What to Plan For on Only Morning in DCA?

[dnamertz]

We will be at DL/DCA for 4 days in mid November (Tues - Fri). Although the hours for that week have not been posted yet, I'm assuming DL will open at 10am Tue, Wed, and Thur, and 8am Fri...and DCA will open at 10am everyday (but I hear it unofficially opens at 9:30 am for Soarin' and for WOC fastpasses).

If this is the case, here is my tentative plan on how to start each of those days:

Tues - Use our Magic Morning at 9am to hit Fantasyland rides and at 10am go to Tomorrowland and ride/or get FPs for Star Tours and/or Space Mt, then maybe toontown at 11am.

Wed - Go to DL at 10am and start off with Indy (either riding or getting FPs)...then maybe FPs for Splash Mt.

Thur - This will be the one day we will start our day off at DCA, and this is where I need to most advice to get as much done as possible before lines get too long. Here is what I'm thinking...enter DCA at 9:30 and ride Soarin' (and since we have one or two members in our party who don't like Soarin' I might give them all of our tickets so they can wait in line for WOC FPs). How busy is Soarin' at 9:30 (on a 10am open day) when it's the only ride in operation? Also, how long is the WOC FP wait at this time? After that we will head to TSMM and The Little Mermaid ride (which should we do first?). Anything wrong with this plan? What should we do next?

Fri - Go to DL at 8am (if we can get up early enough). Get FPs for Buzz, then ride Autopia. Then do whatever we have time for before our 10am Minnie's character breakfast at the Plaza Inn.

What other things am I missing that must be done early in the day? Any advice would be helpful.

 

[skiingfast]

Make sure you arrive at DL 30 minutes early to get toward the front of the line and rope drops.


For DCA, how long to ride Soarin or get WoC FPs really depends on how close to the front of the line you are entering DCA. You may or may not catch Soarin on it's first cycle, so if you don't you are waiting for it to reload, not a true wait because there are not that many people there unless you are pretty late. WoC can load up quickly to get Show Tickets and take 15 minutes but closer to 5 minuts unless you arrive with a clump of people.

Likewise for both TSMM and LMAUA.

If you get off Soarin don't waste time with LMAUA, by 10:30 the line should be setteled down and you can almost walk on, 5-15 minutes wait and the queue is a long walk more than an actual long wait. TSMM either be at the front of the rope drop, located at the bridge to Ariel's Grotto, or take your time. When they drop the rope most people go right to TSMM and if at the front good otherwise the lines almost instantly build to a 30 minute wait for the rest of the day.

I would also suggest getting another Soarin FP if that is your thing, or California Screemin since those have the longest waits in the park for FP attractions.

 

[lilpooh108]

We will be at DL/DCA for 4 days in mid November (Tues - Fri). Although the hours for that week have not been posted yet, I'm assuming DL will open at 10am Tue, Wed, and Thur, and 8am Fri...and DCA will open at 10am everyday (but I hear it unofficially opens at 9:30 am for Soarin' and for WOC fastpasses).

If this is the case, here is my tentative plan on how to start each of those days:

Tues - Use our Magic Morning at 9am to hit Fantasyland rides and at 10am go to Tomorrowland and ride/or get FPs for Star Tours and/or Space Mt, then maybe toontown at 11am.

Wed - Go to DL at 10am and start off with Indy (either riding or getting FPs)...then maybe FPs for Splash Mt.

Thur - This will be the one day we will start our day off at DCA, and this is where I need to most advice to get as much done as possible before lines get too long. Here is what I'm thinking...enter DCA at 9:30 and ride Soarin' (and since we have one or two members in our party who don't like Soarin' I might give them all of our tickets so they can wait in line for WOC FPs). How busy is Soarin' at 9:30 (on a 10am open day) when it's the only ride in operation? Also, how long is the WOC FP wait at this time? After that we will head to TSMM and The Little Mermaid ride (which should we do first?). Anything wrong with this plan? What should we do next?

Fri - Go to DL at 8am (if we can get up early enough). Get FPs for Buzz, then ride Autopia. Then do whatever we have time for before our 10am Minnie's character breakfast at the Plaza Inn.

