Park Reservation System

[twilight mitsuk]

Here to stay

 

[nickys]

I agree with those who think it’ll stay. But with normal capacity you’d probably be able to do it on the day if you want to. Of course if you have an ADR or Fastpass it would make sense to book it ahead of time.

 

[Disstevefan1]

I would hope the reservation system goes away. We usually plan our morning/afternoons carefully but like to "play it by ear" after that for shopping and dining.

This is my hope too. It’s my hope WDW will still offer “go anytime” APs with no reservations or blackouts like my family enjoyed for over 13 years before the pandemic. My fear is those days are gone for good.

Only time will tell. Disney will (as always) do what (it thinks) is best for Disney no matter what we think.

Examples: Rocket Rods and Harmonious barges....

 

[MisterPenguin]

Magic Kingdom fills to capacity about five times per year. The other parks *never* fill to capacity.

Once capacity returns to normal, you won't have to use Park Pass in advance if you don't want to. If you want to wake up and decide where you want to go that day, there will always be plenty of capacity to make your reservation that morning.

Problem is that pre-pandemic, attendance at WDW had been steadily rising. That means hitting those capacity limits will start to happen more often.

And that's the result of AP and any-time Tickets, in which the hundreds of thousands of people with such tickets can all decide to show up at the same time and overwhelm the park.

A park reservation system would allow WDW to:

• know how busy a park will be in advance
• lower max capacity at MK so that there aren't one hour lines just to use the bathrooms
• move people from parks that are over crowded to the other parks other than turning them away at the gate
• prioritize resort guests when things are getting full

As you've said, hitting that max capacity is rare, and so, the 'buckets' should hardly ever be full, but, it gives WDW a chance to smooth out peaks and valleys in attendance in both time, and among the parks.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Problem is that pre-pandemic, attendance at WDW had been steadily rising. That means hitting those capacity limits will start to happen more often.

And that's the result of AP and any-time Tickets, in which the hundreds of thousands of people with such tickets can all decide to show up at the same time and overwhelm the park.

A park reservation system would allow WDW to:

• know how busy a park will be in advance
• lower max capacity at MK so that there aren't one hour lines just to use the bathrooms
• move people from parks that are over crowded to the other parks other than turning them away at the gate
• prioritize resort guests when things are getting full

As you've said, hitting that max capacity is rare, and so, the 'buckets' should hardly ever be full, but, it gives WDW a chance to smooth out peaks and valleys in attendance in both time, and among the parks.

FastPass+ already gives them that information, and gives the guests incentive to actually use it.

Even if FP+ goes away, I see absolutely no compelling reason why guests would bother to use Park Pass in advance if they're traveling outside of peak. I get that Disney would WANT people to still plan ahead, but why would anybody bother?

The only reason people are using it now is because capacity is so limited so they have to.

 

[Dad 2 M & M]

Is the 2 P.M. Hopping here to stay? I can see 2 P.M. sticking for hopping to DHS with the 2nd Boarding Group being the issue

 

[Disstevefan1]

Problem is that pre-pandemic, attendance at WDW had been steadily rising. That means hitting those capacity limits will start to happen more often.

And that's the result of AP and any-time Tickets, in which the hundreds of thousands of people with such tickets can all decide to show up at the same time and overwhelm the park.

A park reservation system would allow WDW to:

• know how busy a park will be in advance
• lower max capacity at MK so that there aren't one hour lines just to use the bathrooms
• move people from parks that are over crowded to the other parks other than turning them away at the gate
• prioritize resort guests when things are getting full

As you've said, hitting that max capacity is rare, and so, the 'buckets' should hardly ever be full, but, it gives WDW a chance to smooth out peaks and valleys in attendance in both time, and among the parks.

When we talk about pre-pandemic max capacity of the WDW parks, whatever arbitrary number WDW placed on themselves, we all agree is super mobbed and is a poor guest experience.

We all agree, On any given day, at any given park, Disney wants to make as much money possible. They already have the APers money. What the APer purchases when in the park doesn’t make up for the $100 to $125 gate price they lost when the APer walked through the gate.

In the long run, COVID is gonna help the theme parks big time in my opinion.

WDW will restructure their AP programs, “go anytime” APs will be gone (which I loved by the way) and (maybe) the guest experience for everyone will be better, but it’s gonna cost you more

 

[drizgirl]

When we talk about pre-pandemic max capacity of the WDW parks, whatever arbitrary number WDW placed on themselves, we all agree is super mobbed and is a poor guest experience.

We all agree, On any given day, at any given park, Disney wants to make as much money possible. They already have the APers money. What the APer purchases when in the park doesn’t make up for the $100 to $125 gate price they lost when the APer walked through the gate.

In the long run, COVID is gonna help the theme parks big time in my opinion.

