Disney Studios (MGM) Tips
Disney Studios, formerly and forever known as MGM Studios, is the only Disney park where you will undoubtedly be smacked in the face with the fact that Disney owns ABC. There are hints of it all over the place, which is fine, because it helps with the overall theme of the park. It's all about Hollywood magic.
There are a few great rides at Disney Studios, but mostly it's shows. Lots and lots of shows. It's a smaller park, so it's easy to cross from one side of it to the other pretty quickly. That comes in handy when you have to race from one place to another to catch that thing you just HAVE to see.
Oh, and this is the Pixar park. If you've got kids who are fans of anything Pixar, this will be a place that makes them very happy. And me. Obviously.
HS Tip #1: Hollywood Studios has weird hours, with parts of it closing earlier than others. This happens at other parks, too, but it seems more annoying at this one for some reason. Make sure to check the schedules for all of the things you hope to do.
HS Tip #2: There are a ton of shows worth catching. Some are spontaneous shows that just happen in the streets, others are things like Indiana Jones, the Jedi Training Academy, the stunt show, etc. Watch the schedules and try to plan out which ones you'll want to catch. It's really hard to get them all in one day. By the way, there is a board near the center of the park that lists the wait times for various attractions, as well as the schedule for various shows. It can be hugely helpful for to take a look at it before planning your next move.
HS Tip #3: Tower of Terror. TOWER OF TERROR. ZOMG, I love the Tower of Terror more than any other ride in all of the universe. It's basically a big drop in an elevator, but the theming of every inch of the place is absolutely amazing. I might have the script to the Twilight Zone movie that is shown in the library memorized. Possibly.
If you want to shorten your wait time at Tower of Terror a bit, move to the opposite side of the room once you enter the library. A door will open up there after the movie ends. Oh, and this is, in my opinion, a Fast Pass worthy ride.
HS Tip #4: While you're grabbing your Fast Pass for Tower of Terror, scope out the situation with Beauty and the Beast. It's very much so like a Broadway presentation and only runs a few times each day. It may be worth asking a Cast Member when should line up. At some times of the year, you might need to wait an hour. Other times, you can just walk in as it's about to start. Every seat is a good seat, but it's outdoor stadium seating. It's not exactly comfy.
HS Tip #5: I'm going to go ahead and call the Rock n Roller Coaster the best roller coaster Disney has to offer. It's a definite Fast Pass ride. You'll want to grab that Fast Pass as early in the day as possible because they will stop distributing them at some point in the day.
HS Tip #6: Toy Story Midway Mania is an evil, addictive, awesome game. The lines for it are usually stupid long, so it's worth a Fast Pass. I dream of the day when people are bored of it and we can get more than one ride on it in the same day. This is another one that you want to try to hit early because they will likely run out of Fast Passes.
HS Tip #7: Directly across from Toy Story Midway Mania is a character meet and greet area. Buzz and Woody are there, so if they are on your Must Meet list, it's a good place to catch them.
HS Tip #8: I don't know that I'd say the pizza at Pizza Planet is the greatest on earth, but I still think it's a fantastic place to grab lunch. C'mon, it's PIZZA PLANET!
HS Tip #9: Muppetvision. DO IT. Make sure to check out the store, too. There are some great Muppets things there.
HS Tip #10: Alexis is a BIG fan of the Honey I Shrunk the Kids Playground. She'll spend an hour there without so much as glancing to see if a parent is still in the same zip code with her.
HS Tip #11: The Drew Carey Sounds Dangerous show is the dumbest show that ever was dumb. I would say it's worth it for grabbing a short, air conditioned nap (it's a sound show, so total darkness), but it's so boring that Alexis nearly revolted within a few minutes of it starting. Don't waste your time.
HS Tip #12: If you need a quick break, try the Writer's Stop instead of Drew Carey. It's a little bookstore and cafe. The coffee is decent according to Disney standards (which is to say it's still not good, but it's not bad either) and there is always great classic Disney cartoons showing on a TV there. Alexis has been known to curl up in a chair and just hang out while I destroyed a cupcake and an iced latte.
