Labor Day Visit: FP changes, Crowd Observations, the Lilly Belle and more!

[ArchOwl]

Just back from a long weekend at the DLR! This trip was different than many of my other trips as DH and I tend to go commando in the parks and stuff as many rides as we can. Well, I had some medical issues that made a slower pace mandatory and it actually made our trip a lot of fun! We slowed down and instead of riding Star Tours 5 times a day (lol), we watched a lot of shows and entertainment offerings. We had an amazing trip!

Crowds

It was very interesting to watch the difference in crowds over the weekend. We arrived on Friday and were in the parks in the late afternoon. Our goal this day was to get a FP for WOC, have a nice dinner and perhaps get on a few rides. All APs were unblocked, but it didn't seem too bad. I would put the crowd level at about 7 out of 10, meaning a longer wait for E Tickets, but Pirates, Little Mermaid, etc. were all 5-10 minute waits.

Saturday was the least busy day, it also felt like about a 7. Star Tours FPs were available until mid afternoon and stand by on Star Tours was a steady 50 minutes throughout the day. Walkways through Adventureland and Tomorrowland got congested especially during the middle of the day, but not as bad as when I was there in July.

Sunday began to get busier, felt like an 8. Wait times began creeping up slowly, building to hour plus waits for Space and Star Tours by late afternoon. There were a lot of runners out later that night, you could tell by their medals. Was there a Twilight ticket that day? Things were getting VERY tight that night in Adventureland/NOS.

Monday all APs were unblocked and it was a holiday. WOWZERS! The parks were hopping by morning. Star Tours shot up to a 90 minute wait early on, with FPs going like hotcakes! Little Mermaid was a 45 minute wait an hour after opening! By the time we left in the afternoon, it was beginning to feel like a 9 crowd-wise.

Fastpasses
Fastpass strategy changed a bit because we weren't going commando, but still best to collect in the morning! Verified that BTMRR FP is now disconnected from the system. As you can see in the photo in the very bottom right hand corner, the time the FP was obtained. These two were obtained 4 minutes apart:


This will mainly be helpful during busy seasons when it is nice to have a BTMRR FP. During low season, the FP machines aren't normally turned on. But it will come in handy when wait times for BTMRR are above 30 minutes or so like they were on Labor Day. The FPs are also usually available with a quick return time, giving you time to ride POC or Jungle Cruise and return to the FP line.

Roger Rabbit
I think someone else may have mentioned this, but the FP return for Roger Rabbit has changed. The FP is still disconnected. There used to be a FP return line that skipped the queue entirely and a standby line that went through the queue. Now it is like Indy where they hold the standby line outside the ride and the FP return skips the outside line and walks quickly through the queue. So both are now going through the entire queue. Not sure if this is a permanent change, or if it was done because of a busy weekend. At any rate, make sure you read the sign unlike myself who went waltzing up where the FP return line used to be, only to then be utterly confused.

Star Tours
I wish there was a better system for ST FP return! Does anyone else think the entrance to that ride is just a disaster? I feel sorry for the CM who is out in front trying to coordinate this mess. I find it very curious that they don't have a better system for this. Almost every other E Ticket has a clearly marked line for FP return except ST. You have to navigate around a crowd of people at the entrance to the ride and find someone to let you in. So weird! What am I missing here?

World of Color
Saw WOC again this trip after seeing it during a trip in July. Wasn't able to get a WOC FP until early evening (long story) and it was giving out Blue for 10:15pm show. So you can see that Friday night was not that bad crowd wise. In July I was also in Blue and put in the extra time to see it from a railing near the very front. This time I saw it from the Blue Handicapped section (thank you Disney for the benches!). I managed to get a spot one section behind the fire hydrant area. This was such an expansive view of the show, so different from being down on the rail. It is hard to say which I prefer. When down near the rail, you feel like you are in the show. But you do miss how encompassing the show is and many of the effects on the sides. From the back, I saw the entire effect of all the lights and water screens. It is like watching two different shows! Either way, my fave show in all of the Resort!

