One kind of guest is seeing MASSIVE benefits from Disney’s new system.
Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
On June 25th Disney shocked us all by announcing a massive overhaul to their Genie+ skip-the-line system. Beginning on July 24th, a new Lightning Lane system that blends features the “current services and the previously offered FastPass+ service, giving guests the choice to plan ahead and removing the hassle of planning during their vacation” will debut. This new service comes with new nomenclature, as Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lane are changing to Lightning Lane Multi Pass and Lightning Lane Single Pass respectively.
In the new system, Lightning Lane Multi Pass will allow you to make 3 Lightning Lane selections in a specific Disney World theme park in advance of your visit, while Lightning Lane Single Pass purchases will allow you to “secure a time to ride one of (Disney’s) most highly demanded attractions” for an additional charge in advance. However, just how far in advance will depend on what kind of guest you are.
According to Disney, “Guests staying at a Disney Resort hotel and other select hotels will be able to plan Lightning Lane passes up to 7 days in advance, for their entire stay (up to 14 days). All other guests can plan up to 3 days in advance.”
In other words, if you’re saying at a Disney hotel, you have a FOUR DAY head start on making both Multi Pass and Single Lightning Lane reservations! While we assume that Disney will have separate “pools” of reservations for the 7 day and 3 day window, this is still a massive advantage for hotel guests in ensuring that they’l be able to score the Lightning Lanes they want for their trip.
©Disney
Disney hotel guests have long had access to perks unavailable to others guests, including access to Disney Transportation and early and late park hours (though, some hotel perks have been dwindling in recent years). However, this is arguably the biggest hotel perk in Disney World history from a standpoint of actual effect on a full park day. To the point where it may sway those planning on staying off property to at least consider staying at a Disney hotel.
Pop Century
With the debut of Disney’s surprise new Lightning Lane system just a month away, we’re trying to learn all we can about it – – including these kind of massive perks available to Disney hotel guests – – as quickly as possible. Stay tuned to DFB for further coverage.
I Have Something Controversial To Say About Disney World Hotel Transportation, and You Might Be Surprised About It
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Would the perk of being able to book Lightning Lanes four days earlier help entice you to stay on property at Walt Disney World if you weren’t already planning on it? Let us know in the comments below.
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My family have 14 nights booked at The Boardwalk Inn September 17th 2024.
However as we are coming over from the Uk, we are discriminated due to Disney’s statement we have to be in the USA before we can purchase Lightning Lane Multi Pass for 14 days.
This makes the system a mockery
& needs to be revised to include International guests asap
Do we know what the other select hotels are?
I agree with Steve above, am coming in August from the UK. Feel completely discriminated against. The fast pass system worked here so they cannot blame I.T issues. UK citizens spend thousands every week, Disney SORT IT OUT
Totally discriminating against UK guests, we pay a fortune to fly and stay on site and yet won’t be able to get book until we are in the US.
Yes uk and others from Europe need this perk it’s rediculuse as it’s usually us that stay for 14 nights
I too am from the U.K. so I will not be able to benefit from this perk until I arrive in the US later this year. I have written to Disney asking for an explanation. I’m also planning to write to Iger. But I’m not holding my breath. Maybe the 1m+ Brits who visit Florida every year should just boycott WDW??
Steve Woollam,
You can try to use a USA VPN a week in advance to make your lightening lane.
We have the same issues in Canada.
You still have to pay additional $$$ for this service, on top of admittance price. No thank you.
What I’m getting is it’s going to almost exactly like the FREE fast pass+ with the exception of the time frame and a price tag.
Big perk I get to spend hundreds of dollars on a perk that use to be frer
I am not from the UK, as I live in the US and reading the comments above does concern me. It really isn’t fair they do not get the same perks. Especially when you factor in flight cost, extra nights, etc. I hope they make this fair for everyone very soon.
No, this perk would not convince me to stay on property. What WOULD do the trick is bringing back the free Magical Express for transportation to/from airport AND the free airline check-in from the hotel. I’d pay a hotel premium if that perk were brought back!
Hi Ashley – it’s in the fine print above, but Swan, Dolphin and Shades of Green are the other hotels (yep, i checked too when it first came out!)
Brenda K- Canadians are now included, you can now book from home.
My guess is Uk visitors will head out to Universal first of all ( or even instead of).
Personally I’m glad I hadn’t booked YC as intended for 2025- would have been money wasted for that first week.
Disney won’t change it- they don’t care about overseas visitors . Or any visitors. Attitude has changed.
International guests are not included in this perk. We are DVC members & also cant even purchase discounted magic bands!
VPNs cannot be used to bypass this.
It is discrimination and is unacceptable.
I have emailed Disney and have yet to receive a response.
