CNN
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Do you have a few hundred dollars more? This gives you access to Disney's new service in the US parks for one person, allowing you to jump into a faster queue at any time of day – once per ride – without having to reserve it through an app.

Note that this is in addition to the cost of your parking ticket.

The pilot launch of the Lightning Lane Premier Pass, which Disney officially announced on Wednesday, will be offered in extremely limited quantities. It is designed to be purchased and used by a few guests.

The price of the pass depends on the date and demand per person and day. This can range from $137.39 to $478.19 (after taxes) at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida and is available starting October 30th.

At the Disneyland Resort in California, the pass costs $400 (non-taxable) per person per day and is available from October 23 through the end of 2024. Variable pricing begins in 2025 depending on date and demand and ranges from $300 to $400.

At Disney World, the price of the pass is also based on the specific park you visit, Disney told CNN ahead of the announcement.

For example, it costs $137.39 (after taxes) to add the Premier Pass to an Animal Kingdom park ticket on a less busy day. This pass would only work in the animal kingdom.

The EPCOT pass would cost more, Hollywood Studios slightly more, with the most expensive Premier Pass at the Magic Kingdom. Purchasing a Premier Pass for Magic Kingdom Park on a very busy day like Christmas would cost $478.19 (after taxes) in addition to your park ticket.

A guest can only purchase one Premier Pass per day.

During this program's pilot launch, the pass will only be available to guests who stay at Disney World luxury hotels seven days prior to check-in.

At Disneyland, the Premier Pass will work a little differently.

It is available to each guest for the same price and can be used at both Disneyland and Disney California Adventure Parks on the same day. Guests can purchase it two days in advance at 7 a.m. PT.

Not every attraction has a faster line, which Disney calls “Lightning Lane.” However, they are generally available for many of the more popular attractions at both resorts. There are currently 55 attractions with Lightning Lanes in the four Disney World parks and 24 in the two Disneyland parks.

Using these waiting lanes can be complicated to organize, especially for Disney newbies and people who aren't very familiar with smartphones.

Until this pilot program, visitors to Disney parks could use these Lightning Lanes by purchasing something called a “Multi Pass.” It allows access to these faster lines by reserving them individually in the resort's app. Some of the most popular rides are sold separately as a “single pass,” where guests purchase access to the faster line for just that one ride.

According to Disney Food Blog editors who have been tracking prices, the Multi Pass at Disney World has ranged from $15.98 to $37.28 (after taxes) per person per day, depending on the season and park. At Disneyland, this pass starts at $32 (non-taxable). However, using Multi Pass requires a lot of strategizing in an app, and in most cases you can only reserve access to a Lightning Lane during a specific return window after accessing the previous one.

With this Premier Pass, all of these steps are eliminated as guests can simply jump into the faster queue whenever and wherever available.

This concept of charging a premium for express services is not new.

Disney's biggest competitor, Universal, has been selling its own “Express Pass” for more than 20 years. Too often it costs more than the parking ticket. A similar skip-the-line pass is available at Six Flags Parks, Cedar Point, Busch Gardens and SeaWorld.

At Universal Studios Hollywood, which has a theme park with 17 express lines, this pass can cost between $80 and $170 (non-taxable) in addition to the theme park ticket price.

Universal Resort Orlando, which has two theme parks with a total of 30 express lines, is offering this pass for $111.81 to $319.49 (after taxes) that can be used at both current parks on the same day when a guest has a park-to-park basic ticket. The price is lower if you only use the pass in one park. (It is currently unknown if and how the Express Pass system will change after the newest theme park, Epic Universe, opens next year.)

Universal also sells an “Express Pass Unlimited,” which allows guests to hop on the faster line multiple times per ride, for $143.76 to $351.44 (after taxes) in Florida and for anyone on one of the three more upscale Stay Hotels Included Universal Orlando Property: Portofino Bay, Hard Rock and Royal Pacific. The same unlimited pass costs between $115 and $215 (non-taxable) in California.

Currently, Disney does not offer the same unlimited service. With the Lightning Lane Premier Pass, you can only use a Lightning Lane once per trip per day.

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Don Munsil, who has tracked theme park prices for decades on his website MouseSavers, said: “When people feel like everything they hear from Disney for a while seems to be something new that only wealthy people can take advantage of “, then it’s okay.” to feel bad.”

The Disney company recently responded to criticism of high prices by highlighting a range of choices for consumers of all budgets, including heavily discounted $50-a-day children's tickets at Disneyland in the new year.

Munsil said the Premier Pass appears to bridge a gap between two tiers of service: the current Multi Pass, which costs tens of dollars, and the VIP Tour experience, which, among other perks, could cost thousands of dollars for a day of through faster queues.

He said the price sends a clear message: “The message is that you only buy this if you have money to burn – or if you have very little time and are trying to get everything done as quickly as possible.”

For most people, Munsil said, this service will not be necessary.

Instead of paying a premium for a theme park ticket and a Premier Pass in one day, guests could still use all rides for a cheaper price by purchasing a multi-day ticket (as subsequent days cost less per day) and adding the Multi Pass.

The difference is whether someone spends more time in the parks.

The Premier Pass price is “intended for someone for whom the time-money ratio is different,” Munsil said.