Tag: Trip Planning

Better Weather Increases Christmas Crowds – Disney World Wait Times for Sunday, December 27, 2020

Post author By touringplans.com
Post date December 27, 2020

It’s been a very cold few days by Central Florida standards, but things are thawing out. Other nearby drive-in destinations in the southeastern states have improved weather in the past 24 hours. Both of these aspects could be some of the reasons wait times today increased compared to yesterday. Still, wait times aren’t as high as they could be, especially at EPCOT.

We received 153 actual wait times in our Lines app today – thank you, Liners! Let’s take a break from the holiday clean-up and look at the numbers.

EPCOT Wait Times

Let’s start at the park that really seems to be missing Gold and Silver Annual Passholders right now. Ever since the black outs started the wait times at EPCOT have noticeably decreased. Even then Disney’s posted wait times have been inflated. The actual wait times have been around 60% of what Disney is posting.

Better Weather Increases Christmas Crowds – Disney World Wait Times for Sunday, December 27, 2020 — EPCOT Wait Times 12-27-2020

Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros had an average wait time today of 10 minutes. Its 7-day average is 9 minutes, so today ranks #2 for this week. Its 30-day average is 9 minutes, so today ranks #12 for the past month. Its 365-day average is 10 minutes, so today ranks #116 for the past year.

Mission: SPACE Orange had an average wait time today of 43 minutes. Its 7-day average is 49 minutes, so today ranks #4 for this week. Its 30-day average is 33 minutes, so today ranks #4 for the past month. Its 365-day average is 28 minutes, so today ranks #35 for the past year.

Soarin’ had an average wait time today of 53 minutes. Its 7-day average is 40 minutes, so today ranks #1 for this week. Its 30-day average is 42 minutes, so today ranks #4 for the past month. Its 365-day average is 37 minutes, so today ranks #44 for the past year.

Test Track had an average wait time today of 66 minutes. Its 7-day average is 64 minutes, so today ranks #2 for this week. Its 30-day average is 65 minutes, so today ranks #11 for the past month. Its 365-day average is 56 minutes, so today ranks #59 for the past year.

Frozen Ever After had an average wait time today of 34 minutes. Its 7-day average is 31 minutes, so today ranks #1 for this week. Its 30-day average is 63 minutes, so today ranks #24 for the past month. Its 365-day average is 58 minutes, so today ranks #194 for the past year.

Magic Kingdom Wait Times

Magic Kingdom’s wait times picked up a little bit today, but today was still a reasonable day to visit the Most Magical Place on Earth. Today ranks as number four out of the past 30 days for average posted wait times.

Actual wait times show to be about 70% of Disney’s posted wait times. Showing actual wait time data and expected wait times to compare against Disney’s posted wait times help our Lines app users better plan their day and avoid wasting precious time.

Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin had an average wait time today of 45 minutes. Its 7-day average is 44 minutes, so today ranks #3 for this week. Its 30-day average is 39 minutes, so today ranks #3 for the past month. Its 365-day average is 34 minutes, so today ranks #64 for the past year. We received 4 actual wait times today, and the actual wait averaged 57% of the posted wait time.

Dumbo the Flying Elephant had an average wait time today of 26 minutes. Its 7-day average is 22 minutes, so today ranks #2 for this week. Its 30-day average is 17 minutes, so today ranks #3 for the past month. We received 4 actual wait times today, and the actual wait averaged 79% of the posted wait time.

“it’s a small world” had an average wait time today of 45 minutes. Its 7-day average is 53 minutes, so today ranks #5 for this week. Its 30-day average is 44 minutes, so today ranks #8 for the past month. Its 365-day average is 35 minutes, so today ranks #38 for the past year.

Jungle Cruise had an average wait time today of 44 minutes. Its 7-day average is 55 minutes, so today ranks #5 for this week. Its 30-day average is 46 minutes, so today ranks #19 for the past month. Its 365-day average is 49 minutes, so today ranks #122 for the past year.

