Main Street Minutes

Volume 12

Disney World had been busy this summer with the opening of Tiana’s Bayou adventure, the launch of Lightning Lane Multipass and Single Pass, the Flavors of Florida series, and so much more!

Trivia

1. In 1987, the first Disney Store (brick & motar) opened in what city?
2. What was the final Disney movie to use the traditional technique of hand-painted cells for most of the film?
3. The castles at the two US Disney theme parks take their names from which Disney Princess(es)?
4. Legendary Disney Imagineer John Hench is quoted as saying, “I liked it better as a parking lot” of which Disney park?
5. Who is Dumbo’s best friend who helps him believe he can fly?

Answers to June Trivia

1. The numbers on the trash cans are from the trash compactor scene!
2. It is the classroom at CalArts where many Pixar animators studied
3. TRUE! It adds to the forced perspective of Cinderella Castle and helps slow guests walking into the park
4. One
5. Yellow = Mustard, Red = Ketchup, White = Mayonaise

A Look Back at July in Disney History

• July 17, 1955 — Disneyland Park opens in Anaheim California
• July 1, 1975 — Tomorrowland Transit Authority’s Peoplemover opens in Walt Disney World
• July 3, 1985 — Tinkerbell takes her first flight across Main Street USA in Walt Disney World
• July 30, 1998 — The Disney Magic sets sail on her inaugural cruise
• July 24, 1966 — New Orleans Square becomes the first new land in Disneyland since opening day, however beloved attractions Haunted Mansion and Pirates of theCaribbean wouldn’t open until later.

Upcoming Events

• Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party select nights starting August 9th
• Epcot International Food & Wine Festival begins August 29th
• Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party and Jollywood Nights kick off November 8th
• Island Tower at Disney’s Polynesian Resort opening December 2024

Deals, Discounts, & Promos 

4-Day, 4 Park Magic Ticket starting at $99 per day OR 3-day, 3 Park Ticket starting at $89 per day (3 park ticket excludes Magic Kingdom)

Save Up to 30% on Rooms This Holiday Season – and Enjoy Other Savings This Fall

Save on Rooms at Select Disney Resort Hotels – and Enjoy a Special Park Hopper Offer When You Upgrade to a Select Package

Annual Passholders: Save Up to 35% on Rooms at Select Disney Resort Hotels This Summer and Early Fall

Special Report: Disney Genie+ Service Becomes Lightning Lane

On July 24, Walt Disney World will introduce new, simpler names to provide more clarity for everyone. Disney Genie+ service will become Lightning Lane Multi Pass, while individual Lightning Lane will now be known as Lightning Lane Single Pass.

Disney will also be updating Lightning Lane passes to help you:

• Make Lightning Lane plans before you’re here, for added confidence.
• Choose your experiences and times prior to purchasing, so you know what you’re getting.
• Book Lightning Lane passes for multiple vacation days, all in a single day.

Check out this special bonus episode to hear all of the new information.

Disney Did It Again! (and I’m not mad about it)

Amy Frazier – Staff Writer and Travel Advisor

I really don’t think there was anyone out there who honestly, genuinely loved Genie+. There were some who mastered the system and made it work for them, but they definitely seemed to be in the minority. Then, just when we thought all the complications and changes were done: BAM! Disney goes and undoes everything we thought we knew with a suspiciously familiar “New” system; enter Lightning Lane Multi Pass and Lightning Lane Single Pass.

We here at Main St Magic brought this news to you back in June when it was announced (see the special report above) and decided to hold off with this month’s Minutes until our Hosts with the Mosts were able to experience the new system for themselves. Thus far, the practical application seems to have been well received. Multi Pass has the same feel as its predecessor – FastPass+. Resort guests can reserve 3 return times in the same park for each day of their trip beginning 7 days prior to check in. Non-resort guests can make their reservations 3 days prior to the day. Of course, there is a fee for this service that so far seems to be in line with what we had been seeing for Genie+ and the pricing is still tiered based on which park you are booking. Magic Kingdom is still the highest price followed by Hollywood Studios and Epcot, with Animal Kingdom being the least expensive. Speaking of tiers, the ride selections have returned to a tier system as well. Guests may pre-select one tier one ride and two tier two rides prior to arrival.

A new convenience is the ability to reserve those Lightning Lane Single Pass (Individual Lightning Lanes) at the same time as booking your three Fast Passes, er, Lightning Lane Multi Passes. Guests using this service can also see availability prior to payment! This is huge for me. If I happen to sleep late on my booking day, open the app and see that all the ride passes I wanted are already sold out for the day — I’m not going to purchase.

Now, of course people are already thinking of ways to …. we’ll just say maximize their Lightning Lane dollars, and for now, that’s perfectly acceptable. Guests with park hopper tickets can legitimately make their pre-arrival selections for Animal Kingdom, the lowest priced Multi Pass park, then make subsequent pass reservations in a different park on the day. What we are not sure of yet is if you will have to use all three of your pre-selections before being able to make selections in a different park. However, this tactic does run the risk of your preferred rides being sold out or the only available return times very late in the day. This also seems like a loophole that Disney will close as soon as the initial hiccups with the system are worked out.

The lack of social media outrage, at least from what I’ve seen, suggests that Disney fans are cautiously optimistic about Multi Pass. There are definitely some kinks to work out with regards to availability and distribution, but I personally believe that will shake itself out fairly quickly. Stay tuned to your Main Street Magic Podcast for more information and updates as this new system unfolds! And if you’ve had experience with the new system, we’d love to hear from you! Drop us a message at Magic@MainStMagic.com and let us know your thoughts.