Frozen Ever After opening day

[HauntedMansionFLA]

Been on it already. As expected, the ride is very good. But it's in the wrong park and has horrible capacity. Thankfully, because it's in the wrong park the lousy capacity isn't as much of a problem as it could have been.

Cool thanks. We are going down in December. Hopefully we can get fast passes. If not, make a run for it at the rope drop. Enjoy your evening.

 

[RSoxNo1]

It's gonna be tight, but we should be on in about 80 minutes total with a couple of minutes to spare before illuminations.

 

[marni1971]

Cool thanks. We are going down in December. Hopefully we can get fast passes. If not, make a run for it at the rope drop. Enjoy your evening.

We did rope drop and walked. Ten minute line.

Once we exited it was 90.

 

[HauntedMansionFLA]

We did rope drop and walked. Ten minute line.

Once we exited it was 90.

Thanks for the heads up!

 

[JenniferS]

Sorry for the bump, just wondering if the Anna & Elsa meet and greet has changed at all lately? I've been checking wait times in the app and they've been close to an hour, at random times throughout the day. Is this accurate? We leave tomorrow and will be in Epcot Monday to meet them & ride Frozen

We waited 10 - 15 minutes last week.

 

[Ol' Br'er Fox]

Is it bad that I didn't even know this ride existed until I saw this thread?

 

[ProfSavage]

Is it bad that I didn't even know this ride existed until I saw this thread?

It is rather new ride, so...

 

[Bolt]

Is it bad that I didn't even know this ride existed until I saw this thread?

That is bad, yes.

 

[TeriofTerror]

Is it bad that I didn't even know this ride existed until I saw this thread?

Rip, it's good to see you! How was that nap?

 

[RSoxNo1]

As a more thorough review:
When working, the Elsa animatronic in the Let it Go scene is very impressive. Unfortunately this was only working 1 of the 3 times we rode. It really should be a 101 animatronic. That figure is a bit further away than the other projected face "Human" characters which I don't think look as good (Kristoff, Anna x2, and an additional Elsa). I love the Olaf animatronics and the Sven animatronics are also pretty good as well. The real surprise was how good the trolls look with projected faces. That's an example of the tech being used perfectly.

All in all, the ride is very well done given the constraints that were put in place. The queue is far more "real life" Norwegian village than cartoon village with a few exceptions. The Imagineers did a good job thematically with a bad situation, but still failed to address the capacity issues. The criticisms from the get go have always been, poor placement, poor capacity. The poor placement issue is better than I expected, but the capacity is still a very significant problem.

 

[Magenta Panther]

As a more thorough review:
When working, the Elsa animatronic in the Let it Go scene is very impressive. Unfortunately this was only working 1 of the 3 times we rode. It really should be a 101 animatronic. That figure is a bit further away than the other projected face "Human" characters which I don't think as look as good (Kristoff, Anna x2, and an additional Elsa). I love the Olaf animatronics and the Sven animatronics are also pretty good as well. The real surprise was how good the trolls look with projected faces. That's an example of the tech being used perfectly.

All in all, the ride is very well done given the constraints that were put in place. The queue is far more "real life" Norwegian village than cartoon village with a few exceptions. The Imagineers did a good job thematically with a bad situation, but still failed to address the capacity issues. The criticisms from the get go have always been, poor placement, poor capacity. The poor placement issue is better than I expected, but the capacity is still a very significant problem.

Didn't everyone here make the same predictions about capacity? Yet the paid clowns at TDO who came up with this idea either couldn't foresee it, or, more likely, just didn't care. Sorry to hear the AAs are still having issues. I wonder if there's any solution to that, or if it's going to be a Yeti situation for like, ever.

 

[RSoxNo1]

Didn't everyone here make the same predictions about capacity? Yet the paid clowns at TDO who came up with this idea either couldn't foresee it, or, more likely, just didn't care. Sorry to hear the AAs are still having issues. I wonder if there's any solution to that, or if it's going to be a Yeti situation for like, ever.

The ride shouldn't have been operating with the Elsa figure motionless except for the face projection. It was late in the day and they didn't want a line full of guests at Guest relations so they ran the attraction that wasn't show ready.

We rode three times and while we saw all effects working on individual rides, we never had a ride with all the effects working. Elsa was the big one on rides two and three. Also, the fog effect on the backwards section needed to be bigger (the same can also be said at the jewel scene of GMR).

The correct solution for what to do about capacity was "don't use a ride system that could never have supported this in the first place". However, excluding that they could potentially load two boats at once to ensure 30 second dispatch times. When you have guests needing extra time this would ensure more consistent dispatches and better capacity.

The good thing is, the exterior of the meet and greet and attraction fit the theming of World Showcase. The queue also is largely Norwegian/Scandinavian and not faux Arrendelle. There are a few exceptions, but for the most part they didn't overly toonify the queue.

 

[raymusiccity]

The ride shouldn't have been operating with the Elsa figure motionless except for the face projection. It was late in the day and they didn't want a line full of guests at Guest relations so they ran the attraction that wasn't show ready.

We rode three times and while we saw all effects working on individual rides, we never had a ride with all the effects working. Elsa was the big one on rides two and three. Also, the fog effect on the backwards section needed to be bigger (the same can also be said at the jewel scene of GMR).

The correct solution for what to do about capacity was "don't use a ride system that could never have supported this in the first place". However, excluding that they could potentially load two boats at once to ensure 30 second dispatch times. When you have guests needing extra time this would ensure more consistent dispatches and better capacity.

