Heigh-Ho friends....
I am VERY experienced (thanks to Ear Scouts) with Genie+, 7am world clock, refreshing, and the whole process. BUT, I do need some advice on my next trip (arrival day this Friday) regarding stacking LL's for a mid-late afternoon arrivel. I'm very comfortable getting LL's and modifying them (playing the slots) on my own but I could use some help with these logistics :-)
NOTES
We (2 people) are coming from Central Time Zone
~5:00-7:30pm = EPCOT (park opens at 9am)
~8:00-10:00pm = HS (9:50pm reservation at Olga's)
My specific question applies to the Genie+ LL #3 while stacking see below.
5:30am CT: Buy Genie+, Set up Regular My Genie Day, Set-up Standby Skipper
6:00am CT (from home):
Genie+ LL #1 = Remy (modify like crazy until I can get it to 5-6pm range)
ILL Guardians for 5-6pm
ILL Rise for ~8:30 range
10am CT (from airport) = Genie+ LL #2 Test Track (2 hours after 9am EST park open, then. modify to later)
10:45am CT: Flight Departs
1:00 EST: Genie+ LL #3 = MMRR, Smuggler's Run or Tower of Terror. We will be in the air on an airline with no WiFi and we don't have anyone else who can log-in and grab the 3rd LL for the stack. I have purchased Standby Skipper because we'll be in the air.
What kind of search should I set-up at 5:30am on Standby Skipper? Keep in mind we will only be at HS from around 8-10pm. It doesn't HAVE to be SR or ToT but I just want something booked at HS right at 1:00pm EST.
Should I book LL #1 and #2 on my own and THEN set up the Standby Skipper search before we take off?
Any other advice?
We obviously want to be as efficient as possible. I hate lines and am willing to pay for efficiency.
2:21pm EST: Flight Lands, Uber to Pop Century.
3:00 EST: Genie+ LL #4 = Something else at HS that's available (book in Uber).
~4:00pm: Room key Direct-to-Room, On Skyliner by 5pm hopefully.
Any thoughts are appreciated! I love the EarScouts community!
i don't have any standby skipper experience either - I feel like it's best for folks who have done less research (you seem to have done yours) but in your case it really might payoff to get something booked during your flight. However, if it were me for option #3 i would either do MMRR or ToT based on your ride preferences, may be hard to do both in such a short time frame (i feel like the line for MMRR tends to be longer since it's little kid friendly and newer so maybe go for that one?). Part of my reasoning is that I think you can keep an eye on the wait time for SR and hope in when there might be a shorter wait. Also, since it's just the 2 of you, you can go into the single rider line for SR and will likely be put in a group together as gunners. You could get split up but the single rider line usually is super short so it's worth doing to skip the line i think!
I love Standby Skipper. Are you following them on their FB page? Did you know if you go into the “about” or the “files” they have plans in there? Also, someone (maybe the creator) sells plans or something of the like on Etsy - you can see it on the FB page. Not sure I would pay for that extra but I did print out their info sheets and have used their service several times. It is an added bonus at not an expensive charge! I booked my ILL on my own and then followed their tips for SS and then modified as needed.
First of all, I love your ambition! Sounds like a plan I would have made 20 years ago when I still had the energy 😂. Unfortunately, I don’t know much about Standyby Skipper but I spent some time on their website (and I still don’t think I learned much haha). It looks like you can choose ‘afternoon’ or ‘evening’ windows for when you want SS to search for a ride you picked, but it also said at different times of day, different windows are available. I am not sure if that means you can choose an ‘evening’ window in the morning or not.
As far as advice on your plans, I would keep checking MDE this week to see what return times are looking like going forward. My biggest concern is the 2+ hours without wifi. I hope you are able to modify what you picked in the morning to later times. I just checked MDE at 10:20 CST and Test Track is at a 5pm return so hopefully you will be good! Also, be sure to have a contingency just in case your room isn’t ready at 4pm. I know they are supposed to be, but in my experience, it’s not a guarantee either. There’s always bell services who can hold your luggage. Can’t wait to see how it turns out!
I think the beauty of Standby Skipper is it will automatically get you something at your 2 hour time - then you can modify if it isn't exactly what you want and still have it credit that you got the LL at the time SS got it.
I don't have any experience with Standby Skipper, so I would lean towards booking #1 and #2 yourself and then letting Standby handle whatever #3 is --and whatever you are able to get for #1 and #2 can inform what kind of search you set up for Standby Skipper? Good luck, hope you have a great time!