How to Maximize Genie+ Lightning Lane Reservations | Guide 2 Disney Genie

So far in our Guide 2 Disney Genie, we’ve shown you how to sign up for Genie, use Genie to manage your day with the MyDisneyExperience app, and purchase Genie+. Now that you have purchased Genie+, this guide will show you how to use it to make Lightning Lane reservations. We’ll share all the intricacies of how the system works to show you how to make the most amount of Genie+ reservations in one day and stack Genie+ reservations.

Update December 12, 2022 – Disney World and Disneyland just made a huge update to Genie+. Now you will be able to modify Genie+ Lightning Lane reservations. This guide has been updated to reflect this new feature.

When Can I Make a Genie+ Lightning Lane Reservation?

At Disney World, Disney Genie+ Lightning Lane reservations open up at 7 am each day. Unlike the previous FastPass+ system, you can only make same-day reservations, so you do not need to worry about making reservations weeks ahead of time.

At Disneyland, you can make Genie+ Lightning Lane reservations as soon as you enter the park.

How to Make a Genie+ Lightning Lane Reservation

In the MyDisneyExperience app or Disneyland app, go to the Disney Genie section. You can do this one of three ways:

• On the home page, there’s a banner highlighting Disney Genie Service. You can press the “Summon Disney Genie” button to get started.
• Press the Plus button in the middle of the bottom menu bar to bring up a list of actions. Press the “View my Genie Day and Tip Board” to go to Genie within the app.
• Press the three lines (also known as a hamburger menu) on the bottom right of the menu bar. You should select “Tip Board” to access Disney Genie.

Once you’ve opened Disney Genie, go to the Experiences section of the Tip Board, and make sure you have the park you are visiting selected. From there, you’ll see an alphabetical list of the attractions at the park. Disney Genie+ Tip: The attractions that you’ve had selected as your “Top Picks” when you configured Disney Genie will show up in this list first. Selecting your Lightning Lane priorities as your Top Picks will save you some time from scrolling.

From this list of attractions, pick the attraction you want to make a Genie+ Lightning Lane reservation. The earliest Lightning Lane return window will be shown, which is the only one you can book.

Tap the box that says “LL Genie+ Lightning Lane / Book Experience” for the attraction you want to make your Lightning Lane reservation. From there you will confirm your party and reservation.

How Soon Can I Make My Next Genie+ Lightning Lane Reservation? The 120 Minute Rule

The answer to this question depends on when you made your last Lightning Lane reservation. There are two different answers to when you can make another Genie+ LL reservation: either in two hours or as soon as you use the last Lightning Lane reservation you made, whichever comes first. We’ll explain in detail below.

120 Minutes After You Made Your Reservation

In general, you can make a Lightning Lane reservation once every two hours. Let’s say Hollywood Studios opens at 9 am, and the first Genie+ Lightning Lane you can get is Slinky Dog Dash for 12 pm – 1 pm. You can then make your next Genie+ Lightning Lane reservation at 11 am. In this thought scenario, let’s say at 11 am you take out your phone and book a Millennium Falcon reservation for 4 pm. You can then make your third Genie+ Lightning Lane reservation at 1 pm, which is 120 minutes after 11 am when you made your last reservation. You can keep doing this until the park closes, Lightning Lane reservations have run out, or you’ve gone on all of the Genie+ Lightning Lane rides.

Note: This 120 minute rule starts at park opening, so even if you made your first Genie+ Lightning Lane reservation at 7 am, the 120 minute countdown to make your second reservation doesn’t start until park opening.

As Soon As You Use Your Latest Lightning Lane Reservation

You can make a new Lightning Lane reservation earlier than 120 minutes if your Lightning Lane reservation is sooner than 2 hours away from when you book it. Let’s go through another scenario, this time at Magic Kingdom on a day when it opens at 8 am. Your first Genie+ Lightning Lane reservation for the day is at 8:30 for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. As soon as you scan your ticket or Magic Band to get in the Lightning Lane line at Big Thunder Mountain, you can make your second Genie+ Lightning Lane reservations. Let’s say you get in line for Big Thunder at 8:35, then take out your phone and get a Haunted Mansion Lightning Lane for 9 am. As soon as you get in line for Haunted Mansion, you can then make a new Lightning Lane reservation. Now let’s say you get in line for Haunted Mansion at 9:15 and grab a Pirates of the Caribbean Lightning Lane for 9:45 right after you scan your ticket to get in the Lightning Lane. In this scenario, you’ve been able to get 3 Lightning Lane reservations for the first 2 hours of park opening. If you had booked your first Lightning Lane reservation for 11 am, you wouldn’t have been able to get your second Lightning Lane reservation until 10 am. This shows the big advantage to getting a Lightning Lane for as early as possible, which may take some luck with some of the more popular attractions.

Let’s run through a scenario that mixes the two rules together.

• You’re going to Epcot, which opens at 10 am.
• At 7 am, you make your first Genie+ Lightning Lane reservation for Soarin’ at 10:15.
• You get in line for Soarin’ at 10:15, and immediately secure a Lightning Lane for Test Track at 1:30 PM.
• The 2 hour rule applies. You have to wait until 12:15 to make your next Lightning Lane reservation.
• At 12:15, you book a 12:30 Spaceship Earth Lightning Lane.
• You get in line for Spaceship Earth at 12:45. As soon as you’re in line, you make a LL reservation for Living with the Land at 1:45.
• You ride Test Track at 1:30. This does not let you get a new Lightning Lane, as the latest LL reservation you made was for Living with the Land.
• You ride Living with the Land at 2 pm, and immediately make a Lightning Lane reservation for Mission: SPACE at 5 pm.
• The 2 hour rule applies, you can make your next Lightning Lane reservation at 4 pm.

