Thinking about visiting Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World in 2020 or 2021? Trying to decide if it is worth visiting now with all of the restrictions? Is there enough open to see, do, and eat to make it worth it?
I recently visited and will share my opinions on everything great about Hollywood Studios in 2020. I definitely had my share of good and bad experiences in the park. From wait times to dining options.
I think it is worth a visit but only if you have been to Hollywood Studios or Walt Disney World before the Covid 19 Pandemic. If you haven’t been…… well I would definitely skip for now and wait till it gets a little more back to normal.
Wait Times
Wait times right now (August 2020) are unbelievable. Slinky Dog Dash was averaging a 30 minute wait. Smuggler’s Run had on average a 15 minute wait. Tower of Terror and Rock N Roller Coaster both had 30 minute average wait times.
It wouldn’t be hard first thing in the morning when they open (currently 10 am) to have 3 major thrill rides (Tower of Terror, Slinky Dog Dash, and Rock N Roller Coaster) done by noon. You could probably get those three down along with Toy Story Mania and Alien Swirling Saucers done by noon. Pretty insane when you think about it. All of those rides would have taken you most of the day back in March.
Most of the other rides had a 15 minute or less wait time. We walked on Star Tours twice with no problem. Toy Story Mania was pretty much a walk on too. We did that one 3 times and we even did Smuggler’s Run twice. One ride did have a long wait though.
Now Runaway Railway has been averaging close to 60 minute wait. Not for nothing the ride was only open a few weeks before all the parks shut down. The ride also goes down from time to time. It doesn’t appear to go down as much as Rise of the Resistance but it still goes down.
The day I visited Hollywood Studios we were able to get a Boarding Group for Rise of the Resistance right when they became available at 10 am. We got boarding group 30. Not bad if you ask me.
The app did say that it would be about a 150 minutes before they would be calling our boarding group. That would have given us plenty of time to do most of the things we wanted to do. The only thing.
Rise of the Resistance broke down within 30 minutes of the park opening. I am not sure how long it was down for but it wasn’t until around 2 pm when I noticed they were calling boarding groups again. Our group could start boarding around 03:20 pm.
I can say they were not calling as many groups as they did before but the line did move quickly. Most of the people also left plenty of room between them and the group in front of them. It made the wait time not feel so bad since you were constantly moving.
If you are really considering a visit to Walt Disney World and Hollywood Studios and have been there before. Based off the current wait times it would be a great idea. We could have easily done ever ride if we wanted to.
You too could ride everything and do a few rides a couple of times. It was one of the main reasons for me to decide to take the trip. I hate that there is no park hopper right now. It would have been great with the low wait times across all four Disney Parks.
Galaxy’s Edge
With the low crowds right now due to capacity limits really makes you appreciate Batuu. If you are willing to wait a minute or two you could get some great photos with no one in them. Batuu is crowded that most places in the park but it still isn’t bad.
Like I stated above the wait time for Smuggler’s Run is low. The longest I seen it on the Friday I visited was 30 minutes and that was about an hour after the park opened and Rise of the Resistance was down. Even waiting for food was short.
Both wait times for getting your mobile order from Docking Bay 7 and Ronto Roasters. I didn’t notice anyone waiting more than 5 minutes at either place. Plus you could find plenty of seating.
Even though at least half of the tables were not able to be sat at. There was still plenty of seats. Most people would eat their meal and get up and let the next group come in. I didn’t see cast members clean the table after each group but I did see them cleaning tables on a regular time table.
For all I know they do clean the tables between each group. I just didn’t happen to see it while I was there. As far as I can tell right now Disney is doing a great job at keeping common areas clean.
If you are planning a trip to Hollywood Studios you can’t beat the low wait times right now. Being able to do almost every ride in 3 or 4 hours is amazing. Having the chance to get some great photos with no one in them is even better. There are areas of the park were it seems like you have the whole place to yourself.
Even though I just listed two things that are great right now. It might be the only things you care about. I know for me it was. I wanted to visit Galaxy’s Edge at Hollywood Studios. I just missed out by a few days last August. It was definitely worth the trip for me to visit Hollywood Studios.
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