As of today, October 30, 2024, Walt Disney World has rolled out the new Lightning Lane Premier Pass, which is a third tier of paid FastPass. This post covers one of the most important topics about the new line-skipping service from a practical perspective: pricing. We have costs of LLPP for Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom for dates between now and late November 2024. Plus, predictions for Thanksgiving through January 2025.
As intimated above, Lightning Lane Premier Pass (LLPP) is a third tier of line-skipping in addition to Lightning Lane Multi-Pass (LLMP) and Lightning Lane Single Pass (LLSP). It does not, and will not, replace either existing option. There are still some questions about the whole Lightning Lane Premier Pass system, and we’ve been doing our best to answer those in the Guide to Lightning Lane Premier Pass at Walt Disney World. That will get another update in the next few days if we learn any new details about Lightning Lane Premier Pass. Probably.
Maybe not, though. The whole point of Lightning Lane Premier Pass is to streamline things. Unlike LLMP or LLSP, Premier Pass is not convoluted or confusing–it’s all about removing the friction introduced by other line-skipping options. It’s a brilliantly devious decision on Disney’s part, and a classic tale of an arsonist turned firefighter. You’ve almost gotta hand it to Disney–they ought to make an animated movie about it. Perhaps they could get Kurt Russell and Billy Baldwin to voice characters.
Anyway, this is worth mentioning because some other sites plan on doing comprehensive field-testing of Lightning Lane Premier Pass. We will not be doing that because, frankly, I don’t really see the point. For one thing, the target audience for LLPP is exceedingly limited–I’d estimate it to be around 1% to 3% of all guests on regular days when bloggers, vloggers, and influencers aren’t buying it to test.
As such, the audience for such posts among planners is similarly limited. The real market, I assume, will be disgruntled fans who rage-read articles or watch videos about how expensive it is…but that’s not really telling us anything we don’t already know. Daily prices are really the only direct element of interest, and it doesn’t take field testing to find those out.
Otherwise, the precise point of Lightning Lane Premier Pass is simplifying the line-skipping experience. Assuming it works as expected (and I guess that is a semi-bold assumption given Disney IT’s track record), the allure of LLPP is not needing to read or learn anything. There are no hacks or ways to squeeze value out of it. You buy it, if at all, to remove stress, planning, etc. Point being: don’t overthink it.
You probably already know if this is a product for you or if it isn’t based simply and solely on the description and price points. If it is, more power to you! As someone who relishes leveraging hacks and savvy strategy to “beat the system,” it’s not for me, and that’s fine–to each their own. Instead, our focus with Lightning Lane Premier Pass will be indirect and come via additional Lightning Lane Multi-Pass and standby testing to see how it impacts those lines.
Honestly, I’m not expecting it to move the needle much, if at all. The main reason is that 1-3% uptake prediction, much of which will come from the pool of guests who already purchase LLMP. Consequently, my expectation is that LLPP will have a negligible impact on the guest experience for everyone else. But, that’s a guess at this point, and my guesses have been wrong plenty of times before, which is precisely why we test things. But I digress.
Here’s a look at the first 21 days of data for Lightning Lane Premier Pass park-by-park prices:
Magic Kingdom Lightning Lane Premier Pass Pricing
- 10/30/2024 – $329
- 10/31/2024 – $329
- 11/01/2024 – $379
- 11/02/2024 – $359
- 11/03/2024 – $379
- 11/04/2024 – $399
- 11/05/2024 – $359
- 11/06/2024 – $379
- 11/07/2024 – $379
- 11/08/2024 – $359
- 11/09/2024 – $379
- 11/10/2024 – $379
- 11/11/2024 – $359
- 11/12/2024 – $379
- 11/13/2024 – $379
- 11/14/2024 – $359
- 11/15/2024 – $379
- 11/16/2024 – $399
- 11/17/2024 – $379
- 11/18/2024 – $379
- 11/19/2024 – $379
- 11/20/2024 – $359
Lightning Lane Premier Pass pricing at Magic Kingdom is most interesting to me. I’ve bolded the peak prices in the next 21 days. Frankly, these don’t make a ton of sense to me. It stands to reason that LLPP would cost the most on the busiest days. November 4 is a Monday, which is the busiest day of the week at Magic Kingdom. So superficially, that makes sense.
But that isn’t a busy week! It’s between Halloween and Christmas, sufficiently ahead of Veterans Day weekend, and on a day when Walt Disney World neglected to extend park hours from the 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. baseline. That Thursday and the following Monday have 11 pm closings, with Saturday having a rare midnight closing. Pricing LLPP at $399 makes more sense any of those days!
