All FP machines to be removed from Animal Kingdom by next week and....

[rebbyparker]

Here are my recommendations for a successful WDW vacation once FP- is gone:

Vacation at a slow time of year like September and first part of November. Be very selective about the time you vacation.

Pull kids out of school to get the most bang for your buck.

Stay on site so you have access to FP+ 60 days in advance, especially if you must travel during holidays and summer.

Stay for 7 days minimum. Plan on going to MK for 3 days, EP 2 days, DHS, 2 days, and AK 1 day. Due to the limit on the number of FP+ one can get, extended vacations will allow you to use FP+ on all the main attractions.

Don't worry about park hopping unless you're interested in seeing the lesser known attractions.

Do not change your schedule the day of unless you are OK with losing your headlining FP+ appointments.

At non busy times you will want to be at the parks at least a half hour before opening..at busy times get there an hour or two ahead. This way you can see the most attractions in a day, and perhaps even ride the headliners more than once. This will become more vital as FP+ becomes more established.

It's still ok to leave for an afternoon break, just make sure you get back in time for your FP+ appointments if you planned them for the afternoon.

Be prepared for huge lines to get into FP lines. That means bring ponchos.

Work with your kids on proper magic band placement to help keep the FP+ line moving.

Schedule your FP+ rides in the afternoons or evenings when the park is most crowded. You are better off using your FP+ selections at that time instead of waiting in huge lines for all non FP+ attractions.

If it's ever offered go ahead and purchase the unlimited FP no matter how much it costs.

Wow, until you put it down in black and white like that, I didn't realise just how much has actually changed. I've been focused on the different aspects of it that applied to us. Thanks for doing that and now I'm really sad.

 

[ArwenMarie]

I don't think they plan on giving offsiters prebooking access. I used to think that they were, but I don't anymore.

AP holders..yes. Because we know that once they have a hotel stay, they get access. So that functionality is built in there, it just needs to be unlocked for all APs.

But there is no reason to do a test like this if you plan on eventually allowing offsiters to book before entering the park (IMO)

If one of the goals is to raise hotel occupancy, you wouldn't want to make FP+ too easy for offsite stays. Then the incentive to move onsite is gone. In addition, the easier it is for offsite stays to access FP+, the more people will use it.

I predict that we are looking at the future here. Permanent kiosks supported by CMs/iPads when needed.

 

[Mkrop]

Here are my recommendations for a successful WDW vacation once FP- is gone:

Vacation at a slow time of year like September and first part of November. Be very selective about the time you vacation.

Pull kids out of school to get the most bang for your buck.

Stay on site so you have access to FP+ 60 days in advance, especially if you must travel during holidays and summer.

Stay for 7 days minimum. Plan on going to MK for 3 days, EP 2 days, DHS, 2 days, and AK 1 day. Due to the limit on the number of FP+ one can get, extended vacations will allow you to use FP+ on all the main attractions.

Don't worry about park hopping unless you're interested in seeing the lesser known attractions.

Do not change your schedule the day of unless you are OK with losing your headlining FP+ appointments.

At non busy times you will want to be at the parks at least a half hour before opening..at busy times get there an hour or two ahead. This way you can see the most attractions in a day, and perhaps even ride the headliners more than once. This will become more vital as FP+ becomes more established.

It's still ok to leave for an afternoon break, just make sure you get back in time for your FP+ appointments if you planned them for the afternoon.

Be prepared for huge lines to get into FP lines. That means bring ponchos.

Work with your kids on proper magic band placement to help keep the FP+ line moving.

Schedule your FP+ rides in the afternoons or evenings when the park is most crowded. You are better off using your FP+ selections at that time instead of waiting in huge lines for all non FP+ attractions.

If it's ever offered go ahead and purchase the unlimited FP no matter how much it costs.

Yeah well my calendar, wallet and patience is not happy with any of that.

As much as I would like to pull the kids out, this was probably our last chance, it is harder with a high schooler. Sometimes my wallet doesnt allow for extended stays. And my patience for standing in long lines was diminished by WDW itself with their original product.

