Josh is the voice of reason on FP+

[JanaDee]

True. To each, his or her own. However, if you equate a successful trip with sheer number of rides ridden and you don't get up for RD or if you travel with children or if you go during peak times then you're probably going to be disappointed, FP+ or not.

I am disappointed with FP+ because for us, we would be getting a lesser experience than in the past while paying more for the experience.

 

[sharonped]

Is there some algorithm or formula I'm not aware of that lays out how many rides you are entitled to ride per dollars spent?

Oh gosh, I don't feel we're "entitled" to anything at all! I don't feel we're entitled to even GO to Disney much less have a certain number of rides per dollar spent. But, I AM entitled to decide if the value is there for MY FAMILY. That's all.

 

[wdwfreak]

I'm not sure why everyone seems to be picking on the PP who mentioned Josh's times are fairly unrealistic with a family with small children. They are. I do not recall her blaming WDW for that, or Josh, or anyone for that matter. She was just pointing out that while his post may provide relief to some people, it doesn't exactly do that for families with small children or other groups who cannot move around the park quickly. That's not a knock against him, I too find his site very helpful, but FP+ in MK is much more complicated when you cannot take full advantage of the rope drop hours like he does. I'm sure he would tell you that too.

Also, I don't know why it's so hard for people to grasp that not everyone goes to WDW for the same reasons they do. For some people it is about the rides. For some people missing a ride or not being able to repeat it would be a downer on their trip. I feel like some people take people wanting to ride rides instead of walk around as a personal insult. Who cares?

Two points:

I was simply stating that traveling with small children will usually make for less efficient touring, no matter what, per my previous experiences. I wasn't picking on the PP. To them, Josh's advice probably won't work out as well. To them I say, maybe the feeling of optimism I got from his post wasn't shared, in which case I guess my original post wasn't for you. I was sharing my own thoughts, as were they.

Second, like I said, if your experience at Disney is rated by the sheer number of rides you ride, then you have to get to RD, you have to go during non peak times, you have to move at more than a leisurely pace. If you can't (or refuse to) do any or all of these things, then you will probably be disappointed, regardless of FP+ or -.

 

[klitteral2009]

My 2 cents is, yes, a WDW vacation is expensive but I spend that money for a Disney experience. Rides, shows, food, magical surroundings and awesome accommodations on site that also provide me with free transportation all over property. I have three children, all princesses who, while they love to ride, also realize that there is a ton more to do. They also realize that waiting in line is part of life. Sometimes getting to bypass a large line is an option but you will always have to wait sooner or later. We leave Monday for a seven night stay and I'm not the least bit apprehensive or negative because WE WILL BE IN DISNEY. Where it's way warmer than home and there is so much fun to be had. My feeling is, if you have kids who like to re-ride, drag your butt out of bed, be prepared the night before and get to RD. You can accomplish more rides that way and I don't think having kids slows you down all that much. Josh's site is where I go at least once a day because he is accurate, helpful and FREE! I just don't get all the whining about having to wait in a line.

 

[sharonped]

True. To each, his or her own. However, if you equate a successful trip with sheer number of rides ridden and you don't get up for RD or if you travel with children or if you go during peak times then you're probably going to be disappointed, FP+ or not.

I respectfully disagree. PART of our enjoyment was multiple rides. Except for our last trip, I've only been to Disney with Legacy FP, we've always done RD, most but not all of our trips have been summer or holiday, and every single other trip I've taken was magical with the exception of our last. Now as you've pointed out, there was double- and triple-dipping going on; so I may have an unrealistic view of what WDW is now and will be over the next few years. I hope so.

 

[wdwfreak]

I AM entitled to decide if the value is there for MY FAMILY. That's all.

Fair enough. Well put, sharonped. As are we all. To me, there is. Disney will have to do a lot worse that FP+ to lose me and my family.

 

[Angel Ariel]

WDW is soooo much more than just rides!! It seems that the people who are only concerned with the number of rides they can get in a day would be better served going to Universal and staying in one of their hotels to get the "front of the line" pass. Then they can ride all they want. I think that would also benefit the other people who are fine with standing in line for a Disney ride to not have to listen to someone next to them complain the whole time in line because they cant get paper FP anymore.

Many of us who have concerns about FP+ are well aware that WDW is "sooo much more than just rides."

