Still a good time with no Fastpass?

[disneypartyoften2015]

We are going to Disney World in November. We are staying off-site and have three families going. Trying to get Fastpasses for the different families is not working.

Will we still be able to do the popular rides in a timely manner without them?

Any other advice for getting the most out of the parks while staying off-site?

I already missed out on character dining because I thought off-site guests could only make reservations 90 days in advance. My kids and husband are really bummed. I'm pretty sure the chances of a reservation of that size canceling is pretty slim.

 

[mesaboy2]

I recommend getting FPs for what you can at least. You can try to modify them to something better if you keep an eye out.

Without FPs, waits for popular attractions will be longer. Follow the usual strategies (like arriving early in the morning) and you can often minimize those.

 

[lovndisney12]

My son and I did a one day trip after a conference last November. While we had Fastpasses for DHS for the AM, we hopped to MK for the afternoon and had a great time without any Fastpasses. We did have some longer rides than pre Fastpass+ days - but manageable and still very much enjoyed our time.

My tips for the headliners - if you can, do RD on NON AM EMH days since you are staying off-site. I would also go ahead and get Fastpass+ and if you don't end up using them, no big deal. But if the times work out, it will save you some time in line. But certainly don't let it stress you out and ruin the trip. (I understand how hard it can be to coordinate)

As far as dining goes, keep trying. Things will open up around the cancellation window - so there is certainly still hope - and maybe look at some other alternatives. There are a lot of great fun restaurants.

 

[vicarrieous]

Keep trying on dining! If you are willing, get a dining table search ap like Dining Scout or Dining Buddy. I have had GREAT results getting character dining alerts like Tusker House, Garden Grill, Crystal Palace and more. Keep watching, you have time

 

[ucfknight]

We are going to Disney World in November. We are staying off-site and have three families going. Trying to get Fastpasses for the different families is not working.

If you are going in November and staying off site, how do you know it "is not working". You are still a month away from even being able to book FastPass+ for November.

 

[MataHari22]

I was wondering exactly what the previous post asked. How's it not working when it's not even time for you to book yet?

Are you the only one in charge of making all three families FP+? Perhaps someone could help you the night of and you could have multiple people booking, each taking a day or two. You can have multiple devices signed on at the same time. If you are making so many FP at once, you're probably also going to have to break up the parties and try for overlapping times.

At 30 days out, you may not be able to get the most popular FP+, but you can do those at rope drop or closer to park close. It's only three rides per day, so we all have to still wait in some standby lines. Yes, you can still have fun.

 

[itchin2go]

I thought she meant it wasn't working as far as a consensus amongst the families/people.

You can go and ignore that FPs are even an option. It will likely mean longer lines for at least 3 attractions per day that you could have had FPs for. If we're talking headliners, and depending on the time of day you want to ride/experience them, you could be waiting 3 hours longer than necessary each day.

I would try to put together a schedule of which parks/which days and go ahead and book FPs for at least your family. If you don't use them, no harm/no foul.

Provide a schedule of what you booked to the other families, with instructions on how to do the same for their families.

Oh, and keep trying regarding dining. You didn't "miss the window". You missed booking at the first available opportunity, but there should still be reservations available for lots of things.

 

[Mkrop]

Call for dining they might be able to help you out with such a large group

 

[minnie mum]

We are going to Disney World in November. We are staying off-site and have three families going. Trying to get Fastpasses for the different families is not working.

Will we still be able to do the popular rides in a timely manner without them?

Any other advice for getting the most out of the parks while staying off-site?

I already missed out on character dining because I thought off-site guests could only make reservations 90 days in advance. My kids and husband are really bummed. I'm pretty sure the chances of a reservation of that size canceling is pretty slim.

Since you can't have tried ( and failed) to book FPs this far out, I assumed you meant you couldn't reach a consensus within your group on which rides to book. My advice when travelling with a large group: don't even try. By which I mean that it's a mistake to stay joined at the hip with everyone else all day, every day. People have different priorities. They want to do different things. Tour at different paces.

I'd recommend that you use a crowd calendar, like the one at easywdw.com and go to the recommended park each day, avoiding the one with EMH hours. Give everyone a general touring plan like the cheat sheets at easy. Then each family can decide which attractions they want to see and which FPs they want. You can perhaps meet up at certain points during the day, and have your meals together.

As for the character meals, keep trying. You might have better luck trying for 2 or 3 tables at the same time, rather than 1 large one.

 

[disneypartyoften2015]

If you are going in November and staying off site, how do you know it "is not working". You are still a month away from even being able to book FastPass+ for November.

I just meant it is not working trying to get everyone coordinated and agreeing on the times for Fastpass+. Some feel we should do certain rides/shows at certain times and others don't agree. Some also want to buy tickets there and not in advance.

