Ratatouille, Galactic Starcruiser & Their Tie to the Future of Disney FastPass, Premier Access, Genie and More!

Ratatouille opens soon on October 1st, but what queueing systems will be part of that attraction experience? There has been a lot of talk recently about the future of FastPass, whether it was coming back, or whether something instead would come in its place. Recently Disneyland Paris has opened up Disney Premier Access which invites guests to purchase a FastPass option to go on popular attractions. This is somewhat in alignment with what Shanghai and Hong Kong have already done. Many in the Disney universe believe this is a sign of the future for Walt Disney World’s FastPass and Disneyland’s MaxPass. We look in to the history of all this, what is involved here, and what’s working and not working. We also look at something called the Standby Pass, which also suggests insights as to where the future is heading for those not buying an upcharge pass. From all of this we tie it to Disney’s opening of the Galactic Starcruiser in Spring of 2022 and the announcement of a Genie app that would help guests plan their vacations and customize their park experience. We will visit the intersection of all these efforts as we consider what really the future of the Disney park experience may become.

Notes are shown below but our podcast carries narrative of the entire experience. You can find the podcast here on Podbean, iTunes, Spotify,  and ListenNotes. Please subscribe! 

Also, be sure to visit ClubhouseDisney on our Disney at Work and Play Facebook Page. Let us know in our poll what you think about a paid FastPass option.

The FastPass Timeline

Let’s talk first about the timeframe of paid privileges to experience attractions:

Disneyland Paris

Premier Access

Here are some details about Disneyland Paris’s Premier Access program. In the podcast we talk about how this could inform what may happen at Walt Disney World.

Skip the regular queue at some of our most popular attractions thanks to the new Disney Premier Access fast lane, from €8 to €15 per person (roughly $9 to $15), per attraction, limited availability!

NOTE: Purchasing a Disney Premier Access gives you fast access to the attraction you choose, but does not guarantee immediate access.

• Open up the official Disneyland Paris app and sign in to your Disney Account or create one.
• Link your Ticket, Pass or Hotel + Tickets package to your account. Tip: do this before your visit to save time!
• Once you’re in the Disney Parks, choose an attraction and select the Guests that want to ride. You’ll be offered a time slot, depending on availability.
• After you’ve paid, head to the dedicated line of the attraction during your allocated time slot and present your QR codes (in the “My Disney Premier Access” section of the app).
• If you don’t have a smartphone or a Disney Account, don’t worry! You can still purchase Disney Premier Access at City Hall in the Disneyland Park or at Studios Services in the Walt Disney Studios Park.
• You must be in the park (ticket activated) to secure (buy) your passes (think MaxPass)
• You may buy a maximum of 3 Disney Premier Access for each attraction per Guest per day, and up to 12 Disney Premier Access for one attraction and one time slot at a time, depending upon availability.
• There are a limited number of Disney Premier Access available for each time slot.
• You can only buy Disney Premier Access for one attraction at a time. To buy for another attraction, simply start another purchase and select the attraction you want to ride to see if there are any time slots available.

Disney Premier Access is available for 

• Big Thunder Mountain
• Peter Pan’s Flight
• Ratatouille: The Adventure
• Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast
• Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain
• Star Tours: The Adventures continue
• The Twilight Zone Tower of Terrorᵀᴹ
• Autopia^®

NOTE: No character meet ‘n’ greets nor entertainment shows are listed here. Also, no Toy Story Land attractions (like RC Racer) were listed, neither was Crush’s Go Coaster or Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril.

Standby Pass

This is another aspect of Disneyland Paris’s program that isn’t being talked about much. It too may have an impact at Walt Disney World

To minimise the time you spend in the queue during certain periods of the day and to ensure safe physical distancing, you will need to reserve a Standby Pass to enjoy some of our most popular attractions. It’s easy, it’s free and it helps you enjoy more time exploring the Disney Parks! It’s easy, it’s free and available only in the app!

• The Standby Pass service will only be activated during certain periods of the day in order to help reduce wait times for certain attractions. You can still queue for these attractions without a Standby Pass at the beginning and at the end of the day (times may vary). 
• You can only reserve one Standby Pass at a time, from 5 minutes after entering the Disney Parks.
• When your allocated time slot has begun, you may reserve a Standby Pass for another attraction.
• It is not possible to cancel or transfer a Standby Pass.
• To manage your Standby Passes easily during the day, you can link all the Tickets and Passes for each member of your group to a single Disney account. 

What About Disney Genie?

• Originally set to debut in late 2020
• It identified interest segments (princess, thrill seeker, culinary)
• It allowed you to plan out the ideal day
• It would show you when buses and boats were available for transportation
• It offered an optimal view of how best to tackle your day
• Real-time updates will be provided
• It showed a Lowest Forecast Wait
• Plans will be flexible
• Certain features of Disney Genie were to still be available through a travel agent
• It did offer a FastPass+ option

Ratatouille at Epcot & The Galactic Starcruiser

In the podcast, we talk about how these two upcoming events may push the premiere pass out the gate sooner than later. Indeed, Ratatouille is only two months away, and the Starcruiser is coming in Spring of 2022.

The Wayfinder Society: A Patreon Site for Disney Fans

We are offering a new program where you have the opportunity to enjoy exclusive offerings from Disney at Play and Disney at Work. Join us as we introduce our new Patreon program, the Wayfinder Society, intended to give you new insights to all things Disney, whether its work or play. I am truly excited to share this new opportunity with you and look forward to creating new experiences that you will enjoy whether at home or at the Disney parks. There are a variety of options for joining, depending on your interests:

When you join, you will be given access to unique, interactive apps that explores the parks in new ways, offering stories, photos, videos and more. 

Here are some of the interactive apps we share with members of our society: 

• Pandora: World of Avatar: This is an expansive and detailed look at every aspect of this land. You can’t find any source that has covered this entire land with its attractions, retail and dining more in depth.
• Pirates of the Caribbean Across the Globe: We not only compare this attraction in parks world-wide, but we deep dive into what makes each unique. Currently we’ve covered Tokyo Disneyland and Magic Kingdom. More to come!
• Coming Soon! S.E.A. Assembled! The Society of Adventurers and Explorers are coming to the Wayfinder Society. We’ll document their whereabouts and showcase their imprint on Disney attractions world-wide.
• Disney at Work Interactive Tour: Disneyland. For our upper tiers, we have an interactive business tour of Disneyland to include more than fifty attractions spread throughout the park. These are best-in-business ideas you can apply to your own organization.
• Disney at Work Interactive Tour: Walt Disney World 50th Anniversary. Looking at the heritage of Most Magical Place in the World, we draw best practices from over the years that you can again, apply to your organization. 

As you see, we have so much to share. And when you donate, a portion of your contribution goes to Embrace Celebration, dedicated to helping Disney Cast Members and others in this area who are unemployed during this pandemic. To learn more, visit our site to discover our offerings and various tiers. Join us!