MK to get SIX new FP attractions? UGH?!?!

[psukardi]

Seems like this FP+ could make going to the park a lot more like work than a vacation. Instead of waking up, getting to the park and just enjoying yourself it would be like the Grisswalds on the way to Wally World having everything planned down to the minute with zero deviation allowed.

Making dinner plans 180 days out was a nightmare - I am thankful trying to plan what rides to go on at what times no what days isn't in the plans yet. With so many variables like weather; mood; density of patrons at a park at a given time; it's really unrealistic to try to plan so many things.

Heck with it, I'll just walk the World Showcase and keep drinking until the fireworks.

 

[habuma]

Seems like this FP+ could make going to the park a lot more like work than a vacation. Instead of waking up, getting to the park and just enjoying yourself it would be like the Grisswalds on the way to Wally World having everything planned down to the minute with zero deviation allowed.

Sarcasm on:

Deviation? What deviation? Surely nobody will ever change their mind and want to ride BTM instead of Splash Mountain. And, I'd never expect it to rain out those best-laid plans. Oh, and rides never close for unexpected maintenance or protein spill management. I'd never even think of breaking the schedule to grab an unplanned drink or a Dole Whip. And there's no way that the kiddos will ever need to go to the restrooms "right now".

Sounds like a solid improvement to the Disney experience for every guest. I, for one, am looking forward to planning my trip down to the second.

Sarcasm off

 

[raven]

NextGen is much more than these added FastPass attractions. This is just one small part of the program and the entire details of NextGen haven't been released yet. The FastPass attractions will work together with the technology that will be incorporated at a later time.

 

[ParentsOf4]

Heck with it, I'll just walk the World Showcase and keep drinking until the fireworks.

Why stop drinking?

 

[raven]

I hope you're right but I am concerned FP+ will mean I have to book my favorite attractions 180 days out.

I already don't book TS at the most popular restaurants because I dislike making a dinner reservation 6 months into the future and committing to being at a specific theme park on a specific day. (I have no problem with people who do; I'm happy for them that they enjoy calling at 9 AM at the 6-month window. It's just not for me.) But I will be bummed if I need my FPs 6 months before I arrive and even more bummed if I can't make it to the theme park on that day and have to chuck them.

Let's hope for the best.

You have to remember that all of NextGen's components are OPTIONAL. No one is forcing anyone to give all or any information about yourself or even use it if you don't want to. I think booking FPs online months ahead of time is tapping into the thrill that guests get while planning their vacations. Obviously it will be very difficult to keep to such a strict schedule while at WDW and things will change, but at least the option is being put out there.

 

[RSoxNo1]

You have to remember that all of NextGen's components are OPTIONAL. No one is forcing anyone to give all or any information about yourself or even use it if you don't want to. I think booking FPs online months ahead of time is tapping into the thrill that guests get while planning their vacations. Obviously it will be very difficult to keep to such a strict schedule while at WDW and things will change, but at least the option is being put out there.

The question that I think most people fear is, will we be at a disadvantage if we can't book or choose not to book ride reservations in advance.

 

[TalkingHead]

Obviously it will be very difficult to keep to such a strict schedule while at WDW and things will change, but at least the option is being put out there.

That really sounds like a waste of money on Disney's part. Options that look good to guests planning trips but aren't feasible while visiting the parks...

 

[raven]

The question that I think most people fear is, will we be at a disadvantage if we can't book or choose not to book ride reservations in advance.

Nope. With the new FP rule (enforcing times), there is a high percentage of people not being able to make their ride time.

That really sounds like a waste of money on Disney's part. Options that look good to guests planning trips but aren't feasible while visiting the parks...

The "$1 billion" that people are talking about being thrown around on these boards is for the entire NextGen project, NOT this tiny part of it.

 

[DisneyFan 2000]

So what exactly IS the project? I'm seeing people say it's not just the Wi-Fi, it's not just the apps, it's not just FP+. I'm not trying to be a cynic, but I'm still waiting for that "SHABANG" reveal that explains what a billion dollars have been invested in. Surely it can't be all for R&D because Disney managed to develop and build a half-baked park for less than that. So what's the punchline?

 

[psukardi]

The question that I think most people fear is, will we be at a disadvantage if we can't book or choose not to book ride reservations in advance.

Maybe, maybe not. Depends on how many slots they reserve for the riders. Are they going to use the reservation system for 25% of the day , 35% or higher? If so, how much more does the regular FP take (if at all)? It's a great big wonderful speculation...

