Soarin' Expansion and new Soarin' Around the World film

[Kman101]

I understand the potential reasons behind not loading the back row, but that means the ride isn't running at capacity. Sure it's a stop gap solution but maybe fix the problem instead of band-aiding it until you HAVE to fix the problem.

 

[marni1971]

You are right that they do not need it, but having it with the current system gives them the ability to move evenly disperse crowds.

As with the legacy system a way to control crowds without actually adding capacity.

But instead of treading old ground again, weren't we talking about Soarin? Or maybe we should come back to it when work actually begins.

 

[Master Yoda]

As with the legacy system a way to control crowds without actually adding capacity.

But instead of treading old ground again, weren't we talking about Soarin? Or maybe we should come back to it when work actually begins.

Aww come on. It is fun to chew the same piece of cabbage over and over again.

 

[GoofGoof]

When fp+ was first introduced, they did say that the goal was to have people spend less time waiting in line. It was in a video on the Disney Parks youtube.

Yep. Less time waiting in lines. Not lower standby wait times. That's 2 different things. The less total time waiting is from more people using FP+ than used regular FP. If you didn't use FP before but use FP+ now you will reduce your time in lines (sometimes by hours depending on which FP reservations you get). For people who already used FP they are probably spending a little more time in some standby lines. For FP commandos (a limited number of guests) they are spending a lot more time in lines. It all works out to less time in line on average. It's the socialization of FP.

 

[PrincessNelly_NJ]

According to those that track wait times for a living, the waits are about the same with e-tickets only having a slight decrease in wait times and attractions like HM having a slight increase.

http://blog.touringplans.com/2014/02/19/fastpass-affecting-your-wait-in-line-disney-world/

http://touringplans.com/walt-disney-world/fastpass

POTC's problems at the moment have little to noting to do with FP+

Hey, a decrease is a decrease no matter how small

 

[PrincessNelly_NJ]

And so don't need Fastpass. Original or new.

There's a reason they took it away from the HM originally. And Pirates in Disneyland. Convieniantly ignored now the magicaltrackingbands are with us.

definitely agree with that...

 

[marni1971]

POTC's problems at the moment have little to noting to do with FP+

True dat.

 

[RSoxNo1]

When fp+ was first introduced, they did say that the goal was to have people spend less time waiting in line. It was in a video on the Disney Parks youtube.

The goal of Fastpass+ was to get guests to commit to staying on property.

“We have known for a really long time that getting our visitors to Walt Disney World to make decisions about where they spend their time before they leave home is a powerful driver of visits per guest. When they get into the Orlando market and their time isn’t yet planned, they can be subject to everything you see down there, which is a lot of in-city marketing for all the many products that people have put there to basically bleed off the feed that we fundamentally motivate. So if we can get people to plan their vacation before they leave home, we know that we get more time with them. We get a bigger share of their wallet. So that’s one thing for you guys to think about.

And the second thing is, what happens to purchases when they become much more convenient and you don’t spend time queuing up for a transaction, queuing up to get in the park and you actually have more time to enjoy the entertainment and subsequently spend more money doing things other than standing in line which, of course, you can’t spend any money while you’re doing that”. - Disney CFO Jay Rasulo, on the 2013 2nd Quarter Earnings Call

 

[Mike S]

The goal of Fastpass+ was to get guests to commit to staying on property.

“We have known for a really long time that getting our visitors to Walt Disney World to make decisions about where they spend their time before they leave home is a powerful driver of visits per guest. When they get into the Orlando market and their time isn’t yet planned, they can be subject to everything you see down there, which is a lot of in-city marketing for all the many products that people have put there to basically bleed off the feed that we fundamentally motivate. So if we can get people to plan their vacation before they leave home, we know that we get more time with them. We get a bigger share of their wallet. So that’s one thing for you guys to think about.

And the second thing is, what happens to purchases when they become much more convenient and you don’t spend time queuing up for a transaction, queuing up to get in the park and you actually have more time to enjoy the entertainment and subsequently spend more money doing things other than standing in line which, of course, you can’t spend any money while you’re doing that”. - Disney CFO Jay Rasulo, on the 2013 2nd Quarter Earnings Call

I must be doing it wrong since I barely spend money in the parks even since MM+ rolled out. Sorry Rasulo

 

[GoofGoof]

I must be doing it wrong since I barely spend money in the parks even since MM+ rolled out. Sorry Rasulo

Honestly, did your spending really change? I don't see a noticeable difference in paying with a magic band or paying with cash/CC. I don't think my spending changed at all.

