[Are you going to miss the] Fast Pass Kiosks? - Page 3 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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The current FastPass system is not "leaving WDW." The FP system is certainly going to go through some changes with the new equipment and ticket media, and the method of booking a FP will almost certainly be different, but that's not the same as the system leaving. It's being upgraded and reconfigured.
ABSOLUTELY!!
It's the same with the recent furor over the GACs "going away"...
Again, I cannot believe there is ANY way Disney is going to take away a vital and traffic-driving amenity to enable those with disabilities to tour the parks. (Disney sees a major revenue stream of return guests who come back because their disabilities, allergies, and special needs are seen to without drama or embarrassment.) I would think that the "GAC card might be going away in favor of that data being available via a MagicBand or a RFID-enabled Keys to the World card.
I was there in July and stayed off property the fastpasses were great. I think they'll keep them and just upgrade to give on-property guest more flexibility. Disney is the master of customer service. They will not dissapoint. That's why i'm paying for another family trip this Christmas. On property!!
Personally -- and this is just my take on it and not based on an official announcement from Disney -- there will still be at least one FP machine at the rides that use FP. It will function with RFID technology rather than mag-stripe technology. Those, along with the kiosks, will allow guests to get FP+s on-the-fly.
I really don't see them keeping the old machines around once FastPass + has been rolled out to everyone. I think Disney has even said that the machines for the stations in new fantasyland are only temporary.
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You can dream, create, design and build the most wonderful place in the world, but it takes people to make the dream a reality.
- Walt Disney
I really don't see them keeping the old machines around once FastPass + has been rolled out to everyone. I think Disney has even said that the machines for the stations in new fantasyland are only temporary.
Agreed, the hardware will need replacement or upgrading.
I think that, with the switchover to the RFID ticket media and the rollout of My Disney Experience, Disney will eventually have RFID kiosks all over the property that will have all of the current FP functionality, all of the new FP+ functionality, and additional services like making and changing dining ADRs, checking ticket and dining plan entitlements, and checking purchase history and balance on room charging accounts. It's all tied together, I think eventually Guests will be able to access it all through the kiosks, and those kiosks will pop up like weeds throughout WDW property. Heck, they may even put some in the Orlando area outlets and the EarPort stores at MCO.
Agreed, the hardware will need replacement or upgrading.
I think that, with the switchover to the RFID ticket media and the rollout of My Disney Experience, Disney will eventually have RFID kiosks all over the property that will have all of the current FP functionality, all of the new FP+ functionality, and additional services like making and changing dining ADRs, checking ticket and dining plan entitlements, and checking purchase history and balance on room charging accounts. It's all tied together, I think eventually Guests will be able to access it all through the kiosks, and those kiosks will pop up like weeds throughout WDW property. Heck, they may even put some in the Orlando area outlets and the EarPort stores at MCO.
I can see them having more in the parks and maybe in resort lobbies, but I doubt MCO will allow them to put them into the stores at the airport. However what may be possible with that would be to allow you to charge something to the card on file with your MagicBand at the stores there.
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You can dream, create, design and build the most wonderful place in the world, but it takes people to make the dream a reality.
- Walt Disney
I can see them having more in the parks and maybe in resort lobbies, but I doubt MCO will allow them to put them into the stores at the airport. However what may be possible with that would be to allow you to charge something to the card on file with your MagicBand at the stores there.
I don't see why MCO would have any objection to Disney adding a piece of Disney computer equipment to a Disney store. Many of the airlines and car rental agencies already have similar self-service kiosks in the airport. In fact, the Southwest kiosks aren't even in Southwest's area; they're in a general lobby area near the ticketing counters. Why would MCO have any objection - or any say - in how Disney equips its own stores inside the terminal?
I don't see why MCO would have any objection to Disney adding a piece of Disney computer equipment to a Disney store. Many of the airlines and car rental agencies already have similar self-service kiosks in the airport. In fact, the Southwest kiosks aren't even in Southwest's area; they're in a general lobby area near the ticketing counters. Why would MCO have any objection - or any say - in how Disney equips its own stores inside the terminal?
