Star Wars Weekend Tips 2012

[Karpkg]

Updated List:

3rd Wknd June 1-3
ajh88 6/1, 6/2, 6/3
audrey2580 6/1
cerberus 6/2
bjakmom 6/1, 6/2, 6/3
delmar411 6/1, 6/2
DisneyMom14 6/1, 6/3
d-r 6/1, 6/2, 6/3
emilyandethansmom
goofyredraider 6/2, 6/3
Hollywoodhaha(working at Darth Mall or Tatooine Traders, say hi to

Holly!)
ireland nicole
jar
jlovesee 6/2, 6/3
jollygreengirl 6/1, 6/2
Karpkg 6/1
MeggyK(KathleensKid) 6/2, 6/3
la la 6/3
lelei
LeslieLou
lovethattink 6/1, 6/2, 6/3
MarkinMA 6/1, 6/2
megan511 6/1, 6/2, 6/3
mesaboy 6/3
mmtska 6/1
MrsPook
ocalla 6/1
pandamom 6/1, 6/2
PIRATEGIRL007 6/1, 6/2
Roythe13th 6/1, 6/3
RedM94 6/1, 6/2, 6/3
Scouter88 6/2
thej 6/1, 6/2, 6/3
tigerdragon
Toystoryfan32 6/3
vleeth 6/2
vwaller72 6/2
yankeePrincess
yulilin3 6/2, 6/3

4th Wknd June 8-10
AdamLonghorn 6/8, 6/9, 6/10
ADisneyQueen 6/8
alala
Atchley 6/8, 6/10
bizeemom4 6/8, 6/10
buckeev 6/10
CarolynMink 6/10
cerberus 6/8, 6/10
Cinderumbrella 6/8, 6/9
cookieswithangel 6/8
disneymomma76 6/8, 6/10
d-r 6/8, 6/9, 6/10
Hanover
Hollywoodhaha(working at Darth Mall or Tatooine Traders, say hi to

Holly!)
ireland nicole 6/8
jacksonsmom 6/8, 6/10
Kathy Jetson 6/8
ladyjubilee 6/10
LeslieLou
liriel 6/10
lovethattink 6/8, 6/9, 6/10
love goofy 6/8
Maavernon 6/8
mmtska 6/8
mousenyc
Music City Mama 6/8
NWT 6/8, 6/9, 6/10
POLY1985 6/10
Poohbug 6/8, 6/10
RalphinSC 6/10
susanrose73 6/8
texasteacher35
tigerdragon
tink70 6/9
TrixieLouMagoo 6/8
undertheseas 6/8
VeganCupcake
vwaller72 6/8
wdwfanatic80 6/9, 6/10
wdwnut61 6/8, 6/9, 6/10
yulilin3 6/9, 6/10
39CINDERELLA 6/8, 6/9, 6/10

 

[yulilin3]

Sorry if this was posted already. I kept up with the thread so long until recently. How are the lines for Darth Mall this past weekend? I'm heading to SWW this Friday the 1st or Sunday the 3rd. I'm interested to see what is there and really want the Chewbacca lanyard. I thought it was more a regular item for the SWW but now I guess its more a limited edition item?

I'm not interested in autographs. Mainly just want to check out the atmosphere, ride Star Tours with other Star Wars fans, maybe a photo with some of the roaming characters and check out the mall. Is there ever a time where the mall is just a walk in?

There are practically no lines to get inside anymore, that was a day one thing...reports do say that the Chewabacca lanyard is sold out...you could always ask.

I've been reading thru this thread most of the day and really appreciate all the great info. We're heading down next weekend so I'm copying all these great tips into a document to print and take with so I don't forget it all. I have a couple questions tho.

I saw that the characters start appearing at Darth Mall around 9-9:30 each morning and you can get pictures with them. How long do they stay? And do they sign autographs?

I also saw a few references to the Jawas trading with park guests. Are they trading pins or something else?

Thanks so much.

Rotating characters usually rotate every 20 to 30min. Luke and Leia sign, the droids don't. The Jawas are around the Premiere Theater and it depends what you give them...for example my daughter traded a DHS map and they gave her beads...I saw one person give them a pina nd they got a keychain...I've heard of people recieving fp's from Jawas.

 

[crusoe2]

Roaming characters usually rotate every 20 to 30min. Luke and Leia sign, the droids don't. The Jawas are around the Premiere Theater and it depends what you give them...for example my daughter traded a DHS map and they gave her beads...I saw one person give them a pina nd they got a keychain...I've heard of people recieving fp's from Jawas.

Thanks for the info. That is so cool about the Jawas. We've been to SWW about 3 times and I never knew that. I'll be sure to take some small items for my kids to trade.

