Everything Genie, Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lane - Please Read Posts 1-7

[scrappinginontario]

Strange thing today. I made reservation for Toy Story Mania for 9:10am at 7:00 this morning. Genie + says I can make another at 10:10. Am I wrong or it should have been at 11:00?

This is correct. You can make a new LL reservation:
- either 2 hours after park opening or,
- after you tap into it or,
- when your first LL expires.

Tory Story expires at 10:10 which is why you’re eligible then if you have not used it and already booked a new LL by then.

 

[Disfamwa]

In the Disneyland forum, DLRExpert and others have reported what rides you can/can't use a Multi-Experience pass (also known as an MEP, anytime pass, Lightning Lane - Select Experience, and by a few other terms) for. We don't have a list like that for the Florida parks, but I thought I'd report my limited experience with MEPs last week at WDW to add to the pool of knowledge.

At Epcot (January 10), I got an MEP when Remy went down. It was not good for Guardians, Frozen Ever After, and Test Track.

At Magic Kingdom (January 11), I got one for Big Thunder Mountain. It was not good for the Parade, Enchanted Tales with Belle, the meet-and-greets with Ariel, Cinderella, Mickey, or Tiana, the ILL rides (Tron and 7DMT) or the rides Jungle Cruise, Peter Pan, and Space Mountain.

FWIW, I had single park Genie+ both days. I don't think that would make a difference, but who knows. I did not test if MEP acceleration (a term used in the Disneyland forum) would work. I didn't want to risk my Remy MEP if it didn't. (I used that MEP for Remy after the ride came back up.) And I spent most of the rest of my day, after getting the MEP for BTMRR, with a friend who did not have an MEP, so we rode only rides we could both get LLs for at the same time. I wound up not using that MEP at all.

Edit: corrected dates

As a Disneyland regular who really takes advantage of the acceleration with MEPs, I was really hoping to find out if they worked at Disneyworld, but I understand why you wouldn’t want to risk it.

Even if acceleration did work, it sounds like it wouldn’t even matter as much because they exclude other top tier rides from a top tier MEP. It’s wild to me how the MEPs at Disneyworld for a top tier attraction, like Remy, aren’t allowed to be used on attractions of the same tier like Frozen.

 

[scrappinginontario]

Reminder: To avoid confusion, please keep discussions in this thread and on the Theme Parks board, to Walt Disney World in FL.

Thanks.

 

[leeniewdw]

Hi All -- DH and I are headed down to WDW for a very quick trip and only 1 park day at EPCOT (hoping to enjoy a warm day poolside or enjoying the warmth anywhere for our other day). Our last trip was Jan 2023 and we've made several trips with G+/LL/ILL.

I think I'm up to date on all the processes, but figured I'd confirm here our 'order of operations' LOL. We're staying at the Swan (first time).

After midnight or pre-7am on EP day: make sure we're still properly set up in MDE (I've heard Swan/Dolphin can sometimes drop guests). Buy G+
7am: attempt to get VQ for GotG
7am after above: Buy ILL$ for GotG (would like to ride twice)
7am after above: select first LL for EP
8:00 (not sure on this timing): depart Swan to head to Int'l Gateway for Early Entry
8:30: ride either Frozen or Remy standby
morning in park

midday break
1pm: if I didn't get VQ for GotG, try again?

late afternoon: return to park

We just discovered that our EP date is also a Extended Evening night, so question here:
6pm: Can we try for another VQ even if we got one at the 7am or 1pm drop?

This plan is correct???

 

[MrBarraclough]

It’s wild to me how the MEPs at Disneyworld for a top tier attraction, like Remy, aren’t allowed to be used on attractions of the same tier like Frozen.

It is because those attractions are not clustered into a single (or two adjacent) parks at WDW like they are at DL. "Experience Redemptions" (to use the WDW term) are limited to the park where they were issued. EPCOT has only two top tier attractions other than Guardians, which as a VQ is in a category by itself there. If you allowed an ER from a breakdown of Remy or Frozen to be used at the other, you'd overrun the other attraction and back up its lightning lane. When a popular attraction goes down, you want to shift that crowd load onto as many other attractions as possible to minimize the impact across the park. Shifting it onto only one or two other attractions sets up a potential for cascading problems.

 

[musicguy856]

It is because those attractions are not clustered into a single (or two adjacent) parks at WDW like they are at DL. "Experience Redemptions" (to use the WDW term) are limited to the park where they were issued. EPCOT has only two top tier attractions other than Guardians, which as a VQ is in a category by itself there. If you allowed an ER from a breakdown of Remy or Frozen to be used at the other, you'd overrun the other attraction and back up its lightning lane. When a popular attraction goes down, you want to shift that crowd load onto as many other attractions as possible to minimize the impact across the park. Shifting it onto only one or two other attractions sets up a potential for cascading problems.

