FastPass+ Chaos at MK today

[Cesar R M]

Peter Pan is terrible. It's almost to the point where it should become "FastPass Only", which I suppose is the next step for some attractions. There are many attractions that would be completely full with FP alone.

or you k now, do the logic and remove the FP+ (or limit it )

 

[Cesar R M]

I would love for that to happen, so people could see that they aren't actually riding more with Fastpass, and standby lines will no longer be dreadfully slow. Waiting in line isn't really that bad when, you know, the line actually moves.

Next time you're stuck in a standby line: pay attention to how fast the Fastpass line flows. That's because 80% of the ride's capacity is devoted to that line. If there were only one line, you would be moving even faster than that.

thats the point.
but the way they sell it, makes FPers think they are getting "better service".
they are just being forced to use LESS capacity due of electronically set limitations.

 

[wogwog]

According to TouringPlans, I went to MK during a predicted 2/10 day and it ended up being a 1/10 day. To me, it didn't really feel like a 1/10 day and if I had to take a guess, I would've said it was a 4/10 or 5/10 day. That said, I haven't been to the parks since between Christmas-NY during 2008 so maybe the overall crowd numbers are just way way up. I don't know, Astro Orbitor at 30 minutes by noon, barnstormer at 25 minutes by noon, Peter Pan 90 minutes by noon, and Space Mountain at 45 minutes. Is that a typical level 1 day?

It would be interesting to see if a non-FP version of myself was roaming the parks and how he would've fared.

I am not familiar with touring plans methodology but the MK attendance was 70k each day over the Presidents weekend and operating hours were extend last night, tonight, and tomorrow in anticipation of the crowd forecast missing the mark, again. Info from a MK manager friend .

 

[erasure fan1]

Really??? For our last trip, I got up at midnight when our window opened to "lock in" fast passes for 2 people for SDMT and guess what - nothing available our first week, I was lucky to get them for the following week. Sorry, no exaggeration, my actual experience.

Hey but no worries, you can get a fastpass for 1 person for tomorrow! So the system is obviously flawless!

First off, if there's somewhere I sign up for my wdc checks, let me know, because I could use the income.
Secondly, the problem is comparing your predicament to the old system. That's like wanting to go back to high school because you want to be a football star again. Too bad. Get over it. Ain't happening. What we've got is the current system of fastpasses, which have new rules that we've got to live with. It doesn't matter whether you like it or not, what matters is knowing how to use it effectively. There's not a single person on this board or anywhere else who knew the best way to use legacy fastpass prior to their introduction, but we all learned. Complain all you want, in the mean time I'm going to figure out the best way to use the new system to my benefit, and see you at the finish line.

Uh I do know how to use it effectively, thats the problem, It's a big chore. To use it effectively you need to micro plan everything and that is the complaint of MANY, myself included. Also why is it a problem comparing it to the old system? The old system as it sits now was better and if Disney gets enough flack it could change. I and everyone in the world could complain that I should be a football star again but that can't happen. But if enough complain about the deficiencies of MM+/FP+ it could actually change.

 

[Martiyoman]

Hey but no worries, you can get a fastpass for 1 person for tomorrow! So the system is obviously flawless!

Uh I do know how to use it effectively, thats the problem, It's a big chore. To use it effectively you need to micro plan everything and that is the complaint of MANY, myself included. Also why is it a problem comparing it to the old system? The old system as it sits now was better and if Disney gets enough flack it could change. I and everyone in the world could complain that I should be a football star again but that can't happen. But if enough complain about the deficiencies of MM+/FP+ it could actually change.

Keep telling yourself that. I will eat the very largest crow in the world if they bring back legacy, but in the mean time...

 

[pax_65]

If enough complain about the deficiencies of MM+/FP+ it could actually change.

