Resort, check.
Race Entries, check.
Basic outline of the week, check
Advance Dining Reservations, check.
Next up, FastPass+.
In a nutshell, a FastPass+ allows you to avoid the standby line, by granting access to a nifty, and if you plan it right, much shorter line just for people with FP+, or rider switch (also called Child Swap) passes.
So, how do you get them?
Easy- every ticketed guest gets three FP+. Done.
After that, it gets a little trickier.
FP+s can be booked 30 days in advance, for certain rides, character meet & greets, and experiences/shows.
Once you are in the park, and you have used all three of your FP+s, you can book a fourth. After that one is used (or the window expires) you can book another, and so on.
Then we add one more layer. Some of these FP+ attractions are not suitable for small children. If you are traveling with small children (which we were), and wanted to go on one such ride, Disney will give you a Rider Switch pass, so whoever is staying back with the kids doesn’t have to wait in that long line for their turn. The Rider Switch pass works like FP+, and can be used for up to three people.
If you’re doing the math at home, let me help you out.
Technically, if you have a party of 4, and you all want to go on Seven Dwars Mine Train, you can all access the fast pass line, while only using one FP+ for one person. That person will go on the ride, showing the Cast Member their party, including the small child. The CM will give the rest of the group the Rider Switch pass, which they can use to enter the FP+ line once Person A has returned to watch the children.
WDW Prep School does a great job of explaining this here, in addition to most things Disney.
This is the final piece to the logic puzzle.
I started by making a list of the attractions/rides available for FP+. Remember, we had booked a number of character meal ADRs, so we didn’t feel the need to use FP+ for those.
Next, I read up on the best attractions/rides to use FP+ for. These are the attractions/rides that have the longest standby line, or the most valuable FP+ seating area.
I also checked with the other travelers, to see if there was anything in particular they considered a ‘must do.’
With my list of FP+ attractions/rides to book, I looked at our ADRs, and tried to fit the FP+s in where it would make the most sense, and we would avoid running from one end of the park to another in order to make our reservation, or our FP+.
For what it’s worth, we didn’t try the Rider Switch trick. I’d be curious to hear of your experiences, though!
Don’t worry, you’ll hear all about ours soon enough!!