For those of us who DID NOT get D23 Sorcerers...

[GeneralTso]

2017 D23 will be our first experience.
We purchased a 3 day pkg. I didn't know about the VIP/Sorcerers but it was sold out anyway.

Please share your planning tips attending this event as a "regular" participant.
Highlights and what not to miss, etc.
Any tips are welcome.

 

[SMD]

Be prepared for lines that put the parks to shame. Accept that you won't see everything. Study the printed guide and set your priorities early. Arrive at the convention center 1-2 hours early for exhibits, 2-3 hours for merchandise and I don't even know how early for presentations. Try to be there for the total experience, not not focus on any one thing that doesn't work out like you thought it would.

 

[wilkeliza]

Chose 1 thing a day that is a must do. If you want to see the big stage shows in the morning you will most likely have to over night for the Saturday ones. The Friday one they didn't not previously allow people to stay overnight but I imagine people were lining up unofficially.

One the first day be prepared for a crazy long line. Even if you are a D23 Gold Member we we waited in line last year for 1.5 hours before we got in. It was roughly an hour early that we arrived (possibly earlier) and for how far back it took them about 30 minutes to get back to us.

Merchandise lines will be long. The D23 show wasn't so bad and I got everything I wanted there but I never made it into any other shop. If you are there to shop make sure the very first thing you do is get in the shop pass line. So basically you get to stand in line in the morning to go shop later in the day with no wait. Same with the 2 smaller panel rooms. Better to get a stagepass for those and have a spot then to stand by. For some of the panels we went to only 2 or 3 standby people got in because it was filled with stagepass people. This was true especially if there was anything about a "giveaway" for that panel.

There are lines for pretty much everything. The line for the Avatar preview and experience was 30-45 minutes, lines for food were long, it is a lot of standing around and waiting.

We had a lot of fun and got to experience a lot last year with just the regular tickets. We did 2 panels a day (one big and one small) and even got into the Parks and Resort panel and the video game panel which were 2 of the 3 big ones we wanted to see. The smaller ones we went to were the ABD/DCL/Aulani panel and the Inside Out panel.

 

[ashley0139]

Get there before 7am so you can wait in line inside, instead of outside in the sun for hours.

 

[GeneralTso]

For the love of churros!! People wait in line OVERNIGHT? No way, not ever for me.
So, lines. And more lines. Not too appealing. We're pretty easy going park people, so I like the idea of prioritizing.
I love it---a fastpass to shop

 

[SMD]

Last year the waits were 5-6 hours for the archive exhibit and people were waiting 2-3 hours for a free Coke can with their name on it. And that's if you can get in the line. Sometimes they're capped.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

Be flexible! Plan your ideal daily itinerary, then accept that it may never happen and go with the flow. You'll wait in lines for hours, but meet some of the nicest people. The stores may sell out of everything you wanted, but you may find other things that you hadn't noticed before. If your panels are full, go with whatever is still open. You may end up having a great time that you never expected. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate! And be prepared for the inevitable chaos that accompanies Expo every time. Don't let it drive you crazy. Just keep swimming!

 

[GeneralTso]

Dang---this sounds more intense than I anticipated!!
Excited to see the items for sale--any favorites or do they change it up every year?

 

[theluckyrabbit]

Last year, 40,000 guests attended on the sold out Saturday -- "intense" was an understatement! But it was still lots of fun. There are D23 themed items every Expo, e.g. special ear hat, mug, pins, t-shirts, D&B bag, etc. There are limited release items at the Disney Store and the Dream Store.

 

[beachdreamr1229]

This is my first year doing D23, but I have done a lot of anime conventions and Comic Con, so I'm assuming it will be similar. Lots of crowds, and a need to have a plan a, b, and c as nothing will ever go completely the way you want it. It's a good idea to bring a card game or some other form of entertainment for those long lines. And a portable power source for your phone.

I realize schedules won't be released until much closer to the event, but in general, if I wanted to go to a big presentation, how many hours on average should I expect to wait in line? I've found information on literally everything else, but when I look up wait times for the presentations, I hear anything from "We walked right into whatever we wanted to see" to "I waited 5 hours and still didn't get in" for the same exact panel.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

Wait times depend on the presentation, the venue, and whether the guest in question has a Sorcerer's package. For Hall D23 (previously known as the arena), people were waiting overnight (starting the line in the afternoon) to get in (e.g. for the Live Action and the Legends presentations). There was a cut off for the "definitely getting in" line and a "might get in" line, then there was the "really no chance, but you're welcome to wait anyway" line. For the smaller venues, it depends on whether you have a Stage Pass (very helpful!). We had SP for most of our choices, waited at least 2 hours for each event, and got in every time (usually with good to very good seats). Keep in mind that the Expo is run by D23, but the employees are a mix of D23 CMs, DLR CMs, and convention center employees. You will get different answers from all 3, especially from the convention center people (clueless! like the guy who told me there were no restrooms...), so be prepared to hear varying info when youj ask about seating availability for the sessions.

