Disney FASTPASS allows theme park visitors to avoid the hassle of waiting in long lines on some of the more popular rides and attractions. This concept lets you to reserve the time you will return to the ride.
What Is FASTPASS?
One of the major complaints about Disney theme parks -- or any amusement park for that matter -- is the amount of time one must spend waiting in line for a ride. Many times, visitors would rather shop, eat or go on a different ride where the wait time is much shorter. Disney park officials listened to this cry. In 1999, they developed the FASTPASS ticket system that allows guests to receive a free reservation time -- usually a 60-minute time frame -- on a few of the theme park's rides. Tickets are dispensed outside of the normal stand-by line on various rides throughout the Disney theme parks.
How It Works
After calculating the maximum number of riders per hour for each FASTPASS attraction, the system will automatically reserve a certain number of those slots. For instance, the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland can accommodate up to 2,000 riders hourly. A portion of those are set aside for FASTPASS and the others are slated for stand-by guests.
However, once those slots are filled up for a given hour, Disney FASTPASS will give you a return time for the following hour and so on. On extremely popular rides such as Soarin' Over California (at California Adventure) or Space Mountain (at Disneyland), those slots are depleted very quickly and FASTPASS times are slated for much later in the day.
Park visitors can only receive one Disney FASTPASS ticket for any given time frame. For instance, you cannot get a ticket for a time on Space Mountain if you hold a FASTPASS for the same time on Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters. Nonetheless, once you are within your allotted return time on a ticket, you can then receive another FASTPASS for another ride or attraction. Guests can also only use their own park ticket or annual pass to receive a FASTPASS ticket.
What Rides Offer FASTPASS?
Usually the most popular rides offer the Disney FASTPASS system during the busiest times of the year. During the off-season, these ticket machines are shut down and everyone must ride stand-by. The following rides offer FASTPASS on a semi-regular basis:
Disneyland Resort
- Disneyland
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- Autopia
- Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
- Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
- Indiana Jones Adventure
- Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin
- Splash Mountain
- Space Mountain
- California Adventure
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- California Screamin'
- Grizzly River Run
- Mullholland Madness
- Soarin' Over California
- The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
Walt Disney World
- Disney's Animal Kingdom
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- DINOSAUR
- Expedition Everest
- It's Tough to Be a Bug!
- Kilimanjaro Safaris
- Kall River Rapids
- Primeval Whirl
- Hollywood Studios
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- Rock 'n Roller Coaster
- Star Tours
- The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
- Toy Story Mania!
- Magic Kingdom
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- Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
- Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin
- Jungle Cruise
- Mickey's PhilharMagic
- Peter Pan's Flight
- Space Mountain
- Splash Mountain
- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
- Epcot
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- "Honey I Shrunk the Audience"
- Living with the Land
- Maelstrom
- Mission: SPACE Pavilion
- Soarin'
- Test Track
Disneyland Resort Paris
- Disneyland Park
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- Big Thunder Mountain
- Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast
- Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril
- Peter Pan's Flight
- Space Mountain: Mission 2
- Star Tours
- Walt Disney Studios Park
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- Flying Carpets Over Agrabah
- Rock 'n Roller Coaster
- The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
Hong Kong Disneyland
- Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
- Space Mountain
- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
- Theater in the Wild featuring Festival of the Lion King
Toyko Disney Resort
- 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
- Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull
- Journey to the Center of the Earth
- Magic Lamp Theater
- Mermaid Lagoon Theater
- Raging Spirits
- StormRider
- Tower of Terror
Final Word About Disney FASTPASS
For the most part, using Disney FASTPASS to get on a ride at any of the Disney theme parks is a good idea. Just remember that if you lose your admittance or re-admittance ticket, you are out of luck. Make sure you check the stand-by time before you select your FASTPASS as that line may be shorter than your wait for your return time.
