Lightning Lane & Genie+ Selections ‘Selling Out’ & Holiday Availability
Earlier this holiday week, we shared Genie+ Collapsing in Crowds at Walt Disney World. That detailed the many problems with Lightning Lanes and the paid FastPass service during Thanksgiving week, from technical difficulties to limited ride reservation inventory. This post is essentially the sequel to that, taking a look at ride reservation options every two hours so you have an idea how quickly selections are “selling out.”
We also wanted to supplement that post with additional thoughts based on the ~140 reader comments. Many of those offer firsthand accounts from regular guests who are visiting Walt Disney World right now, and are frankly a bit tough to read. (Not because they’re poorly written–due to the really bad experiences some are sharing.)
Those comments are worth revisiting, especially if you thought we might’ve been exaggerating. Some also cover errors and glitches that we haven’t experienced at all. That’s the bad news–that some people have had even more problems using Genie+ this week than us. The good news is that Lightning Lane inventory hasn’t looked as bad the last couple of days…
To be sure, Slinky Dog Dash is still fully booked within minutes of 7 am. Same goes for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance on the Individual Lightning Lane side of the ledger. At Magic Kingdom, Jungle Cruise is selling out relatively quickly. The same is true of Na’vi River Journey at Animal Kingdom and Test Track at Epcot.
In order to give you an idea of what inventory is looking like throughout the day, I’ve been taking copious screenshots over the course of the last couple of days–over 200 this week, with 100+ yesterday alone. I’m trying to find a good way of presenting those (I think the 4 in a row below might be too hard to read for most people) and will continue to tweak the approach as this could be a useful illustration going forward.
In any case, I’ve been checking Genie+ regularly and have the following in 2-hour increments (consistent with the 120-minute rule, since that’s the relevant rule when it’s busy). Commentary follows in case you can’t make sense of the screenshots, or just want an interpretation…
~9 am Genie+ Inventory
~11 am Genie+ Inventory
~1 pm Genie+ Inventory
~3 pm Genie+ Inventory
~5 pm Genie+ Inventory
Inventory is definitely better, and it’s better managed. In the prior post, we mentioned that Genie+ Lightning Lane drops or refills had become more frequent and less predictable. That definitely has continued to be the case. In particular, all of the headliners except Slinky Dog Dash had refills after 9 am. All of the Genie+ Lightning Lane selections other than SDD were available at some point after 11 am. (ILLs are a different story–once they’re gone, they’re gone.)
This is relatively significant because it means that, at minimum, you could’ve booked two headliner attractions in any of the parks. Assuming, of course, that you were diligent about watching for watching for Lightning Lane refills and didn’t get a dreaded access code email prompt or have another random glitch while trying to book. (Big assumptions, I know.) Just casually watching from home during another embarrassing Lions loss, I’m pretty confident I could’ve scored selections for at least 4 headliners in Disney’s Hollywood Studios and even more in Magic Kingdom.
Speaking of which, DHS and Magic Kingdom have been our focus with Genie+ since the beginning and that remains the case. It’s a tougher sell for us at Animal Kingdom or Epcot, which is largely driven by a lack of eligible attractions and the reality that following savvy strategy will accomplish just as much. (In the case of Animal Kingdom, “stay late” remains the easiest advice–many Genie+ return times will end up being late in the day when wait times are short anyway!)
Even with this “better” day, inventory at Disney’s Hollywood Studios was pretty low by 3 pm. Still, the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror was available, which would’ve bypassed a 55 minute posted wait and been the 4th Genie+ Lightning Lane selection of the day. That’s not too shabby in terms of total time saved. (That would’ve been the last pick–by 5 pm, even Alien Swirling Saucers was sold out and only shows remained.)
At Magic Kingdom, there were good options into the early evening. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh were still available as of 5 pm. Although I don’t have 7 pm screenshots, there were still reasonably valuable options then. Standby wait times weren’t bad by that hour in the evening, either.
