One-hour FASTPASS return time window now enforced at Walt Disney World, leading to new ride reservation system - Inside the Magic

Comments for One-hour FASTPASS return time window now enforced at Walt Disney World, leading to new ride reservation system

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72 Comments

  1. Dsny1Grl

    I don’t mind the enforcement of the return window. I’d imagine they will be flexible if the ride you are returning to breaks down and you can’t ride during your original time. The whole purpose was to have control over crowds. If you can return any time after your window that defeats the purpose. Also, I don’t know about there if you, but there have been many times where I’ve seen huge amounts of people show up at one time for return to fast pass and heard cast member say that they were tour groups who all returned together regardless of the fact that their return windows had expired. That’s abuse of the system. As for the reservation system. I can;t say I like it much, but if you really wish to plan your days that much, go for it. Then when you don’t show up because something else came up, it just leaves the rest of us a better opportunity to ride using the sand by line!

  2. Mike

    We experienced the enforcement of this new policy earlier this week. Only our third trip to Disney, but we previously showed up after the window many times. This allowed for greater flexibility particularly because we have young children. So if we get to Epcot for a rope drop and pick up Soarin’ FP that ends at 2:50 pm…we have a scheduling problem since nap time ends at 2:30 at the resort and we can’t get back until after the window. They do not make accommodations for that. You just cannot have the magic.

    Same thing with food. When my reservation at Cinderella’s table is locked in six months in advance, and I get my FP which ends after I get out of the castle, I only get half the magic. I can’t get another FP and I can’ cancel the pricey castle visit. It’s just sorry kid, no Peter Pan.

    The worst thing about out experience this week was that we didn’t know about the change. The signs are not conspicuous and the note on the FP is nebulous. The cast member who refused us entry because our FP had expired asked no questions and would hear no explanations; fortunately our Disney experience didn’t hinge only on our son finally being tall enough to ride Space Mountain. This cast member had not been provided the tools to turn her grumpy troll refusal into magic; if they plan to stick with this, they need to refuse better and more professionally.

    As for some other comments, Folks who are saying the time should be static are apparently not scheduling much else which could interfere with FP distribution.

    1. Mark

      Mike, “Folks who are saying the time should be static” are people who have waited in a stand-by line for 2 to 4 hours at a popular ride while hundreds of fast-passers enter non-stop (Soarin’ and Splash Mountain in particular) clearly outside of their window. I’ve hoped for a few years now that Disney would begin enforcing the expiration. Those who explain (complain) they can’t fulfill both a Fast Pass and a Meal reservation should learn that double-booking is not an excuse to inconvenience everyone else in line.

      As for the 2:30 nap time and 2:50 fast-pas time. What? Did you decide to set the nap time AFTER you picked up the fast pass? Dude, just wait at the Fast-Pass line an extra 5 minutes, and you’ll get that coveted 2:30 to 3:30 pm window you need. Smile and let others get in front of you–they’ll not mind.

      Everyone who complains “It’s not fair to ME or my kids!” should begin teaching their children by a mature example that they need to learn to treat OTHERS as fairly as they want to be treated themselves.

      1. Mike

        Mark, one difference is that the FP time is dictated by the machine, while the food reservation was made months before and is paid in advance. Character dining can take some time, especially at the castle. So it is quite unlike double booking because one cannot control the FP window—particularly on a ride like Soarin. You flow with the opening throng to get that FP, and have little choice of times.

        Likewise with the nap. It is at the same time every day, but with travel on either side can be a three hour excursion. I cannot pick my FP time unless I lie in wait at the machine. And if I would do that, it would defeat the purpose of FP: convenience.

        My kids also like meeting characters. If we are 10 minutes from the end of FP window and on our way to the ride, we cannot stop and meet Belle and Beast and honor the FP end time. If those characters are done for the day, too bad.

