Fortune Magazine: Disney's tech innovation is my nightmare

[baymenxpac]

i'm not sure how people don't see the difference between planning a meal and micromanaging essentially every second of the park down to the minute. the difference is pretty huge. it's one thing to go on 180 days out and book your dining (which is a little crazy itself, but let's grant the premise) and then pretty much wing the rest of your day. it's another to say, "we have a meet and greet at 10:20, then we'll do our mine train FP at 10:50, then go over to tomorrowland and wait stand by on buzz before our space mountain FP at 1:10." that's excessive.

also, sometimes you all need to consider how inside baseball all of this is to someone who doesn't hang in a WDW discussion forum. seriously, try to explain FP+ to someone planning a trip to disney world. go ahead. i get paid to communicate and i have yet to find a way to do it in less than about 1,000 words.

 

[blueboxdoctor]

Disney unknowingly created a dangerous situation. Any ambulance chasing lawyer could see that. Adding Fastpass was a quick and easy way to not only fix the problem, but most likely increase guest satisfaction as well.

Yes, you're probably right with the legal part of it, but it's so frustrating how stupid people can be. If it's really hot and you decide to stand in the sun for an hour just to get food in the middle of the day, well, that's your own choice. There are plenty of other places to eat in MK alone - and they implement the same system of waiting in lines and finding a seat - that you aren't forced to go to one place.

 

[Glasgow]

I have no issue with MM/FP+ itself.. what I take issue with is the fact that it's essentially a band-aid to mask the lack of capacity, which is ultimately the result of poor planning (from a guest perspective, that is -- great planning if you're receiving a bonus .. funny ole thing, perspective). It would be great to have increased capacity AND improved planning options. We'll just have to wait a few more years for the former, I suppose.

 

[Dead2009]

Surprise! You have to plan things when you want to go on vacation. All these articles, these "journalists" should know better, and yet they act all shocked that Disney is somehow not the exception.

It's called "entitlement".

 

[jakeman]

i'm not sure how people don't see the difference between planning a meal and micromanaging essentially every second of the park down to the minute. the difference is pretty huge. it's one thing to go on 180 days out and book your dining (which is a little crazy itself, but let's grant the premise) and then pretty much wing the rest of your day. it's another to say, "we have a meet and greet at 10:20, then we'll do our mine train FP at 10:50, then go over to tomorrowland and wait stand by on buzz before our space mountain FP at 1:10." that's excessive.

also, sometimes you all need to consider how inside baseball all of this is to someone who doesn't hang in a WDW discussion forum. seriously, try to explain FP+ to someone planning a trip to disney world. go ahead. i get paid to communicate and i have yet to find a way to do it in less than about 1,000 words.

How is that different from running across the park collecting paper Fastpasses and structuring your day around those times?

The stress or excessive planning needs attributed to FP+ is hyperbole unless your definition of a successful vacation is defined by a very small, specific subset of experiences at WDW.

For example (because I did this yesterday, so why not today to drive the point home), if I were to head out to MK right now, I could queue up FPs for everything except the parades, Frozen, 7DMT, and Pirates. Heck, I could even take my family of 4 to lunch with a reservation at Tony's in 30 minutes from this post.

It's an abject refusal by some at this point to understand that while there are benefits to micromanaging at the furthest time point, winging your day is still possible with generally the same amount of success as before.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

i'm not sure how people don't see the difference between planning a meal and micromanaging essentially every second of the park down to the minute. the difference is pretty huge. it's one thing to go on 180 days out and book your dining (which is a little crazy itself, but let's grant the premise) and then pretty much wing the rest of your day. it's another to say, "we have a meet and greet at 10:20, then we'll do our mine train FP at 10:50, then go over to tomorrowland and wait stand by on buzz before our space mountain FP at 1:10." that's excessive.

Except that's not new. People were doing it long before FP+ was implemented.

Also, your understanding or the 180 day window is completely backwards. You seem to think that if the 180 days went away, people would "be able" to be more spontaneous with their dining. The exact opposite is true. If the 180 day limit weren't imposed, people would be making reservations years in advance.

 

[Lucky]

Also, your understanding or the 180 day window is completely backwards. You seem to think that if the 180 days went away, people would "be able" to be more spontaneous with their dining. The exact opposite is true. If the 180 day limit weren't imposed, people would be making reservations years in advance.

It used to be 90 days. I don't think you could ever book years in advance.

 

[Sandurz]

Heck, I could even take my family of 4 to lunch with a reservation at Tony's in 30 minutes from this post.

PLEASE DAD NO NOT TONY'S I'LL DO ANYTHING

I see where the guy is coming from, but is there any other single leisure destination on the planet that has nearly as many visitors? 60 and 180 days could probably be reduced to a week and 30 days, but there are just too many dang people that go to WDW for his ideal vacation to exist. It's a numerical impossibility.