Pirates of the Caribbean had an average wait time today of 58 minutes. Its 7-day average is 56 minutes, so today ranks #3 for this week. Its 30-day average is 50 minutes, so today ranks #3 for the past month. Its 365-day average is 43 minutes, so today ranks #22 for the past year.

Space Mountain had an average wait time today of 68 minutes. Its 7-day average is 64 minutes, so today ranks #2 for this week. Its 30-day average is 49 minutes, so today ranks #2 for the past month. Its 365-day average is 53 minutes, so today ranks #75 for the past year.

Splash Mountain had an average wait time today of 63 minutes. Its 7-day average is 61 minutes, so today ranks #4 for this week. Its 30-day average is 47 minutes, so today ranks #6 for the past month. Its 365-day average is 52 minutes, so today ranks #49 for the past year.

The Haunted Mansion had an average wait time today of 29 minutes. Its 7-day average is 30 minutes, so today ranks #4 for this week. Its 30-day average is 28 minutes, so today ranks #11 for the past month. Its 365-day average is 40 minutes, so today ranks #151 for the past year.

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train had an average wait time today of 82 minutes. Its 7-day average is 88 minutes, so today ranks #4 for this week. Its 30-day average is 74 minutes, so today ranks #4 for the past month. Its 365-day average is 76 minutes, so today ranks #88 for the past year.

Under the Sea ~ Journey of the Little Mermaid had an average wait time today of 32 minutes. Its 7-day average is 30 minutes, so today ranks #2 for this week. Its 30-day average is 25 minutes, so today ranks #3 for the past month. We received 5 actual wait times today, and the actual wait averaged 34% of the posted wait time.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios Wait Times

In the land of Hollywood wait times picked up today. Part of this is indeed due to the improve weather, but also Rise of the Resistance’s performance slowed down just a hair today. Today ranked number four out of the past 30 days in terms of average posted wait times.

Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith had an average wait time today of 47 minutes. Its 7-day average is 48 minutes, so today ranks #3 for this week. Its 30-day average is 46 minutes, so today ranks #15 for the past month. We received 7 actual wait times today, and the actual wait averaged 78% of the posted wait time.

Star Tours: The Adventures Continue had an average wait time today of 41 minutes. Its 7-day average is 38 minutes, so today ranks #1 for this week. Its 30-day average is 31 minutes, so today ranks #1 for the past month. We received 6 actual wait times today, and the actual wait averaged 51% of the posted wait time.

Toy Story Mania! had an average wait time today of 44 minutes. Its 7-day average is 35 minutes, so today ranks #1 for this week. Its 30-day average is 29 minutes, so today ranks #1 for the past month. We received 10 actual wait times today, and the actual wait averaged 52% of the posted wait time.

Slinky Dog Dash had an average wait time today of 69 minutes. Its 7-day average is 65 minutes, so today ranks #2 for this week. Its 30-day average is 65 minutes, so today ranks #11 for the past month. We received 7 actual wait times today, and the actual wait averaged 76% of the posted wait time.

Alien Swirling Saucers had an average wait time today of 41 minutes. Its 7-day average is 33 minutes, so today ranks #1 for this week. Its 30-day average is 28 minutes, so today ranks #1 for the past month. We received 5 actual wait times today, and the actual wait averaged 62% of the posted wait time.

Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway had an average wait time today of 46 minutes. Its 7-day average is 42 minutes, so today ranks #2 for this week. Its 30-day average is 47 minutes, so today ranks #16 for the past month. We received 11 actual wait times today, and the actual wait averaged 71% of the posted wait time.