        I haven’t proclaimed ‘unfair’ but was ‘surprised’. I am unhappy about the change, but we used the FP system so as to not have to wait in 4 hour long lines. I wish you had done the same because you would agree with me now and would have had more time to enjoy Disney then. I also wanted to make it clear the cast member who enforced the new rule on us was rude and not accommodating, and that is not the Disney I know. So they need to retrain on that…

        1. Jerry

          I have the same persoective as Mike above. The FP is a great tool if you use it wisely, but the new enforcement will limit the flxibility that was such a great feature of the old system. When you receive your FP, the redeem time is unpredictable and may be hours later. In the meantime you end up on the far side of the park. It would make no sense to stop what you are doing in Tomorrowland just because you have to rush over to Frontierland to use a FP that is about to expire, especially if the lines in Tomorrowland are not bad at the moment and you are not yet done in that area of the park. It has always made complete sense to me that they did not enforce the back end of the slot limit on the FP for that very reason. The reality is that this will impact some of the most loyal Disney customers more than anyone else, and for most in this group it will be a negative impact. My guess is that the X-Pass will be something you need to pay for. To me the idea of pre-scheduling your rides, parades, meals (naps?) etc. and then having to comply with this predetermined schedule is so far outsdie of what I want in a relaxing vacation that I cannot see myself using that type of system. Why don’t we just order a package of rides and shows off an value menu like at McDonald’s?? I guess I will just have the #3 combo with the fireworks and a paddleboat exit. I can tell you that if faced with having to run back and forth even more and wait in more lines, other parks will begin to look more attractive. Disney should avoid fixing things that are not broken.

  3. Tj

    We are not local but have been averaging a couple of trips per year to WDW. FP had helped a lot in the past.

    Ok, here is our first experience with the new Fastpass system; We got our Fastpass for Tower of Terror, went to dinner in the park and returned two minutes, Yes TWO minutes after the time on the ticket. We were told, “Sorry, you missed your time, you need to go standby.”. They would not budge! So we spend tons of money for overpriced food and get rewarded by missing our FP opportunity.

    Wondering if they will enforce this for the tour operators who walk up and put hundreds of tickets through for FP’s??

    My other pet peeve is handicapped bypass of lines. It is so abused. We have seen one person push the wheelchair on the way into the ride and the person sitting on the way in driving on the way out. It seems like renting a scooter or wheelchair is the new fast pass bypass. We have traveled with handicapped relatives in the past and heard people in line actually bragging about it. I understand and appreciate the accommodations but it is very abused. We went to Busch Gardens Williamsburg last year and they had a much better system for handicapped access. You had to register, got a card and could bypass each line only once and the party size was limited to the person plus four others.

    1. Michele

      The abuse of the handicap issue bugs our family too and then I feel guilty for being bugged by it. But you’re not alone.

    2. Jennifer

      Accessible accommodations are often abused, but putting excessive restrictions on the system hurts those who truly benefit and wouldn’t enjoy Disney otherwise. Restricting each ride to a one-time accommodation doesn’t make sense because often most of the rides in the park aren’t accessible. We ride Peter Pan two or three times because we can’t do Splash Mountain, Space Mountain, POTC, or the train roller coaster. We often wait longer than the regular line for the accessible vehicle to come along and it’s no picnic either transferring a disabled adult to and from ride vehicles. Disney attracts a lot of disabled folk because it is so accommodating, but there isn’t one blanket set of rules that will meet everyone’s needs while preventing abuse. (If you overhear cheaters, turn them in!)

    3. Beth

      One of my family members gets the handicapped pass every time we go to Disney because he has a handicap that you CAN’T SEE. Waiting 2 hours in line for a ride is not an option. The last time I went to Disney, a person in line had the nerve to question us about the validity of the handicapped pass for our group. I politely told her that some people have handicaps you can’t see, but would still like to spend a quality vacation with their families. She shut-up. Please keep this in mind when you see people “abusing” the system.

  4. Mike

    The problem is not FastPass or waiting for a ride. If there were more places to EAT in the parks, people would not mind the waits,etc. The Dining Plan was the worst idea Disney every implemented. Just add places to grab food! I also think planning ride times weeks or months in advance is a huge mistake. I hope they take into account a % of people who will not pre-plan or FastPass–otherwise the rides/attractions will have the same problem the dining sites have. no reservations–no rides, no meals (unless you are out of the parks)–why spend $185 a day to walk around and shop??…

  5. Jim

    Wow! What passion and over what? A ride in an amusement park. What have we degenerated to that this is such a all-consuming problem for so many.

  6. Ottis

    Just returned from DW at the end of March where we were caught by surprise by the FP enforcement. We were there in Nov and it wasn’t enforced. While I understand the reason for the change, this increased scheduling during vacation is overwhelming. I’m glad we are finished with Disney trips (as the kids are older now). I don’t want to deal with this anymore. Much prefer to wander around at a leisurely pace and have at least some flexibility.

