Tag Archives: FastPass+

Walt Disney World – Perfect Day at Magic Kingdom

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RM-Magic-Kingdom-SelfieSo many touring styles!  Park-hopping, rope-dropping, FastPass-choosing, where to start, where to eat, when to leave, where to sit for optimum parade-viewing.  Get the idea?  Everyone has an opinion on how to best enjoy Disney World’s Magic Kingdom…including me!  (You’re shocked, I know.).  I’m not here to give you advice (unusual, right?) and you should know (if you don’t already) that I’m currently in a life-stage that does not involve vacationing with children.  So, keep in mind that my perfect touring plan for Magic Kingdom is heavy on the classics and light on the kiddie attractions.

To ensure I get the most out of my Magic Kingdom day, I’m planning where and when I’m going to eat dinner in advance and I’m booking an ADR (Advance Dining Reservation) 180 days before my vacation.  Being me (I’m picky about where I eat dinner), I’m not actually eating a table service meal in Magic Kingdom, but will be leaving at the appropriate time for someplace like Raglan Road in Downtown Disney/Disney Springs or one of the fabulous restaurants in the monorail resorts.  ‘Ohana or Kona Café at the Polynesian Village Resort would be good choices since unlike California Grill at the Contemporary or Citricos at the Grand Floridian, I’d feel fine arriving in my park-touring attire.RM-Kona-Menu

I’m also selecting my FastPasses as early as I’m allowed (usually 60 days out).  I’ll choose FastPasses starting very late in the morning and during the afternoon (before or after the Festival of Fantasy Parade at 3:00) OR later in the evening (depending on my dinner plans).  RM-7DMT-Train2I’ll try to book Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (otherwise, standby wait times are typically high enough to ruin my plans), Space Mountain, and Big Thunder Mountain (because my goal is to ride it as many times as I can).  Alternate FastPasses (if my favorites are unavailable at decent times) would be Peter Pan (I know what I said about kiddie rides, but this one’s cool!  Don’t judge), Jungle Cruise (I really hate the queue, but love the ride), Splash Mountain (depending on the time of the year – I don’t like to be cold and wet), or maybe Haunted Mansion (I don’t mind the queue, but it is a pretty hot wait in the summer).

If all the planets align and my planning works out as described, my perfect Magic Kingdom Day would be…drum roll, please…Magic Kingdom Entrance in October

I’ll arrive 30 minutes before park opening (a.k.a. Rope-Drop) to watch the opening show  (which I love beyond description).  I’ll take pictures (mostly selfies) while waiting, then some of the show before heading into the park and straight toward Frontierland.  My objective is to ride Splash Mountain then Big Thunder Mountain first.Walt Disney World's Splash Mountain RM-Liberty-Belle-View-BTMRR If the lines aren’t long yet, I’ll ride one or both again.  While I’m in Frontierland, I’ll visit the Country Bears in Grizzly Hall (I like them, deal with it.) RM-Country-Bear-Musical-Numberand then I’ll check the wait time for Haunted Mansion and ride it next (if the wait is less than 30 minutes).  I’ve been known at this point to squeeze in the Hall of Presidents if it’s warm out because I can cool off AND listen to Morgan Freeman (win/win). RM-Hall-of-Presidents Again, I’m checking wait times.  If I have a pre-noon FastPass booked, I’ll wait until it’s almost expired and do that last before lunch.  For today, let’s say I do and it’s Jungle Cruise.  If I have no late-morning FastPass, I’ll try to squeeze in Pirates of the Caribbean (I don’t mind waiting since it’s indoors) OR Mickey’s PhilharMagic.

I know at this point I’ll be hungry and I’ll want to eat at Columbia Harbor House.  It’s my perfect day and, call me crazy, it’s going to include a tuna sandwich (no, it’s not just a tuna sandwich, it’s the best one in the World!).  RM-Columbia-Harbor-House-Tuna-SandwichPost-lunch, I’ll have time for at least one ride, probably with a FastPass, before I’m looking for dessert and a good seat for the Festival of Fantasy Parade.  If I’m really lucky, I’ll have time for two attractions, so let’s say I use my FastPass for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and then catch Mickey’s PhilharMagic (if I didn’t see it in the morning) OR I’ll hit Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin or maybe Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor.

