Another MagicBand question

[Wizzard419]

Yeah, off season has it's perk and if you can time it right then you still get the late hours without the crowds.

[BenB]

If you go during the right times of the year...and get to the parks at rope drop...you won't even need FP.

We no longer have as much control over the timeframe, being so far away with kids in school. But I remember those days and they were nice.

[theBIGyowski]

If you go during the right times of the year...and get to the parks at rope drop...you won't even need FP.

We no longer have as much control over the timeframe, being so far away with kids in school. But I remember those days and they were nice.

Which days in June do you plan on being down there? That will make a big difference. Also, there are only a few major events going on during June. g** Days will be happening June 5-8 and Star Wars Weekends are the first 3 weekends in June, starting with the May 30-June 1 weekend. So if you are going to be there during Start Wars Weekends, just know DHS may be a little more crowded, especially in the Star Tours area.

If you haven't looked into it yet, I would suggest checking out TouringPlans.com and see if the membership is worth it to you. They can help make you custom touring plans that help you avoid long lines and see as much as you want in a day. They really helped DW and I avoid long lines on our last few trips. They also have a handy dandy app for your phone that can update your touring plans as you go through your day to help you avoid long lines even more. The app also has menus for every restaurant if you wanted to look at them before arriving...and of course it has current wait times and what they estimate the wait time will actually be based on 15+ years of data.

Anyway...that's my $0.02 and I am excited for your upcoming trip. DW and I went in June of 2011 and we loved it. We're hoping we can go back in (early) December of 2015 to take DS on his first trip. We should at least have flying cars by then too.

[theBIGyowski]

And then this happened...

http://www.chipandco.com/disneys-magic- ... ts-188570/

Main Points:
1) Guests will be able to add more FP+ reservations in the park after they have used their original 3 that they setup ahead of time...adding one at a time...similar to the old FP system
2) Park Hopping (no details yet)

What will be interesting is if you could add more FP+ reservations via the mobile app instead of using the kiosks.

[Wizzard419]

I still am waiting to see if they are going to monetize through the app... "Want more FPs? Buy a pack of 3 for $9.95".

[Amy]

I still am waiting to see if they are going to monetize through the app... "Want more FPs? Buy a pack of 3 for $9.95".

I wouldn't be surprised to see something of this sort happen.

[Wizzard419]

If they didn't then they are literally burning money with the app since they have to keep a staff up and running to support it as well as possibly having it operating 24/7 since it is sort of a live service.

[BenB]

Which days in June do you plan on being down there? That will make a big difference. Also, there are only a few major events going on during June. g** Days will be happening June 5-8 and Star Wars Weekends are the first 3 weekends in June, starting with the May 30-June 1 weekend. So if you are going to be there during Start Wars Weekends, just know DHS may be a little more crowded, especially in the Star Tours area.

If you haven't looked into it yet, I would suggest checking out TouringPlans.com and see if the membership is worth it to you. They can help make you custom touring plans that help you avoid long lines and see as much as you want in a day. They really helped DW and I avoid long lines on our last few trips. They also have a handy dandy app for your phone that can update your touring plans as you go through your day to help you avoid long lines even more. The app also has menus for every restaurant if you wanted to look at them before arriving...and of course it has current wait times and what they estimate the wait time will actually be based on 15+ years of data.

Anyway...that's my $0.02 and I am excited for your upcoming trip. DW and I went in June of 2011 and we loved it. We're hoping we can go back in (early) December of 2015 to take DS on his first trip. We should at least have flying cars by then too.

Thanks for the advice! Even though we weren't able to go last year, WDW is still like a second home to me. When we lived in Orlando we had passes and went all the time. I don't remember the last time we waited more than 10 minutes in line - but that's back when we knew how to play the fastpass game like experts. We'll have to see how it goes with the new system. We'll be there June 10-24.

[cy1229]

I still am waiting to see if they are going to monetize through the app... "Want more FPs? Buy a pack of 3 for $9.95".

BARRRRFFFFFF!!!!!!! I know you're probably right but it's still sickening. A WDW trip is already crazy expensive.

[Amy]

I still am waiting to see if they are going to monetize through the app... "Want more FPs? Buy a pack of 3 for $9.95".

BARRRRFFFFFF!!!!!!! I know you're probably right but it's still sickening. A WDW trip is already crazy expensive.

I can wait in the "regular" FP+ lines with you cy1229. I just wouldn't be able to pay for an "extra" FP. I agree that the cost is high enough without adding on to it. I'd rather spend a few extra minutes in line so I can afford to have an extra treat or two without feeling guilty

[Wizzard419]

If the claims are true that people staying in higher end resorts will get more passes than those staying in less expensive ones, it would just be a natural extension. At the same time it would also be a decent trade-off for those who aren't sure if they want the higher end places because they won't be in the room most of the time.

[cy1229]

For me, personally, if I'm going to stay in a higher end resort, I'm going to spend a little more time there to enjoy it. Anyone else feel that way? I wonder how much of a benefit extra FP times are for people who aren't going to extend their park hours. If it's a busy day, and your originally scheduled FP's were to end at 3 pm, how likely is it that more FP times will be available?

The only time I think they would be beneficial is on busy days, because on slow days the standby time wouldn't be horrendous. However, at busy times, more guests would have already claimed the FP's available for a day. So then the question is, is staying at a deluxe resort worth the extra FP's if they aren't going to get you anywhere? But if you don't stay at a deluxe resort, you don't get extra FP's. But do you really need them? And round and round it goes in my head.

[Wizzard419]

It depends on how frequently you would be going to WDW too since the average guest would not be interested in spending thousands on travel/lodging and hundreds on admission/food each day to just sit in the hotel. If it is your annual trip, then spending a little less time in the parks isn't so much of a deal, but for the average one they most likely won't be coming back anytime soon (even if they want to).

Personally, when I pick accommodations, I factor in proximity heavily. I'm not about to stay in a crap hotel room, but I'm also not about to book a room that would require a 30 min commute each way just to do the thing I want to do.

Supposedly, because people can swap times, the sell-out issue with the FP system isn't as problematic as it was in the past. Previously, on a busy day, some rides could be out of passes by lunch.

This reminds me, since the system is still new enough that it didn't hit their rainy season, what happens on attractions like test track where the ride can be down for huge portions of the day? In the past they would just say your paper passes would be valid regardless, but now that it is digital, does the system still keep track of the unused pass even if it has expired?

[Sleepy90]

This reminds me, since the system is still new enough that it didn't hit their rainy season, what happens on attractions like test track where the ride can be down for huge portions of the day? In the past they would just say your paper passes would be valid regardless, but now that it is digital, does the system still keep track of the unused pass even if it has expired?

This very thing happened to us in February with Pirates, the ride was down during the whole window of fastpass and we were just going to let it slide, however as we were passing on the way to the front of the park it was open again. I went to the cast member at the fastpass to ask if the fastpass could still be used as the ride had been down and she lit the passes up again and waved us on through.
It may be we had a very nice cast member or it may be the way you ask. I would not count on them opening the window for you but I guess if you can prove the timings then they will let you through.

[Wizzard419]

Since Disney uses the "Meat-Puppet" principal with the most of park workers (the tasks are mostly automated and they aren't given the power of decision), I wonder if the people scanning at the front of each ride can make those decisions freely? Did they scan the passes, have them show up as expired/rejected, then re-authorized them? Or did it just let you go in on the first attempt? It might be something built into the system if the ride shuts down it allows the affected passes to stay valid until close.