The big G+ rides at HS gone by 1:07!

[Disturbia]

With us the choice is a bit easy as no one wants to go on MFSR. They prefer Star Tours. MFSR has a single rider but there is a minimum age for that (7 years).

So ROTR and SDD and then get whatever we can at 11 (hope for RnRC or TOT); then try to refresh for TSMM and then Star Tours. Inbetween ride MMRR standby and hit some shows.

 

[Mrs~Incredible]

With us the choice is a bit easy as no one wants to go on MFSR. They prefer Star Tours. MFSR has a single rider but there is a minimum age for that (7 years).

So ROTR and SDD and then get whatever we can at 11 (hope for RnRC or TOT); then try to refresh for TSMM and then Star Tours. Inbetween ride MMRR standby and hit some shows.

That sounds great. I feel like the MMRR line keeps moving. And it’s funny what you said about Star Tours- I always forget how much fun that ride is!!

 

[Westerner]

.

 

[escriven75]

We loved FP+. As some previous posters said, you could lock down a few rides (hopefully) by planning way in advance. And the rest of the day you could do what you liked. And it was included in your stay, so there wasn't the additional pressure of feeling like you had to "get your moneys worth" like I'm sensing people are feeling with this new method. We'll be back in Nov (fingers crossed) to do the W&D race series. And with that being the main focus, I think all the reviews I've read so far have convinced me to give it a whirl and just do stand by on as much as we can. As a return Disney-goer we have the advantage of not trying to pack every experience into one trip. Not everyone has that and this new system does not sound like it benefits those folks either. I think we'll embrace being able to be spontaneous next time, even if it means missing a couple rides or waiting a bit too long for a few. Putting our phones in our bags and letting the day happen bc I just can't seem to get into the idea of this G+ system. Best luck to everyone who uses it but I've not heard many at all rave about it so I hope that speaks loudly and they realize it isn't working!! Bottom line is they wanted to make $$$ for something they didn't previously. But as so many have stated, it is having the opposite overall effect. I hope that becomes apparent to the decision-makers!

 

[Jrb1979]

I think a more accurate statement is "FP+ absolutely wrecked first time vacations for people who refused to put any effort or research into their vacation."

I have very little sympathy for these people. ANY vacation requires prework, national parks, cruises, etc... These same type of people still exist today with G+. These are the same folks that will have a terrible trip because they didn't know how to use G+ effectively. They will be the same ones stuck in standby lines, which aren't that different today with G+ versus years past with FP+. Standby lines are long, period.

I'll say it again: In my experience (party of 5-7) ALL the headliners were available, day of, at all parks with the exception of FOP, 7DMT and SDD... and that was during the moderate to busy summer season.

Dan

I will counter that argument. Disney is the only amusement park that requires this ridiculous amount of planning. Go to Universal or any other park and they require very little planning.

My solution to G+ is to make it similar to Express Pass at Universal. Charge upwards of $150 a person and limit the amount of people buying it. Get rid of the scheduling as well. If I'm paying money to skip the line, then I want to ride when I want to ride. Not when you tell me too.

 

[Westerner]

My solution to G+ is to make it similar to Express Pass at Universal. Charge upwards of $150 a person and limit the amount of people buying it. Get rid of the scheduling as well. If I'm paying money to skip the line, then I want to ride when I want to ride. Not when you tell me too.

This might be a case of be careful what you wish for. Express pass and G+ are fundamentally different systems. Express pass is a line-skipping system whereas G+ is derived from the original FP and is more of a virtual queue designed to spread people around to less busy attractions and times.

Express pass is definitely simpler, but with the cost 10x as much it pushes us towards a world where the rich get to skip the line and everyone else has to wait longer than they already do. And then there are tiers of Express Pass, regular and Unlimited (which allows rerides). Six Flags has 3 tiers of Flash Passes with the highest costing ~$200. Do we really want Disney to go down this path where you have to spend twice as much as currently to have a good experience?

Maybe a compromise would be to do more $ILL's, which are simpler and allow more control over return times and clarity on what you're getting. I've read fewer complaints about $ILL than G+, they are essentially a single-ride Express pass.

 

[roctavia]

This might be a case of be careful what you wish for. Express pass and G+ are fundamentally different systems. Express pass is a line-skipping system whereas G+ is derived from the original FP and is more of a virtual queue designed to spread people around to less busy attractions and times.

Express pass is definitely simpler, but with the cost 10x as much it pushes us towards a world where the rich get to skip the line and everyone else has to wait longer than they already do. And then there are tiers of Express Pass, regular and Unlimited (which allows rerides). Six Flags has 3 tiers of Flash Passes with the highest costing ~$200. Do we really want Disney to go down this path where you have to spend twice as much as currently to have a good experience?