On Friday night, the crowds were not bad at all. The fire hydrant spot was available until right before the show. I don't know if that is always the case, but if you can't put in the time to see the show up close, it wouldn't hurt to grab a blue FP and do a walk-by right before the show to see if you could snag a spot.

On a Handicapped section note, I did not return for the 10:15pm show until 9:45 and was able to snag a seat on a bench. I do not necessarily recommend this approach as the section began to get full about 20 minutes before the show. I have no idea if all the people sitting down needed to or not. CMs were not policing the use of benches by the holder of the GAC only. DH stood behind me until the show started, when we were able to squeeze him on the bench due to a last minute departure of a family that had been sitting there.

Surveys
By the end of the trip, DH and I were laughing when ever we saw the folks in the red shirts with the tablet computers, because we knew we were going to get approached. Overall, we were approached 5 times to fill out a survey. Twice just to get an email for a followup survey (which I already received one of), once at the exit to Disneyland to go in the building next to where you check in for tours for a 15-20 minute survey about food and beverage, and once at the exit of Star Tours. We were approached twice about the food and beverage survey by the same person, who quickly remembered us.

Sadly, we were not asked to do any of the "good" surveys for gift cards or anything cool like that. Oh well! We did get these stickers:

Does anyone else get asked all the time? This time seemed a little excessive, but I have probably been approached at least once on every trip this year.

Lilly Belle
Was able to ride the Lilly Belle this trip after many other less successful attempts. My advice would be to go to the Main Street Station as soon as you can and ask if they have availability. It was fun to circle the park in the Lily Belle and listen to our CM talk about the development of the Railroad and the Lily Belle. He obviously loved the Railroad very much and had been to WDW and DL Paris and could talk about the differences.

Some pics from my phone (hopefully DH has some good ones on our real camera):

[/IMG]

We also watched the Dapper Dans, Disneyland Band, Mariachi Divas, and others while in the parks this time. Such quality entertainment that we both really enjoyed. Even just sitting over a late breakfast at the River Belle was enjoyable, soaking in the Disney magic. Maybe we will slow down even when I am back to full health. Maybe...

 

[MyYearWithTheMouse]

I've found this year (I'm trying to do everything there is to do at Disneyland in a year, link in my sig) that I have missed SO MUCH of DL by just rushing through from ride to ride. I had no idea there was so much roving entertainment and how enjoyable it is to just look at all of Disneyland's fabulous details. The rides are awesome, but Disneyland is much more than just rides, and I would encourage anyone (particularly return visitors) to slow down and enjoy it a bit, especially on the most crowded days when you would otherwise spend a lot of time in line for a ride you've already ridden.

 

[HydroGuy]

World of Color
Saw WOC again this trip after seeing it during a trip in July. Wasn't able to get a WOC FP until early evening (long story) and it was giving out Blue for 10:15pm show. So you can see that Friday night was not that bad crowd wise. In July I was also in Blue and put in the extra time to see it from a railing near the very front. This time I saw it from the Blue Handicapped section (thank you Disney for the benches!). I managed to get a spot one section behind the fire hydrant area. This was such an expansive view of the show, so different from being down on the rail. It is hard to say which I prefer. When down near the rail, you feel like you are in the show. But you do miss how encompassing the show is and many of the effects on the sides. From the back, I saw the entire effect of all the lights and water screens. It is like watching two different shows! Either way, my fave show in all of the Resort!

I commented on this last year and it is just so true! I prefer being up closer and feeling more "in" the show but the view from further back lets you take the whole show in much better.

Your report here was so good! Especially when I am at Disney parks with my kids there is such a push to get on rides. My kids will slow down for a street show - no problem - we just do not go looking for those as much.

To my mind your post really means everyone would benefit from one additional day on their trips where they focus on things other than rides.

 

[Saylan]

I was there around the same time (Half marathoner here, and yes I totally wore my C-2-C medal around). I believe there was twilight ticket option made available at an additional cost. I know we didn't go for it as my impression was, it wasn't much of a deal if a deal at all. I know DBF and I found the parks much more crowded that day than the rest but it's good form to walk for at least an hour in the afternoon after a race to avoid injury so many may have been taking the same approach. ART shuttles were a nightmare though, after the race.

