WDW Veteran Just Back -FP+ Exp.

[rastuso]

Nor mine.

Now that the paper FP's have been shut off in MK and all guests are on a level playing field in that regard, it will be interesting to see what effect that has on the lines. If 3 FP's really turns out to be the limit, that might be okay if the typical standby line is equalized to 15 minutes or so. But if the standby lines still have the potential to regularly exceed 30, 45, or even 60 minutes then those 3 FP's are really not going to seem like enough.

Come on, that will NEVER happen. Standbys will never normalize. The mountains will always have the longest waits. And those waits won't be controlled by how many people have FP+, it will ALWAYS be controlled by how long someone is willing to wait for Splash. Which in the summer will ALWAYS be at least an hour.

Ther is absolutely no chance of Splash, Big Thunder, and Mansion stand bys being significantly shorter this year. If someone walks by Splash during Spring Break, and sees a ten minute wait, they would go "HOLY CRAP! SPlash only has a ten minute wait, call everyone we know that is here." Very quickly, Splash will have a long line.

Standby waits are controlled by how badly someone wants to ride the ride. And this billion dollars didnt change that at all.

Jason

 

[3happydancers]

I am just back from a family WDW vacation lasting from 1/3-1/11. We have vacationed at WDW 15 times in the last 12 years, so I consider us veterans. Further, I have been on the DIS for 12 years, so this is not a 'troll' post. Our last trip to WDW was in May of 2013, just before the testing began. I'll be honest and say I was nervous about this trip. The reviews on Magic Bands were so-so, and FP+ were pretty mixed, too. I was not a fan of FP+ before using it. We are rope-droppers, and we use FP throughout the day, the idea of being limited to three was not a happy thought. Our stay involved two nights at All Star Movies, and six at Saratoga Springs.

Checking in to the Movies, there was a long line that took a really long time. The Magic Bands are responsible for this. People either weren't aware of them, didn't understand them, or didn't want them but had to use them. The line was a decidedly unfun way to start vacation. Oh, and the pre-check-in line was no better. We brought our bands from home and the CM couldn't say enough great things about the bands. Apparently, these little bands really ARE magic, because they were going to revolutionize my life! Not so much. We walked from the main building to our rooms in 101 Dalmations. Three of the five bands worked to open the door (yes, we did the scan the first one, then scan each additional, waiting for the green light so as to sync them). Each time we left the room, a different band would work. It was like the lottery, but not as worthwhile. By the time we checked out two days later, one of the five bands worked. I'm not sold on Magic Bands. In fact, I think they should be doused in kerosene and set aflame. They were also spotty getting into the parks. We had to wait to have a CM come over and type the number into a handheld computer, then run the band again. All in all, they need work, and I'm not looking forward to finding out just uncomfortable they can be in the heat of summer.

FP+ is a nice idea, but it's applied so unfairly it makes it hard to enjoy. Let me explain. I am given 3 FP+ I can utilize. That's nice. We went to MK on Saturday, 1/4. We knew it would be busy, but our daughters wanted to ride Splash and the cars before they went down for refurb. Great. As the day progressed and the park got busier and busier, wait times got longer and longer (obviously). However, as onsite guests stuck with FP+, we couldn't pull regular FP. Therefore, offsite guests were able to enjoy as many FPs as they could pull, while Disney penalized their onsite guests with the ability to utilize only 3 FP+. I was not happy. I'm not going to continue paying Disney's onsite prices if the company chooses to continue with this practice. Further, I don't want to choose my rides months, weeks, or even days in advance. And, the tiering is ridiculous. I don't know how Maelstrom is on par with Soarin, but apparently Disney sees it that way.

That said, we checked out of Movies and into Saratoga, and I had a long talk with the CM checking me in. She commiserated on the bands and the issues I had, and promptly presented me with KTTW cards. Yes, I used them to pull FP. I'm normally a big time rule follower, in this case, I could not abide. Something needs to give.

