TerpsBBall
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Aug 28, 2020
- Messages
- 16
Hello,
We just returned from an excellent 8 days at Disney, so I thought I’d share some of our observations. I’ll do this in sections, although some information will likely be relevant to more than one section. Please forgive any typos and feel free to ask any questions. Also, we realize how we do things is not necessarily how others would. The choices we made where those we felt were best for us, both procedurally and financially. So, please take our experience with a grain of salt. We aren’t saying our way is what you should do, it’s just what worked for us. We sincerely hope you all have as good as time as we did. So, here we go…
BACKGROUND
We are a family of 4 from Maryland. My wife and I are in our 50s and our kids are 19 and 17 (boy, 19, girl, 17). We have been to Disney previously, but all our visits were pre-COVID.
PLANNING
We chose January for a variety of reasons. Summer is just too hot and crowded. Plus, our son was on winter break from college and our daughter would only miss 1 day of school (She is a senior and does a dual-enrollment thing with high school and college. Her college was on winter break, so she only missed the one day of high school.). We have visited in January before when the kids were little.
We have stayed in different resorts and have found all to be nice. This time, having heard so many good things about Port Orleans – French Quarter, we wanted to give it a try. However, when we were first able to make our reservations, it was still closed. So, we made a reservation for Coronado Springs and hoped French Quarter would open. It did, and a phone call switched our reservation easily.
We got Park Hopper passes (wasn’t certain how much we would use them but wanted to be prepared). I think it was an extra $360. We also opted to buy Genie+ before we arrived. Again, that may not be what everyone thinks is right. Our thought was we only come once in a while (like every 5-10 years), so we thought the extra $500 was warranted. We have no regrets about getting it, which will be detailed later in this review.
We did not make any dining reservations, as we just do the Quick Service meals. So, I cannot speak to the reservation process for Table Service.
We logged into our account monthly and made payments, which was a nice way to budget out the financial piece. We also received the basic Magic Bands at the discounted price. We didn’t get any fancy ones.
TRAVEL
Being near Baltimore Washington International (BWI), the major airline is Southwest. As soon as the schedule opened, we booked our flights. We got the first flight (6:15 am) on Saturday, January 15th. That meant getting up at 3 am, but that’s a little easier pill to swallow when you know Disney is the result. We drove our own car to the airport and opted to park in the garage closest to the airport. Being January, we wanted covered parking. At BWI, there is a daily garage, which is cheaper than the hourly garage ($12/day versus $22/day). For the daily garage, a shuttle is required. Since we were coming back at 10pm on January 22nd, we opted to pay the $80 difference and use the hourly garage. Yeah, it was a splurge, but it turned out to be a good call in the end due to taking a long time to get our luggage after arriving home (over an hour). We landed at 10 pm, so we didn’t get out of the airport until 11:30. If we added a bus ride on top of that, it would have made a long day that much longer. Typically, with Southwest, we haven’t seen fares drop after the initial offering too often. However, this time, there was a lot of fare movement. By checking every day or so, we were able to get some flight credits, which will come in handy with our college-aged kids.
We always opt for a rental car when at Disney. These rates always fluctuate. I was able to get a discount through Amazon and we had a nice standard SUV (Ford Edge) through Budget for $348 for the 8 days. Plus, with the Amazon promo, they gave us a $25 gift card.
Thanks to DISboards, we read about Visitor Toll Pass. If you are using a rental car, this is THE BEST THING EVER. You make a reservation online and pick it up when you arrive. There is a kiosk near the rental car counters. If renting a car, we also recommend joining the company’s rental club. This is a nice way to skip the sometimes-long lines at rental car counters.
Travel day, other than the early wakeup, was fine. It was quite cold in Maryland when we left (between 10-20 degrees F). So, we layered, knowing Florida weather would be much milder. Our flight left 4 minutes early, and we arrived about 25 minutes early (landed around 8:30 am). We carried on four bags and checked one. We received our checked bag within 15 minutes of landing (nice!) and picked up the Visitor Toll Pass. Knowing we couldn’t likely get to our room this early, we went right to the parks. From DISboards, we recalled the advice of doing online check-in before you go, which allowed for Genie+ use at 7:00 the first day. The systems considers you “there”.
