Crowds - FP+ - the whole WDW experience

[mesaboy2]

Oh my - GREAT responses! I can't get to them all.

Reminds me of what I love so much of Disney - the shared positive experiences with complete strangers!

Quick point for now - THANK you for those that told me we can do each day FP+ 60 days out of our first day. THAT for some reason is something I missed.

I wonder if dining reservations were the same? We did get all the ones we wanted 6 months out, but did that day by day.

(Which proves my point in a way - it's become too complicated. Everything I read says you can book 60 days out - I don't recall the qualifier. It sure SOUNDS like 60 days from the first day FOR the first day, then 60 days from the second FOR the second etc. )

I'll get to reading all these responses from you wonderful people later today. Again - thanks!

From the FP FAQ:

- Onsite guests can book FPs for their entire stay, for as many days as they have tickets for. The maximum number of days is at least 14—reliable data beyond this number is unclear. Practically speaking, this means FPs can be booked for more than 70 days away.

 

[ww52]

After reading these responses, a few more details to clarify.

For each of our prior eight WDW trips, I was the planner - and enjoyed it immensely. First trip in 1989 the kids were quite small; no fast passes at that time; Studios just opened. Stayed at an MK resort and did no pre-planning. I don't think we even had a book and the internet was not a big thing back then. (Did DISBoards exist?) No problems. Great time.

Subsequent trips over the decades included a lot of pre-planning but more of the "what do we really want to see - let's get there early and make sure". Eventually using the official and unofficial guide and DISBoards. FastPasses helped at times but usually getting there at opening was all that was necessary. And an occasional 45-60 minute wait was no issue when the kids became teens and eventually adults with their SOs (last trip in I think 2011.)

What makes this trip much more challenging is the size of the group and diversity of ages and what each wants to experience. Nine people including 2 small children (4 and 2).

Now I realize many will say "then FP+ is GREAT - you'll have the comfort of knowing you'll get most if not all of the "must sees" in for the little ones". Frozen in particular for the 4 year old.

And actually had I known we can get all the FP+ on one day, instead of doing this every morning for 6 straight days like I incorrectly thought, I may not have written this post to begin with.

Still, this extreme advanced planning does take some of the excitement out of it. Because IF we can't procure FPs for the rides we want at the times we want (given nap and bedtime schedules for the little ones, we ARE pretty restricted) - I guess what happens is 60 days from our trip we're already disappointed. For my wife and I alone this will cost over $4,000. It's so much for my son and his family they decided to drive instead of fly - even though that really doesn't save them THAT much. I fear one or more of the group of 9 will say "why are we doing this if we already know we won't see all the things we find important?"

Of course the answer to me is "it's Disney." But that's not enough for at least a few of the 9.

Now I also hear that FPs open up and you have to keep refreshing the app (sounds like fun - he said sarcastically.) But again, the size of the party hurts us in that sense too.

Add to that the need to decide when to have the 3 allotted FPs per day. Use them early so we can get more before they run out? But maybe if we get there early, we don't even NEED them. So maybe we should assume we'll be OK in the morning and make sure we get them for later afternoon? A decision that didn't exist any of the times we went.

And whatever we decide, we're making an essentially irrevocable decision 60 days out.

I realize WDW is not for the spontaneous - and I've realized that even before our very first trip nearly 30 years ago. And it's not the pre-planning I truly object to - it's the very real likelihood that we'll already be disappointed in some level of the trip 2 months before we leave.

And maybe I'll be proven 100% wrong. Like when I do my taxes fearful I'll owe thousands and realize I get a refund instead.

 

[MickeyWaffles]

And whatever we decide, we're making an essentially irrevocable decision 60 days out.

Why? We travel with 8-12 people every trip and often change our FP on the fly based on how everyone is feeling/the kids are holding up, etc.

For SUPER popular things like FoP and SDMT, alternate times are harder to find on the fly but we VERY RARELY use the pre-planned FP as-is. We also prefer to be flexible and not have a structured plan. It all depends on how we are feeling and that is the beauty if it! It can be changed as opposed to when you had paper FP and your FP was your FP. Sometimes half of our group changes their FP to something else. Sometimes we all do. Sometimes we just do what we planned. We don’t act like or consider any of the 3 pre-planned FPs to be set in stone in any way. We very much take things day by day.