Without question, Magic Kingdom is the best park for Genie+ by virtue of its higher attraction count. This is where the system most resembles MaxPass at Disneyland. Having more attractions also removes some of the pressure, which is part of what makes DHS so stressful and unpleasant for using Genie+ Lightning Lanes.
One of the keys to success with Genie+ is getting a feel for the Lightning Lane selection refills or drops. Sometimes, it only appears that an attraction is ‘sold out’ of Genie+ Lightning Lane times for the day, but is actually just temporarily unavailable. In other cases, the time has progressed into evening, but will soon ‘roll over’ into earlier return times.
Since there’s no modify button (a colossal oversight that urgently needs to be remedied), it’s often advantageous not to book a ride reservation, but rather, to wait for a better time to come along. Cancelling and rebooking is too cumbersome–you’ll usually miss out on the better time, and might get denied a replacement reservation altogether due to the app’s bugginess.
If you’ve yet to visit Walt Disney World, we’d recommend spending some time monitoring the Genie Tip Board in the days prior to your vacation to get a feel for the cadence of refills, when they’re happening, and how quickly the times progress. There’s no good way to explain this via a blog post–learn by seeing/doing.
In the summary of our last post about Genie+ collapsing under crowds, we advised that anyone visiting Walt Disney World this week for “holistic enjoyment” and not just wait time minimization, should opt for a normal rope drop, midday break, late night strategy—and pretend Genie+ doesn’t even exist. If you read the horror stories in the comments, the reasons for that recommendation should be fairly evident. Nevertheless, we want to clarify a bit.
Even with all of these problems, Genie+ can still save you a good amount of time waiting in line–potentially 3+ hours at Disney’s Hollywood Studios and 4+ hours at Magic Kingdom. However, that’s assuming you utilized no other strategy and stood in long lines during the middle of the day. Hopefully, anyone reading a strategy blog like this one would otherwise be leveraging a solid touring plan and tactics for outsmarting the crowds–so the time savings offered by Genie+ is a bit illusory.
Right now, our recommendation (or lack thereof) is more colored by all of the headaches dealing with glitches, screen time trying to score “good” Lightning Lane selections, and who knows what other problems. Don’t underestimate the “cost” of all that, as it is significant right now.
Stated differently, the extra time you spend in line by not using Genie+ might be preferable to the frustrations and time incurred in bypassing some lines. Unless your tolerance for Disney IT induced pain is high, you might come out ahead just doing standby and not messing with it.
Everything has a cost–whether in dollars, time or your sanity. Genie+ takes the first and third, while giving you the second. At this point, that tradeoff is arguably not worth it–except maybe at Magic Kingdom, where it’s lower pressure and there’s greater opportunity to book more selections before they sell out. (If you were already on the fence about Genie due to screen time or dealing with Disney IT, the conclusion here should be an obvious one for you.)
Finally, a friendly reminder to be kind to Cast Members if you’re choosing to visit Walt Disney World during this peak holiday season. This should go without saying and is always the case, but it’s especially true now. It has been a tough couple of years for them, and having to do with the many woes of Genie+ will not be easy or pleasant, especially given how belligerent some guests can be about it.
Frontline Cast Members with whom you interact have literally zero say over Walt Disney World’s prices, the upcharges that get sold, nickel & diming policies–and they certainly aren’t the ones coding My Disney Experience. Lines at Guest Relations and the “blue umbrellas” have been very long this Thanksgiving week, and we’ve heard some horror stories about guest behavior. You are not going to change anything by being rude to them, only reveal the true content of your character. Hopefully we’re preaching to the choir, and everyone reading this already knows that.
