Do you think FP+ will come to DL?

[Suvadoo]

After reading other posts about FP+ and the amount of planning it takes, do you think it will be implemented at DL?

If so, how do you think it would change the way people tour the parks?

 

[BrianL]

I think it certainly will...eventually. They will want to get it to a perfect state before doing it. Also, with DL being a more local's park, I bet thye might keep it to booking only a few days before or even day-of. But I bet they will still implement Magic Bands and tap points for admission and such, maybe even before FP+.

 

[HydroGuy]

As I understand it here are some of the main obstacles to bringing FP+ to DLR:

1. Space - WDW added FP queues to almost all the rides. DL has limited space for that. DCA has a bit more space. But DL will be tough.

2. Visitor mix - something like 70% of the DLR visitors are day trippers from SoCal, many of them AP holders, many of the AP holders there for only part of the day, and many of all of those folks make decisions to visit DLR on a whim or at best just a few days before they actually go. Many of the local SoCal folks will choose a day to visit based on the weather. Super hot? Wait and go next week. Cold or rainy? Wait and go a few days later.

3. General culture - DLR visitors are by and large not big planners like WDW visitors because they are for the most part not on a big, expensive family vacation. Part of the reason why dining reservations at DLR are in such low demand. Visitors do not really care to make a detailed plan. Many hop back and forth between parks on a whim.

Will FP+ come to DLR? I think that depends on a few things...

- Money and return on investment - Can WDW show that FP+ is actually making money for Disney. As I understand it that was a big part of the justification in that they could make more money and keep visitors at WDW. If they can't show they are making more money at WDW I do not see why they would go through the expense of bringing it to DLR where they would lose even more money.

- Location and influence of decision makers - it seems like sometimes the folks in Florida make decisions that get applied to DLR without understanding the differences between DLR and WDW. Sometime the folks over DLR are able to be heard by the decision makers. Depending on who wins this debate may influence if FP+ comes to DLR.

Bottom line? I think it is likely FP+ will come to DLR at some point and it will not go over well because of reasons 1-3 above.

 

[Suvadoo]

I guess the Magic Bands would be all right, but I hope they scrap the idea of FP+ at DLR.

I don't know how long they've been using it at WDW, but it's still a royal pain in the rear. I don't want to be looking at my phone the whole time I'm at DLR. The reason I go to the parks is to enjoy my surroundings, I can look at my phone when I'm home.

 

[BrianL]

I think it might work where you use your Magic Band to "scan in" at a FP kiosk and it gives you a return time, but no paper ticket, and maybe you can have 3 right away and then get more after those are used. Actually...that wouldn't be a bad way to go for WDW either.

The elimination of paper would be a good thing too.

 

[Suvadoo]

I like the paper because it allows me to quickly re-check the FP return time. I know it's a waste, but I hate have to continually log on to my phone and then the app to check times etc..

I wish Disney would set up kiosks (like price checking kiosks at Department stores) where you could scan your Magic band quickly and get FP+ return times and updates on ride closures.

Then I wouldn't have to worry about my phone's battery power or accessing an app while I'm in the park.

 

[goodeats]

The only thing I like about FP+ (just from what I've read, I haven't been to WDW since its implementation) is that you don't physically have to go to the attraction to obtain a FP. On Monday I went with my family and we would have to split up so one of us could go over to obtain the FP. Such a pain.

I do think eventually DL will get the FP+ system, but it will be tweaked for the clientele at DL (locals and APs).

 

[momof2n2]

Oh. Please. No. Not before we come next June!
We completely scrapped our 5 WDW days this year b/c I didn't want to deal w/FP+! We did SeaWorld, Busch Gardens Tampa, and Aquatica instead. We like to reride our favorites and the whole tiering system & no repeat FP+ thing was too much for this FP-loving family.

 

[mesaboy2]

The only thing I like about FP+ (just from what I've read, I haven't been to WDW since its implementation) is that you don't physically have to go to the attraction to obtain a FP. On Monday I went with my family and we would have to split up so one of us could go over to obtain the FP. Such a pain.