PORT ORLEANS – FRENCH QUARTER
We really enjoyed this resort. The beignets were our favorite. The resort and room were very clean and well maintained. Mousekeeping came every other day, replenishing towels/supplies and emptying trash. They did seem to come later in the afternoon (3-4 pm) versus midday.
We received a text early in the afternoon of our first day that the room was ready. We had no issue with our Magic Bands opening the resort gate or the door to our room. There is a charge to park a car at the resort.
The resort is well organized, and it didn’t seem like we were “lost” in a sea of people. The cast members were very pleasant and helpful. There were some walking trails, and people were using the pool on the warmer days we were there. You can also take the boat to Disney Springs, and we did this a few times. There are some nice shops and places to eat there.
MY DISNEY EXPERIENCE APP & GENIE+
I cannot load the MDE App on my phone (work phone), but my wife and kids did on theirs. So, we had 3 phones available for Genie+ stuff. Turns out, we typically only used one for our stuff, but it was nice at times having one of the kids look up something while I looked for something else.
Typically during dinner the night before, we would talk about what we wanted to do at the specific park we were to be at the next day. Our strategy was to utilize Rope Drop/Early Theme Park Entry for a popular ride and get a Lightning Lane for another. For example, we Rope Dropped Space Mountain twice. I think we waited at most 20 minutes. I set an alarm for 6:55 am to make sure I was ready. When it became closer to 7, I just kept hitting the “Tip Board” tab, versus pulling down the whole menu to refresh (we have iPhones). My daughter would give me a countdown to 7. Once the Lightning Lanes opened, I picked one immediately. This worked well, and we were able to grab things like Big Thunder and Slinky Dog Dash for 9:10 am each. We didn’t use any of the paid Individual Attraction options. I seem to recall the prices for those were between $9-14.
With Early Entry, we were able to knock out some other stuff. We played the 120-minute rule well, and even were able to stack as many as 3 Lightning Lanes at one point. Genie+ does require you using your phone more than you likely would. It wasn’t overwhelming, but you had to remember the rules and keep a mental alarm clock. For example, when we had a 9:10 am reservation for Slinky Dog, we could get another reservation as soon as we tapped in. So, right before we tapped in, we’d look to see what was likely available, and then after tapping in, we made our pick.
One day we park hopped and made a reservation for our next park (Hollywood). We were at Epcot and knew we would be leaving right after lunch. We had been using Lightning Lanes all morning there, but then figured we would take a break for a few hours and then head to Hollywood. So, we made a 6:30 reservation for Toy Story. This was close to 6 hours from that time, so we knew we could stack. In 2 hours, we made a 6:35 reservation for Rock n Rollercoaster (so we were sitting on 2 reservations). When we got to Hollywood around 5, we stood in line for Runaway Railway (about a 45-minute wait). While in line, we watched Slinky Dog. It showed nothing. However, repeatedly refreshing popped open a 7:10 time, which we snagged. Right after that, there was nothing again. So, at one point, we had 3 reservations at the same time.
We noticed this about the Lightning Lane system…the times change often. It wasn’t uncommon to see a time for 12:20 change suddenly to 10:30 and then back to 12:40. It was just the luck of when you were refreshing. Another thing is if you don’t get what you want at 7, try again at 7:10. The times typically change to the good at that time as people wind up not purchasing Genie+ for that day and their reservations expire.
You can also show up for your time 5 minutes early. Not sure about being late.
Overall, Genie+ worked very well for us. We usually got at least 5 Lightning Lanes each day. You just have to keep a running clock in your head. You will check you phone much more than usual, but we got many more Lightning Lanes than Fastpasses. Also, take a mobile charger. The My Disney Experience app will drain your phone more quickly than usual.
OVERALL PARK STRATEGY
We utilized Early Entry and Genie+. They made the days not as long. We picked what we wanted to rope drop and tried to get a Lightning Lane for the next ride. At 7 am, we were on the site. Typically, we wouldn’t stay in the park all day. We would ride stuff all morning, eat lunch, and then maybe ride more until about 3. Then, we’d go back to the resort to rest a bit before dinner. We did go back to the parks sometimes in the evening.