Better Weather Increases Christmas Crowds – Disney World Wait Times for Sunday, December 27, 2020

Rise of the Resistance is having a decent day. There are no major delays, and it is performing on pace with the past 7 days. Some of the last few days have outperformed compared to today, meaning higher number boarding groups were reached. This may be one of the reasons we are seeing slightly higher wait times across the park today.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Wait Times

Although Animal Kingdom is great in cooler weather, thanks to the animals being more active, sometimes when it gets too cold it’s outdoor attractions aren’t as fun. Today ranked number three out of the past 30 days, though actual wait times showed to be about 64% of Disney’s posted wait times.

Better Weather Increases Christmas Crowds – Disney World Wait Times for Sunday, December 27, 2020

DINOSAUR had an average wait time today of 66 minutes. Its 7-day average is 39 minutes, so today ranks #1 for this week. Its 30-day average is 39 minutes, so today ranks #3 for the past month. We received 5 actual wait times today, and the actual wait averaged 98% of the posted wait time.

Expedition Everest – Legend of the Forbidden Mountain had an average wait time today of 39 minutes. Its 7-day average is 29 minutes, so today ranks #1 for this week. Its 30-day average is 32 minutes, so today ranks #5 for the past month. We received 16 actual wait times today, and the actual wait averaged 49% of the posted wait time.

Kilimanjaro Safaris had an average wait time today of 51 minutes. Its 7-day average is 25 minutes, so today ranks #1 for this week. Its 30-day average is 24 minutes, so today ranks #1 for the past month. We received 9 actual wait times today, and the actual wait averaged 45% of the posted wait time.

Na’vi River Journey had an average wait time today of 72 minutes. Its 7-day average is 60 minutes, so today ranks #2 for this week. Its 30-day average is 56 minutes, so today ranks #3 for the past month. We received 6 actual wait times today, and the actual wait averaged 83% of the posted wait time.

Avatar Flight of Passage had an average wait time today of 87 minutes. Its 7-day average is 61 minutes, so today ranks #2 for this week. Its 30-day average is 62 minutes, so today ranks #3 for the past month. We received 7 actual wait times today, and the actual wait averaged 72% of the posted wait time.

The post Better Weather Increases Christmas Crowds – Disney World Wait Times for Sunday, December 27, 2020 appeared first on TouringPlans.com Blog.

From our friends at touringplans.com

Filed Under: Attractions, Observations, Trip Planning, disney christmas, disney crowds, disney reopening, disney wait times

Tags Attractions, disney christmas, disney crowds, disney reopening, disney wait times, Observations, Trip Planning

Disney Food Disney Parks Disney Reviews

REVIEW – Characters Return to Chef Mickey’s and It is Magical

Post author By touringplans.com
Post date December 26, 2020

A few months ago Chef Mickey’s reopened, but with one very important ingredient missing: there were no characters. Our team visited during that time. The food satisfied, and the lack of characters was welcomed for those looking for a hearty breakfast without the kinetic craziness of typical character dining. Now that the characters are back we have to say, Chef Mickey’s may be our current favorite for Disney character dining.

Chef Mickey’s Atmosphere

The atmosphere at Chef Mickey’s can be one of its greatest features for some guests, and the worst part for others. It is located on the concourse level of Disney’s Contemporary Resort, in a multistory atrium. The iconic monorail whooshes by every few minutes and thanks to its atrium setting the voices of all the guests and the music bounce all around. This is not the place to be if you are not a morning person. If, however, you are looking for a high-energy experience that is undeniably Disney, this is your place. You can’t help but feel excited. There is no denying that you’re at Walt Disney World when you’re at Chef Mickey’s.

REVIEW – Characters Return to Chef Mickey’s and It is Magical — Chef Mickey’s Food Service Station and Monorail

There is no more buffet. Everything is served on platters, family style, and your server will gladly bring you second helpings, or thirds or more, of any of the food, which is included in one flat price. The characters, which are Mickey and his pals, come out and greet guests by section rather than coming to each individual table. All character dining is currently done this way, with social distance, but Chef Mickey’s has been the most energetic that our team has experienced since the parks reopened. As each character came to the section that our team was dining in, they danced a little and were very cheerful.

