Particular person Lightning Lanes are pay-per-ride line-skipping entry to the most well-liked rides at Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood, and Animal Kingdom. This information covers pricing, when reservations promote out, tips on how to ebook ILLs, and variations from the Genie+ service. Plus, the greatest ones to purchase–and why we don’t advocate others. (Up to date February 20, 2024.)
The very first thing you in all probability must know is that Particular person Lightning Lane sights aren’t included within the Genie+ service. That line-skipping service gives Lightning Lane entry for a number of sights (normally at the very least 3 per day, however it relies upon upon crowds and the way environment friendly you’re at making the one-at-a-time reservations), however excludes the most well-liked experience per park. Genie+ now makes use of per-park and date-based pricing, that means it could value as little as $15 or as a lot as $39 per particular person, per day.
The most well-liked experience in every park (or two rides, within the case of Magic Kingdom) is an Particular person Lightning Lanes, or ILL. (That’s an unlucky acronym, however maybe it’s meant to evoke the way you’ll really feel after dropping ~$90 for your loved ones to not watch for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, solely to have the experience breakdown when you’re within the Lightning Lane.) Whereas Genie+ is extra like a bundle, Particular person Lightning Lanes are, because the title suggests, a la carte.
For those who’re not a seasoned Walt Disney World veteran, that could possibly be complicated. In a nutshell, Lightning Lanes are the bodily infrastructure within the parks–a literal line you stroll via within the queue that bypasses standby. Nonetheless, there are two other ways to entry this “quick lane.” For almost all of rides, you make alternatives through the Genie+ service, which supplies you a return time for Lightning Lane entry. For the most well-liked sights in every park, you buy separate (Particular person) Lightning Lane entry.
For many who are nonetheless not sure of the variations (it’s an admittedly complicated system!), we’ve tackle the variations between Genie+ and Particular person Lightning Lanes in quite a few posts, together with our Information to Genie+ at Walt Disney World & Lightning Lane FAQ. We’re not going to rehash these foundational variations right here, so please confer with that. As a substitute, we’ll give attention to tips on how to purchase the pay-per-ride Particular person Lightning Lanes, pricing, and the way shortly ILLs promote out.
Earlier than that, a fast housekeeping be aware. Walt Disney World has used a number of phrases to confer with this similar line-skipping choice: a la carte Lightning Lanes, Particular person Attraction Picks (IAS), and particular person Lightning Lanes–all interchangeably–when referring to this.
These all imply the identical factor. Usually, Disney now refers to this pay-per-ride choice as Particular person Lightning Lanes, however you may appear different phrases used right here and there. Basically, these are the Lightning Lanes which can be not a part of Genie+. They’re those out there for the most well-liked attraction with the longest wait time in every park. (It nonetheless will be complicated, however hopefully that helps.)
If that wasn’t difficult sufficient already, Walt Disney World has moved Particular person Lightning Lane sights to Genie+. Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway at Hollywood Studios, Remy’s Ratatouille Journey and Frozen Ever After at Epcot, and House Mountain at Magic Kingdom are actually included within the flat-rate Disney Genie+ service and won’t be offered a la carte as Particular person Lightning Lanes anymore.
This was initially a short lived change, however Walt Disney World made it everlasting. That’s nice information for anybody wanting to purchase the Genie+ service, however probably unhealthy information for anybody who solely cared about these explicit rides. (For the overwhelming majority of visitors, this alteration is a optimistic.)
Subsequent, let’s check out Particular person Lightning Lane pricing. Walt Disney World beforehand introduced that costs will differ relying on the attraction and day of go to. Consider it like Categorical Lanes on highways—dynamic pricing that will increase with demand.
Costs have exploded for Genie+ with the introduction of date-based after which per-park pricing, taking the fee from $15 each single day for each single park to considerably larger quantities. Underneath the brand new pricing scheme, the typical worth of Genie+ has been $25 for Magic Kingdom or the Multi-Park (Park Hopper) choice. The very best worth Genie+ has reached so far has been $39, with the bottom worth being $15. (All numbers are pre-tax costs; after tax the vary is ~$16 to ~$42.)
