Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
How FastPass+ Affects Your Touring Plans
We think most
Unofficial Guide
readers will probably spend a few less minutes per
day walking around the parks, because they no longer need to walk to an attraction's
FastPass machines. The time saved from walking is slightly more than the overall in-
creases in standby waits at secondary attractions, so FastPass+—when it works—is
roughly a break-even proposition for folks using our touring plans.
We say “when it works” because we've heard from plenty of readers whose waits
in return lines are significantly longer than expected. The issue seems to be the speed
at which the attractions' RFID readers can confirm a FastPass+ reservation stored on
a MagicBand. Thankfully, Disney is putting a lot of effort into streamlining the valid-
ation process, which we expect to be smoothed out by the beginning of 2015.
Customized Touring Plans and FastPass+
The touring plans in this guide are our most efficient, provided you're willing to
arrive at the park 35-60 minutes before opening. Each plan now lists the suggested
FastPass+ start times for the attractions that will save you the most time in line.
Likewise, both our computer-optimized custom plans and our Lines app support
FastPass+. With these, you choose the attractions you want to experience, including
character greetings, parades, fireworks, meals, and midday breaks, and we'll give
you a step-by-step itinerary for your specific dates of travel showing you how to see
everything with minimal waits in line. The touring plans can incorporate your exist-
ing FastPass+ reservations and suggest where to use any remaining opportunities.
YoucanupdateFastPass+reservationswhileyou'reinthepark,too.Ifyoudecide
to change a reservation from Splash Mountain to Big Thunder Mountain, you can tell
Lines to reoptimize your plan based on your new FastPass+ times. This allows you to
handle any situation while still minimizing your waits for the rest of the day.
That said, most of the Studios' and Animal Kingdom's shows never require
FastPass+. The touring plans already do a good job of getting you to the show at least
15 minutes in advance (or earlier for
Fantasmic!
), in which case you'll almost always
be able to get in to see that performance. In the worst-case scenario, you'll have to
wait only until the next show. Also, because you can get a FastPass+ reservation for
either
Fantasmic!
or Toy Story Midway Mania! at the Studios, you'll almost always
end up with a shorter wait in line if you use the Toy Story FastPass+.
