Plan Ahead with Lightning Lane Entry at Walt Disney World Starting July 24

[Jellybean9]

Fwiw the Tiana LL when turned into a multiple experience pass is not valid on other tier 1 rides Link (Some people have seen their Tiana becoming an ME before their trip even starts in that thread.)

The ME could be used on Tiana anytime they wanted and they had an open Tier 1 LL that they could book right then. So really it was a big bonus to get that.

 

[Jen580]

THIS. This to me is the one real, big, important question about the new system - Will it have as many LL spots per ride as under Genie+?

If so (and why wouldn't it, especially considering fewer people using LL for DAS), then availability across the board should stay about the same. Just because people can book earlier, doesn't mean MORE people are booking. So, if most rides had Genie+ spots available throughout the day, and didn't sell out, that should stay the same under LLMP.

The reports of lower-tier rides selling out, and others like HM booking up right away, suggest otherwise. I too hope this more of a result of first day anomalies; if not, it does mean they've clawed back LL slots.

Speaking of which - for the folk that are there - how do the actual L Lanes look? Are they moving faster? Are there noticeably fewer people in them?

Ive been here a few days and everything is selling out at crazy speeds...never happened with G+. Even the single pass rides that you pay extra for are completely sold out for days. Interestingly, standby lines havent been nearly so bad but I do suspect that Disney may be limiting the amount of LL availability for some reason. The rate at which things are instantly sold out (or close enough) just doesn't make sense unless a ton more people are using this system.

 

[Jen580]

I liked your post, and I just wanted to add that I had pretty much exactly the same thoughts and questions, which otherwise haven't really been addressed in this 120-page thread.

Looking at MK in particular, how were LLs so limited yesterday afternoon, while posted wait times were also relatively high (suggesting Disney was NOT holding back LLMP availability)? Were there users a week ago who paid over $20 for Genie+ at MK and barely booked any rides? I find that hard to imagine. Why would the change to LLMP result in more users, or why would Disney reduce ride capacity on the day of a new system rollout?

What is it about LLMP that created less availability? It can't be all the bloggers on day 1, can it? I would think the number of {bloggers looking for day 1 content} is less than {the number of people who would have bought Genie+ but avoided LLMP because it was brand new}. But is that wrong? What is the missing factor?

The answer I am hoping is that Disney DID reduce LL capacity while not reducing ride capacity. This would result in shorter actual standby waits, but Disney could still choose to post high wait times when the actual wait times were much lower. Can anyone who was at MK provide their experience?

Standby lines were much lower than usual for most rides and posted wait times werent even close to reality (thunder mtn for example said 45 min wait and we were on in 18m. But there was basically no availability of LLs so I do feel like Disney is limiting availability

 

[Jen580]

Yep, there's something missing at the moment. I just checked - rides that had availability all day under Genie+ are showing as sold out already for today. And with a few reports of nearly empty LLs, that really points to much lower LL capacity.

Unless ...

THIS could be an important piece of the puzzle (understanding this is a delicate issue - not making a judgement here at all, just trying to do the math). Folk that could access LLs before without booking through the Genie+ system now opting to purchase, thereby effectively increasing the number of people vying for each spot (compared to before). Plus, if it was actually true that a significant percentage of people using LLs under the Genie system were there through DAS, having those same people now book through LLMP (assuming the number of LL spots remains the same) will result in fewer people in those lines.

How much of an impact is this? Time will tell I suppose. Hope the dust settles soon.

But didn't DAS users always use the lightning lanes? So, even if they now buy this new system they are still the same people using the same line.

 

[ML_LovesDisney]

Not sure this deserves a reply, but I'll humor you. We were a Group of 21 who wanted to stay together with a special needs baby and 2 small kids who could not ride some rides. Most had never been to WDW and may not ever go again due to cost. We all live in different cities and wanted to enjoy each other's company. We were able to do everything we wanted to without feeling rushed, including a leisurely lunch at Yak & Yeti. We rope dropped FOP and essentially walked on and did baby swap while the rest of the group did Everest with 5 minute wait. Some also rode FOP again at closing with 45 minute wait while others rode Everest 3x with no wait. We ate dinner at Sa'tuli. We saw Nemo show, rode out to Rafikis and did the animation and petting zoo. We took our time, stayed together, and enjoyed the day. Lines were by no means short today. Being able to walk on each ride was priceless to us. My original post was not a trip report, it was a data report to help people with gauging 4th & 5th ride picks in the new system. Don't judge what someone else believes is worth paying for.

