Big changes coming to Walt Disney World’s Genie+ Service this Summer!
Genie+ Service at Walt Disney World is getting a major change on July 24th! What does this mean for you during your Walt Disney World vacation after July 24th? You’ll see new branding for Disney’s advanced ride reservation system on your My Disney Experience app. Instead of the familiar, and sometimes friendly, Genie+ you will see the Lightning Lane MultiPass and the Lightning Lane Single Pass options available for purchase. Fortunately for you, we have already developed a guide to this new system before it even rolls out - FREE Lightning Lane Pass System Guide!
The rebranded Genie+ Service
Lightning Lane passes will now be available in advance of your park visit to allow for ride reservations to be made up to 7 days in advance of your visit for select Walt Disney World Guests.
Guests staying at a Walt Disney World Resort, Walt Disney World Swan & Dolphin, Walt Disney World Swan Reserve, or Walt Disney World Shades of Green Resort, will be able to purchase their Lightning Lane passes up to 7 days prior to their stay. All other guests will be able to purchase the service and make advanced ride reservations up to 3 days prior to their first park admission date. As with Genie+ there will be limits to the advanced ride reservations you may make.
Rides that were previously only available via the Individual Lightning Lane system will remain the same and will be available for purchase solely through the Lightning Lane Single Pass system. The rides covered under this system will be: Avatar: Flight of Passage (Animal Kingdom), Seven Dwarfs Mine Train & Tron Lightcycle / Run (Magic Kingdom), Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind (Epcot), and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance (Hollywood Studios).
Reservations for all other rides fall into two tiers based upon the individual park. The only exception to this is Animal Kingdom which will not have multiple tiers for advanced ride reservations. In the other three parks, you will be able to make up to 3 advanced ride reservations (subject to availability) once your purchase window opens. You will have the option of booking one ride from tier one (varies by park) and two additional rides from tier two, or three rides from tier two. The full list of tiers is available on our Lightning Lane Passes Guide that has been created to help guests navigate these changes to the ride reservation system.
How much will Lightning Lane Passes cost?
Disney has not yet (as of June 25th) announced a price range associated with the new Lightning Lane Pass system that goes live on July 24th. However, they have confirmed that it will feature dynamic demand based pricing very similar to the current Genie+ & Individual Lightning Lane systems currently in place in the parks. I would be shocked to see a major price increase to either the Lightning Lane MultiPass or Lightning Lane Single Pass when compared to the current pricing, although I wouldn’t put it past Disney to charge a little more for the added convenience of booking these ride reservations in advance. To be honest, having to get up at 6:45AM to not only purchase Genie+ but then make reservations, all following a late night in the parks, was not fun for any parent (aka all of the moms out there).
You will be able to purchase your Lightning Lane MultiPass AND your Lightning Lane Single Pass at the same time through the My Disney Experience app.
How does the new Lightning Lane Pass system work with Park Hopper?
The new Lightning Lane Pass system will work with the Park Hopper ticket option.
When you purchase a Lightning Lane Multi Pass for a theme park, you’ll be prompted to choose up to 3 multi pass experiences and arrival windows in the same theme park.
Once you redeem a selection on the day of your park visit, you can use the My Disney Experience app to choose another multi pass experience in any Walt Disney World theme park (subject to availability), as long as you have a valid ticket with the Park Hopper option or an Annual Pass.
This means pick a ride you know you want to do early on in your day, redeem that advance reservation, and you’ll be able to start making reservations in other parks as long as you have that valid Park Hopper ticket option or an Annual Pass.
You will not be able to select advance ride reservations across multiple parks for the same day at one time until you’ve redeem that first ride selection. I expect this will be a pain point for many park visitors in late July or early August who have not done their research, or have not worked with a Disney Travel Planner who is up to date with all of these changes.
How do I keep up with all of these changes being made at Walt Disney World?
Planning a trip to Walt Disney World always leads to this question. It’s one that we love hearing and answering! The best way to keep up to date with EVERYTHING that’s going on in Walt Disney World is to work with someone who is knowledgeable and trained on everything related to Disney. We already have a FREE Ultimate Packing Guide for Walt Disney World available for you to download and use however you need! We also make it a priority to stay updated on all of the park happenings, events, closures, and changes to make sure your trip is as magical as it can be. Have more questions about Walt Disney World travel or other Disney Vacations? Contact us today or follow us on Instagram to learn how we can help you plan your next amazing Disney Vacation!
