Magic Kingdom Now Runs 8am to 11pm on Thanksgiving Day as Disney World Adds Hours at Three Parks for Thanksgiving Week

Thanksgiving Day at Magic Kingdom is now a 15-hour day. The park opens at 8am and closes at 11pm on Thursday, November 26, an hour earlier and an hour later than the 9am to 10pm Disney first posted.

It is the only Magic Kingdom day to gain two hours. The new Thanksgiving week hours are now on the Walt Disney World website and were reported on the afternoon of Friday, November 6 by Blog Mickey and WDW News Today. Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom all gained time between Sunday, November 22 and Saturday, November 28. EPCOT did not change.

When the week's hours first went up in September, we passed along WDWMagic's advice to treat them as a starting point, because Disney typically extends hours closer to the date. Disney has now done that at three of the four parks.

Main Street, U.S.A. during the holiday season. Thanksgiving Day now runs 8am to 11pm. Photo: WDWMagic

Magic Kingdom, day by day

• Sunday, November 22: 9am to 11pm (was a 10pm close)
• Monday, November 23: 9am to 11pm (was a 10pm close)
• Tuesday, November 24: 8am to 6pm (was a 9am opening), then Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party from 7pm to midnight
• Wednesday, November 25: 9am to 6pm, then the party, unchanged
• Thursday, November 26 (Thanksgiving Day): 8am to 11pm (was 9am to 10pm)
• Friday, November 27: 9am to 6pm, then the party, unchanged
• Saturday, November 28: 9am to 11pm (was a 10pm close)

Early Theme Park Entry for Disney Resort hotel guests moves to 7:30am on the two days that now open at 8am, November 24 and Thanksgiving Day. Every other day keeps its 8:30am early entry. Blog Mickey points out that with these changes, plus the 11pm close on Saturday, November 21 that Disney added last month, every non-party night from November 21 through 28 now ends at 11pm.

The earlier opening on November 24 is for day guests. The park still closes to regular admission at 6pm that evening for the party, and Blog Mickey reports that every November party night, including that one, is already sold out.

A holiday show on the Cinderella Castle stage at Magic Kingdom. Magic Kingdom still closes at 6pm on November 24, 25 and 27 for the party. Photo: WDWMagic

Hollywood Studios opens earlier on two days

Hollywood Studios now opens at 8:30am, with early entry at 8am, on Monday, November 23 and Tuesday, November 24. Disney had listed a 9am opening for both. Closing times did not move: 7pm on the 23rd, when the park turns over to Disney Jollywood Nights at 7:30pm, and 9pm on the 24th.

The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror at Hollywood Studios, which now opens at 8:30am on November 23 and 24. Image: Disney

Animal Kingdom adds evening time on November 22 and 24

Animal Kingdom, which Disney had first posted at 8am to 6pm every day of the week, now runs an hour longer on Sunday, November 22 (to 7pm) and two hours longer on Tuesday, November 24 (to 8pm). Mornings are the same as before, with gates at 8am and resort early entry at 7:30am. That makes November 24 the park's longest regular operating day of the week.

Our September post flagged a disagreement over whether Animal Kingdom's resort-guest Extended Evening fell on Tuesday the 24th or Wednesday the 25th. The themeparks.wiki Animal Kingdom schedule feed, which pulls from Disney's scheduling data, still shows that 6pm to 8pm Extended Evening on Wednesday, November 25, and now shows Tuesday as a regular day running to 8pm. Neither Blog Mickey nor WDW News Today mentions an Animal Kingdom Extended Evening that week, so confirm it on Disney's calendar if you are counting on it.

The Tree of Life at Animal Kingdom, now open until 8pm on November 24. Photo: Walt Disney World

EPCOT holds steady

Nothing moved at EPCOT, which is open 9am to 9pm every day of the week. The one extra is the same as in September: a 9pm to 11pm Extended Evening on Monday, November 23 for guests staying at eligible Disney resort hotels.

If you are planning the week: Thanksgiving Day is now the longest Magic Kingdom day of the week for anyone without a party ticket, and Sunday, Monday and Saturday all run to 11pm. If you need a Magic Kingdom evening and do not have a party ticket, skip November 24, 25 and 27. Disney can still change hours before the week arrives, so check the calendar again before you go.

Which day are you using for Magic Kingdom that week?

Sources

• Blog Mickey, "Disney World Extends Thanksgiving Week Hours" (November 6, 2026)
• WDW News Today, "Walt Disney World Extends Theme Park Hours for Thanksgiving Week 2026" (November 6, 2026)
• themeparks.wiki, Magic Kingdom November 2026 schedule feed (checked November 6, 2026)
• themeparks.wiki, Animal Kingdom November 2026 schedule feed (checked November 6, 2026)

Image credits: Main Street and castle stage photos by WDWMagic. Tower of Terror image by Disney. Tree of Life photo by Walt Disney World.