Fastpass Enforcement coming?

[doconeill]

The problem with trying to apply Universal's model to WDW is the sheer volume of guests that qualify. Basically if you wanted to ride TSM, you'd HAVE to stay onsite, or face 4+ hour standby waits.

Universal Studios Orlando has 3 resorts.

WDW has 25 (counting DVC sections of multi-use resorts separately), and that doesn't include partner hotels like the Swan and Dolphin, Shades of Green, and the ones by Downtown Disney and Bonnet Creek.

Most of those are similar or larger than the USO resorts. Many are significantly larger.

 

[johnnyr]

They did it with the monorail operating hours which I still can't believe they advertise monoril resorts when you can't ride the monorail back to your resort if you don't rush out of the park at park closing. Stinks!

Now you are going to have to rush though a meal, show or some other scheduled event to try an make your fast pass time or miss the ride altogether. Stinks more if you ask me.

 

[larryz]

So, any of you STILL think Iger is worth the $53 million he made in salary and bonuses last year?

 

[Sammie]

You know the best way to let them know you really don't like this is to walk away and not return. How many are going to do that?

Because honestly if all you do is complain and don't back it up, you are saying to them, it's fine with me.

 

[mattsdragon]

They did it with the monorail operating hours which I still can't believe they advertise monoril resorts when you can't ride the monorail back to your resort if you don't rush out of the park at park closing. Stinks!

Now you are going to have to rush though a meal, show or some other scheduled event to try an make your fast pass time or miss the ride altogether. Stinks more if you ask me.

But your forgetting that the return times that are currently being distributed are posted by the FP kiosk. If that time interferes with your dining reservation, don't get a FP for that ride.

Example: You have reservations at Rose and Crown for 5:45 PM, you go to get a Soarin' FP that has a return time of 6 - 7 PM, you forego the FP to avoid problems.

Example 2: You have reservations for American Wave at 6 PM, and the FP return time for Splash is 5:45 - 6:45. You have to calculate the time that it takes to ride the ride, get out of MK, walk to Contemporary,then you realize that American Wave is horrible, and you skip your ADR, pay the Ten spot for missing that place, and enjoy Splash MOuntain, then get a hot dog at Casey's on Main Street.

Ok, so I guess I knew a thing or two about FP.

 

[TLSnell1981]

So, any of you STILL think Iger is worth the $53 million he made in salary and bonuses last year?

Does your survey, give me the option for a "hell no" reply?

 

[winthropf]

It's like your local traffic lights. The "law" states that you need to stop at red lights, but in places it is tolerated to make a right turn at the red light.

Not the same. It's not tolerated, rather the law states that it is permissible to make a right turn on a red light after stopping for the red light. And even if the state says it is OK to do this, the local jurisdiction can say "no, not here."

Not tolerated, rather by design.

 

[johnnyr]

But your forgetting that the return times that are currently being distributed are posted by the FP kiosk. If that time interferes with your dining reservation, don't get a FP for that ride.

Example: You have reservations at Rose and Crown for 5:45 PM, you go to get a Soarin' FP that has a return time of 6 - 7 PM, you forego the FP to avoid problems.

Example 2: You have reservations for American Wave at 6 PM, and the FP return time for Splash is 5:45 - 6:45. You have to calculate the time that it takes to ride the ride, get out of MK, walk to Contemporary,then you realize that American Wave is horrible, and you skip your ADR, pay the Ten spot for missing that place, and enjoy Splash MOuntain, then get a hot dog at Casey's on Main Street.

Ok, so I guess I knew a thing or two about FP.

Sorry, but it's these types of changes that will have me exit the park faster. If it bcomes too much of a hastle to see an attaction, I'm just going to move on.

 

[MrToad_at_BLT]

Hi Everyone,

Been trying to keep up with the thread over the last day or so and finally felt compelled to chime in.

Just some background, my wife and I have been going to Disney on average about once a year since we got together. Rides certainly aren't the only reason we go but we've also never had a park day where we haven't tried to go on as many rides as we could within reason. I can't think of any times we've ever gotten a Fastpass with the plan being to just use it at some point later in the afternoon whenever we could have but it's possible we did. My wife is also a bit crazed when it comes to planning (in a good way), we make our dining reservations as early as we can and we normally have an idea which parks (shows, parades, etc...) we'll be doing on each day as soon as the hours and info are released by Disney at that magical 180 day window.

I don't really have an issue with people who have used the Fastpasses as they were able too (showing up after the allotted time). People knew the system wasn't really enforced, so good on them for using the system that was in place to their advantage. I also understand the concept of "zero sum" as relates to ride capacity and Fastpass vs. Standby riders. I do think that some people are disregarding the possible inconvenience to the later rides who may be delayed by the people returning with Fastpasses with an earlier time and justifying it by saying that people benefited early, but again, people were just using the system in place to their advantage, I don't see it as breaking any rules.

