Disney World Extended Evening Hours Guide
For the last few years guests have been able to stay late in the Walt Disney World theme parks by using Extended Evening Theme Park Hours. What does it mean and who can benefit? We'll break it all down for you.
As you know, since the Disney World reopening phase began in 2020, the popular Extra Magic Hours were essentially eliminated from the theme parks meaning all guests could arrive at the same time without any advantage for on-site Disney World Resort hotel guests.
Now that has changed with Extended Evening Theme Park Hours and the morning Early Theme Park Entry.
The way it works is guests staying at one of the Disney Deluxe or Deluxe Villa Resort hotels get extended access to the theme parks on select nights. That means that you will be able to stay late at the parks and continue enjoying the attractions while all the other guests will have to go home.
In this guide, we will explain everything you need to know about Extended Evening Hours including how it works, which hotels participate in extended evening hours, which attractions are open and how to take best advantage of your time there.
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(UPDATE) Extended Evening Hours Continuing Throughout All of 2027
Disney has confirmed that its Extended Evening Theme Park Hours perk is being extended to select Walt Disney World Resort hotel guests throughout 2027.
Originally, Extended Evening Theme Park Hours was supposed to only stick around through the end of the 50th Anniversary celebration in 2022, but every year since, they have continued bringing it back, and we now know that guests can use it at least through the end of 2027.
This is great news for guests staying at Disney Deluxe Resorts, Disney Deluxe Villa Resorts, and select other hotels, since it gives them extra time in select parks after regular closing.
We think they made the right choice as Extended Evening Hours give guests at Deluxe Resorts a huge advantage, being able to ride the attractions with low wait times.
(UPDATE) Extended Evening Hours Dates for Late 2026 and Early 2027
The Extended Evening Hours schedule now includes November and December 2026, plus select dates in January 2027.
EPCOT continues on select Mondays, while Animal Kingdom takes the Wednesday slot during November and December. Magic Kingdom returns on January 6, 13, and 20, 2027, from 9:00 pm to 11:00 pm. Hollywood Studios hosted fall dates, but there are no upcoming dates listed for it in the calendar snapshot used below.
During the fall and holiday months Disney’s Magic Kingdom hosts Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party and Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. When they are running, it’s natural for Extended Evening Hours to stop for a time and move to another park instead, which is exactly what usually happens.
As usual, only guests staying at one of the Disney World Deluxe Resorts, Disney Deluxe Villa Resorts, or other select hotels will be able to participate in Extended Evening Hours.
It’s already been confirmed that Extended Evening Hours will stick around past this year and at least throughout the entirety of 2027. So if you are going from now until then you should have ample opportunity to take advantage.
Stay tuned for more updates to Extended Evening Hours, including whether more Hollywood Studios dates are eventually added, as well as dates to the other parks. And keep reading down below for all the details about this event.
When Did Extended Evening Hours Start?
Extended Evening Hours started on October 4, 2021, and are now available to guests. The schedules are updated on a regular basis on the Walt Disney World website and it typically runs for 2 hours after the regular theme park closing time on a given day.
Which Parks are Open and When?
Different from Early Theme Park Entry, Extended Evening Hours is not in every park, and not every night of the week. It’s similar to the old Extra Magic Hours with each park selected on certain nights.
- All 4 Walt Disney World theme parks can host Extended Evening Hours: Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios. That does not mean all 4 have dates on every published schedule.
- Disney’s Magic Kingdom has Extended Evening Hours on Wednesdays on select dates, while EPCOT has Extended Evening Hours on Mondays.
- Animal Kingdom replaces Magic Kingdom on Wednesdays during November and December 2026. Magic Kingdom returns on select Wednesdays in January 2027.
- At times the days do change so don’t assume those are always the days they are held. Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom dates are usually more sporadic without a set weekly schedule. Check the official schedule to make sure you have the dates right.
- On those nights, those parks are open 2 hours later than the listed closing time.
Here are the published dates in our November 10, 2026 schedule update:
- Disney’s Magic Kingdom – on select Wednesdays, for 2 Hours after park closing time.
- January 6, 13, and 20, 2027 (9:00 pm to 11:00 pm)
- EPCOT – on select Mondays, for 2 Hours after park closing time.
- November 2, 9, 16, 23, and 30, 2026 (9:00 pm to 11:00 pm)
- December 7, 14, 21, and 28, 2026 (9:00 pm to 11:00 pm)
- January 4, 11, and 18, 2027 (9:00 pm to 11:00 pm)
- Disney’s Hollywood Studios – for 2 Hours after park closing time when scheduled.
