Recently we’ve seen some HUGE Disney news announced.
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FastPass+, FASTPASS, and MaxPass will not return to Disney World or Disneyland. A NEW, FREE planning service called Disney Genie is coming soon will help you optimize your time in the parks. But, if you want to skip the standby lines in the parks, you’ll have to purchase one of Disney’s new PAID FastPass-like services — Genie+ or Individual Attraction Selection. It’s a LOT to take in, but the main thing to take away is that if you want to skip the standby lines, you’ll have to pay for it. We asked our readers whether they would do that. Here’s what they said.
Quick Overview
Before we get into our readers’ responses as to whether they’d pay for Genie+ (one of the 2 paid services Disney recently introduced), we wanted to give you a quick breakdown of the new services Disney has announced.
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Since we’re trying to be brief we’re going to make use of another post we did where we explained the core elements of these 3 services in 500 words or less. You can click HERE to check out that post, but the core information is below:
Disney Genie is a FREE planning service built into the My Disney Experience App and Disneyland App. You will tell Disney Genie what you want to ride, what types of things you like, etc. and Disney Genie will create a personalized, flexible itinerary for you. With Genie, you’ll be able to see forecasted wait times, mobile order your food, chat with a virtual assistant, see walk-up waitlist availability, make restaurant reservations, adjust your plans, and more. Plans will continuously update to help you get the most out of your day. Essentially, Genie is designed to help you plan your day and optimize your plans.
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Disney Genie+ is a PAID FastPass-like service. It costs $15 per day, per ticket at Disney World, and $20 per day per ticket at Disneyland. If you pay for this service, you’ll be able to see when the next available time is to use various rides’ Lightning Lanes (i.e. FastPass+ lanes). You will select the next available time to use the Lightning Lane for whatever ride you want, and when your time arrives, you can visit the ride and use the Lightning Lane (skipping the standby line).
Once you’re done with that ride, you can make another Genie+ Lightning Lane selection — 1 ride at a time, throughout the day. Over 40 attractions will be available through Genie+ at Disney World, over 15 attractions will be available through Genie+ at Disneyland. NOT all attractions will be available through Genie+.
While most guests can purchase Genie+ in advance (though the situation seems different for Annual Passholders), you cannot make a Genie+ Lightning Lane selection until the DAY OF your trip. At Disney World, guests can make their first Lightning Lane attraction at 7AM on the day of their visit. At Disneyland, the first Genie+ Lightning Lane selection can be made once you’re in the park.
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Select, highly popular attractions (like Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom, Radiator Springs Racers in Disney California Adventure Park, WEB SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure at Disney California Adventure Park, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, and Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure at EPCOT) will NOT be listed on Genie+.
That means that even if you pay for Genie+ you will NOT be able to select a time for/use the Lightning Lane at those attractions. Instead, if you want to use the Lightning Lane for those attractions, you’ll have to pay for the attractions INDIVIDUALLY. (We aren’t really going into that in-depth in this post — you can see more about that here).
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That’s a basic overview of the 3 services, but of course, there’s a lot to break down from there.
If you want more information about Genie, Genie+, and Individual Attraction Selection — click here!
Would You Pay for Disney Genie+?
Alright, let’s get to the poll! For our poll on Instagram, we asked our readers whether they would pay for Disney Genie+ (that’s the service that is priced at $15 a day at Disney World, $20 a day at Disneyland, and gives you the ability to select the next available return time to use select attractions’ Lightning Lanes, and you can make 1 selection at a time throughout the day). And…the results were pretty split.
Things Are Pretty Split
Overall, 53% of our readers voted “no” (this came out to 7,468 votes), while 47% of our readers voted “yes” (6,569 votes). The “no’s” had it, but just barely!
Yes, I’ll Pay
From the yes category, we received a few comments. One reader told us that they begrudgingly voted “yes.” That reader said that they’re planning their first trip to the parks and it’s a big one. They probably won’t be back for several years, so they said they felt like they’ll have to pay for Genie+ to really make the most out of their trip and not get stuck in lengthy standby lines.
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Another said they also voted “yes” because they felt like they’d have no other choice. Essentially, they noted that it’s either pay for Genie+ or stand in a (potentially) long standby line.
One reader sort-of echoed those statements saying they’ll pay for Genie+, but they “won’t be happy about it.”
