EPCOT's Lightning Lane Premier Pass Sells Out for First Time

3 days ago in "Disney Genie"

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Posted: Saturday November 23, 2024 5:50pm ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

EPCOT's Lightning Lane Premier Pass has officially sold out for Monday, November 25, 2024. This marks the first time the pass has reached capacity at the park, reflecting heightened demand during the busy Thanksgiving period. The increasing popularity of this new service, coupled with the holiday crowds, has made securing a Premier Pass for certain dates increasingly challenging.

How the Lightning Lane Premier Pass Works

The Lightning Lane Premier Pass provides one-time access to all available Lightning Lane attractions in a single park for one day, without requiring arrival windows for individual rides. This flexibility, combined with perks like Disney PhotoPass digital downloads, has made it an attractive option for guests looking to maximize their time in the parks.

Thanksgiving Week Trends

EPCOT is not the only park experiencing sell-outs for the Premier Pass during Thanksgiving week. Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios have also reported sold-out dates. Here's a snapshot of sold-out dates for Premier Pass across the parks.

EPCOT: November 25
Magic Kingdom: November 23, 25, 26, 27, 28
Hollywood Studios: November 25, 28
View current and upcoming Lighting Lane Premier Pass pricing

Lightning Lane Premier Pass Availability Thanksgiving 2024

What This Means for Guests

If you were hoping to purchase a Lightning Lane Premier Pass for November 25 at EPCOT, it's now unavailable. However, you can still consider other options:

Other Lightning Lane Options: Guests can use Lightning Lane Multi Pass or individual Lightning Lane purchases, though these require selecting arrival windows for attractions.
Alternative Parks: Premier Pass availability may still exist for other parks, depending on the date.
Plan Ahead for Future Dates: As availability for the Premier Pass is limited, purchasing as early as possible—up to seven days in advance for eligible guests—is recommended.

Looking Ahead to the Holiday Season

With Thanksgiving week highlighting the popularity of the Lightning Lane Premier Pass, similar trends may occur for Christmas and New Year's. Guests visiting during these times should plan ahead and monitor availability closely.

Stay tuned for updates on sold-out dates and tips for navigating the holiday crowds at Walt Disney World.

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HoustonHorn1 minute ago

Couple of points as I sit at MCO after a few park days: 1. The changes to LL are "working" from the standpoint of LL efficiency. I think the longest we waited from the time we hit the end of an LL line to the merge was maybe 5 minutes, and probably 95% of the time we walked straight to the merge. So I don't think they are overselling any. 2. To that last point, I overheard a lady behind me in line telling her companion that now that she knows about LLPP, she will be doing it her next trip. But to do so, she will not do the dining plan, not do the photo plan, and will make other cuts. Now that's anecdotal, but it is consistent with reports of people using their WDW budget on LL access and cutting back TS restaurants and others. Disney loves it, because LL is almost pure profit.

MisterPenguin19 hours ago

Yes, the cap can seem quite arbitrary. But a cap must be determined lest Disney sell so many Premiers that the Lightning Lane is clogged with Premies and the standby doesn't move. They hit the target they set. And no more are being sold. Very basic levers of capitalism and not a gimmick.

Jrb197921 hours ago

That makes sense as I would bet for every Premier pass they sell they take some availability from LLMP.

Disstevefan122 hours ago

It worked like a charm during the pandemic ;)

Disstevefan122 hours ago

JMcMahonEsq22 hours ago

I will say our family falls into that group. We aren't AP or DVC holders, but we generally go once a year, or at least once every 18 months. I will just say we value our time such that we are not going to wait in line, and absent the line skip approaching VIP tour per day costs, we are going to buy and use it. I am personally even more of a curiosity most likely as I am not a thrill ride person. Which means i am not riding tron, SM, BTM, and will only begrudgingly do 7dMT. I am any of the thrill rides at the other parks either. But i am still going to use LLPP in December when we are going. I am just no going to waste any time in lines if i can avoid it.

MickeyLuv'r22 hours ago

What's curious to me, is that elsewhere it is some of the semi-frequent visitors expressing interest in LLPP. They say they have used FP/G+/LL and now are willing to pay extra for easier park touring. They don't like having to re-learn WDW's new rules, and they don't like having to use passes in the 1-hour time window, and/or the uncertainty of not getting LL for every ride. Whatever the price, they just want to tour mindlessly from one LL to the next, because they have already experienced WDW's other options.

MickeyLuv'r22 hours ago

Yeesh. Of course LLPP was going to sell out during Thanksgiving week. I could have told you that was highly likely as soon as it was initially announced. The real money maker is Christmas. Having the product sell out this week, drives demand for all of December. I'm sure WDW does have a cap on sales, but I doubt they set the cap at 10% of potential sales. that would just be dumb. I'm confident the cap is much closer to the top range of how many they thought they could sell this week. If anyone doesn't want to believe that selling out is good for WDW, okay.

Purduevian23 hours ago

Just looking at LLMP/SP at 2:45pm... MK Sold out (closes at 6 today): Everything except PhilharMagic, Laugh Floor, Little Mermaid EPCOT sold out (closes at 9): Frozen, GotG, MS, Remy. Past 5pm Figment, Land, Soarin, SSE, Turtle Talk DHS sold out (closes at 9): Alien, BATB, Indy, MMRR, MFSR, RNRC, SDD, RotR, TSM, TOT. Past 5pm Star Tours, Frozen AK sold out (closes at 7pm): FOP, DINO, EE, FotLK, Kali, Safari, Navi Not saying LLPP is worth it, but DHS is basically bare bones LL available with over 6 hours of park time left.

HauntedPirate23 hours ago

Josh told us we weren't supposed to talk about that. No halibut for you!

Disstevefan123 hours ago

In this case its not a physical widget that the warehouse ran out of and and they are literally sold out. Sold out in the case of LLs is a arbitrary number someone in Disney thinks up and the number will change as needed.

GhostHost100023 hours ago

I would love to know how many were sold for them to call it sold out. This may also be a ploy to gain attention to it to make people think they may need to consider buying it on their future trip. It’s interesting they removed the deluxe resorts only restriction right before they announced sell out dates. How many do we think are staying at the all stars that are buying this

Jrb197923 hours ago

Agreed. One of biggest complaints a lot of average guests have is how complicated it is to visit the parks now. Having to pre book attractions, dining, worry about Boarding Groups its a lot for your average guest. By eliminating having to book attractions including boarding passes it makes a Disney vacation simpler.

MisterPenguin23 hours ago

Yeah, you're joking. But there's an egregious and head-banging frustration at the idiocy of calling something "sold out" as if it really wasn't. Because, if it really wasn't sold out, they'd be selling more. But since no one can buy any more... it's sold out. This has got to be one of the dumbest conspiracy theories ever. Next they'll be saying that WDW is closed for the month because that will drive up business.