My Experiences With My Disney FastPass+ Next-Gen Magic Experience

[Ian]

Hey all,

I've posted some spotty feedback in a few threads around the boards since we got back, but I wanted to give one quick summary of how I found working with the new system when we were down recently.

In the interest of being fair I'm going to break it out by Pros and Cons ...


Pros

1. I do like the Magic Bands to some degree. Having everything consolidated on your wrist and not having to dig for your passes or room keys all the time, worry about dropping them or losing them ... it was nice.
2. ADR's continue to be easily managed through the app. I really like having the ability to flex your ADR's if you need to ... we used this a few times while we were down to cancel one and book another and it was a big benefit.
3. The FP+ aspect wasn't quite the I expected it to be. I continue to be opposed to it, but it didn't "RUIN OUR TRIP!" or anything like that.
4. Overall I do like that they appear to be recognizing the system's inherent issues and trying to find ways to correct them. It's better than if they just cram an imperfect program down our throats and make us live with it.

Cons

1. The complexity of the program as compared with the complete and total lack of useful information about it from Disney is a large frustration. It took me a week to get our vacation set up on the app and our FP+ selections done. Although in fairness our reservation was more complicated than the average since we were travling on a TA room only package, had to buy our passes separately, and had one person with us who already had an AP.
2. Ergonomically speaking the Magic Bands aren't well thought out. The sensors that read them are very picky and if you don't get the exact right "Mickey to Mickey" contact you find yourself standing there contorting your wrist in all these unnatural positions. In general, the way they have the sensors set up was also less-than-ideal in that it kind of forces you to twist your wrist in an odd way. I actually thought the use of the bands slowed down the entrance lines vs. speeding them up since people continue to have issues getting them to read properly. Another thing I noticed? It's super easy to sneak in without admission with this new set-up ... there were at least three times I or another member of my party accidentally skipped swiping our bands and not one CM even noticed.
3. The technology that supports it is just atrocious. This is one area where I'll be very pointed in my feedback ... the WiFi continues to be spotty at best (in Art of Animation it was essentially non-existant) and the app itself is klugy, unreliable, and buggy. In my estimation as someone who has worked in technology for over a decade and who builds app for a living Disney is a year or more away from having this program truly ready for prime time. And that's if they invest even more money in it.
4. While FP+ isn't it's also not something I'm interested in. I felt like this trip was actually more rushed and frantic than normal simply because we were constantly running from FP to FP because of the way they're booked (i.e. you take what's available and that's that).
5. They have to fix the fact that you can only get FP in one park on a given day. That is a major inconvenience and makes it virtually impossible to consider getting FP for a park like Animal Kingdom where I might be there for a few hours in the morning and then hop to another park. I'm not sure what the motivation for this is (I can only surmise it's either technical or meant to discourage park hopping), but it needs to change.
6. The new test where you can only get one FP for an E-Ticket per park was a real drag in Epcot. We got FP for Soarin' which essentially made Test Track un-rideable for for us. The FP go so fast that unless you're willing to wait for say eight hours or more for your window to open you're out of luck. And really ... who needs a FP for Living With the Land or Nemo? We took those basically because we had to and they were a complete waste.

Overall I'd have to say the program had a signficantly lesser impact on our trip than I expected it to. Being very honest with myself, if I wasn't pre-disposed to not like it beforehand I think the impact would have been even less. The biggest issue by far is the complexity and lack of clarity around how the program works (and I mean the actual mechanics of using the app and navigating the program details) and also the significant technical limitations and challenges of their network and the app itself.

If they can sort that out and maybe tweak some of the items in the "cons" column I mentioned this may not be as bad as we all thought it would be.

[Tekneek]

I'm not sure what the motivation for this is (I can only surmise it's either technical or meant to discourage park hopping), but it needs to change.

I do not know either, but it has all the looks of a design shortcut. The complexity of scheduling across different parks would mean building in a higher level of intelligence into the system (certainly higher than what it shows so far). They can schedule things back-to-back in the same park and get away with it (nothing is more than an hour from each other), but it would be a disaster if the app booked Splash Mountain an hour apart from Tower of Terror.

Not that this was an impossible problem to solve. Disney should know the parks better than anyone. It should know the transportation methods/times better than anyone. They should be able to do better with this than they are. It surely must be nothing more than taking a shortcut. From a business perspective, I don't see why you wouldn't actually want to encourage the extra charge for park hopping (since you get that cash up front, whether anybody actually park hops or not).

