Frustration with Lack of Spontaneity

[Park Hopper]

It has become too complicated for me to plan a Disney trip to enjoy it anymore.

This is a great point. Although, for me the complication is not how to do it, but more all of the data you have to collect and guess work just to make the plans that you will be locked into. While planning for a Disney vacation used to be fun and exciting, it has become a major chore. Before, I would have a general idea of what parks we wanted to go to so that we could match up some of our favorite ADRs. Now, you are more or less locked into the parks you pick (if you want to go on the top FP+ rides without waiting in line for an hour or so).

I believe the dining plan greatly reduced my level of enjoyment from the restaurants (making them more generic and often hard to schedule) and the FP+ is doing the same for the enjoyment of the rides. We go every year in January, but not this year. The sad thing is that my sadness over not going is greatly reduced by the happiness of knowing that I do not have to plan everything out. There are some other factors here that are contributing to our decision not to go, but the fact is that we would probably still be going under the old FP system, where we could come in and have some degree of relaxation and spontaneity. Now we feel like we would be paying too much for parks that have less to offer (currently), while having to pull kids out of school to go to a somewhat stressful (or at least highly regimented) vacation.

[i'm grumpy]

We hated it!! It seems like all we did was run around and missed so much. We only had 1 ADR and were late for that, so we had to wait for a table and that took more park time.

[Goofy4TheWorld]

For me, the only monster shortcoming of FP+ is the terrible IT behind it all. Disney IT has become complacent with having unstable, flaky, and sometimes even demon-possessed computer systems at all levels of IT, from ADRs, rooms, tickets, FP+, both public and internal computer systems are just a mess. Disney IT has a culture which accepts downtime, appears to have no problem with an "upgrade" creating catastrophic downtime for guests currently on their vacation, and based on my own recent calls to MDE tech support, are now becoming annoyed with anyone who does not accept "give it some time and it will work out" as a solution to the problem I have called about (and waited 45 minutes on hold to boot).

As for the "planning stress" of FP+, I just do not understand why people get so upset about it. Ever since 1971 most families have been trying to "get it all in" and "beat the crowds" at Disney. FP v1 gave us the ability to take some of the pressure off of getting that must-do ride by giving us a time within an hour or two, but we had to stress about physically walking over to the FP machine to get that ticket, and we could only get one "guarantee" before we had to repeat the cycle again.

FP v2 now gives us the ability to lock in THREE must dos, and we get to stress about it 60 days before our vacation instead of stressing about while we are in the parks crisscrossing from one FP machine to the next all day long. No matter how you shake it, MOST families spending time at an amusement park are going to experience some stress trying to get things accomplished, and all FP+ has done is shift a little bit of that stress 60 days earlier than it was in the past.

Looking back at the OP talk about sitting in their room and pondering switching parks, back in the "old days" we had no idea how wait times were because there was no such thing as MDE and FP+ feeding us that information 24/7 onto our mobile phones. If you wanted to change your plans based on attendance, you couldn't make that decision until you were inside the overcrowded park, and then you never knew if the park you hopped to was going to be even worse. Further, if you did leave DHS in favor of MK mid-day, you probably weren't getting a paper FP for many of the E-ticket rides, but of course you wouldn't know that until you had trekked all the way to that attraction's FP distribution machine to see that they were covered up with bags!

I find that there is plenty of opportunity to be spontaneous at Disney, but you have to pick your poison. If you want to have a relaxing day at the parks (or sleep in), then you can't expect to get a lot of things done that day. That's no different than in the past, if you were willing to crisscross the park all day chasing paper FPs, you could get an awful lot done, but it would be a marathon not a leisurely stroll kind of day. I don't see much difference between now and then, except now you get to have your first 3 FPs in hand before you even roll out of the bed. Plus, if you miss the nostalgia of crisscrossing the park chasing more FPs, you still get to do that too by having to go to a kiosk to get a 4th or 5th FP+ reservation! The fact the Standby lines appear to have got longer recently is, IMHO, not a function of FP+ as much as it is that there are just way more people squeezing into the parks, and nothing Corporate does (read price increa$es) seems to do stem the flow up people coming into the parks.

I have found that once I put my phone down and stop trying to maximize my FP+ reservations (or my park choice) by trading things like a broker on Wall Street that I enjoyed my time much better. Sure, there were times I walked in the FP+ line for an attraction with a 10 minute Standby time, but I just took my licks and kept on going without tinkering with things unless I absolutely had to (which for my family, usually involved trips to the ER or Urgent Care!).

