diff --git a/doc/command-line-flags.md b/doc/command-line-flags.md
index dc481d0f0..b496b0494 100644
--- a/doc/command-line-flags.md
+++ b/doc/command-line-flags.md
@@ -45,6 +45,22 @@ If you happen to _know_ your servers use RBR (Row Based Replication, i.e. `binlo
 Skipping this step means `gh-ost` would not need the `SUPER` privilege in order to operate.
 You may want to use this on Amazon RDS.
 
+### attempt-instant-ddl
+
+MySQL 8.0 support "instant DDL" for some operations. If an alter statement can be completed with instant DDL, only a metadata change is required internally, so MySQL will return _instantly_ (only requiring a metadata lock to complete). Instant operations include:
+
+- Adding a column
+- Dropping a column
+- Dropping an index
+- Extending a varchar column
+- Adding a virtual generated column
+
+It is not reliable to parse the `ALTER` statement to determine if it is instant or not. This is because the table might be in an older row format, or have some other incompatibility that is difficult to identify.
+
+The risks of attempting to instant DDL are relatively minor: Gh-ost may need to acquire a metadata lock at the start of the operation. This is not a problem for most scenarios, but it could be a problem for users that start the DDL during a period with long running transactions.
+
+gh-ost will automatically fallback to the normal DDL process if the attempt to use instant DDL is unsuccessful.
+
 ### conf
 
 `--conf=/path/to/my.cnf`: file where credentials are specified. Should be in (or contain) the following format:
diff --git a/go/cmd/gh-ost/main.go b/go/cmd/gh-ost/main.go
index 660c492c6..c00b206f7 100644
--- a/go/cmd/gh-ost/main.go
+++ b/go/cmd/gh-ost/main.go
@@ -67,7 +67,7 @@ func main() {
 	flag.StringVar(&migrationContext.DatabaseName, "database", "", "database name (mandatory)")
 	flag.StringVar(&migrationContext.OriginalTableName, "table", "", "table name (mandatory)")
 	flag.StringVar(&migrationContext.AlterStatement, "alter", "", "alter statement (mandatory)")
-	flag.BoolVar(&migrationContext.AttemptInstantDDL, "attempt-instant-ddl", true, "Attempt to use instant DDL for this migration first.")
+	flag.BoolVar(&migrationContext.AttemptInstantDDL, "attempt-instant-ddl", false, "Attempt to use instant DDL for this migration first")
 
 	flag.BoolVar(&migrationContext.CountTableRows, "exact-rowcount", false, "actually count table rows as opposed to estimate them (results in more accurate progress estimation)")
 	flag.BoolVar(&migrationContext.ConcurrentCountTableRows, "concurrent-rowcount", true, "(with --exact-rowcount), when true (default): count rows after row-copy begins, concurrently, and adjust row estimate later on; when false: first count rows, then start row copy")
diff --git a/go/logic/applier.go b/go/logic/applier.go
index abda2b089..ad6368e61 100644
--- a/go/logic/applier.go
+++ b/go/logic/applier.go
@@ -135,6 +135,16 @@ func (this *Applier) generateSqlModeQuery() string {
 	return fmt.Sprintf("sql_mode = %s", sqlModeQuery)
 }
 
+// generateInstantDDLQuery returns the SQL for this ALTER operation
+// with an INSTANT assertion (requires MySQL 8.0+)
+func (this *Applier) generateInstantDDLQuery() string {
+	return fmt.Sprintf(`ALTER /* gh-ost */ TABLE %s.%s %s, ALGORITHM=INSTANT`,
+		sql.EscapeName(this.migrationContext.DatabaseName),
+		sql.EscapeName(this.migrationContext.OriginalTableName),
+		this.migrationContext.AlterStatementOptions,
+	)
+}
+
 // readTableColumns reads table columns on applier
 func (this *Applier) readTableColumns() (err error) {
 	this.migrationContext.Log.Infof("Examining table structure on applier")
@@ -188,22 +198,21 @@ func (this *Applier) ValidateOrDropExistingTables() error {
 	return nil
 }
 
