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Gemini Cricket
06-11-2002, 11:37 AM
Are CMs instructed to pad wait times? You know, to exaggerate the wait time in line to be more than it actually is? Is there some procedure to this? Does a CM from a ride communicate with the wait time board CM on a regular basis? How often is it updated? How do they know how long it will be? Wait time signs are not permanent in several attractions, who decides when a sign should go out?

Enquiring minds want to know. :)

Ghoulish Delight
06-11-2002, 11:43 AM
I don't know if there's any official policy or anything, but I have always observed that once a line (especially Splash Mountain in the past) gets beyond 2 hours, you can count on it taking about a half hour less than what is posted. I've always speculated that it was on purpose. How else can they get hundreds of people to think to themselves "Yay!! I only waited 2 hours!!"

Nigel2
06-11-2002, 04:03 PM
It probably all depends, for example Rocket Rods had just a standard sign that said like 90 (or was it 75?) minutes from this point (Roger Rabbit has/had one as well) since they may average the wait time. Also pre FP indy the sign could say like 25 but it could be more like 45 (I was once told the sign was stuck upon entering the line) There also may be a discrepency if they haven't called in the time or if it's early in the morning and they just have it at 5 minutes.:)

DisneylandKid
06-11-2002, 04:46 PM
Often times Big Thunder Mountain says that its line is much longer than it actually is (knock on wood). The other day, BTM had posted a 30 minute line----9 minutes----high five!!

thamnarestan
06-11-2002, 05:06 PM
Never rely on posted wait times. Cast Members usually post inaccurate wait times, and do so purposefully.

On FastPass attractions, the standby wait time is used to manipulate the length of the line and the number of people who use the fastpass system. Post a high wait time, and more people will get a fastpass or wait until later instead of waiting in the standby line. As for who has discretion over this-- usually the cast member who is working the entrace to the attraction decides what wait time to post. Occasionally, a manager or working lead will instruct the cast member to post a certain wait time, but usually the decision is left to the individual R.O. (ride operator).

Regarding the Hub Info board-- the guest relations cast member calls each attraction once an hour and asks for the current wait time. Sometimes the cast member who picks up the phone will give an honest answer. More often, however, the cast member will either make up a time or will give a very uneducated guess, because ususally Guest Relations will call a position (such as the control tower) where the cast members will have no way to know how long the line is.

How can you find out the actual wait time? I suppose you could ask a cast member, but many won't contradict what they or their fellow cast members have already posted. We don't want to look like liars, after all.

tinkfreak
06-11-2002, 07:37 PM
Well, even if they're snowballing me, I like it. It's always a nice surprisewhen you expect 40 minutes and only wait 20! Keep it up! Just don't tell me a line is 20 minutes when it's actually 40...

thamnarestan
06-12-2002, 02:23 AM
Originally posted by tinkfreak
Well, even if they're snowballing me, I like it. It's always a nice surprisewhen you expect 40 minutes and only wait 20! Keep it up! Just don't tell me a line is 20 minutes when it's actually 40...

Of course not. We only inflate the wait times because (usually) guests don't mind it. And, by the way, I am one of the cast members who will actually tell a guest the real wait time. So if you do want the real wait time, it doesn't hurt to ask. A tip: ask "How long do you think the line is?" instead of "Is it really 45 minutes?".

coronamouseman
06-12-2002, 06:16 AM
One would think that the Disney CM's would operate under the guideline to never quote a lower wait time than might be possible - thus, if the wait time is shorter, the customer will feel happier because it didn't take as long as they thought ......

Also, since many of the queue systems are so convoluted now because of Fastpass and babyswap/handicapped customers coming in the exits, there exists the potential for a lot of confusion being interjected into how many persons are really waiting for the ride which can lead to inaccurate wait times ......

I find the system is usually very good, however, in terms of accuracy over the last few years I've been to the parks

justagrrl
06-12-2002, 07:19 AM
Originally posted by thamnarestan
A tip: ask "How long do you think the line is?" instead of "Is it really 45 minutes?".