Equally interesting is that LLPP pricing at Magic Kingdom doesn’t appear to take Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party into account. It could be argued that the service should cost more on those days because there are fewer hours, so LLPP allows guests to get more done. A lot of things could be argued, but that doesn’t make them good arguments. The opposite is actually true here: line-skipping services (all of them) are far less necessary and useful due to lower crowd levels on those dates. I don’t even do Lightning Lane Multi-Pass testing on MNSSHP or MVMCP days anymore because it’s pointless. The results are the same (I get a lot done!) every single time.
EPCOT Lightning Lane Premier Pass Pricing
- 10/30/2024 – $169
- 10/31/2024 – $169
- 11/01/2024 – $189
- 11/02/2024 – $189
- 11/03/2024 – $209
- 11/04/2024 – $229
- 11/05/2024 – $189
- 11/06/2024 – $229
- 11/07/2024 – $209
- 11/08/2024 – $189
- 11/09/2024 – $209
- 11/10/2024 – $209
- 11/11/2024 – $189
- 11/12/2024 – $229
- 11/13/2024 – $209
- 11/14/2024 – $189
- 11/15/2024 – $209
- 11/16/2024 – $229
- 11/17/2024 – $169
- 11/18/2024 – $169
- 11/19/2024 – $169
- 11/20/2024 – $209
All of the bolded peak prices (for now) of Lightning Lane Premier Pass at EPCOT are on different days of the week. None of them are in close proximity to the Veterans Day (or any other) holiday weekend. Presently, there’s no reason to expect these dates to be particularly busy. It’s not reflected in Disney’s hours, and only one of these dates see the highest LLMP pricing at EPCOT. It’s also not reflected in any observable externalities we see that could impact crowds.
I feel like there’s a riddle here to be unwrapped, but I’m too dumb to figure it out. That, or Walt Disney World threw darts at a wall to set pricing for Lightning Lane Premier Pass. Perhaps a “why not both?” kinda situation.
Hollywood Studios Lightning Lane Premier Pass Pricing
- 10/30/2024 – $269
- 10/31/2024 – $269
- 11/01/2024 – $289
- 11/02/2024 – $289
- 11/03/2024 – $309
- 11/04/2024 – $329
- 11/05/2024 – $289
- 11/06/2024 – $329
- 11/07/2024 – $309
- 11/08/2024 – $289
- 11/09/2024 – $309
- 11/10/2024 – $309
- 11/11/2024 – $289
- 11/12/2024 – $309
- 11/13/2024 – $269
- 11/14/2024 – $289
- 11/15/2024 – $309
- 11/16/2024 – $309
- 11/17/2024 – $309
- 11/18/2024 – $269
- 11/19/2024 – $309
- 11/20/2024 – $289
For those keeping score at home, November 4 is the only date to have current peak pricing at the 3 parks that matter. I still don’t think there’s any reason to believe that date will be atypically busy relative to the other days on this list. (Before anyone points to the runDisney Wine & Dine Half Marathon Weekend, keep in mind that race participants typically arrive early and do the parks prior to the races, not stay late and do them after. That’s the general rule.)
It’s possible they’re basing these prices on Deluxe Resort occupancy, which could explain the departure from park hours, anticipated crowds, and LLMP/LLSP pricing. Higher occupancy at the top tier hotels doesn’t necessarily result in any of those things, since it could be occurring for other reasons (namely conventions or group events) and is a small pool of guests.
More likely, they’re just testing a variety of price points before the real peak season rolls around. In the past, it’s been somewhat of a fool’s errand to try reading anything into Lightning Lane/Genie+ prices. There was a time when Walt Disney World was months behind in adjusting dynamic pricing to account for attendance trend changes with weekdays vs. weekends. So if you’re trying to read the fig leaves and glean insight into crowds or whatever else, I’d advise against that.
