Thoughts about Virtual queues??

[ChoachMcGoach]

Hello everyone! I am new here so I apologize in advance if this has already been discussed on here.
Wanted to know what everyone's opinions are on these new virtual queue's? Seems like most people like them, but I have some reservations about them.
In the case of Rise of the Resistance, I don't like that it is a complete "lottery", so to speak. I can get to HS at 6:00am, the guy standing next to me could have gotten there at 6:55am and he can end up with boarding group 32 and I can end up with nothing.
I also feel like it is making the "queue" more full because EVERYONE will try to get in because.....well....why not? You've got nothing to lose right? I feel like if it was a regular queue a fair amount of people would skip it. Heck, there are some that are getting their boarding passes and then heading to another park or even going home or back to their resort back to bed!
The other issue I have is that because these people are not physically waiting there in line and are free to roam about the park, all of those people are "gumming up" the rest of the park/attractions, where normally they would be standing in that line over there.
I realize that as a guest that wants to make it onto a popular attraction, the virtual queue is very handy and convenient, but I feel like the drawbacks that come along with it just aren't really all that worth it all the time.
Change my mind!
Thanks everyone!

 

[MarkS2112]

Imagine standing in a line for 12 hour in Florida heat and that is all you get for the day. Imagine you wait all that time and then you don’t get on it because of down time. How would you feel then.

Imagine now you have to be at the gates at 3am to get a chance to ride. Doing a first come first serve does not work and put strain on everyone.

A BG is the same as FP. You get a time to come back and can spend time doing other things.

Giving everyone an equal chance at a set time when park officially opens is the fairest way. Plus it eliminates a stampede for the line and all the fights that would come of it. Look at when it first opened, people were showing up at 2 in the am. Disney has to pay for staff all that time plus you have crowd issues and a basic mob. It does not work.

I could also say that since I stayed on property that I should have first crack at it as a perk for staying onsite and let everyone else be damned. That way no offsite guests, pass holders or day guests get to ride. Imagine the uproar that would cause. But since I takedowns on property I should get first choice of everything with that logic.

With the current system you choose to get there a hour early. That is you choice. If someone gets there five minutes before no big deal. Everyone knows the rules and gets a chance at the same time.

You don’t have to like how everyone does it and can choose not to ride if you like. You could also spend 1 billion dollars and build a GE and then set your rules. Point is not everyone will like the system but it’s better than a 12 hour line.

 

[DL1WDW2]

I think guests that got lucky love it and guests that got screwed by the Q hate it. I personally hate it.

 

[SaintsManiac]

It’s been discussed heavily in the GE sub forum. Here’s a recent thread: https://www.disboards.com/threads/rise-of-resistance-line-method-poll.3789015/

 

[JETSDAD]

I'd prefer FP....but I'd probably vote FP over pretty much any other option.

 

[ChoachMcGoach]

Imagine standing in a line for 12 hour in Florida heat and that is all you get for the day. Imagine you wait all that time and then you don’t get on it because of down time. How would you feel then.

Imagine now you have to be at the gates at 3am to get a chance to ride. Doing a first come first serve does not work and put strain on everyone.

A BG is the same as FP. You get a time to come back and can spend time doing other things.

Giving everyone an equal chance at a set time when park officially opens is the fairest way. Plus it eliminates a stampede for the line and all the fights that would come of it. Look at when it first opened, people were showing up at 2 in the am. Disney has to pay for staff all that time plus you have crowd issues and a basic mob. It does not work.

I could also say that since I stayed on property that I should have first crack at it as a perk for staying onsite and let everyone else be damned. That way no offsite guests, pass holders or day guests get to ride. Imagine the uproar that would cause. But since I takedowns on property I should get first choice of everything with that logic.

With the current system you choose to get there a hour early. That is you choice. If someone gets there five minutes before no big deal. Everyone knows the rules and gets a chance at the same time.

You don’t have to like how everyone does it and can choose not to ride if you like. You could also spend 1 billion dollars and build a GE and then set your rules. Point is not everyone will like the system but it’s better than a 12 hour line.

