Hi Tillie! Welcome to planDisney! Only a couple more months until you arrive for your magical Disney holiday!
You are only days away from
Advanced Dining Reservations being available to start booking. With so many dining locations to choose from, now is the perfect time to start planning where you want to eat.
The Crystal Palace has always been a family favorite of ours, mostly for the character interaction with Winnie the Pooh and his friends.
When making a pre-park opening dining reservation, regardless if you have access to
Early Theme Park Entry or not, you will be allowed to enter the park in order to make it to your reservation in time. The Crystal Palace opens as early as 8 AM, so I suggest arriving at the gate about 15 minutes before your reservation time in order to enter the park and make your way to the restaurant. There should be a Cast Member directing Guests with dining reservations where to enter once you arrive.
With the Magic Kingdom opening at 9 AM most days and Early Theme Park Entry beginning at 8:30 AM, Guests have currently been allowed to enter the park 30-45 minutes before the early entry time. Guests will be held to Main Street, U.S.A. and the hub area in front of Cinderella Castle. Guests with Early Theme Park Entry will then be allowed to enter Tomorrowland and Fantasyland while offsite Guests will have to wait until the official park opening time to enter the rest of the park. There is a good chance when you arrive for your dining reservation that most Guests will already be allowed into these select areas. As always, this process may change at any point, so keep in mind that Guests with dining reservations will always be allowed in the park on time.
Tillie, I hope you have a magical visit this year! Early mornings at the
Magic Kingdom Park have always been my personal favorite. There is nothing quite like being one of the first Guests to stroll down Main Street, U.S.A. in the morning!
See ya real soon!
Greg