Rise with an ILL and other logistics

[pixiedust33]

Hi all! This will be out first WDW trip with Galaxy's Edge open and I have a couple of questions. My primary one is I'm looking for experiences of how long (from entering the LL to exiting the ride) it takes to ride Rise of the Resistance WITH an individual lightning lane? My husband and I have a 2.5 year old (who is actually tall enough, but we're not crazy enough to take him on this ride), so we will be taking turns doing Rise while the other person is doing something with our son. I would like our ILLs to be close to back to back so we don't have to backtrack much, but I can't decide how far apart I should book them to accomplish this. Assuming no ride breakdown, would 30 min apart be reasonable? And if the ride IS down and the queue is going to be longer, can I get a refund if I go to a blue umbrella? We would both really like to ride this ride, but we're also not willing to take hours out of our toddler's day at Disney doing things he would enjoy to do that.

My other question is whether anyone has ideas on spots where a little kid can just run around a bit while the other parent is doing this ride. I was thinking about the Disney Junior dance party? I wish the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground was still at HS!

 

[Miffy]

I can't answer your questions about play areas for your child, but I think a 30-minute difference between ILLs would work out fine. You could probably book them both at the same time, but to be careful, a 30-minute difference should be good.

When using an ILL, I've rarely had Rise take more than maybe 45 minutes, total, from entrance to exit. But I have been inside, gotten more than halfway through, had the ride break down, and been shown to the exit. It does happen. But not always! I've had plenty of times when I've entered through the LL, walked practically right onto the ride, had everything working perfectly, and the entire thing took maybe 30 minutes.

My experience is that Rise goes down a lot. If it does, you'll get ILLs that will be good at any time, but if that wouldn't work for you, then, yes, you can go to the blue umbrella GET and get a refund. I've done that more than once, I'm sorry to say.

All that being said, RotR is an amazing experience--more than just a "ride"--and if you have the opportunity to do it, take it. It's well worth it.

One other thought. If you're going to be at DHS close to closing time, the standby wait at that point (assuming Rise is up and running) is often really short.

 

[pixiedust33]

I can't answer your questions about play areas for your child, but I think a 30-minute difference between ILLs would work out fine. You could probably book them both at the same time, but to be careful, a 30-minute difference should be good.

When using an ILL, I've rarely had Rise take more than maybe 45 minutes, total, from entrance to exit. But I have been inside, gotten more than halfway through, had the ride break down, and been shown to the exit. It does happen. But not always! I've had plenty of times when I've entered through the LL, walked practically right onto the ride, had everything working perfectly, and the entire thing took maybe 30 minutes.

My experience is that Rise goes down a lot. If it does, you'll get ILLs that will be good at any time, but if that wouldn't work for you, then, yes, you can go to the blue umbrella GET and get a refund. I've done that more than once, I'm sorry to say.

All that being said, RotR is an amazing experience--more than just a "ride"--and if you have the opportunity to do it, take it. It's well worth it.

One other thought. If you're going to be at DHS close to closing time, the standby wait at that point (assuming Rise is up and running) is often really short.

Awesome, thanks! We're skipping a lot of rides this time around to make this trip all about our son (Tron, Guardians, etc) but my sisters went earlier this year and they've been to ALLL the theme parks and say Rise is the coolest thing ever and we absolutely can't miss it, so this is the one thing we're prioritizing for ourselves! I'm remaining spoiler free too, so very excited about it and hoping it works out.

 

[loves to dive]

Just to make sure you understand, when you book your ILLs you are going to book both you and your husband for the same time. Then you will do rider swap, one going first and the other going right after, both going through the LL. No way to know how long it will take. If the ride had been down earlier in the day, all the ILL people might show up at the same time, thus making the line longer. Or it could be down 3/4 of the day. You can attempt to very politely ask GS at the blue umbrellas for a refund if it has been down a good portion of the day and you have to leave but there is no guarantee. If it goes down and doesn't come back up at all during the park hours, you have a really good chance of getting your money back.