I don't have a lot of confidence in things changing, but Guest Relations has heard an earful from guests about the system. I wrote them an e-mail and (to Disney's credit) got a phone call in return. My wife and I talked to them for easily 30 minutes. He said they've heard a lot of complaints - primarily technical problems where the system isn't working right but also issues with crowds/lines and the loss of spontaneity. He promised that they are working on these issues and things would improve on all fronts. I said that I hoped that was true but that I was going to give them 18 months to fix the issues before I returned to WDW again. As I said before, we usually do 1-2 trips a year. I think 1999 was the last year we weren't at WDW. But the parks just weren't fun for us last trip (and I definitely didn't feel I got good value for what I paid), so why go?

I think if enough people cancel trips, things will change. But I don't have a lot of confidence in that happening either.

 

[BrerJon]

I don't have a lot of confidence in things changing, but Guest Relations has heard an earful from guests about the system.

I do wonder sometimes if there are two realities. What you and many others say backs up my experience in the park with long lines at guest relations, almost all due to MyMagic concerns, irate guests at the kiosks etc., and yet according to other people it's a perfect system and there's only a tiny, tiny fraction of people who have any problem at all with it.

I just don't understand how so many people can find it so obviously flawed, while so many others see nothing but a perfect experience for all. Maybe it just depends on what days you go or something.

 

[Cesar R M]

I do wonder sometimes if there are two realities. What you and many others say backs up my experience in the park with long lines at guest relations, almost all due to MyMagic concerns, irate guests at the kiosks etc., and yet according to other people it's a perfect system and there's only a tiny, tiny fraction of people who have any problem at all with it.

I just don't understand how so many people can find it so obviously flawed, while so many others see nothing but a perfect experience for all. Maybe it just depends on what days you go or something.

as per my experience.
any day where the "load" of the park is below "7" in the ratting we see in this forum. myMagic Worked perfectly fine (from the 10th to the 13th).
but as soon we reach a 8 or 9.. the system will CONSTANTLY CRASH and sometimes slowdown the entire resort network/$$$ links (presidents day last 2 days )
and THAT IS VERY BAD for business.

 

[lincolnryan]

I do wonder sometimes if there are two realities. What you and many others say backs up my experience in the park with long lines at guest relations, almost all due to MyMagic concerns, irate guests at the kiosks etc., and yet according to other people it's a perfect system and there's only a tiny, tiny fraction of people who have any problem at all with it.

I just don't understand how so many people can find it so obviously flawed, while so many others see nothing but a perfect experience for all. Maybe it just depends on what days you go or something.

I was basically a 1st timer when I went, but considered myself fairly well studied by the time I got there. The people that I know that go to Disney for the first time, they fall in the category of “knowing enough to be dangerous”. I think for them, they’ve basically read through the Disney documentation and have a high level overview of how things work (hotels, FP+, ADR, transportation, etc). They aren’t reading blogs, viewing crowd calendars, or doing touring plans. For these people (who I think represent a BIG % of the people there), they would answer that the current system works fine. When I was there, I never ran into problems with my FP+ reservations, scanning the band, opening my door, etc. I don’t know for sure, but I just think that, technically, most people probably don’t run into problems.


From a big picture standpoint, even assuming everyone’s band is working ok, I don’t really know if the system is accomplishing the goals it set out to do. A lot of the blame is being placed on increased crowd levels, but no clue if that’s true or not. My friends went every year at the end of Jan/early Feb and always said the crowds were extremely low. I asked them how low and he said “We’ve never waited longer than 20 minutes”…and they are LATE risers. This year, practically every ride between 10am-6pm had a 20 minute wait at a minimum. All crowd levels? I don’t know about that. I was told on the first day we were there that there were 40,000 people expected at the parks that day. Not sure how accurate, but it came from a CM.

 

[BrerJon]

My friends went every year at the end of Jan/early Feb and always said the crowds were extremely low. I asked them how low and he said “We’ve never waited longer than 20 minutes”…and they are LATE risers. This year, practically every ride between 10am-6pm had a 20 minute wait at a minimum. All crowd levels? I don’t know about that. I was told on the first day we were there that there were 40,000 people expected at the parks that day. Not sure how accurate, but it came from a CM.

