Fastpass+ without MDE or touring without Fastpass+

[jiminy.cricket]

Hello; I haven't been to the parks in a few years and had a few questions about Fastpass+. First of all, when you activate Fastpass+ on your tickets at a park kiosk, do you essentially need to create a My Disney Experience account? Would the kiosk request any information before activating the tickets? Secondly, has anyone toured just a few attractions without Fastpass+ successfully? Is it doable? Finally, which attraction would be your absolute must-do if you did not use Fastpass+? Tales with Belle, Mermaid, or Mine Train? Thank you so much for any information and input!

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

I haven't been to the parks in a few years and had a few questions about Fastpass+.

You should create a MDE account BEFORE going anywhere near the parks
Link your park tickets to your MDE account and you can then book your daily FP+ at either 60 days or 30 days before you arrive (60 if staying at a Disney Resort or 30 if staying offsite).
You use the kiosks to book additional FP+ while in the parks AFTER your initial three have been used

 

[jiminy.cricket]

Thanks, Captain Hook! I already understand how Fastpass+ works, but can I still use it if I don't create a MDE account?

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

Thanks, Captain Hook! I already understand how Fastpass+ works, but can I still use it if I don't create a MDE account?

No. You have to have the account in which to "store" your FP+ choices in, its where the Magicband accesses and links to the FP+ you've made

 

[dadddio]

I'm not sure that that is correct.

Do people who by passes 'at the gate' build an MDE account? What about those people who buy tickets from a discounter and just show up at the entrance?

I'm thinking that these tickets must exist and be valid within the MDE system, even though they are not linked to MDE accounts.

 

[sjhym333]

I believe (though I am not 100%) that if you buy a ticket at the ticket booth, enter the park and then go to a kiosk and get 3 FP+, the FP's are connected to your ticket and you don't have to set up an MDE account, but you would have to stop at a kiosk anytime you need to make a change.

 

[Rob562]

I believe (though I am not 100%) that if you buy a ticket at the ticket booth, enter the park and then go to a kiosk and get 3 FP+, the FP's are connected to your ticket and you don't have to set up an MDE account, but you would have to stop at a kiosk anytime you need to make a change.

AFAIK, that is correct. Tickets not linked to a specific MDE profile are essentially pointed at "ghost" profiles. (The ticket can then be assigned to an actual MDE profile at any time) The CM's working the kiosk can also link tickets together so that you can make FP+ choices as a group (again, essentially making those "ghost" profiles friends).

-Rob

 

[wdwmagic]

I believe (though I am not 100%) that if you buy a ticket at the ticket booth, enter the park and then go to a kiosk and get 3 FP+, the FP's are connected to your ticket and you don't have to set up an MDE account, but you would have to stop at a kiosk anytime you need to make a change.

AFAIK, that is correct. Tickets not linked to a specific MDE profile are essentially pointed at "ghost" profiles. (The ticket can then be assigned to an actual MDE profile at any time) The CM's working the kiosk can also link tickets together so that you can make FP+ choices as a group (again, essentially making those "ghost" profiles friends).

-Rob

That's correct

 

[jiminy.cricket]

Wow; thank you, all of you! I was scouring the Internet for an answer. Love this site! This is so nice to know!

 

[jiminy.cricket]

I fell off the face of the earth once school started again, but I thought I'd provide an update and a bump for any other planners. Thank you again for the information! You were spot-on.

We programmed our tickets with Fastpass+ at the Philharmagic kiosk in the MK after entry and used the kiosks for the remainder of the day.

We didn't want to create accounts with MyMagic+, and fortunately, we didn't need to. We were lucky (on a weekday before Christmas week) not to really need Fastpasses! We stood in line for Be Our Guest, Enchanted Tales, Under the Sea, Dwarves' Mine Train; the waits weren't overwhelming, we weren't in a rush to see everything, and we used Fastpass+ for old favorites. We even wound up leaving the park early (which never happens); we'd seen everything else before and the park was getting quite crowded. The challenge now is to visit a different season, post-construction, and hopefully keep the magic from going stale!

