Have you ever had one of those moments at Disney World where you thought, “Wait, can I really do this?”
EPCOT
If you’re a Disney World Annual Passholder, then you know there are a few tricks that can make your park-hopping adventures a little smoother. But every once in a while, you discover a hack so good, you’ll wonder how it’s even allowed. Well, we’ve got one of those for you today, and trust us, it’s totally legit!
As we were saying, we stumbled across this Annual Passholder hack that’s so good that you might be wondering if it’s even allowed (no worries because it’s totally allowed).
Disney World Annual Pass
So here’s the scenario: You’re in the midst of planning your Disney day, and you’ve got your heart set on scoring a Virtual Queue (VQ) for Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at EPCOT. Well, you know how it goes. You wake up early, grab that VQ at 7AM, and you’re all set for your day at EPCOT. But what if you don’t want to start your day at EPCOT? What if Magic Kingdom is calling your name, but you still want to ride Guardians later? As an Annual Passholder, you’ve got a whole lot more flexibility than you think!
Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind
Let’s walk through this game-changing hack that one of our reporters tested out recently.
The Setup: Two Parks, One Day
Our reporter initially made an EPCOT reservation with one goal in mind — snagging that Guardians VQ. And, he got it! But here’s what he did. Instead of sticking to his EPCOT reservation for the entire morning, he decided to modify it after securing his VQ.
Virtual Queue
So, after grabbing his VQ for Guardians, he went ahead and changed his park reservation from EPCOT to Magic Kingdom. I hear you saying, “Wait, what? You can do that?” Oh yes, you can!
The Hack: Modify and Park Hop
Once you’ve secured your Virtual Queue for Guardians, you don’t actually have to stay at EPCOT for the entire morning, especially if your callback time isn’t until later in the day. Our reporter changed his reservation to Magic Kingdom, popped over there for a bit of fun, and then later park-hopped back to EPCOT when it was time for his Guardians ride.
Screenshot of My Disney Experience ©Disney
This hack works perfectly for those with Annual Passes, because as a Passholder, you can park hop at any time (after you have scanned into your first park). That means you can spend your morning at Magic Kingdom, get in all your favorite rides, and then head to EPCOT when your VQ is called. So, in this example, no need to start your day at EPCOT unless you really want to.
Why It’s So Useful
The beauty of this hack lies in the flexibility it offers. Without it, if you kept your original EPCOT reservation, you’d be stuck having to scan into EPCOT before heading anywhere else, even if your Guardians callback time isn’t until later in the day. By modifying your reservation, you get to enjoy Magic Kingdom first without sacrificing your Guardians ride. It feels like the perfect solution for Passholders who want to maximize their park time without being locked into one spot.
Magic Kingdom
We’re not gonna lie, this is one of those Passholder hacks that feels like you’re bending the rules, but you’re absolutely not! Disney’s system allows you to modify your park reservations, and as long as you’ve got that sweet VQ in hand, you’re golden. So the next time you score a VQ at EPCOT but feel like starting your day at Magic Kingdom, go ahead and modify that reservation. You’ve earned that flexibility, and this hack makes the most of it.
Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind
That’s all we’ve got for you at the moment. Those were just some of on this Disney World Annual Passholder hack, and now we want to hear from you about your favorite Disney World hacks! Until then, keep it right here for all the latest Disney news!
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Does this also apply for those of us with, ahem, legacy Parkhopper Passes? I have some that are 25 years old….
My favorite ‘hack’ is not very hacky. It’s breakfast reservations in a park before it officially opens, or breakfast reservations at a resort with great transpo options to the park we’re visiting that day (like breakfast at Topolino’s and then riding the Skyliner). Dinner options after a park closes, or close to park closing, work well too – ‘extending’ the AK vibes with dinner at AKL, or dinner at a resort on the Skyliner after Hollywood Studios is a good way not to ‘waste’ time on meals in the parks (if you can pass up the options in the parks!). Or maximize time in the park by ‘bookending’ breakfast and dinner at the same resort, but note if you need to park your car, and you only want to make one reservation and do QS for the other, the reservation will need to be for breakfast.