The Genie Usage, Tips and Strategy ONLY Thread

[DisneyKidds]

Ahhh, understood. So since we are staying on-site and will be able to do the 30 min early entry, it would almost be beneficial to not make a genie+ until past the 2 hours after opening? We used to do this with the Fast Pass system. We normally didn’t even utilize fast pass until around 11am cause we were able to do a decent amount of walk-ons early in the day. Then when afternoon hit we were able to use all 3 fast passes and that got us through the afternoon and almost at dinner time, which is about the time we’d be done with the park for the day.

Yes, for a double stack you would make your first G+ reservation (stack 1) for a return time of 11:00, then at 11:00 before using your existing reservation you make your second G+ reservation (stack 2). Then as you use each of those you can make a replacement G+ reservation, and you continue working those stacks all day. Me….I’m going to try to triple stack. First G+ reservation (stack 1) with a 1:00 return. At 11 make the second (stack 2), then at 1:00 before using the stack 1 reservation make a third (stack 3). Then work the three stacks rest of the day.

Your follow on question is the key….stacking is really dependent upon what kind of G+ reservations are available, which will be more of an issue during busier times.

Of course the double and triple stack strategy timing above assumes you don’t want to engage in grace period roulette, which might just allow you to expedite your stacking timeline!

I don’t really want to have to spend the $15.98 pp for the days we use it, but I do always appreciate a challenge to my generally superior Disney planning and system gaming abilities!!

 

[Sjm9911]

I think the time you arrive is also key. Tripple stacking if your are at rd and not hopping might be a big waste. hell, if its a slow time G + may just be a waste. Hopefully for everyone, ot qorks a little bit to give you an edge if you buy it. Me, im heading home in the am. 7 days of G + at all the parks done. Would I do it again, probably, if just to protect my initial park ticket cost. Was it needed, mostly no. But it was good to have in the afternoon , or to get the one long wait ride. Have fun!

 

[DisneyKidds]

Triple stacking if your are at rd and not hopping might be a big waste.

Agreed! I should have been more clear….I’ll be going for the triple hop stack!

 

[nurseberta]

Agreed! I should have been more clear….I’ll be going for the triple hop stack!

this make me smile!! Lol triple hop stack!!!!!
Hoping to not need much of this in January but happy to know it’s possible. I’m looking forward to taking advantage of G+ and stopping to enjoy the parks in between. Time is money! Esp when you only have 5 days

 

[magicmat77]

Im going to 2 parks - will Genie+ offer reservations on the day of my one-day ticket, and for all the parks so that I can hop and reserve LL and LL$ ? I presume I wont see anything until then on the app to see how its going to work?

 

[nurseberta]

Im going to 2 parks - will Genie+ offer reservations on the day of my one-day ticket, and for all the parks so that I can hop and reserve LL and LL$ ? I presume I wont see anything until then on the app to see how its going to work?

You can purchase G+ day of arrival

It has been reported that if you have a reservation abs want to plan G + attractions at another park you will be prompted with times after 2pm. I have not experienced it yet but this is how it should work

 

[wiggy500]

All is well that ends well I guess. I had a couple big takeaways from day 1 using Genie Plus yesterday. First, I tried to sign up for it at 5:30 am. I couldn't! Tried two devices using both methods I could figure out and got errors. It gave me a phone number to call that no one answered and no one answered the chat either. After a very stressful start, it worked as advertised and I got it around 6:30. I will buy ahead of time next time. So here's how it went:

7:00 book Kilimanjaro 8:10
Ride Kilimanjaro and at 8:13 book 2:00 Big Thunder
10:13 book Navi 12:05.
12:13 book Dinosaur 12:20
Ride Dinosaur 12:31 book 3:25 Haunted
Ride Navi. B mode 12:58 and couldn't book Pirates!

Is stacking LL's a right or a privilege? I was in full "right" mode. Navi went down briefly and changed to a multi experience LL and I had no idea. This made the Navi LL cancel as if I never booked it and I now had to wait until 2:31 to book and I figured to miss Pirates. Be aware this can happen.

2:31 book Splash 4:00 or so. Tap into Big Thunder book 2:50 Pirates! Took some work to get the ideal time, but I did!

No luck getting Test Track. But that's okay. A successful day despite a lot of frustration.

The second and final day on Tuesday I fortunately had no IT glitches to contend with.

