Lightning Lane at Walt Disney World

[GhostHost1000]

Genie+ is awful only cause too many people are buying it. Take away even half the people using it each day and it's a much different story.

The people on this board aren't your average guest. They are the ones that don't like all the planning.

Take away half the people using it, it’s still a bad design that took a step back and needs changes IMO

people don’t mind the planning if it means we get a better experience. I’d rather plan more ahead of time than be stressed planning on my phone starting at 7am the day of and throughout the day while in the parks when I should be enjoying the surroundings and experience of just being there which is what is missing now based on my recent 12 day trip usage of it

FP+ wasn’t perfect either, but I have to think if they had just charged for it as is and less people used it if the experience and feedback would be much better than it is now. They also wouldn’t have had to waste money on new signs and renaming the whole thing which is dumb and more confusing now too (LL and ILL), especially to the newer guests

 

[crazy4disney]

Genie+ is awful only cause too many people are buying it. Take away even half the people using it each day and it's a much different story.

The people on this board aren't your average guest. They are the ones that don't like all the planning.

& no disrespect to you. My guess is More people used FP+ than use Genie. At the bare minimum more people booked 3 rides initially then are using Genie +. So the math just does NOT add up imo i could betotally wrong on this. Maybe you have facts to compare the 2. Im using the eye test and common sense here. Every prebooked 3 rides even people who were clueless. Others a good amount used additional ones in the parks day of. This has been confirmed by numerous people on and off site guests along w AP holders. So i cant buy all of a sudden inventory is an issue. To me this is more propaganda (again hot take) to charge MORE $ for a “new” system they may be developing. Genie is awful you cant get anything. That was NOT the case with FP day of and lets face it we all had 3 solid rides prior to entering the parks as a resort guests and seems like non resort guests and AP were semi haply as well wtheir choices. So all that does not add up that too many people are using Genie.

 

[crazy4disney]

& no disrespect to you. My guess is More people used FP+ than use Genie. At the bare minimum more people booked 3 rides initially then are using Genie +. So the math just does NOT add up imo i could betotally wrong on this. Maybe you have facts to compare the 2. Im using the eye test and common sense here. Every prebooked 3 rides even people who were clueless. Others a good amount used additional ones in the parks day of. This has been confirmed by numerous people on and off site guests along w AP holders. So i cant buy all of a sudden inventory is an issue. To me this is more propaganda (again hot take) to charge MORE $ for a “new” system they may be developing. Genie is awful you cant get anything. That was NOT the case with FP day of and lets face it we all had 3 solid rides prior to entering the parks as a resort guests and seems like non resort guests and AP were semi haply as well wtheir choices. So all that does not add up that too many people are using Genie.

& ill go 1 step further. Charge 25-30 a day for the exact same product FP was people would pay for it & salivate at that once again.
And to touch base on planning. You literally HAVE to plan a park you are going to which to me is worse bc you are stuck there potentially with no top rides comes 7am. So Disney caved on olanning for rides that benefit the guest but didnt cave on the choosing park complaint? Not to mention any families that are doing character meals had to plan anyways so again you didnt eliminate the part people were “complaining” about. Yes Disney lost the spontaneous guests but come on. What percent of people actually book and plan a vacation less than 2 months out and if you do. You cant be upset if you feel
Slighted to someone who booked 6 months earlier. You were literally given 3 rides to walk on. You DIDNT have to use then if you chose not to. They were very flexible with return times in my experience and allowed you to choose early mid day or late ride times. But yea too many people are using Genie+ and thats why the system is awful. Again i dont buy it.

