LOVE or HATE FP+ Anyone's mind been changed ??

[jade1]

I'm just glad we've concluded how great FP+ is for evenings, and that my plan below makes sense for my group.

They now have a clean slate every morning to RD any park (hopping or not) they want-since we also concluded that works well.

And since it's blazing hot-the afternoon break and rain also works out for them.

Couple in the additional FP+'s (although not really needed) to nail down tiers and multiple rerides on a schedule, hard to argue the improvement.

Just booked BLT 2BR for a coworker in July.

FIL is retiring and taking the 2 kids (adults/married) and 3 kids under 3. What? Yep 6 months, 1 year and 2 and 1/2. Pulling the once in a life time trigger too early but that's what he wants. None have been to WDW ever.

I will be helping them with FP+.

The only thing they know for sure-is the 2 adult kids (couples) will be going out each night and G&G will be watching the youngsters, currently they go to bed early.

They will play every AM by ear (ie CLEAN SLATE), how the little ones slept, if everyone is up and at it, maybe just take the 2 yo to MK or AK wherever.

They also plan every afternoon at the resort, by the pool, sleeping in the room-and know it will rain around 4PM every day anyway.

So now-I can equip those 4 with up to 6 FP+'s each for the evenings, meaning TT and Soarin on EPCOT nights, and TSM and RNR and Fantasmic on DHS nights, will prob do a few nights at MK since they are a few minutes walk back to the kids, so that will be 2 7DMT each.

I picture the old days with FP-, is it just me or will this be a planet alignment (FP+) for this group?

 

[Shaden]

disney08 said: ↑
I hate it because if you decide on Wednesday that you would rather go to a different park the following day then where you have your FP, you have to cancel what you have, and try to get new ones...and I will say at that point there are none left.

"It's amazing how a system that is so "flexible" can turn on you so quickly!"

Except for that bolded section is hyperbole. These days, a day in advance leaves you lots of options and they are far from having none left.

But Wis and others are talking about how flexible FP+ is during the busiest times of year, not during low crowd season.

And of course there is this

Tomorrow is a "2" per EasyWDW. I just pulled up FP's for HS for a party of three and was surprised to see that "FastPass+ Distribution Has Ended for Selected Day" for both TSMM and ToT.
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[dayvewc]

It's not hard. People on the Dis figured it out, so will others.

Ahh but you are forgetting that everyone on the Dis is of genius level beyond Sherlock. Not like those silly commoners who don't come here to learn what they should hate about things they haven't experienced yet.

 

[cakebaker]

These are all interesting circumstances......that people faced under FP- and managed just fine. Again, let's not pretend that FP+ is a panacea for every touring circumstance or anomaly. People did just fine in 2013. Their world did not come crashing down on them.

And all that can be said of FP+. You'll manage just fine, your world won't come crashing down.

When I tell people they just need to adapt to FP+ like we did with paper fp- Well let's just say the responses arent' pretty. Why is it ok that those of us who learned to manage with paper fp can't say the same to those who need to learn to manage with fp+? Somehow your issues with FP+ are just insurmountable, ours were no big deal. Funny how it's not a big deal when it's not your problem.

 

[MrInfinity]

OK. Now I'm completely lost. There are a bunch of people here telling me that the scenarios posited all derived from posters talking about hopping. But now you are saying that you don't.

There are some people here telling you about how they do well with FP+ given that they hop.
There are other people here telling you about how they do well with FP+ given that they don't hop.
You said you could replicate ANY day.
So here are lots of examples. Some hop-type days, some 1-park-type days. You have yet to effectively replicate ANY of them.

You offered to me personally that if I showed you one of my days, with rides and FP+ plan, that you could replicate it. Easily. I don't care if the times are the same, but replicating it should get one on about the same things, with about the same amount of walking, and seeing about the same sights. So I gave you a day that I actually have planned, and will actually do... it involves doing way more than was ever possible under FP-. You said you could replicate it, and you have yet to get beyond "pull a FP- one thing at 8am".

