Shanghai Disneyland Fastpass Guide

Over the past few years Disney has worked hard to bring their parks into the 21st Century. With interactive queues, LED lighting and a ton of other technological upgrades, the parks look and feel better than ever. Of course upgrades take time, but Disney is definitely putting a lot of its resources into improving the guest experience with technology.

When I first visited Shanghai Disneyland I exclaimed to my friends that it felt like the first Disney park completely built for modern times. The layout and atmosphere of the park just feels “today” compared to the nostalgic feel of the other Disneyland parks. That works wonderfully too, because Hong Kong Disneyland has a much more classic feel and they compliment each other well.

New Park Old FastPass

In 2016 when Shanghai Disneyland opened they were a bit behind the times when it came to one thing though. Walt Disney World had already moved on to their digital FastPass+ system a couple of years earlier, but Disney’s newest park opened with old fashioned FastPass machines and paper tickets! :O

It was clear from the beginning that Shanghai Disneyland wasn’t planning to use this system for long. Instead of placing FastPass machines at each ride, they instead built information centers in each land which also housed the machines. These areas still exist with ride information screens (and a few kiosks for those without a phone), but I can gladly say that paper fastpasses are a thing of the past in Shanghai!

Shanghai Disneyland Fastpass Overview

During our recent visit to Shanghai Disneyland I finally got to check out their completely free and digital FastPass sytem and it may look familiar to you. For the most part it looks and feels just like MaxPass at Disneyland, except it is included with park admission. They do also have a premium option including pay-per-ride which I’ll show you a bit later.

List of Shanghai Disneyland Fastpass Attractions

Shanghai Disneyland has a surprising number of its attractions on Fastpass. Almost every major attraction at the park has a fastpass option. Here are all of the Shanghai Disneyland fastpass rides along with their location in the park:

• TRON Lightcycle Power Run – Tomorrowland
• Buzz Lightyear Planet Rescue – Tomorrowland
• Seven Dwarfs Mine Train – Fantasyland
• The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh – Fantasyland
• Peter Pan’s Flight – Fantasyland
• Roaring Rapids – Adventure Isle
• Soaring Over the Horizon – Adventure Isle

Using Shanghai Disneyland Fastpass

If you are going to visit Shanghai Disneyland I highly suggest downloading the app before you leave home. You will need to verify your phone number to register to use the app, so make sure you’ll have the ability to receive a text message. Once you get that setup simply scan your ticket into the app when you are at the park and you’ll be all set. The park does have WiFi, but many Western social media, search and news sites are blocked.

How to Grab a Shanghai Disneyland Fastpass

Just like with other versions of the Disney app, you can request a FastPass right from your home screen in the app. Simply head to the “Make Plans” section and click “Get Fastpass” to get started. Once you do that you’ll be presented with the list of attractions with an available Fastpass slot along with the return window. Here is an example.

If you are eligible to get a Fastpass then you can select the time and that’s it! When your time comes simply scan your digital Fastpass at the attraction entrance to be granted entry. Simple, easy, digital and free!

Pay Per Ride (Disney Premier Access)

While Shanghai Disneyland doesn’t charge for their digital Fastpass system, they do have several premium options to pay for fastpasses called Disney Premier Access. Essentially you can either pay for a single ride or buy a bundle that includes multiple rides for a slight discount. The option is presented in the app and Disney really tries to upsell you later in the day when the regular fastpasses are gone.

• Single rides for 80 CNY* (~$11.60 USD)
• Packages of 6-8 rides for 330-440 CNY* ($48-$64 USD) 

*Note that prices may vary depending on how busy it is. 

I have visited Shanghai Disneyland three times now and I can say on all but the busiest days you should be able to get through most everything in the park in one day without having to pay. With that said, if your time is tight, then being able to purchase fastpasses, especially for a single ride is a good thing. Of course the price of almost $12 USD per ride isn’t cheap.

Counterfeit Fastpasses

One of the major reasons I believe Shanghai Disneyland is moving so quickly to digital fastpasses is because the paper ones were sold and/or counterfeited quite frequently. I have definitely seen people attempting to sell them (along with cheap knock off merchandise) inside the parks, although I didn’t notice it on this recent visit. I think its safe to say that buying this stuff is against the rules and maybe even the law plus you’re probably getting scammed. Don’t do it!

Conclusion

I really love the move to digital fastpasses and firmly believe Disneyland’s MaxPass will become a thing of the past as technology dictates the need for a free digital system. Even with free digital fastpasses Disney continues to experiment with paid options as well. Shanghai has one of the better implementations of Fastpass around and is incredibly easy for visiting Westerners.