BIG change to FP+ today

[WillAustin]

I never suggested that all there was to do between attractions was shop or eat (although I admit I do both ), but was suggesting that I don't think that the FP+ is going to open any money doors for WDW.

I agree. When we tested in August, a couple of days we went to a park with FP+ reservations and basically just rode our 3 reserved rides, then left after only a couple of hours in the park. I don't think that's what Disney has in mind as a strategy.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Level one: Headliners as listed in the test (Choose ONE):

Illuminations: Reflections of Earth (Only select dates available)
Maelstrom
Meet the Disney Pals at the Epcot Character Spot
Soarin’
Test Track presented by Chevrolet

It shows how bad Epcot is when a fireworks show, a character meet-and-great, and a log flume are considered "headliners".

 

[jade1]

How can rides not be important? I see that comment sometimes but what's left without rides and shows? At least until evening that is.

I often dream of going to Italy and might just try to do so in the next few years. I bet that I can stroll around and see amazing things and that I can get better food and find plenty to do. Disney doesn't have the market cornered on that.

I'll bite.

For us anyway. (by the way, have done the France and food thing-amazing but actually once was enough-have not done Italy yet-but will once).

1) Start with the "at least until evening that is"-that is our favorite time and we close the latest park every night-MK is usually 3AM when we visit.

So we are not getting up in 3 hours to open a park. On other evenings that are not soo late-we will fish in the am, golf in the am, or do a char breakfast-all missing FP.

Therefore with that being our chosen cycle-all FP's are gone for headliners.

We don't care, that's been our choice, we never complain to WDW-but even one FP+ reserved will be an improvement. I also believe MK and DHS will offer more than one. AK will as well, but we usually do a 1/2 day there and move on-this is the one day we open a park on our trip.

2) Rides are important to us-but we get more out of the whole immersion than the rides. In fairness to many though-we did the rides to death over 15 years, now the kids are older and rides are secondary.

Parades, fireworks, shows-heck we would choose the castle just to look at over a ride.

3) Resorts-staying DVC and also Deluxe has also changed our touring at WDW. We would hate to skip SAB to do 15 straight hours at MK like some prefer. Even just strolling the Boardwalk area is super rewarding.

4) Dining-have some real favorites and is a big part of our trip. This takes time out of ride lines but we choose to do that.

5) Weather-really this is one of our favorite things about WDW.

We like the FL beaches as well for this-but BC/SAB fills that void-esp with the evenings in the parks-the beach gets way too boring after sunset.
We travel in the winter-so there is no open water fishing here for 6 months. Fishing in short sleeves in the winter is a new favorite of ours down there. Way more important than opening a park-same with golf.

6) Family-with the kids moved on, getting together on a trip is different now. We enjoy the slower pace, dining, cocktails, sitting around WS, strolling down Main Street-sitting on a pontoon in front of MK while people run all over for some rides-they can have it.

 

[Tigger's ally]

Then why are you spouting your opinion if this doesn't affect you?

That's a strange answer coming from you, a poster that always does just that.

 

[Mad Hattered]

That's a strange answer coming from you, a poster that always does just that.

MM+ does affect me and my decision on whether I am willing to hand over more money to them, hence my opinion. Bayou and I have moved past that if you read the rest. Nice try, though.

 

[Tigger's ally]

MM+ does affect me and my decision on whether I am willing to hand over more money to them, hence my opinion. Bayou and I have moved past that if you read the rest. Nice try, though.

Nice that you have moved on.

But my original post still stands.

in this case it might affect you, but you always throw your two cents in even when it doesn't affect you, so I still think yours was an interesting post.

Nice try though

 

[Mad Hattered]

Nice that you have moved on.

But my original post still stands.

in this case it might affect you, but you always throw your two cents in even when it doesn't affect you, so I still think yours was an interesting post.

Nice try though

Anytime. But we should probably let this thread continue it's course. I find it extremely interesting.

 

[Planogirl]

I'll bite.

For us anyway. (by the way, have done the France and food thing-amazing but actually once was enough-have not done Italy yet-but will once).

1) Start with the "at least until evening that is"-that is our favorite time and we close the latest park every night-MK is usually 3AM when we visit.

So we are not getting up in 3 hours to open a park. On other evenings that are not soo late-we will fish in the am, golf in the am, or do a char breakfast-all missing FP.

Therefore with that being our chosen cycle-all FP's are gone for headliners.

