Lines/Wait Times: 11/1-11/9/03 (Jersey Week)

[JohnNJ]

I'd like some feedback on the wait times for attractions during Jersey Week this year - November 1 through November 9. I'm thinking of going during Jersey Week next year which will run from October 30 through November 7.

I'm concerned that the crowds will be heavy because of Halloween, Jersey Week, Food & Wine Festival and possibly Soap Stars. Crowded, to me, means wait times of 30 minutes or more.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

Thanks, John

 

[manchurianbrownbear]

I think I can help!

We don't get to WDW frequently, so I may not be the best judge of what is "crowded", but I can give you an idea how long we had to wait in lines at the parks.

Saturday, 11/1 - Epcot

We arrived mid-morning (had to sleep in a little after being out late at MNSSHP!) and had to wait around a half hour to get into the park (bag check line and the turnstile line).

We used FP at TT and M:S and didn't wait in line more than five or ten minutes for anything.

World Showcase was crowded (IMO). We had hoped to sample several different foods, but the lines were almost all 15-30 minute waits. This was mid-afternoon. The lines weren't as bad closer to closing.

We lined up about an hour early to get a good spot for Illuminations and I think we had waited much longer, we wouldn't have had a very good spot.

Monday, 11/3 - MGM/Disney Studios

Crowds were pretty manageable. We used FP at TOT, RRC and Star Tours and didn't wait more than 10 minutes for anything. We rode RRC early in the day and I noticed that when we got off the ride the wait time was up to 25 minutes, but you could solve that with a FP.

We got to Fantasmic an hour early and had great seats.

Tuesday, 11/4 - Animal Kingdom

AK seemed crowded when we were walking around the park, but wait times were not bad at all. We rode Kilimanjaro Safari first thing and waited about 15 minutes. We rode Kali River Rapids twice w/o FP and waited abuot 15 minutes both times. Walked right into TTBAB. We lined up about 20 minutes early to get a decent seat for Festival of the Lion King. We used FP on Dinosaur and there were really no lines on Primeval Whirl or Triceratops Spin.

Wednesday, 11/5 - Magic Kingdom

We got to Fantasyland right away and rode most rides with five or ten minute wait. However, but the time we were finishing up Fantasyland, probably between 10:30 and 11:00, the wait times were creeping toward 30 minutes on many rides!

We walked onto Haunted Mansion before lunch. Used FP at Splash Mountain after lunch (the wait was 25 minutes w/o FP). Walked into HOP. No wait on Aladdin's Magic Carpet Ride. Five minute wait on POC. Mid afternoon it started raining pretty hard and the park cleared out, so we did Tomorrowland with pretty short lines. We used FP at Space Mountain and Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin, but the line weren't REAL long even without FP.

Hope that helps!

 

[bigsis1970]

Hi JohnNJ .. I will be there the same time as you next year and i have been reading the trip report boards and it looks like it wasn't too bad at all this year .. My fingers are crossed that it won't be next year either ! We went in Mid/Later June this year and the crowds were larger then we are used to ( lots of 45- or more waits !! ) and it was soooo hot that we are looking to going back in the fall when hopefully the weather and crowds are manageable ... We will have lime green on .. hope to meet up with you .. Michelle

 

[sue1013]

I was there Nov 1-8. Usually I go beginning of December or Feb so am not used to lines at all. There were a lot of people in the parks but wait times for rides were very short. I won't wait over 10 min. Got fast passes for any wait over that and only needed a couple Test Track, Tower of Terror, Rockin Roller Coaster. I prepared for the worse and was pleasantly surprised.

 

[kc26]

I was at wdw during Jersey week this year and last year. I was really nervous about the crowds this year b/c of the fairytale package and it seemed every where i went someone was talking about going to disney during that week. But actually the crowds were not bad at all. Yes there were some waits but I don't feel like it was more than 20-30 minutes. We rode splash mountain 3 times in a row and didn't even have to get out of the boat.
Last year the crowds were larger i felt. We waited longer for the rides and used more fastpasses. This year the only fast pass we used was for TT. I guess it depends. Have a fun time i'll probably be there again the same time next year!!

 

[0506]

We were there 10/30 until 11/8. The only time I would say it was really crowded was Halloween night. The rides weren't more than 15 mint. that night. Everyone just seemed to be in the streets enjoying each other costumes and the atmosphere. Try not to miss it. Other than that the rest of the week was 5 to 10 mint. Have a great time!!

 

[disneysteve]

We did NJ week last year and this year. The crowds are truly not that bad. We did all 4 Disney parks during the week. MK seemed crowded on 11/3 but the ride wait times were minor. Longest waits were for Space Mtn and Buzz - we did both with Fastpass. Otherwise, we pretty much walked onto everything or waited less than 10 minutes.

Epcot on 11/4 also no problem. We did Mission:Space twice with no wait. Test Track had a 90 minute wait at one point, but I think it was because the ride had been down so there was a backlog of people waiting to ride. We did Fast pass for that also. World Showcase was no problem. I didn't see any lines at any Food and Wine stands and we only waited a couple of minutes for Maelstrom and not at all for Visions of China.

MGM on 11/5 was pretty quiet. I don't think we waited for anything. We got Fastpasses for Rockin Roller Coaster but really didn't need them as the standby line only had a 5 minute wait. We rode it a 2nd time with less than 5 minute wait. ToT did have a 20-30 minute wait by early afternoon.

AK on 11/6 was not bad either. We did the Safari first and waited about 5 minutes. Same for Dinosaur and Primeval Whirl.

All in all, no major waits that you couldn't avoid with Fastpass. I'm sure we'll be there again next year for NJ week. Don't let the supposed crowds scare you off.

Steve

 

[manchurianbrownbear]

I'd like to thank the residents of the state of NJ for sharing WDW with me 10/31-11/5!

 

[disneysteve]

Originally posted by manchurianbrownbear
I'd like to thank the residents of the state of NJ for sharing WDW with me 10/31-11/5!

No problem!

Happy Thanksgiving.

Steve