Time to bring back fast passes!!!

[MillauFr]

Why would anyone expect Disney to be equitable? Wouldn't you expect them to maximize revenue? Our state DOT in Washington is constructing variable priced tolling lanes so those willing to pay can avoid congestion. If government is doing it why wouldn't a private company?

 

[JakeAZ]

Why would anyone expect Disney to be equitable? Wouldn't you expect them to maximize revenue? Our state DOT in Washington is constructing variable priced tolling lanes so those willing to pay can avoid congestion. If government is doing it why wouldn't a private company?

So true.

Contrary to popular opinion here, Disney answers to its shareholders first...guests second.

 

[GoingSince1990]

Reading these FP threads and seeing people’s opinions, I am coming more and more to the conclusion that Disney had arrived at pretty much the best solution with the existing FP system (that is, the one in use immediately before Covid). I well remember the pre-FP days of getting up at the crack of dawn to RD, and zip around the good rides under pressure of the crowds increasing, and do not want to go back to that. I guess we are now spoiled, and nobody in my family ever wants to wait in a line for longer than about 20-30 minutes. As for Disney “monetizing” FP, they already were doing that hand over fist, with tours, events such as FEA, paid EMM, and above all, selling premium priced hotel rooms with 60-day FP as a main selling point. And all while enjoying the goodwill from benevolently granting “free” FPs to all. The bad press and headlines along the lines of “GREEDY DISNEY NOW CHARGING FOR FASTPASS” would be a major PR hit and would take years to live down.

 

[dreamer17555]

just play along with me what would you do while waiting for your FP time? no parades, no meet and greets, lines waiting for food and to shop. play areas not open. I am just wondering things are not the same yes you dont want to wait in lines but what are you going to do while waiting?

I also pointed this out. 35% is like a typical Disney day but without everything open you can really feel the crowds. The only thing that would really help is opening more things (DHS has three shows that have huge outdoor theaters they could distance at- Fantasmic, Indiana Jones, and Beauty and the Beast). When even smaller non attractions are closed (think those splash areas the little’s love) and limited seating at QS, limited ADRs, wait for shops, no parades where people scope out spots early, no castle shows, meet and greets etc, means there is very little to absorb crowds.

 

[JakeAZ]

Reading these FP threads and seeing people’s opinions, I am coming more and more to the conclusion that Disney had arrived at pretty much the best solution with the existing FP system (that is, the one in use immediately before Covid). I well remember the pre-FP days of getting up at the crack of dawn to RD, and zip around the good rides under pressure of the crowds increasing, and do not want to go back to that. I guess we are now spoiled, and nobody in my family ever wants to wait in a line for longer than about 20-30 minutes. As for Disney “monetizing” FP, they already were doing that hand over fist, with tours, events such as FEA, paid EMM, and above all, selling premium priced hotel rooms with 60-day FP as a main selling point. And all while enjoying the goodwill from benevolently granting “free” FPs to all. The bad press and headlines along the lines of “GREEDY DISNEY NOW CHARGING FOR FASTPASS” would be a major PR hit and would take years to live down.

There is no way they are going back to any systems of the past, I agree with you on this.

Your points about them charging for other events that basically give ride preference are valid.

However, when has Disney ever said "you know, guests are giving us enough money"?

This is the absolute perfect time to make the change to some sort of paid program. Sure, there will be some bad press for a few weeks? months? But, then the system is there FOREVER.

People got mad about MDE ending, charging for parking, ending the current EMH program and a whole host of other changes over the years. The anger goes away, people accept the change and Disney laughs all the way to the bank.

 

[disneypharm]

Why would anyone expect Disney to be equitable? Wouldn't you expect them to maximize revenue? Our state DOT in Washington is constructing variable priced tolling lanes so those willing to pay can avoid congestion. If government is doing it why wouldn't a private company?

I don't think people want it to be completely equitable. DOT in Washington is providing a new option to reduce the congestion. Not making all the roads toll roads!! Pre-Covid they had the free option to make most visitors happy. In addition, they had what #GoingSince1990 listed below. If Disney decided to charge everyone for what used to be free, some might pay for FPs, but the majority will not come back.

