Daddy Mack
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- May 6, 2014
- Messages
- 60
I posted earlier in the week about my experience using extra FastPasses at the Magic Kingdom and promised to described my full day later on. Here is the breakdown of everything:
Mission: Maximizing fun for thrill-seeking 6 year old daughter. Meet and greet as many characters as possible on a moderately crowded day at Magic Kingdom
Pre-booked Fastpasses
Space Mountain: 10:35-11:35
Peter Pan: 11:55-12:55
Anna and Elsa: 1:25-2:25
How the Day Played Out:
8:10: Arrive and enter the park, wait about six rows back from the front of the line
8:45: Opening show
8:50: First Rope Drop: Proceed to rope drop at Frontierland
9:00 Frontierland Rope Drop: Proceed to Big Mountain Thunder Railroad
9:00-9:15: Ride BTMR twice (allowed to reride without getting off)
9:15-9:40: Ride Splash Mountain Walk On
9:45: Ride Haunted Mansion Walk On
10:03: Ride IASW 2 minute wait
10:15-10:45: Walk to Space Mountain, ride standby (10 minute posted wait, actual wait 5 minutes), ride again using FP
10:55: Meet Stitch in Fantasyland, 10 minute wait
11:10: Eat lunch at Cosmic Rays
11:45-12:20 Monsters Laugh Factory & Peter Pan with FP
12:25-1:20: Mickeys Philiharmagic, Meet Donald and Goofy, Play in Water at Casey Jr., Get Drinks and Shacks
1:20: Anna & Elsa & Sleeping Beauty with FP
Now begins the use of the extra FPs, Kiosk Wait 5-8 minutes
1:49: FP for Barnstormer for 1:50-2:50. Immediately ride. Told no FP available for Rapzunel/Cinderella M&G or Ariels Grotto M&G. Barnstormer Standby Wait is 35 minutes
2:05: FP for Dumbo for 2:20-3:20. Ride at 2:15. Dumbo Standy Wait is 60 minutes.
2:30: FP for Winnie the Pooh for 2:50-3:50. Ride at 3:00. Rejected FP for Under the Sea at 4:50. Winnie the Pooh Standby Wait is 45 minutes.
2:30-2:55: Meet Minnie Mouse and Daisy
3:12: FP for Pirates of the Carribean for 3:20-4:20. Ride at 3:30. POTC Standby Wait is 35 minutes.
3:50: FP for Jungle Cruise for 4:25-5:25. Ride at 4:40. Standby Wait is 35 minutes.
3:50-4:40: Get Ice Cream, Meet Tinkerbell & Fawn
5:00: FP for Buzz Lightyear for 5:15-6:15. Ride at 5:10. Inquired about FP for Mickeys Townhall, but earliest available was 8:10, which I rejected. Standby Wait for Buzz is 30 minutes.
5:25: FP for Rapzunel and Cinderella for 9:20-10:20. Not available when I asked at 1:49.
5:30: Ride PeopleMover, Walk On
5:40: Astro Orbiter Standby, 15 minute wait
6:10: Mickey Town Hall Standby, 40 minute wait
7:00: Ride Train to Frontierland
7:20: BTMR Standby, posted wait 20 minutes, actual wait 10 minutes
7:40-8:05: Kill time before dinner reservations, Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse
8:05-9:15: Dinner at Crystal Palace, Meet Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, & Eeyore
9:20: Rapzunel & Cinderella FP. Standby Wait is 45 minutes.
9:40: Under the Sea Walk On
9:55: Ariels Grotto Meet Ariel, nobody in line before us
10:00: Based on a CMs recommendation, watch Fireworks from Gastons Tavern. This is a GREAT place to watch the fireworks. Plus, you can grab a stool from outside the tavern and sit in a seat while watching the fireworks.
10:20: Barnstormer -- Walk On
10:30-11:00: Ride Space Mountain Standby Twice
11:00: Electrical Parade
Lessons:
(1) There is great value to be achieved through extra Fastpasses. We would've left the park in the afternoon with FP+ because the waits in the afternoons are typically too long for my liking. FP+, however, allowed us to walk on rides that others were waiting quite a long time for. I kinda felt sorry for them. Someone gets in line for Buzz at 5:00. I get a FP at the Jungle Cruise kiosk at the same time and am on the ride in 10 minutes. They are still waiting for 20 more minutes.
(2) The ability to arrive 5 minutes early increases the value of FP+ when utilized multiple times.
(3) A good strategy is to use an extra FP on Jungle Cruise because you can immediately schedule another FP after the kiosk at the ride. The same thought applies to Dumbo and Goofy near the Big Circus kiosk, too.
(4) Rope drop matters. You can do so much early. Also, don't schedule your FastPasses too early (at least at MK) because they do not add value when everything is a walk on early. The 11-2 pm framework is the best bet.
(5) The stunning success of the 9:30-10:00 window of Under the Sea, Ariel's Grotto, and watching fireworks at Gaston's Tavern will lead me to use this strategy time and again in the future.
(6) Closing the park matters. My M.O. has always been open the parks, close the parks, and be somewhere else in the afternoons. This is the firs time I have ever stayed throughout the day, all because of FP+.
(7) Don't think I needed to be there so early since I was starting with Frontierland. Could still have been near the front of Frontierland Rope Drop if I was 30 minute later in arriving at the park.
(8) My daughter is a trooper.
