Why FastPass+ Shouldn’t Run Your Disney Vacation: A Guide to the Magic Kingdom
Many people that visit Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL do so as a once in a life time trip. They spent years planning it, researching park hours, peak seasons, and must-see attractions. They learn about the best resorts and restaurants, the best shows and Meet-and-Greets. Then again, many people spend years saving up and then just go with almost no research. They do not understand that park hours change daily, may be extremely crowded in July or at Christmas and Easter, and may have an attraction down for refurbishment. Regardless of amount of research done beforehand, it seems that almost all Guests know or learn quickly about the FastPass+ program at the parks. This is why you don’t necessarily need them!
Note: This is a guest post written by Eli Askim
First, some history: FastPass+ (FP+) was originally just FastPass, and was designed to help guests hit their favorite attractions with an expedited wait time. You used to go to an in-park kiosk and place your Theme Park Tickets into the kiosk and out would come a slip of paper with the name of the attraction it is for and an hour window to return to that same attraction for a shorter wait. Sure, it was helpful if you were able to get it for an attraction for the single ride you wanted to do in a single park and then move on, or beneficial to get that time, go eat and return to it.
Today, FP+ is virtually the same in a virtual world. You can book your FP+ in advanced on the website or App for three attractions in a single park and then, after using them, get additional ones at the in-park kiosks one at a time. It works the same as paper FP, you get an hour window to go through an expedited line. This is great for experienced guests because they know how to plan the day in a specific order to maximize their time and get to attractions at these set times.
However, guests who don’t visit as often seem to live and die by their FP+ times, getting as many as possible. By doing this they are wasting their own time and stressing themselves out on what is supposed to be a Magical trip. So, hopefully, I can shed some light on this matter with an experiment a friend of mine and I did.
We both are avid Disney Park visitors, and appreciate the FP+ system for what it is. However, we noticed that people get very upset about the system, with user error being the cause. Guests seem to set up their FP+ selections one of two ways; one, they get the three attractions they want most in that park, and do not look at times; or two, they set up three attractions as early as possible and keep adding one throughout the day. Either way, the same mistake is being made, and that is not using the layout of the Parks to your advantage. The flaw is instead of going through the Parks in an order, appreciating the way the Park tells a story, how the areas of the parks transition into each other, and the details put into the buildings, roads, carts, Cast, and trash cans; you are now running back and forth across the Park to make your times. You are wasting time walking, which can be spent waiting in line for attractions you want to see.
That leads me to our experiment. We decided to go to The Magic Kingdom and do as much of the Park as possible without a single FP+. We chose this Park because it is the main one, has the most attractions, has longest Park Hours (usually), and is my favorite. It also models its layout after Disneyland Park in CA, and is the layout to demonstrate what I believe is the best strategy to enjoy any of the Parks. That strategy is to start on one side of the Park, and go around in order, doing what you want to do.
[bctt tweet=”We decided to go to The Magic Kingdom and do as much of the Park as possible without a single FastPass+”]
The Experiment
We went on a Tuesday, purposefully choosing a week day. The specific day is February 10, 2016, a day not overly crowded but not extremely empty. As I go through our day, I will give some tips and reasoning behind our choices and what I would expect a Regular Day Guest to do.
First, we checked Park Hours: 9:00 AM-10:00 PM with PM Extra Magic Hours (extra hours for resort guests only; we were not eligible for this) and any refurbishments or special hours. Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin was closed.
I woke up around 7:00 AM to get ready and leave. The Magic Kingdom parking lot (also known as The Transportation & Ticket Center or TTC) is about 1.5 Miles from the actual Park, so extra travel time is needed. We parked at 7:57 AM in the Woody lot and made our way to the area to board the Monorail or Ferry to get to the actual Park. Boarded the Ferry at 8:12 AM and made it through security and into the Park by 8:29 AM. We stayed to watch the Welcome Show (which was actually canceled, but they had a small one) at 8:40 AM and made our way through the Train Station. Coming towards the end of Main Street, you can go right into Tomorrowland or left into Adventureland; we decided left and headed towards our first attraction. In our planning we decided to not do any parades, stage shows, Fireworks, or Meet-and-Greets, but strictly attractions.
I should note that we had to stick strictly to the plan: go to every attraction, in order, and just wait in the line, regardless of the posted wait time. We kept track of all wait times posted and what we actually waited. A spread sheet is at the bottom of this article with all of that information. We also spent time Pin Trading, looking for Hidden Mickeys, and occasionally looking around shops and the area. Getting to the park at open was crucial because our first few attractions had zero minute posts.