Just my

[Park Hopper]

As for the "planning stress" of FP+, I just do not understand why people get so upset about it. Ever since 1971 most families have been trying to "get it all in" and "beat the crowds" at Disney. FP v1 gave us the ability to take some of the pressure off of getting that must-do ride by giving us a time within an hour or two, but we had to stress about physically walking over to the FP machine to get that ticket, and we could only get one "guarantee" before we had to repeat the cycle again.

FP v2 now gives us the ability to lock in THREE must dos, and we get to stress about it 60 days before our vacation instead of stressing about while we are in the parks crisscrossing from one FP machine to the next all day long. No matter how you shake it, MOST families spending time at an amusement park are going to experience some stress trying to get things accomplished, and all FP+ has done is shift a little bit of that stress 60 days earlier than it was in the past.

Wow, I really disagree with this and I don't really know where to start. To me there is a fundamental difference in having someone from your party grab a fast pass for a ride you want to go on at whatever park you choose to go to that day and being tied to a specific park on a given day. When we would go, there were very few rides that required FP and that you couldn't get a FP for later in the day. And, really THREE must dos? For the most part, especially in the parks that are not MK, you can use FP+ for one ride that you would have needed an old FP for and then 2 others that never would have required a FP in the first place. It has been my experience that the standby lines for rides since FP+ are considerably longer, and this seems to have been documented with data on other sites. For example, the thought that you would need a FP for Nemo/Living Seas is amazing to me. This was almost always a walk on attraction when we go (again in a not so busy time of the year). Now, you have to wait until you have passed the time for all FP+, two of which you traditionally would not have needed, to get another. By that time, they are all out of the major attractions. I don't see how that is less stressful or having the stress removed 60 days ago.

The only advantage I see to the FP+ system is that on a busy day, you can guarantee (without a hour plus wait) yourself a ride at the major attraction for the park you are at that day. And, that is about it. The other 2 FP+ were not required previously and by the time you finish the major ride, you are done getting any meaningful FP for the rest of the day. And, this had to have been scheduled months prior. We tried for a somewhat spontaneous trip, finalized 3 weeks or so before we left, and we could not get Mine Train FP+ ever because they were all sold out.

I long for the days when you could pick the park you wanted that day, or change your mind about what park you were going to (not having to stick to a plan you made 2 months prior) and ride rides. I never had a problem crossing a park for my family to get FPs. It may be different for some, but for us, we end up on far fewer rides with the FP+ system than we ever did with FP or before even that.

I think the system is perfect for people that like to stick to a rigid schedule, want to show up in the parks late morning or around lunch time to ride 3 rides (maybe one or two more), and then go back to the resort. But if you are active and enjoy getting to the parks early and riding a lot of rides, park hopping, etc... I cannot see how this is better.

Regardless of others' opinions on FP+, I can state that personally it has reduced my level of enjoyment in the parks and has actually been a major factor for us not going this year. I also realize that we go in a less crowded time of the year and our opinions may be different if we were there for peak times - however, there is a reason we go during the less busy times.

[1DisneyNut]

Wow, I really disagree with this and I don't really know where to start. To me there is a fundamental difference in having someone from your party grab a fast pass for a ride you want to go on at whatever park you choose to go to that day and being tied to a specific park on a given day. When we would go, there were very few rides that required FP and that you couldn't get a FP for later in the day. And, really THREE must dos? For the most part, especially in the parks that are not MK, you can use FP+ for one ride that you would have needed an old FP for and then 2 others that never would have required a FP in the first place. It has been my experience that the standby lines for rides since FP+ are considerably longer, and this seems to have been documented with data on other sites. For example, the thought that you would need a FP for Nemo/Living Seas is amazing to me. This was almost always a walk on attraction when we go (again in a not so busy time of the year). Now, you have to wait until you have passed the time for all FP+, two of which you traditionally would not have needed, to get another. By that time, they are all out of the major attractions. I don't see how that is less stressful or having the stress removed 60 days ago.

The only advantage I see to the FP+ system is that on a busy day, you can guarantee (without a hour plus wait) yourself a ride at the major attraction for the park you are at that day. And, that is about it. The other 2 FP+ were not required previously and by the time you finish the major ride, you are done getting any meaningful FP for the rest of the day. And, this had to have been scheduled months prior. We tried for a somewhat spontaneous trip, finalized 3 weeks or so before we left, and we could not get Mine Train FP+ ever because they were all sold out.