What other things am I missing that must be done early in the day? Any advice would be helpful.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but:

1. There are no more FPs for Buzz
2. WOC FPs are disconnected and the line moves quickly at 9:30 a.m. So you can get FPs for Soarin' and WOC one after the other.
3. Since Indy is close to Plaza Inn, it's probably easiest to get Indy FPs before your Plaza Inn reservation. You might also try Haunted Mansion Holiday.
4. I'm prety sure you can get FPs for Soarin' at 9:30 a.m. but I'm not sure if the ride opens at 9:30 a.m. Maybe someone else can clarify. Just thought I remembered the ride not opening right at 9:30 a.m.
5. You should head to TSMM before Little Mermaid. The line for Little Mermaid is usually 15-30 minutes long depending on the time of day. The later it gets, the shorter the line. No need to prioritize this ride.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[mrswh]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but:

1. There are no more FPs for Buzz
2. WOC FPs are disconnected and the line moves quickly at 9:30 a.m. So you can get FPs for Soarin' and WOC one after the other.
3. Since Indy is close to Plaza Inn, it's probably easiest to get Indy FPs before your Plaza Inn reservation. You might also try Haunted Mansion Holiday.
4. I'm prety sure you can get FPs for Soarin' at 9:30 a.m. but I'm not sure if the ride opens at 9:30 a.m. Maybe someone else can clarify. Just thought I remembered the ride not opening right at 9:30 a.m.
5. You should head to TSMM before Little Mermaid. The line for Little Mermaid is usually 15-30 minutes long depending on the time of day. The later it gets, the shorter the line. No need to prioritize this ride.

Just my 2 cents.

Soarin' does open at 9:30, and sometimes earlier. As long as you get there before 10 the line will be tolerable, but unless you get there right when the gates open, you may have trouble making it to rope drop at 10 and getting to TSMM before the line builds. (In my experience, going directly to TSMM at the front of the line for rope drop is your only shot at waiting less than 40 minutes.) Since you are able to get your WOC FPs and Soarin' FPs at the same time, if the line is long for Soarin' you might want to skip it and just grab an FP on your way to get your WOC FP. Then you can ride anytime later in the day. I would not worry a bit about the LM line. We were there in August with big crowds, and the longest ever posted was 15 minutes - and it didn't even take 15 minutes. It is a super fast loading ride - you should be able to more or less walk on almost any time of the day. Save it for when the park is more crowded. JMO!

 

[dnamertz]

Soarin' does open at 9:30, and sometimes earlier. As long as you get there before 10 the line will be tolerable, but unless you get there right when the gates open, you may have trouble making it to rope drop at 10 and getting to TSMM before the line builds. (In my experience, going directly to TSMM at the front of the line for rope drop is your only shot at waiting less than 40 minutes.) Since you are able to get your WOC FPs and Soarin' FPs at the same time, if the line is long for Soarin' you might want to skip it and just grab an FP on your way to get your WOC FP. Then you can ride anytime later in the day. I would not worry a bit about the LM line. We were there in August with big crowds, and the longest ever posted was 15 minutes - and it didn't even take 15 minutes. It is a super fast loading ride - you should be able to more or less walk on almost any time of the day. Save it for when the park is more crowded. JMO!

Are FPs available for Soarin' as early as 9:30? If so, then that is a good suggestion...we'll split up and get FPs for Soarin' and WOC, then head toward TSMM.

 

[skiingfast]

Are FPs available for Soarin' as early as 9:30? If so, then that is a good suggestion...we'll split up and get FPs for Soarin' and WOC, then head toward TSMM.

Yes you can get FPs or ride Soarin at 9:30am.

 

[dnamertz]

Is a Magic Morning day the best day to go into DCA? My thinking was that more people will be in DL from 9am to 10am on a MM (so less people in DCA during that time.

 

[HydroGuy]

Is a Magic Morning day the best day to go into DCA? My thinking was that more people will be in DL from 9am to 10am on a MM (so less people in DCA during that time.

Yes and no. A MM at DL does not really effect DCA attendance. So do not choose an MM day in order to avoid crowds.

However, if you want to start at DCA on one of your days, the best day is usually when DL has a MM. Why? Because if you do not have MM that day and go to DL you will be a disadvantage behind others who had an MM. Better to go start the day at DL on non-MM days if you want equal footing with everyone else - unless you have MM yourself - in which case you will want to go to DL that day.

 

[dnamertz]

Yes and no. A MM at DL does not really effect DCA attendance. So do not choose an MM day in order to avoid crowds.