 

[LuvtheGoof]

Except that's not new. People were doing it long before FP+ was implemented.

Also, your understanding or the 180 day window is completely backwards. You seem to think that if the 180 days went away, people would "be able" to be more spontaneous with their dining. The exact opposite is true. If the 180 day limit weren't imposed, people would be making reservations years in advance.

I don't consider it more spontaneous if I go up to Le Cellier, and they have a 3 or 4 hour wait to get in, which is what you would have without ADRs. Go after 4, and you'll never get in anyway. You would also have to be at Cindy's Castle within 10-15 minutes of rope drop if you wanted to get into there at all on a particular day. Popular restaurants are popular restaurants. They are harder to get into.

And if people don't think that would happen, they are smoking some real good stuff. People could walk up to SOME restaurants years ago because - wait for it - there weren't as many people there! What a concept. It's more crowded now. You can blame anything you want, but the fact is that there are more people going to Disney, and certain restaurants are ALWAYS popular.

Should Disney add dining capacity? Sure. Are they? Yes. They have added 2 new restaurants in EPCOT just in the last few years. Has that changed the fact that it is hard to get into Le Cellier? NO, and it NEVER will. Doesn't matter if they add 10 more places to eat at EPCOT, Le Cellier will ALWAYS be hard to get into. They are adding another sit down in MK, and it appears that others that were seasonal are open more often. Some places are more popular than others, and therefore harder to get in. CRT is the same way. Even if they open 10 more sit downs at MK, CRT will STILL be hard to get.

We have the same exact issue where I live for certain awesome restaurants. If you want to eat there, you call at least 2 months in advance. If you want to get in during certain holidays, you call at least 4-5 months in advance. Disney is NO different.

 

[LuvtheGoof]

PLEASE DAD NO NOT TONY'S I'LL DO ANYTHING

Don't know why Tony's gets such a bad rap. We've eaten there many times, and the food and service has always been excellent. Guess we're lucky.

 

[blueboxdoctor]

Don't know why Tony's gets such a bad rap. We've eaten there many times, and the food and service has always been excellent. Guess we're lucky.

Perhaps I'm just ruined by living in mainly Italian area so Tony's doesn't do much for me at all (plus, I don't see the point in going Italian in WDW when I can do that at home).

 

[LuvtheGoof]

Perhaps I'm just ruined by living in mainly Italian area so Tony's doesn't do much for me at all (plus, I don't see the point in going Italian in WDW when I can do that at home).

Well, I see you point, but I can get every single type of food offered at Disney here where I live. But I still go to TS restaurants there because the food at most places is very good to outstanding. Some places suck. True everywhere, not just at Disney. Heck, we love Rose & Crown, and eat there every trip. Never had a bad meal, but some here say it sucks and they'll never eat there. To each his/her own.

I guess my only point was that if you are in MK, and in the mood for Italian food, then Tony's is not as bad a choice as some make it out to be, and according to @jakeman you can get an ADR there on very short notice.

 

[baymenxpac]

Except that's not new. People were doing it long before FP+ was implemented.

Also, your understanding or the 180 day window is completely backwards. You seem to think that if the 180 days went away, people would "be able" to be more spontaneous with their dining. The exact opposite is true. If the 180 day limit weren't imposed, people would be making reservations years in advance.

actually, no. you misunderstood the entire meaning of my post, which is on you. and you did so pretty badly. i know you might be anxious to herald your opinion as the right one, but try again.

i only brought up dining to contrast it against booking attractions and meet and greets. it's fairly reasonable to plan out where you want to eat dinner. you'll have to decide six months in advance, which is a little silly, but whatever. not a hill i feel strongly enough to die on.

my point is that FP+ makes everything about visiting disney a chore. i can't imagine even those who utilize the system find it relaxing. and it makes the experience of visiting extremely cumbersome to novice visitors who aren't familiar with it. heck, it makes it cumbersome to people who have been twice a year since 1993. people already felt like you needed a spreadsheet to navigate a trip to disney world. now? it's all the more complex, and that's the sentiment you see in this fortune piece.

 

[jakeman]

actually, no. you misunderstood the entire meaning of my post, which is on you. and you did so pretty badly. i know you might be anxious to herald your opinion as the right one, but try again.

The irony of this is absolute wonderful.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

my point is that FP+ makes everything about visiting disney a chore. i can't imagine even those who utilize the system find it relaxing. and it makes the experience of visiting extremely cumbersome to novice visitors who aren't familiar with it. heck, it makes it cumbersome to people who have been twice a year since 1993. people already felt like you needed a spreadsheet to navigate a trip to disney world. now? it's all the more complex, and that's the sentiment you see in this fortune piece.

