Fastpass - TouringPlans.com Blog

Until this past weekend, one of our top insider tips for Disneyland Resort visitors was that the return time windows printed on FASTPASS tickets were rarely if ever enforced. Even though FASTPASS tickets clearly display a one-hour window during which the ticket is valid for expedited admission into an attraction, the end of the time period could previously be safely ignored. This was a great boon to savvy guests, who could get FASTPASS tickets for popular rides in the early hours of the day and stockpile them for use at any time before park closing.

Walt Disney World used to have a similar unwritten policy, until it began enforcing FASTPASS return times last year in preparation for the new MyMagic+ program. Now, Disneyland Resort has joined its Florida counterpart in requiring guests adhere to the designated return times.

As of this morning, Cast Members at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure attractions offering FASTPASS will refuse entry to guests arriving after their printed pass time has expired. Cast Members have been warning guests of the policy change for the past couple weeks, and signs reminding guests to observe their return times have been posted at all FASTPASS dispensing kiosks.

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Copyright Disney

Between the debt crisis, cabinet confirmation, and gun control, you might the the U.S. Congress has its hands too full at the moment to pay much attention to the Mouse. But Disney’s new MyMagic+ program, which was officially announced earlier this month and will soon roll out across Walt Disney World’s theme parks and resorts, has raised questions about security and privacy inside and outside Washington.

On January 24, Representative Edward J. Markey from Massachusetts, who has earned a long-standing reputation for challenging entertainment companies, issued a 3-page detailed letter requesting answers about how Disney’s new RFID chip-based guest management system will be implemented.

Markey’s missive read, in part:

Collecting information about how guests use Disney amusement parks could improve the company’s ability to target advertisements at its guests, including children… Although kids should have the chance to meet Mickey Mouse, this memorable meeting should not be manipulated through surreptitious use of a child’s personal information.

The response from Disney CEO Bob Iger, released on January 28, was less than diplomatic:

We are offended by the ludicrous and utterly ill-informed assertion in your letter dated January 24, 2013, that we would in any way haphazardly or recklessly introduce a program that manipulates children, or wantonly puts their safety at risk. It is truly unfortunate and extremely disappointing that you chose to publicly attack us before taking the time to review our policies and/or contact us for information, which would have obviated the need for your letter. Had you or your staff made the slightest effort, you would have found most of the answers to your questions already existed and were publicly available online at http://corporate.disney.go.com/corporate/pp.html and https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/faq/my-disney-experience/privacy-policy.

You can read Iger’s full response here.

Congressional concern is unlikely to significantly slow the billion-dollar MyMagic+ project, which is expected to expand across WDW in 2013, and invade Disneyland Resort the following year.

Are you concerned about your personal privacy in the light of Disney’s new designs? Do you feel it is appropriate for government representatives to ask questions like these? Leave us your take in the comments below.

I made an all too brief visit to Walt Disney World this past weekend with my husband. About two weeks prior to our departure for this trip, I received a surprise FastPass+ tester invitation in the mail. The “welcome” letter included two standard plastic cards which were imprinted with our names and a square QR code box. We were directed to a website where we could use our resort reservation number to sign up for FastPass+ use.

The test took place at the Magic Kingdom and Disney’s Hollywood Studios. We were directed to choose one of these parks on each of the two nights of our stay. I chose our arrival day Friday December 14 for DHS and Saturday 15 for the Magic Kingdom. We were offered a list of several attractions and allowed to choose a limited number to reserve with the FastPass+. We were presented with four sample time configurations, but had the ability to go in later and tinker with the timing. In practice, this felt very much like making a meal reservation.

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Arrive at DCA at least 45 minutes before park opening...

Looking for traffic avoidance advice as you drive down the crowded Route 66? Well, pull up to the pump and fill up on some free touring info, certain to make your first (or next) visit to Cars Land at at Disney California Adventure a little less fraught.

Recently, we related our step-by-step plan for surviving the Early Entry hour at Cars Land. Since the publication of that piece, Disnelyand announced the expansion of Extra Magic Hours for resort hotel guests to 7 days per week at both parks, now through September 13, 2012. Our advice is to take full advantage of the early admission programs if you are eligible for them, but that’s out of reach for the bulk of visitors this summer.

