The FP+ Gripe

[MickeyMinnieMom]

Attendance at WDW exceeds 45 million annually. There are 446 thousand members of the DIS Boards. There are probably 100??? people posting constantly about FP+ and many of them are extremely negative about a system that is still in testing and which they've never used.

If you are trying to suggest that a self-selected sample of 0.0002% is not representative, I just don't know how to have a conversation with you.

I'm glad you see my humor.

 

[Reddog1134]

Let me see...

It's OK to like FP+ if you don't have enough info about it to dislike it.

It's NOT OK to dislike FP+ if you don't have enough info about it to like it.


Just trying to keep things straight.

It's OK to have a positive OR negative reaction to FP+. I think people are mostly commenting on the "overreaction" which, as far as I have seen, on the negative side.

I haven't seen any Pro-FP+ comments that said "I LOVE FP+. This is the greatest thing Disney has ever done. I'm going to WDW as much as I can and I'm never vacationing anywhere else."

 

[ArwenMarie]

Several times last week I went in to change my selections after rethinking my strategy and the headliners were still available but at less desirable times. Now at less than a week from starting I'm at the point where I can't really do any more editing because of availability. Example: I booked FP+ for my party of 4 for 12:05 for BTMRR and after watching a youtube video my younger son has said he will not ride it. When I try to edit the FP+ for just DH and him for a different ride I get "we're sorry, there are no other rides available during this time." Less than a week from when booking started and I can't even get so much as a Philharmagic FP? Really? I could get something if I changed the time to 2 pm but we'll be long gone by then.

Wow, this is really interesting that within just a week after you first put in your selections, you could see that the availability had decreased so much. And this is just test mode. I think this is really going to become a game of making sure you are up on day 60 and have your days and projected plans set in stone.

 

[fuzzylogic]

I wonder what the outrage was like when Disney introduced the fast pass system back in 1999?

"Oh my gosh! Disney is taking the spontaneity out of all the rides!"

"I'll be forced to get up early to get fast passes, BEFORE they run out so I can ride the headliners"

"It's not fair that the rope droppers will be able to grab fast passes early!"

"What happens if the fast pass machine breaks? I won't be able to ride any rides at all!"

"I don't like it, the standby lines were fine. Disney is messing with something that's not broken! This new system is ridiculous, I'm not giving Disney any more of my money!"

"Disney is just being greedy! They are implementing this whole new system they are calling fast pass, so people have more time to spend in the gift shops"

"Now I'm going to be forced to "plan" my ride order when I get to the park. I won't be able to just stroll around and ride what I want when I want!"

"I can't believe Disney is doing this. I'm not going to be able to sleep late and still ride all the cool rides!"

"This sucks! I'm going to have to run from fast pass machine to fast pass machine in the mornings and gather as many as possible for all the members of family!"

"What happens if I can't find my KTTW??? I won't be able to get a fast pass!"

I think a lot people have forgotten that Disney is NOT forcing anyone to use a fast pass. If spontaneity is a top concern, then great! Don't book ADRs or FP (Or FP+). It's almost like some people think they can't ride any rides at all unless they fast pass it, not true.

I almost wonder if with every trip if the "magic" disappears a little. What I mean by that..... for the seasoned visitors, now we have all these concerns about which fast passes to get, we need to hit this ride first then haul ourselves across this park to catch this ride second then run over to this ride grab a fast pass, then get in line for this attraction, etc.... It's almost like we sabotage ourselves a little as we learn more of the "in and outs" and how to "work the system" to our benefit. It becomes a job!

In a weird way, I envy the person (or family) that is visiting WDW for their first time. They're typically not as "informed" as the seasoned visitor. They're probably not concerned with all smallest of details. They're just looking at the big picture - they'll be at Disney World! They're looking forward to seeing the reaction of their 6 year old when they see their favorite princess or character. Heck, many of them probably don't know about fast pass at all, so their not concerned with getting to rope drop and sending a runner to get all these fast passes.

Back when we went on our Honeymoon in 1996 we were just in awe of all the detail of WDW, how friendly everyone was, the sheer amount of things to do there, how inclusive the whole vacation was, etc... We had no idea what to expect from Disney World so we didn't have to sweat the small stuff. It was a big picture vacation - we were finally at Disney World! The place we heard our friends talk about when we were kids and the place we ALWAYS wanted to go.

Although we enjoy every trip to WDW (especially the last one when we could finally share it with our 4 year daughter), I would say the very first trip was the most "magical", maybe because we were ignorant of the "in and outs" of the whole place and all we did was just "soak it in".

 

[xipetotec]

Who is kind of surprised when they see people who LOVE to plan their Disney Vacations (down to the minute) gripe about pre-planning their FP+?

