Star Wars Weekend Tips 2012

[Robin Hood]

yulilin and MesaBoy thanks for the help!

So is it recommended to get in line for TSM instead of a fastpass at park opening? I haven't been since they started enforcing the fastpass time. So It looks like my day would be something like this.

1. Arrive early
2. Ride TSM
3. Grab FP for ST
4. Line up for Vader
5. Line up for Fab 4
6. Wait for Parade (starts at 12:40, find shady spot at 11:15)
7. Ride ST while one person saves spots for parade
8. Eat Lunch while waiting for Parade
9. Fab 4 line in case we don't have time in the morning
10. Darth's Mall
11. Finish up any rides we miss.

 

[yulilin3]

yulilin and MesaBoy thanks for the help!

So is it recommended to get in line for TSM instead of a fastpass at park opening? I haven't been since they started enforcing the fastpass time. So It looks like my day would be something like this.

1. Arrive early
2. Ride TSM
3. Grab FP for ST
4. Line up for Vader
5. Line up for Fab 4
6. Wait for Parade (starts at 12:40, find shady spot at 11:15)
7. Ride ST while one person saves spots for parade
8. Eat Lunch while waiting for Parade
9. Fab 4 line in case we don't have time in the morning
10. Darth's Mall
11. Finish up any rides we miss.

It sounds good to me...the reason why I think riding TSM first thing is that lines for the ride are non-existent until maybe around 9 am, this way you could ride TSM and maybe even have a chance to ride ST before meeting any characters...get as much done as possible before the parade, then you can take it easy and beat the heat after the parade.

 

[lovethattink]

The photopass website will have about 3-4 different Star Wars Weekend borders though that I've used. If you don't have a photopass account and are curious, look in the photopass store on HS main street to check them out.

Yes! The borders are great!

I'm not getting any bonus pictures showing on my account though, except for Buzz and Woody pics. I was hoping for some SWW bonus pics! Has anyone else checked theirs?

 

[mesaboy2]

Okay, I've pretty much been through this whole thread and I can't remember if this particular question has been asked, which I'm a little embarrassed to ask as I consider myself a bit of a character hound.

Isn't Vader available year-round? If so, where and does he only take pictures or does he also sign? I want to say he does but only takes pictures....

I'm a fairly regular visitor who wants a picture with Vader, but don't care about the John Hancock. Should I bother blowing 60 minutes of my one SWW day to get a pic with him?

Thanks!

 

[yulilin3]

Okay, I've pretty much been through this whole thread and I can't remember if this particular question has been asked, which I'm a little embarrassed to ask as I consider myself a bit of a character hound.

Isn't Vader available year-round? If so, where and does he only take pictures or does he also sign? I want to say he does but only takes pictures....

I'm a fairly regular visitor who wants a picture with Vader, but don't care about the John Hancock. Should I bother blowing 60 minutes of my one SWW day to get a pic with him?

Thanks!

He's not a set character that always comes out...sometimes, during busy season he'll come out next to the Star Tours area, sometimes Stormrtoopers come out as well, but it's not a sure thing

 

[csmommy]

Okay, I've pretty much been through this whole thread and I can't remember if this particular question has been asked, which I'm a little embarrassed to ask as I consider myself a bit of a character hound.

Isn't Vader available year-round? If so, where and does he only take pictures or does he also sign? I want to say he does but only takes pictures....

I'm a fairly regular visitor who wants a picture with Vader, but don't care about the John Hancock. Should I bother blowing 60 minutes of my one SWW day to get a pic with him?

Thanks!

We have seen him around ST various trips when it is not SWW.

 

[mesaboy2]

He's not a set character that always comes out...sometimes, during busy season he'll come out next to the Star Tours area, sometimes Stormrtoopers come out as well, but it's not a sure thing

Gotcha, thanks. I guess I'll brave him on SWW then. Queue length will be a huge factor though. Any indication that hitting him up at the very end of the day might result in a shorter wait?

We have seen him around ST various trips when it is not SWW.

Thanks to you also!

 

[yulilin3]

Gotcha, thanks. I guess I'll brave him on SWW then. Queue length will be a huge factor though. Any indication that hitting him up at the very end of the day might result in a shorter wait?



Thanks to you also!

I'll swing by character lines this coming Saturday, I'll do it late and report back.

 

[csmommy]

Are there different prices for the R2D2 guy? I have seen it online with drinks like milkshakes & frozen lemonade, I have also seen pictures with churros & kids meal/snacks.

 

[Karpkg]

Yes! The borders are great!

