Is Disney's After Hours Worth It? | Episode 86

[00:00:00] Speaker A: Hey there, Mouse Ears Universe. Thank you so much for joining us on the Mouse Ears podcast. Your go to source for all things travel, but mostly Disney. Sponsored by Fairy Tale Journeys Travel. Whether you're a first time visitor. Oh, we have to redo that. [00:00:15] Speaker B: Keep her rolling, keep her moving. [00:00:18] Speaker A: Whether you're a first time visitor or a seasoned pro at the parks, we're here to bring you the latest news, insider secrets and fun stories from the happiest and most magical places on earth. Make sure you give us a like and a follow on whichever platform you're listening to or watching us on. And trust me, you'd rather. You know, you should watch us because it's good stuff. Don't forget to check out the Mouse ears blog. It's mousearsblog.com where we dive even deeper into Disney tips, trip planning and park magic all in one location. Today we are talking about all things after hours. We're going to unlock the magic. We're going to talk about the thrills, some unforgettable experiences you won't want to miss. Now let's jump in today's episode because the magic starts right now. [00:01:30] Speaker B: And welcome to the Mouse Ears podcast After hours edition. I'm your host, Kelton. But not really your host because Jenny's hosting this episode. But that's okay. Jenny is here also. Hello, Jenny. How are you? Are you sure she can't hold it in? It's great. [00:01:54] Speaker C: She's wheezing. [00:01:56] Speaker B: We also have Steph here too. Hello, Steph. [00:01:59] Speaker C: Hey, what's up? [00:02:02] Speaker B: Like we said, this is that you didn't have to pay for, so that's okay. It's not a Patreon episode. We're gonna keep it clean. That was my best ASMR that I could, you know, come. I've watched plenty of ASMR videos. [00:02:21] Speaker C: You nailed it. You could do this again. You could do this again. [00:02:25] Speaker B: Good. Just breathe. All right, let's dive in. I could hold it. [00:02:33] Speaker C: We just started. My cheeks hurt. [00:02:36] Speaker B: Oh, my gosh. Let's dive into today's trivia question. [00:02:39] Speaker C: Have your own meditation podcast, Kelton. [00:02:42] Speaker B: Well, just wait. We'll see what's coming down the line. Today's trivia question, as always, is brought to you by Fairy Tale Journeys Travel. Next time you want to book a Disney cruise, let the agent at FTJ take care of all the details. For a stress free experience at no extra cost to you. When you book with them, not only do you get expert advice, but you can also receive up to $1,000 of onboard credit. This Offer is exclusive to bookings made with ftj. So make sure to contact contact them today and let them know that the great host of the podcast sent you so you can enjoy a magical Disney cruise getaway. [00:03:28] Speaker C: Don't miss out. [00:03:29] Speaker B: Here we go. For today's trivia question. Sticking with After Hours, what year was the first ever Disney After Hours event at Walt Disney World? Wow. I tried and I couldn't even get it. What year was the first ever Disney's After Hours event at Disney World in Orlando? If you don't know, that's okay. I don't either. Stick around to the end of the episode where I tell you what the answer is. Now back to your regularly scheduled podcast episode. Take it away, Jenny. [00:04:09] Speaker A: Hey out there in the mouse ears universe, we're so, so happy you joined us. We're going to talk about After Hours. This is one of my favorite events at Walt Disney World. I think that it is just really captures the magic that Disney tries to create for every guest. I think they do an excellent job of it. So what is After Hours? So it's a limited capacity, special ticketed event that's held after regular park hours. You'll hear a lot of people call it a hard ticket event because you don't put those into a package. You have to buy them separately. So the After Hours features fewer crowds. And by fewer I mean like massively less crowds, shorter wait times, complimentary snacks, and some rare character sightings. They typically run at night from about 10pm to 1am however, you can get early entry at 7pm and that's something really to keep in mind and we'll go through that later. So three of the parks have regular after hours. So we have Magic Kingdom, Epcot and Hollywood Studios. So we're going to kind of dive right in and talk about Magic Kingdom. And this is my favorite After Hours. I've done this one and just loved it. It was a fantastic experience. So Magic Kingdom, their after hours are usually usually on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays. So the dates for 2025 and it's not every week. So the dates for 20 that are coming up, we have April 7th and 28th and then May 5th, 12th and 19th. Now the price range, it seems a little bit pricey. It is 175 to $185 per person. It does vary by date and like we said, it is from 10pm to 1am with entry, you can do early entry at 7 p. And Disney Enchantment is available exclusively during After Hours at Magic Kingdom. [00:06:46] Speaker B: It's actually happily ever After Happily ever. [00:06:49] Speaker C: After, you can watch both. [00:06:51] Speaker B: No, that I see. [00:06:52] Speaker A: No, I think it's just Happily ever after. [00:06:54] Speaker B: Well, I was gonna say, did Enchantment come back? [00:06:57] Speaker C: I mean, I'm seeing it on the website. [00:07:00] Speaker B: You're on the website too? [00:07:01] Speaker C: I'm on the website and it says Disney Enchantment. I mean, Disney. What's the answer? Is it both? So here's the deal. [00:07:11] Speaker A: You. [00:07:12] Speaker C: Whether it's. Whether it's Disney Enchantment or Happily ever after, when you do go to a Disney after hours event, you do get the ability to watch two fireworks show if that is something that is of interest to you. Since you're able to have early entry as early as 7am or 7pm you can watch their regularly scheduled fireworks show plus the one that they offer for the after hours event. I think it's really cool. [00:07:46] Speaker B: You are right. [00:07:47] Speaker A: Yeah. It isn't. [00:07:48] Speaker B: Well, that's what. That's what, that's what AI says on Google. [00:07:52] Speaker A: Nope, I'm on Disney park hours. You can't see. I don't know if you can see that. Anyway. See, it's on. [00:07:58] Speaker B: I'm on. That's what I'm on. I'm on here too. [00:08:01] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:08:02] Speaker C: Disney Enchantment. All right, guys. Disney. Disney. What the heck is wrong with my vocabulary today? Disney Enchantment. [00:08:11] Speaker A: Disney Enchantment. So I'll. The one that I did. Disney does not release