APE Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 I wouldn't buy if it were a one time use deal. Unlimited like it is or nothing from me. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 And Dollywood's system has tiers. The higher tier IS essentially walk-on...a three or four minute wait, at most, most days. Fast Lane people pay for the privilege. It isn't going away. Disney now nearly requires you schedule WDW rides weeks in advance. That isn't going away either. But I might. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldieButGoodie Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 Sure wish that CF would take a page from Disney and allow a small number of FL passes for every ticket-buyer. The market is still there for the full-monty FL pass, but having to choose 3 really worked great down in Orlando. Then you felt like you could relax and be flexible for the rest of the day. Also loved (and hated) the biometric lockers at Universal. Loved them because they were free if you were short-term for a ride, but could be rented for longer, and they didn't have a code you needed to protect but used your fingerprint for access. Hated them when my son was the 'key' and it wouldn't read his fingerprint. Fortunately I had pictures of him on my dSLR (in the locker)! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
APE Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 After using Fast Lane plus at Cedar Point the only thing I would change about it is make a set number per day that isn't a crazy number. Other than that keep them as is with no changes it made for such a relaxing and awesome day at the park. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gad198 Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 Fast Lane people pay for the privilege. It isn't going away. Disney now nearly requires you schedule WDW rides weeks in advance. That isn't going away either. But I might. Disney really opened up Pandora's box when they introduced FastPass. FastPass allows you to trade waiting less for a small number of rides for longer waits on your other rides via the standby queue. This is an important point - all FastPass (and the other quick cut-the-line options) does is re-allocate who is waiting and for how long. FastPass didn't suddenly add capacity to actually cut down wait times. It simply lets some people wait less while others (those in the standby lines) wait longer. All FastPass is doing is changing the perception of how you feel about waiting by giving you some small rewards in the form of a few FastPass opportunities. There are only three ways to cut down on average line times in parks - reduced attendance (which clearly is not at work here), improving the capacity of existing rides, or by adding net new attractions (new attractions minus attractions that are retired). In fairness, there's not much Disney can do to improve the capacity of the existing rides as they are already high capacity. However, Disney has actually made things worse in that their net new attractions have not kept pace with their growing attendance numbers. In some ways Disney is a victim of its own high standards in this regard because new Disney attractions cost a ton more than attractions installed at other parks, and as such they can't install them as often. Disney knows that the long line issue does need to be addressed, which is why they're expanding the Toy Story Mania and Soarin' rides. Disney wisely is adding capacity to help alleviate the issues. On the flip side, Disney is now allowing guests to pre-plan their FastPass times way in advance. How exactly does that solve the long line issues? You still are only allowed a few FastPass reservations, and the system will initially give you FastPasses that you may not want or need. You can manipulate your FastPasses to get what you want, but the times may suck. You're still going to be subject to the long standby lines everywhere else. The whole system there is so intricate and complex that in order to feel like you're not "missing out on anything" that you need to study the system like it's a college course. How is that fun? Disney's introduction of FastPass opened the door to a lot of other parks offering their own paid skip-the-line systems. Unfortunately, there's only been one large park I've seen that's been able to successfully integrate a paid skip-the-line option and that's Universal. Universal's offering works because they change the amount they charge for the Express pass based on the season and raise the price substantially when the park is supposed to be busy. That's the way you do it. A $105 Fast Lane Plus price on peak July Saturdays at Cedar Point is still going to leave you sitting in a long line, whether you buy the Fast Lane or not. Why would anyone pony up the additional funds only to still have wait in a long line? 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bennett Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 The only time that I have ever done the "Fast" pass type besides the old way at Disney was last year at Universal Orlando. Only reason for that was it was a perk of staying at one of the on site resorts. Did we enjoy the benefits of that for two full days in the parks? Yes. Was nice to have, saved us a bit of time, but, was not valid on the most popular rides there, Escape from Gringotts, and Forbidden Journey, which, I felt was more than fair. Did it save us a ton of time, not really. Did I ride things that I might not of because of the ability to skip the line? Yes. Was fun to marathon Ripsaw Falls and Popeye's Barges. That said, I plan our trips to places like that so we can go on Mondays, Tuesdays, etc in order to skip the busy, busy days. Would I pay money to buy Fast Lane at KI, CP, or any other Cedar Fair park? Never. Will I stay at a Universal resort in Orlando everytime we go in the future? You bet. NOt having to touch your car keys for three days is wonderful. