DHS: “Burner” FastPass & Runaway Railway?

[Elias1901]

Hey everyone,

I’m just curious if any DHS FP+ experts out there could shed some light on my DHS selections and what is a good and bad idea for getting through the initial batch of FP+ to be able to start making more... currently, my two days at DHS have FP+ set up like this:

DAY 1

• Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster (9:20 AM – 10:20 AM)
• Star Tours (10:20 AM – 11:20 AM)
• Voyage of the Little Mermaid (11:20 AM – 11:35 AM)

DAY 2

• Slinky Dog Dash (9:40 AM – 10:40 AM)
• Star Tours – The Adventures Continue (10:40 AM – 11:40 AM)
• Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular (12:45 PM – 1:00 PM)

Alright, so. I’m aware the FP+ situation at DHS is a bit screwy right now with all the best attractions shoved into tier one for whatever ungodly reason... BUT I should mention that we obviously have interest in attending our tier one choices listed above as well as both Star Tours.

Now, here’s where the dilemma comes in. As most of you know, DHS forces you pick a show of some sort as your third FP+ and I was reading people that say to just make a useless FP+ at say Voyage of the Little Mermaid or Muppet*Vision 3D or something to “burn” off to get to making new selections faster. This does make sense.

However — as you can see above, I have both Mermaid and Indy as my two “burner” FP+ and I’m not sure (at least with Indy) I’m doing the right thing. You see, we ARE interested in seeing both Indy and Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, etc. but is it suggested I should make the pass for those as early as possible? Would it be better if I tossed Mermaid or Muppets or whatever in as the VERY FIRST slot of the day, if I can, just to push off the “good” FP+ till after that so that we can enjoy the early “lesser crowd” part of the morning without running to our FP+ attractions and instead just enjoy lower standby waits for the time being after RD and into the mid-morning??

Should I just ignore Indy as a FP+ and book Muppets or something and just have us see Indy standby later?? I’m sure I may be able to finagle things around if any of you have suggestions on adjustments for me. Though I’m sure Slinky and maybe Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster are probably pretty absolute. Would you suggest maybe pushing Mermaid/Muppets as early as possible?

Is tapping in at the attractions even necessary?? Or could we just simply miss them and continue on with our rope-drop time/morning...

For that matter... is it even necessary to select a third FP+ to burn? Or could I just stick with my two good ones each day and move onto a third good one at the park day-of? Or do they force a crappy third choice on you even then?? Some info on this would be most appreciated!!

Okay, and as a final note, we are going the second Friday and Sunday after Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway opens (supposedly... lol!) and I’m wondering if we should make that our rope-drop attraction (after securing a boarding group for RotR) since it is brand new?? Or do you think it will still make the most sense to RD Slinky Dog Dash? What about Smuggler’s Run??

I thought I’d float these questions out here now and gather some data and advice beforehand so I can do my best to not let my travel party down once there... I’m supposed to be the Disney expert! Ha!!

 

[Elias1901]

So I just took a peek and it seems I may be hooped with making any adjustments to day one as my Voyage of The Little Mermaid FP+ is basically already as early as I can get it to be. I still can make a change for day two to scrap Indy (I’d recommended to do so) and recover about an hour of time by selecting one of these for 11:45 AM, assuming they’re still available once I get some responses here... thoughts??

 

[havoc315]

Shows never actually require FP. There is no wait for standby.

yes, you must use/expire 3 FPs before making another tier 1 selection. If crowds are high, most/all tier 1 FPs can be gone by noon.
so burn off your FPs as fast as possible.

 

[yorkieteacher]

As PP said, your "burner" FP's must be used or allowed to expire. If you tap into the attraction you do not plan to use, the FP is considered used and you can make another FP as soon as all three register on MDX as used. For your final FP, it is better to have it "used" as soon as possible, so tap into the attraction rather than let it expire if you are anxious to make that 4th FP. I haven't found Tower of Terror, Alien Saucers, or Rock n Roller Coaster, all Tier 1's, to be difficult to get later in the day. We'll be there opening day of MMRR, and I'm sure we will all weigh in on these boards on how they managed queues.

