State of Fast Pass Return (or replacement)

[Remy is Up]

Apologies if my comment about IT was taken the wrong way. I was not so successfully trying to explain the IT talent they have is good. The platform they invested in is not. They should've spent more on a more workable platform so the talent they have in IT could actually make their ideas work

 

[SarahWI]

Apologies if my comment about IT was taken the wrong way. I was not so successfully trying to explain the IT talent they have is good. The platform they invested in is not. They should've spent more on a more workable platform so the talent they have in IT could actually make their ideas work

Totes agree.

as a side note, I really really appreciate your insight: thanks!!

 

[cakebaker]

In addition, bringing back FP+ temporarily would cause confusion among Guests.

What confusion? I think guests can handle going back to a system they've known for years and then months down the road, getting a new system. Sounds like it's going to be a while and they can't continue to let lines grow while they get the paid system up and running.

 

[Nabas]

What confusion? I think guests can handle going back to a system they've known for years and then months down the road, getting a new system. Sounds like it's going to be a while and they can't continue to let lines grow while they get the paid system up and running.

Please keep in mind that, these boards aside, most Guests rarely go to WDW. A large percentage, perhaps even the majority, of Guests over the next 12 months have not been to WDW since FastPass+ was introduced in 2013. FP+ is alien to them. Having to restart and explain FP+ while most of the current discussion centers around Premier Access will only cause confusion.

FP+ does not increase ride capacity. FP+ simply redistributes wait times. Bringing back FP+ solves nothing.

The only ways to reduce wait times (i.e. shorten lines) is to reduce theme park capacity (something corporate Disney won't do) or reopen more attractions (something Disney desperately needs to do). There are far too many attractions still closed at WDW. Disney absolutely needs to stop increasing theme park capacity until all rides and shows are reopened and running at full capacity.

 

[coolbrook]

I can't get into the Park Pass system right now on the website or the app. Maybe something exciting is happening?... (I have family visiting Clearwater right now and I was checking for them to see if they could get into a park tomorrow. )

 

[cakebaker]

Please keep in mind that, these boards aside, most Guests rarely go to WDW. A large percentage, perhaps even the majority, of Guests over the next 12 months have not been to WDW since FastPass+ was introduced in 2013. FP+ is alien to them. Having to restart and explain FP+ while most of the current discussion centers around Premier Access will only cause confusion.

FP+ does not increase ride capacity. FP+ simply redistributes wait times. Bringing back FP+ solves nothing.

The only ways to reduce wait times (i.e. shorten lines) is to reduce theme park capacity (something corporate Disney won't do) or reopen more attractions (something Disney desperately needs to do). There are far too many attractions still closed at WDW. Disney absolutely needs to stop increasing theme park capacity until all rides and shows are reopened.

Ah, so you're anti- FP+. I see why you have the opinion you do.

They aren't going to sit around for what could be months with no ride system in place. FP+ worked just fine. It certainly reduced our wait times. Nothing about the pandemic changed how FP+ works in the parks. All I know is if I go at the end of the month without it, I'm looking at lines for headliners of 50-90 minutes, secondary rides 30-45. With FP+ I'm looking at near walk ons for headliners and little to no wait at the secondary rides because of the way we tour the parks and you don't have to be a pro at FP+ to accomplish that. So don't tell me it doesn't shorten wait times.

What Disney should do and what they will do are two different things. They are not going to stop increasing capacity. Realistically, from all reports I read, it really doesn't matter at this point. Whatever the number is, it's close enough to what they normally have on a busy park day that any increase won't have much effect. They can raise it to 100%, but they'll still only have the park at 2/3rds capacity. They are not going to roll back capacity without a doubt and so here we are- busy parks, long lines and no ride system.

Those who rarely go to WDW, and as long as FP+ has been around are totally unaware of it, are also unaware of any discussion of a new system. There's no confusion there- makes no difference if cast has to help guests navigate FP+ or if they have to help us all navigate a new system except fewer people who are lost and confused.

 

[Nabas]

I can't get into the Park Pass system right now on the website or the app. Maybe something exciting is happening?... (I have family visiting Clearwater right now and I was checking for them to see if they could get into a park tomorrow. )

Or it's those IT issues that were just being discussed on this thread.

 

[TDSAXX]

A quick read between the lines: The new FP system will put different groups into buckets: AP's, Deluxe Resort Guests, Mod/ Value Guests, and Offsite Guests. They have to program the system to differentiate between what sort of guest you are into the new FP system to do what they want it to do. There are all sorts of weird little things that throw this off. What if you fall into multiple buckets (i.e. AP and onsite or A.P. and offsite) What if you have AP ticket vouchers that are inactive? You need a park pass ressie to get FP's at a particular park, your resort ressie has to be linked for the system to let you book FP's and know how many to let you book, 3rd party ticket vendors tickets that you link manually, packages, etc. etc. etc. Since they are trying to micromanage who gets what, they are running into a problem of their own making, and you better believe that they will still run into problems if they ever implement this system.

Good to know it will be simpler than that old convoluted FP+ system that confused all the first timers.