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tr0y Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 Fast-lane = Great for the one time park visitors, a nuisance for the season pass holder... Hopefully Kings Island can correct this dilemma by staffing a Wambulance. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Italian Job 2005 Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 Studying it like a college course... Hmm....sounds a lot like what the people over at TouringPlans.com did. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tr0y Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 Studying it like a college course... Hmm....sounds a lot like what the people over at TouringPlans.com did. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk I gotcha covered, avoid Kings Island on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and during the Holidays. Also if you get there by opening you will have a good portion of the park out of the way before the afternoon rush. Start your day at X-base and work your way out. If you plan on doing the water park, it's also best to the that first thing when it opens. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KIfan73 Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 I always visit during the summer on a weekday, usually Tuesday or Wednesday. For the last three seasons (since the start of FL )it seems like the advantage of doing that seems to have been virtually erased. By noon, almost every ride has had very long lines. Of course, it is still worse on a Saturday. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magenta Lizard Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 As a season pass holder, I don't find Fast Lane a nuisance at all. I feel like it subsidizes my pass being so inexpensive. KI gets bodies in the park with cheaper season passes, which sells more Fast Lane. I win because my pass costs less (I think) than the one I had in high school twenty years ago (and considering parking wasn't included back then, it's even better), the park wins more money from sales of Fast Lane and from me as a passholder (because I rarely visit without spending anything), and the people who can't visit often win by being able to buy a better single day experience. Of course, I also have the freedom to visit the park when I want, so I'm usually there when there are low crowds. I also experienced it from the other side two summers ago, my first time in the park in years, and a friend from out of state who could only go with me on a busy weekend. It was definitely worth it to me to be able to pay an extra $100 (I think, for both) and we could ride all the rides we wanted in a one-day blowout. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bjcolglazier Posted April 23, 2015 Share Posted April 23, 2015 My family is a family of 5, and we have Gold passes, despite the 3-hour-drive to the park. We also buy Fast Lane several times a year. Certainly not every time we go, but maybe four or five times a season. Those days are amazing! And it's one more way for the park to separate us from our money despite getting "free" entry. One thing that surprises me a little is that they don't track who is buying Fast Lane. There's no discount or other incentive for season pass holders buying Fast Lane (not that I'd expect anything major anyway), but providing some minor incentive would allow them to have some record of who is buying. I would think that would be valuable data, but maybe I'm wrong. They can track practically everything else season pass holders buy in the park, after all. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spectrum91 Posted April 24, 2015 Share Posted April 24, 2015 ^I agree. I'm also surprised FunPerks didn't last more than a season for the same reason, because beyond encouraging more in-park spending, it also provides incredibly valuable data on who is buying what and where. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted April 24, 2015 Share Posted April 24, 2015 Welcome to KIC, bjcolglazier! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Italian Job 2005 Posted April 24, 2015 Share Posted April 24, 2015 ^I agree. I'm also surprised FunPerks didn't last more than a season for the same reason, because beyond encouraging more in-park spending, it also provides incredibly valuable data on who is buying what and where. I feel like they are sorta trying to do that with the new Season Pass portal, where you will buy tickets to season pass-only events. They'll be able to see who purchased what from the portal, and how often people are using the portal. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aandjgoods Posted May 13, 2015 Share Posted May 13, 2015 Do I receive a 10% discount with my Platinum Pass if I buy my Fastlane at the Park. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bjcolglazier Posted May 14, 2015 Share Posted May 14, 2015 Do I receive a 10% discount with my Platinum Pass if I buy my Fastlane at the Park. Nope. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aandjgoods Posted May 14, 2015 Share Posted May 14, 2015 OK thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Existential Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 My partner and I...a girl you church types...pledge to allow the other to operate the switches while the other rides when we are the last ones standing. I'd advise everyone to devise such a plan for the Apocalypse. It would be wise. We might beat you to it. Its been a standing plan for us longer than you. Come at us brahs. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
