Disney World 1 hr wait all rides

[scrappinginontario]

I understand OP’s frustration, however.… I’ve seen multiple posts on here about people lamenting the fact that there’s no social distancing. Social distancing isn’t a thing anywhere any longer, why do some expect WDW to still be enforcing it? It seems those that mention it are SHOCKED there are so many people there all close together. Just something I’ve noticed on here and wondered if others are as baffled as I am?

This depends on where you live. SD (and masks) are still alive and well where we live so I understand that not everyone is used to shoulder to shoulder people. Here people allow space 95% of the time, it's still marked in stores, restaurants, etc. and there are still capacity numbers indoors.

It may not be happening at Disney but it is happening in some other places which means some people are working through their comfort levels after not being near people for almost a year and a half.

 

[CAPSLOCK]

Disney is no longer indicating in any way that there is social distancing or reduced capacity at their parks. Not sure why it's surprising that there are a whole lot of people all close to each other.

A theme park is not the place to be if you are concerned about crowds - especially a theme park in July...

If someone walks into Disney expecting low crowds & social distancing, then looks at posted wait times and doesn't enter lines unless they have "low" posted wait times, then I can imagine it being a very disappointing experience.

 

[Biggen]

November and December are really busy now and even more crowded than the summer. Best times now are probably mid-late August and mid-September (if you can tolerate the heat) or mid to late January and early February.

Maybe around Thanksgiving and Christmas. But other than those days those months are much nicer. Cooler weather and less crowds. Its Disney so its still busy but its not 90 degree heat.

And as far as social distancing. This is Florida. I live in Florida. We never did much social distancing to begin with so I can see the concern with someone coming from a much more locked down state. But at some point, if you want to go to parks like Disney, you are going to have to grapple with this. Things have to go back to like they were at some point.

 

[MDIME]

This depends on where you live. SD (and masks) are still alive and well where we live so I understand that not everyone is used to shoulder to shoulder people. Here people allow space 95% of the time, it's still marked in stores, restaurants, etc. and there are still capacity numbers indoors.

It may not be happening at Disney but it is happening in some other places which means some people are working through their comfort levels after not being near people for almost a year and a half.

I’m not sure where you are but the only place I’ve seen any SD markers are in the doctor’s office and even there it’s not enforced!

 

[Disneylover99]

I’m not sure where you are but the only place I’ve seen any SD markers are in the doctor’s office and even there it’s not enforced!

Social distancing is still very much a huge thing in Ontario.

 

[MDIME]

Social distancing is still very much a huge thing in Ontario.

Oh, Canada. That explains a lot.

 

[cjsmom5]

We were at AK in March. Lines were long and at that time social distancing was in place. That said, there were few that were observing it, despite the markers still being on the ground. We observed the same thing at MK. There were several bottlenecks and people were consistently close to each other. At that time masks were required outside. If you are uncomfortable with crowds, WDW probably isn't the best place. If you do go, expect crowds, bring a mask if you are uncomfortable without one, and expect no social distancing.

Lines are long - we waited for 80 minutes for Navi River, in March, (had preschoolers with us) and we passed the time with conversation. However, we knew lines were long and had low expectations. Normal of the past is not normal of the present. Things are different. It is going to be much harder for those of us who have been around for a number of years to accept the new normal as we most likely enjoyed the old normal (although I do know there were unhappy people then, too). On property hotels are more expensive, tickets more expensive, crowds seem larger, lines are longer, etc. But, most everything is that way these days. I do feel badly for families going for the first time with the cost, but they don't know our old normal so many are ok with the new normal. A crazy world right now, for sure.

 

[scrappinginontario]

I’m not sure where you are but the only place I’ve seen any SD markers are in the doctor’s office and even there it’s not enforced!

 

[Cabius]

We were there last week as well, and it is definitely very crowded. As others have noted, the lack of entertainment, character meet-and-greets, and shows means that far more people are competing for the same spaces and attractions, so everything feels busier wherever you go. And when a big people-eater like Pirates goes down, as it did for much of our first day at MK, everything else spirals from there.

I did also notice, though, that actual wait times were consistently MUCH lower than the posted waits. For several attractions, a 40-minute posted wait time actually meant only 15-20 minutes in line. I eventually gave up on WDW's posted waits and just relied on the Touring Plan Lines app, which ended up being more accurate despite being just a general estimate.