I long for the days when you could pick the park you wanted that day, or change your mind about what park you were going to (not having to stick to a plan you made 2 months prior) and ride rides. I never had a problem crossing a park for my family to get FPs. It may be different for some, but for us, we end up on far fewer rides with the FP+ system than we ever did with FP or before even that.

I think the system is perfect for people that like to stick to a rigid schedule, want to show up in the parks late morning or around lunch time to ride 3 rides (maybe one or two more), and then go back to the resort. But if you are active and enjoy getting to the parks early and riding a lot of rides, park hopping, etc... I cannot see how this is better.

Regardless of others' opinions on FP+, I can state that personally it has reduced my level of enjoyment in the parks and has actually been a major factor for us not going this year. I also realize that we go in a less crowded time of the year and our opinions may be different if we were there for peak times - however, there is a reason we go during the less busy times.

My thoughts exactly.

I will add that we found ourselves crossing the park far far more running around to FP+ times than we ever did with the old paper FP system. As has been mentioned by many, you rarely needed a FP for more than one, maybe two attractions in each park prior to FP+. However, now with FP+, the wait times are substantial for rides that rarely ever had more than 15 minutes in the past. It is a direct result of the new system giving FP+ for these rides, especially when the major attractions are out of FP+. People that have these show up in batches and the CM's completely stop the standby line and feed the FP+ line in which causes large wait times that take quite a while to work themselves back out. By the time the standby line normalizes, another parade or show or whatever ends and here comes another batch of FP+ to the rides and back the standby up again.

Another point I will make is the stress isn't just at the 60 day mark, it doesn't end there. To us, it is worse during the actual trip because you get to the park you set up 2 months ago, it is busy, the crowd flow is weird or there is weather that affects your day, there is a show or parade at a particular time you didn't know about or now decided you want to see and guess what......you have a conflict with a FP+ you scheduled 2 months ago. So here you are in the park, on what is supposed to be a vacation with your face in your phone trying to adjust your schedule to fit what you now want to do. For me, that is just like being at work. I run a business and have to make appointments, schedule, work out issues all day long every day and that is the last thing I want to do on vacation.

We used to go 2 and 3 times a year but when FP+ went into place we stopped going and just now went on our first trip with it in place. It was every bit of annoying as I was afraid it would be and more.

Now that I have used FP+, I can tell you who benefits most from it and probably loves it and that would be slackers. The guy that shows up 15 minutes late for everything, drags around about getting to his appointments and getting work done. It is perfect for them because they can drag around in the morning and show up at 1:00 or 2:00 in the afternoon, hit their 3 FP+'s and maybe a show or one other ride and then go to their dining ADR they made 6 months ago, eat and then call it a day. lol

[Goofy4TheWorld]

However, now with FP+, the wait times are substantial for rides that rarely ever had more than 15 minutes in the past. It is a direct result of the new system giving FP+ for these rides, especially when the major attractions are out of FP+.

From what I had read and experienced, the lines are long no matter what you do. The E-ticket Standby lines are longer than ever, the FP+ entry lines are longer than the old paper FP lines, the ABCD-ticket attraction's Standby lines are longer, the bus lines, the food lines, the park exit, it's all a mess. Unless Disney had reduced the throughput of all of the attractions, the total number of people riding the "big rides" hasn't changed because of FP+, it's just that there are more people in the park than in the past.

If FP+ made Haunted Mansion lines get longer, what was the offset attraction who's line went down?

[joonyer]

From what I had read and experienced, the lines are long no matter what you do. The E-ticket Standby lines are longer than ever, the FP+ entry lines are longer than the old paper FP lines, the ABCD-ticket attraction's Standby lines are longer, the bus lines, the food lines, the park exit, it's all a mess. Unless Disney had reduced the throughput of all of the attractions, the total number of people riding the "big rides" hasn't changed because of FP+, it's just that there are more people in the park than in the past.

This is the real problem. The more crowded the world gets, the less spontaneity one can have; more people means everybody has to wait more, regardless of the FP/advance pass system in use. The attractions can still only have the same number of riders per hour. It's simple math. If the crowds were sparse enough, you'd never have to wait in any line, and never need a dinner reservation, and eventually the parks would close for lack of business. But it seems that the theme park business is more popular than ever. Our choice is to either get in line, or go somewhere else on vacation. If enough people do that, the crowds will be reduced and the parks will be more manageable. I'm not counting on that happening.