Adventureland
So, we entered Adventureland at 8:50 AM and headed to The Swiss Family Treehouse. This is a walk through, and can be enjoyed at leisure, so it can take as long as you care to enjoy it. Through Adventureland, we did each of the following as well: Jungle Cruise, The Magic Carpets of Aladdin, Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room, and Pirates of the Caribbean. That is all Adventureland Attractions (5 in total) and we also purchased a book at the Pirates gift shop. We left Adventureland and entered Frontierland at 10:05 AM.
TOTAL TIME IN LAND: 1HR 15MIN AVG ATT TIME: 15MIN
Tip: What I recommend for Adventureland is Jungle Cruise and Pirates of the Caribbean as must-sees as well as getting a Dole-Whip, which is extremely popular, though I personally do not like Pineapple. I expect most Guests to skip Swiss Family Treehouse and The Tiki Room as well as Aladdin if you do not have young ones. You are also able to meet Aladdin and Jasmine here.
Frontierland
Entering Frontierland at 10:05 AM, we started at Splash Mountain, continued to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and ended with Country Bear Jamboree. There is a fourth attraction: Tom Sawyer Island. We decided to skip this attraction because it is one that is larger and done at your own pace, making it hard to quantify the time spent on it. We also went into the Frontier Trading Post, which is Magic Kingdom’s big Pin Trading shop. We did ¾ of the attractions in Frontierland and left and entered Liberty Square at 11:30 AM.
TOTAL TIME IN LAND: 1HR 25MIN AVG ATT TIME: 28.3MIN
Tip: What I recommend for Frontierland is Splash and Thunder Mountains as must-sees. Tom Sawyer Island (TSI) is fun to explore, and a good place to allow kids to let loose and use up energy. I expect most Guests to skip TSI and Country Bear Jamboree, as well as the Mountains if kids are under 40”, though WDW does offer Child Swap. You are also able to meet both Woody and Jessie as well as Chip and Dale in Frontierland.
[bctt tweet=”If you plan best times to eat at Disney World, stay clear of 11:30-1:30 because that is when the restaurants are most crowded.”]
Liberty Square
Entering Liberty Square at 11:30 AM, we decided to eat lunch. Both Hall of Presidents and the Liberty Square Riverboat have set times they go off, and we missed both at entering. So we ate at the Columbia Harbour House and decided to go back. If you were to try and plan best times to eat, I would stay clear of 11:30-1:30, because that is when the restaurants are most crowded, but it was ok for us because of timing with the Hall of Presidents and Liberty Square Riverboat. Lunch, from entering the building to leaving, took about 25 MIN and it was delicious. I really enjoy their New England clam chowder. We left the Columbia Harbour House and went over to The Hall of Presidents, whose next show was to be performed at 12:30PM. With some down time, we looked for Hidden Mickey’s within Liberty Square (we have the book for this), and enjoyed the show. We then did the Liberty Square Riverboat and finished at the Haunted Mansion. We did all Liberty Square Attractions (3 in total) and ate lunch. We left Liberty Square and entered Fantasyland at 2:05 PM. Counting lunch as an attraction:
TOTAL TIME IN LAND: 2HR 35MIN AVG ATT TIME: 38.75MIN
Tip: What I recommend for Liberty Square is Haunted Mansion as a must-see. I also enjoy Hall of Presidents. I expect most guests to skip Hall of Presidents and Liberty Square Riverboat. I also recommend just walking around Liberty Square and going into the shops; the buildings are filled with amazing details. You can do a Meet-and-Greet with Tiana.
Fantasyland
Entering Fantasyland at 2:05 PM, the first attraction is “it’s a small world”. We happened to get off and in line for Peter Pan’s Flight at approx. 2:50 PM, while many guests are watching The Festival of Fantasy Parade (3 O’clock Parade). This made it a good time to get in the queue for one of the longest wait times at The Magic Kingdom. This was not planned, just by chance. We continued on doing all of Fantasyland (and “New” Fantasyland); which includes Mickey’s PhilharMagic, Prince Charming Regal Carrousel, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Under the Sea- Journey of The Little Mermaid, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, The Barnstormer, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, and the Mad Tea Party. We did all 10 attractions, leaving Fantasyland and entering Tomorrowland at 7:05 PM.