I think this is the big unknown. Every ride now has a significant wait, and those against MyMagic will say it's because of Fastpass+ being added to things like Pirates that never needed it, while those in favour will say it's just increased crowds and the removal of walk-on standby is nothing to do with Fastpass+.

The parks definitely feel more crowded, but lots of that could be people being pushed out into the walkways with nowhere to go, instead of being inside attraction lines waiting for rides they wouldn't have got a Fastpass for in the past.

TEA attendance estimations are probably our only tool for working this out. Between 2011 and 2013 MK attendance increased by about 5000 guests a day. Is that enough extra people to give all the walk-on rides 15-20 minute waits? I'm not sure.

Epcot, on the other hand, saw an increase of only 1000 extra guests a day, yet there too every ride has longer waits. Would 1000 guests cause that much of an increase? I think the jury is still out.

 

[wdisney9000]

I do wonder sometimes if there are two realities. What you and many others say backs up my experience in the park with long lines at guest relations, almost all due to MyMagic concerns, irate guests at the kiosks etc., and yet according to other people it's a perfect system and there's only a tiny, tiny fraction of people who have any problem at all with it.

I just don't understand how so many people can find it so obviously flawed, while so many others see nothing but a perfect experience for all. Maybe it just depends on what days you go or something.

I think that is a fair assessment. For me, Its the fact that the myriad of things that can go wrong simply did not exist before, whether it was legacy or even pre-legacy days. Disney has created a system with so many technological parts all moving simultaneously that one problem can create a cascading effect that can result in the entire system shutting down causing resort wide problems. It will have to constantly be upgraded which can only result in more money being spent on MM+ and less money being spent on P&R. These are all problems that we never had to worry about in the past, and now what, we can book a ride 60 days out? We can make an ADR on our phone? Is it really better now?

Adding technology to something does not necessarily make it better. Just because the technology has cool features, it does not necessarily make it better. Just because the technology exists, that does not mean it MUST be used. Can it makes things easier? Sure, but does 'easier' truly make it better if it can come at the cost of a major malfunction happening at any given moment? Disney has spent billions on this and advertised how much more enjoyable your vacation will be because of it. Even if you have a flawless experience, which I have had on certain days, does it TRULY make your trip that much better than before? Im talking about a genuinely upgraded experience that left you in awe of how much more wonderful everything is because of it? You know, that feeling you get when you first rode POTC, or ToT, or watched Celebrate the Magic while holding your kid and seeing the look of complete amazement on their face when the projection hits the castle. MM+ doesnt do any of that, but they advertise it like it will. They tell you how amazing it is. And while its not bad, they could have created so many wonderful things with the money spent on it, which would have also solved the problems they claim MM+ alleviates.

And for the love of God, please nobody respond with a comment about how Im wishing legacy would come back. I dont care if we never see legacy again, we wont. But I d@mn sure dont want to have to wait in line for 20 minutes at GR because my FP+ got erased. I dont want to visit the front desk 3 times because the magic band wont open the door..again. Dont be too proud of this technological terror Disney has constructed. The ability to book FP+ on your phone is insignificant next to the power of real Disney magic.

 

[lincolnryan]

I think that is a fair assessment. For me, Its the fact that the myriad of things that can go wrong simply did not exist before, whether it was legacy or even pre-legacy days. Disney has created a system with so many technological parts all moving simultaneously that one problem can create a cascading effect that can result in the entire system shutting down causing resort wide problems. It will have to constantly be upgraded which can only result in more money being spent on MM+ and less money being spent on P&R. These are all problems that we never had to worry about in the past, and now what, we can book a ride 60 days out? We can make an ADR on our phone? Is it really better now?