Others do this too and that’s why you can often find FP for the most popular rides at some point on the same day.

ETA: With small kids, we always book our 3 FP around 10/11/12 because their best park time is in the morning and we don’t know if they’ll need a break in the afternoon. We play the break by ear. We book additional FP from there as needed. It gives us the freedom to take a break or book additional FP in the park. This allows us to have the most flexibility, and like I said, we often move things around on the fly!

 

[ErinF]

I feel for you, I really do. You're doing all the planning and feel the weight of pleasing everyone in your group. I definitely think it is more challenging for you because you've got a group of 9. I think one big thing you probably need to do is lower your expectations. And don't put all this pressure on yourself that it has to be the greatest, most magical trip ever. It WILL be super magical for the 2 and 4 year old, they will LOVE it no matter what. As far as the adults, it's very much about the attitude going in to the trip. Just do the best you can, with all the information that you have, to plan out the FP's and how you think you want to spend each day. Lots of things are out of your control, rides can break down, weather can be not so great, you'll just have to go with the flow and have the best attitude (and coach your group on this as well) in order to make it fun and memorable. Good luck!!

 

[nco91590]

You're doing all the planning and feel the weight of pleasing everyone in your group.

THIIIIIIS. I was thinking this on one of your other threads. Being the master of everyone's destiny at Disney is a lot of pressure. That's why you should encourage the adults to get their own MDE account and decide on their own FPs.

In my experience with going with 8 adults and 6 children under 9, is that your day will be pretty fluid. Meaning, you might have all the FPs lined up, but things will happen, plans will change, people will want to go in different directions and you're not going to want to sit there and take time to rearrange FPs for everyone else. You'll want to enjoy yourself.

The FP+ and ADR system works great for some families (like mine with 2 small kids with ZERO patience) but not really great for others. But they can't please everyone all the time KWIM?

 

[kwdw]

With a party of 9 - yes - there will be compromises. For a group that size - with multiple smaller family units - keep it simple so you don't go nuts or trying to met the needs of everyone.

1) Get the 3 must do rides from each party in each park. You will use that information to plan FP's.
2) Discuss if any TS meals are required - a character meal, a lunch, a special restaurant, what's important. Ask about timing - breakfast, lunch, dinner? Time of day? One per day? Just one or two for the whole trip?

With THAT information in mind -

1) Make a tentative park plan - which day - which park?
2) Book any TS meals based on tentative days for each park. Book a few extra.
3) On FP day - using your tentative park plan - book the 3 FP's. Now - if you can't get an absolute must-do FP on that day - try other days - see if you can move a park day. Get the "in-demand" FP's first. A must-do for us every trip is IASW - but there's no way I'm wasting a 60+ day FP on that - you decide which ones get FP's in advance.
4) Then - after your mad rush to get FP's - judge things a bit to make your days better. Do things line up well? No park criss-crossing? No worries about getting to a meal on time? No stress about the time you have to arrive at the park. Can you tweak FP times? Dining times?

Unless everyone in the party has agreed to it - don't plan anything TOO early of a morning or TOO late of an evening for anything. If someone wants the afternoon free every day - then put the FP's late morning.

Then - after you have the very basics - which park, which FP's, and any needed TS meals - forget about planning. You are done. Be armed with knowledge of park hours - and some knowledge of park layout and transportation times. And now let everyone else critique/criticize/try to revise your plan to be better. Make changes before the trip as others demand of you - or if you didn't get something good enough that you still want to make better.

Then - when the trip comes - don't worry about making it perfect! As the main planner - you'll know the most and can offer suggestions - but just go with the flow. With a group that size - you can't make everyone happy 100% of the time. Things WILL change during the trip. Unavoidable.

 

[Micca]

I think all this stuff looks worse on paper (or computer screen) than it actually is. Many of us here are planning nuts because we enjoy it, no need to get stressed over it. If you can get your group out of the sack in the morning and over to the parks for RD, that's a huge win right there. I'll also add that with a larger group, trying to keep everyone together may be liking herding cats, if some folks want to split off, go for it.

 

[ww52]

kwdw - I like your style. I've always planned that way - and it's how we're doing it again. Actually, my oldest is doing most of the planning - though we discuss it together. I've sort of passed the torch to him since he has the two small children to consider.

