Average Day at MK- Rope Drop, Crowds, and Wait Times

[mesaboy2]

Mission accomplished.

 

[wisblue]

I was hoping that this thread could stay focused on things that could help people plan their trips and not drift into another debate about whether people like or dislike FP+ and whether they agree or disagree with Disney's business decisions.

 

[Angel Ariel]

I'm not sure what you are wanting people to share. If data is worth more than anecdotes when it comes to wait times, then what should people be sharing here? The data is available elsewhere..it doesn't need to be reposted here, and anecdotes are likely to.be part of any discussion of that data...

I'm not questioning what you find valuable. Like I said before, that's subjective for everyone. Speaking for myself only, the tenor of this thread doesn't make me feel welcome to share my experience. TBH, I've been sharing less and less on these boards over the last few months for the same reason.

 

[mom2rtk]

New here. Eh, Ive perused the boards for a long time. And yes, my experience in reading is that many complain for the sake of complaining. Yes, an AP holder who goes regularly would have a drastically different view of the programs or roll outs of various things as compared to the one time a year or less visitor. And I find message boards tend to be a place for people to levy their complaints and generally without much evidence to back it up. There most certainly will be those who do experience things differently, but, I tend to rely much more on actual experience someone tells me about in person where you can ask questions and really see their thinking rather than anonymous posts on a message board. Disney doesnt do much of anything without seriously thinking steps ahead. And unless you are trying to think ahead with them and not just immediate gratification, then its easy to get caught up in the, "oh thats terrible".

So do you think Disney's primary goal is for me to maximize my personal enjoyment in the parks?

Isn't it possible that Disney's primary goal is to maximize profit?

Isn't it possible that those 2 might sometimes be at odds?

I used to think Disney's primary goal was maximizing profit by maximizing guest enjoyment. I think lately they have changed their approach to merely maximizing profit. If guests maximize their experience along the way, that's great, but I don't think that's their primary goal any longer.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I absolutely believe someone with an AP has a better opportunity to observe and comment on a larger cross section of experiences in the parks. A larger sample size will always be preferable. But that's different from having a typical feeling about and reaction to those experiences. It's just a different perspective. Honestly, I would probably love FP+ if I was a local AP holder. The stakes are just different if you can make up what you miss in a week or two when you get back again. That's not meant to be dismissive. It just is what it is.

I'm not sure I understand your DL comment.RSR does not have 12 hour lines, but it does have prohibitively long lines sometimes. We did miss out on riding Space Mountain last time we were in the MK because of a prohibitively long standby line. Yes, standby was available. But we don't do 120 minute waits. Heck, we really don't do 60 minute waits. I don't pay $100+ to spend a day in the MK only to spend 2 hours of that day in one line.

We are indeed staying onsite with the plan of staying until the end of the PM EMH. As such, we won't even be arriving at rope drop this time.

I appreciate the well wishes. I have every reason to expect that we will have an awesome time.

You made a comment about having to choose one or the other and I inferred that meant not doing one of them at all. I went to describe the only parameter I knew of that would prevent one from riding a ride if both rides were important.
There may be other parameters such as the limits for standby you are willing to deal with. But as far as literally one or the other, I cannot think of any.

We have never done evening EMH, so I don't know anything about it.

We did the one day visit a few years back with no AP and no idea when we would be back to visit let alone life here and have an AP. So I do understand about not wanting to waste park time on lengthy lines. We had the benefit of going on a very low crowd day. And the misfortune of blustery weather. Boy was it chilly.

ETA: not sure why my whole response went to bold. Nor how to undo it.

 

[mom2rtk]

I'm not sure what you are wanting people to share. If data is worth more than anecdotes when it comes to wait times, then what should people be sharing here? The data is available elsewhere..it doesn't need to be reposted here, and anecdotes are likely to.be part of any discussion of that data...

I'm not questioning what you find valuable. Like I said before, that's subjective for everyone. Speaking for myself only, the tenor of this thread doesn't make me feel welcome to share my experience. TBH, I've been sharing less and less on these boards over the last few months for the same reason.

Agreed. And even if someone is in the parks every day of the year, it's still anecdotal as no one person can be on every ride at every point in the day. It's still a very small sampling.

 

[mesaboy2]

I was hoping that this thread could stay focused on things that could help people plan their trips and not drift into another debate about whether people like or dislike FP+ and whether they agree or disagree with Disney's business decisions.

Then I would sincerely recommend avoiding overt comparisons between FP+ and its predecessor in the OP. I found a way to do that a while back, and it's worked out pretty well so far.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

So you're doubling down on the "people just hate change" theory for why some don't like FP+?

Do you have an theory for why so many of those same people are thrilled with the changes at DLR?

My theory is that you got extra stuff, right?

