Hi Amanda!
Welcome to planDisney! As my friend Princess Tiana would say, you're getting
closer and closer every day to your Walt Disney World Resort vacation! Before you know it, you'll be soaring high above Fantasyland on
Dumbo the Flying Elephant, eating your favorite Mickey-shaped snack, and watching
fireworks light up the night sky.
Amanda, I love to plan a split stay during my Disney vacations. It's a great opportunity to experience two different resorts or room types in one trip! To take advantage of the early booking window for
Lightning Lane passes, you must have a valid reservation at a
Disney hotel (or other selected properties) and valid theme park admission. I chatted by phone with a Cast Member who shared that since your tickets are part of a vacation package for your second resort stay, you should find that you can start purchasing Lightning Lane passes 7 days before that second check-in date.
I have an upcoming stay myself and noticed that under "My Plans" in the
My Disney Experience Mobile App, there is a special note for my theme park visit confirming the date I'm eligible to begin purchasing Lightning Lane passes. This is a relatively recent update in the app and may be helpful to check out and confirm your purchase date. If you have further questions, you can always
call a Cast Member at Tickets and Hotel Reservations who can confirm the specifics of your reservation and further assist with an exact date for when you can begin purchasing Lightning Lane passes.
As a reminder, there are three types of Lightning Lane passes: Premier Pass, Single Pass, and Multi Pass. My family likes to use a combination of Lightning Lane Multi Pass and Single Passes to make the most of our time in the parks. If you're planning to
park hop with a Multi Pass, you'll purchase your pass and make your selections for just one park. Then, you can
modify your selections to include additional theme parks after redeeming your first Lightning Lane, subject to availability. Any Single Passes you purchase that day can be from the same park as your Multi Pass or different parks.
Before your trip, don't forget to check out the other
great benefits you'll enjoy as a Guest staying in the Disney Resorts Collection. If your check-in dates are between May 26 and September 8, 2026, everyone on your resort reservation can enjoy
complimentary entry to a water park on that first day of your stay. That means that with two resort reservations and two check-in dates, you can double the water park fun by using this benefit twice during your vacation!
I hope this information has been helpful, Amanda, and that you enjoy a wonderful visit to Walt Disney World! If you have any other questions, please stop by to see us again here at planDisney!
See ya real soon!
Kristi