Category — p. News and Changes

As you may have seen from What You Need to Know Now About FastPass+ and Frequently Asked Questions about FastPass+, one way to find out if you’ve been invited to Disney World’s tests of FastPass+ is simply to sign in to MyDisneyExperience.com, link up your reservations and tickets, and see what you are offered.

This is what I did, and how I found out about my own FastPass+ eligibility.

But you may also get an email, a UPS letter, or both.

EMAIL NOTIFICATION OF YOUR ELIGIBILITY FOR DISNEY WORLD’S MYMAGIC+ TEST

The email I got is below. Click it to enlarge it, and note that it’s personalized to our visit.

UPS NOTIFICATION OF YOUR ELIGIBILITY FOR DISNEY WORLD’S MYMAGIC+ TEST

I also got a letter from UPS–so if you are counting at home, I found out myself first and signed up then, then got a letter, and then got an email.

The UPS envelope has–on both front and back, though I’m just showing the back–something that’s different than most UPS mailings…note the left side, center.

The front page of the UPS letter (below) is similar to the first part of the email (as always, click the images to enlarge.)

The second page, below, is like the second half of the email–tightly personalized.

Note that both the letter and email have the steps you have to go through–which is what everybody needs!

So you might find out you are eligible for the FastPass+ test by logging in to MyDisneyExperience, you might find out via email, you might find out via UPS–and you might find out all three ways!

And, if you are eligible–once you go through and do everything…you’ll have your FastPass+ and your MagicBand!

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Multiple people have reported on this disboards thread that they are getting Fastpass+ reservations well into October, and at many more resorts than those involved in the August test.

Moreover, this has also been confirmed by my friends at Destinations in Florida.

As a result, I’ve updated both What You Need to Know Now About Fastpass+ and Frequently Asked Questions about Fastpass+.

(And by the way, if you are looking at old posts anyway….it’s still not too late to give me a present for my birthday!)

So here’s the scoop, as reflected in more detail in those pages:

• The Fastpass+ test is going well into October–though, if your arrival date is more than 60 days away, you won’t be able to do anything until it hits 60 days.
• Disney World resort hotels in the Fastpass+ test include Animal Kingdom Lodge, Art of Animation, Beach Club, Contemporary, Pop Century, Polynesian, Port Orleans Riverside, and Pop Century.

As the Mysterious A had noted in What You Need to Know Now About Fastpass+, it seems like the model is that resorts in the test will continue in the test, and that more will be added over time!

This makes sense, as all the staff and systems at those hotels are up to speed on the new program…

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(See also What You Need to Know Now About Fastpass+.)

ON JANUARY 23, 2014, TRADITIONAL FASTPASS DISAPPEARED, AND FASTPASS+ BECAME THE ONLY OPTION

On January 23, all the Disney World theme parks became be FastPass+ only.  The old “legacy” Fastpasses are gone.

As of now,

• Guests in Disney owned hotels and in the Swan and Dolphin can book FastPass+ beginning  60 days before their arrival date.
• Everyone else with a linked ticket can book FastPass+ beginning 30 days before their visit.

YOU NEED TO HAVE SIGNED INTO “MY DISNEY EXPERIENCE” TO RESERVE FASTPASS+ AHEAD OF TIME

You can’t do anything for Fastpass+ ahead of time unless you’ve signed in to My Disney Experience.  Go to MyDisneyExperience.com to sign up and sign in.

YOU NEED YOUR HOTEL RESERVATION LINKED TO GET FASTPASS+ 60 DAYS AHEAD OF TIME

When you are in MyDisneyExperience (henceforth “MDE”), check “My Reservations” to see if your hotel reservation is there.  If not, you’ll need your reservation number.  With it in hand, find the button that says “Link a Resort Reservation.”

YOU CAN ONLY MAKE FASTPASS+ RESERVATIONS IF YOU HAVE LINKED TICKETS

Your tickets need to be linked to your MDE account for you to be able to use it to pre-book FastPass+.

NOT ALL OFFERINGS ARE THE SAME ALL DATES FOR ALL USERS

FastPass+ parades and fireworks seem to be released much closer to arrival date than 60 days. So far, they seem to be showing up for the next month near the end of the current month .

“BE OUR GUEST” WORKS COMPLETELY DIFFERENTLY THAN FASTPASS+

The chance to reserve Be Our Guest for counter-service lunch is actually unrelated to the Fastpass+ test.  As near as I can figure out, anyone with a Disney hotel reservation can try for such a reservation.  You need your 12 digit numeric reservation number.  See this for more on how to get this.

