How would you schedule your first day if you were me

[Lexje06]

Hi everyone. It’s been a while since I’ve been to Disney - pre-Covid, Pre-ILL, virtual queu, Genie+, etc.

Assuming my flight isn’t delayed, I’m landing in Orland with boyfriend and 7 yo son at 7:05 am September 3rd. From what I’ve read, September is Disney’s slowest month, but it IS going to be Labor Day weekend. I’ve read Labor Day weekend is the slowest holiday at Disney, but still “busier” than other September dates. It’s ranked a 4/10 crowd rating for this year, although last year was I think closer to a 2/10.

We are staying at AKL. My first question is, assuming our flight is on schedule, what time do you think we can anticipate arriving at Hollywood Studios. (I’m pretty sure this will be our first park, although I’m on the fence between this and AKL this one seems a bit more feasible for day 1). We will be checking bags so will need to grab bags, take bus to resort, drop bags, take bus to HS. Based on my experience last time I went (also stayed at AKL and did HS on first day) I was thinking it would be safe to bet arriving at HS by 10:30 am. Is that still realistic?

The second question is how would you plan your day if you were me. We are in Disney 4 days, 1 park for day, and want to make the most of it. We will be doing Genie+ and ILL if necessary to ride everything we want given that our group is small, we rarely get to take vacations and we only have 4 days. Also, I am flying with an airline with Wifi so should be able to book what I need starting at 7 am on the dot (will log in sooner of course). For ILL, I believe I can pick my own time (plz confirm) but for genie+ will need to make sure I’m not TOO fast as we won’t be at the park until 10:30. I understand for some rides this means literally booking at 7:00:05 as opposed to 7:00:01.

Here is everything we are determined to ride at HS:

Slinky Dog
Toy story mania
Rise of the resistance (ILL)
Smugglers Run

These are the 4 rides we absolutely want to do… but here’s the kicker. We ideally would love to knock these out by 4:30 pm so we can be back to the hotel by 5 and relax the rest of the day. Our flight leaves at 5 am, meaning we need to be at airport by 3 am. We are going to be extremely exhausted, and I don’t want to overdo it.

With these rides, and schedule in mind, I’ve spent literally hours looking at Thrill Data. Based on the data over past 30 days, it seems almost impossible to get these 4 in between 10:30-4:30 due to their popularity. However, I think our dates are slower than the month of July and August so I’m thinking maybe, just maybe we could get lucky?

This would be my *fantasy* schedule

7 am- book ILL RoR at 3:30
7 am- book Genie+ slinky dog for 11:00
[which one should I book first on the app?]
10:30 am- arrive at park
10:30-11:00 am- ride muppets
11:00 am- book Genie+ for smugglers run 2:30 pm
11:30 am - checkin slinky
11:31 am- book toy story mania for 2:00pm
12-1 pm- lunch
1-2 pm- character meet and greets, alien saucer
2pm- ride toy story mania
2:30 pm- ride smugglers run
3:30pm- ride ROR.

back to hotel by 4:30. Would also love if we got lucky enough to book a genie+ for TOT sometime after toy story mania but before 4:30, but not really too worried Bc on the fence if my son would be too scared. Same for Mickey and Minnies railroad- would be cool to get lucky enough to get one late in the day with a short return time, but not too worried ab it Bc not sure he will be into that ride.

Basically… to those who have been to HS and who understand Genie+, is there any chance I could get lucky enough to get something close to this schedule? What would you change if you were me, if anything?

 

[scrappinginontario]

Totally up to you but if it were me I would plan AK for arrival day as it’s the park for our family that requires the least amount of time to tour.

If your flight arrives at 7AM, what time did it take off? What time did you wake up? How much sleep did you get?

I’ve been guilty in the past of not taking these things into consideration and over booking us day one. It made day 1 a very rough start to our vacation.

I now look at these factors to help me plan what we hope to accomplish and plan an early supper and bedtime for our family.

 

[JodyK]

I would also probably not choose HS as my first day park and would go with AK just because it will allow you to have more flexibility in your schedule since that park is much easier to tour, get LLs for, and change plans at. HS can be very particular and you need a lot of things to go right to accomplish your goals. Those things include not only being able to book what you want, rides not going down but also not being tired, hungry, generally cranky by the time you arrive in Orlando.

