Blizzard Beach Mid-Day Arrival

[la la limon]

Evening,

We're thinking of hitting Blizzard Beach on our arrival day for a few hours (probably after lunch time) instead of the parks. Is this a bad idea? We'll be visiting on a Tuesday in August if that helps.

Thanks in advance!

Amy

 

[Gwjoeymed]

The only issue you might run into is afternoon thunderstorms. We went in July a couple of times during our trip and often the afternoon summer storms closed the rides down because of lightning. Lines weren't horrible, though I am sure much better in the mornings, but manageable. It was just the rain issue.

 

[rxsuperwoman]

No not at all, I think its probably a good use of your waterparks and more option, especially if you didn't want to "waste" a day of park ticket.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

It will probably be very busy when you arrive. Summit Plumet, Slushin Gusher, and Downhill Double Dippers will all probably have long lines. I'd stick to things like Teamboat Spring, the Red Slope rides, wave pool, and lazy river until the crowd thins out after Supper.

 

[Sephora]

I thought the water parks close earlier than the other parks? No?

 

[Gumbo4x4]

I thought the water parks close earlier than the other parks? No?

It's dependent on the time of year. Height of Summer, they're typically open until 8:00 pm.

 

[disneymom1229]

Our last trip we headed to TL after check in for a few hours. It was a great way to start our trip. The water parks do close earlier, but that worked out good too. We headed back to the resort and had a 6:00 ADR then we were able to unpack and get to bed early...

As a matter of fact, we have our first day of our trip this year planned the same way. We plan to go to TL after we check in, then to AKL for an early ADR at Boma. We'll bus to DTD and then take the boat back to POR.

We will be there for 11 days and have 10 tickets with PH/WPM, so we will still be able to hit the parks everyday the rest of our trip.

Good Luck to you!!

 

[mom2cinderella]

That's my plan as well. Since we are going in September the water parks will close at 5, but we can still do the Winter Summerland mini golf.

 

[rpk1951]

check before you go out as sometimes they reach capacity and will not let anyone else in

 

[la la limon]

Thanks for everyone's input! I'll check before we leave and if capacity or lousy weather we'll enjoy Disney Quest instead.

Amy

 

[GEM]

Just a suggestion NOT to check out Disney Quest if the weather is lousy. lol. That's what everyone does and the crowds there can get absolutely unbearable if it's bad weather out. It's packed when it's raining. Long lines for even the minor stuff. We usually go in the middle of the afternoon on a nice day and my son can pretty much have the place to himself.

 

[Kimosabe]

We have found that mornings are ideal at the water parks as the crowds don't really start hitting too hard until late morning or after lunch, as people leave the parks early and want to relax at a water park for the rest of the day (which certainly has its merits if you are OK with longer lines). We have also noticed the typical Florida afternoon rain shower affecting the water parks in the afternoon, so just watch out for that and be prepared for temporary shut-downs (but very short-term).

Either way, allow me to recommend the culinary masterpiece that is the macaroni and cheese dog from Avalunch at Blizzard Beach. Regardless of what time of day you are there, this is a worthy addition to your experience (although you might want to wait at least a few minutes between this and Summit Plummet!).

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Just a suggestion NOT to check out Disney Quest if the weather is lousy. lol. That's what everyone does and the crowds there can get absolutely unbearable if it's bad weather out. It's packed when it's raining. Long lines for even the minor stuff. We usually go in the middle of the afternoon on a nice day and my son can pretty much have the place to himself.

Yeah, if it's not an electrical storm, the water parks are GREAT in bad weather. No lines

 

[sasmom]

We went in mid-August 2012, arriving early afternoon, and went straight to Typhoon Lagoon. It was great. The lines were not nearly as bad as I expected. We got on the water coaster several times with minimal wait and did several other - but certainly not all - of the slides. Maybe the crowds we saw were atypical. I think a few hours at a water park is pretty tiring, so it's a great thing to do on a travel day.

 

[la la limon]

Either way, allow me to recommend the culinary masterpiece that is the macaroni and cheese dog from Avalunch at Blizzard Beach. Regardless of what time of day you are there, this is a worthy addition to your experience (although you might want to wait at least a few minutes between this and Summit Plummet!).

Ha ha! I don't think anyone in our party is brave enough for the Summit Plummet, so it's mac and cheese dogs for all!

 

[kay1864]

Just a suggestion NOT to check out Disney Quest if the weather is lousy. lol. That's what everyone does and the crowds there can get absolutely unbearable if it's bad weather out. It's packed when it's raining. Long lines for even the minor stuff. We usually go in the middle of the afternoon on a nice day and my son can pretty much have the place to himself.

Also, go on a weekday, especially before about 8p. The locals really crowd DQ on the weekends.

When on vacation it's easy to forget if it's Thu or Fri, so it pays to plan ahead.

 

[FPminusCommando]

If arriving mid-day I'd be somewhat concerned about finding a good place to sit. I've been a number of times to BB during Spring Break, arriving at opening, 10am. My favorite place to set up camp is next to the "Ski Patrol Training Camp" which is the pool with some smaller slides and the zip line. The seating near there is often shaded and since it's small it's more relaxing. The wavepool area is so chaotic, I'd rather not sit there.

 

[jenjersnap]

This is genius! It is hard to schedule enough water park time to make my kid happy. Although I will have to rent a locker because of all the precious tech stuff I will be carrying that I don't want to entrust to Bell Services...