Here Now & Just Back WDW Reopening Experiences Including Park Hopping

[ILoveMyDVC]

Wow. Thanks for sharing. That looks scary.
Anybody have reports on crowd size at Epcot Forever?

Nothing like HEA - I was just there 5 times in the last 2 weeks. Peaceful, space, easy to leave.

 

[cdurham1]

Just tried joining the ROTR virtual queue right at 7am. Something is structurally wrong with the system if I tried to join within 3 seconds and couldn't. Disney can't be serious that a whole day's worth of people joined in the 2 seconds before I did. If that is the case, Disney has miserably failed at attraction/crowd management.

I will be back on at 1pm, but this is stupid. I mean, I was there the very first day it opened. If I could get a boarding pass without a problem on opening day, no one is going to convince me that all the passes went in 2 seconds on a random Monday morning.

 

[DisneyFive]

HS today. All the early mornings have caught up with us so we decided to sleep in and enjoy the Polynesian this morning.We will make it over to HS later.(our third and final HS day this trip), so this will be our experiment with the park when you don’t rope drop .

Got BG 64 for ROTR. Thankfully it says the return window is 360 minutes from 7am.

I just love mornings at Walt Disney World.

Space Mountain and the castle are WAY closer than they appear in this picture for some reason

10:30 AM. Off to the pool. Still 170 minutes until our BG64 is estimated to be called

Feels good to relax

12:25 lunch at Captain Cooks


1:00pm On bus to HS. Lucked out and the bus arrived just as we got to the bus depot. Our BG was just called. Have a hour to get there

I will say it again, the crowds feel just like every other year that we’ve come Pre Covid this time of year. Here are the crowds in front of the Chinese theater and looking the other direction at 1:15 PM, peak time. Touringplans also lists the crowd levels at the 5 to 7 level for all parks which jives with what I am seeing also. I think people that are used to going during Covid don’t recall exactly what crowds used to feel like this time of year or possibly that the lines extending into the walkways makes it feel much more crowded. I do agree with that for sure ( extended lines making it feel more crowded)


1:30 on ROTR

2:18 PM Got in single rider line for MFSR. Posted 90 minutes for standby line. On in 7 minutes!! Wow, having done that twice standby already this week, that was the way to go. Glad we did it as a family twice already though

2:48 PM star tours. Posted 40 minutes. On in 18 minutes. Our “spy” was an empty seat


3:41 TOT. Posted 55 minutes. On in 26 minutes

Skies are looking ominous. Fitting for TOT I guess
-

Took a break for some caffeine.

5:07 PM. RNRC posted 65 minutes. In line 56 minutes. For what it’s worth touring plans Lines estimated 57 minutes. No single rider. Did not like waiting that long but we didn’t really have an option since this is our last HS day

6:31pm MMRR. Posted 55. TP says 28. On in 33 minutes.

7:15 PM ABC commissary for dinner.

7:45 Star Tours. Posted 10, TP says 5, On the ride in 5
8:07 PM. TSMM. Posted 20 minutes, TP says similar at 18, On in 17 minutes

8:38 PM. Alien saucers. Never done it before, never interested us. We figured “what the heck” let’s try it. Posted 10. TP 8, Walked on. The verdict? Just as terrible as I thought it would be. (sorry to any alien saucer lovers out there)

8:55 PM. Finishing off tonight with a family favorite TOT. On preshow in 4 minutes

Goodbye Hollywood studios. Until next time


-Dan

 

[cdurham1]

When we were there in June we met a family by the pool that told us they bought a service through a company that “guarantees a boarding group” and said they had to give access to their account but that company “has always gotten us a boarding group” so I looked into it and there are three companies that I found that provide this “service” so I wonder if they are doing something fancy with computers to get all the boarding groups that fast? Just something I’ve been thinking about ever since that conversation.

That also makes me wonder if it is also based on something besides just login order. If anyone else got a BG logging in after 7:00am and 3 seconds, I hope they report it here.

 

[Sargeant Tibbs]

Yesterday 8/1 MK, our first park day. I'll just give an overview since I need to get a sleepy child up and ready for another day.

The park was clean, no overflowing trash cans anywhere. Bathrooms were also clean for the most part.

Yes, there were the rumored lines. Anyone recall Disney in the 90's? This is what it was like, and really I couldn't have been happier for it. The reports have been so dire, but we actually had a great day. We rope dropped, driving from our off property resort. We arrived at the booths at 7:30 to park. MK opened at 9.

