FP + What we know and what we want to know

[mom2mickeyfan]

Now you are gaming the new system!!!

shhhh....don't tell anyone

 

[cmwade77]

I just read this in the T&C for My Magic

•Magic Your Way ticket holders may make FastPass+ selections beginning 60 days prior to day of use. The selection window may vary for other admission tickets or passholders.

Hmmm.... So if you buy a MYW package you get the 60 days but not sure about the rest of us.

Magic you way are any tickets, except Annual Passes, Cast Member, Florida resident and other comped or special tickets. Even tickets purchased at the gate are called Magic Your Way tickets, just read the signs and they will tell you this much. So, unless you are in one of those groups, I would assume the 60 day window applies to you. The tickets do not need to be part of a package to be considered Magic Your Way tickets.

 

[UNCFanatik]

How does it prevent others from pulling a FP on their own? If anything, I've had some people thank us for giving them FPs because they didn't know about the FP system before we gave them to them and explained it. So in actuality we helped people pull FPs in the future who might not otherwise have done so because they didn't understand the system.

Admittedly, this is less of an issue in the post-enforcement days.

But since you asked, certain attractions would run out of FPs by late morning or early afternoon like TSMM and Soaring. Since there is a limited supply of FPs, people pulling FPs with the sole intent of giving them away later would stop other guest who arrive later in the park from getting an FP.

 

[JaimeA]

The flip side to that is that when the economy is down, DVC members (which I am not one) will not be willing to put even more money in RCI fees into their vacation after all they have already put in. What they may do is still go to Disney and just not go to the parks if they are limited in some way with the FPs compared to other resort guest. We are time share owners and I find now that they have our money that don't have to cater to us anymore. So if it becomes a drag on their FPs system, I could see that DVC could be some of the first that get hurt. They've already got ya. You've got to pay the fees weather you come to Disney or not. They don't have to woo you in. I have to see that if I see that Disney does this to their DVC members it will throw a bad light on the company in my eyes.

We do own DVC and yes we are stuck with Disney. The honeymoon is over per se. But they are building DVC resorts now and rumored ones on the horizon? How will they sell those if you are losing a perk if you buy. Those sales people want you to feel like you are buying into the family not becoming the step child. This will surely get interesting. And yes as DVC i can come to orlando use ME and then go to US. haha

 

[Cinderumbrella]

Looks like they have answered a few more questions for us in the T&C

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/media/park-experience-terms-and-conditions.html

"To make a FP+ selection for you or your friends, you must retrieve a Resort package reservation including valid park admission through your account, or associate a valid park admission to your account."

"When you initially make FP+ selections for a park park, you will select a FP+ Experience Set and if plan change, you may modify the entire FP+ Experience set until the first FP+ Experience is redeemed or the first unredeemed experience expires. You may modify an unredeemed individual experience any time prior to the end of the day."

 

[MickeyMinnieMom]

Ba-a-a-a-a.... Ugh

I need to stay away from these threads until the big announcements come. It all sounds so awful so far. For us and our touring style that is.

I'm with you on the bold part!

All the stabs into the near-dark are too much for me now! I'll keep apprised of new OFFICIAL info via Twitter, and check back here after full roll-out to hear ACTUAL experiences.

 

[danceintherain]

If people can't figure out how to use the current FP system (stick admission card into FP machine, get FP, get another FP after the time printed on FP) I fail to see how they are going to master a system that requires them to figure out what rides they want to be on 60 days before they get to Florida.

I doubt Disney expects every guest to utilize FP, or plan their trips more than 60 days in advance.

I'm again going to be just as selfish as everyone else here seems to be. I'm a planner but not an early riser, particularly not on a very rare vacation. I'd much prefer to have to plan sixty days in advance than be up at the crack of dawn. Regardless whether I get into the park at 8 AM or 1 PM, my ticket costs the same and I would like to fully participate in the Disney experience. With a young child and a handicapped senior, I'm not going to be running around all day riding rides numerous times, or getting Fastpasses. We just can't move that fast. I would like to ride Soarin', once, and TSMM, once, but don't want to spend hours waiting in line when I would rather be eating or shopping. So for what I anticipate to be MY touring style (and probably a lot of other people for whom Disney is a once-in-a-lifetime vacation), I like what I'm hearing and this could enhance the experience for me. I'm guessing that the folks who spend all day riding probably end up spending less money in the park, so I can certainly see how Disney wants to enhance the value for those who ARE there to spend money. And the idea that people won't know how to use it ... I can only speak for myself, but I've subscribed to this thread so I'll know what to expect in June.

