Disney, please implement a "Recovery Zone"! Thank you to Mr. Testa!

[morethananyonex]

About what I expected, we have a very possible solution to part of the problem and the reaction is still.....no way.............anything that may make FP+ work well or at least better, is not acceptable.

FP- was confusing to many when it came out and many said the same things being said now about how its no good, yet it worked out with time.

We all know change can be scarier, even more so it the regular guests may have to change their ways of doing the parks.

AKK

I think the suggested solutions are good ones, I just think they're unrealistic.

I can't see Disney deciding to add 2 additional scanners, a CM to man each, plus one or two CMs in the added recovery zone. That is a huge increase in labour cost to attempt to fix the problem.

I think the most we'll see out of the article are additional scanners and possibly an extra CM, but no way are they going to add 4 or 5 additional CMs per problem attraction, even though it would help to fix things.

 

[2Tiggies]

Again, we are making concessions for people who are ignorant to how the system works...

The system doesn't work. I cannot believe that these long lines are solely the result of first timers struggling with the system.

Call me crazy, but it's usually up to the company to build/implement a system that's intuitive and easy for the least knowledgeable user. Especially when your customer base includes every age group and 150 or so languages.

It is easy...

Apparently not.

If there are enough people who are having difficulty with it, then how to use the system is not being given out as freely as advertising a system that they want everyone to use.

They haven't even solved the glitches on the website and the app which continue to cause problems, even for experienced users. There were problems with lines for FP in October already when only a sample of guests were using it. So the solution to a framework that isn't coping is to keep on loading more demand to it? What am I missing here? Oh, wait ... it's the people. Because Disney is all about business and profits? As the old saying goes, if you don't look after your customers, somebody else will.

 

[surferdave]

I think the suggested solutions are good ones, I just think they're unrealistic.

I can't see Disney deciding to add 2 additional scanners, a CM to man each, plus one or two CMs in the added recovery zone. That is a huge increase in labour cost to attempt to fix the problem.

I think the most we'll see out of the article are additional scanners and possibly an extra CM, but no way are they going to add 4 or 5 additional CMs per problem attraction, even though it would help to fix things.

Change "Recovery Zone" to "Gift Shop".

 

[mom2rtk]

Phew, I got worried about the lack of snark in the article, but I'm glad OP made up for it in his/her post.

From a monetary perspective, does the amount of money FP+ stands to bring in justify an additional 5 CMs at each FP attraction?

I know, it's getting crazy the amount of staff this system is sucking in.

Or guests could take a screen shot of their fast pass times via their smart phone or ipad or whatever they are using to look up MDE on and keep that photo in their photo gallery on their phone.

OR
if they are at a kiosk- they could take a picture of the screen before they leave the kiosk (this is what we did)

OR

People could right down their times and keep the paper in their pocket and check their times.

This is really not that complicated.

Except that this is only going to work for so long. Eventually people are going to figure out that they can make some FPs, take a screen shot, make some more FPs, take another screen shot........

If so many guests are getting it wrong and that is the reason for these long lines and delays, then the system doesn't work. If the average user can't use it, it's a fail.

I'm all for giving intelligence tests at the gate.

Unless they do that, they have to make it idiot proof (and language barrier proof) or you have to consider the problem systematic when an idiot hold it up.

Agreed.

 

[2Tiggies]

A

We all know change can be scarier, even more so it the regular guests may have to change their ways of doing the parks.

I absolutely agree that we have to change how we tour the parks. But that is not the issue here. We don't know what we are working with from one day to the next. It would be so much less frustrating if they had built a model that worked for the most part and presented to us, letting us know how to use it. Then we could read up and ask questions and figure out what to do and just get on with it, adapt and use it. While it is fine to present a system that requires minor tweaks along the way, I take issue with them building it as they go along, having removed all recourse to any backup.

 

[anna08]

Having recently tried the MB/FP+ for the first time, DH and I agreed that you need to have the current time displayed on your MB. Either you have to double up and wear your watch or constantly pull out your cellphone (which I try NOT to take with me when at the parks.) We did feel we had to have one smartphone with us at all times, even though we found it easier to change FP on the kiosks.

I would add this feature - a digital display of the time PLUS a small green light that glows when your next FP time is active. I know that's asking a lot of IT but I can't imagine it's that hard to add.

Recovery zone would definitely be an improvement. We passed a few frustrated guests that would be better handled slightly away from all the folks in line or in the paths going by the line.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

I think the suggested solutions are good ones, I just think they're unrealistic.

I can't see Disney deciding to add 2 additional scanners, a CM to man each, plus one or two CMs in the added recovery zone. That is a huge increase in labour cost to attempt to fix the problem.

I think the most we'll see out of the article are additional scanners and possibly an extra CM, but no way are they going to add 4 or 5 additional CMs per problem attraction, even though it would help to fix things.

Your points are well taken..........time will tell. I think it would be worth the time and money to let get people use to how it works.......its only one solution, if only temporary, to this part of the over all problem.


AKK

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

I absolutely agree that we have to change how we tour the parks. But that is not the issue here. We don't know what we are working with from one day to the next. It would be so much less frustrating if they had built a model that worked for the most part and presented to us, letting us know how to use it. Then we could read up and ask questions and figure out what to do and just get on with it, adapt and use it. While it is fine to present a system that requires minor tweaks along the way, I take issue with them building it as they go along, having removed all recourse to any backup.

I disagree, because many folks(not you as your post shows) are re ranting over and over and no idea to make things better will work, all they want is to return to FP-.

Now, I do agree, they introduced a massive change to almost everything in the parks and it should have been done much slower to avoid the many tweaks and changes that just leads to more confusion.

IE..........MD with reservations one year..............the next maybe FP+ for attractions, over a year or so, not a few months, then parades, etc.

JMHO

AKK

 

[FlipHipster]

Why not just give a CM at the scanner an ipad? If a line starts to build they can walk the line scanning MB keeping guest with no FP out of the line to begin with. They could have the issues resolved before they even get to the 1st scanner. It's additional costs which they didn't anticipate but it all is at this point..

Waving them past the 1st scanner just moves the bottleneck to the 2nd scanner which is deep in the queue and seems to be a bigger problem. Seems like a quick solution is to make sure only guests with FP even get in the line.

 

[Angel Ariel]

I disagree, because many folks(not you as your post shows) are re ranting over and over and no idea to make things better will work, all they want is to return to FP-.

Now, I do agree, they introduced a massive change to almost everything in the parks and it should have been done much slower to avoid the many tweaks and changes that just leads to more confusion.

IE..........MD with reservations one year..............the next maybe FP+ for attractions, over a year or so, not a few months, then parades, etc.

JMHO

AKK

I can't speak for anyone else, but I have no illusions about going.back to fp-. Those kiosks are gone and never coming back.

I have no issue, aside from the fact that it is unreliable, with the tech itself. Get the tech working as it should, great! But the rules of fp+ are software,.not hardware, based and could.be changed. I would like to see something more of a hybrid of fp+ and legacy. I know prebooking isn't going away because I understand Disney wants to lock people in. I just wish they'd lessen how much can be prebooked, and allow you to get more (beyond 3) in the park..much like the options that were posted in the recent survey.

Since Disney is surveying about changing.those.rules, it isn't unrealistic to think they can change.