Things are constantly changing at Disney World. Recently, Disney has announced that various restaurants will soon be reopening, Park Hopping will be starting again in 2021, and has even brought back fireworks in a small, but still super magical, way.
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in Disney World’s Magic Kingdom
But, when we think about things that are still missing from the parks since the reopening, there’s another BIG thing that comes to mind — FastPass+. When Disney World reopened, FastPass+ was suspended. Will Disney bring back FastPass+ anytime soon? We’re going to break down where we’re at now with FastPass+, what we know so far, and where we think Disney is headed.
Where We’re At Now
FastPass+ Has Been Temporarily Suspended
When the Walt Disney World theme parks reopened a few months ago, they reopened without several key things including parades, fireworks, and FastPass+.
©Disney
According to Disney, the FastPass+ service was suspended because they are utilizing “additional queue space to manage capacity at [their attractions] and maintain physical distancing.” What this means is that Disney is saving the FastPass+ line space in case it needs it to spread out guests in the attraction’s line and ensure social distancing.
© Disney
So, when you go to visit the park, does that mean you’ll be placed in the actual FastPass+ queue? Not really. In our experience, the FastPass+ queue space has been used primarily for those utilizing the Disability Access Service as well as Club 33 members. Disney may also use the FastPass+ queue space for rider switch, No Strings Attached passes, and other occasional needs as well.
Queue for Frozen Ever After
So basically the lines are empty aside from the occasional guest. But if Disney were to need that extra space to make sure guests in line are socially distanced from one another, Disney has the ability to potentially use the FastPass+ queue as additional space. The thing is, that hasn’t happened. With incredibly few exceptions, we haven’t set foot in FastPass lines since the parks reopened (The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh in Magic Kingdom comes to mind, but the queue is routed through a portion of the FastPass queue out of necessity to avoid touching the interactive honey walls). Even on busy days when attractions have lines spilling out far into the lands they inhabit, the FastPass lines typically remain mostly empty.
Click here to read about Disney’s announcement regarding the suspension of FastPass+
FastPass+ Removed from My Disney Experience
Not only has FastPass+ been suspended, but the feature itself has been temporarily removed from My Disney Experience.
My Disney Experience
When you check the app, you won’t find the FastPass+ feature there as you used to.
Click here to read about the removal of this feature from My Disney Experience.
Many of Our Readers Think FastPass+ Won’t Be Brought Back in 2020
Several weeks ago, we asked our readers “Do you think Disney World will bring back FastPass+ by the end of 2020?”and 68% of our readers who responded felt that FastPass+ would NOT be brought back this year. Considering “next year” is a month away, it’s seeming more and more likely this could be the case.
Do you think Disney World will bring back Fastpass+ by the end of 2020?
Some of our readers thought that the return of FastPass+ might be necessary as crowds at the parks increased. Others, however, told us that they hope FastPass+ NEVER comes back! Several of those readers indicated that they felt FastPass+ was unfair or too stressful as it required planning your trip months in advance.
Click here to see more about our readers’ responses!
So, that’s a quick recap of where we’re at now. You can’t make a FastPass+ reservation for a current or future trip at all and the reason they seemingly suspended FastPass — to utilize the queues — isn’t quite happening the way it sounded like it would. What could cause Disney to bring back the FastPass+ system and are there some signs that may point to a change in the future? Here’s what we’ve seen.
Is a Change Coming?
Increased Capacity
Recently, Disney shared that it has increased capacity at its parks in Disney World to 35% (up from 25%). Could this increase in capacity lead to a change with FastPass+?
On the one hand, you could argue that with increased capacity, and therefore the opportunity for more guests to be in the park at the same time, Disney will delay the return of FastPass+ as they will still need the ability to use the additional FastPass+ queue space to manage their standby lines and maintain physical distancing for an even greater number of guests.
Haunted Mansion FastPass Entrance
On the other hand, you could say that this increase in capacity may lead Disney to bring back FastPass+, particularly if lines start to get really long, as it could potentially help control how many guests are in any one line at a particular time. Basically, instead of having everyone run to Splash Mountain (or another popular attraction) in the morning, it’s possible that fewer guests would go to that popular ride directly if they have a FastPass+ for it later in the day.
MagicBand reader in Walt Disney World
Instead, those guests could ride other attractions during that morning rush, while those without a FastPass+ for the popular attractions remain in the standby lines for those rides, potentially spreading guests out more throughout the park.
Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run Queue
One issue with bringing back FastPass+, however, is that Disney would have to manage TWO sides of a line with physical distancing which could be very difficult. That could mean the introduction of even more plexiglass in more queues throughout Disney World. But then again, if they just expanded the stand-by queues into the FastPass queues, wouldn’t they have to do the same thing?
