Are Wait Times For Rides Really That Bad?

[JETSDAD]

Does it generally make a difference using the app vs. website when trying to pull additional FP+? Is one more effective than the other, or are they equal?

I don't think it makes a difference but I personally prefer using the mobile site. It works much better when modifying as it still functions in the way the app used to (the 2 separate change options kind of suck).

 

[disneygirlsng]

Does it generally make a difference using the app vs. website when trying to pull additional FP+? Is one more effective than the other, or are they equal?

I also prefer the mobile site, mostly to be able to see all options instead of the two separate screens, but it also seems to be faster.

 

[wilbret]

The problem is the Universal system doesn't scale to something the size of WDW. WDW has over 36,000 hotel rooms and on any given day 60 to over 100 thousand people visiting its theme parks.

I've had limited success with same day FP+ with a party of 4, but zero success with same day FP+ for a party of 8.

It could be scaleable to a point, but I'd prefer sustainable to scaleable. What's the point of having a "fast pass," if it's not really fast, and it requires planning 60 days out and/or constant manipulation? Probably deserves it's own thread, and Disney has acknowledged the system stinks by trying out other forms.
Some smart person, somewhere could figure it out. ;-) I'll start a thread instead of jacking this one.

 

[Remy is Up]

People will argue this point, but I think most of the "success" stories are solo travelers, or very small groups. I have had limited, almost zero success with this as a family of 5, and certainly no real Tier 1 success (7DMT, etc). I think the FP system sucks, no one should spend $600/day and be forced to plan months in advance, or refresh refresh refresh to game the system. I'd love to see a new system rolled out, or even the universal system with a limited number of express passes.

Have you seen what Universal charges for express pass? And even then it only dumps you in on most rides about halfway through the line. It is not gaming the system. We do it regularly with 2 or 3 and even in a party of 6 we split into 2 parties of 3 and overlapped and had no problems pulling erides. 7DMT is the most difficult to get in MK, but we pulled it for 4 on Christmas day twice. It is knowing how to use the system and we rarely spend more than time in the FP line we just got into grabbing a fp for the next one we will do. Knowing the drops and how to work through things, being versatile and willing to walk a little bit, allows for a lot of spontaneous attractions. Those willing to use the system and learn it benefit from it greatly. Keep in mind the majority of the people in the parks dont know how to use the system and are happily oblivious and jump in a 60 minute stand by line. Havent stood in a stand by line in 2 years at least.

 

[Remy is Up]

I also prefer the mobile site, mostly to be able to see all options instead of the two separate screens, but it also seems to be faster.

Mobile site is much more effective than the app most times, especially when modifying

 

[Dreamin of Dole Whip]

Following this thread, it has been super helpful for our upcoming trip. We are a party of 2, so I am hoping we'll be able to utilize the drop times to modify existing or make new FPP reservations.

RemyisUp, you mentioned a few times that one needs to be able to "know how to use the system" but I wanted to get some clarity on that. I am familiar with the app, and with modifying your reservation. Is it something more than just checking the app around the drop time and refreshing to find things that are available?

Similarly, for example, we have a Slinky Dog FPP on Friday, March 6th at 6PM. During that day would i be able to modify it to an earlier time if new Slinky Dog FPPs drop at the drop times?

Thanks everyone for your help! This is very cool and I want to make sure I have a good strategy down for our trip next week.

 

[Babe the Blue Ox]

People will argue this point, but I think most of the "success" stories are solo travelers, or very small groups. I have had limited, almost zero success with this as a family of 5, and certainly no real Tier 1 success (7DMT, etc). I think the FP system sucks, no one should spend $600/day and be forced to plan months in advance, or refresh refresh refresh to game the system. I'd love to see a new system rolled out, or even the universal system with a limited number of express passes.

We’re a family of 5, and we’ve had exceptional results refreshing during our summer visits. On our last trip, I was able to get everything I wanted with surprisingly little effort. The one outlier was Navi River Journey which wouldn’t pop up no matter what I tried.

All of the other headliners would eventually appear for selection, most with a very short return window. It’s pretty exciting to spend 5 minutes refreshing while waiting in line and then finding something good that you can visit within the next few minutes.

And I don’t think it’s gaming the system at all, just using the tools provided in the most efficient way.

 

[wilbret]

Have you seen what Universal charges for express pass? And even then it only dumps you in on most rides about halfway through the line. It is not gaming the system. We do it regularly with 2 or 3 and even in a party of 6 we split into 2 parties of 3 and overlapped and had no problems pulling erides. 7DMT is the most difficult to get in MK, but we pulled it for 4 on Christmas day twice. It is knowing how to use the system and we rarely spend more than time in the FP line we just got into grabbing a fp for the next one we will do. Knowing the drops and how to work through things, being versatile and willing to walk a little bit, allows for a lot of spontaneous attractions. Those willing to use the system and learn it benefit from it greatly. Keep in mind the majority of the people in the parks dont know how to use the system and are happily oblivious and jump in a 60 minute stand by line. Havent stood in a stand by line in 2 years at least.