There are a lot of things at play that could affect Disney Genie+ and there are a lot of questions we still have about the service. Will Disney be limiting how many can pay for Genie+ per day? What will those return times look like? Presumably, they will vary by day, time, park, ride, etc., so it will be interesting to see just how many rides you could get Lightning Lane passes for in one day. How many people will opt to not pay for this service and how will that impact standard lines? There are a lot of questions that we might not get answered until the system is in place and we get the chance to use it.
Click here to see our answers to some of your Genie+ questions!
NO WAY
We also received quite a few comments from those who voted “no.” One reader said they wouldn’t be paying for “something that’s always been free.” And they indicated that they would spend their entertainment dollars elsewhere.
Note that FastPass has been included in the price of your ticket at Disney World and Disneyland for years, though Disneyland did have a PAID MaxPass option that Disney Genie+ is somewhat similar to. Click here to see what’s different about these services.
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Another told us “This is ridiculous!! It’s expensive enough!!” We totally get it — a trip to Disney World can be incredibly expensive. We’re constantly trying to find and share tips with you that could help you save money on future trips, but unless you win a free trip to Disney World you’ll have to pay something to be and Genie+ will be a cost you’d have to add on top of that.
Just keep in mind that you are not required to pay for Genie+ or Individual Attraction Selection. Rides at Disney World will continue to offer standby and/or Virtual Queues depending on the ride.
Curious to know how expensive Disney might be in 10 years? See our post here!
On the Fence
Other readers were on the fence. One said they need that list of the over 40 rides that will be included with Genie+ (in Disney World, note that over 15 rides will be included with Genie+ in Disneyland) before they could make a decision. And yeah, we totally get that! Disney hasn’t shared the full list of rides that will be included in Genie+ vs. Individual Attraction Selection, but here’s what we know so far.
Disney has indicated that over 40 rides at Disney World and over 15 rides at Disneyland will be available through Genie+. Rides like Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run, and Haunted Mansion will be included in Disney Genie+.
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But, some of those highly popular rides like Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom, Radiator Springs Racers in Disney California Adventure Park, WEB SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure at Disney California Adventure Park, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, and Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure at EPCOT will NOT be available through Genie+. Instead, you’ll have to pay individually per ride for these to use their Lightning Lanes (maximum of 2 of these Individual Attraction Selections per day).
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Another reader said that all of the extras Disney is charging for is giving them “a very negative feel for Disney,” despite their family’s love for Disney. They shared that because of the already high costs, their trips to the parks are “few and far between.” They said they said they actually don’t mind paying for the service, but also said that Disney already charges high prices. The reader shared, “Why add to the expense by nickel and dining everything? This makes it harder for families who already struggle to pay for the trips. How are hard pressed parents going to give their children the best experience possible if they can’t afford to pay for these extras??”
One said they were “torn” and would be leaning on us more than ever with all this news. Truly, we’re thankful that many of you have turned to us with your concerns and questions about the service. Keep the questions coming, let us know what confuses you or what you’re not sure about — we truly want to hear that and want to see how we can help you decide what’ll be best for your trip.
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Want to know more about Disney Genie? Check out some of our other posts, linked below:
- Click here to learn about Genie+ and Individual Attraction Selection, including what attractions have been listed for each and more details
- Click here to see what Annual Passholders need to know about Disney Genie
- Click here to see how and why you’ll pay for individual rides in Disney Genie+ with Individual Attraction Selection
- Click here to see more about the features of the FREE Disney Genie planning service (different than Genie+ and Individual Attraction Selection)
- Click here to see 5 MIND BLOWING features of the Disney Genie planning service
- Click here to see how Disney Genie+ is different from MaxPass
- Click here to see how being a hotel guest will benefit you with the Individual Attraction Selection service
- See answers to some of your Disney Genie questions
We’ll continue to keep an eye out for more updates about Genie, Genie+, and Individual Attraction Selection. Be sure to check back with us for more information.
Click here to see more about Genie, Genie+, and Individual Attraction Selection.
Will you pay for Genie+? Tell us in the comments!