Animal Kingdom Lightning Lane Premier Pass Pricing
- 10/30/2024 – $129
- 10/31/2024 – $129
- 11/01/2024 – $139
- 11/02/2024 – $159
- 11/03/2024 – $139
- 11/04/2024 – $159
- 11/05/2024 – $129
- 11/06/2024 – $159
- 11/07/2024 – $139
- 11/08/2024 – $159
- 11/09/2024 – $159
- 11/10/2024 – $139
- 11/11/2024 – $159
- 11/12/2024 – $129
- 11/13/2024 – $129
- 11/14/2024 – $139
- 11/15/2024 – $159
- 11/16/2024 – $159
- 11/17/2024 – $129
- 11/18/2024 – $159
- 11/19/2024 – $129
- 11/20/2024 – $129
It doesn’t make sense to buy Lightning Lane Premier Pass at Animal Kingdom in the first place, so I’m not going to try making sense of the pricing. There’s a reason that it’s priced so far below the other parks, and that reason is that this is a superfluous product that shouldn’t exist at Animal Kingdom. Lightning Lane Premier Pass is the equivalent of a paid FastLane on the highway at 2 a.m. when there are no other cars on the road.
As a reminder, there is no Park Hopper option for Lightning Lane Premier Pass at Walt Disney World. This is unlike LLPP at Disneyland, and also unlike Lightning Lane Multi-Pass at Walt Disney World. Lightning Lane Premier Pass at Walt Disney World is only valid at the theme park for which you purchase it.
At launch, Lightning Lane Premier Pass is available to purchase only by guests staying at Deluxe Resorts or Deluxe Villa Resorts (Disney Vacation Club Resorts). Lightning Lane Premier Pass may be purchased up to seven days in advance of their stay.
Lightning Lane Premier Pass gives Walt Disney World guests one-time entry to each available Lightning Lane entrance in a single theme park for the day. The lower attraction count along with lower crowds and Lightning Lane Multi-Pass being more useful (and not having tiers) is precisely why LLPP is pointless at Animal Kingdom.
If you’re wondering when is the “best” time to buy Lightning Lane Premier Pass, the answer is the intersection of higher prices and higher crowds. Meaning not November 4 since it almost certainly won’t check both boxes, but probably November 25-27, the weeks of Christmas and New Year’s, Presidents’ Day, peak of Spring Break, and so forth.
The flip side of that is that the “worst” time to buy Lightning Lane Premier Pass is when the prices are lowest. Don’t look at those prices in the $100s and $200s and think you’re getting a bargain–stop to ask why Walt Disney World priced LLPP at that point to begin with. Personally, I wouldn’t buy Premier Pass at those prices because it’s not sufficiently useful…and I wouldn’t buy at the $300 and $400 price points because it’s too expensive.
This parallels Lightning Lane Multi-Pass, so it shouldn’t be a surprise to Walt Disney World regulars. As a general rule, the more guests see longer wait times, the more likely they are to want to skip those standby lines. Worse wait times creates a higher incentive for bypassing lines, meaning higher uptake of Lightning Lanes even when it costs more. Demand for beating crowds increases as attendance goes up, and as such, Lightning Lanes will always be most popular when they’re most expensive. It follows that there’s less demand for Lightning Lanes in lower crowds, even with lower prices.
In terms of when we can expect to see peak season pricing, the first test will come on Monday, November 25, 2024. I mean, I guess technically it could come earlier (the Saturday and Sunday beforehand), but that will be the first truly busy day of Thanksgiving week. Crowds for that holiday week almost always peak prior to Thursday, so we’d expect the highest prices to occur on November 25-27. Those will almost assuredly be higher than November 4 prices, as the parks will certainly be busier.
After that, prices should plummet on the Saturday or Sunday that follow Black Friday, unless Walt Disney World is too reactionary. Then we can expect to see the all-time high prices to be reached starting December 21, 2024 and continuing through at least New Year’s Eve–possibly until January 6, 2025. Walt Disney World has already announced the peak prices:
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom: $199 per person, plus tax
- EPCOT: $249 per person, plus tax
- Disney’s Hollywood Studios: $349 per person, plus tax
- Magic Kingdom: $449 per person, plus tax
Given that November 4, a random day between Halloween and Christmas seasons that won’t be that busy, is already relatively close to those peaks, my personal expectation is to see the above prices for all dates from December 21, 2024 through January 6, 2025. Honestly, I wouldn’t even be surprised if Thanksgiving week hits those prices. It’ll be an interesting saga to watch–we’ll keep you posted to some degree, but don’t expect nearly as many posts about Lightning Lane Premier Pass as Multi-Pass. Frankly, this interests me a lot less and isn’t relevant to 99% of readers.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think about Lightning Lane Premier Pass? Surprised by the date-by-date prices? Thoughts on Walt Disney World’s “answer” to Universal’s Express Pass? Predictions as to how successful this line-skipping service will be? Under what, if any, scenarios would you buy Lightning Lane Premier Pass? Agree or disagree with our assessment? Other thoughts or concerns? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