Adding technology to something does not necessarily make it better. Just because the technology has cool features, it does not necessarily make it better. Just because the technology exists, that does not mean it MUST be used. Can it makes things easier? Sure, but does 'easier' truly make it better if it can come at the cost of a major malfunction happening at any given moment? Disney has spent billions on this and advertised how much more enjoyable your vacation will be because of it. Even if you have a flawless experience, which I have had on certain days, does it TRULY make your trip that much better than before? Im talking about a genuinely upgraded experience that left you in awe of how much more wonderful everything is because of it? You know, that feeling you get when you first rode POTC, or ToT, or watched Celebrate the Magic while holding your kid and seeing the look of complete amazement on their face when the projection hits the castle. MM+ doesnt do any of that, but they advertise it like it will. They tell you how amazing it is. And while its not bad, they could have created so many wonderful things with the money spent on it, which would have also solved the problems they claim MM+ alleviates.

And for the love of God, please nobody respond with a comment about how Im wishing legacy would come back. I dont care if we never see legacy again, we wont. But I d@mn sure dont want to have to wait in line for 20 minutes at GR because my FP+ got erased. I dont want to visit the front desk 3 times because the magic band wont open the door..again. Dont be too proud of this technological terror Disney has constructed. The ability to book FP+ on your phone is insignificant next to the power of real Disney magic.

I think booking a FP on your phone would/is actually pretty nice. A one-step improvement on the old system would be the ability to book a FP on your phone. Forget about the 3 in advance.....you can have 1 out at any given time, it can be booked on your phone, and you wait standby the rest of the time. You don't get another one until you cancel the existing one or use it.

 

[wogwog]

I do wonder sometimes if there are two realities. What you and many others say backs up my experience in the park with long lines at guest relations, almost all due to MyMagic concerns, irate guests at the kiosks etc., and yet according to other people it's a perfect system and there's only a tiny, tiny fraction of people who have any problem at all with it.

I just don't understand how so many people can find it so obviously flawed, while so many others see nothing but a perfect experience for all. Maybe it just depends on what days you go or something.

The system has up and down days as you think. Many more down days than Disney would like you to know. So the once a year "uberplanner" hits a good day and is a fan of MM minus. Understandable. But a close neighbor of mine is a Manager in Guest Relations at WDW. Things are not good and many more people have issues every day than you would probably guess. The Manager says it is heck every day.

 

[BrerJon]

The system has up and down days as you think. Many more down days than Disney would like you to know. So the once a year "uberplanner" hits a good day and is a fan of MM minus. Understandable. But a close neighbor of mine is a Manager in Guest Relations at WDW. Things are not good and many more people have issues every day than you would probably guess. The Manager says it is heck every day.

This is my experience on every day I've visited since the new system came in, and everyone I know who works in the parks says the same, but then you go online and the internet is full of people who have had a wonderful time with the new system and anyone who dares to criticise it is quickly cast out as being some kind of loon, so it's very strange.

I wish there were statistics about how many guest relations issues related to Fastpass now compared to in the past.

EDIT: Also the point about the once a year uberplanners loving it - I wonder if the system is set up to better cater to those who only go once every couple of years, as the complaints seem to come much more from locals, casual day visitors, annual passholders or people who visit several times a year, but this may just be coincidence.

 

[wdisney9000]

I think booking a FP on your phone would/is actually pretty nice. A one-step improvement on the old system would be the ability to book a FP on your phone. Forget about the 3 in advance.....you can have 1 out at any given time, it can be booked on your phone, and you wait standby the rest of the time. You don't get another one until you cancel the existing one or use it.

Sure, not a bad idea at all. I guess I just feel that the more technology you throw in the mix, the higher the potential for problems. I wouldnt know how to formulate a proper equation to gauge the effectiveness of FP+, but it seems if you 'X' number of people riding on 'X' number of attractions, you can not truly lower the overall time they wait for the entire day. Its a set amount, waiting less for Soarin' because you used FP+ means your waiting longer at TT without FP+. In the end, it would probly be the same amount of wait time total for both rides if there was no FP or FP+ and everybody rode standby for everything, so whats the point? The results are negligible at best with any of it, FP, or FP+, sort of just an illusion.

