Category — q. Reviews

HAPPILY EVER AFTER: OVERVIEW

Note: This show returns to Magic Kingdom as of July 1, 2021.

Happily Ever After is the evening show at the Magic Kingdom, and is the best of Disney World’s evening shows.

Debuting in May 2017, it is dominated by fireworks, song and projections, and also features lasers and other pyrotechnics.

It shows almost every night—at a time varying with sunset and park hours—from late December into August, and then several times a week during the Mickey’s party season from September into mid-December.

(During the party season, on the three to four nights a week* when Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party and Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party are on, no evening show is available to those without party tickets.)

Happily Ever After is themed to the concept of “unlocking the magic within” to achieve dreams

Dreams are grouped into themes: Wishes, Adventure, Friendship, Love, [Overcoming] Adversity, and Triumph.

Each theme vignette presents Castle projections and songs from Disney and Pixar films—mostly from the Little Mermaid and later releases—supporting the theme.

Astonishingly effective, and with the latest generation of firework shapes and colors, projection technology, and lasers, Happily Ever After is also sweet and charming, and a tremendous crowd-pleaser—spontaneous applause followed most of the vignettes the nights I saw it.

Happily Ever After is a wonderful capstone to a Magic Kingdom day. Don’t miss it.

*Except the first week of November and Thanksgiving week.

HAPPILY EVER AFTER: WHERE TO SEE IT

Happily Ever After is designed to be seen with the Main Street railroad station at your back and Cinderella Castle in front of you.

Because of the projections on the Castle—and how fleeting, small and/or subtle many of the images that make them up are—the best results will come from being closer to the Castle.

The ideal position is in the circular hub right on front of the Castle.

(The projections are not shown on the back or side of the Castle).

Positions further back on Main Street towards the station will yield less impact, as the effect of the projections will be reduced.

And positions elsewhere in the park, although they will yield views of the higher fireworks and include the music, will lose most of the impact of the show.

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OVERVIEW: DISNEY’S YACHT CLUB RESORT

Our most recent stay (our fourth, in November 2017) confirms that Disney’s Yacht Club Resort, one of the Epcot resorts, is the seventh best deluxe resort at Walt Disney World for first time family visitors.

(Note 10/17: The Yacht Club is now part of a dog-friendly pilot program.)

You can have a wonderful visit at any Walt Disney World resort hotel.

However, this site recommends that first time visitors to Walt Disney World who can afford it should stay at Disney’s Polynesian Resort, a deluxe resort, and that those who can’t should stay at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, a value resort.

(It also suggests that first time visitors should avoid the moderate resorts, while noting that these resorts are wonderful for visits after the first. See this for why.)

Compared to other Walt Disney World owned and operated resorts, the deluxe resorts are distinguished by having (on average) the most amenities, nicest views, best dining options, best transport options, largest rooms, best service, and highest prices.

Among the deluxe resorts, Disney’s Yacht Club Resort has a lot of positives.

It stands out for sharing with the Beach Club Resort the best pool among the Disney-owned resorts, sharing with the Beach Club and the BoardWalk Inn convenient access to Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and also sharing with these resorts a short walk to dozens of table service dining options located in these resorts, at the Swan and Dolphin, on the BoardWalk, and in Epcot.

(See this for much more on resort distinctions by price class–value, moderate, deluxe, etc.)

One of the principal negatives of the Yacht Club–tired, beat-up rooms–was fixed by a refurb that was completed in 2017.

The other principal negatives–inconvenience to the Magic Kingdom, bland theming, and weak counter-service offerings–remain, although slightly better counter service came on line in May 2017.

This review has 6 pages

• The Yacht Club overview you are currently viewing
• Accommodations and Theming at the Yacht Club
• A photo tour of a Yacht Club room
• Dining at the Yacht Club
• Amenities at the Yacht Club
• Stormalong Bay, the Yacht Club’s main pool

ACCOMMODATIONS AT DISNEY’S YACHT CLUB RESORT

Standard rooms at Disney’s Yacht Club Resort are sized in the middle of the deluxe resorts.

They are larger than those at the Wilderness Lodge and Animal Kingdom Lodge, but smaller than those at Disney’s Polynesian Resort and the other monorail resorts.

Most of these rooms sleep five–two each in two queens, and another in convertible sofa. Some rooms have just the two queens, and rooms with one king bed are also available.

