Disney Fanatics

[yankeesfan123]

I wish boards like this were around 40 years ago because I could probably find an answer to my question. Since they weren't, I figured I'd ask here..

Were Disney fans upset when Disney got away from the ticket books and went to an "all inclusive" ticket to a park? Were they mad that they would be paying for something they wouldn't ride?

Were Disney fans upset when FP started? Did they think it would make standby lines longer, or that offsite guests wouldn't be able to participate or that Disney would eventually charge for the privilege?

Was the fact that there was no large, public forum available for people to complain a factor in less complaints?

[Ms. Mode]

All very good questions.

I remember when we had to buy ticket books for attractions at local parks; it was a bummer. You never had enough tickets....unless you spent a fortune. I would imagine that WDW goers where happy to pay a base price and have the option of which rides they wanted to ride as many times as they wanted to stand in the line.

I have often wondered about when the legacy FP started if it caused a ruckus...I somehow doubt it.

[mickclub1955]

The world has changed a whole lot since way back then. The internet has given everyone a voice. In any place (even in one's family, I have found), there will always be someone who complains about something. Change is hard for some people. One thing I have learned is that change is inevitable. I have also learned that sometimes there is nothing we can do about it and yes believe it or not, life goes on. WDW has made many changes over the years to get with the times. It will continue, and we will have to learn to deal with them. We might not like changes and some people will complain a little, but after a while things tend to quiet down and then the change becomes the new norm. Then it will change again.....

There is a saying here on Intercot. "We crank because we care". This is a place where we who love Disney can come together with a common bond and freely express ourselves without getting flamed (unlike some other forums out there). Most everyone on here gets frustrated over the unknown, so with all of that being said, I will get off of my Soapbox now. Love you Intercot!!!!

[Speedy1998]

I think for both there were people on both sides of the argument.

I know my first trip without the ticket book I was thrilled, because my parents let me ride all the fantasyland attractions more than once each. My first trip to WDW when the books were still in use not only did we only do each attraction once, we missed some completely because we were out of tickets.

I also hated the legacy fastpass when it first started because the "standby" line got longer. Personnally I never really loved the paper fastpass system, but I learned to live with it, and enjoyed being able to walk to the front of the line when I was actually holding a fastpass.

[MNNHFLTX]

We used the ticket books on my first trip to Disney World back in 1975. I remember hanging onto my last E-ticket so that I could ride Space Mountain one last time before we left that day; however, my Dad got antsy to get on the road back to our hotel so I never got to use it. I still have that e-ticket today. I don't know if there was a ruckus when Disney changed to the all-inclusive admission price, but I know when I moved to Florida in 1985 and started going to WDW on a more regular basis I really liked it.

As far as Fastpass, we were living in Florida (again) at the time and loved it. I do not recall any complaints from locals or other visitors about it. Keep in mind, though, that this was before dining plans, bounceback offers, etc. Priority Seating had just been implemented and you could still call the day before you went to the park to get those or even get them the same day by stopping in at Guest Services (remember the "space-age" kiosks in Epcot--those were great!) So although those changes took some getting used to, they didn't require planning 180 days out, as the current system does (or would like you to).

I do believe people adjust to change, it's true. But would people have fewer complaints if they had no social media websites to complain on? I doubt it. And in any case it is a moot point since the technology that enables such sites to exist is what has enabled Disney to implement the FP+/MM+ stuff.

[Gator]

First, I refuse to be lectured about complaining by a YANKEES fan.

Second, pretty sure no one complained about having unlimited access to all rides, and even more sure that no one complained that that they could skip the lines of their favorite attractions for free. The people complaing about FP+ are upset because it limits something that used to be unlimited, and may at one time in the future cost extra. Legitimate to complain about that, not to mention how confusing it is.

Third, 3 World Series in the last 10 years!!! Go Red Sox!!!

[Terra]

I remember us using the ticket books as a child at Disneyland.

I much prefer all inclusive so we can ride whatever, whenever. I can't imagine doing tickets now with my children [it's like a carnival! LOL]

I do have a question though. Because obviously I didn't buy the tickets as a child, my mom did
Could you buy more than one book per person a day so you could ride more? Or was it restricted to one book per person per day.

[faline]

Could you buy more than one book per person a day so you could ride more? Or was it restricted to one book per person per day.

I remember seeing ticket booth kiosks all over the park where guests could purchase more ticket books as needed.

