March 7th Fast Pass Experiences

[TLSnell1981]

This thread has completely derailed into what got the "other thread" locked.

Unfortunately, THAT is the "Thread Killers" intent.

As I read through these different posts all I can say, is what I have said constantly since FP was first introduced....KILL IT! .

Well, I believe, that's exactly what Disney is doing....killing the "old" FP and preparing for the "new" one ( X- Pass) Guests will be so grateful, they'll pay anything, not to stand in a 2 hour line.

So, after reading 16 pages and 240 posts, I can summarize...there is a one hour window, new FP can't be pulled, until current FP window is active, a 15 minute grace period....and lines aren't shorter..wait times are longer?

 

[mesaboy2]

So, after reading 16 pages and 240 posts, I can summarize...there is a one hour window, new FP can't be pulled, until current FP window is active, a 15 minute grace period....and lines aren't shorter..wait times are longer?

I've managed to resist participating in or reading this thread too much, but someone please tell me this part is wrong....

 

[White_Sox_Fan]

I've managed to resist participating in this thread too much, but someone please tell me this part is wrong....

It is the same as it was, the lesser of the fastpass return time or two hours.

 

[Alesia]

I've managed to resist participating in or reading this thread too much, but someone please tell me this part is wrong....

It is.

 

[mesaboy2]

It is the same as it was, the lesser of the fastpass return time or two hours.

It is.

Thanks both for the clarification. That would've seriously stunk.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I have sort of dropped out of this thread cause it's turned into the usual. "Late FP make no difference, yes they do, no they don't" argument that has now become a total bore to read.

BUT, I've seen the above comment posted a few times on this thread and I have to say...you are so unbelievably wrong. I remember back then that if you wanted to wait in line for Splash Mountain after noon, your only choice was a 90-120 minute wait. If you eliminate FPs, that's what you are back to. It won't make the lines any shorter. The people with FP will just have to wait in line with the other. Contrary to what some say, FP DOES work, though maybe not exactly as intended. It gets people standing in line less, and thus making for a better experience.

It works so well in fact that Universal uses a similar (extra cost) system. In addition Disney is clearly NOT getting rid of FP. In fact they are expanding them. So, believe what you want, but you are clearly in the minority by a large percent - regardless of the mad rantings of an internet few.

I agree that doing away with FP would be a nightmare. I've been going since MK opened. It wasn't uncommon to stand in like 2 hrs. for rides in FL. If they did away with FP, I'd never ride anything. I was okay with standing in line that long, when I was a kid. I wouldn't even consider it now.
That said, I hope the new FP system won't provide advantages for those in the know. Even though I'm a Diser & up to date on all things Disney, I think everyone pays the same & should be able to expect the same experience w/o living on a message board.

So, after reading 16 pages and 240 posts, I can summarize...there is a one hour window, new FP can't be pulled, until current FP window is active, a 15 minute grace period....and lines aren't shorter..wait times are longer?

The person who mentioned wait times appeared to be talking about the wait between getting a FP & their return time. If that's the case, it really wouldn't have anything to do with them enforcing this policy.

 

[BNM]

OK I think I've read this whole thread at one time or another. There's one thing I'm not finding.
What effect has there been on the standby lines? I mean, no one has said, "Gee, I was in the parks last year at this time and all the late FPs really increased my waits and messed everything up for me, but this year it's so much better", right? Or did I miss it?

Seemingly little has changed.

 

[mattsdragon]

I've managed to resist participating in or reading this thread too much, but someone please tell me this part is wrong....

They aren't, that was nell being. . .dramatic

So far, the only things actually learned are:

1. CM's are telling people that they need to please be aware that soon they won't be allowed to return late.

B. CM's are looking pensive about the amount of grief they will be recieving

lime green. The Disney FP programmer (and some people on this message group) have difficulty spelling select words.

 

[goofyernmost]

I have sort of dropped out of this thread cause it's turned into the usual. "Late FP make no difference, yes they do, no they don't" argument that has now become a total bore to read.

