Lightning Lane at Walt Disney World

[crazy4disney]

From my experience Genie plus works even better at other parks.

In Epoctt on 3rd of July we were able to:

1) Lightening Lane Guardians for a group of 10
2) Genie Plus, Rat, Frozen, Spaceship Earth, nemo, Living with the land, Soarin, and Fast Track
3) walked on 3 Caballeros
4) Got Boarding Group for Guardians at the 1PM drop for 10 people.


After our first 2 Genie Plus selections, many of the others we were able to bounce, from ride to ride, with limited to no wait. Went from soaring, scan in and booked living with the land for almost same time. After getting out of soaring, scanned into living with land, booked nemo for 5min later. Finished nemo walked over to Rat prebooking and then booked spaceship earth.

Now not all lines at Epcott were hour+ waits, but aside from our boarding group ride of GotG and maybe 5min on frozen, we didn't wait in a line for basically the entire day at Epcott. Even if all the Genie plus lines were only 15min each, being able to skip them to me is still a sucess.

Our group had similar sucess at HS, but personally for me as i don't ride Tower, Slinky Dog, or RRC, it doesn't feel like as big a win, but for them we still had limited to no wait times. In fact i think the longest wait we had was 3 of us who were not going on ToT went over to Alien Sauces and waited 20min in line.

To me the $15 buck is worth the sucess of waiting in almost no lines whatsoever, even if I don't get the certainty of knowing I am riding ride X at 10:45 exactly.

Listen i would LOVE to be wrong a month from now in regards to genie and rides being available during the entire day with little down time in between rides ....

 

[JMcMahonEsq]

Listen i would LOVE to be wrong a month from now in regards to genie and rides being available during the entire day with little down time in between rides ....

I think you will be very pleasantly surprised at how easy to use, and beneficial Genie+ is in action. My 2 cents of free advice, from someone who loved FP+ and planning, and has used Genie plus now on 3 occasions, once in a large group (10) once on a solo trip, and during very busy periods (both around Christmas and 4th of July weekend).

Don't try to fit the Genie+ square peg into the FP+ round hole. They are different systems, with different functions, Genie+ is built to skip lines, NOT to pre-plan your day. You get the best use of Genie+ when you are looking for what ride can I get on next, not, I have to get on a certain ride at a certain time.

If you are staying on property, make sure you take advantage of early access. In the old FP world, early magic hours were limited to 1 park a day. While it is true that its only 30min now, it's across the board at all parks. The crowds are more diffused than they were in the past and you are going to get 1 major ride, or 2-3 less popular rides at really low wait times in that first 30min.

Use your 7AM Genie Plus for the RIDE you can't miss. If there is one thing you need to get on otherwise your day is ruined, use your 7AM Genie plus selection on that one. Once you can make your second selection, either because its 2 hours after park opening or you had an early Genie plus selection to start, find the rides you like with the next available open slot. Remember as soon as you scan into your genie plus ride you can select another ride. Don't be wedded to an order, take the next one available and ride the wave from selection to selection. Not only is this the way to get the most out of the system, but it also limits your time on the phone. Don't be sitting there waiting until a certain ride is available at the exact time you want.

Tie up your walking shoes. I loved FP. I loved pre-planning every detail of my trip that i could as far out as possible. Hell the time we took my inlaws to WDW, I made sure our FP selections were planned in sequence to limit the amount of walking we did between rides. That is not possible if you are optimizing Genie+. You may go from Buzz lightyear, to pirates, to under the sea, to haunted mansion. Efficiency in getting on rides, will not equal efficiency in getting to the rides.

 

[G00fyDad]

Don't try to fit the Genie+ square peg into the FP+ round hole. They are different systems, with different functions, Genie+ is built to skip lines, NOT to pre-plan your day. You get the best use of Genie+ when you are looking for what ride can I get on next, not, I have to get on a certain ride at a certain time.

I think this is what I am going to have to work hard at trying to maintain. I have yet to use G+ but I keep finding myself looking at it the same as FP+. I will have to be cognizant of that on this next trip and make sure I use it as you said, a line skip feature.

 

[pdude81]

Can you clarify.