We don't care, that's been our choice, we never complain to WDW-but even one FP+ reserved will be an improvement. I also believe MK and DHS will offer more than one. AK will as well, but we usually do a 1/2 day there and move on-this is the one day we open a park on our trip.

2) Rides are important to us-but we get more out of the whole immersion than the rides. In fairness to many though-we did the rides to death over 15 years, now the kids are older and rides are secondary.

Parades, fireworks, shows-heck we would choose the castle just to look at over a ride.

3) Resorts-staying DVC and also Deluxe has also changed our touring at WDW. We would hate to skip SAB to do 15 straight hours at MK like some prefer. Even just strolling the Boardwalk area is super rewarding.

4) Dining-have some real favorites and is a big part of our trip. This takes time out of ride lines but we choose to do that.

5) Weather-really this is one of our favorite things about WDW.

We like the FL beaches as well for this-but BC/SAB fills that void-esp with the evenings in the parks-the beach gets way too boring after sunset.
We travel in the winter-so there is no open water fishing here for 6 months. Fishing in short sleeves in the winter is a new favorite of ours down there. Way more important than opening a park-same with golf.

6) Family-with the kids moved on, getting together on a trip is different now. We enjoy the slower pace, dining, cocktails, sitting around WS, strolling down Main Street-sitting on a pontoon in front of MK while people run all over for some rides-they can have it.

I agree - nice resorts and good dining and sports activities and so on. And most of it doesn't require a visit to any of the parks. If only there was a pass to see just the castle and World Showcase because I like those too.

I did exclude evenings because I like that time of day best too. The fireworks and parades are great plus there truly is something remarkable about World Showcase at night. You've got me on that one.

 

[Robo]

hat being our chosen cycle-all FP's are gone for headliners...
We don't care, that's been our choice, we never complain to WDW

-but even one FP+ reserved will be an improvement.

Wish: Granted.


.

 

[Minniekins]

And this why I have said Disney needs to be careful how off-site guest are treated with FP+. Off-site guest help fund the parks just as much as on-site guest. They need their money too!

Exactly! Alienating the offsite guest doesn't seem smart at all!

...
I'll just add that I think that there might just be other changes to the FP+ rules. It would be possible to include the offsite people in prebooking (you must buy passes from Disney and you have to specify dates) but they probably won't go there. I don't know where they'll go with this but I don't believe that they'll take a chance on upsetting so many people by making it hard to ride headliners.

Maybe I'm being too positive now...

Yeah, that wouldn't seem like a disney that could still spout "have a magical day" if they were upsetting so many people.

I think this is WDW way of transitioning there system over to that, but are trying to do it in a way where it is still free, but not really. This will cause less upset guests if it still appears to be free or if you stay on site in a deluxe is basically free. First roll out FP+...give a few in the testing. Then roll out to resorts where each level gets a different amount and then off site non resort guests get a couple if you purchase a MB. Then you can buy an additional FP+ for 9.99-14.99 each varying by season! Poof they now have a system in place similar to universal. An offsite person 3 or 4 extra FP+ per ride and they have an extra $135 per family of 4 per day. Not quite as high at the universal system, but still money in their pocket either way and it doesn't cause the outrage of just of a switch from free to paid. ....

To me, this sure seems like it would make people really angry! It definitely seems like a switch from free to paid if offsite guests have to pay an additional $135 for a few FP's. It's as if the price of a day ticket is even higher when guests already pay a large fee to enter the parks, what do they get for the money when they have to pay even more to get on rides without standing in a ridiculous line - it's like you can get in but if you wanna ride stuff in a decent amount of time, fork over more money! And guests already complain every year as ticket prices rise each year! This whole paying thing wouldn't set well with me at all and I always stay onsite. I can't imagine it would sit well with many people at all.

I understand that FP- allowed people to shop instead of waiting on long lines for rides, which made Disney more money.

What I don't understand is, if FP+ has a limit of 3 per day when many people had previously been pulling many more than that, how is Disney going to make more money out of this?

This isn't meant to be critical, I really just am confused. I don't understand how this is better for Disney when it seems like it could result in more people waiting on longer lines... Unless it's possible that this could somehow result in shorter lines overall since tiered FP could mean lines are distributed more evenly?

People keep on saying that FP+ is being created so that people have more time to spend money in gift shops and restaurants. How can that be when so far everything indicates that people will spend more time in lines? Unless they start winding lines through gift shops, I don't see how that will work.

