1-Day Hollywood Studios Itinerary Using Genie+ & Lightning Lanes
Our 1-Day Hollywood Studios Itinerary using Genie+ and Lightning Lanes covers how the paid line-skipping services work in practice. This step-by-step Walt Disney World touring plan answers questions, illustrates the process, and offers time-saving strategy for making the best ride reservations. (Updated September 7, 2022.)
This is a theoretical day at DHS due to unknowns, but that’s true of literally any itinerary. Wait times vary, attractions experience downtime, and there are unique wrinkles to any day in Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Just like a normal touring plan, there’s a lot here that we can pull from past precedent, historical wait time data, and extensive experience with similar systems.
In particular, crowd levels have a big impact on what you can accomplish with Genie+ at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. On slow to moderate days, using Lightning Lanes is straightforward and stress-free. On busier days, the number of ride reservations you can make via Genie+ drops dramatically, as there are more people in the park competing for line-skipping access to the most popular attractions. More than any other park, the Genie+ service “breaks” at DHS under the stress of heavy crowds. Be warned, this itinerary will work well in September, May, and other low-to-average months, but not so much during the weeks of Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Easter.
This is intended to supplement our Lightning Lane and Genie+ at Walt Disney World FAQ. A lot of you have had questions, and we’ve tried to answer most of the common ones there. However, many are about specific scenarios and that FAQ would be as long as a Tolstoy novel if we addressed each one there. Instead, we’re going to explain by showing via a day at DHS, which will hopefully address a lot of concerns/questions/etc. in the process.
When it comes to this itinerary, the most important thing to know from that FAQ is that there’s one big attraction per park that sells Individual Lightning Lane access and is not part of the Genie+ service At Disney’s Hollywood Studios, that ride is Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance.
Normally, we don’t recommend paying extra to bypass the lines because there are other ways to beat the crowds at Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. By and large, Genie+ offers the better bang for your buck, and is the superior way to spend if you’re on a budget. That comes with an asterisk with Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, as it’s the most popular ride in all of Walt Disney World and is prone to downtime. If it has an issue while you’re in line–or throughout the day of your visit, the standby line will back up, slow to a crawl, or stop completely.
With that said, some of you may want to ignore our advice and purchase both Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lanes. Depending on crowds, this actually can be a “challenge” at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, which is home to the most popular Genie+ attraction (Slinky Dog Dash) and the most popular Individual Lightning Lane attraction (Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance) in all of Walt Disney World.
Both of these often book up within seconds of 7 am, which presents a practical problem—how do you book both? There is no good way for one person to accomplish both beyond trying to do things quickly and hoping for the best. Ideally, you’ll want to have two adults awake at 7 am, with one booking Slinky Dog Dash and the other booking Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. This is the only dynamic duo of rides where this presents a problem–if you’re booking any other combination, it’s no issue.
Anyway, on with our 1-Day Disney’s Hollywood Studios Itinerary with Genie+…
7:00:00 am – Book Slinky Dog Dash via Genie+ with a Lightning Lane return window of 3:10 pm to 4:10 pm.
In a perfect world, you’ll get a much earlier return time for Slinky Dog Dash, but it doesn’t always work that way–even if you’re refreshing right at 7 am on the dot. For this attraction, we strongly recommend following our Speed Strategy for Genie+ Selections.
~7:35 am – Race to Rise of the Resistance during Early Entry “bonus time” at DHS.
~8 am – Beat the crowd to Slinky Dog Dash.
8:30 am – Rope drop Toy Story Mania via standby line.
8:50 am – Do Alien Swirling Saucers via standby line.
9:00 am – Leave Toy Story Land, stopping at Walt Disney Presents to meet the Monsters.
9:15 am – Meet Minnie & Mickey at Red Carpet Dreams or Olaf at Celebrity Spotlight, whichever character appeals to you more. Potentially both if the lines are short. (Olaf won’t have much of a wait later in the day–Sulley and Mickey & Minnie will, and none offer Genie+.)