You bring up very good points Mark. This is why I wanted to bring this up as I truly wanted to understand the other side of it. I suppose there really is no GOOD way to do it with crowds and desire to that magnitude.

 

[ChoachMcGoach]

I think guests that got lucky love it and guests that got screwed by the Q hate it. I personally hate it.

This is true. Being from NY state, I try to imagine going down there and my one goal for my whole trip is to get on RoR. And I tell myslef, "I don't care if I have to wait in line for 8 hours". Instead, I get down there and I lose in the lottery. I get no boarding pass. Meanwhile I see all these other people with passes who have ridden the ride a dozen times or more already. That part of it just doesn't seem fair.

 

[CaptainJack4077913]

I like VQ. This way people don't have to stand in line all day for one ride. This way people can go out and enjoy the park.

 

[Thecouch]

they could do VQ but do it like the old fastpass . have a few machines that once park is open you line up and scan magicband or ticket and get boarding pass . then the first people in the park get early time slot and later ones miss out . if they are going to do it at park opening they should let people in so early so the ones that rock up later are still getting in when the ones that arrived a lot earlier have already got there passes

 

[ILovePixieDust]

This is true. Being from NY state, I try to imagine going down there and my one goal for my whole trip is to get on RoR. And I tell myslef, "I don't care if I have to wait in line for 8 hours". Instead, I get down there and I lose in the lottery. I get no boarding pass. Meanwhile I see all these other people with passes who have ridden the ride a dozen times or more already. That part of it just doesn't seem fair.

I hear you. I have even read bloggers who go in and get the boarding group but then don't ride because they have already ridden it!!!! They're just doing it for research and to report back. But then others who may have travelled a long distance or only had one day at HS could have lost out because of that.

 

[finedice]

One problem with FP and virtual queues is that there really isn't too much to do while you wait in them. With all the rides and many shows and meet & greets on the FP system, we are forced into restaurants (oops - booked), QS food lines, into shops and out to overly crowded walkways with nowhere to really sit. While this IS the idea, the infrastructure to support it has to grow at the same rate as the system - in the case of DHS, it hasn't really. At least in MK, you can find something to do with a lesser wait or take in a quicker show that has less of a time commitment, as many of those things still exist.

 

[KMWoolley]

Edit: I just love all the people who bash the VQ system I have watched so many people on other threads bash the VQ system without proposing something better; In my opinion I believe they have made the best of a difficult situation.
I am sick of reading posts that just state, "They must do better" with no suggestion of how.

Paper fastpasses based on arrival to the park - I lived this system when it started, people running madly through the park, pushing and shoving, still massive line-ups on park opening to queue up - No thanks

Advance VQ BG - So who gets the advantage, on site guests at 60 days out like Fastpasses? With nearly 40,000 rooms on site (120,000ish people?), I would wager that no-one else would be able to get boarding groups - No thanks

Standby line - So the line-up outside the park would be massive, prior to opening and my guess is it would start at 3 hrs and go as high as 5 or 6, with no guarantee of riding if the reliability remains as it has been. Imagine the uproar when a couple people jump in the back to "join their family" further up in the line; there would be fights. Oh yeah, midday Florida heat and humidity would pretty much guarantee heat exhaustion and the end of this option - No thanks

Boarding Pass Lottery prior to the actual Day - While this sounds interesting, how many people would get passes (just in case) but then not actually go. At least the current system forces you to be present in the park, creating a much better certainty of the BG actually being used.

Preselling Boarding Passes - That is a very slippery slope. I guess using that logic, they should make you pay extra for the top 2 or 3 attractions in each park; simple Supply and Demand.

If you really think this is the way, lets make it interesting and add an element of risk. You can buy your Boarding Pass in advance but for every day in advance, it costs you $1, therefore 100 days in advance is $100. That's too much you say, then maybe wait until 50 days or 30 days, but who knows, maybe they will run out. So people will err on the side of caution and greatly overpay for something they believe should be included in their already expensive trip and mutter "They must do better"...

