Everything Genie, Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lane - Please Read Posts 1-7

[itf]

If a ride doesn’t come back before park close is it refunded automatically (7DMT) or do I have to go to guest services?

 

[MelanieC]

On one of our MK days, my husband is leaving the park around lunchtime to go to watch a football game and will come back later.
I'm pretty sure I read at one point to make sure we don't book him on a LL when he won't be around, as that would mess up the rest of us (4 of us left in the park) being able to get LL's again if he doesn't tap in for the ride?

Is that correct? Anyone have any experience and can guide me on rules?

 

[itf]

On one of our MK days, my husband is leaving the park around lunchtime to go to watch a football game and will come back later.
I'm pretty sure I read at one point to make sure we don't book him on a LL when he won't be around, as that would mess up the rest of us (4 of us left in the park) being able to get LL's again if he doesn't tap in for the ride?

Is that correct? Anyone have any experience and can guide me on rules?

It’s really easy to just not book for him when he’s not there.

 

[triciambe]

Thanks. I really wish we could "practice" before showing up. I'm pretty tech savvy, but there's a lot to remember. I've started making a cheat sheet to take with me, lol.

I "practiced" before our trip, which helped a lot! I would set my phone alarm for the times I anticipated I would be booking and then would check the tip board to see what LLs were available. I couldn't actually click through to book the LL, but seeing patterns of availability was really helpful. I marked the return time as if I booked it, then set my alarm again for when I would next be eligible: if it was the 7AM drop, that would be two hours from park open, or two hours from when I booked, or less than that if the return time I was given was within two hours. I did this a few times leading up to our trip so when we were in the actual parks, I had a general sense of what would/wouldn't be available and it made it easier to make choices in the moment. We ended up grabbing 27 LLs over 5 days!

 

[GBRforWDW]

On one of our MK days, my husband is leaving the park around lunchtime to go to watch a football game and will come back later.
I'm pretty sure I read at one point to make sure we don't book him on a LL when he won't be around, as that would mess up the rest of us (4 of us left in the park) being able to get LL's again if he doesn't tap in for the ride?

Is that correct? Anyone have any experience and can guide me on rules?

It's ok if you do book him for the ride. If it's more than 2 hours out, it won't be an issue, if it's within 2 hours, and you use yours, just cancel his. If he's booked and the ride goes down, he'll get the anytime experience pass.

 

[james_folds_five]

Hi, looking for some help with Genie +. We are a group of 8 travelling to WDW in just over a week. I have been watching some videos on Genie + and some people have suggested constantly refreshing to get an earlier ride time (for example you see a return time for 6pm but after 5 mins of refreshing get a return time for 2pm). Does anyone have any insight into how the system works and if it would be significantly harder to do this for a group of 8 versus a group of 1 or 2? Thanks so much

 

[Ghost Host 998]

Hi, looking for some help with Genie +. We are a group of 8 travelling to WDW in just over a week. I have been watching some videos on Genie + and some people have suggested constantly refreshing to get an earlier ride time (for example you see a return time for 6pm but after 5 mins of refreshing get a return time for 2pm). Does anyone have any insight into how the system works and if it would be significantly harder to do this for a group of 8 versus a group of 1 or 2? Thanks so much

You should read the first few posts of this thread. It will give you a more in-depth explanation. But, the Genie+ times that are shown are not dependent on the number of guests (Disney says up to 12, in practice it seems 10 guests is the magic number) in your party. You will be shown the same return times regardless of the number of guests in your party (up tp 10 or 12.)

 

[CeeCee101]

What is "the best" YouTube video for explaining the basics of Genie+ ? Is there a group of videos that go from the basics to "tricks and hacks"?

Thanks

I like Ear Scouts and Mermaid Niña. Both explain Genie+ and ILL well. We haven’t been back in over 10 years so totally starting from scratch. These helped me.

 

[MelanieC]

It's ok if you do book him for the ride. If it's more than 2 hours out, it won't be an issue, if it's within 2 hours, and you use yours, just cancel his. If he's booked and the ride goes down, he'll get the anytime experience pass.

