We are a family of 9 (including 3 kids under 5) going to DHS on Saturday 2/29. I originally booked an ADR at 8:20 in hope it’d get us into the park earlier and quicker (opening time was 9am). But now opening time has been changed to 8am. Is there any benefit of still keeping my reservation, since the crowds will already be arriving at the time we’re heading over? Just trying to avoid lots of crowds and standing around that early in the morning with so many littles in tow.
I would say no, TBH.
With the change in opening hours, your ADR won’t provide any advantage in getting into the park earlier or quicker. Unfortunately, due to the boarding group situation for RotR, I suspect it will be crowded at park open (and during the hour prior to park open) for the next few months.
I think you may find better benefit in rope dropping and doing a later breakfast like 10:30/11. To give everyone a bit of a break from an early start. (Also this would really be more of a second breakfast if it was my family. We would do pop tarts and/or fruit to hold us over).
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The only benefit I was thinking was that it may allow us to leave the hotel a little later if there is a dedicated ADS line to get into the park, but I was sure if they still had that line if the restaurant opens at the same time as the park. Does anyone know if that line still applies in this situation?
When the park opens before or at the same time as the dining reservations they don’t have a separate ADR queue to enter the park.
It might. We had a similar situation at Epcot with an ADR for 10 or maybe 15 min after park opening.
We arrived about 30 minutes before park opening and waited around a few minutes. Then a family member said hey, ask the clipboard person if we can go in. I didn’t think we’d be able to but didn’t mind asking.
Our name was on the list and in we went.
This was several years ago. Maybe even 10. You could always ask. It’s not like they’ll take away your birthday or anything.