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NOTICE: FASTPASS+ Discontinued and Replaced
FastPass+ has been discontinued and replaced. To learn more about its replacement, Genie+ and Lightning Lanes, consult the following posts:
Original Post
With FastPass+ currently suspended, this first section of the post now explores when FastPass+ might return and what it might look like when it does. The remainder of the post exists as it did before the 2020 closure.
When will FastPass+ return to Disney World?
As you maybe know, FastPass+ is suspended during the initial reopening phase of the parks. You can read more about the reopening phase of Walt Disney World here. But one big question we keep getting from Disney parks fans is “when will FastPass+ return to Disney World?”
The obvious answer is “we don’t know.” We don’t have any more information than you. That said, we’re happy to take a guess(ish) and more importantly, walk you through how we’re thinking about this issue.
Our best, but most general guess is that FastPass+ will return by October 1 as part of the 50th Anniversary celebrations. For the reasons outlined elsewhere, that’s our mental “back to normal” date in our Disney World outlook.
Previously we speculated that March or May could be good return dates, but those didn’t happen. We still think a summer 2021 return is possible, if for no other reason than to get everyone—Cast Members (both on the ground and behind the scenes), guests, and travel planners back on the page about the system before the 50th Anniversary.
First, we don’t know if FastPass+ will at all be the same. Rumors have persisted for years that Disney will begin charging for FastPass, as they charge for MaxPass at Disneyland Resort. This time of low crowds but medium waits might be a good chance for Disney to test the waters on paid FastPass.
We also don’t know how much Disney really needs FastPass right now. People experiencing the high crowds recently have said they’d like it back, but on scales large and small, it’s not clear it’s needed.
At the ride specific level, we’re seeing Disney add capacity to rides by utilizing all rows (on rides where they were using half before) where safe or otherwise installing barriers to allow them to get more people on the rides.
And if you look at the overall guest experience, not everyone is complaining. Some people found FastPass+ too cumbersome and enjoy being more spontaneous both in planning and in the parks, so long as they’re able to fit in every ride they want.
With the parks pass reservation system in place, Disney has a very good forecast of what crowds will look like (this is in addition to all the other information they have—historical, from web traffic/booking calls, or from hotel bookings, e.g.). I doubt waits get to wholly unmanageable levels without some adjustments from Disney.
Personally, we’ve always loved FastPass+, no doubt in part because we’re good at it (which roughly means we didn’t mind spending hours refreshing out phones hoping for that Flight of Passage FastPass). We want to see it back, and it enhances our personal experience. But Disney has kept it suspended for some time now, so they must not feel it’s immediately needed.
Our immediate point is just that you don’t need to stress about whether your trip needs to wait for FastPass+. There are so many bigger issues, like cost, safety, and the 50th Anniversary, to plan your trip around. Until it actually comes back and operates for a few weeks, we really won’t know whether things are better or worse with (a possibly substantially modified) FastPass+.
In any case, we expect Disney to give advance notice of the return of FastPass. 60-90 day notice would mean an announcement could come as soon as January if FastPass is returning in March. Trust us—there’s nothing we’re more eagerly awaiting than a FastPass announcement, and we will be writing about it here as quickly as possible once it’s announced.
When FastPass+ Does Return…
One of the most debated questions in the Disney community is the optimal Walt Disney World FastPass strategy. This very long post goes over our recommended and tested FastPass+ strategy (the one we actually put to use while we're in Walt Disney World, and it saves us hours). Our goal here is to equip you with all the tools and knowledge you need to get on the most popular rides at Disney World without a wait!
In this post, we start with some basic rules about FastPass+ and the Disney World FastPass+ tiers, then we move onto examples of bad strategies. Finally, we break down our strategy, including the best rides to FastPass, tips about taking it to the next level, the secret Disney FastPass hack we mostly think is real, and how to book for large groups.
Once you’ve read this post, we suggest moving onto our individual park-related posts, which can be found at the following links:
We’ll be breaking this FastPass+ strategy into four parts: knowing the rules, picking your FastPass attractions, scheduling your rides, and mastering the art of the “tap, grab, and modify” approach.
If you're looking to learn more just about the rides themselves, check out the following posts:
And if you want to see us put our FastPass+ strategy to work, we’ve got itineraries for each park as well:
If you won’t be in the parks for one day at each park, we have posts on two-day Disney World trips and three-day Disney World trips that discuss how you might efficiently divide your days (and FastPass+ reservations) across multiple parks.
Part 1. Disney World Fastpass+ Rules & Basics
In this section, we’re going to quickly explain the Disney World FastPass+ rules. If you’re already familiar with these, click here to jump down to part two of the post.
What Is Disney World FastPass+?
FastPass+ (occasionally called “Fast Pass,” “Fastpass,” or “Fastpass Plus” is the electronic/online system for booking rides at Disney World so that you can skip the lines (or wait in substantially shorter lines) for your favorite rides. FastPass+ is used at the four theme parks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios). FastPass+ is not used at the water parks (Typhoon Lagoon, Blizzard Beach).
