Do I get six fast passes +??

[PlutoTheDog89]

No, don't waste your money and use up other guests' FP+.

I've experienced Disney World during Christmas/NYE week four times in the past five years. As a result, I'd consider myself pretty capable of answering this question.

Christmas, New Years and July 4th are the most crowded times at WDW. During this past year's trip, MK saw a Phase 3 closure three times. I'm not sure how Easter compares to Christmas, but if it's anything close, I can assure you that you will not need 6 FP+ -- just a solid plan!

On Christmas I read everything I could get my hands on about FP+ and MagicBands. I'm in advertising, so aside from it being Disney related, I wanted to read up from a creative and business perspective. As a result, it left me and my family prepared and ready to plan the perfect trip.

At the 60-day mark I booked our FP+. I booked mostly morning/early afternoon FP+ or evening. The parks usually get incredibly crowded by 12pm or 1pm. As a result, we wake up early and get to the parks as close to Rope Drop as possible. On Christmas day, we get to MK for the last half hour of the morning EMH (we can't bring ourselves to wake up earlier than that!)

When we arrive early in the morning, we have our park app handy with the ride wait times called up. Let's say we arrive at 7:45am for EMH, and the park opens to public at 8am. Here's where the planning comes in Knowing the history of the crowds from the crowd forecasts and previous years, we know that most rides will be below a 30-minute wait from EMH (7am) through around 30 minutes after opening to public.

So, we know that we can ride Space Mountain in as little as 20 minutes. Okay, Space Mountain is easy to get to right after entering the park. A 20 minutes for Space Mountain on Xmas Day is unheard of, so no need to book that ride for FP, cross it off! As a result, we book the Buzz Lightyear ride (because that's one of the few rides my mom will go on and we can go on as a family) Thunder Mountain and Peter Pan.

Back to the plan... So we get to MK at 7:45am. We check the app and as expected, Space Mountain is a 30-minute wait. But we know it's in reality much shorter. My sister and I make a b-line to Space Mountain, leaving my parents behind. We're on and off the ride in 20 minutes.

The park is now open to public.

We have not had breakfast yet, so we decide to head to Gaston's for a cinnamon roll. On the way, we stop by It's a Small World. The wait time is 10 minutes (a quick note - always deduct about 5-10 minutes from continuous-load rides - Pirates, IASM, etc.) We're on and off IASM in about 15 minutes. It's now around 9:30am. We head to Gaston's. Fortunately, the park isn't incredibly packed yet. Maybe guests have not yet made their way to the back of the park. We sit down and eat our cinnamon rolls.

Now it's 10am and we have a FP+ for Big Thunder Mountain. My sister, dad and I are on and off the ride in around 10 minutes.

We have an 11am FP+ for Buzz Lightyear, so we have some time to kill. The app says Jungle Cruise is a 30-minute wait. For a crowded day, that's incredible. We head to Jungle Cruise and are done by 10:40am. We see that Pirates is a 25-minute wait. We ride Pirates and are done at 11:15.

Time to redeem our FP+ for Buzz. We head back over to Tomorrowland. Buzz standby is now at 40 minutes. Across the way we see a 100-minute wait for Space Mountain!

After riding Buzz it's now 11:45am. We have a 12pm FP+ for Peter Pan, and it's a good thing we do because standby is 75 minutes. We ride Peter Pan. By 12:30 the park is swamped. Sites report that MK is at a Phase 3 closure. It's evident by the Small World line, which extends to the Haunted Mansion!

We decide to head back to the hotel. We take a break before heading to dinner later that afternoon, then end the day at Magic Kingdom for the last hour of public park hours and the two hours of Evening EMH.

With a two year old, taking a break during a crowded day (or any day for that matter) is going to be inevitable. Get to the park very early each day during your vacation. Once it starts to get crazy crowded, go home for a nap or to relax. You can return to the park later in the day if you'd like to.

