The attraction lines at Walt Disney World are some of the very best. Several have interactive games to play along the way. Some are shaded, some are not. Some are near bathrooms, some are not. It is good to know what to expect in the lines, also called queues, and how to prepare for them. I hope that this helps you in your planning and makes your trip even more enjoyable since you know what to expect.
10. Do…
Make sure you have applied sunscreen if you are in an exposed outside queue. Even on cloudy days you could get sunburned without it. You don’t want to ruin your vacation with a painful burn, or go home with your skin all peeling off. You should leave with that grin most of us have dreaming about our next Disney trip!
9. Don’t…
Try to think too much about personal space while at Walt Disney World when you are in the queue, especially the wider ones like Haunted Mansion, Soarin’ or Pirates of the Caribbean, where you are asked to “fill in all the available space”. Also, personal space means different things to people of different cultures I have found. Now, you do not have to put up with someone constantly touching you, bumping into you repeatedly, or their children hanging on your leg or kicking you. I have found that many parents are not really paying much attention to what their children are doing and if you ask them nicely to have their child stop the offending behavior most of them will respond kindly and talk to the child. If it is someone being creepy and you feel unsafe contact a Cast Member and they will help you. If worse comes to worse, you could always tell the group/individual that you will swap places with them in line putting you in charge of how much space will be between you and them. (Watching a parade puts you right in the heart of no personal space, if there is any gap of air between you and someone else, a person, persons, and/or their child(ren) can potentially push their way in at the last minute. The queues are not that bad, usually.) Another funny thing that sometimes happens at the water rides is sometimes people hold up the boat asking for someone to please take a towel and dry it before they get in. Good luck with that one lol!
8. Do…
Use the opportunity while in a ride queue to explain to your child what the ride is all about. If a child is adamant about not wanting to ride, things go much better if you don’t force them to. Yes, even if they meet the height requirement, the embarrassment, not to mention the possible trauma to your child, is worse when you are dragging a little kid onto the ride screaming and kicking. A CM may ask the child directly if they want to ride and if they say no you will have to take them off and exit the ride. It’s okay if your child needs to wait until they are a little older to ride. You can do a “rider switch” if you have a young one who either does not meet the height requirement or does not want to ride. As your group approaches the Cast Member at the ride entrance tell them that you want a “Rider Switch”, showing them the one not riding and who will be staying with that child. The rest of you can go through the queue and after you have ridden, the person who stayed with the child can choose up to two of your group to ride with them and they use the Rider Switch they were given to go through the FastPass+ line and ride it. This system works really well.
7. Do…
Go to the bathroom prior to getting in a queue is good advice for any age. If you make sure your children have visited the bathroom before you get in line you can avoid having to take them back out and then trying to find your party again before they board. If you don’t take them, and you know what happens, it does not endear you to your fellow guests and then you will have to leave with the child anyway. See, it is just much easier to take them to the bathroom before getting in line. Keep in mind that some rides come to a stop for a variety of reasons, and you don’t want to have that happen in the ride you are sitting in, together. By the way, there are no bathrooms on the River Boat and it is a twenty minute ride so please hit the head prior to boarding.
6. Do…
Rehydrate. Many of the queues will allow you to have a drink up until the boarding area so use this as a time to rehydrate yourself and your family. Children dehydrate very quickly and by the time they know they are thirsty they could already be experiencing dehydration. It is the number one problem for guests of all ages so don’t forget to drink yourself. There are water fountains found throughout the parks so you can refill a water bottle you bring with you. Since you are keeping them hydrated they will need to go to the bathroom more often than usual. It is a great idea to carry small servings of snacks with you for everyone in your party. You can get snack size bags to fill with things like peanuts and raisins, or cereal, and each person can be in charge of their own bag(s) of snacks each day so no one person is carrying everything for everyone. Children like having a little fanny pack with access to their snacks when they want them. Fresh fruit is also available in the parks.
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5. Don’t…
Swing on the chains. Cast Members will be asking you not to swing on the chains or jump the line for your own safety, heed that advice. You could easily ruin the day by doing a face plant on the concrete trying to jump over a chain. Parents please remember to watch your children because those chains are tempting to those little adventurous minds. It helps them to fight boredom, but it can hurt other guests to suddenly have a heavy chain swung into their shins unexpectedly. Bring along something to entertain your kids or use this as a good time to talk together as a family about what you just experienced or what you should do next. Check in with them to see how they are feeling. Just have fun together as a family. You can look for hidden Mickey’s! Some of my family’s greatest memories are from having to stand in line together for quite awhile just talking to each other and learning things about each other we may not have learned otherwise.
4. Do…
Use your ability to choose the three FastPass+ selections in advance each day so you can cut the wait time for at least three attractions a day. FastPass+ is good when you can get it, but experiencing Standby queues can be fun also. Unless you are using the smartphone to check on a reservation try not to use them, it cuts down on interaction and fun. You are on vacation!
3. Do …
Be patient. Sometimes rides go down due to unforeseen circumstances and your wait time is a little longer than expected. Don’t take it out on the Cast Member who is working hard to get you on the ride as quickly and safely as possible. Listen to any announcements made regarding the line or the ride.
2. Do…
Understand that being in a FastPass+ line does not mean you have an unhindered flow to the ride vehicle. It does not help for you to reach the merge point of the FastPass+ and Standby Lines expressing great distress at having to wait. The Cast Members are trained and know what they are doing to keep both lines moving along appropriately so don’t slow down the process by complaining to them.
1. Do…
Stay together. The most important thing for you to do in line is to keep your party together and have the total number for your group ready to tell the Cast Member at the loading area. I have seen some people in line think they are going to outsmart the Cast Member by telling them they are a group of two, instead of six, so they could have more space in their row but it doesn’t work out. You may find yourselves in separate boats altogether. The CM’s are well trained to judge the size of guests party and know their ride vehicles very well and how many will fit in a row so just tell them the actual number of your group and everything will move more smoothly and quickly.
