A&E Stampede this morning was insane!!!

[esquared221]

Meeting E&A on our upcoming trip WAS a priority (DD7 and I just love Frozen) but even a month before our trip all the FP's were gone for them (and I mean totally sold out for the entire 10 days we'll be in WDW). I have started to prepare her that we probably won't be seeing them because I will NOT wait in a line like that but we'll keep watching the FP availability in the event that a cancellation occurs.

IMO this is shameless, intentionally created hype. The movie came out last November for Pete's sake, that's plenty of time for Disney to adjust to the crazy demand. There is still just about no merch anywhere and all this crazed behavior to see E&A in their one and only location is ridiculous. I think everyone is right: someone is going to get hurt and what if it's a child? What if some little kid gets trampled when they dash away from mom and dad and run in front of the grown up stampede? I think Walt would be disappointed.

 

[Missyrose]

Meeting E&A on our upcoming trip WAS a priority (DD7 and I just love Frozen) but even a month before our trip all the FP's were gone for them (and I mean totally sold out for the entire 10 days we'll be in WDW). I have started to prepare her that we probably won't be seeing them because I will NOT wait in a line like that but we'll keep watching the FP availability in the event that a cancellation occurs. IMO this is shameless, intentionally created hype. The movie came out last November for Pete's sake, that's plenty of time for Disney to adjust to the crazy demand. There is still just about no merch anywhere and all this crazed behavior to see E&A in their one and only location is ridiculous. I think everyone is right: someone is going to get hurt and what if it's a child? What if some little kid gets trampled when they dash away from mom and dad and run in front of the grown up stampede? I think Walt would be disappointed.

They didn't care about the safety during the Dumbo dash and let the TSM dash go on for years before doing anything about that.

 

[minmate]

Yea I'd wait 5 hours for that! But he must be in total character lol. A&E we got a fp 4 my dd 10 loves them and so does ds 3 but they would not survive a 5 hour line especially in the summer!

I *might* wait five hours for Capt Jack Sparrow but it would HAVE to be THE Johnny Depp!

I'd also like to meet Robert Lopez, the guy who wrote the songs for Frozen (along with his wife). I just learned not long ago, how much he has done (Book of Mormon included). He is one of only a dozen people to wing a Grammy, Emmy, Oscar and Tony and the only person to do it in the same decade. He's crazy talented, no wonder everyone loves the Frozen music!

 

[JeremyGNJ]

Meeting E&A on our upcoming trip WAS a priority (DD7 and I just love Frozen) but even a month before our trip all the FP's were gone for them (and I mean totally sold out for the entire 10 days we'll be in WDW). I have started to prepare her that we probably won't be seeing them because I will NOT wait in a line like that but we'll keep watching the FP availability in the event that a cancellation occurs.

IMO this is shameless, intentionally created hype. The movie came out last November for Pete's sake, that's plenty of time for Disney to adjust to the crazy demand. There is still just about no merch anywhere and all this crazed behavior to see E&A in their one and only location is ridiculous. I think everyone is right: someone is going to get hurt and what if it's a child? What if some little kid gets trampled when they dash away from mom and dad and run in front of the grown up stampede? I think Walt would be disappointed.

I don't really understand this viewpoint. The wait for Space Mountain has been long for...almost all the time...since it was built. They never created a second one to "adjust for demand".

 

[nfceagles]

If we aren't able to get a FP for this, my children will simply be told that we are not waiting in line for hours to get a picture with a stranger in a costume. Period. We aren't big M&G people, but 6yo DD does like Frozen and would enjoy it.

 

[jhaig]

It shouldn't be long before the CM's bring out the rope in the morning and slow people down. Disney's lawyers should insist on it.

Fantasyland will be a nightmare after the Mine Train opens. Summer at the Magic Kingdom should be miserable.

 

[Disney_Princess83]

I don't really understand this viewpoint. The wait for Space Mountain has been long for...almost all the time...since it was built. They never created a second one to "adjust for demand".

