Epcot/Guardians/Entering park from World Showcase

[M&E]

With the elimination of the virtual queue for Guardians, will anything be done to even out the distance walked/travelled for those that arrive on the Skyliner? We are big rope droppers and Guardians is our favorite ride. We also stay at Pop for the ease and convenience of the Skyliner... but if it puts us at a huge disadvantage then MAYBE we would take the bus. Thoughts?

 

[fla4fun]

With the elimination of the virtual queue for Guardians, will anything be done to even out the distance walked/travelled for those that arrive on the Skyliner? We are big rope droppers and Guardians is our favorite ride. We also stay at Pop for the ease and convenience of the Skyliner... but if it puts us at a huge disadvantage then MAYBE we would take the bus. Thoughts?

My first thought is that they don’t run buses from Pop to Epcot if the Skyliner is operating. They only run buses when the Skyliner shuts down for weather or mechanical issues. So you won’t have the choice of one or the other for rope drop. You will have to ride whichever one is operating.

Your best option if you want to enter the front of the park (and you don’t have a car) is probably Minnie Van, Lyft, or Uber, or switching your reservation to a resort that has dedicated bus service to Epcot.

 

[CarolynFH]

will anything be done to even out the distance walked/travelled for those that arrive on the Skyliner?

Realistically, I doubt they would do this. They don’t do anything to even out the distance walked from the front of Epcot to Remy, which is why we see questions here from guests wanting to get to the IG instead of taking the bus from their resort to Epcot. Sorry.

 

[scrappinginontario]

I agree with above. Since the attraction opened, guests at the front of the park have been at a disadvantage for reaching Remy. This in many ways levels the playing field.

The only (long) option if you want to enter fro the front of the park and not pay is to take the Skyliner to DHS then take a bus to a non-Skyliner resort then take a bus from that resort to Epcot. It’s not pretty but an option.

 

[SL6827]

This will be a game changer. Wonder just how early Disney resort guest will line up for EE at the front of the park for the best ride in Disney?

 

[scrappinginontario]

This will be a game changer. Wonder just how early Disney resort guest will line up for EE at the front of the park for the best ride in Disney?

The parks and parking will not open any earlier so I would not anticipate much of a change. Disney transportation will not start earlier nor will parking open earlier so I would not anticipate much/any change.

When Rise was the big draw, police monitored the parking booths at DHS and had guests who arrive too early drive away. I would not be surprised if they start doing the same at Epcot if it becomes a problem.

 

[M&E]

All good points. The last time I was at Disney was May 2024. When I went to Epcot (entering from the front) you were let into the new center area with all the trees. There were different places you could line up and wait. Depending on if you were headed to Test Track or something in WS like Remy. I wonder if they will let guests walk through UK and Canada to line up in that center hub to wait for Guardians.

 

[SL6827]

Wonder how close to closing time will they let guest enter the stand by line?

 

[Mle8308]

Wonder how close to closing time will they let guest enter the stand by line?

They have to allow people to enter the line up until park closing time. Now they can inflate the wait time to discourage people (ask me how I know), but the line does have to remain open until official park close.

 

[CarolynFH]

They have to allow people to enter the line up until park closing time. Now they can inflate the wait time to discourage people (ask me how I know), but the line does have to remain open until official park close.

The one exception to this that I can remember was when Flight of Passage in AK was new and routinely had 3-hour standby lines. They'd close the line early - can't remember how early, but possibly an hour, maybe more, before park closing time - but they would state it clearly, maybe with park hours? I can't remember the details!

 

[scrappinginontario]

Wonder how close to closing time will they let guest enter the stand by line?

Epcot normally closes at 9PM so it is anticipated guests will be able to join the line until 8:59:59PM. As @CarolynFH said, if the line is extremely long, that may change. We really won't know until we see what wait times are like starting Monday.

 

[elvispursley]

I feel that while GotG is the best attraction at WDW, a lot of people have ridden it and can’t tolerate it, getting sick. Hoping once TT opens, it will help disperse the the crowds a little.

Now the conundrum arises for where to stay for a trip this fall!! We tend to like crescent lake but maybe we’ll change it up to a monorail resort for this next trip!

 

[traveler9]

I doubt Guardians will have a huge line near park closing. Getting in line for that will mean missing the fireworks since they start at park close.

 

[gottalovepluto]

All good points. The last time I was at Disney was May 2024. When I went to Epcot (entering from the front) you were let into the new center area with all the trees. There were different places you could line up and wait. Depending on if you were headed to Test Track or something in WS like Remy. I wonder if they will let guests walk through UK and Canada to line up in that center hub to wait for Guardians.

I don’t see them changing that. Last I saw it they held guests in Canada for IG EE RD (want to hit Frozen or Soarin). if they moved that line up they would have to start holding in multiple sections as not everyone is going to be headed to GOTG.

Concur with PP this now evens the playing field rather for IG’s access to Remy.

