Are park hoppers still worth it?

[AnnabelleTheTalkingTree]

How is everyone feeling about the current state of park hopping and park reservations?

We’re finally planning our next trip down, May 2022, in hopes of things being pretty much normal by then. My family always gets hoppers. We like to do a park in the morning and then have the flexibility to get dinner reservations wherever we want. But with the park reservation system I’m questioning whether or not hoppers are even worth it anymore. I don’t like that you can spend the money on hoppers but Disney won’t guarantee that you can actually get into the other parks - I just got off a chat with a Disney rep and the words he used were actually you’re “buying at your own risk.” And something about that just doesn’t set well with me. I understand that hopping availability doesn’t seem to be an issue right now, but I’m surprised that Disney is basically charging for a “product” they won’t guarantee. So what happens if you have a reservation in a park and then miss it because you can’t get into that park? Not only are you missing your ADR but will you be charged for missing it too? I have always loved the flexibility and spontaneity that park hoppers allow, and it’s what helps us get that laid back vacation vibe. I would be sad to pass on hoppers but also not sure if it makes sense.

 

[JimmyBean42]

I'd say a year from now, yes they'd be worth it. We had them when we were there last week and they were definitely worth it as we hopped almost everyday. Capacity should be higher by May 2022 as well.

 

[sponica]

You could always hold off on adding the park hopper, to see how things shake out as experiences start to normalize over the rest of the year.

I haven't seen any posts about being denied entry while hopping, unless it was someone who didn't check into the park where they had a reservation.

 

[The13thLetter]

I agree with sponica above. why not just buy regular tickets. you can always upgrade them to park hoppers closer to your trip, or even once you are at disney. as for not getting into the second (and third and fourth parks) i have not heard any stories of people not being able to hop, and i think by your trip things will be fairly close to normal as far as capacity goes.

 

[ENJDisneyFan]

I don’t like that you can spend the money on hoppers but Disney won’t guarantee that you can actually get into the other parks - I just got off a chat with a Disney rep and the words he used were actually you’re “buying at your own risk.”

There is really no risk. Since park hopping restarted, there has never been a day that park hopping has been restricted. You will have zero issues hopping for a dining reservation.

 

[TheSouthernBelle]

While I suppose nothing is impossible and won't ever say NEVER, but since PH returned, it's never not been open/available to PH. Even though I know most of the time we're there it's not super crowded, when we're getting ready to hop, I call the hopper hotline and the recorded message lets you know it's clear to Ph. Even over spring break with limited capacity and no park passes available, hopping was open. And by May 2022, I'd say we should have higher capacity limits. I agree with sponica, maybe buy regular tix and add the hopper later if you want to wait to see how things shake out.

 

[shawthorne44]

I read a report someone that was told by a CM that you will be let into the park for hopping if you have an ADR.
Think of it like pre-lockdown and at capacity days. They have levels of at capacity and at the lowest level only some people were being turned away.

 

[Miffy]

We were just there--May 17 to 25--and since we have APs, we hopped. Zero problem. All parks were available for hopping, and most of the time we were there, there were no park reservations available anymore.

However, we didn't have ADRs in the hopped-to park.

My guess, though, is that by next May the park reservation system will be moving over to covid trivia territory.

 

[Katie1174]

I would say that the hoppers are totally worth it. We went for 10 days this May and we used hoppers every day, sometimes multiple hops a day. We actually never even called the hopper hotline, we just showed up and were never denied entry. We hopped to Epcot several times for dinner and I never worried about not getting in and this was with limited capacity. By next May I would expect the parks to most likely be back to full capacity.
We have always had hoppers for every trip as we love the flexibility also and yes, you have to tap into your reserved park first, but since you are going to one anyway, its not a big deal.
We are also planning to be back in May of 2022 and we are definitely adding hoppers.
I only hope they take off some of the time restrictions for 3 of the parks, but I am not counting on that. It is still workable as is though.

 

[sponica]

We were just there--May 17 to 25--and since we have APs, we hopped. Zero problem. All parks were available for hopping, and most of the time we were there, there were no park reservations available anymore.

However, we didn't have ADRs in the hopped-to park.

My guess, though, is that by next May the park reservation system will be moving over to covid trivia territory.

I think Chapek said he's keeping it, to more adequately gauge staffing. But I think by next year everyone will be in one bucket....I just hope by next year you can hop before 2. I have hoppers on my late April 2022 trip, we like dinner in Epcot too much to not park hop.

 

[easyas123]

My guess, though, is that by next May the park reservation system will be moving over to covid trivia territory.

I sincerely hope so...to me that is the single most difficult thing about planning a trip at the moment. There is nothing relaxing or enjoyable about trying to figure out which park you feel like going to months in advance, at least not to us.

