Is anyone feeling positive?

[IceSkatingPrincess]

I'm not thrilled, but I'm not 100% against it. The cost isn't a huge factor for us but I am really not into the idea of needing to wake up at 7AM on vacation. I like that there is an alternative to the boarding group situation, and an easy on for one or two rides works well for our touring style.

That said, I had 0 issues playing the refresh game with Fastpass so I'm sure this is going to take some adjusting (and/or learning) for me. I'm trying to not hate it before I have a chance to try it out.

Honestly the 7AM hour is honestly one of my biggest issues with the entire Genie+/LL system. I'm wasn't a fan of it for Rise either, I just don't have any desire to be awake that early on vacation.

 

[kathy884]

I never really cared for the FP+ system. As an offsite visitor who usually visits at busy times it really didn't buy us much. I'm one who actually liked the old paper fastpass system, especially with the plans from touringplans.com telling me when to get fastpasses and when to use them (Boy they had that down to clock work. Incredible time study work!). The Genie system sounds a little bit more like that, so I think I will like it better.

It's really turning into a pay to play world though for so many things these days. As a person who is now just paying for four people to only do two Disney days next year, I think Genie Plus and premiums for maybe two higher tier rides will work for my budget and make the days we go more enjoyable. If we had a group of 10 or more like we used to going together -- budget trip, bringing our own food in the park, bunking up together in a condo, etc. -- ouch -- all those costs really add up.

The ouch for me even more than Disney is that on our next trip two in my party want to do Universal just one day (some new things there one wants to see and another has never been there). And yes we are going in March -- spring break (lovely weather and one of my favorite times to go, but a pretty high season for crowds and tickets). It will be about $200 pp for a one day park hopper for the two Universal parks and then $200 pp with the one time fastpass on fastpass rides. With this, they will have a great day, but at what price $400 pp (It will be their Christmas present). Without the splurging for fastpass, it's long lines, and they wouldn't get to do some of the things they would like to do (almost would seem like a waste to go). I'm so lucky only two want to do that.

I do though think of days at these world class parks as premium experiences worthy of prices to go to a great concert with good seats, etc. (better bang for the dollar than that kind of thing, even with the extra costs of genie / fastpass expenses).

The one thing Orlando still has going for it for us is that we can get such a great deal on offsite accommodations, flights are pretty darn reasonable, and gosh I even have a 1/2 way decent deal on a rental car from a reputable name brand company. Food is also reasonable although not a gourmet dining experience with our doing some meals in and doing dining out at modest offsite places. This means that even with the expensive park tickets, my budget for a vacation in Orlando, for example, is about the same as a trip I am budgeting to the San Juan Mountains in the fall (Southwestern Colorado).

 

[SandyinMonterey]

Genie plus reminds me of the old paper fast passes. Get a paper fast pass, use it, get another. The difference is you're not running to each attraction to get it. I'm not sure exactly how I feel that you have to pay for it now. But I never liked choosing FP 60 days in advance and I always felt (and believe) we got fewer FP that way. It does bother me about the additional cost for the upgrade to the most popular rides. Disney IT doesn't have the best reputation. I'm nervous about the roll out of this and IT support (or rather lack of).

 

[whiporee]

I think it's going to cut down on a lot of confusion and in-time hostility and frustration. I think it's going to work to get people off their phones, and I think it will make the standby lines move faster. I think it's going to eliminate the on-site advantage except for the EMHs, and I think that's fairer to the rest of the world.

I'm very curious to see how Genie lines stack up during the day -- are they just loaded up first thing in the morning, or are they fungible as they day goes on. I'm a little surprised that if they were going to charge for some sort of line access at all that they limited it to one or two a day -- that in itself shows restraint I had not expected.

I'm glad so many people won't have to spend so much time on hold trying to fix FP problems. Hopefully without FPs to hassle with, customer service and IT support may be more fluid and responsive to other problems if they occur.

