More updated Fastpass+ information

[ManyMinnie]

It should also be noted that it is human nature to equate the concepts of 'well thought out and rational' with 'agrees with me'.

Yes, I agree with the letter written in the link.

However, I am also mature and intelligent enough to acknowledge when someone that disagrees with me has a well thought-out, reasonable, rational argument against what I agree with.

 

[ManyMinnie]

For those who believe this new system will ultimately benefit "low info" users, I have a question.

Those same people can't be bothered to learn about the FP system as is, what makes you think they'll be willing to put the time in to go online 180 days before their vacation and pick rides?

 

[3happydancers]

People happily go to the current FP kiosks. FP+ merely gives you more options since you can go to the kiosks or use your phone or Internet-enabled device.

I suppose we look at this differently, and that is ok. You see it as more options; my family sees it as giving only those who can afford the expensive devices more options. Just because some families cannot afford the extra electronic devices does not mean we should not have the same access to Fastpasses. At least with the present FP system, we are all on the same playing level, standing in the same lines at the FP kiosks.

But like I said, everyone is entitled to their own opinions and feelings. My family will simply give it time, check it out, and see if it works for us. If not, we move on. Disney will not feel the impact for there are always people to take our place. We are ok with this.

 

[Brian Noble]

I expect to be able to get a certain level of entertainment out of my time and money

How do you measure entertainment? Rides ridden, or fun with your family?

If the former, then I see your point. But, I bet it is the latter---and this change may impact that less than you suspect. As I wrote above, I expected FP enforcement to materially reduce my enjoyment in the parks, but surprisingly it didn't.

 

[DisneyaHolic23]

I am in the "neutral" position right now (probably a little more on the negative side, but willing to see what the system becomes...), but have several thoughts:

1. I wonder if a piece of this is encouraging folks to buy their tickets directly through Disney. I know that if people buy tickets from an outside source can exchange them for the magic band, but how do they make reservations in advance?

2. I am a HUGE planner. We travel to Disney World 1-3 times a year, and for our next trip scheduled for next Thanksgiving, I already have created an in-depth itinerary. However, I also recognize that "things happen." What if I plan a trip to the water park, and wake-up to discover rain? This system seems to make it very difficult to suddenly make a major change to the itinerary.

3. I have read that this system will help "non-planners", but it is somewhat unclear as to how. You still have to be savvy enough to know that you can make reservations in advance to take advantage of this system. Potentially, if standby lines really are a bit shorter, that will be a tiny advantage, but it seems that this system STILL leaves out non-planners.

4. I look forward to potential bonuses. I love the idea of coupons and other little surprises. It seems like a "Year of a Million Dreams" kind of promotion could be done on steroids (that was my FAVORITE promotion ever!)

5. I do find it frustrating that the goal is to "even the playing field"; those of us that really do visit regularly and get the system should be "rewarded" - I work hard to study and find the little tricks and ways to be more efficient. Those that don't pre-plan, don't, for the most part, even know that they are missing out.

6. Probably my biggest worry is the implementation schedule. Our Thanksgiving trip will be our DREAM TRIP - it is my 50th birthday, and we are doing EVERYTHING. It isn't so bad if I miss a ride, since I have done them all many times before, but we are traveling with 6 total Disney virgins - they have never visited, and are going to experience my love for my birthday. I worry that this will still have glitches when we go in November, and regardless of how great the system ends up, I don't want to spend a bunch of time being disappointed or standing in Guest Relations lines... Please, Disney, hurry and figure it out, give us a timeline, and let's get a move-on.

7. Having everything on a single bracelet seems awesome. I like the idea of keeping all my reservations, ticket, etc. on this one bracelet.

8. Finally, 3 FP+ is NOT ENOUGH! I don't know how to make this work, but it just is so far from what I currently experience. I plan, I take advantage of my research, and I always have a fastpass in-hand. I love the system.

My anxiety is high - this is the first thread I read from beginning to end. I recognize that nothing is gained by worrying, but, as I already said, this is a SPECIAL trip. I just want to know, and keep planning.

 

[interstate70s]

I know it's fashionable to call the original an abject failure, but it drew 5-6M guests per year from '08 to '11. That's not as much as any of WDW's four parks, but it was higher than any non-Disney US park save IoA post-Potter. That's not a bad failure.

With the addition of RSR, WOC, etc., it now reportedly draws equal to Disneyland---which is an insane success. Some of that is cannibalism from Disneyland, but a good chunk of it is new guests. It will almost certainly pass Epcot, and it might even pass Tokyo DisneySea. If it does, it will be the best-attended amusement park worldwide without a castle in it.

