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Edit: I accidentally put French Quarter’s activities schedule up rather than Riverside’s.  The Riverside offers both movies and a campfire.

Continuing from Part 1, we’ll see if we can start an even bigger fight in the comments section.  Actually, I would appreciate it if you wouldn’t point out anything “funny” going on with other guests in the photos.  I would prefer for there to be no one in any of them, but as you can probably imagine, that isn’t the reality of Walt Disney World.  With the Florida heat and inherent “candid” nature of the hundreds of pictures I take on any given day, something weird is inevitably going to creep in occasionally.  Lord knows if you run into me on a July afternoon, I’ll most likely be pouring sweat with food hanging out of my mouth and I wouldn’t want that picture ending up on the Internet with thousands of people gawking at me.  I’m sure you wouldn’t either.

Bigger: http://www.easywdw.com/reports3/pormap.jpg.  This will give you an idea about the immense size of the resort. We spent most/all of Part 1 indoors.  This time, we’ll take a walk around outside.  And then we’ll take the boat over to check out French Quarter.

Stepping outside of the main building, we have the marina to our right.  That’s where you’ll board the boat to French Quarter/Downtown Disney or rent a watercraft/bicycle/surrey bike.  The water taxi is parked there on the water.

And hair wrapping to our left.  That’s the bridge over to the Ol’ Man Island, the resort’s feature pool, behind it.

A very tall entrance/exit into the main building right behind us.  Boatwright’s, River Roost, Riverside Mill, Concierge, main bus stop, etc. would be located in or through there.

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The June operating schedule update should come out tomorrow or this Friday.  At that time, December’s schedule should also be released.

Heading out to Epcot on Saturday May 12th for dinner at Akershus in the Norway Pavilion and to check on the current status of the Land Pavilion operating through 10pm.

Unfortunately, the settings on my camera were wrong, so all of the pictures are going to look like this.  Just kidding.  But this one certainly does.  This is the current state of the Test Track Pavilion refurbishment!  What you can’t see is that the front of Test Track is clear of debris.

It’s 6:06pm and we have a bit of a wait for Spaceship Earth.  It’s not nearly as bad as it might look on initial inspection because the right side is completely empty and the extended portion only goes up about half way.  You can sort of see up at the top left that the queue up there is also empty.  You’re looking at about a five minute actual wait.

You may notice that I am rocking blue nail polish today.  Lost a bet.  Deal with it.

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Continuing from Part 1.

I spent the day at Universal Studios/Islands of Adventure today (Thursday).  I posted a few thoughts in the forum.

There had been a few comments in Part 1 about the fact that I’m a relatively able bodied, very good looking, 26 year old with no kids in tow and that probably benefited my quick maneuvering around the Park.  All of that is true, though I’m not sure how able bodied I am.  But there are two things to take into consideration with the timing.  The first is that I do take some time to take pictures and tweet throughout.  That takes a bit of time.  I’m also a pretty major Internet celebrity, and people do occasionally ask, “Hey, are you Josh?”  While I ordinarily tease that I say “No,” the truth is that I usually admit that it is in fact me.  That happens more often when I arrive early at the most recommended Park, as I am today.  You can be pretty certain that whoever is headed to Dumbo or Rapunzel first thing in the morning frequents at least a few of the major planning websites (and minor ones, as the case may be).  So I stopped several times to chat people up, causing a couple of intermittent delays.  Since this sort of thing is perfectly normal (well, not being an Internet celebrity, but just random delays), I’m not pointing them out specifically.

There had been also been a few questions about whether or not this is the timing you can expect in __________________.  Generally speaking, you can expect to find pretty similar timing throughout the year.  The fact is that few people arrive this early regardless of how many people are actually around.  But don’t worry, Disney was dumb enough to renew my Annual Pass last week, so we have another year of this to look forward to.  I’ll be returning throughout the summer/future to update on wait times, FASTPASS return times, and the like in the early morning.

Just to refresh your memory, it’s 10:14am on Wednesday May 9th.  So far we’ve ridden Dumbo, Barnstormer, Peter Pan’s Flight, Snow White’s Scary Adventures, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, and Astro Orbiter.  We have FASTPASSes for Pan to use between 10am and 11am and we’re eligible for another set of FASTPASSes now.  The posted wait time at Space Mountain is 25 minutes with FASTPASS at 10:55am – 11:55am, or the minimum lead time.  That wait time is probably over exaggerated, but we’ll never know.  I hate Space Mountain.  Every time I get off, my head hurts.  My back hurts.  My legs hurt.  My feet hurt.  It’s just ridiculously bumpy and jerky.  Actually, I am going to go ahead and ride momentarily, just for the sake of the website.

