Help me figure out my morning strategy for Ariel/WOC/Soarin/TSMM

[mrswh]

I was just sayin' that DCA's TSMM does not need it the way DHS needs it.

I'm just being greedy . . . it's my favorite ride!

We have only been to WDW during off peak times, and the stampede to TSMM was pretty wild, it must be awful during the summer.

 

[mousterpiece]

TSMM is far worse at DHS, no question. My wife and I were there on our honeymoon about a week after it opened in 2008 and didn't get FPs, so we waited 2 hours for it. We also visited in March and I saw the running of the bulls with my own eyes. I'll never understand why CMs aren't harsher about stopping people running (though I guess there would need to be either far more CMs keeping an eye out for the runners, or an actual line as soon as you enter the park), but DCA is far better. Now, if only the queue was all indoors...

 

[TLPL]

Ok, here's what the Dobies did last week.

As a guest of any of the 3 onsite properties you get into DCA one hour early, at nine, every day. Line up at the GCH DCA entrance just before or at nine. There will be a bit of a line, but it moves quickly. Enter the park, step to your right, go to the GRR fastpass kiosk, and a CM will take your park tickets and get your WOC fastpasses for you. They will be for 9:00 pm, blue section.

Walk back past the GCH hotel entrance to Condor Flats and ride Soarin'. When you are done, get a FP. Walk toward Paradise Pier and ride LM. There will be no line. Leave LM and walk to rope drop. At 10, they will drop the rope and the crowd will stampede like cattle to TSMM.

You might want to practice your mooing.

What if DL opens at 8am, can I take adventage of that and go for some rides in DL first and then be at GCH DCA entrance just before 9? or too tight? and what if they have MM 7am-8am that day, will it be more doable?

 

[TLPL]

I know all these early opens/additional FPs are a bonus, but I almost get more confused by them. We haven't been to DL in three years so anything I knew about the parks is really out of date. Thank you Hydroguy!

I agree..Same here! all these bonus for staying at the resort but don't know now to take adventage of them all!!
Should we do DL MM or DCA early entry?? all the choices!!!

 

[HydroGuy]

What if DL opens at 8am, can I take adventage of that and go for some rides in DL first and then be at GCH DCA entrance just before 9? or too tight? and what if they have MM 7am-8am that day, will it be more doable?

Sure, you just need to leave the DL gate by 8:50-8:55.

 

[TLPL]

Sure, you just need to leave the DL gate by 8:50-8:55.

How long does it takes to walk back from DL to the DCA entrance at GC?

 

[HydroGuy]

How long does it takes to walk back from DL to the DCA entrance at GC?

Between 5 and 10 minutes. Not sure if it is worth it to be there exactly at 9AM. If so then be leaving the DL gate by 8:50.

 

[engo]

What if DL opens at 8am, can I take adventage of that and go for some rides in DL first and then be at GCH DCA entrance just before 9? or too tight? and what if they have MM 7am-8am that day, will it be more doable?

We did exactly that yesterday morning. Started at 7am, Rode Star Tours and finished Fantasyland by 8:30 am, picked up a couple of FP, and hopped over to DCA by 9:20 through GCH. Soaring was already opened so we grabbed FP and rode it once, FP WoC, Rode Little Mermaid, could've made it to TSMM rope drop but decided not to fight the mob. rode all rides in PP before 11am, hopped back over to DL and used FP. Our 2 little DS were troopers.

a couple of things worth mentioning:
- Star Tour was posted at 5 min at 7:45am, but it felt more like 10. However, it's probably a shorter wait than at 7am, when everyone stampeded over to the ride.
- No one checked for hotel keys at Little Mermaid, but it was a walk on, and the majority of ppl lined up at TSMM rope drop anyway.
- Indy broken down at least twice today, right at opening and around 11am. If your touring plan includes Indy, definitely make a back up plan just in case.

Hope this helps.

 

[TLPL]

Just 6 days before our trip! So exciting!
So Engo, they don't just hand out WoC FP at the GC DCA entrance anymore?
Which rides in Fantasyland did you guys do? all of them? including Nemo??

 

[HydroGuy]

Just 6 days before our trip! So exciting!
So Engo, they don't just hand out WoC FP at the GC DCA entrance anymore?

That was not a regular thing. The typical morning was WOC FPs at the FP machines.

 

[engo]

Just 6 days before our trip! So exciting!
So Engo, they don't just hand out WoC FP at the GC DCA entrance anymore?
Which rides in Fantasyland did you guys do? all of them? including Nemo??

We got our WoC fp at the GRR fp machine, which is just steps away from the GCH entrance.

 

[engo]

Just 6 days before our trip! So exciting!
So Engo, they don't just hand out WoC FP at the GC DCA entrance anymore?
Which rides in Fantasyland did you guys do? all of them? including Nemo??

We didn't get to Nemo yesterday but worked it in during MM this morning. Hadn't planned on it, but since we managed to get on the first car on Star Tours, we rode EVERY ride in Fantasyland that were opened during MM, Buzz, then found the Nemo line to be 10 min. We couldn't resist

 

[mrswh]

We are here now, so I thought I'd update.

