Genie Plus, a must for busy days.

[Grasshopper2016]

I still say the only system that works is one like Universal's.

I sometimes feel that way too, especially with how awful G+ and ILL$ are right now. But we are kidding ourselves if we think that the price would be anything less than $250 per person per day. I would guess more like $300. And likely $500 on high-crowd days. Universal's Express Pass Unlimited costs $330 on the busiest days, and Universal has far fewer guests and smaller crowds.

And there is no way Disney could afford to give the pass out for free to on-site guests, even those staying Deluxe. There are simply too many on-site hotel rooms. The most you could hope for is a modest discount, or maybe the opportunity to purchase earlier. (The supplies would have to be limited for the system to work.)

Talk about class stratification in the parks! And I don't think that I could afford to pay, or justify paying, that much for my family. Maybe we would splurge on just one day of our trip.

 

[Jrb1979]

I sometimes feel that way too, especially with how awful G+ and ILL$ are right now. But we are kidding ourselves if we think that the price would be anything less than $250 per person per day. I would guess more like $300. And likely $500 on high-crowd days. Universal's Express Pass Unlimited costs $330 on the busiest days, and Universal has far fewer guests and smaller crowds.

And there is no way Disney could afford to give the pass out for free to on-site guests, even those staying Deluxe. There are simply too many on-site hotel rooms. The most you could hope for is a modest discount, or maybe the opportunity to purchase earlier. (The supplies would have to be limited for the system to work.)

Talk about class stratification in the parks! And I don't think that I could afford to pay, or justify paying, that much for my family. Maybe we would splurge on just one day of our trip.

It really is the only way to make Genie+ work. There isn't enough attractions for this to work. As it's been said a few times if everyone had LL nobody has LL.

 

[Miffy]

Is the point of these posts to give WDW permission to raise the price of G+ from $15/day to hundreds of dollars/day, the justification being that Universal charges that much?

At the point at which I would be paying big bucks from my WDW AP plus another few hundred dollars a day so that I could avoid waiting in line for hours plus the now huge rates (both rack and the rare discount rates) for my resort, I will stop coming to WDW because I won't be able to afford it.

If that's what everyone who wants the upcharges to accomplish, I guarantee you, it will accomplish that. The guests who don't have thousands of dollars to add to the already high total cost of their WDW trips will be successfully eliminated and WDW will be populated by two groups of people: those who can afford to spend thousands more on their vacation than they're now spending and off-site guests who don't mind waiting hours and hours standing in line.

I've seen it said on the DIS numerous times--that WDW is trying to reduce the number of guests at the parks. If that's the case, why why why are they advertising so much? That doesn't seem like the strategy of a company that wants to repel customers.

 

[Jrb1979]

Is the point of these posts to give WDW permission to raise the price of G+ from $15/day to hundreds of dollars/day, the justification being that Universal charges that much?

At the point at which I would be paying big bucks from my WDW AP plus another few hundred dollars a day so that I could avoid waiting in line for hours plus the now huge rates (both rack and the rare discount rates) for my resort, I will stop coming to WDW because I won't be able to afford it.

If that's what everyone who wants the upcharges to accomplish, I guarantee you, it will accomplish that. The guests who don't have thousands of dollars to add to the already high total cost of their WDW trips will be successfully eliminated and WDW will be populated by two groups of people: those who can afford to spend thousands more on their vacation than they're now spending and off-site guests who don't mind waiting hours and hours standing in line.

I've seen it said on the DIS numerous times--that WDW is trying to reduce the number of guests at the parks. If that's the case, why why why are they advertising so much? That doesn't seem like the strategy of a company that wants to repel customers.

They are advertising so much cause reservations haven't been as high as they expected. I've heard that the day of the 50th they were 30% below what they expected.

I understand where you are coming from if they raise the price of Genie+ but the problem is the system doesn't work. Look at the complaints with only getting 1 or 2 rides a day.

They need more attractions for it to work. Since that isn't going to happen any time soon, the only option is to cap the amount of Genie+ that can be bought or raise the price so fewer people buy it. Genie+ is not going away or will ever be free.

 

[Miffy]

They are advertising so much cause reservations haven't been as high as they expected. I've heard that the day of the 50th they were 30% below what they expected.

I understand where you are coming from if they raise the price of Genie+ but the problem is the system doesn't work. Look at the complaints with only getting 1 or 2 rides a day.

They need more attractions for it to work. Since that isn't going to happen any time soon, the only option is to cap the amount of Genie+ that can be bought or raise the price so fewer people buy it. Genie+ is not going away or will ever be free.

Thanks for your reply. I didn't realize that reservations weren't meeting WDW's expectations.

They do need more attractions and/or a 5th gate. They also need all the attractions they do have to be in working order most of the time.

Somehow I don't think raising the price of G+ is going to make much difference unless they raise it 10x or 20x of what it currently costs. And at that point they'd probably start losing even more guests, since how much is a person really going to spend on a trip? When a trip for 2 to WDW starts costing over $10K, then going to Tokyo Disney is going to seem like a better option, assuming one can afford that.

