DH would have totally been all for this, being an in the moment, plan is a 4 letter word, kind of guy.
Reaching into the pocket for the money clip wasn’t a difficulty 
2 Likes
I would only feel like doing this approach if park admittance costs were something like 10% of what they currently are. Paying over a hundred dollars - and some days over two for at least one park - just to walk in makes me way less inclined to pay extra for a ride. And especially a short ride.
However, if a majority of folks in a park have little idea of planning, they might welcome this scheme. I prefer to wander unencumbered 
3 Likes
This is why I’ve been shocked at how much people have been willing to fork over money for LLMP at all to begin with. It seems people have just accepted that they will just always pay extra for LLMP on top of ticket prices because they can’t fathom that it is possible to enjoy the parks WITHOUT it!!!
Which does lead to a negative from Disney’s side of things. They want guaranteed revenue, so pre-selling LLMP is in their best interest, while at the same time not having to promise that they deliver any real value for the rides that are important to guests. Many guests end up paying for LLMP that may not end up needing it or even getting to use it on the rides they want to, which Disney benefits from.
2 Likes
Well, you know Disney queried guests considerably before putting this out there.
The original Genie/VQ thing was possibly more short-on-CMs driven.
Apparently more folks want a perception of a guarantee, thus the Lightning Lanes.
1 Like
DLP pricing was fixed by ride when we were there.
How would this even work though? At 9am there could only be X passes for 9am-10am so they would “sell out” at some point or else the line would just be a regular line. So then you’d have to be on your phone all day or just waiting at the entrance to see when they restock?
4 Likes
I kind of think this is what drove Disney to once again allowing the pre-booking of the first three rides more recently…without it, people were probably frustrated that they paid for a product with no guarantee they would get to “skip the line” for anything they cared about!!!
2 Likes
No. That’s not dynamic enough. Pricing for the LL would change in the moment, driven primarily by standby wait times, by also by how many LLs are currently “in circulation” for the ride. You aren’t paying for a LL for a time slot, but you are are deciding RIGHT THEN if you want to pay the current price shown or not! You tap in if you do, otherwise you get in the standby line or just move on.
A few nuanced details would need to be worked out. For example, I think when a person decides to tap in, what if the price jumps JUST before they tap? I think the system would need to charge the LOWEST price displayed in, say, the past minute or two. So if the price suddenly goes up halfway through your party tapping in, you aren’t being charged more. Details like that are really just “configuration parameters” though.
1 Like
I still think that this would be a nightmare scenario. You’d have people like hovering around the entrance to Guardians watching the stock ticker waiting to rush the gate as the price drops.
8 Likes
I doubt that would be the case. The price wouldn’t fluctuate that dramatically unless the standby wait dropped dramatically and unexpectedly as well. If there is, say, a 60 minute standby, and the LL costs $10, and then the standby drops to 50 minutes, the LL might drop to $9. I don’t think people would find value in waiting 10 minutes to save a single dollar. And there are calculations you can do that ties it not to the EXACT current standby, but based on the average standby wait for, say, the past 30 minutes. This would soften the fluctuations even more.
1 Like
But what about SDD LLs that sell out a week in advance? Like park opens at 9am and people rope drop. Is the price just going up up and up as people rush the ride? And as the price goes up the line is actually getting longer?
3 Likes
Up to a point, yes. Disney needs to build in an upper limit of LL wait time. So, if the wait in the LL exceeds a certain value (however they determine that…perhaps number of outstanding LLs, etc), they might actually cut off the abillity to tap in for a new LL (although, still allow any pre-booked).
I think Disney would need to keep the number of pre-booked to be quite limited, though. And I think they would need to charge MORE for the opportunity to pre-book. So, to pre-book SDD might cost you $20, but in the park, it might only be $10, on average, at any given time. You are paying for the guarantee to ride. (I’m making up numbers to illustrate, to be clear…not actually suggesting those numbers.)
2 Likes
This is exactly my point! So they cut that off and either people have to hover and wait or be on their phone to see when they can get a LL!
3 Likes
I don’t think you’d be able to get a LL from your phone. Only if you pre-booked. Day of would only be there in the park.
These are just nuances to be configured for. Definitely not really problems that can’t be solved.
1 Like
Exactly. Right now, I just figure that LLMP is part of my ticket price. I know what the cost is going to be ahead of time, and I pony it up. I’m not surprised by day of changes and nickel and diming whether is called credits or actual cash charges. I get ALL rides included in LLMP for one price; I don’t have to pay dynamic pricing for EACH ride. It would be a huge turn-off for me, even more so than managing LLMP on my phone more than I want to be, to have this carnival/midway setup. When you’re thinking of families and not just solo or couple travelers, dynamic pricing per ride could be a HUGE sticker shock. There would be no way Disney would keep prices at just $2/ride.
Also, since I just asked this at work earlier, what problem is this trying to solve? My understanding is that both LL and SB wait times have decreased since the implementation of LLMP and LLSP, so I’m not sure we can improve it much more other than getting rid of LL completely and just making everything SB, which most don’t want either.
3 Likes
I actually like this idea in theory. I, too, like to be able to be spontaneous, pay as I go, and have less impact on standby by having a cost barrier to use.
But the main reason I think Disney wouldn’t do this is practical. If someone buys a LL based on an advertised wait time and then waits longer than that, they will be more likely to ask for a refund than under the current regime. Now you are only being sold the ability to wait “less than standby.” But under this scheme you would essentially be buying a wait for a specific number dollars per minute.
That said, I really like the DLP model and would prefer that!
4 Likes
So if you aren’t wealthy and have a reason you can’t stand in line for 60+ mins, tough luck to be you?
3 Likes
I can’t understand that logic. Like I said, I can’t even tell you the last time I waited more then 60 minutes (or even 45 minutes) and didn’t buy LL. We have gone from LL/FP being a luxury to an expectation???
Disney has many more years without a line skipping service than with one. The reason Disney created one was to drive up revenue for themselves. That’s it. Even the free one was meant to convince people they were offering something unique (which they were) to convince more people to spend their vacations there.
1 Like
I won’t be purchasing LLMP. I had considered it for MK over the summer so DH didn’t have to wait for the one ride he likes to ride, but we had to cancel that trip. There are so few rides I can ride without getting dizzy or hurt that it is no longer even an option for me.
4 Likes
I don’t like the true dynamic pricing. I want to know what to expect. But I don’t mind if things are higher during crowded days and less during the lull. But I want that info to be straight forward- like ticket pricing.
I can get on board with this! But I don’t like the complication of it all.
The long term consequences for a “nickel and dime” structure and qualifying each attraction is that people may decided that the whole experience of Disney becomes less important as more than half the rides an attractions aren’t worth the wait or additional cost. The price of tickets just to walk in the gates are just so high.
Disney really should do better about distributing availability from pre-booking to day of.
Interesting. There are just a couple outside of the current LLSPs that I would pay a premium to guarantee a spot- as long as I’m not subjected to a time slot.
This caveat can change the whole system. They could even limit the information in the app until it detects you’re near the attraction.
But they aren’t really guaranteed unless you pre-book. There are some that rarely see day of availability.
Not having to book a particular spot. Not a problem for Disney but it takes some of the carefree feeling away from the Disney vacation.
1 Like
Raisng revenue by essentially making it easier for more people to buy LLs.
It’s not a real thing. @ryan1 's son worked it out. Youngest grandson would prefer not to use such a system but he sees how an average guest with average pre-planning knowledge would like the spontaneity of this if it were available.
3 Likes