-// AttemptInstantDDL attempts to use instant DDL (from MySQL 8.0, and earlier in Aurora and some others.)
-// to apply the ALTER statement immediately. If it errors, the original
-// gh-ost algorithm can be used. However, if it's successful -- a lot
-// of time can potentially be saved. Instant operations include:
+// AttemptInstantDDL attempts to use instant DDL (from MySQL 8.0, and earlier in Aurora and some others).
+// If successful, the operation is only a meta-data change so a lot of time is saved!
+// The risk of attempting to instant DDL when not supported is that a metadata lock may be acquired.
+// This is minor, since gh-ost will eventually require a metadata lock anyway, but at the cut-over stage.
+// Instant operations include:
 // - Adding a column
 // - Dropping a column
 // - Dropping an index
-// - Extending a varchar column
-// It is safer to attempt the change than try and parse the DDL, since
-// there might be specifics about the table which make it not possible to apply instantly.
+// - Extending a VARCHAR column
+// - Adding a virtual generated column
+// It is not reliable to parse the `alter` statement to determine if it is instant or not.
+// This is because the table might be in an older row format, or have some other incompatibility
+// that is difficult to identify.
 func (this *Applier) AttemptInstantDDL() error {
-	query := fmt.Sprintf(`ALTER /* gh-ost */ TABLE %s.%s %s, ALGORITHM=INSTANT`,
-		sql.EscapeName(this.migrationContext.DatabaseName),
-		sql.EscapeName(this.migrationContext.OriginalTableName),
-		this.migrationContext.AlterStatementOptions,
-	)
+	query := this.generateInstantDDLQuery()
 	this.migrationContext.Log.Infof("INSTANT DDL query is: %s", query)
 	// We don't need a trx, because for instant DDL the SQL mode doesn't matter.
 	_, err := this.db.Exec(query)
diff --git a/go/logic/applier_test.go b/go/logic/applier_test.go
index a2c1414e7..44d1fc730 100644
--- a/go/logic/applier_test.go
+++ b/go/logic/applier_test.go
@@ -170,3 +170,17 @@ func TestApplierBuildDMLEventQuery(t *testing.T) {
 		test.S(t).ExpectEquals(res[0].args[3], 42)
 	})
 }
+
+func TestApplierInstantDDL(t *testing.T) {
+	migrationContext := base.NewMigrationContext()
+	migrationContext.DatabaseName = "test"
+	migrationContext.OriginalTableName = "mytable"
+	migrationContext.AlterStatementOptions = "ADD INDEX (foo)"
+	applier := NewApplier(migrationContext)
+
+	t.Run("instantDDLstmt", func(t *testing.T) {
+		stmt := applier.generateInstantDDLQuery()
+		test.S(t).ExpectEquals(stmt, "ALTER /* gh-ost */ TABLE `test`.`mytable` ADD INDEX (foo), ALGORITHM=INSTANT")
+	})
+
+}
diff --git a/go/logic/migrator.go b/go/logic/migrator.go
index 25989f8b5..13cbdee6e 100644
--- a/go/logic/migrator.go
+++ b/go/logic/migrator.go
@@ -352,15 +352,14 @@ func (this *Migrator) Migrate() (err error) {
 		return err
 	}
 	// In MySQL 8.0 (and possibly earlier) some DDL statements can be applied instantly.
-	// As just a metadata change. We can't detect this unless we attempt the statement
-	// (i.e. there is no explain for DDL).
+	// Attempt to do this if AttemptInstantDDL is set.
 	if this.migrationContext.AttemptInstantDDL {
-		this.migrationContext.Log.Infof("Attempting to execute ALTER TABLE as INSTANT DDL")
+		this.migrationContext.Log.Infof("Attempting to execute alter with ALGORITHM=INSTANT")
 		if err := this.attemptInstantDDL(); err == nil {
-			this.migrationContext.Log.Infof("Success! Table %s.%s migrated instantly", sql.EscapeName(this.migrationContext.DatabaseName), sql.EscapeName(this.migrationContext.OriginalTableName))
+			this.migrationContext.Log.Infof("Success! table %s.%s migrated instantly", sql.EscapeName(this.migrationContext.DatabaseName), sql.EscapeName(this.migrationContext.OriginalTableName))
 			return nil
 		} else {
-			this.migrationContext.Log.Infof("INSTANT DDL failed, will proceed with original algorithm: %s", err)
+			this.migrationContext.Log.Infof("ALGORITHM=INSTANT failed, proceeding with original algorithm: %s", err)
 		}
 	}
 
diff --git a/localtests/attempt-instant-ddl/create.sql b/localtests/attempt-instant-ddl/create.sql
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..9371238b7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/localtests/attempt-instant-ddl/create.sql
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+drop table if exists gh_ost_test;
+create table gh_ost_test (
+  id int auto_increment,
+  i int not null,
+  color varchar(32),
+  primary key(id)
+) auto_increment=1;
+
+drop event if exists gh_ost_test;
+
+insert into gh_ost_test values (null, 11, 'red');
+insert into gh_ost_test values (null, 13, 'green');
+insert into gh_ost_test values (null, 17, 'blue');
diff --git a/localtests/attempt-instant-ddl/extra_args b/localtests/attempt-instant-ddl/extra_args
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..70c8a5211
--- /dev/null
+++ b/localtests/attempt-instant-ddl/extra_args
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+--attempt-instant-ddl