Disney's miscalculation with Genie/Genie+

[bsmcneil]

Agree and neither impact the what the guests are getting for their ticket price. Hours associated with your ticket are published hours and not a set amount of time. This is an after hour event that is "included" aka purchased within the price of your room. In good accounting, the hotels will actually be "charged" the cost of keeping the park open for them just like a private event. Just like the dining plan being "free" ... it is actually paid with your room's profits, not the restaurants other than a negotiated item reimbursement, which if they are not happy with they often drop the item.

The morning entry is a perk of staying at Disney and it does not impact the day guest. So a few folks are in before you, if they weren't they would be entering with you. The parks are already rolling at that point and it likely is a plus for transportation planning as well.

Bottom line Disney World is a business with MANY profit centers who work independently and intertwined. The Parks are depending on mostly offsite guests so they will always be in high consideration in any planning. Add that they pay to park and overall don't need Disney transportation, their ticket is already heavily weighted.

O....k. None of that really tracks with what you said (that resorts have nothing to do with park hours). Even when you wrote, "Genie is for park guests and I assume booking dining/events located outside the parks. It doesn't care where you stay." - early reports are that onsite guests will have a different time to book things than offsite guests. You can say that these are meaningless differences but it's super weird when you say they literally don't exist.

 

[HopperFan]

O....k. None of that really tracks with what you said (that resorts have nothing to do with park hours). Even when you wrote, "Genie is for park guests and I assume booking dining/events located outside the parks. It doesn't care where you stay." - early reports are that onsite guests will have a different time to book things than offsite guests. You can say that these are meaningless differences but it's super weird when you say they literally don't exist.

Sounds like you are not following what I said.

 

[Shannon G]

Yes, that's pretty much what this thread is about. Some people apparently enjoy staying in a Disney resort even without added benefits.

The fact that there aren’t added benefits to you doesn’t mean there aren’t benefits that others find useful. My kids are teens, and we sometimes split up on our trips. My oldest tends to be a park commando, while my youngest is often ready to go back to the hotel in the afternoon for a swim & a nap. My oldest will stay at the parks as late as possible, my youngest doesn’t always want to. Sometimes we each just like some time to go do the things we each want without having to spend every waking minute of the trip all doing the same things. Staying on site & using Disney transportation makes that simple and easy. If we were to stay offsite & rent a car someone would have to either stay later than they’d like or leave earlier than they’d like. It’s worth it to me to pay a bit more to have that flexibility and make the vacation more enjoyable for our entire family.

And to the PP who thinks that means I have more money than brains, I’m sure there are things that you choose to spend money on that I would not, does that mean you lack brains?Yes, I make a good living (thanks to my brain) and travel is what I choose to spend money on. I don’t buy a lot of “things” - my car is 8 years old & paid off, and I will drive it until it dies. We don’t have the latest fancy TVs or other expensive “toys.” I watch for good deals and shop through online portals that earn cash back (at least $600 from that went toward our upcoming October trip). I use credit cards to pay for as much as possible in order to earn points & miles (and no, that does not mean I carry a balance & pay a lot of interest), and most of our trips involve SW flights booked for “free” using the points I’ve earned. I tend to rent DVC points to stay at Deluxe resorts for the cost of a moderate. But since I choose to stay onsite, and you would not, I must be stupid.

 

[DISNEY1975]

Unfortunately it's not just the perks for staying onsite that they have stripped away. No more magical express service. No more magic bands. No more FP's. No more in park purchases delivered to your room. No meal plan. No parades. The list goes on and on, and prices keep going up. WDW is starting to become just another park.

Another big one for me was no more luggage service to the airport. Had to cancel my CG breakfast to get to the airport early enough to check bags

 

[DISNEY1975]

I thought being on-site allows you to book lighting passes at 7am prior to park open. Other offsite guests have to wait till park open.

Im waiting for the day to read a post that someone spent hundreds on Genie only to end up with the Teacups and Barnstormer with availability !!

 

[DISNEY1975]

I also feel like this one ride at a time will have me zig zagging all over the park. I strategically planned my FP+ an hour or more apart based on what I thought I would be near, heading in one direction.

