The pursuit of perfection at Disney’s most challenging park
When I was a kid, I liked to read the choose-your-own-adventure books. Every couple of pages, the book would give a choice. If you pick A, go to this page. If you choose B, go to another page. And I would choose. But I’d also hedge my bets. I would read both pathways moving forward, back tracking and keeping up. It was like a junior literary version of alternate realities. I figured I’d paid for the whole book, might as well get all the story I could out of it.
I feel like Disney’s Hollywood Studios has a lot in common with those books, except you can’t backtrack and live all the possible iterations in a single day.
Hollywood Studios is a park with a lot of potential pathways. It is a park in transition. And, according to some, it has become a park without vision, an unholy hodgepodge of original intention that has been overcome with IP.
IN THIS ARTICLE
What is Hollywood Studios?
If you’re a ride enthusiast, it’s the park with the highest percentage of bangers. Rise of the Resistance, Tower of Terror, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway, Slinky Dog Dash, and Toy Story Mania are all certified hits—just like Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster, which is currently closed as it transitions from Aerosmith to the Muppets.
It is a park in transition. In addition to the aforementioned coaster change, there is a massive addition underway of a Monsters, Inc. themed section of the park – not a full land – with a restaurant and a Monsters, Inc. roller coaster that looks like it could be another – if you’ll forgive the pun – monster hit. There is also massive renovation coming to the Animation Courtyard which will reconnect the park with the studios animation roots.
It is a park that has been maligned as being hodgepodge, of falling further away form its original mission. Opening in 1989 as Disney-MGM Studios, it was designed to be an idealized version of Hollywood, celebrating movie and television culture with backlot tours and The Great Movie Ride. Today you see that original idea celebrated along the park’s entrance and along the Sunset Boulevard section up to the Tower of Terror. Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular still fits in with that theming, but the Toy Story and Star Wars themed lands have made the park – in some people’s eyes – less thematic.
At this park, you’ll have to make decisions, set priorities, and reset them—probably more than once.
I find Hollywood Studios to be the most hectic and most stressful of the Disney World parks.
What’s the obstacle to perfection?
The truth is, even in a state of flux, Hollywood Studios is a lot.
There are too many restaurants to try, too many shows to see, and too many rides to conquer to accomplish comfortably in a single day – but somehow two full days in the park can be, even for someone like me who loves it, a little bit too much.
Wait times can be long. Lightning lanes can sell out. Hollywood Studios rides are the most likely to breakdown, and there are at least three shows that shouldn’t be missed. It’s even a little weird to navigate but some of the changes will improve that.
The pursuit of perfection
As I said before, you have to set your absolute priorities and then plan your perfection around that with the understanding that true perfection is unattainable at almost any theme park, but especially at Hollywood Studios.
These are our recommended musts in Hollywood Studios.
Rise of the Resistance: Simply one of the best theme park rides in the world, even if you’re not a Star Wars fan. The historical average wait time is 73 minutes, but depending on traffic, it can be a lot longer. Rise of the Resistance is an Individual Lightning Lane ride, and we recommend you pay that price. The extra $15-$25 per person is worth saving an hour of your park time.
If you’re not willing to pay that price, or it sells out before you can, you’re going to want to rope drop it, but only if you have access to early entry as a Disney resort guest.
Rope dropping at regular park open isn’t going to save you much time. Also, be prepared: the ride showcases a technological marvel. It goes down more frequently than other, less complicated rides.
Fantasmic: Be sure to check your schedule. Fantasmic – a wonderous nighttime water and projection show featuring dozens of Disney characters – is a spectacle unlike any other in Orlando. But it is not available every night, and sometimes it appears twice in a single night.The key is to know when Fantasmic is scheduled.
Ride Slinky Dog Dash at Night: The Toy Story Land section of the park is fun during the day, though shade can be a little hard to come by. But at night, when the Christmas light decorations are lit, it is beautiful, wondrous and kind of magical. Likewise, Slinky Dog Dash is a good to great family coaster during the day and an exceptional family coaster at night as the park is colorfully aglow.We like to target Slinky Dog Dash—which has an average wait time of 79 minutes at park close—by getting in line as the wait time drops in the final minutes of the day.
The problem? This can conflict with Fantasmic showings, making it a nighttime ride or a visit to Fantasmic and either-or experience.
See the new shows: Disney recently opened its new villains show, Disney Villains: Unfairly Ever After, as well as a revamped Little Mermaid show, both of which are exceptional. These are in addition to the Beauty and the Beast Show, which I find underwhelming in comparison, the Frozen Sing-a-Long, excellent if you need a break from the heat and the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular, fun but maybe not a must.
Ride the Tower of Terror: It’s an iconic Disney ride filled with excellent theming and imagineering and offering a legit thrill. It’s a simple drop ride made excellent through design and execution.
Buy the multi-pass lightning lane: This is especially important for the 40-minute wait time rides. Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, Toy Story Mania, and Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run have wait times that average between 40 and 50 minutes. The additional $20-$35 per person is a real pain, but if you want to comfortably hit all the rides, it will save you an hour and a half to two hours or more in wait time. If you can afford it, on top of the ticket price, it’s worth it.