Chef Mickey’s Food and Beverage

If you love breakfast food, you’re going to be in heaven at Chef Mickey’s for breakfast. Here you won’t find anything too fancy, just elevated versions of American breakfast classics. The meal starts off with a select of breakfast breads with honey butter, as well as fresh fruit and yogurt. Then the feasting continues with a bountiful breakfast platter of bacon, chicken sausage, beef brisket, scrambled eggs, and Mickey waffles. This platter is bursting with classic breakfast items.

A few specialty dishes are served which include “Loaded” Potato-Cheese Casserole; a “Celebration” Mickey Pancake; and Banana Bread French Toast with Espresso-Mascarpone Cream, Toasted Bananas, and Chocolate Crumbles. Of the three our research team enjoyed the Potato-Cheese Casserole the most. But all three dishes really elevate the whole meal. It is a lot of food, so if you’re going to do this for breakfast, consider having a very light lunch.

Our team felt the meal was worth the $42 per adult and $27 per child, plus tax and gratuity. Considering the quality of the food, the fact that you can have as much as you like, and the distinct atmosphere, it is worth it. Our team, and many of our readers, are reporting that they enjoy the family-style service much more than the buffet. Having the food brought to your table makes it more of an enjoyable meal, and you don’t have to run the risk of missing the characters while waiting in line at the buffet.

Chef Mickey’s Character Appearances

Thankfully the food at Chef Mickey’s is good and the entire experience doesn’t hinge on the characters alone. But the great news is the character interaction here is high energy and tons of fun. Each character dons a special chef’s outfit that matches their personality. You won’t need that second cup of coffee once you see Donald shake his tailfeather and Goofy’s flap his ears as he skips around. Although the chance to have one-on-one interaction and photos at your table is temporarily gone, it is still a fun experience. Just practice the art of composing a selfie beforehand.

Each guest receives a souvenir postcard. This Chef Mickey’s postcard has each of the characters autographs on it, and features great artwork on the front with the characters in the monorail as it pulls through the Contemporary.

We have listings and ranks for every Walt Disney World restaurant. Our readers give Chef Mickey’s an 85% thumbs up rating. It is ranked number 50 out of 106 table service restaurants. Reservations for character dining can be difficult to secure. Our Reservation Finder tool is free to use – give it a try!

Have you dined at Chef’s Mickeys before? What do you think of the new setup?

The post REVIEW – Characters Return to Chef Mickey’s and It is Magical appeared first on TouringPlans.com Blog.

From our friends at touringplans.com

Filed Under: Dining, Dos and Don’ts, kids, Trip Planning, chef mickey’s character dining, disney character dining, Disney’s Contemporary Resort, walt disney world mickey mouse

Tags chef mickey's character dining, dining, Disney character dining, Disney's Contemporary Resort, Dos and Don'ts, kids, Trip Planning, walt disney world mickey mouse

Disney Guides Disney Lists Disney Parks

Top 3 Disney World Tips That Everyone Forgets About

Post author By touringplans.com
Post date December 26, 2020

Planning your Walt Disney World vacation can feel overwhelming. Are you making the most of your trip? Is there something you’re forgetting? There’s lots to know, and we aim to make our website and Lines app as helpful as possible. In that spirit here are three tips for visiting Walt Disney World that practically everyone forgets about.

Merchandise Pick-up / Delivery
Adults can order from kid’s menu
The park doesn’t actually close at closing time

Disney’s Merchandise Pick-up / Delivery

This first tip you may not want to share with your kids. If you’ve ever said, “no we can’t buy that, we don’t want to carry it around all day,” this one’s for you. At most Disney theme park merchandise shops you can send your purchase to the front of the park to pick up at the end of your day. This service is free, and it was suspended during the initial reopening on the parks, but it is now back in service.

