First trip back in 6 years!

[Butterfly123]

I haven't been on these boards in years, not since our last trip was cancelled due to the loooong park closure. I'm so excited to be taking a quick last minute three day trip to the parks beginning of June. My family of 5 will be going...we have 3 day one park per day passes with Genie+. We were planning two days in Disneyland, and one in California. Our California day will be a grad night, so that is unfortunate, but we've had grad nights in the past, and it worked out fine. I'll be all over these boards, reading everything I can due to all the changes since our last trip, which was six years ago! I've always found the best tips by hanging out here. I'm very excited, and look forward to interacting here for the next few weeks as i learn everything I need to know.

 

[DizMe]

Welcome back!! I know you'll have a great time. Things have been steadily improving since the parks reopened and you already have a good handle on DLR

 

[Kit Jackson]

Ask any specific questions you have about recent changes. People here are incredibly helpful and knowledgable. FYI-if you have Genie+, then you also have PhotoPass, if that matters to you.

 

[Butterfly123]

The first thing is going to be looking for a video tutorial of how to use the app...how to link everyone, how to use genie+, etc. My question is about the magic band+. It's not necessary, is it? It just means you don't have to pull out your phone all the time?

 

[StarlitNight05]

We just returned after a 3.5 year hiatus and already have another trip planned the end of this year because we had a blast! My best tip for you is to use the modify feature in Genie+ to try to accelerate the return time (essentially you are looking for a cancelled G+). I was able to do this for every attraction I tried it on. The most exciting one was when we had WEB slingers for like 4-5 hours out and after refreshing a few times (sometimes it takes more) I was able to get a near immediate return slot. I believe I read about this trick from @chezcurrie. It was a game changer!

 

[DizMe]

We just returned after a 3.5 year hiatus and already have another trip planned the end of this year because we had a blast! My best tip for you is to use the modify feature in Genie+ to try to accelerate the return time (essentially you are looking for a cancelled G+). I was able to do this for every attraction I tried it on. The most exciting one was when we had WEB slingers for like 4-5 hours out and after refreshing a few times (sometimes it takes more) I was able to get a near immediate return slot. I believe I read about this trick from @chezcurrie. It was a game changer!

Thank you! I've not yet used Genie+ but will in the near future. I'll keep this tip in mind!

 

[chezcurrie]

We just returned after a 3.5 year hiatus and already have another trip planned the end of this year because we had a blast! My best tip for you is to use the modify feature in Genie+ to try to accelerate the return time (essentially you are looking for a cancelled G+). I was able to do this for every attraction I tried it on. The most exciting one was when we had WEB slingers for like 4-5 hours out and after refreshing a few times (sometimes it takes more) I was able to get a near immediate return slot. I believe I read about this trick from @chezcurrie. It was a game changer!

Yay!!!! It really is a game changer!

 

[ironband74]

The first thing is going to be looking for a video tutorial of how to use the app...how to link everyone, how to use genie+, etc. My question is about the magic band+. It's not necessary, is it? It just means you don't have to pull out your phone all the time?

You don't need the magicband+. All the functional stuff (scanning admission, scanning into lightning lanes, photopass, etc) can be done with your phone.

However, Magicband+ is very convenient when you don't want to whip out your phone. And it comes with some fun little extras with light up and haptic effects during shows and on/after certain attractions. And you can play the batuu bounty hunter game, which is a fun little diversion but not a big enough reason to get them on its own.

I was a skeptic, but I wound up getting them for my family, and I have no regrets.

I would add that if you already wear a watch and don't want to wear a second wristband, or if you just don't like wearing them on your wrist, there are a number of products on etsy that allow you to take the puck from the band and put it on a chain, retractable badge reel, keychain, clip, existing watch band, etc. There are also some that fit directly in the charger (full disclosure, I sell such things on etsy, but will not link here since that would be against policy).

They are a lot of fun, even if they don't have all the functionality that they have in Orlando (You can't pay for stuff, and they won't open your hotel room door here on the west coast).

 

[pennym]

I'm justback home from my first trip in 6 years also. The most important game changer is figuring out how to snag a Magic Experience Pass, and then use it throughout the day to accelerate your return times. We were there for 8 days, and snagged an MEP 7 of those days. Indiana Jones worked for us nearly every day in Disneyland, and we got Toy Story and Incredicoaster ones in DCA. Be aware that Incredicoaster is not the gold tier, so you can't accelerate gold tier rides with that. Look up how to fish for MEPs and how to modify your LLs....this can turn your day into an almost line free one while going on every LL line in the park. Also be aware that if you want to get on Rise, it's frequently down. Check with a cast member before heading back there, or keep eyes on the app. Good luck and have fun!