how many tickets they sell. I can tell you that it is way less than the parties. So if you were used to going for one of the parties, Mickey's not so scary. Anything like that. There are less tickets to the after hours events. The first time I went, I was going. I was with a friend who hadn't really done Disney and we were walking down Main street. And even being a former cast member, I was like, it feels wrong to be in the park right now because it was so empty. So, so empty. My guess is maybe 20, 2500 tickets. That would be my guess. I mean, it is. [00:09:14] Speaker B: Yeah. That's nothing. Because usually a, a party, a Halloween Christmas party is like 20,000 tickets. [00:09:20] Speaker A: Yeah, it's way, way less. Yeah. [00:09:26] Speaker B: Maybe 10, but you get it. [00:09:28] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:09:28] Speaker C: My guess was going to be 10, but I never worked there, so I really would not know those details. [00:09:34] Speaker A: It was empty. We walked almost all the way down Main street and up to the castle and we saw two people. Two people. I. Yeah, yeah, it was. It was amazing. We'll talk a little bit more about it and kind of how we spent that day because that's in one of the tips and tricks. But I'm telling you, you're gonna go. [00:09:57] Speaker B: Over attractions, attractions that are, you know, some of the highlighted attractions really. So, you know, and that's one of the benefits. Like Jenny, you were saying about having less people in the park. You talked about shorter weight line, you know, standbys. So think of it that way. The fact that we all know how long it can take for, you know, Tron, if you're queuing through Space Mountain, the fact that you can just walk on. We have so like we have Tron, Space Mountain, Seven Dwarfs, Buzz Lightyear, which is getting ready to go down for a heck of a refurb coming up. So that's going to be awesome. But Haunted Mansion, Jungle Cruise, It's a Small World, Peter Pan and you know, a lot more. But as always with everything else, everything is subject to change. So don't hold us, you know, accountable because here's. [00:10:50] Speaker C: We don't know, here's what I think that people should really, how they should really look at these tickets. You're not just paying for the park entrance. I mean, there's a lot that is included in this despite it not being like a holiday party. But I feel like it's like a park ticket and a lightning lane, like a multi pass and a single pass all in one. Actually, I'd even argue it's a premier pass because you can go all these rides over and over and over again. So really, park ticket plus premier pass in a nice little package for you. I mean, that's the best way I can describe it. [00:11:24] Speaker A: And I will say this. If you go at 7pm and you do that early entry, you can't start doing all of the, you know, all of the rides, all the special lines and everything until it starts at 10pm so you can watch the fireworks and you can go on rides, but you're. [00:11:46] Speaker C: Going to have, go have dinner. Yeah, go have a sit down dinner at 7. Go watch your fireworks show. Say bye to the people, you know, make them feel bad that they're leaving while you're staying and then go get to your lines. Go take some pictures in the meantime. [00:12:02] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah, it literally is a premiere pass. It really is a premiere pass. But with you can use it multiple times on a thing. I can tell you that in I wanted to do Philhar magic when we first got there. And you know how big, if you've been to Disney, you know how big that room is and that theater, there were four of us. Four, four of us. We walked right on To Peter Pan. We walked right on to what were some of the other things that we did. I'm just trying to think like, even with the snacks, we had free snacks, but, you know, you can't take like ice cream bars and stuff onto the rides. And so we didn't even have time to eat all of our snacks. So if you're going pro tip, take a bag to put your snacks in. [00:12:57] Speaker C: Because love that pro tip. [00:13:00] Speaker A: It was. You didn't have time. Like, you just didn't have time because you were going through the line so quickly. [00:13:07] Speaker C: I do really, I do really think that this is underrated. Like Disney After Hours is underrated because it doesn't have like a theme associated with it because it's still a separate ticket event. It still offers a lot of exclusivity. And it runs up until the Halloween parties begin. And by Halloween, I mean, Mickey's not so scary. [00:13:32] Speaker A: It'll still run during that time. [00:13:34] Speaker C: Fantastic. Even better. [00:13:36] Speaker A: Yeah, it'll still run during parties. [00:13:39] Speaker C: So there you go, people. [00:13:40] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:13:41] Speaker C: And then after that it transitions. [00:13:42] Speaker A: Not as often. Just not as often. I'm waiting for one at Animal Kingdom where they'll just do. I'm. I'm hoping that once they get the new land open, because obviously you can't ride the safari and go and see the animals or anything, but to hang out in Pandora and then, you know, just to explore kind of that front half of the park, I think that would be amazing. [00:14:11] Speaker C: More to what Jen just said about how these after hour events run even past Halloween, that's not for Magic Kingdom, only for Hollywood Studios and Epcot. I did want to clarify that and we'll mention dates as we move forward with the episode. But yeah, it, it's really, that's what it is. It just doesn't have a theme associated to it, so. And you know what's the best part is that they offer this in the summer when it's hot so you can actually enjoy your park, not have to do long lines under the beating sun. That right there is worth gold goal. [00:14:55] Speaker A: What we actually did because we stayed over in the Melbourne area with a friend and we went to the beach. So my friend Amanda and I, we went to the beach and we hung out the beach and then we went and got ready. We went and had dinner at Ale and Compass and then we headed over. It was a glorious day. It was so. It was just a perfect day and it was the perfect amount of park time. I think we got into the park at around 8 o'clock and it was the perfect amount of park time to do everything we wanted to do. [00:15:36] Speaker C: The only downside, really is that this is more geared. And I'm not saying that families with Littles can't do it, but it's not geared for families with such young Littles because of the hours. That can be a pro or a con for you, depending on what kind of a park goer you are and. [00:15:58] Speaker A: If your kid is good at sleeping in a stroller. [00:16:00] Speaker B: That's true. [00:16:01] Speaker C: So, all right, moving on. [00:16:05] Speaker A: Hollywood studios. Okay, so they typically have theirs on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. And upcoming dates for that are April 30th, May 14th and 28th, June 4th, 11th and 25th, July 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd and 30th, and then August 6th, 20th, 27th and September 3rd. And the price is a little bit better on that. It ranges from 1:55 to $185 a person. Annual passholders and DVC can get a discount of $30 off per ticket. So keep that in mind on most nights. That one runs from about 9:30 to 12:30 or so. [00:16:58] Speaker C: Yeah. There's only like two or three nights I saw that had the same time frame as the other ones, from 10 to 1. [00:17:05] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:17:06] Speaker C: So for the most part, yeah. Check Hollywood studies. 