Official Star Wars Weekends 2013 Tips and Tricks

[KingsKidsx4]

As if I wasn't geeking out about going enough- I find out that our WDW trip coincides with SWW. . . yeah- if my friends and family had any remaining doubts about my sanity- I have cleared them up.

SAME HERE!!!!

 

[scspsu]

In the past they have a separate merchandise line that first Friday, it's on ther same side as you line up for autograph fp. Then they walk that line in first, before the park opens, slowly to the merchanside tent.

What time should we get there for the merchandise line on the first day to avoid a long wait and make sure we get a crack at all of the LE merchandise? My wife and I are considering getting there around 530, but not sure where that might put us in line. We can be there earlier if we need to.

Also, I'm not entirely clear about how Darth Mall is setup in terms of the LE and General merchandise as this is our first SWW. If both of us go for the LE merchandise first, will we have to deal with an extermely long line for the General merchandise? Should we split up?

Also, will we be able to send our bags of merchandise to the front of the park to pick up later, like you can with other gift shops in the park or will we need to do that ourselves?

Thanks.

 

[kmcdougan]

What time should we get there for the merchandise line on the first day to avoid a long wait and make sure we get a crack at all of the LE merchandise? My wife and I are considering getting there around 530, but not sure where that might put us in line. We can be there earlier if we need to.

Also, I'm not entirely clear about how Darth Mall is setup in terms of the LE and General merchandise as this is our first SWW. If both of us go for the LE merchandise first, will we have to deal with an extermely long line for the General merchandise? Should we split up?

Also, will we be able to send our bags of merchandise to the front of the park to pick up later, like you can with other gift shops in the park or will we need to do that ourselves?

Thanks.

The LE stuff was along one side of the tent, and also had much of the AP and DVC stuff over there with it, as well as some of the art. The general merch was around the rest of the tent, with a lightsaber station, the place to do the Star Tours nametags, and a full separate line for character pics (this was along a side of the tent as well).

The packages can be sent to the front of the park or to your Disney Resort, with the appropriate delays in delivery.

Ash

 

[yulilin3]

What time should we get there for the merchandise line on the first day to avoid a long wait and make sure we get a crack at all of the LE merchandise? My wife and I are considering getting there around 530, but not sure where that might put us in line. We can be there earlier if we need to.

Also, I'm not entirely clear about how Darth Mall is setup in terms of the LE and General merchandise as this is our first SWW. If both of us go for the LE merchandise first, will we have to deal with an extermely long line for the General merchandise? Should we split up?

Also, will we be able to send our bags of merchandise to the front of the park to pick up later, like you can with other gift shops in the park or will we need to do that ourselves?

Thanks.

To be honest I've never done the mercy line for LE stuff so I'm not sure about time. I do know they limit the amount of LE things you can buy of each. Inside the tent there's a separate line for LE merchant, when you enter they give you a list of the LE merchandise and the prices . You then go, staying in line, to the tables where they have the items (last year it was against the wall) you get them and pay. They can be sent to the front of the park or to the resort. If you want to browse regular merchandise you can go later in the day and there will be less of a wait.

 

[JamiLeigh]

Thank you to all who replied. I think out first priority will be DS 5 goes with DH to sign up for JTA while DS 2 and I go get fast passes for TSM. Luckily they are only 5 and 2 so there isn't much expectations on their part. If he only does JTA I think he be thrilled.
We will only be at the parks 3 days, just doing HS and MK. I think I'm gonna change our flight to get there earlier in the day so we can do DD our first night so it doesn't take up a park day. I like how the other poster mentioned building your own light saber there rather than the park.
DH and I went to Disney 3 times before having kids, our last trip was 6 years ago. It so easy back the.

 

[scspsu]

The LE stuff was along one side of the tent, and also had much of the AP and DVC stuff over there with it, as well as some of the art. The general merch was around the rest of the tent, with a lightsaber station, the place to do the Star Tours nametags, and a full separate line for character pics (this was along a side of the tent as well).

