Paid FP options coming soon to WDW?

[M:SpilotISTC12]

Not being willing to wait ~45 minutes for a ride like Pandora or any # of other ones that are certainly worth it, seems a bit over the top to me, but just imo.

Pandora and Star Wars land I can understand but when Muppets and swirling saucers is almost an hour, you've lost me.

 

[mom2rtk]

Disney is a business. Disney lost billions during the cobid days. Disney will make a decision on what's best for them to keep cms employed and for the stockholders. FP is a perk and if they choose to go the route of paid and it drives people away, that is a business decision. But as we have seen in the past. For every person who decides not to go, 5 others happily replace them.

I never said anything contrary to that. Just saying that for many, it's not a matter of "adapting" and I understand their frustration.

And I get that some parks are at capacity right now because of limits set because of the pandemic. But that will change very soon when those limits are lifted. And there won't be a line of 5 people waiting to replace them. Every park had capacity available every day of the year (pre-Covid) minus a couple of holiday days at the Magic Kingdom. There will be lots of people, but that line of having lots of people waiting to get in is just wrong.

 

[Wandering Oaken]

I think FP+ for onsite guests and paid for everyone else. If it is just a paid service for everyone, then I will stop staying onsite as often. FP+ 60 day booking is one of the main reasons I stay onsite every trip.

Who says it has to be one or the other? Why can't they offer a paid version and still allow those staying onsite to book theirs 60 days out?

 

[Grumpy by Birth]

I don't even know why it's a debate honestly. Disney is going to do what they are going to do and us pions will either accept it or stop going.

I wasn't referring to the question of whether Disney will charge or not as much as the barbs being traded about people "exploiting" the system. I had flashbacks to the heated arguments about how some of us were uber-abusers of legacy FP.

 

[mom2rtk]

I wasn't referring to the question of whether Disney will charge or not as much as the barbs being traded about people "exploiting" the system. I had flashbacks to the heated arguments about how some of us were uber-abusers of legacy FP.

Those were some epic threads! Great way to spend a random snowy day in 2012!

And I believe the term was "superuser"!

 

[Wandering Oaken]

Those were some epic threads! Great way to spend a random snowy day in 2012!

And I believe the term was "superuser"!

I was thinking of a far different term.

 

[MickeyWaffles]

If it comes back as paid, it's not a matter of adapting for those who can't afford to add it. It could spell the end of them visiting. And I sympathize with anyone in that position.

Well, we can always adapt to the alternate to paid FP (standby.) That’s what we’ll do if we can’t afford or choose not to pay for whatever it ends up being.

If they charge a premium for FP but limit distribution more than previously, standby waits could be more manageable than they were with FP+. No one really knows what the system will be and only time will tell.

Paid FP is likely a reality. But without knowing what the process will be, it seems premature to judge it.

Also worth noting that there were many people who could not afford to stay on site to get 60 day booking privileges in the first place. Many of them did not have a great experience with FP+ because of how many were given out and how that impacted the standby times. Constantly stopping the line to let the numerous FP in. Perhaps a premium FP can help improve the experience for more people, not just us FP+ experts.

We always stay on site and knew the FP+ system inside and out. We used it to our advantage, but it was not perfect I am open minded about a future change.

 

[Remy is Up]

I never said anything contrary to that. Just saying that for many, it's not a matter of "adapting" and I understand their frustration.

And I get that some parks are at capacity right now because of limits set because of the pandemic. But that will change very soon when those limits are lifted. And there won't be a line of 5 people waiting to replace them. Every park had capacity available every day of the year (pre-Covid) minus a couple of holiday days at the Magic Kingdom. There will be lots of people, but that line of having lots of people waiting to get in is just wrong.

