Tell me your secrets for MK (please) to avoid lines!

[CourtasanSatine]

fast pass is power,plus single rider lines

 

[pavil]

I don't know if this is how FP should work but a CM told us (party of 9) that we should get FP for one ride with half of our tickets and use the other Half for FP on another ride. In effect we were holding two FP at the same time. The CM said that we could use the FP for the entire group on each ride. I didn't believe them but tried it anyway and we FP Big Thunder Moutain and Splash Mountain at the same time. It realy made things run alot smoother. I don't know how this would work in Peak Season as we went in early May and lines were minimal most of the time. But what the CM said worked for the rides that had decent sized lines.
The hint about using a fastpass in combination with a Kidswap works great as well.

 

[Disnurse2B]

Another vote for tourguidemike.com. I followed his plans and we literally walked on to every ride with no wait at all.

 

[MyGoofy26]

I'm guessing that skipping out on parades and fireworks will not be an option with such young kids. If you're planning on spending more than one day in MK, devote one day to catching the parades, and on the next day take advantage of shorter lines while the parades are going on.

Or, plan your AK day on a day that MK is open later. You can plan it out so that you can go to the hotel and swim, relax, or just freshen up after AK closes then head over to MK (assuming you have hoppers) to catch the parade and fireworks that night instead of on your MK day.

I'd say stay in Tomorrowland/Fanstasyland/Toontown since they all interconnect and you can hit more attractions without squeezing past the crowds lining up. It can be a pain in Frontierland during parades, but if you time it out right, and want to take advantage of SM and BTMRR at that time, you can get some cool views of the parades from the outside areas of SM. Kids love that, haha.

 

[familyfun]

We just got home today - we never had to wait more than 10 minutes to ride anything! We were able to get a new set of Fastpasses every 45 minutes. Sometimes we had as many as three sets at one time. Keep a close eye on the time a new one is allowed and go get one for a ride close by before you get on the next ride. I also recommend going early on a non-EMH day. We had ridden a lot by noon each day. We rode Buzz three times in a row without getting off by going early. It seems like a lot of people are staying out late and just can't make it for park opening. Work that Fastpass!

 

[Nora94]

When you enter the park, get a fast pass to whatever has a line that you want to go to. At the bottom of that fast pass it will say when you can get your next fast pass. So, say Peter Pan is the first fast pass, from 10:15 - 11:15, and it says you can get your next fast pass at 10:20. At 10:20 you be at the fast pass machine for the next ride you want to do, than go to the first ride right after. This way you are getting your fast pass before you ride instead of after.

Nora

 

[Nora94]

oh, and use kid swap if possible. Tara, our 46 inch almost 6 yr old, loved the rides that Elise, our 35 inch 2 1/2 yr old, couldn't go on. So, we would have one of us go on the ride, than teh other got to go right on with the child swap with Tara again. Tara got the ride 2 times in a matter of minutes so she got her "I wanna go again" fix and we were all happier.

Nora

 

[countingmomma]

I second that "abandon those plans for the EMH evenings"! What a mess! My advice - pray for rain about 10:15 pm. That clears out the people. Last Friday, we did Pooh, Small World, Peter Pan, Aladin, Tea Cups, and Dumbo in one hour after a similarly timed rain shower. Good luck! And take those mid-day breaks!

 

[whacked]

Yes, the passes are a one shot deal. Looking for it is not your best use of time, but would be fun for those of us who have been there a number of times.

1. Get to the park EARLY. At least 30-45 minutes before it opens. You can ride a lot in the first 90 minutes.

2. Get to the park EARLY. At least 30-45 minutes before it opens. You can ride a lot in the first 90 minutes.

3. Get to the park EARLY. At least 30-45 minutes before it opens. You can ride a lot in the first 90 minutes.

4. Repeat the above steps.

We ride more in the first two hours in a park than we ride the rest of the day.

 

[momdoc]

Thanks to everyone who helped give such great advice!! I really appreciate the time everyone took to answer my question and look forward to putting the advice to good use!! We pray for short lines and sunshine with a nice cool breeze, but will count on rain and long lines (after all it IS Florida in June and I am sure that Orlando has NEVER seen a cool breeze except the dead of winter). We look forward to a great trip anyhow

 

[poohkinandpiglet]

We have always used the touring plan found in the PassPorter's Guide to WDW. The nice thing about this touring plan is that it's printed on the back of the small park maps and it tells you what order to tackle the rides and even tells you which ride to get a fastpass for. I have used this touring plan in the crowded Summer months and also in November and we have always breeze thru the stuff we wanted to do.

 

[kikipug]

Just a note... don't believe everyone who says that the parks clear out when it rains... 3 inches of rain fell on MK on Friday, yet it didn't seem like a single person left the park! (neither did we)...

Our longest wait was for Pooh... however that was at the peak downpour of the day... so we happily stood in the covered line and waited out the worst of the weather while making our way through the line.

 

[LongIslandCouple]

As the evening parade passes through Fronteirland, there will be little to no wait for Splash Mountain or Big Thunder Mountain. Wait until the parade just is starting to enter Frontierland and then make your way through the crowd to these two rides. You shoudl be able to ride each of the 3 to 4 times during thsi window of opportunity.

 

[TheRustyScupper]

Our Methods:

1) Use Fast Pass as often as possible.
2) In lines, complain loudly to your family of your spreading skin rash.
3) Get to the parks early.
4) When you cough (loudly and often), explain it is only mildly contagious.
5) Don't use deodorant or perfume.

 

[mill4023]

Arrive 30 minutes before opening time.
Ride, ride, ride.
Have lunch.
Relax and tour leisurely for the rest of the day, using FP's as much as possible.

Every guidebook agrees that the first hour or two is the least crowded time of day. If possible, schedule two different mornings for MK so you can hit half the popular rides one day and half of them on the other day.

And subscribe to tourguidemike. It's no more expensive than a lot of guidebooks and if you aren't satisfied, you can get a refund.