Latest news with #DisneyAfterHours
Boston Globe
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
Disney without the crowds? Teens thinking their parents are (kinda) cool? Yes, there is such a place.
Now imagine that Disney experience wrapped up in three hours, a brief window to take in as many rides as most people do all day. This land exists — it's called Advertisement On select nights in Florida, from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m., Disney holds a special event at one park when only people with a special wristband can board rides at Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, or Hollywood Studios. You can officially enter at 7 p.m., but the perks begin later. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up I did this recently with my two teenage kids in Florida. between $155 and $185, a tad more than a normal day ticket (prices vary by park and date). But the nighttime alternative is good bang for your buck. Consider our experience with Disney's hot, newish Advertisement Around 8:30 p.m., when the park was still open for regular ticket holders, my kids and I saw the mass of humanity lined up and said no, thank you. When we came back at 11 p.m., we zipped through in minutes. The ride is way cooler at night, by the way. The parks and attractions, including EPCOT's Spaceship Earth, look cool in the dark. Jason Margolis Another night, we hit EPCOT and the indoor roller coaster Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, which opened in 2022. On a normal day, you can either wait up to a whopping two hours or pay about $20 for a Lighting Lane Single Pass, which reserves you a spot. (More on that process in a bit.) During After Hours, we practically walked on, then hopped back in the queue for a second go. Side note for roller coaster enthusiasts: My kids and I agreed that Guardians is hands down the coolest ride we've ever done. The train zips through the dark as a different disco or '80s pop song propels you along, a nice touch to make each time a bit different. I won't spoil the big surprise, but the ride has an unexpected twist, which blew our minds. The special bracelets that got us on the Disney After Hours rides. Jason Margolis Overall, the longest we waited at night was about 20 minutes for the Rock 'n' Roller Coaster in Hollywood Studios, still much quicker than during the day. Here's another small bonus of Disney After Hours: carts hand out unlimited popcorn, sodas and water, and ice cream bars, all for no charge. For a teenager, or anyone for that matter, is there anything better than free food? Advertisement Now, Disney After Hours is not for everyone. Most people there were young adults without kids, with some families sprinkled in the mix. Parents with young children, this event is not for you. Or people who like to soak in the entire Disney vibe, I'd stick to the daytime. After dark, there are no shows, no parades, and very few places to eat or shop. Character sightings are sparse — we only spotted Pluto. Disney After Hours events give guests three hours – after hours – to explore one of the Walt Disney World Theme Parks. Throughout Magic Kingdom, guests can enjoy more than 20 attractions and experiences including the new TRON Lightcycle / Run. Steven Diaz/Steven Diaz, Photographer Also, it's a rather late night. In one of my less-than-stellar parenting moves, when my 13-year-old daughter was just plain tuckered out and it wasn't even close to midnight, I gave her a 20-ounce Coke and some popcorn so my 16-year-old son and I could keep the good times rolling. (But hey, it was free!) And she POWERED through the rest of the night. I also think my kids may have thought I was bordering on cool for just a brief moment as I obliterated all the rules. (My wife was stuck back in Boston preserving her vacation time, so all good there.) Further, my kids loved the perfect teenage schedule: sleep in as late as possible, hit the pool for a few hours, then slowly make our way to the parks by 7 p.m. There was plenty to fill our days as well — Disney has lots to do outside the parks, from riding canoes or horses, taking a boat tour of the themed hotels, strolling 'Disney's Boardwalk' and playing games of chance, or just shooting some free billiards at a hotel. My daughter and I also took a cake-decorating class at the Disney Springs shopping area one day while killing a few hours. Advertisement Now, going back to that Lightning Lane, an After Hours ticket isn't entirely necessary to cut down on wait times if you're well prepared. Disney has its ride reservation system down to a science, and you can put in for up to five attractions in advance: three on a multi-pass and two additional single passes for bigger attractions. When we went to the parks during the daytime, I had my morning laid out a week in advance, including passes for TRON and Guardians. And when Disney says Lightning Lane, they mean it — we never waited more than 5-10 minutes for a ride. But reserving those rides tacks on another $60 or so per person; pretty quickly that late-night ticket starts looking like a sweet deal. Also, the Lightning Lane can only be used for a specific ride once, unless you're willing to purchase an unlimited 'premier pass,' which can run north of $400 per person at Magic Kingdom, a bridge too far for me. With the regular Lightning Lane, once you check in for a ride, you can immediately select a new one on Disney's app. It's a fun system to navigate, but the ride choices become slim pickings as the day goes on. You also quickly become even more tethered to your phone than usual. During the After Hours event, you just go where you want, when you want. After arriving at a park around 7 p.m., we'd hop on a few of the smaller rides with short lines, grab a nice sit-down meal in the park, then wait impatiently for the clock to strike 10 p.m. From that moment on, we were all focus. Advertisement The author's son and daughter headed toward the last ride of their late-night adventure. Jason Margolis Our last night, as the hour approached 1 a.m, we decided to make our last ride When we got off the ride, we realized it was only 12:57 a.m., and we still had three minutes of fun to go. (Also, my daughter needed to burn off the caffeine somehow.) So we ran through the exit, did a U-turn into the entrance, and were back on our rat-shaped vehicle for one more spin with a solid minute to spare. Jason Margolis can be reached at
Miami Herald
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Miami Herald
Disney World adds an adults-only after-dark experience