The simple issue is a lot of people want to travel and want to travel to WDW. As opposed to those who think that things used to be so much better, I think we just complain louder and more publicly than we used to, and therefore companies like Disney have a harder time crafting their narratives. So the more things they offer the more they open themselves for criticism, and the more often people complain here, or on Trip Advisor or Twitter or Instagram or whatever. So someone sees a full trash can, they post a picture of it, someone else retweets it and suddenly WDw doesn't collect trash anymore. People wait in line for MDE, take a picture, writer a tweet and suddenly a free service becomes and PR problem. People book FPs months in advance, something screws up and they're livestreaming their anger. I can understand why WDW decided to scale everything back to the simplest core they could get away with.

So I'm positive that maybe there will be a little less to complain about.

 

[AZMermaid]

I’m feeling good about it. Everyone has been wanting fastpass back for months. It’s back and still people aren’t happy. Some people just like to complain. I’m more in the eh… I’ll roll with it. Why waste time stressing about something I can’t change and in the grand scheme of life, isn’t a huge deal.

We liked Maxpass at DL and felt it was a good value, so I’m optimistic that this will be similar.

 

[ShayBells]

I’ll decide when we have more information. Price wise… it’s not as much as I was expecting so that so far isn’t that bad. (I do feel bad for those with a large group and longer stays.)
Everything else so far is too much up in the air. It’ll come down to how it works and if we even get more than three passes a day for it to be worth it. If I have to wake up at 7 am and somehow I’m still not lucky enough to get a morning pass at all because everyone else is faster than me.. I’ll hate it. It’s too much pressure. I already worry about the VQs (though knowing I have a back up plan for that is nice despite the high price tag.)
Another thing I’m on the fence about is the lack of/ confusion I have about planning. I am a military planner down to every minute/detail. I like it. It calms me to have a game plan. Now I have a trip coming up in Nov and I have no clue how to plan. Not even a little bit.
So to be positive about it seems to be premature, but then to be too negative about it might be premature as well. I just hope we get more information before roll out.

 

[Cj2017]

delete

 

[KittyKitty]

I also like that we no longer be forced to use up certain tier FPs before moving on to new FP

I had totally forgotten about that.

 

[katyringo]

I had totally forgotten about that.

Yes this. Although we know there will be those up charge rides.. but we liked maxpass for the fact if we wanted to just get fastpasses for incredicoaster all day we could.

some additional questions I have for Genie is about flexibility within your party. With maxpass we could book let’s say incredicoaster for my hubby and son and then something else for my daughter and I. We probably did that more at Disneyland as you were in the same parks your whole trip vs world where we would all be in the same park for the day..

 

[Maleficent_Hades]

i'm very positive about this, as is my husband. we've already figured that if its in place for our december trip that we won't need it for EPCOT and we are doing the christmas AH so we won't need it for our MK day either. we are doing HS and AK 2 times 1) my husband has never fully experienced AK as it rained the 3 times he went 2) HS 2 times gives us a better chance to get RoR BG, we've never been on it as our last trip was 3 months before it opened and if by our second HS day if we haven't gotten on RoR we can pay for it if the price isn't too crazy.

now i do love planning my trip ahead of time, but i hated having to pick my ADRs and FPs so far in advance. last time i went i missed a bunch of my FPs due to rain, so i feel G+ will help me in that way. also we usually fly out mid week so by the time we can make our FPs other families that start their trip a few days before us take the rides we really wanted before we even have a chance to try for them. i still haven't been on SDD, or FOP.

another thing is i tend to change up my park plans a few times and already have changed them 3 times for my trip in december and probably will at least 1 more time. had i already had FPs booked i'd have to change them and risk loosing the rides i really wanted.

time will tell just how much i'll like G+ and i'm really hoping it'll start at least by oct 1 so i have a good 2 months to see how it does. i know a lot of people are upset about it, but i'm optimistic

 

