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Post by zima on Mar 21, 2022 13:11:57 GMT
This was announced in December, but I'd not seen it. Only found it in light of some of Disney's other bad press lately.
" When the theme parks at the Disneyland Resort in California and Walt Disney World in Florida reopened after having closed for the pandemic, they did not offer the line-skipping programs FastPass+ (at Disney World) or Fastpass and MaxPass (at Disneyland). Temporarily halting the programs was one of many changes the parks made amid the pandemic.
Started in 1999, the complimentary Fastpass program and its successors allowed guests to make reservations for rides, attractions, shows, and character greetings. For the rides and attractions, it enabled guests to bypass the standby lines and enter special queues that whisked them to the heads of the lines.
As of Dec. 8, Disney has permanently replaced all of its line-skipping programs with Disney Genie, a digital park planning service that includes paid options to bypass lines. Here's what you need to know. [Note: Genie is free, but no reservations. Only Genie+ allows the reservations for an up-charge]
What Is Disney Genie+?
Disney Genie+, one of the new line skipping options, resembles Disneylandās MaxPass program. As with MaxPass, Disney Genie+ costs $20 per day per person at Disneyland. It costs $15 per day, per person at Disney World....
Disney World visitors are no longer able to make reservations up to 60 days in advance as they could with FastPass+. Instead, the service allows them to make their first reservation at 7 a.m. on the day of their visit. Nor are they able to make more than one reservation at a time as they could with FastPass+. ....
In addition to Disney Genie+, Disney is giving visitors the option to purchase Individual Lightning Lane reservations at up to two especially high-demand attractions per day. Eligible rides include Radiator Springs Racers at Disney California Adventure and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Disney Worldās Magic Kingdom.
The costs vary based on the popularity of the attractions and the time of the year. For example, at its introduction, prices range from $9 for Epcot's Remy's Ratatouille Adventure to $15 for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance at Disney's Hollywood Studios. Note that these prices are above the cost to enter the parks."
Not a Disney-goer. What to "regulars" think about the changes?
Apparently the free Genie option allows you to buy Lighting Lane for up to two attractions per ticket per day. Genie+ costs extra per ticket per day and you can still purchase additional LL access for "select few popular attractions".
Seems like a lot more money if you do the "by ride" option since it's also by person. That can really add up.
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Post by Bridget in MD on Mar 21, 2022 13:23:06 GMT
We used to be Disney fans. They really out price themselves. Yet the park upkeep is great. I wonder if FL residence are more upset bc they can purchase some sort of pass and make day trips. Not sure if the fast pass was allowed tho.
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Post by workingclassdog on Mar 21, 2022 13:37:24 GMT
As someone that really can't afford a whole family Disney vacation, this is just another reason why we would never be able to go. I was just listening to something on the radio that even going as cheap as possible for a family of four it would still be around $4,000 grand. My DH and I discussed it and if we were ever to go we would want to go and go at least 'mid class' not on the cheap and pricing that out was upwards to $8,000... but our kids are grown now.. so we won't ever go.. but kinda sad we never made it work. oh well...
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Post by epeanymous on Mar 21, 2022 13:40:31 GMT
We used to be Disney fans. They really out price themselves. Yet the park upkeep is great. I wonder if FL residence are more upset bc they can purchase some sort of pass and make day trips. Not sure if the fast pass was allowed tho. We used to go to one park or the other about once every 18 months. Between the prices and the crowds (we used to be able to pretty easily schedule trips with low crowd numbers, but the last few trips have been pretty thronged even on predicted low-crowd days), we've reoriented to international travel (of course, COVID has mucked up everything, but that was a shift we'd made before COVID and these new changes). |
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Post by supersoda on Mar 21, 2022 13:48:36 GMT
I'm surprised the Fastpass lasted as long as it did. I always expected Disney to turn it into a pay system. If there's a way to make money off something, Disney is going to do it.
Disney has really priced itself out of the middle-class. We can take a really nice vacation in the US or abroad for the cost of a Disney vacation, so a Disney vacation doesn't hold much allure these days. Maybe the odd-day if we're nearby, but not a full-fledged vacation.