9:30 until 30. [00:17:11] Speaker A: Yeah. Disney changes their stuff. So, you know, if you're planning on going down there, check the app and, you know, make sure or work with a travel agent. They'll keep you on task. [00:17:24] Speaker C: Also, these events do happen, rain or shine. The rides might not all be open if it's a storming out, but the event will still happen. Unless there's a hurricane, then that's a whole different ball game. But just so you all are aware, you might need a pack of poncho. You never know. Depends on the time of year that you go. [00:17:48] Speaker A: But at least do a sweater like a light during the winter or something. No, even sometimes at night it got. It got chilly. We were there in, I think it was May and it got cool at night. It had, you know, it hadn't really rained, but I don't know if there was a front coming through or what, but it was. It was a little bit chilly at night. So keep an eye on care accordingly. [00:18:18] Speaker C: Yeah, but I know, Jen, you mentioned upcoming dates, but I want people to know too, if you're going in the future and you know, maybe not this year, but you're trying to plan for next year, they do have some dates in January, February, March. So really you're looking at more than half the Year you're gonna have at least a couple of dates per month, which I think is really, really cool. Yeah. On to the next. [00:18:49] Speaker A: On to the next. Epcot. So they usually have theirs on Fridays and Saturdays. 20, 25 dates. Let's see, May 8th and 29th, June 19th and 26th, July 10th, 24th, 31st and August 7th, 14, 21 and 28, and then September 11th and 25th. So those are the ones that kind of take you through the summer. The price range that is 1:55 to 1:75. And again, AP and DVC can get $30 off per ticket. So I think that's, that's a deal. [00:19:35] Speaker C: Like it's bigger than you get for holiday parties. [00:19:40] Speaker A: Yeah, I. [00:19:41] Speaker C: Holiday parties only $10. This is 30. Yeah. Keep that in mind. [00:19:47] Speaker A: The time, 10 to 1. Early entry at 7pm Jen, do you. [00:19:52] Speaker C: Remember when they typically. I know Disney kind of has their own time frame of doing things, but do you remember when they typically announce after hour dates for the following year? I know I kind of put you on the spot. I don't remember. [00:20:04] Speaker A: No, it's, it has varied. I know that there have been times, especially since COVID there's been like, where we've been waiting and waiting and waiting and then all of a sudden they dump a whole lot of dates at us. But I don't think at this point there's any kind of rhyme and reason. I think they look at their calendar and they're like this, this, this and this and post it. It. So I don't know of any particular, like time of the year where they're releasing these. That's something we'll probably have to look into. [00:20:35] Speaker C: I feel like they released, I don't know, maybe it's this year, last year. I feel like they released it late. Like it was like, oh, we only have like two months or something. And we were all pleasantly surprised by some of the dates and how they aligned with Summit, but I honestly can't remember. But it has to be sometime in the fall. Should be sometime in the fall. Once these dates kind of start to dwindle down. [00:21:07] Speaker A: Yeah, they'll be looking and trying to. I think at that point that's when they will get a really good handle on, you know, what schedules and staffing and like just, you know, what their needs are going to be, when they're going to have in their festivals and especially for Epcot, you know, they, they need to work around all of that. So one of the most asked questions that I get when I'm talking To people about this is, you know, they're like, well, I really want to do an after hours, but I'm going when there's a party going on. It's party season, as we like to call it, where you have the Mickey's not so scary and the very Merry Christmas party. And you know, there's, there's Jollywood. There's stuff going on. So yes, Disney will have after hours. However, it will be very limited during that time period. So. [00:22:10] Speaker C: And they'll sell out quick. [00:22:11] Speaker A: And they will sell out quick. I know the event that I have gone to, the ones I've attended have not been sold out. So I don't know what a sold out one would look like. I don't even know if they would announce that it was sold out if it was. I'm not sure. [00:22:33] Speaker C: It's just not as popular, I guess because they offer so many more dates throughout the year. Yeah. I don't see them announced the way they announced Mickey's not so scary or very merry. [00:22:44] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:22:45] Speaker C: But. [00:22:46] Speaker A: Well, I think people look at the price and they're put off by the price. But when you look at what you get and what kind of experience you can have, you know, it's so worth it. [00:22:58] Speaker C: So like I said, park ticket Premier pass in one without the same price tag. [00:23:04] Speaker A: Yeah. And I priced out premiere for Magic Kingdom for my kids when they went last week and it was $429 per person per day. Now obviously we did not buy that. I got them a tour of what was it? Living with the land instead. Much more budget friendly and they had. [00:23:25] Speaker B: The behind the scenes tour. [00:23:27] Speaker A: Love Seeds. They. [00:23:29] Speaker B: It's one of my favorites. [00:23:31] Speaker A: Yeah, they, they loved it. So with that price, like we said, it's like a premier pass and it's like an ultimate premier pass and a ticket in one. You get the much shorter wait times and I can't stress enough how short these wait times