Walt Disney World Resort Non-Park Discussion Thread

That was a very cool video. Everyone should take the time to watch it, as it shows this technology is only going to make a park visit better.

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They were testing these last week when I was there. I know it's been on the drawing boards and is WAY behind when they wanted to launch it, and I was SO happy that I got to go before they launched it. It's also interesting because at a lot of attractions, they have the FASTPASS+ signage up already, but they made the + disappear by putting tape over it.

I don't like the idea of setting my Fastpasses weeks in advance - using the Dining Plan was tough enough to make sure that I was in the right places at the right times.

The personalization sounds sort of neat, but I generally like rides that tell me a story, not that make me into a story. Which, if every time I ride Small World or Pirates I've got random dolls popping up or the Pirates yelling at the people on the boats, I can't imagine I'll enjoy that. On top of that, with a ride like Small World you're talking about a boat of 15+ people floating by, how can you personalize an experience for all 15 of them at the same time?

The other thing that isn't discussed here is that at the end of the day, this is supposed to "fix" their Fastpass issues. What I mean by that is this - when Disney created Fastpass, the goal was that if they could get people out of line for three of the big rides and save three hours of your time, those same people would then spend their three new hours of "found" time in a store buying stuff... and it didn't work. What happened is that per cap spend wasn't touched by Fastpass...

In fact, Fastpass hurt the first-time guest because if they didn't understand the system perfectly and didn't use it or didn't use it to it's full potential, they would wait in longer lines while those that were there often got on more rides. And, the first time users were the ones that would spend more money with a better experience than the regulars... so that was an issue.

At the same time, because they launched it free, they were not able to capitalize on the line-jump abilities like other parks were. If Disney sold the rights to Fastpass to just 1,000 people per park at $50 per day (extremely low numbers that most regional parks top), it would be a $7.3 million dollar industry. But, they introduced it for free, and people didn't want it gotten rid of because they felt entitled to it.

What is supposedly going to happen with these bands is that they will be able to monetize the Fastpass privileges for the first time. Rumor is that if you're staying at a more expensive hotel, you'll get additional opportunities for more Fastpasses than those staying at the budget hotels, which will be reduced. Off-property guests are rumored to only be able to get what is let over when they arrive, which depending on how many Fast Passes Disney allows to be issued may mean that the discrepancy between an on-property, high paying guest and an off-property guest may be pretty huge.

I'm very curious to see exactly how this all works out, and it is something that I've been following very carefully for the last few years. The cards that Disney already gave you did everything else that the bands do other than the personalization and Fast Pass early reservation. Last week, I could wave it by those exact Mickey things to open my room, pay for stuff if I knew my code, enter parks, get Fastpasses (which printed out, yes - but then I knew when the return time was) and so on. I ate at Be Our Guest too, and while the "bring your stuff to your table" thing was very cool, I couldn't have guessed what I wanted for food days in advance of my visit.

It's going to be fascinating to see how this rolls out, and see how it is accepted. I was talking about this to my dad, who is a lifelong Disney fan who I blame for a lot of my theme park fascination, and he said that he thought it would ruin the experience. I'm really curious to see how the balance works.

Okay, whew. Sorry, that was a lot. I owe you a cookie if you read all this

^I like the idea of being able to reserve ride times on one or two rides I know would otherwise have a long wait (Toy Story, for example, or Space Mountain), but definitely prefer the spontaneity of working it out as I go. I'm sure Disney will work out the right mix between reserved riders and walk-ups, including all of the variables such as no-shows, average wait, GAC riders etc.

This is all stuff they have already thought of and considered and will watch closely to see what works and what doesn't. Its also an extremely flexible system and Disney will continue to fine tune it to meet the needs of all guests, not just the high paying ones.

^ Of course they have already considered this, but I don't have as much trust as you I guess. Disney basically threw away millions of dollars on Fastpass and they were unable to fine tune it to meet the needs of all guests for years upon years. It's an argument that is hard to explain to people who Fastpass generally benefits, but from a business standpoint that has been a debacle. They are spending more than a billion dollars implementing this, so they obviously expect that this will increase their bottom line by a lot, and the most likely target for that is the high paying guests who can now pay to play to get a better experience.

Perhaps ironically, I have almost no issue with regional parks that have this same pay-to-play structure, it's just that those parks still don't make you pick if you want to ride Diamondback or the Beast first thing in the morning.

^ Of course they have already considered this, but I don't have as much trust as you I guess. Disney basically threw away millions of dollars on Fastpass and they were unable to fine tune it to meet the needs of all guests for years upon years. It's an argument that is hard to explain to people who Fastpass generally benefits, but from a business standpoint that has been a debacle. They are spending more than a billion dollars implementing this, so they obviously expect that this will increase their bottom line by a lot, and the most likely target for that is the high paying guests who can now pay to play to get a better experience.

