# The Genie Usage, Tips and Strategy ONLY Thread



## DisneyKidds

*A whole new world
A new fantastic point of view
No one to tell us, "No"
Or where to go….*

Oh, wait. We have Genie now!

If this is your first foray into the world of Genie+ know this.  The G+ we have today is not the same G+ that was rolled out in October.  Around Thanksgiving (maybe page 90 of this thread) Disney made changes that impacted some of the usage strategies presented earlier in this thread.  If you want the sordid history on how we got from there to here read on.  If you want to skip the history and just get to current usage and strategy you may want to save yourself a few hours (days?) and fast forward to page 90 or so.  Either way, enjoy…..but do respect the caveats below!

People need and have been asking for something like this, and I just saw someone tell someone else to start one.  So I’m starting one!

Post up your actual usage experiences and tips here, and your usage strategy or questions IF you plan on using it. No commentary on whether it’s good or bad, no comparisons to things that don’t exist any more (FP+).

This will keep the crybabies and arrogant jerks who don’t like it (myself among them!**) from keeping people from seeing info that will actually help them use it!

** a triple or quadruple hop stack has great potential to alter this!


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## tguz

We are going for 10 nights in early December.  Our strategy is to not buy genie+ for the first 4 days (each park) and see how wait times are and how many of our "must do" attractions we were able to experience.  We would then consider buying Genie+ on our second go round through the parks if there are "must do's" that we were not able to do on the first park visit.  That is just our plan and I hope it works out for us.


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## MainMom

DisneyKidds said:


> People need and have been asking for something like this, and I just saw a Mod tell someone else to start one.  So I’m starting one!
> 
> Post up your actual usage experiences here, and your usage strategy or question IF you plan on using it. No commentary on whether it’s good or bad, no comparisons to things that don’t exist any more (FP+).
> 
> This will keep the crybabies and arrogant jerks who don’t like it (myself among them!) from keeping people from seeing info that will actually help them use it!


It would also be nice ito know how many are in your group. I’m traveling with 7 next June and am looking for reports with bigger groups.
Thanks for starting this thread!


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## OhDannyBoy

Thanks for this!!

I have a monster group of 15 + 1 under 2. Messing with the app it seems I can only set plans / reservations for 12 at a time. Am I correct on this? If so, I'll have to recruit a copilot and split our group which means we may not all ride at the same time. Such is life with a group my size I know. 

Any insight or idea is welcomed.


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## DisneyKidds

OhDannyBoy said:


> Thanks for this!!
> 
> I have a monster group of 15 + 1 under 2. Messing with the app it seems I can only set plans / reservations for 12 at a time. Am I correct on this? If so, I'll have to recruit a copilot and split our group which means we may not all ride at the same time. Such is life with a group my size I know.
> 
> Any insight or idea is welcomed.


We have a group of 19 going next July so I’m interested in actual experiences with big groups as well.  I’ve read the same thing about one person only being able to book for 12.  Wondering if that will make it hard to get everyone together in the same G+ LL return with multiple people booking.  ILL$ would seem to be less of a problem.  No speculation here, let’s wait and see how it’s actually working out for people with parties larger than 12!


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## catnik

DisneyKidds said:


> People need and have been asking for something like this, and I just saw someone tell someone else to start one.  So I’m starting one!
> 
> Post up your actual usage experiences here, and your usage strategy or question IF you plan on using it. No commentary on whether it’s good or bad, no comparisons to things that don’t exist any more (FP+).
> 
> This will keep the crybabies and arrogant jerks who don’t like it (myself among them!) from keeping people from seeing info that will actually help them use it!


Thanks for starting this, DisneyKidds! 
I am headed back the second week in November. Expecting Jersey week and the federal holiday to really pump up the midweek crowds. Gleaning info to create a successful touring plan for our party of 10 is my goal


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## SomDayMyPrnceWillCom

We'll be there Christmas week and I'm waiting to hear some reports on best strategies as well. I have a feeling that I will buy Genie + for MK, Epcot and HS but not necessarily AK. I'm NOT purchasing ahead of time since you have to purchase for all days and I don't think I'll need it for all days as we have 2 park days for every park except AK and Epcot has a day and 1/2 day on departure day for us. MK has extended night time hours we can utilize our first day so I hope that will also allow us to get in any rides we may have missed earlier in the day. While I usually don't do late at the parks anymore, I'm hoping to head back to room for break and nap etc. and then go back out that night for the extra hours.


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## Grumpy by Birth

DisneyKidds said:


> We have a group of 19 going next July so I’m interested in actual experiences with big groups as well.  I’ve read the same thing about one person only being able to book for 12.  Wondering if that will make it hard to get everyone together in the same G+ LL return with multiple people booking.  ILL$ would seem to be less of a problem.  No speculation here, let’s wait and see how it’s actually working out for people with parties larger than 12!


With both legacy FP and FP+, groups would sometimes not be able to get exactly the same return times.  But it was almost always possible to get times that were overlapping so everyone could ride together.

Since the times for G+ will be "next available" like it was for legacy FP, I think there would only be a few extreme examples where the times wouldn't be really close to each other if you book the first 12 of your group and then book for the rest immediately afterwards.  The return times would have to be getting taken at a frantic pace for it to advance more than an hour within the few seconds it will take you to book the first part of the group.

ETA:  Alternatively, you could have two people managing G+ for each half of the group.  That way, you'd be selecting the times practically simultaneously and would know they overlap before committing part of the group to that return time.


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## katyringo

Thanks for starting this. I will be looking at my trip here soon and making a plan after watching the last few days of patters.  I am not park hopping on my trip and I am a "my husband and I were the first ones at HS and got escorted straight to MMRR by security" early arriver...


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## OhDannyBoy

Grumpy by Birth said:


> Since the times for G+ will be "next available" like it was for legacy FP, I think there would only be a few extreme examples where the times wouldn't be really close to each other if you book the first 12 of your group and then book for the rest immediately afterwards.


Ahhh I didn't think of that.

There is one other in my group I "trust" will follow my lead on this so we can have, for lack of a better term, boarding groups. LOL Okay i can make that work.

Good call Grumpy!!


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## DisneyKidds

Grumpy by Birth said:


> With both legacy FP and FP+, groups would sometimes not be able to get exactly the same return times.  But it was almost always possible to get times that were overlapping so everyone could ride together.


Which is exactly what we did, with great success.  Hoping G+ eventually will net similar results.  I’m skeptical, but that’s talk for a different thread!  Can’t wait to see how some actual large party booking experiences go….


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## CarolynFH

@scrappinginontario, is your thread https://www.disboards.com/threads/c...ease-read-posts-1-4-work-in-progress.3856734/ almost ready to be unlocked?


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## DisneyFive

I plan to purchase G+ every day (maybe not AK) because our favorite rides, FOP and EE are ILL.  That leaves VERY little reason to purchase G+ there.

I plan to book my first G+ for, hopefully, about 30 minutes after park opening (this will have a window of 30 minutes to 90 minutes after park open)  That way when rope drop crowds build I have a G+ to use instead.  Then I will book the heck out of my day using as many G+ I can.

On our arrival day, I will book G+ selections in the park we intent to hop to. That way I can stack a few up.  Yes, we will have to tap into our reserved park first and then immediately hop, but I'm o.k. with that.

I can't wait for Tron to open in MK because I can't stand the fact that Space is a ILL selection.  I want Space on the G+ list instead.

Dan


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## DisneyKidds

CarolynFH said:


> @scrappinginontario, is your thread https://www.disboards.com/threads/c...ease-read-posts-1-4-work-in-progress.3856734/ almost ready to be unlocked?


Yeah, I saw that.  Being “Everything”, including discussion of what worked for people (and will naturally get discussion of what didn’t work for people), I hope it doesn’t become Genie Announcement 2.0, Sticky Version.  Hopefully they can ring fence actual usage reports so that info is easier to find!


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## kilik64

DisneyFive said:


> I can't wait for Tron to open in MK because I can't stand the fact that Space is a ILL selection.  I want Space on the G+ list instead.
> 
> Dan



If I were a betting man (which I am) id put money on Tron being the 3rd ILL and there not being a drop of Space...


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## MainMom

kilik64 said:


> If I were a betting man (which I am) id put money on Tron being the 3rd ILL and there not being a drop of Space...


I think if they were going to do 3 they would have added Slinky as an ILL$ with the current 2. Or maybe they are just waiting for Tron and Guardians to open to make it 3 in all of the parks. Safari for AK?


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## leeniewdw

DisneyFive said:


> On our arrival day, I will book G+ selections in the park we intent to hop to. That way I can stack a few up.  Yes, we will have to tap into our reserved park first and then immediately hop, but I'm o.k. with that.



I'll have to decide about this.  I think I can make it work if the 2 parks are EPCOT and DHS, but I'd really hate for there to be a snag in our arriving flights that would put a wrench in the whole thing.  Our party is arriving on 2 different flights, so that could mess things up.

The other strategy is to plan this way and attempt the park reservation switch to eliminate the "tap in" step.  Will be curious to see if that works.

The "safest way" would be to just pick 1 park for arrival day and spend the travel day (and airplane wifi) refreshing return times until it looks like it will work.  Along with reserving late ILL$s.

How much time would you allow from landing at MCO, getting a rental (no baggage claim) and getting to an onsite hotel?   We'll be landing at 1:30pm on a Thursday in Feb.   In March 2020, we landed at 6:30am on a Thursday, picked up bags from baggage claim, a rental car and still made it INTO DHS with 3 minutes to spare before grabbing a BG for RotR at 8am (driving directly to the park).  So that's less than 90 minutes.   If we added in a hotel stop, it's probably at least another 30-45 I'd guess.  Ugh, it looks like we're not going to be in the parks until almost 4pm.  LOTS of $$s spent for that day.  I truly hate the SW schedules this go round!  Looks like I'll be refreshing no matter what park configuration we choose.


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## Welsh_Dragon

Touring Plans are doing a live stream today at 4pm EST (YouTube). They have been testing (free) Genie against one of their plans in MK.


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## dinsdalep

I will be visiting in mid-February (family of four) for a week, with 6 full park days. 

For Magic Kingdom, we will have two early entry mornings and one extra magic evening, which should be enough to accomplish everything without using Genie+ at all.

For Epcot, we have two full days which should also be sufficient.

Animal Kingdom has few enough rides (Everest will be down during our visit) that we can probably get it done in well under a day without paying extra, although if we did it would be ILL for FOP to save time standing in line.

That leaves the Studios, which is the most likely day for us to use G+. I think it's absolutely worth $15 to fit in SDD, Smuggler's Run, Midway Mania, ToT, RnRC, and Star Tours with minimal waits, leaving time to enjoy shows and dining. RotR and MMRR can be done either at rope drop or park close, or ILL if we want to re-ride either one.

So we're looking at spending in the range of $60-$140 total, or about $10-20 per day, which is not a horrible deal to improve a week for four people. It should help that it's a slower time of year.


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## DizBelle

I can't find anywhere when you can make your second ILL$ purchase.  Can you make your 2 for the day both at 7 am?


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## kilik64

MainMom said:


> I think if they were going to do 3 they would have added Slinky as an ILL$ with the current 2. Or maybe they are just waiting for Tron and Guardians to open to make it 3 in all of the parks. Safari for AK?


Who says each park has to have 3? But yea, I'm thinking Tron and Guardians will be a 3rd ILL for MK and Epcot.

SDD was deliberately put into g+ to make people get that, no reason for MMRR to be ILL except its new. SDD wait time is almost always higher than MMRR standby.


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## Revan

Does G+ make any sense if you plan to park hop each day from 2-4 pm and are staying offsite?  

I know we will need to see real-time evidence of booking availability, but if most rides are booking into the afternoon by 9 am then I can't see the benefit.  

Also, since you can't book LL in the park you are hopping to until you get there (again, staying offsite), then I can't see any benefit to G+ in the 2nd park either.


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## DisneyFive

My guess is that Disney will stick to two ILL attractions per park. If they do too many ILL’s it defeats the purpose of getting G+.  We will see I guess.

Dan


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## Dis Dragon

Highly doubtful they're selling out of Frozen ILL at this point.  100% they're going to just keep it to 2 - and honestly I wish they would have only done one, that way they can just keep the most recent ride relevant, it was a little cheapek they did 2 in every park.  Everest, Frozen, Space and even somewhat MMRR didn't need it.


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## RollTideinMD

We will be there in 13 days and plan on using Genie+, but not purchasing IA$ - we will rope drop those rides and try for a virtual queue for Remy.


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## Mcert01

Hi!

The WDW sites says the following about purchasing Genie + before your trip: "Before Your Visit: Available as an add-on to a ticket or vacation package for the duration of visit. Purchase via Disneyworld.com or authorized travel professionals." 

So here is my question.  If I book 8 nights, but only 6 days of tickets, do I have to buy 6 o 8 days of Genie +?  I would think 6, but assumptions can be dangerous. Thanks for your help!


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## Donna M

We head down next week. One day in MK and planning to buy Genie+ for the 4 of us.  I want to rope drop and head to Perter Pan and Small World. We´ll a LL at 9:30 ish for Jungle cruise. Then the plan is to get next available near us and do a stand by while we wait for the LL if needed, especially in the afternoon when the stand by lines will bet longer.  I will be watching a lot of YouTube to see what people think who have been there and used it.


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## babydoll65

Mcert01 said:


> Hi!
> 
> The WDW sites says the following about purchasing Genie + before your trip: "Before Your Visit: Available as an add-on to a ticket or vacation package for the duration of visit. Purchase via Disneyworld.com or authorized travel professionals."
> 
> So here is my question.  If I book 8 nights, but only 6 days of tickets, do I have to buy 6 o 8 days of Genie +?  I would think 6, but assumptions can be dangerous. Thanks for your help!


Its based on the length of your tickets, not resort nights


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## staceychev

catnik said:


> Thanks for starting this, DisneyKidds!
> I am headed back the second week in November. Expecting Jersey week and the federal holiday to really pump up the midweek crowds. Gleaning info to create a successful touring plan for our party of 10 is my goal


FYI - Jersey week and Election Day are both the first week in November - this Jersey girl and her family will be there. Hopefully, you'll have a quieter week the following week!


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## catnik

staceychev said:


> FYI - Jersey week and Election Day are both the first week in November - this Jersey girl and her family will be there. Hopefully, you'll have a quieter week the following week!


Thanks for the heads up. Not that we don’t love our Disney friends from NJ, but a less crazy crowd level would be appreciated


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## Delirium

My strategy is to go somewhere else on vacation.  If you accept or try to justify getting robbed once, you will continue to get robbed until you say no more.


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## Mcert01

babydoll65 said:


> Its based on the length of your tickets, not resort nights


Thanks!


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## ChanaC

I'm going for a quick, two day trip in early December. I am a former CM but I haven't been to WDW since 2015 and if there is one "goal" of my trip it's to get on some of the big attractions I've never been on. I'm debating between getting Genie+ but I'm leaning towards getting it for a few reasons:

1. The trip will just be me and my sibling, and we are both adults without children. An extra $30 each isn't too bad in overall for us. We're also staying off-site so I can kind of justify the extra fee because we're saving money on the hotel.

2. Since we are going for such a short time we really do need to maximize our time, so in this particular case G+ is helpful.

3. As of now, it looks like we'll be park hopping both days, doing DAK and MK one day and HS and Epcot the next. Being able to book a LL attraction in transit between the parks will also be helpful. Plus if we are only doing half days we need to maximize our time.

4. There is a lot that is new at DHS*, and if we are park hopping we wouldn't have all day to attempt to get on everything. G+ could make it actually possible to do a lot of stuff before we run out of park time.

I'm still debating whether to pay even more for the IA$ aka fancy rides (thanks Molly at AllEars, I like that name for it!). I've done stuff like Space Mountain, EE, and 7DMT a bunch so I really feel no need to pay extra for it. But one of my top attractions that I really, really want to ride is FoP. Since we are off-site and wouldn't get that extra 30 minute access I have a feeling that by the time we enter DAK that line will already be long. In that case it might be worth to buy a fancy ride LL pass for FoP and rope dropping something else. And since we aren't starting the day at Epcot, I'm not sure we'll be able to get a boarding group for Remy (assuming everything is gone by 2pm, which it probably will be), so buying a fancy ride pass may be the only way to get on it. And with how packed DHS is with our limited time, it might be worth buying a pass for either RotR or MMRR (can't do both if I'm also trying to do Remy on the same day) because waiting for an hour for either just sucks up so much time.

Idk, I'm still waiting to hear some reports from people before locking in an itinerary or plan. I subscribed to Touring Plans which seems a LOT more reliable than Genie and I'm interested to see what their touring suggestions would be with and without buying fancy passes. I would love to know what other people think.

*Although I haven't been to DHS since 2015, I did go to Disneyland in 2020 and already did Galaxy's Edge. It would be nice to get on RotR again since it is really cool, but I wouldn't be too upset if we miss it. I also did Smuggler's Run twice and... eh. I don't particularly need to do that again. But I'm going with a massive Star Wars fan so he might have other plans.


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## LSUfan4444

Jumping in here and out of the other one.

Thanks


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## amylevan

Revan said:


> Does G+ make any sense if you plan to park hop each day from 2-4 pm and are staying offsite?
> 
> I know we will need to see real-time evidence of booking availability, but if most rides are booking into the afternoon by 9 am then I can't see the benefit.
> 
> Also, since you can't book LL in the park you are hopping to until you get there (again, staying offsite), then I can't see any benefit to G+ in the 2nd park either.


You can book for the park you’re hopping to at any point, even first thing, and it will automatically show you availability after 2pm.


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## disneylover102

DizBelle said:


> I can't find anywhere when you can make your second ILL$ purchase.  Can you make your 2 for the day both at 7 am?


Pretty sure you can book both at 7


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## DisneyOma

DisneyFive said:


> I plan to purchase G+ every day (maybe not AK) because our favorite rides, FOP and EE are ILL.  That leaves VERY little reason to purchase G+ there.
> 
> I plan to book my first G+ for, hopefully, about 30 minutes after park opening (this will have a window of 30 minutes to 90 minutes after park open)  That way when rope drop crowds build I have a G+ to use instead.  Then I will book the heck out of my day using as many G+ I can.
> 
> On our arrival day, I will book G+ selections in the park we intent to hop to. That way I can stack a few up.  Yes, we will have to tap into our reserved park first and then immediately hop, but I'm o.k. with that.
> 
> I can't wait for Tron to open in MK because I can't stand the fact that Space is a ILL selection.  I want Space on the G+ list instead.
> 
> Dan



As long as you realize you can only park hop at 2 PM, this seems to be a good strategy.


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## MainMom

ChanaC said:


> I'm going for a quick, two day trip in early December. I am a former CM but I haven't been to WDW since 2015 and if there is one "goal" of my trip it's to get on some of the big attractions I've never been on. I'm debating between getting Genie+ but I'm leaning towards getting it for a few reasons:
> 
> 1. The trip will just be me and my sibling, and we are both adults without children. An extra $30 each isn't too bad in overall for us. We're also staying off-site so I can kind of justify the extra fee because we're saving money on the hotel.
> 
> 2. Since we are going for such a short time we really do need to maximize our time, so in this particular case G+ is helpful.
> 
> 3. As of now, it looks like we'll be park hopping both days, doing DAK and MK one day and HS and Epcot the next. Being able to book a LL attraction in transit between the parks will also be helpful. Plus if we are only doing half days we need to maximize our time.
> 
> 4. There is a lot that is new at DHS*, and if we are park hopping we wouldn't have all day to attempt to get on everything. G+ could make it actually possible to do a lot of stuff before we run out of park time.
> 
> I'm still debating whether to pay even more for the IA$ aka fancy rides (thanks Molly at AllEars, I like that name for it!). I've done stuff like Space Mountain, EE, and 7DMT a bunch so I really feel no need to pay extra for it. But one of my top attractions that I really, really want to ride is FoP. Since we are off-site and wouldn't get that extra 30 minute access I have a feeling that by the time we enter DAK that line will already be long. In that case it might be worth to buy a fancy ride LL pass for FoP and rope dropping something else. And since we aren't starting the day at Epcot, I'm not sure we'll be able to get a boarding group for Remy (assuming everything is gone by 2pm, which it probably will be), so buying a fancy ride pass may be the only way to get on it. And with how packed DHS is with our limited time, it might be worth buying a pass for either RotR or MMRR (can't do both if I'm also trying to do Remy on the same day) because waiting for an hour for either just sucks up so much time.
> 
> Idk, I'm still waiting to hear some reports from people before locking in an itinerary or plan. I subscribed to Touring Plans which seems a LOT more reliable than Genie and I'm interested to see what their touring suggestions would be with and without buying fancy passes. I would love to know what other people think.
> 
> *Although I haven't been to DHS since 2015, I did go to Disneyland in 2020 and already did Galaxy's Edge. It would be nice to get on RotR again since it is really cool, but I wouldn't be too upset if we miss it. I also did Smuggler's Run twice and... eh. I don't particularly need to do that again. But I'm going with a massive Star Wars fan so he might have other plans.


Maybe someone can verify, but I thought they are still doing a second drop of Remy VQ at 1pm? Before Genie I had read that on some days there were still VQ left at 3pm. Maybe that would work for you?


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## Jrb1979

https://allears.net/2021/10/21/how-can-you-stack-multiple-disney-genie-reservations/
Here's a good article on using Genie+. According to them, stacking LL is not recommended. To get the most out of it is take the next one available. IMO it's seems to best to rope drop the top Genie+ ride and use it for other rides the rest of the day.


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## ChanaC

MainMom said:


> Maybe someone can verify, but I thought they are still doing a second drop of Remy VQ at 1pm? Before Genie I had read that on some days there were still VQ left at 3pm. Maybe that would work for you?



I've been keeping an eye on it. Looks like on some days all the VQs are done at 1:01, but on some days they could still be booked later in the day. I guess it depends on how busy the park is. I wonder now how many people will risk getting the VQ and will just get the LL.


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## katyringo

I'm really trying to think through HS day. No hopper.

I think my plan is going to be to buy individual LL for rise and MMRR- aiming for like the 12-2pm slots.  I plan to use my early entry to head toward TT and rocking roller coaster. Im solo
So I can use single rider at RR.  So right now my debate is do I go for SDD as my first genie or smugglers run.  I think if I can get an earlier return time I would go for SDD.. I just don't know.. need to learn more.


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## disneylover102

Jrb1979 said:


> https://allears.net/2021/10/21/how-can-you-stack-multiple-disney-genie-reservations/
> Here's a good article on using Genie+. According to them, stacking LL is not recommended. To get the most out of it is take the next one available. IMO it's seems to best to rope drop the top Genie+ ride and use it for other rides the rest of the day.


That definitely makes sense. I do think if you have a hopper and start at AK, a good strategy could be to start stacking HS passes for rides like SDD and MFSR since FOP seems to be the only one really worth getting at AK and that’s separate. I also think right at 7 AM you can try to get the more popular ones. For example if you’re starting at HS you could get SDD at 7 and then do MFSR first or something like that


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## Donna M

Mcert01 said:


> Hi!
> 
> The WDW sites says the following about purchasing Genie + before your trip: "Before Your Visit: Available as an add-on to a ticket or vacation package for the duration of visit. Purchase via Disneyworld.com or authorized travel professionals."
> 
> So here is my question.  If I book 8 nights, but only 6 days of tickets, do I have to buy 6 o 8 days of Genie +?  I would think 6, but assumptions can be dangerous. Thanks for your help!





babydoll65 said:


> Its based on the length of your tickets, not resort nights



My understanding is that if you buy a package then you buy Genie+for the duration if you want to purchase the Genie+ early.  If you are not on a package then you can buy Genie+ for as few or as many days as you want, but you would have to wait for it each day.


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## jillinastoria

We bought Genie+ for our April trip (8 resort days/6 park days) and can confirm we were only charged for the 6 park days.


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## Rick195275

Debating if we would like to add Genie+ for a few days in Feb. Anybody out there DVC and also an AP with any insight how it works? Mostly wondering if it has to be added for every day of your trip because of annual passes? We would only want it for a couple days. Trying to avoid having to stay up until midnight to buy it day of and then having to wake up early to set our first time and possibly purchase one for rise.


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## LSUfan4444

Jrb1979 said:


> https://allears.net/2021/10/21/how-can-you-stack-multiple-disney-genie-reservations/
> Here's a good article on using Genie+. According to them, stacking LL is not recommended. To get the most out of it is take the next one available*. IMO it's seems to best to rope drop the top Genie+ ride and use it for other rides the rest of the day.*



All depends on what your must do's are. It makes no sense to me to scramble all morning in a park on my phone, draining my battery when I can find standby lines 10 minutes or less pretty easily for the first 30 min - hour. I'd rather book that first one later in the day. 

But again, if you're in the crowd that needs or wants to do everything, early as possible can work but you need to be willing to either go standby longer in the day for a popular ride or not do it at all. Booking one later in the day for a popular ride (like that article mentions) means you can lock in a low wait for one of the parks more popular attractions but maybe you have to wait a couple more minutes (compounded) on each other small attraction through the day or decide to just skip those altogether.

Length of stay.  Arrival time. How late you will be in the park. Hopping or not. Need to do everything or not. Frequent guest. First time.

It all plays in...there is no best strategy. The key is to use it to save the most amount of time waiting. Either waiting in a standby line or just waiting to get in line for an attraction. if you're a family that plans to make time for Baseline taphouse anyway, waiting an hour or so for SDD isn't a change. If you're a family that has kids and needs to stay busy, that won't work very well.


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## teachmedis

We have a 9 night trip with 7 Park days at the end of June booked. 2 days Mk, 2 days has, one day each Epcot and Animal Kingdom. We will probably only use Genie+ at MK, and at that probably only 1 day. We are rope droppers so on a longer trip we have plenty of time to get everything done.


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## Jrb1979

LSUfan4444 said:


> All depends on what your must do's are. It makes no sense to me to scramble all morning in a park on my phone, draining my battery when I can find standby lines 10 minutes or less pretty easily for the first 30 min - hour. I'd rather book that first one later in the day.
> 
> But again, if you're in the crowd that needs or wants to do everything, early as possible can work but you need to be willing to either go standby longer in the day for a popular ride or not do it at all. Booking one later in the day for a popular ride (like that article mentions) means you can lock in a low wait for one of the parks more popular attractions but maybe you have to wait a couple more minutes (compounded) on each other small attraction through the day or decide to just skip those altogether.
> 
> Length of stay.  Arrival time. How late you will be in the park. Hopping or not. Need to do everything or not. Frequent guest. First time.
> 
> It all plays in...there is no best strategy. The key is to use it to save the most amount of time waiting. Either waiting in a standby line or just waiting to get in line for an attraction. if you're a family that plans to make time for Baseline taphouse anyway, waiting an hour or so for SDD isn't a change. If you're a family that has kids and needs to stay busy, that won't work very well.


The only problem with booking something late in the day is you run into the issue a poster on this board had. They booked SDD for later in the day but once the 120 min cool down period ended there was next to nothing left to book. In a case like that it's a waste of $15. 

My plan would be to do SDD during early entry and use my first LL on what is available first thing. Go from there. 

IMO the issue some are having is that they still have the FP+ mindset in that they need to book headliners


----------



## wisblue

Rick195275 said:


> Debating if we would like to add Genie+ for a few days in Feb. Anybody out there DVC and also an AP with any insight how it works? Mostly wondering if it has to be added for every day of your trip because of annual passes? We would only want it for a couple days. Trying to avoid having to stay up until midnight to buy it day of and then having to wake up early to set our first time and possibly purchase one for rise.



I have a DVC AP and, at least for now, the only option is to add Genie+ on each day that you want to use it. Adding it in advance for the whole visit, or for specific days, isn’t an option.

You don’t have to stay up until midnight to buy it because it will not sell out. Just buy it for the day when you wake up so that you’re ready to make a selection at 7 AM if that’s what you want to do.

One thing to keep in mind if anyone in your party does not have an AP. Those people would have to make their Genie+ purchases separately. For example, in my group of 4 I am the only one with an AP. I can buy the AP for myself, and one of the other 3 can purchase for them using her MDE account. Clunky, I know, but that seems to be the way it is because AP park reservations are in a separate pool.

I have been told by a CM in a chat that, once everyone purchases Genie +, the whole group will be treated as one party and can make G+LL reservations together.


----------



## wisblue

Jrb1979 said:


> The only problem with booking something late in the day is you run into the issue a poster on this board had. They booked SDD for later in the day but once the 120 min cool down period ended there was next to nothing left to book. In a case like that it's a waste of $15.
> 
> My plan would be to do SDD during early entry and use my first LL on what is available first thing. Go from there.
> 
> IMO the issue some are having is that they still have the FP+ mindset in that they need to book headliners



It isn’t necessarily a waste depending on your preferences and objectives.

One of my objectives is to stay away from the stampedes to popular attractions, and SDD is one of those. Plus, SDD is one of the only rides at DHS that my wife likes to do so doing it is a priority.

By getting a LL for SDD and an IALL for ROTR we can use EE to start the day at RNRC and TOT where there will likely be less of a crush while my wife goes to Starbucks. After we do those 2 we can go to TSMM, which my wife will also do and which should still have a manageable line.

If we’re lucky enough to get an earlier SDD return time we can do that and be able to select another LL before 11 AM where there still might be something decent available.

By later in the morning I will be focusing on getting LL reservations for later in the afternoon or evening for whatever park we have decided to go to (which could be DHS after a break or something else). We won’t be in one park all day. 

After I see how it works I’ll decide if I think what we got (and what we avoided) was worth $15. We will have gained knowledge and experience for future reference if nothing else.


----------



## MakiraMarlena

It's going to depend on what you want out of the Genie. Quick access to headliners, or fast entry to as many attractions as possible?

I think I may go for as many attractions as possible but I'm not terribly clear on whether to pick the more popular ones immediately or wait for them.


----------



## wisblue

BTW, on the subject of SDD, I logged in right at 7 ET this morning to see  how quickly the return times for SDD would go up. 

Obviously I couldn’t book anything but starting at a 9 AM return after one refresh the return time was 12:15 and after the second it was 2:10. That’s less than 30 seconds after 7 AM. Now an hour later it’s up to 7 PM.

It looks like getting an early LL for SDD is going to require our best ROTR boarding group skills. Even if you push the button that says 9 AM you might get something closer to noon or later.

For anyone who has actually booked anything, when you hit the purchase button does it preselect everyone in your party and you’d have to take someone off if they wanted something else, or do you have to add everyone from a blank slate?


----------



## Ldisneygraham

Jrb1979 said:


> https://allears.net/2021/10/21/how-can-you-stack-multiple-disney-genie-reservations/
> Here's a good article on using Genie+. According to them, stacking LL is not recommended. To get the most out of it is take the next one available. IMO it's seems to best to rope drop the top Genie+ ride and use it for other rides the rest of the day.


Trying to figure this out. So if I wake up at 7 am and the only SDD is for 3pm, and I select that...Do I have to wait until 9:00 am to select another lightning lane for an earlier time? If I wait until 9:00 AM then choose an unpopular 9:30 lightning lane for another attraction, when I have scanned in for that 9:30 attraction, can I then rebook another lightning lane and not wait until the 11:00 two hour window? And then keep rebooking as we scan in?


----------



## ENJDisneyFan

Ldisneygraham said:


> Trying to figure this out. So if I wake up at 7 am and the only SDD is for 3pm, and I select that...Do I have to wait until 9:00 am to select another lightning lane for an earlier time? If I wait until 9:00 AM then choose an unpopular 9:30 lightning lane for another attraction, when I have scanned in for that 9:30 attraction, can I then rebook another lightning lane and not wait until the 11:00 two hour window? And then keep rebooking as we scan in?


In your example you could not choose a second attraction until 11am (assuming a 9am park opening) -- 120 minutes after the park opens.  At 11am you can make your next selection and let's say you get something for 11:30.  As soon as you tap into that attraction at 11:30 you can make another selection.  Essentially the 4 hour window (7am-11am) is your "cool down" period as a tradeoff for having the placeholder LL booked in the afternoon.


----------



## wisblue

MakiraMarlena said:


> It's going to depend on what you want out of the Genie. Quick access to headliners, or fast entry to as many attractions as possible?
> 
> I think I may go for as many attractions as possible but I'm not terribly clear on whether to pick the more popular ones immediately or wait for them.



The challenge at DHS is that most everything is a headliner. Star Tours usually has a manageable wait, and the Alien ride isn’t too bad, but also not a priority.

It might be difficult to get a G+LL for all of the headliners at DHS that offer it unless you plan to be in the park all day, and even then it might be difficult unless you get an earlier LL for SDD.

At MK I can see us getting a couple of headliners early and then using G+ for other attractions like Small World that have a 30 minute wait time but a nearly immediate LL return time. We’ll be adapting in the fly. You can only pre plan so much.


----------



## Dis Dragon

Ldisneygraham said:


> Trying to figure this out. So if I wake up at 7 am and the only SDD is for 3pm, and I select that...Do I have to wait until 9:00 am to select another lightning lane for an earlier time? If I wait until 9:00 AM then choose an unpopular 9:30 lightning lane for another attraction, when I have scanned in for that 9:30 attraction, can I then rebook another lightning lane and not wait until the 11:00 two hour window? And then keep rebooking as we scan in?



If you book SDD at 7am, you won't be able to book your next one until 2 hours after whatever park you have your park pass for opens.  So if if it's 9am - your window won't open again until 11am (4 hours later).  If it's 8am (AK) it would be 10am, etc.


----------



## TheMick424

wisblue said:


> BTW, on the subject of SDD, I logged in right at 7 ET this morning to see  how quickly the return times for SDD would go up.
> 
> Obviously I couldn’t book anything but starting at a 9 AM return after one refresh the return time was 12:15 and after the second it was 2:10. That’s less than 30 seconds after 7 AM. Now an hour later it’s up to 7 PM.
> 
> It looks like getting an early LL for SDD is going to require our best ROTR boarding group skills. Even if you push the button that says 9 AM you might get something closer to noon or later.
> 
> For anyone who has actually booked anything, when you hit the purchase button does it preselect everyone in your party and you’d have to take someone off if they wanted something else, or do you have to add everyone from a blank slate?


I noticed the same about SDD.  Going to monitor until our trip, but this definitely creates some challenges if you want to hit all the headliners without paying for RoTR.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Revan said:


> Also, since you can't book LL in the park you are hopping to until you get there (again, staying offsite), then I can't see any benefit to G+ in the 2nd park either.


I don’t think this statement is accurate.


----------



## Dis Dragon

wisblue said:


> The challenge at DHS is that most everything is a headliner. Star Tours usually has a manageable wait, and the Alien ride isn’t too bad, but also not a priority.
> 
> It might be difficult to get a G+LL for all of the headliners at DHS that offer it unless you plan to be in the park all day, and even then it might be difficult unless you get an earlier LL for SDD.
> 
> At MK I can see us getting a couple of headliners early and then using G+ for other attractions like Small World that have a 30 minute wait time but a nearly immediate LL return time. We’ll be adapting in the fly. You can only pre plan so much.


You're definitely at the mercy of what the park goers are doing that day, it drives me nuts how this works over the previous iteration of line skipping.  The planning is gone and to maximize G+ you have to keep crossing the park all day - not the way we tour the parks.

A mix of low wait headliners and reaching ahead for hopping seems to be the most logical use of G+ right now - as long as they keep allowing the ride stacking for the later park.


----------



## DCJ

Here now messing with Genie + since Tuesday. Booking Genie +  you cannot choose what time you want, it is giving you a time. If it's 8:00am and you want something at 11, you can't pick it if the next available is 9:00. It shows you one time, take it or leave it. Frustrating. Couldn't change park reservations yesterday. Had to go to Guest Relations and have them do it. Called Disney and it was a 2 hour phone wait, tryed chat at about 7am, no reply from them  until about 5pm. Trying to book attractions with other people has been horrible. I was able to cancel other people's park reservations on my friends and family list, but not my own. Saw many meltdowns yesterday. It's obvious Guest Relations has been overwhelmed with this rollout. Saw Chapek said there was so much positive response for this service. Don't know what he's drinking but I'll take some. They said the people who designed this system were roaming the park helping people.. Yeah. Didn't see that. Buying Genie + and Lightning Lane 3 days now is adding up fast. Good news is the merchandise is lame so saving money there. Finding better dining options off property is saving money also. Hopefully they figure this train wreck out sooner than later.
They seem to want to follow Universals lead, they should spend some time over there.
And don't get me started on Boo Bash..


----------



## Dis Dragon

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I don’t think this statement is accurate.



When the window opens at 7am you can book a reservation for a park you're hopping to with return times starting at 2pm or later.  You don't have to be scanned into the park.

The only thing that stinks about this is if you're not planning on immediately hopping you have to basically camp your phone if you want one around 5pm per say until reservations reach that return time.  Huge inconvenience.


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## snikki

Molly from allears did every attraction at DHS via LL. She did not book SDD first. She had a theory and went with it and it worked out well. She posted it on her IG story. @*allearsnet* is the handle


----------



## LSUfan4444

Jrb1979 said:


> The only problem with booking something late in the day is you run into the issue a poster on this board had. They booked SDD for later in the day but once the 120 min cool down period ended there was next to nothing left to book.* In a case like that it's a waste of $15.*



In every park since since the launch there have been attractions available to book on G+ throughout the day. Yes, some have sold out but at 11, 1 and 3 pm, every day in every park there has been availability.


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## Dis Dragon

I've been keeping data sets of when things were booking out - if they were able to get a SDD reservation (gone around noon) they would still be able to get a Millenium Falcon (the next burnt out FP, which gone around 2-3pm) - everything else would still have a ton of availability.

There are the straggler ones that people cancel and others can pick up later in the day, so maybe that's what happened?


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## MakiraMarlena

not sure how that happened when the only thing to sell out in the past few days was Slinky Dog and occasionally Millennium Falcon (but not 2 hours after opening). My guess is that they were just getting times they didn't want.


----------



## LSUfan4444

Dis Dragon said:


> When the window opens at 7am you can book a reservation for a park you're hopping to with return times starting at 2pm or later.  You don't have to be scanned into the park.
> 
> *The only thing that stinks about this is if you're not planning on immediately hopping you have to basically camp your phone if you want one around 5pm per say until reservations reach that return time.  Huge inconvenience.
> *




Exactly and why I think using that later day G+ makes sense most when hopping. You're paying for the convenience of not having to refresh and think about it all day. If you pair your G+ with one or two ILLs and possible stack another one in your second park and just focus your morning on standby and leave your phone in your pocket/purse/backpack, there is definitely value in that.

Most of the people who are used to hopping and making their FP+ for later in the day pretty much did the same thing....rope dropped and rode all they could while the waits were low and when it got to a point where there was nothing they were willing to wait for, they left knowing their FP+ was waiting or them. You can use G+ and ILLs in a similar fashion.


----------



## Rick195275

wisblue said:


> I have a DVC AP and, at least for now, the only option is to add Genie+ on each day that you want to use it. Adding it in advance for the whole visit, or for specific days, isn’t an option.
> 
> You don’t have to stay up until midnight to buy it because it will not sell out. Just buy it for the day when you wake up so that you’re ready to make a selection at 7 AM if that’s what you want to do.
> 
> One thing to keep in mind if anyone in your party does not have an AP. Those people would have to make their Genie+ purchases separately. For example, in my group of 4 I am the only one with an AP. I can buy the AP for myself, and one of the other 3 can purchase for them using her MDE account. Clunky, I know, but that seems to be the way it is because AP park reservations are in a separate pool.
> 
> I have been told by a CM in a chat that, once everyone purchases Genie +, the whole group will be treated as one party and can make G+LL reservations together.


Hmmm this is pretty off putting to me. Me and my daughter both have APs but will be traveling with a group that will have regular tickets and had intended to leave the planning on things like this to me. It seems like that’s now impossible?? I was on the fence about getting it at all but this seems to be pushing me away. Not going until February so maybe they will iron some things out by then but that makes no sense to me to treat 2 groups of resort guests differently. I can’t same I’m surprised though… as far as I know APs still have issues booking park reservations as a resort guest when the AP pool is full.


----------



## Kazi7

kilik64 said:


> SDD was deliberately put into g+ to make people get that, no reason for MMRR to be ILL except its new. SDD wait time is almost always higher than MMRR standby.



This makes a lot of sense to me.  It seems like park hopping with your stacked LL passes for HS will become a thing, at least among people in the know.  It works for me because we much prefer Slinky in the dark, otherwise we just skip it.  Standby line at park close always seems to be at least 45 min.   Going to be interesting to see how long the RnRC, ToT, MFSR will last into the day.  If I could get 4-5 LL passes in the afternoon-evening for HS, I'd probably pay the $15.


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## snikki

I would rather do 3-4 headliners in the PM saving myself 180 minutes vs 8 regular rides saving myself 80-120 minutes.

There’s no right or wrong way to do it. Everyone will do what’s best for their touring style.

98% of Disney park goers aren’t on these sites trying to figure out the best strategy. They’ll get G+ and book them starting around 9-10 am,  5-6 a day and be happy with it.


----------



## rmclain73

So here is a what if situation building on the hopper stacking strategy.  

Say you load your hopper park into the My Day section of the MDX app and begin scheduling LL's as its discussed now at 7:00am.  You are set and now have 3 attractions booked (2 IIALL and 1 LL) for after 2:00pm.  Would it then be possible to go in and change your park reservation for the day and make the park you were going to hop to your new park reservation if its available?  Would the system let you do this?  Would they then cancel out your booked selections for later in the day?  If this were to work you could then go back to bed and have a nice relaxing morning.  Maybe get some pool time in and do the park later in the day.


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## LSUfan4444

8:45 am, Fri Oct 22, TP crowd level 4, 
 SDD G+ return time at 7:35 pm, Smugglers Run 3:05 pm, RNR 11:25 am, ToT 11:10, TSMM, 11am Star Tours 9:50


----------



## LSUfan4444

snikki said:


> I would rather do 3-4 headliners in the PM saving myself 180 minutes vs 8 regular rides saving myself 80-120 minutes.
> 
> There’s no right or wrong way to do it. Everyone will do what’s best for their touring style.



I would even say I would rather wait in six 20 minutes lines than one 60 minute line.


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## LSUfan4444

8:50 am, Fri Oct 22, TP crowd level 4,
G+ return times: BTMR 12 pm, Haunted Mansion 11:05, Jungle Cruise 11:50, Pooh 10am, Peter Pan 12:20, Pirates 10:25, Splash 10:55, Speedway 9:45 am


----------



## LSUfan4444

rmclain73 said:


> Would it then be possible to go in and change your park reservation for the day and make the park you were going to hop to your new park reservation if its available?  Would the system let you do this?  Would they then cancel out your booked selections for later in the day?  If this were to work you could then go back to bed and have a nice relaxing morning.  Maybe get some pool time in and do the park later in the day.


I havent seen it tested but theoretically, yes...based on park availability.


----------



## rmclain73

snikki said:


> I would rather do 3-4 headliners in the PM saving myself 180 minutes vs 8 regular rides saving myself 80-120 minutes.
> 
> There’s no right or wrong way to do it. Everyone will do what’s best for their touring style.
> 
> 98% of Disney park goers aren’t on these sites trying to figure out the best strategy. They’ll get G+ and book them starting around 9-10 am,  5-6 a day and be happy with it.




THIS EXACTLY!

Everyone has such a different style when at the parks.  Some prefer to have a slower start and go in late, while others like first thing. 

I think we sometimes forget that such a small percentage of Disney travelers come on this board or even know if its existence.  Being in the parks last week it is so very clear that most people are figuring things out as they go, and are still having a great time.  They don't know what they don't know.  Also, a good portion of the people may not even be aware of Genie+ and or may not be able to pay for it.  I think the percentage of people really taking advantage of any type of stacking benefit is very low in the scope of things.


----------



## LSUfan4444

8:55 am, Fri Oct 22, TP crowd level 1
G+ return times: Test Track 1:55 pm, Soarin 11:35 am - there is nothing else significant here in regards to wait times. Everything else is within the first hour


----------



## LSUfan4444

9 am, Fri Oct 22, TP crowd level 1
Safari 11:10 am - thats it...everything else has availability within the hour


----------



## Jrb1979

To each their own but I don't see value in Genie+ in using like FP+ and using it for 3 rides. If it was free I would be all for it. Since I am paying for it, I want to use for 6 to 7 rides a day.


----------



## wisblue

teachmedis said:


> We have a 9 night trip with 7 Park days at the end of June booked. 2 days Mk, 2 days has, one day each Epcot and Animal Kingdom. We will probably only use Genie+ at MK, and at that probably only 1 day. We are rope droppers so on a longer trip we have plenty of time to get everything done.



I think  this makes sense for a longer trip if you’re like us. We are not power repeat riders and almost never do the same attraction twice in one day. We’re satisfied if we do each of our favorites once in a trip, and will do them a second time on a different day if we can. But if we’re going to be there for more than 4 days we like to have some relaxing time outside the parks too, especially if it’s very hot, which it will undoubtedly be in June.


----------



## leeniewdw

LSUfan4444 said:


> All depends on what your must do's are. It makes no sense to me to scramble all morning in a park on my phone, draining my battery when I can find standby lines 10 minutes or less pretty easily for the first 30 min - hour. I'd rather book that first one later in the day.



I agree here.   The challenge I'm facing is that we're going to be traveling with our 20-something kids/SOs and I have no clue how game they'll be for using this approach.  Because if the decide to bail on getting up/out/in park early, then they may be waiting a long time for rides when they arrive in park.   I guess it's still a better strategy to book later because that way whomever is in park early can go about their RD rides and there's no risk in booking a headliner return time the others will miss and get locked out of another LL for it.

FP+ was at least easier on the group planning because you can target the times/rides in advance and get some buy in.   If this was just us 2, the whole thing would be so much easier to navigate, lol.


----------



## js

catnik said:


> Thanks for starting this, DisneyKidds!
> I am headed back the second week in November. Expecting Jersey week and the federal holiday to really pump up the midweek crowds. Gleaning info to create a successful touring plan for our party of 10 is my goal



See you on Main Street! We head out November 11-20! Cannot wait and will start packing tomorrow!


----------



## LSUfan4444

Jrb1979 said:


> To each their own but I don't see value in Genie+ in using like FP+ and using it for 3 rides. If it was free I would be all for it. Since I am paying for it, I want to use for 6 to 7 rides a day.


On what 6 or 7 attractions? Look at the return windows right now on an overall crowd level of 3. You're still waiting with G+. The attractions that have a short return windows right now under like 25 minutes. Eventually, using it all morning will cause you to hit a snag and you'll have to wait hours for that headliner. You can't G+ your way out of that. It's inevitable.


----------



## Dis Dragon

LSUfan4444 said:


> 9 am, Fri Oct 22, TP crowd level 1
> Safari 11:10 am - thats it...everything else has availability within the hour


It's not even worth having the conversation about G+ value at Epcot or AK, because it isn't there.  Hopping to HS is the only value that could be taken from these parks.  And even at that, the late second pull time at Epcot takes away from that.


----------



## jo-jo

This may like a really dumb question......but do you have to do all this on your phone?   In the past with FP, my DD from her home would get into my account and book rolling fast passes.    Is there any online way of using Genie plus?

I have an AP, it there a way to practice before getting there?  Maybe with DD sitting next to me, she can walk me through it.


----------



## LSUfan4444

Dis Dragon said:


> It's not even worth having the conversation about G+ value at Epcot or AK, because it isn't there.  Hopping to HS is the only value that could be taken from these parks.


I think there is value to be found in rope dropping from HS to Epcot if you can snag a 2pm test track. Using the 120 rule you can grab a Soarin as well at like 1pm and potentially walk in with a G+ for Soarin and Test Track and ILLs for FEA, Remy or both and just use standby for everything else. You'll also have the 11am window to book something in HS.

I wouldnt use it at Epcot if I was starting my day there but hopping to, maybe.

AK, no way right now but I need to see what happens to the waits once Everest goes down in January (when our trip is)


----------



## LSUfan4444

jo-jo said:


> do you have to do all this on your phone?


Unfortunately, yes.



jo-jo said:


> I have an AP, it there a way to practice before getting there? Maybe with DD sitting next to me, she can walk me through it.


Yep..make a park reservation (for any park) on a day you know you two will be together and you can basically see the entire system.

You can even see how it works without a park reservation in the app as well but having that park reservation will give you a slightly different look on how to actually buy the genie plus


----------



## snikki

jo-jo said:


> This may like a really dumb question......but do you have to do all this on your phone?   In the past with FP, my DD from her home would get into my account and book rolling fast passes.    Is there any online way of using Genie plus?
> 
> I have an AP, it there a way to practice before getting there?  Maybe with DD sitting next to me, she can walk me through it.



It is app only.


----------



## ZeeWP

I'm starting to worry that G+ may not be worth it on busy days just because all the good rides may be done by mid-day, allowing you to only get one or two real time savers. I think aside from ILL$, If I can't get 2 good and one decent G+ LLs, then I don't think it will be worth the money.

I'll just have to be patient and see what happens during Tgiving and Christmas.


----------



## jo-jo

LSUfan4444 said:


> Unfortunately, yes.
> 
> 
> Yep..make a park reservation (for any park) on a day you know you two will be together and you can basically see the entire system.
> 
> You can even see how it works without a park reservation in the app as well but having that park reservation will give you a slightly different look on how to actually buy the genie plus



thank you.    I feel stressed having to learn something else for a vacation.    I know I don't have to use and just do standby lanes.   But with my DH using a scooter for the first time, part of me is wanting to use it just for the shorter distances that he would have to drive inside rides.   I'm talking about you Little Mermaid.


----------



## Jrb1979

MMRR up $2 today to $10
Avatar up $3 to $14
Frozen and Remy each up $2 to $11
7DMT up $2 to $12
SM up $2 to $9

They weren't lying when they said prices will change. 



LSUfan4444 said:


> On what 6 or 7 attractions? Look at the return windows right now on an overall crowd level of 3. You're still waiting with G+. The attractions that have a short return windows right now under like 25 minutes. Eventually, using it all morning will cause you to hit a snag and you'll have to wait hours for that headliner. You can't G+ your way out of that. It's inevitable.


You aren't waiting in line so it's a big savings. Why use G+ for a headliner. Why not do it during early entry? Here is my plan. At 7am I book my first LL for Test Track for park open. Then at early entry ride Soarin. With that both headliners age done and use G+ for everything else that day. That plan can be used at every park. 

With the way return times are going G+ will not be worth it if you aren't rope droppers.


----------



## snikki

ROTR sold out at 9:01 am today. Apparently no 9 am refresh.


----------



## leeniewdw

Does anyone have thoughts about which parks to "pair" when park hopping and using G+?    We have 3 days (really 2 ½), so we definitely have to hop.   But I can't get a feel for what makes sense.

Also -- I just switched one of our park reservations in MDE and noticed for our 3 days in Feb, they actually have park hours listed in the park reservation part.  But if you go to the "regular" park hours menu choice, they end on 12/31.   Obviously things are all subject to change, but I noticed these hours in the reservation area are longer than what TP predicts.


----------



## Jrb1979

snikki said:


> ROTR sold out at 9:01 am today. Apparently no 9 am refresh.


I'm expecting a price increase very soon. They already have increased prices on some other rides already


----------



## hdrolfe

I am going next week, we won't get to Epcot until at least 4 since we are only landing in early afternoon. I don't plan to get anything for Epcot, not that I could since we'll be travelling and it doesn't seem to work from Canada. I'm not too worried, wait times seem ok and we can always single rider TT. Then we have HS, MK, AK, and I might do the ILL$ for one or two rides at those parks but don't see the value to Genie+. I am hoping we'll be able to use the 30 minutes early entry to ride Slinky, 7Dwarves & FOP, so I don't have to pay for any of those. Then we go back to HS & MK, and I will get Genie+ for those depending on how our first days there go. I do not have park hoppers this trip. I am hoping I don't need to pay for the + but expect to pay at least once for RotR, FOP, 7DMT and possibly Space (kiddo's favourite ride). 

Any way! that's the plan... but I'll continue watching here and the wait times according to Disney and Touring Plans for a couple more days... we arrive Monday.


----------



## hdrolfe

Jrb1979 said:


> I'm expecting a price increase very soon. They already have increased prices on some other rides already



Where can I see the prices? I'm trying to figure out how much they will cost when we are there and didn't know any have changed yet. I'm in Canada so the app doesn't seem to give me all the options yet.


----------



## rmclain73

I think it is becoming very clear that Genie+ will only be one tool to help get though lines the quickest.  You cannot rely only on Genie+ to shorten your time waiting each day.  Early park hours and rope drop are still very important.  Your best bet seems to get there early and just wait standby while picking up the occasional LL and buying the IALL for park headliners.


----------



## LSUfan4444

rmclain73 said:


> I think it is becoming very clear that Genie+ will only be one tool to help get though lines the quickest. You cannot rely only on Genie+ to shorten your time waiting each day.



100% agree. There's no way to G+ your way out of waiting. It comes down to how to use standby to determine how, where, how long you wait and what you do while you're waiting,


----------



## LSUfan4444

Jrb1979 said:


> Why not do it during early entry?




This works IF you're truly at the front of the RD crowd and to do so, you must be a resort guest to take advantage of early entry. And while that isnt a bad strategy, you're still waiting except now, you're waiting to get in the park. Not that your strategy is a bad one but what I am saying is, you can arrive when the park opens for resort guests and not HAVE to worry about being one of the first couple hundred at an attraction.


----------



## TinkSassy

I need a ROTR and Slinky Dog strategy.  I'm off site in 2 weeks - I have one day that someone is joining me and we are trying to do HS in the morning with a hop to Epcot.  With off site I've figured out G+ is useless to me in the morning as the times are gone before I'm even given access (and I don't see that changing).  Does anyone see a strategy to get a line pass for either of these 2?  Any tips on being off site and getting a shorter wait for ROTR or Slinky?  

We are rope dropping (but as day guests).  Can I say I really wish not all parks were open 30 minutes early to resort guests EVERY day?


----------



## Wood Nymph

LSUfan4444 said:


> 8:45 am, Fri Oct 22, TP crowd level 4,
> SDD G+ return time at 7:35 pm, Smugglers Run 3:05 pm, RNR 11:25 am, ToT 11:10, TSMM, 11am Star Tours 9:50


This is exactly why I don't think Genie+ will work for us on our HS day. We usually just stay at HS for a few hours in the morning, go back to the resort (Beach Club) to swim, and then go into Epcot for dinner. We want to do Smuggler's Run and SDD but don't want to hang around for a late LL. Right now I am planning to buy ILL$ for RotR and MMRR and rope drop the other rides we want to do.


----------



## snikki

Jrb1979 said:


> MMRR up $2 today to $10
> Avatar up $3 to $14
> Frozen and Remy each up $2 to $11
> 7DMT up $2 to $12
> SM up $2 to $9
> 
> They weren't lying when they said prices will change.
> 
> 
> You aren't waiting in line so it's a big savings. Why use G+ for a headliner. Why not do it during early entry? Here is my plan. At 7am I book my first LL for Test Track for park open. Then at early entry ride Soarin. With that both headliners age done and use G+ for everything else that day. That plan can be used at every park.
> 
> With the way return times are going G+ will not be worth it if you aren't rope droppers.



I will not do a headliner at EE. Even when we did RD we would always go the opposite way. The crush of people, the pushing, people running over each other, etc. No thanks. That isn’t fun for us. My daughter isn’t the biggest morning person but she becomes one at WDW. Starting a morning like that would throw her whole day off. It’s not worth the stress for us. We will pay for G+ and ILL for some attractions.


----------



## Disturbia

So with stacking evening Genie+, I could be doing that at say 12 pm and 2 pm from the flight for 5-6 Test track, 6-7 Soarin pm on my travel day.  Buy Remy and Frozen stacked (at 7 am) and sit down dinner.

I don‘t have to be scanned in to the park to book the second Genie+?

Could I also book another at 4 pm for 7-8?


----------



## LSUfan4444

TinkSassy said:


> I need a ROTR and Slinky Dog strategy.  I'm off site in 2 weeks - I have one day that someone is joining me and we are trying to do HS in the morning with a hop to Epcot.  With off site I've figured out G+ is useless to me in the morning as the times are gone before I'm even given access (and I don't see that changing).  Does anyone see a strategy to get a line pass for either of these 2?  Any tips on being off site and getting a shorter wait for ROTR or Slinky?
> 
> We are rope dropping (but as day guests).  Can I say I really wish not all parks were open 30 minutes early to resort guests EVERY day?


Even off site guests can book G+ attractions beginning at 7 am. Be on the app exactly at 7 am and you should be good to go to book that. You'll have to wait until 9 am to buy Rise and you need to be quick but it's doable


----------



## LSUfan4444

Wood Nymph said:


> This is exactly why I don't think Genie+ will work for us on our HS day. We usually just stay at HS for a few hours in the morning, go back to the resort (Beach Club) to swim, and then go into Epcot for dinner.


We do the same (boardwalk) and on our rope drop HS day, we will book our G+ likely in Epcot. MAYBE grab an 11 am G+ for somewhere in HS and if we have to wait use that as our Baseline Taphouse time...which is something we do anyway


----------



## emilymad

Wood Nymph said:


> This is exactly why I don't think Genie+ will work for us on our HS day. We usually just stay at HS for a few hours in the morning, go back to the resort (Beach Club) to swim, and then go into Epcot for dinner. We want to do Smuggler's Run and SDD but don't want to hang around for a late LL. Right now I am planning to buy ILL$ for RotR and MMRR and rope drop the other rides we want to do.



Same here.  I had been planning on buying it for HS but I don't want a LL in the evenings.  Or if I do, I need now need to replan my ADRs when there is very limited availability.  We arrive right after Thanksgiving.  I am very interested to see how this will work when there are large crowds.  Will Disney make more LL slots available?


----------



## DisneyKidds

Jrb1979 said:


> To each their own but I don't see value in Genie+ in using like FP+ and using it for 3 rides. If it was free I would be all for it. Since I am paying for it, I want to use for 6 to 7 rides a day.


I’d be more concerned with productivity in the parks and time saved than sheer number of LL rides.  If you did AK in the am (dud for G+, I’d only maybe do FoP ILL$ there) and then stacked TT and Soarin (and maybe more) in Epcot…that would be pretty good.  You’d probably be able to book more in park when you started using.  So you’d probably still end up with 4 or 5, but those 4 or 5 make the hop worthwhile.  You have rides waiting for you at a considerable time savings.  What’s the alternative?  Show up at Epcot with loooong lines for TT, Mission, Soarin, others, and have a bad evening of nothing but lines?  This alternative would also be better than FP+ was, because you could stack TT and Soarin.  Couldn’t do that with FP+.  Unfortunately, being able to do that adds $80 to our day….


----------



## Jrb1979

LSUfan4444 said:


> This works IF you're truly at the front of the RD crowd and to do so, you must be a resort guest to take advantage of early entry. And while that isnt a bad strategy, you're still waiting except now, you're waiting to get in the park. Not that your strategy is a bad one but what I am saying is, you can arrive when the park opens for resort guests and not HAVE to worry about being one of the first couple hundred at an attraction.


Go for early entry and knock off the headliner that gets booked quick and use your first LL for the other headliner. Then you should be able to quite a few LL in 1 day. I don't expect to use G+ for everything but I do expect to get 6 to 7 LL in a day to get my moneys worth. 

For me I would never use it like FP+ and be happy with 2 to 3 headliners.


----------



## AnnabelleTheTalkingTree

LSUfan4444 said:


> Even off site guests can book G+ attractions beginning at 7 am. Be on the app exactly at 7 am and you should be good to go to book that. You'll have to wait until 9 am to buy Rise and you need to be quick but it's doable



I thought the ONE perk of staying onsite was supposed to be that only on-site could book at 7am?


----------



## Jrb1979

AnnabelleTheTalkingTree said:


> I thought the ONE perk of staying onsite was supposed to be that only on-site could book at 7am?