homestar92 Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 Unless I have a rental car and a bodyguard, my roller coaster plans don't involve Apocalypse, or anything else at the park in which it is located. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Existential Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 One can't let the End of Days spoiling the fun...man. get out there and do things if you are around. I might even high five you...if you make it...and I see you. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silver2005 Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 Unless I have a rental car and a bodyguard, my roller coaster plans don't involve Apocalypse, or anything else at the park in which it is located. What about the other Apocalypse? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkroz Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 Fast Lane people pay for the privilege. It isn't going away. Disney now nearly requires you schedule WDW rides weeks in advance. That isn't going away either. But I might. Disney really opened up Pandora's box when they introduced FastPass. FastPass allows you to trade waiting less for a small number of rides for longer waits on your other rides via the standby queue. This is an important point - all FastPass (and the other quick cut-the-line options) does is re-allocate who is waiting and for how long. FastPass didn't suddenly add capacity to actually cut down wait times. It simply lets some people wait less while others (those in the standby lines) wait longer. All FastPass is doing is changing the perception of how you feel about waiting by giving you some small rewards in the form of a few FastPass opportunities. FastPass isn't really making anyone wait longer in theory. The computer knows that Space Mountain has an hourly capacity of X. It distributes (for example) 30% of X to FastPass users, and the remaining 70% is the "Stand-by" line. To make this very simple, let's say there are 100 people in line for Space Mountain. There are only 70 people in Stand-by. But the computer knows that 30 will arrive within the hour long window for their Fastpass reservation, so it adjusts the wait time to compensate for that. The marquee outside will broadcast a wait time based on 100, not 70. The "point," in a sense, is that 100 people would be in line for Space Mountain from 9:00 - 10:00 if there were no FastPass. But Fastpass allows 30 of those people to be out in the park spending money. For the 101st person who chooses to wait in the Stand-by, they're told a wait based on 100 people ahead of them, even if there are only 70 in the Stand-by line. They're waiting just as long as they would've, just with 30 of the 100 people "virtually" queued instead of literally queued. The point is, Disney's system is weighted and measured by computers and adjusting algorithms and return time and capacity formulas that adjust throughout the day. It's also very complex for the operator. Compare it to a simple wristband and a sign pointing up an exit ramp. Voila. Fast Lane. No limits, no computers, no measurements, no extra employees. Just a big box of wristbands and cash in the register. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 And in both cases, the point is money. E tickets rationed ride experiences to those who paid, too. What your logic misses is that, especially with Fast Lane, the line skippers ride many more times than they otherwise would. If I'm in the back of the regular Banshee line (otherwise, say, 90 minutes), and the same 270 Fast Lane patrons decide to ride Banshee all day without ceasing, I will arrive in the Banshee station if and only if they do cease and are not replaced by more if, as on opening day 2014, all Fast Lane patrons are accommodated before any standby. Even if some standby are let in,, they clearly waited longer than they otherwise would have, as those Fast Lane peeps in front of them could and did ride over and over (or took up space in other ride lines when they otherwise would not) while standby waited longer and longer and longer. If a ride always has a line, and there is Fast Lane, and the line skippers ride it more than they otherwise would have, the standby people either wait longer, don't get to ride or quit coming to the park. See also meal plans. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkroz Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 And Fast Lane is very different from FastPass in that regard. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeeastFarmer Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 I just try to plan my visits to KI when lines should be short. However, if a friend can only go on busy days, I would not be opposed to doing legal line jumping. I have done it once, and it was fun. Now, if they would just fix the food lines....haha 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acfinn Posted May 16, 2015 Share Posted May 16, 2015 My brother in law and his kids is coming to visit us in July and we will be making a trip to the park. We will be going on a Friday, the 17th to be exact. I am thinking to ensure they can ride everything and some more than once we should do FLP. Should we buy these in advance? I know the site says they have "limited quantities" or something. I just wanted to get advice from some of the rest of the board. What would you do? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted May 16, 2015 Share Posted May 16, 2015 I'd wait. What if you get to the park and for some unknown reason, 408 people are there? And ONLY 408? 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jsus Posted May 16, 2015 Share Posted May 16, 2015 Come on, have Hart! Hundreds had fun on opening day. The opening day that was really just a preview day. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcgoble3 Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 Yes, they have "limited quantities", but they rarely sell out, and typically only on the busiest of days (which a Friday probably won't be). Absolutely wait until you get to the park and get a feel for the crowds yourself. And by that I mean walk around a bit and look at all the major ride lines after the initial rope-drop rush goes away, then decide. It's likely, but not guaranteed, that you can get through most everything without FL(+). In particular, hit Firehawk and Flight of Fear immediately after rope drop to bypass the long lines they will have later in the day; they are usually walk-ons or almost so during the first 15 to 20 minutes or so immediately after rope drop. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.