In recent years, Early Entry — the 30-minute period each morning when guests of Disney resorts and other select hotels can access each of the theme parks prior to the general public — has been one of Disney World’s most popular perks.
For the majority of that time, the main draw for guests was to immediately rush to the busiest rides at their chosen parks. However, this year Disney is introducing a new perk with… character!
Characters!
During the Cool Kids Summer promotion, which runs from May 26th to September 8th, hotel guests eligible for Early Entry will be able to meet a rotating cast of Disney characters at each park before they park opens to the general public. Meaning that, at least some guests who usually rush to rides will instead try to knock out character meet & greets in the early morning.
Judging by previous examples, there’s no list of which characters will be available in each park, but they WILL be different! Disney is encouraging guests to visit the different parks for Early Entry throughout their trip so they can take advantage of all the special meet and greets. Now, it’s important to note that this won’t take away from any of the regularly scheduled meet and greets in each park throughout regular park hours — it’s just in addition to what’s already scheduled.
Of course, rides are still a big part of Early Entry. The following rides are scheduled to be on offer:
Magic Kingdom
- “it’s a small world”
- Astro Orbiter
- Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin
- Dumbo the Flying Elephant
- Mad Tea Party
- Mickey’s PhilharMagic
- Peter Pan’s Flight
- Prince Charming Regal Carrousel
- Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
- Space Mountain
- The Barnstormer
- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
- Tomorrowland Speedway
- Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover
- Under the Sea ~ Journey of The Little Mermaid
- Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress
EPCOT
- Frozen Ever After
- Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind
- Mission: SPACE
- Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure
- Soarin’ Around the World
- Spaceship Earth
- Test Track
- The Seas with Nemo & Friends
Disney’s Hollywood Studios
- Alien Swirling Saucers
- Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway
- Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run
- Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith
- Slinky Dog Dash
- Star Tours – The Adventures Continue
- Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance
- The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
- Toy Story Mania!
Animal Kingdom
- Avatar Flight of Passage
- Expedition Everest – Legend of the Forbidden Mountain
- Na’vi River Journey
- Zootopia: Better Zoogether!
As if Disney’s Early Entry perk wasn’t valuable enough for hotel guests, 2026 is adding characters to the mix! Stay tuned to AllEars for more on the resort’s offers this year!
The Perks of an Adults-Only Trip to WDW
Are you excited for characters being added to Early Entry? Let us know in the comments below.
Dinosaur is gone and should be removed from the list. This leaves just 4 rides open early which are going to have some ugly long lines. 😭