by: guide4wdw – Collin
Typhoon Lagoon V.I.Passholder Events: A Few Thoughts
Currently I’m spending a little over a week in the parks and typically when I’m on vacation with family I try to really take time to live in the moment and set aside articles for a few days until I return. However, after spending time over at Typhoon Lagoon for the exclusive V.I.Passholder event, I had to take a moment to review the event and share a few thoughts.
In all honesty this was the first one of these events I’ve been able to attend since they started doing them a short time ago. Essentially, the V.I.Passholder events are an invitation only event in which the vast majority of annual passholders are sent an email about a month before the event and if you are able to reserve a slot for the event before the event cap is reached, you get to tour the given park chosen for the event for 3-4 hours after it closes to the days guests.
Last nights event was the the second of only two V.I.Passholder events that have occurred at the Disney Water Parks. To make a long story short, it’s not the perfect event but it is perhaps the best option of the events to be offered so far.
Something interesting to note before we really dive into the details is the fact that even if you are not a Platinum Plus passholder, you can get in the event. If you receive an invite email, you can go to the event without having to buy a waterpark ticket for the day. I know that was a concern I personally had so it’s something I definitely want to note here and clear up any confusion.
In all honesty, you have to approach these events with certain expectations in mind. It is not a hard ticket event that would typically be an additional “add-on” purchase, and as such operates more like “extra magic hours” for passholders that it does a hard ticket event. The crowds are capped but truthfully it makes very little difference in accumulated wait times during the event.
The odd situation that does arise however is the massive transfer over as the normal park guests leave as the park closes its normal operating hours and the V.I.Passholder check in begins at 4:00pm. Essentially, this created an hour of time in which there was a lot going on in the park and a lot of guests going in all different directions. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t a big deal at all, but something you may want to be aware of when you arrive.
Parking is also a bit different that usual in that anyone driving their now car is required to park at the Disney Springs garages and bus over to Typhoon Lagoon. The only known way around this is to get to the park early and grab one of the remaining spots before the event officially starts check in and they start redirecting traffic. Again, it’s not perfect but not something you should be overly worried about either, especially considering its a free event and a great one at that!
Once you’re actually in the park, the crowds aren’t bad, but do not expect to walk on anything. The only exception to this rule is the wave pool. At about 5:15-5:30 the lifeguards did clear the wave pool in it’s entirety which is a bit odd to see and also quite unique at the same time. As they reopen the pool, music starts over on the beach and the atmosphere really starts to kick off the night with music, character interactions, and all around a wonderful experience!
Again, it’s all about your expectations of the event. You have to look at it as a night of 3 free hours in the waterpark surrounded by like minded passholders. If you go in with that expectation you’ll be pleasantly surprised with some really unique photopass opportunities, an event specific drink (for an additional fee), and some pretty neat passholder photo props scattered around the park in select areas. Overall, we really enjoyed our time and as Platinum Passholders who don’t typically do the waterparks, it was a good change of pace to add a unique opportunity to our lineup of planned experiences during this vacation!
Leaving the event was a bit of a struggle as buses were a bit sporadic returning to the resorts and it appeared as if there was a fairly lengthy line of guests waiting for the bus back over to the Disney Springs parking area. All things considered, thats a very small hurdle to overcome for many hours of fun!
This week we’ll also be attending the very first Villains After Hours Event so stay tuned to hear all the details we can pull together from our experience at that paid hard ticket event!
Your Thoughts
As always, if you have thoughts, concerns, questions, or even some tips of your own to share, don’t hesitate to reach out to us on Facebook or your favorite social media platform. Give us a follow while you’re there, and we’ll keep the conversation going in the future. We’re not the largest Disney community, but we’re one that’s here and one that listens. Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day wherever you are!
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