New Be Our Guest lunch line procedure (Test?)

[LAKid53]

I wonder if the managers at WDW are actually manatees picking idea balls at random. Do we have the power to overthrow them? There's certain people here on this forum who I think would be perfect for the jobs of running the place.

No, my guess is that those making the decisions are more bean counters than individuals with the imagination and know how, like Walt and the crew that built Disneyland and planned WDW. For example, why would you take out a popular attraction with a M&G (Camp Mickey/Minnie) to create a new attraction for a movie that was popular but nothing like others in your stable? Do you think Iger and the Board woke up a couple of weeks before the announcement, thinking, "hey, we've got some cash, let's see if we can buy Lucasfilms. Somebody call George and get me a plane ticket to SF". No, that deal was probably in negotiations of some form for several years, probably shortly after the redone Star Tours.

Don't know about Iger's background, but Crofton has an MBA..... I've seen it happening too much in very specialized industries. The people running the companies have business degrees and very little knowledge of the industry the company is in. Think what Frank Lorenzo did to Eastern Airlines (which used to be the airlines of WDW). He knew nothing about running an airlines, but he sure knew how to tear it apart and increase stockholder profits. And where is Eastern today?

Sorry, my lecture for the day.

 

[donsullivan]

No, didn't get the evite, but when I go online at beourguestlunch.disney.go.com I can make a reservation up to Sept 27. Our resort reservation is from Sept 21 through Oct 1.

Out of curiosity, I clicked on the above URL and was able to make a pre-order reservation for lunch this Sunday and I have no resort reservations pending. An interesting change from the last time I looked at that URL.

 

[Captain Chaos]

I wonder if the managers at WDW are actually manatees picking idea balls at random. Do we have the power to overthrow them? There's certain people here on this forum who I think would be perfect for the jobs of running the place.

Manatees are actually smarter...

 

[LAKid53]

You know, I'm really starting to believe that "my Magic minus" has ruined everything that I use to love about WDW. I realized it when I started obsessively checking the super special Be Our Guest for lunch website multiple times a day just to see if I could get us a fast pass for our first day, which is 9/18. Eating at BE Our Guest was one of the few things my husband actually asked for. He doesn't ask for a lot and he works very hard to give us the money to take these over priced trips that I usually adore. So when he asked to dine here I did everything I could to try to make that happen. I never received the email invitation from Disney, even though I am staying on property at a deluxe resort. Finally Saturday morning,8/23, a reservation opened up for us on 9/18. I went ahead and booked it. I pre-ordered our meals but after I did it I felt exhausted simply because every single moment of this eight day trip has been planned within an inch of its life. I feel like there's simply no room to be spontaneous. When I saw that Sweet pea had to change her flight to the day before simply so she could dine with her friends due to this new fast pass system I thought, this is ridiculous! People should be allowed to walk into the park and choose a fast service restaurant to eat at and not have to reschedule their entire lives just to make it happen. And people should not be penalized or criticized for actually wanting to enjoy their day at a park with their friends on a trip.

I like the concept of the Magic Band. I like something that is my room key, annual pass, dining plan (if I purchased one), charging privileges, fastpasses all on something strapped to my wrist so I don't have to pull out various cards from my wallet/pocket/lanyard (well, I still have to show my ID and discount card to get my AP discounts). And something that I can personalize and each new resort/fastpass/dining plan/ticket is on the MB I spent some $$ personalizing. Convenience is the key for me. I just think Disney needs to rethink the whole FP+ system. Such as the additional selections once you've used the advanced ones; having to be in the park and use a kiosk is a BAD idea. You've spent all this money on MDE and the app - why not allow that to be used? Every bloody e-mail you've sent me about my trip in 4 days tells me to (1) create an MDE account if I've not already done so - hello, I couldn't have made the reservation without it and (2) download the app. Don't you think it would have been cheaper to allow visitors to just use the app to make another 1 selection after the first 3 are completed, rather than installing those kiosks? Unless you enjoy creating long lines for guests.....

Form follows function. I think Disney is in need of some good industrial engineers...

