EE vs regular park opening?

[Laurabearz]

I have read all the plans for EE.. RUn to FL hit Pan, dumbo yada yada.. Or hit Nemo first thing on EE days...

How many more people are lined up at opening on a regular morning as appose to an EE morning?

Can't we just hit FL and or nemo first thing on a Regular morning??

From the posts I have read it seems like OMG you have to do all these things on EE days, or you wont get them done with hour an hour wait...

So are regular opening days just too crazy?

Thanks

 

[DangerMouse]

No, regular park opening days aren't overly crazy, you have an even playing field on those days from the beginning.

The point with EE is, that if it's an EE day, you really want to take advantage of it, because otherwise, a whole bunch of people have an hour head start on you, and FL and TL will already be full of guests even if you arrive at park opening.

For someone like me (an AP holder who doesn't stay onsite), I try to avoid EE days as much as possible so that I have a chance to start my day at the front of the crowds.

 

[bradk]

it's easier to get more done during EE simply because there are less guests competing for the attractions

first thing on a non-EE day is going to be worse, but not impossible, but doing Nemo AND Peter Pan might be a bit questionable depending on the season

and in either case, it's never a good idea to hit FL first thing on an EE day that you don't have EE access

'i think'

 

[DLR29]

Also the thing is that on a non-EE day the other side of the park is open and those lines start building such as Indy, Big Thunder, and Splash. Also some rides not open for EE such as Star Tours and Autopia.

 

[HydroGuy]

The crowds at the gates at park opening will be much worse on non-EE days than EE days. However, the fewer people at the gates on EE days are competing for less attractions during EE. IMO FL during EE or during the first hour of a non-EE day is roughly the same - in general. However, this year Nemo sucked lots of people away from FL during EE and it seemed to me it made FL have less people during EE than first thing on non-EE days.

The other part of your question sounds a lot like the one we had in June two weeks after Nemo opened. We only had one EE day and we wondered whether it was better to do FL with EE and Nemo on a non-EE day, or vice versa.

The insane 3-4 hours lines for Nemo at that time persuaded me it was better to use EE for Nemo and then do FL on a non-EE morning. So that is what we did and it worked out fine. Now that Nemo has calmed down a bit I think either way is fine. If it was me I would lean towards doing Nemo during EE still today.

 

[Hound 109]

After reading DangerMouse's experience with Nemo, & if I only had one day of EE.....then I might have to disagree with HydroGuy. (hell just froze over.... )

I would use my only EE day to ride FantasyLand rides (not Nemo).

- taking 45 min. to do Nemo during EE drove me nuts (since i would have ridden 7-8 superior FantasyLand Rides during that time).
- DM indicated that she got in line 20 min. prior to DL closing & rode.
- or I'd be there first on a Gen. Adm. nonEE day.
- or I'd skip the ride altogether. (i know, i know....we all got to ride it once. )

HydroGuy's right though, on EE & non EE days, Nemo takes ALOT of the rope drop crowd away from FL, making the FL tour even more productive. (I loved doing both sides of Matterhorn during EE last time with no lines.)

.

 

[DangerMouse]

After reading DangerMouse's experience with Nemo, & if I only had one day of EE.....then I might have to disagree with HydroGuy. (hell just froze over.... )

I would use my only EE day to ride FantasyLand rides (not Nemo).

- taking 45 min. to do Nemo during EE drove me nuts (since i would have ridden 7-8 superior FantasyLand Rides during that time).
- DM indicated that she got in line 20 min. prior to DL closing & rode.
- or I'd be there first on a Gen. Adm. nonEE day.
- or I'd skip the ride altogether. (i know, i know....we all got to ride it once. )

HydroGuy's right though, on EE & non EE days, Nemo takes ALOT of the rope drop crowd away from FL, making the FL tour even more productive. (I loved doing both sides of Matterhorn during EE last time with no lines.)

.

Just to clarify . . I got in line for Nemo 5 minutes prior to park closing at 8 pm. (they canceled fireworks that night), and got on in 20 minutes. This was off-season, during a very slow week, so others might experience a bit longer of a wait at park closing (maybe 30-45 min tops).

