Un-used Fast Passes

[jimmiej]

If I know I'm not coming back to that park that day, I give them away. If I'm coming back, I keep them & use them later.

I did both on our recent trip. I had to ask 3-4 families before I found someone who could use them. Took about one minute.

As far as using them later, no CM gave me a problem. If they'd said no, that would've been fine also.

 

[2binak]

I think they do have to be used on the day they are issued. I don't believe you can use a regular fastpass on another day (there are some that can be used on later dates). Has anyone actually done so?

I think they have to be used on the date of issue too, unless a CM steps in and says otherwise. A CM give us fastpasses to Buzz that were 2 days old and the CM checking them at the beginning of the FP line started to turn us away saying they were not good because they were from a different day. The CM who gave them to us overheard and told the FP CM that we were ok to get on the ride.

We always use FP's beyond the return time, but on the same date that they were issued. So far, no problems. If we can't use them, we always give them away. Sharing FP karma is the best!!!!!!

 

[kaytieeldr]

You could always save the fastpass and use it later. I am not 100% sure on Disney World's policy but at Disneyland a fastpass never expires and can always be used at a later time.

Never? Or 'never for the rest of the day'?

Wait a minute. Either I'm being extra blonde today or something changed about the FastPass system. I remember that you had to return within a certain timeframe, no later.

Nope. Normal hair day. Most of the time, FastPasses can be used any time at/after the printed start time, through the rest of the regular park hours for that day. Sometimes you'll see unsubstantiated, extra-ordinary, misinformed responses - even here on the DIS

 

[ICF]

If I know I'm not coming back to that park that day, I give them away. If I'm coming back, I keep them & use them later.

Us too....if we miss the time listed on the ticket, we have gone back and used it later in the day.

Otherwise, we just try to find someone to give them to if we are leaving for the day and not going back to that park.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

Former Attractions CM piping in here:

Technically fastpasses are only to be used within the window printed on the ticket on the day printed on the ticket. Now, it is the unwritten rule at most attractions that we will accept them the same day after the window has expired. We are not supposed to accept fast passes from other days.

Basically, here is how the fast pass system works: A specific quota is set for each ride for each time frame. This gives us a good ratio of fastpass to standby (and believe me, even when the ratios are followed to a T stanby gets pissed off at us and yells at us.) Things get very interesting when the ride goes down, the machines malfunction, or you have a lot of people not returning within their window.

Every day those quotas reset and are printed out all over again. If we have a lot of people trying to use tickets from other days it can really throw the system out of whack. It does not take much, believe me.

With all of that said, most of the time we do not really notice the date or will allow it anyway. The times when I am the most likely to say no is when we are backed up because something happened. This is going to be at the CMs discretion though and you will find some who are more strict about it than others.

 

[lajones81]

Let's say that you get a Fast Pass for Peter Pan that is good from 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM. At 12:30, your kids decide that they want to go to a water park for the afternoon and you acquiesce. You now have a set of Fast Passes that you won’t be using. Should you throw them away or give them to strangers?

My sister and brother-in-law got back recently from their honeymoon at Disney. One of their favorite moments was when a gentleman gave them a few fastpasses, as his family was leaving for the day. It made a wonderful trip for them even better!

 

[justhat]

We've always heard them announce at rides "FPs 2pm and earlier" or whatever time. Not "FPs 1-2pm". We normally use them during the window as we plan the day based on them, but have often used them later if we had to eat or something.

There were 2 or 3 times we were told we could save them for another day and that was on Space Mountain and Test Track, when the ride broke down and we were leaving the park. The CMs said we could bring them back another day on the trip, tell the CM the ride was broken and they would let us on. I think it happened twice at TT, but I'm not 100% sure. We did use them days later and it was fine with the CM when we explained why.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

That's how I always announced it. Like I said, it's pretty much the unwritten rule that we accept them anytime after the window has started and I will tell guests that. It's using them another day that becomes an issue. Typically if I give somebody fastpasses from another day, I will initial them (that was the standard in our area) so the person at the entrance knows they are fine. If the ride breaks down, I will say the same thing you were told: use them later that day or another day and just tell the greeter what happened.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

It appears that no one thinks that there is anything wrong with giving them to others. That's what we did on our trip, but I started wondering if it was the right thing to do.

Think about it this way. You don't have a fast pass. You've been waiting in line and are just about to get on. You decide that you can't ride and have to leave. Another identically sized group of people happens to be walking by. Is it OK if you leave the line and give your space to the strangers, essentially letting them get ahead of everyone else without waiting? Isn't that functionally the same thing as giving away your fast pass?

 

[SandrA9810]

Why would you have a problem saving a family time in line?? It's not like one person standing in line to have a huge group push thier way through the line to join that one person... for fastpasses, it's one for one.

Kari has also told me that she's had people come up to her at Thunder with fastpasses and say that they can't be used. So she then will hand them out to the next family of the same size, saying here... jump the line. When she's working fastpass return, she'll swap fastpasses for people that come early. Like they show up 15 minutes early, she'll give them fastpasses that are good for that time... then 20 minutes later do the same for another family.

The only ride I'd show up in my window for is Toy Story Mania. It seems they only follow the rules to a T on new rides when the wait time is like 3hrs long.


