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Park Hopper Option with Little One?
- Thread starter Shoetwin
- Start date
Hopping with a little one can be a pain. I would just go without it and add it if you need it.
Figgy1
Well-Known Member
What he said!
NYwdwfan
Well-Known Member
We have always used the hopper. We found it worked well with the kids to go to a park in the morning, go back to the hotel for lunch and some downtime in the early afternoon, then go to a different park in the evening. My kids needed that break or they would fall apart around 5:00PM.
journ116
Well-Known Member
My opinion: if it's not too much of a strain on your vacation budget, I say, "go for it!"
My DH, our DD's (7 & 3), and myself are PH veterans (with DD7 completing her 11th trip in Nov. 2012), and truly enjoy the hopping for many reasons! One of them being: we like having the option to change our minds on a whim as to which park to visit and when to visit. For example, we might have an early breakfast ressie at MK, but decide that we want to finish our night with delicious french pastries and fireworks at EP. I feel PH actually gives our particular family more freedom vs. being constrained to one park per day. Our DD's have grown used to PH, with the youngest loving the adventures of getting from park to park (in fact, the bus and monorail rides really are "rides" in her eyes). A typical WDW day for us: visit one park from open to lunch time; mid-day nap at the resort; dinner and evening activities at another park.
If and when you do hop, make sure the hopping "makes sense." For example, if you're not planning a stop back at your resort, hop between MK and EP via monorail; or, EP and HS via the Boardwalk walkway or Friendship boats. If you're PH with a visit to AK, hop a resort bus that is closest to your next park (i.e. you want to finish the day at MK, hop a bus to the CT, or another MK resort).
PH is completely doable with a youngin'...however, if you are not mentally up for the challenge, forgo the option for this visit. Also, if you happen to change your mind when you get down there and want to PH, you can always add it to your ticket at the ticket booths before entering the park!
Oh, and don't forget to get a "First Visit" pin for your little one at Guest Relations or at your resort!! Happy travels!
My DH, our DD's (7 & 3), and myself are PH veterans (with DD7 completing her 11th trip in Nov. 2012), and truly enjoy the hopping for many reasons! One of them being: we like having the option to change our minds on a whim as to which park to visit and when to visit. For example, we might have an early breakfast ressie at MK, but decide that we want to finish our night with delicious french pastries and fireworks at EP. I feel PH actually gives our particular family more freedom vs. being constrained to one park per day. Our DD's have grown used to PH, with the youngest loving the adventures of getting from park to park (in fact, the bus and monorail rides really are "rides" in her eyes). A typical WDW day for us: visit one park from open to lunch time; mid-day nap at the resort; dinner and evening activities at another park.
If and when you do hop, make sure the hopping "makes sense." For example, if you're not planning a stop back at your resort, hop between MK and EP via monorail; or, EP and HS via the Boardwalk walkway or Friendship boats. If you're PH with a visit to AK, hop a resort bus that is closest to your next park (i.e. you want to finish the day at MK, hop a bus to the CT, or another MK resort).
PH is completely doable with a youngin'...however, if you are not mentally up for the challenge, forgo the option for this visit. Also, if you happen to change your mind when you get down there and want to PH, you can always add it to your ticket at the ticket booths before entering the park!
Oh, and don't forget to get a "First Visit" pin for your little one at Guest Relations or at your resort!! Happy travels!
Hopping with a little one can be a pain. I would just go without it and add it if you need it.
This has been my experience also...
HouCuseChickie
Well-Known Member
Our girls have been 3x since they were ages 2 and 4 and we have never hopped with them. You usually tour the parks at a slower pace with young children. It also takes longer just to get from point a to point b outside of the parks since you've got all of their stuff, not to mention stopping for bathroom breaks and all of the things that distract a young child. I just feel like whatever time gained from EMH and the convenience of staying onsite would be lost if we tried to hop with the kids at this stage. In theory, we might be able to make it work if we hopped to a different park in the evening after a mid-day break back at the hotel, but we seem to get the most from our time by sticking to one park per day.
SAV
Well-Known Member
We used to hop before kids, so bought them for the first trip with my daughter. We never hopped. Total waste of money. Since that trip we never get the hoppers and really haven't had a need for them. I can count one day of all of the trips where I said "I wish I had a hopper".
And since you are only going for 4 days, you will be able to fill those 4 days up without hopping.
