It does not get any easier to book a Walt Disney World trip. And Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge makes it all the more difficult. In fact, even with Extra Extra Magic Hours, it's still a big problem. We went through this over a year ago, and I thought it would be years before we'd encounter this mess again. But, when our oldest daughter and her husband asked us to go with their family, we jumped at the chance. These kids are big Star Wars fans and had never been to a Disney park. And what a great time we'll have... once we figure out all the pre-trip planning. Ugh, Walt Disney World just used to be much more relaxed and spontaneous. But that was then.
If you look at this post, Booking Nightmare Part One, (from our 2018 trip), you'll see we gave up plenty of must dos in order to get the most out of our time. One thing is certain, having to scurry on line in the early morning hours to get "prime" reservations for rides and restaurants brings out the worst in me, that old sinful nature that reminds me how much I need a savior. Envy, greed, worry, fear, etc. All these things come to the foreground as I compete with others for the best experiences on the property. It shouldn't be this way, but it is. I thought I might do better planning this trip, but no, it was just more of the same. Yet...
For our 2019 adventure with a young family that has never been to Florida, the new addition of Star Wars Land to Disney's Hollywood Studios, only makes things much harder. Unfortunately for guests, Disney park managers and company executives have made things even worse by excluding Galaxy's Edge restaurants and attractions from both Fast Pass+ reservations, restaurant seating times, and the Disney Dining Plan. One more way to extract additional cash from guests in the middle of trying to manage the anticipated crowds. (We all know they didn't figure it out well at Disneyland. But Florida has a whole different kind of vacationer.) How do you explain to middle class kids that building a light saber or eating in the famous cantina won't happen due to pricing and limited availability? Guess we will settle for blue milk to be shared and trinket shopping. The Falcon ride and any entertainment had better be good!
Back to the Studios and not just Star Wars. In an entire theme park with so few attractions (less than 10) versus theater shows, a full day experience is just not possible if you have a family who prefers activity instead of sitting still watching shows. And that's just who we are.
What did we give up this trip? I'll focus just on the Studios for now. We said goodbye to short lines for Twilight Zone Tower of Terror (the original is still the best version) and next door's coaster. We did snag a meal time at Sci-Fi Dine In, a must do with school aged kids- and honestly, one of very few eating locations worth spending time at while in the Studios. We also gave up a more relaxed morning since we must embrace Extra Extra Magic Hours in order to see Galaxy's Edge. Who wants to get up at 4:30am to make sure we get on a ride that is Star Tours 3.0 at best? Yet, for kids whom this will be their only Walt Disney World trip, we do it out of love when they are fans of the films and cartoon series. Those very early morning hours means we give up late nights at the park. For all its shortcomings, the Studios park is absolutely stunning at night, making evening walks delightful.
We set aside two days for this park to make sure we see all of Galaxy's Edge that we can. This meant only one day is set aside for Animal Kingdom. We'll see how that works out. Epcot gets a day and a half. Thankfully, the Magic Kingdom is still a full two day park for guests of any age, the mainstay of a Walt Disney World vacation. As you'll read in the forthcoming trip reports, we did do smashingly well with our restaurant reservations, allowing us to eat in locales I haven't experienced in years or not at all. I'll save that for later. Stay tuned.
(Photograph copyright The Walt Disney Company.)
Back to the Studios and not just Star Wars. In an entire theme park with so few attractions (less than 10) versus theater shows, a full day experience is just not possible if you have a family who prefers activity instead of sitting still watching shows. And that's just who we are.
What did we give up this trip? I'll focus just on the Studios for now. We said goodbye to short lines for Twilight Zone Tower of Terror (the original is still the best version) and next door's coaster. We did snag a meal time at Sci-Fi Dine In, a must do with school aged kids- and honestly, one of very few eating locations worth spending time at while in the Studios. We also gave up a more relaxed morning since we must embrace Extra Extra Magic Hours in order to see Galaxy's Edge. Who wants to get up at 4:30am to make sure we get on a ride that is Star Tours 3.0 at best? Yet, for kids whom this will be their only Walt Disney World trip, we do it out of love when they are fans of the films and cartoon series. Those very early morning hours means we give up late nights at the park. For all its shortcomings, the Studios park is absolutely stunning at night, making evening walks delightful.
We set aside two days for this park to make sure we see all of Galaxy's Edge that we can. This meant only one day is set aside for Animal Kingdom. We'll see how that works out. Epcot gets a day and a half. Thankfully, the Magic Kingdom is still a full two day park for guests of any age, the mainstay of a Walt Disney World vacation. As you'll read in the forthcoming trip reports, we did do smashingly well with our restaurant reservations, allowing us to eat in locales I haven't experienced in years or not at all. I'll save that for later. Stay tuned.
(Photograph copyright The Walt Disney Company.)
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