The Genie Usage, Tips and Strategy ONLY Thread

[wisblue]

We had some success using Genie+ on our arrival day.

We had a flight at 6:05 AM CST, which meant we had to leave home at 3:30 AM to get to the airport. We had park reservations at DHS and planned to spend a few hours there before getting back to the room early to cap a long day.

The first challenge was that we were boarded on the plane at 7AM EST and wasn’t sure I’d be able to connect to MDE. But, I was able to log in after one false start and snagged an LL for ROTR at 4:15. One of my daughters who wasn’t on the flight got a LL for MFSR at 2:20.

We were just arriving at our resort at 11 AM and I got a LL for TSMM with a 3:15 return. Then at 1, just after our room became available I got 4:45 return for Stat Tours.

So, we left for the park at about 1:30 armed with LL for 4 of our favorite attractions. We used those 4 LL, bypassing posted standby waits of 70, 70, 170, and 25 minutes, and get something to eat before leaving the park at 6.

 

[Momma of 4]

I've popped in and out of this thread but can't seem to find the answer to my question....does the G+ line move pretty fast? Is there usually a wait for those lines also, just shorter? We're going end of Jan, so already hopefully lower crowds, but I have 3 under 6 and waits are brutal for us. I'm debating buying G+ for some days, MK specifically, if that means we can walk on the rides we book. Thanks!

 

[Disturbia]

The slowest line we experienced was for Soarin. It took us a total of 30 mins to ride so we had to skip our rider switch. Test Track took 5-6 mins longer because the line was being held up by a huge party (10+) trying to get the CM to issue a rider switch. I’d be careful stacking passes and budget extra time for getting from one end of the park to another (Canada/France area gets extremely congested after 2 pm due to park hopping guests). Food booths took 20 mins in that area.

For MK, Genie+ was giving us a time which was over an hour away at little mermaid when the wait was 25 mins. It worked better in the mornings (Adventureland) and we stacked evening passes during lunch/pool break. It took us over an hour to get from MK to Ohana after the fireworks (would not recommend). Other lines moved faster than FP+ because there were less people buying (first week of Nov).

 

[bjcaed]

I've popped in and out of this thread but can't seem to find the answer to my question....does the G+ line move pretty fast? Is there usually a wait for those lines also, just shorter? We're going end of Jan, so already hopefully lower crowds, but I have 3 under 6 and waits are brutal for us. I'm debating buying G+ for some days, MK specifically, if that means we can walk on the rides we book. Thanks!

We went the second week of December and cro

I've popped in and out of this thread but can't seem to find the answer to my question....does the G+ line move pretty fast? Is there usually a wait for those lines also, just shorter? We're going end of Jan, so already hopefully lower crowds, but I have 3 under 6 and waits are brutal for us. I'm debating buying G+ for some days, MK specifically, if that means we can walk on the rides we book. Thanks!

crowds were busy but not awful and we never waited more than 5 minutes and most things we walked on with LL and ILL. It often took longer to walk through the que because it was empty!! The only exception was Buzz Light year, it had broken down not too long before our return time so it was backed up but we only waited 15 minutes. The line for Frozen looked long but moved really fast. Genie plus worked perfectly for us. I did feel some guilt walking passed ALL the people waiting especially for Slinky and Ratatouille. Have fun

 

[SheSingsAlong]

If I'm planning on using a park hopper ticket with Genie+ at HS on my arrival day (so probably after 5 PM) on a Thursday at the end of January (already checked into resort online) - should I pick a different park for my reservation (like EPCOT) so when I look at 7:00 AM for afternoon or evening availability it'll automatically look for HS availability after 2:00 PM? Just a little confused and many, many thanks! EDIT - JUST DAWNED ON ME THAT I'D STILL HAVE TO TAP INTO EPCOT BEFORE HS IF I DID THAT...oops...not really a problem, but i spaced on that detail for a minute!

no, if you do that you will have to scan in to Epcot first, before you go to HS.

I came here with a similar question - if I wanted to stack HS G+ LLs for the afternoon (on arrival day, let's say), could I make my park reservation for EP initially (in order to force LL return times to 2pm or later for me at HS) and then CHANGE my park reservation to HS later in the day so I wouldn't actually have to go tap in at EP before going to HS? If you change your park reservation, do you lose all your G+ LLs or something crazy like that?

 

[Disturbia]

I came here with a similar question - if I wanted to stack HS G+ LLs for the afternoon (on arrival day, let's say), could I make my park reservation for EP initially (in order to force LL return times to 2pm or later for me at HS) and then CHANGE my park reservation to HS later in the day so I wouldn't actually have to go tap in at EP before going to HS? If you change your park reservation, do you lose all your G+ LLs or something crazy like that?

HS park passes have routinely been sold out for weeks in advance. I would not risk it. I would think your screen would freeze and it takes hours to get things fixed with GET. If you have HS park passes available just grab them and keep looking at the app when you’re eligible to stack evening passes starting with SDD/MFSR (7 am-8 am; should jump into pm availability), MFSR/SDD (11 am), TOT/RnR at 1 pm.