The good thing is, the exterior of the meet and greet and attraction fit the theming of World Showcase. The queue also is largely Norwegian/Scandinavian and not faux Arrendelle. There are a few exceptions, but for the most part they didn't overly toonify the queue.

Well, of course there are capacity issues when people decide to ride it 3 times !

 

[Biff215]

While it will never be a people eater, has capacity really been a major issue since the initial excitement died down? During our July trip we saw 60-90 minute standby waits which are fairly typical at Epcot. With the amount of FP they're shoving through here I don't think the ride is doing that bad. Nothing like what many here predicted, at least in my experience.

 

[Tavernacle12]

While it will never be a people eater, has capacity really been a major issue since the initial excitement died down? During our July trip we saw 60-90 minute standby waits which are fairly typical at Epcot. With the amount of FP they're shoving through here I don't think the ride is doing that bad. Nothing like what many here predicted, at least in my experience.

When I was there last week the lowest I saw was 15 during Illuminations, low-end for normal hours was 45 but it was usually 75-90. People were still getting in line for it at 90 instead of avoiding it in droves. I think the ride's biggest issue right now is that it's breaking down. I'm not sure what's causing it (I assumed it was animatronics but I witnessed a full evac...) but I had six FPs for it over a long stay and half of those times I got emails saying the ride was down and to come back later. I actually lucked out and was the next to board as it broke for an evac, waited half an hour for a fix, rode it, then rode it again before anyone realized it was working again (by the time I got off the second time it was back up to 45...).
I'm not sure if Frozen has effected it in addition to the third theater, but it was nice to see Soarin averaging 30-40 minutes all trip. It was frequently at 20. I think I rode the new version in one trip more times than I rode the original on all past trips combined.

 

[Phil12]

While it will never be a people eater, has capacity really been a major issue since the initial excitement died down? During our July trip we saw 60-90 minute standby waits which are fairly typical at Epcot. With the amount of FP they're shoving through here I don't think the ride is doing that bad. Nothing like what many here predicted, at least in my experience.

What you say is true. It's just normal for the Maelstrom fans to find fault with the attraction by complaining about capacity and saying that the attraction is located in the wrong place. Dire predictions for this attraction are common and can be ignored. I still hear some people complain about Stitch being in the wrong place.

The capacity for Frozen Ever After is just fine.

 

[NearTheEars]

What you say is true. It's just normal for the Maelstrom fans to find fault with the attraction by complaining about capacity and saying that the attraction is located in the wrong place. Dire predictions for this attraction are common and can be ignored. I still hear some people complain about Stitch being in the wrong place.

The capacity for Frozen Ever After is just fine.

I like the ride. But I think this is more of a question of what the capacity for this IP should have been.
It deserved a a large-scale attraction in Fantasyland. But as @RSoxNo1 has said, the Imagineers did their best considering the constraints.

I'd think even you would agree that a completely new attraction in the fantasyland setting would have been better than gutting a small ride like Maelstrom.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

90+ minute waits are pretty consistent, even in the slower seasons. Finding a lesser wait time takes insanely specific timing and luck (generally getting in the park as early as possible or right as the ride comes back online from going down). It has a serious capacity problem and it's quite obvious. And to make matters worse, this has been a pretty poor year for WDW attendance wise (owing to a variety of factors). The lines for many other commonly popular attractions that normally have long waits have been uncommonly low this year. Imagine what a more normal or busy year would be like for this ride...

It is also probably one of, if not THE most temperamental rides prone to breaking down at WDW. A problem that also affected Maelstrom as well (it was a common issue even in the 90s and something i noticed and mom often complained about), but the new ride is just as bad if not worse.

I like the ride. But I think this is more of a question of what the capacity for this IP should have been.
It deserved a a large-scale attraction in Fantasyland. But as @RSoxNo1 has said, the Imagineers did their best considering the constraints.

I'd think even you would agree that a completely new attraction in the fantasyland setting would have been better than gutting a small ride like Maelstrom.

You're asking for fairness and reason from a person who said Guardians of the Galaxy belongs in Adventureland and Animal Kingdom. He'd probably NOT support putting Frozen in Fantasyland, but suggest it fits amazingly in Frontierlandland, Liberty Square and Tomorrowland...

Textbook example of an obvious troll.

 

[Mike S]

I like the ride. But I think this is more of a question of what the capacity for this IP should have been.
It deserved a a large-scale attraction in Fantasyland. But as @RSoxNo1 has said, the Imagineers did their best considering the constraints.

I'd think even you would agree that a completely new attraction in the fantasyland setting would have been better than gutting a small ride like Maelstrom.

Don't respond to Phil.

 

[HauntedMansionFLA]

90+ minute waits are pretty consistent, even in the slower seasons. Finding a lesser wait time takes insanely specific timing and luck (generally getting in the park as early as possible or right as the ride comes back online from going down). It has a serious capacity problem and it's quite obvious. And to make matters worse, this has been a pretty poor year for WDW attendance wise (owing to a variety of factors). The lines for many other commonly popular attractions that normally have long waits have been uncommonly low this year. Imagine what a more normal or busy year would be like for this ride...

It is also probably one of, if not THE most temperamental rides prone to breaking down at WDW. A problem that also affected Maelstrom as well (it was a common issue even in the 90s and something i noticed and mom often complained about), but the new ride is just as bad if not worse.


You're asking for fairness and reason from a person who said Guardians of the Galaxy belongs in Adventureland and Animal Kingdom. He'd probably NOT support putting Frozen in Fantasyland, but suggest it fits amazingly in Frontierlandland, Liberty Square and Tomorrowland...

Textbook example of an obvious troll.

Wait till the next Frozen movie comes out. It will be interesting to see the crowd level this holiday season.