For those of you new to the topic and to the Fast Pass system in general, I will cover some of the basics. The Fast Pass system is a type of reservation system designed to cut your wait time on some of the more popular attractions. Guests are invited to insert their park entry ticket into a small kiosk near the ride entrance and they are issued a ticket, with a time printed letting them know when to return. When the time posted on your Fast Pass has come, you are able to enter a special entrance to that attraction bypassing the majority of the wait time.

There are a few caveats on the system, such as the inability to get more than one Fast Pass per park entrance ticket at any one time; Generally you may get another Fast Pass, once the time has come to use the current Fast Pass. Another is, they only dispense a predetermined amount of tickets per hour for any one attraction. I have been told this number is 100 tickets per hour per attraction, but I have never been able to confirm this number with any Cast Members.

Both of these issues are put in place for very good reasons. First of all, if there were no limit to the amount of Fast Passes you could have at any one time, they would be of little or no value as people would just continue to get Fast Passes for each attraction and there would be no reason to stand in the normal line for the attractions. So then we would have 60 minute waits in the Fast Pass lines and none at all in the normal lines. Pointless. The second falls along the same lines. If they did not limit the amount of Fast Pass tickets per hour, you would have huge lines of people all wanting to ride the attraction at the same time.

There is much speculation on the future of the Fast Pass system, the reasons behind installing them in the first place and the value or lack of value they are to the guests. Many feel that the diving reason Disney developed the system was that of greed. Management wanted to keep people from standing in lines but instead, move them to the shops and dining locations around the park. They assumed that if people were not waiting in long lines at the attractions that they would be in the shops spending money. Has this come to be? It would appear it has certainly helped as park revenue is up by a rather large percentage in recent years.

Some have said that the Fast Pass system should be removed entirety and it is, if nothing else, an eye sore around the park. Disneyland was not built with Fast Passes in mind nor is there unlimited space around most of the "older" attraction at that park so space is at a premium. On the other hand, California Adventure is a new park, and it was build with Fast Passes in mind early in the development so the kiosks less obtrusive than at Disneyland. There is one particularly offensive Fast Pass system that comes to mind, the one for Star Tours in Tomorrowland. The major problem with this attractions system is that it had to be places out in the walk way. Granted, with Space Mountain undergoing a major refurbishment the traffic in the area seems to be a little lighter than normal and that helps the traffic flow a little. With the opening of the new Buzz Lightyear attraction, which by the way will be located right across for the Star Tours Fast Pass kiosk and the grand re-opening of Space Mountain in late 2005 the traffic in that area is sure to be at capacity. Then those machines will be in the way and have a major effect on the smooth flow of foot traffic though the area.

Disney has not issued any official statements on the future of the Fast Pass system to date and Cast Members questioned on their future have no idea if they will be removed or not. Based on popularity of the system, even other theme parks have gone to comparable methods to offer guests a more “express” way of enjoying their favorite attractions; one would think that the Fast Pass system will not be going away any time soon. Perhaps Disney is thinking of shifting from the free system to a paid VIP type of ticket that some other parks are using. Universal Studios Hollywood and Six Flags Magic Mountain both have a "special" or "upgraded" ticket you can purchase that gives you the ability to "cut" in line by either a special entrance to the attraction, or the ability to go through the exit of an attraction. If Disney is as revenue centered as some say, then perhaps this is the future of the park, but there are those that would have a problem with an increased ticket price over what the current price is now. With ticket prices near the fifty dollar mark for a single day single park ticket, how many would be willing, or even able to pay more to cut in line.

People who grew up without the Fast Pass system seem to have mixed feelings about it in the first place. Part of the Disney experience was standing in line with your family and talking about the upcoming ride you were about to embark on. Perhaps in this day and age with people in such a hurry they no longer want to wait in a line, but keep in mind when attractions are designed, the line was a very important part of the show. Imagineers start designing the show for the ride at the very entrance to it; it is not just about the ride, but the whole show. The Fast Pass cuts out a good portion of the show for the attraction.

When people are in such a rush to just get to the ride part of the attraction, they are missing out on a large part of the experience of that attraction. There is an old saying, “Slow down and smell the roses” that we might want to think about when at the park. Slow down, enjoy the experience and the total show, you never know when you might notice something you have never seen before, even when it is an attraction you have been on many times in the past. Hidden Mickey’s are not only in the main ride sequence but also spread around in the pre-show line. You never know when you will spot one of these little characters and it is fun for the whole family to look for them.

Fast Passes are a great way for a group with a very limited time to get as many "rides" in as they can on their visit to the parks. One commonly used method is to get a Fast Pass for a popular ride, and then go wait in line at another. By the time you finish the first ride it should be almost time to go use your Fast Pass for the other one. Of course this method is repeated over and over again to get the most out of your limited visit. Of course you had better get your Fast Passes as early as you can on the popular “E” ticket rides when it is busy, as it is not uncommon for the Fast Passes to be out for the day by early afternoon.

So what ever your feelings on the Fast Pass system lets wait and see what Disney has in mind and not get to excited about the rumors you might read on Disney fan sites. Nothing is official yet and I know a few Imagineers who get a good laugh at of few writers when they publish something as fact when it couldn’t be further from the truth. As we learn more about this topic we will be sure and keep you updated.