However, if you want to start at DCA on one of your days, the best day is usually when DL has a MM. Why? Because if you do not have MM that day and go to DL you will be a disadvantage behind others who had an MM. Better to go start the day at DL on non-MM days if you want equal footing with everyone else - unless you have MM yourself - in which case you will want to go to DL that day.

That was my assumption. Also, it seems like there would be some people already in DL using their MM from 9am to 10am who might otherwise be going into DCA at 9:30...but it might not be enough people to make a difference.

My other dilema is whether to make our Minnie Character Breakfast for 10am on Friday. DL will alread be open for two hours at that point, so we'll get to enjoy a couple early morning hours in the park before that. The other option I was considering was having the breakfast at 9:10am on Thursday (DL opens at 10am that day, but I'm told you can make breakfast reservations 50 minutes before the park opens on MM days). We probably won't be done with breakfast until 10:30 if we did this so we'd miss about the 1st 30 minutes the park is open...but if we did this, we'd have to make Wednesday the day we started off in DCA (to do all the stuff I mentioned above), and we'd have the option on Friday of leaving DL and going over to DCA before they open at 10:00 to ride TSMM again.

 

[HydroGuy]

That was my assumption. Also, it seems like there would be some people already in DL using their MM from 9am to 10am who might otherwise be going into DCA at 9:30...but it might not be enough people to make a difference.

My other dilema is whether to make our Minnie Character Breakfast for 10am on Friday. DL will alread be open for two hours at that point, so we'll get to enjoy a couple early morning hours in the park before that. The other option I was considering was having the breakfast at 9:10am on Thursday (DL opens at 10am that day, but I'm told you can make breakfast reservations 50 minutes before the park opens on MM days). We probably won't be done with breakfast until 10:30 if we did this so we'd miss about the 1st 30 minutes the park is open...but if we did this, we'd have to make Wednesday the day we started off in DCA (to do all the stuff I mentioned above), and we'd have the option on Friday of leaving DL and going over to DCA before they open at 10:00 to ride TSMM again.

Can't help with breakfast advice. I personally am anti-breakfast on Disney visits. Morning time is too valuable. But when we go DL opens 8AM. If you go when DL opens at 10AM there is time for breakfast so maybe that works. Whether it is worth losing morning time for a breakfast is a hard call. Normally I would say no way. But off season is different and my ideas are geared more towards high to mid season.

 

[dnamertz]

Can't help with breakfast advice. I personally am anti-breakfast on Disney visits. Morning time is too valuable. But when we go DL opens 8AM. If you go when DL opens at 10AM there is time for breakfast so maybe that works. Whether it is worth losing morning time for a breakfast is a hard call. Normally I would say no way. But off season is different and my ideas are geared more towards high to mid season.

On the "busier" days when DL opens at 8AM, like the Friday we will be there, how crowded does it start getting at 10AM to 11AM?

Since Minnie's is the breakfast we want to do, we can't do it much earlier since it doesn't open until the park opens (except on Magic Mornings, when it opens 50 minutes before the park opens to the general public). But, having a daughter who will be almost 5, the thing I like about the time of year we are going is the shorter hours. She will need her sleep, so it will be good to get back to the hotel by 9PM and not have to get up until about 8:30AM. Having to get up 1 to 1-1/2 hours earlier to have breakfast before the park opens will probably make for a not so well rested child.

 

[HydroGuy]

On the "busier" days when DL opens at 8AM, like the Friday we will be there, how crowded does it start getting at 10AM to 11AM?

Since Minnie's is the breakfast we want to do, we can't do it much earlier since it doesn't open until the park opens (except on Magic Mornings, when it opens 50 minutes before the park opens to the general public). But, having a daughter who will be almost 5, the thing I like about the time of year we are going is the shorter hours. She will need her sleep, so it will be good to get back to the hotel by 9PM and not have to get up until about 8:30AM. Having to get up 1 to 1-1/2 hours earlier to have breakfast before the park opens will probably make for a not so well rested child.

Fridays in off-season tend to be a little quieter in the day hours and then busier in the evening. Again, I really do not have first hand experience with that and rely on what I read. From that reading I believe that a Friday morning at 11AM will likely be modestly busy but not super busy.

 

[monsterspal]

You definitely want to go on Tsmm first. Lines are one of the longest in the park. Little mermaid lines have been real short during the week...5 min or so. sometimes you just walk on.