 

[TwoMisfits]

Busch Gardens Williamsburg cracked the code this Black Friday for what I want to pay to give my kids a day of rides in a park - park admission, unlimited quick queue (any day in spring/summer), and unlimited (CS) dining/drinks for $99/person. I actually booked a hotel just for a weekend to let them ride next year.

Disney should give this a try at a higher price point b/c it's probably the only thing that will bring me back b/c I don't want to deal with the mess of what they have now...

EDIT: And yes, it does not include their newest ride or 2 of their most popular coasters, but I only have 2 kids who would ride any of those...and they can wait a few times in a day while we pretty much get on other rides at will...

 

[Delirium]

That doesn’t always mean it will be available. I was there earlier in Nov, when it was slower, and tried to get a TSM LL to use before a late Oga’s. I sat in our room and refreshed, literally, constantly for an hour. Times would randomly pop up, but not one time when I clicked would it be available to actually book.

Somebody, anybody, read this post and convince me to book a Disney vacation because Genie+ will make my experience more magical.

FP+ worked for those wanting to make a little effort towards having a great vacation experience. Genie+ not only fails to offer you the opportunity to plan such an experience in advance, it charges you a fee for a LESSER experience.

It's mind-boggling to me that anyone tries to defend it.

 

[Jrb1979]

Thanks for your reply. I didn't realize that reservations weren't meeting WDW's expectations.

They do need more attractions and/or a 5th gate. They also need all the attractions they do have to be in working order most of the time.

Somehow I don't think raising the price of G+ is going to make much difference unless they raise it 10x or 20x of what it currently costs. And at that point they'd probably start losing even more guests, since how much is a person really going to spend on a trip? When a trip for 2 to WDW starts costing over $10K, then going to Tokyo Disney is going to seem like a better option, assuming one can afford that.

I think your missing the point. Having Genie+ is a privilege. That's how it works at every other park. FP ruined it cause now everyone thinks it should be available for everyone

 

[Orsino]

Disney could already increase capacity without building a new park or new rides simply by having longer operating hours. I’ve not gone during thanksgiving week so I’m not sure, but I’m guessing the open hours are much less this year than in years past. Tack on two hours and you’ve increased capacity by over 16 percent.
genie+ isn’t really the problem since genie merely shifts capacity around. To create capacity Disney needs longer opening hours. Short hours are the main culprit.

 

[Jrb1979]

Disney could already increase capacity without building a new park or new rides simply by having longer operating hours. I’ve not gone during thanksgiving week so I’m not sure, but I’m guessing the open hours are much less this year than in years past. Tack on two hours and you’ve increased capacity by over 16 percent.
genie+ isn’t really the problem since genie merely shifts capacity around. To create capacity Disney needs longer opening hours. Short hours are the main culprit.

They won't extend hours as they have Parties in the evening and extra hours for those staying at Deluxe properties. The only answer is to limit the amount of people Genie+ available to buy.

 

[dmunsil]

Disney could already increase capacity without building a new park or new rides simply by having longer operating hours. I’ve not gone during thanksgiving week so I’m not sure, but I’m guessing the open hours are much less this year than in years past. Tack on two hours and you’ve increased capacity by over 16 percent.
genie+ isn’t really the problem since genie merely shifts capacity around. To create capacity Disney needs longer opening hours. Short hours are the main culprit.

Longer hours would definitely help, and in years past they would typically be open 8-midnight on a holiday, sometimes even longer. We went on Christmas a few years back and MK was open at 7, with early entry at 6, and stayed open until 1 am.

I assume they are constrained by staffing issues. If so, they should bite the bullet and offer a lot fewer park reservations. They now have the ability to reduce attendance to allow for better guest experience and they should use it.

 

[5DisneyNuts]

It worked for DisBoarders. Not so well for folks who had no idea they needed to do anything in advance.

And G+, park reservations, erc., won't work for those folks either. Here now seeing plenty of 1st trip buttons not happy at all.

 

[StarCruzer]

Here's the way G+ should work:
- Buy the service up to 24 hours before the day you want to use it
- User creates a list of the attractions in priority order they want for the day (must have park pass reservations)
- G+ uses an algorithm to schedule passes automatically. Ideally, it would take into account if you've already ridden the high demand rides (i.e. if you rode ROTR yesterday, you're less likely to get it on your list today).
- Guarantee each day will have a minimum of five rides (or do like original FP+ and G+ will schedule your first three rides, then one at a time after)
- Allow people to see the generated schedule BEFORE committing to their purchase.

And as many people have said, include all rides instead of dividing into tiers.

It won't be perfect, but the product needs to 1. Guarantee a certain number of attractions and
2. Be extremely easy to use
3. Eliminate frustrating factors (waking up at 6:45 am, fighting with Disney bloggers for G+ slots, etc.)

 

[browneyedgirl1683]

To add to that, Disney+ is the focus now. What gets me is how so many are upset with how Disney is now but still go. There is so many other parks out there. Time to give them a try.