After getting my Remy boarding group at 7:02 book 3:50 or so Slinky
At 11:02 book 3:10 Tower of Terror
At 1:08 after no luck booking Test Track settle for 3:10 Rock n' Roller
At 3:15 or so book 4:20 Star Tours
At about 3:30 ride Tower of Terror (110 minute wait at half strength) and book 4:20 Muppets that I ultimately opted to skip
About 3:45 ride Rock n' Roller (45 minute wait)
About 4 ride Slinky (70 or 75 minute wait)
About 4:15 ride Star Tours

Weirdly at the Epcot entrance they announced Test Track was going to be closing at 7 p.m. for the day, which prevented me from doing it standby in the evening. In the two days that ended up being the only ride I was hoping to ride that I didn't get to.

 

[Grumpy by Birth]

Agreed! I should have been more clear….I’ll be going for the triple hop stack!

Isn't that on the menu at IHOP?

 

[monkeybug]

I’m sure these have been covered and I just missed it but, can two people make selections at the same time for the same group? Can I get passes for Slinky while my husband is getting ILL for ROTR?
And you don’t need to physically be in the park to make selections after that initial 7:00am (or park opening for non-resort guests) pass, right? You can make them from your hotel room or wherever?

 

[AnnaKristoff2013]

From this thread and other sources, I’m getting the message that literally the only Genie+ strategy that works is to start making selections at 7, rope drop, and prioritize must-do early in the day over all else. Do you guys agree?

No. Another option is to just start booking things early to stack later in the day and then stroll into the park later. The only problem with this strategy is that you don't get the benefit of sleeping in because you still have to be up at 7 to make your first selection. Disney really needs to fix this, forcing everyone to be up at 7 every day of their vacation stinks.

 

[nurseberta]

The second and final day on Tuesday I fortunately had no IT glitches to contend with.

After getting my Remy boarding group at 7:02 book 3:50 or so Slinky
At 11:02 book 3:10 Tower of Terror
At 1:08 after no luck booking Test Track settle for 3:10 Rock n' Roller
At 3:15 or so book 4:20 Star Tours
At about 3:30 ride Tower of Terror (110 minute wait at half strength) and book 4:20 Muppets that I ultimately opted to skip
About 3:45 ride Rock n' Roller (45 minute wait)
About 4 ride Slinky (70 or 75 minute wait)
About 4:15 ride Star Tours

Weirdly at the Epcot entrance they announced Test Track was going to be closing at 7 p.m. for the day, which prevented me from doing it standby in the evening. In the two days that ended up being the only ride I was hoping to ride that I didn't get to.

too bad you missed test track, curious what BG you got and when you rode Remy?
Nice touring plan though to get in SDD, ToT, RnR, and Star Tours all in an hour!!! I would call that a win!! did you feel like the time it took to secure these was worth it? did it consume your morning? I am wo worried about being too anxious about stacking that I'll miss the down time

No. Another option is to just start booking things early to stack later in the day and then stroll into the park later. The only problem with this strategy is that you don't get the benefit of sleeping in because you still have to be up at 7 to make your first selection. Disney really needs to fix this, forcing everyone to be up at 7 every day of their vacation stinks.

I think sleeping in and strolling in may possibly need to be left for parks like AK and Epcot. I cant see getting everything done at HS without getting there early.

 

[Jrb1979]

No. Another option is to just start booking things early to stack later in the day and then stroll into the park later. The only problem with this strategy is that you don't get the benefit of sleeping in because you still have to be up at 7 to make your first selection. Disney really needs to fix this, forcing everyone to be up at 7 every day of their vacation stinks.

I doubt it will change. IMO the best option is make it like Maxpass, only be able to use it only when in the parks.

 

[disneyworld19]

Maybe a silly question but can you get the paid LL and also do the stack? We have a short trip for a busy time. For example at Epcot at 7am could i

Buy remy
Buy frozen
Book LL for tt
Get a remy bg

could I hold all those at once, and start a stack at noon?

 

[elgerber]

Maybe a silly question but can you get the paid LL and also do the stack? We have a short trip for a busy time. For example at Epcot at 7am could i

Buy remy
Buy frozen
Book LL for tt
Get a remy bg

could I hold all those at once, and start a stack at noon?

yes

 

[Maxwell42]

No. Another option is to just start booking things early to stack later in the day and then stroll into the park later. The only problem with this strategy is that you don't get the benefit of sleeping in because you still have to be up at 7 to make your first selection. Disney really needs to fix this, forcing everyone to be up at 7 every day of their vacation stinks.

I'm not sure I agree with this. We don't go until January, but from what I've observed, I don't think you need to start booking at 7 if you're going later in the day (depending on what park you're going to). The only park where it seems necessary is HS because SDD (and to a lesser extent MFSR) go so quickly - so it's pretty critical to snag SDD early, at least in that 7:00 hour, and then get MFSR as your second LL at the end of your 2 hour window.