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I don’t think it’s a bad idea at all. For $15 extra a person per day isn’t really that much at all. Over the years the benefits of Fastpass have steadily declined with the wait time for fastpass sometimes being not much shorter that then standby. Hopefully this will return fastpass to its original value of minimum or no wait. Also as an added way to generate revenue in the parks Disney won’t have to cut back on the extras that make Disney disney
Readers, stop stating that the fastpass was free. It was never free and included in the price of your admission. Not only is Fisney conning you with Genie+ but they are also raising admissiin prices. They know (and with utter disdain for fans) that “Disney Diehard” fans will pay anything for their brand. You will. You will take it and like it. Thats reality. If you do not stop feeding the beast with your fanaticism they will get worse every year! Stop the madness. Go to Hawaii or Yosemite or anywhere else you as a customer will be respected and valued! Stop letting Disney devalue and abuse you.
Here in Scotland this is difficult to hear this news. We are not able to even get to Orlando at the moment as UK citizens are band from traveling to the US. We are DVC members , obviously we have paid our Dues in January 2020, again in January 2021 and we will have to pay them again in 2022. No refund from Disney even when we can’t get into the US. Several airlines have withdrawn all flights to Orlando and others are no longer flying from Scotland . Meaning we will need to fly to England at an other additional cost, to then fly to Orlando. It’s just money, money, money. If we are not able to travel to Disney next year, we will lose our points. Again no come back from Disney.
When we travel to Orlando we come for 2 weeks or more( pretty standard for UK visitors)
We will visit the parks 7-10 out of the 14 days. Can you imagine how much this is going to cost us.
Disney gets a lot of our money , DVC costs , Disney plus subscription, visits to the internet line and physical Disney store and trips to the cinema to watch their movies. Seriously, I could have paid off my mortgage years ago if I hadn’t spent it on Disney.
But thank you AJ for keeping us ip to date, we always sit down as a family at the weekend and get our weekly dose of Disney ip dates. Just this weeks had been hard to swallow.
I think a follow up poll would ask which parks WON’T you considering buying Genie+? I would guess: EPCOT & Animal Kingdom and any second day at a park. Maybe that’s just me. But I don’t see people buying it for a whole trip that includes all the parks plus a second day for one.
I am more than willing to pay certain days to make the most of our trip. It sucks that they took away a free service and made it a paid service but that is capitalism and if you don’t want to pay that is your choice. Makes it easier for my family to get the most of the service if many don’t use it.
Lorraine, we can completely understand the frustrations people are feeling. Thanks for following along with DFB through it all!
The DFB is great for advice and during the dark days of the pandemic it was a ray of sunshine. We are able to adapt the advice to suit British/ Scottish tastes.
We were hoping that DVC members would have got any fast pass replacement for free. So this was disappointing.
But thanks again everyone.
I feel extremely stressed about this news. I like to plan our vacations. This is going to make it difficult to book dining reservations and go on the rides we want to go on. First thing in the morning instead of relaxing I’m going to have to book tickets. I’ll be looking at my phone instead of enjoying the parks. I think they’ll soon see that restaurants that need a reservation will take a hit. When you invest so much money to go you want to be able to do what you want to do. I hope they make a compromise and release half the tickets 60 days in advance. Then half the tickets for those who want to be spontaneous the day of. I would like to cancel my vacation but cannot. Our family goes to Disney yearly, but I think we’ll do something else in the future. This no longer seems like fun. We’ve all suffered due to the pandemic. I think this new system is inappropriate. This only benefits the spontaneous wealthy and Disney.
I’m curious about advance dining reservations and how the promise of flexibility potentially clash. If we still have to fight for those ADRs 60 days out, and decide that 11:15 is a good time to eat 2 months from now, then you are still locked into a pretty set schedule – if you are still going to be charged $10/person to cancel an ADR. So two months in advance, without the benefit of the data provided by genie you have to pick your meals and potentially miss out of the optimization the app can offer because it HAS to work around those arbitrary meal times you had to pick two months ago.
I will be shocked if 50% actually don’t buy it for at least their first MK and HS days. Maybe not for the other parks. I think this poll is a knee jerk reaction to the news. A follow up poll a couple months from now and maybe a couple months after it is fully in place would be interesting.
Does it meN yohhave to pay 15$ per ride per person or 15$ per day
Honestly? Feels like blackmail. “Hey, we know you’ve already booked your airface but now we regret to inform you that there is a possibility you won’t be able to ride the best rides unless you fork out extra cash…”
Do you really think you are going to be able to get what you want when everyone is going online at the same time at 7:00 am to book one ride for that day only? Then try to book the next one while in the park after you ride your first one. Think of hours online.
