Soarin Queue

Well if that's what Disney think will help...I'am ok with that...However in all my 5 previous visits,all in July, I've had no problem going on Soarin'..We arrive at rope drop..we walk ( not run ) to Soarin' ..My DW gets our cards and gets passes as my DS and I join the line...We have done Soarin' plenty of times with no wait..If I saw a 120 minute wait...I'd move on..Only my opinion..

Thanks for the info Matt! That sounds interesting. Hope it works. If you don't get there early, you miss it unless you have a fpass. And those lines get pretty long.

They tried this same a week ago for Anna and Elsa meet and greets. I don't think I've seen what the customers reaction and feedback was but I have to think it was not very pleasant. To me, it seems like FP+ or bust. If you want to wait for 3-4 hours for a ride, then that's your decision and you have your own reasons why. But if you're not even allowed to access the standby line, then it's really not a fair process. I mean, instead of one line being unavailable to access after all of its passes are out (FP+ line), it sounds like there is a possibility where both lines are inaccessible. At least with the old FP method, if the FPs were out, you had the choice of waiting in the long standby line or not. With the new scenario, there is a possibility you might be unable to access either line. Of course, if you're there at rope drop and head straight to Soarin', the problem can be alleviated the way I see it. Re-riding it, however, may require some planning.

As a frequent visitor and Disney-obsessed nut, I can easily incorporate the existence of stand-by cards into my touring, but I had some concerns about this new system. From what I understand, Soarin' and TSM were both up for the testing. Can you imagine being a first time park-goer and not getting a chance to experience these two attractions because you didn't know that you had to show up to get a card before 11am? Even after all of the times that I've experienced these two attractions, they are still two of my favorites. I worry that this system could be extended to other attractions, too and that uninformed first-timers will be the ones who suffer.

It will also make the park feel more crowded with the same number of people in attendance. Queues suck up crowds and keep the park's walkways & shops less crowded and maintain a traffic flow for minor attractions that can be absorbed at a consistent rate that renders them "walk-ons" for most of the day. For example, I think TSM is like a 7 minute wait for every 100 people in line in front of you. That means that if handing out these cards decreases the wait time from 90 minutes to 30 minutes on a given day, 60 minutes worth of people (857 people) will now be in the park instead of waiting in line for TSM. That just means that we'll be waiting behind those "extra" people to buy a tchotchke at Tattooine Traders or to get on the Great Movie Ride or to buy a mac & cheese hotdog.

I do appreciate that Disney is constantly innovating the queueing process and I think that they really do a tremendous job of keeping the queues fun, making the lines move efficiently, and creating line bypass procedures (even if all of these things advance their own interests by inspiring people to spend more money and giving them time to do so). I'm just not sure that this is a program that has staying power. I think it's likely to upset more guests than it pleases and that recipe could be bad for business.

Like I stated in my Anna & Elsa post about this, I agree with Annie. It makes sense for guests like us that know to plan for this in advance, but for the first time guest who comes unprepared, it kind of sucks. I hadn't thought about how much more traffic will be out in the parks, too. Excellent point!

I wish Disneyworld did what Disneyland does( confusing sounding I know). Disneyland has a single rider option for Soarin which if you don't mind getting split up usually goes faster.

I know, right? I think Disney World in general needs more single rider lines. The only three single rider lines in WDW are Test Track, Expedition Everest and Rock n Roller Coaster. That's less than double of the single rider lines that Disneyland has!