They wouldn't create a second identical ride to adjust to demand. But it's crazy that they haven't found a better way to deal with the crowds. Find more "friends" for Anna and Elsa. Have them meet at MK and EPCOT, have them meeting at Town Square (to minimise the "dash" to Fantasyland) The line could already be forming before park opening - MUCH safer than the run to the back of the park, get people to line up and offer them an older paper FP return time. Few people would choose to stand in a line than long but they could come back during their return time. Similar to FP+. Offer no prebooked FP+ and just offer the paper FP at the parks.

 

[Peanut Giggleface]

I don't really understand this viewpoint. The wait for Space Mountain has been long for...almost all the time...since it was built. They never created a second one to "adjust for demand".

Space Mountain is a multi-million dollar ride with a footprint of several 100,000 sf. To duplicate this attraction would seriously affect the layout of the park not to mention the aesthetics. The A&E meet and greet is two people dressed in costume with zero footprint taking up a very mobile 10 sf. They could easily duplicate this meet and greet in all four parks (just like they do with Mickey and friends) with very little cost. There is no comparing the two.

 

[JeremyGNJ]

Space Mountain is a multi-million dollar ride with a footprint of several 100,000 sf. To duplicate this attraction would seriously affect the layout of the park not to mention the aesthetics. The A&E meet and greet is two people dressed in costume with zero footprint taking up a very mobile 10 sf. They could easily duplicate this meet and greet in all four parks (just like they do with Mickey and friends) with very little cost. There is no comparing the two.

Its not the cost of an addition that I'm comparing. Its the outrage of having to wait that I'm comparing.

 

[AliceandAriel]

They wouldn't create a second identical ride to adjust to demand. But it's crazy that they haven't found a better way to deal with the crowds. Find more "friends" for Anna and Elsa. Have them meet at MK and EPCOT, have them meeting at Town Square (to minimise the "dash" to Fantasyland) The line could already be forming before park opening - MUCH safer than the run to the back of the park, get people to line up and offer them an older paper FP return time. Few people would choose to stand in a line than long but they could come back during their return time. Similar to FP+. Offer no prebooked FP+ and just offer the paper FP at the parks.

The easiest answer to this mess is this. Sure, it wouldn't put a huge dent in the system, but at least we'd see the lines drop a bit.

And I really don't want to hear the bull that they're having a hard time finding the right 'Anna and Elsa'. From the few pictures I've seen of the girls since they premiered in November, to now, I've counted at least 3 different Annas, and two Elsas. At MINIMUM, they have enough out of the batch that have been hired to do two sets- one in Epcot and one in MK. Everyone is making it that Disney is having such a hard time finding them- it isn't that they're having a hard time, it's that they're doing a darn good job of drumming up hype by keeping them at a bare minimum, while lining the company's bottom line with a nice net of Frozen merch sold around the limited appearances in the parks. If they can find a way to pay only one person to be THE Anna and Elsa, they're going to. They obviously have.

I get it, they're a business. And people will wait for what they want, no matter what the times say. If they're dedicated enough, a 7 hour wait can be handled.

Can they just, you know, bring in an Olaf nearby or something finally? Put Olaf in an area across the park or wherever so there can be SOME Frozen distribution, not to mention a push to see one person when you might not be able to see the other?

 

[AliceandAriel]

They wouldn't create a second identical ride to adjust to demand. But it's crazy that they haven't found a better way to deal with the crowds. Find more "friends" for Anna and Elsa. Have them meet at MK and EPCOT, have them meeting at Town Square (to minimise the "dash" to Fantasyland) The line could already be forming before park opening - MUCH safer than the run to the back of the park, get people to line up and offer them an older paper FP return time. Few people would choose to stand in a line than long but they could come back during their return time. Similar to FP+. Offer no prebooked FP+ and just offer the paper FP at the parks.

The only part I don't agree with is this. If they made it you could line up for the meet before the park opens, with the madness going on right now, people would legitimately camp out for that spot, or start to show up at 2-4AM just to get that coveted spot. Which would really drive madness around them even more.

 

[Brian Noble]

But it's crazy that they haven't found a better way to deal with the crowds.

Well, in some sense they did---the MK location has twice the capacity they had at Epcot, because there are two A&E rooms running simultaneously. But, the location is also more highly visible to the movie's core demographic.

Give them time. It's only been in MK for a week.