This is really a shame. Walt Disney must be rolling in his grave with all the increases in cost this year alone. It feels like that is all the higher powers to be care about. The more money they get the more they want. At this rate they will price themselves out of business. I love Disney but with all that is happening I will not go again!!! I am retired and sure would have a hard time dishing out the money.
It seems that with nearly every DFB newsletter there is a price increase or a once free perk now a paid item. No more free Magic Bands for hotel guests, no more free parking at hotels, no more free fast passes, no more free airport shuttle and the list goes on. It would be different if it somehow improved the Di$ney experience but I fail to see any enhancement other than Di$ney’s bottom line. I can easily imagine in the coming years we will see paid dining reservations, paid park transportation (including Monorail and skyliner). Di$ney is clearly whittling down their availability for middle class families (something Walt believed in) and is catering to the affluent. I don’t know how much longer we will be able to or even desire to vacation at WDW.
Will the Upcharge Never Cease ???
While I understand the frustration from many and the perceived money grab by Disney, I do wish that everyone would stop making comments that this has always been included. Fast Pass+ has only been in existence since 2014. That is 7 years of Walt Disney World’s 50 years of existence. Based on my math that is far from “always”. It isn’t an entitlement and we all should have expected that this change was coming with Disney being given a year to evaluate what they wanted to come back with.
This is pretty much a deal breaker for us. Having to pay the additional fees is just more than most people can handle. It looks more like staycations or local beach trips where the dollar is not the almighty requirement.
I don’t normal leave comments on webpages or blogs, but I think the whole Disney Genie change has pushed me over that edge.
Like Lorraine from Scotland’s comment, I too am finding this more than a lot to take (I am from Essex in the UK).
I had been following the rumbles of the loss of fastpass from DFB and other YouTube channels and hoped it was just a very bad, unfounded rumour.
I booked as a surprise for my family a Christmas at Disney trip (initially staying off resort) for December 2020 back in mid 2019. No had heard of Covid, and the trip without spending money was about $16000 for the two weeks.
Well Covid came and we pushed it back to December 2021, and as consultation for not going I upgraded to Art of Animation (Cars Suite). So now about $20000 all in.
Things still looked bad for getting out to Florida for Christmas 2021. As Lorraine said, flights weren’t guaranteed, quarantine, vaccinations not yet approved by the FDA, reduced attractions, no (proper) meet and greets, events not happening or replaced with lesser events, and list went on. So I postponed it again to December 2022. For which I had the privilege of a $5000 price increase for the exact same holiday bar the date having a 2 at the end of the year.
So, I have sucked it up, hoping the world would return to normal, only to find out that now Disney wants me to pay up to another $600 plus to use a system similar to what was already on my park tickets. Oh and another addition should I want to do the fancy rides. So should want to take advantage of this enhanced guest experience of Genie+ and Additional Attractions, I had better make sure I carry few extra Benjamin’s, like ten.
People say, well you pay for this type of option at Universal, but I say, this was the differentiator that made WDW better. Yes, you didn’t always get the FP+ you wanted (never got Flight of Passage last time). But it did mean, all guests, no matter social or financial status, got an opportunity to experience quicker access to an attraction. FP+ may not have been perfect, but it was good.
However, according to Disney executives, like Josh D’armo and Gary Daniels, paying to not use standby lines and not having an opportunity to have some shorter queues via FP+, is what, the guests have been asking for and want. Plus Genie+ won’t increase capacity of an attraction, like Rise of the Resistance, it will just mean those who can afford to buy seats will and the fewer remaining seats will go to whoever can tap quicker (quicker than present) for the boarding passes. (As an aside, Galaxies Edge looks a second rate attempt at what a Star Wars land/experience could have been).
Plus, just to keep your wallet lighter, the replacement events (I.e. Mickey’s Christmas) is shorter, gives less and costs more.
Money, Money, Money…..
So, I will save and save, put stuff on credit, because I promised my wife and daughter we will get to Disney for Christmas.
Paying for Genie+ and Additional Attractions is the straw that has broken my camel’s back. It will be the last Florida visit, it is unsustainable.
