FastPass+ Most Certainly Not Coming Back As It Was

[aaronml]

My guess is that it'll be dynamic pricing.

I’m curious if they will monetize RotR access right away or not. Given how hard it is to get a boarding group now, the optics wouldn’t be great. That would essentially make it so that in order to ride their most in-demand attraction, you have to either pay up, or win the boarding group lottery (with e.g. 50% less availability than now).

 

[Jeff4272]

My guess is that it'll be dynamic pricing.

Paying a fee pre ride just seems so beneath everything that Disney should be doing. It really cheapens the experience

 

[lentesta]

Hi Len I unfortunately did not get to listen to your podcast..........

Is it your best guess/opinion that there will be no free FP for any guests?

Not sure. I think Genie will function like that. Sort of like "the first try is free" method of drug dealing.

 

[Jeff4272]

ALOT of people woukd never do that. This biard specifically is full of people that will never visit universal and dosen't give them the time of day. Disney is counting on those die hards.

Well I am a die hard........Have been a bunch of times, DVC owner, eat every meal in WDW and I will be changing our experiences........We love WDW so wont abandon it but instead of going to WDW and maybe filling in a day or 2 at UOR, we will now flip that, rent my points and use that money to stay at UOR and sprinkle in a couple park days at WDW

 

[matt9112]

Well I am a die hard........Have been a bunch of times, DVC owner, eat every meal in WDW and I will be changing our experiences........We love WDW so wont abandon it but instead of going to WDW and maybe filling in a day or 2 at UOR, we will now flip that, rent my points and use that money to stay at UOR and sprinkle in a couple park days at WDW

Sure it dosen't have the nostalgia but universal is a far better value for the product. The product may be inferior but thats apples to oranges. The way they treat APs also....that was pretty awesome. I switched since disney didn't think my money was good enough for them. I will go be poor down the street.

 

[Jeff4272]

Sure it dosen't have the nostalgia but universal is a far better value for the product. The product may be inferior but thats apples to oranges. The way they treat APs also....that was pretty awesome. I switched since disney didn't think my money was good enough for them. I will go be poor down the street.

I wouldn't say the product is inferior....The quality of the hotels is way higher at UOR vs WDW, especially for the prices...............Their headliner rides (Harry Potter rides, Hagrids, Velocicoaster, etc) are as good or better than anything WDW offers

I understand they don't have the same nostalgia and that's why we will always go back to WDW, just in a different capacity

 

[Basil of Baker Street]

I wouldn't say the product is inferior....The quality of the hotels is way higher at UOR vs WDW, especially for the prices...............Their headliner rides (Harry Potter rides, Hagrids, Velocicoaster, etc) are as good or better than anything WDW offers

I understand they don't have the same nostalgia and that's why we will always go back to WDW, just in a different capacity

To me it's not nostalgia, it's trying to find something to do after day 2 at Uni

 

[Jeff4272]

To me it's not nostalgia, it's trying to find something to do after day 2 at Uni

Maybe you misunderstood...WDW is nostalgic and thats why we will always go there, even if we stay at UOR

 

[Basil of Baker Street]

Maybe you misunderstood...WDW is nostalgic and thats why we will always go there, even if we stay at UOR

Yeah, I was agreeing with you. The reason I keep going to WDW is not nostalgia per se, it's I get bored at Uni.

 

[jpinkc]

ROTR will be a nightmare if we have to pay. This is just getting worse the longer I look and listen. Maybe we should cancel our Nov trip.

 

[Beacon Joe]

Any legitimacy to this?

$50 for a ride on a ride that breaks down all the time? Do you get a full refund if you spend that much and actually never get to ride it?

 

[brettf22]

Don’t you think it’s completely realistic to assume that you could do all 4 parks in way fewer days by buying FP and this save money on number of park days and hotel nights? I think this could backfire on Disney. I could see people shortening their trips from 7 to 4 days and then going to universal or another place and still spend way less money.

I'm not sure Disney's numbers really show that shorter trips would be better for them, but I brought up the same thing a couple of months ago...

As other have intimated, I’m wondering if the whole goal this (outside the ultimate goal of making more money) is to decrease length of stay, but compressing the same spending into fewer days. If my family plans a visit for 6 days, but with this new FP system, we can purchase Lightning Passes each day, we can cut our trip down to only 4 days. I’ve essentially transferred my two extra days’ expenditures into Lightning Pass expenditures.