One more question - do the characters keep appearing at Darth Mall till closing time? Last year I didn't make it down to the merchandise store till late in the day. I was in there for quite awhile and I don't remember seeing any of the characters come in for photos. I'm wondering if they stop at some point earlier in the day or if I just didn't notice when they came in.

 

[VeganCupcake]

Karpkg- thank you for posting the face painting pictures! I may have to get the Ahsoka paint myself! We're going the 8th, 9th, and 10th. So so sooo excited!
And yulilin3- thanks for all the tips as always!

 

[CentralFloridian99]

There are practically no lines to get inside anymore, that was a day one thing...reports do say that the Chewabacca lanyard is sold out...you could always ask.

The lanyard is going CRAZY on eBay! I believe it sold out on Day 1.

 

[Music City Mama]

You can get the face painting anytime at DHS-it is not exclusive to SWW. The paint is not that hard to get off. In fact, if you are hot and sweaty, it is going to come off pretty quick when you wipe your face. Get the pics you want as soon as possible before it gets messed up.

Your kids look adorable! (on second thought, not sure if adorable is the right adjective when talking about Darth Maul, but you you know I mean).

I have to say it was tougher than I hoped. MH was done with it by lunch time - she'd had it painted on early that morning around 8 and by PMC she wanted it off. I tried to hold her off, but she couldn't stand it itching. I took her to a restroom and with just water it only smeared around. I was too afraid to try using soap and it getting in her eyes.

Water only doesn't work so hot, it did come off easily in the bath tub with her regular childen's wash pretty easily.

The couple of spots that got on her white shirt from earlier in the day came out without issue in the laundry.

Thanks for the info. I have a feeling my boys will want it, but I worry about being hot/sweaty and it starting to "melt" and not looking too good and DS5 touching his face a lot because he gets itchy (so smearing it around and then having it all over his hands). Good to know it comes out of clothes easily in the wash, though. Oh well, I guess I'll just go with the flow and see when we get there.

Another question. I remember reading that the first weekend (at least that Friday) that both PMCs were Clone Wars. Have they changed that (i.e., the 6:30 one is movie-related)?

 

[lovethattink]

The little SW buttons are just about sold out too.

 

[CentralFloridian99]

The little SW buttons are just about sold out too.

Really? They had a bunch a week ago.

 

[tigerdragon]

Thanks for the info. That is so cool about the Jawas. We've been to SWW about 3 times and I never knew that. I'll be sure to take some small items for my kids to trade.

We were at SWW a few years ago right after my DD turned 1 and she was sitting in her stroller with some Cheerios on the tray. A Jawa came up to her and took one of her Cheerios and gave her a coin. She was scared of him but my DS thought it was the coolest thing ever.

Another question. I remember reading that the first weekend (at least that Friday) that both PMCs were Clone Wars. Have they changed that (i.e., the 6:30 one is movie-related)?

I'm still curious about this too. My DS only wants to do it if they are doing something besides Clone Wars. He's seen the shows but would rather have questions about the movies.

 

[Jozymouse]

Hello!

We attended the 2 first weekends and here are a few tips :

Everyday, the park opened at 7:30am.

Darth Mall:
We arrived on Friday May 18 at around 1pm. There was no line to get into Darth Mall BUT a 45 minute wait to get in line for the exclusive merchandise . While my DH was waiting in line for the excl. merchandise i was able to meet Luke and then got back in line and got R2D2, Princess Leia and C3PO all together!!! I wasnt aware that C3PO could talk and interact with guests! HOW COOL!

On a few other occasions, we went to Darth Maul and we never waited to get in so that was cool, it was always in the afternoon/evening.

Characters!!!!!

The only character that was out at opening (7:30am) was Darth Vader. At 7:45am we waited less than 10 minutes to meet him

The Fab 4 started their set at 9:30am and Jedi Mickey was always the first one out. Then it was Minnie, then Mickey, then Minnie then at 11:40 Donald AND Goofy came out together. I was also told that Mickey and Minnie came out together at 3pm. But you should always check with a cast member since they have a specific schedule. Everything worked out great by getting in line about 20 minutes before the scheduled appearance of the character we wanted to see. Also, alot of people would let people go by to wait for a specific character.

We found that most of the roaming characters (except for the Storm and Clone Troopers) were only found during the afternoon. One Jawa was out at 3:45 every day near Lights Motors action and we had brought some stuff to trade and it was fun. Aura Sing, the tusken raiders, Gamorrean guard were also out after 2pm. We catched the cantina band a few times throughout the day so these guys were quite easy to find.

