A former Touring Plan Pro's thoughts about Genie+

[aggiedog]

We just got back yesterday from an adults only WDW trip. We've done WDW many times over the years, and I have to say, overall, I was not thrilled with Genie+/ILL's, etc. I'll try to make this as concise as possible.

A brief background: We have 4 kids, and the last time we went as a family was 6-7 years ago. We like to stay on site, preferably the Beach Club Villas. We would be there at rope drop, use a touring plan to hit all the highlights, then be back at the room around lunch for pool and rest time before hitting Epcot for one of the international restaurants. Since our last trip, I've also chaperoned 2 HS band trips, where we stayed offsite, getting our tickets each day the morning of, and usually not getting to the parks until 1-2 hours after opening but then are there until closing. Not my preferred way to see the parks, but we were still able to see/do quite a bit.

This trip we were gifted a condo at the Sheraton Vista for 7 days. Due to timing and school, we made it adults only with 2 sets of friends. All of us have done WDW with our kids, and we really just wanted to hit the highlights (Galaxy's Edge, Avatar, the Food & Wine festival) while getting some relaxation in by the pool and eating good food.

Two of us decided to become the Genie+ experts, which took way more research than I really want to do for a vacation.

I HATED having to either be awake past midnight, or get up before 7:00, in order to have G+ purchased in time to start looking for LL's. If there was a way to choose a later time than what was given, other than to refresh and hope for the best, I didn't see it. Then I hated that we had to do that all again at park opening time to hope there were any ILL's for the rides we'd really hoped to ride. This generally resulted in us getting mid-morning LL's, and only once getting an ILL, for early evening So much for a relaxing start to our day and having time out of the park to hang out by the pool.

I didn't mind using the phone to continue to use G+ during the day, and would generally just check it quickly once we tapped into the current LL. That worked well for HWS, though we NEVER had a chance at a ROTR ILL. Not so much for Epcot, where it would have had us running all over the park. For Epcot, we really just wanted Guardians and Remy. We got an estimated arrival time of 5:45 for Guardians with the VQ, and 2:30 for Remy after one refresh at 7:00am for Remy. Good thing we kept checking the times as our Guardians arrival time moved drastically, to hover around 2:15. We then spent quite a bit of time obsessing over it was going to move again, and barely made our Guardians time, with 5 minutes to spare, after hoofing it across the park. We really enjoyed Remy, and LOVED Guardians. Really, the best rollercoaster I've ever done. But with competing times, it was not fun.

Some of us ended up going back to HWS at 8:00 to just ride standby for ROTR, as that seemed the only way to ride it without waiting 2+ hours. We waited exactly one hour between entering the line and starting the experience. We agreed more than that might not have been "worth it" and that was from a Star Wars fan.

Epcot was stupid busy. We were there the night of a race and it's after party. We took the highliner from HWS, and the line to go thru the IG was 25 minutes long, stretching back to the entrance of the Beach Club. I'd love to know if that is common now or due to the race, as when we finally got to the front, we were told that non-race participants could suddenly move to a shorter line. It really felt like the CM's there had no clue what they were doing. The international section of Epcot was packed, body to body. Seriously not fun that night.

We had Space 220 reservations and just getting to the front of the park was a huge PITA. Space 220 was great, with some caveats. The food is good, and not cheap. We managed a somewhat early dinner time, which meant lots of kids were still there. So we spent a good deal of money, trying to enjoy our good food, while surrounded by cranky, loud kids. (Hey, I have kids, and it is Disney, I get it. But if you're looking for an experience to match the cost, this is a consideration.)

Staying off site, I had no idea until yesterday that only deluxe resorts get extended hours, and that they no longer deliver purchases to your resort. WTH??

So, we had a great time with our friends, and the G+ system mostly worked for us, though staying off site is a distinct disadvantage, so much so as to be punitive if your goal is the rides. It still galled me, though, that I had to PAY for that ability. If we'd been paying for our 4 kids on top of all that, it would be more galling yet. This system, if you want to ride rides, pretty much insures you will not have significant control over your schedule on any given day, and that you will likely spend a very long day in the park.

