Next generation FASTPASS system to begin guest testing this week

[invader]

How about putting the gift shops inside the queue? People can shop while moving along in the lines. Insert a snack bar or two along the way to keep everyone filled with food and drink. Two birds with one stone.

Or, perhaps just route the queue through the shops/restaurants.

HPatFJ has a snack bar inside the queue, so some people here may think the idea is ingenious. Don't speak too loud. :lol:

~ FD

 

[PamelaNiebergal]

Fastpass/Xpass on Haunted Mansion and Omnimovers will actually make lines worse and ruin the flow of the attraction in my opinion. Fastpass is good for low capacity high profile rides like the mountains, tower of terror, and Soarin'

I totally agree with this.

 

[dreamscometrue]

Fastpass/Xpass on Haunted Mansion and Omnimovers will actually make lines worse and ruin the flow of the attraction in my opinion. Fastpass is good for low capacity high profile rides like the mountains, tower of terror, and Soarin'

Is there so sort of logic to your hypothesis?

 

[BigThunderMatt]

What you have suggested (Happier guests, more rides, etc.) is nothing more (in my opinion) than a PR spin on whatever their true motive is.

It's not a PR spin. It is something that Disney takes so seriously they base operational decisions on it. Ever wonder why the parks just suddenly get their hours extended day of?

 

[spaceghost]

Theory = PR response. Given that I know you acknowledge that altrusim isn't the sole purpose for the new system - but I would venture to say - It isn't the reason AT ALL. What you have suggested (Happier guests, more rides, etc.) is nothing more (in my opinion) than a PR spin on whatever their true motive is. The problem being - we don't even know what the point of XPass is. It will be curious to see if they do - other than they have this insane budget, new technology, and a department that wants to keep their jobs, so they are trying to figure out how to implement it and pitch it to the public.

So...we are ascribing the reason for XPass now to some nebulous motivation that only the Illuminati know? Sometimes the best answer is the simplest one - someone within TWDC convinced people that XPass and NextGen will increase profits for the reasons stated previously. I really don't think we have to dig too deep into this. Now, whether it will actually work or not, that is up in the air...

 

[spaceghost]

I'm not sure what relevance this has to do with anything in the thread. Personally, I think that is not a valid excuse. You aren't being forced to leave the park to go to another, so if you're late coming back that's just too bad for you.

So you have no problem reserving Toy Story Midway Mania, right now, for Thursday, July 5 at 9:15am? Nothing could possibly happen that would make you decide not to be there on July 5 and go to another park? Or something external to Disney prevents you from getting there in time? You are ok with reserving that time, missing it, thereby preventing someone from having a FP because you decided three months ahead of time that's when you were going to go?

That is what I was responding to. You were arguing that you couldn't go to another park on that day because you had XPass reservations. My response was that you could choose to not use your XPass reservations and still go to the other park and use FastPass. There's nothing stopping people from doing this.

As for your other points, I guess we will have to agree to disagree. I think that you are in a very small minority of people that have moral qualms with getting a FastPass/XPass and not using it. It happens every day. I have done it before when, as you stated, life came up and we ended up having to take the kids back to the hotel or whatever. I didn't lose any sleep over it. I just don't think it is a big deal and I don't think that most people are going to worry about it.

In regards to the overall beef with having to plan your trip details, down to the ride times, far ahead of time, I just don't understand why it bothers you. Some people like to do that. I am one of those people. There are plenty of others like me. Planning the trip ahead of time is part of the fun - we can look at the restaurants we want to eat at and the rides we want to go on and make decisions. Why would you begrudge me the enjoyment I might get out of using XPass? By your own account you don't really use FastPass anyway, meaning this really shouldn't affect you. So, why do you care? Just don't use it and your experience will be pretty much the same as it is now...

 

[menamechris]

It's not a PR spin. It is something that Disney takes so seriously they base operational decisions on it. Ever wonder why the parks just suddenly get their hours extended day of?

Of course not. More guests arrived at the park than they projected the day before. Therefore, since guests will be spending the majority of time waiting in lines - more time needs to be build into the day for the shopping, spending money, and dining part. It is not done solely out of the goodness of their corporate heart...