 

[GhostHost1000]

& ill go 1 step further. Charge 25-30 a day for the exact same product FP was people would pay for it & salivate at that once again.
And to touch base on planning. You literally HAVE to plan a park you are going to which to me is worse bc you are stuck there potentially with no top rides comes 7am. So Disney caved on olanning for rides that benefit the guest but didnt cave on the choosing park complaint? Not to mention any families that are doing character meals had to plan anyways so again you didnt eliminate the part people were “complaining” about. Yes Disney lost the spontaneous guests but come on. What percent of people actually book and plan a vacation less than 2 months out and if you do. You cant be upset if you feel
Slighted to someone who booked 6 months earlier. You were literally given 3 rides to walk on. You DIDNT have to use then if you chose not to. They were very flexible with return times in my experience and allowed you to choose early mid day or late ride times. But yea too many people are using Genie+ and thats why the system is awful. Again i dont buy it.

100% agree with what you are saying. I don’t buy the argument more people are using it than before, it would work if less people did, and they took out preplanning because people didn’t like it yet add in preplanning elsewhere. If people have to preplan their parks, then some show up the day of guests can’t get in anyways. It just doesn’t add up. The old system while not perfect was used more with in some cases less offerings and it was way easier to do things and enjoy your day without stress and a 7am gambling match

And it blows my mind with the data Disney has they couldn’t figure out and know it or even build an AI system to determine how this new system would work or not work before implementing. It’s just a complete failure in management, planning, and implementation and they are paying for it more than we are

 

[Jrb1979]

& no disrespect to you. My guess is More people used FP+ than use Genie. At the bare minimum more people booked 3 rides initially then are using Genie +. So the math just does NOT add up imo i could betotally wrong on this. Maybe you have facts to compare the 2. Im using the eye test and common sense here. Every prebooked 3 rides even people who were clueless. Others a good amount used additional ones in the parks day of. This has been confirmed by numerous people on and off site guests along w AP holders. So i cant buy all of a sudden inventory is an issue. To me this is more propaganda (again hot take) to charge MORE $ for a “new” system they may be developing. Genie is awful you cant get anything. That was NOT the case with FP day of and lets face it we all had 3 solid rides prior to entering the parks as a resort guests and seems like non resort guests and AP were semi haply as well wtheir choices. So all that does not add up that too many people are using Genie.

More people may have used FP+ but you also had didn't have 2 rides per park taken out of the FP+ inventory like you do now. That makes a huge difference in ride availability. Add in from everything that's been said they also don't give out as many LL compared to FP. Mainly due to that if you are paying for it most people want short waits. It is a completely different system.

If you read what @disneyglimpses wrote on how it is supposed to work I think most would be ok with it. It's not meant to used like FP with stacking attractions and refresh refresh refresh.

 

[Chi84]

people don’t mind the planning if it means we get a better experience. I’d rather plan more ahead of time than be stressed planning on my phone starting at 7am the day of and throughout the day while in the parks when I should be enjoying the surroundings and experience of just being there which is what is missing now based on my recent 12 day trip usage of it

FP+ wasn’t perfect either, but I have to think if they had just charged for it as is and less people used it if the experience and feedback would be much better than it is now. They also wouldn’t have had to waste money on new signs and renaming the whole thing which is dumb and more confusing now too (LL and ILL), especially to the newer guests

This is absolutely true. I don't know where people get the idea that someone planning their only or very infrequent, very expensive WDW vacation is okay with flying by the seat of their pants where rides are concerned, especially if they have to reserve dining, plan for shows, decide on water park days, etc. I've been contacted by friends and family for advice on WDW vacations, and I can guarantee you they loved the assurance of knowing they could get the rides they wanted at times that wouldn't interfere with their other plans. If anyone contacts me now, my only advice is not to go at this time.

 

[crazy4disney]

More people may have used FP+ but you also had didn't have 2 rides per park taken out of the FP+ inventory like you do now. That makes a huge difference in ride availability. Add in from everything that's been said they also don't give out as many LL compared to FP. Mainly due to that if you are paying for it most people want short waits. It is a completely different system.

If you read what @disneyglimpses wrote on how it is supposed to work I think most would be ok with it. It's not meant to used like FP with stacking attractions and refresh refresh refresh.