I didn't love that we had to reserve park days ahead of time, and hated that we couldn't park hop until 2:00. Again, no significant control of your day.

I probably won't consider another family trip to WDW for a good while. There is a long recent thread on if WDW is "worth it" now. For how we like to travel as a family, no. I can spend the same, or perhaps more, money on other trips, but know that I have control of what I'm doing that day, without dealing with the crowds, the constant juggling of our schedule, or trying to get fleeting chances at things we really want to do.

 

[revdon64]

"that you will likely spend a very long day in the park."

This is not a bug, it's a feature. It's exactly what Disney wants G+ to accomplish.

 

[set88]

I didn't mind using the phone to continue to use G+ during the day, and would generally just check it quickly once we tapped into the current LL. That worked well for HWS, though we NEVER had a chance at a ROTR ILL. Not so much for Epcot, where it would have had us running all over the park. For Epcot, we really just wanted Guardians and Remy. We got an estimated arrival time of 5:45 for Guardians with the VQ, and 2:30 for Remy after one refresh at 7:00am for Remy. Good thing we kept checking the times as our Guardians arrival time moved drastically, to hover around 2:15. We then spent quite a bit of time obsessing over it was going to move again, and barely made our Guardians time, with 5 minutes to spare, after hoofing it across the park. We really enjoyed Remy, and LOVED Guardians. Really, the best rollercoaster I've ever done. But with competing times, it was not fun.

I know it's not much help now, but it might help someone else reading this... you can do Guardians any time after your boarding group is called, for the rest of the day! It doesn't matter if they move the time up, you are always able to wait. You just can't go before it's called - anytime after is fine.

Reports are that ILLs work the same way (you will be allowed to enter any time after your start time), but Genie+ does not.

We had Space 220 reservations and just getting to the front of the park was a huge PITA. Space 220 was great, with some caveats. The food is good, and not cheap. We managed a somewhat early dinner time, which meant lots of kids were still there. So we spent a good deal of money, trying to enjoy our good food, while surrounded by cranky, loud kids.

Kind of wish I'd read this before I decided to drop our later dinner reservation in favor of the lunch one I honestly didn't consider this. I'm glad to know you enjoyed the food. Space 220 is hopefully going to be one of the biggest highlights of our trip and I've read a few negative things about it.

 

[aggiedog]

Well, that would have been nice to know about VQ's. I didn't see anything to that regards. Grrr.

And I'm sure Disney wants us to spend all day in the park, with the 2 hour rule between G+'s. But I don't want to. And I didn't have to in the past, and was still able to do all the things we had planned.

 

[baozi]

I know it's not much help now, but it might help someone else reading this... you can do Guardians any time after your boarding group is called, for the rest of the day! It doesn't matter if they move the time up, you are always able to wait. You just can't go before it's called - anytime after is fine.

Reports are that ILLs work the same way (you will be allowed to enter any time after your start time), but Genie+ does not.

Just back from Epcot, I guess it is dependent on the situation at the time (sorry that this is not helpful at all, but basically give a counter example).

My data point: got a boarding group 1 (return window 8:10-9:10), I was rope dropping for Frozen and Remy, rode twice each, and got to Guardians at 10:11. The receptor blinked blue, and the CM said "1 minute late", and laughed it off.

For ILL, I believed that the buffer would be 5 minutes before and 10 minutes after. I arrived at FoP nearly half an hour later, but it worked without the blue blink.

 

[CarolynFH]

Just back from Epcot, I guess it is dependent on the situation at the time (sorry that this is not helpful at all, but basically give a counter example).

My data point: got a boarding group 1 (return window 8:10-9:10), I was rope dropping for Frozen and Remy, rode twice each, and got to Guardians at 10:11. The receptor blinked blue, and the CM said "1 minute late", and laughed it off.

For ILL, I believed that the buffer would be 5 minutes before and 10 minutes after. I arrived at FoP nearly half an hour later, but it worked without the blue blink.

