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FastPass+ Chaos at MK today
- Thread starter Arty Cordova
- Start date
SnarkyMonkey
Well-Known Member
Exactly! Could the system be improved? Sure. Is it the antichrist? No.
The discussion that is happening in this thread would lead one to believe that the type of crash described in the OP happens every day. I am a frequent visitor to WDW and I have never seen this happen before. So, either I was born under a lucky star or this isn't as big of an issue as it is being made out to be.
We have used the system many times since it firs came online. Had trips with very little trouble, also had trips with major issues.
When the system works, its good, but the only true advantage I see is MDE and the use of your phone to make or change FP+. But when it has problems, or multiple problems over the course of your vacation, the time spent at guest relations, park entrance or front desk can really add up and it gets frustrating. Does it ruin your vacation? No, it just creates problems that never existed before or the possibility of a problem occurring is 10X higher than it used to be.
When the system works, its good, but the only true advantage I see is MDE and the use of your phone to make or change FP+. But when it has problems, or multiple problems over the course of your vacation, the time spent at guest relations, park entrance or front desk can really add up and it gets frustrating. Does it ruin your vacation? No, it just creates problems that never existed before or the possibility of a problem occurring is 10X higher than it used to be.
lazyboy97o
Well-Known Member
The only benefits exclusive to the MagicBand are the responsive tracking features that have largely been put aside for the time being. Those features have long been expected to be an upcharge and the only one presently available is an upcharge. So unless you can name specifics, the main benefit of the MagicBand at the moment is its new form factor for the all-in-one token.
ford91exploder
Resident Curmudgeon
Really - I have not been able to make a FP+ reservation SINCE the initial tests because Disney hosed my account because they were 'testing' with LIVE PRODUCTION DATA. Since I'm DVC and DVC is tied to that account they can't even delete it and start over, The biggest problem with FP+/MDE is when it fails it fails HARD and cannot be fixed.
CaptainAmerica
Premium Member
You have to be fair though. By your own admission, these problems came up in the testing phase, the purpose of which is to, you know, test. You also sound like a fairly "unique" guest (DVC member with Premium AP who also participated in testing). I'd guess a full-time cast member with six adopted children and a same-sex domestic partner who is both a seasonal cast member and AP holder would also see more bugs than the family of four who comes once every two years, stays at the Caribbean Beach Resort for six nights with a five day MYW plus dining.
bhg469
Well-Known Member
Well staying at Caribbean beach comes with a whole other list of complaints!
rct247
Well-Known Member
The system always goes down when their is an update to it. Never seems to fail.
I'm just really wanting the ability for additional selections to be made on my MyDisneyExperience app rather than a kiosk.
For all those presenting "fixes" to the FP system, the only way to truly fix it would be to get rid of it entirely. Period. What has happened is you have a large number of guests who believe everything NEEDS a Fastpass or should have a Fastpass. They want them then and now and when they go to redeem they don't want to wait in a Fastpass line. They want to be able to come when they want, with anyone they want, and they don't want to have to make that reservation ahead of time. They just want to walk up and use it. There are also a large number of guests who want to cheat that system even more too. Even the choices they made in how they set up their own Fastpasses has become a "well, I didn't do that. your system is broken".
What the general public fails to understand is the math that went behind all of this nonsense to create a delicate balance. Standby has to move at somewhat of a steady pace. Fastpasses can't be unlimited. Rides do have certain hourly capacities. Some rides are more in demand than others. In some parks, the balance of those attractions is very uneven and has resulted in those tiers everyone hates.
I know I'm preaching to the choir, but the main point is that the current system is fine and is an improvement in a lot of ways, it just needs to become more reliable.
I'm just really wanting the ability for additional selections to be made on my MyDisneyExperience app rather than a kiosk.
For all those presenting "fixes" to the FP system, the only way to truly fix it would be to get rid of it entirely. Period. What has happened is you have a large number of guests who believe everything NEEDS a Fastpass or should have a Fastpass. They want them then and now and when they go to redeem they don't want to wait in a Fastpass line. They want to be able to come when they want, with anyone they want, and they don't want to have to make that reservation ahead of time. They just want to walk up and use it. There are also a large number of guests who want to cheat that system even more too. Even the choices they made in how they set up their own Fastpasses has become a "well, I didn't do that. your system is broken".
