Aahh, ya, I knew it was for more characters... Anyway, I hope it doesn't go down or at least not for too long.
Hydroguy, I've read most of your articles and I have really appreciated the info. For me the downsides of the summer are the crowds and the heat. I went when I was about 15 in the summer and it was absolute torture. All I really remember is the heat and standing in a 30 minute line just to buy a drink. So, I'm wondering, a)what you do to stay cool and b) how do you get around with the packed park? (I have read your articles enough to know that with a knowledge of the park and fastpass you can still avoid long lines, so that is good to know. We have found that to be true at WDW so I believe you
) If you don't mind answering my questions, I'd appreciate it and you can mention whatever else it is you like about summer too.
I ask because in the past we would NEVER have considered summer
, but I'm thinking more and more about trying a summer trip....
IMO, when visiting in summer the common mistake is to stay all afternoon when it is hottest and the lines are longest. Here is what we do, which reflects other posts of mine you may have read already:
1. Stay at a nearby hotel within easy walking distance. For some people HoJo's is close enough - we stayed there in 2003 and it was too far for us. The last couple trips we have stayed at the Best Western Park Place Inn. There are others very close to BWPPI on Harbor. From the DLR plaza to the BWPPI is about a 5 minute walk. We are thinking about splurging and staying at the GCH this summer.
2. We get our sleepy bodies out of bed and get to the gates 15-30 minutes before they open, thus we are one of the first in line. During a summer 8AM opening, that means 7:30-7:45AM for DL, and 9:30AM for DCA. In line at the gate, not leaving the room. This is not so much a desire to be "first in", but to take advantage of the incredibly short lines during the first two hours of the day.
3. We focus on rides for the first couple hours, and collect FastPasses.
4. We take a hotel break by 12 Noon or 1PM (depending on how we feel), go for a swim to cool off, and take a nap - adults included. This is when the lines and heat ramp up.
5. We come back to the parks at 5-6PM. This is when the lines and heat start to ramp down.
6. We stay as late as we can make it - usually most of us make it until midnight. Again, after 10PM the lines get much shorter for many rides.
7. We sleep in one or two mornings and start at DCA on those days.
I should also mention that I have learned how lines build up on most all of the rides, and thus which rides are best to do early and which can wait until later. For example, the Tiki Room has a short line any time of day. Don't do this early in the morning. Do it when you are in the park and all other rides have the longest lines. Plus, it is air conditioned, so it is best to do this when it is hotter outside - say at 12 Noon or 5PM. For those who do not understand this very well, RideMax can help
www.ridemax.com .
With the above approach, we rarely wait in lines more than 10 minutes, and never more than 20. On our most recent multi-day trip we averaged 17 rides per day (one day we did 29) and saw all the shows and parades, and my DW mentioned how the trip felt like it had a relaxed pace. This was during the first week of August.
If you do the above, you can experience much more than the average DLR guest (who goes on 8-9 rides per day according to Disney), while avoiding the longest lines and worst of the heat. Plus, you have the maximum number of rides operating, the shows at their maximum frequency, and the parks with their longest operating hours.
