News Operating hours extended at Disney's Hollywood Studios

Weather_Lady

Well-Known Member
Let's hope WDW continues extending hours at HS. They just updated President's Day week, but only to move the week's one day of morning EMH to evening (which has the effect of REDUCING park hours for my family, as we leave mid-afternoon that day to fly home). Every other day during that week (with crowd estimates as high as 10/10 due to it being a school vacation week for much of the northeastern United States) HS is open only from 9am-8pm! Rise of the Resistance, my butt! For me, trying to figure out how to win the Boarding Group gamble with so few park hours, it's just Rise of the Blood Pressure! 🤣
 

DisneyDreamer08

Well-Known Member
Let's hope WDW continues extending hours at HS. They just updated President's Day week, but only to move the week's one day of morning EMH to evening (which has the effect of REDUCING park hours for my family, as we leave mid-afternoon that day to fly home). Every other day during that week (with crowd estimates as high as 10/10 due to it being a school vacation week for much of the northeastern United States) HS is open only from 9am-8pm! Rise of the Resistance, my butt! For me, trying to figure out how to win the Boarding Group gamble with so few park hours, it's just Rise of the Blood Pressure! 🤣
We are there Tuesday the 14th and I already had to readjust plans once when it switched from 9 to 8. I’m just hoping it stays at 8 🙏 We are rope dropping Toy Story land and I don’t think I can get my kids there (happily) much earlier than 7:30.
 

Hank Hill

Well-Known Member
Any opinion on how late on a weekend can I come and still get a boarding group? I want to take the ride, but we are not a rope drop family.
 

Ravenclaw78

Well-Known Member
Any opinion on how late on a weekend can I come and still get a boarding group? I want to take the ride, but we are not a rope drop family.
Check out the Boarding Groups thread in the DHS subforum, but the bottom line seems that they're likely to keep running out of boarding groups within 5 minutes of park opening most days.
 

Weather_Lady

Well-Known Member
Any opinion on how late on a weekend can I come and still get a boarding group? I want to take the ride, but we are not a rope drop family.

Unless or until they change the Boarding Group system, if you don't rope drop -- that is, if you're not present in the park, logged into DME with a fast phone, and lucky enough to be able to join a Boarding Group at park opening time -- you won't be able to ride RoTR. It's as simple (or as frustrating, depending on your outlook) as that.
 
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Weather_Lady

Well-Known Member
We are there Tuesday the 14th and I already had to readjust plans once when it switched from 9 to 8. I’m just hoping it stays at 8 🙏 We are rope dropping Toy Story land and I don’t think I can get my kids there (happily) much earlier than 7:30.

I understand. I'm just thinking, if they open (e.g., like today) at 7am and all boarding groups are filled by 7:03-7:04am because of the number of early risers simultaneously trying to join, how much more horrendous is it going to be if we're there on the equally-crowded week of President's Day trying to join a group at 9am, when all of the later risers are there, too, and when there are fewer park hours available and therefore a few dozen less boarding groups that can even realistically expect to be called?
 
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rowrbazzle

Well-Known Member
Unless or until they change the Boarding Group system, if you don't rope drop -- that is, if you're not present in the park, logged into DME with a fast phone, and lucky enough to be able to join a Boarding Group at park opening time -- you won't be able to ride RoTR. It's as simple (or as frustrating, depending on your outlook) as that.

I don't think it's quite that dire. The super fast filling of standard Boarding Groups has only happened during these super crowded days. And backup groups have still been available for a while. It's hard to know how much is due to crazy crowds or a more permanent increase in demand at park open.
 

GabeP

Active Member
You might want to update the hours in late Jan for DHS, since it appears as if opening has been pushed up to 7 AM (as judged by the fact that I was able to change my Slinky FP from 8:30 AM to 7:50 AM on 1/24/20, with availability showing for most of the other Tier 1 rides as of 7:05. Planning to be inside the gates by 6:30 ready to refresh at 7 and get a BG for Rise.
 

wsmith1978

Well-Known Member
I think back to my first trip in February 2009. That was when there was truly an off season. The Recession had an impact too, I believe. Hardly any lines, crowds were light. It was magical. Truly the best possible experience for a first trip.
 

disneygeek90

Well-Known Member
I think back to my first trip in February 2009. That was when there was truly an off season. The Recession had an impact too, I believe. Hardly any lines, crowds were light. It was magical. Truly the best possible experience for a first trip.
Wasn't that around the time when they were giving away a free ticket on your birthday? The recession definitely hit the parks hard. They were doing anything they could to bring the levels back up.
 

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