Hi Sarah,
Welcome to planDisney. I love the idea of a reunion at Walt Disney World Resort! I have some close friends scattered all over the country and I've found it to be the perfect place to connect and catch up.
Right now,
Lightning Lane Passes are available for purchase and scheduling beginning 7 days before the check-in date for Disney Resort Collection hotel guests. If your friends don't have an eligible resort reservation, they will not have access to pre-planning on the same timeline even if you are all connected via the
Family & Friends list.
Off-property guests can purchase and reserve Lightning Lane return times 3 days before their ticket start date. If your local friends will be using multi-day tickets they can plan for their length of admission 3 days before their first day in the parks. If they will be
using an Annual Pass, they will need to plan each date of their visit individually as they reach that 3-day window.
I've gone through the purchasing and scheduling process, but have yet to plan anything for a mixed group of resort and non-resort guests. I reached out to a Cast Member who advised that you will
not be able to modify existing selections to include your friends once they are within their booking window. Instead, you would need to cancel and rebook to include everyone in the group. The Cast Member recommended having your friends try to secure overlapping return windows for the same attractions, or waiting until everyone is eligible to purchase and plan to ensure you can ride together.
I can't guarantee that all attractions and times will be available the closer you get to your visit, so I'd probably plan my first three Lightning Lane selections early and cross my fingers my friends can find an overlapping time. If not, you can try modifying your reservations to match their times, or simply cancel and rebook another attraction you can all experience together. I
outlined the modification process for another guest recently if you'd like to review the steps. I believe you should be able to schedule subsequent same-day selections together after redeeming one of your initial selections.
I hope this was helpful, Sarah. Please come back and see us with more questions as you prepare to visit next year.
Magic and memories,
Amy