Festival of Fantasy is the best parade I’ve ever seen and I want to watch it again and again.  I’ll grab my snack (a churro or ice cream cone, hopefully) to eat while waiting for the parade to start.  Festival of Fantasy Parade Ostrich Ariel in Festival of Fantasy RM-Festival-of-Fantasy-Maleficent-2015So exciting, Festival of Fantasy is packed with Disney magic, favorite characters, and awesome details.  I like sitting on the Tomorrowland side of the hub OR at the end of Main Street U.S.A. in front of the train station.  I only use that second choice if I’m leaving for dinner right after the parade.  So, let’s pretend I’ll be watching the parade near Tomorrowland.  Again, if I’ve worked this right, I’ve got a Space Mountain FastPass I can head for right after the parade passes by.  After Space Mountain, I’ll see Carousel of Progress and ride the PeopleMover.  PeopleMover wins if I don’t have time for both.RM-Space-Mountain-Sign

At this point, I’ve used all my FastPasses (most likely), but that’s great.  I’ll leave the park around 5:00 pm and I won’t make it back until nearly 9:00 pm.  If my Dinner ADR is at 6-ish and I don’t want to eat and run, that’s the sacrifice I’ll have to make for a nice meal.  When I get back to the park, I’ll grab the first decent spot I can snag that will let me see both Wishes and the Main Street Electrical Parade.  RM-HalloWishesI’ll have a full belly, so sitting on the curb in Main Street will be just fine with me.  Once the Electrical Parade passes by, I’ll be ready to call it a day.RM-Main-Street-Electrical-Parade-Dragon

No, I didn’t see and do everything I could have, but that’s okay with me.  I’ll have plenty of time on a future visit and someday, If I’m really fortunate, with a grandchild (or two or three).  In the past, my idea of the perfect Magic Kingdom day looked a lot different, as I’m sure it will in the future.  But for now?  This is what I like to do.  It’s the way I love Magic Kingdom most and, in my lifelong, ever-changing love for Disney World (the place that makes me happy at every age), keeps me coming back as often as I can.

How about you?  What are your must-dos?  What FastPasses will you choose and where will you eat on your perfect day in Magic Kingdom?  How has your touring style changed over the years?

 

My Disney Experience – A Fair and Balanced Review

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WDW Bus Stop at Old Key WestUp until our recent visit to Walt Disney World, I could only speculate about how I would use all the new bells and whistles of the My Disney Experience, MyMagic+, FastPass+, and MagicBand.  I researched, I planned, I chose my ADRs (Advance Dining Reservations) 180 days in advance, I purchased MemoryMaker, I customized my Magic Band, I selected my FastPasses 60 days before I would need them.  I played by the rules, so to speak, and fulfilled what I considered all the new requirements for a visit to my favorite vacation destination.

The Good News:  For the most part, the WHOLE of our experience was a positive one.  I’m going to be completely honest in the rest of this article – not to whine, but to tell you how our experience really was – for us.  We always have been and still are HUGE Disney fans.  Please don’t misunderstand comments that seem to be complaints – to be fair and balanced, I need to point out areas that can be improved or that didn’t work well for our family.WDW Mickey Pretzel

We did not experience any glitches with linking our party in the My Disney Experience / MyMagic+ system, selecting FastPasses, etc.  The convenience of using a MagicBand for resort room access was awesome!  Our MagicBands were comfortable, lightweight, and non-irritating.  After selecting a PIN for use with our MagicBands for charging purchases, I’m certain we did spend quite a bit more money than intended – the process was so darned easy to use!  Touch the key pad, enter the 4-digit pin, enjoy your purchase.  Snacks, souvenirs, meals, drinks – the bill really racks up fast!

The whole FastPass+ thing was fine, but not as great as I’d imagined.  I was, perhaps, a bit overly optimistic.  We left a lot of FastPass selections unused!  Crowd levels were such that, for the most part, we didn’t need FastPasses for any other than e-ticket (headliner) rides and attractions.  Being forced to select 3 then only needing one or two Waiting for Toy Story Midway Maniameant that if we never used all 3 on a particular day, we totally ruined our chances to select more.  Yes, we could have changed our selections to something else in the same park, but then we’d have been more or less “forced” to ride out those passes to be eligible to get more – and we wanted more, especially for a different park.  Plus, the addition of the tiered FP systems in Epcot and the Studios really proved to be challenging and not as good as the old FP system for our family (your experience may be completely different!).