9:30 am – Blast off to Batuu, enjoying free time in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge before the crowds and midday heat arrive. Although it’s early, consider playing Batuu Bounty Hunters via the MagicBand+ for a little bit now.
10 am – Do Star Tours: the Adventures Continue via standby line.
You may not be wild about waiting in three consecutive standby lines for popular rides, but that’s bound to happen at DHS given the top-heavy nature of the lineup. In fact, you will almost certainly have more Genie+ Lightning Lane reservations in late afternoon than in the morning or early afternoon. That’s just how it tends to work out, so plan accordingly and knock out “easier” attractions via standby early on.
10:20 am – Marvel at MuppetVision 3D in all of its distinctly patriotic brilliance.
10:30 am – While waiting for MuppetVision (but without taking your attention away from its profound pre-show), book Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run via Genie+ with a Lightning Lane return window of 2:30 pm to 3:30 pm.
Note: 10:30 am is chosen because it’s 120 minutes after park opening (assuming DHS opens at 8:30 am), which is consistent with How the Genie+ 120 Minute Rule Works at Walt Disney World. This rule governs when you can make your next Genie+ ride reservation, and is incredibly important to understand.
11 am – Free time or a buffer in case crowds are worse during your visit. If you’ve already accomplished all or most of this, consider rewarding yourself with one of the best snacks at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
11:45 am – Arrive at least 15 minutes early to catch the second showing of Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular. Take notes to improve your sick parkour moves.
12:30 pm – Book Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith via Genie+ with a Lightning Lane return window of 4:05 pm to 5:05 pm.
Note: Lightning Lane return times for every attraction except Slinky Dog Dash get refilled or “roll over” throughout the day, so if you only see late evening return times when first opening up My Disney Experience to book another Genie+ Lightning Lane, give it a few minutes–you should see earlier times. (As with so many aspects of Genie, this is YMMV. The whole system continues to change/evolve, so this may not be your experience.)
12:40 pm – Browse Walt Disney Presents for evidence to confirm suspicions of grave-rolling.
1 pm – Lunch, free time and/or buffer (we recommend an ADR at Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater Restaurant)
2 pm – Recover from your food coma with Vacation Fun – An Original Animated Short with Mickey & Minnie.
2:30 pm – Book the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror via Genie+ with a Lightning Lane return time of 4:20 pm to 5:20 pm.
3:10 pm – Do Millennium Falcon Smugglers Run via Lightning Lane (Genie+ ride reservation).
3:40 pm – Do Slinky Dog Dash via Lightning Lane (Genie+ ride reservation).
4:00 pm – Do Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith via Lightning Lane (Genie+ ride reservation). Arrive 5 minutes early, taking advantage of grace period (see FAQ).
4:20 pm – Do the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror via Lightning Lane (Genie+ ride reservation).
4:21 pm – With all headliners in DHS ‘sold out’ for the day, book a new Genie+ Lightning Lane ride reservation for a headliner in Epcot, where you’ll Park Hop for Harmonious, anyway.
4:45 pm – Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy via standby line.
5:10 pm – Race on over to the Trolley Car Cafe Starbucks for some coffee…and against your better judgment, a Carrot Cake Cookie. Lightning McQueen would say you’ve earned it–time to ka-chow down!
5:25 pm – Do Frozen Sing-Along Celebration via standby line.
7 pm or so – Park Hop to Epcot via the Disney Skyliner gondolas and pick up your evening there…
Once again, this was a theoretical day with Genie+ at Disney’s Hollywood Studios based on assumptions about capacity allocation and demand. Some or all of these assumptions could be off and not reflect what you actually experience depending upon your travel dates. Again, the same could be said of any itinerary. If you’re diligent, this is probably ~75% accurate, and at the very least, should illustrate how a day could look using Genie+ for those who never used paper FastPass or MaxPass.
To be sure, this is an efficient day at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, but not an overzealous one. The biggest challenge will be the backloaded Genie+ return times, and filling out your late morning and midday with stage shows and table service meals–or whatever else you want to kill time before your Lightning Lane return times roll around.