Chewbacca is alone in the morning and WITH an ewok all afternoon! They dont rotate! They meet together! Meeting them was BY FAR the best part of the trip for me! I had a Chewy t-shirt and an ewok stuffie and both characters were SO excited!!!!!!! They closed the line at 2pm and reopened at 3pm so we got in line at 2:30 and waited less than 40 minutes. We saw 3 different ewoks (color) throughtout our stay.

There was also alot of characters rotating (a Clone wars line- Ventress, Ashoka, Capt Rex, Cody) and a Jedi line(Anakin, Kit Fisto and a girl with horns), and a line just for the Queen.

Bobba Fett started at 10am and alternated with Jango. We got in line at 9:30 and got Bobba. Then went back in line to get Jango.

SW Parade
We saw it once on weekend one and once on weekend two and the characters were QUITE different! So if you get the chance to catch it more than once you might get a nice surprise. On weekend one, we got ALOT of ewoks, snow troopers, characters from the cantina scene and on weekend two there was the HUGE wookiee with dreads (dont know his name), less ewoks, more characters from Clone wars etc. SO COOL to see that HUGE wookiee!!!!! We got a spot for the parade one hour ahead on weekend one and were in the first row and 30 minutes ahead on weekend 2 and were in the second row but the people in front were sitting so we had a perfect view. We were in the sun both times. The few shaded spots were taken like 2 hours ahead.

Rides :
Since most characters only started at 9 :30-10am, we were able to enjoy the rides in the morning. We rode Toy Story about 6 times each morning with NO wait. Then we would ride Aerosmith, ToT, Star Tours. Then we would grab a couple of fast passes for the afternoon so we were all set for the day.

Enjoy the SWW! I know we did!!! SOOOOO MUCH!!!!!!

 

[cerberus]

Thanks Jozymouse for the report!!

 

[baler31]

Sure this has been asked many times before but have looked thru the thread and cannot find the locations for the characters. Looking for:

Darth Vader
Darth Maul
Fab 4
Bounty Hunters

Thanks again.

 

[jacksonsmom]

arriving in 10 days! Looking forward to SWW again!

I just want to ask your opinion, we will be staying at AKV and going to DHS for June 8. We definitely want to get in line before the park opens. We are not interested in celebrities but want to be very close to the front of the line.

We have no problem getting to the bus stop early (like 6:30) but will buses be running that early? Or would it be better to take a cab over to Studios?

We switch resorts on June 9th and will be staying at Boardwalk so on the 10th we plan to just walk over to Studios for the opening. But I am wondering what to do on the 8th?

Bus or cab from AKV?
What would you do?

 

[sammatt]

arriving in 10 days! Looking forward to SWW again!

I just want to ask your opinion, we will be staying at AKV and going to DHS for June 8. We definitely want to get in line before the park opens. We are not interested in celebrities but want to be very close to the front of the line.

We have no problem getting to the bus stop early (like 6:30) but will buses be running that early? Or would it be better to take a cab over to Studios?

We switch resorts on June 9th and will be staying at Boardwalk so on the 10th we plan to just walk over to Studios for the opening. But I am wondering what to do on the 8th?

Bus or cab from AKV?
What would you do?

I'm wondering the same thing from All Star Sports. It seems like a 7am bus is pushing it, but 6:30 would work. Hmmm...

 

[evcollins]

Many, many thanks to all the dissers and your expertise!! Because of your advice, tips and tricks, we had a fantastic first-timers experience this past Saturday!! After MONTHS of trying to put a TP together for us, we accomplished just about everything and I wanted to share with you 3rd and
4th weekenders how ours went. Apolgies in advance if it's too long, but I have learned through these boards that too much information is always appreciated (at least for me)!!