How Does FastPass+ Work at Disney World?
Unlike many of the other Disney parks worldwide, the Walt Disney World FastPass+ system does not rely on paper tickets. Instead, you schedule FastPass+ reservations online, through the My Disney Experience app, or through physical kiosks in the park. These reservations are linked to your park ticket or Magic Band.
Unique to Disney World is the chance to book FastPass reservations before you even arrive at the resort. Time is money at Walt Disney World, and you get the most bang for your buck with good planning. We’ll cover all this in more detail below.
FastPass+ Is Free, And That Means You’re Already Ahead of the Curve
Unlike Disneyland’s MAXPASS, which is paid access to an improved FASTPASS system in Disneyland, the cost of Disney World FastPass+ is just $0 (free). It is included with the cost of your park admission.
That means that the people who get the most out of it aren't those who pay more, but those who prepare most. You’re here to prepare, and that puts you ahead of the curve!
There Are Three Ways To Get and Modify FastPass+ Reservations
The three ways to make and modify FastPass+ reservations are:
On your phone Via the MyDisneyExperience App
In the parks at physical kiosks
Our individual parks posts discuss the locations of each in park kiosk, but you should know they do move on occasion.
How to Book a FastPass+ On the My Disney Experience App
Note: The interface was tweaked a bit in November 2019 and I haven’t updated all the photos yet, but the basic layout is the same.
While we’re going to give an example using the My Disney Experience App, the My Disney Experience website and the in-park kiosks follows roughly the same steps (though the kiosks are confined to today’s date and the park you’re in).
If you already know how to book a FastPass+ via the My Disney Experience app, or if you’re not interested in reading this right now, click here to skip this section.
Step 1. You begin by logging into the mobile app (you can download the mobile app here). You login using your same Disney credentials that you use for the Walt Disney World and Disneyland websites.
Step 2. Click the encircled + at the bottom and then select Get FastPass+
Step 3. If you don’t have any FastPass+ reservations, you’ll see a welcome screen with an explanation of FastPass+.
Step 4. Select your party from your friends and family list. You need to select everyone you wish to book a FastPass+ for. You’ll be searching and booking for the number of people you select here.
Step 5. Select your date and park. If you’re booking far in advance, click the calendar icon to see all dates you can book for. If you have a hotel reservation, you should have access to those dates 60 days in advance (more on this below). Once you’ve picked your date, click the park to see what’s available that day. (Click arrows to scroll between photos)
Step 6. Search by time. You’ll have the ability to search by “Morning” “Afternoon” or “Evening” or hour-by-hour. The app shows what’s available in those times or when availability is limited, other available times. (Click arrows to scroll between photos)
Step 7. Select your time and confirm your reservation. (Click arrows to scroll between photos)
Step 8. Move onto the next reservation, either the same day or a different day. Typically you can just select “I’m Done,” but this is a good moment to highlight the glitchy nature of the app, as I couldn’t even get through this simple reservation without a random glitch where I’m not allowed to select that I’m done.
FastPass+ Availability Can Be Complicated
Everyone wants to know what FastPass availability is going to look like for their trip, and the truth is there's really no way to know. There are a few reasons for this.
First, Disney can change FastPass availability as they see fit. Disney occasionally “dumps” availability and opens a large number of slots. No one knows about this until it happens (though bloggers and other guests on twitter or instagram will often share if they notice a lot of space opens).
Conversely, Disney also clearly shrinks FastPass+ space on occasion. You can tell this when you’re in a nearly empty park at 10AM and yet still can’t find a FastPass+ for any of the major rides.
Second, with lots happening at the resort through 2021, FastPass+ availability is going to be in great flux. Tiers are changing and guest priorities are changing. Disney will probably be monitoring the situation closely and adjusting availability as it develops.
Nonetheless, here are some things you can expect when booking FastPasses...
FastPass availability is (almost) always best the furthest date out (the last day of your trip). This means when you can book, you’ll want to look at putting the most popular rides at Disney World (the Toy Story Land, Pandora, and Galaxy’s Edge rides, right now) on the last few days of your trip, where you’ll find better availability.
The exceptions to this are mostly obvious. Certain holidays and busier days will have low availability pretty quickly. And this rule doesn’t apply if you’re booking 30 days in advance one day at a time. The advantage only works if you have a 60-day + hotel reservation booking window that allows you access to later days (like days 65, 65) as soon as your 60-day window opens.
A group of four can usually find FastPass availability on most Tier 2 rides while at the park. We’ll discuss this in more detail later, but basically you can expect (but never count on!!) to be able to find space on all but the most popular rides while you’re at the parks.
