I need help with Genie+, I'm DAS-less, going 7/15

[Goldilocks07]

I'm still scared to death of Genie+ and being able to enjoy the park without being on my phone the entire time.

 

[neverlandsky]

I'm still scared to death of Genie+ and being able to enjoy the park without being on my phone the entire time.

Rope Drop still offers a huge advantage with very low waits and even walk-ons. Same goes for dinner hours and a couple of hours before close. Keep in mind even with Genie+ there's no guarantee you won't wait in line.

 

[CWTC]

I pay for a ticket to go on rides, I pay for hotels ON PROPERTY, and of course pay for food/snacks/souvenirs....
And now I have to pay to enjoy myself with rides and attraction or the alternative is to spend my time in pain standing in line.

Oh wait, the other option is to not pay at all and stand in pain in a line that is up to 4 times the amount of standby.

This BLOWS that I have to either stay up late AND wake up at 6:58 or wake up at 6:45 regardless. FML

Yes this is what my family and other non DAS holders been choosing or not choosing to do since the genie+ system was rolled out. We own DVC and have APs but aren’t local. We paid for the DVC, the tickets, and pay for food while there. We choose to buy genie+ because it’s worth it to us. Others don’t because it’s not worth it to them.

Genie+ isn’t all that different from the old FP system. Read a few how to’s and you’ll get it. It is going to change in a few weeks to a system similar to FP+.

We don’t try for VQs but I’d suggest prioritizing those, then get the LL, and then the ILL. As for during the day, I’m on my phone often anyways so being on the MDE app every so often is no biggie.

I’m just excited about being able to pre book the fast passes and not have to get up every day while on vacation.

Hope you have a great time!!

 

[jimmymc]

1. Genie+ can be purchased the day of going? Is this right? You can't buy it ahead of time??? What time do I buy it? At 12:01 am the day I go to the park? Seems reasonable...

This is correct for your trip. You can wait up until midnight or buy it at 6:30 am each day.

2. I have to somehow wake up at 6:58 am and both try and snap a VQ for Tiana's Bayou ANNNND grab whatever popular LL I can, at 7:00 am on the dot, because a lot of rides 'sell out' aka no more genie+ for that ride.

Yes. Go for the VQ rides first, because they will be gone in seconds, while Genie+ rides will all take at least a few minutes to sell out.

3. Rides on Genie+ may show unavailble or 'sold out' for the day, but to refresh it because they may become available again. Awesome.

Yes, always keep refreshing if something appears sold out.

4. I don't have to be on property to do the above, but do need a park reservation (which I have). Geezus.

Also yes, you need a park ticket and reservation linked to your account.

5. Is stacking still a thing? I have read about this over and over and my brain isn't understanding this. You can hold 3 LL on genie+? So, I choose one while the rooster crows at 7:00am (for one late in the day) and then 2 hours later (9:00am) I can choose another (and not lose the first)? And 2 hours later do the same?

Yes you can stack, starting after you use a reservation or two hours after park opening/making your last reservation. So if the park opens at 9 and you get a 12 noon time for Frozen Ever After, you can make your next ride reservation at 11 am and your third one after scanning in to Frozen.

6. And if above isn't confusing enough, in between this 'every 2 hour' business, I can then select other LL to go on as they are available?

You'll be able to select another pass either 2 hours after the picking the previous one or using a pass you currently have.

7. I know I'm lucky to get to pay on top of Genie+ to get on the 'special LL rides'. How thoughtful.

The one upside to these rides is that there isn't a rush in the morning to get them. You can make your VQ and first Genie+ reservation at 7, then you'll have plenty of time to pick a time for the upcharge rides.

8. Does anyone actually enjoy using this? I feel like I'm going to be on my phone ALL DAY and not present to enjoy the park. Should I hire an assistant to do all this work for me?

I prefer doing all this the day of than making my choices in advance, like we did with Fastpass+. I don't feel tied to my phone any more than I would be while using FP+.

