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Even if you’ve got a slew of Disney World experiences under your belt, there are probably still a few things about the parks that don’t make a whole lot of sense!
Hiya Mickey!
That’s why we’re gonna examine five common issues that, even to this day, still confuse some self-proclaimed Disney World experts — even US!
We’re going to start with one of the most common issues we hear about from folks who aren’t very familiar with some of Disney World’s unique one-off policies.
Why Can’t I Make a FastPass for Rise of the Resistance?
Rise of the Resistance is Disney’s newest attraction in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. If you’ve been too busy with life to keep up with all the details on the Rise of the Resistance attraction since it opened, you may find yourself wondering why you can’t reserve a FastPass for the ride.
Lieutenant Beck on Rise of the Resistance
It isn’t a computer glitch — it’s just that Disney’s Hollywood Studios operates this super-popular ride a bit differently from the rest. Up until the parks closed they were still only offering boarding groups for Rise of the Resistance.
Needing to join a Boarding Group to secure a spot to ride the attraction means that you have to get inside Hollywood Studios before the park officially opens for the day and jockey for a place in the virtual queue using the My Disney Experience app.
Rise of the Resistance
While we don’t know what the case will be when Disney World reopens (although they have mentioned that they will potentially introduce virtual queues for much more than just Rise), we know Rise of the Resistance FastPasses still aren’t a thing on My Disney Experience.
However, you can still currently reserve FastPasses for Hollywood Studios’ other newest attractions including Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway as well as Millenium Falcon: Smugglers Run!
Read more information about Rise of the Resistance’s boarding group system here!
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge
It’s possible when the parks reopen even more Disney World attractions will offer virtual queues similar to the process Rise of the Resistance uses, but the manner in which they’ll be issued and for what has yet to be revealed.
Find out to decide which Hollywood Studios’ tier one FastPass you should choose here!
Why Aren’t There More Parades in Disney World?
Ever since Magic Kingdom’s long-running Main Street Electrical Parade moseyed away in 2016, we haven’t seen a new nighttime parade come in to replace it.
Pete’s Dragon Float in the Main Street Electrical Parade
There are still daytime performances of Festival of Fantasy and Move It! Shake It! MousekeDance It! at Magic Kingdom, but there seem to be fewer parades in general at Disney World these days, especially when you compare now to how it was a few years ago.
Festival of Fantasy Parade
Disney’s Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios used to have big parades back in the day including Mickey’s Jammin’ Jungle Parade along with Aladdin and Frozen-themed processionals down Hollywood Boulevard when the Disney films were released.
Mickey’s Jammin’ Jungle Parade
And until more recently, the March of The First Order led by Captain Phasma (of Star Wars fame) used to storm through Hollywood Studios. It wasn’t a crazy big spectacle or anything, but still, it was something really cool to witness first hand!
Captain Phasma leading First Order Stormtroopers
If you love the thrill of watching parades while enjoying your vacation and want to see something new next time (especially at night!), consider going to Disney World during the fall or winter.
Special holiday parades such as Mickey’s-Boo-to-You Halloween Parade and Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmastime Parade (which normally require separate tickets) can be a great way to change up your parade repertoire!
Boo-To-You
Check the calendar before you go because these special after-hours events only happen on select nights at Magic Kingdom. And the closer you get to Halloween or Christmas Day, the more likely the party is to sell out AND cost more, so always get your tickets ahead of time instead of buying them at the gate!
Check out our FULL REVIEW of last year’s Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party here!
Once Upon a Christmastime Parade
Here’s our Ultimate Guide to last year’s Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas parties!
And keep in mind this year’s Disney Villains After Hours parties now include the Villains Cursed Caravan! It’s a mini-parade, but it includes the fire-breathing Maleficent Dragon float from Festival of Fantasy AT NIGHT!
Maleficent Dragon
As you can probably imagine, the flames look even more EPIC at night! Disney’s Villains After Hours Event also costs extra to attend and only occurs on certain evenings at Magic Kingdom. This party offers an assortment of special treats, spooky lighting, and minimal wait times for popular rides since only a limited number of tickets are sold!
See our Ultimate Guide to the 2020 Disney Villain After Hours parties here!
Why Can’t We Meet Rare Characters As Often?
There are several places to meet Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, Pluto, and Goofy throughout Disney World, but why isn’t there a little more of a variety?
Don’t get us wrong — these guys are great and all! We especially love it when we can meet them wearing special outfits like the safari attire they wear at Tusker House or the artsy clothes they’re sporting at the Topolino’s Terrace character breakfast!
Topolino’s Terrace Breakfast a la Art Characters
Check out our FULL REVIEW of the Topolino’s Terrace character breakfast here!