It's the "book in advance" mentality. You buy into it so early, and then prepare to get excited. Because you've booked early, you develop a plan. What else can you do to pass the time? Genie+ is meant to help you achieve that plan, and now you are invested. If you spend months dreaming of space mountain you will buy the pass to ensure you get onto it.

What angers me is that Genie+ is going to be taken as a fast pass for the casual fan, when really it should be viewed as ride concierge service. You might not get any of your choices, but you bought the right to try.

 

[Figment of Speech]

Disney could already increase capacity without building a new park or new rides simply by having longer operating hours. I’ve not gone during thanksgiving week so I’m not sure, but I’m guessing the open hours are much less this year than in years past. Tack on two hours and you’ve increased capacity by over 16 percent.
genie+ isn’t really the problem since genie merely shifts capacity around. To create capacity Disney needs longer opening hours. Short hours are the main culprit.

It could help as long as they increase hours without also increasing the reservation cap. Not that they're maxing out reservations every single day anymore, but it still happens during peak periods. Does anyone know if max capacity already fluctuates with park hours? As far as I've read, it's not something they share with the public, so it's possible they already do, which means changes in hours will only work if they, well, don't adjust the max cap too.

But supposing they did increase hours without adjusting capacity as well, it may or may not reduce line length that much, but it would definitely reduce the pressure people are under to try to skip the lines, because there would be more time to get on everything, even if you have to mix G+ and standby (or — gasp — do everything standby). We wouldn't hear "Genie+ didn't get me everything I wanted, so I'm never coming back to WDW again" (or less extreme versions of the same general message) quite as much.

 

[Tomaso12]

Bought G+ for MK this past Monday. Not a good experience. It forces you to bounce around the park. Most rides were gone by about 1pm and totally gone by 3pm. Often a time would pop up and be gone as soon as you clicked on it. Had a sore neck from staring at phone all morning. Spoke to a lot of people who were having simular issues / dont like the system. Total money grab and not getting much in return.

What I really don't like is the experience you get even if you don't use Genie plus. dont mind waiting in a long line provided it continues to move/creep along. Often, the stand by line would dead stop for several mins(10+) and it was typically due to the LL being backed up and prioritized over the stand by line.....never experienced this with Fast Pass system. Although it is impossible to find selections in the genie plua tip board; it seems the ll are highly oversold.

Lines also felt "artificially" long....as in Disney was trying to push up wait times rather then running rides efficiently...ie empty seats on ride cars/not loading all cars.

The only thing worse right now then Genie plus is how Disney is handling rope drop / early entry

 

[Grasshopper2016]

The only thing worse right now then Genie plus is how Disney is handling rope drop / early entry

Can you elaborate on this? I was kind of hoping that early entry would be the saving grace of my trip, given that G+ is such a train wreck.

 

[Tomaso12]

Pre-covid it seemed if you got up early and got to the park 40-50 mins prior to official open you got in, and could do a handful of rides prior to official openning. No real crowds. Even on super crowded days, there really wasn't much of issue doing anything before say 11:00 am or so. Now with early entry, it seems everyone staying onsite is at the park 20-30 mins prior to early entry. You get cattle herded around....from security to the tapstiles, to early entry check and finally to the actual rope drop....only to stand in line for 60+mins unless you go to a less popular ride (which isn't worth going through getting up early). I was at Hollywood 2-3 weeks after Rise first opened and dont recall it being as crazy in the morning as it was this past week.

Now, the one thing I would try to plan around/for that is helpful is if you can use the Deluxe extended hours.....got many rides in on the day we were able to at MK....the hub was still packed with people, but elsewhere was empty and walk on.

 

[soniam]

Pre-covid it seemed if you got up early and got to the park 40-50 mins prior to official open you got in, and could do a handful of rides prior to official openning. No real crowds. Even on super crowded days, there really wasn't much of issue doing anything before say 11:00 am or so. Now with early entry, it seems everyone staying onsite is at the park 20-30 mins prior to early entry. You get cattle herded around....from security to the tapstiles, to early entry check and finally to the actual rope drop....only to stand in line for 60+mins unless you go to a less popular ride (which isn't worth going through getting up early). I was at Hollywood 2-3 weeks after Rise first opened and dont recall it being as crazy in the morning as it was this past week.

Now, the one thing I would try to plan around/for that is helpful is if you can use the Deluxe extended hours.....got many rides in on the day we were able to at MK....the hub was still packed with people, but elsewhere was empty and walk on.

Pre-covid, I don’t ever remember getting into a park more than 30 minutes before opening, outside of AM Extra Magic Hours, barring the waiting on Main Street time at MK. Also, they usually didn’t have rides running until much closer to opening time. We have been going since 2012 during Summer, Spring Break, Thanksgiving, Wine & Dine weekend, and between Xmas-NYE.

 

[Doug7856]

We're undecided on adding Genie+ and this thread hasn't really encouraged us to purchase it. It appears the biggest complaints are the need to watch your phone continuously throughout the day (and the battery life of the device), the lack of availability on busy days midway through the afternoon, and the propensity to bounce around the park. It would seem a good touring plan for the day would likely better serve a family. The lack of movement by the standby lines is very concerning.