Reading these FP threads and seeing people’s opinions, I am coming more and more to the conclusion that Disney had arrived at pretty much the best solution with the existing FP system (that is, the one in use immediately before Covid). I well remember the pre-FP days of getting up at the crack of dawn to RD, and zip around the good rides under pressure of the crowds increasing, and do not want to go back to that. I guess we are now spoiled, and nobody in my family ever wants to wait in a line for longer than about 20-30 minutes. As for Disney “monetizing” FP, they already were doing that hand over fist, with tours, events such as FEA, paid EMM, and above all, selling premium priced hotel rooms with 60-day FP as a main selling point. And all while enjoying the goodwill from benevolently granting “free” FPs to all. The bad press and headlines along the lines of “GREEDY DISNEY NOW CHARGING FOR FASTPASS” would be a major PR hit and would take years to live down.

I agree!

 

[JakeAZ]

If Disney decided to charge everyone for what used to be free, some might pay for FPs, but the majority will not come back.

IMO I think they will favor on-site guests with some form of included FP. Whether that's a set number based on the level of accommodations you select or some other criteria, I do not know. But it would make sense for them to do it that way. On site transportation and 30 min of early entry do not justify current on-site hotel pricing.

They could then offer a lesser set amount to off-site / day guests.

Everything else after that would be paid.

 

[dreamer17555]

Disney needs to tie something with fast passes back to staying on site. That 60 day window was a big reason many people chose to stay on site especially with extra magic hours and DME. EMH is pretty much gone in any conventional sense and I haven’t seen word of when they plan to roll out these new early half hour mornings nor word of a Disney dining plan which is also reason a lot of people like to stay on site so everything is paid for upfront (yes I agree it doesn’t often save people money but people like it for the convenience factor).

I am sure people will still flock to Disney but whether they’re willing to pay for their hotels is a different beast entirely. If they want to keep guests on site they need to do some thing with the fast passes tied to a resort stay.

 

[Delirium]

We did DW last August for the first time with No FP's. We were thinking it would be a big problem. It wasn't. Avg wait times were shorter across the board. Significantly. So we still rode all we wanted to and waited less time that day. I think each day we had hours at the end where we could go back and ride again things we loved.

They will come back, but it's not a bother to us that they are gone for now.

Your wait times were shorter, not because of the absence of FastPass, but because overall crowds were SIGNIFICANTLY smaller due to the Covid restrictions.

Try envisioning no FPs existed when crowds are at 2019 levels. It just would not work.

 

[becauseimnew]

What they really need to do is increase park hours, bring back more CMs, increase ride capacity & open up more shows.

 

[JakeAZ]

If they want to keep guests on site they need to do some thing with the fast passes tied to a resort stay

It would be a HUGE mistake for them not to do this.

Once DME stops, there is very little to justify on-site stays right now...aside from proximity. 30 minutes early is nice but what about later hours for those guests who don't want to rope drop every day of their vacation?

 

[Delirium]

I would never tie FP's up for an entire day with an evening FP. Use them early and often and keep using them throughout the entire day. I might grab a later one just to make refreshing quicker but you could ride so many more rides through the day with little to no wait through the FP line that even if you did not get a SDD FP you would still be much further ahead with that one wait. That being said, even headliners like SDD and FOP could be found day of.

Depends on what your goals are. I would not hesitate to book a Slinky Dog FP in the evening so I would get to experience the attraction in the dark. Same with things like Jungle Cruise, Mine Train, Test Track, etc. Those rides are simply more special at night, and it is totally unreasonable to assume a party of 4 would get the opportunity to snag those as 6th, 7th, or 8th FPs.

From what I've seen, working hard to grab 'extra' FPs results in a lot of unnecessary time refreshing your phone and then criss-crossing the park as you follow up that Pirates of the Caribbean FP with one to Buzz Lightyear, and then snag one for Haunted Mansion. That's not the type of experience I want when I am at Disney.