Availability can vary from person to person. You can confirm this yourself, as if you have two people searching for availability at the same park, they'll often see slightly different results. Disney’s algorithms clearly home some amount of randomness built into them.
When can you book FastPasses at Disney World?
The top question on everyone's mind: When can I get FastPass reservations for my trip? The quick answer is 60 days in advance if you’re staying at a Disney or other select hotel and 30 days in advance for everyone else.
But the full answer is more complicated. How fan in advance you can book FastPasses depends on what hotel you’re staying at. This is the Disney FastPass+ rule (or perk, really) that actually does create something of a “pay-to-play” system. Some people can pay a little more (or at least plan a little differently) to get ahead of the competition.
Select Hotels Get 60-Day Advance Fastpass+ Booking
If you're staying at a Disney resort (or select other resorts), you can make FastPass+ reservations 60 days in advance of the first night your stay. If you are not staying at one of these resorts, you can make FastPass+ reservations up to 30 days into the future. This is one of several perks of staying at a Disney hotel.
Stay at a Disney World hotel to get advance access to Fastpass+!
If you're at these select resorts, you can book FastPass+ reservations for your entire stay starting 60 days before your first day. So If you’re staying at Disney’s Pop Century Resort ten nights from November 1 to November 11 and have 11-day park tickets, you can book 11 days of FastPass+ reservations starting on September 2. This is true even if you have a split stay at two Disney hotels, as long as the stays are consecutive.
We have a Disney FastPass+ Calendar (or Disney FastPass+ calculator) to help you remember when you can start booking. Just click through this link here and you'll be taken to it. It's nothing fancy, but it gets the job done.
You Can Make Up To Three Advance FastPass+ Bookings For Each Day
This is probably the Disney FastPass+ rule most people know. When booking 30/60 days in advance, you can select THREE FastPass+ reservations each day. Each reservation (with very limited exceptions) has an hour window. These hours cannot overlap.
The three reservations must be at a single park. Epcot, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios have tiered selections (see below for the Disney World FastPass tiers). When you make your advance three reservations, they can only include a maximum of one “Tier 1” ride. We cover the Disney tier lists below.
Another big question: What time can I make Fastpass+ reservations? The FastPass+ booking window opens at 7AM, Eastern Standard Time either 30 days or 60 days in advance. To find out what day you'll need to book your advance FastPass+ bookings, click here to access our Disney FastPass+ calendar.
If you don't trust us, visit google and search “60 days before DATE,” substituting DATE for the first date of your trip. Remember, if you’re not staying at one of the select resorts with the 60-day window, your FastPass+ booking will open one day at a time, 30 days in advance of each day.
You Can Modify Your FastPass+ Bookings
Anecdotal evidence suggests you’ll have better luck modifying a 10PM booking to a 1PM booking for the same ride, or even for a different ride in the same park, than you will just stumbling upon the 1PM booking.
This means if you know you want to ride Flight of Passage on Tuesday and you see an opening for Tuesday at 8PM, just grab it! If a 1PM pops up later, you’ll be able to modify into it. Modifying a FastPass+ selection is easily done by clicking “modify” on the FastPass+ screen.
The new interface gives two “change” options. You can either change the time of your current ride or you can change your ride selection (both subject to availability):
You Can Get “Unlimited” FastPass+ Bookings Once At The Park
People often ask “How many FastPasses do you get per day at Disney World?” and the answer to that is three in advance, but there’s no limit to how many you can get once it’s time for your visit.
This is one of the most sadly forgotten Disney FastPass+ rules. To be clear, you can’t just show up at the park and book all the rides you want.
Rather, once you have used all three of your initial FastPass+ bookings for a day you can make another one for that day at any park. Once you use or cancel that reservation, you can make another, and so on. We discuss this in greater detail as part of our strategy below.
Disney World FastPass+ Tiers (2019 and 2020)
In this section we give you a full breakdown of the Disney World FastPass tiers.
Tier 1 - The Most In-Demand Rides at Disney World
Here are the Disney World FastPass+ tiers for 2019, beginning with the top tier (these are the rides most likely to be the most popular rides at Disney World). The most popular ride or rides are bolded.
Hollywood Studios Tier 1 FastPass - Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway, Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run, Slinky Dog Dash
Epcot Tier 1 FastPass - Frozen Ever After, Soarin’, Test Track, Epcot Forever
Animal Kingdom Tier 1 FastPass - Avatar Flight of Passage, Na’vi River Journey
Remember, when you book your FastPass+ reservations at these parks, you can only book one top tier ride in your first set of three Fastpass+ selections. Once you use your three, you can book a new tier one ride as your fourth (and/or fifth, and so on) selection.
Tier 2 - The Rest of the FastPass+ Rides at Disney World
And now, the second Disney World FastPass tier (book two or three of these in advance)...
