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Monorail

One of the first decisions you’ll need to make when choosing your theme park tickets for Walt Disney World is whether you’ll park hop or stick with a single park per day. Park hoppers are the more expensive option, but are they worth the price?

With a two-day park hopper you’ll pay a difference of $30 a day, as of the time of publication, for the chance to go between parks. With a ten-day ticket, that margin shrinks to just $7.50 per day. However, even that $7.50 could be a couple Dole Whips in a day or a new trading pin. Ask yourself these questions to determine whether a park hopper is the right pick for you.

Who’s in your party?

Ready to travel

One of the most important considerations with your ticket selection is who’s in your party. While tickets for children age 3 through 9 are moderately cheaper, the premium for park hopping is the same. If you have a larger party, the price for park hopping will add up quickly. Even a difference of $7.50 a day will add up to $30 daily for a party of four, or $300 for these ten-day tickets. That’s a lot of extra Disney swag you could put your shopping bag.

If you have small children in your party, the perks of park hopping diminish further. Hitting more than one park in a day is exhausting for even the most seasoned travelers. If you have toddlers and young children in your group who need to rest during the day, you’ll lose a lot of the time that could be spent moving from park to park. Children or elderly family members who move slower will also make it more difficult to race from one park to another.

How many days are you staying?

Monorail

The longer you’re staying, the less appeal there is in a park hopper ticket. If you’re staying at Walt Disney World for at least four days, there’s little need for park hopping, because you have enough time to dedicate an entire day to each park. If you’re staying more than four days, you’ll have extra time built in to return to your favorite parks at the end of your visit and catch up on anything you may have missed.

If you’re in Orlando for just a day or two, however, a park hopper is the only way you can see all of the Walt Disney World parks. A two-day park hopper will allow an energetic couple to easily take in all four parks in a weekend. Though park hopping is tiring, it’s manageable for a short visit of just a day or so, whereas it would become extremely trying toward the end of a week-long run.

Where is your resort?

Contemporary Resort

If you’re staying on property, there’s a greater chance that you’ll be able to fully enjoy the benefits of park hopping. One of the biggest barriers to properly enjoying a park hopper ticket is the time involved in actually moving from park to park. If you have a car in the parking lot, you’ll have to shuttle to your car before you can even begin the journey, then navigate a new parking lot and make your way up to another set of park gates, typically via another shuttle. At the Magic Kingdom the process is even more complex, as you have to take a monorail or boat first before you reach the parking lot shuttle.

If you’re staying on property, you have park transportation right at your fingertips. You can hop on a boat, bus, or monorail at your resort to reach your first park, then use these same options to get from one park to the next. At the end of the day, you don’t have to track down your car for an exhausted drive back to your hotel. Disney’s free public transportation will get you back to your hotel room promptly.

 
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Comments

As a local I totally agree with this article. Even though I have an annual pass and can freely go from park to park we very rarely park hop. The reason why is it just takes way too long to get from park to park. Depending on where you are going it takes up to two hours to go from one attraction in one park to another attraction at another park. That's a large time investment. Whether you are taking disney transportation or your own car it just takes too long. Stick with one park/day to maximize your time. Even if you are limited in your vacation time I still think it is a better option to just choose a park and stick with it. This is especially true with Animal Kingdom becoming a true full day park. In the past when it closed at 5 its a great idea to park hop to MK until it closes at midnight. That's no longer the case. One exception for now would be Hollywood Studios as that is now a true half day park and could easily be combined with a some more time at MK or Epcot.

Unfortunately the old "Water Parks and More" option requires a parkhopper now. If you plan to visit the water parks or Oak Trail walking golf course at least twice, it is more economical to get the new Parkhopper Plus option.

Everything is a valid point except for one point... You do not have to take your car around to each park... There is free transportation going between the parks

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