That's only for the paid LL


----------



## elmwyn

Someone mentioned group numbers on the first page but if people could also include group composition (young, old, mobility etc.) when posting their successes/failures it would also be very helpful. A lot of the bloggers/vloggers are constantly crisscrossing parks to get the most out of the system but also not very practical advice for a lot of people.


----------



## DisneyFive

wisblue said:


> BTW, on the subject of SDD, I logged in right at 7 ET this morning to see  how quickly the return times for SDD would go up.
> 
> Obviously I couldn’t book anything but starting at a 9 AM return after one refresh the return time was 12:15 and after the second it was 2:10. That’s less than 30 seconds after 7 AM. Now an hour later it’s up to 7 PM.
> 
> It looks like getting an early LL for SDD is going to require our best ROTR boarding group skills. Even if you push the button that says 9 AM you might get something closer to noon or later.
> 
> For anyone who has actually booked anything, when you hit the purchase button does it preselect everyone in your party and you’d have to take someone off if they wanted something else, or do you have to add everyone from a blank slate?



Personally I would not book that late of a SDD but rather do it standby with Early Entry (assuming you are onsite).  Do we have reports of how many headliners can be accomplished at HS during the new EE?  The problem with booking a G+ that far out in the day (in your reserved park) is that you are then locked out of the first 120 minutes in the park to book multiple G+ attractions if that is your desire.  The other option is to book your first G+ soon after park open and keep booking more G+'s as soon as you tap into your current G+ selection.  For instance, on average, refreshing I can get RnRC and ToT G+'s about 60 - 90 minute from the current time.  Star tours even sooner.

This is especially important at MK.  I am one of those that will gladly book a G+ for Buzz, Small World, etc... to basically immediately walk onto the ride.  For instance, Buzz may have a standby wait of 20-30 minutes later in the morning.  G+ appears to be acting a lot like FP+ did in this case, where I can find a G+ within 10 minutes of current time.  I immediately book Buzz, and considering the 5 minute early grace period, by the time I walk over to Buzz I can immediately get into the LL.  Same goes for attractions like Small World, Ariel, etc...  After I knock out 3-4 attractions like that (every little bit of time saved helps), THEN I'll look for something like BTMRR, SPLASH, Pirates etc that will most likely be 1-2 hours out for the next G+.

Having said that, if you have park hoppers, I do think the stacking strategy had merit too (Book multiple G+ for the park you are hopping to).  This allows for standby in the morning for one or two headliners with low waits at your reserved park with a number of G+ waiting for you at your "hopped to" park.

Dan


----------



## Disturbia

Touringpalns did a comparison yesterday and they mentioned if you weren’t in first wave of rope drop crowds (first 5-10 mins; they had people at front of enterance, at 5 mins and at 10 mins spaced out), your wait time is the same as someone arriving 30 mins after park opening.

We always avoid the rope drop so Genie+ works better for us


----------



## ENJDisneyFan

DisneyFive said:


> The problem with booking a G+ that far out in the day (in your reserved park) is that you are then locked into trying to find additional G+ at only 120 minute intervals.


What do you mean?  If at 7am you book SDD for late in the afternoon, you are locked out from booking another pass until 2 hours after park opening.  But let's say you book your second at 11am for 11:30am, as soon as you tap in at 11:30 you can make your next selection.   You don't have to wait 120 minute intervals from that point on.


----------



## DisneyFive

ENJDisneyFan said:


> What do you mean?  If at 7am you book SDD for late in the afternoon, you are locked out from booking another pass until 2 hours after park opening.  But let's say you book your second at 11am for 11:30am, as soon as you tap in at 11:30 you can make your next selection.   You don't have to wait 120 minute intervals from that point on.


Oh yeah, you are correct.  Sorry, it's just that first 120 minutes after park open that you are locked out of.  I'll go edit my post.  

Dan


----------



## PaladinButters

Disturbia said:


> Touringpalns did a comparison yesterday and they mentioned if you weren’t in first wave of rope drop crowds (first 5-10 mins; they had people at front of enterance, at 5 mins and at 10 mins spaced out), your wait time is the same as someone arriving 30 mins after park opening.



Do we know what difference there is between rope drop open and rope drop early entry for that?


----------



## Disturbia

PaladinButters said:


> Do we know what difference there is between rope drop open and rope drop early entry for that?


I think they didn’t do that comparison because either you are a resort guest or not.  So if you are a resort guest the same logic would apply, if arriving a few mins after 8:30 am, you would have higher waits than someone upfront


----------



## Disturbia

Resort guests are 1/3 of the crowds?

https://www.disboards.com/threads/w...me-parks-who-are-staying-on-property.3396585/


----------



## DisneyFive

Disturbia said:


> I think they didn’t do that comparison because either you are a resort guest or not.  So if you are a resort guest the same logic would apply, if arriving a few mins after 8:30 am, you would have higher waits than someone upfront


Perhaps, but the overall level of guests gets thinned out throughout the park since there are less guests in the first 30 minutes.  I would love for them to do a report of what headliners can be accomplished in that first 30 minutes and if it's worth it.

That was our problem with they way they opened the parks later this summer.  EVERYONE was allowed in 1 hour prior and the crowds just built and built until they would officially open the park (HS was 30 minutes before official open, MK right at the posted time, etc...)  So if you weren't in the very tippy top front of the crowd it wasn't worth it.  You could get ONE headliner with low wait.  By the time you got off that attraction, the queues for the headliners were already crushed.  I'm hoping EE really helps in this regard, but we are onsite guests.

Dan


----------



## JStu

dinsdalep said:


> I will be visiting in mid-February (family of four) for a week, with 6 full park days.
> 
> For Magic Kingdom, we will have two early entry mornings and one extra magic evening, which should be enough to accomplish everything without using Genie+ at all.
> 
> For Epcot, we have two full days which should also be sufficient.
> 
> Animal Kingdom has few enough rides (Everest will be down during our visit) that we can probably get it done in well under a day without paying extra, although if we did it would be ILL for FOP to save time standing in line.
> 
> That leaves the Studios, which is the most likely day for us to use G+. I think it's absolutely worth $15 to fit in SDD, Smuggler's Run, Midway Mania, ToT, RnRC, and Star Tours with minimal waits, leaving time to enjoy shows and dining. RotR and MMRR can be done either at rope drop or park close, or ILL if we want to re-ride either one.
> 
> So we're looking at spending in the range of $60-$140 total, or about $10-20 per day, which is not a horrible deal to improve a week for four people. It should help that it's a slower time of year.


we are in the exact same boat.  8 days early feb.  we are thinking of possibly buying FoP for our AK day, as the rest are easy enough to do standby with rope drop.  The only thought is do you get G+ for the afternoon park, and try and stack 2-3-4 rides so you can have an eventful afternoon as well?


----------



## Disturbia

Wait times are crazy at 10:45 am ESt; (you go to the tear drop on the bottom of the app and then click show list top right just as you did in the old app to see this)


----------



## Jrb1979

Disturbia said:


> Wait times are crazy at 10:45 am ESt; (you go to the tear drop on the bottom of the app and then click show list top right just as you did in the old app to see this)
> 
> View attachment 615405


Seeing that makes me think the plan of doing standby in the morning and booking afternoon LL is not going to get you far.


----------



## katyringo

Today is really our first look at a busy day and probably another reason for having a good idea of what crowds will be like on your trip.

I'm rethinking my HS strategy.  I think it's kinda like rope drop.Everyone goes to slinky dog. The same will be for Genie+- everyone will book slinky first.  I think I may not. My new strategy may be:

7am: indivual lightning lane for MMRR and Rise for 12-2pm time. Use early entry for TT and rocking roller coaster. Make first LL for smugglers- thus hopefully giving me an earlier return time. Use that first genie+ and be able to book another. That would allow me to use genie+ still for TT and RR. May suck it up for standby at SDD or wait for evening.


----------



## LSUfan4444

Jrb1979 said:


> Seeing that makes me think the plan of doing standby in the morning and booking afternoon LL is not going to get you far.


Look at the G+ return times for those attractions. On a day like this, it makes alot of sense to book that first G+ for after 11 am then you book your second at 11am (right now, you're seeing return times of after 2pm) for alot of those rides. Then at 2pm, you book another one for the evening.


----------



## jimmymc

My next trip probably isn't until April, but from what I've seen, I will almost definitely purchase G+ on my Magic Kingdom day, and I'm still debating it for Studios and Animal Kingdom. 

MK has so many attractions that I think it's a no-brainer. I can ropedrop 7 Dwarfs and just wait out Space Mountain, and from the early reviews I've seen people able to LL almost every attraction without a wait.

At studios, both Smuggler's run and Rock n Roller Coaster have single rider lines, so the only rides covered with longer lines are Slinky Dog, TS Mania, and Tower of Terror. Not sure if it's worth it for what is ultimately 3 attractions. Now that Rise doesn't use boarding groups, I think a single ride pass is a good investment, meaning the only long line I would have to wait in 

At Animal Kingdom, I'm leaning towards just getting a FoP individual pass rather than G+. Everest has a single rider line, I usually do the Safari first when it has no wait, and if I have to wait for Dinosaur that is OK, most of the queue has AC.

Epcot doesn't have enough attractions to bother. Might get a single use pass for Frozen, Test Track has single rider, Remi still uses reservations, and Soarin has an indoor queue that gets short later in the day.


----------



## yorkieteacher

We are going early spring 2022- our strategy- 
Watch the wait times and ILLS sellouts and what regular Genie+ rides have late return times. So far-
Epcot- Do not buy Genie Plus- early resort entry for Frozen, ILL for Rat mid afternoon, and then watch wait times for other things.
AK- Do not buy Genie+- early resort entry Navi followed by Safari  and Everest ( rarely has long waits in the morning) Buy ILL for FOP mid afternoon,watch wait times for others.
MK. Buy Genie+ and ILL for Mine Train for late afternoon, Genie+ first sign up for Jungle Cruise, resort early entry Peter Pan and Buzz, watch wait times for others and add Genie+ Rides as we go along.
HS- Buy Genie+ only. Early resort entry Runaway Railway. first Genie+ sign up for Slinky. Watch wait times for others, add Genie plus rides as needed. We have risen ROTR twice before, and don’t consider it worth $15 a piece to ride it again!
Anyway, that’s our current strategy. I’m keeping my Touring Plans Subscription because i
Believe the personalized plans I make on their site have always worked out great for us!


----------



## LSUfan4444

Disturbia said:


> Wait times are crazy at 10:45 am ESt; (you go to the tear drop on the bottom of the app and then click show list top right just as you did in the old app to see this)
> 
> View attachment 615405



SDD return time right now: 6:05 PM
Smuggler Run: 5:30 pm
TSMM: 1:40 pm
Peter Pa;: 2:10 pm


----------



## jimmymc

katyringo said:


> Today is really our first look at a busy day and probably another reason for having a good idea of what crowds will be like on your trip.
> 
> I'm rethinking my HS strategy.  I think it's kinda like rope drop.Everyone goes to slinky dog. The same will be for Genie+- everyone will book slinky first.  I think I may not. My new strategy may be:
> 
> 7am: indivual lightning lane for MMRR and Rise for 12-2pm time. Use early entry for TT and rocking roller coaster. Make first LL for smugglers- thus hopefully giving me an earlier return time. Use that first genie+ and be able to book another. That would allow me to use genie+ still for TT and RR. May suck it up for standby at SDD or wait for evening.



I think I would still flip SDD and Smuggler's run. Slinky tends to have longer standby lines and the queue is totally outdoors, while Smugglers takes a while to build up it's line in the morning and has a very fast single rider line.


----------



## katyringo

jimmymc said:


> I think I would still flip SDD and Smuggler's run. Slinky tends to have longer standby lines and the queue is totally outdoors, while Smugglers takes a while to build up it's line in the morning and has a very fast single rider line.



ooooooo you are correct. I forget that since this is my first solo trip that I can use SR...


----------



## jimmymc

katyringo said:


> ooooooo you are correct. I forget that since this is my first solo trip that I can use SR...



Definitely use it! I got on with zero wait while the standby line was at 60 minutes.


----------



## acebatonfan

I'm going in December with one other adult for 8 days. We just made the purchase for Genie+, so my pockets are grumbling a bit with all the issues going on. December should be a lower-crowd time, but looking at the MK waits at the moment I'm seeing things like 80 minutes for PeterPan, 70 minutes for POTC, and even 35 minutes for the magic carpets. Is Disney inflating the numbers to encourage more Genie+/LL+ purchases, or are we going back to the old FP+ waits where standby is at a standstill?

At this point, my plan is to just roll with things. Pick out the #1 ride we must get a reservation for and focus my 7AM booking on just that ride. Once that's in, then I can work around the rest - and hopefully still be somewhat spontaneous with genie+ pickings. I'm still confused as to why MS:Green is a genie+ pick when that is always under a 15 minute wait, or why Everest is LL+ and not Navi (thank god for Everest single rider).


----------



## Disturbia

Slinky is a must do for our 5 yr old; Smugglers run was too bumpy confusing, they prefer star tours (Even our teen).


----------



## Disturbia

acebatonfan said:


> I'm going in December with one other adult for 8 days. We just made the purchase for Genie+, so my pockets are grumbling a bit with all the issues going on. December should be a lower-crowd time, but looking at the MK waits at the moment I'm seeing things like 80 minutes for PeterPan, 70 minutes for POTC, and even 35 minutes for the magic carpets. Is Disney inflating the numbers to encourage more Genie+/LL+ purchases, or are we going back to the old FP+ waits where standby is at a standstill?
> 
> At this point, my plan is to just roll with things. Pick out the #1 ride we must get a reservation for and focus my 7AM booking on just that ride. Once that's in, then I can work around the rest - and hopefully still be somewhat spontaneous with genie+ pickings.


There is some inflating as Jojo pointed out (MMRR posted 45 actual 20)


----------



## Disturbia

acebatonfan said:


> I'm going in December with one other adult for 8 days. We just made the purchase for Genie+, so my pockets are grumbling a bit with all the issues going on. December should be a lower-crowd time, but looking at the MK waits at the moment I'm seeing things like 80 minutes for PeterPan, 70 minutes for POTC, and even 35 minutes for the magic carpets. Is Disney inflating the numbers to encourage more Genie+/LL+ purchases, or are we going back to the old FP+ waits where standby is at a standstill?
> 
> At this point, my plan is to just roll with things. Pick out the #1 ride we must get a reservation for and focus my 7AM booking on just that ride. Once that's in, then I can work around the rest - and hopefully still be somewhat spontaneous with genie+ pickings. I'm still confused as to why MS:Green is a genie+ pick when that is always under a 15 minute wait, or why Everest is LL+ and not Navi (thank god for Everest single rider).


Maybe Disney did think that their actual future customers (now toddlers) have a miserable time while waiting for everyone to rider switch FOP, Kali, EE with times inflated so they’re stuck for 2 hours each time with nothing to do.  Also if mom/dads batteries die they can’t purchase more things/LLs etc

Hence, planning on buying FoP and single rider EE (Kali closed first week of Nov-mid Dec!); riding safari standby


----------



## PaladinButters

acebatonfan said:


> Is Disney inflating the numbers to encourage more Genie+/LL+ purchases, or are we going back to the old FP+ waits where standby is at a standstill?



Both - wait times have always been inflated (better to be pleasantly surprised at a shorter wait after all) but there's no way standby wouldn't be affected by this.  Considering the shorter wait now has a cost - there will be less people buying than took advantage of free FPs but a few days worth (with all the free days they gave out for it) is just not enough on the ground data to see how much it's affected.


----------



## jimmymc

PaladinButters said:


> Both - wait times have always been inflated (better to be pleasantly surprised at a shorter wait after all) but there's no way standby wouldn't be affected by this.  Considering the shorter wait now has a cost - there will be less people buying than took advantage of free FPs but a few days worth (with all the free days they gave out for it) is just not enough on the ground data to see how much it's affected.



Agreed. Wait times range between accurate and inflated, but the standby lines are also moving slower than they were pre-Genie+


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Seems like the optimal strategy, if you have a long trip, is to do resorts and other activities in the mornings while simultaneously stacking up LL’s for the afternoon.  Then go for a half day in the afternoons and evenings using your stacked LL’s and adding more as you can. I’m going Christmas week (god help me), and that’s what I’ll attempt.


----------



## peteykirch

jimmymc said:


> Agreed. Wait times range between accurate and inflated, but the standby lines are also moving slower than they were pre-Genie+



Is anyone shocked by this?

I thought it was all but guaranteed that the standby line would go to a crawl like it did with FP+ once LL came on board. It'll be the old 10 LL users getting in for every 1 stand by person.


----------



## Disturbia

peteykirch said:


> Is anyone shocked by this?
> 
> I thought it was all but guaranteed that the standby line would go to a crawl like it did with FP+ once LL came on board. It'll be the old 10 LL users getting in for every 1 stand by person.


It is 35 LL for 5 standby (Jojo or Kyle confirmed with CM)


----------



## TinkSassy

LSUfan4444 said:


> Even off site guests can book G+ attractions beginning at 7 am. Be on the app exactly at 7 am and you should be good to go to book that. You'll have to wait until 9 am to buy Rise and you need to be quick but it's doable


Fantastic!  If I can get Slinky we will wait for ROTR if we need to


----------



## jimmymc

peteykirch said:


> Is anyone shocked by this?
> 
> I thought it was all but guaranteed that the standby line would go to a crawl like it did with FP+ once LL came on board. It'll be the old 10 LL users getting in for every 1 stand by person.



Not at all. This is actually the reason I didn't like FP+ and I think Genie+ is way too cheap.


----------



## Disturbia

glitch..sorry


----------



## DisneyFive

BTW a good portion of our strategy will be using the refresh ability of Genie+ to snag earlier return times. Here’s how I do it:


1) Find the attractions you want a G+ for
2) Click on "Book Experience" for that attraction
3) Hit the "x" in the top left corner. (This backs you back out, and will then hold the attraction at correct location on your phone screen)
4) Now you can simply keep clicking on the "Tip Board" tab on the top left of the screen.  This will refresh the G+ return time each time you click it.
5) When you find a return time you are satisfied with, then go through the process to fully book it by clicking "Book Experience" and follow the prompts

Dan


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

peteykirch said:


> Is anyone shocked by this?
> 
> I thought it was all but guaranteed that the standby line would go to a crawl like it did with FP+ once LL came on board. It'll be the old 10 LL users getting in for every 1 stand by person.





Disturbia said:


> It is 35 LL for 5 standby (Jojo or Kyle confirmed with CM)


So, basically, a ratio of 1:7 vs. 1:10 which represents a slight improvement over the FP+ ratio (assuming 1:10 was an accurate quote for FP+).

ETA: when you expand these numbers out to scale, I suppose you could make the argument that it's a 30% increase of SB let through in comparison to LL.  So, perhaps not insignificant.


----------



## MainMom

LSUfan4444 said:


> 8:50 am, Fri Oct 22, TP crowd level 4,
> G+ return times: BTMR 12 pm, Haunted Mansion 11:05, Jungle Cruise 11:50, Pooh 10am, Peter Pan 12:20, Pirates 10:25, Splash 10:55, Speedway 9:45 am


For how many people?


----------



## diskids2

DisneyFive said:


> Oh yeah, you are correct.  Sorry, it's just that first 120 minutes after park open that you are locked out of.  I'll go edit my post.
> 
> Dan



ok so if you get a G+ at 7 am and let's say the parks opens at 9 am, then you still can't get the second G+ until 11 am unless you've used the first one between 9 and 11, so then it's whatever  comes first?  Bottom line is that I can't book another G+ at 9 am which is two hours after I booked my first one right?


----------



## DisneyFive

diskids2 said:


> ok so if you get a G+ at 7 am and let's say the parks opens at 9 am, then you still can't get the second G+ until 11 am unless you've used the first one between 9 and 11, so then it's whatever  comes first?  Bottom line is that I can't book another G+ at 9 am which is two hours after I booked my first one right?


Correct.

Dan


----------



## wisblue

MainMom said:


> For how many people?



I wouldn't think it would really matter. Because, unlike FP+, they just give you the next available time the worst that should happen is your larger group spilling into the next block 5 minutes later.


----------



## wisblue

In the other long thread, posters have said that if you have a hopper ticket and indicate on Genie that you intend to hop to another park, you will be offered LL return rimes at the other park after 2PM, even if other guests are seeing return times before 2.

I tried a little experiment today. Because park reservations were not sold out, I used my AP to make a reservation at DHS and entered into Genie a plan to hop to Epcot at 3 PM.

As I have gone to the Tip Board, starting at 7 AM and a couple more times since, I have not seen LL return times after 2 PM yet, except for Test Track which is already out to 7 PM, probably for everybody. The wait times for the G+LL attractions at Epcot are all pretty short; even Test Track is only 35 minutes and that is the longest.

Anyway, unless they only show if you have already purchased Genie+ or have tapped into your first park, the statements that later return times are offered to people  with hopper tickets may not be accurate.


----------



## MainMom

wisblue said:


> I wouldn't think it would really matter. Because, unlike FP+, they just give you the next available time the worst that should happen is your larger group spilling into the next block 5 minutes later.


Hmm…That’s interesting. Thanks.


----------



## Disturbia

diskids2 said:


> ok so if you get a G+ at 7 am and let's say the parks opens at 9 am, then you still can't get the second G+ until 11 am unless you've used the first one between 9 and 11, so then it's whatever  comes first?  Bottom line is that I can't book another G+ at 9 am which is two hours after I booked my first one right?


Yes,  but You can book your second genie+ at 9:05 am as long as you scanned in to the ride.  Maybe you booked the 9-10 pass at 8 am, you still can book next genie+ once you ride/scan at 9:05 am


----------



## Disturbia

wisblue said:


> In the other long thread, posters have said that if you have a hopper ticket and indicate on Genie that you intend to hop to another park, you will be offered LL return rimes at the other park after 2PM, even if other guests are seeing return times before 2.
> 
> I tried a little experiment today. Because park reservations were not sold out, I used my AP to make a reservation at DHS and entered into Genie a plan to hop to Epcot at 3 PM.
> 
> As I have gone to the Tip Board, starting at 7 AM and a couple more times since, I have not seen LL return times after 2 PM yet, except for Test Track which is already out to 7 PM, probably for everybody. The wait times for the G+LL attractions at Epcot are all pretty short; even Test Track is only 35 minutes and that is the longest.
> 
> Anyway, unless they only show if you have already purchased Genie+ or have tapped into your first park, the statements that later return times are offered to people  with hopper tickets may not be accurate.


So one Genie+ for Test track is bookable at 12 pm; we’re not sure about the second, May not even be necessary as crowds gather around the world showcase to dine, line up for fireworks


----------



## slo

Disturbia said:


> Yes,  but You can book your second genie+ at 9:05 am as long as you scanned in to the ride.  Maybe you booked the 9-10 pass at 8 am, you still can book next genie+ once you ride/scan at 9:05 am



When is your LL considered “used”?
When you enter the line or when you get on the ride?


----------



## CJK

Quick question that I haven't seen addressed yet. With FP+, we were able to swap magic bands if one member of the party didn't want to do a ride for whatever reason. As long as there was a valid FP+ booked for that time, cast members didn't care that the name popping up when you scanned in was clearly not you. Is that still permitted with G+LL and ILL$?


----------



## MainMom

slo said:


> When is your LL considered “used”?
> When you enter the line or when you get on the ride?


When you tap in. If there are 2 taps it’s the second one.


----------



## DisneyKidds

CJK said:


> Quick question that I haven't seen addressed yet. With FP+, we were able to swap magic bands if one member of the party didn't want to do a ride for whatever reason. As long as there was a valid FP+ booked for that time, cast members didn't care that the name popping up when you scanned in was clearly not you. Is that still permitted with G+LL and ILL$?


I would imagine so.  If Mickey lights up green when the magic band is tapped I doubt the cast member at the LL entrance cares who is using it, or would even know.  I’m sure they aren’t looking at every name, if they even have something that displays that information.


----------



## tarabl

I have a quick question about the disney genie + reservations.   My family is staying on site at the Swan Reserve and I unfortunately can not get a reservation on site and will stay off site since the trip is scheduled for November 4-November 8.   I was wondering if I am offsite can I link my ticket to them so I can be on the rides with them for Genie+     There is the fact that I am not on property  will they be able to add me when they make reservations for the day?


----------



## vinmar4

DizBelle said:


> I can't find anywhere when you can make your second ILL$ purchase.  Can you make your 2 for the day both at 7 am?



I"m pretty sure. Im making one for our first park and the second none for our second one, but that one will be after 2 PM.


----------



## Disturbia

slo said:


> When is your LL considered “used”?
> When you enter the line or when you get on the ride?


Looking at Safari it’s when you scan closer to where the fast pass and standby merge, the second magic band scan so people don’t just scan and exit; usually it’s right before boarding the ride


----------



## Disturbia

vinmar4 said:


> I"m pretty sure. Im making one for our first park and the second none for our second one, but that one will be after 2 PM.


Yes.  You can make SDMT at 9:30-10:30 (LLIA$); jungle cruise 9-10 Genie+ and Space mtn 10-11 all at 7 am


----------



## Cotta

CJK said:


> Quick question that I haven't seen addressed yet. With FP+, we were able to swap magic bands if one member of the party didn't want to do a ride for whatever reason. As long as there was a valid FP+ booked for that time, cast members didn't care that the name popping up when you scanned in was clearly not you. Is that still permitted with G+LL and ILL$?



And now it becomes obvious why you can only ride each ride once.


----------



## BridgetR3

Grumpy by Birth said:


> With both legacy FP and FP+, groups would sometimes not be able to get exactly the same return times.  But it was almost always possible to get times that were overlapping so everyone could ride together.
> 
> Since the times for G+ will be "next available" like it was for legacy FP, I think there would only be a few extreme examples where the times wouldn't be really close to each other if you book the first 12 of your group and then book for the rest immediately afterwards.  The return times would have to be getting taken at a frantic pace for it to advance more than an hour within the few seconds it will take you to book the first part of the group.
> 
> ETA:  Alternatively, you could have two people managing G+ for each half of the group.  That way, you'd be selecting the times practically simultaneously and would know they overlap before committing part of the group to that return time.



I know that everyone says it is the "next available" time that is offered but the times available seem to jump all over the place.  I would be careful with choosing and assuming that they are close to each other by booking at the same time.  Maybe make sure you are together when you book so you can see each other's times.  Such crazy hoops we have to jump through to do what we have always been able to do.....



hdrolfe said:


> Where can I see the prices? I'm trying to figure out how much they will cost when we are there and didn't know any have changed yet. I'm in Canada so the app doesn't seem to give me all the options yet.



Unfortunately it seems that Disney is only publishing the prices each day in the app and can change it on whim as they want.  In order to find out prices, it looks like you will have to log in on the day of your trip and see what price Disney decided it was worth that day.


So here's my question for this thread - Our family of four is made up of two VERY different groups of people - two are thrill ride junkies and and two love the slow rides/dark rides/Country Bear Jamboree.   Do I have to make my G+ reservations for everyone in my party or can I choose for use to split up on the rides?   In FP+, I would always pick 2 SDD and 2 Toy Story or whatever but I could split our choices.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Is it true that you can **always** add another LL after you’ve tapped into a ride even if you’ve stacked?  In other words, consider teh following scenario:

1.  At 7 AM I book splash mountain at noon;
2.  MK opens at 9 am
3.  At 11 am I book IASW for 11:30 AM
4.  At 11:30 AM I tap into IASW.  Can I now add another LL notwithstanding my existing Noon Splash?
5.  Assuming the answer to the above is yes, now at 11:30 I tap into IASW and add Buzz Lightyear for 1:00 PM;
6.  I know have LL’s for Splash at Noon and Buzz at 1:00 PM.
7.  I tap into Splash at noon.  Can I now add another LL notwithstanding that I have an existing LL at 1:00 PM?

If the answer to all of the above is yes then there is a **huge** advantage to stacking early, regardless of what rides you stack, because it effectively gives you the ability to continue pulling two lightning lanes at a time for the rest of the day.

Does anyone know for sure the answers to the above questions?  Has anyone been in the parks and reported back on this?


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

BridgetR3 said:


> I know that everyone says it is the "next available" time that is offered but the times available seem to jump all over the place.  I would be careful with choosing and assuming that they are close to each other by booking at the same time.  *Maybe make sure you are together when you book so you can see each other's times. * Such crazy hoops we have to jump through to do what we have always been able to do.....
> 
> 
> 
> Unfortunately it seems that Disney is only publishing the prices each day in the app and can change it on whim as they want.  In order to find out prices, it looks like you will have to log in on the day of your trip and see what price Disney decided it was worth that day.
> 
> 
> So here's my question for this thread - Our family of four is made up of two VERY different groups of people - two are thrill ride junkies and and two love the slow rides/dark rides/Country Bear Jamboree.   Do I have to make my G+ reservations for everyone in my party or can I choose for use to split up on the rides?   In FP+, I would always pick 2 SDD and 2 Toy Story or whatever but I could split our choices.


To the bolded... that's what I was suggesting.  Directly coordinating with someone standing next to you so you can see that both are getting overlapping return times.


----------



## leeniewdw

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> Is it true that you can **always** add another LL after you’ve tapped into a ride even if you’ve stacked?  In other words, consider teh following scenario:
> 
> 1.  At 7 AM I book splash mountain at noon;
> 2.  MK opens at 9 am
> 3.  At 11 am I book IASW for 11:30 AM
> 4.  At 11:30 AM I tap into IASW.  Can I now add another LL notwithstanding my existing Noon Splash?
> 5.  Assuming the answer to the above is yes, now at 11:30 I tap into IASW and add Buzz Lightyear for 1:00 PM;
> 6.  I know have LL’s for Splash at Noon and Buzz at 1:00 PM.
> 7.  I tap into Splash at noon.  Can I now add another LL notwithstanding that I have an existing LL at 1:00 PM?
> 
> If the answer to all of the above is yes then there is a **huge** advantage to stacking early, regardless of what rides you stack, because it effectively gives you the ability to continue pulling two lightning lanes at a time for the rest of the day.
> 
> Does anyone know for sure the answers to the above questions?  Has anyone been in the parks and reported back on this?



I have not been in the parks, but we know that you cannot select your times using G+/LL.  The odds of having a Splash Mtn return time of noon at 7am seems unlikely.  You could continue to monitor the return times to see if one eventually shows up for noon and as long as that happened before park opening, you are no worse for wear in getting the next LL at 11am.

*note:  people (myself included) have had success playing with the Tip board and seeing return times vary, but that doesn't seem to be the case in the early morning.  It seems to be the case when return times are, say 5:00pm and you refresh and the time move earlier, say 4:00 (because people have canceled).  Let me find the post where this is described.  BUT, I don't think that is going to help you at 7am.   

Hope this wasn't more confusing.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

leeniewdw said:


> I have not been in the parks, but we know that you cannot select your times using G+/LL.  The odds of having a Splash Mtn return time of noon at 7am seems unlikely.  You could continue to monitor the return times to see if one eventually shows up for noon and as long as that happened before park opening, you are no worse for wear in getting the next LL at 11am.
> 
> *note:  people (myself included) have had success playing with the Tip board and seeing return times vary, but that doesn't seem to be the case in the early morning.  It seems to be the case when return times are, say 5:00pm and you refresh and the time move earlier, say 4:00 (because people have canceled).  Let me find the post where this is described.  BUT, I don't think that is going to help you at 7am.
> 
> Hope this wasn't more confusing.


My example might have been too extreme you’re right, but the scenario still works if you can grab, lets say an 11:30 AM Splash Mountain (or insert whatever the most popular LL attraction in MK is these days) at 8:55 AM (5 minutes before opening), and then add a 12:00 PM BTMRR at 11.  The point is, if the rules are that you can always get a new LL after tapping in regardless of whether or not you are stacked, then for MK at least the goal should always to figure out a way to be stacked early on, as that enables you to pull twice as many LL’s the rest of the day.


----------



## leeniewdw

Here is an example of what return times were looking like this morning at 8:50am.  Obviously it's going to depend on the day/crowd etc.  But today, you could have grabbed Splash at 8:50am for a return time of 10:55am.   Then you can still grab your next LL at 11am.



LSUfan4444 said:


> 8:50 am, Fri Oct 22, TP crowd level 4,
> G+ return times: BTMR 12 pm, Haunted Mansion 11:05, Jungle Cruise 11:50, Pooh 10am, Peter Pan 12:20, Pirates 10:25, Splash 10:55, Speedway 9:45 am


----------



## leeniewdw

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> My example might have been too extreme you’re right, but the scenario still works if you can grab, lets say an 11:30 AM Splash Mountain (or insert whatever the most popular LL attraction in MK is these days) at 8:55 AM (5 minutes before opening), and then add a 12:00 PM BTMRR at 11.  The point is, if the rules are that you can always get a new LL after tapping in regardless of whether or not you are stacked, then for MK at least the goal should always to figure out a way to be stacked early on, as that enables you to pull twice as many LL’s the rest of the day.



There's another theory that you could grab an early LL (9:30 say) for _______ and then at 9:30 when you tap in to that ride you (maybe even after riding a RD headliner) open up another LL slot and so on and so on.  Eventually I guess they'll return times will be later, but I see that value in that as well!


----------



## rmclain73

I wonder if Touring plans will be keeping track of what expected crowd levels will be in relation to how far out LL's are booking out.  It would be a great source to know if its even worth the cost.  On a busy day like today the LL's are booking out so far its faster to wait in standby.


----------



## Disturbia

Stacking is not an advantage due to the 2 hour wait between securing one:  allears-how can you stack multiple Disney genie reservations 

https://allears.net/2021/10/21/how-can-you-stack-multiple-disney-genie-reservations/


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

leeniewdw said:


> There's another theory that you could grab an early LL (9:30 say) for _______ and then at 9:30 when you tap in to that ride you (maybe even after riding a RD headliner) open up another LL slot and so on and so on.  Eventually I guess they'll return times will be later, but I see that value in that as well!


Yeah but that’s just describing the normal system that lets you pull LL’s after tapping in.  You’re still only ever going to be able to pull one at a time that way.  If you stack early my point is that you should be able to stay stacked the rest of teh day effectively pulling twice as many LL’s.


----------



## rmclain73

wisblue said:


> In the other long thread, posters have said that if you have a hopper ticket and indicate on Genie that you intend to hop to another park, you will be offered LL return rimes at the other park after 2PM, even if other guests are seeing return times before 2.
> 
> I tried a little experiment today. Because park reservations were not sold out, I used my AP to make a reservation at DHS and entered into Genie a plan to hop to Epcot at 3 PM.
> 
> As I have gone to the Tip Board, starting at 7 AM and a couple more times since, I have not seen LL return times after 2 PM yet, except for Test Track which is already out to 7 PM, probably for everybody. The wait times for the G+LL attractions at Epcot are all pretty short; even Test Track is only 35 minutes and that is the longest.
> 
> Anyway, unless they only show if you have already purchased Genie+ or have tapped into your first park, the statements that later return times are offered to people  with hopper tickets may not be accurate.



Others who are there and have tried this have said that it works.  The only difference is they said they were park hopping at 2:00pm.  Not sure if that is the difference.  It is also possible that Disney has made this longer an option.  Also these people did purchase Genie+ with no LL's scheduled for the first park.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Disturbia said:


> Stacking is not an advantage due to the 2 hour wait between securing one
> 
> https://allears.net/2021/10/21/how-can-you-stack-multiple-disney-genie-reservations/


It is an advantage though if it lets you pull a new LL after every one you use regardless of whether you are stacked.  Yes you’re not going to be able to do LL’s those first few hours, but the rest of teh day you’re going to be pulling twice as many.  This is a bigger advantage the later the park is open.


----------



## leeniewdw

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> Yeah but that’s just describing the normal system that lets you pull LL’s after tapping in.  You’re still only ever going to be able to pull one at a time that way.  If you stack early my point is that you should be able to stay stacked the rest of teh day effectively pulling twice as many LL’s.



I guess the thought is that you are gaining LLs early as opposed to being locked out for the first 2 hours.   I have no idea what makes the most sense


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

leeniewdw said:


> I guess the thought is that you are gaining LLs early as opposed to being locked out for the first 2 hours.   I have no idea what makes the most sense


I mean if you’re a rope dropper who tries to knock stuff out early and isn’t shutting the park down, then yeah, it doesn’t make sense.  If you’re like me though with young kids who can’t possibly get there at park open or anything near park open, then it’s a huge advantage.  Especially since I’m going Christmas week when the parks are open till midnight some nights.  What I’d really like is confirmation that this actually works though.  I haven’t seen reports of people stacking and then trying to continuously pull LL’s after swiping into each stacked LL.


----------



## dmunsil

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I mean if you’re a rope dropper who tries to knock stuff out early and isn’t shutting the park down, then yeah, it doesn’t make sense.  If you’re like me though with young kids who can’t possibly get there at park open or anything near park open, then it’s a huge advantage.  Especially since I’m going Christmas week when the parks are open till midnight some nights.  What I’d really like is confirmation that this actually works though.  I haven’t seen reports of people stacking and then trying to continuously pull LL’s after swiping into each stacked LL.


It works. It has been tested, multiple times by multiple people, including me. Once you have two, you can keep having two for the rest of the day, provided you always book another as soon as you tap in.


----------



## persnickity

Disturbia said:


> Stacking is not an advantage due to the 2 hour wait between securing one:  allears-how can you stack multiple Disney genie reservations
> 
> https://allears.net/2021/10/21/how-can-you-stack-multiple-disney-genie-reservations/



That particular use case might not be an advantage. The use case pp mentioned, of pulling an FP around 2.5 hrs after park open still seems viable to me. I'm not sure that it's necessarily better than just being quick on the draw and pulling LL's from 9 on. Either way, you'll get to the end of the bottom of the bucket of readily available LL's pretty quickly, so I'm not sure it matters a lot which is better. 

(Ok, I still think having two could be better, because then you could still use one to book something that's gotten pretty far out without losing the ability to pull rides that are available sooner with your other slot.)


----------



## DisneyFive

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> Is it true that you can **always** add another LL after you’ve tapped into a ride even if you’ve stacked?  In other words, consider teh following scenario:
> 
> 1.  At 7 AM I book splash mountain at noon;
> 2.  MK opens at 9 am
> 3.  At 11 am I book IASW for 11:30 AM
> 4.  At 11:30 AM I tap into IASW.  Can I now add another LL notwithstanding my existing Noon Splash?
> 5.  Assuming the answer to the above is yes, now at 11:30 I tap into IASW and add Buzz Lightyear for 1:00 PM;
> 6.  I know have LL’s for Splash at Noon and Buzz at 1:00 PM.
> 7.  I tap into Splash at noon.  Can I now add another LL notwithstanding that I have an existing LL at 1:00 PM?
> 
> If the answer to all of the above is yes then there is a **huge** advantage to stacking early, regardless of what rides you stack, because it effectively gives you the ability to continue pulling two lightning lanes at a time for the rest of the day.
> 
> Does anyone know for sure the answers to the above questions?  Has anyone been in the parks and reported back on this?



I think you are good all the way up until step 7. I think your next G+ attempt will not be available until you tap into the 1 PM IASW, because that is the G+ that you have not exhausted the 120 minute window for yet.  I could be wrong though and maybe that’s a loophole?

Dan


----------



## wisblue

rmclain73 said:


> Others who are there and have tried this have said that it works.  The only difference is they said they were park hopping at 2:00pm.  Not sure if that is the difference.  It is also possible that Disney has made this longer an option.  Also these people did purchase Genie+ with no LL's scheduled for the first park.



Yeah, there are a variety of reasons why my offsite test with no Genie+ purchase wouldn‘t work.


----------



## wisblue

DisneyFive said:


> I think you are good all the way up until step 7. I think your next G+ attempt will not be available until you tap into the 1 PM IASW, because that is the G+ that you have not exhausted the 120 minute window for yet.  I could be wrong though and maybe that’s a loophole?
> 
> Dan



I would think you are right.

My expectation would be that the eligibility time for making another selection is established by your most recently made selection, which in this example would be the 1 PM Buzz.

It couldn’t hurt for someone to try this because the worst that would happen is the message that “this guest is not eligible to make another selection“.


----------



## g-dad66

LSUfan4444 said:


> 8:45 am, Fri Oct 22, TP crowd level 4,
> SDD G+ return time at 7:35 pm, Smugglers Run 3:05 pm, RNR 11:25 am, ToT 11:10, TSMM, 11am Star Tours 9:50



A few more data points --

7:45 am, Fri Oct 22
SDD G+ return time at 6:35 pm, Smugglers Run 2:25 pm, RNR 11:00 am, ToT 10:35, TSMM 10:40, Star Tours 9:30


----------



## Disturbia

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> It is an advantage though if it lets you pull a new LL after every one you use regardless of whether you are stacked.  Yes you’re not going to be able to do LL’s those first few hours, but the rest of teh day you’re going to be pulling twice as many.  This is a bigger advantage the later the park is open.


Each time you pull one you have to wait 2 hours, so if you pulled 3, you wasted 6 hours with no Genie+


----------



## g-dad66

Some more data points from today:

AK at 10:00 (2 hours after park opening)
Safari return time: 11:40
Navi return time: 12:05

MK at 11:00 (2 hours after park opening)
Jungle Cruise: 2:05
Peter Pan: 1:55
Big Thunder: 1:05
Haunted Mansion: 12:55
Pirates: 12:15
Splash: 1:05

HS at 11:00 ( 2 hours after park opening)
Millenium Falcon: 4:25
RnRC: 1:05
ToT: 12:30
TSM: 12:10

EP at 12:00 (2 hours after park opening)
Soarin 12:40
Mission Space 12:10

If we get our first LL for Peter Pan or Jungle Cruise, SDD, and Test Track (all possibly with return times more than 2 hours out, I wanted to see what availability might be like for our second LL.  (Not an issue for AK obviously but was just curious about it too.)

Think we will Early Entry rope drop for Space Mtn, MMRR, Frozen, and Navi (possibly FoP but we'll probably go ILL$ on it).


----------



## rmclain73

Disturbia said:


> Each time you pull one you have to wait 2 hours, so if you pulled 3, you wasted 6 hours with no Genie+



yes but it doesn’t matter if standby waits aren’t too bad. They are pretty manageable if you go first thing in the morning. You’re going to end up waiting at some point with Genie+.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Disturbia said:


> Each time you pull one you have to wait 2 hours, so if you pulled 3, you wasted 6 hours with no Genie+


No that’s the whole point. You only have to wait the two hours once. After that you can pull a new one every time you’ve tapped into a ride. You only need to stack two to get double the ll’s for the rest of the day by pulling every time you swipe in.


----------



## Disturbia

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> No that’s the whole point. You only have to wait the two hours once. After that you can pull a new one every time you’ve tapped into a ride. You only need to stack two to get double the ll’s for the rest of the day by pulling every time you swipe in.


Wait. I thought at 11 am I pull a 4-5; at1 pm pull 5-6 and 3 pm pull 6-7

so nothing 9-11, 11:01-1:01 and 1:02-3

are you saying I can get all evening slots booked on top of each other 11 am onwards?


----------



## Disturbia

Per allears:

“One of the most complicated aspects of Genie+ is the two-hour cool-down rule. When you book a Lightning Lane with Genie+ you can book a new one either when you use your existing Lightning Lane or *two hours after selection time.*

Theoretically, though, you could even stack more than two Lightning Lanes. If after your Slinky Dog Dash cool down at 11AM, you booked a 5PM Tower of Terror; you would then be able to book a third Lightning Lane after another two-hour cool down at 1PM.

If you made your 7PM Slinky Dog Dash selection after park open, your cool down begins at selection time. So, if you booked at 9:32AM, you’ll be able to book a new Lightning Lane at 11:32AM.”

For a minute there I though I was going crazy


----------



## ucf_knight

katyringo said:


> I'm really trying to think through HS day. No hopper.
> 
> I think my plan is going to be to buy individual LL for rise and MMRR- aiming for like the 12-2pm slots.  I plan to use my early entry to head toward TT and rocking roller coaster. Im solo
> So I can use single rider at RR.  So right now my debate is do I go for SDD as my first genie or smugglers run.  I think if I can get an earlier return time I would go for SDD.. I just don't know.. need to learn more.


Smugglers has a single rider too


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Disturbia said:


> Wait. I thought at 11 am I pull a 4-5; at1 pm pull 5-6 and 3 pm pull 6-7
> 
> so nothing 9-11, 11:01-1:01 and 1:02-3
> 
> are you saying I can get all evening slots booked on top of each other 11 am onwards?


No, that’s not the idea.  The idea is to pull two stacked LL’s as early as possible (adjusted for when you plan to be in the park).  Once you have two, you will always be able to have two at a time, effectively doubling the number of LL’s you can pull throughout the day. This is because every time you tap into one, you can immediately pull another (again assuming that detail is accurate with regard to stacking).  So, by way of example, you pull LL #1 for 11:05 AM first thing in the morning. Then at 11:00 AM (120 minutes past park opening), you pull a second LL.  You now have two LL’s at once.  For the rest of the day, you will be able to have two at once.  This is an advantage.  This appears to me to be the game theory optimal strategy for most folks, again assuming that you can use stacked LL’s like this.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Disturbia said:


> Per allears:
> 
> “One of the most complicated aspects of Genie+ is the two-hour cool-down rule. When you book a Lightning Lane with Genie+ you can book a new one either when you use your existing Lightning Lane or *two hours after selection time.*
> 
> Theoretically, though, you could even stack more than two Lightning Lanes. If after your Slinky Dog Dash cool down at 11AM, you booked a 5PM Tower of Terror; you would then be able to book a third Lightning Lane after another two-hour cool down at 1PM.
> 
> If you made your 7PM Slinky Dog Dash selection after park open, your cool down begins at selection time. So, if you booked at 9:32AM, you’ll be able to book a new Lightning Lane at 11:32AM.”
> 
> For a minute there I though I was going crazy


There’s going to be a maximum number of LL’s you should attempt to stack which will vary based on the park hours for the day.  We have incomplete information right now on trends including how frequently these times fill up, but I’m confident the optimal strategy is to use stacking to some degree, with adjustments to that strategy based upon crowd level and park hours.


----------



## masupo

Disturbia said:


> Wait. I thought at 11 am I pull a 4-5; at1 pm pull 5-6 and 3 pm pull 6-7
> 
> so nothing 9-11, 11:01-1:01 and 1:02-3
> 
> are you saying I can get all evening slots booked on top of each other 11 am onwards?





AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> No, that’s not the idea.  The idea is to pull two stacked LL’s as early as possible (adjusted for when you plan to be in the park).  Once you have two, you will always be able to have two at a time, effectively doubling the number of LL’s you can pull throughout the day. This is because every time you tap into one, you can immediately pull another (again assuming that detail is accurate with regard to stacking).  So, by way of example, you pull LL #1 for 11:05 AM first thing in the morning. Then at 11:00 AM (120 minutes past park opening), you pull a second LL.  You now have two LL’s at once.  For the rest of the day, you will be able to have two at once.  This is an advantage.  This appears to me to be the game theory optimal strategy for most folks, again assuming that you can use stacked LL’s like this.



Here is a Iink to a video by Kyle Pallo where he discovers what he thinks is a glitch, but is actually stacking two LL's and rolling them continuously after each ride. Some viewers let him know that later in the video. 

He went to MK in the morning, left for awhile then went back in the afternoon. Without realizing it, he made a second LL two hours later and was able to carry two at a time after multiple rides.


----------



## AndreaA

I’m curious about what the STANDBY waits were for the rides with distant return times.


----------



## AndreaA

masupo said:


> Here is a Iink to a video by Kyle Pallo where he discovers what he thinks is a glitch, but is actually stacking two LL's and rolling them continuously after each ride. Some viewers let him know that later in the video.
> 
> He went to MK in the morning, left for awhile then went back in the afternoon. Without realizing it, he made a second LL two hours later and was able to carry two at a time after multiple rides.



I’m not sure why people are saying this is “doubling” LLs.  You aren’t doubling your amount of LLs, you’re just carrying one single “extra” and it’s not really an “extra” since if you’d made it for an earlier time, you’d have likely had multiple other LLs before that return time.

First, it’s all just conjecture as to whether or not you’ll be able to pull a later return time first thing in the morning, much less continue to get later return times throughout the day.  Why not just aim to get something early and then continue pulling as you go?  You’ll end up riding the exact same amount because you’ll be pulling your second LL at 9am and thus have earlier return times for anything you are looking for than if you aren’t pulling your second until 11am or later.


----------



## Disturbia

masupo said:


> Here is a Iink to a video by Kyle Pallo where he discovers what he thinks is a glitch, but is actually stacking two LL's and rolling them continuously after each ride. Some viewers let him know that later in the video.
> 
> He went to MK in the morning, left for awhile then went back in the afternoon. Without realizing it, he made a second LL two hours later and was able to carry two at a time after multiple rides.



This doesn't contradict what I'm saying.  He is booking future rides only and riding current rides standby after riding his initial pass and rolling it until he secures a pass late afternoon.  So at 7am he had a current Genie+ for early am but at 11 am when he got the late afternoon, he then had to ride standby big thunder and he does take breaks to eat etc.

IF at the time he rode Big Thunder that had a 1 hour wait and at Peter pan's flight time late pm wait was 20 mins, he was at a disadvantage, you are *giving up using Genie+ now for later*.  But like Jojo pointed out Genie+ is not worth it in the morning, so booking evening passes are better.  Jojo couldn't get it to work because he probably doesn't have a pass over 2 hours away.


----------



## masupo

.


----------



## Disturbia

The real question I have (which will really throw fuel on this fire) is:

Can I stack evening Genie+ passes without tapping into the park (say in flight or from the poolside bar)?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

masupo said:


> Here is a Iink to a video by Kyle Pallo where he discovers what he thinks is a glitch, but is actually stacking two LL's and rolling them continuously after each ride. Some viewers let him know that later in the video.
> 
> He went to MK in the morning, left for awhile then went back in the afternoon. Without realizing it, he made a second LL two hours later and was able to carry two at a time after multiple rides.


Wow.  I just dont’ see how that isn’t going to be the optimal strategy for most people.  Being able to roll two lightning lanes throughout the day is almost always going to be superior to grabbing one at a time.  It lets you essentially have two LL “paths.”  One “path” allows you to grab some of the more popular attractions even though there may be a gap between them time wise.  The second path lets you grab less popular filler attractions in between the headliners.  Using both of them together probably lets you avoid standby lines altogether on all but the busiest of days.

Edit:  This is for Magic Kingdom and/or park-hopping.  In the other parks I don’t think there are enough rides for this to matter as much.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

AndreaA said:


> I’m not sure why people are saying this is “doubling” LLs. You aren’t doubling your amount of LLs, you’re just carrying one single “extra” and it’s not really an “extra” since if you’d made it for an earlier time, you’d have likely had multiple other LLs before that return time.


You are doubling your LL’s because you are doubling the number of conditions which reset your cooldown and allow you to pull more.  If your goal is to get as many LL attractions as possible in a day, in a park like MK you’re almost always going to be able to pull more if you can pull 2 at a time then if you can pull one at a time.  It also allows you to pull headliners that may be a few hours away without having a huge gap in your plans because you can use your other LL to pull non-headliners to fill the gaps.


----------



## Disturbia

I'm not going to rope drop and have no interest in riding everything, only a select few rides standby and Genie+ and then will book an afternoon LL and at least one LLIA$.   In my case, I'm less likely to do the stacking and will really take a pool break and not look at my phone constantly in the afternoon for riding a 2 min park ride. There are other things to do in the parks besides rides which we enjoy.

IF someone wants to be glued to their phone and look like TWD (as another poster had commented), more power to them.  We have never done rope drop and will never do it even if it meant skipping my most beloved ride - FOP


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Disturbia said:


> The real question I have (which will really throw fuel on this fire) is:
> 
> Can I stack evening Genie+ passes without tapping into the park (say in flight or from the poolside bar)?


I’m pretty sure this has been answered (in the large thread) and the answer is yes.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Disturbia said:


> I'm not going to rope drop and have no interest in riding everything, only a select few rides standby and Genie+ and then will book an afternoon LL and at least one LLIA$.   In my case, I'm less likely to do the stacking and will really take a pool break and not look at my phone constantly in the afternoon for riding a 2 min park ride. There are other things to do in the parks besides rides which we enjoy.


I will never rope drop either. I think the stacking strategy I’m referencing is actually better for people like us.  I’m not going to be in the parks before 11 am on most days anyway with a 2 year old and a 6 year old, so i can grab my first LL a few minutes before opening for 2+ hours out on some headliner, then pull my second LL at 11 when I get there, and now I’m stacked for the day. I don’t think that’s going to be too difficult to accomplish given the reported return times thus far.


----------



## Missmaureen78

Question:  If you Early Entry at HS, can you get both ToT and RnRC done within the first 30-60 minutes?

Based on the LL time slot data from today in this thread, this is what I was thinking - keeping in mind that we don't care about SDD, we do not want to crisscross the park and we actually want some downtime throughout the day to snack, shop and perhaps have a cocktail or two   I realize that makes us a bit of an outlier.

1.  7:00AM:  Book RotR for sometime around 5-6 (understanding it's a risk if the ride goes down earlier in the day)

2.  Keep an eye on the Smuggler's Run LL availability and try to get slot around 4, but definitely book before 9AM.

3.  Early Entry ToT and RnRC

4.  MMRR around 10:00 via ILL

5.  At 11:00, book TSM for next available (hopefully around noon, which jives with today's data)

6.  Standby Alien Saucers

7.  After tapping in to TSM, book Star Tours for next available -- if it's too early, keep checking for something that works with the rest of our day

8.  Lunch (we'll try for a TS reservation)

9.  Muppets

10.  Spend the rest of our time in Galaxy's Edge, with a reservation at Oga's in the evening.  

We'll be there President's Week so it will be crowded, so I'll be keeping an eye on how things play out on busier days.


----------



## g-dad66

Missmaureen78 said:


> Question:  If you Early Entry at HS, can you get both ToT and RnRC done within the first 30-60 minutes?



You can't get both of them done in 30 minutes, but you can almost surely get both done in 60 minutes.  It will probably take about 45-50 minutes.


----------



## ShelsGoingToDisney

We bought Genie+ at MK today. Was not happy to get up at 7, but I did and booked Jungle Cruise at 7:02 for 10:55. We got to the park around 10 and had Starbucks and made our way over to JC. We waited until 11 and booked our 2nd (Pirates) and then clocked into JC. After that, we were able to book another, Peter Pan. Using this strategy we were able to hold 2 LL's all day and used 8.
JC
Pirates
Peter Pan
Small World
Big Thunder
Haunted Mansion
Buzz
Speedway

We could have fit in Splash but nobody wanted to ride that again (we rode Monday). We're all 16+ so some of the more kiddie rides weren't ones we wanted. We stood in stand-by for Mermaid and Mine Train (at 8:15 for 15 minutes).

It made for a more enjoyable day by not standing in lines all day. We were able to have lunch at Crystal Palace and rode the monorail to Poly for rum Dole Whip. Still not sure if it was worth $60 for the 4 of us and the only way it is possibly worth it is if you can double book all day like we did. It's not affordable to spend every day of a weeklong trip.

It's a good thing we had my son's newer phone as my iPhone 10 just could not stay into Disney's wifi and the app would not work at all for me using cell service. It was a royal pain in the butt and if Disney wants to have every single thing on the phone they should have the most tip-top wifi possible IMO.


----------



## DL1WDW2

If you are having problems I suggest you update your personal info on file with MDE especially update the Wallet APP . Somebody suggested that when I went into AT&T for Genie help. And they didn’t even try to sell me a new phone!
I also have better online since I narrowed down all those magicbands on MDE….instead of having over 10 linked  magicbands connected to my name I now have only 2…front desk suggested that was problem . 
You can modify and editthe magicbands online when you use Your MDE . It took me awhile to figure it out but it can be done.


----------



## Welsh_Dragon

It’s taken me a while to read through this thread this morning but the information is invaluable. Thank you for sharing.


----------



## elgerber

g-dad66 said:


> You can't get both of them done in 30 minutes, but you can almost surely get both done in 60 minutes.  It will probably take about 45-50 minutes.


We got both done in 30 on Tuesday. Then hit MSFR right after nine. Yesterday we sat in RnR for 20 minutes before we nailed and then they said it wasn’t working.


----------



## LSUfan4444

Missmaureen78 said:


> Question: If you Early Entry at HS, can you get both ToT and RnRC done within the first 30-60 minutes?


So long as both are running, yes. 

The problem comes when only one is running for some reason so almost everyone that was heading to both attractions files into one while some people decide to wait with getting no reassurance from CMs when they actually expect it will start running again. Sometimes it's 5 minutes, sometimes, it's 40 minutes.


----------



## wisblue

Missmaureen78 said:


> Question:  If you Early Entry at HS, can you get both ToT and RnRC done within the first 30-60 minutes?
> 
> Based on the LL time slot data from today in this thread, this is what I was thinking - keeping in mind that we don't care about SDD, we do not want to crisscross the park and we actually want some downtime throughout the day to snack, shop and perhaps have a cocktail or two   I realize that makes us a bit of an outlier.
> 
> 1.  7:00AM:  Book RotR for sometime around 5-6 (understanding it's a risk if the ride goes down earlier in the day)
> 
> 2.  Keep an eye on the Smuggler's Run LL availability and try to get slot around 4, but definitely book before 9AM.
> 
> 3.  Early Entry ToT and RnRC
> 
> 4.  MMRR around 10:00 via ILL
> 
> 5.  At 11:00, book TSM for next available (hopefully around noon, which jives with today's data)
> 
> 6.  Standby Alien Saucers
> 
> 7.  After tapping in to TSM, book Star Tours for next available -- if it's too early, keep checking for something that works with the rest of our day
> 
> 8.  Lunch (we'll try for a TS reservation)
> 
> 9.  Muppets
> 
> 10.  Spend the rest of our time in Galaxy's Edge, with a reservation at Oga's in the evening.
> 
> We'll be there President's Week so it will be crowded, so I'll be keeping an eye on how things play out on busier days.



That looks like a good plan. 

I might be trying something similar on my trip in 3 weeks, though we usually hop to a second park and getting a LL for SDD will be a priority.

The big question for all of us is going to be how things develop in terms of larger crowds and more people getting and learning how to use both G+LL and IALL. There could be some significant changes in standby lines and LL return times from what we’ve seen these first few days.


----------



## LSUfan4444

Okay, the thing that is going to throw me the most is having to scroll all the way to the top to "change park" rather than hitting this back button. I do it AT LEAST 5 times a day.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

ShelsGoingToDisney said:


> We bought Genie+ at MK today. Was not happy to get up at 7, but I did and booked Jungle Cruise at 7:02 for 10:55. We got to the park around 10 and had Starbucks and made our way over to JC. We waited until 11 and booked our 2nd (Pirates) and then clocked into JC. After that, we were able to book another, Peter Pan. Using this strategy we were able to hold 2 LL's all day and used 8.
> JC
> Pirates
> Peter Pan
> Small World
> Big Thunder
> Haunted Mansion
> Buzz
> Speedway
> 
> We could have fit in Splash but nobody wanted to ride that again (we rode Monday). We're all 16+ so some of the more kiddie rides weren't ones we wanted. We stood in stand-by for Mermaid and Mine Train (at 8:15 for 15 minutes).
> 
> It made for a more enjoyable day by not standing in lines all day. We were able to have lunch at Crystal Palace and rode the monorail to Poly for rum Dole Whip. Still not sure if it was worth $60 for the 4 of us and the only way it is possibly worth it is if you can double book all day like we did. It's not affordable to spend every day of a weeklong trip.
> 
> It's a good thing we had my son's newer phone as my iPhone 10 just could not stay into Disney's wifi and the app would not work at all for me using cell service. It was a royal pain in the butt and if Disney wants to have every single thing on the phone they should have the most tip-top wifi possible IMO.


I’m convinced that what you did was the optimal strategy.  You’ve got to stack early so you can double book throughout the day.  It also seems like it is pretty easy to stack by just grabbing a really popular headliner as your first ride (like JC).

