Are the shuttles still transporting guests between parks before the 2pm hopper passes go into effect? Also, can I buy a single day ticket for two different parks and make reservations for the same date for them, instead of choosing the park hopper option?”

Hey there, Kendra! Thanks for visiting us here at planDisney to ask your question. 

Park hopping is my favorite way to spend a day at Walt Disney World. My perfect Disney day starts out in the morning at Magic Kingdom Park. I love checking off a bunch of must-do attractions in the morning before the park tends to get busy. Then, around lunchtime, when I feel like the parks are the most crowded, I like to head back to the Walt Disney World Resort Hotel that I am staying at for an afternoon swim. Once I've had my fill of fun in the sun, I like to head on over to Epcot for the evening hours enjoying snacks and drinks around the World Showcase for dinner. 

Kendra, currently, you are not able to hold two park pass reservations for a single day. If you are wanting to visit multiple Walt Disney World Theme Parks in one day you do need to have standard theme park admission with the park hopper option added on. Park hopping does look a little bit different these days. To park hop, you must have standard theme park admission with the park hopper option. Then, you'll need to make a park pass reservation for the first Walt Disney World Theme Park you'd like to visit each day. You'll need to scan in and enter the theme park with the park pass reservation first each day to activate your park hopper feature. Park hopping hours do begin each day at 2:00 p.m. and last until each park closes. To make park hopping easier for Guests, complimentary park-to-park bus transportation is being provided at this time. Transportation does start around 2:00 p.m. each day. To use the park hopper bus transportation, there will be a Cast Member working the bus stop area making sure each Guest boarding the buses does indeed have the park hopper option added to their ticket. This is just a quick scan of the MagicBand or ticket card and you'll be able to board the bus to be whisked off to your next destination. I should mention that park hopping is subject to capacity limitations, however, I've been parking hopping since its return (almost 3 full months now) and have not encountered any troubles with it yet. 

Kendra, I hope this helps you figure out which tickets you'd like to buy and how you'd like to plan your days for your upcoming Walt Disney World vacation. If you have any other questions before you go, I'm happy to help. Have fun!