EPCOT
For Epcot, our favorites are Soarin’ and Test Track. We hoped to ride Remy’s and thought if we could get on Frozen, we would. We’ve ridden Maelstrom before it was Frozen and enjoyed it. We figured we’d go if the wait turned out to be okay. We headed over there once when the wait was advertised as 25 minutes, but once we got there (we were not close), it went up to 45. We rope-dropped Remy’s, as it is now part of the Early Entry. Unfortunately, we couldn’t use the International Gateway entrance, so we had a decent speed hike to get there. When we arrived, the wait was about 25 minutes. Honestly, we weren’t that taken with the ride after having ridden it. Technically, it was quite impressive, but it is short and just something we weren’t into. The single rider line worked great for us on Test Track. We watched the new fireworks show, which was quite good.
Genie+ Opinion – To buy or not to buy Genie+ for Epcot depends on a lot…when you go during the year, when you go during the day, etc. For us, being able to rope drop something, use Early Entry to get on other things quickly, and use the Genie+ for other things or repeat something you rode earlier since it had a lower wait time was a plus.
MAGIC KINGDOM
We did not do, or try for, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. There was always a huge line, and we wanted to use our rope drop strategy on Space Mountain. This worked well. We rope-dropped it twice with Early Entry and waited no more than 20 minutes. We would use Genie+ to get Big Thunder (Splash Mountain was closed for refurb) and once tapped in, get another reservation. We used the app to watch wait times and rode other stuff in the interim. This worked out well, and we rode many things more than once. We also rode Space Mountain during the fireworks. After that, we walked on Buzz Lightyear twice with zero wait. We could have done it 3 times if we wanted. Peter Pan also had long wait times and Lightning Lanes were late in the day if you didn't jump on one early. We did get an early Jungle Cruise.
Genie+ Opinion – Again, we used it to our advantage and were able to double up on rides by combining Genie+ with Early Entry.
HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS
On one day at 7 am, we got a Lightning Lane for Toy Story, but the line never really got too long. So, we tapped in and got another reservation for something else. I guess the point is we probably didn’t need to worry about getting a reservation for Toy Story that early in the day. Later in the day, the wait times for it approached 45-60 minutes, so Genie+ helps. Toy Story probably just doesn’t need to be your first pick. On another day at 7 am, we used Genie+ to get a Slinky Dog Lightning Lane for 9:10. Immediately after, the time went to 2 pm. So, we lucked out. We rope-dropped Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway. We liked that more than Remy. Again, just a personal preference. We are not big Star Wars fans, so we didn’t try for Rise of the Resistance. We did notice the wait times were pushing 3 hours at times. It was also down a few times while we were there. Many people also rope drop it. We park-hopped here one day (mentioned earlier), and this is where we had 3 Lightning Lanes stacked at one time.
At the beginning of the day, we noticed you could wait in line at the attraction versus behind a rope until 8:30 (Early Entry was at 8:30 for this day). Noteworthy is you cannot get into the parking lots of the parks until 1 hour before Early Entry starts.
We used Genie+ for Smuggler’s Run, which was a nice ride. The interior of the Millennium Falcon set is amazing. We saw many taking advantage of the single rider line. We used Genie+ for several things…Slinky Dog, Toy Story, Tower of Terror, Rock n Rollercoaster, Indiana Jones. Fill time was spent with lesser-wait attractions like the Muppets. We also monitored wait times and used the standby lines when they weren’t too bad.
Genie+ Opinion – Definitely needed for this park.
ANIMAL KINGDOM
We aren’t Avatar fans (haven’t seen the movie), but we figured we’d try to rope drop Flight of Passage. We screwed up and didn’t take note of the park hours changing. We thought it was 9, but it was 8. So, we didn’t get there until 8, and by that time, the other Early Entry people had made the line close to 60 minutes. Plus, it was cold and rainy. We rode the Safari, Dinosaur, Na’vi River Journey, and saw the Festival of the Lion King. The walking trails are also nice. This was our last day, and we knew we wouldn’t need a full day here.
