FastPass+ makes Walt Disney World easier, and more fun! The excitement of booking your Fast Passes in advance is great fun in itself! But, there is no point in using a Fast Pass on an attraction that has a low wait time or doesn’t require a queue, or on a celebration such as the fireworks where views are excellent around the parks.
So which should you use your Fast Passes on in Hollywood Studios?
If you are not familiar with what Fast Passes are, make sure you read out post about Fast Passes in Walt Disney World first!
Hollywood Studios Fast Pass Tier System
There are two Hollywood Studios FastPass tiers. Tier 1 currently has three attractions. Tier 2 has twelve attractions. When selecting your 3 FastPasses for Hollywood Studios, you can only pick one of the Tier 1 attractions, OR all three in Tier 2.
Rise of the Resistance is not a part of FastPass+ at Walt Disney World. The only way to ride it is currently by Boarding Pass, though as some point standby and FastPass will be added.
These are:
Tier 1 (Choose 1 attraction)
- Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway
- Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run (also has single rider)
- Slinky Dog Dash
All other rides in Hollywood Studios fall into Tier 2, and you can select any of these as you wish for your other two fast passes. Of course, you can select three Tier 2 Fast Passes instead.
Tier 2 (Choose 2 or 3 attractions)
- Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster (also has single rider)
- Tower of Terror
- Toy Story Mania
- Alien Swirling Saucers
- Star Tours
- Voyage of the Little Mermaid
- Disney Junior Dance Party!
- Frozen Sing-Along Celebration
- Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular
- Muppet Vision 3D
- Beauty and the Beast
- Fantasmic!
What Fast Passes to get in Hollywood Studios
Hollywood Studios has come on leaps and bounds in the last few years, with the addition of Toy Story Land, and the newest part being Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge. It used to have very few attractions compared to some of the other parks, but this has changed hugely, with amongst the most attractions of the 3 parks apart from Magic Kingdom. This means that you should be selecting a Tier 1 with any Fast Pass booking you make to ensure you get one of the best rides in the park. Don’t forget though; you can book more once you use your first three!
Our Top three Fast Passes at Hollywood Studios:
- Slinky Dog Dash Roller Coaster in Toy Story Land
- This was actually quite a hard one to pick; the oldest of the three Tier 1 attractions, it is still mega popular, and an excellent roller coaster; easily within the top 5 in all of the roller coasters in Walt Disney World. We picked this as your Tier 1 FastPass ahead of Runaway Railway and Millenium Falcon Smugglers Run, simply because Smugglers Run has single rider line, and Runaway Railway can be rope dropped right at the start of the day. Slinky Dog Dash is at the back of the park, making it the furthest away from when you get in, and can have crazy long lines; longest we have seen is a whopping 280 minute wait with the queue going outside of Toy Story Land!
- Rock N’ Rollercoaster
- We absolutely love Rock N’ Rollercoaster. Themed to Aerosmith, this is a pretty intense ride, and features a dash to the concert, with hits from Aerosmith along the way. This features an inversion as well (LOOP!) and is has a speedy launch right out the docking station into the darkness. Wait times can be short in standby, but its worth spending your FastPass on.
- Toy Story Mania
- Alongside Buzz Lightyear Star Command over in Magic Kingdom (both Toy Story?!), this is one of the most interactive rides in all of Walt Disney World. You take the controls to score as many points as possible in a number of fun and interactive screens, where you and your partner have to hit targets, shoot balloons, aim pies, and more, to get the best possible score you can. This is a crazy popular ride, with the longest wait time we’ve ever seen being 220 minutes! Definitely worth spending your FastPass on!
Good Alternatives to our Top Three:
- Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway
- This is the newest ride in the park, and very popular. If you are not bothered with roller coasters or Star Wars, THIS should be your number one FastPass to try and get, and helps avoid the morning rush. Times have been extremely long for waits in the Stand By line ever since its opening. The ride itself is outstanding, featuring some incredible effects and technology to truly give a unique experience.
- Tower of Terror
- If you have the stomach for it, the Tower of Terror gives you a thrilling drop and jolt from way up high! Enjoy the view of the theme park from the top of the tower, before suddenly crashing down in a moment of stomach in your mouth! This is a very popular ride as well, with some long wait times. But be warned; it is not for the faint of heart!
- Beauty and the Beast Live Show
- This show does happen a few times in a day, but is always extremely busy! Its definitely worth seeing as well, with a shortened version of the Beauty and the Beast story live on stage, with full costumes and songs. One time we saw it, Cogsworth fell over, and just couldnt get up. He had to be helped up by some stage hands… seen as though we had seen it a few times at that stage, it was as entertaining as the show!
Honourable Mentions:
- Star Tours
- A simulator ride where there are multiple possibilities, so riding more than once is recommended! For any Star Wars fans, it should definitely be on your list of things to check out. This is not actually in Galaxy’s Edge, but further forward in the park. See below for the map. Generally, waits are not long or non existent, though on busy days, it can get up and over 90 minutes for stand by.
- Muppet Vision 3D
- This is an entertaining, relaxing show from the Muppets, all in 3D. Now, we will say, its a big theatre, and generally, you do not need to have a FastPass for the show. But if you have used all 3 already, and you see it available, it’s definitely worth seeing!
What not to use your FastPass on at Hollywood Studios:
Pretty much anything not mentioned above. There are a lot of options, but a lot of the attractions are walk ons, because the above listed are taking all the guests to their queues!
Should I use a Fast Pass on the Night Time Fantasmic show?
No – this is visible from pretty much anywhere around Hollywood Boulevard at the front of the park, and you can easily find a spot to view this show. The FastPass section is only small as well; so you have to show up early to get a good spot even with the FastPass. Don’t bother spending it unless late in the day, you’ve done everything else, and you just want to have a good spot!
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