As with most things Disney, the fast pass system as Disney World continues to evolve with the times. As of July, 2024, Genie Plus was no longer, and it has been replaced with the most current fast pass system known as "Lightning Lane Multipass." In this post I will lay out what this new system is, how it works, and some possible strategies. I have not visited Disney World since the implementation of Lightning Lane Multipass, so this is all theoretical for now. I am excited to use the new system for the first time during our upcoming trip in November.
1) What is Lightning Lane Multipass?
If you can remember the old Fast Pass+ system of pre-covid, the Lightning Lane Multipass system is essentially that with a pricetag tacked on. Ever since Genie Plus came out, Disney was not going to go back to a free fast pass system. Paying to skip the line will be the norm from here on out in Disney World, and while I hate it, I do think it is necessary to have an enjoyable time and I will continue to pay for this service.
2) How does Lightning Lane Multipass work?
The major advantage of Lightning Lane Multipass, is that it can be booked and all set prior to your Disney World vacation. This bring a huge sigh of relief to those who were sick of the stress of booking their first Lightning Lane at 7am on the day of. Gone are the days of uncertainty on what your day in the parks will look like. Now, just like with the old Fast Pass+ system, you can have your first 3 Lightning Lanes set and know what your day will look like, before you even set foot on Disney World property.
In you are staying on Disney property you can purchase Lightning Lane Multipass for any or all days of your trip, 7 days before the first day of your Disney trip. For all other Disney visitors, you can book 3 days prior to your first day. Booking starts at 7am on the day you are eligible. This is obviously another huge advantage to stay on site at a Disney World resort. Purchasing Lightning Lane Multipass will cost on average $16-$39 per person, per day. While high, it is comparable to what we paid for Genie Plus, and is arguably a better system.
When your eligibility day arrives to book Lightning Lane Multipass, you will be able to schedule 3 Lightning Lanes in your first park for each day that you purchase Multipass for. To reiterate- you do not have to purchase Lightning Lane Multipass for everyday of your trip. It is important to note that you can book your days out of order, meaning that if you are going to Animal Kingdom on your first day and Magic Kingdom on your second day, you can book Lightning Lane Multipass for your second day before booking for your Animal Kingdom Day as Multipass attractions in Magic Kingdom are more in demand than in Animal Kingdom.
Another very nice benefit of Lightning Lane Multipass over Genie Plus, is that you can see the attractions and return time options before you pay to book Multipass for a particular day. This means you can choose not to book Multipass if there are no return times that you are happy with. The ability to choose the return time that you would like while scheduling your Lightning Lanes allows you to strategically line them up or space them out however you may think is best. Also, you are able to modify your selections any time after booking them.
3) What attractions can you book through Lightning Lane Multipass?
In each park, attractions have been placed into tiers. Group A includes the most popular attractions in a given park while Group B attractions are less in demand. When booking your initial 3 Lightning Lanes, you are permitted to choose 1 attraction in Group A and 2 attractions (or 3 if not choosing a Group A attraction) in Group B. This is true for Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, and EPCOT. Animal Kingdom on the other hand does not utilize tiers, and all attractions (except Flight of Passage) are eligible to be booked as part of your initial 3 Lightning Lanes.
The Tiers for Magic Kingdom are as follows:
GROUP A:
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Jungle Cruise
Peter Pan’s Flight
Space Mountain
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
GROUP B:
The Barnstormer
Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin
Dumbo the Flying Elephant
Haunted Mansion
“it’s a small world”
Mad Tea Party
The Magic Carpets of Aladdin
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
Mickey’s PhilharMagic
Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor
Pirates of the Caribbean
Tomorrowland Speedway
Under the Sea ~ Journey of The Little Mermaid
The tiers for Hollywood Studios are as follows:
GROUP A:
Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway
Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run
Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith
Slinky Dog Dash
GROUP B:
Alien Swirling Saucers
Beauty and the Beast Live on Stage
Disney Junior Play & Dance!
For the First Time in Forever: A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration
Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular
Muppet*Vision 3D
Star Tours – The Adventures Continue
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
Toy Story Mania!
The tiers for EPCOT are as follows:
GROUP A:
Frozen Ever After
Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure
Soarin’ Around the World
GROUP B:
Disney and Pixar Short Film Festival
Journey into Imagination with Figment
Living with the Land
Mission: SPACE
The Seas with Nemo & Friends
Spaceship Earth
Turtle Talk with Crush
4) What about the attractions not listed above?
