Eliminate the Park Reservation Requirements

[BrianL]

Plenty of people do. My brother went spring break week. Bought tickets the week before. He didn’t even know masks were required outdoors when he got there.

Most people I know do day trips to Disney. They go to Orlando, stay off site, do Orlando attractions, buy tickets at the gate, including Disney. They don’t go on week long on-site vacations with FP and ADRs.

Yeah, I don't always plan that far in advance. I am usually booking at 60 days out max really, and often not even. For a quick, solo rip, it might even only be a couple of weeks.

 

[cakebaker]

Most people I know do day trips to Disney. They go to Orlando, stay off site, do Orlando attractions, buy tickets at the gate, including Disney. They don’t go on week long on-site vacations with FP and ADRs.

The mistake is in thinking how "we" do things or how people we know do things means that's what most people do. There's nowhere I know of that will give us any indication on how many guests are just day guests or off site single day visitors, but I suspect outside of locals, not many people travel to visit WDW for a single day.

 

[Moliphino]

epcot opening time sucks. It’s the reason the only time I’m going to Epcot first is when the day we get there. Getting to mco about 8:30 so epcot will be good that day. Probably park hop to epcot a couple times during the week also. There is no way I will schedule a epcot day If I’m already there because it opens so late.

Yeah, we booked Epcot for arrival and departure days (when we knew we'd be later getting out, since we needed to finish packing and bring bags to bell services) for that reason. It's a waste to do it mid-trip and not be able to go to a park until 11am. We did hop there most evenings.

The park reservations are annoying but I think it’s more annoying because of the limited capacity. Once capacity limits are lifted it won’t be much different than booking ADRs and FP+ and locking yourself into a park since you’ll be able to change your park day easily.

I think Disney would love to be at regular capacity but can’t due to staffing issues.

Agreed. Back in October availability was pretty wide open and it was easy to book park reservations at the last minute. They should fix it so that you don't have to cancel one first then book a new one to change your park for a day, though. I want it to hold the first until the change is confirmed so you don't risk being without a park at all.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

Agreed. Back in October availability was pretty wide open and it was easy to book park reservations at the last minute. They should fix it so that you don't have to cancel one first then book a new one to change your park for a day, though. I want it to hold the first until the change is confirmed so you don't risk being without a park at all.

That’s how FP worked right? It’s been a while. I forget. Lol.

 

[zumfelde]

I have no problem if Disney keeps the park reservation system if they use it to control the crowds. For the last several years this is the biggest complaint I have read on the boards is WDW is to crowded. WDW does not have enough attractions or dining places to handle the ever increasing crowds. Too many times WDW has replaced attractions but not added more. Dinning books up months in advance. The will just charge more but have less people. I think they will probably eliminate FL resident AP or raise the price so much to discourage people from buying. that would maybe reduce the number of vloggers in the parks. I do enjoy watching some of them but they are a little annoying when your in the parks just way to many of them. Bob C has even said they need to control the crowds to make a better customer experience.

 

[ChipnDale79]

Bob C has even said they need to control the crowds to make a better customer experience.

I've got 8k budgeted for next week...thats way more than some spend at a week at disney, and way less than other spends. For me, it's a lot, and when i spend that kind of money, i dont like the idea of being told i cant go to a certain park. Again, i get it because of Covid, but not post Covid.

It's really simple for me, we just moved our trips to every other year vs every year (we went 6 times over 2018 and 2019 when we had our APs, all but one of those trips were onsite hotels and none of them were for a single day). I still have kids in the house, but we're getting to the point where we're doing other things, and i can easily move Disney to every 3 years, or over 10. In reality, that's how Bob C is managing crowds.

 

[Moliphino]

That’s how FP worked right? It’s been a while. I forget. Lol.

I think so? I've also forgotten exactly.

 

[Pens Fan]

If Disney is going to keep the reservation system, I really wish they would include a way to modify your selected park without having to cancel and rebook. I know we can check availability prior to attempting to make the change and the chances of that changing before you can cancel and rebook are pretty slim, but it could happen. You can modify ADR's and FP+ (in the before times), so I don't know why they didn't include that functionality in the park reservation system.

 

[jade1]

I have no problem if Disney keeps the park reservation system if they use it to control the crowds. For the last several years this is the biggest complaint I have read on the boards is WDW is to crowded. WDW does not have enough attractions or dining places to handle the ever increasing crowds. Too many times WDW has replaced attractions but not added more. Dinning books up months in advance. The will just charge more but have less people. I think they will probably eliminate FL resident AP or raise the price so much to discourage people from buying. that would maybe reduce the number of vloggers in the parks. I do enjoy watching some of them but they are a little annoying when your in the parks just way to many of them. Bob C has even said they need to control the crowds to make a better customer experience.

Yea I'm OK with it as well, but fine with it's elimination if/when that happens.

Our best trips have been over this last year, at least in many aspects-and mostly related to much lower crowding as you mention.

Probably the most extra effort we did, was enter DHS and then "Hop" to EPCOT after 2PM by skyliner-the park we really wanted that evening.

Be interesting to see if park reserving can keep HEA less insane.

 

[jade1]

The DVC resale market is at an incredibly high level. No DVC owners are “locked in”. Any that wanted to could quickly sell their contract. And many could do it with a sizable profit, And none have to travel. Even if they didn’t want to sell, points are easily rented to others. The demand is actually astronomical right now. Points are rented in hours if not minutes.

