Rider switch

[Japy]

Can you queue first and do rider switch when you reach the front of the queue where the disney employee is? Or do you have to waste time talking to them to get rider switch before you queue?

 

[Mommb]

If everyone is willing/able to wait in line until you reach a cast member, then sure, those not riding could then get out of line after setting up a rider switch. However, it does sort of defeat the purpose to have people wait in line to get a pass that allows them not to wait in line. Some rides will not permit people unable to ride into the line, but those rides typically have cast members stationed at the beginning of the queue anyhow.

 

[Japy]

It doesn't defeat the purpose. I've read that they force you to wait in a separate area anyway with rider switch which is hardly a great way to spend time. The whole point is that you all get to go on the ride, and don't have to q twice. Being forced to wait separately in a room for an hour or longer is as bad as qing if not worse. Why they can't just split you just before you go on the ride I don't know. Sounds like a ridiculously overengineered process

 

[Mommb]

The process depends on the ride, and the castmember at the back of the queue will tell you the process for that ride. For some rides, it is possible for the family to go through together, but for some it isn't. One issue is that some rides disembark at a different place than they embark, so it wouldn't be possible for the riding adult to take the child while the other adult boards. Another issue is that if a child is just short of tall enough to ride safely, Disney doesn't want to take the risk of the child actually getting on the ride if castmembers further down the line don't check as thoroughly.

It's been some years since I did Rider Switch, but the only time I waited separately was for Star Tours. My daughter and I went through the line with my husband and son. As they boarded my daughter and I actually walked through the vehicle and sat on a bench on the exit side during the voyage. Then as passengers disembarked, my husband took my daughter and I boarded the vehicle from the "wrong" side with my son. I don't know if that's still the process. Most rides just treated the Rider Swap like a FastPass, so my daughter and I hung out in a gift shop or other area until my husband and son returned, then I got in the FastPass line. I'd guess it works the same with the Genie+ line. I can't think of any ride where the nonriding group would need to be in a separate place for an hour , but as I said, I haven't used rider switch in the past 10 years.

 

[DisneyCare]

We did rider switch a lot last week because of our too short to ride child. We always had it set up before anyone entered the queue - it barely took a minute. We looked for the CM with an iPad at the queue entrance, told them we wanted rider switch. They confirmed we qualified by seeing our young child in the stroller, asked who would be riding twice and scanned that person’s magic band. Pretty simple! We did see a family on ToT who used the rider swap after all standing in line together. They “swapped” at the elevator in the boiler room.

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

It doesn't defeat the purpose. I've read that they force you to wait in a separate area anyway with rider switch which is hardly a great way to spend time. The whole point is that you all get to go on the ride, and don't have to q twice. Being forced to wait separately in a room for an hour or longer is as bad as qing if not worse. Why they can't just split you just before you go on the ride I don't know. Sounds like a ridiculously overengineered process

I think you're confusing Disney World and Universal. Disney gives you the rider swap before you are fully in the line. The first riding party stays in line, the second riding party can go off and do whatever they please. I took my kids to the Boneyard while Hubby was riding Everest. He took them to meet Mickey and Minnie during my turn.

When first rider is done and second party is ready to go, they tap in and go to the Lightning Lane.

I remember reading that Universal had the waiting room style set up, but have not gone myself, so I could be confusing that piece of info. Disney *definitely* doesn't put the waiting party in a room, though.

 

[HopperFan]

It doesn't defeat the purpose. I've read that they force you to wait in a separate area anyway with rider switch which is hardly a great way to spend time. The whole point is that you all get to go on the ride, and don't have to q twice. Being forced to wait separately in a room for an hour or longer is as bad as qing if not worse. Why they can't just split you just before you go on the ride I don't know. Sounds like a ridiculously overengineered process

Not at Disney. If a rider is too short to ride they can't even enter the line. If they are tall enough but don't want to ride they will often do the split close to loading area, you just stand to the side.

Universal is set up all go through the line and you wait in a holding room BUT it isn't for long because that room is just before boarding so the first party is back in the time takes to ride plus a couple minutes.

 

[EliWil]

We rider switched a lot our last trip since it was just my husband and I with our three year old the cast members would just scan the waiting parents ticket while the other went in line and then they were free to visit fantasyland or wherever our girl wanted to go it was great