This monthly article will provide the best FastPass+ strategies to use in Walt Disney World. We publish it 60 days in advance so that you can get your FastPasses set up as soon as your booking time begins! Remember that guests at Walt Disney World Resort hotels can book their FastPass+ reservations 60 days in advance of arrival!
If you want an incredibly detailed post on everything FastPass+ related in 2019 then you should visit MouseHacking’s strategy guide. Our article is meant to provide a laser-focused strategy for each park with consideration for special events and crowd levels. This will be right for a lot of Disney World guests, but it isn’t for everyone. If you want help making FastPass+ reservations for your party, leave a comment or message us on Facebook!
In each park section we will suggest the following:
- Rope Drop: this is the ride you should Rope Drop at or near park opening. Do not use a FastPass here.
- FastPass 1: preferably in the 10-11AM timeslot
- FastPass 2: somewhere between 11AM-2PM
- FastPass 3: noon-4PM. If there is a must-see character FastPass for you, then swap it in here
- DO NOT FP+: This is one ride to never waste a FastPass+ on
We are a few days late, but here are our FastPass+ strategies for December 2019!
Special Considerations
We start each monthly strategy article off with an overview of special events that are happening in the month, as well as any other common events that might affect the strategy. Every month is different and might be affected by multiple events on a week-to-week basis. We will do our best to help you understand the nuances each month!.
Crowd Levels
First we will start off with a link to the December crowd calendar. A significant amount of data science goes into these, so use them to your advantage! December is an interesting month because it is split into two distinct time periods. The first two weeks of December are standard, mid-volume park weeks. Most kids are still in school so weekdays will not be too packed.
The second two weeks of December include the Christmas and New Year’s holidays. Unlike the first half of December, these two weeks are two of the busiest weeks of the entire year.
Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party
Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party (MVMCP) runs from November 8 through December 22, 2019. The party takes place every Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from 7PM to midnight in December. The prices vary for this Extra Ticketed Event – and are subject to change – and tend to increase the closer you get to Christmas Day.
Crowds in Magic Kingdom, where this party takes place, will tend to be lighter on days when MVMCP happens. Guests who do not have tickets to MVMCP will be asked to leave Magic Kingdom around 7PM. Therefore people tend to skip Magic Kingdom on those days because they don’t think they’re getting the full value of the park.
That’s silly, especially if you have Park Hopper tickets!
International Festival of the Holidays
The Epcot International Festival of the Holidays is the fourth and final annual festival in Epcot. Unlike Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, this festival is included in the price of a regular ticket. The activities and extras from this festival happen daily from November 29 through December 30.
Since the festival offers the same entertainment daily, you will not notice too much of a difference in Epcot crowd levels across the month. Guests tend to stay later due to the holiday lights as well as some popular after-dark entertainment.
Magic Kingdom
- Rope Drop: Peter Pan’s Flight
- FastPass 1: Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
- FastPass 2: Space Mountain
- FastPass 3: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (allows you to be at the start of the Festival of Fantasy Parade, and skip to other rides while the rest of the park is watching)
- DO NOT FP+: Dumbo the Flying Elephant (we love the flying elephant, but you can either walk on or enjoy the play area while you wait)
Animal Kingdom
- Rope Drop: Na’vi River Journey
- FastPass 1: Avatar Flight of Passage
- FastPass 2: Expedition Everest
- FastPass 3: Kilimanjaro Safaris (usually you can grab a 4th FP+ here if you would rather see Mickey & Minnie)
- DO NOT FP+: UP! A Great Bird Adventure (you will be disappointed)
Epcot
- Rope Drop: Test Track
- FastPass 1: Frozen Ever After
- FastPass 2: Spaceship Earth
- FastPass 3: Mission: SPACE
- DO NOT FP+: Literally everything else except Soarin’ or Test Track (these 5 rides are the only ones with substantial lines relative to the other FP+ options)
Hollywood Studios
Quick note to reiterate that these suggestions only apply to December 2019. The attractions in Galaxy’s Edge are NOT on the FastPass+ reservation system yet.
- Rope Drop: Toy Story Mania!
- FastPass 1: Slinky Dog Dash
- FastPass 2: Star Tours
- FastPass 3: Muppet*Vision 3D
- DO NOT FP+: Fantasmic! (this prevents you from getting more than 3 FP+ reservations since it is at the very end of the day)