Maybe a compromise would be to do more $ILL's, which are simpler and allow more control over return times and clarity on what you're getting. I've read fewer complaints about $ILL than G+, they are essentially a single-ride Express pass.

The problem is disney has way too many people for this. Even at $200 per person, more people would want to buy it than can and will be pissed off that they can't buy it. Or they let too many people buy it and the stand by line would never move.

Charging for individual rides would also get out of control quick, or turn things into rich people ride the rides and people on a budget get to ride 2 things after waiting 4 hours. If they fixed G+ just so people could modify their ride times would make a huge difference....

 

[abtahime]

The problem is disney has way too many people for this. Even at $200 per person, more people would want to buy it than can and will be pissed off that they can't buy it. Or they let too many people buy it and the stand by line would never move.

Charging for individual rides would also get out of control quick, or turn things into rich people ride the rides and people on a budget get to ride 2 things after waiting 4 hours. If they fixed G+ just so people could modify their ride times would make a huge difference....

I just think it’s highly problematic that Disney is charging for a service/product that they seem unable to really deliver on. A free FP system that doesn’t work well for everyone? No problem, it’s free. But charging a fee and selling it to anyone and everyone willing to buy it with no limit while simultaneously severely limiting its use is a bad look. Everyone keeps saying they can’y raise the price because it will make people mad, or make it unlimited because of capacity restraints and hence long lines - but all of us are already paying exorbitant prices and going to these parks with several hour long waits per ride as is.

it would at least be nice if there was some option, even if it was ridiculously expensive, that those who were planning a once in a lifetime trip or even once every 5-10 years could budget in where they weren’t competing with locals and AP holders who can and do go regularly. Nothing against these groups, if I lived in Florida I would have an AP too - I would also probably buy genie+ every time I went at only $15 (taking away from others even though I would have done everything how ever many times to make my day easier) whereas if it were even a little more cost prohibitive I wouldn’t. Or something more exclusive to on property guests than 30 minutes in the morning. Something to help those spending thousands and thousands and spending their precious vacation time would really be great.

 

[roctavia]

I just think it’s highly problematic that Disney is charging for a service/product that they seem unable to really deliver on. A free FP system that doesn’t work well for everyone? No problem, it’s free. But charging a fee and selling it to anyone and everyone willing to buy it with no limit while simultaneously severely limiting its use is a bad look. Everyone keeps saying they can’y raise the price because it will make people mad, or make it unlimited because of capacity restraints and hence long lines - but all of us are already paying exorbitant prices and going to these parks with several hour long waits per ride as is.

it would at least be nice if there was some option, even if it was ridiculously expensive, that those who were planning a once in a lifetime trip or even once every 5-10 years could budget in where they weren’t competing with locals and AP holders who can and do go regularly. Nothing against these groups, if I lived in Florida I would have an AP too - I would also probably buy genie+ every time I went at only $15 (taking away from others even though I would have done everything how ever many times to make my day easier) whereas if it were even a little more cost prohibitive I wouldn’t. Or something more exclusive to on property guests than 30 minutes in the morning. Something to help those spending thousands and thousands and spending their precious vacation time would really be great.

I agree that this new system is a problem... and made much worse due to the fact that people have to pay for it, I just don't think charging more will fix it. They do have VIP tours for the people really willing to pay, but most people can't or wouldn't spend that much to skip all the lines. But I think the limit is close to that, in that because this could be a once in a life time sort of trip, a lot of people would be willing to pay $200+per person to skip lines, but then it's too many people who want the experience and we still have unhappy guests and line problems. Adding more cost/more pay for individual rides isn't going to fix things either.

FP had it's issues, but G+ was definitely a downgrade in addition to costing a lot more.

 

[DisneyFive]

I will counter that argument. Disney is the only amusement park that requires this ridiculous amount of planning. Go to Universal or any other park and they require very little planning.

My solution to G+ is to make it similar to Express Pass at Universal. Charge upwards of $150 a person and limit the amount of people buying it. Get rid of the scheduling as well. If I'm paying money to skip the line, then I want to ride when I want to ride. Not when you tell me too.

I don't consider 30 minutes planning my FP's for the trip, then 30 minutes of my time booking FP's 60 days out, to be a ridiculous amount of planning. I do much more planning for our cruises: what excursions at each port, what dining, shows, ship, departure port, itinerary, etc... or National parks... where am I staying each night? Where am I going each day? What is my transportation?