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7 a.m., seconds before rope from in Cars Land for Early Entry. (All photos by Seth Kubersky)

The new Cars Land attractions are barely three weeks old, but their popularity has already pushed the Disneyland Resort in general, and the Disney California Adventure park in particular, to record levels of attendance. The old conventional wisdom was that the sparsely-attended second gate didn’t require the same assiduous planning as its older sibling to enjoy in a single day. But at least until the Cars Land hoopla dies down — which we don’t expect to happen any time this summer — you’ll need an efficient itinerary to absorb all the relaunched park has to offer.

The 2013 edition of The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland will soon be winging its way to the presses, packed with our brand-new optimized touring plans for tackling Disney California Adventure’s latest additions. Unfortunately, it will arrive on store shelves too late to help those of you planning to visit within the next few months. Therefore, in honor of the recently-passed Independence Day holdiay, we wave the flag of freedom from frustration, and offer you this “survival guide” to liberating yourself from the long lines in Cars Land.

As always, our number one advice is “Arrive early, arrive early, arrive early!” For the foreseeable future, as far as Cars Land is concerned, you’ll want to add at least two more “arrive earlies” to that mantra. Much of your touring strategy depends on whether you are eligible for one of the park’s Early Entry programs.

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“There is nothing wrong with your computer monitor.  Do not attempt to adjust the settings.  We are controlling content.  If we wish to excite you, we will bring you a post about the Fantasyland Expansion.  If we wish to bore you, we will bring you a post about which brand of band-aid best accommodates walking-borne blisters.  If we wish to bend your brain, we will bring you a post much like the one to follow.  For the next five minutes, sit quietly and try to wrap your mind around what we are about to deliver.  We repeat: there is nothing wrong with your computer.  You are about to participate in a great adventure.  You are about to experience the awe and mystery which reaches from within the insanity of Type-A, commando, vacation planners to . . . The Outer Limits.”

This is how I imagine a blog post such as this one should open.  My mind explodes as I try to comprehend the magnitudinal impact of the information that I am about to share.  In terms of a Disney vacation, this is where it is at for a die-hard.  The time that could be saved . . . the biological energy that could be conserved . . . the amount of Disney territory that could be conquered . . . it’s almost more than a little Neurotic Disney Mom such as myself can take.  But a word of caution: This information is not for the faint of heart.  It is possibly not for the faint of anything because once you are able to comprehend this complex trickery of Touring Plan bliss, the execution of it might cause you to . . . well, faint.  Consider yourself warned.

Many a Disney fan is familiar with the Fastpass system that is an option for most of Disney’s longest “wait-in-line attractions”.  To refresh, though, I will pull an excerpt from the latest edition of The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World:

” . . . . insert your park admission pass into a Fastpass machine and receive an appointment time (for later in the day) to return and ride [the attraction for which you opted to get a Fastpass].  When you return at the designated time, you enter the Fastpass line and proceed directly to the attraction’s preshow or boarding area.” – p. 79

In the Fastpass system, each ticket is limited to one Fastpass at a time.  The holder of the Fastpass for one attraction may not acquire a Fastpass for a second attraction until the time indicated on the original Fastpass has transpired.  Only then can a ticket-holder seek a Fastpass for a second attraction, but the “Rider Exchange” is a game-changer for those that are serious about time efficiency.

The “Rider Exchange” (referred to as the “Switch-Off” in The Unofficial Guide) is possibly a less-known time-saving technique amongst the Disney guest population because it is not as widely publicized.  However, it is a necessary option for parties that have a person who is unwilling or unable to ride attractions but can’t be left alone while the rest of the group experiences them.  Here is another excerpt from The Unofficial Guide to briefly explain:

“To switch off, there must be at least two adults . . . . On most Fastpass attractions . . . . When you tell the cast member that you want to switch off, he or she will issue you a special “rider exchange” Fastpass good for three people.  One parent and the non-riding child (or children) will at that point be asked to leave the line.  When those riding reunite with the waiting adult, the waiting adult and two other persons from the party can ride using the special Fastpass.” -p. 331-332

So here is the mind-blowing part.  You can incorporate Fastpasses with the Rider Exchange in order to have Fastpasses for multiple attractions at the same time. This is an enormous benefit for larger groups.