Hollywood Studios Tier 2 FastPass - Toy Story Mania!, Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror, Alien Swirling Saucers, Beauty and the Beast, Disney Junior Dance Party, Frozen Sing-Along Celebration, Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular!, Muppet Vision 3D, Voyage of the Little Mermaid, Fantasmic!, Star Tours
Epcot Tier 2 FastPass - Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival, Journey Into Imagination with Figment, Living with the Land, Mission: SPACE, Spaceship Earth, The Seas with Nemo & Friends, Turtle Talk with Crush
Animal Kingdom Tier 2 FastPass - DINOSAUR, Expedition Everest, Finding Nemo - The Musical, UP! A Great Bird Adventure, It's Tough to be a Bug, Kali River Rapids, Kilimanjaro Safaris, Meet Favorite Disney Pals, Primeval Whirl, Rivers of Light, Festival of the Lion King, Animation Experience
Remember, there are no FastPass+ tiers at Magic Kingdom. All Fastpass+ rides at Magic Kingdom are on the same level.
Before we move on, we need to cover a special FastPass+ situation that falls outside of these rules.
Special Case: Club Level Access to Extra Fastpass+ Perks
Disney World offers access to extra FastPass+ reservations for an additional fee to Disney hotel club level guests. Guests who pay $50 plus tax per person per day will receive (paraphrasing Disney Tourist Blog):
Three additional FastPass+ selections per day
Ability to reserve these three additional FastPass+ selections in different parks if you have park hopper
Booking window of up to 90 days in advance for these three additional FastPass+ selections
Additional Fastpass+ selection can be used at multiple Tier 1 rides
Preferred viewing for one nighttime show per day
At this point we have no intention of updating our strategy with anything more about this. The reasons for this are twofold. First, we don't think many readers will avail themselves of this option, nor would we endorse it if you’re at all on the fence about it. We don’t value this perk at $50 per person per day, not even close.
Second, you can take the essentials of this purchase and just modify our strategy to apply it yourself, it shouldn't be too hard. We don't want to complicate things with too much unnecessary content.
Part 2. Picking The Best Rides To FastPass
The best rides to FastPass are subjective insofar as you can skip rides you don’t care about or don't want to ride, but beyond that, a good rule of thumb is to use FastPass+ for the rides with the longest average standby times. Remember too that you'll have to keep the Disney World FastPass tiers (discussed above) in mind.
You can find information on standby times on various sites, most notably Touring Plans, which also has extensive FastPass+ content. We also have individual park guides linked to above and in the next paragraph.
Additionally, you’ll want to keep Walt Disney World’s height requirements in mind. If you’ll be skipping a ride because of a height requirement, you won’t want to waste a FastPass+ on it.
In general, the most important (that is, difficult) FastPass+ reservation you can get at each park in 2020 (and thus the best rides to FastPass) will be:
Best FastPass at Animal Kingdom - Avatar Flight of Passage
Best FastPass at Epcot - Frozen Ever After or Test Track
Best FastPass at Magic Kingdom - Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
Best FastPass at Hollywood Studios - Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway or Slinky Dog Dash
There really isn’t too much debate around which rides are best to FastPass right now, though Hollywood Studios is a little more complicated than the other parks. As we get through our strategy, you’ll find that sometimes the best ride to FastPass is simply the one with the next open slot.
How to get the best Fastpasses at Disney World
Here are some quick tips on how to book these rides (they all boil down to persistence):
Book ASAP — that’s at 7AM Eastern either 30 days or 60 days in advance of your stay
Check again for the first week of booking — people will shuffle around their bookings for the first week or so
Check again at 30 days out — some people think Disney releases more FastPass space 30 days out
Check the week of your trip — everyone makes some changes when they finally get to Disney World
Check same-day — people will change their plans same-day for a variety of reasons
You can also check during all your other free time, but these are the times people are most likely to cancel a FastPass, opening up a slot for you. Basically no one changes plans 45 days out or 15 days out.
Single Rider
Four rides at Walt Disney World have single rider lines: Expedition Everest, Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, Test Track, and Millennium Falcon Smugglers Run. If your party is willing to be broken up and ride solo, these lines are a great alternative if your FastPass+ plans don’t work out.
Part 3. Two Bad FastPass+ Strategies
We're starting with bad strategies as a way to show you some of the counterintuitive aspects of FastPass+ planning.
Bad FastPass+ Strategy 1: Start the day quickly
The first bad strategy is to put your FastPass+ slots right at the start of the day. Putting one at the time the park opens is a baffling decision, as your wait time on your first ride will be short if you get to rope drop (covered more below) regardless.
Note: As of early 2020, we think this is a workable strategy at Hollywood Studios, which is seeing waits for rides peak in the morning and then drop throughout the day.
Head to the Hollywood Tower Hotel at rope drop and you'll be checking out 15 minutes later.
Bad FastPass+ Strategy 2: Space them out Too Much
A worse mistake is to space your FastPass+ bookings out throughout the day. You want to use your first three FastPass+ in a timely manner so you can start grabbing your fourth FastPass+, and then your fifth, sixth, and so on.
