Where to line up for Nemo??

[AussieFamilyMJTS]

Hi all,

I am a first time contributor BUT have thoroughly enjoyed reading all the great contributions over the last few months. My family (DW, DS7,& DS3) are coming from Australia to have our first and perhaps only visit to Disneyland next week and want to ensure we can get on all the good rides including Nemo. We are planning to have a MM on Thursday and to go on Nemo first. My question pertains to where to line up and the quickest way to get there. I believe I have read that you need to go left of the Matterhorn and around it to get into the start of the entry line rather than in through the Tomorrowland entrance. Bear in mind I have not actually been to Disneyland, so very clear instructions will be needed. Does it make a difference on a MM?

Thanks in advance

 

[farmfresh]

Hello from you next door nieghbour down under! Just got back, and we rode Nemo on a thursday MM. Here's what we did.

1. get there early!!! 30 -40 mins is best before MM time. Line up at the gates that say early entry.
2. When you enter the turnstiles, you want to head through the right hand tunnel, and head down the right hand side of main street.
If there is a rope drop, stay to the right hand side of it.
3. As you leave main street heading toward the castle, stay on the right hand side. Don't head into tomorrowland.
4. Keep walt's statue on your left - as you pass it there will be a path to your right (just above astro orbitors) follow that around the base of the matterhorn, and voila - you will see the sub line.
5. you should stay between tomorrowland and the matterhorn - don't go up to the back of the matterhorn.

There are cast members along the route to keep you in the right direction.

My only comment would be that Nemo is a relatively long ride, and your kids seem the ideal age for Fantasyland. We had two MMs because we were staying on site, and we used the second for Nemo.

As this is your first and perhaps only trip, I would reccommend a different strategy. I would hit the Fantasyland rides on your MM - there is a generally agreed order , with PP flight first, then dumbo, then on to the other dark rides, and the matterhorn. You can get through seven rides or so fairly easily - much more easily than at any other time.

PPF generally has at least half an hour or more on it at other times.

You could then ride Nemo on any other regular opening day (not another MM day, and not the weekend), by following the same strategy of being there extra early. You could consider doing it before sawppign to Dca for example.

Given the age of your kids , the other technique of waiting till close seems
unrealistic.

Nemo is a fun ride, but I think many others here would say it is not absolutely unmissable. Anyway, I'm sure you 'll get more helpful feedback, and good luck when you do attempt the nemo challenge!

You will

 

[tink2dw]

We had 1 person in our party that needed to use the "handicapped viewing room" due to their claustrophobia [fear of small places]. I almost went with but decided to do the sub. Big mistake! I was queasy from motion sickness by the end.

So if motion sickness or claustrophobia may be a problem, They said the viewing room was very good.

 

[avalon451]

Previous poster said don't go to the left of the Matterhorn, but everywhere else I've read says you should, because they start the line on the back of the Matterhorn ride. When we did it, that is where the CMs were directing us. Any other experiences with this?

That said, I wouldn't do the "Nemo stampede" again. It was insane. While it was a cute ride, I don't think it was worth it for all the fuss and getting up at the crack of dawn. I agree with the other poster that with the age of your kids, if you only have one MM, I'd use it for doing Fantasyland, Buzz and Matterhorn. You can do ALL those rides during your MM. You don't want to miss Peter Pan, and it has pretty long lines all day if you don't hit it right off the bat. Also Dumbo and the teacups get really long lines later on.

We had 2 MMs, so we did Fantasyland on the first one, and Nemo on the second. Next time, I'm going to see Nemo in the viewing room. Much less fuss!

But, hey, to each his own. Hope you have a wonderful time!

 

[Disney Mystic]

Question about this "Nemo Stampede". On our upcoming trip, I believe Monday, we get one of those MM's and we were finally going to try Nemo...is it sheer insanity with people lining up and all fighting to get to the ride? Can you kinda describe the level of chaos for it? I visioned a quiet calm morning where not many people are really there...I'm starting to think that's not the case.