Getting into the parks seemed to be a LOT slower than in the past.  Especially for us since Raymond’s MagicBand almost never worked properly.  Remember Key to The World cards?  How you fed them into the card reader then the fingerprint reader’s light would come on?  Well now you touch the Mickey on your MagicBand to a reader and wait for a light to swirl around and around (on the reader, while you’re touching Mickey to it) before the swirling light becomes a bright, solid light – THEN the light comes on for the fingerprint DSCN3367reader.  Then you wait for the whole shebang to turn green- it’s much slower than the card reader!  Especially when one member of your party has trouble almost every time.  In Raymond’s case, the Cast Member by the MagicBand reader would have him try multiple times before calling over a Senior Cast Member with a hand held reader – who would read Raymond’s MagicBand, call him by name, and give him the go-ahead to enter.  This would have been okay if it only happened once, but we visited two parks a day and the process got tedious in a hurry.  It also felt like we were…how do I put this…appearing suspect.  I wasn’t embarrassed, really, but – we just felt singled out, stared at, scrutinized, again and again.  When you’re trying to use Morning Extra Magic Hours and you get held up every time…I’ll stop complaining now, you get the idea.

Splash Mountain Ride PhotoSo – to wrap it all up for you…

MagicBands – very convenient when they work properly.  Highly wearable – no complaints about comfort (I kept looking at mine as if it would tell time).  If Disney really wants this to be convenient, they’ll find a way to attach your discounts (Tables in Wonderland, DVC, Annual Pass) so you don’t have to carry all the cards!

MemoryMaker / PhotoPass – easier to use than the old system – just hold your arm out post-picture-taking for a quick scan of a MagicBand and you’re on your way.  Ride photos, character dining pics, park photos all together for one price with MemoryMaker.  If you’re Family Pic at Disney's Boardwalkthinking about it, pre-purchase for the $50 discount.  You can read my justification for forking over the $149 here.

FastPass+ – There’s a definite learning curve here.  I think I can do better on our next visit.  I strongly dislike the must-choose-and-use-three at the same park before getting the option to hop and pick again.  I also wasn’t a huge fan of having to use a kiosk to pick the fourth, fifth, etc. (versus being able to use the app, which you can’t).

MyMagic+ – There’s still some work to be done.  I believe the app is not as user-friendly as it could (and should) be.  It’s so slow!  Even when we were in a park – SLOW!!!Meg and Joe at Disney's Hollywood Studios

We had a GREAT vacation!  None of the problems we experienced were more than momentary annoyances.  No matter what kind of change you’re faced with, there’s always a period of adjustment.  I feel certain that Disney will address the existing system glitches.  I believe they will listen to guest feedback and make some additional tweaks here and there.  I am very much looking forward to our next visit to Walt Disney World in October to celebrate our 25th Anniversary – our first trip without children since my first visit in 1990!

Tim over at Dad for Disney has a great article on new versus old FastPass systems.  Check it out here.

If you’ve been to Walt Disney World recently, how was your experience with the new system?

 

 

 

 

 

 

First Time Using MyMagic+ / FastPass+ Walt Disney World Plans

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Cinderella Castle in Walt Disney World at NightThe results of this week’s Disney Plan-a-Palooza?  Pretty successful!  I thought I’d go ahead and share our plans as an example for you if you’re planning a trip and haven’t yet used Magic Bands or FastPass+.  This will be our first time to use the new system and I’d love to hear some honest feedback.  Do you think this plan is solid?  Bear in mind, we are (have always been) diehard, commando-style Walt Disney World vacationers – but I still feel this plan has enough free time built into it for us to stop and enjoy the Disney magic.  Post dinner hours are unplanned so we can decide last-minute if we want to try to take in a show (Fantasmic, Wishes, or Illuminations).  For sure we will see Wishes and the Main Street Electrical Parade at the Magic Kingdom at least twice.

We arrive on Sunday, leave on Saturday.  We’re staying at Old Key West – we’ve never stayed there before, but it’s an extremely economical use of our DVC points.  Most of our points are being used at Bay Lake Tower for our (Raymond and I) 25th Anniversary trip in October for Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival.  Note:  In these plans, FastPasses (FP+) are listed by start time only, we have an hour once the start time begins to use them.WDW Big Thunder Mountain Railroad

Here’s the plan:

Sunday afternoon:  Magic Kingdom – Lunch / Snack on the run. FP+’s:

  • Space Mountain (1:50 pm)
  • Journey of the Little Mermaid (2:50 pm)
  • Big Thunder Mountain (4:50 pm).

Then we’ll walk around and enjoy being in the Magic Kingdom until we have to leave for dinner.  Dinner is at 7:30 in Downtown Disney at Raglan Road.

Monday Morning:  Extra Magic Hour (EMH) – Animal Kingdom at 8:00 am.  Planning to ride Expedition Everest, then the Kilimanjaro Safari, then take it easy and play it by ear until after lunch (counter service). Eat a fairly early lunch and park hop!

