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Disney After Hours at Epcot (dates, cost, how to plan your time)

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Disney After Hours at Epcot (dates, cost, how to plan your time)

Disney After Hours is a special event held on select dates at Epcot in the evenings. It’s not exactly an affordable option, and depending on how your evening goes, many not even find it worth the price. After all, not every Disney After Hours event is created equal.

This special-ticketed event gives guests the chance to ride their favorite attractions and experience the entire theme park with much lower crowds compared to what they look like during the day.

Here’s information on what Disney After Hours is, how much it costs, who should plan to attend, and a suggested itinerary if you decide to go.

What is Disney After Hours at Epcot?

Disney After Hours is a specially ticketed event (meaning it’s a ticket that is purchased separate from regular park tickets) that allows people to enter Epcot starting at 7 p.m. and staying until 1 a.m.

Only a limited number of tickets are sold for the event. We’ve attended many After Hours at Walt Disney World and we can safely say that the parks are not overwhelmed with crowds during these events. The crowds are quite low, meaning so are the wait times for many of your favorite attractions.

Disney After Hours Cost

Current ticket prices are:

  • $149-$159 plus tax per adult or child (depending on date)

Discounts

There are some discounts available, though.

Annual Passholders and Disney Vacation Club (DVC) members can purchase tickets for $119-$129 (depending on the date), which is a great way to save money.

How to get tickets

Tickets for 2024 After Hours events go on sale November 7 for onsite guests staying at a Disney resort. All other guests can purchase tickets beginning November 14.

When it comes time to purchase tickets, you have a couple of options:

You can purchase them from your travel professional (we recommend Small World Vacations).

Or, if you’d rather, tickets can be purchased online or by calling 407-827-7185.

Disney After Hours dates and times

The Disney After Hours event at Epcot starts at 10:00 p.m. and ends at 1:00 a.m. in 2024. You can enter the park with just your party ticket beginning at 7:00 p.m.

When can you enter Epcot for After Hours?

With an After Hours ticket for Epcot, you can enter the park with just your event ticket starting at 7 p.m.

If you can, we definitely suggest entering the park at this time because it allows you 3 additional hours before the even officially begins and gives you extra time to enjoy more rides, see the fireworks, and even grab something to eat.

When you arrive, look for the “After Hours” signs at the tapstiles.

You’ll scan your MagicBand or ticket and receive your special “After Hours” wristband at that time.

Checking in

There are two places to check in for After Hours at Epcot.

If you arrive via the front of the park, simply follow the signs and head towards the respective tapstiles.

disney after hours check in sign at epcot

For anyone walking to Epcot, taking a boat, or arriving by Skyliner, you’ll also be able to check in at the International Gateway.

check in for disney after hours at epcot's international gateway

Once you’ve checked in, you will be given a wristband, which you will have to show at the official start of the event when entering lines. Those without wristbands will be asked to exit the park.

map for disney after hours epcot

Don’t forget to also pick up a Disney After Hours map so you know you’ll be able to experience during the event.

Planning on arriving earlier than 7 p.m.?

If you have a regular park ticket for that day, and you’ll be spending the afternoon before the check-in time at Epcot, you shouldn’t have to go all the way back to the front to check in.

There will be check-in locations inside the park as well, including at some of the Guest Experience spots (blue umbrellas). If you’re not exactly sure where to go, just ask a Cast Member, and they should be able to point you in the right direction.

wristbands at disney after hours in epcot

People without the proper credentials won’t be allowed to enter any of the lines, and it doesn’t take long at all for the park to clear out of non-Disney After Hours participants, though you should plan on there being some overlap between day guests and the beginning of the event.

What’s available at Epcot After Hours

Here is everything you can experience during the Epcot After Hours event.

Rides & Attractions

test track on ride photo at epcot after hours

Characters

  • Select character greetings

Entertainment

  • Event DJ throughout the night in World Discovery with Chip ‘n’ Dale
  • Mariachi Cobre in the Mexico pavilion at 10:15 p.m., 11:15 p.m., and 12:15 a.m. (stay tuned for 2024 showtimes)
epcot after hours dj dance party with chip and dale

Shopping

  • Creations Shop
  • ImageWorks — The “What If” Labs
  • Treasures of Xandar
  • Misson: SPACE Cargo Bay
  • Test Track SIMporium
  • SeaBase Gift Shop
  • Plaza de los Amigos
  • World Traveler

What’s not available

Important: The section from China through Morocco is closed during Epcot After Hours. You can only access the Norway, Mexico, World Showcase Plaza, Canada, United Kingdom and France areas of the World Showcase.

section of world showcase closed off during epcot after hours

Free Drinks & Snacks

One of the best parts of Disney After Hours events are the free snacks and drinks!

