A new test to enhance the guest experience at Walt Disney World has started at the Magic Kingdom. It introduces a new group of cast members, known as the Guest Experience Team, that are available to assist guests with maximizing their opportunities for fun in… Read More »New Guest Experience Team locations offer answers in a busy park
Three new Magic Band colors have recently become available to guests at Walt Disney World. A Black band came out a few weeks ago and this week we get a brown band and a new millennial pink color. The millennial pink color will be a… Read More »New Magic Band Colors hit the shelves
The new look for Magic Bands, your digital key to all Walt Disney World’s magic, was revealed at Destination D, the Florida focused mini-convention for D23, the official Disney Fan Club. The new band features a detachable puck like element that pops out of the… Read More »New generation of Magic Bands revealed
My friend John, aka Big Fat Panda on YouTube, was asked by a couple visiting Walt Disney World from their home in Montana to help them with a special moment for their family. Eddie and Sarah Wells are big Disney fans and wanted a special… Read More »Couple travels to Disney World to find out if they are having a boy or girl
We’re excited to have this new walk through of some of the best new Star Wars Weekends merchandise available in 2015. Thanks to Steven from Disney merchandise marketing for showing off the cool stuff for us. Among the cool new items is a Star Wars:… Read More »Star Wars Weekends Merchandise Walk-Through
You knew it was only a matter of time before Disney turned their latest theme park must have into a collectible. With this Frozen themed set of Magic Bands, the evidence is clear – Disney wants you to get very close to your favorite Disney… Read More »New Limited Edition Frozen themed Magic Bands
Disney’s Magic Band and the related MyMagic+ and Fastpass+ are just three elements of a skunk works type division charged with creating Next-Gen experiences for guests at Walt Disney World. Just how revolutionary are these changes? One Tampa Bay Tribune business columnist has gone so… Read More »Is Disney’s Magic Band the Future of Retail
One tap of the MagicBand and Guests access their Disney FastPass+ attractions which can be secured before they even leave home.
The switch from Legacy Fastpass (where select attractions were able to be reserved on a day-of basis as many times as you could according to the rules) to the Next-Gen technology driven Fastpass+ (where most major attractions and many minor ones now offer FP+ entry, but you’re limited to just three FP+ a day) is nearly as drastic a change as the transition from the famous A-B-C-D-E-Ticket ride coupons to a passport system where one ticket gets you in the park and on every attractions.
My memory is a little hazy, but I don’t recall guests getting so worked up about that switch. That’s because it was largely a switch in the method of accounting in the guest’s vacation ledger. With ride coupons park admission was merely a token charge, the real money was in the coupons. So grandma could take the kids and she would only have to pay a small amount for herself. Single admission changed that model forever. The new model meant Disney got more at the gate, but a savvy guest could work the system by staying from open to close (we called them marathon days) and ride many times more attractions than they could with a coupon book. Plus they wouldn’t be stuck with a bunch of unused A-tickets at the end of the day. So in the end, the ledger balanced for the guest.
A certain camp of Disney Imagineers believe this switch was the worst thing to happen to the parks. That the move away from ride coupons and to a single passport, meant that new attractions couldn’t be cost justified based on coupon purchases, that guest behavior was unleashed and less predictable, that minor attractions suffered in attendance, and that it made more difficult for a family to come and enjoy the park if they had to pay a large chunk up front just to get in. The counter arguments were: that most families on vacation had a set amount to spend and they’d spend it on passports or ride coupons just the same, that allowing guests to experience the park without worrying about buying another E-ticket for Space Mountain provided a better guest experience, and that the real money for Disney was in hotels, food, and souvenirs. Read More »FastPass+ and MagicBands Takeover Walt Disney World – Part 2: Challenges and Solutions Ahead