Navigating Rope Drop in a Scooter and waiting in lines

[slyster]

This will be our first trip in about 8 years and our first trip in a scooter. There are two of us and both will be in a scooter. We are going to try and rope drop, arriving to the parks before they officially open in hopes to get on a couple of rides early.

Any advice or tips on how to navigate this? I have not been to a rope drop and I imagine hundreds of people trying to make their way in, but I honestly have no clue. I could be wrong LOL.

ETA: From the couple of videos I watched it appears there are lines...that seems to make it much easier to navigate and then once in things spread out? You go to the ride and get in a line there. Did I get that right?

Also, a side question I hope you can answer here without having to start a new thread. Part of the reason for the scooter rentals is we cannot stand in long lines for very long. I'm thinking we can ride our scooters most of the way up and then disembark and walk the rest of the way? I hope that makes sense. I can't stand in a 30 minute or longer ride, but I could stand and walk for a few minutes without any problem. I'm hoping as we get close to the attraction, we park or a cast member takes the scooter? I'm a newbie for sure!

 

[gap2368]

As for rides go. It depends on the ride how much you will walk once leaving your scooter most will be a few feet to a few minutes. If the line is short enough you can park your scooter and walk the line

 

[lanejudy]

From the couple of videos I watched it appears there are lines...that seems to make it much easier to navigate and then once in things spread out? You go to the ride and get in a line there. Did I get that right?

I think that depends on when the videos were recorded. After the re-opening and through this spring, parks were opening approximately 45 minutes early, with many/most rides operational at that point, often with little or no wait. I understand this summer they have largely returned to a more typical rope-drop of holding the crowd and then at/near opening time slowly walking the crowd to the land and rides. There is a Rope Drop thread on the TPAS Forum, you might want to keep an eye on the latest reports. You may want to stay on the scooter through the queue, otherwise while you are parking and rejoining the queue a hundred others could move ahead of you.

 

[tobikaye]

I have not personally been the one in the EVC, but have done many trips with my sister in either an EVC or WC. This past June, our cousin joined us so we did have 2 EVCs in our party. My sister has some anxiety so unless we are towards the front of a group at rope drop, we wait to the side or back of the group. We are still able to get some short lines, but maybe not the ones that can grow quickly.

My suggestion for being more in the pack, would be to go single file with the person more comfortable in the crowd leading and know where you are heading as the crowd starts to move. Try to position yourselves so you do not have to cross over past people or many people. For MK, I would suggest trying to be in the hub area before the park opens, mainly because up and down Main Street can be brutal with EVCs, or without, with so many people suddenly stopping everywhere to take pictures and trying to get over the tracks. No joke, this past trip, we literally had to go back and forth across the tracks 5 times to get around people.

Example of positioning yourselves:
MK: Heading to Fantasyland, using the path to the right of the castle, next to Sleepy Hollow. Position yourselves to be the to right side of the path heading to LIberty Square to make the right turn to Fantasyland.
Epcot: This is a bit crazy right now if entering from FW because of all the barriers for construction. If headed to TT, I would suggest trying to be at the near front of the pack and more left center. We were not headed to TT, but took that path just after most of the group had moved out after the line started, it was still crazy as we got near there because there are so many things along the edges of the path that just pop up so everyone at the edges had to move into the center.

If you take the EVC into the line, you will take it up to the ride vehicle or near the ride vehicle and then the CM will take it from you. You might want to grab the guide maps for mobility disabilities for the parks, you can usually get these for all the parks at Guest Services so you can see if there is a different entrance needed for mobility devices.

 

[slyster]

I just watched a couple of them from June and I have to say I'm a bit nervous. Crowds...and I didn't really see scooters in those videos. It's just the two of us, both in scooters. AND our first time with scooters

 

[tobikaye]

I am not going to lie, the crowds can be crazy and it can seem overwhelming. If you are not familiar with the EVCs you will be using, make sure to spend a bit of time working out the turn radius and how quickly they will slow down or stop once you release the throttle, remember no brakes on EVCs. That will help and as you get used to the movement of the EVCs in the crowds, you will probably become more confident with maneuvering them and figure out what works for you.