You can add to this capacity of five a child younger than three who sleeps in a crib.

The rooms are well-appointed an dwell-proportioned, and after their renovation are among the most livable rooms at Walt Disney World.

For a photo tour of a refurbed Yacht Club room, see this, and for more on accommodations at the Yacht Club, see this.

DINING AT DISNEY’S YACHT CLUB RESORT

The Yacht has two table service restaurants. Yachtsman Steakhouse is a terrific–but expensive–option. The less expensive and simpler Captain’s Grille was re-done and reopened in late 2017 as the Ale & Compass Restaurant.

More dining is within walking distance at the Beach Club. There, Beaches and Cream is a popular burger and ice cream shop, but far too small for the demand for it. The Cape May Cafe has Minnie and other characters, but not Mickey, at breakfast, and an OK seafood buffet at dinner.

Quick service dining is quite limited, with just a limited venue in the Yacht Club gift shop, small venues at the back of the distant Beach Club gift shop and by the main pool, plus pastries and coffee in the lobby bar in the morning.

For more on dining at the Yacht Club, see this.

THE POOLS AT DISNEY’S YACHT CLUB RESORT

The Yacht Club and Beach Club share the best pool complex at any Disney-owned resort (the Four Seasons has the best overall pool complex on property).

Known as Stormalong Bay, there’s actually three pools in the complex, plus a stunning water slide.

There’s also a smaller pool at the Yacht Club, plus two smaller pools at the Beach Club.

For more on Stormalong Bay, see this.

KID APPEAL AND CONVENIENCE AT DISNEY’S YACHT CLUB RESORT

Resorts are ranked on this site for first time visitors based first on their kid appeal, and then on their convenience.

On this basis, Disney’s Yacht Club Resort is the seventh-best deluxe resort for first time family visitors to Walt Disney World.

Kid Appeal.

• Three of the deluxe resorts–the Wilderness Lodge, Animal Kingdom Lodge, and Polynesian Resort, in that order–have spectacular kid appeal. The Beach Club has comparatively little architectural  kid appeal
• None of the moderates do.
• All of the value resorts–Disney’s All-Star Sports, All-Star Music, and All-Star Movies, its Pop Century Resort, and its Art of Animation Resort–have strong kid appeal.

The kid appeal of the Yacht Club Resort, such as it is, comes from its pool and beach, not its design, architecture, or theme.

Stormalong Bay, the pool that the Beach Club and Yacht Club share, is the most fun and kid-appealing pool among the Disney-owned resorts.  

Otherwise, nothing about the design or architecture of the Yacht Club shouts out that it was built for kids, and in fact it feels formal and austere to many of them.

Convenience. Disney’s Yacht Club Resort is the seventh-most convenient of all the Walt Disney World resorts in carrying out the itineraries for first-time family visitors on this site.

All of the Epcot resorts are convenient to Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Epcot is a moderate walk from the Yacht Club, and the Studios are a longer walk or a boat ride away.  (Epcot can also be accessed by boat.)

The other two parks are accessed by buses, which are shared with some of the other Epcot resorts.

BEST PLACES TO STAY AT DISNEY’S BEACH CLUB RESORT

This site suggests that first time visitors stay in standard rooms, not preferred rooms.

This is because they won’t be spending much time in their rooms.

The single exception is visitors to the Animal Kingdom Lodge, who should always pay for savanna views.

On the map, the Yacht Club Resort is on the left, the Beach Club is center-right, and the Beach Club Villas are at the top right. The walkway to Epcot is at the far right, and the boat dock shared by the Beach and Yacht Clubs is at the center in the lake.

The room areas of the Yacht Club–at the left on the map–are in a long, narrow building with only two elevator banks, one central, and one on the left side.

As a result, some rooms on the left side of the Yacht Club can be a hike from the main pool and central services and restaurants area–and from Epcot.

So you should ask for a room as close to Epcot as possible. The current room request form won’t allow for that–but you can call and ask!

BEST FOR:

Any first time family visitors who can afford it, but can’t get into or don’t want to stay at Disney’s Polynesian Resort or the Beach Club, or find the refurbed rooms so much more livable and its balconies so much better than those at the Beach Club that they prefer it instead.

WORST FOR:

Families seeking the highest degree of kid appeal. Families too large to fit even its 5 person rooms. See this for more on large families at Walt Disney World.

