Walt Disney World has posted its first park hours for Thanksgiving week, covering all four theme parks from Sunday, November 22, through Saturday, November 28, 2026. The calendar includes three 6 p.m. Magic Kingdom closings for Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, two 7 p.m. Hollywood Studios closings for Disney Jollywood Nights, and one Extended Evening Hours window each at EPCOT and Animal Kingdom.
And the holiday calendar has one very Disney plot twist: Thanksgiving Day itself is the generous one. Magic Kingdom stays open from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Thursday, while Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday all end at 6 p.m. for Christmas parties. The turkey is behaving; Mickey’s party calendar is the one rearranging the table.
Magic Kingdom has three little curfews
Magic Kingdom is currently listed from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on November 22, 23, 26, and 28. On November 24, 25, and 27, regular park hours end at 6 p.m., with Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party beginning at 7 p.m.
Wednesday, November 25, is the sneaky one. A pre-Thanksgiving Magic Kingdom day sounds like a natural fit until the clock strikes six and the evening belongs to party guests. Thursday, November 26, does the opposite: Thanksgiving Day carries the longer 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. schedule, with no Christmas party listed that night.
Disney resort guests get Early Theme Park Entry at 8:30 a.m. each day under the initial schedule. That extra half hour looks especially handsome on the three party dates, when the published regular park day spans nine hours instead of the 13-hour window currently listed for the longer dates.
Hollywood Studios has its own pair of holiday-party cuts. The park is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Monday, November 23, and Saturday, November 28, before Disney Jollywood Nights begins at 7:30 p.m. Every other day that week is listed from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., with Early Theme Park Entry at 8:30 a.m.
Two parks, two different parties, and five early closings in one week: those are the dates we would circle before making a single dinner reservation. Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party and Disney Jollywood Nights are separately ticketed events, not extensions of regular daytime admission.
EPCOT holds steady; Animal Kingdom gets two hours after dark
EPCOT is the calm one on this calendar, open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day from November 22 through 28. Eligible resort guests also have Extended Evening Hours from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Monday, November 23, while Early Theme Park Entry begins at 8:30 a.m. daily.
Animal Kingdom is just as consistent: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. all week, with Early Theme Park Entry at 7:30 a.m. The better surprise arrives Tuesday, November 24, when eligible resort guests have Extended Evening Hours from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Animal Kingdom after sunset is already a rarer treat than an EPCOT late night; seeing it land beside a 6 p.m. Magic Kingdom party closure makes that Tuesday particularly interesting.
The initial schedule does not name every hotel whose guests qualify for Extended Evening Hours, so eligibility should be checked against the reservation rather than assumed from the words “Disney resort.” WDWMAGIC also notes that these are the first hours posted more than two months ahead and that Disney often extends park hours closer to busy holiday dates. The hours can still stretch, but those five party-night closures are the sharpest marks on the page.
