It’s no secret Disney is a hot spot for vacationers. Annually, Disney will see about 52 billion guests, which breaks down to about one billion per week. One way Disney is combatting crowds is with FastPass+. Love them or hate them, the FastPass+ system at Disney World is here to stay.
The biggest mistakes people make when planning their trip is not booking FastPass+ or they book the wrong FastPass+. In this post I will go through when and how to book your FastPass+ as well as which attractions are best for FastPass+.
I have traveled to Disney World four times in the past five years. Over those four tips I have picked up some tips and tricks about booking FastPass+. In this blog post, I’ll share my knowledge of FastPass+ to help you maximize your time in the Parks.
(Note: This post only covers FastPass+ for Disney World NOT Disneyland.)
What is a FastPass+?
FastPass+ allow guests to bi-pass standby lines of certain rides and attractions. They allow guests to experience more attractions than if you were to wait in the standard line. Some rides, especially the more popular ones, can build up long wait times, some up to 2 hours or more.
Every guest with a ticket to the Disney Parks is allowed three FastPass+ to start each day. This is something that is included in the price of your Park Pass, there is no extra charges for using FastPass+. After you use the first three, you are eligible to book more that day you are in the Park. You will be able to book these ones one at a time. Once you use the fourth, we’ll be able to use the fifth, and so on. There is no limit to how many FastPass+ you can get in the day.
Having a FastPass+ does not mean you won't have to wait in a line it just means you will be waiting in a shorter line. Depending on the attraction, you could be waiting up to 20 minutes, which in comparison to 2 hours does not seem long at all. You will ALWAYS get through the FastPass+ line before the standby line.
(Note: Wait times can be viewed on the My Disney Experience App.)
When Can I Book?
When you can start booking your FastPass+ depends on where you are staying. Guest staying on-property will be able to start booking FastPass+ 60 days out while guest staying off-property can start booking at 30 days out. Booking will open at 7:00 am EST on the first day of your planned visit. You’ll be able to book your FastPass+ through your My Disney Experience App or on your computer. There are a limited amount of passes available per day per attraction and the most popular ones do book up early. Because of this, you will want to have your App or computer opened right away.
Booking FastPass+ ahead of time is not required, it is highly recommended. You will have a better chance of getting on the most popular attractions if you book early. Another tip booking your FastPass+ is to always start with your last day. For example, if you are planning a 7 day stay start with day 7, than 6, than 5, so on and so forth. Technically speaking, you’ll then have 67 days to plan your FastPass+. If you use this method, you might not get the best passes for your first couple of days but you will get great ones for the last few days of your trip. In many cases guests will visit the Magic Kingdom first, which has more FastPass+ available than the other Parks.
What Time Should I Schedule My FastPass+?
There are basically two ways to plan out your FastPass+.
The first way would be to plan early and plan often. This means you would plan your first passes as early as possible. If the park opens at 9:00 am you can get your first pass for 9:00-10:00, the second for 10:00-11:00, and the third for 11:00-12:00. If you use this method, you could get to the Park at rope-drop (which means as soon as they open) and jump onto a few attractions standby before you use your first FastPass+. As soon as you’ve used those passes you will be able to book more.
The second method is what I call the “rope-drop method”. If you use this method, you would be scheduling your first FastPass+ for 10:00 or 11:00. With this method you can take advantage of the lower crowds in the morning and save your first FastPass+ for the afternoon. But you should still have them scheduled early enough in the day for you to take advantage of more than four or five.
Something to keep in mind there are special situations in which you will not be able to schedule FastPass+. You cannot schedule passes during Extra Magic Hours, the Halloween Party, or the Christmas Party. This is due to the low crowd volumes during this time.
What is a “Tier”?
At Epcot, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios the FastPass+ are set up in a tier model. There are Tier 1 attractions, which are the most popular attractions, and Tier 2 attractions, which are the rest.
With your original three FastPass+ picks you will be able to pick one Tier 1 attraction and two Tier 2 attractions. Which attractions you pick will depend on what kind of attractions you are into.
What Attractions Should I FastPass+?
You can schedule a FastPass+ for rides, shows, firework spots, and character meet and greets. Different people are going to have different opinions on how to use your FastPass+. Some things to look into before planning would be; which characters are available to me, what rides are the most popular, and how many viewing areas are available for fireworks. Although you can schedule FastPass+ for Show, I would recommend not using them because shows are typically offered at multiple times throughout the day.
Magic Kingdom
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Space Mountain
Buzz Lightyear Spaceranger Spin
Pirates of the Caribbean
Enchanted Tales with Belle
Meet Mickey and Minnie in Town Square Theater
Peter Pan’s Flight (I’d do this one at rope-drop over getting a FastPass+)
Epcot
Tier 1 (choose 1):
Frozen - Best for Kids
Test Track
Soarin’
Tier 2 (choose 2):
Mission Space
Spaceship Earth (you should avoid this one if you get motion sickness)
Animal Kingdom
Tier 1 (choose 1):
Avatar Flight of Passage
Na’vi River Journey
Tier 2 (choose 2):
Expedition Everest
Kilimanjaro Safari
Kali River Rapids
Hollywood Studios
Tier 1 (choose 1):
Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run
Slinky Dog
Alien Swirling Saucers
Tier 2 (choose 2):
Rock n’ Roller Coaster
Tower of Terror
Star Tours
Takeaways
There’s a lot to know about planning and scheduling FastPass+. Here is a breakdown of the main takeaways:
FastPass+ is INCLUDED in your Park Pass price
Get the App
Plan early
Please check back for more posts about planning your next Disney Vacation. And remember, every Disney Vacation holds its own Magic.