[GMRO]

Thank you for the details! Enjoyed your Tweets as well from your trip. Hope your family had a magical time.

Was looking forward to your feedback... We hope by May2014 during our next trip that "some" of the glitches are fixed. I would very much like to use it for park entrance and room entrance...and to walk up to the FP kiosk and get a FP if available. Past that...I don't want to schedule my time while on vacation or have to have an iDevice/APP running to enjoy my day.

Again - THANKS!

[MrPeetrie]

Ian, thank you for your well-detailed analysis of the NextGen at WDW. I anticipated many of the cons listed, except the difficulty with the bands lining up. I expected this to be a great asset, reducing the time to enter the parks. I was surprised to read about how "touchy" the bands were. I hope this gets worked. out. I, too, think the bands will eventually become a nice asset to future vacations.

[Kenny1113]

I agree with your summary.
Especially the bands lining up. I didn't find it asuncomfortable in the park for entrance and rides as I did for purchases. Maybe this was because it was on the side for the rides vs twisting your wrist completely around for purchases.

[Ian]

Agreed ... the FP and entrance readers weren't as bad as scanning for purchases.

[buzznwoodysmom]

I agree with your summary.
Especially the bands lining up. I didn't find it asuncomfortable in the park for entrance and rides as I did for purchases. Maybe this was because it was on the side for the rides vs twisting your wrist completely around for purchases.

I found the bands most uncomfortable when entering our rooms. I had to turn my wrist in a very awkward position every time I opened our room door.

[sorcerer fan]

another vote for wrist contortions onthe bands. In 8 days Inever had a immediate read fromthe bands. It didnt slow us down that much,but it was a bother

[Ian]

another vote for wrist contortions onthe bands. In 8 days Inever had a immediate read fromthe bands. It didnt slow us down that much,but it was a bother

That's how I felt, as well. I'm sure they have to make them that sensitive to ensure they're not accidentally scanning everyone's RFID all the time but it's just one more example to show the program wasn't all that well thought out in the first place.

[VWL Mom]

Thanks for the feedback Ian. I'm looking forward to seeing how it works for us next month. I'm pretty happy (after countless adjustments) with the way our FP+ times are distributed. We're creatures of habit so picking a park wasn't a big deal since we seem to follow the same pattern each trip, for first timers or those that don't visit as frequently, I could see a problem.

After tying our bands on I already decided to wear the Mickey head on the inside of the wrist. I wear my watch that way so it just felt more comfortable and easier to access.

[AndrewJackson]

Thanks for the report, Ian. I agree that they need to let guests pick FP+ for more than one park. Hopefully this is just temporary during the rollout.

If this continues, and it shows a decline in park hopper add ons, you bet TDO will allow multiple parks.

[Katzateer]

Hey all,

I've posted some spotty feedback in a few threads around the boards since we got back, but I wanted to give one quick summary of how I found working with the new system when we were down recently.

In the interest of being fair I'm going to break it out by Pros and Cons ...


Pros

1. I do like the Magic Bands to some degree. Having everything consolidated on your wrist and not having to dig for your passes or room keys all the time, worry about dropping them or losing them ... it was nice.
2. ADR's continue to be easily managed through the app. I really like having the ability to flex your ADR's if you need to ... we used this a few times while we were down to cancel one and book another and it was a big benefit.
3. The FP+ aspect wasn't quite the I expected it to be. I continue to be opposed to it, but it didn't "RUIN OUR TRIP!" or anything like that.
4. Overall I do like that they appear to be recognizing the system's inherent issues and trying to find ways to correct them. It's better than if they just cram an imperfect program down our throats and make us live with it.

