Fastpass queues (plus obligatory "I'm new" thread)

[monotonehell]

Hey from Australia .. no wait *clears throat*
G'day. (Must keep the illusion alive)

Long time lurker, first time poster.

Last time I was at DLR they were still building DCA and the Rocket Rods were being tested under wraps. So this whole fastpass thing is a new concept to me. I've read loads of articles all over the web and spent an hour or more reading the "Joys of fastpass" thread. But no one has mentioned how long the queues to actually obtain a fastpass are.

So, if it's busy and you have to queue to collect a fastpass, what are the kinds of waiting periods at different times while you're waiting for confused guests to stop trying to shove credit cards into a fastpass machine?

[Erika Ruth]

The longest I have had to wait to get a fast pass is about 2 minutes. And that is when the machine is jammed... (a CM comes over and opens the machine and unjams it). Really, it isn't a concern! (they have like 4 machines per ride, and it takes a total of 15 seconds to get them for your group) Normally, one person sticks in like 3-4 tickets quickly in a row to get the fastpasses for the whole group.

Erika

[tinkermonkey]

I'm sure you will get more detailed responses than this one, but its a simple "line?" from me. Rarely is there more than a couple of minutes for a line to get fastpasses. The only exceptions I can think of on my last trip were Haunted Mansion Holiday which was about a 5 minute easy line - but then there was Splash. I found it ironic to be standing in a line for nearly 15 minutes to avoid standing in line later - although the real ride line is much longer!!

Hope that helps! Oh, yeah, WELCOME to Micechat!! (y'know, officially and all...)

[wickeddisneygurl]

it doesn't usually take too long because all you do is stick your ticket in and grab a pass and there are at least 6-8 machines. plus there are often cm's standing there to help those confused guests. and anywayz, i've never seen anyone try to stick their credit cards in (yet!). the instructions seem pretty straightforward, at least for me, though i can't speak for anyone else!

btw-welcome!

[frecky]

Ive never heard of anyone trying to stick a credit card in there. I had trouble with one the other day....because well, I wasnt on top of my game. But anyway, Ive never waited in line to get a fast pass before.
And welcome!

[ALIASd]

WELCOME! Please say hi to Tassie & family for us!

[hollywood1939]

The only time I've waited was when the machine said it took my passport but didn't give me a ticket. I then tried to use another machine and it said I already had a FP. A nice CM just gave me one that I could use right then (the time had already passed). Now that I think about it, I should have gave her a compliment at City Hall for it. Really nice lady.

[monotonehell]

Thanks for the welcomes and the answers, people. The reason I asked was an article I read spoke of "joining the sort of queue that guests waiting to use the fastpass machines try to form". That started me wondering if there was some kind of ironic queues forming there.

Fastpass sounds like a curse and a blessing.

Will do ALIASd maybe I should get a job as a Jungle Cruise Skipper, I could add an Authentic Australian flavour to it.

[DarkRider]

Fastpass sounds like a curse and a blessing.

Now you're gettin' it!

maybe I should get a job as a Jungle Cruise Skipper, I could add an Authentic Australian flavour to it.

That'd be cool...never heard an Aussie skipper before!

[DisneyCarnivora]

ONCE just once on a hot busy day I did see the line for Splash Mountain fastpass extending down towards HM with about a 25min wait. The norm is 2-5min or less to get a fastpass.

[rihard2000]

The only time I've ever experienced any sort of a wait to get a fastpass ticket is at Haunted Mansion Holiday or Indy on a day when the park reached capacity. Unless your visit is going to be New Years Eve, you really don't have to worry about waiting to get a fastpass ticket.

[travelmom]

Welcome to the board!
We seem to meet people from Australia every time we go to Disneyland for the past couple of years.
Hope you have the opportunity to visit the parks soon!

[aerinpegadrak]

That'd be cool...never heard an Aussie skipper before!

We had an Aussie skipper for a while. Pretty sure he left before I learned Jungle.

On Saturday morning, the line to get Fastpasses for Indy was about 15 minutes. When the line got longer than what the roped off queue could hold, we printed off tons of FPs and handed them out to get the area clear. That only happens on really, really crowded days, because that area gets dangerously bottlenecked and needs to be kept as clear as possible.

Have fun at Disneyland! It's a pretty different place now than when you were there last, but it's nice. My biggest tip about FP is to check the bottom of your pass to find out exactly when you can get a new one, and make sure you have a new one as soon as possible.

And welcome to the boards!

[DisneyGeek75]

Normally there is a very small wait. There are exceptions, Slpash as mentioned and also during peak days like Veterens day etc. Also, you do have those people who insist on going in through the exit and causing problems!!!!!! Come on people you can wait 2 mins to get your fastpass no need to cut!

[PEZZ Lightyear]

Welcome, Monotone! We love the blokes from down unda!

FastPass question has been answered pretty well here. No real line to speak of to get them.

Tell us when you'll be walkin' about DL so we can put another Barbie on the shrimp!