[TheVBs]

For me, the only monster shortcoming of FP+ is the terrible IT behind it all. Disney IT has become complacent with having unstable, flaky, and sometimes even demon-possessed computer systems at all levels of IT, from ADRs, rooms, tickets, FP+, both public and internal computer systems are just a mess. Disney IT has a culture which accepts downtime, appears to have no problem with an "upgrade" creating catastrophic downtime for guests currently on their vacation, and based on my own recent calls to MDE tech support, are now becoming annoyed with anyone who does not accept "give it some time and it will work out" as a solution to the problem I have called about (and waited 45 minutes on hold to boot).

As for the "planning stress" of FP+, I just do not understand why people get so upset about it. Ever since 1971 most families have been trying to "get it all in" and "beat the crowds" at Disney. FP v1 gave us the ability to take some of the pressure off of getting that must-do ride by giving us a time within an hour or two, but we had to stress about physically walking over to the FP machine to get that ticket, and we could only get one "guarantee" before we had to repeat the cycle again.

FP v2 now gives us the ability to lock in THREE must dos, and we get to stress about it 60 days before our vacation instead of stressing about while we are in the parks crisscrossing from one FP machine to the next all day long. No matter how you shake it, MOST families spending time at an amusement park are going to experience some stress trying to get things accomplished, and all FP+ has done is shift a little bit of that stress 60 days earlier than it was in the past.

Have to agree with all that you've said. First of all, the fact that Disney, of all companies, settles for shoddy IT mystifies me. There's no excuse for it. They certainly have the money to fix it.

I also agree with the FP vs. FP+ shifting the stress. I do like that with FP+, we walk in knowing we're going to get on rides like TSM or 7DMT. In fact, we'd never been on TSM before FP+ because we weren't willing to do the wait time. And, you're right, going into the parks and relying on the old FP system didn't net any guarantees either.

As for rides that you wouldn't typically need a FP for now being on the FP+ system, I wonder if most of us who think this is silly are traditionally going at slower times? I've seen the massive line capacity some of these rides have that are typically walk ons when we go. Perhaps this system is making a huge difference to those who can only go during the busiest times.

Now that I have used FP+, I can tell you who benefits most from it and probably loves it and that would be slackers. The guy that shows up 15 minutes late for everything, drags around about getting to his appointments and getting work done. It is perfect for them because they can drag around in the morning and show up at 1:00 or 2:00 in the afternoon, hit their 3 FP+'s and maybe a show or one other ride and then go to their dining ADR they made 6 months ago, eat and then call it a day. lol

You are hilarious! This actually made me giggle out loud. My goodness! If someone likes a relaxed vacation where they sleep in once in awhile then they must be total life slackers? Doesn't that contradict the argument that this whole system is causing too much stress?

[waymickey]

I have used fast pass + twice now and must say I loved it the first time and hated the second time. It was a trip killer IMHO. First day second trip, I used three fastpasses at Epcot hopped to AK and wanted a fast pass to Mickey meet and greet. I Was told that was a no go "cant do that". MY DD was working with Mickey at that time and I was trying to surprise visit her. Could not do it. There was no line for Mickey but I could not use the Fastpass line (since there is just one mickey) So DD was hanging with mickey alone in a room and no way for me to surprise her since no fastpass could be made. Waste of time for the visitor and for the workers.
The rest of the trip all the Fastpasses for any of the must do rides were gone for the week. No I did not make FP+ 30 or 60 days out. I did not know I was going. I am going back during the dreaded Christmas week to see my DD and I do not plan to go to the parks. My plan right now is to resort hop, see the sights, rent a boat, visit the horses at the ranch, and eat.
There are way more people in the parks, way more.Not a busy week by any means in the past. The flow is wonky and rides broke down constatnly. While in line; nemo, pirates, haunted mansion, thunder mountian, pirates again, and space mountain all went down.

[1DisneyNut]

Have to agree with all that you've said. First of all, the fact that Disney, of all companies, settles for shoddy IT mystifies me. There's no excuse for it. They certainly have the money to fix it.

I also agree with the FP vs. FP+ shifting the stress. I do like that with FP+, we walk in knowing we're going to get on rides like TSM or 7DMT. In fact, we'd never been on TSM before FP+ because we weren't willing to do the wait time. And, you're right, going into the parks and relying on the old FP system didn't net any guarantees either.