Even prior to the pandemic, message boards were filled with tons of people complaining about this or that. Doomsayers saying WDW will lose guests. Yet they were packed. Boards like these are a tiny cross section of wdw guests and not even close to representative of the general park goer. Wdw will adjust and balance things to that sweet spot. They haven't found it yet where there is a loss of guests vs loss of profit. So fp being paid could very well be a revenue stream. Personally, as an ap holder, we loved fp+ and knew how to use it. A paid one will be a choice. They also could add it as a perk for platinum passholders. Never know since they haven't showed us any changes to passholder tiers, prices, or perks yet.

 

[zombieScar24]

Listening to most podcasts (especially those featuring travel agents) it seems the conventional wisdom is that for a majority of their crowds and hotel guests, they're banking on the mid-upper middle class incomes and above. Its not about pure numbers of butts in the seats or through the turnstiles. Those figures only go into calculating how many trains/ride vehicles need to be running.
If paid FP+ becomes a thing, I would expect it to start similarly from the concierge offering of $50 a day for three additional fast-pass bookings. As others have said, hopefully this starts as a resort only option with partner hotesls eventually paying the mouse more for the same opportunity.

 

[Grasshopper2016]

I think it is easy for someone of means to say they would pay for FP. For my family it wouldn't be to much of an inconviences (an unwelcome one for sure, but doable), however for someone taking several children, or a family that saved for a long time just to get a room at an all star resort, it's not so simple. I've seen it more than once (especially in recent years) that families are having to give up more and more of the things that make a trip memorable, just for the privilege of actually being there. Exclusive experiences (droids and light sabers) have an up charge. Specialty tours have an up-charge. Desert parties (prime viewing spots), and BBB Deluxe packages (the good costumes). It's just getting harder and harder to watch. Yes I know, all these things are optional. However through the eyes of young ones they are essential. And so many people are either forced to pony up more money they don't have, or be forced to tell their kids no...again. I would really hate to see, FP join the list of things people have to budget extra money for. Who wants to tell their child no to something like that? With all the things Disney has taken away in recent years, (like them or hate them) FP+ was one of the few things that were there for everyone, regardless of cash flow.

This is true. But, it seems to me that Disney has gotten so much more expensive in recent years that those with limited means are pretty much already priced out. Prices for everything at Disney have shot up at rates much higher than inflation over the past five or so years. I'm sure that families in the bottom half of the country in terms of wealth and income still visit --- saving carefully, staying offsite, packing their own lunches, etc. But it gets harder and harder for them every year. And, as you say, it seems like they are forced to miss out on more and more of the experiences that make Disney so enjoyable for those of us lucky enough to be able to afford them.

I suspect that some version of free fastpasses will come back, at least for those staying onsite. I also suspect that it will be supplemented by some version of paid fastpasses. I just hope that Disney prices and limits the availability of the paid ones in a way that doesn't grind the standby lines to a still. If they do, that might actually make people who can't afford the extras better off than they were pre-Covid.

 

[Wandering Oaken]

This is true. But, it seems to me that Disney has gotten so much more expensive in recent years that those with limited means are pretty much already priced out. Prices for everything at Disney have shot up at rates much higher than inflation over the past five or so years. I'm sure that families in the bottom half of the country in terms of wealth and income still visit --- saving carefully, staying offsite, packing their own lunches, etc. But it gets harder and harder for them every year. And, as you say, it seems like they are forced to miss out on more and more of the experiences that make Disney so enjoyable for those enough lucky enough to be able to afford them.

I suspect that some version of free fastpasses will come back, at least for those staying onsite. I also suspect that it will be supplemented by some version of paid fastpasses. I just hope that Disney prices and limits the availability of the paid ones in a way that doesn't grind the standby lines to a still. If they do, that might actually make people who can't afford the extras better off than they were pre-Covid.

We are not of limited means by any stretch of the imagination but this will probably be our last Disney trip since our kids are older. Heck, my son (youngest) will be 19 by the time we go next year. I wouldn't be going now except that I cannot live life without experiencing the Star Wars stuff at least once. I have been enthralled by SW since I was 5 years old and my dad took me to see A New Hope. Because Disney keeps pricing more and more people out I doubt we will ever go again.