 

Perhaps ironically, I have almost no issue with regional parks that have this same pay-to-play structure, it's just that those parks still don't make you pick if you want to ride Diamondback or the Beast first thing in the morning.

Can you cite where it says they are spending this much money on the system?

A quick google search reveals many sources:

http://www.nowtheendbegins.com/blog/?p=11742

For instance, here's a fun article to read, lol

^Do you believe everything you read on the internet?

He's a French model.

A quick google search reveals many sources:

 

http://www.nowtheendbegins.com/blog/?p=11742

 

For instance, here's a fun article to read, lol

Wow. I can't say that I had read one like that one before... I need to go get a tin hat.

But yup. I've been following this very carefully for a long time now (over two years?) There has been a LOT of interesting stuff that has been gone over with this already. Disney isn't infallible. The most reliable figure I've heard is they are sinking $1.5 billion into this system. They aren't doing it to be nice - they expect to make some serious dough off of it.

^Do you believe everything you read on the internet?

Did you miss my sarcasm about the article...?

And I've heard the billion dollar number a few too many hundred times for it not to be somewhere in the ballpark.

^^I'll agree with you there. They plan on making money off this.

^Yeah, I think he missed the sarcasm!

A quick google search reveals many sources:

 

http://www.nowtheendbegins.com/blog/?p=11742

 

For instance, here's a fun article to read, lol

 

Wow. I can't say that I had read one like that one before... I need to go get a tin hat.

 

But yup. I've been following this very carefully for a long time now (over two years?) There has been a LOT of interesting stuff that has been gone over with this already. Disney isn't infallible. The most reliable figure I've heard is they are sinking $1.5 billion into this system. They aren't doing it to be nice - they expect to make some serious dough off of it.

The whole point of building a park in Orlando was to make money.

The whole point of adding DCA was to make money.

The whole point of building on-site hotels was to make money.

The whole point of building additional gates at WDW was to make money.

The whole point of going from ticket books to POP admission was to make money.

We might visit Fantasyland at the Disney parks, but the parks exist in the real world. In the real world, if the parks don't make money THEY CLOSE.

We might visit Fantasyland at the Disney parks, but the parks exist in the real world. In the real world, if the parks don't make money THEY CLOSE.

That was my point? As I said, I just think it's interesting to follow because it is one of the biggest changes ever in how people visit parks, and there is potential for it to misfire, as there is for anything in this industry no matter how well thought out it was / is.

Although as someone said recently and I agree with this, Disney never fails, the just state the goal is different!

^Yeah, I think he missed the sarcasm!

I don't think I would have lasted this long on the internet if I listened to sites like that.

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2013-07-23/the-daily-disney/os-att-is-now-the-official-wireless-provider-for-walt-disney-world_1_walt-disney-world-resort-disneyland-resort-lte

If you’re an AT&T wireless subscriber, here’s great news if you’re at the Magic Kingdom and trying to upload your iPhone video of Splash Mountain to YouTube while you share some Instagram photos of Mickey with your friends on Facebook, too.

 

AT&T and Disney Parks today announced that the wireless provider would be the official wireless company for Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort.

 

The agreement will bring a lot of branding and marketing endeavors, of course, but it also will have a very real technological effect for AT&T users in the theme parks here in Orlando and in California.

 

Those include: Ten cell sites across Walt Disney World Resort; more than 25 distributed antenna systems to increase wireless capacity; more than 350 so-called “small cells” to extend network connectivity; and more than 40 repeaters to boost the mobile performance for both guests and Disney cast members.

 

According to today’s announcement, the agreement also will see AT&T acting as a sponsor of Disney-created soccer and runDisney events at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. The pact also will be used by both companies to educate consumers about the dangers of texting while driving.

 

Also, Disney cast members will use new mobile devices and the enhanced network capabilities as part of their interaction with park guests, the release stated.

 

Meg Crofton, president of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Operations, said she was excited about the agreement.

 

"This alliance joins two companies that share a commitment to providing quality experiences,” Crofton stated in the release, “and we look forward to the collaboration as we continue to leverage technology to enhance the experience for our guests."

 

In addition to touting AT&T’s 4G LTE network, the release also pointed out that AT&T was named America's fastest 4G LTE network in PC Magazine's 2013 “Fastest Mobile Networks” 30-market study.

Glad to see them bringing a major boost to cell service there! Sometimes it was a pain to find good service. There was usually decent service, but now it should be a lot better! At least for those of us on AT&T.

Wish they could get all the major providers to upgrade cell infrastructure, though I have never had any issues at WDW on Verizon. Don't get LTE everywhere though. Luckily they offer free WiFi to offset that!

Nice for AT&T users. I don't generally use my phone to much when in the park but with the new stuff they are installing for fastpass and stuff, this could be useful.

