75 mins for HM!?!?!? Time to fire current Disney parks MGMT

[Planogirl]

Except for the lockers (see previous post) Besides the food at US is crud, I nearly choked when I tried the Cornish Pasties at HP, whoever put them on the menu has never been within 3000 miles of Cornwall. Horrible things compared to the divine real things.

You don't have to use lockers. You just can't endanger other people by carrying bulky objects onto certain rides. You can leave the items in your room.

As for food, some is good and some is bad just like at any park including WDW. You have to do your research as to where to eat.

 

[999DoomBuggies]

Ummm...you didn't take business did you? Read the news? Use google (GTFG)? No? 1. BP - gulf spill 2. Exxon - valdez 3. Numerous electricity companies causing power grid failures 4. Tech bubble 5. Housing bubble? 6. Plenty of private company purchases or strategy changes costing >$1B ...just to name a few Forbes has plenty of articles that might educate you on the matter. In the grand scheme, FP+ is...what's that term....Mickey Mouse? The passion you seem to have for this topic is impressive...but perhaps misplaced. Would love to see that passion directed towards a cause that actually, I don't know, means something to the human race.

Really? I did not take business? I clearly stated this was a calculated decision by disney to implement MDE and it's trappings yet you begin listing disasters and bubbles. How is the Valdez a calculated business move? How is the tech boom a calculated business move by a corp.? Go back to reading the TMZ of the business world, e.g. Forbes. Not sure you could embarrass yourself more.

 

[Planogirl]

Sorry? Don't see why you're saying I 'ruined' a thread...or how that's even possible...

Do you honestly believe that all that many newbies come here and read the comments and decide to cancel their trips? Really?

First the people here are an insignificant factor according to some and now I see that those people are driving away business.

 

[Planogirl]

I haven't liked the idea of FP+ since the inception and had no idea of the wait time implications at that time. That being said one of my facebook friends that is there now posted photos of the 5 times he rode EE yesterday at AK and the 3 times he rode Dinosaur as well as photos from multiple different attractions. I have no idea if he was using FP or not, or if he was using single rider lines-just know that he seem to be getting onto a lot of attractions. He is definitely a commando though, rope drop to close!

Single rider lines are amazing and might just be part of the answer IMO. We don't mind splitting up so I've been thinking about how to work those into touring plans. I do wish that more rides had them.

 

[monkyby87]

Is it safe to say, given all of this, that Rope Drop to hit all of the major rides is still the way to go? We've always done Rope Drop in the past without much issue, so I'm just hoping that it's still the best plan.

 

[999DoomBuggies]

Is it safe to say, given all of this, that Rope Drop to hit all of the major rides is still the way to go? We've always done Rope Drop in the past without much issue, so I'm just hoping that it's still the best plan.

You should be fine if you rope drop, especially during non peak times. Also, you should be good later in the evening. I love disney theme parks more than most and believe disney is still very much worth visiting.

 

[sretav]

We went yesterday and there were lines wrapped around almost every place selling food. Even the little carts had 30+ people in line. I guess my point is that yes the line was long, we have seen it that long before during christmas week though, but the park was packed yesterday.

If people like this PP were at MK the same day as the OP and are reporting that food lines were also uncharacteristically long then the fault of the crowds isn't a FP thing, it really is just a crowd thing.

Sounds like the OP just started late, had to wait in line to get his park tickets and then in line again to get his FPs and after that, he'd had enough. If he'd shown up a week from now with his tickets in hand and attached to MDE, his FPs pre booked (because as of April 1 he can) and the lesser crowds expected next week, he may have had a great time.

Chalk it up to bad timing, possibly some bad planning and a generous dash of bad luck!

 

[Kellykins1218]

What on earth has Disney management done to the parks? I cannot fathom spring break causing consistent days of 75 minute lines for Haunted Mansion.

We go to DW every Spring Break and almost always see waits close to that for HM.

