Lightning Lane at Walt Disney World

[JD80]

I personally wish they got rid of ADRs and Park Reservations. Make it first come first serve.

No thanks. I want to be able to make dining reservations ahead of time, the longer in advance the better. I always know on trips where I want to eat, whether it's a new restaurant or a favorite.

People want a stress free trip to one of the busiest or not THE busiest tourist destinations in the world. That's never going to happen. Your fantasy of being able to go where you please whenever you want and eat where you want is ridiculous. People are complaining (and rightfully so) about having to make LL choices starting at 7am every day of their trip yet you want the same amount of people jostling for dinner reservations every day?

The reason I always had advocated for the Dining Plan, 180 day ADRS, 60 day FP as being a fantastic system because this allowed me to create a vacation experience that is as close to an "all inclusive stress free vacation" as possible because I front loaded all the "stress" (and it was never a lot of stress) far in advance of the trip. So now when I went I had as little or as much planning out of the way.

The was WDW is right now is a complete nightmare for someone who liked to vacation that way. Every day is a potential struggle. At least I can make my dining reservations.

 

[crazy4disney]

Without fewer people in the parks or adding a ton of additional capacity, I believe they’re trying to create a truly impossible system. People, including myself, continually underestimate the amount of money folks are willing to throw at WDW. If they made it $100 a day, it would probably still sell enough to break the system without a hard cap. They’re too greedy to cap it.

No price is fixing this simple as that bc it will sell out and only cause long lines for every ride for what 85% of the rest of the guest creating yet another "class' system that makes Disney look like another place w 2 sets of rules depending on what you can afford.... the place simply does not have the capacity to hold its current attendance charging all this money for a skip the line system doesnt solve that for most people... again FP worked well for what the park capacity currently has/had but until they truly ADD rides NOT replace them nothing will solve the issue... just off top of my head the MK theatre could have built already, tron should have been completed by now(stop blaming covid), stitch has been dormant for how long now? I remember martin years ago talk about a new tomorrowland boss coming and things would get done and nothing and obviously he wouldnt say that unless things were gonna gte done yet management passed.... epcot cancelling MP ride, Brazil was it in WS, WoL still empty Figment still no update, HS removing GMR as opposed to refurbing and adding MMRR along with underbuilding SWL & TSL.. AK Dinoland has been a mess for how long now and how long will PW sit dormant.. the park is underbuilt as well w nothing new in site... stating all the obvious here but these were basic simple additions that should have been done and would have easily generated more money imo and yes im a Wall St guy and get they are a business but shortsightedness will eventually bite you in the a$$ & now they are completely phkd .... and lets not even get into the Splash debacle

 

[Jrb1979]

No price is fixing this simple as that bc it will sell out and only cause long lines for every ride for what 85% of the rest of the guest creating yet another "class' system that makes Disney look like another place w 2 sets of rules depending on what you can afford.... the place simply does not have the capacity to hold its current attendance charging all this money for a skip the line system doesnt solve that for most people... again FP worked well for what the park capacity currently has/had but until they truly ADD rides NOT replace them nothing will solve the issue... just off top of my head the MK theatre could have built already, tron should have been completed by now(stop blaming covid), stitch has been dormant for how long now? I remember martin years ago talk about a new tomorrowland boss coming and things would get done and nothing and obviously he wouldnt say that unless things were gonna gte done yet management passed.... epcot cancelling MP ride, Brazil was it in WS, WoL still empty Figment still no update, HS removing GMR as opposed to refurbing and adding MMRR along with underbuilding SWL & TSL.. AK Dinoland has been a mess for how long now and how long will PW sit dormant.. the park is underbuilt as well w nothing new in site... stating all the obvious here but these were basic simple additions that should have been done and would have easily generated more money imo and yes im a Wall St guy and get they are a business but shortsightedness will eventually bite you in the a$$ & now they are completely phkd .... and lets not even get into the Splash debacle

I agree with all of that. Its what should have happened. In the end it didn't. This is the hand we are dealt with. No amount of crying is going to change anything. FP+ is dead and likely not coming back and it's definitely not going to be free.