Especially if you dumped Remy onto Frozen as the latter has much less capacity.

 

[MrBarraclough]

Is Genie+ a race like trying to get ADR dining reservations? If so, does it help to have all of the adults sitting together trying to get in at the same time and first one wins. Or, as the designated trip organizer, should I just do the racing myself. My son is an adult and is very savvy so I could see both of us trying to get things reserved if it is nothing more than a race. Or could one of us be getting LL passes and one working on Genie+. TIA

I think two people trying to book G+ LLs for the same party simultaneously is likely to cause more headaches than be helpful. You'll both be seeing the same information from the same servers, just with the added complication that you might both try to modify the same LL reservation in conflicting ways.

By contrast, if you're trying to book both LLs and grab a VQ spot at 7am, then yes by all means one of you should be grabbing the LL while the other tries for the VQ. Those do not potentially conflict with one another.

 

[scrappinginontario]

I think two people trying to book G+ LLs for the same party simultaneously is likely to cause more headaches than be helpful. You'll both be seeing the same information from the same servers, just with the added complication that you might both try to modify the same LL reservation in conflicting ways.

By contrast, if you're trying to book both LLs and grab a VQ spot at 7am, then yes by all means one of you should be grabbing the LL while the other tries for the VQ. Those do not potentially conflict with one another.

This is not the case though. There are many experiences shared here of multiple people, using the same MDE account, trying for the same VQ or LL. Whoever gets through the process first calluses the others to be stopped along the way. No problem at all.

For extremely popular attractions such as GotG and Tron VQs or, SDD, having multiple people try at the same time only increases your chances.

We visited WDW last summer for 9 park days and had up to 4 people trying for the same VQ or LL and zero problems. The winner was respected and high-fived by the thankful group!

 

[chris1212]

Question about purchasing ILL for Tron. 2 adults, 3 kids, one kid is not tall enough. Do we purchase ILL for 4 of us and then rider swap so the kids can ride with both parents? We don't need to purchase 5 ILL when one cannot ride?

 

[scrappinginontario]

Question about purchasing ILL for Tron. 2 adults, 3 kids, one kid is not tall enough. Do we purchase ILL for 4 of us and then rider swap so the kids can ride with both parents? We don't need to purchase 5 ILL when one cannot ride?

Correct, no need to purchase for child not tall enough to ride. Not positive how rider swap works on Tron. I did a search on this thread of 'rider swap' and there are some who have shared only one child was allowed to ride with the parent using the rider swap. Not sure of the current policy.

 

[Matrixleos]

Tons of great info on this thread. I think I have a good grasp of everything but had two remaining questions.

First, if you're staying at a deluxe WDW resort and you can book your first LL at 7am. Which then starts the 2 hour clock for my next Lightning Lane for 9am at Park Opening. With early park access, if I scan into my first Lightning Lane at 8:45am (before the park opens). I'll then be able to select another LL at 8:45am. My question, do I have to now wait another 2 hours till 10:45am to reserve my next Lightning Lane or would I still be able to reserve another Lightning Lane at Park Open at 9am? That part is still a bit confusing for me.

Second, when you have Genie Plus and reserve your first Lightning Lane attraction as park opens at 9am. Then the two hour time limit for your next Lightning Lane begins for 11am. If you arrive at your first LL attraction that you reserved at 9am at let's say 9:15am and you scan in, you'll be able to book your next Lightning Lane at 9:15am too. My question is does that start the 2 hour clock all over again and you now how to wait till 11:15am before you can book another Lightning Lane or is your original 11am two hour window still good?

 

[Tom_E_D]

Tons of great info on this thread. I think I have a good grasp of everything but had two remaining questions.

First, if you're staying at a deluxe WDW resort and you can book your first LL at 7am. Which then starts the 2 hour clock for my next Lightning Lane for 9am at Park Opening. With early park access, if I scan into my first Lightning Lane at 8:45am (before the park opens). I'll then be able to select another LL at 8:45am. My question, do I have to now wait another 2 hours till 10:45am to reserve my next Lightning Lane or would I still be able to reserve another Lightning Lane at Park Open at 9am? That part is still a bit confusing for me.

Second, when you have Genie Plus and reserve your first Lightning Lane attraction as park opens at 9am. Then the two hour time limit for your next Lightning Lane begins for 11am. If you arrive at your first LL attraction that you reserved at 9am at let's say 9:15am and you scan in, you'll be able to book your next Lightning Lane at 9:15am too. My question is does that start the 2 hour clock all over again and you now how to wait till 11:15am before you can book another Lightning Lane or is your original 11am two hour window still good?

