*Confirmed* G+ Changes to Advanced Lightning Lane

[Becky Mouse]

I believe it has to do with DAS.

From what I understand, someone is suing Six Flags because the 3rd party system requires people to show documentation/proof of their disability to get the line skipping accommodations. They're arguing that this violates the ADA, which is probably true, but also might need to be adjusted/updated considering so many people are abusing policies like DAS.

I have a simpler solution, though. Maybe it's too simple? Hear me out.
If someone has disability that affects their mobility, they don't get DAS. Disney suggests they rent a scooter or wheel chair for the day. Renting a scooter costs money, but it's a paid accommodation option available to people who can't stand or walk all day.

So, if it's OK for a disability accommodation like a scooter to cost people money, why can't Genie+ just be an accommodation people have the option of buying if they can't wait in lines? Then, people who need to skip lines pay for the accommodation.... just like anyone who doesn't have a disability is supposed to. So, theoretically, can't Disney then get rid of the DAS system and just offer people the option of buying Genie+ for lightning lanes? Just like they offer people the option of renting a scooter if they can't walk? Why does there need to be a free line-skipping option, because then there are SO MANY people who abuse it....?

 

[Keladry84]

From what I understand, someone is suing Six Flags because the 3rd party system requires people to show documentation/proof of their disability to get the line skipping accommodations. They're arguing that this violates the ADA, which is probably true, but also might need to be adjusted/updated considering so many people are abusing policies like DAS.

I have a simpler solution, though. Maybe it's too simple? Hear me out.
If someone has disability that affects their mobility, they don't get DAS. Disney suggests they rent a scooter or wheel chair for the day. Renting a scooter costs money, but it's a paid accommodating option available to people who can't stand or walk all day.

So, if it's OK for an accommodation like a scooter to cost people money, why can't Genie+ just be an accommodation people have the option of using if they can't wait in lines? Then, people who need to skip lines pay for the accommodation.... just like anyone who doesn't have a disability is supposed to. So, theoretically, can't Disney then get rid of the DAS system and just offer people the option of buying Genie+ for lightning lanes? Just like they offer people the option of renting a scooter if they can't walk? Why does there need to be a free line-skipping option, because then there are SO MANY people who abuse it....?

A wheelchair is an aid, not access. Even those who use a wheelchair all the time provide their own. Disney has provided access to their rides for those in wheelchairs (meaning they can physically access the attraction and are not barred from it). Disney is not required to purchase or pay for the wheelchair for everyone.

For those who can’t queue due to the environment of the queue….we don’t have access in the standard queue line. I cannot physically BE in the queue area for the length of most queue lines. DAS provides access for me. Genie + even if it were free for me would not. 1. It only provides access to lines that are available 2. It can sell out 3. It is too unpredictable. My disability does not do well with unpredictability.

Similar to a wheelchair user, I have aids to help myself, such as earplugs, headphones, etc. that I purchase myself. I wouldn’t expect Disney to provide those for me. I also pay extra for an onsite resort that allows me peace/quiet and easy to get to from parks for a break. I wouldn’t spend the money on that without my disability.

So, if Disney abolished DAS and just said, buy Genie+, they would then be charging to provide ‘access’. However, Disney could abolish DAS and redesign their queues….then I would have access and wouldn’t need it.

 

[Rpo0921]

Why does there need to be a free line-skipping option, because then there are SO MANY people who abuse it....?

this sentences sums up you not understanding DAS. It’s not a line skipping option. You are waiting in the line, minus the 2 advance reservations at smaller attractions, without physically being in the line and can only hold 1 selection at a time.

 

[LoveToDisney]

If paying for DAS would help it not be abused by those who do not need it (because it would no longer be free) I would happily pay for it. I would hate to see it disappear for those who really need it.

 

[Rpo0921]

If paying for DAS would help it not be abused by those who do not need it (because it would no longer be free) I would happily pay for it. I would hate to see it disappear for those who really need it.

I’m pretty sure charging for DAS would be illegal.

 

[SL6827]

I’m pretty sure charging for DAS would be illegal.

Probably so.