We last went over Thanksgiving Week in 2018. Despite going on such a busy week, we were able to ride every single attraction at least once during the trip without using more then 3-4 FPs a day and without waiting in line for more than 30 minutes for anything except to see Mickey at Magic Kingdom.

Scheduling late in the day FPs allowed us to do things in our 2nd park of the day if we hopped and experience attractions in the evening that are better when it is dark. And, it eliminated a TON of stress from the day that would have otherwise been spent constantly refreshing to grab a FP for something I could have walked on without needing one if I had planned my day better.

 

[Leigh L]

I am sure people will still flock to Disney but whether they’re willing to pay for their hotels is a different beast entirely. If they want to keep guests on site they need to do some thing with the fast passes tied to a resort stay.

This would be my family. We'd never stayed at a Disney-owned resort until 2019. For us, what will reduce our Disney resort stays is the loss of DME. When I travel without DH I don't want to rent a car and I don't do rideshare. For him, it varies whether he wants a car or not.

I don't think FPs are coming back the way they were, but if they want to keep guests in their hotels, they are going to have to offer something to differentiate themselves from their competitors and make it worth paying Disney prices. The 30-minute early entry is nice, but I wouldn't pay for it likely - an hour maybe. (We've had enough times where Disney buses not showing up in time to make rope drop, so 30 min is useless in that respect IMO)

 

[JakeAZ]

This would be my family. We'd never stayed at a Disney-owned resort until 2019. For us, what will reduce our Disney resort stays is the loss of DME. When I travel without DH I don't want to rent a car and I don't do rideshare. For him, it varies whether he wants a car or not.

I don't think FPs are coming back the way they were, but if they want to keep guests in their hotels, they are going to have to offer something to differentiate themselves from their competitors and make it worth paying Disney prices. The 30-minute early entry is nice, but I wouldn't pay for it likely - an hour maybe. (We've had enough times where Disney buses not showing up in time to make rope drop, so 30 min is useless in that respect IMO)

100%

I don't mind "overpaying" if I feel it gives me an advantage over people who chose not to.

If FP relaunches with a paid service and I can stay anywhere and have access to the same paid packages as those who stay on-site, my family will never see the inside of a Disney hotel again! We will cover WDW trips with CC and hotel points going forward and use the savings to max out on ride access.

 

[mrsap]

Just saw this and thought I’d share, since it pertains to the topic...

https://allears.net/2021/03/02/why-bringing-back-fastpass-wouldnt-solve-disney-worlds-problems/

 

[Leigh L]

Just saw this and thought I’d share, since it pertains to the topic...

https://allears.net/2021/03/02/why-bringing-back-fastpass-wouldnt-solve-disney-worlds-problems/

Thanks for sharing. That's a good point about park hopping, I hadn't honestly even considered that, but just another reason why FP won't work right now.

 

[JakeAZ]

Thanks for sharing. That's a good point about park hopping, I hadn't honestly even considered that, but just another reason why FP won't work right now.

Pre-pandemic you could only make FP reservations at one park in advance.

That was Disney's precursor to the Park Reservation system. They knew where everyone was going to be for their first 3 FP.

Maybe I'm missing something. Those points in the allears article could make sense, but get tossed out the window when FP lines are in use right now:
DAS
Club 33
Rider Swap
Guest Recovery
VIP

 

[JETSDAD]

Depends on what your goals are. I would not hesitate to book a Slinky Dog FP in the evening so I would get to experience the attraction in the dark. Same with things like Jungle Cruise, Mine Train, Test Track, etc. Those rides are simply more special at night, and it is totally unreasonable to assume a party of 4 would get the opportunity to snag those as 6th, 7th, or 8th FPs.

From what I've seen, working hard to grab 'extra' FPs results in a lot of unnecessary time refreshing your phone and then criss-crossing the park as you follow up that Pirates of the Caribbean FP with one to Buzz Lightyear, and then snag one for Haunted Mansion. That's not the type of experience I want when I am at Disney.

We last went over Thanksgiving Week in 2018. Despite going on such a busy week, we were able to ride every single attraction at least once during the trip without using more then 3-4 FPs a day and without waiting in line for more than 30 minutes for anything except to see Mickey at Magic Kingdom.