  7. SJ

    The lack of end time for the fastpasses, along with some careful planning thanks to some Disney trip planning software meant that my family managed to go on every ride at Disneyland and California Adventures in the 2 days we had in LA during our extended stopover on the way to England from New Zealand. I believe it would have been incredibly disappointing and nowhere near as enjoyable had we not been able to gather fastpasses as we went.

  8. Michele

    Wow! I don’t really know what to say. I agree that FP is a privilege and that the times should be adhered to. For whatever reason, if you can’t make it to that ride during your alotted HOUR, then get in line w/ the masses.

    Now I will agree that we’ve seen blatant abuse of what is practically “line jumping” by families of handicapped people. At the Dumbo ride one time, we witnessed this woman push this elderly woman thru the handicap access and get the chair stuck numerous times, all while holding up any further loading. Once she finally got through in the chair, along with about ten members of her family, she “suddenly” decided she didn’t want to ride. And of course they didn’t make the family members get off. She never had any intention OF riding, but they had intentions of abusing her disability. Shameless!

    And I’m sorry people, but just because it’s vacation to the happiest place on earth DOES NOT mean you shouldn’t have a plan. We’ve been twice and I’ve always made a plan/itinerary. We’ve used Fast Passes on numerous rides and jockeyed waiting in lines, meeting characters, and using the FANTASTIC Dining Plan that Disney offers.

  9. kaaylity

    My family of five had the opportunity to test the new system the second week in May of this year. I really liked it and the way in which the times were scheduled (Disney controls this a bit to keep people from scheduling unrealistically) allowed plenty of time to return within the hour window. We only had one day in MK and going in I was worried that we would not be able to do many of the things we wanted. After receiving four pre-scheduled fast passes for rides of our choice (all on one card for each member of your party which you you swipe at the ride), we were much less rushed, didn’t have to backtrack to get fastpasses and return later, weren’t limited to one fastpass at a time, and had peace of mind that we would not waste time waiting in line for some of our favorites. We did arrive an hour late to one ride due to a delay at lunch (systems were down at the Crystal Palace and we didn’t get in for our 11:35 lunch reservation until 12:30). We were allowed to ride late. Of course, not everyone was using the new system so that may change things somewhat, but it seems to me an idea worth pursuing.

  10. Tiffany

    It think once we all get used to it, having to adhere to the times will improve wait times. Right now Disney issues the passes based on a certain number of people coming in a set 1 hour window. If half those people randomly come at a different time window it messes up the fastpass wait line as well as the standby line. I think a great way to implement the new advanced reservation idea would be rather than having people walk up and be forced to take the 1 hour window offered you could select your one hour window. For example, instead of getting there and getting 4pm-5pm when you have dinner reservations at 4, you could chose a 6:30-7:30 window instead. Or if you get there early and don’t necessarily need or want your fastpass for an early time you could elect to make your fastpass later in the afternoon, leaving the earlier slots for people who really want them. for this to work they would HAVE to enforce the 1-hour window. The question is, do we have to make those reservations 6 months in advance or should they be limited to making them, say, the day you plan to use them.

  11. Jennifer

    I was there in March right after this was implemented and it caused TOTAL CHAOS! The wait in the standby line was ridiculous and constantly held up. One of the many reason we will NOT be renewing our passes next year.

    1. Greg White

      “One of the many reason we will NOT be renewing our passes next year.”

      I don’t think we’ll go back next year either. So the lines will be shorter. LOL!

  12. juan

    Used to go twice a year.. with my hard earned money and two kids… and piled fastpases and baby swaped… now they are changing rules to go give less… it is crowded they have a lot of land why dont they build a clone park.. or more parks… more lands… more rides?????… its all about give less and get more…. we are crowded make bigger lines…. keep then eating shoping… ridind doesnt make more money walking eating shoping does… for some the system had a scape to the trap.. now they cut it. My money was hard to earn to wait in a line.. you alk saints are right i aint going to pay to wait in a line… i take my kids in low season to seaworld aquatica and bush…. you are very right YOU PAY TO MAKE A LINE.. no stockpiling no swaps going elswhere.

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