Slinky Dog Dash Queue
Disney would also have to ensure social distancing across both lines on an attraction even in the instance where there are delays, like when a ride hits a cleaning cycle. That could cause both the FastPass+ and standby queue to be longer, meaning even more guests would have to be accounted for on two different sides of the same queue. If the queues spill out outside of the attraction buildings, that could also be an issue.
Slinky Dog Dash Fastpass+ Sign
Right now, if the line for Peter Pan’s Flight, for example, spills outside of the attraction (because of all the social distancing requirements), the Cast Members can simply wrap the line around the outside of the attraction, but that can then cause the whole walkway to feel a bit more cramped (especially if the line for “it’s a small world” also extends outside of its interior building).
Fantasyland Crowds
Imagine how much more complicated and crowded things would be if there was not just one but TWO lines spilling out of the same attraction in potentially two different directions. That’s something Disney can’t simply ignore. It’s something they’d have to plan and be prepared for if they do decide to reintroduce FastPass+.
Larger Crowds
This goes hand-in-hand with the above point, but increased crowd levels in the parks could affect the return of FastPass+ again for all the same reasons stated above, as it means Disney would have to ensure there is enough queue space to maintain social distancing with even more guests.
Crowds in Magic Kingdom
With Disney sharing that Thanksgiving week was almost booked to its full 35% capacity, not only are more guests are allowed in the park, but it seems that lots of people are actually going. In fact, the Orange County Mayor noted that people are still traveling to Orlando and, in his opinion, will continue to come. He also noted that Orlando International Airport was the second busiest airport in the nation on one of the recent days. Despite the situation with the global pandemic, Florida is STILL leading as one of the biggest travel destinations this holiday season.
Magic Kingdom Crowds
In the earlier part of Thanksgiving week we saw some large crowds in the parks, but the crowd levels were surprisingly much lower on the day before Thanksgiving. We’re not sure exactly why that was the case, but with the holiday season approaching it seems likely that we’ll see more of those high crowd days. Again, large crowds could push Disney to ultimately bring back — or delay — the return of FastPass+ for the reasons we discussed above.
Click here to see our photos of the crowds in Disney World during the early part of Thanksgiving week!
Park Hopper Is Returning
Another thing that did not come back with the Disney World reopening is Park Hopping. But, Disney has recently announced that Park Hopping will be returning, with some modifications, in 2021. Could that mean that FastPass+ will be coming back too? The return of Park Hopping could potentially show that Disney is working on bringing back some of the things that have been suspended since the parks reopened.
Splash Mountain
Josh D’Amaro, Chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products has noted that Disney does plan to bring back some of its currently discontinued entertainment offerings in the future. So, it seems Disney is very much aware of the things that have been discontinued in the parks and may be looking at ways to bring some of them back. It’s possible that FastPass+ is on that list for consideration.
Fastpass Distribution Area for Tower of Terror
If Disney does bring back FastPass+ under the new Park Hopping system, they would have to make some specific modifications. For example, they’d likely have to limit guests to only making FastPass+ reservations at the park where they have a Park Pass reservation (the first park the guest plans to visit) as Park Hopping to another park is not guaranteed at the moment and will depend entirely on availability.
Park Hopping Procedure
But, we expect Disney will likely only bring back one thing at a time. We anticipate that Disney will, as announced, bring back Park Hopping and let that play out, work out all the issues, and then potentially consider bringing back FastPass+ if they feel they can do so safely. We wouldn’t expect to see FastPass+ brought back right now or even right at the beginning of 2021, when the quirks and issues of Park Hopping will likely still be getting worked out.
Click here to read more about the modified Park Hopping experience coming to Disney World!
Recent Survey
One thing that could indicate FastPass+ will make an eventual return, however, is a recent survey that was sent out to guests. The survey asked about a few services that have been suspended in Disney World, including FastPass+, and how the absence of these services affected the guest’s experience in the parks.
Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run FastPass Queue
The mere fact that Disney is asking about FastPass+ and whether the absence of it had any kind of impact on a guest’s vacation shows that they are considering this service and what it means (or doesn’t mean) in terms of guest satisfaction. If Disney receives an overwhelming amount of responses one way or the other, it may impact their decision on when, how, or whether FastPass+ will be brought back.
Click here to read more about this survey!
Disney Genie
In other aspects of its business, however, Disney appears to have left out any mention of FastPass+ whatsoever — whether that’s intentional or not. For example, we recently got a preview of the NEW Disney Genie planning app, which is meant to help guests easily plan their trips to Disney World, and even adjust their plans while in the parks on a whim. One thing that didn’t really appear to be specifically referenced during this presentation…is FastPass+.