[katyringo]

i'm very positive about this, as is my husband. we've already figured that if its in place for our december trip that we won't need it for EPCOT and we are doing the christmas AH so we won't need it for our MK day either. we are doing HS and AK 2 times 1) my husband has never fully experienced AK as it rained the 3 times he went 2) HS 2 times gives us a better chance to get RoR BG, we've never been on it as our last trip was 3 months before it opened and if by our second HS day if we haven't gotten on RoR we can pay for it if the price isn't too crazy.

now i do love planning my trip ahead of time, but i hated having to pick my ADRs and FPs so far in advance. last time i went i missed a bunch of my FPs due to rain, so i feel G+ will help me in that way. also we usually fly out mid week so by the time we can make our FPs other families that start their trip a few days before us take the rides we really wanted before we even have a chance to try for them. i still haven't been on SDD, or FOP.

another thing is i tend to change up my park plans a few times and already have changed them 3 times for my trip in december and probably will at least 1 more time. had i already had FPs booked i'd have to change them and risk loosing the rides i really wanted.

time will tell just how much i'll like G+ and i'm really hoping it'll start at least by oct 1 so i have a good 2 months to see how it does. i know a lot of people are upset about it, but i'm optimistic

I have many of the same thoughts. I’m also one that likes the plan- but also changes my plans up quite a bit as I go. I like not being locked into things.

 

[Maleficent_Hades]

I have many of the same thoughts. I’m also one that likes the plan- but also changes my plans up quite a bit as I go. I like not being locked into things.

one thing i'm looking forward to this time around, is only having to do possibly 2 ADRs. trying for Space 220 and Le Cellier as thats mine and my husbands favorite restaurant in EPCOT. but we also both had gastric sleeve surgery, january 2021 for hubby and march 2021 for me, so we don't eat as much and therefore having a lot of table service ADRs just don't make sense for us. so money we are saving on food can now go towards G+ if we need it.

 

[katyringo]

one thing i'm looking forward to this time around, is only having to do possibly 2 ADRs. trying for Space 220 and Le Cellier as thats mine and my husbands favorite restaurant in EPCOT. but we also both had gastric sleeve surgery, january 2021 for hubby and march 2021 for me, so we don't eat as much and therefore having a lot of table service ADRs just don't make sense for us. so money we are saving on food can now go towards G+ if we need it.

Omg!! I had gastric sleeve 2 years ago. Actually at this moment im laid up in bed recovering from skin removal. Hubby and I took a solo trip last fall and it deff changed how I did Disney eating. I looked at menus a lot before hand and we shared a lot more. I did a couple fixed price things but more for experience than food.

 

[crazymomof4]

We used MaxPass in DLR for two trips. Loved it.
Have always said since then, that if paid FP is inevitable, I'd like to see something like MP come to WDW. So I was happy with that aspect. $15pp/day is what I gladly forked over in Nov 2018 in DLR.

That said, I don't know what impact the Individual Attraction Selection part of it will have on our trip. (if all this is not up and running by 2nd week in Oct I won't have to worry about it at all)
I really don't like the idea of paying per person, per ride, for what is essentially a FP. For example, SDMT.... I used to have that locked and loaded 60 days before each trip. One ride, each day in MK, for everyone in our party, guaranteed shorter wait for no extra charge. So, I can't get around the fact that this is no longer a reality.

 

[Maleficent_Hades]

Omg!! I had gastric sleeve 2 years ago. Actually at this moment im laid up in bed recovering from skin removal. Hubby and I took a solo trip last fall and it deff changed how I did Disney eating. I looked at menus a lot before hand and we shared a lot more. I did a couple fixed price things but more for experience than food.

oh thats awesome to hear!! i know skin removal can be painful so i hope your recovery is going well

the experience is exactly why we still want to do Space 220 even though we heard lunch is a 2 course meal and dinner is a 3 course meal. doubt they'll let us share 1 meal there so lunch is looking like the more logical option. we're planning on either sharing or bringing ziplock bags for what we don't finish to eat later. and as for EPCOT besides the 2 places we wanna sit and eat at, we are gonna do the food booths. also a lot of lounges in our future

 

[ocdb8r1]

I am personally fine with the announcement.