BUT, I've seen the above comment posted a few times on this thread and I have to say...you are so unbelievably wrong. I remember back then that if you wanted to wait in line for Splash Mountain after noon, your only choice was a 90-120 minute wait. If you eliminate FPs, that's what you are back to. It won't make the lines any shorter. The people with FP will just have to wait in line with the other. Contrary to what some say, FP DOES work, though maybe not exactly as intended. It gets people standing in line less, and thus making for a better experience.

It works so well in fact that Universal uses a similar (extra cost) system. In addition Disney is clearly NOT getting rid of FP. In fact they are expanding them. So, believe what you want, but you are clearly in the minority by a large percent - regardless of the mad rantings of an internet few.

I have to ask, what exactly do you perceive as wrong with the Fastpass system?

I know people argue the whole accept/don't accept late fastpasse issue, but in general, I don't think I have EVER read on any Disney forum or blog or heard anyone, besides you, say that they need to totally trash the Fastpass system. Many companies have even tried to duplicate the enormous success of the Fastpass system. I have never, myself, felt that using the Fastpass system was "stressful." In fact, I have found that is makes my Disney vacation much less stressful - as I think the majority of Disney visitors would attest to.

At least you have conviction.

I personally would hate to see it go. I love it for a few reasons: 1) saves time in lines for headliners, 2) It is free and available to anyone with a ticket,(unlike Universal Studios) 3) By reducing wait time it makes for a happier experience, and isn't that what is the most compelling for Disney. Happy customers come back, unhappy don't.

There are a whole thread worth of reasons why I dislike FP, but they all pretty much center around one grossly misunderstood or just plain denied, point.

If you have a FP in your hand, you may think that the majority of Disney visitors have one. The fact of the matter is that the most, last I heard, number of FP's that are given out is around 30% of the crowd. Doing simple math that means that 70% of the guests cannot get one (they don't have anymore to give out)

You can use the argument that "Well, they should have gotten there early and gotten one while they still were there." OK, lets just for the sake of fun we say that every single Disney guest for any single day, got to the park at exactly the same time and they all headed for a specific FastPass machine. There would have to be some sort of line because they don't have enough FP machines to take care of all the distribution individually at the same time. That means that only 30% of all those that got to the park at the same time as everyone else will be able to get one. There is no way to equalize that.

Still staying simple...that means that 70% of the guests are not going to have their wait time shortened, but in all likelihood it will be increased. Total that out = 30% happy...70% frustrated/angry.

To requote the last quote.

Happy customers come back, unhappy don't.

But no matter what school one attended 30% does not a majority make!!

 

[mesaboy2]

Still staying simple...that means that 70% of the guests are not going to have their wait time shortened, but in all likelihood it will be increased. Total that out = 30% happy...70% frustrated/angry.

Even assuming your numbers are correct, I would categorize the 30% as smart planners, and the other 70% as blissfully clueless. Whenever I look in the standby line, I definitely don't see "frustrated/angry" there.

 

[doconeill]

There are a whole thread worth of reasons why I dislike FP, but they all pretty much center around one grossly misunderstood or just plain denied, point.

If you have a FP in your hand, you may think that the majority of Disney visitors have one. The fact of the matter is that the most, last I heard, number of FP's that are given out is around 30% of the crowd. Doing simple math that means that 70% of the guests cannot get one (they don't have anymore to give out)

You can use the argument that "Well, they should have gotten there early and gotten one while they still were there." OK, lets just for the sake of fun we say that every single Disney guest for any single day, got to the park at exactly the same time and they all headed for a specific FastPass machine. There would have to be some sort of line because they don't have enough FP machines to take care of all the distribution individually at the same time. That means that only 30% of all those that got to the park at the same time as everyone else will be able to get one. There is no way to equalize that.

Still staying simple...that means that 70% of the guests are not going to have their wait time shortened, but in all likelihood it will be increased. Total that out = 30% happy...70% frustrated/angry.

To requote the last quote.


But no matter what school one attended 30% does not a majority make!!

I don't think basing a percentage of the total crowd of the park makes any sense. It may only be 30%, but you have to take into account that not every attraction has Fastpass (in fact, it's a minority of attractions), not everyone is riding only those attractions at any given time, and some don't ride them at all.

In fact, given that the Fastpass attractions are a minority, and only represent a fraction of the total ride capacity, 30% seems reasonable.

