*No longer relevant* (Maxpass/Fastpass: an overview and some strategy)

[maltdizzy]

I prefer WDW's because it is free.

Not free, "included."

DLR offers an "included" option if guest are willing to walk to the attractions to secure it. And everyone starts the day on the same footing, regardless of whether they spent the night at the Grand Californian or Watts.

 

[Skyegirl1999]

I wouldn’t change anything. It’s great info. Can’t wait to see where you put the new rides in the priority list.

So far, Monster's Inc has been available "immediately" all day, but it's KILLING the standby wait - 30 minutes right now! That's the same as Soarin'! GOTG's standby is 40 minutes, Incredicoaster is 20... so, yikes. Hopefully they'll work out the kinks and make it more equitable.

Autopia is on par with the Group 4 rides so far today.

Based purely on the app, today appears to be a very low crowd day, so the real test will be when the parks are busier.

 

[asumom]

Not free, "included."

DLR offers an "included" option if guest are willing to walk to the attractions to secure it. And everyone starts the day on the same footing, regardless of whether they spent the night at the Grand Californian or Watts.

Yes, included with the tickets, so basically free because I am not adding more. They also have kiosks if you don't have a phone. Just saying, it's a money maker for DLR to offer max pass. I don't mind going to the kiosks at DLR.

 

[Etonduf]

Updated with price increase, new rides, and a section on "Maxpass value" at the bottom of the OP. The OP is getting to be a bit overly long IMO, so I'm happy to take suggestions on streamlining it.

I'd vote to keep everything in. It's a long read, but has sooo much great information. It's all useful, and I don't think it's unreasonable to ask people people to read through it all if they're unfamiliar with the system.

 

[asumom]

Not free, "included."

DLR offers an "included" option if guest are willing to walk to the attractions to secure it. And everyone starts the day on the same footing, regardless of whether they spent the night at the Grand Californian or Watts.

Yeah, I could do without the advance fast pass selections at WDW; just saying to be able to make the fast passes on your phone included with your ticket at DLR would be nice. Don't care about the pictures. I don't stay at the Grand Californian either....lol. Stovalls is my go to.

 

[Skyegirl1999]

My husband and I just went on our first trip to Disneyland last week. Overall we had a great time, but there were some little things about MaxPass in particular that I was not a fan of. I know it's a different system than Disney World, and overall we took as much advantage as possible, but it was definitely a different experience than using FastPass+ in Disney World.

I think my biggest issue with it is the limited ability (if at all) to get last minute FPs for the popular rides. The system does not allow you to refresh and see multiple return times available for rides. You're only provided with one. Yes I toggled to refresh here and there, and once in a while a different time would pop up. But for the most part, it would present one time, and as more FPs were distributed, the return times got later and later.

On one occasion though, I was trying to refresh for a Space Mountain FP, just to see if something would pop up. It was about 7:20, and all of a sudden one for 7:30-8:30 popped up. I immediately clicked it, and then it said that time was unavailable. With MDE at Disney World, when a time pops up on your screen, it's usually yours for the taking. So it was very frustrating to have a time pop up and then it is instantly not be available. I went back and forth a few times, and then the 7:30-8:30 showed up again. But once again after I clicked it, it said that time was no longer available.

Has anyone else encountered this? I'm so used to refreshing on MDE to get last minute FPs, so not really having the ability to do that in Disneyland was kind of frustrating.

I also wish there were more overall options for FPs. Having some for the Fantasyland rides would be nice, but seeing how tight space is in there, I'm guessing it would be pretty impossible. Remembering the time I could make my next FP was kinda confusing at times too lol.

I mean, what you’re describing is how Maxpass works, so in terms of “Has anyone else encountered this?” Yes. There have, however been a number of recent threads/comments about how surprisingly available cancelled FPs have been, so not everyone has been having the same experience in that regard

The system, including how quickly cancelled FPs “disappear,” is discussed in more depth here:https://www.disboards.com/threads/m...view-and-some-strategy.3726246/#post-60074882

You can see more discussion of picking up cancellations near the end of the thread.

 

[nocturnekings]

I could totally get how one would be frustrated to open the app and see that no FPs were available for whatever ride they wanted to go on. However, if one is persistent going back-and-forth between selecting the park and the fastpass selection screen, it's amazing what one could get. Just a week ago, when Guardians had zero FP availability for the day, we kept checking continuously, and were able to get FPs three different times, and got on the ride 3 times within 90 minutes (seeing another come up after getting in queue or shortly after exiting). All this when there was a 60 minute standby.

Darn near should rename it to MagicPass. I just wish there was a refresh button and the ability to hide things I don't want FPs for - but those features would probably work against me, as it'd be easier for everyone else to compete!

 

[Carolwoodpr]

So now that maxpass is $20 per person per day is it still worth it?

 

[Carrie in AZ]

Thank you for everything! I appreciate all of the information!

 

[Lewdannie]

So now that maxpass is $20 per person per day is it still worth it?

It sure is disappointing (particularly as I arrive in a couple of weeks) but maybe it will stifle demand, at least initially and increase Fastpass availability

 

[Skyegirl1999]

So now that maxpass is $20 per person per day is it still worth it?

I added a new section at the bottom of the OP with some things to consider when making that call for your group.

 

[Syndrome]

So now that maxpass is $20 per person per day is it still worth it?

