Rumored Changes to G+

[DebbieB]

Yes and it would be great to bring back that feature. I’m not sure why they got rid of it.

To me the real advantage without messing things up for everyone else would be to make people have to be in the park to start skipping the lines. Fastpass+ was totally out of control. I really hope we don’t go back to those days.

They wanted to do the dynamic pricing where it changes everyday.

 

[mamaofsix]

Yes and it would be great to bring back that feature. I’m not sure why they got rid of it.

To me the real advantage without messing things up for everyone else would be to make people have to be in the park to start skipping the lines. Fastpass+ was totally out of control. I really hope we don’t go back to those days.

I would say the same for the VQ for Tron and Guardians - way too much competition, gone in seconds. If you had to be in the parks, half the people vying for it would not bother.

 

[Jrb1979]

I would say the same for the VQ for Tron and Guardians - way too much competition, gone in seconds. If you had to be in the parks, half the people vying for it would not bother.

IMO get rid of VQ for new rides. If standby ends up being 3 hours or more so be it.

 

[New Mouse]

IMO get rid of VQ for new rides. If standby ends up being 3 hours or more so be it.

This. And build capacity to match your crowds.

 

[feesh]

This. And build capacity to match your crowds.

I'll be honest, I never understood this logic. If you go to a restaurant and its full do you say to the restaurant its their fault for not building a bigger place?

Disney is a private enterprise and doesn't owe anything to anyone. Many people seem to act as if they need to provide a specific type of vacation/visit to them. The idea that they just need to keep building capacity because it gets crowded is not a sustainable approach. This is very much like induced demand with traffic on the roads - you would think building more lanes would decrease traffic but it only encourages more people to drive so your right back to square one.

Right now some people choose not to go because of the crowds. If you create more capacity those people will show up at the parks and then you will be right back to the same problem. The new headliner rides would still suffer the same fate of the big rides today and people will complain they can't find a way to do Tron + Mine Train + new ride 1 + new ride 2 all in the same trip since they all have long lines / sell out quickly.

If its too crowded for you then don't go and get better value somewhere else.

 

[BrianL]

I'll be honest, I never understood this logic. If you go to a restaurant and its full do you say to the restaurant its their fault for not building a bigger place?

Disney is a private enterprise and doesn't owe anything to anyone. Many people seem to act as if they need to provide a specific type of vacation/visit to them. The idea that they just need to keep building capacity because it gets crowded is not a sustainable approach. This is very much like induced demand with traffic on the roads - you would think building more lanes would decrease traffic but it only encourages more people to drive so your right back to square one.

Right now some people choose not to go because of the crowds. If you create more capacity those people will show up at the parks and then you will be right back to the same problem. The new headliner rides would still suffer the same fate of the big rides today and people will complain they can't find a way to do Tron + Mine Train + new ride 1 + new ride 2 all in the same trip since they all have long lines / sell out quickly.

If its too crowded for you then don't go and get better value somewhere else.

Well, yes and no. A restaurant that is full is no problem, but if the restaurant is constantly completely overbooked, taking reservations for months out, and still making patrons wait an hour for a table after arrival, well, they might want to look into expanding their operation.

I do think Disney is at a point where some expansion is warranted, or at least using all of the currently available spaces that the parks have. Like there is no reason why places like the Tomorrowland north building or Wonders of Life are completely unused. Start there at the very least - it is compeltely warranted with current business levels.

 

[feesh]

Well, yes and no. A restaurant that is full is no problem, but if the restaurant is constantly completely overbooked, taking reservations for months out, and still making patrons wait an hour for a table after arrival, well, they might want to look into expanding their operation.

I do think Disney is at a point where some expansion is warranted, or at least using all of the currently available spaces that the parks have. Like there is no reason why places like the Tomorrowland north building or Wonders of Life are completely unused. Start there at the very least - it is compeltely warranted with current business levels.

For sure a restaurant could expand - but there are many that choose not to for a variety of reasons - they are happy with what they have, they fear they will lose a grip on the quality, a downturn could happen at any moment that would cause a lot more stress (i.e. covid). The business owner can decide for him/herself what they want. If that means you don't want to deal with the hassle that is totally fine.

As for the "no reason places are completely unused comment" - building things takes capital. Maybe Disney isn't ready to drop the money? Maybe they haven't been able to come up with a plan they feel would generate a return on their investment?

I don't follow Disney financials very closely but I believe that, while things are looking better, they took some heavy losses coming out of Covid.

At the end of the day Disney is a business and, right or wrong, drives their business with shareholders in mind first and foremost.

 

[New Mouse]

I'll be honest, I never understood this logic. If you go to a restaurant and its full do you say to the restaurant its their fault for not building a bigger place?

Disney is a private enterprise and doesn't owe anything to anyone. Many people seem to act as if they need to provide a specific type of vacation/visit to them. The idea that they just need to keep building capacity because it gets crowded is not a sustainable approach. This is very much like induced demand with traffic on the roads - you would think building more lanes would decrease traffic but it only encourages more people to drive so your right back to square one.


If its too crowded for you then don't go and get better value somewhere else.

If I go to a restaurant and they have consistent lines hours long, they tell me theh are sold out, they dont charge me to wait in the lobby or only sell me apps and drinks. If that restaurant is consistently busy, they expand.

People have stopped going to Disney, but they still have problems with operational logistics so it seems like they need a new approach.