 

[ChoachMcGoach]

One problem with FP and virtual queues is that there really isn't too much to do while you wait in them. With all the rides and many shows and meet & greets on the FP system, we are forced into restaurants (oops - booked), QS food lines, into shops and out to overly crowded walkways with nowhere to really sit. While this IS the idea, the infrastructure to support it has to grow at the same rate as the system - in the case of DHS, it hasn't really. At least in MK, you can find something to do with a lesser wait or take in a quicker show that has less of a time commitment, as many of those things still exist.

I agree. And that was one of my main concerns about this virtual queue thing. RoR is obviously the most anticipated attraction ever and HS just isn’t the best for enormous crowds like that. And when all these people AREN’T in a line somewhere then it just really congests the park. I get it though - we all knew these kinda crowds were coming.
I really feel like WDW definitely needs a 5th gate. They keep building all of these hotels and they keep making all of these surrounding hotels “Good neighbor” hotels or whatever giving those guests all the perks of staying on-site. As the saying goes - “the low crowd days are gone”. But that’s for a whole other discussion.

 

[ChoachMcGoach]

I just love all the people who bash the VQ system without proposing something better; I honestly believe they have made the best of a difficult situation.
I am sick of reading posts that just state, "They must do better" with no suggestion of how.

Paper fastpasses based on arrival to the park - I lived this system when it started, people running madly through the park, pushing and shoving, still massive line-ups on park opening to queue up - No thanks

Advance VQ BG - So who gets the advantage, on site guests at 60 days out like Fastpasses? With nearly 40,000 rooms on site (120,000ish people?), I would wager that no-one else would be able to get boarding groups - No thanks

Standby line - So the line-up outside the park would be massive, prior to opening and my guess is it would start at 3 hrs and go as high as 5 or 6, with no guarantee of riding if the reliability remains as it has been. Imagine the uproar when a couple people jump in the back to "join their family" further up in the line; there would be fights. Oh yeah, midday Florida heat and humidity would pretty much guarantee heat exhaustion and the end of this option - No thanks

Boarding Pass Lottery prior to the actual Day - While this sounds interesting, how many people would get passes (just in case) but then not actually go. At least the current system forces you to be present in the park, creating a much better certainty of the BG actually being used.

Preselling Boarding Passes - That is a very slippery slope. I guess using that logic, they should make you pay extra for the top 2 or 3 attractions in each park; simple Supply and Demand.

If you really think this is the way, lets make it interesting and add an element of risk. You can buy your Boarding Pass in advance but for every day in advance, it costs you $1, therefore 100 days in advance is $100. That's too much you say, then maybe wait until 50 days or 30 days, but who knows, maybe they will run out. So people will err on the side of caution and greatly overpay for something they believe should be included in their already expensive trip and mutter "They must do better"...

I hear what you’re saying loud and clear. And I did not start this discussion with the attitude of “they need to do better”. So let’s just take a step back. I asked what people thought about it. I wanted to hear all sides of it.
That being said, I see all of your points and I don’t disagree. However, I am of the mindset that HOWEVER they do it it should be done in a way that gives all guests a FAIR chance. And I just don’t know if that’s how it is being done. I suppose it is because anyone can go and be there when they’re supposed to and everyone has an equal chance. BUT as I said, being someone from out of state who only is able to get down there once a year, if that, there’s a very good chance I come up empty and the local next to me who has ridden twenty times already scores a ride again. And that’s the part I don’t think is right. Think of how many families have saved $ for who knows how long because Disney hyped this land and this ride up and made all their reservations a year in advance or whatever and then you get down there and .....sorry, no Rise for you.
what the answer is I don’t know.
I was planning to do a solo trip to experience GE because my family wants nothing to do with Star Wars. But there’s absolutely no way I’m going to go down there while the VQ is in place and risk not getting on Rise after spending all of that $.
And as I said before, the other part this is kind of bothersome is when you get a boarding pass and then you hop over to another park for most of the day and only come back when your boarding group gets called. It just feels like cheating. I dunno. Maybe I shouldn’t feel that way. (Shrugs)

 

[KMWoolley]

being someone from out of state who only is able to get down there once a year, if that

Sorry if I offended you with my initial statement and have made a slight edit.
I have seen the phrase I used, over and over on the thread detailing tips on the RoTR Boarding Groups.