There were previously pretty predictable second drops of LL availability around 7:10 to 7:15 am. So you'd be looking at return times for FOP of 6:15pm or so, then suddenly they start popping up for 8am.

If they don't show you the cached return times between 7 and 7:30 that gets pretty hard to work through. At that point I guess you have to just take your shots on the second screen and just not take anything you think is trash.

Also, if they made one tweak there could be several.

 

[crazy4disney]

I think you will be very pleasantly surprised at how easy to use, and beneficial Genie+ is in action. My 2 cents of free advice, from someone who loved FP+ and planning, and has used Genie plus now on 3 occasions, once in a large group (10) once on a solo trip, and during very busy periods (both around Christmas and 4th of July weekend).

Don't try to fit the Genie+ square peg into the FP+ round hole. They are different systems, with different functions, Genie+ is built to skip lines, NOT to pre-plan your day. You get the best use of Genie+ when you are looking for what ride can I get on next, not, I have to get on a certain ride at a certain time.

If you are staying on property, make sure you take advantage of early access. In the old FP world, early magic hours were limited to 1 park a day. While it is true that its only 30min now, it's across the board at all parks. The crowds are more diffused than they were in the past and you are going to get 1 major ride, or 2-3 less popular rides at really low wait times in that first 30min.

Use your 7AM Genie Plus for the RIDE you can't miss. If there is one thing you need to get on otherwise your day is ruined, use your 7AM Genie plus selection on that one. Once you can make your second selection, either because its 2 hours after park opening or you had an early Genie plus selection to start, find the rides you like with the next available open slot. Remember as soon as you scan into your genie plus ride you can select another ride. Don't be wedded to an order, take the next one available and ride the wave from selection to selection. Not only is this the way to get the most out of the system, but it also limits your time on the phone. Don't be sitting there waiting until a certain ride is available at the exact time you want.

Tie up your walking shoes. I loved FP. I loved pre-planning every detail of my trip that i could as far out as possible. Hell the time we took my inlaws to WDW, I made sure our FP selections were planned in sequence to limit the amount of walking we did between rides. That is not possible if you are optimizing Genie+. You may go from Buzz lightyear, to pirates, to under the sea, to haunted mansion. Efficiency in getting on rides, will not equal efficiency in getting to the rides.

Thank you..

Ive used it in November and it was awful imo hence why im hoping its better and thats what i tried to do was take anything that was close to current time worthwhile but i also noticed that wasnt best strategy bc of the fact you couldnt modify and had to cxl 1st.

 

[JMcMahonEsq]

Thank you..

Ive used it in November and it was awful imo hence why im hoping its better and thats what i tried to do was take anything that was close to current time worthwhile but i also noticed that wasnt best strategy bc of the fact you couldnt modify and had to cxl 1st.

To me that is FP type thinking. Under FP we were guilty of always looking to see if something we liked better, or a better time slot opened up, and would try to rebook/cancel and exchange when there was a better deal.

With Genie+ its about volume. Its about getting through the line at the moment, so you can book your next ride as soon in time as possible, so you can then book your next ride. Its not about getting the best time for the best ride. Its about getting the most rides in the time your in the park

 

[crazy4disney]

To me that is FP type thinking. Under FP we were guilty of always looking to see if something we liked better, or a better time slot opened up, and would try to rebook/cancel and exchange when there was a better deal.

With Genie+ its about volume. Its about getting through the line at the moment, so you can book your next ride as soon in time as possible, so you can then book your next ride. Its not about getting the best time for the best ride. Its about getting the most rides in the time your in the park

I agree but what im trying to say was in November there really wasnt much that offered that outside of the MK which is where i used that strategy just grabbed closest available… the other 3 parks were a nightmare when i went.

 

[Patcheslee]

Th

I think you will be very pleasantly surprised at how easy to use, and beneficial Genie+ is in action. My 2 cents of free advice, from someone who loved FP+ and planning, and has used Genie plus now on 3 occasions, once in a large group (10) once on a solo trip, and during very busy periods (both around Christmas and 4th of July weekend).

