Meanwhile at USH this weekend...

[Deleted member 107043]

Radiator Springs Racers - 120 Minutes
Soarin' Around The World - 120 Minutes
Splash Mountain - 105 Minutes
Hyperspace Mountain - 90 Minutes
Tower of Terror - 75 Minutes
Grizzly River Run - 65 Minutes
California Screamin' - 65 Minutes
Midway Mania - 60 Minutes

Lord have mercy! Those DLR wait times are nuts.

How have waits for the Potter ride in Hollywood compared to the waits during the Florida attraction's first summer?

 

[TP2000]

How have waits for the Potter ride in Hollywood compared to the waits during the Florida attraction's first summer?

That's a great question! Anyone from back east know?

At 5pm here on Labor Day, the Disneyland waits are still very long. Radiator Springs Racers is holding at 120 minutes, Soarin' has dropped five minutes to 115 minutes. Hyperspace Mountain broke down and is temporarily closed. Star Tours is up to 65 minutes now.

Harry Potter is now 20 minutes. Hippogriff coaster is 10 minutes.

 

[GiveMeTheMusic]

While USH and DLR aren't particularly comparable, this weekend is especially out there. It's a holiday weekend with a half marathon and the close out of a hugely successful 15 month celebration. If DLR wasn't packed to the gills, I'd be concerned.

 

[yookeroo]

So... Universal Studios seems a bit busier than it had been this summer, and Disneyland Resort seems absolutely packed. When Mater's and Little Mermaid have wait times around 30 minutes, with many E Tickets 90 to 120 minutes, you know the place is busy! Likely all the AP's trying to rush to see the Diamond Celebration close in style.

I don't think any were blocked out. Weird for a holiday.

 

[Darkbeer1]

Knott's waits weren't bad for the last day of "Ghost Town Alive"

Main parking lot was full and using secondary lots

Ghostrider was about 1 hour

Voyage of the Iron Reef was also about an 1 hour wait

(Just got back home from Knott's)

 

[dweezil78]

If you think it is bad now you should have saw it 5-10 years ago. They have actually improved the park a lot in the last few years. There use to be trash everywhere. Now it is a lot cleaner. I think park management is working on fixing buildings. They are working their way across the park. The section with Twisted Colossus and Scream look brand new. The DC Universe area also looks great. As you move across the back half of the park things look worst and worst. The top of the mountain where Ninja and Superman are are probably the worst offenders. They really need to refurbish those buildings and put a restaurant back up there. The Roaring Rapids camp and Baja Ridge are acceptable. The Riddler's Revenge area should look great next year.

Remember this is not Disneyland were they constantly refurbishing stuff. They have 18 parks to keep up to date and very little money to maintain them.

I used to go a lot from like 2000 thru 2005 or so, so I guess I missed this extra extra dark period you talk about haha. But I really don't remember it being nearly as bad as it was yesterday last time I was there, but I might also not have paid as close attention.

Totally get (and always have) that SFMM is not Disneyland and I really lowered my expectations severely before going there based on what I remembered from when I was an AP holder and all the stories I've heard since -- but even that didn't prepare me for just how overall run down, dirty, and poorly managed the park felt.

And sorry, not going to cut SF any slack for managing 18 parks. That's the business they are in just like any big corporation who operates multiple locations. Some do it well, others don't. If they don't have enough $$$ to maintain the parks, then they need to re-think their cost structure and business plan. Instead of trying to one-up their competitors with a bigger/crazier coaster year after year, maybe take a year or two off from the pi**ing contest and put some of that $$$ into making the park look nice again. Heck, even start by cleaning your restrooms.

 

[FerretAfros]

While USH and DLR aren't particularly comparable, this weekend is especially out there. It's a holiday weekend with a half marathon and the close out of a hugely successful 15 month celebration. If DLR wasn't packed to the gills, I'd be concerned.

If we're comparing the weekend itself, perhaps it's time to be concerned. Although the roads around DLR were a mess in the mornings due to the races, the parks themselves were practically empty. Most of the APs were blocked out, so it was pretty much just the tourists.

The longest waits I saw were 75 minutes for Space and Racers, with most of the headliners in the 25-40 range; the longest we waited was about 35 minutes for Indiana Jones. We did the brand new Soarin' twice with FPs (available about 45 minutes out, with a 35 minute posted wait), which really seemed to drive the point home. Rivers of America, Haunted Mansion, the Railroad, and Mr Lincoln were all closed, but the walkways rarely felt busy

We ate 5-6 meals in the parks and only had to wait to order once; the other times we just walked straight up to the cashier. It was incredibly convenient (especially after some painfully slow experiences in the past), but was a real shock. It was even pretty painless to find viewing spots for Paint the Night and Forever on their penultimate night

Through a weird twist, the crowd levels have been inverted in recent years and depend more on AP blackout days than traditional holidays and big travel weekends. As someone who can realistically only make it to the parks during holiday periods, I appreciate it (especially for how much I pay per hour in the park compared to an APer), but it just feels backward

I also think that the regular ticket pricing is starting to scare a lot of people off. Although I travelled across the country specifically for Disney's races, this was the first time we've had a serious (and fairly last-minute) discussion about whether it was worthwhile to even go to the parks. We ultimately bought the tickets, but I suspect we may take a different approach in the future.

 

[Deleted member 107043]

I also think that the regular ticket pricing is starting to scare a lot of people off.

Good.