Magic Kingdom is the perfect park for purchasing Walt Disney World’s Genie+ service. The paid FastPass alternative affords Lightning Lane line-skipping entry to 23 points of interest and character sightings in Magic Kingdom, and our information ranks the rides and leisure when it comes to time-saved and the way shortly reservations refill. (Up to date June 30, 2024.)
The aim of this publish is providing you with the instruments and data to construct your personal Magic Kingdom itinerary with Genie+, somewhat than counting on our 1-Day Magic Kingdom Genie+ and Lightning Lanes Plan. We’d suggest a better of each worlds strategy, consulting that pre-made plan and the rankings right here so that you perceive the why of it, and may make your personal itinerary.
Since crowds, climate, attraction downtime, and extra can all closely impression how an precise day at Walt Disney World performs out, it’s nearly sure {that a} pattern itinerary can’t be replicated step-for-step with the very same Lightning Lane time slots, and so on. As such, this equips you to place collectively your personal dynamic plan of assault for utilizing Genie+ in Magic Kingdom…
After all, this assumes that you simply wish to ‘pay to play’ and can use Genie+ somewhat than merely doing standby strains. In Magic Kingdom, that’s usually our suggestion. Mainly, it boils all the way down to the journey rely. With 23 points of interest providing Genie+ at Magic Kingdom, it has nearly double the variety of points of interest as different parks at Walt Disney World.
With that stated, Genie+ is just not all the time strictly essential. That is very true through the low season, reminiscent of many dates previous to spring break season, in addition to after that ends and summer season begins. It’s additionally true throughout Occasion Season–from mid-August by December on days when Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Occasion or Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Occasion is held. Mainly, at any time when crowd ranges drop under 4/10, you don’t must pay additional for Lightning Lane entry. It nonetheless may be good to have, nevertheless it’s hardly important.
Our subsequent huge caveat is that this checklist expires on July 24, 2024. Starting on that date, Genie+ might be changed by Lightning Lane Multi Go and Single Go, which is an advance journey reservation system. Some have categorized this as a renaming, which is inaccurate (it is true for Disneyland, which is perhaps the place the confusion is coming into play).
Though the Lightning Lane title is being retained, Genie+ is lifeless as of that date. For all intents and functions, the brand new system can have extra in widespread with FastPass+ than it does Genie, which means that the moniker “paid FastPass” actually is coming true. In any case, these rankings might be irrelevant for anybody visiting beginning July 24, 2024. There’s no level in studying any additional should you’re visiting on or after that date–we’ll have a brand new checklist within the coming weeks for Lightning Lane Multi Go.
For now, you possibly can learn our Lightning Lane MultiPass and Single Go at Disney World FAQ.
Our last asterisk is that this information affords journey priorities for Lightning Lanes by way of Genie+ and not Particular person Lightning Lanes (ILL), that are pay-per-ride. At current, the ILL points of interest in Magic Kingdom are Seven Dwarfs Mine Practice and TRON Lightcycle Run.
We aren’t eager on shopping for a la carte entrance of line entry, so we suggest doing Seven Dwarfs Mine Practice proper earlier than Magic Kingdom closes (or within the early night, should you can’t keep till park closing). Sadly, TRON Lightcycle Run doesn’t have a standby line, so that you’ll wish to seek the advice of our Digital Queue Information to TRON Lightcycle Run for suggestions & methods on using that, together with our velocity technique.
One factor to think about with regard to TRON Lightcycle Run is that it’s a really totally different expertise after the solar goes down, and also you may wish to do it within the night consequently. To perform this, you possibly can both gamble and take a look at for the later digital queue entry time, or be a part of the 7 am VQ, after which buy a Lightning Lane for the night. (A better of each worlds strategy is doing it by way of the VQ earlier, seeing how a lot you take pleasure in it, after which shopping for the ILL if you wish to do it once more.)
Now, on with the present & journey rankings for Genie+ at Magic Kingdom…
The Better of Genie+ at Magic Kingdom
1. Tiana’s Bayou Journey – That is the reimagined journey that replaces Splash Mountain, which was often a prime 3 Lightning Lane in Magic Kingdom, however by no means the #1 precedence. The variations are two-fold. The primary being that Tiana’s Bayou Journey actually simply opened and something new or redone is standard. (Jungle Cruise is nonetheless seeing renewed recognition following its enhancements a couple of years in the past!) The brand new journey scent will finally put on off, nevertheless it’ll most likely take a 12 months or so for that to happen.
Second, Tiana’s Bayou Journey is struggling reliability woes and intensive day by day downtime consequently. That is arguably the larger subject (not less than on some days), and exacerbates the aforementioned elevated recognition with decreased day by day capability. Because of this, Tiana’s Bayou Journey is operating out of Lightning Lanes inside seconds or minutes of seven am.
