FastPass+ Basic Info, Attraction List, and Suggested Priorities--Part I

[mesaboy2]

How late can you get to the reserved spot for the electrical parade as a FP+ option? do they give you a time in which you need to report to the reserved spot?

There is a return window yes, but as with anything the earlier you get there the better chance at a front-row spot. It's just you generally don't have to be as early with FP as you would otherwise.

 

[Aliceacc]

Ah you are so right. We actually have the desert party booked as well as Pirate Pals which is a boat ride to see the fireworks. I am not sure which one to keep at this point. We are going to MK twice. The first day we leave early to go to the Poly for their dinner show. I was considering doing either the parade and or Wishes as a FP+ option after the dinner show. Our second day at MK we will get to the park late morning due to doing the Character breakfast at Ohana's. The boys have an appointment to be made up as pirates so we thought it would be fun to do Pirate Pals that night but have Desert Party booked in case that would be a better option and avoid the running around. Since we will be doing one of those options for sure we most likely will not choose Wishes as one of our FP+. Oh my I swear I am going to drive myself crazy. Ops to late LOL!!!!

I've never done the luau. But if it ends before Wishes, you can watch Wishes from the Poly beach. The boys can relax and play on the beach, the adults can enjoy the fireworks, and you don't deal with the craziness of leaving the Magic Kingdom... just walk to the TTC from the Poly and get onto the right bus.


The boys don't even have to know that there's such a thing as the pirates cruise... you can save that for the next trip.

And know that, ultimately, whatever you decide on will be just right. You'll have a great time no matter what. And you can't possibly do it all, so it's OK to leave some things for the next trip, or the one after that.

So enjoy the planning, but don't let it make you crazy.

 

[horse11]

I've never done the luau. But if it ends before Wishes, you can watch Wishes from the Poly beach. The boys can relax and play on the beach, the adults can enjoy the fireworks, and you don't deal with the craziness of leaving the Magic Kingdom... just walk to the TTC from the Poly and get onto the right bus.


The boys don't even have to know that there's such a thing as the pirates cruise... you can save that for the next trip.

And know that, ultimately, whatever you decide on will be just right. You'll have a great time no matter what. And you can't possibly do it all, so it's OK to leave some things for the next trip, or the one after that.

So enjoy the planning, but don't let it make you crazy.

Your so right! Thanks for the advice. I love planning it is almost as much fun as the trip itself. Thanks!

 

[conniehar90]

Great thread - thanks Mesaboy!

Is there anywhere that shows the best FP+ kiosks to use? I have been reading that some are more crowded than others but having that info all in one spot would be great.

Especially, at rope drop. We are offsiters and visiting at the end of March so it looks like there will be no opportunity for us to reserve ahead of time. Just stressing about what to do first (ride or hit kiosk) and where would be the best kiosk to hit.

Thanks for all you do for these boards!

 

[horse11]

There is a return window yes, but as with anything the earlier you get there the better chance at a front-row spot. It's just you generally don't have to be as early with FP as you would otherwise.

That is understandable. Do you happen to know when those window times usually start ( how long before the parade)?

 

[siskaren]

Great thread - thanks Mesaboy!

Is there anywhere that shows the best FP+ kiosks to use? I have been reading that some are more crowded than others but having that info all in one spot would be great.

Especially, at rope drop. We are offsiters and visiting at the end of March so it looks like there will be no opportunity for us to reserve ahead of time. Just stressing about what to do first (ride or hit kiosk) and where would be the best kiosk to hit.

Thanks for all you do for these boards!

I don't have any personal experience, but I've read that you should avoid the first kiosk you encounter when you enter the park, which makes sense because most people who enter will most likely be hitting the first one they see.

 

[mesaboy2]

Great thread - thanks Mesaboy!

Is there anywhere that shows the best FP+ kiosks to use? I have been reading that some are more crowded than others but having that info all in one spot would be great.

Especially, at rope drop. We are offsiters and visiting at the end of March so it looks like there will be no opportunity for us to reserve ahead of time. Just stressing about what to do first (ride or hit kiosk) and where would be the best kiosk to hit.

Thanks for all you do for these boards!

I haven't seen much yet. I think it's still too early to see much in the way of patterns, but I do plan of folding that info into this OP eventually.

That is understandable. Do you happen to know when those window times usually start ( how long before the parade)?

I do not, sorry.

I don't have any personal experience, but I've read that you should avoid the first kiosk you encounter when you enter the park, which makes sense because most people who enter will most likely be hitting the first one they see.

This is the best advice I've seen so far, but it's not foolproof..

 

[mommaodie]

A "BIG" Thank You!! This info is really detailed and easy to understand!

 

[Lorrained]

Been trying to explain this to my family today, but then hit a wall. Please can I ask a question mesaboy2.....

I asked about park hopping, and someone suggested (not sure who and the thread is very long) to visit the first park, but just use standby lines for that park and book FP+ for the second park we intend to visit! but I have just read your first post and number 12. Indicates that you can only book passes for the park you are in, so that means say if we decide to visit HS in the morning and use standby lines for Tot and RnR and save our. FP+ for the afternoon at Epcot for say Test track, mission space and soaring, we can't actually book those passes in the morning at HS, we have to wait until we get over to Epcot and book them there, by which time will there actually be FPs left?

