FP+ Frustration

[cuches]

Well I am actually happy they got rid of the old FP system. If you didn't get to the park super early you got nothing. I don't like the idea of planning so much so far out from a trip (Like how am I suppose to know on March 4th I want to be at MK riding SM at 3pm?) But it sure beats waiting in lines on every single ride. I wish I had an answer to fix the system.

 

[Nancyg56]

OP here. Thanks to all for the replys. It's not a situation of trying to do every major ride. Nor is it about doing rides multiple times. I know choosing to go during the holidays is going to cause hiccups. For us, Thanksgiving week is the best option. We have traveled to Disney 6-7 times at Thanksgiving. This trip is the 1st time where I feel that changing my mind has too many consequences. It is just frustrating. ADRs at 180 day. FP+ at 60 days. Park hours somewhere in between. But wait, Disney decides to adjust open hrs. Kinda throws a curve ball into plans. When I made the fp+ plans at 60 days, i did not think about setting up for the hopper park. I just set what i thought would work for the day we planned to visit. But like i said, changing a park day comes with the penalty of losing FPs. For me it feels more like work and less like a vacation. Everyone is different. It may be awesome for some. Again, thanks for the comments. PS. To those that are happy with "at least we know we have 3 fp". WOW. That is a whole lot of money for 3 rides...

I was there for Thanksgiving a few years ago, and it was crazy busy. LINES everywhere! A few weeks ago I went with a friend and once again, it was 7 and 8 in the parks, especially MK and Epcot. You will get on the attractions with some waits, but waits happen when it is busy. You can make changes, but probably not the Big Ticket attractions will be available during the popular times. I was worried that we would get on just the three attractions, but honestly, it was not that bad. Planning around the FP+ was basically the same as remembering to get to the Attraction with the old FP. The same benefits for getting to the parks at RD rather than sleeping in. I would suggest that you let some of the nervousness go, (hard to do, I know! This was the first time I felt responsible for making a trip really fun for someone else.) I hope I am right here and that you have a great time!

 

[f19810]

You might be surprised. We went during Spring Break last year---so, quite a busy time. The first half of the week was pre-planned, but the second half I did FP+ reservations the night before. Plenty of good choices still available.

Refresh my memory, did off site have access to fp+ at that time last year? That info may help me plan for a spring trip

 

[Missyrose]

It's not all doom and gloom.

Good to know amidst the doom and gloom.

Ah, the "doom and gloom" phrase, it's been a while since we've had a FP+ thread in which that phrased got lobbed at people who voice any frustration with the new system. This feels very retro.

If you think a garunteed for three rides isn't much.. Wow
Yeah Disney is expensive but going in with a mindset that everything on your list will be done like I said before is setting up for a failing trip

I'm fairly certain everyone who has commented on this thread knows there is a standby line. And I do love this "all or nothing" mentality. You either have to be super-duper positive about everything about the trip or your trip will fail. Guess what? That isn't reality. Yes, you're guaranteed three FP+ reservations and that is great for planners. I'm a planner, I have no problem making ADRs at 180 days out. and I don't mind making FP+ reservations 60 days out. But I'm with the OP in that the FP+ reservations do make you feel trapped in the plans.

I've been to Disney three times since the advent of MM+ and December will be my fourth. I've had frustrations and hesitations with the system and never once did it ruin a trip.

I know some people have nothing but love for the new system and others cannot stand anything about it. But for those in between, don't feel like there aren't any other people like you. There are. We plan our trips, have our frustrations, but in the end, will make the most of it. Hang in there OP!

 

[wdwcoltsfan]

I don't get the thought process of "WOW, you're only getting to ride 3 rides." Ummm, no, those are the rides we had FP+ for, but we were able to ride more than those with minimal to moderate wait.