Ultimately, the point here is not to “sell” you on buying Genie+ and Lightning Lanes, but rather, to illustrate how Genie+ could prove advantageous for days you opt to purchase the add-on, put some doomsday assumptions to rest, and start making lemonade out of lemons.
If you’re still not quite satisfied with how Genie+ works in practice, see My Day at Disney’s Hollywood Studios Using Genie+ (if you’re visiting during a busier season, don’t expect to accomplish that much–here’s a look at my day using Genie+ with peak crowds). If you’d rather simply know which selections are objectively the best (in terms of time saved and how quickly they book up), see our Disney’s Hollywood Studios Genie+ Priorities & Lightning Lane Ride Ranks.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
Was this 1-Day Disney’s Hollywood Studios Itinerary w/ Genie+ helpful to illustrate how paid FastPass works at Walt Disney World? Have any questions we didn’t answer with the above? Still confused by how Genie+ or Lightning Lanes work? Do you agree or disagree with our assessments? Other thoughts or concerns? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
Our son uses the DAS. Will this line up work with DAS?
We are three weeks away from our WDW trip and, although we won’t be interested in several of the attractions in your plan, I learned more about the workings of Genie+ reading your article than I have reading or listening to the rules over the past month. Thanks!
Thanks Tom! We visited HS on Thanksgiving day and had a very successful day following a bunch of your strategies. We got up early and 3 of us used your speed strategy on separate phones. One of us booked our desired ROR lightning lane time, the other two of us were focused on our first genie plus pick. One of us was trying to get SDD and the other Smugglers Run for the earliest time possible. We were able to get Smugglers Run for 9:30 and rope dropped SDD. We were able to ride SDD, Toy Story Mania and Smugglers run before the park officially opened. We went back to the hotel after lunch and came back to the park after an early Thanksgiving Dinner with a stacked list of headliners to ride. I did have to keep checking every 120 mins…but it was worth it. We didn’t wait longer than 25 minutes all day (we rode ROR a 2nd time before park close with posted wait of 90 minutes but was only 25).
Thanks for sharing your success. That’s really good, especially for Thanksgiving–that week was insane!
Thank you, Tom! Thanks for removing the 9am one. Am I correct that the loophole that was closed was the “let the genie + timeframe expire and tap in with the 15 minutes of leeway to get another Genie+ reservation”?
You are correct.
Hi Tom,
Can you update this sample itinerary after the “closing of the loophole” and also clarify when you are booking the various LL options? Finally, you mentioned booking something at 9am but I thought you could do one at 7am and then the next one at 2 hrs post park opening (so if it’s 9am, 11am would be first chance?)? Thanks!
It has been fully updated as of today! 🙂
Can you do a Genie+ and lighting lane for those who will also get that extra half hour of early magic due to being on property? I am willing to pay for lighting lanes and would like to do the least amount of back tracking. I have a family of 7 with kids ranging from 7-17. I need to be organized.
So, can I get a Genie+ res for SDD *plus* buy the LL for Rise to happen (theoretically) at 9:10 and 10:00?
Tom
Since both Slinky Dog and Rise of the Resistance slots are often gone quickly, how might one navigate securing both a Slinky Dog Genie+ reservation as well as an ILL for Rise since availability to book both opens at 7 am? Is this just impossible to do? We will have only one day at Hollywood Studios and would love to be able to ride both without having to stay late.
Thank you for the Carrot Cake Cookie recommendation. My wife and I were in the midst of a “magical”, heated argument when I took a break and returned with the cookie…..you may have saved my marriage. 🙂 Thanks guys!
Can you explain how to use genie plus with a group of 8??
Does this itinerary have an error at the 9:11 mark? If a LL was booked at 7am for Slinky Dog, wouldn’t the next available time to try to book be two hours after park opening at 11am?
If you’re park hopping, can you purchase the two aka carte rides at 7 at the two different parks?