 

[disneypartyoften2015]

Thank you everyone! I will try getting a few tables for character dining. We want to go to Chef Mickey's since it's not in a park and we aren't all doing the same parks. Whew. You
Going with ten people is hard!

 

[BudgieMama]

I just meant it is not working trying to get everyone coordinated and agreeing on the times for Fastpass+. Some feel we should do certain rides/shows at certain times and others don't agree.

If others don't want to do certain rides/shows at certain times, are you planning on sticking together the whole time? Maybe it might just be worth agreeing that each family will do/not do their own FP+ selections, and that might mean some of you duck off at one time or another to use your FP+?

Good luck! And I echo what others have said. Keep trying with the dining. We got Cinderella's Royal Table at 60 days out, first time we looked. You might need to split up but if it gets you into something you really want to do, that's not the end of the world!

 

[Alesia]

I just meant it is not working trying to get everyone coordinated and agreeing on the times for Fastpass+. Some feel we should do certain rides/shows at certain times and others don't agree. Some also want to buy tickets there and not in advance.

If you try to stick together the whole time, everyone will be miserable.

 

[itchin2go]

If you try to stick together the whole time, everyone will be miserable.

Agreed. I know it seems like the right thing to do, but everyone will end up resenting someone and wishing they were somewhere else. Make FPs for your family. Pass along the information to the other families and leave it at that.

 

[LuvDaisy&Minnie]

Oh please get some fastpasses for the headliners that are important to your family. Yes, you can have a great time without them, but you can experience so much more with them. You didn't say when exactly you are going in November (or I didn't see it), but if it is Thanksgiving week, you will really wish you had FP's. I agree with looking at crowd calendars and just planning which park you will all start out in each day together. You can split up for your FP rides and then get together for the shows, meals, and rides for which you have no FP. I would just plan my FP's now and give a list to everyone and they can plan with them...or not. I would also try to get to the parks for rope drop most days if you can without making your family miserable. And don't wait on the others if they don't want to come that early...let them meet you.

 

[gemini2727]

We just got back and FP is the way to go if you can. It really moved us along in our first park of the day. What didn't help was the FP kiosk in the second park we visited. It was very difficult to get on rides that we would have liked to later in the day. They were almost always unavailable. I hope someday soon that you'll be able to add you fourth FP from the app whereever you are once your first three are used up. That would be much more useful than how it is now.
We like to get to the park at RD (or pre-RD with dining), ride what we could without FP, then ride our favorites with FP. It worked out great.

 

[gtpoohbear]

I went with a group of 10 a few years ago (my family of 3 plus ILs).

I definitely echo what a few have already said- don't plan to stick together the whole time! You will be miserable by the second day. If everyone can't agree for FPs, get what works for your family and let everyone else do their own. Or at least tell you what they want.

What worked well for us was touring together for an hour or two in the morning, then having dinner together most nights. During the middle of the day we were usually split into 2 or 3 groups. And on one whole day, we all went to a different park.

We did a lot of ADRs separate too, because a group that large takes so much longer. I couldn't have dealt with that at every meal.

I would not skip getting FP completely as it will save you a LOT of time in line if done right. There's no harm in having them, even if you end up not using them.

If you can't agree on what to get FPs for, you aren't going to be able to agree on what to do in the park either. Having at least a part of a plan ahead of time (FPs) might help solve some indecisiveness and disagreements once you are there.

 

[JACKNAG]

Big vacation parties for parks, big trouble, be afraid , very afraid

 

[danny1649]

Knute Rockne (sp)Famous ND football coach was once asked why ND didn't have a hockey team. He answered " I can't endorse any sport that puts a stick in the hand of a Irishman" So what i am saying with your group. Your going to have someone who has to do #1 or #2 at different times. Some want burgers and some pizza and some a sit down meal. Some are going to want to do Space Mountain while others think Pooh ride is thrill ride.Some will want to do MK on certain day others want to do Epcot. So you plan for your family and let them plan for theirs.Plus if any of you are Irtish some one is going to get hit with a stick or hand them out to everyone in advance.Then your at least going to be on equal on sticks. PS I'm Irtish

 

[Kathryn777]

When we travel with extended family, especially ones who don't care about fp, I try to get consensus on the park and then tell people what I'm booking my fp for. We usually agree to meet for a meal and the fireworks and then stick together as much as possible...but I'm not waiting 60 min to ride something because someone couldn't be bothered to fp it. Disney is just too expensive for that.

I used dining buddy and really liked it. I got bog twice for 2 parties of 4. Fairly quickly too, so I would definitely try that for a meal or two.