So what makes FP+ so bad?

[Mommy2Corinne]

We just got back from a 9 day trip this past Sunday. Although we went during the slowest time of the year, the lines were long, even on rides like IASW and Spaceship Earth.

Again, reports like these are so discouraging. What.A.Mess.

 

[redrosesix]

We just got back from a 9 day trip this past Sunday. Although we went during the slowest time of the year, the lines were long, even on rides like IASW and Spaceship Earth.

I was not able to pre-book any FP+ rides as the Disney My Experience (or whatever it was called) wasn't working for me. I tried multiple phone calls but decided to just wing it once we arrived because of the anticipated low crowds.

I think we just used the FP+ for two days. On one day, we used it just once for Soarin', and blew off the two tiered two tickets we were required to schedule. The second day, they were out of Soarin' tickets, and we could only schedule late afternoon time slots. We were in the mood to switch parks, so those went unused.

I bought AP's with the anticipation of returning within 12 months. I think we will try to do that to get our moneys worth (I had also purchased a TIW card), but I think it will be quite sometime after that before we return. It was very frustrating, and we are not the type to plan rides so far ahead.

I hope they really try to fix this system. Right now, it's a mess, with long lines for rides that were once walk ons (there are still a few walk ons), and inability to go on more than just a few rides a day. We did take advantage of the single rider lines, and the late magic hours did help.

I just keep telling myself "it's ok, it will be fine, you're a hopper". But I have to be honest -- we're buying the year pass to SW and have 3 day passes for US, so my plan to hop may be right out of WDW and into one of those parks. Of course we'll use our EMH but I've already cancelled any plans, including ADRs, to tour WDW parks during Pres Week. We have been to all 3 during Pres Week, and WDW has decidedly always been the worst, even when they had FP-

You gotta go with the flow when you travel at busy times. FP- used to help us do that. We never got upset because we couldn't do exactly what we wanted to exactly when we wanted to. And we were prepared to hop out of a park when it gets so ridiculously crowded you can hardly move.

FP+ is like the anti-zen for us.

 

[famy27]

But mathematically, are there any "leftovers"? Suppose that every person with a 4:00-5:00 return time fails to return for that ride. But every person with a 5:00-6:00 return time does return on schedule. If Disney concluded that the unused FPs were "leftovers, (and it could not reach that conclusion until 5:01), and it decided to redistribute those FPs for the 5:00-6:00 (or 6:00-7:00) time slots, it would bog down those times with extra people. I suppose if FPs are not distributed for the final hour of park operation, they could squeeze the extras in there. But many people won't stay that late, and crowd levels in the last hour of operation are usually such that FPs aren't necessary. Bottom line....if you took every unused FP from 9:00am-4:00pm and redistributed them for use between 4:00pm and park closing, you might end up with huge FP lines in the final hours of operation. At present, we don't know how many unused FPs we are talking about, so we can't really draw any conclusions as to if, or how they should be re-used.

I think there will be leftovers, not in terms of unused FPs but in terms of time slots that are never booked. I'm particularly looking at Maelstrom. I can't imagine that a ton of people are using their one Tier 1 FP for that. I'm sure there are a few people, but it can't possibly be anything close to all of the available slots. So the question becomes when and how to make that capacity available (or will Disney just allow SB to move faster on those underbooked rides)? I really think the idea of "surprise and delight" will be what they use. If you log into MDE and see a brand new "bonus" Maelstrom FP, you might be inclined to head over to WS when you were originally planning to hang out in FW and ride TT instead.

 

[redrosesix]

I think there will be leftovers, not in terms of unused FPs but in terms of time slots that are never booked. I'm particularly looking at Maelstrom. I can't imagine that a ton of people are using their one Tier 1 FP for that. I'm sure there are a few people, but it can't possibly be anything close to all of the available slots. So the question becomes when and how to make that capacity available (or will Disney just allow SB to move faster on those underbooked rides)? I really think the idea of "surprise and delight" will be what they use. If you log into MDE and see a brand new "bonus" Maelstrom FP, you might be inclined to head over to WS when you were originally planning to hang out in FW and ride TT instead.

..or eat in WS instead of going to Golden Corral. I didn't understand Maelstrom being Tier 1 either.