But if you want to talk availability, you need to look at the Fastpass attractions specifically. And I'm willing to bet that the number of Fastpasses issued compared to their capacity is a LOT higher than 30%. So issues of fairness in that regard are a LOT different.

 

[MELSMICE]

Now, I'm talking minors not adults. I have never been told no at the gate when I bring my 7 year old with me and he has a lower #.

Not to derail the thread, but I'm talking about your entire party......adults included. We always board with the person that has the lowest number & have always been told it's fine.

We all check in at the same time, but don't always get our #'s together. Sometimes there are 5 or 10 numbers between us, but have boarded together.

 

[CandleontheWater]

The FP enforcement is being reported both by USA today and Fox News. Here is a link to the USA today article

but what I found most interesting was a comment posted by Len Testa (of touringplans.com). Scroll down to the bottom of the article to find the comments. I consider him to be a reliable source when it comes to predicting wait times, since his experience is based in math and algorithms, and not hearsay or perception.

Here is what he wrote:

"I don't see how enforcing FASTPASS return times will result in shorter lines, as Ian says. For example, morning guests can no longer "bank" the savings they get from obtaining FASTPASSes early and riding late; they have to return and ride during the morning. As a result, there's less time for visiting other attractions in the morning, when lines are low. Every simulation I've run says guests will experience an increase of at least 4 minutes over the course of a day, and the average is somewhere between 15 and 30."

I've also been checking twitter, and there isn't a lot of reports back on what is happening with FP in the parks today. I am a little disappointed, I was hoping for more news.

 

[DRDISNEYMD]

Ridemax has always had a little radio button you could click to "take advantage of late fastpass". If you unclick the button, then it makes your plan so that you use them during the return times. I do wonder how accurate the plans will be now. They were always right on with the late fastpass option. I never tried it the other way, though.

Also, to the PP who said the pic may be photoshopped-- it's not-- Ridemax just posted a similar pic on their FB page for Space Mountain (http://www.facebook.com/ridemax) .

It looks like it's really happened . --Katie

I wonder what the crowds are like this week. Calm before the storm of Spring Break maybe?

~I thought crowds were 9 and 10 this week? In the meantime, I'll be waiting for that one poster who was caught off guard and starts a thread informing everyone about the new late fastpass enforcement and how they were turned away. You know it's coming, when we least expect it, lol.

It's entirely possible that at 9:45 on a Wednesday the first week of March, the stand-by time was less than 40 minutes.

~That's very true. When I was there in August, Space Mountain was just 20 minutes standby. I will definitely take that into account when planning our days for this trip.

That's because the return time on the first fastpass is 10:25. That's working exactly the same as it always has.

~What am I not getting? Are all fastpass time-frame return windows the same or does it vary for each ride, each day?

~The picture below shows an old fp that was pulled at 4:27PM and you cannot pull another FP or ride until 6:20PM, that's almost 2 hours. The new fp above only has a 40 minute wait time before you can ride and/or pull another fp. Thanks.

~Here is a picture of the FP I snagged from Doc's website.

I think she was referring to the fact that it was only 45 minutes from Fastpass pull to Fastpass entry...not a terribly long time - but I don't think it was terribly busy, and I think Splash gets more popular later in the day in general.

~Thank you. That's exactly what I was saying, it's only a 40 minute wait for me to ride/or pull another FP, so I would have just enough time to go over to Splash Mountain and wait to pull another Fastpass and make it back in time to ride Space Mountain.

I have absolutely no issue with returning within the stated window. If you don't think you can make it back to that attraction before the window closes, don't take a FP. FP were not put out there in order to allow guests to get a FP and then head off and eat or ride 15 other rides. They were given in order to let guests do something other than stand in the standby line...doing nothing. Now, with FP, you can head to a gift shop, or maybe ride another ride. But seriously?? You want the ability to take a FP, with a return window of 11:45-12:45, and then head off to a table service restaurant??? And then, when you can't make it back before 12:45, you want to still be able to use the FP??

I really wish Disney hadn't allowed us to use the FP past the return time. If they had held us to the stated times, this wouldn't be happening. People get used to taking advantage of something, and then when it's changed back to what it was 'supposed' to be, they get all in a dither and say they can no longer plan accordingly and they will miss things.

