*No longer relevant* (Maxpass/Fastpass: an overview and some strategy)

[Winnowill]

Does anyone know if max pass quantities are limited? I was considering buying tickets through a discount site and then adding max pass once we are in the parks. I just don't want max pass to become unavailable due to the SWGE crowds expected this summer.

Considering that paying for MP does nothing for anyone in terms of getting FPs for SWGE (they won't be available initially), I think standard MP will be just fine.

Can someone explain the math? I love the MP idea, but we're a party of six. In order to get six FPs, we would need MP for all six tickets? So $15x6 = $90...per day? So, a 5-day trip would add $450? Or can we "only" spend $40 per day for DH and I to have MP and book for us and the kids? Every time I read a post where I think I understand, I read one that flips my understanding. TIA!

Every person who wants to book Fastpasses through the app needs to purchase MP. You can purchase for all members of your party, but every person needs it. So, yes, all five, for each day you want it. $450 in your case for every day.

 

[ellamama]

Can someone explain the math? I love the MP idea, but we're a party of six. In order to get six FPs, we would need MP for all six tickets? So $15x6 = $90...per day? So, a 5-day trip would add $450? Or can we "only" spend $40 per day for DH and I to have MP and book for us and the kids? Every time I read a post where I think I understand, I read one that flips my understanding. TIA!

MP - essentially the ability to book FP via the app - is $15 per person per day. So yes, in order to book via MP for your entire party, you would need to purchase MP for each person. In your case, at a cost of $90/day. Traditional paper FPs are free at the kiosks.

 

[Butterfly123]

Can someone explain the math? I love the MP idea, but we're a party of six. In order to get six FPs, we would need MP for all six tickets? So $15x6 = $90...per day? So, a 5-day trip would add $450? Or can we "only" spend $40 per day for DH and I to have MP and book for us and the kids? Every time I read a post where I think I understand, I read one that flips my understanding. TIA!

What I was referring to in that post was that the max pass price had been raised from $10 to $15. So an extra five dollars a day for five people for five days was $125 over the price we would’ve been paying for the max pass when it was $10. So I was just bemoaning how much more I would pay since they raised the price from $10 to $15.
Maxpass for all 5 of us with the price increase for 5 days would be $375.

 

[Betty_Baylor99]

What I was referring to in that post was that the max pass price had been raised from $10 to $15. So an extra five dollars a day for five people for five days was $125 over the price we would’ve been paying for the max pass when it was $10. So I was just bemoaning how much more I would pay since they raised the price from $10 to $15.
Maxpass for all 5 of us with the price increase for 5 days would be $375.

In our experience as a party of 5 for a recent 3 day visit. We only bought MP for all of us for the first two days at DL. I only bought MP for myself on the 3rd day which was our CA day because I wanted the photopass entitlement for pictures that day. I do not feel buying a MP for CA is worth it because there are so few rides/attractions it covers to make it justifiable for the price. We honestly felt the EMH entitlement (we were staying on property) was enough to get us a jump start so that we could ride everything we needed that day- we did the early hour and grabbed a RSR paper FP, walked onto and rode Incredicoaster twice, walked onto Toy Story Mania, walked onto Little Mermaid, and we were able to grab paper FP for Soarin, Goofys Sky School and GOTG later that day. We just always made sure to grab the next FP possible when the next booking window opened up. We also tag teamed where DH would stay in a standby line with the kids for a ride that I didn’t care for (side eye at you Tow Mater LOL) so that I would just run with everyone’s tickets to pull paper FPs for all of us so it’d just be me doing the running around, and not the kids. If we were to go back, I would only feel compelled to book MP for our Disneyland days. That being said, we are WDW FP veterans and former DL passholders so we are familiar with FP strategizing process.

 

[kiwitinkerbell]

Hi. I have tried searching but have got a bit confused. It has been some time since visiting Disney and the last time was when we used fast passes for rides. This has obviously changed now and from what I can read it's been replaced by "maxpass". Is that correct?
Could someone please explain how it works or direct me to a thread that explains it. Thank you.

 

[AmberK24]

MaxPass didn’t replace the Fast Pass system, but is a more convenient add on feature. For $15/person/day, you can book your next Fast Pass through the app as soon as you are available to do so. It saves having to go to the actual attraction to get your FP, but it can still be used in the old version.

