Any one do a child swap recently?

[RichNKatHolly]

Just wondering what the procedure is for the child swap. DD2 will not be able to ride a few things that everyone else wants to do (Soarin', etc.). So I believe we all wait on line, DH gets some sort of ticket and holds DD, we get off and DH gets on or does he wait in line again? Does he have to ride alone or can I send DS with him for a second ride?

Thanks for any info!

 

[bubbasmom99]

It really depends on the ride -- each one has a different procedure. Most of the time, you will go up to the ride attendant at the start of the queue and tell him/her that you need a rider switch/baby swap and they will give you a switch pass (sometimes a fastpass). One of you goes in the line and the other waits by the ride exit or wherever. When the first person exits, you will either go back through the exit line or go back in through the fastpass line. If there is a single rider line, you will usually go through that.

I have not been on Soarin' at Epcot yet but in California at DCA, they use the single rider line for rider switch.

 

[RichNKatHolly]

Ahhh, poor DH has to go it alone? That stinks for him. Maybe it will be better just to have him get back in line with DS or all of us again and then I'll sit it out.

 

[all4fun]

Most often the person with the rider swap pass can take an additional 2 people with them back on the ride, so your ds should be able to ride again. Soarin' at Epcot has an FP line so I'm sure this would apply there. There are only a few rides (M:S, and TT @ Epcot) that have single rider lines, that I know of anyway. Like the pp said the actual procedure could vary by ride, so just ask the CM standing at the front of the queue. Most of all, have fun!

ETA: here's a site that explains fastpass: http://www.allearsnet.com/tp/fastpass.htm
and here is what the same site says about Child Swap:

What if I want to ride an attraction that my child is too small to ride?

Try the baby-swap. The baby swap is designed to allow both parents to experience an attraction that your little one may be two small to ride and not have to wait in line twice to do so.

It works like this. At the entrance to the attraction, you mention to the cast member that you would like to do a baby swap. They will instruct you on how to proceed on that particular attraction. You will all go into the attraction line and one parent will ride the attraction while the other stays with the child. When the first adult is finished, they will take the child and the second adult will then ride. This is especially fun for an older brother or sister who is large enough to ride the attraction. Many times the cast members will allow the child to ride with both adults which gives the child the chance to experience the attraction twice without having to wait in line.

This procedure is changing for many of the rides that are now offering FastPass so be sure to ask the CM at the entrance of the attraction which procedure you are to follow.

What is FastPass and how will it help me?

FastPass is a newer system which helps guests eliminate some of the longer lines by receiving a time frame in which they can ride the attraction with out having to wait in the longer traditional queue. For more information on FastPass visit the FastPass FAQ.

The FastPass system lets you as a parent plan more efficiently around longer waits by getting a time frame to return to the ride and enjoy other portions of the park. Although the Fastpass line can involve some waiting, it is generally less than the traditional queue.

FastPass is a great way to keep your child motivated through the longer lines, a fussy period, or even getting them to nap. By knowing when you're going to go on Winnie the Pooh, you can use that as incentive to take a nap, eat, or give them something to look forward to during a tough time of the day. (Dave Reich

hth!

 

[becca011906]

I was wondering about this also...Almost all the rides that have the hight restrictions are the only ones that i'm not taking dd on, so most of thoes have FP that i plan to us, but we have a large group going 4 adults and 5 kids only one that can't ride most big things. so only 2 can use the child swap??? can you use FP with child swap?

 

[all4fun]

Becca, I believe that they will allow up to three people in line with the Rider Swap pass and yes, you can also combine the use of Fastpass with the rider swap pass, as long as that attraction/ride has a Fast Pass line.

 

[RichNKatHolly]

Thanks!!

 

[susykt4]

We did the Soarin' fastpass baby swap when we were there at the end of April. When we went to the fp line, the attendant gave us a babyswap pass. DD4 and I went to the fp line while DH and DS2 waited and then when we were done DD4 got to go again with Daddy. This was the only ride we did the baby swap on so I know nothing about the others, but baby swap on Soarin took FOREVER! DS2 was bored out of his mind! We went up and down the escalators about 7 million times, stopped at the Kidcot station as long as I could keep him there, watched the characters in the restaurant and that was just MY shift. I believe this was the first week Soarin was open fulltime so maybe they have worked out some kinks, but it might be worth taking your 2-yr-old to the Living Seas or the Imagination play area while the others go and have them call when they're exiting. Or at least arrange a place to meet after the 2nd "shift" rides... It's too bad Soarin has a height requirement because DS would have LOVED this one!!! The rest of us certainly did.

 

[becca011906]

Thanks!

 

[all4fun]

We did the Soarin' fastpass baby swap when we were there at the end of April. When we went to the fp line, the attendant gave us a babyswap pass. DD4 and I went to the fp line while DH and DS2 waited and then when we were done DD4 got to go again with Daddy. This was the only ride we did the baby swap on so I know nothing about the others, but baby swap on Soarin took FOREVER! DS2 was bored out of his mind! We went up and down the escalators about 7 million times, stopped at the Kidcot station as long as I could keep him there, watched the characters in the restaurant and that was just MY shift. I believe this was the first week Soarin was open fulltime so maybe they have worked out some kinks, but it might be worth taking your 2-yr-old to the Living Seas or the Imagination play area while the others go and have them call when they're exiting. Or at least arrange a place to meet after the 2nd "shift" rides... It's too bad Soarin has a height requirement because DS would have LOVED this one!!! The rest of us certainly did.