Yep, I have. And that's why it works, it's actually treated as a premium. It's interesting you think that splitting a party, refreshing, willing to traverse the park (not counting that as time), etc, is what the customer should get for the cost. I heavily disagree with the on the value of the EP at Universal. The only challenge we've ever had is with HP rides, but those waits max out at 30-45 minutes with the standby line is several times that.

To each their own. I played the game for years, using the lines app, refreshing for FPs, before realizing it's just not worth it. We changed how we attack the parks. Even if you like the system in place now, you have to admit there is room for improvement. You can't keep the same system when rooms are being added at a ridiculous pace. I started another thread to talk about this, reply over there if you can. thx

 

[Remy is Up]

Following this thread, it has been super helpful for our upcoming trip. We are a party of 2, so I am hoping we'll be able to utilize the drop times to modify existing or make new FPP reservations.

RemyisUp, you mentioned a few times that one needs to be able to "know how to use the system" but I wanted to get some clarity on that. I am familiar with the app, and with modifying your reservation. Is it something more than just checking the app around the drop time and refreshing to find things that are available?

Similarly, for example, we have a Slinky Dog FPP on Friday, March 6th at 6PM. During that day would i be able to modify it to an earlier time if new Slinky Dog FPPs drop at the drop times?

Thanks everyone for your help! This is very cool and I want to make sure I have a good strategy down for our trip next week.

Yes. Note the drop times at studios. Generally add drops mostly on the 2and and 3rd times and the ride times are usually within an hour or so.

 

[sharadoc]

This has probably been mentioned but invest in Touring Plans and possibly the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World (which gives you a discount on your Touring Plans subscription). Read up on everything slowly, don't try to take it in all at once. That way you can get an understanding of each park and possible strategies. With 20 people, you are not going to get a whole lot done, walking from one attraction to another will take much longer than it will take two of you. And if you have little ones, or strollers, plan on it taking even longer.

There are plenty of low wait rides that you can sprinkle in. The Carousel, Philharmagic, Carousel of Progress, Country Bear Jamboree, usually Pirates of the Caribbean, Tea Cups. Take it slow and enjoy your time there with each other. Main Street has the Dapper Dans, the Trolley Show and the Philharmonic Marching Band. There's a cute show in front of the castle plus the daily parade.

If this is your first visit, don't think of WDW as a theme park where you only run ride to ride. Enjoy the "atmosphere". That's the beauty of WDW. Make sure you grab a times guide at the entrance of each park (if you can find them) and plan out some shows and other distractions in addition to your attractions. And if you can't do something, don't worry about it and don't let it ruin your day

 

[Heather07438]

Thanks for all the replies! Appreciate it!

How many days are you planning? Having more days definitely helps between the added FPs and flexibility.

 

[Boopuff]

Part of our touring plans usually revolve around late evenings. However, I've noticed WDW hasn't had a lot of late night hours. Years ago I remember being at MK around 1am in August. (no special party just the hours). It was heaven. I'm hopeful with the increasing crowds Disney will re-think the hours the parks are open. We don't live live by FP. We book our initial 3, and leisurely tour the parks. who needs all the stress.

 

[wilbret]

Part of our touring plans usually revolve around late evenings. However, I've noticed WDW hasn't had a lot of late night hours. Years ago I remember being at MK around 1am in August. (no special party just the hours). It was heaven. I'm hopeful with the increasing crowds Disney will re-think the hours the parks are open. We don't live live by FP. We book our initial 3, and leisurely tour the parks. who needs all the stress.

Those were the days. Then the parties happened. I much prefer the parks at night!

 

[vincep]

As has been proven they'll keep the hours low to save money. They'll get the extra crowds no matter what. So why should they add the hours as a perk like they used to?

And the nighttime parties seem to be a success with people willing to spend $145 for 3 hours. To me it seems outrageous. All that money to run from ride to ride. For me it doesn't seem to be much fun. Three hours in a theme park seems to me no time at all. So you get to kick out the day guests and get people to spend all that money to stay to midnight. From a business point it is a better strategy. Years ago it would have been unthinkable as it would have blatantly shown Disney thinks about nothing but fleecing customers. But we are not living years ago.

 

[persnickity2020]

As has been proven they'll keep the hours low to save money. They'll get the extra crowds no matter what. So why should they add the hours as a perk like they used to?

And the nighttime parties seem to be a success with people willing to spend $145 for 3 hours. To me it seems outrageous. All that money to run from ride to ride. For me it doesn't seem to be much fun. Three hours in a theme park seems to me no time at all. So you get to kick out the day guests and get people to spend all that money to stay to midnight. From a business point it is a better strategy. Years ago it would have been unthinkable as it would have blatantly shown Disney thinks about nothing but fleecing customers. But we are not living years ago.

