Arrival Day, Swan hotel/ Hollywood Studios plan!!

nurseberta

DIS Veteran
Joined
Jan 20, 2019
2nd week May, 2019.
We land at 10:40, have Mears booked as transport to the Swan, then we can walk to HS when we drop our bags/ looks like a green/blue day crowds 1-3/10 .

FP booked SDD 12:25-1:25, RnR 2:25-3:25. ToT 4:05-5:05. I would have liked SDD a bit later for time cushion but that was all that was available.

trying to get an ADR for Sci-Fi dine in theatre.

question #1
How long at midday/low crowds would it take to do Toy Story land? think I can get it all done in an hour-2 and still make my RnR at 3:25 ?
we will be hopping for an evening later in the trip so don't need to get everything done this 1st day mostly wanted to hit our FP because this is the only day we have for FP booked for HS, other days FP are all booked for MKx2. AKx1, Epcotx1.

question #2
Is it worth it to purchase touring plans for the notification of an ADR. that being said I have already done our complete plan and would not really need or use it for anything other than this.
TIA!!!!
 
You don’t need to pay for the adr finder on TP. Just get a free basic subscription. As for TSL, YMMV but we spent about 3 hrs there between exploring and rides. We had a FP for SDD.
 
You don’t need to pay for the adr finder on TP. Just get a free basic subscription. As for TSL, YMMV but we spent about 3 hrs there between exploring and rides. We had a FP for SDD.

3 hours? was that all waiting in line? I'm guesstimating 30 min wait for TSM and 30-45min for alien swirling saucers, curious what else was there of interest? M+G? and what is YMMV? lol
 
3 hours? was that all waiting in line? I'm guesstimating 30 min wait for TSM and 30-45min for alien swirling saucers, curious what else was there of interest? M+G? and what is YMMV? lol
Time was an estimate from what I remember. We ate, shopped, looked around, took our time. We had a long wait for ASSaucers and TSM standby line was much longer then 30 minutes (it usually is) YMMV=your mileage may vary
 


That seems like a very aggressive timeline.
Land at 10:40 and first FP at 12:25?
Hope all your flights, etc are on time for you.
When we did TSL at RD, we finished all 3 rides in 30 minutes. Later in the day, I suspect the lines will be much longer.
 
That seems like a very aggressive timeline.
Land at 10:40 and first FP at 12:25?
Hope all your flights, etc are on time for you.
When we did TSL at RD, we finished all 3 rides in 30 minutes. Later in the day, I suspect the lines will be much longer.


Oh YES I 100% agree, ideally I would hope we could barely make the FP window at the end for SDD which would be 10:40 land-1:25pm FP or a few minutes after for the grace period. and the convenience of walking from Swan to HS for entry gives me more control over our arrival because we are not waiting for the bus. I just could not get any other SDD time, so I grabbed it but plan to adjust to a later time if available prior to the day. Also, I am not interested in stressing the fam out by rushing so I'm not worried about that. and we are purposely skipping the RD because I'm not interested in fighting the crowds with a 2 yr old and 8 yr old. its just not worth it. thanks for you feedback!!
 


Time was an estimate from what I remember. We ate, shopped, looked around, took our time. We had a long wait for ASSaucers and TSM standby line was much longer then 30 minutes (it usually is) YMMV=your mileage may vary

I'm curious what time of year was this. we are 2nd week of may so hoping the crowds are a bit more manageable but we would prob at least wait for one of them either TSM or AlienSS whichever was the shorter line. I wonder which ride has a larger capacity? thanks for your feedback
 
I'm curious what time of year was this. we are 2nd week of may so hoping the crowds are a bit more manageable but we would prob at least wait for one of them either TSM or AlienSS whichever was the shorter line. I wonder which ride has a larger capacity? thanks for your feedback
This was the weekend after thanksgiving, so more crowded then usual. And it was in the afternoon. We decided to go to DHS on our arrival day just for TSL.
 
You don’t need to pay for the adr finder on TP. Just get a free basic subscription. As for TSL, YMMV but we spent about 3 hrs there between exploring and rides. We had a FP for SDD.

Omg this was amazing advice! I signed up this morning and already got 2 options that work! Thank you so much for the advice! So much easier than logging into the app a few times a day! Now if they did one for FP that would be something g, though I’m sure the web traffic would shut down the internet! Lol
 
Depends on what you want to do in Toy Story Land... there really isn't all THAT much there besides the rides and couple character meets... but of course they all require standing in line. You already have SDD, so that's good. But at midday think the lines are going to be long for everything there. Alien SS is VERY skippable unless you have under 5yo's that can't do other rides... TSM is an easier 4th+ FP to get if wanted to try for it later in the day, but of course no guarantees you'd get one.

If it is hot that day would look for the boat going to HS.. .the walk is pretty miserable on a hot day. Not sure where the walking path takes you now, but it was the long way around last August.. the boat puts you near the gates.
 
Do you have to get bags from baggage claim or are you carry-on only? If you need to pick up and then get Mears, I'm not sure you will make SDD. I had 110 minutes from landing to Swan when I took Mears less than a month ago.
I would say if you can, don't check in at the Swan and don't let them try to make you. Drop your bags, get directions and get moving. HS is 15 minutes at a steady pace, 20 with children. You may just be able to sneak in. However, I would watch the entire time you are on the way to the hotel and see if you can push it by just a bit.

If you can make it SDD by 1:30(within grace), you will have probably about 10 minutes in the FP line(possible less), putting you off the ride at 1:45. I would say you have time for either A2S or TSMM. You probably won't be able to do both and get to your RnR unfortunately. Those two rides backs up quite a bit midday.
 
Do you have to get bags from baggage claim or are you carry-on only? If you need to pick up and then get Mears, I'm not sure you will make SDD. I had 110 minutes from landing to Swan when I took Mears less than a month ago.
I would say if you can, don't check in at the Swan and don't let them try to make you. Drop your bags, get directions and get moving. HS is 15 minutes at a steady pace, 20 with children. You may just be able to sneak in. However, I would watch the entire time you are on the way to the hotel and see if you can push it by just a bit.

If you can make it SDD by 1:30(within grace), you will have probably about 10 minutes in the FP line(possible less), putting you off the ride at 1:45. I would say you have time for either A2S or TSMM. You probably won't be able to do both and get to your RnR unfortunately. Those two rides backs up quite a bit midday.
Thanks! Any idea the FP wait for RnR or ToT, I would be fine doing only TSM and a bit of a wait would be ok
 
My wait time in RnR FP first thing in the morning was close to 15 minutes. ToT was about 5 to pre-show.

I realized I may not have written super clearly. I was referring to the backup of A2S and TSMM. They gain quite a line. I think A2S is down from where it used to be, but is still over 40 minutes and TSMM is usually longer. Though I will say, A2S would be super disappointing to wait for. TSMM is a lot more fun.
 
I would have done uber/lyft to the Swan - probably the fastest and cheapest option. Agree w/ others - skip Swan check in (or see if there is an online check in option via app) and hope your flight is on time/early and bags come quickly.
 

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