 

[HydroGuy]

Hi. I have tried searching but have got a bit confused. It has been some time since visiting Disney and the last time was when we used fast passes for rides. This has obviously changed now and from what I can read it's been replaced by "maxpass". Is that correct?
Could someone please explain how it works or direct me to a thread that explains it. Thank you.

Yes someone can and has. See "Maxpass/Fastpass: an overview and some strategy" by @Skyegirl1999 - www.disboards.com/threads/maxpass-fastpass-an-overview-and-some-strategy.3726246/

 

[TheBacklot]

I think I am going to use it over Mothers Day weekend, it will be my first time, but it seems like the two biggest benefits for me will be the ability to do it on the phone vs going to each kiosk and then there is a 90-minute waiting period vs a 2-hour standard waiting period, so that alone may help me maximize my time. I am not clear on the stacking of fast passes yet, that's kind of confusing.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

... I am not clear on the stacking of fast passes yet, that's kind of confusing.

From the MP overview thread (excellent resource! read it, if you haven't already) linked above (in HydroGuy's post):
"Stacking" FPs:
When people reference "stacking" FPs, they're talking about booking FPs so that you have a bunch ready to use at one time. This is especially nice if you're taking an afternoon break and want to have a bunch of FPs ready when you come back (just keep booking a new one every 90 minutes). Some examples of how this can work:
Example A - stacking for the evening:
Mid-morning, you book RSR for a 7:00-8:00pm return time. Throughout the day, you keep an eye on other DCA rides and book them when they get to evening returns - say, grab GOTG with a 6:30-7:30 return time, and later grab Incredicoaster with 7:15-8:15. Now, when you come back to DCA, all three of those are waiting for you.
Example B - stacking by location:
First thing in the morning, you book Space Mountain with an 8:45-9:45am return time. At 8:45, you book Star Tours with a 9:15-10:15 return time. At 9:15, you book Buzz Lightyear with a 9:20-10:20 return time. Now, head to Tomorrowland and ride all three. (Note: In this case, I'd actually ride Buzz first so you can grab your next FP immediately - keep in mind that your Space FP will scan until 10am, giving you plenty of time to hit Buzz on your way there.)

 

[sunshiinedaydream]

From the MP overview thread (excellent resource! read it, if you haven't already) linked above (in HydroGuy's post):
"Stacking" FPs:
When people reference "stacking" FPs, they're talking about booking FPs so that you have a bunch ready to use at one time. This is especially nice if you're taking an afternoon break and want to have a bunch of FPs ready when you come back (just keep booking a new one every 90 minutes). Some examples of how this can work:
Example A - stacking for the evening:
Mid-morning, you book RSR for a 7:00-8:00pm return time. Throughout the day, you keep an eye on other DCA rides and book them when they get to evening returns - say, grab GOTG with a 6:30-7:30 return time, and later grab Incredicoaster with 7:15-8:15. Now, when you come back to DCA, all three of those are waiting for you.
Example B - stacking by location:
First thing in the morning, you book Space Mountain with an 8:45-9:45am return time. At 8:45, you book Star Tours with a 9:15-10:15 return time. At 9:15, you book Buzz Lightyear with a 9:20-10:20 return time. Now, head to Tomorrowland and ride all three. (Note: In this case, I'd actually ride Buzz first so you can grab your next FP immediately - keep in mind that your Space FP will scan until 10am, giving you plenty of time to hit Buzz on your way there.)

So you can pull another FP once your window to ride your current FP starts? You don’t have to wait until you scan the FP to ride or 90min?

 

[PHXscuba]

So you can pull another FP once your window to ride your current FP starts? You don’t have to wait until you scan the FP to ride or 90min?

YES. The only exception is you can't hold 2 MPs for the same ride at the same time. So when the window opens to book another MP you can't book one you already have and haven't used yet.

I do a screenshot (see picture below) of my MP confirmation screen that says "this party can make a new Fastpass selection at XX:XX" so I know when my window opens because it's not as easy to calculate in your MaxPass selections.



PHXscuba

 

[sunshiinedaydream]

YES. The only exception is you can't hold 2 MPs for the same ride at the same time. So when the window opens to book another MP you can't book one you already have and haven't used yet.

I do a screenshot (see picture below) of my MP confirmation screen that says "this party can make a new Fastpass selection at XX:XX" so I know when my window opens because it's not as easy to calculate in your MaxPass selections.