 

[g-dad66]

I came here with a similar question - if I wanted to stack HS G+ LLs for the afternoon (on arrival day, let's say), could I make my park reservation for EP initially (in order to force LL return times to 2pm or later for me at HS) and then CHANGE my park reservation to HS later in the day so I wouldn't actually have to go tap in at EP before going to HS? If you change your park reservation, do you lose all your G+ LLs or something crazy like that?

Wait a few seconds after 7am, and Slinky Dog Dash LL time will be well into the afternoon. By 11am when you are next eligible, you will have no trouble getting LLs with late afternoon return times.

 

[leeniewdw]

4. At 11:35, we tapped Toy Story Mania and booked TT for 5:15~6:15. I had 2-hour countdown alarm started on my phone to remind me of the next G+ opening.

This is a much better idea than what I did when we went in Dec. I set up alarms based on time of day on my phone. It worked FINE when I was grabbing LLs on our arrival day for DHS (even our flight departed/arrived during a 2 hour window). But it was a bust the next day when I was trying to grab evening LLs in EP. I kept having to wait to get a time that worked for us and then it threw off my alarms. This is so smart!

The slowest line we experienced was for Soarin.

For us it was Soarin and TT. Between those wait times and the ground we had to cover between attractions, we missed a SPACE return time (and I forgot to just cancel and try to rebook). However, when we arrived at SPACE there was literally not another human in our line or waiting to get on the ride (orange side). The CM pretended we were VIPs since he said they hold everyone else up, lol.

I will definitely rethink any LL scheduling at EP. After Space we had to hoof it to Remy to make *that* window. Come to think of it, that was slightly slower than other rides, but it was our last one, so it didn't matter.

 

[Duck143]

I'm wondering if you have multiple LL stacked in the afternoon, let's say your first one is at 2pm, then you have 3 more stacked for later than that. Can you make another LL after you tap into the 2pm LL attraction?

 

[g-dad66]

I'm wondering if you have multiple LL stacked in the afternoon, let's say your first one is at 2pm, then you have 3 more stacked for later than that. Can you make another LL after you tap into the 2pm LL attraction?

No, because you already used up the eligibility that your first LL would have given you (when you booked your second LL). Tapping into an attraction only makes you eligible when it is your MOST RECENTLY BOOKED attraction.

 

[Duck143]

No, because you already used up the eligibility that your first LL would have given you (when you booked your second LL). Tapping into an attraction only makes you eligible when it is your MOST RECENTLY BOOKED attraction.

Got it, so if the earliest one (2pm) was booked last and tapped into first, you could make a new choice.

 

[kellya222]

What do you think of my plan using Genie + for DHS on Wednesday, Jan 12th?

At 7am, book SDD first ( Smugglers Run is not a priority for us)....likely to trigger the 120 minute rule. Immediately after, buy ROTR ILL$ and MMRR ILL$.
At 8:30 early entry, RD TOT and Rock and Roller coaster.
Do short stand bys and shows while waiting to book next LL at 11. Pick up less popular LLs as the day progresses.

 

[Disturbia]

What do you think of my plan using Genie + for DHS on Wednesday, Jan 12th?

At 7am, book SDD first ( Smugglers Run is not a priority for us)....likely to trigger the 120 minute rule. Immediately after, buy ROTR ILL$ and MMRR ILL$.
At 8:30 early entry, RD TOT and Rock and Roller coaster.
Do short stand bys and shows while waiting to book next LL at 11. Pick up less popular LLs as the day progresses.

Sounds like a solid plan. That’s what we did in Nov. Kids don’t like MFSR. One of us grabbed SDD and the other ROTR. They were both easy to book. MMRR gave us problems and I had to copy and paste from an email 4 times (kept freezing on payment screen) and it was time consuming and frustrating. I would prioritize TOT over RnR. I picked RnR after TSMM around 2:30 and TOT was sold out within minutes after that (was refreshing to get an earlier time, should have split bookings as our 5 yr old doesn't meet height requirements for RnR). The CM told me to go to GET at the front of the park if I wanted RnR cancelled; we didn’t bother.

Do keep in mind that ROTR takes 30-40 mins to ride each time (esp if doing rider switch).

 

[kellya222]

Sounds like a solid plan. That’s what we did in Nov. Kids don’t like MFSR. One of us grabbed SDD and the other ROTR. They were both easy to book. MMRR gave us problems and I had to copy and paste from an email 4 times (kept freezing on payment screen) and it was time consuming and frustrating. I would prioritize TOT over RnR. I picked RnR after TSMM around 2:30 and TOT was sold out within minutes after that (was refreshing to get an earlier time, should have split bookings as our 5 yr old doesn't meet height requirements for RnR). The CM told me to go to GET at the front of the park to fix it; we didn’t bother.