As a corollary to this, it’s also worth noting that the decision-makers are often “insulated” from the operational consequences of the products they release and actual on-the-ground guest experience. We already know that the company views Genie as a great success, because CEO Bob Chapek said as much on the last quarterly earnings call. (Money talks…)
He and other leaders see financial results coming out of Walt Disney World, which undoubtedly look great this week, plus summary reports often written to reinforce what they want to hear. It should also go without saying, but those in the c-suite are not in the parks, fielding complaints. They are also not using using Genie+ themselves to book Lightning Lanes because, on the rare occasions that they do visit Walt Disney World, their visits are carefully scripted and they are whisked around by an entourage of park management and have VIP access.
The point of all this rambling is that we recommend respectfully expressing your opinions as to how Genie+ or Lightning Lane is impacting your vacations or business with Walt Disney World by emailing [email protected].
This is far superior to only complaining in comments, social media, forums, etc. (Although Disney sees all of that, too.) Rather than starting petitions, which are largely ineffectual, share feedback in guest satisfaction surveys, bring it up if you speak with managers or others in park leadership, or even contact Guest Relations. Write your letters is a sincere manner, explaining exactly why you were disappointed and the impact it had on your vacation. Sarcasm or “venting” might make you feel better, but it is far less likely to get results.
There’s probably more ground to cover with how Genie+ is working–and breaking–this week at Walt Disney World, but those are my key thoughts in seeing how the last couple of days have played out and seeing reader comments. Should more questions or interesting points arise in the comments, I’ll revise this accordingly. Plus, we’ll be in the parks throughout the weekend and early next week to do more testing and research, and will bring you more firsthand conclusions then. Stay tuned!
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
If you’re at Walt Disney World for Thanksgiving week, what has been your experience with Genie+ or standby lines? Any success or failures making morning Lightning Lane selections? Would you recommend Genie+ to others, or just advise sticking to standby? Have you had problems with My Disney Experience glitches, errors or bugs? Other problems or thoughts to share? Do you agree or disagree with my assessment? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
We have been here since Tuesday Nov 23. Genie+ has been hit or miss. We got lucky today and my husband managed to get Smuggler’s Run for 4:30 return time at 4:15. It felt like winning the lottery! We also got Slinky Dog at 7am for a 2:20 return time. But besides that. It’s been a lot of misses. We’ve had issues with the screen freezing, or when you tap on an available time, it’s no longer available. We also wish that there was a modify feature. We sometimes hold on to inconvenient times because we don’t want to take the chance that if we cancel, we can’t book another time (even if it shows available.) That really needs to get fixed. Another feature of FP+ I miss is the ability to select a time slot, which allowed us to plan our day, make dining reservations, etc. Even with all the strategies and tips, and being savvy WDW goers and tech users, we were unable to do everything we wanted or would’ve been able to do with FP+, which is frustrating. We are frequent visitors so not being able to do all the big headliners is acceptable for us, but I would be beyond disappointed if this were our first trip or our only trip. It’s just crazy to me that the slots fill in a matter of seconds and that’s just it for the day. Unless you wait in a 3.5 hr line (ROTR wait time today), which is also crazy. We are leaving on Sunday and I would say overall it hasn’t been a total disaster but it’ has definitely been a frustrating trip.
Great tips Tom! We were previous AP before Covid, with our last Disney trip this summer. We were considering going over Thanksgiving but a little anxious with the new genie + system and sold out reservations, so we opted for Universal. Universal’s express pass system is so simple and we loved that we didn’t need to be on our phones all day. We still love Disney but not sure why they are making things so complicated (and for a high price).
Could you talk about how this might work for a late start day? Can I start making reservations at 7:00 then every 2 hrs after opening stacking them in the afternoon/evening?
I’m mainly interested in Magic Kingdom.
I love your insight. Thanks.
In comments on this page and in multiple other places I have seen guests mention “mandatory room checks” on disney properties occurring in the early morning hours. I’ve read that “do not disturb” signs are ignored…. And even read about some women traveling alone being made uncomfortable by men doing these “security checks.” Tom are you aware or able to elaborate on this at all? We are from the west coast and planned to sleep in. Is there anyway around being woken by a knock on the door? Why are they doing it?
