Making the best of EMH and FP at AK and DHS

[Yano]

Hi all. I need some advise!!
When going to Morning EMH in AK and HS what rides do you think I should go to during EMH and what rides should I FP starting 9am during that day? keeping in mind that we usually take a break around 1, then park hope to another park In the after noon. Also, TSL will be open when we go in August.
I was initially thinking:
-AK: during EMH go first thing to KS then EE, then everything in Dino land then FP FOP and EE, maybe also NRJ. Of course do other things in between. Should I FP FoTLK?
-DHS: go to RNR and TOT and The Star Wars ride during EMH, then FP SDD and TSMM and maybe the last FP to go to RNR again try to get them all down by around one?
Also, should I be at park by 7:30 for the EMHs?

As I get closer to my FP reservations I will post an itinerary to see what you great experts think
Thank you all

 

[TXDisney]

FOP is the FP to get at AK. So I’d try getting that at all costs that day.

 

[brifraz]

Hello and welcome! Here are some of my thoughts - I've been over 30 times and 20+ of those have been with my wife and daughter, so bear in mind that's where I'm coming from.

AK - first off, you can't FP+ both FOP and NRJ, you can only get one. So, here's how we go with AK - assuming 8am EMH...
7:30am - at the gate
8am - Navi River Journey (possible they will let you in early as we have witness opening at 7:45 and 7:50 on recent visits)
8:20 - Everest, in our family it would be Everest 2x
8:35 - Primeval Whirl (our daughter loves it and it is during EMH, so we do it)
8:45 - Dinosaur!
9:15 - FP+ for Kilimanjaro Safari (it only runs during EMH sometimes, but you still want to do it early - get the FP+ for 9-10am as you might get through the rest earlier)
9:45 - Head to Festival Of the Lion King - you won't need an FP+ unless the seats are that important to you - show is at 10am
10:30 - FP+ for Flight of Passage
11am - Walk through Gorilla Falls trails
11:30 - FP+ for Kali River Rapids (by this point, you will be hot enough that it helps to get soaked and it will have a line)
11:45 - Walk through Maharajah Jungle trek - to dry off and see the young playful tiger cubs!
12:15 - Casual walk to Finding Nemo the Musical show (show at 1pm)
1pm - Finding Nemo the Musical
1:45 - out of the park
--certainly depending on your crew, character M&G could be things you want to do and some of the rides might be less important, we are big nature/zoo people so we love the Gorilla Falls and Maharajah walks and they are a priority for us!

DHS
7:30 - In line
8am - Rockin' Roller Coaster
8:15 - Tower of Terror
8:30 - Rockin' Roller Coaster a 2nd time (sometimes in single rider line if the regular line is getting long)
8:45 - stop at Starring Rolls or Starbucks for a muffin or something yummy!
9am - FP+ for Slinky Dog (assuming you can get one)
9:30 - Enjoy the rest of Toy Story Land
10am - FP+ for Toy Story Midway Mania (not sure if you will be able to get TSMM and Slinky FP+ as they might both be tier 1)
10:30 - Little Mermaid Show/Star Wars Launch Bay/Muppet Vision 3D (or some subset of these)
11:30 - FP+ for Star Tours
12pm - Indy Stunt Show
1pm - either out of the park OR Beauty and the Beast show and then heading out
--big concern would be the whole Tier 1 FP+ issue. If Slinky is Tier 1 and Toy Story remains Tier 1, I'd do Toy Story at 8am, then Rockin' and Tower right after - but that's a little more running around for sure

There really isn't a great reason to FP+ any of the shows at either park, they don't tend to get totally full (even in August for first half of the day shows. Those plans kind-of assume that you are only doing half a day in either of those parks and have a lot of running around to hit everything. Have fun planning and good luck getting those Flight of Passage and Slinky Dog FP+.

 

[Yano]

Hello and welcome! Here are some of my thoughts - I've been over 30 times and 20+ of those have been with my wife and daughter, so bear in mind that's where I'm coming from.

AK - first off, you can't FP+ both FOP and NRJ, you can only get one. So, here's how we go with AK - assuming 8am EMH...
7:30am - at the gate
8am - Navi River Journey (possible they will let you in early as we have witness opening at 7:45 and 7:50 on recent visits)
8:20 - Everest, in our family it would be Everest 2x
8:35 - Primeval Whirl (our daughter loves it and it is during EMH, so we do it)
8:45 - Dinosaur!
9:15 - FP+ for Kilimanjaro Safari (it only runs during EMH sometimes, but you still want to do it early - get the FP+ for 9-10am as you might get through the rest earlier)
9:45 - Head to Festival Of the Lion King - you won't need an FP+ unless the seats are that important to you - show is at 10am
10:30 - FP+ for Flight of Passage
11am - Walk through Gorilla Falls trails
11:30 - FP+ for Kali River Rapids (by this point, you will be hot enough that it helps to get soaked and it will have a line)
11:45 - Walk through Maharajah Jungle trek - to dry off and see the young playful tiger cubs!
12:15 - Casual walk to Finding Nemo the Musical show (show at 1pm)
1pm - Finding Nemo the Musical
1:45 - out of the park
--certainly depending on your crew, character M&G could be things you want to do and some of the rides might be less important, we are big nature/zoo people so we love the Gorilla Falls and Maharajah walks and they are a priority for us!

DHS
7:30 - In line
8am - Rockin' Roller Coaster
8:15 - Tower of Terror
8:30 - Rockin' Roller Coaster a 2nd time (sometimes in single rider line if the regular line is getting long)
8:45 - stop at Starring Rolls or Starbucks for a muffin or something yummy!
9am - FP+ for Slinky Dog (assuming you can get one)
9:30 - Enjoy the rest of Toy Story Land
10am - FP+ for Toy Story Midway Mania (not sure if you will be able to get TSMM and Slinky FP+ as they might both be tier 1)
10:30 - Little Mermaid Show/Star Wars Launch Bay/Muppet Vision 3D (or some subset of these)
11:30 - FP+ for Star Tours
12pm - Indy Stunt Show
1pm - either out of the park OR Beauty and the Beast show and then heading out
--big concern would be the whole Tier 1 FP+ issue. If Slinky is Tier 1 and Toy Story remains Tier 1, I'd do Toy Story at 8am, then Rockin' and Tower right after - but that's a little more running around for sure

There really isn't a great reason to FP+ any of the shows at either park, they don't tend to get totally full (even in August for first half of the day shows. Those plans kind-of assume that you are only doing half a day in either of those parks and have a lot of running around to hit everything. Have fun planning and good luck getting those Flight of Passage and Slinky Dog FP+.

Wow this plan sounds great
We will have to see what they do with Slinky dog and TSM, but the alternative you give is great.
Thank you

 

[brifraz]

Wow this plan sounds great
We will have to see what they do with Slinky dog and TSM, but the alternative you give is great.
Thank you

My pleasure! We tend to have Plan A, B, and C whenever we go and generally end up creating some hybrid of the three with a few other things thrown in on the spur of the moment!