Magical greetings, Kaitlin, and welcome to planDisney! Your trip is getting so close, and before you know it, it will be time to purchase those
Lightning Lane Passes. Thanks for asking your question.
As you've already learned, for the purpose of
dining reservations, each individual
Disney Resort hotel reservation is considered its own separate trip, even when they are back-to-back, and your check out day in one hotel is the same as your check in day in the next. This means your dining reservations can be made 60 days in advance of each reservation for the duration of that reservation, but not into the next one.
The good news is, Lighting Lane reservations don't work this same way. When you have back-to-back reservations with no breaks in between, or split stays as Disney fans lovingly call them, for the purpose of Lightning Lanes, it's considered one trip. So, you'll be able to purchase and make Lightning Lane reservations for the duration of your visit beginning 7 days in advance of your first check in date. That deserves a happy dance, don't you think?
October is one of my favorite times to visit for two reasons,
Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party and
EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival, even better if I can do both in the same day. If you're going to the Halloween party, which is a separately ticketed event, be sure to check out the treat stop inside
The Diamond Horseshoe. The Hitchhiking Ghosts might just materialize to greet you. If you plan to spend time at the festival, which is included in your EPCOT admission, pick up a complimentary festival passport book so you don't miss anything. Most importantly, it contains locations and menu items for all of the
Global Marketplaces. If you've purchased a
Disney Dining Plan, some of these offerings can be purchased using your snack credits. To that I say, challenge accepted!
Kaitlin, I hope you get the Lightning Lane reservations of your dreams and that you have a wonderful trip. Please visit us again with any other planning questions you can think of. We're always here to help.
Grab hold of your dreams!
Melanie