That’s the unhealthy information. The excellent news is that although costs have gone up for sure Particular person Lightning Lane sights, they don’t seem to be up almost that a lot. Actually, some haven’t elevated in any respect within the final 12 months. Right here’s a have a look at new/present weekday pricing:
Right here’s a have a look at excessive and low worth factors we’ve seen to date post-price enhance:
- Seven Dwarfs Mine Prepare: excessive $12, low $10
- TRON Lightcycle Run: $20
- Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind: excessive $17, low $14
- Star Wars Rise of the Resistance: excessive $25, low $20
- Avatar Flight of Passage: excessive $17, low $12
Within the final 12 months, solely Avatar Flight of Passage has seen a worth enhance to its most. Costs hit these highs final 12 months through the weeks of Christmas and New Yr’s Eve. So far in 2024, they’ve approached the peaks through the week of Mardi Gras, Presidents’ Day. Anticipate related tales throughout Spring Break and Easter.
As for future adjustments, it’s attainable that ILL costs will hit new highs throughout Spring Break 2024. Though that’s a vacationer season, it doesn’t have any weeks of concentrated crowds like Spring Break, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and so forth. Walt Disney World didn’t elevate costs even through the absolute peak week throughout Christmas and NYE, so we wouldn’t count on it for Spring Break or Summer season 2024.
The attainable change this 12 months would be the debut of Tiana’s Bayou Journey, which might go both manner–both becoming a member of Genie+ or being an Particular person Lightning Lane. If Tiana’s Bayou Journey does get ILL standing, we’d count on Seven Dwarfs Mine Prepare to be relegated to the Genie+ service. Once more, might go both manner–we will see!
With date-based pricing, Walt Disney World is extra prepared to regulate costs with regularity, particularly across the aforementioned holidays when demand is far larger. As we’ve seen over the course of the final 12 months, Particular person Lightning Lanes promote out quicker–even at larger costs–when crowds and wait instances are worse.
Which makes full sense: even when it prices extra, there’s extra worth in skipping an extended line. In different phrases, present demand already means that the costs might seemingly go up considerably. Nonetheless, with pent-up demand exhausting itself, costs could now begin to development downward as a substitute of up for the remainder of this 12 months.
That brings us to our subsequent matter: Particular person Lightning Lane availability or lack thereof–what’s promoting out and what’s available. Be aware that that is primarily based on our experiences from so far in 2024. Particular person Lightning Lanes have offered out quick on many dates this 12 months, even non-peak ones.
We suspect it is because Particular person Lightning Lanes supply higher relative worth than they did two years in the past. Again then, Genie+ value $15 day by day, which was roughly the identical ballpark worth as an Particular person Lightning Lane. Now, Genie+ is normally dearer for every park than the ILL experience in that park–usually by $10 or extra. That makes ILLs extra engaging of a purchase order by comparability, and as such, they’re promoting out quicker.
We’d count on this development to stay true via the beginning of summer season. We’ll be monitoring availability and can report again as to how day by day availability is trying as of mid-June 2024, when the height vacationer season begins and Tiana’s Bayou Journey opens.
For now, let’s begin with demand for the most recent Particular person Lightning Lane attraction: TRON Lightcycle Run. Since opening, the Particular person Lightning Lane for TRON Lightcycle Run has been priced at $20 per particular person.
This places it larger than Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, however behind Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance on common. It is usually larger than its counterpart in Magic Kingdom, Seven Dwarfs Mine Prepare. That family-friendly coaster is retaining its ILL standing and at the moment prices between $10 and $12.
Its first a number of weeks after launching, TRON Lightcycle Run repeatedly offered out earlier than or shortly after Magic Kingdom formally opened for the day. For the reason that begin of the shoulder season, Particular person Lightning Lane availability has improved significantly and demand has dropped. At the moment, it’s frequent for TRON Lightcycle Run to nonetheless have ILL instances till 1 pm or later.
That is noteworthy as a result of the experience additionally has free boarding group availability for minutes and even hours after 1 pm. See our Information to the TRON Lightcycle Run Digital Queue for every little thing it’s essential to find out about that. This dynamic will seemingly change as soon as summer season arrives–the quicker the digital queue fills up, the quicker Particular person Lightning Lane entry for TRON Lightcycle Run will promote out.
As famous above, Seven Dwarfs Mine Prepare was not ‘downgraded’ to Genie+ when TRON Lightcycle Run opened. Seven Dwarfs Mine Prepare is the oldest attraction with ILL standing, and Magic Kingdom is the one park with two ILL rides.
Nonetheless, Seven Dwarfs Mine Prepare remains to be extremely in style and with a completely totally different demographic than TRON Lightcycle Run. On high of that, Magic Kingdom already has 23 Genie+ Lightning Lane sights, which is greater than another park. Consequently, Disney is sustaining its ILL standing to be able to seize extra income since extra Genie+ capability shouldn’t be wanted.