Take a FP if you can return within the times...if you want to head to BTMRR or SpMt, then you may not want to take a Space Mt FP with a return time of 11:45-12:45, at 10:00...you may very well not make it back. Especially if you want to grab something to eat in there.

~I don't know if your post is addressed to me. If it isn't, I apologize, but if it is, please go back re-read my post.

~Also, when I spoke of pulling a Fastpass for Space Mountain, since I would only have to wait 40 minutes to pull another Fastpass, I could go over to Splash Mountain and pull a Fastpass and cross back over to ride Space Mountain. I mentioned nothing about riding Splash Mountain at that time. Then after riding Space Mountain, I would pull another FP for BTMRR before using my FP for Splash Mountain. I never mentioned anything about any table service anywhere.

~Again, maybe this post is meant to address someone else or no one specifically.

I'm curious about the apparent contradiction in your statement...if they weren't put out to allow the guests to "head off and eat", but there were there to let the guests "do something other than stand in the standby line", then what are they supposed to be able to do?

But this gets back to trying to understand the intent of FP...the only obvious intent was to get people out of the standby lines. People not standing in lines for hours are happier people. Now, whether they expected or at least hoped that those people would instead be shopping and eating instead of sitting in another line is debatable, but you can only hold people off from doing something else they want to do for so long. they could have put different enforcements in, like "if you pull this Fastpass, you can't ride any other attraction for at least 30 minutes, so go shop instead!" or some such, but that's really getting too restrictive. So they placed limits on how often you could get Fastpasses.

~I totally agree, this is a very good point!

 

[phillyteamhater]

~Also, when I spoke of pulling a Fastpass for Space Mountain, since I would only have to wait 40 minutes to pull another Fastpass, I could go over to Splash Mountain and pull a Fastpass and cross back over to ride Space Mountain. I mentioned nothing about riding Splash Mountain at that time. Then after riding Space Mountain, I would pull another FP for BTMRR before using my FP for Splash Mountain. I never mentioned anything about any table service anywhere.

This is going to be my Touring Strategy for when I go in June, will get there for RD and hopefully the 40 mins like it was in that example is around the same for my FPs, and therefore hopefully get most big attractions out of way in morning by using FPs for some and short stand by lines for some too. Would really like to hear how FP went for today and updates for the rest of the week.

 

[DRDISNEYMD]

This is going to be my Touring Strategy for when I go in June, will get there for RD and hopefully the 40 mins like it was in that example is around the same for my FPs, and therefore hopefully get most big attractions out of way in morning by using FPs for some and short stand by lines for some too. Would really like to hear how FP went for today and updates for the rest of the week.

~Thank you, it's great isn't it?! You would think I was speaking a foreign language with that FP strategy. I'm so glad to hear that I'm not the only one, lol. Have fun in June!

~I agree with you, I would love to hear some more FP experiences!

 

[Alesia]

~What am I not getting? Are all fastpass time-frame return windows the same or does it vary for each ride, each day?

It does vary. The time that you will be able to get another fast pass will be either the time when the window for the current fastpass opens up or two hours, whichever comes first.

 

[MouseEarsForAll]

Not to derail the thread, but I'm talking about your entire party......adults included. We always board with the person that has the lowest number & have always been told it's fine.

We all check in at the same time, but don't always get our #'s together. Sometimes there are 5 or 10 numbers between us, but have boarded together.

You don't have to worry about derailing it...It already is.

 

[DRDISNEYMD]

It does vary. The time that you will be able to get another fast pass will be either the time when the window for the current fastpass opens up or two hours, whichever comes first.

~Okay, that's what I was missing. I thought it would be a 40 minute wait time for all FP's, lol. Thanks so much for clearing this up.

LOL, this thread has been derailed *way* before I first posted on page 12!

 

[TLSnell1981]

Thanks both for the clarification. That would've seriously stunk.

I agree, a serious stinker. That is why, I had a ? And ...Wasn't sure, I was reading it correctly.

They aren't, that was nell being. . .dramatic
.

Actually, I wasn't being "dramatic" (this time). The Fast passes, that are displayed, all had the same time (new FP availability and return window).