ADR for H&V 8:05 for day with 9am park open. Level 8 Crowds.
Couldn’t have been smoother. Arrived 7:15-7:30ish, got in far left line for early food reservations folks. 7:45ish, they started letting food folks in. After entering and heading to food, just past restaurant to tabled near Indiana Jones store. Only a handful of families there–likely early diners who were before us in line or possibly VIPs. Got our first choice Jedi show. I think we were numbers 4 and 5? This was all on a Monday, crowd level 8. By the time we left breakfast (still before rope drop), line was LONG for Jedi, from the first non-VIP, non-early-breakfast folks.
And then show went well. DD5 was sort of all over the place, but liked it. DS7 was over the moon. Or so I thought. Later told me it was only his third favorite thing of the day. After Toy Story. And buying a souvenir in the gift shop. (What did I expect: “Thank you, Mom, for sweating blood over this, I will remember it always”? Hardly.)
I saw on Kenny the Pirate that maybe they are not always going to do an early sign-up for VIPs and early diners, on a low level crowd day. So can’t count on it. But it worked great for us.
This is great news to hear and I am happy it worked out so well for you and your family. We will be attempting something similar in August. Thanks for the report back!
I’m still undecided, I have an early morning ADR but I also have a lunch H&V with Fantasmic seating. It will be Wed 14th Dec, so most kids will still be in school, CL6, and we will be there early. I’m hoping for a 10:10am slot, 2nd choice 12:10pm, 3rd choice between 5-6pm but that wouldn’t be convenient. We should be fine just doing RD right? It’s our first morning in WDW so an early ADR would be a lovely start, but I’d prefer to keep the lunch ADR.
I’d get there well before RD on a CL6 day. For our CL8, was a long line already for the RD Jedi folks when we arrived (the farthest one or two to the left that are not for breakfast folks). waiting to get in, and then could see that they had to wait in another long line for the Jedi signup once they got into park. But I think a lot of the early folks go for the earliest shows, so if you don’t get 10:10, the midday one is a good bet if you’re early enough and don’t mind the lines. Or can pay for the breakfast for less stress and lines.
We signed up before an 8am ADR several weeks ago on a CL5 day with no issue. If not doing an ADR I would definitely get there early (as in 8am). We were close to the windows in H&V and we could tell when they let people through the turnstiles. There were people running with their kids past the restaurant to the sign ups. We left the restaurant not long after and waited with everyone else for internal rope drop. If they still have JTA when we go in 2018, we will probably get there early and do rope drop. My youngest will be out of the Disney Jr age.
Wondering -
If they let you into the park pre rope drop to sign in for JTA, and you sign up before rope drop, what do you do? Are you then allowed to wait at an attraction before rope drop?
All pre RD crowd are let into a contained area of HS 15-30mins early, people gather on the side of their first attraction, and JT sign up is open then. I don’t think any rides open early? there are places open to get a snack and drink, don’t know about shops.
No rides open early. You are held at the internal ropes. Then around 9 they have everyone walk behind the ropes carried by the CMs to the bigger attractions. It’s a lot like MK.
How does this work on EMH days? I know this may be a stupid question. We are planning on going to HS on a day with EMH. So-they don’t have PPO dining then, right? I grabbed a 8:20 ADR. But I am guessing that won’t help for Jedi sign-ups. Help! TIA!