I’m also convinced that very few are going to use this optimal strategy putting those of us who do at a big advantage.


----------



## Jrb1979

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I’m convinced that what you did was the optimal strategy.  You’ve got to stack early so you can double book throughout the day.  It also seems like it is pretty easy to stack by just grabbing a really popular headliner as your first ride (like JC).


In theory that works and on lower crowd days. I think on busier days it's not going to work so well. On busier days I wouldn't be surprised to see by 11 am return times well into the afternoon.


----------



## wisblue

Jrb1979 said:


> In theory that works and on lower crowd days. I think on busier days it's not going to work so well. On busier days I wouldn't be surprised to see by 11 am return times well into the afternoon.



I agree.

For the next 3 weeks before our trip I’m going to be watching standby lines and LL return times to see how this unfolds.

I especially want to see what standby waits are like in the first two hours and what kind of LL return times there are at 11 AM.

Waiting until after 11 for your second LL might start your stacking sooner but might also mean getting fewer attraction in before 11.

A lot also depends on whether you plan to spend all day in one park or hop to a second park. If hopping it might make more sense to use the time in between parks to set up the stack instead of trying to do it right at 11. Book one LL for for your second park before you leave the first one, and make a second one for that park two hours later.

That won’t work great either if LL for more of the most popular rides start running out by early afternoon.

I am thinking that stacking could work well for Marathon Weekend when we usually won’t be at a park for early entry because of one or more members of the group participating in the running events.


----------



## PaladinButters

Jrb1979 said:


> In theory that works and on lower crowd days. I think on busier days it's not going to work so well. On busier days I wouldn't be surprised to see by 11 am return times well into the afternoon.



*Not to compare this to any previous systems* but.... we've all been through if you don't snag pass for X attraction by Y time they are gone for the day, yeah? If I can't stack things near each other in both times and distance - did I just waste my time crossing the park to get the most out of my $15 instead of wasting it standing in line?


----------



## Wood Nymph

We are going to HS on Monday and plan to purchase ILL$ for RotR and MMRR. We are not planning to purchase Genie+ and we are planning to leave early afternoon. We want to ride standby for SDD, MFSR and TSM. We are at the BC and can walk over for early entry.

What would be good times for the RotR and MMRR purchases?


----------



## emilymad

I am not seeing how this will work for people who take a mid day break.  Very quickly the return times are in our break time.  I guess wait and stack for the evening?

If the return times are getting late in the day so fast with moderate crowds how many of these attractions will sell out on the truly crowded times?  We go around Thanksgiving and I am not confident that most of the headliners will sell out early.  Unless Disney changes their capacity with is always possible.


----------



## ZeeWP

ShelsGoingToDisney said:


> We bought Genie+ at MK today. Was not happy to get up at 7, but I did and booked Jungle Cruise at 7:02 for 10:55. We got to the park around 10 and had Starbucks and made our way over to JC. We waited until 11 and booked our 2nd (Pirates) and then clocked into JC. After that, we were able to book another, Peter Pan. Using this strategy we were able to hold 2 LL's all day and used 8.
> JC
> Pirates
> Peter Pan
> Small World
> Big Thunder
> Haunted Mansion
> Buzz
> Speedway
> 
> We could have fit in Splash but nobody wanted to ride that again (we rode Monday). We're all 16+ so some of the more kiddie rides weren't ones we wanted. We stood in stand-by for Mermaid and Mine Train (at 8:15 for 15 minutes).
> 
> It made for a more enjoyable day by not standing in lines all day. We were able to have lunch at Crystal Palace and rode the monorail to Poly for rum Dole Whip. Still not sure if it was worth $60 for the 4 of us and the only way it is possibly worth it is if you can double book all day like we did. It's not affordable to spend every day of a weeklong trip.
> 
> It's a good thing we had my son's newer phone as my iPhone 10 just could not stay into Disney's wifi and the app would not work at all for me using cell service. It was a royal pain in the butt and if Disney wants to have every single thing on the phone they should have the most tip-top wifi possible IMO.


wow you guys used it exactly as intended and it worked out well. I hope this works out for us!


----------



## wisblue

Today could be an interesting one to watch, especially at MK.

Touring Plans has this as a crowd 7 day and in this first half hour they have several expected times longer than the posted times.

It will be interesting to watch how standby waits and LL return times compare to yesterday.


----------



## DisTXMom

LSUfan4444 said:


> 8:50 am, Fri Oct 22, TP crowd level 4,
> G+ return times: BTMR 12 pm, Haunted Mansion 11:05, Jungle Cruise 11:50, Pooh 10am, Peter Pan 12:20, Pirates 10:25, Splash 10:55, Speedway 9:45 am


This makes me think it will be sold out early on busy days unless they increase the number available.  At 9am on a low crowd day, I’d have thought PP and Splash to have return windows within 90 minutes. We are going spring break and will watch Thanksgiving/Christmas patterns to get a vibe of what to expect.


----------



## Nabas

Wood Nymph said:


> We are going to HS on Monday and plan to purchase ILL$ for RotR and MMRR. We are not planning to purchase Genie+ and we are planning to leave early afternoon. We want to ride standby for SDD, MFSR and TSM. We are at the BC and can walk over for early entry.
> 
> What would be good times for the RotR and MMRR purchases?


I suggest waiting in the Standby lines first (SDD, TSM, and MFSR in that order), and then doing RotR.  With you arriving for early entry, this means you'll likely be done with the 3 Standby attractions pretty early, perhaps as soon as 2 hours after opening.  So maybe book the 2 IAS immediately after that?

The important thing to keep in mind is that RotR has been selling out early, so book that as soon as you can.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

emilymad said:


> I am not seeing how this will work for people who take a mid day break.  Very quickly the return times are in our break time.  I guess wait and stack for the evening?
> 
> If the return times are getting late in the day so fast with moderate crowds how many of these attractions will sell out on the truly crowded times?  We go around Thanksgiving and I am not confident that most of the headliners will sell out early.  Unless Disney changes their capacity with is always possible.


There are enough popular headliners that book far enough out that you should be able to book a return time for after your break.


----------



## kiramay

I have two trips coming up. The first is in only a couple of weeks. Just my husband and I for Food and Wine and the new ROTR ride. Originally I wasn’t going to pay for G+ at all on this trip and just pay for the one ILL ride. But now I’m considering paying for once day to play with it at HS and hopping to Epcot. The plan will be the earliest SDD possible, early ILL ROTR, and RD Tot and RnRC. Maybe squeeze in TSMM and ST. 

Then hop. VQ Remy (or ride it another day). LL TT and Soarin. That’s about all we care about.


----------



## PaladinButters

DisTXMom said:


> This makes me think it will be sold out early on busy days unless they increase the number available.


I imagine they do (or more like they offer less spots per time slot than they could on the slower days to keep the crowd balance they want) - and it would just scale with the crowd size, but there's still a maximum amount of people that can ride Slinky every hour and everybody wants in.  Return time just went from 7:30 to not offered back to 7:50 refreshing while I was checking all this (so two hours-ish after park open for those trying to carry two??) - any busier of a day sounds like a big gamble to not choose this one first so we all kinda get locked into that same strategy regardless.  

So.... If we grab Slinky for a later time and try to carry an extra - do we attempt to rope drop Rise and get out of paying the extra money for it or do we just fork the cash over and spend that time hitting something like MMRR or RnRC that we could then repeat later?  It would mean more rides total for the day that way.


----------



## rmclain73

ShelsGoingToDisney said:


> We bought Genie+ at MK today. Was not happy to get up at 7, but I did and booked Jungle Cruise at 7:02 for 10:55. We got to the park around 10 and had Starbucks and made our way over to JC. We waited until 11 and booked our 2nd (Pirates) and then clocked into JC. After that, we were able to book another, Peter Pan. Using this strategy we were able to hold 2 LL's all day and used 8.
> JC
> Pirates
> Peter Pan
> Small World
> Big Thunder
> Haunted Mansion
> Buzz
> Speedway
> 
> We could have fit in Splash but nobody wanted to ride that again (we rode Monday). We're all 16+ so some of the more kiddie rides weren't ones we wanted. We stood in stand-by for Mermaid and Mine Train (at 8:15 for 15 minutes).
> 
> It made for a more enjoyable day by not standing in lines all day. We were able to have lunch at Crystal Palace and rode the monorail to Poly for rum Dole Whip. Still not sure if it was worth $60 for the 4 of us and the only way it is possibly worth it is if you can double book all day like we did. It's not affordable to spend every day of a weeklong trip.
> 
> It's a good thing we had my son's newer phone as my iPhone 10 just could not stay into Disney's wifi and the app would not work at all for me using cell service. It was a royal pain in the butt and if Disney wants to have every single thing on the phone they should have the most tip-top wifi possible IMO.



Great strategy you set up for yourself there! Let me ask you, when you picked your second attraction at 11:00 AM what was the return time that you got?  Were all of your rides spaced two hours apart or were you able to still carry 2 even though some were within 2 hours?


----------



## Juventus

What time have ROTR ILL$ been selling out?  Any chance for us mere mortals who usually stay offsite to grab one right at park opening before about 6:30 pm?  I don't  know if I'd trust much of a later time given its (lack of) reliability.


----------



## stephk1981

Juventus said:


> What time have ROTR ILL$ been selling out?  Any chance for us mere mortals who usually stay offsite to grab one right at park opening before about 6:30 pm?  I don't  know if I'd trust much of a later time given its (lack of) reliability.


We have tried twice this past week without luck....we live about 15 minutes from the park. We have a resort staycation in a couple of weeks, so I think it will be easier then. I may be giving up hope fir a ILL pass for ROTR from home. Hoping you have better luck than we have!


----------



## AmishGuy91

stephk1981 said:


> We have tried twice this past week without luck....we live about 15 minutes from the park. We have a resort staycation in a couple of weeks, so I think it will be easier then. I may be giving up hope fir a ILL pass for ROTR from home. Hoping you have better luck than we have!



if you’re local why would you ever pay for a ride?  Either rope drop or go near closing and you won’t have much wait even for RotR


----------



## stephk1981

AmishGuy91 said:


> if you’re local why would you ever pay for a ride?  Either rope drop or go near closing and you won’t have much wait even for RotR


Both are hard to do with a 3 year old....but I also have a 13 year old, who likes to go...so getting boarding groups before worked really well for us. This not so much, but that's okay! We'll get on eventually!


----------



## jojomoore

Can resort guests book  genie plus attractions  at 7 am on arrival day?  I am trying to decide if using it on arrival day is possible. We usually visit HS toy storyland on arrival day and then rope drop HS another day. I think trying to fit HS into one day during a very crowded time might not be ideal. I think i am going to stalk the attraction wait times to help me plan.


----------



## Missmaureen78

There's been a lot of questions about buying G+ in advance (and having to book for entire trip) vs. buying each individual day.  Not sure if this particular angle was covered, but just in case:

We currently have a 3-day park pass booked, to which I've already added G+.  We were planning on doing MK, Epcot and HS.  This morning, we decided to add a park ticket for the day we arrive and do AK in the afternoon/evening.  We do not want G+ for that park.  By booking a new ticket (not extending my current one) I could just buy a regular ticket without the G+ add on.

It's cumbersome (and you'd lose out on the small discount when booking a multi-day pass)  but if you only wanted to buy G+ for select days, you can book separate tickets for G+ days and non-G+ days. And then not have to worry about adding G+ to your tickets the day of.

**I didn't test if this works if your non-G+ days would be in the middle of your trip.**


----------



## Bibbobboo2u

katyringo said:


> I'm really trying to think through HS day. No hopper.
> 
> I think my plan is going to be to buy individual LL for rise and MMRR- aiming for like the 12-2pm slots.  I plan to use my early entry to head toward TT and rocking roller coaster. Im solo
> So I can use single rider at RR.  So right now my debate is do I go for SDD as my first genie or smugglers run.  I think if I can get an earlier return time I would go for SDD.. I just don't know.. need to learn more.


We were at HWS on Tuesday and used G+.  You should pull SDD first, as it will eventually give out of return times before MFSR, which still had return times showing at 6pm that day.  Of course, every day will be different. I posted more detail about that day in the other Genie thread.  Good luck!


----------



## g-dad66

wisblue said:


> Today could be an interesting one to watch, especially at MK.
> 
> Touring Plans has this as a crowd 7 day and in this first half hour they have several expected times longer than the posted times.
> 
> It will be interesting to watch how standby waits and LL return times compare to yesterday.




Here are two that I have my eye on because of the way I think we will want to do them.

At 11:00 on October 22
Jungle Cruise return time: 2:05
Peter Pan return time: 1:55

At 11:00 on October 23
Jungle Cruise return time: 2:05
Peter Pan return time: 1:55

Weird that they are exactly the same both days.

Also these are pretty close to the same for both days:
At 11:00 on October 22
Millenium Falcon return time: 4:25
Toy Story Mania return time: 12:10

At 11:00 on October 23
Millenium Falcon return time: 4:15
Toy Story Mania return time: 12:35


----------



## cfw213

Im not sure if this has been discussed today but I’m pleasantly surprised at the return times in MK, specifically because it is “sold out” today. So far they’re tracking about the same as they were all week. I have to think on busy days they allocate more Genie+ than standby.


----------



## Missmaureen78

cfw213 said:


> Im not sure if this has been discussed today but I’m pleasantly surprised at the return times in MK, specifically because it is “sold out” today. So far they’re tracking about the same as they were all week. I have to think on busy days they allocate more Genie+ than standby.



I've been very encouraged by what I've seen today and yesterday.


----------



## cfw213

Missmaureen78 said:


> I've been very encouraged by what I've seen today and yesterday.


Me too. TP has the MK at a 7 today. We are going on an 8 day and I was concerned it would be a bust but honestly it’s looking great.


----------



## katyringo

It's worth saying that the reason HS is going to be a park where genie is most useful but also may require the most strategy with early entry and individual lightening lanes (at least in my brain) is because it simply doesn't have enough rides but houses some of the most in demand rides at WDW.

At Disneyland we used maxpass with a hopper because it's SO easy to just treat the whole Disneyland resort as one big park.. we would start out day with early entry in Disneyland while starting to stack our DCA fastpasses. However now that you can't park hop at Disneyland until 1pm I will anticipate the same thing we are seeing happen at Hollywood studios will happen at DCA.  DCA holds some most of the in demand rides on the Disneyland resort (not rise.. but still)...


----------



## Disturbia

emilymad said:


> I am not seeing how this will work for people who take a mid day break.  Very quickly the return times are in our break time.  I guess wait and stack for the evening?
> 
> If the return times are getting late in the day so fast with moderate crowds how many of these attractions will sell out on the truly crowded times?  We go around Thanksgiving and I am not confident that most of the headliners will sell out early.  Unless Disney changes their capacity with is always possible.


Book the highest wait Genie+ ride for the earliest time slot, ride one big attraction at/close to rope drop (or pay LLIA$ for it), ride a few more high wait rides, book the second highest for a late afternoon before leaving the parks; stack or take a real break mid day and then come back in the evening for a few more filler rides and save one (or pay LLiA$) for park close.  

OR you can try maximizing by riding little kids rides all day long and get your count of rides up


----------



## wisblue

kiramay said:


> I have two trips coming up. The first is in only a couple of weeks. Just my husband and I for Food and Wine and the new ROTR ride. Originally I wasn’t going to pay for G+ at all on this trip and just pay for the one ILL ride. But now I’m considering paying for once day to play with it at HS and hopping to Epcot. The plan will be the earliest SDD possible, early ILL ROTR, and RD Tot and RnRC. Maybe squeeze in TSMM and ST.
> 
> Then hop. VQ Remy (or ride it another day). LL TT and Soarin. That’s about all we care about.



That sounds very similar to what I plan to do at DHS. If by rope drop you mean resort guest early entry you should be able to do all of those things with time to spare before the 2 PM hopper window opens.


----------



## kiramay

wisblue said:


> That sounds very similar to what I plan to do at DHS. If by rope drop you mean resort guest early entry you should be able to do all of those things with time to spare before the 2 PM hopper window opens.



Thank you! Yes, I mean the new early entry. All the terms have changed. Lol
We’re hoping to have a relaxing trip, no rushing around. Probably hanging out at Brown Derby Lounge or Baseline Taphouse and people watch.


----------



## wilkydelts

I maybe confused on something so please clarify. Why are people waiting to book their second selection until 11a when you are allowed to get one 2hours after original 7a booking? Why not book second pass at 9a?


----------



## Welsh_Dragon

wilkydelts said:


> I maybe confused on something so please clarify. Why are people waiting to book their second selection until 11a when you are allowed to get one 2hours after original 7a booking? Why not book second pass at 9a?


You have to wait until 2 hours after official park opening to book your second G+LL.


----------



## katyringo

Welsh_Dragon said:


> You have to wait until 2 hours after official park opening to book your second G+LL.



IF your 1st return time is more that 2 hours after park opening.


----------



## ShelsGoingToDisney

rmclain73 said:


> Great strategy you set up for yourself there! Let me ask you, when you picked your second attraction at 11:00 AM what was the return time that you got?  Were all of your rides spaced two hours apart or were you able to still carry 2 even though some were within 2 hours?



It's been 24 hours and I am now sitting in the airport but I'll try and remember my times best I can. 

JC booked for 10:55 at 7:02, Pirates booked for 12:10 at 11, Peter Pan for 2:10 at app. 11:15 after riding JC (couldn't get wifi in the line or around it), went to Tiki Room, Small World for 1:50 at app. 12:10 after checking into Pirates. Road stand-by Mermaid, had ice cream, Big Thunder for 4:30 at 1:50 after checking in for SW, 4:45 for Haunted Mansion after checking in for PP, had lunch at Crystal Palace at 2:45, rode BT at 4:30, and booked Buzz for 5:05, rode HM at app. 4:45 and booked Speedway for 5:30. Went to the Poly for eum Dole Whip, returned and went back behind the castle for fireworks, and then rode mine train stand-by at 8:15. Boo Bash after.

You have the check through the second checkpoint of a ride before the LL opens for you, but other than that 9-11 2-hour window time no longer mattered.


----------



## Disturbia

Welsh_Dragon said:


> You have to wait until 2 hours after official park opening to book your second G+LL.


This is incorrect.  You can book say Jungle cruise 9-10 am at 7 am; then at 9:15 ride and book Big Thunder 9:15-10:15; then say it took 15 mins to scan; book Pirates 9:30-10:30 and at 10:30 you could *only get Monsters at 5-6 pm (depends on availability; as Genie+ is next available only)*  Now you have a cool down period of 2 hours FROM booking time so 10:30-12:30 pm.  AT 12:30 pm you can book another pass for whenever - 12:30-1 (let’s say you don’t choose this) or you can book 6-7 pm whatever.  If you do stack again and book 6-7 you’re giving up riding currently with Genie+ and have another 2 hour cooling period (so no rides 12:30-2:30);

https://allears.net/2021/10/21/how-can-you-stack-multiple-disney-genie-reservations/
the people who are waiting till 11 am are doing am standby and trying to stack everything in the PM or late afternoon


----------



## Disturbia

Per allears:

One of the most complicated aspects of Genie+ is the two-hour cool-down rule. When you book a Lightning Lane with Genie+ you can book a new one either when you use your existing Lightning Lane or *two hours after selection time.*

This two-hour rule won’t go into play except with high-demand attractions. For instance, say you wake up at 7AM and select a 7PM Slinky Dog Dash Lightning Lane. That doesn’t mean you’re locked out of Lightning Lanes all the way until you use that one at 7PM.


----------



## ZeeWP

The stacking and being able to overlap make the strategy SOUND really fun. BUT BUT, on busy days, will there be enough passes to make it worth it?

I worry that during Thanksgiving break next year, if I get G+, I will be able to use it only for SDD and that's it. by the time the two hour passes, all the good ones (MFSR, ToT, RRC) will be gone. So basically it will be the same cost as Rise to ride SDD.

I am probably getting overly anxious too soon...


----------



## Disturbia

In the allears example they couldn’t get anything at 9 (when they tried booking at 7; exaggerating) that they wanted (and booked an evening pass), so now they ride standby until *2 hours from park opening* when they can book another pass

OR

now if you had a 9 am pass (and scanned second turnstile at 9:32) and booked the late afternoon pass at 9:32 am; you can start booking more at 11:32 am (*2 hour cool off starts from when you booked* the pm pass).


----------



## Disturbia




----------



## kranzaldua

Jrb1979 said:


> MMRR up $2 today to $10
> Avatar up $3 to $14
> Frozen and Remy each up $2 to $11
> 7DMT up $2 to $12
> SM up $2 to $9
> 
> They weren't lying when they said prices will change.
> 
> 
> You aren't waiting in line so it's a big savings. Why use G+ for a headliner. Why not do it during early entry? Here is my plan. At 7am I book my first LL for Test Track for park open. Then at early entry ride Soarin. With that both headliners age done and use G+ for everything else





Jrb1979 said:


> MMRR up $2 today to $10
> Avatar up $3 to $14
> Frozen and Remy each up $2 to $11
> 7DMT up $2 to $12
> SM up $2 to $9
> 
> They weren't lying when they said prices will change.


Already?!  Wowzas!!!


----------



## randumb0

Are people really paying for Genie + for everyday of their  trip?


----------



## Bullseye

randumb0 said:


> Are people really paying for Genie + for everyday of their  trip?


 I know, I think I will only use once at each park over six day tickets.


----------



## Tom_E_D

kranzaldua said:


> Already?!  Wowzas!!!


Some of the ILL$ prices went up because it's the weekend. When they gave examples at the media event a few weeks ago, they indicated prices for some rides would be higher today (Saturday) than on Tuesday. I would expect most, if not all, of those increased prices to be reduced again (to Tuesday's prices) on Monday.


----------



## PinkPixel

DisneyFive said:


> I plan to purchase G+ every day (maybe not AK) because our favorite rides, FOP and EE are ILL.  That leaves VERY little reason to purchase G+ there.
> 
> I plan to book my first G+ for, hopefully, about 30 minutes after park opening (this will have a window of 30 minutes to 90 minutes after park open)  That way when rope drop crowds build I have a G+ to use instead.  Then I will book the heck out of my day using as many G+ I can.
> 
> On our arrival day, I will book G+ selections in the park we intent to hop to. That way I can stack a few up.  Yes, we will have to tap into our reserved park first and then immediately hop, but I'm o.k. with that.
> 
> I can't wait for Tron to open in MK because I can't stand the fact that Space is a ILL selection.  I want Space on the G+ list instead.
> 
> Dan


You can buy ILL without buying Genie+?


----------



## kilik64

PinkPixel said:


> You can buy ILL without buying Genie+?


Yes


----------



## dischris11

This is our first time using MDE and obviously genie. I just noticed that all of my kids say their plans are managed by me but my husbands account does not. He is still listed under my friends and family. Will I be able to make genie+ and virtual queue reservations for all of us including him? Is there anything specific I need to do to make sure all five of us are getting the same ride time? Thanks!


----------



## Disturbia

kilik64 said:


> Yes


To be clear, for only the top 2 rides per park (*at launch*):


----------



## CampbellzSoup

Well with all the sell outs that it’s constantly pulling in it’s not going away!

I love reading this thread it’s fascinating


----------



## PepperjackDragon

HS to MK park hopping with Genie+ today Saturday Oct 24th

so the basic plan then how it played out.

we have done everything we wanted 2-3 times this week without Genie EXCEPT slinky dog and splash. So the idea was to early entry HS pick up a genie plus for Slinky then triple stack for a 2pm MK arrival.

It worked. I’ll give the final results then a few tips from my experience. Not a pro, just my first time using it but maybe it will be helpful.

7am:           SD booked for 1043am
8:15-           arrive to park
8:30-910:    MMRR then MFSR
9:10-11:00  Plenty of time left for a quick toy story
                    and saucers. Frozen song along.
11:00-          book 1:35pm splash mountain
                     (considered a  noon toy story but
                      wanted to let kids rest)
11:15             Slinky dog
11:16             book splash at 1:35pm (later changed
                      to 2pm, must have gone down)
11:30             Hotel bus: worst wait of the day by far
1:16.              Book Jungle cruise (daughter request

2pm arrive at MK

here I will just list the LL I got and what they changed to after getting the rides

LL0: Slinky

A1: splash 2pm
B1: thunder mountain 2:20pm
C1: Jungle Cruise 2:50pm

A2irates of Car 3:25
B2: Peter Pan 5pm (had to refresh 5 times to get it here)
C2: Pooh 4pm

A3: Ariel 4:30
B3: Haunted Mansion 7pm
C3: Mad Tea 4:25

A4: Buzz at 815
C4: small world (we also worked small world in but can’t remember which ride I booked it after, did it right before Pan. Something seems slightly off in the transition order actually but very close to how it went down.)

This was the busiest day yet. Everyone of the rides was showing 60+ between 2-5pm when we rode, a few looked to be overestimated but some looked like underestimates. Really long and slow lines.

From 530ish (requested West wing so got delayed-huge mistake imo)-815 we ate at BOG and watched enchantment. I had a dilemma here, I couldn’t book things far enough out about because all except for Haunted Mansion were within 20-40min away and we were eating. Only had stuff like Barnstormer left to get and they just weren’t going to book up in advance. To keep the triple stack LL going I just booked and then canceled and rebooked later. I ended up pushing haunted mansion back until 9pm on purpose. We could have easily risen every G+ Via the triple stack but ended up shopping after eating, rode Mine train and called it the end of the trip.

Frankly it worked amazingly well and really made an excellent last day. However it wouldn’t work as well in HS because they just don’t have enough rides so they get booked pretty far out early on. Might be possible though if you were at AK and triple stacked for a jump to HS, but I doubt it. However it works so well jumping to MK it turns MK into a 1 or at MOST 1.5 day park. If one rope dropped FOP and paid ROTR and for MMR and evening rode Seven Dwarves it might be possible to complete all three parks (Genie+ and ILL rides only) in a single day, assuming smooth transportation especially once they allow hopping prior to 2pm. A stretch but I think it may be possible.

honestly if you add this to a 10 day trip I really don’t think the parks can sustain you for that long at this pace.  Will either have to underutilize Genie+ or ride everything 5-10 times. Will edit later with my tips from experience.


----------



## rpfennig

PepperjackDragon said:


> Will either have to underutilize Genie+ or ride everything 5-10 times.



I am okay with the latter. 

I tend to think of Epcot as the afternoon part of park hopping but this might push MK into that space. Will be interesting to see if this shifts the way people park hop in ways that Disney didn't foresee.


----------



## Kazi7

PepperjackDragon said:


> HS to MK park hopping with Genie+ today Saturday Oct 24th
> 7am:           SD booked for 1043am
> 8:15-           arrive to park
> 8:30-910:    MMRR then MFSR
> 9:10-11:00  Plenty of time left for a quick toy story
> and saucers. Frozen song along.
> 11:00-          book 1:35pm splash mountain
> (considered a  noon toy story but
> wanted to let kids rest)
> 11:15             Slinky dog




I thought I was getting this stuff fairly well but maybe not.  In the above, at 7 am Slinky was booked for 10:43 and before they tapped in to the ride, they were able to pull a second one at 11:00 for Splash Mountain?  I thought you could only pull the second (stacked) one at 11 if your first return time was later.


----------



## bluealien626

wisblue said:


> Anyway, unless they only show if you have already purchased Genie+ or have tapped into your first park, the statements that later return times are offered to people  with hopper tickets may not be accurate.


From what I've heard, you won't be able to see the later times until you book. After you press the button to "book attraction", your assigned time will be 2 or after on the next page regardless of what time was listed on the tip board when you booked.


----------



## Babars_Wife

Kazi7 said:


> I thought you could only pull the second (stacked) one at 11 if your first return time was later.



In this case their “return time” was after 11 because they probably waited until after 11 to scan into their ride (window was 10:40-11:40 and they scanned at 11:15ish)


----------



## CWTC

bluealien626 said:


> From what I've heard, you won't be able to see the later times until you book. After you press the button to "book attraction", your assigned time will be 2 or after on the next page regardless of what time was listed on the tip board when you booked.


I can confirm this. Epcot is our first park and we wanted to ride ROTR again:  booked that for 3pm and Smuggler’s run was showing LL for 1120am.  I was curious what would happen if I tried to book it: G+ presented me with a 2 pm LL for it with a comment of “time adjusted for park hopping.”


----------



## Miffy

Let's say you didn't purchase G+ and now you're in MK, for example, and you see all the standby wait times are not to your liking and you're thinking of buying G+.

Will Genie show you what the next available G+ times would be if you purchased it? Or would you just be taking a stab at better wait times if you purchase G+?

And, similarly, would you be able to see what G+s had already sold out?

I'm picturing myself RDing, then later in the morning maybe wanting to repeat some rides that now have longer standby lines.


----------



## wisblue

The Tip Board on the app shows both standby wait times and the available LL return time.

If the LL spots for an attraction are “sold out” it will say “not available”.


----------



## randumb0

Would Genie + be considered an upper level course at the local university?


----------



## ZeeWP

Kazi7 said:


> I thought I was getting this stuff fairly well but maybe not.  In the above, at 7 am Slinky was booked for 10:43 and before they tapped in to the ride, they were able to pull a second one at 11:00 for Splash Mountain?  I thought you could only pull the second (stacked) one at 11 if your first return time was later.


I think it's the tapping in time, not the return time. So it's 2 hours after park opening OR after you tap into the ride with the LL OR when the window of that ride is closed if you don't use LL pass.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

Tips from my days experience:

1: set up your tip board with your desired rides the night before. The tip board is what you use to make selections.

2: add selections that might sell out first then add by  area in the park-s they cap the # of attractions added to your list, so this way you don’t have towalk back and forth.

3: when a specific selection time is not to yourliking you can pull down and refresh. Alternatively, if the attraction you want is farther down the list this can be irritating because you have to scroll down and refine it on your list. Instead, if you tap the attraction then click the back arrow it will repopulate the list and keep the chosen selection at the top of your screen. (On iPhone anyway)

4: you have to click the last checkin Mickey stile before you can rebook. If you are close to the end of your window I recommend taking a screenshot of the ressie? Didn’t test what would happpen if the time expired while between the two.

5: I don’t know what happens if you have multiple stacked LL times that are unassigned. (I had 3, but was worried that if I left two unassigned I would lose one, as I doubt the system allows you two simultaneous unassigned LL) this, if you want to ride everything and take a dinner break, plan to leave a couple of the more popular attractions until evening. I got stuck with only close arrival times on small attractions, so had to either risk letting them “expire” or had to constantly login and reassign times which got irritating and risks forgetting and using up an attraction on accident.

6: holidays might not work but to get sddat The 2hlur mark I clicked it at exactly 7am, saw 9am time,gave A fast two count and clicked it-showed 1035 for me.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

ZeeWP said:


> The stacking and being able to overlap make the strategy SOUND really fun. BUT BUT, on busy days, will there be enough passes to make it worth it?
> 
> I worry that during Thanksgiving break next year, if I get G+, I will be able to use it only for SDD and that's it. by the time the two hour passes, all the good ones (MFSR, ToT, RRC) will be gone. So basically it will be the same cost as Rise to ride SDD.
> 
> I am probably getting overly anxious too soon...


I’m going Christmas week so I’m really curious to see how this works out on Thanksgiving.  I feel like they’re going to have to do something to increase LL availability for the busy days (maybe by changing the LL/standby ratio), because otherwise you’re right, people ar going to be paying $15 pp for one ride.  I’ve also heard reports that LL’s are almost always walk-ones.  I think they could increase the number of LL’s given out to give LL people around a 15 minute wait on average to increase aviailability, especially on busy days.


----------



## Boardwalk III

DL1WDW2 said:


> If you are having problems I suggest you update your personal info on file with MDE especially update the Wallet APP . Somebody suggested that when I went into AT&T for Genie help. And they didn’t even try to sell me a new phone!
> I also have better online since I narrowed down all those magicbands on MDE….instead of having over 10 linked  magicbands connected to my name I now have only 2…front desk suggested that was problem .
> You can modify and editthe magicbands online when you use Your MDE . It took me awhile to figure it out but it can be done.



Were you able to delete your extra magic bands? I have more than 10 and need to get rid of some. I did move many of them to “inactive” but I’ve also heard it doesn’t really help unless you delete them and you have to call DISNEY IT for that. Wondering if that’s true?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Tom_E_D said:


> Some of the ILL$ prices went up because it's the weekend. When they gave examples at the media event a few weeks ago, they indicated prices for some rides would be higher today (Saturday) than on Tuesday. I would expect most, if not all, of those increased prices to be reduced again (to Tuesday's prices) on Monday.


How much do you want to bet the prices never get as low as they were on opening day, ever again?


----------



## ZeeWP

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I’m going Christmas week so I’m really curious to see how this works out on Thanksgiving.  I feel like they’re going to have to do something to increase LL availability for the busy days (maybe by changing the LL/standby ratio), because otherwise you’re right, people ar going to be paying $15 pp for one ride.  I’ve also heard reports that LL’s are almost always walk-ones.  I think *they could increase the number of LL’s given *out to give LL people around a 15 minute wait on average to increase aviailability, especially on busy days.



That is my hope!


----------



## ZeeWP

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> How much do you want to bet the prices never get as low as they were on opening day, ever again?


For some, like Rise yeah, they going up up up.

But EE or Space Mountain, I can see them either going lower, or disappearing into G+.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

PepperjackDragon said:


> HS to MK park hopping with Genie+ today Saturday Oct 24th
> 
> so the basic plan then how it played out.
> 
> we have done everything we wanted 2-3 times this week without Genie EXCEPT slinky dog and splash. So the idea was to early entry HS pick up a genie plus for Slinky then triple stack for a 2pm MK arrival.
> 
> It worked. I’ll give the final results then a few tips from my experience. Not a pro, just my first time using it but maybe it will be helpful.
> 
> 7am:           SD booked for 1043am
> 8:15-           arrive to park
> 8:30-910:    MMRR then MFSR
> 9:10-11:00  Plenty of time left for a quick toy story
> and saucers. Frozen song along.
> 11:00-          book 1:35pm splash mountain
> (considered a  noon toy story but
> wanted to let kids rest)
> 11:15             Slinky dog
> 11:16             book splash at 1:35pm (later changed
> to 2pm, must have gone down)
> 11:30             Hotel bus: worst wait of the day by far
> 1:16.              Book Jungle cruise (daughter request
> 
> 2pm arrive at MK
> 
> here I will just list the LL I got and what they changed to after getting the rides
> 
> LL0: Slinky
> 
> A1: splash 2pm
> B1: thunder mountain 2:20pm
> C1: Jungle Cruise 2:50pm
> 
> A2irates of Car 3:25
> B2: Peter Pan 5pm (had to refresh 5 times to get it here)
> C2: Pooh 4pm
> 
> A3: Ariel 4:30
> B3: Haunted Mansion 7pm
> C3: Mad Tea 4:25
> 
> A4: Buzz at 815
> C4: small world (we also worked small world in but can’t remember which ride I booked it after, did it right before Pan. Something seems slightly off in the transition order actually but very close to how it went down.)
> 
> This was the busiest day yet. Everyone of the rides was showing 60+ between 2-5pm when we rode, a few looked to be overestimated but some looked like underestimates. Really long and slow lines.
> 
> From 530ish (requested West wing so got delayed-huge mistake imo)-815 we ate at BOG and watched enchantment. I had a dilemma here, I couldn’t book things far enough out about because all except for Haunted Mansion were within 20-40min away and we were eating. Only had stuff like Barnstormer left to get and they just weren’t going to book up in advance. To keep the triple stack LL going I just booked and then canceled and rebooked later. I ended up pushing haunted mansion back until 9pm on purpose. We could have easily risen every G+ Via the triple stack but ended up shopping after eating, rode Mine train and called it the end of the trip.
> 
> Frankly it worked amazingly well and really made an excellent last day. However it wouldn’t work as well in HS because they just don’t have enough rides so they get booked pretty far out early on. Might be possible though if you were at AK and triple stacked for a jump to HS, but I doubt it. However it works so well jumping to MK it turns MK into a 1 or at MOST 1.5 day park. If one rope dropped FOP and paid ROTR and for MMR and evening rode Seven Dwarves it might be possible to complete all three parks (Genie+ and ILL rides only) in a single day, assuming smooth transportation especially once they allow hopping prior to 2pm. A stretch but I think it may be possible.
> 
> honestly if you add this to a 10 day trip I really don’t think the parks can sustain you for that long at this pace.  Will either have to underutilize Genie+ or ride everything 5-10 times. Will edit later with my tips from experience.


Wait, so if you cancel a stacked LL you can immediately rebook another attraction as well?  Interesting.  I think this is yet more evidence that stacking, especially at MK, is the key strategy here.


----------



## Miffy

PepperjackDragon said:


> 5: I don’t know what happens if you have multiple *stacked LL times that are unassigned*. (I had 3, but was worried that if I left two unassigned I would lose one, as I doubt the system allows you two simultaneous unassigned LL) this, if you want to ride everything and take a dinner break, plan to leave a couple of the more popular attractions until evening. I got stuck with only close arrival times on small attractions, so had to either risk letting them “expire” or had to constantly login and reassign times which got irritating and risks forgetting and using up an attraction on accident.



Could you explain what you mean by "unassigned"? Thank you!


----------



## Alexis56578

randumb0 said:


> Would Genie + be considered an upper level course at the local university?



College student here. I could totally see this being a 2 or 3000 level course.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Miffy said:


> Could you explain what you mean by "unassigned"? Thank you!


I think he means that, once he had stacked 3, he had the ability to make 3 at a time.  But he didn’ tknow what would happen if he let two expire at onc without booking a new one.  I would assume that would mean you would lose one of the “stacks.”


----------



## Miffy

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I think he means that, once he had stacked 3, he had the ability to make 3 at a time.  But he didn’ tknow what would happen if he let two expire at onc without booking a new one.  I would assume that would mean you would lose one of the “stacks.”


I admit that now I'm completely confused!


----------



## thanxfornoticin

randumb0 said:


> Would Genie + be considered an upper level course at the local university?


No more so than the education level required for Disney planning before!  Dining at 180, now 60.  FP+ at 60.  Park hopping or not.  Park reservations.  For those DVC, reservations at 11 months or 7 months.  Online dining starting at 6am et.  "Play" options online at 7am et.  Mobile order.  Dining plans.  Discounts for this and that.  

It has always been a magical place, but one you really needed to understand to take full advantage.  We always joked about needing a PhD in Disney (not just a high-level course!).  G+ and ILL$ will be more of the same - until the next generation of tech comes out.  And there will be another generation of change at some point!


----------



## Boardwalk III

randumb0 said:


> Would Genie + be considered an upper level course at the local university?



Best Genie Plus post ever!


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Miffy said:


> I admit that now I'm completely confused!


You can make one LL attraction at a time generally. After you use one, you can make another.  EXCEPT if you  have a LL pass that is more then 120 minutes into the future, you can make an additional one after 120 minutes.  Thereafter you can effectively make 2 for the rest of the day, one after each one expires.  An unknown at this point is what happens if you let both of them expire without booking a new one first.  Can you still make two for the rest of the day because the system “remembers” that you were stacked, or can you only make one for the rest of the day.  He was worried about testing that theory.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

I apologize for not having read every post, but where did the conversations start about some sort of limit of 3 with LL?  I've not seen such a restriction, but might've misread the post.  Is there a limit of 3 being held at the same time?  Thanks.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I think he means that, once he had stacked 3, he had the ability to make 3 at a time.  But he didn’ tknow what would happen if he let two expire at onc without booking a new one.  I would assume that would mean you would lose one of the “stacks.”


 Yes.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

thanxfornoticin said:


> I apologize for not having read every post, but where did the conversations start about some sort of limit of 3 with LL?  I've not seen such a restriction, but might've misread the post.  Is there a limit of 3 being held at the same time?  Thanks.


There does not appear to be an upward limit to the number held at the same time except the practical limit that you can only book one every 120 minutes if you’re stacking into the future and the parks are only open for so long.  I could see on long park hour days (like Christmastime), being able to stack 4 at once, but on normal days I would bet the practical limit for all intents and purposes is 3.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> There does not appear to be an upward limit to the number held at the same time except the practical limit that you can only book one every 120 minutes if you’re stacking into the future and the parks are only open for so long.  I could see on long park hour days (like Christmastime), being able to stack 4 at once, but on normal days I would bet the practical limit for all intents and purposes is 3.


Agreed.  Was just wondering if I missed something in the restrictions.  You're right - it would be tough to accumulate more than 2 or 3 at the same time with the 2-hour requirement.


----------



## DsnyDreaminDad

I’ve skimmed through 15 pages of this topic and have reached one conclusion…

This is way more complicated than it should be!


----------



## thanxfornoticin

DsnyDreaminDad said:


> I’ve skimmed through 15 pages of this topic and have reached one conclusion…
> 
> This is way more complicated than it should be!


I don't disagree with you.  But since it's only been operating a few days, there are still way more questions than answers.  Once they work out the technical kinks and people understand the dos and don'ts, it should get better.  I remember when FP+ first came out - similar confusion.  Remember all the questions about getting a 4th FP and getting a FP at a different park during the day?  I feel confident Disney will be motivated to make this 'cash flow' workable and understandable - they will want people to buy it.


----------



## slo

DsnyDreaminDad said:


> I’ve skimmed through 15 pages of this topic and have reached one conclusion…
> 
> This is way more complicated than it should be!



LOL!
I’ve been studying this more than some exams I’ve taken. 
I’m so glad that when we started taking our DD’s 21 years ago that everything was more simple. You’d stick your park ticket into the fastpass ticket machine, get your fastpass return ticket and move on with your day. So easy!


----------



## Miffy

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> You can make one LL attraction at a time generally. After you use one, you can make another.  EXCEPT if you  have a LL pass that is more then 120 minutes into the future, you can make an additional one after 120 minutes.  Thereafter you can effectively make 2 for the rest of the day, one after each one expires.  An unknown at this point is what happens if you let both of them expire without booking a new one first.  Can you still make two for the rest of the day because the system “remembers” that you were stacked, or can you only make one for the rest of the day.  He was worried about testing that theory.


I think I get it, but I still don't understand the use of the word "unassigned." How can you reserve a LL and it's also "unassigned"? Isn't it assigned as soon as you reserve it? That's the part I don't get. The post I was asking about said "stacked LL times that are unassigned." Doesn't "stacked" imply that you've reserved them? Or maybe I don't understand the meaning of "stacked"!

ETA: I look forward to the day when there's a sticky that explains all the ins and outs of G/G+/ILL$, but I expect that'll be a while from now, since it's still so new and the genie pigs aren't finished their vital work!


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Has anyone seen any reports of how Geine+ and ILL$ is working with rider switch?  I have a 2 year old, a 6 year old, and my wife and I on our next trip.  Consider the folliowing scenarios:

1.  My 2 year old is 38 inches (probably by December for our trip, she’s 37.5 right now so it’s close!).  I purchase an ILL$ for myself, my wife, and my 6 year old for Ratatouille.  I assume my 2 year old can ride with us as well without purchasing an ILL$ since she’s too young for a ticket anyway?
2.  Same question as above but for a regular LL attraction, let’s say Peter Pan.  I get a LL reservation for myself, my wife, and my 6 year old.  I assume my 2 year old can come as well without Genie+ since she’s not old enough for a ticket?
3.  I purchase an ILL$ For Expedition Everest for myself, my wife, and my 6 year old.  My 2 year old is not tall enough for this ride.  Can I rider switch so that my 6 year old gets to ride twice, once with my wife, and once with me?
4.  I purchase an ILL$ for Expedition Everest for my wife and 6 year old only.  I go to the rider switch line and ask to do rider switch so my 6 year old can ride twice and I can ride with her the second time…. Will this work?  This sometimes worked under the old fastpass system if you didnt’ have a FP+ for everyone in the group.
5.  Same question as #3 only now it’s a Genie+ attraction, let’s say Splash mountain;
6.  Same question as # 4 only it’s a Genie + attraction, Splash mountain.

Do we have any reports of conclusive answers to the above questions?


----------



## leeniewdw

PepperjackDragon said:


> 7am:           SD booked for 1043am
> 8:15-           arrive to park
> 8:30-910:    MMRR then MFSR
> 9:10-11:00  Plenty of time left for a quick toy story
> and saucers. Frozen song along.
> *11:00-          book 1:35pm splash mountain*
> (considered a  noon toy story but
> wanted to let kids rest)
> 11:15             Slinky dog
> *11:16             book splash at 1:35pm (later changed
> to 2pm, must have gone down)*
> 11:30             Hotel bus: worst wait of the day by far
> 1:16.              Book Jungle cruise (daughter request
> 
> 2pm arrive at MK
> 
> 
> honestly if you add this to a 10 day trip I really don’t think the parks can sustain you for that long at this pace.  Will either have to underutilize Genie+ or ride everything 5-10 times. Will edit later with my tips from experience.



This was a fantastic post, but I'm confused.  I thought G+ wouldn't allow a pre-2pm LL reservation in a park you are going to hop to?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

leeniewdw said:


> This was a fantastic post, but I'm confused.  I thought G+ wouldn't allow a pre-2pm LL reservation in a park you are going to hop to?


That’s interesting.  I bet that was a glitch and was the reason why his LL was changed from 1:35 to 2:00.


----------



## rmclain73

Did a test run from home yesterday for a future trip on what a park reservation day at HS could look like with stacking.  Over the last few days I have noticed that the big rides are already booking into the afternoon pretty early.  I think for HS it may be to your advantage to make it a later start.  With my families style of going into the parks I think this actually works into our favor.  We like to have a nice breakfast and relax a bit a the hotel before heading in.  This strategy could also be good for arrival days. 

I woke up at 7:30am (which is sleeping in for me) and started making notes.

At 7:30am I could have booked Slinky Dog for 3:05pm, booked a IALL for ROTR at 3:20pm, and booked a IALL for MMRR for 2:30pm.  At 11:00pm I checked and MFSR was available to book for 4:20pm.  At 1:00pm Toy Story Mania was available  for 2:45pm, and at 3:00pm TOT was available to book for 4:25pm.

Park day would have looked like something this based on what tip board was showing and using the hour window of booked attractions:

1:00pm - Arrive at HS
1:15pm Star Tours 10min Standby 
1:45pm Muppets 3D 10min Standby
2:30pm MMRR IALL
3:00pm TSM LL
3:30pm SDD LL
4:00pm ROTR IALL
4:30pm MFSR LL
5:10pm TOT LL 
5:40pm RnR 30min Standby


----------



## katyringo

randumb0 said:


> Are people really paying for Genie + for everyday of their  trip?



I did but I'm solo and I want to try it all before the family trip. I'm also doing Epcot on arrival day and won't be rope dropping - the Saturday after thanksgiving- so I want to be able to possibly book some rides in the evening. 

I only have 1 day in each park with Epcot being arrival day and MK departure day (I'm also doing Christmas party)... full day at AK and HS.

my thought is this for my solo trip: it's worth the money to me even tho I know I could strategize and get everything done without it. It's worth it because it's gonna let me save a good amount of time and this I'm gonna have more time to just take things easy and slow on my solo trips. Ima. Rope drop to closer person so if I use genie+ and do all the rides fairly easily then I have so much more time to just explore the parks in a way I haven't before.. idk of that makes sense but that's how my brain is doing it.

i also plan to buy individual lighning Lanes for  almost everything I can.(but I know I don't need Genie+ to do that)


----------



## zebrastreyepz

After watching all vlogs I can find where people were testing it, here is my plan for me and DH in first part of December:

No using the basic Genie or G+ at all. I will use Touring Plans instead. This COULD change as information about the holiday crowds become available especially with International travel opening up next month.

I will do ILL$ for Rise since we haven't been on it IF I can get it.


----------



## katyringo

Today smugglers seems to be going faster than slinky dog...


----------



## rmclain73

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> That’s interesting.  I bet that was a glitch and was the reason why his LL was changed from 1:35 to 2:00.



he said the ride went down and It got switched to 2 o’clock.


----------



## coolbrook

jo-jo said:


> thank you.    I feel stressed having to learn something else for a vacation.    I know I don't have to use and just do standby lanes.   But with my DH using a scooter for the first time, part of me is wanting to use it just for the shorter distances that he would have to drive inside rides.   I'm talking about you Little Mermaid.


I am so glad to hear someone else say this!  I use a rollator for walking at Disney and I was thinking that the shorter line lengths for Lightning Lane would add to value of purchasing G+ for me. Some that came to mind were Little Mermaid, Safari, and Finding Nemo.


----------



## chicagodisneyguy

So we're doing HS today and decided to sleep in.  We bought ROTR and MMRR at 7am ($15 & $10).  Our first LL ride was Slinky at noon but it's been broken all day.  So here's our current slate of attractions at 12:15pm:

12:15 to close- anytime LL
12:25pm TSM
1:15pm ROTR
1:55pm ToT
2:20pm MMRR
3:15pm RnR (after tapping in to TSM)

We walked on Startours in roughly 15 minutes thru standby line.  RnR is our next target so will update when we add.  For people that like arriving late...this stacking thing could be amazing.

also, once we were given the recovery fast pass for Slinky, we were immediately able to make another LL reservation...almost resetting the clock


----------



## LSUfan4444

chicagodisneyguy said:


> 12:15 to close- anytime LL


Can these be used even on something you're already done via G+?


----------



## snikki

LSUfan4444 said:


> Can these be used even on something you're already done via G+?



Yes. Someone on the trip report board said they got an anytime for splash after it broke down and were able to book an additional splash LL.


----------



## chicagodisneyguy

Thanks.  We were wondering that too.  We'd like to use it on Slinky if it reopens.  But one cast member said not looking likely.

Edit 1pm: just kidding  back open


----------



## snikki

chicagodisneyguy said:


> So we're doing HS today and decided to sleep in.  We bought ROTR and MMRR at 7am ($15 & $10).  Our first LL ride was Slinky at noon but it's been broken all day.  So here's our current slate of attractions at 12:15pm:
> 
> 12:15 to close- anytime LL
> 12:25pm TSM
> 1:15pm ROTR
> 1:55pm ToT
> 2:20pm MMRR
> 
> We walked on Startours in roughly 15 minutes thru standby line.  RnR is our next target so will update when we add.  For people that like arriving late...this stacking thing could be amazing.
> 
> also, once we were given the recovery fast pass for Slinky, we were immediately able to make another LL reservation...almost resetting the clock



I assume that at 11 am you made your TSM LL but when did you make the ToT. I’m very interested in the PM stacking strategy.


----------



## snikki

ElizaDoesDisney said:


> I initially planned to head out post-fireworks, but I was feeling good (that first day at Disney magic) and Splash was back up.   When Splash went down, they automatically turned my LL reservation into a pass good for the rest of the day at any LL line except the ILL$ and Peter Pan.  Later after finishing up Buzz - I thought to try to book another timeslot for Splash post-fireworks and was surprised it allowed it.  So I ambled all the way back to Frontierland and rode Splash twice.   It's one of my favorite - I love the ride mechanics and the story-telling; I'm excited to see what it will look like once it is rethemed.



The post I was referencing with usimg anytime LL and rebooking LL for same ride.


----------



## persnickity

Miffy said:


> I think I get it, but I still don't understand the use of the word "unassigned." How can you reserve a LL and it's also "unassigned"? Isn't it assigned as soon as you reserve it? That's the part I don't get. The post I was asking about said "stacked LL times that are unassigned." Doesn't "stacked" imply that you've reserved them? Or maybe I don't understand the meaning of "stacked"!
> 
> ETA: I look forward to the day when there's a sticky that explains all the ins and outs of G/G+/ILL$, but I expect that'll be a while from now, since it's still so new and the genie pigs aren't finished their vital work!



I'm a little in the weeds on this myself - but I think they were considered "stacked" from the moment more than 1 had been selected for the afternoon. So after that, they could continue stacking from the first 3. But once each of them is used, it's sitting there "unassigned" until another ride is selected. So it might be risky to tap into your second stacked ride before selecting a ride from the first - because then you'd have two free slots that haven't been used yet to grab new selections, and the system might not allow that.

Was that better, or worse? lol


----------



## Disturbia

ZeeWP said:


> I think it's the tapping in time, not the return time. So it's 2 hours after park opening OR after you tap into the ride with the LL OR when the window of that ride is closed if you don't use LL pass.


That’s right.  If you tapped in at 9:32 am to your first Genie+ attraction, then got your next Genie+ ride at say 3-4 pm; you have a cool down period so no rides 9:32-11:32 am and at 11:32 you can book your next Genie+ for current OR afternoon rides depending on availability

the park opening 2 hour cool down only applies if at 7 am you book a ride for 11:30 am or after (not sure if 11:05 also counts as you can enter 5 min before); maybe it’s 11:10 onwards); you can book a ride at 11 am so you don’t end up waiting more than 2 hours without a Genie+ pass


----------



## chicagodisneyguy

snikki said:


> I assume that at 11 am you made your TSM LL but when did you make the ToT. I’m very interested in the PM stacking strategy.


We made TSM at 11am.  Then ToT when we got the recovery LL.  Then just made RnR for 315 when we tapped in at TSM at 12:35. 

The good thing with stacking is it seems you get to make a new one when u use one.  So if u stack a bunch close u can keep making them.

Edit: ROTR paid line from tap in to the first show scene....45 seconds.  Worth $15 to us


----------



## Disturbia

Boardwalk III said:


> Were you able to delete your extra magic bands? I have more than 10 and need to get rid of some. I did move many of them to “inactive” but I’ve also heard it doesn’t really help unless you delete them and you have to call DISNEY IT for that. Wondering if that’s true?


I had many MBs and when IT had me clear  them (was having issues adding my mom and we had to wait 1.5 hr to get into Epcot and 45 mins on a Halloween party) by having me transfer my account to a new email and then back, that’s when they messed something up in my account.  My payment is never loaded and I have to go through hell to book reservations now; multiple time outs, email codes, no access screen, sometimes credit card shows up on app other times doesn’t; have to rescan my card and risk someone stealing it etc etc; (this is not limited to the peak booking time either) sometimes I get Disney Visa card offers sometimes I don’t; I never got an email or notification regarding the ROTR change last year from 10 am in park to 7 am in resort and walked in to the park dumbfounded.  I can’t mobile order at the milk stand; so I’m anticipating all these challenges to be multiplied with Genie+ and LLIA$ purchases at 7 am

I never had payment issues on my account before this mess

If you can, I would hold off on changes until after your trip.  It can mess up things you can’t even anticipate.  After over 6 hours with IT, I gave up and just deal with all this every time I book a dining reservation or make a payment on my account


----------



## cfw213

PepperjackDragon said:


> HS to MK park hopping with Genie+ today Saturday Oct 24th
> 
> so the basic plan then how it played out.
> 
> we have done everything we wanted 2-3 times this week without Genie EXCEPT slinky dog and splash. So the idea was to early entry HS pick up a genie plus for Slinky then triple stack for a 2pm MK arrival.
> 
> It worked. I’ll give the final results then a few tips from my experience. Not a pro, just my first time using it but maybe it will be helpful.
> 
> 7am:           SD booked for 1043am
> 8:15-           arrive to park
> 8:30-910:    MMRR then MFSR
> 9:10-11:00  Plenty of time left for a quick toy story
> and saucers. Frozen song along.
> 11:00-          book 1:35pm splash mountain
> (considered a  noon toy story but
> wanted to let kids rest)
> 11:15             Slinky dog
> 11:16             book splash at 1:35pm (later changed
> to 2pm, must have gone down)
> 11:30             Hotel bus: worst wait of the day by far
> 1:16.              Book Jungle cruise (daughter request
> 
> 2pm arrive at MK
> 
> here I will just list the LL I got and what they changed to after getting the rides
> 
> LL0: Slinky
> 
> A1: splash 2pm
> B1: thunder mountain 2:20pm
> C1: Jungle Cruise 2:50pm
> 
> A2irates of Car 3:25
> B2: Peter Pan 5pm (had to refresh 5 times to get it here)
> C2: Pooh 4pm
> 
> A3: Ariel 4:30
> B3: Haunted Mansion 7pm
> C3: Mad Tea 4:25
> 
> A4: Buzz at 815
> C4: small world (we also worked small world in but can’t remember which ride I booked it after, did it right before Pan. Something seems slightly off in the transition order actually but very close to how it went down.)
> 
> This was the busiest day yet. Everyone of the rides was showing 60+ between 2-5pm when we rode, a few looked to be overestimated but some looked like underestimates. Really long and slow lines.
> 
> From 530ish (requested West wing so got delayed-huge mistake imo)-815 we ate at BOG and watched enchantment. I had a dilemma here, I couldn’t book things far enough out about because all except for Haunted Mansion were within 20-40min away and we were eating. Only had stuff like Barnstormer left to get and they just weren’t going to book up in advance. To keep the triple stack LL going I just booked and then canceled and rebooked later. I ended up pushing haunted mansion back until 9pm on purpose. We could have easily risen every G+ Via the triple stack but ended up shopping after eating, rode Mine train and called it the end of the trip.
> 
> Frankly it worked amazingly well and really made an excellent last day. However it wouldn’t work as well in HS because they just don’t have enough rides so they get booked pretty far out early on. Might be possible though if you were at AK and triple stacked for a jump to HS, but I doubt it. However it works so well jumping to MK it turns MK into a 1 or at MOST 1.5 day park. If one rope dropped FOP and paid ROTR and for MMR and evening rode Seven Dwarves it might be possible to complete all three parks (Genie+ and ILL rides only) in a single day, assuming smooth transportation especially once they allow hopping prior to 2pm. A stretch but I think it may be possible.
> 
> honestly if you add this to a 10 day trip I really don’t think the parks can sustain you for that long at this pace.  Will either have to underutilize Genie+ or ride everything 5-10 times. Will edit later with my tips from experience.


Damn!! Great work!


----------



## Tom_E_D

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> How much do you want to bet the prices never get as low as they were on opening day, ever again?


I think the appropriate wager for this type of bet is "I told you so" rights. I expect we'll have an answer as to which of us is right in the next few days.


----------



## Turksmom

persnickity said:


> I'm a little in the weeds on this myself - but I think they were considered "stacked" from the moment more than 1 had been selected for the afternoon. So after that, they could continue stacking from the first 3. But once each of them is used, it's sitting there "unassigned" until another ride is selected. So it might be risky to tap into your second stacked ride before selecting a ride from the first - because then you'd have two free slots that haven't been used yet to grab new selections, and the system might not allow that.
> 
> Was that better, or worse? lol


Worse  I thought I understood it before, but now I don't. Glad the pool bars are still easy to operate


----------



## jvz82

**Sorry for this long play-by-play! I hope it's helpful to see how G+ worked for our group.**

We used Genie+ at MK on Friday with a group of 8 (4 adults, 4 kids). So far, I definitely prefer FP+ but obviously it's new and I don't know what I'm doing yet. I will add here that we often go at Christmas time, I'm used to crowds and I can count on one hand the number of times I've waited in a line over 30 minutes. But this trip it happened a LOT. 

At 7 am, I made a G+ reservation for Jungle Cruise at 10:30. 

We decided to RD 7DMT at park opening. We waited at the entrance of Fantasy land and they did not let us in until 8:30 on the dot. Everyone rushed towards 7 dwarves, only to be told that the ride was "experiencing delays". When I heard the cast member say that, I was like I am absolutely not sitting in a line all morning so we changed gears and went to Space Mountain. This cost us valuable time of course, and the wait was already 20 minutes by the time we got there. 

[Side note: My biggest frustration is that in the past, we almost always RD Space Mountain, and did a later FP for 7 dwarves. Usually we walked right on Space Mountain at RD and could even ride twice. This whole LL thing means that everyone goes to either of those two rides so they don't have to pay for it and it makes the RD lines so much longer. Ugh. Need a new strategy here I guess.]