With that mentioned, Seven Dwarfs Mine Prepare tends to be the least in style Particular person Lightning Lane at Walt Disney World. It nonetheless does promote out many days at Magic Kingdom, however normally lasts for at the very least a couple of hours after park opening. On slower days, there’s availability effectively into the afternoon.
Over at Epcot, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind has improved Particular person Lightning Lane availability. On peak days, it usually sells out by 9 am or 10 am–about an hour after park opening. On reasonably crowded or slower days, nevertheless, ILL for Cosmic Rewind usually lasts till after 2 or 3 pm. There have been some 1/10 or 2/10 crowd stage days when it hasn’t offered out in any respect. (These are undoubtedly the exception, not the rule.)
With it now simpler to enter the digital queue for Cosmic Rewind, the Lightning Lane normally doesn’t promote out till after boarding teams refill. (See our Methods to Trip Guardians of Galaxy Cosmic Rewind & Digital Queue Velocity Technique for enhancing your odds of success on the free digital queue; no must learn that in case you’ve already consulted the extra complete TRON digital queue information.)
We don’t advocate buying Particular person Lightning Lane entry to both TRON Lightcycle Run or Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind in case you’re visiting on low or reasonably crowded days. This comes right down to the aforementioned digital queues, that are simple to entry as long as crowd ranges are beneath 8/10. (See our Walt Disney World Crowd Calendars for perception as to how busy it’ll be once you’re visiting.)
The one exception is if you wish to expertise these rides a number of instances. Each do have re-rideability due to Cosmic Rewind’s six totally different songs and the way totally different TRON seems and feels at night time. Of the 2, we’d be extra inclined to pay further for a number of rides on Cosmic Rewind, because it’s an extended and extra satisfying attraction with larger variations due to the soundtrack adjustments, however to every their very own.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios is house to the best-seller: Star Wars Rise of the Resistance. This Particular person Lightning Lane attraction generally sells out earlier than DHS even opens, which is when off-site visitors are eligible to buy.
On much less busy days, it could have availability via mid-morning and even past if crowd ranges are actually low. The decrease the standby wait time for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, the longer its Particular person Lightning Lane availability lasts. When the posted wait time doesn’t crack triple digits, Rise of the Resistance can have ILL stock into the early afternoon.
To compound issues on busier days, DHS can also be house to the unequivocally hottest Genie+ Lightning Lane attraction: Slinky Canine Sprint. This presents a sensible downside–how do you ebook each? There isn’t a great way for one particular person to perform each past making an attempt to do issues shortly and hoping for one of the best. Realistically, you’ll need to have two adults awake at 7 am, with one reserving Slinky Canine Sprint and the opposite reserving Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. For one of the best consequence, observe our Velocity Technique for Genie+ Picks.
With all of that mentioned, in case you’re solely going to purchase one Particular person Lightning Lane, make it Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. That is the one large exception to our advice that you simply strategize round ILLs, and is for a couple of causes. First, we predict it’s the greatest attraction of all at Walt Disney World. Second, it usually is the longest wait time in all 4 parks.
Lastly, and most significantly, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance is essentially the most unreliable attraction, with breakdowns occurring day by day. For those who soar right into a multi-hour standby line, there’s reasonable chance of downtime when you’re ready. That not solely means you’ll probably be caught in the identical spot for an hour or so, but additionally that when Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance returns from downtime, it’ll have a backlog of Particular person Lightning Lane visitors–who’re prioritized–to course of earlier than the standby line.
Talking from expertise, it’s extremely irritating and an enormous waste of time if this occurs when you’re within the standby line. Whereas we hate Particular person Lightning Lanes as a matter of precept, we’re additionally realists and acknowledge that trip time is finite and has a per hour worth. There’s additionally the truth that enduring a experience breakdown of Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance whereas within the standby line might actually put a damper in your day, and trip as an entire.
Because of this alone, we advocate Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance throughout Early Entry, on the finish of the night time, or through the Particular person Lightning Lane. The chance and potential for wasted time through standby through the center of the day is just too excessive. It’s not an overstatement or exaggeration to say {that a} damaging standby expertise with Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance might break your day.
One other various is ready for a refill of the Particular person Lightning Lane for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. See Trip Reservation Refill Guidelines at Walt Disney World for timing on when these usually happen.
Animal Kingdom is the place you’ll discover one among Walt Disney World’s hottest sights: Avatar Flight of Passage. This has offered fairly effectively, usually being gone earlier than afternoon whereas posting hour-plus and even triple digit standby wait instances.
