So I did the Rancho packages today. Actually sitting in the section now waiting for the show. Second show. I am glad to be here sitting on the ground and hopefully the show is great. But the dinning package experience was a bit frustrating today. I arrived at Rancho right on time. They have one CM sitting at a table checking people in for the Fantasmic package. She has a printed copy of reservations. She has an iPad but it had died. She ran out of menus. Went to get more. It seems they literally have 5-10 of the menus because she kept having to leave to go get menus- pausing the check in line each time. It took me 10
Minutes to just check in- that's not even getting in a food line. Then the food line was way backed up because they seems to now be keeping the potato tacos stocked and having to cook more. They also had one CM working the Fantasmic line. From check in to sitting down with food took almost 40 minutes. The food was really good tho. I got the carne asada. Then checking in for the show was a cluster. The CMs at the top (harbor gallery) was giving different directions than the CMs toward the seating areas- meaning no one was in the actual right line for their package. I then was so surprised how many people complained and held up the line because when they go to the viewing area they didn't know it was ground seating. Everything just seemed clunky!
wow, that sounds so different to my experience a few weeks ago.
I did the first show Rancho package. I booked for 2.00pm. There was no issues with the check in cm, there was no one else ahead of me. There was just one person ahead of me picking up food and then when I went to pay there was 2 cashiers open so again just one person ahead of me. Very smooth process and not many people getting food.
From check in to sitting down with food was about 10 minutes.
For the actual show, I was at the Harbour Galley line up area for 7pm, and watched the cms set up the viewing area. I was standing at the bottom of the fence, beside the the pelicans and didnt move.
This meant I was the first in the Rancho line. I watched the whole set up. The cms either play dumb or just really dont know about the lines. It was the lead cm, the person with a head set and clipboard who organized the lines, Rancho against the fence, CO in the middle and Riverbelle at the red wall and walked us into the viewing areas. Its been the same for a good few years. I watched the cms tell people to just wait at the top , while at the same time there were people in line behind me at the fence for Rancho and other people in line at the red wall for Riverbelle. We just created the pre line up ourselves. Some people did ask the cms why were we in line, and they said I dont know, just go back to the top. I think maybe the cms are different every day and that they just get assigned the viewing area as an extra shift, so the only person who really knows anything is the lead.