CRASHES, FRUSTRATION, INCOMPLETE STUFF ARE STILL ALL TOO COMMON

Reports suggest this is going fine for most people, and gets better every week, but that crashes, incomplete data, mystified cast members etc., are still all too common…

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WHAT FIRST TIME VISITORS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT DISNEY WORLD’S FASTPASS+ PROGRAM

(See also Frequently Asked Questions about FastPass+.)

I’m gonna focus here on prioritizing your FastPass+ at each park.

(Note that if you are using one of my itineraries, this prioritization is already done for you.)

I’m assuming that you will still arrive at the parks early in the morning, well before opening.

Arriving plenty early means you can experience at least one more headliner with a low wait beyond what you can get on FastPass+.  Since you will be limited to 3 pre-booked FastPass+, this is a big deal. (You can add fourth and following FastPass+ one at a time in the parks once your first three are used.)

Picking your early morning target is tricky.  There’s two good ways to pick:

1. A ride with a really distinctive queue that you will largely miss if you go through the FastPass+ return line—for example, Test Track and Expedition Everest.
2. A ride you know you will want to see again, since you can only pre-book one FastPass+ per ride per day—more relevant to returning visitors who know what they want to repeat than for first timers.

So based on this, and on what’s being offered right now for FastPass+, here’s my suggestions by park:

FASTPASS+ AT EPCOT

Epcot: Plan to arrive early and see Test Track.  Target for FastPass+ first Soarin, then Mission: Space, and then Spaceship Earth.

FASTPASS+ AT DISNEY’S HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS

Disney’s Hollywood Studios: Plan to arrive early and see Rock N’ Roller Coaster. Have Toy Story Mania be your headliner FastPass+, and your next priorities Tower of Terror and the Frozen Sing-along.

FASTPASS+ AT DISNEY’S ANIMAL KINGDOM

Disney’s Animal Kingdom:  Plan to arrive early and see Expedition Everest.  Prioritize Kilimanjaro Safaris as your first FastPass+ selection, then Kali River Rapids and DINOSAUR.

FASTPASS+ AT THE MAGIC KINGDOM

Magic Kingdom: Much tougher, as there are many rides that build long lines quickly.

The ones to target are Anna and Elsa Meet n Greet, Big Thunder Mountain, Enchanted Tales with Belle, Peter Pan, Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, and the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train.

There’s enough there for two or three days’ worth of FastPass+ at the Magic Kingdom.

So here’s the thought for now:

• FastPass+ Priority Targets:  Anna and Elsa (lines can be too long even at open), the Mine Train Ride (same reason), Splash Mountain (you don’t want to get wet at open)
• Park opening first ride (without FastPass+) targets: Space Mountain, Peter Pan, Big Thunder Mountain
• Other possible priorities: Buzz Lightyear, Pirates of the Caribbean, and the Haunted Mansion

There’s many ways to do this. Here’s one approach:

• Day 1 at the Magic Kingdom: Plan Peter Pan at open, then FastPass+ Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Big Thunder Mountain, Splash Mountain
• Day 2 at the Magic Kingdom: Plan to repeat the favorite from Day 1 at open, then FastPass+ Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear, and Enchanted Tales with Belle
• If you have a third day at Magic Kingdom with a morning, then plan to save the first ride for a repeat of a favorite, then book as FastPass+ repeat visits to Space Mountain, Splash Mountain and Peter Pan—almost everyone’s list of Magic Kingdom favorites includes at least two of these three…

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My younger son and I just checked out of Disney’s All-Star Sports Resort.

We had a great visit, but the food court is down until December for rehab, the mini-fridge in our room—like those in thousands of other Walt Disney World rooms—is off until it’s replaced, and the heat and humidity were such a mess that the AC in our room could only make the temperature adequate, not comfortable.

So it was kinda like being dropped into the Mojave Desert portion of the Pacific Crest Trail with just some twine, a mirror, a broken hacksaw blade, and empty water bottles for succor…but it was still a blast, and because of that, it was kinda like every other Disney World trip I’ve ever been on.

Details follow.

THE CLOSURE FOR REHAB OF THE FOOD COURT AT ALL-STAR SPORTS

The food court at All-Star Sports, not much to start with, is now closed for a welcome rehab into December 2013.

Alternatives abound.

First, there’s dedicated bus service to the food courts at nearby sister resorts All-Star Music and All-Star Movies (for most people in the Homerun hotel section of Sports, and many in other southern rooms, walking to Music is faster).

