Lightning Lane at Walt Disney World

Jeff4272

Well-Known Member
The most popular ones were gone. Maybe we have a different definition of "selling like hotcakes." I agree with the no-fee suggestion (free is better), but the only thing worse for us than paying for a line-skip system would be having to wait in standby lines all day long. I remember those days and have neither the will nor the ability to return to them.
Only thing worse is going.........That why we are donzo

Sold my DVC too.......

WDW stinks and is no fun in its current form

We will go back if they change but i highly doubt they will
 
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G00fyDad

Well-Known Member
So here is the itinerary that I am thinking about. Let me know if you see something that screams "Hey idiot! You're doing it wrong!" 😁 (Keep in mind, we do not care even a little about PP.)

Day 1 - Disney Springs (and possibly BooBash)
No G+ needed.

Day 2 - MK
Purchase ILL's for SpaceM x3 and 7DMT x3
Schedule first G+ for JC at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop Space Mountain, CoP, and Buzz

Day 3 - DHS
Purchase ILL's for RotR x3 and MMRR x4
Schedule first G+ for RR at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop SDD and TSMM

Day 4 - AK
Purchase ILL's for EE x3 and FoP x3
Schedule first G+ for Dinoaur at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop Na'Vi River and Kilimanjaro Safaris

Day 5 - Epcot
Purchase ILL's for Frozen x4 and Remy x4
Schedule first G+ for Soarin at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop Living w/Land and Seas w/ Nemo

Day 6 - MK
Purchase ILL's for SpaceM x3 and 7DMT x3
Schedule first G+ for JC at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop Under the Sea and MILF

Day 7 - Clearwater Beach
Day 8 - Clearwater Beach
 

macefamily

Well-Known Member
We were down two weeks ago, and I didn't like the new Genie atmosphere. We went to the parks four times over the pandemic and it was great. No competing lines with only one line for everyone was a thing of beauty. The lines moved much smoother with no standing still for several minutes. Now we're back to Standby lines dragging while those willing to pay the Mouse move on right through.
 

G00fyDad

Well-Known Member
We were down two weeks ago, and I didn't like the new Genie atmosphere. We went to the parks four times over the pandemic and it was great. No competing lines with only one line for everyone was a thing of beauty. The lines moved much smoother with no standing still for several minutes. Now we're back to Standby lines dragging while those willing to pay the Mouse move on right through.

The same was said about FP+ but we never experienced any slow moving lines while waiting in standby. I think this is a perception thing and those that hate FP+ or any line skipping feature always complain about the long waits when a line skipping feature is in place. I think it may be more about a trick of the mind by seeing people pass by in the FP (now LL) lines causing a person to think they are waiting longer then they really are.
 

dovetail65

Well-Known Member
So here is the itinerary that I am thinking about. Let me know if you see something that screams "Hey idiot! You're doing it wrong!" 😁 (Keep in mind, we do not care even a little about PP.)

Day 1 - Disney Springs (and possibly BooBash)
No G+ needed.

Day 2 - MK
Purchase ILL's for SpaceM x3 and 7DMT x3
Schedule first G+ for JC at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop Space Mountain, CoP, and Buzz

Day 3 - DHS
Purchase ILL's for RotR x3 and MMRR x4
Schedule first G+ for RR at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop SDD and TSMM

Day 4 - AK
Purchase ILL's for EE x3 and FoP x3
Schedule first G+ for Dinoaur at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop Na'Vi River and Kilimanjaro Safaris

Day 5 - Epcot
Purchase ILL's for Frozen x4 and Remy x4
Schedule first G+ for Soarin at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop Living w/Land and Seas w/ Nemo

Day 6 - MK
Purchase ILL's for SpaceM x3 and 7DMT x3
Schedule first G+ for JC at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop Under the Sea and MILF

Day 7 - Clearwater Beach
Day 8 - Clearwater Beach

It seems like a fun trip to me.