 

[cakebaker]

I can't get into the Park Pass system right now on the website or the app. Maybe something exciting is happening?... (I have family visiting Clearwater right now and I was checking for them to see if they could get into a park tomorrow. )

People have reported being able to access it, but not get past the add guests to your party- for me, I have to search to get anything to come up and it's a dead link. I see nothing new tonight and still unable to access it.

 

[elmwyn]

Disney Parks rely on nostalgia to keep people coming back year after year and generation after generation. I know the main reason I go every year is because I went multiple times with my family as a kid. Cutting out multiple multi-generational families who have annual trips' desires out of the equation to focus on first-timers might be good short-term, but eventually people will stop coming as often. They're not WOWing first-timers anymore like they used to. It's also really bad business, as it is a lot cheaper to keep customers than to go out and get new ones. Without the core fans the parks would suffer. We may not always directly spend as much in the parks every time, but nobody spends more on TWDC as a whole than we do. They'll eventually learn... maybe.

This is basically what I keep coming back to when people suggest, well they'll just fill the hotels and parks with different people. You've said it very well here. There's a reason even your local burger joint has a loyalty program. A customer kept is a customer earned.

 

[cakebaker]

Good to know it will be simpler than that old convoluted FP+ system that confused all the first timers.

I'm just going out on a limb and assuming this is sarcasm. You know, I was a first timer with FP+ at one point and I don't recall being confused. I recall being thrilled they finally had a decent system in place to handle the long lines. And you'd be hard pressed to find anyone less tech savvy than me.

 

[Mrs~Incredible]

I am a die hard wdw fan. No way will we pay extra (even just $8 pp) to FP a 3-4 minute ride. If this is what they do, I’m afraid our next trip will be our last.

Disney, please stop the greed and consider the guests you are disenfranchising. This system will force a lot of guests to wait in 60+ standby waits all day long and they may not ever wish to return if that is their vacation. What happened to all your research on the number of experiences a guest has in a day that makes her want to return? Your old system made that possible, and we returned many times, and each time for longer trips because it was so great. Now you’re losing us. Is that really what you want?

 

[Faithful Raider]

My biggest concern is the Standby Pass. According to the DLP site, "The Standby Pass service will only be activated during certain periods of the day in order to help reduce wait times for certain attractions. You can still queue for these attractions without a Standby Pass at the beginning and at the end of the day (times may vary)."

To me that sounds like such a program could end up meaning for me to ride 7DMT I'd have to a) Rope Drop (standby line opens briefly until it hits their limit, possibly 60 minutes), b) be in the park to get a "limited quantity" standby pass before they are all taken, with a reserve time which could be hours later, as shown in the promo photo on the DLP site - and locking me out of another standby pass during that time, or c) wait until the end of the day when the standby line opens again (likely right before park closing). And what about park hopping? If you hop to a park at 2:00, do you really think there will be any time slots available for the most popular rides there? Oh that's right, there will be, at $10-$18 a seat....

Personally I'm not against the paid fast pass thing. But I am not a fan of Disney straight up denying access to what may be ALL popular rides at ALL parks for ALL times other than rope drop and closing unless you pay $10-$18 a person.

I realize this might be an extreme example (and maybe playing a little devil's advocate), but with the parks becoming more and more busy, how can this not be at least a possible scenario? Think long lines are bad now? Wait until your kids are complaining they can't get on any of the "good rides" because the Standby Passes are gone for the next 8 hours as they are forced to go on Small World or the flying carpets for the 5th time because they can't go stand in line for anything else. Disney maybe hoping that motivates parents to shell out the $$ so they don't end up feeling like the trip was a waste?

 

[jlb727]

My biggest concern is the Standby Pass. According to the DLP site, "The Standby Pass service will only be activated during certain periods of the day in order to help reduce wait times for certain attractions. You can still queue for these attractions without a Standby Pass at the beginning and at the end of the day (times may vary)."

To me that sounds like such a program could end up meaning for me to ride 7DMT I'd have to a) Rope Drop (standby line opens briefly until it hits their limit, possibly 60 minutes), b) be in the park to get a "limited quantity" standby pass before they are all taken, with a reserve time which could be hours later, as shown in the promo photo on the DLP site - and locking me out of another standby pass during that time, or c) wait until the end of the day when the standby line opens again (likely right before park closing). And what about park hopping? If you hop to a park at 2:00, do you really think there will be any time slots available for the most popular rides there? Oh that's right, there will be, at $10-$18 a seat....

Personally I'm not against the paid fast pass thing. But I am not a fan of Disney straight up denying access to what may be ALL popular rides at ALL parks for ALL times other than rope drop and closing unless you pay $10-$18 a person.

I realize this might be an extreme example (and maybe playing a little devil's advocate), but with the parks becoming more and more busy, how can this not be at least a possible scenario? Think long lines are bad now? Wait until your kids are complaining they can't get on any of the "good rides" because the Standby Passes are gone for the next 8 hours as they are forced to go on Small World or the flying carpets for the 5th time because they can't go stand in line for anything else. Disney maybe hoping that motivates parents to shell out the $$ so they don't end up feeling like the trip was a waste?

