Everything You Need To Know About Disney Genie
Welp, it's here as of October 19, 2021, we might as well help you prepare!
Laura Tracy, Owner & Travel Agent
(Credit: Disney)
What is the Disney Genie?
Disney Genie is a new feature functionality within the My Disney Experience App that is meant to maximize what you get out of your upcoming Walt Disney World trip. The Disney Genie has both free and decidedly not free functionality that can help with everything from checking wait times, to buying your way onto the "Lightning Lane" for certain high demand attractions. In this article we're going to 'high level' some of that feature functionality so you know what to expect, but there will almost certainly be more 'how to' articles to come.
What do you get for free?
(Credit: Disney)
What you can get for free is really nothing to sneeze at because it can certainly make your day in a crowded park a lot less aggravating:
We are excited that this functionality will help to allow more 'day of' support and guidance for our clients so that they can focus on maximizing the fun! Keep in mind though, that it certainly doesn't replace the invaluable insight we can provide as an Earmaked Agency to help you plan in advance.
- Select your favorite attractions, dining. events, etc and Genie will make timing recommendations.
- The 'My Day' tab will display any reservations you've made alongside Genie recommendations. Keep an eye on this tab also, because new recommendations will pop up throughout the day.
- Forecasted wait times for park attractions, mobile order, and dining reservations (including walk-up list information) will all be available as well.
- You can chat with a cast member, avoiding the need to wait in a long guest services line if your question can be answered virtually. The chat functionality is said to be available on the 'My Day' tab.
- A custom tip board will also be available and will be tailored based on your selected favorites.
We are excited that this functionality will help to allow more 'day of' support and guidance for our clients so that they can focus on maximizing the fun! Keep in mind though, that it certainly doesn't replace the invaluable insight we can provide as an Earmaked Agency to help you plan in advance.
Pay to play: Genie+ & One-time Lightning Lane Purchase
As with anything Disney, we have to be realistic because there is always a profit driven element to anything new. We get it, they are big business and have lots of jobs to support, but this does feel a little nickel and dime-ish. There are two pay-for-play elements available:
Genie+ General Purchase:
For $15 per park day (or $15 one day at a time), you would have access to a "Lightning Lane" reservation system that is remarkably similar to the old (free) Fastpass+ system. This means that when you purchase your package, you can add Genie+ to the reservation and your park ticket will automatically have it included for each park day (e.g. a 4 day park ticket is an add on of $60 per person). If you do not purchase it for your whole ticket because you want to purchase it one day at a time, you can make the in app purchase at midnight on that day regardless of where you are staying. Just keep in mind that Genie+ service could potentially sell out on certain high volume days.
Once you purchase Genie+, you can make your first Lightning Lane pass at 7:00 AM for that day. Contact us today to plan your next Disney vacation and we will help you with strategies for maximizing your Lightning Lane passes.
There are other perks associated with purchasing the Genie+ product, but honestly, they are not even worth mentioning. The only other note we'll make is that there was previously a lot of confusion around whether Memory Maker or Photo Pass photos for the day were included in the purchase, but they are not.
Genie+ General Purchase:
For $15 per park day (or $15 one day at a time), you would have access to a "Lightning Lane" reservation system that is remarkably similar to the old (free) Fastpass+ system. This means that when you purchase your package, you can add Genie+ to the reservation and your park ticket will automatically have it included for each park day (e.g. a 4 day park ticket is an add on of $60 per person). If you do not purchase it for your whole ticket because you want to purchase it one day at a time, you can make the in app purchase at midnight on that day regardless of where you are staying. Just keep in mind that Genie+ service could potentially sell out on certain high volume days.
Once you purchase Genie+, you can make your first Lightning Lane pass at 7:00 AM for that day. Contact us today to plan your next Disney vacation and we will help you with strategies for maximizing your Lightning Lane passes.
There are other perks associated with purchasing the Genie+ product, but honestly, they are not even worth mentioning. The only other note we'll make is that there was previously a lot of confusion around whether Memory Maker or Photo Pass photos for the day were included in the purchase, but they are not.
Lightning Lane Access for up to two attractions per park day:
In addition to the Genie+ service, you can also purchase access to the Lightning Lane for up to two high demand attractions starting at 7:00 AM on that park day. The pricing varies from $7 per person to $15 per person per attraction which (in our opinion) is based on both the attraction's popularity and the park's crowd levels. The available attractions include:
A possible issue we see with this will be if you have both Genie+ and you want to purchase single attraction access, both open up at 7:00 AM for booking, so you may need to coordinate with other members of your travel party to divide and conquer. This will require that you ensure that everyone who has their own My Disney Experience account is connected properly before your trip.
In addition to the Genie+ service, you can also purchase access to the Lightning Lane for up to two high demand attractions starting at 7:00 AM on that park day. The pricing varies from $7 per person to $15 per person per attraction which (in our opinion) is based on both the attraction's popularity and the park's crowd levels. The available attractions include:
- Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and Space Mountain (Magic Kingdom)
- Remy's Ratatouille Adventure and Frozen Ever After (Epcot)
- Avatar Flights of Passage and Expedition Everest (Animal Kingdom)
- Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance and Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway (Hollywood Studios)
A possible issue we see with this will be if you have both Genie+ and you want to purchase single attraction access, both open up at 7:00 AM for booking, so you may need to coordinate with other members of your travel party to divide and conquer. This will require that you ensure that everyone who has their own My Disney Experience account is connected properly before your trip.
(Credit: Disney)
Contact us today to help plan your next Disney trip and we will share with you all of our practical insider tips for getting the most out of Genie, Genie+, and single Lightning Lane Attraction purchases!
Check out the official Disney Roll-out Video for Genie
(Credit: Disney Parks Official YouTube Channel)