Fast Pass Strategy

[Tiki Birdland]

Likely asked a dozen times...
We're going in mid July. Should we schedule our FP for later in the day and do RD at each park and hope for the best? In the past, we used the paper system and knew exactly where the machines were and had the system down pat. This will be our first time using FP+ and I don't want to get it wrong!

 

[mesaboy2]

Likely asked a dozen times...
We're going in mid July. Should we schedule our FP for later in the day and do RD at each park and hope for the best? In the past, we used the paper system and knew exactly where the machines were and had the system down pat. This will be our first time using FP+ and I don't want to get it wrong!

That is a common strategy, and mentioned in the FP FAQ cited in my signature.

 

[Ava]

I think it depends on the park and if you plan to leave for a mid-day break or not. If you are touring from rope drop and leaving the park after lunch, it would make sense to schedule your FPs for the evening when you return. If you plan to stay in the park through the afternoon, it may make sense to schedule your first 3 FP's from around 10am-1pm so you can get more FPs after you've used your first 3. I think the latter strategy works especially well for MK, because there are so many attractions that offer FP you can get good 4th, 5th, etc FPs except on the most crowded days.

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

What tends to work well for many including my family is to RD as much as you can and book your FP+ for late morning/early afternoon.
If you do this for MK especially it seems to allow for quite a bit to get done in the first couple hours and still allows for booking additional FP+ after your first three.

 

[Canuck16]

This was our strategy when we were there 3 years ago when FP+ first came out. We would RD everyday and leave mid day for a break and then hop to another park in the afternoon with our 3 FP+'s in hand when the crowds were heavier.

Have a great trip!

 

[gap2368]

I like to do one of two things

at the MK I like to get my FP starting between 10 and 10:30 this way I have a better chance of getting a better 4 FP and I can RD a few rides before my FP opens

or I will do one park with out FP do a few RD rides ( for me AK this works great for) then have my FP for another park starting at 12 or latter ( say HS, or EPCOT) now with pandora opening this may change thing at AK

 

[IrishNYC]

It really depends on your touring style, and what you hope to achieve. I like to keep most of mine early, and then reevaluate the SB lines and roll my FP to something else if I can. This is particularly effective in MK. Last trip I kept one FP rolling all day by rescheduling after looking at SB lines.

 

[Praying Colonel]

Likely asked a dozen times...
We're going in mid July. Should we schedule our FP for later in the day and do RD at each park and hope for the best? In the past, we used the paper system and knew exactly where the machines were and had the system down pat. This will be our first time using FP+ and I don't want to get it wrong!

Ah, what a Golden Era it was....

I've done it the way you suggest and I've also interspersed them during the morning. I've found the latter strategy usually works best at MK because there are more attractions so you're more likely to get a good 4th (and subsequent) FP+ for later use.

There are lots of variables that affect how you want to do it, such as time of year, park you're visiting that day, whether you're taking an afternoon break, etc. Generally I'd probably go with what you suggest and change it up as necessary based on your personal experience.