It sure is disappointing (particularly as I arrive in a couple of weeks) but maybe it will stifle demand, at least initially and increase Fastpass availability

Exactly what I am thinking . I may be in the minority , but I think Maxpass @ $20 . per day is even MORE of a value than before .
Less people will purchase Maxpass now , especially locals (perhaps Disney is trying to cater more, to the "once in a while traveling visitor" ) . That leads me to believe that it will be even more valuable now, as there will be more FP available and even easier access to grab them ( for those that purchase Maxpass) . All for an extra $5. per day !
I think this is exactly what Disney is going for . Less people who will purchase Maxpass , but the bottomline earnings for it may come out ahead for Disney ($5. more PP) , an even better experience for guests who do purchase Maxpass , all while keeping the standby wait times / lines at some kind of normalcy. (The WDW standby wait times are atrocious now due to FP+. There are lines at attractions that NEVER had lines before ) !!!
I think Disneyland is making a smart move for everyone !

We purchased 5 day park hoppers with Maxpass included (at the $15. price) , because this is probably our last trip to DL for a while, and we didnt mind the small splurge for a better experience and less running around to FP machines . Perhaps this is the demographic Disneyland is aiming for ?

 

[Skyegirl1999]

Exactly what I am thinking . I may be in the minority , but I think Maxpass @ $20 . per day is even MORE of a value than before .
Less people will purchase Maxpass now , especially locals (perhaps they are catering more to the "once in a while traveling visitor" ) . That leads me to believe that it will be even more valuable now, as there will be more FP available and even easier access to grab them ( for those that purchase Maxpass) . . All for an extra $5. !
I think this is exactly what Disney is going for . Less people who will pay for Maxpass , but the bottomline earnings for it may come out ahead for Disney ($5. more PP) , an even better experience for guests who do purchase Maxpass , all while keeping the standby wait times / lines at some kind of normalcy. (The WDW standby wait times are atrocious now due to FP+. There are lines at attractions that NEVER had lines before ) !!!
I think Disneyland is making a smart move for everyone !

Well... at $125 for the year for APs, they’re not limiting it that much, to be honest. And it won’t affect standby lines at all... nothing about the price of MP or how many people are using the system really affect standby lines...

I think it’s more likely that they’ve hooked people on using it who will pay whatever they are charging. The last upcharge did not affect FP return times in any appreciable way.

They’ve added more FP rides, so I do expect FP availability patterns to change favorably, but I don't think the price increase will be the cause.

 

[B3rlingirl]

Exactly what I am thinking . I may be in the minority , but I think Maxpass @ $20 . per day is even MORE of a value than before .
Less people will purchase Maxpass now , especially locals (perhaps they are catering more to the "once in a while traveling visitor" ) . That leads me to believe that it will be even more valuable now, as there will be more FP available and even easier access to grab them ( for those that purchase Maxpass) . . All for an extra $5. !
I think this is exactly what Disney is going for . Less people who will pay for Maxpass , but the bottomline earnings for it may come out ahead for Disney ($5. more PP) , an even better experience for guests who do purchase Maxpass , all while keeping the standby wait times / lines at some kind of normalcy. (The WDW standby wait times are atrocious now due to FP+. There are lines at attractions that NEVER had lines before ) !!!
I think Disneyland is making a smart move for everyone !

I don’t think that’s how it’s going to be...
There is still the free paper FP you can get and collect. So I doubt that there will be a significant change in FP availability...
The big problem I see is that less people will buy maxpass but use the free FP (because some might have figured it out a by now or might do some research and see that there is a free version...) And with less maxpass users and more paper FPs there will be less canceled FP, so the refresh tactic to grab canceled FPs won’t work as good as it does now...
Yes, there might be some more FPs but I guess the maxpass experience as a whole might not be as great as it used to be...

 

[CastAStone]

Updated with price increase, new rides, and a section on "Maxpass value" at the bottom of the OP. The OP is getting to be a bit overly long IMO, so I'm happy to take suggestions on streamlining it.

I could wordsmith it to remove word count or you could remove some examples, but honestly this is one of the best written and thought out posts on the DISboards, and it’s pretty damn good as is.

 

[Etonduf]

So now that maxpass is $20 per person per day is it still worth it?

So it turns out we were there for the last fews days of MP at $15. I would've paid $20 and I still think it's worth it at that price. It's a really important part of how my family likes to experience the parks, and we'd probably even buy them at $30 (please don't tell Iger I said that).

But the thread is also populated with people who thought $15 or even $10 was not worth it since they're content to sent a runner to grab paper tickets. It really does depend on how you tour, as they say. Between photos and the ability to stack up evening FPs and minimize lines when my kids are worn down and easily frazzled, it enhances my family's trips. I can easily see that it wouldn't be the case for other people.

Still the increase stings.

 

[Skyegirl1999]

I could wordsmith it to remove word count or you could remove some examples, but honestly this is one of the best written and thought out posts on the DISboards, and it’s pretty damn good as is.

Well, thank you, that is kind of you to say.

Since I’m going to be revisiting it as the new rides are added and patterns change, I’ll look for opportunities to cut down the wording.

 

[midnight star]

So now that maxpass is $20 per person per day is it still worth it?

It depends on the person/family. Everyone has such different budgets for Disney trips. For some, paying $20 a ticket a day won't sting. Others it can be bank-account breaking.There are also many touring styles. You can get by without maxpass. It's not a need, but it's very convenient. Where I still think Maxpass has a win, is the ability to choose fastpasses when you have left the park, pick up cancelled ones, waiting 90 minutes instead of 120, and not having to run all over the park to get them.

 

[julieheyer]

I wish I’d have added the max pass for the year to our flex passes! $100 was nice. I just figured I could add it on my next visit . Bummer!

at this price I will think twice about it. As easy and helpful as it is, it adds up with a family of 5.

 

[EmJ]

Moving my own post to a more appropriate thread