Spring Surprise (March 31-April 3rd 2022)

[huskies90]

...if the parks are crowded, you will feel like it wasn't worth it because you didn't get anything good as everything will be gone before noon; if the parks aren't crowded, you might feel like it wasn't worth it because you wouldn't need it in the first place.

I had almost the exact same comment in the Princess Weekend thread and it is what I hate the most about Genie+ (and there is alot to hate about the system in general). I wish they would have just added the extra $$ to the cost of the ticket and still called it "free". People like all inclusive even if it costs more. Breaking out the costs leads to many of us debating whether spending the $$ was worth it. Where as if it was just included, you would simply be happy to be in a park that was nearly empty and not thinking, "darn I spent $15/person for nothing". And if the park is crowded you would think "cool I was able to score a few LL's" instead of "I got none of may fav rides/timeslots and I wasted $15/person." It is a mindset shift. I get that, and many people can just chalk up Genie+ as a sunk expense. But I always end up debating the value and I hate that.

 

[Livelovedance]

I can’t bring myself to try the new systems that replaced FP yet. That being said, I chose very little park time this Princess Weekend due to the large crowds and long waits for attractions. We still have APs so it wasn’t a big deal to walk in for a brief time and leave, but I definitely would’ve felt differently if I had purchased daily park tickets.

I’ve taken a couple short trips since September, but the crowds this week were much larger than I’ve seen. I personally just wasn’t comfortable, but that’s just me and I am aware of that. I would’ve liked to have had FP+ to know I could get on three rides of my choosing without an extremely long wait at each, and have those planned out in advance. As someone who visits fairly often, I just didn’t want to wait in such long lines or pay extra for the chance to have shorter lines.

 

[Blue Caterpillar]

Hi, Im going to be staying a POP for this weekend. I looked but haven't been able to find where the rundisney bus stop are for this hotel? It may be late but I was going to try to put in a room request for something some what close to it.

Also I noticed the sunrise yoga is available right now.

 

[sunshine girl]

Hi, Im going to be staying a POP for this weekend. I looked but haven't been able to find where the rundisney bus stop are for this hotel? It may be late but I was going to try to put in a room request for something some what close to it.

It is at the normal bus stop area for Pop, which is right in front of the resort (in front of Classic Hall w/ lobby and food court). The line usually starts at the first bus stop (furthest away/south from lobby main doors) or one of the first. But depending on when you arrive, the line might extend the full length of the bus stop area and beyond! So it is hard to say where exactly you'll have to be to actually join the line.

The line can get really long sometimes but generally keeps moving as Pop is a popular race resort so they seem to send a lot of buses that way.

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

I had almost the exact same comment in the Princess Weekend thread and it is what I hate the most about Genie+ (and there is alot to hate about the system in general). I wish they would have just added the extra $$ to the cost of the ticket and still called it "free". People like all inclusive even if it costs more. Breaking out the costs leads to many of us debating whether spending the $$ was worth it. Where as if it was just included, you would simply be happy to be in a park that was nearly empty and not thinking, "darn I spent $15/person for nothing". And if the park is crowded you would think "cool I was able to score a few LL's" instead of "I got none of may fav rides/timeslots and I wasted $15/person." It is a mindset shift. I get that, and many people can just chalk up Genie+ as a sunk expense. But I always end up debating the value and I hate that.

I agree with you. My sister and I were at Disney this past week for Princess and I was telling her I think it would have been smarter for Disney to just raise ticket prices even more and include Genie+. As is, we are paying more for tickets than we used to, but getting less since Fastpass+ is not included. I think had they just increased tickets the extra cost of Genie+ and said it was free (as you said), people would have complained about higher ticket prices, but probably no more than they currently complain about the higher ticket prices, and wouldn't be complaining about how bad Genie+ is for having to pay for it and not be able to get what you want. In other words, they still would have gotten their money (more, actually since everyone would be charged the $15 for Genie+) and there would probably have been less complaining than there currently is. Whoever has been making these recent calls for Disney has really been missing the mark. Having people pay more to get less is never going to be a popular decision with the customer base.

 

[Doingitagain]

I agree with you. My sister and I were at Disney this past week for Princess and I was telling her I think it would have been smarter for Disney to just raise ticket prices even more and include Genie+. As is, we are paying more for tickets than we used to, but getting less since Fastpass+ is not included. I think had they just increased tickets the extra cost of Genie+ and said it was free (as you said), people would have complained about higher ticket prices, but probably no more than they currently complain about the higher ticket prices, and wouldn't be complaining about how bad Genie+ is for having to pay for it and not be able to get what you want. In other words, they still would have gotten their money (more, actually since everyone would be charged the $15 for Genie+) and there would probably have been less complaining than there currently is. Whoever has been making these recent calls for Disney has really been missing the mark. Having people pay more to get less is never going to be a popular decision with the customer base.

I thought this initially too, but then I thought about all the people who just want to enjoy the parks and entertainment without going on rides. At least they aren't paying for something extra they aren't using.

ETA: Then again, some are paying for Genie + and not getting many rides from it...

 

[The Expert]

I'm really curious about the reasoning behind the age requirements. My daughter, who will be 12 when these races happen, is a year too young but is registered to do the 10k and 10 miler (and yes, she has trained and no, this won't be her first time doing either distance). I'm assuming it's an insurance thing having to do with the race being at night, but all of the 5k and many of the 10k races I've done at Disney started and ended before sunrise.