 

[The Hub]

For all those concerned with the safety of yourself, Cast Members and other guests, I advise you to call our Safety Hotline (Safeline) at 407-WDW-SAFE. You are able to leave an anonymous tip and they will forward it to the leadership teams of Main Street Operations and possibly Fantasyland Operations.

Obviously, safety is our first priority. If we don't take care of a safety hazard early on, it can escalate into something that could have been prevented. It's disappointing that Anna and Elsa have already caused a fight to break out amongst a couple of guests. For those who call, thank you for making Walt Disney World a safer place.

 

[mom2rtk]

I can't even imagine how guest tempers will flare with that long line out in the sun in the middle of summer.

 

[jtowntoflorida]

I can't even imagine how guest tempers will flare with that long line out in the sun in the middle of summer.

I hope that by then, they'll see the foolishness in putting A&E in the middle of Fantasyland and will have relocated them again. The problem is, in MK where do they have the space to accommodate a line that is 5+ hours long? I'd think having them at TST would be bad because it would jam up the entrance to the park and even muck up the parade route. I can't believe that they added these characters to the park that has the most crowding and crowd control issues. It makes no sense.

Even if it doesn't fit with the theme, I maintain that the best (temporary) location would have been the old Odyssey Restaurant in Epcot...it's empty, there are bathrooms available, and the queue would be indoors. Marginal second location would be on the Streets of America, though the theme issues there would be even bigger. At least there would be space to accommodate all the people since it's a marginally used section of the parks.

 

[jhaig]

That's not a bad idea. I wouldn't worry about theme though, because that should be secondary to guest safety in the entire guest experience. Epcot could handle that many people much easier than where they are now.

 

[AndreaA]

I don't really understand this viewpoint. The wait for Space Mountain has been long for...almost all the time...since it was built. They never created a second one to "adjust for demand".

I have never heard of the wait for ANYTHING being FIVE HOURS LONG - SpaceMtn, RnR, or even TSMM.

And I would also agree that it's one thing to be unable to do anything about supply vs demand, as in the case of a huge complicated roller coaster, and having PLENTY of ability to spread the supply around, as with creating a few M&G locations in various parks or dining locations. The bull about it "spoiling the magic" is just that. Bull. What do kids think about the fact that A&E are in the FairyTaleHall and the FofF Parade at the same time? What do they think about Mickey being at Chef Mickey, Donald's Safari Breakfast, Epcot, HS, and various parades? The answer is that they don't give it a second thought.

Honestly, I reserve a lot of my disgust for the parents who feed into this ridiculousness, because clearly it is PARENTS, not 2-5yr olds making the biggest fuss (take a look at the "simple pleasures" thread for proof), but ultimately, Disney created this mess and Disney has an obligation to fix it before someone gets seriously hurt.

 

[donp]

I *might* wait five hours for Capt Jack Sparrow but it would HAVE to be THE Johnny Depp! I'd also like to meet Robert Lopez, the guy who wrote the songs for Frozen (along with his wife). I just learned not long ago, how much he has done (Book of Mormon included). He is one of only a dozen people to wing a Grammy, Emmy, Oscar and Tony and the only person to do it in the same decade. He's crazy talented, no wonder everyone loves the Frozen music!

If I am not mistaken, they also did some of the music for the Nemo show at AK. There are definite similarities.

 

[mom2rtk]

I hope that by then, they'll see the foolishness in putting A&E in the middle of Fantasyland and will have relocated them again. The problem is, in MK where do they have the space to accommodate a line that is 5+ hours long? I'd think having them at TST would be bad because it would jam up the entrance to the park and even muck up the parade route. I can't believe that they added these characters to the park that has the most crowding and crowd control issues. It makes no sense.

Even if it doesn't fit with the theme, I maintain that the best (temporary) location would have been the old Odyssey Restaurant in Epcot...it's empty, there are bathrooms available, and the queue would be indoors. Marginal second location would be on the Streets of America, though the theme issues there would be even bigger. At least there would be space to accommodate all the people since it's a marginally used section of the parks.

Agreed. But part of me thinks Disney wants photos of Fantasyland with crowds from A/E bumping up against crowds from the Mine Train to compete with the crowd photos US will put out when the new Harry Potter attractions open.

 

[KatieKat]

Is a&e still meeting at Epcot? If so , what are those wait times looking like?