I'm a combination. I'd much rather plan my FPs 60 days in advance than run back and forth all day first to get a FP, then back to that area to use it. "FP runners" have never worked for us very well, as it's mostly just me and DH + small child. We want to spend time as a family on vacation, not run around a park.

Not sure I understand. Are you saying they spent $1B because someone/people had an axe to grind, or that maybe "fixing" a "problem" was not the motive for FP+?

Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar... maybe they want to improve the park experience for MOST guests (thus resulting in increased profits)... (remembering here that this initiative involves more than FP+).

I think that's the key. MOST guests AND Disney's bottom line. They have to find a balance between the two.

It is interesting that on this forum and in the press, the Disney FP+/Magicband/MyMagic+ system has gotten very little (frankly no) comparison to the Lo-Q Q-Bot ride reservation system which has been employed at many parks world wide even though the Q-Bot would seemingly be a closer comparison. Perhaps this is because we are all mostly in the Disney bubble (I confess I had not heard of Q-Bot until Recently). Apparently Q-Bot is used in certain Six Flags, Dollywood, and has been tested by Universal in Orlando recently. Q-Bot is a hand held wireless device with a small LCD screen and a few buttons. You select which attractions you want on the device, and are given a wait time for each. Q-Bot is usually sold as a plus up to guests in 3 modes (at different plus pricing vs. traditional waiting in line) a) no priority, you just don't have to wait in line; b) cut wait time by 50%, c) cut wait time by 95%. There are obvious differences between Q-Bot and a magicband - a magic band should be a lot cheaper (you forfeit a $300 deposit if you lose a Q-Bot); Disney hasn't said how much (if anythiny) it will cost to replace a lost magicband. MagicBands have no dislpay, you have to use your smartphone or a kiosk. Has anyone had any experience with Q-Bot?

Interesting. I wasn't aware that there was a precedent in the world.

That is going to happen when the only FP time they can get for their favorite headlines is 9:45 to 10:45 in the morning. As you can tell, my family are RDers and I would pick my FP times for late afternoon when the park is full. And since I am in the "know" and will pick my FP time as soon as I can, I will have first pick. Those that aren't will get the leftovers times. There can only be so many late afternoon/early evening places. I believe this will cause the park to become crowded much earlier in the day.

The way I see this also is that it is not going to make me spend more time in the park but less. Once I have used up my FPs and the wait times for most rides are an hour or more, we will be leaving the park. But that will make it better for those late comers because my family will be getting out of the way. But we will have to consider if the cost of the ticket will continue to be worth it if we are unable to do as much. It keeps being stated that I can still do anything I want but if I can only ride 2 rides in the same amount of time that I use to do 3 or 4 then I didn't get the same vaule for my ticket as I did in the past. So will Disney not do a price increase on tickets this year for all us "super-users" lost vaule on our tickets? I'm sure not.

But trust me! I understand that this will be better for more people. But I also say that all those people had the same choice as me when it came to their day in the park. If my family can do it, so can yours!!

Human nature being what it is, I doubt many more people will make it to RD even if it they have FPs for 9:45-10:45. People will be tired from being in the parks late and just plain unwilling to get up early on vacation, even when it means missing their FP time.

I doubt it will attract people earlier. Most people have a bottom line of how early they're willing to wake up on vacation. If the promise of shorter lines hasn't drawn them out of bed by now, I doubt it will in the future. Also, those who enjoy sleeping in and are aware of the new system will very likely be attempting to get those late afternoon FPs with the rest of us. Otherwise, they will be stuck with whatever is leftover, which isn't that different from what they're stuck with now.

This is the e-mail I sent to Disney regarding my group:


Dear Guest Communications Department:

Good afternoon.