I'm not getting any bonus pictures showing on my account though, except for Buzz and Woody pics. I was hoping for some SWW bonus pics! Has anyone else checked theirs?

There aren't any star wars bonus characters, only the regular characters that are triggered when you take certain characters at their locations.

Last year I attempted to get the photopass photographers to take pics of the characters alone for us but was told when it comes to George Lucas' characters those pics are then considered merchandise saleable (postcard or posters) and are subject to copyright sale, and Photopass would be in violation of merchandise agreement. But once people enter the picture Lucas hands those rights off to Disney and Disney can do whatever they like. I was like, umm, oops, didn't know that! I was allowed though to use our own cameras to take pics of the SW characters themselves.

 

[Karpkg]

yulilin and MesaBoy thanks for the help!

So is it recommended to get in line for TSM instead of a fastpass at park opening? I haven't been since they started enforcing the fastpass time. So It looks like my day would be something like this.

1. Arrive early
2. Ride TSM
3. Grab FP for ST
4. Line up for Vader
5. Line up for Fab 4
6. Wait for Parade (starts at 12:40, find shady spot at 11:15)
7. Ride ST while one person saves spots for parade
8. Eat Lunch while waiting for Parade
9. Fab 4 line in case we don't have time in the morning
10. Darth's Mall
11. Finish up any rides we miss.

I'd switch up 3 and 4. You'd be closer to Vader right after you ride TSM. Then on your way to Fab 4 grab the FP for ST. Check the FP time for ST; you may find yourself with a short FP time turnaround and decide to get it later.

I haven't found Star Tours to have bad lines in the afternoon, even with SWW.

 

[Karpkg]

Maybe a dumb question, but is the Darth Mall located inside of the park? A pic I saw of it on allearsnet looked like it was in a parking lot.

It actually is the CM's parking lot. Those gates are normally closed during regular park hours.

They used to have the merchandise tent inside the park but it got way crowded. I like it this way better, the tent is spacious and brings the star wars people to the other side of the park, not completely congesting the star tours area.

 

[tidwelhm]

We just returned from our very first trip to Disney and the SWW weekends. I feel like it was a successful trip. Here are a few of my notes.

We went to the studios on Thursday when it was less crowded and enjoyed Star Tours, TSM, the Animation Academy drawing class, Jedi Training, etc. There were hardly any lines and it was a great day. We also scoped out where we thought characters may be.

We skipped Friday and went back to the studio on Saturday and Sunday for SWW. We arrived at 7:30 both days because we didn't want any celeb autographs. On Saturday there was nobody collecting money at the parking lot entrance, so we parked for free. On Sunday there was.

The park was open when we arrived and I took the kids straight to the Jedi Training to get signed-up (they wanted to do it again.) We got a 10:45 show time. My husband went and got fast passes for TSM while we were in line for the training. He tried to sign the boys up for the mind challenge after getting the passes, but was told the boys needed to be with him.

After riding star tours a couple of times, we got in the line for Chewy. This was around 8:30. They said he would be out at 9:00, but didn't come out until 9:30. This was our best decision. Later in the day, his line was 3 hours long at one point. Because of his costume, he only stays out for a short time before needing a break.

The Fab 4 start autographs at 9. Darth starts at 9:30, and the others (Anakin, Kit Fisto, etc.) started at 9:45. Lines were shortest in the morning. After 11:30, they seemed to be incredibly busy. That is besides Bobo and Janga Fett. There line actually seemed to be shorter in the late afternoon.

My son was asked to be in the parade. We were walking near the Animation Academy around 10am and a nice women stopped him. She had a blue/white striped shirt on. The parade didn't start until 12:40, but the kids had to be there by 12:10. One parent walked with him and the other was given a ticket for a reserved area to watch the parade. (If you get to go to the reserved area, get there early-- it's right next to the hat stage on the left side if you're facing the entrance.) No cameras were allowed backstage while waiting for the parade. The kids are at the beginning of the parade and then have a front row seat (on the ground) in front of the stage to finish watching it. The characters seemed to give them a lot of attention.

Characters stopped signing around 11:30 to get ready for the parade. Some didn't start signing again until 2:45. Darth starts right after the parade. If you don't care about the parade, wait in his line during the parade and you will get him quickly.

Sunday seemed much more crowded than Saturday.

 

[Karpkg]

We just returned from our very first trip to Disney and the SWW weekends. I feel like it was a successful trip. Here are a few of my notes.