I assume your first question refers to a Genie+ LL and not an ILL. Anyone, not only those staying at deluxe WDW resorts, can book their first LL at 7:00. You can book your next LL at the earliest of:

1. You tap into your most-recent G+ LL reservation
2. You cancel your most-recent G+ LL reservation
3. Your most-recent G+ LL reservation expires
4. Two park hours (i.e. hours the park is open) pass since making your most-recent G+ LL reservation

If the park opens at 9:00 and the 2-hour rule applies, that is 11:00, not 9:00, when you can book your next LL. Genie+ LL times start with park open. There is no lightning lane during early entry, as I understand it (although I've not been in the park that early to see if they actually let people use it before 9:00). So, your tap in at 8:45 example may not be possible. The earliest return time is 9:00. I don't know when you could book your next one if you did tap in at 8:45 and the 2-hour rule applied to when you could book your next one; 10:45 or 11:00. It would definitely not be 9:00.

For your second question, if you tap into your most-recently-booked G+ LL at 9:15, your 2-hour time becomes reset for 11:15. The 2-hour time is based on your most-recent booking.

For the first six weeks or so that Genie+ existed, there was a loophole that allowed people to book at the 2-hour time and at the later tap-in time. That loophole was closed before Thanksgiving 2021.

 

[MrBarraclough]

Tons of great info on this thread. I think I have a good grasp of everything but had two remaining questions.

First, if you're staying at a deluxe WDW resort and you can book your first LL at 7am. Which then starts the 2 hour clock for my next Lightning Lane for 9am at Park Opening. With early park access, if I scan into my first Lightning Lane at 8:45am (before the park opens). I'll then be able to select another LL at 8:45am. My question, do I have to now wait another 2 hours till 10:45am to reserve my next Lightning Lane or would I still be able to reserve another Lightning Lane at Park Open at 9am? That part is still a bit confusing for me.

Second, when you have Genie Plus and reserve your first Lightning Lane attraction as park opens at 9am. Then the two hour time limit for your next Lightning Lane begins for 11am. If you arrive at your first LL attraction that you reserved at 9am at let's say 9:15am and you scan in, you'll be able to book your next Lightning Lane at 9:15am too. My question is does that start the 2 hour clock all over again and you now how to wait till 11:15am before you can book another Lightning Lane or is your original 11am two hour window still good?

Tom_E_D already addressed your misunderstanding about the two hour rule starting from the park open time, not the 7am initial booking time.

As for your second question, no, that original 11:00am period is gone. The 2 hour clock resets with each booking. So if you tap in to your first LL at 9:15 and also book a new LL at 9:15, then you cannot book another LL until either 11:15 or you use the LL booked at 9:15 (or it expires, which functions the same as using it), whichever occurs first. That 11:00 booking limitation from your pre-9:00 LL booking became irrelevant when you tapped in to the attraction at 9:15. The system only cares about your most recent booking.

Also, and this is a minor point, you can tap in up to 5 minutes before your LL return time. So your 8:45 tap in for a 9:00 return time isn't possible. Lightning lanes aren't even open during early entry anyway.

 

[Landry]

Hi All -- DH and I are headed down to WDW for a very quick trip and only 1 park day at EPCOT (hoping to enjoy a warm day poolside or enjoying the warmth anywhere for our other day). Our last trip was Jan 2023 and we've made several trips with G+/LL/ILL.

I think I'm up to date on all the processes, but figured I'd confirm here our 'order of operations' LOL. We're staying at the Swan (first time).

After midnight or pre-7am on EP day: make sure we're still properly set up in MDE (I've heard Swan/Dolphin can sometimes drop guests). Buy G+
7am: attempt to get VQ for GotG
7am after above: Buy ILL$ for GotG (would like to ride twice)
7am after above: select first LL for EP
8:00 (not sure on this timing): depart Swan to head to Int'l Gateway for Early Entry
8:30: ride either Frozen or Remy standby
morning in park

midday break
1pm: if I didn't get VQ for GotG, try again?

late afternoon: return to park

We just discovered that our EP date is also a Extended Evening night, so question here:
6pm: Can we try for another VQ even if we got one at the 7am or 1pm drop?

This plan is correct???

I would do the Virtual Queue at 7am, then get your first LL ride (Remy, Frozen, or Test Track), then get the ILL$ for Guardians. The purchase for Guardians will last longer than anything else at 7am.

