Hollywood Studios can be TRICKY to get Lightning Lanes for everything you want using Genie Plus, especially when attractions like Slinky Dog Dash and Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway sell out super early in the day. BUT it isn't impossible. With the help of Standby Skipper, you CAN get the Lightning Lanes you want and maximize your time in Hollywood Studios while minimizing the amount of time you have to spend on your phone. Here is my strategy to do just that!

Just a heads up! You need to understand how Genie+ works before reading this post! You can find what you need HERE.

First we’ve got to talk about getting ready for your day as you’ll need to be ready to go to book your first Lightning Lanes at 7am EST.

If you are using Standby Skipper, you’ll need to make sure to have everything set up and linked so that you can put your first search request in BEFORE 7am. Learn more about what Standby Skipper is and how it works HERE.

I highly recommend only setting up 1 (maybe 2) searches for that first one so that you have the best chance of getting the ride you really one. You can also increase your chances with harder to get Lightning Lanes by choosing ‘Anytime’ so that on really busy days or days that Genie+ decides to be glitchy, Standby Skipper can be searching the whole day instead of just a few hours.

You need to make sure to put in your search before 7am, I typically get up around 6:30am EST and purchase Genie+ and then set my 1st search so that I’m ready to go at 7am. If you are a night owl and would rather do this at midnight, you can do that too! (yay for sleeping in a bit).

Then at 7am, you can focus on booking your Individual Lightning Lanes for Rise of the Resistance. While you do that, Standby Skipper will book your first Genie+ Lightning Lane!

Now let’s head to the park!

ROPE DROP

I am a local, so I don’t typically qualify for early park entry, so I’m planning my day around regular rope drop time. HOWEVER, you can still use this same strategy for both!

I am one that likes to save money where I can, so instead of purchasing the Individual Lightning Lane for Rise (although you totally can if it’s a must for you) I opt to rope drop this one! This is the one park that you MUST get here as early as possible to get ahead of the crowd if you want a shorter wait.

I recommend getting to the park about an hour before you want to enter. (so one hour before early entry if doing that or one hour before park open if not eligible for early entry). They do let guest in BEFORE those official opening times, so the more towards the front of the line you can be, the better!

The day we went, the park opened at 9am and so we arrived right around 8am and they let us into the park about 9:50am. This is SUPER key as by the time we got over to the attraction at 9:11am the posted wait was 45 minutes (we waited a little over 20) and by around 9:20am, the wait had already jumped up to 70 minutes. THIS is why getting there early MATTERS.

Toy Story Land

After Rise of the Resistance, we were ready to use our first Lightning Lane for Slinky Dog Dash. This is definitely the attraction I recommend going for first at 7am as it is the hardest one to get! (plus the line get HOT later in the day, so the earlier, the better)

After I had gotten my Lightning Lane booked that morning at 7am, I went ahead and put in my next ‘batch’ of Standby Skipper Searches for Toy Story Mania & Alien Swirling Saucers. The goal is to put in a few attraction searches at a time to hopefully avoid alot of backtracking across the park.

That being said, this park is notorious for rides going down, so it’s important to have a good plan, but be flexible too and know that you can always modify or cancel your Lightning Lanes if needed.

Shows

After Toy Story Land is done, I’m actually going to save most of the rides for later, but I am going to go ahead and put a Standby Skipper search in for Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway (this is another one that can be tricky to get later).

Most shows and characters are only available during the daytime hours and close around 4-5pm, so it’s super important to prioritize these during the day!

We opted to start with the Frozen Sing Along and Indiana Jones first and then luckily were able to get a Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway Lightning Lane around those times too! (After snagging this, go ahead and set your Standby Skipper searches for Tower of Terror and Rockin Roller Coaster) This was great to help us stay in this main area of the park before moving to the next.

PRO TIP: Don’t worry about using Lightning Lanes for the shows. Most of the time you still have to show up just as early as the regular line in order to get a good seat AND you can then prioritize those Lightning Lanes for attractions that are harder to get.

If you have littles and want to fit in the Disney Junior Show and characters, this is a great time to do this too!

Sunset Blvd.

After finishing that main area of the park, we’re headed to Sunset Blvd to ride Tower of Terror, Rockin Roller Coaster, and to see the Beauty & the Beast Live on Stage show. Again, you will probably be hitting that later in the day time, so make sure to keep an eye on showtimes so that you don’t miss the last Beauty & the Beast show!

You can also check out Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy! This is a short little show that’s fun for kiddos, or great for an A/C break.

We’ll be coming back here later in the night for Fantasmic, but right now it’s time to finish the rest of the park!

Echo Lake & Muppet Courtyard

Star Tours is one that you don’t really need a Lightning Lane for, but if you can grab one, great! After grabbing this one, I recommend putting in your Standby Skipper search for Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run.

Next up is Muppet Vision 3D! This is a classic film that is another great A/C break and you definitely don’t need a Lightning Lane for.

Galaxy’s Edge

Pro Tip: I prefer Galaxy’s Edge in the evening. It’s typically ALOT less busy, less hot, and as it gets darker and the lights turn on, it makes this land extra magical!

This is the time we are hitting up Smuggler’s Run. IF you weren’t able to get a Lightning Lane (although if you were using Standby Skipper, you probably will be able to) you can opt for the single rider line. Your party WILL be split up, but it’s another great way to reduce your wait for this attraction!

We also like to grab dinner at Docking Bay 7, get a Blue or Green Milk at the Milk Stand, or even do a reservation at Oga’s Cantina for a fun drink! Don’t forget to do a bit of shopping in the marketplace for some unique souvenirs.

They also will do Lightsaber photos with PhotoPass Photographers and you don’t even have to have your own! These are definitely the coolest once the sun goes down!

Fantasmic

This show can be super fun… or your worst nightmare if you don’t time it right. If there are two showings of Fantasmic, the second one is usually 30 minutes after park close, so I HIGHLY recommend doing this one as it will be MUCH less busy (which means easier to find a seat) and you’ll be able to squeeze in a little more park time.

If there is only one show, you’ll need to plan a little more carefully. I recommend getting in line at least an hour beforehand to get the best seats. During the first show (or one show if they aren’t doing a second) the middle area is reserved for those with Dining Packages, so the stadium can fill up FAST.

My favorite seats are as close to the middle and down to the front as you can get! I’ve seen this show a million times and sit in the front row almost every time and rarely get wet, so I wouldn’t worry too much about that (unless it’s a windy day). I always notice that a TON of people get up and leave halfway through the show, so it can be super distracting and harder to enjoy when sitting further back.

If you are doing the later/second showing, I recommend getting in line around 45 minutes - 1 hour before the show. Again, this one is much easier to get a good seat, but getting there early can get you an even better one!

A FEW NOTES

This is my typical strategy and it’s good to know that there will always be variables based on crowd levels, Lightning Lane availability, ride closures, etc. So definitely use this as a base, but also prioritize the things MOST important to you and don’t feel like you have to squeeze EVERYTHING in one day. Spoiler….. it’s not possible. I live here and go to Hollywood Studios all the time and still have not seen or done it all!

BUT if you focus on those few things that are most important, anything else you get done is just a bonus and you won’t be disappointed! It’s only as fun as you make it, and you are on vacation after all.

Let me know in the comments your Standby Skipper, Genie+, or Strategy Questions! Ready to get started with Standby Skipper? Just click the button below! Don’t forget to let the captain know that Kayla and Mark Alan sent you. (We earn a small commission when you do)

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