But we’ll skip ahead to Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin.  Current standby wait is listed as 5 minutes.

The line for Buzz the character to our left.

Some pictures inside the Spin for no reason in particular:

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Earlier this week I “published” an article titled, “Planning Around Disney World’s FASTPASS Return Enforcement Policy.”  It’s basically a collection of quick and dirty tips to minimize walking and waiting, while still maximizing FASTPASS use.  We’re going to set out to check how “my ideal morning” plan works in practice.

As a reminder, this is the plan:

• Arrive by 8:30am.  The turnstile doesn’t matter because they’ll open early and let you into the area in front of the Main Street train station for the opening show.  If I want to see the show, I stand in the middle of this area.  If I’m in a hurry to meet Rapunzel or another major character, I move to the far left opening and get as close to the rope as possible.
• Ride Dumbo.
• Ride Barnstormer.
• Collect FASTPASSes for Peter Pan’s Flight.  Return time around 9:20am will be 10am – 11am.
• Ride Peter Pan’s Flight.
• Ride Snow White’s Scary Adventures.
• Ride The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.
• Ride Space Mountain.
• Collect FASTPASS for Space Mountain if dining in Tomorrowland.  Return time should be around 10:45am – 11:45am.  Otherwise, collect FASTPASS for another attraction.
• Ride Peter Pan’s Flight with FASTPASS.
• Ride Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
• Ride Splash Mountain.  If the wait time is too long at either, collect FASTPASSes for later.
• Collect FASTPASS for Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain, Jungle Cruise, or another attraction.
• Ride Haunted Mansion.
• Have lunch at Columbia Harbour House.

While we’re here, I’ll share my two Walt Disney World touring philosophies with you.  Wait.  Am I smart enough to have philosophies?  Do philosophies even exist anymore?  Have we transported ourselves to Ancient Greece via an omnimover attraction located in a gigantic golf ball?  I don’t have the answers to these questions.  But I think it’s time that someone introduced an air of pretentiousness to this website, and since you seem unwilling (or unable), I’ll have to do it.

Philosophy Alpha: Arrive prior to Park opening, have a plan for the first two hours, then relax, then take a break.

Before you get smart with me and tell me that I’ve introduced four philosophies instead of one, let me just remind you that I’m the stinkin’ philosopher here.  The first two hours of operation are almost always the least crowded of the day with the lowest crowds and shortest waits.  There are some exceptions, most notably the last two hours of the day when Magic Kingdom is open until 1am or later.  We also saw two almost completely empty hours at Animal Kingdom earlier in the week.  But the morning is guaranteed to see low crowds, short waits, and plentiful FASTPASS availability.  When forming your plan of attack, identify the attractions/characters that will have longer afternoon waits and hit them in the morning when crowds are lower.  The plans linked above in the FASTPASS enforcement article hit these attractions in an efficient manner.  My character prioritization articles will help you work in the characters as efficiently as possible.  Note that the Magic Kingdom version needs to be updated with Rapunzel’s new location/meet times and then with Princess Merida this weekend.

Having a good idea about what you want to do in the first two hours will help you move quickly from attraction to attraction.  All of the picture opportunities, high capacity attractions, shows, etc. will still be waiting for you after 11am when lines are longer at the major attractions and crowds are heavier.  Once you make it through the first two hours, you can relax a bit and take your time.  As long as you stay away from the standby lines at the three or four attractions with long waits (which you’ve already done), you can pretty much do whatever you want.  Collect FASTPASSes to ride the biggies with short waits.  Pose for pictures.  Hit the high capacity shows and less popular attractions.  Grab a leisurely lunch.  Do whatever feels right, knowing you’ve already been on Toy Story Mania, Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror, and Star Tours (or what have you).

Around 1pm, take a break for a few hours.  It’s the busiest and hottest part of the day.  Return in the evening for some evening rides, dinner, and the nighttime spectaculars.

Philosophy Beta: The best part about the plan is the ability to throw it out.

In other words, knowing why we do the things that we do is much more important than simply being able to follow some list on your smartphone.  Something is probably going to go “wrong” at some point during your trip.  Whether it’s a late bus, a broken monorail, a missed alarm, a 30 minute wait for a table, a sick child, or whatever else, you’re going to need to adapt.  You’ll also be able to identify opportunities that you may not have been expecting.  Later on today, I’m going to run into a short wait at Astro Orbiter at 10:30am.  We know that while Astro Orbiter certainly isn’t one of the “most popular attractions,” that it builds waits quickly because of its miserable capacity.  I got to ride it with a short wait – something that ordinarily isn’t possible at that time of day.