At the other parks, the return times for most rides don't seem to push out into the afternoon nearly as quickly as at HS, so if you're planning for a late arrival, I don't think it benefits you to start booking at 7. But you certainly want to prioritize the rides that go most quickly in the park you're headed to, and watch the return times for them so you can book them as soon as possible, so that you can start stacking LL's every two hours.

 

[dez1978]

Yes, for a double stack you would make your first G+ reservation (stack 1) for a return time of 11:00, then at 11:00 before using your existing reservation you make your second G+ reservation (stack 2). Then as you use each of those you can make a replacement G+ reservation, and you continue working those stacks all day. Me….I’m going to try to triple stack. First G+ reservation (stack 1) with a 1:00 return. At 11 make the second (stack 2), then at 1:00 before using the stack 1 reservation make a third (stack 3). Then work the three stacks rest of the day.

Your follow on question is the key….stacking is really dependent upon what kind of G+ reservations are available, which will be more of an issue during busier times.

Of course the double and triple stack strategy timing above assumes you don’t want to engage in grace period roulette, which might just allow you to expedite your stacking timeline!

I don’t really want to have to spend the $15.98 pp for the days we use it, but I do always appreciate a challenge to my generally superior Disney planning and system gaming abilities!!

Could you give me some suggetions for this? We are going to ak then hopping to HS. How would I want to time this? The plan is to RD FOP, and honestly Idk that we'd need to LL anything else at AK. We could FOP, the Navi, then safari. EE has a single rider line. Dino is usually a short ish wait and if not, no big deal. We are going the week after thanksgiving so I'm not sure about crowds.

 

[wings91]

Is this a better deal than fp?

 

[DisneyKidds]

Could you give me some suggetions for this? We are going to ak then hopping to HS. How would I want to time this? The plan is to RD FOP, and honestly Idk that we'd need to LL anything else at AK. We could FOP, the Navi, then safari. EE has a single rider line. Dino is usually a short ish wait and if not, no big deal. We are going the week after thanksgiving so I'm not sure about crowds.

While I have no idea how effective it will be next summer when we have a chance to try and put what I think I’ve learned to practice , this is my likely strategy for an AK then hop elsewhere day. Of course it’s all dependent upon suitable LL returns being available.

Arrive AK 45 minutes prior to park open. Sometime after 7am but before 8:00 secure a LL for Safari with a return window that extends beyond 4 hours from park open. Say AK opens at 8:00, try and finagle at Safari return of 12:00 (if returns are that far out prior to 8am). Rope drop FoP, then beeline to EE for standby/single rider, then try to get Dinosaur and a couple other things while lines are still relatively short. At 10:00 make a LL reservation in the hop to park, say TT with a return after 4:00 (again, if a reservation that far out is available). At 12:00, before tapping into Safari, make another LL reservation in the hop to park, say Soarin’ also with a return after 4:00 (if…we’ll, you get the drill). I believe that should set the triple hop stack, with Safari, TT, and Soarin’ in hand before tapping in for anything. Once tapped in for Safari (don’t tap in before 12:00!) make another LL reservation in hop to park, say Spaceship Earth with a return later in the day. After the 12:00 Safari return do some walking trails, maybe a show or another short standby or two, have lunch, then commence hop. That allows us to arrive at the hop to park in the afternoon with three rides secured (after having use a LL return in AK). You could replace TT, Soarin’ and Spaceship Earth in that example with rides in HS (perhaps RnR, ToT, and TSMM). Then when you arrive in the hop to park and start using LL returns book something new after each tap in, if stuff is available. I think that plan is solid, but if anyone sees a flaw let me know!!!

I’m still fuzzy on the whole grace period hack, which might provide an opportunity to expedite the creation of the stack….but I’ve got time to figure out if that’s worth messing with.

 

[abbycwell]

Im still looking for answers on if you cancel a G+ reservation to say HM, you can rebook HM again later in the day?

Also what if you accidently let your G+ reservation expire for BTMR? Can you book it again?

yes- you can rebook if you cancel it- but not if you let it expire. I did it a lot this week.

 

[Missmaureen78]

Question on the "grace period" hack for setting up a stack. Let's say you created a double stack in the morning and use it for a few hours. Then you notice the LL time -- for Peter Pan for example -- is already way out in the evening so you book it before its gone. Now you only have 1 LL reservation to work with. Can you use the grace period hack to set up another stack? So it's 2:00, you make a PP reservation for 7:30 (for example), you make a reservation for XX ride at 2:30, you let that expire at 3:31, make another, tap in and make another....so now you're back to having 2 + the PP for later. Assuming there are rides with appropriate times...would that work?