Example if you arrived at AKL and your room was ready (I know that seems like a long shot these days) planning on AK would give you flexibility to rest for a bit before heading to that park depending on energy levels. A lot of people start their days at AK and hop out of it so arriving a bit later can be an advantage. It isn't the best park for stacking Genie+ for a later arrival since times move slowly but it is a park where you don't need Genie+ or can get return times that generally aren't too far out. Not sure what is on your list there in terms of must ride there?

 

[Lexje06]

Totally up to you but if it were me I would plan AK for arrival day as it’s the park for our family that requires the least amount of time to tour.

If your flight arrives at 7AM, what time did it take off? What time did you wake up? How much sleep did you get?

I’ve been guilty in the past of not taking these things into consideration and over booking us day one. It made day 1 a very rough start to our vacation.

I now look at these factors to help me plan what we hope to accomplish and plan an early supper and bedtime for our family.

We need to be at airport by 3:15 am for 5 am take of. I agree, but we cannot check in until 3:00 anyways so we need to kill some time at least.

I would also probably not choose HS as my first day park and would go with AK just because it will allow you to have more flexibility in your schedule since that park is much easier to tour, get LLs for, and change plans at. HS can be very particular and you need a lot of things to go right to accomplish your goals. Those things include not only being able to book what you want, rides not going down but also not being tired, hungry, generally cranky by the time you arrive in Orlando.

Example if you arrived at AKL and your room was ready (I know that seems like a long shot these days) planning on AK would give you flexibility to rest for a bit before heading to that park depending on energy levels. A lot of people start their days at AK and hop out of it so arriving a bit later can be an advantage. It isn't the best park for stacking Genie+ for a later arrival since times move slowly but it is a park where you don't need Genie+ or can get return times that generally aren't too far out. Not sure what is on your list there in terms of must ride there?

That was my concern… simply that there are more rides I want to do there. Definitely flight of passage which I can ILL.

Outside of that, Dinosaur. Safari. Expedition Everest. Na’vi river journey. And rapid rivers.

 

[SG131]

We need to be at airport by 3:15 am for 5 am take of. I agree, but we cannot check in until 3:00 anyways so we need to kill some time at least.

That's not actually true. When you do online check-in they ask what time you will arrive and they try to take that into account. And even if you haven't gotten a text, when you get to the hotel, you can ask if they happen to have any rooms available right away. Often times the larger resorts can accommodate you especially if you aren't picky about room location.

I would also say AK makes more sense. Especially these days when you can't count on your plane leaving on time.

 

[Lexje06]

That's not actually true. When you do online check-in they ask what time you will arrive and they try to take that into account. And even if you haven't gotten a text, when you get to the hotel, you can ask if they happen to have any rooms available right away. Often times the larger resorts can accommodate you especially if you aren't picky about room location.

I would also say AK makes more sense. Especially these days when you can't count on your plane leaving on time.

Good to know. Last year we got to AKL about 8 am and our room wasn’t ready until 4 but maybe it will be different this time?

 

[Tom_E_D]

Hi everyone. It’s been a while since I’ve been to Disney - pre-Covid, Pre-ILL, virtual queu, Genie+, etc.

Assuming my flight isn’t delayed, I’m landing in Orland with boyfriend and 7 yo son at 7:05 am September 3rd. From what I’ve read, September is Disney’s slowest month, but it IS going to be Labor Day weekend. I’ve read Labor Day weekend is the slowest holiday at Disney, but still “busier” than other September dates. It’s ranked a 4/10 crowd rating for this year, although last year was I think closer to a 2/10.

We are staying at AKL. My first question is, assuming our flight is on schedule, what time do you think we can anticipate arriving at Hollywood Studios. (I’m pretty sure this will be our first park, although I’m on the fence between this and AKL this one seems a bit more feasible for day 1). We will be checking bags so will need to grab bags, take bus to resort, drop bags, take bus to HS. Based on my experience last time I went (also stayed at AKL and did HS on first day) I was thinking it would be safe to bet arriving at HS by 10:30 am. Is that still realistic?

The second question is how would you plan your day if you were me. We are in Disney 4 days, 1 park for day, and want to make the most of it. We will be doing Genie+ and ILL if necessary to ride everything we want given that our group is small, we rarely get to take vacations and we only have 4 days. Also, I am flying with an airline with Wifi so should be able to book what I need starting at 7 am on the dot (will log in sooner of course). For ILL, I believe I can pick my own time (plz confirm) but for genie+ will need to make sure I’m not TOO fast as we won’t be at the park until 10:30. I understand for some rides this means literally booking at 7:00:05 as opposed to 7:00:01.

