After being announced several years ago, the new Disney Genie service has finally launched today at Walt Disney World.

Guests can access the new free service right in the resort’s official My Disney Experience app. You will need to update the app if you already have it on your device to reveal today’s new features.

Disney Genie gives you a new way to plan out your day at the parks. With touring tips and suggestions for the best places to dine, it can be helpful for new visitors and returning guests alike.

Along with the Disney Genie service, the resort officially started the new Lightning Lane system today. This is the replacement for the FastPass lines, which have been rebranded to the new term.

There are two different ways to get a Lightning Lane reservation, and they both cost money, (neither is included in your theme park admission cost). Most attractions offer Lightning Lane reservations through Disney Genie+, which is an upgrade to Disney Genie. This upgrade will cost you $15 per person per day.

The other way to get a Lightning Lane reservation is through what Disney calls “Individual Lightning Lane.” These are select attractions that are some of the most popular at the park, and you would have to pay individually for a Lightning Lane for them. Each park has two attractions that can only be purchased individually.

The good news is, you don’t have to pay for Disney Genie+ to be able to purchase one of these individual Lightning Lane reservations, like for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, but you can only do two of them a day.

Slinky Dog is the most booked Genie+ Lightning Lane currently, already booked though 5pm for the day (30 mins after bookings started).

At Magic Kingdom, where there are more attractions, longest any one ride is booked out in Genie+ is ~2 hours after park open. pic.twitter.com/UvY7Paohne

— Alicia Stella (@AliciaStella) October 19, 2021

No matter how you get a Lightning Lane reservation, you will only be able to reserve a particular attraction once per day. And you can only book one Lightning Lane reservation at a time using Disney Genie+. These restrictions should help spread out the crowds and help keep Lightning Lane reservations for each attraction from running out too quickly.

Although, Slinky Dog Dash at Disney’s Hollywood Studios really put that theory to the test, running through most of its reservations within the first hour of the service launching this morning.

When using Disney Genie, you have two tabs in front of you. “Tip Board” will show you current wait times, next available Lightning Lane reservations, and more based on the park selected at the top. This is the best place to book your Lightning Lane passes and learn more about what is happening at any of the parks in real time.

The second tab, “My Day,” shows you what you already have reserved for today, (or any specific day selected from a calendar,) including dining, Lightning Lane, and other experiences. Here you can help plan your day and stay on schedule. This tab will also offer suggestions as the day goes on, based on the interests you entered when selecting the day.

There are other options included in the paid Disney Genie+ service in addition to being able to reserve Lightning Lane for most attractions. You can add Augmented Reality filters to your photos in the parks, and listen to special behind the scenes audio tracks about the parks as well.

Keep in mind that Lightning Lane reservations available through Disney Genie+ can and will run out for the more popular attractions first, so always check to see what is left before purchasing the service later in the day.

Since this is only the new service’s first day of operation, changes are still being made, and you may encounter trouble loading certain screens. If you receive an error message or missing screen, close the app and reopen it. Make sure it is completely closed first. This usually fixes most problems. Opening day jitters I suppose!

For more information on Disney Genie+, Lightning Lane, and more, be sure to see our Complete Guide, which features a full list of all rides with Lightning Lane. The Frequently Asked Questions section was updated today with all of the latest details to help you with some of the more common concerns.

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