I think it would be important to note too that Saturday may have been the lightest because racers had to rest up and some may have been there just for the 5K which took place early Saturday morning. So 15000 racers went to bed early and probably took it easy in the parks on Saturday while just under 4500 5K racers were done with their race and relaxing or heading home. Just guesses all around on that though.

 

[Potterswife]

Thanks for the recap! Someday we hope to get on the Lily Belle, we usually only score rides in the caboose...which is still cool, I want to get my hands on one if those tickets!!

 

[DisneyIsMagical]

Lilly Belle
Was able to ride the Lilly Belle this trip after many other less successful attempts. My advice would be to go to the Main Street Station as soon as you can and ask if they have availability. It was fun to circle the park in the Lily Belle and listen to our CM talk about the development of the Railroad and the Lily Belle. He obviously loved the Railroad very much and had been to WDW and DL Paris and could talk about the differences.

In order to ride the Lilly Belle, we should just ask one of the conductors at the Main Street station?

 

[Kittyskyfish]

I've found this year (I'm trying to do everything there is to do at Disneyland in a year, link in my sig) that I have missed SO MUCH of DL by just rushing through from ride to ride. I had no idea there was so much roving entertainment and how enjoyable it is to just look at all of Disneyland's fabulous details. The rides are awesome, but Disneyland is much more than just rides, and I would encourage anyone (particularly return visitors) to slow down and enjoy it a bit, especially on the most crowded days when you would otherwise spend a lot of time in line for a ride you've already ridden.

Yes YES YES!! Disneyland is, in itself, a magical place to be. As an example, we love arriving early in the morning to have breakfast outside at the River Belle Terrace. The river and "lands" are bathed in soft, golden light and nothing is obscured by crowds. Watching the park come alive is one of our favorite traditions.

 

[ArchOwl]

I've found this year (I'm trying to do everything there is to do at Disneyland in a year, link in my sig) that I have missed SO MUCH of DL by just rushing through from ride to ride. I had no idea there was so much roving entertainment and how enjoyable it is to just look at all of Disneyland's fabulous details. The rides are awesome, but Disneyland is much more than just rides, and I would encourage anyone (particularly return visitors) to slow down and enjoy it a bit, especially on the most crowded days when you would otherwise spend a lot of time in line for a ride you've already ridden.

Very true! I am glad I slowed down and plan to try and do so next time as well! I checked out your blog and it is very cute and what a cool idea! I look forward to reading your updates.

I commented on this last year and it is just so true! I prefer being up closer and feeling more "in" the show but the view from further back lets you take the whole show in much better.

Your report here was so good! Especially when I am at Disney parks with my kids there is such a push to get on rides. My kids will slow down for a street show - no problem - we just do not go looking for those as much.

To my mind your post really means everyone would benefit from one additional day on their trips where they focus on things other than rides.

Thanks! It was a good reminder that DL is more than rides. And I don't have quite as bad of a Disney hangover today!

And yep, I think you are right about WOC, different show depending on where you see it.

I was there around the same time (Half marathoner here, and yes I totally wore my C-2-C medal around). I believe there was twilight ticket option made available at an additional cost. I know we didn't go for it as my impression was, it wasn't much of a deal if a deal at all. I know DBF and I found the parks much more crowded that day than the rest but it's good form to walk for at least an hour in the afternoon after a race to avoid injury so many may have been taking the same approach. ART shuttles were a nightmare though, after the race.

I think it would be important to note too that Saturday may have been the lightest because racers had to rest up and some may have been there just for the 5K which took place early Saturday morning. So 15000 racers went to bed early and probably took it easy in the parks on Saturday while just under 4500 5K racers were done with their race and relaxing or heading home. Just guesses all around on that though.

Cool, thanks for the info. The medals looked awesome!

In order to ride the Lilly Belle, we should just ask one of the conductors at the Main Street station?