The packages can be sent to the front of the park or to your Disney Resort, with the appropriate delays in delivery.

Ash

To be honest I've never done the mercy line for LE stuff so I'm not sure about time. I do know they limit the amount of LE things you can buy of each. Inside the tent there's a separate line for LE merchant, when you enter they give you a list of the LE merchandise and the prices . You then go, staying in line, to the tables where they have the items (last year it was against the wall) you get them and pay. They can be sent to the front of the park or to the resort. If you want to browse regular merchandise you can go later in the day and there will be less of a wait.

Thanks for the info! My wife already has quite a few of the LE items on her list of things to get. I think we will see how crowded the General merchandise area gets after making our way through the LE section. If too crowded, we will come back for those items.

If anyone has info about what time would be good to get in line, please let me know. We are staying at Port Orleans Riverside and are planning on taking a cab over to get in line early.

 

[501st disney trooper]

I just saw that on the Florida Garrison boards last night and shared it earlier today. I like that.

Ash

I saw also and it was in my fb feed today

 

[501st disney trooper]

I've been re-watching the Stormtrooper pre-shows from the last two years this AM at work. Funny stuff. Oddly, now that I have spent time helping guys get INTO that armor, I'm watching the armor a little more than the antics.....

Let me just say, I have lots of respect for those who not only can build that armor but can wear it. It ain't easy. Neither is Boba Fett.

I will be drawing up a detailed report of my day(s) last year and should have that posted up later today.

Ash

Ash is correct , dawning the armor is process .
Wearing it is sometime harder than building it - which is another process all together ..lol

Its cumbersome - restricting . Hot -hot- and vision is limited at best . But its still fun its just a learning process in wearing
Its all for the kids - big and little lol.
Its a different animal costuming in fl, coming from the midwest .. Hotter - more humidity - makes for sweaty foggy helmets and chances for dehydration . Heat stroke etc ... .. Theres safety and hydrating involved in wearing the suits - handlers are a must always in summer !!
Heres to a safe sww !! With no casualties !!
We refer to sww 2011 as the fl deathmarch

( no one actually died ) but too many hours in the direct fl sun in may-june- August

 

[Meech Loves Mickey]

For the people wondering what the shows are about here are some clips:

Behind the Force (all about the Clone Wars and how they do voice over acting): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlRg6qdRuzQ&list=UUarxr8vv__ZzTNGkYWPTUuw

Obi Wan and Beyond (James Arnold Taylor shows his talent in voice-over acting) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFWVYbygGFo&list=UUarxr8vv__ZzTNGkYWPTUuw&index=115

Pre-Show of Stars of the Saga (Stormtroopers entertain the guest arriving for Stars of the Saga, this is the best pre-show ever, they change it every year, it's a must do) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bzn3HMIe0w&list=UUarxr8vv__ZzTNGkYWPTUuw

Stars of the Saga (visiting celeb Q&A) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kzzm0eFJwug

Visit to the Maul (Ray Park shows his martial arts moves he used for Darth Maul, kids get picked at random) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VeGOwV5gew

Stormtrooper opening the park : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8lyOjf3MSU

What is "Visit to the Maul"? When and Where is it located? Is this something they will have this year?
Thanks!

 

[yulilin3]

What is "Visit to the Maul"? When and Where is it located? Is this something they will have this year?
Thanks!

It's only done when Ray Park is visiting, he shows the audience and kids his martial arts moves that he used when playing Darth Maul. It's done inside the Premiere Theater by the exit to Muppet Vision 3D

 

[yulilin3]

What we know for sure
MAY 17-19
Ray Park – (Darth Maul )
Jeremy Bullock (Bobba Fett) *not confirmed
MAY 24-26
Ray Park (Darth Maul )
Warwick Davis ( Wicket)
MAY 31 - JUNE 2
Warwick Davis ( Wicket)
JUNE 7-9
Billy Dee Williams (Lando Calrissian)