If Disney keeps going the way it is going with rubbish attractions, every increasing prices with less retirn for the guests, additional costs for what was complementary and rubbish creation of content from IP, it will come to a point where domestic and international visitors will either go elsewhere or not come at all, and they will fail. Disney seems intent on ruining the relationship between it core market, followers and fans for those who can pay.
Ironically, I think the likes of Iger (historically) Kathleen Kennedy, Chapek, D’armo, Daniels et al should watch the first few episodes of the Disney Imigineering series and see what Walt and Roy vision was. They too, may not have been perfect it would better than what we have now.
Sorry for the lengthy message, but hey…
I took my family of 4 to Disney with flights and souvenirs, staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge for 8 nights and it ran about $10,000 US. This was about 12 years ago. Now a family of 4 is that much before flights and souvenirs and staying at a value resort. I want to take my family next year but I am leaning to something else because the cost is beyond stupid, I will not pay for Genie + if we do go. I hardly used fast pass as it was.
My family and I were planning a 10 day trip in early 2022. So glad we decided not to. I am just disgusted with the greedy changes Disney has made. We would NOT pay for Genie+, why should we. When we would already be paying an arm and a leg for park tickets hopper passes, and our room. Shame on you Disney for destroy ing all the magic that Walt Disney created. We might just go to Universal this time. You have taken away Magical Express, complimentary magic bands and now you want to CHARGE for “fast passes” . Call it what it is pure greed and taking advantage of a world wide disaster to institute these ridiculous changes. No Disney+ for us: we’ll try Discovery Cove or Universal!
Count me in the “one half that won’t”. First it was pay to park at a resort you’re staying , and that was tiered charges. If you stay at the Contemporary is your car treated any different than if is parked at Pop Century? Then the announcement that the Magical Express was disappearing. The cast members all greet you with “Welcome Home” when you check in to make you feel you are a guest. Now it’s, “So What?. Find your own way here and why should we accommodate you just because you’re spending $4,000 to $xx,000 to stay here,” making one feel that you are are an unwelcome third cousin twice removed relative. Now it’s pay to go to the parks and, oh by the way, if you want to give us more money, we will let you on the rides quicker . Also, If everyone is one their phone at 7:00 a.m. what chance is there that the Disney Genie website will crash? Just saying.
disappointment with genie +, though since we have gone many times in the past well miss the fastpass system. With the decline in perks and disney costing more money, now genie +…..and the popular rides being even more $$$ I am doubting well be spending as much time as disney anymore. Just is not worth it for my family in terms of total cost.
As a Florida resident, we visit WDW several times a year. Since we don’t have to fly, it’s a relatively inexpensive vacation for us. I don’t find Disney to be more expensive than many other destinations. A few years ago we drove to the Florida Keys for 5 days . It cost us more than a Disney trip, and we left a day early because there was not that much for our family to do. At least at WDW, you get 10 or more hours of entertainment for your daily ticket price. I have missed the old fast pass system, and agree that it has been hard having to pick your fast passes months in advance. I’m looking forward to seeing how well the new system works. I trust Disney to make changes that improve the guest experience, and have always found a Disney vacation to be a good value for our entertainment dollars. There are lots of ways to save on a Disney vacation , too., with many options for different budgets. I’d personally rather forego a few upscale dinners or stay at a less expensive resort and pay a little extra to skip the stand by lines.
I am an annual pass holder who lives out of state and always stays at a deluxe resort when visiting Disney World. I am not sure how all of this will affect my family. Will we be like any other deluxe resort guest in terms of genie + and whatever the pay-per-ride add-on “service” is?
Also, I don’t understand the need to alter everything thing based upon the supposed desire of guests to have a “spontaneous” experience. Guests could always have a spontaneous experience. No one made you make advance dining reservations. No one made anyone schedule fast passes in advance from
home…or indeed, no one made anyone use their free fast passes at all, if they didn’t want to. The former system accommodated those who like to be spontaneous as well as those who are planners.
I, for one, do not want to get up at 7:00 a.m. every morning on vacation only to experience the stress of having to plan my days one by one, and ride by ride. I really liked being able to go through all the planning, organizing and stress at home, which enabled me to relax and have a good time once vacation started.
Maybe people wouldn’t complain about the added expense quite as much if the experience was improved or at least not made worse.
