Star Wars Academy & Priate Adventure & Rain

[jediagh]

We are 6 days and counting down to getting to Disney World.
However I'm got some concerns with the weather.
10 day forcast is calling for the following:

MON, 09/03 - Isolated T-Storms 20% chance of rain
TUE, 09/04 - Mostly Sunny - 20% chance of rain
WED, 09/05 - Scattered T-Storms - 60% chance of rain
THR, 09/05 - Scattered T-Storms - 60% chance of rain
FRI, 09/06 - MON 09/13 no data yet too early

We have reservations for the Pirate Adventure - Albatross Treasure Cruise out of the Yatch & Beach Club for 9:30AM on WED, 09/05.

If it's raining will they cancel this adventure?
At a 60% chance of rain I figure we will see rain that day.

Of even bigger concern is The Star Wars Jedi Academy! We have plans of going to Hollywood Studios on THRS, 09/06 and my DS really, really wants to "become a Jedi" so we plan on getting to the park 1.5 hours BEFORE they open and make the mad dash to get in line and begin the waiting and waiting.

I'm basing my info on this:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2588981

My concern is will they cancel the show(s) if it rains?

 

[TDC Nala]

I don't know about the Pirate cruise, but they will cancel Jedi Academy in inclement weather. If they have kids already signed up, it appears they give them the opportunity to have a meet and greet with Darth Vader.

 

[jediagh]

I don't know about the Pirate cruise, but they will cancel Jedi Academy in inclement weather. If they have kids already signed up, it appears they give them the opportunity to have a meet and greet with Darth Vader.

Thanks now I'm on major super worried mode. *sigh*

 

[rgf207]

Thanks now I'm on major super worried mode. *sigh*

no sense in worrying over something you can't control.

 

[jediagh]

no sense in worrying over something you can't control.

True. We went 2 years ago same time frame and the weather was beautiful. Mid 80s to low 90s the entire stay and just one day of rain in the AM for about 2 hours. I know it's rainy/hurrican season right now and I can't control it. **sigh**

 

[lilipad]

I think it will all be ok. Take a deep breath and pour yourself an adult beverage of choice. We were there a couple weeks ago during the busy season. Just about every day, HS was a "not recommended" park. Jedi Academy was a must for our 7 yr old. We got there maybe 10 minutes before they opened. I took ds and headed straight to the sign up. We made the 10ish show. I think it was the 2nd show. It wasn't the horrible wait that I had envisioned. Granted, HS even on a neutral day, can seem very crowded but it's manageable. Keep in mind too that rain usually hits after lunch. If you have a smartphone or iPhone, just keep tabs on the hourly forcast and be prepared to change up your plans a little based on the forecast if necessary. It will be ok.

 

[dwfanatic]

We had our albatross cruise cancelled last August- there wasn't rain but there were thunder storms in the area. We were bummed, but DS was ok. They did open the sandcastle club and let DS and others play. We were fortunate to be able to reschedule. We were there for 12 days and the cruise was originally scheduled for the 3rd day. I hope you get on he cruise! It was lots of fun. My other DS did the cruise 10 years ago at the Grand Floridian and the one at beach club was a little better- my DS was so excited he got to go into the lake at EPCOT!!

 

[jediagh]

If you have a smartphone or iPhone, just keep tabs on the hourly forcast and be prepared to change up your plans a little based on the forecast if necessary. It will be ok.

--facepalm---
I totally forgot about using my smartphone for weather updates!
So focus on "it's going to rain **maybe** all day" that it went ove rmy head.

We had our albatross cruise cancelled last August- there wasn't rain but there were thunder storms in the area. We were bummed, but DS was ok. They did open the sandcastle club and let DS and others play. We were fortunate to be able to reschedule. We were there for 12 days and the cruise was originally scheduled for the 3rd day. I hope you get on he cruise! It was lots of fun. My other DS did the cruise 10 years ago at the Grand Floridian and the one at beach club was a little better- my DS was so excited he got to go into the lake at EPCOT!!

Well we do have FRI slated as a resort day as well so if they cancel us on WED perhaps I can get in on FRI. Hum... Do you think I should call now to do a reservation for FRI as well? It will conflict with our Ploynesian Resort Breakfast with Lilo & Stitch. But I would rather they do the private adventure than the breakfast.