It’s just that while the Fab Five is truly nothing short of classic, we’d love to see some of Disney’s rarer guys make a cameo appearance every now and then! Last year, our wish was granted when some characters from Chicken Little, Zootopia, and Ratatouille who DON’T usually meet showed up for Mickey and Minnie’s Surprise Celebration!
Hello from the Magic Kingdom!
We can sometimes spot a few unique characters at Disney’s Hollywood Studios Character Palooza (an unpublished but somewhat predictable event that occurs around mid-day featuring many of the costumed characters who perform later in the evening’s production of Fantasmic!) we want something a little more official to hang our Mickey Ear Hats on!
Big Al Moseying around Frontierland
Rare characters even come out at some special after-hours events such as the holiday parades and Disney Villains After Hours which we mentioned earlier — you just don’t actually get a chance to “meet” any of them!
Sorry, You Won’t Be Meeting Mr. Big Bad Wolf or Mr. Oogie Boogie!
And rare characters are often brought out for special photo ops at runDisney events, but unless you’re a super planner, you probably won’t have your autograph book handy!
Either way, we hope Disney will find a way to bring back some of our buds we’ve lost along the way, especially some of the ones that have only disappeared more recently like Baymax and Sadness!
How to Get Around on the Disney Skyliner
It doesn’t seem that hard, right? But we still had a lot of confusion about exactly where the Skyliner went and what connected to what before we got a chance to ride regularly ourselves!
Here’s a tricky thing that often trips people up: even though the Disney Skyliner goes to Hollywood Studios and Epcot, you need to transfer lines, meaning there isn’t a line that goes straight through to each park. Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort is where you’ll need to switch gondolas.
Disney Skyliner System Route Map
It’s funny because we’ve had many people SWEAR to us they rode straight to Hollywood Studios from Epcot. But it’s just not possible! The International Gateway at Epcot connects to Disney’s Riviera Resort, Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, and Disney’s Pop Century Resort, while Hollywood Studios has its own separate line out of Caribbean Beach.
Disney Skyliner
On a side note, you can also use the Disney Skyliner to indirectly get to Disney’s Yacht Club Resort, Disney’s Beach Club Resort, and Disney’s BoardWalk Inn which are only a short walk from the International Gateway! That comes in mighty handy if you need to swing by Beaches and Cream real quick and you’re staying at Art of Animation!
Check out our Disney Skyliner FAQ right here!
How to Get Around On Fort Wilderness’ Internal Bus System
Another transportation system that really trips people up can be found at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort. This enormous property is REALLY spread out. Sometimes it’s too far to walk to the pool, dining, or other recreational activities you’d like to enjoy!
Fort Wilderness Tri Circle Ranch
While you could walk and easily get your 10,000 steps in every day, there are other ways of getting around. You can bring a bike or golf cart from home or rent them by the day from the resort. Other than that, you’ll need to know how Disney’s Fort Wilderness’ internal bus loops work (Yes, they have their own internal bus system!!).
These are color-coded routes: purple, yellow, and orange — and depending on where you’re trying to get to, you might need to get on more than one bus!
Chip and Dale’s Campfire Sing-A-Long Area
The orange bus line will take you to the Meadows area, which includes most of the major amenities of the resort. This is where you’ll find the main pool area, snack bar, and other activities including Chip and Dale’s Campfire Singalong and Movies Under the Stars. This line also runs through the 600-700 and 1000-12000 campsites.
Tri Circle D Ranch
The yellow bus line also connects to the Meadows, but it runs through the 100-500 and 1400-1900 campsites, while the purple bus line runs through the 2000-2800 campsites along with the quiet pools and recreational sports areas on the other side of the resort.
Nearby Tables
You can also take a boat from Settlement Depot to Magic Kingdom. The boat dock is only a short walk to Pioneer Hall where the Hoop Dee Doo Revue dinner show is performed.
Hoop-Dee-Doo Pioneer Hall Players
Boat transportation is also provided to Disney’s Wilderness Lodge or Disney’s Contemporary Resort, while you can take a bus from Outpost Depot to get to all the other Disney Parks, water parks, and Disney Springs! Piece of cake…right?! Whew. Yeah. We still don’t get it.
Read our FULL REVIEW of the Hoop Dee Doo Revue here!
Well, friends, we certainly hope you found at least one useful piece of info for planning your next trip to Disney World, and if you have a question about something you still don’t really get about the parks or resorts, don’t be afraid to reach out to us and ask it in the comments below!
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One thing I don’t understand is the parking fee if staying in a a Disney Resort? My husband and I drove to Florida and stay at a resort, never moving our car until our day of checkout. I’ve read many different articles on the additional charge however, nothing makes sense.