I don't like change per se. I don't consider an addition a "change". Can't speak for Larandtra--but if a ride is added, no big deal. People don't mind when nothing was lost.

But did people like that part of the GC resort was changed for DVC? Or was no one upset when the Nemo subs took the place of 20,000 leagues.

I mean--The Pooh ride is nice, but we lost Mr Toad for it. 20,000 leagues went away, eventually filled in and replaced with a playground that was removed for a mine train.

By what I have read, change was welcome at DLR, mainly DCA--because folks didn't care for the change that brought DCA and the park was meh. So if something is meh and change occurs to make it not meh--it would be better received.

I was always amused by the refurbishment signs where Disney posts they are doing something for "your future enjoyment".
It comes across more friendly than "construction zone".

The psychology of change is fascinating. And the Dis is a great place to observe that.

 

[NavyDad]

Haha - these threads are so funny. They always draw the same people that are firmly entrenched in their positions.....

As has always been the case those who are the most prepared are in the best position to get the most out of their touring. I really appreciate Josh's blog and the work Mesa has done to inform us how to use the current system to our advantage.

If people would just get over feeling like they have to carry the water for one side or another things could move forward....

 

[Angel Ariel]

As has always been the case those who are the most prepared are in the best position to get the most out of their touring. I really appreciate Josh's blog and the work Mesa has done to inform us how to use the current system to our advantage.

Ita

 

[mesaboy2]

You made a comment about having to choose one or the other and I inferred that meant not doing one of them at all. I went to describe the only parameter I knew of that would prevent one from riding a ride if both rides were important.
There may be other parameters such as the limits for standby you are willing to deal with. But as far as literally one or the other, I cannot think of any.

We have never done evening EMH, so I don't know anything about it.

We did the one day visit a few years back with no AP and no idea when we would be back to visit let alone life here and have an AP. So I do understand about not wanting to waste park time on lengthy lines. We had the benefit of going on a very low crowd day. And the misfortune of blustery weather. Boy was it chilly.

ETA: not sure why my whole response went to bold. Nor how to undo it.

This has gotten me recently too. I select the entire text and bold it, then bold it again (unbolding it), and then bold the portion you want.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

This has gotten me recently too. I select the entire text and bold it, then bold it again (unbolding it), and then bold the portion you want.

That worked. Thanks!

 

[momof2n2]

I learn so much on this board.

 

[Mickey&Mouse]

Here I am! Congratulations, you have now met an experienced WDW vet who knows how to plan and hits every rope drop, but who doesn't think FP+ makes touring more enjoyable and less stressful.

If FP+ works for you, great! There are lots of different ways to do Disney, and everyone is entitled to their opinion. So please don't label people with different opinions as complainers who just like to complain. There are those who think their opinion is better than anyone else's, and like to just complain about people who complain just to complain.

On our last trip, there were some days FP+ was an advantage, but more days where we would have gotten more done with old paper FP. I will give you one simple concrete example of why FP+ was not an improvement for us. With old paper FP, our first three FP of the day at HS would typically be TSMM/RnRC/ToT. At Epcot it would be Soarin/TestTrack/TestTrack. At MK some days Thunder/Splash/Thunder, other days Space/Space/Buzz. At AK Everest/Safari/Everest. All of those touring strategies are now impossible with FP+ rules and tiers, resulting in us getting fewer rides on the attractions that we wanted to do the most. I hope you can understand that I'm not complaining just for the sake of complaining.

Agreed.

For us last week, FP+ ultimately made it more stressful. Repeating headliners was a challenge, particularly at Epcot and DHS. The *feeling scheduled* aspect was front and center- and not enjoyable. I actually ripped the cell phone pocket of my bag because I was having to look at my phone so much. We criss-crossed far more than we ever had in the past. The kiosks are too few and far between. The kiosk line in the breezeway between Frontierland and Adventureland is very long and doesn't appear to move at all. We actually sent a FP runner to the JC kiosk while we waited in the breezeway line- he ran over, scheduled our 4th, and ran back all while we were in the same exact position in line.

One thing that FP+ has successfully accomplished: highlighting with a laser beam how sorely lacking in headliner attractions both Epcot and DHS are.

 

[Planogirl]

I think that the truth is that a forum such as this is a place to share experiences both good and bad. You can't discount bad experiences just because you don't agree with them or just find them unpleasant. They are reality for the people reporting them just as good experiences are the reality for those reporting them. Forums that allow such open discussion seem to be busier than those that don't and with good reason.

I do agree that FP+ is what we have and we all need to learn to deal with it or just not go. However any time a thread is started comparing the new with the old then those who prefer the old are going to say so. To think otherwise is to be a bit naïve to put it mildly.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Agreed.