So -
1) Done
2) Done
3) Still confused and using Touring Plans we're seeing in some cases it's best to save our 3 advance ones for the park we go to after naps.
4) Question - can we change our advance FPs in advance of the day?
4a) Question - can we change one or more of our 3 advance FPs ON the day? If we get to the park and see the standby line is short for a ride we have a FP, can we dump that and get another? Or do we still have to wait until the last of the three is used or expires?

Thanks everyone for all the help and moral support!

 

[Wubar]

I think all this stuff looks worse on paper (or computer screen) than it actually is. Many of us here are planning nuts because we enjoy it, no need to get stressed over it. If you can get your group out of the sack in the morning and over to the parks for RD, that's a huge win right there. I'll also add that with a larger group, trying to keep everyone together may be liking herding cats, if some folks want to split off, go for it.

In some cases, having some folks splitting off is better for the group as a whole!

 

[Wubar]

kwdw - I like your style. I've always planned that way - and it's how we're doing it again. Actually, my oldest is doing the planning - I've sort of passed the torch to him since he has the two small children to consider.

So -
1) Done
2) Done
3) Still confused and using Touring Plans we're seeing in some cases it's best to save our 3 advance ones for the park we go to after naps.
4) Question - can we change our advance FPs in advance of the day?
4a) Question - can we change one or more of our 3 advance FPs ON the day? If we get to the park and see the standby line is short for a ride we have a FP, can we dump that and get another? Or do we still have to wait until the last of the three is used or expires?

Thanks everyone for all the help and moral support!

3) Personal preference. Depends on what works for you.
4) Yes, you absolutely can. You will be, of course, be constrained by what is available at that time.
4a) Yup!

 

[Wubar]

The first couple posts of this thread are invaluable when it comes to FP info...

https://disboards.com/threads/fastpass-frequently-asked-questions.3491680/

And this thread as well....

https://disboards.com/threads/fp-fa...l-tier-1-booking-cl-fp-trial-program.3538258/

 

[bladiator]

3) Personal preference. Depends on what works for you.
4) Yes, you absolutely can. You will be, of course, constrained by what is available at that time.
4a) Yup!

This is definitely my touring style. I only try to get "tough-to-get" FPs ahead of time, but I never stay on site so getting stuff at the 30-day mark is difficult. But especially at a place like MK, I love getting rid of my FPs as soon as possible so that I can start just walking down the lane in Fantasyland where NO ONE wants to "waste" their FPs and just get an instant FP for everything. Usually I start at IASW, look for an FP (for up to 4 people this last trip) and get one for 5 minutes in the future. If it's 15 minutes away, I won't give up until I get something sooner because there is almost way you won't get it. Then when we punch in there, I start looking for Pooh or Under the Sea Tea Party or Dumbo or WHATEVER. If you get a tough FP like Peter Pan or 7DMT, you're saving 60-90 minutes instantly. But I can easily save 60-90 minutes by getting these "bad" FPs for all the short lines and saving 15-20 minutes for each.

 

[MickeyWaffles]

4) Question - can we change our advance FPs in advance of the day?
4a) Question - can we change one or more of our 3 advance FPs ON the day? If we get to the park and see the standby line is short for a ride we have a FP, can we dump that and get another? Or do we still have to wait until the last of the three is used or expires?

Thanks everyone for all the help and moral support!

Yes to both questions. We love being able to modify FP especially day of.

With a big group it’s especially nice. For example, we like to take the kids on PP twice. We had booked everyone’s FP that way - going on PP again. My sister and BIL looked on MDE and saw Space Mtn was open at the same time so they just switched theirs to Space so they could ride that again instead of PP. None of us follow a super strict plan but still find FP+ very valuable.

Also, I was very worried about FP+ before I used it. I also felt too “locked in.” After two trips with Fp+ I am a huge fan now and prefer it to the old way. Being able to book FP from my phone after we use our 3 pre-booked ones is really awesome.

I hope you have a great trip!

 

[belledreamer]

In some cases, having some folks splitting off is better for the group as a whole!

Omg I can't stress that enough. Especially for the span of your age group. Even for our group of 3 adults, solo time for us is a must.

But to the OP, it almost makes me sad to read your posts since it seems like you've already decided that there's going to be a level of disappointment to your trip and you haven't even gotten there yet, that things will be harder because you have a group of nine or that one or more will ask why are we even doing this?