 

[New Mouse]

I do think Disney is at a point where some expansion is warranted, or at least using all of the currently available spaces that the parks have. Like there is no reason why places like the Tomorrowland north building or Wonders of Life are completely unused. Start there at the very least - it is compeltely warranted with current business levels.

Considering these buildings were deemed necessary as part of the plan to mitigage crowds in the....70s and 80s.... yes, the unused capacity is definitely needed today!

 

[BrianL]

For sure a restaurant could expand - but there are many that choose not to for a variety of reasons - they are happy with what they have, they fear they will lose a grip on the quality, a downturn could happen at any moment that would cause a lot more stress (i.e. covid). The business owner can decide for him/herself what they want. If that means you don't want to deal with the hassle that is totally fine.

As for the "no reason places are completely unused comment" - building things takes capital. Maybe Disney isn't ready to drop the money? Maybe they haven't been able to come up with a plan they feel would generate a return on their investment?

I don't follow Disney financials very closely but I believe that, while things are looking better, they took some heavy losses coming out of Covid.

At the end of the day Disney is a business and, right or wrong, drives their business with shareholders in mind first and foremost.

You're right - you can choose not to expand, but that could lead to dissatisfied customers and eventually a drop in that business. Certainly, the business owner can choose not to care about that. I think it is certainly warranted for Disney to be investing in the parks considering how the business actaully is. They are bringing in the money, no doubt. At least put some of the cancelled projects back in play.

 

[New Mouse]

At the end of the day Disney is a business and, right or wrong, drives their business with shareholders in mind first and foremost.

So going from 200 to 90 was decision based with shareholders in mind? I'd hate to see what it would be like if they focused on guests before shareholders.

These capacity issues existed before covid they just didn't bother to address them. They have exacerbated the issue since then with poor decision making and planning.

Where I would agree is that they screwed up so much with their stock, heavy investment now is a tough pill to swallow for wall street.

 

[MJJME]

Seems to me they could let those staying on site buy Genie+ a week in advance, but not let you reserve any rides until the day of your visit....

This makes zero sense

 

[HokieRaven5]

I don't follow Disney financials very closely but I believe that, while things are looking better, they took some heavy losses coming out of Covid.

At the end of the day Disney is a business and, right or wrong, drives their business with shareholders in mind first and foremost.

Disney took out close to $20B in debt during Covid to keep the lights on in the parks side of the company.

In 2019 the parks had an operating income of $4.9B. For fiscal 20 and 21 the theme parks had operating losses of -$1.696B and -$2.213B.

Fiscal 2022 and 2023 has been recovery and recuperation for those losses.

 

[MJJME]

no, the max price observed has been $35 for Genie+ over Christmas and NYE..... , everything is conjecture at this point

I believe max price hit $39....plus if you buy 2 ILL's, you will be well over $50pp

 

[Jrb1979]

I'll be honest, I never understood this logic. If you go to a restaurant and its full do you say to the restaurant its their fault for not building a bigger place?

Disney is a private enterprise and doesn't owe anything to anyone. Many people seem to act as if they need to provide a specific type of vacation/visit to them. The idea that they just need to keep building capacity because it gets crowded is not a sustainable approach. This is very much like induced demand with traffic on the roads - you would think building more lanes would decrease traffic but it only encourages more people to drive so your right back to square one.

Right now some people choose not to go because of the crowds. If you create more capacity those people will show up at the parks and then you will be right back to the same problem. The new headliner rides would still suffer the same fate of the big rides today and people will complain they can't find a way to do Tron + Mine Train + new ride 1 + new ride 2 all in the same trip since they all have long lines / sell out quickly.

If its too crowded for you then don't go and get better value somewhere else.

Adding more headliners would definitely draw more crowds. That's not what the parks need. They need more attractions on the level of Moana water walk through. It won't draw more people to the park but adds more things to do at Epcot

 

[Smugpugmug]

They don't need to be headliners, but Animal Kingdom needs more than 7 rides. The park has been cursed with the half day park label for 26 years.

 

[BrianL]

Adding more headliners would definitely draw more crowds. That's not what the parks need. They need more attractions on the level of Moana water walk through. It won't draw more people to the park but adds more things to do at Epcot

Yes, this I agree with. They need some no-height-requirement, omni-mover style rides - high capacity rides that are solid but won't cause a rush for them.

 

[sheilafri]

Well, yes and no. A restaurant that is full is no problem, but if the restaurant is constantly completely overbooked, taking reservations for months out, and still making patrons wait an hour for a table after arrival, well, they might want to look into expanding their operation.

I do think Disney is at a point where some expansion is warranted, or at least using all of the currently available spaces that the parks have. Like there is no reason why places like the Tomorrowland north building or Wonders of Life are completely unused. Start there at the very least - it is compeltely warranted with current business levels.

Agree. The biggest difference is that you generally don’t pay to wait at a restaurant but you pay to wait at WDW. There are very different expectations between a person who shows up and is disappointed and a captive audience who has already paid.

 

[Disney Kidd]

This is one reason I prefer Disneyland to Disney World. They have roughly the same number of rides but split between two parks instead of four. Genie plus works great there!

 

[Obi-J Kenobi]

This is one reason I prefer Disneyland to Disney World. They have roughly the same number of rides but split between two parks instead of four. Genie plus works great there!

Proximity makes better park hopping too, naturally.