Yes, there is usually a CM inside the Main Street station. There is a white board inside a closet with the reservations written down for the Lilly Belle. If she is running and they have space, they will write down your party size and name. Then they give you a return time. Have fun and good luck!

 

[Vexorg]

I was in the parks Sunday to today and I will comment more when I am back to my desktop PC, but Roger Rabbit was back to the "normal" loading method of the separate FP queue today. Didn't ride it on Sunday or Monday to compare though. No FPs on BTMRR today (relatively low crowds, but picked up later on) so I can't confirm that one.

Oh, and Star Tours was down for a good portion of Sunday too, which probably messed up some FP strategies. Got a good collection of FPs early on for later in the day though.

 

[skiingfast]

I enojoyed seeing the pictures of the train tickets. Did you retain both as souvenires? Did they write a return time on one of those?

 

[ArchOwl]

I was in the parks Sunday to today and I will comment more when I am back to my desktop PC, but Roger Rabbit was back to the "normal" loading method of the separate FP queue today. Didn't ride it on Sunday or Monday to compare though. No FPs on BTMRR today (relatively low crowds, but picked up later on) so I can't confirm that one.

Oh, and Star Tours was down for a good portion of Sunday too, which probably messed up some FP strategies. Got a good collection of FPs early on for later in the day though.

Interesting about Roger Rabbit. I know they were still doing the different loading procedure as of Sunday, but I didn't check on Monday. I would imagine if they were doing it because of crowds, that they would continue to do so on Monday because it was very busy on Monday. It does take more CMs outside the queue, though. So they may not do it during slow times.

And yes, ST down on Sunday probably did mess up a lot of folks. I know it was down for awhile.

I enojoyed seeing the pictures of the train tickets. Did you retain both as souvenires? Did they write a return time on one of those?

Sorry, should have labeled the pictures. That was the same ticket, the first picture is the front of the ticket and the second picture is of the back of the ticket. We weren't given them until we were on the Lilly Belle, so they didn't write anything on them. We were allowed to keep them, which is a nice touch. They were supposed to punch them, but I guess they lost the punch! Ooopsie.

We also got to sign the guest book, which was neat. A cool thing for a Disney nerd like me!

 

[Vexorg]

OK, a few additional thoughts on this weekend from my perspective:

-By far, the best time for getting things done was Sunday morning. I had a basic plan in mind, but nothing too formal, and I made it clear to the friends I was with that I would accomodate any particular things they wanted to do. That said, on Sunday morning we managed to ride and get Fastpasses for Space Mountain, BTMRR and Indiana Jones in short order, and got FPs for Splash Mountain, Soarin' and California Screamin' relatively quickly to use later on in the day when the crowds were higher. California Screamin' also had some downtime on Sunday, and seemed to have some problematic behavior on Monday as well although I don't think it ever went completely down. Monday was a bit trickier, but we were able to get Star Tours and Space Mountain FPs pretty quick.

-I treated the group to Blue Bayou for lunch yesterday, when PotC wasn't running. We were there early, and when we got there none of the effects were on, so it was surprisingly quiet. Eventually they did turn on the effects for the bayou area, but even then without the ride going it was a lot more quiet than I'd expect Blue Bayou to be on a normal day.

-The other 3 members of the group I was with all had 3 day Parkhoppers with a Magic Morning on them, but since I bought an Premium AP before this trip I didn't have it. On Tuesday when the group used their MMs, I was expecting to need to wait outside until the 10am park opening, but the CM at the front gate managed to "sneak" me in with the others. This was nice, although I would never have tried doing that under any other circumstances (then again, if I'm traveling solo I'm not all that big on making it to rope drop anyway.) Your mileage, of course, may vary.

-On Monday afternoon and most of Tuesday it was very hot outside (at least by my Pacific Northwest standards) which made it tough to spend too much time waiting in lines. Fortunately most of the lines on Tuesday were reasonably short, and although we were time constrained by having to catch a flight. I suspect that general fatigue and sore feet probably limited the amount of stuff accomplished on these days as well.

