Greetings, Shae, and welcome to planDisney! The
Lightning Lane Multi Pass is a great way to fit more into your day, so it's great that you have it on your radar. With a bit of strategy, you'll be able to coordinate plans for your whole family and focus on having fun together. Let's get into it!
To answer your question, Shae, the Lightning Lane Multi Pass won't activate until the ticket it's tied to is used to enter a theme park. That means you wouldn't be able to make Lightning Lane selections for others in your group until they've entered the park as well. Once they've joined you in the park, however, you'd be able to book Lightning Lane return times for everyone, as long as their theme park tickets are linked to your account in the
Disneyland mobile app. It certainly makes the day go a little smoother if one person is in charge of booking.
If the others in your group like to have a slower start to the morning, you certainly could enter the theme park first and jumpstart your magical day. I love getting to the park in time for rope drop. The entrance gates to the theme parks open a little early, and Guests can walk down Main Street, U.S.A. until they reach the ropes. As the park officially opens for the day, the ropes are removed, and Guests can make their way to their first attraction.
Shae, perhaps you can convince your group to head into the parks early so you can start making Lightning Lane selections, but start with a leisurely breakfast. The character dining breakfast at
Plaza Inn is fun, and you can't go wrong with
Carnation Cafe. A ride on the Disneyland Railroad is another leisurely way to start the day.
Here are a few things to keep in mind:
- Some popular attractions are more likely to have later return windows than others, especially as the day progresses. I recommend prioritizing Indiana Jones Adventure and Space Mountain in Disneyland, as well as Guardians of the Galaxy and Toy Story Midway Mania in California Adventure.
- Lighting Lane selections are made one at a time. Once you’ve redeemed a selection (or after two hours have passed), you can book your next return time. And remember, you can book each attraction once.
- The multi pass can be used for attractions in both parks. You can start booking attractions for your second park while you are still in the first park, as long as you have a Park Hopper ticket and the return time is after 11 a.m. (since you won't be able to cross over to the other park until then).
- Single passes are available for a few of the most popular attractions not included in the multi pass. You can purchase those separately on the day of your visit if you wish to use them.
Shae, my last tip is to take advantage of the
Disney PhotoPass Service. You'll receive unlimited digital downloads of PhotoPass photos all day long with your multi pass. It's a great opportunity to have photos taken with your entire family, especially at iconic locations like Sleeping Beauty Castle.
I hope your trip is filled with magical moments, thrills, laughs, and happy memories. If you have any questions in advance of your trip, please reach out. We're always happy to help here at planDisney!
Your pal,
Kriss