Updated: 12/31/13
It's that time of year again. The Holiday season is upon us and that means
that the WDW parks are in jeopardy of
closing to guests. While it does stink when you are down there and the parks close to
capacity, being prepared is the best course
of action to deal with the potential disappointment.
The park that is most likely to
close is the Magic Kingdom. Year after
year, it seems to close during the Holidays.
It closes most frequently because the crowds mostly want to visit here on special
days. Least likely to close is Epcot because the park is so large
and can hold crowds the best. Disney's Hollywood Studios and Disney's
Animal Kingdom lie somewhere in the middle.
They close sometimes, but most of
the time remain open.
A majority of the time, if the parks
do close, they will reopen to all guests a few hours later. Very rarely are they closed the entire
day. This is due to fact that guests
have left the park and it allows additional guests to enter the park.
There are four different Phases for
closures. Here is what the different closures mean:
Phase 1:
Those allowed:
- Multi-day tickets
- Guests staying at Disney Resorts
- Annual Passholders
- Guests re-entering the park from
the day
- Guests Park-Hopping from another
park
- Guests with in park reservations
- Guests who arrive using Disney
transportation
Those who are not allowed:
- People without park tickets
- One day, single park tickets
- Those using Cast Member passes
Phase 2:
Those allowed:
- Guests staying at a Disney Resort
- Annual Passholders
- Guests re-entering the park from
the day
- Guests Park Hopping from another
park
- Guests with in park reservations
- Guests who arrive using Disney
transportation
Those who are not allowed:
- People without park tickets
- One day, single park tickets
- Those using Cast Member passes
- Multi-day tickets
Phase 3:
Those allowed:
- Guests staying at a Disney Resort
- Guests with in park reservations
- Annual Passholders
Those who are not allowed:
- People without park tickets
- One day, single park tickets
- Those using Cast Member passes
- Multi-day tickets
- Guests re-entering the park from the day
- Guests Park Hopping from another park
- Guests who arrive using Disney Transportation
Phase 3.5 (only for the Magic Kingdom):
Those allowed:
- Guests staying at a Disney Resort
- Guests with in park reservations
- Annual Passholders
Those who are not allowed:
- People without park tickets
- One day, single park tickets that have been pre-purchased to the Magic Kingdom only - must visit another park and exchange their tickets at guest relations found at the entrance to the other parks.
- Those using Cast Member passes
- Multi-day tickets
- Guests re-entering the park from the day
- Guests Park Hopping from another park
- Guests who arrive using Disney Transportation
Phase 4:
- Park is closed to all guests
No matter what, if you visit during the holidays, the best piece of advice I can give you is to enter the parks early. It may be hard to do, but you will optimize your chances of seeing everything you want to see. Lastly, just have fun, people watch, and enjoy the Disney Anarchy!