Taking the fun out of Spontaneous visits

[Ohiovolfan]

Just planned a spontaneous visit to WDW and specifically Hollywood Studios in the middle of our spring break next week. Staying in Sarasota are with the Grandparents and decided to take a quick jaunt up to Orlando to visit friends. Discovered that my son's former High School's Band (we moved from Ohio to SC a year ago) will be at Disney during that time and agreed to go to HS on the day that the band would be there so that he could see some friends he hasn't seen in almost a year.

We have left over unexpired tickets from a previous trip in 2003 that I have held onto faithfully for years. They are still good - but we have to go to customer service to upgrade them for current tickets once we are on property. Well I figured we could get to the park at rope drop and go straight to the FP kiosk and get some pretty decent Fast Pass times. Well - I just researched FP+ and realized that while we can get FP reservations - they will likely have a return time of 4pm - even if we are the first in line at the kiosk!! Oh well - guess it will be a mad dash to ride our first choice ride - then we will stand in endless lines the rest of the day.......At least I discovered this in advance and am prepared........Thankfully my son will happy just to see his friends again......

Not looking for solutions (though if you have any solutions or suggestions they are welcomed) - just wanted to vent for a few minutes.......Apparently the Pixie dust doesn't work for those who don't plan 60 to 90 days in advance...... :-(

 

[siskaren]

I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure you can link the tickets you have to your MDE account now, although since they're pre-MYW tickets, I think you would have to call to do it. You would then have to go to Guest Services to exchange them for RFID-enabled tickets. But you would be able to book FP ahead of time.

 

[Ohiovolfan]

Thanks siskaren, I will call and see what (if anything) I can do. But the kicker is that son #2 was born after the Disney trip that the unexpired tickets are from. So we would typically purchase a ticket for him at the time we would exchange the existing tickets. Love how what initially appeared so simple is now suddenly complicated........ sigh.....

Thanks again for your help!!

 

[ArwenMarie]

Yeah, it's amazing how the FP slots fill up during the busy weeks. Good luck!

 

[verleniahall]

yes - at the bottom of the link your tickets area, there is a spot for older tickets or your tickets don't look like this or something to that effect - you just find which yoru ticket looks like and imput the nunbers - then you are able to get FP+ - and if you have to buy a ticket for your son, you can do that on MDE and get it linked for FP+ for the same time

 

[Mickey&Mouse]

Just planned a spontaneous visit to WDW and specifically Hollywood Studios in the middle of our spring break next week. Staying in Sarasota are with the Grandparents and decided to take a quick jaunt up to Orlando to visit friends. Discovered that my son's former High School's Band (we moved from Ohio to SC a year ago) will be at Disney during that time and agreed to go to HS on the day that the band would be there so that he could see some friends he hasn't seen in almost a year.

We have left over unexpired tickets from a previous trip in 2003 that I have held onto faithfully for years. They are still good - but we have to go to customer service to upgrade them for current tickets once we are on property. Well I figured we could get to the park at rope drop and go straight to the FP kiosk and get some pretty decent Fast Pass times. Well - I just researched FP+ and realized that while we can get FP reservations - they will likely have a return time of 4pm - even if we are the first in line at the kiosk!! Oh well - guess it will be a mad dash to ride our first choice ride - then we will stand in endless lines the rest of the day.......At least I discovered this in advance and am prepared........Thankfully my son will happy just to see his friends again......

Not looking for solutions (though if you have any solutions or suggestions they are welcomed) - just wanted to vent for a few minutes.......Apparently the Pixie dust doesn't work for those who don't plan 60 to 90 days in advance...... :-(

I hear you. It definitely sounds frustrating. This is exactly where Legacy FP was a far superior system, IMO. It was a fair and equal system for plan-ahead people as well as last minute folks. There are always going to be last minute visitors to WDW. It's a shame that the FP+ system stacks the deck against those types of visitors.

I hope you are able to link your tickets to MDE like the PP suggested. Best of luck on your trip!!

 

[Ohiovolfan]

thank you all for the great information. However, since my tickets are dated prior to 2007 I am unable to even link my old ticket ID # to my current MDE account. I called and learned they cannot verify tickets over the phone. I would have to send an electronic image of the tickets and my Driver's License to WDW. They would not be able to provide verification for at least 5 - 7 days. Being that we are planning to visit Disney in 7 days it simply doesn't make sense to attempt this route. I will simply go to guest services at DTD the night before and update the old tickets and purchase the new one for my younger son. At least we know in advance what we will be up against when we get to the park and won't be blind-sided once we arrive. Guess we will simply soak up the atmosphere and my oldest son will enjoy getting to see his former classmates.