The lines were long, but moved. We rode PP, IASW, then had a 10:15 Capture Your Moment photo session, after which we rode Pooh and teacups, then my daughter passed out in her stroller. So instead of finishing our Fantasyland tour we got cheeseburger eggrolls, then rode Pirates twice in a row, BTMRR. When she woke up we rode Little Mermaid, then it was time for our early dinner reservation. After dinner we got on HM, Dumbo, Barnstormer. By this point we were sticky and tired, so took a break in the seating area back behind the circus. Close to HEA we rode the carousel, then staked out a spot in Fantasyland to watch the fireworks as we weren't comfortable being in the crowds in the hub.

So yes, lines appear long. However, we rode 11 rides, counting Pirates twice, and if it wasn't for the Capture Your Moment and my daughter falling asleep, we would have ridden more. We weren't rushing, and had quite a leisurely day.

Today we are headed into AK, skipping RD (a last minute decision), with an 11:30am Tusker House ADR. Then hopping to Epcot for F&W.

 

[Southernmiss]

Just tried joining the ROTR virtual queue right at 7am. Something is structurally wrong with the system if I tried to join within 3 seconds and couldn't. Disney can't be serious that a whole day's worth of people joined in the 2 seconds before I did. If that is the case, Disney has miserably failed at attraction/crowd management.

I will be back on at 1pm, but this is stupid. I mean, I was there the very first day it opened. If I could get a boarding pass without a problem on opening day, no one is going to convince me that all the passes went in 2 seconds on a random Monday morning.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/b...ad-1st-post-before-commenting.3841524/page-33

 

[ThereYouSeeHer]

Just tried joining the ROTR virtual queue right at 7am. Something is structurally wrong with the system if I tried to join within 3 seconds and couldn't. Disney can't be serious that a whole day's worth of people joined in the 2 seconds before I did. If that is the case, Disney has miserably failed at attraction/crowd management.

From our experience practicing at home, we have to be in the app and refreshing prior to 7am, or there is no chance. For your 1pm attempt, enter the app a couple minutes prior, click 'Join' from the main MDE homepage, and then constantly refresh the next page, starting around 12:59pm. On my iPhone, I constantly swipe down to refresh, but other devices may vary. Best wishes for success this afternoon!

 

[Mousefan mom]

Just tried joining the ROTR virtual queue right at 7am. Something is structurally wrong with the system if I tried to join within 3 seconds and couldn't. Disney can't be serious that a whole day's worth of people joined in the 2 seconds before I did. If that is the case, Disney has miserably failed at attraction/crowd management.

I will be back on at 1pm, but this is stupid. I mean, I was there the very first day it opened. If I could get a boarding pass without a problem on opening day, no one is going to convince me that all the passes went in 2 seconds on a random Monday morning.

We got a join, then when I clicked it, got an error message "oops something went wrong" while there--didn't get it of course. We tried the 1pm, but what we didn't know at the time was the ride went down for hours that day so waiting around until 1 (you all have to be in the parks) and trying was a waste of our time because if the ride goes down they push back everyone who got a 7AM and don't do any new 1pm....we spoke to another guest at the pool that night that told us he was supposed to board at 1--and didn't get on until almost 6 (it completed changed his entire day for just this one ride). I agree, horrible way they are doing it. If they had just announced they weren't doing 1pm boarding groups we at least could have left and went and swam versus waiting around that day. Sorry you didn't get one!

 

[Loopster]

Just tried joining the ROTR virtual queue right at 7am. Something is structurally wrong with the system if I tried to join within 3 seconds and couldn't. Disney can't be serious that a whole day's worth of people joined in the 2 seconds before I did. If that is the case, Disney has miserably failed at attraction/crowd management.

I will be back on at 1pm, but this is stupid. I mean, I was there the very first day it opened. If I could get a boarding pass without a problem on opening day, no one is going to convince me that all the passes went in 2 seconds on a random Monday morning.

It’s been like this for months now. They’re gone in two seconds or less. Click this link and read first post for tips and tricks: https://www.disboards.com/threads/b...read-read-1st-post-before-commenting.3841524/

 

[MomOTwins]

We got in line for haunted mansion but that was a fail . Touring plans thought it would be 25 minutes and posted wait was 40 minutes. But we waited 40 minutes and didn’t even get through to the main line. It kept stopping for some reason. And it was getting close to when we might get called for dinner. So we bailed. I’m not sure what was happening there.

