Tusker House 8:15am or 10:15am Pros/Cons

[MC0810]

I made a reservation for Tusker House for 8:15am and 10:15am. Looking for the pros/cons of either time and if anyone has done it before?

I thought the 8:15 would be good to get there before its crowded, but the 10:15 would be good to use as a "brunch"

thoughts needed

 

[catne]

do you ride Ex. Everest first thing when the park opens? Or the K. Safari...or Dinosaur? Or any of the fast/spinner/extra bumpy rides? If so, would not have a big buffet breakfast right before getting on these rides I'd do the wild & bumpy rides first, then go to breakfast.

If you don't do the bumpy rides, then go with the early breakfast.

 

[MC0810]

we have a 3 year old so we would be doing the safari

 

[Cinderumbrella]

That's a tough call. This year, we have an 8am so we can get out at rope drop and ride till it gets too hot.

Normally, we take the 10:20 am, arrive by rope drop and hit EE a few times, plus Dinosaur and Primeval whirl, then grab a FP for the safari before eating.

Seeing all the characters isn't a priority for us. So if your little one will need to see them all and you are worried about missing rope drop, then I would keep the 10:15am so you can do some stuff before eating.

 

[quinnc19]

I would take the 8:15 in a heartbeat. I love being in the parks before they open. AK is so peaceful before it gets crowded!

 

[momtoejanda]

I would take the 8:15 in a heartbeat. I love being in the parks before they open. AK is so peaceful before it gets crowded!

ditto....while you are eating you can send DH out to get FP for the safari since it is so close. Then you can go ride it after you finish breakfast.

 

[nealsmith]

We had a reservation at 8:00 the last time. It was nice being in the park before it opens.

I have a question though. This year I book Tusker House at 9:20. Does anyone know if they would let us in through the dinning reservation line before 9?

 

[mjp12831]

It's a no brainer - 10:15 - we've done it and are doing it again this year.

You want to be able to get on rides and attractions the first hours of the park open - by mid morning the late risers are coming and you get a break going to eat.

Is it an am emh day? Another advantage is if you grab a fp at open 8am, you'll likely be able to pick up another around 9 (possible window open) and possibly go to get that third one (or at minimum get your second) before going in to eat. Then you're sitting on at least 2 fp and your clock is ticking so that when you get out of the 1:30 brunch your window for another fp is about open again. That gives you three fp and possibly 4 before noon to use the rest of the day. This strategy will get you on every ride twice.

Final advantage, as a mid morning BIG brunch type meal you likely won't be hungry the remainder of your park day (or at minimum just pull a snack by late afternoon). We didn't eat "dinner" that day until around 9pm after returning to our resort when the park was closed.

 

[rlahansler]

I made a reservation for Tusker House for 8:15am and 10:15am. Looking for the pros/cons of either time and if anyone has done it before?

I thought the 8:15 would be good to get there before its crowded, but the 10:15 would be good to use as a "brunch"

thoughts needed

I would take the 10:15am, especially since you have 3 year old. We had 805am reservations this past March. I have a 11 year old boy and 8 year old girl. We skiped the picture with Donald, went right in to eat. Was done by 850am, headed over to EE, went right to the fastpass machine and to our surprise there were free fastpasses already waiting for us, we then put our cards in and got more fastpasses. Total of 8. We rode expedition standby since we were there exactly in 9, we were the first cars. After EE we headed over to Dinosaur, then the Safari, then we went back to EE to use our fast passes. Love Rope Drop and early breakfast reservations, great with older kids!!!

 

[sydneysmom]

I vote for the 8:15. We went early ( 8 am) last year and it was wonderful. the park is empty and quiet...we got a great family pic in front of the Tree of Life on our way in ( from the photopass photog) w/ no other people around.

Plus, when you're done eating, you can get to the Safari ( or Everest) with minimal wait time. it was perfect !

 

[ktlm]

We had a reservation at 8:00 the last time. It was nice being in the park before it opens.

I have a question though. This year I book Tusker House at 9:20. Does anyone know if they would let us in through the dinning reservation line before 9?

Yes they will and you should because otherwise it is difficult to get there in time with the rope drop ceremony. You must be at the character meal gate by 8:45 because at about 10 minutes to 9, they close it and make you wait to get in with everyone else, and then you are stuck while everyone gets in and they do the rope drop ceremony. We usually make an ADR at Tusker House right around that time, and the first time we got stuck and were running to make our ADR. Since then, we always get there right about 8:45 and have never had any problem with them letting us in. We walk back to TH taking a few pictures along the way- photopass is usually out too so you can get some good pictures in front of the Tree with no crowds around. Then we check in at TH, and at 9:00 a.m., I make a run to Safari for FPs for after breakfast.

MCO810, as you have a 3 year old, I would consider whether you are dealing with a time change and whether your child is a morning person. We made that mistake the first time. We had a prime pre-park opening ADR, only for me to realize a couple of days into our trip that there was no way we could get there in time with DD in any kind of good mood. For an 8:15 ADR if you are using Disney transport, you will need to be down waiting for a bus by around 7:00 a.m. If your child is a morning person, I would say go for the earlier time. We always ride Safari right after leaving TH, and we have never had a problem.