 

[menamechris]

So...we are ascribing the reason for XPass now to some nebulous motivation that only the Illuminati know? Sometimes the best answer is the simplest one - someone within TWDC convinced people that XPass and NextGen will increase profits for the reasons stated previously. I really don't think we have to dig too deep into this. Now, whether it will actually work or not, that is up in the air...

Well...ummm...ya. No one is arguing that point. In fact, I think that was kinda the point to begin with. Basically, this is not solely for guest convenience and satisfaction. Now it is up to the marketing geniuses to sell it to the public... And as you said, many experimental things Disney has tried have fallen flat and been phased out - but then, the company never invested to insanely into them...

 

[AEfx]

Well...ummm...ya. No one is arguing that point. In fact, I think that was kinda the point to begin with. Basically, this is not solely for guest convenience and satisfaction. Now it is up to the marketing geniuses to sell it to the public... And as you said, many experimental things Disney has tried have fallen flat and been phased out - but then, the company never invested to insanely into them...

The end-user experience of fastpasses and customization is the by-product of everything else, not the intention. I mean, they didn't exactly spend a billion dollars so that you could get 5 FP in advance of a trip.

It was all about the infrastructure revamp for everything - from reservations to security and back again. Disney's technology was built under many different systems - this seems like a way to unify it (which is why we have seen larger downtimes here and there for reservations systems, etc., the ones that we would obviously as consumers be affected by).

I think most of it is really just a more sophisticated way of increasing profits for food/merch. Disney always tracked us in many ways - we all have a "Disney file", where if, say, we use a credit card we are known to carry (because we purchased tickets or a room on it) is used for $100 of merch in the Emporium, they know that, too. This is a way to unify all that and really data mine, which they have always been good at but this will take it to a whole new level.

 

[fosse76]

In regards to the overall beef with having to plan your trip details, down to the ride times, far ahead of time, I just don't understand why it bothers you. Some people like to do that. I am one of those people. There are plenty of others like me. Planning the trip ahead of time is part of the fun - we can look at the restaurants we want to eat at and the rides we want to go on and make decisions. Why would you begrudge me the enjoyment I might get out of using XPass? By your own account you don't really use FastPass anyway, meaning this really shouldn't affect you. So, why do you care? Just don't use it and your experience will be pretty much the same as it is now...

The issue is when it becomes a necessity. Just look at the number of people on this board who have said at one time or another how if they don't get a FP for an attraction then they simply skip that attraction. What happens when it gets to the point that you HAVE to make these kinds of reservations or the trip will be miserable? Not dissimilar to dining, where "standby" is pretty much impossible.

And that's fine if you want to microplan your day...but what happens when everyone has to do that in order to enjoy their day? Your decision, which is above and beyond what any normal vactioner whould decide, is now adversely affecting my trip. (Of course, this is worst case scenario).

And for the record, I never said I don't use FP. In fact I use it all the time. I rarely make ADRs (and when I do it is day of).

 

[PamelaNiebergal]

The issue is when it becomes a necessity. Just look at the number of people on this board who have said at one time or another how if they don't get a FP for an attraction then they simply skip that attraction. What happens when it gets to the point that you HAVE to make these kinds of reservations or the trip will be miserable? Not dissimilar to dining, where "standby" is pretty much impossible.

And that's fine if you want to microplan your day...but what happens when everyone has to do that in order to enjoy their day? Your decision, which is above and beyond what any normal vactioner whould decide, is now adversely affecting my trip. (Of course, this is worst case scenario).

And for the record, I never said I don't use FP. In fact I use it all the time. I rarely make ADRs (and when I do it is day of).

Yes this ^^ People who chose not to use the new system will be adversely affected if standby wait times are inflated due to all the x-pass users.

 

[mickeyminiemom]

I was just looking into Dolly wood for our summer trip and they have something similiar to fastpass/xpass called the Q2Q Line Management System

"More time, less wait! This small portable device, called a Q-bot, waits in line for you at selected shows and rides while you enjoy all that Dollywood has to offer!"