MCO most likely wouldn't have a problem with it but the other theme parks may. It would be like when DME first started and they were taking anyone who had a Disney reservation even if they hadn't booked DME. Now under the current agreement with MCO Disney can only take those who have signed up with them for DME on the bus, mainly because the taxi and car service companies complained about it.
__________________
You can dream, create, design and build the most wonderful place in the world, but it takes people to make the dream a reality.
- Walt Disney
Also, wouldn't they have to keep someone on hand to "man" and service the machines if they broke? I'm not sure they want the expense of that, or the appearance of an out-of-order machine as the first thing a Disney vacationer sees at the airport.
MCO most likely wouldn't have a problem with it but the other theme parks may. It would be like when DME first started and they were taking anyone who had a Disney reservation even if they hadn't booked DME. Now under the current agreement with MCO Disney can only take those who have signed up with them for DME on the bus, mainly because the taxi and car service companies complained about it.
That was a different situation. They were providing a service, using a public area of the airport, that was directly undercutting established local businesses (namely towncar, limo, taxi, and shuttle services). They were also violating their rental agreement with the airport by deploying CMs in public areas where towncar and limo services are prohibited from deploying people. The other services were understanably upset.
A MDE kiosk inside the Disney Store in the airport, is no different than a bank having an ATM or one of the airlines setting up kiosks to make reservations and print boarding passes. Universal and SeaWorld both have stores in MCO, and I don't doubt that they both sell tickets at those stores, just as Disney does in the EarPorts. But there would be no undercutting going on - Disney is simply providing a device of convenience to access services they already offer at the EarPort or by phone or internet.
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Originally Posted by Caldercup
Also, wouldn't they have to keep someone on hand to "man" and service the machines if they broke? I'm not sure they want the expense of that, or the appearance of an out-of-order machine as the first thing a Disney vacationer sees at the airport.
That is a very valid concern. But the maintenance and repair expense is no greater than the other kiosks they deploy around WDW property, and I think Disney may (perhaps short-sightedly) gloss over the potential image problem it in favor of the New Shiny Thing. After all, they won't deploy a machine that they assume is going to be broken a large percentage of the time; they're going to assume near-100% up-time in their decision of where to deploy the kiosks.
How long have those self-service ticket sales kiosks been sitting completely inoperative at TTC?
I should've been more clear -- I meant I doubt they'd have a kiosk at the MCO airport (where it would be hard to service.)
The kiosks in the parks is a no-brainer. They'll be very popular for those guests who don't have a smartphone to make on-the-go changes to their FP+s.
No, you were clear. I just meant that the cost and maintenance issues at the airport wouldn't be much greater than the cost and maintenance issues at WDW itself. Granted, the airport is 25 miles away, but I'm sure Disney has maintenance people out there all the time to work on the systems in the EarPort stores and at the DME area, so if a kiosk malfunctioned, it would be a simple matter to send a truck out with a replacement and just bring the broken one back in for service. They wouldn't fix it in situ at the airport.
Once they get the bugs worked out of the kiosks, I think we'll all begin to love them. Having complete access to the My Disney Experience system in one place - for ADRs, FPs, and hopefull at a lter time, PhotoPass pics, ticket entitlements and dining plan credits - will become an integral part of the WDW experience.
They experimented with putting computers in every room at Contemporary a few years ago. That seemed to work well, but it was only a pilot program and didn't go any further. But I could see, perhaps 10 or 15 years from now, a MDE terminal in every resort room. It would replace the dining line and allow Guests instant access to so much stuff that they currently have to make phone calls or go to the front desk to do. They could even incorporate video phones into the kiosks for those times when you need tech support or more detailed customer service than the automated system could provide.
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I was there in July and stayed off property the fastpasses were great. I think they'll keep them and just upgrade to give on-property guest more flexibility. Disney is the master of customer service. They will not dissapoint. That's why i'm paying for another family trip this Christmas. On property!!
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