are. There's free snacks, there's ice cream popcorn and sodas and water in the bottles. [00:23:56] Speaker B: Wait, y'all, that right there is like. And you know, so you have your ticket, premier pass and pretty much a snack based dining plan all in one. Like so if you're going. So I have not done an after hours. However, I did get to do a cast only party with a couple friends of ours that are cast members. Kind of like after hours, really. Before, after hours had kind of spooled up, but it was at Epcot. So when we went and it really did feel like after hours are very minimal. People there. We got to go on guardians four times in a row, back to back, and it was just shoving your face with premium bars and ice cream sandwiches and. You want a popcorn. Sure. How about seven bottles of water? Absolutely. [00:24:59] Speaker A: Bring a bag. [00:25:00] Speaker B: So. So what we ended up doing was going to get a bag from one of the oh, my goodness. Merchandise locations. So we grabbed a bag, and we did any stand we passed that was open. We were, you know, two bottles of water. Slap a couple of Cokes in there, like, and it was just consistently because we were there for a couple of days. So we got to stock up. It's the same way as you're, you know, stocking up that candy bag and not so scary. Just so two weeks later, at Halloween, you can dump it into your candy bowl and boom, you don't have to go to Costco and spend $37,000 on bags of candy. [00:25:44] Speaker C: Dollars. [00:25:45] Speaker B: A lot of. A lot of candy. [00:25:46] Speaker C: Exactly. It is. No, candy's expensive. [00:25:48] Speaker B: I mean, so, you know, and that's. But that's something to just. Don't make yourself sick on ice cream now. I mean, we kind of did that. [00:25:56] Speaker C: I think it's worth it. I. I absolutely would. Would see how many I can eat before I get sick. 100. I would. 100 now. [00:26:06] Speaker B: Yeah, it was fun. [00:26:07] Speaker C: On the topic of food, very important. Very, very important. I did want to highlight where you can get said included foods at these three parks. So at Magic Kingdom, for instance, they do have the carts, the popcorn novelty, ice cream, novelty, specialty, or select bottled beverage carts throughout the park. That's where you'll get them at Magic Kingdom. In addition, they do have Main Street Bakery and select other locations throughout the park where you can purchase a few items. So Magic Kingdom does offer both, but again, blue cards. That's where you'll get all your nice snacks. Full flee. Full flee at Magic Kingdom. Now, I'm just gonna try and pull up the next. The next park real quick, but while I look that one up, I also wanted to mention we did talk about Magic Kingdom having the Enchantment show. That is the only park of the three parks that offer a nighttime show included with your admission for the after hours. So I wanted to highlight that because I know that's, like, a really big selling point, but it's only for Magic Kingdom. [00:27:27] Speaker B: Well, that's the thing is it's, you know, included with and during after hours. Unlike you have Luminous and Fantasmic. You can go in and see it at 7, but enchantment is only played during that 10pm to 1am time slot. [00:27:48] Speaker C: So moving on over to Hollywood Studios, where can you get your free snacks? Grand Avenue, Hollywood Boulevard, Sunset Boulevard and Toy Story Land. You'll be able to find these carts and get your snacks there. But for purchase they also have a few quick service locations like the Anaheim Produce, hosted by Cuties Milk Stand and Woody's Lunchbox. They also might have walk up availability for Oga's Cantina. [00:28:24] Speaker B: Nice. [00:28:26] Speaker C: All right, so that's Hollywood Studios and. [00:28:29] Speaker B: Now we're gonna take Epcot since I have it up here. [00:28:31] Speaker C: Sure. Perfect, go for it. [00:28:33] Speaker B: So for Epcot Nut, I mean they don't have anything stated on what, you know, places you can go and purchase food, which they're going to have. I guarantee you they're going to have it. Just check the park map when you get in there for the event. But your included cards are going to be the Carpa Mission Space over an Imagination Check out by Connections and the Fountain Popcorn cart. But no, they can. All of these can close at any time. So don't wait until the end to gather up them water bottles. Get yourself, you know, as Jenny would do, a nice little, you know, $20 stroller to hold everything and just call it, you know that that's it right there, you know, that's all you have to do. [00:29:21] Speaker C: I absolutely would take advantage of having a dinner reservation for like 7:15, 7:30. Get in there, go have a nice meal, go watch your show. You know, from there start planning out your evening. [00:29:36] Speaker A: You're muted. Of course I am. I was gonna say don't start, don't start your dining. Don't do a dining reservation for like right before the park closes because you're gonna be wasting time doing that depending. [00:29:48] Speaker C: Kind of like how you would do a Mickey's not so Scary or you know, otherwise you don't want to waste your precious park time with zero wait time. [00:29:59] Speaker B: Well, not just that, there might not be any, you know, table service restaurants open during that because you have to say you have to. With this being a hard ticket meaning Magic Kingdom, Epcot and Studios close hard at that time. And if you have never been involved in a hard close, it's rather eye opening for people who go to Disney. It is because they, you know, I mean, they close the merchandise shops. Unless you have that wristband, they close everything. Because think about it, if you're paying $175, well, gosh darn it, come 10:00, I want to be the only one in there. Me and you know, 2,500 of my other friends. [00:30:49] Speaker C: Exactly. [00:30:51] Speaker B: So, you know, it's. That's just how it goes. [00:30:54] Speaker C: Gosh, it makes me want to go to one now. [00:30:56] Speaker A: I have. And actually tickets go on sale tomorrow for the H2O Glow After Hours at Typhoon Lagoon. They go on sale. Well, I say tomorrow, April 4th. It's tomorrow for us because we're recording early. So that will be select nights from May 23rd to September 13th of 2025. So that is the After Hours at Typhoon Lagoon, which I have not just talked about. [00:31:37] Speaker B: One of those, like the characters come out and they're, you know, different beach or swim attire outfits. They got a DJ just pumping some tune, some tunes right there on the beaches. You know, you're in the tide pool and so you're jamming out to some power line right there and all of a sudden, oh, here comes Max right