When we first went in 1979, the individual tickets were still in use. However, we never used them. At the time of our first visit, they were introducing an all-inclusive multiday ticket that would allow you to ride all the rides as many times as you wanted. Those tickets were made from cardboard and had blank spaces for each allowable day of entry. As you entered the park in the morning, the cast member would date stamp one of the boxes with the date you were entering. You would then show that ticket at the entrance of each ride to obtain access to the ride.

[Katzateer]

It was wonderful not to have to use the ticket coupons. You could ride anything you wanted, as many times as you liked.

That would have been a fun addition to the new circus area in Fantasyland - a ticket given to ride Dumbo or the train or Barnstormer.

And I don't remember any complaints about fast passes. A lot of people did not even know about them which surprised me.

[Janmac]

I remember seeing ticket booth kiosks all over the park where guests could purchase more ticket books as needed.

When we first went in 1979, the individual tickets were still in use. However, we never used them. At the time of our first visit, they were introducing an all-inclusive multiday ticket that would allow you to ride all the rides as many times as you wanted. Those tickets were made from cardboard and had blank spaces for each allowable day of entry. As you entered the park in the morning, the cast member would date stamp one of the boxes with the date you were entering. You would then show that ticket at the entrance of each ride to obtain access to the ride.

Thank you, Linda! I've been confused since reading this thread yesterday. All I recall about our 1974 WDW trip was trying to accommodate each of 3 kids of wildly varying ages, and opinions, while trying to decipher the MK map. If we're relying on my memory it'd be what tickets?!? Did we have tickets?

However, I have a much better memory of our 1979 trip and do not recall any coupon booklets. Your description of the boxes with the stamps rings a bell tho I do not recall showing the ticket to CMs at individual rides, which we could have done.

Our next trip was 1984 and of course that was an inclusive ticket.

As for complaints, I suppose parents buying the new all inclusive tickets might have complained.

Jan

[Fangorn]

I'm sure I'm not the oldest person around here, but to my knowledge I'm the only one to have been at Disneyland on opening day... So I have a bit of "experience" with the original ticket books and the migration to today's Park admission.

There were multiple options with the original ticket books, lots of special things for different reasons, but it basically came down to:
1) General Admission - you got in the Park, but couldn't ride anything
2) 10 ticket book - various denominations of tickets A-E. I don't remember the exact split, but there was only 1 E-ticket
3) 15 ticket book - more of the same above. There may have been 3 E-tickets.

Ticket books included general admission entrance to the park.

At various times the ticket books also included special tickets for certain attractions - Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln had it's own ticket, and for awhile Adventures Through Inner Space by Monsanto had a separate ticket. Neither or those counted as one of your 10 or 15 tickets.

There were also special ticket books where every ticket could be used any ride. You generally could not buy these at the gate - only through the company where you worked, or some charitable organization.

Tickets could be purchased individually at the ticket booths scattered around the park. You could also buy additional ticket books at the booths. These were cheaper than at the gate, since they did not include "General Admission".

And while you might not think so, there were a surprisingly large number of people who only did the General Admission thing. There was a lot of entertainment available at Disneyland for just that GA price.

The limiting factor, as a kid, was always how many tickets can I get my hands on, and what can I do with them. Trip planning included asking all your friends and family if they had any left over tickets you could have. They usually did, but mostly the A & B tickets (not very useful).

When Disney introduced the unlimited pass concept around 1980, it was an incredible deal. Yes, it cost twice as much as a 10-ticket book, but you could ride anything you wanted as much as you wanted. For a year or two both the tickets and the passes were available at the same time. You had to either show your pass or "tear out an E coupon" to ride the Matterhorn.

No one complained about the passes.

I don't recall every hearing anyone complain about the original FastPass, either. When FP was introduced, people were pretty used to waiting in line for 30 minutes or more for pretty much everything. People were certainly much more patient about waiting than they are today. Very few people knew or used FP when it first came out. That lack of knowledge/understanding hasn't really changed all that much over the years.

FP didn't have much affect on standby lines, at least initially. The percentage of ride capacity that was dedicated to FP was pretty small, so any increase in standby time would be (at most) only 2-3 minutes. Fast forward and prior to FP+ some rides had their FP percentage apparently set at 90% of capacity (TSMM at WDW, for instance), resulting in standby times going through the roof.

I've rambled long enough... You do that when you get old.

