nearly 4 hours...really

[rafjen]

I'm usually first up 4-5am- kids follow an hour or two later- Husband may need woken

[Guest]

Originally Posted by TIMBUCK2

It's beyond a joke tbh, when are Disney going to sort this out ?

A 4.5hr wait on an allegedly quiet day at a quiet time of the year is ridiculous and it's not the first time in the past few days/weeks that the wait has been 4-5hrs.

We're going in late May and are staying offsite so we've got no chance of getting a FP for FOP in the 30 day window, so our only hope is to get there ridiculously early and hope to get near the front of the queue for rope drop. And then join another queue for an hour or so! Getting up at 5:30am on a holiday is not my idea of fun & I can't imagine the family entertaining the idea either.

I'm dreading the look on my son's face when I'll more than likely have to tell him that FOP is out of bounds.

Someone please tell me I'm over-reacting and there's still a glimmer of hope !

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I usually travel in May but have just got back from a February trip. Far busier this time and in fact we found most rides more difficult to get on, the regular queue was indeed very long for FoP. I doubt we would do a Feb trip again, although I did like the cooler weather.

FoP is excellent, we did it four or five times because we went to a special event and got a 60 day FP another day.

[Gaz Lear]

We were in AK on the 16/2 by midday there wasn’t a single fastpass left for the rest of the day, not even Tough to be a Bug

FOP was at 280 minutes when we left

[Guest]

Originally Posted by Gaz Lear

We were in AK on the 16/2 by midday there wasn’t a single fastpass left for the rest of the day, not even Tough to be a Bug

FOP was at 280 minutes when we left

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We were there the week before you. Other than at the special event, we only got three rides in both AK and HS as there were no extra FPs available and extremely long queues for literally everything.

[DisneyDaffodil]

We managed to ride FoP once (with a 60 day before FP) in our trip last October, it was a fantastic ride and we would have loved to have rode it again but won’t wait over 30-40 minutes for any ride.

I think if people just go to Disney World for the rides, they are going to be disappointed and annoyed by the queues. For us, although we love the rides, there is more to do there than just the rides though and we love spending time doing all the other magical things that make Disney World unique.

Our FoP ride was really slow loading, as one rider was afraid and was panicking about getting into the correct position on the seat. She wasn’t a large lady but insisted she couldn’t follow the, very patient, cm’s instructions. We must have taken 20-30 minutes to start the ride!

[Gill H]

I agree DisneyDaffodil. Us Brits are luckier than the Americans in that respect, as we are more likely to be there for two weeks. Most Americans get a week at most (although of course if they are local they are more likely to be able to go more often).

Over the course of a typical Brit's two-week holiday, there might be one or two rides that they just can't get on (unless they are willing to spend several hours queuing). Also there might be some rides down for refurb, or something that hasn't opened yet.

And you know what? It's not the end of the world. You still have 4 parks, 2 water parks, Disney Springs, all the resorts etc to enjoy. Plus, something to look forward to doing next time.

I don't know what Disney can do to avoid 4-hour queues on popular rides. You could say they are already doing all they can. They provide the FP system for free, which no other park does. They have EMH for onsite guests which will cut the crowds down. They also provide paid-for 'extra time' opportunities to do some rides when there is no-one else in the park - I know they are currently doing this for Toy Story Land and I wouldn't be at all surprised if there might be a Pandora version in the future. And perhaps a Galaxy's Edge version when that opens.

Speaking of which, I wonder if Pandora will be quieter once Galaxy's Edge opens?

I'd say just accept the fact that there are one or two really popular rides that have hard-to-get FPs. Don't give up on getting one - they do become available when people cancel. But equally, don't let missing out on one ride spoil an amazing holiday.

[Clamshell]

Originally Posted by Andybear

Apart from the last two and a bit weeks in September - last year when I was there anyway. I was looking for all the crowds I keep reading about on here and was delighted that I couldn't find them

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Don’t tell everyone! It’s the late September goers secret

[Nimbus]

Originally Posted by TIMBUCK2

Not sure why the smart alec response, a bit uncalled for. I apologise unreservedly for having the audacity to criticise anything Disney related, what was I thinking !