Toy Story Midway ManiaMonday Afternoon:  Disney’s Hollywood Studios – FP+’s:

  • Toy Story Midway Mania (1:30 pm)
  • Twilight Zone Tower of Terror (3:13 pm)
  • Star Tours (4:15 pm).

Dinner is at 7:30 on the Boardwalk at the Flying Fish Cafe.

Tuesday Morning:  Extra Magic Hour (EMH) – Epcot at 8:00 am.  Planning to ride Soarin’ then leisurely enjoy the morning doing whatever appeals to us until enjoying an early lunch (counter service).

Tuesday Afternoon: Back to Animal Kingdom!  FP+’s:

  • Kali River Rapids (12:30 pm)Expedition Everest's Forbidden Mountain
  • Expedition Everest (2:10 pm)
  • DINOSAUR (3:15 pm).

A quick bus ride away, we’ll enjoy dinner at Boma in the Animal Kingdom Lodge (7:00 pm).  Pre-dinner animal viewing on the savannah overlook is a must!

Wednesday Morning:  EMH – Disney’s Hollywood Studios at 8:00 am.  Planning to ride Toy Story Midway Mania and Rock’n’ Roller Coaster first then relax and see what the wait times are for MuppetVision 3D, The Great Movie Ride, Tower of Terror and more.  It’s Raymond’s birthday, so we’ll defer to his picks – he LOVES Rock’n’ Roller Coaster – it’s his most favorite ride in the World.  Won’t surprise me if we ride it more than once if the standby line wait time is not too terrible.

The Seas With Nemo and FriendsWednesday Afternoon:  Epcot – FP+’s:

  • The Seas With Nemo & Friends (2:45 pm)
  • Soarin’ (3:55 pm)
  • Spaceship Earth (5:00 pm).

Dinner in Epcot’s World Showcase at Tutto Italia (7:15 pm).  After Spaceship Earth we can pick up a cold beverage to enjoy as we may your way to the Italy Pavilion.

Thursday Morning:  EMH – Magic Kingdom at 8:00 am.  Our plans are to ride the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train first.  It should be open by then and if I can score a FastPass for it on Sunday or Friday afternoon, I’ll do that for sure.  After the Dwarfs, we’ll be free to do what we please – Haunted Mansion, Pirates, and Jungle Cruise are must-do attractions for us, so we’ll be trying to fit those in.  This is where the longer-than-ever-before standby lines will cause us the most pain.

Thursday Afternoon: Epcot – FP+’s – Don’t laugh.  We only really needed/wanted one FastPass Crush the Sea Turtlethis day, but felt obligated to select three so…

  • Journey into Imagination with Figment(2:00 pm) – I KNOW!  You don’t have to say it.
  • Test Track (3:00 pm)
  • Turtle Talk with Crush (4:20 pm).  I don’t care if it’s supposed to be for little kids…I LOVE it.

After that we’ll scoot on back to our resort so we can relax before getting cleaned up for our 7:45 ADR at 1900 Park Fare.  I want to get some great pictures at this character meal (Cinderella, the Prince, Lady Tremaine and the Step Sisters) and would prefer The Fam look a little less park-worn for the evening.

Friday Morning: Disney’s Hollywood Studios – 8:00 am.  It’s Star Wars Weekend!  This will be our day to do as we please while enjoying the festive party atmosphere that Star Wars Weekends always bring.  Of course we’ll dash for either Toy Story Midway Mania or Rock’n’ Roller Coaster first thing, but after that, we’ll be taking it easy and soaking up the sights…that is until we enjoy our noon ADR at Hollywood Brown Derby for lunch.  Then we hop!

Friday Afternoon:  Magic Kingdom – FP+’s are for…

  • Splash Mountain (3:15)
  • Space Mountain (4:15)
  • Big Thunder Mountain (8:00)

Being our last day, we’ll be trying to make the most of it.  Counter Service for dinner will allow us more time to walk around and say farewell until next time.

So, if you were taking this trip, what would you change?  If you’ve got any pointers or tips to share about Old Key West, I’d love to hear them – especially pertaining to which bus stops are the best!

 

More Musings on My Disney Experience / MyMagic +

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IMG_2531In a couple of weeks, The Fam and I will be able to make our FastPass+ selections for our upcoming Walt Disney World Vacation (pretend that last part was said in a loud booming voice with an echo!).  I’ve been listening to a ridiculous number of podcasts, pouring over other Disney blogger’s posts, and surfing Disney message boards in preparation.