If you cancel your latest Lightning Lane reservation or the reservation expires, you’ll also be able to make a new Lightning Lane reservation.

Can I have multiple Genie Plus Lightning Lane reservations at a time?

Yes, you are allowed to have overlapping or stacked Genie+ reservations. In the scenario I just described, you would have two Lightning Lane reservations overlapping: Test Track for 1:30-2:30 pm and Living with the Land for 1:45-2:45 pm. If you make overlapping plans, please keep in mind how far away the attractions are from each other. Disney World does offer a buffer period when it comes to Lightning Lane, so you can be 5 minutes early or 15 minutes late.

Disney Genie+ Tip: The best way to maximize your Genie+ reservations is to make stack your Lightning Lane reservations as I just described. If your Lightning Lane reservation is sooner than the 2 hour rule, then be sure to check for your next Lightning Lane reservation immediately after you scan your ticket to get in the Lightning Lane for your current ride. If you make a Lightning Lane reservation for more than two hours later, set a timer for 2 hours to remind yourself to make your next reservation. I love using my Apple Watch for this, as it will silently tap my wrist instead of making a loud beeping noise.

What about the Genie+ Lightning Lane loophole/hack?

When Genie+ debuted with a quirk that would let you double dip on getting a new Lightning Lane reservation if you made your reservation for further than 2 hours out. You could get a new Lightning Lane reservation both when 120 minutes had elapsed AND when you got in line for your Lightning Lane reservation. Disney has closed this loophole, so normal stacking rules apply.

If you’re curious about the Lightning Lane loophole, you can read all about it here.

What attractions are included in Disney Genie+?

You can find the full list of Disney World and Disneyland Genie+ Lightning Lane attractions here.

Can I use Lightning Lane for the same attraction more than once?

No. Genie+ does not allow for same-day re-rides through the Lightning Lane. If you want to go on an attraction more than once, you’ll have to use the standby or single rider line.

Do Individual Lightning Lane reservations affect when I can make Genie+ Lightning Lane reservations?

No. As we’ve explained in our overview of Genie+ vs Individual Lightning Lane, Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lane are separate systems. You can have Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lane reservations that overlap with each other. Purchasing Individual Lightning Lane reservations does not impact the timing of making a Genie+ reservation. For example, at Hollywood Studios you could:

• At 9 am, make a Genie+ Lightning Lane reservation for Toy Story Mania at 10 am. The next time you can make a Genie+ Lightning Lane reservation is as soon as you get in line for Toy Story Mania.
• At 9:05, purchase Individual Lightning Lane selections Rise of the Resistance at 1 pm and Flight of Passage in Animal Kingdom at 6 PM (if you had a park hopper ticket). You are limited to 2 Individual Lightning Lane purchases per day.
• You get in line for Toy Story Mania at 10:10. You make a Genie+ Lightning Lane Reservation for 1:45 at Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run. The 2 hour rule applies, so the next time you can make a Genie+ reservation is 12:10 pm.

In this scenario, you were able to make your Individual Lightning Lane purchases immediately after you made your first Genie+ reservation, even though it’s within the window where you couldn’t make a second Genie+ reservation. That’s because these are two separate systems. You also would have Genie+ and Individual LL reservations that overlap: Rise of the Resistance at 1 pm – 2 pm and Smuggler’s Run at 1:45 pm – 2:45 pm. Even though Rise of the Resistance is a lengthy experience, you should have no trouble going on both rides, as they are in the same section of the park and both windows only overlap by 15 minutes.

How to modify Genie+ Lightning Lane Reservations

As of December 2022, Genie+ now allows for Lightning Lane modifications. You can now modify the time, attraction, and/or party size. Previously, you would have had to cancel your reservation and make a new one, which often would result in the reservation being gone by the time you made the cancellation. Genie+ modifications are a really welcome planning tool, and it’s something you should use to your advantage.

With the My Disney Experience app and Disneyland updated to version 7.19 or later, you will notice an ellipsis (“…”) on your Genie+ Lightning Lane selection. To modify your reservation, simply tap the ellipsis and select “Modify Plan.” This will bring up a list of available Genie+ Lightning Lane times/attractions at the same park, allowing you to choose a new attraction and time for your reservation.

Once you’ve made your selection, your reservation will be updated accordingly. It’s that easy!

How to cancel your Genie+ Lightning Lane reservations

You are able to cancel your Genie+ Lightning Lane reservations. You may want to do this in case your plans change, or if you see a ride you want to make a reservation for open up and you want to free up the ability to make a new reservation (caveat: in the time that it takes you to cancel your reservation, the LL reservation may be gone if it’s for a popular attraction like Slinky Dog Dash).

To cancel your reservation, go to the My Day tab in the Disney Genie section of the MyDisneyExperience or Disneyland app. Tap the Genie+ Lightning Lane reservation that you’d like to cancel and follow the on-screen prompts from there.

Unlike FastPass+, you cannot “modify” your reservation to a different timeslot at this time. The only way to change your reservation is to cancel your first reservation and then make a new reservation.

What to do if I can’t get a Genie+ Lightning Lane reservation for the ride I want

Lightning Lane reservations are first come, first served. So the most popular attractions like Slinky Dog Dash and Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run will run out of availability earlier than other attractions. Your best bet is to go for the popular attractions early. If you can’t get a Lightning Lane reservation for the attraction you want, you should refresh the tip board to check again. It does seem like Disney is releasing some availability throughout the day, especially at 7:30 and park opening. Also, other guests may change their plans and cancel their Lightning Lane reservation, which would make them available.

For the next entry in our Guide 2 Disney Genie, we will show you how to make Individual Lightning Lane Purchases. You can see all of our Disney Genie guides listed below.