As for rides that you wouldn't typically need a FP for now being on the FP+ system, I wonder if most of us who think this is silly are traditionally going at slower times? I've seen the massive line capacity some of these rides have that are typically walk ons when we go. Perhaps this system is making a huge difference to those who can only go during the busiest times.



You are hilarious! This actually made me giggle out loud. My goodness! If someone likes a relaxed vacation where they sleep in once in awhile then they must be total life slackers? Doesn't that contradict the argument that this whole system is causing too much stress?

I think you missed the point I was trying to make. One of the groups that I would think love FP+ would be slackers/late to the party type people. It puts them on an even playing field as far as FP goes. It takes the old saying of "the early bird gets the worm" and throws it out the window.

They still won't get as much done because they miss so much park time but those type people are the ones that always complained because all the good paper FP's were gone by the time they got to the park at 2 in the afternoon. That is the reason I think that group probably loves FP+.

My argument is all the planning and adjusting is stressful. I can't comprehend how not getting to "sleep in" could be stressful although I guess for some people maybe it is but for me it is right the opposite; if I am not up and getting after it in the morning, my stress level goes through the roof.

From what I had read and experienced, the lines are long no matter what you do. The E-ticket Standby lines are longer than ever, the FP+ entry lines are longer than the old paper FP lines, the ABCD-ticket attraction's Standby lines are longer, the bus lines, the food lines, the park exit, it's all a mess. Unless Disney had reduced the throughput of all of the attractions, the total number of people riding the "big rides" hasn't changed because of FP+, it's just that there are more people in the park than in the past.

If FP+ made Haunted Mansion lines get longer, what was the offset attraction who's line went down?

You used to be able to get to the park early and blow through rides like crazy until around noon or a little after without even using FP but now since they do FP+, a lot and I mean a lot of people schedule them for first thing in the morning and that causes standby lines to be long right out of the gate. You can't just show up early and blow through all the popular rides in the standby lines like you used to and then later all those that had early FP+ are in the standby lines making them even longer. That is how it has made standby lines longer throughout the day although throughput is still the same.

The week we were there was busy for this time of year but wasn't even in the ball park as busy as the 4th of July weeks we have been in the past so I can tell you by comparison that FP+ has obviously affected the wait times.

After being there for a week fighting the system, I finally figured out how to work the system in my favor but I couldn't adjust all of my FP+'s to work to my advantage because of lack of availability for the times I would have needed. When we go back, I will most likely be able to outmaneuver the majority of the crowds but it is going to require an entirely different attack plan than what I used to use prior to FP+. The traffic flow, standby lines and FP system is just totally different than it used to be and is really weird if you have been to WDW a lot and knew how to work the old system.

[DisneyGiant]

I keep lobbying for more fast passes. After each trip, I write to Guest Relations with that suggestion. I want the ability to book 5 fast passes in the Magic Kingdom - then I'll be content.

Epcot & DHS are jokes - only 2 attractions really need FP. Maybe more could be used at AK - but really MK needs more.

I have not been successful in gaining the extra fast pass after the 3rd one is over. There are virtually none available for the E ticket attraction.

On my last trip - on the last day, I found it amusing to use FPs for the Electric Parade & Fireworks. They were readily available that day, around noon.

[TheVBs]

I think you missed the point I was trying to make. One of the groups that I would think love FP+ would be slackers/late to the party type people. It puts them on an even playing field as far as FP goes. It takes the old saying of "the early bird gets the worm" and throws it out the window.

They still won't get as much done because they miss so much park time but those type people are the ones that always complained because all the good paper FP's were gone by the time they got to the park at 2 in the afternoon. That is the reason I think that group probably loves FP+.

My argument is all the planning and adjusting is stressful. I can't comprehend how not getting to "sleep in" could be stressful although I guess for some people maybe it is but for me it is right the opposite; if I am not up and getting after it in the morning, my stress level goes through the roof.

Ah. Yes, I got that reasoning backwards didn't I? Sorry about that. I can see what you're saying now.

As far as sleeping in goes, it depends on where we are. I get stressed if we sleep too late on a WDW trip too! Although as we get towards the end of our trips we tend to have later nights and aren't getting up as early. I would go nuts if we didn't get to a park until 2pm! So would DH.

On other trips I definitely enjoy sleeping in a little. It depends on where we are and what there is to do.

[Bass T-bone]

Too many people in the parks...

If it's ever going to return to 'normal' they are going to have to build another theme park...
or raise the prices so much that only the financially well off can go.