 

[RoseGold]

Im waiting for the day to read a post that someone spent hundreds on Genie only to end up with the Teacups and Barnstormer with availability !!

hahahah! I had plenty of fast pass days with barnstormer and teacups. The whole buy it the night before is making it sound like this is an exclusive thing with limited capacity. Like barnstormer, I guess.

 

[nkereina]

We choose to stay on-site solely for the convenience. There's no off-site hotel (save for Swan/Dolphin, which I also stay at) that is walkable to parks or is a quick Skyliner/monorail/boat/bus ride away. That's just a fact and the biggest benefit Disney can tout with on-site resorts. We fly and do not want to rent a car so it makes sense for us to stay in a resort where we can maximize our park time. That means being close to the parks. We chalk the added cost up to the cost and value of convenience. Everyone will have different priorities when traveling - convenience is ours, for others it might be theme, space, budget friendly, etc. No right or wrong answer.

In the OP's example, they seem to be implying that if Disney Genie+ had better incentives for on-site guests, they'd be willing to cough up another $3200 to stay on-site? Did I read that right? If the price difference is that substantial for you, I can't imagine what Genie+ could possibly offer that would make it worth that difference in cost.

 

[cakebaker]

I also feel like this one ride at a time will have me zig zagging all over the park. I strategically planned my FP+ an hour or more apart based on what I thought I would be near, heading in one direction.

That's how we always felt about paper FP, had a designated runner that would go get the FP's then join us in line for something nearby. With FP+ we could create a better touring plan without trekking back and forth across the park.

 

[JoJoGirl]

When I first started visiting there were no fastpasses, and I enjoyed myself.
Then they introduced the paper FP. I learned the system and I enjoyed myself.
Then they introduced FP+. I learned the system and I enjoyed myself.
Now they are introducing something else. And I will find out in due time what aspects of this system will be useful to me.

This! I’m certain that once we learn the ins and outs of the new program, it will become a useful and valuable tool. We may even grow to love it. So I’m not knocking it from a functional perspective.

My challenge is that I have a set amount of $$ that I want to spend on vacation, and certain experiences I want to have for those $$. When Disney adds fees for things like Genie+, IAS, and double cost after-hours, I will not simply pony up more funds. That money will be taken from another aspect of my vacation - resort, dining, souvenirs, etc. So when I prioritize Genie+, Disney does not get more money. I lose enjoyment somewhere else.

So I’m not so worried about how Genie will function in practice (I think it will work just fine). I’m more worried about whether I will still get enough total enjoyment for my total money at Disney. Every price increase and amenity cut tips that scale toward “No.”. Some people are are already there, and some folks not even close. The tipping point is very personal. I have two unactivated AP vouchers worth of time to figure it out - that’s at least three years and 9-10 trips in real time. My mind is open, but for the first time ever (well, in 30 years of trips) I can see the possibility of not getting enough enjoyment to keep going.

 

[OKW Lover]

I also feel like this one ride at a time will have me zig zagging all over the park.

From what I've read Genie will suggest nearby attractions in order to avoid exactly this.

 

[disneyseniors]

I still think there is confusion (surprising, right?) about the 2 paid fp's per day. I read that they were 2 per day, period. Not 2 per park. I think it said that you could have one at one park and the other one at another park.
There seems to be some confusion on this paid 2 a day "perk"
Does anyone know the correct way to use the 2 paid per day passes? thanks

 

[disneydentist]

I find it entertaining to read the complaints about the perks that have been lost. Fastpass(+), Magical Express, luggage delivery, Extra Magic Hours, longer hours year round, and so on. Welcome back the eighty's and early 90's. Ask yourselves, honestly, why Disney did these things. The didn't do it to make your trip your magical. That's marketing hype. They did it to increase hotels stays and drive attendance. Obviously, they now feel that they can get sufficient numbers of guests without the perks. Are they right? Time will tell.

For those who say that Disney is just another park, you're absolutely correct. That's all it has ever been. A park with higher/newer tech than most all smaller parks, but still a park. The "magic" has nothing to do with Disney. It has everything to do with how people perceive their experience. There are literally tens of millions of people in America alone who have never been to Disney but still feel that their family vacation to (fill in the blank) was "magical".

In fairness, I personally would have liked to see Disney keep many of those perks in place. However, we don't always get what we want in life and a modified Disney experience is still better than none. Also remember, nothing is forever, even Disney.