Your analysis of the Standby Pass makes sense. If this is what it looks like at WDW soon, I will be selling my DVC points.

 

[monstermash23]

My biggest concern is the Standby Pass. According to the DLP site, "The Standby Pass service will only be activated during certain periods of the day in order to help reduce wait times for certain attractions. You can still queue for these attractions without a Standby Pass at the beginning and at the end of the day (times may vary)."

To me that sounds like such a program could end up meaning for me to ride 7DMT I'd have to a) Rope Drop (standby line opens briefly until it hits their limit, possibly 60 minutes), b) be in the park to get a "limited quantity" standby pass before they are all taken, with a reserve time which could be hours later, as shown in the promo photo on the DLP site - and locking me out of another standby pass during that time, or c) wait until the end of the day when the standby line opens again (likely right before park closing). And what about park hopping? If you hop to a park at 2:00, do you really think there will be any time slots available for the most popular rides there? Oh that's right, there will be, at $10-$18 a seat....

Personally I'm not against the paid fast pass thing. But I am not a fan of Disney straight up denying access to what may be ALL popular rides at ALL parks for ALL times other than rope drop and closing unless you pay $10-$18 a person.

I realize this might be an extreme example (and maybe playing a little devil's advocate), but with the parks becoming more and more busy, how can this not be at least a possible scenario? Think long lines are bad now? Wait until your kids are complaining they can't get on any of the "good rides" because the Standby Passes are gone for the next 8 hours as they are forced to go on Small World or the flying carpets for the 5th time because they can't go stand in line for anything else. Disney maybe hoping that motivates parents to shell out the $$ so they don't end up feeling like the trip was a waste?

Interesting. And yea as the above poster said, seems like a great analysis of what we may have to deal with logistically. And I say this without knowing any deep detail of how the Shanghai versions operate on a day to day.

 

[onelove8187]

Of course this is trusting Disney at their word… but to all those begging to blow up FP+ for the sake of standby lines, why on earth would these parks need to implement the standby pass system? Because more people will be in standby, that’s why… sure it will move faster with lower loading ratio but it will be longer (that other main obsvious variable neglected in most supporting arguments). And now that opens the door to obvious manipulation and availability throttling to maximize sales. We should probably stop asking Disney to change things expecting they will be better for the guest experience.







[/QUOTE]

 

[jhlmendez]

Feeling worse and worse about my decision to book a 5 night stay at the Swan in late Oct. Between the FP rumors, increased Boo Bash capacity, and the recent news that Swan & Dolphin were left off the lists of hotels eligible for extra hours (early entry or post close) and this trip is starting to feel like a big mistake.

More and more, it looks like we will be facing the worst case scenario of capacity crowds, fewer/no perks from our resort booking, no FP/FP+/MagicPass/etc, and a slew of new/extra expenses for "privileges" that used to come for free.

When I booked our trip a month ago, I started enthusiastically checking news sites and web boards for hopeful news of things returning to some semblance or normality by the time our trip rolled. Now, it feels like every Disney press release is specifically crafted to reduce our trip in some way and help me understand that I should expect to pay more for less.

 

[Loro]

Feeling worse and worse about my decision to book a 5 night stay at the Swan in late Oct. Between the FP rumors, increased Boo Bash capacity, and the recent news that Swan & Dolphin were left off the lists of hotels eligible for extra hours (early entry or post close) and this trip is starting to feel like a big mistake.

More and more, it looks like we will be facing the worst case scenario of capacity crowds, fewer/no perks from our resort booking, no FP/FP+/MagicPass/etc, and a slew of new/extra expenses for "privileges" that used to come for free.

When I booked our trip a month ago, I started enthusiastically checking news sites and web boards for hopeful news of things returning to some semblance or normality by the time our trip rolled. Now, it feels like every Disney press release is specifically crafted to reduce our trip in some way and help me understand that I should expect to pay more for less.

Try not to get yourself too worked up or panic yet. There's a lot that's going to happen in the next few months.

 

[taterheads]

Feeling worse and worse about my decision to book a 5 night stay at the Swan in late Oct. Between the FP rumors, increased Boo Bash capacity, and the recent news that Swan & Dolphin were left off the lists of hotels eligible for extra hours (early entry or post close) and this trip is starting to feel like a big mistake.

More and more, it looks like we will be facing the worst case scenario of capacity crowds, fewer/no perks from our resort booking, no FP/FP+/MagicPass/etc, and a slew of new/extra expenses for "privileges" that used to come for free.

When I booked our trip a month ago, I started enthusiastically checking news sites and web boards for hopeful news of things returning to some semblance or normality by the time our trip rolled. Now, it feels like every Disney press release is specifically crafted to reduce our trip in some way and help me understand that I should expect to pay more for less.

That last sentence sums it up perfectly. PERFECTLY!

 

[SL6827]

This coming January will most likely be our last trip for a very long time. If I hadn't already bought our tickets, I would be rethinking this trip.