News and observations from the past month

[asianway]

It's not.

If Disney was actually so concerned about reducing operating costs that they were willing to operate rides at reduced capacity you wouldn't see expensive installations like Tower of Terror, Everest, and the Magic Kingdom's various Mountains operating as fast as they can run them from the first half hour the park opens and even into the evenings before the park closes, when when fastpass returns are a non-issue. Ops gets as many people through these attractions as many times as possible as Ops can manage given the technical limitations of the ride hardware, all day, every day.

To argue otherwise is demonstrably false.

When did they start doing that? Serious question - tells you how long its been since I rope dropped Space.

 

[Mr Bill]

Attractions aren't going to send out empty vehicles while people in the standby line wait just because enough FP+ people haven't shown up yet. Not happening. Some manager outside of ops may have thought it was a good idea at one point, but there's no way anyone would ever actually enforce something that ridiculous.

20 people getting through in Standby at Soarin' in an hour could have happened for a number of reasons all unrelated to FP+. FP line might have been backed up causing a higher merge ratio to be used. Could just be one poorly trained CM not enforcing the merge ratio. Could have been some brief downtime.

What's going to change at major attractions when FP+ is fully rolled out? Nothing.

 

[dreamscometrue]

Attractions aren't going to send out empty vehicles while people in the standby line wait just because enough FP+ people haven't shown up yet. Not happening. Some manager outside of ops may have thought it was a good idea at one point, but there's no way anyone would ever actually enforce something that ridiculous.

20 people getting through in Standby at Soarin' in an hour could have happened for a number of reasons all unrelated to FP+. FP line might have been backed up causing a higher merge ratio to be used. Could just be one poorly trained CM not enforcing the merge ratio. Could have been some brief downtime.

What's going to change at major attractions when FP+ is fully rolled out? Nothing.

Smartest person ever!!

 

[willtravel]

Look it's already happening, I am so disgusted with MyMagicMinus with mine and other friends experiences I had a week scheduled for the Christmas holiday at WDW, Family decided to cut it to 3 days because Mannheim Steamroller is in town that week and we'd rather see Chip Davis and company for one evening than spend 4 days with MouseArrest bands and being unable to access rides.

Only reason we are STILL going is this will probably be the last year for the Osborne Lights at DHS and DW's parents have never seen them. Once again Disney is taking away an attraction to be replaced with nothingness.

And no I cannot link our PAP's to NGE so no FastPassMinuses for us which means during Christmas holidays no rides either.

Has it been announced Osborne Lights will be the last year?

 

[xdan0920]

Has it been announced Osborne Lights will be the last year?

Rumored, heavily rumored.

 

[ford91exploder]

Has it been announced Osborne Lights will be the last year?

There have been a couple of announcements - dont want to take a chance

 

[willtravel]

There have been a couple of announcements - dont want to take a chance

On Disneys website?

 

[Bairstow]

If I had to hazard a guess, the reduction of the Obsorne Light contract was due to Disney needing leeway to undertake the planned (at the time) Carsland expansion.

 

[doctornick]

If I had to hazard a guess, the reduction of the Obsorne Light contract was due to Disney needing leeway to undertake the planned (at the time) Carsland expansion.

Yeah, Martin earlier mentioned that the SoA are safe for now. If that land is not going to be used for any DHS expansion, then I would imagine that the Osborne lights will continue. Of course, it will be dependent on what any future plans are for the park and whether the SoA space ends up getting used for something else.

 

[willtravel]

Rumored, heavily rumored.

So much for seeing the lights in 2014....

 

[djlaosc]

So much for seeing the lights in 2014....

We're already booked to go see the lights in 2014 - but Martin has said in the last week or so that the Streets of America are safe (for now), which would likely mean that the Osborne Lights will be safe as well.

However, this plan could easily change again, depending on what they use to back up Star Wars.

 

[willtravel]

We're already booked to go see the lights in 2014 - but Martin has said in the last week or so that the Streets of America are safe (for now), which would likely mean that the Osborne Lights will be safe as well.

However, this plan could easily change again, depending on what they use to back up Star Wars.

Oops. Actually I meant 2015. Oh well...

 

[rael ramone]

Attractions aren't going to send out empty vehicles while people in the standby line wait just because enough FP+ people haven't shown up yet. Not happening. Some manager outside of ops may have thought it was a good idea at one point, but there's no way anyone would ever actually enforce something that ridiculous.

