Some Queues We Have Never Seen--Will We?

Walt Disney World—will there be lines?  Yes.  Will those lines or queues provide a story line?  Yes.  Often the queues are so well themed and/or interactive they become just as fun as the attraction.  Can you by pass lines?  Yes, by using Fastpass—which is FREE to every guest.

One could go on and on about lines with incredible theming and we and others have.  But what we discovered during an evening walk is that there are lines we have never seen or experienced. 

Splash Mountain—we have yet to experience the stand-by queue which winds before going into the mountain.  We have only experienced the Fastpass line which features various portraits of the characters guests will get to meet throughout the attraction.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad—while we haven’t been to the Magic Kingdom since the interactive queue has opened, we have yet to use the stand-by entrance for this attraction.  It has only been Fastpass for us and will most likely continue.  Do guests in the Fastpass queue get to use the interactive portions of the line too?

Soarin’—we have heard that there are interactive games and screens in the stand-by line, but we have yet to see or experience them.  Our entrance to this attraction has always been through the Fastpass lane.

Expedition Everest—as of this writing we have only ridden once but it was through the Fastpass line that we entered the attraction which was still incredibly themed.

Kali River Rapids—we have seen the stand-by queue wind throughout the sheltered area from the Fastpass line which has been our only way into this wet ride.

Then there are some attractions that we have used both the Stand-bye queue and the Fastpass entrance depending on time of day, wait time posted on the attraction, and availability of Fastpasses.  Those include Toy Story Mania, Star Tours, Jungle Cruise, Peter Pan’s Flight, Dinosaur, Maelstrom, and Living With the Land.

When the husband and I were discussing this subject, he said Astro Orbiter.  Huh?  Astro Orbiter does not have Fastpass.  It is one of the slowest loading rides and we only ride it early in the morning before the line begins to build.  Then he said, “ What about pirates?”  I think he was referring to Pirates of the Caribbean, so I again reminded him that there isn’t Fastpass at Pirates of the Caribbean and that is one of the fastest loading and unloading rides (It’s a Small World is one of the fastest loading, but not so fast in unloading).

Will we EVER see the stand-bye queues of those attractions listed previously?  Maybe.  In the meantime, we will use Fastpass to our advantage, even if it means missing a themed queue or two.

Ways to Make Waiting Less Painful at Walt Disney World

Heat, lines, crowds.  All words you might hear people say when planning a trip to Walt Disney World, already on a trip, or just returning from a trip.  And, while Disney can’t do anything about the heat, likes the crowds, are they trying to figure out ways to lessen the lines?

Lessening wait times for guests or making the wait times less “painful” means that guests may spend more time in the parks which equals spending more money.  While the “money spent per minute” facts aren’t available for Walt Disney World, they are available for the grocery industry.  For ever minute a customer is in a grocery store, they spend $2.  (You do the time/money ratio the next time you’re in the store.)  So, it would make sense that there is a similar ratio at Disney.  Happier guests means more time in the parks which means more money spent. 

A strategy that is already available to guests to lessen wait times is Disney’s Fastpass.  Guests use their ticket media to obtain a Fastpass at the desired attraction, return to the attraction at the designated time, and bypass the stand-bye queue entering through the Fastpass return and thus lessening their wait time.  Guests also get to take advantage of other attractions and services until their Fastpass return time.  Our family takes full advantage of Fastpass use and can’t imagine a trip to the World without it.  Yet, we find guests still perplexed by Fastpass—think there is a charge, don’t understand the system, etc., and still do not use it.  Pitty.

If an attraction doesn’t have Fastpass or guests don’t take advantage, there are other ways to lessen the pain of wait times as Disney is quickly creating more interactive queues.  The Winnie the Pooh attraction at the Magic Kingdom comes to mind.  While one guest holds the spot in line, other guests in the party, big and little, can play and interact with elements that are themed to the attraction.  Haunted Mansion is another.  We hear Soarin’ has something similar, but have never used the Stand-bye queue for that attraction, so I can’t speak from experience. 

Are more interactive queues on the way?  Test Track is under refurbishment and may have a more interactive queue upon its re-opening.  Pirates of the Caribbean will have a short closing and there are already hints in the queue area for more interactivity.  When Big Thunder Mountain Railroad re-opened after a refurbishment, there were boxes throughout the queue that have yet to be revealed.  More options for interaction while waiting?  The new Dumbo queue features opportunities for guest interaction while waiting.  Are there more to come?

Speculation would make me say yes.  In addition to interactive queues, Walt Disney World is adding more interactive experiences throughout the parks.  The Agent P Adventure has taken over the former Kim Possible interactive experience at EPCOT and Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom continues to expand guests’ hunting/finding/interacting experiences.  Will Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom be next?

Heat?  Yes.  Well, except this summer when it was hotter where we lived than Disney more days than not.  Crowds?   You bet.  Lines?  Yes, but not as painful as they could be.  And, that’s without even mentioning Disney’s plans for the Next Generation Fastpass system that allows guests to choose the Fastpasses prior to their park visit.  That is something I want to try!