Thanks, good to know you can cancel just one person!!

 

[BooBooMonster]

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone would be able to answer these questions or perhaps share a link to where I would be able find them! I’ve read a lot of the basics about Genie+/ILL but have specific questions that I am not able to find else where. Thank you.


1) As an example: if I wake up at 7AM and am able to make a Genie+ reservation for say around 11AM for Kilimanjaro. By the time 11AM rolls around, the 120-Minute Rule will have passed. So I assume I’d be able to make another Genie+ reservation BEFORE checking into Kilimanjaro. So let’s say I do that. Will I be able to then book another one once I check into Kilimanjaro even though it isn't the “last” reservation I made?


2) The above question may be the same as this one but, as an example: if I “stack” my Genie+ reservations (on the phone at 7 AM, 11 AM, 1PM, 3PM) for rides with check in times at around 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM, will I then be able to make new Genie+ reservations for every ride I start checking into during that time?


3) At the risk of running out of reservations and spending a lot of time refreshing on my phone, am I able to book Genie+ reservations for each available ride as we arrive to the attraction? That is, book a Genie+ reservation, check into it, then start booking for whatever is next. And if so, up to how many Genie+ reservations will I be able to make in one day?


4) Do Individual Lightning Lane selections have a 120-Minute Rule to them as well? I know currently there aren’t multiple ILL’s in one park but perhaps when Tron opens (?), I am wondering if I’d be able to make both ILL reservations at the same time at 7 AM (staying on-site) or is there a 120-Minute Rule? Do ILL’s count towards the 120-Minute Rule of Genie+?


5) Am I able to book an ILL or G+ reservation for a ride later in the evening and still able to ride the ride at early entry/rope drop/throughout the day without messing up my reservation?


6) I understand that in order to edit a Genie+ reservation so that I can remove certain people from the reservation, I have to go all the way through with canceling it? Is this true? Is there no way to simply remove someone from a reservation without canceling?


Thank you so much! Here is just some context to my plan in case it’s needed:
I am taking myself and 10 family members (4 kids, 7 adults) to the Polynesian in early February and staying for 6 days, visiting and spending the day at each of the four parks. I know I may not need Genie+/ILL for every park on every day but I plan on getting it anyway. I plan on utilizing early entry time (and extended magic hours if applicable) on riding high wait-time rides but still wanted to try and book reservations for re-rides if possible.
- Random question but do you think Genie+ will be getting any major changes this year/next year that may make any of the above answers obsolete? I know they’re always tweaking it and adding/taking away rides but as far as any rumors about major changes coming? Thx!!!

 

[set88]

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone would be able to answer these questions or perhaps share a link to where I would be able find them! I’ve read a lot of the basics about Genie+/ILL but have specific questions that I am not able to find else where. Thank you.


1) As an example: if I wake up at 7AM and am able to make a Genie+ reservation for say around 11AM for Kilimanjaro. By the time 11AM rolls around, the 120-Minute Rule will have passed. So I assume I’d be able to make another Genie+ reservation BEFORE checking into Kilimanjaro. So let’s say I do that. Will I be able to then book another one once I check into Kilimanjaro even though it isn't the “last” reservation I made?


2) The above question may be the same as this one but, as an example: if I “stack” my Genie+ reservations (on the phone at 7 AM, 11 AM, 1PM, 3PM) for rides with check in times at around 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM, will I then be able to make new Genie+ reservations for every ride I start checking into during that time?


3) At the risk of running out of reservations and spending a lot of time refreshing on my phone, am I able to book Genie+ reservations for each available ride as we arrive to the attraction? That is, book a Genie+ reservation, check into it, then start booking for whatever is next. And if so, up to how many Genie+ reservations will I be able to make in one day?


