FastPass+ open to all guests at Disney's Hollywood Studios and Epcot next week

[hpyhnt 1000]

Well, if thats how they're going to market FP+/My Magic+, then there is no way the majority of the masses are going to ever figure it out. Even if you do decipher the minuscule amount of info thats being sung at you, it doesn't do anything to explain what FP+ is or how it works or what one does to access it.

And don't even get me started on the amount of CGI and splicing thats in that video. You can't even really say it depicts the MK anymore given how much stuff is digitally added or moved.

 

[71jason]

Side note, all of the computers at the old Innoventions Kim Possible station that only allow Magic Band folks to access the MDE web site were totally empty. You know, the ones that day guests and APs can cannot use....

The same stations that are totally empty and Sid's while lines outside are 15-25 deep.

It's almost like this is a fad--all the APs want to play with it (just like they lined up at Odyssey to get new AP cards last year, or slammed the Leap Day and Friday the 13th parties). Meanwhile, the more casual resort cases either can't be bothered with or are largely unaware of the new system.

 

[startraveler]

I have a kind of "low incidence" question. Doesn't happen to the average guest. When you make a fast pass + reservation say for a show, does it ask if you need wheelchair seating? Or limit the number in your party who can sit with a wheelchair user? Because of my needs I need a lot of info on changes, etc to make the best decisions.
I ask because I have been in line for shows where I was stopped because wheelchair areas were full. And everyone else behind our party was able to get a seat. Also, been given a seat but my family would have to sit somewhere else. Not possible with my needs. A little frustrating for example to stand in the sun waiting to not be admitted. But I deal with it. But I'd hate to use a fast pass + (not going till October so I don't have experience) only to get to the front of the line and get turned away. And I realize the fast pass + for attractions that use special vehicles will not be accurate in terms of the time spent in line which is actually extra. So I'm wondering say if you are still on a ride or in line when it is time for your next fast pass and miss it, do you just lose it or can you still go to a cm and schedule another one. (I will be staying off site and don't have a smart phone.)
Thanks.

 

[JimboJones123]

As true as that may be, that's a horrible defense for not fixing a problem. That points to a couple of issues:

• There is a steep learning curve with the new Fastpass+ system
  
• The readers for the new Fastpass+ system are too slow to handle the distribution capacity for Fastpass

Add that to the already numerous list of other issues and this system can't be described as anything but fundamentally flawed. A fundamentally flawed system needs to change, otherwise it will fail. The premise behind Fastpass+ was a belief that guests should be able to make ride reservations in advance. Whether this was based on guest demand or misguided bean counters is irrelevant. To accomplish this required making Fastpass+ digital, clearly that is still having issues but can still be fixed. The speed of the readers can be improved, the app can be improved, and the ease of use can be improved. The other component that points to "misguided bean counters" is the desire for all guests to have 3 Fastpass+ reservations per day that can be booked in advance. The math never worked for this, yet it's the largest public selling point of this new program. With the national marketing campaign, Disney is now in the business of intentionally deceiving their guests. You could argue they were already doing this with the Dining Plan, but that easily be sold as a "convenience" more than a money saver. With Fastpass+ not only are there attractions that don't need it, there are shows where use of Fastpass+ will actually cost a guest time rather than save a guest time.

The Fastpass system was a competitive advantage that Disney had over Universal for all guests. Now, I would argue that Express Pass is a superior product even as a pay service.

In all fairness, something has changed over the past few weeks. The readers are MUCH faster now at attractions. Nearly instant and no longer take 2-7 seconds like the front gate ones do or the attractions ones used to.

 

[rioriz]

Imagine that, the park VP actually out in the park. The Almighty Phil himself going out into the park isn't something that deserves praise, in my opinion. It's part of his job. He should be out there regularly experiencing the park the way the guests do.

And I politely disagree...I rarely see the VP of my company and only on special occasions

I give him praise on being hands on at least to hear any criticism guest may have

 

[asialeigh]

Imagine that, the park VP actually out in the park. The Almighty Phil himself going out into the park isn't something that deserves praise, in my opinion. It's part of his job. He should be out there regularly experiencing the park the way the guests do.

Phil is out there on a pretty regular basis actually.