Genie+ Opinion – If you have Early Entry, you may not use Genie+ that much. It’s still nice to have, as you can move through stuff quickly.
FOOD & MOBILE ORDER
We like the refrigerator in the room. On the first night there, we stopped at Publix and picked up yogurt, fruit, cereal, granola bars, and water. This way, we could eat breakfast in the room and save the cost of a meal, as well as time. We also got flavor packets for the waters. Each day, we carried in 4-5 waters and used them for lunch and to hydrate. Drinks are pricey (water is $3.50/bottle), so by carrying the bottles in, we saved $14/meal. A soda (which you can also carry in), is $4.69 for a 20-ounce bottle.
In short, Mobile Order worked really well. We had no problem getting (and altering) our pickup times. We did make our initial reservations a few hours before lunch or dinner, but we changed things more than once close to the “peak” times. You do have to be cognizant of making a reservation and picking food when you really aren’t hungry (ready to eat). We didn’t do any table service meals, but we did notice there were times available. Like Genie+, you can get there 5 minutes early.
We had many good quick service meals. Standouts included: Regal Smokehouse, Sleepy Hollow (Waffles with Nutella and fruit), Pinocchio Village Haus, Aloha Isle, ABC Commissary, and Pecos Bills. We tried the Carrot Cake Cookie from the Trolley Car Café, and thought it was good, but not great. We thought the Wookie Cookie was much better. We would definitely get the Wookie Cookie again versus the Carrot Cake Cookie. Mickey pretzels and funnel cakes were also quite good. We weren’t fans of the cheese sauce with the pretzels, and I think it was about $1 cheaper if you didn’t get the sauce (cannot confirm).
We enjoyed Disney Springs, specifically the Earl of Sandwich. We also ate at Chicken Guy’s and found it to be okay, but nothing spectacular. Maybe we didn’t choose the right sauce, as there are many to pick from.
….That’s about all I can think of. Please feel free to ask any questions.
We just returned from an excellent 8 days at Disney, so I thought I’d share some of our observations. I’ll do this in sections, although some information will likely be relevant to more than one section. Please forgive any typos and feel free to ask any questions. Also, we realize how we do things is not necessarily how others would. The choices we made where those we felt were best for us, both procedurally and financially. So, please take our experience with a grain of salt. We aren’t saying our way is what you should do, it’s just what worked for us. We sincerely hope you all have as good as time as we did. So, here we go…
BACKGROUND
We are a family of 4 from Maryland. My wife and I are in our 50s and our kids are 19 and 17 (boy, 19, girl, 17). We have been to Disney previously, but all our visits were pre-COVID.
PLANNING
We chose January for a variety of reasons. Summer is just too hot and crowded. Plus, our son was on winter break from college and our daughter would only miss 1 day of school (She is a senior and does a dual-enrollment thing with high school and college. Her college was on winter break, so she only missed the one day of high school.). We have visited in January before when the kids were little.
We have stayed in different resorts and have found all to be nice. This time, having heard so many good things about Port Orleans – French Quarter, we wanted to give it a try. However, when we were first able to make our reservations, it was still closed. So, we made a reservation for Coronado Springs and hoped French Quarter would open. It did, and a phone call switched our reservation easily.
We got Park Hopper passes (wasn’t certain how much we would use them but wanted to be prepared). I think it was an extra $360. We also opted to buy Genie+ before we arrived. Again, that may not be what everyone thinks is right. Our thought was we only come once in a while (like every 5-10 years), so we thought the extra $500 was warranted. We have no regrets about getting it, which will be detailed later in this review.
We did not make any dining reservations, as we just do the Quick Service meals. So, I cannot speak to the reservation process for Table Service.
We logged into our account monthly and made payments, which was a nice way to budget out the financial piece. We also received the basic Magic Bands at the discounted price. We didn’t get any fancy ones.
