May the Force be with who? A May 2013 PTR

[kwitcherkicken99]

Fantastic shots, Kwitch.

Thanks!

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

My apologies for the extended delay.

School started and last I knew it was August 9th...

Regardless...

Greetings from South Dakota!!

and who's getting excited for the re-opening of Test Track???

<-------- this girl is!

DH told me tonight that we'd have to cancel our trip if it wasn't opened yet!

Here are some of the latest details!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Welcome back!

 

[danicaca]

subbing - mostly for all of the SWW info! You have saved me - I was resigned to the fact that I was going to have to make SW shirts for my girls because I could not find any that were not for boys. DD8 really wants a shirt with Leia - and thanks to you I found Her Universe - awesome!!!!! Can you tell I am a little excited?? Anyway, we are going end of May and plan to dedicate one day to just SW. Can't wait to hear more about your planning!
Danica



Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Nutrition Facts For Foods

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

Welcome back!

Thanks!!!

subbing - mostly for all of the SWW info! You have saved me - I was resigned to the fact that I was going to have to make SW shirts for my girls because I could not find any that were not for boys. DD8 really wants a shirt with Leia - and thanks to you I found Her Universe - awesome!!!!! Can you tell I am a little excited?? Anyway, we are going end of May and plan to dedicate one day to just SW. Can't wait to hear more about your planning!
Danica

Glad I could help!

I'm SO picking up a tee or two for us for the trip!

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

It's absolutely killing me that we don't have reservations yet.

I can't handle not knowing dates or our resort yet.

All I'm doing is saving at the moment!

We were watching football earlier and they were playing at WWOS and they did a little plug for the FLE and my kids went NUTS!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Just keep saving, just keep saving.


The rest will take care of itself when the time is right.

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

I didn't think renting DVC would be this stressful!

I'm used to having a resort and dates secured by now!

And very soon, our window for ADRs will open - I'm still on the fence for where we're going to eat. DH is pulling for BoG, but I'd hate to use a TS credit on it when it's not going to be a character meal. I (think) I'd rather pop in for the CS menu to see the inside and save our credits for another meal.

I'm still bent about Cali being closed and the more I think about it, I'm not even sure if I want to go to Narcoossee's anymore and use our credits at places like VN, Teppan Edo... I've never felt this lost in planning before!

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

As more and more of the tidbits concerning FLE are coming out, I'm getting FLIPPIN' EXCITED!!

Watch this video!!!

I can't wait to take DD! DS did lament today that FLE is a whole new "girls" area, but he loves the ladies... so he doesn't mind going there...

 

[Lilfoot93]

Joining in! We are going in May for my sons Make A Wish trip and he is a HUGE Star Wars fan! Maybe I can get some ideas from your planning

We have never been to Disney World let alone knew they dedicated a whole weekend to Star Wars! It seems so far away I don't even know where to begin...

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

Joining in! We are going in May for my sons Make A Wish trip and he is a HUGE Star Wars fan! Maybe I can get some ideas from your planning

We have never been to Disney World let alone knew they dedicated a whole weekend to Star Wars! It seems so far away I don't even know where to begin...

First off

And WELCOME!!!!

I'm glad to hear all about your upcoming WISH trip! They are so exciting (at least from what I've heard from others, including a former student of mine)!

SWW is a giant beast, but if you have the knowledge young padawan, you will succeed! You may want to consider possibly doing SWW over two days. But then again, you may not need to two days on a Wish trip? Will there be someone helping you guys out with lines and such?

I recall on our first family trip, we got caught in a sudden Florida downpour while in line to meet Donald at AK. I put up our umbrellas and we waited it out. Loads of other people pushed past us to get under cover of the M&G area and the CM took note. Just before we were going to get to meet Donald, another CM asked if we would mind waiting for a Wish trip to go ahead. The CM at the M&G said, "No!! They got pushed out of the way." My big softie of a DH and I both agreed that we could wait a bit longer, we weren't in a hurry and it was important for us for others to have a good trip as well so we waited a bit. Donald spent a good amount of time with us - it was really cool!

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

I was going to wait to post this information, but this is what I found for my friend who attended SWW on their first family trip this past May/June.