 

[Calee]

Yes, drop Indy and pick something that you can get right after Star Tours. Also, after you check into your Star Tours FP you can get on the app and try to move your third earlier.

 

[Etch]

Okay, and as a final note, we are going the second Friday and Sunday after Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway opens (supposedly... lol!) and I’m wondering if we should make that our rope-drop attraction (after securing a boarding group for RotR) since it is brand new?? Or do you think it will still make the most sense to RD Slinky Dog Dash? What about Smuggler’s Run??

I think for this question you'll just have to wait and see how WDW chooses to handle the opening of MMRR. Will it be a boarding pass like ROTR? A FP+ choice? Standby Line Only? Once this is announced you'll have a better idea for your touring plan.

It's really hard to plan a day at HS after Mar. 4th right now. All the current information could be out the window.

 

[havoc315]

My recommendations would be:
9am Muppet FP. Just let it expire. Instead, do a rope drop priority.
10am— real tier 1fp.
11am— Star Tours.
Swipe your FP for Star Tours right at 11, and get another tier 1, while you’re in the queue.

 

[Elias1901]

Thanks to all who replied! I have made whatever adjustments I could at the time,according to your recommendations.

My recommendations would be:
9am Muppet FP. Just let it expire. Instead, do a rope drop priority.
10am— real tier 1fp.
11am— Star Tours.
Swipe your FP for Star Tours right at 11, and get another tier 1, while you’re in the queue.

So, yes, on day two I did drop Indy for a Muppets FP+ but unfortunately, I couldn’t get it to show any times for the first hour of park operation. I shall note that type of strategy for next time (assuming the tiers don’t change to become more reasonable).

I did, however, manage to select it for 11:40 AM, as that was all that was available ASAP. I will remember once we’re in the park to burn that off as soon as it comes available to be able to make more tier one selections.

Day one remains unchanged as Mermaid at 11:20 AM was also the earliest thing showing up and I already had that. Again, I shall remember to burn it as soon as I can.

Question. While burning these passes... would it be a bad idea to just use them as intended and see the shows with these? I know I’ll jump on the app in the queue or whatever as soon as we tap in... but should we might as well use them by that time if we walked there to burn them and we planned on catching these experiences at some point anyway? I could see ignoring them if it was still the early AM... but I’d assume by that time, the crowds would start packing in, so it couldn’t hurt to just see these shows anyhow... am I wrong on this??

Also! As I use each FP+ on my list, should I try to keep adjusting the time on the one ahead of the one I just used in order to see if I can scoot the next one to be used up faster? I assume if there’s no options you just wait it out and use your passes at the times you’ve picked regardless, though...

 

[Dug720]

My recommendations would be:
9am Muppet FP. Just let it expire. Instead, do a rope drop priority.
10am— real tier 1fp.
11am— Star Tours.
Swipe your FP for Star Tours right at 11, and get another tier 1, while you’re in the queue.

Could you also try to modify up the Star Tours to earlier once you have tapped in for the 10am pass?

 

[glocon]

You should definitely see the shows you want to see anyway once you tap in for them. The burners are really space fillers for people who don’t want to see them- but you do want to see them! So do it!! Also, it is good strategy to try and move up fp’s if you can once you tap in on one. Just don’t miss out on some of the great queues doing so!

 

[PrincessWithABlaster]

Shows are great to see in the afternoon while wait times are high and you don’t need FPs for them. But by 11 you might as well just go watch it if you want to see it (make your next FP right after tapping in or while waiting for it to start). If you had a 10:00 Muppets I would say burn it and go back in the afternoon. If the Tiers stay the way they are now after March 4th I’m going to have to have the Disney strategy talk ahead of time with my family (of let’s go on the people move at 9:20 am fame).

 

[Alison S]

Putting the tier 1 FP first (as you've done) is the best strategy. As soon as you tap into it, choose a Tier 2 FP that is immediately available- either by modifying your second FP or choosing a new FP. Then repeat for the third.

