Lightning Lane at Walt Disney World

[JMcMahonEsq]

My guess is that they didn’t want to charge for a previously free service because that would have made the cash grabby nature of it more overt. So instead the idea is that Genie+ was supposed to be an “upgraded” service that is worth $15 more than FastPass. Of course that clearly didn’t happen - it’s a worse service for more money.

I am at least relieved, from what DisneyGlimpses has posted, to see that Disney apparently understands how unpopular Genie is and that it needs to go.

You also couldn’t charge for a system (FP) that was intentionally favored to resort guests. You were not going to be able to sell FP to off site or day guests successfully after all the selections had been picked over by 10am stay resort guests 60 days out.

 

[crazy4disney]

My guess is that they didn’t want to charge for a previously free service because that would have made the cash grabby nature of it more overt. So instead the idea is that Genie+ was supposed to be an “upgraded” service that is worth $15 more than FastPass. Of course that clearly didn’t happen - it’s a worse service for more money.

I am at least relieved, from what DisneyGlimpses has posted, to see that Disney apparently understands how unpopular Genie is and that it needs to go.

They care so much that NO significant change will be made until 2023 and we still dk what that change will be....

 

[crazy4disney]

You also couldn’t charge for a system (FP) that was intentionally favored to resort guests. You were not going to be able to sell FP to off site or day guests successfully after all the selections had been picked over by 10am stay resort guests 60 days out.

Why not? again it would have been a "perk" for staying on site and if you really felt the inventory was depleted which people have clearly stated it wasnt you could have possibly either held some back or keep doing the drops during the day or simply charged slightly less for off site guests if need be... it could have easily been done to avoid this absolute nightmare genie is....

 

[Jrb1979]

They care so much that NO significant change will be made until 2023 and we still dk what that change will be....

Personally I don't see drastic changes to Genie+. I think they are going to raise the price and change some things.

I would raise it to $40 a day and limit stacking to 2. I think Genie+ can work without going back to advanced booking. First thing is they need to have less people buying it. If you limit stacking to 2 that would free up availability later in the day.

 

[mikejs78]

Personally I don't see drastic changes to Genie+. I think they are going to raise the price and change some things.

I would raise it to $40 a day and limit stacking to 2. I think Genie+ can work without going back to advanced booking. First thing is they need to have less people buying it. If you limit stacking to 2 that would free up availability later in the day.

Limiting stacking to two would take away the one good feature that genie plus has over fastpass Plus.

Would make it a worse product.

 

[Patcheslee]

Personally I don't see drastic changes to Genie+. I think they are going to raise the price and change some things.

I would raise it to $40 a day and limit stacking to 2. I think Genie+ can work without going back to advanced booking. First thing is they need to have less people buying it. If you limit stacking to 2 that would free up availability later in the day.

That would also penalize guests who don't rope drop more than it already does. Right now it takes work to utilize Genie+ if someone chooses to wait until say noon to start their park day.

 

[JMcMahonEsq]

Why not? again it would have been a "perk" for staying on site and if you really felt the inventory was depleted which people have clearly stated it wasnt you could have possibly either held some back or keep doing the drops during the day or simply charged slightly less for off site guests if need be... it could have easily been done to avoid this absolute nightmare genie is....

Because they didn’t design or want Genie + to be a perk of staying on site. Current market demand is such that Disney doesn’t need to give out perks to encourage on site bookings. They believe booking demand is solid enough as is. You only give perks if you need to encourage or solidify sales.

Disney moved to a broader consumer base to maximize more sales at a lower cost. In the future if on site booking demands soften, they can always add it to a package if you book a deluxe stay, ect.

 

[JMcMahonEsq]

That would also penalize guests who don't rope drop more than it already does. Right now it takes work to utilize Genie+ if someone chooses to wait until say noon to start their park day.

It doesn’t penalize people who are late coming to the park. You simply get more use out of it if you use it for as long as the park is open.

 

[crazy4disney]

Personally I don't see drastic changes to Genie+. I think they are going to raise the price and change some things.

I would raise it to $40 a day and limit stacking to 2. I think Genie+ can work without going back to advanced booking. First thing is they need to have less people buying it. If you limit stacking to 2 that would free up availability later in the day.

eventually it will end but if Disney has taught us anything people will pay whatever it is they charge... heck i was there in November and never seen more Plaids in all the years ive visited and heard them talking they were looking to hire more because it was booked up & they had trouble keeping up with the demand... how true that is i dk ive never used nor checked availability but it was clearly obvious they were present in every park....

 

[crazy4disney]

Because they didn’t design or want Genie + to be a perk of staying on site. Current market demand is such that Disney doesn’t need to give out perks to encourage on site bookings. They believe booking demand is solid enough as is. You only give perks if you need to encourage or solidify sales.

Disney moved to a broader consumer base to maximize more sales at a lower cost. In the future if on site booking demands soften, they can always add it to a package if you book a deluxe stay, ect.

okay so dont call it a perk..... allow everyone to book in advance & see how it goes

 

[mikejs78]

Because they didn’t design or want Genie + to be a perk of staying on site. Current market demand is such that Disney doesn’t need to give out perks to encourage on site bookings. They believe booking demand is solid enough as is. You only give perks if you need to encourage or solidify sales.

Multiple insiders have said Disney is concerned about onsite guests and is looking to add more on-site perks (Not necessarily related to Genie+ but could be).

