The Disney World parks have varying hours, so it’s a good idea to keep up with Disney World’s schedule and DFB’s updates.
Cinderella Castle
Usually, the opening and closing times only vary by one or two hours on different days. However, there’s one day coming up when Magic Kingdom is going to close VERY early. We’ve got all the details here so that you can plan around this short day.
Magic Kingdom has had a few short days over the last couple of months since Disney is planning an event for Cast Members in this park. Unfortunately, the event has been postponed a couple of times, but the park still closed very early on those days.
Closing early sign
Now, it looks like the Cast Member event has been rescheduled for May 3rd, 2022. On that day, Magic Kingdom will close at 4:30PM ET.
©Disney
If you’re hoping to get more time in the park, you may want to choose a different Disney World park for that day.
EPCOT stays open late
We will say that on one other short day in Magic Kingdom, the crowds were unusually low. That’s probably because people didn’t want to pay full price for basically a half-day. But if you’re looking for a little time in Magic Kingdom with lower-than-normal crowds, May 3rd might be a good option. Low crowds aren’t guaranteed for that day (and we’ve been seeing some very high crowds almost everywhere we go in Disney World lately), but based on our past experiences there’s a pretty good chance that fewer people will be in this park.
Low crowds in Magic Kingdom
Remember that the nighttime fireworks show, Enchantment, will likely not be happening on this date, since Magic Kingdom is closing so much earlier than normal. Disney hasn’t confirmed that yet, so we’ll be on the lookout for more updates.
Enchantment
Whether you’re gambling for lower crowds or avoiding the early closing time, be sure to mark May 3rd in your Disney World planning calendar! (Normal people have those, right? Just us?)
Magic Kingdom
Keep following DFB for more of the latest updates from Disney World.
Select Disney World park hours were extended on some days in February and March.
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Disagree. We were there recently during the cancelled cast day and the day prior to the short party day had the worst wait times ever, Including prepandemic. The short day had very small crowds and we did more in the 3 hours we park hopped in that the whole previous day. I would recommend going there and hoping out to another park after the closure.