The Best Disney World Fastpass+ Strategy
The best FastPass+ strategy has two parts. First, when you initially book, you book three FastPass+ reservations in near succession, preferably between the hours of 10AM and 2PM (or else one to two hours after park opening through midday).
Second, as soon as you use your first FastPass (!!) you start modifying your next two, and you continue picking up new FastPass+ slots throughout the day. Let's address these two parts in detail.
Part 4. Scheduling Your Advance FastPass+ Reservations
First, you have to pick what days you’ll schedule which parks. There are a lot of factors that go into this, and while we won’t address all of them we want to give you a rough idea of some things to consider.
Later dates have more availability. If you’re staying at a Disney hotel and booking 60 days in advance of your arrival, the end of your trip will have more FastPass+ availability than the beginning. That’s where you’ll have better luck finding a FastPass+ for Slinky Dog Dash or Avatar Flight of Passage.
Are you park hopping? If you’re park hopping, it might make sense to book afternoon FastPass+ at one park and rope drop another one, particularly if you can get the FastPass+ at the park that closes latest that day.
You don’t have to combine Extra Magic Hours with FastPass+. If you have park hopper tickets, it can be a good idea to visiting morning Extra Magic Hours and then hop to a different park where you’ll use your FastPass+ reservations. This is especially true if you visit Magic Kingdom morning Extra Magic Hours, as you can cover a ton of rides by midday.
Do you need two days of Magic Kingdom FastPass+? It’s often advisable to do two days of FastPass+ at Magic Kingdom. If you arrive early for Hollywood Studios (at least until Runaway Railways opens) and Animal Kingdom rope drops, you can avoid needing FastPass+ reservations at those parks.
Once you’ve picked your days, here's why scheduling your initial three FastPass selections in near succession between 10AM and 2PM is best.
It gives you full flexibility at rope drop. You can go where the lines are shortest for the first hour or two. Importantly, you can expect a short wait on the first ride you go to which saves you from having to waste a FastPass on that ride. We have posts specifically covering Magic Kingdom Rope Drop, Hollywood Studios Rope Drop Animal Kingdom Rope Drop, and Epcot Rope Drop.
You minimize big gaps. Because your FastPass windows are back-to-back-to-back, you can do two of your rides back to back, you won't have to waste hours waiting in lines or walking around the park waiting for your FastPass times to arrive.
You have maximum flexibility. You want to leave a gap of 15 minutes to 30 minutes between your first two FastPass+ reservations in order to be sure you can move up your third reservation once you use your first (moving up your second is always an option, too).
You FastPass through the busiest time of the day. 10AM to 4PM tends to have some of the longer waits. You’ve scheduled your FastPasses to avoid that. It doesn’t matter what season or what the crowd calendars say, Disney lines can get wicked year-round.
You’re done early to get a new FastPass and start park hopping. This is why we personally love this strategy. Once you’ve used your three FastPasses, the “World” is your oyster! You can even pick your next park based the best FastPass available. Or you can keep checking until your favorite ride opens up. There’s not a single ride that doesn't occasionally see an open FastPass slot.
Part 5. Mastering the Art of the “Tap and Grab”
Here's how the awesome ride-hopping folks over at Parkeology describe the “Tap and Grab”:
Once you have used your initial selection of 3 FastPasses, the My Disney Experience app lets you pick up bonus FastPasses one at a time. As soon as you “tap” at the Mickey touch point to use your current FastPass, the app will allow you to grab a new FastPass.
Tapping and grabbing is an essential part of any good FastPass+ strategy. Some bloggers refer to it as a “hack.” Others call it the secret to getting “infinite” Fastpasses. However you want to think about it, this is what drives getting the most out of FastPass+.
The best way to master tapping and grabbing is to practice. Magic Kingdom is the park where tap and grab is most essential, so we suggest practicing it at a different park in the days before you visit Magic Kingdom.
We constantly get asked “does this really work?” The answer is YES! Now are you going to get Flight of Passage, Frozen Ever After, and Slinky Dog Dash all in one day with this method? Probably not.
But can you get some real winning slots? Definitely. You can see tap and grab at work—particularly at the Magic Kingdom—in our all our one-day itinerary posts (linked above) as well as our Walt Disney World trip reports.
FastPass+ Secret: “Tap and Grab” Starts After Ride One, Not Ride Three
While not entirely tapping and grabbing, the actual work starts as soon as you ride your first ride. This is the one secret to FastPass+ we think many experts ignore! Here’s why you absolutely need to open up your My Disney Experience app as soon as you've used your first FastPass.
You Can’t Get a Fourth FastPass+ Until You Use Your First Three…
Just for added clarification—no, you cannot get your fourth FastPass+ before you use your first three. That’s not what we’re saying here.
