What is Disney Genie & Disney Genie+?

Last Updated on August 25, 2023 by Happily Ever Park Hoppers

What is Disney Genie & Disney Genie+?

So you’ve heard a lot about the new Disney Genie service coming to the Disney Parks but you’re not exactly sure what it is. Well, you’re not alone! This new service at the Walt Disney World Resort Here we will go over all the info we know about the Disney Genie service as of right now.

What is Disney Genie+?

So we know what Disney Genie is, then what is Disney Genie+? Along with all the great free features that Disney Genie has to offer, Disney Genie+ is a paid add-on (think of it as a package or bundle) that allows you to skip the standby line and use the new Lightning Lane. By purchasing this add-on, you will use Disney Genie+ to book your Lightning Lane selections, one attraction at a time.

All throughout the day, you can book your Genie+ Lightning Lane selections one after the other. In each park, you will be able to use this add-on for pretty much all the rides except for the “Tier 1” rides. These Tier 1 rides can be purchased as Individual Lightning Lane selections or “a la carte”, with or without the Disney Genie+ add-on. Each Tier 1 ride is purchased completely separate from the Disney Genie+ package. Meaning, you can purchase the Individual Lightning Lane selection for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance and NOT have to pay the package price of Disney Genie+. And alternatively, you can purchase all of the daily options if you so choose. So you could buy the Disney Genie+ add-on and both a la carte attractions.

Important Note:

• Guests cannot purchase “Disney Genie+ Service for Multiple Parks” together with single-park Disney Genie+ service ⬅️So, once you select your option for the day, there is no switching to another park or option.
• Guests may purchase different products for members of their travel party in a single transaction.

What rides are included in each park?

The Individual Lightning Lane attractions vary in price depending on the ride and the day. The prices vary between $10-$25. As of right now Disney has not shared any kind of Individual Lightning Lane calendar pricing, just that throughout the year the prices may be more or less.

Individual Lightning Lane pricing examples:

• Avatar Flight of Passage: $13-$17
• Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind: $15-$20
• Seven Dwarfs Mine Train: $10-$13
• Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance: $15- $25

How far in advance can I make my Lightning Lane bookings?

Lightning Lane bookings can be made the day of your visit.

For Disney Genie+

Beginning at 7:00AM you can make your first Lightning Lane selection.

You will be able to make additional Lightning Lane selections as soon as

• You redeem your current selection
• It’s been 2 hours/120 minutes later
• OR It’s been 2 hours since the park first opened
  • IE: 7am you make a 12:05pm Lightning Lane selection for Jungle Cruise in Magic Kingdom. And Magic Kingdom opens at 9am. You can make your second Lightning Lane selection at 11am
    • This rule ONLY applies for your second Lightning Lane if your 7am selection has a redemption time that falls after the park has been officially opened for 2 hours.
  • IE: 7am you make a 10:15am Lightning Lane selection for Space Mountain. If Magic Kingdom opens at 9am, you can make your second Lighting Lane selection as soon as you’ve tapped in at Space Mountain. You no longer have to wait the 2 hours for the park to be open since your first selection was redeemed.

As the day continues on, one after the other as you continue to tap in to your current selection, you can then get an additional Lightning Lane selection.

Stacking Lightning Lane selections

It is possible to stack your Lightning Lane selections and have more than one selection booked at a time.

If you make a selection at 7am for Slinky Dog Dash for a 9:05am, as soon as tap in to that ride, you can make your next selection. You make your next selection at 9:10am for Rock ‘n Rollercoaster but the window is at 2pm, you will then be able to make another selection at 11:10am because it’s now been 120 minutes! At 11:10am you are able to score a Smugglers Run booking for 3pm. It is possible at 1:10pm to be able to book another selection. Say this time you want to hop over to Epcot, and you find a Lightning Lane window available for Test Track at 6pm and book that as well. By 1:15pm you’ve got THREE Lightning Lane selections in your pocket! Now this may not be the case when you are there. Certain rides will “sell out” of the booking windows early in the day. But just know that you can make your next selection as soon as you tap in to your current ride OR 120 minutes later.

You will only be able to book an attraction once; meaning you can’t book ride the same ride over and over. If you have a Park Hopper ticket, you will be able to make your Lightning Lane selections across all four parks. So once you tap into your current ride, you can book your next Lightning Lane selection even it it’s in another park.

PRO TIP!!

In the My Disney Experience App, make sure you select your “TOP PICKS” on your Tip Board for each day you have Theme Park Reservations for.

This way when you go to make your Lightning Lane selections each morning, your Top Picks will be at the top of your Tip Board. This saves you time from scrolling to look for Slinky Dog Dash or Space Mountain, which would be further down because after your Top Picks, rides are listed in alphabetical order.

For Individual Lightning Lane attractions/ a la carte attractions

Selections can be made the day of at each park’s posted opening time.

IE: Animal Kingdom opens at 8am, selections can be made starting at 8am. If Hollywood Studios opens at 9am, selections can be made starting at 9am.

For Disney Resort hotel guest and other select hotels*, selections can be made the day of at 7:00AM. *Other select hotels include Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin hotels and Shades of Green

NOTE: If you purchase Disney Genie+ and both individual attraction selections, you can have three selections all at once as early as 7am; if you are staying On-Property, or by park opening for Off-Property guests.

Do I need to purchase Disney Genie+?

The short answer: No. You don’t “need” to purchase Disney Genie+ to have a great Disney vacation. I have heard plenty of people talk about how much this would cost their family for X amount of days. However, avoiding long lines or skipping the standby lines can definitely enhance your Disney vacation. Remember, time is money at Disney.

My suggestion would be to prioritize what attractions you want to ride. Since Disney Genie+ is priced out per day, you don’t have to buy it for every single park day. You can easily choose to purchase Disney Genie+ for only one of the four theme parks. With Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios having the most attractions available, you are definitely going to get more bang for your buck. And with more attractions available, it means more booking windows and more availability to be spread out amongst all the guests.

Also, keep in mind that with a Park Hopper ticket you can take advantage of making Lightning Lane selections across all four parks. So instead of paying for the add-on every single day, make a few morning selections and then hop to another park and make your next Lightning Lane selection in your next park. But (yes there is always a but) keep in mind that Lightning Lane windows are subject to availability and are “limited”. So just keep in mind that if you aren’t able to make as many Lightning Lane selections that you had hoped, you can always decide to buy another add-on for the next day.

Spreading magic one post at a time

Kristin