Cons

1. The complexity of the program as compared with the complete and total lack of useful information about it from Disney is a large frustration. It took me a week to get our vacation set up on the app and our FP+ selections done. Although in fairness our reservation was more complicated than the average since we were travling on a TA room only package, had to buy our passes separately, and had one person with us who already had an AP.
2. Ergonomically speaking the Magic Bands aren't well thought out. The sensors that read them are very picky and if you don't get the exact right "Mickey to Mickey" contact you find yourself standing there contorting your wrist in all these unnatural positions. In general, the way they have the sensors set up was also less-than-ideal in that it kind of forces you to twist your wrist in an odd way. I actually thought the use of the bands slowed down the entrance lines vs. speeding them up since people continue to have issues getting them to read properly. Another thing I noticed? It's super easy to sneak in without admission with this new set-up ... there were at least three times I or another member of my party accidentally skipped swiping our bands and not one CM even noticed.
3. The technology that supports it is just atrocious. This is one area where I'll be very pointed in my feedback ... the WiFi continues to be spotty at best (in Art of Animation it was essentially non-existant) and the app itself is klugy, unreliable, and buggy. In my estimation as someone who has worked in technology for over a decade and who builds app for a living Disney is a year or more away from having this program truly ready for prime time. And that's if they invest even more money in it.
4. While FP+ isn't it's also not something I'm interested in. I felt like this trip was actually more rushed and frantic than normal simply because we were constantly running from FP to FP because of the way they're booked (i.e. you take what's available and that's that).
5. They have to fix the fact that you can only get FP in one park on a given day. That is a major inconvenience and makes it virtually impossible to consider getting FP for a park like Animal Kingdom where I might be there for a few hours in the morning and then hop to another park. I'm not sure what the motivation for this is (I can only surmise it's either technical or meant to discourage park hopping), but it needs to change.
6. The new test where you can only get one FP for an E-Ticket per park was a real drag in Epcot. We got FP for Soarin' which essentially made Test Track un-rideable for for us. The FP go so fast that unless you're willing to wait for say eight hours or more for your window to open you're out of luck. And really ... who needs a FP for Living With the Land or Nemo? We took those basically because we had to and they were a complete waste.

Overall I'd have to say the program had a signficantly lesser impact on our trip than I expected it to. Being very honest with myself, if I wasn't pre-disposed to not like it beforehand I think the impact would have been even less. The biggest issue by far is the complexity and lack of clarity around how the program works (and I mean the actual mechanics of using the app and navigating the program details) and also the significant technical limitations and challenges of their network and the app itself.

If they can sort that out and maybe tweak some of the items in the "cons" column I mentioned this may not be as bad as we all thought it would be.

yeap, that sums it up well! It will be interesting to see if Disney responds to the feedback. I think if they work out the FP+ problems it could be a good system. I like having my hands free and no cards to fumble around with.

[Ian]

After tying our bands on I already decided to wear the Mickey head on the inside of the wrist. I wear my watch that way so it just felt more comfortable and easier to access.

I'm not certain, but I don't think they'll work that way. The Mickey head needs to be facing out to make proper contact with the scanner I believe.

[Zawadi]

Pros

1. I do like the Magic Bands to some degree. Having everything consolidated on your wrist and not having to dig for your passes or room keys all the time, worry about dropping them or losing them ... it was nice.
2. ADR's continue to be easily managed through the app. I really like having the ability to flex your ADR's if you need to ... we used this a few times while we were down to cancel one and book another and it was a big benefit.
3. The FP+ aspect wasn't quite the I expected it to be. I continue to be opposed to it, but it didn't "RUIN OUR TRIP!" or anything like that.
4. Overall I do like that they appear to be recognizing the system's inherent issues and trying to find ways to correct them. It's better than if they just cram an imperfect program down our throats and make us live with it.

When the system worked, there was a feeling of being able to reserve a ride at a given time instead of rushing at park opening to get a FP to find it's time is late afternoon.

Park entry works best is the band is on your left wrist and fingerprint a finger on your right hand.

Cons

1. The complexity of the program as compared with the complete and total lack of useful information about it from Disney is a large frustration. It took me a week to get our vacation set up on the app and our FP+ selections done. Although in fairness our reservation was more complicated than the average since we were travling on a TA room only package, had to buy our passes separately, and had one person with us who already had an AP.
2. Ergonomically speaking the Magic Bands aren't well thought out. The sensors that read them are very picky and if you don't get the exact right "Mickey to Mickey" contact you find yourself standing there contorting your wrist in all these unnatural positions. In general, the way they have the sensors set up was also less-than-ideal in that it kind of forces you to twist your wrist in an odd way. I actually thought the use of the bands slowed down the entrance lines vs. speeding them up since people continue to have issues getting them to read properly. Another thing I noticed? It's super easy to sneak in without admission with this new set-up ... there were at least three times I or another member of my party accidentally skipped swiping our bands and not one CM even noticed.
3. The technology that supports it is just atrocious. This is one area where I'll be very pointed in my feedback ... the WiFi continues to be spotty at best (in Art of Animation it was essentially non-existant) and the app itself is klugy, unreliable, and buggy. In my estimation as someone who has worked in technology for over a decade and who builds app for a living Disney is a year or more away from having this program truly ready for prime time. And that's if they invest even more money in it.
4. While FP+ isn't it's also not something I'm interested in. I felt like this trip was actually more rushed and frantic than normal simply because we were constantly running from FP to FP because of the way they're booked (i.e. you take what's available and that's that).
5. They have to fix the fact that you can only get FP in one park on a given day. That is a major inconvenience and makes it virtually impossible to consider getting FP for a park like Animal Kingdom where I might be there for a few hours in the morning and then hop to another park. I'm not sure what the motivation for this is (I can only surmise it's either technical or meant to discourage park hopping), but it needs to change.
6. The new test where you can only get one FP for an E-Ticket per park was a real drag in Epcot. We got FP for Soarin' which essentially made Test Track un-rideable for for us. The FP go so fast that unless you're willing to wait for say eight hours or more for your window to open you're out of luck. And really ... who needs a FP for Living With the Land or Nemo? We took those basically because we had to and they were a complete waste.