- No upcoming dates listed in the calendar snapshot through January 20, 2027.
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom – for 2 Hours after park closing time.
- November 4, 11, 18, and 25, 2026 (6:00 pm to 8:00 pm)
- December 2, 9, 16, 23, and 30, 2026 (6:00 pm to 8:00 pm)
The schedule rotates among the parks as seasonal events affect the normal pattern. The January dates above come from the calendar screenshots through January 20. More dates will be released soon.
Animal Kingdom’s November and December dates come from the previously captured schedule, with its November 11 hours also confirmed in the live calendar check. These dates can change, so check Disney’s calendar for your visit. Separately ticketed Disney After Hours events are not Extended Evening Hours.
Each participating park is open for an extra 2 hours, which is a nice bonus for eligible Deluxe Resort and other select-hotel guests and lets you experience attractions with greatly reduced wait times.
Check the Walt Disney World website for the latest schedules and times.
How Does it Work?
In order to access Extended Evening Hours, guests need valid admission and must use a MagicBand, Disney MagicMobile pass, or Key to the World Card to confirm eligibility.
Theme park reservations are no longer required for date-based tickets. Other admission types may still require a park reservation. If you are using a ticket with the Park Hopper option that requires a reservation, you must first enter the park where you made that reservation before visiting another park for Extended Evening Hours.
It's important to note that Disney says that "select attractions" are running during Extended Evening Hours. While not every single attraction is open, most of the popular E-Ticket rides are available.
Merchandise, as well as food and beverage locations, are also running during Extended Evening Hours, though it's a limited number of dining locations and not all of them are open.
Park Hopping is also possible with Extended Evening Hours, so you can be at another park earlier in the day or evening and then head over to either EPCOT or the Magic Kingdom to enjoy the extra time. Just keep in mind that you need to have entered the park where you made your original park pass reservation before park hopping to a second park.
Which Hotels Qualify for Extended Evening Hours?
Guests who want to take advantage of the Extended Evening Hours perk must be staying at one of the following hotels:
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas – Kidani Village
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas – Jambo House
- Bay Lake Tower at Disney’s Contemporary Resort
- Disney’s Beach Club Resort
- Disney’s Beach Club Villas
- Disney’s BoardWalk Inn
- Disney’s BoardWalk Villas
- Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
- Copper Creek Villas & Cabins Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
- The Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort (DVC Cabins only)
- Disney’s Contemporary Resort
- Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
- The Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
- Disney’s Old Key West Resort
- Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort
- Disney’s Polynesian Villas & Bungalows
- Disney’s Riviera Resort
- Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa
- Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
- Disney’s Yacht Club Resort
- Walt Disney World Swan, Dolphin, and Swan Reserve
- Shades of Green
Extended Evening Hours are NOT available to guests staying at any of the Walt Disney World Moderate or Value Resorts.
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Attractions Open for Extended Evening Hours
One of the best advantages of being in the Disney theme parks for Extended Evening Hours is getting to ride your favorite attractions with shorter-than-usual wait times.
Here is the list of attractions scheduled to participate in each Disney World park during Extended Evening Hours. Attractions are subject to change and temporary downtime:
- “it’s a small world”
- Astro Orbiter
- Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
- Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin
- Country Bear Musical Jamboree
- Dumbo the Flying Elephant
- Haunted Mansion
- Mad Tea Party
- Mickey’s PhilharMagic
- Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor
- Peter Pan’s Flight
- Pirates of the Caribbean
- Prince Charming Regal Carrousel
- Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
- Space Mountain
- Swiss Family Treehouse
- The Barnstormer
- The Magic Carpets of Aladdin
- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
- Tomorrowland Speedway
- TRON Lightcycle Run
- Under the Sea ~ Journey of The Little Mermaid
- Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room
In total there are 23 attractions open at the Magic Kingdom during Extended Evening Hours with most of the best attractions available such as Space Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train.
- Frozen Ever After
- Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros
- Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind
- Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana
- Mission: SPACE
- Remy's Ratatouille Adventure
- Soarin’ Around the World
- Spaceship Earth
- Test Track
- The Seas with Nemo & Friends
There are 10 attractions open at EPCOT during Extended Evening Hours including favorites such as Test Track, Soarin' Around the World, and Frozen Ever After.
- Alien Swirling Saucers
- Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway
- Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run
- Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster Starring The Muppets
- Slinky Dog Dash
- Star Tours – The Adventures Continue
- Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance
- The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
- Toy Story Mania!
