One of the worst aspects to being a tourist (especially in peak season) are the crowds and waiting in lines! You spend half the time you should be spending sightseeing standing in lines waiting for tickets and admissions. But there are ways to avoid and to skip those lines and coast right on up to the front!
So your on your nice relaxing holiday, and you head out to see the sights in Paris. You turn up to the attraction or museum etc and the line is 4 hours long (no joke, this was the estimated wait time last time i went to the Louvre in Paris). Well, now you've wasted your entire day and you've only done one thing. What a way to waste a holiday, and talk about the stress!
Well i'm here to tell you there are ways around it! Don't be the chump that waits in those lines. Do your research before hand and find your way to skip them. Here are my top tips to skipping those dreaded lines while on Holiday.
Book in off-peak season.
Depending on the intended attraction or the time of year your wait times will vary. Obviously the peak times are way worse e.g. summer, school holidays etc, so if you can book outside of peak times that will help immensely. Try to book around February to April time, or the September to November to get the best deals.
Pre-Buy your tickets
Pre-buy your tickets when you can, especially to the more popular places. Most places have a separate line for ticket holders and you can pretty much walk straight in (plus online tickets usually get a small discount, usually only a few dollars but every dollar counts right!). Some places may still have a security check once you get in but at least you'll be more than half way there.
Get up EARLY.
It is such a simple thing to do but people rarely do it right. Most people think early means getting somewhere just before or after opening. Nope, Not gonna help you for the really popular places. For example, most really popular spots will have a good 100 people already lined up by opening time. If you want to beat the crowds, i would recommend getting there about an hour early. Sure, you're now standing in line for an hour, but you will be among the first people inside, so no one blocking your photos, or taking time in security, so you can be in and out before you know it while still enjoying your visit.
Go to the busiest places first.
As the day winds on the crowds will only get bigger. Its best to plan out your day so you will be going to the busiest places in the morning before the crowds accumulate, then save the smaller places for the afternoon. That way, even if you have a line, it should only be s small one.
Read reviews and do your research.
Websites like TripAdvisor are geared so that you get your information from other travelers. If you read the reviews of the place before you go, you will not only learn about potential wait times and obstacles, but you might also learn some helpful tricks to skip those lines. For example, the best tip i have ever gotten is there is a little known about side door at the Louvre! Everyone heads straight to the main line in the iconic square with the pyramid, plus you see the line so you just figure you should join it. Don't! If you head off to the side there is a stairwell leading underground to the groups entrance. if you already have your ticket, you can use this line and it brings your wait time down from 4 hours to 15 minutes!
Front of the Line or Fast Pass.
Fast pass is another front of the line ticket. This generally works in one of two ways. You can pay the extra money for a Front of the Line ticket, which is usually costly but depending on your time constraints can be worth it. Or, some places have a timed fast pass system. Places like Disneyland will have machines near some of the busier rides and attractions. Here you can print out a ticket for later in the day and it gives you an entry time where you can come back and go straight to the front of the line. This system has gotten really popular over the last few years though and its no longer a secret, so often so many people use it that the fast pass lines can sometimes be just as long.
Use CityPass, or GoCards.
Most cities have a program called the Go Card, or the City Pass. this is basically an all access pass to some of the main attractions in the city. You can buy a 1 day, 2 day, 3 day or 5 day pass and It generally gives you a list of all the places you can get free entry into with the card. Then you just go to as many you can make it to before the card expires. A fantastic system on its own, but most of the busier places allow you to use the Go Card as a sort of front of the line ticket. So you get to walk past all of the hundreds of people waiting in line and walk straight up to the front like a V.I.P. If this option is available for you, i highly recommend it!
Jacki-love your travel trips for shorter lines getting into popular venues. Where can you get the Go Cards and approximately how much are they?