This.

If it's "so bad" simply cash in, or rent for triple your dues.

Many of us are double what we paid, but staying deluxe on dues (usually less than $100 a night) when rooms are $300 to $500 a night-keeps us from selling esp since its paid off long ago.

 

[Miffy]

We were just there and these are the things that bothered me about the park reservation system:
(1) You can't spontaneously decide to go to a park. The old "whatever bus comes next" system is gone, and I used to use that at least once per trip, sometimes more.
(2) If you're going to hop, you have to go to your reserved park first. So if you decide to sleep in and want to skip your reserved park and hop instead, you can't.
(3) 2 pm for hopping? Seriously? And this eliminates being able to try to get a 1 pm RotR BG.
(4) Not being able to confidently make ADRs in a non-reserved park. Yes, there haven't been any restrictions on hopping. Yet. I wouldn't want to test it out though.;
(5) Not being able to modify your park reservation. The cancel-and-rebook thing is too chancy.

Yeah, other than that, it was okay. Hah!

 

[Brett Wyman]

We were just there and these are the things that bothered me about the park reservation system:
(1) You can't spontaneously decide to go to a park. The old "whatever bus comes next" system is gone, and I used to use that at least once per trip, sometimes more.
(2) If you're going to hop, you have to go to your reserved park first. So if you decide to sleep in and want to skip your reserved park and hop instead, you can't.
(3) 2 pm for hopping? Seriously? And this eliminates being able to try to get a 1 pm RotR BG.
(4) Not being able to confidently make ADRs in a non-reserved park. Yes, there haven't been any restrictions on hopping. Yet. I wouldn't want to test it out though.;
(5) Not being able to modify your park reservation. The cancel-and-rebook thing is too chancy.

Yeah, other than that, it was okay. Hah!

Yeah the system still has that temporary feel to it even though Disney has announced its not going anywhere anytime soon. Since we will be living with park reservation for some time I hope Disney adds some features and streamlines the service.

1. Don't show a park that isn't available on the reservation page.
2. Let us switch parks reservations without first cancelling.
3. Drop the hopping time from 2pm until 1pm, or even noon.
4. Drop the requirement to visit your first park before you hop(while still enforcing the hopping arrival time).

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I hope they do away with the hopping time. Please. If we’re having a bad start at a certain park we’ve been known to abort mission and go to a different park. Sometimes before 10 am.

 

[jade1]

(3) 2 pm for hopping? Seriously? And this eliminates being able to try to get a 1 pm RotR BG.

I'm not positive, but I think this is so the DHS guests that reserved DHS have a "2nd shot" at RotR if they weren't successful in the AM.

If they flood DHS with hoppers before the 2nd lottery-the original guests have an even worse chance maybe?

This may be the plan with MK Tron and EPCOT GotG but who knows.

 

[BrianL]

I'm not positive, but I think this is so the DHS guests that reserved DHS have a "2nd shot" at RotR if they weren't successful in the AM.

If they flood DHS with hoppers-the original guests have an even worse chance maybe?

This may be the plan with MK Tron and EPCOT GotG but who knows.

But wouldn't they know if you hopped and could restrict the VQ to only those with Park Pass for the day? It seems like it already does that anyway, so I don't think it's a concern for the time.

I would like to see all of these Park Passes, Mobile Order (reqired), and Virtual Queues go away!

 

[jade1]

But wouldn't they know if you hopped and could restrict the VQ to only those with Park Pass for the day? It seems like it already does that anyway, so I don't think it's a concern for the time.

I would like to see all of these Park Passes, Mobile Order (reqired), and Virtual Queues go away!

Yep, but the question was wanting to hop "in order to get the RotR 1PM lottery".

And maybe eliminate guest confusion of those not reading the fine print?

 

[Jeb2318]

This is why I don't get why some people seem to have such a large problem with it. Other than APs who have a limit to how many they can hold at a time, that frustration I totally understand. But you had to essentially reserve a park with FPs, I really don't see how this is any different from that.

One example would be that some people stay on property near epcot to be able to go in and out as they please. And when the monorail is running as usual, they may walk through to get to the monorail to head to Mk (or any resort for dinner, as an example). So a lot of it is taking away spontaneity.

 

[Miffy]

Yep, but the question was wanting to hop "in order to get the RotR 1PM lottery".

And maybe eliminate guest confusion of those not reading the fine print?

Just for the record here, I didn't say "in order to get" RotR but to "try to get" it. Or maybe I just want to eat lunch at a DHS restaurant before 2 p.m.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

Just for the record here, I didn't say "in order to get" RotR but to "try to get" it. Or maybe I just want to eat lunch at a DHS restaurant before 2 p.m.

On our DHS we have always hopped to Epcot for lunch around 12. This hopping after 2 pm really messes that up for us.

 

[jade1]

Just for the record here, I didn't say "in order to get" RotR but to "try to get" it. Or maybe I just want to eat lunch at a DHS restaurant before 2 p.m.

Yep fair point. I should have been clear-I think "try to get it" could be why the made it an hour earlier for DHS guests-but I as I mentioned "I'm not positive".

I know I would prefer a smaller group trying to get the 2PM RotR if it's my DHS day, not happy with thousands more rolling in to try and get it.