Just got back tonight from Disney

[drumflower]

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Glad you had a good time, hope you feel better soon.

It is funny that I went to grocery to buy stuff for homemade chicken noodle soup for my kids who are sick. Well by the time I battled those lines, now I feel sick! I think we will be living on that chicken soup for several days. When we went to Kona Cafe, they have it on the appetizer menu, so my son ordered that for his meal. He loved it. It was the only thing he could eat with his sore throat. The waiter even brought him some m&m's to feel better and he didn't want them. It is times like this, I wish we were at home so I could take care of my kids. It is hard to do in a hotel room! By the way, there were tons of sick people all over Disney last week! The gift shop lady said they were having a hard time keeping there cough drops and cold medicine on the shelf!

 

[3 Mouseketeers]

We were in Disney from Feb 1-10 and starting on Superbowl Sunday the parks really filled up. We also were at AK that day and it actually was a ZOO and Disney says its Nahtazu.
Anyways, it was busier this year at this time because Mardi Gras fell alot earlier than it usually does. Since it took place during "value" season this made it alot more affordable for families to come to Disney.
Add in all the dance teams, cheerleaders, and bandteams and you've got a full house @ Disney.

 

[4mykids]

We were there from Feb 5-12. Busy! I have never waited in line more than 10 minutes for Great Movie Ride or Pirates. Rode Pirates two different days and had to wait over 30 minutes each time. Has this become more popular since the movie?

We never had a problem with EMH wristbands. Walked right up at MGM. At Epcot, we stood in line for a couple of minutes (World Showcase Plaza). Same at MK (Riverboat entrance).

EMH parks seemed to be more crowded.

Did not see any cheerleaders until Feb 11. We were at Epcot and they were there in droves.

Were able to walk onto Splash Mountain two times in a row on Friday due to cold weather. That was great!

At MK on EMH night, we rode Pooh, Peter Pan, Tea Cups, and Philharmagic in a very short period. Actually rode everything that night except Aladdin (broke down).

When did Dumbo open? It was closed each time we were there for refurb.

 

[drumflower]

When did Dumbo open? It was closed each time we were there for refurb.

I don't know when it first opened but it was open on Friday the 11th. But it broke down after we waited in line for over 1 1/2 hours. They gave us a fastpass to use on any ride. I encounted the most rude woman that I have ever met! She was there with her Dh and young kid. Well the kid did a really stinky #2 in his pants . Everyone was dying from the smell! Somebody said something that her husband could save her spot while she went to change him in the restrooms right accross from Dumbo. Well she said I don't think it is my kid you are smelling! So we all waited in the stink for over 45 minutes to have the ride break down right when we got up to the front. This lady was yelling at the CM's and other guests. My kids were scared of her. I used to have a daycare and leaving that smelly stuff that long in the diaper can really give the kids a sore behind. It wasn't a normal bad smelling diaper but a rancid smelling one! ( us parents know what I mean! lol)

 

[SusanDK]

I keep reading mention of the wristbands for EMH. Is this related only to access to the rides/attractions that are open for EMH, or is this for anyone wishing to stay in the park?

I'm just wondering if it is really necessary to stand in the queue to get a wristband if all one wants to do is walk through the park, enjoy the street entertainment and surroundings, or get a bite to eat.

Sometimes we are content just to roam around later in the evening after the crowds have thinned and soak up the atmosphere.

Susan

 

[snappy]

Extra Magic Hours allows Disney resort guests to enter the parks one hour early on certain days in certain parks or remain in the parks three hours after regular park closing on certain days in certain parks. I received a EMH schedule when I checked in to Old key West. The schedule listed the attractions that were open for morning EMG vs evening EMH. You have to show your resort card to enter early and to receive the wristband for the evening hours.

The CMS at the rides are supposed to check your wristband before letting you on a ride after regular park closing time. Most of the CMs I saw were doing this the nights we attended EMH.

One thing to be aware of, not all rides are open for EMH. All of Adventureland and Frontierland was closed until regular park opening when we went. Only five riders in Fantasyland and three in Tomorrowland were open in the am.
I believe more are open in the evening. In MGM, only TOT, rockn rollercoaster and the Muppets were open in the evening. The lines were long because so few attractions were open and Fantasmic filled up early.

