Hound 109
<font color=teal>So non-screamin' family members c
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- Oct 10, 2006
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Update March 2011 - I posted this 4 years ago after receiving great advice from many on this board on how best to enjoy our one hour of Magic Morning/MM. HydroGuy has included this post in his excellent sticky, so it gets bumped from time to time.
With the Nemo attraction now a part of MM, this thread could have been re-named "A Critique of MM w/o Nemo" or "How Best to Enjoy MM on a non-Nemo day". But since Nemo is NOT worth dedicating 30-50 minutes of a visitor's MM time, this Critique & the comments by others below are still very relevent to enjoying & optimizing one's time during MM.
For any questions on how MM works (or practically any information regarding MM), one should review DLR 29's excellent Magic Morning Superthread (which is also included on HydroGuy's Super Sticky). Also, after much discussion here on the board, the general consensus on the desired itinerary for maximizing FantasyLand during MM (assuming one does Nemo at another time) would be:
- Peter Pan. (best to be one of the first on...because after 3-5 min. a line begins to form & it generally stays long)
- Dumbo. (if you're one of the first one on PP, you'll be able to ride Dumbo on the the first or second cycle).
- Alice (or Matterhorn)
- Matterhorn (or Alice) - If inclined, you can ride BOTH sides of the Matterhorn...& say "Hi" to Harold when he growls "Hi" to you.
- The Teacups (or Mr. Toad) - If you're walking by the teacups & they're loading, hop on....otherwise continue on to our favorite Toad.
- Toad (or the Teacups) - & I realize that over half the folks might skip the spinning teacup ride.
- Carousel/Pinocchio/Snow White - These 3 can be ridden in any order & are just a few steps from each other. None should have much of a line during MM. Also, Pinocchio & SW can be ridden throughout the day with little line. If walking by the Carousel & it's loading.....hop on....otherwise you can walk over to the other two for a quick ride.
If you have 2 or more days of MM available to you (because you're staying on site). Then you could change the above up a little. But if Peter Pan is on your schedule for the day.....it's first.....always first.
Even if PP isn't on your schedule, & you're thinking that you want to ride SM or Buzz during MM..... then I'd still do (for example)....Alice, Matterhorn & Toady BEFORE heading over to Buzz & SM. Plus if you dedicate the last 15-25 min. (as opposed to the first 15-25 min.) of MM to riding SM once or twice, you'll be right there to pick up your first FP (at SM) before the Gen. Adm. hordes show up one min. after rope drop.
I just got back and had a great time @ DLR. I'll try to do a trip report, but wanted to offer opinions on specific items that I had asked about. First Topic:
Hound's "rules" in regards to DL Magic Morning -
- If available and you don't use it.....you're crazy.
- If you don't follow HydroGuy's advice (& the other knowledgable Dis'ers here).....you're crazy.
My experience w/ MM:
Got the family up between 6 - 6:15am, shower, shave etc, & I was out the door (of the Fairfield Motel on Harbor Blvd) & standing in line at McDonalds at 6:55am (ordered for all 4 of us...they stumbled in between 7am - 7:05am). We quickly ate then left (at about 7:25 am) & power walked (with coffee in hand) to line at DL arriving at 7:35am (11th in our line).
At 8am sharp (we all counted down) they let us in & the family walked "purposefully" down Main St. toward the "smallish" castle (it had been 40 years since i'd seen it). We carefully avoided knocking down small children & grandmothers with walkers.
Per the excellent advice from those listed above we rode (in order):
-Peter Pan - no wait. One of the first on.
-Dumbo - waited 52 1/2 seconds. Rode on the second cycle.
-Alice - (I don't remember it from 40 years ago....i liked it....would even like it better if Jefferson Airplane was soundtracking). Waited maybe 2 min.
-Matterhorn - I goofed. I didn't know there was ANOTHER LINE. My wait was about 8-10 minutes (if i had gone to the line on the FAR side of the mountain it would have been about 3-4 minutes...didn't realize it till we were almost on.) 8 y/o kiddo was a little scared but like it.
-Mr. Toad - 1 min. wait. The Toad "Rocked"... just like I remembered it! Kiddo & I loved it.
-Snow White - 2 min. wait. (That witch is really mean...isn't she?)
-Pinochio - 1 min. wait. (very cute ride...i don't remember it...was it always there?)
-Carousel - 2 min. wait. And PLUTO RODE WITH US.
At this point it was 9:05 am, so we walked purposefully toward Tomorrowland (taking the very secret passageway that took us right by Snow White's statues) - took 2 pictures - then continued on to SM and picked up SM FP (for return at 10:15am). My family (7 y/o kiddo, wife & wife's sister) was breathing heavily & their heads were spinning so we strolled over to Main St.... got a cup of coffee & a danish... & relaxed for 5 min. before walking to...
-Storyland Canal Boats - (Long line that didn't move the 5 min. we were there...i'm guessing all the MM folks in Fantasyland headed here & it was slow to open.....anyway's...we bailed & walked on to (with absolutely no wait!)......
- It's a small, small (headache inducing) world. Which was actually very nice. & I HAD remembered how nice the landscaping was....nice to see it still looks great (way better than that park in Orlando).
Trip report to come, but I wanted to inform all who might contemplate EE for DL...to DO IT. And as always follow HydroGuy's & the other Diser's most excellent advice.
hound
Note: The next time that we enjoyed MM, we skipped the Teacups & Dumbo (on purpose) & found ourselves at the :42 minute mark with our Fantasyland rides completed.
So, we strolled over to Buzz & rode it twice (walk on both times), then continued over to Space Mountain & picked up our first FP of the day at :01. This worked very well for us, as it got us started on our FP collection immediately for the rest of the early morning.