I think it depends on the priorities of those making the decisions (aka the 'sharp pencil boys').

If the priority is to keep guests happy, maximize attraction resources, minimize waits to potentially increase time spent shopping & eating, then the obvious way to handle it is to fill every seat (which is the insipration behind the 'singles line').

If the priority is 'sell' MM-minus at all costs - with all the crowd control (manipulation) and data harvesting that results from it - then it isn't surprising that they'd rather have an empty car then reducing the wait of a lowly 'standby rider' - remember their arrogance that 'We're Disney, we can do what we want and they'll still come and give us their money'.

 

[bethymouse]

Oh good hell I am NOT ready for snow...

I am! BRING IT ON!

 

[ford91exploder]

I think it depends on the priorities of those making the decisions (aka the 'sharp pencil boys').

If the priority is to keep guests happy, maximize attraction resources, minimize waits to potentially increase time spent shopping & eating, then the obvious way to handle it is to fill every seat (which is the insipration behind the 'singles line').

If the priority is 'sell' MM-minus at all costs - with all the crowd control (manipulation) and data harvesting that results from it - then it isn't surprising that they'd rather have an empty car then reducing the wait of a lowly 'standby rider' - remember their arrogance that 'We're Disney, we can do what we want and they'll still come and give us their money'.

And so far it appears that 'selling' MyMagicMinus is the goal, NOT guest satisfaction the arrogance of the TWDC team will be what brings them down in the end.

Just look at the Disney Channel offerings recently, They are all 3-4 boys or girls with a member of opposite sex as a sidekick - with cheaply themed sets nothing original or creative - Just another example of We're Disney people will take whatever c--p we produce and like it.

The most creative offerings on the Disney Channel(s) have been 'Phineas and Ferb' and 'Kid vs Kat'' but TWDC execs HATE those shows. As an engineer and siamese cat slave I like both, I am sure the siamese we are enslaved by are aliens plotting to take over the world.

 

[luv]

My new pet peeve - Figment with a FP line.

I, personally, like the Figment ride. I rarely say it because I don't want to be chased by a group of Captain Caveman people, eager to clobber me for being a heretic...but I do like it. I love the giant moon-face guy, lol. (So sue me.)

Even I realize it isn't popular and doesn't require a FP line, though.

What the heck.

 

[Radok Block]

My new pet peeve - Figment with a FP line.

I agree, although I wonder if it's meant to 'goose' interest in the ride by creating the impression that it's so popular that people need reserve times to see it. Kinda like a silent auction sometimes-- nobody bids on an item until somebody else finally does, and then you can't beat bidders off with a stick, because of the illusion of desirability and competition (if that makes sense).

In short-- rather than build a popular ride, they're trying to engineer popularity.

 

[Tom Morrow]

They only gave FP+ to Journey because they gave it / are giving it to every ride.

 

[hpyhnt 1000]

They only gave FP+ to Journey because they gave it / are giving it to every ride.

Because they need to. Epcot only has...what, 10 rides? Of those, only 4 had regular Fastpass distribution. And of those only 2 are consistently busy enough to ever need it. But its hard to justify the benefits of FP+ for only 2 rides; hence the need to put it everywhere.

Same holds true for DHS and AK. Gotta love FP+; its all just a shell game aimed at tricking first timers.

 

[GoofGoof]

Because they need to. Epcot only has...what, 10 rides? Of those, only 4 had regular Fastpass distribution. And of those only 2 are consistently busy enough to ever need it. But its hard to justify the benefits of FP+ for only 2 rides; hence the need to put it everywhere.

Same holds true for DHS and AK. Gotta love FP+; its all just a shell game aimed at tricking first timers.

It's not just to justify the benefits, but they need to be able to offer enough reservations for people to get 3 each. If you only have FP+ at 4 rides and lets say the average ride has a capacity of 1,000 riders per hour that is 12,000 potential rides per day. Assuming that the FP reservations are limited to 75% of ride capacity that's around 36,000 possible reservations. If EPCOT has about 30,000 visitors a day and you want to offer each visitor 3 FP options that's 90,000 FP reservations. You need to significantly expand the rides with FP or you will run out.

The real issue is that when you book late and get FP reservations for Imaginantion, Spaceship Earth and Nemo it's not much different than getting none. Getting Test Track and Soarin will be like getting an ADR for BOG. Hard, but not impossible if you get it early.