Star Wars Weekends
SITE: http://sww.studioscentral.com/main/
MAP: http://www.studioscentral.com/sites/default/files/matt/blog/SWW_0518-202012.pdf


General Tips

• SWW information desk is at the defunct Sounds Dangerous! attraction
• It's SUPER hot, so be prepared. Drink LOTS of fluids!
• It's SUPER crowded, so be prepared. Lots of people. For the shows, get in line early for the choice of seats.
• Arrive early. Sure there is a fun Storm Trooper skit before the park opens and lots of other fans to talk with but the reality is you need to arrive early to Disney's Hollywood Studios so you can get a spot in line
• If you don't care about autographs, arrive 60 minutes before park opening.
• If you can, do Fantasmic! a non-SWW night, it's very crowded and if your not going to see the show, it's a great time to ride rides, like TSMM or RRC or ToT
• There is a lot of crossing the park back and forth - autographs are near Echo Lake, the event merchandise is behind RnRC, Star Tours is back towards the other side, behind Indy, and the costumed character meet & greets are all over the place.
• Otherwise, do not count on doing everything on each day, as you might do on a day that is not a high peak time. Patience and preparation are the best tools you can have handy.
• Of course, I would handle things a little differently with a larger crowd and take into account what everyone wants to do. It really comes down to planning what you want to do and checking around for the times
• Be prepared to wait for EVERYTHING
• Learn the map. Don't waste time trying to figure out where you are or where the event is being held. Familiarize yourself with the map of Disney's Hollywood Studios and refer to this map that has a listing of where Star Wars Weekend events will take place.

Jedi Training Academy

• Be there BEFORE the gates open. During SWW, they ran twice as many Academies, and twice as many kids in each academy. The slots were all taken 45 minutes after the gates opened
• Sign up for Jedi Training Academy ASAP
• JTA sign up is at the entrance for Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular, NOT it’s normal spot.
• Rumor that kids that get into FIRST JTA of the day will be in the parade
• Get (your child) chosen for Jedi Training Academy. For the best results to get chosen for Jedi Training Academy, show up for the earlier shows in the day, arrive 20-30 minutes early for the event, have your child be VERY enthusiastic when asking for volunteers and dressing up in a costume helps get chosen. Disney wants enthusiasm with the kids, not shy and timid ones.

TWEET FROM WEEKEND 1: Jedi training completely full before 9a Padawan Mind Challenge by 8:10a


Padawan Mind Challenge

• Guests 12 and under can test their Star Wars knowledge when they appear in front of the Jedi Council at the Padawan Mind Challenge.
• Sign up your kids early. If your child wants to participate in the kids trivia (Padawan Mind Challenge) and go to the table between Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular and Star Tours to sign up.
• Remember that you MUST have your child(ren) in line with you to sign up; they will NOT give you a wrist band to participate as the bands go right onto the child(ren)'s arms when they write their name(s) on the list.
• There are ONLY 20 spots per show and ONLY 2 shows per day.
• You can pick for which show to be on, one is all about Star Wars The Clone Wars (animated series) the other is on Classic Star Wars. The questions start easy but get difficult as they go on, at the end everyone gets the same prize.

The Parade

• In the past, parade started at 12:40 from the entrance to the Hat, the route is very short
• Assuming the SW parade route stays the same, (from entrance to hat stage), if you want better pictures, get on the left side of the street (looking at the hat). The sun will work better for you. Near Uptown Jewelers in the street MAY work… Streets usually fill up later than the sidewalks.
• Ask a CM if you go around 45-60 minutes out and they may direct you to a great spot – it has worked for me in the past. A CM set us up as the first family to take up residence IN THE ROAD and then people began to fill in around us. Just make sure to stay back of the edge of the sidewalk.
• This means that you should grab a spot 1 1/2 hours before the parade.
• For SW parade at least 30 minutes ahead of time if you want front row. Possibly even 45 minutes ahead of time.
• If you want your child in the parade, go near the Star Wars Weekend Information Desk at opening, and look for a Disney employee handing out wristbands for the parade. If you don't immediately spot this Cast Member, ask one of the Cast Members at the desk.
• Disney invites kids to be part of the parade and dresses them up as Jedis. If your child(ren) wants to be in the parade, right when the park opens head over to a special table that is located between Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular and Star Tours and ask about the parade. You can't sign up directly for it, but certainly asking about it may get your child(ren) a invite into it.
• Also heard you can get good shots near the AI Experience

Meet and Greets/Autographs

• If you want an autograph from a celebrity, show up at least 90-120 minutes before park opening. Fastpasses are distributed for celeb autos and if you don’t have one, don’t even bother trying to get in.
• C3PO wasn't doing M&Gs after 2pm, but I don't know if that will apply next year. (Many characters don’t meet much after 4p in all the parks except for the dedicated character “spots”
• The biggest character lines are for Darth Vader and Chewbacca. You may want to knock those out early.
• Fastpass - for autographs - show up WAY early. Reports: “I got there at 7:15 for Anthony Daniels on Friday and got #10 standby.”
• If actor autographs are important to you, I'd show up even earlier... there was quite a line waiting for the autograph FPs when we got there at 7.
• Ashley Eckstein and James Arnold Taylor are the slowest
• If you get FP for autos, EVERYONE must be there and no leaving and re-meeting
• Meet the characters. Some people write off the character meet-n-greets as for kids but they are a lot of fun. Generally speaking, the "bad guys" (Storm troopers, bounty hunters, Gamorrean Guard, etc) are the most entertaining.
• Characters have been spotted roaming around the Streets of America. It has generally been Storm Troopers.