TOTAL TIME IN LAND: 5HRS 0MIN AVG ATT TIME: 30MIN
Tip: What I recommend for Fantasyland is Mickey’s PhilharMagic, Peter Pan, Seven Dwarfs, and Under the Sea. This is harder because it has different meaning to different people and first timers should probably do Small World or Dumbo or Teacups. I also recommend to watch The Festival of Fantasy Parade. This is the area with most attractions and most classics. It also has the most Meet-and-Greets; Peter Pan (and Wendy), Merida, Gaston, Ariel, Minnie, Goofy, Daisy, Donald, Winnie the Pooh and Tigger (may change Pooh’s friend), Cinderella, Rapunzel, Anna and Elsa (at time of our trip), Step Sisters (occasionally) and Aurora (if awake). You are also able to see Belle at Enchanted Tales with Belle. We did not consider this an Attraction, but a show/Meet-and-Greet that is continuous.
Tomorrowland
Entering Tomorrowland at 7:05 PM we were in our final land and had just under 3 HRS until park close. We decided to get dinner at Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe. This was a relatively ok timing for dinner; however, Cosmic Ray’s is busy most of the day. From entering the building to leaving took 32 MIN. We then went to Tomorrowland Speedway. We continued with Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor, Astro Orbiter, Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover, and Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress. The Astro Orbiter had technical difficulties, causing our wait time to increase a little bit, but this was during the Fireworks Show Wishes, which caused wait times to decrease anyhow. Space Mountain was also down for technical difficulties, and Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin was closed for Refurbishment. We chose not to do Stitch’s Great Escape!, as we do not really enjoy that attraction at all. With that, we did 5 out of 8 Attractions and left Tomorrowland at 9:45 PM. This did give us enough time to do Stitch if we decided. Counting dinner as an attraction.
TOTAL TIME IN LAND: 2HRS 40MIN AVG ATT TIME: 26.7MIN
Tip: What I recommend for Tomorrowland is Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, and The PeopleMover. I also highly recommend watching Wishes from Main Street USA. I expect most guests to skip Speedway and Astro Orbiter. You can also meet Buzz Lightyear here.
[bctt tweet=” I highly recommend watching Wishes from Main Street USA.”]
Meet-and-Greets on Main Street, U.S.A are Mickey and Tinker Bell. As we were walking down Main Street, U.S.A. to leave, we walked through the shops and made some purchases. Another great way to save time, is to shop Main Street at the end of the night, because those shops stay open about an hour after close, or in this day’s case, all guests can shop during Extra Magic Hours. We walked out of MK and boarded the Monorail at 10:11 PM.
TOTAL TIME IN PARK: 13HR 42MIN TOTAL NUMBER OF ATTRACTIONS: 26 OUT OF 30
Counting Lunch and Dinner: 28 AVG ATT TIME: 29.4MIN
All without FastPass+
You do not need FP+ to enjoy the Parks, just a plan and open mind and willingness to wait in queues. Look for Hidden Mickey, play games, talk with the other guests, and just enjoy the day. There is no need to stress!! My biggest piece of advice for first timers and anyone really, is do NOT Park Hop unless necessary for dining plans. All 4 Parks can last a day if you enjoy it all. Do Meet-and-Greets during down times, enjoy desserts and snacks, enjoy the atmosphere and SLOW DOWN. Don’t cross the park over and over again; just go in order and you will have a blast. Do what you want and skip what you don’t. Imagine if we only hit our favorite attractions, or the classics, or the newest!! We would have had all the time in the world to meet our favorite characters, watch the parades, and see the fireworks. Also know, Magic Kingdom is the hardest to complete in one day, so Epcot, Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom can be done the same way.
[bctt tweet=”My biggest piece of Disney World advice is do NOT Park Hop unless necessary for dining plans.”]
I also understand we did this in a slower time of year; however, Disney adjusts park hours for peak seasons, and we plan on trying this again during a busier time. Just be aware, Spring Break, Summer Break and, most of all, Christmas and New Years are very busy times of year, and being able to do less is something to keep in mind. I also know that two people in their mid-twenties may be able to last 15-16 hour days more easily than families with kids or elder guests. The experiment was fun but not an exact science, so in the words of legal writing: Experiences are subject to availability, weather permitting, and may change without notice. Hope these tips help, and you have as much fun as we did!!
