Whether Or Not To Wait In Line Without Fast Pass....

[Jasper Dale]

we are going to WDW December 13-17.

here are a few scenarios and really need advice from experienced folk on what you would do in these situations:

1. In Magic Kingdom, what is a reasonable wait time for the standby line. For example, at what point is it better to just wait in line rather than get a Fast Pass and have to go back to the attraction later.

2. If the Fast Passes are gone for the day when you get to a popular attraction, say Soarin', how long of a wait is acceptable, and when should you just plan on doing the ride another day when you can get the Fast Pass?

3. Are the standby times accurate? If it says 60 minutes, is that pretty much the time you wait, or is the actual time in line less or more?

looking forward to your help. we only have a limited time in WDW and am trying to figure out how to tour the parks effectively!

 

[Disney_Freak429]

Wow glad I am here for once to be the first to answer things

1) any wait time that is 30 min. or less just jump in standby because then you won't have to back track to it when your Fast Pass window comes up. Plus getting a Fast Pass for any wait time 30 Min. & under is really a waste.

2) I would say with Soarin' you would be lucky with anything around an hr. If you can't get a fast pass hit it right before the park closes & you can usually walk on in under 20min. No need to wait until a day you can get a Fast Pass just hit it at the end of the day.(during Illuminations is best)

3) Standby times are "accurate" to a point of expect that amount of time but it can be less. this will depend if they have not changed the sign ect. It has said 30 Min. & I have only waited around 15. So I would plan on either the posted amount of time or less but more then likely not much more (maybe 5 Min. if a bunch of Fast Passes get in line) Yes that is confusing but so is how accurate the posted time is so I did my best to explain it.

 

[Captain Hank]

1. I'll agree with the above poster that 30 mins is the "decision point" for Fastpass. More than 30 mins, get a Fastpass. 30 mins or less, take Standby.

2. For Soarin' in particular, I'd make every effort to get a Fastpass. The Standby times get very nasty without it (though it probably won't be all that bad during your trip). If you really have your heart set on Soarin', don't have a Fastpass and don't mind missing IllumiNations, then 8:45-ish would be a good time to show up at The Land to ride it. Personally, I'd prefer IllumiNations any day--though I really, really like Soarin'. For other parks, try timing your visit to popular attractions that have given out all Fastpasses around major events, like parades.

3. Every effort is made to keep wait times accurate. Sometimes they'll be a little higher than in reality in order to account for unforseen difficulties. However, there are times when the wait time is longer than advertised. It's rare, though.

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

Standby times are a "best guess" - not an exact science. That said, I'm sure you that you would rather stand in a line with a posted 60 minute wait and be admitted after 50 than wait for 70. The American culture is one of complaining (don't take offence) so Disney will post times slighty over actual wait times to try and keep everyone happy

 

[Monty]

Stand by wait times are based on how long it actually took a guest to get from the welcome CM to the ride load CM. It is only an approximation because there is no way to tell how many people went into line behind the person who carried the timing lanyard [red tag they hand to random folks entering the queue].

Many rides have a sort of ebb and flow for wait times, when the wait is posted long, people avoid the queue, then because people avoided te wait time reduces so people jump in line and the wait time gets longer... and so on...

Soarin' less so, because people join the queue even if it's posted as a very long wait. :shrug:

 

[raven]

Yesterday (Thursday) the wait time for Space Mountain was 10 minutes (but you actually walked on), Splash was 5 minutes, Buzz was 5 minutes and Pirates was 10 minutes (unless you didn't follow the crowd all going down one side of the queue like me then you could walk on).

I had a FP for Space Mountain when the wait time said it was 20 minutes but I didn't need it. So it all depends what the crowds are like and the time of day.

 

[MousDad]

1) I'm trying hard to think of any reason that I would get in the standby line when FPs are available, and I'm having a hard time doing it. I don't get the whole 30 minute rule thing.

2) I'm trying hard to think of any time I would ride an FP attraction standby when FPs were out, and I'm having a hard time doing it. If FP's are out, and I didn't get one, I consider that failed planning on my part.

3) The others have spoken well in answer to this question. I have been in lines that were longer than the posted wait before, though.

 

[krankenstein]

1. At MK the most I will usually wait is 30 - 40 minutes. That said, in the past I have waited around 60 minutes for some of the headliners because of the time of year I went. Another thing that influences me is if I'm solo or with people. If I'm solo, I'll only wait around 30 minutes. If I'm with other people, I go with the flow.

2. With Soarin' I waited 70 minutes on the 4th of July this past year because the group I was with really wanted to ride. When I'm solo it isn't worth anything longer than around 20 minutes to me. I like the attraction, I just find it to be a bit over hyped. TSMM is a different story, I really enjoy the ride and would consider waiting an hour to be able to get it in. Like I said early, it just depends on my mood, whether I'm with people or not, and the time of the year.

3. As others have said, this flucuates. I have found them to be dead on like the 70 min. wait for Soarin' this past 4th of July. At times they are horribly inaccurate. Once the wait posted at Star Tours was 30 minutes, but I literally walked on. Still others are fairly close but not dead on, once TOT was posted as 30 minutes, it actually took me 40 minutes to get on. It's kind of a crap shoot but they tend to be fairly accurate.

 

[heliumalias]

1. This depends on how far away the FP entry time is and whether I've already got an FP for another ride. But generally 20-30 mins. Sometimes (often with BTM) I'll get an FP then hop in the stand-by, ride it, then hop in the FP line.

