Fast Pass Plus Plan of Attack - Advice Needed!

Hi there, well it's also kinda new to me too..My plan is on my rope drops to head straight for our favourites first thing but have my FP + passes for later in the morning...Our past trips have all been in July, yet at rope drop in DHS we walked in a brisk manner, I joined the queue for Toy Story with our DS whilst my DW got FP paper cards for later and joined us in the queue..We even managed 3 times in one morning..Same idea for Soarin..As far as time spent in each park, I think everyone will have their favourites in order..In our 14 day vacation, we spend more time in MK followed by Epcot, then DHS and lastly AK..

Hi Princess Cupcake! Based on your FP date, it looks like you are traveling October 22-26 or there about, so you should enjoy moderate crowds.

Day 1: I would get a FP for Space Mountain, 7DMT, and Under the Sea. Actually, I would probably use that last FP for something different (maybe Enchanted Tales with Belle), but I'm very underwhelmed by Under the Sea. Skip Adventureland and Frontierland until your last day.

Day 2: If no other ride in DHS interest you, just do TSM at rope drop. You'll wait about 40 minutes or so, but with arriving later to AK, you'll have a pretty short time there because they are the first park to close in the evening. I would get FP at AK for Kilimanjaro Safaris, Festival of the Lion King, and your choice of Kali River Rapids, Expedition Everest, or Finding Nemo

Day 3: Ride either Soarin' or Test Track at rope drop and use FP for DHS - Star Tours, ToT, RnR if you've already ridden TSM on day 1.

Day 4: FP Soarin' or Test Track, whichever one remains. The other two FP are basically throwaways. I'd probably pick Spaceship Earth and Maelstrom now that Living with the Land is tier 1.

Day 5: Do Adventureland and Frontierland at rope drop. Standby on Jungle Cruise, Pirates, and Big Thunder Mountain. FP on Splash, Haunted Mansion, and a remaining Fantasyland attraction--if you have interest, Peter Pan's Flight. That line is ridiculous.

If day 5 is an extra magic hours morning, this won't work as well. If it is, do Frontierland and Adventureland on FP the first day (Big Thunder, Splash, and Jungle Cruise). Do Pirates on standby later in the evening. Then do Peter Pan and Enchanted Tales with Belle, and Haunted Mansion at rope drop on day 5 and FP Space Mountain, Under the Sea, and 7DMT. Really that would work regardless of the EMH schedule.

So that's my two cents. Enjoy!!

I would definitely do two days in MK and one in Epcot if you're with kids. My DH and I choose MK over Epcot most days too. MK is so magical and big that I was really disappointed our first trip that I didn't leave
More time in MK. I think most children would much rather spend two days in MK over Epcot.

Your plan:

Day One: Arrive early afternoon, head to MK
Day Two: HS in the am, AK in the PM
Day Three: EPCOT, head to HS for Fantasmic after dinner
Day Four: EPCOT
Day Five: MK in am (if time allows), MNSSHP in pm

You can indeed hit the highlights at both Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom in half a day, but putting AK as the second park will make for a pretty short day since it's almost always the first park to close. My suggestion would be to do HS one morning followed by either Epcot or MK, then AK the next morning again followed by either Epcot or MK. Both of those parks are usually open later than HS and always open later than AK. But if you're set on doing both HS and AK on the same day, start with AK and finish with HS.

And I agree with alicemouse, if your family has any interest in Peter Pan's Flight, get FP+ for that one - the standby lines are horrendous. Either that or go there FIRST THING after rope drop.

Edited to add: Another advantage to starting out at AK in the morning - the animals are usually more active in the morning than in the afternoon. So hit Kilimanjaro Safaris as soon as you arrive.

You could even save some of the fun at MK for the MNSSHP. Ride times will be nearly non- existent on party nights. I don't recall waiting longer than 20 minutes for the major attractions. However be aware that Splash may not be open on Party nights but who wants to be wet at night?! Do not miss the Boo to You Parade (the latter parade is less crowded), or Hallo-Wishes. There are dance parties and trick or treating all over the parks. You can go through the trick or treat lines as many times as you like. We challenge ourselves to go through ALL of them at least once but sometimes we hit the short lines a couple of times.

MK is a two day park for sure. The 7 dwarves ride is a must see for first timers but it is not a thrill ride. Your kids are older and may be a little disappointed in the coaster. It's a fantasyland ride, mainly for the under 10 yr old set, in terms of thrills. Think of it as a equal to the barnstormer with a snow white theme. You don't want to wait in the normal line so it really is a FP must.

DHS can be done in a half day however as a first timer you're going to want to walk around and see everything. You will want to get a FP for ToyStory Mania, Tower of Terror and I recommend Star Tours over Rock n Roller coaster but only because we usually do the single rider line for that ride.

AK is half day park as well. If you plan on doing a rope drop I'd go to the safaris first, then Kali River and Expedition Everest. Show times for Nemo and the Lion King are easy to get into. EE also has a single rider line which we take advantage of when we go to avoid long waits.

Because you are going to Epcot during Food and Wine depending on the day you plan to attend it may be crowded (midweek is better than weekends). The kids will love the rides in the front half of the park and depending on how adventurous your eating habits are, the whole family will love the countries and added kiosks of food and beverages in the World Showcase. I'd get a FP for Soarin, Test Track and then any other ride or show that interested you.

There are several of us who will be "home" during that week of October so check the "when are you going to the world" post and see if you can meet up with the October crew. The more the merrier

Have a great first trip and be prepared to fall in love with the World.

I don't know if anything has changed, but when we were there in 2012 Splash Mountain was running during the MNSSHP and we were in an empty log both times we went on. Maybe I'm in the minority, but I love Splash Mountain at night!

My plan of attack when I go to MK is hit up Big Thunder and Splash Mountain first thing in the morning because they have non-existent lines in the mornings right at rope drop. Everyone heads to Fantaslyand and Tomorrowland first thing in the morning at rope drop leaving Adventureland and Liberty Square empty. I would definitely recommend trying to get Seven Dwarfs on a fastpass.

Just a tip, if you're doing FP+ at Epcot during F&W, you might consider the rides BEFORE the food or a couple hours AFTER the food....unless you're riding Nemo. Even motion sickness on Soarin can be unpleasant for the person and those underneath.....

We booked our FP+ fairly early in the day so that we could enjoy the food and drinks without worry.

I like craycatpersons plan but I would make some changes

Day One: Arrive early afternoon, head to MK
Day Two: AK in the am, HS in the PM stay for fantasmic
Day Three: MK
Day Four: EPCOT
Day Five: MK in am (if time allows), MNSSHP in pm

Some ADRs can be changed very easily, moved to a different time or a different day. Restaurant Marrakesh at Epcot, for example - we have never had any trouble getting a table there, even at the last minute. We've also gotten same-day ADRs at Sci-Fi Dine-in Theater at Hollywood Studios, and once we even walked in there without an ADR and got seated fairly quickly. Other ADRs pretty much cannot be changed at all unless you're willing to cancel the original reservation and eat somewhere else. Cinderella's Royal Table and Be Our Guest are good examples there - if you're lucky enough to have an ADR at either restaurant, you're pretty much stuck with the day and time you have if you must eat there.

What I'm saying is, check those ADRs, maybe you can change your schedule and still eat where you want.