Ive read it and honestly still
Dont buy it and if ALL these people are stacking that means there should be a ton of early availability which there isnt. As far as the inventory being gone. Here is my take on that. When FP was around Those rides were pretty much gone already would you agree? Thats been the “complain” atho plenty have said otherwise. So you can have it both ways. So thats 1 ride out of 3 when we pre planned because currently thats all thats out of the mix and its still a nightmare. Everyone gets another ride at 7am thats 2 rides. Still leaves you 1 ride short of ALL the pre planned rides booked when MORE people had access to the system. Again i have absolutely ZERO inside knowledge other than common sense and using some logic and math after experiencing it in its early stages where less people were on it vs FP which everyone was on and booked 3 rides to start the trip. Once you were able to book another ride using Genie there was absolutely nothing remotely close to the actual time so unless you paid for ILL you rode once and then are like now what? Even with 2 they werent going to be close together. I can assure you using FP as a resort guest i was using my 4th ride either before noon or right around there basically each day at ALL parks and i go during Thanksgiving so far from a slow time. Used it during Columbus day week as well another decently busy week and the Presidents week when schools are off at times. So its not like ive gone during dead times of year. Again to me the #s just dont add up. Call me skeptic but they felt charging for the same product was gonna be bad (not sure why they care bc they truly have shown deep down they dont even tho they may say they do. Actions have spoken louder). Give us an awful product. Then “create” a new one at an even higher price thinking owe wow. Thank you Disney. There is No defending this. No way. No how and no way they couldnt expect this disaster and as i stated early on. If they did think this would work. Shame on them and those people need to be take a few lessons & start reading these forums more often. Maybe even go to the parks like an average guest. You went from 3 rides at basically any time before you boarded a plane to now waking up and hoping to hit a lottery to get something at 9 am to then get to refresh and see what we can do. Yea. Sure they thought this would work?!? Rant over for now…

 

[mysto]

I'm disappointed Disney didn't ignore all the complaints and just do the right thing. Oh wait...

 

[Disney Glimpses]

More people may have used FP+ but you also had didn't have 2 rides per park taken out of the FP+ inventory like you do now. That makes a huge difference in ride availability. Add in from everything that's been said they also don't give out as many LL compared to FP. Mainly due to that if you are paying for it most people want short waits. It is a completely different system.

If you read what @disneyglimpses wrote on how it is supposed to work I think most would be ok with it. It's not meant to used like FP with stacking attractions and refresh refresh refresh.

Expectations are the driver here, not volume. The FP+ inventory was plenty to allow each resort guest 3 per day at 60 days out. The expectation of use on the remaining inventory (off site, APs) was low. Saying FP+ worked "perfectly" as a resort guest makes me chuckle a bit. If you weren't a resort guest it was awful.

And the only reason it had a chance at not being awful is because the balking point for searching for reservations was very, very low since it was free (people searched and just gave up). The balking point for Genie+ is non-existent: people want something in return for their money.

 

[Chi84]

Expectations are the driver here, not volume. The FP+ inventory was plenty to allow each resort guest 3 per day at 60 days out. The expectation of use on the remaining inventory (off site, APs) was low. Saying FP+ worked "perfectly" as a resort guest makes me chuckle a bit. If you weren't a resort guest it was awful.

And the only reason it had a chance at not being awful is because the balking point for searching for reservations was very, very low since it was free. The balking point for Genie+ is non-existent: people want something in return for their money.

So now we have Genie+ and it's awful for everyone. And we get to pay.

 

[pdude81]

So now we have Genie+ and it's awful for everyone. And we get to pay.

It's not necessarily awful for those who don't pay for it, because the lines should be moving faster in standby.

 

[Disney Glimpses]

So now we have Genie+ and it's awful for everyone. And we get to pay.

The frustrating thing here is rather than take something that was free and monetize it reasonably (and also improving the experience), they simply couldn't help themselves in not putting purchase limits on it.

The way this should work, in my opinion:
- price raises to $25
- limit it to xx,0000 guests (whatever makes sense)
- resort guests can purchase it starting at 10pm the night before and make their first selection
- starting at 7am the next morning, whatever remaining Genie+ inventory there is (if any) goes to everyone else at which point those guests who do purchase it can make their first selection.

