JohnD
Well-Known Member
I knew the No votes would be the majority. But I'm surprised at the 21% yes (as of this post). Thought it would be lower.
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Express Transportation starting Dec 7th
- Thread starter imkrazy182
- Start date
I knew the No votes would be the majority. But I'm surprised at the 21% yes (as of this post). Thought it would be lower.
GrumpyFan
Well-Known Member
Options are too black/white.
We might take advantage on a short stay, or if we had park hoppers, but on a 4+ day trip, probably not.
James Norrie
Well-Known Member
Maybe this is a start of improving the existing service, by getting the upcharge suckers to pay to be off of the buses? Just a thought...
Monorail Mike
Well-Known Member
Great question! I hadn't thought about it, but of course someone has. Let'a run some numbers...
They promised a max wait time of 30 minutes, if we assume that it takes more than 15 minutes (worst case) for the longest trip, then they'll need 2 buses on the each route. Multiplied out by 4 theme parks, that means 12 dedicated buses will be needed for the service. According to the internet, a 40' Gillig seats 40 and has room for 30 more standing. That's a maximum theoretical capacity of 1680 guests per hour transported between all parks. Of course, they could add more buses to meet demand. Sounds like we're gonna need a bigger tent!
They really know how to rinse the pixie dust from your eyes.
Besides opening up a non-themed section of the park to visitors (So much for honoring Walt's berm around DL to keep inside of the park magical) it doesn't even really make sense.
Assuming you are a family of 4 and have 3 park hops during a 5 day trip, you are looking at a total cost of $96 for tis service. 3 Ubers would cost that same family a max of $45. And how crowded is security mid-day?
Besides opening up a non-themed section of the park to visitors (So much for honoring Walt's berm around DL to keep inside of the park magical) it doesn't even really make sense.
Assuming you are a family of 4 and have 3 park hops during a 5 day trip, you are looking at a total cost of $96 for tis service. 3 Ubers would cost that same family a max of $45. And how crowded is security mid-day?
Disneyhead'71
Well-Known Member
You do realize that Disney is now selling you something because they intentionally made the free service not worth being free. If you are considering this it has already negatively impacted you to the point where you are personally willing to throw money at the problem to correct the problem for you.
TheGuyThatMakesSwords
Well-Known Member
VERY perceptive....
I wondered earlier if, in some fashion, WDW would come up with something like a "TSA Pre" option. This isn't quite it.... but it MAY be the start.
Disneyhead'71
Well-Known Member
More likely they will continue to "nudge" folks to the pay option with longer lines, longer waits, and overcrowding on the "free" service.
GrumpyFan
Well-Known Member
It's the same as upgrading to first class on an airplane, though, isn't it, or staying at a Deluxe vs. Value?
It's about the individual's comfort and/or convenience factor.
Plus, it's kind of hard to say/measure if they actually "intentionally made the free service not worth being free". That's not really something any of us can accurately determine. Regardless, if someone is willing to pay for the "upgrade", what difference does it make? It's a matter of choice or preference.
I just can't see Disney deliberately making bus service even worse than it already is just to "entice" guests into paying for something. Wait a minute, this is Disney, yes I can...
Disneyhead'71
Well-Known Member
What is Disney's incentive to improving the "free" service if doing/spending nothing on it actually makes you more money.
Remember, Disney is a Business!
GrumpyFan
Well-Known Member
Customer/guest satisfaction.
Besides that, between-park transfers isn't a huge part of the transportation picture.
If they don't get guests to the parks, they can't spend more on food and merch.
If the internal transportation becomes unbearable, everyone will switch to their own cars and Disney will have to build bigger parking lots and garages.
If the internal transportation becomes unbearable, people won't come back.
