Originally Posted By -em From what I understand of the FP- that its designed for the benefit of the guests who micro manage/book 180/60- Buy their entire package from WDW and stay their entire vacation on property and visit every 1-2 years Everyone who does not fit that mold precisely will '2nd tier citizens' which include off site, cast, APs, locals and may/will find much of the mymagic minus not available to them in one way or another like FP+- where not only will you potentially not be able to ride most rides with any sort of FP advantage youll be 'penalized' with increased wait times... When Mansion and Pirates doesn't drop under 30 wait time during FP+ testing doesn't bode well for standby times
Originally Posted By FerretAfros ^^Sounds a little grim, but exactly like what I suspected (and feared). And more importantly, I really like the name FP- and MyMagic-. These completely fit in with my gripe about the name of "Rapid Refill" (and Nature Fun at summer camp) in the other thread : )
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt Obviously there are no answers yet, just some things to ponder" I'm going to take a guess and say that the system sets aside a certain number of FP+ bookings for any given attraction at any particular time, leaving FP reservation slots open for walk ups. In other words there are X number of slots and a segment of those will be designated for FP+. So, to answer your question you probably will still have a chance of getting a FP for a given ride, there just won't be as many available for walkups as there are now.
Originally Posted By -em ^ actually from a D23 presentation there was a statement that NO FP+ selections would be held back for day of selection... I'm sure with people adding and switching things may or may not come available but it doesnt sound promising of being able to get headliners day of...
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "actually from a D23 presentation there was a statement that NO FP+ selections would be held back for day of selection..." I don't think I'm following you. What I'm saying is that there has to be a maximum number of daily FPs that can be distributed for any given attraction. If you break those down into say, 10 minute reservation slots, there are X number of passes available for each slot on any given day. I assume that MyMagic + simply allocates a certain number of those passes in each slot in advance of the date and once the a slot is filled the system offers the next customer the next available return time just as it does now for walkups. I'm also assuming that the same system sets aside a certain slots for walkups as well.
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt And by walkups I mean guests who are not participating in the MyMagic+ program.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros My guess is she meant that of the X FP+ slots for any given attraction, they can all be given away well in advance of the actual date, rather than saving a few for people who need to change their plans or who make last-minute plans From my understanding, there will still be some slots in the attracton's overall daily capacity of rstandby guests, though perhaps a lower number than with the current FP system.
Originally Posted By -em >>My guess is she meant that of the X FP+ slots for any given attraction, they can all be given away well in advance of the actual date, rather than saving a few for people who need to change their plans or who make last-minute plans<< Exactly- with easy math as I don't know the 'real' #s Say if they decided 1000 is the max # of FPs available a day- All 1000 will become 'available to book' at 60 days out vs say 800 being 'available' 60 days out and 200 become available at park open that day.. (Personally I had hoped itd be say 60% pre booked 40% day off but not that lucky) -em
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "Say if they decided 1000 is the max # of FPs available a day- All 1000 will become 'available to book' at 60 days out vs say 800 being 'available' 60 days out and 200 become available at park open that day.." I'm not seeing how that negatively impacts walkups in a major way unless disney is reducing the overall number of FPs for any given attraction. The only thing i can think of is that premium reservation times will probably be snatched up first by FP+ customers.
Originally Posted By sjhym333 Again I think the big issue may be that all 1000 FP's will be gone within hours of when the system opens them up.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros Additionally, handing out 1000 FPs may only leave 500 slots in an attraction's capacity for standby guests. Given that this will be most people's only option of getting on, the standby waits will increase dramatically, since the priority has been given to the FP+ users I've read multiple accounts (both from people who know about NextGen and people who have no idea) that the reserved seating section for Fantasmic! at the Studios takes up the prime real estate foe the 'good' seats. With the various dining packages they've offered for years, it's been hard enough to get a decent seat, but add in the FP+ reservations and it's taking over the arena This relegates the non-FP+ crew to the margins of the arena. Presumably, we'll see a similar approach with other show-based attractions on the FP+ list, like fireworks, 3D movies, and parades. These instances both figuratively and literally marginalize the experiences of other guests, but it will be happening across the park, at nearly every attraction
Originally Posted By sjhym333 My feeling is that Disney has decided that their bread and butter is with its resort guests. It seems a lot of what they are doing now points to that.
Originally Posted By dizneed Just a note that the extra perks like FP+ were only made available about a month after full payment of the resort package. We're leaving in two weeks, and with all of these questions in this thread, I'm really anxious to find out about how we'll be impacted by FP, good or bad. This is exciting!
Originally Posted By sjhym333 I expect that you will enjoy your FP+ experience. Everyone I know who has taken part of the test has had great things to say about it. I think that the problems will begin to present themselves when every resort and AP holders go online.
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "Again I think the big issue may be that all 1000 FP's will be gone within hours of when the system opens them up." There's no question that will happen on busy days for certain attractions because it happens now. "Additionally, handing out 1000 FPs may only leave 500 slots in an attraction's capacity for standby guests. Given that this will be most people's only option of getting on, the standby waits will increase dramatically, since the priority has been given to the FP+ users" How so? This.would only be the case if Disney plans to increase the total number of FPs being distributed for a given attraction.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros >>There's no question that will happen on busy days for certain attractions because it happens now.<< Personally, I see a huge difference in FPs running out by 10am, and FPs running out 2 months in advance. Yes, it has the same net result for most guests (no FP), but same-day distribution at least gives the illusion that you had a chance of getting one. But that may vary from person to person Studies have shown that people are more likely to find value in an experience or product if they paid for it well in advance (which is part of the reason Disney makes you pay so early). I wonder if there will be a similar mentality to reserving a FP months in advance, rather than doing it the same day. >>How so? This.would only be the case if Disney plans to increase the total number of FPs being distributed for a given attraction.<< There has been no indication whether they'll increase then number of FPs distributed or not. For these tests, it seems like they are giving out the normal number of paper FPs, in addition to the FP+ folks invilved with the tests (who can also get paper FPs now), which means that the data they're looking at is fundamentally flawed. Given that they're hoping this will be the next big thing, and be able to market it to guests as a huge gamechanger, they will need the FP+ capacity to match the high-profile system; I can only assume that they would increase the numbers accordingly. Additionally, there have been rumors that certain attractions will be available exclusively for FP+, though that hasn't been confirmed
Originally Posted By FerretAfros >>Just a note that the extra perks like FP+ were only made available about a month after full payment of the resort package.<< I don't know if this was intentional or not, but it's an interesting aspect. They appear to have settled on a 60 day reservation window, and I believe that final payments are typically due 45 days before your vacation. But with the tests, they aren't announcing the system as early, which may alter the timeline that guests use, and their overall opinion of the experience. I think that reserving FPs a week or two in advance is somewhat reasonable; 2 months, notsomuch
Originally Posted By sjhym333 Actually Disney's plan has been to increase the number of FP's distributed in each hour. The first step to this has been enforcing the return times. A friend working on NexGen has told me that they believe by holding people to their FP windows they should be able to open more FP's per time period because they have a much clearer idea of the number of guests returning each hour. Under the old policy there was no real way to know how many people would return at any given time once people learned that they could return whenever they wanted to.
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "Actually Disney's plan has been to increase the number of FP's distributed in each hour. The first step to this has been enforcing the return times. A friend working on NexGen has told me that they believe by holding people to their FP windows they should be able to open more FP's per time period because they have a much clearer idea of the number of guests returning each hour." At last a bit of real information. I hadn't considered the new enforcement rule on return times and that could impact the program. This sounds reasonable, and no doubt a sizable number of reservation holders never return for their time slots anyway.