Shows

• If that is not terribly critical, then don't worry too much about it. The shows repeat each day - that is, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday are carbon(ite) copies of each other. We planned to space things out so that we could see it all, get the autographs we wanted, and cover all the shows.
• Autograph lines will be the worst, followed by regularly scheduled events. Remember, patience is a virtue.
• Don't be fooled by the large crowd level, regular attractions will more than likely be running at normal capacity or even under due to everyone participating at the events. Take advantage of scheduled events, especially the parade to experience your favorite attraction with less wait.
• See the two shows you might skip. There are two events most guests skip either out of ignorance or choice but they are highly entertaining. First, see the Storm Troopers skit that takes place on top of the entrance to the Studios before the park opens. The second show worth seeing is the Hyperspace Hoopla, which is held at the end of the day and wraps up the day and it's like a closing ceremonies for Star Wars Weekends and it's worth your time even if you are hot, sweaty and tired.
• Keep an eye out for special shows by people from the Star Wars franchise. They aren’t widely published but heard they were not to be missed! One of the guys has done a martial arts presentation in the past.

Hyperspace Hoopla

• Hyper Space Hoopla the year before was at least a 60+ min line up before time to get anywhere near glancing at the stage.
• Line up for event shows early - like an hour early or so, we didn't go last year but last year looked better but for kiddos to see you will need to be closer up.
• Parents will still lift their kids and put them on their shoulders. You may not be able to see the stage well. For information, if you can't get there early and be close enough to the stage to see, then the show was "simulcast" on the big screen outside American Idol.
• Hyperspace Hoopla was great! Unless you are in the first ~5 rows, kids won't be able to see. Even if you get there and everyone is sitting down, they will stand up. I had to put DS on my shoulders for 45 minutes so he could see... we were ~12 rows back.

Food

• Kids power pack meals (in an R2-D2 tub) available at Backlot Express, Studio Catering Company, ABC Commissary, Catalina Eddy’s, Fairfax Fare, and Rosie’s All American
• Be sure to make reservations for lunch & dinner ahead of time at the sit down restaurants as you'll not want to have to compete with everyone for somewhere to sit and be in the air conditioning.
• There are special Darth Vader cupcakes available all over the park.

Merchandise

• Carbonite experience MUST HAVE reservations. (407) 939-8324. The pictures are taken, the souvenir is made, and it’s shipped directly to your house. Carbonite experience is also taking place at Sounds Dangerous! attraction.
• The American Idol Experience gift shop has been set up as a SWW gift shop
• Visit the SW mechandise tent (Darth Mall). Even if you don't plan on buying anything it's worth a look around.
• Merchandise can get sold out quickly so buy early in the day and if you can, attend the first or second weekend of the event. If there is something you want to buy, buy it.
• A lot of the same merchandise found at Tatooine Traders can be found near the exit to Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular and Golden Age Souvenirs (near exit to Sounds Dangerous)
• Buy anything you want as soon as you can. Star Wars Weekends merchandise tends to sell out fast so don't wait around and gamble that it won’t.
• Buy it as soon as you can and if you don't want to lug it around the park with you, you can have anything you buy sent to the front of the park for Disney to hold until you are ready to leave or if you are a Disney resort guest, have it sent to your resort for you.
• Avoid the merchandise line. Lots of people think the only place to get Star Wars Weekend merchandise is at the gift shop at the exit to Star Tours (Tattooine Traders) but there are places around the park to pick up both limited and not limited edition merchandise.
• You can have your name written in the official Star Wars language put on a Star Tours nametag (for an unknown cost) at Darth Mall

Special consideration

• Dressing up can be fun and can add to the experience of Star Wars Weekends. If you have kids and have Star Wars costumes, dress them up, or yourself, for that matter! Kids in costumes get treated almost like celebrities and they're great picture ops when standing next to their favorite SW character. Just remember, yes, it'll be hot, so if wearing that Chewbacca outfit, bring a change of clothing if it becomes unbearable.

• If SWW is important to only some of your group, split up.
• Speaking of gates opening... the PUBLISHED time for the gates to open was 9am. I had read on DIS that they opened early the first two weekends. Reports they were on the move around 7a this morning (5-18-12)
• I've also read that Fridays are generally a tad less crowded for the same reason (less locals)
• Check the park map for the day to confirm select times for events as they are subject to change.