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caangel
Drama Llama
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Location: So Cal
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Post by caangel on Mar 21, 2022 14:02:07 GMT
We live about 25min for DLR and go a few times a month. I hate Genie/Genie+. The wait times are so long now. They have also stopped a lot of their single ridder lines or don't always have them open. And supposedly they haven't opened the parks up to pre COVID max capacity yet.
The free Genie option is a joke. If you know the parks at all, you can do way better on your own.
DLR still doesn't have big day time parade or their large shows (Mickey's Magical Map & Royal Theater at DL and Frozen at DCA) back so hoping once those return it will help absorb some crowds. But DL has close closed Toontown and Pirates for renovations, which add to the increased crowds in the park.
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Post by natscraps on Mar 21, 2022 14:03:47 GMT
We were a big Disney family. We would go every 3-5 years. Stressing over finding the best deals, all the planning and fastpasses was part of the fun and like my hobby. We went for 2 weeks as a family of 3 for under $5000 in 2019. That trip was split with 4 nights as deluxe and the rest value. I just tried pricing out a 4 day trip for this May and the cheapest I could get us down to was $6000. And thatās with a whole lot less for your money. Meal portions are now smaller (we would frequently split meals). Limited character interactions. No mouse keeping. We wonāt be going back for a long while. And itās hard as DS has special needs and that was one place we felt comfortable taking him. Finding another vacation destination where us parents can relax too is proving to be extremely difficult.
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Post by lily on Mar 21, 2022 14:18:58 GMT
We went to Disney World 3 times between 2007 and 2011. We NEVER used Fastpass and honestly never had a huge wait to get in any attraction. I think the longest we ever waited was maybe 30 minutes for Soarin'. So for me, I would probably never use Genie anyway.
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Post by Monica* on Mar 21, 2022 14:19:48 GMT
I feel for families now. I grew up in LA and recall our first family day trip to Disneyland in the 60s (back when you had to buy tickets for the individual rides -- anyone remember "E ticket rides? ). Even as a young adult in the 80s, you could meet up with friends for a night excursion to hang out. After I moved away, I remember bringing my kids to Disneyland in the early 2000s on a trip home to visit family and it was doable. But then on our next trip home, it became untenable with wait times in relation to a one-day visit, so we bailed. They were nice enough to refund our entrance. We ended up going down to the pier to ride the rides and soak up the sun. Haven't been back since. Now that I'm a grandma, I would love to take the next generation, but I wonder if it will even be possible.
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Post by auntkelly on Mar 21, 2022 14:24:27 GMT
We took three trips to Disney when our kids were young. We used the Fastpass system and I thought it worked great.
The new system just seems like a backhanded way of raising ticket prices. It seems like just about every guest will be forced to purchase the Genie + or spend all of their day standing in line to ride one or two rides.
If I had young kids now, I probably wouldnāt go to Disney. Itās just gotten too expensive.
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oh yvonne
Prolific Pea
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Jun 26, 2014 0:45:23 GMT
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Post by oh yvonne on Mar 21, 2022 14:25:48 GMT
I feel for families now. I grew up in LA and recall our first family day trip to Disneyland in the 60s (back when you had to buy tickets for the individual rides -- anyone remember "E ticket rides? ). Even as a young adult in the 80s, you could meet up with friends for a night excursion to hang out. After I moved away, I remember bringing my kids to Disneyland in the early 2000s on a trip home to visit family and it was doable. But then on our next trip home, it became untenable with wait times in relation to a one-day visit, so we bailed. They were nice enough to refund our entrance. We ended up going down to the pier to ride the rides and soak up the sun. Haven't been back since. Now that I'm a grandma, I would love to take the next generation, but I wonder if it will even be possible. This, especially going to the dance club in the 80's..it had a name, what was it called? Over by where Toontown is now. But yeah, the last time we went as a family was right after Star Wars land opened. After that horrible 3 hour wait line we were so over it. We winded up at CA at one of the restaurants to drink lol (eldest DD is in her 20s). Oh and funny enough we ran into a Pea! (2boysandwill). We spent so much money, and although we expected to stay until the evening we threw in the towel by like 7. Its too much money, too crowded and way too much hassle to be worth it anymore. |
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pilcas
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Post by pilcas on Mar 21, 2022 14:29:47 GMT
We took our kids once when they were young. It was part of our Florida vacation. We also went to the California one for 2 days and that was it for me for the rest of my life.my kids are adults now. I think that is way too expensive for most people.