HS Tip #13: The Little Mermaid show is pretty much perfect for short people who are fans of Ariel. It's a stage show complete with air conditioning and cushy chairs. Oh, and did I mention air conditioning? Yeah. For some reason I'm a fan of air conditioning while in Orlando.
HS Tip #14: 50's Prime Time Cafe is probably my favorite of all of the Disney restaurants. I kind of love having "Mom" yell at me for having my elbows on the table while I watch episodes of I Love Lucy and munch on macaroni and cheese. By the way, there is an adult portion of macaroni and cheese available, but you won't find it on the menu. Just ask. Also, the milkshakes and desserts are pretty fantastic.
If you can't get reservations for Prime Time Cafe but want that sort of food (meatloaf, pot roast, and the like), go to the Tune In Lounge. Same menu, you'll just be stuck eating at a bar. And, yes, I said bar. The Tune In Lounge is the closest thing to a "real" bar you'll find at Disney World. It's insanely expensive for a drink there, but knock yourself out if you want.
HS Tip #15: I'm a HUGE Pixar fan, so I love, love, love the Hollywood Studios parade. It's all Pixar and pretty much every favorite is included. Grab a funnel cake from the stand near Indiana Jones and then have a seat. The parade is super short (6-9 minutes, I'd guess), so don't worry if you aren't in the most comfortable spot of all time.
HS Tip #16: It's possible to avoid some of the heat by making your way through parts of the park indoors. You can get just about all the way down Hollywood Boulevard and down half of Sunset Boulevard without setting foot in the sun.
HS Tip #17: Fantasmic is without a doubt the best of the night shows in all of Disney (Right this second, a bunch of people are twitching with eagerness to disagree--NEENER NEENER! I say it's the best. Heh.). You might need to line up early for it, but it's so worth it. It features pretty much every character you can imagine, fire, lights, fireworks, projection images, water, and all around awesome. If there are two showings, try to catch the second one. It will be a lot easier to get a seat for it.
DS Tip #18: If you stay on Disney property, Extra Magic Hours at Disney Studios really are magical.
OK, almighty Disney gurus, got anything to add?
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Reader Comments (12)
Can you believe there is no fast pass available for our Toy Story Mania? It's basically a mad, insane dash across the park to get in line when it opens. Otherwise, you're waiting 45 minutes or longer AND YOU'LL LIKE IT MISSY!
I know you hate exclamation points, but Honey I Shrunk the Kids Playground!!!! I forgot all about that and I remember absolutely LOVING it.... almost 20 years ago (UGH).
DHS is my least favorite park in the scheme of things and kinda has been neglected and that's why it's at the bottom of my list. I do like Tower, RnRC, Toy Story Mania and The American Idol Experience.
Yes, AI is one of the best shows you can see during the day. The finale show is the best to view and the production values are really high. It's one of my must do's when I go.
Muppets being the other.
The Drew Carey show is seasonal and only opened until May 20 when Star Tours re-opens.
Also starting May 16 there will be a new Cars 2 meet and greet and one of my favorites, a Phineas and Ferb meet and greet in the Streets of America section.
I'm usually in and out of Studios as Indiana Jones hasn't been updated on 20 years.
Playhouse Jr, is now called Disney Junior, but the shows run early in the morning, but it's entertaining especially if you or your kids enjoy, Mickey Mouse Club House, Jake and the Neverland Pirates and more Disney Jr. shows.
I despise 50s Prime Time Cafe. The menu is blah and you have to rely on the comic stylings of you waiter to make the concept work without getting annoying. Rather go to Sci-Fi and that's not saying much. Hollywood & Dine, Brown Derby or the often overlooked, but amazing, Mama Melrose.
Fantasmic is great, as long as you never saw the far superior version on the west coast. Disneyland's is pretty amazing especially with the Peter Pan part instead of the Pocahontas section and they have a "real" dragon at DL and not a head on a stick like DHS.