I totally agree with Mickey&Mouse - The legacy FP system was definitely better in that it was fair and equal for all guests. The irony of it is that I am usually the "uber planner" who plans vacations down to the very last detail. For example I am currently researching and planning a cruise that is booked for June 2016. Being spontaneous is not usually my style - figures the one time I decide to do something relatively "spur of the moment" it is doomed from the start.....

But the bright side is that I actually scored some dinner reservations at DTD at a decent hour for Monday night!

 

[jcdean]

Are you driving to Sarasota? If so, could you stop at DTD and exchange the tickets on your way to the grandparent's? Having a couple of days to schedule fast passes might be less stressful than trying grab them day of.

 

[Cormoran]

This is where I think Disney punishes last minute guests. I'll bet there are young families who can't afford to purchase tickets in advance, so they get shut out of some attractions unless they're willing to wait in the long SB lines. I'm sorry OP, it must be disappointing to realize you can't do any advanced FP+ reservations.

 

[wisblue]

To the OP, next week, the last full week before Easter, is obviously one of the most busy weeks of the year. You didn't say exactly what day you will be going, but DHS opens at 8 AM every day next week. Your best bet would be to get to DHS early. My suggestion would be to be at the turnstiles by 7:15 or no later than 7:30 because they often start letting guests in 10-15 minutes before the stated time. Because they don't hold guests on Hollywood Boulevard anymore, there really isn't a mad dash to the rides because the entry process creates a natural break in the crowd as it enters.

You also didn't say which rides you were most interested in, but if you want to do all of the major ones, my suggestion would be to go directly to TSMM because it is usually operating as soon as they let guests in while the others don't usually start operating until the official park opening time. Then you can go right to RNRC and ride there; if you are willing and able to use the single rider line the wait there should be pretty reasonable. Then you can go to TOT, where the wait should still be manageable. We took this route on the Sunday between Christmas and New Year's in 2013 during the FP+ transition, and were able to complete all 3 rides in less than an hour. That day also had an 8 AM (not EMH) opening.

As for FPs, once you get your tickets linked you should be able to make them on your phone, assuming someone in the group has a smartphone. You could do that while you wait for the gates to open. Otherwise, you could check the lines at the kiosks near TOT as you go by. The availability may not be great, but you should be able to get something for things like the Movie Ride and Star Tours, and maybe Tower of Terror.

I would point out that those crowd 9 and 10 days were no stroll in the park with paper FPs either. FPs for TSMM would be well out into the afternoon within the first hour and gone completely within 2 or 3 hours. The others would have return times several hours out quickly too and standby lines got very long very quickly, just like they do now. As long as you know going in that the crowds are going to be huge you should have a great time.

 

[jon18uk]

This is where I think Disney punishes last minute guests. I'll bet there are young families who can't afford to purchase tickets in advance, so they get shut out of some attractions unless they're willing to wait in the long SB lines. I'm sorry OP, it must be disappointing to realize you can't do any advanced FP+ reservations.

On busy days you would of had to get to DHS at opening to get a return time before 4pm anyway, so in that respect FP+ is no less fair. Even if you can purchase tickets a week before your trip then you can still go into the park knowing what time you have reservations. With paper FP you had no idea what FPs or return times you could end up with. At least with kiosk same day FP+ you can get all three FPs at once, you don't need to run off round the park at two hour intervals.

 

[chitownpeeps]

HI I agree with everything you wrote. Three years ago we decided while on Spring break at Universal we really wanted to see Disney since we were so close. We went at 9 am on a Friday and rode everything we wanted to. I guess Disney doesn't want those one day folks anymore.

That would not happen again. I am actually dreading my trip next week. I have already told my peeps this is probably it for us and DisneyWorld. I will stick with Disneyland (until they change to Fast Pass Plus too)

 

[Ohiovolfan]

Thanks all for the tips! Jcdean - we are flying directly into Sarasota so no chance to stop and exchange the tickets beforehand. We will do this the evening before at DTD. Hopefully will be able to link tickets and select FP+ online before we arrive at the park. Yup - I do realize that the week before Easter Weekend will be INSANE!! We've actually done almost this exact same scenario before - and fared pretty well. Went to MK first, got there for the 8 a.m. rope drop - jumped on 6 major attractions and were headed to HS by 11:00 a.m. Naturally by that time HS was pretty full and we were only able to ride RNRC and TOT once.

wisblue - thank you so much for the tips. Very helpful!! Will definitely try your strategy! We did TSMM on a previous trip and was actually pretty underwhelmed - so luckily it is not high on our list of "must see" attractions. Our boys are 11 and 15 so naturally TOT and RNCRC are at the top of our list - so we will head there first. Actually star Tours is pretty high on our list as well. Simply because we haven't ridden it yet. Seems like every time we have visited HS it has been closed for repairs/upgrades. Both boys have been prepped that it will be crowded and there WILL be lines. However it IS a spontaneous trip to one of their favorite places and to just soak in the experience.

