Why You Need A Burner Ride At Disney World

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How to use the burner ride strategy at Disney World to get the most value from Lightning Lane Multi Pass.

There are many different ways to skip the lines at Disney World – but the one that offers the most bang for your buck is Lightning Lane Multi Pass. 

The only problem with Multi Pass is that is can be difficult to get your money’s worth from it – UNLESS you know this strategy!

We’ll start with some basics then move on to how to ride everything you want to with Multi Pass.

How Does Lightning Lane Multi Pass Work?

• Multi Pass – lets you use the Lightning Lane (LL) for a group of attractions in the theme parks for one day with reservations ($15-$35 per person per day)
• Single Pass – lets you use the LL for an individual attraction once ($10-$25 per person per ride)
• Premier Pass – lets you use the LL for all attractions in one park once for a day with no reservations required ($129-$449 per person per day -NOT recommended!)

With Multi Pass, you get to make three advance reservations before you even set foot in the parks. 

And then every time you redeem a LL reservation on the day of your visit, you get to make another reservation immediately. So in this way you can always have three reservations in your Lightning Lane “backpack”, as I like to say. 

You can continue to do this until all of the LL reservations have been taken for the day (there is a limited number of reservations released each day).

So the real value of Multi Pass comes from using it for as many rides and shows as possible! I’ll show you how to do this below.

If you are brand new to the skip the line passes at Disney World, I suggest starting with this overview post. 

When Should I Buy Multi Pass?

This post is about getting the most out of Multi Pass, so here are some guidelines about when to buy it:

You can (and should) purchase Multi Pass in advance of your visit. When you can purchase depends on if you’re staying at a Disney World resort or not.

If you’re staying at a Disney World resort, you can purchase 7 days before check in for the entire length of your stay. 

If you aren’t staying at a Disney resort, you can purchase 3 days before the first day of your park ticket for the length of your ticket. 

Next is advice on what rides you should select in adavnce when you purchase Multi Pass – this is the key to getting the most value from it.

Click here if you want a complete up-to-date guide to planning a Disney World vacation without long lines or overspending.

What Rides Should I Pick For My Advance Selections?

First of all, my free Lightning Lane Cheat Sheet will make planning your selections SO MUCH easier – click here and sign up if you don’t already have it. 

When you buy Multi Pass you can make three advance selections per day. 

However only ONE of them can be from the “Tier 1” most popular attractions in the park. Click here for more details about the rides tiers. 

But on the day of your visit, once you tap into your first LL selection you can pick ANY attraction for your next selection – even another Tier 1 ride. 

One of your advanced LL selections should be a low-demand ride with a very early (ideally park opening) return time – that’s your “burner ride”. 

As soon as you tap into your burner ride that morning, immediately select another Tier 1 ride. 

The wait times at this point will only be 5 minutes so you won’t really NEED the LL pass, but you’ve essentially “burned” your first selection in order to get access to the most popular rides before anyone else. 

I use this strategy regularly to ride ALL Tier 1 attractions in one day. You’ll get way more value from Multi Pass than the average visitor and be able to ride many more of the most popular rides.

What Are The Best Burner Rides In Each Park?

This should be your plan when you make your three advance LL Multi Pass selections:

1. Tier 1 ride
2. Tier 2 ride that you don’t want to miss (ideally with a return time before noon)
3. Burner ride – any ride with a very early return time

Expert tip: You can tap into some shows to unlock your next LL pick, walk away, and return later in the day to actually watch (and no you aren’t stealing a spot from anyone – these shows are empty in the morning). 

Here are my favorite burner rides in each park:

✅ Magic Kingdom: Mad Tea Party, Mickey’s Philharmagic (don’t watch the show, just tap and return in the afternoon to watch)

✅ Hollywood Studios: Star Tours, Frozen Singalong (tap & go)

✅ Epcot: The Seas with Nemo & Friends, Pixar Short Film Festival (tap & go)

✅ Animal Kingdom: I actually don’t recommended buying Multi Pass here since you can ride everything without it

Sometimes other short rides (such as Dumbo or it’s a small world) will have an earlier return time. If that’s the case, pick those! The goal is just to unlock another Tier 1 ride as early as possible. 

I use this burner ride strategy on every visit to Walt Disney World to get more value from Multi Pass. 

Any questions? Leave a comment below!