These include ice cream novelties (think Mickey ice cream bars and ice cream sandwiches), popcorn, and select bottled beverages (Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite, water). Yes, this is all “free,” aka included in the cost of your ticket.

free snacks and drinks at epcot after hours

Sometimes the lines at the carts can get long, but they move quickly. It is also a good tip to just keep walking to the next cart if you don’t want to wait.

Quick Service Locations

There are other select dining locations open, where you can enjoy food and drinks — but for an additional cost.

rose and crown during epcot after hours

While most Quick Service and Table Service spots are closed, you can find the following open during Epcot After Hours:

  • Connections Eatery and Café (until 10 p.m.)
  • World Discovery Hot Dog Cart
  • Kringla Bakeri Og Kafe (select menu items available)
  • Yorkshire County Fish Shop (until 11 p.m.)
  • Rose & Crown Pub

Sometimes the full menu may not be available, so keep that in mind.

Planning your time

Here’s how we think you can best use your time.

  • Arrive at Epcot just before 7:00 p.m. so you can enter the park as soon as you can.
  • Visit any of the attractions or characters that are not available after the event begins, like any of the shows you may want to see. If you want to explore some of the World Showcase that is closed off during the event, you should do that as well.
  • Grab something to eat before After Hours starts, so you don’t waste time doing that during the actual event.
  • Watch the fireworks.
  • After the event starts, you should spend most of your time trying visit attractions and meeting characters, picking up snacks at carts throughout the park as you go.
  • You might want to consider starting the event at Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure in the France pavilion, since that attraction is much farther away than the other rides open during the event. And then try hitting up Frozen Ever After, before heading to the others.
  • Cosmic Rewind will most likely have a steady wait most of the night due to is popularity, so keep that in mind. You might want to save this for the end of the night to maximize most of your event time.
  • Grab a PhotoPass picture inside a nearly empty park, especially any fun Magic Shots (we encountered several near Cosmic Rewind).
  • Grab a bottle or two of beverages to take back to your hotel before you head out.

Who should attend?

Disney After Hours is far from cheap. You’re basically paying a lot of money for what is essentially 3 hours of park touring, plus the time between 7 p.m. and when the party starts.

But for people on short trips or guests staying offsite that weren’t able to snag Genie+ Lightning Lane selections for the attractions, it might make sense to add After Hours into your plans.

That said, out of all the After Hours events (Epcot, Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, Typhoon Lagoon) we felt like we got the least value out of the one at Epcot. Epcot is HUGE, and the attractions are spread out. You may end up doing a lot of backtracking and walking, which really eats up into your precious After Hours time.

If the event was longer than 3 hours, maybe After Hours would be a good idea. But if you can only do 1 during a trip, we’d definitely recommend booking After Hours at Magic Kingdom or Hollywood Studios over Epcot.

epcot after hours light magic shot

All that said, here are some people who might enjoy After Hours at Epcot:

  • Photographers: With fewer people around, it’s a great time to take photos without the usual crowds photobombing the shots.
  • People without kids: While families with young children might find the late hours challenging, adults or families with older children can take full advantage of the late-night atmosphere.
  • First-time Visitors: If someone’s trip to Epcot is a once-in-a-lifetime event, they might want to maximize their experience.
  • Repeat Visitors: Those who’ve been to the park multiple times might enjoy a different, more relaxed experience.
  • Guests on Short Trips: If someone is only in Orlando for a short time and wants to make the most of it, this is a great way to experience a lot in a little time.
  • People who dislike crowds: One of the main benefits of the After Hours event is the significantly reduced crowd sizes.
  • Attraction Enthusiasts: Guests who want to experience as many attractions as possible, especially popular ones like the Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, Frozen Ever After, and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind.

Video: Disney After Hours: Is It Worth It?

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Allyson Koerner
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