…But You can move up your next two FastPasses once you use your first One
What you can do is start modifying your second and third FastPass+ reservations to make them earlier as soon as you use your first one.
If you scheduled a 10AM, 11:15, and 12:15, when you use that 10AM FastPass right at 10AM, you can hop on your app and move your 12:30 to 10:05, if a slot is available (and it often will be!). Even if it isn’t, you can move your slots as early as possible, buying you more time for the rest of the day.
Note that this doesn't have anything to do with your fourth FastPass selection. We’re still just talking about your first three. All you’re doing is modifying them once you've used your first. You can't schedule them for 10AM, 10:10, and 11:15 in advance, but once you use your 10AM, you can go ahead and move one up to 10:10AM.
Skipping or Cancelling Tier 2 Reservations
We get lots of questions about ways to move onto grabbing a fourth FastPass+ (a Tier 1 ride, specifically) without first using your first three. We now have a new post on skipping (or just not booking) FastPass+ reservations in hopes of getting quick access to Tier 1 rides.
Then once you’ve used your first three Fastpass selections, keep searching, and you'll skip almost all the lines!
As an example of how great this can get (more examples are found throughout our content), on July 5, we grabbed a Fastpass for Space Mountain via the app at 11:23 (while on the bus to Magic Kingdom). The FastPass window started at 11:35, just 12 minutes later, while the standby wait was 65 minutes!
We were two people, and that means any two people hopping in that line at 11:23 could have saved nearly an hour of waiting in line if they had used this strategy! Then as soon as you use that Fastpass, start searching for your next one to do the same trick! Keep reading, because we get more into these details later!
Part 6. Rope Drop, The Most Important Part of Your Day
We didn't used to talk about rope drop in our FastPass+ posts, but it slowly found its way in. That's because rope drop is the most important part of getting on rides besides FastPass+. You really can’t talk about one without the other, so this section is dedicated to really explaining rope drop.
What Is Rope Drop?
“Rope drop” refers to the time when a theme park actually opens in the morning. The term originates in fact that while most theme parks are gated with turnstiles, they'll usually let people through the gate before the actual opening time (more on that in a bit), blocking off lands or attractions with ropes which Cast Members “drop” at actual opening time.
As a verb, “rope drop” is used to mean what you do first in the morning when the park opens. If I say you should “rope drop Toy Story Mania”, that's shorthand for, “When the park opens you should immediately go to Toy Story Mania!” We'll also sometimes use it to refer to the rides you go to between the time the park opens and when lines start to build about two hours into the day.
By The Way…
We have posts specifically covering:
Why To Rope Drop
Before we get into the nitty gritty of rope drop, let's cover why it’s important. Because rope drop is at the very start of the day, it is the time when lines are shortest. Although lines can build up, rope dropping is the easiest way to get a short wait on a ride without a Fastpass+.
Rope dropping is also almost entirely in your control. While there are rides that sometimes open late, you can guarantee yourself a short wait on any ride in Walt Disney World by waking up a little earlier than you're used to and getting to the park.
What Time Is Rope Drop?
The first thing to know about rope drop is that the time the park is scheduled to open is usually the absolute latest most of the park will be operational. On most days, the gates to the Disney parks open 15 to 45 minutes before scheduled park open.
On some days, rides will actually be operational before the park is scheduled to open. On a recent visit to Animal Kingdom, for example, we went for morning Extra Magic Hours and were actually off Na'vi River Journey before the scheduled start of Extra Magic Hours.
Extra Magic Hours
If a park has Extra Magic Hours, rope drop is really the time that Extra Magic Hours begin. If you don't have Extra Magic Hours, you're going to be at a disadvantage when you arrive at the regular opening time as EMH guests will already be in line. If you don't have access to Extra Magic Hours, you shouldn't start your day at a park with morning Extra Magic Hours for this reason.
A sample park schedule with morning Extra Magic Hours circled.
Magic Kingdom is a special case for Extra Magic Hours. It’s the only park where the majority of the rides aren't open for morning Extra Magic Hours. Tomorrowland and Fantasyland are open, but Liberty Square, Adventureland, and Frontierland are not.
So if EMH begins at 8AM and the park opens at 9AM, those latter three lands won't open until 9AM. Anyone who arrived before 9AM will have equal opportunity to rope drop those lands as the people who had the extra hour in Tomorrowland and Fantasyland.
Rope Drop Tips
Rope drop strategy works in tandem with Fastpass+ strategy. While your Fastpass+ options are going to be constrained by a number of factors, including pure luck, rope drop is more in your control.
Mind Your Fastpass+ Tiers
Three of the parks have tiered Fastpass+, which means you'll have Tier 1 rides you couldn't book in advance. At rope drop at those parks, you're going to be trying to get those rides done, as whatever you didn't book in Tier 1 should be more popular than the rides you didn't book in Tier 2. Consult our individual park posts for the Fastpass+ tiers:
Pay Attention To Ride Length
WDWInfo has a great list of the ride times at Walt Disney World (though it doesn't include pre-shows and prep time) . At rope drop, you'll want to avoid (as much as you reasonably can) the rides with long ride times. Long ride times give the other lines time to grow, which defeats the point of getting there early.
