Today I’m excited to welcome guest poster Heather! She blogs about Disney, travel, running, and family over at Heather’s Looking Glass. She’s here to share some of her best Fastpass tips with us.
Fastpasses are a great tool that Disney uses to help guests see more of their favorite attractions without having to stand in long lines. It’s free for anyone, but there is some strategy involved. Check out my list of Fastpass mistakes to avoid and get more done on your next Disney vacation, in less time!
1.) Making your times too early in the day: By general rule, Disney parks are the least crowded first thing in the morning, and then fill up as the day goes on. A common mistake people make is scheduling their fastpasses first thing in the morning, when the lines are the shortest. Instead, my advice would be to get to the parks early and ride as many things as you can in the short standby lines, and then schedule your three fastpasses starting around lunchtime. That way, you are going through the short fastpass lines when everyone else is waiting in the long standby lines because the park is now full.
2.) Making your times too late in the day: Similar to the first tip, some people make their initial three fastpass selections too late in the day. Remember, you get to make three, and once you have used ALL THREE, you can then make more, one at a time. So let’s say you make one for 11:00 am, 12:00 pm, and then 8:00 pm. You will be stuck in standby lines all afternoon because you can’t add additional fastpasses until all three have been used. It would be wiser to make that third one at 1:00, and then one at a time from there/after that.
3.) Not making them soon enough before your trip: One of the many benefits of staying on Disney property is that you get to make your fastpass selections up to 60 days in advance of your vacation. This allows you to get “first dibs” on ride times and more flexibility. If you forget and wait until a week before your trip, there may not be many, if any times available for very popular attractions, so be sure to set yourself a calendar reminder!
4.) Booking attractions with short waits: In most circumstances, you will want to “save” your fastpasses for attractions with long wait times. It would be silly to use one for something that generally has less than a 15 minute wait instead of one with an hour plus wait! Be strategic with your plans to maximize your time.
5.) Not getting more fastpasses after using your initial three: After you use your first three fastpasses, you can use your My Disney Experience app, or go to any kiosk in the park to add more fastpasses, one at a time. be sure you know how to do this on your app or know the location of the kiosks so as soon as you rise that third ride, you can be sure to get another fastpass, again and again until you are done!
One of the main reasons people don’t book their fastpasses is they don’t know how. I have solved this problem for you by creating a FREE course that explains how to do this as well as many other things like booking dining reservations, creating a profile, friends and family list, etc. It also tells you all about Magic Bands and how to use them. You can SIGN UP HERE, it’s completely free! Don’t miss out on Disney’s free service just because you don’t understand the process. I will help you! Just sign up today.
What is a ride you always make sure to fastpass?
SO resourceful! I wish I’d known this before I went to DisneyWorld. The system is so different at Disneyland so I was in for a real surprise.
It really is! I’m going to be at Disneyland in about two weeks so I have to get back into the Disneyland mindset!
Thanks for letting me guest post!
Thank you again for sharing all of your insight!