Premiere Pass for mid may

[VioletSparkles]

Hello!
This will be our second trip to WDW- but our first as a family of 5.
It will be my husband and I and our 3 kids who are 12,8, and 4.
My plan has been to do the LL premiere pass for Hollywood studios, Epcot, and magic kingdom: reason is that I’m just not Disney savvy at all and am worried about wasting precious time in lines and darting all over the park. It’s obviously crazy expensive: painfully so for 5 people but this will be a one and done for our family. We will not be back so I want it to be magical and really enjoy our time.
We are not going to rope drop- we want this to feel like a vacation not a strictly adhered to mission.
Recently more and more people I’ve been talking to are telling me I’m crazy for getting the premiere pass because lithe multi pass is plenty- however these people are not Disney veterans like you all so I wanted to get opinions!
Going may 14-May 19.

Realistically what are line wait times without lightening lane? Would you spring for it if it were you? We have the money budgeted but I’d be thrilled to save $4k if I opt not to do them.
My biggest wild card is my 4 year old. Like most 4 year olds, patience is not a strong point and I just don’t want to set us up for failure with 30 min lines for a 4 min ride

 

[mmouse50]

I went with 3 teens in mid February - did premier pass for MK and HS. It was a god send for me, i really dont waiting in lines and the ability to walk up to any ride and hop into the LL line was wonderful. No trying to HOPE that I would be able to ride a ride, we rode them all. On HS day - Rise and Mickey/Minnie were down for most of the day but when they finally came back up we were able to hop right into the LL which was a little backed up due to it being down for so long but it was alot better than standby.
As a rule most regular lines were running anywhere from 50 or more min in standby with the exception of the headliners they were longer.
Only bought the SLL for Guardians and Avatar at the other 2 parks.
Yes it was pricey but the no hassle in trying to be stuck on my phone trying to get the next ride was worth it to me.

 

[DisneyJulieZ]

Thank you for asking this question and for the reply! We are going on Memorial Day weekend (EEK!) so even though the LL Premier Pass is CRAZY expensive, I feel like it's our only hope of having a truly magical time.

Does anyone else want to weigh in on the value of LL Premier Pass for Memorial Day weekend? (Specifically Sunday and Monday).

Our son in in the United States Air Force, and it is the only time he can get away, so we want to make it great. We are West Coast/DL vets, but WDW is a whole different beast, and we probably won't be going back for many, many years, if ever.

Thank you in advance for any words of wisdom/advice!

 

[Dave006]

Does anyone else want to weigh in on the value of LL Premier Pass for Memorial Day weekend? (Specifically Sunday and Monday).

I would not suggest LLPP for any parks but MK, and HS. This weekend is typically very busy, it can also be very hot and it the rainy season has started, it can often have periods of heavy rain. Will you be staying on-site where you could start in the morning, take a break and then finish out your park day.

Just a reminder that with a LLPP it is only valid for 1 visit to every LL attraction.

Why not AK or Epcot in my view? AK does not really have a good number LL attractions that would be interesting for your group's age range. Epcot is almost the same situation.

Dave

 

[Dave006]

This will be our second trip to WDW- but our first as a family of 5.
It will be my husband and I and our 3 kids who are 12,8, and 4.

When would your be visiting as that makes an impact for wait times?

Dave

 

[ucf_knight]

Hello!
This will be our second trip to WDW- but our first as a family of 5.
It will be my husband and I and our 3 kids who are 12,8, and 4.
My plan has been to do the LL premiere pass for Hollywood studios, Epcot, and magic kingdom: reason is that I’m just not Disney savvy at all and am worried about wasting precious time in lines and darting all over the park. It’s obviously crazy expensive: painfully so for 5 people but this will be a one and done for our family. We will not be back so I want it to be magical and really enjoy our time.
We are not going to rope drop- we want this to feel like a vacation not a strictly adhered to mission.
Recently more and more people I’ve been talking to are telling me I’m crazy for getting the premiere pass because lithe multi pass is plenty- however these people are not Disney veterans like you all so I wanted to get opinions!
Going may 14-May 19.

Realistically what are line wait times without lightening lane? Would you spring for it if it were you? We have the money budgeted but I’d be thrilled to save $4k if I opt not to do them.
My biggest wild card is my 4 year old. Like most 4 year olds, patience is not a strong point and I just don’t want to set us up for failure with 30 min lines for a 4 min ride

Not sure what the cost would be for your dates but your are approaching a one day private vip tour cost for the three days of llpp. I would either looking into having one epic day at the end of your trip with a vip guide and do magic or only do llpp for magic and not the other parks. You can rope drop and get a lot done at the other parks since there are not as many attractions.