 

[Mike S]

Honestly, did your spending really change? I don't see a noticeable difference in paying with a magic band or paying with cash/CC. I don't think my spending changed at all.

Nope, hasn't changed at all.

 

[Goofyernmost]

Yep. Less time waiting in lines. Not lower standby wait times. That's 2 different things. The less total time waiting is from more people using FP+ than used regular FP. If you didn't use FP before but use FP+ now you will reduce your time in lines (sometimes by hours depending on which FP reservations you get). For people who already used FP they are probably spending a little more time in some standby lines. For FP commandos (a limited number of guests) they are spending a lot more time in lines. It all works out to less time in line on average. It's the socialization of FP.

And that is a very good and probably accurate result as long as they only go to the attractions that they have a FP for. If they go to others and they don't have a FP, they will make up the saved time standing in the line that is lengthened by others using FP.

I think that has always been a fallacy. I used FP and have never been able to see more things now then I did before FP ever existed. It's totally smoke and mirrors in my opinion.

 

[GoofGoof]

And that is a very good and probably accurate result as long as they only go to the attractions that they have a FP for. If they go to others and they don't have a FP, they will make up the saved time standing in the line that is lengthened by others using FP.

I think that has always been a fallacy. I used FP and have never been able to see more things now then I did before FP ever existed. It's totally smoke and mirrors in my opinion.

It depends on what park and what rides. For example if you went to DHS and didn't use FP before for TSMM but now you use FP+ you are saving a minimum of 60 minutes of wait time. @MasterYoda posted the links to the touring plans blog where they found the average standby wait time is only up a minute or 2 on average with FP+. There are only 5 rides at DHS so if you have FP for TSMM, TT and Star Tours you are looking at a slightly longer standby wait at RNRC and GMR. You are going to spend less time in line than you did before. If you usually used FP anyway for those 3 rides then you are only standing in line a few extra minutes. The commandos who would ride the headliners multiple times in a day using multiple FPs are the big losers.

Now if you are comparing FP+ to no FP at all that's a totally different story. It probably depends on the time of year and crowd levels. I preferred the pre-FP days myself, but if you went at crowded times the headliners had pretty long waits. Especially the mountains at MK.

 

[Goofyernmost]

It depends on what park and what rides. For example if you went to DHS and didn't use FP before for TSMM but now you use FP+ you are saving a minimum of 60 minutes of wait time. @MasterYoda posted the links to the touring plans blog where they found the average standby wait time is only up a minute or 2 on average with FP+. There are only 5 rides at DHS so if you have FP for TSMM, TT and Star Tours you are looking at a slightly longer standby wait at RNRC and GMR. You are going to spend less time in line than you did before. If you usually used FP anyway for those 3 rides then you are only standing in line a few extra minutes. The commandos who would ride the headliners multiple times in a day using multiple FPs are the big losers.

Now if you are comparing FP+ to no FP at all that's a totally different story. It probably depends on the time of year and crowd levels. I preferred the pre-FP days myself, but if you went at crowded times the headliners had pretty long waits. Especially the mountains at MK.

That could very well be true, however, if I didn't have a FP for TSMM I didn't ride it. But, that is a prime example of what I was saying. If you cannot get a FP for TSMM, but have kids that "must" see it, you will not have gained much by having other FP's as opposed to none at all. In my mind, Disney hopes that you never really keep track of it, because if one did, I think that there would be an uproar to get rid of FP all together and right now it is being used to entice people to stay on-site.

 

[GoofGoof]

That could very well be true, however, if I didn't have a FP for TSMM I didn't ride it. But, that is a prime example of what I was saying. If you cannot get a FP for TSMM, but have kids that "must" see it, you will not have gained much by having other FP's as opposed to none at all. In my mind, Disney hopes that you never really keep track of it, because if one did, I think that there would be an uproar to get rid of FP all together and right now it is being used to entice people to stay on-site.

The assumption is that you attempt to ride the same number of rides. If you skipped every ride that wasn't a walk on you would in theory not wait at all in line. For people with a must see ride or rides the new system is actually better. You know you have TSMM locked in before you leave your house. You are giving up some spontaneity for that right, but it's locked in and you don't need to get to DHS at rope drop to run for a fastpass or skip it because the standby wait is 60+ minutes.