I think it's more about the insurance/liability for the "scavenger hunt" portion of the 5K, rather than it being at night.

 

[PrincessV]

I hated FP and FP+, but would gladly take either back instead of G+ lol! I refuse to pay for rides on top of admission, so my new "strategy" is I don't plan on doing much more than walking around and maybe waiting in one long line. I'm clearly not WDW's target market.

 

[Herding_Cats]

how are we feeling about event guide release dates?

Next Thursday/Friday? Would put us 3wks/20 days out from the expo, which I think is when changes for the Princess guide started un-officially hitting?

 

[Wishuponastar0412]

how are we feeling about event guide release dates?

Next Thursday/Friday? Would put us 3wks/20 days out from the expo, which I think is when changes for the Princess guide started un-officially hitting?

That's my guess as well. I'm hoping for an all Animal Kingdom 5K, more Epcot in the 10K (like the 2020 routes), and more HS in the 10 miler! I'd love to be able to run through Toy Story Land & Galaxy's Edge.

 

[1lilspark]

It will be interesting to see if 10k just reuses Princess and MW route

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

We were at Princess and agree about Genie+. Our usual park is Disneyland, and we were huge fans of Maxpass. Genie+ is not Maxpass. We tried it out at HS on Thursday and were extremely disappointed. I hate getting up early so the 7 am thing really sucks. We booked Mickey and Minnie (first day not ILL) for around noon. We also did a ILL for ROTR at 4-ish. The parks were so busy we were only able to get one other LL for Rocking Rollercoaster at 5-ish. So we paid $30 per person for three rides. The problem was that we had dining reservations for lunch and dinner so didn't have a lot of flexibility for ride times. Basically after our second ride choice (Rocking Roller Coaster), there was nothing good left. We could have gotten something between Mickey and Minnie, but our lunch dining reservation at Brown Derby interfered. We also had problems with choosing a ride and the ride time changing by time we got through the selection process. I read a good summary on Touring Plans about how there is a sweet spot for Genie+ and clearly the crowds were to high for Princess for it to be a good deal. I suspect we will just go for ILLs for Spring Surprise weekend. Those you can at least choose your time for.

 

[deadvc]

Done runDisney before, but never gotten a beer after the race before. With the AK 5k being a night race I do find that more tempting than usual. I know it's been awhile since they've done night races, but was there a beer tent in the reunion area after night races when they did them? What kind of payment do they accept?

 

[sunshine girl]

Done runDisney before, but never gotten a beer after the race before. With the AK 5k being a night race I do find that more tempting than usual. I know it's been awhile since they've done night races, but was there a beer tent in the reunion area after night races when they did them? What kind of payment do they accept?

All (I think?) the morning races have a post-race beer/champagne tent available at the crack of dawn, so presumably a night race would also have one.

That being said, every Disney night race I've done has included a post-race party ... but there is no post-race party advertised for this race, so who knows what Disney intends!

In the past, I've paid for my post-race champagne with my magicband and have had to show ID. I always bring plenty of cash in case the magicband/watch/card machines are glitching.

 

[sandam1]

In the past, I've paid for my post-race champagne with my magicband and have had to show ID. I always bring plenty of cash in case the magicband/watch/card machines are glitching.

Word to the wise - if you are carrying your ID on you (which IMHO you always should whether you want to buy a drink or not), make sure you secure it properly!!! This comes from the voice of experience. For the 5K of Marathon Weekend, I decided at the last minute to not use my running belt ('cause it was only a 5K after all) and put my ID, cash and credit card in my (I thought) secure shorts pocket. We weren't to Mile 1 when I realized that I had lost it one of the times that I pulled my phone out. It was upsetting to say the least. Thankfully I a) had my NEXUS pass with me so I knew that I was going to be able to fly home and b) was able to file a lost-and-found report with Disney and get it back. But don't be repeat my mistake!

 

[fatmanatee]

I have a photo from January's 5k of the beer menu, which helpfully informs us that they start serving at 6 am. If they're doing that then I'd imagine they'd have drinks available after a race at 10 pm.

 

[kps7795]

When will the Event Guide be released for the Springtime Surprise? Does anyone (most likely @DopeyBadger) remember when they released the Event Guides before Marathon Weekend and Princess Weekends respectively? I might be remembering incorrectly, but I thought that we got the MW Guide in early December one month before the race.

 

[MissLiss279]

When will the Event Guide be released for the Springtime Surprise? Does anyone (most likely @DopeyBadger) remember when they released the Event Guides before Marathon Weekend and Princess Weekends respectively? I might be remembering incorrectly, but I thought that we got the MW Guide in early December one month before the race.

Princess Event Guide started to be updated 3 weeks before race weekend. I think this was mentioned a few comments up…
I am expecting/hoping to see them next Thursday!

 

[kps7795]

Princess Event Guide started to be updated 3 weeks before race weekend. I think this was mentioned a few comments up…
I am expecting/hoping to see them next Thursday!

But, I want it NOW! (Think of a Veruca Salt whining voice in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory)

 

[kps7795]

Princess Event Guide started to be updated 3 weeks before race weekend. I think this was mentioned a few comments up…
I am expecting/hoping to see them next Thursday!

In all seriousness, do you happen to remember when the MW Event Guide was released? I wonder if that one was released three weeks before race weekend like for the Princess Weekend.