No Genie+/LL strategies

[TTFNTigger]

I’d love to hear from anyone who has any tips/encouragement/positive vibes for a day at Magic Kingdom and a day at Hollywood Studios without Genie+ or LL. I’ve checked multiple crowd calendars, but they are inconsistent from 5/6 to 8/9 crowds. Two adults and a teen. Haven’t been in 7 years and teen has been asking to go so we’re squeezing in a last minute trip. Extra purchases just aren’t in the budget.
Thanks in advance!

 

[qv09vvp]

I’ll jump on this train because I w got a group of 15 and we won’t be doing either also.

 

[g-dad66]

Magic Kingdom:
Try for the Virtual Queue for Tron. If Mine Train, Peter Pan, and/or Jungle Cruise are priorities, aim to do them at park opening or just before park closing. In order to be in the park at both opening and closing, you may want to take an afternoon break. If no break, then during late morning to mid-afternoon when wait times will be the longest, aim for attractions with lowest wait times such as Mickeys Philharmagic, Monsters Inc Laugh Floor, People Mover, Tiki Room.

Hollywood Studios:
There are fewer attractions in this park, but more high-wait-time ones: Rise of the Resistance, Slinky Dog Dash, Rock n Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror, Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway, Millenium Falcon, Toy Story Mania. I suggest determining which ones are priorities and aiming for them at park opening or just before park closing. During the middle part of the day, the shows (Beauty and Beast, Frozen-Sing-a-Long, Indiana Jones), as well as Muppets 3D and Star Tours are good time-fillers.

One caution: if you save a high-priority ride for the end of the day, there is always the possibility that it will be down and you miss the attraction.

 

[TTFNTigger]

I’ll jump on this train because I w got a group of 15 and we won’t be doing either also.

I wish you the best of luck with your trip planning. Last time we went we were a group of 15 as well and I was the only one that knew anything about the workings of WDW and the sole planner. It was a fun and memorable trip, but at times a bit stressful. All the best Disney Magic to you and your group.

 

[TTFNTigger]

Magic Kingdom:
Try for the Virtual Queue for Tron. If Mine Train, Peter Pan, and/or Jungle Cruise are priorities, aim to do them at park opening or just before park closing. In order to be in the park at both opening and closing, you may want to take an afternoon break. If no break, then during late morning to mid-afternoon when wait times will be the longest, aim for attractions with lowest wait times such as Mickeys Philharmagic, Monsters Inc Laugh Floor, People Mover, Tiki Room.

Hollywood Studios:
There are fewer attractions in this park, but more high-wait-time ones: Rise of the Resistance, Slinky Dog Dash, Rock n Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror, Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway, Millenium Falcon, Toy Story Mania. I suggest determining which ones are priorities and aiming for them at park opening or just before park closing. During the middle part of the day, the shows (Beauty and Beast, Frozen-Sing-a-Long, Indiana Jones), as well as Muppets 3D and Star Tours are good time-fillers.

One caution: if you save a high-priority ride for the end of the day, there is always the possibility that it will be down and you miss the attraction.

Your last caution is so true. That’s what happened on our last trip 7 years ago. Traded the Splash Mountain fast passes for some of our group to Jungle Cruise so all 15 of us could do it together thinking wed be able to ride Splash Mountain later in the day. Sadly it was shutdown the rest of the day and now closed permanently before we made another trip.

 

[babiipiggiex3]

I wish you the best of luck with your trip planning. Last time we went we were a group of 15 as well and I was the only one that knew anything about the workings of WDW and the sole planner. It was a fun and memorable trip, but at times a bit stressful. All the best Disney Magic to you and your group.

sorry to hijack this post. Do you find it easier to split a large group into 2 for easier planning?

 

[dizneedoll]

I found these videos to be helpful:

And if you are eligible for early entry:

 

[TTFNTigger]

sorry to hijack this post. Do you find it easier to split a large group into 2 for easier planning?