 

[buzzgirls&dad]

Just back from the world. Could not believe the crowds. Last year we went at the same time and crowds were light. Feb. 11 and 12 were really bad. We overheard some security guards saying " were are all these people comming from." On friday we had PS at Le Cellier they were turning away people saying they were so booked they could not seat anyone else all night and this was at 6:00pm. We had lots of variations in weather. Swimming one day frost warning the next. DD was picked for lion king show and DH made it in the hot seat at millionaire. All in all we had a magical time.

 

[eyeoretoo]

We were there Feb 1st thru 7th. Tues to Thrus no waits at all I think space said 15 minutes - all we did was that long walk and then had to wait for 3 cars. Rode it twice like that. By Friday you could see the park attendance increase.

Did Animal kingdon on Sat. Fast pass for Safari was 1:10 wait was 45 min. So got a fast pass and did it twice.

Sun went to MGM - Was crowded but not overly. almost full show for Indy but still some room left. It really depended on timing. RNR had a wait time of 15 minutes then Beauty and Beast show got out - wait time increased to 1hr.

Still enjoyed our time.

 

[WorldlyWise]

I hate to say it, but I too saw how dirty the park seemed to be. Now maybe it was because I was waiting in line so long that I noticed more but even the rides were dirty. On the Winnie the Pooh ride, you could see dust everywhere! There was gum all over the sidewalks and things just didn't seem as clean as before. Now I am going to get on my flame proof suit, lol . We visited Universal Studios for 2 days and it was clean everywhere and everything looked new. I didn't have to wait in line for anything since we stayed on site and we walked onto all the rides. The crowds were there too but we didn' t wait in line much at all. I still will always love Disney but my family really had a lot of fun at Universal Studios even when the temps were in the 50's!

That's because Eisner hasn't squeezed the blood out of Universal! Something has to give!

 

[kfeuer]

We were there 2/5-2/12 and I was very surprised by how busy it was. Our previous trips have all been in either September or early December, and we usually haven't had to wait longer then 15 minutes for anything. Not true this trip. We ended up leaving MGM after only doing 3 things because it was so crowded (and there wasn't anything left we cared enough about to wait 30-45 minutes for it). We used Fastpass alot and still had a great time, I just wish it had been less crowded.

 

[Grand2me]

I think the reason that it was so busy is because alot of folks down South had time off for Mardi Gras. Last week was pretty much a wash for work and school last week. If I could have gone to Disney, I sure would have!

 

[SusanDK]

Extra Magic Hours allows Disney resort guests to enter the parks one hour early on certain days in certain parks or remain in the parks three hours after regular park closing on certain days in certain parks. I received a EMH schedule when I checked in to Old key West. The schedule listed the attractions that were open for morning EMG vs evening EMH. You have to show your resort card to enter early and to receive the wristband for the evening hours.

The CMS at the rides are supposed to check your wristband before letting you on a ride after regular park closing time. Most of the CMs I saw were doing this the nights we attended EMH.

Hi snappy,

Yes, I know what EMH is and how it works. My question was related to whether I had to wait in a queue for a wristband for the evening EMH if I didn't intend to go on any rides. Others posted that the queues were sometimes very long just to get the wristband.

We will be staying onsite during our next trip, so if we stay in the park after the normal closing hours, to enjoy EMH, but don't intend to go on rides, do we still need to get a wristband? Or can we stroll around enjoying the parks, street entertainment, food, etc. without worrying about queuing for the wristband?

You mentioned Fantasmic being full on EMH night. Were there two showings of Fantasmic, one during general public hours and one during EMH, or was it only one showing? And if only one, was it during the normal opening hours or EMH hours?

Susan

 

[3Mousketeers]

Just back from 2/9-2/13 trip. Agree with all the posters that crowds were crazy. Definitely not b/c of the cheerleaders. These were families. It was as crowded as our April vacation week trip last year. Still, with planning & fastpasses never waited more than 20 min at most for a ride. Guess we got lucky with EMH night at MK. We found a CM giving them out at something called the Seven Dwarfs Grove (or something like that) with no line. I wouldn't think you need one if you're not going on rides b/c they are only checked as you board a ride, not as you're just wandering around the park. Was suprised by the number of breakdowns - space mountain, test track, dumbo, pirates ... Still had a good time but just not what we were expecting this trip.