A Complete Guide to Genie, Genie+ & Lightning Lanes
A Complete Guide to Genie, Genie+ & Lightning Lanes Walt Disney World offers an all-encompassing experience with its enchanting theme parks, stunning resorts that make you feel like you’re in a movie, and activities for the whole family to enjoy. One of the top reasons guests flock to Walt Disney World is for its world-class rides and attractions. As the most magical theme park in the country, Disney features rides that immerse you in your favorite Disney stories. Maximizing your ride experience during your next Disney World vacation likely brought you here – to this guide on Disney’s new Genie service. Learning The Lingo – What is Disney Genie, Genie+, & Lightning Lane If it’s been a while since your last trip to Disney World, you might have heard about Disney Genie, Genie+, and Lightning Lanes but aren’t quite sure what they entail. Let’s start with a quick overview to get you up to speed. What Is Disney Genie? Disney Genie is a free planning tool designed to help you organize your day at Disney World based on your family’s preferences. When you log into Disney Genie, you can prioritize your day according to your favorite activities, whether it’s dining, attractions, shows, or more. You can even select specific restaurants and rides. Once you’ve chosen your favorites, the app will provide the best itinerary to ensure you experience everything you love. For rides, it will notify you when the wait times are shorter and suggest the optimal time to go. Disney Genie is an excellent complimentary planning tool that can help you plan the perfect Disney day for your family! What Is Disney Genie+? Disney Genie+ is a paid service that offers additional features, including Genie+ Lightning Lanes, Interactive Disney PhotoPass Lenses, and Audio Tales throughout the Disney Parks. It also includes all the functionalities of the free Disney Genie tool. However, the main attraction for most guests is the Lightning Lanes, which we’ll explain next. Disney Genie+ starts at $15.00 per person, per day, but prices are dynamic and can go up to $35.00 as of April 2023. When Can You Purchase Disney Genie+? You will be able to purchase Disney Genie+ after midnight, on the day you wish to use it. This can be done from the top of your Tip Board, anytime after midnight, on the day you wish to use it. You will need to purchase it the same way, every single day. Unfortunately the option to purchase Genie+ in-advance no longer exists. What Are Disney Genie+ Lightning Lanes? If you’re spending the day at Disney Theme Parks and rides and attractions are a key part of your experience, you’ll want to take full advantage of Lightning Lanes. Lightning Lanes are the new version of FastPass. Before COVID, Disney offered FastPass services included in ticket prices, providing an alternative line that moved much faster than the standby queue. During COVID, Disney discontinued FastPasses, and at the end of 2021, introduced Lightning Lanes. Most rides at Walt Disney World are included in Disney Genie+, but for the most popular rides, you will need to purchase Individual Lightning Lanes. At the end of this guide, you’ll find a comprehensive list detailing which rides are included with Genie+ and which require an additional Individual Lightning Lane purchase. What Is An Individual Lightning Lane at Disney World? An Individual Lightning Lane allows you to purchase a lightning lane for some of the more popular rides at each park. Typically, each park offers one to two rides that are not included with the standard Genie Lightning Lane that you can purchase Individual Lightning Lane pass to ride. These rides are usually the most popular and have the longest lines in the park. The prices of the Individual Lightning Lanes change depending on the ride, day, and season you want to purchase them on. Most Individual Lightning Lanes cost $10-$20 per person per Lightning Lane. You can only purchase two Individual Lightning Lanes per day, and they usually sell out quickly, so make sure to book as soon as possible. If you truly want the full experience – you will be buying Individual Lightning Lanes in addition to the cost of Genie+. However you do not need to buy Genie+ to also purchase Individual Lightning Lanes. What’s Included With What? To quickly summarize what’s included with Genie, and what’s included with Genie+, check out the helpful graphic below! Core Facts Surrounding Disney’s Genie, Genie+, and Individual Lightning Lanes Just because the ride is listed as a Disney Genie+ ride does not mean it will be available. Each ride has limited availability for Lightning Lanes, so it is best to book your favorite rides as soon as possible, the top rides sell out in seconds. Even if a ride says it does not have any more availability does not mean there won’t be availability later. Rides can slow down, and Disney may release more Lightning Lanes passes. You can purchase Disney Genie+ at midnight on the day you are heading to the park. You can purchase your first Individual Lightning Lane at 7am regardless if you are staying on-property or off-property. You do NOT need to purchase Genie+ to purchase Individual Lightning Lanes. Disney Genie+ costs vary from $15.00-$35.00 per person per day. You can use Genie+ for all the Disney Parks you will be visiting on the same day. You cannot book the same ride twice using Genie+ Lightning Lane. If you want to ride the attraction a second time, you will have to wait in the stand-by line. Best Practices For Reserving Rides with Lightning Lane The Tip Board Portion of Genie allows you to access the Lightning Lanes. Here, you can find what Lightning Lanes are available, and this is where you will book them. The most challenging part of using Lightning Lane is understanding how and when to reserve rides. This sections tries to cover how you can reserve attractions using Genie+. Genie+ Lightning Lanes If you purchase Genie+ to use Lightning Lanes for your day
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