State of Fast Pass Return (or replacement)

[PalmettoPath]

They were still 5 hours when this picture was taken in May, 2014. (I didn't stand in the line, I just wanted my picture next to the 300 minute sign haha)

View attachment 589488

3+ hour waits aren't a new thing, they have happened in the past when it's especially crowded or there is a super popular "must do" thing.

Very true. Anyone who visited frequently in the 1970s will know that the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea line was routinely over 180 minutes during busy seasons.

 

[onelove8187]

Like most here, I’ve been going to Disney, at least annually for 30+ years. I’ve been during Spring Break, Easter, Christmas, May, June, etc. And this still blows me away 300 for small world!? I really thought I saw everything at Disney prior to this photo. I’m sorely mistaken

its for the anna and elsa meet and greet, small world is just in the background of the photo. 300 minutes for small world wold be insane lol.

 

[monstermash23]

its for the anna and elsa meet and greet, small world is just in the background of the photo. 300 minutes for small world wold be insane lol.

It would be the craziest thing I’ve ever seen/heard of at Disney lol, that’s for sure. Thank you for clearing that up

 

[Cygnus 2112]

I remember one visit during Easter break small world was 60 minutes with the velvet rope outside for the line- that really solidified in my mind how big the crowds were during that trip.

 

[Obi-J Kenobi]

didnt they have fast passes for this though?

My recollection was that fairytale hall had 2 queues. Each queue lead to 2 princess. If you wanted to Fastpass all 4 princess you needed to book 2 seperate, Fastpasses or wait in both queues.

 

[cakebaker]

They were still 5 hours when this picture was taken in May, 2014. (I didn't stand in the line, I just wanted my picture next to the 300 minute sign haha)

View attachment 589488

3+ hour waits aren't a new thing, they have happened in the past when it's especially crowded or there is a super popular "must do" thing.

This was just very shortly after they moved it from Epcot. I expect waits like that for new things and Anna and Elsa were a phenomenon then that I don't think we've ever seen before. Right now, it's a typical weekday, with a ride that is over 4 years old. No comparison. If someone could show me 3-4 hr wait times for rides that are several years old, not on a holiday, no special events, I'd love to see them. The fact is, FOP has been hitting 2+ hours for a couple of weeks now and every day it gets longer. I don't believe we can say that about any other ride at any other time.

 

[cakebaker]

didnt they have fast passes for this though?

Yes. There were 2 meets, Anna/Elsa and 2 other princesses. Back then during the Elsa Anna craze, the other princesses were more like the step sisters so waits for them were short and no need for a FP really.

 

[cakebaker]

Just for reference, July 4, 2019, FOP averaged 108 min wait time througout the day. Yesterday it averaged 120, and that was with a top wait time of 125 minutes, not the 180 we see today. We're pretty much above average wait times for what they'd be like on a holiday and these wait times are everyday, not just a single holiday. There's just no claiming that this is something that happens all the time or that it's normal. It isn't. And again, the big difference is, there was FP+ to avoid the wait time.

Corrected from 300 minutes to 180- my bad!

 

[anomamatt]

I have posted this elsewhere... but those posted waits are NOT accurate with actual wait times. If you look at TP Lines for FoP today:

11:46am - Posted = 210 min - Actual = 130 mins
12:29pm - Posted = 180 min - Actual = 121 mins

(This kind of trend is true across all parks)

I'm not saying 120 mins is "great", but for whatever reason the waits have been excessively inflated over the past week. The posted waits are almost always higher than normal, but these are much more inflated than normal.

I don't believe this (at all), but if you are conspiracy minded: maybe this is a ploy to get people to buy paid FP+ whenever (if) it comes to pass. Make the waits say 3+ hours just to get more people to pay... or maybe it's just to make people happy it didn't take (nearly) as long as advertised. But it's clearly getting a lot of people here upset / nervous about their upcoming trips...

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

Just for reference, July 2019, FOP averaged 108 min wait time througout the day. Yesterday it averaged 120, and that was with a top wait time of 125 minutes, not the 300 we see today. We're pretty much above average wait times for what they'd be like on a holiday and these wait times are everyday, not just a single holiday. There's just no claiming that this is something that happens all the time or that it's normal. It isn't. And again, the big difference is, there was FP+ to avoid the wait time.