I agree. We are here with a group of 10 and everyone is totally happy with 3-4 rides. Our kids are ready to leave after 3-4. It’s super efficient now that they can overlap a little and be closer together in times. Today is MK day for us and with LLMP and LLSP I have 5 rides booked through 2p and by that time everyone will be ready to go back to resort. I understand this doesn’t work as well for people who like to do double and triple the rides, but it does also seem like standby times are shorter since recent changes to DAS and this system.

 

[princesswahooey]

I agree. We are here with a group of 10 and everyone is totally happy with 3-4 rides. Our kids are ready to leave after 3-4. It’s super efficient now that they can overlap a little and be closer together in times. Today is MK day for us and with LLMP and LLSP I have 5 rides booked through 2p and by that time everyone will be ready to go back to resort. I understand this doesn’t work as well for people who like to do double and triple the rides, but it does also seem like standby times are shorter since recent changes to DAS and this system.

We don't often come in summer, and it is so hot. Even with crowds being lower, waiting in outdoor queues--even for 10 minutes is brutal, especially with people who aren't used to humidity. That factor alone makes it worth it even though crowds are at 5-6 instead of 9-10 like we're used to at Christmas. And afternoon hotel breaks are vital. Being able to "save" a few rides for evening with reservations is wonderful.

 

[merdie]

Just finished my passes for 8/4-8/8. All went smoothly, got everything I wanted except Tiana’s on our 1st day. It’s crazy that even 7 days out it’s unavailable. I was able to get one for our last day on 8/8. Everything else was easy.

Fingers crossed for a VQ for Tiana’s!

 

[disneytata]

Lucky you . I arrive on the 8th but as I am not American I am screwed and will get nothing . Vpn doesn t work .

 

[andrniki]

Has anyone heard any reports about people booking for the same group of people, from different accounts, for different days? Has there been any issues of things freezing up? I want at least one of my boys to be booking from his account while I book different days in my account.

On day one, the only person reporting they had trouble booking was someone who had her and her husband on one account. That was the only glitch reported on that day as far as I remember. I don't know if anyone has successfully booked with 2 people using the same account since then. I'm curious if 2 different accounts would work also!

 

[clbielick]

It does kind of suck to be booking in the beginning of this. I book a week from now.

Initially I thought I would book backwards, like you said. But now, I think,the day before I will make sure all of the LLSP I want are still open and that the trend remains that they are open at the 7 day point. (Aug 3 is showing all LLSP still open - I can't see the times, but they are available) Assuming this holds, I will book day 3 MK (Tiana), day 2 DHS (Slinky), Day 6 MK (Tiana), Day 4 DHS - need 5pm or later, Day 7 DHS, Day 8 MK, Day 5 AK, Day 9AK. I will book the entire day. While I am doing that, I will have one of my boys book in their account Day 1 Epcot (Frozen & GOG), and two other days LLSP GOG.

If LLSP are selling out on the 7 day mark, I might make sure all of this gets done first. Maybe I'll grab son #2 and make him buy Tron & FOP LLSP, while son #1 does GOG & Rise.

And yes, I imagine after I book it all, I will have a Bloody Mary (lucky me I book on a Sunday!) and fuss around with the times.

stupid question-how are you seeing what is booked out 7 days from now? I agree with your approach as I am planning to do the same in 2 weeks when my window opens (assuming i can figure out how to see whats open the day before)

 

[andrewilley]

Lucky you . I arrive on the 8th but as I am not American I am screwed and will get nothing . Vpn doesn t work .

Set your Country of Residence to "USA" in the MDE app (hamburger-icon>Profile>Account Settings). Exit and then turn off your device's Location Services (or just turn Location off for the MDE app only) and then restart the app.

Or if they close that loophole, you could use a GPS Spoofing app (on Android) to tell the device that you are in the USA. VPN is not required, it's the GPS location that is being checked.

Andre

 

[Bound4DisneyWorld]

Question: does anybody know how long the system is blocking off for a dining reservation to prevent overlap?

We will be visiting Hollywood Studios in the evening, with a 5:00 pm dinner reservation. The system spits out the earliest time, and when trying to modify to evening times, should I look for 7:00pm hour slots?

TIA!

 

[Bound4DisneyWorld]

stupid question-how are you seeing what is booked out 7 days from now? I agree with your approach as I am planning to do the same in 2 weeks when my window opens (assuming i can figure out how to see whats open the day before)

If it’s a stupid question, then I’m stupid too. I was wondering the same thing.