 

[Laketravis]

I apologize if your feelings were hurt. It was never meant to be scolding at all. It was a compliment..

It would take a lot more than an insensitive post from a stranger on the internet to hurt my feelings. I simply wanted to point out that you may not get the reaction you sometimes seek based on how your frame your comments and there is no need to respond to someone that way.

In regards to the "You don't mind driving back and forth to Universal every day", I've never even tried it so I don't know if I mind it or not. But based on some good information from others in this thread it sounds like that won't be much more of an endeavor than park hopping within WDW. I'll find out shortly, but to use your term I don't see how that's "relevant" especially since it's only supposition on your part.

I frankly don't understand why these discussions - which could be very germane and enjoyable for a group who apparently has plenty of time and interest to engage themselves in - have to escalate to snarky personal attacks or pontification.



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[dayvewc]

I'm just glad we've concluded how great FP+ is for evenings, and that my plan below makes sense for my group.

They now have a clean slate every morning to RD any park (hopping or not) they want-since we also concluded that works well.

And since it's blazing hot-the afternoon break and rain also works out for them.

Couple in the additional FP+'s (although not really needed) to nail down tiers and multiple rerides on a schedule, hard to argue the improvement.

Just be aware that if you are making FP+ on a second ticket, it will have to be used for admission in that park before it can be redeemed for the FP.

 

[jade1]

Just be aware that if you are making FP+ on a second ticket, it will have to be used for admission in that park before it can be redeemed for the FP.

That's why I said "if not needed", they have never been so even an evening with just TT and WS will be great, then Soarin and WS another night-but there will be days at BLT they will open MK (as mentioned) and returning that night-they also figured DHS and maybe EPCOT as well.

 

[jade1]

There are some people here telling you about how they do well with FP+ given that they hop.
There are other people here telling you about how they do well with FP+ given that they don't hop.
You said you could replicate ANY day.
So here are lots of examples. Some hop-type days, some 1-park-type days. You have yet to effectively replicate ANY of them.

My example day is one that I actually have planned, and will actually do... it involves doing way more than was ever possible under FP-. You said you could replicate it, and you have yet to get beyond "pull a FP- one thing at 8am".

Not too sure my groups days (above) could be replicated with FP-

 

[Laketravis]

I'm just glad we've concluded how great FP+ is for evenings, and that my plan below makes sense for my group....

Unless of course one decides to use the additional time of the day to pursue other non-Disney activities because for some reason that just doesn't sit well with a few and they can't stop mocking it or speculating that it's some sort of cagey plan to stick it to the mouse. Apparently it's only acceptable if you use the additional time afforded to your leisure made possible by the benefits of FP+ within the confines of Disney property.

I'm not going to waste time trying to figure out why a tiny number feel that way or to convince them otherwise. I don't really care. Instead, I'll agree with you that FP+ is great for the evenings and I think it's going to allow us to have a lot more fun each day even if that involves spending some time driving rather than riding from one park to another.



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[cakebaker]

... a group who apparently has plenty of time and interest to engage themselves ...

You're surely not making a snide comment about how much time any of us spend on the boards are you? Because that would be really insensitive and then I'd have to explain how I do that as well as do 3 of the 5 loads of laundry I have, getting dinner in the oven, grandson played with and fed today, house cleaned and bills taken care of.

But I'm quite sure you meant nothing by it.

 

[Laketravis]

You're surely not making a snide comment about how much time any of us spend on the boards are you? Because that would be really insensitive and then I'd have to explain how I do that as well as do 3 of the 5 loads of laundry I have, getting dinner in the oven, grandson played with and fed today, house cleaned and bills taken care of.

But I'm quite sure you meant nothing by it.

No, I'm not. You'd only need to explain how you can accomplish so much more if you are compelled to. I understand, because I was also on a conference call during much of the last 90 minutes but likewise I'm sure I don't have to explain that to you. Having plenty of time and interest to engage in these conversations is a benefit that not many can enjoy, the quality of which can vary so much on a whim and that is sad. I can't help what you try to read into anything. Take it as a compliment, because I didn't preface it with the word "waste"....