Disney's underlying rule is do what it takes to make the guest happy. And it's not hurting anyone by letting them use thier fastpass beyond the window.
Two major backups happen, 1 when a ride reopens after a down time, 2 after a parade. But I'd just wait about 30 minutes after that when the line starts flowing like normal again.

 

[S. C.]

Use them the next day/trip.

 

[S. C.]

I think they do have to be used on the day they are issued. They technically want you to use them during that 1 hour window, but will almost always except them up until park close. I don't believe you can use a regular fastpass on another day (there are some that can be used on later dates). Has anyone actually done so?

We did use fast passes the next day on an attraction. A storm came thru the day before during our use time and they closed the attraction. After telling the CM what happen she let us use them.

 

[Liberty Belle]

Why would you have a problem saving a family time in line?? It's not like one person standing in line to have a huge group push thier way through the line to join that one person... for fastpasses, it's one for one.

Kari has also told me that she's had people come up to her at Thunder with fastpasses and say that they can't be used. So she then will hand them out to the next family of the same size, saying here... jump the line. When she's working fastpass return, she'll swap fastpasses for people that come early. Like they show up 15 minutes early, she'll give them fastpasses that are good for that time... then 20 minutes later do the same for another family.

The only ride I'd show up in my window for is Toy Story Mania. It seems they only follow the rules to a T on new rides when the wait time is like 3hrs long.


Disney's underlying rule is do what it takes to make the guest happy. And it's not hurting anyone by letting them use thier fastpass beyond the window.
Two major backups happen, 1 when a ride reopens after a down time, 2 after a parade. But I'd just wait about 30 minutes after that when the line starts flowing like normal again.

I'm confused. Kari (apparently a cm?) said they couldn't be used and then handed them to another family? Or did the original family say they couldn't be used? If so, why didn't she correct them.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

Why would you have a problem saving a family time in line?? It's not like one person standing in line to have a huge group push thier way through the line to join that one person... for fastpasses, it's one for one.

Any time I save for the recipients of my generosity comes from the people waiting in line. That family may avoid a 30 minute wait, but the 300 people in line will all have to wait a bit longer to make up for it.

The fast pass doesn't create any more riding time. Every time that someone uses a fast pass, everyone else in line waits just a bit longer. No matter how you slice it, the same number of people are going to get to ride the ride. When you give a family a set of fast passes, you are shifting everyone in the line back one family so that they can move to the front. You haven't made any more ride spaces available, you've just shifted who gets to ride when. Why should you reward one family and punish everyone else in line?

If giving away the fast passes was a good thing, wouldn't it be just as good if the CM running the ride occasionally told everyone in line to wait because she wants to let a family that happens to be walking by ride without waiting?

 

[kaytieeldr]

I'm confused. Kari (apparently a cm?) said they couldn't be used and then handed them to another family? Or did the original family say they couldn't be used? If so, why didn't she correct them.

No - I think. If I'm right, the quoted poster means the family that hands the FastPasses to CM Kari can't use those because they're leaving.

 

[Liberty Belle]

No - I think. If I'm right, the quoted poster means the family that hands the FastPasses to CM Kari can't use those because they're leaving.

Ah, ok. Thank you. That makes sense.

 

[xCourxCorex]

Any time I save for the recipients of my generosity comes from the people waiting in line. That family may avoid a 30 minute wait, but the 300 people in line will all have to wait a bit longer to make up for it.

The fast pass doesn't create any more riding time. Every time that someone uses a fast pass, everyone else in line waits just a bit longer. No matter how you slice it, the same number of people are going to get to ride the ride. When you give a family a set of fast passes, you are shifting everyone in the line back one family so that they can move to the front. You haven't made any more ride spaces available, you've just shifted who gets to ride when. Why should you reward one family and punish everyone else in line?

If giving away the fast passes was a good thing, wouldn't it be just as good if the CM running the ride occasionally told everyone in line to wait because she wants to let a family that happens to be walking by ride without waiting?

People in the standby line all had the option of getting a FastPass as well. If they want to wait in standby, that's their choice.

 

[Chereya]

If giving away the fast passes was a good thing, wouldn't it be just as good if the CM running the ride occasionally told everyone in line to wait because she wants to let a family that happens to be walking by ride without waiting?

Gee, by this logic, doesn't that make the entire Fast Pass system "unfair" because people who utilize them don't have to stand in line with everybody else? Disney is full of magic moments and magic moments aren't always equal opportunity. Do you begrudge other people who get a magic moment? I don't. Sometimes it's pure luck and sometimes it's the discretion of the CM. The best you can do is hope to be blessed with your own magic moment one day.

 

[iNTeNSeBLue98]

Strangers were kind enough to give us their FP for Star Tours, as it interfered with their dinner ADR. It was awesome! She handed them to us right outside the ride entrance, just as the window opened so we didn't have to wait at all.

 

[Kimmumum]

DH and I have 2 boys. If we have fastpasses that we can't use we always look for a family with 2 little boys to give them too. When we were there in June we couldn't find anyone that wanted 4 fastpasses to TicketMania at Hollywood Studios. We took the ferry back to the resort and when we got off of the ferry we handed them to the boat captain and asked him to give it to a family. He said he was happy to do so Just adding a little pixie dust