Travel

Disney FAST Pass Strategy For The Magic Kingdom

I have been lucky enough to visit Disneyworld in Florida on 3 separate occasions, visiting each of the parks and hitting almost every ride. Of all the four parks my favorite has to be the Magic Kingdom, the heart of everything Disney and the look on my children’s faces as we arrive is worth the cost of the entrance fee alone. This year we plan to take a trip to Disneyland in California, to see if the parks live up to the standard which has been set here in Florida.

When you visit the Disney parks, everyone is allowed 3 FAST pass applications, which mean that they can skip the queues to get the best rides. The pass system is done in hourly slots so you have to be quick off the draw to get the rides which you want. Naturally you should use your passes for rides which usually have long queues, so here is a strategy for how to use them in the Magic Kingdom.

 Seven Dwarfs Mine Train

Without any shadow of a doubt the first place where you should be looking at using your pass is on the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, a ride which can reach queue lengths of up to 3 hours. The ride is in the style of a traditional runaway train-type rollercoaster albeit with the props and incredible digital displays which you see, that take you through the world of the Seven Dwarfs. A great ride and one which is incredibly popular, use your first pass for this.

Splash Mountain

Another ride which fills up very quickly and creates long queues because of the low volume of people on each ride, is Splash Mountain. This log flume ride can be found in Frontierland and both it sits right next to the Big Thunder Mountain ride. Both of these rides have long queues but I would say that the best bet would be to go for Splash Mountain for your pass, as the Big Thunder Mountain ride does have lulls over lunchtime where you may be able to find shorter waiting times.

Pirates of the Caribbean

Any new rides will attract a lot of attention and the same is true of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. This adventure takes you through the world of Jack Sparrow and his pirate mateys in an incredible and chaotic experience of cannon-fire and double crossing. The queues can be very long on this ride so be sure to use your final pass here.

FAST Pass Tips

If you are using passes on rides in different zones, be sure to give yourself plenty of time between each one, so that you can pair another ride in the same zone, rather than going back and forward. Also you should aim to use up your passes as early as you possibly can, as even FAST pass slots can get filled up. Finally you must ensure that you don’t miss your slots, otherwise you will lose your pass altogether.

These passes can help to make your day even more magical, so use them wisely.