Put me in the “very disappointed” camp here.
To start off with the positives, IAS is valuable for ROTR, FOP, SDD and will be for GoG and Tron
But the negatives far outweigh that. Who would pay for Space Mountain, Frozen, MMRR, Remy or Everest ? The times don’t justify it in any way.
Other than HS today, you would have likely been able to ride all the same rides at each park in slightly more time with far less of the cost.
The biggest negative is not being able to pick your return times. For Genie+. That’s a deal breaker.
The second biggest is getting up EVERY morning at 7am. Who does that on vacation?
When it’s a slow day like today, you will not need this service in any park.
When it’s really busy during the holidays etc. you will likely not be able to get enough Genie+ Rides to make it worth while
Sorry to be Debbie Downer but this was a MAJOR disappointment
All of the work to have a good experience kind of takes the fun out of “The Happiest Place.”
Question: If each member of your party has their own MDE account and we all have Genie+, can each person book a Lightning Lane pass at 7 as long as it is for different rides at different times? Or is it only on LL pass per party? For example, starting at 7, can I get a pass for Pirates using my account and then someone else get a pass for Haunted Mansion using their account as long as it the return time is diffetent times?
We will be going to WDW 1/22-1/28 and we really want to experience the Skyliner. From what I understand, you won’t be able to use it when park hopping from DHS to Epcot during those dates. We are staying at All-Star Music so I just wanted to know what the best way would be to ride a gondola from our hotel to either DHS or Epcot. Do we take a bus to Pop Century? Or CBR?
Thanks for this outline. I’m willing to pay for a MaxPass type service with two kids under 7, but waking myself up at 7AM each day is going to be brutal– worst part of virtual queue IMO as a perpetually exhausted mom (who is a Dream key holder, are you listening Disney?).
My main question is actually unrelated to Genie+, but I hope you’ll give me your opinion anyway: is there a reason you prefer Gondola to the boats to go from Epcot to DHS (and reverse)? I will be staying at one of the properties with boat service, if that makes a difference, but I can’t recall them ever checking other than for EMH.
It’s simply a matter of the Skyliner being more predictable than the boats since it’s constantly moving (well, except for when it stops).
If you prefer boats, go with those. The difference is usually fairly negligible.
@ Manny,
How many years ago was this ? They in fact do make money on renting scooters, however a renting a scooter doesn’t get you access to DAS. You have to go to guest relations and have an actual disability and just being in a wheelchair does not count. Also only a party of 6 is allowed. Maybe it was 2 separate parties you saw going into the fastpasse lane, or it’s a HUGE possibility that you just assumed they had a DAS because of the wheelchair when really what they had was actual Fastpasses. Not to mention the fact that you’re complaining about people with a disability. What kind of person does that make you? Also even if they did HAVE DAS, and there actually was 10+ people in the party, it doesn’t negate the fact that they still HAD to wait just like you they were AGAIN just doing it elsewhere. Believe me when I say Disney does not allow ANYONE to take advantage of that and hasn’t in 10+ years. It’s really obnoxious that you’re even saying anything in the first place and a bit redundant to reply again when multiple people have told you otherwise. If you don’t know what you’re talking about or what the truth is you probably shouldn’t speak of it like you do.
Thank you for clarifying but I have been on the line in Small World and seen one person on a wheel chair with 10 guests in tow. This was not hyperbole. I appreciate your challenges but Disney also makes a steady business of renting vehicles without proof of disability. Once again I appreciate your efforts to educate.
Manny, DAS does not allow ten guests to enter an attraction. Disney allows five, plus the guest with the DAS – a total of six. Sitting in a wheelchair does not qualify you for a DAS. In fact, in most cases, it will disqualify the guest. Since the overhaul, there are few cases where one would be able to obtain a DAS. I can’t imagine anyone being angry with a guest who qualifies for a DAS. It’s like saying it’s not fair that a person has a disability and does not have to wait in line. We could have ended that sentence at the word ‘disability’, as far as I’m concerned.