DisneyTips.com Your Guide To A Great Disney Vacation
So let’s face it, there are many of you out there are focused on the rides and want to fit as many in as possible, right? Sometimes you get lucky and maybe it rained and cleared out the park, or it’s a slower season, but most of the time Disney is pretty busy. With just a little bit of planning and coordination, you can fit in a ton of rides, even when the parks are experiencing moderate to high volumes. Here are 7 amazing Disney ride tricks that we swear by:
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1. Ride indoor rides during the heat of the day.
This trick can be a lifesaver to ensure that you can last during the day at the parks. Try to coordinate the outdoor rides during morning and evening hours so that you aren’t waiting in the sun, or even in the shade, but still sweating like the crazy. The indoor rides will feel like a treat as soon as that burst of air conditioning hits you, and you can get cooled off enough to face the heat again.
2. Coordinate FastPass+ for busy times of the day and the busiest attractions.
You likely wouldn’t need FastPass+ right when the park opens since guests will still be arriving. So you may want to wait until mid-morning to start FastPass+ options since you can get a couple rides in soon after park opening. You will want to use FP+ for the busiest attractions, since even at park opening, there are crowds of people that flock to rides Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom, Avatar Flight of Passage at Animal Kingdom, and Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway or Slinky Dog Dash at Hollywood Studios. If you use FP+ for these rides and rush to rides that will have almost no line first thing in the morning you can fit more in, in a shorter amount of time.
3. Get Extra FastPass+.
Some guests may not know this, but the My Disney Experience App may only let you reserve 3 FP+ selections to start with, but once you have used all 3 of the first selections, you can go use the My Disney Experience app and get another pass. To get the best benefit out of this, schedule your FP+ for mid-morning and into early afternoon so you can grab another one! Finished with your 4th FP? Go for a 5th FP and so on until the park closes!
4. Ride rides late and during parades/shows.
Just how the parks aren’t as busy first thing in the morning, you will find much shorter lines the last couple hours of park operation, especially on late nights or Extra Magic Hours. This is also true during parades, fireworks and evening shows. While everyone else is squished together getting these experiences, the ride lines are shorter and waiting for you. I love riding Big Thunder Mountain or Splash Mountain during Happily Ever After! It’s a really neat view and experience. Definitely don’t use your FP+ options for these times, you likely won’t need it!
5. Use single-rider options.
There are a few rides in WDW parks that have single-rider options (Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run, Test Track, Expedition Everest, Rock ‘N’ Roller Coaster). If you want to get on the ride much faster (usually), use this option. You may not be on the same ride with the rest of your party, but that may not matter if you have ridden the ride before or don’t mind meeting up afterward. You might even make a new friend!
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6. Be mindful of ride locations.
Set yourself up for success to minimize the amount of walking and walk time between attractions. It wouldn’t be helpful to ride an attraction in Tomorrowland, have your next FP+ selection in Adventureland and then head back to Tomorrowland again for the next one. Pay attention to ride locations and select FP+ times that follow an efficient walking pattern. Your feet will thank you, too!
7. Know which rides have photos.
If ride photos are your thing, make sure you know which rides have this option. You can check your hair or practice your best poses and faces while you wait to board so that you are ready for the photo! So many people get extremely creative with their poses, so learn the spot in the ride where the photo is taken and create a memorable photo (for the other people on your ride, too!). No selfies though, since selfie sticks are now banned from Disney rides! You’ll just have to settle for the ride photo options!