In late October we were able to ride the following with a 25 minute wait or less
Soarin(got to Epcot 30 min after RD)
RNR(not at RD)
ITTBAB
Jungle Cruise
Buzz
HM
POTC
BTMRR
GMR
Muppets
Small World
Philharmagic
Living with the Land
JIYI

There were others we could have ridden with short/medium waits, but we didn't. Those were
Tomorrowland Speedway
Stitch
Country Bears
Tiki Room
Magic Carpets
Kali
Ellen's Universe of Energy
Star Tours

We found the new system very workable. We went earlier, but not a RD in order to do Soarin and we rode in 15 min. Otherwise, we got to the parks around 10:30. I was able to switch from MK to HS during my trip with a one day notice and the only thing I couldn't get was TSMM. Not a big deal because we had already ridden it earlier. Obviously, SDMT and A&E are going to be tough to work around, but they would be rides we had to schedule around in the old system.

It might take a little getting used to the new system, but it does have positives. If a person decides that it just ruins Disney for them, it's a good thing there are many other vacation choices. No reason to be stressed over vacation.

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

Perhaps the anti FP+ crowd would prefer the ultimate fair system: no FP at all.

No FP at all would mean that people would get to ride fewer rides than they currently do and would be standing in longer lines for many of the rides, correct? Here's the deal. That's why many people dislike FP+. With the old system, most of the people here who are opposed to FP+ were able to ride just about everything they wanted to ride as many times as they wanted to. They were able to get more done in a day and wait in shorter lines. That's why they dislike FP+. It took away the ability to ride certain rides multiple times a day and increased wait time for many rides that never really had much of a wait prior to implementation of FP+. So, your logic behind saying "Perhaps the anti FP+ crowd would prefer the ultimate fair system: no FP at all" has the same logic as switching from FP to FP+ for many of us.




And, for whatever it's worth, FP was a perfectly fair system. Everyone had the same opportunity to pull the same fast passes. Some chose to sleep in, park hop, have more dining reservations, etc. which kept them from pulling as many fast passes, but that was their choice. They had the same opportunity as a person who got there at rope drop, stayed at one park, and only did counter service meals. Opportunity was always the same and that's fair. Personal choices made the outcomes different.

 

[wrighter]

And this is exactly why, after our family reunion trip in the spring, we will be taking a long hiatus from WDW. And we own DVC - usually go at least once per year - so this is really saying something. We feel like we're giving this new system a fair shot, but it's not for us. It's sad, but we just don't like to plan our vacations in such detail so far in advance. We're happy to book the vaca - we always do this well in advance - but we don't want to know all the minute details of every single day, or pay the penalty of (Heaven forbid!) changing our minds once we're there. Clearly there are enough people willing to (happily) jump through these absurd hoops that Disney won't miss my money.

Now I just hope we can visit Orlando's "other" parks before they adopt a similar system.

 

[mh1973]

It's regulating everything to be more fair. The system is great only people who have problems are the ones who can't decide on something and expect to do what they want. It's cutting down on the frequent number of times ppl rides an attraction but garunteed you getting to at least do three of you're choice honestly park hopper is waste of money. During the peak season it's even better cause you go in knowing you get to pass your favorite standby lines.

The system is easy to work you start with three and as the day goes you are able to try and switch if you want to change a fast pass.
Disney is trying to get more structure in the parks I hated the paper fast passes as they were always out when igot to kiosk now before I'm even in the gate I've already got three. However most ppl hate the new system because they don't get as much as they used to since Disney is leveling the playing field

I pay a lot of money to go to Disney...I should be able to expect to do what I want. Why shouldn't I be able to ride a ride over and over and over?

 

[summerskye]

It might take a little getting used to the new system, but it does have positives. If a person decides that it just ruins Disney for them, it's a good thing there are many other vacation choices. No reason to be stressed over vacation.

I never said it was going to ruin my trip. I agree there are positives. But, there are also negatives. My point was/is that there is frustration to making changes to my plans in my situation. Bottom line, I am sure we will enjoy our trip. Again, different stroke for different folks...