THEMING AND ACCOMMODATIONS AT DISNEY’S YACHT CLUB RESORT

This review continues here.

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(For the first page of this review of Disney’s Yacht Club Resort, see this.)

THEMING AND ACCOMMODATIONS AT DISNEY’S YACHT CLUB RESORT

There are currently 8 official Disney owned and operated deluxe resorts at Walt Disney World. In their recommended order for first time family visitors, they are

1. Polynesian
2. Wilderness Lodge
3. Animal Kingdom Lodge
4. Contemporary
5. Grand Floridian
6. Beach Club
7. Yacht Club
8. BoardWalk Inn

All but one of these also offer Disney Vacation Club (“DVC”) studios and villas, all for rent to the general public–see this for more on the Disney Vacation Club resorts. The Yacht Club is the only one with no DVC offering, but next door sister resort the Beach Club offers the Beach Club Villas.

THE THEMING OF DISNEY’S YACHT CLUB RESORT

Disney’s Yacht Club Resort opened in November 1990, and in 2017 completed a badly needed refurb, with significant changes to its guest rooms, and an update of its gift shop and one of its dining venues.

According to Disney World’s website, the Yacht Club

“…[features] lush landscaping and the formal grace of a grand New England yacht club.

“Designed by architect Robert A.M. Stern—known for his East Coast beach houses—this splendid 5-story Resort transports Guests to the summertime Shingle Style hotels of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. (Sister resort Disney’s Beach Club Resort is a more relaxed, pastel-toned edifice next door; the 2 share many amenities.)

“Public areas, guest rooms and suites are adorned in dark wood and wicker furniture, portholes and simulated captain’s wheels. Cast Members are decked out in ship’s crew regalia, including navy blazers and captain’s hats.”

The architect (and former Disney board member) Stern on his own website also talks about the Yacht Club in its context with the Beach Club:

“While both hotels draw their inspiration from America’s architectural past, each has a unique identity.

The Yacht Club is reminiscent of the rambling, shingle-covered seaside resorts that were built toward the end of the last century in New England towns such as Newport, Marblehead, and Bar Harbor.

The Beach Club is lighter, more airy in expression. It is modeled on the many Stick Style cottages and resorts that could be found in towns like Cape May, New Jersey.”

(For more on Stern’s role in Walt Disney World, see this.)

In the past, I have (correctly, back then) claimed that these two resorts just aren’t that different. Yet while the Yacht and Beach Clubs remain more like one another in theme, style, decor, and layout than are any other pair of deluxe resorts at Walt Disney World, the room refurbs completed at the Beach Club in 2015 and the Yacht Club in 2017 have led to a significant divergence in their guest room offerings.

On the map, The Yacht Club rooms and lobby are on the left, the Beach Club rooms and lobby on the right, and in between is shared space used for restaurants, kitchens, and other shared support activities.

Above this central shared space on the map is the convention center, labeled as the Yacht Club convention center (and being expanded) but in fact shared by both hotels, and below it the shared spectacular pool, Stormalong Bay.

Note that the room wings are essentially mirror images of each other. Until the recent refurbs, the room layouts and furnishings themselves were identical (other than colors and details).

Room layouts, after the refurb, remain the same–no walls were added or moved–and each has the same basic characteristics, offering in the same square footage equivalent bath, hall, and bedroom space, and sleeping four on two queens or five on two queens and a daybed.

The Yacht Club has always offered more reliably better balconies–too many balconies at the Beach Club are either small, or so tiny as to be essentially unusable. But the refurb has added many other livability advantages to the Yacht Club rooms (and one or tw0 possible disadvantages) that Beach Club rooms don’t have.

Livability advantages now in the Yacht Club but not the Beach Club include the following–all perhaps small, but adding up to something:

• A sliding door between the sink area and the entry hall, adding noise and light isolation
• A pocket door between the sink and bath areas, easing movement between these two spaces
• More structured and flexible closet storage
• Point-able high intensity reading lights, handy for reading my book and limiting the effect of reading lighting on the other occupants of the room
• Many more storage drawers
• A much larger TV
• Space under the beds high enough for you to stick your luggage there

The potential disadvantages of the new rooms are two: first, the shower curtain on the tub has been replaced with sliding clear doors, making it harder to bathe kids (or your brother-in-law, after he incurred the typical sequelae of Drinking Around the World); second, the top of the queens is so now so high–around 30 inches–that some will need to do the Fosbury Flop to get into it.