 

[VioletSparkles]

When would your be visiting as that makes an impact for wait times?

Dave

Staying on site (Riverside) and our park days are:

Hollywood Studios (Wednesday 5/14)
Magic Kingdom (Friday 5/16)
Epcot (Sunday 5/18)

 

[Dave006]

Staying on site (Riverside) and our park days are:

Hollywood Studios (Wednesday 5/14)
Magic Kingdom (Friday 5/16)
Epcot (Sunday 5/18)

Those days should not be packed since it is will before the crowds ramp up toward Memorial Day weekend and the first (2) weeks of June. But the Standby lines will all have periods of 50 minutes or higher during part of any Park day. The normal advice of hitting Early Entry (30 minutes before Park opening). Is the way to go and then take a break when the heat hits.

If you decide to go the LLPP route it will give you great flexibly in your day where you will not need to worry about hitting the parks early in the day.

Dave

 

[brockash]

Hello!
This will be our second trip to WDW- but our first as a family of 5.
It will be my husband and I and our 3 kids who are 12,8, and 4.
My plan has been to do the LL premiere pass for Hollywood studios, Epcot, and magic kingdom: reason is that I’m just not Disney savvy at all and am worried about wasting precious time in lines and darting all over the park. It’s obviously crazy expensive: painfully so for 5 people but this will be a one and done for our family. We will not be back so I want it to be magical and really enjoy our time.
We are not going to rope drop- we want this to feel like a vacation not a strictly adhered to mission.
Recently more and more people I’ve been talking to are telling me I’m crazy for getting the premiere pass because lithe multi pass is plenty- however these people are not Disney veterans like you all so I wanted to get opinions!
Going may 14-May 19.

Realistically what are line wait times without lightening lane? Would you spring for it if it were you? We have the money budgeted but I’d be thrilled to save $4k if I opt not to do them.
My biggest wild card is my 4 year old. Like most 4 year olds, patience is not a strong point and I just don’t want to set us up for failure with 30 min lines for a 4 min ride

Obviously you can do whatever you think is best, however since you asked....there is NO WAY in the world I would buy PP even during the busiest of weeks UNLESS I just had so much money that I had way too much to know what to do with. It's absolutely insane to me.

Having said that and on a calmer note...mid may is not a busy time at all (not dead, but def. a slower time since almost all are still in school/finishing up), so even without rope dropping; even regular LL really isn't needed.

If you want one or the other I'd def. say PP is most definitely overkill, but to each their own.

 

[VioletSparkles]

I appreciate your honesty and candor! lol we def don’t have more money than we know what to do with I wish!
Lightening Lane Multi pass is probably what I will go with

 

[Disneydawg74]

I appreciate your honesty and candor! lol we def don’t have more money than we know what to do with I wish!
Lightening Lane Multi pass is probably what I will go with

You might consider the PP for the one park that seems most necessary for your family’s preferences (like MK or HS) and MP for the others.

 

[HeiHei2018]

If you can afford LLPP, go for it. The flexibility would be amazing with a preschooler.

The value of LLPP at Epcot is less than at MK or HS, but the price is lower. Remy and Frozen are our favorite rides, and it’s hard to get them both on the same day with LLMP and not rope dropping. Epcot is also a massive park, so having to backtrack for LLMP times is hard on little feet. We don’t do GOTG or Mission Space, but LL usually saves 25-45 minutes on Soarin in addition to the 45-60 minutes each for Remy and Frozen.

We go on a “budget” trip every year, so I could never bring myself to spend the money for PP. But it would certainly make the trip more magical for the vacation planner (me) and family who would love walking less (everyone!).

 

[mcgrawfan]

I would add up the cost of the Premier Pass for all 3 parks and compare that to a VIP Tour Guide. It is very expensive but such an amazing way to zip through the parks. We did 3 parks from 2-9 pm, 13 rides and ended with a special viewing location for Happily Ever After. Included all the bottled pop and water we wanted and all the ice cream novelty treats like Mickey Bars etc. We had an SUV to pick us up and drive us the next park and they offered snack baskets with yummy choices between parks. Then your next two days could be covering what you didn't hit. We used the VIP tour to make sure we got on the longer wait rides and snuck some others in there too

 

[Mouse Tracker]

Whatever you decide ..........factor in what is currently under refurbishment / closed at each park you plan to visit. This may help in deciding whether PP or a MP/SP combo meet expectations. Figure the $ side of both options.