I do think eventually DL will get the FP+ system, but it will be tweaked for the clientele at DL (locals and APs).

Currently at WDW, after you've used your 3 FP+s, you must go to a kiosk to get additionals. Kiosk locations are not plentiful, and they can have lines as well. On the plus side, this is expected to be a temporary solution until the MDX app is modified to handle additional FP+s. I would assume this particular requirement would be a distant memory before DLR ever saw FP+.

And I think HydroGuy brings up some excellent points above. If it does go to DLR, I will watch with interest (and perhaps amusement).

 

[momof2n2]

If it does go to DLR, I will watch with interest (and perhaps amusement).

That's mean, dude.

 

[mesaboy2]

That's mean, dude.

At least you wouldn't be the guinea pigs!

 

[chirurgeon]

Haven't used FP+, but a friend did. His major complaint was the My Disney Experience App failed most of the time. Until they fix that, I don't see it being installed at Disneyland. And I don't see it succeeding until they fix the IT. Gee Disney not getting the IT right, who would have thought it.

 

[momof2n2]

At least you wouldn't be the guinea pigs!

Yes. It's good to know they could not likely implement in 11 months....

Haven't used FP+, but a friend did. His major complaint was the My Disney Experience App failed most of the time. Until they fix that, I don't see it being installed at Disneyland. And I don't see it succeeding until they fix the IT. Gee Disney not getting the IT right, who would have thought it.

Whoda thunk, right?

But, non-frequent Disney visitors gearing up for the once-ever trip have no idea Disney isn't on top of the IT game. They assume it has to be done right, because it is Disney.

 

[TwinPrincessMermaids]

Ew! Please dont let DLR get FP so called Plus!!! It was almost miserable in May! The Tier System is crap. People book them out months in advance. The preplanning takes any relaxation out of it. We booked ours a week ahead and had cancel all of them because of a huge storm system that we didnt want to spend our only day at EP running thru World Showcase in storms. (Base tix, no hoppers) which shows that no one can plan a week in advance nonetheless two months in advance. Last year, we could hop all four parks and ride multiples in a single day. This year, we had base tix and the standby lines were staggering so we could hardly ride anything in a single park day. In fact this is one of the reasons why DLR is so appealing to me. You might think it sounds nice not have to physically go get your FP, but that's about where the convenience ends. Even Figment has 40 min lines now. I won't go back to WDW until they fix (which means ditch the tiers) FP so called plus, or until Avatar comes out. That's how much I DIDNT like it. It sucked the magic out of our family reunion with a huge fight over who picked the tier 1 FP etc. I also heard other families fighting in the parks, people lined waaayy back for kiosks and the FP lines were way way outside the SB lines for scanning tix/bands. It was chaotic. I asked a CM what happened, these lines were as bad as Thanksgiving in May and without a secs hesitation, he said "its the new FP system." Yuck. Nobody wish for this for your lovely Disney park. Ours left a big distaste in our mouth. For those who had a week, it probably is no big deal. We had two days around our Disney Cruise and the clock was constantly running out on us.

 

[Blue32]

As I understand it here are some of the main obstacles to bringing FP+ to DLR:

1. Space - WDW added FP queues to almost all the rides. DL has limited space for that. DCA has a bit more space. But DL will be tough.

2. Visitor mix - something like 70% of the DLR visitors are day trippers from SoCal, many of them AP holders, many of the AP holders there for only part of the day, and many of all of those folks make decisions to visit DLR on a whim or at best just a few days before they actually go. Many of the local SoCal folks will choose a day to visit based on the weather. Super hot? Wait and go next week. Cold or rainy? Wait and go a few days later.

3. General culture - DLR visitors are by and large not big planners like WDW visitors because they are for the most part not on a big, expensive family vacation. Part of the reason why dining reservations at DLR are in such low demand. Visitors do not really care to make a detailed plan. Many hop back and forth between parks on a whim.

Will FP+ come to DLR? I think that depends on a few things...

- Money and return on investment - Can WDW show that FP+ is actually making money for Disney. As I understand it that was a big part of the justification in that they could make more money and keep visitors at WDW. If they can't show they are making more money at WDW I do not see why they would go through the expense of bringing it to DLR where they would lose even more money.