 

[mommyof2boys1girl]

Question about this "Nemo Stampede". On our upcoming trip, I believe Monday, we get one of those MM's and we were finally going to try Nemo...is it sheer insanity with people lining up and all fighting to get to the ride? Can you kinda describe the level of chaos for it? I visioned a quiet calm morning where not many people are really there...I'm starting to think that's not the case.

Sorry to burst your bubble, Disney Mystic, but it's crazy!! We were there during a MM on a Thursday during off season (May 1, to be exact), and when they dropped the rope on Main St, people actually RAN to get in line for Nemo! Here's a mental picture for you - easily 200 people stampeding down Main St, jockeying with strollers and wheelchairs, one teen I saw literally leapt over another stroller to get ahead of a family group! CM's desperately telling people to slow down and trying to "direct" the stampede as best they could - I was totally unprepared!!

Having said that, we walked quickly in the same direction, hung a right AT the Matterhorn (check the map on Disneyland.com - it shows the path). You head past the astro orbiter and hang a right shortly after. The Matterhorn will be on your left as you walk by, and Triton's Gardens/Ariel character greet on your right. And don't worry - there was a CM every 30 feet or so along the way shouting "This way to Nemo Sub ride!!!", so it's pretty impossible to get lost!

We were able to get on the second "round" of subs, and so had almost 30 mins of our MM left to ride some of the FL rides - we had actually done FL the day before on a normal entry day, and with the exception of a couple rides, we did everything that day to leave room for Nemo on our MM.

Best of luck! It can be scary, the "Nemo Stampede", but perhaps if you know what to expect, it won't be too shocking!

 

[Disney Mystic]

So I'm considering sending one of my faster kids to the line and the rest of the family meeting him when we get there. The thing is I don't want him jumping over strollers or knocking people down, just get there near the front and hope the family has caught up before its his turn in line.

I got it, I'll get him some fuel-powered healies with some nitrous oxide injectors!!

 

[amyamya]

DLR hotel guests who take the monorail to TL or those running from the rope drop?

 

[tortugaverde]

I will give you my two cents, although I was there during spring break... and it was very crowded.

Expect crazy people pushing sleeping kids at break neck speeds in an attempt to get there quickly. Remember that you can keep your kids in a stroller all throughout the line and the CM's will park it for you when you get close to the entrance.

If I were you, I would use your MM to go on Nemo... if it is a must do attraction for you. You probably will use your entire MM waiting for Nemo.

I would follow the advice from others about getting there early, staying to the right at the rope drop (if there is one). Really, there is no mystery about where to go for Nemo... EVERYONE will be going to Nemo There will be CM's directing traffic yelling "this way to Nemo" and waving their arms in the correct direction. Once you get to the end of Main street, stay to the right until you are directed to go left... then stay to the right around the Matterhorn, you will then see the line. Unless you sprinted the whole way, it will be long by the time you get there. We had about a 45 min wait, but by the time we had been in line for 10 min... the line was already wrapping around the Matterhorn near the 2 hour wait mark.

As others have said, it is a cute ride... but not really worth they hype. However, my 3 and 5 year old still talk about it and it is always mentioned as one of their favorites.

We missed our other MM because we just could not make it there that early a second time! But we enjoyed Fantasyland on regular opening days between 8-9 with fairly short lines. Aside from Peter Pan (25 min wait) everything else was pretty much a walk on or a 5-10 min wait.

Good luck and have fun

 

[tortugaverde]

So I'm considering sending one of my faster kids to the line and the rest of the family meeting him when we get there. The thing is I don't want him jumping over strollers or knocking people down, just get there near the front and hope the family has caught up before its his turn in line.

I got it, I'll get him some fuel-powered healies with some nitrous oxide injectors!!

