Unsure of AK plan

Looking for AK advice…
There are 7 of us visiting AK on Wed. 11/20 (crowd level 2 according to TP). Grandparents (ages 74, 71), me, DH, DS9, DD6, DS2. Right now we only have FP for Navi at 1:05. I don’t even have FOP in my current TP because the wait time is beyond what any of us would be willing to accept!
Ideally, we would do Pandora first and tour the park clockwise from there. (Safari FP at 12:00.)
My dream is that I will be able to move Navi to ~9am and also possibly score a FOP FP for DH and use rider swap. If that doesn’t come to fruition, do you think trying to rope drop FOP and Navi without FPs is realistic given the fact that we will have (moderately energetic) grandparents, a stroller, crowd level, etc.
I’d like to ride FOP but would be ok with only riding Navi with grandparents and toddler while DH and two older kids ride FOP.
I just don’t want the grandparents to be overwhelmed with the rope drop cattle call to Pandora and none of us will be cool with waiting a long time in line. (We’ve been spoiled by minimal wait times our last three trips - thanks, TP!)

In regard to FoP only - It is only feasible if you are willing to get to the park at least one hour before park opening. (NRJ is very easy to get on in the morning. The queues there only build when people get to Pandora mid-morning or later and see the line for FoP and go there instead.)

A same day FPP for FoP for two people is definitely manageable. You’ll have to stay diligent about checking the FPP drop times. The current FPP drop times in AK are: 11:01am, 1:01pm, 3:01pm, 5:01pm

(Advice - This will mean you’ll have to spend a good bit of time on your cell phone and not engaging with your family. I’ve done this and while I can get the FPP later in the day I feel like I should have been more “in the moment” with my family)

Finally…

A common misconception about Crowd Levels is that they are an indicator of the number of people in each park. However, they are an indicator of average queue waits at the park.

A CL 1 can feel like a CL 4 in terms of park capacity, but the queues may be moving quickly. Conversely, you can be in a CL 9 park that feels like a CL 5 because the streets aren’t packed. However, all the queues are super long.

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Thanks! What if my husband and big kids (ages 9/6) take off at rope drop and head to FOP while I make my way to Navi with the grandparents and stroller? Do you think the wait for FOP would still be long for the three of them?

I can then keep checking for same-day FPs in case anyone wants to ride either again.

I would rope drop Navi without a FP and modify your Navi FP to FOP at the same day FastPass drop of FOP.

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If you are truly not at the front of the RD crowd, getting there an hour or more early, your wait will be an hour or greater. 90% of the people that go to RD head straight to FoP.

This might help you - Avatar Flight of Passage Wait Times - Sunday, October 20, 2019

I’m a party of six, with a DS5 that cannot ride. We are planning to get to AK when EMH starts on 10/7, ride Navi as a family, then rider swap FOP. I will take DS5 and do other stuff for the hour while DW rides with the big kids, and know that I can ride with whichever two of my other children can ride later with essentially a FP. If we score a FP later in the day, it’s a bonus.

And you can also consider riding end of day while those who are exhausted or cannot head out.

It’s always easier to get on FoP in the last hour of the parks operating than any other time of day. I recommend this more often than RD. With so many little ones and seniors in OP group I didn’t suggest it though.

We will be there that same day- and for the same reason- CL2!

:slight_smile: We didn’t get FoP either- but NRJ for 9:05. I’m going to just try to get one that day- and if not, we will just wait.

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Very wise! We usually rope drop and then head back to the hotel late afternoon for down time, swimming, dinner, and early to bed to do it all again the next day!
Unless we’re at the front of the herd, I think I’ll just plan to head to Navi then watch for a FP for FOP while in the park. If we miss FOP, it certainly won’t ruin our week and will just be another reason to come back! (DH has yet to ride FOP - last trip I rode with DS. We did rider swap but when DH went back to ride, DS had a bathroom emergency just as they were boarding and they had to dip out. Haha! The attendant told DH that he could come back but he wasn’t in the mood to trek back after all that. Lol!)

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