We had 5 days in the parks and park hoppers and the ability to make Fast Pass reservations ahead of time, so my planning was much different than yours. I can’t imagine what it would be like now. But to answer your question, because we had 3 families, a set of grandparents, with ages 2-69, I did split things up quite a bit. Had grandparents riding dumbo with the littles while olders were on space mountain and such.

 

[TTFNTigger]

sorry to hijack this post. Do you find it easier to split a large group into 2 for easier planning?

We also had a dining plan and had a sit down meal every day. I did split of group into 2 into make reservations. I think I then called to make sure we were linked.

 

[momof2gr8kids]

Are you staying on-site and able to use early entry?

 

[TTFNTigger]

Are you staying on-site and able to use early entry?

Yes. And we’ve had a change in plans. Going to Epcot instead of HS.

 

[momof2gr8kids]

Yes. And we’ve had a change in plans. Going to Epcot instead of HS.

The ear scouts videos someone posted above are good to help you plan out your strategy.

When we went in April (week after Easter) I was so stressed about Genie, how much extra it would cost (we're Canadian, so factoring in the exchange ... ), but we only ended up using it one day out of 7 for HS and I found it to be a pain, and we didn't really need it.

With the extra 1/2 hour each morning, get in your must do's. Try for virtual que for Guardians and Tron at 7 am. If you don't get it, don't worry - the 1 pm drop seems to last longer so you should be able to get it then.

In MK, adventure land doesn't open for EE, so after EE, head right over there to get in your top rides. Ear scout videos will help you determine which order to do them in. If you stay all day, take in the shows, parades, the low wait rides. We took a break around 1:30 and came back at 6 to do Tron (we got 1 pm virtual que), shop, watch fireworks and jump on rides after fireworks, Mine Train just before close. We felt we got in all our must do's that day.

For Epcot, most of the bloggers say Genie + isn't worth it. Again, utilize early entry for your must do's. Test Track single rider is an option. You should have no problem getting a VQ for Guardians at 1 if you don't get in on the 7 am drop. I'm not a fan of Remy, in fact I thought it was a waste of time and steps power walking there for Early Entry.. lol. But some people love it. When we take our grandkids in January I'm not even telling them it's there unless we miraculously hit a low wait time when we're near it. Ha Ha. We have 9 on the next trip that we are paying for, so we'll be doing the parks without Genie Plus or ILL.

Good luck. Report back how your days went without it!

 

[TTFNTigger]

The ear scouts videos someone posted above are good to help you plan out your strategy.

When we went in April (week after Easter) I was so stressed about Genie, how much extra it would cost (we're Canadian, so factoring in the exchange ... ), but we only ended up using it one day out of 7 for HS and I found it to be a pain, and we didn't really need it.

With the extra 1/2 hour each morning, get in your must do's. Try for virtual que for Guardians and Tron at 7 am. If you don't get it, don't worry - the 1 pm drop seems to last longer so you should be able to get it then.

In MK, adventure land doesn't open for EE, so after EE, head right over there to get in your top rides. Ear scout videos will help you determine which order to do them in. If you stay all day, take in the shows, parades, the low wait rides. We took a break around 1:30 and came back at 6 to do Tron (we got 1 pm virtual que), shop, watch fireworks and jump on rides after fireworks, Mine Train just before close. We felt we got in all our must do's that day.

For Epcot, most of the bloggers say Genie + isn't worth it. Again, utilize early entry for your must do's. Test Track single rider is an option. You should have no problem getting a VQ for Guardians at 1 if you don't get in on the 7 am drop. I'm not a fan of Remy, in fact I thought it was a waste of time and steps power walking there for Early Entry.. lol. But some people love it. When we take our grandkids in January I'm not even telling them it's there unless we miraculously hit a low wait time when we're near it. Ha Ha. We have 9 on the next trip that we are paying for, so we'll be doing the parks without Genie Plus or ILL.

Good luck. Report back how your days went without it!

Thanks!