 

[amylevan]

And my patience for standing in long lines was diminished by WDW itself with their original product.

I think this is the most ironic thing. There has been bashing all over the place for people not willing to stand in line but it was WDW itself that made us realize there was no need to stand in line.

Now we don't even visit our local theme parks unless its a non-crowded time.

 

[jimmysmom74]

I think this is the most ironic thing. There has been bashing all over the place for people not willing to stand in line but it was WDW itself that made us realize there was no need to stand in line.

Now we don't even visit our local theme parks unless its a non-crowded time.

This an excellent point. We aren't the ones who thought up bypassing the lines. They are. Now that we(all those savvy in the FP- system) have mastered it, they want to include all the people who never really cared about the FP in the first place. I never minded lines as a child, now I almost faint at anything over 30 mins. Disney made us the immediate gratification monsters that we have become.

 

[ckelly14]

I don't think they plan on giving offsiters prebooking access. I used to think that they were, but I don't anymore.

AP holders..yes. Because we know that once they have a hotel stay, they get access. So that functionality is built in there, it just needs to be unlocked for all APs.

But there is no reason to do a test like this if you plan on eventually allowing offsiters to book before entering the park (IMO)

If one of the goals is to raise hotel occupancy, you wouldn't want to make FP+ too easy for offsite stays. Then the incentive to move onsite is gone. In addition, the easier it is for offsite stays to access FP+, the more people will use it.

I predict that we are looking at the future here. Permanent kiosks supported by CMs/iPads when needed.

No one really knows what will happen in the future, but I would be surprised if pre-booking was restricted to onsite only. Sort of defeats the whole idea of FP+.

Even if all guests had pre-booking access, you still have to plan for those that are clueless/lazy/laid-back and don't WANT to schedule anything until they show up in the park.

 

[AquaDame]

Here are my recommendations for a successful WDW vacation once FP- is gone:

Vacation at a slow time of year like September and first part of November. Be very selective about the time you vacation.

Pull kids out of school to get the most bang for your buck.

Stay on site so you have access to FP+ 60 days in advance, especially if you must travel during holidays and summer.

Stay for 7 days minimum. Plan on going to MK for 3 days, EP 2 days, DHS, 2 days, and AK 1 day. Due to the limit on the number of FP+ one can get, extended vacations will allow you to use FP+ on all the main attractions.

Don't worry about park hopping unless you're interested in seeing the lesser known attractions.

Do not change your schedule the day of unless you are OK with losing your headlining FP+ appointments.

At non busy times you will want to be at the parks at least a half hour before opening..at busy times get there an hour or two ahead. This way you can see the most attractions in a day, and perhaps even ride the headliners more than once. This will become more vital as FP+ becomes more established.

It's still ok to leave for an afternoon break, just make sure you get back in time for your FP+ appointments if you planned them for the afternoon.

Be prepared for huge lines to get into FP lines. That means bring ponchos.

Work with your kids on proper magic band placement to help keep the FP+ line moving.

Schedule your FP+ rides in the afternoons or evenings when the park is most crowded. You are better off using your FP+ selections at that time instead of waiting in huge lines for all non FP+ attractions.

If it's ever offered go ahead and purchase the unlimited FP no matter how much it costs.

Thats a LOT of work for only 3 (tiered, so not even my favourite!) rides a day. January will be our last trip to WDW for a bit, DLR here we come!

 

[mom2rtk]

No one really knows what will happen in the future, but I would be surprised if pre-booking was restricted to onsite only. Sort of defeats the whole idea of FP+.

Even if all guests had pre-booking access, you still have to plan for those that are clueless/lazy/laid-back and don't WANT to schedule anything until they show up in the park.

I agree. Disney has said that their primary goal with all of this is to have people commit their days to Disney in advance. Why would they leave the off-siters out of that equation? That's a huge piece of the pie.

 

[wordwitt]

I agree. Disney has said that their primary goal with all of this is to have people commit their days to Disney in advance. Why would they leave the off-siters out of that equation? That's a huge piece of the pie.