 

[Selket]

I have done rope drops pre-covid in a scooter including being the crazy very first group of annual pass holders to get into the preview of Star Wars land at WDW. I just pick someone to follow and move with the crowd. If they push through ahead I pick someone else. In my experience you WILL fall back further in the crowd because you can't move the same way in an ECV as people walk (they see an opening and speed up walking and twist around people). You just do the best you can do!

Most rides the CM takes the scooter and you won't walk too far or stand too long without it. FOP I have always let them take it and went through to the holding room with everyone else but I think there is an option to avoid that if you want. Some attractions you need to go through the line in a WC (like Buzz Lightyear) so I only would do it when I had a FP. Not sure how I'd handle that ride at the moment if I had no one to push me.

I also agree to practice using the ECV at your resort if rope drop is your first park day. Try backing up, take elevators, parallel park, get used to all the speeds so you know what its like and how quickly it will stop. My rentals from Gold Mobility always stopped instantly when I released the tiller so that was nice. You'll be fine - have fun!!!

 

[slyster]

Thankfully our first day is AK and we won't be heading to the park until around 11am so first day will be easier

 

[slyster]

I am not going to lie, the crowds can be crazy and it can seem overwhelming. If you are not familiar with the EVCs you will be using, make sure to spend a bit of time working out the turn radius and how quickly they will slow down or stop once you release the throttle, remember no brakes on EVCs. That will help and as you get used to the movement of the EVCs in the crowds, you will probably become more confident with maneuvering them and figure out what works for you.

my wife is going to be more nervous for sure. I sort of go with the flow, but maneuvering and the crowd will probably make her really nervous. I'm sort of second guessing rope drop, but I heard if you want to get on popular rides, do it early.

 

[tobikaye]

I would still plan for rope drop, but maybe find a spot off to the side or the back and let most of the people take off before you move on. That is what we did at Epcot since the first attraction we were doing was Frozen Ever After. Even waiting for the main group heading to Test Track to get by and then taking our time stopping to get pictures and such, the wait was only 20 minutes when we got there about 20 minutes after rope drop.

Not sure if you have found that some attractions require you to get a return time for riding with a mobility device because of using an alternate entrance. When you get to AK, if you have a chance stop by and ask the CMs at guest services if they have the mobility guide for each of the parks. This way, when you have a break, you can see what might be different ahead of time. Basically, if the map says to see a host, those are possibly going to give you a return time or direct you a specific way.

Here is an example of what we did at MK: We were late getting into MK and my sister loves Jungle Cruise so we grabbed a return time, which was about 20 minutes and then did the Tiki Room. Once we were done with Tiki, we went and got on Jungle Cruise. Next we would have grabbed a return time for Big Thunder for the EVC and then done the riverboat while waiting, but my sister had fallen getting out of Frozen Ever After and felt she would be sore if she rode Thunder. The only other attraction we ended up doing before the rain hit that day that required her to use a separate entrance was the carousel and there she just waited for the next ride.

 

[slyster]

Here is an example of what we did at MK: We were late getting into MK and my sister loves Jungle Cruise so we grabbed a return time, which was about 20 minutes and then did the Tiki Room. Once we were done with Tiki, we went and got on Jungle Cruise. Next we would have grabbed a return time for Big Thunder for the EVC and then done the riverboat while waiting, but my sister had fallen getting out of Frozen Ever After and felt she would be sore if she rode Thunder. The only other attraction we ended up doing before the rain hit that day that required her to use a separate entrance was the carousel and there she just waited for the next ride.

I don't understand what you mean about grabbing a return time. That sounds like a fast pass?

 

[Selket]

I don't understand what you mean about grabbing a return time. That sounds like a fast pass?