I did not like the mad rush and pre-vacation work to get FP+ reservations. It took too much effort to get the passes we wanted and then once we were on-site we were locked into a very rigid plan. I feel like the new system is going to allow a bit more flexibility and spontaneity (albeit for more uncertainty as to what rides you're going to get a LL pass for). I'm perplexed by some of the complaining posts that seem to assert FP+ was perfect because people could get all the rides they wanted....even traveling off-peak there were lots of forced tradeoffs and decisions to be made; I feel like the new system just changes the game a bit (bot doesn't make it any worse, other than the daily fee).

Second, like many others, I think memories are short and/or people don't recall what the Disney experience was pre-Fastpass (of any kind). Waiting in 60-90 minute lines was simply the way it was for popular rides (or any ride during peak seasons). I remember waiting hours when StarTours opened at Disneyland in the summer of '89....mostly outside in the heat, just praying to get inside to enjoy the A/C and interesting queue area. We didn't love it, but it was expected and normal. Fast forward to January 2020 and to get on ROTR we had to rope drop and play the virtual queue game. Yes, there was a risk of not getting a Boarding Group, but even during those early days MOST got in and once our time came up, we waited 15-20 minutes to board. This will continue to be a FREE option post Genie+ (for both ROTR and Remy's). Bottom line, I think "change" in general is both net positive and aimed at improving the guest experience. Everyone continues to have the ability to wait in the standby lines, just was required for decades.

The one gripe I understand is those with families struggling to budget the extra $$$ if they want to get Genie+ for their whole family. However, I think it's just part of the sad reality of price increase that will always continue so long as Disney offers a product attractive to the masses. I don't see any way of balancing demand other than to increase prices in some way; the fact they chose to move to a more "a la carte" pricing increase seems to have really struck a nerve. I've even seen some posts where people said they would have preferred if Disney just bumped up the price of tickets by $15/day and included Genie+. I don't see how this is any better and forces everyone to absorb the price increase.

 

[C&Jx2]

I’m indifferent. I want to see it in action before I form an opinion.

 

[lukemorenus]

Now that the dust has settled, I'm still feeling positive. ... thank you for this post - it's a breath of fresh air around here lately

 

[teachmedis]

I hate change..................... ok, got that out of the way.

Disney Parks has never, ever, ever, been inexpensive as long as I've gone, 56 years now.

I am looking forward to see how Genie+ works. I don't know enough to have a negative opinion. But have been going long enough, that most of the time, the changes work out fine. ( I even liked the 25 year anniversary Castle, pink frosting). I like that Disney keeps reinventing itself.

As Walt said. "Disneyland(or WDW) will never be completed. It will continue to grow as long as there is imagination left in the world.

Here are other quotes from him.
https://www.keepinspiring.me/walt-disney-quotes/
Yes, I have drank the koolaid.

View attachment 598712

I'm grateful for you to say it has never been inexpensive. The big worry that families are just now getting "priced out" of Disney burns me a bit because I was a poor kid in the 80's, my family couldn't afford it then. I promise you families being "priced out" isn't new. The Genie won't price anyone out because you don't have to buy it. I don't plan on buying it every day--it'd be a waste at Animal Kingdom for us because we only ride 2 or 3 rides. I'm always curious to see how the touring professionals figure out how to master these things.
I agree that this on the heels of magical express and other cuts like parties and proper extra magic hours makes it sting a bit more than it probably would. But we can also see that they are regularly bringing back entertainment and food options. So I remain cautiously optimistic and likely a Kool aid drinker right til the end .

 

[Suzabella]

Hard to stay positive when the vloggers and you tubers aren't.