'Waste' EE entry just for Rise rope drop?

[bcwife76]

We have two park days in August and are staying onsite (first time onsite since 2019) at Pixar Place. Husband wants us to use early morning entry not for the rides in Fantasyland and Tomorrowland but so that we can get to the rope near Rose Tavern so we can rope drop Galaxies Edge. I think this is a waste of EE, that we should do some rides in Fantasyland then go over to GE for Rise but he thinks the wait will then be super long (and isn't keen on paying for the ILL for our party of 4 ) Is this a silly strategy, should we use EE for the rides that they are intended for and just high tail it to GE after 8am?
Bonus question: I know EE guests line up near Plaza Inn but when first entering the turnstiles, is there a dedicated line for EE or are we just choosing any line along with everyone else? Thank you!

 

[LKing]

Rise is frequently not open first thing in the morning.

 

[Howry]

Like Lking said, most of the time it isnt even open to start the day. Would be a huge gamble and a HUGE waste of the time if it was closed when you got there.

 

[princesscinderella]

I would say plan for rise at the end of the day, as the previous poster said it’s not always open for early entry. If you are getting genie+ do the fantasy land rides that don’t offer it, especially if you like Peter Pan or Mr toads. I love the storybook boat ride and Casey Jr too and like that they have little to no wait first thing in the morning. Then you hope that the genie+ ride you picked first goes down and you get a multi attraction one instead and keep stacking them throughout the day

 

[bcwife76]

Oh wow, I didn't realize Rise was frequently down first thing in the morning. Thanks so much! Definitely won't waste my EE on waiting for that if that's the case.

 

[OlliePop27]

Oh wow, I didn't realize Rise was frequently down first thing in the morning. Thanks so much! Definitely won't waste my EE on waiting for that if that's the case.

Agree with all other posters - not worth the gamble at RD due to being down so frequently at park open. ROTR breaks down a lot in general, both at DL and WDW. Indy breaks down a lot too, so also not a great RD pick.

My advice is the same for Radiator Springs Racers. I don't recommend rope dropping as it's frequently down at park open.

 

[LKing]

When it does open, the line moves quickly because there are no LL.

 

[Porsche4]

I watch a blogger who always recommends trying Rise at about 7:30pm when the wait is usually about 40 minutes. Also something I just learned recently is that the posted wait time includes the 20 minutes of pre shows and that the predicted wait time is the time they expect you to get onto the actual ride portion of the attraction not into the first pre show area. I personally don't consider the pre shows as standing in line as they entertain me and I love them, so if I see a 40 minute wait I am going for it. This blogger also said that if the line is out in the open air then the wait is long, if the line is just spilling out of the cave entrance then the line is short. I personally would not rope drop Rise you can get so much of Fantasyland done in that first 30 minutes of EE and then at normal rope drop (8:00am) you are set to ride things like Space Mountain, Big Thunder or Indiana Jones.

 

[kes601]

Disregard, I was talking about HS and not DL.

 

[OlliePop27]

When Rise is open and you are close to the front of the line you can be off of it before EE actually starts. When we decide to head there if we find it isn't open we just detour to Smugglers.

I don't see how that's possible given that ROTR at DISNEYLAND is not open for EE. Do you mean you can be off shortly after the park opens to regular guests at 8:00?

Alternatively, you might be referencing ROTR at HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS at WDW, which is entirely different and not relevant to this poster's question about DL.

 

[bcwife76]

@Porsche4 that's really interesting and quite helpful, thank you! We've only done Rise once, back in 2021 when it was still VQ. And our youngest was not with us on that trip hence why my husband is quite eager to make sure we do this ride

 

[kes601]

I don't see how that's possible given that ROTR at DISNEYLAND is not open for EE. Do you mean you can be off shortly after the park opens to regular guests at 8:00?

Alternatively, you might be referencing ROTR at HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS at WDW, which is entirely different and not relevant to this poster's question about DL.