I don't think you need to avoid rope drop unless she is very nervous and/or you're getting up way earlier than you prefer and you're exhausted, etc. In a big crowd you're sort of like a part of a school of fish all swimming in the same direction more or less. If you have trouble with claustrophobia that could be an issue with the scooter cause you're so low and people are around you. I didn't have any issues with people getting in my personal space however. Also with two of you in scooters I think you should not worry about trying to stay together at rope drop - just plan on meeting back up at the ride you're going on.

 

[tobikaye]

Closer to a DAS than FP, except no DAS needed. It is a mobility return time. For attractions where both the main line and FP line are not accessible, the CMs issue a return time. You then return to them and they direct you usually through an exit or alternate entrance.

Adding: The only attractions I know that might do this are Big Thunder, Jungle Cruise, Spaceship Earth. I am not sure about StarTours at WDW.

 

[Evita_W]

Closer to a DAS than FP, except no DAS needed. It is a mobility return time. For attractions where both the main line and FP line are not accessible, the CMs issue a return time. You then return to them and they direct you usually through an exit or alternate entrance.

Adding: The only attractions I know that might do this are Big Thunder, Jungle Cruise, Spaceship Earth. I am not sure about StarTours at WDW.

Actually, they issue a mobility return time if the standby queue is not accessible (you would return to the FP return queue if accessible), as of June, the list of attractions that would issue mobility return times were:

• Magic Kingdom
  • Jungle Cruise
  • Pirates
  • Splash Mountain
  • Big Thunder
  • Haunted Mansion
  • it's a small world
  • Peter Pan
  • Winnie the Pooh
  • Space Mountain
• Hollywood Studios
  • These attractions sometimes have extended queues that go through non-accessible areas, mobility return times will be issued for them:
    • Slinky Dog Dash
    • Toy Story Mania
    • Smuggler's Run
    • Rise of the Resistance
  • Star Tours
  • Tower of Terror (Sometimes)
  • Rock n Roller Coaster (Sometimes)
• EPCOT
  • Spaceship Earth (Always ask at the exit, as sometimes they will do return times, but most of the time they don't)
  • Living with the Land
  • Finding Nemo (If you need one due to the extremely dark twists and turns in the standard queue being difficult to navigate, they usually will give one even without a DAS if you ask nicely)
• Animal Kingdom
  • These attractions sometimes have extended queues that go through non-accessible areas, mobility return times will be issued for them:
    • It's Tough To Be a Bug
    • Kilimanjaro Safaris
    • Expedition Everest
    • Dinosaur
  • Kali River Rapids
  • Celebration of Festival of the Lion King - If the show you try to go to has no spaces left for mobility devices, they may give you a return time for the next show time that allows you to bypass the standby queue

As mentioned, some of these are only some of the time and in all cases, if the standby wait time is relatively low and/or there are very few mobility devices in the queue, they may just let you go straight on, so always bring your entire group with you right now (same goes for using a DAS at the moment). And as everything keeps changing, this list may change as well, so this is definitely a your mileage may vary list.

 

[slyster]

Thank you all for your feedback. I do overthink things sometimes. Your advice and insight is appreciated.

 

[SueM in MN]

I would still plan for rope drop, but maybe find a spot off to the side or the back and let most of the people take off before you move on. That is what we did at Epcot since the first attraction we were doing was Frozen Ever After. Even waiting for the main group heading to Test Track to get by and then taking our time stopping to get pictures and such, the wait was only 20 minutes when we got there about 20 minutes after rope drop.

Not sure if you have found that some attractions require you to get a return time for riding with a mobility device because of using an alternate entrance. When you get to AK, if you have a chance stop by and ask the CMs at guest services if they have the mobility guide for each of the parks. This way, when you have a break, you can see what might be different ahead of time. Basically, if the map says to see a host, those are possibly going to give you a return time or direct you a specific way.

Here is an example of what we did at MK: We were late getting into MK and my sister loves Jungle Cruise so we grabbed a return time, which was about 20 minutes and then did the Tiki Room. Once we were done with Tiki, we went and got on Jungle Cruise. Next we would have grabbed a return time for Big Thunder for the EVC and then done the riverboat while waiting, but my sister had fallen getting out of Frozen Ever After and felt she would be sore if she rode Thunder. The only other attraction we ended up doing before the rain hit that day that required her to use a separate entrance was the carousel and there she just waited for the next ride.

