Line etiquette

[Canadian Harmony]

I had two instances at my last visit:

We were waiting for Mater who was switching out with Lightnin', and there was NO ONE in the line. So, the lady before me and her kid ducked under the rope. Just as I was about to do it, this other woman her and her kid who had come up from the back (the proper entrance) shot me a vicious glare, so I glared and huffed back and walked alllllll the way around to end up.. right behind her anyway. Seriously - it's a bagillion degrees out and your "shame on you!" look made me go all the way around for no reason. Plus, she wanted Lightnin' but he arrived JUST after her and we wouldn't have cared either way. By that time, the line up was quite long and she would have had to have waited another 15 minutes in the blazing sun. If she'd have let me jump in, she'd have been first in line to see who she wanted.

The fam was waiting in line at the NOC and I ran off to get HM FP. I wasn't sure exactly where it was, but I did find it in about 5 minutes. By the time I got back, they were JUST entering into the restaurant. I slid in with them and didn't get any snarky looks or anything, so that was nice. I felt bad about doing it, but I figured the line up was moving pretty quickly so I didn't mess anyone up.

I think a little courtesy goes a long way - one person or a parent and a kid avoiding the long, twisty rope line. But 12 people? That would have earned a conversation with the CM nearby.

 

[lildreamer101]

What should people do when other people try to cut in front of you?

 

[GatorChris]

What should people do when other people try to cut in front of you?

Duh!!! Talk trash, of course. No, no, no. That's usually what happens at the of a day/week when people are fatigued and the last thin the want is to wait another few seconds in line. And I'll admit I'll sometimes say something snarky just within ear shot but not looking at them to avoid confrontation... if it's more than just one person. But for one person or an adult with a child, I think we've all been there.

I'll often be upset when I say "I'm running for this FP, wait at Pirates for me." And when I get there, my wife's in line. Then I have to be THAT GUY. I honestly hate it. And for what, maybe 1 minute. Not worth it.

 

[jammyjam25]

I think if you're a party of healthy adults/teenagers, there's no excuse for line cutting to "join your party". I think it's rude to have one person hold your party's place while the rest go ride other rides, etc. and then cram their way through the line last second to get on yet another ride. You should join the line together as a group or not at all.

That to me is totally different than parents taking kiddos out for potty breaks or other similar situations. Those aren't "cutting" since they were already in the line with their party.

 

[Terri_Berri]

When I was a kid and would run ahead to get in lines, I couldn't understand why when my Dad FINALLY caught up with me he would make ME wait for him to catch up in line. I had to let everyone else go past me while my slowpoke Dad told me to wait for him. The nerve!!!!!!! But it turned out to be a pretty good lesson and it's always stuck with me on how to behave in lines.

I think, there are legit times when it's necessary to catch up with a lost family member or because kids need random things in line. But this concept of having one person hold a bunch of spots is one of the single most selfish, jerky things that can happen. And the fact that people get away with it is all the more frustrating. One time this nasty girl got mad at me because she was trying to cut ahead of everyone and apparently I was standing too much in her way. I thought she was going to beat me up. She could have too! It was scary

 

[bcla]

We were a party of three, so in the line at Matterhorn my wife and kid got in line and I just went to the front to have a look at about how long the line was. I went back immediately with a report. Nobody seemed to mind, and it was pretty clear what I did. I was only gone about 2 minutes though.

 

[DLRExpert]

If someone in my group has to join I just let the 10 or so people that were behind me go in front and then join the line after. Most people in the back will just think you were waiting for someone to join you and now it is ok.

 

[Baklava]

OMG- I had the EXACT same experience on Storybook. I was in line with my son (2 of us) and there was 1 woman in front of me. Next thing I know she is joined by a dozen people. I could not believe that they had to go ahead of us. I think that was the angriest I ever got. But then they needed 2 people on a boat 3 boats ahead of her and I have to admit to smirking smugly as we walked past her group.....

I'm boggled that they *could* get in front of you. I had some twerpy little thing trying to, "excuse me! Excuse me!" her way past me in that line. I eventually turned to her and said, "I don't know exactly where you think I'm going to go!" She huffed and sulked all the way to the front but that's a tight queue and short of twisting and jamming myself against the rails there wasn't room for her to push past.

 

[Disney Lvr of Old]

I'm boggled that they *could* get in front of you. I had some twerpy little thing trying to, "excuse me! Excuse me!" her way past me in that line. I eventually turned to her and said, "I don't know exactly where you think I'm going to go!" She huffed and sulked all the way to the front but that's a tight queue and short of twisting and jamming myself against the rails there wasn't room for her to push past.

It was just a bunch of people saying excuse me and pushing past us. I moved my 5yo out of the way because they werent budging in moving forward. It was awkward and weird.

I echo and agree with PP mentioning a parent and child or older guests meeting up with their party. That I never have a problem with.

 

[Epek]

I agree with everyone about "cutting" for bathroom/personal issues vs to get to someone holding your place while you were on another ride or whatever.

What really bothers me beyond what's been discussed is that most of the time, cutters barely even say excuse me! They just look for an opening and squeeze by. If they say excuse me, that's all they say! If it were me, I'd be explaining my whole situation, because I feel terribly guilty no matter what the reason. And, I wouldn't want people to think I'm just pushing ahead. I'd be pointing to my family, offering up unused fp's, my firstborn (kidding, but you get my point).

Also, this is a Disney problem. They want everyone to have a magical time, so they let a lot of infractions slide.