down the way. So, you know, I. It really seems like a cool event. Yeah, I've seen great pictures of it. I would love to be able to attend one of these one time. I just need to be there. [00:32:15] Speaker C: We can make this happen. [00:32:17] Speaker A: I think for this we can. And let me tell you. So a water park ticket for Disney is around $74 for an adult without any discounts. [00:32:32] Speaker C: This is rack rate. [00:32:33] Speaker A: This is RAC rate without any discounts. Somewhere around there. The after hours is $85 for an adult and 4,250 for a child ages 3 to 9 and under. Three is free. [00:32:50] Speaker C: Not a bad way to spend your summer. And let me tell you, it is always hot in the summer. I'm talking morning, afternoon, evening, overnight. It is always hot. My hair is always growing from the humidity. So, you know, you won't need a sweater then. [00:33:10] Speaker B: But did we talk about. But did we, did we talk about what is also included? No, we did, because it's the exact same thing. You want to, you know, have some ice cream running around barefoot in a water park for free. Grab those bags because you're getting all. While these are fountain beverages, not bottled, but you can still get all of them. I would assume they'd have bottled water there too, but that's all still included. And then on top of that, you've got all of the rides open too. And during the summertime in these water parks, it's not like you're waiting an hour for some of the big ones, but you're waiting 30 minutes. But think about it, though. Florida sun, 30 minutes. No flip flops on cement. [00:34:01] Speaker A: It is not. [00:34:03] Speaker B: It can get a little hot. [00:34:04] Speaker C: Well, no, you just get Sunburnt. That is the worst part, at least for someone as pale as me. I mean, I have to be reapplying sunblock literally every 90 minutes if I'm in line for 30 minutes. [00:34:20] Speaker B: Try that. Like, you know, what do they call the SPF 3000 or something where you put it on once and you're good for seven years. [00:34:26] Speaker C: Well, if you think I don't own SPF 100, think again. [00:34:32] Speaker A: Well, the cool thing about Typhoon Lagoon is that they also have a DJ and they have like a giant bash party. Like, I think that's so cool for kids that they get to, you know, even for adults. I would love to go do that. I'm not a huge water park person because I have my. Yeah, I don't like other people's germs. [00:34:59] Speaker C: But, but Disney, Disney is all about safety and trying to keep things clean. Like, if there's ever going to be a water park, I, I will feel more comfortable and inclined to go to. It's Disney. And I'm gonna throw a little bit of new news in your direction, Emmyu. That is that Disney this past week announced that both water parks, I'm talking Blizzard beach and Typhoon Lagoon, will be open at the same time, summer 2025. It won't be all summer long, but we will have it for the summertime. So you will be able to go to both water parks. And that hasn't happened in years. Years. [00:35:46] Speaker A: Yep. [00:35:47] Speaker C: So, you know, go check in to your hotel, go to Blizzard beach for free during the day and then have your Typhoon Lagoon after hours ticket that evening. And you're just, you will sleep like a baby, let me tell you. But yeah, don't, don't sleep on, don't sleep on Disney's water parks and definitely don't sleep on Disney's after hours event. Especially if you're, you know, if you can snag a good rate because you can get 30% discount on certain hotel rooms this summer at Contemporary, you just walk into the park, you walk right back. I. It does not matter that it closes at 1. You will be in bed by 1:30. Easily. Easily. It is fun. There's a lot of fun things that you can do with this. And again, don't underestimate the value of not having to A, deal with the sun and B, having to purchase any kind of lightning lane pass. You will save money for everyone. [00:37:00] Speaker A: You cannot park hop with these. So. [00:37:04] Speaker C: Yes. [00:37:04] Speaker B: No, no. Why would you want to? [00:37:07] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:37:07] Speaker C: Correct. You can't just like the premier pass, you can't. You can't park hop with the Premier Pass. [00:37:16] Speaker A: But there, there is no, there is no park hopping. So I get that question a lot actually. Can they go to another park? If you have a regular park hopper ticket, you can do that during the day, you know, hop around, but not during the after hours early entry. Like we said, the parties start somewhere 9, 30, 10 o'clock depending on what park you're going to go to, what day you're going to go there. But you can get in as early as seven if you plan on doing early entry. I would be there about 30 minutes early, earlier than that, just for the line and to get through. And sometimes they do wristbands. The times that I've gone, I've gotten a lanyard and so it was very obvious who was supposed to be in the park and who was not supposed to be in the park. You know, and they did like Kelton said, they were pushing everybody out. You know, they, they weren't letting anyone go back into another land or cut through another land to get out. It was the quickest way out of the park. [00:38:37] Speaker B: And it does come down to. Yeah, at. I want to say it's like 15 minutes after start time. You'll see, you'll see the cast members, they'll, they'll line up at the entrance to each land from the, the hub and the only way past them is it with that notification of being part of the after hours event. [00:39:02] Speaker C: I'm sure that they also have certain cast members in certain locations inside the park. If you have a day ticket and then also have an after hours ticket like they do for, you know, some of the seasonal holidays, holiday parties I should say. But I don't know where that would be. But so we should. [00:39:24] Speaker A: One time we had to go back up front and we had to get it kind of like you would with Mickey's not so Scary and stuff where you have to go up and get your, your wristband and. [00:39:35] Speaker B: Yeah, through the bypass they. Because they'll send you through the bypass there by, by Tony's. Yeah, I've started to see that too. [00:39:43] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:39:44] Speaker B: So how about some lesser known tips and. Or secrets. [00:39:47] Speaker C: Love it. [00:39:48] Speaker B: Secrets. [00:39:49] Speaker A: Secrets. All right. [00:39:56] Speaker C: You have a great tip. Sorry, you're gonna talk. [00:40:01] Speaker A: I have a great tip. [00:40:03] Speaker C: You do have a great tip. That's a tip. Well, you talk about the tip you're going to