News Star Wars Galaxy's Edge opening day reports - Disney's Hollywood Studios

[Andrew C]

Disney probably doesn’t like it, but these are the wait times I have always wanted. Kinda mad I didn’t book a trip for right now. Lol. Unfortunately for guests, I don’t expect this to last long term.

Also, no fast pass for falcon is probably helping keep the stand by wait times down slightly, even during this slower period.

 

[BubbaQuest]

11AM

So this should be peak time right now. Weather is great, Saturday, F&W

FOP 140
Falcon 50
SDD 50
7DMT 50

Hagrids 120

Excuses are starting to wear thin. This should not be happening. This isn’t just a Star Wars Problem.

So now I'm just perplexed. With DLR, I could propose people were not showing up because of increased costs -- all wait times at DLR were low. But with a 140 FOP wait time, people are showing up to WDW, just not SWGE? Are customers so locked into a 6-month-in-advance FP reservation they don't even know Falcon is open because it's not on their FP list?!

 

[Andrew C]

So now I'm just perplexed. With DLR, I could propose people were not showing up because of increased costs -- all wait times at DLR were low. But with a 140 FOP wait time, people are showing up to WDW, just not SWGE? Are customers so locked into a 6-month-in-advance FP reservation they don't even know Falcon is open because it's not on their FP list?!

Wait times seem to be down across the Parks. To be honest, I don’t see how this could have surprised Disney. They know what hotel reservations are on the books. They know how many cancellations they have had. They know how many tickets were purchased in advance for these dates. They know what fast passes have been booked. It seems silly this would have caught them off guard, minus the hurricane piece (which would have come through as last minute cancellations). If it did surprise them..weird.

 

[bclane]

11AM

So this should be peak time right now. Weather is great, Saturday, F&W

FOP 140
Falcon 50
SDD 50
7DMT 50

Hagrids 120

Excuses are starting to wear thin. This should not be happening. This isn’t just a Star Wars Problem.

Check out other rides at Universal:

The parks are just dead right now all around.

 

[monothingie]

Disney probably doesn’t like it, but these are the wait times I have always wanted. Kinda mad I didn’t book a trip for right now. Lol. Unfortunately for guests, I don’t expect this to last long term.

Also, no fast pass for falcon is probably helping keep the stand by wait times down slightly, even during this slower period.

It's not a fair comparison. Because of that difference.

But consider the old adage that a rising tide lifts all ships. You would think that the draw of SWGE would boost existing attractions at DHS, however it's not. That should be the mechanism for comparison.

 

[mikejs78]

True September is always slow, but It’s slower than last year, and years prior. DHS with TSL was a hotter ticket in September 2018.

Not sure that's the case.

Saturday after labor day, 2018, ~11AM
SDD: 70
FoP: 105
7DMT: 50

Looks probably a little higher than last year... Increased park capacity and increased hours spread the crowds out more. So similar wait times with more hours or slightly lower wait times with higher capacity probably mean an uptick, but probably not a substantial one. Plus I do think we are likely still feeling the effects of rescheduled trips due to the hurricane. That should start to change going into next week.

Still, not the huge crazy influx everyone expected.

 

[Steph15251]

Check out other rides at Universal:
View attachment 407251View attachment 407252View attachment 407253

The parks are just dead right now all around.

Man now those wait times make me wish I had a pass for USO ,I have not been there in a long time.

 

[Disney Analyst]

Orlando is dead in general... tracker video from yesterday showed USF dead!

 

[bclane]

Man now those wait times make me wish I had a pass for USO ,I have not been there in a long time.

Same here. We didn’t renew our Uni passes this year but i’m already regretting it. Whatever is causing the lack of people to visit the parks (Disney and Universal) these days may be debatable, but based on crowd levels, this is a real opportunity for people to come and get a lot done with a lot less hassle than normal. If I wasn’t going to a Hillsong United concert tonight I’d be at AK right now and at DHS tonight. Everyday I’m not there feels like a huge wasted opportunity right now.

 

[Higginbotham587]

So now I'm just perplexed. With DLR, I could propose people were not showing up because of increased costs -- all wait times at DLR were low. But with a 140 FOP wait time, people are showing up to WDW, just not SWGE? Are customers so locked into a 6-month-in-advance FP reservation they don't even know Falcon is open because it's not on their FP list?!

Not to beat a dead horse but comparing the standby wait time at a FP+ attraction (FOP) to the wait time at an attraction without FP+ (MFSR) is really silly. For the majority of people riding FOP the wait is 10-20 minutes because they are riding FP+. People are willing to wait 50 to ride MFSR?! Wow it must be a ton better/more interesting!

The comparisons are just too tough to make. Some people are willing to get into an FOP standby line of 140 minutes. No one is facing that decision with MFSR. When they add FP+ to it somebody feel free to resurface this thread. We can then see how much FP+ destroys standby wait times. Hours waits for MFSR will be there at Spring Break if there is FP+.