They need to get ride of the old backlot tour because there really isn't anything back there anymore.
If you get a chance stop and watch on of the best cover bands Mulch, Sweat and Shears. They put on a really god show.
My suggestion that I would add, especially if you want to ride Toy Story Mania twice is to grab a fast pass immediately upon arrival - if you are staying on property you have a great chance at getting in three trips because of the early extra magic hours. You can get a fast pass, then wait in line (which I really recommend because it really is a great queue),ride the ride, get in line for your fast pass, and grab another fast pass on your way out. Did that make sense? Anyway, the key there is to do it early, because that bad boy runs out of fast passes by noon on slow days.
We also will fast pass either Rock n roller coaster and wait for tower of terror, or vice versa. I really like that those two awesome rides are so close together.
Thanks for getting me excited for my trip in June (not that I needed much to get me started), and for these great tips! I can't believe that you don't like Drew Carey's show. ;) Yawn!
If you plan on sitting down for dinner, check to see which restaurants offer priority seating for Fantasmic with a dinner reservation. There's usually three - although that may change depending on if you're there in the busy season. We were able to avoid the two-hour long wait in the July heat for a seat this way. Priority seating is a little off to the sides of the stadium, so if you're looking for a seat dead center this won't work for you, but if you're not that picky it's a great option!
{SIGH} I love MGM. It is -hands-down- my favorite Disney park. We always, always eat at Mama Melrose and I cannot call my trip complete without a blueberry muffin from the Writer's Stop (my favorite place to sit down for 3 frickin' seconds at WDW).
I like the backlot tour (and what happened to watching the animators? I LOVED that!!). Toy Story Mania opened the day AFTER we left last time (it was originally scheduled to open on our last day there. Dang.). We are also HUGE Pixar fans, so this was devestating news but it caused us to start planning our next trip on the plane ride home!
We don't like the Little Mermaid. At all. We've tried it 3 times and it has always been an epic FAIL. And I don't like Pizza Planet. Sorry. I tried to, but I just...don't.
The Muppets is AWESOME - pay close attention to the details going in AND coming out. Amazing!
The blue car by the diner is where we take a picture of our boys every time. It's our version of your Snow White and Alexis photo. And last time we added Baby Girl for good measure. {SIGH}
Do they still mist you during the Little Mermaid show? Last time I was in MGM was a looooog time ago. It was blisteringly hot and the Tower of Terror was brand new (still awesome though!). We more or less parked ourselves in the Little Mermaid show with occasional trips ToT breaks. Back then the park didn't have much and was kind of...um...lame. It was also pretty empty and it only took 10 minutes (or less) to get through the ToT line.
But yeah..back to the tip...if they still mist you the Little Mermaid show is PERFECT for a cool down stop.
I was there back in '95 so it's about 16 years that show has been the same....
i've never had a strong desire to go to disney.
after reading all of your tips and recaps, i NEED a disney vacation.
they should pay you for this shit.
Thanks for all of these tips Michelle. We hope to go next winter, if we can hold out that long (Deven asks EVERYDAY if we can visit Minnie).
I have learned a lot from these posts, so I won't be so unprepared when we go.
Have you ever used the Disney babysitting services? I've heard you call up and they give you options: loving grandmother type, young and full of energy, etc. Or am I completely crazy thinking we would have any energy after a day at Disney to go out for an adult dinner?
@beckyd--We haven't, but I know people who have and say great things about it. A dinner out without the kid sounds like a pretty fantastic idea, actually. Not crazy at all.
I went to Disney on my honeymoon about 63 years ago (or 12). The Tower of Terror and Ariel show were my favorites. In fact, I don't remember much else from that particular park. Maybe some Indiana Jones show-thing? I also don't remember the Rock n Roller Coaster, but funnily enough, I was at a confirmation last night and the Bishop talked about that ride. Both you and he made it sound like a good one. I so wanna go back, and I know my seven-year old will love it.