Nonetheless, it’s additionally comparatively simple to expertise Avatar Flight of Passage with out a prolonged wait. Both arrive for Early Entry and do it first, or present up late and do it over the past hour of the night. We’ve accomplished each approaches many instances, and sometimes have an precise wait time of underneath half-hour, whatever the posted wait time.
Subsequent, right here’s tips on how to ebook Particular person Lightning Lanes…
There are a couple of other ways to make an preliminary buy of Particular person Lightning Lanes.
It’s completely attainable you’ll be prompted whereas shopping My Disney Expertise or establishing the free Genie service, during which case you’d see one thing just like the above.
You may as well navigate to the Tip Board through the + button on the center backside of My Disney Expertise or the hamburger button on the underside proper.
From there, you’ll see one thing much like the above display. Click on the Particular person Lightning Lane field for the attraction to which you’d like to purchase line-skipping entry.
From there, you’ll both see the display above or one to pick out your occasion. That is fairly self-explanatory; you choose the beginning time of obtainable one-hour return home windows.
Remember to examine your current plans (faucet the arrow subsequent to “Plans Throughout This Time” for a dropdown) to keep away from vital overlap between Advance Eating Reservations, Genie+ alternatives, and different plans. My Disney Expertise won’t stop you from reserving conflicting plans–it’s as much as you to be sure to’re not double-booked.
It’s additionally attainable you’ll first be directed to this display, the place you’ll be able to choose which members of your occasion for whom you’d wish to buy Particular person Lightning Lane entry. Because of this you do not must buy ILL for anybody who the experience would possibly make bodily in poor health, youngsters who’re too brief to experience, and so forth.
For those who don’t see the above display first, you will get thus far by tapping the “Edit” button to the suitable of your occasion on the time slot choice display.
After confirming your occasion and deciding on a time, you’re despatched to a display to assessment the main points earlier than finishing the acquisition.
If something is inaccurate otherwise you’d like to alter it, faucet the again arrow on the highest left nook of the display.
In any other case, it’s on to enter or verify your contact particulars, fee data, and comply with Disney’s phrases & circumstances earlier than tapping buy. Notably, Particular person Lightning Lane costs don’t embrace tax–identical to the Genie+ service–which looks like nickel & diming on high of nickel & diming.
On a extra humorous be aware, there’s a caveat above the phrases & circumstances that this Particular person Lightning Lane can solely be redeemed at Walt Disney World–close to Orlando, Florida. If somebody can’t distinguish between Disneyland in Anaheim, California and Walt Disney World, they’re severely going to be misplaced in relation to the convoluted Genie system!
From there, you’ll obtain a receipt with a prolonged affirmation quantity and order particulars that ought to look much like the above. I say “ought to” as a result of I’ve by no means truly purchased Particular person Lightning Lane entry and don’t have any intentions of doing so.
No offense to those that plan on shopping for these–to every their very own–however it’s merely a line we’re not prepared to cross, so to talk. Whereas we’re already followers of Genie+, that’s bundled entry for a number of sights that makes the entire day simpler. That is totally different, because it means placing a worth on a single attraction–all of which we’ve got accomplished many, many instances through the years.
Past that, us shopping for Particular person Lightning Lane entry shouldn’t be essential “for the sake of analysis,” whereas testing and utilizing Genie+ very a lot is. Since there’s at the moment just one ILL experience per park, it’s fairly simple to rope drop one and do the opposite proper earlier than park closing and bypass the traces that manner.
If something, pondering up, making an attempt, and testing different savvy technique to bypass lengthy waits at Particular person Lightning Lane sights will likely be a “enjoyable” problem. That’s extra necessary to us than attending to skip the traces ourselves! We advocate the same strategy to most trip planners who’re on a tighter finances, with the one potential exception being Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. For the explanations outlined above, it may be a great use of cash that minimizes complications and saves a ton of time–however even then, doing it throughout Early Entry or on the finish of the night time is a viable various.
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YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you consider the pay-per-ride Particular person Lightning Lane experience reservations? Planning on utilizing this to skip standby traces, or do you like to not pay much more for an already costly Walt Disney World trip? Are you extra prone to buy Genie+ or Particular person Lightning Lanes–or neither? Do you agree or disagree with our recommendation and evaluation? Any questions we will help you reply? Listening to your suggestions–even once you disagree with us–is each attention-grabbing to us and useful to different readers, so please share your ideas beneath within the feedback!