We went to the studios on Thursday when it was less crowded and enjoyed Star Tours, TSM, the Animation Academy drawing class, Jedi Training, etc. There were hardly any lines and it was a great day. We also scoped out where we thought characters may be.

We skipped Friday and went back to the studio on Saturday and Sunday for SWW. We arrived at 7:30 both days because we didn't want any celeb autographs. On Saturday there was nobody collecting money at the parking lot entrance, so we parked for free. On Sunday there was.

The park was open when we arrived and I took the kids straight to the Jedi Training to get signed-up (they wanted to do it again.) We got a 10:45 show time. My husband went and got fast passes for TSM while we were in line for the training. He tried to sign the boys up for the mind challenge after getting the passes, but was told the boys needed to be with him.

After riding star tours a couple of times, we got in the line for Chewy. This was around 8:30. They said he would be out at 9:00, but didn't come out until 9:30. This was our best decision. Later in the day, his line was 3 hours long at one point. Because of his costume, he only stays out for a short time before needing a break.

The Fab 4 start autographs at 9. Darth starts at 9:30, and the others (Anakin, Kit Fisto, etc.) started at 9:45. Lines were shortest in the morning. After 11:30, they seemed to be incredibly busy. That is besides Bobo and Janga Fett. There line actually seemed to be shorter in the late afternoon.

My son was asked to be in the parade. We were walking near the Animation Academy around 10am and a nice women stopped him. She had a blue/white striped shirt on. The parade didn't start until 12:40, but the kids had to be there by 12:10. One parent walked with him and the other was given a ticket for a reserved area to watch the parade. (If you get to go to the reserved area, get there early-- it's right next to the hat stage on the left side if you're facing the entrance.) No cameras were allowed backstage while waiting for the parade. The kids are at the beginning of the parade and then have a front row seat (on the ground) in front of the stage to finish watching it. The characters seemed to give them a lot of attention.

Characters stopped signing around 11:30 to get ready for the parade. Some didn't start signing again until 2:45. Darth starts right after the parade. If you don't care about the parade, wait in his line during the parade and you will get him quickly.

Sunday seemed much more crowded than Saturday.

Chock full of excellent advice and observances. Didn't know you had to have the child with you for PMC. Trying to get a feel of character lines if you aren't in line already in the morning. I do think that if one isn't able to get them early in the morning then the next bet is getting them soon after the parade.

 

[mesaboy2]

I'll swing by character lines this coming Saturday, I'll do it late and report back.

Only if it doesn't inconvenience you--thanks!

And based on tidwelhm's post above, I may consider getting in line during the parade. (Gasp!)

 

[Karpkg]

For those who've done JTA during SWW was Darth Maul equally exchanging out with Ventress? I'm debating doing the JTA run; each time we've done this it's always fighting Ventress and I would love to get pics of the kids with Darth Maul.

 

[Cinderumbrella]

We just returned from our very first trip to Disney and the SWW weekends. I feel like it was a successful trip. Here are a few of my notes.

We went to the studios on Thursday when it was less crowded and enjoyed Star Tours, TSM, the Animation Academy drawing class, Jedi Training, etc. There were hardly any lines and it was a great day. We also scoped out where we thought characters may be.

We skipped Friday and went back to the studio on Saturday and Sunday for SWW. We arrived at 7:30 both days because we didn't want any celeb autographs. On Saturday there was nobody collecting money at the parking lot entrance, so we parked for free. On Sunday there was.

The park was open when we arrived and I took the kids straight to the Jedi Training to get signed-up (they wanted to do it again.) We got a 10:45 show time. My husband went and got fast passes for TSM while we were in line for the training. He tried to sign the boys up for the mind challenge after getting the passes, but was told the boys needed to be with him.

After riding star tours a couple of times, we got in the line for Chewy. This was around 8:30. They said he would be out at 9:00, but didn't come out until 9:30. This was our best decision. Later in the day, his line was 3 hours long at one point. Because of his costume, he only stays out for a short time before needing a break.

The Fab 4 start autographs at 9. Darth starts at 9:30, and the others (Anakin, Kit Fisto, etc.) started at 9:45. Lines were shortest in the morning. After 11:30, they seemed to be incredibly busy. That is besides Bobo and Janga Fett. There line actually seemed to be shorter in the late afternoon.