 

[GhostHost1000]

Expectations are the driver here, not volume. The FP+ inventory was plenty to allow each resort guest 3 per day at 60 days out. The expectation of use on the remaining inventory (off site, APs) was low. Saying FP+ worked "perfectly" as a resort guest makes me chuckle a bit. If you weren't a resort guest it was awful.

And the only reason it had a chance at not being awful is because the balking point for searching for reservations was very, very low since it was free (people searched and just gave up). The balking point for Genie+ is non-existent: people want something in return for their money.

I want something that isn’t a step backwards in the experience and stress of using it regardless of the cost

if off site or day of guests used FP+ right, they could have found attraction availability the day of. I was able to modify some of mine and snag a FoP multiple times when it would originally fill up 60 days prior. The modify feature enabled things to move around which is why they need that back and being able to select our timeframes

 

[pdude81]

The frustrating thing here is rather than take something that was free and monetize it reasonably (and also improving the experience), they simply couldn't help themselves in not putting purchase limits on it.

The way this should work, in my opinion:
- price raises to $25
- limit it to xx,0000 guests (whatever makes sense)
- resort guests can purchase it starting at 10pm the night before and make their first selection
- starting at 7am the next morning, whatever remaining Genie+ inventory there is (if any) goes to everyone else at which point those guests who do purchase it can make their first selection.

This, except possibly 9pm unless they are worried about people not being able to take crappy videos of the fireworks show.

 

[GhostHost1000]

The frustrating thing here is rather than take something that was free and monetize it reasonably (and also improving the experience), they simply couldn't help themselves in not putting purchase limits on it.

The way this should work, in my opinion:
- price raises to $25
- limit it to xx,0000 guests (whatever makes sense)
- resort guests can purchase it starting at 10pm the night before and make their first selection
- starting at 7am the next morning, whatever remaining Genie+ inventory there is (if any) goes to everyone else at which point those guests who do purchase it can make their first selection.

Well then there’s another issue. So at 10pm the night prior we are supposed to rush to purchase Genie+ before it sells out (when we may be on a bus or driving back from a nighttime show or even still in a park) and then at 7am do the mad dash again.

I just don’t understand why Disney has to make everything more complicated. A vacation to Disney should be enjoyable…not stressful and frustrating planning by the seat of your pants at times you don’t want to while there trying to enjoy the parks and resorts

 

[pdude81]

Well then there’s another issue. So at 10pm the night prior we are supposed to rush to purchase Genie+ before it sells out (when we may be on a bus or driving back from a nighttime show or even still in a park) and then at 7am do the mad dash again.

I just don’t understand why Disney has to make everything more complicated. A vacation to Disney should be enjoyable…not stressful and frustrating planning by the seat of your pants at times you don’t want to while there trying to enjoy the parks and resorts

No, if you made your choice at 10pm you wouldn't be able to make another until 2 hours after park opening, or after you used your first G+ LL. So that removes the early wake up requirement.

 

[MickeyLuv'r]

I think the issue is that they had a plan that seemed to work quite well, in terms of customer satisfaction (FP+). They just didn’t want to make it obvious that they were charging for a formerly free system, so they tried to fix what wasn’t broken. I think whatever system they go with in the future is going to have to look a lot like the old FP+, in the end. Most people, imho, want to be able to lock in their plans, especially if they are paying Disney prices. Ain’t nobody shelling out 4 or 5 figures to go to Disney in the hopes that they will have a “spontaneous” day of riding the People Mover and going to the Monster’s Inc. show, ha ha. If they want to connect as many people to as many rides as possible, they are going to have to allow advance reservations again (or limit park attendance, or build many new rides - but in the absence of that, a reservation system is the only feasible system.) A day-of dice roll system doesn’t allow people to organize their day around other park goers efficiently, because no one knows what to expect so no one knows what rides to rope drop / budget a wait for / skip, etc.