Now, I feel I need to preface the remainder of this post with a disclaimer:  This is my blog and the words you are about to read are my personal, amateur, Disney non-specialist opinions…Opinions formed by all the unofficial research I’ve been doing.  There, now, I may proceed with a clear conscience.

The FastPass+ portion of the My Disney Experience / MyMagic+ is still a very hot topic.  Overall acceptance to the new way of vacationing at the World is gaining traction – people seem much more positive today than they were even a month ago.  More users are reporting positive experiences with the structure of the program as it stands today (still in testing, according to Disney).  I am absolutely certain we are going to love Magic Bands!  I also believe that Disney is indeed still actively testing and we still haven’t seen the final version of the experience.

That being said, there are still two areas that remain sources of angst I want to address:

  1. Folks still do NOT like the 3-FastPass, 1-Park, Tiered-attraction aspect.  A very decisive IMG_2608person normally, I find myself on the fence.  I’m okay with the 3-FastPasses (we very rarely used more than 3 in a single day, ever).  I think I can be okay with the 1-park restriction as we’d always planned (from the first time we heard about this) to book our FastPasses for the afternoon – do rope-drop (arrive prior to park opening) at park #1, ride E-Ticket attractions early (no FastPasses needed), then hop over to park #2 where we’ve booked our FastPass usage.  The tiered-attraction aspect is, most likely, going to hurt.  Attractions are tiered at Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios.  In the old system you could have FastPasses for all the E-Ticket rides you could score in a day, no restrictions – as long as they were available and you were willing to use the specified return time.  I’m mulling this over and working out different strategies based on park hours and where we’re eating (Advance Dining Reservations booked months ago).  I’ll let you know what plan I decide on later.
  2. IMG_3040The forced planning of FastPasses 60 days in advance is troubling for many vacationers.  The biggest complaint being it’s too restrictive; it’s killing the magic and spontaneity.  This is a very hot issue!  And, never one to shy away from controversy, I have to say I completely disagree with these people!  The number one thing I did NOT like about the former system was how restrictive I thought it was with FastPass return times.  One of us, carrying all our park tickets, would run to gather FastPasses for a favorite ride, only to find out that the fast pass return time would not work for us at all.  It was either too late in the day or smack dab in the middle of a dining reservation.  Also, obtaining and using the legacy FastPasses often required a LOT of schlepping around, back and forth, across a park, in the summer sun!  I believe, if people would be a little open-minded, they could potentially find this pre-planning actually less stressful and more freeing.  No more sending a runner, no more having to go back out to a park at night specifically to use FastPasses that you would have much preferred using earlier in the day.  I’m picturing our commando-touring style still working for us – but we’ll know our FastPass times are times WE chose, not obtained at the mercy of the machines cranking out slips of paper to the other guests who got there before us.  There is positive feedback coming from actual users who are embracing these changes and making it work – believe it or not, they’re still having great vacations!  I’m convinced we will, too.  I’m fairly happy/content in stand-by lines up to about 40-45 minutes long.  Yes, that’s mainly due to not having small children, but even with little ones, some creativity can make waiting in line bearable.

Final Thoughts:

IMG_2522

Photo Credit: Nicholas Maglio

If you are unfamiliar with which rides are the most popular and would normally require a FastPass (to avoid wait times in excess of 30 minutes – sometimes as high as 90 minutes or more) – this may cause you to dislike the new system.  See, here’s the dealio:  With this new set up, FastPasses were added to rides that never had them before.  These are rides with normally low wait times (relatively speaking).  Haunted Mansion, It’s a Small World, and Pirates of the Caribbean come to mind at the Magic Kingdom.  So if you don’t choose wisely, you may end up with 3 FastPasses you don’t need at all and subsequently face very long stand-by lines for the rides you should have chosen instead.  To resolve this issue I suggest you research like crazy (online, books, podcasts) OR consult a travel agent that specializes in Disney travel.  A competent travel agent could be invaluable in helping you choose dining and attractions and then…wait for it…the travel agent will actually book everything (dining, FastPasses, tickets, accommodations, transportation etc.) for you so all you have to do is show up for vacation!!!  If planning, strategizing, and/or research is not your thing – just call a travel agent.  They don’t cost anything!

Okay – now it’s your turn.  Do you have (or have you taken) a Disney vacation this year?  What are your thoughts on My Disney Experience / MyMagic+ / FastPass+?

If you missed my previous posts about using MyMagic+ and Magic Bands and want to know what I said, go here.