1st time Disney Family. Working on a plan for DHS on a projected crowd level 7 day.
I was surprised the plans I’ve been generating have suggested Rope Dropping SDD and then doing ROR and Smugglers Run, and then using a G+LL for MMRR.
I’d appreciate any thoughts on trying to do SDD first compared to ROR and then getting a LL for SDD.
Kids are 6 and 11 if that matters.
Thanks!
I think that’s because SDD is more reliable to be running first thing and it’s a much shorter attraction to experience. If you’re truly at the front of the pack you can ride SDD and get to RoR relatively early still.
Conversely, RoR can be down first thing and then you’ve rushed just to be stuck in line while you wait for it to open. Even if it is running right at the start of early entry it’s still a long attraction so by the time you’re finished other lines are getting long.
Honestly rope dropping both isn’t the most ideal scenario, the program is just making the best plan out of the circumstances you’re giving it (not buying ILL for RoR or having LL for SDD).
Edited to add: if this is your first time in the park especially I’d recommend a less ambitious approach, plus the kids will likely enjoy taking it all in rather than the rush and craziness of rope dropping the most popular attractions.
I agree with Aimes about RotR. We tried in October…front of the pack…told they didn’t know when it would be back up…we debated and waited for about 15-20 mins since we were so close to the front. Then got out of line but by the time we left the line, we lost any advantage at SDD or MMRR. The worst part was that it opened like 15 mins after we left…so worst case scenario by all accounts! We ended up riding at park close…we got in line around 8:40 and waited about 30 mins which was still less than all the time we wasted at rope drop. My advice is rd Slinky and ride RotR late.
ETA: one thing to keep in mind about the LL for SDD is that you have virtually no control over the time you get. As most of the slots fill up within minutes of 7a, you are just tapping screens as quickly as you can. Not an issue if you plan to be at DHS all day, but if you were planning to leave at a certain time or park hop and you get a 6p LL - it’s just something to consider. You can also try to modify your time, but I don’t have any experience on success of that. The G+LL is definitely way less stressful than RD though as long as you are flexible.
I read somewhere that ROTR is usually down first thing in the morning about 50% of the time. It’s risky to rope drop it, the line builds fast, and it will be long most of the day, so you can really go anytime. We had good luck with going toward the end of the night, but that is also risky in case it goes down and it is your only time in HS.
The touring plans software can be a little wonky with LLs still - which is frustrating.
If you want to ride SDD twice, then I would rope drop it and get an LL. If you want it once, then I’d probably use that for my first LL. You could also rope drop TSMM, MMRR or ToT as potentially less stressful options.
How exciting - first trips are so fun!
I don’t know how long you’re staying in the park but I’d actually opt to get a LL for Slinky and ride at park close as opposed to RD’ing.
If you’re set to ride it earlier though, you can do it it’s just stressful.
Are you getting an ILL for Rise or just Standby?
Congrats on your first trip!
Touring Plans recommends ROR as the one “myst get” ILL because of the downtime it experiences.
I know it is a.lot of money to get G+ and ILL, but HS is the one park where I would recommend both.
My original thought was to do ROR standby at RD. However, based on the comments, I’m rethinking that, and maybe the ILL is the way to go.
I have been to the parks a dozen times and have RD’d at HS many of those trips and never have I RD’d Rise due to its unreliability. I almost always go the ILL route.
Once, in November of '22 with my DS, we failed to secure an ILL for Rise and got in the SB line around 7 pm or so (around the time everyone was booking it to Fantasmic - it had recently reopened for the first time since COVID) and we had a pretty minimal wait. I was pleasantly surprised.
I tend to spring for LL and ILL in HS. Just less stressful.
I have RD’d Slinky many times, and have even done it solo with my 4 kids who were 10, 8, 6, and 4 at the time. It’s stressful, but doable - especially if you are at the front of the pack.
I would try to RD Toy Story Land. If you are at the front of the pack you can knock out Slinky, TSM, and AS2 pretty quickly. I’d try to get your first LL for MSFR and head there after TSL. Get an ILL for Rise whenever you can and then work through the remaining attractions throughout the day.
We’ve tried it both ways. We were at the front of the turnstyles both times. RD SDD was very successful for us with a mid morning ILL for Rise. When we tried to RD Rise it was delayed opening and it messed up our plan a bit.