 

[GrumpyFan]

In all fairness, something has changed over the past few weeks. The readers are MUCH faster now at attractions. Nearly instant and no longer take 2-7 seconds like the front gate ones do or the attractions ones used to.

I hope this is true and remains so, it's dearly needed.
I would like to see the readers/scanners changed to icrease their range. As is, you have to place your band directly on the reader for it to work, or that's the way it was in Oct. Where I work we have rfid door keys that will work at about an inch or so away from the reader.

 

[Lord_Vader]

I have a kind of "low incidence" question. Doesn't happen to the average guest. When you make a fast pass + reservation say for a show, does it ask if you need wheelchair seating? Or limit the number in your party who can sit with a wheelchair user? Because of my needs I need a lot of info on changes, etc to make the best decisions.
I ask because I have been in line for shows where I was stopped because wheelchair areas were full. And everyone else behind our party was able to get a seat. Also, been given a seat but my family would have to sit somewhere else. Not possible with my needs. A little frustrating for example to stand in the sun waiting to not be admitted. But I deal with it. But I'd hate to use a fast pass + (not going till October so I don't have experience) only to get to the front of the line and get turned away. And I realize the fast pass + for attractions that use special vehicles will not be accurate in terms of the time spent in line which is actually extra. So I'm wondering say if you are still on a ride or in line when it is time for your next fast pass and miss it, do you just lose it or can you still go to a cm and schedule another one. (I will be staying off site and don't have a smart phone.)
Thanks.

I can tell you a FP+ reservation does NOT guarantee a spot, we were denied access twice to shows due to exhausted capacity. I personally do not recommend using FP+ for shows at all, we did for Fantasmic, BaTB and IJSS and were sent away at BaTB and IJSS and lost the FPs. We were lucky enough to have made our reservations before the tiering but were still quite irritated with the mess. We did see both shows, but not with FP and recommend asking for seating in the front rows if at all possible. This allows your party to sit behind you and provide a view without obstructions in front of you, my wife nearly always ends up with someone over 6ft tall or a child standing to see which end up blocking her view. We have come to the conclusion that we must wait extra at shows and some rides now due to my wife being wheelchair bound, just plan extra time to make sure you get to see the shows you want to.

Also, they can and will limit the number of guests that can sit with any guest in a wheelchair but generally try to seat everybody close to you even during extreme busy periods like Christmas week.

 

[Lord_Vader]

In all fairness, something has changed over the past few weeks. The readers are MUCH faster now at attractions. Nearly instant and no longer take 2-7 seconds like the front gate ones do or the attractions ones used to.

They were nearly instant over Christmas week with only guests inability to get their jackets out of the way before they approach the readers slowing them down.

 

[startraveler]

I can tell you a FP+ reservation does NOT guarantee a spot, we were denied access twice to shows due to exhausted capacity. I personally do not recommend using FP+ for shows at all, we did for Fantasmic, BaTB and IJSS and were sent away at BaTB and IJSS and lost the FPs. We were lucky enough to have made our reservations before the tiering but were still quite irritated with the mess. We did see both shows, but not with FP and recommend asking for seating in the front rows if at all possible. This allows your party to sit behind you and provide a view without obstructions in front of you, my wife nearly always ends up with someone over 6ft tall or a child standing to see which end up blocking her view. We have come to the conclusion that we must wait extra at shows and some rides now due to my wife being wheelchair bound, just plan extra time to make sure you get to see the shows you want to.

Also, they can and will limit the number of guests that can sit with any guest in a wheelchair but generally try to seat everybody close to you even during extreme busy periods like Christmas week.

Thanks for the information. That's kind of what I thought might happen. Maybe the new Lion King show in AK will have more wheelchair seating.

 

[omurice]

Please do not go up to these Cast Members with the sole purpose of trying to get extra FP+ or an attraction that is no longer available. You are setting people up for disappointment. They are there to assist with troubleshooting MM+ not to start making exceptions. If they see that it's appropriate, available, and achievable then they will.

I'm not advising people to do that, I think asking for exceptions should be a rare thing. I'm reporting what I experienced and what I observed happening at two different places.
And yes once the lifestyle bloggers get a hold of that info, they'll post it to their blog or FB group and the CMs will have to say "No!" to the requests for priveleged "snowflake" status much more often. What's going on now I think is a temporary state of affairs. But it is going on.

