Disney World and FastPass

I am so excited, I can hardly stand it!  We are now just 37 days away from our Walt Disney World vacation!  2 weeks ago I booked our FastPass+ return times.

We started our countdown more
than a year ago, so it's getting real!

FastPass allows you to skip the line for certain rides, shows, parades, or other attractions.  You will be given a 1 hour window to arrive at the ride entrance.  You can pick 3 per day and they must all be at the same park.  If you are staying on Disney property you can start booking 60 days before your arrival date.  Off property guests can book 30 days out.  This is the third time we've gone with the new FastPass+ system.  (Before you couldn't book your return times in advance).

You can make your FastPass+ selections
on the My Disney Experience app
or on the website

If you haven't been to Disney World before, this can be overwhelming.  You don't want to be running from one side of the park to the other side- you will end up exhausted and frustrated.  So what should you do?  You can call Disney World and ask them to send you maps of each park.  That way you can study them before making your selections.  I would once again recommend reading Birnbaum's Walt Disney World book.  Each park is broken down by area and each attraction is described in detail.  You can also check out Touring Plans.  There is a $12 subscription per year (but you can find coupon codes, I was able to get it for $9 for the year).  I had never done Touring Plans before, because I consider myself an expert!  But I decided to try it this year.  It is actually really fun. It uses historical attendance data for your dates to tells you how long lines will be, how long it will take to walk from one attraction to the next, and which attractions are best options for FastPass.

This is my go-to book for all things Disney World
I buy a new one just about every year

Unlike advanced dining reservations, which open for booking at 6am, FastPass opens for booking at midnight.  So, should you stay up until midnight to get yours exactly 60 days before your trip?  It really depends.  I would say definitely do it at midnight if-
1.you're staying for a short period of time
2. have a large party traveling with you
3. want to get FastPasses to popular attractions like an Anna and Elsa meet and greet, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and Toy Story Midway Mania
If you're staying for a longer time, if you're traveling with a smaller party (4 or less) and you don't want those more popular attractions or you can wait until later in your trip to do them, you should be fine waiting until later in the day.

Happy planning!