Here is everything we are determined to ride at HS:

Slinky Dog
Toy story mania
Rise of the resistance (ILL)
Smugglers Run

These are the 4 rides we absolutely want to do… but here’s the kicker. We ideally would love to knock these out by 4:30 pm so we can be back to the hotel by 5 and relax the rest of the day. Our flight leaves at 5 am, meaning we need to be at airport by 3 am. We are going to be extremely exhausted, and I don’t want to overdo it.

With these rides, and schedule in mind, I’ve spent literally hours looking at Thrill Data. Based on the data over past 30 days, it seems almost impossible to get these 4 in between 10:30-4:30 due to their popularity. However, I think our dates are slower than the month of July and August so I’m thinking maybe, just maybe we could get lucky?

This would be my *fantasy* schedule

7 am- book ILL RoR at 3:30
7 am- book Genie+ slinky dog for 11:00
[which one should I book first on the app?]
10:30 am- arrive at park
10:30-11:00 am- ride muppets
11:00 am- book Genie+ for smugglers run 2:30 pm
11:30 am - checkin slinky
11:31 am- book toy story mania for 2:00pm
12-1 pm- lunch
1-2 pm- character meet and greets, alien saucer
2pm- ride toy story mania
2:30 pm- ride smugglers run
3:30pm- ride ROR.

back to hotel by 4:30. Would also love if we got lucky enough to book a genie+ for TOT sometime after toy story mania but before 4:30, but not really too worried Bc on the fence if my son would be too scared. Same for Mickey and Minnies railroad- would be cool to get lucky enough to get one late in the day with a short return time, but not too worried ab it Bc not sure he will be into that ride.

Basically… to those who have been to HS and who understand Genie+, is there any chance I could get lucky enough to get something close to this schedule? What would you change if you were me, if anything?

I can't answer all of your questions, but I will offer a few comments.

The time you will be able to get to AKL, and from there to DHS, may depend on which bus you are taking. I presume you know that Disney's Magical Express is no more. There are a couple of paid substitutes and I'm not sure they have the same frequency of running.

You may be overly optimistic in forecasting getting an 11:00 G+ for Slinky. On the other hand, someone will get that time and it could be you! As long as you get a time when you will be in the park, it shouldn't make much difference. Assuming the park hours are not extended, you are right that you can book your second G+ LL at 11:00 (2 hours after the currently-scheduled 9:00 park open). However, if you book a G+ LL then for Smugglers Run (and you should), you cannot book another at 11:31 after tapping in to Slinky. Slinky would not then be your most-recently-booked G+ LL. After booking Smugglers Run at 11:00, you can't book another until 1:00. Booking Toy Story Mania at 1:00 may get you a return time after your hoped-for 4:30 return to the hotel. Again, you might get lucky and get an earlier time, but it is hard to plan based on being lucky.

Book Slinky before Rise, or better yet, have two people using different phones booking at the same time (one for Slinky, the other for Rise). I think you have the correct order for booking your three G+ LL rides: Slinky before Smugglers Run before Toy Story Mania.

With that said, Good Luck.

 

[KristaZ]

So I'm gonna give another vote for switching arrival day to AK - knocking out what you want in the time frame you want will be much easier there without arriving first thing in the morning.

What you want to happen is not impossible, but it is highly unlikely in my experience with Genie+. You could easily end up with a 7pm Slinky Dog to start off your day, and by the time you book Smuggler's Run it will likely be outside of your desired 4:30pm time slots.

With that said, if you're set on doing HS - book Slinky Dog first, then RotR. I haven't been keeping up with it, but I know at least a couple of months ago there was still a refill for RotR around 7:10am, making it a little bit easier to grab that one second.

 

[JodyK]

Even with wanting to do more rides at AK they are much easier to get LLs for times that will work with your schedule so the odds would be much more in your favor of getting those early morning / mid-day times. Right now mid-day in the summer mostly everything in AK has return times within the hour. For the few that were further out (Navi and Kali) I was able to refresh and see some earlier times. Right now for HS return times for the rides on your list are much further out. Of course, this is just one point in time but it is just an example.