-Saw World of Color for the first time on Monday. We got there around 11 or so and got yellow tickets for the 9:00 showing (which wasn't all that crowded, all things considered.) I have to say that it might just be the coolest thing I've ever seen in a Disney park. Our plan was to parkhop back to Disneyland to close out the park over there, but thanks to a bit of serendipity, at the end of WoC we hopped on The Little Mermaid for a quick ride with little waiting, and got out just in time for most of the departing crowd to have dispersed and to catch the tail end of the Disneyland fireworks, which were surprisingly visible from that area. This allowed enough time to leave DCA, get back into Disneyland after most of the crowds dispersed, and get over to Splash Mountain (I probably would have passed on this if I was on my own, but I got dragged along mostly to participate in the silly ride photo they had apparently been planning all day.) And when this was done, we got out just in time to catch most of the late Fantasmic showing. I hadn't planned on any of that, but it worked out surprisingly well.

I may do a somewhat more comprehensive trip report on this one later, but I think this might have been one of the best Disney trips I've been on. Disney was, as usual, a lot of fun, but it was the friends I was with that really made the trip.

 

[skiingfast]

Sorry, should have labeled the pictures. That was the same ticket, the first picture is the front of the ticket and the second picture is of the back of the ticket. We weren't given them until we were on the Lilly Belle, so they didn't write anything on them. We were allowed to keep them, which is a nice touch. They were supposed to punch them, but I guess they lost the punch! Ooopsie.

We also got to sign the guest book, which was neat. A cool thing for a Disney nerd like me!

Should of asked before. Did you wait and come back later, or just wait for the train to arrive while sitting in the station?

 

[HydroGuy]

OK, a few additional thoughts on this weekend from my perspective:

-By far, the best time for getting things done was Sunday morning. I had a basic plan in mind, but nothing too formal, and I made it clear to the friends I was with that I would accomodate any particular things they wanted to do. That said, on Sunday morning we managed to ride and get Fastpasses for Space Mountain, BTMRR and Indiana Jones in short order, and got FPs for Splash Mountain, Soarin' and California Screamin' relatively quickly to use later on in the day when the crowds were higher. California Screamin' also had some downtime on Sunday, and seemed to have some problematic behavior on Monday as well although I don't think it ever went completely down. Monday was a bit trickier, but we were able to get Star Tours and Space Mountain FPs pretty quick.

-I treated the group to Blue Bayou for lunch yesterday, when PotC wasn't running. We were there early, and when we got there none of the effects were on, so it was surprisingly quiet. Eventually they did turn on the effects for the bayou area, but even then without the ride going it was a lot more quiet than I'd expect Blue Bayou to be on a normal day.

-The other 3 members of the group I was with all had 3 day Parkhoppers with a Magic Morning on them, but since I bought an Premium AP before this trip I didn't have it. On Tuesday when the group used their MMs, I was expecting to need to wait outside until the 10am park opening, but the CM at the front gate managed to "sneak" me in with the others. This was nice, although I would never have tried doing that under any other circumstances (then again, if I'm traveling solo I'm not all that big on making it to rope drop anyway.) Your mileage, of course, may vary.

-On Monday afternoon and most of Tuesday it was very hot outside (at least by my Pacific Northwest standards) which made it tough to spend too much time waiting in lines. Fortunately most of the lines on Tuesday were reasonably short, and although we were time constrained by having to catch a flight. I suspect that general fatigue and sore feet probably limited the amount of stuff accomplished on these days as well.

-Saw World of Color for the first time on Monday. We got there around 11 or so and got yellow tickets for the 9:00 showing (which wasn't all that crowded, all things considered.) I have to say that it might just be the coolest thing I've ever seen in a Disney park. Our plan was to parkhop back to Disneyland to close out the park over there, but thanks to a bit of serendipity, at the end of WoC we hopped on The Little Mermaid for a quick ride with little waiting, and got out just in time for most of the departing crowd to have dispersed and to catch the tail end of the Disneyland fireworks, which were surprisingly visible from that area. This allowed enough time to leave DCA, get back into Disneyland after most of the crowds dispersed, and get over to Splash Mountain (I probably would have passed on this if I was on my own, but I got dragged along mostly to participate in the silly ride photo they had apparently been planning all day.) And when this was done, we got out just in time to catch most of the late Fantasmic showing. I hadn't planned on any of that, but it worked out surprisingly well.