 

[SMD]

I've been to D23 3 times and Comic Con 10+ times. In some ways Comic Con is much better organized. D23 is less dense with the people, but the line situation at SDCC at this point has improved past what D23 did last year.

 

[lurkergirl]

Strategy know is hard beyond the basics: there is a lot that won't be known until we get much closer. Case in point: overnight lines. 2015 was the first Expo they actually sanctioned lining up overnight, creating a space in the basement hall. The line was supposed to open up on Thursday evening, there was an unofficial line for the line early Thursday morning.

Will it be back for 2017? Won't know for a while.

Be prepared. It will be crowded and it will be frenetic. I always say to temper your expectations. Lots of times crowd control and staffing could be better, so patience and lowered expectations help.

I've done three Expos without Sorcerer tickets and had fun. Yes, I missed stuff, but I learned to get over that fast.

 

[montreid]

For those who missed the initial; waitlist is back.

 

[Flounder89]

Do you need to buy a standard ticket to get on waitlist?

 

[lurkergirl]

You have to be either a Gold Member or a Gold Family Member to purchase the Sorcerer tickets - I'm not sure if the Wait List requires you to purchase a ticket before going on it, but I believe it's closed again.

 

[wilkeliza]

Okay figured out what we did last year.

Day 1: D23 entrance. Got there an hour prior to D23 member entrance time and the line was already way on the opposite side of the entrance. Waited for an hour and a half in the beating sun before we were finally inside. Went straight to stage pass and waited there until they started giving them out. Got a pass for the Inside Out panel. That was our only panel that day. Walked around the exhibit hall and went to the D23 shop. Then we called it quits early and hung out at California Adventure.

Day 2: Fiance hung out at the pool while I went around the show floor having fun. I think that was Force for a Change day so if that is the case I spent the morning waiting in a very very short line to get back into the d23 store to buy the force for a change stuff. Then I met my fiance and we went and waited for parks and resort. I think we waited about an hour before as they weren't letting people line up before that. After parks and resort a little more show floor and then off to change and go to Disneyland.

Day 3: I got up and went to the expo around 7 or 8 am. The panel I absolutely wanted to see was that morning (gaming) and the fiance and I decided that we could split up since I'm better at waiting then he is. He came around 30 minutes to opening time and since the panel still wasn't full the let him join me in line. We met an awesome couple who we still chat with. Wish they lived close to the east coast so we could hang out. We did that panel and then as soon as it was done went and got stage passes for the Aulani, DVC, DCL, ABD panel. That was our last panel and then back to the show floor to look around. We did the Avatar exhibit, star wars stand ups, and looked at Shanghai Disney. We also just took random photos with all the stuff on display. Again back to a park in the evening.

Over all we felt like for the price of regular admission we got our monies worth. We averaged a panel a day, didn't have terrible waits, and had fun. We even got one of the Pixar bouncy balls which seemed to be in hot demand simply because we were out on the floor when everyone else was waiting in lines. I also collect the trading cards but that was a crap show. There were people skipping in line and looping back in line to get multiples. At one point I gave up on the cards becasue grown adults didn't know how to act like adults. I watched an easily 30 year old man shove a small child out of the way to get the hat box ghost. As much as I like trading cards I hope it is not back this year since people can't be trusted to behave or if they do it they set up queue lines to keep people honest about it.

 

[lcasa]

There's a facebook "D23 Members, Expo Fans and Attendees" group that's putting together tips from prior attendees.
I've been to all 3 and it's gotten tougher (read: more crowded) every time. LOTS of standing in lines. Last year we got there around 10pm the night before the first night because we really wanted to see the Legends ceremony - slept on the floor inside the convention center - we got great seats though it seemed disorganized - a lack of info as to when we'd be let in etc. Our seats were actually better than the sorcerer seats! Most of the people there that early were in the shopping line instead - one couple had a full air mattress! The 2nd night we didn't get there until midnight and again got really good seats for the film presentation. But by attending those we were pretty out-of-luck for getting the stage passes for other panels. Stage pass lines were REALLY long as well. You just have to pick one or two things you must do and fully commit to waiting as early as allowed.

 

[GeneralTso]

Thank you so much for the Facebook page info. I sent a request.