 

[Jennifer S]

we just got back and our forcast had said the same thing and really it was not bad at all. Never rained for long when it did.

My son was signed up for Jedi Academy and it started pouring! Luckily it cleared up quickly and he was able to do it. They did tell us he could do the Meet and Greet if it was still raining.

If its a nice day sign up for the earliest you can - tends to get rain later in the day. If its already raining sign up for later so as maybe it will clear up

dont stress it probably wont be bad.

 

[jediagh]

If they do the meet & greet do they still get a certificate?
If they complete the training is there a certificate that is still given?

 

[gator girl]

Of even bigger concern is The Star Wars Jedi Academy! We have plans of going to Hollywood Studios on THRS, 09/06 and my DS really, really wants to "become a Jedi" so we plan on getting to the park 1.5 hours BEFORE they open and make the mad dash to get in line and begin the waiting and waiting.

I think you're getting to the park way too early. Your kids are going to be exhausted before the park even opens. Unless it's a major holiday or SWW about 30 minutes early should be plenty of time - mayyyyyybe 45 minutes. You're going on a very low crowd week. And, as I understand the process, there is no "waiting and waiting". You get in line with the kids, they sign you up for a specific Jedi show, and you're on your way until it's time to return for your show. You don't have to stand there all day until your showtime arrives. I've seen people comment that the entire process took about 10 minutes. That thread you are referencing is almost 2 years old & they have changed the way they handle signups.

As is repeated over & over on these boards, unless there is a major tropical system passing over Orlando, then a 60% chance of rain *does not* mean that it is going to rain on your family for 60% of your park touring time. It means that it will more than likely rain somewhere in the vicinity of the entire sprawling city and suburbs at some point during the day. AKA summer in Florida. That's the forecast every single day all summer long, unless there is a dry spell coming through, which would then be the unusual event, not the short daily shower which is expected by everyone who knows anything about Florida weather. So you might be at DHS and it rains for 10 minutes at Epcot and then boom it's done. Most of the time, the rain is in the afternoon, not the morning. I think panicky reservation reshuffling and obsessing over what-if's is overkill.

 

[jediagh]

Thanks Gator Girl and thus why I'm posting here and trying to stay calm.
This trip is my DS's second he was only 2 and 11 months when we went last time and this is "his trip" so I'm just trying to make it perfect. I know that at the end of the day a "tub with water" is just as much fun for him as being on a ride with pirates.

I never got the chance to do any of this as a kid so want to make sure he does that is all.

We have been practicing the 'waiting in line' (have a DS, DS Lite and smartphone for enterntainment) as well as me and him running to/from the start/end line so it may sound crazy but we are prepared for that even if we don't want to wait and wait anymore.

 

[TDC Nala]

It's Florida in September, it's going to rain. Probably not all day, but you need to expect rain. There really isn't any sense panicking. Perfection is unattainable. If he can't do Jedi Academy one day, come back and try again.

 

[PlutoTheDog89]

It's Florida. It's supposed to rain every day. It doesn't always.. when it does, it rains for an hour or two then gets humid all day.

 

[tzolkin]

I think you're getting to the park way too early. Your kids are going to be exhausted before the park even opens. Unless it's a major holiday or SWW about 30 minutes early should be plenty of time - mayyyyyybe 45 minutes. You're going on a very low crowd week. And, as I understand the process, there is no "waiting and waiting". You get in line with the kids, they sign you up for a specific Jedi show, and you're on your way until it's time to return for your show. You don't have to stand there all day until your showtime arrives. I've seen people comment that the entire process took about 10 minutes. That thread you are referencing is almost 2 years old & they have changed the way they handle signups.

Just wanted to second this. Both my younger kids wanted to do Jedi training. We got to the park about 1/2 an hour before the official opening time (they did start letting people in early, so we only waited in line by the turnstiles for maybe 15 minutes). We walked over to the sign up and both kids were in the first show. (This was a few weeks ago before everyone was back in school, so the park will be much less crowded when you go) If you're there around the time the park opens you will have absolutely no issue getting into a show that day.

