Veteran Walt Disney World visitors know what a FASTPASS is and use it to their advantage. It is the saving grace for our trips especially during peak seasons or busier times of year. I am all about being prepared for a trip to Disney World and am still amazed at the number of new visitors that have no clue what a Fastpass is or that it’s free of charge. So here is my rundown on the fastpass!
This fastpass was one we got on our last trip to Disney World. In order you can see from the top down:
- The attraction and FASTPASS right underneath.
- The first time is the opening of your window to return to the attraction.
- The bottom time is the end of the window (more on that below).
- The next area explains that you can get a fastpass for another attraction after this time.
- The very bottom shows the time at which you received your fastpass.
A few important tips for the new users of fastpass. The most important thing to know is that your fastpass doesn’t automatically expire after the window of time on the pass. My experience and that of many others has been you can use your fastpass later but they won’t let you into the line one minute before the start of your return window. So if you show up with the above fastpass at 10:24 you will be waiting for 10:25 before they let you in line. I have collected fastpasses in the morning and used them in the evening on the same day with no issue. All fastpass expires the end of the day of issue.
The neat thing about fastpass is although you feel like you are going to the front of the line what’s actually happening is your fastpass is saving your spot in line so that you can tour the parks or eat lunch and then come back and get into your spot in line. There is no cost for fastpass and any guest weather staying on property or not can utilize this system. Not every attraction offers fastpass and you can find out which do by checking your park map.
Sometimes you might receive a ‘Surprise Fastpass’. There is no rhyme or reason to when you’ll get one or from what attraction. You’ll notice that all the information on this type of fastpass is the same as a regular fastpass. We got this suprise fastpass while getting our Peter Pan’s Flight fastpasses. I have never had to use or even thought of using a fastpass for Mickey’s PhilharMagic even during Thanksgiving. The suprise passes seem to more often than not point guests to other attractions in the same area that aren’t as popular. This kind of gets it on your radar by spitting out the extra pass. These suprise fastpasses do not count against you getting another fastpass they are just an extra and you can choose to use them or not.
You may even get a pass for a ride like Carousel of Progress in Tommorowland that doesn’t even have a fastpass system and is always a walk on. This is again showcasing under utilized attractions.
Spreading pixiedust at the parks is something I try and do each trip. One of my favorite ways to do it is giving fastpasses to others when we know we aren’t going to use ours. I have received some funny looks and a lot of smiles. Our last trip we gave 4 passes to some teenagers for Expedition Everest. Sometimes I’ve had to explain they can use them until the end of the day even if the end return time has come and gone. If you use the fastpass system to your advantage you will never have to wait in massive lines again and be able to tour and enjoy your park days more!
Angela is a Disney Vacation Specialist with Pixie Vacations
Contact: Angela@PixieVacations.com or 865-247-5462
Follow: Facebook “Angela’s Pixie Vacations”
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