#mymagicplus

[brittyro]

#magicband #collection #disney #wdw #mymagicplus #addiction #LE #DISNEYWORLD

[lastgenpodcast]

FastPass+ - What Is It it, Why It Is, Why It's a Positive

WHAT IS IT?

Over the past year and a half, the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida has been rolling out a new system called FastPass+ to replace the then existing ride reservation setup simply known as FastPass.  

The new implementation allows guests the opportunity to reserve a FastPass (FP) for up to three attractions at the theme parks located within Walt Disney World up to 60 days in advance if you are a resort guest (staying in a WDW hotel) or 30 days in advance if you are staying off property.  You can reserve three rides each day for every day you are visiting the parks.  So, for example, if you were visiting the Magic Kingdom, you could reserve a FastPass for Space Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain, and the new Seven Dwarfs Mine Train for a specific time, as pictured.  Knowing that I made dinner reservations at 6pm and I intend on being in the Magic Kingdom very late, I wanted to book my FastPass for nighttime to avoid the heavy wait times one would encounter on a Saturday night in Disney.  This is a great example of how to make the new FastPast+ system work for you.

On an additional note, you must book your three attractions in the same theme park per day.  For example, if you are visiting Animal Kingdom one day, then you must book your first three FastPass+ reservations IN Animal Kingdom.  If you plan of park hopping, which many, myself included, do, you can book one new FP+ reservation at the kiosks available at your second park once you arrive at there. For location of these kiosks, ask a cast member and they will direct you.  Keep in mind that there are a limited number of passes distributed per day so not all attractions may be available, but nab what you can and then enjoy the park.  

You may read people being frantic about not being able to book an attraction they want even though they are trying 60 days in advance.  I have NEVER had this issue.  The only time I had to book on Day 60 was when the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train was newly opened.  Just now I looked online and attempted to book Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Space Mountain, and Splash Mountain for two weeks from today (4/14/15) and all the attractions were available.  I even tried to book Soarin' at EPCOT (notoriously busy) and was able to secure a FastPass if I wanted.  Take advantage of the 60 day window but know you have flexibility.  The window of opportunity does close eventually but it's nowhere near some of the alleged complaints I have read.   Of course anything is possible so planning ahead is encouraged regardless.  

The most important thing to remember while visiting Disney is that the rides are only 1/2 the experience.  Never let missing X or Y attraction make or break your vacation.  It's the most visited theme park in the world with an immense amount to see and do. You WILL NOT do it all in a single trip.   

 So how do you book your FastPass+ reservations?  Pretty simple to be honest.  

Once you book your vacation package via a travel agent (may I suggest Mouse Fan Travel, I have no relationship with the company but highly recommend them regardless) or through Disney directly, you will want to set up your MyDisneyExperience profile for you and whoever is travelling with you.  This will give you access to view and reserve attractions in advance, as well as allow you to book dining reservations 180 days in advance of your arrival.  This is all accessed on your vacation by using your Magic Band (pictured above) which is an RFID device that you use as a door key, your FP, and even a method of payment that you can link to your debit/credit card and secure with a pin code.  The idea of that may give you hesitation towards security, but a wrist band is no different that your wallet or purse.  Be aware and safe.  You are on vacation but you shouldn't leave your common sense at home.  

This may seem like a great deal of extra work and, while it is a tad more planning in advance, you will be thankful you did once you arrive and are able to sit down for dinner without waiting for an hour, or worse, being informed there is no availability at all, which can and does happen.  This brings us to the "why" of FastPass+.

WHY IT IS?

So, why has Disney done away with the previous version of FastPass and made the major shift to the new design?  A number of reasons but let's first discuss the old system and the issues with it.  

Under the old FastPass you would arrive at the park, find your way to the entrance, or nearabout, of an attraction you wanted a FastPass for, entered your park ticket into a machine and it spat out a paper FastPass telling you what time to return and when you could be issued another pass.  

If you visit a Disney fan message board, you will find people lamenting the passing of this old system, citing that you didn't have to plan your day months in advance prior to the advent of FP+.  This, however, is untrue because if you are a frequent guest at the parks, you were well aware that certain attractions would run out of available FastPass tickets and you made those a priority before you arrived at the park anyway.   I have also read on many a message board that people don't like to "plan their whole day".  Three attractions will, at most, take up an hour of your time unless we are discussing Universe of Energy or another extreme example.  That should not be your whole day and if it is, you may want to re-evaluate the way you time manage.  

You may also read how the old system allowed you to get unlimited FastPasses; this is also false.  Time is still time and it is limited.  Let's take the image of a FastPass of Rock'n'Roller Coaster as an example.  The time printed to return is 6:20pm.  On the lower right hand side you will see when the guest got the FastPass.  It says 16:27 which is 4:27pm. Looking a bit more we see that a new FastPass will be available at 6:20pm as well.  So, for the next two hours this guest can't get a new FastPass ticket.  Then, if we assume they get a new pass exactly at the time allowed, at 6:20pm,  they will get another pass which could also have a two hour wait till the next entrance time.  Then we find ourselves at 8pm and over nearly four hours, we have hit two attractions using the old FastPass system.  If crowds were low you could make a killing in this system, but attendance is not a flat line, it's an ever climbing slope, but more on that later.  

Now, these times will vary towards what attraction you get a pass for and time of year you visit, in terms of attendance, but you get the point.  Both systems had/have their caps.  Furthermore, the old system required you to be at the park for "rope drop" (fan community term for park opening) to secure a FastPass for certain busier attractions.  My wife and I would be at rope drop for Hollywood Studios simply so we could land a FastPass for Toy Story Midway Mania.  There was no other reason for us to get up at 7am except we knew that, if we wanted to ride that attraction without a two hour wait in a queue, we had to enter with the masses.  Riding Toy Story was not the end all of our trip, but the fact that getting there so early was a necessity was a bummer.  