Follow
@Luis – I am wondering about this also since the previous loophole has evidently been discovered by Disney….so, can you make your next LL selection after you tapped in, or only 120 minutes after your last selection; regardless of when you tapped in for your reservation…for example:
7:01am – make first genie+ reservation
9:25am – tap in for first LL reservation
Is it:
9:26am – make second genie+ reso; OR
11:00am – make second genie+ reso (2 hours after park opening)
thanks all!
Thanks for all info! Really appreciate all the work that goes into these kinds of posts! And thanks to all the folks that took the time to add their comments and experiences. We’ll be there next week, and all the first hand knowledge everyone has shared is definitely going to come in handy. Not counting all the other trips to DW, this will be our 8th (?) time doing the week after Thanksgiving – but it kind of feels like we’re going for the first time!
Thanks again, Tom – and thanks to all that have added to the conversation!!!
Does turning a LL in reset the 2 hour clock?
in other words, can I continue to book a LL every two hours once I start turning them in?
Thank you for the information about the emailed access code. I wonder if it could be avoided if you have your iPhone set up for “face id”.
As far as Michaels post and Toms comment on making stay late a higher priority than rope drop, I actually think that may end up being my primary strategy on busier days, as I don’t think we will be able to do both rope drop and stay late. I’m thinking a winner for me may be to plan on a mid afternoon arrival, and just stack until then. Gets me 3 or 4 LL plus the ILLS. Staying at Boardwalk so it’s easy to just park hop as it’s easy to just tap in at IG.
Only exception may be AK. I’m thinking that one may be a Rope drop. Either RD Safari or Navi (not sure which one makes more sense). Get a LL for the other, ILL for FOP, and standby Dinosaur and EE between the rope drop and FOP. I think even on a busy day that gets me ‘done’ late morning.. then can walk around some and allows me to build stacks for a park hop park.
Thank you for your continued coverage. We really appreciate it! I’m also reading reports of glitches involving mixed ticket types (ie. APs traveling with others who have regular tickets with Genie+ already included for length of stay aren’t able to purchase Genie+ service until 7am, rather than midnight). Seems like there are many, many bugs that need to be worked out to make the guest experience better.
As an avid fan of Disney for over 40 years, I have always admired Disney’s customer service and attention to detail when it came to Disneyland Resort. I was a native of Southern California and have visited Disneyland and Disney’s California Adventure hundreds of times. I moved to Arizona in 2013 and after the move visited two times ( vacations instead of daily trips).
After Covid began with lockdowns and social distancing we stayed at home until the vaccine was introduced and we decided to plan a 2-week stay at Walt Disney World Resort from Nov. 8th – Nov. 21st. I planned 6 months ahead, booking the Cabins at Fort Wilderness and Animal Kingdom’s Kidani Village. We planned to visit The Magic Kingdom for 3 days, Epcot for 2 days, Animal Kingdom for 3 days and Hollywood Studios for 2. I had a party of 8 people; 3 of which were limited in their physical ability to walk and function. My plan was to ask my girlfriend to marry me there ( she said yes) as well as introduce the high standard Disney had shown me for over 40 years. We ate at expensive restaurants and got tickets for special events. I had worked with Getaway Today to insure our trip would be eventful and memorable.
I have to say, the high expectation I had for Disney parks has been completely shattered. Customer service at both resorts was horrible…
An example was that we were told we could get delivery to our rooms for instacart and assistance with our limitations. We had to walk 1/2 mile to the front of the resort at the Cabins and then was told we had to carry our groceries back on our own. ( luckily, a Disney van pulled up, realized our dilemma and offered to drive our groceries back ). It was great to see, that is, until they charged me $20 for delivery. At Kidani, they rudely informed my fiancé that we could not use a luggage cart for our instacart order… ( Once again, another employee “snuck” a cart for us to use for 10 min). In another instance, my fiancé was ill and ordered instacart… a trash service driver had her hop into his truck to give her a ride and return with groceries. The Concierge and Bell Hop services should have had all these amenities available. Also, every day at 8am, the resorts demanding to check our rooms. Since we all started late for the days in the parks, waking up to a knock on the door wasn’t pleasant.