I would almost think if I enjoyed planning out my WDW vacations that much, I would LOVE the ability to book FP+ 2 months in advance!

Are the gripes about MDE being overblown? I see people saying their are not going to Disney World anymore because of it. They're angry because they say Disney is wanting to use this system to make more money and accuse them of being greedy. If the Disney company had no profits, there would be NO Disney World.

Walt Disney himself and the Disney company have always considered themselves to be on the forefront of technology, going digital (and paperless) for fast passes seem to be a natural progression. It's no surprise they are trying out newer technologies.

Way way way back in the day when Disney World introduced the KTTW so that it was your room key, park pass, your credit card, etc... I wonder how many people were so adverse to that change.

Sure, right now, there are some bugs to work out with the Magic Bands, FP+, etc... that's why it's still in the testing phase. Usually, Disney does a pretty good job at implementing new tech... In 5 years it will probably seem pretty natural to book your WDW trip, customize your band and wear it to the park so you don't have to keep up with your KTTW card.

I'm not saying that this new program doesn't have it's disadvantages, but it seems no one is talking about it's advantages either.

To me some of the advantages are:

1) Possible quicker park entry because we're not diggin' for cards and quicker check out lines at the gift shops
2) Not being forced to keep a card tucked away in a bag or pocket
3) The ability to customize your child's experience (if you to choose to opt-in and share the information)
4) Touch and go
5) If someone loves to plan, plan, plan - this gives them the ability to plan even more of their trip

Any other advantages I'm not thinking of?

Someone once told me... "Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it"

Not trying to start a flame war, I would just like to see some folks point out the positive points of the MDE with magic bands, FP+, etc... for me.

The TECHNOLOGY aspect, I agree with.

But I am only an uber planner because I HAVE to be. If my family wants to eat at certain specific restaurants, the 180 day ADR policy makes it almost mandatory really. Otherwise, fat chance. Now this is going to be the case with FastPass. You know, the thing we could come in the park and say, cool, let's get a fastpass for "x". Now we have to plan weeks in advance for what rides we'll want to do in what parks on what days.

"You don't HAVE to book 60 days out" ... uh huh, and you don't HAVE to book CRT 180 days out either. You MIGHT get a table.

 

[mbrittb00]

It's OK to have a positive OR negative reaction to FP+. I think people are mostly commenting on the "overreaction" which, as far as I have seen, on the negative side.

I haven't seen any Pro-FP+ comments that said "I LOVE FP+. This is the greatest thing Disney has ever done. I'm going to WDW as much as I can and I'm never vacationing anywhere else."

I'll be honest I don't plaster myself 24/7 to the Dis Boards. In fact I'll check in every few months to see what is going on (and lately to see the status of FP+). So it is possible that i've missed some posts, but I havn't seen anyone say that "I HATE FP+. and it is the worst idea Disney has ever had." I also don't recall anyone stating that simply becasue FP+ is comming that they will never go to WDW agan. More to the point they are stating that if the system works the way people have been thinking it will work, and it make their experinace a lot worse and unenjoyable, then they will stop comming. And who wouldn't

I'll admit that there has been a lot of angst over potential issues that people perceive will exists. The fact that they have been testing the system for well over a year and marketing it as the next big thing for the last 6+ months, yet are giving no details has fueled the rumor mill.

I go on vacation to have fun. But I also want to get the most bang for my buck. For me I'm going to wait to decide on my future WDW plans after the system is fully rolled out. based on our normal rotation we would typically be scheduled to go to WDW next year (2014). But while all of this is still in flux I don't want to make any plans. I want to see how this system will work and have time to figure out how to best suit it to our family before commiting to spend $6K-$10k.

Wow, this is really interesting that within just a week after you first put in your selections, you could see that the availability had decreased so much. And this is just test mode. I think this is really going to become a game of making sure you are up on day 60 and have your days and projected plans set in stone.

Admiditly this test is on a limited scale and I'm sure that they are only making a few FPs avaliable for each attraction (not the entire lot), but I suspect that if you don't make your FP+ selections very early in the 60 day window then you options will decline very quickly.

 

[mom2rtk]

I'll be honest I don't plaster myself 24/7 to the Dis Boards. In fact I'll check in every few months to see what is going on (and lately to see the status of FP+). So it is possible that i've missed some posts, but I havn't seen anyone say that "I HATE FP+. and it is the worst idea Disney has ever had." I also don't recall anyone stating that simply becasue FP+ is comming that they will never go to WDW agan. More to the point they are stating that if the system works the way people have been thinking it will work, and it make their experinace a lot worse and unenjoyable, then they will stop comming. And who wouldn't

You didn't miss it. It wasn't there. But it's a lot more fun to make up responses to reply to.

 

[mbrittb00]

"It's not fair that the rope droppers will be able to grab fast passes early!"

