If you take an afternoon break, when do you ride the "afternoon" rides?

[Babe the Blue Ox]

The RD crowds quickly melt away as they all head off in different directions. 10-15 minute waits (or walk-ons) are fairly common early for rides that build up later in the day. Don't be scared off by the photos as everyone is just jammed into a tiny space. It's very relaxing until about 10:30 am.



That's an anomaly. HS is notorious for having only a few high-demand rides. TSMM is one that builds almost instantly because early FP+ riders and 1/3 of the people entering the park are headed directly to that ride. MK is altogether different, though 7DMT and A&E can get busy fast. If you're not concerned about those two (use FP+ for those!) then you have your pick of whatever is open.

AK is another park in which you can ride everything you want if you hit RD. In fact, we often save our FP+ for whatever park we go to when we leave AK.

AK empties out considerably after about 3 pm. We like to hop over there for a few hours in the afternoon to hit the headliners several more times.

7D is fun, but we generally don't use a FP+ for it. Just a few weeks ago, we found a 5 minute wait just after Wishes. Posted wait time was 65.

My kids aren't satisfied with only 1 or 2 rides on the headliners. That's why we like to wait until later so they can ride as many times as they want.

 

[Allison]

Thanks for all of the replies. I've seen pictures of the early morning rope drop crowds and can't imagine getting in the middle of all that. We like to close the parks and take advantage of the really short lines.

I just wondered when guests hit those typical mid day attractions if they're not in the parks at mid day.

We can do those as you are arriving at the park as we have already finished the headliners.

 

[itchin2go]

Here's an example of why we prefer late nights:

I had a co-worker recently telling me about her trip to Disney World. They seemed to be pretty good planners and tried to maximize their time the best they could.

She was very excited to tell me about her experience riding Midway Mania without a Fast Pass. The got up really early, got to the gates about 45 minutes before they opened and waited in a pretty large crowd. Then they hurried as fast as they could to the ride and the wait was *only* 15 minutes. By the time they got off the line was almost an hour long. There were people all over the place.

I rode the same ride 4 times in about an hour late at night and didn't have to deal with the crowds.

Ah, but only part of the reason we do rope drop is strategy. The other part is that we're up early anyway and it's easy for us. By contrast, we are not late night folks so forcing this would be ... unpleasant for us.

I don't doubt that a late night strategy can be as successful as an early morning one. There is more than one way to have a successful day at Disney World.

FWIW, my family did ride BTMRR twice at rope drop. That crowd may look daunting waiting outside the gates, but Frontierland was pretty empty when we got there ... owing mostly to the crowds that went to A&E and SDMT. After riding BTMRR twice, Splash was a walk-on. Now, you do have to stay ahead of the crowds because they will start to build, especially at headliners.

One other thing to consider is that not everyone wants to ride things (at least not everything) multiple times. My family will ride certain things more than once, BTMRR, SDMT (if it's possible), TSMM, Test Track, for instance. But there are certain things my husband will just not go on a second time.

It sounds like you have found a good strategy for you though. Late and nights and no break would drive my husband crazy, but I know there are plenty of people who wouldn't have it any other way.

 

[Babe the Blue Ox]

It sounds like you have found a good strategy for you though. Late and nights and no break would drive my husband crazy, but I know there are plenty of people who wouldn't have it any other way.

Thank you. The key is really just having a plan and sticking to it. We like the evening hours because we find them much less crowded.

Here's just an example of what we we've been able to accomplish from 8 pm to midnight in early summer on a crowd level 8 day. No FP+. Non-EMH night.

Big Thunder 3x
Splash Mtn 2x
Space Mtn 2x
Mine Train (10 min wait right a closing time)
Pirates
Jungle Cruise
Haunted Mansion
Pooh
Peter Pan
Speedway
Barnstormer 2x

We also watched the parade and fireworks and had a couple of Dole Whips.

 

[Allison]

The first few hours of the day are also much less crowded than the middle of the day. A lot can be done during that time.

We went over Christmas week a few years ago. I love the pictures from the openings in the mornings showing that no one else was around.

I think the key is knowing the middle of the day is going to be the busiest.

 

[Disneylover99]

Thank you. The key is really just having a plan and sticking to it. We like the evening hours because we find them much less crowded.

Here's just an example of what we we've been able to accomplish from 8 pm to midnight in early summer on a crowd level 8 day. No FP+. Non-EMH night.

Big Thunder 3x
Splash Mtn 2x
Space Mtn 2x
Mine Train (10 min wait right a closing time)
Pirates
Jungle Cruise
Haunted Mansion
Pooh
Peter Pan
Speedway
Barnstormer 2x

We also watched the parade and fireworks and had a couple of Dole Whips.