If you go into your trip expecting that something's going to go wrong, that you'll be disappointed, that someone's not going to be happy, something minor that goes wrong is going to be terrible in your mind because that would be confirmation of everything you've been worrying about for months before. If one family member is stressed about what could happen or what could go wrong, the rest could end up doing the same. And that's no way to start a vacation, let alone a trip to Disney.

Admittedly, during our recent trip, things didn't go exactly as we had wanted, crowds were larger, wait times were longer, I didn't get to eat at a restaurant I had my heart set on and there were characters I really wanted to see that on the one day I was in a certain park, they weren't there... Our trip was not a failure by any means though and we still had a great time. Everyone here has offered some great tips and I definitely agree with all the advice they've offered.

Plus you'll have two grandchildren with you to experience Disney with. They won't care that they didn't ride every ride or see every show. There's something to be said for the joy of a child seeing their favorite character in person for the first time or their excitement at watching the fireworks. Even swimming at the hotel pool can be a big deal for a child their ages. So if I had to add anything, I'd say to take the time to view your vacation through their eyes and try to relax. It's okay to not have all your FPs, ADRs, every moment of every day planned to a T. Sometimes the best moments of our vacations are the moments that we're least expecting.

All the best to you.

 

[Mickey's Best Girl]

It's only stressful if you make it stressful. We stay offsite and have an AP, so we're limited to only having 7 days of FP+ and can only make them 30 days out. It's never once caused an issue for us. You don't HAVE TO plan obsessively. You don't HAVE TO have everything set up perfectly in MDE. Just like @loves to dive, we're very much "wing it" people. We make our 3 FP+ at 30 days, but even that is pretty random. From there, it's very much doing what we want, when we want...and we LOVE it. No stress, no fuss. Just relax and enjoy.

100% agree with this post, especially the bolded.

My “real life” is planned and scheduled. I have zero desire for that nonsense while on vacation.

Another poster noted that perhaps the stress of YOU planning for everyone was a factor - that the stress comes from trying to make sure everyone has a great trip. I fell into this trap when my parents, brother, niece and nephew joined my DD and I on a family trip in 2013, right when MDE and FP+ were going live. For some reason I felt this trip had to be planned to within an inch of its life because it wasn’t just me and my kid - I had 5 other people to consider - so before the trip and during the first two days my face was stuck in my phone making sure everything was perfect. It wasn’t until my mom sent me a candid shot she had taken of the entire family standing on Main St smiling and laughing - all but me. I was standing there with my family, in my favourite place on earth, staring at a phone screen. It was that moment I threw every one of our plans out the window and only used my phone for photos. Life is way too short to be constantly looking at a 4.7 inch phone screen. Especially while on vacation.

Just my .02

 

[bobbie68]

Hi I totally understand what you are saying. I love DW but I guess I am in the minority here about that certain planning parts of the trip have changed. Years ago it didn't seem to bother me as much but now that I am older, I don't like knowing 60 or 90 days out where I want to eat, what park what ride or time. The last time I did it was 4 years ago and I miss DW but not the planning. I now go over to the "darkside" every year and love the less planning. We just wake up in the morning, decide a park, where we want to eat, go with our express pass and that's it.

I remember the days in the late 80's when you would show up to Epcot in the morning go to guest relations and make your dining reservations that morning. Those were the days for me

I will agree that I think that being responsible for so many people having a great vacation is a lot of pressure. As the primary planner you want everyone to have the best trip they can. I think communication is important with your family about what you are able to do or not do. You may decide that between now and then you have someone else work with you on it. This might take some pressure and guilt off if you can't give them what they would like to do.

I hope your next trip is a good one

 

[HydroGuy]

WDW has gone towards the hyper-planned vacation - I still am shocked at the idea of choosing rides 60 days in advance - and now 90 with the concierge test. Yes, as we all know folks who live in certain time zones get up way before dawn to make those ADRs SIX MONTHS IN ADVANCE! That is WDW and the endless threads on the matter indicate that stresses some (most?) people while it makes other feel more relaxed that they have high value rides and dining locked in before they ever board an airplane.