9. Please pray for me.
10. Also please give me hope. I absolutely love Disney World but clearly pretty sour about all this.

Like I mentioned, now that I know Genie+, I prefer it to FP+. I still think paper fastpasses and Maxpass were better, but I'll take this over trying to reserve times 60 days out.

 

[mistysue]

Thank you all for chiming in and responding. I'm a WDW vet and am well-versed on FP and now DAS Pass. Now it's time to learn Genie+ and soon the new thing whatever it's called. This is all incredibly frustrating.

I pay for a ticket to go on rides, I pay for hotels ON PROPERTY, and of course pay for food/snacks/souvenirs....
And now I have to pay to enjoy myself with rides and attraction or the alternative is to spend my time in pain standing in line.

Oh wait, the other option is to not pay at all and stand in pain in a line that is up to 4 times the amount of standby.

And yet there's still another option: not to go at all (which makes me very sad because we are DVC members and AP holders).

Let's see how Monday works.

This BLOWS that I have to either stay up late AND wake up at 6:58 or wake up at 6:45 regardless. FML

I'm sorry you feel as you do, might I suggest that your emotions may be negatively impacting your interpretations here?
You could log on at 6:55, purchase and book all together.
When you book a LL, set an alarm for 2 hours. Then if you haven't booked yet, your phone will tell you it's time. Now you are done dealing with your phone and it's not that complicated.
Sorry but paying for hotel/tickets/travel/food is not unique because you have a disability. That is typical for EVERYONE, and does not mean anyone should be given special treatment. Everyone has to pay for G+ if they use it, that is the way it works.

 

[Disturbia]

At Mk you have two VQs - Tiana’s and Tron. You can only hold one VQ at a time now.

Which resort are you staying at and what park will you be going to first?

Some nights have extended evenings and deluxe resort guests get to try for a VQ at 6 pm (in addition to trying for one earlier).

 

[Disturbia]

In general, at MK I would book the earliest ride and arrive early and ride and book rides until lunch time. Start stacking while eating lunch.

Say at 7 am get a VQ for Tiana; then book Genie+ Big Thunder 9 am-10 am
arrive at 8:55 am (you can enter queue 5 mins early) and ride BTM and book POC 10-11 am (try to modify to an earlier time). Spring rolls and Dole whip for snacking if there is a wait in between passes. Lunch at Columbia Harbor or Pecos Bill. By 12 pm most rides will be booking into early evening if the parks are busy.

The top of the Tip Board shows when you can book your next pass (some rides have one scanner others have another one closer to loading).

If you click on the name of the ride on the tip board and then click on ‘LL’ on the ride page, when you refresh the tip board it will automatically scroll down to that particular ride (helps if trying to get a sold out ride like TOT).

At HS slinky dog dash has the highest Genie+ demand and within seconds jumps to 2 pm. That’s the park where you would have to most likely start stacking 2 hours after park opening (at 11 am). You can choose to buy ROTR for the morning or hit some shows. If you get SDD for 9am or even 10 am, plan to be at the park early and ride the ride ASAP so you can be ahead of those who won’t get to book anything until 11 am (everyone who holds a Genie+ that starts after 11 am).

When trying to modify your Genie+ ride be careful not to cancel it or the 2 hour clock will reset.

AK opens at 8 am, but you can usually get Navi before 10 am.

 

[Tom_E_D]

5. Is stacking still a thing? I have read about this over and over and my brain isn't understanding this. You can hold 3 LL on genie+? So, I choose one while the rooster crows at 7:00am (for one late in the day) and then 2 hours later (9:00am) I can choose another (and not lose the first)? And 2 hours later do the same?

Yes you can stack, starting after you use a reservation or two hours after park opening/making your last reservation. So if the park opens at 9 and you get a 12 noon time for Frozen Ever After, you can make your next ride reservation at 11 am and your third one after scanning in to Frozen.

6. And if above isn't confusing enough, in between this 'every 2 hour' business, I can then select other LL to go on as they are available?