I may do a somewhat more comprehensive trip report on this one later, but I think this might have been one of the best Disney trips I've been on. Disney was, as usual, a lot of fun, but it was the friends I was with that really made the trip.

Thanks. I find it so interesting how WOC seems to find such a wide divergence of opinion. Yours was similar to mine. But so many others are unimpressed.

 

[Vexorg]

Oh, and one more thing I should note: On Tuesday, I noticed that construction walls sprang up overnight in a section of Tomorrowland in front of the Space Mountain Exit/Starcade/Star Trader area. Nothing is closed as a result of this (traffic exiting Space Mountain is being diverted through Star Trader to get around this,) but there was no indication of what was actually going on here. Any ideas?

 

[ArchOwl]

Should of asked before. Did you wait and come back later, or just wait for the train to arrive while sitting in the station?

On busy days (like when I was there), the CM said the earlier you make a reservation the better. I think we went to the Main Street Station first thing after grabbing a FP and riding a quick ride. Our reservation was for about two hours later when we returned to the station. I noticed on the board that the first reservation wasn't available until 11am (ours was for 11:45). The park opened at 9:00am that day. I know from earlier conversations with the Railroad CMs that they can only have guests in the Lilly Belle at certain times because it pulls a CM out of the regular rotation to ride in the car with guests. So I am thinking that the schedule works around when CMs are available.

So even though the Lilly Belle may be on the train, it doesn't mean it will always be available to guests. Your best bet is to get there early in the day and make a reservation for a later time. We have tried other days and on very busy days the Lilly Belle was completely full an hour after the park opened! We have tried to ride it before when we were guests at Club 33. One of those times she wasn't running and the other she was full. Finally did it!

 

[ArchOwl]

OK, a few additional thoughts on this weekend from my perspective:

-By far, the best time for getting things done was Sunday morning. I had a basic plan in mind, but nothing too formal, and I made it clear to the friends I was with that I would accomodate any particular things they wanted to do. That said, on Sunday morning we managed to ride and get Fastpasses for Space Mountain, BTMRR and Indiana Jones in short order, and got FPs for Splash Mountain, Soarin' and California Screamin' relatively quickly to use later on in the day when the crowds were higher. California Screamin' also had some downtime on Sunday, and seemed to have some problematic behavior on Monday as well although I don't think it ever went completely down. Monday was a bit trickier, but we were able to get Star Tours and Space Mountain FPs pretty quick.

I agree the morning is the best time. I didn't notice too much of a difference between Sunday and Saturday morning, but we got a bit of a late start in the parks on Sunday because we were having breakfast in the park at Minnie and Friends.

-I treated the group to Blue Bayou for lunch yesterday, when PotC wasn't running. We were there early, and when we got there none of the effects were on, so it was surprisingly quiet. Eventually they did turn on the effects for the bayou area, but even then without the ride going it was a lot more quiet than I'd expect Blue Bayou to be on a normal day.

Interesting! I thought BB was supposed to be down while POC was closed?

-The other 3 members of the group I was with all had 3 day Parkhoppers with a Magic Morning on them, but since I bought an Premium AP before this trip I didn't have it. On Tuesday when the group used their MMs, I was expecting to need to wait outside until the 10am park opening, but the CM at the front gate managed to "sneak" me in with the others. This was nice, although I would never have tried doing that under any other circumstances (then again, if I'm traveling solo I'm not all that big on making it to rope drop anyway.) Your mileage, of course, may vary.

Wow, super nice of the CM! Some pixie dust for you!

