Paid FP options coming soon to WDW?

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Here is exactly what my confirmation email says about FPs:



You will notice the **, here is what that says:


Also, the first part is a link, which means that is part of the confirmation email and would have to be honored for this reservation, here is an excerpt from that link:


So all existing reservations would need to get free FPs based on this a d if you read through, it clearly states that while there may be tiers you can choose 3 FPs per day and has the following verbage:

So, it is also clear that after you have used the first three, you can get more for free as well.

Incidentally this is one of the very few Disney items that I have seen that doesn't say it is subject to change without notices in the fine print, which would indicate that even if a change were made it couldn't affect existing reservations.

But asaI said previously, I seriously doubt that Disney will move to a paid FP system aside from perhaps.paying for early access.
You'll notice they don't specify WHICH fastpasses will be available for free....
 
I'd be applauding it if I believed it would make a noticeable positive difference, but I'm not convinced of that. Now, my perception could be off, but I don't think that the FP lines at Disney are much longer/shorter waits (in terms of 5 of time saved as opposed to the regular line) than the EP lines at Universal. I feel like they both save you about the same amount of time. So I don't know why/how WDW implementing a Universal style FP system would make the lines any better.

Mind you, we avoid going during the really, really busy times of year, so perhaps during those times Universal's system really is faster than Disney's?? If that's the case then I understand why others see things differently than I do. :)

Comparing the Universal EP and the current WDW FP+ is like comparing apples to oranges for me. The main advantage is that the Uni EP is good for every ride in the park, (with the tiny exception of newly unveiled attractions in the few months after they first open, when no EP is available for anyone). You don't have to pick and choose at Universal, your EP is good for every ride, you aren't stuck trying to choose from what is left in the inventory for any given day. It may be luck of the draw how much time the EP saves you on any given day, depending on crowd level, but you've always got it in your back pocket if you need it. Considering that I can stay at the top tier Universal on-site hotel for less than half of what a rack rate room at WDW deluxe costs me and get the EP included in my stay, that makes Universal a much better value for my money, but I digress....

Back to the topic at hand, the current FP+ system puts people who do shorter stays at a disadvantage. With a 3-4 day stay I have no chance at certain tier 1 FP's, because anyone arriving within a 10 day window before me gets first access. This is what I've been complaining about for 5-6 years now, or however long we've had this system. Regular, old school paper FP gave everyone visiting the same park on the same day equal access. Granted, it was 1st come, 1st served, but equal, regardless of where you were staying or length of stay. Depending on how they would implement this, if I could buy, say, a Flight of Passage FP if one isn't available for free during my window, (it won't be), at least I have a chance to play now.

Its going to depend very much on how they decide to roll this out, but I kind of hope its at a price point high enough that not everyone will take advantage. That's the kicker, right there. If anyone can pay $10-$15 per person to get out of waiting in a 3-4 hour line for a ride, that is a no-brainer. Anyone with any sense and a budget that isn't super strict will do that, that's the price of one quick service meal per person. Skip a full lunch, buy the FP instead, and have a snack when you are done. Great value. That would be of no benefit to me, because now the FP line is a long as the normal standby, because everyone has bought into the system. Any foolish person who doesn't pay, and chooses standby, now has an infinitely long wait. If they are going to do this and have it be a benefit, they MUST do it at a price point that not everyone will take advantage of. I'm talking starting at $25 per person and going up from there.

Who knows, maybe they'll do a flat fee per park, per day, everyone gets one ride, like at USO. Or, maybe tier 1 and tier 2 FP's will be a different price points. Maybe they will only give you tier 2 attractions for free, and make you pay for tier 1 FP's. No one knows for sure at this point, all I know is that I will pay, and I won't be mad about it.
 
I haven’t been following the whole Martin saga on WDWmagic - is there any legit updates to what’s going on here? Or is this thread really just about socks and stocks now? When’s the last time Martin said anything on this? Any (legitimate) rumors on when it may be implemented?

No updates. Last comment was just that there would be "more to talk about before the end of this year".
 
No updates. Last comment was just that there would be "more to talk about before the end of this year".

Boy, that's specific... He started a tornado with the original vague comments, and now, is being even more vague.

I'm also in the camp of thinking/hoping no change will happen without quite a lead time... but I guess, at the end of the day, I'm really hoping for no change at all! :rotfl2:
 




Boy, that's specific... He started a tornado with the original vague comments, and now, is being even more vague.

