Disclosure: Affiliate links within. Purchasing and/or clicking on some of the links in this post helps support Family Travel Magazine®.
I am a former member of the Disney Parks Moms Panel and have been on some complimentary press trips at Walt Disney World, but all opinions are my own.
7 Tips for Booking Your FastPass+ Allocations
Walt Disney World has been testing out their MyMagic+ system for a while now, but many families still haven’t had the opportunity to experience the new FastPass+ system. It’s so different from the old, legacy paper FastPass system, and since you can book them in advance, it’s important to be well prepared and ready to book when your window opens.
Here are some tips for booking your FastPass+ reservations in advance.
Know when you can book
Currently, you can book FastPass+ allocations for your whole trip 60 days in advance of your arrival date if you are staying on property, and 30 days if you are not staying on property.
Check out the system in advance.
(note, it’s harder to do this now with the new system)
You can always access the system and pretend to book your FastPass+ reservations for that day or the next day just to see how the system works. That way, you won’t waste time when your window opens.
The system resets at midnight Eastern Time.
This has changed and is now in the morning. Want some harder to book attractions or traveling during a busy time? Get on your computer at exactly that time. You’ll be tired the next morning, but glad when your vacation rolls around. (A note from a commenter – if the parks happen to be open past midnight that night, the system will not reset at midnight. Instead, they will reset after the park closes).
Start at the end of your vacation for tough to book attractions, like the rides at Pandora.
Since you can schedule for your entire vacation 30/60 days in advance, attractions may already be booked for the first part of your vacation. So, start at the end of your trip and move forward for the best availability.
Once you are ready:
- Choose date/park
- You’ll be presented with several options
- Remember that you can only book three FastPass+ allocations, at one park per day.
- Book for FastPass+ reservations for later in the day, when the parks are more crowded.
- You can later go into each allocation and change the time to an available time.
You can make changes to any available FastPass+ at any time.
Just go back into that reservation. Just keep in mind that reservations can book up quickly, so you may not have as many options.
Once you use your three, you can make new ones at a kiosk in the park.
Just remember that availability will be limited. Don’t count on these.
You can purchase MagicBands and accessories on the Disney Store online. You can also decorate your MagicBand 2 with decals from Etsy.
Here are some hotels that I recommend – check out prices and reviews at these links. You can also save up to 28% on Disney Resort hotels here, and see various discounts on Walt Disney World tickets here.
- Disney’s Beach Club
- Disney Swan and Dolphin
- Disney’s Art of Animation
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge
- Gaylord Palms
- JW Marriott Orlando Grande Lakes
- World Center Marriott
ELizabeth says
Thanks, I am going to Disney for my honeymoon, and a lot of the websites are for family/ child tips. This is great for everyone that is going to have a great time at Disney. I did not know about the different time for te pass, and your tip about going to the site before you get the pass is a great tip too!
M. Moir says
You might want to edit your article. The FP+ reservation window does not always open at midnight. If the parks are open past midnight, the window often does not open until the parks close for the night.
Jodi Grundig says
Just saw your comment – will definitely add that in. Thanks so much!
Kim Enfield says
My husband and I will be going to Disney world next summer. We’ve been there in the past but have not been since they’ve started using this new fast pass system. Will we need the braclets? How do we get those? Do they get sent to you in the mail? Thanks for the help.
Kristi at Disney Insider Tips says
Understand that you can only book one fast pass at a time after your initial three. You must wait until the fourth pass has been used to get a 5th. You cannot do this online or on your smart phone. It must be done at a kiosk.
Jules says
Just to update this for new viewers:
Fast passes open at 6:00 AM Pacific Time….not midnight as it once was.
And if you are using My Disney Experience App, you cannot access it to get familiar with the settings. It will tell you to link your tickets. Your tickets are probably already linked, but until your day arrives, it will appear as though they are not.
Easy process though!! Have fun.
Jodi Grundig says
Thanks so much for the updates!