Places to play. HS is really lacking with just good old fashioned run around and get your energy out spots for the littles. The dance party is a good idea but all the way across the park so your timing is going to have to be spot on to get back for rider swap if you want to do it right when rider #1 gets off. When I'm watching my grand daughter for her parents to ride (she is currently 2 1/2 but has been 3 times already) I tend to just walk around with her, mostly keeping her in her stroller but sometimes if it's not too crowded I let her walk and hold my hand. Not easy to do if it's very crowded with one so small though.

 

[pixiedust33]

Just to make sure you understand, when you book your ILLs you are going to book both you and your husband for the same time. Then you will do rider swap, one going first and the other going right after, both going through the LL.

Wait, why would I have to do this? I was under the impression to rider swap, you have to bring your child to the attraction and then speak to a cast member, which seems like it would take more time. If we each just buy our own individual lightning lane, we should each be free to go whenever we want to go through the lightning lane, without doing any sort of formal "rider swap". Is there a rule that everyone in your party needs to have the same ILL time?

The dance party is a good idea but all the way across the park so your timing is going to have to be spot on to get back for rider swap if you want to do it right when rider #1 gets off.

Right, this is my point and why I don't want to do rider swap. But is there some reason I have to??

 

[scrappinginontario]

You can book at the same time and use Rider Swap as indicated above.

 

[pixiedust33]

You can book at the same time and use Rider Swap as indicated above.

Understood, but I don't actually want to use rider swap because then all there of us have to go to the queue and remain nearby. My intention is that my son will be remaining in another area of the park and my husband and I would be trading off supervision of him while he's doing something he would enjoy. Is there a reason I would have to do rider swap or some benefit to doing so that I am missing?

 

[Minnie1222]

Understood, but I don't actually want to use rider swap because then all there of us have to go to the queue and remain nearby. My intention is that my son will be remaining in another area of the park and my husband and I would be trading off supervision of him while he's doing something he would enjoy. Is there a reason I would have to do rider swap or some benefit to doing so that I am missing?

In that case, booking the iLL 30 minutes apart would be fine. It usually takes us about 40 minutes from entering the LL to exiting.

 

[Mle8308]

Understood, but I don't actually want to use rider swap because then all there of us have to go to the queue and remain nearby. My intention is that my son will be remaining in another area of the park and my husband and I would be trading off supervision of him while he's doing something he would enjoy. Is there a reason I would have to do rider swap or some benefit to doing so that I am missing?

It's the same thing. Book/buy your ILL's at and for the same time. One of you goes on while one waits somewhere with your child. Then the other goes while the person who already rode waits with the child. Chances are you won't be able to book them 30 minutes apart because of the way they sell out - fast if it's a busy time and if you are staying off property, you may not even be able to buy them. You could also risk one person doesn't get the ILL and and one of you does because you wanted different times. For two different times, you would have to buy each ILL separately, buy for one person then buy another after - because you said you want a different time for the second person. And that different time is most likely going to be hours after the other. ILL's go quickly. But you do what you think will work best for you. Or take him on it with you since you said he meets the height requirement, he doesn't need an ILL since he's under 3. I took a 3 year old on it and he loved it.

 

[pixiedust33]

It's the same thing. Book/buy your ILL's at and for the same time. One of you goes on while one waits somewhere with your child. Then the other goes while the person who already rode waits with the child.

So I'm open to doing this, but this is why I'm asking how long it takes on average to get through the whole experience. If we both get slots for, say, 11am, and ones of us goes through but it takes 45 minutes, it won't give that person very much time to meet back up with the other two and have the second parent book it over to the ride, which risks that person missing the slot. I don't want the non-riding parent and my son to just have to hang around the queue exit because he is very much not a patient child and a constant ball of energy.