Don't try to fit the Genie+ square peg into the FP+ round hole. They are different systems, with different functions, Genie+ is built to skip lines, NOT to pre-plan your day. You get the best use of Genie+ when you are looking for what ride can I get on next, not, I have to get on a certain ride at a certain time.

If you are staying on property, make sure you take advantage of early access. In the old FP world, early magic hours were limited to 1 park a day. While it is true that its only 30min now, it's across the board at all parks. The crowds are more diffused than they were in the past and you are going to get 1 major ride, or 2-3 less popular rides at really low wait times in that first 30min.

Use your 7AM Genie Plus for the RIDE you can't miss. If there is one thing you need to get on otherwise your day is ruined, use your 7AM Genie plus selection on that one. Once you can make your second selection, either because its 2 hours after park opening or you had an early Genie plus selection to start, find the rides you like with the next available open slot. Remember as soon as you scan into your genie plus ride you can select another ride. Don't be wedded to an order, take the next one available and ride the wave from selection to selection. Not only is this the way to get the most out of the system, but it also limits your time on the phone. Don't be sitting there waiting until a certain ride is available at the exact time you want.

Tie up your walking shoes. I loved FP. I loved pre-planning every detail of my trip that i could as far out as possible. Hell the time we took my inlaws to WDW, I made sure our FP selections were planned in sequence to limit the amount of walking we did between rides. That is not possible if you are optimizing Genie+. You may go from Buzz lightyear, to pirates, to under the sea, to haunted mansion. Efficiency in getting on rides, will not equal efficiency in getting to the rides.

This is where it falls apart for us. Last time we went it took us 30 minutes to walk from BtM to Space due to DH needing to stop and catch his breath (asthma). This was 2019 and only done because we happened to get another SM FP. Learned quickly I have to plan not backtracking or he will push himself too much.

 

[ChrisM]

I know this well-trodden ground, but I spent the day at Six Flags Great America yesterday and used their skip the line system (Flash Pass).

There were three tiers at different prices points (based on date and how far ahead you purchased it). The literature describing the tiers was sort of vague - with the two top tiers described as "Gold - reduce wait time by 50%" and "Platinum - reduce wait time by 90%".

In practice what that meant was it was $100 per person for Gold and that gave you the ability to schedule rides with a virtual wait (e.g. return in 30 minutes and enter the Flash Pass line) or the ability of an additional "ILL"-style per-ride purchase ($11-$15) for instant return time access. For the $185 per person Platinum tier, the ILL purchase was removed and all return times were almost instant when booked.

A little confusing until you actually purchased and had access to the system but made sense once you had it in hand. The app was simple, clean, and easy to use, providing a QR code for reservations that was scanned at the Flash Pass entry points, all of which were almost effectively located right at the ride load areas.

I actually didn't end up buying it until after lunch when wait times rocketed up to over 60+ minutes for all the major rides. But then it easily saved us 5 hours or more of waiting in line and felt like it was well worth the money.

Expensive (for what it is) and lots of constant upcharges? Sure. A regional amusement park on a moderate crowd level day and not a top 5 worldwide theme park during a busy travel season? Absolutely. But for a fairly similar system (in practice) to Genie+/ILL, it was immeasurably easier and less stressful to use.

I'm sure this largely points to "number of people with Genie+/ILL access" as the prime culprit, but that simply underscores the necessity to either limit sales by jacking up the price point, or increasing capacity.

 

[DCBaker]

Disney has provided an update confirming A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration in Hollywood Studios will be unavailable from Genie+ August 22nd through September 9th -

"For the First Time in Forever: A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration will be temporarily unavailable August 22, 2022 through September 9, 2022."

 

[JD80]

For starters define “success with Genie” bc its impossible to have the same rides/times vs FP and the 3 rides you were able to book at the times you want. I used it in November with less people using Genie. Less people in parks yet lines were far from moving and honestly rendered DAS basically useless as ive stated here countless times. I go back next month and will see how round 2 is. And to anyone who will again “attack me bc i have DAS” and my opinion doesnt matter etc etc etc. DAS was so useful that i chose to but Genie again a product that to me was awful and from what ive read only gotten worse…

I posted this upthread a few pages, but I had better success with G+ than I did with FP+ with my trip from July 14-18 in all four parks. The issue because cost and the "work" you need to put in to maximize it.

