Newbie here and need some advice.

[Gurgi1138]

I've been to WDW twice, but not since I was young (12-13). My gf and I are going in January (24th-30th) and I wanted to know how optional the FP+ system is or isn't in off-peak times. I haven't been since they had just started using the paper FP system so this is all very new to me.

I understand the need to plan, but I'm not an uber-planner and we like to wing it. I've seen the crowd calendars for January and heard reports of the parks being non-crowded, but how bad is it really? Would it be possible to do the parks that week without FP+ or would we still be missing out on a lot of rides? I can't imagine the lines being that bad, but I could be wrong.

We aren't doing ADR's as we got the Quick Service plan so that is not something we have to worry about, thankfully.

 

[sharonabe]

You can do the parks without FP+, but you will have to wait in longer lines for the more popular rides. Even in a "non-crowded" park, those rides will have 30-40 min waits, if not longer. And remember, the park hours are shorter in Jan, so you don't have as much time to wait.

If you're okay with waiting or perhaps not riding some things, then you can still wing it with no plans. It just depends on what you're willing to miss.

 

[Brian Noble]

I'm not an uber-planner and we like to wing it.

Using FP+ isn't as over-planned as it sounds like. Once you've made a decision to go to a park, grab your phone and make a few reservations. If you don't get to them, that's okay too.

 

[ArwenMarie]

If you're definitely going, you might as well prebook your FPs as best you can, even if plans change once you are there.

 

[Gurgi1138]

Thanks everyone.

 

[Ladyfish77]

Schedule your FP+ for the top attractions (ie the ones that generally have the longest wait times). You can always change your FP to a different time if you can't use it or miss the window. There may not be any FP left for the attraction you want, but if not you can change it to another. We used this option the most at MK. There are lots of attractions with wait times, so you can usually find something that will fit your plan.