Hi Annette! Welcome to planDisney!
I'm excited to hear about your upcoming visit to the
Walt Disney World Resort! Before you know it, you'll be strolling down Main Street, U.S.A. with a Mickey pretzel in hand taking in all of the sights and sounds!
While you may not have access to
Early Theme Park Entry, you can still plan to arrive at the parks early to get a head of the pack. At the Magic Kingdom, typically all Guests will be allowed to enter the park about 30 minutes before Early Entry. You'll be contained to Main Street, U.S.A. and the front of
Cinderella Castle. Some of the shops may be open during this time if you want to check out merchandise or grab a coffee. Guests that have access to Early Entry will gather close to Tomorrowland and Fantasyland, where they will wait until they can enter. There will be Cast Members checking their Disney Bands to ensure that they are staying in a Disney Resorts Hotel. Once the park officially opens, you can then enter any other area you would like to go to. Essentially, you can arrive on the earlier side here and still be able to enter a portion of the park a bit early.
For the other three parks, you'll have to wait until the official opening time to get anywhere inside. At
EPCOT, you'll typically wait inside the entry area close to Spaceship Earth. Guests with Early Entry will be allowed to pass by when it is their time to enter. If you arrive early, you can wait close to the iconic Spaceship Earth and grab some pictures before it is your time to go.
Starting in just a few days,
Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind will switch to a regular standby queue instead of offering a virtual queue. If this attraction is a priority, getting to the park early will help you get ahead of other Guests and make your wait time shorter. If you are a fan of thrill rides, this is one you will not want to miss. It has quickly become one of my favorite rides across all four parks!
Annette, I hope you have a magical time during your holiday!
See ya real soon!
Greg