The buses leave from the lobby bus point, not the theme park bus point—the same place where Disney Magical Express drops people off.

I checked the crowding in Music’s food court multiple times over the last few days, and except for one breakfast zoo didn’t find it that much more mobbed than I would normally expect it to be with no such closure…and the Movies food court—the best of the food courts at the All-Stars anyway—doesn’t seem much affected at all.

Second, there’s a couple of grab and go points at All-Star Sports.

• One is by the Surfboard Bay pool, between the main and baby pools. It has a selection of muffins, hot dogs and such from carts.
• The second is the bar, which now still works as a bar, but has some additional food options.
• Third is the main replacement.  Disney has stripped out the video arcade in the main building, and replaced it with a large grab and go section. Here you’ll find all kinds of room-temperature and cold options.  Lots of pastries, some great pre-made sandwiches, all the different drinks you could want, cold cereal boxes, etc.  The merit of this space compared to the other two is that it has a much larger selection, and is indoors.

This is a pain, but the alternatives do a pretty good job of helping deal with it.

MISSING FRIDGES AT ALL-STAR SPORTS

As has been widely reported, Disney is slowly replacing tens of thousands of mini-fridges which have  some risk of fire.

The deluxes are largely done, I hear mixed things about the moderates (see for example this, which reports 40%+ are in service at Port Orleans Riverside and French Quarter) and so far as I can tell there’s not yet a ton of traction at the values—except for the family suites, unaffected by this replacement.

Our room at Sports had the fridge present, but turned off, with this note on it.

The room I’m currently in at All-Star Movies has the fridge present and off, but with this working replacement in the corner by the window.

If you need a fridge for medication or allergies, and are in a moderate or value, call your resort and request one.  I also hear that people are having some success on site getting either a fridge or a refund for other less urgent reasons by calling and being firm.

Sometimes we have our mini-fridges stuffed full of breakfast and lunch fixins.  Sometimes it’s just beer. This trip, we managed just fine without the fridge, by drinking the beer before it got warm.

But there are other alternatives, all framed around the presence of the ice machines and some handy extra-strength trash bags and zip lock bags you bring from home:

• Use your un-plugged mini-fridge (if it is still in the room) as an insulated box, cooling it with ice.
• Use an emptied suitcase, trash bags and ice to make a cooler
• At home, buy a soft-sided cooler, pack it in one of your bigger bags, use it and ice as your cooler, and then use it as an extra bag to pack your souvenirs into for the trip home

(The role of the trash bags and ziplock bags is to separate your food and the room carpet from the ice-melt water, especially for the first two alternatives.)

This is a pain in the butt, but not a disaster.

AIR CONDITIONING CHALLENGES AT ALL-STAR SPORTS

So in our room with no fridge, at a hotel with no food court, we also had trouble keeping our room cool enough.

Despite setting the AC as low as it would go, both my son and I were a little uncomfortable with the warmth of our room at All-Star Sports—not very, but just not quite cool enough to comfortably drift off to sleep.

Now, it’s August in Florida, and this weekend has been as hot and humid as any I’ve ever experienced at Walt Disney World.  Highs have been in the upper 90s, and the humidity, sadly, seems to be giving it that old mathematically impossible 110%…and I know you can’t size heating and cooling to be perfect every conceivable day…

But this room comfort issue is where the approach to our missing fridge—drink the beer before it gets warm—came in especially handy.

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In yesterday’s discussion of Disney’s quarterly earnings, CEO Bob Iger discussed the timing of MyMagic+, Disney’s future program which among other features will enable people to reserve Fastpasses well in advance of their visit.

He said that MyMagic+ will “probably” see “full rollout in the early part” of Disney’s Fiscal 14.

Disney’s fiscal year begins in October, so mathematically the “early” part of it extends from October through March. Moreover, “full rollout” could range from full use of Fastpass+ in the parks to a much lower ambition–full use of the capability to reserve Fastpass+ ahead of time, which likely will precede full use in the parks by 60 days or so.

So, ignoring that “probably,” the range of possibilities the words will bear is from full use of Fastpass+ in the parks in early October to just full use of the website to book them beginning in later March 2014.

Add the “probably” back in–a needed word, as Disney is still testing the systems behind the offering–and there’s really no new insight to be gained from this call about the timing of Fastpass+.

So there’s no basis here for me to change my proposition that we won’t see widespread use of Fastpass+ in the parks until calendar 2014…

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