You'll be able to select another pass either 2 hours after the picking the previous one or using a pass you currently have.

You can make another Genie+ reservation either two hours after booking your last one, or after you tap into the one you booked last. Tapping into one that was not the one you booked last does not allow you to make another. When Genie+ first started, there was a loophole that allowed you to book another whenever you tapped into any one, but they closed the loophole in November 2021. So, if you book Frozen at 7:00, and book another ride at 11:00, then tapping into Frozen after 12:00 does not allow you to book another.

 

[scrappinginontario]

I'm still scared to death of Genie+ and being able to enjoy the park without being on my phone the entire time.

Thousands of people have paid for this service every single day for years. If you don't want it, don't purchase it. You are not being forced to purchase G+. Many people visit everyday without it.

If it's too much, then don't put the pressure on yourself. Just go and enjoy the parks and do what you can do.

 

[Figment Mom]

G+ worked flawlessly for me. It was not complicated or a burden.

I think you'll find that you can accomplish a lot with it. And you're only on your phone once every 2 hours. Or if you tap into your most recently booked LL, just book another while you're waiting to board. Then put your phone back in your pocket or bag and continue on with your day.

 

[jimmymc]

You can make another Genie+ reservation either two hours after booking your last one, or after you tap into the one you booked last. Tapping into one that was not the one you booked last does not allow you to make another. When Genie+ first started, there was a loophole that allowed you to book another whenever you tapped into any one, but they closed the loophole in November 2021. So, if you book Frozen at 7:00, and book another ride at 11:00, then tapping into Frozen after 12:00 does not allow you to book another.

I was able to get another reservation that way in 2023. By reserving rides as you use them, I was able to hold two reservations at once for most of the day.

 

[Tom_E_D]

I was able to get another reservation that way in 2023. By reserving rides as you use them, I was able to hold two reservations at once for most of the day.

If you could get a new one every time you tapped into one that was not your most-recently-booked one, then your experience doesn't match how I understand the system to work. I agree it is possible to have more than one at a time, but that involves tapping into your most-recently-booked one (or letting two hours pass since your most-recent booking), then booking another.

 

[Disturbia]

In any case, you can just look at the top of the tip board to see when you can book next and set your timer a few mins before.

Be careful if you’re drinking alcohol (yes I did forget because I was interrupted by the waitress around 11 am).

 

[jimmymc]

If you could get a new one every time you tapped into one that was not your most-recently-booked one, then your experience doesn't match how I understand the system to work. I agree it is possible to have more than one at a time, but that involves tapping into your most-recently-booked one (or letting two hours pass since your most-recent booking), then booking another.

The way it usually worked is I was tapping into my old reservation. So I would tap in to my 7 am reservation, and that would allow me to book a new one in addition to the one I made at 11. Unless I'm misremembering, since I didn't write any of this down, I think that's how it worked.

 

[Goldilocks07]

At Mk you have two VQs - Tiana’s and Tron. You can only hold one VQ at a time now.

Which resort are you staying at and what park will you be going to first?

Some nights have extended evenings and deluxe resort guests get to try for a VQ at 6 pm (in addition to trying for one earlier).

We are actually going just for the day, which I've never done. My daughter competes in horse shows so we are sort of nearby. We are going to try for Tiana's.

 

[Debbie Jean]

We are actually going just for the day, which I've never done. My daughter competes in horse shows so we are sort of nearby. We are going to try for Tiana's.

Good luck tomorrow! Hope you score a spot for Tiana’s and that you have a wonderful time with DD

 

[Goldilocks07]

UPDATE & PARK REPORT:
Sorry it took so long to post this, I was lazy. My daughter and I went for the day, and here's my experience.

Wake up at 6:45, began the genie plus purchase. $27 each .Didn’t realize there were a few steps to get it. Done at 6:58

6:58 was in the VQ section.

TIANA's Q: Scrolled to refresh until I was able to wrangle my boarding group, #56.