 

[Pluto468]

Have a great trip!

 

[Butterfly123]

I'm justback home from my first trip in 6 years also. The most important game changer is figuring out how to snag a Magic Experience Pass, and then use it throughout the day to accelerate your return times. We were there for 8 days, and snagged an MEP 7 of those days. Indiana Jones worked for us nearly every day in Disneyland, and we got Toy Story and Incredicoaster ones in DCA. Be aware that Incredicoaster is not the gold tier, so you can't accelerate gold tier rides with that. Look up how to fish for MEPs and how to modify your LLs....this can turn your day into an almost line free one while going on every LL line in the park. Also be aware that if you want to get on Rise, it's frequently down. Check with a cast member before heading back there, or keep eyes on the app. Good luck and have fun!

Thanks for the tip, I've never even heard of a Magic Experience Pass, but I will do some research . I'm trying to familiarize myself with Genie+. So much to learn, but I'm very excited!!

 

[gelatoni fan]

Thanks for the tip, I've never even heard of a Magic Experience Pass, but I will do some research . I'm trying to familiarize myself with Genie+. So much to learn, but I'm very excited!!

There is no such thing as a Magic Experience Pass. I think the previous poster meant Multiple Experiences pass which is given when you have a Lightning Lane for an attraction when it is temporarily closed. These days, attractions at Disneyland go down a lot due to poor maintenance so on a multi-day trip, it's not uncommon to have several Genie+ Lightning Lane reservations turn into Multiple Experiences passes. These Multiple Experiences passes can be used any time of the day for any of the listed attractions, some of which don't even have lightning lanes. But notably, some attractions are considered higher tier and only available if you got a Multiple Experiences pass from a breakdown of a ride in that tier. I think the higher tier right now includes Matterhorn, Space Mountain, Indiana Jones, Web Slingers, Guardians of the Galaxy and Midway Mania.

Since Multiple Experiences Passes were introduced into the old Maxpass system, many people would get fastpasses or now lightning lanes for attractions which frequently break down such as Indiana Jones in the hopes that they would break down at the right time to get Multiple Experiences passes. If it seems like too much to think about, don't worry about optimizing your strategy for Multiple Experiences passes but it's good to be aware of them for when attractions break down.

 

[Kit Jackson]

@gelatoni fan did an excellent job of explaining it. If @Butterfly123 feels too overwhelemed, the simple explanation is that sometimes rides breakdown, and when they do, if you had a Lightning Lane reservation, that will convert to an MEP which can be used on a variety of different rides. It allows you to skip the standby line and use the Lightning Lane line.

 

[Butterfly123]

There is no such thing as a Magic Experience Pass. I think the previous poster meant Multiple Experiences pass which is given when you have a Lightning Lane for an attraction when it is temporarily closed. These days, attractions at Disneyland go down a lot due to poor maintenance so on a multi-day trip, it's not uncommon to have several Genie+ Lightning Lane reservations turn into Multiple Experiences passes. These Multiple Experiences passes can be used any time of the day for any of the listed attractions, some of which don't even have lightning lanes. But notably, some attractions are considered higher tier and only available if you got a Multiple Experiences pass from a breakdown of a ride in that tier. I think the higher tier right now includes Matterhorn, Space Mountain, Indiana Jones, Web Slingers, Guardians of the Galaxy and Midway Mania.

Since Multiple Experiences Passes were introduced into the old Maxpass system, many people would get fastpasses or now lightning lanes for attractions which frequently break down such as Indiana Jones in the hopes that they would break down at the right time to get Multiple Experiences passes. If it seems like too much to think about, don't worry about optimizing your strategy for Multiple Experiences passes but it's good to be aware of them for when attractions break down.

@gelatoni fan did an excellent job of explaining it. If @Butterfly123 feels too overwhelemed, the simple explanation is that sometimes rides breakdown, and when they do, if you had a Lightning Lane reservation, that will convert to an MEP which can be used on a variety of different rides. It allows you to skip the standby line and use the Lightning Lane line.