If they really want to use FP+ as a tool to entice people to stay on property they need to up the benefits to more than just an extra 30 days to book advanced reservations. They could offer onsite guests some combination of: complete park hopping flexibility, more than 3 advanced reservations, more flexibility to add additional FP reservations once the original 3 are used, exclusive areas for parade/firework/show viewing, or exclusive options to book restaurants like BOG lunch in advance. If they truly made the onsite FP+ experience significantly more beneficial than offsite guests it could actually help boost hotel occupancy. Right now EMHs and magic express are much better benefits. They missed the boat on using the system to drive hotel results.

 

[Goofyernmost]

The assumption is that you attempt to ride the same number of rides. If you skipped every ride that wasn't a walk on you would in theory not wait at all in line. For people with a must see ride or rides the new system is actually better. You know you have TSMM locked in before you leave your house. You are giving up some spontaneity for that right, but it's locked in and you don't need to get to DHS at rope drop to run for a fastpass or skip it because the standby wait is 60+ minutes.

If they really want to use FP+ as a tool to entice people to stay on property they need to up the benefits to more than just an extra 30 days to book advanced reservations. They could offer onsite guests some combination of: complete park hopping flexibility, more than 3 advanced reservations, more flexibility to add additional FP reservations once the original 3 are used, exclusive areas for parade/firework/show viewing, or exclusive options to book restaurants like BOG lunch in advance. If they truly made the onsite FP+ experience significantly more beneficial than offsite guests it could actually help boost hotel occupancy. Right now EMHs and magic express are much better benefits. They missed the boat on using the system to drive hotel results.

Yes, I agree, but, the key here is getting those FP's, not everyone is going to get one, it's just logic. If you can you might be able to save some time, otherwise, I truly doubt it, unless, as you said, you just don't go to any other attraction that isn't a walk on. But, who really spends that kind of money to only experience a few things.

 

[GoofGoof]

Yes, I agree, but, the key here is getting those FP's, not everyone is going to get one, it's just logic. If you can you might be able to save some time, otherwise, I truly doubt it, unless, as you said, you just don't go to any other attraction that isn't a walk on. But, who really spends that kind of money to only experience a few things.

Put aside the frozen meet and greet thing. The only rides with availability issues are TSMM, Soarin and Test Track. I don't think there is much of an issue getting a reservation even for those rides, especially if you book at least 30 days in advance. Most other rides are available same day when you arrive at the park and I've seen people report getting even those 3 same day. Depends on the crowd levels and time of day. Disney is addressing 2 of the 3 rides by adding additional ride capacity. Once complete those rides will have more than enough capacity for FP+ on all but the super peak days. I think the idea that large numbers of people aren't getting what they want is highly exaggerated. Does it happen to some people? Sure, but the vast majority can get what they want by booking in advance.

 

[Lord_Vader]

yeah I agree with that... those attractions just weren't designed with FP in mind.. ESPECIALLY Pirates. They really need a new entrance for FP and continue to use both sides for standby.... and one other thing that would help is to load all of the seats on the boat. The last time I was there they weren't loading the back rows at all (or has this changed)?

They loaded all rows yesterday and today.

 

[Admiral01]

Horizons...World of Motion...please?...anyone?

Even a good Journey into Imagination would help!

 

[Kman101]

Put aside the frozen meet and greet thing. The only rides with availability issues are TSMM, Soarin and Test Track. I don't think there is much of an issue getting a reservation even for those rides, especially if you book at least 30 days in advance. Most other rides are available same day when you arrive at the park and I've seen people report getting even those 3 same day. Depends on the crowd levels and time of day. Disney is addressing 2 of the 3 rides by adding additional ride capacity. Once complete those rides will have more than enough capacity for FP+ on all but the super peak days. I think the idea that large numbers of people aren't getting what they want is highly exaggerated. Does it happen to some people? Sure, but the vast majority can get what they want by booking in advance.

I've noticed Dwarfs Mine Train not being available often. It wasn't at all during, IMO, a slow-ish period at the beginning of this month. Everything was 20/30/40(Pan) minutes, Mine Train was 60 and no FP+ for days. I've yet to have trouble getting TSMM, Soarin' or Test Track (when I randomly search for availability on them), but I don't really go for them either so maybe they're more unavailable than I think. But TSMM more than the other two seems to be more available than Mine Train. It's strange. Either way, Epcot, Animal Kingdom and DHS need many more things to do. And honestly, even the MK could use one or two more things.