Do you like the Fastpass+ system?

[bbkangs]

This is my first trip to WDW since they started with the FP+ system.
Is it just me, or does this make planning MUCH more stressful and less fun?
I feel like:
1. I'm not doing it right
2. There's too much planning now (and I used to LOVE planning for WDW)
3. There's too much to read about strategies
4. feels like all we're going to accomplish is 3-5 rides a day at best, and it seems like we're going to be waiting in line much more than back when there was regular fastpass.

Is it just me?

A lot of planning does go into WDW trips, and it can get complicated at times. But with the FP+ system, make sure to book your FastPasses early in the day because once you use them all, you get an additional FP each time you finish the previous one. You can go on a lot of rides if you do it right!

Another thing to keep in mind, though, is that E ticket attractions (7 dwarves, frozen etc.) it's pretty much impossible to get a FP the day of, so use your advanced FP for big attractions like that. What my girlfriend and I did, was use our 3 initial FP then once we can do another FP, we wait in line at a different ride. So pretty much every other ride we went on, we had FP.

At first, I wasn't too sure about FP+ either, but now I love it. Used correctly, you can ride everything you want, and more!

 

[RetroCOTfan]

I guess what I don't understand about the criticism of FP+ (and WDW in general) is that it requires planning things in advance. WDW is not unique in this respect. Regardless of where I'm traveling on vacation, I will spend a considerable amount of time planning the trip. For me, there is no difference in the amount of time I spend planning a WDW vacation than planning a trip to a place like NYC. For both, I spend time planning and researching where to stay, where to eat, what attractions/activities I want to see, etc.

And "messing up" the schedule/plan has penalties in the "real" world, just like WDW. The last time we went to NYC, I didn't plan our timing well for getting to the dock to ride out to the Statue of Liberty. As a result, we were stuck in line waiting to board the ferry for almost 90 minutes. Can the same thing happen at WDW due to poor planning? Yep, it happens all the time. On that day, in NYC, we were "that family." On other days, in WDW, we've been "that family."

And I get it - for some people vacation =/= planning. But just like you could go to NYC, or DC, or wherever and "wing it," you can do the same at Disney. You won't get as much done as other people who planned, and your vacation will be less efficient, but if you don't want the stress of planning, the option is there for you to ignore FP+ and ADRs. Just go, have fun with your family, and enjoy not being at work. Or schedule a few FP the day of, on your phone on the bus riding to whatever park you chose. There will be attractions available, even headliners, with very few exceptions.

Not having a plan would be stressful for me. Everyone has different wants/needs from a vacation, so if FP+ stresses you out, then don't use it, or use it sparingly. Just realize that you're making that choice, and while that choice works for you, the choice of using FP+ works for others.

 

[edk35]

I guess I just don't see how it adds more planning. In the old system, you had to walk/run/whatever to the ride you wanted a FP+ for. That would take planning, wouldn't it? And even worse the return time the kiosk spit out was 5 hours later, and you already had plans for 5 hours later, then what? Just skip the ride? Now with FP+ that issue is completely gone. You're still planning what ride you want. And frankly, with very limited exceptions, if you change your mind, it's not all that hard to swap FP+ same day



So wait, let me get this right? Everyone in my family has two magic bands (some of them have 3). We could take another set of MB, create an account under DW name (our current MDE account is under mine) and get an entirely different set of 3 FP+ using those? I get we'd have to do it at the kiosk, but we can actually do that? So in theory, if we walked right from the tap to a kiosk, we'd be walking in with 6 FP+?? Really? If that's true, OMG...

Sooooo, at the parks we had one of our teen boys or husband do the running. It worked for us. Until the end of time people will debate this. I think the new system works well for people who don't arrive early. We however have always been rope drop peeps. Yes to me this new system is stressful to plan. Too much planning too far out. My opinion.


There is a thread about the fast pass thing with a second set of magic bands. I have not tried it.

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

We are generally rope drop people. At the park before it it opened kind of rope drop.

My husband was our "runner." No, he didn't run through the park, but he was the one that went to the ride to get the fast pass. And he ended up crisscrossing the park all day.

I like fastpass+ and I wasn't fond of the old system. I like spending the entire day with my husband.

 

[kariandy6698]

This is my first trip to WDW since they started with the FP+ system.
Is it just me, or does this make planning MUCH more stressful and less fun?
I feel like:
1. I'm not doing it right
2. There's too much planning now (and I used to LOVE planning for WDW)
3. There's too much to read about strategies
4. feels like all we're going to accomplish is 3-5 rides a day at best, and it seems like we're going to be waiting in line much more than back when there was regular fastpass.

Is it just me?

I don't care for it as it is currently in place. I am hopeful that it will improve over time.

 

[Texans_loyal]

I love the new fastpass system!
I can change and add new FPs while i am still in bed.

