How to Plan Your California Adventure Day – California Adventure Touring Plan – with Lightning Lanes

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California Adventure touring plan

Last updated: February 24, 2025.  Please email us if you find any errors.

Are you planning your Disneyland vacation and feeling overwhelmed with the options and unsure how to navigate the parks?  Disney can often leave guests, first-timers, and repeaters, overwhelmed. Using our California Adventure touring plan in place will help to ensure your day’s success!  Let’s get started!

California Adventure touring plan

California Adventure is the second of two parks at the Disneyland Resort.  Here you’ll find some of the new attractions offered by Disney, including home to some of our favorite characters – The Incredibles, The Avengers, and Cars.

Disney's California Adventure park mapWhat You Need to Know About Lightning Lanes Before Visiting California Adventure

Lightning Lane Multi Pass

Lightning Lane Multi Pass is a paid service at Disneyland that replaced the Genie+ system, which replaced the old FastPass system.

 

Lightning Lane Multi Pass can be purchased each day of your trip, or added on when you purchase your tickets. It must be purchased for each person who wants to ride with Lightning Lanes.

Rides included in Lightning Lane Multi Pass are selected on the official Disneyland app with a specific return time when you can join the Lightning Lane line. You will have a one hour window to scan in at the Lightning Lane entrance. You can use Lightning Lane Multi Pass for each eligible ride once per day.

Everyone can choose their first Lightning Lane Multi Pass selection as soon as you scan in at either park. You can make a second selection either 2 hours later, or after you use your first selection – whichever comes first.

Lightning Lane Multi Pass also gives you access to PhotoPass photos, which includes photos taken by Disney photographers, ride photos, and interactive PhotoPass lenses to use on your phone. This is a great benefit to have your vacation memories saved for you!

Pro Tip: Always set an alarm on your phone for the time you can pick another Lightning Lane selection! The app will always tell you exactly what time you can choose the next one. In some cases it’s 2 hours since your last selection, or when you scan in to use a Lightning Lane selection. Check the app each time you scan in for a ride to see if you can select a new ride.

 

Lightning Lane Single Pass

Some of the more popular rides in each park are not included with your Lightning Lane Multi Pass purchase.  These few attractions are called Lightning Lane Single Pass. Confused yet?  We know, the names make it extra tricky! But we promise, it will all come together for you!

Lightning Lane Single Pass can purchased in your Disneyland app, as a per person, per ride add on – for each ride offered.

Those rides are: (Subject to change)

  • Radiator Springs Racers at California Adventure Park
  • Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance at Disneyland Park

California Adventure Park Strategy with Lightning Lanes

Carsland Disney's California Adventure

Here’s your California Adventure plan. Let’s get started!

Arrive at least one hour before park opening. Park hours can be found in your Disneyland app or on the Disneyland Website.

Once you’re scanned in at California Adventure:

Once scanned in, purchase Lighting Lane Multi Pass for each guest (if not purchased with your tickets)
• Select first Lightning Lane for Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout!
• Purchase Lightning Lane Single Pass for Radiator Springs Racers, if wanted
• Ride Soarin’ standby (they generally open this line before official park opening)
• Ride Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree standby
• Ride Luigi’s Rollickin’ Roadsters standby
• Ride Guardians of the Galaxy with Lightning Lane
• Select Lightning Lane for Toy Story Mania!
• Ride The Little Mermaid standby
• Ride Golden Zephyr standby
• Ride Silly Symphony Swings standby
• Ride Toy Story Mania! with Lightning Lane
• Select Lightning Lane for Incredicoaster
• Ride Pixar Pal-A-Round standby
• Ride Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind standby
• Ride Jessie’s Critter Carousel standby
• Ride Incredicoaster with Lightning Lane
• Select Lightning Lane for Web Slingers: A Spider-man Adventure
• Fill time with Animation Academy, Mickey’s PhilharMagic, Monster’s Inc. 
• Ride Web Slingers with Lightning Lane
• Select Lightning Lane for Grizzly River Run
• Ride Radiator Springs Racers using single rider line
• Ride Grizzly River Run with Lightning Lane
• Select Lightning Lane for Goofy’s Sky School
• Other options to choose for Lightning Lane: Soarin’, The Little Mermaid, Monster’s Inc. 
• Ride Goofy’s Sky School with Lightning Lane

For additional Park Touring plans visit the following:

For additional information on Lightning Lanes search “Lightning” in the top right.  Here are links to a few of our favorites.

Ready to book your next magical vacation?  Contact your favorite Love of the Magic Vacations Travel Advisor or email hello@LOTMV.com

Disney's California Adventure Touring Plan Pin

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Jamie Rumph
Hi, I'm Jamie, traveling mama, entrepreneur, and travel advisor. I'm addicted to Disney, traveling and exploring the world with my family, and have a passion for helping families experience the magic of travel. My home is filled with love and chaos, 2 crazy girls, 2 large dogs, and the most spectacular architect and Disney Cast Member I call my husband. We live in Florida and spend our weekends playing at Orlando's many theme parks and visiting the beach. In 2015, after helping numerous families plan their vacations to various Disney Destinations, I started a blog to answer all of the many travel questions I received daily. In 2016, the blog grew into a travel agency, and Love of the Magic Vacations was born. With a team of nearly 20, we spend our days creating family vacations around the world. What started as a blog is now a full service, worldwide vacation destination planning service. I create custom itineraries for each of my clients that not only meets but exceeds expectations. There is no greater gift than making memories while sharing the world and its cultures with your kids.

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