FP+ Window reduced to 30 days for non-resort guests

[ethanwa]

This is not a big deal.

Agreed.

 

[5Hfan]

Has anyone noticed that the truncated version the link says "assholders" instead of "passholders?" Because that's some funny stuff right there.

I don't see anything wrong with any company offering perks to people who stay onsite. Think of all the comps people in Vegas get....kind of the same thing. Spend more in the casinos, get the rooms free. Sometimes I think people treat Disney like its a public charity, and not a business.

Sure disney is a business, but it's a bumpy transition offering *new* perks for on site guests by taking away everyone's old benefits...

 

[mom2rtk]

Wow.

I think this is a huge deal once they bring everyone on prebooking.

That is one distinct possibility.

It's also possible that it might not make much difference.

Unless you want to book the Mine Train.

The truth is that nothing that has happened yet gives anyone any idea of what it will be like when everyone has prior access.

 

[PJ]

Would be nice, but I don't know if they could make that work. The booking window perk just strikes me as kind of useless, especially during slower times.

As of now the difference between 30 and 60 has little impact on what you can and can't book. That could all change as offsite guests are able to prebook and more attractions open though. Time will tell how useful this actually is, but it's nowhere near an EMH type perk for me yet.

Definitely not useless to us in slow times - We just spent the Winter with AP's so no FP+ available, and went only on slow days ( easywdw crowd estimates 4 or less and went to most recommended park). DH is not a rope-dropper, and even on slow days if we didn't get to a park till 10:00 we stood in long FP+ kiosk lines and often couldn't get a FP for Soarin' or TSMM.

FP+ just opened for us today on MDE - I'm excited!!! With even the 30 day window I'm confident we'll be able to do everything we want next Winter.

 

[JimmyV]

Since off-site guests make up half of attendance (and an even higher percentage in the holiday and high seasons), I don't think this will be a big deal. I can't imagine that on-site guests will drink the well dry between days 31-60. But this begs the question: If there isn't going to be any meaningful advantage given to on-site guests, why not level the field, or change it to the same system as ADRs, which would be 60+10 for on site and "60 days rolling" for off site?

 

[5Hfan]

I made all of my fastpass+ selections the day of (even though I was an on-site guest) and had no problem finding passes for all rides at all times. This is not a big deal.

What time of year/crowd level?

 

[Raenstoirm]

Any idea what takes "priority" in regard to APs, on-site and FP+? In the past, AP holders could only book 7 days of FP+ or something. If we are on-site AP holders can we book FP+ for our entire trip now, regardless of how may days the trip is? (Our APs expired last year and we are not sure if we are going to renew them.)

 

[5Hfan]

Since off-site guests make up half of attendance (and an even higher percentage in the holiday and high seasons), I don't think this will be a big deal. I can't imagine that on-site guests will drink the well dry between days 31-60. But this begs the question: If there isn't going to be any meaningful advantage given to on-site guests, why not level the field, or change it to the same system as ADRs, which would be 60+10 for on site and "60 days rolling" for off site?

That's just some crazy logic talk there. Who knows maybe that's where they'll end up after the test?

 

[ArwenMarie]

That is one distinct possibility.

It's also possible that it might not make much difference.

Unless you want to book the Mine Train.

The truth is that nothing that has happened yet gives anyone any idea of what it will be like when everyone has prior access.

That's true. We don't know yet what prebooking is going to be like once they let everyone prebook. So we can't say if it will be a huge advantage, or not a big deal at all.

It will also depend on the week of the year and how busy it is.

It definitely makes Mine Train Watch even more interesting.

 

[ArwenMarie]

Since off-site guests make up half of attendance (and an even higher percentage in the holiday and high seasons), I don't think this will be a big deal. I can't imagine that on-site guests will drink the well dry between days 31-60. But this begs the question: If there isn't going to be any meaningful advantage given to on-site guests, why not level the field, or change it to the same system as ADRs, which would be 60+10 for on site and "60 days rolling" for off site?

I think it's just Disney's way of making sure that their onsite guests have first pick. I think the reason they made it 30 days difference is to give onsite guests a lot of time to make their picks before the influx of offsite prebooking starts.