 

[omurice]

No. Stop. Wrong. You ruined it. Stop spreading lies. Period. Seriously.
...

Was not advising people what they should do, was telling them what I saw and experienced. The CMs with the iPads and GR both can enhance your FPs, it is real and it is happening.
I have a whole story about this if anyone cares to hear it, but I'm really reluctant to tell the story because I don't want people abusing the system, and repeating what I said like some magic words to get 3 magic flex FPs. So I'm not going to tell that story. But: I did not lie, cajole or demand anything. I told a CM my situation, which was the truth. She took pity on me, went above and beyond what I asked for (I asked to move just one expired FP to "now", that is all). And she made some magic happen, which CMs in a decent mood like to do sometimes.

edit: I see you were probably being sarcastic there
But did not want anyone to think I'm advising guests to badger CMs into giving them special treatment. That's the worst - I hate reading about it, much less seeing it happen. I see it on every trip, guests abusing the fact CMs can't shout back or just tell them to go away. I might not cut it as a CM, for losing my s*!#

 

[disney4life2008]

This is quite funny. You can only reserve 3 attractions - they make it seem like you can reserve nearly everything.

 

[George]

This is quite funny. You can only reserve 3 attractions - they make it seem like you can reserve nearly everything.

I can reserve everything thanks to Disney's legendary computer prowess.

 

[rct247]

Was not advising people what they should do, was telling them what I saw and experienced. The CMs with the iPads and GR both can enhance your FPs, it is real and it is happening.
I have a whole story about this if anyone cares to hear it, but I'm really reluctant to tell the story because I don't want people abusing the system, and repeating what I said like some magic words to get 3 magic flex FPs. So I'm not going to tell that story. But: I did not lie, cajole or demand anything. I told a CM my situation, which was the truth. She took pity on me, went above and beyond what I asked for (I asked to move just one expired FP to "now", that is all). And she made some magic happen, which CMs in a decent mood like to do sometimes.

edit: I see you were probably being sarcastic there
But did not want anyone to think I'm advising guests to badger CMs into giving them special treatment. That's the worst - I hate reading about it, much less seeing it happen. I see it on every trip, guests abusing the fact CMs can't shout back or just tell them to go away. I might not cut it as a CM, for losing my s*!#

Sorry, but I wasn't being sarcastic. Just the fact that you mentioned it gives people ideas.

 

[omurice]

This is quite funny. You can only reserve 3 attractions - they make it seem like you can reserve nearly everything.

What the commercial forgot to show is: If you hold up your MagicBand at the right point in EE, the YETI WORKS in A mode again, just for your train - YAYYY MagicBand!

Unfortunately, there's a catch. As the commercial indicates, Lumiere has to be on the ride with you for the Yeti to function. So without Lumiere, it's B mode STROBE LIGHT Yeti as usual! Booooo... Why did you forsake me Lumiere?

 

[RSoxNo1]

In all fairness, something has changed over the past few weeks. The readers are MUCH faster now at attractions. Nearly instant and no longer take 2-7 seconds like the front gate ones do or the attractions ones used to.

That's great to hear, thanks for the report.

 

[MGMBoy]

With Fastpass+ not only are there attractions that don't need it, there are shows where use of Fastpass+ will actually cost a guest time rather than save a guest time.

Bingo! There were a couple times back in the day when an attraction's legacy FP machines would go down for the day and the standby queues would run 40-60% shorter then when they had FP working. I think the system is okay for a few attractions (especially ones who have a queue built specifically for FP) but otherwise you're saving 20-30 minutes on one attraction to spend 40-60 minutes more on another attraction while people with FPs for THAT attraction jump ahead of you.

 

[alissafalco]

Does anyone know where the Epcot kiosks are located? Sorry if this has been mentioned I don't feel like going through the whole thread.

 

[Lil Fort]

In all fairness, something has changed over the past few weeks. The readers are MUCH faster now at attractions. Nearly instant and no longer take 2-7 seconds like the front gate ones do or the attractions ones used to.

Someone finally indexed the database?