News Disney Park Pass System announced for Walt Disney World theme park reservations

[mightynine]

Everyone loves to dump on the APers, can't wait when they start limiting park accees to the DVCers.

 

[Disstevefan1]

Honestly, you guys have made some good points, I'll concede it a bit.

Hopefully in a few years, all staffing problems will be way long gone and things will trend back towards 2019 standards. Maybe Disney will need to woe guests back and add back some of the missing cut perks. Maybe AP will return for good and park passes and will fall aside.

I don't see it happening (well maybe a few things slide back), but believe me, I'd take that over what we have now as well.

We know WDW laid off thousands via email due to the pandemic. I will also concede that IF PPRs were truly put in place due to staffing problems, I will understand it, I won't like it, but I will understand it.

I can't remember if they ever officially communicated PPRs were implemented due to a staffing shortage.

We know the numbers got out when they did all the layoffs. I am not sure there are numbers showing just how understaffed they are now, if they are indeed understaffed.

 

[Rteetz]

Sure, flexibility is great. And the majority of guests have it until a couple of weeks prior to their actual day.

But unlimited flexibility comes with a cost. If you're headed to Magic Kingdom on a random Tuesday, you good with all last minute people joining you at Magic Kingdom, when they could go to another park?

It worked for 48-49 years so yes.

 

[Disstevefan1]

Ten million more people per year at MK tends to change what they can handle.

And yes, they were asleep at the wheel in not creating more capacity.

I've been choosing to go to WDW at the beginnings of Oct, Dec, and Feb to enjoy the 'dead times.'

There are no dead times anymore. Too many people. Disney is a victim of its own success (and failure to increase capacity).

This is true!
But this post would have been true in 2019, 2018, 2017 and so on . . .

 

[Rteetz]

Ten million more people per year at MK tends to change what they can handle.

And yes, they were asleep at the wheel in not creating more capacity.

I've been choosing to go to WDW at the beginnings of Oct, Dec, and Feb to enjoy the 'dead times.'

There are no dead times anymore. Too many people. Disney is a victim of its own success (and failure to increase capacity).

Even with the system it’s still crowded.

 

[Rteetz]

Everyone loves to dump on the APers, can't wait when they start limiting park accees to the DVCers.

That’s basically already started. DVC can’t buy APs right now which makes some of them look at the number of trips they take more so now than before.

 

[mikejs78]

What guest doesn’t want flexibility? Flexibility is what you should want. Even if someone is available to make a switch it’s a pain in the butt to change it still.

We were good with it for 48ish years. I can't believe we can't remember back to 2019.

It worked for 48-49 years so yes.

This is true!
But this post would have been true in 2019, 2018, 2017 and so on . . .

2019 WDW was really bad crowd wise. Frankly, I found my most recent trip a lot more pleasant from a crowd perspective than my trips in 2017 and 2019. I have young kids, Dumbo is a must do. In 2019 it regularly had 45-60 minute plus waits. In my end-of-June trip this year, the waits were 5-15 minutes.

I don't think it was working by 2016 or so. So I'd say it worked for about 44 years.

Even with the system it’s still crowded.

Not like it was in 2019.

 

[mightynine]

That’s basically already started. DVC can’t buy APs right now which makes some of them look at the number of trips they take more so now than before.

They can't get the Florida AP rate right now unless it's a renewal?

 

[mikejs78]

They can't get the Florida AP rate right now unless it's a renewal?

Only if they are FL residents.

 

[Disstevefan1]

I remember how mobbed the parks were pre pandemic, we all do.

But given the choice, I still don’t want PPRs and would prefer to just go and take my chances like I did the last three decades.

That’s just me.

 

[mattpeto]

It worked for 48-49 years so yes.

Maybe. Some would argue the capacity was a real issue.

 

[Rteetz]

2019 WDW was really bad crowd wise. Frankly, I found my most recent trip a lot more pleasant from a crowd perspective than my trips in 2017 and 2019. I have young kids, Dumbo is a must do. In 2019 it regularly had 45-60 minute plus waits. In my end-of-June trip this year, the waits were 5-15 minutes.

I don't think it was working by 2016 or so. So I'd say it worked for about 44 years.



Not like it was in 2019.

Crowds have continued to build over time yes. Things are more spread out now yes however this system hasn’t made the parks dead either. You still have major crowds. Covid definitely forced their hand. I’m not sure we would have the current system for park reservations without it. Things like mine train still have 2+ hour waits on a regular basis. Before this system you also had the opportunity for “free shorter line access” with Fastpass. Now you want to skip that line it’s an added cost. Everything about Disney in 2022 vs. 2019 is more confusing and convoluted.

 

[Rteetz]

Maybe. Some would argue the capacity was a real issue.

There are ways to combat capacity without reservations.

 

[mightynine]

Only if they are FL residents.

I thought since DVCers had property interest in Florida, that enabled them to be able to purchase an AP at the Florida resident rate.

I've gotten any DVC knowledge third-hand, so the person telling me may have misunderstood.

 

[Rteetz]

They can't get the Florida AP rate right now unless it's a renewal?

DVC cannot get the sorcerer pass which they are eligible unless it’s a renewal.

 

[nickys]

You want people turned away, not in their living room as they're planning their vacation, but at the gate of the park?

Hmmm, put like that….

 

[MickeyLuv'r]

<Puts in mouth guard>

Hot take: the park pass reservation system is really not a big ordeal many of you constantly complain about. Availability is typically 100% wide open for everyday for all ticket types. It's honestly a pretty minor inconvenience: make the park pass and go to the park you want.

I'm not one to write about it here, but an example of why I think WDW uses it, and when it can be annoying is for G+, esp before in HS before GoG opened.

In short, if you miss out on a G+ for Slinky, then G+ isn't nearly as valuable to the customer in HS. If there were no park reservations, we'd be free to play the G+ Slinky slot machine every day. So if on Monday, we didn't get G+ for Slinky, we'd just swap to a different park (use our G+ there), then try again for Slinky on Tuesday, and Wednesday and so forth. On almost any day, you can get great G+ passes at MK at 7:05am, but if you miss Slinky, meh for HS. HS has so few attractions, if you miss one, the value of the pass drops, because the only other attractions worthy of G+ are: ToT, MFSR, RNRC, TSM, and MMRR.

I think we also would have tried to get GoG more days, just because it is the new ride at WDW.

 

[Disstevefan1]

We need @lentesta to show us the numbers!
I would love to see standby wait times for months in 2019 VS. months in 2022.

 

[nickys]

DVC cannot get the sorcerer pass which they are eligible unless it’s a renewal.

They cannot buy the Incredi pass either unless it’s a renewal.

So in a nutshell, @mightynine, DVC members cannot buy an AP right now unless they are also FL residents. They can renew existing ones.

But no, owning DVC does not make them FL residents. In that sense your source is totally misinformed.

 

[Rteetz]

They cannot buy the Incredi pass either unless it’s a renewal.

So in a nutshell, @mightynine, DVC members cannot buy an AP right now unless they are also FL residents. They can renew existing ones.

But no, owning DVC does not make them FL residents. In that sense your source is totally misinformed.

Right, the incredipass is one open to everyone even out of state tho. Sorcerer is in state or DVC so that’s why I brought that one up.