And since you are only going for 4 days, you will be able to fill those 4 days up without hopping.
erasure fan1
Well-Known Member
We have always found that the hopper works out really well. We always have gone back to the room for a few hours in the afternoon with the little ones so they don't get completely burned out. Its nice then to be able to go where ever we want and not be restricted to the same park we started at. So I will go against the grain and say go for it. 
BoarderPhreak
Well-Known Member
I tend to maximize every bit of the time afforded me... But apparently not everyone thinks this way... 
I'd say the little one won't be up for this sort of strategy - and might not be worth your while (and expense).
I'd say the little one won't be up for this sort of strategy - and might not be worth your while (and expense).
olinecoach61
Well-Known Member
We do exactly the same thing. The park hopper is essential for us, we need the flexibility with kids.
Weather_Lady
Well-Known Member
I'd recommend going without them, regardless of whether you had a little one or not. Since I assume you'll be retiring to the room for a nap in the afternoon and then going back to the parks, you'll be doing some "hopping" already!
We took the kids (ages 4 and 6) for the first time last year (5 nights, 6 days) and used our park hoppers exactly twice: once to spend an extra half-day at the MK after completing AK in the morning, and once to hop from MK to Epcot and then back again, for a dinner reservation. Had we planned better (e.g., spending that extra half-day in Downtown Disney instead of MK, and not doing that extra Epcot meal), we'd have saved a couple hundred dollars. Also, we found that whenever we left our "morning park" to return to the resort for naps, the kids would be making a mental list of all the things they still wanted to do in that same park, and would beg to return there in the afternoon. "One park per day" is just simpler.
Of course, for you, with a four-day trip, that might not be possible. AK and HS will likely not be full-day parks for you (especially given your LO's age -- seeing more than a couple sit-down shows at HS exhausts a small attention span, and walking AK exhausts little legs!), and you'll likely want to spend more than one day at MK, which will have more things to interest a 5-year-old than any other park. If you want to visit all four parks and don't need much "down time," parkhoppers may be essential for you to maximize your visit. But as another poster said, you can always add the parkhopper option to your ticket later...
We took the kids (ages 4 and 6) for the first time last year (5 nights, 6 days) and used our park hoppers exactly twice: once to spend an extra half-day at the MK after completing AK in the morning, and once to hop from MK to Epcot and then back again, for a dinner reservation. Had we planned better (e.g., spending that extra half-day in Downtown Disney instead of MK, and not doing that extra Epcot meal), we'd have saved a couple hundred dollars. Also, we found that whenever we left our "morning park" to return to the resort for naps, the kids would be making a mental list of all the things they still wanted to do in that same park, and would beg to return there in the afternoon. "One park per day" is just simpler.
Of course, for you, with a four-day trip, that might not be possible. AK and HS will likely not be full-day parks for you (especially given your LO's age -- seeing more than a couple sit-down shows at HS exhausts a small attention span, and walking AK exhausts little legs!), and you'll likely want to spend more than one day at MK, which will have more things to interest a 5-year-old than any other park. If you want to visit all four parks and don't need much "down time," parkhoppers may be essential for you to maximize your visit. But as another poster said, you can always add the parkhopper option to your ticket later...
woodardfamily
Active Member
Ditto...we never did the park hopper option until we got our Florida resident AP's.
englanddg
One Little Spark...
On a four day trip, I'd skip Park Hopper. 4 parks, 4 days...with the AK evening being for DTD. That's how I'd do it...
However, as an option, you could purchase 3 day tickets without and then get a 1 day ticket with Park Hopper separately...or some combination like that.
On a 14 day trip I buy a 4 day ticket without Park Hopper, then a 10 day with Park Hopper and WP&M.
jkl2000
Well-Known Member
That's what we're planning on doing - the hops will be after a long break at the resort when there are evening EMH at MK or Epcot, and also MNSSHP. But there ARE a few days where we won't use it.
If we want to take it on a day-by-day basis, when and where would we add the park hopper option to a day's ticket?
The fact that lately DS4 has been going to sleep around 10pm is giving me hope this will work well. Even though he'll be waking up quite a bit earlier in the morning, a nap at the resort or a swim and a couple hours of down time should revive him.
RandomPrincess
Keep Moving Forward
We had hoppers on out last trip (kids were 11m and just under 3) we hopped on day. This trip we are skipping the hoppers.