Let's talk about how the opening of Galaxy's Edge will affect crowds at OTHER parks.

[Tiggerlover91]

I totally forgot about that...meanwhile when that was happening all I could think of was what kind of clown you have to be to camp out for days to see a movie! That’s on a level that I’ll never understand!

 

[scrappinginontario]

I'm in the same boat (spaceship??) as you; our six night stay at OKW starts September 5. And to think we were so certain we'd booked early enough to avoid the SW:GE opening and enjoy the last few relatively quiet days.

We logged on and looked at a week to three weeks earlier but the cost rises prohibitively, and since we got a real steal during the "free" DDP special, I guess we'll just stick with what we have. But ugh, this was some surprising and extremely unexpected news today.

Have you tried calling Disney to see if you can move your existing FD booking into August. They may be able to do that if there is availability. I called last evening and they (at the time) were able yo do that for me if I chose to. Still haven’t done so as I need to make decisions and get different time off at work but I may. It’s worth calling to ask.

How is this going to effect HHN.We are going to Disney for a week in may/june and were going back in late sept.for HHn.

Are you referring to HHN at Universal? Not sure how much SWGE will affect Universal. Some but not a ton is my guess.

 

[Nancyg56]

No stoning. I do wonder if you will try the rides even if you are not into SW? A lot of people are not really Avatar fans but go on FoP and Navi. I hope you have a great trip, either way!

I am wondering the same thing. I have never seen avatar and was shocked at how much I loved Pandora. Now I am not a SW fan but I would never visit WDW and skip SWGE becuase I have seen the movies, enjoyed taking my own kids and rememebr havung to buy every toy imaginable for my sons. You bet that if I am in WDW I am carving out a bot of time to go on the attractions in GE. I bet a lot of other people will as well.

 

[Nancyg56]

I agree that crowds everywhere are going to be up, but do you think all other parks will shoot from the typical 2 to 3 up to 10s automatically?.. we planned to travel sep 1 to 12 in order to avoid star wars, I guess thats not happening.. Im fine with staying away from HS but how hard will good fast passes be to get with the giant influx of people. We had some problems with our January travel and Disney has provided 2 anytime fast passes per day while were there in Sept, so atleast well have 2 rides.

I am not sure the WDW resort crowds will skyrocket to 10 but I do believe they will increase, especially as you move from September into October. October was typically a slower tiem to visit and was my favorite however that changes as F&W grew. DEcember was then my new favorite time to visit with day touring and low crowds, but now? It has grown as well. Add a new much anticipated Land and I think all parks will feel the increase. How much is not certain, but with Parties starting in late August, F&W in full swing, and Pandora attractions still drawing huge lines, well, I would prepare.

 

[Cinderumbrella]

Other than the first few days, I don’t think the park will go to Phase 4 closings where no one is admitted.

 

[Scoobie]

I am bummed - I have saved up airmiles and $$ this last year to be able to take my 10 & 11 year old nephews to WDW for the first time. We have 9 days: 3 @ USO + 6 @ WDW. This is their first ever trip there, and I am excited that I get to take them on this adventure; I rented DVC points so I get to show them the Wilderness Lodge and the Boardwalk (split stay). I had everything pencilled in to get ready for ADRs and then fast passes, and now I haven't a clue how to plan this. We are west coasters, so far more used to planning for Disneyland, all the planning that needs to go into a WDW was already enough for me
I am overwhelmed

We are also west coast, but we've been to DW loads more than DL - between what you already know and all the people here to answer your questions, you'll be fine!! Take a deep breath, explain to your nephews the difference between patience in the outside world and patience in Disney World, and they will also be fine. We did that with our 2 boys (who very tiny when we first started going) and said it every trip. As soon as we'd land in Orlando, and got on the tram, We'd say,"We're here!! Time to slip into Disney patience mode!". That means slow down, take a step back and a breath, and be prepared to wait on average 4 times longer for everything. They got used to it. And ask questions!! Everyone would love to help.

 

[sponica]

I do foresee an increase in park hoppers being purchased if people don't have them already.

I just wish we had a concrete strategy as to how they are handling entry into GE. Will GE have it's OWN line at security that goes all the way to (insert distant city?)

 

[hakunamomtata]

I do foresee an increase in park hoppers being purchased if people don't have them already.

I just wish we had a concrete strategy as to how they are handling entry into GE. Will GE have it's OWN line at security that goes all the way to (insert distant city?)

If I had to guess, I would assume they will form a line within the park for folks looking to access the land similar to how they did for Pandora. I'd assume they'd limit the capacity of that line to allow others into the actual park itself, so they can enjoy the other attractions. I'd also assume they're going to extend that line out of the park, past security, and into the parking lot. So if you want to enter SWGE, you'll have to do it via the segregated entrance queue. I see it being almost like it's own Park access, honestly. They learned a lot from Pandora and Harry Potter opening at universal.

 

[yorkieteacher]

I surely hope hakunamomtata is right! We won't dare try GE this early September trip (written in stone, can't change it). But grandsons really want to see TSL and have been so looking forward to it. We will rope drop that and hope we can get a FP for at least one attraction. Thinking rope drop Alien Saucers and FP Midway Mania and for SDD! And hope we know in time to try for FP for Runaway Railroad if it is open then. Don't even know what tier it will be in!

 

[kristenrice]

I do foresee an increase in park hoppers being purchased if people don't have them already.

I just wish we had a concrete strategy as to how they are handling entry into GE. Will GE have it's OWN line at security that goes all the way to (insert distant city?)

