Where exactly are these kiosks located that didn't have long lines? The place in frontierland is usually fairly crowded, the front of the park is crowded, FL is crowded....there's only 5 kiosk locations in the park with the most rides (when there are 6 in AK and Epcot). I think it's a poor choice on Disney's part to put fewer kiosks in the park with the most FP+ attractions.
Liberty Square has been reported as empty or with small waits while Fantasyland's goes tons of people deep. Frontierland at opening has been manageable with short waits.
Just to be very clear here, nor do I. I'm sorry, but I am quite bothered by the condescending tone of your entire post.
I'm not trying to be condescending, I'm just pointing out that you say that you want to pay a certain price, which is fine, we all do, so you choose to stay at SoG because you like the location, room size, and access to monorail. But because you've chosen to forgo staying on-site, that means you'll have less entitlements which includes the convenience of pre-selecting your FP+. It doesn't mean the system is broken or doesn't work, it means that you've elected to pay a certain price that allows you to have rooms you find better, a location you find better, and access to a monorail because you value that savings on a good room over having those FP+, DDP, DME perks.
There's absolutely nothing wrong with that. We all do it. I do it. I've only had two trips where economy and saving money weren't on my mind where I could just buy whatever and spent however much without any sort of limit. The rest of them are about if I want to spend more for a better room, less on the room so I can do DDP, if I want to do on-site and do perks, offsite and skip perks but save money, etc etc.
I put little value on room, a high premium on being close to EPCOT and having good dining. So I go cheap on my room at Pop, perfectly satisfied with two doubles and a view of a dumpster, standing-room only on the bus, all as long as I can get my DDP. Because that's what I choose. My parents, room is their priority along with Disney perks. They want full experience, no waits for anything, best food, monorail, everything. They stay at Poly, get DDP, the whole 9 yards. They want no compromises on experience, and they pay accordingly. From your post, I can tell your focus is best room for best price, location, and transportation, which lands you on SoG. Because that's what you've chosen as your priority, it comes with the loss of certain perks. It means you rent a car or pay for a taxi from the airport, it means you pay OOP for food, it means you can't pre-book your FP+ and have to wait in a park, possibly in line to do it. You've implied you're OK with all but the latter.
However, those facts about the FP+ and how you have to use it differently from actual resort guests doesn't mean the experience doesn't work, that the process is broken, that it's a flawed system, etc etc. It just means that you've chosen something that requires a compromise in the FP+ system, just like I choose to compromise with my room size, setup, location, buses, what have you in order to get what I like. To complain the system is broken because you as a SoG have to stand in line and have a less optimal pick of FP+ times while resort guests get more would be like me complaining that because I didn't choose to pay for Poly, that I can't take a monorail at Pop. It's not the experience I paid for.
As to this...FP was never a resort perk. So yes, I can take issue with them taking something that was never a resort perk - something that was free and at an equal level to all who purchased a park ticket - and then essentially making it a resort perk.
It's still not a resort perk. Anybody can do it. Like before, you show up early, you get the ride you want. In fact, unlike before, show up earlier and get your prime pick of times on any 3 rides. You walk away from that kiosk with 2 more FP's than you got before.
The only perk is the 60 day pre-pick. And never once so far has that perk meant that the guests who show up from off-site at the very start of the day walk up to find that, at the very start of the day, minutes after park opening, there's no FP time at all for their rides of choice. It may mean that by 10 or 11 that they can't get that FP anymore, but that's no different than before, when you had to get your FP for Soarin/TT/TSM/RRC before 11 or you wouldn't get it at all. In fact, people are finding that FP's are opening up later in the day for things like RRC/ToT/Mermaid/Peter/Space/Splash as the standby is shorter than anticipated and/or FPs going unredeemed, an option we never had before as when FP's were gone, they were gone.
I don't have any issue with Disney making money, and have never said anything was part of "some grand scheme to make more money" - please don't put words in my mouth. I do not like that they are *taking something away from those who can't afford Disney prices.
I didn't say you did.
And again, nothing is being taken away... It's now available to everybody. Just with different parameters than for on-site guests.
As for the people who can't afford Disney prices, again, I'm afraid I have little sympathy. If it truly is too expensive for most, Disney will adjust as they have in the past. However, if one chooses a vacation of economy, then they get an experience of economy. Disney is not a charity and is under no obligation to set prices so that all people can afford it. In fact, I'd argue that Disney has always set prices so that they were only available to a set who could afford it, and even then, they provide numerous, numerous options for a cheaper vacation. I can't afford the Poly so I don't begrudge it being expensive, I choose Pop. I know that choice means I'll make sacrifices, but I don't complain that Disney has taken away something from me and given something to somebody willing to pay more... Because in truth, they have taken nothing away. I was the one who chose to pay less and get less, and the person who chose to pay more than me truly does deserve to get more than me. The real injustice would be if it cost more to stay at the Poly than Pop yet the Poly people had nothing to show for it in rooms, perks, or location.
Planning a Disney vacation doesn't entitle you to the best Disney has to offer. Disney, like every other vacation destination in the universe, gives the best to people who pay for it. And with FP+, it's now available to everybody, but for those who pay for the pre-book, they get the pre-book. And those are resort guests.
If they had started off the FP system this way, or changed it when Universal changed theirs (shortly after they implemented it), that would be one thing. It's another to give all guests something included with park admission for over a decade and then turn around and make it something that really only benefits those that stay onsite.
FP+ is to the FP system what the Playstation 4 was to the Playstation 3. It's a new animal based on an old design. This new animal includes a new feature, the option to pre-schedule your FP's, a new perk that, from its inception, from the first day it was rolled out, was and is available only to resort guests. A perk that is built into the cost of their room and is offered only to those who buy that perk.
The portion of this new FP system that most resembles the old system, walk in to the park, go to a ride, get a FP, come back later, ride the ride... That still exists, and it's open to everybody. In fact, its upgraded from picking one ride and then waiting 2ish hours to grab another one, to being able to pick 3 in one whole swoop from one stop at one location... A setup decidedly better than the old process of getting one at at time. That portion is entirely free and open to everybody.
So this isn't just a sudden changing of a system. It's the retiring of a system and creating a new one, a shell of which still exists as was, but a new dimension of it available only to those who've paid. And the retiring of this system, we've known it was coming for 2, even 3 years. Disney didn't spring anything on anybody, bait and switch, or suddenly change the established rules.
That is the kind of thing I need to know!!!
You are still on vacation! My family has not been on vacation in 7 years. 77777777777777 years, which means my kids have never been on a real vacation. Maybe these people who can go to WDW one or more times a year sould focus on the fact that they are lucky to be able to do that. To take my family on a vacation, especially at Disney, would be a dream and I'd be darned if I would let all the negative comments effect my attitude to the point where I wouldn't enjoy it! I understand that these people pay thousands of dollars to go to WDW but, they need to remember that WDW is not forcing them into coming. It's their vacation, they can choose to go elsewhere. They can choose to go to WDW with the mindset that FP+ will stink and ruin their vacation. Or they can choose to not let it bother them, what will be will be and have a great time. Who do you think will have more fun? It just boils down to the general population not liking change. Give it a chance and you may find it is the better system in the long run. And if you don't, Thank you for giving MY family an oppurtunity for bigger, better, and more frequent discounts so we can finally afford to go to WDW. And I guarentee you when we do, WE WILL HAVE FUN because we won't care about FP+ because we will be on vacation!