 

[summerskye]

And, for whatever it's worth, FP was a perfectly fair system. Everyone had the same opportunity to pull the same fast passes. Some chose to sleep in, park hop, have more dining reservations, etc. which kept them from pulling as many fast passes, but that was their choice. They had the same opportunity as a person who got there at rope drop, stayed at one park, and only did counter service meals. Opportunity was always the same and that's fair. Personal choices made the outcomes different.

Great Point !!! And, if I wanted to go to a different park than the one I had planned, then I still could get FPs. Now, not so much...

 

[snayak]

I pay a lot of money to go to Disney...I should be able to expect to do what I want. Why shouldn't I be able to ride a ride over and over and over?

You can always ride whichever attractions you want by using the standby line.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

I pay a lot of money to go to Disney...I should be able to expect to do what I want. Why shouldn't I be able to ride a ride over and over and over?

You can...just not with fastpasses. You can get into the standby line as many times as you want. and if I want to ride the Haunted Mansion several times without waiting in the standby line I don't think I would end up having an issue with making it one of my 3 fps, and making several extra FPs for it once my 3 are used. That might not work with something like Space Mountain and definitely not with Mine Train though.

I heard that WDW was reacting in part to the number of first time guests who complained that they didn't get to ride anything popular at all because they didn't know they had to plan. Now everybody has to plan, and you can "skip the line" on at least 3 attractions a day. Of course, it's going to be more difficult to get anything popular, so they may not end up being the attractions that you'd WANT to skip the lines on.

 

[summerskye]

I'm fairly certain everyone who has commented on this thread knows there is a standby line. And I do love this "all or nothing" mentality. You either have to be super-duper positive about everything about the trip or your trip will fail. Guess what? That isn't reality. Yes, you're guaranteed three FP+ reservations and that is great for planners. I'm a planner, I have no problem making ADRs at 180 days out. and I don't mind making FP+ reservations 60 days out. But I'm with the OP in that the FP+ reservations do make you feel trapped in the plans.

I've been to Disney three times since the advent of MM+ and December will be my fourth. I've had frustrations and hesitations with the system and never once did it ruin a trip.

I know some people have nothing but love for the new system and others cannot stand anything about it. But for those in between, don't feel like there aren't any other people like you. There are. We plan our trips, have our frustrations, but in the end, will make the most of it. Hang in there OP!

You get it! I am somewhere in between.

 

[mom2rtk]

You can always ride whichever attractions you want by using the standby line.

Standby is only as good as the capacity Disney devotes to it. Some reports have it at 10-30% of the average daily capacity.

 

[snayak]

Standby is only as good as the capacity Disney devotes to it. Some reports have it at 10-30% of the average daily capacity.

Understood...so someone can book a FP+ for it, and then ride it again to their heart's content using standby. Or keep booking FP+ at kiosks depending on availability.

 

[wisblue]

Maybe someday somebody will be able to explain to me how making 3 FP+ reservations equates to "scheduling every minute of the day".

If I make 3 reservations for attractions at, say, DHS with return times from 5-6, 6-7, and 7-8 PM, all that does is tell me that, if I decide to go to DHS that evening, I will have the opportunity to enjoy those 3 attractions in a space of 3 hours. If I decide to do something else that evening, it hasn't cost me anything out of pocket. At worst, I lost an opportunity to get a FP for something else at some other time of the day. And, even if I choose to use those FP+ reservations, I am still free to do whatever I want for the majority of the day.

Would you say that you've scheduled every minute of your day if you buy tickets in advance for a sporting event, concert, or other show? Those things require much more of a specific time and financial commitment.

If I don't want to commit in advance to buying tickets, I can wait until the last minute and take my chances that I might miss out on something I want to do. I see FPs the same way. If getting a ride on Soarin or TSMM is critical to your enjoyment of your trip, FP+ gives you a chance to make a reservation for it in advance. If spontaneity is more important to you, don't make reservations, or feel free to dump the ones you've made if you don't feel like using them. After a couple of trips in which we entered the parks using CM Main Gate passes, and couldn't get FPs in advance, I know that you can still enjoy a lot of attractions, and have a lot of fun, while starting the day with a clean slate and just using FPs that are available same day. On those trips, we have always been able to do every one of the major attractions in all four of the parks in just 4 park days.

