Fast pass

[mwood1]

Ok I'm confused, If everyone staying on property are getting fast passes so far in advance are there even going to be any left on the days that my family go to the parks. We have not been since the new fast pass system has come out,we have never planned on which parks we were going to do that day until we woke up that morning.the only real planning ahead that we did was our dining.

 

[AllieBoo]

Yes, there will be. The only ones you might have trouble getting are things like the Anna & Elsa character meet, the Seven Dwarves mine train and maybe TSM or Soarin

 

[5kidsmommy]

Remember even if fast passes aren't available you can wait in stand-by lines or do rope drop and have shorter lines. You will be fine either way.

 

[jomass]

Yes, there will be. The only ones you might have trouble getting are things like the Anna & Elsa character meet, the Seven Dwarves mine train and maybe TSM or Soarin

In other words you're not really fine. If you were, then it would not be followed by a list of exceptions. If you'd like one of the exceptions, you could be left with only very late or nothing at all.

 

[AllieBoo]

In other words you're not really fine. If you were, then it would not be followed by a list of exceptions. If you'd like one of the exceptions, you could be left with only very late or nothing at all.

Looks like you misread the the OP's question, which was "are there even going to be any left on the days that my family go to the parks" - the answer is yes, there will be fastpasses left, there just might not be any for a select few attractions......

 

[jomass]

My bad

 

[Cyrano]

This FP+ availability site might be of some help.
BTW it is a UK based forum

 

[mwood1]

Sounds like disney didn't think this new system through very well. I have been reading a lot of bad reviews on the new fast pass, not only here but other sights to.

 

[wisblue]

Sounds like disney didn't think this new system through very well. I have been reading a lot of bad reviews on the new fast pass, not only here but other sights to.

I think they thought it through very well.

The end result of FP+ is that people who are willing and able to commit to WDW in advance by buying park tickets, and better yet staying at a WDW resort, get the first crack at FPs. Also, some of the other parameters of the system ensure that FPs will be distributed more evenly among all park visitors than they were under the FP system. I think these are both results that Disney intended.

When reading the bad reviews, it's a good idea to pay attention to exactly what it is that someone doesn't like about it. Frequently, those complaints are coming from people who had learned how to take maximum advantage of the paper FP system and are understandably not happy that the FP+ system makes it virtually impossible for them to get 3 or 4 FPs in a day for something like Test Track, Soarin, or Toy Story. I think Disney knew full well that this would be one of the results of FP+, including the dissatisfaction from that one small slice of its customer base.

Of course, there are other things that some people don't like about FP+. But, there are also a lot of things that a lot of people like about it. When you start with the understanding that you can't please everyone, I suspect that Disney is getting the results it expected, and is happy with them.

On your original question, if you make your FP reservations as soon as you can, or even same day, you will still get something. And, by arriving at the parks early and following an efficient plan, you can still do as much as the onsite guest who got their FPs 60 days in advance. You might just have to do things in a different order.

 

[LaurenT]

I was there Easter week. I stayed offsite so I could not book 2 months out.
But I did book at 30 days out, which everyone with a ticket and MDE account is allowed to do. A&E and the FoF parade were not available, but even 7DMT has a few spots open in the evening....
And one day during vacation I changed FPs for the next day from MK to AK and was able to get everything at an acceptable time except Kilimanjaro. I think that's pretty good for the day before during Easter week ... And Kilimanjaro was a walk on at RD.

 

[mrzrich]

Op, I can't tell from your post if you are aware that even though you are staying off site, you can still book your FP UP TO 30 days in advance? Even if you wait and decide that morning which park you want to go to, you can use your smartphone to make your FP That morning as your family gets ready, and still have an advantage over those showing up and making their choices when they arrive.

 

[Mambo Junkie]

Ok I'm confused, If everyone staying on property are getting fast passes so far in advance are there even going to be any left on the days that my family go to the parks. We have not been since the new fast pass system has come out,we have never planned on which parks we were going to do that day until we woke up that morning.the only real planning ahead that we did was our dining.

Like you, we have always been day of people and we did both last visit. We stayed on property, did the 60 day thing but that's not our touring style. So, we dropped our fps and went day by day, sometimes changing our minds on the fly because there wasn't a wait for the attraction we had an fp for, so we'd drop it and get another for something else. Some things we just had to wait for. For us, that was far more enjoyable than the pre planning. You will still have a wonderful time, and if planning ahead and getting fast passes is important to you, you may adopt the practice of booking a "throwaway" room. There's a thread around here somewhere that tells you all about it.

ETA: Also, it is not uncommon for people to be undecided at 60 days out, so they may book multiple fps for the same attraction on different days. Then, as they finalize their plans, they'll drop some. Always check, even up to the last minute because sometimes they come available.

 

[mwood1]

We have always stayed on sight ,and always will. When we first started going to Dis we book a travel guide and followed it to the letter, well we got to notice that so many others were walking around with that same book doing exactly what my family was doing. We got rid of the guide ,after the family finished breakfast we would walk down to the bus stop and what ever line was the shortest that was the park we went to that day. We loved that no stress! Now we always have hopper passes so we might not stay in that park all day.So I'm afraid that the new FP will hurt us. I'm all about the stress free Vacation

 

[jmkjr72]

You can still do a stress free and go to what ever park has the shortest line. Just plan your fp+ for later in the day and go to th e park with the shortest line in the morning and hop over for your fp

 

[IBFW]

Ok I'm confused, If everyone staying on property are getting fast passes so far in advance are there even going to be any left on the days that my family go to the parks. We have not been since the new fast pass system has come out,we have never planned on which parks we were going to do that day until we woke up that morning.the only real planning ahead that we did was our dining.