- Location and influence of decision makers - it seems like sometimes the folks in Florida make decisions that get applied to DLR without understanding the differences between DLR and WDW. Sometime the folks over DLR are able to be heard by the decision makers. Depending on who wins this debate may influence if FP+ comes to DLR.

Bottom line? I think it is likely FP+ will come to DLR at some point and it will not go over well because of reasons 1-3 above.

All great points. I agree with the obstacles. I will go against the grain and say that we will not see FP+ come to DLR. For the reasons you mention here and because they won't see the return on investment. If it does come, it's not coming soon, and it will probably look much different than the WDW version.

 

[Eclectic Goddess]

We actually found that we liked FP+. We struggled with scheduling them at first, but found that they were easy to change around after the fact. It's definitely not for everyone, though. DF and I are very relaxed park-goers. We don't worry about getting on all the rides, so FP+ let us make sure we got on our favorites, and we didn't worry about the rest.

Our only complaint was that it didn't allow for park-hopping, which wouldn't work at all at DLR. They'd definitely need to correct that.

 

[planningjollyholiday]

I don't get all the hate for fastpass +. I think that the concept is great and once they work out all the kinks it will be fantastic. I agree that when it first rolled out there were too many hiccups, but they've been trying to fix these mistakes and the program is evolving slowly to where it needs to be. I think if it were to come to DLR it would not be a clone of the WDW program, but instead they would tailor it to meet the needs of their biggest clients here which is AP holders. As the fastpass runner in our group, I would love to give my legs and feet a break and not have to run around the park exhausting myself to get fastpasses. There has been plenty of threads about "how do I get a fastpass for RSR at night" or "I want to get fastpasses for a certain ride, but I'm afraid it will be during my ADR time". Fastpass+ would eliminate some of these concerns. I think sometimes change can be a good thing, and the idea of the magicbands aspect would be so convenient.

 

[TwinPrincessMermaids]

Let's see here, hmm, choose one... Which will it be? Great Movie Ride, Rockn Rollercoaster or TSMM? Tough choice.....

Yeah what an improvement. Or Living With Land vs Soarin or TestTrak?

I'd say their "improvements" are well on their way....

 

[HydroGuy]

I don't get all the hate for fastpass +. I think that the concept is great and once they work out all the kinks

I think you answered your own question. A lot of the hate comes from all of the kinks. Folks wasting hours and hours because MDE loses their FPs in the etherworld or is way too slow and/or regularly crashes on their smartphone to the point of it being non-functional.

If they get all of the kinks worked out then some of the hate will subside.

Other valid reasons people can and do "hate" FP+ are that:

- they do not like to plan ride times 60 days (or any days) in advance. It reduces spontaneity for those who like spontaneity, and it reduces flexibility in going to a different park on a given day for those who like flexibility.

- apparently there are now substantial lines for rides that never used to have substantial lines - such as SpaceShip Earth and Figment JII.

I have not used it yet and even though I am more of planner type, I dislike the idea of choosing ride times in advance. However, I do like the idea of not having to rush around getting FPs. I do like the idea of being able to show up late to a park and still being able to get on top rides. I dislike the idea of teired rides where I have to choose between Soarin and TT at Epcot and cannot get both.

Those are some of the valid reasons for the "hate". Then there are folks who just plain dislike change. That is another discussion.

 

[GatorChris]

Let's see here, hmm, choose one... Which will it be? Great Movie Ride, Rockn Rollercoaster or TSMM? Tough choice.....

Yeah what an improvement. Or Living With Land vs Soarin or TestTrak?

I'd say their "improvements" are well on their way....

I'm with you on this and your other post. I'm a WDW lover first and foremost. But we did DL last November because of all the chaos of FP+ (not sure why it's a + sign when it should be a - sign). Outside of not having to run to the FP machine and splitting up, I don't see the benefit. Especially when there's tiers. That makes it an even bigger mess. After reading your first response, I'm so glad I did DL, and I'm so glad I picked up APs for our next trip. That will keep us with the way a Disney park should be for at least a whole year.