2. 30-60 mins is reasonable depending on what the lines around the park are generally like. There are 2 exceptions where I would always make my first priority of the day getting FPs for them. TSM and Soarin'. This is becasue they'll either be gone by the end of the day or there'll be a 5hr+ time difference between getting them and being able to use them (which for me isn't always practical).

3. It seems I'm the only one that's found this but sometimes the wait can be longer that stated (it can be shorter as well). As a former mathematician this is how I'd explain it. The CMs (from what I've observed) hand out the "timer cards" at fairly regular intervals. If it is a short wait then that's fine and the times will be reasonably accurate. If it's a long wait though then the gaps between each card will get longer (and longer) so it takes longer for the system to update. It also means the entire system is on a slight delay. If the line's 30 mins then they don't know that until 30 mins after the person has entered the line. By which time either no-one could have entered the line or loads more people could have. (this is unusual because lines usually have a relatively smooth flow of people entering. It is most common at the beginning of the day.)
Most of the time these days I'll make my own guestimate based on where the visible line is (obviously not always possible)

 

[Tinkerbella16]

Usually we'll wait in standby if it says 30mins or less. Even when it says 40 mins, it is always shorter. The time posted is the time that it will take from that point...where the sign is.

Last week we got to DHS before opening...it is the only possible way to get on TSM without waiting in a longggg line. We fastpassed it first and then jumped in the standby and walked right on. so we got to ride it twice without waiting. In the afternoon, forget it... the wait time was at 100 minutes and fastpasses were gone by 11am.

Other than TSM, we really didn't need FP's. If it says 30 minutes, its usually shorter...if its says 60 minutes, its usually only 30.

 

[juscet]

we are going to WDW December 13-17.

here are a few scenarios and really need advice from experienced folk on what you would do in these situations:

1. In Magic Kingdom, what is a reasonable wait time for the standby line. For example, at what point is it better to just wait in line rather than get a Fast Pass and have to go back to the attraction later.

2. If the Fast Passes are gone for the day when you get to a popular attraction, say Soarin', how long of a wait is acceptable, and when should you just plan on doing the ride another day when you can get the Fast Pass?

3. Are the standby times accurate? If it says 60 minutes, is that pretty much the time you wait, or is the actual time in line less or more?

looking forward to your help. we only have a limited time in WDW and am trying to figure out how to tour the parks effectively!

1. I would say thirty minutes would be the maximum you should wait for any ride without a Fastpass. Just remember that you should always have Fastpass in hand.

2. I, personally, would never wait in line for anything that has a wait of fourty-five minutes. There are so many things in WDW to do, why would you waste time in a long line. Planning is the key. Soarin' Fastpasses go so fast that you need to make that the first thing you do when you get to Epcot. I have heard Toy Story Mania FP's are going quickly too.

3. I find that the wait times are a little high for most rides, Peter Pan being the one exception. That line takes forever.

Hope you have a great time and happy holidays!:xmas:

 

[The_CEO]

we are going to WDW December 13-17.

here are a few scenarios and really need advice from experienced folk on what you would do in these situations:

1. In Magic Kingdom, what is a reasonable wait time for the standby line. For example, at what point is it better to just wait in line rather than get a Fast Pass and have to go back to the attraction later.

2. If the Fast Passes are gone for the day when you get to a popular attraction, say Soarin', how long of a wait is acceptable, and when should you just plan on doing the ride another day when you can get the Fast Pass?

3. Are the standby times accurate? If it says 60 minutes, is that pretty much the time you wait, or is the actual time in line less or more?

looking forward to your help. we only have a limited time in WDW and am trying to figure out how to tour the parks effectively!

Question 1: A reasonable time period is anything between 20-30 minutes. You can usually subtract between 5-10 minutes off the time considering they base the time off that point in the line, and if you are walking past the wait time sign, then you can expect a lesser wait!

Question 2: Soarin' is tricky, it is probably inline with space mountain for difficulty to get a good wait time after the fastpasses are gone. I have seen Soarin open and within an hour have a 90 minute wait. Remember FPers get priority and will be let in to ride in a larger percentage then standby. So if you can't get a FP for those attractions then plan on hitting it the next day first thing. Reasonable wait time without FP - again 35 tops.

Question 3: Again the wait time is based on the FLICK system, which supposedly accurately determines the wait time via the standby guests holding a card through their wait and having it scanned when they reach boarding. But considering some people keep them as souvenirs and forget, this may not always be the case and the wait time will fluctuate.

Hope I helped some!! Have fun!!

Justin

 

[DisneyMusician2]

The American culture is one of complaining (don't take offence)

So, so true....you only need to look at the headlines in this country to see it.

Disney will post times slighty over actual wait times to try and keep everyone happy

I've found that this is also the case, and the only line I experienced longer than posted wait times was Soarin'.

Ironically enough.

The last time we had a FP, and my wife and I still wait about 45 minutes to get on. It was craziness. Soarin' was still pretty new then, so I guess it was more understandable.

 

[WDW 3]

Tsm

We did wait 60 min to ride TSM last month. Because.... when we are on vacation we rarely set the alarm, sleeping in is one of perks of not having to go to work (or school) so TSM fastpasses are long gone before we get there. We only get to WDW every couple years so it was wait 60 min or wait 2 years.