It cost 15 dollars a person and seems worth it to me not to have to wait in line. I just wonder why it has taken DIsney so long to come up with something similar to this where they profit.

 

[CndleontheWater]

The issue is when it becomes a necessity. Just look at the number of people on this board who have said at one time or another how if they don't get a FP for an attraction then they simply skip that attraction. What happens when it gets to the point that you HAVE to make these kinds of reservations or the trip will be miserable? Not dissimilar to dining, where "standby" is pretty much impossible.

And that's fine if you want to microplan your day...but what happens when everyone has to do that in order to enjoy their day? Your decision, which is above and beyond what any normal vactioner whould decide, is now adversely affecting my trip. (Of course, this is worst case scenario).

And for the record, I never said I don't use FP. In fact I use it all the time. I rarely make ADRs (and when I do it is day of).

This is what I am afraid of, being sucked into the system because its either use Fastpass+ or stand in long standby lines.

I would be Ok with reserving maybe one or two rides a day, but I don't want to be locked into having to plan 8-10 attractions and effectively scheduling my entire day.

I have little kids, and its a known fact that parents with kids are a main WDW demographic. I know how difficult it is to plan an entire day at Disney and have everything go according to plan, because I've tried and failed miserably. My two year old is a pretty good theme park tourer, but still I've had him fall asleep in the stroller hours before his typical nap time, get hungry much earlier than I planned for lunch, decided that he doesn't want to ride a ride he previously loved, and ask to ride a ride multiple times that I wasn't planning on riding at all (the carousel).

I suppose I could be mean mom, wake him up from sleeping, forcing him to go hungry, force him on rides he doesn't like and make him skip things he's interested in, all for the sake of the schedule, but that doesn't seem like much fun.

I just don't want to be stuck in this type of scenario, i.e. ride according to your pre-planned schedule or don't ride at all. I know there is standby, but there is no way I'm getting in a line that is more than 15 minutes long with a toddler. I know his limitations and I don't want to be the mom of the child that is running amok through the chain partitions. You all don't want me to be that mom! :ROFLOL:

Please, Disney, don't make this too hard on parents and kids, you don't want to loose our business!

 

[Brava Centauri]

Gone are the days when I could make dining reservations day-of at any theme park for any restaurant I chose if I did it in the morning. Now, on a seemingly off-season Monday, by 10 AM all but 3 EPCOT locations are booked solid--and 2 of those options want me to eat dinner at 3:30.

Increased visitors year-round + ADRs = decreased spontaneity.

At this point, I'll only have an issue with x-pass if it interferes with my spontaneous day trips to the point where I need to plan my day far in advance, get to the parks by rope-drop to collect any remaining fast passes, or am simply left out of the perk because I'm not staying at a resort hotel. All of this to avoid long lines?

That's putting too much work into time off. Great if you're a super planner, but not if you're a local. WDW ignores us enough as it is.

 

[spaceghost]

But also, I am not of the belief that if I don't get to participate then I don't get to ride. I I want to ride something, Standby is ALWAYS an option. I think some people are a little ridiculous in thinking that they can't ride something if there is no FP available. I almost always have to do standby for TSMM. But I would rather stand in line for 75 minutes (the longest I've ever had to wait) than to be at the park at opening and have a FP return for 5pm when I've long since finished everything at the park by then.

The issue is when it becomes a necessity. Just look at the number of people on this board who have said at one time or another how if they don't get a FP for an attraction then they simply skip that attraction. What happens when it gets to the point that you HAVE to make these kinds of reservations or the trip will be miserable? Not dissimilar to dining, where "standby" is pretty much impossible.

And that's fine if you want to microplan your day...but what happens when everyone has to do that in order to enjoy their day? Your decision, which is above and beyond what any normal vactioner whould decide, is now adversely affecting my trip. (Of course, this is worst case scenario).

And for the record, I never said I don't use FP. In fact I use it all the time. I rarely make ADRs (and when I do it is day of).

My bad. I misread the above as not using FP at all, when it was specific to TSMM. Your other concerns are valid. But at this point, they should just be concerns, not criticisms. We have no idea what affect this will have on FP distribution.

