Boarding groups - Any thoughts/rumors on when this might end?

[DisSurfer878]

Not true. If staying onsite you can book your entire trip at 60 days. So there is a huge FP advantage for people with longer trips. ROTR FP will likely be impossible without at least 6 nights.


Agreed!

You did not understand my post.

i was saying they could make ROTR 60 days on advance, day of only. You would HAVE to book 60 days in advance exactly to prevent the 60+whatever advantage. Similar to boarding groups, still no standby, but eliminates the rope drop misery and day of disappointment.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I've searched these boards for this and I'm sure it was discussed at some point but couldn't find anything.

I'd love to try RotR but have kind of resigned myself to the fact that's not going to happen (the chances of a) making it to the park on time with two young kids and b) not staying at a resort within walking distance along with c) my lack of skill on cell phones and d) being in the park when the BG is called (again, young kids), are slim).

What is everyone's opinion on when these may be eliminated? I know some people like them and I respect that and if they are necessary it's great they can be enjoyed that way but at the same time I'm kind of in the "hope they go to FP+" camp

Only the Ancients know and in reality it will come down to when they get the ride running more reliably

I will just add that were there past Monday (Presidents Day) with three small kids and while very crowded it really wasn't bad. Everyone was very friendly and chatting before BGs went live and after we were all lead calmly into Galaxy's Edge - no running or shoving or anything.

 

[rteetz]

The sooner they get rid of BGs, the better. It’s a horribly frustrating and kludgy system that meshes very badly with Disney’s existing system of FPs and ADRs. It’s reassuring to see that the infrastructure to make it more normal is all in place, like the signs that will show wait time and current time for FP, ready to be turned on when it becomes reliable enough.

I disagree. You have two hours to return. You can do FPs and ADRs with that.

 

[chaboyd]

I've read a LOT about this since this ride is a major must for us in August. I've come around to the idea that the current system is the best until they can get the ride more reliable.

My biggest concern is we only have 4 park days. We had not planned on park hoppers. I don't get to do Disney that often. This is my 50th birthday present and it is a BIG deal to us that we are spending this money. I don't mind getting myself in the park for the "lottery", but if we can't get on, now I'm having to choose if I'm spending hundreds more dollars so we can all get park hoppers so we can enjoy the day at another park. I like the idea of just letting us check in to HS. If I don't get a pass at opening, let me take my one day park ticket and go to another park if there is no way I'm getting on the ride.

 

[tinkerhon]

Only the Ancients know and in reality it will come down to when they get the ride running more reliably

I will just add that were there past Monday (Presidents Day) with three small kids and while very crowded it really wasn't bad. Everyone was very friendly and chatting before BGs went live and after we were all lead calmly into Galaxy's Edge - no running or shoving or anything.

Or we can ask the Phoenicians....

 

[ILovePixieDust]

You did not understand my post.

i was saying they could make ROTR 60 days on advance, day of only. You would HAVE to book 60 days in advance exactly to prevent the 60+whatever advantage. Similar to boarding groups, still no standby, but eliminates the rope drop misery and day of disappointment.

This scenario would be an even greater misery!! Can you imagine getting up early for your entire length of stay to do this??? I cant imagine waking up at 4 am western time for 14 days in a row trying to get ROTR FP on the 60 days for every single day of my stay. What a nightmare that would be!!! That would be way worse than the current BG system.

I don't see why those with longer stays shouldn't have an advantage over those with shorter stays. As it is, the 60 day advantage has dwindled with the number of offsite resorts they have offered it to already.

 

[DisSurfer878]

This scenario would be an even greater misery!! Can you imagine getting up early for your entire length of stay to do this??? I cant imagine waking up at 4 am western time for 14 days in a row trying to get ROTR FP on the 60 days for every single day of my stay. What a nightmare that would be!!! That would be way worse than the current BG system.

I don't see why those with longer stays shouldn't have an advantage over those with shorter stays. As it is, the 60 day advantage has dwindled with the number of offsite resorts they have offered it to already.

So it's get up at 5 am to be in the park or get up at 5 am at home. I fail to see the difference.

 

[lovethesun12]

This is a great discussion. Thanks for all the responses! Really FP+/BG/whatever Disney is always a hassle. I'm o.k. with that - not sure how I'd spend my spare time if there was no Disney debating =)

At this point, I think I'm going to rope drop HS with the kids on our first park day. If we don't get a BG, I'm going to maybe rope drop the second day by sneaking out of the hotel room by myself and riding it solo .