I have to agree that the FL EE tour is sooo, sooooo much better with Nemo in the mix. I couldn't believe the throngs of EE people going to Nemo. We just casually strolled across the empty bridge into the castle and were the first on PP (and we were nat least 20 people back in line at the turnstiles that morning!)

After experiencing Nemo once, I agree with Hound that I will never, ever forfeit my FL EE schedule to use it on Nemo. I would wait for park closing or alternatively watch Nemo from the observation room (which I hear never has much of a wait).

 

[HydroGuy]

After reading DangerMouse's experience with Nemo, & if I only had one day of EE.....then I might have to disagree with HydroGuy. (hell just froze over.... )

I would use my only EE day to ride FantasyLand rides (not Nemo).

- taking 45 min. to do Nemo during EE drove me nuts (since i would have ridden 7-8 superior FantasyLand Rides during that time).
- DM indicated that she got in line 20 min. prior to DL closing & rode.
- or I'd be there first on a Gen. Adm. nonEE day.
- or I'd skip the ride altogether. (i know, i know....we all got to ride it once. )

HydroGuy's right though, on EE & non EE days, Nemo takes ALOT of the rope drop crowd away from FL, making the FL tour even more productive. (I loved doing both sides of Matterhorn during EE last time with no lines.)

.

OK, now you are on my bad list.

I wasn't really thinking about it, but implicit in my post was the idea that the person had not ever ridden Nemo. In such a case, it is usually a high priority for them to ride Nemo after the long sub closure. Those who have ridden Nemo (at least most of them) know that it is not that great of a ride. If so, then doing Nemo during EE is much less of a priority because of the mediocre experience and the long ride time which sucks up almost the entire EE hour.

On future trips we will want to ride Nemo. Once. I will have to figure out how to fit that in though. If the lines continue to die down I would definitely lean towards doing FL for EE since you can do so many rides at that time and doing Nemo at some other TBD time.

 

[Hound 109]

.....

I hope they come up with a mediocre E ticket ride every year or two.

It'll allow most of "us Disers" to tour FL stress free while the other 85% are standing in line for Autopia...er, Nemo....er, Monsters Inc.....etc.

 

[Hound 109]

double post, sorry.

 

[Laurabearz]

Hydro was right in this case to assume we have not done Nemo yet, and it is high on our list to do on this trip, at least once. Personally i loved the old Sub ride, and it was a must do for me every trip, add to the fact my kids are Nemo Freaks, we could very well do it more than once.

We are staying at the DLR on DVC points so we dont have any package perks... not sure if just staying onsite is good enough for EE, or if we are SOL on that front. Either way, we need a morning plan on Non EE mornings, since we have MORE of them than EE lol

My first inclination is to do FL durning EE, and saving Nemo for non EE mornings. But it all could be moot if we dont have EE privledges lol

 

[DangerMouse]

Good news! Because you are staying on property, you have EE access each day it is offered. You just need to show your charge slip at the turnstiles and you're in!

 

[bumbershoot]

We are staying at the DLR on DVC points so we dont have any package perks... not sure if just staying onsite is good enough for EE, or if we are SOL on that front. Either way, we need a morning plan on Non EE mornings, since we have MORE of them than EE lol

Unless they change things drastically, staying at the resort hotel gets you ALL the EE days available during your stay. I think your sig says you have 8 days. You'll get a few EE days in there. You'll be EE'd out, LOL.

Basically, on EE days if you don't partake, just don't try for FL or Nemo in the morning, because there will already be tons of people there. So on EE days that you do not partake in it, go to the rides and areas away from the EE lands and rides.

On non-EE days, there aren't people already in the park when it opens, so everyone is on the same footing! AND everything is open (except for toontown) all at once, rather than squished into 1, er, 2, er, 1.5 lands.

 

[Laurabearz]

I can find no mention any where on the DLR site that says we get EE just for staying onsite.