The correct answer is: It depends.

Think of the new FP system like the old FP system, except with the new system they moved Rope Drop back 30 days and morning EMH 60 days.

So if you mean "Will there be any FP's available when we actually get to the park?" it depends on what park you are going to, how crowded it is that day, and what attractions you are trying to get FP's for.

Will some of them be gone before the park opens that morning? Most likely.

Will some of them be available in the morning but run out quickly? Definitely.

Will some of them still be available later in the day? Probably.

Should you wait until the day you go to the park to make your selections? No.

 

[mom to minnie&mickey]

We are planners but my dh HATED rope drop. It got extremely tiring each day. I love knowing that during the busy month of July we can show up at say Magic Kingdom late morning and be guaranteed Space, Seven Dwarfs and Splash without a 2 hour wait for each. I don't mind waiting on other rides knowing that at least the 3 big ones will be a virtual walk-on.

 

[Mambo Junkie]

We have always stayed on sight ,and always will. When we first started going to Dis we book a travel guide and followed it to the letter, well we got to notice that so many others were walking around with that same book doing exactly what my family was doing. We got rid of the guide ,after the family finished breakfast we would walk down to the bus stop and what ever line was the shortest that was the park we went to that day. We loved that no stress! Now we always have hopper passes so we might not stay in that park all day.So I'm afraid that the new FP will hurt us. I'm all about the stress free Vacation

Lol, remember the "olden days" when you could walk into almost any restaurant (CRT excepted) and get a seat (sometimes after a reasonable wait)?

 

[wisblue]

We have always stayed on sight ,and always will. When we first started going to Dis we book a travel guide and followed it to the letter, well we got to notice that so many others were walking around with that same book doing exactly what my family was doing. We got rid of the guide ,after the family finished breakfast we would walk down to the bus stop and what ever line was the shortest that was the park we went to that day. We loved that no stress! Now we always have hopper passes so we might not stay in that park all day.So I'm afraid that the new FP will hurt us. I'm all about the stress free Vacation

I second the PP who said that the best way to accomplish what you want is by scheduling FPs for later in the day. That way you can do whatever you want in the morning, knowing that you have 3 FPs lined up later if you choose to use them. That's what we did the week after Easter and it really helped us to do a lot of things even with the very large crowds that week.

On the issue of going to the bus stop with the shortest line, my experience is that that is often the one for which the bus left most recently. So, getting in the shortest line might mean that there will be fewer people boarding the bus ahead of you, but it might also mean that you will be waiting longer for it to come. When we get to a bus stop I always like to see a few people waiting for our intended destination because it means we didn't just miss a bus.

 

[jomass]

I think they thought it through very well.

The end result of FP+ is that people who are willing and able to commit to WDW in advance by buying park tickets, and better yet staying at a WDW resort, get the first crack at FPs. Also, some of the other parameters of the system ensure that FPs will be distributed more evenly among all park visitors than they were under the FP system. I think these are both results that Disney intended.

When reading the bad reviews, it's a good idea to pay attention to exactly what it is that someone doesn't like about it. Frequently, those complaints are coming from people who had learned how to take maximum advantage of the paper FP system and are understandably not happy that the FP+ system makes it virtually impossible for them to get 3 or 4 FPs in a day for something like Test Track, Soarin, or Toy Story. I think Disney knew full well that this would be one of the results of FP+, including the dissatisfaction from that one small slice of its customer base.

Of course, there are other things that some people don't like about FP+. But, there are also a lot of things that a lot of people like about it. When you start with the understanding that you can't please everyone, I suspect that Disney is getting the results it expected, and is happy with them.

On your original question, if you make your FP reservations as soon as you can, or even same day, you will still get something. And, by arriving at the parks early and following an efficient plan, you can still do as much as the onsite guest who got their FPs 60 days in advance. You might just have to do things in a different order.

"Distributed more fairly among all park visitors" wrong, you just said prior to that "better yet staying at a WDW resort". How can you say it is fair for the people who are left a month behind resort guests in even having a chance to select a FP? The hottest most sought after attractions are already gone or you're left with an 11:30 PM FP for your 4 yr old because the reasonable hours are gone as well? I hardly call this fair. I call it catering to those who want to dig deep into their wallets while those that can't or won't are left with fending for scraps. It is fair if you're the subset of a subset, but beyond that, not so much.

 

[wisblue]

"Distributed more fairly among all park visitors" wrong, you just said prior to that "better yet staying at a WDW resort". How can you say it is fair for the people who are left a month behind resort guests in even having a chance to select a FP? The hottest most sought after attractions are already gone or you're left with an 11:30 PM FP for your 4 yr old because the reasonable hours are gone as well? I hardly call this fair. I call it catering to those who want to dig deep into their wallets while those that can't or won't are left with fending for scraps. It is fair if you're the subset of a subset, but beyond that, not so much.

I did not use the word "fair" or "fairly".

I didn't say "fairly" because that is subject to debate. I said "evenly" because one of the results of FP+ is that more people than before get ONE FP for the most popular attractions while almost nobody gets more than one.

There are a lot of posters on this board who boast about their conquests of collecting 6 or 8 or 10 FPs in a day, including multiples for the most popular attractions in the parks. FP+ has put an end to that, and some of those guests are not happy about it.