 

[psukardi]

So what exactly IS the project? I'm seeing people say it's not just the Wi-Fi, it's not just the apps, it's not just FP+. I'm not trying to be a cynic, but I'm still waiting for that "SHABANG" reveal that explains what a billion dollars have been invested in. Surely it can't be all for R&D because Disney managed to develop and build a half-baked park for less than that. So what's the punchline?

Looking at costs and infrastructure, you raise a very good point. The cost of implementing and supporting park wide Wi-Fi is great (but not $1billion). Obviously to cover that amount of space with Wi-Fi is going to be tricky with access points and seamlessly bridging connections from one AP to the next without the end user knowing. The initial upfront cost of hardware will be great in addition to technical support and things like bandwidth.

The apps, the cost of the apps should be trivial in comparison to the hardware costs.

So then the question goes back to what you said. Let's hope a large chunk of it is spent on R&D and improvements that the parks could really use.

 

[awilliams4]

I wish there was something...I mean any...anything that would make this next-gen stuff seem, ya know....worth it, to anyone who has any CLUE about how to spend time usefully at WDW.

1 Billion dollar bust is what I smell...hey, look, its time to renew my Universal AP...

OK, how about this. Families that like to relax on vacation and not eat hamburgers and hot dogs all week. Sleep in at their Villas, take their time having a sit down breakfast at the resort then going back to their room to enjoy their balcony, read a book in the Solarium or do the many activities offered at their resort or do a lot of nothing during the day. Then going to the parks for an early dinner. Hitting the parks around 4:00 or so after the temps have already hit their highs, and will only be going down at this point. When the meltdown and commandoes with all the blood pressure bursting through their heads are that much closer to being on the way out of the parks, and then taking their time hitting some shops and taking in the sights and then eating from say 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Brown Derby at DHS.

Then when they are ready for some fun....look at this, we already have FP for RnR and TSM and we didn't have to get up at the crack of dawn on our vacation and stand butt to butt in crowds of smelly people waiting for a rope to drop and then hanging out in crowds all day long in the heat so I can run from one end of the park to the next getting and timing FPs.

By the way, NextGen sounds perfect to how we like to 'vacation'. We get to participate in FP offerings without having to get out of bed at 6:00 a.m. What a terrible idea.

 

[awilliams4]

The key word is "if" we continue to visit. I'm planning on having sooo much fun in September because we can still be somewhat spontaneous. I don't make dining reservations because I have no idea where I will want to eat in 6 months or even next week, and I think having to do that to get a seat sucks, so when they make it so that I have to reserve ride times, forget it......

I don't understand the big deal about making dining reservations at 180 days out.

I mean, what decision is there really. When you plan your vacation you know when you are going, you know where you are staying, you probably know already that you will be visiting MK x number of days, you see what the hours are. Look MK has EEMH, that either is something that works or doesn't work for people. If it does work, you probably know you are going there that night, if it doesn't, you know you are not.

How many choices are there at that point, if you aren't on the dining plan, you probably can already figure out whether you will be spending big bucks at a buffet at MK or big bucks at Epcot instead. If you are staying at BLT, you probably already have a feel for yes, I am definately doing me some California Grill and Ohaha's later in the week so I know that I won't have the cash for Crystal Palace or Liberty Tree Tavern....what does that leave? Tony's or the Plaza, flip a coin!

 

[awilliams4]

And for ALL the many 100s if not 1000s of posts out there about people that have been threatening to quit going to WDW for the last 10 years that I have been browsing these boards, doesn't it seem so incredibly predictable to you yet how empty the threats are after awhile?

 

[RSoxNo1]

Nope. With the new FP rule (enforcing times), there is a high percentage of people not being able to make their ride time.

That's still creating a disruption in touring compared to times previous to March 2012. Are they adding more FP to the system as a result of this change?

 

[flynnibus]

I don't understand the big deal about making dining reservations at 180 days out.

I mean, what decision is there really. When you plan your vacation you know when you are going, you know where you are staying, you probably know already that you will be visiting MK x number of days, you see what the hours are.

Because the simple fact you may not know at 180 days.. and if other people do, by not being ready at 180 days, you are severely limited in what is available to you when you do 'know' when you are going.

Why can't I decide today, that I would like to go spend christmas in WDW? After all, it's only August! Do you have all your Christmas plans already sorted down to the day right now on Aug 30?

That's why people don't like the 180 day window.. it penalizes people who don't make Disney plans 6+ months out.