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The Great Carpezio
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Something profound goes here.
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Post by The Great Carpezio on Mar 21, 2022 14:37:48 GMT
I thought it was ridiculous before the amount of "research" one had to do before, but now with no pre-reservation, yeah, I don't think so-- since we usually travel with more than our family unit.
I still would like to take the boys to the Star Wars park, so we might still do that at some point and then go to Universal--which I have heard is easier to navigate.
But thinking about planning a Disney trip gives me anxiety (even with the concierge service we used last time). It doesn't really sound fun. It sounds like work.
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Post by cadoodlebug on Mar 21, 2022 14:40:00 GMT
I feel for families now. I grew up in LA and recall our first family day trip to Disneyland in the 60s (back when you had to buy tickets for the individual rides -- anyone remember "E ticket rides? ). My family went in 1958. My dad wore a suit and my mom, sister and I wore our Sunday best.  As I recall there were hardly any lines. I remember the E tickets. Everyone came home with a bunch of A & B tickets still in their possession. |
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Post by cme37 on Mar 21, 2022 14:40:32 GMT
We live in Florida and have annual passes. If we didn't live here, I would not be taking trips to Disney anymore. When we lived in TX, we went quite a few times. It was expensive but not horrible. When we first started going in 2008, the economy went into a recession. We were getting the meal plan free and the crowds were super low. I also liked Pandemic Disney. Super low crowds, social distancing, no fast passes-it was great.
Now, not so much. It is really crowded even in January and February. Those were always my go-to months for low crowds and nice weather. And I hate the new Genie + system. It is expensive and I don't think user friendly at all. I bought it once and couldn't figure out how to change the park I was in once I hopped. I had to wait in line at guest services to figure out how to use it. And I will never buy those individual genie + rides. $15 a ride (I think you get two for that, but I'm not sure) plus the cost to get in is way too much money to me.
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Post by zima on Mar 21, 2022 14:47:39 GMT
Hold up. They don't clean your room!?! |
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PLurker
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Jun 28, 2014 3:48:49 GMT
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Post by PLurker on Mar 21, 2022 14:52:08 GMT
Another time "I'm so far behind I think I'm ahead" for me. I never saw the allure and the $$$ was crazy to me, so I'm ahead of the game/don't have to switch my mindset. Lol
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Post by Ryann on Mar 21, 2022 15:04:18 GMT
I grew up in So Cal and went to DL a few times as a kid in the 80s/90s. The last time I went was mid 2000s on NYE; it was one of the worst days of my life and I haven't been back since.
My wife worked at DL when she was in high school. She was a dancer in the parades (she played Goofy in one!). We've never been to DL together but I would like to go before we move out of CA next year. I guess I should look into it if the pricing is outrageous now?!
ETA: After reading this thread and being reminded that Disney is playing games with politics in FL, I have no desire to give any Disney park my money. Oh well!
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christinec68
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,129
Location: New York, NY
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Post by christinec68 on Mar 21, 2022 15:06:47 GMT
I feel like Disney is giving guests the middle finger with Genie+. They are charging for a service they used to offer for free and made it more difficult to use. From what I understand guests can only reserve one ride at a time (it was 3 rides with FP+), there is little flexibility in the ride time (I'm not sure about this part), and there's a waiting period between having the ability to make the next reservation so guests end up spending the whole day planning their day.
Then there's the lightening lane add on for "premier" rides.
Way to enhance a vacation Disney.
I know this is all optional but guests spend $$$$$ to be there so the additional nickel and diming is annoying.
