Hello there, Elliot!
Thanks for stopping by planDisney! You’ll be at the Most Magical Place on Earth during the most wondrous time of the year. From experiencing the all-new
Disney Jollywood Nights at Disney’s Hollywood Studios to watching “snow” fall upon Disney Springs, there’s so much to see and do during that joyful season. Now, when it comes to maximizing your theme park days, I highly recommend taking advantage of Lightning Lanes, which are priority queues that will lessen your waits for attractions.
First, you’ll want to purchase your Walt Disney World Resort theme park tickets or book a
vacation package, in which your hotel and tickets are combined. You can do this by visiting the Walt Disney World Resort website, using your
My Disney Experience App, or
speaking to a helpful Cast Member via a telephone call. And Hakuna Matata! No worries! There aren’t any special tickets to buy at this stage to give you access to Lightning Lanes.
In order to use several attractions’ Lightning Lanes, you’ll need to purchase the
Disney Genie+ Service. Starting at 7 a.m. on the morning of each theme park day, you will be able to make your party's first Lightning Lane selection in your My Disney Experience App. You can technically make your Disney Genie+ Service as early as midnight the day of your theme park visit, but you still can’t book your first Lightning Lane until later in the morning, so you might as well wait until a little before 7 a.m. to buy it and use it.
After you scan into each Lightning Lane throughout the day, you’ll want to head to your My Disney Experience App and book your next Lightning Lane. I like to quickly select my next ride while waiting in the short queue that I just scanned into. Make sure everyone in your party has scanned in, so you can be in the same return time window for your next attraction.
AN EXTRA GEM: There are some super popular attractions that require an Individual Lightning Lane purchase (and not Disney Genie+ Service). If you’re staying on Walt Disney World Resort property, you can make these selections as early as 7 a.m., but all other Guests can purchase access once the attraction’s theme park officially opens. Currently, these are the attractions that require an Individual Lightning Lane purchase in order to access its Lightning Lane:
TRON Lightcycle / Run
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind
Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance
Avatar Flight of Passage
If you have any other questions as you put those final touches on your Disney vacation, Elliot, please don’t hesitate to revisit us here at planDisney.
I’m all ears!Magic always,
LeAndra