Originally Posted By RoadTrip The Unofficial Guides are generally well done, but I think they are a little too harsh on WDW restaurants. My favorite guide is "Walt Disney World for Couples" by Rick & Gayle Perlmutter. Their descriptions of the Disney resorts are so much better than those found in any other guide that there is no comparison. (Especially in comparison to the Unofficial Guide, where the information on Disney resorts is sparse at best.)
Originally Posted By TDLFAN >>My favorite guide is "Walt Disney World for Couples" by Rick & Gayle Perlmutter. Their descriptions of the Disney resorts are so much better than those found in any other guide that there is no comparison.<< I am sure that's because Mr & Mrs Perlmutter probably never left their room while at WDW if you know what I mean...
Originally Posted By RoadTrip <<I am sure that's because Mr & Mrs Perlmutter probably never left their room while at WDW if you know what I mean...>> Yea, sigh... ain't it great? ;-)
Originally Posted By JeffG I will state that I have posted quite a bit more about my experiences during the hurricane on other boards than I have here. The main reason for this is that this thread so quickly drifted off-topic that the on-topic comments that I posted here were quickly lost in all the noise. Frankly, this happens often enough in the WDW boards here, that I often don't even bother with them even when a trip is imminent. -Jeff
Originally Posted By LuvDatDisney Fastpass is to the theme park experience what microwaves are to fine dining. Oh, and the hurricane really wasn't an issue in Orlando. The worst hours were in the morning and since I didn't have to work I slept until noon. By then, the sun was shining. Should have gone to the MK!
Originally Posted By Goofyernmost >>>I agree with vbdad. With the exception of a couple of extraordinarily popular attractions like Test Track and Soarin' that have allocated all Fastpasses by early afternoon, ANYONE can get a Fastpass. I think many people CHOOSE not to because they see the return time is a couple of hours away and they decide they would rather stand in line for half an hour that have to come back to that spot 2 hours later. That's their choice. It isn't anything forced on anyone<<< Then there is that nasty little fact to enter into this scenario and that is that they only issue a specific number of them. (something you stated above and if they haven't run out it is because there is no line there to begin with). When they run out then there is no choice. But let's not add that into the arguement because then that would make it more difficult to justify line cutting. As for motivation..."sometimes a cigar is just a cigar". I think you give those people way to much credit for having the ability to be business strategy masters.
Originally Posted By vbdad55 <As for motivation..."sometimes a cigar is just a cigar". I think you give those people way to much credit for having the ability to be business strategy masters.< I may think they are uncaring about history sometimes..but I do not believe that all the halls of the Disney Corp are filled with empty suits -- as a stockholder I have to believe that they have marketing professionals in the marketing department...
Originally Posted By MrToadWildRider >>Let me start out by saying that I HATE fastpass and the caste system that it has inadvertently created. That said, the above statement could only have been made by someone that hasn't stood in the standby lines and listened to the reaction of the people in those lines. I know, I know...the next thing to be said is well everyone has the opportunity to use Fastpass. For the gazillionth time that is wrong, wrong, wrong. If indeed everyone had access to one, then you would have the same old line again, the only difference being they all would be hanging on to a fastpass. There are only so many people that are going to be able to get on a ride at any given time and there will be a front of the fastpass line and there will be an end of the fastpass line. If everyone had a fastpass the line and wait would be just as long.<< First of all that's my statement and I've never stood in stand by lines? What do you think I do in the time I have til my fast pass time rolls around? Twiddle my thumbs and admire the foliage? Of course I've stood in stand by lines and I've heard people complain about line length....but I heard the same complaints BEFORE the FP system too. What all the Fast Pass bashers seem to think is that fast pass makes the line super longer...they don't. They may add 5-10 minutes to each individual line, which when you add up the totals is a lot but trust me when you're standing in a 100 minute line or 95 minutes line instead of a 90 minute line it really doesn't matter....but when you wait in a 5 minute line instead of that 90 minute line it sure as heck does. People don't like lines PERIOD and I don't know if you remember pre-fast pass but I seem to recall there being lines back then and people complaining then too.... I can almost gaurantee the people you're talking about aren't saying "JESUS CHRIST THIS LINE IS 10 MINUTES LONGER THAN LAST TIME WE WERE HERE BECAUSE OF THAT DAMN FAST PASS!!" they're saying "JESUS CHRIST 90 MINUTES 95 MINUTES 100 MINUTES I DON'T CARE IT'S STILL A LONG LINE THAT I HATE" And it IS accessible to everyone as mentioned above - it's just most people don't understand how to use them. I've actually heard people ask the CMs at the line start/FP distribution area "The wait time says 90 minutes but the Fast Pass Return time is in 2 hours, that's stupid who would take a 120 minute wait over a 90 minute wait??" - these are the same people you reference as complaining in the stand-by line. The only two rides I've ever been denied a Fast Pass at into the early evening have been Pooh and Buzz's Space Ranger Spin - It's just knowing which rides are most popular, yea I'm sure if you go to Splash at 6 or something in the evening it'll be sold out....but that's a long time to get one and if you don't that's your fault. >>Fastpass is to the theme park experience what microwaves are to fine dining.