 

[DougEMG]

The whole point of MDE and FP+ was to increase revenue, I would also guess that Disney is expecting a bigger return then what they got when they added Carsland to DCA. If that turns out to not happen, then shareholders will get annoyed, Disney stock will go down and then an exec might be in trouble.

 

[Disney_Princess83]

Maybe I'm weird (totally possible ), but if.someone chooses not to go to wdw after reading a message board, that's their issue. If I really, truly want to go some place, then negative posts on a fan lovers message board aren't going to stop me . But then, I don't put much stock in movie or restaurant reviews either

Negative messages alone wouldn't convince us not to go to WDW. However, having experienced FP+/MDE/Magic Bands previously, we really don't like all that they involved. We are giving it one more shot and if we're still unhappy, we'll be headed to Disneyland afterwards. Disney won't care because we're only swapping one for the other. The difference will be is that instead of going for 4-6 weeks at a time, we'll go for 1 maybe 2 maximum.

 

[HydroGuy]

Negative messages alone wouldn't convince us not to go to WDW. However, having experienced FP+/MDE/Magic Bands previously, we really don't like all that they involved. We are giving it one more shot and if we're still unhappy, we'll be headed to Disneyland afterwards. Disney won't care because we're only swapping one for the other. The difference will be is that instead of going for 4-6 weeks at a time, we'll go for 1 maybe 2 maximum.

It would appear that Disney intends to bring MB/MDE/FP+ to DLR in the future. Part of that process was that they followed FP- window enforcement about a year after WDW did that. So your solution may only be a temporary.

How MB/MDE/FP+ would work at DLR is beyond me, however. The demographic mix could create a bigger backlash there than at WDW. Too many folks who make too many last minute day trips (or just plain evening trips) for it to work effectively.

 

[Disney_Princess83]

It would appear that Disney intends to bring MB/MDE/FP+ to DLR in the future. Part of that process was that they followed FP- window enforcement about a year after WDW did that. So your solution may only be a temporary.

How MB/MDE/FP+ would work at DLR is beyond me, however. The demographic mix could create a bigger backlash there than at WDW. Too many folks who make too many last minute day trips (or just plain evening trips) for it to work effectively.

If FP+ ever came to DLR (which I don't see for sometime if ever - such a different demographic since more locals visit that interstate and international as you said) we would honestly mostly skip the parks. Maybe do a Disney Cruise and move onto something else.

 

[mom2rtk]

It would appear that Disney intends to bring MB/MDE/FP+ to DLR in the future. Part of that process was that they followed FP- window enforcement about a year after WDW did that. So your solution may only be a temporary.

How MB/MDE/FP+ would work at DLR is beyond me, however. The demographic mix could create a bigger backlash there than at WDW. Too many folks who make too many last minute day trips (or just plain evening trips) for it to work effectively.

I chatted with a fair number of locals while in lines on our DLR trip last fall. If anything they found the idea of FP+ silly and questioned why anyone would care about reserving rides. It's just a totally different mindset from the occasional traveler. What they miss this time, they will catch next time. They've done it all countless times before.

I think the biggest obstacle at DLR would just be the sheer number of AP holders who could book on the off chance they "might" go to the parks on a given day. Whatever the fallout is at WDW, it will happen in spades at DLR.

 

[csmith041177]

I think it is all about expectations. If you go during spring break you have to be ready for crowds. Unfortunately going in with unrealistic expectations can lead to big time expectations.

 

[mom2rtk]

I think it is all about expectations. If you go during spring break you have to be ready for crowds. Unfortunately going in with unrealistic expectations can lead to big time expectations.

That's correct. For many, that means lowering their expectations from here forward. That's what so many of us are struggling with.

 

[ArwenMarie]

It would appear that Disney intends to bring MB/MDE/FP+ to DLR in the future. Part of that process was that they followed FP- window enforcement about a year after WDW did that. So your solution may only be a temporary.

How MB/MDE/FP+ would work at DLR is beyond me, however. The demographic mix could create a bigger backlash there than at WDW. Too many folks who make too many last minute day trips (or just plain evening trips) for it to work effectively.