This is exactly it!! I just don't understand why Disney would want people to stand in more and more long standby lines! I mean they emphasize booking rides ahead of time and not having to stand in long standby lines, but this new systems seems to lead to super long lines all around! That doesn't leave people happy regarding standing in extra long lines, nor leave them with lots of extra time to wander the shops, eat, and watch entertainment, and spend more money!

Part of me feels like Disney really miscalculated how this new FP system would work regarding eliminating long standby lines, but the other part feels Disney couldn't be that far off the mark and be spending so much money on something they miscalculated! But so far, it's just not making any sense!

DVC is not really a typical time share because it has a lot more flexibility. While many traditional time shares have been disasters, point based vacation clubs like DVC hold their value pretty well and have a much higher level of satisfaction.

For someone who is confident that their family members will want to take regular trips to WDW every 2 or 3 years (or more often) you are effectively getting about 70% off comparable onsite resort accommodations.

I studied it thoroughly before buying and it has been great for us.

I realize this is a bit OT, but that doesn't make much sense to me, guess I don't understand how buying DVC actually works, but owners pay dues or maintenance type fees every year, so isn't that just like paying for a place to stay?

 

[ArwenMarie]

Let's assume that prebooking does turn out to be only for resort guests...There will be a way to buy them and we already know the cost...they are the price of a value room divided by 4..so let's say $25 a day, or $8 a FP. And then the price can even vary by season along with the room cost.

(I don't know if that loophole is still working where you can buy the room for only one night, then it is even cheaper)

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Wish: Granted.


.

 

[Bullseye]

And this why I have said Disney needs to be careful how off-site guest are treated with FP+. Off-site guest help fund the parks just as much as on-site guest. They need their money too!

As far as park tickets, dining, and shopping go on and off site guests are equal as far as what they contribute to Disney profits. But WDW doesn't make any hotel profit from guests staying off site. The perk of staying off site is getting a more reasonably priced room or getting an entire house/condo for comparable prices to WDW moderate. Just like ME, EMH, & bus service onsite guests are provided with certain perks to incent them to stay. US/IOA provides a great front of the line perk to onsite guests. There's nothing wrong with WDW doing the same to some degree with FP+.

 

[bcrook]

I have only one word to say: Fabulous.

And we are right back where we started in January.

Yep. Definitely weighing options. Maybe they are concerned about when all of the APs and other offsite tickets come on board.

The numbers are clear, there won't be enough fastpasses for everyone to experiences all the marquee rides. Disney says it a lot... You can always use our standby lines. They are being upgraded for your waiting pleasure. Interactivity.

I think that is a big thing that is playing into it. If this works out I would expect it to go to all the parks but it may be hard at Mk.

Actually, it works for MK too because of the larger crowds and demand. But also this is where they could sell extra the easiest or give more perks to the onsite guests.

Thinking WAAAY back to when details of FP+ first started making their way out, I do recall them saying something to the effect of having to choose between headliners. I remember people being quite upset about it and the usual folks pulling a "we just don't know...it could change"

Well here we are. I suppose it could change...again.

Yup, back to the beginning. Very little has changed since the original details came out in December 2012. The timeline can be found in my signature.

I really think they need to rethink this. Offer everyone ONE FP+ per day, with TSMM and the new mine coaster not included at all. I could see that as a value added benefit, while not messing as much with the entire pool of available FPs. Then allow people to add FP+ slots once the arrive IN the park and have used the one they had scheduled, or maybe one every 2 or 3 hours after they scan their ticket at the gate.

Ah, but that would be focusing on making the customers experience better. This is clearly about monetizing FP. I agree though, your plan would be perfect. Especially if I could hop.

well, if they successfully convince people that Maelstrom is on par with Soarin' or Test Track that will be a pretty darn good magic trick

Maelstrom should be bogged down with FP+ now, it will appear to be a popular ride. New Customers will be disappointed that maelstrom is being marketed as a headliner after they ride it.

so maybe this entire FP+ system is the brain child of the Norwegian government?!?!?!?!

hmmm, maybe the Audubon Society can get the Tiki Room set as a Tier 1 FP+ attraction when this rolls out to the Magic Kingdom

 

[bcrook]

How bad are the stand by lines in mid may? Does anyone know ? Do we really need a FP Or FP+? And how far in advance can you get these ?

People who want to sleep in would still get to do at least one major attraction at a park, which is one more than they can do now at a busy time of the year. They can decide for themselves what is worth more to them- 3 hours of sleep or a ride on Test Track.

