What do you LIKE about FP+ and magic bands?

[Klismania]

I went last October as a single and stayed at POFQ. I was fortunate enough to be in one of the test groups and I absolutely adored the MB and FP+!

My very favorite thing about the MB was the fact that I never had to worry about accidentally getting locked out of my room if I went to the ice machine or the pool. My key was always on my wrist. I also never had to worry about my key (as a valuable) being left alone on the pool deck while I was in the water. My key stayed with me and was waterproof!

It was easy to pay for meals, easy to get into the parks, no fumbling for plastic card keys or worrying about losing my key and having to get it turned off and replaced, or having to put a hold my credit card while I was there because the key card could have been stolen. The MB was with me all day long and only came off when I went to bed at night.

I had MDE on my smartphone so I was always playing around with my FP time. I made my ride choices and FP ride times while on the bus to the park. If I was in a park and nearing a window for a ride that was across the park from where I was, I just changed the time of the ride or changed the FP a different ride that I was closer to. I'm pretty laid-back and flexible, so even if I had to wait another hour for that new ride it was no big deal for me. Since I was there alone I made good use of the single-rider lines, too.

So there's my glowing report about the MB and FP+. I LOVE IT!!

On another note, it seems to me that for the last 10+ years I've seen people complaining bitterly about how resort guests pay so much but they don't seem to get that many perks anymore. Well, it looks like Disney may be moving toward FP being a 'resort guest only' perk; one that I'm glad to see coming. Every time I see someone say that they're not going to Disney because of a new change like this, I feel all inside because that means more room in the parks for me and more discounts for people who are willing to save longer and pay a bit more to stay at the resorts.

 

[MrsDuck]

We love Magic Bands.. we like being able to book our trip in advance and not worry about getting paper FPs. Also, we love that everything is consolidated to just 1 wristband.

 

[dminnie]

OP here. Thanks everyone. Reading some of the other threads was starting to make me wonder if we'd still enjoy going there. It sounds like it's mostly more convenient, with the exception of only having 3 fast passes, tiering and one park. I can deal with that. Things change over time and that's OK.

I was concerned about the lack of spontaneity, but it will be nice not having to walk back and forth through the parks to get fastpasses and then sometimes have them come out during our ADR for dinner or when we wanted a break at the room. The waterproof aspect at the pool sounds pretty good too.

Maybe, with time, they will increase the number you can get or add park hopping to it. For now, I can see it being nice to do RD at one park and then hop to another to use the fastpasses later in the day when things are busier.

So, are the restaurants bringing the bill payment machine to your table now? I assume they are since your "credit card" is a bracelet. They were doing that a lot in Canada and it was great...not having to send our credit card away from our sight for a little while.

A few other questions:
1. We won't have our tickets until just a few weeks before the trip. Will we be OK, or is it likely that there won't be much left in the way of fastpasses to reserve?
2. Do you reserve a specific time, or is it a time frame? How long is the time frame?
3. Does everyone in your party have to have the same fastpasses reserved? 4. Can you reserve for everyone in your party at the same time to insure that you all have the same fastpass return time?

 

[mummabear]

Overall I do not like it (as it is at this time).
BUT what I do like about it:
1) You can hold a FP for a ride that "sells out" early in the day without getting to the park for RD (such as TSMM)
2) You can hold FPs for meet and greets, parades and shows.