So, at the end of the day it looks like this: I am disappointed in the direction Disney has gone with the "Magical Experience". It didn't feel particularly magical to me. I realize everything changes, and I have no problem with Disney making changes to enhance their business. I am/was planning to celebrate my 40th with a two-week long trip in August of 2015. Multiple family members were planning to come to celebrate with us. At this point, that trip is up in the air. I want so see where this "test phase" ends up. If it's not satisfactory, I'm not spending $10k. I don't expect this to change Disney, and it's not an idle threat. Simply put, if the experience is no longer positive, we won't be heading back. (Yes, I put this is a letter to Disney, as well as in my survey responses).

I'm happy to answer any questions.

No questions here but thanks for taking the time to write a review although be it, a sad one. And I was very happy to hear that you sent it off to Disney. Disney needs to hear from us I wrote to them as well though I did not have an actual experience to base my letter; just concerns. Your report describes what I am worried will happen with our upcoming trip. Our saving grace is that we don't go until the end of August. We are hoping things will turn around but honestly, we have already started making plans to split our vacation time. We will go to Disney to give this new system a fair shake, but we are not willing to waste our entire vacation should things continue to go south. My family does not mind change however, not at the expense of paying customers who drop thousands of dollars at a time. What ever happened to the saying, "You get what you pay for!"

 

[Planogirl]

Thanks for the review. I will only say that I didn't like the unfairness of it all either even though we could pull FP- last month and our trip was like past trips. Going forward it looks like everyone will be in your situation whatever that will turn out to mean...

 

[Mad Hattered]

I am just back from a family WDW vacation lasting from 1/3-1/11. We have vacationed at WDW 15 times in the last 12 years, so I consider us veterans. Further, I have been on the DIS for 12 years, so this is not a 'troll' post. Our last trip to WDW was in May of 2013, just before the testing began. I'll be honest and say I was nervous about this trip. The reviews on Magic Bands were so-so, and FP+ were pretty mixed, too. I was not a fan of FP+ before using it. We are rope-droppers, and we use FP throughout the day, the idea of being limited to three was not a happy thought. Our stay involved two nights at All Star Movies, and six at Saratoga Springs.

Checking in to the Movies, there was a long line that took a really long time. The Magic Bands are responsible for this. People either weren't aware of them, didn't understand them, or didn't want them but had to use them. The line was a decidedly unfun way to start vacation. Oh, and the pre-check-in line was no better. We brought our bands from home and the CM couldn't say enough great things about the bands. Apparently, these little bands really ARE magic, because they were going to revolutionize my life! Not so much. We walked from the main building to our rooms in 101 Dalmations. Three of the five bands worked to open the door (yes, we did the scan the first one, then scan each additional, waiting for the green light so as to sync them). Each time we left the room, a different band would work. It was like the lottery, but not as worthwhile. By the time we checked out two days later, one of the five bands worked. I'm not sold on Magic Bands. In fact, I think they should be doused in kerosene and set aflame. They were also spotty getting into the parks. We had to wait to have a CM come over and type the number into a handheld computer, then run the band again. All in all, they need work, and I'm not looking forward to finding out just uncomfortable they can be in the heat of summer.

FP+ is a nice idea, but it's applied so unfairly it makes it hard to enjoy. Let me explain. I am given 3 FP+ I can utilize. That's nice. We went to MK on Saturday, 1/4. We knew it would be busy, but our daughters wanted to ride Splash and the cars before they went down for refurb. Great. As the day progressed and the park got busier and busier, wait times got longer and longer (obviously). However, as onsite guests stuck with FP+, we couldn't pull regular FP. Therefore, offsite guests were able to enjoy as many FPs as they could pull, while Disney penalized their onsite guests with the ability to utilize only 3 FP+. I was not happy. I'm not going to continue paying Disney's onsite prices if the company chooses to continue with this practice. Further, I don't want to choose my rides months, weeks, or even days in advance. And, the tiering is ridiculous. I don't know how Maelstrom is on par with Soarin, but apparently Disney sees it that way.

That said, we checked out of Movies and into Saratoga, and I had a long talk with the CM checking me in. She commiserated on the bands and the issues I had, and promptly presented me with KTTW cards. Yes, I used them to pull FP. I'm normally a big time rule follower, in this case, I could not abide. Something needs to give.