Uh-oh, when was this? Yours is the first report I’ve seen of being turned away from GotG for being late. I hope it’s not the first of many!

When we got our VQs in July, they didn’t have an end time. The notification just said our BG was open.

 

[baozi]

I am just back from a WDW trip. I think I am satisfied with my utilization of G+ but under the following mode: it is an "exercise" mode hopping all parks and the only thing is to ride the rides.
I got Frozen, Remy, SDD, MMRR, TSMM, Navi, Peter Pan, Haunted Mansion (these were reserved more than 120 minutes in advance) and many instant return attractions during my last 2 hours at Magic Kingdom. It was on Nov. 4, a not-so-busy but long park hour day.

 

[baozi]

Uh-oh, when was this? Yours is the first report I’ve seen of being turned away from GotG for being late. I hope it’s not the first of many!

I was not turned away, the CM did let me in. But that was Nov. 2.
And note in my case it feels like the buffer, instead of 10 minutes for regular G+ passes, is 1 hour.

 

[CarolynFH]

I was not turned away, the CM did let me in. But that was Nov. 2.

Thanks for clarifying! I thought you meant the CM turned you away and laughed that off!

 

[tigerlilly]

I probably won't consider another family trip to WDW for a good while. There is a long recent thread on if WDW is "worth it" now. For how we like to travel as a family, no. I can spend the same, or perhaps more, money on other trips, but know that I have control of what I'm doing that day, without dealing with the crowds, the constant juggling of our schedule, or trying to get fleeting chances at things we really want to do.

Thank you for the report. You expressed a little bit of what I felt after our trip in September. There is no longer a sense of control and that is what I loved about Disney vacations. I loved having every detail planned ... times to eat, times to ride, which park, which show, resort room type etc. I am able to still plan some of this but there is little control outside of dining and choosing our resort (this trip we literally received the opposite of every room request we made and our inquiries to change were usually met with a shrug lol...which is fine I understand but still). I laughed our morning of MK sitting on the bus at the BC...sun wasn't up everyone with their nose buried in the phone buying Genie +...in line at gates everyone trying to get a good ride time. Definitely not relaxing. I think staying off site is not ideal.

Were you there during the hurricane? We were there during Ian and I must say... no control there lol...

Thanks again for report.

 

[AliceIn]

"that you will likely spend a very long day in the park."

This is not a bug, it's a feature. It's exactly what Disney wants G+ to accomplish.

After trying G+ and paid ILL last vacation, we've decided not to do it again and significantly reduce our park time because of it. If that is what Disney wants to accomplish with G+, it certainly worked for my family.

 

[SusanDK]

Thanks for the excellent, comprehensive review.

I still don't understand why Disney couldn't just keep the old FP+ system but add the daily fee if an extra fee is what they wanted. Maybe reduce the advance planning timeframe for booking rides from what it was with FP+, but allow people to pre-select their 3 rides or attractions at the time they wanted, and to do it before park arrival / day of. I would be willing to pay the $15 (or whatever it is now) if I could pick my 3 LL experiences at times of my choosing from the comfort of home prior to arrival in the park so I could enjoy my time in the park, knowing that I had those three rides secured, ideally within a couple of hours of one another. They obviously have the technology to do it already since that was how it used to work.

 

[baozi]

Thanks for the excellent, comprehensive review.

I still don't understand why Disney couldn't just keep the old FP+ system but add the daily fee if an extra fee is what they wanted. Maybe reduce the advance planning timeframe for booking rides from what it was with FP+, but allow people to pre-select their 3 rides or attractions at the time they wanted, and to do it before park arrival / day of. I would be willing to pay the $15 (or whatever it is now) if I could pick my 3 LL experiences at times of my choosing from the comfort of home prior to arrival in the park so I could enjoy my time in the park, knowing that I had those three rides secured, ideally within a couple of hours of one another. They obviously have the technology to do it already since that was how it used to work.