I do however, have some issues with some of the complaints about the change.

Issue #1:isney is just doing this to make more money via people having to stay in parks, X-Pass sales, etc:: You bet they are, and at the end of the day that's what they should do. We can all say what we want about how Disney is taking away some of the magic, all they care about are stockholders or whatever, but the idea of Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, any other theme park is to make money. I'm sure someone will reply to this and say that Walt Disney wanted the parks to be a place where all families and people could enjoy themselves and make memories, but if Disneyland wasn't making money when it opened all those years ago you can bet Walt would've been all for making changes to ensure it's success. In particular I'd like to direct this to anyone who has complained in this thread about this all being about making money who might have at one time or another also complained that a Disney park needs new rides or shows: We can not and should not expect any business to make a significant investment in something without at bare minimum expecting to make back not only the initial cost of that investment but a profit that justifies the decision.

Issue #2::This change will not fix any problems, just make things worse for some people:: People who have been using the current policy to their advantage certainly are going to be getting the short end of the stick on this, but people have already brought up the fact that not everyone knew about this anyway, so I'm sure some of this issue is geared towards it being almost like a secret advantage for people "in the know". Just because we took the time to find out about, or happened to stumble upon the fact that return times on the tickets was not enforced doesn't make us entitled to have this benefit forever. We still have the Disboards, Easy WDW, WDW Magic, and numerous other resources that the average vacationer doesn't know about. I was actually surprised to find out that people planned their trips around this.

Issue #3a::This change should not occur because you can't always plan your day around a return time for a ride - Dining Reservations:: I can definitely see this being a problem for some but I don't think it's as terrible as some have made it out to be. I don't think it's outside the realm of possibility to call the restaurant and ask for a time adjustment in your reservations. I've had to do it in the past due to an issue on a ride and it was no problem. Otherwise I'm sure that if you go to customer relations and explain the situation they would at least do something to help you. If neither one of those are feasible, than there is always the option to simply wait in the standby line for the ride when it won't interfere with your dining and get a Fastpass ticket for a ride that doesn't interfere with your dining plan.

Issue #3b::This change should not occur because you can't always plan your day around a return time for a ride - Other Delays:: We're not talking about getting a Fastpass ticket that says 'Return between 1:00 pm and 1:05 pm'. The consensus seems to be the hour window will have a 5 minute early buffer and a 15 minute late buffer. That's 75 minutes. Now I don't have kids, so I won't pretend to know what traveling with one or more children is like, but I don't think it's so unreasonable to be aware of a 75 minute time window approaching. Instead of being on the other side of the park right before your windows starts, doing something further away (based on your return time) once you get your ticket and then work your way towards the ride where you Fastpass is for as your time approaches.

That's my 2 cents on the matter. I know within 20 minutes I'll have people quoting me and tearing my statements apart but that's fine. I'll just close with this. A lot of us (myself included) sometimes seem to feel we're "entitled" to certain things because of the money we spend going to Disney, but things change. People can no longer use the same mugs year after year because Disney found a system that can net them more profit. Certain dining reservations now come with a penalty if you don't cancel in a certain amount of time (which I'm 100% for, because I know for a fact people were taking advantage of this). This can be seen as a move for profit, but I genuinely think this also helps other people. And finally the Fastpass system is changing.

The Fastpass system is a benefit provided by Disney and is included in our admission cost. The rules and their enforcement are totally up to Disney, whether we like it or not. If Disney decided tomorrow to limit each persons total number of Fastpasses to 3 per day, that's totally within their rights. If anyone wants to let a change to a benefit being provided to them make them go to Disney less than they normally would, then that's your loss.

To me Disney will always be about spending time with people I love, whether it's sitting in a restaurant I'm probably paying too much to eat in or standing in a line that might be taking a little longer than it did yesterday. I'm not going to come home at the end of the trip and say "ugh, I had to hurry up and run back so I could use a Fastpass" I'm going to talk about how fun the ride I got to go on was.

 

[Liandro]

Hi Everyone,

Been trying to keep up with the thread over the last day or so and finally felt compelled to chime in.

Just some background, my wife and I have been going to Disney on average about once a year since we got together. Rides certainly aren't the only reason we go but we've also never had a park day where we haven't tried to go on as many rides as we could within reason. I can't think of any times we've ever gotten a Fastpass with the plan being to just use it at some point later in the afternoon whenever we could have but it's possible we did. My wife is also a bit crazed when it comes to planning (in a good way), we make our dining reservations as early as we can and we normally have an idea which parks (shows, parades, etc...) we'll be doing on each day as soon as the hours and info are released by Disney at that magical 180 day window.