So, at the end of the day it looks like this: I am disappointed in the direction Disney has gone with the "Magical Experience". It didn't feel particularly magical to me. I realize everything changes, and I have no problem with Disney making changes to enhance their business. I am/was planning to celebrate my 40th with a two-week long trip in August of 2015. Multiple family members were planning to come to celebrate with us. At this point, that trip is up in the air. I want so see where this "test phase" ends up. If it's not satisfactory, I'm not spending $10k. I don't expect this to change Disney, and it's not an idle threat. Simply put, if the experience is no longer positive, we won't be heading back. (Yes, I put this is a letter to Disney, as well as in my survey responses).

I'm happy to answer any questions.

Very nice, detailed report, mrsltg. I'm sorry you had the issues listed but it sounds like something Disney needs to read. It's so odd that for every great report there is one that contradicts it.

This thing seems far from ready to impose on the masses.

 

[Joe Dirt 1972]

I really don't understand why people are bashing people for using the old fast pass system. I have been to WDW 4 times since the fast pass system was put in. Before going I did my homework understood how to get the most fast passes and maximise my families joy in the parks. But for all the people that did what myself and many others have done to get the most fast passes these methods and tricks of the trades were available to every guest so we lets be fair

Also one thing that I like about the old fast pass system was if you couldn't use the fast pass or someone else couldn't use theirs it was a matter of handing it off to someone else and they could enjoy the ride. There were times where something came up and we couldn't use our passes and we gave them to people with their kids standing in line and it brought a smile to their faces.

It is herding and more planning the only thing I ever planned or booked was my restaurants because we were on the dining plan , but this year we are not getting the dining plan because it cut in the day too much because your whole day revolved around your dinner reservation. Same as the new fast pass + will cause more headaches because you are tied to that time at least with the old fast pass system if you couldn't make it or were on another ride you could just had it off to someone else.

Why spend the money on a park hopper?
__________________

 

[Shaden]

Nor mine.

Now that the paper FP's have been shut off in MK and all guests are on a level playing field in that regard, it will be interesting to see what effect that has on the lines. If 3 FP's really turns out to be the limit, that might be okay if the typical standby line is equalized to 15 minutes or so. But if the standby lines still have the potential to regularly exceed 30, 45, or even 60 minutes then those 3 FP's are really not going to seem like enough.

Not surprising, I totally agree with you here. Really, if this had a DRAMATIC impact on standby lines, like to bring headliners down to 15-20 mins, or so, I would be totally ok with 3FPs. But if the SB lines stay that high, and I can't pull FPs, I am probably done with WDW for a few years, will hit it up again in 5 or 6 years when we have little ones. And to think after our last trip in May we started shopping for DVC

Well, the joke's on us. Hypothetically, the less we're in lines for rides, the more potential time/$$ we're spending in shops and restaurants. Or just milling about waiting for our next FP+ reservation time.

Plus, most reports are that lines are just as long as (and, in some cases, longer than) ever.

Ha! There goes me trying to stay positive...

This is the problem, that's exactly what people have been reporting. Some people have theorized that this might be because of double dipping, and, that might have had some impact. We will know I guess around the President's day weekend ... I think that's the next High season point isn't it ??? And by then, legacy FP looks to be gone. Whether offsite guests will be able to pre-book FP+ by then (or at all) is yet to be seen.

 

[guppy1013]

I'm confused about the uninformed part.

We are going in 2 weeks. We got the lovely flash drive package. Didn't everyone? If you are informed enough to know about park hoppers and fast pass and see that things are changing, don't you do a little research? (If you are reading this, well, obvs...I am always researching on the dis whether we have a planned vaca or not).

If a consumer is so insistent about the way things should be....they should do their part too. Disney isn't REALLY magical. They can't magically change this system without some bumps in the road. I do feel bad for people whose vacations get stalled or have hassles because the bands don't work. I don't feel bad for people because they don't understand.

I am too young to remember installing FP-. Did it change the way people toured? I'm sure. Did people still not understand it? Yes. Actually enforcing return times? Dear lord it was the end of the world. Did it change the way people toured? A lot of angry angry posters. Magic bands have been out for less than 4 months? I would LOVE to be compensated for being part of the testing phase....but in 5 years, I think this is going to be standard operating procedure and we will be complaining about the next way disney is changing the way you vacation.