I'm also in the camp of thinking/hoping no change will happen without quite a lead time... but I guess, at the end of the day, I'm really hoping for no change at all! :rotfl2:
Most rumors do start out more vague. People in the know try to keep their friends on the inside friends. If you say too much that hurts your friend more than you. I know that first hand.
 
Man - now we don’t even know what we are agreeing or disagreeing on. One thing we can probably all agree on...Loose socks are no good.

I haven’t been following the whole Martin saga on WDWmagic - is there any legit updates to what’s going on here? Or is this thread really just about socks and stocks now? When’s the last time Martin said anything on this? Any (legitimate) rumors on when it may be implemented?

I did also see a reply that "testing was currently happening", FWIW.
 
That would be of no benefit to me, because now the FP line is a long as the normal standby, because everyone has bought into the system. Any foolish person who doesn't pay, and chooses standby, now has an infinitely long wait. If they are going to do this and have it be a benefit, they MUST do it at a price point that not everyone will take advantage of. I'm talking starting at $25 per person and going up from there.

Yea they can't simply "low ball" the price of say FoP, and then sell all they can. That would never work because the FP line would take forever.

They have to "limit" the FP for sale no matter what the cost, at least close to the current mix. It's just who can buy them and when IMO.

all I know is that I will pay, and I won't be mad about it.

Yea same.
 
With the number of people willing to pay for FP's, and the amount they seem to be willing to pay, I should just go into business making FP's for people. Forget about this work thing, I'll just hang out at home refreshing for those free FP's that anyone can get.
 
I did also see a reply that "testing was currently happening", FWIW.
That was a while back and just because they test does not mean it will come they could test and decide against it... or they could drop it soon... my luck they’ll roll it out when I’m there canceling all my FP that I made and throwing my plans out the window :)
 
With the number of people willing to pay for FP's, and the amount they seem to be willing to pay, I should just go into business making FP's for people. Forget about this work thing, I'll just hang out at home refreshing for those free FP's that anyone can get.

That doesn't work though, if you have a short stay and all of the free FP's for the rides you want are gone before your window even opens.
 
Most rumors do start out more vague. People in the know try to keep their friends on the inside friends. If you say too much that hurts your friend more than you. I know that first hand.

Yeah, I get that.... secrets don't stay secret very long sometimes.

I guess my feeling is though, if he didn't know anything more, why even bring it up? It just started a feeding frenzy. It certainly didn't help anyone by announcing "I can't tell you what it is, but I've heard something is being considered about Paid FPs...."

Seems a little too much like grade school taunting... "Nanner nanner nanner, I know something you don't know". He maybe didn't intend that, but that's what it seems to be boiling down to.

Why not just wait until something more specific was there to announce...?
 
Yea they can't simply "low ball" the price of say FoP, and then sell all they can. That would never work because the FP line would take forever.

They have to "limit" the FP for sale no matter what the cost, at least close to the current mix. It's just who can buy them and when IMO.



Yea same.

I wonder if they will vary the price due to demand, like they did with the park tickets. The same FP may cost you more or less depending on the day you want it.
 
Yeah, I get that.... secrets don't stay secret very long sometimes.

I guess my feeling is though, if he didn't know anything more, why even bring it up? It just started a feeding frenzy. It certainly didn't help anyone by announcing "I can't tell you what it is, but I've heard something is being considered about Paid FPs...."

Seems a little too much like grade school taunting... "Nanner nanner nanner, I know something you don't know". He maybe didn't intend that, but that's what it seems to be boiling down to.

Why not just wait until something more specific was there to announce...?
Someone asked him if there was more he could share that’s why he had that response.
 
That was a while back and just because they test does not mean it will come they could test and decide against it... or they could drop it soon... my luck they’ll roll it out when I’m there canceling all my FP that I made and throwing my plans out the window :)
Page 20 of the thread, March 13th was when Martin said testing was happening. Page 23, this morning, he said, "Nothing more except I still anticipate more to talk about before the end of this year." And yeah, with a July trip plan I hear you on the "rolling it our while I'm there" concern!
 
At whatever time they open up for, and that is trying to bank on someone changing their plans. I'd rather pay for the guarantee. I know I'm in the minority here, and that is ok.

This took less than a minute to grab. There are plenty of posts about refreshing for FP's so I'm not going to get into it much but to switch from a free system to a pay for play system doesn't work for me. There are plenty of ways to pay additional money at WDW and get to hit the top rides without changing the current FP system.



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