WDW will restructure their AP programs, “go anytime” APs will be gone (which I loved by the way) and (maybe) the guest experience for everyone will be better, but it’s gonna cost you more

I still think in the end the money counters will win. I think we'll be back to pre-pandemic mob levels by the anniversary in October.

 

[marni1971]

FastPass+ already gives them that information

It does, but not the ability to “close” a park in advance.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

It does, but not the ability to “close” a park in advance.

Understood, I just think the circumstances under which they need to close a park for capacity reasons are so rare that it's a distinction without a difference.

 

[marni1971]

Understood, I just think the circumstances under which they need to close a park for capacity reasons are so rare that it's a distinction without a difference.

Operationally I know the system has been discussed to become permanent. If it does or not remains to be seen. Between this and the future of ride reservations it’s a right mine field.

 

[yonafunu]

I would hope the reservation system goes away. We usually plan our morning/afternoons carefully but like to "play it by ear" after that for shopping and dining.

the same. We like to plan sometimes, but at WDW we like to plan the day before which park we want to do...

 

[MisterPenguin]

I still think in the end the money counters will win. I think we'll be back to pre-pandemic mob levels by the anniversary in October.

Both Bobs have said aloud that hitting those high capacities actually hurts Disney. Customer satisfaction goes down. Per cap spending can't go any higher if your food service is already at max and your stores are too full for anyone else to enter. More people will not lead to more sales. More people means hiring more crowd control for people who aren't spending anything extra.

And when you injure "the brand" it injures all other products "the brand" produces.

There's a sweet spot of attendance that maximizes profit and getting anywhere near the old shut-down caps goes way past it. But... the tickets were sold. Turning away people at the gate also hurts the brand.

The park reservation system moves that disappointment of not getting in from the turnstile to the living room, where people are a lot less 'put out' when they can't get a reservation than those who showed up and attempted to get in because they bought a ticket.

 

[drizgirl]

Both Bobs have said aloud that hitting those high capacities actually hurts Disney. Customer satisfaction goes down. Per cap spending can't go any higher if your food service is already at max and your stores are too full for anyone else to enter. More people will not lead to more sales. More people means hiring more crowd control for people who aren't spending anything extra.

And when you injure "the brand" it injures all other products "the brand" produces.

There's a sweet spot of attendance that maximizes profit and getting anywhere near the old shut-down caps goes way past it. But... the tickets were sold. Turning away people at the gate also hurts the brand.

The park reservation system moves that disappointment of not getting in from the turnstile to the living room, where people are a lot less 'put out' when they can't get a reservation than those who showed up and attempted to get in because they bought a ticket.

I'm aware that's what they've said. I just don't believe they'll hold that line.

 

[lunchbox1175]

Will AP's return? The impression that I got from their announcement is that they view it as an option that loses money and it won't be. I really hope it does. I don't live in state and I still get one.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Will AP's return? The impression that I got from their announcement is that they view it as an option that loses money and it won't be. I really hope it does. I don't live in state and I still get one.

Disneyland's AP seems to be dead as they will move to a Loyalty Program.

WDW's AP doesn't have the same death knell attached to it... yet (at least from what Disney and insiders are currently saying). So... dunno.

 

[graphite1326]

Interesting idea. How would that work though, does that mean that enough people not staying on property could fill up the capacity of a park with reservations, keeping property guests from getting into a park? I personally don't like the reservation system, I want to be able to wake up and decide where I want to go that day, but I do see the benefit of being "guaranteed" to get in the park. I feel like a lot of the things implemented over the last few years are reducing flexibility.

We used to schedule our daily parks and use the fastpasses. But at the end of our trip we liked to just wing it and go from park tp park.

 

[Djsfantasi]

Is the 2 P.M. Hopping here to stay? I can see 2 P.M. sticking for hopping to DHS with the 2nd Boarding Group being the issue

FYI, with respect to the 2pm PH at DHS being tied to RotR Boarding Groups...

I was at WDW a few weeks ago, and the second boarding group was at 1 PM! Not 2.

Also, park hoppers are NOT eligible for the second boarding group.

So this post is mis-informed.

 

[lunchbox1175]

FYI, with respect to the 2pm PH at DHS being tied to RotR Boarding Groups...

I was at WDW a few weeks ago, and the second boarding group was at 1 PM! Not 2.

Also, park hoppers are NOT eligible for the second boarding group.

So this post is mis-informed.

I think what they were saying was that the 2pm park hopper time would be kept to keep people from being able to join the second boarding group, thus making it available to people that committed to being at the park before that.

 

[Djsfantasi]

I think what they were saying was that the 2pm park hopper time would be kept to keep people from being able to join the second boarding group, thus making it available to people that committed to being at the park before that.

But people who enter DHS via park hopper cannot get into ANY boarding group. So groups are only available to people with a valid DHS reservation for the day.