New dates have been released for Early Morning Magic in Fantasyland starting in November and runs all the way until March 2020. So should you book this for your next Walt Disney World vacation?
Quick Take:
Early Morning Magic: Fantasyland (EMM) is a special event held at the Magic Kingdom that allows a limited number of guests early access to attractions in Fantasyland prior to park opening. Not to be confused with Extra Magic Hours (EMH), EMM is a paid event booked as a dining reservation that allows exclusive access to the following attractions from 7:45-9:00am and serves breakfast until 10:00am
- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
- “It’s a Small World”
- Mad Tea Party
- Princess Fairytale Hall
- Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
- Under the Sea- The Journey of the Little Mermaid
Currently, Peter Pan’s Flight is not listed as one of the open attractions. Personally, I believe this to be an error on the website, but only time will tell if this attraction will be included or not.
Guests receive a wristband at the Magic Kingdom gate. This identifies guests as Early Morning Magic participants. You should arrive to the gates of the Magic Kingdom by 7:30am to allow you and your family enough time to check in. The gates typically open right at 7:45am.
The experience includes a plated breakfast at Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Café alongside the exclusive early access to the park. The cost is $89 per adult and $79 per child ages 3-9. Children under 3 are free, but MUST be included in the reservation. This is a $10 increase to the most recent price and a $20 increase to it’s original price. Regular theme park admission is required alongside the Early Morning Magic reservation and not included.
Dates currently available for booking include:
- Wednesday, November 13, 2019
- Wednesday, November 20, 2019
- Tuesday, December 3, 2019
- Thursday, December 5, 2019
- Monday, December 9, 2019
- Wednesday, December 11, 2019
- Tuesday, December 17, 2019
- Monday, January 6, 2020
- Wednesday, January 8, 2020
- Tuesday, January 14, 2020
- Thursday, January 16, 2020
- Sunday, January 19, 2020
- Tuesday, January 21, 2020
- Tuesday, January 28, 2020
- Thursday, January 30, 2020
- Sunday, February 2, 2020
- Thursday, February 6, 2020
- Tuesday, February 11, 2020
- Thursday, February 13, 2020
- Tuesday, February 18, 2020
- Thursday, February 20, 2020
- Tuesday, February 25, 2020
- Thursday, February 27, 2020
- Sunday, March 1, 2020
- Tuesday, March 3, 2020
- Tuesday, March 10, 2020
- Sunday, March 15, 2020
- Sunday, March 22, 2020
- Thursday, March 26, 2020
- Sunday, March 29, 2020
Should You Book Early Morning Magic?
My family has done EMM 4 times in the last 2 years. The first 3 times were the original format of just 3 rides and a buffet breakfast at Pinocchio Village Haus. There are reviews of both formats on my blog. We LOVE Early Morning Magic and have booked it for our Magic Kingdom Day again this coming December. Here are the top five reasons why we love this experience and why you should book it for your next trip!
- Empty Fantasyland, Castle and Park Photos
Individuals who book Early Morning Magic are allowed into the Magic Kingdom at 7:45am on a typical 9:00am park opening. The only individuals allowed in the park at this time are those with the EMM reservation or those with a pre-park opening reservation to a table service restaurant in the Magic Kingdom (Be Our Guest, Crystal Palace, etc.). Imagine walking down Main Street without the huge crowds, it is magical. While there are people in the background of the Main Street Castle photos, our favorite spot is just to the left of the castle at the base of the bridge leading Liberty Square to Fantasyland. You can get a great castle shot with no one in the background and you also will not have the sun blaring in your face. BONUS!
Once you get back to Fantasyland, the park is essentially deserted! We were able to park my son’s stroller and leave it for the duration of the special event. He was able to walk freely through Fantasyland, running from attraction to attraction with virtually no one else around.
- A wonderful “all you care to enjoy” breakfast is included.
Early Morning Magic reservations include a plated breakfast at Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Café. The breakfast plate includes breakfast staples such as eggs, hash browns, sausage, bacon, pancakes, fruits, and pastries. Juices and coffee are also included. To best utilize your time during EMM, I suggest riding rides included in the event from 7:45-9:00am, rope dropping a few more desired attractions from 9-9:30am, and heading over to get your breakfast right around 9:30am. We usually hit The Haunted Mansion and then head over. The food is still fresh, the dining area is less crowded, and you are able to sneak in a few more attractions prior to the crowds rushing down Main Street.
Breakfast itself is delicious. While I did prefer the buffet in the original version, this breakfast is still very good. The staff there can also accommodate individuals with food allergies, but you should allow yourself a little extra time. We also found that having a later breakfast allowed us to skip lunch and then have an earlier dinner. This helps justify the cost a little.
- (Almost) Private Character Interactions
Early Morning Magic includes access to one character interaction location: Princess Fairytale Hall. On one side of the hall guests can meet Tiana and Rapunzel. On the other side, guests can meet Cinderella and Elena of Avalor. We started our morning at Fairytale Hall around 7:50am, We were the only family in line on either side of the hall. Because no one was waiting, we were afforded extended interactions with all of the characters. My son had one-on-one time with each princess. They talked to him about his day, walked him around the room as a “prince”, and left him with lipstick kisses all over his face. We were able to get several amazing pictures through Memory Maker from Princess Fairytale Hall. This is an attraction we most likely would have skipped without the purchase of EMM tickets and I am so glad we were able to experience it with this event.
- Rides, Rides, and More Rides
The primary reason most people book Early Morning Magic is the exclusive access to rides in Fantasyland. Through this experience, my party was able to ride every single ride offered during this event, including riding Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. December will be the first time we attend EMM when my son will be tall enough for this attraction, so we will have to strategize a little differently. I anticipate we may be riding this multiple times.
In my opinion, this is a game changer! This allows you to experience rides you wouldn’t otherwise, as you do not have to spend valuable park time waiting in line. On a typical park day, my family would not have spent the 20-30 minutes required waiting in line for Under the Sea: The Journey of the Little Mermaid, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, or Prince Charming’s Regal Carrousel (which happened to be open during EMM!). Because of Early Morning Magic, we were able to experience all of these rides as walk-ons. By the end of the event at 10:00am, I always feel so accomplished!
- Perfect Start to a Magical Day
My top reason why you should book Early Morning Magic is that it simply is a perfect start to your magical day in the Magic Kingdom. By riding Fantasyland rides at the beginning of the day before anyone else, you can save the fastpasses you would have used on Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and Peter Pan’s Flight for other attractions, such as Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. This allows for better utilization of fastpasses to maximize your attraction experiences.
Additionally, knocking out Fantasyland rides prior to park opening means that, at rope drop, you can ride other attractions deep into the park with no wait. While the masses are sprinting to Mine Train, you can make your way over to meet Ariel at her Grotto, to Dumbo or Barnstormer, or even to Space Mountain with no wait.
Because of Early Morning Magic, we are able to complete everything we want to before we leave the park for our son’s afternoon nap. This would be impossible to accomplish without EMM. We typically leave Magic Kingdom right after the Festival of Fantasy parade, leaving us an afternoon and evening to do whatever we choose, such as pool time or a nice sit-down dinner.
If you have room in your vacation budget for one or two “extras”, Early Morning Magic at Fantasyland is definitely one to consider!
Have you ever booked Early Morning Magic at Fantasyland? What are your thoughts on the experience?