When you’re checking out, ask the Cast Member about the Merchandise Pick-Up option. Usually they need just 2-3 hours to ensure your purchase makes it to the park exit. Be sure to double check on if you have enough time, and ask about the exact location for picking up your merchandise. At EPCOT you will need to know if you will exit at the front of the park or at International Gateway.

The other free option is for your purchase to be sent to your Disney resort hotel. Not all hotels on Disney property participate, so be sure to double check with the Cast Member. You will need to provide your room number. The purchase will be sent overnight and available for pick up the next day at your resort’s merchandise shop. This service cannot be done for delivery on the day you check out of your hotel.

Top 3 Disney World Tips That Everyone Forgets About — Hester’s and Chester’s Dinoland USA Merchandise

Adults can order from the kid’s menu

If you’re not too hungry, or you’re trying to save a little money at Walt Disney World, you can order from the kid’s menu. This mainly pertains to quick service dining locations. At table service restaurants it may be a little trickier. Thanks to Mobile Ordering you can easily order from the kids menu and simply pick up your order when it is ready. Disney does have the basics of children’s eating habits like chicken nuggets, burgers, and pizza, but they also have some creative, healthy options too. Be sure to explore!

There’s also a great snack pack available at select quick service locations which provides a decent amount of snacks that can keep you going throughout the day.

The park doesn’t actually close at closing time

Each park’s published closing time indicates a few things. First, no more guests will be admitted into the park at that point. Second, no additional guests will be allowed entrance into any of the queues for the attractions. Most quick service locations and many shops will close at closing time or just before. However, if you are already in line, you can remain in line. So, yes, if you’ve got five minutes until the park closes and you jump into a line with a 45 minute wait, for example, you’ll be able to continue in line and ride the ride.

You can also dine past closing time. Many table service restaurants will have timeslots available all the way until just before closing time. There’s also been cases when we’ve found timeslots for right after park closing, say 15 minutes. You use our Reservation Finder to help secure a reservation at popular spots and popular timeslots.

Enjoying a meal that goes beyond the published park closing time will not only satisfy your hunger, but will give you a chance to stroll through the park with less people–an enchanting way to end your day. Merchandise shops at the front of the park are open for about an hour past closing as well, in case you need those last-minute mementos.

There’s plenty more tips where these came from. Let us know in the comments if you’d like to see more tips like these.

The post Top 3 Disney World Tips That Everyone Forgets About appeared first on TouringPlans.com Blog.

From our friends at touringplans.com

Filed Under: Dos and Don’ts, Observations, Park Hours, Trip Planning, best tips for disney world, disney dining, disney park hours, disney world planning tips

Tags best tips for disney world, disney dining, Disney Park Hours, disney world planning tips, Dos and Don'ts, Observations, Park Hours, Trip Planning

Disney Guides Disney Parks Other

Where to Find the Exits for Disney’s Animal Kingdom’s Most Popular Rides

Post author By touringplans.com
Post date November 2, 2020

Disney’s Animal Kingdom has a good balance of animal experiences and attractions that range from thrills to relaxed chills. But there may be folks in your group that prefer to just chill and avoid the thrills. In that case it’s good to know where the exits to the rides they are not interested in are at so they can plan to meet up with you when you’re done.

If you want to meet up with your party at the exit area the options at Animal Kingdom are a little weak compared to other parks. But, you can also go through the queue with your party so you can stick together, and then let the Cast Member know you do not wish to ride, and they’ll direct you to where you can wait to meet your party. While in line, browse our Lines app to check out ratings for all the restaurants in the park. Place your lunch, snack, or dinner order through mobile ordering in the MyDisneyExperience app so your food will be ready when you’re done.

Where to Find the Exits for Disney’s Animal Kingdom’s Most Popular Rides — Rivers of Light Amphitheater for Expedition Everest Waiting

Here’s where to locate the exit for some of Animal Kingdom’s most popular attractions, and yes, some of them do exit into a gift shop.