View attachment 392700

PHXscuba

Good to know! Do you have a screenshot of what it says when you make a FP selection for say.. 20 minutes out and when you can pull your next one is?

 

[Skyegirl1999]

Good to know! Do you have a screenshot of what it says when you make a FP selection for say.. 20 minutes out and when you can pull your next one is?

There’s a screenshot like that in the Maxpass/FP thread linked above - it’s in the first post after the OP.

 

[kiwitinkerbell]

Thanks everyone for the info!

 

[dieumeye]

• Can I check for cancelled FPs without cancelling my current FP? No, unfortunately not.

Something to look into regarding this. I might be wrong, but I think this has changed with the recent app update.

What I'm used to is the app doing a "check" before you get to the return time screen. That is, you select the FP party, then it does the "check" and if you aren't able to make a FP reservation it won't let you see the screen with all the FP return times. So, there was no way to see all the current return times at once if you aren't eligible to book a FP.

When I visited the park the other day after the app update I noticed this: I made my FP party, and then it went to the return time screen so I could see all the available return times. I got to that screen even though I was not eligible to book another FP since I had just booked one. Only AFTER I tried to book another FP, did it do the "check" and I was told I couldn't select another FP until a certain time.

I hope that made sense. But basically, I'm saying I think they changed it so that even if you have a FP booked and are are not yet eligible to book another one, you can still get to the screen that shows all the return times.

Again, I might be losing my mind, but I feel like that is different than it used to be and thought I'd mention it.

PS - awesome job with the FP/MP writeup. It's really good. I wish everyone in the park was required to read it!

 

[Skyegirl1999]

Something to look into regarding this. I might be wrong, but I think this has changed with the recent app update.

What I'm used to is the app doing a "check" before you get to the return time screen. That is, you select the FP party, then it does the "check" and if you aren't able to make a FP reservation it won't let you see the screen with all the FP return times. So, there was no way to see all the current return times at once if you aren't eligible to book a FP.

When I visited the park the other day after the app update I noticed this: I made my FP party, and then it went to the return time screen so I could see all the available return times. I got to that screen even though I was not eligible to book another FP since I had just booked one. Only AFTER I tried to book another FP, did it do the "check" and I was told I couldn't select another FP until a certain time.

I hope that made sense. But basically, I'm saying I think they changed it so that even if you have a FP booked and are are not yet eligible to book another one, you can still get to the screen that shows all the return times.

Again, I might be losing my mind, but I feel like that is different than it used to be and thought I'd mention it.

PS - awesome job with the FP/MP writeup. It's really good. I wish everyone in the park was required to read it!

Ooooo, I will check for that! I understand exactly what you're describing, and I didn't even think to check if that had changed with the update.

I'll make sure to confirm when I'm there so I know how to describe it, and update the OP accordingly. The question would still be whether you could cancel your existing FP in time to pick up a cancellation you saw - you'd have to X out of that screen, get to the FPs, cancel them, get back to the return time screen... I wonder if you could do it from two phones at the same time, so one person could cancel and then the other could book it? Something to consider...

Thanks for the information!

 

[theluckyrabbit]

Another glitch we noticed after the last update: our FPs weren't disappearing from our app after we used them. We didn't try to go back to see if they would actually work at the scanner again. This happened every FP we had all evening. Has anyone else noticed this and checked to see if the FP works more than once?

 

[dieumeye]

Another glitch we noticed after the last update: our FPs weren't disappearing from our app after we used them. We didn't try to go back to see if they would actually work at the scanner again. This happened every FP we had all evening. Has anyone else noticed this and checked to see if the FP works more than once?

Yes!!! Last Saturday I had two GRR FPs that didn’t go away after using them. I thought it was maybe because a CM was using a hand scanner (instead of the posts) and so I just ignored it. Was tempted to try to use them but didn’t.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

Yes!!! Last Saturday I had two GRR FPs that didn’t go away after using them. I thought it was maybe because a CM was using a hand scanner (instead of the posts) and so I just ignored it. Was tempted to try to use them but didn’t.

Yes -- our experience was on Saturday, too! Anyone there now experiencing this??

 

[twodogs]

If you forget to screen shot that, just try to book a FP and it will give you an “oops” screen that says you can’t book your next FP until xx:xx.