<< Are you comparing standing in 110º humid weather for an hour and a half to dining in a fine dining room? >>Then there is that nasty little fact to enter into this scenario and that is that they only issue a specific number of them. (something you stated above and if they haven't run out it is because there is no line there to begin with). When they run out then there is no choice. But let's not add that into the arguement because then that would make it more difficult to justify line cutting.<< It's simple - get them before they run out....they don't evaporate minutes after the park opens - not even HOURS after the park opens...as I said above I've only been to the parks (all 4 of them) where I was ever denied a FP to a ride I hadn't already ridden that day, once was at Space Ranger Spin and on a different day it was Pooh....that's AFTER I'd gone through just about every other ride/attraction in the park and at that point I didn't really mind standing in the standby. You're making it sound like getting one fastpass is getting tickets to like a Red Sox World Series ticket in Boston - they aren't gone within seconds they're there for MOST of the day. Please stop crying about fast passes as "Line Cutting" it's just a system that actually enables people to get more out of their day and move about the park more efficiently - the only requirement is 1/2 a brain which most people check at the gate on their way in.
Originally Posted By MrToadWildRider >>Let me start out by saying that I HATE fastpass and the caste system that it has inadvertently created. That said, the above statement could only have been made by someone that hasn't stood in the standby lines and listened to the reaction of the people in those lines. I know, I know...the next thing to be said is well everyone has the opportunity to use Fastpass. For the gazillionth time that is wrong, wrong, wrong. If indeed everyone had access to one, then you would have the same old line again, the only difference being they all would be hanging on to a fastpass. There are only so many people that are going to be able to get on a ride at any given time and there will be a front of the fastpass line and there will be an end of the fastpass line. If everyone had a fastpass the line and wait would be just as long.<< First of all that's my statement and I've never stood in stand by lines? What do you think I do in the time I have til my fast pass time rolls around? Twiddle my thumbs and admire the foliage? Of course I've stood in stand by lines and I've heard people complain about line length....but I heard the same complaints BEFORE the FP system too. What all the Fast Pass bashers seem to think is that fast pass makes the line super longer...they don't. They may add 5-10 minutes to each individual line, which when you add up the totals is a lot but trust me when you're standing in a 100 minute line or 95 minutes line instead of a 90 minute line it really doesn't matter....but when you wait in a 5 minute line instead of that 90 minute line it sure as heck does. People don't like lines PERIOD and I don't know if you remember pre-fast pass but I seem to recall there being lines back then and people complaining then too.... I can almost gaurantee the people you're talking about aren't saying "HOLY COW THIS LINE IS 10 MINUTES LONGER THAN LAST TIME WE WERE HERE BECAUSE OF THAT DANG FAST PASS!!" they're saying "HOLY COW 90 MINUTES 95 MINUTES 100 MINUTES I DON'T CARE IT'S STILL A LONG LINE THAT I HATE" And it IS accessible to everyone as mentioned above - it's just most people don't understand how to use them. I've actually heard people ask the CMs at the line start/FP distribution area "The wait time says 90 minutes but the Fast Pass Return time is in 2 hours, that's stupid who would take a 120 minute wait over a 90 minute wait??" - these are the same people you reference as complaining in the stand-by line. The only two rides I've ever been denied a Fast Pass at into the early evening have been Pooh and Buzz's Space Ranger Spin - It's just knowing which rides are most popular, yea I'm sure if you go to Splash at 6 or something in the evening it'll be sold out....but that's a long time to get one and if you don't that's your fault. >>Fastpass is to the theme park experience what microwaves are to fine dining.<< Are you comparing standing in 110º humid weather for an hour and a half to dining in a fine dining room? >>Then there is that nasty little fact to enter into this scenario and that is that they only issue a specific number of them. (something you stated above and if they haven't run out it is because there is no line there to begin with). When they run out then there is no choice. But let's not add that into the arguement because then that would make it more difficult to justify line cutting.<< It's simple - get them before they run out....they don't evaporate minutes after the park opens - not even HOURS after the park opens...as I said above I've only been to the parks (all 4 of them) where I was ever denied a FP to a ride I hadn't already ridden that day, once was at Space Ranger Spin and on a different day it was Pooh....that's AFTER I'd gone through just about every other ride/attraction in the park and at that point I didn't really mind standing in the standby. You're making it sound like getting one fastpass is getting tickets to like a Red Sox World Series ticket in Boston - they aren't gone within seconds they're there for MOST of the day. Please stop crying about fast passes as "Line Cutting" it's just a system that actually enables people to get more out of their day and move about the park more efficiently - the only requirement is 1/2 a brain which most people check at the gate on their way in. Edit: I Disney-ed up some of the language of the ticked off guest in line impression in case an admin thought it was inappropriate. I don't know if JC and t D word are connsidered so on this board and I apologize for using them if they are.