I went to Disneyland for the first time last year and found it to be a hassle. One one FP at a time and we had to run around to get them. space mountain was gone by 2 pm.

 

[MrInfinity]

Interesting to see this conversation back from the grave. If you asked the same thing 4 years ago it would have been 9:1 against with speculation of how FP+ was going to kill Disney World. Today it seems to be about 7:3 in favor. We just had the fortune of going back to Disneyland to enjoy the old system... and it was comfortably familiar - yet primitive. There was nothing wrong really, we could use it as well as ever... But it still felt like sitting down to an old game that you loved... it's fun to retry for the nostalgia, but you wouldn't want to go back to that technology for good. We've got a trip coming up and will have passes for 3 brand new rides that we won't have to wait more than a few minutes for. Over a week trip we'll get at least 27 fast passes each with no effort or running and no need to be there at rope drop. That's awesome.

 

[BudgieMama]

Love FP+. Used the paper FP system at DLP, and spent ages walking to places to find the FP were out/the time didn't suit... awful system! Loved grabbing another FP+ whilst in line and moving times to suit.

 

[mom2rtk]

I love the new fastpass system!
I can change and add new FPs while i am still in bed.

I went to Disneyland for the first time last year and found it to be a hassle. One one FP at a time and we had to run around to get them. space mountain was gone by 2 pm.

But at least at DL you can still ride all the headliners by fastpass in a single day (no tiers or limit on rerides with advance FPs). And all fastpass inventory is still available at park open every single day. I love having a blank slate every morning with everything still possible.

 

[Texans_loyal]

But at least at DL you can still ride all the headliners by fastpass in a single day (no tiers or limit on rerides with advance FPs). And all fastpass inventory is still available at park open every single day. I love having a blank slate every morning with everything still possible.

true but that only works out if it's not crazy busy. we got to DL an hour after rope drop and Indiana Jones FP was already at 3 PM. so we grabbed it and we couldn't grab anything else for the next 2 hours.

 

[RetroCOTfan]

But at least at DL you can still ride all the headliners by fastpass in a single day (no tiers or limit on rerides with advance FPs). And all fastpass inventory is still available at park open every single day. I love having a blank slate every morning with everything still possible.

I have limited (one week's worth) experience with FP+, and that was just this month, so I'm asking the vets of the system - how frequent is it that there are zero FP's available for headliners on the same day, other than 7DMT and FEA?

I was there the first week of March, which I know isn't peak time, but it was still fairly busy. I saw BTMRR and Splash FP still available around lunchtime at MK, and Soarin' was available in the late morning at Epcot. (Those are just the ones I remember)

 

[HopperFan]

I have limited (one week's worth) experience with FP+, and that was just this month, so I'm asking the vets of the system - how frequent is it that there are zero FP's available for headliners on the same day, other than 7DMT and FEA?

I was there the first week of March, which I know isn't peak time, but it was still fairly busy. I saw BTMRR and Splash FP still available around lunchtime at MK, and Soarin' was available in the late morning at Epcot. (Those are just the ones I remember)

We have APs and often don't book early. Even with 60 window, we arrive Sunday and have no FP+, guess we'll do that tonight. Part depends on how crowded the parks are ... and other things like when Jungle Cruise is Jingle Cruise, hard to get .... when ToT has problems and an elevator goes down, all FP+ will be grabbed.

We have had great luck day of, we got Anna and Elsa day of when it was still hours long wait, we have gotten 7DMT day of ... but rare. We like to roll the 4th one and walk straight from one ride to the next. The minute you scan into a ride, then open app and book the next one. We have been able to use FP+ in more numbers than we ever did with legacy FP.

 

[mom2rtk]

true but that only works out if it's not crazy busy. we got to DL an hour after rope drop and Indiana Jones FP was already at 3 PM. so we grabbed it and we couldn't grab anything else for the next 2 hours.

I don't find the 2 hour wait to be unreasonable. At least at DLR all FP inventory is still available when the park opens and hasn't been picked over for the preceding 60 days. And when you get your second FP you aren't limited to selections from another "tier" or even other rides. You can pull the same one over again if that ride is your favorite.

I have limited (one week's worth) experience with FP+, and that was just this month, so I'm asking the vets of the system - how frequent is it that there are zero FP's available for headliners on the same day, other than 7DMT and FEA?

I was there the first week of March, which I know isn't peak time, but it was still fairly busy. I saw BTMRR and Splash FP still available around lunchtime at MK, and Soarin' was available in the late morning at Epcot. (Those are just the ones I remember)

I doubt that there are ever "zero" FPs available. People cancel and make changes all the time. But I just prefer a system where I know all the inventory is still available every morning. It means I can count on what I want being available rather than hoping to luck into it.