I think the ability to pre-book will be a perk of on-site stays. JMO.

 

[johde]

I don't think they plan on giving offsiters prebooking access. I used to think that they were, but I don't anymore.

AP holders..yes. Because we know that once they have a hotel stay, they get access. So that functionality is built in there, it just needs to be unlocked for all APs.

But there is no reason to do a test like this if you plan on eventually allowing offsiters to book before entering the park (IMO)

If one of the goals is to raise hotel occupancy, you wouldn't want to make FP+ too easy for offsite stays. Then the incentive to move onsite is gone. In addition, the easier it is for offsite stays to access FP+, the more people will use it.

I predict that we are looking at the future here. Permanent kiosks supported by CMs/iPads when needed.

While I agree we don't know what the final product will look like. There is a benefits to doing this type of test.

You are getting large group testing on how long it take real people to make reservations using the Kiosk and how many people on average you can make reservations per hour during the morning.

Even when FP+ is available in advance to offsite guests, large numbers of people wait to buy their tickets at the gate. All of those guests buying tickets out front at the gate are probably going to use the kiosks.

That being said, we may be seeing what "phase 2" implementation is going to look like. The may run this system for a while to see what happens with the few groups that have FP+ without a current reservation. Right now, AP can make FP+ once they have stayed onsite and have a MB. It also seems like people who have any tickets attached to a MB can have access to FP+ in advance. People have mentioned making reservations, getting the MB then canceling the reservation. So it appears that right now, access to advance seems to be a feature that once it's enabled on an account it continues to be enabled indefinitely.

 

[Mkrop]

I think this is the most ironic thing. There has been bashing all over the place for people not willing to stand in line but it was WDW itself that made us realize there was no need to stand in line.

Now we don't even visit our local theme parks unless its a non-crowded time.

And when we do visit we wish for FPs and wait times posted the whole time...we are always comparing it back to WDW. We do it all the time at Hershey Park, we dont stand in lines there either if we can help it. We go at off times or midweek during the summer, we stay onsite to get in an hour early. We know the park inside and out so we can maximize our ride time and minimize our wait in line time...gee wonder where we figured out that strategy

 

[kmarie99]

Thats a LOT of work for only 3 (tiered, so not even my favourite!) rides a day. January will be our last trip to WDW for a bit, DLR here we come!

What makes you think this will not eventually be rolled out to DLR

 

[wisblue]

Thats a LOT of work for only 3 (tiered, so not even my favourite!) rides a day. January will be our last trip to WDW for a bit, DLR here we come!

You do realize that if you do all of those things you will be able to do a LOT more than 3 rides a day.

Plus, a lot of this is pure speculation, such as the long FP+ lines and arriving at the park 2 hours early.

Maybe you should look at the video someone posted a few weeks ago of the LONG, LONG line waiting at the FP return for Space Mountain and warning that this is what lines are going to be like all the time when FP+ really gets going. But, when the video was reviewed more carefully, the last person visible in the line passed through the gate a whole 90 seconds after the video started.

As for arriving 2 hours early to line up at the gates, I am willing to bet that that will never gain you much. 30 minutes is a good rule of thumb now, and MAYBE an hour would help a little. But, not enough people are going to get there more than an hour ahead to give you that much of an edge.

 

[kmarie99]

You do realize that if you do all of those things you will be able to do a LOT more than 3 rides a day.

Plus, a lot of this is pure speculation, such as the long FP+ lines and arriving at the park 2 hours early.

Maybe you should look at the video someone posted a few weeks ago of the LONG, LONG line waiting at the FP return for Space Mountain and warning that this is what lines are going to be like all the time when FP+ really gets going. But, when the video was reviewed more carefully, the last person visible in the line passed through the gate a whole 90 seconds after the video started.
As for arriving 2 hours early to line up at the gates, I am willing to bet that that will never gain you much. 30 minutes is a good rule of thumb now, and MAYBE an hour would help a little. But, not enough people are going to get there more than an hour ahead to give you that much of an edge.