 

[bwr827]

Lucky you . I arrive on the 8th but as I am not American I am screwed and will get nothing . Vpn doesn t work .

There’s a solution starting to make the rounds. I believe I saw it a few pages back in this thread, but I’m sure it’ll start popping up in more places soon.

 

[g3pak]

The ME could be used on Tiana anytime they wanted and they had an open Tier 1 LL that they could book right then. So really it was a big bonus to get that.

This happened to me. A bonus if Tiana's is open. A setback if it is not because we grabbed another tier 1 but a few days after our window opened, meaning many times were already gone.

 

[mthds]

I’m sure this question has been answered but I can not find an easy to understand answer. Haven’t been to Disney since pre covid so never used genie plus. This sounds like the fast pass plus I used on the last trip.

Going in November, weekend and few days before Thanksgiving, so a busy time. Staying on site. Party of 3

I know I can make selections 7 days out for my entire stay.

Will I purchase and select each day one at a time? As in check out the first day and then move on to the next checking out 3-4 different times?

Or will I purchase all days in one checkout process. If so will it hold the first selections for me while I select the other days? I keep hearing it will hold selections for 5 minutes. I don’t know if I can do our entire week in 5 minutes. Will I confirm and add to the cart day 1 and it holds that until I finish my trip? Is there a time limit. I know not hours but how fast do I need to get my whole week purchased?

so question is —— how long will day 1-3 sections hold while I work on day 4?

 

[gottalovepluto]

The ME could be used on Tiana anytime they wanted and they had an open Tier 1 LL that they could book right then. So really it was a big bonus to get that.

That’s a lot better!

I scratched my original post. How in the world did people make that so confusing?!

 

[Tom_E_D]

stupid question-how are you seeing what is booked out 7 days from now? I agree with your approach as I am planning to do the same in 2 weeks when my window opens (assuming i can figure out how to see whats open the day before)

If it’s a stupid question, then I’m stupid too. I was wondering the same thing.

You can see what LLSPs are fully booked for future dates even though you cannot yet buy them for that date and you do not see what times are available. However, you cannot check what LLMP attraction availability is like unless you can buy it.*

In MDE, choose one of the Purchase Lightning Lane options (they appear on different screens). It will have you choose a date. Choose a park. It will show you the prices for LLMP and LLSP in that park on that date, unless one or more of them is sold out. If it is sold out, it will say "Currently Unavailable." To this point, it hasn't asked you who you are booking for and hasn't checked to see if you have a ticket and are eligible to buy. It does that on the next screen.

Don't feel so stupid. Several pages back in this thread, I was the one insisting I couldn't see what LLSPs were sold out on future dates.

*- as far as I know. Maybe there is a way to see LLMP availability for future dates that I haven't learned about yet.

EDIT: You can see LLMP availability/times for future dates, not from MDE but from Thrill-data. See post 2830. It has LLSP times (first available time, I presume) too. I think it is clunky to use, but the data is there.

 

[tom1944]

Question: does anybody know how long the system is blocking off for a dining reservation to prevent overlap?

We will be visiting Hollywood Studios in the evening, with a 5:00 pm dinner reservation. The system spits out the earliest time, and when trying to modify to evening times, should I look for 7:00pm hour slots?

TIA!

I think we will cancel almost all of our dining reservations on our park days and just see what is available day of or do QS.

 

[Tom_E_D]

I’m sure this question has been answered but I can not find an easy to understand answer. Haven’t been to Disney since pre covid so never used genie plus. This sounds like the fast pass plus I used on the last trip.

Going in November, weekend and few days before Thanksgiving, so a busy time. Staying on site. Party of 3

I know I can make selections 7 days out for my entire stay.

Will I purchase and select each day one at a time? As in check out the first day and then move on to the next checking out 3-4 different times?

Or will I purchase all days in one checkout process. If so will it hold the first selections for me while I select the other days? I keep hearing it will hold selections for 5 minutes. I don’t know if I can do our entire week in 5 minutes. Will I confirm and add to the cart day 1 and it holds that until I finish my trip? Is there a time limit. I know not hours but how fast do I need to get my whole week purchased?

so question is —— how long will day 1-3 sections hold while I work on day 4?

From what I've read, you have to purchase one day at a time. You can buy both LLMP and LLSP(s) for the same day as one transaction, but you have to complete that purchase before you move on to another day.