A few days ago I contacted Disney to ask why international visitors cannot book the new LL passes and rides for the duration of their stay until they are on US soil. (I’m from the U.K. and scheduled to travel with 8 family members this fall.) They did not explain the rationale. However, they did say that my concerns had been escalated to senior leadership/management in the Disney empire. I recommend international visitors contact Disney to complain. There is no guarantee things will change, but if we don’t complain I can guarantee nothing will change
I have friends in the UK and am disappointed for them. WDW can easily include them and should even make it better for them by perhaps not charging for LL and allowing them to book 3 LL’s a week in advance (but not for their whole stay, as they stay several weeks at a time). They are wonderful guests who are polite and friendly, and they must spend a lot of time and money just to get here yet still spend a lot of money at WDW.
I am coming from the Caribbean for a week’s stay in August at a WDW property. I had the genie plus system down. With this change I’m not sure how the park day will go. Our exchange rate to US is high. It’s a mini investment coming to WDW and I am extremely annoyed and disappointed that this change has happened. We have already paid non refundable fees. This LL should have been announced a year in advance for visitors to decide if they want to visit or not. We now just have to go with the flow. Make it fair for everyone. We are paying the same money!
This discrimination against UK visitors has left me wishing I had not spent thousands of pounds to visit this August. Access to rides will be virtually impossible for us when other visitors who are not paying to stay at a resort hotel will have access before us. This is not something I ever thought I would say about a trip to Disney.
I am from the UK and completely agree with the preivous comments. We are staying in Disney hotel to and not being allowed to book LL before we fly out is obsured. International visitors spend a considerable sum of money on an increasingly expensive holiday, its about time the Disney policy makers take note. You could stand loose large number of visitors!!
We are coming to Disney World on Christmas week, 2024 (I know, ouch!) and were planning on staying off property until the change with the Lightening Lanes. We have since booked a hotel on property to take advantage of the 7-day selection period. Not happy about it because our budget for lodging just went way up (there are 6 of us), but we were concerned we wouldn’t be able to get on any of the rides we wanted, especially since we are coming at such a busy time, if we stayed off property. We will see!
Not a fan of paying for tickets and then lightening lane. This seems better but not interested.
I’m going with my family at the end of the month for 12 days from Spain. I will only benefit from this perk because we’re visiting Washington first, but I think is unjust for EU and UK visitor as we pay a lot to stay in property. I’will write to Disney as well.
Has anyone tried the following. Close down all open Apps. Then turn off location services within settings and also on the MDE app. Within settings of the MDE change Country of Residence to US. Close down the MDE app and then reopen it to see if you can now book the Lightening Lanes whilst in the UK
To everyone from other countries complaining, stop whining. I am American and have lived in other countries during my lifetime. Things are not always “fair” when you are visiting other countries. What do you expect? You’re not from there and shouldn’t demand that they cater to you…a foreigner. Maybe try Euro Disney.
Anna, thanks for your comment
We’re not ‘whining” we are pointing out that this has been marketed by Disney as a benefit- allowing guests to plan ahead which is exactly what international guests do.
We, like everyone who visits Disney- whichever Disney location spend a lot of money. It is unfair that we can’t access things like LL until we are in the USA.
And ‘Disneyland Paris’ hadn’t been Euro Disney since 1994.
Have a magical day.
In response to the comment from Anna – ha ha. Interestingly Americans whine all the time when they visit the UK. Quid pro quo!! On a serious note, Brits are the second largest foreign group to visit WDW every year – 2 million of us. In the good old days we Brits could book Fast Pass+ months in advance of our visit without any issues. I hope common sense (eventually) prevails and WDW opens up this perk to ALL foreign visitors. The 2 week family trip we are about to take to WDW has cost us over $30k. Seems rather churlish of Disney not to allow us the full benefits of this perk given how much money we have already spent.
I do not usually comment but I have to apologize for Anna.
Walt built these Parks for all families to enjoy together. Granted we are all a bit upset with Disney for many reasons but we Americans welcome you to visit our country and enjoy.
Well said Debbie. You have a huge YT following (deservedly so) and I am hoping Disney looks at your blog and the comments made by us humble hard working WDW fans and has a change of heart. My main concern is that Brits like me (and other foreign visitors) will land in Florida in a few weeks from now to find that all the LL tickets have already been sold and/or all the rides have been booked in advance by US citizens.
I totally agree with Steve’s comment and we have booked to go in 2025. We are not close enough to try the “solution” I outlined in my earlier post that will allow UK visitors to book LL’s in advance whilst still in the UK. I have it on good authority that it works and if anyone could try it and see how they get on that would be brilliant 🙂. Hopefully Disney will make it easier for non US and Canadian based residents to make advance bookings in the near future
We go on Thursday, all LLs booked. It works! Let’s not shout about it or they’ll find a way………..