Improve Lines app for in-park use

I was using the Lines app at WDW last week, and there were a few things that I found awkward or unclear in the app:

e.g. When I’m timing my waits, I’m interpreting the instructions to mean the clock should keep running for pre-show elements. e.g. For Haunted Mansion, the time stops when you get on the doom buggy, not when the stretch room show starts. For something like Rise of the Resistance, since there are multiple parts of that ride, the instructions should be real clear about which one is the one where the clock stops.

There were a few rides where I forgot to stop the timer when I got on the ride, but I discovered that when I got off and was opening the app to see where I should go next. An option to submit a time for “I just got off the ride” (that subtracts the actual ride time from the timer) might be useful.

If I’m doing an update (e.g. new optimization), it would be nice to be able to have more choices for explicitly setting my current location (or just have the system use GPS to get my location, rather than ask me). I understand the attraction of keeping the list short (Selecting Magic Kingdom/Fantasyland is faster than scrolling through a list of every ride and restaurant), but sometimes this isn’t precise enough. EPCOT/Workd Showcase might be the best example of this. Suggesting Mission Space as a next stop is very different if you’re currently in Mexico than if you’re currently near American Adventure.

The custom HS touring plan let me select both “Wonderful World of Animation” and “Fantasmic!” However, both of these were once-a-day shows at 9PM, but there weren’t any warnings about a schedule conflict. I had put both on my schedule request, and it wasn’t until I started trying to figure out why the plan had me arriving to Fantasmic well after it had started that I figured out the conflict.

I had some difficulty scheduling around Fantasmic, because I couldn’t figure out what the scheduler was trying to do with respect to arrival times. One of the plans I made had me arriving late, but another one I made where I had scheduled a 30 minute break at 8:30PM said I couldn’t make the show. For shows like that one, there may need to be options to allow people to optimize the probability of a “good” seat vs. time spent waiting in a theater.

While I appreciate the ability to edit times spent at restaurants and “Walk through” attractions (e.g. EPCOT/Moana), having more guidance or recommendations about expected times might be useful, particularly if it’s something I haven’t done before (or haven’t done recently). You’ve probably got much better data about how long people typically spend at these attractions and restaurants than I do.

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@len probably should read this. :).

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These are great recommendations, @ToddDTaft. Thank you!

When you scheduled Wonderful World of Animation and Fantasmic, did you do that through the app or through the website? I ask bc the website should have that sanity check.

I agree that we should add GPS to the app specifically for the kinds of scenarios you’re describing. I will make sure that’s on the to-do list.

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App.
I was sort of operating under the assumption that the app would have capabilities that the website wouldn’t, due to more access to things like GPS, as well as possible offline data, in case there were network issues. Should I really be using the website, even on mobile? I noticed that there were a few functions that forced me to the website.

There are a few functions that are on the website and not on the app. Those should be on the app by the end of the month. So you should be able to use the app for everything then.

I think the only two things not on the app right now are the new “rope drop mode” and “put free time at end of the plan” flags. So if you see anything else not on the app that’s on the site, please let me know.

Remind me again when your next trip is, please.

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Oh, this will be a nice addition!