I love the atmosphere at Disney...I love just being on Main Street at closing and chilling out there as long as I'm allowed (not that I can do this anymore, with a toddler, but I love it nonetheless). That said, I am *also* there because I enjoy their rides and shows. Competing with DH on Buzz and TSMM is a big part of our fun. Riding Star Tours multiple times to see if we get any new scenes is fun. Watching my (then) 6 y/o nephew's joy and laughter at riding Thunder Mountain 6x in a row one morning with no wait? Priceless.

Going to Universal with a young child does not interest me. Even for just myself...I enjoy WDW rides specifically because while there are some "thrill" rides, they are not SO "thrilling" that I don't like them. I enjoy WDW's rides specifically because they are a nice in-between. Universal is much more for the outright thrill seekers than the in-between people like me, so it's not really a solution for guests like me.

 

[morethananyonex]

Two points: I was simply stating that traveling with small children will usually make for less efficient touring, no matter what, per my previous experiences. I wasn't picking on the PP. To them, Josh's advice probably won't work out as well. To them I say, maybe the feeling of optimism I got from his post wasn't shared, in which case I guess my original post wasn't for you. I was sharing my own thoughts, as were they. Second, like I said, if your experience at Disney is rated by the sheer number of rides you ride, then you have to get to RD, you have to go during non peak times, you have to move at more than a leisurely pace. If you can't (or refuse to) do any or all of these things, then you will probably be disappointed, regardless of FP+ or -.

I was not referring specifically to you, just anyone who implied PP (or anyone with children) thought Disney or Josh were at fault for making touring with small children more complicated. Looking back, that was not you who said that, so the comment is not directed at you .

Again, you're not who the second part of the comment was referring to either. You are not the poster who basically said "you want rides, go to universal". I agree with what you're saying, what I take issue with is people who can't understand that while they may see the rides as a small piece of the puzzle not everyone does.

 

[JanaDee]

disney will have to do a lot worse that fp+ to lose me and my family.

nm

 

[Planogirl]

Many of us who have concerns about FP+ are well aware that WDW is "sooo much more than just rides."

I love the atmosphere at Disney...I love just being on Main Street at closing and chilling out there as long as I'm allowed (not that I can do this anymore, with a toddler, but I love it nonetheless). That said, I am *also* there because I enjoy their rides and shows. Competing with DH on Buzz and TSMM is a big part of our fun. Riding Star Tours multiple times to see if we get any new scenes is fun. Watching my (then) 6 y/o nephew's joy and laughter at riding Thunder Mountain 6x in a row one morning with no wait? Priceless.

Going to Universal with a young child does not interest me. Even for just myself...I enjoy WDW rides specifically because while there are some "thrill" rides, they are not SO "thrilling" that I don't like them. I enjoy WDW's rides specifically because they are a nice in-between. Universal is much more for the outright thrill seekers than the in-between people like me, so it's not really a solution for guests like me.

I'm not much of a thrill seeker but I love Universal. That aside, I do agree that riding certain things multiple times is part of the fun. I'll be VERY interested in what happens to the lines at Star Tours since that ride is one of the few reasons we even bother with DHS. I hadn't even thought about that.

 

[ArwenMarie]

Also, I don't know why it's so hard for people to grasp that not everyone goes to WDW for the same reasons they do. For some people it is about the rides. For some people missing a ride or not being able to repeat it would be a downer on their trip. I feel like some people take people wanting to ride rides instead of walk around as a personal insult. Who cares?

I can think of ten cities in the U.S. right off the top of my head where I could go if I just wanted to walk around, eat, and soak up the atmosphere. I could even work in some shows and parades and street fairs if I planned it right. All without paying big bucks for admission tickets.

I know for us, the reason we can get our kids to go to WDW is because of the rides. My husband and I enjoy the atmosphere, but my kids want rides.

 

[nugov2]

True. To each, his or her own. However, if you equate a successful trip with sheer number of rides ridden and you don't get up for RD or if you travel with children or if you go during peak times then you're probably going to be disappointed, FP+ or not.