Just to throw another idea out there … if it fits in your budget, purchase ILL for Rise in addition to G+.
Kids ages 6 and 11 would likely love TSM.
Get first LL for SDD, Get ILL for Rise and RD TSM (and then ride a second time later in the day with LL). RD line should be much less for TSM than SDD or Rise.
Thanks Everyone,
I appreciate the feedback and will definitely be changing the plan and RD TSM, and get the ILL for ROR.
It is going to be our first park too, so if we can avoid the stress and hopefully just let people enjoy it, that’s probably the best plan.
Your post is making me question if it would be better to rope drop HS or instead to stack LL for the evening around 4:30 since I will be there in the evening for Fantasmic. Either way I will buy a ILL for rise. My only must dos are Slinky, TOT, Rise and MMRR. What does everyone think is a better strategy?
HS is stressful because it has so many e-ticket rides! But I have been able to do it all!
Do you have EE? If you don’t, you will be way behind for RD!
If BG1 is still running, you should be able to get the first slot for Genie+, which I would suggest SDD.
Did you look at this for priority for Genie+? The Genie Thread! All WDW Info Here
Ignore the Tiers. Combine the Tiers and customize the attractions to fit your family.
I agree with not RDing RISE. It is often down, like others have said. I suggest RDing TSM during EE. You should have time to do TSM twice, during EE, if you want (You can still book a TSS LL later in the day!). Or go to ASS. Redeem SDD LL and book your next LL. This should get all the rides in Toystory Land done within an hour after park opening. I’ve done it like this on two different trips, with different travel companions who had to do it all. We got in all the rides, a couple of shows, a QS, a TS with Fantasmic Dining Package, tons of PhotoPass stops, character meet and greets, shopping, and snacks.
For RISE, an ILL helps. But, if there are two Fantasmic showings, you could watch the first showing of Fantasmic and hop in line a couple of minutes before park closing for RISE without paying for ILL or waiting in line forever!
There’s already tons of good advice here. I agree that ILL or hopping in line at the end of the day for Rise is a better strategy then rope dropping it (ILL being the more reliable option - if it’s a must do for you and you have no back-up day, the end of the day plan is risky in case it goes down late and doesn’t come back up).
I’ve rope dropped Slinky once and it’s doable but a bit stressful as to you really want to be front of the pack/at security nearly 1hr before park open to ensure minimal wait time. If you are not getting G+ then it’s still worth going, but since G+ is so helpful for so many DHS rides (wait times are high for virtually all attractions in the middle of the day) I think it’s almost always worth budgeting for it. Then with G+, it’s much more enjoyable to arrive at the park at a more leisurely pace right around the time of EE and rope drop a second tier attraction like TSMM or MMRR (depending on crowd levels you could potentially knock out MMRR first and still have very minimal wait for TSMM, then ride ASS).
As @stlouie says, by using BG1 (you can find info about this in the La Cava section of the forum), you can easily get an early morning LL for Slinky, tap into that after you’ve finished the rest of Toy Story Land, and then grab LLs for everything else (ToT, RRnR, MSFR and MMRR if you didn’t manage to do that at rope drop). You don’t really need it for shows (though for some shoes like Frozen it’ll likely get you better seats than the regular line).
Hope you have a great time!
This is what we did! We were middle of the pack, RD TSM and we’re able to ride twice before EE ended.
Your suggestion was exactly what my family did on our last trip. We rope dropped MMRR, then went directly to TSM which was still a walk on.
We’re not SDD fans, so we used our first Genie+ on MFSR, and rode ROTR with ILL-was very smooth MMRR to Toy Story Land, to Star Wars Land.
I prefer stacking for HS and arriving later, but 4:30 pm sounds a little late given the time you will spend at Fantasmic. Rise can take some time from start to finish even with ILL. And you probably want some time for dinner too. Can you get to HS 3:30 pm?
I didn’t think this was a thing 
Thanks for the input. This will be in May. Not sure what time Fantasmic is then. My guess is 9? We could probably get there at 3:30. We are either going straight there from AK or taking a mid day break at the hotel. I’m glad you said stacking because I think I want to rope drop MK the morning that would otherwise be HS.
Me either! But my BFF is not a fan. I’m booking us a LL anyway and I’ll steal her magic band and ride twice while she has a beverage. Win win🙂