Do keep in mind that ROTR takes 30-40 mins to ride each time (esp if doing rider switch).

Great advice! Thank you!

 

[Leahc117]

Any G+ advice for park hopping magic kingdom morning and Hollywood studios afternoon?

 

[g-dad66]

Got it, so if the earliest one (2pm) was booked last and tapped into first, you could make a new choice.

Correct.

 

[wisblue]

Day 2 of our Marathon Weekend trip produced some Genie+ information.

Our plan for the day was to start at DHS, leave around noon to get our bibs and shirts for the events, stop back at SSR to drop things off and take a short break, and then go to Epcot for a few hours.

At 7, my daughter snagged a Slinky return of 9:10. My phone froze when I tried to book Slinky and I had to close and restart the app, and by then the return time was out to 2PM. My backup plan had been to try to get an early time for Slinky during the 710 Surge. Though that wasn’t necessary, I confirmed on the bus to DHS that more Slinky times did come up at 710.

We rode TOT at opening (RNRC was still down as it has been most of the last week) and then MMRR with about a 20 minute wait (it seemed like they had let the non resort guests in early because a lot of people were joining that line at the same time.)

After riding Slinky with the LL and the Swirling Saucers with a 15 minute wait (posted 35) we had done every open ride in the park between yesterday afternoon and today in about 5 hours of park time.

The afternoon confirmed that Genie + at Epcot doesn’t save much time. The LL for TT were gone by the time we got off Slinky so, ended up getting and using LL for Sorain and Mission Space. We used both of those but with posted waits of 45 minutes for Soarin and 30 for MS, we didn’t save that much time. Every other G+ attraction at Epcot was a virtual walk on.

As an aside, when we left MS we decided to try the single rider line at TT, which we like anyway because we don’t care if we do the car design. To our surprise, there was literally not one other person in the single rider line so we walked right in and were on and off the ride in 10 minutes. So, I’m glad we didn’t get a LL for that. We did not intend to pay for Frozen or Remy on this trip.

 

[mousegear]

1/5 Wednesday
We went to AK in the morning and MK in the evening. Today is pretty much the last full day in the parks. We still have two days left in our tickets but we only plan to pop in and out for ADRs and just to stroll and shop. We like to take it easy so we are well-rested before heading back home.

1. @ 7 am, I booked G+ Safari LL for 8-9am return. EE is down for refurb which is boo~
I actually drove to AK since we stayed in our room until 7am and this was a mistake. We were really back with Early Entry crowd and it took us almost 20 minutes in FOP line. However since we were able to ride without paying LL$, we stuck it through. We then rode Navi River.
2. We decided to ride Safari right away since the animals are really active in the morning which is a good decision. Then as soon as I tapped, I booked the Festival of Lion King. Today started out cloudy and chilly which we didn't want to ride Kali River.

Afterward we took a coffee break @ Creatures of Comfort and waited until almost 10. It was the first showing for Lion King and we were seated right away. Enjoyed the show and walked Gorilla Trail

3. After tapping Lion King, I started to stack for MK evening. I booked Jungle Cruise for 6:40~7:40pm. Again set 2 hour count down clock for the reminder.
4. Got Thunder Mt for 5:30~6:30 and 2 hour countdown.
5. Got Splash Mt for 5:50~6:50 and after 2 hours, I got Pirate for 6~7.
6. After 2 hours, I got Buzz for 6:30~7:30.

Our plan was to ride hard for 2~3 hours and get out before the fireworks. We saw it from Cali Grill the other night and didn't want to deal with the crowd. Tonight was the busiest night since all the G+ was gone by the time we finished Buzz around 7pm. The park was really packed. I assume it's the marathon crowd and also deluxe resort evening hours at MK that built the crowd.

 

[wisblue]

Wait a few seconds after 7am, and Slinky Dog Dash LL time will be well into the afternoon. By 11am when you are next eligible, you will have no trouble getting LLs with late afternoon return times.

I agree with this based on our experience the last two days. If you can’t get an acceptable time for Slinky at 7:00, wait until 7:10 when more times always seem to pop up. Because those times don’t disappear as fast as at 7:00 you should be able to get something that fits your schedule. By 11 AM when you can make your second pick, the times for the most popular attractions will all be out after 2 PM unless the park is unusually uncrowded.

 

[Avery&Todd]

I've popped in and out of this thread but can't seem to find the answer to my question....does the G+ line move pretty fast? Is there usually a wait for those lines also, just shorter? We're going end of Jan, so already hopefully lower crowds, but I have 3 under 6 and waits are brutal for us. I'm debating buying G+ for some days, MK specifically, if that means we can walk on the rides we book. Thanks!

When we went this past November that the longest wait was for Ratt - we were on time for our G+ return time but waited in line for 45+ minutes - my DH was not happy at all. We visited Epcot 2xs during our visit and the ride wait time was as long for both days...

Now, it may have changed/gotten better since then but I'm anticipating long waits when we go in March...