They don't say that because that would not play into their whole FP+ is going to ruin your Disney World trip.
Yes... Yes... I know there are some people who do not like FP+ and think it will ruin their trip and they want to make everyone think that it will ruin theirs too. Misery loves company!

 

[granmanh603]

No one really knows what will happen in the future, but I would be surprised if pre-booking was restricted to onsite only. Sort of defeats the whole idea of FP+.

Even if all guests had pre-booking access, you still have to plan for those that are clueless/lazy/laid-back and don't WANT to schedule anything until they show up in the park.

That would be us no plan,stay on site DVC and do not plan til day of and will not wait in line so the advantage of staying for big bucks in now deminished . We used M B in oct/Nov and was unimpressed. Most day could book morning of but longer FP lines and we could at least use regular fP to go to another park when too agrivated with the park we were at . Oh and will rarely do stand by, this does not seem like boding well for us. We held off booking March trip( usually do 3 weeks) so glad about that, will just do a short 1week trip if it is available. Guess there might be some DVC contracts up for sles or rent soon.

 

[Vidia2]

What makes you think this will not eventually be rolled out to DLR

I think this is exactly where this is headed. They've proven with other things that they have a huge interest in having both US parks function with the same strategies.

 

[jade1]

Some current waits

Soarin 65
TT 60
Space 65
TSSM 65
RNR 60

EE 20
Safari 20

 

[lugnut33]

I posted that video and I still think it's ridiculous to have a huge line like that stretching out into the walk areas. It's not the only ride I saw a FP line stretching out into walk areas. The line for BTMRR went almost to Splash Mountain. But I guess that's OK with you.

It's also a fact, FP+ IS SLOWER than traditional fast pass.

 

[taterheads]

While I agree we don't know what the final product will look like. There is a benefits to doing this type of test. You are getting large group testing on how long it take real people to make reservations using the Kiosk and how many people on average you can make reservations per hour during the morning. Even when FP+ is available in advance to offsite guests, large numbers of people wait to buy their tickets at the gate. All of those guests buying tickets out front at the gate are probably going to use the kiosks. That being said, we may be seeing what "phase 2" implementation is going to look like. The may run this system for a while to see what happens with the few groups that have FP+ without a current reservation. Right now, AP can make FP+ once they have stayed onsite and have a MB. It also seems like people who have any tickets attached to a MB can have access to FP+ in advance. People have mentioned making reservations, getting the MB then canceling the reservation. So it appears that right now, access to advance seems to be a feature that once it's enabled on an account it continues to be enabled indefinitely.

There was a post on another board from someone talking about a CM telling them that room only reservations would have to be paid off 45 days in advance for a reservation she made and she was upset because she wanted to pay off at check in. I suggested that FP+ and people getting MB mailed then canceling without penalty might be the reason why. If they don't require payment in full on all resort stays prior to mailing MBs then I could definitely see that happening for off siters who still wanted MB and FP+. What would deter them? Perhaps cancelation fees! Not making a stance, just stating something I found interesting.

 

[ArwenMarie]

While I agree we don't know what the final product will look like. There is a benefits to doing this type of test.

You are getting large group testing on how long it take real people to make reservations using the Kiosk and how many people on average you can make reservations per hour during the morning.

Even when FP+ is available in advance to offsite guests, large numbers of people wait to buy their tickets at the gate. All of those guests buying tickets out front at the gate are probably going to use the kiosks.

That being said, we may be seeing what "phase 2" implementation is going to look like. The may run this system for a while to see what happens with the few groups that have FP+ without a current reservation. Right now, AP can make FP+ once they have stayed onsite and have a MB. It also seems like people who have any tickets attached to a MB can have access to FP+ in advance. People have mentioned making reservations, getting the MB then canceling the reservation. So it appears that right now, access to advance seems to be a feature that once it's enabled on an account it continues to be enabled indefinitely.

Is that right? I thought that was only APs? That's interesting for sure. So since I have active MBs from our past trip, I could buy a ticket right now from wherever and link it and prebook at 60 days?