All those FP haters thought new system would stop from having to plan. Now wouldn't it be nice if you could just pay for your plan today and not wonder that at 7am you find can't get what you want. You just did what we had to do with FP as far as planning, the only difference now is that you have to wake up and hope. Certain guests and Chapek thinking paying might thin out lines or make the system more in the moment(Chapek's words for the most part) are going to find they will not get the LL at all if that is how they go about their trip, ie no planning.

Planning now is more difficult and more important than any time I ever went to Disney, even comparing to when FOP opened.

What some people just never understood is that people for the most part don't spend from 5, 10, 20 grand use all that effort to travel to WDW and then not do what they want to do over another 20.00 to 200.00 a day. Chapek knows this of course. Guests may complain, but I am telling people these LL are sold out already much of the time and people are paying and going to continue to pay.

To anyone going to Disney once or once every few years, just pay for the Genie+ and LL every single day, that's my advice. Over time the LL's are going to be used more and more not less and new guests will see it just as part of the cost of a regular trip. Who drops 10K on a family trip to tell their kids no ROTR over 100.00?

AP are at a disadvantage because the Genie's and LL's are gone by the time an AP holder can get into the system to purchase. I am now told being an AP holder I can pay for Genie at Midnight and can then grab Genie and LL at 7am or later if not a guest. Can someone verify that, it was not the case for my family's last trip. Back then though the entire system seemed to be glitching.

I am going to put issues with Genie and LL up to it being a busier holiday season and a glitchy new system and will see how the LL and Genie plus work on this trip. It will be Feb and only 2 of us. PreCovid Feb was always one of the best months we ever went to visit, for line times anyhow.

I never wanted to document my own trips, but since I have a schedule laid out I will post it in the trips thread and post a picture per day of our trip. My plans will not show LL's or Genie plus choices ahead of time though. I know in my head what park I am at and what I need to get at 7am. I will post what Genie and LL I get as I visit instead. I don't want a let down or base my plans on ROTR on a certain day and then can't get it. I am not dropping any ADR or special events for LL's either, so my plans are going to be based on ADR and special tours etc. I guess that's how Chapek and the FP haters want it anyhow. And yeah the FP thing may take years for me to get that taste out of my mouth and it's not about money. I would pay 60 bucks a person to have the 3 FP back the way it was myself. Heck, if they are charging 14 to 24.00 for ROTR I would pay 35.00 to book it now ahead of time with my existing WDW plans. I would not be surprised if someday Disney does come out with a book in advance price for LL's, I mean what's next if not that?

My plans will demonstrate the absurdity of not being able to plan LL along with the ADR and special events. The amount of time getting certain ADR and special events was crazy. No one wants to know how many hours it took to get these things,it isn't even that many events compared to when 4 or 6 kid come along. After all this not to be able to get on ROTR again, well at least I'll have fun anyhow.
 
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Texas84

Well-Known Member
The only advantage for resort guests is ILL purchases. Everyone can book their first G+ selection at 7 AM - unless you're a Passholder, in which case you have to wait to purchase G+ until 7 AM and then make your first pick when you get through the payment process.
In January (Passholder & resort) I was able to purchase G+ before 7AM. Wasn't able to do that in November. Guess they fixed it.
 

disneygeek90

Well-Known Member
The same was said about FP+ but we never experienced any slow moving lines while waiting in standby. I think this is a perception thing and those that hate FP+ or any line skipping feature always complain about the long waits when a line skipping feature is in place. I think it may be more about a trick of the mind by seeing people pass by in the FP (now LL) lines causing a person to think they are waiting longer then they really are.
The ROTR queue CRAWLED a few weeks ago. Once I got to the front I could see all of the people with ILL being filtered in. It's definitely not a perception thing, it's math. When there's only one line that's being used, that line is moving at a more steady pace than the stop and go treatment it gets when there's a line merge.
 

