OK, I can understand that, but if you are only going to the attractions you have a FP for then you are missing a lot of attractions along the way. Or if you do decide that you want to see a specific thing that you couldn't get a FP for, you will experience wait times that are double or triple the times that we spent in line without any form of FP available. There was no standing there waiting for all those FP people jumping in ahead of you even though you have been standing there for what seems like hours. People didn't experience the original way it was done, are only experiencing what standby is now with FP in place.
Many have said to me that the crowds are bigger now. I say that is bull. The parking lot at MK was always full and my sense of the numbers of people inside the park is almost exactly the same. If not bigger. I can remember when you would have to literally push your way through the crowd, especially around the Small World/Peter Pan area. Remember that all there was for along time was just MK and Epcot. Now all those people are spread out over 4 parks. Also right not the lines seem a lot longer because of Covid Protocol.
I am old enough to have experienced Disney parks and other amusement parks without Fast Pass, Fast Lane, Express Pass or whatever term a park calls it. I will pay the premium not to wait. My patience to ride a ride isn't the same as it was back in 1990 waiting 2 hours to ride Magnum XL at Cedar Point. Personally, I do not want to do it anymore. I don't like waiting. Yes, I waited 45 minutes on this last trip for FOP and Test Track, and it reassured me of my stance. FP are for me!!
FWIW, when FP was in place, we did not miss a lot of attractions along the way. We have our initial 3 set early, and keep getting the additional ones right after another. If a ride has a minimal wait without, we go on it. Sure, there are attractions we don't go on, but that is NOT due to lack of FP, it's because we do not care to ride them. We aren't missing anything. YMMV, and that is cool, nothing wrong with having different park strategies.
We have experienced everything we wanted using FP. The only time we didn't ride or wait in line was for the first month of FOP because I couldn't snag a FP and we weren't waiting 3+ hours in line. On our next visit 4 months later, we rode FOP four times using FP's with refresh. (refresh is key to FP's)
The crowds aren't bigger, the problem is with lack of shows, dining, character meets, parades, and fireworks -- everyone is flocking to the same things which gives the appearance that the parks are packed. You currently don't have a plethora of activities to partake in, so what is available is busy. I have never seen wait times for certain attractions (Figment, Conservation Station, Muppet Vision) like they are now.
You enjoy the park without FP. We enjoy the park with FP's. Nothing is wrong with either opinion. But to infer that we miss out because we only use FP is incorrect. This past trip I know I missed out on rides because wait times were excessive. The bulk of our day would have been waiting, not exploring. I am not waiting 60 minutes for Pirates, Navi, or any other ride for that matter.