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Post by malibou on Mar 21, 2022 15:11:11 GMT
I feel for families now. I grew up in LA and recall our first family day trip to Disneyland in the 60s (back when you had to buy tickets for the individual rides -- anyone remember "E ticket rides? ). Even as a young adult in the 80s, you could meet up with friends for a night excursion to hang out. After I moved away, I remember bringing my kids to Disneyland in the early 2000s on a trip home to visit family and it was doable. But then on our next trip home, it became untenable with wait times in relation to a one-day visit, so we bailed. They were nice enough to refund our entrance. We ended up going down to the pier to ride the rides and soak up the sun. Haven't been back since. Now that I'm a grandma, I would love to take the next generation, but I wonder if it will even be possible. This, especially going to the dance club in the 80's..it had a name, what was it called? Over by where Toontown is now. But yeah, the last time we went as a family was right after Star Wars land opened. After that horrible 3 hour wait line we were so over it. We winded up at CA at one of the restaurants to drink lol (eldest DD is in her 20s). Oh and funny enough we ran into a Pea! (2boysandwill). We spent so much money, and although we expected to stay until the evening we threw in the towel by like 7. Its too much money, too crowded and way too much hassle to be worth it anymore. I have lived in So Cal for almost 30 years. Ds is 21. I worked in construction at Disney. I haven't been to Disneyland since before I lived here. Ds has never been. He just kept telling us he didn't want to go. What he actually says is, It's just not my bag, baby! š His friends used to ask me why I hated Disneyland, because they couldn't imagine it was driven by ds. The only time I can see myself going is if Skellinton goes at Halloween and invites me to hop on again. I even bought a shirt for last Halloween, but we had to cancel. |
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Post by Skellinton on Mar 21, 2022 15:23:49 GMT
This, especially going to the dance club in the 80's..it had a name, what was it called? Over by where Toontown is now. But yeah, the last time we went as a family was right after Star Wars land opened. After that horrible 3 hour wait line we were so over it. We winded up at CA at one of the restaurants to drink lol (eldest DD is in her 20s). Oh and funny enough we ran into a Pea! (2boysandwill). We spent so much money, and although we expected to stay until the evening we threw in the towel by like 7. Its too much money, too crowded and way too much hassle to be worth it anymore. I have lived in So Cal for almost 30 years. Ds is 21. I worked in construction at Disney. I haven't been to Disneyland since before I lived here. Ds has never been. He just kept telling us he didn't want to go. What he actually says is, It's just not my bag, baby! š His friends used to ask me why I hated Disneyland, because they couldn't imagine it was driven by ds. The only time I can see myself going is if Skellinton goes at Halloween and invites me to hop on again. I even bought a shirt for last Halloween, but we had to cancel. I am trying!!! That was a particularly hard cancel last year. I want to go so bad, but as everyone has said it has gotten so expensive. I promise if not this year for sure next! I am going to WDW (fingers crossed, knock on wood) this December for my and their 50th otherwise I would for sure go this year. I Just promised myself when I was at Disney World for their 30th I was going to make it back for the 50th since we celebrate the same year! I canāt wait to meet up with you, it would be my first pea meeting!! |
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Post by Skellinton on Mar 21, 2022 15:28:43 GMT
A lot if people blame Chapek for the recent decisions. He is pretty universally reviled on various Disney platforms.
Unfortunately as long as people are willing to pay Disney will just keep jacking up the prices. It is insane to see how crowded it is all the time though. I follow lots of Disney Instagram accounts and it just boggles my mind, it does not seem like thereās any slow seasons. The fact that they keep saying they are not even running at full capacity itās just shocking to me. It looks so so crowded. I donāt know if itās all the pent-up demand from the pandemic or what. They totally revamped the AP program at DL as well and there was a lot of griping about that but it didnāt seem to stop anyone from buying the passes.
