Fast Pass Attractions

When planning your day at Walt Disney World you may want to give some consideration to the Fastpass® rides.   Fastpass rides are the more popular rides, like Test Track and Space Mountain, where wait times can be as long as two hours.  A Fastpass ticket gives you a specific time to return.   When you return, get in the Fastpass Return line; you perhaps will not walk right in, but you will bypass everyone else in the Standby Line and your wait time will be significantly shorter. Most people who have used Fastpasses tend to like the system.

Fastpass machines are located in front of each of the attractions. Put your WDW admission pass in the machine and a ticket with a time stamped on it pops out. The ticket is free and your admission pass is returned unaltered. The time stamped on the ticket is when you return. The return time usually covers a span of about an hour, so you do not have to be there on the dot.  For example, if your return time is 12:15, you have until 1:15 to return.   Each person has their own ticket, one ticket will not cover your entire group.  If there are several people in your party be sure to get tickets at the same time. Waiting even a few minutes can result in a significant difference in someone’s return time.

Something you want to be aware of before you get a Fastpass is a possible conflict with other plans. For most rides the return time will be less than two hours, but for rides like Test Track the return time may be considerably longer. Before you get a ticket be sure to look at the two clocks at the attraction entrance. One clock lets you know what time you will need to return if you get a Fastpass ticket; the other clock tells how long the wait time will be if you queue up right then.  If the return time is going to be close to a dining reservation time you may be better off either queuing up in the Standby Line right then or waiting until later. Remember, even with the Fastpass you may have a few minutes wait, then there is the time it takes for the ride and to get from there to the restaurant. So, you don’t want to cut it too close.

You will want to get Fastpasses for the more popular rides as early as possible. By midday they may have already given out all the passes for those rides.  Use Fastpass whenever possible, but be aware that once you get a ticket it may be as much as two hours before you can get a Fastpass for another ride.  Printed at the bottom of your Fastpass will be the time after which you can get another ticket.  Fastpasses for the more popular attractions like Test Track and Soarin’ may have longer return times.

Here is a list of attractions that offer Fastpasses. They will be marked on your park map so they are easy to find.