A guide to Early Morning Magic – Fantasyland at Magic Kingdom

If you're looking for a way to knock out some of the most popular attractions in Fantasyland with little to no waits, Early Morning Magic - Fantasyland might be for you.

This special-ticketed event takes place on select days through the year, and although the price may seem steep, there are definitely times when it may be worth it.

Here's what you need to know.

Quick review

All the details

Early Morning Magic - Fantasyland is an opportunity for guests to get a head start on their day at Magic Kingdom.

During the 75 minutes the event takes place, guests attending get unlimited rides on 7 of the most popular attractions at Magic Kingdom:

• The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
• Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
• Princess Fairytale Hall
• it's a small world
• Under the Sea ~ Journey of the Little Mermaid
• Peter Pan's Flight*

*In recent promotion of Early Morning Magic, Peter Pan's Flight has been left off of the list of available attractions. As of this time, Disney has not indicted definitively whether or not it will be available at Early Morning Magic for dates in 2020.

In addition to the rides, guests are also treated to a breakfast buffet at Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe.

There aren't any characters at this breakfast, but you will have your choice of several tasty treats.

More on that below.

Note: The previous version of this event included only 3 attractions (The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Peter Pan's Flight, and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train) with breakfast at Pinocchio Village Haus.

Cost

Because this is a special-ticketed event, there is an additional cost to attend.

Tickets are $89 for adults and $79 for kids (plus tax).

And, unlike other special-ticketed events (like Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, for example), it requires you to have a regular theme park ticket in addition to the Early Morning Magic ticket.

Dates and Time

The event takes place from 7:45 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. on select dates throughout the year.

Event dates are typically opened up 1-3 months in advance, so if your travel dates are further away than that you'll probably have to wait until closer to see what will be available.

Here is the current schedule:

2020 Early Morning Magic - Fantasyland

• January: 6, 8, 14, 16, 19, 21, 28, 30
• February: 2, 6, 11, 13, 18, 20, 25, 27
• March: 1, 3, 10, 15, 22, 26, 29
• April: 2, 5

2019 Early Morning Magic - Fantasyland

• January: 1, 6, 8, 15, 22, 29
• February: 3, 5, 10, 12, 17, 19, 26
• March: 3, 5, 10, 12, 17, 19, 24, 26, 31
• April: 2, 9, 14, 21, 28
• May: 5, 7, 12, 14, 19, 21, 26, 28
• June: 2, 4, 9, 11, 16, 18, 23, 25, 30
• July: 7, 9, 14, 16, 21, 23, 28, 30
• August: 4, 6, 11, 13, 18, 20, 25, 27
• November: 13, 20
• December: 3, 5, 9, 11, 17

Here's a handy comparison chart that shows you the historical Early Morning Magic Dates (including 2018, 2019 and 2020 dates) by month:

How to book it

If you're interested in booking you'll have a couple of options to do that:

• Book online
• Book by calling (407) 827-7350

What to expect

How to get there

Because you're paying extra money to attend this event, we recommend you plan ahead on how you'll get there so you don't miss any of it.

Buses will be running that early; however, they may not run as frequently as they do later in the morning. That means it is very important that you are at the bus stop with plenty of time to spare.

It is an awful feeling to be rushing around only to watch the bus you needed pull away when you're too late to catch it.

Because of that, we do suggest thinking about using a Minnie Van to help expedite the ride to Magic Kingdom.

If you do plan on using a Minnie Van, keep in mind that there is a limited number of them available.

We recommend planning to request one around 6:45 a.m.

If you wait to request one after that, you may find that none are immediately available.

Minnie Vans would be the best option because they drop off at the same bus stops used by the buses, but their pricing structure and availability may make them impractical for lots of guests.

If you aren't interested in using a Minnie Van, be sure to be at your resort bus stop early (buses to Magic Kingdom start around 6:30-7 a.m. daily) and get to Magic Kingdom that way.

Checking in

You'll be asked to check in out front of Magic Kingdom by 7:30 a.m.

There you'll be given a brightly-colored wristband which lets the Cast Members know you're cleared to go into Fantasyland early.

When they let guests into the park, you'll have time to pause for some photos in front of the castle if you want, but don't expect the park to be totally empty since anybody with a dining reservation before 9:15 a.m. or ticket to Early Morning Magic will be let in all together.

Typically you'll find PhotoPass photographers available, too.

There will likely be several photographers lined up along Main Street.

Frequently the first one is the most busy, but if you keep walking you'll find the lines a bit shorter on the ones further down.

Guests attending Early Morning Magic will be asked to enter Fantasyland via the bridge to the right of Cinderella Castle.

Guests with dining reservations will be directed to other lines near the castle.

Rides

The attractions that are open during Early Morning Magic are some of the most popular in Fantasyland.

Because admission to the event is limited, guests attending will find it very easy to ride their favorites over and over again.

This is true even for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, which historically tends to have some of the longest wait times in the entire park.