 

[BrianV]

Why didn't you want an MDE account?

(Glad you had fun!)

 

[RonAnnArbor]

If you visit the park for a day you don't need a MDE account...why would you want one? Im a annual passholder and I almost never use MDE -- just to make occasional fastpasses in advance or dining reservations -- even then, I don't make dining reservations through MDE, it just links it to that account when you login on the dining site

 

[BrianV]

If you visit the park for a day you don't need a MDE account...why would you want one? Im a annual passholder and I almost never use MDE -- just to make occasional fastpasses in advance or dining reservations -- even then, I don't make dining reservations through MDE, it just links it to that account when you login on the dining site

I just figured there must be a rationale for NOT wanting one. The system is designed to link everything together so fast passes, dining reservations, room reseravations and even pictures are all there in one place. I get that one might be lazy and not bother to get one. But in this case, it seems to be more work to actively avoid getting one.

Are there privacy concerns involved? Or does skipping a MDE account allow for some additional flexibility or benefits of which I'm not aware?

 

[RonAnnArbor]

No, its just that if you don't use those things there is no reason to even have it -- the downside is that it 100% links you to your smartphone all day long...day visitors don't usually have room reservations, nor pictures. You can make dining reservations faster by calling then by using MDE on your phone. Fast passes are on the tickets themselves. There is nothing that MDE would do that you need as a day visitor.

 

[mousehockey37]

Everyone has their way of doing things. Simple as that. With as tech savvy as we are becoming, there are people that don't want to buy into it, and that's fine. So Disney has to leave an avenue open to those that want to show up and just get a pass and see what they can do 'on the fly'.

Remember, they still also do KTTW cards for people who don't want magic bands.

 

[BrianV]

No, its just that if you don't use those things there is no reason to even have it -- the downside is that it 100% links you to your smartphone all day long...day visitors don't usually have room reservations, nor pictures. You can make dining reservations faster by calling then by using MDE on your phone. Fast passes are on the tickets themselves. There is nothing that MDE would do that you need as a day visitor.

I think you can use MDE without even owning a smart phone. Certainly, all FP+so can be done on a computer at home. As for pictures, it was pretty cool. I didn't even once pose for a picture. And a week after our vacation, we were alerted to two pictures of us on the 7-dwarfs mine train. Even though we are never day visitors and we never have signed up for a photo package, this was a cool extension of long range magic bands tied together with MDE.

Also, as a day visitor, you could still book your FP+ the night before (actually up to 30 days before). Maybe you can do this without a MDE account.

Everyone has their way of doing things. Simple as that. With as tech savvy as we are becoming, there are people that don't want to buy into it, and that's fine. So Disney has to leave an avenue open to those that want to show up and just get a pass and see what they can do 'on the fly'.

Remember, they still also do KTTW cards for people who don't want magic bands.

I get that someone might rather not use MDE. In the same way, someone might rather not use fast pass. Someone else might rather not made ADRS. Totally your call. But I'm still at a loss to understand if there is an advantage to passing on MDE. Or if there is a disadvantage to using it.

To each his or her own. But I'd love to understand the rationale behind the decision.

 

[RonAnnArbor]

There is no disadvantage to using it. There is no reason to use it for some visitors.

 

[jiminy.cricket]

Why didn't you want an MDE account?

(Glad you had fun!)

There is no disadvantage to using it. There is no reason to use it for some visitors.

Thank you both! Yeah; the default for us leaned more toward not using MDE than using it. We usually visit the park(s) for a day each trip and there isn't much we haven't seen. Also, my family likes to do vacations on the fly instead of planning a lot. I like planning but I just try to minimize the amount of personal information I give away in general. Still, I had an interest in using Fastpass+ to help us in the park.