That seem sort of silly - when the line is usually right behind the CM and everyone can see how long the line is. (How long relating the actual physical length of the line in my mind - not the actual wait time.)



The responses to this thread were not at all what I expected. I always thought the opposite was true. that is that the posted line length was shorter then it really was to get people to go stand in line anyway, even when the wait is longer then they'd like.

i.e. I've seen the wait time at the Sun Wheel posted as 5 minutes when the entire line is full and it takes 30 minutes. Same with Screamin' where we've seen a 30 minute post time and the wait was more like 45 min or an hour. Obviously, it's harder to draw the line between 30 and 45 minutes then it is between 5 minutes and half hour.

In my eyes, honesty with guests should take precedence over guest manipulation.

coronamouseman
06-12-2002, 08:08 AM
I think you would have guests who are far more unhappier if posted line times were shorter than the lenght of the lines rather than the reverse.

But are we not again here talking about a "quality" issue? And it would seem that if Disney is going to maintain a position of being the industry leader then they would simply figure out exactly what they need to do on each ride to come up with and provide the guest with the best possible information ...............

And that is all the guest should really ask for, isn't it?

RandomCM
06-16-2002, 02:25 PM
To answer yuor question :yes. The CM at the Information Board are supposed to call the attractions on their wait sheet,every hour on the hour to update the wait times. Sometimes the attractions don't answer the phones, but they keep trying. They only go by what the attraction cast member tells them. Most of the times the attraction cast member makes up the time, or will tell the Guest Relation cast member to hold on while they ask the guest boarding the attraction how long they had to wait in line. A lot of times the attraction cast member wil; give a longer time then it really is because it is better to state a longer time then a shorter time and have everyone go complain to city hall. Just thought you'd like to know. :)

MickeyD
06-16-2002, 02:33 PM
Originally posted by RandomCM
...or will tell the Guest Relation cast member to hold on while they ask the guest boarding the attraction how long they had to wait in line.

One time when DF and I were boarding Peter Pan the CM got the call and asked us how long the wait was. But we weren't really paying attention and both at the same told her two different things. (One of us said 45 mins, one said 20 mins.) I thought it was pretty funny, and odd how two people can wait in the same line and have two completely different perceptions of it. Probably the CM thought it was annoying that between the two of us we had no clue.

Ace
06-16-2002, 07:36 PM
the only time that the actual wait was posted was correct was on Autopia.

me: it says 35 minutes, but it's really not (there weren't that many in line!)
over hearing CM: oh yeah, it's 35 minutes
me: oh, ok (you're wrong!)

it was 35.

cstephens
06-16-2002, 10:16 PM
We were there this Saturday. At about 11am, we passed by the ride board, which said the standby wait time for Splash was 60 minutes. When we got to Splash to get our Fastpasses, the sign there said the standby wait time was 110 minutes. Big difference. But we didn't care, because we were Fastpassing our way through. The only way to ride!

coronamouseman
06-18-2002, 01:44 PM
As a way to improve the guest's experience, how about posting wait time boards similar to the one found on Main Street over by Pirates in NOS, Matterhorn/Storybookland junction in FL and over between Innoventions and SM/HISTA in TL?

And for good measure, on all four boards, post the current FP return times being assigned at that moment for each FP ride .....

This arrangement would give guests a chance to plan their next few hours properly and decide which attractions to get FPs for and which to go on standby on ..........

Techie7
06-18-2002, 03:18 PM
coronamouseman: I agree in theory with your idea. The board I would like to see moved or added is in DCA. Why the board is all the way at paradise pier makes little sense when many of the rides listed are accross the park. It would seem to make more sense to implement digital boards which could be linked to the wait times at each attractoion. Then a few boards could exist and they would need less staffing.

coronamouseman
06-18-2002, 03:27 PM
T7 - exactly! (Your solution is true to your name .....)

Ultimately, wireless PDAs would be better as they could provide instantaneous information (how about a "perk" for Disney hotel guests?)

But why not have technology fitting for this century?

MickeyD
06-19-2002, 12:34 AM
The wait time for Pirates this afternoon was posted at 50 minutes, but it was actually 25 minutes, FYI.