Scheduling late in the day FPs allowed us to do things in our 2nd park of the day if we hopped and experience attractions in the evening that are better when it is dark. And, it eliminated a TON of stress from the day that would have otherwise been spent constantly refreshing to grab a FP for something I could have walked on without needing one if I had planned my day better.

Not unreasonable at all to be able to get a same day FP for 4 people for any ride. Refreshing also did not mean having to criss cross the park unless you chose to. We would decide which ride we were going to next and get a FP for that ride. Yes if we had a chance to ride FOP within the hour we would likely take that even if it meant walking across the park but that doesn't have to be done. Some rides were obviously more difficult to get than others but being able to use 20 FP's at MK, ride FOP 3-4 times/day, get SDD for 7 people day of, etc was all possible (we did it). I know other people have different experiences but I've shown many times on here what is possible with same day FP's. I'm glad others are willing to spend time in SB lines though because that leaves more FP's for those of us who would prefer to not wait.

 

[Disneyfan754321]

I've never been a fan of FPs or any system where you have to have lots of inside knowledge or experience in order to maximize it. That leaves lots of people who don't eat, breathe, and live Disney out. It's like their terrible system for Rise of the Resistence right now. For those who don't spend countless hours researching, watching Youtube, reading forums....wonder how they feel when they find out they actually had a window of 5 seconds to get a boarding pass. That's a seriously broken system. I much preferred MaxPass to FastPass when I was in DL.

I totally agree. With cheaper airfare , a spur of the moment trip is a possibility with FP the only rides you will find are the ones you dont need fast pass for lol.

 

[CanadianEmily]

Reading these FP threads and seeing people’s opinions, I am coming more and more to the conclusion that Disney had arrived at pretty much the best solution with the existing FP system (that is, the one in use immediately before Covid). I well remember the pre-FP days of getting up at the crack of dawn to RD, and zip around the good rides under pressure of the crowds increasing, and do not want to go back to that. I guess we are now spoiled, and nobody in my family ever wants to wait in a line for longer than about 20-30 minutes. As for Disney “monetizing” FP, they already were doing that hand over fist, with tours, events such as FEA, paid EMM, and above all, selling premium priced hotel rooms with 60-day FP as a main selling point. And all while enjoying the goodwill from benevolently granting “free” FPs to all. The bad press and headlines along the lines of “GREEDY DISNEY NOW CHARGING FOR FASTPASS” would be a major PR hit and would take years to live down.

I agree with this. I think the existing FP system and/or the boarding group system combined with a series of different paid opportunities to access rides outside of normal hours might continue to make the most sense. I just don't know if paid FPs would work at WDW the same as it would work at other theme parks, including Disneyland. And I do think short-term PR matters coming out of a pandemic. A return to "normal" is everyone's biggest dream right now. No doubt, any changes will result in more money for them, but they might be more subtle than outright directly charging for FPs. There has been lots of talk of tying it to resorts. I'm not sure if FPs could get people to book in a higher tier of resort. Maybe up one tier, but I can say for myself that there's not a chance I would go from value to deluxe. I would probably have to shorten my vacation to go from value to moderate, and is that what they want? Maybe it would be if they could still always fill all the types of rooms.

In any case, I do think they would have better luck charging for fast access in a variety of ways like they currently do. I did EMM on our last trip, and I don't mind paying for a special thing one day of the trip. I wouldn't mind paying for FPs on a per-FP basis if the cost was not extraordinary, plus it would be one of those things, if you were paying on the day off, where you wouldn't realize how much you were spending. That's always ideal for the company, lol. If they wanted to charge something like $20-$30 day for a good FP service, I would also pay that, but so would everyone else. I don't know what the answer is, but I'm one of the ones definitely crossing my fingers that it comes back in a not-too-altered format. Just by doing a bit of research, we barely stood in lines on our very first trip. But I also agree it's not fair that you need to do that research in order to really take advantage of it. If we had to stand in multiple hour-long lines though, we for sure wouldn't be trying to go back so soon if ever.