These are actual wait times from July 2019 for FOP:
July 8 2019 = 172 mins 2021 = 125 mins
July 9 2019 = 181 mins 2021 = 123 mins
July 10 2019 = 190 mins 2021 = 115 mins
July 11 2019 = 142 mins 2021 = 103 mins
July 12 2019 = 155 mins 2021 = 129 mins
July 13 2019 = 134 mins 2021 = 137 mins

And where on earth did we see 300 mins today? 3 hours maybe….but thats 180 mins

 

[anomamatt]

These are actual wait times from July 2019 for FOP:
July 8 2019 = 172 mins 2021 = 125 mins
July 9 2019 = 181 mins 2021 = 123 mins
July 10 2019 = 190 mins 2021 = 115 mins
July 11 2019 = 142 mins 2021 = 103 mins
July 12 2019 = 155 mins 2021 = 129 mins
July 13 2019 = 134 mins 2021 = 137 mins

And where on earth did we see 300 mins today? 3 hours maybe….but thats 180 mins

So today’s actual numbers are not abnormal.

The highest I saw today on MDE was 210 mins. But that was 130 min actual wait.

 

[Future_WorldPhonencian]

I have posted this elsewhere... but those posted waits are NOT accurate with actual wait times. If you look at TP Lines for FoP today:

11:46am - Posted = 210 min - Actual = 130 mins
12:29pm - Posted = 180 min - Actual = 121 mins

(This kind of trend is true across all parks)

I'm not saying 120 mins is "great", but for whatever reason the waits have been excessively inflated over the past week. The posted waits are almost always higher than normal, but these are much more inflated than normal.

I don't believe this (at all), but if you are conspiracy minded: maybe this is a ploy to get people to buy paid FP+ whenever (if) it comes to pass. Make the waits say 3+ hours just to get more people to pay... or maybe it's just to make people happy it didn't take (nearly) as long as advertised. But it's clearly getting a lot of people here upset / nervous about their upcoming trips...

The inflated wait times are to discourage people from getting in line, but also to underpromise and overdeliver. Posted wait times should be taken as a worst case scenario, typically they are 30% longer than your actual wait. The TP staff has also speculated that end of day wait times get pumped up even more to keep rides from running well after park close. Its almost always worth it to get in a line just a few minutes before park close even if the posted time is astronomical, its likely way off.

 

[Friendlyadvice2]

So today’s actual numbers are not abnormal.

The highest I saw today on MDE was 210 mins. But that was 130 min actual wait.

It seems as though you are attempting to let facts get in the way of a good drama

 

[anomamatt]

The inflated wait times are to discourage people from getting in line, but also to underpromise and overdeliver. Posted wait times should be taken as a worst case scenario, typically they are 30% longer than your actual wait. The TP staff has also speculated that end of day wait times get pumped up even more to keep rides from running well after park close. Its almost always worth it to get in a line just a few minutes before park close even if the posted time is astronomical, its likely way off.

I know they stop updating the time at the end of the night. And higher posted than actual is normal.

but the posted times today in some cases are 65% more than the actual wait. That is unusual.

although the numbers that @TinkerBelle_325 posted above are not that far off 60% higher than actual. So maybe it’s a FoP phenomenon to make sure the queue isn’t always stretching to FtoLK.

 

[cakebaker]

These are actual wait times from July 2019 for FOP:
July 8 2019 = 172 mins 2021 = 125 mins
July 9 2019 = 181 mins 2021 = 123 mins
July 10 2019 = 190 mins 2021 = 115 mins
July 11 2019 = 142 mins 2021 = 103 mins
July 12 2019 = 155 mins 2021 = 129 mins
July 13 2019 = 134 mins 2021 = 137 mins

And where on earth did we see 300 mins today? 3 hours maybe….but thats 180 mins

Sorry, my mistake. Not 300 minutes. 3 hrs, 180 minutes. I'll correct my post, but thanks for catching that. I also meant to say July 4 and will fix that as well.

 

[cakebaker]

So today’s actual numbers are not abnormal.

The highest I saw today on MDE was 210 mins. But that was 130 min actual wait.

With one minor difference. That is that FP was available to be able to skip those waits. No one is skipping them now outside of VIP's and DAS. I'm comparing posted wait times to posted wait times, just to be clear.

 

[lukemorenus]

Interesting comparison, most parks have a slightly longer wait compared to 2019… with the exception of MK:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1415053048406216708

 

[Spaceguy55]

The posted and actual wait times have always differed no matter what year..but FP+ is almost always less than 10-20 minutes....

 

[Stephy811]

With one minor difference. That is that FP was available to be able to skip those waits. No one is skipping them now outside of VIP's and DAS. I'm comparing posted wait times to posted wait times, just to be clear.

Right…so if the whole argument is that fp increases stand by waits (which we know is true)…wouldn’t that make these waits “worse” if all stand by and same wait time? People that weren’t lucky in 2019 to get fp are basically no worse off than in this stand by only line if that makes sense…

 

[annadreamsofdisneyworld]

didnt they have fast passes for this though?

Yup. We went in 2015 when the wait to meet Anna and Elsa was still high. I was able to get 1 fast pass for my husband to use to bring our daughter, who was under 3 and didn't need her own fast pass. We felt really lucky to score that and otherwise would not have waited in an hours long line.