Demystifying the Lightning Lane and Standby Lines at Disneyland

Did you know...

That "Lightning Lane" is just the name of the area you enter these select rides from. "Standby" is the other one. This post is about line entry points only on the rides with a Lightning Lane line option. There are two line types at Disneyland Resort; Standby (all rides), and additionally, Lightning Lane (some rides) which allows access to the shorter wait times. That "Lightning Lane" is just the name of the special entrance on the most popular attractions, that provides a shorter queue wait to ride. Lightning Lane, aka lightning fast... is the new name for the former Fastpass entrances. Here's where this sometimes gets confused and I agree, the naming is not great here. (Dear Disney, can we call these "fancy ride" instead?) You may purchase an Individual Lightning Lane on (presently) three rides only. You may also purchase GENIE+ (grants access to about 19 rides at the moment, and NOT the Individual Lightning Lane rides (Fancy Rides). You will access ALL of these rides through the Lighting Lane special entrance. You may be granted a DAS Pass, which will work on ALL rides in the park, and you will access rides through the Lightning Lane as well, or if there isn't two line options, you'll just go to the exit to enter. This is the same protocol on a Return to Ride card issued at an attraction for those with a mobility disability. Basically on these Lightning Lane rides, there are two lines to stand in. The long line (Standby) and the shorter line (Lightning Lane). Here are the differences and similarities entering a ride attraction with DAS, GENIE+ and Individual Lightning Lane...

Similarities: They all enter through the section marked "LIGHTNING LANE". All 3 options will grant you access to skip the standby line and go into the ride through the lightning lane which results in a much shorter wait time to ride.

Differences: 1. DAS is a free access pass granted to guests who are unable to stand in the longer standby line queues, available for all rides in the park. DAS allows the guest and party to re-ride as often as they'd like. 2. GENIE+ is a paid for add on to your ticket that includes a bundle of some of the most popular rides and allows for a much shorter wait time ONCE per ride in this category. 3. INDIVIDUAL LIGHTNING LANE (Fancy Rides) is a paid for ala carte option to add to your ticket that ONLY includes that specific ride purchased and allows for a much shorter wait time for a fee ONCE per ride in this category AND only 2 out of the 3 offered can be purchased in a single day. If the ride offers a Lightning Lane included with your Genie+ purchase (up to 19 rides I think, between both parks), and you select it through the app and return to "scan" into the ride, you will enter through the section of the line marked Lightning Lane. If the ride offers an Individual Lightning Lane (Fancy Ride) option (currently that's on Rise of the Resistance, Mickey and Minnie, and Radiator Springs), and you've paid to shorten your wait time, that means access to the same Lightning Lane entry point is the same as the before mentioned Lightning Lane line. Make sense? Let's hear your questions and/or comments below. And please note, this post is about entry points only on rides with a Lightning Lane line option.