Matt and Elena's

Disney Park Guide

Rider Bonus

Here are a few secrets that could help you maximize your ability to ride and re-rider your favorite attractions without waiting in line.

Rider Bonus #1: Fastpass and Child Swap Combination

If you are visiting the parks with one or more children that are not tall enough to ride every attraction, you get a bonus!  Here's how it works.  You first get your fastpass tickets for the attraction as you would normally.  Make sure you use all your park tickets, even for the children that cannot ride the attraction.  Next, wait for your fastpass return time.  Now, before using your current fastpass, make sure you have picked up your next fastpasses.  So, you return to the attraction and show up at the line entrance.  Ask the cast member for a child swap pass.  Now, everyone pull back for a moment while you decide who will stay behind with the children and who will ride.  Now, use your fastpasses for those that will ride.  Once, they have ridden, you can now switch riders and use the rest of the fastpasses and if you need to, use the child swap pass for two people.  You will find, depending on how many park tickets you have and how many do not qualify to ride, most will be able to ride two maybe three times in a row without having to wait in line.  BONUS!!!

Rider Bonus #2: Fastpass Disconnect

The fastpass system prevents abuse by networking all fastpass ticket machines to make sure you do not receive your next fastpass before it is time.  This makes sense otherwise what would prevent you from standing in front of a fastpass ticket machine and just emptying it of all fastpass tickets for the day.

The Disneyland Disconnect:  At Disneyland, not all fastpass ticket machines are connected to the fastpass network.  There doesn't seem to be much rhyme or reason as to why the machines are not all connected.

At Disneyland, all fastpass attractions are networked except for:
At California Adventure, all fastpass attractions are networked except for:
You can take advantage of this disconnect.  It means when you get a fastpass from Roger Rabbit's Cartoon Spin (for example) it won't prevent you from immediately walking over to Splash Mountain and getting another fastpass.  In short, fastpasses for a 'disconnected' attraction do not count against you for the other fastpass attractions.  The individual attractions do monitor themselves so, in this example,  you could not get another Roger fastpass until your return time or two hours, which ever comes first.

Also, fastpass machines are not connected across the parks.  If you park hop during the day, you can get fastpasses in park one and then immediately go to park two and get more fastpasses.  And remember, save any unused fastpasses they are good anytime that day, even if their 'use by' time has passed.  Cast members ignore the end time.

Rider Bonus #3: Single Riders Unite!

Finally, some attractions have a single-rider line.  Single rider lines are typically only found on fastpass attractions that have finite seating capacity on the attraction vehicles, like Splash Mountain.  A single-rider line is a separate line where you wait until there is an opening in an attraction vehicle.  Guests waiting in the single-rider line fill the empty seats.  Disney is careful to never allow you to ride with someone you know.  Often, the single-rider line will be as quick if not quicker than the fastpass line.  The only downside to the single-rider line is you will not be riding with anyone you know.

Not all attraction offer a single-rider line.  The easiest way to find out is ask the cast member at the entrance to the lines.  Usually the park map given to you when you entered the park will tell you when attractions have single rider lines.


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Last updated: 31 July 2006