Thanks for posting. I keep seeing people say to buy the TP subscription because the lines app shows the real waits are shorter than what disney posts, but honestly, I’d rather go into a line expecting a longer wait based on Disney’s app and get a nice surprise of waiting less time than use TP’s app, expect a shorter wait, and end up waiting longer.

 

[ENJDisneyFan]

Just tried joining the ROTR virtual queue right at 7am. Something is structurally wrong with the system if I tried to join within 3 seconds and couldn't. Disney can't be serious that a whole day's worth of people joined in the 2 seconds before I did. If that is the case, Disney has miserably failed at attraction/crowd management.

I will be back on at 1pm, but this is stupid. I mean, I was there the very first day it opened. If I could get a boarding pass without a problem on opening day, no one is going to convince me that all the passes went in 2 seconds on a random Monday morning.

That also makes me wonder if it is also based on something besides just login order. If anyone else got a BG logging in after 7:00am and 3 seconds, I hope they report it here.

They are gone in less than 3 seconds basically every day. You have to be on the app and ready before 7am and follow the steps in the BG thread (someone posted the link above). The 1pm drop is usually a bit easier than 7am.

 

[Iowamomof4]

We got a join, then when I clicked it, got an error message "oops something went wrong" while there--didn't get it of course. We tried the 1pm, but what we didn't know at the time was the ride went down for hours that day so waiting around until 1 (you all have to be in the parks) and trying was a waste of our time because if the ride goes down they push back everyone who got a 7AM and don't do any new 1pm....we spoke to another guest at the pool that night that told us he was supposed to board at 1--and didn't get on until almost 6 (it completed changed his entire day for just this one ride). I agree, horrible way they are doing it. If they had just announced they weren't doing 1pm boarding groups we at least could have left and went and swam versus waiting around that day. Sorry you didn't get one!

You could have tried from the pool. You just have to have all tapped into the park before 1, but you can leave and try for a BG from outside the park.

 

[Mousefan mom]

You could have tried from the pool. You just have to have all tapped into the park before 1, but you can leave and try for a BG from outside the park.

We asked Cast Members working the ride this exact question, and they told us that would not work we all 5 had to physically be in the park, and they would know we weren't if our magic bands didn't show us in the park...

 

[ENJDisneyFan]

We asked Cast Members working the ride this exact question, and they told us that would not work we all 5 had to physically be in the park, and they would know we weren't if our magic bands didn't show us in the park...

They were wrong LOL. There are plenty of reports on the Rise thread of people getting 1pm from outside the park (ETA - as long as you have tapped in before 1pm that is).

 

[cdurham1]

They are gone in less than 3 seconds basically every day. You have to be on the app and ready before 7am and follow the steps in the BG thread (someone posted the link above). The 1pm drop is usually a bit easier than 7am.

Yeah, I did those steps. Still gone

 

[preemiemama]

We asked Cast Members working the ride this exact question, and they told us that would not work we all 5 had to physically be in the park, and they would know we weren't if our magic bands didn't show us in the park...

This is not accurate based on experiences in the thread below. It's really a great resource for the ride!

It’s been like this for months now. They’re gone in two seconds or less. Click this link and read first post for tips and tricks: https://www.disboards.com/threads/b...read-read-1st-post-before-commenting.3841524/

 

[ENJDisneyFan]

Yeah, I did those steps. Still gone

Sorry to hear that - I wish you better luck at 1pm!

 

[123SA]

Yeah, I did those steps. Still gone

did you check the time on your phone to make sure that your time isn’t off by 10-16 seconds? Crazy that we need to do that.

 

[honeymo78]

We asked Cast Members working the ride this exact question, and they told us that would not work we all 5 had to physically be in the park, and they would know we weren't if our magic bands didn't show us in the park...

It's definitely not true, but it likely is the required CM response. During my trip at the end of June, none of us were still in the park at 1pm and I had no trouble getting a 1pm boarding pass. I can't recall if we had made it all the way back to the room but we had definitely left the park. You don't tap out when you leave the park - they don't know when you leave.

 

[cdurham1]

At HS right now, RD'ing TOT. Pushed us up into the the actual queue about 8:35 or so. Cast members at the start of the queue (fp checkin) instructing everyone to mask up from that point forward. We are about 75 people back from being inside hotel. Probably 30% of people (including us) unmasked while waiting outside here.