The one bright spot is the fact that I have a great friend who performs in "Frozen - the Singalong"! Since he is actually working that day we have VIP seating for one of his shows! I think that my boys will be soo thrilled not to have to wait in line for something that they won't even complain that it is "Frozen"!! (they typically hate all things associated with the movie!! LOL)

 

[IBLarsen]

I can say last week during our Spring Break trip, Tower of Terror FP was easier to get last minute than the RNCRC. Although our week was certainly busy, yours will be busier, so not sure what your availability will be like. I ended up loving the new FP system, but again, we planned in advance, and during our days there I did think it wouldn't be the best for last minute trips during busy times. I did find many times the posted waits weren't actually as long as it said. Star Tours said 15 min, early morning and was literally walk on, same with Great Movie Ride. I think you will have better luck with those being easier to get on, but obviously take what you can get with whatever FP's are available to you, as you never know! It stinks that you can't link your tickets earlier, even a couple days I think would help with FP's. Sorry, and hope you still enjoy, at least you have realistic expectations

 

[wisblue]

If you choose to skip TSMM you will be that much more ahead of the game. You might even be able to get in a second ride on TOT or RNRC before the lines get too long.

The line at Star Tours should not get that long that fast and you should be able to get a FP for it night before or same day. That can be a fun one for repeat rides because of the different scenes. If you get there by 9-10 AM the wait time will probably be no more than 10-20 minutes and the opportunity for multiple rides should be there.

If you have experience with large crowds you will have a great time. I will be there with 2 of my adult daughters the next week. We have our FP+ reservations, but we will also be at the parks early to take advantage of the lightest crowds of the day. We save our FPs for the evening, usually at a different park, so we will have no advantage over those same day guests in our first park, and will actually be at a disadvantage to the ones that have morning FPs.

 

[Cormoran]

On busy days you would of had to get to DHS at opening to get a return time before 4pm anyway, so in that respect FP+ is no less fair. Even if you can purchase tickets a week before your trip then you can still go into the park knowing what time you have reservations. With paper FP you had no idea what FPs or return times you could end up with. At least with kiosk same day FP+ you can get all three FPs at once, you don't need to run off round the park at two hour intervals.

Actually the OP,who is facing this problem, is also wishing for Legacy FP. With legacy, all FP's were available in the morning, now they're not. As she said , it was a level playing field.
I know that when I arrived at DHS with legacy, I was always able to pickup a FP for TSMM for later in the morning. Also, this did not involve me or anyone in my party running to the FP+ kiosk. For me, I don't see the benefit of 3 guaranteed rides and then waiting in longer SB lines for everything else that never had FP's.
At the kiosk, guests can get all 3 FP + at once for the same day, but what will be available? Muppets, Star tours, and Beauty and the Beast? These are attractions that never required FP's. I don't think that's an improvement.

 

[hakepb]

HI I agree with everything you wrote. Three years ago we decided while on Spring break at Universal we really wanted to see Disney since we were so close. We went at 9 am on a Friday and rode everything we wanted to. I guess Disney doesn't want those one day folks anymore.

That would not happen again. I am actually dreading my trip next week. I have already told my peeps this is probably it for us and DisneyWorld. I will stick with Disneyland (until they change to Fast Pass Plus too)

At Disneyland, it's not an issue because they have, *gasp*, enough rides in their parks. Their TSMM has no FP- and wait times stay under 40 minutes most of the time.

 

[rcraw45425]

I think what really brings it home for me now is that The Great Movie Ride now has 45 minute standby lines Hubby and I have done three visits since FP+ and Magic Bands began and they have all been pretty last minute. Each visit has been increasingly more aggravating. Thankful that our girls are grown now and we are all seasoned vets. Tomorrow is my 60 day window (for the first time ever!) and I'm hating having to lock ourselves into a park!

 

[jon18uk]

I think what really brings it home for me now is that The Great Movie Ride now has 45 minute standby lines Hubby and I have done three visits since FP+ and Magic Bands began and they have all been pretty last minute. Each visit has been increasingly more aggravating. Thankful that our girls are grown now and we are all seasoned vets. Tomorrow is my 60 day window (for the first time ever!) and I'm hating having to lock ourselves into a park!

Of course GMR isn't helped by them closing the backlot tour. The number of attractions that aren't thrill rides is now smaller.

 

[maxiesmom]

I think what really brings it home for me now is that The Great Movie Ride now has 45 minute standby lines Hubby and I have done three visits since FP+ and Magic Bands began and they have all been pretty last minute. Each visit has been increasingly more aggravating. Thankful that our girls are grown now and we are all seasoned vets. Tomorrow is my 60 day window (for the first time ever!) and I'm hating having to lock ourselves into a park!

As in today? Because I was on the GMR in October, and waited no where near 45 minutes. I think just as before, a lot of how long the lines are depends on your timing.