This is not to say I did not enjoy the old system; I did.  I did not like aspects of it though.  Biggest being that you were never sure what time your return time was going to be for unless you frequently visited the FP kiosk near that attraction and timed it just right as to not interfere with your lunch or dinner plans.  

Conversely, I have issues with the new FP+ too.  Three rides per day is too limited.  Let me book five if I want.  Let me book three in the A.M. at EPCOT and two in Magic Kingdom for the P.M. if my profile shows I have a hopper pass.  When I am done with my existing 3 (or 5 in this scenario) passes, allow me to book another pass via the MyDisneyExperience app instead of having to visit a kiosk with 15 people who can barely figure out Facebook in front of me.  

Also, you do not have to use this system at all if you don't want to.  Just a few months ago, a couple I know went to Disney for their first time ever.  They made no dining reservations, they did not use FP+ at all, and had a great time.  They even texted me from the airport asking when my next trip was planned because they wanted to go back.  It is YOUR vacation.  You make of it what you will. 

Here is the thing though, MyDisneyExperience and FP+ is still in its infancy.  A year and a half of introducing a new system into a business which never shuts down is a massive undertaking and patience is sometimes required.  They are still "testing" the system, so who knows what new details will be introduced over the next two years.  

Crowd control is one of the major factors for the new system.  Since 2008 the attendance at the Magic Kingdom has increased by 1.5 million guests annually up to 18.6 million per year .  From 2012 to 2013 it saw a 6% increase.  The numbers for 2014 are not yet available, but with profits up as they were in the fiscal calender there is no reason why the attendance won't reflect further increased numbers.  The old system simply could not handle this load of people.  I don't know about you but I don't feel the need to jostle with 50,958 people (that is the daily average with an attendance of 18.6 mill) to get a piece of paper so I can ride Big Thunder Mountain in a timely manner.  The FP+ system sends crowds into directions and better handles the insane flow of humanity that enters the park.  It simply is not the same as it was in the early 2000's.  The parks have more people, but no extra real estate (coughcough5thParkPleasecoughcough).  The "dead" season that once was during January when you could almost run up and down Main Street without bumping into someone is no longer a reality.  

The other reason is more business savvy.  If you are spending your time in-between rides walking back and forth to paper FP kiosks, then you are not taking that time to walk through a store or buy a snack.  Your next ride is already booked now though.  No reason to rush.  Now, maybe, you look through the Emporium with the extra time you have on your hands.  It's also easier to spend money if all you are doing is waving your Magic Band in front of the sensor on the register.  It's akin to purchasing digital music.  "Oh, I just click here and don't have to do anything else?  Ok."

So the reasoning is two fold, but you can make it work for you in either case.  

WHY IT IS A POSITIVE  

For my wife and me, the past few trips have been the best yet.  We no longer need to get to a park in the early morning just to secure a paper FP.  We can book our attractions around our dinner reservations.  All I need in my day is on my Magic Band.  It's just streamlined.  MyDisneyExperience allows everyone on my reservation to see what we have planned, which is also a nice addition when you tend to travel with a group.  

We have noticed something, though, that could be useful to others.  Save those FP+ reservations for later in the day.  It simply is not busy enough most mornings to warrant using them.  We now will go to the park early, no rush, just before 10 A.M., and visit the attractions we don't have FP+ for later in the day.  We have a nice lunch, then, just when the heat is starting to kick in along with the heavier crowds, we leave the park and relax at the hotel for a bit before heading out to dinner and then returning to the park with FP+ ready to go.  

Don't want to leave the park?  Great.  Go around and look at all the small details in the park.  Find Mr. Toad in the Haunted Mansion cemetery.  Go to Tom Sawyer Island.  Take the railroad all around the Magic Kingdom.  If you are in Animal Kingdom, go to Rafiki's Planet Watch.  Watch the pavilion shows in EPCOT.  Walk around Hollywood Studios and wonder when the hell the Star Wars expansion is going to start construction because HOLY S$%T there is not that much to keep me here all day.  None of these things require a FP.  Take a tour if you have the time.  There is so much to do in every park that the attractions should not be the end goal at all times.  

New things send people into hysterics and Disney fans are no different.  The new system may seem intimidating as first, especially if you have never visited the park before, but take it step by step and you will be fine.  Or you just do the parks in the classic style and arrive at rope drop then do the "dash to splash" and the "race to space".  

So there you have it.  FP+ is here and it is here to stay.  It will change over the coming months/years but the idea is there.  As said above, it's YOUR vacation, make of it what you will.  Enjoy yourself, it's Disney.  

One final tip, if you are a complete Disney rookie, check out the WDW Radio Disney Podcast.  The host is Lou Mongello and there are multiple episodes dedicated to informing you of what is in each Disney park and what to look for.  Keep an eye out for the "listener email" shows in particular since they usually address many questions towards vacationing in the parks from folks just like yourself.  If you are a Disney nerd, it's also a fantastic addition to your podcast collection.  I have been a listener and supporter for many years and have learned a lot about the parks and Disney in general.  

Next time we will discuss Malestrom and the future of the Norway pavilion in EPCOT.  

[didsomeonesayadventure]

Dear Disney,

You are driving a lot of your Annual Passholders and Cast Members to Universal. And we are some of the most loyal to the company. Please get your act together. 

Sincerely, us who love the parks so much and we live with Disney in our hearts and we feel you don't care about us at all.