For those for whom the disadvantages noted don’t matter, the Yacht Club rooms are unambiguously better than Beach Club rooms.

Now the Beach Club is warmer, prettier, airier, more appealing to kids, and closer to Epcot, so for many families it will remain the first choice among these two.

But for most who are not powerfully drawn to the Beach Club theming, the quality of the Yacht Club rooms will make up for its duller and more stuffy theming. (To do a test drive of these rooms yourself, a photo tour of a Yacht Club room is here, and a photo tour of a Beach Club room is here.)

ACCOMMODATIONS AT DISNEY’S YACHT CLUB RESORT

All Disney deluxe resorts have standard rooms; concierge rooms, which Disney calls “club” rooms; and suites. (See this for more on suites at Walt Disney World.)

At Disney’s Yacht Club Resort, standard and club/concierge rooms sleep either four or five, in two queen beds, or two queens and a day bed.

Standard rooms are well appointed and nicely proportioned, and unlike at the Beach Club, almost all come with substantial balconies.

There’s a detailed photo tour of a standard Yacht Club room later in this review.

King bed rooms that sleep two or three (the third on the day bed) are also available.

Standard and club rooms can be booked with Standard views, Garden or Woods Views, and Lagoon or Pool views. Lagoon or pool view rooms view either Crescent lake or a pool. Garden or Woods view rooms see forests or landscaped areas.  Standard rooms have views of something else–the front drive, a roof, the back of the convention center.

No rooms are bookable as Theme Park Views, but many rooms that look over Crescent Lake can see the higher parts of IllumiNations, Epcot’s evening show.

You can request such a room over the phone.

CONCIERGE ROOMS, DELUXE ROOMS, AND SUITES AT DISNEY’S YACHT CLUB RESORT

I generally advise against special room types for first-time visitors, as they won’t be spending much time in their rooms. However, they may be well worth it for families intending to spend more time at the Yacht Club Resort than implied by this site’s itineraries.

TikimanPages.com has a great discussion of the value of concierge rooms here. Though focused on the Polynesian, it applies to any deluxe resort.

Most Yacht Club concierge rooms (Disney calls them “club” rooms) are the same size as the rest of the resort’s rooms.  However, there’s also an option called a “Deluxe” rooms, and several types of two-bedroom suites.

Deluxe rooms don’t offer any more sleeping capacity–they just give you more space, and more separate spaces, for your family to live in. Deluxe rooms (which used to be called junior suites) are about 60% larger than standard rooms, and include two queens and a semi-private sitting area.

The two-bedroom Turret Suites have an unusual shape and layout–with one of the bedrooms connecting the other spaces.

There’s also two-bedroom Presidential and Admiral suites, each with ~2000 square feet and the two-bedroom Captain’s Deck Suite, with ~2400 square feet.

For more on suites, see this, and for more on larger families seeking deluxe options, see this.

Note that to all the capacity figures above you can add a child under three in a crib. A crib fits nicely between the dresser/TV and the closet.

PHOTO TOUR OF A STANDARD ROOM AT DISNEY’S YACHT CLUB RESORT

This review continues here.

PAGES IN THIS REVIEW OF DISNEY’S YACHT CLUB RESORT

• Overview and summary of Disney’s Yacht Club Resort
• Accommodations and Theming at the Yacht Club
• A photo tour of a Yacht Club room
• Dining at the Yacht Club
• Amenities at the Yacht Club
• Stormalong Bay, the Yacht Club’s main pool

OTHER KEY PAGES FOR WHERE TO STAY AT DISNEY WORLD

• Where to stay–the Basics
• Where first-timers should stay
• Reviews of all the Disney World resorts, based on my 160+ stays in them

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For the first page of this review of the Disney World Swan and Dolphin, see this.

REFURBED STANDARD ROOMS AT THE DISNEY WORLD DOLPHIN

Rooms at the Dolphin  completed a refurb in 2017, and this photo tour is of a refurbed room. The main elements of the refurb were a simplified bath, new dresser and table, and different fabrics and finishes. Refurbed rooms have kept the full beds and single sink that make Dolphin rooms less family-friendly.

The room layout is traditional with a bath on one side of the entry and a closet on the other.

The closet is large but not as engineered for capacity as are those in Swan rooms.

