I Went to EPCOT After Hours — Here’s If I’d Do It Again

Hello everyone!

I hope this summer has been treating you well! I am here with another review of a Disney Enchanting Extra that has exploded in popularity recently: Disney After Hours.

What is Disney After Hours?

Disney After Hours is a separately ticketed event that allows guests to stay in a designated park for a few hours after regular park close. The biggest draw of these events is the opportunity to experience shorter wait times on big-ticket attractions with lower crowds than a typical park day.

There are also a few extra perks included with your event ticket, such as complimentary bottled beverages, popcorn, ice cream novelties, and some scattered character meet-and-greets throughout the park.

Another major benefit is early entry. Your ticket usually allows you to enter the park about two to two and a half hours before the event officially begins. This is one of the biggest wins in my opinion because it gives you extra time to enjoy the park before the After Hours event starts. Depending on the park and event time, this may also give you the chance to catch the nighttime show before the event officially kicks off.

EPCOT After Hours — Tickets and Info

One of my best friends and I decided to attend EPCOT After Hours on April 15 while she was visiting Orlando. We saw that the dates lined up perfectly and decided to take a chance on it, especially since neither of us had attended an EPCOT After Hours event before. It was also a big travel day for both of us, so we knew going into it that we were going to have to pace ourselves.

For Tiffany, we purchased the regular ticket, which came out to $179 before tax. I was able to purchase my ticket at a discounted annual passholder rate, which brought mine down to $149 before tax. EPCOT After Hours pricing can vary by date, with tickets generally costing more during peak times. Disney uses dynamic pricing for these events, so keep that in mind when comparing dates and planning your visit.

Our event took place from 9:30 PM to 12:30 AM, with access to the park beginning at 7:00 PM. We were able to get into EPCOT a little before 8:00 PM after I picked Tiffany up from the airport and we made our way back to Walt Disney World property.

Check-in was super simple. All we needed was the barcode sent to our email, which was scanned before we were given wristbands designating us as event attendees. From there, we grabbed an event map and started our journey around EPCOT.

Our Experience and Attractions

Since we arrived a little after 8:00 PM, we decided to take a walk around World Showcase and grab a spot for Luminous, which started at 9:00 PM. This was one of the things on our must-do list since Tiffany had not been able to see the show yet. We ended up standing just in front of the Port of Entry shops with a great view overlooking the lagoon.

Once Luminous finished, we started with our first ride of the night: Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind. This was by far the longest wait we had during the event. We got in line at 9:36 PM and got off the ride a little after 10:15 PM, giving us a wait of almost 40 minutes. This was definitely longer than we expected for an After Hours event, but considering the attraction had not gone under 90 minutes earlier that day, I still took it as a win.

From there, we grabbed our first snacks of the night: popcorn, sodas, and Mickey bars. These are included with the price of admission, which is a fun perk and definitely helps add a little extra value to the event. There is just something about walking around EPCOT late at night with a Mickey bar and lower crowds that feels extra magical.

Our second ride of the event was Test Track. We entered the line at 10:32 PM and got off at 11:03 PM. This was another attraction where we waited longer than the posted wait time, which was listed at 20 minutes. After that, we decided to make our way over to The Land Pavilion to ride Soarin’.

On our way to Soarin’, I will admit we got distracted by the dance party happening with Goofy at the pavilion. I may have stayed for two or three songs just having a good ol’ time dancing with Goofy to Disney and pop hits that are definitely on my playlist. Although this put us more behind schedule than planned, it ended up being one of the highlights of our night.

We arrived at The Land Pavilion around 11:20 PM to ride Soarin’, which was posted as a 10-minute wait. We decided to save Living with the Land for the next day when we came back to the parks, just to maximize our event time as much as possible. We ended up walking right onto Soarin’ and were out in about 15 minutes.

From there, we decided to hightail it over to the France Pavilion for one last ride: Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure. This was also posted as a 10-minute wait, but it was actually a walk-on. We got in line exactly at 12:00 AM and were off the ride by 12:07 AM.

We were going to attempt to make it over to Norway before the event ended to ride Frozen Ever After, but with Tiffany having a full travel day from flying in and me driving almost three hours on I-4 in traffic to get to Orlando, we decided to call it a night a little early. Since we had Animal Kingdom planned for the next morning, getting back to the hotel and getting some rest felt like the better choice.

Attraction	Posted Wait Time	Actual Wait Time	Average Wait During Normal Park Hours	Time Saved During Event
Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind	30 minutes	39 minutes	83 minutes	44 minutes
Test Track	20 minutes	30 minutes	82 minutes	52 minutes
Soarin' Around the World	15 minutes	Walk-on	57 minutes	57 minutes
Remy's Ratatouille Adventure	10 minutes	Walk-on	46 minutes	46 minutes

Our Thoughts and Conclusion

Overall, I can definitely see the benefits of EPCOT After Hours, especially during peak seasons when wait times are high and Lightning Lane selections can be harder to secure. At the beginning of the night, we did experience longer waits than expected, especially for Cosmic Rewind and Test Track. However, as the night went on, the wait times noticeably dropped, and we were able to walk on attractions like Soarin’ and Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure.

For us, the event was fun, unique, and a great way to experience EPCOT with lower crowds. I loved being able to see Luminous before the event officially started, grab included snacks throughout the night, ride some of EPCOT’s bigger attractions, and somehow end up at a dance party with Goofy.

Would I do EPCOT After Hours again? Yes, but I would recommend going into it well-rested and with a loose priority list. This event is best for guests who can stay up late, want shorter attraction waits, and are okay spending extra for a more relaxed park experience. If you are trying to ride every single attraction or are already exhausted from travel, you may not get the full value out of the event.

I will also admit that for similar pricing, Disney does offer other separately ticketed events throughout the year, such as Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party and Disney Jollywood Nights. Those events typically include more entertainment, themed offerings, and seasonal experiences in addition to attractions. Because of that, I think what you value most will really determine whether EPCOT After Hours is worth the cost for you.

If your main goal is to knock out major attractions with lower waits and enjoy some included snacks, EPCOT After Hours can be a great option. If you are looking for a more immersive, entertainment-heavy event with exclusive offerings, I would personally lean toward one of Disney’s themed seasonal events in the fall or winter.

Overall, I think EPCOT After Hours can be worth it for the right guest, especially if you are visiting during a busier time of year or want a lower-crowd way to enjoy the park. It may not be an every-trip must-do for me, but I am really glad we experienced it.