 

[sjf4291]

Hi sorry if this has been asked before but does anyone know if the rides that moved to genie+ temporarily (space mountain, expedition everest and mickey and Minnie's runaway money train) will definitely be going back to LL on 7th August? We go the 10th, so trying to work things out! Thanks!

 

[maleficentfan]

Hi sorry if this has been asked before but does anyone know if the rides that moved to genie+ temporarily (space mountain, expedition everest and mickey and Minnie's runaway money train) will definitely be going back to LL on 7th August? We go the 10th, so trying to work things out! Thanks!

Going at the end of August and wondering the same thing. Either Disney will announce something next week or they'll quietly just let Space, Everest, MMRR, Remy, and Frozen go back to ILL's.

 

[G00fyDad]

Hi sorry if this has been asked before but does anyone know if the rides that moved to genie+ temporarily (space mountain, expedition everest and mickey and Minnie's runaway money train) will definitely be going back to LL on 7th August? We go the 10th, so trying to work things out! Thanks!

Disney has said they will so I would assume so but Disney does weird things all the time. But I would be willing to bet that they stick to the plan and they revert to ILL on 8/8/22.

 

[crazy4disney]

Disney has said they will so I would assume so but Disney does weird things all the time. But I would be willing to bet that they stick to the plan and they revert to ILL on 8/8/22.

If people who have gone recently have had some success with genie (still dk how after my experience in November) as ive read here im wondering if the added inventory was a major factor of that because crowds are there from everyone i know that has gone & works the parks... would really be awful to go back to the Nightmare it was in November & only show how little they care. Hopefully im wrong & they decide to extend it til this new rollout in 2023 we keep hearing so much about.... heck raise the price to $20 & justify by saying we are including those rides now going forward

 

[Disney Glimpses]

Sadly, it seems they will proceed with removing those attractions from Genie+. They did just bump August hours, so I am hoping they will reconsider.

 

[crazy4disney]

Sadly, it seems they will proceed with removing those attractions from Genie+. They did just bump August hours, so I am hoping they will reconsider.

& if this is true this i find it hard to believe that they care at all... you stated 2023 because of multiple reasons altho i dont agree with the wait to do see some "validity" with why... a move like this is sheer greed and stupidity on their part & shows how out of touch they are with their guests... hopefully im wrong and the realize keeping it the way it is now is best for everyone

 

[Disney Glimpses]

& if this is true this i find it hard to believe that they care at all... you stated 2023 because of multiple reasons altho i dont agree with the wait to do see some "validity" with why... a move like this is sheer greed and stupidity on their part & shows how out of touch they are with their guests... hopefully im wrong and the realize keeping it the way it is now is best for everyone

It's possible that the volume of guests they believe will be using it will be that much lower starting next week that it won't offer a different experience from the one that is there today (aside from losing 4 attractions).

To be clear, they care, but it's not something they are losing sleep over. It will be solved, eventually. I personally believe all 4 should remain in Genie+ until next year (when more significant changes can be made).

 

[crazy4disney]

It's possible that the volume of guests they believe will be using it will be that much lower starting next week that it won't offer a different experience from the one that is there today (aside from losing 4 attractions).

To be clear, they care, but it's not something they are losing sleep over. It will be solved, eventually. I personally believe all 4 should remain in Genie+ until next year (when more significant changes can be made).

Even if the 1st part is true wouldnt you want to make those guests even more happier and ensure an even better experience... and of course they "care" but all ive been saying is they dont care enough to truly do anything about it as you said they wanted to wait til 2023 to make any real changes... this is such a simple change its laughable they havent just said we are leaving this as is....

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Disney has said they will so I would assume so but Disney does weird things all the time. But I would be willing to bet that they stick to the plan and they revert to ILL on 8/8/22.

I hope at a minimum not both Frozen and Remy go back to ILL ... Don't need 3 ILL rides at Epcot and basically no use for G+ at Epcot then if 2 of the 3 rides it is actually useful for move off it