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Sorry, it wasn’t a “smart alec” response. It was a genuine response asking a genuine question. I’m not sure why you think it was otherwise?

And Disney’s great minds have thought of something - they invented the fastpass virtual queuing system and provided it free to everyone (unlike other theme parks). They’ve added events where you can get into the park when the crowds are lower. They’ve started charging more for tickets during busier times so as to discourage the crowds, and hopefully reduce the longer queues. And when that’s not enough, they’ve added things like preshows, games and theming to the queues to make the wait seem slightly less boring. As you say, it’s not in Disney interest for people to be stood in a queue for a long time - they won’t be spending their money whilst doing so.

But at the end of the day, there only so much Disney can do. Clearly telling people that the wait time is over 3 hours doesn’t put people off. It’s the most popular ride in the most popular theme park resort in the world during a busy “bank holiday”-like weekend. It’s going to be stupidly busy. The only thing they could do is lower the limit on the number of people they allow into the park. But that would make far more people even more unhappy - at least currently everyone gets to ride some of the rides.

Tourist attractions sometimes get busy and the popular ones sometimes get really busy. It’s a fact of life and has been the case for many years. I remember going to theme parks when I was a teenager and not being able to go on every ride because the queues were sometimes too long.

[Andybear]

Originally Posted by Pluchesteven1

What is this that i am Reading now for the second time about early wake ups because of jetlag? We are expecting to be in bed around 10pm the night we arrive. So i planned to sleep a bit longer because i suspect we will be very tired of the long journey and start the holiday with a slighty later start at 1 of Disney’s waterparks. But now i read it might be a better idea to start the first day early? (We are also planning the early morning Rope drop for FOP at AK)

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I can never get any sleep the first night so always have a quiet first full day. Last year I spent a few hours in Typhoon Lagoon then went to the early showing (5.15) of the Luau at the Polynesian. I then went to Disney Springs to get my free $200 gift card from World of Disney. Then I went back to POFQ (where I was staying), had a dip in the pool then went to bed about 9.00. I got a good night's sleep and was fine the rest of my trip - no jetlag.

[adreamisawish]

Originally Posted by TIMBUCK2

Not sure why the smart alec response, a bit uncalled for. I apologise unreservedly for having the audacity to criticise anything Disney related, what was I thinking !

I'm sure the great minds within the Disney corporation can come up with a way to reduce a regular 4 or 5 hour wait time, especially as they realise customers aren't parting with their hard-earned cash when stood in a queue.

When people are shelling out hundreds of pounds for a ticket then any ride shouldn't be off-limits just because they weren't lucky enough to get an FP or don't have the inclination to get up at daft o'clock to queue for an hour before rope-drop to then likely join another queue at FOP.

I'm not disputing that it's the most popular ride in Orlando or that it's personal choice whether to join a lengthy queue or not, but I'm pretty certain that most people would rather get on with enjoying the rest of the park & their holidays.

PS thanks for the encouragement at the end of your post, we live in hope !

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I think the only option Disney really have at this point to help with people queuing is to potentially offer a single rider option, or an option to skip the pre show. Single rider, however, does not guarantee a shorter wait in the slightest (it can at times, and the preshow is partially an important part of the theming and the ‘show...but it’s also Disney’s way of queue control.

However, it’s your own choice to make a ride ‘off limits’ due to queue length. Disney isn’t making it off limits, it’s your own personal choice to not queue, your own personal choice to not stay onsite and not be eligible for 60 day FP’s and extra magic and your own choice to not get up for rope drop. People who do so are just more bothered about riding, and you’re clearly not. And that’s okay.

I personally will not queue for anything more than an hour. But Disney aren’t restricting me from riding if something’s posted at an hour. I know I’m going to one of the biggest tourist traps in the world and pay my money expecting queues to be part of my holiday. I pay a little more money to stay onsite because I hate queuing so I like perks onsite offers.

I just think you’re being harsh and unreasonable in your criticism. I agree that queues of 4.5 hours are mental. But there’s nothing Disney can really do about that.