Gone are the days of FastPass reservations in the Walt Disney World Resort. Nowadays, Guests have access to three different services that can assist their time spent in the Disney Parks. Disney Genie, Genie+, and Lightning Lane are things you can use when taking a Disney vacation in Lake Buena Vista. But what do they do, and how can you use them successfully? Let’s look at the services provided by The Walt Disney Company and how they can benefit you.
Disney Genie
When visiting the Walt Disney World Resort, having the My Disney Experience app on your phone is helpful. The free app allows you to check attraction line times and show times, make advance dining reservations, and open your Disney Resort hotel Guest room. Additionally, My Disney Experience provides you with free access to Disney Genie.
The Disney Genie service is a free planning tool for all Walt Disney World Guests. Before your Disney vacation, you can select your favorite rides, attractions, shows, and dining in the Disney Parks. Upon your arrival at Walt Disney World, Disney Genie will suggest when to visit different attractions, when to order food and more. Furthermore, Disney Genie can also provide projected wait times for rides throughout the day, giving you an insight into overall wait times.
Part of the fun of visiting a Disney Park is planning your day and deciding what to experience next. However, Disney Genie is beneficial if you prefer to avoid planning your day. Instead, the Disney service will provide a personalized itinerary that maps your day based on your likes and dislikes.
Disney Genie+
Disney Genie+ is a paid service that upgrades your Disney Genie. It aims to provide more convenience and flexibility to your day. The price to upgrade to Disney Genie+ varies daily, depending on the date, attraction, and Disney theme park. Typically Disney Genie+ costs between $15 and $35 per day.
To access Disney Genie+, you must purchase it on the day of your visit to the Walt Disney World Resort from 7 a.m. You must have a Disney Park reservation and valid admission to the same Park on the same day. Alternatively, when booking, you can add the Disney Genie+ service to your Walt Disney World vacation package. Once you have purchased Disney Genie+, you can bypass the regular standby lines for attractions and use the Lightning Lane entrances offered. The number of Lightning Lane reservations you can make throughout the day will vary.
Many Disney attractions and experiences are available via Disney Genie+, although not all attractions are. Disney Genie+ attractions by Disney Park include:
- Magic Kingdom Park – Space Mountain, entrance to Princess Fairytale Hall, Haunted Mansion, Jungle Cruise, Peter Pan’s Flight, and more
- EPCOT – Spaceship Earth, Living with the Land, Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, Test Track, and more
- Disney’s Hollywood Studios – Toy Story Mania!, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway, Star Tours – The Adventure Continues, and more
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom – Expedition Everest – The Legend of the Forbidden Mountain, Kilimanjaro Safaris, Na’vi River Journey, and more
Guests can make one Lightning Lane reservation at a time, using Disney Genie+. Once you have redeemed a Lightning Lane reservation, you can make another. Should you make a reservation for more than two hours later, you can make your next Lightning Lane reservation after two hours, despite still having another to use.
How successful Disney Genie+ is for you and your travel party will vary daily. Some days, you may be able to use the service to experience most or all of the attractions in the Disney Park you are visiting. On other days, you may only experience two to three Disney attractions. Before purchasing Disney Genie+, we recommend deciding if you really need it.
If you regularly visit the Disney Parks, you may prefer to save the additional cost and sacrifice some Disney attractions should the lines be too long. Meanwhile, Guests who don’t take regular Disney vacations may find the service beneficial to maximize their Disney experience. The good news is that you can use Disney Genie+ in multiple Disney theme parks daily. This is excellent news if you plan to Park hop while using the Disney Genie service.
Individual Lightning Lane
Lightning Lane access is available to Guests using Disney Genie+, but they can also be used by Guests who have purchased individual Lightning Lane entry. Individual Lightning Lane selection is ideal if you wish to skip only one or two attractions on the regular standby line. There are currently four attractions in Walt Disney World where you can purchase individual Lightning Lane entry for:
- Seven Dwarf’s Mine Train in Magic Kingdom Park
- Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind in EPCOT
- Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance in Disney’s Hollywood Studios
- Avatar Flight of Passage in Disney’s Animal Kingdom
Like Disney Genie+, individual Lightning Lane selections vary in price by ride and day. Should you wish to take advantage of individual Lightning Lane entry, we recommend budgeting for these costs when planning your Disney vacation. You can purchase up to two individual Lightning Lane entries per person per day. As such, you can Park hop and visit an individual Lightning Lane attraction in two different Disney Parks.
Once you have purchased, your entry will be added to your plans for the day. Unfortunately, they cannot be modified or canceled, so make sure you will use your entry once you have purchased it. Upon purchase, the time of your experience will be confirmed. Once you reach your individual Lightning Lane reservation time, you can go to the Lightning Lane entrance of the Disney ride and present the My Disney Experience app, Disney Park ticket, or Disney MagicBand+.
What are your thoughts on Disney Genie, Disney Genie+, and Lightning Lane entry? Do you plan to use these services during your next Disney vacation? Have you planned Disney Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lane entries into the budget for your next Walt Disney World Resort visit?