 

[mattpeto]

They're going to have to do something, because they can't have huge crowds showing up every single morning from now on. If it's bad now, it's going to be utter chaos in the summer. Somebody's going to get hurt.

I know a while ago they asked for visitor input as to an alternative. I imagine if they make any major changes, it'll be before the summer crush hits.

I’m not sure this situation is a bad problem for Disney to have huge HS crowds in AM. The crowds bring buzz and revenue. I’m guessing BG are here to stay until the attraction is extremely reliable and there’s something worthy for an early morning wait like this headliner. If I had to predict, I’d say maybe it goes FP when Tron or GotGR open.

 

[Thecouch]

I think they should limit first hour of boarding groups to people who have not got a boarding group for 7 days . every person should get a chance to ride once . then you should have to wait a hour or so on following days and hope to get a back up group

 

[rteetz]

I think they should limit first hour of boarding groups to people who have not got a boarding group for 7 days . every person should get a chance to ride once . then you should have to wait a hour or so on following days and hope to get a back up group

I’m not a quite sure how you could monitor that. You only make the system worse the more “filter” it down.

 

[Thecouch]

I’m not a quite sure how you could monitor that. You only make the system worse the more “filter” it down.

You have to get boarding group on app so when boarding group opens up if it detects that you have received one in last week you don't get access for another hour. If the ride has broken down when you were riding you should have received a fastpass so don't have to worry about those people getting a 2nd shot.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I’m not sure this situation is a bad problem for Disney to have huge HS crowds in AM. The crowds bring buzz and revenue. I’m guessing BG are here to stay until the attraction is extremely reliable and there’s something worthy for an early morning wait like this headliner. If I had to predict, I’d say maybe it goes FP when Tron or GotGR open.

There was a definitely some negative sentiment on the internet (shocker, I know), and certainly some upset guests who don't get a BG, but having just gone through the experience the vast majority of people there are upbeat and friendly. The process builds excitement and at time to try beings almost a sense of community.

I am not trying to totally sugar coat things - the performance / reliability of the ride is not great and the fact it hasn't shown steady improvement is concerning ... Just saying it isn't like this total nightmare scenario in the park either

 

[ILovePixieDust]

So it's get up at 5 am to be in the park or get up at 5 am at home. I fail to see the difference.

The difference is the number of days you would need to do it and the probability of getting a BG. If everyone with onsite reservations could try every single day of their visit to get a BG then your probablity would be a lot less than if you are only competing with the amount of people who show up at HS on any given morning.

 

[rteetz]

You have to get boarding group on app so when boarding group opens up if it detects that you have received one in last week you don't get access for another hour. If the ride has broken down when you were riding you should have received a fastpass so don't have to worry about those people getting a 2nd shot.

That sounds wayyyyyyyy too messy for Disney. This current system is the best possible option for the time being.

 

[hertamaniac]

I think they should limit first hour of boarding groups to people who have not got a boarding group for 7 days . every person should get a chance to ride once . then you should have to wait a hour or so on following days and hope to get a back up group

Or, in my opinion, don't force open a ride that isn't reliable to the masses. Looks good for most PR, but I can't imagine what it is like for those that abided by the rules and missed it.

 

[mercuryvenus]

We didn’t find the BG process difficult. Everyone who wanted to ride in our group got to do so. This was the week before President’s Day. I’ve been periodically looking at the app since getting home and they are definitely getting through more groups consistently than they used to.

I think they’ll switch to FP by the summer, but that’s just my hunch.

 

[ENJDisneyFan]

Or, in my opinion, don't force open a ride that isn't reliable to the masses. Looks good for most PR, but I can't imagine what it is like for those that abided by the rules and missed it.

But what’s the alternative? The only way to identify the problems with the ride is to have people riding it. And thousands are still riding successfully every day, which is much better than zero IMO.

 

[mshanson3121]

Thats just it. There really is no better option right now.

Also the last three days have been pretty good for the attraction. The back up boarding groups were open for 40 minutes after park opening today. They are already done with regular boarding groups for the day.

Go figure. The ride works, but their website has been down most of the day. Probably asking too much to have both massive technologies working reliably in the same day

 

[mshanson3121]

the performance / reliability of the ride is not great and the fact it hasn't shown steady improvement is concerning ...

This. It's going on 3 months now. You would expect to see some significant improvement by now, if it was just "operator" issues that needed to be figured out.