Soarin' SB+ test...Fail

[lovethattink]

We want photos. And video...... a complete recon package.

Oh.... and have fun!

Yes!

I am here now, and am actually going into epcot momentarily. I will attempt to see what is actually going on.

I have found trying to do repeat rides, even with rope dropping, more difficult then ever, because of fast pass and the way they are opening the parks - at epcot and studios. Also, The number of people making and using a 9 am fast pass is remarkable, and the problem is maginified at these two parks because of the limited number of 'e' attractions.....MK is still easy. Have not done AK yet

I'm heading to the world, but off to another entertainment venue

Look forward to your reporting back!

AK has always been easy for us, except when the park closes early. Then there is less opportunity for FP+. The one time we went the ONLY FP+ available to us was It's tough to be a bug. All other times we were able to get 3. That 1 FP+ day was when we decided to go to the park on the spur of the moment.

 

[Suvadoo]

AK has always been easy for us, except when the park closes early. Then there is less opportunity for FP+. The one time we went the ONLY FP+ available to us was It's tough to be a bug. All other times we were able to get 3. That 1 FP+ day was when we decided to go to the park on the spur of the moment.

Spontaneity is strictly forbidden!

 

[selina4disney]

we don't have DVC, almost bought in 2006, glad I didn't. But we have still gone every year, and this year we were double booked because we couldn't decide between universal or Disney, Disney won by a thread because of FD. But I admit, if I wasn't paid in full, all of which I bought gift cards for, so no refund, I'd probably have backed out already. We have already told the kids that next year we are going elsewhere.

If you cancel they do refund the amount you paid on gift cards back to the cards. I had paid part of a trip I had to change with a gift card. It was back on the card in about a week.

 

[Carrie in AZ]

It is obvious to me that whoever is thinking up this stuff has never actually been in the parks. I am not kidding. If anyone with any decision making power actually booked a vacation, spent hours online making ADRs and FP+, lost them, spent hours on the phone with IT to get them back, went to the parks and experienced these new cards, they would realize how completely and utterly WHACKED things have gotten.

We spent our 10 year and 20 year anniversaries at DW and we are scheduled to return in November for our 25th. I am realizing now that the magic we experienced on those previous trips will not be present when we get there this time. We have been considering Hawaii instead, I think it's time to make a change. DH and I have absolutely no patience for things that don't make sense. None of this makes any sense!!

UGHHHHHHHHHHH

 

[canyoncam]

3. Here is my biggest fear - WDW visitors who need their Disney fix cannot stand it anymore, and more and more head off to California. Execs see these new crowds and people staying longer and realize - we need Magic Bands and FP+ here right away...

This is mine too. I have been to WDW many times but planning first trip to DL next year. I'll cry f they make changes there:-(

 

[Suvadoo]

It is obvious to me that whoever is thinking up this stuff has never actually been in the parks. I am not kidding. If anyone with any decision making power actually booked a vacation, spent hours online making ADRs and FP+, lost them, spent hours on the phone with IT to get them back, went to the parks and experienced these new cards, they would realize how completely and utterly WHACKED things have gotten.

We spent our 10 year and 20 year anniversaries at DW and we are scheduled to return in November for our 25th. I am realizing now that the magic we experienced on those previous trips will not be present when we get there this time. We have been considering Hawaii instead, I think it's time to make a change. DH and I have absolutely no patience for things that don't make sense. None of this makes any sense!!

UGHHHHHHHHHHH

Maybe things will improve by your 30th or 40th anniversary

 

[MaryKatesMom]

There are very few popular attractions in Epcot. Wouldn't it have been smarter to invest in new E ticket attractions prior to introducing FP+ ? I resent Disney trying to convince guests to book FP+ on rides like Figment or EO. What a joke!

I have a brilliant idea for you, Disney. Stop building more and more DVC guest rooms and hotels and start adding actual attractions to keep up with the crowd levels you are obviously courting. NFL is a start, but there needs to be something else to do in the other parks. EPCOT has a big empty pavilion just waiting to be filled, for Pete's sake.

I'm sorry, but Soarin' has been attraction there for ages. It is old and needs to be re-done. Yet there is a huge uproar to ride it…because there's nothing else to really do except TT! I could not believe they actually force you to pick FPs for lame attractions like Captain EO and Figment and they're trying to say this makes your vacation better than the old way. It isn't.

With the reported $2 billion spent on My Magic Plus, Disney could have built five $100 million e-tickets at each of their 4 Walt Disney World theme parks.

What would most guests have been more happy with?
Which would have "increased park capacity" more?
Which would have prompted more potential guests to book more WDW vacations?