 

[elaine amj]

We just returned; DW, DD2, DS8 months and myself, we don't like it at all. For starters the earliest I could get a FP+ for 7dmt was my last day of a week long stay, well I thought at least I'll get to ride it. Well at 2:00 on Friday my 2yr old had a breakdown and I wasn't about to leave DW alone to handle both of them, I had to miss my FP window of 2:30-3:30. I had skipped standing in the stand by line all week because I new I had a FP for fri. We've already decided it'll be a while before we head back to the world. I used a FP for POC, DW timed me and it took 35 mins from the time I entered until I exited, the standby line said 40min wait. Trying to make changes was miserable, after arriving and seeing that my 2yr wasnt going to be able to tour the way I thought I tried to adjust our plans, and my options were extremely limited.

You know PoC is about 8.5 mins long ride? Counting in loading and unloading, say 10 minutes. So say FP+ gave you a 25 min wait including however long walking through the lineup area took you (and walking back out).

Standby would have been 40 mins PLUS the 10 minutes for the ride so 50 mins total.

All in all, you saved about 15 mins doing FP+. Since Pirates was a ride that historically only needed FPs during heavier crowd times, this sounds about right to me. I'll be there during Christmas Week and have high hopes of riding Pirates late at night without FP+.

I know some people have nothing but love for the new system and others cannot stand anything about it. But for those in between, don't feel like there aren't any other people like you. There are. We plan our trips, have our frustrations, but in the end, will make the most of it. Hang in there OP!

You get it! I am somewhere in between.

I am somewhere in between too. I really liked legacy FP and spent tons of time learning all the tricks to maximize it. FP+ is definitely cramping my style (and I'm a minute by minute planner). To say it's all bad is a bit of an exaggeration though - my point is there are some good things about it.

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

Understood...so someone can book a FP+ for it, and then ride it again to their heart's content using standby. Or keep booking FP+ at kiosks depending on availability.

Okay, but can you at least understand why a person who was able to ride a certain ride, let's say Soarin', 3, 4, or even 5 times a day using Fast Pass would dislike FP+ and the fact that he or she can now only ride it once with a fast pass? And can you also understand how a person might be upset that now, thanks to tiering, that person can only ride Soarin' or Test Track, not both, with FP+ when in the past, with FP, they were able to do both multiple times via fast pass? And can you see how a person who was able to do favorite attractions multiple times and didn't have to worry about tiering would find FP+ to be considerably more restricting? And can you see how that person is now irritated that he or she is spending the same or even more money as before to do fewer things he or she desires to do through no fault of his or her own? And can you understand why people get irritated that they have to plan dining 180 days out, FP+ 60 days out, but Disney will then decide to shut down a ride or restaurant for refurb (that, but the way, they have known about for more than 180 days and just don't announce) and a person who has done all of that planning now has to scramble to find replacements that are rarely up to the level that they had originally chosen? Or how a person is bothered when Disney changes operating hours or extra magic hours thereby changing what the crowds are going to do and the efficiency of certain dining reservations (prior to park open, right at closing, etc.) and then people have to suddenly change the plans that they had to make 180 or 60 days out?

 

[MakiraMarlena]

But that is what Disney wanted....to prevent guests riding popular attractions multiple times with fastpass. as far as that goal, it's working. Totally understandable that it's not what some guests wanted (the ones who would previously plan to ride popular attractions multiple times with fastpass.)

 

[IWannaBuildASnowman]

I understand the tiering from Disney's perspective. They have so few good rides at Epcot that they want to force people on to the other dreck. But from a user perspective it blows. Soarin *or* test track is nonsense. If they want to make sure it's "fair", then allocate less spots to FP and leave the rest of it up to standby.

But like I said. I am already a 2nd class citizen because I stay offsite. Always leaves a bad taste in my mouth.