We went in mid June(peak) and had 3 2yr olds in our party. Like I stated we waited in virtually no lines. Winnie The Pooh broke down and that was our only long wait. Would I expect the level of ease on all trips, no....but I also know that if I have long lines and ride on very few rides, I won't go. I also am in the camp of purchasing more FP and will pay for an onsite hotel and not use it for access. Worse comes to worse we hit two parks only and pay for VIP for our next trip if the situation stays the same, but it will mean instead of going to WDW as one of yearly vacations every few years...it will be the last for a long time. I don't think WDW or anyone else for that matter will care if that happens, but I do think it is a shame that something that worked well for most was changed to something that works well for few(at least at this time). Do I think that can change, sure and I hope it does.

I do not equate our trip success on how many rides, but how satisfied we feel and how much fun we have. The same way I do on any trip. When you have experienced something that was so great and then it changes, just makes you feel disappointed that it may not be that way again. If on our next trip to Hawaii we find out that the beaches are closed for the next 20 years b/c of a toxic spill and now all visitors much share one lagoon and you have to schedule your day there and can only go 3 times during your week trip..it may make us not want to go back. Yes we are still in paradise, we can hike, horseback ride, helicopter rides and luau...but the beaches(while not the only part) are a big part of our trip so we will just go elsewhere for our next trip if we can't have access like we used to.

This is WDW decision, do I think the company will go belly up b/c of this...no, but that doesn't mean it still wasn't a mistake and it may change things for them and not just in good ways. Just b/c Disney puts their stamp on it doesn't make it better or right...they are not exempt from making mistakes as a big corporation(as many have pointed out look at the car industry). Do I know for a fact this was a mistake, no b/c it is too early to tell. Doesn't change the fact that I am relieved we took our trip before this mess and that we won't pay the kind of money we did for another until the dust settles.

 

[lugnut33]

Nothing will beat the good old days of getting there at rope drop, riding the headline attractions (several times), collecting fast passes until around 1pm, heading to the room for a break, and then heading back and using all those collected fastpasses you on the headliners again. Oh, and then staying late in the night so you could ride the same ride over and over again without any wait. Ahhh, glory days.

 

[Planogirl]

I can think of ten cities in the U.S. right off the top of my head where I could go if I just wanted to walk around, eat, and soak up the atmosphere. I could even work in some shows and parades and street fairs if you planned it right. All without paying big bucks for admission tickets.

I know for us, the reason we can get our kids to go to WDW is because of the rides. My husband and I enjoy the atmosphere, but my kids want rides.

I'm an adult and I want rides and shows too. I'll admit it.

The atmosphere is fine but I get tired of the crowds kind of blocking a lot of that. Walking around gets old if you spend a lot of that time struggling through big crowds.

 

[aaarcher86]

We went in mid June(peak) and had 3 2yr olds in our party. Like I stated we waited in virtually no lines. Winnie The Pooh broke down and that was our only long wait. Would I expect the level of ease on all trips, no....but I also know that if I have long lines and ride on very few rides, I won't go. I also am in the camp of purchasing more FP and will pay for an onsite hotel and not use it for access. Worse comes to worse we hit two parks only and pay for VIP for our next trip if the situation stays the same, but it will mean instead of going to WDW as of yearly vacations every few years...it will be the last for a long time. I don't think WDW or anyone else for that matter will care if that happens, but I do think it is a shame that something that worked well for most was changed to something that works well for few(at least at this time). Do I think that can change, sure and I hope it does.

I do not equate our trip success on how many rides, but how satisfied we feel and how much fun we have. The same way I do on any trip. When you have experienced something that was so great and then it changes, just makes you feel disappointed that it may not be that way again. If on our next trip to Hawaii we find out that the beaches are closed for the next 20 years b/c of a toxic spill and now all visitors much share one lagoon and you have to schedule your day there and can only go 3 times during your week trip..it may make us not want to go back. Yes we are still in paradise, we can hike, horseback ride, helicopter rides and luau...but the beaches(while not the only part) are a big part of our trip so we will just go elsewhere for our next trip if we can't have access like we used to.

This is WDW decision, do I think the company will go belly up b/c of this...no, but that doesn't mean it still wasn't a mistake and it may change things for them and not just in good ways. Just b/c Disney puts their stamp on it doesn't make it better or right...they are not exempt from making mistakes as a big corporation(as many have pointed out look at the car industry). Do I know for a fact this was a mistake, no b/c it is too early to tell. Doesn't change the fact that I am relieved we took our trip before this mess and that we won't pay the kind of money we did for another until the dust settles.