Martin has explained this about FP+ so many times I have lost count.

 

[BoarderPhreak]

...Everyday I’m not there feels like a huge wasted opportunity right now.

Seriously. If I were local, I'd be milking the low attendance as much as possible too.

 

[Bob Harlem]

Seriously. If I were local, I'd be milking the low attendance as much as possible too.

Beware Horror nights was absolutely slammed, so there are still people coming, just not during the day.

 

[mikejs78]

It's not a fair comparison. Because of that difference.

But consider the old adage that a rising tide lifts all ships. You would think that the draw of SWGE would boost existing attractions at DHS, however it's not. That should be the mechanism for comparison.

Do we really even know that though? FoP often experiences jumps in wait times because of one or more simulators being down. That's why I hate this day to day wait time comparison - it's somewhat meaningless.

Show me a trend line in 6 months that compare year to year, and then we can talk..

 

[monothingie]

Orlando is dead in general... tracker video from yesterday showed USF dead!

So why?

We have passed the tipping point with average guests.

You can lump DLR into this as well because it’s the same problem. (And It has not much to do with Star Wars). SWGE and the $$ increases and up charges leading up to it, especially the large FU to AP holders, have shifted the value equation.

Hotels, Tickets, Food, Merch are now out of reach. SWGE was just the driver and justification for these increases. Even with SWGE and token promotions, it’s still not worth it.

Remember there is free dining for a good portion of September including now, and it’s not making a difference.

I would even consider that USO is hurting too because people are passing on WDW. Yes there will be people that go to only USO, but I think many split the time. Again because of the $$ of Disney people are passing it up.

I don’t like crowds at Disney, but I also don’t like high prices, upcharges, and cuts. Guest looking at travel options are now looking elsewhere because of this.

Alarm bells should be ringing at Burbank.

 

[monothingie]

Seriously. If I were local, I'd be milking the low attendance as much as possible too.

They were priced out with the AP increases.

 

[monothingie]

Do we really even know that though? FoP often experiences jumps in wait times because of one or more simulators being down. That's why I hate this day to day wait time comparison - it's somewhat meaningless.

Show me a trend line in 6 months that compare year to year, and then we can talk..

@lentesta any insight or commentary?

 

[mikejs78]

So why?

We have passed the tipping point with average guests.

You can lump DLR into this as well because it’s the same problem. (And It has not much to do with Star Wars). SWGE and the $$ increases and up charges leading up to it, especially the large FU to AP holders, have shifted the value equation.

Hotels, Tickets, Food, Merch are now out of reach. SWGE was just the driver and justification for these increases. Even with SWGE and token promotions, it’s still not worth it.

Remember there is free dining for a good portion of September including now, and it’s not making a difference.

I would even consider that USO is hurting too because people are passing on WDW. Yes there will be people that go to only USO, but I think many split the time. Again because of the $$ of Disney people are passing it up.

I don’t like crowds at Disney, but I also don’t like high prices, upcharges, and cuts. Guest looking at travel options are now looking elsewhere because of this.

Alarm bells should be ringing at Burbank.

I still think it's too early to make this leap. September is never busy. It's one of two low times that Disney seems unable to crack. People just don't travel to theme parks in September.

Let's see what the last three months of the year bring.

 

[RobWDW1971]

11AM

So this should be peak time right now. Weather is great, Saturday, F&W

FOP 140
Falcon 50
SDD 50
7DMT 50

Hagrids 120

Excuses are starting to wear thin. This should not be happening. This isn’t just a Star Wars Problem.

Apparently at Hagrid's it's not September, Dorian, rain, postponed vacations, the dog ate my homework.....

 

[mikejs78]

.


Apparently at Hagrid's it's not September, Dorian, rain, postponed vacations, the dog ate my homework.....

That's because the only thing anyone can do a lot Universal is Hagrids. Every other attraction there is dead. And Hagrids has abysmally low capacity.

 

[Disney Analyst]

So why?

We have passed the tipping point with average guests.

You can lump DLR into this as well because it’s the same problem. (And It has not much to do with Star Wars). SWGE and the $$ increases and up charges leading up to it, especially the large FU to AP holders, have shifted the value equation.

Hotels, Tickets, Food, Merch are now out of reach. SWGE was just the driver and justification for these increases. Even with SWGE and token promotions, it’s still not worth it.

Remember there is free dining for a good portion of September including now, and it’s not making a difference.

I would even consider that USO is hurting too because people are passing on WDW. Yes there will be people that go to only USO, but I think many split the time. Again because of the $$ of Disney people are passing it up.

I don’t like crowds at Disney, but I also don’t like high prices, upcharges, and cuts. Guest looking at travel options are now looking elsewhere because of this.

Alarm bells should be ringing at Burbank.

I mean... I think Orlando was just impacted by the hurricane... flights cancelled. Travel plans ruined.