 

[LAKid53]

Manatees are actually smarter...

And Disney only has 2-3.....

 

[jencor]

I feel old saying this, but "back in the day" (and not even THAT long ago), anything that was open at WDW you could walk up to right up until the moment before it closed and get admitted. The entrance to the line closed at that time, but it might be "open" another hour or two to cycle through all the guests.

Of course, that was back when park hours weren't nearly as short as one average work day shift, and park hours actually meant something - the only thing you needed a "times guide" for was for the shows/fireworks, not the spreadsheet like thing it is now where every other thing at WDW is a special snowflake with it's own abbreviated hours.

It was that atmosphere that had me hooked in going to WDW as many times as we could. We are planning a trip in October and now I am uptight, confused and not sure at all how it is going to go. The excitement that I normally feel is not there. Luckily this time we are doing DCL also for the first time and I hope we found the replacement of going to the parks. I really feel for those who plan a vacation thinking they are just going to go with no or little planning. I say bring back those "back in the day" days that were not that long ago.

 

[LAKid53]

It was that atmosphere that had me hooked in going to WDW as many times as we could. We are planning a trip in October and now I am uptight, confused and not sure at all how it is going to go. The excitement that I normally feel is not there. Luckily this time we are doing DCL also for the first time and I hope we found the replacement of going to the parks. I really feel for those who plan a vacation thinking they are just going to go with no or little planning. I say bring back those "back in the day" days that were not that long ago.

Sadly, Disney has invested too much $$$ to go back to the old days, plus that would mean some execs/board members would be involuntarily exercising those "retirement" options in their contracts. Umm....

I'm not sure without some MAJOR expansions/revisions the parks could handle the increase in visitors without some sort of tool to manage those crowds - and I'm not referring to admission ticket price increases. Demand for Disney has just gotten too big for a park planned in the late 60s to accommodate without some major overhauls. You know Disney, most people get a bigger house when their family size increases. Not that I'm dropping any hints here.

 

[LAKid53]

Indeed. One would think so, but...that would apparently be mistaken.



That's so old school, back when customer service actually mattered, and Disney operated its attractions, shops, and restaurants for the convenience of guests. As opposed to 2014, when guests are expected to ride, shop, and dine at Disney's convenience.

Sadly, that's the state of business in general, when CEOs have to focus on the short term, i.e., increase shareholder profits, in order to keep their jobs. Can you imagine one of the top 30 industrials with a CEO who has been in that position more than 5 years? This is the trickle down mentality from Wall Street - and I'm a business school grad.

 

[LAKid53]

It was that atmosphere that had me hooked in going to WDW as many times as we could. We are planning a trip in October and now I am uptight, confused and not sure at all how it is going to go. The excitement that I normally feel is not there. Luckily this time we are doing DCL also for the first time and I hope we found the replacement of going to the parks. I really feel for those who plan a vacation thinking they are just going to go with no or little planning. I say bring back those "back in the day" days that were not that long ago.

I knew someone who, in spite of my warnings to plan - at least see what times the parks were open during your visit and when EMH were, decided to wing it. Hated her trip. And will never return, because Murphy's Law kicked in the minute she set foot on property.

 

[crazydudex]

We experienced trouble with this FP+ system this past week. Backstory: we were staying at All-Star Sports and last minute trip to WDW that was booked two weeks prior to departure.

We made the trip from AK all the way to MK for lunch at Be Our Guest as it's our absolute favorite lunch in any of the parks. Met with the FP+ line and no stand-by line since they're "at capacity". They ask us if we received an email about making a reservation, and we didn't since we only booked our trip at the last minute. Other guests had already had their lunches booked a month or two in advance, apparently.

This test is not noted on a times guide, park map, any signs posted anywhere in the resorts or parks, and I had not heard about this prior to making the trip down. Even CMs in the New Fantasyland area didn't know about and were telling guests to just go line up for lunch! So we wasted a good chunk of our day trying to get lunch.