Anyway, after SM, we did SB for Buzz LIghtyear, 5 minute wait. Then SB for the race cars, 10 minute wait. Then we walked over to Adventure Land to hit Pirates, which said it had a 15 minute wait. Well, by the time we got there it was increased to 45 and I was just feeling like I did not want to wait in a 45 minute line after we had paid for Genie + so we abandoned that plan and went on the Magic Carpets. Even that ride, which is usually a walk-on, was 15 minutes. 

I was under the impression that you could make another G+ reservation at 9 am, 2 hours after the first reservation. This did not happen, it would not let me make one until 11 am (2 hours after park opening) or after using my first G+. That really made me frustrated. In the future, I would book my first G+ earlier than 10:30 so I could book the next one sooner. 

At 10:30, hopped onto Jungle Cruise. Made a G+ reservation for IASW at 11:15. Ate lunch at Pecos Bills first. 

While in line for IASW, made a G+ reservation for Barnstormer at 11:45. While in line for that, made a G+ reservation for Haunted Mansion but couldn't get one until 3:10. 

After Barnstormer, did Country Bear Jamboree and Tiki Room (SB). Got some Dole Whips. Waited in a 45 minute SB line for Thunder Mountain. During the wait in line, our 2 hour window hit so I was able to make another G+ for Peter Pan at 5:55 pm even though we hadn't used our Haunted Mansion one yet. After Thunder, used our G+ for Haunted. 

Walked over to Tomorrow Land and hit up Carousel of Progress. Headed back to Fantasy Land and ate dinner at Pinocchio's Haus. Our 2 hour window hit again, so I made another G+ for Pirates at 6:10. I was surprised that G+ let me do that, so I simultaneously had G+ reservations for Peter Pan at 5:55, and Pirates at 6:10. 

After dinner, rode Peter, booked it across the park to do Pirates. 

Oh, I should add that 7 Dwarves was actually down for several hours. We had decided to pay for LL, and we had a reservation for that sometime around 12 pm and it was back up shortly before our LL was set. 

So it looks like 6 G+ reservations altogether. On a typical FP+ day, I probably would have gotten more at MK. I also would have had my day meticulously planned out so I think we would have waited in fewer lines. But when I look back on my day, I can see where the mistakes were and what to do differently next time. My current opinion is that it's NOT better than FP+ AND I had to pay for it, so I am feeling a little crotchety and "back in my day" about the whole thing.


----------



## dmunsil

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> An unknown at this point is what happens if you let both of them expire without booking a new one first.  Can you still make two for the rest of the day because the system “remembers” that you were stacked, or can you only make one for the rest of the day.  He was worried about testing that theory.



I tested this; you effectively lose the stack. The system is not, I don't believe, tracking how many outstanding LLs you have. It's just following simple rules:

- If you book a G+LL, your booking ability goes away and a 2-hour timer is set
- If you use, cancel or let expire any G+LL your booking ability returns and the timer is stopped and reset
- If the timer runs out, your booking ability returns

That's it. The concept of "stacking" is just a consequence of applying those rules. If you use a LL and your ability to book comes back, then use or cancel another one, nothing changes - you already have the ability to book.

In order to keep your "stack" you have to book another G+ reservation after using, canceling or letting expire any reservation or after your timer runs out. If you forget and use the next reservation, you've lost a booking opportunity.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

dmunsil said:


> I tested this; you effectively lose the stack. The system is not, I don't believe, tracking how many outstanding LLs you have. It's just following simple rules:
> 
> - If you book a G+LL, your booking ability goes away and a 2-hour timer is set
> - If you use, cancel or let expire any G+LL your booking ability returns and the timer is stopped and reset
> - If the timer runs out, your booking ability returns
> 
> That's it. The concept of "stacking" is just a consequence of applying those rules. If you use a LL and your ability to book comes back, then use or cancel another one, nothing changes - you already have the ability to book.
> 
> In order to keep your "stack" you have to book another G+ reservation after using, canceling or letting expire any reservation or after your timer runs out. If you forget and use the next reservation, you've lost a booking opportunity.


This makes sense.  Thanks for testing!


----------



## wgeo

snikki said:


> Yes. Someone on the trip report board said they got an anytime for splash after it broke down and were able to book an additional splash LL.



I think the original question is slightly different. For example if I ride Splash using a G+LL and then later on I have a G+LL for dumbo and it goes down and so I get a converted anytime pass - can I use that anytime pass on Splash or am I blocked out since I've already used the LL for that ride that day? Has anyone tested that? 

I'm thinking it should work, if the person was able to use the anytime pass first and then the specific booked one, it should work in the reverse order -but I'd be curious to know people's experiences with the anytime passes.


----------



## snikki

wgeo said:


> I think the original question is slightly different. For example if I ride Splash using a G+LL and then later on I have a G+LL for dumbo and it goes down and so I get a converted anytime pass - can I use that anytime pass on Splash or am I blocked out since I've already used the LL for that ride that day? Has anyone tested that?
> 
> I'm thinking it should work, if the person was able to use the anytime pass first and then the specific booked one, it should work in the reverse order -but I'd be curious to know people's experiences with the anytime passes.



It should but with new systems, who knows, but I hope so.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

leeniewdw said:


> This was a fantastic post, but I'm confused.  I thought G+ wouldn't allow a pre-2pm LL reservation in a park you are going to hop to?


I was just guessing that it was because the ride went down. Some other posters in this thread said that they got a message the time was changed to 2pm when they booked an earlier time (when park hopping) mine probably had such a message but I must have missed it.


----------



## moorish

CWTC said:


> I can confirm this. Epcot is our first park and we wanted to ride ROTR again:  booked that for 3pm and Smuggler’s run was showing LL for 1120am.  I was curious what would happen if I tried to book it: G+ presented me with a 2 pm LL for it with a comment of “time adjusted for park hopping.”


Were you then able to then book your next G+ at 11 am (2 hours after HS opens where your first FP was booked) or at 12 pm (2 hours after Epcot opens where you had your park reservation)? I've seen differing accounts.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

Miffy said:


> I think I get it, but I still don't understand the use of the word "unassigned." How can you reserve a LL and it's also "unassigned"? Isn't it assigned as soon as you reserve it? That's the part I don't get. The post I was asking about said "stacked LL times that are unassigned." Doesn't "stacked" imply that you've reserved them? Or maybe I don't understand the meaning of "stacked"!
> 
> ETA: I look forward to the day when there's a sticky that explains all the ins and outs of G/G+/ILL$, but I expect that'll be a while from now, since it's still so new and the genie pigs aren't finished their vital work!


This was my fault. What I mean is that I had the ability to stack three LL. However before we went to eat I rode Small World and then Peter Pan. I assumed if I rode both rides but did not choose any new rides for either of them, then I would have two “unassigned” LL selections, and forfeit one. We were headed to dinner and the only rides I could still book were for something like 545pm but we weren’t riding anything else until 8:15. I didn’t want to leave both of them unassigned and risk losing one, so I had to book LL for each, then change them during the meal, then had to change again during the fireworks when we decided to shop. I should have tested it though as I ended up just letting them expire later that evening anyway (after using one for buzz).


----------



## Ensusieasm

rmclain73 said:


> he said the ride went down and It got switched to 2 o’clock.


I think annakristoff2013 is correct. That time automatically changed to 2:00 because of the park hopping rule. Also, PepperJackDragon didn’t say the ride went down, he actually only made that assumption ......
“(later changed to 2pm, *must* have gone down)”


----------



## PepperjackDragon

wgeo said:


> I think the original question is slightly different. For example if I ride Splash using a G+LL and then later on I have a G+LL for dumbo and it goes down and so I get a converted anytime pass - can I use that anytime pass on Splash or am I blocked out since I've already used the LL for that ride that day? Has anyone tested that?
> 
> I'm thinking it should work, if the person was able to use the anytime pass first and then the specific booked one, it should work in the reverse order -but I'd be curious to know people's experiences with the anytime passes.


I am pretty sure that these anytime LL are entered into your MDE as “multiple experiences” and are assigned a specific date/park but are separate from Genie+. I got a couple during the last week for an issue over boo bash and got one specifically for Mine Train as a result of an unwelcome birthday prank a CM played on my daughter. Didn’t have anything to do with Genie+


----------



## jojomoore

ZeeWP said:


> The stacking and being able to overlap make the strategy SOUND really fun. BUT BUT, on busy days, will there be enough passes to make it worth it?
> 
> I worry that during Thanksgiving break next year, if I get G+, I will be able to use it only for SDD and that's it. by the time the two hour passes, all the good ones (MFSR, ToT, RRC) will be gone. So basically it will be the same cost as Rise to ride SDD.
> 
> I am probably getting overly anxious too soon...


We usually travel Thanksgiving too. and I have the same concern. we went in 2019 during TG week or actially the 7 days prior to TG and there were no fastpasses available day of. I am wondering if  rope dropping SDD is the best way to go. I think i will try to stalk the tip board in MDE this year during thanksgiving week to see if i can gain any insight.


----------



## heapmaster

chicagodisneyguy said:


> So we're doing HS today and decided to sleep in.  We bought ROTR and MMRR at 7am ($15 & $10).  Our first LL ride was Slinky at noon but it's been broken all day.  So here's our current slate of attractions at 12:15pm:
> 
> 12:15 to close- anytime LL
> 12:25pm TSM
> 1:15pm ROTR
> 1:55pm ToT
> 2:20pm MMRR
> 3:15pm RnR (after tapping in to TSM)
> 
> We walked on Startours in roughly 15 minutes thru standby line.  RnR is our next target so will update when we add.  For people that like arriving late...this stacking thing could be amazing.
> 
> also, once we were given the recovery fast pass for Slinky, we were immediately able to make another LL reservation...almost resetting the clock


When did you book the other G+ rides, at the 7am mark or later on?


----------



## Lsyves

Can someone point me to a post that explains what stacking is? I’m not following


----------



## JakeAZ

Lsyves said:


> Can someone point me to a post that explains what stacking is? I’m not following


Having multiple LL's lined up so you can use them sequentially later in the day.  Basically picking a ride with later return times (like slinky) earlier in the day and then using the 120 reset clock to your advantage by picking from the later times available, without using your first LL yet.

Instead of booking one, using one, booking another one....


----------



## CWTC

moorish said:


> Were you then able to then book your next G+ at 11 am (2 hours after HS opens where your first FP was booked) or at 12 pm (2 hours after Epcot opens where you had your park reservation)? I've seen differing accounts.


11 am.  We booked TT as our next (for 830pm)  and were allowed to double stack at 1 pm (TSMM for 330) so we briefly had 3 LL and 1 IA$ at once.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

Lsyves said:


> Can someone point me to a post that explains what stacking is? I’m not following


Once you book a LL you are no longer eligible to book another. If you go 2hrs bring inelligble they let you make another. Then if you use one you can book again.
At MK I am confident that at least having two is the only efficient use of Genie+. The most popular rides will always be 1-2 hrs in advance, but the small rides will  have availability now-30min. You will eventually have to use it on a big ride and wait the 2hrs. Best to get it going quickly before crowds build and have the ability to secure a popular ride and use the 2nd to ride smaller rides in the gap so you aren’t wasting your time in peak hours.

However, I just don’t see any real value in it for the other parks unless you are park hopping and stack your second park, imo.

For a ride challenge if Someone was up to the challenge:



AK until 1pm
HS 2-5/530
MK 630/7-10

Edited to swap HS and MK for an extra hour

animal kingdom early with plans to just SB all but one AK (if possible pick up a 1020am Navi or safari prior to park open, if not just SB all of them early) start stacking HS and you could probably  Race through HS with triple stacked and then-if you timed your last HS with first MK just right go into MK making your Fourth LL.


----------



## moorish

CWTC said:


> 11 am.  We booked TT as our next (for 830pm)  and were allowed to double stack at 1 pm (TSMM for 330) so we briefly had 3 LL and 1 IA$ at once.


Awesome, thanks! We're planning on an Epcot late morning/early afternoon and then HS in the evening and this was my only remaining question about how stacking would work in this situation.


----------



## dischris11

I wonder if it is worth buying genie+ for MK on the day we arrive even though I don’t expect to get to the park until after 1. I have a 3, 5, and 8 year old so I’m not keen on waiting in long lines with them. But we have boo bash tickets the next night so maybe we can ride most rides then. Of course the kids will be half asleep then…


----------



## DisneyFive

PepperjackDragon said:


> HS to MK park hopping with Genie+ today Saturday Oct 24th
> 
> so the basic plan then how it played out.
> 
> we have done everything we wanted 2-3 times this week without Genie EXCEPT slinky dog and splash. So the idea was to early entry HS pick up a genie plus for Slinky then triple stack for a 2pm MK arrival.
> 
> It worked. I’ll give the final results then a few tips from my experience. Not a pro, just my first time using it but maybe it will be helpful.
> 
> 7am:           SD booked for 1043am
> 8:15-           arrive to park
> 8:30-910:    MMRR then MFSR
> 9:10-11:00  Plenty of time left for a quick toy story
> and saucers. Frozen song along.
> 11:00-          book 1:35pm splash mountain
> (considered a  noon toy story but
> wanted to let kids rest)
> 11:15             Slinky dog
> 11:16             book splash at 1:35pm (later changed
> to 2pm, must have gone down)
> 11:30             Hotel bus: worst wait of the day by far
> 1:16.              Book Jungle cruise (daughter request
> 
> 2pm arrive at MK
> 
> here I will just list the LL I got and what they changed to after getting the rides
> 
> LL0: Slinky
> 
> A1: splash 2pm
> B1: thunder mountain 2:20pm
> C1: Jungle Cruise 2:50pm
> 
> A2irates of Car 3:25
> B2: Peter Pan 5pm (had to refresh 5 times to get it here)
> C2: Pooh 4pm
> 
> A3: Ariel 4:30
> B3: Haunted Mansion 7pm
> C3: Mad Tea 4:25
> 
> A4: Buzz at 815
> C4: small world (we also worked small world in but can’t remember which ride I booked it after, did it right before Pan. Something seems slightly off in the transition order actually but very close to how it went down.)
> 
> This was the busiest day yet. Everyone of the rides was showing 60+ between 2-5pm when we rode, a few looked to be overestimated but some looked like underestimates. Really long and slow lines.
> 
> From 530ish (requested West wing so got delayed-huge mistake imo)-815 we ate at BOG and watched enchantment. I had a dilemma here, I couldn’t book things far enough out about because all except for Haunted Mansion were within 20-40min away and we were eating. Only had stuff like Barnstormer left to get and they just weren’t going to book up in advance. To keep the triple stack LL going I just booked and then canceled and rebooked later. I ended up pushing haunted mansion back until 9pm on purpose. We could have easily risen every G+ Via the triple stack but ended up shopping after eating, rode Mine train and called it the end of the trip.
> 
> Frankly it worked amazingly well and really made an excellent last day. However it wouldn’t work as well in HS because they just don’t have enough rides so they get booked pretty far out early on. Might be possible though if you were at AK and triple stacked for a jump to HS, but I doubt it. However it works so well jumping to MK it turns MK into a 1 or at MOST 1.5 day park. If one rope dropped FOP and paid ROTR and for MMR and evening rode Seven Dwarves it might be possible to complete all three parks (Genie+ and ILL rides only) in a single day, assuming smooth transportation especially once they allow hopping prior to 2pm. A stretch but I think it may be possible.
> 
> honestly if you add this to a 10 day trip I really don’t think the parks can sustain you for that long at this pace.  Will either have to underutilize Genie+ or ride everything 5-10 times. Will edit later with my tips from experience.



This is really fascinating.  Normally I can follow this stuff pretty good, but there are some things I don't understand...  I'm confused

When did you book your Big Thunder Mountain G+?

So you were able to book another G+ after you use *any* of your stacked G+ attractions?  So using your nomenclature, after each A1, B1 and C1 as soon as you tapped in for each of those you could book another G+ and keep rolling those 3 G+ into 3 more?

So you had 3 G+ booked at MK and just kept rebooking each so you always had 3 G+ the rest of the day?   If true, this is a major hack and really fully utilizing the system!

Dan


----------



## JakeAZ

dischris11 said:


> I wonder if it is worth buying genie+ for MK on the day we arrive even though I don’t expect to get to the park until after 1. I have a 3, 5, and 8 year old so I’m not keen on waiting in long lines with them. But we have boo bash tickets the next night so maybe we can ride most rides then. Of course the kids will be half asleep then…


Are you going to have access to the Genie app while traveling to stack reservations?  If so, I would do it.  You can have a really enjoyable entry as you prep for Boo Bash and if the kids aren't waiting in early lines, they may be more refreshed for later.

The only thing is if you get delayed while traveling....


----------



## wisblue

slo said:


> LOL!
> I’ve been studying this more than some exams I’ve taken.
> I’m so glad that when we started taking our DD’s 21 years ago that everything was more simple. You’d stick your park ticket into the fastpass ticket machine, get your fastpass return ticket and move on with your day. So easy!



That part of the paper FP system was easy, but power users knew about the 2 hour rule and discovered that the return times weren’t enforced. So, strategies for maximizing the use of that system were developed. The vast majority of guests in the park were blissfully unaware of these strategies and enjoyed their days in the parks by using FPs the simple way, if they used them at all.

What you’re seeing with stacking is the Genie+ version of special strategies, and in that regard it isn’t any more complicated. If anything it’s simpler because the steps can be accomplished on your phone and not by sending someone across the park to harvest the paper FPs.


----------



## ZeeWP

dmunsil said:


> I tested this; you effectively lose the stack. The system is not, I don't believe, tracking how many outstanding LLs you have. It's just following simple rules:
> 
> - If you book a G+LL, your booking ability goes away and a 2-hour timer is set
> - If you use, cancel or let expire any G+LL your booking ability returns and the timer is stopped and reset
> - If the timer runs out, your booking ability returns
> 
> That's it. The concept of "stacking" is just a consequence of applying those rules. If you use a LL and your ability to book comes back, then use or cancel another one, nothing changes - you already have the ability to book.
> 
> In order to keep your "stack" you have to book another G+ reservation after using, canceling or letting expire any reservation or after your timer runs out. If you forget and use the next reservation, you've lost a booking opportunity.


Best explanation of the stacking! Thanks for simplifying it.


----------



## ZeeWP

jojomoore said:


> We usually travel Thanksgiving too. and I have the same concern. we went in 2019 during TG week or actially the 7 days prior to TG and there were no fastpasses available day of. I am wondering if  rope dropping SDD is the best way to go. I think i will try to stalk the tip board in MDE this year during thanksgiving week to see if i can gain any insight.


I know Christmas and spring break is slightly different but I will stalk those, too, because as people become more "experts" things will become clearer later on. By the time Thanksgiving next year hopefully everyone will know what they are doing! haha


----------



## StarrySkye21

I have our trip coming up in 3 weeks and this is giving me all sorts of anxiety.  I’m pretty tempted to skip G+ and just stick to a TouringPlan and rope drop.  But as this is a big once-in-a-lifetime trip, I don’t want to ruin it by waiting in lines all day watching people woosh by us in the LL’s.   But I also don’t want to ruin the experience by purchasing G+, losing sleep, stressing about the order to get ride passes while comparing it to park maps, and finally running all over the parks to tap into rides in one different land after another. 

Ugh where’s my Tums?


----------



## ZeeWP

StarrySkye21 said:


> I have our trip coming up in 3 weeks and this is giving me all sorts of anxiety.  I’m pretty tempted to skip G+ and just stick to a TouringPlan and rope drop.  But as this is a big once-in-a-lifetime trip, I don’t want to ruin it by waiting in lines all day watching people woosh by us in the LL’s.   But I also don’t want to ruin the experience by purchasing G+, losing sleep, stressing about the order to get ride passes while comparing it to park maps, and finally running all over the parks to tap into rides in one different land after another.
> 
> Ugh where’s my Tums?


Are you a Planner or a Pantser?

If you are a planner, I would go with touringplans. At least you know what you are getting into. 

If you are a "fly by the seat of their pants" type, then I would do the G+. you can get what you get, and not worry or stress over it. If you think you will stress, then you are more of a planner than pantser I think, in which case I would go with the touringplans.


----------



## Tom_E_D

StarrySkye21 said:


> I have our trip coming up in 3 weeks and this is giving me all sorts of anxiety.  I’m pretty tempted to skip G+ and just stick to a TouringPlan and rope drop.  But as this is a big once-in-a-lifetime trip, I don’t want to ruin it by waiting in lines all day watching people woosh by us in the LL’s.   But I also don’t want to ruin the experience by purchasing G+, losing sleep, stressing about the order to get ride passes while comparing it to park maps, and finally running all over the parks to tap into rides in one different land after another.
> 
> Ugh where’s my Tums?


Perhaps by the time you go, TP will have adapted their plans for those who will be doing Genie+. Tell TP when you want to enter the park, what you want to ride, and that you want to minimize walking, and perhaps it will tell you what G+LL's to book as you're going through your day. It may be optimistic to assume they'll be able to do it all optimally in just three weeks, but you can shift the planning burden to the program. And even if it's less than perfect, it will likely be less stressful than figuring it all out yourself. You don't have to buy TP *or* G+. If you can afford G+, you can probably afford to buy TP also.


----------



## Sjm9911

jvz82 said:


> **Sorry for this long play-by-play! I hope it's helpful to see how G+ worked for our group.**
> 
> We used Genie+ at MK on Friday with a group of 8 (4 adults, 4 kids). So far, I definitely prefer FP+ but obviously it's new and I don't know what I'm doing yet. I will add here that we often go at Christmas time, I'm used to crowds and I can count on one hand the number of times I've waited in a line over 30 minutes. But this trip it happened a LOT.
> 
> At 7 am, I made a G+ reservation for Jungle Cruise at 10:30.
> 
> We decided to RD 7DMT at park opening. We waited at the entrance of Fantasy land and they did not let us in until 8:30 on the dot. Everyone rushed towards 7 dwarves, only to be told that the ride was "experiencing delays". When I heard the cast member say that, I was like I am absolutely not sitting in a line all morning so we changed gears and went to Space Mountain. This cost us valuable time of course, and the wait was already 20 minutes by the time we got there.
> 
> [Side note: My biggest frustration is that in the past, we almost always RD Space Mountain, and did a later FP for 7 dwarves. Usually we walked right on Space Mountain at RD and could even ride twice. This whole LL thing means that everyone goes to either of those two rides so they don't have to pay for it and it makes the RD lines so much longer. Ugh. Need a new strategy here I guess.]
> 
> Anyway, after SM, we did SB for Buzz LIghtyear, 5 minute wait. Then SB for the race cars, 10 minute wait. Then we walked over to Adventure Land to hit Pirates, which said it had a 15 minute wait. Well, by the time we got there it was increased to 45 and I was just feeling like I did not want to wait in a 45 minute line after we had paid for Genie + so we abandoned that plan and went on the Magic Carpets. Even that ride, which is usually a walk-on, was 15 minutes.
> 
> I was under the impression that you could make another G+ reservation at 9 am, 2 hours after the first reservation. This did not happen, it would not let me make one until 11 am (2 hours after park opening) or after using my first G+. That really made me frustrated. In the future, I would book my first G+ earlier than 10:30 so I could book the next one sooner.
> 
> At 10:30, hopped onto Jungle Cruise. Made a G+ reservation for IASW at 11:15. Ate lunch at Pecos Bills first.
> 
> While in line for IASW, made a G+ reservation for Barnstormer at 11:45. While in line for that, made a G+ reservation for Haunted Mansion but couldn't get one until 3:10.
> 
> After Barnstormer, did Country Bear Jamboree and Tiki Room (SB). Got some Dole Whips. Waited in a 45 minute SB line for Thunder Mountain. During the wait in line, our 2 hour window hit so I was able to make another G+ for Peter Pan at 5:55 pm even though we hadn't used our Haunted Mansion one yet. After Thunder, used our G+ for Haunted.
> 
> Walked over to Tomorrow Land and hit up Carousel of Progress. Headed back to Fantasy Land and ate dinner at Pinocchio's Haus. Our 2 hour window hit again, so I made another G+ for Pirates at 6:10. I was surprised that G+ let me do that, so I simultaneously had G+ reservations for Peter Pan at 5:55, and Pirates at 6:10.
> 
> After dinner, rode Peter, booked it across the park to do Pirates.
> 
> Oh, I should add that 7 Dwarves was actually down for several hours. We had decided to pay for LL, and we had a reservation for that sometime around 12 pm and it was back up shortly before our LL was set.
> 
> So it looks like 6 G+ reservations altogether. On a typical FP+ day, I probably would have gotten more at MK. I also would have had my day meticulously planned out so I think we would have waited in fewer lines. But when I look back on my day, I can see where the mistakes were and what to do differently next time. My current opinion is that it's NOT better than FP+ AND I had to pay for it, so I am feeling a little crotchety and "back in my day" about the whole thing.


This was exactly what i said before it came out, everyone at rd would go to the rides that cost $$$. And thanks for the rest. Exactly what didnt want to do, criss cross the park. At least you did it smart and made the most of the area where you were good job. Im not looking forward to next week, and i should be because we will be at disney on vacation. We like rides, and 2 years ago we could pretty much bang out the whole park by 2 pm. Oh well, maybe i will get a new appreatioation of the parks. I do have tom sawyer island on my to do list. I may even being and leave a paint brush behind.........


----------



## Disturbia

jvz82 said:


> Walked over to Tomorrow Land and hit up Carousel of Progress. Headed back to Fantasy Land and ate dinner at Pinocchio's Haus. Our 2 hour window hit again, so I made another G+ for Pirates at 6:10. I was surprised that G+ let me do that, so I simultaneously had G+ reservations for Peter Pan at 5:55, and Pirates at 6:10.


Wow.  Thanks for sharing all the details.  This really amazing.  So maybe the system doesn’t see the later pass and only checks if you rode prior to the current time.  edit: thought you rode pirates twice.

we will also be there next week and I haven’t started packing yet (no one is seriously excited)


----------



## CWTC

Disturbia said:


> Wow.  Thanks for sharing all the details.  This really amazing.  So maybe the system doesn’t see the later pass and only checks if you rode prior to the current time
> 
> we will also be there next week and I haven’t started packing yet (no one is seriously excited)


The system has let me make multiple overlapping passes- no big for us because we feel like we reasonably know what can be done in what time frame. But for the first timer? Allowing overlapping windows seems like a huge problem: the system says I can do soaring at 3pm and TSMM at 315 so I’ll book it. Yeah we know better but…


----------



## Disturbia

Lsyves said:


> Can someone point me to a post that explains what stacking is? I’m not following



Nothing explains it better than:

https://allears.net/2021/10/21/how-can-you-stack-multiple-disney-genie-reservations/


----------



## DL1WDW2

Why did Disney use Aladdin Genie because a ton of genies pop up in google
For example


----------



## Disturbia

Because you’ve never met a friend like me…


----------



## nurseberta

LSUfan4444 said:


> We do the same (boardwalk) and on our rope drop HS day, we will book our G+ likely in Epcot. MAYBE grab an 11 am G+ for somewhere in HS and if we have to wait use that as our Baseline Taphouse time...which is something we do anyway



whatis a baseline tap house time?


----------



## CWTC

nurseberta said:


> whatis a baseline tap house time?


Beer, cider, cheese, charcuterie near entrance to Batuu.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

DisneyFive said:


> This is really fascinating.  Normally I can follow this stuff pretty good, but there are some things I don't understand...  I'm confused
> 
> When did you book your Big Thunder Mountain G+?
> 
> So you were able to book another G+ after you use *any* of your stacked G+ attractions?  So using your nomenclature, after each A1, B1 and C1 as soon as you tapped in for each of those you could book another G+ and keep rolling those 3 G+ into 3 more?
> 
> So you had 3 G+ booked at MK and just kept rebooking each so you always had 3 G+ the rest of the day?   If true, this is a major hack and really fully utilizing the system!
> 
> Dan


Yes this is exactly how it worked. It was ridiculous and fantastic. We never had to jump from area to area (except once to get to Pooh but that was partly intentional since we then worked our way back for BOG).
I doubt it will stay in this current format for long, but as of right now it is a gold mine of ride access.

edit: I took a few screenshots early on just to help myself plan. You can see where after I did splash we booked Pirates, then later I had already booked Pooh and pan and was working on deciding my third LL when I took the screenshot. Small world was going up very slowly so I ended up waiting on it at that time.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

Sjm9911 said:


> This was exactly what i said before it came out, everyone at rd would go to the rides that cost $$$. And thanks for the rest. Exactly what didnt want to do, criss cross the park. At least you did it smart and made the most of the area where you were good job. Im not looking forward to next week, and i should be because we will be at disney on vacation. We like rides, and 2 years ago we could pretty much bang out the whole park by 2 pm. Oh well, maybe i will get a new appreatioation of the parks. I do have tom sawyer island on my to do list. I may even being and leave a paint brush behind.........


If you do the stacking you can easily knock out the whole park in 4hours without cross crossing at all, as things are currently operating.


----------



## Sjm9911

PepperjackDragon said:


> If you do the stacking you can easily knock out the whole park in 4hours without cross crossing at all, as things are currently operating.


Ill let you know in like 10 days, lol. The crowds will be a bit higher then also. The problem is some rides are having unusual high stand by times, at least as listed. Some don't even show, untill you refresh. Says standby not avaliable at this time, and the tide isnt down during those times. I do my do dillagance. I have ideas, but will not really know how they will translate into real time. I dont see you knocking out the park in 4 hours. At least not with a kid in tow. But we will see.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

StarrySkye21 said:


> I have our trip coming up in 3 weeks and this is giving me all sorts of anxiety.  I’m pretty tempted to skip G+ and just stick to a TouringPlan and rope drop.  But as this is a big once-in-a-lifetime trip, I don’t want to ruin it by waiting in lines all day watching people woosh by us in the LL’s.   But I also don’t want to ruin the experience by purchasing G+, losing sleep, stressing about the order to get ride passes while comparing it to park maps, and finally running all over the parks to tap into rides in one different land after another.
> 
> Ugh where’s my Tums?


I wouldn’t get too anxious about it. I was worried but it turned out to be exceedingly simple. Once you get in the parks and understand how it works the only thing you will need to do is see which rides are available and try to get multiple LL in the same area of the park around the same time so you don’t have to run around everywhere. This is one of the reasons why it is so Critical to get the second LL set up early.

the only challenging part is deciding when to allow a 2hr gap so you can set up the second LL access, and imo the answer will almost always be immediately.

once you have two of them running, it becomes really easy as long as you know where rides are physically located in the park.

however comparing it to touring plans is the wrong move. Genie itself is a TERRIBLE planning and optimization app. Genie+ is complete different, it is actual ride access NOT trip planning/optimization. Genie (for planning) is Total junk-Touring plans is way better.

Unfortunately tourong plans Won’t be able to help much now because of the fluid nature of LL availability. I think one would really just need to look over the map and main attractions and figure out beforehand which rides are close to each other, then first thing in the morning set up a 2hr delay between LL so you can stack two and then start booking rides in close proximity to each other.You could get more in depth by looking at different parks and optimizing genie plus, but if you have two early on and book rides physically near each other things should go well. Probably not worth it at all times of day or in all parks, but will be beneficial in all the parks so don’t worry too much.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

Sjm9911 said:


> Ill let you know in like 10 days, lol. The crowds will be a bit higher then also. The problem is some rides are having unusual high stand by times, at least as listed. Some don't even show, untill you refresh. Says standby not avaliable at this time, and the tide isnt down during those times. I do my do dillagance. I have ideas, but will not really know how they will translate into real time. I dont see you knocking out the park in 4 hours. At least not with a kid in tow. But we will see.


I had a super fussy 8 year old and a 10 year old (hence the 2.5 hour hotel trip/nap break) . Take a look at what I did in the HS and MK, it was incredibly busy and worked way better than expected. Peter Pan was 85min when we went on, Pooh 60, splash started at 45 I think but was obviously worse and went to 75 when we were done, jc 70, thunder 60 (I think that one might have been an overestimate). Even small world said 30 but looked like it might have been more based on the line I saw compared to previous days. Incredibly busy but was a breeze with G+


----------



## chicagodisneyguy

So as our day ends, we ended up riding every ride at HS with little to no wait.  That's after getting soaked, going back to BWV, eating an amazing meal at Topolinos, then skylining back.

We were fast pass superstars.  Genie+, irrespective of the cost, is better for us. We did more showing up to HS late than we ever did with free fp.  We are 100% in the camp that the extra cost will make our future trips better.  I also will say Disney wait times are garbage.  They are obviously flat out lying. 

I think recent crowds are WAY  lower than expected...so Genie+ is a home run at the moment.  Once the Euro Disney crowd  shows up coupled with Xmas who knows.   But I'd buy it.  And we probably will most days... except tomorrow,.bc my partner got so drunk on fuzzy ton tons his lips won't feel anything for a few days.


----------



## DavidNYC

PepperjackDragon said:


> Yes this is exactly how it worked. It was ridiculous and fantastic. We never had to jump from area to area (except once to get to Pooh but that was partly intentional since we then worked our way back for BOG).
> I doubt it will stay in this current format for long, but as of right now it is a gold mine of ride access.
> 
> edit: I took a few screenshots early on just to help myself plan. You can see where after I did splash we booked Pirates, then later I had already booked Pooh and pan and was working on deciding my third LL when I took the screenshot. Small world was going up very slowly so I ended up waiting on it at that time.



The way I look at this - if you booked LL for the earliest you could get them, you could likely kick out 4-5 LL rides during the first couple of hours for all but the most popular rides.  So by stacking what you're in fact doing is giving up the opportunity to do a lot of LL earlier in the day in return for being able to do more of them later.  There are far too many permutations to consider but I don't think overall you're necessarily getting to a greater number of LL reservations.  But what you're doing is finding a way to be able to use more of them during the times when it's more likely to be a greater time save.  Sure - I could do 4 LL in the first 90 minutes of park opening easily but I probably could have done those 4 rides standby in 2 hours  . . . But giving up some of those early opportunities, it will allow me to use those same 4 later in the day after standby lines have grown substantially and may be saving me 60 minutes per ride.  My initial impression from reading reports from the first week is that this is going to be the key strategy going forward.  There will be some variations on how to do it depending on what park, what rides are your priorities, etc.  But there seems to be some clear opportunities to maximize using the LL when they'll save you the most time (of course if you're wrong with some of your guesses you could also find yourself locked out of some rides and running out of time but we'll have a lot more data over the next few weeks that will allow people to hone the strategies.  (I have no doubt Touring Plans is currently crunching every number and scenario possible.)


----------



## PepperjackDragon

DavidNYC said:


> The way I look at this - if you booked LL for the earliest you could get them, you could likely kick out 4-5 LL rides during the first couple of hours for all but the most popular rides.  So by stacking what you're in fact doing is giving up the opportunity to do a lot of LL earlier in the day in return for being able to do more of them later.  There are far too many permutations to consider but I don't think overall you're necessarily getting to a greater number of LL reservations.  But what you're doing is finding a way to be able to use more of them during the times when it's more likely to be a greater time save.  Sure - I could do 4 LL in the first 90 minutes of park opening easily but I probably could have done those 4 rides standby in 2 hours  . . . But giving up some of those early opportunities, it will allow me to use those same 4 later in the day after standby lines have grown substantially and may be saving me 60 minutes per ride.  My initial impression from reading reports from the first week is that this is going to be the key strategy going forward.  There will be some variations on how to do it depending on what park, what rides are your priorities, etc.  But there seems to be some clear opportunities to maximize using the LL when they'll save you the most time (of course if you're wrong with some of your guesses you could also find yourself locked out of some rides and running out of time but we'll have a lot more data over the next few weeks that will allow people to hone the strategies.  (I have no doubt Touring Plans is currently crunching every number and scenario possible.)



Understanding this dynamic was what I was trying to figure out the first couple of days in the parks and watching Genie+ unfold. What I saw was pretty clear, in MK if you choose the morning knock out approach you will be jammed with two problems. 1: Locations 2: available times. 
You can pretty quickly grab another LL, but it will either be a very minor one, like Alladin/Dumbo or it will be for something that may be in a different area of the park. Hoewver, because you tied up your only LL on the minor ride or the ride far from your current location, by the time you get check in to the ride the time for the other attractions near you have now gotten pushed back even farther. Then you get the same situation, walk far again, or wait 1-1.5 hours for your next nearby attraction to become available. By stacking you eliminate this issue in the first two hours of the park opening, and can now pretty handily plan ahead to keep your attractions clustered and save significant time which means more rides.

This is only exasperated in HS where the smaller number of attractions only makes it worse, because the attraction availability time diverges so quickly that you migh have a Smuggler run at 5pm and a Toy story at 1pm etc. Again, by getting early stacks you could plan ahead for those and start clustering them together, all while doing it at peak wait windows allowing you to choose to also SB during lower periods or do other things without so much running around the park.

AK and Epcot were jokes for Genie plus while I was there, with maybe a 1 hour window at Epcot where it even mattered at all, and a couple hours where it would help a tiny bit at AK. During holidays it would probably help more all day, but would be the same problem we see above at HS and MK. 

From what I have seen so far, single selections will always leave you with a long wait between LL (minus dumbo/barnstormer types) and running around the park. I would be curious to see some examples of how it plays out in real life though, as that is just my analysis of the situation.


----------



## dischris11

If you are arriving late to MK and not park hopping, how do you stack and get a later time (after 2) when you book your first G+ at 7am?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

PepperjackDragon said:


> Understanding this dynamic was what I was trying to figure out the first couple of days in the parks and watching Genie+ unfold. What I saw was pretty clear, in MK if you choose the morning knock out approach you will be jammed with two problems. 1: Locations 2: available times.
> You can pretty quickly grab another LL, but it will either be a very minor one, like Alladin/Dumbo or it will be for something that may be in a different area of the park. Hoewver, because you tied up your only LL on the minor ride or the ride far from your current location, by the time you get check in to the ride the time for the other attractions near you have now gotten pushed back even farther. Then you get the same situation, walk far again, or wait 1-1.5 hours for your next nearby attraction to become available. By stacking you eliminate this issue in the first two hours of the park opening, and can now pretty handily plan ahead to keep your attractions clustered and save significant time which means more rides.
> 
> This is only exasperated in HS where the smaller number of attractions only makes it worse, because the attraction availability time diverges so quickly that you migh have a Smuggler run at 5pm and a Toy story at 1pm etc. Again, by getting early stacks you could plan ahead for those and start clustering them together, all while doing it at peak wait windows allowing you to choose to also SB during lower periods or do other things without so much running around the park.
> 
> AK and Epcot were jokes for Genie plus while I was there, with maybe a 1 hour window at Epcot where it even mattered at all, and a couple hours where it would help a tiny bit at AK. During holidays it would probably help more all day, but would be the same problem we see above at HS and MK.
> 
> From what I have seen so far, single selections will always leave you with a long wait between LL (minus dumbo/barnstormer types) and running around the park. I would be curious to see some examples of how it plays out in real life though, as that is just my analysis of the situation.


This is why Disney has, yet again, designed a system that the casual user is going to be really frustrated with while people who understand the strategy will not. Even moreso then FP+.  At least with FP+ everyone could understand the baseline of “get three rides you like at good times 60 days out), and it was only the power-users that could get more easily.  Now it’s “get some rides, all over hte park, terribly spaced out unless you understand stacking.”


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

dischris11 said:


> If you are arriving late to MK and not park hopping, how do you stack and get a later time (after 2) when you book your first G+ at 7am?


Don’t book you first one at 7 am in that scenario.  You can book it at 8:59 AM.  Remember there is no practical difference when you book it before park opening other then the return times available then.  You’re not going to be able to book your next one until Park Opening + 2 hours whether you booked it at 7 am, or 8:59 am.


----------



## snikki

chicagodisneyguy said:


> So as our day ends, we ended up riding every ride at HS with little to no wait.  That's after getting soaked, going back to BWV, eating an amazing meal at Topolinos, then skylining back.
> 
> We were fast pass superstars.  Genie+, irrespective of the cost, is better for us. We did more showing up to HS late than we ever did with free fp.  We are 100% in the camp that the extra cost will make our future trips better.  I also will say Disney wait times are garbage.  They are obviously flat out lying.
> 
> I think recent crowds are WAY  lower than expected...so Genie+ is a home run at the moment.  Once the Euro Disney crowd  shows up coupled with Xmas who knows.   But I'd buy it.  And we probably will most days... except tomorrow,.bc my partner got so drunk on fuzzy ton tons his lips won't feel anything for a few days.



Did you stack for the evening?


----------



## KaTinkerbell

Thanks for this thread!!! I’m going to read all of it ahead of my trip 1st wk. of Dec. Going to purchase Genie+ for all of my Park days so reading everyone’s strategies is very helpful!


----------



## Donna M

PepperjackDragon said:


> Understanding this dynamic was what I was trying to figure out the first couple of days in the parks and watching Genie+ unfold. What I saw was pretty clear, in MK if you choose the morning knock out approach you will be jammed with two problems. 1: Locations 2: available times.
> You can pretty quickly grab another LL, but it will either be a very minor one, like Alladin/Dumbo or it will be for something that may be in a different area of the park. Hoewver, because you tied up your only LL on the minor ride or the ride far from your current location, by the time you get check in to the ride the time for the other attractions near you have now gotten pushed back even farther. Then you get the same situation, walk far again, or wait 1-1.5 hours for your next nearby attraction to become available. By stacking you eliminate this issue in the first two hours of the park opening, and can now pretty handily plan ahead to keep your attractions clustered and save significant time which means more rides.
> 
> This is only exasperated in HS where the smaller number of attractions only makes it worse, because the attraction availability time diverges so quickly that you migh have a Smuggler run at 5pm and a Toy story at 1pm etc. Again, by getting early stacks you could plan ahead for those and start clustering them together, all while doing it at peak wait windows allowing you to choose to also SB during lower periods or do other things without so much running around the park.
> 
> AK and Epcot were jokes for Genie plus while I was there, with maybe a 1 hour window at Epcot where it even mattered at all, and a couple hours where it would help a tiny bit at AK. During holidays it would probably help more all day, but would be the same problem we see above at HS and MK.
> 
> From what I have seen so far, single selections will always leave you with a long wait between LL (minus dumbo/barnstormer types) and running around the park. I would be curious to see some examples of how it plays out in real life though, as that is just my analysis of the situation.


We will be going to the MK on Thursday.  I am starting to understand the stacking. Is this the way to do it?  We will have a 2 and 3 year old with us.          At 7:00 get a  ll for 11:30 at JC     At 9:00 get a ll for somewhere in Fantasy Land.   Rope drop and do as many rides in Fantasy Land a s possible.  Lunch at 11:00.   Over to JC and add a ll for rides near there.  Keep stacking rides in that area then in the other lands.  See about getting a 3rd ll.  Not paying for any.


----------



## DisneyKidds

Who knew on October 18 that the next day would introduce the word “Stacking” as one of the most important words in our Disney vocabulary ever!

Can someone confirm this crucial first step in the Stacking strategy.  If a park opens at 9am    does the LL return you booked between 7am and 8:59 am (to create the first Stack) have to have a return window that starts after 11am, or can that return window start before 11am so long as you don’t tap into it until after you book another LL at 11am (to create the second Stack)?

For a triple Stack the first two Stacks would have to have LL return windows that extend to 4 hours beyond park open, does that sound correct?  For a 9:00 open you could theoretically stack 1:00, 3:00, 5:00 for a late arrival in your first reserved park…..or 2:00, 4:00, 6:00 for a park you are hopping to.  Theoretically a triple Stack could cross parks, but you’d have to not use your Stack 1 return in the first park until after 1:00.  So, you could RD MK, hopefully get things done SB while assembling your stacks, all while not tapping into the first stack before securing the third at 1:00.  Please tell me I’m catching on?!

That’s effective power Stacker strategy now, but will it be effective during busier times, for better G+ rides, when LL returns push out later earlier in the day?  Jury out….


----------



## leeniewdw

Donna M said:


> We will be going to the MK on Thursday.  I am starting to understand the stacking. Is this the way to do it?  We will have a 2 and 3 year old with us.          At 7:00 get a  ll for 11:30 at JC     At 9:00 get a ll for somewhere in Fantasy Land.



You can't get a second LL at 9am, it's 2 hours after Park Open.


----------



## snikki

From what I’ve seen stacking isn’t as easy with your first reserved park, especially MK. When I’ve checked the tip board arrival windows are usually within the hour for MK for a big portion of their rides. You can only book next available if it’s your reserved park.

If you are hopping, stacking seems to work better. At or around 7 am make a 3 pm for SDD. Around 11 am make a 5 pm for Smugglers. At 1 pm make a 4 pm for TSM/RNRC/TOT.  If you bought ROTR and MMRR at 7 am you could walk into the park at 3 pm with 5 LL and make a new one as you arrive and keep rolling them out. Of course if times work.

That’s how I’m understanding it anyway.


----------



## leeniewdw

PepperjackDragon said:


> 7am:           SD booked for 1043am
> 8:15-           arrive to park
> 8:30-910:    MMRR then MFSR
> 9:10-11:00  Plenty of time left for a quick toy story
> and saucers. Frozen song along.
> *11:00-          book 1:35pm splash mountain
> (considered a  noon toy story but
> wanted to let kids rest)*
> 11:15             Slinky dog
> *11:16             book splash at 1:35pm (later changed
> to 2pm, must have gone down)*
> 11:30             Hotel bus: worst wait of the day by far
> 1:16.              Book Jungle cruise (daughter request
> 
> 2pm arrive at MK
> 
> here I will just list the LL I got and what they changed to after getting the rides
> 
> LL0: Slinky
> 
> A1: splash 2pm
> *B1: thunder mountain 2:20pm*
> C1: Jungle Cruise 2:50pm
> the parks can sustain you for that long at this pace.  Will either have to underutilize Genie+ or ride everything 5-10 times. Will edit later with my tips from experience.



This is my favorite post and I'll be reading it over and over.   We already talked about how the 1:35pms turned into 2:xx when getting booked because of the hopper time of 2pm, but I wanted to make sure that one of the Splash reservations was actually Thunder Mountain?   I'm presuming the 11:00 grab was for the 2pm Splash and the 11:16 grab (once you tabbed into SDD) was 2:20pm BTMRR?


----------



## leeniewdw

Using PepperjackDragon's strategy, here is a somewhat aggressive hypothetical strategy we might use on 12/4:


Saturday 12/47amgrab FOP and EE ILL$ for timeslots around 2pm7amgrab a 10:45ish LL for MFSR8:30amRD either SDD or TT/RRC9-11amStandby Rides11:00amBook MK LL1 for post 3:30pm11:XXRide MFSR11:XXBook MK LL2 for post 3:30pm11:30amLeave Park for Hotel12-1:30pmbreak1:00pmbook next LL3 for post 3:30pm1:30pmhead to AK2-3pmFOP/EE3:00pmhead to MK

Obviously this would depend on crowd and available slots, but the key here is to book LL2 at the 11am slot (2 hours post park opening) before I actually use my LL1 (MFSR), which then gets me to 2 in my stack.  Once it hits 1pm, I get LL3 as 3rd in my stack.

I *think* this works.....theoretically?


----------



## snikki

leeniewdw said:


> Using PepperjackDragon's strategy, here is a somewhat aggressive hypothetical strategy we might use on 12/4:
> 
> 
> Saturday 12/47amgrab FOP and EE ILL$ for timeslots around 2pm7amgrab a 10:45ish LL for MFSR8:30amRD either SDD or TT/RRC9-11amStandby Rides11:00amBook MK LL1 for post 3:30pm11:XXRide MFSR11:XXBook MK LL2 for post 3:30pm11:30amLeave Park for Hotel12-1:30pmbreak1:00pmbook next LL3 for post 3:30pm1:30pmhead to AK1:45-2:45FOP/EE3:00pmhead to MK
> 
> Obviously this would depend on crowd and available slots, but the key here is to book LL2 at the 11am slot (2 hours post park opening) before I actually use my LL1 (MFSR), which then gets me to 2 in my stack.  Once it hits 1pm, I get LL3 as 3rd in my stack.
> 
> I *think* this works.....theoretically?



Wouldn’t you have to wait 120 minutes to book LL2 in MK since you just booked one at 11 am for 3:30ish? I see you are scanning into MFSR but that one already “reset” itself at 11 am and then you booked LL1 in MK. I’m pretty sure it doesn’t “reset” itself again once you scan in. I think you have to wait until 1 pm to book LL2 in MK but I could be wrong.


----------



## leeniewdw

I'm not sure!?  This is what I'm basing it on:

7am: SD booked for 1043am
8:15- arrive to park
8:30-910: MMRR then MFSR
9:10-11:00 Plenty of time left for a quick toy story
and saucers. Frozen song along.
*11:00- book 1:35pm splash mountain
(considered a noon toy story but
wanted to let kids rest)
11:15 Slinky dog
11:16 book splash at 1:35pm (later changed
to 2pm, must have gone down)* I'm presuming this was a BTMRR reservation, not Splash

It looks like the grabbed the 10:43 SDD at 7am
at 11am, grabbed their MK LL1
at 11:15 redeemed their HS LL1 which was SDD
at 11:16 grabbed their MK LL2 since they'd tapped in at SDD

At least that's what I'm thinking?


----------



## snikki

leeniewdw said:


> I'm not sure!?  This is what I'm basing it on:
> 
> 7am: SD booked for 1043am
> 8:15- arrive to park
> 8:30-910: MMRR then MFSR
> 9:10-11:00 Plenty of time left for a quick toy story
> and saucers. Frozen song along.
> *11:00- book 1:35pm splash mountain
> (considered a noon toy story but
> wanted to let kids rest)
> 11:15 Slinky dog
> 11:16 book splash at 1:35pm (later changed
> to 2pm, must have gone down)* I'm presuming this was a BTMRR reservation, not Splash
> 
> It looks like the grabbed the 10:43 SDD at 7am
> at 11am, grabbed their MK LL1
> at 11:15 redeemed their HS LL1 which was SDD
> at 11:16 grabbed their MK LL2 since they'd tapped in at SDD
> 
> At least that's what I'm thinking?



Hmmm I see. Let’s see what they say because now I’m interested.


----------



## Donna M

This is soooo confusing at times! First I think I understand it, then I read something else.  I only have two more days to figure it out!


----------



## aeasterling

Also a tip to make sure your entire party is selected when you pick a LL.  Something strange happened to us yesterday.  My son wasn't here for our entire trip, so he has a separate ticket reservation but is part of my Friends and Family in MDE.  All day Saturday, my LL selections automatically had all 4 of us.  For some reason yesterday, it was just 3 and I had to click edit to add him.  

I caught it the first time, but then not on our JC LL. So when we went to tap in, he wasn't eligible.  I had to go to guest service and they ended up giving me a recovery pass.  Unfortunately, that "broke" stacking for him, so I had to wait until we rode our next one to get him another one.  I'm still not sure how that happened, but it was close to time for Boo Bash, so didn't really matter.


----------



## g-dad66

Donna M said:


> This is soooo confusing at times! First I think I understand it, then I read something else.  I only have two more days to figure it out!



Agree.  I think a separate thread just for Stacking strategies might be a good idea, to benefit those for whom it will be a good strategy

But I don't see Stacking to be a useful strategy for our situation:

1) We don't plan to do any park-hopping
2) We usually stay in one park until mid-afternoon, at which time the grandkids are ready to call it quits, and we don't go back in the evening.
3) If we have young grandkids on the trip, we will be skipping some of the high-demand height-requirement rides.
4) With older grandkids, we don't care about getting a large quantity of rides; we have little interest in doing some of the attractions (for example, Teacups, Barnstormer, Pooh, Dumbo, Magic Carpets, Speedway).  We just want to be able to hit our favorites with a minimum wait time.
5) So 3-4 LLs is probably going to do it for us.

For those of us not planning to stack, a Genie+-for-Dummies Sticky might be what we need.


----------



## coolbrook

Donna M said:


> This is soooo confusing at times! First I think I understand it, then I read something else.  I only have two more days to figure it out!


I know what you mean! The possibilities are exciting, but a bit mind boggling.  Its like trying to understand branches in the time line in the Loki series.


----------



## snikki

g-dad66 said:


> Agree.  I think a separate thread just for Stacking strategies might be a good idea, to benefit those for whom it will be a good strategy
> 
> But I don't see Stacking to be a useful strategy for our situation:
> 
> 1) We don't plan to do any park-hopping
> 2) We usually stay in one park until mid-afternoon, at which time the grandkids are ready to call it quits, and we don't go back in the evening.
> 3) If we have young grandkids on the trip, we will be skipping some of the high-demand height-requirement rides.
> 4) With older grandkids, we don't care about getting a large quantity of rides; we have little interest in doing some of the attractions (for example, Teacups, Barnstormer, Pooh, Dumbo, Magic Carpets, Speedway).  We just want to be able to hit our favorites with a minimum wait time.
> 5) So 3-4 LLs is probably going to do it for us.
> 
> For those of us not planning to stack, a Genie+-for-Dummies Sticky might be what we need.



They are working on a sticky. It’s locked right now until they gather more info. One for stacking isn’t a bad idea either.


----------



## leeniewdw

aeasterling said:


> Also a tip to make sure your entire party is selected when you pick a LL.  Something strange happened to us yesterday.  My son wasn't here for our entire trip, so he has a separate ticket reservation but is part of my Friends and Family in MDE.  All day Saturday, my LL selections automatically had all 4 of us.  For some reason yesterday, it was just 3 and I had to click edit to add him.
> 
> I caught it the first time, but then not on our JC LL. So when we went to tap in, he wasn't eligible.  I had to go to guest service and they ended up giving me a recovery pass.  Unfortunately, that "broke" stacking for him, so I had to wait until we rode our next one to get him another one.  I'm still not sure how that happened, but it was close to time for Boo Bash, so didn't really matter.



I recall you posting about this.   It sounds very odd.   When we go in FEB, we've got 3 rooms for us, and our 2 sons and their SOs.  Would that imply I couldn't select their LLs for all of us?   Since we're footing the bill for the whole trip, my CC is tied to their reservations (and it'll be paid off before we go).  I have added G+ to the reservations, but now I'm concerned I might not be able to grab the LL for the whole group and be unable to add the ILL$ for all of us?


----------



## amylevan

This was a great Head to Head to head to Head comparison of a no genie touring plan vs a G+ day vs 2 genie days at HS. https://touringplans.com/blog/genie-testing-hollywood-studios-double-head-to-head/


----------



## wisblue

DL1WDW2 said:


> Why did Disney use Aladdin Genie because a ton of genies pop up in google
> For example
> View attachment 616076



Just out of curiosity, what does this have to do with Disney using Genie for its services?


----------



## Disturbia

dischris11 said:


> If you are arriving late to MK and not park hopping, how do you stack and get a later time (after 2) when you book your first G+ at 7am?


You can also book your first Genie+ pass at 9 am (ride by 9:15 am, book 915; ride by 9:30 and book next one etc) and keep rolling it until 11 am.  At 11 am you get your first 2-3 pm pass.  then no riding 11 am -1 pm (2 hour cooling period-eat lunch/snacks/parades/ride standby).  At 1 pm book second pass 2:30-4 pm (2nd cool off period is not a full 2 hours because you have a pass 2-3pm, but will loose stacking).

Personally I would book my first evening pass when I leave the park for a mid day break.  So at 1 pm book 4-5pm and then head out the park; if I look again at 3 pm (2 hr cooling can start at 1, 1:30 whenever you book the evening pass) I may book another 4:30 or 5 pm pass.


----------



## gharter

snikki said:


> From what I’ve seen stacking isn’t as easy with your first reserved park, especially MK. When I’ve checked the tip board arrival windows are usually within the hour for MK for a big portion of their rides. You can only book next available if it’s your reserved park.
> 
> If you are hopping, stacking seems to work better. At or around 7 am make a 3 pm for SDD. Around 11 am make a 5 pm for Smugglers. At 1 pm make a 4 pm for TSM/RNRC/TOT.  If you bought ROTR and MMRR at 7 am you could walk into the park at 3 pm with 5 LL and make a new one as you arrive and keep rolling them out. Of course if times work.
> 
> That’s how I’m understanding it anyway.


That was our experience last week.
Genie + is no where near as user friendly as FP+ was.  Hopefully this will improve with time.
Park hopping made stacking much more doable.


----------



## Disturbia

leeniewdw said:


> Using PepperjackDragon's strategy, here is a somewhat aggressive hypothetical strategy we might use on 12/4:
> 
> 
> Saturday 12/47amgrab FOP and EE ILL$ for timeslots around 2pm7amgrab a 10:45ish LL for MFSR8:30amRD either SDD or TT/RRC9-11amStandby Rides11:00amBook MK LL1 for post 3:30pm11:XXRide MFSR11:XXBook MK LL2 for post 3:30pm11:30amLeave Park for Hotel12-1:30pmbreak1:00pmbook next LL3 for post 3:30pm1:30pmhead to AK2-3pmFOP/EE3:00pmhead to MK
> 
> Obviously this would depend on crowd and available slots, but the key here is to book LL2 at the 11am slot (2 hours post park opening) before I actually use my LL1 (MFSR), which then gets me to 2 in my stack.  Once it hits 1pm, I get LL3 as 3rd in my stack.
> 
> I *think* this works.....theoretically?



I'm not 100% sure about LL2 either.  I would think you have to book it at 1 pm.  like Molly:

https://allears.net/2021/10/21/how-can-you-stack-multiple-disney-genie-reservations/
It gave her an error message that it was too soon to book another when she tried at 11 am (she initially booked  7 pm Slinky at 7 am - I assume, she didn't really clarify).

In your example you have a Genie+ pass that you're trying to modify.  I think it might work.  You're allowed to ride rides now after the cooling period is over and if only availability is evening (if you have another one with pm availability) then you should be able to book it.

*Edit:  I think you need to reverse riding MFSR and then book the late afternoon pass at 11:15 am?  that was throwing me off.  Then you have to wait with no Genie+ 11 am-1 pm.  Next Genie+ can only be booked at 1 pm for now (1 pm+) or later afternoon/evening.*


----------



## snikki

Disturbia said:


> You can also book your first Genie+ pass at 9 am (ride by 9:15 am, book 915; ride by 9:30 and book next one etc) and keep rolling it until 11 am.  At 11 am you get your first 2-3 pm pass.  then no riding 11 am -1 pm (2 hour cooling period-eat lunch/snacks/parades/ride standby).  At 1 pm book second pass 2:30-4 pm (2nd cool off period is not a full 2 hours because you have a pass 2-3pm, but will loose stacking).



So if at 11 am you book a LL for 2-3 pm and then at 1 pm book a second LL for 2:30 -3:30 pm when does the cool off period end? In 120 minutes at 3 pm or when you scan into the 2 pm LL? This is what I'm trying to figure out.

ETA: I see you replied above to another poster.


----------



## wisblue

I’m not going to assume that stacking the way it can be done now is always going to be allowed. It would be easy for Disney to change the system to prevent making a new LL if you use one but have another one outstanding, Your booking window could be established at 2 hours after you booked the other outstanding one or use it.

That aside, as long as the system is what it is, I can see how the stacking can work for almost anyone, regardless of their style: early entry resort guest, offsite rope dropper, later arriver, all day in one park, midday breaker, park hopper, or whatever.

The key just comes in getting the stack set up by getting a LL with a return time at least 2 hours out, making another LL before using the other one, and then going from there, booking another LL whenever you use or cancel one or let it expire.

I’ve been thinking about how we can take advantage of this over marathon weekend when travel and the races will prevent us from being at a park at opening.


----------



## Disturbia

I think you loose stacking?


----------



## Disturbia

snikki said:


> So if at 11 am you book a LL for 2-3 pm and then at 1 pm book a second LL for 2:30 -3:30 pm when does the cool off period end? In 120 minutes at 3 pm or when you scan into the 2 pm LL? This is what I'm trying to figure out.
> 
> ETA: I see you replied above to another poster.


I think in this instance you loose stacking ability due to the overlap.  Hence the limited amount of stacking you can do.

So if you want to hold 3 passes, and get one at 11 am, 1 pm and 3pm, your first late afternoon/evening pass has to be *3:10 pm onwards* (you can enter ride 5 min early).

