DHS/Toy Story Land "Early Morning Magic" (EMM) FAQ & Discussion

[sequoia 14]

We attended today as well (6/17). It was frustrating to have SDD go down twice (at the opening of the event and then the middle when my DH was in line) but extending our access until noon as the poster above stated really helped us feel that we received value for money. We have 4 under 4 (to include 2 babies) so my husband and I usually have to take turns taking our older daughters on rides. It was nice that each of us were able to ride the rides with them. In the end we met Jessie & Woody/ Bo Peep, rode the saucers x 3, TSM x2 , SDD x1 and SDD x2 after the event. It wasnt particularly relaxing but it was way better than the mass of people + the 3 hr wait for SDD, 2 hr wait for TSM and 1 hr wait for aliens we saw when we came back into the land at 1030. So for our family's needs it was worth it.

 

[VAfamily1998]

Update - slinky dog is back up and our bands are good until noon, I believe for the whole area and not just SDD. We’re heading over for breakfast and then will come back and ride until the teenagers finally wake up and join us.

When you say your "bands are good", do you mean they give you some type of priority in the regular line? Like a fast pass? Thanks!

 

[tarak]

When you say your "bands are good", do you mean they give you some type of priority in the regular line? Like a fast pass? Thanks!

Yes. The green wristbands we were given at the beginning worked as a FastPass for SDD until noon. All told, we rode TSMM four times and SDD four times. It’s a cute ride, but I was feeling a bit nauseous after so many go arounds. We got breakfast around 9:45. It was really good. My daughter just had the chicken with the donuts and she was happy with that. I had the chilequiles and really liked it. I was so stuffed, though, I couldn’t bring myself to go right back and ride SDD right away, so we rode star tours, which had a half-hour wait. SDD went down again for weather maybe 20 minutes before noon, so we decided to bag it.

All told, it was worth it for me because the response to the ride closure was appropriate. If it hadn’t gone down, we never would have ridden SDD that often as it was taking about 15 minutes to get through the line. TSMM was a walk-on pretty much throughout. We didn’t bother with the alien saucers because I’m not too fond of that sort of spinning ride. I feel bad for anyone who wasn’t able to make the extended FP work with their schedule.

 

[kwiatamanda]

We were also there on 6/17. They walked us into Toy Story Land at about 7:20. We went on SDD first. While waiting in line about 5 minutes, they announced it was down. We took a chance and waited and they restarted after just a few minutes. We rode it once and then headed to meet Jessie and ride Alien Swirling Saucers. Then, we rode TSM once and headed back over to SDD. Got in line and then it closed down again. This time we got right out of line and headed back to do TSM again. SDD was still down, so we got in the line for Woody and Bo Peep with about 10 families ahead of us. While in line, we heard others talking about how our bands were extended until 10:30. We would have not known this if I had not overheard them talking about it. A little while later, someone said they had changed the extension until noon. We were still in line for Woody and Jessie at 8:50 when the massive crowd came in. We headed to eat breakfast right after that. Then we had a fast pass for Star Tours and stopped to see BB8. Wasn't in a huge rush because we figured that the fast pass line for SDD would still be 20 minutes since the Standby line was so long. When we got to SDD, we found out that it only took us about 7 minutes in between rides. The people in line in front of us were on their 7th SDD ride already. We rode SDD two more times and then a downpour of rain hit while we were riding, and it was almost noon. Felt rather guilty riding it again in front of the people who had waited two hours to ride with the threat of lightning looming any second. We also had a fast pass for SDD later. All in all we ended up riding SDD 3 times plus once more with our fast pass, TSM two times, Alien Swirling Saucers once, and met Woody, Jessie and Bo. We could've probably done Buzz too, but it was starting to rain and my kids were satisfied with getting the other 3 characters. Breakfast was good. All in all I'd say it was worth it because of the extension until noon. If I would not have heard the others talking about it in line though, it would have been pretty disappointing.

 

[Boardgaming]

I tried to get a reservation and it is showing as full. Has anyone had any luck getting reservations after they have sold out? Do people typically cancel so other slots will open or do you know if Disney adds slots closer to the date?

 

[AdrianneB]

I tried to get a reservation and it is showing as full. Has anyone had any luck getting reservations after they have sold out? Do people typically cancel so other slots will open or do you know if Disney adds slots closer to the date?

I picked up a 7:00 am reservation for 3 for the EMM on 6/10 after the event had already shown as "sold out" 31 days beforehand. Bookmark the page and take a look every day or so. People do cancel their reservations (as evidenced on this thread).