You may notice that each park's most popular attraction(s) are not included in the respective park's tiers at all. This is because Disney wants to cash in even more than they have already. Similarly to the old Individual Lightning Lanes that were in effect during the Genie Plus era, these rides are now only eligible for "Lightning Lane Single Pass." For an additional fee, you will be able to book 2 Lightning Lane Single Passes each day (in 1 park or different parks), in order to skip the line to ride the most popular rides in Disney World. I personally will never pay for a Lightning Lane Single Pass because it truly feels like a rip off to pay $15-$20 to skip the line for one ride. I am less reserved to pay a little more than that to skip lines all day under the Lightning Lane Multipass.
The Single Pass Attractions for Magic Kingdom are:
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
TRON Lightcycle Run
The Single Pass Attractions for EPCOT are:
Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind
The Single Pass Attractions for Hollywood Studios are:
Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance
The Single Pass Attractions for Animal Kingdom are:
Avatar Flight of Passage
5) What happens on your park day?
Another benefit of Lightning Lane Multipass over Genie Plus is that once you use your first Lightning Lane of the day, you can book another Lightning Lane. In effect, you can have 3 upcoming Lightning Lanes at any given time. This is different from the old Fast Pass+ system, as that required you to use all 3 fast passes before booking another, so this system is far superior.
Once you use your first Lightning Lane, the tiers no longer apply and you can book any ride as your next Lightning Lane. This also applies to modifications, in that once you use your first Lightning Lane, you can modify any existing Lightning Lanes to a Group A tier, even if you are still holding a Group A tier Lightning Lane. Additionally, you can book subsequent Lightning Lanes in any park. However, just like with Genie Plus, you can only book one Lightning Lane Multipass per ride per day. This means that if you want to ride a ride for a 2nd time, you will have to wait in the line.
6) Do virtual queues still apply?
Only two rides at Walt Disney World still operate on a virtual queue- Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind and Tiana's Bayou Adventure. The virtual queue slots remain as 7am (from anywhere) and 1pm (if already tapped into the respective park that the ride is located). Since Guardians of the Galaxy is not part of Lightning Lane Multipass, it seems that the virtual queue is the only option to ride this ride unless you want to fork over $20 to by a Lightning Lane Single Pass. Tiana's Bayou is a Group A tier of Multipass, but it seems better strategy to me to use the virtual queue to ride Tiana's and save your Group A tier for another attraction. It is a shame that Tron is no longer virtual queue and is not a part of Multipass.
7) Preliminary Strategy for Lightning Lane Multipass
Based on everything I have read about the new fast pass system at Disney World, I have begun to come up with some strategy on how to best utilize Lightning Lane Multipass. First, it seems to me that your best bet is to book your first 3 Lightning Lanes as early in the day as possible. Think about what is typically your 2nd or 3rd ride at a given park (since you can still plan to rope drop your 1st ride with a Lightning Lane booked) and try to schedule those Lightning Lanes as early in the morning as possible. If those rides do not have available return times until afternoon, it looks like it would be best to schedule other rides in the morning. The reasoning behind this, is once you use your first Lightning Lane, you will be able to book afternoon/evening Lightning Lanes. This strategy of focusing on return time rather than specific attraction will allow you to book more Lightning Lanes in a day.
So for example, we always rope drop Jungle Cruise at Magic Kingdom, followed by Pirates. Therefore, when using Lightning Lane Multipass, I would not book Jungle Cruise or Pirates as one of my initial 3 Lightning Lanes. I would likely target Big Thunder Mountain and Haunted Mansion, depending on available return times. If those rides did not have a return time until the afternoon, I would book what was available in the morning, and then once tapping into my first Lightning Lane, I would book Big Thunder Mountain, and after tapping into my second Lightning Lane, I would book Haunted Mansion. This is presuming that there will be afternoon/evening bookings available on day of, which there should be since there typically was with the old systems of Genie Plus and Fast Pass+. It will also be interesting to see how Multipass combines with Park Hopping, and if pm return times will actually be available in the park you are hopping to, or if it will essentially be a loss for your second park.
As for what parks Multipass is best suited for, I think it will be very similar to my conclusions with Genie Plus. Multipass will be best in Magic Kingdom, followed by Hollywood Studios. I don't see it being that helpful in EPCOT or Animal Kingdom. Only time will tell, and I am very excited to start experimenting with Multipass. One can only hope that this fast pass system will stick around longer than Genie Plus did, as it is incredibly frustrating to get the knack of one system just in time for a new one to come along and replace it.
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