People willing to arrive at opening have always been able to do more attractions than those who don't, and they always will, unless or until Disney completely eliminates standby or same day passes. I don't see that day coming, at least not in my lifetime.

It has been clearly stated and demonstrated over and over again that Fastpass+ is absolutely perfect for those not interested in riding a lot of headliners and wanting to sleep in. It seems like a small subset of people to change an entire system for. I was there a few weeks ago, and it was extremely convenient having a couple of fastpasses for a park waiting for me when I showed up at 7:00 pm. It didn't work well on my other days though.

 

[MJ6987]

It has been clearly stated and demonstrated over and over again that Fastpass+ is absolutely perfect for those not interested in riding a lot of headliners and wanting to sleep in. It seems like a small subset of people to change an entire system for. I was there a few weeks ago, and it was extremely convenient having a couple of fastpasses for a park waiting for me when I showed up at 7:00 pm. It didn't work well on my other days though.

Its a pretty big percentage of "casual" visitors though, i.e. most of Disney's business

 

[bcrook]

my sister and I just spend an hour on line setting up our vacation in two weeks (she and my dad live in Buffalo, and I live in Boston). I like knowing that, if nothing else, I will be able to get on these three rides i've booked for each day. I also like the way the fastpass website prompts you if you've booked a restaurant reservation.

My sister and I dont go nearly as often as my dad. Every time we go there seems to be some new development in crowd management. I wonder if not really being used to any one way of doing disney makes handling changes a bit easier. I understood the old fast pass, but I had only used it on two trips, so changing how it works is not that big of an adjustment.

I keep reading all of these tips with the old system where you had to be at the park at rope drop to get the fastpasses for the rides you want. With this system, if we want to be lazy old people and sleep off the results of the previous nights drinking, we can still have fastpasses for later in the day.

I can also see how this would benefit some people who are either ocd or have issues around predictability (thinking of the kids wiht autism I've worked with in the past), where there is a set schedule for their top picks that would have a shorter line that might alieviate some melt downs.

I guess we'll have to see how it all works, but for right now I think it looks like it is going to work well for my family.

I think your story is what is going to make this a huge success for Disney. They are creating a new reality. Newcomers will like it and not have much to compare it to. All Disney has to do is wait out the current unhappiness of their frequent visitors.

Once they start building Pandora, Star Wars land, open that mine coaster, add some new attractions in Pixar place everyone will be happy with their 1 FP+ and purchasing more as needed.

 

[bcrook]

I agree. When we tested in August, a couple of days we went to a park with FP+ reservations and basically just rode our 3 reserved rides, then left after only a couple of hours in the park. I don't think that's what Disney has in mind as a strategy.

We felt the same way. Rode our three and moved on. As funny as it sounds, I liked waiting for my next fastpass window to open up so could grab another one. This is how we spent all day in the parks. We would kill time in between enjoying the simple things. But now, all three rides are bunched up, done in two hours and I am ready to go elsewhere. It is a strange shift.

 

[nugov2]

To me, this sure seems like it would make people really angry! It definitely seems like a switch from free to paid if offsite guests have to pay an additional $135 for a few FP's. It's as if the price of a day ticket is even higher when guests already pay a large fee to enter the parks, what do they get for the money when they have to pay even more to get on rides without standing in a ridiculous line - it's like you can get in but if you wanna ride stuff in a decent amount of time, fork over more money! And guests already complain every year as ticket prices rise each year! This whole paying thing wouldn't set well with me at all and I always stay onsite. I can't imagine it would sit well with many people at all.

I don't know if it will be that way, but that is my feeling. I am thinking that is why the hotel loophole is working. It won't be worth it once this whole system is up an running 100% because you will only get a couple of extra FP for staying value which would cost you about $80(by my hypothetical FP prices) for a family of four which is about the same as paying for the value...what would be the point of booking the hotel then if you don't really want to sleep there.

I agree with a PP who called Epcot a glorified mall. It is not worth the same admission as MK. I also think the same of AK/HS. Those are half day parks and everyone I know who visits the world feels the same. I do think WDW is shooting themselves in the foot. I mean the 3 lesser parks will hold no appeal to us at all if I have to pay for FP or only get 2 and the choices are the way they are showing now. We will always love the MK and take a trip there(would even pay for FP there), but as far as the other 3 they will be replaced with the many other things there are to do in the area.

 

[jade1]

Wish: Granted.


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Yep and glad to have it.