Again, sorry the OP had delays in getting in room. Or people had delays getting in parks. But not realizing it's not a park hopper? And I do think they will change the 3 pass limit and tweek the system and EVENTUALLY it will have effects on standby lines....Disney wouldn't be doing something that makes more people wait in line and NOT available to spend money.

Patience. And don't take your once in a lifetime trip until the kinks are worked out.

 

[Karbase8]

I am glad by your Sarotoga Springs stay you got the KTTW cards. This should have been given to you at the All-Star Movies resort upon check-in because it is still in the testing phase so if you had glitches you had a backup and still would be able to pull FP as this is not double-dipping WDW is allowing this during the testing phase.
I went to WDW in August 2013 and at that time me and my DS13 felt like celebrities as it was rare to see people with the MB at that time. We had no glitches with the MB open our room, getting into the parks, our dining reservations were linked,etc. I believe why there are massive glitches at this time is that they have overloaded the system with putting so many guests on the system when they are still working out the kinks.
I did have trouble altering my FP+ times and found that frustrating. I also do not like the tier system as well. Per example, the three headliners TSM, TOT, and RNRC if you want FP for them you can only choose one out of the 3. I hope as WDW receives complaints and suggestiions, there may be changes to the system. I appreciate your feedback!

 

[3happydancers]

I am glad by your Sarotoga Springs stay you got the KTTW cards. This should have been given to you at the All-Star Movies resort upon check-in because it is still in the testing phase so if you had glitches you had a backup and still would be able to pull FP as this is not double-dipping WDW is allowing this during the testing phase.
I went to WDW in August 2013 and at that time me and my DS13 felt like celebrities as it was rare to see people with the MB at that time. We had no glitches with the MB open our room, getting into the parks, our dining reservations were linked,etc. I believe why there are massive glitches at this time is that they have overloaded the system with putting so many guests on the system when they are still working out the kinks.
I did have trouble altering my FP+ times and found that frustrating. I also do not like the tier system as well. Per example, the three headliners TSM, TOT, and RNRC if you want FP for them you can only choose one out of the 3. I hope as WDW receives complaints and suggestiions, there may be changes to the system. I appreciate your feedback!

I agree. KTTW cards should have been given to op right from the beginning of his stay. When you think about it, this problem is so great, that Disney should be doing this for everyone at the time of check-in until they can get this problem under control. There is no reason why anyone should be expected to stand on long lines during their vacation time, trying to rectify problems that Disney has been aware of for months. What I see is that Disney is not proactive nor prepared. Obviously this does not address the second issue related to unhappy customers and the new fast pass system but at least they would be spared the frustration connected to unreliable bands.

 

[poohgirl6]

OP thanks for the honest review. I was afraid of this happening, once they MBs became more prevalent, and they started phasing out the old FP system.

We were there early Sept 2013, and had the MBs at the CR. There were a few glitches getting them set up (only 2 of 4 keys would open our door), but overall, we loved the way they worked. However, we rarely saw anyone else with the bands on in the parks, so there were very few guests utilizing the FP+ system at that time. There was no tiering, and we had multiple choices of ride times throughout the day. We also had back-up KTTW cards, so we could pull FPs if we park hopped.

It seems there are lots of glitches to be worked out, and I guess that is to be expected, but it sure sucks if it has to happen on your vacation time and money. Also, I don't really see the benefits outweighing all of this trouble and money when it's all said and done. Just MHO

 

[lugnut33]

What would be awesome is if Disney just kept this program in the testing phase forever so nobody could have reasonable expectations about what the system should do.

That way somebody could always come on here and say, "but it's in testing and could change". Doesn't matter you just spent thousands of dollars on a vacation for your family.

 

[johde]

Nor mine.

Now that the paper FP's have been shut off in MK and all guests are on a level playing field in that regard, it will be interesting to see what effect that has on the lines. If 3 FP's really turns out to be the limit, that might be okay if the typical standby line is equalized to 15 minutes or so. But if the standby lines still have the potential to regularly exceed 30, 45, or even 60 minutes then those 3 FP's are really not going to seem like enough.