What the general public fails to understand is the math that went behind all of this nonsense to create a delicate balance. Standby has to move at somewhat of a steady pace. Fastpasses can't be unlimited. Rides do have certain hourly capacities. Some rides are more in demand than others. In some parks, the balance of those attractions is very uneven and has resulted in those tiers everyone hates.
I know I'm preaching to the choir, but the main point is that the current system is fine and is an improvement in a lot of ways, it just needs to become more reliable.
CaptainAmerica
Premium Member
Is that not possible? I was able to do that during testing with a CM friend several months ago. Has it been disabled for full rollout?
dreamfinder
Well-Known Member
I do believe that any FP+ after the initial 3 must be made at the in park kiosk. You can reschedule it via the app though.
the-reason14
Well-Known Member
It's easier for us to complain about it, and long for the days when the old system was in place and or when fastpass wasn't invented yet. We rather complain and complain and state how much WDW is deteriorating and why this person shouldn't be in charge and why that person is messing everything up and why that other person hasn't not only ever stepped foot inside a park but doesn't even know where Walt Disney was born!! Madness I know. This system is flawed, it's horrible and a travesty, but I got 3 trips booked to WDW this year. Hooray for hypocrisy.
(No, I hope to go to Disneyland this year. Not sure how they use fastpass over there, if it's similar to the way it was when I first went back in 2009, but either way they take better care of their parks over there and that's where I plan on spending my money.)
ford91exploder
Resident Curmudgeon
That's true, The caveat of course since I was thrown BY DISNEY not by my OWN choice into that testing pool, I have not been able to make a FP+ for 2 years running - so how by any measure is that a good thing or good customer service and Disney's answer is - Tough there is nothing we can do for you, It's why I'm a 'reformed' pixie duster and no longer give them the benefit of the doubt.
draybook
Well-Known Member
I wouldn't say that going to Disney World even when hating one aspect of it should be labeled as hypocrisy. I'm sure every one of us has had a problem with one or two things that our significant other do but you don't just stop being in that relationship(unless it's major, of course). You keep working on the relationship and strengthen the bonds that are good. Is FP+ a joke to me? You bet! Is it something that will stop me from going to Disney World? Not yet!
ford91exploder
Resident Curmudgeon
Being DVC yes we visit florida but we spend less time in the parks than we used to and we eat off property.
flynnibus
Premium Member
I wouldn't call 'having a Premium AP' unique... and they pretty much hosed that audience for many months because of the dispartities between where a pass is bought, activated, first used, and more. Nothing unique about it, more like 'we picked 3 out of the 20 use cases to test.. everything else we'll just work out as it comes'.
BrerJon
Well-Known Member
The reduction in custom is going to be more of a slow drip that eventually mounts up rather than a rush to flee the parks due to the chaos and inconvenience of a visit.
In my case, after a disastrous experience of MyMagic last year and a realisation that I just wasn't enjoying it given the money I was paying, I'd pretty much decided not to go back to WDW until Pandora opened, but a first visit friend wanted a trip and now I will be visiting later in the year - no matter how hard you try to escape, something always pulls you back.
But instead of ten days of commando in the parks, as I'd have done a few years ago, this time we'll probably just do one day in each then spend most of our time at Universal, as the expense to value ratio of WDW has gone down a lot for the budget we'll be on, and because of Fastpass+ I know there's no way to do all the attractions now, so we'll just pick a couple of good ones to focus on then head back to I-Drive to spend money there when crowds get too crazy.
So most people will always have some excuse pulling them back into the bubble, but that doesn't mean you're still putting the same amount of dollars in Mickey's pockets as you used to, and that's what matters to the suits who run the company at the end of the day.
Tom Morrow
Well-Known Member
I don't think that is being suggested. But we do know that the system still has too many glitches and hiccups - Fastpasses being "lost" electronically, touchpoints/terminals saying the user does not have a Fastpass for that attraction scheduled, when they do, etc. Another disadvantage to this is people are now learning from these glitches and using them to their advantage to scam.
Correct.
CaptainAmerica
Premium Member
That's just it though. Most people aren't having "disastrous" experiences. It sucks that it happened to you and it'll certainly have an impact on the decision making of those who have had problems, but mots people aren't.
Lol that's just false. An attraction that could handle 1,000 guests per hour before Fastpass+ can now handle EXACTLY 1,000 guests per hour after the implementation of Fastpass+. The parks' ride capacities have not been altered in any way, shape, or form.