NONE of what you said has anything to do with Fastpass+ or is, in any way, new. It's a reality of the way things work when you have a limited amount of time to visit a very crowded place. My mother had a "clipboard of fun," as we sarcastically called it, planning our itinerary the first time we went in 1996 and every trip thereafter. People pay money to have curated itineraries when they visit Africa, Europe, a cruise, or any other number of vacations. We had a clipboard of fun on road trips to New Hampshire and Maine, camping in upstate New York, or visiting Dollywood in Tennessee. Nothing you're saying is unique to Disney. Families plan, especially families with children. You have to. Planning in advance from the comfort of your home allows you to maximize the time that you're actually in the parks doing things.

 

[baymenxpac]

NONE of what you said has anything to do with Fastpass+ or is, in any way, new. It's a reality of the way things work when you have a limited amount of time to visit a very crowded place. My mother had a "clipboard of fun," as we sarcastically called it, planning our itinerary the first time we went in 1996 and every trip thereafter. People pay money to have curated itineraries when they visit Africa, Europe, a cruise, or any other number of vacations. We had a clipboard of fun on road trips to New Hampshire and Maine, camping in upstate New York, or visiting Dollywood in Tennessee. Nothing you're saying is unique to Disney. Families plan, especially families with children. You have to. Planning in advance from the comfort of your home allows you to maximize the time that you're actually in the parks doing things.

oh, cool! what other resorts do you book fast pass times in advance?

sorry if i insulted your mom's clipboard.

 

[LuvtheGoof]

actually, no. you misunderstood the entire meaning of my post, which is on you. and you did so pretty badly. i know you might be anxious to herald your opinion as the right one, but try again.

i only brought up dining to contrast it against booking attractions and meet and greets. it's fairly reasonable to plan out where you want to eat dinner. you'll have to decide six months in advance, which is a little silly, but whatever. not a hill i feel strongly enough to die on.

I realize that you are not answering me, but it has been debunked enough already that unless you wish to eat at one of the 5 most popular restaurants on property, you have no reason to plan at 180 days out at all. Most can easily be had within 30-60 days, and many even less than that.

my point is that FP+ makes everything about visiting disney a chore. i can't imagine even those who utilize the system find it relaxing. and it makes the experience of visiting extremely cumbersome to novice visitors who aren't familiar with it. heck, it makes it cumbersome to people who have been twice a year since 1993. people already felt like you needed a spreadsheet to navigate a trip to disney world. now? it's all the more complex, and that's the sentiment you see in this fortune piece.

Well, we've been going to WDW since 1978, and FP+ has made it much easier for us these last few years. We go 2-4 times every year. As an example, we have missed going to TSMM for a few years simply because the FP paper passes were either all gone, or the return time was well after we planned on being there that day. We just made a FP+ only a few weeks out for TSMM that works out great. We don't have to be there at rope drop and run to an attraction. We can leisurely visit and take our time getting there. No pressure and much more relaxing. I have no idea how you can think that the old system was relaxing. Running to an attraction at rope drop and hope there are still available times that work out with your timetable.

We certainly don't need a spreadsheet, and I fail to see why anyone would need one. It's all available in the app. We made a few ADRs and our 3 FP+ selections for each day less than 3 weeks out. Got every restaurant we wanted. Got every FP+ we wanted. Took 30 minutes to do all of it. 30 minutes. How can you make that out to be cumbersome??

 

[CaptainAmerica]

oh, cool! what other resorts do you book fast pass times in advance?

sorry if i insulted your mom's clipboard.

You can't honestly be that clueless, right? I'm not going to spend more than ten seconds googling this for you, so you get the first result that comes up.

http://www.newyork.com/articles/attractions/10-things-to-book-before-you-visit-nyc-75528/

 

[baymenxpac]

You can't honestly be that clueless, right? I'm not going to spend more than ten seconds googling this for you, so you get the first result that comes up.

http://www.newyork.com/articles/attractions/10-things-to-book-before-you-visit-nyc-75528/

...and i'm the daft one? you're not comparing apples to apples, man. you just don't seem to be able to wrap your head around anything not thinking the way you do, which...fine. that's cool. if you like FP+, enjoy it! i'm just expressing the fairly common viewpoint that it's unwieldy and doesn't add much to the enjoyment of the parts. if anything, it detracts from it, which -- once again -- is the point of the article we're discussing.

 

[LuvtheGoof]

i'm just expressing the fairly common viewpoint that it's unwieldy and doesn't add much to the enjoyment of the parts. if anything, it detracts from it, which -- once again -- is the point of the article we're discussing.

Actually, you're not expressing a common viewpoint. Most people, even here, seem to prefer it over the older system. I'm one of those. I get that you are expressing YOUR viewpoint, but I don't think you are in the majority by a long shot.