 

[Wrangler-Rick]

I think booking a FP on your phone would/is actually pretty nice. A one-step improvement on the old system would be the ability to book a FP on your phone. Forget about the 3 in advance.....you can have 1 out at any given time, it can be booked on your phone, and you wait standby the rest of the time. You don't get another one until you cancel the existing one or use it.

My DW and I have iPhones. During our last two vacations, our experiences with the app in the Parks was pathetic. We gave up trying to get the apps to work - the WiFi was slower than molasses (read that as infinite loop, never loading pages) and going to AT&T air didn't work much better. It got to the point where I had to write down the attractions, ADR's and times on paper and keep pulling it out to see where we were supposed to be next and at what time. Sorry, but for me that is an epic failure of the whole system. Give me the ability to set alerts on my phone (like Microsoft figured out how to do decades ago in Outlook!!!) and maybe you've got something more worthwhile, but they've got to solve the connectivity issues in the Parks too....

 

[wdisney9000]

then you go online and the internet is full of people who have had a wonderful time with the new system and anyone who dares to criticise it is quickly cast out as being some kind of loon,

The internet is also full of people who have seen Big Foot...

 

[wdisney9000]

My DW and I have iPhones. During our last two vacations, our experiences with the app in the Parks was pathetic. We gave up trying to get the apps to work - the WiFi was slower than molasses (read that as infinite loop, never loading pages) and going to AT&T air didn't work much better. It got to the point where I had to write down the attractions, ADR's and times on paper and keep pulling it out to see where we were supposed to be next and at what time. Sorry, but for me that is an epic failure of the whole system. Give me the ability to set alerts on my phone (like Microsoft figured out how to do decades ago in Outlook!!!) and maybe you've got something more worthwhile, but they've got to solve the connectivity issues in the Parks too....

Everest went down an hour prior to our FP+ return time and we never got an alert. A few hours later, after we rode it, I got the alert. lol

We basically criss crossed the park after walking there and it was down then we walked over to Dinosaur. and people claim that 'rushing all over the park for legacy FP was horrible. lol. Glad we didnt mind legacy because Im sure the sheer horror of walking around would have ruined our day. /sarcasm

 

[CaptainAmerica]

I wonder if the system is set up to better cater to those who only go once every couple of years, as the complaints seem to come much more from locals, casual day visitors, annual passholders or people who visit several times a year, but this may just be coincidence.

I think that's exactly the case, and it's why it's so unpopular around here. The better you know WDW, the less you need tools to help you make the most of it. You know what rides are busy when, what the weather's going to do at different times of the year, how the Expedition Everest Fastpass distribution window progresses through the day, etc. While people who go all the time find planning a burden, people who only go once in awhile find comfort in the fact that their "must-dos" are locked in. They don't have to worry about whether they'll have to wait two hours to meet Elsa because they can lock in that Fastpass that says they will. If you're a passholder or frequent visitor, you lose that value. If you miss Elsa because the line is too long, no worries because you'll be back in a few weeks. The more you go, the more you value flexibility. You can make changes on the fly because you don't really have any must-dos. Must-dos become "would be nice to do, but if not there's always next time."

 

[Thumper14]

well I guess we are too picky because we only had one day to enjoy the parks and the fp+ system only let us use it on Belle and little mermaid.. two attractions that we had no desire to go to..

The system is designed to punish you for not booking your trip months in advance. It also punishes those who don't like to plan for much at all.. showing up to the parks with little to no agenda was a perfectly adequate way to enjoy yourself 3 years ago. Not anymore.

A WDW vacation requires a planner much like a bachelor party requires a DD!