We had 4 FPs in our pocket (that we used that evening) when we left DL at 10:20am & hopped to DCA for a 2.5 hour visit. (prior to our afternoon rest).
With the Nemo attraction now a part of MM, this thread could have been re-named "A Critique of MM w/o Nemo" or "How Best to Enjoy MM on a non-Nemo day". But since Nemo is NOT worth dedicating 30-50 minutes of a visitor's MM time, this Critique & the comments by others below are still very relevent to enjoying & optimizing one's time during MM.
For any questions on how MM works (or practically any information regarding MM), one should review DLR 29's excellent Magic Morning Superthread (which is also included on HydroGuy's Super Sticky). Also, after much discussion here on the board, the general consensus on the desired itinerary for maximizing FantasyLand during MM (assuming one does Nemo at another time) would be:
- Peter Pan. (best to be one of the first on...because after 3-5 min. a line begins to form & it generally stays long)
- Dumbo. (if you're one of the first one on PP, you'll be able to ride Dumbo on the the first or second cycle).
- Alice (or Matterhorn)
- Matterhorn (or Alice) - If inclined, you can ride BOTH sides of the Matterhorn...& say "Hi" to Harold when he growls "Hi" to you.
- The Teacups (or Mr. Toad) - If you're walking by the teacups & they're loading, hop on....otherwise continue on to our favorite Toad.
- Toad (or the Teacups) - & I realize that over half the folks might skip the spinning teacup ride.
- Carousel/Pinocchio/Snow White - These 3 can be ridden in any order & are just a few steps from each other. None should have much of a line during MM. Also, Pinocchio & SW can be ridden throughout the day with little line. If walking by the Carousel & it's loading.....hop on....otherwise you can walk over to the other two for a quick ride.
If you have 2 or more days of MM available to you (because you're staying on site). Then you could change the above up a little. But if Peter Pan is on your schedule for the day.....it's first.....always first.
Even if PP isn't on your schedule, & you're thinking that you want to ride SM or Buzz during MM..... then I'd still do (for example)....Alice, Matterhorn & Toady BEFORE heading over to Buzz & SM. Plus if you dedicate the last 15-25 min. (as opposed to the first 15-25 min.) of MM to riding SM once or twice, you'll be right there to pick up your first FP (at SM) before the Gen. Adm. hordes show up one min. after rope drop.
I just got back and had a great time @ DLR. I'll try to do a trip report, but wanted to offer opinions on specific items that I had asked about. First Topic:
Hound's "rules" in regards to DL Magic Morning -
- If available and you don't use it.....you're crazy.
- If you don't follow HydroGuy's advice (& the other knowledgable Dis'ers here).....you're crazy.
My experience w/ MM:
Got the family up between 6 - 6:15am, shower, shave etc, & I was out the door (of the Fairfield Motel on Harbor Blvd) & standing in line at McDonalds at 6:55am (ordered for all 4 of us...they stumbled in between 7am - 7:05am). We quickly ate then left (at about 7:25 am) & power walked (with coffee in hand) to line at DL arriving at 7:35am (11th in our line).
At 8am sharp (we all counted down) they let us in & the family walked "purposefully" down Main St. toward the "smallish" castle (it had been 40 years since i'd seen it). We carefully avoided knocking down small children & grandmothers with walkers.
Per the excellent advice from those listed above we rode (in order):
-Peter Pan - no wait. One of the first on.
-Dumbo - waited 52 1/2 seconds. Rode on the second cycle.
-Alice - (I don't remember it from 40 years ago....i liked it....would even like it better if Jefferson Airplane was soundtracking). Waited maybe 2 min.
-Matterhorn - I goofed. I didn't know there was ANOTHER LINE. My wait was about 8-10 minutes (if i had gone to the line on the FAR side of the mountain it would have been about 3-4 minutes...didn't realize it till we were almost on.) 8 y/o kiddo was a little scared but like it.
-Mr. Toad - 1 min. wait. The Toad "Rocked"... just like I remembered it! Kiddo & I loved it.
-Snow White - 2 min. wait. (That witch is really mean...isn't she?)
-Pinochio - 1 min. wait. (very cute ride...i don't remember it...was it always there?)
-Carousel - 2 min. wait. And PLUTO RODE WITH US.
At this point it was 9:05 am, so we walked purposefully toward Tomorrowland (taking the very secret passageway that took us right by Snow White's statues) - took 2 pictures - then continued on to SM and picked up SM FP (for return at 10:15am). My family (7 y/o kiddo, wife & wife's sister) was breathing heavily & their heads were spinning so we strolled over to Main St.... got a cup of coffee & a danish... & relaxed for 5 min. before walking to...
-Storyland Canal Boats - (Long line that didn't move the 5 min. we were there...i'm guessing all the MM folks in Fantasyland headed here & it was slow to open.....anyway's...we bailed & walked on to (with absolutely no wait!)......
- It's a small, small (headache inducing) world. Which was actually very nice. & I HAD remembered how nice the landscaping was....nice to see it still looks great (way better than that park in Orlando).
Trip report to come, but I wanted to inform all who might contemplate EE for DL...to DO IT. And as always follow HydroGuy's & the other Diser's most excellent advice.
hound
Note: The next time that we enjoyed MM, we skipped the Teacups & Dumbo (on purpose) & found ourselves at the :42 minute mark with our Fantasyland rides completed.
So, we strolled over to Buzz & rode it twice (walk on both times), then continued over to Space Mountain & picked up our first FP of the day at :01. This worked very well for us, as it got us started on our FP collection immediately for the rest of the early morning.
We had 4 FPs in our pocket (that we used that evening) when we left DL at 10:20am & hopped to DCA for a 2.5 hour visit. (prior to our afternoon rest).
TwingleMum....be careful......we don't want everyone to know the location of the "secret passageway". 