As for the parks, employees rarely smiled and engaged. The Genie+ service was a waste of time amd money. $400 for Genie + and in each park rides became unavailable from 1pm on. No times available. Long waits that my fiancé, mother-in-laws and everyone couldn’t wait for. I thought Genie+ was supposed to be a paid privilege amd available for the days we used it. Plus stacking the times was only available once as the rides were across the parks and impossible to get to. The busses broke down and one night we had the provide of smelling septic fumes from a coach with an out-of-order bathroom.
We had an incident at Animal Kingdom. My mother-in-law needed a wheelchair at Epcot, got one and waited the park with it. We entered Animal Kingdom 2 days later bit when leaving were told we couldn’t exit because the wheelchair did not have a rod attached to it. ( of course, the rodded wheelchairs prevent you from boarding a car or bus. After a rough day at the parks, we were not happy to have to get a manager to allow us to leave the park with the wheelchair provided.
Unfortunately, all of these shortcomings ruined our trip and the magic Disney has touted and promised for 50+ years. The expense and waste of funds has really put a strain on the rest of our vacation and, as a result, we had to cut our vacation short a week.
I am extremely disappointed with the Dosney organization and its lack of the high standard they used to have.
It is unfortunate that Iist now email the organization and repeat what I have expressed here.
On a side note- Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure, and the Loews International Resort treated us wonderfully and showed us that THEY are now the standard of customer service and hospitality I learned about at Disneyland Resort.
Great post again, Tom. Very useful info. I do think, however, that people should post their problems with Genie+ freely and frequently on social media platforms. If Disney is PUBLICLY humiliated over this greedy grab, then they may feel a more urgent need to change. Some of the social media comments regarding Genie+ have received national attention by mainstream media. (Remember the 22K dislikes when Disney announced Genie+ on their YouTube channel? And the savage comments made national headlines.) Getting up every morning at 6:45, starting the day with anxiety, frustration, and disappointment, followed by being glued to my phone all day, is not my idea of fun. I only hope they mitigate the damage their doing to their brand, and soon.
Totally agree. I meant that people shouldn’t exclusively complain on the internet–added an “only” in there for clarity.
Public feedback online is seen by other consumers and shapes their decisions, whereas private feedback shapes decisions by the company but not the public. Where possible, offer both. 🙂
Thanks Tom for your time and research for this Genie + disaster so to speak!
I have an upcoming Christmas trip, so reading all of the Genie + disaster stories in this post and the prior post, it can be disheartening. But then I believe Michael’s primary goal hits it on the head (Goal #1: Have fun, don’t fight the crowds, and just flow with it.).
Whether we can ride 4 rides, or 20 rides, the fact that we can be there with our families is a blessing in itself, especially after what has happened over the past almost 2 years.
And like my friends Connie & Bruce say, “Go with low expectations, this way you won’t be disappointed!” Lol
Thanks again!
What is the dreaded access code and how do I avoid getting the the email with the code?
It’s an email with numerical code you’ll receive to authenticate your Disney account login. There’s nothing you can do to avoid getting it, at least not to my knowledge. It typically doesn’t start to occur until you’re at WDW (or Disneyland–we’ve been having the same problem there).
Hi! So currently at Walt Disney World… staying at the Boardwalk Inn. We went to Mk on Tuesday and Wednesday, used Genie Plus on Tuesday, thought it wasn’t too bad as we were there from 9-5. It def drains your phone battery. One thing I have been noticing is the Stand by times listed are not as long as they actually say, 80% of the time you can cut that time in half. Oh Wednesday night having the parks from 10-12 to deluxe only residents was great. Mind you this is our third time coming as adults so we kind of know the ins and outs. Our other friends that came for the first time and got here before us did not have a magical stay to say the least. Cast members in the hotels have been great, cast members in the parks …. Not so much. Weather has been great . Genie plys is good if you have the money to spend, if you are an older less savvy tech person or just don’t have the extra money to spend on it then it is not good.