Luckily, there were a couple times left to book during the week and we ate at BOG for lunch twice. Awesome for us guests who stay at the resorts all the time - but those who don't stay at the resorts currently have to line up at 10am and wait to see if they can get a return card? What is so wrong with just lining up and waiting for a quick service restaurant? Since when does quick service need a fastpass? If they're concerned about people waiting outside in the sun, put up some umbrellas along the bridge!

TL;DR I hope this test fails because I seriously don't want to plan ahead for my turkey sandwich + grey stuff if I don't have to.

 

[jencor]

Sadly, Disney has invested too much $$$ to go back to the old days, plus that would mean some execs/board members would be involuntarily exercising those "retirement" options in their contracts. Umm....

I'm not sure without some MAJOR expansions/revisions the parks could handle the increase in visitors without some sort of tool to manage those crowds - and I'm not referring to admission ticket price increases. Demand for Disney has just gotten too big for a park planned in the late 60s to accommodate without some major overhauls. You know Disney, most people get a bigger house when their family size increases. Not that I'm dropping any hints here.

I do agree with you that things need to change, but I thought that having 4 parks was handling the bigger crowds. They are just not maximizing the others parks well enough. How many say that AK and DHS is just a half park. I think by blocking people out of a QS meal is not a tool that helps handling crowds. Let the people decide if they want to wait in line or not and as long as there is a line, then BOG is being utilized to the max.

 

[LAKid53]

We experienced trouble with this FP+ system this past week. Backstory: we were staying at All-Star Sports and last minute trip to WDW that was booked two weeks prior to departure.

We made the trip from AK all the way to MK for lunch at Be Our Guest as it's our absolute favorite lunch in any of the parks. Met with the FP+ line and no stand-by line since they're "at capacity". They ask us if we received an email about making a reservation, and we didn't since we only booked our trip at the last minute. Other guests had already had their lunches booked a month or two in advance, apparently.

This test is not noted on a times guide, park map, any signs posted anywhere in the resorts or parks, and I had not heard about this prior to making the trip down. Even CMs in the New Fantasyland area didn't know about and were telling guests to just go line up for lunch! So we wasted a good chunk of our day trying to get lunch.

Luckily, there were a couple times left to book during the week and we ate at BOG for lunch twice. Awesome for us guests who stay at the resorts all the time - but those who don't stay at the resorts currently have to line up at 10am and wait to see if they can get a return card? What is so wrong with just lining up and waiting for a quick service restaurant? Since when does quick service need a fastpass? If they're concerned about people waiting outside in the sun, put up some umbrellas along the bridge!

TL;DR I hope this test fails because I seriously don't want to plan ahead for my turkey sandwich + grey stuff if I don't have to.

When BOG first opened, you lined up and waited to get in. We did so within a few months after that portion of the new Fantasyland opened and waited 40 minutes, top. Dinner has always been an ADR. We've used the FP+ system a couple of times (when it worked) for lunch. On July 4th, yes the 4th of July, I walked over from 7DMT to BOG about 1:00-1:15; the line was maybe halfway up the bridge. Waited 15 minutes to get in.

When the weather is bad - hot or raining - Disney does provide both water (hot days) and umbrellas (hot and rainy days). Unlike some other posters on this thread, I think that is good customer service on Disney's part. However, as I've previously said, if the bridge was covered, neither would be needed since there is protection from the sun and rain. If I remember, there was no check in kiosk on the bridge when BOG first opened, so add on construction was possible.

 

[aladdin2007]

Out of curiosity, I clicked on the above URL and was able to make a pre-order reservation for lunch this Sunday and I have no resort reservations pending. An interesting change from the last time I looked at that URL.

Not sure how you did it? When I tried it said resort reservation number required. So essentially one cant eat here now unless they are staying at a resort? (granted I havent read all 33 pages of the thread) but locals, day guests, and passholders are out? I think the day is coming where unless you are staying at a resort you wont be allowed in at all, and even then you will have to reserve what day your doing what park etc. I know that sounds extreme but at the rate they are going it wouldnt surprise me in the least.

 

[LAKid53]

How is that possible? The first "required field" is your resort reservation #.