If you want to hold 4 passes, you need to get one at 11 am, 1 pm, 3 pm and 5 pm for 5:10 onwards (rare to have that late availability at 11 am; not advisable as you spent most of your day without using Genie+)

edit:  apparently if you don’t scan into your first pass around 11 am that ends after 11 am, the system sees no pass (2 hrs from park opening 9 am-11 am) and allows you to book a pass in the future at 11 am as long as you didn’t tap into the pass before 11 am.


----------



## snikki

wisblue said:


> I’m not going to assume that stacking the way it can be done now is always going to be allowed. It would be easy for Disney to change the system to prevent making a new LL if you use one but have another one outstanding, Your booking window could be established at 2 hours after you booked the other outstanding one or use it.
> 
> That aside, as long as the system is what it is, I can see how the stacking can work for almost anyone, regardless of their style: early entry resort guest, offsite rope dropper, later arriver, all day in one park, midday breaker, park hopper, or whatever.
> 
> The key just comes in getting the stack set up by getting a LL with a return time at least 2 hours out, making another LL before using the other one, and then going from there, booking another LL whenever you use or cancel one or let it expire.
> 
> I’ve been thinking about how we can take advantage of this over marathon weekend when travel and the races will prevent us from being at a park at opening.



We don’t go until November 2022 and I’m trying to keep with now because I know things will be different by then. I figure if I keep up now I won’t be as confused when they switch things up. Maybe I can keep up.


----------



## 2Gma

The only issue I had with trying to stack (and something to be aware of) was during my days at MK and DHS this past week (Thurs/Fri) booking a higher popularity ride where time slots go fast (JC/PP or SDD/MFSR) early in the day is that then you're Genie+LL is tried up for quite a while and the other Genie+LL attractions times get later and later or gone. If you don't book a high popularity ride early then you chance missing it and having to wait longer in line.

One could certainly make a case for booking a close return window and riding shortly there after and then booking another but I didn't find that to be the case unless if it was something you usually don't wait that long for anyways.  (for example Alien Saucers, Dumbo, IASW, etc.).

RotR is its own beast.  As as offsite guest, I followed some social media and knew I had to book at exactly 0900 or miss out. I was able to grab one for 7:10-8:10 and in one minute they were gone.  If you're onsite you have much better chance with starting at 0700.


----------



## leeniewdw

snikki said:


> We don’t go until November 2022 and I’m trying to keep with now because I know things will be different by then. I figure if I keep up now I won’t be as confused when they switch things up. Maybe I can keep up.



We have a 6 person trip in Feb but we're thinking of making a quick trip down in early Dec for just the 2 of us.  Presumably we'll learn best by using it, but I've found the posts about people's experiences the best explainers.   I've book marked about 4 posts in the last few days and have gone back and re-read them.   I feel like the actual is so much better than the theoretical.  It also helps to read about hiccups and how those were handled.


----------



## chicagodisneyguy

snikki said:


> Did you stack for the evening?


We stacked most things before out 6pm dinner.  But we did stack Smugglers Run and Star Tours for when we got back


----------



## Disturbia

I think the easiest way is to just book a pass at 7 am and keep going.  IF you really wanted to do the top 2, pay for some of them with known high waits (FOP; Everest has a single rider line and so does Space mtn).  When you want to break, book your evening pass before you leave the park and just charge *your and your phone's* batteries.

Edit:  ok fine, for all the time we spent thinking of stacking; at least do one stacking after your 2 hour cool down.

Edit:  apparently Space Mtn doesn’t have a single rider line


----------



## PepperjackDragon

leeniewdw said:


> This is my favorite post and I'll be reading it over and over.   We already talked about how the 1:35pms turned into 2:xx when getting booked because of the hopper time of 2pm, but I wanted to make sure that one of the Splash reservations was actually Thunder Mountain?   I'm presuming the 11:00 grab was for the 2pm Splash and the 11:16 grab (once you tabbed into SDD) was 2:20pm BTMRR?


Oops yes sorry I’ll edit it.


----------



## leeniewdw

Disturbia said:


> I think the easiest way is to just book a pass at 7 am and keep going.  IF you really wanted to do the top 2, pay for some of them with known high waits (FOP; Everest has a single rider line and so does Space mtn).  When you want to break, book your evening pass before you leave the park and just charge *your and your phone's* batteries.



I feel like the pendulum has swung back and forth!  Which probably means, there are good options for you no matter your touring approach.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

Disturbia said:


> I think in this instance you loose stacking ability due to the overlap.  Hence the limited amount of stacking you can do.
> 
> So if you want to hold 3 passes, and get one at 11 am, 1 pm and 3pm, your first late afternoon/evening pass has to be *3:10 pm onwards* (you can enter ride 5 min early).
> 
> If you want to hold 4 passes, you need to get one at 11 am, 1 pm, 3 pm and 5 pm for 5:10 onwards (rare to have that late availability at 11 am; not advisable as you spent most of your day without using Genie+)


That’s not correct, you can stack them all within minutes of each other. It just shows you have overlapping plans but is not an issue.


----------



## Disturbia

PepperjackDragon said:


> That’s not correct, you can stack them all within minutes of each other. It just shows you have overlapping plans but is not an issue.





PepperjackDragon said:


> That’s not correct, you can stack them all within minutes of each other. It just shows you have overlapping plans but is not an issue.


You can stack them one on top of each other only if they're in the future, not now (as in within your 2 hour cool down).  You can book 3:10-4:10 pm and 3:30-4:30 and 4-5 pm (if you were booking at 11 am, 1 pm and 3 pm)


----------



## snikki

PepperjackDragon said:


> Oops yes sorry I’ll edit it.



So your 120 minute cool off period was over once you checked into SDD?

11 am : book splash for 2 pm.

11:15 am : ride SDD that was booked at 7 am

11:16 am : book thunder for 2:20 pm

Is this how it went? That’s interesting because I would’ve assumed you would have to wait 120 minutes but I like this better if it’s the case.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

Disturbia said:


> You can stack them one on top of each other only if they're in the future, not now (as in within your 2 hour cool down).


In sorry I’m not understanding what you are saying. I booked rides that overlapped all afternoon/evening without an issue.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

snikki said:


> So your 120 minute cool off period was over once you checked into SDD?
> 
> 11 am : book splash for 2 pm.
> 
> 11:15 am : ride SDD that was booked at 7 am
> 
> 11:16 am : book thunder for 2:20 pm
> 
> Is this how it went? That’s interesting because I would’ve assumed you would have to wait 120 minutes but I like this better if it’s the case.


Yes as soon as you check in to the ride you can book your second, there is no required cool down period. Anytime you ride a ride or cancel a ride you can immediately rebook. The cooldown isn’t only if you book a ride and then wait 2hrs, allowing you to create the second etc LL access.


----------



## Disturbia

PepperjackDragon said:


> In sorry I’m not understanding what you are saying. I booked rides that overlapped all afternoon/evening without an issue.


I think you started off with one Genie+ at park opening? so didn't have the first cool down period park opening to 11 am


----------



## Disturbia

Sorry:  I need coffee and go hit my head in the wall


----------



## leeniewdw

PepperjackDragon said:


> Yes as soon as you check in to the ride you can book your second, there is no required cool down period. Anytime you ride a ride or cancel a ride you can immediately rebook. The cooldown isn’t only if you book a ride and then wait 2hrs, allowing you to create the second etc LL access.



Perfect.  I actually understood, whew.  Thanks again for the time spent explaining your day!   I watched YT video where he was *trying* to stack, but was unsuccessful because of the order of things he did it in.  Obviously that wasn't helpful (other than to attest to the complexity), but I also think seeing it written out is more helpful.   

So if things don't change between now and 12/4, we're going to try my 3 park approach.


----------



## snikki

PepperjackDragon said:


> Yes as soon as you check in to the ride you can book your second, there is no required cool down period. Anytime you ride a ride or cancel a ride you can immediately rebook. The cooldown isn’t only if you book a ride and then wait 2hrs, allowing you to create the second etc LL access.



Good to know! I understand the whole cool down period not being only if you book a ride and all that. I just assumes that since you booked splash at 11 am for 2 pm your cool down period would be set for splash so you’d have to wait 120 minutes since you already did your cool down period for SDD. I didn’t know it would reset once riding splash. I thought it would reset at 1 pm because it would be going off of the splash LL. This scenario could work really well depending on which park you RD and which park you hop to!

I don’t know if I make any sense. It makes sense in my head. I’m with @Disturbia. Coffee and a wall. Lol


----------



## leeniewdw

Disturbia said:


> I think you started off with one Genie+ at park opening? so didn't have the first cool down period park opening to 11 am



No, their 7am reservation was for a 10:45 SDD.   But they didn't ride it until AFTER 11am, which allowed them to make a 2nd LL reservation AT 11am.  Tapped into SDD at 11:15am and immediately g0t another LL, at which point their stack was 2 (Splash at 2pm,  BTMMR at 2:20).   Had they ridden SDD FIRST, they would have lost the chance to stack.


----------



## 2Gma

@snikki I think what might be being said here is that your plans/return times can overlap. I held a RotR ILL for 7:10-8:10.  
I also had Genie+LL for RRC from 6:55-7:55 and ToT from 7:25-8:25.

You will get a message telling you in app you have overlapping plans.

The 2 hour window is while trying to book if they are not being used immediately.


----------



## Tom_E_D

Disturbia said:


> I think the easiest way is to just book a pass at 7 am and keep going.  IF you really wanted to do the top 2, pay for some of them with known high waits (FOP; Everest has a single rider line and so does Space mtn).  When you want to break, book your evening pass before you leave the park and just charge *your and your phone's* batteries.
> 
> Edit:  ok fine, for all the time we spent thinking of stacking; at least do one stacking after your 2 hour cool down.


Since when has Space Mountain had a single rider line? I've ridden it many times over the years and only saw two lines: standby and what was then called the fastpass line.


----------



## fly girl

I know this has probably been asked before but I am too lazy to go through 20 pages. 

Of course HS is the biggest strategy for G+ and ILL. We are staying onsite. We can book both G+ and ILL at 7am. Question is, can we utilize multiple phones with the same account to get both ROTR and SDD at 7am?  We are park hopping after 2pm so I would like to get a jump and have those rides before we hop.


----------



## snikki

leeniewdw said:


> No, their 7am reservation was for a 10:45 SDD.   But they didn't ride it until AFTER 11am, which allowed them to make a 2nd LL reservation AT 11am.  Tapped into SDD at 11:15am and immediately g0t another LL, at which point their stack was 2 (Splash at 2pm,  BTMMR at 2:20).   *Had they ridden SDD FIRST, they would have lost the chance to stack.*



Ahh ok. Got it. That’s a good way to work around the system.


----------



## fly girl

Tom_E_D said:


> Since when has Space Mountain had a single rider line? I've ridden it many times over the years and only saw two lines: standby and what was then called the fastpass line.



SM has single rider at DL, not WDW.

Unless something has changed, WDW single rider lanes available at: TT, RNR, MFSR, and EE


----------



## snikki

2Gma said:


> @snikki I think what might be being said here is that your plans/return times can overlap. I held a RotR ILL for 7:10-8:10.
> I also had Genie+LL for RRC from 6:55-7:55 and ToT from 7:25-8:25.
> 
> You will get a message telling you in app you have overlapping plans.
> 
> The 2 hour window is while trying to book if they are not being used immediately.



Yes I know they can overlap but I was throughly confused on how they were allowed to book a LL at 11 am for 2 pm and then 15 minutes later book another without the 120 minute cool down window. Now I see it’s because they scanned into SDD (the LL they made at 7 am for 10:45 am) and it reset the 120 minutes to no minutes.


----------



## aeasterling

leeniewdw said:


> I recall you posting about this.   It sounds very odd.   When we go in FEB, we've got 3 rooms for us, and our 2 sons and their SOs.  Would that imply I couldn't select their LLs for all of us?   Since we're footing the bill for the whole trip, my CC is tied to their reservations (and it'll be paid off before we go).  I have added G+ to the reservations, but now I'm concerned I might not be able to grab the LL for the whole group and be unable to add the ILL$ for all of us?


I think of if are all at an eligible resort, then you could do the 7am ILL$ for everyone.  I had that problem because it didn't recognize my son as a resort guest 

This problem was for LL. No idea why it started happening, but it didn't jump out at me that he wasn't defaulted on the LL, so it was very easy to blow through the screens and not realize that he wasn't selected.


----------



## Tom_E_D

Tom_E_D said:


> Some of the ILL$ prices went up because it's the weekend. When they gave examples at the media event a few weeks ago, they indicated prices for some rides would be higher today (Saturday) than on Tuesday. I would expect most, if not all, of those increased prices to be reduced again (to Tuesday's prices) on Monday.


I just looked in MDE and all ILL$ rides showing prices are back to weekday prices, the same as last Tuesday: 7DMT $10, Space $7, Remy $9, Frozen $9, MMRR $8, AFoP $11 and EE $7. Rise is sold out and not listing a price.


----------



## snikki

How I feel this thread is like


----------



## snikki

Tom_E_D said:


> I just looked in MDE and all ILL$ rides showing prices are back to weekday prices, the same as last Tuesday: 7DMT $10, Space $7, Remy $9, Frozen $9, MMRR $8, AFoP $11 and EE $7. Rise is sold out and not listing a price.



I think rise will always be $15 until they decide to raise the ceiling on ILL.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

T


leeniewdw said:


> Perfect.  I actually understood, whew.  Thanks again for the time spent explaining your day!   I watched YT video where he was *trying* to stack, but was unsuccessful because of the order of things he did it in.  Obviously that wasn't helpful (other than to attest to the complexity), but I also think seeing it written out is more helpful.
> 
> So if things don't change between now and 12/4, we're going to try my 3 park approach.


his is where the third is so critical to making the park a simple walk through. With two you may have to just delay something like PP until the evening and wait to book it until your ready for dinner. For example, when I went through jungle cruise at like 3:30, PP was for 6:45. However I already had two LL booked so I had u til I rode my next LL to wait, no pressure to rush. Refreshed 5-6 times after I rode JC and a 5pm popped up. If you only have two you would have needed to book your second immediately to try to optimize and so would have to adjust accordingly. Could still work well,  it would definitely mean more waiting. With three I am pretty sure it is a guaranteed walk up LL for every ride as long as you are using some basic planning skills and have a general understanding of park layout.

if pan had not showed up for 5pm I would have just continued booming u til pan showed up for a time I liked later that evening-which wouldhave been easy to get since forward times are predictable (backward times require cancellation, but forward times you just have to wait for people to book).


----------



## LSUfan4444

nurseberta said:


> whatis a baseline tap house time?


It's a lounge in Hollywood Studios next to Sci Fi Drive in. It's traditionally where we plan to spend an hour or two when we have that downtime in our HS park day


----------



## leeniewdw

PepperjackDragon said:


> T
> 
> his is where the third is so critical to making the park a simple walk through. With two you may have to just delay something like PP until the evening and wait to book it until your ready for dinner. For example, when I went through jungle cruise at like 3:30, PP was for 6:45. However I already had two LL booked so I had u til I rode my next LL to wait, no pressure to rush. Refreshed 5-6 times after I rode JC and a 5pm popped up. If you only have two you would have needed to book your second immediately to try to optimize and so would have to adjust accordingly. Could still work well,  it would definitely mean more waiting. With three I am pretty sure it is a guaranteed walk up LL for every ride as long as you are using some basic planning skills and have a general understanding of park layout.



Last week I would have read this and be totally confused, but now (for now lol) it's making sense.  I think it helped to read your original post a few times, then try to explain it (probably terribly) to my DH and then walk thru a hypothetical day.  It was starting to make sense and when I came back and re-read your post this morning it was like "got it".  I'm still going to bookmark this post though!


----------



## acarsme123

Jrb1979 said:


> That's only for the paid LL


I am sorry if this has been asked/answered before, but can both paid LL be purchased right away at 7am?  I mean, you don’t have a two hour window in between booking those like you do with the regular genie+ rides do you?


----------



## badinnplaid

Man, I feel like I usually get all this stuff but for whatever reason, I'm struggling with the stacking here! So I'll be down for a quick two-day trip in a couple of weeks, and one day we're doing Hollywood Studios and hopping to Magic Kingdom after 2. Plan on taking advantage of early entry hours and rope dropping Hollywood Studios, and will probably get an ILL for Rise of the Resistance. I'm very interested in stacking for our evening at Magic Kingdom, but I want to make sure I understand the implications.

So at 7, we book something at Hollywood Studios with a starting window from 10:30ish to 11. This is A1 reservation.

We tour HS as normal, taking advantage of EEH. Then at 11, we book a reservation for MK, at some point after 2. This is B1 reservation. 

We then use our A1 reservation and get to book A2, which is something at MK after B1. 

Then at 1:00, we get to book a 3rd reservation at MK. This is C1. Once we hop after 2:00, we keep this rolling, use B1, book B2, use A2, book, A3, use C1, book C2.

First, is this right or am I missing something? Second, am I right in thinking that we will only be able to get one G+ option at Hollywood Studios or could we use our A2 reservation to get something at HS at like 1:15 or so...or does that mess up the stacking in some way?

Also, do we have to keep track of the order we need to use them in? So like does A2 HAVE to come after B1 to keep the stack going? Or does it not really matter?


----------



## snikki

Are people finding more availability with this than with FP+?

I loved FP+ but we barely utilized legacy FP due to the running around. It was too much with small kids. FP+ allowed me 3 rides a day which was probably 2 more rides than we used with legacy FP.  We did FP+ in our PM park and we weren’t FP+ refreshers so rarely, if ever, did we get more than our initial 3. I feel with G+ we are going to be able to do more rides and save more time. Yes we have to pay now but time is money.


----------



## leeniewdw

badinnplaid said:


> Man, I feel like I usually get all this stuff but for whatever reason, I'm struggling with the stacking here! So I'll be down for a quick two-day trip in a couple of weeks, and one day we're doing Hollywood Studios and hopping to Magic Kingdom after 2. Plan on taking advantage of early entry hours and rope dropping Hollywood Studios, and will probably get an ILL for Rise of the Resistance. I'm very interested in stacking for our evening at Magic Kingdom, but I want to make sure I understand the implications.
> 
> So at 7, we book something at Hollywood Studios with a starting window from 10:30ish to 11. This is A1 reservation.
> 
> We tour HS as normal, taking advantage of EEH. *Then at 11, we book a reservation for MK, at some point after 2. This is B1 reservation.
> 
> We then use our A1 reservation and get to book A2*, which is something at MK after B1.
> 
> Then at 1:00, we get to book a 3rd reservation at MK. This is C1. Once we hop after 2:00, we keep this rolling, use B1, book B2, use A2, book, A3, use C1, book C2.
> 
> First, is this right or am I missing something? Second, am I right in thinking that we will only be able to get one G+ option at Hollywood Studios or could we use our A2 reservation to get something at HS at like 1:15 or so...or does that mess up the stacking in some way?
> 
> Also, do we have to keep track of the order we need to use them in? So like does A2 HAVE to come after B1 to keep the stack going? Or does it not really matter?



The bolded part is key, but yes I think this is exactly how it works.

I think the 2nd LL at HS (A2) would work depending on what kind of return times are available.   At 11:15, would there be something else that's available before 2pm that you want to ride at HS?  I JUST looked at the app about an hour ago and was thinking most HS rides were later than when you'd want to hop.  But that's something you could monitor via MDE and see how likely that might be.


----------



## badinnplaid

Ahh--okay, so we think that if I made one at Hollywood Studios (depending on availability) at say 1:30--that would be okay, because I could still reserve one my 3rd one at 1 and keep it all going.


----------



## emilymad

So with stacking is the rules always to book a LL then use the existing LL?


----------



## leeniewdw

badinnplaid said:


> Ahh--okay, so we think that if I made one at Hollywood Studios (depending on availability) at say 1:30--that would be okay, because I could still reserve one my 3rd one at 1 and keep it all going.



I am NO EXPERT, nor have I used this in person, so I've just been reading and reading.  I think the only thing that would be an issue is that your "stack" would likely stay at 2 LLs unless you had a longer gap before hopping to MK.   I might play around with this idea and see what I come up with.


----------



## Disturbia

fly girl said:


> SM has single rider at DL, not WDW.
> 
> Unless something has changed, WDW single rider lanes available at: TT, RNR, MFSR, and EE


Skipped it for many years and have only ridden with FP+ Or Halloween party; sorry my bad


----------



## Disturbia

I didn’t even know that if you didn’t ride a ride, Genie+ still will see it as a future ride so if he didn’t ride 10:45-11:45 Genie+, he can book an afternoon pass at 11 am and then go ride the 10:45 ride

everyday I’m learning something new


----------



## thanxfornoticin

snikki said:


> I think rise will always be $15 until they decide to raise the ceiling on ILL.


If ROTR continues to sell out the ILL in a few hours, the price is going to go up.  Disney is monitoring these attractions closely, and they'll be supply and demand driven, I'm sure.  I could see older ILL attractions like SM and EE dropping prices because few buy them.  But ROTR will likely go the other way in the immediate future - until that becomes one of the 'older' attractions and doesn't sell out ILL.


----------



## persnickity

SM does allow you to go past a portion of the line as a single rider - but it's not at the beginning of the queue, you have to wait a bit and then tell a CM that you are a single.

(I've never done it, but I've watched a lot of vlogger videos lately, lol.)


----------



## leeniewdw

badinnplaid said:


> Ahh--okay, so we think that if I made one at Hollywood Studios (depending on availability) at say 1:30--that would be okay, because I could still reserve one my 3rd one at 1 and keep it all going.



Yeah, this still works as long as the time's work I think.  DISCLAIMER, I don't know any more than anyone else who hasn't been.   But these exercises actually help me!


7amgrab a 10:45+ LL for MFSRStack = 1LL8:30amRD either SDD or TT/RRC9-11amStandby Rides11:00amBook HS LL2 for 1:15Stack = 2LL11:10amTap into MFSRStack = 1LL11:11amBook MK LL1 for post 2:30Stack = 2LL11:12-1:00Standby Rides/Lunch1:00pmBook MK LL2 for post 2:30Stack = 3LL1:15pmTap into HS LL2 ride selected at 11amStack = 2LL1:16pmBook MK LL3 for 3:00+Stack = 3LL1:30pmDepart HS for MK2:00pmArrive at MK with 3 LLsStack = 3LL2:00pm oncycle the stack ride by ride always booking another LL before you tap into the next ride

And actually this is what post #257 is all about,  IIRC they talked about maybe grabbing another HS ride but opted not to.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

acarsme123 said:


> I am sorry if this has been asked/answered before, but can both paid LL be purchased right away at 7am?  I mean, you don’t have a two hour window in between booking those like you do with the regular genie+ rides do you?


That's a really good question.  One clarification, though.  You can only purchase the paid LL at 7AM if you are a resort guest.  But I've not seen anything yet stating you can't purchase 2 at the same time.


----------



## snikki

thanxfornoticin said:


> If ROTR continues to sell out the ILL in a few hours, the price is going to go up.  Disney is monitoring these attractions closely, and they'll be supply and demand driven, I'm sure.  I could see older ILL attractions like SM and EE dropping prices because few buy them.  But ROTR will likely go the other way in the immediate future - until that becomes one of the 'older' attractions and doesn't sell out ILL.



I’m sure it’s coming but for right now the max for ILL is $15. Once they raise the max Rise will stay at that max price every day of the year. It won’t have a weekday vs weekend pride like the rest of the rides seem to have.


----------



## snikki

acarsme123 said:


> I am sorry if this has been asked/answered before, but can both paid LL be purchased right away at 7am?  I mean, you don’t have a two hour window in between booking those like you do with the regular genie+ rides do you?



They can both be booked at 7 am. They can overlap times or be booked at two different parks. There’s no 120 minute cool off.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

snikki said:


> I’m sure it’s coming but for right now the max for ILL is $15. Once they raise the max Rise will stay at that max price every day of the year. It won’t have a weekday vs weekend pride like the rest of the rides seem to have.


I think you're right.  It's selling out fast enough now, it doesn't seem to matter if it's weekday or weekend or holiday.  Good point.


----------



## MomDoc_99

Tom_E_D said:


> Since when has Space Mountain had a single rider line? I've ridden it many times over the years and only saw two lines: standby and what was then called the fastpass line.


Space Mountain at WDW has sort of a single rider line (at least they did pre-COVID). Once you get into the main room, you can tell a CM you are a single rider and they will direct you. You don't skip all of the line, but you can skip part of it.


----------



## robinb

persnickity said:


> SM does allow you to go past a portion of the line as a single rider - but it's not at the beginning of the queue, you have to wait a bit and then tell a CM that you are a single.
> 
> (I've never done it, but I've watched a lot of vlogger videos lately, lol.)


Sometimes the CMs will ask for a single ride at the final loading queue.  Is that what you're talking about?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Donna M said:


> We will be going to the MK on Thursday.  I am starting to understand the stacking. Is this the way to do it?  We will have a 2 and 3 year old with us.          At 7:00 get a  ll for 11:30 at JC     At 9:00 get a ll for somewhere in Fantasy Land.   Rope drop and do as many rides in Fantasy Land a s possible.  Lunch at 11:00.   Over to JC and add a ll for rides near there.  Keep stacking rides in that area then in the other lands.  See about getting a 3rd ll.  Not paying for any.


I suspect the easiest way to stack a third is around whenever you take lunch.  Stacking only occurs when you have 120 minutes in between pulls.  That seems most likely to occur based on a break you take to eat.  I'm not sure that stacking a third is optimal strategy on a low crowd day when you arrive early if you've got two stacked and can keep pulling.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

DisneyKidds said:


> Can someone confirm this crucial first step in the Stacking strategy. If a park opens at 9am does the LL return you booked between 7am and 8:59 am (to create the first Stack) have to have a return window that starts after 11am, or can that return window start before 11am so long as you don’t tap into it until after you book another LL at 11am (to create the second Stack)?


The second is correct.  People have reported making their first reservation for 10:55 AM and still being able to stack by not tapping into that first one until they've made the second one.


----------



## persnickity

I'm trying to strategize for a lengthy mid-day break (no hopping). 

Before 9: Book 11ish JC
11am: book PP for around 2 or 3

*Question*: After booking the 2nd ride, could I _cancel _the JC and rebook it for later? Or will I lose it since I now have PP booked?  It's a different slot, so I'm hopeful it could work, just can't remember if this has been tested.


----------



## Cotta

Tom_E_D said:


> Since when has Space Mountain had a single rider line? I've ridden it many times over the years and only saw two lines: standby and what was then called the fastpass line.


 
Just watched this on Mr. Morrow... Space does not have a "single rider line" per se. But it does have a sign that says tell your attendant if you are single (Which don't they always ask anyway??) But Mr. Morrow did indeed skip a big portion of the line being a single rider.


----------



## Disturbia

robinb said:


> Sometimes the CMs will ask for a single ride at the final loading queue.  Is that what you're talking about?


They do that for FOP but that’s in the last 5-10 minutes of a 60 min wait


----------



## Disturbia

Cotta said:


> Just watched this on Mr. Morrow... Space does not have a "single rider line" per se. But it does have a sign that says tell your attendant if you are single (Which don't they always ask anyway??) But Mr. Morrow did indeed skip a big portion of the line being a single rider.


Single rider or single?


----------



## Disturbia

persnickity said:


> I'm trying to strategize for a lengthy mid-day break (no hopping).
> 
> Before 9: Book 11ish JC
> 11am: book PP for around 2 or 3
> 
> *Question*: After booking the 2nd ride, could I _cancel _the JC and rebook it for later? Or will I lose it since I now have PP booked?  It's a different slot, so I'm hopeful it could work, just can't remember if this has been tested.


As long as you don’t tap into your 10:45-11:45 am JC pass you can book an late afternoon/evening PP pass (learned this just now).


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Disturbia said:


> I think in this instance you loose stacking ability due to the overlap.  Hence the limited amount of stacking you can do.
> 
> So if you want to hold 3 passes, and get one at 11 am, 1 pm and 3pm, your first late afternoon/evening pass has to be *3:10 pm onwards* (you can enter ride 5 min early).
> 
> If you want to hold 4 passes, you need to get one at 11 am, 1 pm, 3 pm and 5 pm for 5:10 onwards (rare to have that late availability at 11 am; not advisable as you spent most of your day without using Genie+)


The only time I could see 4 stacks being both possible and the optimal strategy would be on Christmas week days when the parks are open until midnight but also incredibly crowded.


----------



## wisblue

snikki said:


> Are people finding more availability with this than with FP+?
> 
> I loved FP+ but we barely utilized legacy FP due to the running around. It was too much with small kids. FP+ allowed me 3 rides a day which was probably 2 more rides than we used with legacy FP.  We did FP+ in our PM park and we weren’t FP+ refreshers so rarely, if ever, did we get more than our initial 3. I feel with G+ we are going to be able to do more rides and save more time. Yes we have to pay now but time is money.



My immediate reaction to this is “It’s early”.

GLL+ is definitely more available now because (1) the parks haven’t been that crowded, and (2) Genie + is brand new and I would guess that a lower percentage of park guests aren’t using it, either because they don’t know about it, don’t know it works, aren’t willing or able to pay extra, or don’t think it’s  necessary because standby lines haven’t been that long.

As crowds and standby lines grow, and more people decide there is value in Genie+, we might find that it will be difficult to get as much mileage out of Genie+ as we can today. Those “free” 3 scheduled FPs for headliner attractions at times we chose might look pretty good.

But, in the meantime, I intend to take full advantage of it.


----------



## JakeAZ

leeniewdw said:


> cycle the stack ride by ride always booking another LL before you tap into the next ride


This is very good advice, thanks!


----------



## rmclain73

One pro to the stacking aspect of Genie+ being difficult to wrap your head around at first is that your average park visitor will have no idea whats going on.  Everyone on this forum will have a much greater advantage and  get the most out of the $15.98 charge.


----------



## rmclain73

wisblue said:


> My immediate reaction to this is “It’s early”.
> 
> GLL+ is definitely more available now because (1) the parks haven’t been that crowded, and (2) Genie + is brand new and I would guess that a lower percentage of park guests aren’t using it, either because they don’t know about it, don’t know it works, aren’t willing or able to pay extra, or don’t think it’s  necessary because standby lines haven’t been that long.
> 
> As crowds and standby lines grow, and more people decide there is value in Genie+, we might find that it will be difficult to get as much mileage out of Genie+ as we can today. Those “free” 3 scheduled FPs for headliner attractions at times we chose might look pretty good.
> 
> But, in the meantime, I intend to take full advantage of it.



The other thing to consider is that Disney may have a threshold of people who use it before they decide to increase they daily fee to keep LL's available and the lines moving.


----------



## snikki

rmclain73 said:


> One pro to the stacking aspect of Genie+ being difficult to wrap your head around at first is that your average park visitor will have no idea whats going on.  Everyone on this forum will have a much greater advantage and  get the most out of the $15.98 charge.



Yup. 98% of park goers will start booking G+ around 9-10 am (or whatever time they arrive to the park) and book them as they go. One at a time. They’ll get 5-6 a day and be happy with it. They won’t be trying to strategize or finding the ins and outs. It’s only a college level course for people on these boards (including myself).


----------



## DisneyKidds

persnickity said:


> *Question*: After booking the 2nd ride, could I _cancel _the JC and rebook it for later? Or will I lose it since I now have PP booked?  It's a different slot, so I'm hopeful it could work, just can't remember if this has been tested.


I think that may be covered in Stacking 450:  Advanced Stacking Steategies.


----------



## wisblue

emilymad said:


> So with stacking is the rules always to book a LL then use the existing LL?



Not necessarily. If your first LL is far enough out, you might end up booking and rebooking a second one multiple times before you use the first one.

For example, if at 7 AM you book Slinky for 2 PM, you could make a second selection at 11 AM. If that one has a return time of say 12:30 PM, you could use that one and book another before using the one for Slinky.


----------



## Orsino

I see multiple strategies developing in this thread, which is great. What is less great is overlapping terms and discussions can get a bit confusing.

Here is what I've gleaned from this thread, with some made-up terms I'm using to try and keep the strategies distinct.

- "stacking" refers to the Genie+ implementation where a user becomes eligible for a new LL reservation 120 minutes after having not been eligible for some other reason. 'stacking' refers to the fact that this process will lead to holding more than one LL at the same time.

- "hop stacking" refers to the strategy of collecting LL reservations at a park other than your initial park reservation park. The system will automatically offer LL times after the 2PM park hop restriction to facilitate collection of useful LL.

- "double stacking" refers to the strategy of getting the initial LL reservation for a return time around 2 hours after park open so that the 120 minute "stacking" strategy comes into play (LL#2), followed shortly by redemption of the first LL and booking LL#3.

- "minimum cycle time" (jargony, sorry: maybe there is a better term. I wanted to avoid the term 'greedy' which is also jargony) refers to the strategy of getting as many LL as possible as quickly as possible to maximize the use of LL. Stacking is unlikely to come into play with this strategy as the user is trying to get their next LL quickly by using the previous one asap. The key to this strategy is to get the popular LL that winds up with late return times quickly for early in the day. A 7AM start with Genie+ is a must.

My view is that 'minimum cycle time' makes the most sense for users who are not interested in re-riding any attractions. If you aren't going to re-ride something, then using LL to skip a 'short wait' 15 minute line is perfectly reasonable since you aren't coming back anyway. However, for users interested in re-riding attractions, when to use LL for a particular ride becomes part of the strategy. In other words, re-rides means you have to use standby at some point, so that standby wait will want to be during the short wait opportunity.

I think 'double stacking' makes the most sense for users interested in riding the same ride multiple times. Ride standby at rope drop when standby lines are most reasonable, then use the double stack after the first 120 minutes of the day.

The final strategy I'm trying to formulate is 'late arrival stacking.' (No hopping) On arrival day, I'm getting to MCO around 3PM. This is too late to make use of 'hop stacking.' I'm eyeing rides that get pushed to late return times early in the day (e.g. Jungle Cruise). I don't think I'd be able to get a 4PM or 5PM return time at 8:55AM so this strategy is one I'll be watching for feasibility.


----------



## DavidNYC

wisblue said:


> My immediate reaction to this is “It’s early”.
> 
> GLL+ is definitely more available now because (1) the parks haven’t been that crowded, and (2) Genie + is brand new and I would guess that a lower percentage of park guests aren’t using it, either because they don’t know about it, don’t know it works, aren’t willing or able to pay extra, or don’t think it’s  necessary because standby lines haven’t been that long.
> 
> As crowds and standby lines grow, and more people decide there is value in Genie+, we might find that it will be difficult to get as much mileage out of Genie+ as we can today. Those “free” 3 scheduled FPs for headliner attractions at times we chose might look pretty good.
> 
> But, in the meantime, I intend to take full advantage of it.


That's my impression as well.   Where this is making the most difference is that for those who wish to get up at 7am, it is much easier to at least get a couple LL in the morning day of.  As for availability when you hit midday?  I noticing some adjustments to how it works moreso than availability.  I could easily get a FP for most rides with some light refreshing previously.  There are very few rides that aren't ILL where I'm noticing any signficantly increased availability compared to what you could do before.  

If you had no idea what FP+ was and showed up at the park without anything booked, you'll find more availability and be better off.  If you knew what you were doing with FP+, I think you'll find your availability about the same or a little worse since you'll have less ability to choose time slots for yourself.


----------



## leeniewdw

All looks good to me and I understood your explanations!



Orsino said:


> The final strategy I'm trying to formulate is 'late arrival stacking.' (No hopping) On arrival day, I'm getting to MCO around 3PM. This is too late to make use of 'hop stacking.' I'm eyeing rides that get pushed to late return times early in the day (e.g. Jungle Cruise). I don't think I'd be able to get a 4PM or 5PM return time at 8:55AM so this strategy is one I'll be watching for feasibility.



Yes, we'll need to use this as well.   We'll buy ILL$ on our arrival day at 7am and book them for pretty late (to account for travel delays), then try to monitor regular LL slots as they move into the timeframe we might be able to use them.    For one of our trips, it's EPCOT as arrival day park, and I'm not even sure it makes sense for G+ since it'll be evening on a day that's expected to be lower crowds.  But we may try it anyway just to see how it goes.


----------



## Disturbia

DavidNYC said:


> That's my impression as well.   Where this is making the most difference is that for those who wish to get up at 7am, it is much easier to at least get a couple LL in the morning day of.  As for availability when you hit midday?  I noticing some adjustments to how it works moreso than availability.  I could easily get a FP for most rides with some light refreshing previously.  There are very few rides that aren't ILL where I'm noticing any signficantly increased availability compared to what you could do before.
> 
> If you had no idea what FP+ was and showed up at the park without anything booked, you'll find more availability and be better off.  If you knew what you were doing with FP+, I think you'll find your availability about the same or a little worse since you'll have less ability to choose time slots for yourself.


Maybe add multiple stacking (more than 2)-we can call it the cliff hanger strategy

and also ‘in window strategy’


----------



## thanxfornoticin

rmclain73 said:


> The other thing to consider is that Disney may have a threshold of people who use it before they decide to increase they daily fee to keep LL's available and the lines moving.


Agreed.  We equate G+ mostly with MaxPass at DL.  We loved using MaxPass and have hopes G+ will be a positive.  But MaxPass started at $10 (I believe), and then went to $15 and eventually $20.  This fee will likely climb at both parks.


----------



## Disturbia

Also, is it verified that for 11 am stacking I don’t need to be in the park?  Epcot on travel checkin day


----------



## badinnplaid

leeniewdw said:


> Yeah, this still works as long as the time's work I think.  DISCLAIMER, I don't know any more than anyone else who hasn't been.   But these exercises actually help me!
> 
> 
> 7amgrab a 10:45+ LL for MFSRStack = 1LL8:30amRD either SDD or TT/RRC9-11amStandby Rides11:00amBook HS LL2 for 1:15Stack = 2LL11:10amTap into MFSRStack = 1LL11:11amBook MK LL1 for post 2:30Stack = 2LL11:12-1:00Standby Rides/Lunch1:00pmBook MK LL2 for post 2:30Stack = 3LL1:15pmTap into HS LL2 ride selected at 11amStack = 2LL1:16pmBook MK LL3 for 3:00+Stack = 3LL1:30pmDepart HS for MK2:00pmArrive at MK with 3 LLsStack = 3LL2:00pm oncycle the stack ride by ride always booking another LL before you tap into the next ride
> 
> And actually this is what post #257 is all about,  IIRC they talked about maybe grabbing another HS ride but opted not to.



This is super helpful (as is post 257)! So I think I definitely get how to build our stack early in the day. What I'm a little unsure of is if I understand the order of operations required to maintain that stack of 3 if we want to do like was done in post 257. Like am I basically doing the exact same thing at 3:00, 5:00, and 7:00 as I did earlier or are those times now irrelevant? Why is this so hard for my brain?


----------



## ruthies12

I want to know if it is possible to purchase an ILL for 7D between 7:00 and 8:00 on a night when you only have a Very Merry After Hours ticket?  

I'm attending the after hours party but mine train always has a longer wait even in after hours parties and it's our only visit to the park that trip.  I'm staying offsite so I'm wondering if the morning of our party ticket at park opening can I purchase a ILL for mine train do you think?  I don't want regular G+ obviously since I can't enter the park until 7:00 pm, just want to do the one ILL during the regular park hours before the party starts...........


----------



## leeniewdw

Disturbia said:


> Also, is it verified that for 11 am stacking I don’t need to be in the park?  Epcot on travel checkin day



Correct as far as what has been reported.  That's my plan as well.



badinnplaid said:


> This is super helpful (as is post 257)! So I think I definitely get how to build our stack early in the day. What I'm a little unsure of is if I understand the order of operations required to maintain that stack of 3 if we want to do like was done in post 257. Like am I basically doing the exact same thing at 3:00, 5:00, and 7:00 as I did earlier or are those times now irrelevant? Why is this so hard for my brain?



Again, standard discalimer!    But I think once you got to MK in this hypothetical day, you'd probably just be cycling the LLs as you use them.   So if your first 3 rides at MK were this:

2:15 JC    (MK LL1)
2:45 Pirates  (MK LL2)
3:30 HM   (MK LL3)

Your plan could be:
2:15 Tap into JC
2:16  Grab MK LL4 (replaces LL1)
2: 45 Tap into  Pirates
2:46  Grab MK LL5  (replaces LL2)
3:30 Tap into HM
3:31  Grab MK LL6 (replaces LL3)  

So basically you've kept 3 LLs except the moment between tapping in (drop down to 2) and then grabbing another.   However, on this mythical timeline what about:

2:15 JC    (MK LL1)
2:45 Pirates  (MK LL2)
3:30 HM   (MK LL3)

Your plan could be:
2:15 Tap into JC
2:16  Grab MK LL4 (replaces LL1)
2: 45 Tab into  Pirates
2:46  Grab MK LL5  (replaces LL2)
3:00  Grab MK LL6 (new to the stack, now you have LL3, LL4, LL5, and LL6 in hand!!!)
3:30 Tap into HM
3:31  Grab MK LL7 (replaces LL3)   (still have LLs 4-7, stack of 4)

LOL, no clue if this would work.   It would greatly depend on the return times available.  I believe post 257 said that they had to work to find a good time for one of their returns.

I think the post using Ax, Bx, Cx might be more helpful because it's shows how you are cycling the same slot in the stack, but you get it.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

rmclain73 said:


> One pro to the stacking aspect of Genie+ being difficult to wrap your head around at first is that your average park visitor will have no idea whats going on.  Everyone on this forum will have a much greater advantage and  get the most out of the $15.98 charge.


Yes, it's this exactly.  Stacking lets you effectively pull twice as many to three times as many LL's in a day as an average user.  Regular users aren't going to know about stacking, heck, Disney doesn't even publish the 120 minute "cooldown" anywhere (does it?)  Anyone who reads this thread has a massive advantage.


Disturbia said:


> Also, is it verified that for 11 am stacking I don’t need to be in the park?  Epcot on travel checkin day


Yes.  You do not need to be in the park to make LL's.  You could, if you want, with a valid ticket and park pass, purchase G+ and make LL selections all day long without ever entering the park.


----------



## badinnplaid

leeniewdw said:


> Correct as far as what has been reported.  That's my plan as well.
> 
> 
> 
> Again, standard discalimer!    But I think once you got to MK in this hypothetical day, you'd probably just be cycling the LLs as you use them.   So if your first 3 rides at MK were this:
> 
> 2:15 JC    (MK LL1)
> 2:45 Pirates  (MK LL2)
> 3:30 HM   (MK LL3)
> 
> Your plan could be:
> 2:15 Tap into JC
> 2:16  Grab MK LL4 (replaces LL1)
> 2: 45 Tap into  Pirates
> 2:46  Grab MK LL5  (replaces LL2)
> 3:30 Tap into HM
> 3:31  Grab MK LL6 (replaces LL3)
> 
> So basically you've kept 3 LLs except the moment between tapping in (drop down to 2) and then grabbing another.   However, on this mythical timeline what about:
> 
> 2:15 JC    (MK LL1)
> 2:45 Pirates  (MK LL2)
> 3:30 HM   (MK LL3)
> 
> Your plan could be:
> 2:15 Tap into JC
> 2:16  Grab MK LL4 (replaces LL1)
> 2: 45 Tab into  Pirates
> 2:46  Grab MK LL5  (replaces LL2)
> 3:00  Grab MK LL6 (new to the stack, now you have LL3, LL4, LL5, and LL6 in hand!!!)
> 3:30 Tap into HM
> 3:31  Grab MK LL7 (replaces LL3)   (still have LLs 4-7, stack of 4)
> 
> LOL, no clue if this would work.   It would greatly depend on the return times available.  I believe post 257 said that they had to work to find a good time for one of their returns.
> 
> I think the post using Ax, Bx, Cx might be more helpful because it's shows how you are cycling the same slot in the stack, but you get it.



Okay--this is all great news (assuming it works this way)! That was my hope was that once you have the three, you're just replacing as you use and not really worrying about times anymore. I still think I'm gonna have to write down a flow chart or something to carry around with me to keep track of it all!


----------



## DsnyDreaminDad

Dis Dragon said:


> You're definitely at the mercy of what the park goers are doing that day, it drives me nuts how this works over the previous iteration of line skipping.  The planning is gone and to maximize G+ you have to keep crossing the park all day - not the way we tour the parks.
> 
> A mix of low wait headliners and reaching ahead for hopping seems to be the most logical use of G+ right now - as long as they keep allowing the ride stacking for the later park.


I find the lack of planning capable with Genie+ to be frustrating also.  I like to go through the parks systematically and enjoy each area.  We typically do Magic Kingdom in 2 days and we might not even go into Tomorrowland on the same day that we focus on Frontier land and Adventure land.  Genie+ (if I choose to use it) will have me crisscrossing each park all day long.  That just sounds stressful and exhausting.


----------



## DisneyKidds

Orsino said:


> I see multiple strategies developing in this thread, which is great.


Yes.  Honestly, with every fiber of my Disney being I want to not like G+, nor to give Cheapek more of my hard earned $$$.  However…if I can master the double (aka: cliff hanger) hop stack then maybe, just maybe, I can get something more useful out of G+ than FP+ used to get us for “free”.

What we used effectively with FP+ was doing one park rope drop and booking FP+ for late day in a hop to park, like Epcot.  I can envision a double/cliff hanger hop stack whereby we book a 1:00ish return window in the morning RD park, then at 11am book LL2 for after 2pm in the hop park, then at 1:00 book LL3 in the hop park before tapping into LL1.  For instance, RD HS with a 1:00 G+LL for RnR.  Hopefully knock a bunch out standby in HS (don’t care about wasting G+ on Slinky, or ILL$ on RotR or MMRR, they aren’t that great for us) while securing LL2 and LL3, then use LL1 before we get out of HS.  Take a break back at the hotel (we are big fans of that).  Then hop to Epcot with Soarin and Test Track secured via LL2 and LL3, with another ride (say Spaceship Earth) booked via LL1 after we tap into RnR.  That would theoretically allow us to hop to Epcot with 3 rides secured (including both Soarin and TT, which you couldn’t do with tiering under FP+), and the potential to additionally work the stacks for more at Epcot (if anything is available).  That would be getting something more for my $15.98pp than we could achieve under FP+.  That’s all dependent upon what available return time are, but it’s got potential!

Any flaws in that cliff hanger hop stack??


----------



## PaladinButters

snikki said:


> Yup. 98% of park goers will start booking G+ around 9-10 am (or whatever time they arrive to the park) and book them as they go. One at a time. They’ll get 5-6 a day and be happy with it. They won’t be trying to strategize or finding the ins and outs. It’s only a college level course for people on these boards (including myself).



Even though I'm here taking that advanced course with everybody else, if my $15 gets me on the rides I *need* them for (so yes to the Jungle Cruise but I can wait a few minutes for the Mad Tea Party) I'm good.  I am very prepared for the return times to not work out in my favor for everything when I get there.  

BUT -

Question - do we know how long the line for LL is aka how much time it saves to use?  The line for Slinky is at 100 minutes (so lets say the real line is 75?)  - LL is sold out,  so a bunch of people must have them for each hour - if I enter the LL line at my time slot how long am I waiting? Almost walk-on? 20 minutes? 40?


----------



## leeniewdw

DisneyKidds said:


> Any flaws in that cliff hanger hop stack??



I think that works.  I think (depending on crowd levels and capacity) hopping to a 2nd park with 3 LLs in your pocket is pretty doable as things stand right now.   As has been said in a general sense, HS and MK seem like the best parks to use G+LL due to the # of rides available, but your example should work (depending on crowd levels and capacity). 

We're doing an afternoon/evening at EPCOT on arrival day (no hopping) and I'll probably use G+ anyway because...I want to see how it works!

I just took a look at times in EPCOT and AK and there's not really anything that's a long SB.  This might not be the week to figure out how this will go if when you're traveling it'll be a much bigger crowd.


----------



## wisblue

Disturbia said:


> Also, is it verified that for 11 am stacking I don’t need to be in the park?  Epcot on travel checkin day



So far at Epcot the only attraction that has been having a LL return time more than 2 hours out is Test Track. You could book that at 11 and then do a second one at 1 PM even if you aren’t in the park.


----------



## snikki

PaladinButters said:


> Even though I'm here taking that advanced course with everybody else, if my $15 gets me on the rides I *need* them for (so yes to the Jungle Cruise but I can wait a few minutes for the Mad Tea Party) I'm good.  I am very prepared for the return times to not work out in my favor for everything when I get there.
> 
> BUT -
> 
> Question - do we know how long the line for LL is aka how much time it saves to use?  The line for Slinky is at 100 minutes (so lets say the real line is 75?)  - ILL$ is sold out so a bunch of people must have them for each hour - if I enter the LL line at my time slot how long am I waiting? Almost walk-on? 20 minutes? 40?



Most reports I’ve read say the LL lines move quickly (5-10 minutes or walk on). I’ve only read a few that said they waited very long but it’s still early.


----------



## moorish

snikki said:


> From what I’ve seen stacking isn’t as easy with your first reserved park, especially MK. When I’ve checked the tip board arrival windows are usually within the hour for MK for a big portion of their rides. You can only book next available if it’s your reserved park.
> 
> If you are hopping, stacking seems to work better. At or around 7 am make a 3 pm for SDD. Around 11 am make a 5 pm for Smugglers. At 1 pm make a 4 pm for TSM/RNRC/TOT.  If you bought ROTR and MMRR at 7 am you could walk into the park at 3 pm with 5 LL and make a new one as you arrive and keep rolling them out. Of course if times work.
> 
> That’s how I’m understanding it anyway.


This is exactly what we're planning for hopping to HS.

Edited to add: well, not buying MMRR but getting into the line right before park close. We would buy ROTR.


----------



## wisblue

PaladinButters said:


> Even though I'm here taking that advanced course with everybody else, if my $15 gets me on the rides I *need* them for (so yes to the Jungle Cruise but I can wait a few minutes for the Mad Tea Party) I'm good.  I am very prepared for the return times to not work out in my favor for everything when I get there.
> 
> BUT -
> 
> Question - do we know how long the line for LL is aka how much time it saves to use?  The line for Slinky is at 100 minutes (so lets say the real line is 75?)  - ILL$ is sold out so a bunch of people must have them for each hour - if I enter the LL line at my time slot how long am I waiting? Almost walk-on? 20 minutes? 40?



To be clear, Slinky is not an Individual LL selection, it is one of the attractions available through Genie+.

The LL slots for Slinky have been going faster than any other attraction at any of the parks and eventually “sell out”.

Reports seem to be that the LL waits have been minimal, except when ride breakdowns cause the LL to back up.


----------



## nurseberta

badinnplaid said:


> Man, I feel like I usually get all this stuff but for whatever reason, I'm struggling with the stacking here! So I'll be down for a quick two-day trip in a couple of weeks, and one day we're doing Hollywood Studios and hopping to Magic Kingdom after 2. Plan on taking advantage of early entry hours and rope dropping Hollywood Studios, and will probably get an ILL for Rise of the Resistance. I'm very interested in stacking for our evening at Magic Kingdom, but I want to make sure I understand the implications.
> 
> So at 7, we book something at Hollywood Studios with a starting window from 10:30ish to 11. This is A1 reservation.
> 
> We tour HS as normal, taking advantage of EEH. Then at 11, we book a reservation for MK, at some point after 2. This is B1 reservation.
> 
> We then use our A1 reservation and get to book A2, which is something at MK after B1.
> 
> Then at 1:00, we get to book a 3rd reservation at MK. This is C1. Once we hop after 2:00, we keep this rolling, use B1, book B2, use A2, book, A3, use C1, book C2.
> 
> First, is this right or am I missing something? Second, am I right in thinking that we will only be able to get one G+ option at Hollywood Studios or could we use our A2 reservation to get something at HS at like 1:15 or so...or does that mess up the stacking in some way?
> 
> Also, do we have to keep track of the order we need to use them in? So like does A2 HAVE to come after B1 to keep the stack going? Or does it not really matter?




I may be confused but I don't think this is how it will work.  You can only have one G+ attraction at a time, or add new ones if the first is greater than 120min away. In the example above you would be stopped at A2 because you can only add one at a time unless one is far out. and you will at this moment in time have an existing B1 reservation. unless your B1 reservation is greater than 120 minutes from A2, you wont be able to add C1 as you would move onto B2 instead. If your B2 is further out then you could book C1. make sense? Of course if you add in ILL$ then you woul dhave more total combines LL, but Genie+ only allows you to keep 2 LL rt if they are 2 hours apart.


----------



## badinnplaid

nurseberta said:


> I may be confused but I don't think this is how it will work.  You can only have one G+ attraction at a time, or add new ones if the first is greater than 120min away. In the example above you would be stopped at A2 because you can only add one at a time unless one is far out. and you will at this moment in time have an existing B1 reservation. unless your B1 reservation is greater than 120 minutes from A2, you wont be able to add C1 as you would move onto B2 instead. If your B2 is further out then you could book C1. make sense? Of course if you add in ILL$ then you woul dhave more total combines LL, but Genie+ only allows you to keep 2 LL rt if they are 2 hours apart.



Hmm--I thought it was just that 120 minutes had passed since your last one was booked OR since park opening (i.e., you book at 7, you're available for G+ number 2 at 11)


----------



## snikki

nurseberta said:


> I may be confused but I don't think this is how it will work.  You can only have one G+ attraction at a time, or add new ones if the first is greater than 120min away. In the example above you would be stopped at A2 because you can only add one at a time unless one is far out. and you will at this moment in time have an existing B1 reservation. unless your B1 reservation is greater than 120 minutes from A2, you wont be able to add C1 as you would move onto B2 instead. If your B2 is further out then you could book C1. make sense? Of course if you add in ILL$ then you woul dhave more total combines LL, but Genie+ only allows you to keep 2 LL rt if they are 2 hours apart.



Another poster confirmed they did exactly what he’s posting. I was confused at first too.

At 7 am book SDD for 10:45 am

at 11 am book splash for 2 pm

ride SDD at 11:15 am

11:16 am - once tapped into SDD book BTMRR for 2:30 pm

have lunch/ride standby 

1 pm make HM for 3 pm

tap into splash at 2 pm

2:01 pm book another ride at MK for after 3 pm

Then you keep rolling them


----------



## moorish

leeniewdw said:


> Yeah, this still works as long as the time's work I think.  DISCLAIMER, I don't know any more than anyone else who hasn't been.   But these exercises actually help me!
> 
> 
> 7amgrab a 10:45+ LL for MFSRStack = 1LL8:30amRD either SDD or TT/RRC9-11amStandby Rides11:00amBook HS LL2 for 1:15Stack = 2LL11:10amTap into MFSRStack = 1LL11:11amBook MK LL1 for post 2:30Stack = 2LL11:12-1:00Standby Rides/Lunch1:00pmBook MK LL2 for post 2:30Stack = 3LL1:15pmTap into HS LL2 ride selected at 11amStack = 2LL1:16pmBook MK LL3 for 3:00+Stack = 3LL1:30pmDepart HS for MK2:00pmArrive at MK with 3 LLsStack = 3LL2:00pm oncycle the stack ride by ride always booking another LL before you tap into the next ride
> 
> And actually this is what post #257 is all about,  IIRC they talked about maybe grabbing another HS ride but opted not to.


Wouldn't you need to wait until 1:11 pm to book your MK LL2 because you last booked at 11:11 am and didn't ride anything to reset the clock in between? (Not that 11 minutes is a big difference, just testing my understanding!)


----------



## nurseberta

moorish said:


> Wouldn't you need to wait until 1:11 pm to book your MK LL2 because you last booked at 11:11 am and didn't ride anything to reset the clock in between? (Not that 11 minutes is a big difference, just testing my understanding!)



I am going to need to read and re-read because I am not seeing it but I want to!!


----------



## snikki

nurseberta said:


> I am going to need to read and re-read because I am not seeing it but I want to!!



Check out post 257. ***At 11:16 am change splash to thunder. It was a typo by the poster. The secret is to book the next LL before tapping into the next ride. Once you tap in, it “resets” the 120 minutes and you can book another LL.

Is it a glitch? Is it meant to work like this? Who knows.


----------



## snikki

moorish said:


> Wouldn't you need to wait until 1:11 pm to book your MK LL2 because you last booked at 11:11 am and didn't ride anything to reset the clock in between? (Not that 11 minutes is a big difference, just testing my understanding!)



Seems that MK LL2 goes off of the time of HS LL2. So 2 hours after HS LL2 is booked is 1 pm.

ETA: I just went back to post 257 and it seems it should be 1:11 pm. The poster did 11:16 am and 1:16 pm. If I’m reading it all right.


----------



## moorish

nurseberta said:


> I am going to need to read and re-read because I am not seeing it but I want to!!


The most helpful thing for me to understand was that two things reset the lock-out time and make you eligible to make a G+ reservation again:

1. It's been 120 minutes since you last made one.
2. You tapped into a G+ reservation (even if you just made a new G+ reservation 10 minutes prior because your 120 minutes was up)

So if you look at the schedule, they last made a G+ reservation at 11:11 am, making them eligible again at 1:11 pm and they did not tap in to any G+ reservations during that time, just riding standby and eating lunch.

They did make a G+ reservation at 11:00 am which would start the countdown to 1:00 pm, but I think by tapping in a ride and making another G+ at 11:11 am, they restarted the 120 minute period to be at 1:11 pm.

*If some of this is wrong, then I do not in fact understand any of it. Lol.


----------



## moorish

snikki said:


> Seems that MK LL2 goes off of the time of HS LL2. So 2 hours after HS LL2 is booked is 1 pm.


But they tapped in to a G+ ride after that, so wouldn't that reset the 120 minute counter?

If not, then I'm back to being confused. 

Edited: nevermind! I see your edit now.


----------



## snikki

moorish said:


> But they tapped in to a G+ ride after that, so wouldn't that reset the 120 minute counter?
> 
> If not, then I'm back to being confused.



I edited my post. I think you’re right. I had to reread and read again.


----------



## moorish

snikki said:


> I edited my post. I think you’re right. I had to reread and read again.


We are both reading and editing at the same time! 

I need to go lie down now. Ha.


----------



## dmunsil

moorish said:


> Wouldn't you need to wait until 1:11 pm to book your MK LL2 because you last booked at 11:11 am and didn't ride anything to reset the clock in between? (Not that 11 minutes is a big difference, just testing my understanding!)



I had thought the answer was no, that the system did a lookahead to the end time on the next G+LL you are holding, but It turns out, the answer is "yes." I just tested it. The eligibility time is reset every time you book, and it's based on the end time of the reservation you just booked, not any other reservations you might be holding.

So if at 11:00 you book a 1:15-2:15 G+LL, your eligibility time is 1:00. Great.
At 11:10, you use a previously booked G+LL and you regain eligibility. The 1:00 time no longer applies.
At 11:11 you book a 3:00-4:00 G+LL. Your eligibility time is 1:11.

Unless you have a previously booked G+LL with an arrival time between 11:11 and 1:11, or you're willing to cancel one of your existing reservations, you have to wait until 1:11 to book your next one.


----------



## leeniewdw

snikki said:


> I edited my post. I think you’re right. I had to reread and read again.





moorish said:


> We are both reading and editing at the same time!
> 
> I need to go lie down now. Ha.



Thanks to both of you for catching this!  This is a detail that might be small (or just a few minutes of a difference), but could throw me into confusion in the midst of trying to execute a plan like this.  LOL


----------



## nurseberta

moorish said:


> The most helpful thing for me to understand was that two things reset the lock-out time and make you eligible to make a G+ reservation again:
> 
> 1. It's been 120 minutes since you last made one.
> 2. You tapped into a G+ reservation (even if you just made a new G+ reservation 10 minutes prior because your 120 minutes was up)
> 
> So if you look at the schedule, they last made a G+ reservation at 11:11 am, making them eligible again at 1:11 pm and they did not tap in to any G+ reservations during that time, just riding standby and eating lunch.
> 
> They did make a G+ reservation at 11:00 am which would start the countdown to 1:00 pm, but I think by tapping in a ride and making another G+ at 11:11 am, they restarted the 120 minute period to be at 1:11 pm.
> 
> *If some of this is wrong, then I do not in fact understand any of it. Lol.