Mission: Maximizing fun for thrill-seeking 6 year old daughter. Meet and greet as many characters as possible on a moderately crowded day at Magic Kingdom
Pre-booked Fastpasses
Space Mountain: 10:35-11:35
Peter Pan: 11:55-12:55
Anna and Elsa: 1:25-2:25
How the Day Played Out:
8:10: Arrive and enter the park, wait about six rows back from the front of the line
8:45: Opening show
8:50: First Rope Drop: Proceed to rope drop at Frontierland
9:00 Frontierland Rope Drop: Proceed to Big Mountain Thunder Railroad
9:00-9:15: Ride BTMR twice (allowed to reride without getting off)
9:15-9:40: Ride Splash Mountain Walk On
9:45: Ride Haunted Mansion Walk On
10:03: Ride IASW 2 minute wait
10:15-10:45: Walk to Space Mountain, ride standby (10 minute posted wait, actual wait 5 minutes), ride again using FP
10:55: Meet Stitch in Fantasyland, 10 minute wait
11:10: Eat lunch at Cosmic Rays
11:45-12:20 Monsters Laugh Factory & Peter Pan with FP
12:25-1:20: Mickeys Philiharmagic, Meet Donald and Goofy, Play in Water at Casey Jr., Get Drinks and Shacks
1:20: Anna & Elsa & Sleeping Beauty with FP
Now begins the use of the extra FPs, Kiosk Wait 5-8 minutes
1:49: FP for Barnstormer for 1:50-2:50. Immediately ride. Told no FP available for Rapzunel/Cinderella M&G or Ariels Grotto M&G. Barnstormer Standby Wait is 35 minutes
2:05: FP for Dumbo for 2:20-3:20. Ride at 2:15. Dumbo Standy Wait is 60 minutes.
2:30: FP for Winnie the Pooh for 2:50-3:50. Ride at 3:00. Rejected FP for Under the Sea at 4:50. Winnie the Pooh Standby Wait is 45 minutes.
2:30-2:55: Meet Minnie Mouse and Daisy
3:12: FP for Pirates of the Carribean for 3:20-4:20. Ride at 3:30. POTC Standby Wait is 35 minutes.
3:50: FP for Jungle Cruise for 4:25-5:25. Ride at 4:40. Standby Wait is 35 minutes.
3:50-4:40: Get Ice Cream, Meet Tinkerbell & Fawn
5:00: FP for Buzz Lightyear for 5:15-6:15. Ride at 5:10. Inquired about FP for Mickeys Townhall, but earliest available was 8:10, which I rejected. Standby Wait for Buzz is 30 minutes.
5:25: FP for Rapzunel and Cinderella for 9:20-10:20. Not available when I asked at 1:49.
5:30: Ride PeopleMover, Walk On
5:40: Astro Orbiter Standby, 15 minute wait
6:10: Mickey Town Hall Standby, 40 minute wait
7:00: Ride Train to Frontierland
7:20: BTMR Standby, posted wait 20 minutes, actual wait 10 minutes
7:40-8:05: Kill time before dinner reservations, Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse
8:05-9:15: Dinner at Crystal Palace, Meet Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, & Eeyore
9:20: Rapzunel & Cinderella FP. Standby Wait is 45 minutes.
9:40: Under the Sea Walk On
9:55: Ariels Grotto Meet Ariel, nobody in line before us
10:00: Based on a CMs recommendation, watch Fireworks from Gastons Tavern. This is a GREAT place to watch the fireworks. Plus, you can grab a stool from outside the tavern and sit in a seat while watching the fireworks.
10:20: Barnstormer -- Walk On
10:30-11:00: Ride Space Mountain Standby Twice
11:00: Electrical Parade
Lessons:
(1) There is great value to be achieved through extra Fastpasses. We would've left the park in the afternoon with FP+ because the waits in the afternoons are typically too long for my liking. FP+, however, allowed us to walk on rides that others were waiting quite a long time for. I kinda felt sorry for them. Someone gets in line for Buzz at 5:00. I get a FP at the Jungle Cruise kiosk at the same time and am on the ride in 10 minutes. They are still waiting for 20 more minutes.
(2) The ability to arrive 5 minutes early increases the value of FP+ when utilized multiple times.
(3) A good strategy is to use an extra FP on Jungle Cruise because you can immediately schedule another FP after the kiosk at the ride. The same thought applies to Dumbo and Goofy near the Big Circus kiosk, too.
(4) Rope drop matters. You can do so much early. Also, don't schedule your FastPasses too early (at least at MK) because they do not add value when everything is a walk on early. The 11-2 pm framework is the best bet.
(5) The stunning success of the 9:30-10:00 window of Under the Sea, Ariel's Grotto, and watching fireworks at Gaston's Tavern will lead me to use this strategy time and again in the future.
(6) Closing the park matters. My M.O. has always been open the parks, close the parks, and be somewhere else in the afternoons. This is the firs time I have ever stayed throughout the day, all because of FP+.
(7) Don't think I needed to be there so early since I was starting with Frontierland. Could still have been near the front of Frontierland Rope Drop if I was 30 minute later in arriving at the park.
(8) My daughter is a trooper.

You & your DD had a fabulous day at the Magic Kingdom -- and she sounds like quite the trooper!!!


. I'm very relieved...
? Wasn't that the biggest complain about FP-? And the justification for spending all this money?