MAJOR changes to Genie+!

[ilovetotravel1977]

We didn't buy it. After using it in December and hating every blasted second of it, we decided to forego it on our trip 2 weeks ago. Rope drop and early entry for the win. Then midday pool breaks and evenings in the park. Delightful.

Oh right. Forgot about early entry, which we will have as well.

 

[SeasonneRose]

Some of these prices people are suggesting are absolutely absurd. You can compare prices to Universal's Express Pass but that system is nothing like Genie+ and Lightening Lane. Yes you can only use Express Pass once for each ride in Universal but you aren't ever prevented from using it on a ride because there aren't any left like with Lightening Lane. They would have to completely overhaul the Genie+ and Lightening Lane system to even consider going to prices that high. $200 a day for a family of four and not even guaranteed to be able to get on each ride like you can at Universal? No chance.

Genie + in it’s entirely could change. It may not look anything like it does now once it’s done.

Even still, I would happily pay $50+ dollars for it as it exists today if it meant they drastically limited how many people they sold then to.

 

[SeasonneRose]

I personally don't think advanced booking will return. The best thing they can do is cap sales and make it like MaxPass. You can't use it til you are in the parks

They absolutely need to cap sales and raise the prices 3-4x what it is now.

I think the advance sales comes back as a perk to higher level resort guests. It’s not coming back for the general masses.

 

[MaC410]

Genie + in it’s entirely could change. It may not look anything like it does now once it’s done.

Even still, I would happily pay $50+ dollars for it as it exists today if it meant they drastically limited how many people they sold then to.

What would expect from that $50 though? Would you expect being able to ride any and every ride at least once using lightening lane?

 

[SeasonneRose]

I think what the main issue is everyone has this idea that you must have it. The way they are capping sales and possibly raising is saying thats not what Disney wants

I agree. And I think the other problem is that people feel entitled to it because it was free for so long. Most of the complaints from people are generally mad because it’s a paid service now so that colors their entire view of the product.

 

[wvjules]

You don't but you can sorta push off when you go to book yours. Our DISer friend had to do that for one of the parks I'm blanking on which one but she had Genie+ for the day but wanted the times for her afternoon park and the times in the morning were too early for return so she just waited a while to actually book til the LL return times were later in the day.

That's what I did last week. I just had to wait until later in the morning to start stacking since times were too early first thing in the morning.

 

[SeasonneRose]

What would expect from that $50 though? Would you expect being able to ride any and every ride at least once using lightening lane?

I would pay $50 today even if they didn’t change one thing except drastically reduce the number of people that have it.

That reason right there is the core problem with genie+ and why it doesn’t work as well as it should. Too many people have it.

 

[MaC410]

I would pay $50 today even if they didn’t change one thing except drastically reduce the number of people that have it.

That reason right there is the core problem with genie+ and why it doesn’t work as well as it should. Too many people have it.

You didn't answer my question though. I'm not trying to be difficult I'm genuinely curious what you would expect to get out if it. Would you expect to be able to be able to go on each ride at least once using lightning lane? Or would you still pay $50 per person per day with the risk of the best rides not being available after a certain time?

 

[MaC410]

I agree. And I think the other problem is that people feel entitled to it because it was free for so long. Most of the complaints from people are generally mad because it’s a paid service now so that colors their entire view of the product.

I think it's a pretty fair complaint though. I would be pretty disappointed in the average consumer if they DIDN'T complain about a "free" service being taken away and replaced by a worse paid service.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Anyone on here NOT buying Genie+? Our group of 7 are planning on not buying it. We will have 2 days at HS and 2 days at MK (including a Xmas party night) and we weren't going to get it for Epcot or AK anyways. We are rope drop/close park people and stay all day. And we don't like to zigzag through the parks.

Tell me we will be okay without it...please? lol

We didn't buy it but we had 7 days (6 day park hopper and then one day entered with our CM friend) although some of those days was filled with hanging with friends and other such activities (Guardians preview, a wedding, then wedding activities, etc) so rushing from ride to ride was limited on those days in favor of being with friends and doing rides that had shorter wait although some of that could be done near each other (Living with the Land, Soarin', we did Gran Fiesta as well sorta close to the other two). We've been before and while we would have loved to do more attractions/shows and have reriden more the time spent with friends was invaluable to us so it made up for other things.

