FastPass+ open to all guests including offsite beginning next week at Disney's Animal Kingdom

[disney4life2008]

I, like many others, hate this entire system. Sure, it will save one member of our party from rushing to the end of the park to get FPs for Everest. But the fact that you can only get 3 per day irks me. I guess when I go in January, we will be using singles for Everest or hopping on towards the end of the day, and then the next time I go with my parents we'll use DAS (my younger brother has autism).

I have a feeling the single line is going to be eliminated soon enough. People who cant get a FP+ desired time will not want to wait in standby and will likely go to single rider - which will increase the single rider line.

 

[flynnibus]

I heard a great line from a CM about how offsite guests will remember when their FP+ times are due to the lack of the paper ticket.

They have been told by management to tell the guests to take a photo of the kiosk screen with their cell phone.

It's a great point - and deficiency of the Kiosk design IMO - they should output a pocket sized coupon showing your itineraries. If the kiosk is there for those without smartphones... they should provide an itinerary the user can consume.

 

[CDavid]

It's a great point - and deficiency of the Kiosk design IMO - they should output a pocket sized coupon showing your itineraries. If the kiosk is there for those without smartphones... they should provide an itinerary the user can consume.

And if you don't have a smartphone, you may not even have a phone with a camera...

 

[Virtual Toad]

I heard a great line from a CM about how offsite guests will remember when their FP+ times are due to the lack of the paper ticket.

They have been told by management to tell the guests to take a photo of the kiosk screen with their cell phone.

Sounds great! How could I ever have had fun at a theme park before this amazingly hi-tech solution to something that was never a problem before!

 

[disney4life2008]

Bingo.

This is why I'm a fan of the new FP+. I'm too old to be waking up at the crack of dawn to be at the gate for rope drop to bum rush to the FP machine and grab my ticket. Let me wake up on my schedule, have a cup of coffee and read the paper. I'm on holiday gosh darn it! Now I can at least schedule this in for a later time in the day and if I don't get to it I don't sweat it because I didn't get on it the last time either

But your mindset likely makes up a small percentage of supporters. Every board I have read people are in disgust (including me).

 

[disney4life2008]

And if you don't have a smartphone, you may not even have a phone with a camera...

Well the MM+ app is limited to those with Android, Apple and I think Kindle - I am a windows phone user I am shut out.

 

[psukardi]

But your mindset likely makes up a small percentage of supporters. Every board I have read people are in disgust (including me).

Eh, I just look at it like this. I've been to Disney before, I'll be back again. If I don't get on the ride - I'm not going to get mad about it. Heck, one of my favorite things to do is to just walk around the World Showcase and people watch. Crap I'm getting old. Get off my lawn

 

[flynnibus]

I have to think that keeping anyone but resort guests OUT of the MDE booking system has got to be a technology limitation only.

The idea that all non-resort guests must use a kiosk for any FP+ is suicide. You create a situation where everyone wants to create their FP+ usage at the same time (start of the day)... you have a system that requires significant time to complete the task (and has a ton of user variables)... and you funnel them all to the same place?

Lines for the FP+ kiosks at the start of the day will be intolerable and people will just give up. I can't imagine this working at scale. The only rational thinking I can forsee to justify this is simply the MDE app can't accommodate the type of testing they want to do... so this is temp before they open up MDE for same day usage without a resort ressie. Maybe simply the software isn't done yet...

I can't even phathom this being their intended endgame where you send the majority of your guests to limited kiosks... at the same time.

 

[donsullivan]

Although not formally rolled out to APers, this DAK test will include AP holders. Anyone with an RFID entry ticket can use FP+.

I probably should have been more precise in my language. What I was referring to is the advance reservation aspect of FP+. An AP holder who has not stayed at a resort since this whole thing started has the same lowest level privilege to the FastPass as any random one-day once-in-a-lifetime visitor staying at a resort along 192. For the amount of money I spend there (and Disneyland) each year it's starting to make me rethink my future visit pattern. It's reached the point where I can't ride much of anything when I visit the parks any longer and I'm not likely to put up with that much longer.

 

[Jeff2140]

The model for offsite guests in this test is getting closer to what FP+ should be: paperless fastpass that works very much like the current system with no advanced reservations. I hope (but don't expect) they move in this direction for everyone.