@Mike – I disagree, this is a totally bad idea – wealthier guests will obviously benefit more than anyone else. Large families will definitely take a hit. I have been traveling to WDW since I was a kid – I think this will be my last trip – and unfortunately, my two children – now in their 20s, feel the same way. Disney is making short term gains and incurring long term losses. Walt made Disney for everyone, not just for certain classes of people!
The only way that Disney can control the crowds is with price. Pre-covid, The parks were operating at near capacity and the lines were long. Price increased for tickets did not seem to quell the onrush of visitors especially from South and Central America. Raising the prices weeds out the less cash fortunate and favors the over achievers. We are approaching the $200.00 ticket for everything in the not too distant future.
Absolutely NOT!!!
One of your readers stated that they are nickel diming. And much less magical. That is absolutely correct. But the worst part is that it’s for things that have ALWAYS been included as an extra perk of going to Disney.
Now you pay for resort parking. Now you pay for fastpass. Next parking at the parks won’t be included (I’m sure that’s coming).
Question:
You didn’t explain the Audio experience. Or the Photopass that was listed in the Animated graphic.
It looks like Photopass is still included with Disneylabd but not WDW.
can you clarify this?
I apologize if you have already answered this question but do you know if there will still be single rider lines? These have been helpful to our family in the past and wondered if they would still be an option. Thanks so much for all you do. Our family is also grounded for the time being as we live in Canada but it is awesome to be kept in the loop.
Firstly, many thanks to the whole DFB crew. You all do so much to get all the Disney updates to us.
As too this Lightening Lane business, I’m sure there will be many issues at first. Remember when FP+ started up? Stand by lines were shorter. I was there. So I’ll have to see how this works once it is actually up and running before I make a decision.
To The Disney Brass, your ceiling is not made of glass and the base is crumbling.
No way! Pay even MORE?? No free transportation to Disney resorts, no free parking at hotels, no free magic bands and nos pay for ride? AND tickets/food/merch price increases.
No all thw peopple afford go to DW, but now is converting in a hi luxury. Good for the ppl that can pay for it.
Hi, I am a massive Disney fan and a long term DFB follower. I am very saddened by the end of the fast passes like everyone else, but, I am really not surprised. From what I understand about other Disney Parks world wide it seems that the majority of them had a ‘paid for’ fast pass system in place prior to this announcement anyway and no one complained about them. A reasonable number of guests must have been willing to pay for their fast passes or Disney wouldn’t have continued them and to extended it to Disney World too.
We know that Disney is all for equality and is becoming more and more so – tattoos, beards, jewellery, hair etc to name the recent ones but has anyone considered that Disney may be just trying to even up the experiences their guests have world wide?
Everyone is (understandably) upset and disappointed by this massive change, accusing Disney of being money grabbers etc. Universal, and Seaworld have paid for ‘fast passes’ for which guests are willing to pay for. There isn’t a lot of difference in the prices of a Disney or Universal ticket either. Perhaps we should stop being quite so angry with Disney and think that maybe if we all hadn’t been quite so willing to pay for these else where and in other Disney Parks too, then it might not have become as common place as it now is, after all we all are guilty of trying to get the most out of everything and everyone?
Yes it’s a sad change and experience has taught me that all good things have to come to an end. I am trying to face the sun and leave all the past shadows behind me. Only time will tell if the standby wait times will stay the same, or get worse, They may even improve if people want to pay of genie+
Face the sun, change can be good !