Ohhhhhhhhhhh
Let me see if I can follow. If you make the G+LL selections for the future and based on this you stack 2 for afternoon/evening, AND it’s been 120 minutes since you last booked. You can essentially trick the system by making a new G+ LL before your LL+ are used thereby meaning Genie is not alerted that you have 2 currently pending. Genie is only alerted to the fact that you have NOT A. tapped in to your LL or B. Booked a G+ LL in the last 120 min.
so in effect, Genie is blind to the active LL’s that you have?


----------



## leeniewdw

dmunsil said:


> I had thought the answer was no, that the system did a lookahead to the end time on the next G+LL you are holding, but It turns out, the answer is "yes." I just tested it. The eligibility time is reset every time you book, and it's based on the end time of the reservation you just booked, not any other reservations you might be holding.
> 
> So if at 11:00 you book a 1:15-2:15 G+LL, your eligibility time is 1:00. Great.
> At 11:10, you use a previously booked G+LL and you regain eligibility. The 1:00 time no longer applies.
> At 11:11 you book a 3:00-4:00 G+LL. Your eligibility time is 1:11.
> 
> Unless you have a previously booked G+LL with an arrival time between 11:11 and 1:11, or you're willing to cancel one of your existing reservations, you have to wait until 1:11 to book your next one.



I can follow this!  I don't know if I'm proud or freaked out.   Going to bookmark yours as well.   I will have to re-read these posts once a week until our trip to try to download the understanding.  I can just see me saying to DH  "this time we have to wait 11 more minutes after 1pm...just believe me, it's easier that way".


----------



## nurseberta

snikki said:


> Check out post 257. ***At 11:16 am change splash to thunder. It was a typo by the poster. The secret is to book the next LL before tapping into the next ride. Once you tap in, it “resets” the 120 minutes and you can book another LL.
> 
> Is it a glitch? Is it meant to work like this? Who knows.



how donI find post 257?


----------



## snikki

PepperjackDragon said:


> HS to MK park hopping with Genie+ today Saturday Oct 24th
> 
> so the basic plan then how it played out.
> 
> we have done everything we wanted 2-3 times this week without Genie EXCEPT slinky dog and splash. So the idea was to early entry HS pick up a genie plus for Slinky then triple stack for a 2pm MK arrival.
> 
> It worked. I’ll give the final results then a few tips from my experience. Not a pro, just my first time using it but maybe it will be helpful.
> 
> 7am:           SD booked for 1043am
> 8:15-           arrive to park
> 8:30-910:    MMRR then MFSR
> 9:10-11:00  Plenty of time left for a quick toy story
> and saucers. Frozen song along.
> 11:00-          book 1:35pm splash mountain
> (considered a  noon toy story but
> wanted to let kids rest)
> 11:15             Slinky dog
> 11:16             book splash at 1:35pm (later changed
> to 2pm, must have gone down)
> 11:30             Hotel bus: worst wait of the day by far
> 1:16.              Book Jungle cruise (daughter request
> 
> 2pm arrive at MK
> 
> here I will just list the LL I got and what they changed to after getting the rides
> 
> LL0: Slinky
> 
> A1: splash 2pm
> B1: thunder mountain 2:20pm
> C1: Jungle Cruise 2:50pm
> 
> A2irates of Car 3:25
> B2: Peter Pan 5pm (had to refresh 5 times to get it here)
> C2: Pooh 4pm
> 
> A3: Ariel 4:30
> B3: Haunted Mansion 7pm
> C3: Mad Tea 4:25
> 
> A4: Buzz at 815
> C4: small world (we also worked small world in but can’t remember which ride I booked it after, did it right before Pan. Something seems slightly off in the transition order actually but very close to how it went down.)
> 
> This was the busiest day yet. Everyone of the rides was showing 60+ between 2-5pm when we rode, a few looked to be overestimated but some looked like underestimates. Really long and slow lines.
> 
> From 530ish (requested West wing so got delayed-huge mistake imo)-815 we ate at BOG and watched enchantment. I had a dilemma here, I couldn’t book things far enough out about because all except for Haunted Mansion were within 20-40min away and we were eating. Only had stuff like Barnstormer left to get and they just weren’t going to book up in advance. To keep the triple stack LL going I just booked and then canceled and rebooked later. I ended up pushing haunted mansion back until 9pm on purpose. We could have easily risen every G+ Via the triple stack but ended up shopping after eating, rode Mine train and called it the end of the trip.
> 
> Frankly it worked amazingly well and really made an excellent last day. However it wouldn’t work as well in HS because they just don’t have enough rides so they get booked pretty far out early on. Might be possible though if you were at AK and triple stacked for a jump to HS, but I doubt it. However it works so well jumping to MK it turns MK into a 1 or at MOST 1.5 day park. If one rope dropped FOP and paid ROTR and for MMR and evening rode Seven Dwarves it might be possible to complete all three parks (Genie+ and ILL rides only) in a single day, assuming smooth transportation especially once they allow hopping prior to 2pm. A stretch but I think it may be possible.
> 
> honestly if you add this to a 10 day trip I really don’t think the parks can sustain you for that long at this pace.  Will either have to underutilize Genie+ or ride everything 5-10 times. Will edit later with my tips from experience.



@nurseberta


----------



## Mango7100

badinnplaid said:


> Hmm--I thought it was just that 120 minutes had passed since your last one was booked OR since park opening (i.e., you book at 7, you're available for G+ number 2 at 11)


I am wondering how this would work if someone starts at Epcot and hops to another park. For example, if I book a SDD at 7 am for 4 pm, when does my 2 hr period stop? Is it based on when your reserved park opens? So if Epcot is opening at 11 I therefore can’t book another LL and start building my stack until 1?


----------



## moorish

Mango7100 said:


> I am wondering how this would work if someone starts at Epcot and hops to another park. For example, if I book a SDD at 7 am for 4 pm, when does my 2 hr period stop? Is it based on when your reserved park opens? So if Epcot is opening at 11 I therefore can’t book another LL and start building my stack until 1?


I asked someone who started in Epcot but made their first G+ in HS as they were going to hop over. They said they could make their second reservation 2 hours after HS opened at 11 am (where their first G+ was) not at 12 pm which was 2 hours after Epcot opened (where their park reservation was.)


----------



## mom2rtk

nurseberta said:


> how donI find post 257?



Easier to do on a desktop computer.




PepperjackDragon said:


> HS to MK park hopping with Genie+ today Saturday Oct 24th
> 
> so the basic plan then how it played out.
> 
> we have done everything we wanted 2-3 times this week without Genie EXCEPT slinky dog and splash. So the idea was to early entry HS pick up a genie plus for Slinky then triple stack for a 2pm MK arrival.
> 
> It worked. I’ll give the final results then a few tips from my experience. Not a pro, just my first time using it but maybe it will be helpful.
> 
> 7am:           SD booked for 1043am
> 8:15-           arrive to park
> 8:30-910:    MMRR then MFSR
> 9:10-11:00  Plenty of time left for a quick toy story
> and saucers. Frozen song along.
> 11:00-          book 1:35pm splash mountain
> (considered a  noon toy story but
> wanted to let kids rest)
> 11:15             Slinky dog
> 11:16             book splash at 1:35pm (later changed
> to 2pm, must have gone down)
> 11:30             Hotel bus: worst wait of the day by far
> 1:16.              Book Jungle cruise (daughter request
> 
> 2pm arrive at MK
> 
> here I will just list the LL I got and what they changed to after getting the rides
> 
> LL0: Slinky
> 
> A1: splash 2pm
> B1: thunder mountain 2:20pm
> C1: Jungle Cruise 2:50pm
> 
> A2irates of Car 3:25
> B2: Peter Pan 5pm (had to refresh 5 times to get it here)
> C2: Pooh 4pm
> 
> A3: Ariel 4:30
> B3: Haunted Mansion 7pm
> C3: Mad Tea 4:25
> 
> A4: Buzz at 815
> C4: small world (we also worked small world in but can’t remember which ride I booked it after, did it right before Pan. Something seems slightly off in the transition order actually but very close to how it went down.)
> 
> This was the busiest day yet. Everyone of the rides was showing 60+ between 2-5pm when we rode, a few looked to be overestimated but some looked like underestimates. Really long and slow lines.
> 
> From 530ish (requested West wing so got delayed-huge mistake imo)-815 we ate at BOG and watched enchantment. I had a dilemma here, I couldn’t book things far enough out about because all except for Haunted Mansion were within 20-40min away and we were eating. Only had stuff like Barnstormer left to get and they just weren’t going to book up in advance. To keep the triple stack LL going I just booked and then canceled and rebooked later. I ended up pushing haunted mansion back until 9pm on purpose. We could have easily risen every G+ Via the triple stack but ended up shopping after eating, rode Mine train and called it the end of the trip.
> 
> Frankly it worked amazingly well and really made an excellent last day. However it wouldn’t work as well in HS because they just don’t have enough rides so they get booked pretty far out early on. Might be possible though if you were at AK and triple stacked for a jump to HS, but I doubt it. However it works so well jumping to MK it turns MK into a 1 or at MOST 1.5 day park. If one rope dropped FOP and paid ROTR and for MMR and evening rode Seven Dwarves it might be possible to complete all three parks (Genie+ and ILL rides only) in a single day, assuming smooth transportation especially once they allow hopping prior to 2pm. A stretch but I think it may be possible.
> 
> honestly if you add this to a 10 day trip I really don’t think the parks can sustain you for that long at this pace.  Will either have to underutilize Genie+ or ride everything 5-10 times. Will edit later with my tips from experience.


----------



## Mango7100

moorish said:


> I asked someone who started in Epcot but made their first G+ in HS as they were going to hop over. They said they could make their second reservation 2 hours after HS opened at 11 am (where their first G+ was) not at 12 pm which was 2 hours after Epcot opened (where their park reservation was.)


Thank you! We may do a low key Epcot morning and then hop to studios and try to have a stack built for the afternoon—we are thinking of a last minute trip in 3 weeks!


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## moorish

Mango7100 said:


> Thank you! We may do a low key Epcot morning and then hop to studios and try to have a stack built for the afternoon—we are thinking of a last minute trip in 3 weeks!


This is our plan for one of our days too!


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## Disturbia

DisneyKidds said:


> Yes.  Honestly, with every fiber of my Disney being I want to not like G+, nor to give Cheapek more of my hard earned $$$.  However…if I can master the double (aka: cliff hanger) hop stack then maybe, just maybe, I can get something more useful out of G+ than FP+ used to get us for “free”.
> 
> What we used effectively with FP+ was doing one park rope drop and booking FP+ for late day in a hop to park, like Epcot.  I can envision a double/cliff hanger hop stack whereby we book a 1:00ish return window in the morning RD park, then at 11am book LL2 for after 2pm in the hop park, then at 1:00 book LL3 in the hop park before tapping into LL1.  For instance, RD HS with a 1:00 G+LL for RnR.  Hopefully knock a bunch out standby in HS (don’t care about wasting G+ on Slinky, or ILL$ on RotR or MMRR, they aren’t that great for us) while securing LL2 and LL3, then use LL1 before we get out of HS.  Take a break back at the hotel (we are big fans of that).  Then hop to Epcot with Soarin and Test Track secured via LL2 and LL3, with another ride (say Spaceship Earth) booked via LL1 after we tap into RnR.  That would theoretically allow us to hop to Epcot with 3 rides secured (including both Soarin and TT, which you couldn’t do with tiering under FP+), and the potential to additionally work the stacks for more at Epcot (if anything is available).  That would be getting something more for my $15.98pp than we could achieve under FP+.  That’s all dependent upon what available return time are, but it’s got potential!
> 
> Any flaws in that cliff hanger hop stack??


My brain has been stir fried already.  Maybe stir fry stacking is a better name


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## PaladinButters

wisblue said:


> To be clear, Slinky is not an Individual LL selection, it is one of the attractions available through Genie+.
> 
> The LL slots for Slinky have been going faster than any other attraction at any of the parks and eventually “sell out”.
> 
> Reports seem to be that the LL waits have been minimal, except when ride breakdowns cause the LL to back up.



Yes, sorry. My brain got so used to typing that it just slipped in there. But that is the exact kind of info I was looking for. I’ve for sure been in express lanes at parks where it wasn’t very express at all and that’s one thing that Disney had (and still has) over competitors is the booking windows, while complicating things, are keeping all 50000 people from trying to ride the same thing at once.


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## Disturbia

nurseberta said:


> how donI find post 257?


Page 13

https://www.disboards.com/threads/the-genie-usage-and-strategy-only-thread.3857056/page-13


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## DisneyKidds

nurseberta said:


> I may be confused but I don't think this is how it will work.  You can only have one G+ attraction at a time, or add new ones if the first is greater than 120min away. In the example above you would be stopped at A2 because you can only add one at a time unless one is far out. and you will at this moment in time have an existing B1 reservation. unless your B1 reservation is greater than 120 minutes from A2, you wont be able to add C1 as you would move onto B2 instead. If your B2 is further out then you could book C1. make sense? Of course if you add in ILL$ then you woul dhave more total combines LL, but Genie+ only allows you to keep 2 LL rt if they are 2 hours apart.


Agreed.  I think the key to getting to C (the elusive triple stack) is securing the three stacks (A1, B1, and C1) BEFORE you tap in for A1.


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## PaladinButters

snikki said:


> Most reports I’ve read say the LL lines move quickly (5-10 minutes or walk on). I’ve only read a few that said they waited very long but it’s still early.


At 5-10 minutes…. I’ll pay double (nobody tell Bob). 
I didn’t want to assume it was like FP returns in this strange new (Disney) world we’re in.


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## Tiggr88

For those considering stacking for a late arrival or for PHing, remember that the stacking more than 2 G+ reservation discussions are academic and for planning purposes. In practice, you may find that return times may or not be far enough out to stack more than 2 reservations at a time. And you'd probably prefer it not to be since that would mean it is pretty crowded. 

My daughter was at MK yesterday and had a G+ in the AM and used it. She wanted to start stacking for a late afternoon/early evening return. There were no times slots yet available, since the return times were too soon. JC, PP and HM tend to have the longest return time windows these days, but they may not be available yet. By the time you can make one, you'll have to wait two hours before making another (assuming you haven't tapped into the first). By the time she scheduled her JC G+ which had the furthest return time, it was already 3PM. So she had to wait until 5 to make her next. She didn't want to wait until 7 to make a third, so she started tapping in and then just replacing each of her two throughout the night.  Two is plenty to use, especially if the return windows are relatively short. And they';; typically get shorter as the day goes on. You would obviously then want to concentrate on those that disappear soonest. 

Having a third G+ concurrent reservation may be beneficial for a HS late arrival with more rides having later return times, but I'm not sure its necessary at MK, AK or Epcot. At least not based on the crowd levels we saw this week. It might work better with high crowds and longer return times, but for now just getting even 2 should be enough.


----------



## nurseberta

Tiggr88 said:


> For those considering stacking for a late arrival or for PHing, remember that the stacking more than 2 G+ reservation discussions are academic and for planning purposes. In practice, you may find that return times may or not be far enough out to stack more than 2 reservations at a time. And you'd probably prefer it not to be since that would mean it is pretty crowded.
> 
> My daughter was at MK yesterday and had a G+ in the AM and used it. She wanted to start stacking for a late afternoon/early evening return. There were no times slots yet available, since the return times were too soon. JC, PP and HM tend to have the longest return time windows these days, but they may not be available yet. By the time you can make one, you'll have to wait two hours before making another (assuming you haven't tapped into the first). By the time she scheduled her JC G+ which had the furthest return time, it was already 3PM. So she had to wait until 5 to make her next. She didn't want to wait until 7 to make a third, so she started tapping in and then just replacing each of her two throughout the night.  Two is plenty to use, especially if the return windows are relatively short. And they';; typically get shorter as the day goes on. You would obviously then want to concentrate on those that disappear soonest.
> 
> Having a third G+ concurrent reservation may be beneficial for a HS late arrival with more rides having later return times, but I'm not sure its necessary at MK, AK or Epcot. At least not based on the crowd levels we saw this week. It might work better with high crowds and longer return times, but for now just getting even 2 should be enough.


Do you know how she set up her 1st 2 to stack? Time wise?


----------



## snikki

Tiggr88 said:


> For those considering stacking for a late arrival or for PHing, remember that the stacking more than 2 G+ reservation discussions are academic and for planning purposes. In practice, you may find that return times may or not be far enough out to stack more than 2 reservations at a time. And you'd probably prefer it not to be since that would mean it is pretty crowded.
> 
> My daughter was at MK yesterday and had a G+ in the AM and used it. She wanted to start stacking for a late afternoon/early evening return. There were no times slots yet available, since the return times were too soon. JC, PP and HM tend to have the longest return time windows these days, but they may not be available yet. By the time you can make one, you'll have to wait two hours before making another (assuming you haven't tapped into the first). By the time she scheduled her JC G+ which had the furthest return time, it was already 3PM. So she had to wait until 5 to make her next. She didn't want to wait until 7 to make a third, so she started tapping in and then just replacing each of her two throughout the night.  Two is plenty to use, especially if the return windows are relatively short. And they';; typically get shorter as the day goes on. You would obviously then want to concentrate on those that disappear soonest.
> 
> Having a third G+ concurrent reservation may be beneficial for a HS late arrival with more rides having later return times, but I'm not sure its necessary at MK, AK or Epcot. At least not based on the crowd levels we saw this week. It might work better with high crowds and longer return times, but for now just getting even 2 should be enough.



Stacking I think is more difficult at your first park. Park hopping and stacking is better since it’ll only show you after 2 pm times for your second park starting at 7 am. You enter it into your genie plans and when you go to that park on the tip board times for after 2 pm will populate.


----------



## JETSDAD

snikki said:


> Stacking I think is more difficult at your first park. Park hopping and stacking is better since it’ll only show you after 2 pm times for your second park starting at 7 am. You enter it into your genie plans and when you go to that park on the tip board times for after 2 pm will populate.


If someone is just looking at going later in the afternoon/evening then the timing could be tricky though.  If they're only being offered times in the 2:00-5:00 window then stacking for the 2nd park won't be of much use.  If someone is wanting to go right at 2:00 then yes, that could work well.  

Personally, unless the first park doesn't give much/any advantage using G+ (looking at you AK) then I'd prefer to just keep using them early and often instead of waiting to stack.


----------



## wisblue

snikki said:


> Another poster confirmed they did exactly what he’s posting. I was confused at first too.
> 
> At 7 am book SDD for 10:45 am
> 
> at 11 am book splash for 2 pm
> 
> ride SDD at 11:15 am
> 
> 11:16 am - once tapped into SDD book BTMRR for 2:30 pm
> 
> have lunch/ride standby
> 
> 1 pm make HM for 3 pm
> 
> tap into splash at 2 pm
> 
> 2:01 pm book another ride at MK for after 3 pm
> 
> Then you keep rolling them



I was able to do some experimenting with Genie+ yesterday when my daughter who lives in the Orlando area and is a Disney CM went to DHS and bought Genie+ largely to see how it worked.

She left the park after lunch, so I did kind of a virtual hop from DHS to MK. First I tried to make a LL reservation at Soarin and, as others have reported, the system offered a time of 2-3 even though the general return time was earlier than that. There was a message that the return time was adjusted because of hopping.

My question that is relevant to this discussion is what kind of time the system offers if you try to make a second reservation in the second park if the normal return time is still before 2. Will it offer 2-3 or 3-4 or something else?

BTW, after booking the Soarin LL I cancelled it and focused on MK. Starting at 12:21 PM (after my daughter had used LL 3 times at DHS) I for a LL for JC at 3:15. Then at 2:21 I got BTMRR for 2:55. I proceeded to cancel each reservation about 20 minutes after the start of the return time and then book a replacement. I tried to simulate a reasonable tour of the Adventureland/ Frontierland side of the park, allowing time to move from one attraction to the next and getting through the LL and riding. Ending with a 6:10 return at HM, I was able to get LL reservations for JC, BTMRR, Splash, POC, IASW, and HM. I figured that I could have done those 6 rides, eaten at Pinocchio’s, and finished up the rides by 7 PM, in time to get a spot for the fireworks.

To be fair, there was some rain yesterday afternoon and that might have reduced the crowds and made LL more available with shorter returns than other days. But, it was still good practice to see how the system can work.


----------



## kappyfamily

OhDannyBoy said:


> Thanks for this!!
> 
> I have a monster group of 15 + 1 under 2. Messing with the app it seems I can only set plans / reservations for 12 at a time. Am I correct on this? If so, I'll have to recruit a copilot and split our group which means we may not all ride at the same time. Such is life with a group my size I know.
> 
> Any insight or idea is welcomed.


I traveled with 10 adults a year ago, trust me, split the ADRs and meet up after you eat. It was a nice little break from one another and so much easier. Also just because you have an adr for 15 at 6pm doesn’t mean you won’t be waiting for ages for it. Have a great vacation!


----------



## BridgetBordeaux

I encourage every one of you who is in the parks to stop by GR and tell them you want more options than "First Available".

If it is ...let's say....11:30 and you want to take a lunch break outside the park or go to the resort pool for a couple of hours or give your toddler a nap......you have no option right now to pick any later LL slots.

It may show you lots of rides and the one you want may keep tossing 12:30 to you......but that may be too quick of a turnaround for you to make it work. 

If there is a 12:30 seat open, then we know that 12:45, 1pm, 1:15 and 1:30 are also open.

Why can't they offer those to us as an option?

Granted it may not be the most efficient touring plan, *but it meets your needs during that time of the day.*

It will not cost them a thing to make the change......they just have to change the program a bit.

So far I have been in the parks for several days and Genie+/LL is a poor substitute for FP+


----------



## Tiggr88

BridgetBordeaux said:


> I encourage every one of you who is in the parks to stop by GR and tell them you want more options than "First Available".
> 
> If it is ...let's say....11:30 and you want to take a lunch break outside the park or go to the resort pool for a couple of hours or give your toddler a nap......you have no option right now to pick any later LL slots.
> 
> It may show you lots of rides and the one you want may keep tossing 12:30 to you......but that may be too quick of a turnaround for you to make it work.
> 
> If there is a 12:30 seat open, then we know that 12:45, 1pm, 1:15 and 1:30 are also open.
> 
> Why can't they offer those to us as an option?
> 
> Granted it may not be the most efficient touring plan, *but it meets your needs during that time of the day.*
> 
> It will not cost them a thing to make the change......they just have to change the program a bit.
> 
> So far I have been in the parks for several days and Genie+/LL is a poor substitute for FP+


I believe the downside is that it may make it more difficult for Disney to manage the windows, especially for larger parties. In the FP+ days, parties of 2 vs 10 could get vastly different options. I believe because Disney allotted a certain amount of guests at a time. With next available, Disney can display the next available time slot regardless of how many people are in your party. It may push the next guest time slot a little further down, but everyone is treated the same way. In essence, there are no real windows for Disney to manage, its just one large window all day. As times fill up, they just move the return time back. More people with larger parties just pushes the time back more quickly, but the same available return time will show regardless if you have 1 or 15 in your party.


----------



## buyerbrad

Just trying to make sure I understand. Will this possible scenario work for a 9am park opening?

7am - Book G+ for Ride A (11:15am-12:15pm)
11am - Book G+ for Ride B (11:30am - 12:30pm)
11:15am - Use Ride A G+ (can I now book another G+ or do I need to use my Ride B G+ first?) If I use my Ride B G+ before I use my Ride A G+, can I immediately book another?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

moorish said:


> I asked someone who started in Epcot but made their first G+ in HS as they were going to hop over. They said they could make their second reservation 2 hours after HS opened at 11 am (where their first G+ was) not at 12 pm which was 2 hours after Epcot opened (where their park reservation was.)


Ooh, that’s a nice fact to keep in mind.  If you’re doing Epcot it’s beneficial to hop to HS afterwards then, grab your first Epcot FP (SDD) right at 7, then book your first epcot LL at 11 which coincidentally is when epcot opens.


----------



## Disturbia

thanxfornoticin said:


> That's a really good question.  One clarification, though.  You can only purchase the paid LL at 7AM if you are a resort guest.  But I've not seen anything yet stating you can't purchase 2 at the same time.


Yes you can purchase both LLiA$ rides and make your first Genie+ and they can overlap 

eg SDMT 9-10; Space Mtbn 9:15-10:15; Buzz 9:30-10:30


----------



## twincruisers

buyerbrad said:


> Just trying to make sure I understand. Will this possible scenario work for a 9am park opening?
> 
> 7am - Book G+ for Ride A (11:15am-12:15pm)
> 11am - Book G+ for Ride B (11:30am - 12:30pm)
> 11:15am - Use Ride A G+ (can I now book another G+ or do I need to use my Ride B G+ first?) If I use my Ride B G+ before I use my Ride A G+, can I immediately book another?


Yes, the first ride’s G+ LL being used will allow you to book another. But you will restart the 2 hour counter for you next stack when you use ride A’s LL. So when you ride B, your G+ time counter will be tied to when ride C’s booking time +2 hours (which is related to when you released ride A).


----------



## OhDannyBoy

kappyfamily said:


> I traveled with 10 adults a year ago, trust me, split the ADRs and meet up after you eat. It was a nice little break from one another and so much easier. Also just because you have an adr for 15 at 6pm doesn’t mean you won’t be waiting for ages for it. Have a great vacation!


I appreciate that!! Trying to get 16 people to sit down and eat a meal is just not something I look forward to doing.

We don't do ADR's anyways to be honest. We're a "bring a lot of snacks and finger food pick up window" kind of people.


----------



## Disturbia

nurseberta said:


> how donI find post 257?



You can enter page number by clicking on the page (eg 19 to 26)

Post 267 is on page 13


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## Terry D

I have a couple of questions. In these examples my reservation will be for MK and hopping to HS.
Q1 - Do I have to be in my reservation park to make a LL reservation? For example can I stay at my offsite resort and book LL at 7am, 11am and 1pm for HS after 2pm?
Q2 - Do I have to enter my reservation park of MK before I can park hop to HS...or can I just enter HS after 2pm.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Terry D said:


> I have a couple of questions. In these examples my reservation will be for MK and hopping to HS.
> Q1 - Do I have to be in my reservation park to make a LL reservation?


No.


> For example can I stay at my offsite resort and book LL at 7am, 11am and 1pm for HS after 2pm?


  Yes.



> Q2 - Do I have to enter my reservation park of MK before I can park hop to HS


Yes.



> ...or can I just enter HS after 2pm.


No.

Edit:  Although if park reservations are still available for HS that day you can always switch your park reservation after doing all of the above.


----------



## coolbrook

"Edit: Although if park reservations are still available for HS that day you can always switch your park reservation after doing all of the above."

Do we know for a fact that if you change you park reservation your G+ reservations will remain?  If so, that is wonderful news for me.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

coolbrook said:


> "Edit: Although if park reservations are still available for HS that day you can always switch your park reservation after doing all of the above."
> 
> Do we know for a fact that if you change you park reservation your G+ reservations will remain?  If so, that is wonderful news for me.


I think somebody reported that was the case but I am not positive.


----------



## starryagain

If anyone could help with my question I would be very grateful. We are taking a last minute trip, just one night at Beach Club and two park days, this Sunday (Halloween) and Monday. We are annual passholders but I was not expecting the trip and as such am overwhelmed by trying to figure things out.

Day 1 we plan on rope dropping with the 30 minutes early arrival at Hollywood Studios, long break at Beach Club, then Epcot in the evening. We would ideally get a Lighting Lane for RotR and Genie+.

My question is how hard will it be if we are on promptly at 7AM to get a RotR LL before noon then a SDD Genie+ before noon? Is that basically impossible to get both? I can't seem to figure out a way to purchase Genie+ in advance, it says we have to do it later. The RotR LL is higher priority to us than SDD.

Day 2 we are going to Animal Kingdom and we are iffy on using Genie+ there.


----------



## coolbrook

starryagain said:


> If anyone could help with my question I would be very grateful. We are taking a last minute trip, just one night at Beach Club and two park days, this Sunday (Halloween) and Monday. We are annual passholders but I was not expecting the trip and as such am overwhelmed by trying to figure things out.
> 
> Day 1 we plan on rope dropping with the 30 minutes early arrival at Hollywood Studios, long break at Beach Club, then Epcot in the evening. We would ideally get a Lighting Lane for RotR and Genie+.
> 
> My question is how hard will it be if we are on promptly at 7AM to get a RotR LL before noon then a SDD Genie+ before noon? Is that basically impossible to get both? I can't seem to figure out a way to purchase Genie+ in advance, it says we have to do it later. The RotR LL is higher priority to us than SDD.
> 
> Day 2 we are going to Animal Kingdom and we are iffy on using Genie+ there.


I would say, buy the G+ BEFORE 7 am like at 6:45 or something then have two people on phones at 7 with one trying for ROTR and one trying for SDD.  The reports have been that Slinky has been going to afternoon times very quickly.  Good luck and have fun!


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## Gentry2004

Has anyone seen a good YouTube video of the stacking? I have searched every way I can think of and the vloggers seem to know way less than even I do. One even said you had to be tapped in to use Genie+ unless you stayed onsite.
Has anyone seen a video from someone who “gets it”?


----------



## Disturbia

starryagain said:


> If anyone could help with my question I would be very grateful. We are taking a last minute trip, just one night at Beach Club and two park days, this Sunday (Halloween) and Monday. We are annual passholders but I was not expecting the trip and as such am overwhelmed by trying to figure things out.
> 
> Day 1 we plan on rope dropping with the 30 minutes early arrival at Hollywood Studios, long break at Beach Club, then Epcot in the evening. We would ideally get a Lighting Lane for RotR and Genie+.
> 
> My question is how hard will it be if we are on promptly at 7AM to get a RotR LL before noon then a SDD Genie+ before noon? Is that basically impossible to get both? I can't seem to figure out a way to purchase Genie+ in advance, it says we have to do it later. The RotR LL is higher priority to us than SDD.
> 
> Day 2 we are going to Animal Kingdom and we are iffy on using Genie+ there.


Just to be clear, you can book both at 7 am.  LLIA$ for ROTR and Genie+ are separate systems and the passes can overlap


----------



## Disturbia

Gentry2004 said:


> Has anyone seen a good YouTube video of the stacking? I have searched every way I can think of and the vloggers seem to know way less than even I do. One even said you had to be tapped in to use Genie+ unless you stayed onsite.
> Has anyone seen a video from someone who “gets it”?


The best was allears (the more recent video), although I think we know more at this point.

Here is the video:


----------



## coolbrook

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I think somebody reported that was the case but I am not positive.


The next question I would have is does the Genie system "know" or care whether I actually have park hopper capability when deciding to offer me return times at the park I don't have park reservations for, the presumed hopping park? I have an AP and am planning to try this for our arrival day in November, but some of our traveling group only have one-park tickets.


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## starryagain

Oh ok thank you so much! So you can buy Genie+ the morning of, before 7:00, and then can start using at 7:00? (we will be on site)


----------



## Disturbia

coolbrook said:


> The next question I would have is does the Genie system "know" or care whether I actually have park hopper capability when deciding to offer me return times at the park I don't have park reservations for, the presumed hopping park? I have an AP and am planning to try this for our arrival day in November, but some of our traveling group only have one-park tickets.


I think it would have to know to give you times accordingly (although there is a screen where you set what time you will be at which park).  I'm not sure if there is a check that you have park hoppers.  Other people had issues if someone was offsite vs onsite (7 am vs 9 am booking ability), so I suppose it could have a check for your ticket type as well.

Allears:  what is park hopping like now with Disney genie:

https://allears.net/2021/10/21/what-is-park-hopping-like-now-with-disney-genie/


----------



## Disturbia

starryagain said:


> Oh ok thank you so much! So you can buy Genie+ the morning of, before 7:00, and then can start using at 7:00? (we will be on site)


No you can start booking at 7 am, but you don't use it until you get in the park.  so you book something for 9-10 am, scan MB at the second turnstile and imediately book 9:15-10:15..... Genie+ can be booked by both onsite and offsite at 7 am

The offsite guests have restrictions for the top 2 LLIA$ rides, so they can only book those at park opening, whereas onsite guests can book at 7 am, so there have been days that ROTR sold out at 8:59 am and so offsite had no availability.


----------



## dmunsil

coolbrook said:


> The next question I would have is does the Genie system "know" or care whether I actually have park hopper capability when deciding to offer me return times at the park I don't have park reservations for.


Yes. If a guest doesn't have a Park Hopper or AP it won't let them book a LL at a park they don't have a reservation for. You could book a LL for yourself, but you would need to remove the folks without hopping capability from the party list when you book a LL in a park you don't have a reservation for.


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## starryagain

Disturbia said:


> No you can start booking at 7 am, but you don't use it until you get in the park.  so you book something for 9-10 am, scan MB at the second turnstile and imediately book 9:15-10:15..... Genie+ can be booked by both onsite and offsite at 7 am
> 
> The offsite guests have restrictions for the top 2 LLIA$ rides, so they can only book those at park opening, whereas onsite guests can book at 7 am, so there have been days that ROTR sold out at 8:59 am and so offsite had no availability.



Sorry my question is confusing. If I am on site and want to buy a single day of Genie+ can I buy it the morning of at say 6:00 AM or do I have to wait until 7:00 AM to purchase? I know I can't use until theme park opening. But I didn't want to waste the beginning of my booking window on making the purchase.


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## Tess

starryagain said:


> Sorry my question is confusing. If I am on site and want to buy a single day of Genie+ can I buy it the morning of at say 6:00 AM or do I have to wait until 7:00 AM to purchase? I know I can't use until theme park opening. But I didn't want to waste the beginning of my booking window on making the purchase.



You can purchase Genie+ anytime after midnight of the day you wish to utilize it.  You cannot reserve LL or IAL$ (RoTR) until 7:00 a.m. the morning of.  Since you are on site, you can book your IAL$ (RoTR) at 7:00 a.m.--those off site are not able to book the paid IAL$ until 9:00 a.m.


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## Sunelis

starryagain said:


> Sorry my question is confusing. If I am on site and want to buy a single day of Genie+ can I buy it the morning of at say 6:00 AM or do I have to wait until 7:00 AM to purchase? I know I can't use until theme park opening. But I didn't want to waste the beginning of my booking window on making the purchase.


You can buy G+ starting at midnight any day you want to use it.


----------



## Donna M

starryagain said:


> Sorry my question is confusing. If I am on site and want to buy a single day of Genie+ can I buy it the morning of at say 6:00 AM or do I have to wait until 7:00 AM to purchase? I know I can't use until theme park opening. But I didn't want to waste the beginning of my booking window on making the purchase.


Yes, you can buy it before 7 am.


----------



## Gentry2004

I know Rise times go quickly but I don’t think it has yet sold out before park open. Someone feel free to correct me.


----------



## michaeldorn1

My Head Hurts!!


----------



## soniam

Touring Plans has some great info on their blog. Here are the articles so far.

https://touringplans.com/blog/https://touringplans.com/blog/genie-testing-what-we-learned-in-one-day/https://touringplans.com/blog/genie-testing-questions-we-got-on-day-two/https://touringplans.com/blog/genie-testing-genie-and-touringplans-head-to-head/ (Technically Genie not Genie+)
https://touringplans.com/blog/whats-new-with-das-at-walt-disney-world/ (DAS)
https://touringplans.com/blog/genie-testing-hollywood-studios-double-head-to-head/ (Interesting scenarios for DHS with/without Genie, Genie+, ILL)
https://touringplans.com/blog/genie-testing-what-we-learned-that-you-need-to-know/ (Info on priority of Genie+ and ILL attractions)
https://touringplans.com/blog/facto...r-to-purchase-individual-lighting-lane-rides/


----------



## soniam

Gentry2004 said:


> I know Rise times go quickly but I don’t think it has yet sold out before park open. Someone feel free to correct me.



I don't think so either. I think it has sold out very close to park open though, like maybe 15-30 minutes after 9am.

Has anyone seen any evidence of them holding/not holding Rise ILL until the park opens? I know holding was seen first day and not holding was seen 2nd day (I think).


----------



## cfw213

Disturbia said:


> You can also book your first Genie+ pass at 9 am (ride by 9:15 am, book 915; ride by 9:30 and book next one etc) and keep rolling it until 11 am.  At 11 am you get your first 2-3 pm pass.  then no riding 11 am -1 pm (2 hour cooling period-eat lunch/snacks/parades/ride standby).  At 1 pm book second pass 2:30-4 pm (2nd cool off period is not a full 2 hours because you have a pass 2-3pm, but will loose stacking).
> 
> Personally I would book my first evening pass when I leave the park for a mid day break.  So at 1 pm book 4-5pm and then head out the park; if I look again at 3 pm (2 hr cooling can start at 1, 1:30 whenever you book the evening pass) I may book another 4:30 or 5 pm pass.


This is exactly our plan. We make out better this way than by starting a stack with the first ride of the day (based on what we’re seeing for return times). I fiddled with it both ways and doing the 2 hour cool down over lunch nets more ride and more g+


----------



## Tiggr88

If you mean have they been holding back more entries to make available at 9AM for non-resort guests, the answer is they appear to have stopped doing that after the first day or two and are no longer doing that.

For the person inquiring about trying to get SDD and Rise before morning, if you don't have two separate people going in I would prioritize SDD first and then Rise. SDD slots move out faster. Rise tends to have more available in the morning longer because people can select their return times throughout the day while people trying to get SDD are all going to start in the AM and then push out from there.

Based on what we've seen, you should still be able to get a morning Rise after you have procured your SDD. Of course, things may always change depending on crowd levels and adoption. I suspect the major touring plan and wait time sites will start publishing some heat map type info for return times and priorities as they gather more info. I would monitor them as you get closer to your trip.


----------



## GatorChris

Anybody find it at least a little amusing that the acronym everyone is using for Individual (pay extra) Lightening Lanes is....ILL. It's perfect! Because it literally makes me ill to think I have to pay to not have to stand in an hour long line.


----------



## Tiggr88

I think that is exactly why so many people settled on it. Its probably more accurate to be IALL (Individual Attraction Lightning Lane) but everyone decided ILL was better.


----------



## JETSDAD

Tiggr88 said:


> I think that is exactly why so many people settled on it. Its probably more accurate to be IALL (Individual Attraction Lightning Lane) but everyone decided ILL was better.


Disney actually calls it Individual Lightning Lane which is why people latched on to the ILL abbreviation.  Even in the app they are referred to as Individual Lightning Lane.


----------



## Disturbia

starryagain said:


> If anyone could help with my question I would be very grateful. We are taking a last minute trip, just one night at Beach Club and two park days, this Sunday (Halloween) and Monday. We are annual passholders but I was not expecting the trip and as such am overwhelmed by trying to figure things out.
> 
> Day 1 we plan on rope dropping with the 30 minutes early arrival at Hollywood Studios, long break at Beach Club, then Epcot in the evening. We would ideally get a Lighting Lane for RotR and Genie+.
> 
> My question is how hard will it be if we are on promptly at 7AM to get a RotR LL before noon then a SDD Genie+ before noon? Is that basically impossible to get both? I can't seem to figure out a way to purchase Genie+ in advance, it says we have to do it later. The RotR LL is higher priority to us than SDD.
> 
> Day 2 we are going to Animal Kingdom and we are iffy on using Genie+ there.


I would book your SDD Genie+ first (pay $15 before 7 am competing against on-site+offsite ) as ROTR has availability for a few hours (offsite can’t book until park opens)


----------



## goofy4prez

kilik64 said:


> If I were a betting man (which I am) id put money on Tron being the 3rd ILL and there not being a drop of Space...



If I were a betting man (which I'm not) I'd have to agree with you. While we complain and complain about G+ and ILL$, when it's all said and done we will continue to pay and pay and pay and pay. Disney will see us minions spending away and will just keep on adding more and more ILLS with time. Not until they see the revenue stream diminish, they have no reason not to continue finding new ways to extract the $$$$$ from our wallets and purses.


----------



## wisblue

Gentry2004 said:


> I know Rise times go quickly but I don’t think it has yet sold out before park open. Someone feel free to correct me.



I’ve  been paying attention to this as I prepare for a trip in a couple,of weeks. Rise and Slinky both go quickly but they haven‘t been completely gone before 9 on any of the days I’ve looked.

if you just want something at any time you should be able to get something, but if you want something in the morning you have to have pretty quick fingers at 7 AM.


----------



## Disturbia

wisblue said:


> I’ve  been paying attention to this as I prepare for a trip in a couple,of weeks. Rise and Slinky both go quickly but they haven‘t been completely gone before 9 on any of the days I’ve looked.
> 
> if you just want something at any time you should be able to get something, but if you want something in the morning you have to have pretty quick fingers at 7 AM.


It has.  I saw a video where ROTR sold out at 8:59

Edit:  Just learned this:  Disney changed the procedure 3 days in so there are different buckets because there was nothing left for offsite guests

*On Day 3 of Genie, Disney Changes Protocol for Rise of the Resistance Lightning Lane Availability*

https://blogmickey.com/2021/10/on-d...f-the-resistance-lightning-lane-availability/


----------



## fly girl

starryagain said:


> If anyone could help with my question I would be very grateful. We are taking a last minute trip, just one night at Beach Club and two park days, this Sunday (Halloween) and Monday. We are annual passholders but I was not expecting the trip and as such am overwhelmed by trying to figure things out.
> 
> Day 1 we plan on rope dropping with the 30 minutes early arrival at Hollywood Studios, long break at Beach Club, then Epcot in the evening. We would ideally get a Lighting Lane for RotR and Genie+.
> 
> My question is how hard will it be if we are on promptly at 7AM to get a RotR LL before noon then a SDD Genie+ before noon? Is that basically impossible to get both? I can't seem to figure out a way to purchase Genie+ in advance, it says we have to do it later. The RotR LL is higher priority to us than SDD.
> 
> Day 2 we are going to Animal Kingdom and we are iffy on using Genie+ there.



Jumping on your question as I asked this yesterday and it got lost in the shuffle.

Does anyone know if multiple phones with same account can book simultaneously? EX: at 7am I’m on my phone getting SDD, husband on his phone snagging RoTR.

We are park hopping too and want to get both of these before 2pm.


----------



## Tiggr88

fly girl said:


> Jumping on your question as I ask this yesterday and it got lost in the shuffle.
> 
> Does anyone know if multiple phones with same account can book simultaneously? EX: at 7am I’m on my phone getting SDD, husband on his phone snagging RoTR.
> 
> We are park hopping too and want to get both of these before 2pm.


In theory yes. It probably isn't necessary since you can grab the SDD at 7AM and the Rise slots should still be available in the AM but it should work.


----------



## Disturbia

ROTR sells out within minutes but there may be inventory dropped later?


----------



## fly girl

Tiggr88 said:


> In theory yes. It probably isn't necessary since you can grab the SDD at 7AM and the Rise slots should still be available in the AM but it should work.



My plan was SDD first, then Rise if only I could do it.

But having us both on is our game plan, especially if one of our phones glitches.


----------



## Tiggr88

Disturbia said:


> ROTR sells out within minutes but there may be inventory dropped later?
> 
> View attachment 616656


I believe this is trying to show just the opposite. Resort guests can start reserving at 7AM and no inventory is added at 9Am when non-resort guests can start reserving. Because of that , it is sold out quickly or potentially even before 9AM. All times are available from 7AM onward and if resort guests take them all then non-resort guests are SOL.  

When they used to add inventory at 9AM,you would see a screen with availability throughout the day, since they held back some slots to save them for the non-resort guests (and late to the party resort guests).


----------



## Tiggr88

fly girl said:


> My plan was SDD first, then Rise if only I could do it.
> 
> But having us both on is our game plan, especially if one of our phones glitches.


Assuming current trends hold, you should definitely be able to get SDD and then have a fair amount of times available in the AM for Rise. It certainly doesn't hurt to have multiple people trying, but so far it would not be necessary. Again, things may change so there are no guarantees but the ILL times do not disappear in a minute like the old BGs.


----------



## fly girl

Tiggr88 said:


> Assuming current trends hold, you should definitely be able to get SDD and then have a fair amount of times available in the AM for Rise. It certainly doesn't hurt to have multiple people trying, but so far it would not be necessary. Again, things may change so there are no guarantees but the ILL times do not disappear in a minute like the old BGs.



We will be there this weekend, let’s hope the trend holds a few more days!


----------



## boop0524

So we are staying offsite in a couple weeks. Should I be concerned that at 9 am there won’t be any time slots left for ROTR?


----------



## Tiggr88

boop0524 said:


> So we are staying offsite in a couple weeks. Should I be concerned that at 9 am there won’t be any time slots left for ROTR?


I believe there have been slots available most days but they run out within minutes or less and may not be as varied as you like. Seems like someone reported they ran out before 9Am on one day so it is certainly possible.

While wait times have certainly hit 90 minutes or more, late in the day I've also seen them come down and be almost reasonable in the 60 minute range. FWIW, this past Saturday my daughter got in line 5 minutes before closing to a 35 minute posted, 15-20 minute actual wait so that is always an option as well if you don't get an ILL. As long as there isn't significant downtime late in the day and its up and running you may not get quite that lucky but it would not be unreasonable to have a 30 minute actual wait at closing.


----------



## Foreveraprincess17

starryagain said:


> If anyone could help with my question I would be very grateful. We are taking a last minute trip, just one night at Beach Club and two park days, this Sunday (Halloween) and Monday. We are annual passholders but I was not expecting the trip and as such am overwhelmed by trying to figure things out.
> 
> Day 1 we plan on rope dropping with the 30 minutes early arrival at Hollywood Studios, long break at Beach Club, then Epcot in the evening. We would ideally get a Lighting Lane for RotR and Genie+.
> 
> My question is how hard will it be if we are on promptly at 7AM to get a RotR LL before noon then a SDD Genie+ before noon? Is that basically impossible to get both? I can't seem to figure out a way to purchase Genie+ in advance, it says we have to do it later. The RotR LL is higher priority to us than SDD.
> 
> Day 2 we are going to Animal Kingdom and we are iffy on using Genie+ there.





coolbrook said:


> I would say, buy the G+ BEFORE 7 am like at 6:45 or something then have two people on phones at 7 with one trying for ROTR and one trying for SDD.  The reports have been that Slinky has been going to afternoon times very quickly.  Good luck and have fun!



Agreed, working on two phones would be your best bet.  If you use one phone by the time you book the ILL for ROTR, the GP+ time for SDD is going to be late morning at the earliest (not likely).... most likely the booking time will be in the early afternoon.


----------



## Tiggr88

FWIW, I believe Rise ILLs have lasted until at least 9:15 most days. I think almost to noon on 10/24. I'm not sure what the return times were, but according to thrill data, they were available.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

Tiggr88 said:


> I believe there have been slots available most days but they run out within minutes or less and may not be as varied as you like. Seems like someone reported they ran out before 9Am on one day so it is certainly possible.
> 
> While wait times have certainly hit 90 minutes or more, late in the day I've also seen them come down and be almost reasonable in the 60 minute range. FWIW, this past Saturday my daughter got in line 5 minutes before closing to a 35 minute posted, 15-20 minute actual wait so that is always an option as well if you don't get an ILL. As long as there isn't significant downtime late in the day and its up and running you may not get quite that lucky but it would not be unreasonable to have a 30 minute actual wait at closing.



we got in line last week during a week day at like 6-7 pm, can’t remember now. The line said 70 min. I asked if it was an overestimate and the guy snapped at me that this was disneys official time so he can’t say anything else. Was actually 30min. Unless HS evenings really pick up soon people should just wait and do it in the evening imo, though 30 minutes might stil be worth it. It was one of the best lightning ones though. Despite still having to wait in line, the LL takes you immediately to the beginning of the “experience” def wouldn’t want to cut any of that part out, so for those with the the money it’s def the one ILL actually worth it.


----------



## hdrolfe

We were at HS yesterday and purchased RoR for 10:15. We didn't get genie+ but did rope drop. We rode everything but tower and rockin rollercoaster. We got on slinky dog first, did toy story and aliens so well before park opening, then rode milenium falcon with a short wait. There are not a lot of rides at HS. We had a snack break before our Rise time and.... it broke down while we were on it. We got an any time pass but when it came back up that line was crazy, I am sure it was 40 minute wait in the lightning lane line so we went for a break at the hotel and back after dinner. We ended up riding TSMM again, got our Rise ride (which was awesome BTW, worth the cost to avoid the 100 minute posted wait most of the day) and then did Runaway Railway and ended with 3 more rides on Slinky. 

I feel like we did really well. We could have done Rise at park close instead of Slinky and may when we go back on Thursday. 

Today is MK and we should be on a bus at least by now but kiddo is tired so... I hope we will be able to do well without any costs, but know we will probably miss 7DMT unless we stay to closing. We go back there Saturday and may get the LL$ for it then. 

I can certainly see why people would pay but we saw people in the LL late in the day when we waited 15 minutes for the same ride so I question the value. If the park was busier I guess, but with only being able to use it once per ride we would have had to wait in lines any way since we want to ride some things more than once.


----------



## wisblue

Disturbia said:


> It has.  I saw a video where ROTR sold out at 8:59
> 
> Edit:  Just learned this:  Disney changed the procedure 3 days in so there are different buckets because there was nothing left for offsite guests
> 
> *On Day 3 of Genie, Disney Changes Protocol for Rise of the Resistance Lightning Lane Availability*
> 
> https://blogmickey.com/2021/10/on-d...f-the-resistance-lightning-lane-availability/
> View attachment 616654



Interesting.

If this is now the standard procedure it raises the question of how long those “refilled” slots last. If you really want a morning time, and the earliest you can get shortly after 7 is in the afternoon, should you wait until 9 to try to get something earlier?

That seems like a gamble if there is nothing available before 9; you might end up with nothing. Plus, if I’m planning to be in the park at 8:30 for Early Entry I wouldn‘t want to have to alter my early riding to be in a place to hunt for a ROTR at the stroke of 9.

Unless something changes significantly before then, my plan for our DHS day is to be ready right at 7 and try to get Slinky for the earliest time I can get and then go immediately for booking ROTR and try to get a time around 10 or 10:30 or as soon after that as possible.

If I can get my daughters to help out with this, that might help us get the   times close to what we want. My wife will have nothing to do with this silliness, and isn’t interested in ROTR anyway.

ETA: I checked this this morning. At 8:59 ET the available return time for ROTR was 4:00. At 9:00 on the dot there was no apparent earlier availability and by 9:05 the time had gone out steadily to 6:20 PM.


----------



## Disturbia

If ROTR is not a priority, I would book SDD;  for a park like HS (little shade in Toy story land and elsewhere) we need a midday break, so booking the earliest pass and then catching a later pass when leaving for a break makes sense for us.  It will save time in multiple lines vs one ride; we will also be stuck in rides longer due to rider switch.  We will buy ROTR at 7 am first.


----------



## Orsino

My understanding is Disney changed to NOT have a non-resort bucket at 9am on day three. Day one and two they refilled rise of the resistance at 9am, but now they no longer do.


----------



## ZeeWP

I think to clarify how many G+ you can have, we need to stop thinking about it as "how many I am holding" and start thinking of it as:

*You can get another G+LL when:*
*1) The clock of 120 min runs out OR
2) When you tap into a ride/attraction OR
3) The time runs out on your LL pass*
*Whichever is first*

That's how it works.


----------



## katyringo

Orsino said:


> I see multiple strategies developing in this thread, which is great. What is less great is overlapping terms and discussions can get a bit confusing.
> 
> Here is what I've gleaned from this thread, with some made-up terms I'm using to try and keep the strategies distinct.
> 
> - "stacking" refers to the Genie+ implementation where a user becomes eligible for a new LL reservation 120 minutes after having not been eligible for some other reason. 'stacking' refers to the fact that this process will lead to holding more than one LL at the same time.
> 
> - "hop stacking" refers to the strategy of collecting LL reservations at a park other than your initial park reservation park. The system will automatically offer LL times after the 2PM park hop restriction to facilitate collection of useful LL.
> 
> - "double stacking" refers to the strategy of getting the initial LL reservation for a return time around 2 hours after park open so that the 120 minute "stacking" strategy comes into play (LL#2), followed shortly by redemption of the first LL and booking LL#3.
> 
> - "minimum cycle time" (jargony, sorry: maybe there is a better term. I wanted to avoid the term 'greedy' which is also jargony) refers to the strategy of getting as many LL as possible as quickly as possible to maximize the use of LL. Stacking is unlikely to come into play with this strategy as the user is trying to get their next LL quickly by using the previous one asap. The key to this strategy is to get the popular LL that winds up with late return times quickly for early in the day. A 7AM start with Genie+ is a must.
> 
> My view is that 'minimum cycle time' makes the most sense for users who are not interested in re-riding any attractions. If you aren't going to re-ride something, then using LL to skip a 'short wait' 15 minute line is perfectly reasonable since you aren't coming back anyway. However, for users interested in re-riding attractions, when to use LL for a particular ride becomes part of the strategy. In other words, re-rides means you have to use standby at some point, so that standby wait will want to be during the short wait opportunity.
> 
> I think 'double stacking' makes the most sense for users interested in riding the same ride multiple times. Ride standby at rope drop when standby lines are most reasonable, then use the double stack after the first 120 minutes of the day.
> 
> The final strategy I'm trying to formulate is 'late arrival stacking.' (No hopping) On arrival day, I'm getting to MCO around 3PM. This is too late to make use of 'hop stacking.' I'm eyeing rides that get pushed to late return times early in the day (e.g. Jungle Cruise). I don't think I'd be able to get a 4PM or 5PM return time at 8:55AM so this strategy is one I'll be watching for feasibility.



this is amazing and what a great summary!


----------



## leeniewdw

I have what I presume is a simple question (as compared to stacking strategies!), but where in the app do I indicate my plan is to hop to a 2nd park.  It's my understanding that in doing so, when I want to reserve a LL in a hop-to park, it will show me 2pm+ times.   OR is the fact that I currently have a park reservation in Park 1, that if I flip the tip board to Park 2 it will automatically show me post-2pm times once I click "book experience".


----------



## snikki

leeniewdw said:


> I have what I presume is a simple question (as compared to stacking strategies!), but where in the app do I indicate my plan is to hop to a 2nd park.  It's my understanding that in doing so, when I want to reserve a LL in a hop-to park, it will show me 2pm+ times.   OR is the fact that I currently have a park reservation in Park 1, that if I flip the tip board to Park 2 it will automatically show me post-2pm times once I click "book experience".



When you go to the My Day portion of the app, and you do the prompts for park 1 it’ll take you back to the main My Day screen. It’ll show you the prompt for “plan for the next park.”


----------



## wisblue

leeniewdw said:


> I have what I presume is a simple question (as compared to stacking strategies!), but where in the app do I indicate my plan is to hop to a 2nd park.  It's my understanding that in doing so, when I want to reserve a LL in a hop-to park, it will show me 2pm+ times.   OR is the fact that I currently have a park reservation in Park 1, that if I flip the tip board to Park 2 it will automatically show me post-2pm times once I click "book experience".



There is a feature of the app that lets you identify a second park that you expect to visit. (ETA- the previous post describes this).

I‘m quite sure that you don’t have to do that in order to make LL reservations at that park.

If you try to make a LL selection at a park other than the one for which you have a park reservation, the app will only offer you return times beginning at 2PM.

For example if you are at MK at noon and intend to hop to Epcot, and would like a LL for Soarin, just go to the Tip Board screen for Epcot. Even if the posted LL return for Soarin is before 2 PM, if you click on it, the app will offer you a return time of 2 PM (or maybe later, I guess) with a note “adjusted for park hopping”.


----------



## leeniewdw

Thank you.  I do not have the blue "Plan for Your Next Park" section.   We do have a park reservation for that day and we show the 1 day Park Hoppers listed in MDE.  These were leftover 1 day hoppers because we were in WDW when it closed (and left with a day left on our package).   I wonder if there is still something left to do.  The good news is that we'll have time to talk to Guest Services when we arrive the day prior.   We have to stop there anyway because we'll be buying 1 day passes to add to this free one and we'll need to make sure on day 1 it uses the 1 day/1 park pass instead of the hopper.

Thanks again.


----------



## snikki

leeniewdw said:


> Thank you.  I do not have the blue "Plan for Your Next Park" section.   We do have a park reservation for that day and we show the 1 day Park Hoppers listed in MDE.  These were leftover 1 day hoppers because we were in WDW when it closed (and left with a day left on our package).   I wonder if there is still something left to do.  The good news is that we'll have time to talk to Guest Services when we arrive the day prior.   We have to stop there anyway because we'll be buying 1 day passes to add to this free one and we'll need to make sure on day 1 it uses the 1 day/1 park pass instead of the hopper.
> 
> Thanks again.



I had to go and plan out my day for park 1 before that showed up.


----------



## leeniewdw

snikki said:


> I had to go and plan out my day for park 1 before that showed up.



Thanks so much for your help.   I added plans for my park reservation and then it showed up.   It's not showing me eligible to Hop on the next screen once I clicked that, so still a little bit of an issue.  But I appreciate the repeated help!


----------



## vinmar4

Good morning,

We are arriving this Sunday for 4 nights for Food and Wine. We are going to try to get Remy that day at 7am and if not at 1 PM . So far ,we are just planning on buying FOP if we don't want to get up that early for our AK day. We will do  the early EMH for HS and Epcot to get on some rides, we will hop to MK maybe one time. We will also do  the evening EMH at MK on our last night. The rest of the time just enjoy Food and Wine,  eat eat at some resorts or DS. Our party is 19 and over, not crazy about getting on all the rides, so we feel Genie plus is not needed during this trip, plus we will be back in March. 

Just playing with the Genie app. I saw that I could choose our preferences for our first day and it listed my whole party, but when I tried to choose the next day from my genie day, it tells me that none of us are eligible in our party .

Is this normal ? or should I contact them ? I don't want to run into this issue once we there.

thank you


----------



## Turksmom

vinmar4 said:


> Good morning,
> 
> We are arriving this Sunday for 4 nights for Food and Wine. We are going to try to get Remy that day at 7am and if not at 1 PM . So far ,we are just planning on buying FOP if we don't want to get up that early for our AK day. We will do  the early EMH for HS and Epcot to get on some rides, we will hop to MK maybe one time. We will also do  the evening EMH at MK on our last night. The rest of the time just enjoy Food and Wine,  eat eat at some resorts or DS. Our party is 19 and over, not crazy about getting on all the rides, so we feel Genie plus is not needed during this trip, plus we will be back in March.
> 
> Just playing with the Genie app. I saw that I could choose our preferences for our first day and it listed my whole party, but when I tried to choose the next day from my genie day, it tells me that none of us are eligible in our party .
> 
> Is this normal ? or should I contact them ? I don't want to run into this issue once we there.
> 
> thank you


Be sure you are selecting the park where you have a reservation


----------



## vinmar4

Turksmom said:


> Be sure you are selecting the park where you have a reservation



Huh!
I could see that it said HS at the top  , but then I double checked when I read your post, and I had to again choose HS at the bottom, and there it was !
Thank you so much


----------



## wisblue

Turksmom said:


> Be sure you are selecting the park where you have a reservation



Yes, this issue was discussed in detail in the thread titled “Error Using Genie (Free Version)”. I bumped that thread so the PP can see that if still having problems.

The simple problem is that when you plan for your first day the app makes you select a park. When you click on a second day, the app seems to auto fill the park you selected for the previous day and, since you don’t have reservations at that park, you get the “not eligible“ message.

People like me have been tripped up by that because when you select that second day, the place to select the park is hiding below the visible part of the screen. You have to scroll down to change the park selection.


----------



## snikki

How will G+ and the tip board work when I am actually there and park hopping?

Will the tip board automatically populate to park 1? Will it automatically populate to park 2 at the time I tell the genie I am arriving?