 

[AquaDame]

This is my first trip to WDW since they started with the FP+ system.
Is it just me, or does this make planning MUCH more stressful and less fun?
I feel like:
1. I'm not doing it right
2. There's too much planning now (and I used to LOVE planning for WDW)
3. There's too much to read about strategies
4. feels like all we're going to accomplish is 3-5 rides a day at best, and it seems like we're going to be waiting in line much more than back when there was regular fastpass.

Is it just me?

Nope, I'm still not a fan either. Especially now with tiers (shudder). I'm fussy and don't want to just take whatever is available - whether that is fair or not to the system is going to depend on your POV... I just can't get on as many rides as I could in the past and staying longer isn't really an option for us as we have limited vacation time.

 

[Tarheel girl 1975]

A few different ways we can do it.

First, I should probably clarify about "rope drop". The common definition on this board for that term is to show up 45-60 minutes before the gates open. We just don't have any interest in standing around outside the gates. However, if Epcot is open at 9am, we may show up between 9:00am and 9:15am. So we don't have to stand around outside, be part of the initial crush/rush of getting in, etc... We still have little trouble getting on a top tier ride. In this case, we'd have a FP+ for TT at 10:00am and head right to Soarin' when we arrive at 9:xx. The standby line is still less than 15-20 minutes.

If you're getting to the park between 9 and 9:15, I would consider that rope drop. It's very different than showing up around 11am.

Personally, I do not like FP+. We've adjusted to it after using it for 4 trips, but I still miss legacy FP. They added FP to too many attractions and shows that simply don't need them and it's negatively affected wait times. I think it's too much advance planning and I am a planner. I miss having that blank slate everyday. Sometimes the weather is bad so you want to go to park with more indoor rides. Or maybe this is they year your child decides that they aren't afraid of thrill rides anymore and they want to ride Splash and BTMRR more than you planned.

We're planning on visiting DL this summer and one of the things I am most excited about is using paper FP again.

 

[PrincessWithABlaster]

We didn't go during the FP era so I don't have anything to compare FP+ to (other than express pass at Universal which is heads and tails above) but having to have one family member not get to stay with the family does not sound appealing. I feel guilty spending too much time on the app and not being present with the kids but at least I'm physically there - not halfway across the park.

 

[AngiTN]

Nope, I'm still not a fan either. Especially now with tiers (shudder). I'm fussy and don't want to just take whatever is available - whether that is fair or not to the system is going to depend on your POV... I just can't get on as many rides as I could in the past and staying longer isn't really an option for us as we have limited vacation time.

Curious, how was paper FP better in regards to the bold?

 

[Boardwalk III]

https://www.disboards.com/threads/e...set-fp-long-faq.3520747/page-62#post-57331032

Everything you could ever want to know about Same Day Fast Passes. This is perhaps a touch controversial, kind of like using the old paper FP's past their "window." If you are willing to use the method though, it can be a significant advantage.

Just posted this on another post but more relevant here I think...

Curious, how was paper FP better in regards to the bold?

Rides weren't reserved in advance, so when the park opened everything was wide open with no previous reservations. If you got to a park in the morning and planned well, you could ride every single attraction and sometimes even duplicates with very little "line" time. And it would never be the case that a ride's FP's were sold out before the park opened since no one could get them in advance. In addition, the "tiering" make things especially difficult now. There was no limitation on which rides you could go on if you planned the in-park same-day FP system well.

 

[jvz82]

Our last trip was my first trip to use FP+. I was pretty used to the only FP system so it was an interesting change! I think overall I like it better. But I'm a planner, and I liked having the attractions we were going on planned out for the day and not needing to stress about getting fast passes once in the park.

One thing I worry about is that we tend to be people who go at peak times, like at Christmas break. This year wasn't a problem, because we stayed on site and I got my fast passes booked 60 days out and got everything I wanted. But I'm nervous about the trips when we go and don't stay on site, since then we only get to book 30 days in advance. That's probably not a big deal at non-peak times, but I'm not sure how easy it will be to get rides/times I want when I can only book 30 days out. Hard to say since I haven't done it yet.

On the other hand, our last trip prior to FP+ was at Christmas and our fast passes that we got early in the day for Space Mountain didn't start until 10 pm so that kind of sucked. It was nice to know I'd be able to go on Space Mountain when I wanted to. I definitely felt that I was able to do LOTS of rides and everything I wanted to do.

 

[AngiTN]

Rides weren't reserved in advance, so when the park opened everything was wide open with no previous reservations. If you got to a park in the morning and planned well, you could ride every single attraction and sometimes even duplicates with very little "line" time. And it would never be the case that a ride's FP's were sold out before the park opened since no one could get them in advance. In addition, the "tiering" make things especially difficult now. There was no limitation on which rides you could go on if you planned the in-park same-day FP system well.

No, that wasn't the question. It was specific to what PP posted, and I put in bold. PP said they didn't like FP+, that they were fussy and didn't want to take whatever time was available. I am confused on how that is worse with FP+ than it was with paper FP