I know you're being over dramatic, but FP+ is not going to turn TSMM, Soarin', TT, SM, etc. into a 15 min. wait midafternoon in the summer. If it brings each of the "headliners" standby wait times down by 10-15 minutes from 70 min. to 60 or 55 min. it could be considered a huge success with the crowd that previously didn't pull many FP's. They now get on 3 rides quickly where previously it may have been 1 or 2, and all the long lines are just a little bit shorter than they were last year.

 

[MrsSilvaStrat]

Hi there! leaving for WDW in 3 weeks and appreciate your post!

I am going to ask for KTTW cards up front. After a day of traveling with two toddlers, if I get to my door and I can't open it, I will not feel so magical.

One of the perks about a family vacation to WDW is that it is supposed to be EASY! It's my place where I can go to and not think for a week and have magic all around. I'm so nervous this trip won't be as magical

 

[kidd_freeper]

Good thread.

We're going in July and will stay offsite. We might participate in a YES class. So we might have a mix of YES tickets and UT tickets.

There are a lot of bugs to work out by then. Seems to me that the best conclusion that will come from these test periods is: 'The system doesn't work. We will revert back to the old system'

Right.

Maybe we'll just go to the beach.

 

[Laketravis]

I know you're being over dramatic, but FP+ is not going to turn TSMM, Soarin', TT, SM, etc. into a 15 min. wait midafternoon in the summer. If it brings each of the "headliners" standby wait times down by 10-15 minutes from 70 min. to 60 or 55 min. it could be considered a huge success with the crowd that previously didn't pull many FP's. They now get on 3 rides quickly where previously it may have been 1 or 2, and all the long lines are just a little bit shorter than they were last year.

Agreed. That's why I used the term "typical standby line". We'll probably land a man on mars before the SB line for TSMM averages 15 minutes (now that was probably a dramatic statement ) but the majority of queues could see more consistent wait times between them. Of course, some would have to rise for others to fall.

I'm compelled to think that with as much as Disney is investing in this, there simply has to be more than just "here's 3, you can only use them in this park today". There could be some very sophisticated expectations behind all of this that could also provide some very sophisticated results.

There's another thread going that asks how long people are willing to wait in line. I understand it's not very scientific, but the responses are pretty common and it looks like waits of 30 minutes or more are deemed unacceptable by most. Of course there are the exceptions like character meets where people will often tolerate a longer wait.

Honestly, would I think a company that figured out how far to space trash cans and could make plants sing probably has a pretty good chance of figuring out how to reduce wait times even if it doesn't involve just building more of the things people wait for.

And then I go back to thinking about the very long lines for character meets and how easy that would be to fix by just adding more staff in costumes yet Disney hasn't done that.

Certainly the thing they are best at (creating demand) is also their Achilles heel. Hopefully they will listen to the kind of feedback the OP gave.

 

[4forMe]

Hi there! leaving for WDW in 3 weeks and appreciate your post!

I am going to ask for KTTW cards up front. After a day of traveling with two toddlers, if I get to my door and I can't open it, I will not feel so magical.

One of the perks about a family vacation to WDW is that it is supposed to be EASY! It's my place where I can go to and not think for a week and have magic all around. I'm so nervous this trip won't be as magical

Disney is getting rid of KTTW cards from all resorts by January 20th. Here is a link to the rollout:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3217107

In addition, legacy Fastpass is scheduled to be removed from DHS and Epcot by the end of January so no more double dipping of fastpasses. It appears everything will be FP+ by the beginning of February.

 

[johde]

I'm compelled to think that with as much as Disney is investing in this, there simply has to be more than just "here's 3, you can only use them in this park today". There could be some very sophisticated expectations behind all of this that could also provide some very sophisticated results.

I agree there is more coming from FP+ what it is I'm not sure. I'm also not sure if it's going to be free or pay. Right now, I think they are trying to focus on finishing rolling out the system to all WDW guests in a form that will work for 99% of the year. Once that's in place, and the software is running smoothly, I think we'll start seeing changes happen

There's another thread going that asks how long people are willing to wait in line. I understand it's not very scientific, but the responses are pretty common and it looks like waits of 30 minutes or more are deemed unacceptable by most. Of course there are the exceptions like character meets where people will often tolerate a longer wait.

