The Genie Usage, Tips and Strategy ONLY Thread

[g-dad66]

Hello, apologies for this question that I'm sure has already been asked, but I skimmed several pages and didn't see it.

We have a group of 6 going. I'm the only one with an MDE account, and everyone is linked to it.

Can we also install MDE on, say, my wife's phone and have her log in using my account at the same time I'm logged in on my phone? And if so, can we do two things at once? For example, at 7 AM, I book a ILL while she books our first G+ LL?

I'm thinking especially about our DHS day, of course, where multiple things we would want to get at 7 AM are gone almost instantly.

Thanks!

Yes and yes.

 

[jacobsmommy]

Which of the ILL rides do you all recommend rope dropping at 8:30 and which do you recommend buying? We want to ride SM, SDMT (and we have two mornings at MK); FEA and R (and we have two mornings at Epcot); M&M and ROTR (and one morning at HS; and FOP (with one morning at AK).

 

[cjlong88]

Without getting into a debate about Genie+ and individual lightning lane purchases, looking for some insight from those who have been lately. At DHS, I will buy EITHER Genie+ OR an ILL for ROTR, not both. ROTR is a must-do for us, since my son has never been to Galaxy's Edge and is a lifelong Star Wars fan. We've been to DHS many times, so everything else is gravy.

Would you buy Genie+ and rope drop ROTR (we'll be onsite, so will have early entry), or would you buy ILL for ROTR?

Thanks for your thoughts!

Personally, I would get the ILL for Rise. Rope Drop other attractions so you can get 1-2 rides with short waits. If it gets crazy crowded just take a break at the hotel, then come back in the evening and hop in line for something right at park close. If your party absolutely loved Rise and it’s operating just fine at night, you could ride it for a second time. With it being the major reason you’re visiting, picking the exact time you would want would be great and if it breaks down it will be good for anytime it’s back up and running.

 

[emcarle27]

Think of G+ (LLs) and ILL$ as completely different systems, "disconnected" in the old FP language. Other than both giving you a quick way to get on a ride, they don't interact or affect each other. They each have different rules of how many you can book and when, differences in booking times in one but not the other if staying onsite or offsite, etc. They are just separate things, you can buy one but not the other, neither, or both products. They don't impact each other at all.

Thank you! I did not realize that. Good to know

 

[mvndvm]

Having trouble finding an answer…when you book either G+ or ILL, does the app automatically select all linked members?

 

[GBRforWDW]

Having trouble finding an answer…when you book either G+ or ILL, does the app automatically select all linked members?

Yes. You can also choose to edit your party and remove someone.

 

[masupo]

Ok Slinky Dog and Rise are still available. Is everyone just sleeping in after the marathon?

 

[glocon]

Ok Slinky Dog and Rise are still available. Is everyone just sleeping in after the marathon?

And 20 minutes after your post, both are still available!

 

[Dixiemom]

This Genie+ thing is really confusing to me. I just wonder if it might be a good way to avoid doing the park hopper as many of the attractions my daughter loves are on it.

 

[3smithboys]

Thanks so much for this thread. There is a lot of great information. I have been reading over it for days now, and I think I am beginning to get a better understanding of everything.

The one thing that I can’t seem to understand is the idea of the 2hr wait to book another G+ vs tapping in and being able to get one right away. I understand the stacking in the evening. I’m sure there are other tricks and tips I’m missing too!

Thanks for any help.

 

[g-dad66]

Thanks so much for this thread. There is a lot of great information. I have been reading over it for days now, and I think I am beginning to get a better understanding of everything.

The one thing that I can’t seem to understand is the idea of the 2hr wait to book another G+ vs tapping in and being able to get one right away. I understand the stacking in the evening. I’m sure there are other tricks and tips I’m missing too!

Thanks for any help.

You can get another LL right away (let's call it LL2) if you are tapping into your MOST RECENTLY BOOKED LL (let's call it LL1). You don't have to wait the full 2 hours from the time that you booked LL1.

If 2 hours have gone by since you booked LL1, you are now eligible to book LL2. After using the 2-hour rule, the LL1 booking no longer has any relevance to future eligiblity. It doesn't matter what time the LL1 booking is for or when you use it.

LL2 now determines your next eligibility which is either (a) 2 hours, or (b) when you double-tap into LL2 (whichever comes first).

The good thing is that when you try to book, the app will tell you if you are not eligible, AND it will tell you the next time when you are eligible to book again.

 

[3smithboys]

You can get another LL right away (let's call it LL2) if you are tapping into your MOST RECENTLY BOOKED LL (let's call it LL1). You don't have to wait the full 2 hours from the time that you booked LL1.

If 2 hours have gone by since you booked LL1, you are now eligible to book LL2. After using the 2-hour rule, the LL1 booking no longer has any relevance to future eligiblity. It doesn't matter what time the LL1 booking is for or when you use it.

LL2 now determines your next eligibility which is either (a) 2 hours, or (b) when you double-tap into LL2 (whichever comes first).