Chi84

Premium Member
The ROTR queue CRAWLED a few weeks ago. Once I got to the front I could see all of the people with ILL being filtered in. It's definitely not a perception thing, it's math. When there's only one line that's being used, that line is moving at a more steady pace than the stop and go treatment it gets when there's a line merge.
When we were there in October, the wait for RotR was at 120 minutes. When the waits are that long it doesn't matter to me whether the line is moving steadily or stop and go - we were glad the ILL was an option. The ride wasn't that great and we probably won't pay for it again, but it was nice to be able to ride without standing in a long line. We visited the parks prior to any form of fast pass system and the standby waits for the headliners have always been prohibitive - everyone wants to ride the newest or most popular attraction.
 
So here is the itinerary that I am thinking about. Let me know if you see something that screams "Hey idiot! You're doing it wrong!" 😁 (Keep in mind, we do not care even a little about PP.)

Day 1 - Disney Springs (and possibly BooBash)
No G+ needed.

Day 2 - MK
Purchase ILL's for SpaceM x3 and 7DMT x3
Schedule first G+ for JC at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop Space Mountain, CoP, and Buzz

Day 3 - DHS
Purchase ILL's for RotR x3 and MMRR x4
Schedule first G+ for RR at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop SDD and TSMM

Day 4 - AK
Purchase ILL's for EE x3 and FoP x3
Schedule first G+ for Dinoaur at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop Na'Vi River and Kilimanjaro Safaris

Day 5 - Epcot
Purchase ILL's for Frozen x4 and Remy x4
Schedule first G+ for Soarin at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop Living w/Land and Seas w/ Nemo

Day 6 - MK
Purchase ILL's for SpaceM x3 and 7DMT x3
Schedule first G+ for JC at 7am and then go for other G+ the rest of the day in order of importance to us.
Rope drop Under the Sea and MILF

Day 7 - Clearwater Beach
Day 8 - Clearwater Beach
Lots of good choices here! However, your rope drop strategy is... odd.
Day 2 - you don't need to rope drop CoP (that's an anytime attraction)
Day 4 - it seems like you're going in the fall. EE is arguably the worst attraction to buy an ILL for. I would just go towards the end of the day and the wait will be shorter. Or single-rider. It really isn't worth the $$$. I would rope-drop Na'vi River first just because of the shocking capacity.
Day 5 - Do NOT rope-drop Nemo and Living with the Land, please. They will be short wait times in the afternoon. Rope-drop Soarin' or Remy. Everyone goes to Test Track which is often down in the morning so you lose a lot of time. Soarin' is always the better rope-drop option I find. Also schedule your first G+ for Test Track not Soarin' - Soarin' should last longer. It's worth noting that once Guardians opens, either Frozen or Remy will no longer be ILL (most likely Remy cos Frozen will sell better).
Day 6 - Likewise, these are terrible choice for rope-drop. MILF won't be open at rope-drop most likely and Under-the-Sea doesn't get appreciable waits until late morning.

I hope this helps!
 
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G00fyDad

Well-Known Member
Lots of good choices here! However, your rope drop strategy is... odd.
Day 2 - you don't need to rope drop CoP (that's an anytime attraction)
Day 4 - it seems like you're going in the fall. EE is arguably the worst attraction to buy an ILL for. I would just go towards the end of the day and the wait will be shorter. Or single-rider. It really isn't worth the $$$. I would rope-drop Na'vi River first just because of the shocking capacity.
Day 5 - Do NOT rope-drop Nemo and Living with the Land, please. They will be short wait times in the afternoon. Rope-drop Soarin' or Remy. Everyone goes to Test Track which is often down in the morning so you lose a lot of time. Soarin' is always the better rope-drop option I find.
Day 6 - Likewise, these are terrible choice for rope-drop. MILF won't be open at rope-drop most likely and Under-the-Sea doesn't get appreciable waits until late morning.

I hope this helps!