Pre-plan as much as possible and remember "siemper Gumby"
(always flexible)

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

Joining in!

And PS... Love your DS's name! (It's near and dear to my heart! )

Mine is 6, will be 7 next July and my DD is about to turn 4 in a month!

 

[Lilfoot93]

Thanks for all the info! I will have to go back and read up on all of it

I am not exactly sure how it is going to all work yet... I think that because being a Jedi during Star Wars Weekend is his wish that it may make it a little easier to go through everything quicker but I am not sure I know we will have a button that may or may not be helpful to avoid some lines...

I'm trying to learn all I can so I know what to tell Trevor what there is to do and he can pick and choose! Right now he wants to do it all... We are waiting on the dates to be published which I have heard won't be out until after the 1st of the year.

Trevor is a great name How cool they have the same name and birth month! My daughters turn 4 this week so they are close too!

Jackie

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

Ha!! I really wish I knew what month it was... DD turns four on the 22nd of THIS month.

Good grief... WHERE DID MY YEAR GO????

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

I am not exactly sure how it is going to all work yet... I think that because being a Jedi during Star Wars Weekend is his wish that it may make it a little easier to go through everything quicker but I am not sure I know we will have a button that may or may not be helpful to avoid some lines...

Jackie

Are you staying in the Village or elsewhere for this trip??

All I know is that JTA filled up VERY early! Any luck in that T is an early riser? He'll have to be there to sign up for it... A lot of people were lining up outside DHS as early as 5am - part were there so early to get the "fastpasses" for talent autographs and the others were lining up to queue up for JTA sign-ups.

You may consider hiring a cab that morning and avoid the buses altogether to get there early-early!

Reports have said that kids that dress up get noticed a bit more - so that may be a good card to have in your back pocket. You could easily take along his robe from his birthday party (LOVED the pool noodle idea - GENIUS!!!!) and some pants.

DH has sworn off ALL early mornings at WDW. I'm not about to try to get DS into JTA unless he and I go and leave DH and DD. Part of the reason I'm dying to get a villa at BWI is because DH said he'd be willing to shell out a bit more for a room to be closer. And if we're closer to DHS, he'd be more willing to get up a little early to get to the park.

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

Oh! Emmm! Gee!

I just looked through pinpics.com and found out that in order to complete ALL of the sets that we are actively looking for, we will need 114 pins.

 

[Lilfoot93]

Are you staying in the Village or elsewhere for this trip??

All I know is that JTA filled up VERY early! Any luck in that T is an early riser? He'll have to be there to sign up for it... A lot of people were lining up outside DHS as early as 5am - part were there so early to get the "fastpasses" for talent autographs and the others were lining up to queue up for JTA sign-ups.

You may consider hiring a cab that morning and avoid the buses altogether to get there early-early!

Reports have said that kids that dress up get noticed a bit more - so that may be a good card to have in your back pocket. You could easily take along his robe from his birthday party (LOVED the pool noodle idea - GENIUS!!!!) and some pants.

DH has sworn off ALL early mornings at WDW. I'm not about to try to get DS into JTA unless he and I go and leave DH and DD. Part of the reason I'm dying to get a villa at BWI is because DH said he'd be willing to shell out a bit more for a room to be closer. And if we're closer to DHS, he'd be more willing to get up a little early to get to the park.

We are staying at Give Kids the World. We will have a rental car to get around. That is about all I know right now

We are from the west coast so it will be tough getting up that early! But I am sure we can do it! I know Trev really wants to do Jedi Training. So hopefully we will be able to!

We really enjoyed planning Trev's birthday party this year. It was a lot of fun! And easy too We just had the party for my girls today and they pulled out the Jedi robes and light sabers and had an impromptu battle... My girls know more about Star Wars than I do!

Thanks for all the tips!

Jackie

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

I've been there. I lived in Santa Barbara/Ventura, CA for a few years. It killed me coming back home during the winter when there was a four hour time difference. Summer wasn't so bad since A) it was three hours and B) the sun being up really helped me get going.

My former student loved staying in the Village and I personally LOVE having a car. I haven't discussed it with DH yet, but I'll bet $50 that he'll want a rental. We wasted SO.MUCH.TIME. on the bus last time and we were all miserable. I gave the buses a good (positive) go in December and was again, disappointed. It KILLED ME that BWI shared a bus with the Swolphin. AND we had a horrible experience on the bus one night between one of the parks and POR... Needless to say, I'm in NO hurry to board a bus and lose time!

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

Well, I applied for the 2013 Mom's Panel!