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[Lisa loves Pooh]

These are all interesting circumstances......that people faced under FP- and managed just fine. Again, let's not pretend that FP+ is a panacea for every touring circumstance or anomaly. People did just fine in 2013. Their world did not come crashing down on them. If the question is: are these issues more easily addressed with FP+, then the answer for some is, "yes". And that comes at a cost. And a dozen pages ago, all I said was that it was not irrational for people to not endorse the cost at which the benefits come.

No one is arguing they didn't manage just fine per se.

The question remains, could they optimize the experience?

All the requests to not pretend ... For FP+ can equally be applied to FP-.

I am not sure what you mean by cost.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

??? They couldn't pull on for 7DMT because they had FPs in Epcot. The timing has nothing to do with it.

They weren't trying to. ???

 

[erc]

I frankly don't understand why these discussions - which could be very germane and enjoyable for a group who apparently has plenty of time and interest to engage themselves in - have to escalate to snarky personal attacks or pontification. .

You mean like "This avatar sponsored by FastPass+"? How many times have we heard, "Well, if this is where Disney is going then I'm not giving them any more of my money" type of comments? In this very thread we have concluded that FP+ isn't any worse than FP- except if you want to wake up put your finger up to the wind and meander into whatever park the prevailing winds take you to.

When people get that outraged over such a small thing I can't help but assist them in realizing how silly the whole thing is.

 

[Laketravis]

You mean like "This avatar sponsored by FastPass+"?....

Huh? What? Sorry if the humor escapes you, but that's all it is. Then again, maybe it's not because a portion of the money FP+ is going to save me could actually go to keeping fuel in that cruiser, so yeah, in a sense you could say that Avatar is sponsored by FP+. Like saying I saved enough on car insurance using ______ to buy ___________ . Not sure why that would rub anyone the wrong way, maybe there's a wiki that explains why.

How many times have we heard, "Well, if this is where Disney is going then I'm not giving them any more of my money" type of comments?....

I have no idea how many times you've heard that, but I do know you haven't heard it from me.

When people get that outraged over such a small thing I can't help but assist them in realizing how silly the whole thing is.

Except that by virtue of outrage a small thing is no longer small and pointing out how silly the whole thing is could be counter-productive.

Regardless, it's somewhat interesting that there are other topics that start out much larger than this one on other DIS boards and while there are some pretty strong opinions expressed those discussions are both respectful and very interesting. In fact, one particular board comes to mind where I can't even remember the last time a thread was closed but yet there are some really meaty topics offered up for discussion.






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[cakebaker]

??? They couldn't pull on for 7DMT because they had FPs in Epcot. The timing has nothing to do with it.

Again Jimmy, we were both ( you and I) making assumptions using paper fp, not fp+.

The bottom line is, you were wrong. You cannot, easily or otherwise, duplicate what we do with FP+ using paper fp. I knew that because we had to alter how we toured the park for many years. If there was a way to do it, we would've discovered it.

 

[Hokie2000]

If you read my statement to mean that I would replicate the times as well as the rides, I apologize. That is not what I meant. I thought that I cleared that up in subsequent posts by saying "maybe not at the exact times." Replicating the times seems rather pointless. The goal here is "what can one accomplish in a day". Not, "what can one accomplish at 9:47".

That's cool, no apology needed! I agree that if you spent the day in one park, you could ride more rides with FP-, especially in DHS and Epcot. But I also think it took a bit more effort as well - especially at Epcot where the two main rides are across FW from each other! As for me, I never wanted to put in a whole lot of effort to maximize rides with FP-, so we end up riding around the same amount. So the number of rides for us becomes a wash, and the plus is in the convenience of having everything on my phone to change as needed (almost no problems there), preplanning (I love it!), and increased value of park hopping w/ 3 FPs booked in the afternoon park. Our last trip was the best one I've ever taken. Very relaxing, we did everything we wanted to do in the parks (with the exception of getting a cronut, dangit!), spent a good amount of time at the pool, and went to Typhoon Lagoon. I don't think all the credit belongs to FP+, but it didn't hurt, either.