I had something like-
9:40-10:40 SDD (used at 9:40)
10:40-11:40 ST (moved up to an immediate use FP, say 10-11)
11:40-12:40 Muppets (moved up to an immediate FP, say 10:30-11:30)
We wanted to watch Muppets anyway so we did that. It isn't long, and I used that time to hunt down my next Tier 1 FP. I couldn't get an immediate return time anyway for a Tier 1 FP so there was no harm in seeing the show.

 

[Etch]

Someone correct me if I’m wrong but I think the first Muppets show is usually an hour after park open (so 10:00am on your day).

This is probably why you’re not seeing a 9:00 FP for it.

 

[yulilin3]

Someone correct me if I’m wrong but I think the first Muppets show is usually an hour after park open (so 10:00am on your day).

This is probably why you’re not seeing a 9:00 FP for it.

correct, it opens at 10am

 

[havoc315]

Thanks to all who replied! I have made whatever adjustments I could at the time,according to your recommendations.




So, yes, on day two I did drop Indy for a Muppets FP+ but unfortunately, I couldn’t get it to show any times for the first hour of park operation. I shall note that type of strategy for next time (assuming the tiers don’t change to become more reasonable).

I did, however, manage to select it for 11:40 AM, as that was all that was available ASAP. I will remember once we’re in the park to burn that off as soon as it comes available to be able to make more tier one selections.

Day one remains unchanged as Mermaid at 11:20 AM was also the earliest thing showing up and I already had that. Again, I shall remember to burn it as soon as I can.

Question. While burning these passes... would it be a bad idea to just use them as intended and see the shows with these? I know I’ll jump on the app in the queue or whatever as soon as we tap in... but should we might as well use them by that time if we walked there to burn them and we planned on catching these experiences at some point anyway? I could see ignoring them if it was still the early AM... but I’d assume by that time, the crowds would start packing in, so it couldn’t hurt to just see these shows anyhow... am I wrong on this??

Also! As I use each FP+ on my list, should I try to keep adjusting the time on the one ahead of the one I just used in order to see if I can scoot the next one to be used up faster? I assume if there’s no options you just wait it out and use your passes at the times you’ve picked regardless, though...

If it’s a good time to see the show, then go ahead and see it. As you said, you’re already there. I simply wouldn’t feel obligated to the FP time.

 

[havoc315]

Could you also try to modify up the Star Tours to earlier once you have tapped in for the 10am pass?

yes, and you should.

 

[havoc315]

Someone correct me if I’m wrong but I think the first Muppets show is usually an hour after park open (so 10:00am on your day).

This is probably why you’re not seeing a 9:00 FP for it.

whoops, true.
Point still being: at park open, if you’re there early, do a rope drop attraction. Then your tier 1 after lines have started to build. And try to burn all 3 FPs by 11.

 

[gharter]

Could you also try to modify up the Star Tours to earlier once you have tapped in for the 10am pass?

absolutely!
As soon as I tap in for a FP, I am trying to move up one of the others.

 

[CastAStone]

You are in great shape and what you're talking about it really just massaging a great plan into a marginally better plan. Sure it will help but don't stress over it. You already can do all 5 FP Tier 1 rides using FP+ in a single day if you have a morning SDD FP and are done with all 3 of your prebooks in the morning.

Make sure you are smart about it - TSM and AS2 tend to run out by early afternoon and late afternoon, respectively, which means if you grab TSM at noon you'll get a late afternoon return time, at which point you'll have to grab AS2 if you want it at all and then by the time you're done with that RNR FPs will be all gone.

The better plan after you do your 3 is to grab TOT (which will be available immediately), then RNR (which if you grab as soon as you walk into TOT you should be able to get for no later than 20-30 minutes of walking off of TOT), then the toy story land rides.

You will have a LOT of free time doing two days there with your current plan.

 

[randal106]

Question, do you HAVE to use two tier 2 FP before picking a new Tier 1 FP? AKA, I just have SDD FP, can I not just pick another Tier 1 FP after using the first FP?

EDIT; Nevermind, I answered my own question after searching touring plans... the answer is no, must use the first group a and 2 group b before selecting a new group A: https://touringplans.com/blog/2019/09/05/rules-for-additional-fastpass-selection/