I don’t think I have seen this question addressed. I know you can tell genie you are park hopping. Can you book your first LL for your second park? For example, if I am starting at AK but want to end my day at HS, can I go ahead and try to get Slinky Dog at 7 AM since it is going so fast? My park reservation would be for AK.
I was at Disney October 31- November 6. I am a grandmother, and hadn’t been to Disney for many years….and I won’t be going back. I read your blog and even tried to practice using Genie Plus. I am not a grandmother who has trouble with tech because I worked in tech before I retired. I had my plans, and was up at 7 every morning, to try and get things going. I also purchased the mousewatcher to get dining reservations, but that also required constant looking at my phone before we even go there to see what was being offered. Space 220 went so fast that two seconds were too long to wait. With two little ones, and my daughter and we stayed at the Beach resort (very nice…only saving grace). Since I hadn’t been to the parks, not only did I have to navigate Genie plus, but I had to navigate us around to the different rides. Therefore, I was on my phone all the time! I hated it. To me, the crowds were ridiculous. So I can’t imagine what they are now. We had to choose between staying late and getting to the parks late in the morning or leaving early and starting early. We did the later….because dealing with crankty kids in crowds is no fun. I don’t get how people love Disney world. Yuck.
Sounds like this makes for a very relaxing vacation. I can’t help but wonder what Disney is doing with all the data they are mining from the app. Vote with your feet. This AP did. BIG Walt fan, not a fan of the way things are now. Not worth what they are sucking out of your wallets. Disgusting.
Tom, thanks! I so much appreciate the posts and comments and suggestions on the new tech, the issues. You and Sarah have put together such an incredible resource. I’ll be in the parks next week for a solo trip and will add my comments for the community here. At present, my strategy is –
Goal #1: Have fun, don’t fight the crowds, and just flow with it, which depends on priority #1…
Priority #1: Have a touring plan, but expect it to change when things happen (and they always do); I use your touring plan as a start and then adjust with other resources (e.g., touringplans.com); this might take 15 minutes per day to put together and I generally do this before traveling.
Priority #2: Rope drop, rope drop, rope drop. Get there early enough to do this. I’m a morning person so this is easy for me. My wife hates it. If you can’t do this, be sure to have a good touring plan and do priority #3.
Priority #3: Stay late, stay late, stay late (this may depend on how much you indulge in tip #2 below).
Priority #4: My plan is to use Genie+ as an extra to my touring plan. I’ll stick to the touring plan, but adjust based on what happens with Genie+. This will be new to me as I have not used Genie+ before (I plan on taking Tom’s suggestion on checking this out early). I don’t mind getting up early and setting this all up (I guess I’m sick that way).
Tip #1: Express gratitude to others throughout the day to cast members, family and friends, other guests. Gratitude keeps things in perspective – you and others are there to have fun! You could be back at the office in a cube!
Tip #2: If gratitude is not your thing, have a cocktail (or two) mid-day. On second thought, have a cocktail regardless.
Tip #3: Resort hopping can be a lot of fun and good break midday. The resorts have some incredible Christmas decorations.
Just a few thoughts on my plan… hoping everyone has a great week!
Love all of these priorities and tips, thanks for sharing!
My only (rather strong) piece of advice to you and anyone else reading this would be to switch priorities 2 and 3. That’s especially true if staying off-site, but even so if not. Wait times are shorter in the evenings, and I think that’ll continue to be the case (especially as colder weather at night pushes people towards the exits).
Otherwise, agree entirely with this outlook and philosophy. Have a great trip! 🙂