Dizjunkiee
New Member
I am somewhat puzzled by this. I participated in a survey a few months back about alternate transportation for a fee. so am not surprised to see something offered. What does surprise me is that it is for park to park transport, vs. resort to resort, which is more what the survey seemed to lean toward. While I don't think that I would utilize this since there is already sufficient (in my experience/opinion) transport from park to park, it does ruffle my feathers a bit that it sounds as though regular PH ticket holders can opt for a multi day option, but those of us with AP's can't. That seems just so wrong to me that they wouldn't offer that to AP holders as well. Now if they offered something for going resort to resort at a reasonable cost, I might consider that as I often opt to catch an Uber vs. doing the usually long and convoluted trip with the current transport options.
JoeCamel
Well-Known Member
Simple answer, APs are not wanted so they are actively discouraging your participation in the parks by raising prices, cutting perks and generally telling you that you are not that special.
Wendy Pleakley
Well-Known Member
It could be better if it operates on a fixed schedule. If the bus from MK to AK leaves at 1:10 and 1:40 I can plan around that and my wait time should be minimal. The regular buses may come every 20 minutes on average, but it's still hit and miss.
GrumpyFan
Well-Known Member
It would be nice if the buses were on an actual schedule during the day. I know the general rule is every 20 minutes, but that tends to be vague. I would like to see a top and bottom of the hour type of schedule, or 15 and 45, so you could better plan. As-is, (during the day) it can be very sporadic with a bus coming anywhere from once every 20 minutes, to one or two at a time, then the next not for another 45 or more.
People keep missing the point of this. Disney's main goal is to keep every dollar spent during a tourist's vacation going into their pocket, not someone else's. Magical Express was never designed for guest convenience, it was designed to dissuade guests from getting a rental car or staying off-property. Keep them captive from the airport to hotel and back. Less chance they'll go to that competitor down the street, too.
Now, with ride sharing services such as Uber becoming an exceptionally popular method of transportation at WDW, they must do something try to bring some of those dollars back to Disney. Obviously offering a premium resort-to-park option is a logistical issue, from a staffing and vehicle perspective, plus it is doubtful Disney could do it any cheaper than Uber can. So what can Disney offer that Uber can't? Direct transfer from park to park via routes that make the transfer far more seamless than it would be if guests took Uber (i.e. only going through bag check once, etc).
As far as accessing backstage areas, there are a lot of guests who go backstage for a number of reasons (guest performers, post-fireworks blowout, etc). The very costly private VIP tour program offers a stated benefit of transportation between parks (and hotels) in a Disney van. These guests use backstage routes on a daily basis, oftentimes even from ride to ride within the same park. So, no, going backstage is not the sin it was ten or fifteen years ago. Additionally, Disney has offered this type of service as a type of service recovery in the past.
Now, with ride sharing services such as Uber becoming an exceptionally popular method of transportation at WDW, they must do something try to bring some of those dollars back to Disney. Obviously offering a premium resort-to-park option is a logistical issue, from a staffing and vehicle perspective, plus it is doubtful Disney could do it any cheaper than Uber can. So what can Disney offer that Uber can't? Direct transfer from park to park via routes that make the transfer far more seamless than it would be if guests took Uber (i.e. only going through bag check once, etc).
As far as accessing backstage areas, there are a lot of guests who go backstage for a number of reasons (guest performers, post-fireworks blowout, etc). The very costly private VIP tour program offers a stated benefit of transportation between parks (and hotels) in a Disney van. These guests use backstage routes on a daily basis, oftentimes even from ride to ride within the same park. So, no, going backstage is not the sin it was ten or fifteen years ago. Additionally, Disney has offered this type of service as a type of service recovery in the past.
Seems odd Disney wants to discourage APs when...
1. Current AP holders get a discount to renew.
2. Their 45th anniversary incentive is getting an extra month free.
3. Their 45th anniversary incentive is getting food discounts that rival Tables in Wonderland without having to pay a commensurate buy-in like TiW requires.
4. Their 45th anniversary incentive includes even more merch discount than before.
5. All the other AP perks remain (free parking, discounts to special events, etc...)
Now, did they try to discourage locals from using APs from excacerbating peak days with tiered passes with block out dates? Yes. But everything else they're doing seems to be encouraging APs.