It's barely an exaggeration to say that the food in Disney theme parks is a big part of the experience, almost as much as the rides. And anyone who has visited one of the parks more than once most definitely has a favorite "only in Disney" food. Don't miss the move: Subscribe to TheStreet's free daily newsletter Maybe you can't visit without grabbing one of those turkey legs that's as big as your 10-year-old child's arm. Or maybe it's the pineapple Dole Whip soft-serve that you dream about. How about a churro? In Walt Disney's (DIS) Disney World, there are 200 places to eat, including 90 with table service. (There are only 139 in Disneyland, but still plenty to choose from.) You can even find upscale dining options like steakhouses in the parks, not quite Michelin Star material, perhaps, but almost. Earlier this year, Disney World announced it was bringing back a dining option that is really popular with families: kids eat free. If you stay at one of the 25 Disney Resort hotels in Orlando and you purchase a dining plan for people in your group who are older than 10, you will also get a free dining plan for kids ages 3 to 9. Related: Disneyland lowers some ticket prices (act fast) Since a day in Disney can cost between $500 and $1,200 per person by the time you account for the ticket, the hotel and food, any offer that helps bring the prices down is a welcome one. Guests normally can't combine special offers, but this year Disney is allowing it. "The kids' free dining plan offering can be combined with other select special offers, meaning you may still be eligible to take advantage of other deals we later roll out for 2026," according to the Disney Parks Blog. The Disney Company is always looking for ways to get people to come back to The Happiest Place on Earth. They revamp old rides, introduce new ones, add new live shows, and have spectacular seasonal events. More on travel: U.S. government issues serious warning for cruise passengersDelta Air Lines makes a baggage change that travelers will likeUnited Airlines passenger incident triggers quick response Disney World and Disneyland don't normally have adults-only attractions, but there are experiences that are more appropriate for adults, including the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival and Disney After Hours. Earlier this year the company announced GEO-82, a new 21+, reservations-required dining lounge in Epcot. Related: Disney World makes families a generous offer Now the park is upping the ante with the new GEO-82 Fireworks Experience. A ticket to the show includes fireworks, fountains, music and light, and a menu that will include: Champagne that's specially selected by sommeliers at Walt Disney World Resort (or event-exclusive cocktails);A tasting tower of savory light bites, available before Luminous The Symphony of Us begins;A selection of sweets during Luminous The Symphony of Us. Disney hasn't yet specified what the "light bites" for the Fireworks Experience will include, but the GEO-82 menu includes foods with global influences - like Truffled Ahi Tuna and Jumbo Lump Crab Gâteau. The cocktail menu highlights a Brown Butter Old Fashioned - made with brown butter-infused bourbon - and a Clarified New York Sour, plus a selection of mocktails, wines, and beers. Reservations for the GEO-82 Fireworks Experience will open on May 6 for dates starting June 4. The experience costs $179 (plus tax and gratuity). Related: Veteran fund manager unveils eye-popping S&P 500 forecast Copyright 2025 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved
USA Today
11-02-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Nearly half of Magic Kingdom's attractions shut down Monday night, reports say
The same night that the Philadelphia Eagles were celebrating their Super Bowl win at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom, nearly all the rides shut down at the park, according to reports by local outlets WKMG News 6 and WOFL. There were some social media posts about the issue. "My brother is at Disney World right now & everything just stopped," @MelissaElrod20 wrote in the post on X. "People are stuck in rides everywhere [and] all the lights inside the rides are on. He said it's pandemonium in the streets at the Magic Kingdom." Hours before the park was set to close at 10 p.m. local time, the My Disney Experience app listed 18 out of the park's 40 attractions as "temporarily closed," reported local news outlet News 6. Guests use the My Disney Experience app to view the wait times of rides and the app also shows which rides are out of service. "This is crazy," wrote a Reddit user in the Walt Disney World subreddit. "Several ride queues emptied out in front of me. [I] go to the next ride, and it's being emptied." Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle. At 8 p.m. on Monday, only five rides were available to ride, according to News 6. Attractions guests were able to ride included the following, according to the news outlet: The Haunted Mansion in Liberty Square Jungle Cruise in Adventureland Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover in Tomorrow Land Tron Lightcycle / Run in Tomorrowland As of Tuesday morning, at 8:45 a.m. ET, some of the rides that were listed as "temporarily unavailable" on Monday have wait times and seem to be available on the My Disney Experience app. Rides without wait times listed on the rides will not open until 9 a.m. ET. USA TODAY has reached out to Walt Disney World for comment. What caused the rides to shut down? Although there were claims online that the shutdown was due to a power outage, what actually caused the park's attractions to be shut down remains unclear. Rides shut down during Disney After Hours event While the rides shut down before the park closed, Magic Kingdom was scheduled to host a "Disney After Hours" ticketed event, according to Walt Disney World's website. The event allows guests who purchased a separate ticket, priced from $175 to $185 plus tax, to stay from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m., after the park closes for regular ticket or annual pass holders. However, by 10 p.m., the time the event was set to start, only three rides were shut down, reported WOFL. On the list were the following: Space Mountain in Tomorrowland Tiana's Bayou Adventure in Frontierland "It's a Small World" in Fantasyland It is unclear if the event was affected by the ride closures. Super Bowl winners "fly to Disney World" On Monday, the Philadelphia Eagles, the winners of the big game that happened the night before, also made the traditional visit to the Magic Kingdom. In a video posted to Walt Disney World's Instagram, Jalen Hurts, the Eagle's quarterback, can be seen on a parade float with Mickey and Minnie Mouse driving down Main Street USA. It is not known if the Philadelphia Eagles were affected by the ride shutdown. Are rides still down? As of Tuesday, at 8:45 a.m. ET, the only rides that were listed on the theme park app as unavailable were previously closed for refurbishment before Monday night's shutdown. The rides "closed for refurbishment" are: Astro Orbitor in Tomorrowland Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in Frontierland The Hall of Presidents in Liberty Square Julia is a trending reporter for USA TODAY. You can connect with her on LinkedIn, follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, Instagram and TikTok: @juliamariegz, or email her at jgomez@