 

[raidermatt]

I don't equate Genie with staying on property. To me these are two entirely separate things. Genie is about doing the parks. Staying on property is about where you sleep.

Yes, Genie+ and where you stay are no longer linked. That is the point. But that was not the case with FP+. On-site guests had an earlier booking window with FP+, which was a benefit. That benefit has been removed. Along with all the other changes, this has changed the value proposition.

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

I still think there is confusion (surprising, right?) about the 2 paid fp's per day. I read that they were 2 per day, period. Not 2 per park. I think it said that you could have one at one park and the other one at another park.
There seems to be some confusion on this paid 2 a day "perk"
Does anyone know the correct way to use the 2 paid per day passes? thanks

According to Disney Food Blog, you get 2 per day. Total. So you can have 2 at Magic Kingdom. You can have 1 at Epcot and 1 at DHS. However, you cannot get 2 at Magic Kingdom and then one at Epcot. Just two per day.

 

[reddog21]

According to Disney Food Blog, you get 2 per day. Total. So you can have 2 at Magic Kingdom. You can have 1 at Epcot and 1 at DHS. However, you cannot get 2 at Magic Kingdom and then one at Epcot. Just two per day.

You don't get 2 per day total you can only hold 2 lighting rides at a time. It's basically the same as fastpass was, you can only hold "x" amount of passes at any given time and you can't get a new pass until you use one or let one expire. Touring plans does a better job of explaining how it will work. My big issue is the availably after you use one of your lightning passes so there is a possibly that you would only get 2 rides if there's nothing available.

 

[Juventus]

If you like to rope drop most days there are still benefits to staying onsite: early entry spread out through all parks which should let you get on the 2 e-ticket rides and not pay for them.
And do they get early, 7:00am access to first genie+ choice, or is that just for the paid LL?

If you don't like to ropedrop then I don't see much benefit to staying onsite (ridewise)...u should be able to get later G+ and paid LL. But it depends what this all looks like when it rolls out I guess.

 

[supernova]

I don’t think it is going to impact on-site stays. However I am getting tired of the loss of on-site perks and constant nickel diming on everything with a drop in service quality. An extra $60 or more a day is going to make us cut other things for sure.

Unless it's a personal money issue (which I totally get), I can't see someone picking some random Holiday Inn over the Wilderness Lodge because they aren't getting free Magic Bands any longer.

 

[Yardbird]

I agree it makes off property look more enticing. Right now there are no December discounts and my rack room rate for AS Movies is around $230 a night more or less.

Why not rent points from a DVC member? $230/night at AS Movies is crazy. Renting points, I paid $165/night for a studio at OKW. Check out the DVC Rent/Trade board.

 

[meremac]

I just finished a Genie training session. A couple of PPs have asked questions earlier in the thread that I can maybe answer? Here are the main points I gleaned (much of this info is already out there, but I'll try to make it super concise to clear up some confusion I'm reading).

The Genie service itself will be free. It will be imbedded in MDE. This is where guests will find their dining reservations, place mobile orders, and add themselves to sit-down restaurant waitlists if available. They can also view current and projected wait times here, as well as get suggestions for which attractions to visit next based on interests. Genie is also where guests will join Virtual Queues for select attractions, like RoTR and Rat.

Guests have the option to upgrade to Genie+ for $15/person per day at WDW and $20/person per day at DL. Genie+ will allow guests to make Lightning Lane reservations for most attractions, one at a time. At WDW, onsite resort guests can make their first Genie+ reservation beginning at 7am. All others will have to wait until they enter a park. At DL, everyone has to wait until they enter a park to make their first reservation. There are no limits to how many Genie+ Lightning Lane reservations a guest can make each day but, again, they can only be made one at a time. No word on which attractions will be available through Genie+.

A few super headliner attractions at each park will not be included in Genie+. Guests can choose to use the Standby Line for most of these attractions, although some (like RotR and Rat) will only utilize Virtual Queues. Or subject to availability, guests can purchase Lightning Lane access for these super headliner attractions separately (no word on how much that will cost, but it will vary by date and attraction). Onsite guests can make their first Lightning Lane purchase starting at 7am. Guests can only purchase TWO Lightning Lane attractions per day, period. No official word on which attractions will be available for separate Lightning Lane purchase.

This is pretty much all the info that was given to us.