Next to the closet is a small station with a coffee service on top and a shelf below. The mini-fridge that used to be here has shifted into the main room.

The divided bath has a single sink in an outer space…

…with some amenities in shelving between the studs.

This layout adds simplicity and space to what used to be an angled sink and vanity area.

Beyond the sink area you’ll find in their own space a toilet and tub/shower combo.

Deeper in the room the bed side offers two full beds. Note the easy chair beyond them.

Here’s the beds from the back.

Between them is a small bedside table.

The other side of the room has a dresser, TV, and a table and chair.

This side of the room from the back. The table can serve as either a dining or games table, or a desk.

The dresser has four medium-sized drawers.

At one side of the dresser you’ll find this mini-fridge

Dolphin rooms have a variety of views, and most don’t have balconies.

Our room did have a balcony, and from it I could see glimpses of the Hollywood Studios Star Wars fireworks!

AMENITIES AT THE DISNEY WORLD SWAN AND DOLPHIN

This review continues here!

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RIVERS OF LIGHT AT DISNEY’S ANIMAL KINGDOM

Rivers of Light is the new, much anticipated evening show at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. It opened in mid-February 2017, and I had the chance to see it in early March.

Combining floats, boats, colors, water, lasers, fire, music and song, Rivers of Light is not as dramatic as the evening shows at the other three parks, but much lovelier, and I consider it a must see.

It is currently showing four times a week—Saturdays, Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. On April 8, it shifts to being on every night–at least through the summer–and some evenings will have multiple shows.

Start times vary depending on the time of sunset. Over the next few months and the summer they range from 7.15 to 9.15p. The second show, when available, begins 75 minutes later. A delightful pre-show begins 15 minutes before show start.

It occurs in a lagoon between Expedition Everest and Dinoland.

While there are a few small areas from which you can get off-center views elsewhere in the lagoon, the best views and all seats are in a dedicated amphitheater that Disney has built along the shore here.

The amphitheater seats about 5,000 of the 30,000 people in Animal Kingdom on an average day—a number that will likely go up quite a bit this summer after Pandora: World of Avatar opens.

Half of the amphitheater (on the Expedition Everest side) is dedicated to FastPass+…

And a fair proportion of what’s left goes to those who have booked special Rivers of Light dining packages at Tusker House or Tiffins.

As a result, even on nights with two shows, fewer than 5,000 people will be able to see Rivers of Light via the stand-by line. So FastPass+ or the special Rivers of Light dining package (which guarantees you nice seats on the Dinoland side) will be by far the best choice for most.

Those on a one-day visit to Animal Kingdom—especially after Pandora opens in late May 2017—will be best served by buying the dining package.

This is because you can’t add FastPass+ until after you used all the ones you pre-booked, and you will use your FastPass+ for Rivers of Light so late that little or nothing will be available after it ends.

Those with two days in Animal Kingdom should get a FastPass+ for Rivers of Light.

My co-author Josh has more info on the dining packages for Rivers of Light—plus much better pictures of the show—on his site easyWDW.com here.

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Update: Disney After Hours is returning for the summer of 2018.

Disney After Hours, an expensive way to see a bunch of Magic Kingdom rides with hardly any waits, has returned for 2017.

Not something I’d recommend for first-timers, this event is well worth it for returning visitors who can afford it and can stay up through it.

It’s currently on the calendar for most (but not all) Thursday nights into early March—specifically, February 2, 9, and 16, and March 2 and 9.

It “begins” at park close–the February dates are 8-11p, and the March dates 9p-12MN–but ticket holders can officially enter at 7p, and unofficially, I believe, can enter at 4p.

Prices for most people are $119 per adult or child. There’s also a deal of $89 per Annual Passholder/Disney Vacation Member adult or child (plus tax for both). The general price of $119 is about 20% less than last year’s price.

The number of tickets sold is quite limited. As a result, you can enjoy a number of Disney World rides with almost no wait.

It’s hard to communicate just how empty Magic Kingdom is.

I attended the party Friday January 27th and here’s a shot of the area between Peter Pan and the Carrousel during the afternoon that day:

And later during the event:

The boarding area for it’s a small world during the event:

The boarding area for Splash Mountain during the event:

The TTC parking lot about half an hour before event end:

If you know the Magic Kingdom well and are willing to move quickly, you can see quite a bit during the period from when you are let in to event end.