I think there would be a lot more leftovers if they would allow us to book just 1 or 2 fp's, or cancel those we didn't need. After so many trips we still have our must-do's, but the rest we sort of do according to SB time -- if it's a short wait we do it no matter what it is (except ITTBAB -- it's not allowed). It helps make each visit a little different.

 

[JimmyV]

I think there will be leftovers, not in terms of unused FPs but in terms of time slots that are never booked. I'm particularly looking at Maelstrom. I can't imagine that a ton of people are using their one Tier 1 FP for that. I'm sure there are a few people, but it can't possibly be anything close to all of the available slots. So the question becomes when and how to make that capacity available (or will Disney just allow SB to move faster on those underbooked rides)? I really think the idea of "surprise and delight" will be what they use. If you log into MDE and see a brand new "bonus" Maelstrom FP, you might be inclined to head over to WS when you were originally planning to hang out in FW and ride TT instead.

Agree 100%. I wasn't thinking about non-taken FPs as leftovers. But you have hit on the perfect example. Unless there are changes to the tiering, or certain rides get disconnected from the grid, a ride like Maelstrom might as well dismantle its FP return queue cuz it ain't ever going to get used. I can see the SB line extending out to the lagoon while the FP return side is hearing crickets. You have to believe that the eggheads at WDW who drafted the tiers would have noticed that Maelstrom stuck out like a sore thumb and would soon become the red-headed stepchild of Epcot's top tier. It does seem logical for them to open up that attraction. If the MM+ system works the way it is supposed to, I imagine that on afternoons when Future World is disproportionately crowded, a signal could be pushed to users who are detected as being in FW, giving them a free FP to Maelstrom to entice them to abandon FW and head to WS.

 

[oddman]

For us it is super simple.

FP+ changes the entire nature of the Disney vacation.





So looked at our options, turns out Nobody in our group wants to be forced into tight schedules just to avoid lines. Nor do we want to have to wrestle with rebooking on the day etc.
We have a very generous budget for vacations, so our options where to go are not exactly limited.



While I am sure we will end up in Disney somewhere down the road, this marks the end of the long stays and frequent trips. There is simply no way I will make my vacations like a work thing.


Kind of sad really, but there it is.

 

[2Tiggies]

And there is the truth. You really are getting just one...the rest you wouldn't have needed one anyway. It is a trick, but new park visitors won't get that.

It is a trick, but the majority of the visitors will fall for it. The new system is now reportedly having a knock on effect, creating lines at attractions that previously didn't have any, and with that will come the belief that FP's actually ARE needed for these 'lesser' attractions, thereby causing the second tier FP's which really are pointless .... to be quite purposeful.

FP+
Major fail, IMO

 

[JimmyV]

It is a trick, but the majority of the visitors will fall for it. The new system is now reportedly having a knock on effect, creating lines at attractions that previously didn't have any, and with that will come the belief that FP's actually ARE needed for these 'lesser' attractions, thereby causing the second tier FP's which really are pointless .... to be quite purposeful.

I am but one voice and one vote, but I can say with all sincerity that the day I conclude that a FP is purposeful for Journey Into Imagination, Captin EO and the Tea Cups is the day that Disney has seen my last dollar.

 

[Mommy2Corinne]

I am but one voice and one vote, but I can say with all sincerity that the day I conclude that a FP is purposeful for Journey Into Imagination, Captin EO and the Tea Cups is the day that Disney has seen my last dollar.

It sounds like it's already happening for IASW, POTC, and HM...also rides that were once walk-on or minimal SB attractions.

 

[2Tiggies]

I am but one voice and one vote, but I can say with all sincerity that the day I conclude that a FP is purposeful for Journey Into Imagination, Captin EO and the Tea Cups is the day that Disney has seen my last dollar.

I hear ya, buddy! And we may each be just 'one voice and one vote' ... but there seem to be many of us. I don't want to make that decision just now because I'm holding onto hope that somehow, I am being way too quick to judge. But every time I hit another sinking feeling of disappointment when I think of an aspect of our upcoming trip ... and then realize that xyz is no longer going to be part of the vacation that we knew and loved, it pushes me one step closer.

We actually sat last weekend with brochures from a travel agent just wondering ....