As for standby waits, I think it is a given that they will go up by some extent. That is the reason for the interactive queues (if Jim Hill is to be believed). The question is by how much.

In my opinion, given what we know about the current state of wait times and FP distribution for attractions, I only see XPass potentially impacting a handful of attractions negatively - those headliners with huge wait times and early FastPass distribution end times, with TSMM and Soarin' being the key offenders here. The devil will be in the details.

Personally, I am excited about the possibilities. How cool would it be to be in Epcot and decide you want to hop over to the MK and you check an app on your phone that says there are XPasses still left for Space Mountain, so you "reserve" your ride? This is automatically tied to you and your ticket media, so you can just ride the monorail over to MK, walk over to Space Mountain, swipe your ticket by the FP readers and away you go. That just seems like a useful, savvy way to tour the parks.

 

[minnmickey0403]

Removed comment.

 

[majortom1981]

I was just looking into Dolly wood for our summer trip and they have something similiar to fastpass/xpass called the Q2Q Line Management System

It cost 15 dollars a person and seems worth it to me not to have to wait in line. I just wonder why it has taken DIsney so long to come up with something similar to this where they profit.

Six flags parks have had qbot for a long time and have had the newer version of qbot for like 2-3 years. The new qbot allows you to setup rides in advance .

The system that disney is testing out is doing this. It doesnt cause any extra problems at six flags parks so I cannot figure out why people are complaining about it at disney.

They way jimhill is saying how the testing is being done makes it sound like it dumps them into the normal fastpass line. I do not see this causing any major problems because these people would have normally gotten a regular fast pass anyway. I can see this actually helping to make fastpass lines shorter.

 

[jakeman]

Gone are the days when I could make dining reservations day-of at any theme park for any restaurant I chose if I did it in the morning. Now, on a seemingly off-season Monday, by 10 AM all but 3 EPCOT locations are booked solid--and 2 of those options want me to eat dinner at 3:30.

I just logged into the reservation system and looked for a dinning reservation for dinner for a family of 4 tonight at Epcot.

Here is what is available with availability at 5:45 or later:

Biergarten
Bistro de Paris
Garden Grill
Las Hacienda
Le Cellier
Les Chefs de France
Nine Dragons
Restaurant Marrakesh
Rose & Crown
San Angel Inn
Teppan Edo
Toyko Dining
Via Naopli

There are exactly three table service restaurants without availability right now:

Akershus Royal Banquet Hall
Coral Reef
Tutto Italia

EDIT: Just to update, there are exactly nine restaurants without availablity for dinner at WDW today across the entire property.

 

[G00fyDad]

Personally I don't buy the whole "We can never get a last minute TS spot, ever, because of the DDP". I get a couple of last minute tables each time we go to WDW. Seems like a weak excuse to me. As a matter of fact, of all my friends that go to Disney, I am the only one who uses the DDP and plans ahead. All the rest just go and "wing it". And they never have issues getting seated within 10 to 15 minutes. Maybe that is the real problem people are having. They have to wait a few minutes for a table instead of being seated right away so there must not be any tables to be had. :lookaroun

 

[WDWFigment]

I just logged into the reservation system and looked for a dinning reservation for dinner for a family of 4 tonight at Epcot.

Here is what is available with availability at 5:45 or later:

Biergarten
Bistro de Paris
Garden Grill
Las Hacienda
Le Cellier
Les Chefs de France
Nine Dragons
Restaurant Marrakesh
Rose & Crown
San Angel Inn
Teppan Edo
Toyko Dining
Via Naopli

There are exactly three table service restaurants without availability right now:

Akershus Royal Banquet Hall
Coral Reef
Tutto Italia

EDIT: Just to update, there are exactly nine restaurants without availablity for dinner at WDW today across the entire property.

I've actually done a fair amount of research on this (doing exactly what you did) for TouringPlans, and your results are fairly representative of what I have seen. During free dining, the results are different, but the complaints that you can never get last minute reservations anywhere are largely inaccurate.