RD: Rise or RnRC??

[JayMass]

We will be at DHS next Sunday 8/11. Already have LL for SD, ToT, and TSM. We are staying onsite so we have EE. I'm trying to decide between Rise and RnRC for RD.

So my initial thought is to RD Rise because that will be the shortest wait at any time of the day. After Rise, could probably get over to RnRC and have a short wait because waits over there typically don't build until after 9:30 or so according to averages from Thrill Data.

But, when I looked at today's wait times on both MDE and Touring Plans, the wait at RnRC at 9am was 45 mins while the wait at Rise was 20 minutes.

Now I'm thinking if I did RnRC first with a short wait, I could get over to Rise and still have a short wait. Also, RnRC is a much shorter ride so doing that first might still get me in good position for Rise.

What would you do? (And yes I know that the two rides are at completely different ends of the park. My wife, two college age kids, and I can move pretty fast!)

 

[Yensid67]

My vote is fir RnRC!

 

[AttheParks]

I would rope drop RIse. That was our plan this week, but Rise was down during Early Hours.

 

[123SA]

I don't do Rise during early hours because
1. I don't the walking with that crowd
2. It's unreliable
3. IF RNRC goes down, I can head over to TOT instead (which I prefer to SWMF)
4. One of your party can stop at Star Bucks and easily meet back up with your group
5. 45 minutes in a line at ROTR is much more pleasant than 45 minutes in line at RNRC.

I will be at WDW 8/11-19. I was there last year at this time as well. Pay attention to the wait times at Rise. Both of our DHS days last year, we kept checking the wait times and headed over to Rise when the time dropped to 40 minutes during the day...not early entry or soon after, and not at closing.

 

[Babe the Blue Ox]

So my initial thought is to RD Rise because that will be the shortest wait at any time of the day.

I’m not so sure about that. If you’re interested in an alternate strategy, the line for Rise often gets very short in the evening.

Just an example from our most recent visit. We hit Rise an hour and 20 minutes before closing time and coincidently found an 80 minute posted wait with hardly anyone hanging around. This was a pretty good indication that an inflated wait time was already in place.

The actual wait was about 20 minutes for the first ride, 10 for the 2nd trip then 0 for the 3rd.

They did lower the posted wait to 70 minutes sometime between the 2nd and 3rd round.

 

[preemiemama]

We were there a couple weeks ago, and Rise was down both mornings when we tried to rope drop it for EE. A friend encountered that 3 times in the past week or so. Neither of us knew it was down until we arrived at the ride, so we wasted most of our EE time walking there and then trying to come up with plan B. Plus, when we wound up doing Rise at the end of the night, our wait was only 20-30 minutes. So, my vote would be to do RNR and then get TOT- save Rise for the end of the night.

 

[sponica]

I would not rope drop rise. If it doesn't open with the park you've wasted the early entry advantage. Rope drop RnRC and then you have TOT as a backup.

But also, it's the one ride if you can swing the LLSP or whatever it's called, I recommend purchasing. If it's down when you've purchased the LLSP, you get an anytime you can redeem that day. I've also gotten it refunded because we had dinner plans elsewhere and weren't going to be able to do it.

 

[ucf_knight]

I would RD RnRC. Rise for me in the past few visits may be listed as a 60-75 min wait and its typically lower (around 40-45 min). In my experience if RnRC says its a 60 min+ wait it will for sure be that or more and it stays a long line most of the day.

 

[JayMass]

Thanks everyone. I appreciate the insight. Seems like the consensus is to RD RnRC. I didn't consider the chance that Rise might be down in the morning. We are not park hopping so we'll be at DHS all day. Late day ride on Rise might be the solution.

 

[Genie+]

Things keep changing but there was a time when RotR often opened 10 or 15 minutes before EE officially started, where RnRC did not. Being at the front of EE pack meant getting on and off Rise, scoot over to MFSR, and jet over to MMRR or ToT just as the nonEE guests started making it through the gate. Not sure if still feasible.

 

[JayMass]

Just an example from our most recent visit. We hit Rise an hour and 20 minutes before closing time and coincidently found an 80 minute posted wait with hardly anyone hanging around. This was a pretty good indication that an inflated wait time was already in place.

The actual wait was about 20 minutes for the first ride, 10 for the 2nd trip then 0 for the 3rd.

They did lower the posted wait to 70 minutes sometime between the 2nd and 3rd round.

That's crazy! 80 minute posted time but actually 20 minutes?! I use the Touring Plans Lines App and last time I was in the parks (2022) it was pretty accurate. Disney's posted times are frequently off compared to actual wait times but I don't remember seeing one off by an entire hour.

 

[kylenne]

My SOP at HS EE is buying a Rise LL for later in the morning and starting down Sunset working my way back from Tower for actual rope drop. Assuming front of the pack (I always am), and everything running, I walk onto Tower and RnRC for actual EE and then MMRR is nearly a walk on, usually stopping right before the preshow. I generally try to have that Rise LL around 10:30ish so I can stop for breakfast after MMRR and then go do it.

I know that can get pricey for groups, but I hate the stress and the crowds of running with the herds at rope dop so I always zig when others zag when possible.

 

[Justrose]

starting down Sunset working my way back from Tower for actual rope drop. Assuming front of the pack (I always am), and everything running, I walk onto Tower and RnRC for actual EE and then MMRR is nearly a walk on, usually stopping right before the preshow.

This is what we do, too (except we switch RnR and ToT). After MMRR, breakfast at Woodys.

 

[Babe the Blue Ox]

That's crazy! 80 minute posted time but actually 20 minutes?! I use the Touring Plans Lines App and last time I was in the parks (2022) it was pretty accurate. Disney's posted times are frequently off compared to actual wait times but I don't remember seeing one off by an entire hour.

This is standard procedure at Disney. The wait times are intentionally inflated in the evening to discourage late riders. They use a very effective process known as Line Stacking to funnel guests away from the attractions and toward the gift shops and eventually the exits.

It is very common to see posted wait times up to 4x the actual wait. We first learned about this in the 1997 Unofficial Guide and have been using it to our advantage ever since.