Highway in the Sky - Our own version?

[Etch]

Staying at BLT in November for the first time. Have not visited any of the monorail resorts before.

DW and I are interested in the "Highway in the Sky" dining tour but we also were thinking that we would like to spend a little more time at the resorts checking them out. Also, we'd like to reserve dinner at California Grill since we haven't been there either.

So my thought is this. We book a reservation for California Grill for let's say around 8:00pm. We head out on the monorail around 5:00pm to check out Poly and GF. Have some drinks, apps and do whatever happens to interest us until our ADR at 8:00pm. "Highway in the Sky" minus the schedule.

My main question is this. How crowded are the lounges/bars at these resorts at this time in the evening if we wanted apps or drinks? I assume a lot of people would be headed do their dinner ADR's so some of the lounges would have at least some space for this?

Everyone feel like this is a good plan? All suggestions are welcome.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

We did this two years ago and had the BEST time! We actually started at Trader Sam's right before 4 pm so we wouldn't have to wait to be seated as that lounge is small and can get crowded. If you would rather start at 5 pm, you can always sit on the patio at Trader Sam's and wait to get inside. Tambu will probably be quite crowded at this time with people waiting for O'hana, but we prefer Trader Sam's anyway - great drinks and apps. I don't think you will find huge crowds at Mizner's at GF, IMHO. We also ended with dinner at Cali Grill - it was an awesome night!

 

[Jadyreen1282]

Highway in the sky was a good buy for us. We would do it again.

 

[Etch]

We actually started at Trader Sam's right before 4 pm so we wouldn't have to wait to be seated as that lounge is small and can get crowded. If you would rather start at 5 pm, you can always sit on the patio at Trader Sam's and wait to get inside. Tambu will probably be quite crowded at this time with people waiting for O'hana, but we prefer Trader Sam's anyway - great drinks and apps. I don't think you will find huge crowds at Mizner's at GF, IMHO.

Great info! Exactly what I was looking for. Thanks!

 

[MusicalAstronaut]

I've done HITS, and I've also done my own version. A few things I remember from doing it on my own (on a Saturday I believe) - I couldn't get into trader sam's, and it took a lot longer than I thought for not much fun. It was 5pm and I was solo, and it was over a 1.5 hour wait. I put my name down and went upstairs to the bar outside of O'hana. Couldn't get near it - it was either groups of young people drinking, or people with kids trying to get a few drinks & bites instead of eating at O'hana, or people waiting for their O'hana reservation to come up (is it just me or are they always running like 45 minutes behind?). So like I could stand behind a child and shout over their head or stand behind a group of 20-something who were flirting heavily with each other and feel super awkward trying to get past them to actually order something. After a while of this I managed to get a shot of whiskey on the rocks. I downed it, went back down to Trader Sam's, gave them the buzzer, and left. This was the first weekend in December so then I got to wait in a long line for security to get back on the monorail. I'm pretty sure it was over an hour of my time and I felt stressed out & like I'd wasted time I could've spent in MK. I was MUCH happier at the GF - they had a little pop up bar and Christmas music, and I spent a long time there trying to rekindle my Christmas spirit. I didn't bother stopping at the Contemporary because I felt too burned by the Poly's bars. One of the super nice things about HITS is no waiting - you have your own cars on the monorail so you get to walk right past the huge line and go to your next stop. Then when you get there, they're pouring your drinks instantly, no fighting to get a bartender's attention and standing there holding your drink. If you do your own version of it, I would go in non-peak hours and/or a weekday, and if you want to do Trader Sam's get there early. I heard from talking to people that they got there about 45 minutes before it opened on a Saturday and there was still a line.

 

[gharter]

We were at Trader Sams 2 weeks ago on a Saturday. We were in line at 3:30, 30th, one of the last to get in. It was a lot of fun, would do it again. We were at the bar and that was great for just the 2 of us. A large group, you want to get there earlier as the place is very small inside. We left at 5:30 and were one of hte first to leave. If you don't get in with the first group, expect at least 60-90 minute wait.

 

[DisneyaHolic23]

We do the Monorail Drink-a-Thon (with snacks/appetizers) pretty regularly. Here are my tips:
1. We do the "extra-credit" bars, starting at Wilderness Lodge Geyser Point for lunch. It is pretty easy to get a seat here. Then we go to Fort Wilderness and have a drink at Crockett's - again, easy to get a seat at the bar, or take it outside on the deck in the rocking chairs.
2. Next is Trader Sam's - we get there at 3:30. We do find it really fun. We have actually had pretty good luck getting in, as long as it isn't a weekend... There are some decent appetizers here.
3. Then we go to Mizner's at Grand Floridian. Nowadays, it is getting crowded too. However, people don't stay long, so just watch for people who have empty glasses.
4. We usually end at California Grill. Sometimes we dine, sometimes we just go to the bar. Our new favorite thing is Savor, Sip, & Sparkle - Celebration at the Top, which is on Sunday only.
5. We found some inexpensive, personalized Monorail Drink-a-Thon passports online (PM me, or do a Google search) that make this really fun. We do them on every trip now!

 

[shannie102]

I did a review of HiTS from back in October.
https://www.disboards.com/threads/highway-in-the-sky-review.3644414/
I would vote for doing your own, most likely cheaper and then if you really like somewhere you can stay longer

 

[heidijanesmith]

We just got back from our own Highway in the Sky tour.

We started at the Poly at 7PM. Trader Sam's was so busy, but we got a great spot at Tambu lounge.
Next on to Mizners at GF, plenty of space there.
Last to California Grill for a drink at the bar and then watched the fireworks at 9:15. We had a reservation at 9PM, but they did not seat us until after the fireworks. That was ok.

We saw a group of Highway in the Sky folks, they were leaving the Poly at the same time we were. We saved a bunch, by doing it on our own and we had so much fun.

 

[rentayenta]

Now I need to somehow fit this into our plans. I love the DIY idea.