People are still pretty regularly getting late Slinky return times right at 7AM so it is a bit of a mixed bag. There are also some things on your HS list that are really optimistic like meeting character meet and greets and alien saucers all within one hour with the lines? Can it be done, yes, but it would need to be perfect. The other risk on ROTR is yes you are able to pick your return time, in theory, I know people had been reporting getting times that are much later than the time they selected originally. FOP doesn't move as quickly so I think you'd have better luck, but it is up to you.

 

[SG131]

Good to know. Last year we got to AKL about 8 am and our room wasn’t ready until 4 but maybe it will be different this time?

It can vary, but even if you don't get a room ready text, you can always go to the front desk and ask if they have anything available now. Sometimes they do.

 

[Skip Coffee for Rope Drop]

Totally up to you but if it were me I would plan AK for arrival day as it’s the park for our family that requires the least amount of time to tour.

If your flight arrives at 7AM, what time did it take off? What time did you wake up? How much sleep did you get?

I’ve been guilty in the past of not taking these things into consideration and over booking us day one. It made day 1 a very rough start to our vacation.

I now look at these factors to help me plan what we hope to accomplish and plan an early supper and bedtime for our family.

You want to pace yourself Lex, if you overdo it for the 7 year old on the first day, it may ruin the entire week for the entire party. I think you should consider doing Epcot first because most rides will be a walk on (figment, Nemo, Spaceship, Mission space Green lane, donald duck boat) and there are lots of places for the 7 year old to stay cool, almost every attraction has a large room at exit and have kid friendly activities. Make fast passes for TT and Frozen, Guardians (at 7am, your boarding time will most likely be after 3). This will also let you get a feel for Genie plus so you will be experienced when you do HS and MK on the next days.

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

Another vote for AK here. Yes, you want to do more, but the return times on those rides don't go so darn quickly! HS is the most difficult and unpredictable park where G+ is concerned and I don't think it's reasonable to expect you'll be able to slot in everything you want 10:30-4:30. By contrast, I think this is reasonable at AK and, if you have to do some standby, those lines won't be as bad, either. Unless you want to do the shows, which require their own kind of Jenga, then AK is much more doable in your very specific timeline.

It's currently 1pm on a Thursday on what should be a busier day than your visit. Everest is at 35 minutes, Dinosaur at 45. Not great, but not awful to fill in while you wait for other LLs. By comparison, Mania is at 75, slinky at 115. With a seven year old, I'm assuming those wait times are a firm "veto" meaning you have to make G+ work just right at HS, which is asking a lot of a crappy system.

 

[SarahD112]

Hollywood Studios has a lot of heavy hitters, and I think Genie+ and rope dropping are essential for this park. I also wouldn’t go on a Saturday. Animal Kingdom is best bet for a Saturday. You can buy flight of passage. A lot of people say you don’t need Genie+ for AK, but with only three of you and one day per park, I’d probably buy genie+ every day. So that will help you get the rest of the rides done in a partial day. No big nighttime show either, so you’re not missing anything by leaving before dinner. I’d do Magic Kingdom Sunday, since Saturday and Monday are supposedly the worst days. Although on a holiday weekend, that might not work out as usual. If you have all day Tuesday for Hollywood Studios, then I’d do Epcot Monday. Tuesday should be lowest attendance day. The only caveat of waiting until your last day for HS is that Rise goes down a lot. If you can buy it for early in the day, you’ll probably get on ok even if it’s down at some points. But it might be safer to switch HS AND Epcot days, just in case.

 

[Lexje06]

Even with wanting to do more rides at AK they are much easier to get LLs for times that will work with your schedule so the odds would be much more in your favor of getting those early morning / mid-day times. Right now mid-day in the summer mostly everything in AK has return times within the hour. For the few that were further out (Navi and Kali) I was able to refresh and see some earlier times. Right now for HS return times for the rides on your list are much further out. Of course, this is just one point in time but it is just an example.

People are still pretty regularly getting late Slinky return times right at 7AM so it is a bit of a mixed bag. There are also some things on your HS list that are really optimistic like meeting character meet and greets and alien saucers all within one hour with the lines? Can it be done, yes, but it would need to be perfect. The other risk on ROTR is yes you are able to pick your return time, in theory, I know people had been reporting getting times that are much later than the time they selected originally. FOP doesn't move as quickly so I think you'd have better luck, but it is up to you.

Thanks so much. I’m def switching to AK for first day after this feedback!