----------



## vinmar4

wisblue said:


> Yes, this issue was discussed in detail in the thread titled “Error Using Genie (Free Version)”. I bumped that thread so the PP can see that if still having problems.
> 
> The simple problem is that when you plan for your first day the app makes you select a park. When you click on a second day, the app seems to auto fill the park you selected for the previous day and, since you don’t have reservations at that park, you get the “not eligible“ message.
> 
> People like me have been tripped up by that because when you select that second day, the place to select the park is hiding below the visible part of the screen. You have to scroll down to change the park selection.


 Wow, yes, that's exactly what happened, better that I found out today than when we are actually there!
thank you for the explanation


----------



## PepperjackDragon

snikki said:


> How will G+ and the tip board work when I am actually there and park hopping?
> 
> Will the tip board automatically populate to park 1? Will it automatically populate to park 2 at the time I tell the genie I am arriving?


On iPhone you can easily change parks at the top of the page


----------



## leeniewdw

snikki said:


> I had to go and plan out my day for park 1 before that showed up.



I started a chat in MDE and they didn't admit to doing anything, but I went back to the same place and suddenly I could see the 2 people traveling in Dec available to say they were going to MK after 2pm.  
Thanks again!


----------



## HappyPrincessGlee

If I book a Genie+ ride at 7:00 am with a return time right after park open at 9:00, and I don’t ride, when the return time expires, can I make another selection right away, or will it be 2 hours after park open?  Does Genie treat an expired return time the same as a tap in or not?  TIA!


----------



## amylevan

HappyPrincessGlee said:


> If I book a Genie+ ride at 7:00 am with a return time right after park open at 9:00, and I don’t ride, when the return time expires, can I make another selection right away, or will it be 2 hours after park open?  Does Genie treat an expired return time the same as a tap in or not?  TIA!


You can make another one when time expires.  Note that as things stand now, you will not be able to make another one for the one you missed - it’s treated as used.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

amylevan said:


> You can make another one when time expires.  Note that as things stand now, you will not be able to make another one for the one you missed - it’s treated as used.


This is why you are much better off cancelling it before the return time starts.


----------



## wisblue

amylevan said:


> You can make another one when time expires.  Note that as things stand now, you will not be able to make another one for the one you missed - it’s treated as used.



In addition, if you know you aren’t going to use that first ride you can cancel it and make a new reservation immediately. You wouldn‘t have to wait until the first one expires.


----------



## Disturbia

Allears did good detailed (with screenshots) review of how to park hop

https://allears.net/2021/10/21/what-is-park-hopping-like-now-with-disney-genie/

*Some Park Hopping Issues*
While Genie is smart with park hopping in some ways, it can also experience some issues. For example, during one trip, Genie kept telling one of our reporters that they needed to go to Disney’s Hollywood Studios from EPCOT, even though the reporter had already scanned into Hollywood Studios and was there. For some reason, *the free planning service never seemed to recognize that the hopping had taken place*.

But, that never had a practical effect on their ability to book Genie+ selections in the park they had hopped to, so don’t let those technical issues concern you unless they affect your ability to make selections.


----------



## Newbie500

ZeeWP said:


> I think to clarify how many G+ you can have, we need to stop thinking about it as "how many I am holding" and start thinking of it as:
> 
> *You can get another G+LL when:*
> *1) The clock of 120 min runs out OR
> 2) When you tap into a ride/attraction*
> *Whichever is first*
> 
> That's how it works.



Nah, that sounds too easy.


----------



## MrsHammer

Is the system allowing resort guests to buy the individual lightning lane attractions at 7am on their check in day?   So, for example, on our arrival day, we won't get into Orlando until maybe 3pm.  We would check into AKL shortly thereafter.   Would I be able to purchase the ILL for Rise at 7am from home before we board our plane for maybe a return time of after 6pm?    It would be nice to hit HS on our arrival night and get that one ride under our belts.    I'm just worried that it won't recognize us before we actually check in.


----------



## Disturbia

MrsHammer said:


> Is the system allowing resort guests to buy the individual lightning lane attractions at 7am on their check in day?   So, for example, on our arrival day, we won't get into Orlando until maybe 3pm.  We would check into AKL shortly thereafter.   Would I be able to purchase the ILL for Rise at 7am from home before we board our plane for maybe a return time of after 6pm?    It would be nice to hit HS on our arrival night and get that one ride under our belts.    I'm just worried that it won't recognize us before we actually check in.


https://touringplans.com/blog/genie-testing-questions-we-got-on-day-two/
Answer seems to be yes and you can add Genie+ to your entire package ahead of time. Definitely do *online checkin* beforehand.

Keep an eye on when SDD changes into evening passes and then book (if getting Genie+ as well):

7-8 am book 6:00-7:00 SDD and ROTR$$
11 am book 6:30-7:30or 3:10-4:10 MFSR
1 pm book 7:00-8:00 or 3:30-4:30 TSMM
3 pm book 7:30-8:30 or current


----------



## Disturbia

On page 12, there was a posting regarding times available:

Also these are pretty close to the same for both days:
At 11:00 on October 22
Millenium Falcon return time: 4:25
Toy Story Mania return time: 12:10

At 11:00 on October 23
Millenium Falcon return time: 4:15
Toy Story Mania return time: 12:35


----------



## Disturbia

Does anyone have data points for HS availability at 1 pm and 3 pm?


----------



## ZeeWP

I have always thought that Park hopping was not for lazy people like me, but maybe that is the strategy for G+ if you can stack. But that seems like a lot of work when we can be having fun lol


----------



## Disturbia

ZeeWP said:


> I have always thought that Park hopping was not for lazy people like me, but maybe that is the strategy for G+ if you can stack. But that seems like a lot of work when we can be having fun lol


You can stack within one park.  We are not doing park hopping and will use the variable night hours for pool/rest/ADRs


----------



## Disturbia

Touring plans has a great summary:

https://forum.touringplans.com/t/the-genie-thread-all-wdw-info-here/81599/1


----------



## ZeeWP

Disturbia said:


> You can stack within one park.  We are not doing park hopping and will use the variable night hours for pool/rest/ADRs


I guess that's true LOL okay, no park hopping. lol


----------



## Tiggr88

ZeeWP said:


> I think to clarify how many G+ you can have, we need to stop thinking about it as "how many I am holding" and start thinking of it as:
> 
> *You can get another G+LL when:*
> *1) The clock of 120 min runs out OR
> 2) When you tap into a ride/attraction*
> *Whichever is first*
> 
> That's how it works.


It may need another 'or'. Or if your time runs out for an existing selection. In theory you can make a G+ for 9-10AM and even if you don't tp in, you will be able to make another at 10. If you do, you will not be able to make another at 11, just as if you had tapped in and had to wait. Not sure why anyone would do that, you should probably cancel the first for reasons explained above, but technically you will be able to select another efter your window has expired if you don't tap in.


----------



## Disturbia

Molly vs Quincy; you save 3 hours standing for $32


----------



## Isabelle12345

Maybe this has been answered but I can’t seem to find the answer…
If we are hopping from AK to Hs (8 AM opening for AK, 9AM opening for HS), if we make a first LL at 7:00 for HS (trying to stalk LL in the afternoon for HS), can we make our second LL selection at 10:00 or only at 11:00?
If it’s at 11:00, would it be a good strategy to make a LL for 8-9 Navi, tap in that ride at 8:01 and make one LL for HS at 8:01 - then I guess I would be able to make one at 10:01?


----------



## cfw213

Isabelle12345 said:


> Maybe this has been answered but I can’t seem to find the answer…
> If we are hopping from AK to Hs (8 AM opening for AK, 9AM opening for HS), if we make a first LL at 7:00 for HS (trying to stalk LL in the afternoon for HS), can we make our second LL selection at 10:00 or only at 11:00?
> If it’s at 11:00, would it be a good strategy to make a LL for 8-9 Navi, tap in that ride at 8:01 and make one LL for HS at 8:01 - then I guess I would be able to make one at 10:01?


If the park opens for all guests at 8am you should be able to make a reservation at 10am


----------



## Orsino

I'm thinking it would still be 11AM, but I don't know if anyone has tested this.


----------



## moorish

Isabelle12345 said:


> Maybe this has been answered but I can’t seem to find the answer…
> If we are hopping from AK to Hs (8 AM opening for AK, 9AM opening for HS), if we make a first LL at 7:00 for HS (trying to stalk LL in the afternoon for HS), can we make our second LL selection at 10:00 or only at 11:00?
> If it’s at 11:00, would it be a good strategy to make a LL for 8-9 Navi, tap in that ride at 8:01 and make one LL for HS at 8:01 - then I guess I would be able to make one at 10:01?


From what someone here told me based on their personal experience with Epcot and HS, the 2 hours depends on the park you make the G+ selection in and not the park your reservation is for.


----------



## dmunsil

Isabelle12345 said:


> Maybe this has been answered but I can’t seem to find the answer…
> If we are hopping from AK to Hs (8 AM opening for AK, 9AM opening for HS), if we make a first LL at 7:00 for HS (trying to stalk LL in the afternoon for HS), can we make our second LL selection at 10:00 or only at 11:00?
> If it’s at 11:00, would it be a good strategy to make a LL for 8-9 Navi, tap in that ride at 8:01 and make one LL for HS at 8:01 - then I guess I would be able to make one at 10:01?


The two hours is counted from the opening time of the park the ride is in. So if your 7am booking is at HS, you can book next at 11. If it’s at AK, you can book next when you tap in or 10:00, whichever comes first. I personally tested this yesterday.

As to strategy, a lot depends on whether you want a Slinky Dog LL reservation. If you do, then you’ll need to grab it pretty early, and because HS isn’t your reserved park, that means you’re going to likely wait 2 hours after booking it. Millennium Falcon is kind of similar, in that if you wait on it, times will be gone or very late by the time you’re ready to hop. So your plan isn’t bad. Get Na’vi as close to 8 as you can, tap in and get Slinky. Ride standby for 2 hours and then get more AK rides until you see that your next HS ride is getting late, then switch to booking HS.

Honestly, I think it’s way easier to do HS first, then hop to AK than the other way around. But it really depends on the specific rides.


----------



## ZeeWP

Tiggr88 said:


> It may need another 'or'. Or if your time runs out for an existing selection. In theory you can make a G+ for 9-10AM and even if you don't tp in, you will be able to make another at 10. If you do, you will not be able to make another at 11, just as if you had tapped in and had to wait. Not sure why anyone would do that, you should probably cancel the first for reasons explained above, but technically you will be able to select another efter your window has expired if you don't tap in.


fixed it


----------



## Sjm9911

Ok, so this is all confusing.  Lol. But i think i finally worked out a strategy.  At least for MK. That will work for us. I may just try stacking 2 eary. So JC at say 11 am and get another before tapping in. RD sdmt, and then PP and HM , then the mountians. From there roll the 2 genie + slots for the rest of the park. Hit space last. Then take a brake around 3 pm. Go back after dinner. Will it work well? IDK. We could re ride some of the stuff we did at RD in the evening.  

HS is a biy easier for us, as the kido only wants SDD, and toy story land. Ill get a rise pass, and then maybe we will do something else. I did get the genie + for the other parks also, so we can rd and then get pases to ride 2x. Or sleep in, lol. All the 7 am stuff will make me tired!


----------



## ckelly14

This is the first time in years we will be doing hoppers.  We only have 4 days so we want to maximize touring.

Instead of stacking for the afternoon park, couldn't I just use G+ during the morning, then when 11AM rolls around, start "stacking"  LLs for the second park?  Won't I only really be missing out on the 7AM additional LL?  Seems kind of a waste to not use G+ in the AM just to have one extra LL waiting for me in the later park.

Not trying to be critical but just making sure I have my head around this correctly...


----------



## DisneyKidds

ckelly14 said:


> Instead of stacking for the afternoon park, couldn't I just use G+ during the morning, then when 11AM rolls around, start "stacking"  LLs for the second park?  Won't I only really be missing out on the 7AM additional LL?  Seems kind of a waste to not use G+ in the AM just to have one extra LL waiting for me in the later park.


That makes sense.  At 11am you’d have to pick a LL return window beyond 1:00.  Then at 1:00 you could stack a second.   So long as effective LL returns are available that would work.  What will ultimately save more time in line is the question…..having a 3rd stack afternoon/evening in Park 2 when lines might be longer, or using G+ for a couple hours at open of Park 1 when lines might be shorter?


----------



## FRANKTSJR

Disturbia said:


> Molly vs Quincy; you save 3 hours standing for $32
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> View attachment 616932


That's for one person. Family of four $132. That's the cost of a nice dinner. Multiply that by 5-7 days and it's a big chunk of change


----------



## leeniewdw

FRANKTSJR said:


> That's for one person. Family of four $132. That's the cost of a nice dinner. Multiply that by 5-7 days and it's a big chunk of change



If you are in the park for 5-7 days, I can't imagine you'd need G+ for all of those days.    I can see using it for MK and HS for your first visits to those parks but I can't imagine you'd need it for re-visits and AK and EP given all those days.

For short trips and multi-park days, sure.    We're spending an afternoon/evening at EP in December and I'm still not sure we'd need G+.  We might do it anyway because it'll be our first day in the parks since it was announced and just to see how it all works, but I'm certain it's not necessary.


----------



## snikki

leeniewdw said:


> If you are in the park for 5-7 days, I can't imagine you'd need G+ for all of those days.    I can see using it for MK and HS for your first visits to those parks but I can't imagine you'd need it for re-visits and AK and EP given all those days.
> 
> For short trips and multi-park days, sure.    We're spending an afternoon/evening at EP in December and I'm still not sure we'd need G+.  We might do it anyway because it'll be our first day in the parks since it was announced and just to see how it all works, but I'm certain it's not necessary.



This is what I’m thinking too. We are doing 9 nights with 8 day hoppers. I am trying to align our days to make G+ more beneficial. Like hopping between MK and DHS and getting G+ those days. On the days we hop between AK and EP I won’t get it. On a day we are just doing WS I won’t get it.   It is having me mix up my days differently. We used to do MK/EP hop and AK/DHS hop.


----------



## Disturbia

FRANKTSJR said:


> That's for one person. Family of four $132. That's the cost of a nice dinner. Multiply that by 5-7 days and it's a big chunk of change


Yes that’s exactly what we’re looking at for 4 riders 7 days, so downgraded our resort; we probably will use it for 5-6 days.  We do have ADRs 5 nights (food allergies so quick service takes 15-30 mins extra waiting for chef).  We will not do park hopping as we want to enjoy each park and not turn it into a ride count challenge.


----------



## Turksmom

I think it probably isn't needed to ride what you want over multiple park visits, but it may be "needed" to avoid the miserable experience of spending all day just standing in one long line after another. Not the case right now, but it could be an issue with higher crowds


----------



## loves to dive

FRANKTSJR said:


> That's for one person. Family of four $132. That's the cost of a nice dinner. Multiply that by 5-7 days and it's a big chunk of change


So true, that is a big chunk of change.   Also note, while Q didn't stand in line as long as M, M rode all the rides and was done before Q.   Q had a lot of down time and a lot of time "fiddle faddling" trying to find a good time to ride.   Q also had two snacks while M just had a cup of coffee but could easily have gotten a snack along with her cup of coffee and eaten it while walking to the next ride or even in the portion of the line that she was standing in before it became the usual line.   It really depends on if your goal is to ride as many rides as you can or your goal is not be standing in lines.  That might also depend on time of year.   If you are standing in outside non-shaded lines in the middle of July (SDD I'm looking at you) it might be worth the shorter standing lines option.  If it's winter and cooler and cloudy (ish) and you have the Kindle app on your phone, the standing in a long line might not be the bad option and save yourself some money and still get to ride as many rides.

It might also depend on your mind set.   For example:  my son and I have been going to the parks since long before any FP system so if you wanted to ride a ride, you stood in line.  So, for us, standing in line is just sort of normal.   We rarely used the recent FP system since we are not planners and had no idea what park we wanted to go to on any given day, much less what rides we would be in the mood to ride.  We did sort of use the old paper FP system.  When we did use the last FP system we only booked a FP if it was no longer than 30 min. out from when we thought we would be off the ride we were currently waiting in line for, since we always had park hoppers and weren't even sure we wanted to stay in the current park.   We never booked more than one FP at a time.   I don't see us constantly on our phone trying to find the next ride just so the line would be shorter.   We do usually go for at least 6 days, 5 nights so even if we only get 5 day tickets, since those are always PHs, there is plenty of time to ride the rides we want to and not spend $45 a day extra (me, my son, his SO).


----------



## Disturbia

loves to dive said:


> So true, that is a big chunk of change.   Also note, while Q didn't stand in line as long as M, M rode all the rides and was done before Q.   Q had a lot of down time and a lot of time "fiddle faddling" trying to find a good time to ride.   Q also had two snacks while M just had a cup of coffee but could easily have gotten a snack along with her cup of coffee and eaten it while walking to the next ride or even in the portion of the line that she was standing in before it became the usual line.   It really depends on if your goal is to ride as many rides as you can or your goal is not be standing in lines.  That might also depend on time of year.   If you are standing in outside non-shaded lines in the middle of July (SDD I'm looking at you) it might be worth the shorter standing lines option.  If it's winter and cooler and cloudy (ish) and you have the Kindle app on your phone, the standing in a long line might not be the bad option and save yourself some money and still get to ride as many rides.
> 
> It might also depend on your mind set.   For example:  my son and I have been going to the parks since long before any FP system so if you wanted to ride a ride, you stood in line.  So, for us, standing in line is just sort of normal.   We rarely used the recent FP system since we are not planners and had no idea what park we wanted to go to on any given day, much less what rides we would be in the mood to ride.  We did sort of use the old paper FP system.  When we did use the last FP system we only booked a FP if it was no longer than 30 min. out from when we thought we would be off the ride we were currently waiting in line for, since we always had park hoppers and weren't even sure we wanted to stay in the current park.   We never booked more than one FP at a time.   I don't see us constantly on our phone trying to find the next ride just so the line would be shorter.   We do usually go for at least 6 days, 5 nights so even if we only get 5 day tickets, since those are always PHs, there is plenty of time to ride the rides we want to and not spend $45 a day extra (me, my son, his SO).


From my experience, food is not allowed in the lines.  They made us eat our dole whip before entering Jc even the outdoor queue that wasn’t in the roped official area (thirsty kids in direct sunlight; part of the family was waiting in line).

We were also told everyone including the baby has to wait in the outdoor line for SDMT if we wanted to do rider switch (20 mins of 60 min wait).  This change was this June; we did rider switch old way nov 2020


----------



## JETSDAD

loves to dive said:


> So true, that is a big chunk of change.   Also note, while Q didn't stand in line as long as M, M rode all the rides and was done before Q.   Q had a lot of down time and a lot of time "fiddle faddling" trying to find a good time to ride.   Q also had two snacks while M just had a cup of coffee but could easily have gotten a snack along with her cup of coffee and eaten it while walking to the next ride or even in the portion of the line that she was standing in before it became the usual line.   It really depends on if your goal is to ride as many rides as you can or your goal is not be standing in lines.  That might also depend on time of year.   If you are standing in outside non-shaded lines in the middle of July (SDD I'm looking at you) it might be worth the shorter standing lines option.  If it's winter and cooler and cloudy (ish) and you have the Kindle app on your phone, the standing in a long line might not be the bad option and save yourself some money and still get to ride as many rides.
> 
> It might also depend on your mind set.   For example:  my son and I have been going to the parks since long before any FP system so if you wanted to ride a ride, you stood in line.  So, for us, standing in line is just sort of normal.   We rarely used the recent FP system since we are not planners and had no idea what park we wanted to go to on any given day, much less what rides we would be in the mood to ride.  We did sort of use the old paper FP system.  When we did use the last FP system we only booked a FP if it was no longer than 30 min. out from when we thought we would be off the ride we were currently waiting in line for, since we always had park hoppers and weren't even sure we wanted to stay in the current park.   We never booked more than one FP at a time.   I don't see us constantly on our phone trying to find the next ride just so the line would be shorter.   We do usually go for at least 6 days, 5 nights so even if we only get 5 day tickets, since those are always PHs, there is plenty of time to ride the rides we want to and not spend $45 a day extra (me, my son, his SO).


They were just testing a specific list of rides though.  In the 3 hours of saved time Quincy could have done a lot of other rides/attractions as well.


----------



## mggeary

Forgive me if already answered.  We will likely take pool breaks from around 12-4ish, then park hop.  When we begin grabbing our afternoon G+ stacks, can we choose a time later than 2pm or does it always just default to 2pm.  Are we able to refresh to get different afternoon times?  Is it possible to later modify time from 2pm to 4pm?  If not is it better to book and later cancel/rebook?  Or just wait and book later when return times are 4pm-?


----------



## SmittS

We’ll be in the parks starting on Thanksgiving at MK.  We probably won’t get in until early afternoon and the focus will be dinner and fireworks, so we’ll probably first trial G+ on Friday.

We plan to start in Epcot (have park reservation) then hop to HS later in the day and want to ride SDD.  If I understand the stacking correctly, I’m thinking my plan goes like this:

7am - Go for Remy BG
After 7 am - Refresh G+ Until I get a later afternoon slot for SDD, say…4 PM
At 11 am, 2 hours after HS opening, book G+ LL for first Epcot ride.
Assuming first G+LL at Epcot is before 1 pm, tap into first ride then book additional G+LL for Epcot.
Do this for Epcot rides until ready to leave.  I will try to book a HS G+LL at 1:30 for a slot later in the afternoon/evening.
I will now have two G+LL for HS - SDD at 4pm and another for later.
At 3:30 (2 hours after booking the second HS G+LL), book a 3rd.
At 4-ish, tap into SDD, then book a replacement G+LL (back up to 3 at this point).

Am I understanding this right?


----------



## leeniewdw

mggeary said:


> Forgive me if already answered.  We will likely take pool breaks from around 12-4ish, then park hop.
> When we begin grabbing our afternoon G+ stacks, can we choose a time later than 2pm or does it always just default to 2pm.



It would depend on that day (and ride) and if there are already enough LLs reserved that it's pushed beyond 2pm.  You can't choose a later time.



mggeary said:


> Are we able to refresh to get different afternoon times?
> Is it possible to later modify time from 2pm to 4pm?
> If not is it better to book and later cancel/rebook?
> Or just wait and book later when return times are 4pm-?



People have reported that refreshing (before final booking the LL) has yielded earlier times.   

There is no "modify", only cancel and rebook (take your chances).

Waiting is always an option, but would require checking/re-checking.

I think it will vary greatly depending on the park and the crowd level.


----------



## aeasterling

I would say today was a successful use of Genie Plus for us.  Me, husband and 15 year old daughter.  We had a 12:20 ADR for CRT - family joke is we went when daughter was 5, but she doesn't remember so this was her do-over.  We wanted to sleep in this morning. 

11:10 - made a 12:50 LL for PPF
1:10 (during lunch) made 1:15 LL for BTMR
1:20 joined PPF LL queue - 8 min wait, the only LL we didn't walk on
After tapped into PPF, made IASW LL
After tapped into IASW, made Splash LL
After tapped into BTMR, made LM LL
After tapped into Splash, made Buzz LL
Rode LM (Didn't select another LL b/c we planned to leave soon)
rode Buzz at 3:15, then husband and I rode COP (I love this ride, fight me!) while daughter rode Space  twice (sign said 20 min standby, more like 10). 
Then headed back to our hotel to get ready for dinner at Sanaa

So in 2.5 hours, we rode all of that without waiting at all, except 8 min for PPF. Granted, standby wasn't terrible, especially since it was raining. But we still couldn't have gotten 6 rides done in this time without it.  For me, I'd say it's worth it at MK, as long as the constant booking doesn't stress you out. I found it fun- sort of a game, but I love planning!


----------



## leeniewdw

SmittS said:


> We’ll be in the parks starting on Thanksgiving at MK.  We probably won’t get in until early afternoon and the focus will be dinner and fireworks, so we’ll probably first trial G+ on Friday.
> 
> We plan to start in Epcot (have park reservation) then hop to HS later in the day and want to ride SDD.  If I understand the stacking correctly, I’m thinking my plan goes like this:
> 
> 7am - Go for Remy BG
> After 7 am - Refresh G+ Until I get a later afternoon slot for SDD, say…4 PM
> *At 11 am, 2 hours after HS opening, book G+ LL for first Epcot ride.
> Assuming first G+LL at Epcot is before 1 pm, tap into first ride then book additional G+LL for Epcot.*
> Do this for Epcot rides until ready to leave. * I will try to book a HS G+LL at 1:30 for a slot later in the afternoon/evening.*
> I will now have two G+LL for HS - SDD at 4pm and another for later.
> At 3:30 (2 hours after booking the second HS G+LL), book a 3rd.
> At 4-ish, tap into SDD, then book a replacement G+LL (back up to 3 at this point).
> 
> Am I understanding this right?



I'm not 100% sure I'm following your plan, but I think you will run into an issue if you book a pre-1pm EPCOT LL, tap into that, and then try again at 1:30.  Tapping into the ride would push your next time to reserve to  "tap in time" + 2 hours.  

I think it would work better to reserve the HS LL at 1pm, THEN tap into the ride reserved at 11am (at which point you can book that slot again).    Of course, depending on when you got to EPCOT, you might have a long time w/o an LLs.


----------



## SmittS

leeniewdw said:


> I'm not 100% sure I'm following your plan, but I think you will run into an issue if you book a pre-1pm EPCOT LL, tap into that, and then try again at 1:30.  Tapping into the ride would push your next time to reserve to  "tap in time" + 2 hours.
> 
> I think it would work better to reserve the HS LL at 1pm, THEN tap into the ride reserved at 11am (at which point you can book that slot again).    Of course, depending on when you got to EPCOT, you might have a long time w/o an LLs.


Hmmm.  This is the first I’ve heard of this. Everything I’ve read is you can booked your next LL after tapping into a LL, or two hours after you made your last LL reservation, whichever is sooner.  I haven’t seen anything about tap in time plus two hours.


----------



## Tiggr88

SmittS said:


> Hmmm.  This is the first I’ve heard of this. Everything I’ve read is you can booked your next LL after tapping into a LL, or two hours after you made your last LL reservation, whichever is sooner.  I haven’t seen anything about tap in time plus two hours.


You should be able to reserve a new G+ after you have tapped into an existing one, regardless of the two hours. It is either/or.


----------



## DisneyKidds

Yeah, “tap in time + 2 hours” isn’t a thing.  Once you tap in for any LL reservation G+ (or that Stack, if you are Stacking) is hot.  Once tapped in you can immediately make another.  

The 120 minute thing is a cooling off period that only applies if 1) a LL you reserved is more than 2 hours in the future, or 2) two hours after park opening IF you already have a G+LL reserved and the return window extends beyond 2 hours after park open.

Someone please tell me I got that right!


----------



## mggeary

If you have set up an afternoon park hop triple stack for between 2-4pm, but then want to arrive later, can you cancel each and rebook to later times (assuming available) without losing any of the stack? (I guess I’m asking if the process of canceling a G+ resets the 120 min cool down).


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

mggeary said:


> If you have set up an afternoon park hop triple stack for between 2-4pm, but then want to arrive later, can you cancel each and rebook to later times (assuming available) without losing any of the stack? (I guess I’m asking if the process of canceling a G+ resets the 120 min cool down).


So long as you book a new one before cancelling the next one.  Basically if you cancel a G+ when you already could have made a G+ selection then you’ll lose that stack.


----------



## aeasterling

mggeary said:


> If you have set up an afternoon park hop triple stack for between 2-4pm, but then want to arrive later, can you cancel each and rebook to later times (assuming available) without losing any of the stack? (I guess I’m asking if the process of canceling a G+ resets the 120 min cool down).


I tried that this week.  If you cancel a reservation, you will lose that "stack".  So let's say you reserve A1 at 7 and B1 at 10.   You could reserve A2 as soon as you use one and B2 after you use the other.  But if you were to cancel B1 before you use either, you then can't schedule another until you use A1.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

mggeary said:


> If you have set up an afternoon park hop triple stack for between 2-4pm, but then want to arrive later, can you cancel each and rebook to later times (assuming available) without losing any of the stack? (I guess I’m asking if the process of canceling a G+ resets the 120 min cool down).


As long as you are using all your available reservations then when you cancel one you can rebook it. Just don’t cancel two at the same time, book the first then cancel the second.


----------



## DisneyKidds

PepperjackDragon said:


> As long as you are using all your available reservations then when you cancel one you can rebook it. Just don’t cancel two at the same time, book the first then cancel the second.


I don’t know.  Sounds to me like cancelling and rebooking times under a Triple Hop Stack might be Master’s Level Stacking.  Somehow I think I’ll be happy just to achieve a basic Triple Hop Stack.  Not sure I wanna go for the advanced degree on that….


----------



## aeasterling

PepperjackDragon said:


> As long as you are using all your available reservations then when you cancel one you can rebook it. Just don’t cancel two at the same time, book the first then cancel the second.


Have you tried this?  I did it yesterday in EPCOT and once I cancelled one and still had one active, it wouldn't let me get another one.


----------



## dmunsil

aeasterling said:


> Have you tried this?  I did it yesterday in EPCOT and once I cancelled one and still had one active, it wouldn't let me get another one.


I did test this earlier this week, and for me, canceling a reservation always got me another. But perhaps there’s something subtly different about the way I was doing it, or perhaps they tweaked the rules between when I tried and you tried.


----------



## mggeary

PepperjackDragon said:


> As long as you are using all your available reservations then when you cancel one you can rebook it. Just don’t cancel two at the same time, book the first then cancel the second.



Hmm….so in this example:

Book A1 at park 1 (9am open) for 11-12. At 11:00 book B1 for 2-3 at park 2. Tap into A1 at 11:05 and book A2 for 2:30-3:30 at park 2. At 1:05, book C1 for 3-4 at park 2.

Back to resort/pool; Realize not making it to park 2 till 5pm.  Currently have at park 2:
B1 2-3
A2 2:30-3:30
C1 3-4

1). If at 2pm I try from pool to cancel B1 and rebook it for a later time, can I? (my cool down period otherwise doesn’t end till 3:05).  If yes, can I then cancel and rebook A2 for a later time? And again for C1?

2) If I waiit till 3:05, I can then book D1.  If I try to cancel and rebook B1 for a later time after this, will I be able to?


----------



## PepperjackDragon

mggeary said:


> Hmm….so in this example:
> 
> Book A1 at park 1 (9am open) for 11-12. At 11:00 book B1 for 2-3 at park 2. Tap into A1 at 11:05 and book A2 for 2:30-3:30 at park 2. At 1:05, book C1 for 3-4 at park 2.
> 
> Back to resort/pool; Realize not making it to park 2 till 5pm.  Currently have at park 2:
> B1 2-3
> A2 2:30-3:30
> C1 3-4
> 
> 1). If at 2pm I try from pool to cancel B1 and rebook it for a later time, can I? (my cool down period otherwise doesn’t end till 3:05).  If yes, can I then cancel and rebook A2 for a later time? And again for C1?
> 
> 2) If I waiit till 3:05, I can then book D1.  If I try to cancel and rebook B1 for a later time after this, will I be able to?



you can (as of last week). It’s really fairly simple.
1: if you are currently eligible to book a LL then that is that. You won’t get any “extras” no matter how long you wait.

2: you are only eligible to book one LL at any give moment. So if you already have the ability to book a LL and then cancel one of your LL, you won’t have the ability to book two- you will only be able to book one. You can hold multiple reservations,  but you are only eligible to book one at a time.

3.  the two hour window starts when you book a ride, not before. So if you log in and change a reservation time you also restart the two hour window.

4: if you are ineligible to book a LL and then cancel you can book one.

5: if you are ineligible to book for two hours then you can book one.
.

It’s really all pretty easy in practice. The only tricky part is to plan the timing of your first and second reservations based on if you want to stack two or three LL at once. Only doing one at a time all day would be a waste imo, unless you were only going to be at the parks in the AM-in which case it all depends on how busy it is and if any genie slots will be available for you to pick up. Generally speaking it is obviously less efficient to use one at a time throughout the AM. That might not be true during major holidays, but only if it is so busy that the entire LL system breaks down


----------



## ckelly14

Let's say I forgo stacking in the PM.  I book a 10AM LL for pirates at 7 AM.  Will I be able to book another LL at 9 no matter when they are available or do the 2 LL need to be spread apart and not overlap?


----------



## Orsino

ckelly14 said:


> Let's say I forgo stacking in the PM.  I book a 10AM LL for pirates at 7 AM.  Will I be able to book another LL at 9 no matter when they are available or do the 2 LL need to be spread apart and not overlap?


For this example you will not be able to book at 9am because you are not yet eligible for another LL.


----------



## DisneyKidds

ckelly14 said:


> Let's say I forgo stacking in the PM.  I book a 10AM LL for pirates at 7 AM.  Will I be able to book another LL at 9 no matter when they are available or do the 2 LL need to be spread apart and not overlap?


You wouldn’t be eligible to book the next LL reservation until 1) you tap into your 10am LL (no cooling off), or 2) 11am (two hours after park open cooling off), assuming you have not tapped into your 10am, thereby creating a stack.  If you do this and create a stack it does not matter when the second LL return is….it could be before, during, or after the window for the first.


----------



## wisblue

ckelly14 said:


> Let's say I forgo stacking in the PM.  I book a 10AM LL for pirates at 7 AM.  Will I be able to book another LL at 9 no matter when they are available or do the 2 LL need to be spread apart and not overlap?



You would not be able to book another LL until you use or cancel the one for POC. The two hours period does not begin to run until the park opens at 9. If you let the one for POC expire without using it you could book another at 11.


----------



## DisneyKidds

wisblue said:


> You would not be able to book another LL until you use or cancel the one for POC. The two hours period does not begin to run until the park opens at 9. If you let the one for POC expire without using it you could book another at 11.


A 10am LL return has at least a 14 minute grace period, right?  Does this mean if unused it won’t cancel until 11:15…..or will it cancel but they’ll just let you on if you show up within the grace period?  When you show up to a LL during a grace period does Mickey still turn green?  Either way, if you don’t use or cancel the first LL (with immediate booking availability after you do) you would next be eligible at 11am.  The key concept here is are you able to utilize the LL grace period in your stacking strategy timing?


----------



## PepperjackDragon

i don’t think it will work because


DisneyKidds said:


> A 10am LL return has at least a 14 minute grace period, right?  Does this mean if unused it won’t cancel until 11:15…..or will it cancel but they’ll just let you on if you show up within the grace period?  When you show up to a LL during a grace period does Mickey still turn green?


I doubt it will work because in the app it will say you are ineligible to book until 11am. So at 11am you will become eligible. The question is, can you book your second and then still use pirates in that 15 minutes AND it still considers that a regular use, immediately allowing you to rebook? No way to know until someone tries to do it I guess. Better to delay a second on pirates and book a 10:10am or something.


----------



## DisneyKidds

PepperjackDragon said:


> Better to delay a second on pirates and book a 10:10am or something.


Most definitely, if your intention is to do a morning double stack.  If the grace period counts as part of the official LL return window (i.e. if Mickey turns green when you tap at 11:09 for your 10:00 PoC LL) it just gives a little more wiggle room in stack timing.


----------



## leeniewdw

SmittS said:


> Hmmm.  This is the first I’ve heard of this. Everything I’ve read is you can booked your next LL after tapping into a LL, or two hours after you made your last LL reservation, whichever is sooner.  I haven’t seen anything about tap in time plus two hours.



Sorry, I misread your post I think.  I also knew that on Monday I thought I understood everything and if I didn't do a daily mental exercise I'd start to lose parts of that understanding!  I've realized that if I don't literally write it out in a spreadsheet I have, I can't really visualize the progression of times/LLs.   Sorry if I added confusion!


----------



## wisblue

DisneyKidds said:


> A 10am LL return has at least a 14 minute grace period, right?  Does this mean if unused it won’t cancel until 11:15…..or will it cancel but they’ll just let you on if you show up within the grace period?  When you show up to a LL during a grace period does Mickey still turn green?  Either way, if you don’t use or cancel the first LL (with immediate booking availability after you do) you would next be eligible at 11am.  The key concept here is are you able to utilize the LL grace period in your stacking strategy timing?



I don’t know this for sure, but I think the system just triggers off of the official end time, not including the grace period.

I think if you don’t cancel the 10AM LL you could book a new one at 11 (2 hours after the 9 AM opening, which is treated as the booking time of the first LL).

This  example might be less confusing if it started with a LL reservation that wasn’t at exactly 10-11 because it jumbles the question of whether the 11 AM booking is allowed because of the 2 hour rule, or the expiration of the first LL.

I would expect that you could still use the 10AM one before 11:15, but maybe someone who has actually tried this can weigh in.

If I were trying to stack I wouldn’t want to cut it that close.

My tentative plan for MK is to get a LL for Jungle Cruise for about 11:10 because the return time for JC (and the length of the standby line) goes out faster than the other attractions we would try to do in the morning, Then we could book something at 11 before we go on JC, then another after riding JC, and our stack would be in place. We would just ride standby from EE until 11 because standby lines for BTMRR, Splash, POC, and HM are usually manageable during those first two hours., We would do either 7DMT or Space and Buzz during the EE period.


----------



## DisneyKidds

wisblue said:


> I don’t know this for sure, but I think the system just triggers off of the official end time, not including the grace period.
> 
> If I were trying to stack I wouldn’t want to cut it that close.


Agreed.  IF we use G+ it will be primarily for hop stacking and I’ll do my best to avoid having to worry about nuances such as how grace periods affect booking eligibility…..but it would be interesting to know.  I think some bloggers need to go back again to test some such nuances!


----------



## DisneyKidds

wisblue said:


> My tentative plan for MK is to get a LL for Jungle Cruise for about 11:10 because the return time for JC (and the length of the standby line) goes out faster than the other attractions we would try to do in the morning, Then we could book something at 11 before we go on JC, then another after riding JC, and our stack would be in place. We would just ride standby from EE until 11 because standby lines for BTMRR, Splash, POC, and HM are usually manageable during those first two hours., We would do either 7DMT or Space and Buzz during the EE period.


Solid plan.  I’m thinking I may primarily try triple stacks (w/hopping) so before park open book the first with a return extending past 1:00, then another at 11am, then another at 1pm (before we use the first).  We’ll see…..


----------



## PepperjackDragon

DisneyKidds said:


> Solid plan.  I’m thinking I may primarily try triple stacks (w/hopping) so before park open book the first with a return extending past 1:00, then another at 11am, then another at 1pm (before we use the first).  We’ll see…..



Alternatively, if you are going to be in a park in the am, you could use a single LL until 10am, then book a 12 noon in park one. At 12 do your second LL for park two before tapping in then a second park two immediately after tapping in.

  That would allow you to have LL at your original park from open-10am and another at 12 (if you can find one for that time slot) and still be able to triple stack starting at 2pm. Your this one will be pushed back a bit but realistically it takes time to get in the park and ride your first two LL so it would likely still work out well.

Only reason I can think of that you wouldn’t want to do that is to pick up a hard to get LL in park 2 that would be sold out or have much later time after 2pm.


----------



## Ldisneygraham

Will genie + let you book 2 lightning lanes at a time if you split your party to do two different attractions? Say my husband and son want to ride rockin roller coaster and my girls and I want to ride toy story mania at similar lightning lane times…will it allow that? Or would one party have to scan in before booking what the rest want?


----------



## ComeToSocialize

Does anyone else think the stacking is a loophole that Disney unintentionally created? I feel like someone coded it where after you tap into a ride, you are always eligible to make a new G+ selection, without considering fact that someone might have just booked a G+ using the 2 hour rule. You shouldn't be able to make 2 bookings so close to one another. My guess is someone just screwed up and this will get changed at some point. Maxpass didn't work this way (though had 90 minute rule, which would've made this even more powerful).


----------



## elgerber

Ldisneygraham said:


> Will genie + let you book 2 lightning lanes at a time if you split your party to do two different attractions? Say my husband and son want to ride rockin roller coaster and my girls and I want to ride toy story mania at similar lightning lane times…will it allow that? Or would one party have to scan in before booking what the rest want?


I don't see why not, you select your party when you book, so just select the people for each ride.


----------



## DisneyKidds

Ldisneygraham said:


> Will genie + let you book 2 lightning lanes at a time if you split your party to do two different attractions? Say my husband and son want to ride rockin roller coaster and my girls and I want to ride toy story mania at similar lightning lane times…will it allow that?


Yes


----------



## Turksmom

Ldisneygraham said:


> Will genie + let you book 2 lightning lanes at a time if you split your party to do two different attractions? Say my husband and son want to ride rockin roller coaster and my girls and I want to ride toy story mania at similar lightning lane times…will it allow that? Or would one party have to scan in before booking what the rest want?


You select your party for each ride, just like with FP+, so you can book separately.


----------



## leeniewdw

ComeToSocialize said:


> Does anyone else think the stacking is a loophole that Disney unintentionally created? I feel like someone coded it where after you tap into a ride, you are always eligible to make a new G+ selection, without considering fact that someone might have just booked a G+ using the 2 hour rule. You shouldn't be able to make 2 bookings so close to one another. My guess is someone just screwed up and this will get changed at some point. Maxpass didn't work this way (though had 90 minute rule, which would've made this even more powerful).



It seems extremely unlikely that Disney IT did not go thru all of the Use Case scenarios.   They may decide this does not support their capacity and ride throughput, but I can't believe they didn't realize.

If someone opts not to park hop and stack, they might be able to churn thru a ton of LL  back to back to back, something the "stacker" is not doing.   To me (which is worth $0), this allows both styles of touring to be used.   In my hypothetical park hopping day, I go thru several periods of not having/using LLs.  First 2 hours of park opening plus a 2 hour mid day break.  I suspect someone grabbing/riding LLs for those 4+ hours could surely ride the same # of rides I've stacked.


----------



## snikki

ComeToSocialize said:


> Does anyone else think the stacking is a loophole that Disney unintentionally created? I feel like someone coded it where after you tap into a ride, you are always eligible to make a new G+ selection, without considering fact that someone might have just booked a G+ using the 2 hour rule. You shouldn't be able to make 2 bookings so close to one another. My guess is someone just screwed up and this will get changed at some point. Maxpass didn't work this way (though had 90 minute rule, which would've made this even more powerful).



IMO I don't think so. They need something to entice people to buy park hopper tickets. Also those people that are stacking in the PM are freeing up morning LL which is how most people will go about their day with G+. I think most guests will book AM LL and book one after another throughout the day and not stack. If it doesn't work for Disney they will change it up.


----------



## maichan

Tiggr88 said:


> It may need another 'or'. Or if your time runs out for an existing selection. In theory you can make a G+ for 9-10AM and even if you don't tp in, you will be able to make another at 10. If you do, you will not be able to make another at 11, just as if you had tapped in and had to wait. Not sure why anyone would do that, you should probably cancel the first for reasons explained above, but technically you will be able to select another efter your window has expired if you don't tap in.


So I had this happen to me this week. I managed to snag a 9am LL for Slinky Dog, but it wouldn't let me book another until 10am. I had tapped in just after 9 but the system still wouldn't let me book my next LL until 10am. It might be that they were not using the second tap-in that morning. I actually tried to use it anyway (given reports that the second tap was needed) but we were rushed through the queue before it could turn green. Luckily, it was a low crowd day at HS, and I still managed to construct the stack I wanted at 10am and noon without any problems.


----------



## ComeToSocialize

leeniewdw said:


> It seems extremely unlikely that Disney IT did not go thru all of the Use Case scenarios.   They may decide this does not support their capacity and ride throughput, but I can't believe they didn't realize.
> 
> If someone opts not to park hop and stack, they might be able to churn thru a ton of LL  back to back to back, something the "stacker" is not doing.   To me (which is worth $0), this allows both styles of touring to be used.   In my hypothetical park hopping day, I go thru several periods of not having/using LLs.  First 2 hours of park opening plus a 2 hour mid day break.  I suspect someone grabbing/riding LLs for those 4+ hours could surely ride the same # of rides I've stacked.


Your faith in Disney IT is greater than mine .

I live in CA so really only go to DLR, so am basing this off my experience there with Maxpass. I agree, there is a trade off in that you have to wait 2 hours before using any LLs, but since standby lines are usually shortest at park opening, I don't think that's a significant downside. You're right though that for some people who are planning to use G+ for non-headliners with early return times I could see them being neutral or better off. 

The reason I don't think it's intentional is its incredibly non-intuitive, and if you don't read forums/blogs like this, you'll never figure it out. For example, say you book your first LL for 1030-1130am on a day with 9am park opening. It's 10:58am and you're outside the ride. If you tap in, you've missed an opportunity to stack, which I believe literally means for the rest of the day you'll be able to get half as many G+ reservations as if you'd waited until 11am, booked a g+, then tapped in and booked another G+. There is zero literature explaining that you're better off waiting, and it goes against a core principal of Fastpass (you can't book 2 at a time). 

There have always been advantages to those who have experience with Fastpass (refresh system, booking your 3 FP+ early in the day so you can get to the 4th FP earlier), but the above is an example of what should be a very simple choice (tap first then book, or book, tap, book) that if you pick wrong makes a huge difference for your day, and there's no way for a random guest to know that the book, tap, book, strategy is much better. That can't be something that Disney intentionally decided is a good idea, though they very well may not ever decide to fix it.


----------



## ckelly14

Orsino said:


> For this example you will not be able to book at 9am because you are not yet eligible for another LL.





DisneyKidds said:


> You wouldn’t be eligible to book the next LL reservation until 1) you tap into your 10am LL (no cooling off), or 2) 11am (two hours after park open cooling off), assuming you have not tapped into your 10am, thereby creating a stack.  If you do this and create a stack it does not matter when the second LL return is….it could be before, during, or after the window for the first.





wisblue said:


> You would not be able to book another LL until you use or cancel the one for POC. The two hours period does not begin to run until the park opens at 9. If you let the one for POC expire without using it you could book another at 11.



I get it now.  Thanks for all the comments.  Forgot about the 2 hour after opening bit.  So safe to say that if you use Genie+ in the AM it will be a one at a time LL only.


----------



## Cotta

ComeToSocialize said:


> Your faith in Disney IT is greater than mine .
> 
> I live in CA so really only go to DLR, so am basing this off my experience there with Maxpass. I agree, there is a trade off in that you have to wait 2 hours before using any LLs, but since standby lines are usually shortest at park opening, I don't think that's a significant downside. You're right though that for some people who are planning to use G+ for non-headliners with early return times I could see them being neutral or better off.
> 
> The reason I don't think it's intentional is its incredibly non-intuitive, and if you don't read forums/blogs like this, you'll never figure it out. For example, say you book your first LL for 1030-1130am on a day with 9am park opening. It's 10:58am and you're outside the ride. If you tap in, you've missed an opportunity to stack, which I believe literally means for the rest of the day you'll be able to get half as many G+ reservations as if you'd waited until 11am, booked a g+, then tapped in and booked another G+. There is zero literature explaining that you're better off waiting, and it goes against a core principal of Fastpass (you can't book 2 at a time).
> 
> There have always been advantages to those who have experience with Fastpass (refresh system, booking your 3 FP+ early in the day so you can get to the 4th FP earlier), but the above is an example of what should be a very simple choice (tap first then book, or book, tap, book) that if you pick wrong makes a huge difference for your day, and there's no way for a random guest to know that the book, tap, book, strategy is much better. That can't be something that Disney intentionally decided is a good idea, though they very well may not ever decide to fix it.



Disney definitely literally set this up this way. Being able to book at 11 am is simply a use of the two hour rule that disney set... not a stack or strategy or anything else made up on the forums. Now is it an advantage to book around 11 am and have two LL the rest of the day? sure.


----------



## Miffy

Please tell me if I understand this correctly.

I decide I'm going to hang out at AKL and watch animals all morning.

7 am: book G+ for PPF at 1 pm.
7 am: book ILL$ for MMRR at 5 pm.
11 am (assuming MK opens at 9): book HM for 1:30 pm.

At this point, do I have to wait until either 1 pm or I've tapped into PPF in order to make another selection at either MK or DHS?

Every time I think I've got a handle on this I read another post and realize I have no idea what to do!

And am I being overly optimistic that these times would even be available?

My plan is to try to use G+ and ILL$ as a way to avoid RDing every day. After my trip in May, I'm RD'd out.


----------



## kiddo76

On Monday, stacking worked effectively at MK.

AT 7:00AM I booked PP with a return time of 10:10. We road several rides standby with little wait upon arrival. At 11:00AM I booked a second LL (I forget which one or time). At 11:01 we scanned into PP and I booked a 3rd LL. For the rest of the day, we had 2 LLs booked at a time and used it for BTMR, Splash, HM, JC and Buzz.


----------



## JETSDAD

Miffy said:


> Please tell me if I understand this correctly.
> 
> I decide I'm going to hang out at AKL and watch animals all morning.
> 
> 7 am: book G+ for PPF at 1 pm.
> 7 am: book ILL$ for MMRR at 5 pm.
> 11 am (assuming MK opens at 9): book HM for 1:30 pm.
> 
> At this point, do I have to wait until either 1 pm or I've tapped into PPF in order to make another selection at either MK or DHS?
> 
> Every time I think I've got a handle on this I read another post and realize I have no idea what to do!
> 
> And am I being overly optimistic that these times would even be available?
> 
> My plan is to try to use G+ and ILL$ as a way to avoid RDing every day. After my trip in May, I'm RD'd out.


You won't be able to get LL times at your 2nd park with return times before 2:00 when hopping starts.


----------



## Sjm9911

kiddo76 said:


> On Monday, stacking worked effectively at MK.
> 
> AT 7:00AM I booked PP with a return time of 10:10. We road several rides standby with little wait upon arrival. At 11:00AM I booked a second LL (I forget which one or time). At 11:01 we scanned into PP and I booked a 3rd LL. For the rest of the day, we had 2 LLs booked at a time and used it for BTMR, Splash, HM, JC and Buzz.


Perfect, thats exactly what I want to do also. No, what i will do in a few days time. I figure if your there at opening, you dont need the LL early. And if you wanted to you can redue your favorites later.


----------



## Snow L

Has anyone tried stacking along with using rider switch?  I'm curious if having the rider switch pass wil throw something off.


----------



## William B

kiddo76 said:


> On Monday, stacking worked effectively at MK.
> 
> AT 7:00AM I booked PP with a return time of 10:10. We road several rides standby with little wait upon arrival. At 11:00AM I booked a second LL (I forget which one or time). At 11:01 we scanned into PP and I booked a 3rd LL. For the rest of the day, we had 2 LLs booked at a time and used it for BTMR, Splash, HM, JC and Buzz.


Is there a specific amount of time you have to tag in on the LL?  I noticed you had 10:10 but it was over 50 minutes later that you tagged in.  I thought it was a more limited time frame?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

ComeToSocialize said:


> Does anyone else think the stacking is a loophole that Disney unintentionally created? I feel like someone coded it where after you tap into a ride, you are always eligible to make a new G+ selection, without considering fact that someone might have just booked a G+ using the 2 hour rule. You shouldn't be able to make 2 bookings so close to one another. My guess is someone just screwed up and this will get changed at some point. Maxpass didn't work this way (though had 90 minute rule, which would've made this even more powerful).


You couldn't stack with maxpass?


----------



## elgerber

William B said:


> Is there a specific amount of time you have to tag in on the LL?  I noticed you had 10:10 but it was over 50 minutes later that you tagged in.  I thought it was a more limited time frame?


one hour


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## AnnaKristoff2013

leeniewdw said:


> It seems extremely unlikely that Disney IT


Yeah, I'm going to stop you right there...


----------



## nurseberta

DisneyKidds said:


> That makes sense.  At 11am you’d have to pick a LL return window beyond 1:00.  Then at 1:00 you could stack a second.   So long as effective LL returns are available that would work.  What will ultimately save more time in line is the question…..having a 3rd stack afternoon/evening in Park 2 when lines might be longer, or using G+ for a couple hours at open of Park 1 when lines might be shorter?



I am confused. Why would you have to choose a return time after 1? My understanding is that the return times are random, so they could be closer than that


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## Miffy

JETSDAD said:


> You won't be able to get LL times at your 2nd park with return times before 2:00 when hopping starts.


Thanks so much. Just so I understand this, will I be able to purchase ILL$ at park #2 at 7 am if it's for a time after 2 pm?


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## DisneyKidds

nurseberta said:


> I am confused. Why would you have to choose a return time after 1? My understanding is that the return times are random, so they could be closer than that


Pick/choose a return after 1 is bad terminology on my part.  What I should have said is refresh until you find a ride you want that offers a return time after 1.  You are correct, you can’t pick a return time of your choosing.  That doesn’t mean you can’t finagle your stacks, if you can get suitable LL times to offer up.


----------



## elgerber

Miffy said:


> Thanks so much. Just so I understand this, will I be able to purchase ILL$ at park #2 at 7 am if it's for a time after 2 pm?


Yes this is correct.


----------



## wendydelite

Hi all- question for daily purchase of Genie+ on select days during a trip in a couple days.
I have 3 groups going together that have 5 different MyDisneyExperience accounts. 
Can I purchase Genie+ for all of them if we are linked together in MDE?  OR does each account holder have to do it?  

Same question for reserving lightning lanes.  Sister's room has 2 minors that her account controls plans of, so I am confused on what I am able to do.

Thanks!!


----------



## dez1978

I'm trying to catch up on this thread, but wanted to ask a question.  I have a 2 day park hopper trip planned plus 1 day where we just have the xmas party thing.  Its just 2 adults.  The plan is Ak/HS on one day and MK/Epcot on the other.  Or should I switch and do AK and Epcot on the same day?  Thoughts on the best strategy utilizing both single rider line and G+?  Since it's just the 2 of us I don't mind paying for the fancy rides if I need to I just have no idea what order I should attack lol.  We are staying at the Hilton in DS so we do have early entry but can't book anything until parks open.


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## Tiggr88

wendydelite said:


> Hi all- question for daily purchase of Genie+ on select days during a trip in a couple days.
> I have 3 groups going together that have 5 different MyDisneyExperience accounts.
> Can I purchase Genie+ for all of them if we are linked together in MDE?  OR does each account holder have to do it?
> 
> Same question for reserving lightning lanes.  Sister's room has 2 minors that her account controls plans of, so I am confused on what I am able to do.
> 
> Thanks!!


I'm not sure about purchasing, but for reserving you should be able to reserve a G+ reservation time for anyone you are linked to. So if you can make a dining reservation and include them, you should be able to reserve a G+ LL selection.

Same for ILL$ with the caveat that you (or they) can only make reservations at 7AM for people that are on a resort reservation, so make sure each person is on a resort reservation as well. If you are making an ILL$ after park open, it doesn't matter if they are on a resort reservation. 

Keep in mind that the friends and family linking process seems to be one of the more unreliable of the Disney IT processes, but I believe that is how it should work. 

Also remember that you can purchase anytime after midnight for a day. So you should be able to coordinate purchase before you need to make selections
 if necessary.


----------



## dez1978

PepperjackDragon said:


> Yes this is exactly how it worked. It was ridiculous and fantastic. We never had to jump from area to area (except once to get to Pooh but that was partly intentional since we then worked our way back for BOG).
> I doubt it will stay in this current format for long, but as of right now it is a gold mine of ride access.
> 
> edit: I took a few screenshots early on just to help myself plan. You can see where after I did splash we booked Pirates, then later I had already booked Pooh and pan and was working on deciding my third LL when I took the screenshot. Small world was going up very slowly so I ended up waiting on it at that time.


I am still so confused by this.  I don't know why, but dang


----------



## t-roy

Here now trying Genie+. We don’t hop and felt we really didn’t need it until later in the day. We’re staying onsite so were able to get into HS early. When I say early, we walked onto Rise at 7:50, 40 minutes before our actual early entry. We rode Rise and Smugglers before 8:30. Next, did standby for MickeyMinnie then TSM. My son rode StarTours while I took a break at Baseline and made our first LL for ToT. He did single rider for RnR Then we headed to ToT. Made a 7:55pm LL for SDD then headed off to Savi workshop and H&V for lunch. We are taking a break right now back in the room. Since we made the last LL at 1:00, we were able to book a Smugglers LL for 7:10pm. Forgot to mention we bought a Rise LL and it went down during our return time so we are able to use it tonight when we return. The park closes at 9 and we have Oga’s at 9:30. So, it’s going to be a busy night


----------



## Tiggr88

t-roy said:


> Here now trying Genie+. We don’t hop and felt we really didn’t need it until later in the day. We’re staying onsite so were able to get into HS early. When I say early, we walked onto Rise at 7:50, 40 minutes before our actual early entry. We rode Rise and Smugglers before 8:30. Next, did standby for MickeyMinnie then TSM. My son rode StarTours while I took a break at Baseline and made our first LL for ToT. He did single rider for RnR Then we headed to ToT. Made a 7:55pm LL for SDD then headed off to Savi workshop and H&V for lunch. We are taking a break right now back in the room. Since we made the last LL at 1:00, we were able to book a Smugglers LL for 7:10pm. Forgot to mention we bought a Rise LL and it went down during our return time so we are able to use it tonight when we return. The park closes at 9 and we have Oga’s at 9:30. So, it’s going to be a busy night


That's great that you got onto Rise and MFSR before 8:30. I'm pretty sure they were holding people until 8:30 recently to even get into that section of the park (or any sections of the park). My daughter had to wait at a RD until 8:30 to get to the Sunset Blvd rides just last week.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Has anyone figured out if there are additional “drops” throughout the day for particular rides the way there used to be with FP+?


----------



## kiddo76

William B said:


> Is there a specific amount of time you have to tag in on the LL?  I noticed you had 10:10 but it was over 50 minutes later that you tagged in.  I thought it was a more limited time frame?


The app gives you a 1 hour slot return time. I did not try using any past that time.


----------



## Donna M

We were at the MK on Thursday. Here´s our experience with Genie+, we stayed at WL and got into the park at 8:45 with a 2 yo and 3 yo.  While at the resort I got a ll for JC at 10:45  We did Perter Pan with a 20 minute standby, Barnstormer 3 times walk on, Dumbo, the carousel, Small World, Tea Cups all about a 5 minute wait, no ll. Then we went over to JC for our first ll around 11:00.  A little after 11:00, I got a second ll for Pirates for about 15 minutes after our jc.  After we did those two we headed back to Fantasy Land and had overlapping ll for the rest of the afternoon.  We went back to the resort for dinner and showers and returned for more rides without any waits, getting ll for the fun of it, but not needing it.  

Genie+ was worth it to avoid the 55 min wait at JC; and not having to wait even on 20 minute lines was worth it for us since we had a 2yo boy who was not patient at all!   We ran into a lot of app usage issues: it bumped me out about 6 times so that I would have to log in, enter a code they emailed me, and then when it wouldn´t let me in I was locked out because I tried too many times!  Luckily, we were ready to head back to the resort for dinner.

A problem happened at 7:30 am when I reserved the first ll for JC, by the time I got back into the park and got reconnected to their wifi, I had to make a new JC reservation.

All in all it was good.  We are heading back on Tues and might not get Genie+ because we didn´t  ¨smell the flowers¨ because we were doing  so many rides.


----------



## kiddo76

William B said:


> Is there a specific amount of time you have to tag in on the LL?  I noticed you had 10:10 but it was over 50 minutes later that you tagged in.  I thought it was a more limited time frame?


The app gives you a 1 hour slot return time. I did not try using any past that time.


----------



## aeasterling

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> Has anyone figured out if there are additional “drops” throughout the day for particular rides the way there used to be with FP+?


We were running a little late today and tapped into our Soarin LL 5 minutes past the end time. Got in no problem.


----------



## aeasterling

Today was a successful day combining early Entry, Genie+ and hopping.  We are staying at the Swan and had HS res today, along with park hoppers.  

Right at 7, I got at LL for SDD at 11:15. Walked into HS at 8:20 and they were letting guests in the park.  Walked to GE and into MFSR at 8:30. Rode MFSR 2x and TSM all walk on by 9:40, then waited 30 min to ride RRC (our longest wait all day), then watched 10:30 Frozen show.  We had a 11am ADR for Sci Fi - during lunch I grabbed a 12:50 LL for TOT, so now I had two stacked.  Rode SDD (60 min standby) then TOT (50 min standby) then back to hotel. 