 

[kwiatamanda]

I tried to get a reservation and it is showing as full. Has anyone had any luck getting reservations after they have sold out? Do people typically cancel so other slots will open or do you know if Disney adds slots closer to the date?

I got our reservation for 5 on 6/17 after it had already been showing sold out for a couple of weeks. I just kept checking every couple days.

 

[Jessirip]

We attended TS EMM on 6/12 and had a great time. There was 4 of us which includes a 7 year old and a 4 year old. Here's how the gist went:


We woke around 6:15am at POFQ which was later than I had wanted, but we had done MK EMM the previous day and were a little tired. This was the 2nd full day of our vacation though so still had some excited energy to use. Just as we were all together I saw on the app that a bus had just left for HS around 6:45. We headed that way and I kept checking the app and screens for when the next available bus would come, but it remained at "No Times Available". We stayed at the bus stop for a good 10 minutes (approaching 7am) when I got nervous enough to say forget it and requested a Minnie Van. (We need a car seat still for the 4 year old). We got picked up around 7:10? And made it to HS right at 7:30. Wasn't stressing as the Minnie Van driver was quick and kind and got us there asap. (Later we would pass another family in SDD line that opted to remain and wait for the bus... they got to HS about 7:45 which we figured worked out to $26 for one more ride on SDD).

This may be a great time to arrive, because we had absolutely no one around when we walked in. There was no mass of people to wait in like the previous day with MK EMM. We just walked in, were given our bands and told to have a great time. Walking into TSL was like we had the place to ourselves, everyone was already in line. It was still too early to even eat a pastry for us, so we took some photos and ooohed and awed at how stikin' cute this land is!

Though I knew heading to SDD first might mean longer wait times, we did it anyway. We had passed right by the stroller parking at the entrance of TSM however and started to head back, but a super nice cast member at the entrance to SDD offered to take it to the exit of SDD for us, so we hopped out right there and got in line. The wait time posted was 25 minutes, but we were on and off in less than that. All of us LOVED it. When we exited the stroller was parked so nicely with some others and out of the way that we just opted to leave it there for the whole event. This worked out great!

We headed to Alien SS next which was a walk on. It was fun and silly but, couldn't see waiting in a long line for it. The kids begged to do SDD again (3rd time), so we did. Jessie was meeting by the wall for Aliens and our 7 year old was dressed like her so I knew I needed a photo. The line was about 5-6 families long. Our 4 year old boy didn't want to meet Jessie so we rode Aliens again while DH waited in line with our daughter to meet her favorite cowgirl. As soon as we were walking off Aliens they were wrapping up their meet and it was about 8:45.

I knew at this point we had time for just one more thing until the RD hoards came. We hadn't done TSM yet, but we loved SDD so much, that was the winner. So we got in line. This was an awesome time to ride because we both walked on and got a birds eye view of the huge mass of people walking in for RD. So much fun and I wished I had my phone out to take a photo. Walking off and having our stroller right there was amazing also. We strapped the kids in and headed to TSM. EMM was over, but we joined the RD crowd for this one and were out by 9:30.

From there we headed straight to breakfast which felt like a rush and a hike. But it was worth it. The food is really good. We had the Avocado toast (DH didn't like the lemony taste but I loved it), kids chicken and donuts, shrimp and grits (very good), and the egg thing with the tortilla strips which was my fave. At 9:45-9:50 they were not really replenishing the pastries etc. on the buffet but the entrees were all delicious.

So though not that much:
SDD X4
Aliens X2
Jessie X1

I still thought this was worth it. I didn't find it to be oversold (supposedly it was sold out this day) and it was great to do all this first thing in the morning before typical Florida afternoon rain storms. I probably wouldn't do it again because for us the main draw would be SDD, and we have now done it plenty. But I am so glad we did it this once.

Some tips:
- Don't stress about being there to walk in with the masses at 7:25. We still had a great time and a much better entry experience by getting to the park at 7:30.

- Park your stroller by the exit to SDD if you want that to be your last hurrah!

- Don't worry too much about beating the RD crowd out of TSL. They pretty much all stay to the left and immediately line up at SDD.

- Put the kiddos on the right when loading into SDD. This ride photo is from the side and it makes for a better shot of the little ones.

If you are going have a great time!

