All the adversity I've had in my life, all my troubles and obstacles, have strengthened me...You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you.
-Walt Disney

Monday, February 6, 2012

Disney getting strict on FASTPASS

Touring Plans is reporting that WDW will be enforcing FASTPASS return times. Apparently, Cast Members have been informed to begin the enforcement March 7th. There is no word on if or when Disneyland may start this enforcement.

The new enforcement means you will no longer be able to return after the end of the hour-long return window, as was the unwritten rule in the past, although there will apparently be some buffer with 5 additional minutes at the beginning and 15 minutes at the end of the time.

So what does this mean for park-goers? Well, it simply means a little more planning will be involved in riding attractions. Gone are the days when you can run over to that popular attraction, get a Fastpass, and just come back later in the day.

Now, let's not forget that this has always been the rule concerning Fastpass return times, and it was even enforced early in the history of Fastpass. Disney has simply been lenient and accommodating to people's schedules and ability to return at their assigned times. But the time has now come when the rules need to be enforced again. With the future of pre-scheduled vacations with pre-scheduled ride times, the parks can no longer afford to let people return whenever they want.

While I do think it will take a little bit to get used to, especially for those who follow the guidebooks, which by the way have all been teaching the method of getting a pass early and returning later and therefore will all need to be rewritten, I do think it will help to keep Fastpasses for the more popular rides from "selling out" so fast. It will also help keep the Fastpass return lines more even, since they will actually be able to plan how many people return for a ride during a given hour. All in all, this will be a good thing for the parks and crowds, once everyone gets used to it.

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