I’ve been visiting WDW almost every year since 1973 and consider myself a bit of a Disney aficionado. I also watch the DFB Youtube updates frequently. I like to know what is going on and hear and see the latest news from a variety of sources, not only DSB. Our last visit to WDW was about 2 years ago and while always enjoyable, its becoming a lot different and harder to have fun than the “old” days, where things weren’t so complicated. I am planning another trip for the end of 2022. I am waiting for a bunch of new attractions (for example “Tron”) to come on line and for all the extensive construction at EPCOT to finish up. I am also hoping this Covid 19 fiasco with all it’s craziness and flip-flopping requirements is ended by that time and more things come back to what I consider more “normal.” What is upsetting to me is how seemingly overly complicated planning these trips has become. Visits to WDW, especially when you listen to DSB, these days seemingly requires D-day planning which takes it’s toll on me, as I am tasked with the job. My wife thinks I’m crazy. In any event, when you are paying all this money for a WDW vacation, you do not like to be hung by your heels and shaken down for every last nickel and dime. Once you are in any of the parks you are pretty much a captive and are generally forced to fork over lots of money for food, drinks and snacks which are not inexpensive. This is on top of hotel costs and transportation, if your not a Florida resident. Then you have the ticket prices themselves. Generally, these are high enough and multi day. It just seems crazy that if you want a “park hopper” its an add on, and now this Genie+ and Single Pay options on top of it all is becoming absurd. It’s like Micky Mouse is becoming or has already become a voracious rat. I love the Disney Co. and WDW. There is something about these parks that can be truly a wonderful and magical experience for everyone. Some of the best times I’ve had in my life have been on these trips. However, it’s getting harder and harder to feel that “magic” with all that has been going on. I can’t imagine what it costs to bring an entire family to these parks. At this stage of my life, it is really just my wife and I and I feel very fortunate to have visited and to be able to visit as frequently as I have. We feel we know the ropes but things like needing advanced dining reservations 60 days in advance and having to pre order lunch coupled with all the other nonsense (e.g. bording groups for “Rise of the Resistance”) and now this Genie + nonsense can wear you down. We travel off season and hopefully during cooler weather, however, we found there is really no “slow” time anymore. It’s more like it’s always crowded, super crowded or totally out of control insane. Anyway, DFB keep up the good work.
At what point is it just plain corporate greed. They are continually raising prices on everything while at the same time removing things that used to be included in the already high cost. What’s next, pay toilets in the park along with pay toilets in all of the resort rooms?
My family just returned from Disneyworld. I will not pay for Genie+. All of the nickel and diming started with paying for parking at the resorts. Now there will be a charge for transportation from the airport to the hotels. Vacation used to start the moment you stepped on the Magical Express. What is my very expensive entrance fee for if I also have to pay for individual tickets? Oh I know, I can still stand on a stand by line. This trip we were only averaging three rides per day and that was with limited capacity. Limited capacity is another fairy tale. The parks were packed and loaded with people drinking. The Disney feeling is gone. The virtual que for Rise of the resistance was another stressful episode. Eventually all 16 of my family members were able to experience it, but with much angst. Walt Disney wanted a place where families could go and be together. The parks have taken a wrong turn and until they are back on the straight and narrow this 40 plus year Disney World family will not return. Sorry, Mickey.
In my opinion they should have made their Genie system more like Universal’s Xpress pass. Although the Genie+ cost less, you have to go on the app and reserve a time but you are not guaranteed to ride all the rides you want to that day, plus you have to pay extra for the so-called premium rides and you are only limited to 2 per visit and that is if they are not sold out for the day. Hopefully it will fail and they will bring back FastPass or make it more like Universal.
At Universal you pay one price and you go on any ride anytime one time without reserving a ride on an app. If you choose you can upgrade and pay more, but you can ride any ride anytime as much as you want, it’s unlimited. So you literally can ride The Hagrid ride 10 times in a row if you want. You just have to get off and go back in the express line. At Disneyland, once you ride Raise of the Resistance and the Spiderman ride, you can’t ride it anymore for that day. Same thing at Disney World and their premium rides.
So I’d rather pay more for an Xpress pass and have unlimited access to any ride anytime as much as I want rather than pay for the Genie+ and get far less in the end. So more than likely I will not be purchasing the Genie+. But it doesn’t matter because it seems like Disney doesn’t care about their guest as they are just trying to Nickel and Dime their visitors anyway they can just to squeeze out more and more money form the one’s who are willing to pay.
Nope. No way. Nada. Never.
Disney now defines greed.
This is the last straw for us,
after 100+ visits since 1972.
We are avid WDW vacationers and we are done , no magicbands, magical express, restricted park hopper , fastpass+ gone, extra hours gone at night unless you stay at deluxe resort, park reservations. This new leadership is destroying Disney! They ned to ask “what would walt do”, because they have lost their way.
“Note that FastPass has been included in the price of your ticket at Disney World and Disneyland for years…”
Sorry, but I’m calling you out on that. If that were true, they would lower the price of admission to compensate… ROFL, like that would ever happen! I’ll bet the Fastpass/Genie+ system costs nearly NOTHING for Disney to operate (other than a few pennies more per month to keep the servers going), as it’s ALL ELECTRONIC!!