 

[Wolfli]

We attended TS EMM on 6/12 and had a great time. There was 4 of us which includes a 7 year old and a 4 year old. Here's how the gist went:


We woke around 6:15am at POFQ which was later than I had wanted, but we had done MK EMM the previous day and were a little tired. This was the 2nd full day of our vacation though so still had some excited energy to use. Just as we were all together I saw on the app that a bus had just left for HS around 6:45. We headed that way and I kept checking the app and screens for when the next available bus would come, but it remained at "No Times Available". We stayed at the bus stop for a good 10 minutes (approaching 7am) when I got nervous enough to say forget it and requested a Minnie Van. (We need a car seat still for the 4 year old). We got picked up around 7:10? And made it to HS right at 7:30. Wasn't stressing as the Minnie Van driver was quick and kind and got us there asap. (Later we would pass another family in SDD line that opted to remain and wait for the bus... they got to HS about 7:45 which we figured worked out to $26 for one more ride on SDD).

This may be a great time to arrive, because we had absolutely no one around when we walked in. There was no mass of people to wait in like the previous day with MK EMM. We just walked in, were given our bands and told to have a great time. Walking into TSL was like we had the place to ourselves, everyone was already in line. It was still too early to even eat a pastry for us, so we took some photos and ooohed and awed at how stikin' cute this land is!

Though I knew heading to SDD first might mean longer wait times, we did it anyway. We had passed right by the stroller parking at the entrance of TSM however and started to head back, but a super nice cast member at the entrance to SDD offered to take it to the exit of SDD for us, so we hopped out right there and got in line. The wait time posted was 25 minutes, but we were on and off in less than that. All of us LOVED it. When we exited the stroller was parked so nicely with some others and out of the way that we just opted to leave it there for the whole event. This worked out great!

We headed to Alien SS next which was a walk on. It was fun and silly but, couldn't see waiting in a long line for it. The kids begged to do SDD again (3rd time), so we did. Jessie was meeting by the wall for Aliens and our 7 year old was dressed like her so I knew I needed a photo. The line was about 5-6 families long. Our 4 year old boy didn't want to meet Jessie so we rode Aliens again while DH waited in line with our daughter to meet her favorite cowgirl. As soon as we were walking off Aliens they were wrapping up their meet and it was about 8:45.

I knew at this point we had time for just one more thing until the RD hoards came. We hadn't done TSM yet, but we loved SDD so much, that was the winner. So we got in line. This was an awesome time to ride because we both walked on and got a birds eye view of the huge mass of people walking in for RD. So much fun and I wished I had my phone out to take a photo. Walking off and having our stroller right there was amazing also. We strapped the kids in and headed to TSM. EMM was over, but we joined the RD crowd for this one and were out by 9:30.

From there we headed straight to breakfast which felt like a rush and a hike. But it was worth it. The food is really good. We had the Avocado toast (DH didn't like the lemony taste but I loved it), kids chicken and donuts, shrimp and grits (very good), and the egg thing with the tortilla strips which was my fave. At 9:45-9:50 they were not really replenishing the pastries etc. on the buffet but the entrees were all delicious.

So though not that much:
SDD X4
Aliens X2
Jessie X1

I still thought this was worth it. I didn't find it to be oversold (supposedly it was sold out this day) and it was great to do all this first thing in the morning before typical Florida afternoon rain storms. I probably wouldn't do it again because for us the main draw would be SDD, and we have now done it plenty. But I am so glad we did it this once.

Some tips:
- Don't stress about being there to walk in with the masses at 7:25. We still had a great time and a much better entry experience by getting to the park at 7:30.

- Park your stroller by the exit to SDD if you want that to be your last hurrah!

- Don't worry too much about beating the RD crowd out of TSL. They pretty much all stay to the left and immediately line up at SDD.

- Put the kiddos on the right when loading into SDD. This ride photo is from the side and it makes for a better shot of the little ones.

If you are going have a great time!

Thanks for the review ! We are doing EMM on 6/26 and I trying to keep my expectations at 1 ride on each and a character .