 

[Mamato4boys]

This is something I am a bit worried about for our upcoming trip. Our 2 year old is, well, a 2 year old, and I'm worried about him throwing a fit while we are in line. We are working with him on using words instead of fits, but it definitely still happens on occasion. We plan on avoiding any long waits whenever possible, but I am hoping most people would be understanding if one of us left the line with him until he calmed down and then rejoined the rest of the family. I definitely wouldn't want to stay in the line with him acting up and ruin everyone else's experience, but I am scared of nasty looks if we tried to come back.

 

[mpadilla89]

What should people do when other people try to cut in front of you?

totally depends on how many people and what age. If a group of teens tries meeting up with their friends i speak up and say there is a line and make surea cm can hear me. If say mom and child is line and dad and another child come i can be ok as long as they are nice about. maybe. But if i have been in that line and so has my daughter it is not my fault if your kids or friends or family don't like waiting so they can either get a FP use the single rider line or not go on the ride. It really depends on my mood at that moment and everyones attitude. But if i feel its unfair i will let them know.

 

[sherilaine]

CMs won't do anything - they get paid so little why would they bother or care. Disney does not care about how people behave in their parks from the behavior I have seen tolerated. Jerks live among us and they are allowed to buy tickets to the park like anyone else. And for the record, other than a parent joining up with their family cause the little one had to tinkle there is no excuse for cutting in line - be there together or don't get in line!

 

[Agent 86]

I don't know what to do about this.

I was at Disneyland in late May during Grad Nights (although the conduct in question may have been by people other than grads). It was very frustrating to very frequently have people push through lines insisting that their friend / partner / parent / whatever was just ahead of them - only to see them try to continue such behaviour all the way to the front of the line / loading area. On one visit to Haunted Mansion, two younger people kept pushing through the crowd calling out for their clearly non-existent friend. But, in such a large crowd someone is always going to let them through.

I did see one heroic woman at Universal Studios Hollywood. When in line for Indiana Jones, a lone man came barging through insisting that his wife was waiting for him ahead. This wonderful woman in line simply refused to let him pass and the man was too flabbergasted to push past her (the fact that she had a tall, well built boyfriend with her may have helped). Needless to say, there was no-one waiting for that man when we got to the loading zone. And he then stuffed up the loading by getting into the first / front row instead of the row that he was told to go to which meant that one couple had to wait for the next ride vehicle all because of his selfishness.

My husband refuses to cut in line if I wait and refuses to get in line first and to allow me to join him later. So, I do the Fast Pass runs, etc and simply meet him at the entrance to the lines.

 

[nikerbokers]

Once or twice I will go stand in a long line, my husband and our daughter (now we have 2) would go on a ride and then join me. My daughter is 3. Saying that, when she's older than 5, no way am I going to do that. Also, I would never do it for more than 2. A group of a dozen and right as they are at the front? Nope! I would probably walk right in front of them and say "sorry I think you meant to NOT put 12 people in front of me". My husband is more of a passive person than I am though and would probably die of embarrassment lol.

 

[agamble]

This can be an issue sometimes, especially with little kids, many of us have found ourselves in this kind of situation. A couple things to keep in mind while at amusement parks. First, if the line is long (even the FP for RSR ) take your kid to the bathroom right before getting in line. They could still end up having to go if the line is real long, but it helps. Also, carry snacks in your bag so that you aren't sending someone to get snacks for your group while you wait in line, that's only okay while waiting for a show, not a ride. Also, some places have good areas to catch up with your group. Example: at Toy Story there are a few areas that make it so you could meet up with your group without having to walk through a crowd of people. So meet up there, it's okay to let others go ahead of you. Along those lines, some queues are half inside and half outside. If you're split up, meet back up as a group before entering the building. As someone mentioned above those in line can wait in that spot and let others go in front. Example: you have been waiting in line for Star Wars, little one needs to pee, one of you takes little one to the potty. The line continues to move. Now you're outside the entrance to the internal queue. Wait there for your party instead of going inside.

 

[Angie 2016]

When I was at Six Flags Magic Mountain recently, everyone in line was playing some phone game where you guess the movie or actor or something - something like charades. While it wouldn't work for a 2 yo it might for an older kid. For a 2 yo I'd just bring a favorite toy or two for them to play with in line. And we play I spy with my little eye a lot.

But I don't mind if one or two people go ahead to meet their group after they ran to the bathroom or the like.

 

[disneyxica20]

it doesn't bother me if it's just 1 or 2 people catching up to their group (we do this if someone has to use the restroom or something), but if a group of 3 turns into a group of 10, i'd be annoyed. when we went with a larger group back in may, i told my husband (we were the ones sort of in charge of planning everything) that we needed make sure to get in lines together. and if i am left in charge of saving a spot and i reach a point in the queue that is very narrow, i step aside and let others go ahead of me.
it bothers me more when we're waiting for a show and 20 minutes before it starts, when the seating area is packed, a family of 6 expects everyone else to accommodate them. we witnessed a really ugly disagreement while we were waiting for fantasmic. like, dude, if you and your family wanted a good seat you should have been here two hours ago with the rest of us.

 

[Turk February]

I honestly can't imagine letting a group of teens/adults pass by me. It's rude, and if you're going to be rude to me and the people around me, I'll be rude to you and block you from getting by. It won't ruin my day. If Disney isn't going to do anything about it, then people need to step up. Otherwise it'll just increase as people tell their friends how easy it is and how no one will say anything to you.

 

[krispin41]

I had an experience on my last trip...I was solo, and in getting to the lines at security in DD. I was maneuvering in and around trying to find the shortest queue and did. I was standing texting my friend to find out where to meet. I was standing in one spot for about 5 minutes, when the girl next to me, part of a larger group, turned to me and said "The line is back there." Um....there are multiple lines there. I wound up just moving over to another line because I didn't want to deal with her BS.