4) Do Individual Lightning Lane selections have a 120-Minute Rule to them as well? I know currently there aren’t multiple ILL’s in one park but perhaps when Tron opens (?), I am wondering if I’d be able to make both ILL reservations at the same time at 7 AM (staying on-site) or is there a 120-Minute Rule? Do ILL’s count towards the 120-Minute Rule of Genie+?


5) Am I able to book an ILL or G+ reservation for a ride later in the evening and still able to ride the ride at early entry/rope drop/throughout the day without messing up my reservation?


6) I understand that in order to edit a Genie+ reservation so that I can remove certain people from the reservation, I have to go all the way through with canceling it? Is this true? Is there no way to simply remove someone from a reservation without canceling?


Thank you so much! Here is just some context to my plan in case it’s needed:
I am taking myself and 10 family members (4 kids, 7 adults) to the Polynesian in early February and staying for 6 days, visiting and spending the day at each of the four parks. I know I may not need Genie+/ILL for every park on every day but I plan on getting it anyway. I plan on utilizing early entry time (and extended magic hours if applicable) on riding high wait-time rides but still wanted to try and book reservations for re-rides if possible.
- Random question but do you think Genie+ will be getting any major changes this year/next year that may make any of the above answers obsolete? I know they’re always tweaking it and adding/taking away rides but as far as any rumors about major changes coming? Thx!!!

1) Genie+ only cares about the LAST thing you booked. So in your example, your next available time would be based on whatever you booked 2 hours after park opening. Genie+ also just recently started showing you the exact time you can make your next selection in the app, so that should help.

2) A new Genie+ reservation only is based on the thing you booked most recently and whether you've ridden that. In that example, it's based on whatever you booked at 3pm.

3) That's correct, you can book a new one as soon as you tap into the most recently booked one. There's no limit to the number you can make in a day. It just depends on crowds / whether you are choosing attractions with far away return times or ones with immediate return times. Of course, it's more useful if you're actually saving time in line. Attractions with immediate return times may not save you any time vs standby.

4) You can make up to 2 ILLs per day, provided they are for different rides (so currently, has to be at different parks). You can make them both right at 7am, no time restrictions... and you can choose your return time.

5) Yep.

6) I am 99% sure you can cancel a G+ for one member of the party without having to cancel it for all of the party.

Just as a head's up, from what I've read, you can book for all 11 people with Genie+, but for the ILL, you may have to book in two groups (you would just choose overlapping times). I think the max for G+ is 12 while the max for ILL is 10.

I think there may be some changes to Genie+ starting next year, depending on the feedback they get about it over the busy holiday season. I don't think there will be major changes between now and the end of the year, since so many people prepaid for it already.

 

[daisylovesdisney]

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone would be able to answer these questions or perhaps share a link to where I would be able find them! I’ve read a lot of the basics about Genie+/ILL but have specific questions that I am not able to find else where. Thank you.


1) As an example: if I wake up at 7AM and am able to make a Genie+ reservation for say around 11AM for Kilimanjaro. By the time 11AM rolls around, the 120-Minute Rule will have passed. So I assume I’d be able to make another Genie+ reservation BEFORE checking into Kilimanjaro. So let’s say I do that. Will I be able to then book another one once I check into Kilimanjaro even though it isn't the “last” reservation I made?

We just got back a couple of days ago and made our first Genie+ LL at AK for Navi River (at 7am we received a 8:50am return time and made it there just in the nick of time at 10am). We booked our next Genie+ LL for the Safari and it was for a 10:45am start time. After riding our FoP ILL we went right onto the Safari and after tapping into that ride booked a LL for Expedition Everest. After riding that, I was able to make a LL for Kali River Rapids that started 30 minutes later. We had an ice cream, used the restrooms, went over and put our stuff in a locker outside the rapids ride, watched the monkeys for a bit and then rode the ride.

My family wasn't interested in going on Dinosaur or seeing the shows there again, so after that I started booking LLs for that evening in MK. I had to wait sometimes before booking because what was available was still too early for our plans.