 

[MJJME]

We just got back and the crowds were pretty low for spring break time. I was very surprised. Genie+ works a lot better when it's not crowded. I was able to stack at MK, but it just sucks because you cannot plan anything. You get the time you get or have to keep refreshing. I refreshed for hours one day trying to get later times because we were flying in that day and couldn't do anything until after 1pm. Either no one was buying Genie or the crowds were just super low. The only ILL that ever sold out was GOTG, I had to buy that right at 7am. Like the previous poster said, it doesn't really sound like they're going to change it at this point.

Spring break doesn't start until the end of this week at WDW....You were in a sweet spot as far as attendance is concerned....After the Presidents Day long holiday weekend and before schools go on spring break/Easter break (last weekend of this month)

 

[Minnie1222]

Spring break doesn't start until the end of this week at WDW....You were in a sweet spot as far as attendance is concerned....After the Presidents Day long holiday weekend and before schools go on spring break/Easter break (last weekend of this month)

I agree! If I weren't recovering from a knee injury and a respiratory illness, I'd have gone to WDW sometime between 02/26 to 03/07. We're going late next week, pending my conditions. I'm hoping people will stay away thinking it would be busy as years past.

 

[ML_LovesDisney]

Spring break doesn't start until the end of this week at WDW....You were in a sweet spot as far as attendance is concerned....After the Presidents Day long holiday weekend and before schools go on spring break/Easter break (last weekend of this month)

My daughter's college spring break started 3/1 and I've been on this weekend several times, and it's been a lot busier in past years.

 

[MJJME]

My daughter's college spring break started 3/1 and I've been on this weekend several times, and it's been a lot busier in past years.

Right but FL and most of the south, the states where the crowds actually come from, dont start until next week mainly..........I live in MA and we have a fixed week (for all schools but the preps), always the third week of April (15th-20th this year) and WDW will be slow that week too..........Most states "float" their spring breaks to Easter week so when Easter is early like it is this year, our vaca week tends to be one of the best times to go to WDW............

 

[tjkraz]

My daughter's college spring break started 3/1 and I've been on this weekend several times, and it's been a lot busier in past years.

Well, I think the point is that year-to-year comparisons are very difficult given changes in things like spring break schedules, the timing of Easter, runDisney events, large events scheduled at Wide World of Sports, festivals at Epcot, new attraction openings boosting demand some years, FL resident blockout dates, Cast Member blockout dates, etc. Then there are factors like Extended Evening Hours, Disney After Hours and extra nighttime shows drawing guests to certain theme parks on certain days.

We were at WDW about 4 weeks ago. Genie+ pricing hit a recent peak (suggesting high crowds) and both Epcot and DHS reached Park Pass capacity and weren't allowing any additional morning reservations. Among other factors, there was a large cheerleading event at WWOS that weekend. We made a reservation for MK and later hopped to DHS. That evening, we rode Rise of the Resistance with a Standby wait of less than 30 minutes and saw the second Fantasmic show in a half empty theater.

It may be accurate to say that you encountered shorter wait times than years past when traveling during the same general timeframe. But that doesn't necessarily tell us anything about actual WDW crowds spring break 2024, or even the days you visited.

 

[TCRAIG]

Right but FL and most of the south, the states where the crowds actually come from, dont start until next week mainly..........I live in MA and we have a fixed week (for all schools but the preps), always the third week of April (15th-20th this year) and WDW will be slow that week too..........Most states "float" their spring breaks to Easter week so when Easter is early like it is this year, our vaca week tends to be one of the best times to go to WDW............

South Carolina spring break is mostly the week after Easter this year…not before..

 

[MJJME]

South Carolina spring break is mostly the week after Easter this year…not before..

I think most do it the week after Easter, so vacation starts on holy Thursday with Good Friday being a holiday

 

[SL6827]

Did Disney not think that more people, whether they are frauds or honest, would use DAS more when a price for skipping the line was implemented? Regardless, those who truly need it should get it.

 

[kc51570]

My daughter's college spring break started 3/1 and I've been on this weekend several times, and it's been a lot busier in past years.

