On July 24th, Disney will be rolling out a new version of Genie+. Here's everything you need to know about it to be totally prepared for your trip!
THE BASICS:
(this assumes you don't know anything about Genie+, and that's ok!)
Lightning Lane Passes are Disney's paid version of the traditional "skip-the-line" service. Not every ride is included in this service. Find the Full List of rides that are included in this service here.
There are 2 options for this service: the Lightning Lane Multi Pass & the Lightning Lane Single Pass.
But Kim, they sound almost exactly the same! What's the difference? Great question!
LIGHTNING LANE PASS CATEGORIES
So, I think it's easiest to understand this if you categorize Disney's attractions into 4 categories.
Level 4: The creme of the crop.
Disney's Biggest, Newest attractions that are in the most demand. (Think Tiana, Guardians of the Galaxy, or Avatar Flight of Passage).
Level 3: Crowd Favorites
These are often crowd favorites, iconic rides, OR rides that are just old enough that there's a slight drop in demand, but still see high wait times. Examples are Jungle Cruise, Slinky Dog Dash, and Remy's Ratatouille Adventure.
Level 2: Fun, but not shiny.
This is where I'd say majority of Disney rides are. Still fun and could be considered classics, but new and shiny any longer. They can still see high wait times during peak seasons, and are otherwise are very manageable (e.g Toy Story Mania, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Living with the Land).
Level 1: Filler Attractions
Low-demand rides, some might be considered filler attractions. (Walt Disney World Railroad, Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros, you get the idea)... Although some of my faves are in this category (justice for the PeopleMover!).
Now that we've categorized them, it might be easier for us to understand the two systems.
To skip the line for Disney's Level 4 attractions, you have to purchase single passes for each separate ride. This is the Lightning Lane Single Pass. You are able to purchase 2 of these per Park day, that's it.
Disney's Multi Lane Pass encompasses Levels 2 and 3 - The bulk of Disney attractions. However, the Levels here are still important for booking your attractions in advance. You're able to reserve More on that later.
HOW DO I BOOK MY ATTRACTIONS?
If you're staying on-property at one of the Disney hotels, you're in luck! You'll be able to choose up to 3 (three) experience 7 days in advance of your check in date.
If you're staying off-property, or are a Disney AP, you'll be able to choose up to 3 (three) experiences 3 days in advance of your check in date.
You are able to choose both the attraction AND the time slot that you want to ride the attraction. This is GREAT when trying to work around Dining reservations, and takes away the previous stress of having to gamble for the perfect timeslot on your park day.
"But Kim," you might say, "this is terrible bang for your buck!" You're right! Luckily, for Multi-day passes, once you've used your first selection, you will be able to make another for whatever is available.
THE MULTI LANE PASS RULE
This is where the ride categories come in.
Lightning Lane Single Passes are (more) simple. They are your Level 4 attractions (Disney's best and newest). If you want to skip the line for a particular attraction on that list, you buy it, and then make that reservation when your arrival is here. Done. Easy.
HOWEVER, If you purchased the Multi Lane Pass and want to make reservations, Disney will only allow you to make an advanced selection for ONE (1) ride from Level 3, and the other two (2) from Level 2 groups. OR, you can opt out of selecting a ride from a Level 3 group and select all 3 attractions from Level 2.
(Remember that Level 3 attractions are the ones typically in higher demand, so Disney is trying to prevent folks from preselecting more-popular rides).
Taken from the official Disney World website, the list of rides and their groupings in EPCOT.
WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS OF LIGHTNING LANE?
Early birds will really win here, because if you're willing to snag the earliest timeslot of the day, you'll be able to make another one fairly quickly, and you might even be able to grab reservations for another of those higher demand rides. I'm curious to see how quickly reservations will run out, and more importantly, at what time each reservation runs out. This will impact people's strategies enormously, especially if you're trying to do it all.
Let me know what your thoughts are, and if you have any questions!
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