I pretty much agree with you, except the public is willing to make some-roll-with it allowances, but we have to have some trust the product will meet our expectations.

I don't need pre-planning to have fun, but I do need a product that works. FP+ gave us a metric of what to expect at WDW.

If WDW wants us to pay more, they need to deliver a better product than what they previously offered. Paying a higher premium should = something that delivers a better outcome.

I would have been happy if G+ was simply 4 any-time, any attraction Fast Passes. "Redeem any time from 9am-9pm for any attraction in any park." I'm not holding my breath that will happen, but I think many would have been happy with a product like that.

 

[Disney Glimpses]

I want something that isn’t a step backwards in the experience and stress of using it regardless of the cost

if off site or day of guests used FP+ right, they could have found attraction availability the day of. I was able to modify some of mine and snap a FoP multiple times when it would originally fill up 60 days prior. The modify feature enabled things to move around which is why they need that back and being able to select our timeframes

Haha I'm talking about realistic changes. If we're talking about wish lists - I want an Express Pass style service offered to free for Deluxe guests. Realistically, the flexibility of FP+ is not returning. I agree with you, but there's a huge difference between what we want and what we can reasonably expect.

Well then there’s another issue. So at 10pm the night prior we are supposed to rush to purchase Genie+ before it sells out (when we may be on a bus or driving back from a nighttime show or even still in a park) and then at 7am do the mad dash again.

I just don’t understand why Disney has to make everything more complicated. A vacation to Disney should be enjoyable…not stressful and frustrating planning by the seat of your pants at times you don’t want to while there trying to enjoy the parks and resorts

No, the point of the 10pm is so you don't have to wake up at 7am. In fact, I'd change it from 7am for everyone else to park open. That way when it is 2 hours after park open, resort guests get first pick at round 2 of selections.

 

[GhostHost1000]

No, if you made your choice at 10pm you wouldn't be able to make another until 2 hours after park opening, or after you used your first G+ LL. So that removes the early wake up requirement.

ah ok... i misread that but again we are making it more complicated... 10pm the night before (while most are on vacation already), 7am the day of (when most are starting their day or getting ready to have breakfast at the resort) etc. etc. etc.

at least 60 days was 60 days and we have peace of mind knowing we have 3 selections
chosen at the times we selected
knowing we can modify them if when needed
and being able to plan your day / navigation around the parks (rope drop selection, direction, where to be around at lunch, schedule around any dining reservations or shows/parades, etc.)

I don't understand why they think the new design is a step in the right direction honestly because it has COMPLETELY altered how we plan (or not plan) our days and most importantly the overall experience in a negative way and it's not all about the cost of it or how many are using it.. it's the design and lack thereof (whether it's by design or not)


all in all, most don't want to play the attraction selection lottery planning their vacation while on vacation at times that's not convenient

 

[Disney Glimpses]

ah ok... i misread that but again we are making it more complicated... 10pm the night before (while most are on vacation already), 7am the day of (when most are starting their day or getting ready to have breakfast at the resort) etc. etc. etc.

at least 60 days was 60 days and we have peace of mind knowing we have 3 selections
chosen at the times we selected
knowing we can modify them if when needed
and being able to plan your day / navigation around the parks (rope drop selection, direction, where to be around at lunch, schedule around any dining reservations or shows/parades, etc.)

I don't understand why they think the new design is a step in the right direction honestly because it has COMPLETELY altered how we plan (or not plan) our days and most importantly the overall experience in a negative way and it's not all about the cost of it or how many are using it.. it's the design and lack thereof (whether it's by design or not)

That is something that you liked but was a primary complaint from Disney guests. By and large Disney guests did not like having to plan attractions 60 days out.

In fact, in many ways, that was worse than Park Pass. The only reason we put up with it is because we got to skip lines. But in reality, all we're being asked to do right now is pick a park ahead of time. Back then, we were not only asked to pick a park but basically tell them everything we were doing throughout the day there.