I realized why that was when I went through the queue for Kilimanjaro Safari: those standby queues are NOT designed to hold the entire throughput of the attraction, and it causes major crowd control issues when they do, so they overestimate the wait times to scare people away and keep it from being even worse.

Kilimanjaro Safari has an hourly capacity of 3,000 people. If 2/3rds of capacity is dedicated to FastPass+ that means about 1,000 people/hour are expected to move through the Standby queue. That Standby queue may hold less than 1,500 people or so (rough estimate based on the time spent once we actually entered the "normal" queue area), so with FastPass+ running they might have space for a 90 minute wait in the Standby queue.

But when there is no FastPass+ queue, all 3,000 people move into a physical space that was not designed to hold them, and they spill out into the rest of the park. If there are 3,000 people in line (60 minute wait) then more than 1,500 people are in the extended queue, spilling out in the park!

On Kilimanjaro, the queue was posted as 75 minutes (3,750 people) and started at Tusker House, switched back down by Festival of the Lion King, and even ran through an ugly backstage industrial area (eww!) before entering the queue. And that was for an actual wait of "only" 50 minutes (2,500 people). If the wait was actually 75 minutes, I have no idea where they would put everybody.

Without FastPass+, they really only have physical space for a 30-minute queue, but of course everybody would ride the Safaris if the wait is only 30 minutes, and that would be unmanageable. So they lie to guests, consistently overestimating wait times to scare folks away and keep the miserable extended queues barely manageable. (Here is an article with some photos of the awful Safaris queue experience -- I was truly horrified.) https://www.kennythepirate.com/2021...om-attraction-is-now-using-a-backstage-queue/

I noticed the same thing on Pirates of the Caribbean, where the posted 45-minute wait actually took less than 20 minutes, but even at that point the queue almost backed up into the street.

This experience has me convinced that FastPass+ definitely will come back, and will likely have at least half of ride capacity dedicated to it on most attractions (e.g. not just as a super-expensive add-on to a minority of users). They just do not have the physical space in those queues to do it any other way.

 

[DisBuckMan]

This depends on where you live. SD (and masks) are still alive and well where we live so I understand that not everyone is used to shoulder to shoulder people. Here people allow space 95% of the time, it's still marked in stores, restaurants, etc. and there are still capacity numbers indoors.

It may not be happening at Disney but it is happening in some other places which means some people are working through their comfort levels after not being near people for almost a year and a half.

That's not Disney's problem, though.

It's up to every visitor to determine if the conditions *at WDW* are within their comfort zone. If not, stay at home. If so, have a great vacation.

 

[MrsPete]

On the one hand, it's July -- even pre-Covid when Fast Pass was up-and-running, July was super-crowded.
On the other hand, I'm not going back to Disney until Fast Pass is functioning again; it's a game-changer.

 

[scrappinginontario]

Please discuss waits, not masking and social distancing.

Comments from here forward discussing masks, social distancing and Covid will be deleted.

 

[123SA]

So that info about the safari line was very helpful. I've been to Disney enough to gauge how long a standby line is when FP was in place, but in its absence, I can't look at a line and guess whether the 50 minutes posted wait time is correct or not. What would be very useful then is some sort of guide to let people know how much time the wait would actually be. For example, if the end of the Everest line is on the bridge on the way to Dinoland - how long of a wait is that? Of course, it would nice if Disney would provide that, but they haven't and won't. But, I bet this group could put one together.

On the one hand, get in the line if you want to ride. If a posted wait of 50 minutes takes only 20 minutes, why complain? But I'd like to avoid this situation: I have an ADR 60 minutes from now. All of the posted wait times are 45 minutes or more (completely possible!)...so I don't get in a line. However, if I knew what 20 minute line vs a 45 minute line at HM looked like, I could go on the ride instead of sitting around waiting for my ADR.

 

[goofy4prez]

This experience has me convinced that FastPass+ definitely will come back, and will likely have at least half of ride capacity dedicated to it on most attractions (e.g. not just as a super-expensive add-on to a minority of users). They just do not have the physical space in those queues to do it any other way.

I agree with you, FP+ or some form of it is coming back. Where I don't agree is that it will return as an add-on experience. People (especially us gullible Disney fanatics) are already showing they are more than happy and willing to pay more to receive less or pay for what used to be included. I have a feeling Disney will have no problem selling a ton of FP's to the masses. This has been happening for some time now and this whole pandemic and all the changes have really shown Disney just how willing people are to keep forking over the $$$$$ and then say, "Thank You," hit me with another. A can't believe I'd ever say this, but I am close to my threshold. I have a trip coming up in February and I'll see how that goes if I return again anytime soo.

