Disney World Announces Return of Extended Evening Hours for 2026

Who’s ready to start planning their 2026 Disney World vacation?!

Cinderella Castle in Magic Kingdom

Packages for Walt Disney World Resort are now available to book for 2026, and we’re getting hyped about planning our vacations in advance. Special deals have already been announced, like a free Dining Plan offer for kids, but what about the perks of staying at a Disney World Resort? Well, we’ve got updates about those, too.

Disney World has announced that Extended Evening Hours are returning in 2026! This perk is offered exclusively to guests staying at Deluxe Resorts and Disney Vacation Club Resorts on Disney World property.

Extended Evening Hours typically take place twice a week, with the dates and parks changing depending on the season. We’ve seen Extended Evening Hours offered at all four parks at different times in the past, but they seem to happen most often at Magic Kingdom and EPCOT.

Extended Evening Hours give you two extra hours after the park closes to hop on rides and enjoy low crowds and low wait times! It’s a great perk if you’re trying to accomplish everything in the park in one day, but it’s important to check the list of available attractions before you go — not every ride or show is open during those extra hours.

This is an awesome offering for night owls who don’t want to get up early every day of vacation to do the rope drop rigamarole. You’ll also appreciate Extended Evening Hours if you miss the days of Extra Magic Hours in the evenings.

Because this perk is only offered to those staying at Disney World’s most expensive hotels, it’s a bit more exclusive than the 30-minute Early Theme Park Entry that all resort guests get each day. We’ve even seen some people plan one-night Deluxe Resort stays just to take advantage of this offering.

Extended Evening Hours at Animal Kingdom

So if you’re heading to Disney World in 2026, you can start planning your vacation schedule now! And check out our video below to see how to plan your trip for this year.