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I just don't understand why they didn't keep the FP+ model. If they wanted to make money off it just have it so you had to pay an extra $10 a day to add it to your ticket. I am not sure what Genie+ has done to solve any issues there were previously with FP+

One issue they were trying to solve is the need for preplanning. Many, many people didn't like having to pick what ride they would ride at specific times months in advance.

The thought process was this wouldn't be needed - just show up and if you want pay for the service and pick rides to skip the line for throughout the day with no preplanning needed. This combined with the Genie planning tool that guided you through the park would create a more enjoyable day with less planning

..... It just didn't work out like that ... Like, at all

And is resulting in even more planning and sort of doing the planning you would have done over months at home now on the fly instead of, you know, enjoying your vacation

Really comes down to supply and demand - there is too much demand for the service and the available spots at the attractions. Disney is trying to address demand somewhat with limiting capacity and slowly bringing back entertainment but not nearly enough so need to impact demand (via price increases, etc)

 

[Chip Chipperson]

Why not? again it would have been a "perk" for staying on site and if you really felt the inventory was depleted which people have clearly stated it wasnt you could have possibly either held some back or keep doing the drops during the day or simply charged slightly less for off site guests if need be... it could have easily been done to avoid this absolute nightmare genie is....

I agree except for the part about charging less for off-site guests. Charge them the same, but then that makes them somewhat less likely to purchase, which effectively reduces the demand for the service since that demand is apparently causing one of the major issues with G+ right now.

 

[GhostHost1000]

Multiple insiders have said Disney is concerned about onsite guests and is looking to add more on-site perks (Not necessarily related to Genie+ but could be).

That’s smart because they are beginning to lose DVC members too

 

[Jrb1979]

That’s smart because they are beginning to lose DVC members too

It is smart. I don't think Genie+ or advanced booking of LL is going to be one of them. I can see reservations going away for resort guests.

 

[maleficentfan]

The way I always played FP+ was to pre-book my 3 at each park around where my partner and I were planning on eating and it made it so easy. Then we could have fun in the parks choosing other fastpasses knowing we got our 3 around our meals. So, for MK that would look like this:

Breakfast - Sleepy Hollow = Haunted Mansion
Lunch - Cosmic Ray's = Space Mountain
Dinner - Be Our Guest - 7DMT

Genie+ makes planning around meal times (especially if you have multiple reservations) a planning nightmare. I get the fact that this is like the original paper FastPass where you had to be strategic with what you booked and when to make sure it didn't overlap a dining res. I'm going at the end of next month (previously used Genie+ in Feb. and had moderate success) so I'm looking forward to seeing how things pan out. I should also note I won't have to be up to book Genie+ every day as I had booked this package before the June 8 cutoff so our Genie+ is for the whole stay.

 

[pdude81]

The way I always played FP+ was to pre-book my 3 at each park around where my partner and I were planning on eating and it made it so easy. Then we could have fun in the parks choosing other fastpasses knowing we got our 3 around our meals. So, for MK that would look like this:

Breakfast - Sleepy Hollow = Haunted Mansion
Lunch - Cosmic Ray's = Space Mountain
Dinner - Be Our Guest - 7DMT

Genie+ makes planning around meal times (especially if you have multiple reservations) a planning nightmare. I get the fact that this is like the original paper FastPass where you had to be strategic with what you booked and when to make sure it didn't overlap a dining res. I'm going at the end of next month (previously used Genie+ in Feb. and had moderate success) so I'm looking forward to seeing how things pan out. I should also note I won't have to be up to book Genie+ every day as I had booked this package before the June 8 cutoff so our Genie+ is for the whole stay.

If you show your receipt from meal they let you in late for your LL. You can try to plan around meals, but if there is a conflict you have an option. This makes things a bit easier for me as I have stopped locking in all my dining early and can take what pops up day of.

 

[bhg469]

The way I always played FP+ was to pre-book my 3 at each park around where my partner and I were planning on eating and it made it so easy. Then we could have fun in the parks choosing other fastpasses knowing we got our 3 around our meals. So, for MK that would look like this:

Breakfast - Sleepy Hollow = Haunted Mansion
Lunch - Cosmic Ray's = Space Mountain
Dinner - Be Our Guest - 7DMT

Genie+ makes planning around meal times (especially if you have multiple reservations) a planning nightmare. I get the fact that this is like the original paper FastPass where you had to be strategic with what you booked and when to make sure it didn't overlap a dining res. I'm going at the end of next month (previously used Genie+ in Feb. and had moderate success) so I'm looking forward to seeing how things pan out. I should also note I won't have to be up to book Genie+ every day as I had booked this package before the June 8 cutoff so our Genie+ is for the whole stay.

I'm so glad there are just two of us.. We rarely have issues with dining because we simply sit at bars, when there is one but in the parks that doesn't really exist.

 

[correcaminos]

That’s smart because they are beginning to lose DVC members too

For every DVC member that sells they gain a new member who they don't have to offer perks to. It think they really don't care if people sell DVC. They care about new buy ins

 

[crazy4disney]

I agree except for the part about charging less for off-site guests. Charge them the same, but then that makes them somewhat less likely to purchase, which effectively reduces the demand for the service since that demand is apparently causing one of the major issues with G+ right now.

im fine with that as well... was just spitballing that if certain inventory was unavailable to allow on site guests a better chance but yes wouldnt argue that