We weren't on site so no early entry but we did get to the parks right when they opened or very shortly after. One thing to keep track of is opening times and your early entry times. Our last morning at DHS parks opened at 8:30am with early entry at 8-8:30. A woman behind us in the lines waiting to be allowed into the taptiles before the park officially opened was talking to a person behind her about park ticket issues just trying to help out. She casually mentioned "and just so you know they won't let you in until 9am when the park opens" (it was about 8:25am) and the woman she was trying to help was like "oh I thought they opened at 8:30?" and I sorta piped up and said yeah it opens at 8:30am. The woman then said "shoot, gotta go". They did have a line to the left for Early Entry and we were towards the right where people with ECVs were directed. Because it was so close to the end of Early Entry not sure if she made it through the throng of people. That's the downside to Early Entry only being 30mins AND well Disney changing the times.

Our time together with friends in the park it was anywhere between 4 to 7 of us and there wasn't really a way for us to even coordinate Genie+ together anyhow just with everyone's schedules, parks they would be in when we didn't overlap, etc. Some did have Genie+ but didn't use it when we all got together.

 

[SeasonneRose]

You didn't answer my question though. I'm not trying to be difficult I'm genuinely curious what you would expect to get out if it. Would you expect to be able to be able to go on each ride at least once using lightning lane? Or would you still pay $50 per person per day with the risk of the best rides not being available after a certain time?

I did answer it though. Exactly the same thing I get from it now.

Are you asking how I think having less people changes the quality of genie+? I think if they sold far fewer genie+ then there will be way more available rides times, quicker rides times and less waiting. So that would correspond to how I think genie+ would be better and what I would get for my money.

 

[SeasonneRose]

I think it's a pretty fair complaint though. I would be pretty disappointed in the average consumer if they DIDN'T complain about a "free" service being taken away and replaced by a worse paid service.

I don’t think it’s a fair complaint. I understand it but I don’t think it’s fair. It’s people upset that things are changing. There is not one theme park in America that has a free skip the line program.

That fact that Disney offered for as long as they did should be commended not lauded.

 

[MaC410]

I did answer it though. Exactly the same thing I get from it now.

Are you asking how I think having less people changes the quality of genie+? I think if they sold far fewer genie+ then there will be way more available rides times, quicker rides times and less waiting. So that would correspond to how I think genie+ would be better and what I would get for my money.

So you're saying you would pay $50 per person per day for 3-4 lightening lanes?

 

[MaC410]

I don’t think it’s a fair complaint. I understand it but I don’t think it’s fair. It’s people upset that things are changing. There is not one theme park in America that has a free skip the line program.

That fact that Disney offered for as long as they did should be commended not lauded.

There's not a theme park in America that costs as much to visit as Disney World. You can't simply compare everything straight up. There's a reason people love(d) coming here and a lot of it was the perks that you got because you paid so much. So much of that has been taken away.

 

[Jrb1979]

So you're saying you would pay $50 per person per day for 3-4 lightening lanes?

I think with less people having it you should easily get 5-6 Lightening Lanes. Most people don't use it on lower tiered rides anyways

 

[SeasonneRose]

So you're saying you would pay $50 per person per day for 3-4 lightening lanes?

I dont know what that number is. I’m saying I think that with less people having genie+ that the service operates way better and more in line with expectations. It’s oversold right now. It needs to be more exclusive. That’s why vip tours work well. Genie plus should have a tier between vip tours and the $15 option.

 

[MaC410]

I think with less people having it you should easily get 5-6 Lightening Lanes. Most people don't use it on lower tiered rides anyways

I'm just trying to clarify because they said they would pay that amount for the same expectations as today. Disney specifically says to expect 3-4 lightening lanes.

 

[SeasonneRose]

I think with less people having it you should easily get 5-6 Lightening Lanes. Most people don't use it on lower tiered rides anyways

If you could use genie plus and pick a ride time within an hour, you could easily stack and do standby.

 

[Jrb1979]

There's not a theme park in America that costs as much to visit as Disney World. You can't simply compare everything straight up. There's a reason people love(d) coming here and a lot of it was the perks that you got because you paid so much. So much of that has been taken away.

Ticket price they aren't that much more then a lot of other parks. Universal has similar park ticket prices. Even Cedar Point costs $85 for a day ticket.

Where the price difference is, is in resort stays.

 

[SeasonneRose]

I'm just trying to clarify because they said they would pay that amount for the same expectations as today. Disney specifically says to expect 3-4 lightening lanes.

I said with limiting the number of genie+. The reason Disney specifies 3-4 rides is because genie+ is oversold. If you solve for that problem then you solve the 3-4 rides a day problem.