Yes. It does. Sadly I haven't been to Disney in 8 years. A LOT of things have changed and though I had a touring plan laid out in perfect detail before it included FP+ and G+ is vastly different and tossed all of my well laid plans in the shredder. Thank you for your input. I am going to rework my plan of attack with that info in mind now. 😁
 

dovetail65

Well-Known Member
Lots of good choices here! However, your rope drop strategy is... odd.
Day 2 - you don't need to rope drop CoP (that's an anytime attraction)
Day 4 - it seems like you're going in the fall. EE is arguably the worst attraction to buy an ILL for. I would just go towards the end of the day and the wait will be shorter. Or single-rider. It really isn't worth the $$$. I would rope-drop Na'vi River first just because of the shocking capacity.
Day 5 - Do NOT rope-drop Nemo and Living with the Land, please. They will be short wait times in the afternoon. Rope-drop Soarin' or Remy. Everyone goes to Test Track which is often down in the morning so you lose a lot of time. Soarin' is always the better rope-drop option I find.
Day 6 - Likewise, these are terrible choice for rope-drop. MILF won't be open at rope-drop most likely and Under-the-Sea doesn't get appreciable waits until late morning.

I hope this helps!
Rope drops when the park are open 30 minutes to the hotel guests reduce the need for Rope drops and in many cases rope dropping at all. Now if you are a on site guest getting there at opening makes more sense.
 
Yes. It does. Sadly I haven't been to Disney in 8 years. A LOT of things have changed and though I had a touring plan laid out in perfect detail before it included FP+ and G+ is vastly different and tossed all of my well laid plans in the shredder. Thank you for your input. I am going to rework my plan of attack with that info in mind now. 😁
Generally getting to the park early (if you're in a Disney hotel take advantage of the extra 30 mins) works best. Future World (or whatever they call it now) in Epcot is usually pretty dead from 4 no matter when you go as well (it was even at Christmas) except for Test Track and Soarin'. HS is by far the hardest to plan.
 
Rope drops when the park are open 30 minutes to the hotel guests reduce the need for Rope drops and in many cases rope dropping at all. Now if you are a on site guest getting at opening makes more sense.
Tell that to the people who were still running to SDMT when the parks were opening an hour early at Christmas... though it definitely lessens the need for sure.
 

G00fyDad

Well-Known Member
Generally getting to the park early (if you're in a Disney hotel take advantage of the extra 30 mins) works best. Future World (or whatever they call it now) in Epcot is usually pretty dead from 4 no matter when you go as well (it was even at Christmas) except for Test Track and Soarin'. HS is by far the hardest to plan.
We are staying on-site so we will have the 30 minutes extra. I am going to have to research what is open during that early 30 minutes.
 

dovetail65

Well-Known Member
Lots of good choices here! However, your rope drop strategy is... odd.
Day 2 - you don't need to rope drop CoP (that's an anytime attraction)
Day 4 - it seems like you're going in the fall. EE is arguably the worst attraction to buy an ILL for. I would just go towards the end of the day and the wait will be shorter. Or single-rider. It really isn't worth the $$$. I would rope-drop Na'vi River first just because of the shocking capacity.
Day 5 - Do NOT rope-drop Nemo and Living with the Land, please. They will be short wait times in the afternoon. Rope-drop Soarin' or Remy. Everyone goes to Test Track which is often down in the morning so you lose a lot of time. Soarin' is always the better rope-drop option I find. Also schedule your first G+ for Test Track not Soarin' - Soarin' should last longer. It's worth noting that once Guardians opens, either Frozen or Remy will no longer be ILL (most likely Remy cos Frozen will sell better).
Day 6 - Likewise, these are terrible choice for rope-drop. MILF won't be open at rope-drop most likely and Under-the-Sea doesn't get appreciable waits until late morning.

I hope this helps!
Also schedule your first G+ for Test Track not Soarin'

MY wife would slap my face if I did that, hehe. One time she had me bring her to EPCOT 4 days in a row to go on Soarin, eat lunch and then leave.

They did have a promotion at that time "go to EPCOT 4 times and get coasters". Boy times have changed. Sometimes it seems like Disney doesn't want AP holders going at all let alone 4 times in a 30 day span, even though we dropped money on lunch everyday(and souvenirs at least once in those 4 days as well).
 

DCBaker

Premium Member

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