Because the “rider exchange pass” can be used by the adult holding it as well as three companions, this essentially gives a “four for the price of one” scenario in terms of Fastpass currency.  The basic idea is that we’re using one one-person Fastpass to get one multi-person rider swap pass.  Naturally this give you more “bang for your buck” in terms of covering ground during your hours at Disney.

An alert reader in Mequon, WI discovered this strategy of combining the two time-saving line options to ride more Fastpass attraction headliners:

You advise sending someone to get Fastpasses for Big Thunder and then “switching off” so all the adults can ride.  But if you have at least two adults in a group and one non-riding child, it’s possible to use the “switching off” pass to get Fastpasses for more than one attraction at a time.

Our group consisted of two adults, two teens, and two young children.  We split our tickets into two groups of three and used one group to get Fastpasses for Big Thunder and one group to get Fastpasses for Splash Mountain.  When the half with the Big Thunder Fastpasses went to ride, we asked to “switch off” and obtained a pass good for one adult and up to three other people.  My husband used the three Fastpasses to ride with our two teens.  Then, with the switch-off pass, I rode with the teens again and one of our younger sons who was willing to ride.  We did the same thing on Splash Mountain immediately afterwards because the time on our Fastpasses for that ride was already here when we finished riding Big Thunder.

Depending on size and number of ticket-bearers, this strategy has the potential to hold Fastpasses for as many as five attractions at any given time while still maintaining the ability to get the entire group on each attraction with a single “swap.”  This mass Fastpass acquisition is accomplished by dividing up the group’s tickets for Fastpasses at different attraction kiosks, but the maximum number of attractions a party can exploit this way diminishes as the size of the group increases.

Used at its fullest potential, a family that consists of two adults and four other ticket-bearing people (one which is not able or willing to ride) can divide their tickets into five groups.  One ticket would be used to obtain a Fastpass at “Attraction A.”  One would be used to get a Fastpass at “Attraction B.”  The pattern would continue for acquiring tickets for “Attractions C, D and E” simultaneously.  With the attraction of the earliest Fastpass time stamp being called “Attraction A”, an adult wielding the Fastpass for “Attraction A” would request a rider exchange pass by approaching the Cast Member at the Fastpass Return entrance.  After securing the rider exchange pass, the adult would use his Fastpass to board the ride and give the rider exchange pass to the second adult when he rejoins the group.  At that point, the second adult–accompanied by the three others whom are riding–would present the switch-off pass to the Cast Member guarding the Fastpass Return entrance.  All four family members would be permitted to enter the Fastpass lane for the ride while the first adult would remain with the non-riding individual.  Upon the return of the second group, the same procedure could be followed for the remaining four Fastpass attractions without having to wait an extended period for the assigned time-frames.

This scenario may seem unappealing as it would require an adult that was always willing to ride solo as well as some serious team cooperation in gathering the Fastpasses from all corners of the park.  For that reason, we see dividing the group’s tickets into thirds and using them for three different attractions as a more reasonable option (providing the number of riders in the party doesn’t exceed six).  Here is how it might play out:

Two parents, two adventurous grandparents, two excited teens, and one terrified child named Clarence want to make the most of their time.  Dividing their tickets into three groups of two, Dad runs to grab two Fastpasses at Space Mountain and plans to meet up with the rest of the family after they have used two tickets to get Fastpasses at Splash Mountain and two tickets to get Fastpasses at Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.  Once the time rolls around, Dad and Grandpa use the Fastpasses for Splash Mountain, being sure to ask for the rider exchange pass when they enter the Fastpass line.  After they ride, they give the rider exchange pass to Mom who then takes Grandma and the two teens through the Fastpass lane.  Dad and Grandpa wait with Clarence near the exit, and the group is reunited when Mom, Grandma and the happy teens emerge.  This same scenario would play out for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Space Mountain in short duration due to the fact that the FastPasses for those attractions have already been grabbed and the time for entry has probably arrived.

Now that I have completely amazed you with the brilliance of this Touring Plan technique, you are left with two questions:

1. How far are you able to take this mind-boggling strategy within the demographics of your particular vacation party?

and

2. Are you willing to take it to the “Outer Limits”?