There are two things I can tell you with certainty about FastPasses. First, you definitely need FastPasses for your Walt Disney World vacation (no need to worry – they don’t take away from your spontaneity on your trip). And, the second thing I can share with you is that not all FastPasses are created equal. Some FastPasses are just wildly more popular than others.
FastPasses in a Nutshell
Basically, FastPasses are advanced reservations for some of your top attractions. FastPasses are free and are included in the price of your ticket. You may book in advance (for onsite guests – 60 days prior to your arrival time) up to three attractions per day in the same park. Now there is one little catch. All the parks except for Magic Kingdom have a two-tier system for FastPasses. This means you can select one FastPass from the top tier and the other two FastPasses must come out of the second tier.
Click here for a complete FastPass listing including Tier levels and height restrictions.
To help ensure your chances of scoring those “must-have” FastPasses, be sure to follow these important tips.
My Disney Experience Account Set-up
Be sure to have your My Disney Experience account set-up prior to your FastPass day. You don’t want to waste valuable time fumbling through setting up your account on the morning you can begin making FastPasses. If you need to set-up an account click here: https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/plan/my-disney-experience/.
Add Your Reservation and link Family & Friends in the My Disney Experience Account
After your account is set-up be sure to add your resort reservation number or ticket order number under the “My Plans” section of the My Disney Experience account. You must do this before you can make FastPasses. Also, if you are making FastPasses for additional people that are not on your individual reservation, be sure to link everyone together under the “My Family and Friends” section of the app.
Be Ready to Go at 7:00 am EST
Be ready to beginning making FastPasses at 7:00 am EST, on either the website or your mobile app, 60 days prior to your arrival date for guests staying on property. At this point, you will be able to make FastPasses for your entire link of stay (for onsite resort guests only). Now the FastPass reservations will start exactly at 7:00 am. If you are already on the FastPass screen at 7:00 am you will need to refresh your screen or you will encounter an error message indicating you do not have tickets.
MOST IMPORTANT – Go After the Most Popular First
The fourth and most important tip is to go after the most popular FastPasses first. Don’t work on the FastPasses from beginning to end of your trip, but rather go after the most popular FastPasses first regardless of where they fall in your trip. Here are some of the top FastPasses in the order you should go after:
- Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway (HS)
- Millennium Falcon (HS)
- Animal Kingdom’s Flight of Passage (AK)
- Hollywood Studio’s Slinky Dog Dash (HS)
- Magic Kingdom’s Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (MK)
- Epcot’s Tier 1 attraction (either Frozen Ever After, Soarin’, or Test Track)
- Magic Kingdom – Peter Pan’s Flight, Space Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain, Splash Mountain, Mickey Mouse Meet and Greet, Enchanted Tales with Belle
- Animal Kingdom – Expedition Everest, Kilimanjaro Safari, Kali River Rapids, Na’vi River Journey (if you do not have a FastPass for Flight of Passage)
- Hollywood Studios – Star Tours (The majority of rides are in the top tier at this park meaning you can only choose one. If you do not want Slinky Dog you can choose one of the other popular Tier 1 attractions including Toy Story Mania!, Tower of Terror, and Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster)
- Epcot – Mission Space
The Later the Better
The last tip for scoring those hard to get FastPasses involves being last. If you just must get a FastPass for one of the top attractions, then plan to visit that park on one of your last days at Walt Disney World. Because onsite guests can book FastPasses for their entire vacation beginning 60 days prior to your trip, the odds of scoring a popular FastPass greatly improves the later in the trip you schedule that park visit.
Follow these tips above and you will be well on your way to planning a great Disney vacation. Does all this seem a little overwhelming? No problem, we have you covered! Book your trip with Castle and Cruise Adventures, LLC and we will book the FastPasses for you! Just let us know what you want and we will handle the rest. To get a FREE quote, just click here.