Disney's Lightning Lane Premier Pass: "Pay to Skip" Comes at a Hefty Cost

By Grace Turner Oct 23, 2024

Disney introduces a new tier of passes for immediate park access, costing between $129 and $449 per day.

Disney (DIS) theme parks are introducing a pricier and faster option for guests to skip to the front of the lines. Starting this month, Disney will pilot a new tier of its "Lightning Lane" passes at Disneyland in California, and at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, available to everyone and at certain high-end hotels and resorts at Disney World, respectively.

These Lightning Lane Premier Passes will be available in "very limited quantities" and will cost between $129 and $449. This one-time fee allows park-goers to bypass lines for rides via Lightning Lanes once for each ride in a single day, in addition to the regular admission fees.

Passes for Disneyland will become available on October 23rd, costing $400 per person for the remainder of the year. Moving forward, the pricing will fluctuate between $300 and $400 based on demand and time of year. These passes will be applicable at both Disneyland and the Disney California Adventure Park, assuming the park-goer has the "Park Hopper" perk.

Disney World passes present a more complex pricing structure, as each pass is only usable in one park like Epcot or Magic Kingdom, for the day. They have a price range from $129 for Animal Kingdom to up to $449 for Magic Kingdom, varying with the highest prices set for the peak travel season.

Notably, this new tier of passes provides unrestricted access to any number of Lightning Lanes in a park in a day, eliminating the need for guests to decide ahead of time when they plan on boarding the ride.

The introduction of this new pass tier comes amidst concerns highlighted by analysts around the competitiveness of Disney's parks. This initiative forms a part of Disney's broader $60 billion, 10-year investment plan into its theme parks and cruises businesses. Disney's stock saw a 2% hike to $96.31 on receiving this news, bringing their 2024 gains to nearly 7%.

LEAD STORY