Wow! You got a lot done in four hours!
We have had some success touring later, but it's been a bit hit or miss.
That's why we do like rope drop. At least we know, we can consistently get a lot done in the first few hours.

 

[itchin2go]

Thank you. The key is really just having a plan and sticking to it. We like the evening hours because we find them much less crowded.

Here's just an example of what we we've been able to accomplish from 8 pm to midnight in early summer on a crowd level 8 day. No FP+. Non-EMH night.

Big Thunder 3x
Splash Mtn 2x
Space Mtn 2x
Mine Train (10 min wait right a closing time)
Pirates
Jungle Cruise
Haunted Mansion
Pooh
Peter Pan
Speedway
Barnstormer 2x

We also watched the parade and fireworks and had a couple of Dole Whips.

Similar to our first MK day, minus most of the re-rides. Also, the family didn't want to ride Barnstormer, Pooh or Jungle. They did ride the teacups and we did Philharmagic. I think they did Small World, maybe Mermaid? We did Tomorrowland on another day. Add in lunch at Columbia Harbor House. There was a parade we saw while shopping on Main Street. We're not much into parades. This was probably more like 5 hours? MK had an opening of 8:00 am this day.

Anyway, you bring up a good point that gets lost in all the talk of rope drop. For those who are night owls, it looks like a late night plan could be very successful. I feel bad for the people who only go in the middle of the day, and get neither the benefit of early morning or late night.

BTW - for those who want to see concrete numbers, take a look at the charts of wait times at the back of this:

http://www.easywdw.com/cheatsheets/mk_cheatsheet_v3.pdf

You can see how much of a difference it will make if you're willing to visit early or late.

 

[sleepymouse]

I rode the same ride 4 times in about an hour late at night and didn't have to deal with the crowds.

Wondering about this for TSMM. Was it during evening EMH with park closing at midnight? I had not planned to do HS during EMH for fear that the crowds would be too large.

 

[firecracker725]

Thanks for all of the replies. I've seen pictures of the early morning rope drop crowds and can't imagine getting in the middle of all that. We like to close the parks and take advantage of the really short lines.

I just wondered when guests hit those typical mid day attractions if they're not in the parks at mid day.

The trick is to get in ahead of those crowds. Also, the crowds disperse through the parks rather rapidly.

 

[LOL!]

Here's an example of why we prefer late nights:

I had a co-worker recently telling me about her trip to Disney World. They seemed to be pretty good planners and tried to maximize their time the best they could.

She was very excited to tell me about her experience riding Midway Mania without a Fast Pass. The got up really early, got to the gates about 45 minutes before they opened and waited in a pretty large crowd. Then they hurried as fast as they could to the ride and the wait was *only* 15 minutes. By the time they got off the line was almost an hour long. There were people all over the place.

I rode the same ride 4 times in about an hour late at night and didn't have to deal with the crowds.

I wonder if in some cases any time is actually saved; it seems the wait could be the same just in different places. For example, your friend waited a total of 60 minutes (45 for the park to open and 15 minutes in line) when the line was "almost" the same as that when they got off.

 

[itchin2go]

I wonder if in some cases any time is actually saved; it seems the wait could be the same just in different places. For example, your friend waited a total of 60 minutes (45 for the park to open and 15 minutes in line) when the line was "almost" the same as that when they got off.

You are totally right, but that 45 minute wait for the rope to drop (which is longer than we actually wait, but even so), will pay off at more than one ride. If it only paid off at one ride, you would be right - it would be a wash.

In reality, they can now walk over to RNRC or TOT and find waits to be 30 minutes shorter (or more) than the waits will be just a few hours later. See charts of wait times at the end of this:

http://www.easywdw.com/cheatsheets/hs_cheatsheet_v3.pdf

As OP noted, and according to the charts, wait times closer to closing are really manageable as well.

 

[itchin2go]

The trick is to get in ahead of those crowds. Also, the crowds disperse through the parks rather rapidly.

Yes - and there are so many places for the crowds to disperse at MK. At other parks, less so.

 

[mort1331]

Wondering about this for TSMM. Was it during evening EMH with park closing at midnight? I had not planned to do HS during EMH for fear that the crowds would be too large.

We have done this when Fantasmic has started. We had a late dinner and did not want to go to the show after. We said lets check out the line up at TSM. Posted time said 60mins, but CM said not even close, so we walked in. Real time was approx 10mins. Came out and did it again 3 times, the only reason we stopped, was my arm was tired of pulling the string,,lol,,need to work on that.