say. I'm going to type it. [00:40:11] Speaker A: Okay. I'm going to start with the best rides to prioritize and of course you want to get those really big ticket attractions. Those are the ones that you really want to prioritize. However, I will say don't go running straight for those because if, if the park closes at. Let's say the park closes at 9:30 and seven drawers. Mine train had an hour and a half wait. Had a 90 minute wait. You're still going to have all those people in line. All right, so I would give it just a little bit at the very beginning. I would run around and see what characters or I would do something that. [00:40:56] Speaker C: Isn'T one of those indulging with your ice cream. [00:40:59] Speaker A: Yes. And you know, they, they'll, they'll melt fast too in the summer. But that's part of why we did Philhar magic is to kill that little bit of time. And my friend had not really experienced Magic Kingdom. She had only been there once. And so I said, well, you have to do Philhar magic because it's just amazing. And we killed time doing that. And it was by time we got out, we walked right on to Peter Pan. I'm just, I mean, like not even waited behind people. I mean, walked right on to the conveyor belt and got on. [00:41:48] Speaker C: There is an element of feeling vip. [00:41:52] Speaker A: Oh, yeah. [00:41:53] Speaker C: To something like that. Yeah. That's awesome. [00:41:57] Speaker A: That's amazing. So for. [00:41:58] Speaker C: Especially if. Sorry, I'll say especially if you're someone who doesn't frequent the parks and this may or may not be one of the only times that you get to visit. You know, it's not a bad alternative. I mean, it really just depends on what you're trying to gain out of the parks. If you're just trying to go for rides for the most part, this is a really great opportunity to do that. If you want to see more shows and eat and do other kinds of meet and greets, then it's not. But if you're strictly, hey, I want to go on the rides, I want to go on as many as I can, as many times as I want, so on and so forth. Then this is really a great opportunity for you. [00:42:39] Speaker A: Yeah. So Magic Kingdom, Seven Dwarfs, Mine Trains, Space Mountain and Tron. Those are going to be your, your big three. I'm going to also throw Tianas in there too. And Tiana's is beautiful at night. I know when we did, we got to ride it at night and it was just gorgeous. [00:43:01] Speaker B: It is, it is straight giving off Avatar vibes. [00:43:06] Speaker A: Yes, it is beautiful. [00:43:08] Speaker B: Really is. [00:43:09] Speaker A: It is beautiful. So Hollywood Studios, I would recommend Rise of the Resistance and Slinky Dog. Now Slinky loads a little bit slow. So you might have maybe a five minute wait or so Epcot, you're going to want to hit Remy's Frozen Ever after and Guardians of the Galaxy. So there's like your, your big ones. Now for Epcot, I recommend, you know, watching the nighttime show and then heading over and doing Soarin and, you know, kind of get that one out of the way so that you can head, you know, over to Guardians and spend as much time as there as you want and then hit the world showcase. [00:44:00] Speaker C: So if I were, if I were doing an Epcot's After Hours, my goal would be to ride Guardians of the Galaxy until I can get every song available. [00:44:11] Speaker B: There you go. [00:44:12] Speaker C: I would do the Guardians of the Galaxy challenge. [00:44:15] Speaker A: Challenge accepted. [00:44:17] Speaker C: Who's joining me? [00:44:18] Speaker A: Oh, yeah, I'm there. [00:44:20] Speaker B: It's a little rough right now to do, you know, to do an Epcot one just personally, because with test track being down. [00:44:27] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:44:28] Speaker B: You know, and doing all that reefer, because what attractions do you really have? Okay, you have Frozen, you have Remy, you have Soren, and then you have Guardians. Look at, that's a, it's very spread out there. And so you, for Epcot, you're gonna be, you are gonna be hiking it big time, you know, for some of those big named attractions. [00:44:51] Speaker A: Yeah, I, I really recommend that when test track comes back and opens back up, that is going to be the time to do an after hours at Epcot. Yeah, I think that it's, it's going to be well worth it at that point to have, you know, Guardians and test track right there. So. And, you know, all the other attractions are open or most of them are open. So I'm just talking about, you know, the ones to prioritize. Yep. Currently, for now. All right, for snacks, like Kelton said, hit the snack stations early. And also the table service restaurants will be closed. They absolutely will be closed. So make sure you eat beforehand and then you can gorge yourself on your snacks. So bring a bag like Kelsey said. I went and got a bag. Bring a bag. Yep, yep. And stuff. Yep. [00:45:58] Speaker C: I will eat all the Mickey ice cream bars. All. Yeah, all of them. [00:46:04] Speaker A: Stephanie is a Mickey ice cream bar connoisseur. [00:46:08] Speaker C: I am, I am, Yes. [00:46:11] Speaker B: I can't do it. [00:46:13] Speaker A: It's too boring, I think. [00:46:15] Speaker C: No, everything's better in a Mickey. In a Mickey shaped. [00:46:18] Speaker B: That's why I eat the ice cream sandwich. [00:46:20] Speaker A: I really, I think Stephanie's okay. [00:46:22] Speaker B: You can admit you're wrong. [00:46:23] Speaker A: Five a day. When we were there last. [00:46:26] Speaker C: Oh, yeah. When we did the club level, I had Them for breakfast? Absolutely. I've had them at Summit even when it's 50 or 40 degrees out. I've taken them back to the hotel room from the park. No, no, no. I. Yeah, yeah. [00:46:45] Speaker A: That was fun. [00:46:47] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:46:47] Speaker A: So do the snacks early. So like we said, quick service. Some of them may be open. This might be subject to change depending on how many tickets they sold, but no table service restaurants. Bring a sweater or a poncho, depending on when you're going. This is where you're really going to want to watch the weather and see what's going to be going on at night, not just during the day. So when it says a low of 54 degrees, bring it, y'all. [00:47:20] Speaker B: 54 in Florida is cold. [00:47:22] Speaker A: It is cold. Okay. It is cold. You know, or bring a poncho. All right. This is one of my big, big, big tips. I don't know if this is the one that Steph was talking about, but this is one of my big tips. And it's very important now that the DAS changes have gone into effect and we're not going. We're not going to get all into the DAS changes. Right. I myself, my son is an