Regarding the increased cost for something like Express Pass, it just doesn't work at WDW. People book much longer stays at WDW and something that costly would be too prohibitive except for a VERY few. G+, even at $16 a day, is only getting 1/3 to 1/2 of guest purchasing it. The more you go that high price direction, the more you make the majority of guests go standby, which is what caused the original FP to be created in the first place. Guests number one complaint at WDW before FP was the long lines, and attendance was dropping until they introduced the FP system.

Dan

 

[Jrb1979]

I agree that this new system is a problem... and made much worse due to the fact that people have to pay for it, I just don't think charging more will fix it. They do have VIP tours for the people really willing to pay, but most people can't or wouldn't spend that much to skip all the lines. But I think the limit is close to that, in that because this could be a once in a life time sort of trip, a lot of people would be willing to pay $200+per person to skip lines, but then it's too many people who want the experience and we still have unhappy guests and line problems. Adding more cost/more pay for individual rides isn't going to fix things either.

FP had it's issues, but G+ was definitely a downgrade in addition to costing a lot more.

They don't necessarily have to charge more for it. The issue still comes down to the fact there isn't enough ride capacity for everyone to have G+. They need to limit the availability to fix it.

 

[escriven75]

I will counter that argument. Disney is the only amusement park that requires this ridiculous amount of planning. Go to Universal or any other park and they require very little planning.

My solution to G+ is to make it similar to Express Pass at Universal. Charge upwards of $150 a person and limit the amount of people buying it. Get rid of the scheduling as well. If I'm paying money to skip the line, then I want to ride when I want to ride. Not when you tell me too.

Ya, it's like they only kept the bad parts of FP+ and then started charging for it!!

 

[PinkPixel]

The older kids have stopped loving Disney. Last year was the first time my 13 year old didn’t feel sad coming back and our 5 year old couldn’t care less about rides (except the carousel which we rode 4 times) and just wanted pool time (we did 3/7 days when it wasn’t raining). Our bribe was pool time not rides. At 5, our DD couldn’t wait to get in the parks. Our son repeatedly says when are we going back to the pool. I agree that the overwhelming feeling is that it’s not for people with young kids (and we’ve been going for over a decade). Hopefully things will slowly get back to normal. I think the pandemic had everyone on edge and living in fear (losing jobs, health etc).

Disney needs to focus on their future customers and their current experience (not just shorter lines, but character interaction (DD2 loves Goofy because of Hollywood & Vine interaction), entertainment (sudden character appearances-remember when that was a thing), meal choices (offer more toys for kids), Disney themed coloring pages at ADRs, drawing classes at AOA (loved the Halloween booths around the resort), some unexpected magic (a custodial Cm at HS brought our DD a cupcake (was her birthday trip) when she saw her playing and running after birds

Your 5 year old doesn’t like it’s a small world? People mover? Dumbo? Chef Mickey etc?

 

[Jrb1979]

I don't consider 30 minutes planning my FP's for the trip, then 30 minutes of my time booking FP's 60 days out, to be a ridiculous amount of planning. I do much more planning for our cruises: what excursions at each port, what dining, shows, ship, departure port, itinerary, etc... or National parks... where am I staying each night? Where am I going each day? What is my transportation?

Regarding the increased cost for something like Express Pass, it just doesn't work at WDW. People book much longer stays at WDW and something that costly would be too prohibitive except for a VERY few. G+, even at $16 a day, is only getting 1/3 to 1/2 of guest purchasing it. The more you go that high price direction, the more you make the majority of guests go standby, which is what caused the original FP to be created in the first place. Guests number one complaint at WDW before FP was the long lines, and attendance was dropping until they introduced the FP system.

Dan

Maybe it's time they stop taking decades to add new attractions. To put it in perspective, Cedar Point has 71 rides and attractions, that's more then all of WDW. Long waits aside, that right there is the biggest issue with WDW. Not enough attractions for G+ to work.

 

[abtahime]

Maybe it's time they stop taking decades to add new attractions. To put it in perspective, Cedar Point has 71 rides and attractions, that's more then all of WDW. Long waits aside, that right there is the biggest issue with WDW. Not enough attractions for G+ to work.

Having grown up in close proximity to cedar point I think this is a great point. They add a big new ride every 1-2 years to keep things fresh. I do wonder why this problem is exaggerated so greatly in HS however, compared to Epcot and AK who also don’t have a ton of rides. Maybe less people buy genie+ for those parks compared to HS as they have less “big” rides, so the system can actually handle the demand? Are they just allowing way more people into HS? In theory, the more popular rides has the more capacity a park should have to handle the demand, but logic tends to fail at HS.