2) The above question may be the same as this one but, as an example: if I “stack” my Genie+ reservations (on the phone at 7 AM, 11 AM, 1PM, 3PM) for rides with check in times at around 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM, will I then be able to make new Genie+ reservations for every ride I start checking into during that time?


3) At the risk of running out of reservations and spending a lot of time refreshing on my phone, am I able to book Genie+ reservations for each available ride as we arrive to the attraction? That is, book a Genie+ reservation, check into it, then start booking for whatever is next. And if so, up to how many Genie+ reservations will I be able to make in one day?

We were able to do this for a bit in the MK after hopping there in the late afternoon. I had booked the Jungle Cruise earlier in the day from Epcot. Added Buzz while hopping, went straight there when we arrived. After tapping into Buzz I booked Pirates and walked straight over there afterward. Booked Aladdin's Magic Carpets after tapping into Pirates. Then our Jungle Cruise LL would have been next except we had a lightening storm and ended up in the Tiki Room instead to get out of the rain. We were able to make several additional LLs but you have to weigh what is available, the walking, etc.. I'd rather wait for a bit then continually walk back and forth and enjoy a snack, etc..

4) Do Individual Lightning Lane selections have a 120-Minute Rule to them as well? I know currently there aren’t multiple ILL’s in one park but perhaps when Tron opens (?), I am wondering if I’d be able to make both ILL reservations at the same time at 7 AM (staying on-site) or is there a 120-Minute Rule? Do ILL’s count towards the 120-Minute Rule of Genie+?

ILL do not count towards the 120 minute rule and you can schedule both for whatever times are available (but the 2nd would have to be after 2pm since that's when you can hop).

5) Am I able to book an ILL or G+ reservation for a ride later in the evening and still able to ride the ride at early entry/rope drop/throughout the day without messing up my reservation?

You can ride standby as many times as you want, that won't affect Genie+.

6) I understand that in order to edit a Genie+ reservation so that I can remove certain people from the reservation, I have to go all the way through with canceling it? Is this true? Is there no way to simply remove someone from a reservation without canceling?

I think we could have just canceled particular people in the reservation but I just didn't select everyone for the LL if they weren't going to ride.

Thank you so much! Here is just some context to my plan in case it’s needed:
I am taking myself and 10 family members (4 kids, 7 adults) to the Polynesian in early February and staying for 6 days, visiting and spending the day at each of the four parks. I know I may not need Genie+/ILL for every park on every day but I plan on getting it anyway. I plan on utilizing early entry time (and extended magic hours if applicable) on riding high wait-time rides but still wanted to try and book reservations for re-rides if possible.
- Random question but do you think Genie+ will be getting any major changes this year/next year that may make any of the above answers obsolete? I know they’re always tweaking it and adding/taking away rides but as far as any rumors about major changes coming? Thx!!!

The biggest issue I encountered was wanting to book LLs for later and had to wait and wait for the times to advance. I was booking things by location as we didn't want to zig zag all over. So I wanted times for Splash and BTMRR back to back, Fantasyland rides to overlap, Adventureland etc.. It all worked out but I sometimes I had to watch and wait, book something else in the meantime and then try again later, etc..

 

[Tom_E_D]

. . .

4) You can make up to 2 ILLs per day, provided they are for different rides (so currently, has to be at different parks). You can make them both right at 7am, no time restrictions... and you can choose your return time.

. . .

You can book them both at 7:00 if staying "onsite." If staying "offsite," you have to wait until park open. You can choose your return time, subject to availability.

 

[Grumpy by Birth]

A couple of questions about what the current policy is with regards to G+ and park hopping. We're starting off at DHS one day and hopping to EPCOT. I understand that I can book an EPCOT G+ LL before we get there.

We might do a second hop to MK around the time EPCOT is closing. Can I book a G+ for MK from EPCOT if anything is available at MK between 9-11pm?

They have extended hours there (we're DVC at BCV so eligible) from 11pm-1am. They offer G+ during those extended hours, correct? Can we book a G+ LL with a return time after 11pm earlier in the evening or do we have to wait until 11pm to book anything during the extended hours?