I think that it might not be as big of a deal at DLR as one might initially think. From what I read on here, locals and semi-locals (who get to go many times a year, let's say one or two hours drive) seem to like FP+, or at least not detest it.

The people who seem to have the biggest issue with FP+ are tourists who come once a year or less and are trying to make the most of every minute they have there in terms of rides.

 

[morethananyonex]

What would be the point of FP+ at DLR? To keep things uniform with what's going on at WDW? Seems like DLR wouldn't really benefit from "locking in" guests, as such a huge chunk of them are locals who are coming anyways, and FP wouldn't really get much more money out of them.

Also, in order for them to use it at DLR for staffing purposes, they would have to change the overall mindset there. How do you convince a huge chunk of locals to book further in advance than maybe the night before? WDW already gave their guests lots of incentive to plan in advance before FP+. Even if you ignore the obvious things like ADRs, which can be skipped, there's a higher need to plan caused by WDW being more of a vacation destination. Flights and hotel reservations lock people into their dates, and 4 parks and 2 water parks create the need to map out more of a schedule. At DLR, there are fewer guests who are married to their dates, and a much lower need to plan ahead of time.

How does FP+ at DLR benefit Disney more than FP- does? Disney doesn't see as big of a benefit from day of or night before bookings as they do from tourists locking in their dates and plans 60 days in advance.

 

[HydroGuy]

The whole point of MDE and FP+ was to increase revenue, I would also guess that Disney is expecting a bigger return then what they got when they added Carsland to DCA. If that turns out to not happen, then shareholders will get annoyed, Disney stock will go down and then an exec might be in trouble.

From what I understand that is in fact what happened. The CL expansion was part of a $1.2 billion expansion at DLR that drove attendance way up and brought in increased income. MDE/FP+ cost something similar and it is starting to look like it will have a much lower ROI. That is why many Disney projects at parks have been put on hold.

Some DLR fans are upset that the MDE/FP+ experience and low ROI at WDW is forcing Disney to delay projects at DLR.

For example see:

"My Magic BUST: How Problems With MyMagic+ Could Effect Other Projects"
http://micechat.com/49401-my-magic-plus-failure/

 

[HydroGuy]

I think that it might not be as big of a deal at DLR as one might initially think. From what I read on here, locals and semi-locals (who get to go many times a year, let's say one or two hours drive) seem to like FP+, or at least not detest it.

The people who seem to have the biggest issue with FP+ are tourists who come once a year or less and are trying to make the most of every minute they have there in terms of rides.

If you think that then you do not know much about DLR locals. Comparing them in mindset or quantity to Florida locals is highly misleading.

 

[HydroGuy]

What would be the point of FP+ at DLR? To keep things uniform with what's going on at WDW? Seems like DLR wouldn't really benefit from "locking in" guests, as such a huge chunk of them are locals who are coming anyways, and FP wouldn't really get much more money out of them.

Also, in order for them to use it at DLR for staffing purposes, they would have to change the overall mindset there. How do you convince a huge chunk of locals to book further in advance than maybe the night before? WDW already gave their guests lots of incentive to plan in advance before FP+. Even if you ignore the obvious things like ADRs, which can be skipped, there's a higher need to plan caused by WDW being more of a vacation destination. Flights and hotel reservations lock people into their dates, and 4 parks and 2 water parks create the need to map out more of a schedule. At DLR, there are fewer guests who are married to their dates, and a much lower need to plan ahead of time.

How does FP+ at DLR benefit Disney more than FP- does? Disney doesn't see as big of a benefit from day of or night before bookings as they do from tourists locking in their dates and plans 60 days in advance.

You are correct across the board. But there have been rumblings it is coming to DLR. If it never comes to DLR that would make a lot of folks very happy. Messing up something that is working so well and profitably (the whole Disneyland Resort is what I am referring to) would really hurt Disney.

For the price of MM+/MDE WDW could have built an entire CarsLand at WDW plus much more.