Great!!!!!!! Heart racing and absolutely thrilled.....

....and then I realized I had to get the LL too. Got that for a return time of 1-2pm. WHEW. I can breathe. Thank you, Disney, for the morning anxiety attack. Who needs coffee when you have a park day?

We drove from Ocala and waze said 10:30 am TCC arrival, great. Traffic and weird back roads, now 10:49. Waze sent me to the back side of the lot (behind poly) and the fun begins. There’s no signage ANYWHERE to get into the lot (that I can see right next to me). Finally give up after searching online for where in the h*ll to actually go. Drive to the contemporary infuriated and almost in tears and he tells me where to go and what to put into Waze. GREAT.

As we were pulling in to the parking lot at 11 on the dot, I grabbed my second lightning lane for the Haunted Mansion, I know this is not the most popular but we absolutely love it.

11:05 park car in a decent spot. Miss the tram, decide to walk. It is HOT. Line security line and my daughter got stopped (and we have no clue what set it off but later on realized it was the fans). Longggg line for security. Thank goodness those guys are so nice and friendly.

Walk to the monorail. LONG line. Come to find out that one of the monorails were being taken off of the track and we had to sit and wait. It is now 11:58 and we just arrived at Magic Kingdom. At this point I need calming meds (or a drink) and I'm like, I'm NEVER parking my own car for MK, that was an insane process!!

In reference to GENIE PLUS SYSTEM: (yes I know this has changed as of yesterday 7/24)

There's no comparison to the old fast pass system. Getting a fast pass was easy and showed multiple time slots and never 'sold out'. Also, plans change in the park, especially as the day goes on- and at 2 pm we were seeing time slots for 9pm (if at all)!! That's insane. It was HOT and we were irritated with the system so we bounced to HS.

So here’s my take on it, let’s assume that 75% of DAS pass users are no longer qualified. Why aren’t there 75% more lightning lanes available throughout the day? I’m at Hollywood Studios at 4 o’clock now and Slinky, Aerosmith and Rise of the Resistance are long since sold out with the lightning lane process (I had checked way earlier in the day). I mean, Alien Saucers is terrible and we are past all the kiddi shows.

The system is great if they did not run out of LLs. Because the way Das pass worked you could get a return time for any ride whether lightning lane has been out or not. So if all those people which would be thousands of thousands or not that system anymore, why does that not release the ability to have lightning available for the most desired rides. I would never in 1 million years pay for genie plus at Hollywood Studios with the four top tiered rides selling out of lightning lanes. I don’t want to have to come to the park at rope drop. That is not enjoyable for me. Just like people that rope drop don’t necessarily want to be in the parks at 11 o’clock at night. How is it fair that you are forced to be here at the crack of dawn and attempt to rush through the park and do all the rides you possibly can before 11 AM? How is that fun? There are plenty of people that are not morning people (or people that have been so many times and don't need to do it all) and that want to enjoy the parks at leisure. So this kind of works for people who like to wake up very early and be at opening and aggressively rush through the park. Otherwise you’re not going to be able to use the lightning lanes that you paid to use. And forget about adjusting the time slots.

Overall, the system absolutely s>cks.

So now, someone like me who has an annual pass likes to visit frequently and at leisure, and enjoy spending money in the parks, eating dinner in the parks, and all of that, I now will not renew my annual pass, I will buy tickets as I go, and come to the parks less. I would like to know how Disney thinks this will increase their revenue. Because I know a lot of people that only came here because they used the das pass (My cousin included, was a party of 6 and they won’t come anymore. For a group that size to have to buy park tickets PLUS 6 genie plus or multipasses, PLUS LL$??? Um. No). So Disney will lose a huge group of people that have been many many times, and don't want to pay for all the additional fees. DAS or No DAS, the new Mulitpass System is costly for a family.