My test of the event last April is here, when basically I saw almost every headliner at Magic Kingdom, plus more.

In my 2017 test of this event Friday January 27, I tried to act less like a power user and more like what I thought the “typical family” might act like—specifically by starting in Fantasyland and going from there to Liberty Square, Frontierland, and Adventureland.

(Note that I don’t actually recommend this approach. You’ll see lower crowds if you start with Adventureland and end your night in Fantasyland. See below.)

Moreover, I intentionally arrived just before the event’s official beginning, as would those who aren’t aware that they can enter the park before the event, and knocked off after about two hours, figuring that I was about 50% more productive than the typical family, who would spend some time bickering outside the restrooms and eating ice cream (you get free ice cream, popcorn, and water and soft drinks at the event).

Here’s my results (times are when I got to the ride):

• Barnstormer 9p
• Dumbo 9.05
• Mad Tea Party 9.14
• Winnie the Pooh 9.19
• Seven Dwarfs Mine Train 9.25
• Under the Sea–Journey of the Little Mermaid 9.32
• Prince Charming Regal Carrousel 9.44
• it’s a small world 9.53
• Peter Pan 10.08
• Haunted Mansion 10.18
• Big Thunder Mountain 10.40
• Splash Mountain 10.50
• Pirates of the Caribbean 11.10p

Note that if you could have matched my pace, you would still have had time to ride Buzz Lightyear, Space Mountain, and perhaps, Seven Dwarfs again.

If you want to see a lot of Magic Kingdom rides with low or no waits, it is well worth it. The challenge is fitting it into your already existing plans and budget.

Like most things at Disney World, a successful visit to the event comes from careful planning.

The best strategy is to

• Do what Josh and I call in our book “Anytime Rides” (that is, rides that typically have low waits all day long) until near the time of the event
• Do “First or Last Hour Rides” (that is, rides that typically have low waits at the beginning and end of the day, but high waits in between) just before the event, and
• Do rides that are typically high-wait during the event itself.

Moreover, during the event, target the west side of the park first, then Tomorrowland, then Fantasyland.

Do it this way for a couple of reasons

• Most people’s first targets will be Tomorrowland or Fantasyland, so you’ll see lower crowds by starting in Adventureland, Frontierland and Liberty Square
• The only ride where other people are essential is the Jungle Cruise, giving another reason to put Adventureland early
• Small children at the event will be sinking as the night grows later, so put Fantasyland last

Depending on how you value your time and money and design your visit, doing the After Hours event will either save a hotel night and day of eating (if you are at a deluxe, that itself will pay the extra cost of full price tickets), give you an extra day at another park, or give you an extra day off.

Taking full advantage of the minuscule waits requires the ability to stay up somewhat late, a good plan, sound knowledge of Magic Kingdom, and brisk movement.

For these reasons I can’t recommend it to first timers.

But the After Hours event can be a very good idea for returning visitors who know the Magic Kingdom well and want to grab an extra day out of their trip.

A NOTE FOR THE ENRAGED

The Disney World fan community, in general, gets enraged by only two things:

• Things Disney does
• Things Disney doesn’t do

The After Hours Event, after it was announced last year, enraged many people. Almost all the reasoning behind the enragement was speculation that something, somehow was being taken away from regular park guests and given instead to the rat-finks who could afford the quite expensive tickets for the After Hours Event.

In 2016 this reasoning was comically inept, as nothing in fact was taken away from regular guests.

There’s a bit more to the rage for the 2017 event, however.

Over the relevant weeks in January-March 2017, the Magic Kingdom in fact closed/is closing on average an hour and 17 minutes earlier on event nights than it did on the equivalent nights in 2016 (yes, I’ve corrected this for the changing dates of Presidents Day).

A third of this reduction in operating hours available to the general public (three of the nine fewer hours) is on one night, the Thursday before Presidents Day, when Magic Kingdom was open until 11p in 2016 and is open only til 8p in 2017. Three more of the “lost” hours have already passed—one on January 20th and two on January 27th. The next biggest impact is March 9, open til 11p in 2016 and 9p in 2017.

That said, it seems worth noting that on non-event nights in February 2017 (March 2017 does not yet have a firm calendar), the Magic Kingdom is open, on average, 58 minutes fewer than the same days in 2016…so it’s not only the event nights that are seeing shorter hours…

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