We went the end of February into the first couple of days of March one year and it was very busy. It also coincided with Mardi Gras which I think a bunch of southern schools are off for. This year Easter is so early that you probably missed the Mardi Gras crowds.

 

[SheSingsAlong]

Did anyone listen to The Disney Dish? Len Testa pointed out that in the announcement of 2025 Resort rates, there was a brief statement indicating that the last day to cancel a resort reservation for a refund is changing from 5 days out to 8 days out. Len thinks this relates to G+ changes (theoretically, onsite resort guests will be able to pre-book G+ 7 days out). This may be Disney's way of preventing people from gaming the system by reserving a hotel, making advanced G+ at 7 days out, and then cancelling the hotel right after. Thoughts?

 

[ML_LovesDisney]

Well, I think the point is that year-to-year comparisons are very difficult given changes in things like spring break schedules, the timing of Easter, runDisney events, large events scheduled at Wide World of Sports, festivals at Epcot, new attraction openings boosting demand some years, FL resident blockout dates, Cast Member blockout dates, etc. Then there are factors like Extended Evening Hours, Disney After Hours and extra nighttime shows drawing guests to certain theme parks on certain days.

We were at WDW about 4 weeks ago. Genie+ pricing hit a recent peak (suggesting high crowds) and both Epcot and DHS reached Park Pass capacity and weren't allowing any additional morning reservations. Among other factors, there was a large cheerleading event at WWOS that weekend. We made a reservation for MK and later hopped to DHS. That evening, we rode Rise of the Resistance with a Standby wait of less than 30 minutes and saw the second Fantasmic show in a half empty theater.

It may be accurate to say that you encountered shorter wait times than years past when traveling during the same general timeframe. But that doesn't necessarily tell us anything about actual WDW crowds spring break 2024, or even the days you visited.

I am basing my experience on DVC point charts and the time I went is the 2nd to most expensive point time besides actual Easter week and Christmas time. That signifies this is expected to be a busy time at Disney and it was not as busy as in past years based on my experience. I’m not sure how you can debate my experience of the parks recently, but I am simply stating my experience with Genie+ to the topic of this thread.

 

[Minnie1222]

I am basing my experience on DVC point charts and the time I went is the 2nd to most expensive point time besides actual Easter week and Christmas time. That signifies this is expected to be a busy time at Disney and it was not as busy as in past years based on my experience. I’m not sure how you can debate my experience of the parks recently, but I am simply stating my experience with Genie+ to the topic of this thread.

I don't believe anyone is questioning your experience. It's just that the last 3 weeks of March are typically busier than the first week, the last 2 weeks in December are more crowded than the first two, etc.. I'm glad you had a slower week than normal.

 

[tjkraz]

I am basing my experience on DVC point charts and the time I went is the 2nd to most expensive point time besides actual Easter week and Christmas time. That signifies this is expected to be a busy time at Disney and it was not as busy as in past years based on my experience. I’m not sure how you can debate my experience of the parks recently, but I am simply stating my experience with Genie+ to the topic of this thread.

I did not question your experience. In the last passage, I explicitly stated as such. I was simply listing some of the reasons why crowds frequently fluctuate at WDW. This is especially true in the March timeframe when Easter changes annually and schools modify their spring break periods.

The DVC seasons are a decent general guide, but obviously not a precise estimate of week-by-week and day-by-day room demand. Early March is among the ~70 days which fall into the second highest priced season. A period which includes Thanksgiving and President's Day weekend. Obviously crowds are not identical across all of those dates. Late-April is also in that grouping, and is probably the most overpriced dates in relation to member demand. The idea that WDW is busier in early March and late April than it is for the entire stretch of May - mid November is simply not true.

 

[Brian Noble]

My daughter's college spring break started 3/1 and I've been on this weekend several times, and it's been a lot busier in past years

I go the week after P-Week most years and did again this year, ending on the 2nd this year. Didn’t feel much different to me for a non-mardi-gras year.

That week is always what used to be called Magic Season in the DVC point charts. But the cash rates usually dip a little that week in non-mardi grad years.