Originally Posted By vbdad55 < I can almost gaurantee the people you're talking about aren't saying "JESUS CHRIST THIS LINE IS 10 MINUTES LONGER THAN LAST TIME WE WERE HERE BECAUSE OF THAT DAMN FAST PASS!!" they're saying "JESUS CHRIST 90 MINUTES 95 MINUTES 100 MINUTES I DON'T CARE IT'S STILL A LONG LINE THAT I HATE" Let's get a blood pressure check here stat ! -- LOL Toad -- and btw-- I am in agreement with you...but this one set you off like comments about the Pooh playground do for me and this is one of the few times that I could actually picture the capitalization part of a post--really being screamed out.....I am still laughing
Originally Posted By Kennesaw Tom I think Fastpass is a creative idea that works some of the time. The only ride/ attractions where I actually saw it working "fairly" was on The Jungle Boat Cruise and the Kali River Rapids. When I went on each of these rides they counted off an equatable number of regular ticket holders standing in line as well as fast passers. In other words they would allow say ten fastpassers then ten people in line. Then another ten fastpassers then another ten people in line. This kept the both lines moving. I have waited in line for 90 minutes once to ride Test Track while fastpassers and the singles lines were walking on ( so much for wanting to ride with your party ). I have shopped, used the restroom while waiting for my Fastpass time to become available. So maybe Fastpass needs some tweaking.
Originally Posted By MrToadWildRider Heh VB I'm neither of those people (yet) but I have seen the ones who literally shout their "feelings" about line length at WDW and I was being mild But I seriously don't think line complainers are complaining about that extra 10 minute wait, they're complaining about the standard 90 minute wait they're in the middle of. And I agree with KT above - it also depends on the ride loaders and other CMs at the front of the line. The description of 10/10 even split it what I usually see but sometimes I see a CM hold the FP for a while until it builds up into 40+ people and then they stop the standby and start loading just those 40+ FPs and that just PO's BOTH lines because no one likes being in a line and making zero progress. It may result in the same length of time but there's something people hate about just standing still - they'd rather take 25 minutes walking steadily towards the load than 20 minutes standing still.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN >>Of course I've stood in stand by lines and I've heard people complain about line length....but I heard the same complaints BEFORE the FP system too.<< EXACTLY why FP is not needed! It DID NOT solve the problem or made the waitimes shorter for the majority, did it? So why screw up the good old first come/first serve system?? Whiners will be whiners no matter what so...KILL FP!!
Originally Posted By Socrates May I offer an example of how to use Fastpass? I was at WDW with two pre-teens just after Winnie the Pooh had opened. The park wasn't that crowded -- wait times were under 15 minutes for everything we wanted to do -- except Pooh was 40 minutes. And because of the kids, it was a must. So we got Fastpasses for Pooh, then did everything else we wanted. About the time we were finished with everything else, it was time to use the Fastpass. I figure it save us about a half hour of just standing in line. Isn't that the way Fastpass is supposed to work? Socrates "The unexamined life is not worth living."
Originally Posted By RoadTrip <<Isn't that the way Fastpass is supposed to work?>> He's not sure. Give him a little time to think about it. Sometimes it takes a while for a guy to get his mind around a concept.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN FP works like a charm when (as you put it) the park isn't that crowded as was your experience. When parks are crowded...it's a whole different ballgame. Waits to use FP time window may be longer and you are blocked off from obtaining another FP for longer periods of time... forcing you to do much longer and slower stand by lines as those found on uncrowded days, as was the case when you visited.
Originally Posted By Kennesaw Tom I do like how Universal Studio's did it. You pay extra for the "fast system ( or what every they call it ) priveliges". You just walk up on the rides at Universal Studios. The reason why it works better at US is because they designed some of their rides to accomidate a two lines load. The rides/ attractions at MK are not designed for a two line load system. In fact the only ride I can think of at the MK that had a two line load system was Mr Toad and that is closed.