 

[abtahime]

The older kids have stopped loving Disney. Last year was the first time my 13 year old didn’t feel sad coming back and our 5 year old couldn’t care less about rides (except the carousel which we rode 4 times) and just wanted pool time (we did 3/7 days when it wasn’t raining). Our bribe was pool time not rides. At 5, our DD couldn’t wait to get in the parks. Our son repeatedly says when are we going back to the pool. I agree that the overwhelming feeling is that it’s not for people with young kids (and we’ve been going for over a decade). Hopefully things will slowly get back to normal. I think the pandemic had everyone on edge and living in fear (losing jobs, health etc).

Disney needs to focus on their future customers and their current experience (not just shorter lines, but character interaction (DD2 loves Goofy because of Hollywood & Vine interaction), entertainment (sudden character appearances-remember when that was a thing), meal choices (offer more toys for kids), Disney themed coloring pages at ADRs, drawing classes at AOA (loved the Halloween booths around the resort), some unexpected magic (a custodial Cm at HS brought our DD a cupcake (was her birthday trip) when she saw her playing and running after birds

we went last year for the first time, stayed at the GF, and my sons favorite part of the trip by leaps and bounds was the pool - and it’s not even close. He spent most of the time in the parks asking when we could leave and go to the pool. I’m glad he loved that area but agree Disney definitely failed to capture his enjoyment with the lack of magic. My daughter enjoyed the parks and pools equally but definitely wasn’t bummed to leave the parks each day and return to the resort.

 

[Westerner]

we went last year for the first time, stayed at the GF, and my sons favorite part of the trip by leaps and bounds was the pool - and it’s not even close. He spent most of the time in the parks asking when we could leave and go to the pool. I’m glad he loved that area but agree Disney definitely failed to capture his enjoyment with the lack of magic. My daughter enjoyed the parks and pools equally but definitely wasn’t bummed to leave the parks each day and return to the resort.

fyi all Universal resorts allow pool hopping to each other’s pools except for Endless Summer and Dockside, TP article link below. We stayed at Cabana Bay which isn’t too expensive and has a couple of very nicely themed pools including a lazy river. We used it as our base for WDW in fact. I stayed at Portofino once and the pool is gorgeous, more of a beach really. So if your kids like pools you may want to consider it.

TP Universal pool article

 

[gzh6464]

T

Maybe it's time they stop taking decades to add new attractions. To put it in perspective, Cedar Point has 71 rides and attractions, that's more then all of WDW. Long waits aside, that right there is the biggest issue with WDW. Not enough attractions for G+ to work.

This is actually a good point. Disney is banking on new customers who have never been and those who are diehards no matter the situation. But a large percentage of people are neither and look for new things. In the last 5-10 years there has been little change and what change has occurred has been slow (Epcot = Remy and Frozen (malstrom same ride), MK - 7DMT/Little mermaid, AK - Avatar/Navi, DHS - MMRR, ROR, MF, ?TSM/SDD.

Always wondered when World showcase would add countries. Other than Remy/and Malstrom facelift it hasnt changed in decades nor has futureworld which is essentially overlooked by many ( yes GG is being made). MK is pretty much unchanged in a decade besides 7DMT (tron coming) and the closing of snow white. AK - has added the 2 awatar rides and has otherwise not changed in decades. DHS has made the most changes and reason it is so busy.

G+ has some efficacy in the MK with its volume of rides but the other three parks are limited be cause of fewer rides. If many people use the service in these parks the benefit becomes less.

 

[RamblingMad]

Maybe it's time they stop taking decades to add new attractions. To put it in perspective, Cedar Point has 71 rides and attractions, that's more then all of WDW. Long waits aside, that right there is the biggest issue with WDW. Not enough attractions for G+ to work.

I think, the reason WDW is upgrading EPCOT is because Universal is going to open a third gate. Universal feels more new than WDW.

 

[abtahime]

fyi all Universal resorts allow pool hopping to each other’s pools except for Endless Summer and Dockside, TP article link below. We stayed at Cabana Bay which isn’t too expensive and has a couple of very nicely themed pools including a lazy river. We used it as our base for WDW in fact. I stayed at Portofino once and the pool is gorgeous, more of a beach really. So if your kids like pools you may want to consider it.

TP Universal pool article

Thanks for the advice and article! We are actually staying at Royal Pacific for a few nights (my youngest LOVES dinosaurs and we were lucky enough to get the Jurassic World kids suite) but we may definitely pool hop. Portofinos pool looks wonderful!