Need Help for recent WDW visitors - Toy Story Midway?

[llgray16]

OK, we are finalizing our park days and plan of attack. We have never been to WDW in the blisteing heat of an Orlando August! So we are planning on early mornings, heading back to SSR in early afternoon and then going back to the parks in the evening. We haven't been since the new Toy Story Midway Mania opened and I know my boys are going to want to ride this at least twice! We are only doing Hollywood Studios one day so I want to really figure out the best way to do this. I have heard the dash for fast passes is pretty intense. I was thinking that I once we get thru the gate I will take everyones tickets and go as close to the front of rope drop as I can so I can do the mad dash for the passes. I will send DH and my dad with kids down to ToT for a ride or two and then meet them at RnR. For our second ride on TSM, I was thinking of trying to ride it while the first Fantasmic show is going on. Probably still will be a line but may be more manageable then?

Any words of wisdom for getting more rides on TSM? Does this sound like a good plan? We just do not wait more than 20 mnutes for any ride but I know we might have to for this one :rolleyes:

[Mom2aPrincess]

We've got an August trip planned too and so I'd love to hear any advice from those that have been.

I think that sounds like a great plan though. We have a very similar general plan (open parks, afternoon breaks, and then back for the evenings). I deliberately even made late dinner reservations this time so that we didn't have to be in a hurry to get back in the parks. We'll probably send one person ahead for fast passes and the others will still head there asap for the first ride (that's our approach to Soarin'), but we don't ride ToT and do RnR as single riders as my youngest won't ride anything that goes more than 1 mph :rotfl: or drops more than 6 inches :rotfl:

ETA: i don't know how old your boys are, but I read somewhere (maybe on DIS) that riding TSM as single riders gets you through the line much faster. My youngest is still too young - she'd freak over being separated, but maybe that would work for you guys on the 2nd ride.

[llgray16]

We've got an August trip planned too and so I'd love to hear any advice from those that have been.

I think that sounds like a great plan though. We have a very similar general plan (open parks, afternoon breaks, and then back for the evenings). I deliberately even made late dinner reservations this time so that we didn't have to be in a hurry to get back in the parks. We'll probably send one person ahead for fast passes and the others will still head there asap for the first ride (that's our approach to Soarin'), but we don't ride ToT and do RnR as single riders as my youngest won't ride anything that goes more than 1 mph :rotfl: or drops more than 6 inches :rotfl:

ETA: i don't know how old your boys are, but I read somewhere (maybe on DIS) that riding TSM as single riders gets you through the line much faster. My youngest is still too young - she'd freak over being separated, but maybe that would work for you guys on the 2nd ride.

Sounds like we have very similar plans. I chose much later ADRs because of our desire to go back to the resort in the afternoon as well (although I may need to change most of them because I am moving our park days around :headache: )

My boys are 6 & 8 and while I will let them ride together, I don't think we are ready for the single rider lane just yet. Thanks for the suggestion anyway :)

[Mom2aPrincess]

Sounds like we have very similar plans. I chose much later ADRs because of our desire to go back to the resort in the afternoon as well (although I may need to change most of them because I am moving our park days around :headache: )

My boys are 6 & 8 and while I will let them ride together, I don't think we are ready for the single rider lane just yet. Thanks for the suggestion anyway :)

Well at least we'll go doing right or wrong together. :sunshine:

My daughter is 7 so I know right where you are on the single rider line.

[lrsellars]

We just went the middle part of June and the fast passes for Toy Story Mania go very quickly.

I went as fast as I could with all of our tickets in hand and got our first fastpasses and the return time was already at 11am'ish. Of course, I was the only adult with the three kids at this point and it was a Saturday during Star Wars Weekend. While I was waiting in line, the time kept rolling forward very fast. There actually was a five minute gap in return time on one of our 4 tickets. Anyway, when we returned at 11'ish, we rode (didn't have to wait for more than 5 minutes or so) and once we got off, I decided to get fast passes again - the return time was 8PM. I almost fell over. The rest of the week (we went back two more times) it was different but the fast passes went very quickly and by mid morning they were all gone. By the way, one time when we went past, they had posted a wait in standby of 420 minutes. That's crazy. The ride is GREAT and is my new favorite but I wouldn't wait that long.