A I understanding that right?

 

[mesaboy2]

Been trying to explain this to my family today, but then hit a wall. Please can I ask a question mesaboy2..... I asked about park hopping, and someone suggested (not sure who and the thread is very long) to visit the first park, but just use standby lines for that park and book FP+ for the second park we intend to visit! but I have just read your first post and number 12. Indicates that you can only book passes for the park you are in, so that means say if we decide to visit HS in the morning and use standby lines for Tot and RnR and save our. FP+ for the afternoon at Epcot for say Test track, mission space and soaring, we can't actually book those passes in the morning at HS, we have to wait until we get over to Epcot and book them there, by which time will there actually be FPs left? A I understanding that right?

You got it. Unfortunately at the moment, waiting to book FPs at your second park is very risky for offsite guests, since they can only use kiosks day-of and the kiosks only book them for the same park they are in.

I'm afraid chances are high that FPs for desirable rides will be few and far between, if any are available at all, in cases like yours where you can't book them until afternoon when you arrive at that park. Hopefully it won't be too much longer before offsites can prebook--that would solve your problem and many others.

 

[gretchenohar@hotmail]

Thank you for this thread, Mesaboy2!

 

[MermaidMommy]

For those looking for information on the kiosks, Josh has a rundown of the them from least to most busy in every park. Go to to the section entitled "Cheat Sheets" at easyWDW.com. (It's free.)

 

[mesaboy2]

For those looking for information on the kiosks, Josh has a rundown of the them from least to most busy in every park. Go to to the section entitled "Cheat Sheets" at easyWDW.com. (It's free.)

Certainly helpful, but I look at that as a single snapshot in time and may or may not be all that accurate. Only time will tell which ones are consistently less crowded.

 

[SRUAlmn]

I still can't understand why Disney didn't organize FP+ the way the dining plan is organized. Say you have 4 people in your travel party and you're staying 7 nights. Couldn't they say you have 28 FP+ to use throughout your stay in whatever fashion you'd like. They could still prohibit park hopping, they could still have tiering, but that would be SO much more flexible for the varieties of families/ages/ride styles, don't you think?

I guess it's probably because there might be a HUGE swing of FP+ used depending on the day since people could use 6 one day and 3 another day, or perhaps lines in the MK would be WAY longer since there are more options to use FP+ so people would use more of theirs for MK?

 

[MermaidMommy]

Absolutely. I agree it's too early to know whether or not those kiosks will remain the least crowded, but for those planning a trip soon, it can't hurt to take a look at Josh's recommendations.

 

[db57me]

So, we will be there the last week of June. I will be able make FP+ beginning 60 days out. Should I? We have a clear plan for which park on which day, and we have our dinner reservations made. We will be able to change, even on the fly, so does it make sense to schedule attractions that early so we know we have at least one choice for each key attraction we want in each park?

 

[mesaboy2]

I still can't understand why Disney didn't organize FP+ the way the dining plan is organized. Say you have 4 people in your travel party and you're staying 7 nights. Couldn't they say you have 28 FP+ to use throughout your stay in whatever fashion you'd like. They could still prohibit park hopping, they could still have tiering, but that would be SO much more flexible for the varieties of families/ages/ride styles, don't you think?

I guess it's probably because there might be a HUGE swing of FP+ used depending on the day since people could use 6 one day and 3 another day, or perhaps lines in the MK would be WAY longer since there are more options to use FP+ so people would use more of theirs for MK?

I think Disney wants to maintain control and keep things evenly spread. Consider someone's weeklong vacation around 4oJ or NYE. What are the odds, with your proposal, that savvy guests would save a pantload of FPs to be used on a crazy-busy holiday? I think pretty high.

Absolutely. I agree it's too early to know whether or not those kiosks will remain the least crowded, but for those planning a trip soon, it can't hurt to take a look at Josh's recommendations.

Yep.

 

[mesaboy2]

So, we will be there the last week of June. I will be able make FP+ beginning 60 days out. Should I? We have a clear plan for which park on which day, and we have our dinner reservations made. We will be able to change, even on the fly, so does it make sense to schedule attractions that early so we know we have at least one choice for each key attraction we want in each park?

I don't see the harm, sure...go for it!

 

[eangel12]

Our strategy in August is to get to the park early, do stand-by for the rides we want to ride and then head to closest kiosk to pull FP+ for later in the evening, head to lunch and then leave the park for swimming and resting.

Are we able to select times for our FP+ in the afternoon or is it "whatever they have left" type of thing??

Our kids are 4 and 2 so earlier times are better than say 9:00pm. My preference would be 6-8pm FP+ times. We would be out of the park at that point for sleep.

Thanks in advance for the help!

 

[ckelly14]

Our strategy in August is to get to the park early, do stand-by for the rides we want to ride and then head to closest kiosk to pull FP+ for later in the evening, head to lunch and then leave the park for swimming and resting. Are we able to select times for our FP+ in the afternoon or is it "whatever they have left" type of thing?? Our kids are 4 and 2 so earlier times are better than say 9:00pm. My preference would be 6-8pm FP+ times. We would be out of the park at that point for sleep. Thanks in advance for the help!

Yes, it will be subject to availability.