 

[Lexje06]

Another vote for AK here. Yes, you want to do more, but the return times on those rides don't go so darn quickly! HS is the most difficult and unpredictable park where G+ is concerned and I don't think it's reasonable to expect you'll be able to slot in everything you want 10:30-4:30. By contrast, I think this is reasonable at AK and, if you have to do some standby, those lines won't be as bad, either. Unless you want to do the shows, which require their own kind of Jenga, then AK is much more doable in your very specific timeline.

It's currently 1pm on a Thursday on what should be a busier day than your visit. Everest is at 35 minutes, Dinosaur at 45. Not great, but not awful to fill in while you wait for other LLs. By comparison, Mania is at 75, slinky at 115. With a seven year old, I'm assuming those wait times are a firm "veto" meaning you have to make G+ work just right at HS, which is asking a lot of a crappy system.

Thanks so much. Def switching!

 

[Lexje06]

Hollywood Studios has a lot of heavy hitters, and I think Genie+ and rope dropping are essential for this park. I also wouldn’t go on a Saturday. Animal Kingdom is best bet for a Saturday. You can buy flight of passage. A lot of people say you don’t need Genie+ for AK, but with only three of you and one day per park, I’d probably buy genie+ every day. So that will help you get the rest of the rides done in a partial day. No big nighttime show either, so you’re not missing anything by leaving before dinner. I’d do Magic Kingdom Sunday, since Saturday and Monday are supposedly the worst days. Although on a holiday weekend, that might not work out as usual. If you have all day Tuesday for Hollywood Studios, then I’d do Epcot Monday. Tuesday should be lowest attendance day. The only caveat of waiting until your last day for HS is that Rise goes down a lot. If you can buy it for early in the day, you’ll probably get on ok even if it’s down at some points. But it might be safer to switch HS AND Epcot days, just in case.

So, I’m not buying park hopper and Epcot late night is monday (since we are staying in AKL) so Epcot has to be Monday. I was thinking Hs for Sunday and just going later… like 4/5 pm. HS was my least fav park last time so I didn’t want to do it last day… of course, last time I went was before Star Wars stuff so idk if it’s changed. It just felt rhe least “Disney” to me so I really wanted MK to be last day. Also, there’s so much to ride at MK and Tuesday is going to be the slowest day of our trip. It should be pretty dang slow like 2/10 that day

If I do HS Sunday I can get a Genie+ to slinky early in morning maybe like 5/6? Book ROR for like 8 pm. Get Smugglers at 11 am for around 7 pm. Check to see if TOT or Micky and Minnie have late night return times at 1 pm. 3 pm book Toy story mania for around 5:30. Go to park at 3:30/4 Sunday? Seems more practical?

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

Keep in mind that even if you are supposed to land at 7:05, there are no guarantees that you will be on the ground and with phones on by 7 to try to snag hard to get ILLs.

If you haven’t been to HS in a long time there’s a lot there. Beyond just Star Wars and Toy Story, the Frozen show is one of our very favorite things to do. Even my 13 year old son loves it. The Indiana jones show is fun, and if you like thrills Tower of Terror and Rockin Roller Coaster both have long lines. Runaway Railway is fine if you want something more low key. Plus if your kid still likes Disney Jr (my daughter was on the fence at 7) this is probably your last chance at that one.

Don’t underestimate why HS is as popular as it is.

 

[JodyK]

If I do HS Sunday I can get a Genie+ to slinky early in morning maybe like 5/6? Book ROR for like 8 pm. Get Smugglers at 11 am for around 7 pm. Check to see if TOT or Micky and Minnie have late night return times at 1 pm. 3 pm book Toy story mania for around 5:30. Go to park at 3:30/4 Sunday? Seems more practical?

This plan sounds pretty achievable to me, the only wild card being ROTR which is still really competitive. Going later in the day though you can also get in line before park closes assuming it doesn't go down that is one of the shortest wait times for Rise.

 

[Lexje06]

This plan sounds pretty achievable to me, the only wild card being ROTR which is still really competitive. Going later in the day though you can also get in line before park closes assuming it doesn't go down that is one of the shortest wait times for Rise.

I was going to do ILL ROTR. think I’ll have a chance? Thanks again for the feedback.

 

[JodyK]

I think you have a chance! Just checked thrilldata and it seems like LL have been staying around longer then I thought. You can scroll down to the Individual Lightning Lane Availability Map to see how it has been tracking.

https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/attraction/hollywood-studios/starwarsriseoftheresistance/