Once you've set up your account, all you have to do is log in - it doesn't ask for a resort reservation number after the initial set up. That's how I've been able to make reservations without getting the e-mail. But that has probably changed by now.

 

[LAKid53]

I do agree with you that things need to change, but I thought that having 4 parks was handling the bigger crowds. They are just not maximizing the others parks well enough. How many say that AK and DHS is just a half park. I think by blocking people out of a QS meal is not a tool that helps handling crowds. Let the people decide if they want to wait in line or not and as long as there is a line, then BOG is being utilized to the max.

I agree, eliminating the standby line for a QS restaurant is not the way to handle crowds in what is an overcrowded park and high demand restaurant. I was commenting more globally, as I think this particular solution to a problem that didn't exist is an indication of the mindset of Disney corporate.

 

[crazydudex]

When BOG first opened, you lined up and waited to get in. We did so within a few months after that portion of the new Fantasyland opened and waited 40 minutes, top. Dinner has always been an ADR. We've used the FP+ system a couple of times (when it worked) for lunch. On July 4th, yes the 4th of July, I walked over from 7DMT to BOG about 1:00-1:15; the line was maybe halfway up the bridge. Waited 15 minutes to get in.

Oh, I went to BOG for lunch a couple months after it opened as well. Same as you - only ever waited 45 minutes tops. I have no problem waiting that long for a good lunch! I find it laughable that management thinks FP+ is needed for a quick service lunch that you could get within fifteen minutes on the 4th.

 

[LAKid53]

Not sure how you did it? When I tried it said resort reservation number required. So essentially one cant eat here now unless they are staying at a resort? (granted I havent read all 33 pages of the thread) but locals, day guests, and passholders are out? I think the day is coming where unless you are staying at a resort you wont be allowed in at all, and even then you will have to reserve what day your doing what park etc. I know that sounds extreme but at the rate they are going it wouldnt surprise me in the least.

And THAT is when Disney will implode as a company and Walt and Roy will be spinning in their graves. And the economy in Florida tanks.

 

[aladdin2007]

And THAT is when Disney will implode as a company and Walt and Roy will be spinning in their graves. And the economy in Florida tanks.

well I mean I know it sounded out there, but it sure feels like at times thats where they are going with it. Like others have said for what you pay to get in you should be able to try and get on or in anything you want. Why havent they just made this location full service, reservation for both lunch and dinner like the others??

 

[LAKid53]

Oh, I went to BOG for lunch a couple months after it opened as well. Same as you - only ever waited 45 minutes tops. I have no problem waiting that long for a good lunch! I find it laughable that management thinks FP+ is needed for a quick service lunch that you could get within fifteen minutes on the 4th.

Oh, I've got a FP+ for this coming Sunday. If it is the chaos Dave indicated, with photographic evidence no less, Mr. Iger and Ms. Crofton both are going to get a succinct email from me with detailed suggestions for improving the mess they allowed staff to create. The first will be for them to get on a plane from Glendale and walk around the park, without cast member name badges and handlers. To see what the experience is like for the average guest.

 

[donsullivan]

Not sure how you did it? When I tried it said resort reservation number required. So essentially one cant eat here now unless they are staying at a resort? (granted I havent read all 33 pages of the thread) but locals, day guests, and passholders are out? I think the day is coming where unless you are staying at a resort you wont be allowed in at all, and even then you will have to reserve what day your doing what park etc. I know that sounds extreme but at the rate they are going it wouldnt surprise me in the least.

I'm an Orlando local Passholder and it caught me by surprise as well since the last time I'd looked at that URL it still asked for resort reservation. When I went there this morning, I could only choose 7 days into the future which was fine. There were only a couple of times available but I chose one, and put together my full lunch order. I can now go back into the site and see the reservation and make changes to my food order (albeit really slow).

I never got a confirmation email of any kind and it doesn't show up in the MDX app so I had to put the details into my calendar to have them on my phone for Sunday. I still don't like the idea of having to make an ADR for lunch vs. the old model of waiting in line but at least I now know that a non resort guest can at least make an ADR for lunch.