There are 9 attractions on Disney’s Hollywood Studios Extended Evening Hours list including Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, Slinky Dog Dash, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway, Toy Story Mania!, and Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster Starring The Muppets.
- Avatar Flight of Passage
- Expedition Everest – Legend of the Forbidden Mountain
- Na’vi River Journey
- Zootopia: Better Zoogether!
FAQs
Extended Evening Hours start after the regular theme park closing time and run for 2 hours. Guests can show up at the desired park at any time during the day. Once the Extended Evening Hours begin, guests' theme park tickets or MagicBands will be checked before entering attractions to make sure they should be there.
Disney’s Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios can all host Extended Evening Hours. The schedule above includes EPCOT and Animal Kingdom dates in November and December 2026 and Magic Kingdom and EPCOT dates in January 2027. Hollywood Studios has no upcoming dates listed in the calendar snapshot through January 20.
There is no additional charge for Extended Evening Hours. All guests staying at one of the Disney World Deluxe or DVC Resorts are eligible.
Even though it's a watered-down version of Extra Magic Hours, at least Disney is doing something to make Disney World Resort guests feel special (even if it only is the Deluxe Resort guests in this case).
We'll keep you updated as soon as Disney makes any changes to this new program. Stay tuned...
If you are going to Disney World soon, make sure to read our Disney World Planning Guide for all the tips and info you will need to cover everything! Also, check out our Disney World Crowd Calendar so you know when the best time to visit is!
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Your Thoughts
I want to know what you think about the Extended Evening Hours at Walt Disney World...
- Do you think this is a good addition?
- What benefits would you like to see with it?
Let us know in the comments section below!
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My name is Ziggy and I love Disney, everything Disney! I grew up on Disney and it has and continues to be a huge part of my life. I started young when my parents took me to Disney World when I was 18 months old. Little did they know that would be the first of an uncountable number of trips we would take. I have so many amazing memories going to Disney with my family and friends and it has been interwoven into my DNA.
For the extra hours in the evening...I have already picked my park reservations awhile ago. Chances are the selected nights each park will be open later will not be the same days I am at that park.
Not very happy about these EMH masquerading under different name. If it quacks like a duck…..
First decreasing morning to only 30 min, then bringing back evening hours only for Deluxe resorts is a real slap in the face. And I used to stay Deluxe a lot. But room rates have gotten stupid and I won’t pay those prices.
Disney is slowly reducing perks while increasing prices. I think this may be the straw that broke the camels back.
We are going next month but I think the majority of my vacays now will be at Universal. Disney isn’t what it used to be.
@Sue,
Aren't you being a bit arbitrary, Sue ?
It's not as if they are catering to deluxe resort guests and not being inclusive with other resort guests. Come on now ! Disney is all about being inclusive, right ! Their very progressive and would not segregate the affluent from the joe sixpacks, in order to seperate and cater to the elite class. No way ! They support all the right social justice initiatives, and would never try such a cheap and divesive stunt to be party to class seperation, by virtue of monitary outlay. (Or Profit).
Not the kind caring people at the, Magical Reimagined Disney Corporation, never !
AND REMEMBER: Guests have so many choices to transport their families to Resorts from Orlando International their no longer offering the outdated, survey result, perk of included transportation for free.
No there are so many choices THEIR customers now can choose to purchase whatever their needs call for. SEE !!!!!
If not ! The service would or will be allowed to degrade into a conundrum of inefficiency, and the availablility and service would make guests lives a living hell, to help you decide what best works for you ! You see ! It's for your own good.
The licencing agreements for the Great Movie Ride were expiring, so instead of negotiating a new deal, they took a "manufactured survey", and declared the ride dead. Even though the line for it was never less the twenty minutes long, on anyday. Facts is they made more replacing it with a 100% Disney themed ride to sell and market it's own product. Better than sharing profit with other studios, who they can't bully or control. (And be told, how much Disney will pay for their licensing fees)
Same with the TwilightZone Tower of Terror, now reimagined as the Tower Hotel ? Really ? Really ?
Just pay up and go pay inflated prices for updated policys and reduced services because after all Sue, Disney Lost Money during the pandemic closure . And of course will pass along cost increases to the customer to balance the ledger to make up THEIR loss. After all don't you want to pay extra to help them celebrate their own "Anniversary" of being in business and turning a profit for fifty years !