Thanks for the explanation. So you can stack the MEP's if more than one ride that you have a lightning lane pass for goes down? And if I'm understanding it, you don't have to schedule the MEP for a ride, you can just show up and use it?
Here is another question. If you have a lightning lane pass that you made at noon for, let's just say Indiana Jones at 1:30, and the ride goes down at 1:00, but it hasn't been the two hour time limit to schedule a new lightning lane pass, when will you be allowed to schedule a new pass? Do you have to wait until 1:30 to get an MEP, and then the scheduling will open up? I hope that question makes sense.

 

[twodogs]

Thanks for the explanation. So you can stack the MEP's if more than one ride that you have a lightning lane pass for goes down? And if I'm understanding it, you don't have to schedule the MEP for a ride, you can just show up and use it?
Here is another question. If you have a lightning lane pass that you made at noon for, let's just say Indiana Jones at 1:30, and the ride goes down at 1:00, but it hasn't been the two hour time limit to schedule a new lightning lane pass, when will you be allowed to schedule a new pass? Do you have to wait until 1:30 to get an MEP, and then the scheduling will open up? I hope that question makes sense.

You can use the MEP anytime on any ride that is allowed for that pass (list of rides you can use it on will be in the app within the MEP).

If the ride goes down, you may see your LL convert to a MEP even before your LL time window opens (suspect this happens when the problem with the ride is expected to take a long time to repair). Other times, the ride may be down the entire one hour window of your LL, and you won't get a MEP at all (has happened to us and not sure why; you could probably screen shot your LL and go to GS to get a MEP, but we didn't bother as it was late in the night). But usually, if the ride goes down during your one hour LL ride window, you will get a MEP sometime during that window (but may not be until the end of your one hour window, as they don't want to give out a bunch of MEPs, and then the ride comes back up quickly). Once it converts to MEP, you can book your next LL at that time, IF the LL that converted to a MEP was your most recently booked LL (ie if the "converted" LL was the one blocking you into the 2 hour rebooking window; sometimes the LL that converts to a MEP was a LL booked much earlier in the day, and it is not the LL that is currently blocking you from rebooking; in that case, even though it converts to MEP, you are still held to the 2 hour block based on the most recently booked LL).

 

[Butterfly123]

You can use the MEP anytime on any ride that is allowed for that pass (list of rides you can use it on will be in the app within the MEP).

If the ride goes down, you may see your LL convert to a MEP even before your LL time window opens (suspect this happens when the problem with the ride is expected to take a long time to repair). Other times, the ride may be down the entire one hour window of your LL, and you won't get a MEP at all (has happened to us and not sure why; you could probably screen shot your LL and go to GS to get a MEP, but we didn't bother as it was late in the night). But usually, if the ride goes down during your one hour LL ride window, you will get a MEP sometime during that window (but may not be until the end of your one hour window, as they don't want to give out a bunch of MEPs, and then the ride comes back up quickly). Once it converts to MEP, you can book your next LL at that time, IF the LL that converted to a MEP was your most recently booked LL (ie if the "converted" LL was the one blocking you into the 2 hour rebooking window; sometimes the LL that converts to a MEP was a LL booked much earlier in the day, and it is not the LL that is currently blocking you from rebooking; in that case, even though it converts to MEP, you are still held to the 2 hour block based on the most recently booked LL).

Thank you, this makes sense. I appreciate the info!

 

[pennym]

The most important thing to note is that if you've scored an MEP you can accelerate all other LLs. Make a HM reservation for 3pm, go ride it immediately, then make a Space Mountain LL for 7pm, go ride it immediately. Use your MEP last thing. It makes the 2 hour window thing irrelevant.

 

[Simba001]

The first thing is going to be looking for a video tutorial of how to use the app...how to link everyone, how to use genie+, etc. My question is about the magic band+. It's not necessary, is it? It just means you don't have to pull out your phone all the time?

What ironband74 stated…. You do not need a Magic Band+. I did purchase one and used it . I like it for Park entrance and Lightening Lane entrance (though we rarely purchase Genie+ and therefore didn’t go through many LL entrances) . My husband on the other hand, did not want a Magic Band. So when we would enter the Parks and/or the LL, I flash my wrist with my Magic Band…. Easy peasy…. I’m in. I sometimes would forget to remind him… pull the paper ticket ( yes…they did give us one, though many folks aren’t given them…. Why? I don’t know) or take out your phone. So he often started scrambling. Before the MB+ I would have my phone at the ready for both of us to enter Parks and LL.
As far as the light up features of the MB+ … it’s fun at first, but not something I get too excited about. Probably more fun for kids.

When we next go to WDW, I’ll take my MB+ to use and he’ll probably just use his Apple Watch - with its limited capability there.