Things we shouldn’t do at Hollywood Studios
Character Dining: Honestly, I’m pretty down on character dining in the parks. I am pretty much committed to doing character dining at resort restaurants on non-park days.
We pay so much for tickets and extras, spending the additional time on lengthy sit down meal seems like a bad trade off. Now, if you’ve got your heart set on it, you should do it. Everyone’s perfect day is different.
For me? Character dining is best when I’m off the theme park clock. Really this applies to almost all the table service dining in the park. It’s cool and pretty neat, but there’s other things to do, and I can get a cobb salad in a lot of places.
Don’t get fixated on any one thing: My first time trying to ride Rise of the Resistance, the ride went down, and I kept waiting and waiting and checking my app to see if it was back.
I’ve been a Star Wars fan since 1978. Rise of the Resistance was something I’d been looking forward to since I’d first heard they were building it.
I let myself get stressed about missing out and it kind of ruined part of my day. You have to manage your mental battles on a Disney trip.
Worrying and stressing won’t add to the experience and won’t help make things better.
Be smart.
Plan well.
Be flexible.
Don’t try to overdo it: There’s a lot to do at Hollywood Studios, and as I said, it can be chaotic. If you follow a Lightning Lane schedule, you’ll often hustle back and forth across the park.In the Florida heat, it can be taxing.
On a recent trip, I found myself exhausted, overheated, and fading fast. I told my family to rock on without me for a bit. Then, I found an empty corner in the Backlot Express, got a cold drink and a Wookie Cookie.
For 20-minutes, I closed my eyes for a catnap. Now, I realize that not everyone can sleep in that situation – I fell asleep once at a big Alanis Morrisette concert in the mid-90s at the height of her fame – but knowing your limits is important. If you push yourself to get things done, you can end up being counterproductive.
Plan the perfect day
We’re going to assume a Disney resort stay and the purchase of both the Individual Lightning Lane and multi-pass.
This and EPCOT are the only parks we feel buying both Individual Lighting Lane and multi-pass is worth it. It’s important to remember that you can purchase Lightning Lane passes seven days in advance if you’re a resort guest, and three days in advance if you’re not. You should target Slinky Dog Dash first and Rise of the Resistance second.
After that, do your best.
If you get Lightning Lanes for Slinky Dog Dash and Rise of the Resistance, you should probably rope drop Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway to start your day.
It’s sufficiently Disney and is really a great ride though some malign it, many of whom remain in mourning for The Great Movie Ride which it replaced. But this trackless ride features a fun story, cool animation, and a surprisingly successful screen integration. If you don’t have a Lightning Lane for Rise of the Resistance or Slinky Dog Dash, you can join the masses racing to either one, but it makes for a stressful start to the day as both are a pretty good march from the front.
If you’ve purchased the multi-pass you’re next move should be dictated by when your rides are booked. If not, the choice is between Toy Story Mania or Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run. Let the wait time dictate which and try to beat the park’s full opening crowd at 9:00 a.m. After the second rope drop period ends, roughly 10:00 or 10:30 a.m., it’s a good time to target any characters you want to meet. There are several Star Wars characters wondering around Galaxy’s Edge, including Rey, Kylo Ren, First Order troopers, and the Mandalorian and Grogu. If you’re into Star Wars, Mando is a must. There are also several park specific characters in Toy Story Land, as well as some of the Disney Jr. characters in other parts of the park. Olaf also has an indoor meet and great where you can get out of the heat.
If you’re not into characters, this is a good time to target shows.
s lunchtime approaches, consider getting a Ronto Wrap in Galaxy’s Edge—sausage and pork with coleslaw. Or grab something quick from Woody’s Lunchbox. If you don’t want something heavy, the kid’s meal with grilled cheese and tomato soup is a surprisingly good deal.
Other quick options are the Backlot Express and the ABC Commissary.
Hollywood Studios has some really good table service restaurants like the Brown Derby and the Roundup Rodeo BBQ but both take a lot time. At Hollywood Studios, it’s best to eat quickly and lightly. As your day goes on, keep an eye on Star Tours. It’s a great simulator ride for Star Wars fans.
Avoid it if you’re prone to motion sickness.The historical average wait time is 14 minutes, but often it’s just 5 to 10 minutes. When other rides have long lines, you can ride Star Tours multiple times for different experiences and keep moving.
The late afternoon is a good time to look at Tower of Terror. It can be an especially pretty sight in the glooming. This is another ride that is better after dark and is another decent option for park closing time.
If you’ve never done Fantasmic before, or if it’s been a long time, you should probably plan for that as your last event of the evening, though we strongly recommend Slinky Dog Dash as well. Keep in mind that the last show of Fantasmic is often at 9:30 p.m. or a half an hour after park closes. Disney says the Skyliner will run for 90 minutes after park closes, which means post Fantasmic – you’ve got an hour to get from the amphitheater to the Skyliner hub.
Not an impossible task but the crowd moves slowly. I’m not sure Disney would shut down the Skyliner while guests are still leaving, but I doubt they would. But I also wouldn’t dawdle.
Choose your favorites.
During our last visit, we found ourselves with time running out. We were trying to get in Toy Story Mania and then get to Slinky Dog Dash for the finale. However, time was cutting it close. We might have made it. We might have not.
Ultimately we chose the roller coaster and were the happier for it.