Thanks!

 

[masupo]

A couple of questions about what the current policy is with regards to G+ and park hopping. We're starting off at DHS one day and hopping to EPCOT. I understand that I can book an EPCOT G+ LL before we get there.

We might do a second hop to MK around the time EPCOT is closing. Can I book a G+ for MK from EPCOT if anything is available at MK between 9-11pm?

They have extended hours there (we're DVC at BCV so eligible) from 11pm-1am. They offer G+ during those extended hours, correct? Can we book a G+ LL with a return time after 11pm earlier in the evening or do we have to wait until 11pm to book anything during the extended hours?

Thanks!

You can hop to two different parks and book G+ LL for each. When you're at Epcot after DHS, you can book G+ at MK. You should even be able to book at both parks while you're in DHS if something good comes up at MK.

Unfortunately G+ isn't available during extended hours. I experienced very low wait times during extended hours at MK though. It was awesome!

 

[Grumpy by Birth]

You can hop to two different parks and book G+ LL for each. When you're at Epcot after DHS, you can book G+ at MK. You should even be able to book at both parks while you're in DHS if something good comes up at MK.

Unfortunately G+ isn't available during extended hours. I experienced very low wait times during extended hours at MK though. It was awesome!

Thanks! I expected that the crowd level for extended hours might make LL irrelevant. Maybe we'll get lucky and I can find a LL attraction between 9-11 pm to book before we get there, so we have it waiting on us.

 

[triciambe]

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone would be able to answer these questions or perhaps share a link to where I would be able find them! I’ve read a lot of the basics about Genie+/ILL but have specific questions that I am not able to find else where. Thank you.


1) As an example: if I wake up at 7AM and am able to make a Genie+ reservation for say around 11AM for Kilimanjaro. By the time 11AM rolls around, the 120-Minute Rule will have passed. So I assume I’d be able to make another Genie+ reservation BEFORE checking into Kilimanjaro. So let’s say I do that. Will I be able to then book another one once I check into Kilimanjaro even though it isn't the “last” reservation I made?


2) The above question may be the same as this one but, as an example: if I “stack” my Genie+ reservations (on the phone at 7 AM, 11 AM, 1PM, 3PM) for rides with check in times at around 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM, will I then be able to make new Genie+ reservations for every ride I start checking into during that time?


3) At the risk of running out of reservations and spending a lot of time refreshing on my phone, am I able to book Genie+ reservations for each available ride as we arrive to the attraction? That is, book a Genie+ reservation, check into it, then start booking for whatever is next. And if so, up to how many Genie+ reservations will I be able to make in one day?


4) Do Individual Lightning Lane selections have a 120-Minute Rule to them as well? I know currently there aren’t multiple ILL’s in one park but perhaps when Tron opens (?), I am wondering if I’d be able to make both ILL reservations at the same time at 7 AM (staying on-site) or is there a 120-Minute Rule? Do ILL’s count towards the 120-Minute Rule of Genie+?


5) Am I able to book an ILL or G+ reservation for a ride later in the evening and still able to ride the ride at early entry/rope drop/throughout the day without messing up my reservation?


6) I understand that in order to edit a Genie+ reservation so that I can remove certain people from the reservation, I have to go all the way through with canceling it? Is this true? Is there no way to simply remove someone from a reservation without canceling?


Thank you so much! Here is just some context to my plan in case it’s needed:
I am taking myself and 10 family members (4 kids, 7 adults) to the Polynesian in early February and staying for 6 days, visiting and spending the day at each of the four parks. I know I may not need Genie+/ILL for every park on every day but I plan on getting it anyway. I plan on utilizing early entry time (and extended magic hours if applicable) on riding high wait-time rides but still wanted to try and book reservations for re-rides if possible.
- Random question but do you think Genie+ will be getting any major changes this year/next year that may make any of the above answers obsolete? I know they’re always tweaking it and adding/taking away rides but as far as any rumors about major changes coming? Thx!!!

