The 200th FP+ kinda complaint

[Mendelson]

I'm a huge planner. So is my SIL. We are going in January as a group of three separate families.

Our 60-day window is Tuesday. We were trying to plan and organize over text and realized just how overwhelming that is.

We now have a WebEx meeting scheduled for 7am Tuesday morning. To plan. For our trip.

I'm not overly negative on the whole system, but it did make me chuckle the extent to which we have to go to prepare this time around.

[PirateLover]

Insanity! Good luck...

[Janmac]

That is a chuckle.

Disregarding fp+ for a moment, and off topic, I'm feeling that way about our cousins reunion this summer. Coordinating is getting more and more difficult. This is the first reunion that I'm wishing we were going to WDW, even with fp+. It couldn't be any more complicated.

Good Luck!

Jan

[vicster]

You'll be glad you made those fast pass reservations when you get to WDW! It's worth the planning - enjoy!

[KylesMom]

We now have a WebEx meeting scheduled for 7am Tuesday morning. To plan. For our trip.

Absolute craziness!

[DizneyRox]

We now have a WebEx meeting scheduled for 7am Tuesday morning. To plan. For our trip.

I think the FP+ system opens at midnight or like 1am, so by 7am, the choices will be dwindling.

Just saying...

[Tygger7]

It does open at midnight...I was online at 12:01am making FP+ reservations and STILL couldn't get everything we wanted during the times we needed.

[MrPeetrie]

I'm not sure if all his FastPass+,supposed-to-be-a-vacation-but-I-feel-like-all-i-do-is-work-at-it planning is pure zaniness...or the coolest thing ever. I guess I'll find out next year.

Good luck with WebEx meeting.

[Kenny1113]

Yes. Definitely difficult with a group.
Last Nov we were on the phone for at least an hour trying to coordinate FP+ times.

[ransam]

we are now 19 days out and kind of firming up our plans and it kind of stinks cause we have no flexability. We can't eat at Epcot one day because all our FP are at MK and just too much traveling with a 5 year old boy

[ransam]

I like planning but i'm not a fan of having everything firm every day, 60 day out. I like to have flexibility.
I have a strict work schedule at work. I don't want to have to meet deadlines on vacation.

[TheVBs]

We left a few days at the end of our last trip without FPs or ADRs, so that we would have some unstructured time. For the most part it gave us the feeling we were looking for. But I have to admit there were one or two times when we wished we'd done FPs for some rides.

[Mendelson]

Thanks - I'd since read that it opens at midnight and so we've changed our meeting time to midnight.

Yay?

[RunDMV]

I have a strict work schedule at work. I don't want to have to meet deadlines on vacation.

That is the bottom line for me. I have a job that i absolutely LOVE. It requires constant planning and scheduling. I get paid for it. No way in Bay Lake am i going to pay someone so that i can do the same thing on my vacation away from all my planning amd scheduling.

[texas211]

I like planning but i'm not a fan of having everything firm every day, 60 day out. I like to have flexibility.
I have a strict work schedule at work. I don't want to have to meet deadlines on vacation.

Can I get an AMEN. AMEN..

Going to WDW is now a lot like work. The planning, the prep, tools like Webex are needed, spreadsheets and continuous checking. In addition, when I'm there I now have to carry a device so I can make changes, where a special ID device and swipe it everywhere I go. If only I could get free coffee when I arrive, and free pens.

[Johnno52]

Originally we thought the FP+ would ruin spotaneity however it has made our trips more enjoyable.

We decide what park we want to visit that day and book our FPs (usually as late as 11.00 am). The system gives us quite a few choices of times.

I qualify this be saying that we are in Orlando for almost 3 months so we can pick and choose as we are not limited to a short visit like most. We will be at WDW resorts for the first 18 days and won't do any bookings until we get there.

Having said this I still think its still workable for short stays! Don't stress yourself out by trying to make it perfect.

Go there and enjoy the visit, there is so much to see, it will always work out!

[azcavalier]

Yeah, they billed it as "it allows you to be more flexible!" but I just don't see it. It locks you in to where you're going to be each day. And if you bail, you're screwed. And it doesn't provide a way to gauge what attractions actually NEED to have a FP for riding. Since FP+, i've had to miss attractions because I couldn't get a FP for it, because I was locked in to something I wasn't even going to use! If they would remove the tiers from the Epcot and DHS attractions, that would make it better, but they won't because they're trying to drive people to ****** attractions that hold no interest.

[paragon]

I travel with five other people, each of which are completely clueless to any form of rhyme or reason, ( butterfly chasers..)
and would be entirely lost or stuck in the wrong line for the entire trip if it weren't for me, and my planning. I had no issues with FP+ during our last visit, ten days, I was able to secure everything, and had no troubles re-arranging things during our trip. The worst thing to happen to us was when a ride went down due to weather related issues-but we were automatically notified of the situation and another FP was issued. I see all these posts complaining about the system but I must be missing something because I have yet to encounter any real difficulty with it, whether its getting the FP I wanted, or re arranging things. Same for ADR's, I have never had a bad experience with these. Hmmm, maybe I will go buy a few lottery tickets-seems I am just lucky I guess...

[MargaretMessler]

Admittedly, I have yet to experience my first trip using the FP+ system, but I think my biggest problem is that it doesn't seem to leave any preferable options for those of who prefer not to plan everything and like to vacation "at will", so to speak.

Under the FP+ system, if I don't plan FP for the most popular attractions, and decide to go to EPCOT tomorrow morning, I am left with two choices : wait in longer lines or end up skipping things from lack of time. Previously I could decide by the day where to go, go to the park in the morning, and just run with it, choosing FP day of.

So yes, there is room for plenty of flexibility, but it is not as flexible as the old system. Thankfully, I tend to travel during less busy times and am a park opener by nature, so perhaps it will not prove to be too troublesome.