 

[kylenne]

I feel that while GotG is the best attraction at WDW, a lot of people have ridden it and can’t tolerate it, getting sick. Hoping once TT opens, it will help disperse the the crowds a little.

tbh EE at Epcot for me once TT is back is most likely going to be like Pandora where we will buy SP for Guardians and head to TT instead. I doubt TT will be as empty at rope drop as Navi but it should be a considerably less stressful experience than heading to Cosmic Rewind first thing--I feel like that will be a FoP level running of the bulls situation and I avoid those at all costs. Re-ride attempts will probably be for EEH nights.

Now the conundrum arises for where to stay for a trip this fall!! We tend to like crescent lake but maybe we’ll change it up to a monorail resort for this next trip!

Funny enough we are doing a split between them in May, BWI then Poly, so it will be interesting to see how both methods work out.

 

[ScarletFire]

Once TT reopens, the lines will disperse between both attractions. Unless TT is the new VQ

Think about it like this: The bus ride to the front entrance might take longer than the skyliner to IG. Maybe your overall wait times will be equal. Definitely shorter for those staying at Cresent Lake.

 

[kylenne]

Once TT reopens, the lines will disperse between both attractions. Unless TT is the new VQ

Sincerely doubt that will be the case given the presence of single rider there, it won't be necessary tbh.

Think about it like this: The bus ride to the front entrance might take longer than the skyliner to IG. Maybe your overall wait times will be equal. Definitely shorter for those staying at Cresent Lake.

There is no way in hades a Crescent Lake guest is going to have a shorter wait rope dropping Guardians from the IG than bus or monorail guests unless they've spontaneously discovered teleportation, for the exact same reason rope dropping Remy from the front entrance is the worst possible use of your time: literally everyone coming in from the closer entrance will have poured into those queues by the time you even manage to cross the entire length of the park to reach it from the opposite entrance. It has nothing to do with transportation times to the park and everything to do with the geography of it once you're there. Maybe if IG guests were let in earlier than main entrance, but that hasn't been the case since early on in weird pandemic era Epcot. Everyone is kept at both holding points until EE begins so even if you're front of the pack at IG you have, at minimum, 10 min of crazy power walking to World Discovery just to end up behind everyone who was coming in the front.

Just like today, IG guests will have the advantage for Remy and bus/monorail/driving guests will have the advantage for World Discovery attractions. The only net gain imo will be for anyone attempting to rope drop Frozen esp. while Test Track is still offline, because it's roughly equidistant to both park entrances and virtually no one will be heading there first anymore when Guardians is open for standby during EE. Until TT went down everyone front entrance and IG tended to do Frozen second. We will probably end up rope dropping Frozen for that reason during the Poly half of our split stay in May, and just buy SP for Guardians.

 

[ScarletFire]

I am factoring in the the walk to the bus stop, the wait for the bus, the bus ride, walk to the front entrance, security, tap, wait at the rope, wait in line. It's all part of the wait.

 

[traveler9]

Sounds like Soarin will be pretty quiet in the morning once Guardians goes to standby.

 

[kylenne]

I am factoring in the the walk to the bus stop, the wait for the bus, the bus ride, walk to the front entrance, security, tap, wait at the rope, wait in line. It's all part of the wait.

Those people will still be long in the queue before IG guests even get halfway to WD. That walk is LONG and I don't think you really understand how long it is. Back in June '21 before Remy opened and when they were still doing the weird pandemic procedures where IG guests were being let in slightly before people at the front of the park, I rope dropped Soarin from the IG (kind of by accident, because I just sort of got caught in the crowd flow) and was still behind a whole bunch of people who came in from the front. Fortunately the wait wasn't awful just because Soarin has crazy high capacity with all three theaters running but that will absolutely not be the case with Cosmic Rewind.

Even if it made sense to count all that time against people coming from the front (and it genuinely doesn't lol) you're not factoring in the non-insignificant number of people arriving via monorail who don't have to go through security at Epcot because they already did much shorter lines at their resorts. We could also throw in equally silly factors like how long it takes Skyliner guests to transfer lines at CBR. But all of this is insignificant because the simple reality is nobody coming from the front is going to take more time to get to World Discovery than someone coming from clear across the park, even if they are walking in main from the furthest possible point (the non-Disney rideshare drop off, which is actually past the bus depot). The only time that matters for this comparison is the time before the park opens and Blue route will have Pandora level crowds held much, much closer to the ride while Red is held much, much further back. Red people are not racing Blue people coming from the bus depot and the parking lot, they are racing against Blue people who have been held roughly at point 11 above Spaceship Earth or the point 3 at the center of the curve near Communicore Hall, and who will be taking off the second EE begins and the "rope" drops. And Red people will be coming from roughly at point 5 between UK and France. They are not winning lol. Usain Bolt in his prime is not winning that race. This is not based on conjecture either, we've already seen this with people doing the reverse and trying to rope drop Remy from main.