Trying to understand the new Max Pass at Disneyland? Fast passes have always been our ticket to sanity when enjoying our trip in Disneyland. If you don’t enjoy standing in long lines at Disneyland the new Max passes are for you.
Fast passes are still available in the same way they were available before. You go to the fast pass kiosks located around the parks and print out the return to ride ticket when it is your turn to ride on said ride. This system does still help save you a ton of time standing in line, but you still have to run from one part of the park to the other.
Before the Max Pass system my husband and I would come to the park with an attack plan in place with me waiting in line for one ride while he would go claim our fast pass at a kiosk across the park. You certainly burn more calories this way, but when you are trying to get through a lot of rides in a day this isn’t the best way…(now!)
How much does it cost?
The Max Pass is $15 per person, per day.
What is included?
*Reserve fast passes right from the convenience of your Disneyland app.
You can reserve a fast pass for different rides at the same time in different parks. We had park hopper passes and loved being able to hit our favorite rides and shows regardless of where we were earlier in the day. This made the experience really easy to pick and choose what we wanted to do based on wait times and opportunities available in the park like parades and night shows.
*90 minute window for riding the ride.
*unlimited number of fast passes you can do in a day, you simply need to do one at a time.
*reserve your night time show as soon as you scan your pass in for the day.
*free photo Pass access for both parks and access to professional photographers and their mad skills! I regret that I didn’t take advantage of this more…we had so much fun with our photographer and he caught some truly magical moments in a few short minutes. It was so nice to not have to worry about asking someone to take a picture of us with our phone and the pictures are such high quality.
Our photographer even snagged this adorable picture of these two. I couldn’t love it more! These pictures are available right in your app and are available for download for you to print and share as you please.
*convenience of using your phone for scanning your fast pass ticket and reserving your next ride while you wait in your current line.
With the new Max Pass system you can actually reserve your next fast pass on the Disneyland app while you stand in line for your current ride. We shocked at how quickly we were able to move from one ride to the next and map out our day as we went checking off the rides we had on our “must do” list.
After selecting a park you will be able to create a FastPass Party which will include all of the people in your group and allow you to schedule rides for yourselves through out the day. Keep in mind that you will need to scan all of your tickets in for the day to be able to reserve your fast passes. So you will not be able to schedule them the day before or months before the way you can in DisneyWorld.
You’ll be able to see all passes and activities that are available for a fast pass and this will help you to plan your day and figure out what things you want to do.
I don’t think it would be necessary to buy a Max Pass every single day of your stay if you are staying for a week. If you are staying for just a few days I would say you should absolutely do it! We were blown away by how quickly we were able to fly through the lines by using our Max Pass to plan a ride sequence from one to the next.
***One added bonus is that if for some reason you are unable to use your fast pass because of a ride being unavailable or a ride breaking down a cast member will often give you access to a fast pass you can use on any ride in the park. This must be claimed in the same park and used by the end of the day.
We were able to ride our favorites a couple of times and knowing what the wait times were helped us to figure out which ride to go for depending on the wait times. I would suggest trying to ride the most popular rides in the morning and again late in the evening. FantasyLand opens up so much in the evening. If you can manage it, I would suggest staying somewhere close so that you can come to the hotel in the middle of the day for a nap/rest and come back to the park in the evening.
We stayed at the Disney Grand California Hotel and it was so dreamy. They took care of every need we had and made us feel so welcomed and cared for. It was easy to pop in and we ALL took a nap to recharge. I feel in love with the architecture of the Disney Grand that is meant to mimic the beautiful forrest and orange blossom trees.
If you are interested in booking a stay with Disney, you can find more information HERE.
Give the Max Pass a try, I think you’re going to love it!
This post was written in partnership with Disneyland, all opinions are my own.
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Tips for taking small children to Disneyland: https://bit.ly/2vJwEhr
Secret ways to save money at Disneyland: https://bit.ly/2vmMGwA
Tips for bringing a baby to Disneyland: https://bit.ly/2hOOnhH
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Hello! I am Camille, a wife, mother of four, Disney obsessed, certified teacher, and believer in creating your best momlife the way you see fit. Motherhood comes with its ups and downs, my hope is you’ll find something here to make your life a little better/easier. Let’s be friends on social!