 

[Di$neyCPA]

We also attended on 6/17, similar experience to others with SDD down a lot.because DW is not anride person, she would wait in lines for characters while I took DS8 and DD7, so we managed all 3 characters plus rides. In all, we did SDD x2, AS x2 and TSMM x2. We were finishing with Buzz when the the rope droppers arrived - cost of admission might have been worth it just for ability to walk around TSL without crowds.
During breakfast, the GET blue shirts were walking around- probably because of issues with SDD. We explained that extending use of wristbands didn’t help us because we had FPs stacked in late morning at other end is Sunset Blvd. they gave each of our group 1 anytime, any ride FP to compensate.
When DW went to guest relations late for unrelated matter, she provided feedback also and they gave us 2 additional anytime FP good for next day. Overall, seeing we got enough time in TSL to try everything, decent breakfast, and 3 FP each (which alone cost $50/person if you stay in club level), it was a good value but an experience I also wouldn’t need to do again.
2 quick notes for others-
A) they were giving out granola bars at Andy’s Lunch Box, in addition to drinks, which was good because we didn’t get food before rides.
B) we don’t eat meat, but they happily made me a charcuterie plate with extra salmon and no meat, which made for a satisfying breakfast.

 

[magickingdomprincess]

We were at the 6/12 EMM. We arrived later than I wanted at 7:30 but it was fine because we just walked right in. Got in line for SDD and waited about 20 min. Rode AS next which was pretty much a walk on. Headed back to SDD and waited 20 min. We split up next, DD6 and I rode SDD again and again (4 times actually), DH and Ds8 rode AS and TSMM. I was surprised that the RD crowd didn't seem to hit till 9. DD6 and I rode TSMM next, waited about 15 minutes while DH and DS rode ST. We met up at breakfast about 9:30. We all really enjoyed it, I really liked the egg/sausage/tortilla bowl. It was different and tasty! The cold selections were good but cleaned up pretty promptly at 10.

Overall we really enjoyed the event! At first I wasn't sure with the longish waits for SDD, but by the end getting 6 rides in on SDD and the other rides too I'd say we got our money's worth! The kids (and parents too!) liked Slinky so much we came back at the end of the night to ride one more time right before closing!

 

[Erikbo16]

Are all the characters out from 7:30?

 

[NicholeB630]

We did the event on the 12th. Our plan was to rope drop ToT before heading to breakfast. We joined the masses at about 8:50. Let me preface by saying we were 2 adults and 3 teenagers. We sort of weaved our way through the gift shop on the left which put us near the front of the crowd but at 9:00 we were held until the main crowd was even to us. That’s when I lost our 3 teenagers. Once at the restrooms just before the right turn to ToT, there was a rope a crossed the walkway with one small opening. It was the mother of all bottlenecks essentially pushing a mass of people to a single file line. My friend and I watched as the wait time went to 45 and we weren’t far back from the rope. We never made it to the opening in the rope. We bailed when it hit 90 minutes as we knew at that point we’d miss breakfast. My teenagers were able to ride and arrived at breakfast about 20 minutes after we did. My son said they had to do a lot of “bobbing and weaving” to get to the rope entrance. If I did the event again, I would not attempt to rope drop ToT or RnR.

This is sad. I was hoping we could book it to RNR so we could ride before leaving HS and heading to AK. We saved our FP for AK.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Are all the characters out from 7:30?

That is generally when they have been coming out, from reports. Give or take a few mins.

 

[GPirate]

I also did the event on 6/17. Won’t go into too much detail because it’s mostly the same as the others. We stopped at Backlots first and had breakfast. Walked into TSL around 7:30. As others said, SDD was down for a while during the event. However, we still managed to ride SDD x 2, TSMM x 2, and Saucers x 2. Also met Jessie and Buzz. Line was long for Woody and Bo, so we skipped. Then proceeded to the Mickey and Minnie meet and greet which were maybe 5 minute wait. Also happened to catch Pluto as he was setting up for meet and greets so we were 2nd in line for that.

I heard about the wristbands working as FPS until around 10, but didn’t know about the extension. Though we probably wouldn’t have used it anyway.

Overall, I thought it was worth it. Got to ride everything twice with little to no wait and enjoyed the breakfast. And aside from TSL, not much else to keep my kids attention at HS.