One of the things I love about Disneyland is that the advance planning is minimal to zero. Yes, you can literally do a "wing it" approach every day with little to no penalty (i.e., you will not be behind the expert planners except at maybe a few restaurants). But Disneyland is so small compared to WDW!!! Yes, and you therefore will never find yourself standing around waiting for a bus or boat either. Lots of good stuff at DLR especially for those who like to wing it.

Just sayin'.

 

[mom2rtk]

WDW has gone towards the hyper-planned vacation - I still am shocked at the idea of choosing rides 60 days in advance - and now 90 with the concierge test. Yes, as we all know folks who live in certain time zones get up way before dawn to make those ADRs SIX MONTHS IN ADVANCE! That is WDW and the endless threads on the matter indicate that stresses some (most?) people while it makes other feel more relaxed that they have high value rides and dining locked in before they ever board an airplane.

One of the things I love about Disneyland is that the advance planning is minimal to zero. Yes, you can literally do a "wing it" approach every day with little to no penalty (i.e., you will not be behind the expert planners except at maybe a few restaurants). But Disneyland is so small compared to WDW!!! Yes, and you therefore will never find yourself standing around waiting for a bus or boat either. Lots of good stuff at DLR especially for those who like to wing it.

Just sayin'.

It's no coincidence that our travel patterns mostly changed from east to west just after FP+ rolled out.

 

[ww52]

Again - I really appreciate all the people here who take the time out to comment and offer suggestions and support.

Really - how incredibly wonderful!

A few responses (some general, some specific; apologies for not referring to the poster by screen name):

Most recent post about the days of making dining reservations in the morning - yes, I remember that as well. We have NEVER made advance dining reservations in any of our 8 prior trips. We've done Cape May several times. Character breakfasts even. A few places in Epcot (not many, but a few).

(And I had the same thought about the "competition". Wouldn't that be a LOT easier? Of course - but then again, Disney could never do that. They are too big /popular. Will we ever see the day of six parks or more - with different privileges depending on what hotels you stay at? I honestly thik they coudl build a second identical MK, plus one more park - and then have people decide on a 3 park (one of the MKs and then 2 other parks) package with an Express Pass to them - based on where you stay.)

I suspect (or hope/pray) we can still walk into some places like the German Beer Garden on a whim. We had lunch in France last trip on a walk in. The idea that you CAN make reservations 6 months in advance hopefully doesn't mean you HAVE to in every case.

We reserved Cape May, the Mary Poppins breakfast, and the Princess dinner in Norway. The rest of the meals we hope can be somewhat spontaneous. (And there will be a lot of "on the run" breakfasts and a few "offsite" meals.)

Which brings me the "issue" of the large group. YES - we certainly realize we will want to split off at times. And likely need to - so we don't start to resent the fact that the group as a whole is making things complicated. We're ALL aware of that and we're all open to that.

In theory.

But even THAT requires advance planning. Example - Frozen. My 4 year old granddaughter loves the movie. (Well, she DID love it - but she's experiencing so many Disney movies now she has a new favorite every week it seems. That's a GOOD thing. right now, it's "Belle" as she calls Beauty and the Beast).

Anyway, EVERYONE is going to want to experience her and her sister's reaction to Frozen. (The group is her family of 4, 3 grandparents, one aunt (my daughter) and almost her uncle (my daughter's SO).

Now - what about other attractions? I don't want to assume anything. I don't want to hear my granddaughter rave about a ride or attraction and hear anyone say "gee - I wish WE could have seen that!"

So right now the plan we're considering (my son and I) is kids' morning attractions with the whole group. Then late afternoon and evening more of a split up.

But that is to be determined by FP availability. Sixty days in advance.

Sure - it's easy to say let everyone plan their own FPs. But EVERYONE wants to experience WDW through the eyes of the two little ones.

And - having typed that, brings me back to what others are saying. THAT'S the magic, isn't it? How can anything be disappointing when I realize that's what the memory will be- no matter what we do?

I KNOW it won't be. BUT - still have to plan.

Yet, as I say often, a bad day at WDW beats the heck out a good day anywhere else.

 

[belledreamer]

I don't want to hear my granddaughter rave about a ride or attraction and hear anyone say "gee - I wish WE could have seen that!"

Please forgive me for saying so, but that's a TON of pressure to put on yourself... And it's okay to not experience every ride or attraction; it's all the more reason to go back!