Fast Pass expanses to the Tokyo Disney Resort App - some explanations

[slapshot]

Here is some information that may be useful for TDR visits.
As announced earlier Fast Passes can now be get electronically through the Tokyo Disney Resort App. This app is currently fully in Japanese, but with some practice I think also people with no Japanese can at least use the major functions.

• TDR tickets can be bought over the App (difficult), if you connect the app with the Tokyo Disney resort website, tickets and (show)-restaurant reservations there will also show up. The QR-code of a paper ticket can be scanned in and be used for fast passes or lottery.
• You can have tickets of a whole group in one smartphone and take fast passes / lottery applications for the whole group and also use only one phone for the entrance to a show or a fast pass gate.
• You can send tickets between various smart phones forth and back.
• Restaurants where reservations are possible can be booked through the app (difficult). The same is possible for the show restaurants but that usually has to be done on the day where the reservation becomes possible.
• If you have the tickets within the app, you can apply for the lottery of shows at TDL/TDS (this is possible since some time)
  • One Man's Dream II, Let’s Party Gras!, Judy and Nick's Jumpin' Splash and seasonal shows at Disney Land
  • Big Band Beat, Song of Mirage and seasonal shows at Disney Sea
  • All shows still have a section with unreserved seats but in my experience especially for Let’s Party Gras! and Song of Mirage (Hangar Stage) you have to line up very early to get a seat. Compared to when everything was unreserved those shows are also now hard to get in.
  • You can enter the show with the qr code on the smart phone or the original paper ticket. You can display qr codes on one smart phone for various people.
• All Fast passes can now be get over the App.
  • The same rules time-wise as before apply (next pass can be get after two hours or the the time of the previous fast pass - whatever is earlier).
  • All attractions now have fast pass scanners, some even twice (once at the entrance and once where the standby and the fast pass queue merge). It is impossible now to use a fast pass outside the designated time - on the smartphone they become invalid anyway.
• Lottery Machines and Fast Pass machines are still available as before.
• You can only apply for the lottery and fast passes after you passed the entrance gate of the park (when the qr code is scanned).

This has some significant impact on how to use fast passes and how the crowd behaves:

• Fast Pass runs over the whole park are unnecessary, I really like that. This is also especially a benefit for less mobile groups (family with children). Now everybody has the same chance.
• People apply more for Fast Passes and the Lottery, which makes it less available. I am not sure if I just had bad luck, but my hit rate for shows is much lower since they introduced it over the app.
• Fast Passes run out now faster. Even for attractions where fast passes where not that popular before, run out now.
• What happens in TDS now is that people enter the gate and then get their first fast pass on the smart phone immediately. Especially for Soarin this means that Fast Passes can run out after 10-15 minutes. I don't think that will change in the near time.

I really like to have now everything in one app and hope OLC starts to localize the app in other languages.

[jiminysgurl]

Is there a way to download the app from the US before arriving in Japan?

[slapshot]

Currently the app is only available on the Japanese Apple and Google stores. So you need to make an account in the Japanese Store. For that I think you need a unused email-address. The app is of course free, so no credit card or so is needed.

[mickeyandme67]

It's a bit complex but doable. Google " WikiHow to get japanese apps on iphone" and it will talk you through it. When asked to enter a CC, just click none as the TDR App is free and no CC is needed. Once you go through the process, you'll need to change your location back to the US.

[wallyworld81]

It's a bit complex but doable. Google " WikiHow to get japanese apps on iphone" and it will talk you through it. When asked to enter a CC, just click none as the TDR App is free and no CC is needed. Once you go through the process, you'll need to change your location back to the US.

It says though that by changing your country to Japan it will cancel any recurring subscriptions associated with your Apple ID. So is this something that should be done only once you get to Japan?? Or just do it now and then change back to the US and the app still works?

[slapshot]

You need to create a new account in the japanese App store and then switch accounts, not countries. Once you downloaded the app you can switch back to your normal account and the app should stay (you may need to switch back when there is an update). But at least for iOS it should work like that (i still have two accounts on my iPhone and no issues).