I promise - as packed as it may be.. you will be fine. Just plan ahead and use these tips:

- Take advantage of EMH
- Leave the park around 1pm - it will be too crowded
- Get to the park as early as possible. I'm not sure if people were opening gifts Christmas morning or what the reasoning was, but we basically walked on rides until 10am.
- Don't be a "sucker" for the new stuff on Easter Day. Stay out of Starbucks, avoid Fantasyland and "exploring" the new areas. Save that stuff for a less-crowded day (the day after or before) or during EMH. It will waste the time you can be using to go on rides and it's a tourist-crowd trap. Everyone will flock there when entering the park - don't be one of them!

 

[#1DopeyFan]

OP, if you can afford it (clearly you can), then go for it, PP's have said it can be done easily enough.

But good Lord people...why is everyone so freaking judgmental and want to turn a molehill into a mountain? Seriously! OP said it wasn't an option waiting in line with her 2yo. So??? Why does anyone care what is or isn't an option for another parent? If she can afford to "buy her way to the front of the line" like a PP said, then good for her...everyone wants to bring up teaching your kid a lesson or it's sad that this world is coming to an instant gratification society. But what about all you people that get ticked because someone makes more money then you, or doesn't have to save for months in order to be able to go, or can afford to spend endless amounts of money while they're there? Again, soooo???? More power to them!! I hope one day I don't have to save all year long in order to be able to go...but in the meantime, I sure as heck won't hold it against people who can "buy their way" wherever they want!!

 

[KimK2006]

OP, if you can afford it (clearly you can), then go for it, PP's have said it can be done easily enough.

But good Lord people...why is everyone so freaking judgmental and want to turn a molehill into a mountain? Seriously! OP said it wasn't an option waiting in line with her 2yo. So??? Why does anyone care what is or isn't an option for another parent? If she can afford to "buy her way to the front of the line" like a PP said, then good for her...everyone wants to bring up teaching your kid a lesson or it's sad that this world is coming to an instant gratification society. But what about all you people that get ticked because someone makes more money then you, or doesn't have to save for months in order to be able to go, or can afford to spend endless amounts of money while they're there? Again, soooo???? More power to them!! I hope one day I don't have to save all year long in order to be able to go...but in the meantime, I sure as heck won't hold it against people who can "buy their way" wherever they want!!

Well said!

 

[AndreaA]

OP, if you can afford it (clearly you can), then go for it, PP's have said it can be done easily enough.

But good Lord people...why is everyone so freaking judgmental and want to turn a molehill into a mountain? Seriously! OP said it wasn't an option waiting in line with her 2yo. So??? Why does anyone care what is or isn't an option for another parent? If she can afford to "buy her way to the front of the line" like a PP said, then good for her...everyone wants to bring up teaching your kid a lesson or it's sad that this world is coming to an instant gratification society. But what about all you people that get ticked because someone makes more money then you, or doesn't have to save for months in order to be able to go, or can afford to spend endless amounts of money while they're there? Again, soooo???? More power to them!! I hope one day I don't have to save all year long in order to be able to go...but in the meantime, I sure as heck won't hold it against people who can "buy their way" wherever they want!!

Good grief, YES to all of this!!

I am particularly struck by the "just teach your 2yr-old to wait" chorus. Who says the OP isn't doing that? I was constantly teaching my kids patience from the time they were born. I STILL would have wanted to avoid waiting and avoid HAVING to teach that while on vacation at WDW. Not every experience has to be a dang "learning experience".

 

[klitteral2009]

OP, if you can afford it (clearly you can), then go for it, PP's have said it can be done easily enough.