The good thing is that when you try to book, the app will tell you if you are not eligible, AND it will tell you the next time when you are eligible to book again.

Thank you so much for your answer! This makes sense and I understand it so much better. Now we have to decide if it’s better to stack a few for the evening or ride in the morning and then start stacking for the evening.

It’s just DH and I going for a short trip July 2-5 to celebrate our 30th anniversary. We’ve not been for several years, and can’t wait to see everything new. Never been without our kids either.

 

[Ecomommy09]

Thank you so much for your answer! This makes sense and I understand it so much better. Now we have to decide if it’s better to stack a few for the evening or ride in the morning and then start stacking for the evening.

It’s just DH and I going for a short trip July 2-5 to celebrate our 30th anniversary. We’ve not been for several years, and can’t wait to see everything new. Never been without our kids either.

You will have so much fun.

 

[monkeybug]

We’re headed to MK tomorrow and are resort guests who plan on rope dropping. Would you recommend buying Seven Dwarves and Space? If we do that should we head straight to Peter Pan? We do have access to MK extra evening hours later in the week if that makes a difference.
I plan on getting a LL for Jungle Cruise at 7am.

 

[RNTeacher]

We rope dropped in MK today and walked on to 7DMT. Not sure what crowds look like for tomorrow. We had a fabulous day at MK.

 

[g-dad66]

We’re headed to MK tomorrow and are resort guests who plan on rope dropping. Would you recommend buying Seven Dwarves and Space? If we do that should we head straight to Peter Pan? We do have access to MK extra evening hours later in the week if that makes a difference.
I plan on getting a LL for Jungle Cruise at 7am.

If you buy 7 Dwarfs and Space, then it makes sense to rope drop Peter Pan. One advantage of rope-dropping Peter Pan is you go through the queue where you will get to see Tinker Bell. (If you LL it, you skip the queue.)

 

[Disneynewb0001]

We rope dropped in MK today and walked on to 7DMT. Not sure what crowds look like for tomorrow. We had a fabulous day at MK.

Our last trip was July/August last year (2021) and there was no FP, FP+, or Genie+. Honestly, I enjoyed not having to worry about that because everyone was on equal footing. At the end of the day, getting to the parks at rope drop paid off, and everyone was equal as there was only one line.

Back when visiting the parks with FP+, I felt like we had to line up rides via FP+ as standing in the standby line meant you weren't just waiting for the folks to move through in the line in front of you but also all the folks who have fast passes entering the FP line before and even after I entered the standby line.

Personally, I don't like the introduction of Genie+ and ILL but I know that I will utilize the two for our upcoming trip in April. While I count it as the cost of going to WDW, I don't like the fact that families who are budgeting just to make the trip and can't afford the extra cost are treated differently just because they don't have the money to spend on Genie+ and/or ILL.

 

[Twilight Sparkle]

Has anyone had trouble using Genie + on an iphone 7 plus? I'm wondering if I need to upgrade my phone before our trip.

 

[Mambo Junkie]

I'm trying to figure out how/when to purchase, etc. Thank you if you can point me in the right direction!

 

[wisblue]

Ok Slinky Dog and Rise are still available. Is everyone just sleeping in after the marathon?

The marathon was Sunday, the half marathon was Saturday.

I was at DHS at 7:30 yesterday (Sunday) because I was going to be there to see two of my daughters come through much later in the morning as they completed the Dopey Challenge. ( I am not that dopey and just did the 10K on Friday). I also wanted to have a chance to see the top marathoners race through just 3 miles from the finish line. Then I knew I would have a chance to do a few rides with low waits before my daughters would come through.

When I arrived, instead of the usual lines waiting for the security lanes to open, I was one of about 5 people there. When they did open security they let everyone through the tapstiles into the park, so I was able to walk down by TOT to see some of the fastest marathoners come through.

I think there are two significant reasons why crowds at opening of the parks are low on Marathon day. For one, a lot of resort guests are either participating in the marathon or supporting family and friends who are running. Also, road closures relating to the event can make getting to the parks more difficult, and I expect that that keeps people away.

The wait times at DHS were very low for the first hour or so on Sunday. I had purchased Genie+ because my daughters and I were going to MK later in the day and I knew they wouldn‘t feel like standing in lines. So, I had a LL for Slinky for a 9:10 return, and when I went there after walking on TOT and TSMM (RNRC was still down) the posted wait time at Slinky was only 35 minutes, and I would guess the actual wait might have been shorter. It was strange to see the line not extending out around the corner.

After Slinky I walked over to MFSR and was the only person in the Single Rider line. Then I went to Star Tours and there was literally nobody in the line before the merge point. The ship I was on was not full. At one point shortly after 9 the posted wait time at ROR was 25 minutes. Because I had done the ride with my daughters a few days earlier I didn’t bother hustling over to take advantage of that.

The bottom line is that Marathon Sunday is a unique once a year day at WDW. It presents some unique challenges and some unique opportunities if you can take advantage of them. Generally, I don’t think I would want to go to WDW on Marathon Weekend if I wasn’t participating.