Not All Equal Waits Are Equal
A 30-minute wait at rope drop can be worse than an hour wait later in the day. At rope drop, your 30-minute wait is going to give all the other lines in the park time to go from 0 to 15+, which might leave you with just two or three rides before peak waits set in. If you stick to short waits, though, you'll finish plenty of rides and be left with just one or two long waits in the middle of the day.
When In Doubt, Don't Get Cute
For the most part, the crowds know what they're doing. And even if they don't, the crowds will form long lines, and it's often better to be in them now than later when they're even longer.
Part 7. Finally, Are There aNy Secret Disney World Fastpass Hacks?
Okay, we’re not big believers in there being Disney FastPass+ secrets, but we think there is maybe one. We don’t have anything other than anecdotal evidence (both our own experiences and others) to suggest that this really is a Disney FastPass+ hack, but here it is.
The Most Important Fastpass+ Hack: “Tap, Grab, and Modify”
Remember “tap and grab”? Well, actually, the optimal FastPass+ trick is “tap, grab, and modify.”
While we don’t have access to Disney's internal algorithms to confirm this, our own experience and word of mouth pretty strongly suggest that there is one consistent, unspoken pattern to Fastpass+ availability, and it comes in two parts:
If you’re looking to ride a ride at a specific time and aren’t seeing slots at that time, you’ll have better luck grabbing a later time and modifying the selection to an earlier time.
If you’re looking to ride a ride and aren’t seeing any slots on that ride, you’ll have better luck if you grab any FastPass+ at the same park and try to modify it to your desired ride.
That is, you’re better off tapping and grabbing to get close to what you want and then modifying to get your actual selection than just repeating a search for a tough-to-get slot.
(Sidenote: Although I’ve been using this term for years, and although “modify” is the word used by Disney themselves, I did want to give hat tips to Kenny the Pirate and Parkeology, who I believe may have been using this phraseology even before me.)
Let’s assume Adam and Beth both want a Splash Mountain FastPass for 4PM. They both have no current reservations for the rest of the day. Adam is on his phone constantly refreshing and conducting searches for Splash Mountain, making no reservations until he finds one he likes.
Beth grabs a 3:30PM FastPass for Buzz Lightyear and then continually tries to modify that to a Splash Mountain Fastpass. We think Beth has the better odds here. And Charlie, who grabs a 9PM Fastpass for Splash Mountain will have even better luck finding the 4PM. This might seem like complete nonsense, but there is a decent amount of anecdotal evidence to support it.
Example of Tap Grab Modify with Five Modifications
Here's an example of how “tap, grab, and modify” worked for us recently. While in the Fastpass+ line for Splash Mountain (having just "tapped" on) at about 1:30PM, we were searching for Jungle Cruise and finding nothing until after 6PM. I searched “afternoon,” “1:30PM,” “2:00PM,” and so on. No luck. Finally, I just grabbed a 6:30PM and started modifying.
How did it go? By the time we were on the ride, I’d modified the Fastpass+ for three people five times, moving it from 6:30PM to 5:40PM, then to 3:55PM, then to 3:40PM, then to 3:05PM, then to 1:55PM.
An Obvious Explanation of Why This Actually Works
There is a straightforward explanation of why at least helps somewhat. Particularly at Magic Kingdom, it can take a while to scroll down to the ride you’re searching for (we’re looking at you, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and Peter Pan’s Flight) to see if its available.
If you already have the ride booked for a different time, though, and you’re trying to modify, it will be at the top of your search results. Basically, you go from being able to perform a search every 5-10 seconds to performing one every 2-3 seconds.
Is this the entire explanation for why it works? Maybe. But either way, this is definitely an example of how it helps to have the ride already booked for a different time, and that’s enough for us to fully endorse this approach.
Part 8. Getting Fastpass Reservations for Your Entire Group
One of our toughest Disney challenges was surviving a trip with eleven family members. Just kidding! But the real challenge was getting all the Fastpass reservations scheduled, especially when it came time to tap and grab.
Break the group up when you need to
Breaking the group up into two when Fastpass scheduling is fine if you getting overlapping slots. You might not be able to find availability from 11:30 to 12:30 for a group of eleven, but if you can get six at 11:05 to 12:05 and five at 11:45 to 12:45, you have a 20-minute window during which you can all ride together.
This is annoying when planning your three advance reservations, but you should have better luck finding space for large groups on those, anyways. This means having two team captains who are making the reservations. It’s not enough to have one person, because availability just comes and goes too quickly.