 

[morethananyonex]

Definitely not useless to us in slow times - We just spent the Winter with AP's so no FP+ available, and went only on slow days ( easywdw crowd estimates 4 or less and went to most recommended park). DH is not a rope-dropper, and even on slow days if we didn't get to a park till 10:00 we stood in long FP+ kiosk lines and often couldn't get a FP for Soarin' or TSMM. FP+ just opened for us today on MDE - I'm excited!!! With even the 30 day window I'm confident we'll be able to do everything we want next Winter.

That's not what I'm talking about at all. I'm saying the difference between 30 days and 60 days, making the 60 day window a perk for onsite guests is not a huge perk at this point, especially not during slow times.

APs (and offsite eventually) getting prebooking absolutely does make a difference and is a perk.

 

[Jennasis]

If this happens then watch a whole bunch of rooms open up as people hustle to cancel ghost reservations.

 

[mom2rtk]

That's true. We don't know yet what prebooking is going to be like once they let everyone prebook. So we can't say if it will be a huge advantage, or not a big deal at all.

It will also depend on the week of the year and how busy it is.

It definitely makes Mine Train Watch even more interesting.

I would think that if one wanted to compare it to something, one would need to compare it with what availability has typically been by around noon on any given day in the parks. Because that's the point at which most offsite guests have had a chance to book. But once they can bypass the kiosk line and go online, more people might actually book.

 

[lugnut33]

I'm not worried about on-site guests sucking up all the fastpasses, even for TSMM. 30 days should be just fine.

 

[lugnut33]

If this happens then watch a whole bunch of rooms open up as people hustle to cancel ghost reservations.

Actually it would lead to an increase of ghost reservations as they would be allowed the 60+10.

 

[JimmyV]

I don't think this will be marketed as a perk. It's just Disney's way of making sure that their onsite guests have first pick. I think the reason they made it 30 days difference is to give onsite guests a lot of time to make their picks before the influx of offsite prebooking starts.

I'm not being critical of you, but of Disney when I say that this is largely semantic. I agree that it will not be marketed as a perk, just the way the 180+10 vs. 180 for ADRs is not marketed that way. But in the end, if you give one sub-set "a lot of time to make their picks", it is a perk. If we assume that popular rides (like 7DMT) would get wiped out on Days 60-50 once all people came on line (and we don't really know that for certain, it is just an assumption), then it would seem that those rides will NOT get wiped out durng Days 60-31 under the new approach, but may very well during Days 30-20. If that proves true, then the people who get shut out will be disproportionaltely off site guests (without opining as to whether this is "right" or "just"). If the people getting shut out are disproportionately off site guests, then it is hard to make the argument that the on-site guests have not received a perk. In the end, I am a planner. I am diligent. And I stay either on site or at the Swan/Dolphin (not sure if they will be counted as on or off site here). Either way, I don't expect to be impacted. Especially if the "throwaway room" remains a viable option.

 

[ArwenMarie]

Whatever the significance of this particular change turns out to be, it proves that Disney is going to tier FP among its different groups of customers based on their perceived value to them.

Based on recent news (testing prebooking for offsite, etc), it seemed that they were going to keep everything equal as far as FP+ access, but that they were just slow at bringing everyone on the system.

Now that is clearly not true anymore.

I am even more convinced that onsite will be getting extra FPs now as well and I think the possibility of extra FPs by resort level is more likely now.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

Interesting. I am hoping that Mine Train does get added to FP+ but I wonder how far from it's opening day? 60 days or 30 days or day of opening? Every soccer mom for herself...

I am waiting for the day that the EPCOT Elsa and Anna line meets the back of the Mine Train SB line in MK. I want those folks to perform a mexican wave.

 

[freediverdude]

Ok I guess I'm going to repeat this post and see if it gets deleted again? Apparently? And if it does, I will be taking this up with the mod of the forum and possibly leaving Disboards, because I don't see anything wrong with the opinion I posted which is the following:

"I hate to nitpick, but why should I, who paid $600 for his ticket, have a smaller booking window for fp+ than someone who books 2 nights at the All-Stars and buys a 2 day ticket?"

 

[ArwenMarie]

I would think that if one wanted to compare it to something, one would need to compare it with what availability has typically been by around noon on any given day in the parks. Because that's the point at which most offsite guests have had a chance to book. But once they can bypass the kiosk line and go online, more people might actually book.

That's a valid comparison. But we don't know if they were holding back day-of reservations and if so, will they keep doing that. Like everything at Disney, the crowd levels are going to be the key.