The previews of the app shown didn’t appear to say anything at all about FastPass+ or making a FastPass+ reservation. Instead, it showed an itinerary which you could update and provided estimated arrival and standby times.
©Disney
Previous concept art of Disney Genie, however, did include mentions of FastPass+. You can see it referenced near Avatar Flight of Passage on the phone to the left, and near Under the Sea — Journey of The Little Mermaid on the right phone.
Disney Genie ©Disney
What we saw was only a preview though, so a determination can’t be based on this alone. It’s possible that its omission from the recent preview doesn’t really mean anything, or it could mean that Disney is purposefully shifting away from showing FastPass+ in this app, in the event it is suspended for an extended period of time or potentially never brought back.
Disney Genie ©Disney | Concept Art from 2019
Could the Disney Genie system take over FastPass+, where instead of making any kind of set reservation, you operate on more of a dynamic itinerary that can help you get the most out of your day while offering more flexibility than a set FastPass+ reservation would? Too little is known about Disney Genie at this time to say either way.
Jungle Cruise
Could the Disney Genie allow for more constant updates about what path or option may be best, and possibly set guests up for success in a way that would enable them to ride more attractions than if they had reservations for just their three daily allotted pre-booked FastPasses? It’s certainly possible. We’ll have to wait for more information on the Genie to see what the future holds.
Click here to check out more about the Disney Genie!
Standby Pass/Boarding Groups
We’ve seen a virtual queue standby pass experience utilized for some attractions at both Disneyland Paris and Shanghai Disneyland. Under this system, guests can make an online reservation for a participating attraction with a specific time frame selected. During these certain hours, the Disney Standby Pass is the only way to access select attractions. Could we see this system implemented in Disney World instead of the return of FastPass+? It’s possible.
Disneyland Paris Standby ©Disney
It could help guests plan their days and “reserve” a time to ride certain key rides without actually having to physically take up space in line. Overall, that could be slightly better for Disney in terms of controlling their lines and physical distancing as those guests (who would normally also be in a physical line) could be spread out elsewhere as they wait for their virtual queue standby pass to be called.
Flight of Passage
Another somewhat similar system we’ve seen used already in Disney World is the Boarding Group system used at Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance in Disney’s Hollywood Studios. While the Boarding Group system may help limit the number of guests that can ride a certain attraction in one day, and thus help spread out guests in the park, an increased use of this system could also cause issues for Disney if the system utilized to “reserve” a spot on a ride makes getting a ride reservation as difficult as it is to get a Boarding Group for Rise of the Resistance.
Now, there may be many factors contributing to why it is so difficult to get a boarding group for Rise of the Resistance including lower ride capacity (particularly before the plexiglass was installed) and the technical difficulties the ride frequently experiences. But, if getting a boarding group for something like Seven Dwarfs Mine Train or Peter Pan’s Flight becomes just as difficult as getting on to Rise of the Resistance, you could see guests getting quite upset. So, we expect Disney will consider all of its options carefully before expanding the Boarding Group system.
Click here to read about the recent changes made to the Rise of the Resistance Boarding Group system!
Josh D’Amaro’s Statements
Some of Josh D’Amaro’s recent statements, however, makes us feel like SOME kind of FastPass+, reservation, or planning system may come to Disney World is the future.
During this year’s International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions Expo, Josh D’Amaro gave a keynote speech where he said, “Do you really have to wait in line? Why can’t guests choose exactly what they want to do when they want to do it? After all, isn’t this what our millennials expect of us today? Why can’t a trip to Walt Disney World be simple?”
©Disney via IAAPA Expo 2020 Presentation
Could Josh be referring to the return of FastPass+ or perhaps a modified version of the system? Was this a reference to the Disney Genie app? Or perhaps virtual queues or boarding groups? It’s not clear. One thing that is certain is most guests don’t want to wait in lines and right now, that’s their only option.
©Josh D’Amaro
But it does seem that something may be coming — perhaps not immediately, but at some point (maybe years into the future) that will allow guests to, “choose exactly what they want to do when they want to do it” and, presumably, maintain any safety or health procedures in place at the time.
Click here to read more about Josh D’Amaro’s exciting (and even some eyebrow-raising) statements during the recent IAAPA Expo!
Overall
So, what’s the big takeaway here? There’s definitely a potential to see FastPass+ return, particularly as crowds increase and lines get longer — but Disney will have to overcome logistical hurdles regarding health and safety (lines, plexiglass, how to socially distance people on both sides, etc) AND Disney may decide that a modified or totally different version of “ride reservations” (virtual queues, boarding groups, etc.) may be better than FastPass+ and we may see that implemented instead.
FastPass+ sign at Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run
Josh D’Amaro’s statements, however, make it seem like SOMETHING is in the works that will help guests plan out their days and do what they want when they want. What will that system be exactly? It’s unclear. But we’re looking forward to finding out.