Expedition Everest– The queue for this attraction is well detailed so you may want to consider at least walking through with your party. The “chicken exit” is easy to get to from the loading area. This attraction exits into the gift shop, without any seats nearby. But there is a small waiting area to the far right of the entrance, or you can sit in the Rivers of Light amphitheater.
Kali River Rapids – If you’re not up for getting wet like the rest of your group, there’s a few benches just on the other side of the bridge that riders will cross once they exit.

DINOSAUR – Besides being a rough and often fast ride, DINOSAUR is dark at parts and loud. This ride exits into a merchandise shop, but there is a nice shaded area just outside the building, to the right of the entrance.
Kilimanjaro Safaris – Although Safaris is not a thrill ride, some folks may elect not to ride, like expectant mothers and those with heart or back conditions. The exit for Safaris is really awkward, down a winding trail near the entrance to Gorilla Falls. There are some tables and chairs near the ride’s entrance, and Harambe Market quick service is currently not open, but has tables and chairs available.
Avatar Flight of Passage – If you’d rather not uh… fly (this attraction is very thrilling after all), there is not much of a waiting area here. This ride does exit into a merchandise shop, and there are a few benches outside.

I like to enjoy some quiet time while my party goes on thrill rides. I usually go grab a drink as soon as they get in line, and then grab a seat near the exit while I sip, sit, and people watch. Of course, in the park it is tempting to just sit and enjoy Nomad Lounge while I wait.

Do you prefer to stick together with your party, or enjoy some quiet from time to time?

The post Where to Find the Exits for Disney’s Animal Kingdom’s Most Popular Rides appeared first on TouringPlans.com Blog.

From our friends at touringplans.com
Filed Under: Attractions, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, Dos and Don’ts, Trip Planning, animal kingdom rides, disney’s animal kingdom attractions, disnney’s animal kingdom tips

Tags animal kingdom rides, Attractions, disney's animal kingdom attractions, Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park, disnney's animal kingdom tips, Dos and Don'ts, Trip Planning

Disney Parks Other

PHOTOS – The Holidays Start to Arrive and Nighttime Returns to Pandora at Disney’s Animal Kingdom

Post author By touringplans.com
Post date November 2, 2020

We’ve become accustomed to Magic Kingdom being all decked out for Christmas as soon as the sun rises on November 1 in recent years. What we weren’t expecting was to see Animal Kingdom begin its holiday decorations so soon, and to be the lucky recipient of the first Holiday Exclusive treat. Last year marked the first year that Disney’s Animal Kingdom was decked out with holiday decorations in every section of the park. It will be interesting to see how much of that is brought back for the 2020 holiday season.

We’ll definitely be back to scope out the decorations once they are fully on display. For now, we hope you enjoy this sneak peek at the decorations that we spotted yesterday at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

All photos were taken by Ivonne on our team, @servoisnaked on Twitter and Instagram.

Merry Menagerie Luminaries at Discovery Island

Lights Starting to Go Up at Dinoland USA

Another gift we received yesterday is the return of Pandora – World of Avatar, at night. With the time change yesterday, guests who visit during days with extended hours at Animal Kingdom (Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays primarily) will be treated to the other worldly night setting offered at Pandora.

Are you planning a trip to Walt Disney World for the holiday season? Become a TouringPlans Subscriber so you can give yourself the gift of avoiding long lines. Many of our users save 2-3 hours on an average day in the parks. You’ll have more time to enjoy the holiday cheer at Disney’s Animal Kingdom and throughout Walt Disney World.

Did you get a chance to the new holiday decorations at Disney’s Animal Kingdom last year? What’s your favorite part?

The post PHOTOS – The Holidays Start to Arrive and Nighttime Returns to Pandora at Disney’s Animal Kingdom appeared first on TouringPlans.com Blog.

From our friends at touringplans.com
Filed Under: Christmas, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, Trip Planning, disney christmas, walt disney world christmas decorations

Tags christmas, disney christmas, Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park, Trip Planning, walt disney world christmas decorations