I don't really have an issue with people who have used the Fastpasses as they were able too (showing up after the allotted time). People knew the system wasn't really enforced, so good on them for using the system that was in place to their advantage. I also understand the concept of "zero sum" as relates to ride capacity and Fastpass vs. Standby riders. I do think that some people are disregarding the possible inconvenience to the later rides who may be delayed by the people returning with Fastpasses with an earlier time and justifying it by saying that people benefited early, but again, people were just using the system in place to their advantage, I don't see it as breaking any rules.

I do however, have some issues with some of the complaints about the change.

Issue #1:isney is just doing this to make more money via people having to stay in parks, X-Pass sales, etc:: You bet they are, and at the end of the day that's what they should do. We can all say what we want about how Disney is taking away some of the magic, all they care about are stockholders or whatever, but the idea of Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, any other theme park is to make money. I'm sure someone will reply to this and say that Walt Disney wanted the parks to be a place where all families and people could enjoy themselves and make memories, but if Disneyland wasn't making money when it opened all those years ago you can bet Walt would've been all for making changes to ensure it's success. In particular I'd like to direct this to anyone who has complained in this thread about this all being about making money who might have at one time or another also complained that a Disney park needs new rides or shows: We can not and should not expect any business to make a significant investment in something without at bare minimum expecting to make back not only the initial cost of that investment but a profit that justifies the decision.

Issue #2::This change will not fix any problems, just make things worse for some people:: People who have been using the current policy to their advantage certainly are going to be getting the short end of the stick on this, but people have already brought up the fact that not everyone knew about this anyway, so I'm sure some of this issue is geared towards it being almost like a secret advantage for people "in the know". Just because we took the time to find out about, or happened to stumble upon the fact that return times on the tickets was not enforced doesn't make us entitled to have this benefit forever. We still have the Disboards, Easy WDW, WDW Magic, and numerous other resources that the average vacationer doesn't know about. I was actually surprised to find out that people planned their trips around this.

Issue #3a::This change should not occur because you can't always plan your day around a return time for a ride - Dining Reservations:: I can definitely see this being a problem for some but I don't think it's as terrible as some have made it out to be. I don't think it's outside the realm of possibility to call the restaurant and ask for a time adjustment in your reservations. I've had to do it in the past due to an issue on a ride and it was no problem. Otherwise I'm sure that if you go to customer relations and explain the situation they would at least do something to help you. If neither one of those are feasible, than there is always the option to simply wait in the standby line for the ride when it won't interfere with your dining and get a Fastpass ticket for a ride that doesn't interfere with your dining plan.

Issue #3b::This change should not occur because you can't always plan your day around a return time for a ride - Other Delays:: We're not talking about getting a Fastpass ticket that says 'Return between 1:00 pm and 1:05 pm'. The consensus seems to be the hour window will have a 5 minute early buffer and a 15 minute late buffer. That's 75 minutes. Now I don't have kids, so I won't pretend to know what traveling with one or more children is like, but I don't think it's so unreasonable to be aware of a 75 minute time window approaching. Instead of being on the other side of the park right before your windows starts, doing something further away (based on your return time) once you get your ticket and then work your way towards the ride where you Fastpass is for as your time approaches.

That's my 2 cents on the matter. I know within 20 minutes I'll have people quoting me and tearing my statements apart but that's fine. I'll just close with this. A lot of us (myself included) sometimes seem to feel we're "entitled" to certain things because of the money we spend going to Disney, but things change. People can no longer use the same mugs year after year because Disney found a system that can net them more profit. Certain dining reservations now come with a penalty if you don't cancel in a certain amount of time (which I'm 100% for, because I know for a fact people were taking advantage of this). This can be seen as a move for profit, but I genuinely think this also helps other people. And finally the Fastpass system is changing.

The Fastpass system is a benefit provided by Disney and is included in our admission cost. The rules and their enforcement are totally up to Disney, whether we like it or not. If Disney decided tomorrow to limit each persons total number of Fastpasses to 3 per day, that's totally within their rights. If anyone wants to let a change to a benefit being provided to them make them go to Disney less than they normally would, then that's your loss.

To me Disney will always be about spending time with people I love, whether it's sitting in a restaurant I'm probably paying too much to eat in or standing in a line that might be taking a little longer than it did yesterday. I'm not going to come home at the end of the trip and say "ugh, I had to hurry up and run back so I could use a Fastpass" I'm going to talk about how fun the ride I got to go on was.

Hear hear,the voice of reason.

 

[Mister Skellington]

I wish WDW would use the FOTL like Universal, it is easy, no FPs to worry about. Stay at resort and get it free...I would even pay for an all day FP.

It is probably coming and if it does it will be the last time I go....I remember when universal used the Disney style FP machines and it was great. When they went to the "class" system" (those who can afford it, get it) It ruined it. We can afford to stay on Property at both Disney and universal but we can stay longer by staying off property. We choose more time...
If Disney goes to Universals FOL method, I will be spending my time WAY off property on the island of Maui. It could be worse....lol

 

[trainingupmy4princes]

I think that is overly cynical.