My name is xxx. As a DVC Owner, I've been following closely the roll-out of the new Disney Experience (web/app) and the perspective Disney's FP+ System.

Although I'll be on-site in August using my points, I will be traveling with a group of almost 20 the middle of March, staying at Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort.

The group are high school boys playing baseball at Disney for Spring Training at Wide World of Sports. We booked as a group and therefore the group will be getting 3-day park tickets.

The Disney Experience site asks that I please "register" the tickets and there is speculation that perhaps those tickets that are registered will be "entitled", upon the roll out of FP+, to choose certain attractions/venues where the FP+ can be used. If this is correct, may I please ask how our group will be able to participate in this since, as you are aware, we do not receive our park tickets until we arrive on the first day of check in.

May I please ask what practices will be in place for having groups register their tickets on/before the 60 day mark of their trip (which I am
at today) prior to their arrival?

It would be wonderful for me, as the group leader, to take advantage of the FP+ system, if it rolls out before the middle of March (or for anyone after that time) to be able to pre-register our group for FP+. Giving my group a set amount of FPs before we enter a park during a very busy time frame would work wonderfully for us but, if I'm correct, we would need to register our tickets, which Disney will not give to me until check in day.

I look forward to hearing from you and thank you for taking the time to assist in my planning.

Best Regards,
XXXX
Phone Number:

It will be interesting to see the answer. I'm in the Armed Forces Salute group, and while I CAN purchase my tickets early, they won't be activated until the day of.

 

[Cinderumbrella]

Another fun gem

"Availability of a FP+ experience, the number of experiences you may select, and arrival windows are limited and vary based on factors such as theme park you are visiting, the attraction or experience, the time of year and the day of the week, and prior demand. In addition, the number of days for which you can hold FP+ selections at any given time is limited."

 

[JaimeA]

Magic you way are any tickets, except Annual Passes, Cast Member, Florida resident and other comped or special tickets. Even tickets purchased at the gate are called Magic Your Way tickets, just read the signs and they will tell you this much. So, unless you are in one of those groups, I would assume the 60 day window applies to you. The tickets do not need to be part of a package to be considered Magic Your Way tickets.

You are right I shouldn't have added the word package. We are AP holders so we aren't in that group.

 

[mcd2745]

Another fun gem

"Availability of a FP+ experience, the number of experiences you may select, and arrival windows are limited and vary based on factors such as theme park you are visiting, the attraction or experience, the time of year and the day of the week, and prior demand. In addition, the number of days for which you can hold FP+ selections at any given time is limited."

Hard to really glean any meaningful info from the official T&C. They will always be filled with a lot of "CYA legalese" that may or may not have any real world significance.

 

[lugnut33]

I have given thought to how this will change our park strategy. Pretty sure I'll hit up the attractions that are one step below the headliners right at rope drop, and schedule the headliners late morning. I'm still focused on getting the crowded attractions out of the way first so later in the day we can relax and hit up Hall of Presidents and Carousel of Progress.

 

[lugnut33]

Another fun gem

"Availability of a FP+ experience, the number of experiences you may select, and arrival windows are limited and vary based on factors such as theme park you are visiting, the attraction or experience, the time of year and the day of the week, and prior demand. In addition, the number of days for which you can hold FP+ selections at any given time is limited."

But Mousemerf said it was 3 and only 3 for everybody, no more and no less forever.

So I'm the only one who sees this as a huge profit center.

 

[Cinderumbrella]

Hard to really glean any meaningful info from the official T&C. They will always be filled with a lot of "CYA legalese" that may or may not have any real world significance.

I took that line to be the "don't blame us! We told you TSMM was popular..." line when folks complain about not being able to schedule a FP+ for it the day before.

I have been doing so much on my ipad lately that today is the first time I am was able to view these T&C since I am on my laptop. My ipad still has the old version of the wdw.com site and I am not willing to "switch" until it makes me since I still find that site easier when comparison pricing.

