What's your opinon on fast passes?

The topic of line-skipping passes at amusement parks (Fastpass, Flash Pass, Fast Lane, Quick Queue, etc.) seems to be a controversial issue among theme park goers. I'm curious to see what other members of this site think of these passes because I haven't found any other threads about this.

Personally, I like them. I never use it at my home parks, but if I'm making a long distance trip to a park and won't be coming back for a while, it's a great way to make sure you get on all the rides you want, or to make sure that you get the most of your limited time. The last time I purchased one was on a Thursday at Cedar Point back in June, and while the park wasn't incredibly busy (mostly 10-20 minute waits expect for the A-list attractions), it was nice to get in a bunch of rides on that day. Only complaint about it is that based on the way the lines are set up, I still had to wait 15-30 minutes for several rides, but it was still worth it.

I don't agree with the notion that fast passes are made to cater to wealthier park guests. I paid $85 for the Fast Lane Plus, but I wouldn't consider myself rich by any means. It's all about how prioritize your budget and what you choose to spend your expendable money on. That being said, I will admit that when I use fast passes, I do feel a little guilty walking past everyone else in line since I've gotten a few dirty looks while doing so.

[Dirk_Ermen]

I've got mixed feelings with the fast pass system. In one way it's pretty unfair that people can skip the line so they have to wait shorter in queue. On the other side, it's a convenient system if you're visiting an unknown park for the first time and it's extremely crowded. So that you're still able to get all the rides in.
Yes, occasionally we do buy a fast pass for certain parks. But that impulse mostly comes from my mum who doesn't like queuing up long for rides.

Personally I'm feeling a lot more for Single Rider queues than an actual fast pass type queue. Fast passes only clog up the normal queueline with a lower capacity due other people skipping a line. Resulting in longer lines for about 95-99% of the park guests and a fat wallet for the CEO who already earns way too much for what they are actually doing. Meanwhile a SRQ would only increase the overall capacity from a certain ride by filling all the spaces in each train. For fans like us it's an ideal queue with a common shorter queue than the regular queueline and guests from the regular queue don't see any change in queuing times.

[Paradox]

Six Flags' flash pass system is actually pretty good imo. You still "wait" for the coaster just not in an actual line.

Cedar Fair's fast lane system is soooooo easy to abuse haha.

[Oscar]

They came very handy at Universal Studios Orlando / Islands of Adventure.

[TTD03]

They are really great for "not your homepark"

I enjoy using them. They serve their purpose. I don't buy them when I don't need to. I don't take a large chunk of my time and money out of my work and school and personal life to stand all day on concrete waiting in line. If I'm going far, and I'm not returning to that park for a long long time, and it's even a little busy, I will buy them.

Cedar Point is my homepark and I don't mind at all when others use the Fast Lane, and even I have used it even though the park is somewhat close by.

It's also making the parks a ton of money, which I support.

A proper skip the line system is a great thing for parks to have, but it must be run in such a way that regular visitors are minimally impacted. Those using the pass either need to merge with the regular queue or have designated seats when entering from the exit. It is extremely frustrating to wait for a high demand seat only to have someone come in the exit and take that seat. In addition, I am not a fan of the way Six Flags does the Platinum Flash Pass as the double rides can cause issues when trying to ride with other members of your party.

As for my personal use of the systems, I will typically use it at major parks I'm not likely to revisit in the near future. However, I would never buy one at a local park unless visiting with a first time visitor on a very busy day, and I probably would not invest in one if crowds seemed low enough that I could do everything without it.

[Coasterkidmwm]

The best is when Fast Passes are purchased by people too fat to ride anything and then they complain about it.

I don't like them.

[Mr. Freeze]

I like them, just not when I am an employee that has to deal with idiotic stuff with them

VF15 wrote:

I don't agree with the notion that fast passes are made to cater to wealthier park guests. I paid $85 for the Fast Lane Plus, but I wouldn't consider myself rich by any means. It's all about how prioritize your budget and what you choose to spend your expendable money on.

I simply think that the amusement parks need to provide "Fun For Everyone".

[Mr. Freeze]

Try telling that to them this time of year

I've only used a couple of times. Cedar Point Fright Lane. Hate the idea of waiting hours just to go into a Haunted attraction! So a group of us did this and had a blast getting all the haunts done in couple hours.

Did the Q-Bot system many years ago at SFOG with a couple of friends. We used it so much, that it went dead before park closed, and we had to get it replaced.