There is no point in beating the dead horse. It's best to move on and figure ways to make Genie+ better.

 

[Heelz2315]

Forgive me for clarifying the new rules, but is it now you can buy Genie+ at midnight but can't make selections until 7AM, or at midnight the day you're going you can buy it and make selections?

I don't want to have to get up at midnight the day we're going, to buy it and start making selections, but I will if that's what's required.

 

[pdude81]

Forgive me for clarifying the new rules, but is it now you can buy Genie+ at midnight but can't make selections until 7AM, or at midnight the day you're going you can buy it and make selections?

I don't want to have to get up at midnight the day we're going, to buy it and start making selections, but I will if that's what's required.

At midnight the day you plan to use it is when you buy. 7am is selection time for G+. If ILL then you are either 7a or 9a depending on where you're staying.

 

[crazy4disney]

I agree with all of that. Its what should have happened. In the end it didn't. This is the hand we are dealt with. No amount of crying is going to change anything. FP+ is dead and likely not coming back and it's definitely not going to be free.

There is no point in beating the dead horse. It's best to move on and figure ways to make Genie+ better.

I agree its never going to be free again but if disney is truly waiting til 2023 bc they dont wanna deal w refunds why cant they just bring back FP the way it was? its laready been mentioned by insiders they acknowledge there is a problem so why waste any more money with IT or "brainstorm" i use that term loosely on then trying to figure out something new... take your years worth of FP data and tweak it if need be and simply charge for it... let people complain or not like you said thisis never gonna be free until they need people to show up and offer it as a promo.... so to me the way to make genie better is to scrap it and use a system that worked

 

[dreday3]

At midnight the day you plan to use it is when you buy. 7am is selection time for G+. If ILL then you are either 7a or 9a depending on where you're staying.

That brings up something - can we purchase at midnight the night before our arrival if our trip/package/ticket doesn't technically start until the next day? I'm assuming yes?

 

[JD80]

That brings up something - can we purchase at midnight the night before our arrival if our trip/package/ticket doesn't technically start until the next day? I'm assuming yes?

I imagine it's tied to the day of a park reservation. So once the day ticks over at midnight AND you have a park reservation for that day, you're good to go.

However, I don't think anyone has seen that Genie+ is being limited just yet. You're probably safe to buy it at 6:50am and just wait the 10 minutes to 7am to start booking.

 

[Jrb1979]

I agree its never going to be free again but if disney is truly waiting til 2023 bc they dont wanna deal w refunds why cant they just bring back FP the way it was? its laready been mentioned by insiders they acknowledge there is a problem so why waste any more money with IT or "brainstorm" i use that term loosely on then trying to figure out something new... take your years worth of FP data and tweak it if need be and simply charge for it... let people complain or not like you said thisis never gonna be free until they need people to show up and offer it as a promo.... so to me the way to make genie better is to scrap it and use a system that worked

They would have to refund all those who pre-purchased it as the terms of service changed. All they can do right now is tinker with things til next year. I'm sure there will be changes coming next year. I don't think it will go back to mostly pre-booking. IMO they are going to find a way to make what's in place work.

 

[pdude81]

They would have to refund all those who pre-purchased it as the terms of service changed. All they can do right now is tinker with things til next year. I'm sure there will be changes coming next year. I don't think it will go back to mostly pre-booking. IMO they are going to find a way to make what's in place work.

I don't think they'd have a problem refunding people for their purchase if they knew what they were moving to next. Especially if the price of the service changed as well as the terms. You could then tell people they are offered a refund or can keep the updated version under the old price. But they need some time to figure out what the heck they are doing anyway.

 

[Jrb1979]

I don't think they'd have a problem refunding people for their purchase if they knew what they were moving to next. Especially if the price of the service changed as well as the terms. You could then tell people they are offered a refund or can keep the updated version under the old price. But they need some time to figure out what the heck they are doing anyway.

