Disney Wins Big with Premier Pass
Every three months, federal laws require companies to report their earnings.
In a very real way, this one simple requirement has placed a complete stranglehold on the advancement of the business world.
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Rather than planning long term, companies live in fear of reporting stagnant earnings every few weeks, leading to a drop in stock value.
This level of uncertainty and fear has undone many companies, and it was the bane of Disney’s existence during the pandemic.
(Photo by Adam Kissick/SXSW Conference & Festivals via Getty Images)
Recently, Disney uncovered a new way to beat the system, and I suspect it’s why Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro is in the running to become CEO.
Let’s discuss how Disney beat the system and won big with Lightning Lane Premier Pass.
What’s Lightning Lane?
Photo: Playbuzz.com
I mentally wince whenever the topic of Lightning Lane arises, as I know that it’s a hot button for many of you.
We once called Lightning Lane by a different name, and it was decidedly more popular then.
Photo: Yesterland
That name was FastPass, and it exemplified everything pure and good about the Disney theme park experience.
More than 25 years ago, Imagineers solved one of the most pressing problems with theme park operations.
Nobody likes to stand in line any more than absolutely necessary. That’s a challenge when tens of thousands of people visit the same theme park each day.
FastPass addressed the problem by reducing the number of people standing in line at any one time.
Disney created a digital tracking system, a kind of online waiting queue similar to restaurant reservations.
When you eat at a busy table service restaurant, you walk up to the host/hostess and put your name on the waiting list.
Credit: Disney
OpenTable has modernized the process by turning the wait into a digital queue instead, but the practice remains the same.
Once the host/hostess calls your name, your table is ready, and the person seats you.
FastPass
A FastPass functions as the theme park equivalent. You’re putting your name on the list to wait for your turn to experience an attraction.
Once your turn arrives, you enter the much quicker FastPass queue and enter the attraction in a matter of minutes.
Disney
The system worked brilliantly from day one, and Disney eventually perfected it thanks to MyMagic+, a billion-dollar theme park upgrade.
FastPass became the end-all, be-all for Disney fans, as it allowed us to maximize a park visit.
We call this service by a different name today, though. It’s now known as Lightning Lane.
Why Isn’t Lightning Lane Free?
Image: The Healthy Mouse
That problem with spending $1 billion on an upgrade is that a business must provide a return on investment.
That’s the quirk of capitalism I referenced at the start of this article. Investors want to know how FastPass helps the business.
Photo Credit: https://momrewritten.com/disneylands-disability-access-service-das/
No matter how much Disney points out that guest satisfaction surveys improved due to FastPass, Wall Street remained nonplussed.
Meanwhile, competitors in the industry monetized it. For a time, Disney remained the final holdout for the free version of FastPass.
Everyone from Universal Studios to Six Flags to Dollywood to Cedar Point took Disney’s idea and made tons of money off it.
The one company that didn’t was Disney, at least not tangibly. It’s not a coincidence that Disney revenue soared during this timeframe.
Photo: Reddit
People loved using FastPass and told all their friends about it. So, more deep-pocketed vacationers traveled to Disney. Even better, they spent more money.
Disney tracked all these improvements across years of earnings reports, as the theme parks division became an anchor for The Walt Disney Company.
All investors noticed was that other businesses were charging customers for their versions of FastPass, while Disney wasn’t.
The company was leaving money on the table by not charging customers. Still, Disney held firm…until Bob Chapek was in charge.
Photo: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg
That’s when the free FastPass service vanished during the pandemic. When it returned, Disney used a new name: Lightning Lane.
At its core, Lightning Lane is just FastPass, only you pay for it, which is why the mere thought of it makes many fans angry.
Source: CNBC.com
People still use Lightning Lane, though, especially its new version, Lightning Lane Premier Pass.
What’s Lightning Lane Premier Pass?
Last year, Disney introduced its most luxurious version of Lightning Lane, the Premier Pass.
At the time, headlines mocked Disney for charging an almost comical amount of money for what’s tantamount to Lightning Lane Ultra.
With Premier Pass, guests can enter the Lightning Lane line queue, the short line, for any participating attraction.
Basically, anything with a Lightning Lane works with the Premier Pass. So, you have the run of Disney when you use it.
Frozen Ever After
This service works eerily similar to a Disney VIP Tour, save for the fact that a Plaid doesn’t escort you around the park.
Depending on how you look at it, Premier Pass either saves plenty of money versus a VIP Tour, which costs several thousand dollars, or it’s a total ripoff.
I say that because the Magic Kingdom version of Premier Pass costs $450 or more, depending on your date.
The cheapest price for Premier Pass at Magic Kingdom over the past month is $359…plus tax…for one person. It’s a lot.
Lightning Lane
Many people scoffed at the very idea of Premier Pass when it debuted, and that’s the remarkable part of this story.
Over the past 30 days, Premier Pass at Magic Kingdom has sold out 15 times!
In other words, Disney isn’t just charging a fortune for this product. People are paying it!
Disney Won with Premier Pass
Here’s the stunning part. Before Premier Pass debuted, Disney’s comments implied that they’d sell about 2,000 Premier Passes per day.
At the time, the indication was that 800 of those would go directly toward Magic Kingdom sales.
Lightning Lane
That’s understandable since Magic Kingdom is the world’s most popular theme park. Skipping the line there provides more value to park guests.
Folks, 800 Premier Passes sold at an average price of $367.70 over the past month generate Disney a profit of more than $8.8 million.
That’s just for one theme park in one month. Admittedly, it’s the most lucrative theme park, but you get my drift.
Now, Disney didn’t sell every one of those Premier Passes on half of the days, which drops the numbers some.
If we estimate $7.5 million instead, Disney is making $90 million on Premier Passes annually at Magic Kingdom alone!
Last October, I evaluated the initial pricing for Premier Pass. At the time, I referenced one Wall Street analyst’s research.
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This individual believed that Disney could generate $230 million annually from Premier Pass.
At the time, many people scoffed at the notion. Based on what I’ve tracked in calendar 2025, that estimate was low.
Thus far, Lightning Lane Premier Pass has proven itself a stunning triumph. Simply stated, Disney has won big with Premier Pass.
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Feature Photo: Disney.
