If you are visiting Walt Disney World Resort this week, you better get ready to experience some heavy crowds.
Since Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios all reopened after the pandemic we have seen crowds slowly begin to increase. Although capacity is not back to what the pre-pandemic levels originally were, the crowds are bustling, and we now know Disney will never return to those levels, so this may be the new normal. Disney is always going to be busy no matter when you visit throughout the year, however, there are certain times of the year that are much worse than others.

Often, we see holidays be a very popular time for Guests to visit Disney, and from late February through to early April, many different school districts undergo their spring break, which is a perfect time for many families to fly to Orlando as the kids are out of school. This week in particular has been one of the busiest of the season, with Park Passes gone for all Guests throughout the week. This means that if you do not have a Disney Park Pass for this week, you will not be able to get into the Park.

We recently wrote on the insane lines that are growing for PhotoPass due to the influx of Guests, and on social media, we can see that no matter where Guests are going to escape the crowds, they cannot. Because of this, we have also seen lines for attractions like Space Mountain at Magic Kingdom grow incredibly long, almost passing the exit of Tomorrowland. As many Guests want to avoid waiting in line for hours, Disney Genie+ has been a popular purchase so that Guests can use Lightning Lane.

Disney Genie+, the paid aspect of the system, allows Guests to use the Lightning Lane when their return time strikes — which has replaced the previously free FastPass lane. Then both theme park resorts have a la carte options where Guests must pay varying costs per ride, per person to ride the attraction. Disney Genie+ costs $15.00 per person per day for Disney World Guests and $20.00 per person per day at Disneyland. The cost for Disney Genie+ is slightly more expensive at Disneyland, and so are the a la carte options. Rise of the Resistance has hit costs of $20.00 per person per ride, which would essentially double the daily cost of Disney Genie+ if Guests wanted to Lightning Lane the Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge attraction, as well as use the paid system for other attractions.

A la carte options tend to sell out the fastest, as there are only so many to give out, and everyone goes for them in the morning as they are not scattered like the other Disney Genie options, therefore, speed and internet connection do matter for trying to get a Lightning Lane on the following attractions at Walt Disney World.
- Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
- Space Mountain
- Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure
- Frozen Ever After
- Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance
- Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway
- Avatar Flight of Passage
- Expedition Everest

Since Guests can only utilize one Lightning Lane pass at a time, the race to get a new pass after you ride an attraction at an earlier time is essential to being able to continue using the service. But what happens when Lightning Lane sells out?
Thanks to WDW Stats (@WdwStats) we have seen that Lightning Lane options are disappearing faster than Guests can book them!
All the Lightning Lane passes for Alien Swirling Saucers have been given away. #HollywoodStudios #WDW #WaltDisneyWorld #DisneyWorld
All the Lightning Lane passes for Alien Swirling Saucers have been given away. #HollywoodStudios #WDW #WaltDisneyWorld #DisneyWorld
— WDW Stats (@WdwStats) March 15, 2022
Toy Story Mania is also sold out for the day.
All the Lightning Lane passes for Toy Story Mania! have been given away. #HollywoodStudios #WDW #WaltDisneyWorld #DisneyWorld
All the Lightning Lane passes for Toy Story Mania! have been given away. #HollywoodStudios #WDW #WaltDisneyWorld #DisneyWorld
— WDW Stats (@WdwStats) March 15, 2022
Other attractions like Na’vi River Journey, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway, Tower of Terror, Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith, Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run, Kilimanjaro Safaris, Frozen Ever After, Slinky Dog Dash, Test Track, Rise of the Resistance, and more are all no longer available for Guests to obtain, even with over half the Park day left.

From this, we can clearly tell that the amount of Guests not only at Disney World but using Disney Genie+ is huge. If you show up to the Parks late with a desire to use Disney Genie+ this week, we would advise against it, as you will likely spend the $15.00 per person to find little to no availability for the attractions you desire.
What do you think of Disney Genie+? Let us know in the comments below.
Let the expert team at Academy Travel help you plan your next magical vacation to Walt Disney World Resort’s four theme parks — Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios — and the Disney Springs shopping and dining district!