Arrived 7:00am (one couple in front of us; kids stepped back to watch Stormtroopers on the roof)
Me and Kiddos - Speed walk to Jedi Training, got 9:15am
" " - Rode Star Tours while waiting for DH (it's now 8:07am)
DH - FP for TSMM
Rode Star Tours (x2)
FP for TSMM (11:30-12:30 return time)
Rode FP TSMM
Head over to Jedi Training (15 min. early)
Rode Star Tours
9:15am Jedi Training (no particular order for picking who fights who. DD8 fought Vader and about froze (lol) DS7 fought Darth Maul) received certificate
Rode Star Tours (15 min. wait)
10:15am Watched Indiana Jones Stunt Show
Meet Luke Skywalker (who sent them on mission) and Stormtrooper
11:00am Watched Lights, Motor, Action
DH and Kiddos - Rode FP TSMM
Me - FP Rock-n-Roller Coaster
12:20pm Find parade spot while DH/Kiddos on TSMM
(I did not get on Hollywood Blvd. It was packed and HOT! Looking at the hat, we were off the parade route to the left in front of the little gray cart. Some of the characters walk off to the left, main characters walk to stage and celebrity motorcade veers off in front of us. We saw everyone, so it wasn't a problem not seeing them all on stage!!)
1:20pm ADR for Sci-Fi (great in air conditioning, quiet and calm. I think everyone in there was just tired and glad to be in the dark, relaxing in A/C)
This is where DH and the boys split from me and DD. An hour and 45 minutes to kill before our FP for RNR. Boys decided to character meet. DD wanted to see Little Mermaid.
During the hour and 45 minutes, boys met Boba Fett, Darth Maul, Pig guy
(??lol), Sandpeople of Naboo, Bounty Hunter, Stormtroopers (again), Luke Skywalker (again, they were waiting for Ashoka and switched right when they came up, but he recognized them and told them their mission was complete!)
(FYI, Ashoka, Luke, Commander Cody and Captain Rex rotate)
DD and I met Queen Amidala (20 min. wait)
Watched Little Mermaid (15 min. wait)
Shopped at Star Tours gift shop and boys made their own droids. Wait wasn't long for making the droids; however, them actually making them with so many choices took forever!!)
Rode FP RnR
5:45pm Watched Beauty and the Beast
Took family picture with Photopass in front of hat and headed out!

Note, I had the TP ready to go so we knew where to head and also relax and little and follow the kiddos lead. We did not plan a mid-day break because there was so much to do and the kids were doing fine with the heat. They all carried their own mesh backpacks with their Sharpie, book, water bottle and five snacks. I carried my backpack with first-aid kit, wipes, santizer, panchos, small wallet, snacks and water bottle; camera in seperate small bag. DH carried a soft-sided cooler with 7 water bottles. Everyone did great. We weren't planning on staying for Hoopla because I knew they would be exhausted. If I felt they could have kept going, we planned on dinner at Backlot Express, rest in the Animation Building and then line up for Hoopla.

I hope this helps! We had a great time and the kids were troopers. I feel that we sat and rested just as much as we walked around. I put the kids in the shade as much as possible when standing around for M&G or in line for something. No one wanted to ride TOT so we never grabbed an FP. If so, I would have grabbed the FP before going into Little Mermaid.

Thanks again, everyone! This TP worked quite well for us. I wasn't sure if we were going to be able to do it all as I had it planned, but we accomplished everything I was hoping for and then some!!


ec

 

[Jozymouse]

I know that the boats from the EPCOT resorts only started at 7:30am. Maybe the same for the buses?

We had a car and were staying offsite and we never paid parking since their was no parking attendant at the small parking gate at HS at 7am, their was a sign saying to "proceed to the parking lot". Saved us a bit of money!!!!

 

[audrey2580]

evcollins - great mini report thanks!!

 

[aiminator]

I attended SWW yesterday Sun 5/27. I arrived at 11am for an ADR at 50s Prime Time - they did an excellent job of checking us in and getting us out in a reasonable amount of time. Ran over to Star Tours at noon to get a fast pass - which had a return time of 1:20pm. The line for Chewbacca photo spot closed at 12pm so he could get ready for the parade and the CM said he would be back at 1:50pm. By the time 1:50 rolled around the line was about 40+ people deep. Amidala's line moved quickly - probably only 15 people in line to see her around noon.

Storm Troopers wandered the park. One Storm Trooper came right at me and I ducked haha he was quite intimidating!! But he wouldn't stop for a photo with my boyfriend but they seemed to stop for most children. Storm Trooper kept walking away to avoid the photo hahaha. It was pretty funny. I got a pic of him walking away and my bf following him. Quite comical.

Got a FP for Rock n Rollercoaster at 1:20pm with a FP return of 6:30pm. Backlot tour only had a 5-10min wait. Same with Muppets. Standing room only at the Indiana Jones Stunt Show.

I didn't get the sense that HS was overly packed at late morning/mid-afternoon. I was able to move around quite freely.

 

[CentralFloridian99]

Sure this has been asked many times before but have looked thru the thread and cannot find the locations for the characters. Looking for:

Darth Vader
Darth Maul
Fab 4
Bounty Hunters

Thanks again.

Vader- To the left of the Backlot Tour
Maul- To the right of the Backlot Tour
Fab 4- To the left of The Great Movie Ride
Bounty Hunters- Roaming around Streets of America, the Fetts are right before Pixar Place

 

[baler31]

Vader- To the left of the Backlot Tour
Maul- To the right of the Backlot Tour
Fab 4- To the left of The Great Movie Ride
Bounty Hunters- Roaming around Streets of America, the Fetts are right before Pixar Place

Thank you, appreciate the help.