TRAVEL
Being near Baltimore Washington International (BWI), the major airline is Southwest. As soon as the schedule opened, we booked our flights. We got the first flight (6:15 am) on Saturday, January 15th. That meant getting up at 3 am, but that’s a little easier pill to swallow when you know Disney is the result. We drove our own car to the airport and opted to park in the garage closest to the airport. Being January, we wanted covered parking. At BWI, there is a daily garage, which is cheaper than the hourly garage ($12/day versus $22/day). For the daily garage, a shuttle is required. Since we were coming back at 10pm on January 22nd, we opted to pay the $80 difference and use the hourly garage. Yeah, it was a splurge, but it turned out to be a good call in the end due to taking a long time to get our luggage after arriving home (over an hour). We landed at 10 pm, so we didn’t get out of the airport until 11:30. If we added a bus ride on top of that, it would have made a long day that much longer. Typically, with Southwest, we haven’t seen fares drop after the initial offering too often. However, this time, there was a lot of fare movement. By checking every day or so, we were able to get some flight credits, which will come in handy with our college-aged kids.
We always opt for a rental car when at Disney. These rates always fluctuate. I was able to get a discount through Amazon and we had a nice standard SUV (Ford Edge) through Budget for $348 for the 8 days. Plus, with the Amazon promo, they gave us a $25 gift card.
Thanks to DISboards, we read about Visitor Toll Pass. If you are using a rental car, this is THE BEST THING EVER. You make a reservation online and pick it up when you arrive. There is a kiosk near the rental car counters. If renting a car, we also recommend joining the company’s rental club. This is a nice way to skip the sometimes-long lines at rental car counters.
Travel day, other than the early wakeup, was fine. It was quite cold in Maryland when we left (between 10-20 degrees F). So, we layered, knowing Florida weather would be much milder. Our flight left 4 minutes early, and we arrived about 25 minutes early (landed around 8:30 am). We carried on four bags and checked one. We received our checked bag within 15 minutes of landing (nice!) and picked up the Visitor Toll Pass. Knowing we couldn’t likely get to our room this early, we went right to the parks. From DISboards, we recalled the advice of doing online check-in before you go, which allowed for Genie+ use at 7:00 the first day. The systems considers you “there”.
PORT ORLEANS – FRENCH QUARTER
We really enjoyed this resort. The beignets were our favorite. The resort and room were very clean and well maintained. Mousekeeping came every other day, replenishing towels/supplies and emptying trash. They did seem to come later in the afternoon (3-4 pm) versus midday.
We received a text early in the afternoon of our first day that the room was ready. We had no issue with our Magic Bands opening the resort gate or the door to our room. There is a charge to park a car at the resort.
The resort is well organized, and it didn’t seem like we were “lost” in a sea of people. The cast members were very pleasant and helpful. There were some walking trails, and people were using the pool on the warmer days we were there. You can also take the boat to Disney Springs, and we did this a few times. There are some nice shops and places to eat there.
MY DISNEY EXPERIENCE APP & GENIE+
I cannot load the MDE App on my phone (work phone), but my wife and kids did on theirs. So, we had 3 phones available for Genie+ stuff. Turns out, we typically only used one for our stuff, but it was nice at times having one of the kids look up something while I looked for something else.
Typically during dinner the night before, we would talk about what we wanted to do at the specific park we were to be at the next day. Our strategy was to utilize Rope Drop/Early Theme Park Entry for a popular ride and get a Lightning Lane for another. For example, we Rope Dropped Space Mountain twice. I think we waited at most 20 minutes. I set an alarm for 6:55 am to make sure I was ready. When it became closer to 7, I just kept hitting the “Tip Board” tab, versus pulling down the whole menu to refresh (we have iPhones). My daughter would give me a countdown to 7. Once the Lightning Lanes opened, I picked one immediately. This worked well, and we were able to grab things like Big Thunder and Slinky Dog Dash for 9:10 am each. We didn’t use any of the paid Individual Attraction options. I seem to recall the prices for those were between $9-14.
