Disney to Remove Highly Disputed Pirates of the Caribbean Addition

If you are a fan of the recent change made to Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean attraction, do not get too close to the line-skipping ability that was added, as it will be removed.

After Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort ended FastPass, we saw the introduction of Disney Genie+ and Lightning Lane. What this new system allows is for guests to skip the line by entering the old FastPass queue. Now, however, the previously free offering costs money for each guests, and only guarantees 2-3 rides for the cost.

Originally, the price was fixed at $15 per guest at Disney World, and $20 per guest at Disneyland, however, the system now uses date-based pricing and costs have reached over $35 per guest during busier seasons.

At Disneyland, we just saw a new attraction added to the Disney Genie+ offerings, Pirates of the Caribbean. The iconic attraction starring the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) is one of the more original attractions at the park, being worked on by Walt Disney specifically, and for many guests, it is a must-ride on their vacation.

With so many attractions shutting down at Disneyland, including Haunted Mansion with its queue refurbishment and Splash Mountain as it is transforming into Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, Disney has had to replenish their Disney Genie+ options by adding Pirates of the Caribbean to the list.

Now, guests looking to enjoy a swash-buckling adventure that begins in the bayou and ends up in a burning city can do so by skipping the line, but not forever.

While the new scanning touchpoints have been added to the attraction, Disneyland has made it quite clear that the ride is only temporarily going to utilize the Lightning Lane option. Considering the Haunted Mansion and Tiana’s Bayou Adventure are both set to reopen in the later months of 2024, we would expect that Pirates of the Caribbean will remain available on Disney Genie+ for the majority of 2024.

If the Lightning Lane option does prove to be popular among guests and can be correlated towards more guests purchasing Disney Genie+ in order to skip the line at Pirates of the Caribbean, it would not be out of character to see Disney add it as a more permanent option. That being said, that outcome is solely speculative at this point in time.

Lately, we have seen more than one Disney park look to add their Pirates of the Caribbean attraction to their “pay-to-skip” option. At Disneyland Paris, the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction has never been a Premier Access option. Premier Access is somewhat similar to what we can see in the American Disney parks. However, it is individual to an attraction. This means you will pay a smaller amount than the total cost of Disney Genie+, but it will only let you skip one ride.

Disneyland Paris is currently finishing up what looks to be a little Caribbean hut in front of the ride, which will serve as the Premier Access entry point for the attraction. Based on recent looks at the wait times for the ride, however, it may not be the best idea to spend one’s money on that attraction, as wait times are often more manageable as compared to other rides like Crush’s Coaster or Tower of Terror.

Many guests of Disneyland Resort, which is primarily a park that is flooded with California locals, as opposed to Disney World’s tourist population majority, have expressed that they are not too big of a fan of this new Pirates of the Caribbean change as it will make the standby queue longer for those not wanting to spend any extra money.

Would you choose Pirates of the Caribbean as one of your Disney Genie+ picks for the day at Disneyland?