"always follow the money" is a term usually used for criminal investigations. I read somewhere that it may have originated in the movie made about the Watergate scandal (All the Presidents Men).

Also - I think a good business like Disney puts the horse before the cart...i.e. make guest experiences better and better and they will be happier and happier and profits will follow.

Because I don't know about you, but I LOVE spending money at Disney. Not that I toss it around frivolously or that I am Bill Gates, but I really enjoy buying things at Disney whether it be a Dole Whip or the $155 Nao we just bought on Main Street of a young girl spinning Minnie in the breeze....

Correction they used to put the guests first I have seen that declining for quite some time. I love Disney but realistically they have lost that mentality long ago now the profit bean counters are in control. And they are hoping either enough people don't notice the decline or don't care and return or first-timers will have rose-colored glasses and not notice.

 

[MrToad_at_BLT]

It is probably coming and if it does it will be the last time I go....I remember when universal used the Disney style FP machines and it was great. When they went to the "class" system" (those who can afford it, get it) It ruined it. We can afford to stay on Property at both Disney and universal but we can stay longer by staying off property. We choose more time...
If Disney goes to Universals FOL method, I will be spending my time WAY off property on the island of Maui. It could be worse....lol

Well I think that this might actually be getting more towards the "middle ground" that might satisfy more people than the current changes.

The current Fastpass system is available free to all guests, but if you're staying at a moderate-level and above resort or you're an annual pass holder you can obtain a Fastpass where the late return window is not enforced. So if I'm an annual passholder my Fastpass would have the current return time in the system but instead of saying 1:30 pm to 2:30 pm it just says 'Anytime after 1:30'

This way there is a benefit given to those people staying on site but the Fastpass system is still available to everyone else.

Not a perfect system by any means, but I wouldn't personally have a problem with something like this.

 

[MrToad_at_BLT]

Correction they used to put the guests first I have seen that declining for quite some time. I love Disney but realistically they have lost that mentality long ago now the profit bean counters are in control. And they are hoping either enough people don't notice the decline or don't care and return or first-timers will have rose-colored glasses and not notice.

I do agree with this in a sense, but really the biggest problem is at what point do potential profits begin to suffer to the point where they are not benefiting from "putting the people first".

As an very extreme example: Everyone would be happy if park admission was sliced in half starting tomorrow, but I can't fathom the amount of money Disney would be losing.

I think it's a good point about how first-timers have those rose-colored glasses, but I also think that a lot of people who go to the parks year after year are in a position to notice even small declines and have an image of "the way things were" that isn't always correct.

 

[tj4disney]

Wow...30 pages is alot to get through!

Count me among those who will be very disappointed if this change goes through, to the point of not sure when I'll be back. Will have to see what the Xpass is really like, but the only scenarios that even remotely make sense don't sound that appealing. Will wait and see.

 

[TLSnell1981]

Looks like it's almost here!
http://jimhillmedia.com/editor_in_c...cting-to-have-a-very-merry-xpass-in-2012.aspx
Too true..Wallet Disney World

 

[Liandro]

It is probably coming and if it does it will be the last time I go....I remember when universal used the Disney style FP machines and it was great. When they went to the "class" system" (those who can afford it, get it) It ruined it. We can afford to stay on Property at both Disney and universal but we can stay longer by staying off property. We choose more time...
If Disney goes to Universals FOL method, I will be spending my time WAY off property on the island of Maui. It could be worse....lol

Nonsense. Disney Paris has this system and there is no "class system".
You will not even know who has this passes. BTW we love them and we would pay good money to obtain them or just get them whit the room.
Expensive room three FP per person per day and concierge unlimited access to the FP line.
For those who would like to buy them they can obtain them for a certain price.

 

[PirateD]

I had just finally stopped worrying about the Next Gen and now I have to start again. We never purposely plan on using our FP late but we find it next to impossible to always make it there exactly during the return time. This is because we have a large group that includes young children and grandparents with limited mobility. We always made it during our return times at Disneyland but I think that is because it is less spread out than WDW. Since I am a teacher and can go only during peak times this will severely limit what we will be able to see and do during the day.

 

[KellyNY]

OMG, I just googled Xpass, I tried to find some official info and you have no idea how many articles are out there and how much people hate it.

 

[MrToad_at_BLT]

OMG, I just googled Xpass, I tried to find some official info and you have no idea how many articles are out there and how much people hate it.

Yeah, it's pretty much going to be this discussion x900 when those details eventually come out.

Personally, I have no problem with it. If there's an option to pay to have additional benefits I don't see what the problem is.

I'll probably come off sounding like a privileged jerk but if I have the money and want to spend it I don't see a problem with me getting additional perks.