With Early Entry, we were able to knock out some other stuff. We played the 120-minute rule well, and even were able to stack as many as 3 Lightning Lanes at one point. Genie+ does require you using your phone more than you likely would. It wasn’t overwhelming, but you had to remember the rules and keep a mental alarm clock. For example, when we had a 9:10 am reservation for Slinky Dog, we could get another reservation as soon as we tapped in. So, right before we tapped in, we’d look to see what was likely available, and then after tapping in, we made our pick.
One day we park hopped and made a reservation for our next park (Hollywood). We were at Epcot and knew we would be leaving right after lunch. We had been using Lightning Lanes all morning there, but then figured we would take a break for a few hours and then head to Hollywood. So, we made a 6:30 reservation for Toy Story. This was close to 6 hours from that time, so we knew we could stack. In 2 hours, we made a 6:35 reservation for Rock n Rollercoaster (so we were sitting on 2 reservations). When we got to Hollywood around 5, we stood in line for Runaway Railway (about a 45-minute wait). While in line, we watched Slinky Dog. It showed nothing. However, repeatedly refreshing popped open a 7:10 time, which we snagged. Right after that, there was nothing again. So, at one point, we had 3 reservations at the same time.
We noticed this about the Lightning Lane system…the times change often. It wasn’t uncommon to see a time for 12:20 change suddenly to 10:30 and then back to 12:40. It was just the luck of when you were refreshing. Another thing is if you don’t get what you want at 7, try again at 7:10. The times typically change to the good at that time as people wind up not purchasing Genie+ for that day and their reservations expire.
You can also show up for your time 5 minutes early. Not sure about being late.
Overall, Genie+ worked very well for us. We usually got at least 5 Lightning Lanes each day. You just have to keep a running clock in your head. You will check you phone much more than usual, but we got many more Lightning Lanes than Fastpasses. Also, take a mobile charger. The My Disney Experience app will drain your phone more quickly than usual.
OVERALL PARK STRATEGY
We utilized Early Entry and Genie+. They made the days not as long. We picked what we wanted to rope drop and tried to get a Lightning Lane for the next ride. At 7 am, we were on the site. Typically, we wouldn’t stay in the park all day. We would ride stuff all morning, eat lunch, and then maybe ride more until about 3. Then, we’d go back to the resort to rest a bit before dinner. We did go back to the parks sometimes in the evening.
EPCOT
For Epcot, our favorites are Soarin’ and Test Track. We hoped to ride Remy’s and thought if we could get on Frozen, we would. We’ve ridden Maelstrom before it was Frozen and enjoyed it. We figured we’d go if the wait turned out to be okay. We headed over there once when the wait was advertised as 25 minutes, but once we got there (we were not close), it went up to 45. We rope-dropped Remy’s, as it is now part of the Early Entry. Unfortunately, we couldn’t use the International Gateway entrance, so we had a decent speed hike to get there. When we arrived, the wait was about 25 minutes. Honestly, we weren’t that taken with the ride after having ridden it. Technically, it was quite impressive, but it is short and just something we weren’t into. The single rider line worked great for us on Test Track. We watched the new fireworks show, which was quite good.
Genie+ Opinion – To buy or not to buy Genie+ for Epcot depends on a lot…when you go during the year, when you go during the day, etc. For us, being able to rope drop something, use Early Entry to get on other things quickly, and use the Genie+ for other things or repeat something you rode earlier since it had a lower wait time was a plus.
MAGIC KINGDOM
We did not do, or try for, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. There was always a huge line, and we wanted to use our rope drop strategy on Space Mountain. This worked well. We rope-dropped it twice with Early Entry and waited no more than 20 minutes. We would use Genie+ to get Big Thunder (Splash Mountain was closed for refurb) and once tapped in, get another reservation. We used the app to watch wait times and rode other stuff in the interim. This worked out well, and we rode many things more than once. We also rode Space Mountain during the fireworks. After that, we walked on Buzz Lightyear twice with zero wait. We could have done it 3 times if we wanted. Peter Pan also had long wait times and Lightning Lanes were late in the day if you didn't jump on one early. We did get an early Jungle Cruise.
Genie+ Opinion – Again, we used it to our advantage and were able to double up on rides by combining Genie+ with Early Entry.
HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS
On one day at 7 am, we got a Lightning Lane for Toy Story, but the line never really got too long. So, we tapped in and got another reservation for something else. I guess the point is we probably didn’t need to worry about getting a reservation for Toy Story that early in the day. Later in the day, the wait times for it approached 45-60 minutes, so Genie+ helps. Toy Story probably just doesn’t need to be your first pick. On another day at 7 am, we used Genie+ to get a Slinky Dog Lightning Lane for 9:10. Immediately after, the time went to 2 pm. So, we lucked out. We rope-dropped Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway. We liked that more than Remy. Again, just a personal preference. We are not big Star Wars fans, so we didn’t try for Rise of the Resistance. We did notice the wait times were pushing 3 hours at times. It was also down a few times while we were there. Many people also rope drop it. We park-hopped here one day (mentioned earlier), and this is where we had 3 Lightning Lanes stacked at one time.
At the beginning of the day, we noticed you could wait in line at the attraction versus behind a rope until 8:30 (Early Entry was at 8:30 for this day). Noteworthy is you cannot get into the parking lots of the parks until 1 hour before Early Entry starts.
We used Genie+ for Smuggler’s Run, which was a nice ride. The interior of the Millennium Falcon set is amazing. We saw many taking advantage of the single rider line. We used Genie+ for several things…Slinky Dog, Toy Story, Tower of Terror, Rock n Rollercoaster, Indiana Jones. Fill time was spent with lesser-wait attractions like the Muppets. We also monitored wait times and used the standby lines when they weren’t too bad.
Genie+ Opinion – Definitely needed for this park.
ANIMAL KINGDOM
We aren’t Avatar fans (haven’t seen the movie), but we figured we’d try to rope drop Flight of Passage. We screwed up and didn’t take note of the park hours changing. We thought it was 9, but it was 8. So, we didn’t get there until 8, and by that time, the other Early Entry people had made the line close to 60 minutes. Plus, it was cold and rainy. We rode the Safari, Dinosaur, Na’vi River Journey, and saw the Festival of the Lion King. The walking trails are also nice. This was our last day, and we knew we wouldn’t need a full day here.
Genie+ Opinion – If you have Early Entry, you may not use Genie+ that much. It’s still nice to have, as you can move through stuff quickly.
FOOD & MOBILE ORDER
We like the refrigerator in the room. On the first night there, we stopped at Publix and picked up yogurt, fruit, cereal, granola bars, and water. This way, we could eat breakfast in the room and save the cost of a meal, as well as time. We also got flavor packets for the waters. Each day, we carried in 4-5 waters and used them for lunch and to hydrate. Drinks are pricey (water is $3.50/bottle), so by carrying the bottles in, we saved $14/meal. A soda (which you can also carry in), is $4.69 for a 20-ounce bottle.
In short, Mobile Order worked really well. We had no problem getting (and altering) our pickup times. We did make our initial reservations a few hours before lunch or dinner, but we changed things more than once close to the “peak” times. You do have to be cognizant of making a reservation and picking food when you really aren’t hungry (ready to eat). We didn’t do any table service meals, but we did notice there were times available. Like Genie+, you can get there 5 minutes early.
We had many good quick service meals. Standouts included: Regal Smokehouse, Sleepy Hollow (Waffles with Nutella and fruit), Pinocchio Village Haus, Aloha Isle, ABC Commissary, and Pecos Bills. We tried the Carrot Cake Cookie from the Trolley Car Café, and thought it was good, but not great. We thought the Wookie Cookie was much better. We would definitely get the Wookie Cookie again versus the Carrot Cake Cookie. Mickey pretzels and funnel cakes were also quite good. We weren’t fans of the cheese sauce with the pretzels, and I think it was about $1 cheaper if you didn’t get the sauce (cannot confirm).
We enjoyed Disney Springs, specifically the Earl of Sandwich. We also ate at Chicken Guy’s and found it to be okay, but nothing spectacular. Maybe we didn’t choose the right sauce, as there are many to pick from.
….That’s about all I can think of. Please feel free to ask any questions.
I really wish they would have kept the old fast pass system but I'll try to reserve judgement and give it a try!