The frustration is not just because of this sole issue. Its coming from all the added costs (fastpass+, Magical Express, ticket price increases, etc.) and simultaneous removal of perks that actually had value. It’s a lot when you add it up. Until people stop bending to Disney’s will, it will keep getting worse. There’s no more pixie dust and it’s sad.
I will absolutely buy it. I think it’s a huge improvement on the old system. For one, it works across different parks. You can make one selection in the morning for Magic Kingdom, then another for Epcot. Before, you had to use 3 fastpasses before you could switch parks and use one.
Also, before, you could only have one per hour. So if I scheduled one at 9 am, I couldn’t have another for, say 9:30. If I’m in the Land pavilion, I want to be able to ride soarin’ and then just hop over to living with the land without leaving for an hour and walking all the way back. No, there’s no guarantee that there will be passes left for that second attraction at that time, but considering you aren’t booking those fast passes months in advance, you stand a better chance than before. And as soon as you use the one, you can book another, rather than waiting an hour before being able to get another. And people who don’t stay on property won’t automatically be locked out of availability for the most popular ones. There might still be some left at the end of the day.
It’s also not JUST a fastpass system. It mentioned unlimited downloads of photopass photos…so is Memory Maker now included in the price of Genie+? Will people be able to get memory maker seperately? Is it a different system? And with the audio files from imagineers, I think it will be a fun system.
Coming from the Netherlands, we only get to go once every several years, and then we spend 2 weeks at Disney. With only one trip, we have to make it worth the time. We’ve always had to compete for the fastpasses with how many thousands of people for the same day and park, both on and off property guests. Now there won’t be as many people competing for those same passes, so yes, it’s totally worth it for me! I don’t ride any of the ones mentioned for the individual attraction lanes anyway, so Genie+ seems great to me.
Wow. A new way for Disney to screw you. A 15 dollar Genie +. Then you can purchase up to 2 premium upgrades, let’s say at 20 bucks a person. That’s rough on a family. Not to mention paying for parking now too. That used to be a perk for staying at Disney. They are really showing their greed. Very disappointed.
We will likely use genie+ when park hopping since it works in multiple parks on the same day. One day park ticket with park hopping and genie+ for 4 people should be cheaper than two day park ticket for 4 people.
Genie here are my three wishes. 1get back magical express back 2get mickey bands back 3 get ride of the genie and the people who thought all these changes up .thank you genie
Susan, thank you for providing your perspective. With regard to PhotoPass, the unlimited downloads are for Disneyland guests who buy into Genie+. At Disney World, Genie+ users will receive Augmented Reality (filters, basically) that they can apply to the PhotoPass pictures they see in My Disney Experience. To download the photos, you’d need to pay for them (unless you buy Memory Maker, then you can download).
Linda, we’re glad to keep you in the loop. Thanks for reading. Disney has not said anything about Single Rider lines, but I would think logistically, they can retain those lines (i.e. they don’t need a new queue space for Lightning Lanes). If there’s any change to Single Rider, we will update.
Brandon, you’re correct that PhotoPass is included with Disneyland’s Genie+ but not Walt Disney World’s. At Disney World, users will receive Augmented Reality (filters, I think) for the photos in their My Disney Experience. However, to download pics at Disney World, users will still need to either buy Memory Maker or buy each photo individually that they’d like to have. As for the audio experience: it doesn’t sound like Disney has said much about it. My understanding is that it could include background on attractions, historical trivia, maybe comments from Imagineers. We will update if Disney releases more information, and certainly when Genie+ launches, we will try this out.
I’d be interested to see a poll on if people are willing or not willing to pay for genie + based on social economic background. I agree with the other reader who mentioned raising the prices didn’t do anything to stop parks filling to capacity. Other reader accurately stated that most other parks have a charge for using fast pass services. This isn’t new. Just new to Disney. I am 28 and from the northeast of Us and travel to Disney World twice a year (once with family & once with friends) I have been going at least once every year since 1993 and will continue to go twice a year unless I feel Disney really cuts back on its offerings. I never used Magical express and never rented a car so I guess parking fees and magical express never really mattered to me. This change is the first that really impacts me, but I don’t think $15 added on is really a big deal. Disney took a hit with its parks closing and is trying to drive in revenue ASAP. Hopefully with this revenue increase we will be able to see some new perks.
Susan, it’s $15 per person per day.