Disney's Fast Pass system has once again gotten a bit more complicated. Earlier this month, the company introduced Lightning Lane Premier Pass, another new type of Lightning Lane that has naturally caused confusion among casual park guests who don't follow every single announcement made by Disney.
As it currently stands, there are a few different ways to skip the standby line and join a shorter line for attractions. There's the Lightning Lane Multi Pass, a Lightning Lane Single Pass, and the new Lightning Lane Premiere Pass. Here's the difference between all three paid skip-the-line options.
Lightning Lane Single Pass vs Lightning Lane Multi Pass
Let's start with the Lightning Lane Single Pass and Lightning Lane Multi Pass, since those were both introduced in tandem. Both allow you to skip the standby queue, with the only major difference being that the Lightning Lane Single Pass is a single purchase per rider that's available for Disney's "most in-demand attractions." The Lightning Lane Multi Pass does not provide access to the same attractions as the Lightning Lane Single Pass.
Single Pass Lightning Lane attractions include Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and TRON Lightcycle / Run at Magic Kingdom, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at EPCOT, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance at Hollywood Studios, and Avatar Flight of Passage at Animal Kingdom.
The Lightning Lane Multi Pass is what you would purchase to get fast pass for just about every other attraction at a Disney park. It's a single price that varies depending on the park and time of year and gives you the ability to make fast pass return times for park attractions. It allows you to select up to three multi pass experiences and arrival windows for a theme park in advance of your visit. Once you enjoy your first multi pass experience, you can make an additional selection (subject to availability).
How Lightning Lane Premier Pass differs from Lightning Lane Multi Pass
Lightning Lane Premier Pass is the newest version of Disney's Lightning Lane. Introduced in October 2024, it's a new offering that lets allows one-time entry to each Lightning Lane experience in a theme park -- including the most in demand attractions.
Think of Lightning Lane Premier Pass as the ultimate fast pass. It includes all of the attractions in through Lightning Lane Multi Pass as well as the individual attractions available through Lightning Lane Single Pass.
There's a couple big differences to take note of. For starters, there's no specific arrival ride times. You can ride any of the attractions within the park when you want. You don't have to select a return time.
The other big difference is that it includes every single attraction in a single park. It doesn't matter if it's TRON Lightcycle / Run, Space Mountain, or It's A Small World.
Pricing for all of Disney's Lightning Lane options
Disney uses dynamic pricing for its Lightning Lane options. This means the price will vary depending on things like date and theme park. You'll be able to view the prices for any of the Lightning Lanes within the My Disney Experience app.
For the Lightning Lane Single Pass, prices range between $10 to $25 per person per attraction. So lets say you have a family of four want to ride TRON Lightcycle / Run. Let's say it costs $15 per pass, you'll be paying 60 total to ride.
The Lightning Lane Multi Pass uses per-perk and date-based pricing. This can cost anywhere between $16 and $39 per person, per day. Again though, you're getting more fast pass options with this one.
Now for Lightning Lane Premier Pass. This is the most expensive option that's priced different between Disney World and Disneyland.
At Disneyland, it costs $400 per person, per day for parks visited through December 31, 2024. Beginning in 2025, pricing will vary by date and demand within a $300 to $400 range.
For Disney World, the Lightning Lane Premier Pass varies by date and theme park with prices at launch ranging between $129 and $449 per pass. The highest prices will fall on a limited number od ay over peak travel periods. In order to purchase a Lightning Lane Premier Pass at Disney Worrld, you must be staying at one of the eligible resort hotels.