I know your pain, I'm from Canada and travel over 1200 miles to be there.
That being said, I went last week, only planned one HS day, prepped for getting a BG and got 'lucky' with BG5 the day I went. I was fully set to accept I may not ride due to the popularity/reliability/newness etc.
If not riding was going to be something to ruin my trip, I would not have gone.

I arrived at the park 1 hour before opening and boarded as soon as my group was called - therefore my wait time 9standing doing nothing else) was just over an hour - I think that's amazing for a new ride
When FoP and 7DMT opened (no VQ and I believe no FP) the standby lines were ridiculous (4+hrs) and still approach it on some busy days.
I stated early on that I thought they were doing the best they could with a difficult situation - the simple fact is there is no way to please everyone.

 

[ChoachMcGoach]

Sorry if I offended you with my initial statement and have made a slight edit.
I have seen the phrase I used, over and over on the thread detailing tips on the RoTR Boarding Groups.

I know your pain, I'm from Canada and travel over 1200 miles to be there.
That being said, I went last week, only planned one HS day, prepped for getting a BG and got 'lucky' with BG5 the day I went. I was fully set to accept I may not ride due to the popularity/reliability/newness etc.
If not riding was going to be something to ruin my trip, I would not have gone.

I arrived at the park 1 hour before opening and boarded as soon as my group was called - therefore my wait time 9standing doing nothing else) was just over an hour - I think that's amazing for a new ride
When FoP and 7DMT opened (no VQ and I believe no FP) the standby lines were ridiculous (4+hrs) and still approach it on some busy days.
I stated early on that I thought they were doing the best they could with a difficult situation - the simple fact is there is no way to please everyone.

Agreed and well said. Glad it worked out for you. Sounds like you got pretty lucky. I suppose we’ll see how it works out with Mickeys Runaway Railway without the VQ. Not sure if that will hold the same amount of popularity though.
To actually sound like I’m going the OTHER way, I’m wondering how VQ’s would work on attractions that are NOT brand new. Like take Peter Pan for instance. It’s a fairly popular attraction. How would VQ work with that? I think for attractions such as that it could work really well. Hmmmm.
I know Volcano Bay uses VQ’s and I think they work pretty well there.

 

[finedice]

I hear what you’re saying loud and clear. And I did not start this discussion with the attitude of “they need to do better”. So let’s just take a step back. I asked what people thought about it. I wanted to hear all sides of it.
That being said, I see all of your points and I don’t disagree. However, I am of the mindset that HOWEVER they do it it should be done in a way that gives all guests a FAIR chance. And I just don’t know if that’s how it is being done. I suppose it is because anyone can go and be there when they’re supposed to and everyone has an equal chance. BUT as I said, being someone from out of state who only is able to get down there once a year, if that, there’s a very good chance I come up empty and the local next to me who has ridden twenty times already scores a ride again. And that’s the part I don’t think is right. Think of how many families have saved $ for who knows how long because Disney hyped this land and this ride up and made all their reservations a year in advance or whatever and then you get down there and .....sorry, no Rise for you.
what the answer is I don’t know.
I was planning to do a solo trip to experience GE because my family wants nothing to do with Star Wars. But there’s absolutely no way I’m going to go down there while the VQ is in place and risk not getting on Rise after spending all of that $.
And as I said before, the other part this is kind of bothersome is when you get a boarding pass and then you hop over to another park for most of the day and only come back when your boarding group gets called. It just feels like cheating. I dunno. Maybe I shouldn’t feel that way. (Shrugs)

I'm not quite sure how much more fair you can be than a random lottery.

 

[finedice]

I suppose we’ll see how it works out with Mickeys Runaway Railway without the VQ. Not sure if that will hold the same amount of popularity though.

I don't know... I think it looks pretty darned cool so far. Don't doubt the popularity of the mouse!

 

[Disney Dan 47]

Disneyland (in pure california fashion) has made virtual queue a nightmare. If you don't make it into the next to impossible boarding group at the 7 am or 12 pm times, you do not even get to visit the Avengers land. So, no Web slinger ride and no guardians of the galaxy ride (formerly tower of terror). W...T...F... Disney !