FastPass+ Questions?

[bc1206]

Hi - My family and I will be at WDW the first week of May. It will be me, my H and DD (age 5) and also my in-laws, brother-in-law and his 2 boys (ages 10 and 8). I want to take advantage of the Disney FastPass and have no idea where to start. I know that we will be in MK on Sunday for sure. What rides do you suggest we use the FPs for? I looked online already and see the FP for the parades in MK are already gone.

Also, any general suggestions would be appreciated. I haven't been to Disney in years. I'm starting to get nervous/anxious thinking about it all.  Thanks!

[curbsideprophet]

With that big of a group you might need to split up. Not sure if Anna and Elsa will still be at MK then (I assume yes) but I would recommend a FP for that if your DD is interested.

I would potentially try for seven dwarfs mine train, space mountain, splash mountain if anyone is into coasters. Well, splash is a log flume ride but has a big drop.

[nsl]

I wouldn't bother with parade Fast Passes as you can get good spots on the route without needing to wait forever, and by afternoon your group might welcome the chance to sit down for 30 minutes or so and just enjoy an ice cream while waiting for the parade to start. Mine Train should be your top priority as its waits are insane, and I would probably also snag some for Peter Pan given your daughter's age. Your relatives may want to make their own FP reservations if they want to ride other things.

FWIW, we took a trip in Feb with my two boys (8 and 5) and I found a ton of great tips and info at WDW Prep School and the Disney Tourist Blog. Easy WDW has great crowd calendars and wait time spreadsheets that will give you an idea of which rides are most popular at which times of day.

For Magic Kingdom, we were traveling during a low (ish) attendance week so your mileage may vary, but we had a lot of luck getting on rides like Space Mountain and Buzz Lightyear without needing Fast Passes (or waiting in line) by making a beeline for Tomorrowland right at rope drop. I concentrated my Fast Passes in Fantasyland during the late morning, which allowed us to ride Space Mountain twice, Buzz twice, and a few other less popular rides right after rope drop before the crowds started building. We basically walked on to everything in Tomorrowland, whereas I know from our second day in the MK that there were 15-20 minute waits in Fantasyland from the beginning because A: everyone was headed there, and B: early dining at Be Our Guest left us at a disadvantage.

Do look at crowd calendars to make sure that the days you're planning to spend in each park are days when the crowds won't be at their worst.

[bc1206]

Thanks! I'll check out both of the websites you mentioned.

[littlemermaid]

Also try to plan the fastpasses so you aren't jumping from one side of a park to the other. I looked at a map of the park and planned the fastpasses so we would complete the rides in an organized flow.