Chances are you won't be able to book them 30 minutes apart because of the way they sell out - fast if it's a busy time and if you are staying off property, you may not even be able to buy them. You could also risk one person doesn't get the ILL and and one of you does because you wanted different times. For two different times, you would have to buy each ILL separately, buy for one person then buy another after

We are staying on property and were each planning to buy our own ILL on our phones for our desired times. I know they sell out, but I didn't think they were selling out in seconds these days. We're going the first week of March. Do you really think we wouldn't be able to get our desired times if we're both on there right at 7? ILLs are all new to me so definitely don't mind being told if this is a pipe dream! In that case, I think we would probably just book hours apart rather than risking the same time though. We'll be at HS all day, with a break for nap midday, so one could do morning and one could do late afternoon if that's somehow easier.

Or take him on it with you since you said he meets the height requirement, he doesn't need an ILL since he's under 3. I took a 3 year old on it and he loved it.

Now this is an intriguing idea.... hard for me to assess whether my son would do ok with it because I'm remaining entirely spoiler free and a dumbo-esque ride is the most thrilling thing he's been on to-date. HS will be our last park day so maybe I will have a better read by then if he's into thrill rides. He's a thrill seeker at the playground at least!

 

[Mle8308]

So I'm open to doing this, but this is why I'm asking how long it takes on average to get through the whole experience. If we both get slots for, say, 11am, and ones of us goes through but it takes 45 minutes, it won't give that person very much time to meet back up with the other two and have the second parent book it over to the ride, which risks that person missing the slot. I don't want the non-riding parent and my son to just have to hang around the queue exit because he is very much not a patient child and a constant ball of energy.

We are staying on property and were each planning to buy our own ILL on our phones for our desired times. I know they sell out, but I didn't think they were selling out in seconds these days. We're going the first week of March. Do you really think we wouldn't be able to get our desired times if we're both on there right at 7? ILLs are all new to me so definitely don't mind being told if this is a pipe dream! In that case, I think we would probably just book hours apart rather than risking the same time though. We'll be at HS all day, with a break for nap midday, so one could do morning and one could do late afternoon if that's somehow easier.

Now this is an intriguing idea.... hard for me to assess whether my son would do ok with it because I'm remaining entirely spoiler free and a dumbo-esque ride is the most thrilling thing he's been on to-date. HS will be our last park day so maybe I will have a better read by then if he's into thrill rides. He's a thrill seeker at the playground at least!

If you are on property, you should be fine with getting ILL's at 7am. But, even with both of you buying on different phones at the exact same time, you could get very different return times. Maybe not, but it's a possibility. However, I do think if you went to one of the blue umbrellas and explained your situation, they could fix it. And I think if you both did have the same return time and went on separately and one person is a few minutes beyond the return time, if you explain to the CM at the entrance they will not have a problem letting it go. And yes, I would figure about 40 minutes from getting in line to getting off the attraction. And who knows? You may find your son is into the thrill rides! Have fun, it's a great ride and I don't even really like anything Star Wars!

 

[sponica]

Understood, but I don't actually want to use rider swap because then all there of us have to go to the queue and remain nearby. My intention is that my son will be remaining in another area of the park and my husband and I would be trading off supervision of him while he's doing something he would enjoy. Is there a reason I would have to do rider swap or some benefit to doing so that I am missing?

The ride is just soooooo unreliable, I'd rather book the ILLs at the same time and utilize rider swap. If the ride breaks down, then you both get anytime ILLs.

If you're using 2 phones, booking 2 slots close to each other may not be an issue. But if you're only using one phone, you might end up with time slots a few hours apart. What if it's working for person A but then goes down by the time person B's time is called. Then you might have to figure out when person B is able to get there before the park closes.

If you are on property, you should be fine with getting ILL's at 7am. But, even with both of you buying on different phones at the exact same time, you could get very different return times. Maybe not, but it's a possibility. However, I do think if you went to one of the blue umbrellas and explained your situation, they could fix it. And I think if you both did have the same return time and went on separately and one person is a few minutes beyond the return time, if you explain to the CM at the entrance they will not have a problem letting it go. And yes, I would figure about 40 minutes from getting in line to getting off the attraction. And who knows? You may find your son is into the thrill rides! Have fun, it's a great ride and I don't even really like anything Star Wars!

And yes, I have done this. My husband got stuck on Smugglers Run so he was late to the return time by the time I got off Rise and they let him on.