I like this one. It isn't fair that some people are willing to do more to get more.

...

I think a lot people have forgotten that Disney is NOT forcing anyone to use a fast pass. If spontaneity is a top concern, then great! Don't book ADRs or FP (Or FP+). It's almost like some people think they can't ride any rides at all unless they fast pass it, not true.

I almost wonder if with every trip if the "magic" disappears a little. What I mean by that..... for the seasoned visitors, now we have all these concerns about which fast passes to get, we need to hit this ride first then haul ourselves across this park to catch this ride second then run over to this ride grab a fast pass, then get in line for this attraction, etc.... It's almost like we sabotage ourselves a little as we learn more of the "in and outs" and how to "work the system" to our benefit. It becomes a job!

In a weird way, I envy the person (or family) that is visiting WDW for their first time. They're typically not as "informed" as the seasoned visitor. They're probably not concerned with all smallest of details. They're just looking at the big picture - they'll be at Disney World! They're looking forward to seeing the reaction of their 6 year old when they see their favorite princess or character. Heck, many of them probably don't know about fast pass at all, so their not concerned with getting to rope drop and sending a runner to get all these fast passes.

Back when we went on our Honeymoon in 1996 we were just in awe of all the detail of WDW, how friendly everyone was, the sheer amount of things to do there, how inclusive the whole vacation was, etc... We had no idea what to expect from Disney World so we didn't have to sweat the small stuff. It was a big picture vacation - we were finally at Disney World! The place we heard our friends talk about when we were kids and the place we ALWAYS wanted to go.

Although we enjoy every trip to WDW (especially the last one when we could finally share it with our 4 year daughter), I would say the very first trip was the most "magical", maybe because we were ignorant of the "in and outs" of the whole place and all we did was just "soak it in".

I get your point about there were a lot of complaints when the origional FP system was rolled out. And for the most part they turned out to be not as big a problem as people were expecting. It did require people to change the way they tour the parks, which people are always resistive to. My biggest problem was with the thought that you would be limited to use only one of your FP+ selections for the E-Ticket rides, and that you would have to sand in hour+ long waits for the others. It appears now, that that is not the case (of course things could change back).

I agree that trip after trip after trip, some of the magic does get lost. We (generally) learn how to utilize the system to get the get the most bang for our buck. Being able to go into a park without having to zig-zag back and forth getting FPs will be a welcomed addition, and likly bring some of the magic back. I am holding out hope that you will not be limited to 3 FP selections and that in park FPs will continue to be avaliable (especially at MK).

 

[jade1]

Well we are looking forward to it actually.

But also hoping we can check the available FP+ options throughout the year.

Does anyone know, if you are set up in the system, and have an AP, or some kind of park pass-can we log in just any old time and see what's available at 60 days, 2 weeks, tomorrow etc?

We used to check the DVC rental board just for fun, sometimes to see whats available coming up etc. Thats kinda just points now so no fun.

Check airlines sometimes, even WDW hotels for deals, certainly WDW dining.

We also check an app on WDW wait times at attractions just for conversation-usually how long TSM or RNR (or some headliner) is.

Geez checking for attractions would be far more fun IMO. Plus just the education of it all.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

Wow, this is really interesting that within just a week after you first put in your selections, you could see that the availability had decreased so much. And this is just test mode. I think this is really going to become a game of making sure you are up on day 60 and have your days and projected plans set in stone.

This is pretty telling, and even those that support the idea of FP+ recognize this problem. The reality - book very early on the first day that you are able and you might get the FPs at the times or on the dates that you want. Book a day or two late and you will be left with FPs for rides that do not require FPs.

And this is supposed to be an improvement.

 

[mbrittb00]

This is pretty telling, and even those that support the idea of FP+ recognize this problem. The reality - book very early on the first day that you are able and you might get the FPs at the times or on the dates that you want. Book a day or two late and you will be left with FPs for rides that do not require FPs.

And this is supposed to be an improvement.

We have to admit that this is a small sample test, and they probably only put a proportional amount of FPs avaliable in the system, and EVRERYONE is participating. Considering that many people don't participate in the current FP system it is safe to assume that many (probably the same ones) people won't participate in the FP+ system (unless they are forced to). That said, I will still book my FP+ selections as early as I am allowed to do so.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

They are hoping it fails and jumps on any and all initial issues in these roll out phases. They refuse to see anything good because they want to to fail so badly.

Depends on how you define "failure". If success is defined as the implementation of the system as currently understood, I hope that it is a miserable failure and that WDW is forced to srap the entire system. However, if Disney has some other plan that will allow my family to take full advantage of the FP+ system without booking early, than I hope it is successful.

However, the information released to date suggests that those late to the game will be left only with FPs for rides that do not currently require FPs, essentially disenfranchising those who cannot or will not choose park days months in advance.