As for the weather, we were just there for two weeks and it did rain every day. However, only twice were we ever out in any rain. Usually it rained when we were at the resort for an afternoon break and a few times at night. Just check the weather each day to get an idea of when it might rain. If that day is going to be hours of pouring rain, perhaps you could try HS another morning.

 

[jediagh]

Thanks for the advise on getting their way too early. Gives us more time for breakfast at the resort.

Another question. For the pirate adventure there is a 24 hour cancellation policy or else they charge you card on file. If they cancel (Disney that is) the day of the event I take it I don't get charged and/or get a refund to my card since I'm not the one cancelling the trip/appt but them (disney).

 

[lilipad]

Re the cancellation policy, you may want to firm that up w/Disney to avoid any gotchas.

I can so relate to the weather anxiety planning thing. We had rain forcasted the entire week we were there. Except for the last few days, if it rained, it did it after about 2pm or so. There were some bad storms our last few days. They both started earlier in the am and we were able to work around them. However, we waited until our departure day to go to Typhoon Lagoon to swim with the rays (the ONE thing my 7 yr old ds wanted to do). Well, we could buy the tickets if we wanted to but we were told that the lightening was going to be coming in around noon and that they would be closing the park in that case (which they did btw). There would be no refunds for us in that case. We opted not to go which left my 7 yr old incredibly heart broken. I still feel horrible about it. Poor guy. To compound it all, our return flight was cancelled at the last minute due to DFW weather. All I can recommend in these cases is a nice cool adult beverage and some flexiblity in your scheduling. Always have a plan B or C imo. I can't say the weather was bad, but I just wish we had been more flexible in our planning. That way we could have gone to the water park earlier in the week and spent the rainy day at one of the other parks. Lessons learned....

 

[tzolkin]

Thanks for the advise on getting their way too early. Gives us more time for breakfast at the resort.

Another question. For the pirate adventure there is a 24 hour cancellation policy or else they charge you card on file. If they cancel (Disney that is) the day of the event I take it I don't get charged and/or get a refund to my card since I'm not the one cancelling the trip/appt but them (disney).

My kids just did the Pirate Adventure at POR.

We signed them up at the concierge desk a few days before and were told that if they cancelled for weather related reasons we would not be charged.


Also, just FYI each parent paid at the marina desk while the kids were getting ready. You did not have to pay with the cc you had on file. They definitley don't charge you prior to the class, so you would not need to worry about getting a refund if the activity is cancelled.

 

[Marthasor]

You do not have to be at DHS 90 minutes prior to opening to get a spot for Jedi Training. We were just there this morning, got in line to sign up around 9:20 am and got a 2:20 pm spot. If it's raining, they will cancel and offer you a meet and greet with the characters. I'm not sure if they give you a certificate. It was raining so hard the last time we tried to do it, we couldn't even see the group as they walked over to the meet and greet area, so we never got to do it!

My son's Albatross cruise was cancelled on Monday morning due to inclement weather. They called me Sunday night to let me know, but I heard it is more typical to cancel morning of. I knew they were calling for heavy rain (TS Isaac was rolling up the gulf), so I did make a back-up reservation for tomorrow morning. Fingers crossed he'll get to go! We'll see how the weather holds up tomorrow.

Don't fret. These are things you can't control. I know your children really want to do these activities, but WDW offers plenty of fun alternatives should mother nature interfere!

 

[Marthasor]

You do not have to be at DHS 90 minutes prior to opening to get a spot for Jedi Training. We were just there this morning, got in line to sign up around 9:20 am and got a 2:20 pm spot. If it's raining, they will cancel and offer you a meet and greet with the characters. I'm not sure if they give you a certificate. It was raining so hard the last time we tried to do it, we couldn't even see the group as they walked over to the meet and greet area, so we never got to do it!

My son's Albatross cruise was cancelled on Monday morning due to inclement weather. They called me Sunday night to let me know, but I heard it is more typical to cancel morning of. I knew they were calling for heavy rain (TS Isaac was rolling up the gulf), so I did make a back-up reservation for tomorrow morning. Fingers crossed he'll get to go! We'll see how the weather holds up tomorrow.

Don't fret. These are things you can't control. I know your children really want to do these activities, but WDW offers plenty of fun alternatives should mother nature interfere!