Disney World Hotels With Early Entry: The Full List (and Which Ones Are Actually Worth It)

If you have been searching for Disney World hotels with early entry, here is the good news right up front: it is a much longer list than most people expect, and it includes some surprisingly affordable options. Early Theme Park Entry gets you into any of the four parks 30 minutes before the official opening time, every single day of your stay, and it is genuinely one of the best perks Disney still offers. 🏰

Let me break down exactly who gets it, who gets the better version of it, and how to actually use those 30 minutes.

The short answer

Every single Disney-owned resort hotel gets Early Theme Park Entry. Not just Deluxe. Not just certain seasons. All of them, all four parks, all days, including your check-out day.

So if you are staying at Disney, you have it. The real question becomes which resort fits your budget and which park you want to attack first.

Every Disney resort with early entry, by price tier

Value Resorts
- All-Star Movies, Music, and Sports
- Pop Century
- Art of Animation

Moderate Resorts
- Caribbean Beach
- Coronado Springs
- Port Orleans French Quarter and Riverside
- Fort Wilderness Cabins and Campsites

Deluxe and Deluxe Villa Resorts
- Grand Floridian, Polynesian, Contemporary, Wilderness Lodge
- BoardWalk, Beach Club, Yacht Club
- Animal Kingdom Lodge
- Riviera, Saratoga Springs, Old Key West

A campsite at Fort Wilderness gets you the exact same 30 minutes as a club level room at the Grand Floridian. That is worth knowing if you are budget planning. More on each resort over on /hotels.

The non-Disney hotels that also get early entry

This is the part people miss. Disney extends Early Theme Park Entry to a group of "Other Select Hotels," which has included:

• Walt Disney World Swan, Dolphin, and Swan Reserve
• Shades of Green (military eligible)
• Four Seasons Resort Orlando
• The Disney Springs Resort Area hotels (Hilton Buena Vista Palace, Drury Plaza, DoubleTree Suites, B Resort, Holiday Inn, Wyndham Garden, and others)
• The Bonnet Creek area hotels, including Waldorf Astoria Orlando and Signia by Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek

This list does shift a little year to year, so always confirm on the hotel's own site before you book. But if you find a great rate at a Disney Springs area hotel, you are very likely still getting those 30 minutes.

Extended Evening Hours: the perk with a much shorter list

Early entry is the morning perk. Extended Evening Hours is the night one, and honestly it is the better of the two: two extra hours after the park closes to the general public, with noticeably shorter lines.

That perk is limited to Deluxe Resorts, Deluxe Villa Resorts, Swan/Dolphin/Swan Reserve, Shades of Green, and Four Seasons. It typically runs select nights each week, usually Magic Kingdom and EPCOT, so check the calendar for your dates. If you are debating a Moderate versus a Deluxe, this is the actual tiebreaker.

How early entry works that morning

You do not need a special ticket or a reservation for it. You tap in with your MagicBand or ticket at the regular entrance, and cast members start letting resort guests through about 30 to 45 minutes before the early entry time. You will be asked to confirm you are staying on property.

My honest advice: be at the tapstiles 60 minutes before the official park opening, not 30. The crowd that shows up exactly at early entry time is the crowd you will be standing behind.

What I ride first at each park

• [Magic Kingdom](/parks/magic-kingdom): Seven Dwarfs Mine Train first, then Peter Pan's Flight. Those two are the hardest standby lines of the day.
• [Hollywood Studios](/parks/hollywood-studios): Slinky Dog Dash. It is the single biggest time save on property.
• [EPCOT](/parks/epcot): Frozen Ever After, then walk straight to Remy's Ratatouille Adventure.
• [Animal Kingdom](/parks/animal-kingdom): Avatar Flight of Passage, no debate. Then Na'vi River Journey while you are standing right there.

Not every attraction opens during early entry, and the list changes, so check the My Disney Experience app that morning.

So is it worth booking on property just for this?

If you are doing a short trip (three days or fewer), yes. Those 30 minutes are worth roughly 90 minutes of afternoon touring, and on a short trip every hour counts. If you are staying a week, a cheaper off-property hotel with a rental car can absolutely make sense, especially if you are already planning slower days.

One wardrobe note since early entry means early alarms: mornings in the parks can be genuinely chilly from November through February. I keep a light cardigan or an oversized flannel tied around my bag and my ears clipped to the strap so I am not fussing with anything at the tapstiles.

If you want help building the mornings around all this, my itinerary guides walk through day by day plans for each park. ✨