 

[dayvewc]

Again Jimmy, we were both ( you and I) making assumptions using paper fp, not fp+.

The bottom line is, you were wrong. You cannot, easily or otherwise, duplicate what we do with FP+ using paper fp. I knew that because we had to alter how we toured the park for many years. If there was a way to do it, we would've discovered it.

Just to be contrary, this is not a true argument. FP+ could not replicate FP-, which is why you had to change how you toured the parks.

At the same time, FP- could not replicate what can now be done under FP+.

 

[wisblue]

For me (and only me, not anyone else in this thread) the advantage of legacy FP is that when you switched parks there was a very good chance that FP's would be available for pretty much anything. There are always exceptions like TSMM and Soarin', but other than that there were usually no issues for us and we would pull FP's until we were ready to head home. If we switched parks it would be around mid-day for us so that's obviously going to impact availability. We also traveled during moderate to heavy times but never had issues riding anything multiple times unless that ride broke down. And, before someone brings it up, we had no "runners". It just happened organically for us.

As to your second question. While it is only 3 FP+ reservations, that tie up at minimum 3 hours (depending on how closely you are able to schedule them and when you actually make it to the ride). That in and of itself is not the problem for ME. It's when it's pouring rain, or the crowds are not what was expected. With legacy FP we just turned around and headed to another park. If we got there (the other park) an hour or two after opening WE (in our experience) would have our pick of FP rides. What would our choices be at the new park if we did that with FP+? If we wanted to try another park and come back to our FP+ reservations then we WOULD NOT be able to pull any new FP reservations until we went back to our original park and used them. Sure, we could tough it out in the original park, but that's not how we have toured around in the past. And, since you are scheduling so far in advance there is no way to predict if you made the right choice in timing your FP+ reservations. I tried to make ours by taking into account our past riding habits from our previous visits and am hoping for the best.

So, that's how this change will impact US on OUR next visit next month. Will it be horrible like some have experienced? Will it be the greatest thing ever? Who knows, but whatever we experience is what WE EXPERIENCE. There is no wrong or right, and I think that's what some folks on these boards don't get. YOU tour how YOU like, WE tour how WE like and so on and on and on.

But, then again, if people actually did (respect someone else's experience instead of telling them how great/horrible it is if you do what they do/did) that these forums would be dead!

This is a very fair and evenhanded summary that explains how FP+ and paper FP compare for one particular touring style and set of personal preferences.

I do want to comment though on the comment about tying up 3 hours minimum because that isn't how we look at it. If, for example, our preliminary plan is to see Fantasmic at 8:30 some evening, we would probably make FP+ reservations for TSMM (or RNRC), TOT, and Star Tours with return times like 4-5, 5-6, and 6-7. After doing whatever we want in the morning and early afternoon, we could arrive at DHS sometime after 4 PM and use the first FP close to 5. Then we could do the second between 5 and 6 and the third right at 6 (or 5:55). Depending on how long the FP+ wait is for the third attraction, we would be using all 3 FPs in less than 90 minutes and still have time to get something to eat before heading to Fantasmic.

We also don't feel like those FPs tie us up in any way because we don't feel obligated to use them. If bad weather or just a change of heart makes going to Fantasmic and DHS unappealing, we could switch gears. This happened to my daughters last year when they were on their spring break trip. They texted me about severe thunderstorms in the area in the afternoon so they ditched their plan to go to DHS and returned to their resort instead. So, they asked me to change their FPs to MK in case they decided to go there later after the storms cleared the area. I was able to do that and, while I don't remember exactly what I was able to get them, there were quite a few decent attractions to choose from (things like Buzz, POC, HM, JC, and maybe Space Mountain). Maybe not the pick of the litter, but still better than what they would have usually gotten walking into MK at 6 PM during spring break.