 

[UNCFanatik]

Depends on how you define "failure". If success is defined as the implementation of the system as currently understood, I hope that it is a miserable failure and that WDW is forced to srap the entire system. However, if Disney has some other plan that will allow my family to take full advantage of the FP+ system without booking early, than I hope it is successful.

However, the information released to date suggests that those late to the game will be left only with FPs for rides that do not currently require FPs, essentially disenfranchising those who cannot or will not choose park days months in advance.

disenfranchising? You have got to be kidding me.

"you keep using that word, I do not think it means what you think it means"

 

[BuckeyeBama]

disenfranchising? You have got to be kidding me.

"you keep using that work, I do not think it means what you think it does"

It means deprived of power or opportunity. In this conversation, it means deprived of the opportunity to fully participate in the FP system. Try again.

 

[mbrittb00]

Depends on how you define "failure". If success is defined as the implementation of the system as currently understood, I hope that it is a miserable failure and that WDW is forced to srap the entire system. However, if Disney has some other plan that will allow my family to take full advantage of the FP+ system without booking early, than I hope it is successful.

However, the information released to date suggests that those late to the game will be left only with FPs for rides that do not currently require FPs, essentially disenfranchising those who cannot or will not choose park days months in advance.

And that is the biggest problem I see. We plan our trips well in advance. So this isn't going to affect us much (in fact it could be a huge benefit).

One thing that Disney could do to improve park flow would be to give bonus FP+ selections for a park on a days that they are historically less crowed. (i.e. MK on Tuesday or Epcot on Wednesday, etc).

 

[mbrittb00]

disenfranchising? You have got to be kidding me.

"you keep using that word, I do not think it means what you think it means"

At least get the quote right. Fixed now.

 

[ArwenMarie]

We have to admit that this is a small sample test, and they probably only put a proportional amount of FPs avaliable in the system, and EVRERYONE is participating. Considering that many people don't participate in the current FP system it is safe to assume that many (probably the same ones) people won't participate in the FP+ system (unless they are forced to). That said, I will still book my FP+ selections as early as I am allowed to do so.

I agree that your first sentence could be a possibility for sure with this test. However, what happens when it really rolls out...There's no reason to think that availability will be any better once it is rolled out to everyone, especially for certain high-demand rides, and there are still lots of unknowns.

But yeah, getting in at 60 days and knowing exactly what you want will be the ticket here, regardless on how we feel about it now. I don't think anyone will be foolish enough to think that they can just lazily play around with their FPs for two months prior to their trip and still get everything they want when they want it

 

[Planogirl]

Let me see...

It's OK to like FP+ if you don't have enough info about it to dislike it.

It's NOT OK to dislike FP+ if you don't have enough info about it to like it.


Just trying to keep things straight.

Perfect!

And that is the biggest problem I see. We plan our trips well in advance. So this isn't going to affect us much (in fact it could be a huge benefit).

One thing that Disney could do to improve park flow would be to give bonus FP+ selections for a park on a days that they are historically less crowed. (i.e. MK on Tuesday or Epcot on Wednesday, etc).

The trouble with this is that the crowded days are likely to be the difficult days. People often comment that the idea is that you can change your fastpasses as necessary but that will of course depend on crowds and how involved they are. We used kiosks to make dining reservations at one time and many locations sold out rapidly. People do like to line up at what they see as an attraction. Many treated the dining kiosks as an attraction (and they were pretty cool.)

I also want to comment on this notion of chastising people for discussing the possible negatives of this new system. I have seen a few that are perhaps overly down on FP+ however most people seem to be voicing legitimate concerns. I also thought that forums were created for the opportunity to discuss such things. Of course we could all be super positive about this and sit around and praise it but that would make for a pretty dull discussion.

 

[UNCFanatik]

It means deprived of power or opportunity. In this conversation, it means deprived of the opportunity to fully participate in the FP system. Try again.

hyperbole...much

No one is being deprived of an FP+. Any more than those before that were "disenfranchised" because they got to the park late and were "deprived" of an opportunity to get a FP for TSMM. But i see you werent worried about those folks being "disenfranchised" in the past...now were you...nor would you use that word to describe them...

so try again...

 

[Rosanne]

And people talk about the FP police but now we have a new FP+ police. The ones that look for every post that even hints at any and all optimism about the FP+ system and then tells them how wrong they are for having said optimism.

And its the same handful of posters you see in every FP+ thread spreading their FP+ doom and gloom scenarios. They are hoping it fails and jumps on any and all initial issues in these roll out phases. They refuse to see anything good because they want to to fail so badly.

Ummm. You do realize the title of this thread is FP+Gripe, right? It's okay have an entire thread dedicated to complaining about those who are concerned about FP+ but it's not okay to have concerns?

Got it.