I’m fine with them being more aggressive with who gets the pass (let me be clear, I'm NOT fine with their limited medical choices), but I'm totally NOT ok with paying for a service (now LL Multipass) and then there not being LL's to choose from throughout the day. It's crazy- that I pay to go to the park, pay to get LLM, and THEN PAY to go on the 'best' rides- all praying there are LL's to choose from, if at all.

Yes, I can read everyone's mind: "well, you also have the option of waiting in the standby line or just don't go to Disney at all..."
Sad, that the above is most people's response. Standing in a 2-3 hour line and taking up 1/3 of my day for one ride is not ideal when you factor in the cost of a ticket, gas/flight, food etc, just to get there in the first place. Plus I've been so many times, and it's not worth killing those hours on rides I've been on- even though I still enjoy them. Time is valuable to me. Just like revenue is CLEARLY valuable to The Disney Company.
And not going at all will be terrible me as well, as I love WDW and hold onto that space as safe and happy. Well, at least it was.

 

[Goldilocks07]

Good luck tomorrow! Hope you score a spot for Tiana’s and that you have a wonderful time with DD

We did indeed have a wonderful time, even with the above post. We had fun, because I was with my DD and we had a day like none other. We've never done a day trip, and we ended up at 2 parks, got to ride Tiana's AND RnR, got drenched on the way out (as per usual for us in HS lol) and then went to an amazing asian restaurant about 14 minutes from the park. We were SOAKED. And laughing. I was like, what are we going to do I don't have dry clothes??? And then I remembered I had clothes to donate to Goodwill still in my trunk and I dug through them and found comfy clothes and made the best of it. We were laughing in the car because people were walking to their vehicles and we are trying to change in the front seat and I'm thinking someone is going to walk by and get a show! LMAO
It was a great day indeed.

Also, Tiana's was amazing- I think they could have done a lot better with the mushroom scene, it felt very much unfinished- but overall was so nice. We miss Splash, but change is good and we love The Princess and the Frog.

 

[Disturbia]

I’m glad you had a great time despite the obstacles. Disney has an over crowding issue and they’re trying to see how high they can price things before attendance falls. It’s pretty clear that DAS abuse wasn’t the sole reason behind the DAS change (it was $$$$.). Even the LLMP should have been priced lower for at least the resort guests who attended the first 3 days or so as they had to compete with non resort guests.

They’re trying to update rides now to cater to the younger generations who are more familiar with Frozen, Tiana, Moana and Encanto but it’s pretty slow compared to Universal which created a whole new park despite the pandemic. Staffing and lack of entertainment are still an issue and they need to add more characters, shows (eg lights, motor action at HS), street entertainment and create a new electric parade! They just brought back the meet and greet with the Beast at BOG and Enchanted Tales took so long to open. The disaster with Jollywood (overcrowded overpriced adult centric event) just shows how near sighted they are.

 

[Debbie Jean]

We did indeed have a wonderful time, even with the above post. We had fun, because I was with my DD and we had a day like none other. We've never done a day trip, and we ended up at 2 parks, got to ride Tiana's AND RnR, got drenched on the way out (as per usual for us in HS lol) and then went to an amazing asian restaurant about 14 minutes from the park. We were SOAKED. And laughing. I was like, what are we going to do I don't have dry clothes??? And then I remembered I had clothes to donate to Goodwill still in my trunk and I dug through them and found comfy clothes and made the best of it. We were laughing in the car because people were walking to their vehicles and we are trying to change in the front seat and I'm thinking someone is going to walk by and get a show! LMAO
It was a great day indeed.

Also, Tiana's was amazing- I think they could have done a lot better with the mushroom scene, it felt very much unfinished- but overall was so nice. We miss Splash, but change is good and we love The Princess and the Frog.

Changing into those Goodwill clothes in the front seat of your car after getting drenched is a memory you’ll always have My DD and I still laugh about the time years ago when my scooter died at the very end of MNSSHP… she, as Marilyn Monroe, pushed me, an overaged hippie, all the way back to Bay Lake Towers at midnight! It was a sight LOL

So glad you had a nice time together despite the challenges!