This morning we entered DCA through GCH at 9:15. Got WOC FPs (9:00, blue), rode Soarin' (which was already open when we walked up at 9:20), got FPs for Soarin', and rode LM once before 9:55. You did not have to have a room key to ride LM between 9:30 and 10:00, but there was almost no line at all. My DH waited for rope drop (arriving 5 minutes beforehand), was the 4th person at TSMM, rode it and was back at LM by 10:15. (My kids and I rode LM twice more in those 20 minutes). When he walked out of TSMM (after being among the first on the ride), the line was already 45 minutes. After that we saw Disney Junior Live on Stage, rode Monsters, Inc., saw Muppetvision 3D, Turtle Talk with Crush, Animation Academy, and the rest of the animation building with zero wait times. It was great!

Yesterday we went to DLR around 8:30. It was not a MM. Peter Pan was already 30 minutes, so we skipped it. We walked onto Pirates. Then walked onto Haunted Mansion but my kids got scared in the waiting area so we left. Walked onto Jungle Cruise. Buzz Lightyear was around 15 minutes at 9:15. We did not go on Star Tours but the wait was 40 minutes at 9:15. By 9:30, when we came off Buzz, DLR was PACKED!

Moral of the story - go early.

 

[Dobie]

To clarify Soarin' opening:

It does NOT open at 9:30. It opens at 9:00 for resort guests who enter in through the GCH entrance, and fastpasses are available at 9:00.

 

[TLPL]

We are here now, so I thought I'd update.

This morning we entered DCA through GCH at 9:15. Got WOC FPs (9:00, blue), rode Soarin' (which was already open when we walked up at 9:20), got FPs for Soarin', and rode LM once before 9:55. You did not have to have a room key to ride LM between 9:30 and 10:00, but there was almost no line at all. My DH waited for rope drop (arriving 5 minutes beforehand), was the 4th person at TSMM, rode it and was back at LM by 10:15. (My kids and I rode LM twice more in those 20 minutes). When he walked out of TSMM (after being among the first on the ride), the line was already 45 minutes. After that we saw Disney Junior Live on Stage, rode Monsters, Inc., saw Muppetvision 3D, Turtle Talk with Crush, Animation Academy, and the rest of the animation building with zero wait times. It was great!

Yesterday we went to DLR around 8:30. It was not a MM. Peter Pan was already 30 minutes, so we skipped it. We walked onto Pirates. Then walked onto Haunted Mansion but my kids got scared in the waiting area so we left. Walked onto Jungle Cruise. Buzz Lightyear was around 15 minutes at 9:15. We did not go on Star Tours but the wait was 40 minutes at 9:15. By 9:30, when we came off Buzz, DLR was PACKED!

Moral of the story - go early.

Wow it got it down pact!
Did you get to rest or swim in the afternoon? or spent the whole day in the parks??

 

[audrey2580]

We are here now, so I thought I'd update.

This morning we entered DCA through GCH at 9:15. Got WOC FPs (9:00, blue), rode Soarin' (which was already open when we walked up at 9:20), got FPs for Soarin', and rode LM once before 9:55. You did not have to have a room key to ride LM between 9:30 and 10:00, but there was almost no line at all. My DH waited for rope drop (arriving 5 minutes beforehand), was the 4th person at TSMM, rode it and was back at LM by 10:15. (My kids and I rode LM twice more in those 20 minutes). When he walked out of TSMM (after being among the first on the ride), the line was already 45 minutes. After that we saw Disney Junior Live on Stage, rode Monsters, Inc., saw Muppetvision 3D, Turtle Talk with Crush, Animation Academy, and the rest of the animation building with zero wait times. It was great!

Can I ask, where did you wait for rope drop? Before LM we waited by Bugs Life and all the people by the WOC FP were led to TSMM before us and by the time we "walked, not ran" there it was a 45 min wait. We are staying on site so just wondering where to line up.

 

[HydroGuy]

Can I ask, where did you wait for rope drop? Before LM we waited by Bugs Life and all the people by the WOC FP were led to TSMM before us and by the time we "walked, not ran" there it was a 45 min wait. We are staying on site so just wondering where to line up.

Since all the construction walls are up blocking the way from the park entrance to Bugs Land, and because LMAUA is open early at 9AM, they have been holding rope drop at the bridge before Ariel's Grotto right out in front of the LMAUA ride entrance.

HTH

 

[gardengirl2790]

What time should we be in line at the GCH to enter early into DCA? We would like to get onto Soarin' as early as possible.

 

[HydroGuy]

What time should we be in line at the GCH to enter early into DCA? We would like to get onto Soarin' as early as possible.

If you are staying at a Disney hotel then by 9:30. Some report that Soarin has been open this summer at 9AM for hotel guests. It is definitely open by 9:30. You can enter DCA at 9AM so you might want to line up then.

See "The Official Scoop on DCA's Unofficial Morning Opening Hours" - http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2680309

 

[mrswh]

What time should we be in line at the GCH to enter early into DCA? We would like to get onto Soarin' as early as possible.

DCA opens at 9 a.m. Soarin' opens at some unspecified time that, at least this week, has been well before 9:30. If you want to get on the first flight, I'd enter DCA at 9:00.