[The Dad]

[QUOTE=Bass T-bone

"or raise the prices so much that only the financially well off can go."[/QUOTE]
What the heck.....they did that a long time ago! MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!

[IMADisneyFreak]

The one thing I miss the most and the one thing that has been overlooked in this entire post was the flexibility and freedom of physically having a FP ticket in your hand. There were times we decided that we were not going to venture over to a ride for the FP time on our tickets and instead would walk up to someone and hand them our FP tickets. The smile it brought made it worth while. THAT's spontaneity! And on the flip side, I recall standing in line for ToT with my daughter, waiting 90 minutes and finally enjoying the ride. We were walking through the gift shop to meet up with my wife and son when she said she wished she could ride it again but because the standby line was so long I told her that we would try later. Then a woman walked up to us and asked if we wanted her FP for the ride because their plans had changed and they were leaving the park. The time stamp was within the next 10 minutes. My daughter was so excited that we were able to get right back on. We have not been to WDW since the FP+ launch but we plan on going in another year or so. This post was insightful but I must admit that it is disappointing to know that our vacation may be more of a chore rather than a time to enjoy the magic.

[i'm grumpy]

One trip I was able to ride RNR 7 times. I guess those days are gone.

[TheVBs]

One trip I was able to ride RNR 7 times. I guess those days are gone.

They aren't! Our girls did it on our last trip (Aug. 2015). They were able to just keep getting back in line for RNR one afternoon. They were in heaven!

[Park Hopper]

This post was insightful but I must admit that it is disappointing to know that our vacation may be more of a chore rather than a time to enjoy the magic.

Good point about the ability to transfer the old FPs to others. Now, you would need their magic band!

However, do not be too disappointed - it is still Disney World. For those of us that had an aggressive strategy of getting to the parks early and maximizing the use of the Fast Passes throughout the day, hopping from park to park, etc.., the new system is really a big disappointment. For others, who only need to ride a ride once per day (not 2-3 times or more), have adequate advance time to plan, and are less likely to deviate from their plans, this system works, as it gives you 3 guaranteed rides at specific time slots of your choosing.

For first time visitors, they will not know what it used to be. For those of us who remember and used the system well, it is disappointing. The old system really rewarded the active (in terms of arriving early and ability/desire to pound the pavement) people who enjoyed maximizing the number of rides in a given day. The new system is really a dagger in that type of touring plan, in my opinion. And, as discussed, forces you to a more rigid and less adaptable schedule.

You will still have fun, but it will not be as fun as it used to be if you fit into the more aggressive touring style described above. I don't think we have had time to get a full grasp of the numbers yet, but I am willing to bet that due to the work, cost, and somewhat more limited offerings (it sounds like at least this part is changing), repeat visitors that go somewhat frequently will be down, especially with the competition from Universal.

For us, with Soaring and most of HS currently down, the hassle involved with FP+, and the ever increasing costs, we decided not to go on our annual trip this January. We are DVC members and will definitely be back, but probably not with the frequency that we once traveled.

[EeyoresBestFriend]

I miss the days of spontaneity, good street entertainment and Magical moments.

Both DH and I are people watchers and we noticed on this last trip how you didn't see a lot of folks, in groups or otherwise, appearing to have fun. Not a lot of laughing or happy wandering people looking at the sights as we have seen in the past. There seemed to be a general air of desperation and rush everywhere and the lines had a lot of groaning, crabby folks that were stressing about their next FP or ADR. It sure seemed that the Magic was not often in the air. It was sad. If this had been my first time at WDW, I don't think I'd be going back.

Well done, Disney. (sarcasm not withstanding)

[Johnno52]

The FPs and ADRs work well in many cases and it's great for Disney as they can control crowds to parks and restaurants. One week stays must be hell for many people as listed here. Thankfully we are retired and spend weeks in Disney and the Orlando area.
Our planning comes the morning when we decide what and where to go. We have a vehicle so it is easier to get around the parks and resorts. We seldom eat at the parks as we would rather the use the resorts or outside restaurants. The dining plan does not work for us and we feel it not only limited the menu, but also over-inflated the price.
The FPs are done the morning of the visit which cannot be done by short stay visitors. If we can't get one we just enjoy walking through the parks and getting on attractions when not too long of a wait.
We now avoid weekend visits to Parks, as stated they are very busy.
It is sad that many cannot relax and enjoy the park due to scheduling. It costs a lot of money for these trips and may get to the point that some people will finely just not return or less frequently!