 

[awilliams4]

Because the simple fact you may not know at 180 days.. and if other people do, by not being ready at 180 days, you are severely limited in what is available to you when you do 'know' when you are going.

Why can't I decide today, that I would like to go spend christmas in WDW? After all, it's only August! Do you have all your Christmas plans already sorted down to the day right now on Aug 30?

That's why people don't like the 180 day window.. it penalizes people who don't make Disney plans 6+ months out.

If you haven't made your resevations for your vacation at all at 180s out, yes, I can see how this negatively affects you. But where do you draw the line? 120 days? Doesn't that have negative consequences too? WDW is a very popular place, as with all popular places, the more popular they are, the more likely you have to make reservations in advance. That is like complaining about being on a wait list to get Red Sox season tickets. It is what it is because it is so popular. So the complaint is therefore Disney is at fault because they are so popular?

 

[COProgressFan]

If you haven't made your resevations for your vacation at all at 180s out, yes, I can see how this negatively affects you. But where do you draw the line? 120 days? Doesn't that have negative consequences too? WDW is a very popular place, as with all popular places, the more popular they are, the more likely you have to make reservations in advance. That is like complaining about being on a wait list to get Red Sox season tickets. It is what it is because it is so popular. So the complaint is therefore Disney is at fault because they are so popular?

You draw the line at a point that is much less than 180 days. I can't think of any other place on earth that takes reservations for a tuna sandwich at lunch six months out! At 180 days out, very few people even have trips booked, let alone have their days mapped out. I would argue a better time frame might be 30 days, or perhaps even 60. At that point, more people will have a better idea of what their plans might be. This is more customer friendly, to more guests. It gives a fairer chance to casual first or second time visitors than the crazy theme park trip planners who have spreadsheets planning every moment of their trip including bathroom breaks six months beforehand. It's supposed to be a vacation. Yes, I do remember the days that you would make same day reservations at the video kiosks in Epcot. It was possible then. Its still often possible at DL.

The one other thing to add is that most locations have no tables set aside for walk-ups. Even during quiet times of year it can be impossible to get into even less popular locations (Plaza restaurant, for example). Setting aside a reasonable number of walk-ups (or even releasing some tables for reservations a few days beforehand) would, again, be more accommodating to more guests.

 

[awilliams4]

You draw the line at a point that is much less than 180 days. I can't think of any other place on earth that takes reservations for a tuna sandwich at lunch six months out! At 180 days out, very few people even have trips booked, let alone have their days mapped out. I would argue a better time frame might be 30 days, or perhaps even 60. At that point, more people will have a better idea of what their plans might be. This is more customer friendly, to more guests. It gives a fairer chance to casual first or second time visitors than the crazy theme park trip planners who have spreadsheets planning every moment of their trip including bathroom breaks six months beforehand. It's supposed to be a vacation. Yes, I do remember the days that you would make same day reservations at the video kiosks in Epcot. It was possible then. Its still often possible at DL.

The one other thing to add is that most locations have no tables set aside for walk-ups. Even during quiet times of year it can be impossible to get into even less popular locations (Plaza restaurant, for example). Setting aside a reasonable number of walk-ups (or even releasing some tables for reservations a few days beforehand) would, again, be more accommodating to more guests.

My opinion, it happens no place else on Earth because there is only one WDW. If you wait to make ressies at 60 days out than you won't be staying at BLT, BCV, AKV, BWV, WLV and probably a few other places. I guess All Stars for a room and SSR for a villa is all your going to get. Just like if you try and make dining ressies at 60 days, you are not going to get Sci-Fi or Le Cellier but you can settle for Kona Cafe. I don't believe that would be justification however to not allow Villa and Hotel bookings until 60 days out. The difference in where you are staying isn't much different than what you will be wanting to eat. Is there a bigger difference between Italian or Chinese for dinner versus say wanting to be within an African Themed environment at AKL/AKV or watching Wishes from your balcony at an MK view from the Contemporary?

 

[kucarachi]

Used universals x pass or whatever its called and it absolutely made the one day we spent there one of the best (1 day) experiences we ever had at a theme park. It was a lot more but we had limited time and would not have been able to do half the things we wanted to. But with all the new stuff opening this and next year in magic kingdom are they afraid of being over crowded all the time? Don't they still have to close when at max cap? There will just be more rides, places to eat...but for people with limited days this could be a great way to get everything in...some people only get one trip in a lifetime why not make the most of it