My son was asked to be in the parade. We were walking near the Animation Academy around 10am and a nice women stopped him. She had a blue/white striped shirt on. The parade didn't start until 12:40, but the kids had to be there by 12:10. One parent walked with him and the other was given a ticket for a reserved area to watch the parade. (If you get to go to the reserved area, get there early-- it's right next to the hat stage on the left side if you're facing the entrance.) No cameras were allowed backstage while waiting for the parade. The kids are at the beginning of the parade and then have a front row seat (on the ground) in front of the stage to finish watching it. The characters seemed to give them a lot of attention.

Characters stopped signing around 11:30 to get ready for the parade. Some didn't start signing again until 2:45. Darth starts right after the parade. If you don't care about the parade, wait in his line during the parade and you will get him quickly.

Sunday seemed much more crowded than Saturday.

Thanks for your review!! I have been going back and forth about which line to jump into (Vader vs Chewy) after riding a couple of things at opening and I think I will start with Chewy and then hop in the Vader line before the parade, since we don't care to see it again.

 

[neffernie]

Hi everybody. I need opinions. We are heading there this Sunday and due to some friends joining us, I need to change our ADR time for dinner to add them to the party. Doing this will cause us to miss one of the shows we had planned (only times left at the restaurant).

So...would you skip Stars of the Saga or a Trip to the Maul?

 

[emokid9963]

Quick question, will Ray Park or other quests, sign like action figures. I found this great Darth Maul one, and I really hope he could sign it. The reason I ask is because I don't want to bring it and risk breaking it, if he won't sign in. Thanks for any answers

 

[yulilin3]

We just returned from our very first trip to Disney and the SWW weekends. I feel like it was a successful trip. Here are a few of my notes.

We went to the studios on Thursday when it was less crowded and enjoyed Star Tours, TSM, the Animation Academy drawing class, Jedi Training, etc. There were hardly any lines and it was a great day. We also scoped out where we thought characters may be.

We skipped Friday and went back to the studio on Saturday and Sunday for SWW. We arrived at 7:30 both days because we didn't want any celeb autographs. On Saturday there was nobody collecting money at the parking lot entrance, so we parked for free. On Sunday there was.

The park was open when we arrived and I took the kids straight to the Jedi Training to get signed-up (they wanted to do it again.) We got a 10:45 show time. My husband went and got fast passes for TSM while we were in line for the training. He tried to sign the boys up for the mind challenge after getting the passes, but was told the boys needed to be with him.

After riding star tours a couple of times, we got in the line for Chewy. This was around 8:30. They said he would be out at 9:00, but didn't come out until 9:30. This was our best decision. Later in the day, his line was 3 hours long at one point. Because of his costume, he only stays out for a short time before needing a break.

The Fab 4 start autographs at 9. Darth starts at 9:30, and the others (Anakin, Kit Fisto, etc.) started at 9:45. Lines were shortest in the morning. After 11:30, they seemed to be incredibly busy. That is besides Bobo and Janga Fett. There line actually seemed to be shorter in the late afternoon.

My son was asked to be in the parade. We were walking near the Animation Academy around 10am and a nice women stopped him. She had a blue/white striped shirt on. The parade didn't start until 12:40, but the kids had to be there by 12:10. One parent walked with him and the other was given a ticket for a reserved area to watch the parade. (If you get to go to the reserved area, get there early-- it's right next to the hat stage on the left side if you're facing the entrance.) No cameras were allowed backstage while waiting for the parade. The kids are at the beginning of the parade and then have a front row seat (on the ground) in front of the stage to finish watching it. The characters seemed to give them a lot of attention.

Characters stopped signing around 11:30 to get ready for the parade. Some didn't start signing again until 2:45. Darth starts right after the parade. If you don't care about the parade, wait in his line during the parade and you will get him quickly.

Sunday seemed much more crowded than Saturday.

Great report...so glad you got to do so much and great having your kid picked for the parade.

Hi everybody. I need opinions. We are heading there this Sunday and due to some friends joining us, I need to change our ADR time for dinner to add them to the party. Doing this will cause us to miss one of the shows we had planned (only times left at the restaurant).

So...would you skip Stars of the Saga or a Trip to the Maul?

This is a personal choice, are you interested in learning more about the SW movies and the actors who played the different characters and their experiences then go to Stars of the Saga...if you're more interested in how Darth Maul got his moves, then go to Visit to the Maul.

Quick question, will Ray Park or other quests, sign like action figures. I found this great Darth Maul one, and I really hope he could sign it. The reason I ask is because I don't want to bring it and risk breaking it, if he won't sign in. Thanks for any answers

He will sign it, he's great with signing everything...al celebrities have been fine with signing alot of diferent items...the exception being Anthony Daniel who only signed his B&W photo.