Just to provide a little more insight on why some people are "willing to pay": for our trip, a 5 day ticket would have cost $92 more than the 4 park magic ticket we ended up purchasing. To add a 5th day, we would have had to take a late flight home, deal with hustling to pack up and get our bags to bell services in the morning, then go to a park for a partial Saturday (6-7 hrs at best), with the need to get back to the resort by 3 hours pre-Magical Express hanging over our heads.

Or, we could add the AH ticket for about $50 more and go to MK on our arrival day, checking into the event around 6:30pm and using Fastpasses until 10, then staying until 1am, hopefully with far lesser crowds and getting some "free" snacks to boot.

So, I agree WDW is profiting off of a demand they themselves created, and that is frustrating. But it's really a pretty reasonable choice for guests to make, and a better value than many things Disney-related. Ideally, they would offer a regular late night and 1-2 late night EMH's each week during busy periods, in addition to the party nights, to spread the crowds out better. Only offering the late hours at an additional cost is just not a good look and creates some justified frustration.

 

[Remy is Up]

Just to provide a little more insight on why some people are "willing to pay": for our trip, a 5 day ticket would have cost $92 more than the 4 park magic ticket we ended up purchasing. To add a 5th day, we would have had to take a late flight home, deal with hustling to pack up and get our bags to bell services in the morning, then go to a park for a partial Saturday (6-7 hrs at best), with the need to get back to the resort by 3 hours pre-Magical Express hanging over our heads.

Or, we could add the AH ticket for about $50 more and go to MK on our arrival day, checking into the event around 6:30pm and using Fastpasses until 10, then staying until 1am, hopefully with far lesser crowds and getting some "free" snacks to boot.

So, I agree WDW is profiting off of a demand they themselves created, and that is frustrating. But it's really a pretty reasonable choice for guests to make, and a better value than many things Disney-related. Ideally, they would offer a regular late night and 1-2 late night EMH's each week during busy periods, in addition to the party nights, to spread the crowds out better. Only offering the late hours at an additional cost is just not a good look and creates some justified frustration.

IN your situation you looked at what was "value" to you. Which is how the whole thing works. What each person sees as value. People can be frustrated or upset with Disney using after hours to increase revenue, but, the reality of things have been such that the park is open to the day guests until 9 ( still an hour later than Universal) and on weeknights in ( I laugh at this term) "Off season" they wouldnt be open past 9 anyway. All they are doing is taking hours that wouldve been closed and having the park open for those who find value in it. We have resident Aps and will do 3 or 4 Ah at MK a year because they are fun and it has "value". You did the same thing. Demonizing a company beholden to stockholders to show profit and ROI makes no sense. They arent taking something away on those nights. They are merely offering something extra to those willing to purchase it. I would say the same thing about the parties. This is just the company maximizing the sales potential they have.

 

[Orionreplay]

From our last experience in November, you do get lucky sometimes and doing standby for Haunted Mansion for instance, even though the sign said 45 minutes, we were actually much closer to half that. In my remembrances, we also experienced that as standby for Toy Story Mania and Slinky Dog. I know Slinky Dog was reading 80 minutes when we got in line, but we were closer to 60 minutes. Yes still an hour, but I got close to 20 minutes back! Soarin' was another that would read one time, but reality was something less.

Now with that said, Frozen read 80 minutes when we got in line as stand by, and oh my goodness, I think it was closer to 90-100 minutes by the time we got on that boat.

 

[Remy is Up]

From our last experience in November, you do get lucky sometimes and doing standby for Haunted Mansion for instance, even though the sign said 45 minutes, we were actually much closer to half that. In my remembrances, we also experienced that as standby for Toy Story Mania and Slinky Dog. I know Slinky Dog was reading 80 minutes when we got in line, but we were closer to 60 minutes. Yes still an hour, but I got close to 20 minutes back! Soarin' was another that would read one time, but reality was something less.

Now with that said, Frozen read 80 minutes when we got in line as stand by, and oh my goodness, I think it was closer to 90-100 minutes by the time we got on that boat.

Frozen is almost always longer than posted for some reason

 

[Heather07438]

Frozen is almost always longer than posted for some reason

Probably deflate FEA wait times to help attract guests over to WS where the spending magic happens

 

[Remy is Up]

Probably deflate FEA wait times to help attract guests over to WS where the spending magic happens

That would make sense. We dont do stand by but I have seen multiple posters say the wait times at FEA are consistently longer than posted. I also wonder if it has something to do with the FP-Stand by Ratio. Those are moving targets based on crowds but it has some impact on certain rides..Test Track, Jungle Cruise, and Safari come to mind instantly.