I think it is different.
For the old FP+ system, many people believed that it was basically 3 FP+ per day, and in fact, when making reservations, what if, say, there is only one 6:00pm slot open for FoP, do you take it or leave it? And for people who could not grab hot attractions, were they satisfied with 3 mediocre attractions?
Now people have a more uniform strategy, and it is limit once per attraction per day. In the old days, I followed a different strategy, used 3 dummy FPs ASAP in the morning, then kept refreshing, and was able to get say, FoP, four times a day. I guess this is the style some people do not like, as you have to keep refreshing, and it depends on the fact that people used different strategies. To me, current G+ is a downgrade, but for a different reason.

 

[DavidNYC]

I consider myself an expert too and just finishing up a long weekend here. I was able to do nearly everything I wanted with Genie+ but it was far more stressful, too a lot more work and required a ridiculous amount of extra walking crossing back and forth in the parks and often having to rush from one to another with overlappping times. So much worse than the prior system.

 

[revdon64]

After trying G+ and paid ILL last vacation, we've decided not to do it again and significantly reduce our park time because of it. If that is what Disney wants to accomplish with G+, it certainly worked for my family.

The Law of Unintended Consequences. I don't think they meant to chase a lot of people off, but that is happening too. We were there for three days in March and our G+ experience, really the overall experience, was so bad that my DW and kids have no interest in going back at all. My youngest son is getting his tenth birthday Disney cruise in January with one surprise park day added on, but that's it. Our vacation for 2023 is booked for a cabin overlooking Pigeon Forge in Tennessee and everyone is looking forward to it. Iger and Chapek have lost this loyal family.

 

[emilymad]

"that you will likely spend a very long day in the park."

This is not a bug, it's a feature. It's exactly what Disney wants G+ to accomplish.

And this is exactly why G+ doesn't work for us. We have no desire to stay in the parks all day even if that is what Disney wants.

We tried G+ last year for one day and never again for us. We are doing a short trip later this month because we had left over tickets. We are planning for no G+ and no ILL. We are DVC and have a week booked in February but we don't plan to do any park days. We did the same two years ago. So now we will use our DVC but it is a new game to see how little money we can give Disney. Our actual vacation budget is spent on other destinations. We would have happily paid the money if it was the old FP+ system but instead they have lost one more family.

 

[wilkydelts]

And this is exactly why G+ doesn't work for us. We have no desire to stay in the parks all day even if that is what Disney wants.

We tried G+ last year for one day and never again for us. We are doing a short trip later this month because we had left over tickets. We are planning for no G+ and no ILL. We are DVC and have a week booked in February but we don't plan to do any park days. We did the same two years ago. So now we will use our DVC but it is a new game to see how little money we can give Disney. Our actual vacation budget is spent on other destinations. We would have happily paid the money if it was the old FP+ system but instead they have lost one more family.

This makes no sense. If what you are saying was true rent your points and spend no money at Disney.

 

[MousetersInc]

We just got back yesterday from an adults only WDW trip. We've done WDW many times over the years, and I have to say, overall, I was not thrilled with Genie+/ILL's, etc. I'll try to make this as concise as possible.

A brief background: We have 4 kids, and the last time we went as a family was 6-7 years ago. We like to stay on site, preferably the Beach Club Villas. We would be there at rope drop, use a touring plan to hit all the highlights, then be back at the room around lunch for pool and rest time before hitting Epcot for one of the international restaurants. Since our last trip, I've also chaperoned 2 HS band trips, where we stayed offsite, getting our tickets each day the morning of, and usually not getting to the parks until 1-2 hours after opening but then are there until closing. Not my preferred way to see the parks, but we were still able to see/do quite a bit.

This trip we were gifted a condo at the Sheraton Vista for 7 days. Due to timing and school, we made it adults only with 2 sets of friends. All of us have done WDW with our kids, and we really just wanted to hit the highlights (Galaxy's Edge, Avatar, the Food & Wine festival) while getting some relaxation in by the pool and eating good food.

Two of us decided to become the Genie+ experts, which took way more research than I really want to do for a vacation.