 

[Sydnerella]

just a few of the examples of a few that are trying to make us feel bad or that we are doing something wrong by being there at rd and making the best use of the fp system. I've never thought that disney said that about us "super-users". I also have not seen anyone state that they should have all the fps and others should not. Just that if they want the same chances as me, then get to the park at the same time i do and spend the day there. It is not hard to find out info about fp! If more did this instead of complaining about us "super-users" getting all the fp's then this would have cut down on what each person would have been able to get. If i get less pass because more show up for rd, then it is what it is. I don't feel like disney is leveling the playing field as much as they are patting the others on their head and say "its okay, you can sleep in as late as you want and still have some fps. We limited those that are willing to get up and do rp and saved them for you"
when we pull into the parking lot first thing in the morning, should we be made to leave open spots close to the gate for those that want to show up late. The attitude of a few on here has been.."how dare we get there early and take up all those front row parking places!! I should be able to show up whenever i want and still get a nice close parking spot" maybe that is the next thing disney should start making us plan 60 days out!

thank you!!!

 

[DaisyD23]

I have a trip planned for the middle of March so I'm keeping a close eye on this thread. Hopefully Disney will release more information soon!
In my past trips I have been a fastpass "super user" so I don't like the idea of getting only 3 fastpasses for the day and not being able to freely choose what 3 rides I want to use them on.

We also used to "pixie dust" fastpasses to people on our trip. We never did it with the expectation of giving the fastpasses away, usually we'd pull them thinking we would do the ride and then something changed that plan, such as our child was ready to go back to the resort, we were tired, or just wanted to leave the park earlier than expected. So rather than throwing the passes away and the FP going to waste, another family was able to use them. I doubt other people who are also "pixie dusting" are doing it to keep FP out of other peoples hands or run down the amount of FPs available to other people.

 

[guynhawaii]

Aloha,

Do I understand correctly that using FP+ you are limited to a max of 3 FP tickets for one park per day? And if you use FP+ you can't use the regular FP system? If true, this is horrendous. When my family goes to WDW/DL we often obtain at least six FPs throughout the day.

If this is all true (only three FP using FP+), I am assuming the best strategy is to be at Rope Drop and hit the rides as a walk-on and use your very limited three FP for later in the day when the lines are much longer.

Personally I think WDW/ DL is going in the wrong direction in this whole process with opposite results of what they are trying to achieve. FP+ will make the park rides less available, the lines longer and more unhappy guests.

If they want to increase revenue and improve the product then spend their $$ on more rides and sell super FPs like US.

 

[mom2rtk]

If this is all true (only three FP using FP+), I am assuming the best strategy is to be at Rope Drop and hit the rides as a walk-on and use your very limited three FP for later in the day when the lines are much longer.

Theoretically this is still the best approach. However, what we can't really quanitfy until it actually rolls out is how much slower those standby lines will be earlier in the day since Disney will be filling those early slots as well.

There will reach a point where the only times available for headliner FP+ are the early ones, soon after rope drop. I'm still cautiously optimistic that people will choose to sleep in and miss those early spots.

 

[jade1]

Aloha,

If they want to increase revenue and improve the product then spend their $$ on more rides and sell super FPs like US.

What makes you think that's not what's coming next?

 

[finedice]

I wonder if the suites at Disney are reading this thread rolling in the aisles?

There is so much we don't know -- so much we have speculated on -- that I have to wonder if it's half as bad as some of us think it is?

I for one look forward to using the system as an educated guest. I can't believe the execs at Disney will willingly destroy the loyalty of so many of its guests. The stingy process of withholding information has definitely cost them business in the short term (at least from me).

Hopefully all will be revealed soon and much of the anxiety expressed here will pass...

My family of 3 has traveled to WDW every two years since our DD was really old enough to enjoy it. For us, it takes high airfare (we do not live near a major hub airport and have to drive several hours to one, or make connections from where we live which drives the cost to around $600 per ticket). In addition, we pay parking at the airport, use a rental car, and pay for pet boarding. For our upcoming trip, those things will/have cost us around $2,500. That money is spent before our Disney resort room, our tickets (WP+ and Hoppers  always), and our meals are even figured in. For us (hopefully valued repeat customers), the cost of admission is steep when I tally the list.