 

[MeeskaMooska13]

We did EMM on Monday, June 10 and had a great time! Here’s the timeline for our party of 5 (me, DH, DS14, DS8, DD5):
6:27 bus from caribbean beach (time wasn’t posted - guessed based on previous reviews - thx!)
6:41 arrive! Grabbed snacks and headed back.
7:26 walk into TSM queue (long walk but walked onto ride)
7:40 leave TSM (Fun!)
7:42 enter SDD for first time!
8:01 exit SDD (this line SEEMED long and I was ready to be annoyed based on recent reviews but there were 3 cars running and the line moved along)
8:02 back in line for SDD
8:20 off SDD #2
8:22 in line for A$$
8:30 off A$$ - we had to wait one cycle
8:31 back in line for SDD #3
8:44 I walked into TSM line with DS8 and DD5 for 2nd time and DH and DS14 walked over to ToT. Note that they were too late for TofT - was posted 20 when they arrived but jumped to 75 while in line and they bailed. They wend to RNRC, jumped on, then met us for breakfast by 9:30.
Overall - happy we did it. 3xs on SDD, 2xs on TSM, 1x on A$$ (no photos or meandering). My husband is NOT a disney fan and this is our 2nd trip (he didn’t come with me and kids on first trip last year) and even HE said it was worth it after seeing the sea if humanity walking in for SDD rope drop.
Really appreciate everyone who has left reviews and helped me plan!

We also did this event on 6/10. We weren’t as successful as you, though. We got there before 7:00 am. Rode SDD twice (then my party had to have a potty break along with a pressed penny stop. Huge mistake - it took up 10 valuable minutes). We then rode A$$ but had to wait a cycle. By the time we rode TSMM twice (did not have to get off in between) it was already 8:50. We made the mistake of then going to ToT - wait said 40 but ended up being 75 so we totally missed breakfast. So, we made a couple of mistakes (one small, one HUGE). Having said that, I feel like only getting to ride an attraction 5 times during the event wasn’t enough (even if we got to eat breakfast) for me to want to do it again. I am not writing this to complain - I am only presenting this so that people don’t make the same mistakes we did.

 

[bellepepper]

Hi!
Did anyone go to EMM yesterday morning and have feedback re: crowd level and wait times?
I’m going for the first time next week and am curious if the crowds for EMM have picked up further into summer.

Also have a few other questions —

To confirm- Jessie is meeting near swirling saucers, woody and bo peep near TSMM, and buzz near the entrance to TSL? And they are usually scheduled to be out during EMM?

If a main priority after EMM is over is to meet Mickey/Minnie and Mike/Sulley, which do you suggest getting in line for first?
For each set of characters mentioned above, is it one line to meet both of them or separate lines?

For the incredibles dance party, can you just do that or do you have to pass through all of the other incredibles stuff for the kids to be able to participate?

Thank you in advance! This info will really help me with my planning for my young nieces.

 

[GPirate]

Hi!
Did anyone go to EMM yesterday morning and have feedback re: crowd level and wait times?
I’m going for the first time next week and am curious if the crowds for EMM have picked up further into summer.

Also have a few other questions —

To confirm- Jessie is meeting near swirling saucers, woody and bo peep near TSMM, and buzz near the entrance to TSL? And they are usually scheduled to be out during EMM?

If a main priority after EMM is over is to meet Mickey/Minnie and Mike/Sulley, which do you suggest getting in line for first?
For each set of characters mentioned above, is it one line to meet both of them or separate lines?

For the incredibles dance party, can you just do that or do you have to pass through all of the other incredibles stuff for the kids to be able to participate?

Thank you in advance! This info will really help me with my planning for my young nieces.

I attended on 6/17. We did not meet Mike/Sully, but we did meet Mickey/Minnie. We left TSL shortly after 9, just after they let everyone in. We casually walked toward the Mickey/Minnie meet and greet and it was only a 5 minute wait. For that one, it is just one line. When you enter the building, you go into a room with Minnie. After you are done with photos/autographs, you proceed down a hallway to another room with Mickey.

 

[smitty0705]

If tix are sold out to the August date I’m interested in, are we out of luck or is it possible more tickets could be released?

 

[EEva]

Hi!
Did anyone go to EMM yesterday morning and have feedback re: crowd level and wait times?
I’m going for the first time next week and am curious if the crowds for EMM have picked up further into summer.

Also have a few other questions —

To confirm- Jessie is meeting near swirling saucers, woody and bo peep near TSMM, and buzz near the entrance to TSL? And they are usually scheduled to be out during EMM?

If a main priority after EMM is over is to meet Mickey/Minnie and Mike/Sulley, which do you suggest getting in line for first?
For each set of characters mentioned above, is it one line to meet both of them or separate lines?

For the incredibles dance party, can you just do that or do you have to pass through all of the other incredibles stuff for the kids to be able to participate?

Thank you in advance! This info will really help me with my planning for my young nieces.

Hello,
We are also hoping to meet Mike/Sulley soon after our EMM in July. I believe that meet doesn't open until 10am. So we are planning to head over after eating breakfast.