I read on another board that you should get fast passes right at rope drop but then go immediately to standby and ride one time. Someone in the party could stand in the fastpass distribution line (yes the line can get VERY long just to get the fast pass) and the others can wait in standby.

While we were riding on one of our last days, the ride broke down just as we were exiting. It was great because we got fastpasses that said we could return anytime. And they didn't expire for a couple of days.

It's a must do ride but unless you have a lot of time to wait, I wouldn't do it without fastpasses. In regards to the singlerider line - I heard a CM tell a family that even that line was long. I'm not sure I would have had as much fun without one of my family members with me. It's a point competition with the person sitting next to you and how would I rub it in that I bet that person. LOL!!! Wouldn't be very nice of me!! :rotfl:

We go back the end of this month and prior to our trip in June, I hadn't planned on returning to DHS in July. But we will now.

[llgray16]

Thanks for the info! There is absolutely no way I would wait hours to ride any ride! We go far too often to do that! Even if it was a once in a lifetime trip, how fun is it to spend half a day to ride one 2 minute ride - crazy!!!

Maybe I will have them sprint with me to TSM and get one ride in and get fastpasses while they are riding. Then we can always try again later in the evening to see if we can ride it again. If not we just have to ride ToT agin - awww shucks :D

[hmdelf]

thanks for the info. We are going in Oct. and I can't wait for that ride!!!

[SunshineGirl]

I really, really hope that we can take the girls on it in October because we got to ride it at DL without them last month and I feel guilty. LOL! But I'm not sure how we will swing it because it might be tough to get them there by rope drop when we'll be at MNSSHP until midnight the night before.

Hmm....decisions, decisions.

[ligrumpygirl]

Just back...and this was DD7's FAVORITE ride!

We rode this twice...once with fastpasses from a friend (I will explain in TR) and the second time early in the morning. We got to Pixar Place about 9:20 and there was a 10 minute wait. DH and DD went right in. I stayed with DS1 and fed him and got fastpasses. While I waited on that line, the time went from 11 to 11:20. In the 20 minutes or so I waited for DH/DD, the time went all the way to after 1pm...and the stand by time to 40 minutes.

We ended up not using our FP because it was starting to rain so we gave them away to a young couple who were so happy!

[luvdisney00]

Can someone explain what this ride is like? I am working on my DHS tour plan right now, and I'm not sure I can fit this in. My girls 5,10, and 13 like Buzz, but they don't love it. Is it similar? DD10 &DD 13 say R&R is the absolute priority in this park, they LOVE it, and DD5 got to see all of the shows last year, so she's OK with whatever we do.

Is this really a must do?

[ligrumpygirl]

TSM is similiar to Buzz...in that it is a game. TSM is a 4Dride...that is a video game. You are inside Andy's room playing shooting for targets. Now picture Philharmagic incorporated...water sprinkles on you...smells are coming at you.

I hope I described it right...maybe Traci or somebody else will come along and help me out.

In my family, it is now a not-to-miss!

[eaglesdare]

we went also during june and star wars weekend. i think we did it on a friday. but we only got the fastpasses and then later in the day rode it.

personally though if i were doing it again, i would go straight to tsm and ride it then get my fastpass to use later in the day.

the ride is like buzz in that it is a shooting game ride. but you wear glasses (at least i seem to recall wearing them, maybe i was dreaming this) but i believe you wear them and that causes the 4-d affect. you pull a string attached to your gun and shoot. by the end of the ride your arm is tired. i had to swap arms at least twice. it is a must do ride for us now. it was so much fun.

[luvdisney00]

OK, thanks, I guess we have to make this one. The problem is that the only days we'll be in DHS in once for the FDP dinner at MM at 5 and than F! and then our last day we'll arrive in the park around 11 and can stay till 4 before we have to leave for the airport. Ther's just too much good stuff to do, it's hard to fit it all in!

[MKCP84]

We love this ride - went on it 7 times during our trip in June. Each time I took a picture of our ending scores to see how we progressed. When the rope dropped I "quickly" went over to get fastpasses while DH, DD 15, and DD12 went to ride TOT. My one suggestion for getting fastpasses is go way over to the left machines. Everyone crowds at the first few machines and the ones over to the left didn't have as many people.