We must have been there about the same time. We were there in April the weekend they reopened The Land for a DVC/AP preview of Soarin' so I had hoped that like you said some of the kinks have been worked out since then. I had the same experience - ds and I went up and down the stair/escalator what felt like a hundred times. He was also just about to turn two at the time and a very active toddler. Well at least I was getting some exercise, LOL. I think the wait for that attraction is worse because the "movie" is about 15minutes long. Then you have to add wait time to get into the theater so you can be waiting around for quite a while. The suggestion to take your toddler somewhere else is a really good one. This is when radio's and cell phones come in handy because you can just connect with your party that way to let them know where you're at. (Just be aware the radio/phone might not work in the bldg - at least my cell phone didn't at the time).

p.s. I thought the wait was worth it btw. Soarin' is really incredible.

 

[RichNKatHolly]

We will certainly bring out cell phones! We also have Epcot planned twice in our visit so it is possible that we will just ride on different days. DH is not as "into" the rides as I am, so I'll go first, OF COURSE!!

Soarin is one of the rides I'm looking forward to most of all. Looks absolutely beautiful! DS is also excited. Is the height requirement below 45 inches?

 

[becca011906]

I'm almost positive that it's 40 for it and most...

 

[gr8ful4Him]

we had to do the child swap for soarin' in mid July. Our dd was about a half inch under the height. The nice thing about the fp they gave us was it was good for 3 riders and the expiration of 7/31/05! My dd and I went and did a few things in the building and when ds and dh were done, we went to lunch. On the way back through, ds and I went and got in the fp line waited a few min. before the merged line. Since he had already been on the ride, ds said we had about a 20 min wait from where we were. Just when we were getting comfy, here comes a cm looking for a party of 2!
So, our wait total was about 10 min. maybe!

 

[rt2dz]

How baby swap works depends on the ride and how busy the park is. The busier the park, the more likely you are to be sent through the fast pass line. In slow seasons they often just let you wait by the exit and jump right on. One extra person is also always allowed to ride with you. More than that will again depend on the ride, how busy, and the CM.

 

[disney_family_1247]

The past two times we have tried the baby swap, we have run into trouble.

In March, I tried it on Dinosaur. The attendant was extremely rude; she stopped me as I got to the line and said that my two year old was too small to ride. I agreed with her and said we were going to switch off. She told me that they don't do that anymore! She said that I could go and wait in the gift shop with ds while everyone else rode and then switch off from there, but I couldn't bring him to wait in line with our group. I had no interest in sitting in a gift shop for an hour by myself, so I didn't get to ride.

When we tried to switch off at the Stitch attraction, the woman told us that she was out of passes. My aunt and I had to wait around in the courtyard until my mother and nephew came out of the ride before getting in line ourselves.

I was very disappointed both times by the situation. The only place that the swap worked was in Star Tours.

 

[RichNKatHolly]

The past two times we have tried the baby swap, we have run into trouble.

In March, I tried it on Dinosaur. The attendant was extremely rude; she stopped me as I got to the line and said that my two year old was too small to ride. I agreed with her and said we were going to switch off. She told me that they don't do that anymore! She said that I could go and wait in the gift shop with ds while everyone else rode and then switch off from there, but I couldn't bring him to wait in line with our group. I had no interest in sitting in a gift shop for an hour by myself, so I didn't get to ride.

When we tried to switch off at the Stitch attraction, the woman told us that she was out of passes. My aunt and I had to wait around in the courtyard until my mother and nephew came out of the ride before getting in line ourselves.

I was very disappointed both times by the situation. The only place that the swap worked was in Star Tours.

Wow, that stinks! Sorry you had trouble. I'll be sure to post back after our trip about our experience with it. I guess we will just go into it thinking worst case is that we wait on line twice.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I was wondering about this also...Almost all the rides that have the hight restrictions are the only ones that i'm not taking dd on, so most of thoes have FP that i plan to us, but we have a large group going 4 adults and 5 kids only one that can't ride most big things. so only 2 can use the child swap??? can you use FP with child swap?

Still use babyswap--then 1 person stays behidn with the non-rider...and then 2-3 volunteers (depends on the ride, the #) get to accompany that person when the swap occurs and rides a second time. This is how we handle our large group swaps.

 

[BBGirl]

Just wondering what the procedure is for the child swap. DD2 will not be able to ride a few things that everyone else wants to do (Soarin', etc.). So I believe we all wait on line, DH gets some sort of ticket and holds DD, we get off and DH gets on or does he wait in line again? Does he have to ride alone or can I send DS with him for a second ride?

Thanks for any info!

My DH and I both rode with on DS(7). So DS did all the ride twice in a row. This was at Fast Track, Soarin, Buzz Lightyear, Stich. The Baby pass allows up to 3 people to ride sooo. Other rides we rode DD(2) rode with us or DS only wanted to do once and not again so gave our Baby Pass back. Tell them you are doing the baby swap and ask for the pass. You will have to have baby with you had to go get her at Stich. Remeber to pick a spot to meet up again. We always asked where the ride exited and stayed there. If you have a faspass tell them you still want the baby pass as you or DH doesn't want to ride alone.
HTH
Tina

 

[disneymom225]

I WANTED to do a child swap in a restaurant tonight when DD has a hissie fit but I couldn't find anyone willing to swap with me!!!

 

[RichNKatHolly]

I WANTED to do a child swap in a restaurant tonight when DD has a hissie fit but I couldn't find anyone willing to swap with me!!!

Ahhh, now there is a money maker for ya. Sit around and take people's kids when they flip out. I'd pay almost anything when those happen right after appetizers!!