Ughh, I keep forgetting to see what forum I am in.

 

[OlliePop27]

@Porsche4 that's really interesting and quite helpful, thank you! We've only done Rise once, back in 2021 when it was still VQ. And our youngest was not with us on that trip hence why my husband is quite eager to make sure we do this ride

I'm sure you will find a way to make it work - have a great time!

I am definitely in the minority, but I really don't care for ROTR. I love thrill rides and I love innovative tech. There's just something about it that makes me say "eh" when I leave the ride. I've ridden it twice - once with VQ in November 2021 and once with ILL in January 2023. I think it's two things: 1) I don't relate to the newer characters as much and 2) I don't think the ride fits in DL park.

It is an impressive ride and I understand why it's popular. It does make my visits a little easier since I don't view it as a priority! My wife has never ridden it, so I'll likely buy her and my dad a ILL to do it together on our trip this summer or have them do it later in the evening one day once the littles are asleep. If we pay for ILL at all, I would rather save it for RSR!

 

[DnA2010]

I would say not worth it. The time I tried it on my last trip, it didn't open. Like others have said, watch for it to come back up from going down, or when it's at 40 min- I've never experienced it being actually 40 min, but shorter.

 

[MonocularVision]

I watch a blogger who always recommends trying Rise at about 7:30pm when the wait is usually about 40 minutes.

I give the same recommendation. We have never waited more than 45 minutes to hit pre-show when we go near the end of the day. And a few of the times it was under 20 and one time we walked all the way to pre-show without a wait at all. In all cases the wait time listed no less than 45 minutes. Feels like they just lie at the end of the day to stop people rushing the ride since it closes before park close most of the time.

 

[Porsche4]

I give the same recommendation. We have never waited more than 45 minutes to hit pre-show when we go near the end of the day. And a few of the times it was under 20 and one time we walked all the way to pre-show without a wait at all. In all cases the wait time listed no less than 45 minutes. Feels like they just lie at the end of the day to stop people rushing the ride since it closes before park close most of the time.

Yes I think that is exactly what they do. Also at that time people are usually heading to snag seats for Fantasmic (when it comes back) and the fireworks so it is also a good time, if you are not interested in those things, to ride quite a lot of attractions with a relatively lesser wait time than earlier in the day. We are lucky, coming from Australia we usually visit for 7 days so we always have plenty of time to see night time offerings one night and then hit rides with low waits on the other nights.

 

[PiratesOfTheSea]

Yes I think that is exactly what they do. Also at that time people are usually heading to snag seats for Fantasmic (when it comes back) and the fireworks so it is also a good time, if you are not interested in those things, to ride quite a lot of attractions with a relatively lesser wait time than earlier in the day. We are lucky, coming from Australia we usually visit for 7 days so we always have plenty of time to see night time offerings one night and then hit rides with low waits on the other nights.

The ROTR standby line tends to lighten up after about 5pm. Last April we managed to go on it twice starting at about 5:30pm and later that night having never waited more than 30 minutes each time. That was also the day after Fantasmic went up in flames so it wasn't even running to draw the crowds.

 

[Porsche4]

The ROTR standby line tends to lighten up after about 5pm. Last April we managed to go on it twice starting at about 5:30pm and later that night having never waited more than 30 minutes each time. That was also the day after Fantasmic went up in flames so it wasn't even running to draw the crowds.

Wow lucky you, sometimes you can just be in the right place at the right time and the Disney gods are smiling on you.

 

[Babe the Blue Ox]

On our most recent visit, we hit Rise 80 minutes before park close and were able to ride 3 times. You can’t do that in the morning no matter how early you arrive.

 

[Porsche4]

On our most recent visit, we hit Rise 80 minutes before park close and were able to ride 3 times. You can’t do that in the morning no matter how early you arrive.

Thats fantastic. I doubt we will have the same luck as we will be there the first week of December so it will be busy but maybe everyone will be there to see the Xmas night time shows so we might luck out.