Pretty crazy story today about a Sinkhole taking out a resort building near WDW.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-sinkhole-damage-disney-area-resort-20130812,0,376846.story

First came the cracking sounds. Then windows started blowing out. And before they knew it, guests felt the ground beneath their Lake County resort near Disney World sink into the ground.

 

Guests had only 10 to 15 minutes to escape collapsing buildings at the Summer Bay Resort on U.S. Highway 192 in the Four Corners area, located about 7 miles west of Walt Disney World resort, where a large sinkhole — about 60 feet in diameter and 15 feet deep — opened in the earth late Sunday.

 

No one was injured but about three dozen resort goers left behind car keys, medication and other personal belongings inside their luxury condominiums after the crumbling edifices were evacuated. One building suffered catastrophic destruction while two others are being evaluated for possible damage.

 

"My heart sunk. I was sick to my stomach," said resort president Paul Caldwell after getting a call after about 10:30 p.m. from his staff that the 15-year-old buildings full of guests were sinking into the ground. He said it is peak season for Summer Bay and there are about 4,500 guests on the 900-unit resort property.

 

"No doubt there would've been injuries if they hadn't gotten the building evacuated," he said during a news conference. He praised the reaction of his staff and security guards who raced to get people out.

 

When windows began to shatter, a guest ran into the street to flag down resort personnel, Caldwell said.

 

Richard Shanley was on duty as the security guard last night when the building sank. He immediately sprang into action, helping people climb out of the building.

 

"It was scary. You don't know what to do. But you do what you can do to get people out," he said.

 

Shanley ran to one of the buildings to try to wake up guests as the ceiling collapsed and glass shattered. People were petrified and confused, he said.

 

"I had to run literally from end to end of the building to get people out. While you are running by, pieces of the building are falling down behind you," he said. "So you just do what you can and get out. "

 

He said guests were afraid that the building might cave in with people inside.

 

"Some of them were like 'are you serious,' Shanley said. "Some of them were screaming and hollering. I was trying to calm them down as best as I could."

 

The scene played out like a scene from a movie as terrified children screamed out to their parents.

 

"Kids were crying. They were saying, 'We don't want to get trapped here. Mommy, we're on vacation. We're here to have fun. This is not what we expected. We don't want to get trapped here,'" Shanley said.

 

The building that fell at Summer Bay was Building 104.

 

Maggie Moreno of San Antonio was visiting the resort with her husband Julian, her daughter and two grandchildren, ages 8 and 17 months. The family has been at the resort for a two weeks, she said, and staying on the third floor of Building 105, which faces the building that collapsed.

 

Moreno said Building 105 has also been condemned and she has not been able to get back in for her family's belongings. She said the scene Sunday night was confusing, then scary.

 

"We heard a ruckus, and my husband said, 'What's going on?'" said Maggie Moreno, 48. "You could hear the buckling of the building. You could hear it snapping like popcorn, pop, pop, pop."

 

She said management at the resort herded people into a clubhouse on site until they are able to find other accommodations.

 

Moreno said her family met a young couple with an infant who were staying in Building 104 and had to climb out of a window when the building started to sink and break apart.

Pretty crazy story today about a Sinkhole taking out a resort building at WDW.

Just to clarify, the resort isn't "at WDW"--it's about 10 minutes away.

Pretty crazy story today about a Sinkhole taking out a resort building at WDW.

 

Just to clarify, the resort isn't "at WDW"--it's about 10 minutes away.

I clarified it.

Pretty crazy story today about a Sinkhole taking out a resort building at WDW.

 

Just to clarify, the resort isn't "at WDW"--it's about 10 minutes away.

But it sounds better if you use WDW in the article otherwise it is just another sink whole in Florida!

Person killed when Disney bus, car collide near Epcot

Read more: http://www.wesh.com/news/central-florida/disney-bus-car-collide-near-epcot/-/11788162/21500392/-/tsw64kz/-/index.html#ixzz2cANnTrQ4

Florida Highway Patrol troopers said at least one person was killed in that crash, but could not give further details.

The car and bus collided on Orange Epcot Center Drive. The roadway was blocked as rescuers were called to the scene.

The car and bus collided on Orange Epcot Center Drive. Troopers said the car stopped along the roadway and that the bus did not have enough time to stop, according to witnesses.

 

If that ends of being the cause I'd be surprised it took that long for an accident like that. I've seen so many people on WDW property stopping in the middle of the old, reversing in the middle of the road, and making u-turns wherever they want.

Of course, if that's not the cause then I'm just ranting about something totally unrelated.

^Thats why it should be law to have center guardrails on all multilane highways

Overall I've to say that US drivers are far more defensively driving than drivers here in Germany. We've a saying here: "Who brakes looses!"