-On Monday afternoon and most of Tuesday it was very hot outside (at least by my Pacific Northwest standards) which made it tough to spend too much time waiting in lines. Fortunately most of the lines on Tuesday were reasonably short, and although we were time constrained by having to catch a flight. I suspect that general fatigue and sore feet probably limited the amount of stuff accomplished on these days as well.

Agree about the heat. Well actually, it wasn't the heat so much that bothered me, but the humidity. I don't like the muggy feeling at all.

-Saw World of Color for the first time on Monday. We got there around 11 or so and got yellow tickets for the 9:00 showing (which wasn't all that crowded, all things considered.) I have to say that it might just be the coolest thing I've ever seen in a Disney park. Our plan was to parkhop back to Disneyland to close out the park over there, but thanks to a bit of serendipity, at the end of WoC we hopped on The Little Mermaid for a quick ride with little waiting, and got out just in time for most of the departing crowd to have dispersed and to catch the tail end of the Disneyland fireworks, which were surprisingly visible from that area. This allowed enough time to leave DCA, get back into Disneyland after most of the crowds dispersed, and get over to Splash Mountain (I probably would have passed on this if I was on my own, but I got dragged along mostly to participate in the silly ride photo they had apparently been planning all day.) And when this was done, we got out just in time to catch most of the late Fantasmic showing. I hadn't planned on any of that, but it worked out surprisingly well.

First, I totally agree about WOC. I love this show and I am not a big "show person". I can watch it over and over again. I know not everyone agrees, but for me this show is just magical. Secondly, it sounds like you stumbled on a winning plan to catch the entertainment. I wonder what you think of WOC compared to Fantasmic?

I may do a somewhat more comprehensive trip report on this one later, but I think this might have been one of the best Disney trips I've been on. Disney was, as usual, a lot of fun, but it was the friends I was with that really made the trip.

I would love to hear a more detailed report if you have time. And I agree that the company you keep at DL has a lot to do with how much you enjoy yourself.

Thanks. I find it so interesting how WOC seems to find such a wide divergence of opinion. Yours was similar to mine. But so many others are unimpressed.

Totally agree. Still trying to wrap my head around the reason for such a difference of opinion on this show.

Oh, and one more thing I should note: On Tuesday, I noticed that construction walls sprang up overnight in a section of Tomorrowland in front of the Space Mountain Exit/Starcade/Star Trader area. Nothing is closed as a result of this (traffic exiting Space Mountain is being diverted through Star Trader to get around this,) but there was no indication of what was actually going on here. Any ideas?

The only thing I can think of is the Ghost Galaxy overlay. Maybe they were storing stuff behind the walls? Other than that, no idea!

.

 

[ArchOwl]

I forgot to include in my original observations about the craziness that is the rope drop for TSMM on Monday (Labor Day). I have come to the realization that rope drop for TSMM and I just don't get along. Monday was crazy busy and the line after rope drop for TSMM quickly built past Screamin' and up the pier. People were cutting in line and I was soon over it. I think they were trying to get folks in the queue, but for whatever reason it wasn't happening that day. I said forget it and rode Screamin' and when I got off the line was still long! It then rose to 45 minutes about 1/2 hour after park opening. I rode it after lunch and it was 30. So I am basically over trying to figure it out, lol.

I have tried prior to this to do rope drop to TSMM and the ride has been down, so I basically wasted any time up to that point. That's it TSMM and rope drop, we are officially over!

 

[Vexorg]

If I recall correctly from the last major PotC rehab, they list Blue Bayou separately on the closures list from PotC itself if it's. In this case, it sounds like the work being done (some show changes and new animatronics) does not affect anything in the queue/bayou areas, so there's no reason to close Blue Bayou for it.

 

[mom4princesses]

If I recall correctly from the last major PotC rehab, they list Blue Bayou separately on the closures list from PotC itself if it's. In this case, it sounds like the work being done (some show changes and new animatronics) does not affect anything in the queue/bayou areas, so there's no reason to close Blue Bayou for it.

Then they must be doing some work on it because its closed when we will be there, 10/1-10/7. I tried to get PS and the CM informed me of the closure.