 

[Grumpy by Birth]

Those were some epic threads! Great way to spend a random snowy day in 2012!

And I believe the term was "superuser"!

Epic indeed! Whether it was preceded by super- or uber-, some huge arguments ensued over whether the correct term was user or abuser.

 

[ford91exploder]

Who says it has to be one or the other? Why can't they offer a paid version and still allow those staying onsite to book theirs 60 days out?

Because Disney did not build that vastly expensive infrastructure to not monetize it, A couple of years ago TSMM went all FP many Disney cynics like myself thought that that was a test of paid FP and/or Pay-Per-Attraction. On the ground it was vastly unpopular because many did not/could not secure a FP

 

[luv2cheer92]

Because Disney did not build that vastly expensive infrastructure to not monetize it, A couple of years ago TSMM went all FP many Disney cynics like myself thought that that was a test of paid FP and/or Pay-Per-Attraction. On the ground it was vastly unpopular because many did not/could not secure a FP

You do know why TSMM was FP only right?

 

[Wandering Oaken]

Because Disney did not build that vastly expensive infrastructure to not monetize it, A couple of years ago TSMM went all FP many Disney cynics like myself thought that that was a test of paid FP and/or Pay-Per-Attraction. On the ground it was vastly unpopular because many did not/could not secure a FP

That is my point. Disney could monetize it. Add a fee to the FP+ system and they can still allow the 60 days out feature for those that stay onsite. I would still pay for the service.

 

[elmwyn]

Every major theme park in America has some version of Express/Flash/FP that can be purchased as an add-on to reduce wait times. None of the ones I've seen require scheduling time windows. Not in advance, not day of. I cannot, for the life of me, understand why Disney insists on holding on to the hour by hour scheduling aspect which results in so much unnecessary stress on their guests. Just let guests purchase the priority entry and then enter each attraction as they come to it.

It’s a capacity problem.

Chains that specialize in regional parks can offer unfettered ride passes because they have a fraction of the attendance and are often much bigger.

The Express Pass at Universal Japan, which has much higher attendance than their domestic parks, relies heavily on return times.

Whatever replaces FP+ will need to have return windows or virtual queues to function or be so exclusive it basically takes the place of the private tours.

 

[kat_lh]

Here no and (owning my privilege) I hate it with your FP+. I was a super user / abuser and our last trip was hands down the best one. (We rode FOP three times.) I love the virtual queue for RotR and have gotten it both of our park days. And if I could get a reservation for HS for the rest of days, I’d switch just to be able to ride it daily.

I miss all the add on hours and events and honestly, I think I’d be okay with no FP if they brought those back. It’s hard to stand in line for any amount of time for 7DMT when you remember being able to just get off and get right back on again during an EMM event.

we loved the universal system but, we stayed in property and it was in October, so lower crowds meant less waiting for everyone.

my biggest complaint and it’s one I think everyone has is that Disney hasn’t learned how to air condition the outdoors. Truly, if they could make the outdoor sections more pleasant, I think you’d hear a lot less complaining.

 

[Honeypot]

I just posted in another thread, but I have an option in my plans now that shows FastPass, and has a date of Dec 27 for selections, which is 60 days before my trip...seems some kind of FP is coming soon.

 

[bernina]

I just posted in another thread, but I have an option in my plans now that shows FastPass, and has a date of Dec 27 for selections, which is 60 days before my trip...seems some kind of FP is coming soon.

This "glitch?" has been popping up since last year based on posts I've seen in several groups. I'd love it to be real (and who knows, maybe they're doing some testing) but so far it hasn't materialized into anything.

 

[Honeypot]

This "glitch?" has been popping up since last year based on posts I've seen in several groups. I'd love it to be real (and who knows, maybe they're doing some testing) but so far it hasn't materialized into anything.

The thing I thought was different (but could be totally wrong) is that it gave an actual date that is 60 days prior to the start of our trip. I thought previously there were no dates, or a general June 30 or something. Who knows? It's been interesting reading everyone's opinions (of which there are many!) on the topic.