I couldn't take anything else you said seriously. You're obviously a crazy person

 

[Jennasis]

Fair enough. Well put, sharonped. As are we all. To me, there is. Disney will have to do a lot worse that FP+ to lose me and my family.

I'm sure they're working on something... ;-)

 

[wdwfreak]

I'm sure they're working on something... ;-)

 

[Angel Ariel]

You just have to go with it. It isn't going away any time soon, if ever at all. Learn to roll with the punches, and plan a bit more, sure, but hey, if it's what you've got to do to make sure you ride what you want and see what you want, so be it.

I'm all for planning, and yet I have yet to be able to figure out how to get FP+ to allow us to do what we did on our trips with DD in March and October.

With the parameters of 4 day Park Hopper tickets (AFS tickets), and experiencing the attractions together as a family (not splitting up) in March we were able to easily accomplish:

Jungle Cruise, ETwB, Little Mermaid (FP), Dumbo (Bonus FP given to us), Haunted Mansion, it's a small world, meeting Rapunzel/Aurora/Cinderella (FP, but before fairytale hall opened), meeting Mickey (FP), Buzz Lightyear (3 times at least, FP'd twice), Monster's Inc, POTC, Swiss Family Robinson, Space Mountain (2x, 1 w/FP, 1 w/RS), Thunder Mountain (FP), Wishes (w/tomorrowland dessert party)

This was in 1 day at MK, during spring break season, and we were there appx 30mins after RD or so (and I'm pretty sure I'm missing a ride or two in here too). We rode Buzz one more time after Wishes to let the crowds die down a bit, and then headed back to the hotel.

I am having a hard time figuring out how, in a busy season like spring break, we can accomplish all that we did on that busy season trip with only 3 FP+. The only thing I've been able to come up with so far is spending 2 days in MK and just not being able to do as much each day. In which case, WDW gets less of our money, as we like to spend money around WS and if we have to spend 2 days at MK, that's less time for Epcot.

We didn't "hoard" FPs, we didn't do "FP Running," we didn't do crazy amts of re-riding (except for maybe on Buzz..but isn't that the point of an interactive game like that?)...we used FP as it was intended, and now the system will get us far less than it did before, while paying the same (if not more).

While I can suck it up and deal with the best of them, that doesn't mean I have to smile and like that I'm getting less

 

[MichiganDVC]

We didn't spend the money it costs and time it took to get to FL to wander around looking at each other.

Um, isn't "vacation" spending time with your family or whomever you're with?

I know what you're saying...you don't want to "do nothing" while at a park, but I'm always curious about people who lament "doing nothing" at Disney while arguing that their next trip will be at the beach.

Personally, I have spent entire trips at WDW where I went on zero rides. Each trip is different for me. Yes, I am an adult. And yes, I know that kids want different things. And I'm also pretty sure that when I was ages 2+ and went to Disney every summer (before FP!) my parents would tell me "NO" when I wanted to ride something again if there was a long line. And if I had a meltdown, I would be taken into the bathroom and summarily spanked. My parents weren't harsh or abusive...they just had this concept that if they said, "No" that I was supposed to listen and oblige.

As a 25+ visitor in my 35 years of life, I don't feel like any of the magic was spoiled by not riding "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride" 15 times in a row when I was 8 years old. But that's just me...

 

[jco_direwolf]

Does anyone remember the original FP roll out? Look the system as-is is not fixed. They rolled out what they could expect to support today.

Can you imagine the Havoc if they tired something like you get 3-10 FP pre booked depending on resort, expected crowd levels, tiered attractions chosen and if you are an Passholder/DVC member?

I'm not saying they are going to do that but they could because all the information is integrated.

Right now FP+ doesn't even do what Legacy FP did of checking before you use it that the admission to the park had been granted. Everything is currently unlinked.

If you have 5 people with tickets but only 2 are in the park grab the extra bands and you have 15 FP+ for the 2 people. Do I expect this to remain NOPE. But they will turn the features on as the roll out continues.

I refuse to call this testing this is a roll out. They are getting everyone comfortable with the system (which is at this point a year behind in deployment) once they have it working for everyone and the number of trouble tickets fall off well start seeing more FP+ for guests. Either in the form of Bonus Passes (think surprise FP) or Same day passes or some way.