Your answer is in your previous sentence. Those 2 rides are the only rides at Epcot that are highly popular. If they let people book both, there would not be nearly enough FP available to go around. Half the people going to the park that day would not be able to get either. If half your guests can't book either of the only 2 rides everyone wants to ride, that makes for a lot of unhappy guests.

Instead of making capital investments in new, in-demand attractions for Epcot and Disney's Hollywood Studios, this is their solution.

This is not a problem at Magic Kingdom because there are plenty of in-demand attractions. Sure there aren't nearly enough A&E or mine train FP available so everyone can get one, but everyone can still get Splash Mountain, Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, Peter Pan, etc. as a consolation prize.

Can you imagine what 2 new E ticket attractions at either Epcot or DHS would do? At Epcot it would DOUBLE the amount of must do rides, and spread the 2 hour lines at TT and Soarin down to under an hour and eliminate the need for tiers. The same would happen at DHS. It would also great so much more goodwill for Disney.

I like the FP+. I don't think it's as "fair" as the old system as I am a comando and loved to maximize my FPs. But overall it is an improvement. But spending the money on attractions would have been a much bigger improvement.

MDE and FP+ are not simple. Guests have to have a lot of tribal knowledge to effectively use the system. If I were a WDW newcomer, I would be incredulous at the amount of pre-planning suggested to maximize my visit to amusement parks!

I truly feel sorry for the front line CM's. I think the executives who suggested SB+ should work as front line CM's during implementation. I just don't understand why they thought this was a good idea!

Disney continues to pack the parks, but now they're to the point where there's no availability for their most popular rides, because they can't convince their guests that EO and Figment are fabulous.

I don't understand why they don't increase their park hours. It might help
with some immediate problems. However in the long run, they need more E ticket attractions. Particularly in Epcot and DHS, and they can't take 5+ years to build them.

The only solution to capacity problems is more capacity. They don't have enough attractions for the number of guests they are courting to the parks, no matter what shell games they implement to move the crowds around.

The solution is MORE attractions!! Two more headliners would do...at least one has to be in WS. that would redistribute crowds.

Bottom line though.... Disney wouldn't need FP+ tiers and SB+ whatever the flop it is, if there were MORE RIDES!!! They need to kick this into high gear and get some rides into EPCOT that people actually want to ride.

Epcot has needed help for a long time.

I think everyone on disboards could see this blunder coming! Honestly what did they expect. Whoever came up with this idea should be fired immediately. Disney not spending the money on new attractions is gonna bite them in the butt real soon! Hey they made their bed now its time to lie in it!

Wow! I was just shocked to see this. I'm so glad that I don't have a trip planned for WDW this year. And this is the first time in decades that I'm not going to WDW in the near future. What a mess! After my last trip in October 2013, I was so disappointed with Disney. It just wasn't enjoyable any more - too much planning, hard to redo the rides I enjoyed, too many people for too few rides.

Disney needs to put some money into these parks, especially Epcot and the Studios. Another reason that I'm not going to WDW this year is that everything is the same, nothing new. When will Disney see the light and get moving on some new attractions. And no, Avatar does nothing for me - that's another waste of money just like MDE.

Hope someone at Disney is paying attention.

While pouring money into other venue's WDW has done a great job of building DVC units and hotel rooms at WDW. What % of rooms have they added over the last 15 years and what % of capacity have they added?

I think it is interesting that poster's are so jealous of the TLC from Comcast to Universal that they feel the need to stomp their feet and declare "It's not as good as you think!" Better than the crumbs throw by Disney at WDW.

 

[Suvadoo]

This is mine too. I have been to WDW many times but planning first trip to DL next year. I'll cry f they make changes there:-(

DLR is a local park and the locals are proud of it. I don't think they could introduce FP+ without causing a major riot.

 

[Suvadoo]

I think it is interesting that poster's are so jealous of the TLC from Comcast to Universal that they feel the need to stomp their feet and declare "It's not as good as you think!" Better than the crumbs throw by Disney at WDW.

Oh c'mon! I know how excited everyone is about the new DD parking garage!

 

[mom2rtk]

Hope someone at Disney is paying attention.

While pouring money into other venue's WDW has done a great job of building DVC units and hotel rooms at WDW. What % of rooms have they added over the last 15 years and what % of capacity have they added?

I think it is interesting that poster's are so jealous of the TLC from Comcast to Universal that they feel the need to stomp their feet and declare "It's not as good as you think!" Better than the crumbs throw by Disney at WDW.

It's not rocket science to figure out that Disney has a capacity problem. For them to proceed down the road they have chosen just tells me they know that yet still intend to go a different direction.

DLR is a local park and the locals are proud of it. I don't think they could introduce FP+ without causing a major riot.

There are lots of reasons why it's an even worse fit at DLR. In addition to it being a park of locals, most rides don't have FP return lines, or space to squeeze it in. Yet, I have this feeling that if MM+ turns out to increase guest spending, they will give it a go.

