First hint - Fastpasses - these are for Disney World. Disneyland does have the passes as well but the system is different, you use your entry ticket and scan it at a Fastpass kiosk in the park where you will get a Fastpass ticket which will tell you a time to come back and you can only have one Fastpass at a time. DisneyWorld is a little different.
For DW's Fastpass, it is an electronic ride booking system that is connected to your ticket / magic band. Having one of these passes will allow you to skip the regular line and join the FastPass line. Typically this line will be a lot faster as you have priority onto the ride so if there are 5 people in the FastPass line and 10 in the regular line, the 5 in the FastPass get onto the ride before they will load the 10 in the regular line.
These passes are valid for 3 ride in the same park per day of your stay. Once you actually ride the three rides that you booked for that day that you will get one additional one to book for another ride in any of the parks. Make sure to read my FastPasses Tips & Tricks article to get the most out of using these!
At DL or DW can always hit up Rope Drop. If the park does not have an Early Magic Morning then usually the first two hours will be the quietest. However "quiet" does not mean there won't be crowds, it just means the crowds will get worse. If there are a lot of rides you want to do or you were not able to score the FastPass for that popular ride then show up for Rope Drop to increase your chances of bypassing the line.
Rope Drop is when the park opens officially (yes, they use a rope). Get to the park an hour before it is set to open and they will normally be allowing people into the gates, as the park "opens" cast members will walk through various areas to "open" them. If you are towards the front of the group then of course you will one of the first people on the ride for the day. A few hints to make the most of Rope Drop:
- show up at least 30 minutes prior to Rope Drop (parks will sometimes list these times on the TV in your room or in the app) - try to be polite and don't run but speed walk, everyone is here for the same reason
- follow the rope and don't try to sneak by it. If you get to a ride / location that is not open, a Cast Member will redirect you which may cause you to backtrack and lose time
- head to the left side of the park as most people will go right
- try to get the shorter rides out of the way so you get more done (ride times are listed in the MyDisney app)
- if you have a FastPass for the ride (unless you are a huge fan) skip it and ride something else
- try to not waste time walking and hit up rides that are close together
- check the wait times in the app and go for the rides with short lines as the ones with long lines in the morning will thin out as people head over to the shorter line rides afterwards
- focus on getting the rides in then take in the atmosphere and explore the parks afterwards
Use the MyDisney Experience App as this will give you wait times and maps to the rides. One thing to keep in mind is that Disney always over estimates its wait times as they would rather have you thinking you are going to wait an hour for a ride but actually only wait 45 min. You'll walk away happier than if the line is stated to be 45-min but ends up being an hour. If you want a more accurate wait time then there are lots of other apps out there that do the same (they usually have people in the park, waiting to take a ride, and timing the length they are standing there) but a lot of these are paid. You will probably have to download the MyDisney Experience App anyways so might as well use it plus it is free.
Are you okay riding by yourself? Then join the Single Riders Line. Not every ride has a SRL but if they do, there is a very good chance that you will be able to ride the line faster. Quite a few of the rides do not allow people to ride alone so if there is a group of 3 or 5 then they need an additional person to fill out the group, that's when they pull from the SRL. If there is no one in the Stand By line then they will put two single riders together so the line is always moving. The only time this plan can backfire is that you have to wait for a spot that the Cast Member can squeeze you in so if everyone in the Stand By line has the right number of people for the ride, you will be waiting. During the busy times though this will still save you 5-15 minutes compared to the Stand By line.
If you have a kid that cannot ride the ride then you can also do the Ride Swap / Rider Switch program. Not every ride allows it so just ask a Cast Member at the entrance. If it is allowed then have your entire group show up (max 3 adults and there must be at least 1 child). The Party 1 person will join the Stand By line and then Party 2 will be given a Ride Switch Entitlement and asked to wait in a designated area. When Party 1 comes out, they go to Party 2 and take over watching the kid while Party 2 gets to pop into the FastPass line after the Cast Member validates them. If there is a third person that waited with Party 2 then they can join Party 2 in the FastPass line.
If Fireworks and Parade's are not really your thing, this is a great time to ride - Skip the Pomp! 85% of the park will skip the rides to go watch the fireworks or the parade so if these are not your thing (or you've already seen it once this trip) then head for the rides as the line will be shorter! Parade's usually happen multiple times throughout the day and the firework shows usually happen twice a night (first one so you can get the little ones to bed and a later one to close the park) so you could even catch the show at one period and ride during the second one. (We've ridden Expedition Everest six times in a row during the River of Life show in the Animal Kingdom.)