From last year's schedule when Ray Park was there
Padawan Mind Challenge: 2:10 & 6:30pm
Hyperspace Hoopla: 8:00pm
Jedi Training Academy: 9:15am, 9:45am, 10:15am, 10:45am, 11:15am, 11:45am, 12:15pm, 1:30pm, 2:00pm, 3:45pm, 4:15pm, 4:45pm, 5:15pm, 5:45pm, 6:15pm, 6:45pm
Star Wars Character meets: 9:00am - 7:00pm
Behind the Force: 11:00am & 1:45pm
Stars of the Saga: 3:15pm
Obi-Wan and Beyond: 4:45pm
Visit to the Maul: 6:00pm
Star Wars Motorcade 12:40pm
Autograph Sessions:
James Arnold Taylor 9:45am
Ashley Eckstein 4:30pm and 5:45pm
Ray Park: 10:15am and 1:45pm
2nd SW celeb 10:15am 1:30pm and 4:30pm
Clone Wars celeb 3pm, 4:30pm and 5:45pm

 

[Meech Loves Mickey]

It's only done when Ray Park is visiting, he shows the audience and kids his martial arts moves that he used when playing Darth Maul. It's done inside the Premiere Theater by the exit to Muppet Vision 3D

Does this get super crowded? How soon should we line up? Or I guess I should ask, how early do they let you in the theater?

Is it really interactive for kids? I'm wondering if my two boys ages 2 and 5 would like this?

Thanks.

 

[yulilin3]

Does this get super crowded? How soon should we line up? Or I guess I should ask, how early do they let you in the theater?

Is it really interactive for kids? I'm wondering if my two boys ages 2 and 5 would like this?

Thanks.

kids get picked at random during the morning hours, there's no way of predicting who, where or when they get picked, but they usually get kids who are dressed up in SW costumes or t-shirts that look enthusiastic, around the Star Tours/Indiana Jones area. The show is very popular and you need to get in line an hour before the show starts.

 

[kmcdougan]

As promised, here is my report, in detail, from last year. It is lengthy, and I apologize for that in advance, but, it is limited to SWW, and how I attacked it, including my plan and what we did. This plan accomplished everything we set out to do. Had I cut some of my rides short, and got in line 45 minutes earlier, I could have done it all, except for the Carbon Freeze, which I set up the appointment for weeks in advance.

Last year, we went to SWW second weekend (Memorial Day Weekend) with a couple sets of friends. My one buddy, Dan, his wife and son traveled with us (we took two cars down), and we stayed at SSR with our DVC points. We met my buddy Quentin and his wife and daughter down there. We arrived in the
Orlando area Wednesday, and then had a great day with everyone at MK on Thursday.Friday morning, Dan and I were up and at it, picking Quentin up with our car for just before 0500. We then made it to DHS and were in line for Ray Park by 0505. We seemed to be about 50 people deep in that line, and it was the longest one. It grew after our arrival. Somewhere around 0600 or so, maybe a little later, they came down the line with wrist bands. As it got closer to 0700, there was movement up front, as the FPs were being distributed. We got around number 52, with a couple people behind us getting
the last of the ones for the morning (first) autograph session with Ray. We then made it around to the front of the park, awaiting opening. The Stormtroopers came out and did their show. When the pointed to "that guy" in the crowd, I was in the right spot. Shortly thereafter, the park opened, and we booked it for FPs to TSMM and/or ST, figuring that whichever had the shorter line would be a walk on and the other would be FP. We managed to get that secured, and rode ST pretty quick. Quentin stuck around and built his lightsaber, then got in line for the build a droid. Dan & I went to TSMM for a quick ride. We got back in time to take pics of Q feverishly building a droid.

After that, we went over to Darth's Mall and did most of our shopping before the 1015 autograph time. We were able to get our AP, DVC and other merchandise with ease, then went to the autograph session. The line was still long when we got there, and had to wait a bit to get our pics and autographs. Ray took the time to talk to everyone and had a good time with them. So, we ended up being later getting out of there than expected. We were about an hour late, leaving there at 1200. We still needed to eat lunch, so headed to, I think, Backlot (it was a counter service, and I had a buffalo chicken sandwich).

