What do I need to know about rope drop for EMH at Star Wars and HS?

[tazzy]

This is my first time at HS since Star Wars opened. I only spent a couple of hours at HS last year, before Toy Story opened, so I'm pretty much a noob. (My son got overheated from the sun that day so I had to take him back to our hotel to rest.) I know very little about HS as a whole. He did rally enough to do the Star Wars jedi training during that trip, but that was it.

This is a last minute trip, and we live 1,000 miles away, so I want to make the most of it for my son. He's 11 years old. I've managed to snag a last-minute reservation for Oga's Cantina. And we're staying at the AK Lodge so we can take advantage of the early morning hours and arrive at 6 am. But what time should we really get there to get in first and head straight to the Star Wars section and get on the Millennium Falcon: Smuggler's Run.

I'd love to treat him to the Savi's Workshop experience but I can't justify the extra $200 on top of everything else.

We will be there this coming Saturday, Oct. 19. So it's coming up fast!

Any tips for the rope drop, timing, etc, would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance! I searched the board for this info but didn't find quite what I needed.

 

[hiroMYhero]

This is my first time at HS since Star Wars opened. I only spent a couple of hours at HS last year, before Toy Story opened, so I'm pretty much a noob. (My son got overheated from the sun that day so I had to take him back to our hotel to rest.) I know very little about HS as a whole. He did rally enough to do the Star Wars jedi training during that trip, but that was it.

This is a last minute trip, and we live 1,000 miles away, so I want to make the most of it for my son. He's 11 years old. I've managed to snag a last-minute reservation for Oga's Cantina. And we're staying at the AK Lodge so we can take advantage of the early morning hours and arrive at 6 am. But what time should we really get there to get in first and head straight to the Star Wars section and get on the Millennium Falcon: Smuggler's Run.

I'd love to treat him to the Savi's Workshop experience but I can't justify the extra $200 on top of everything else.

We will be there this coming Saturday, Oct. 19. So it's coming up fast!

Any tips for the rope drop, timing, etc, would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance! I searched the board for this info but didn't find quite what I needed.

Which FPs have you booked?

Guests are finding it’s best to go to TSL at rope drop and then ride MFSR sometime between 7:30 and 9:00 before the regular park opening.

@GADisneyDad14 is reporting there was an actual 30 minute wait for MF at 8:30a even though it was a posted wait of 50 minutes.

 

[tazzy]

I have only been able to book an FP for the rock 'n roller coaster. This trip was just a business trip, but I convinced my husband to come with our son, so we added a couple days for fun, and bought tickets for the parks about four weeks ago. It was too late to get much in the way of FPs or dining reservations.

I do have a membership with TouringPlans and they suggest that we arrive at 6 am, go straight to smuggler's run, and by the time we arrive at 6:10 am there will only be a 16 minute wait at that point, according to their analytics. I used them last year to optimize my schedule for the rides we wanted to make sure we rode, and had a really good experience. I tried it with us arriving at 7 am, and going straight to Smuggler's Run, and the wait was 104 minutes long. Ugh. So a huge difference in a 6 am vs. 7 am arrival, if TouringPlans is right. What experience do you guys have with TouringPlans and accuracy for Smuggler's Run and star wars at HS?

 

[hiroMYhero]

I do have a membership with TouringPlans and they suggest that we arrive at 6 am,

You’d need to arrive a little after 5a to enter near the front of the rope drop crowd for that low wait time for MFSR.

 

[tazzy]

You’d need to arrive a little after 5a to enter near the front of the rope drop crowd for that low wait time for MFSR.

Good to know. Thanks!

 

[sophy1996]

Last week bag check for security was 20 minutes just before 6 a.m. Even the no-bag line was 5-7 minutes. So I agree with arriving closer to 5 to be toward the front of the crowd. We were there at 5:55 and the crowd was already in GE before we got to the gate (we weren't planning on riding SR that morning, so we didn't really care).

Star Tours was consistently 5-10 minutes during EEMH during our visit. And don't forget about the Launch Bay for more Star Wars stuff. It doesn't open until 9, though.

 

[Stargellstars]

Here is my families touring plan from Thursday October 3rd. If you are going to HS while the park is still offering the 6-9 am EEMH I would HIGHLY recommend hitting Toy Story Land first at 6:00 am and then head over the SWGE.

6:00 am – Entered Disney’s Hollywood Studios
6:20 am – Slinky Dog Dash (5 Minute Wait)
6:30 am – Alien Swirling Saucers (Walk on)
6:40 am – Toy Story Mania (Walk on)
7:25 am – Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run (20 Minute Wait)
7:35 am – Oga’s Cantina (Breakfast & Drinks)
8:25 am – Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith (Walk on)
9:10 am – The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror (Temporarily Closed for 25 Minutes)
9:30 am – Star Tours – The Adventures Continue (5 Minute Wait)
10:30 am – Frozen Sing-a-long Celebration
11:55 am - Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run (30 Minute Wait)
12:40 pm – Muppet Vision 3D
1:05 pm – Star Tours – The Adventures Continue (Fast Pass+)
1:40 pm – Lunch at Sci-Fi Dine-in Theater Restaurant
2:55 pm – Met Cast Member - Kyle Pallo (Disney Youtube Vlogger)
3:00 pm – Return to Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
7:00 pm – Re-Entered Disney’s Hollywood Studios
7:15 pm – The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror (Fast Pass+)
7:50 pm – Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith (25 Minute Wait)
8:35 pm – Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run (25 Minute Wait)
9:05 pm – Toy Story Mania (20 Minute Wait)
9:30 pm – Wonderful World of Animation
10:00 pm – Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular
10:15 pm – Left Park and Returned to Grand Floridian Resort & Spa

 

[TinkSassy]

Here is my families touring plan from Thursday October 3rd. If you are going to HS while the park is still offering the 6-9 am EEMH I would HIGHLY recommend hitting Toy Story Land first at 6:00 am and then head over the SWGE.

6:00 am – Entered Disney’s Hollywood Studios
6:20 am – Slinky Dog Dash (5 Minute Wait)
6:30 am – Alien Swirling Saucers (Walk on)
6:40 am – Toy Story Mania (Walk on)
7:25 am – Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run (20 Minute Wait)
7:35 am – Oga’s Cantina (Breakfast & Drinks)
8:25 am – Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith (Walk on)
9:10 am – The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror (Temporarily Closed for 25 Minutes)
9:30 am – Star Tours – The Adventures Continue (5 Minute Wait)
10:30 am – Frozen Sing-a-long Celebration
11:55 am - Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run (30 Minute Wait)
12:40 pm – Muppet Vision 3D
1:05 pm – Star Tours – The Adventures Continue (Fast Pass+)
1:40 pm – Lunch at Sci-Fi Dine-in Theater Restaurant
2:55 pm – Met Cast Member - Kyle Pallo (Disney Youtube Vlogger)
3:00 pm – Return to Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
7:00 pm – Re-Entered Disney’s Hollywood Studios
7:15 pm – The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror (Fast Pass+)
7:50 pm – Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith (25 Minute Wait)
8:35 pm – Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run (25 Minute Wait)
9:05 pm – Toy Story Mania (20 Minute Wait)
9:30 pm – Wonderful World of Animation
10:00 pm – Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular
10:15 pm – Left Park and Returned to Grand Floridian Resort & Spa

Hoping we have EEMH after RotR opens but not counting on it. These mornings look amazing!

 

[Stargellstars]

I think everything will change once ROtR opens! Especially if they don't offer the EEMH. I would guess that both MFSR and RotR will be 120+ minute waits throughout the day. SDD will most likely be a long wait too!