 

[lovethattink]

Spontaneity is strictly forbidden!

Lol. But we are Disney's kind of people. We are happy eating and people watching. Half the time we don't use all 3 FP+. We go for a few hours at a time. Usually a meal, a ride or two, a show or parade.

 

[microscopes]

"Standby Plus"

It is an "experiment" by WDW to reduce long standby lines by having guests who want to wait "standby" receive a card with a time to come back to the ride later. Supposedly they would then wait no longer than 30 minutes. When they run out of cards, the "line" closes to any new entrants. It's been used on the Anna and Elsa meet and greet and is relatively successful there at fixing it so nobody has to wait in a 3 hour line to meet characters. But will it work on rides? Do guests really want to have a shorter wait guaranteed at the cost of being unable to join the standby line whenever they want to?

So ... it's basically what FP was when it first came out.

 

[canyoncam]

DLR is a local park and the locals are proud of it. I don't think they could introduce FP+ without causing a major riot.

That does reassure me.

Not that I do this often but I am indulging in a TWINKIE! Wouldn't it be wonderful if all these changes went away and things went back the way they used to be. We saw it with TWINKIES and "NEW" Coke. But the powers that be at Disney are more stubborn than the heads of those two companies.

 

[Squidgyness]

This makes me boil with rage on principle. I feel so sad, just not happy to see how WDW is going right now.

That might seem pathetic and sad to some people, but it was my childhood, and a lot of other peoples too. It means a lot to me, I've criticised it yes, but in the sense of a mentor wanting his pupil to succeed or a fan wanting his team to win.

The only thing I can think to compare it to is a seaside town I used to go to as a kid for little breaks. They replaced the 'old' vintage trams there for new, 'better' ones. They courted parties and stag night crowds for easier sales. They increased prices. They decreased attractions.

Sure you can still go to that town, get some candy, enjoy the beach, maybe even do attractions with a bank loan or two... but it's not the same. Not nearly the same.

I'm not an evil or spiteful person, I can understand that change, even if it doesn't benefit me, is necessary if it helps the majority. Heck, I support some unpopular policies precisely for that reason. But can anyone seriously tell me all this is better than what was in place in 2009 when I last went? That it couldn't have been handled much better, or the money spent elsewhere where it was badly needed? I find it hard to believe.

I just remember people getting laughed at, shouted down at suggestions fast pass plus was the tip of an iceberg of change. Seems pretty clear it was now.

Count me in the waiting for some good news category. Please, come to your senses Disney. We want to give you money, make yourselves worthy of it!

And good luck to all those heading elsewhere, enjoy your trips !

 

[DebbieB]

I have a brilliant idea for you, Disney. Stop building more and more DVC guest rooms and hotels and start adding actual attractions to keep up with the crowd levels you are obviously courting. NFL is a start, but there needs to be something else to do in the other parks. EPCOT has a big empty pavilion just waiting to be filled, for Pete's sake.

I'm sorry, but Soarin' has been attraction there for ages. It is old and needs to be re-done. Yet there is a huge uproar to ride it…because there's nothing else to really do except TT! I could not believe they actually force you to pick FPs for lame attractions like Captain EO and Figment and they're trying to say this makes your vacation better than the old way. It isn't.

DVC resorts pay for themselves. They get the construction costs plus a profit when they sell the points. That's why they keep building more, it's a money maker.

 

[Jennasis]

I get angrier and angrier each passing moment with this BS+ (not a typo).

 

[clsteve]

I'm sure she will. As long as she's not hoping to, you know, actually ride it.

Well, at least she knows. She's got that going for her.....

Mesa, are you as surprised as I am that we're 22 pages into it and nobody's brought up the "Why the heck are they doing this during the peak of Summer without telling anybody...?" response?

22 pages and not one guinea pig reference.

At least they've done a very good job of conditioning us that it's alright to pay to be a tester. So they've got that going for them....

 

[mom2rtk]

I get angrier and angrier each passing moment with this BS+ (not a typo).

 

[Squidgyness]

I get angrier and angrier each passing moment with this BS+ (not a typo).

I know, I haven't even got trips planned, don't own DVC and couldn't have gotten back till 2016 and it makes me furious. Can only imagine how people going soon or owning DVC feel.

If you find a way to calm down, let me know. After these past few months reading all the innovative ways Disney is finding to screw people, I could use it...

 

[mesaboy2]

Well, at least she knows. She's got that going for her.....

Mesa, are you as surprised as I am that we're 22 pages into it and nobody's brought up the "Why the heck are they doing this during the peak of Summer without telling anybody...?" response?

22 pages and not one guinea pig reference.

At least they've done a very good job of conditioning us that it's alright to pay to be a tester. So they've got that going for them....