Going from DCA to DL at rope drop

[Wilcojoe]

If you are spending your EMH at DCA and you want to be at DL for rope drop, what is the best way to do so? Do you have to go thru a line of people trying to get into DL, that weren't at DCA for EMH? It almost seems like we would need to cut short our EMH in order to line up for DL rope drop. I guess the same question goes for the other way around on EMH days at DL.

 

[tlovesdis]

At Disneyland they will start letting people onto Main Street 30 minutes before opening, and then they wait at the end of Main Street until the park opens. If you wanted to be near the rope drop area, I would suggest not doing EMH at DCA as people will be lining up at the DL gates probably an hour before opening.

 

[Wilcojoe]

So your saying don't use our EMH at DCA on Wed and Fri? Or just use it for the first 30 minutes and then head to Main Street and line up? That certianly takes some luster out of the idea of getting an EMH each day.

 

[tlovesdis]

So your saying don't use our EMH at DCA on Wed and Fri? Or just use it for the first 30 minutes and then head to Main Street and line up? That certianly takes some luster out of the idea of getting an EMH each day.

Well if you want to be at the DL rope drop then I would say don't use the EMH. If you do use 30 minutes of it, you will probably only get on one ride, maybe two. I personally would just stay in DCA for a few hours then hope over to DL later in the day. Then on EE day for Disneyland, I would start there, stay for a few hours then hop over to DCA. That's how we do it anyway. We've never tried to do EE in one park and be at the other for rope drop. It just seems like you wouldn't have much time for anything during the EE. But there may be others who have done it!

 

[Wilcojoe]

That's a great point. For some reason I just keep thinking that I need to be at DL at rope drop. The last time I was at DCA was in 2003 in February and it was dead. I mean an absolute ghost town, whereas DL had decent crowds. I guess a lot has changed in 13 years. Still wish the EMH days were flipped, though.

 

[maltdizzy]

Do you have to go thru a line of people trying to get into DL, that weren't at DCA for EMH?

Yes...you have to exit into the promenade and wait in line at the turnstiles all over again.

I agree with everyone else. Enjoy your EMH at DCA, it's only available to on-property guests and you can get a few rides in and grab any necessary FP's (World of Color, Frozen, another trip on RSR) at park opening.

Then, move over to DL when ready. DL is often (but not always or consistently) lighter on DCA EMH days. It depends on a lot of factors.

 

[Wilcojoe]

The one complaint I have (first world problems right?) is that we won't be starting our first day at DL. Not being able to walk down Main Street with our young boys to start our visit is going to feel odd.

If they had a dedicated "breeze thru" lane for resort guests to go from the EE park to the rope drop park (maybe 5 minutes ahead) would be awesome. I would totally pay extra to stay onsite for that every single time!

 

[BriannaRuth]

The one complaint I have (first world problems right?) is that we won't be starting our first day at DL. Not being able to walk down Main Street with our young boys to start our visit is going to feel odd.

This happened to us once -- there's no rule that says you *have* to use every EMH. We decided not to use our EMH the first morning and went to DL instead because I love doing Main Street the first morning of our visit. Then we used EMH the rest of the week. You may have two DL mornings in a row if you do that but you can always head to DCA later in the day.

 

[lindyv321]

The one complaint I have (first world problems right?) is that we won't be starting our first day at DL. Not being able to walk down Main Street with our young boys to start our visit is going to feel odd.

Our last two trips we started our first day in DCA due to the EMH schedule and in the end it was just fine. It was nice to hop to DL in the late morning/afternoon and walk down Main Street when there weren't a million other people crammed in. You cant take Main Street in as well when you're there for rope drop....

 

[maltdizzy]

If they had a dedicated "breeze thru" lane for resort guests to go from the EE park to the rope drop park (maybe 5 minutes ahead) would be awesome. I would totally pay extra to stay onsite for that every single time!

Early entry is designed, in part, as crowd control.

They want you to stay in DCA. The promenade can be wall-to-wall with guests waiting to enter the parks in the morning. Getting the hotel guests in early takes some stress off the turnstyles.