The excellent news is that, if the journey is dependable and has below-average downtime, Walt Disney World is dropping extra Lightning Lane availability all through the day. The dangerous information is that you’ve actually no method of realizing at 7 am whether or not it’ll be dependable or not on the day of your go to. As such, it’s crucial that Tiana’s Bayou Journey is your #1 choose going ahead, for not less than so long as Genie+ exists. Each different journey needs to be obtainable together with your #2 choose–there’s a superb probability this is not going to. All depends upon how typically (and for the way lengthy) it breaks down all through the day of your go to.
2. Peter Pan’s Flight – Not an enormous shock for many who booked FastPass+ reservations up to now! Peter Pan’s Flight is much and away the most well-liked of Magic Kingdom’s iconic Fantasyland darkish rides, with wait occasions repeatedly exceeding 90 minutes. Its Lightning Lane reservations go quick early on, however there’s often availability into the night. Nonetheless, it’s a wise first choose. That’s very true you probably have young children who might not make it previous 7 pm. (Or for anybody who needs to observe the fireworks.)
3. Jungle Cruise – This one may come as an enormous shock, however Jungle Cruise has seen an enormous resurgence in recognition because it’s current reimagining. This 12 months, it has the third-longest common wait time in Magic Kingdom, behind solely Peter Pan’s Flight and Seven Dwarfs Mine Practice. (It could even be behind TRON Lightcycle Run, however that doesn’t publish a wait time.)
4. Meet Ariel at Her Grotto – The Little Mermaid meet & greet has extraordinarily restricted Lightning Lane availability. If going solely by how shortly reservations guide up, this might be the #1 Genie+ Lightning Lane at Magic Kingdom on many dates. Nonetheless, the typical wait time for the Princess Ariel meet & greet doesn’t even start to justify giving it the highest slot.
5. Area Mountain – The primary of two consecutive Magic Kingdom Mountain Vary rides, it needs to be unsurprising to see Area Mountain crack the highest 5. Area Mountain has seen even increased demand within the final year-plus, as its next-door neighbor–TRON Lightcycle Run–attracts crowds to this aspect of the park.
6. Massive Thunder Mountain Railroad – One other Magic Kingdom Mountain Vary entry, so this one most likely doesn’t want a lot rationalization. If something, you may marvel why Massive Thunder Mountain Railroad ranks this low. It’s all a matter of common wait occasions–which have been average–and Genie+ availability–which has been plentiful. Each of these issues may change, however for now, there’s no must prioritize BTMRR any earlier.
7. Haunted Mansion – Since Hatbox Ghost debuted, Haunted Mansion now has one of many prime 5 common wait occasions in Magic Kingdom. The one cause it doesn’t rank increased is as a result of Haunted Mansion additionally has perpetual Lightning Lane availability–till park closing on most days–so there’s actually no sense of urgency right here.
8. Meet Cinderella and a Visiting Princess at Princess Fairytale Corridor – Each of the subsequent two princess meet & greets at Princess Fairytale Corridor in Fantasyland rank increased throughout Occasion Season on account of staffing shortages. We gained’t go too deep into how the sausage is made, so to talk, however extra characters through the arduous ticket events means fewer for different shifts. Consequently, there are longer strains throughout regular hours.
9. Meet Princess Tiana and a Visiting Princess at Princess Fairytale Corridor – Cinderella’s meet & greet has the slight edge on Tiana, with barely increased wait time on common. In actuality, prioritize whichever of those issues extra to you. This actually holds true for picks #6 by #9. All of those are character-centric leisure that aren’t that far aside from each other when it comes to precedence.
10. Pageant of Fantasy Parade – All of those are clearly non-compulsory, however that is much more circumstantial. You’ll be able to simply watch Pageant of Fantasy Parade with no Cinderella Fort-facing view. As such, this Lightning Lane doesn’t essentially save any time–it affords a reserved viewing space, which may be worthwhile to households with young children. If you wish to do that one, be conscious of showtimes for Pageant of Fantasy Parade. You may want to maneuver this one up a couple of spots relying upon crowd ranges.
11. Meet Mickey & Minnie at City Sq. Theater – Late final 12 months, this climbed to #1 on our rankings. That was on account of occasion season, which pulled meet & greet “assets” away from the Mickey Mouse meet & greet. Throughout Occasion Season, this Lightning Lane spikes in recognition. All different occasions, it has solely average recognition/precedence.
12. Pirates of the Caribbean – Comparable story to Haunted Mansion with Pirates of the Caribbean. Standby waits have been lengthy on account of common downtime, so that you’re probably bypassing a prolonged line when utilizing the Lightning Lane for PotC. On the plus aspect, it seldom runs out of reservation availability in Genie+, besides through the busier seasons.
13. Enchanted Tales with Belle – When it reopened, Lightning Lane availability for Enchanted Tales with Belle was extraordinarily restricted. That has modified in a giant method over the course of the previous couple of months, and despite the fact that it’s typically passed by mid-afternoon (earlier than many entries earlier on this checklist), Enchanted Tales with Belle is NOT a excessive and even average precedence Lightning Lane. The explanation for that’s pretty easy: the Lightning Lane doesn’t prevent a lot time.
