How to speak Disney like a pro
Learn your ILL's from your ADR's here
Disney parks ABC’s
Have you ever wished there was a Google Translate for Disney Parks jargon?
Between official Disney terminology, fan abbreviations, and the nuances of ever-changing marketing lingo, it can be really hard to speak this language.
Take heart my friends - today’s post is a glossary of some of the most commonly used Disney Parks terms. Whether you’ll be visiting Disneyland, Disney World, or any of the international resorts, these 27 words and phrases will help you speak Disney like a pro.
Disney-speak is an evolving language
It’s important to note that common Disney terms change over time. Jargon like ‘FastPass’ and ‘Extra Magic Hours’ has given way in the past few years.
Knowing the current terms will help you find up-to-date information and advice. If it’s been awhile since you’ve encountered a Disney park, be sure to brush up.
After all, no one wants to go around talking like it’s 2019.
This topic was the inspiration for my last Facebook Live discussion. We broke down what’s changed since I last wrote about the language of Disney. You can watch/listen to that chat here.
27 Commonly used Disney parks words and phrases
ADR - Short for Advanced Dining Reservation. Yes, you should make dining reservations in advance - especially if there’s a place you really want to try.
AP - Annual pass, at Disney World. At Disneyland, annual passes are called Magic Keys.
Backstage - Behind the scenes in the Disney parks.
Cast Member - All Disney World employees are called Cast Members.
DDP - Disney Dining Plan, a prepaid meal package guests can add to a hotel reservation.
Disney Bubble - The theme park magic that extends beyond the parks at the Disney resorts.
DVC - Disney Vacation Club, Disney’s time-share program. Many Disney World resorts have DVC units - and you don’t have to be an owner to stay there.
Here’s my post all about the Disney World hotels, including DVC villas.
Early Entry - Guests staying on-site in a Disney hotel get to enter the parks ahead of everyone else. Here’s a quick look at how it works at Disneyland ⬇️
Extended Evening Hours - Exclusive after-hours admission to a Disney World theme park. This is included for guests staying at the Deluxe hotels and Villas.
Genie - Genie is part of the My Disney Experience app. It’s designed to help plan your day around the parks, but it is NOT Disney’s skip-the-line system. (As of 7/24/24) Also, it’s not a good planning tool. Use the resources from TouringPlans instead.
Imagineer/Imagineering - Imagineers are the designers of everything in the theme parks. Imagineering is the arm of the Disney company responsible for the design and construction of the theme parks.
IP - Intellectual Property – The movie, book, or show that inspires an attraction. IP in Disney’s Parks includes Star Wars, the Muppets, and Disney/Pixar.
Lightning Lane - This is the new name/system for FastPass. Lightning Lane is a special queue that bypasses the standard wait. You can purchase access to the Lightning Lanes using the park app.
Lightning Lane Multi Pass - Lightning Lane Multi Pass is a paid add-on to the My Disney Experience app. It allows guests to book Lightning Lane time slots to skip the regular queue.
Lightning Lane Single Pass - Lightning Lane Single Pass is an additional charge to skip the line on certain high-profile attractions that are not included in the LLMP service.
Want to know more about Disney’s Lightning Lane system? Read this:
Magic Band - This is an electronic wristband that contains your park ticket, room key, Lightning Lane reservations, and more. You can even use it for purchases in the parks and hotels.
My Disney Experience app/MDE - The official app for every Disney park. But it’s not called My Disney Experience in the app store! Look for the Disneyland, Disney World, Disneyland Paris, etc, app.
In the MDE app, you can book your Lightning Lane reservations (for a fee), make dining reservations, open your hotel door, view current ride wait times, find where you are on the interactive map, and mobile order food at many park restaurants.
Park Hopper/Park Hopping - Park Hopper is a ticket that allows admission to more than one park in the same day. Visiting more than one park in the same day is called park hopping.
PhotoPass/Memory Maker - Disney’s photo service. Photographers are located throughout the parks to take photos which are available for purchase. An all-inclusive PhotoPass package is called Memory Maker.
Pixie Dust - A random act of kindness or extra special moment.
Queue - A waiting line for an attraction. Also refers to the area the line passes through.
Rope Drop - The moment when guests are allowed into the park. Often guests are admitted through the main gate prior to park opening, then held behind a rope until the park officially opens.
The free & simple way to beat the crowd every time 💥
Single Rider - A separate attraction entrance that allows riders, willing to ride with strangers, to bypass the standby queue.
Here are some tips for riding single at Disney and Universal.
Standby - This is the line everybody waits in unless they have a Lightning Lane reservation.
TTC - Ticket and Transportation Center – The TTC is located at the parking lot for Disney World’s Magic Kingdom Park, and is the transportation hub for Magic Kingdom. Transport arriving/departing from here includes the Disney World monorail, ferry to Magic Kingdom, taxis and Uber.
If you’ve never been to Magic Kingdom at Disney World, check out episode 13 of my Go Informed podcast. It’s a virtual tour with lots of insider tips.
Virtual Queue - Part of the My Disney Experience app, some attractions offer a virtual queue. The virtual queue assigns a ride time so guests don’t have to physically wait in line. Unlike Lightning Lane, there is no extra charge to use the virtual queue.
Walk-on - When you walk straight through the queue without any wait!
WDW - Walt Disney World, the official name of Disney’s Orlando resort.
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