But good Lord people...why is everyone so freaking judgmental and want to turn a molehill into a mountain? Seriously! OP said it wasn't an option waiting in line with her 2yo. So??? Why does anyone care what is or isn't an option for another parent? If she can afford to "buy her way to the front of the line" like a PP said, then good for her...everyone wants to bring up teaching your kid a lesson or it's sad that this world is coming to an instant gratification society. But what about all you people that get ticked because someone makes more money then you, or doesn't have to save for months in order to be able to go, or can afford to spend endless amounts of money while they're there? Again, soooo???? More power to them!! I hope one day I don't have to save all year long in order to be able to go...but in the meantime, I sure as heck won't hold it against people who can "buy their way" wherever they want!!

So if the majority of people could buy their way to the front of every line, you'd still be ok with it? You waiting in a standby line while dozens of people who had the 'endless amounts of money' to get in front of you, that wouldn't irk you just a little? And who's mad that anyone makes more money than anyone else? How is that even a topic of discussion? My observation was that since she had 30,000 in disposable income that another few hundred wasn't an issue. I don't care how anyone spends their money, my problem was with the fact she was using her two year old as a reason to get more fp, when in fact, it was she who didn't want to brave the lines. Period. If you don't want the opinions of the passionate Dis members, then for gods sake don't bother posting.

 

[AndreaA]

So if the majority of people could buy their way to the front of every line, you'd still be ok with it? You waiting in a standby line while dozens of people who had the 'endless amounts of money' to get in front of you, that wouldn't irk you just a little? And who's mad that anyone makes more money than anyone else? How is that even a topic of discussion? My observation was that since she had 30,000 in disposable income that another few hundred wasn't an issue. I don't care how anyone spends their money, my problem was with the fact she was using her two year old as a reason to get more fp, when in fact, it was she who didn't want to brave the lines. Period. If you don't want the opinions of the passionate Dis members, then for gods sake don't bother posting.

Who cares if it's for her daughter's sake or for hers? You think all the pre-three-year-olds being dragged around the parks are taking home meaningful memories of their visit? Absolutely not. They're there because their PARENTS want to be there and have the memories. And there is nothing at all wrong with that.

As for people with money buying a way to the front of the line, what do you call VIP tours, the express pass at Universal and express passes at dozens of other parks? No it wouldn't irk me if more people bought VIP tours or what have you, just as it never bothered me when people ran around to get more FPs while I never bothered with any.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

My FP+ strategy - leverage extra tickets.

I am going to WDW for 2 days in late April. I have a business trip to FL and will stay an extra 2 days on my dime while in the area to visit the World. I am bringing my wife's AP with me. She will be on my room reservation. Using both APs for FP+ reservations, I hope to have 6 FP+ each of those 2 days.

My wife and I are going back in September and I plan on buying a second set of tickets for that trip. One set we will convert to APs (our current APs expire in August), the other we will attach to our room reservation to book extra FP+. If possible, we will just use the extra tickets (wrist bands) to access FP queues, but if they update the system we will be happy to enter the parks twice so we can use both sets of FP+ reservations. Over 10 days of park visits, we consider the cost to be a great value.

 

[Magpie]

OP, if you can afford it (clearly you can), then go for it, PP's have said it can be done easily enough.

But good Lord people...why is everyone so freaking judgmental and want to turn a molehill into a mountain? Seriously! OP said it wasn't an option waiting in line with her 2yo. So??? Why does anyone care what is or isn't an option for another parent? If she can afford to "buy her way to the front of the line" like a PP said, then good for her...everyone wants to bring up teaching your kid a lesson or it's sad that this world is coming to an instant gratification society. But what about all you people that get ticked because someone makes more money then you, or doesn't have to save for months in order to be able to go, or can afford to spend endless amounts of money while they're there? Again, soooo???? More power to them!! I hope one day I don't have to save all year long in order to be able to go...but in the meantime, I sure as heck won't hold it against people who can "buy their way" wherever they want!!

If she can afford it, then she's still better off buying the VIP tour. She'll get in many more than 6 rides, and she won't have the hassle of setting up two different MDE accounts, and exiting and reentering the park, all to get three additional FP+.

