This week has been BUSY at Disney World, and it looks like it’s just going to get worse as we approach the weekend.
Crowds in Disney World
We’ve noticed bigger-than-normal crowds in the parks, and Genie+ prices skyrocketed early in the week (those prices are based on demand, so when prices are high, we expect busier parks). When we checked on the Park Pass Reservation availability calendar this morning, we saw something that made us cringe!
Right now, Park Pass Reservations are SOLD OUT for both Magic Kingdom and EPCOT on February 22nd, 23rd, 24th, and 25th. This is true for guests with non-date-based tickets who either just have the tickets or are staying at a Disney World hotel.
©Disney
Park Passes are NOT sold out for Annual Passholders, however. If you have a Disney World Annual Pass, you can still make reservations for any of the theme parks this week/weekend. (And don’t forget that February 27th, 28th, and 29th are Good-to-Go days, which means you don’t need any reservations at all to visit the parks!)
Annual Pass
Guests who have date-based tickets don’t need to make Park Pass Reservations at all anymore, so this update will not affect their trips.
Scanning in!
Genie+ prices today have actually gone DOWN compared to recent days. Today (February 22nd) is the cheapest they’ve been all week. On Sunday and Monday, the Multi-park option was $35 per person, and on Monday that option sold out as well.
On Tuesday, both Multi-Park and Magic Kingdom Genie+ sold out pretty early in the morning. On Wednesday, they cost $29, but today it’s down to $27. Here’s a look at what Genie+ costs today for each of the theme parks:
©Disney
We can also tell it’s crowded by which Individual Lightning Lanes are sold out today. Guests who purchase Genie+ can book Lightning Lanes throughout the day, but some of the most popular rides have Individual Lightning Lanes instead, which you have to purchase a la carte.
Today, three of those rides have already SOLD OUT of Lightning Lane availability: Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance in Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train in Magic Kingdom, and Avatar Flight of Passage in Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (Disney World)
Rise of the Resistance has sold out by 10AM EST every single day this week, and both Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind and TRON Lightcycle / Run have sold out on a couple of days as well. Like we said, it’s busy in the parks, and a LOT of people are trying to get on these popular rides!
TRON Lightcycle / Run
If you want to make sure you’re able to get on the best rides, be ready to book those Individual Lightning Lanes as soon as they’re available. For guests staying at Disney World hotels, that’s 7AM EST. For other guests, it’s as soon as the park opens.
If you’ll be in Disney World this weekend (or any time when it’s particularly busy), take advantage of skip-the-line services like Genie+, Mobile Order, and Mobile Merchandise Checkout to save time throughout your day.
Mobile Order
You can use the rope drop strategy to get on more rides, too. Rope drop means you get to the theme parks well before they open (at least a half hour early) so you’re ready to head straight for your top-priority rides once the gates open. The crowds will look big, but the wait times early in the morning are generally much shorter than you’ll see later in the day.
Everyone tends to head for the BIG rides at rope drop.
Don’t forget that guests at Disney World hotels can go inside the theme parks a half hour early every day!
Early Entry sign
Stay tuned to DFB for more updates on the latest Disney news.
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Are you visiting Disney World this weekend? What’s your strategy to beat the crowds? Let us know in the comments!
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The Princess Half Marathon is this weekend
AJ what’s going on! We arrived in Jan this year, the bus to MK from DAS was rammed, 3 in total where called the queue was crazy, this was 21st- 31st Jan, even a lot of locals also said it’s getting busier ☹️
Post this to the silly sites claiming Disney is empty because it’s “woke” LOL