I surely don't want to miss out on a golden opportunity like this ! When the utility company's I buy from have their anniversary, I want them to raise their fee's so I can help them "Celebrate" too !
Sue, just stop already it's for your own good.
P.S. don't mind the interest you'll pay on every purchase, because it's all credit card based purchasing, to eliminate handling cash and being able to hire anyone who can work a credit card swipe machine for $8.00 an hour and working in tip fees for services, without you knowing.
You reimagined friend Grumpy !
@Grumpy, ? love it
In 2019 any resort guest could stay until midnight or 1 am. Now only "select" hotel guests can stay with a skeleton crew on hand.
What changed ? Why are only mid to upper level guests welcome NOW ?
Proof that they are only interested in the most affluent guests and want their parks occupied by them exclusivly. While everyone pays the same fee for tickets mid and value guests are funding extra hours for the big money resort guests.
Time for resort guests to wake up and smell the coffee !
This is the inclusion we're preached to and about from Disney Corp. All are welcome ! But some more than others. Depends on how much you spend no matter your race color creed gender ect......
The swamp land in Florida, they are selling you, is the height of Hypocrisy and exclusion, if your bright enough to see through the smokescreen of bait and switch, and bovinescathology ??
In your park hours you wrote “11 am” almost every time. Makes it sound like the parks are open all night LOL I’m pretty sure you mean 11 PM, but you might want to correct that for others who are more optimistic than I
Hi Sallie, thanks for letting me know, I fixed it! 🙂
So I appreciate the extended hours however paying an arm and a leg you make us choose our reservations ahead of time when we book to guarantee us the park entrance then we pay so much and if we just happened to NOT choose that day it is extended then to bad for us and hey thanks for paying a to. Of money to stay at one of our resorts because you were told about cool extended hours if you stay there 🙁
Please change this so that we are able to book at least two weeks in advance to enjoy this ! Especially first timers who go
So once again, if you you wish to use the extened hours, you need to bring a wagon load of money with you and book one of the high dollar hotels! Why not give the same benefit to ANY hotel within the park. Spending 10 thousand for a week is obscene with the cost of things today and families struggling. I fear many families will never get the chance to visit!
So much info my head is spinning. Can you please answer how one plans to be at a certain park when it has extended hours, when ticket reservations have to be purchased in advance and a specific park reserved each day ( we aren’t doing hopper passes) and the extended hours may not be listed or known. Any advise?
Thanks for all the details.
Roxanne
Hi Roxanne, that's a good question. Usually, the schedule for extended hours is listed enough in advance that park passes are still available. Unless it's a really busy time of the year you can get park passes for most of the theme parks even a week or two in advance. Hope that helps...
Disney continues to shaft everyone with giving less and taking more. One of the many things to a long list of garbage from them. It sucks because its the place we all go to forget about life and how crazy it is..a place to get away from the insanity and get into the magic. They have tainted the magic and yet most of us including myself continue to put money in their pockets. They are lucky there is not "another" Disney or competitor or things would get real. Having said all that..Magic Hours "were" amazing when "all" resorts could use them. We loved the lights on effect and less traffic. If your'e not a morn ing person this is time well spent. Hey Disney maybe you can start charging for the bus rides 😉
So I’m curious what if you aren’t at a deluxe resort are you able to stay and shop and eat during extra hours and then get transportation back to the other resorts?
Disney is now for the rich. Felt outcasted as we were not staying in a deluxe result. If you want to get in more than 2 rides per day, you have to pay for the Genie+...and the most popular/new rides need even more money with Light Lane. Bad experience overall.
Sounds good to take advantage of the late hours. Bonus is it's ok then to sleep in the next day. ? ?
I hope Disney changes the extended after park hours to the way it used to be! That anyone staying at a Disney resort can take advantage of these perks. Not very fair to exclude the moderate and value resorts.
So if my family of 15 are staying at an offsite venue (rented house), we are not able to attend the extended hours even though we have paid thousands of dollars for
Park tickets. Correct or not? If so, how unfair!
Roberta
Hi Roberta. Yeah, i know that it's unfair. Disney does this as a special add-on for guests staying at the Deluxe Resorts only. While it stinks for most, it's an added incentive of staying on-site and specifically at one of the Deluxe Resorts. Sorry...
We are coming over next year when coming from England huge cost of flying and huge cost of staying in Disney why shouldn’t everyone paying to stay in a Disney resort get the same privilege as the next person let’s hope by next year Disney will get this sorted and treat everyone the same.