Aloha, Amy.
Welcome to planDisney! Your magical
Walt Disney World Resort vacation is just around the riverbend. I bet the excitement and anticipation are building as each day passes, because pretty soon, you'll be standing right in the middle of Main Street, U.S.A. gazing upon Cinderella Castle!
I'm glad you stopped by with this question. I was in this same boat in December, so I have first hand experience in this arena. My husband and I had a weekend getaway planned with our best Disney friends. We were staying on property at Disney's Pop Century Resort, but they were staying off site. All Disney Guests, whether they're staying on property or not, can purchase
Disney Genie+ service starting at 12:00 a.m. midnight on the day of use and make their first
Lightning Lane selection beginning at 7:00 a.m. I recommend purchasing Genie+ by 6:00 a.m. at the latest to leave a cushion for any technical hiccups.
Unfortunately, only
Disney Resorts Collection hotel Guests can purchase Individual Lightning Lane selections at 7:00 a.m. All other Guests must wait until the official
park opening time for the theme park their park reservation is at for the day. When we tried to purchase an Individual Lightning Lane on our December trip, it told us our friends were not eligible to purchase at that time. They had to instead purchase their Individual Lightning Lane at 9:00 a.m. when Disney's Hollywood Studios opened that day, which meant their arrival window was much later than ours. If this happens to your party, you can always speak to a Cast Member on one of the Guest Experience Teams (look for the blue tents stationed in the park) to see if they could modify the arrival window to be the same for everyone. They may or may not be able to accommodate, but it's certainly worth giving it a try!
Whether it's a Disney Genie+ Lightning Lane selection or an Individual Lightning Lane selection, be ready to book your first arrival window via the Tip Board in your
My Disney Experience App at at the exact time you are eligible to, because some selections sell out quickly. Pro tip: Link an active credit card to your My Disney Experience account ahead of your trip to make the Disney Genie+ service or Individual Lightning Lane purchase faster and more streamlined.
While I know this wasn't the answer your heart's been dreaming of, I hope knowing you will be in The Most Magical Place on Earth will turn that frown upside down. After all, any day at Disney is better than a day at home. There's a great, big, beautiful tomorrow just waiting for you, Amy!
Tomorrow is just a dream away,
Alyssa