See that area on the left in the photo below?

That is the exit to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. On the right is where you enter the final part of the queue.

When the line to get on is short, the Cast Members open that section up so you can easily get right back on after riding.

The other open attractions have equally short - if not shorter - lines.

Sometimes you may get lucky and find Prince Charming Regal Carrousel open, too, but that isn't one of the publicized attractions. If it is open, think of it as a lovely bonus ride!

Look at the crowds!

Just kidding. Fantasyland is basically empty during the event.

You can see the crowds on the other side of Cinderella Castle waiting to get in, though:

All those guests will be let in promptly at 9:00 a.m.

Breakfast

Breakfast is served at Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe, which is located next to the teacups of Mad Tea Party.

Because breakfast continues after the park opens, we recommend you eat around 9:30 and choose an attraction or 2 to visit from 9-9:30.

You'll find several Cast Members outside directing you where to go.

When it does come time to eat, you'll find plenty to fill you up.

For the main entree, guests receive scrambled eggs, pancakes, fried potatoes, bacon, and sausage and you can have seconds (or thirds) if you want.

You'll also have the option of coffee, tea, water, juice (apple or orange), or soda.

Nearby there is a toppings bar that has some additional offerings.

The selection may vary slightly but you can expect to find:

• fruit
• yogurt
• pastries
• oatmeal and toppings
• cheese
• syrup
• condiments such as ketchup & hot sauce

Basic touring plan for Early Morning Magic - Fantasyland

In order to maximize your morning, your best bet is to plan out your time so that you ride as many attractions as many times as possible before the crowds hit.

With that in mind, we recommend:

• 7:45 - 9:00 - Ride the rides that are part of Early Morning Magic as many times as you'd like, especially the ones that will have the longest lines later in the day
• 9:00 - 9:30 - Head over to a nearby attraction and do that before the lines build. Any of the attractions in Tomorrowland are perfect for that, but you may want to focus on something where lines build quickly, such as Space Mountain. Depending on what you choose, you may have time for a couple before it is time to eat.
• 9:30 - go to Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe for breakfast

After breakfast, you can continue on with one of our Magic Kingdom touring plans, but you'll be able to skip over any of the attractions you've already done.

FAQ's

Is this the same thing as Extra Magic Hours?

Disney did make things confusing when they gave 2 morning events very similar sounding names.

But Early Morning Magic and Extra Magic Hours are 2 totally different things, with the main differences being that one involves almost the entire park and is free to onsite guests (Extra Magic Hours), while the other (Early Morning Magic) costs money and is open to anybody.

Read more in the FAQ: What is the difference between Early Morning Magic and Extra Magic Hours?

I made a reservation at Be Our Guest so I could get onto Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and now Early Morning Magic is scheduled. Is my plan ruined?

Not at all!

At worst, you may wait a couple more minutes than you might have had there not been an Early Morning Magic scheduled that day, but it won't be noticeable.

You'll just be held back a little longer, but because you're already in a line while you wait to get into the real line, your early morning breakfast reservation still puts you at an advantage to get onto Seven Dwarfs quickly.

Another thing to consider: when Early Morning Magic is scheduled, that means the Magic Kingdom opening time will not be moved to an earlier time that overlaps with your breakfast reservation, so your pre-park opening breakfast will stay before the official park opening.

Will the crowds be heavier on Early Morning Magic days?

Having an Early Morning Magic scheduled means a couple of things for people who won't be attending.

First, it means Disney won't change the parks to an earlier time which comes in handy if you have a pre-park opening breakfast reservation. It's frustrating to get that early reservation time and then have Disney change the park hours to overlap with your breakfast, but it won't be an issue on days when Early Morning Magic is schedule.

Secondly, it means that while there will be people in Fantasyland before the park opens, there aren't very many tickets sold, and most of those people are likely to be finished riding and headed to breakfast by the time you arrive.

It's still a good idea to arrive early to put yourself at the front of the regular park guest crowds (arrive 45 minutes before scheduled park opening), but the increase in crowds in Fantasyland should be negligible.

Is it worth it?

As always, the answer to this is subjective.

But when you take into account the amount of times you can go on the rides, plus the fact that it includes breakfast, it's a good deal for many, especially for those interested in riding Seven Dwarfs Mine Train multiple times.

Hearing the kids scream "we get to go AGAIN?" is the best.

We definitely think that if you have a shorter trip or if your time at Magic Kingdom is limited, this is a good option to get some extra rides on some of the more popular Fantasyland attractions.

Another option

If you can only pick one extra event and you have the option of doing Disney After Hours at Magic Kingdom during your trip dates, you might consider doing that event instead.

It is more expensive, but most of the rides in the park are open during it so you could possibly see and ride most of the main Magic Kingdom attractions in one evening if you wanted.

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Looking for the Hollywood Studios version? Check out our post on Early Morning Magic - Toy Story Land.

Have you given Early Morning Magic - Fantasyland a try? Let us know how it went in the comments.