adult and he is autistic, and sometimes the parks are way too much for him. Yes, we love him so much, but sometimes it's too much. I don't know. It depends on what your child's schedule is. If you have someone with special needs, you know that schedules are very, very important. Luckily, we're a bunch of night owls here. So if you are going with someone that has special needs or some type of anxiety disorder or even ibs, anyone that's really been denied das, please consider doing the after hours. Please consider doing the after hours. There are no waits. There's a lot less people. Everything seems much, much calmer. The volume level is going to be down in all the cub and, you know, within the. The rides, the attractions themselves, it is one of the best ways you can hang out, you know, at the pool, you know, during the day, have a nice dinner, take a nap, and then head in for, you know, you can, or I say take a nap and then have a nice dinner. But you can structure your day to where you're not going to be overwhelmed in the parks. So that is my number one tip and the thing that I really, really stress to the clients I have that have special needs people, you know, with them in their parties. It's can make or break a trip on how you handle your park days. And this is a way to really make the trip magical and a great experience. You' going to get all of that Disney, but it's going to be much, much calmer. So there's no. [00:50:04] Speaker B: I think, I think that's a good. I think it's a good, unfortunate workaround that people have had to figure out. [00:50:12] Speaker A: It works. It works. So. [00:50:13] Speaker C: But it's a pro tip. But it's like a really good pro tip at the end of the day too, for so many reasons. Truly. Truly. I mean, I think just like the alt, you know, we talk about the crowd levels. Sorry, we talk about the lines. But really having the dispersed crowd levels, I mean, DAs aside, for one second, you have no idea, just no idea how great you can get content, like phenomenal content at the parks because it's. [00:50:47] Speaker B: So empty to all the influencers. [00:50:50] Speaker C: But yeah, for that reason, I mean, the people are just so dispersed. And honestly, I would argue that most people who purchase the tickets don't even stay till the end. Easily half of them are gone by 1101, 1130. Like, my point being is. Yeah, you really can't put a. It's hard to almost wrap your head around by when I say it's empty, like it's a ghost town. [00:51:24] Speaker A: It is a ghost town. I have pictures and we'll, we'll get pictures up. There's maybe like I had to look for people to get a picture with people in it. So it just, it felt wrong to be there the entire time. The entire time it felt wrong. I felt like, yeah, they're, they're gonna make me leave because I'm not supposed to because it's empty. [00:51:50] Speaker C: Well, like, you almost feel bad for the cast members because it's like you're their entertainment. You look around, there's like no one else and you're like, what? You're like, I'm sorry, do you want to go home? But you can't. So should I keep going to keep you entertained? Like, I don't know what to do. [00:52:06] Speaker A: The cast members love it. They are awesome. The ones that stay late, they, they are awesome. [00:52:12] Speaker B: You have magic makers you have to realize. And it, it's funny when you think about it and then kind of scary after you thought about it some more. For these late. Like, I remember, I remember working till the park was open till three many years ago. I remember going back to my apartment that was five minutes behind the parking lot for the Magic Kingdom cast members getting home at 5 o'clock in the morning. Yes. A lot of times we would high five the openers on our way Out. We were there that late. [00:52:51] Speaker C: I mean, that's quite the experience. [00:52:53] Speaker B: We're there anyway, it doesn't matter. But what you have to realize and what makes it even funnier is the average age of a cast member, when you get later and later, like 10:00pm midnight, 1:00, drops drastically. I think when I was there, the average age working that night was like 25. And that's taking your oldest person, usually being your park duty, all the way down to that 19 year old cast member who's probably running space Bounce. It is. [00:53:31] Speaker A: So they are highly trained. Just so you know, very. They're highly trained. [00:53:37] Speaker C: They might be Safety above everything. [00:53:39] Speaker A: Safety above everything. [00:53:42] Speaker B: Yeah, but that's what it is. [00:53:43] Speaker C: That's awesome. [00:53:44] Speaker A: That is what it is. [00:53:45] Speaker B: So, yeah, stick around next week for more information on that. Yeah, that is next week. [00:53:53] Speaker C: Okay, next week. [00:53:54] Speaker A: All right. So, and here's something we've kind of alluded to it. Is it worth the cost? [00:54:03] Speaker C: I don't know. You tell me. [00:54:05] Speaker A: Hands down. Absolutely, absolutely. So. [00:54:13] Speaker B: But it's different for every family. [00:54:14] Speaker A: It is different for every family. For our family. I am happy to fork over that money and not do park tickets. Of course we have annual passes. But if I was going to be doing park tickets, I would rather have a free day, get all of my rides done in four hours or so, three, four hours, and be done with it and have a really good experience. So you can do more in three hours than you can in a full park day. [00:54:47] Speaker C: But if you think about it, 11 or sorry, 1 to 12, 12 to 11, 11 to 10, that's three hours. But then 10 to 9, 9 to 8, 8 to 7. You're talking six hours in total. [00:55:03] Speaker A: Yep. [00:55:04] Speaker C: Honestly, I definitely think it's worth it. Asterisks in the summertime. Yeah, in the summertime. [00:55:15] Speaker A: Another pro is it's a very unique atmosphere with the low crowds. You really like Stephanie had said, I think it was Stephanie with like getting photos and content and really being able to soak up every bit of magic in there without thousands of people pressing against you and hitting you with strollers and running you over with ECVs. It's, it's very unique to have those low crowd numbers and you'll have to pay for Lightning Lane because it's not needed, it's not offered. You're not going to be on your phone trying to schedule any rides. You're just going to walk on up and get on. End of story. So I love that, I love that consult. It can be expensive. I, I Realize that that's. It is a lot of money per person. It can be expensive. I think it's fully worth it. At least it is for us. But I know that that's not true for everybody. And if you're