Click here to see the 5 biggest changes coming to Disney World in 2021!
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Fastpass+ would generally allow Disney to regulate where guests will go at certain times and they can track its use. I personally don’t see why they wouldn’t bring it back, as they could limit how many passes are given out per each time slot. But I am no expert! I do hope they bring it back though!
Maybe I’m naive on this but I don’t see why they had to stop utilizing FP at all. Universal has been using their express pass since reopening and it works just fine. They have marked it lines on the ground in both que lines so everyone knows where to stand. Not sure why Disney feels they can’t handle both if other parks are able to and it would free up more space than they realize.
One thing that I haven’t seen mentioned in relations to the FastPass+ is the fact that MagicBands won’t be free to resort guests anymore in 2021. When they announced that, to me it was an indication that the FastPass+ in its current iteration may not be coming back, especially with the Disney Genie app. I have to say, as much as I didn’t like having to plan my FastPasses out so far in advance, I’m really not liking the future reliance on phones…I go to Disney to get away from the “real” world, not to be on my phone all the time – it takes away from the family focus, in my opinion.
I spend a lot of $ each month for my DVC membership. Having access to FP & early hours are part of the benefit. If Disney isn’t going to allow those why am I paying so much more than someone staying at a local hotel??
If they would better control the huge amount of guests coming in from South America, the wait times would be greatly reduced and we would not even need fast pass. I have been going to WDW multiple times per year since the late 80’s, before the Animal Kingdom and the Studios and the lines and wait times were more acceptable. When the world came in in the early 2000’s, the lines began to grow and the value for the ticket price began to be challenged. Control the crowds and there is no need for fast pass.
Has Disney mention anything about annual passes. My wife and I are waiting to purchase them.
This would be absolutely devastating to our family. We LOVE FastPass and are total pros, we would not want to go without it. We NEVER wait in lines. On our last 5 day trip we waited in ONE standby line the whole trip. It is THE BEST THING EVER! It gives us so much extra time to enjoy the park.
Great article. It touches on a lot of key points, and integrations with the parks.
I hope they bring the Disney Genie app in Jan 1, 2021. It would actually tie into the announcement of complimentary Magicbands no longer being provided to guests, who stay is starting Jan 1, 2021, and that the My Disney Experience app will bring features of a MagicBand to your Smart device.
https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/plan/my-disney-experience/bands-cards/
“In addition to MagicBands, in 2021, we plan to unveil an innovative new offering as part of the My Disney Experience app that will bring features of a MagicBand to your smart devices.
Disney Resort hotel Guests with an arrival date through December 31, 2020 will receive complimentary MagicBands. Magicbands will no longer be provided on a complimentary basis for new reservations for arrivals at Disney Resort hotels January 1, 2021 and beyond. However, Guests will have the option to purchase MagicBands.”
Perhaps that Disney Genie app is going to be part of the My Disney Experience app, and it is unveiled all at once, and it can preplan the rides you want, based on your thrill level/interests, but then be modified? It would be able to take into consideration where you are GPS-wise, and know when your other fastpasses are for, as well as determine where you have already been, and what ages your party is, and how fast you move. It can help spread out the crowds algorithmically, and push people into places they want you to be in, if you don’t care which specific ride is next. I would guess that it can determine wait times in lines, as well as how many fast passes are already given out, and help you get a better experience overall, without needing to worry about things WHILE YOU ARE IN THE PARK.
I Love the fastpass! I can’t wait for them to bring it back or a version of it. Anything would be better than waiting in those long lines and while I was waiting for one on flight of passage….so many people were scanning their bands for the fastpass line and I do not believe they are all for ride switch or club 33….my guess is employees who visit too. There was way too many but I don’t care as long as I’m one too!! LOL
Fast Pass would allow quest to enjoy attractions without standing in line so long. I hope they bring it back soon. No one enjoys waiting. Much better to ride 3 rides and have time to eat a good meal and shop some all in the same day.
Phillip, so far no.
When Park Hopping resumes. In January, will the Monorail between EPCOT and the Transportation Center be running? I wish you could find out and mention it in the Blog.
QB, some of the Cast Members we spoke with said yes, while others said they couldn’t confirm. We expect that the EPCOT Monorail will resume, and when it’s confirmed we will report.
I love fast pass I think to rally helps o be Plan An plan a Disney day. I am old school and don’t want to get tied up using a phone appt. I use my phone for .photos. I would just rather show up at a ride at certain window of time.
Apparently FastPass and park hopping have still been a thing for Club 33 members through the entire pandemic since the parks reopened. It’s nice to know Disney can put a price on people’s health and safety. But, then again, when have rules ever applied to rich people?