My Disney Experience



(Updated 10/26/2021)

My Disney Experience (MDE) is a free website and app that you can use to help navigate your Disney World vacation.

If you have an account (ID and password) with Disney through shopdisney or Disney+ you will use the same sign ins for MDE. If you don’t already have an account, you can easily set up one here. Guests log in to see their plans, make more plans, modify plans, check on ride wait times and SO MUCH MORE. What was once a handy tool (mostly) is quickly becoming a necessity.

Learning how My Disney Experience works is a key component to your Disney World trip.

Like it or love it, you are pretty much going to have to use it if you want to get the most out of your trip. What began as a planning tool to use before your vacation has evolved into something that will be constantly used during your vacation. Yep, we’re not thrilled with the idea of spending more time staring at our phones either. There are a lot of new things that just launched inside the app that will pretty much guarantee that guests will be using My Disney Experience on a smartphone during their visit.

Below is a list of everything that MDE allows you to do.

My Disney Experience allows you to:

  • Access your resort reservations & park tickets
  • Make/Modify Advance Dining Reservations
  • Manage your travelling plans
  • Set up a credit card for park/resort charging (these charges will be added to your resort room)
  • Access your itinerary
  • Access special event tickets (must be linked)
  • View, purchase and download pictures & ride videos  from PhotoPass/Memory Maker
  • Check your resort’s bus arrival times
  • Access park maps and ride wait times
  • Look up information on attractions
  • Look up entertainment times
  • Browse restaurant menus & place Mobile food orders for pick up
  • Shop for merchandise & utilize Mobile Checkout in certain locations
  • Join a virtual queue for Epcot’s Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure
  • Make/Modify Genie+ selections and Individual Lightning Lane Selections

Whoa! That’s a lot! Sounds great, but how can I access My Disney Experience?

My Disney Experience is accessible via desktop at the official Disney World site and by phone via the app. You will need to download the app version on your phone for use in the parks and on the go.  For both versions, you will need an ID and password. The same id/password works for both the desktop version and the app. If you already have an ID/password with shopdisney or Disney+, you will use the same ones for MDE.

How does My Disney Experience connect with resort reservations and tickets?

You can link your resort reservation to your account using your reservation confirmation number. Tickets should also be linked to your account if they are not part of a resort package. If you purchased a Disney Dining Plan (currently not available) or Memory Maker, those should all be linked to your MDE account as well.

If you are using the Magic Band purchased as part of your on property resort reservation, it will already be added to your account. Other Magic Bands will need to be added to your account in order for them to work. Instructions on how to do that are here.

MDE is also where you can put your credit card number to charge to your room.

What about the other members of my travelling party?

You can add them to your MDE page as Family and Friends. Simply use the Add a Guest feature on your Family and Friends. This will allow members of your travelling party to view your plans, reservations and more. Here is how you add Family & Friends:

  • Log on to your MDE account on your phone
  • Click on the “hamburger” icon (bottom right of the app screen next to the search icon)
  • Scroll down to “My Profile”
  • Click on “Family & Friends List” at the top right of the page
  • Click on “Add a Guest” for anyone you want to be on the list

Is My Disney Experience complicated to use?

Like most technology, it takes some getting used to. It’s not complicated by any means. However, I do recommend spending some quality time with both the online and app versions. For the online version, become familiar with it BEFORE you are under the pressure of booking those Advance Dining Reservations. For hard to get reservations, being able to navigate quickly to secure one is pretty important.

Play around with the phone app before you go on vacation. A lot. Trust me. It will be so much easier to utilize if have already tried it out. Don’t wait until you are on vacation.

What is all the fuss about My Disney Experience not working or WIFI connections being terrible?

I personally have not experienced any long lasting problems with MDE. But, with any technology, that can happen. I have found the WIFI in the parks to be pretty terrific EXCEPT when waiting in indoor ride queues.  Sometimes the WIFI is spotty at the resorts as well. Overall, it is a great tool. I have found the online version to be a little problematic, but not the app.

That being said, I always print out a copy of our itinerary from the MDE site and bring it with us to the parks. If something is happening to the system, at least you have a copy at hand.

My Disney Experience also has upgrades that can be purchased in order to lessen your time waiting in line.

Most attractions at Disney World have a standby lane and a Lightning Lane. The standby lanes are free but can have a longer wait time. The Lightning Lanes cost extra to access but make wait times much shorter or sometimes even a walk-on.

Guests can access the quicker Lightning Lanes by purchasing something called Genie+ and/or Individual Lightning Lane Selections (ILLS). Both Genie+ and ILLS selections are made inside the My Disney Experience app.

Are you still with me?

I know it’s a lot to digest. Even those of us familiar with MDE will have to learn the ins and outs because Genie, Genie+, and Individual Lightning Lane Selections are brand new. Deep breath. We are all in this together.

To find out more about that little Genie, Genie+, and Individual Lightning Lane Selections bomb I dropped in the last paragraph click on those links. It’s complicated, but you’ll get there!

For a fantastic Genie/Genie infographic and FAQ, check out WDW Prep School. Poke around the Mousehacking web site as well. Both have great information.