Not sure if you are being sarcastic or for real (due to the shoe comment, but if you are considering this I would suggest rethinking your plan. I do believe there are rules against saving spots in line and I would imagine that with Nemo, it is strictly enforced... not to mention making everyone around you grumpy!

Just a thought

 

[princessalexis]

Sorry, I didn't read all of the other posts (soooo tired from getting home at 3 this morning), but let me tell you our experience this week:

We planned to do Nemo at park opening on Monday. It was a cold rainy morning, and I was surprised at how many people were there. Everyone must have headed straight to Nemo. I didn't realize that you can keep your stroller in line and then a cast member will take it, so we took about an extra 30 seconds and parked the stroller headed to the end of the line. We waited for about 5 - 10 minutes, and then realized it was a 45 minute wait!!! ALREADY!!! Since I was (and still am) sick, I decided we would skip Nemo this trip. DS is 2 and wouldn't remember it anyway and I didn't want to wait out in the cold.

Monday night we watched Parade of Dreams and were done with that at about 7:35pm. Since the park closed at 8 that night, I knew we would only be able to do one more ride, so we decided to brave Nemo. Only about a 30 minute wait!

I don't know if that plan would work everyday, but it worked well for us - I think as long as you are in line by park closing, you will get through. I was glad we got to ride it because it was a cute ride, but I wouldn't have wanted to wait an hour or two for it.

And a little side note of something funny I saw on my trip (relating to Nemo's line) - we were walking back to our hotel for a nap one day and passed a family of four with shirts they had made for themselves. I don't know if they all said the same thing, but the one I read said "I Survived Nemo's Line." They need to start selling those in the gift shop.

 

[quiltymom]

After reading all of this, we're definitely skipping Nemo in the morning. I'd much rather do Fantasyland and Tomorrowland instead and try our luck with Nemo in the evening, or try the viewing room instead.

From what I remember of the old sub ride, I was quite claustrophobic on it anyway.

 

[Nftysqrt]

We are Disneyland regulars and the best time to do Nemo would be towards the end of the night. Kids are mostly done for the day, and people will be trying to get spots for the fireworks. Also, taking the monorail in will drop you off right in front of the line.

Also, don't trust the wait times. Yes, the line will seem huge but most of the time it goes fast. If it's posted 45 mins then more then likely it will take 30. Since the ride has been open for a while now the lines have calmed down a bit. Yes, it's still the most popular attraction but it shouldn't be horrible. Probably the same wait time as Peter Pan which always has the longest line in Fantasyland.

 

[avalon451]

Question about this "Nemo Stampede". On our upcoming trip, I believe Monday, we get one of those MM's and we were finally going to try Nemo...is it sheer insanity with people lining up and all fighting to get to the ride? Can you kinda describe the level of chaos for it? I visioned a quiet calm morning where not many people are really there...I'm starting to think that's not the case.

Yanno, kind of off-topic, but this reminded me... I was unprepared for the number of people lining up for opening in the mornings, the first time we went. I had heard so much about strategies for MM, and for some reason I also had a vision of just not so many people around... maybe a couple of dozen at the turnstiles waiting for MM opening. D'oh! The first day, we got to the gates at 6:30 a.m. for a 7 a.m. MM, and we were probably 25th or so in our line, and all the lines (maybe 10-12 lines?) were equally long. Imagine my surprise when, by opening time, the lines stretched back almost to the California letters on the Esplanade! There were hundreds of people lined up!

I started thinking, "Man, this is crazy! I thought it was "deserted" first thing in the morning!" But, once you get inside, and all those people spread out (or RUN directly to Nemo ), it does seem quieter than later in the day when it's wall-to-wall people.