If I had to guess, I would assume they will form a line within the park for folks looking to access the land similar to how they did for Pandora. I'd assume they'd limit the capacity of that line to allow others into the actual park itself, so they can enjoy the other attractions. I'd also assume they're going to extend that line out of the park, past security, and into the parking lot. So if you want to enter SWGE, you'll have to do it via the segregated entrance queue. I see it being almost like it's own Park access, honestly. They learned a lot from Pandora and Harry Potter opening at universal.

Exactly! I have NO desire to go anywhere near SWGE, but we would like to visit TSL, ToT and Fantasmic. I'm dreading the idea of waiting in a huge line just to get into the park to do a few, non-GE attractions, and then to wade through a mass of people to do them. I don't see how they will have a separate entrance to the park itself for those wanting to go to GE, unless it is "THE" line for GE. If you have to queue up for GE outside of the park entrance, then I could see it working. That way, those who aren't interested in going in to GE can still get into the park without having to stand in a huge line and if they change their mind, they have no unfair advantage over those who have been waiting outside.

 

[hedg12]

We were booked Sept. 16-21, but pushed it back to the week before Thanksgiving. Not really over the moon about GE, but I wouldn't mind at least walking through to see it. Hoping it won't still be a mosh pit then.

 

[Brett Wyman]

We were booked Sept. 16-21, but pushed it back to the week before Thanksgiving. Not really over the moon about GE, but I wouldn't mind at least walking through to see it. Hoping it won't still be a mosh pit then.

We have a second trip booked November 18th-23rd. I don't think it will have calmed down any, but I do hope they have some sort of paid EMM or DAH by then, as I loved to see it without the soul crushing crowds.

 

[garris3404]

I just wonder how early you will have to get there to be able to be toward the front for RD.
For a 9 am opening we were there at 8 and it was good.
Now is it 5am, 6 am?

WHAT? You're not already in line?

 

[APiratesLifeForMe2]

My sister said, "Oh, I don't plan to do anything at HS except TSMM, SDD, the Frozen Sing Along, ToT, Star Tours and Fantasmic....so we should be able to avoid most of the crowd". I had to point out that she first has to GET INTO THE PARK! That could be the big problem if we don't get there at rope drop, and since we are not all early risers, it will be a tall order. I think she is grossly underestimating the magnitude of the crowds that will be there during our trip. We are going October 18-26 so we were also hoping that we would miss the opening.

OMG YES, this is totally how my SIL, her boyfriend and my MIL are acting. MIL just wants to go and see Toy Story Land and my SIL and her boyfriend told me not to remove HS from the plans as I suggested yesterday. I am worried about getting to the park and in the park. Can you imagine the traffic and lines just to get in bag check and through the gates?

 

[Jocelynaus]

.

 

[APiratesLifeForMe2]

How does it work if they close a park to entry but you have an ADR?

Will 8am ADRs in HS become the new impossible to obtain?

There are various phases of closure and I believe all allow you in with an ADR until the stage 4 which is a final closure. Someone can correct me if I am wrong.

 

[cmwade77]

Honestly, this is one land with two attractions, yes, the first month or so will be busy, but then it will calm down. I mean look at Universal with Harry Potter when it first opened, yes it made things a bit busier, but nothing dramatic and it was arguably far more ambitious than Galaxy's Edge. I have said it before and I will say it again, i think everyone is blowing the crowd projections up way over what they will be and I actually think in the end Disney will be disappointed in how low the crowd levels are over the long term. I could be wrong, but there have been plenty of examples of items that were supposed to bring killer crowds, such as Carsland, Pandora, when DCA first opened, when DCA was remodeled. It never happens and it isn't going to happen this time either.

 

[Mom2Stitch]

Have you tried calling Disney to see if you can move your existing FD booking into August. They may be able to do that if there is availability. I called last evening and they (at the time) were able yo do that for me if I chose to. Still haven’t done so as I need to make decisions and get different time off at work but I may. It’s worth calling to ask.

Are you referring to HHN at Universal? Not sure how much SWGE will affect Universal. Some but not a ton is my guess.

Seriously? Man I got the wrong CM on the phone! All I was trying to do was add a night onto our FD package at the YC. The room was available, but I was told since the FD promo was over I couldn't add it. I could pay and have a room only reservation. I asked if someone in guest services could help with that and was told no others had tried before. I know that with the FD package I'm paying rack rate, but still...I just booked a room at PoP for our last night-we will be picked up early by ME anyway so just sleeping in the room-saves me $$ in the long run.

 

[cmwade77]

Seriously? Man I got the wrong CM on the phone! All I was trying to do was add a night onto our FD package at the YC. The room was available, but I was told since the FD promo was over I couldn't add it. I could pay and have a room only reservation. I asked if someone in guest services could help with that and was told no others had tried before. I know that with the FD package I'm paying rack rate, but still...I just booked a room at PoP for our last night-we will be picked up early by ME anyway so just sleeping in the room-saves me $$ in the long run.

Try calling again and asking, you never know, different CMs will give different answers.

 

[Brett Wyman]

There are various phases of closure and I believe all allow you in with an ADR until the stage 4 which is a final closure. Someone can correct me if I am wrong.

Yes that's correct. There are always jokes around the new year's and christmas closures, "Quick book an ADR!". You can get in with an ADR with all levels except 4. AP holders and those staying on property have the same advantages. But really do you want to get in?

Phase 3 Closure
The only guests allowed through the turnstiles and into the parking lots are:

• Those staying at a Disney Resort
• Annual Passholders
• Those with in-park reservations or appointment