Pay attention to who is actually riding
If grandma and grandpa aren't going to ride Rock 'n' Roller Coaster, don't include them when searching for availability! If the little ones (or in our case, our 30-year-old brother) are afraid of Tower of Terror, then tell them to enjoy a turkey leg when you find availability for everyone who actually wants to ride!
Get Out and Ride, Ride, Ride!
Fastpass+ is a system that is totally worth mastering. While this strategy is the best for us, it might not be the best for your circumstances. But you know what? The first thing you try won't be the best either. We're talking about hours of time waiting in line that you could avoid if you find the strategy that works best for you and your family. If you don't take this strategy in all its details, take the main ideas with you and put together the strategy that works for you!
Other Disney World FastPass FAQ
Here we’re going to quickly answer from frequently asked questions about FastPass+. Some of these are answered above, others are just loose ends to tie up.
When does Disney release more fast passes?
There’s no official response on when or even if Disney opens up more Fastpass space. Besides “whenever they feel like it,” the best guess is that they open up some space 30 days in advance for people who missed out on the 60-day window, but this is completely unconfirmed.
If you missed out on a FastPass, your best option is just to keep searching, particularly the first week you’re able to book FastPass, the week of your trip and the day of your visit because those times are when people’s plans are most likely to chance.
Can you make Fastpass+ reservations at multiple parks?
No. For a single day, your three advance reservations must be at the same park.
When can you get more Fastpasses at Disney World?
As discussed above, you have get more FastPasses (beyond your initial three advance bookings) once you’ve used your three advance bookings for the day.
How to get extra (more than three) FastPasses at Disney World?
Except for club level guests, you cannot get more than three FastPasses in advance at Disney World. You can get your fourth (and fifth, and so on) once you arrive at the park and use your first three.
Do You have to use all Three FastPasses before getting more?
The quick answer here is yes—you have to use your first three Fastpasses before getting more. The longer answer is more complicated and answered in a separate post on skipping or not booking FastPass reservations.
Can you get unlimited FastPasses at Disney World?
Yes. The strategy outlined in this post allows you to fit as many FastPasses as you can into a day, subject to some restrictions. Even though you can theoretically grab unlimited FastPasses, you’re still subject to whatever rides are available that day, for example.
How much are extra FastPasses at Disney World? Can you buy extra FastPasses?
Only Club Level guests can buy extra FastPasses at Disney World. Everyone else is on the same free system that allows you to book three rides in advance and then as many as you’re lucky enough to snag same-day.
Can you check Fastpass availability without cancelling?
Yes. Just proceed to add a FastPass as normal through the app. You’ll get a warning telling you that if you book a new FastPass, existing FastPasses will be cancelled, but you can see availability without booking a new one. If you book a new one at a different park, you’ll see all three reservations at the old park in the “Replacing These Experiences” warning before confirming your new booking.
Is there a Fastpass grace period?
There is an unofficial Fastpass grace period of 5 minutes prior to a reservation and 15 minutes after a reservation during which you can use your FastPass. These are always subject to Cast Member discretion and subject to change by Disney.
How early can you check in for a FastPass?
As mentioned above, the unofficial grace period allows you to check in five minutes before your FastPass window starts.
What happens if you miss your FastPass time?
Again, there’s a grace period of about 15 minutes after your window when the system will typically still just let you pass right through, but grace periods are always subject to change and to Cast Member discretion. If you miss by a lot of time, it will be up to the Cast Member, but generally you should not miss your FastPass without a good reason, because it’s not up to the Cast Member and the other people in line to accommodate you.
All Your Other Disney World Planning Questions Answered
Don't be overwhelmed by Disney World planning! Take a second to check out our most important content and you'll not only be an expert, but you'll save big $$$ along the way.
Just starting out? Check out our Walt Disney World planning guide! If you're still picking dates, we've got everything you need to know about Disney World crowd calendars. For picking your hotel, check out our Walt Disney World hotels guide.
When it comes time to book we’ll help you find discount Disney World tickets. Decide whether you need a dining plan in our Complete Guide to Disney World Dining Plans! And at 180 days out it's time to book those Disney World Advance Dining Reservations!
Don't forget to master your Disney World FastPass+ strategy a few months in advance. We'll keep you out of long lines so you can maximize the magical time in the parks! We've got park-specific guides as well: Magic Kingdom FastPass, Epcot FastPass, Animal Kingdom FastPass, and Hollywood Studios FastPass.
Know what to ride with our guides to: Magic Kingdom rides, Hollywood Studios rides, Epcot rides, and Animal Kingdom rides! Plus learn about the water parks with our guide to Blizzard Beach and our guide to Typhoon Lagoon! And for some some fun prep, check out our Ranking of Every Ride at Walt Disney World.
Finally, before you head out, be sure to check out our to-the-point packing list, 10 essentials you forget to pack for every Disney trip. And if you're interested in saving, there's no better list than our 53 Ways to Save on your Disney trip from start to finish.