I think others have already answered a lot of your G+ questions. We just got back from Disney last week as a group of 12 and had a great time using G+, maximizing different strategies (booking LLs right after another as well as stacking for the afternoon/evenings). I posted about it HERE if it's helpful. I tried to include as much detail as possible in terms of all my LL reservations.

 

[Monk6552]

We just got back a couple of days ago and made our first Genie+ LL at AK for Navi River (at 7am we received a 8:50am return time and made it there just in the nick of time at 10am). We booked our next Genie+ LL for the Safari and it was for a 10:45am start time. After riding our FoP ILL we went right onto the Safari and after tapping into that ride booked a LL for Expedition Everest. After riding that, I was able to make a LL for Kali River Rapids that started 30 minutes later. We had an ice cream, used the restrooms, went over and put our stuff in a locker outside the rapids ride, watched the monkeys for a bit and then rode the ride.

My family wasn't interested in going on Dinosaur or seeing the shows there again, so after that I started booking LLs for that evening in MK. I had to wait sometimes before booking because what was available was still too early for our plans.


We were able to do this for a bit in the MK after hopping there in the late afternoon. I had booked the Jungle Cruise earlier in the day from Epcot. Added Buzz while hopping, went straight there when we arrived. After tapping into Buzz I booked Pirates and walked straight over there afterward. Booked Aladdin's Magic Carpets after tapping into Pirates. Then our Jungle Cruise LL would have been next except we had a lightening storm and ended up in the Tiki Room instead to get out of the rain. We were able to make several additional LLs but you have to weigh what is available, the walking, etc.. I'd rather wait for a bit then continually walk back and forth and enjoy a snack, etc..


ILL do not count towards the 120 minute rule and you can schedule both for whatever times are available (but the 2nd would have to be after 2pm since that's when you can hop).

You can ride standby as many times as you want, that won't affect Genie+.

I think we could have just canceled particular people in the reservation but I just didn't select everyone for the LL if they weren't going to ride.



The biggest issue I encountered was wanting to book LLs for later and had to wait and wait for the times to advance. I was booking things by location as we didn't want to zig zag all over. So I wanted times for Splash and BTMRR back to back, Fantasyland rides to overlap, Adventureland etc.. It all worked out but I sometimes I had to watch and wait, book something else in the meantime and then try again later, etc..

Question on this - has anyone found the right tactic to utilizing Genie+ ONLY for the park you're hopping to in the afternoon. When I try to set up "My Day" in MDE it will only allow me to choose the park we have a reservation for (Epcot), but I want to be able to have it set up so that it's only showing me HS (which I know I can do via tip board), but if I do it that way, I still have to scroll through all the rides to get to slinky dog...is there any way to set it up so I only see slinky dog (the way you would be able to if your res was at that park) or am I just going to have to scroll through the rides? To be clear, this only saves like 2 seconds...but when it's for a busy time, every second counts!

 

[disneydawn]

For whatever it is worth, we had a large party of 15 for a December visit. 4 of us are AP, the rest are not. This group consisted of 4 different families with each family having a separate MDE account. We were all staying at BLT in 2 rooms (3 bedroom & 1 bedroom). All of us, except one who joined last minute, were listed in the DVC reservation in the 2 separate rooms. My biggest challenge was getting everyone to show up in my Friends and Family list ("controllers" of the MDE acct were showing up fine but kids were not. Had to work with MDE chat to resolve each time. Luckily I did that weeks in advance of trip). We were AP but everyone else went ahead and bought tickets with Genie + option (can't do that with AP at this time) and we all selected the same park reservation. When I woke up at 7am each morning and went to select Genie + for our group, everyone showed up. I then selected all and made the Genie + reservations for our full group. Again, 4 had AP, 11 ha+

 

[disneydawn]

Excuse my previous post. Not sure how that happened. Question...were you able to book all 15 of your group or did 2 people have to split it up and try at the same time? I have 15 going next Friday and I am more than stressed out about all this! Any help is appreciated!