 

[Nice Work Pal]

For those saying “waits are about the same”…no they’re not. When you had fp you waited a few minutes to get on a ride, then used another fp or you’d wait for a ride until your other fp selection was ready. Now that you have to wait 60ish minutes for EVERY ride your wait times are increased significantly. If you didn’t use fp that’s on you.

Said this in another thread…but if I’m waiting in the heat all day on vacation I’d rather be on a beach in Aruba with a drink than in line in the Florida heat surrounded by a bunch of sweaty people.

I encourage everyone to email Disney.

 

[Nice Work Pal]

I agree with you, FP+ or some form of it is coming back. Where I don't agree is that it will return as an add-on experience. People (especially us gullible Disney fanatics) are already showing they are more than happy and willing to pay more to receive less or pay for what used to be included. I have a feeling Disney will have no problem selling a ton of FP's to the masses. This has been happening for some time now and this whole pandemic and all the changes have really shown Disney just how willing people are to keep forking over the $$$$$ and then say, "Thank You," hit me with another. A can't believe I'd ever say this, but I am close to my threshold. I have a trip coming up in February and I'll see how that goes if I return again anytime soo.

Don’t want to get off topic I know there’s a fp thread but Disney is the undisputed king of theme parks. They’re a different standard. A fp pay system will turn away average folks who can barely afford to go (they’re second class guests) and for us regulars they’re making us pay extra for something that used to be free. Look at companies who have tried stunts like this…it hasn’t gone well. I’m an AP since 2015… if I have to pay extra to use fp I’m done.

 

[Dakota731]

We used to always visit Disney in the summer before fast passes and lines were always an hour in the Florida heat. So maybe the issue is that people have become used to the fast pass system or are too young to remember before they were a thing! I can then understand why they are shocked having to wait for long periods to ride anything.
I also think it sometimes seems like Disney is a parallel universe since I can read in these boards how awful it is, and then have a friend return the same week who has a totally different story and had a great trip. I guess everyone’s expectations are different and as a result each person has a different outlook on their trip.

 

[Cabius]

I agree with you, FP+ or some form of it is coming back. Where I don't agree is that it will return as an add-on experience. People (especially us gullible Disney fanatics) are already showing they are more than happy and willing to pay more to receive less or pay for what used to be included. I have a feeling Disney will have no problem selling a ton of FP's to the masses. This has been happening for some time now and this whole pandemic and all the changes have really shown Disney just how willing people are to keep forking over the $$$$$ and then say, "Thank You," hit me with another. A can't believe I'd ever say this, but I am close to my threshold. I have a trip coming up in February and I'll see how that goes if I return again anytime soo.

That's fair -- I'd say that Disney needs 50-70% of their capacity going through FP+ queues for logistical reasons, so if they can get paid for that (even by including it for on-site guests only and then letting people buy more) then I'm sure they will. If the uptake isn't there, they'd need to make it free... but let's be realistic: we'll clearly pay more and more for less and less, gripe about it on these forums, and then do it again like a bunch of fools.

 

[gharter]

We were there last week as well, and it is definitely very crowded. As others have noted, the lack of entertainment, character meet-and-greets, and shows means that far more people are competing for the same spaces and attractions, so everything feels busier wherever you go. And when a big people-eater like Pirates goes down, as it did for much of our first day at MK, everything else spirals from there.

We noticed that even earlier this year when they had lower capacity limits. The lack of shows that take a large number of people out of the walk ways make a huge difference in how busy the parks appeared.

 

[Nice Work Pal]

We used to always visit Disney in the summer before fast passes and lines were always an hour in the Florida heat. So maybe the issue is that people have become used to the fast pass system or are too young to remember before they were a thing! I can then understand why they are shocked having to wait for long periods to ride anything.
I also think it sometimes seems like Disney is a parallel universe since I can read in these boards how awful it is, and then have a friend return the same week who has a totally different story and had a great trip. I guess everyone’s expectations are different and as a result each person has a different outlook on their trip.

Huge difference…BOTH lines were open prior to them starting fp and utilizing that line solely for that purpose. Lines for popular rides usually hovered around the 60 minute mark and under. The 70 minute + stuff only started once the parks expanded and they added better rides. When I went in the 80’s the only real long line was for space mountain. 90’s I lived in San Diego and visited DL often but those lines were never bad even during the summer.