OP - I think the advice you got to get non hoppers now and upgrade later once the situation becomes clearer is pretty spot on. Have fun on your trip!

 

[SandyinMonterey]

We're DVC and I struggled with the same ideas/questions you are having. When I spoke to DVC about it, basically was told the same thing. He also suggested not making ADR's to a park that you want to hop at because if it's at capacity, you won't get in and be charged. We all know that getting ADR's at 60 days out is hard enough, can't imagine trying to do it that day. Our trip is in October so we're still dealing with the park reservation system. I'm thinking (and hoping) by the time your trip comes around, it will be more normal. After reading on these boards and finding out no one really seems to have been turned away...I feel a bit more comfortable getting the park hopper.

 

[Shellyred8]

I think Chapek said he's keeping it, to more adequately gauge staffing. But I think by next year everyone will be in one bucket....I just hope by next year you can hop before 2. I have hoppers on my late April 2022 trip, we like dinner in Epcot too much to not park hop.

I hope they change the 2-pm hop time too. That's kind of late to be hopping over to AK with the decreased evening hours.

 

[Memorymakerfor4]

I think Chapek said he's keeping it, to more adequately gauge staffing. But I think by next year everyone will be in one bucket....I just hope by next year you can hop before 2. I have hoppers on my late April 2022 trip, we like dinner in Epcot too much to not park hop.

Agreed about it being here to stay. Once capacity is back to 100% it shouldn't be hard to reserve your starter park, except for a very select few holiday weeks. It'll be really nice to reserve MK on Christmas for example, and know you're guaranteed entrance.

We got hoppers for our trip this July and I have zero concerns. With shortened hours especially, it'll be nice to hop somewhere that's open later.

 

[jimmymc]

I think they definitely are. To date, Disney has not stopped anyone from park hopping to any park. The odds of it happening in May 2022 are practically zero.

 

[Feberin]

We're also going in May 2022 and got park hoppers. Good to hear nobody is being denied. I also didn't book any days for Epcot because we will hop there on one or more of Hollywood Studios days. We really want to do Rise of the Resistance and I wanted to maximize the amount of chances but am anxious about being able to hop.

 

[Gehrig1B]

We're also going in May 2022 and got park hoppers. Good to hear nobody is being denied. I also didn't book any days for Epcot because we will hop there on one or more of Hollywood Studios days. We really want to do Rise of the Resistance and I wanted to maximize the amount of chances but am anxious about being able to hop.

You have chosen wisely.

Adding the hopper after arrival defeats the purpose for us... We will make ADRs based upon the premise that we will be hopping. As many have already said, regardless of policy and what CMs have to tell you, no one has been denied the ability to hop since it returned in January.

 

[goofyernmost]

Once all restrictions have been removed they will not only be worth it, but also a deal killer without it for me. I don't mind the mask and the distancing, but without hopping none of it is worthwhile to me. OK, I'll admit to possibly the oldest case of AAADHD*** in history. I no longer have the H part anymore because of back issues and mild arthritis.

I have loved WDW for many years now, but I very quickly lose interest and have to do something or go someplace different. In all my 45 visits only once did I stay in the same park all day long. I still spend about the same amount of time because I go back the next day or a day or so after, but if I go to MK in the morning, you will not see me there in the late afternoon or evening. I will probably be in Epcot. Or visa versa! If I am going to do those two I will plan where my car will be parked (cause I always have a car for the same reason). Morning at MK I will park at Epcot, take the Monorail to MK and plan to have my car in at the last park I'm planning to finishing my day at which in this case would be Epcot. Until they offer hopping in the same casual way they did before, I will not be attending.

I actually liked it better when DHS and DAK were both half day parks. Then I could easily spend two full days in both MK and Epcot and half a day each in DHS and DAK. Star Wars Land and MMRR and even Toy Story Land have made DHS a full day and with more strings to pull then a marionette which has made me only go for a three day pass and only go to one or the other. Last trip in 2019 I spent two days in WDW (MK, Epcot, DHS) and two days at Universal. It was absolutely the right amount of time. Three parks in two days at WDW is not possible without the hopper.

*** Ancient Adult Attention Deficient Disorder

 

[jimmymc]

We're also going in May 2022 and got park hoppers. Good to hear nobody is being denied. I also didn't book any days for Epcot because we will hop there on one or more of Hollywood Studios days. We really want to do Rise of the Resistance and I wanted to maximize the amount of chances but am anxious about being able to hop.

That's the smart choice. When I was there, Epcot opened at 11 anyway, those 3 hours would've been a waste of a reservation.

 

[jbrinkm]

DH calls Park Hoppers "insurance" for the tickets. We don't have to hop but if something goes wrong (looking at you, AK's electricity) you have an option to bail. We're in parks 4 days this summer and only PLANNING to hop one of the days.