14. Buzz Lightyear’s Area Ranger Spin – Strains can fluctuate dramatically for Buzz Lightyear’s Area Ranger Spin, with waits some days exceeding 60 minutes and it being a close to walk-on different days. If you happen to’re visiting when it’s busier, scoring a Lightning Lane reservation right here might be necessary–particularly because the overflow queue is open air and affords minimal shade. Fortuitously, Genie+ typically has nearly instantaneous return occasions and it nearly all the time has Lightning Lane availability proper up till park closing.
15. The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh – The argument might be made that Winnie the Pooh’s Fantasyland darkish journey needs to be within the prime 5. Its common wait time places it there and, subjectively, the wait within the standby line is excruciating (I communicate from expertise). Nonetheless, Genie+ availability has been plentiful, and the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh is extra skippable on account of its high quality (or lack thereof) than the points of interest above it.
16. “it’s a small world” – This well-known–or notorious, relying upon your perspective–Fantasyland boat journey has not had lengthy wait occasions traditionally, however they’ve spiked in current months. Some days, utilizing the Lightning Lane entrance will bypass a forty five minute (or extra) wait, making this a probably robust Genie+ journey reservation. (Different days, it’ll prevent no time in any respect.)
17. Underneath the Sea ~ Journey of the Little Mermaid – It’s a really comparable story right here. If the standby line for the Little Mermaid darkish journey spills out into the walkway, this could be a 45 to 60 minute wait. More often than not, this ‘people-eater’ attraction can have fairly quick waits, although. Nonetheless, it’s simple to seize a nearly-immediate return time by way of Genie+, and the potential financial savings make it a really useful choose for late afternoon.
18. Dumbo the Flying Elephant – One other iconic Magic Kingdom rite-of-passage attraction that’s an actual wildcard. Standby waits right here may be lengthy, however so can also Lightning Lane waits should you get unfortunate. Nonetheless, we’d suggest utilizing Genie+ for it on busier days, as there’s strong time-savings potential.
The Remainder of Genie+ at Magic Kingdom
Barnstormer – This kiddie coaster can have lengthy waits on the busiest days of the 12 months, however to date, we’ve discovered Genie+ to supply nearly no benefit right here. Get it should you can, however don’t sweat standby.
Mad Tea Occasion – The long-lasting spinning teacup is enjoyable, however averages wait occasions underneath quarter-hour. Once more, use Genie+ should you can (as a result of why not), nevertheless it’s not an enormous deal in any other case.
Magic Carpets of Aladdin – This is sort of a knock-off county truthful model of Dumbo. We don’t suggest doing it in any respect–we’d wait in an extended standby line for Astro Orbiter if actually needing our spinner repair.
Monsters Inc. Snigger Ground – Utilizing Genie+ right here on busier days may get you in a single present sooner than you in any other case would’ve making this a possible ‘sleeper choose’ for the Lightning Lane.
Tomorrowland Speedway – Until car exhaust-induced cognitive impairment and the loud putter of engines is your factor, you’ll wish to be out and in of line as shortly as potential right here. That additionally makes it a superb sleeper choose to be used of Genie+ and the Lightning Lane. Proper now, that’s not essential, however on a busier day, this might sneak into the highest 10.
In the end, it is best to be capable of knock out all 23 points of interest by way of Genie+ utilizing Lightning Lanes on a good day in Magic Kingdom. On a foul day, you may solely be capable of do the highest 10. On an terrible day, it is perhaps the highest 5. So plan accordingly primarily based on the crowds if you’ll be visiting, and in addition give your self as many different benefits as potential–like Early Entry, rope drop, or Prolonged Night Hours.
No matter if you’re visiting, Genie+ will prevent extra time at Magic Kingdom–and help you have a extra leisurely day–than at another Walt Disney World park. That is what makes shopping for it our suggestion for most individuals and on most days of the 12 months. Even when it requires a little bit of a splurge, lower the associated fee out of your Walt Disney World trip finances some other place.
Planning a Walt Disney World journey? Study lodges on our Walt Disney World Lodges Evaluations web page. For the place to eat, learn our Walt Disney World Restaurant Evaluations. To save cash on tickets or decide which sort to purchase, learn our Ideas for Saving Cash on Walt Disney World Tickets publish. Our What to Pack for Disney Journeys publish takes a novel have a look at intelligent objects to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Experience Guides will assist. For complete recommendation, the perfect place to begin is our Walt Disney World Journey Planning Information for every part it is advisable know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
How would you rank your journey priorities utilizing Genie+ and Lightning Lanes in Magic Kingdom? Stunned to see Jungle Cruise at #1? Are you planning on shopping for Genie+ or skipping it? Do you agree or disagree with our rankings? Any questions we can assist you reply? Listening to your suggestions–even if you disagree with us–is each fascinating to us and useful to different readers, so please share your ideas under within the feedback!
