Park Hopping is set to return to Disney on January 1 — but with some conditions

Disney World opened its gates this summer following a 117-day closure, offering a different experience for guests. In addition to numerous safety measures, one of the most significant changes was the suspension of the Park Hopping feature, which previously allowed visitors to explore multiple theme parks in one day.

Beginning January 1, the ability to visit several parks in a single day will resume, though in a revised format.

The Disney Parks Blog revealed that ticket holders and annual pass members with the Park Hopping option (i.e., the pricier ticket) will have the opportunity to visit various parks, provided that:

1. You need to make a reservation for your initial park using the Park Reservation System
2. After that, you visit the first park
3. Then, you may go to a second park starting at 2 p.m.
4. No reservation is necessary for your second (or third or fourth) park, but capacity limits will still be enforced

This means you could transition from Animal Kingdom to Hollywood Studios after 2 p.m., but be aware that Hollywood Studios (currently the most sought-after park due to Star Wars Galaxy's Edge and Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway) might already be at full capacity.

Ideally, Disney will implement some form of monitoring and alerts through the Disney World App to notify you of park capacity before you attempt to move to a second park. Disney also indicated that Park Hopping hours might shift from 2 p.m. in the future, depending on the park and date, so check the app during your visit.

The return of Park Hopping follows Disney's announcement of an increase in capacity from 25% to 35%, with parks being 77% booked for the holiday season in the park pass reservation system.

The announcement of expanded park options and higher capacity comes as the U.S. is nearing 200,000 new COVID-19 cases daily, with the CDC strongly advising against travel during Thanksgiving.