I don't care how she parents her child. I just think what she's proposing is inefficient, and there's a better way to achieve what she wants... and more!

 

[Glennie5]

Disney is in the business of selling tickets. If they could figure out a way to start selling two tickets to every patron, someone would get a bonus.

 

[mom2mickeyfan]

If she can afford it, then she's still better off buying the VIP tour. She'll get in many more than 6 rides, and she won't have the hassle of setting up two different MDE accounts, and exiting and reentering the park, all to get three additional FP+.

I don't care how she parents her child. I just think what she's proposing is inefficient, and there's a better way to achieve what she wants... and more!

I think she doesn' t want to spend the day with s stranger.

 

[KYDisneyDad]

Wow....I mean Wow.
I though those of us on all the "Hate Fastpass+ " threads we're getting pretty snarky but some of you folks here are downright nasty!

 

[KYDisneyDad]

My FP+ strategy - leverage extra tickets. I am going to WDW for 2 days in late April. I have a business trip to FL and will stay an extra 2 days on my dime while in the area to visit the World. I am bringing my wife's AP with me. She will be on my room reservation. Using both APs for FP+ reservations, I hope to have 6 FP+ each of those 2 days. My wife and I are going back in September and I plan on buying a second set of tickets for that trip. One set we will convert to APs (our current APs expire in August), the other we will attach to our room reservation to book extra FP+. If possible, we will just use the extra tickets (wrist bands) to access FP queues, but if they update the system we will be happy to enter the parks twice so we can use both sets of FP+ reservations. Over 10 days of park visits, we consider the cost to be a great value.

Better get ready to duck Buckeye...... Seems 'thems fighting words on this thread!
Lol

 

[OtherScott]

do you think it is possible to buy another set of tickets so I will be able to reserve six attractions in advance???

Yes. If you want to use both tickets at one park, you might have to go out and back in...or you might not.

To keep it simple, I would book the first 3 FPs of the day on one ticket and the next 3 on the other ticket.

You can also use this method to make park hopping more efficient.

A 5 day ticket costs about $300 and gets you 15 FPs. That means each additional FP costs you $20 (unless you're using Common Core, in which case the answer is "Cat").

 

[dimndgal1]

Wow....I mean Wow.
I though those of us on all the "Hate Fastpass+ " threads we're getting pretty snarky but some of you folks here are downright nasty!

Better get ready to duck Buckeye...... Seems 'thems fighting words on this thread!
Lol

Why come onto a thread and (rightly or wrongly) chastise the people in the thread, and then stir the pot some more?

 

[OtherScott]

Can't fastpass bagcheck...

...yet.

 

[klitteral2009]

Why come onto a thread and (rightly or wrongly) chastise the people in the thread, and then stir the pot some more?

I was wondering the same thing myself

 

[ljcastro18]

I'm sure you have your reasons for going over Easter period but it would be beyond cheaper and a lot less waiting in lines to move your trip a week or two after Easter. Just a thought - especially since your DD is not in school.

FWIW, I take offense to the thought that you can't teach a 2 year old to wait. Do 2 year olds like to wait? No, but it is a sad look on today's society if people just dismiss the ability to teach a toddler the lesson. My DD HATES waiting but she does it because we taught her that if Mommy and Daddy are waiting for something it's probably worth it.

I know not every child will wait well, but there truly is no time like the present to teach the lesson that sometimes you can't have immediate gratification. My 6 yo has ADD and still has been able to wait in line since 18 months old on our first DL trip. Do I have to be prepared? yes... but it's ridiculous to say children that young can't be taught. Patience seems to be lacking in children nowadays and I can't help but wonder if it's because we as parents aren't patient enough to teach it.