Thats why I said "1.0" yes its awesome now a (I love it) after Disney basically said mea culpa and dropped a billion to fix.

I disagree that just because a company spends a lot of money on something means its going to be successful. Disney has had failures too. I hope things work out but I hope it doesn't even test before our trip.

 

[Brian Noble]

what makes you think they'll be willing to put the time in to go online 180 days before their vacation and pick rides?

I think it is 60, not 180, and just as with ADRs, you can do it anytime---even the same day if you like. But, if lots of people don't use them at all, then the 3/day limit will probably go up, as I wrote above.

But, if you believe that doing this online---maybe 60 days prior, maybe the night before, maybe even that morning---is easier than going to a FP kiosk, then *some* additional people will make use of it. Likewise, you don't have to get up early to make full use of FP+; everyone has full access whether they are rope-droppers or would rather sleep in. So, that will help a few more people. And, if they do use it, their trips will might be less of a hassle, and probably more enjoyable.

The real question is how many more people will take advantage of FP+ vs. FP, and whether it matters or not. Some still won't, for sure. That's okay as long as more use it and get something out of it. That's the $1B bet that Disney has made. True, RFID is being used for more than just attraction access and enhancement, but rightly or wrongly the attractions are why people go.

 

[bauer1168]

The trouble at least in Disney's mind is "What about the person who likes to sleep in on vacation, eat an expensive character meal and strolls into DHS Right now 1:00 on the Saturday. If MyDisneyExperience can be trusted, they are looking at the following
Ride Wait Fast Pass
Star Tours 10 min 1:35 - 2:35
TSMM 80 min 7:40 - 8:40 (shocked they are still available at all)
TOT 80 min 2:10-3:10 (Something doesn't look right)

Josh on easywdw stated TOT has been having big problems and only been running at half capacity, resulting in the long waits.

 

[bauer1168]

The new system is not intended to make you (or me) happy, Doug. It's intended for the family who shows up at 11AM, without a real idea for how to tour the parks---which is to say, the vast majority of Disney's customers. After all, the reason our touring style works is only because the vast majority doesn't know how to do it. All of those families will be a little better served by FP+, and correspondingly enjoy their visit more. That's the goal. Because ride capacity is fixed, that necessarily means the "extreme tourers" like you and me will be getting less.

I get what you're saying I'm not too sure if I believe this will be an easier option for the average guest to understand how to use FP+.
FP is advertised in park maps, resort tv, holiday brochures, websites, travel books, yet some have no idea what it is or how to use it. This whole new experience could completely overwhelm the average guest I feel.

 

[glamdring269]

I feel like the phrase "You snooze, you lose" is a true statement. I really don't feel bad for people who want to take it easy an show up at the parks at lunch time. There really should be a benefit for people who show up to a park when it opens. I guess that benefit will still exist to some degree but it just won't be as much.

Probably.

Like I said before, I'll wait until the full details are in the wild before making final judgment.

 

[bauer1168]

I feel like the phrase "You snooze, you lose" is a true statement. I really don't feel bad for people who want to take it easy an show up at the parks at lunch time. There really should be a benefit for people who show up to a park when it opens. I guess that benefit will still exist to some degree but it just won't be as much.

Probably.

Like I said before, I'll wait until the full details are in the wild before making final judgment.

I think Disney are trying to reach a happy medium and make as many guests as they can happy.
The benefit for people who show up early is the short waits, if any wait at all, for the attractions. I hope this doesn't change when FP+ comes along.
But, we'll have to wait until its all fully rolled out and see what happens

 

[jade1]

I'm more than happy to go to Universal and use their Express Pass.

I'm not convinced this wont happen one day at WDW. Well at least offer more FP+'s for some reason or another anyway. Guest relations, money, DVC purchase, Deluxe-who knows, but it would be simple with this new system and transparent to other guests in the park.

 

[ManyMinnie]

I think it is 60, not 180, and just as with ADRs, you can do it anytime---even the same day if you like. But, if lots of people don't use them at all, then the 3/day limit will probably go up, as I wrote above.

But, if you believe that doing this online---maybe 60 days prior, maybe the night before, maybe even that morning---is easier than going to a FP kiosk, then *some* additional people will make use of it. Likewise, you don't have to get up early to make full use of FP+; everyone has full access whether they are rope-droppers or would rather sleep in. So, that will help a few more people. And, if they do use it, their trips will might be less of a hassle, and probably more enjoyable.