Steve

[yankeesfan123]

Does anyone remember if the original FP had a test phase? Was it originally only available to resort guests before it rolled out to offsite guests? Just wondering if it had as slow of a rollout as FP+.

I'm not sure if the parks FP machines could differentiate between offsite and onsite because, even up to just last year, onsite visitors could have just a park ticket that wasn't attached to their room reservation. So I guess maybe that answers part of my above question lol.


And to my original questions, I can come to terms with the fact that very few people had an issue with the original FP.

However, it does seem quite possible, especially from some of the replies, that a decent amount could have been annoyed by the all inclusive park ticket. But without a method for an "everyman" to voice their complaints, it probably went mostly unnoticed.

[MNNHFLTX]

There were multiple options with the original ticket books, lots of special things for different reasons, but it basically came down to:
1) General Admission - you got in the Park, but couldn't ride anything
2) 10 ticket book - various denominations of tickets A-E. I don't remember the exact split, but there was only 1 E-ticket
3) 15 ticket book - more of the same above. There may have been 3 E-tickets.

I seem to remember that you could use multiple lower level tickets to ride an E-ticket ride--like two D tickets would be the equivalent of an E-ticket. Do you recall this?

[PETE FROM NYC]

I like the pay once ticket. That was in my area before WDW tried it, at Palisades Park and Coney Island.
I will be using FP+ this September. I do not think I will like it. I prefer spur of the moment decisions.
Same for ADRs 180 days out. I hate having to schedule everything 180 days prior.

[Fangorn]

I seem to remember that you could use multiple lower level tickets to ride an E-ticket ride--like two D tickets would be the equivalent of an E-ticket. Do you recall this?

Yes. Each ticket had a specific value (in cents). For instance I recall just before the change over, an "E" ticket had a value of 95 cents. "D" was 75 cents, "C" was 50, "B" was 25(?) and "A" was 10. You could combine them as long as you came up with the right value. So yes, you could've used 2 D tickets in place of an E ticket - although you would've been spending more than you needed to.

I don't ever recall that option being particularly mentioned anywhere in any Disney guidebook, but I remember doing it.

Somewhere in the early ninety's my mom discovered a small cache of old Disneyland tickets (alas, mostly A tickets). The next time we went to Disneyland, we took them to cash them in, but the Carter years had made them more valuable as collector's items than any monetary value they had.

Steve

[mrte62]

My Dad's company had access to the Magic Key Club tickets ... we thought we were so cool in 1973 ...

[Bruegge]

in 1976 I was graduating high school.

We went to Disneyworld and MK while on spring break from the heart of the midwest.

Yes, 5 of us drove in one car to Fl. each with only $200.00 cash. We stayed at a (cheap) hotel on the beach in Daytona for 7 days and rode over to Disney for a day...

All I remember (Beer was involved, Drinking age in FL was 18 back then) is we bought a ticket pack and didn't have to wait a long time to ride Space Mountain.

Spring break and lines that were not awful???

I guess I loved the ticket books....

OH, and the money lasted till our last day ... $200.00 each.... Lost my last $30.00 at the dog track in Daytona. Had to use Mom's credit card for gas on the way home.

I hate greyhounds...

[Wayne]

I remember us using the ticket books as a child at Disneyland.

I much prefer all inclusive so we can ride whatever, whenever. I can't imagine doing tickets now with my children [it's like a carnival! LOL]

I do have a question though. Because obviously I didn't buy the tickets as a child, my mom did
Could you buy more than one book per person a day so you could ride more? Or was it restricted to one book per person per day.

You could either purchase an MK entrance ticket (with no access to rides and ticketed attractions) or a ticket book that included admissions. The ticket books were gone with the opening of EPCOT. There were ticket booths located throughout the Magic Kingdom to purchase additional ride tickets so, if you had the cash, you could ride to your heart's content.

[faline]

My Dad's company had access to the Magic Key Club tickets ... we thought we were so cool in 1973 ...

Loved the Magic Key Club!!

[yankeesfan123]

Some comments got me thinking...

I kinda feel like a "no rides; park only" type pass for a park like EPCOT would be pretty popular.

It would mostly be attractive to locals who can't afford (or don't want) an annual pass.

For a lower admission price, guests could stroll the world showcase, watch illuminations, eat dinner, catch some entertainment acts, spend money at kiosks, etc.

Realistically, it would probably be a logistical nightmare with crowds these days, but it seems like a nice option for locals.