Here is the link to the Resort benefits page... http://disneyland.disney.go.com/disneyland/en_US/hotels/benefits?name=DisneylandResortsBenefitsPage

They say the big benefit is being able to take a mid-afternoon Nap...

So have things changed drasticlly?

 

[DLR29]

I can find no mention any where on the DLR site that says we get EE just for staying onsite.

Here is the link to the Resort benefits page... http://disneyland.disney.go.com/disneyland/en_US/hotels/benefits?name=DisneylandResortsBenefitsPage

They say the big benefit is being able to take a mid-afternoon Nap...

So have things changed drasticlly?

It has never, is not, and will never be advertised on their website. It has been/is/will be an unwritten rule to allow onsite guests multiple MM (Magic Mornings now, no longer EE, same thing, different name).

 

[Hound 109]

Hydro was right in this case to assume we have not done Nemo yet, and it is high on our list to do on this trip, at least once. Personally i loved the old Sub ride, and it was a must do for me every trip, add to the fact my kids are Nemo Freaks, we could very well do it more than once.

HydroGuy is always right.

& i hear you Laurabearz. Even though i read mixed reviews of Nemo....& only had two days at the park.....& wasn't planning on riding it......planned on riding PP/Dumbo etc......DS & I found ourselves on Main St. at Park Opening.....20 yards ahead of any other guest that day.

I looked over at DS 8 & said......"Dude, we can be first on Nemo".....& off we walked (puposefully) to the Nemo line.

& the previous posters are correct. 5 days staying onsite.....you'll have more EE opportunities than you'll eat in churros & dole whips. Have a great trip.

.

 

[bumbershoot]

It has never, is not, and will never be advertised on their website. It has been/is/will be an unwritten rule to allow onsite guests multiple MM (Magic Mornings now, no longer EE, same thing, different name).

Ayep.

Nothing was mentioned about it online, anywhere, or while booking our package. Yet when we checked in to PP she handed us a helpful sheet of paper that outlined it exactly, and then told us exactly what days we could have EE for, b/c we were staying onsite.

You're used to it being advertised like WDW does. It's not WDW, and for whatever reason, they don't advertise it!

I did notice that you have over 100 days until your trip, and so things might change, but unless you are the Very First Person that it happens to, I assure you, you'd hear about the change here as soon as the first Dis'er that it impacts can get to a computer.

But it's been a perk since at least last Feb when I started planning our September trip and learned about it here, was in effect in September for our trip, and remains a perk.

 

[Laurabearz]

We have 8 nights onsite

And why not advertise it? I have been going crazy with 10 windows open trying to figure out which ticket deal I can buy to get EE and TTMM, because I had no idea.

(can I just say I hate both the WDW and the DLR websites)

 

[bumbershoot]

I don't think anyone has been able to figure out why they don't advertise it. It's silly, really.

MTTMM is only available with a package deal. Or if you buy the vouchers on ebay. Or if you sign up on the list here. Maybe other places, but those are the ones I know.

But the good thing is now you can just go with the least expensive park hoppers, b/c you won't need the EE from your tickets anyway! Unless, of course, something changes drastically (typical CYA line we use 'round here, LOL).

And yes, the disney websites are hideous.

 

[HydroGuy]

AyepBut it's been a perk since at least last Feb when I started planning our September trip and learned about it here, was in effect in September for our trip, and remains a perk.

To be specific, they started offering EE to DLR hotel guests in July 2005 right when the actual 50th anniversary occured (July 17). I visited on Aug 1 that year and word was only one EE day for a 3+ day ticket. And then we showed up for our trip (we were offsite that year) and this new perk was being given to the DLR hotel guests. But it is now 2 1/2 years later and the perk is still there, and has never, ever been officially advertised.

My guess is that there is something going on whereby Disney thinks they may stop the perk or change the perk or something, and they want flexibility to do that. If they do not promise it - and they do not - then no one can rightly complain if they stop or change it. But be assured it is common knowledge to DLR vets that this perk is available and will be for you unless something changes.