 

[elvispursley]

For a one and done trip, I might be more apt to get LLPP, especially if you are not going to rope drop. LLMP seems to work best when you can get your first rides around park open. But I honestly can’t see myself ever forking out that kind of money, especially knowing I ccould take another trip somewhere with the savings.

 

[distherapy]

We have done both VIP tour guide and LLPP and prefer the PP. Definitely for MK and HS. We thought about adding Epcot only because we wanted to ride Guardians a few times and would have done PP and Single Lightning Lane, but decided just to do the Single.

For our family -and it was a splurge - the PP made for a fantastic trip. We could sleep in and not stress - we also rode rides we would have otherwise skipped.

Every family has to decide what works for them financially - we were thrilled to be able to do it. Our kids are older now and our trips together are limited.

 

[DisneyJulieZ]

I would not suggest LLPP for any parks but MK, and HS. This weekend is typically very busy, it can also be very hot and it the rainy season has started, it can often have periods of heavy rain. Will you be staying on-site where you could start in the morning, take a break and then finish out your park day.

Just a reminder that with a LLPP it is only valid for 1 visit to every LL attraction.

Why not AK or Epcot in my view? AK does not really have a good number LL attractions that would be interesting for your group's age range. Epcot is almost the same situation.

Dave

Thank you for the reply and great thoughts/advice. It's very appreciated.
Yes, we are staying on-site and will open the parks and plan to come back for a mid-day nap, then back to the parks. We only have 1.75 days. My son is active duty Air Force and we are limited on time due to that. We plan MK (with LLPP) on Sunday of Memorial Day weekend, and then Epcot (probably just with LLMP) for Monday until about 4 PM, when we'll have to leave. :-(

 

[Dave006]

We plan MK (with LLPP) on Sunday of Memorial Day weekend, and then Epcot (probably just with LLMP) for Monday until about 4 PM, when we'll have to leave

Sounds like a good plan for that weekend. Just a reminder that it can be a very hot humid weekend so plan ahead so you are not surprised.

Dave

 

[kylenne]

Thank you for the reply and great thoughts/advice. It's very appreciated.
Yes, we are staying on-site and will open the parks and plan to come back for a mid-day nap, then back to the parks. We only have 1.75 days. My son is active duty Air Force and we are limited on time due to that. We plan MK (with LLPP) on Sunday of Memorial Day weekend, and then Epcot (probably just with LLMP) for Monday until about 4 PM, when we'll have to leave. :-(

I’m going against the grain bc I go on Memorial Day weekend pretty much every year bc my birthday falls around that time and imo Premier Pass is just lighting money on fire going any time in May, even then. Especially if you plan to rope drop and have EE benefits. Memorial Day weekend, while elevated, is absolutely never the type of crowd situation in practice that people fear when they think of “holiday crowds”. Not enough schools are out yet.

Granted, like I’ve been saying all along in our May group, Epic is a wildcard of the sort we’ve never had before, so it’s very difficult to predict what crowds will be like at WDW (whether it will bring more ppl to the area who add on Disney, or draw more people away). But I still 100% believe that LLMP combined with rope dropping Early Entry will absolutely be enough. Premier Pass is a waste of money if you’re willing to do that.

 

[DisneyJulieZ]

I’m going against the grain bc I go on Memorial Day weekend pretty much every year bc my birthday falls around that time and imo Premier Pass is just lighting money on fire going any time in May, even then. Especially if you plan to rope drop and have EE benefits. Memorial Day weekend, while elevated, is absolutely never the type of crowd situation in practice that people fear when they think of “holiday crowds”. Not enough schools are out yet.

Granted, like I’ve been saying all along in our May group, Epic is a wildcard of the sort we’ve never had before, so it’s very difficult to predict what crowds will be like at WDW (whether it will bring more ppl to the area who add on Disney, or draw more people away). But I still 100% believe that LLMP combined with rope dropping Early Entry will absolutely be enough. Premier Pass is a waste of money if you’re willing to do that.

Great insight! Thank you very much!! (and happy early birthday!)