Overall I'd have to say the program had a signficantly lesser impact on our trip than I expected it to. Being very honest with myself, if I wasn't pre-disposed to not like it beforehand I think the impact would have been even less. The biggest issue by far is the complexity and lack of clarity around how the program works (and I mean the actual mechanics of using the app and navigating the program details) and also the significant technical limitations and challenges of their network and the app itself.

I agree that the purchase scanner are small and it is hard to align the band to them.

At park entry you have to turn to face the scanner, since you fingerprint as well. However, at FP+ return points there are two scanners, each on a post either side of the entry and the scanners face each other. This means than when you approach it is easy to use the left scanner when the band is on your left wrist, or vice-versa. However, using the opposite scanner involves stopping, turning and bending your wrist. This means that the scanner on one side (usually the left) is used more resulting in lower throughput. It would be much easier if the scanners faced you as you approached.

At one point we found no stand by line for Kilimanjaro Safari but the FP+ return line was past the stroller park area.

I too work in IT and found the app quirky to say the least. Being able to change only one thing at once (experience or time) was time consuming with too many screens to go through.

In MK the android app crashed when downloading alternative experience via WiFi.

We lost a lost of the magic by CMs at FP+ returns, making us feel guilty of trying to beat the system until we could prove that we had a genuine FP+ reservation.

[Gator]

I need some clarification on a few things with this.

1) Can you ONLY get fastpasses in advance now? Or can you get a fastpass for a ride as soon as you get to the parks in addition to the pre-fastpasses you have? I'm getting conflicting messages it seems.

2) In the old days (last year), I'd take my whole family's tickets to a fastpass machine and get the tickets while they rode some kiddie ride on the other end of the park or went to the bathroom or ordered some food. Do I now how to take all of their bands off to do this? And that's assuming I can get these extra fast passes.

BIG FAT MESS!

[Pirate Granny]

Three will be your limit...no legacy FP if you have a magic band

[Zawadi]

1) Can you ONLY get fastpasses in advance now? Or can you get a fastpass for a ride as soon as you get to the parks in addition to the pre-fastpasses you have? I'm getting conflicting messages it seems.

2) In the old days (last year), I'd take my whole family's tickets to a fastpass machine and get the tickets while they rode some kiddie ride on the other end of the park or went to the bathroom or ordered some food. Do I now how to take all of their bands off to do this? And that's assuming I can get these extra fast passes.

Regular (paper) FPs can only be obtained with a KTTW card. They cannot be obtained using a MagicBand.

AK has suspended regular FP for all guests with resort guests being able to pre-book FP+ via the app/website and non-resort guests in the park via a FP+ kiosk.

[Ian]

I need some clarification on a few things with this.

1) Can you ONLY get fastpasses in advance now? Or can you get a fastpass for a ride as soon as you get to the parks in addition to the pre-fastpasses you have? I'm getting conflicting messages it seems.

2) In the old days (last year), I'd take my whole family's tickets to a fastpass machine and get the tickets while they rode some kiddie ride on the other end of the park or went to the bathroom or ordered some food. Do I now how to take all of their bands off to do this? And that's assuming I can get these extra fast passes.

BIG FAT MESS!

You can only make them in advance unless you get KTTW cards.

And based on what's in our News forum it looks like the legacy FP machines are coming out soon.

[Crow]

the band were a big headache since a diff person was originally on the reservation.
I agree w the issue of not being able to book FP at diff parks on the same day.
and agree with bending your hand to get in the gate to the resort or your room. sometimes I took it off and held it against the sensor

[Ian]

One thing I forgot to mention in the Con column ...

We had a friend who lives local to the parks come over to hang out with us during most of our trip. The inability to get her on our FP+ schedule stunk.