I could not agree more. From what I understand the whole concept of Fastpass plus was to keep families together. Under the old system families would have to separate to get fastpasses across the park, or drag the whole family around just to get a fastpass. Fastpass plus should work identical to the old system with the exception that you book your fastpasses on your phone or at any Kiosk in the park and do not get paper ones. With GPS enabling they could make sure that you have to be in the park to book a fastpass. Also, there should not be a limit on how many fastpasses you can get in a day as you would still have to wait until your fastpass time arrives, or 2 hours after getting a fastpass to get another one. Why limit everyone to 3 fastpasses if crowd levels are low and there is much more availability of fastpasses. I also disagree with guests staying at resorts being able to get fastpasses 60+ days in advance. I always stay on property and still don't agree with this. IMO having to plan out my whole day ahead of time can be a hassle.

 

[wdwmagic]

I probably should have been more precise in my language. What I was referring to is the advance reservation aspect of FP+. An AP holder who has not stayed at a resort since this whole thing started has the same lowest level privilege to the FastPass as any random one-day once-in-a-lifetime visitor staying at a resort along 192. For the amount of money I spend there (and Disneyland) each year it's starting to make me rethink my future visit pattern. It's reached the point where I can't ride much of anything when I visit the parks any longer and I'm not likely to put up with that much longer.

Yes word on the advance reservation for AP has been very quiet so far. I am starting to wonder if there will even be an option for advance reservations for APers. Hopefully I am wrong.

 

[WDWYankee15]

I admire you for having a "glass half full".

My glass is just... Twice as big as it needs to be.

I hope you deal well with disappointment.

Thanks. I generally try to be positive. I won't be disappointed. I will roll with things and make the best decisions given the state of affrairs... I also tend not to jump completely in the deep end and sink to the bottom until someone has measured the water.

Again I am not thrilled with the prospects of this thing, but as was said earlier, this ball is too big and rolling too fast for it to be stopped. Now we need to see what happens and perhaps what adjustments are made over time to it. You can hope for the best... expect the worst... and probably in the end we are somewhere in between.

I will say one thing for sure, it will never be for the guests what we would want to have spent billions of dollars on.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

......and ...I had a really good laugh at the attractions that were put on the list as being "FP+ Attractions":
Character Greeting at Adventurers Outpost
Expedition Everest
DINOSAUR
Festival of the Lion King
Finding Nemo – The Musical
Kali River Rapids
Kilimanjaro Safaris
Primeval Whirl
It's Tough to be a Bug!

Just wait until FotLK is closed next year and people have one less FP+ option...and then Dinosaur or Everest breaks down...

 

[flynnibus]

Yes word on the advance reservation for AP has been very quiet so far. I am starting to wonder if there will even be an option for advance reservations for APers. Hopefully I am wrong.

Well.. since both AP and offsite are in the same boat during the test... two possibilities come to mind...

- They are both held back by the same imcomplete functionality
- They are both held back by 'thats the intended design!'

 

[Buried20KLeague]

You are correct, but in this light being limited to 3 actually makes more FastPasses available. In the past I could way more than 3 FastPasses in a given day for the top tier attractions. Now I can't which therefore, allows more FastPasses to remain in the pool, if you will.

... Which is all well and good, but will give your family a lesser experience.

And I would argue that more fastpasses are being made available due to the unnecessary addition of FP to attractions that do not need it.

Also, while not confirmed, and as stated by another poster earlier; I would not be surprised if only a percentage of the FastPasses for a given date and timeslots are prereleased. I would imagine some will be held in reserve so it is first come first serve at the kiosk that day. In theory, onsite guests have preplanned, so they already have attractions picked so day offs will generally go to offsite guests. In theory being the operative word. Because you can always move them around day of (with the advantage of the app), but then that opens other FastPasses that were previously booked.

Even if they hold a percentage back for day of, it's still going to be a massive drop. You're still going to have tens of thousands (literally) fighting for less than they were able to before. This image comes to mind...

Not loving this whole plan, but as someone who generally stays on property I think it will effect me less than others. I will say I will be reading these boards over the next few months to get feedback on actual experiences and will be curious as to what tweeks they will make over that time as well in anticipation of our late August 2014 trip. I'm not sure they really even know exactly how this is going to play out yet.

Here's hoping it is not as bad as it could be.

People have posted that they're glad they stay onsite because of this change. I don't understand that rationale. Not one bit. I've stayed onsite for 90% of my trips, yet this change has me furious. Because the prices for their hotel rooms are going to go up, and I'm going to receive less. I'll receive less FP per day, and those FP's won't be for attractions I can freely choose. And EMH are going away as well. MM isn't an "onsite benefit"... It's just less of a cutback than those staying offsite!

Everyone loses with this system compared to before it.

Literally the only positive I can think of with this system is not having to run to TSMM at rope drop to get a FP. That's literally the only part of all this that couldn't have been easily solved already. Moving to the band media is a marketing gimmick, and is largely a KTTW card with the added benefit of being watched by Big Brother. But I certainly would not have traded easier access to TSMM FP's for this whole mess. FP for SSE? REALLY?!?!?!?? Omnimovers? They've proved already that FP didn't work on omni's (HM) and wasn't needed. Now they're putting it back. What message should that send to all of us? They had it, spent the money to remove it, and now are putting it back. What should that tell us?