For us last week, FP+ ultimately made it more stressful. Repeating headliners was a challenge, particularly at Epcot and DHS. The *feeling scheduled* aspect was front and center- and not enjoyable. I actually ripped the cell phone pocket of my bag because I was having to look at my phone so much. We criss-crossed far more than we ever had in the past. The kiosks are too few and far between. The kiosk line in the breezeway between Frontierland and Adventureland is very long and doesn't appear to move at all. We actually sent a FP runner to the JC kiosk while we waited in the breezeway line- he ran over, scheduled our 4th, and ran back all while we were in the same exact position in line.

One thing that FP+ has successfully accomplished: highlighting with a laser beam how sorely lacking in headliner attractions both Epcot and DHS are.

Without a doubt!


As to the rest, I'm sorry that you experienced that. There is some strategy technique that helps to make that less of an issue. Please don't take this as a dismissal of your experience. I can understand how, for some, this strategy wasn't needed before.

For us-it is the same strategy we have always used (rope drop and zoning) and now we just tweak that as needed. For our family, the rope drop thing worked well for the past several visits and helped the family reride their top choice headliner 2-3 times. Doesn't work for ALL headliners in that we had to pick ONE and maybe two if they were next to each other. But it certainly helped the family score re-rides on RNR, TOT, Space Mountain, and Splash Mountain on the given days we did reride. (6am on 24 hour day was the best result with a record of 4x on BTMRR.) Now if only I can deal with the battery life on my phone.

 

[mom2rtk]

I think that the truth is that a forum such as this is a place to share experiences both good and bad. You can't discount bad experiences just because you don't agree with them or just find them unpleasant. They are reality for the people reporting them just as good experiences are the reality for those reporting them. Forums that allow such open discussion seem to be busier than those that don't and with good reason.

I do agree that FP+ is what we have and we all need to learn to deal with it or just not go. However any time a thread is started comparing the new with the old then those who prefer the old are going to say so. To think otherwise is to be a bit naïve to put it mildly.

Very nicely put PlanoGirl!

 

[Mickey&Mouse]

Without a doubt!


As to the rest, I'm sorry that you experienced that. There is some strategy technique that helps to make that less of an issue. Please don't take this as a dismissal of your experience. I can understand how, for some, this strategy wasn't needed before.

For us-it is the same strategy we have always used (rope drop and zoning) and now we just tweak that as needed. For our family, the rope drop thing worked well for the past several visits and helped the family reride their top choice headliner 2-3 times. Doesn't work for ALL headliners in that we had to pick ONE and maybe two if they were next to each other. But it certainly helped the family score re-rides on RNR, TOT, Space Mountain, and Splash Mountain on the given days we did reride. (6am on 24 hour day was the best result with a record of 4x on BTMRR.) Now if only I can deal with the battery life on my phone.

We definitely took advantage of RD most days and were able to get standby headliners in that way; however, TT and Soarin consistently had very long lines throughout our one day there. In the past we would have been able to FP both a second time. This trip we rode Soarin once with a FP, and TT once standby at RD. They both were unavailable for a 4th around 12:30-1PM as well- so no re-rides . We had two days at DHS which was our saving grace on re-riding RNRC and TOT. Thurs May 14 at DHS was insanely crowded and we could only get one FP for RNRC. Again, in the past we would have been able to get FP's for TSMM, RNRC, and TOT- with multiple FP's for RNRC and TOT.

 

[Austintatious]

So with the spirit of this thread in mind I checked some wait times online about thirty minutes ago.

Both Spaceship Earth and The Great Movie Ride had a posted 45 minute wait. Living with the Land was at 40. Tuesday morning, late May.

Does that seem about right?

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

We definitely took advantage of RD most days and were able to get standby headliners in that way; however, TT and Soarin consistently had very long lines throughout our one day there. In the past we would have been able to FP both a second time. This trip we rode Soarin once with a FP, and TT once standby at RD. They both were unavailable for a 4th around 12:30-1PM as well- so no re-rides . We had two days at DHS which was our saving grace on re-riding RNRC and TOT. Thurs May 14 at DHS was insanely crowded and we could only get one FP for RNRC. Again, in the past we would have been able to get FP's for TSMM, RNRC, and TOT- with multiple FP's for RNRC and TOT.

I have not ridden Soarin' or Test Track since our 2012 trip. The family has though. I haven't a clue on how to do re-rides on those in the current system. Single rider line for TT, maybe? I have written off Soarin' as a lost cause, personally. Nice ride--but I don't get the waits at all.

Our experiences at DHS have been different than yours, except for TSMM. And that is without even using our rider swap that we do get. To be clear, if I mention a re-ride on an attraction, I will mention if it involved a Rider swap. So any re-riding I am talking about is either with Standby only or with Standby and FP+. When I mention the rider swap times, it is usually for the consideration of giving an idea of our day and the times we spent at attractions.