I like to think that these sorts of “walkabouts” give you a better idea about how to go about your day and what to expect from the theme parks than a bunch of graphs and decimal points.  If you’ve been following this site, you’re already smarter than 99.9% of the people that you’re going to run into at Walt Disney World.  You’re better than the 1%.  You’re the 00.10%.

Okay, back on track.  It’s 8:10am on Wednesday May 9th and we’re at the Transportation and Ticket Center.  With all of my best friends.  The Express Monorail doesn’t come online until 8:30am, so our choices are the ferry boat or the Resort Monorail.

Unless you can walk right on the Resort Monorail, the ferry boat is faster.  I usually check to see if the ferry boat is close to arriving.  If it is, I head down to the ferry.  If it’s not, I stand here and wait to see if the Resort Monorail arrives.  If it does, I scamper up the walkway and board.  It’s going to take about 15 minutes to get to the Magic Kingdom, with stops at the Polynesian and Grand Floridian Resorts on the way.  The ferry boat ride is about five minutes once it departs.

The ferry arrived first, so we’ll board.

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Heading out to check on the Port Orleans Riverside Resort.  We’ll take a look at the French Quarter next.  The Riverside is my third favorite of the Walt Disney World moderate resorts.  It’s strikingly beautiful, but I’m less crazy about the immense size, bus situation, and overall amenities.  If I’m looking to stay at a resort as spread out as the Riverside, I prefer the Coronado Springs’ pool, health club, fitness center, dedicated bus service, and dining options.  With the recent room refurbishments at both the Riverside and French Quarter, they are much closer to the Coronado in terms of in-room amenities.  Before, the Coronado enjoyed queen beds and much nicer furnishings.  That distinction no longer comes into play, though I still prefer the Coronado’s wood doors that separate the sleeping area from the vanity area.  But I’m nit-picking obnoxiously with that one.  You can hit me.  And when I say hit me, of course I’m talking about throwing your monitor against the wall.  But trust me, I feel a little pinch every time someone does that.   Click here for my lengthy look at the Coronado Springs Resort.

As far as the Riverside versus the French Quarter, the French Quarter is my favorite of the moderate resorts.  While it isn’t going to win any awards on aesthetics, the fact that it’s so compact is hard to overlook.  You can’t be more than a five minute walk away from the Sassagoula Floatworks quick service for your morning bagel and hot cocoa, the pool for a quick dip, the bus stop after a restful break, or the boat dock for an evening at Downtown Disney.  Anyone that has marched the 30 minute round trip from the Ranchos section of the Coronado Springs Resort to Cafe Rix for a doughnut and coffee can attest to how nice it would be to walk seven minutes instead.  There’s also just one bus stop at the front of the resort.  French Quarter and Riverside often share buses and the French Quarter is always picked up and dropped off first, except for the Downtown Disney route that operates in reverse.  That means French Quarter guests will almost always get seats on the way to the theme parks, whereas Riverside guests are much more likely to stand.

On the flip side, Riverside beats out French Quarter in a number of categories.  Its quick service eatery is far larger, with superior offerings and a healthier variety.  The French Quarter doesn’t have a table service restaurant, while the Riverside features Boatwright’s.  Riverside’s pool blows French Quarter’s out of the water, to be as cliche as humanly possible.  Somewhat more debatable is the lounge area, though I give that to the Riverside as well.  It’s also much easier to board the boat to Downtown Disney from the Riverside.  French Quarter guests only board if there’s room after first picking up Riverside guests.

Also at the Riverside, rooms in the Alligator Bayou section can theoretically sleep up to five people, though it’s a tight fit.  With the renovation, more comfortable Murphy beds have been installed in place of the smaller, less comfortable trundle beds.  However, it’s no longer possible to request an additional roll-away bed in any Magnolia Bend room, including the new Royal Guest Rooms.  The same is true at the French Quarter, where all rooms officially sleep four people.

The size of the Riverside can be mitigated if you book a preferred room in Alligator Bayou buildings 14, 15, 18, or 27.  However, these rooms now book as a separate category that costs an additional $25/night, or $175 over a seven night stay.

In my last post, Bryan informed us that “A couple of your pics looked like crap.”  So I’ve decided to “one up you” and downsample every image in this post to 14.18 pixels.  We’ll start out at the Riverside’s main bus stop and work our way inside.  A better comment: “If you asked my boys what the best part of our last trip was, they will tell you ‘seeing the gorilla pooping over the cliff and we got a picture of it!’ I just had to throw this out there with all the butt talk!”  I’m not sure how we descended this far into the bowels of the Internet, but I’m not complaining.

