Just back!

We are staying at AKV. We are trying to decide if we should get the hopper ticket. We usually take a break at the resort mid-day. Do you think we should spend the extra money or just go back to the same park after our break?

We have gone the past 3 years and gotten park hoppers all 3 times. We found it was helpful in planning dinner- we weren't restricted to 1 park, and we like Epcot for dinner... It gave us flexibility to do what we wanted, so we thought it was worth it!
 
We're going this same week next year and was wondering:

1) temperatures -- how hot did it get? I know this is personal for each person, but what time in the day did you all say -- enough! got to get out of the heat?

2) crowds -- how soon did the FPs for the major rides go into the afternoon?

Temps: it was hot! We live in NC, so we're used to some heat. MK was better as you are inside more than the other parks, it seems. We were usually back by 1 or 2 pm for some pool time- and just drenched in sweat as was everyone else. The sun was just intense. It was about 100 with the heat index according to the weather there, and it felt it. I'd say the typical 12-5 pm window of intense heat and sun was accurate. We usually were at the hotel for a good part of that time.

Fastpasses/crowds:

For Soarin and TSM, they were gone by 2 or 3 from what we saw.

Didn't get to AK so can't say there.

MK was an hour for BTMRR and two for SM at mid-day, but SM was also having some issues daily with their computer breaking down, so it was not operating at least once per day.

We were able to walk on to Pirates (less than 10 minute wait every time), Haunted Mansion, Small World, Winnie the Pooh, Aladdin, Monsters, Stitch, etc. Peter Pan and Buzz Lightyear also got to an hour on fastpass, but overall, it was not bad for anything in MK.
 
We only have a DS9, so we did not see the faries- sorry!

We stayed at Boardwalk this year, which was new for us (last 2 we were at SSR). We also did the Wishes dessert party, and really liked the new Hall of Presidents- it was much improved.

Interesting side note, lots of people ignoring the CMs. People in HoP with cell phones texting and snapping pictures. TONS of people taking flash pics on Pirates- one woman snapped away the whole ride, including turning around and blinding the back half of the boat so she could "get her shot". :confused3 Also, repeated messages on SM to remain seated throughout the ride- this was just after it had reopened from computer issues. :confused: Guess I now understand where the grumpy CM reports are coming from...
 

We only have a DS9, so we did not see the faries- sorry!

We stayed at Boardwalk this year, which was new for us (last 2 we were at SSR). We also did the Wishes dessert party, and really liked the new Hall of Presidents- it was much improved.

Interesting side note, lots of people ignoring the CMs. People in HoP with cell phones texting and snapping pictures. TONS of people taking flash pics on Pirates- one woman snapped away the whole ride, including turning around and blinding the back half of the boat so she could "get her shot". :confused3 Also, repeated messages on SM to remain seated throughout the ride- this was just after it had reopened from computer issues. :confused: Guess I now understand where the grumpy CM reports are coming from...

Would love to hear your thoughts about the Wishes dessert party! TIA.
 
The desserts were good- large selection and smaller size so you could try things and not feel overwhelmed.

The service was a bit slow. We got there a little before 9 and they were not seating people yet, so line was long. We were seated and eating by 9:20, though, so plenty of time to eat before Wishes.

Not good for Spectromagic. You really cannot see it from most of the seats, and from what I could tell it was randomly generated by computer beforehand- no requesting other seats allowed.

Also, be ready to stand at 9:50. The first time you hear Jimminy Cricket talk, people are lining up at the rail for Wishes! Tinkerbell flies right over you, and it's great for pictures of Wishes. As long as you don't expect more than that (and some good desserts to try!), you will enjoy it.
 
We also just returned (about 4 hours ago now, lol!).

Did you see the fairies at Pixie Hollow?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If yes, what time of day and what was your wait?

We did not. We walked over at 10:20 (opened at 10) and the wait was 45 minutes. We did the Princesses, where the wait said 15 minutes, but was actually about 8 minutes.

Overall, the crowds were not that bad. We're Disney veterans and often go in July, so this was far from the worst I've seen. Some things just are going to have long waits: Test Track, Soarin, Peter Pan, TSM, Pixies, etc. I can't always figure it out. At one point, Misson Space was 10 minutes and Test Track was 110...??? We did do TSM during EMH and it was only a 20 minute wait at that time. Everest wasn't bad...we did the fastpass line at about 10am and then did stand-by for 25 minutes.

As for the heat, I strongly recommend going back to your resort between 1 and 4. Trust me, you'll be glad you did! Even so, try to do the outdoor waits in the morning and save the indoor waits for the afternoon.
 
The desserts were good- large selection and smaller size so you could try things and not feel overwhelmed.

The service was a bit slow. We got there a little before 9 and they were not seating people yet, so line was long. We were seated and eating by 9:20, though, so plenty of time to eat before Wishes.

Not good for Spectromagic. You really cannot see it from most of the seats, and from what I could tell it was randomly generated by computer beforehand- no requesting other seats allowed.

Also, be ready to stand at 9:50. The first time you hear Jimminy Cricket talk, people are lining up at the rail for Wishes! Tinkerbell flies right over you, and it's great for pictures of Wishes. As long as you don't expect more than that (and some good desserts to try!), you will enjoy it.

Thanks! Sounds like it's worth a try! :goodvibes
 
We were there last week. Here is what we were able to accomplish on EMH mornings, finishing around 1-2 each day, returning to resort or going to water parks:

EPCOT: Soarin, Test Track, Mission Space, Space Ship Earth, lunch at Sunshine Seasons, Living with the Land, Soarin (FP) and Test Track (FP)
AK (Day 1): Safari, Dino, Asia Trek/Boneyard (family split up), Kali, lunch at Tamu Tamu, Kali (FP), Asia Jungle Trek again, Dino (FP). We had FP for Everest, but the kids chickened out so we gave them away
MK: Peter Pan (WALK ON!), Winnie the Pooh, Haunted Mansion, Thunder Mtn twice, railroad to Main Street, Buzz twice, Astro Orbitors (first time), Pirates, eat at Columbia Harbor House, Peter Pan (FP), Swiss Family Treehouse, Jungle Cruise (FP)
HS: Toy Story, Tower of Terror, RNR Single Rider, Star Tours, Backlot Tour, Indiana Jones/Beauty and the Beast (family split up), llunch at Sci Fi, Great movie ride, Toy Story (FP- all sold out by 1), gave away FP for ToT
MK (Day 2): Peter Pan, Splash, Haunted Mansion, Thunder Mtn, Tom Sawyer Island, Splash Mtn (FP), Pirates, left at 12:30
AK (Day 2)- not EMH, 9 am: Primeval Whirl/Fast pass runner to Everest, meet and ride Dino, Lion King 10am , Nemo 11:15 (walk in), had to skip Everest FP line- too busy, African Walking trail, Everest FP, Dino, eat at Flame tree, left at 2:30
 


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