*~* OP, this is not directed at you but to the many posters I see talk about how pointless/impossible/unlikely it is to teach children to wait *~*

I am not saying it is pointless/impossible/unlikely to teach my toddler to wait, what I am saying is, If I teach and educate my kids every single day for every single hour,and If I have the option while I am on vacation to have a break and give her a break too, and have what some people call some instant gratification and save ourselves endless waiting in lines, then by all means I am going to do just that, just as I will stay on site, and have housekeeping everyday, go eat to nice restaurants every day, and valet my car, because we are on VACATION and if this spoils me and my kids for the period our vacation last, I won't apologise for that, I know I posted on a public site and I am ready for everyones opinions and I respect them, but there are ways to express your differences of opinion without having to be rude, I am just saying how sad some people have to judge everything and the post rude comments thinking everything goes just because you have an opinion, lets not confuse liberty of expression, with the liberty to be an ***!!!!

 

[nugov2]

Of course, people are entitled to do whatever they want. However, this kind of attitude displayed by the OP and many others here is EXACTLY why we are now where we are with Disney and all of the restrictions/enforcement. Everyone is looking for a way to scam/beat the system. I am quite sure that Disney did not intend for folks to buy additional park tickets in order to get around the FP restriction. Next thing, they will raise park tickets even more to help discourage this practice.

Everyone wants their trip to be perfect. I am not happy with the new system and waiting in line more, but like most, I am making the best of it, trying to utilize a touring strategy that is going to minimize the effects as much as possible on me, and like many others, have had to revise my expectations.

Why can't people just play by the rules. If Disney went back to no FP, just stand-by, folks would have no choice but to work within the system, plan as effectively as they could to see as much possible, and be happy.

The first time I went to WDW was 1973 and there was no FP, no multiple parks. I remember waiting an hour for Country Bears! And guess what, I also remember having wonderful trips and loving Disney so much, that we then continued to go every year. Back then, you also didn't have everyone trying to work the disability system and getting a wheel chair or using ADD as an excuse that 'Johnny can't stand in line'

Disney is in the business of selling tickets. If they could figure out a way to start selling two tickets to every patron, someone would get a bonus.

Couldn't agree more mom2rtk

I mean I don't get how buying an extra ticket is a scam or abuse anymore than getting 8+ FP in a park a day in the old days were. Just because you can't or wouldn't do it...doesn't make it a scam, violation of policy or any other unethical/morally wrong label.

I'm just curious....Is it a scam to use your dh's FP+ that he booked if he is sick/tired and goes back to the hotel room to rest and you let your dd ride SM with his FP that was prebooked so she can ride twice back to back? Or should you let it and his other prebooked FP go unused because he is no longer in the park.

 

[KYDisneyDad]

Why come onto a thread and (rightly or wrongly) chastise the people in the thread, and then stir the pot some more?

Because simply: I did open this thread and read the posts. After reading them I found so many of them to be incredibly rude, petty, and simply downright mean spirited . Then I chose to comment on them as is the right of any poster here so long as they are not breaking the rules of these boards.

 

[klitteral2009]

I am not saying it is pointless/impossible/unlikely to teach my toddler to wait, what I am saying is, If I teach and educate my kids every single day for every single hour,and If I have the option while I am on vacation to have a break and give her a break too, and have what some people call some instant gratification and save ourselves endless waiting in lines, then by all means I am going to do just that, just as I will stay on site, and have housekeeping everyday, go eat to nice restaurants every day, and valet my car, because we are on VACATION and if this spoils me and my kids for the period our vacation last, I won't apologise for that, I know I posted on a public site and I am ready for everyones opinions and I respect them, but there are ways to express your differences of opinion without having to be rude, I am just saying how sad some people have to judge everything and the post rude comments thinking everything goes just because you have an opinion, lets not confuse liberty of expression, with the liberty to be an ***!!!!

Could you tell me how anyone was being an ***? All I see is discussion and statements of truth. If you don't want all opinions, you shouldn't post. Expecting everyone to be all rainbows and sunshine is unrealistic and totally uncharacteristic here.