gonna also have park tickets, the cost, you know, it, it is a lot. [00:56:35] Speaker C: It is a lot like teenagers would like. This gives them an opportunity to stay late for. For instance. [00:56:41] Speaker A: Yeah. And I have a lot of parents who will have someone, you know, will have grandparents there or you know, a child's older sibling where they'll babysit while the parents have a date night at an after hours. It's a great date night. Cute. [00:56:57] Speaker C: Cute. [00:56:58] Speaker A: It's a great date night. So another con like we were talking about. It can be tough for kids to be up that late. And if you have a very strict schedule where your child is in bed and asleep by 8:00, this is not the event for you. Okay. It's just not the event for you. But if your kids like to pretend they're sleeping for four hours after you put them to bed, this, this may be something that you, you know, want to do. Just take a really good nap in the afternoon. [00:57:39] Speaker C: You can enjoy your hotel during the day. [00:57:41] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:57:42] Speaker C: Because I feel like doesn't always happen enough, especially if you're club level. But yeah, I feel like you can enjoy some of the different amenities and activities, the pool, other stuff like that. And then you go to the park when there's no one. I mean that's really pretty cool. That's a pretty cool way to take advantage of your trip in all like a Disney trip in all of its areas. Especially because it happens where we go to Disney and it feels like we need a vacation from the vacation because there's so much going on. Right. There's a lot of walking, there's a lot of emotions and excitement and this and that. And I feel like if you are able to kind of space it out where your day is more chill and you get to enjoy the hotel in that aspect of a vacation and at night you get to walk and go on rides and scream and whatever. It's pretty cool way to, to have a vacation trip if you ask me. I'm biased. Yeah, anything Disney. [00:58:51] Speaker A: It is a very chill day. You can't have a very chill day. You know, like you said, I love it. This is recommended for people who are thrill seekers, who are very into the rides, people who are night owls, such myself, adults without kids, you know, having a date night. Bachelorette party, bachelor party, bachelor Bachelorette party. I've seen those out there. Solo trips. If you're doing a solo trip, and if you haven't, I highly recommend it. Solo trips. [00:59:28] Speaker C: Do one of these, even for introverts. [00:59:31] Speaker A: Yes, yes. [00:59:32] Speaker C: We are many. [00:59:34] Speaker A: Yes. [00:59:34] Speaker C: So I'm just saying that is also a great opportunity to kind of go and enjoy the park and not feel uncomfortable. So. [00:59:41] Speaker A: Yeah. Also, if you are limited on your park days and you really want to get as much done as possible and you only have a few days, do the after hours. Bypass the tickets, enjoy the resort, do the after hours. So that's. That's my. My little PSA for that. [01:00:03] Speaker C: Jen, you did great. Seriously. Honestly, it gives it. It's hard to not have FOMO at Disney's After Hours. [01:00:11] Speaker A: I know. It is. Oh, it's so magical. I love it. Emelia, my. My youngest, she is. She just wants to do one at Hollywood Studios. We haven't done Hollywood Studios yet, and we wanted to do Jollywood, but I think for her birthday we're gonna surprise her. So hopefully she's not listening to this episode, but I think we might head. Head there just to do an After Hours at Hollywood Studios for a birthday. [01:00:43] Speaker C: I love that. That's a great birthday plan. Great birthday plan. So on that note, Carlton, you want to bring up a trivia question answer? [01:00:54] Speaker B: I do. So if you remember back to the beginning of the episode, our question was, what year was the first ever Disney's After Hours event at Walt Disney World in Orlando? Which I'm kind of surprised with this one. But for those that don't know, the first one did take place in 2016. [01:01:23] Speaker A: Not that old. [01:01:24] Speaker B: One year before I left the Disney. [01:01:26] Speaker A: Company, I remember when they announced it and everyone was up in arms about it. Oh, it's so expensive. No one's ever going to pay it. No one's. And I was like, well, I don't want to judge something until I've tried it. [01:01:42] Speaker B: And here we are nine years later. [01:01:44] Speaker A: And here we are. [01:01:47] Speaker B: Actually, I'm pretty sure the first After After Hours park was Epcot. [01:01:51] Speaker C: I couldn't find the answer to that one when I looked it up, I'll be honest, but I wouldn't be surprised. [01:01:56] Speaker A: Drop it in the comments. [01:01:58] Speaker C: Yes, please. Google did not know. It kept wanting to pop up. What's coming this year in 2025? I'm like, no. [01:02:06] Speaker A: Oh. Which is so much what I want. So much. So much to unpack on that one. All right, well, folks, this about does it. For this week's episode of the Mouse Ears Podcast. Don't forget to join our Facebook group and follow us on our official social media accounts on TikTok, Instagram X Facebook. Stay up to date with all things travel, but mostly Disney. And if you are interested in having a fairy Tale journeys agent book your next trip, visit fairytalejourneys.com and let them know that the podcast sent you. And lastly, if you found this episode helpful, share it with a friend or leave us a review wherever you listen to us. And until the next episode, hold on. [01:03:01] Speaker B: The Kingdom was the answer, not epcot Magic Kingdom April 16 so April 14, 2016 11:00pm-2:00am now you may finish. [01:03:12] Speaker C: Okay, you heard it here, people. [01:03:15] Speaker B: 3,000. 3,000 people. [01:03:17] Speaker A: All right, so I'm going to go out on a limb. I think they're around the after hours that I've gone to. I think there were less than 2,500 people. I would say that they probably limit those tickets to 5,000. That's going to be my. [01:03:37] Speaker B: I think Max. I think so. [01:03:39] Speaker A: I think like a sold out event would be 5,000 people. [01:03:43] Speaker C: Still sounds high. But, but we know it's not. Not for Disney. Yeah. [01:03:49] Speaker A: Specific for Magic Kingdom. I'm sure it's different for each park, but yeah, I'm gonna go. Yeah. So thank you so much everybody and I hope you have a great day or night or whatever it is when you're watching us. We love you. [01:04:07] Speaker B: Good afternoon, good evening and good night. [01:04:09] Speaker A: Good night. [01:04:10] Speaker C: See you at the next Disney after hours. Bye, everyone.