The real question is how many more people will take advantage of FP+ vs. FP, and whether it matters or not. Some still won't, for sure. That's okay as long as more use it and get something out of it. That's the $1B bet that Disney has made. True, RFID is being used for more than just attraction access and enhancement, but rightly or wrongly the attractions are why people go.

Whatever the time frame is, some people still won't bother (aka, the exact people the system is supposed to be designed for).

So who is really benefiting?

 

[jade1]

I feel like the phrase "You snooze, you lose" is a true statement.

That's not changing-its just 6AM on your pc at 160 days.

 

[Brian Noble]

I disagree that just because a company spends a lot of money on something means its going to be successful.

I don't claim that it is a guarantee. But, you don't spend the equivalent of a new DCL ship, or the DCA makeover, unless you have a pretty good idea of how you're going to make it back.

They could be wrong, and it could end up not improving guest satisfaction at all, and not generating the other savings/revenue opportunities that they expect. They could be REALLY wrong, and it could lower guest satisfaction. But, before spending all that money, someone whose job depends on being right probably spent a lot of time thinking about what the pros and cons were going to be. At this level of expenditure, it was a large number of "someones". They could all be wrong. Time will tell, but Disney obsessively measures its guests about things like this, so they have a lot more information to work with than we do.

Speaking of being wrong when it comes to these sorts of things, it is interesting to note that Disney was wrong about something very closely related---FP itself. The original motivation behind FP was that if you got guests out of line, they would spend more money in the shops and restaurants. But, that isn't what happened. If you go back and look at the annual reports, you will find that Parks & Resorts did not see an unusual increase in in-park spending vs. the other theme park operators. Instead, guests just got back in some other line. Indeed, the other theme park operators that had "free" virtual queuing (Universal and Cedar Fair) abandoned it and went to paid-only versions, while other operators who started with paid-only versions (Six Flags, Herschend, Busch/SeaWorld) have only expanded it.

Why did Disney not also just go the pay-to-play route? I don't know. That's a very interesting question. Maybe, they finally are, though the VP of NextGen has said quite publicly that they do not plan to. I have a hard time believing that, but that's been the story so far.

 

[glamdring269]

That's not changing-its just 6AM on your pc at 160 days.

Ha so true. Now let's just hope the weather forecast is good that far out.

 

[clareita]

All I can say is that I am hoping that the rollout of FP+ is after our April trip. My husband was less than thrilled when I told him about the new FP enforcement policy. If I told him we were limited to to 3 FP per day (assuming this is correct) I would have a rebellion on my hands.

I can honestly say that if the more pessimistic views of the FP+ turn out to be true (3 FP per day, limits on FP for big rides) it will reduce the chances of a return visit for us. I freely admit that we aren't Disney diehards - we go every 3 years or so, not every year or multiple times a year like some other Disboarders, but we still love it. However, the cost of a WDW vacation for 5 flying from Mass is high. The airfare alone for my family this trip is over $3000. I'm not going to pay these kinds of prices to spend a lot of time in lines. I can get my Disney fix with a day trip to DL when I visit my sister who lives 15 minutes from DL.

 

[Brian Noble]

Whatever the time frame is, some people still won't bother (aka, the exact people the system is supposed to be designed for).

So who is really benefiting?

Some people still won't for sure. Some people will, though. It doesn't have to be everyone, it just has to be more than use FP today.

That doesn't seem like too big of a stretch to me. This sort of thing is already nearly ubiquitous. For example, we're headed to Washington DC next week. I just booked my National Archives arrival time online, and the whole process took at most five minutes---and that included having to create an account.

 

[BeccaG]

For those who believe this new system will ultimately benefit "low info" users, I have a question.

Those same people can't be bothered to learn about the FP system as is, what makes you think they'll be willing to put the time in to go online 180 days before their vacation and pick rides?

I don't believe it will benefit low info users but it will benefit the non uber user. I know how to get 10 fast passes a day but if I made my west coast family get up to do that they would be grumpy and our time not as enjoyable. So this new system appears to benefit those in my situation. But as others have said time will tell.

 

[4disneygenerations]

After reading so much of this thread, I have to say I can't help but worry I seem to be in the same frame as DisneyaHolic23. We go to Disney every year. This year we are taking 3 WDW virgins, 9, 14 & 18. We are going in August and there is still no definite information on FP+ We have always used FP as much a we could and I am a planner but What if we change are minds on which park we will be at because of weather? What if WDW has FP+ in place before we get there and it works as well as their new WDW site has I want this trip to be as magical as all our others. Yes I am a worrier