I have no doubt Disney has dissected the data every way possible. Maybe they’ve determined they can increase daily per guest spending by compressing trips and squeezing more people (at a higher per day spending rate) into the same space as before.

I've already started to do the calculus of determining if shorter and/or offsite stays + multiple paid FP each day could end up more cost effective for us, especially since our family numbers (2 adult parents, 1 adult grandparent, and 2 teens) requires least four sleeping surfaces, with multiple rooms almost a necessity, making staying onsite exorbitantly expensive. Unless there are some onsite resort-based free FPs included, staying onsite simply for the ability to rope drop (which really is what the extra 30 mins for onsite guests actually means) may not be worth it. In fact the rest of my family may even be happier without rope drop (the slackers that they are).

 

[MurphyJoe]

I’m curious if they will monetize RotR access right away or not. Given how hard it is to get a boarding group now, the optics wouldn’t be great. That would essentially make it so that in order to ride their most in-demand attraction, you have to either pay up, or win the boarding group lottery (with e.g. 50% less availability than now).

Yeah on the optics. I wonder if Disney wouldn't just say, "Screw it," do away with the first lottery of the day, then any ride capacity that hasn't been sold gets offered during the afternoon draw.

 

[runnsally]

Not sure. I think Genie will function like that. Sort of like "the first try is free" method of drug dealing.

Now would be a good time to change the Touringplans logo to a blue Jim Hill.

 

[MurphyJoe]

Anyone who doesn't win the lottery? Are you forgetting you cant just wait in line. The boarding group thing hopefully isnt expanded but if it is its a great opportunity. Aww no you didn't win the lottery today? Well you can buy a ride on haunted mansion. Etc. Also great opportunity to have real time pricing. For example price of a FP at its a small world at rope drop might be 3 dollars PP or 5 dollars PP but at 2pm it might be 15 PP splash mountain might be 5 dollars if its a 25 minute wait and 15 if its 45 etc. They could easily charge 50 PP on the really hard to get on and long line prone attractions. Think 7DMT and ROTR or FOP.

Not forgetting that there's no standby. I'm confident Disney would get many people to purchase at $50+; however, I'm also confident more than a few people wouldn't because either they couldn't afford to, decide that amount of money isn't worth it for a theme park attraction when they've already paid to get into the park, or simply don't have that level of interest in RotR. If Disney goes this route, I'm definitely feeling for Guest Services when the complaints start rolling in over this.

 

[sbunit]

Well I am a die hard........Have been a bunch of times, DVC owner, eat every meal in WDW and I will be changing our experiences........We love WDW so wont abandon it but instead of going to WDW and maybe filling in a day or 2 at UOR, we will now flip that, rent my points and use that money to stay at UOR and sprinkle in a couple park days at WDW

And that's exactly what my family and I did this past February. Stayed the week in Universal and only committed two day trips to Disney. There's still a lot to obviously be seen, but with the way the rumors are trending I just can't justify the unnecessarily aggressive business tactics Disney may be pursuing (and this is not about affording Disney or not, it's about principle and what made Disney Disney).

 

[G00fyDad]

So what is essentially being said in that podcast? Anyone have a breakdown on what is said in the podcast?

 

[mightynine]

Not sure. I think Genie will function like that. Sort of like "the first try is free" method of drug dealing.

"Get a free Mickey Ice Cream with your first Premiere Access purchase!"

*Free Mickey Ice Cream only available at Art of Animation food court between 10 and 11am, Thursdays. Restrictions apply, subject to change, those who are diabetic and/or lactose intolerant may enjoy watching someone else eat it.

 

[dreday3]

Someone mentioned Rat being boarding groups like ROTR.

How would that work with a constantly loading/unloading ride? I mean, wouldn't they get through boarding groups a heck of a lot faster than ROTR?

 

[UNCgolf]

Someone mentioned Rat being boarding groups like ROTR.

How would that work with a constantly loading/unloading ride? I mean, wouldn't they get through boarding groups a heck of a lot faster than ROTR?

What do you mean? Rat isn't an omnimover; I don't think it loads/unloads any faster than ROTR?