This delay caused us to miss the parade. However, we were able to be in line
for Behind the Force after a quick run on ST or TSMM (I honestly can't
remember which, but we did have a FP for it). Behind the FOrce started at 1345. After it was over, we chilled out a bit, then got back in line for
the 1515 Stars of the Saga Show. Repeat for the 1645 Obi-Wan and Beyond
Show. Repeat one last time for the 1800 Visit to the Maul Show. After that, Q and I headed to Hoopla and had a pretty good spot. Dan & his wife went to ride TSMM. After Hoopla, we all went to our dinner reservations at Sci-Fi, hoping they would take us a little early. They did, but not by much. Service was not that great that night, and, afterwards, we headed back, Dan & I dropping Q off at Pop.

Saturday morning, I had my Carbon Freeze appointment for 0900, so the wife and I took the bus over for park opening. We got there just after the pre-show, and walked right up snagging a FP for Andy Secombe for his 10:15 session. We went to Darth's Mall first, since we were there before 0800. After wandering around a bit, we headed out. Her scooter died on her, and we had to call in a tech to get it fixed, so, we just walked over to Carbon Freeze while we were waiting.

That took about an hour, give or take, due to the process and people ahead of me. We then went to Andy's session, got his autograph and a couple pics, then headed back to the scooter and the guy showed up and repaired it while I rode RNR. We then trooped over to ST, rode it, then did my build a droids. We met back up with our group, lucked in to some generic anytime FPs that some random guy said he could not use. We did the parade, then rode TOT and RNR with the passes. We had some left, so, paid it forward with the rest. That was when Quentin and his group had to leave. We did another run through Darth's Mall, then bugged out from DHS. Thus endeth the report.

Ash

 

[kmcdougan]

Ash is correct , dawning the armor is process .
Wearing it is sometime harder than building it - which is another process all together ..lol

Its cumbersome - restricting . Hot -hot- and vision is limited at best . But its still fun its just a learning process in wearing
Its all for the kids - big and little lol.
Its a different animal costuming in fl, coming from the midwest .. Hotter - more humidity - makes for sweaty foggy helmets and chances for dehydration . Heat stroke etc ... .. Theres safety and hydrating involved in wearing the suits - handlers are a must always in summer !!
Heres to a safe sww !! With no casualties !!
We refer to sww 2011 as the fl deathmarch

( no one actually died ) but too many hours in the direct fl sun in may-june- August

And I can tell you, from listening to our guys (I do handler duty down here while still working in my costume, we call it wrangling), most other garrisons are not set well for marching. In New Orleans, we troop Mardi Gras parades, with lengths of around 6-7 miles, sometimes doing several each season. So, our guys figure out where the armor pinches and make adjustments. We are also used to the heat and humidity. So, NOLA troopers are a little more acclimated to the Fl Death March.

Ash

 

[Nayrb]

Has the cast yourself in Carbonite been confirmed for the 2013 star wars weekends, or is this something that generally goes on?

Any info would be great

 

[yulilin3]

Has the cast yourself in Carbonite been confirmed for the 2013 star wars weekends, or is this something that generally goes on?

Any info would be great

Just called D-Tech and they said that they'll start taking reservations starting April 15. Here's the phone number 407 939 8324

 

[shelbyf31]

Did Dtech say the price?

 

[kmcdougan]

Did Dtech say the price?

Last year, for non-Florida residents, it was $115 including shipping (no tax, due to being shipped out of state - something to do with it being treated as an online-type order). I would expect maybe a slight increase this year, due to inflation.


Ash

 

[AquaDame]

Last year, for non-Florida residents, it was $115 including shipping (no tax, due to being shipped out of state - something to do with it being treated as an online-type order). I would expect maybe a slight increase this year, due to inflation.


Ash

Were there any AP or other discounts available?