The guidemap for Guests with disabilities can be found in the rack with the other park maps near the park entrance. Look for the map with a black border on the top.
You can also find links to them on this page of the Disney website - they are under the part labeled Guides for Guests with Disabilities
Disney website - services for guests with disabilities

The ones currently linked there are from June, I believe. You can also find the information on the My Disney Experience app, but you need to go to the Accessibility information link for each attraction.

I don't understand what you mean about grabbing a return time. That sounds like a fast pass?

As others mentioned, they are given for guests who are using mobility devices when the regular entrance is not accessible. If the wait in the standby line is short and/or if the area used for guests with disabilities is not full, you may not be given a return time.

 

[ttintagel]

When I was in a group of two people with ECV’s, we generally went in single file, with the other person in front because her eyesight is much better than mine and it was easier for me to follow her then try to navigate the crowd. We only really had problems when people tried to step in between us.

The only problem I had with the rope drop crowd is that we were packed in so tightly together that a woman standing beside me holding her toddler in her arms didn’t seem to care that her toddler was swinging her legs and kicking me in the head every few seconds. When I pointed it out to her, she just shrugged and laughed, so I bent forward over the steering wheel until I could get out of the way.

 

[Weedy]

This is a snap from a video on Disboards on FB during rope drop today
I suggest arriving just a little after park open so you aren’t in this large crowd

 

[philharmagic fan]

Actually, they issue a mobility return time if the standby queue is not accessible (you would return to the FP return queue if accessible), as of June, the list of attractions that would issue mobility return times were:

• Magic Kingdom
  • Jungle Cruise
  • Pirates
  • Splash Mountain
  • Big Thunder
  • Haunted Mansion
  • it's a small world
  • Peter Pan
  • Winnie the Pooh
  • Space Mountain
• Hollywood Studios
  • These attractions sometimes have extended queues that go through non-accessible areas, mobility return times will be issued for them:
    • Slinky Dog Dash
    • Toy Story Mania
    • Smuggler's Run
    • Rise of the Resistance
  • Star Tours
  • Tower of Terror (Sometimes)
  • Rock n Roller Coaster (Sometimes)
• EPCOT
  • Spaceship Earth (Always ask at the exit, as sometimes they will do return times, but most of the time they don't)
  • Living with the Land
  • Finding Nemo (If you need one due to the extremely dark twists and turns in the standard queue being difficult to navigate, they usually will give one even without a DAS if you ask nicely)
• Animal Kingdom
  • These attractions sometimes have extended queues that go through non-accessible areas, mobility return times will be issued for them:
    • It's Tough To Be a Bug
    • Kilimanjaro Safaris
    • Expedition Everest
    • Dinosaur
  • Kali River Rapids
  • Celebration of Festival of the Lion King - If the show you try to go to has no spaces left for mobility devices, they may give you a return time for the next show time that allows you to bypass the standby queue

As mentioned, some of these are only some of the time and in all cases, if the standby wait time is relatively low and/or there are very few mobility devices in the queue, they may just let you go straight on, so always bring your entire group with you right now (same goes for using a DAS at the moment). And as everything keeps changing, this list may change as well, so this is definitely a your mileage may vary list.

Our MK experience has been a bit different. Peter Pan issued wheelchair times when social distancing necessitated the queue running through Columbia Harbor House (which has stairs), but before covid and for the last few weeks, wheelchairs would go through the regular queue with no return time. If you're on a scooter at Pan or Winnie the Pooh, you park at the entrance and either walk through the regular queue or borrow a wheelchair and ride through; no return times in either case. At Tea Party, we've sometimes been given a return time or sometimes were directed immediately to the accessible gate (if the line is short).

 

[slyster]

This is a snap from a video on Disboards on FB during rope drop today
I suggest arriving just a little after park open so you aren’t in this large crowd
View attachment 591925

l
Wow that is a bit crazy. How the heck would a scooter maneuver that.