If your child is not a morning person, I would keep the later ADR. Safari is right next to TH, so when the park opens I would go straight back and ride Safari, and when you get off the ride, you should be pretty close to being able to check in for TH.

 

[MC0810]

enjoying everyones reccommendations.

We are staying at Pop Century, I really have to leave at 7am for an 8:15 reservation?? thats pretty early, how does it work, we give our name at the gate?

 

[nealsmith]

Yes they will and you should because otherwise it is difficult to get there in time with the rope drop ceremony. You must be at the character meal gate by 8:45 because at about 10 minutes to 9, they close it and make you wait to get in with everyone else, and then you are stuck while everyone gets in and they do the rope drop ceremony.

That's good advice. We have a picture in front of the tree on our way to TH on our last trip. My dad wanted to know why the park was so empty!
Thanks!

 

[poohs_hunny]

I went through this same debate with my Crystal Palace reservation. We typically go for a late breakfast (around 10-10:30). This year, I went back and forth between an 8:05 and a 10:20. Here were my pros and cons:

Pros of an 8:05 reservation:
1. Getting into the park before everyone else. You get to experience it nearly empty and get those coveted people-less pictures! I've never done this, and would like to some day.
2. Most likely being finished in time for rope drop at 9:00, therefore not wasting any park time eating.

Cons of an 8:05 reservation:
1. Having to wake up early to get to the park before 8. After a late night at Epcot watching Illuminations, this sounds even less desirable.
2. Needing to eat lunch (though probably a late lunch).
3. Though I wouldn't be wasting park time eating, not being able to go on any "big" rides at rope drop due to the queasiness factor after eating a big breakfast.

Pros of an 10:20 reservation:
1. Getting to sleep in a bit more to get to the park by 9, not 8.
2. Doing "big" rides at rope drop when the lines are shortest.
3. No need to eat lunch.

Cons of an 10:20 reservation:
1. Wasting park time eating during a still relatively uncrowded time of day.
2. Not getting to experience an empty park before opening.

I ended up choosing our standard 10:20 reservation. I think it is the best choice for this trip, although I'd still like to experience the empty park some day! Hope this helped you - good luck with your decision!

 

[squirrel]

enjoying everyones reccommendations.

We are staying at Pop Century, I really have to leave at 7am for an 8:15 reservation?? thats pretty early, how does it work, we give our name at the gate?

It's true, you should be at the bus stop at 7am. Don't be surprised if you don't see a bus until 7:30am. AK buses are not very frequent for the early morning breakfasts.

Last year we made it to AK just before 8am. I'd say about 7:50am. The bus didn't even arrive at Pop until after 7:30am.

They have a line open for breakfast guests. Not sure how it opens as we were late arriving. MK they let you in, but hold you in an area before allowing you onto Main St.

I was surprised that I couldn't find any photopass photographers, considering that's why I was there so early. Eventually one came along.

Personally, I would go for the later ADR. You don't seem to want to ride the big rides - EE, Dinosaur, etc. It's fun to watch the opening ceremony. I would grab FP for the Safari and then hop in line for it if you arrive for park opening. I'm sure you will want to ride it again later in the day.

EE has a single rider line so if you wanted to take turns riding you could.

I also like the later breakfast as it ends at 10:30am. Which means you will be one of the last families entering TH for breakfast. The characters stay longer and they often visit more than once.

I'm going to TH twice on my next trip. Once for the photo in front of the tree. The other so we can see the opening ceremony and take our time eating brunch.

 

[Niki in NJ]

If I were in your position (with a 3 year old), I would take the 10:15 reservation. I definitely think that getting to a park before rope drop, having the opportunity to be in the park when barely no one else is, is really a great experience. With that being said, it's going to definitely be an early morning making sure you are ready in time to catch the bus. But, if your family are normally early risers, this wouldn't be as big of a deal. I think getting to AK for rope drop at 9 would be perfect - head to the safari and do that first .. then walk over to Tusker House for your breakfast reservation. Because you have a 3 year old, I don't know if you would be riding EE, but if so, I would get a fast pass before heading into your breakfast reservation. I just think it will be more relaxing having the reservation an hour after the park opens, rather than a rush to make sure you make your early reservation.

Now .. if this were MK, I would have a different opinion and say that getting in the park before rope drop is amazing, because it really helps with getting some rides out of the way before most people enter into the park. We never have felt that same sense of urgency with AK.

Whatever you choose will be perfect for your family

 

[ktlm]

You will see a small sign over one of the gates that says something to the effect of "character breakfast". You just go to that gate and give them your name , and they check the list and let you in. Sometimes they ask for your ADR time too. As far as EE, I don't know if you have another child that wants to ride it, but as it is just DH and I that ride it, instead of fast passing it, we just take turns getting in the single rider line while the other hangs out with DD at some point in the day. That has always worked out great for us, and we have never had too long a wait.

 

[Cory's Gal]

We had an early Tusker House ADR on our trip last Spring. We had a 5 & 2 year old. We enjoyed getting up early and eating. We had our pic with Donald and were seated right away. The food was great (the juice is awesome!). The character interaction was great and we were paid and all finished right at 9:00. We walked right over to the Safari and basically walked right on. It was a great way to start our day and it was wonderful to walk back through the park with no crowds

 

[scootch]

Do they have mickey waffles? thanks