Rope Drop MMRR or TOT? (Staying offsite, No EE)

[SquashBanana]

I am working on my HS touring plan for late June/early July. We are staying offsite so we will do regular drop drop without EE. We are planning to arrive at the gate around 8:30 (assuming 9 am park open) but my question is, where do we head from there? RotR and SDD will already have long standby waits so we were either going to head to MMRR or TOT. The other wildcard is whether or not RNRC will be reopened by then if it would make any difference in which to do first. Thanks for any advice!

 

[DWillowBay]

So, my answer has much more to do with WHEN you are going, than what ride to choose. June/July can be brutally hot/humid. For THAT reason, I would choose to do MMRR earlier in the day as sometimes that line can have a good portion of it in uncovered areas. It can get quite uncomfortable later in the day. TOT has shade and covered areas. TOT is not 'ideal', but more shade is available there than if the line gets long at MMRR. Just my 2 cents. Have a great trip.

 

[Grim Grinning Ghostie]

As DSWillowBay said, a lot of the queue for MMRR is outside, whilst much of the queue for TOT is indoors - the heat in July can be absolutely unfathomable, to the point that I often refuse to go to the parks in July or August, so getting rides with lengthy outdoor portions in their queues out of the way first is crucial to a positive park experience. Likewise, as MMRR is newer, it still tends to draw larger crowds than TOT does, with a line that doesn't really diminish as the day progresses (as far as I've seen) the way other lines will.

Additionally, if I had to spend time looking at the decor for either ride, it'd be TOT - the midday queue may be longer than it would have been had you rope-dropped the ride, but who can be upset whilst fully immersed in such immaculate theming?

 

[SquashBanana]

Thanks for the feedback. I didn't take into consideration how much of the queue was outside. It sounds like MMRR is the better option. From there would it make sense to backtrack to TOT or maybe head to Galaxy's Edge and do Smuggler's Run?

 

[jsergent]

Thanks for the feedback. I didn't take into consideration how much of the queue was outside. It sounds like MMRR is the better option. From there would it make sense to backtrack to TOT or maybe head to Galaxy's Edge and do Smuggler's Run?

I suppose it depends on if you are using Genie+ at all and what other wait times are like.

If SDD isn't a terribly long wait, perhaps that could be a choice? It can easily be 80 - 90 minutes or more. If you would happen to catch it a fair amount less than that and are not using G+, maybe a good second choice. Afternoon thunderstorms can take that ride down, so a morning wait that isn't awful perhaps would be a good choice. But if you have a later LL return time for Slinky, then maybe Smuggler's Run or ToT if the wait isn't bad there either.

Many variables to consider with weather, G+ LL's, and ILL for Rise. If you are planning to purchase and use those other things, that impacts how to plan the morning.

 

[Grim Grinning Ghostie]

Thanks for the feedback. I didn't take into consideration how much of the queue was outside. It sounds like MMRR is the better option. From there would it make sense to backtrack to TOT or maybe head to Galaxy's Edge and do Smuggler's Run?

That completely depends on your preference - both Smuggler's Run and Tower of Terror have outdoor portions to their queues, but both rides likewise have those portions shaded. Smuggler's Run has fans blowing during its outdoor portions, and Tower of Terror (most of the time) has misters going in the hotter months to keep guests cool. If I remember correctly, Tower of Terror has MORE outdoor waiting time than Smuggler's Run does, but I could be mistaken there.

It would really come down to how the weather looks that day and how heavy the crowd level is, I suppose - I've seen Smuggler's Run at both 25 minutes and 105 minutes on days with high crowds, so it can be fairly unpredictable. I'd say to go with whichever ride sounds more fun to you / with whichever ride you and your family want to experience more. There's always Star Tours if Smuggler's Run has too long of a wait.