I HATED having to either be awake past midnight, or get up before 7:00, in order to have G+ purchased in time to start looking for LL's. If there was a way to choose a later time than what was given, other than to refresh and hope for the best, I didn't see it. Then I hated that we had to do that all again at park opening time to hope there were any ILL's for the rides we'd really hoped to ride. This generally resulted in us getting mid-morning LL's, and only once getting an ILL, for early evening So much for a relaxing start to our day and having time out of the park to hang out by the pool.

I didn't mind using the phone to continue to use G+ during the day, and would generally just check it quickly once we tapped into the current LL. That worked well for HWS, though we NEVER had a chance at a ROTR ILL. Not so much for Epcot, where it would have had us running all over the park. For Epcot, we really just wanted Guardians and Remy. We got an estimated arrival time of 5:45 for Guardians with the VQ, and 2:30 for Remy after one refresh at 7:00am for Remy. Good thing we kept checking the times as our Guardians arrival time moved drastically, to hover around 2:15. We then spent quite a bit of time obsessing over it was going to move again, and barely made our Guardians time, with 5 minutes to spare, after hoofing it across the park. We really enjoyed Remy, and LOVED Guardians. Really, the best rollercoaster I've ever done. But with competing times, it was not fun.

Some of us ended up going back to HWS at 8:00 to just ride standby for ROTR, as that seemed the only way to ride it without waiting 2+ hours. We waited exactly one hour between entering the line and starting the experience. We agreed more than that might not have been "worth it" and that was from a Star Wars fan.

Epcot was stupid busy. We were there the night of a race and it's after party. We took the highliner from HWS, and the line to go thru the IG was 25 minutes long, stretching back to the entrance of the Beach Club. I'd love to know if that is common now or due to the race, as when we finally got to the front, we were told that non-race participants could suddenly move to a shorter line. It really felt like the CM's there had no clue what they were doing. The international section of Epcot was packed, body to body. Seriously not fun that night.

We had Space 220 reservations and just getting to the front of the park was a huge PITA. Space 220 was great, with some caveats. The food is good, and not cheap. We managed a somewhat early dinner time, which meant lots of kids were still there. So we spent a good deal of money, trying to enjoy our good food, while surrounded by cranky, loud kids. (Hey, I have kids, and it is Disney, I get it. But if you're looking for an experience to match the cost, this is a consideration.)

Staying off site, I had no idea until yesterday that only deluxe resorts get extended hours, and that they no longer deliver purchases to your resort. WTH??

So, we had a great time with our friends, and the G+ system mostly worked for us, though staying off site is a distinct disadvantage, so much so as to be punitive if your goal is the rides. It still galled me, though, that I had to PAY for that ability. If we'd been paying for our 4 kids on top of all that, it would be more galling yet. This system, if you want to ride rides, pretty much insures you will not have significant control over your schedule on any given day, and that you will likely spend a very long day in the park.

I didn't love that we had to reserve park days ahead of time, and hated that we couldn't park hop until 2:00. Again, no significant control of your day.

I probably won't consider another family trip to WDW for a good while. There is a long recent thread on if WDW is "worth it" now. For how we like to travel as a family, no. I can spend the same, or perhaps more, money on other trips, but know that I have control of what I'm doing that day, without dealing with the crowds, the constant juggling of our schedule, or trying to get fleeting chances at things we really want to do.

LOL, I dreamed about this thread last night! (Perhaps combined with the thread about trouble with the app.) I dreamed that I got a call from Bob Chapek, and he said "I heard you had some questions for me?" And I was like, "Oh, gee, I don't know why this went all the way to the CEO, I just had some minor questions about some details of the UX in the app. But while I've got you on the line—read this thread! That, sir, is called 'customer dissatisfaction.'"

 

[Louise97]

Lack of control over our schedule was really frustrating for us. I might have liked G+ better if I could have selected a time slot for our return but having to take whatever time it offered was frustrating. Not being able to hop until 2pm and having to go to your reserved park first added to the overall feeling of lack of control, I'd love to see the data Disney are using to decide that it's worth the impact on the customer experience.

 

[parasail_of_congress]

So you were there last week, which was NJ week and rather crowded, correct? It sounds as if most of your issues with G+ were due to the large crowds.