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Post by padresfan619 on Mar 21, 2022 15:36:11 GMT
I feel like you have to take a course on planning a trip to Disneyland and Disneyworld. We went to Disneyland a couple of times when I was a kid and thereās no way my parents would have been able to manage it if it were like it is today. I hope my son doesnāt grow up to be majorly into Disney because the thought of trying to plan out a perfect weekend makes me break out into a cold sweat.
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Post by andreasmom on Mar 21, 2022 15:41:27 GMT
I hate Genie/Genie+
Would not do it again.
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Elsabelle
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,612
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Post by Elsabelle on Mar 21, 2022 15:42:59 GMT
DD and I are the Disney fanatics in our house. The other two could take it or leave it. Even she and I are over Disney because of the outrageous price increases. For us itās not that theyāve priced us out. They were expensive before but the increases are screaming GREED so blatantly and loudly and in a way that makes us not want to contribute to that anymore. Iām a Disney fan not a Disney sucker. Although, DH would argue that we were suckers when we were willing to pay pre pandemic prices. Heās probably right but we had a lot of fun.
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lavawalker1
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Jul 9, 2021 21:41:57 GMT
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Post by lavawalker1 on Mar 21, 2022 15:45:05 GMT
Hold up. They don't clean your room!?! This is a pandemic thing, not just a Disney thing. DH and I have been to several hotels since the pandemic, and itās very common. When you check in they let you know and say to call if you need fresh towels, etc. The last hotel we stayed in a couple weeks ago, told us they would come in for trash only everyday, but no making the bed, freshening up the room. Sure hope this practice doesnāt āstickāā¦. |
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vexedangel
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Nov 4, 2018 20:14:04 GMT
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Post by vexedangel on Mar 21, 2022 16:16:49 GMT
Weāre going in June and I am worried. š«
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Post by tallgirl on Mar 21, 2022 16:18:30 GMT
We did several Disney trips with our kids when they were younger, mostly WDW and once to DL. We always enjoyed them and even enjoyed the planning - getting a Fastpass in advance, restaurant reservations 6 months out, etc.
We went to WDW again in December as a last hurrah kind of trip to finally see Disney during the Christmas season (since we've always visited in summer), knowing that would likely be our last Disney trip for a while. I'm glad we did it, but we all agreed that we are done with Disney. We didn't like Genie/ILL, and not just because of the cost - it's also because you now have to be up early securing reservations while actually on your trip, and the new touring style really does have you crisscrossing the park a lot, which is more tiring than it needs to be. We still had a fun trip, but it had lost a lot of the magic. I know it's partly because my kids are older now, and partly because of the operations issues they are dealing with due to the pandemic, but part of it is just a shift in how Disney treats their guests.
We're hoping to go to Japan next year and will spend some time at Tokyo DL if we do, since we've made a point to visit the other international parks on our travels and it's fun to identify the cultural differences between them. But we won't plan another dedicated WDW/DL trip for the foreseeable future, if ever.
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Post by zima on Mar 21, 2022 16:19:21 GMT
Hold up. They don't clean your room!?! This is a pandemic thing, not just a Disney thing. DH and I have been to several hotels since the pandemic, and itās very common. When you check in they let you know and say to call if you need fresh towels, etc. The last hotel we stayed in a couple weeks ago, told us they would come in for trash only everyday, but no making the bed, freshening up the room. Sure hope this practice doesnāt āstickāā¦. I've stayed at a few places since the pandemic, but they always say "call down if you'd like housekeeping." I call every day. I'd like the beds made (if not changed), new towels, vacuuming, and trash removed. |
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Post by natscraps on Mar 21, 2022 16:29:08 GMT
Hold up. They don't clean your room!?! This is a pandemic thing, not just a Disney thing. DH and I have been to several hotels since the pandemic, and itās very common. When you check in they let you know and say to call if you need fresh towels, etc. The last hotel we stayed in a couple weeks ago, told us they would come in for trash only everyday, but no making the bed, freshening up the room. Sure hope this practice doesnāt āstickāā¦. This was pre-pandemic. Mousekeeping was every third day or so and that was deluxe. You could call down if you needed something but it usually took multiple calls. The customer service that used to make it worth the value just isnāt there anymore. |
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