 

[donsullivan]

Well.. since both AP and offsite are in the same boat during the test... two possibilities come to mind...

- They are both held back by the same imcomplete functionality
- They are both held back by 'thats the intended design!'

The number of AP holders who have continued to be able to use FP+ advance reservation following a resort stay during the testing period tells us that the functionality is in the system. I've seen far too many reports for that to be anecdotal any more.

I just don't understand why they have simply chosen to disenfranchise that portion of the guest community unless they have a goal to reduce the number of Annual Passholders by creating a lesser experience for them. It seems a ridiculous strategy but Disney has been absolutely silent on this whole thing will no communication at all to folks with AP's and it's starting to feel like that's because we won't like what they have to say.

 

[WDWYankee15]

I have a feeling the single line is going to be eliminated soon enough. People who cant get a FP+ desired time will not want to wait in standby and will likely go to single rider - which will increase the single rider line.

Single rider reduces wait times on the rides that it is available. They don't care of the single rider line gets longer...Don't wait in it if you don't want to. They use the single rider line to fill cars quickly that are about to go out with empty seats. Being in the single rider line takes you out of the standby line and therefore reduces that wait time. In effect the single rider line increases capacity. There are only so many seats per hour. Everytime one is empty the affect is increased wait time. So the function and creation of a single rider line on some attractions is a result of efficience and therefore will not be illiminated from use... it may be illiminated from use by certain guests that no longer see the benefit of riding seperate to save a few minutes. Net result is still really the same.

 

[Buried20KLeague]

The FP+ arguments are like a ping pong game. Every time an adjustment is made the group that is affected is displeased. This time its offsite guests not being able to get as many FP they would like in a day at AK (level to everyone onsite who already couldnt).

I'm normally an onsite guest and I'm negatively impacted and displeased by the same thing you say applies to only offsite above.

Agree totally that the change to 3 per day is limiting, changes how we will plan, and no I do not like it (Never said I did )

But that is apples to oranges when it comes to on/offsite prebooking.

Taking away the FP- DOES put everyone on a level playing field as NOONE will have to ability to double (or triple) dip the FP system in that park.
Everyone WILL have the ability to secure FP for the day whether it be ahead of time by days, weeks, hours or minutes from riding.

The FP+ arguments are like a ping pong game. Every time an adjustment is made the group that is affected is displeased. This time its offsite guests not being able to get as many FP they would like in a day at AK (level to everyone onsite who already couldnt).

Well, if you're simply saying that you're glad they're not running the two FP system concurrently... THAT I get. I'm all for that. I believe legacy FP has been propping up guest satisfaction thus far. It's been acting as a life support system for FP+. I can't wait till they pull the plug.

 

[bladerunner]

The number of AP holders who have continued to be able to use FP+ advance reservation following a resort stay during the testing period tells us that the functionality is in the system. I've seen far too many reports for that to be anecdotal any more.

I just don't understand why they have simply chosen to disenfranchise that portion of the guest community unless they have a goal to reduce the number of Annual Passholders by creating a lesser experience for them. It seems a ridiculous strategy but Disney has been absolutely silent on this whole thing will no communication at all to folks with AP's and it's starting to feel like that's because we won't like what they have to say.

I think this is it and more, the goal may also be to reduce the number non-site guests as well.

 

[flynnibus]

The number of AP holders who have continued to be able to use FP+ advance reservation following a resort stay during the testing period tells us that the functionality is in the system. I've seen far too many reports for that to be anecdotal any more.

I was referring to the idea of getting booking rights without any room reservation... more so than worrying about what your ticket is.

Think about it.. Disney has no idea what day you are going to use your ticket... it's not tied to any day, while FP+ is tied to days. So using tickets to decide what days you can book or not is not as direct as using your resort ressie (which is tied to specific days) to gate when booking should open for you. Since advanced booking was the first thing rolled out for FP+.. it makes sense to have entitlement done by hotel ressies done and implemented before worrying about entitlement for day of bookings.

I just don't understand why they have simply chosen to disenfranchise that portion of the guest community unless they have a goal to reduce the number of Annual Passholders by creating a lesser experience for them. It seems a ridiculous strategy but Disney has been absolutely silent on this whole thing will no communication at all to folks with AP's and it's starting to feel like that's because we won't like what they have to say.

IMO - AP is just being pushed down the priority list. I don't see Disney looking to marginalize them.