Another reason to wait til next year. Gives them time to figure out something. I don't know what the answer is. It's not going to be free and I highly doubt it will fully go back to advanced booking.

 

[Beacon Joe]

Today's All Ears video is... illuminating. One host follows Genie recommendations to a tee and the other doesn't.

Guess which person got in 5 rides (Big Thunder, Pirates, Haunted Mansion, Dumbo, and Buzz) plus a snack and lunch before noon, and which host only got on 2 rides (Small World & Haunted Mansion)plus lunch before noon?

Fast forwarded to the summary. No need to watch the previous 30 minutes of frustration and standing in lines.

 

[Beacon Joe]

At midnight the day you plan to use it is when you buy. 7am is selection time for G+. If ILL then you are either 7a or 9a depending on where you're staying.

Are you serious? Is that how it works?

 

[crazy4disney]

They would have to refund all those who pre-purchased it as the terms of service changed. All they can do right now is tinker with things til next year. I'm sure there will be changes coming next year. I don't think it will go back to mostly pre-booking. IMO they are going to find a way to make what's in place work.

Everyone is acting like a refund would be such a bad thing to basically use a system for another 6-7 months when they can in theory say we are improving a product and give the option of a credit towards it or a refund…. Is someone is willing to pay for this awful system im confident people would be willing to pay for a better one… si to me the refund is nothing more than a lazy excuse. Can you imagine another company willingly serving a terrible product all in the name of not wanting to refund and have people repurchase. Im sure there is no law suit that could be had w all the fine print. Thats like a steak house serving an awful steak getting complaints daily but tells people we cant change it until end of year bc people already booked a reservation and that item must stay on the menu… to me it's moronic and again a sign of what Disney has become.

 

[aaronml]

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.


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.

What about making it like DLR, where you can’t make your first selection until entering the park? At least for non-resort guests (I like the 10pm the night before idea also).

 

[GhostHost1000]

What about making it like DLR, where you can’t make your first selection until entering the park? At least for non-resort guests (I like the 10pm the night before idea also).

There could be some help in that but I don’t like the idea of the mad dash of people entering the gate on their phones either

 

[Jrb1979]

Everyone is acting like a refund would be such a bad thing to basically use a system for another 6-7 months when they can in theory say we are improving a product and give the option of a credit towards it or a refund…. Is someone is willing to pay for this awful system im confident people would be willing to pay for a better one… si to me the refund is nothing more than a lazy excuse. Can you imagine another company willingly serving a terrible product all in the name of not wanting to refund and have people repurchase. Im sure there is no law suit that could be had w all the fine print. Thats like a steak house serving an awful steak getting complaints daily but tells people we cant change it until end of year bc people already booked a reservation and that item must stay on the menu… to me it's moronic and again a sign of what Disney has become.

First it's not that simple as flicking a switch to turn FP back on. It would take time to implement it.

I do agree that its a sign of what they have become. Nothing is going to change til people stop going.

 

[aaronml]

Apple because only iOS has the refresh hack (though I've been using BG1 to make reservations lately).

What’s BG1?

 

[crazy4disney]

First it's not that simple as flicking a switch to turn FP back on. It would take time to implement it.

I do agree that its a sign of what they have become. Nothing is going to change til people stop going.

Its been said that the system is Not impossible to turn “back on”

 

[Ayla]

Yup, folks are romanticizing FP+. Even folks staying 7 days on site couldn’t get some rides. If you weren’t on site, you entered the park with low level rides. Yes, you had a chance of lucking out, and ALL rides were available, but FP+ was really Only good for folks who stayed at WDW all week, and were happy with 2 or 3 big rides a day.

WDW is broken. They simply don’t have enough rides, and there are enough sheep for now to keep paying.

The only ride I could never get with FP+ as an onsite customer was FOP. That was it. I think my best day with FP+ was using 14, on all levels of rides - headliners, shows and smaller, less-intense rides. Our average trip was 5 park days.