But that is the typical DISer who is proficient in FP- and themepark navigation. I just posted on that thread if you look at the typical expected wait times, especially in the afternoon, people aren't skipping rides when the lines get to 40, 50, 60 minutes long in a lo of cases.

Honestly, would I think a company that figured out how far to space trash cans and could make plants sing probably has a pretty good chance of figuring out how to reduce wait times even if it doesn't involve just building more of the things people wait for.

And then I go back to thinking about the very long lines for character meets and how easy that would be to fix by just adding more staff in costumes yet Disney hasn't done that.

Certainly the thing they are best at (creating demand) is also their Achilles heel.

In a strange way, Disney may be doing some of this by what they are not doing. What is everyone on this boards cure for fixing DHS build a major Starwars Land. Something to rival Carsland at DCA or WWoHP at IOA. While those 2 additions added capacity to their respective parks, attendance also increased 22% to 29%. Wait times at IOA are longer now than they were before WWoHP. Most people on the DIS consider New Fantasy Land a dud. But, it added capacity to the park, while not shooting attendance to unsustainable levels. The question is where Avatarland at AK is going to fall. It's got the potential to fall between the 2 groups which is what AK needs. People are not going to plan an entire trip around see it like WWoHP but I think it will give an uptick to attendance and capacity.

 

[Donut23]

Agreed. That's why I used the term "typical standby line". We'll probably land a man on mars before the SB line for TSMM averages 15 minutes (now that was probably a dramatic statement ) but the majority of queues could see more consistent wait times between them. Of course, some would have to rise for others to fall.

I'm compelled to think that with as much as Disney is investing in this, there simply has to be more than just "here's 3, you can only use them in this park today". There could be some very sophisticated expectations behind all of this that could also provide some very sophisticated results.

There's another thread going that asks how long people are willing to wait in line. I understand it's not very scientific, but the responses are pretty common and it looks like waits of 30 minutes or more are deemed unacceptable by most. Of course there are the exceptions like character meets where people will often tolerate a longer wait.

Honestly, would I think a company that figured out how far to space trash cans and could make plants sing probably has a pretty good chance of figuring out how to reduce wait times even if it doesn't involve just building more of the things people wait for.

And then I go back to thinking about the very long lines for character meets and how easy that would be to fix by just adding more staff in costumes yet Disney hasn't done that.

Certainly the thing they are best at (creating demand) is also their Achilles heel. Hopefully they will listen to the kind of feedback the OP gave.

Perhaps in the long run the less-than-magic-bands will resolve some of Disney's "demand" issue.


I can't get the mental image out of my head of the Comcast Grownups reading about the less-than-magic-bands on the Disboards and doubling over in uncontrollable laughter while they count to $ 1.2 BILLION on their fingers.

 

[sunkissed4]

I really wish Disney would rethink completely eliminating KTTW cards. We've had 3 stays with MB and have never, not ONCE been able to enter our room after check-in.

I had 2 small sleeping kids at AOA our last trip and was told our previous MBs would work and was even given new KTTW cards and neither let us in.

To all staying soon before these issues are fixed, I'll be thinking of you when you're exhausted after traveling and are desperate to get into your room!

OP I really enjoyed your review, it's hard to stay optimistic when I see so many people having the same issues we suffered through as well.

 

[PrincessV]

I'm confused about the uninformed part.

We are going in 2 weeks. We got the lovely flash drive package. Didn't everyone?

Nope. Two of my coworkers just attended a conference at CSR and had NO prior knowledge at all about MBs. They were handed to them at check-in with no explanation at all; they had to ask "WTHeck is this?!" to find out. They were decidedly unimpressed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I've been using my MBs for a few months now and haven't had a problem yet with getting into a room, park or FP+ return, but seeing so many others have soooo many issues is cause for concern. As an AP holder I always have to have my hard ticket on hand, anyway, and I insist on a room key, too, so I always have back-up, just in case. So I really have no use for the MB at all; I tried it, I've seen no advantage to it over a plastic card (other than when going to a pool - it would be great for that, but it's been too cold for this Floridian to swim so far!), and I now skip the MB altogether.

I do wonder, though... I don't ever attach a credit card to my room key/MB - possible that's why I haven't had any issues? It's the only factor I've seen that makes my usage different than some others.