 

[Ava]

The one park I really enjoy rope drop at is MK. The welcome show just puts me in a great mood for the day, and there are so many attractions that the crowds disperse pretty quickly. Unless you're trying to see A&E or ride 7DMT, there's really no need to rush with the crowds once the gates open. I like to hit either Tomorrowland or Adventureland at RD; since the majority of people seem to go to Fantasyland first, lines in these areas are virtually non-existent in the early morning.

 

[Babe the Blue Ox]

Wondering about this for TSMM. Was it during evening EMH with park closing at midnight? I had not planned to do HS during EMH for fear that the crowds would be too large.

No, we do this on non-EMH nights when the bulk of the crowd is waiting for Fantasmic. I've got another tip for fireworks nights that works just as well.

 

[Babe the Blue Ox]

I wonder if in some cases any time is actually saved; it seems the wait could be the same just in different places. For example, your friend waited a total of 60 minutes (45 for the park to open and 15 minutes in line) when the line was "almost" the same as that when they got off.

The big difference is they rode it once in 60 minutes. We rode it 4 times in 60 mins.

 

[Babe the Blue Ox]

Similar to our first MK day, minus most of the re-rides. Also, the family didn't want to ride Barnstormer, Pooh or Jungle. They did ride the teacups and we did Philharmagic. I think they did Small World, maybe Mermaid? We did Tomorrowland on another day. Add in lunch at Columbia Harbor House. There was a parade we saw while shopping on Main Street. We're not much into parades. This was probably more like 5 hours? MK had an opening of 8:00 am this day.

Anyway, you bring up a good point that gets lost in all the talk of rope drop. For those who are night owls, it looks like a late night plan could be very successful. I feel bad for the people who only go in the middle of the day, and get neither the benefit of early morning or late night.

BTW - for those who want to see concrete numbers, take a look at the charts of wait times at the back of this:

http://www.easywdw.com/cheatsheets/mk_cheatsheet_v3.pdf

You can see how much of a difference it will make if you're willing to visit early or late.

Also keep in mind that those posted wait times are often greatly exaggerated at night.

At DHS, the kids rode Tower of Terror 13 times in 2 hours recently when the posted wait was 30 minutes. At MK, they rode Space Mtn 4 times in 35 minutes when the posted time was 40. I could go on and on...

 

[Allison]

Some find it more efficient to tour in the mornings, some find it more efficient to tour in the evenings. Win-Win for everybody. Can't beat that.

 

[itchin2go]

Also keep in mind that those posted wait times are often greatly exaggerated at night.

At DHS, the kids rode Tower of Terror 13 times in 2 hours recently when the posted wait was 30 minutes. At MK, they rode Space Mtn 4 times in 35 minutes when the posted time was 40. I could go on and on...

I think the link I posted to shows actual (albeit averaged) wait times, but maybe that's just something I assumed. Correct me if I'm wrong. There have been lots of reports of posted wait times outside of attractions being wrong. Mostly I see reports that they're exaggerated. Sometimes, I see reports that they're worse than what's posted. Seems like there would be a way to make these more accurate.

Holy crap. TOT 13 times? That's like a nightmare I had once.

 

[ForMyBoys]

We are early risers, but I can't stand the crowds at rope drop. We aim to get to the park at opening time and 9 times out of 10 the rope has already dropped so there isn't a huge wait (I've never waited 45 mins to rush to a ride at rope drop- the ONLY exception was to get my kids signed up for Jedi training since the day before we got there at park opening and rope had dropped already so it was full). We keep an eye on the disney app for wait times and there are still good wait times at many rides in the morning, we never go to the park with early morning hours if we can avoid it so I can't speak for those parks.

I notice the lines/crowds start getting very long around 11 to noon. So we typically have one or two FPs arranged for then. We almost always eat a sit down meal for lunch (in air conditioning) around 1, then typically leave the park around 2ish. Head to the hotel to swim/nap/whatever to 5 or 6ish. Our remaining FP's are arranged for right when we get back from break and then we typically stay until park close (assuming its not 1am or anything). I do love being in the parks late at night, one night after a rain at Hollywood Studios every ride was walk on, including TSM and HM. We had a blast!

This works for us. We like the mid day pool/nap break and we'd never make it up to enjoy the late night hours if we didn't have that break. We are naturally early risers so we'd be going crazy waiting to get to the parks until 11.

We do all the rides you mentioned above between FPs and when we are in the area. We don't have a specific time for those rides, we just work them in whenever.