I booked a spring trip this year with the comfort of knowing that I would have essentially the same valued experience. At the time, I was unaware of FP time enforcement changes (not THAT big a deal  but still significant), and nothing of FP+, MDe, or RFID. Shame on me for not keeping up on changing information religiously since our summer 11 trip.

I noted the increased ticket prices, the hugely increased dining prices, and the swollen resort prices, but still somewhat shrugged it off despite that Disney inflation is far outpacing income improvements in our family on a percentage basis.

We have never regretted the money spent, and while we are always sad to leave, we have always left feeling that we had reached our personal saturation point (even our daughter). We have learned to use FP-, strategic hopping, EMH, and other crowd dodging techniques to accomplish everything we generally wanted to in a given day, while still having the time to leisurely shop, eat, and see the smaller bits of Disney magic. We were never super users or hoarders, but did like that we could use several FP in the morning hours for one park, and by hopping to a less crowded park, perhaps get lucky enough to gather a couple of more for that gate as well. A hardcore day for us could include 5 or 6 E ticket rides (including select repeats), more than several lesser attractions, a show or two, a leisurely TS meal, and an evening major performance. I would NEVER waste a FP on anything but an E-ticket  because everything else could be experienced with a minimal wait at some point on the trip. A FP for the fireworks? Really?

However, a lesser day might only include a few hours of a major park, or none at all. On a one week trip, along with several water park visits (none too long), we could visit DTD twice, and generally browsed about every single shop in the parks, our resort store several times, as well as those in resorts we were visiting to enjoy a TS meal (nearly every day). In my mind, this made us the ideal FP users. Not only did we leave saturated and satisfied, but we spent plenty of time shopping, dining, snacking, and paying extra admission to events like dining experiences, Cirque, etc.

FP+ may or may not change those behaviors. I hate lines, and wont tolerate any longer than 20 or occasionally 30 minutes (if I happen to find myself not hopping in time to avoid midday crowds). I will go without rather than wait longer. I like the extra time for shopping, eating, and relaxing (as much as vacationing at WDW allows). If that is no longer possible, my satisfaction will decrease.

The RFID tech, despite my previous posts regarding Big Brother, marketing Doom and Gloom, and movement tracking, does have the potential to enhance my experience with all of that. It really does seem groundbreaking. Not only can they track what I actually buy, but everything I was browsing at and didnt buy as well. Imagine walking away from an item you had looked closely at, and having an offer pop-up via text message or coupon at the register for an additional 15% off that item. Some that were on the edge just might go back for it (including me).

Anyway, the point of all this is that by changing the FP system the way it appears to they are, Disney will negatively affect my familys experience drastically, and thus, my desire to return will drop dramatically. I wont go to US or IoA. I will find myself on a beach in the Caribbean, in Europe, or elsewhere. I do not believe that I am not important to Disney.

I know enough about the hospitality business to know I am very important to them. I have, and potentially will spend plenty of money in extra revenue generating experiences and merchandise, and pump friends and family all the time about how great a WDW trip is. But that potential drops dramatically if I am unsatisfied with the entire trip, because I could no longer experience as much as before, in my chosen way, while paying higher prices than ever before.

I am holding out hope that the conjecture does not all truly reflect what will be in place for our trip in late April. I am generally somewhat stuck, because the airline tickets have been bought, and the deposit paid. Im already in for 2k. I hope, hope, hope that some of the space between the lines includes provisions for FP that include Hopping, additional E tickets per day once in the park, and hopefully, availability of additional FP entitlements beyond the 3 tiered pre-reserved ones stated. If not, this might be one happy customer that will no longer be happy, and will of course, begin to advise others NOT to go.

For now, the usual excitement is just not there. For us, they only have one chance to get it right, because I didnt have the info necessary to make an informed choice. This trip is happening  whether I leave satisfied or not. I really hope its groovy and magical, putting all my fears to rest.

 

[DougEMG]

I respect TheRustyScupper, but in this instance I'll have to disagree with him. I don't see DVC people being treated differently than other resort guests.

DVC sales are a huge profit center for Disney. What do you think would happen to the sales of DVC units if there was a difference in how FP+ worked for the two of them? My guess is that sales would drop a lot. It would certainly make me consider selling my DVC contracts.