 

[melissa70]

What happens if you book something and don’t get a return time until 5 o’clock but you wanted to park hop? How would you do that? Would that mean you are stuck staying in the first park until five?

 

[Ann-CA]

What happens if you book something and don’t get a return time until 5 o’clock but you wanted to park hop? How would you do that? Would that mean you are stuck staying in the first park until five?

I’d try to keep modifying and seeing if you can get an earlier time (depends on the ride). I tried yesterday to modify some earlier, but it’s pretty busy this week so without a ton of luck.

But no, you could leave but you’d have to hop back to ride. You can also book your next lightning lane for any park as long as it’s after your time eligible to book.

 

[Matrixleos]

I assume your first question refers to a Genie+ LL and not an ILL. Anyone, not only those staying at deluxe WDW resorts, can book their first LL at 7:00. You can book your next LL at the earliest of:

1. You tap into your most-recent G+ LL reservation
2. You cancel your most-recent G+ LL reservation
3. Your most-recent G+ LL reservation expires
4. Two park hours (i.e. hours the park is open) pass since making your most-recent G+ LL reservation

If the park opens at 9:00 and the 2-hour rule applies, that is 11:00, not 9:00, when you can book your next LL. Genie+ LL times start with park open. There is no lightning lane during early entry, as I understand it (although I've not been in the park that early to see if they actually let people use it before 9:00). So, your tap in at 8:45 example may not be possible. The earliest return time is 9:00. I don't know when you could book your next one if you did tap in at 8:45 and the 2-hour rule applied to when you could book your next one; 10:45 or 11:00. It would definitely not be 9:00.

For your second question, if you tap into your most-recently-booked G+ LL at 9:15, your 2-hour time becomes reset for 11:15. The 2-hour time is based on your most-recent booking.

For the first six weeks or so that Genie+ existed, there was a loophole that allowed people to book at the 2-hour time and at the later tap-in time. That loophole was closed before Thanksgiving 2021.

Thanks for the clarification, I think I'm mostly all set with Genie Plus now. I did have two more quick questions.

1) Are their any other benefits in concerns to Genie Plus and scheduling G+ LL that people staying at a Disney Delux Resort have? I think I read something awhile back on this but might be outdated information.

2) If everyone can book their first G+ LL at 7am and the Park doesn't officially open till 9am. Would a second G+ LL be available at 9am?

Mostly trying to figure if I can stack my 7am G+ LL for a ride in a park that I'll be Park Hopping to later on (modifying the time to later in the afternoon if\when possible). Although if you don't get a second G+ LL at 9am and I'd need to wait the 2 hours till 11am to get my next G+ LL, then I don't think that would be a good strategy.

 

[scrappinginontario]

Thanks for the clarification, I think I'm mostly all set with Genie Plus now. I did have two more quick questions.

1) Are their any other benefits in concerns to Genie Plus and scheduling G+ LL that people staying at a Disney Delux Resort have? I think I read something awhile back on this but might be outdated information.

2) If everyone can book their first G+ LL at 7am and the Park doesn't officially open till 9am. Would a second G+ LL be available at 9am?

Mostly trying to figure if I can stack my 7am G+ LL for a ride in a park that I'll be Park Hopping to later on (modifying the time to later in the afternoon if\when possible). Although if you don't get a second G+ LL at 9am and I'd need to wait the 2 hours till 11am to get my next G+ LL, then I don't think that would be a good strategy.

1) Genie+ is the same for everyone. Even though a person may be blessed to stay at a deluxe resort, it does not offer them any perks or advantages with Genie+ or ILL$. Everyone is on a level playing field.

2) As @Tom_E_D shared, if you book your first LL at 7AM, you will not be eligible to book a second one at park opening.

You can book your next LL at the earliest of:

1. You tap into your most-recent G+ LL reservation
2. You cancel your most-recent G+ LL reservation
3. Your most-recent G+ LL reservation expires
4. Two park hours (i.e. hours the park is open) pass since making your most-recent G+ LL reservation

In your case, if you book your first LL at 7AM, if you don't use it before 11AM, the earliest you'll be able to book your second LL is 11AM as you cannot book a second LL until 2 hours after official park opening which you mentioned is 9AM.

 

[EpcotNerd]

If at 7am you book a LL for your afternoon park (let's say SDD at HS) but you're rope dropping at MK, which park counts for the "You can book your next LL two hours after park opening" clock? The one you first tap into for the day or the one you got your first LL for? When we're there MK and HS have different combinations of 8:00/8:30/9:00 openings. We'll have a hopper ticket and will purchase a multi-park G+.

 

[TheMouseKId]

The one where your LL is booked. In this case, HS.