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Continuing from a wordy Part 1 and a pictur(e)y Part 2.

It’s 4:02pm and the Jungle Parade still hasn’t arrived in Africa yet.

Taking pictures of the Kilimanjaro Safaris queue, since no one else is around.

It’s not nearly as interesting as the Expedition Everest queue we’ll take a look at shortly.

But there are some cute touches.  The main theme seems to be, “When It Comes to Safaris – We Go Wild!”  I’d take one of those brochures for the “HIPPO SNORKLLING [sic] at Mzima Springs.”  Depending on what “snorklling” is I guess.

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Continuing from Part 1.  Even though there isn’t much to it, we’ll call this Part 2 with the 100+ pictures of Pangani Forest Exploration Trail.  If that doesn’t interest you, there’s no reason to click further.

It’s 3:25pm, which means we’ve got 20 minutes until Mickey’s Jammin’ Jungle Parade starts.  There are still plenty of viewing spots down here near Creature Comforts.  The bad news is that the Parade isn’t going to arrive here until about 4:10pm.  Remember, the Parade now starts to the left of this store, not in Africa, and then proceeds around in the opposite direction towards DinoLand USA and Asia before heading all the way back down here.  The change was made to ease congestion in the Africa section leading up to the start of the Parade.

Here in Africa, you can imagine what it would like like if cast members were trying to rope off the street and people were trying to save parade viewing locations along both sides.  It only took about 12 years to change the route.  In Disney years, that’s about four days, or a “snappy decision.”

This is about as hot as the Street Party in Harambe Village gets.  We have a few cast members leading a dance with a few guests that have obviously spent most of the day at the Dawa Bar.

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Heading out to Animal Kingdom this afternoon, Sunday May 6th.

Bus stops at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.  Not sure where they’re going to fit in the Art of Animation here.  I guess they could just pile everyone staying at the Deluxes into one bus.  Can’t beat dropping $600/night on the Grand Floridian only to have to wait for people to load/unload at Wilderness Lodge first every trip, right?

It’s 2:07pm.  The nice(?) thing about Animal Kingdom is that there really isn’t anything keeping people around into the evening.  At Epcot, people stick around for the booze and IllumiNations.  At Hollywood Studios, it’s Fantasmic.  At Magic Kingdom, it’s obviously Wishes and the Electrical Parade.  With no evening entertainment, people simply leave Animal Kingdom whenever they finish their itineraries.  Since most guests skip at least one of the stage shows and one of the zoological walks (if not both walks and at least two of the shows), people tend to begin leaving in droves around 2pm.  Others stick around for the 3:45pm Parade and then head out immediately after.  At the moment, we probably have 25 people leaving for every person that’s arriving.

When Animal Kingdom is recommended highly and the overall crowd level is less than a “7,” the Animal Kingdom is a perfectly viable late arrival, particularly when it’s open until 7pm like it is today.  What you’ll want to do is basically tour backwards compared to what we would do with an early morning arrival.  Instead of doing Kilimanjaro Safaris and Expedition Everest first thing, we’ll do them last, when the most people will have exited in front of us.  We’ll still want to collect FASTPASSes for Kali River Rapids, Expedition Everest, and Kilimanjaro Safaris (in that order during the summer).  In the meantime, we’ll want to see the shows with high capacities, hit the jungle walks, check out the Tree of Life and It’s Tough To Be A Bug, maybe head over to Rafiki’s Planet Watch, and stuff like that.  The great thing about today is that both Kilimanjaro Safaris and Expedition Everest are going to be “walk-ons” at 5pm with all other attractions also seeing wait times of five minutes or less.

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A few odds and ends attached to the Tutto Italia/Tutto Gusto launch from earlier in the week.

Walt Disney Company stock is moving above $44 again as we look towards the second quarter earnings report next Tuesday.  This should be an interesting one with the 200 million dollar loss on John Carter and a lot of “stuff” coming online this quarter and next.  The Fantasy debuted last month and Cars Land at Disney’s California Adventure opens next month.  Not to mention The Avengers, New Fantasyland, Grand Floridian DVC, and other major projects.  With international attendance breaking records and domestic/European attendance down, it will be interesting to see if we hear anything specific in regards to resort occupancy and overall theme park attendance.

Work continues on gutting Test Track.

It’s a Tuesday, which ordinarily means Epcot is hosting a morning Extra Magic Hour.  It’s 8:28am and Disney resort guests are invited to use the turnstiles down here on the far left.

A small crowd has formed here to the right of the turnstiles that are currently letting in resort guests.

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