BTW, people don't "fight" to get on Nemo, but it is just a lot of fuss. Getting up very early to get to security before it opens... running to be first at the turnstiles... running to get up to the top of Main Street to be first at the rope drop... then running to Nemo and going through the huge maze of the rope line. (and feeling guilty all the time for jogging while the CMs call out futilely, "Please don't run!" But if you don't, the line is awful before you get there!) We got on the first sub. But my hubby is a daily runner, and got there about 3 minutes ahead of us (gasping along in his wake ), and we were able to point at him and my DD10, who kept up with him, and politely say, "Oops, there's Dad, we need to join him, please excuse us, thank you!" and duck under a few ropes in the queue. Nobody seemed bothered by it, thankfully.

 

[Disney Mystic]

Ok explain this, I'm a little confused.

There's the tented area leading into the open area where the security people at the tables check your bags. I saw something about they make everyone go back there once they start letting people in.

If we decide to actually get up early and do this, do we line up at the main front gate to Disneyland or do we wait over by the tables? I'm assuming what happens is really early in the morning, the security people aren't there, and then when they arrive they flush everyone out who went through so they can be checked too.

Is this accurate?

 

[farmfresh]

No you don't have to go back. if you arrive early, you will be held at the tented security area for bag check until the security team are ready to let you go through to the gates.

You can't access the plaza area between the parks without passing through security at any time. If you are really early you just line up at the bag check - they will let you through at a set time, then you go and line up at the entry gates. And wait . Again. Before waiting at the rope drop! Again!

But at leat you'll get the most of the day!

 

[farmfresh]

PLus - re nemo directions - you really should just go straight past the base of the Matterhorn in the morning, not all the way around the back - that's a lot of extra 'fast' walking!

The poster who advised you will spend most of you MM there was right. bear in mind that each sub holds 20 people, so even if you are first there, you need to wait for more people before they open the ride up. that also means, if you are a little slow, a crowd of forty ahead of you is only a couple of subs - not ideal, but better than you'll see most of the day.

 

[avalon451]

If we decide to actually get up early and do this, do we line up at the main front gate to Disneyland or do we wait over by the tables? I'm assuming what happens is really early in the morning, the security people aren't there, and then when they arrive they flush everyone out who went through so they can be checked too.

Is this accurate?

You wait over by the tables. We got there at 6:10 on our second MM (Nemo or die!). We were third at the deserted security tables. There was a mom with two kids (one conked out in her stroller), and one other guy alone. We stood and chatted, and within 10 minutes there were, like, 50 people lined up behind us. (I think there's like, 3 tents with 2 tables back to back in each one?) Security leisurely wandered in about 6:25. At this point, each of us "firsties" were standing at one of the tables with our waist packs already off and held open on the table for them to look at, and they opened up at 6:30 (checking on walkie-talkies to make sure they were in synch with the security checkpoint over on the other side of the Esplanade).
As soon as we were through security we dashed over to the turnstiles to be first in line at ours.

People do walk through the Esplanade before security gets there, but they are usually people who are heading to work at DL or at DTD.

 

[Pucka1378]

I have only read original post.

We were there on mothers day and I made Nemo our first stop. We went in the park about 30mins after it opened and we went through tomorrow land and the line had not yet reached the matterhorn and they did not have all the twisty turvey things opened. We were in line about 35mins.

We talked to CM at the front of the line and they said their average wait time for that ride is 65mins.

 

[mommyof2boys1girl]

Ok explain this, I'm a little confused.

There's the tented area leading into the open area where the security people at the tables check your bags. I saw something about they make everyone go back there once they start letting people in.

If we decide to actually get up early and do this, do we line up at the main front gate to Disneyland or do we wait over by the tables? I'm assuming what happens is really early in the morning, the security people aren't there, and then when they arrive they flush everyone out who went through so they can be checked too.

Is this accurate?

On our MM day, we got to the line about 8:30 (half hour before opening) and the lines had already formed at the bag check. They held us there for about 15 mins, then we were let thru to wait in line at the gate for 5 mins, then in for rope drop till 9. I think the bag check CM's start stopping people from going through about an hour before MM opening, so unless you are there ridiculously early, you should simply be held at the bag check tent till opening.