After riding SDD, I was able to grab a 5:40 LL for TT.  Back at hotel by 1:30, 3 hour break and then walked to EPCOT.  Grabbed a 6pm Soarin LL before tapping into TT to keep stack going.  Rode TT (40 min standby - LL took 20). Rode Soarin (20 min standby).  At this point everything else was 5 min waits, so no LL needed.  Now waiting for fireworks to start.  

All in all, I'd say Genie+ was worth it.  Except for TT, no LL took more than 5-10 minutes.  Granted, we rode MMRR and ROTR already this trip, so they weren't priorities.


----------



## katyringo

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> You couldn't stack with maxpass?


 Maxpass did work this way.  Folks who studied maxpass could easily stack them up this way. There was a shorter grace period but it still worked this way. The difference was you had to have entered the parks to use maxpass.  So you couldn't start stacking for a later arrival.


----------



## soniam

maichan said:


> So I had this happen to me this week. I managed to snag a 9am LL for Slinky Dog, but it wouldn't let me book another until 10am. I had tapped in just after 9 but the system still wouldn't let me book my next LL until 10am. It might be that they were not using the second tap-in that morning. I actually tried to use it anyway (given reports that the second tap was needed) but we were rushed through the queue before it could turn green. Luckily, it was a low crowd day at HS, and I still managed to construct the stack I wanted at 10am and noon without any problems.



I have experienced both FP+ & Maxpass not registering as used before the full 1 hour window, even if I had tapped into all points. So, it has been an occasional problem for a while. Did you try to cancel to see what that would do?


----------



## Leahc117

Can you guys help me plan genie+ for Mk am - HS pm park hop day?  I’m still a little confused at why stack for later when you could just be using genie+ in the morning.  However I assume I won’t have a chance at getting a later LL for SDD without stacking?  I would assume RD SDMT or PPF after making SDD at 7 am for later afternoon/evening.  Then at 11am use the “second” LL for whatever I can get at MK?  We will be up late the night before for the extra hours at EPCOT so how necessary is rope drop?  We usually always rope drop but with stacking LL later on is it still necessary?  Thanks for suggestions.


----------



## JETSDAD

Leahc117 said:


> Can you guys help me plan genie+ for Mk am - HS pm park hop day?  I’m still a little confused at why stack for later when you could just be using genie+ in the morning.  However I assume I won’t have a chance at getting a later LL for SDD without stacking?  I would assume RD SDMT or PPF after making SDD at 7 am for later afternoon/evening.  Then at 11am use the “second” LL for whatever I can get at MK?  We will be up late the night before for the extra hours at EPCOT so how necessary is rope drop?  We usually always rope drop but with stacking LL later on is it still necessary?  Thanks for suggestions.


If I were doing MK first then I personally wouldn't make LL's for my second park until I was done with MK.  If you do decide to stack for your second park then RD becomes more important because you're then hoping for shorter standby rides in the first park. Now if you wanted to have a slower morning and show up later at MK then making a LL for the evening should be fine and then start making MK LL's when you show up (once 11 hits).


----------



## Wood Nymph

Donna M said:


> We were at the MK on Thursday. Here´s our experience with Genie+, we stayed at WL and got into the park at 8:45 with a 2 yo and 3 yo.  While at the resort I got a ll for JC at 10:45  We did Perter Pan with a 20 minute standby, Barnstormer 3 times walk on, Dumbo, the carousel, Small World, Tea Cups all about a 5 minute wait, no ll. Then we went over to JC for our first ll around 11:00.  A little after 11:00, I got a second ll for Pirates for about 15 minutes after our jc.  After we did those two we headed back to Fantasy Land and had overlapping ll for the rest of the afternoon.  We went back to the resort for dinner and showers and returned for more rides without any waits, getting ll for the fun of it, but not needing it.
> 
> Genie+ was worth it to avoid the 55 min wait at JC; and not having to wait even on 20 minute lines was worth it for us since we had a 2yo boy who was not patient at all!
> 
> All in all it was good.  We are heading back on Tues and might not get Genie+ because we didn´t  ¨smell the flowers¨ because we were doing  so many rides.


Agree - 
We were at MK on both Tuesday and Thursday of this week and thought that the only ride you really needed Genie+ was for Jungle Cruise. Otherwise, we walked on lots of rides without buying Genie+


----------



## aeasterling

Leahc117 said:


> Can you guys help me plan genie+ for Mk am - HS pm park hop day?  I’m still a little confused at why stack for later when you could just be using genie+ in the morning.  However I assume I won’t have a chance at getting a later LL for SDD without stacking?  I would assume RD SDMT or PPF after making SDD at 7 am for later afternoon/evening.  Then at 11am use the “second” LL for whatever I can get at MK?  We will be up late the night before for the extra hours at EPCOT so how necessary is rope drop?  We usually always rope drop but with stacking LL later on is it still necessary?  Thanks for suggestions.


It depends on your priorities.  Is SDD a must do?  If so, i would get a LL for that at 7 - it will give you a time after 2 if its not your reservation - and rope drop MK. 

If you want a later start at MK, then I'd use the LL there.  I've found most of the rides you can get a LL right away.  Maybe get PPF at 7 since that one can fill up.  Then just watch SDD and grab it if it starts to get late in the evening.  Your only risk that way is that you might miss SDD (or have to stand in a long line for it).  Good luck!!


----------



## baozi

Wood Nymph said:


> Agree -
> We were at MK on both Tuesday and Thursday of this week and thought that the only ride you really needed Genie+ was for Jungle Cruise. Otherwise, we walked on lots of rides without buying Genie+



I tracked the waiting time on Thursday -- it was a very lightly crowded day. The entire afternoon FOP was like 5 minutes wait. Look at the same for today -- you might need it for many rides.


----------



## JMommyof3

Leahc117 said:


> Can you guys help me plan genie+ for Mk am - HS pm park hop day?  I’m still a little confused at why stack for later when you could just be using genie+ in the morning.  However I assume I won’t have a chance at getting a later LL for SDD without stacking?  I would assume RD SDMT or PPF after making SDD at 7 am for later afternoon/evening.  Then at 11am use the “second” LL for whatever I can get at MK?  We will be up late the night before for the extra hours at EPCOT so how necessary is rope drop?  We usually always rope drop but with stacking LL later on is it still necessary?  Thanks for suggestions.



W/O rope drop at MK I would
7am make PPF LL (probably 9-10 or 9:30-10:30)/buy 7DMT ILL$ for anytime before 2
Arrive MK tap into PPF (10am?) then make SDD LL.  By that point it might be later in the afternoon/evening, maybe 6-7pm, check around the thread to see what times SDD is pulling at various times.
10-12: Do any short waits/ILL$/get food
noon-get new LL for MK or if standby is looking good, start evening stacking for HS.  continue stacking as needed.

If you do decide to rope drop
7am PPF LL  (9-10)
RD 7DMT, then hit PPF(9:15).  You should be able to get an earlyish (4pm) SDD.  Then at 11:15 start stacking again.

If you don't want to pay for 7D, that should be your RD ride.  After that I'm I'm not sure what the wait times for PFF would be in standby but I think they've been pretty long which is why I would still LL that as your first if that is a priority.  The only difference b/w RD and not RD would be possibly buying ILL$ for 7D and getting an earlier pull time for SDD.


----------



## CBMom01

Sorry if this has already been covered, but is anyone concerned by the inability to plan on Genie+ times during very busy weeks? We will be there around Christmas and I don't feel like I can plan on Genie+ times being available for everything we want, let alone near the times we want.  Anyone have thoughts on that?


----------



## Bevo in VA

CBMom01 said:


> Sorry if this has already been covered, but is anyone concerned by the inability to plan on Genie+ times during very busy weeks? We will be there around Christmas and I don't feel like I can plan on Genie+ times being available for everything we want, let alone near the times we want.  Anyone have thoughts on that?



You might take a close look at how things go during T-Giving week.  Crowds should be similar.  You can go to thrill data afterwards and see what G+ times were available throughout the day which might help you out with your planning.


----------



## starryagain

My husband and daughter will be at Hollywood Studios tomorrow. I am connected to them through My Disney Experience (or whatever it is called now). Can I book paid Genie+ experiences for them as they are driving there? They will be driving from 6:30AM-8:00AM and would like to book them an experience at the 7:00AM timeslot.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

CBMom01 said:


> Sorry if this has already been covered, but is anyone concerned by the inability to plan on Genie+ times during very busy weeks? We will be there around Christmas and I don't feel like I can plan on Genie+ times being available for everything we want, let alone near the times we want.  Anyone have thoughts on that?


No one knows yet. Safe bet is that they will scale up LL availability so that both LL and SB will be longer.


----------



## TB'sWidow

Maybe this has been asked sorry haven’t read all pages but does each person have to purchase their own Ll pass for say ROtR? Or can one person purchase for all ? Thanks sorry if it’s been asked before


----------



## Leahc117

aeasterling said:


> It depends on your priorities.  Is SDD a must do?  If so, i would get a LL for that at 7 - it will give you a time after 2 if its not your reservation - and rope drop MK.
> 
> If you want a later start at MK, then I'd use the LL there.  I've found most of the rides you can get a LL right away.  Maybe get PPF at 7 since that one can fill up.  Then just watch SDD and grab it if it starts to get late in the evening.  Your only risk that way is that you might miss SDD (or have to stand in a long line for it).  Good luck!!


We are taking my in-laws on their first Disney trip in 30 years.  I would like SDD and that line always freaks me out - we’ve always had a FP or rope drop!


----------



## PepperjackDragon

Leahc117 said:


> Can you guys help me plan genie+ for Mk am - HS pm park hop day?  I’m still a little confused at why stack for later when you could just be using genie+ in the morning.  However I assume I won’t have a chance at getting a later LL for SDD without stacking?  I would assume RD SDMT or PPF after making SDD at 7 am for later afternoon/evening.  Then at 11am use the “second” LL for whatever I can get at MK?  We will be up late the night before for the extra hours at EPCOT so how necessary is rope drop?  We usually always rope drop but with stacking LL later on is it still necessary?  Thanks for suggestions.


My suggestion would be to book an animal kingdom prior to 8am. Then you could do pretty easy SB at MK from 8:30-10am. I believe at 10am you should be able to book your second a LL, cancel the animal kingdom and start double stacking The easier MK. I would do that until SDD got to a time as late as I was happy with doing it and then book SDD. At this point I would assume it’s fairly close to lunch and book something a couple hours out like JC or PPF, plan to do the carousels or other short waits, eat lunch, then pick up a double stack for the rest of MK and go into the HS evening with three.

To try to simplify:

A1: 7ish am (could sleep until 750): book any AK
B1: 10am MK LL
A2: 10:01 cancel AK and book MK LL2

keep and eye on JC, PPF and SDD if any of them reach your maximum desired time get it.

Keep stacking until you hit a good lunch break or HAVE to reserve those higher demand rides (or of course of a convenient time pops up), then do whatever until your third slot opens up.


However:

it might be unnecessary depending on the day

if it is REALLY busy you might have to switch the AK out  straight to SDD (if you really insisted on a SDD LL), foregoing the early double stack at MK, but you should be able to tell that by 9am so won’t lose anything by waiting and trying. (Edit: Even then it would probably work out better to just wait on SDD rather than tie up your LL until late evening, would make sense to me if you were able to get a 4-5 pm around 11:30 and get a second MK running after a natural break for lunch etc, but definitely not a 7pm at 7am-that would obviously be a waste. )

this is based on my understanding that the 2hr wait time starts from park opening of your first reservation, regardless of having reserved the park as your primary destination.


----------



## mickmom728

RollTideinMD said:


> We will be there in 13 days and plan on using Genie+, but not purchasing IA$ - we will rope drop those rides and try for a virtual queue for Remy.


We are here now and were able to ride Remy all 3 of our Epcot days just by doing the virtual queue. People who paid for LL were merged right in line with us and it looked like they waited the whole time we did once inside.


----------



## mdinme

always wise




Jrb1979 said:


> https://allears.net/2021/10/21/how-can-you-stack-multiple-disney-genie-reservations/
> Here's a good article on using Genie+. According to them, stacking LL is not recommended. To get the most out of it is take the next one available. IMO it's seems to best to rope drop the top Genie+ ride and use it for other rides the rest of the day.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

mdinme said:


> always wise


I agree with the article when it is used as described. In the use case they present you actually are only using it for two evening rides and running 0-1 all day. However, that would be a very inefficient use of stacked lightning lanes, one would obviously be better off just waiting for SDD (presumably a RD if you couldn’t secure an optimum LL time) and maximizing the stacks during the day, so I don’t think that is what most of us on here are suggesting.


----------



## twincruisers

starryagain said:


> My husband and daughter will be at Hollywood Studios tomorrow. I am connected to them through My Disney Experience (or whatever it is called now). Can I book paid Genie+ experiences for them as they are driving there? They will be driving from 6:30AM-8:00AM and would like to book them an experience at the 7:00AM timeslot.


Yeah if you are connected in MDE, G+ add-one for the whole party are available to you.


----------



## twincruisers

Leahc117 said:


> We are taking my in-laws on their first Disney trip in 30 years.  I would like SDD and that line always freaks me out - we’ve always had a FP or rope drop!


Yeah, SDD is either a first or second choice LL option so you don’t get sold out or you can rope drop or be there at park closing for shorter ride times.


----------



## DavidNYC

PepperjackDragon said:


> I agree with the article when it is used as described. In the use case they present you actually are only using it for two evening rides and running 0-1 all day. However, that would be a very inefficient use of stacked lightning lanes, one would obviously be better off just waiting for SDD (presumably a RD if you couldn’t secure an optimum LL time) and maximizing the stacks during the day, so I don’t think that is what most of us on here are suggesting.


Right - this article misses all of the nuance and other options.   Simply booking your first LL for 10:10, getting a new LL at 11 and using your first one at 11:01 give you two for the rest of the day having only waited a single 2-hour period.  My guess is for the majority of the year - simply doing that will be sufficient to get through most LL rides in a park if you're doing only one park that day.  Obviously if you're planning on hopping you can make the choice whether to use in the morning or stack more for later.


----------



## aeasterling

I know it's not for everyone, but we did all four parks yesterday using Genie+ - and paid for Rise and Space Mountain.  We had up to 3 LL stacked at a time and were able to ride 14 attractions with little to no wait using LL


----------



## anne60

Is there any app that is tracking genie plus return times? Considering buying genie plus for HS. We have a member that has DAS, but they do not want to ride RnR or ToT. 3 of the 5 in our DAS group would buy genie plus but if those two rides return times are late in the day by morning I don’t think it would be worth it for us. We have small kids in the group and plan to be leaving the park around 4 each day.


----------



## Timbud2

ComeToSocialize said:


> Does anyone else think the stacking is a loophole that Disney unintentionally created? I feel like someone coded it where after you tap into a ride, you are always eligible to make a new G+ selection, without considering fact that someone might have just booked a G+ using the 2 hour rule. You shouldn't be able to make 2 bookings so close to one another. My guess is someone just screwed up and this will get changed at some point. Maxpass didn't work this way (though had 90 minute rule, which would've made this even more powerful).


I don’t think it was unintentional.  People wouldn’t pay if  all  they could get was one ride every two hours.  Especially if they didn’t  plan to stay at a park all day.


----------



## wisblue

anne60 said:


> Is there any app that is tracking genie plus return times? Considering buying genie plus for HS. We have a member that has DAS, but they do not want to ride RnR or ToT. 3 of the 5 in our DAS group would buy genie plus but if those two rides return times are late in the day by morning I don’t think it would be worth it for us. We have small kids in the group and plan to be leaving the park around 4 each day.



I don’t know about any app, but I have been checking some days to try to get some ideas for what I want to do about Genie+ on a trip we have coming up in two weeks.

I’ve often been looking at around 11-11:30 AM ET to see what might be available for a second LL if I make a first one for around 11 to try to set up a stack to use at a second park later in the day.

On the days I’ve looked, the return times for both TOT and RNRC have been more in the 1-2 PM range at 11 AM. If that continues, you should be able to use Genie+ for those two attractions before leaving at 4.

 If you book one for earlier in the day and the second one right after you use the first one you should be be able to do them both before 2 PM.

Good luck. My advice is worth every penny you pay for it.


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## Turksmom

Just looking at my tip  board for HS at 10:22 , everything is +/- at least an hour away(except Star Tours). ToT next time 11:30, RNRC 12:20, MFSR 3:45


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## itf

anne60 said:


> Is there any app that is tracking genie plus return times? Considering buying genie plus for HS. We have a member that has DAS, but they do not want to ride RnR or ToT. 3 of the 5 in our DAS group would buy genie plus but if those two rides return times are late in the day by morning I don’t think it would be worth it for us. We have small kids in the group and plan to be leaving the park around 4 each day.



Thrill-data seems to be.


----------



## Disturbia

American cancelled our flight (will refund $200) we rebooked on Spirit ($758 one way), and hopefully we reach by ur dinner ADR, so no Genie+, no VQ.  I did see Remy Bg was available at 7:30 am.


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## leeniewdw

Rethinking our day and a half trip in Dec to take in the Merriest AH thing.  However, that has downstream implications as to what ILL$ we use since we'd be hopping with different parks on our hopper day.    There's no way I'm paying for a full day in a park PLUS the Merriest AH when we'd only get into the parks in early afternoon.   

I think I may wait until the first Merriest AH reports come in and if our date is still not sold out, make the decision then.   If it's sold out...decision made.   In the meantime, we've downgraded from CBR to POP since they had rooms come available.  So either we'll save a little money that we can put toward the Merriest AH, or we'll save even more money.

And to think I thought I had this all figured out.  I'm still good on the LL stuff, but now the ILL$ limit of 2 becomes more complicated.


----------



## leeniewdw

Disturbia said:


> American cancelled our flight (will refund $200) we rebooked on Spirit ($758 one way), and hopefully we reach by ur dinner ADR, so no Genie+, no VQ.  I did see Remy Bg was available at 7:30 am.



 $758 one way!  Did American refund your fare PLUS $200?   So you knew in time (or where smart enough) to NOT purchase G+ before the cancellation?

Late/cancelled flights are never fun, but for the start of your trip...terrible.   I'm a little concerned about our Dec trip, it's VERY short and every little bit counts.


----------



## MomEadon

Question about the individual lightning lanes:

is it like genie plus where you have to buy it for everyone in your party with tickets on your account or can you select individual people to buy them? I’m only wondering because not everyone in my party is tall enough for some of them


----------



## wisblue

MomEadon said:


> Question about the individual lightning lanes:
> 
> is it like genie plus where you have to buy it for everyone in your party with tickets on your account or can you select individual people to buy them? I’m only wondering because not everyone in my party is tall enough for some of them



You don’t have to buy the ILL for everyone in your party.

Unless I missed something, you don’t have to buy Genie+ for everyone in your party either.


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## Tiggr88

You don't need to add it for everyone in your party if you get it day by day. I'm not sure if you choose to add it length of stay when you get your tickets, then you may need to. But since there is not benefit to doing it in advance, most people will only purchase it day of.


----------



## nurseberta

mickmom728 said:


> We are here now and were able to ride Remy all 3 of our Epcot days just by doing the virtual queue. People who paid for LL were merged right in line with us and it looked like they waited the whole time we did once inside.



That’s great! What time of day did you ride and if you don’t mind sharing how long the approximate wait was?


----------



## Donna M

Tiggr88 said:


> You don't need to add it for everyone in your party if you get it day by day. I'm not sure if you choose to add it length of stay when you get your tickets, then you may need to. But since there is not benefit to doing it in advance, most people will only purchase it day of.


We bought it on Tuesday for MK before 7am.  We are going back on Thursday and will  wait to see how the day is going before we buy it.  The lines were so short on Tue it really wasn´t necessary, except for a couple rides that we will pass on this time.


----------



## Disturbia

leeniewdw said:


> $758 one way!  Did American refund your fare PLUS $200?   So you knew in time (or where smart enough) to NOT purchase G+ before the cancellation?
> 
> Late/cancelled flights are never fun, but for the start of your trip...terrible.   I'm a little concerned about our Dec trip, it's VERY short and every little bit counts.


We got 4 tickets on a special fare.  So they refunded the cost.  Spirit was overbooked so they upped their prices.  Fortunately they arrived 30 minutes early and we were able to purchase Remy and Frozen (paid $44  plus tax for 4 ppl; each ride) overlapping and go before our ADR.  I did see Remy VQ open until around 6 pm.  We didn’t get into the park until 7 pm.

AA knew weeks ahead they were understaffed and they should at least give a few days notice, they’re only liable for what you paid now and don’t even have to rebook you, they did try to put us on an alternate flight but very few seats were left (2 seats only, so they would split our party).  The wait was 4 hrs to speak to an agent.  We only got a notice a day before our flights.  At least we didn’t waste $60 on genie+, so be careful if you’re booked on AA and purchasing Genie+ on your travel day.


----------



## wisblue

Disturbia said:


> We got 4 tickets on a special fare.  So they refunded the cost.  Spirit was overbooked so they upped their prices.  Fortunately they arrived 30 minutes early and we were able to purchase Remy and Frozen (paid $44  plus tax for 4 ppl; each ride) overlapping and go before our ADR.  I did see Remy VQ open until around 6 pm.  We didn’t get into the park until 7 pm.
> 
> AA knew weeks ahead they were understaffed and they should at least give a few days notice, they’re only liable for what you paid now and don’t even have to rebook you, they did try to put us on an alternate flight but very few seats were left (2 seats only, so they would split our party).  The wait was 4 hrs to speak to an agent.  We only got a notice a day before our flights.  At least we didn’t waste $60 on genie+, so be careful if you’re booked on AA and purchasing Genie+ on your travel day.



This sounds identical to what happened with Southwest a few weeks ago.

Air travel could be dicier than usual this holiday and winter season when big crowds and bad weather hit.

I would be careful about making non refundable, non cancellable reservations in advance for travel days.


----------



## LindaOwl1

Question about booking LL with G+:  At 7AM does the Tip Board automatically populate with LL return times or do you have to refresh the page?  And if refresh is required which I suspect, what is the fastest way to do this to get the return times up to be able to book?  Any experiences with this?  Thanks


----------



## dez1978

mickmom728 said:


> We are here now and were able to ride Remy all 3 of our Epcot days just by doing the virtual queue. People who paid for LL were merged right in line with us and it looked like they waited the whole time we did once inside.


You can only do that tho if Epcot is your reserved park for the day correct?  Otherwise you have to purchase the $ll?  We are hopping to epcot


----------



## Turksmom

dez1978 said:


> You can only do that tho if Epcot is your reserved park for the day correct?  Otherwise you have to purchase the $ll?  We are hopping to epcot


If there are still VQ groups available after you hop, you can still join


----------



## RoseGold

dez1978 said:


> You can only do that tho if Epcot is your reserved park for the day correct?  Otherwise you have to purchase the $ll?  We are hopping to epcot



I tried to do the virtual queue at 1PM from HS, and it wouldn't let me.  After you go into Epcot, it should let you, if there are slots left. I just paid $7 and booked for late at night.


----------



## ComeToSocialize

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> You couldn't stack with maxpass?





katyringo said:


> Maxpass did work this way.  Folks who studied maxpass could easily stack them up this way. There was a shorter grace period but it still worked this way. The difference was you had to have entered the parks to use maxpass.  So you couldn't start stacking for a later arrival.



You could definitely stack with Maxpass using the 90 minute window. You could book one, wait 90 min, book another, wait 90 min, book another, etc etc. So you could have 3-4 passes using Maxpass for sure.

What you couldn't do is this new trick where you book something for 1-2 hours out, wait 120 minutes, book another, tap in to the ride and immediately book a 2nd. With Maxpass, you didn't immediately become eligible to book again anytime you tapped into a ride. You still had to finish your cooling off period (shorter of 90 min or start time of your window) before booking another, regardless of whether you tapped in. 

So you could stack but you couldn't do this multi-threaded stacking. You also didn't have this scenario where you were better off waiting for the 120/90 period to end before riding.


----------



## Newbie500

So it's around 1:15 PM today and I'm looking at the tip board now and I see Haunted Mansion standby Line 45 Minutes and LL 2:40pm.  What is the advantage to using LL in this situation when I can get on the ride faster in the standby line?


----------



## elgerber

Newbie500 said:


> So it's around 1:15 PM today and I'm looking at the tip board now and I see Haunted Mansion standby Line 45 Minutes and LL 2:40pm.  What is the advantage to using LL in this situation when I can get on the ride faster in the standby line?


the advantage is, you walk up and 2:40 and walk on in just a couple minutes, instead of standing in the line for 45 minutes.


----------



## JoJoGirl

Newbie500 said:


> So it's around 1:15 PM today and I'm looking at the tip board now and I see Haunted Mansion standby Line 45 Minutes and LL 2:40pm.  What is the advantage to using LL in this situation when I can get on the ride faster in the standby line?



You would be free to do something other than waiting in line in the meantime.


----------



## aquirko

Unsure if this has been asked, but I'm flying down on Sat Nov 6th. I bought Genie+ cause why not. Would I be allowed to make ride selections for later that day starting at 7am? Or do I have to physically be on property for that to work?


----------



## aeasterling

We got back yesterday and I will give my analysis of Genie +.  During our trip, I jotted down the posted standby time and our actual wait on all of our LL rides (I'm a dork).  I've already put this in a spreadsheet and done some cost/benefit analysis (like I said, I'm a dork).

We had 7 day tickets for 3 of us (me, husband, daughter) as well as 2 day tickets for my college aged son who flew down separately for the weekend.  We also had Park Hoppers.  Over those 7 days, we purchased 7 ILL$ ranging from a total of $29 (Space for 3) to $60 (FOP for 4).  We did run into a little snag our first day because I bought ROTR ILL for us at 7am but couldn't get one for my son because he wasn't on our hotel reservation.  We went to Guest Services as soon as we got to HS and they were nice enough to give us a recovery pass for him - so saved us $15 there.  Total we spent almost $300 on those 7 ILL$ - more than I had planned to... it's very easy to drop 30 bucks on Space Mountain when you don't feel like standing in line for 45 minutes.  We got FOP and ROTR twice each, plus Everest, Space and Remy.  I wouldn't recommend doing Everest since you can ride single rider... but my son wanted us all to ride together, so we spent the money.  In total, we saved ourselves about 4.5 hours for our group.

For Genie Plus, we spent $367 total and rode 33 rides.  We saved a total of 13.5 hrs for our group.  On our best day, we rode 8 rides and saved about 5 hours.  On our worst day, we rode 2 rides and saved only 15 minutes - that was our EPCOT day where the plan was to do F&W.  I had made a decision ahead of time that I'd rather waste money on that day then have to buy Genie + every morning for the other 6 days.  I still standby that, but admit I could have saved myself some money buying it on a day by day basis.  We averaged 5 rides with LL per day.

If I divide the time saved by what we spent, then I estimate the cost per hour saved as $37 for our group or $11 if you look at the time saved as multiplying by each person.  I'm not sure the $11 is valid since we would be together anyway, but that treats the time of each individual as having a value.  So essentially, I have to decide is paying $37/hour to NOT stand in line was worth it for me.  Since I hate standing in line, I think I would lean towards saying that it is.  I definitely feel like if you plan the Genie+ game well you can get more done than with the FP system.  I really like that I could hop with it, since we hopped every day except for the EPCOT F&W day.

Final note, be aware that buying your ILL$ ahead of time can be a crap-shoot in terms of how much time you'll save.  For rides where it runs out (ROTR and FOP) or if you are trying to get a certain time, you have no choice but to buy in the morning but you can't always know what the standby will look like.  Our example is probably an anomaly - but I bought FOP one day because we wanted to ride it before our Sanaa dinner so we needed a specific time.  It rained that day and the parks cleared out... when we rode FOP the standby was FIVE minutes!!  So glad I spent that $30, lol.

All in all - great trip.  I'm a project manager and planner by nature, so I had no problem with constantly getting LL and trying to stack (got up to 3 at a time one day) - I actually found it fun.  But I could see how it may be stressful for other folks.

Hope this helps someone!


----------



## coolbrook

aquirko said:


> Unsure if this has been asked, but I'm flying down on Sat Nov 6th. I bought Genie+ cause why not. Would I be allowed to make ride selections for later that day starting at 7am? Or do I have to physically be on property for that to work?


Yes, you can do it before you get there.


----------



## RoseGold

aquirko said:


> Unsure if this has been asked, but I'm flying down on Sat Nov 6th. I bought Genie+ cause why not. Would I be allowed to make ride selections for later that day starting at 7am? Or do I have to physically be on property for that to work?



Resort guests get to start earlier, but I was able to do it when I wan't even in the right park.  We were able to use it hopping, and it adjusted to after 2 for hopping hours.  The system relies on park reservations.  If you don't have a park reservation (or a hopper for after 2) it won't let you do anything in that park.

We changed parks, and we had to cancel the park reservation and make a new one to get the whole thing to work.


----------



## William B

aeasterling said:


> We got back yesterday and I will give my analysis of Genie +.  During our trip, I jotted down the posted standby time and our actual wait on all of our LL rides (I'm a dork).  I've already put this in a spreadsheet and done some cost/benefit analysis (like I said, I'm a dork).
> 
> We had 7 day tickets for 3 of us (me, husband, daughter) as well as 2 day tickets for my college aged son who flew down separately for the weekend.  We also had Park Hoppers.  Over those 7 days, we purchased 7 ILL$ ranging from a total of $29 (Space for 3) to $60 (FOP for 4).  We did run into a little snag our first day because I bought ROTR ILL for us at 7am but couldn't get one for my son because he wasn't on our hotel reservation.  We went to Guest Services as soon as we got to HS and they were nice enough to give us a recovery pass for him - so saved us $15 there.  Total we spent almost $300 on those 7 ILL$ - more than I had planned to... it's very easy to drop 30 bucks on Space Mountain when you don't feel like standing in line for 45 minutes.  We got FOP and ROTR twice each, plus Everest, Space and Remy.  I wouldn't recommend doing Everest since you can ride single rider... but my son wanted us all to ride together, so we spent the money.  In total, we saved ourselves about 4.5 hours for our group.
> 
> For Genie Plus, we spent $367 total and rode 33 rides.  We saved a total of 13.5 hrs for our group.  On our best day, we rode 8 rides and saved about 5 hours.  On our worst day, we rode 2 rides and saved only 15 minutes - that was our EPCOT day where the plan was to do F&W.  I had made a decision ahead of time that I'd rather waste money on that day then have to buy Genie + every morning for the other 6 days.  I still standby that, but admit I could have saved myself some money buying it on a day by day basis.  We averaged 5 rides with LL per day.
> 
> If I divide the time saved by what we spent, then I estimate the cost per hour saved as $37 for our group or $11 if you look at the time saved as multiplying by each person.  I'm not sure the $11 is valid since we would be together anyway, but that treats the time of each individual as having a value.  So essentially, I have to decide is paying $37/hour to NOT stand in line was worth it for me.  Since I hate standing in line, I think I would lean towards saying that it is.  I definitely feel like if you plan the Genie+ game well you can get more done than with the FP system.  I really like that I could hop with it, since we hopped every day except for the EPCOT F&W day.
> 
> Final note, be aware that buying your ILL$ ahead of time can be a crap-shoot in terms of how much time you'll save.  For rides where it runs out (ROTR and FOP) or if you are trying to get a certain time, you have no choice but to buy in the morning but you can't always know what the standby will look like.  Our example is probably an anomaly - but I bought FOP one day because we wanted to ride it before our Sanaa dinner so we needed a specific time.  It rained that day and the parks cleared out... when we rode FOP the standby was FIVE minutes!!  So glad I spent that $30, lol.
> 
> All in all - great trip.  I'm a project manager and planner by nature, so I had no problem with constantly getting LL and trying to stack (got up to 3 at a time one day) - I actually found it fun.  But I could see how it may be stressful for other folks.
> 
> Hope this helps someone!


GREAT breakdown!  Love the analysis!  Can you give the example of how you were able to stack and get up to 3 one day?  Thanks in advance!


----------



## aeasterling

William B said:


> GREAT breakdown!  Love the analysis!  Can you give the example of how you were able to stack and get up to 3 one day?  Thanks in advance!


Sure.  We had a day where we wanted to do all 4 parks - something we've always wanted to do.  We roped dropped AK and did everything standby or single rider - rode FOP, Everest 4 times and Safari.  We were back at the hotel (Swan) by 11am to take a nap.

At 7am, I got online and got a paid ROTR (2:25pm) and SDD (2:50pm).  I got SDD first and that was the time it gave me - it will automatically go to past 2pm if it isn't your park reservation.

At 11am (2 hrs past park open), back at the hotel, I got a TOT LL at 2pm.

At 1pm (back at hotel, after my nap), I got TSMM at 2:55pm.  

So then we had 3 stacked for HS + an ILL, all to use between 2 and 4pm.  We walked over from Swan, got about 2:15.  We did TOT first, then ROTR and then hung out in GE for a bit until 2:45... then walked over to Toy Story land and rode SDD and TSMM.  As soon as we rode TOT, I got a LL for Test Track (4:55pm) and then grabbed Soarin (4:55pm) after we rode SDD.  I could have gotten a 3rd one after TSMM, but there wasn't anything else we wanted to ride at EPCOT.

We were walking out of HS around 4:15 - so 4 rides done in 2 hours.  Took the boat to EPCOT, got there at 5 and rode Soarin and Test Track.  So at this point I had two stacked - I replaced those with rides at MK (Buzz and BTMR, I think) and kept 2 going until we left MK at close.


----------



## Newbie500

elgerber said:


> the advantage is, you walk up and 2:40 and walk on in just a couple minutes, instead of standing in the line for 45 minutes.



Thanks.

Are the LL lines always a shorter wait than standby?


----------



## elgerber

Newbie500 said:


> Thanks.
> 
> Are the LL lines always a shorter wait than standby?


I cannot imagine a time when they wouldn't be.  that is the point of Lightning Lane, it's just like the old fast pass lines.


----------



## William B

aeasterling said:


> Sure.  We had a day where we wanted to do all 4 parks - something we've always wanted to do.  We roped dropped AK and did everything standby or single rider - rode FOP, Everest 4 times and Safari.  We were back at the hotel (Swan) by 11am to take a nap.
> 
> At 7am, I got online and got a paid ROTR (2:25pm) and SDD (2:50pm).  I got SDD first and that was the time it gave me - it will automatically go to past 2pm if it isn't your park reservation.
> 
> At 11am (2 hrs past park open), back at the hotel, I got a TOT LL at 2pm.
> 
> At 1pm (back at hotel, after my nap), I got TSMM at 2:55pm.
> 
> So then we had 3 stacked for HS + an ILL, all to use between 2 and 4pm.  We walked over from Swan, got about 2:15.  We did TOT first, then ROTR and then hung out in GE for a bit until 2:45... then walked over to Toy Story land and rode SDD and TSMM.  As soon as we rode TOT, I got a LL for Test Track (4:55pm) and then grabbed Soarin (4:55pm) after we rode SDD.  I could have gotten a 3rd one after TSMM, but there wasn't anything else we wanted to ride at EPCOT.
> 
> We were walking out of HS around 4:15 - so 4 rides done in 2 hours.  Took the boat to EPCOT, got there at 5 and rode Soarin and Test Track.  So at this point I had two stacked - I replaced those with rides at MK (Buzz and BTMR, I think) and kept 2 going until we left MK at close.


Thank you again!  So the key is to park hop so you can make LL choices past 2 and then can use the 2 hours windows to make more.  One more quick question, is the 2 hours past park open the one you have a park reservation for (in your case AK) or is it the one you made your 7am reservation for (HS)?


----------



## aeasterling

William B said:


> Thank you again!  So the key is to park hop so you can make LL choices past 2 and then can use the 2 hours windows to make more.  One more quick question, is the 2 hours past park open the one you have a park reservation for (in your case AK) or is it the one you made your 7am reservation for (HS)?


It is two hours past the open time of the park you made your 7am reservation in.


----------



## aeasterling

Newbie500 said:


> Thanks.
> 
> Are the LL lines always a shorter wait than standby?


Generally, our LL wait was 5-10 minutes.  So if you did a LL for Spaceship Earth, for example, you might not save any time - but that is not a ride where you really need LL.  The one LL that seemed to go slower was Test Track - because they merge you at the design room and then it can still be a 15 minute wait after that.


----------



## CBMom01

aeasterling said:


> We got back yesterday and I will give my analysis of Genie +.  During our trip, I jotted down the posted standby time and our actual wait on all of our LL rides (I'm a dork).  I've already put this in a spreadsheet and done some cost/benefit analysis (like I said, I'm a dork).
> 
> We had 7 day tickets for 3 of us (me, husband, daughter) as well as 2 day tickets for my college aged son who flew down separately for the weekend.  We also had Park Hoppers.  Over those 7 days, we purchased 7 ILL$ ranging from a total of $29 (Space for 3) to $60 (FOP for 4).  We did run into a little snag our first day because I bought ROTR ILL for us at 7am but couldn't get one for my son because he wasn't on our hotel reservation.  We went to Guest Services as soon as we got to HS and they were nice enough to give us a recovery pass for him - so saved us $15 there.  Total we spent almost $300 on those 7 ILL$ - more than I had planned to... it's very easy to drop 30 bucks on Space Mountain when you don't feel like standing in line for 45 minutes.  We got FOP and ROTR twice each, plus Everest, Space and Remy.  I wouldn't recommend doing Everest since you can ride single rider... but my son wanted us all to ride together, so we spent the money.  In total, we saved ourselves about 4.5 hours for our group.
> 
> For Genie Plus, we spent $367 total and rode 33 rides.  We saved a total of 13.5 hrs for our group.  On our best day, we rode 8 rides and saved about 5 hours.  On our worst day, we rode 2 rides and saved only 15 minutes - that was our EPCOT day where the plan was to do F&W.  I had made a decision ahead of time that I'd rather waste money on that day then have to buy Genie + every morning for the other 6 days.  I still standby that, but admit I could have saved myself some money buying it on a day by day basis.  We averaged 5 rides with LL per day.
> 
> If I divide the time saved by what we spent, then I estimate the cost per hour saved as $37 for our group or $11 if you look at the time saved as multiplying by each person.  I'm not sure the $11 is valid since we would be together anyway, but that treats the time of each individual as having a value.  So essentially, I have to decide is paying $37/hour to NOT stand in line was worth it for me.  Since I hate standing in line, I think I would lean towards saying that it is.  I definitely feel like if you plan the Genie+ game well you can get more done than with the FP system.  I really like that I could hop with it, since we hopped every day except for the EPCOT F&W day.
> 
> Final note, be aware that buying your ILL$ ahead of time can be a crap-shoot in terms of how much time you'll save.  For rides where it runs out (ROTR and FOP) or if you are trying to get a certain time, you have no choice but to buy in the morning but you can't always know what the standby will look like.  Our example is probably an anomaly - but I bought FOP one day because we wanted to ride it before our Sanaa dinner so we needed a specific time.  It rained that day and the parks cleared out... when we rode FOP the standby was FIVE minutes!!  So glad I spent that $30, lol.
> 
> All in all - great trip.  I'm a project manager and planner by nature, so I had no problem with constantly getting LL and trying to stack (got up to 3 at a time one day) - I actually found it fun.  But I could see how it may be stressful for other folks.
> 
> Hope this helps someone!


This is very helpful and how I like to analyze things: marginal cost/benefit

My concern is buying Genie+ for a busy week and not getting to use it fully because of demand + limited availability.


----------



## mrsxsparrow

RoseGold said:


> Resort guests get to start earlier, but I was able to do it when I wan't even in the right park.  We were able to use it hopping, and it adjusted to after 2 for hopping hours.  The system relies on park reservations.  If you don't have a park reservation (or a hopper for after 2) it won't let you do anything in that park.
> 
> We changed parks, and we had to cancel the park reservation and make a new one to get the whole thing to work.



Had you made LL reservations already when you cancelled and rebooked your park reservation? Did they still work?


----------



## Cotta

aeasterling said:


> So then we had 3 stacked for HS + an ILL, all to use between 2 and 4pm.  We walked over from Swan, got about 2:15.  We did TOT first, then ROTR and then hung out in GE for a bit until 2:45... then walked over to Toy Story land and rode SDD and TSMM.  As soon as we rode TOT, I got a LL for Test Track (4:55pm) and then grabbed Soarin (4:55pm) after we rode SDD.  I could have gotten a 3rd one after TSMM, but there wasn't anything else we wanted to ride at EPCOT.


 
So when you say you could have gotten a third one after TSMM I am curious if there is a time limit associated with that 3rd stack? Could you have made it for something later at MK?


----------



## aeasterling

Cotta said:


> So when you say you could have gotten a third one after TSMM I am curious if there is a time limit associated with that 3rd stack? Could you have made it for something later at MK?


The challenge is that you have to take the next available time.  Since we were trying to do all four parks AND we had a reservation for the Fireworks Treats & Seats in MK at 7 (not great planning on my part), we were on a time crunch to get through HS and EPCOT.

If we had more time at HS, we could have gotten RRC - that one I think was usually available right away.  There's not really anything besides Soarin and Test Track that you need a LL for at ECPOT - The Seas, SE, MS and LWTL are always short waits.  I suppose I could have gotten a LL for one of those just to keep the stack of 3 going, but we basically rushed through ECPOT in an hour and were still 15 minutes late for our dessert party res.  

If I didn't have the dessert party res, I probably could have also gotten one for MK as long as I would get there in time to use it - PPF would be a good choice as those were usually several hours out.

So, to answer your question - no Disney time limit on the stacking... just the limitation of me trying to get to all four parks.


----------



## mickeymom629

aeasterling said:


> We got back yesterday and I will give my analysis of Genie +.  During our trip, I jotted down the posted standby time and our actual wait on all of our LL rides (I'm a dork).  I've already put this in a spreadsheet and done some cost/benefit analysis (like I said, I'm a dork).
> 
> We had 7 day tickets for 3 of us (me, husband, daughter) as well as 2 day tickets for my college aged son who flew down separately for the weekend.  We also had Park Hoppers.  Over those 7 days, we purchased 7 ILL$ ranging from a total of $29 (Space for 3) to $60 (FOP for 4).  We did run into a little snag our first day because I bought ROTR ILL for us at 7am but couldn't get one for my son because he wasn't on our hotel reservation.  We went to Guest Services as soon as we got to HS and they were nice enough to give us a recovery pass for him - so saved us $15 there.  Total we spent almost $300 on those 7 ILL$ - more than I had planned to... it's very easy to drop 30 bucks on Space Mountain when you don't feel like standing in line for 45 minutes.  We got FOP and ROTR twice each, plus Everest, Space and Remy.  I wouldn't recommend doing Everest since you can ride single rider... but my son wanted us all to ride together, so we spent the money.  In total, we saved ourselves about 4.5 hours for our group.
> 
> For Genie Plus, we spent $367 total and rode 33 rides.  We saved a total of 13.5 hrs for our group.  On our best day, we rode 8 rides and saved about 5 hours.  On our worst day, we rode 2 rides and saved only 15 minutes - that was our EPCOT day where the plan was to do F&W.  I had made a decision ahead of time that I'd rather waste money on that day then have to buy Genie + every morning for the other 6 days.  I still standby that, but admit I could have saved myself some money buying it on a day by day basis.  We averaged 5 rides with LL per day.
> 
> If I divide the time saved by what we spent, then I estimate the cost per hour saved as $37 for our group or $11 if you look at the time saved as multiplying by each person.  I'm not sure the $11 is valid since we would be together anyway, but that treats the time of each individual as having a value.  So essentially, I have to decide is paying $37/hour to NOT stand in line was worth it for me.  Since I hate standing in line, I think I would lean towards saying that it is.  I definitely feel like if you plan the Genie+ game well you can get more done than with the FP system.  I really like that I could hop with it, since we hopped every day except for the EPCOT F&W day.
> 
> Final note, be aware that buying your ILL$ ahead of time can be a crap-shoot in terms of how much time you'll save.  For rides where it runs out (ROTR and FOP) or if you are trying to get a certain time, you have no choice but to buy in the morning but you can't always know what the standby will look like.  Our example is probably an anomaly - but I bought FOP one day because we wanted to ride it before our Sanaa dinner so we needed a specific time.  It rained that day and the parks cleared out... when we rode FOP the standby was FIVE minutes!!  So glad I spent that $30, lol.
> 
> All in all - great trip.  I'm a project manager and planner by nature, so I had no problem with constantly getting LL and trying to stack (got up to 3 at a time one day) - I actually found it fun.  But I could see how it may be stressful for other folks.
> 
> Hope this helps someone!


Thanks for the report and glad you had a great time!  It seems like a lot of $ (to me) to not wait in line, especially when you add it on to the cost of the original tickets.  However, I'm sure I'm going to be tempted on our upcoming trip, especially if the wait times are long.


----------



## aeasterling

mickeymom629 said:


> Thanks for the report and glad you had a great time!  It seems like a lot of $ (to me) to not wait in line, especially when you add it on to the cost of the original tickets.  However, I'm sure I'm going to be tempted on our upcoming trip, especially if the wait times are long.


Oh, I totally agree it is a lot of $$.  I'll fully admit that I had a lot of "we cancelled all of our vacations for the last 18 months, let's live it up" mentality on this trip and was not very disciplined on spending.  I also totally recognize the privilege in that statement.

I did not intend to spend as much on the ILL$ as we did.  It was really easy in the moment to say, Space Mountain line is 45 minutes or we can spend $30, why not?  That could totally add up.  If I was trying to do a more budget trip and was staying at a Disney hotel, I would utilize rope drop.  We got a lot done on the mornings we were there before the parks opened.


----------



## elgerber

aeasterling said:


> Oh, I totally agree it is a lot of $$.  I'll fully admit that I had a lot of "*we cancelled all of our vacations for the last 18 months, let's live it up" *mentality on this trip and was not very disciplined on spending.  I also totally recognize the privilege in that statement.
> 
> I did not intend to spend as much on the ILL$ as we did.  It was really easy in the moment to say, Space Mountain line is 45 minutes or we can spend $30, why not?  That could totally add up.  If I was trying to do a more budget trip and was staying at a Disney hotel, I would utilize rope drop.  We got a lot done on the mornings we were there before the parks opened.


We had the same mentality LOL, but I went into it knowing I would spend all the genie $$$.  It was only two of us, and not 4 of us, which helped.  I refused to spend it on Space Mountain though LOL, everytime I ride that, I says "why am I doing this?", so I didn't pay to be rattled and tormented .


----------



## fly girl

Back from a very short weekend trip (only 2 park days).

Here are my thoughts. Take it as MY opinion only. YMMV.

G+, better than nothing. No where near as good as MaxPass or FP+. App is glitchy would crash out on occasion. It is annoying how you have to keep switching parks on Tip Board if you are offline for a bit. Refresh is easy to do on app, but good ride times aren't easy. (I was a refresh pro with MP and FP+) I think it all depends on how busy the parks are. Afternoon at MK, HS, it is hard to get a LL time that is not over 1.5 - 2 hours out for good rides. And personal preference, but I could't stand how I had to keep hitting that additional check mark for my whole party every time. Wish it would be automatic and you had to un-click if you wanted to remove someone. G+ not worth it in Epcot. AK only if you are park hopping. Also, if you passed the 2 hour window but already hit that first LL access point, you must wait to hit the second point to book next LL. It happened twice to us and I found it very irritating. You'd think it wouldn't be a big deal as the first and second touch points aren't far, but they are for the 2 rides we got stuck with it on - Navi and Jungle Cruise. I missed a fabulous BTMRR LL return because of it. 

ILL$, mixed bag. Used it for FOP, SDMT, ROTR, and Remy. FOP, SDMT worth it. ROTR would have been worth it if the ride was fully functioning. But don't charge $15 + tax per person for a premium product and deliver a sub par experience. I don't want to risk spoilers, but second half of ride was not fully functioning and as a non Star Wars person, I noticed and felt ripped off. I can see if this was a sudden issue. Apparently it has been in this "B" mode for over a while. If I would have known this, I would have saved $47+ dollars. I am not pleased with nickel and dime Chapek Disney right now.   YMMV. Remy, wasn't worth the price point but seeing we only had 2 days and Epcot wasn't our starting park it worked for us. However, just go for the boarding group if you can. Ride is cute but not worth extra.

I didn't feel totally ripped off with G+, it just felt like I was getting a cheap and crummy knock off of Max Pass. Instead of getting a Mattel Barbie Doll, I was getting one of those Dollar Tree Fashion Dolls.  It will fit the bill, for a small time. Long haul,  , I just don't see it as a great alternative.


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## RoseGold

mrsxsparrow said:


> Had you made LL reservations already when you cancelled and rebooked your park reservation? Did they still work?



We decided to skip AK and go MK instead.  It wouldn't let us book anything at MK because our park reservations said AK, even though we hadn't gone to the park yet.  We canceled park reservations, rebooked into MK, and then used G+ at MK.


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## RoseGold

fly girl said:


> G+, better than nothing. No where near as good as MaxPass or FP+. App is glitchy would crash out on occasion. It is annoying how you have to keep switching parks on Tip Board if you are offline for a bit. Refresh is easy to do on app, but good ride times aren't easy. (I was a refresh pro with MP and FP+) I think it all depends on how busy the parks are.



I actually paid $50/person/day for the extra FP with club level, and I'd take G+ all day every day.  G+ was a real VIP no waiting line, not a line in another part of the ride called FP full of APs who have ridden this 20 times.  I felt like I could get all my B-level attractions in a day or two, I was thrilled.  I was a FP pro, and I still did better on the fly with G+ than I did in the early hours 90 days out.  I think G+ is absolutely awesome.  I'm thrilled to have a VIP option that isn't a $800/hour VIP tour.


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## fly girl

RoseGold said:


> I actually paid $50/person/day for the extra FP with club level, and I'd take G+ all day every day.  G+ was a real VIP no waiting line, not a line in another part of the ride called FP full of APs who have ridden this 20 times.  I felt like I could get all my B-level attractions in a day or two, I was thrilled.  I was a FP pro, and I still did better on the fly with G+ than I did in the early hours 90 days out.  I think G+ is absolutely awesome.  I'm thrilled to have a VIP option that isn't a $800/hour VIP tour.



Honestly, I am so glad you are happy with it!  Like I said in the beginning of my post, YMMV.

My situation was different. I waited in G+ lines similar to FP+ and MP for Jungle Cruise, SDD, TSMM, Star Tours (that one shocked me), Navi, and KS. It is ok. We aren't pumping our fist to the heavens cursing Disney. We just don't think it was as good as FP+ but especially MaxPass what they claimed was the new spin on.

We all have different takes. That is why we share it on here so people can read both sides, maybe learn a little bit on what to expect, and make it work for them!


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## happiest in Disney

RollTideinMD said:


> We will be there in 13 days and plan on using Genie+, but not purchasing IA$ - we will rope drop those rides and try for a virtual queue for Remy.


What time is rope drop if you stay in resort hotel?


----------



## fly girl

happiest in Disney said:


> What time is rope drop if you stay in resort hotel?



30 minutes before park opening.


----------



## DisneyKidds

aeasterling said:


> We got back yesterday and I will give my analysis of Genie +.  During our trip, I jotted down the posted standby time and our actual wait on all of our LL rides (I'm a dork).  I've already put this in a spreadsheet and done some cost/benefit analysis (like I said, I'm a dork).


What a dor……oh, wait, you said it. 

JK.  Thanks for the analysis.  If you don’t mind me asking a few dorky questions of my own….

13.5 hours x 60 minutes = 810 minutes. Regardless of party size (whether 1 person or 4) , is that the amount of standby time G+ succeeded in avoiding?

810 minutes /33 rides = approximately 25 minutes per ride.  So, on average, you avoided 25 minutes of standby time per return by using G+.  In reality I assume some G+LL saved you very little, while others saved you much more than that average.

If you drop out of the 33 LL rides those that didn’t actually save you much time (say more than 15 minutes) how does that change the numbers?


----------



## aeasterling

DisneyKidds said:


> What a dor……oh, wait, you said it.
> 
> JK.  Thanks for the analysis.  If you don’t mind me asking a few dorky questions of my own….
> 
> 13.5 hours x 60 minutes = 810 minutes. Regardless of party size (whether 1 person or 4) , is that the amount of standby time G+ succeeded in avoiding?
> 
> 810 minutes /33 rides = approximately 25 minutes per ride.  So, on average, you avoided 25 minutes of standby time per return by using G+.  In reality I assume some G+LL saved you very little, while others saved you much more than that average.
> 
> If you drop out of the 33 LL rides those that didn’t actually save you much time (say more than 15 minutes) how does that change the numbers?


LOL - I am a proud dork.

Yeah, let's go with the time regardless of party size.  Total time saved (regardless of party size) was 812 minutes.  The best was the two days we rode SDD - one day saved 55 minutes and the other 65 minutes.  On the other end, I got a LL just because I could for Spaceship Earth and that saved us maybe 5 minutes.

If I only look at rides saving 15 minutes or more, that is 23 rides and 747 minutes, so average 32.5 minutes per ride.

I would also add that these numbers are all based on Disney's listed stand-by time... so if they are inflating that then my numbers are off.


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## happiest in Disney

rmclain73 said:


> I think it is becoming very clear that Genie+ will only be one tool to help get though lines the quickest.  You cannot rely only on Genie+ to shorten your time waiting each day.  Early park hours and rope drop are still very important.  Your best bet seems to get there early and just wait standby while picking up the occasional LL and buying the IALL for park headliners.


What time are early entry for the parks now and what time is rope drop?


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## happiest in Disney

fly girl said:


> 30 minutes before park opening.


do buses leave an hour before that to the parks or earlier?  thank you.


----------



## bsmcneil

aeasterling said:


> We got back yesterday and I will give my analysis of Genie +.  During our trip, I jotted down the posted standby time and our actual wait on all of our LL rides (I'm a dork).  I've already put this in a spreadsheet and done some cost/benefit analysis (like I said, I'm a dork).
> 
> We had 7 day tickets for 3 of us (me, husband, daughter) as well as 2 day tickets for my college aged son who flew down separately for the weekend.  We also had Park Hoppers.  Over those 7 days, we purchased 7 ILL$ ranging from a total of $29 (Space for 3) to $60 (FOP for 4).  We did run into a little snag our first day because I bought ROTR ILL for us at 7am but couldn't get one for my son because he wasn't on our hotel reservation.  We went to Guest Services as soon as we got to HS and they were nice enough to give us a recovery pass for him - so saved us $15 there.  Total we spent almost $300 on those 7 ILL$ - more than I had planned to... it's very easy to drop 30 bucks on Space Mountain when you don't feel like standing in line for 45 minutes.  We got FOP and ROTR twice each, plus Everest, Space and Remy.  I wouldn't recommend doing Everest since you can ride single rider... but my son wanted us all to ride together, so we spent the money.  In total, we saved ourselves about 4.5 hours for our group.
> 
> For Genie Plus, we spent $367 total and rode 33 rides.  We saved a total of 13.5 hrs for our group.  On our best day, we rode 8 rides and saved about 5 hours.  On our worst day, we rode 2 rides and saved only 15 minutes - that was our EPCOT day where the plan was to do F&W.  I had made a decision ahead of time that I'd rather waste money on that day then have to buy Genie + every morning for the other 6 days.  I still standby that, but admit I could have saved myself some money buying it on a day by day basis.  We averaged 5 rides with LL per day.
> 
> If I divide the time saved by what we spent, then I estimate the cost per hour saved as $37 for our group or $11 if you look at the time saved as multiplying by each person.  I'm not sure the $11 is valid since we would be together anyway, but that treats the time of each individual as having a value.  So essentially, I have to decide is paying $37/hour to NOT stand in line was worth it for me.  Since I hate standing in line, I think I would lean towards saying that it is.  I definitely feel like if you plan the Genie+ game well you can get more done than with the FP system.  I really like that I could hop with it, since we hopped every day except for the EPCOT F&W day.
> 
> Final note, be aware that buying your ILL$ ahead of time can be a crap-shoot in terms of how much time you'll save.  For rides where it runs out (ROTR and FOP) or if you are trying to get a certain time, you have no choice but to buy in the morning but you can't always know what the standby will look like.  Our example is probably an anomaly - but I bought FOP one day because we wanted to ride it before our Sanaa dinner so we needed a specific time.  It rained that day and the parks cleared out... when we rode FOP the standby was FIVE minutes!!  So glad I spent that $30, lol.
> 
> All in all - great trip.  I'm a project manager and planner by nature, so I had no problem with constantly getting LL and trying to stack (got up to 3 at a time one day) - I actually found it fun.  But I could see how it may be stressful for other folks.
> 
> Hope this helps someone!


This is cool and could be helpful but sometimes you use numbers for your group of 3 and and then the group of 4 and I can't tell if the 367 you spent on G+ also included the 2-days for your son. Could you clarify a little bit? And then - you added the G+ and ILL costs and times? Because otherwise the math doesn't seem to add up (and I keep trying to break it down to a single unit (since I won't be in a group of 3 or 4 for 7 days) and it's just not quite making sense (so I recognize there's something I'm missing).


----------



## soniam

happiest in Disney said:


> What time are early entry for the parks now and what time is rope drop?





happiest in Disney said:


> do buses leave an hour before that to the parks or earlier?  thank you.



Try this thread, especially first post.
https://www.disboards.com/threads/everything-early-theme-park-entry-etpe-please-read-post-1.3855945/


----------



## aeasterling

bsmcneil said:


> This is cool and could be helpful but sometimes you use numbers for your group of 3 and and then the group of 4 and I can't tell if the 367 you spent on G+ also included the 2-days for your son. Could you clarify a little bit? And then - you added the G+ and ILL costs and times? Because otherwise the math doesn't seem to add up (and I keep trying to break it down to a single unit (since I won't be in a group of 3 or 4 for 7 days) and it's just not quite making sense (so I recognize there's something I'm missing).


I'm not looking at my spreadsheet, but I'll try to give you the details.  The $367 was for 3 x 7 days plus 2 days for my son.

The first two days of Genie Plus rides (I think there were 10 total) were for 4 of us and the rest of the days were 3 of us.  For the ILL$, 3 were for 4 of us and the others for 3.


----------



## bsmcneil

aeasterling said:


> I'm not looking at my spreadsheet, but I'll try to give you the details.  The $367 was for 3 x 7 days plus 2 days for my son.
> 
> The first two days of Genie Plus rides (I think there were 10 total) were for 4 of us and the rest of the days were 3 of us.  For the ILL$, 3 were for 4 of us and the others for 3.


Got it - thanks! This helps. I'm curious about (not asking you to do anything - this is me thinking aloud) how the ILL impact is different. So, I took the G+ numbers for each of us, number of days - and that (for me) was 25/hr, which was super good to know. I don't really know how to equate time saved/money on the ILL since they're such weird creatures. Spending anything for Space Mountain would feel unproductive, even if there's an hour wait (because I wouldn't do an hour - I probably wouldn't do anything more than 10) and I definitely won't pay. But for ROTR - iI just know it'll be worth it for the first time I take the kids, just because. But the more general G+ was really my question and your input was super helpful - thank you for sharing!


----------



## aeasterling

bsmcneil said:


> Got it - thanks! This helps. I'm curious about (not asking you to do anything - this is me thinking aloud) how the ILL impact is different. So, I took the G+ numbers for each of us, number of days - and that (for me) was 25/hr, which was super good to know. I don't really know how to equate time saved/money on the ILL since they're such weird creatures. Spending anything for Space Mountain would feel unproductive, even if there's an hour wait (because I wouldn't do an hour - I probably wouldn't do anything more than 10) and I definitely won't pay. But for ROTR - iI just know it'll be worth it for the first time I take the kids, just because. But the more general G+ was really my question and your input was super helpful - thank you for sharing!


I think ILL are so much personal preference.  For us, ROTR and FOP were totally worth it.  We even rope dropped FOP and then bought ILL to ride it again later because we love it that much.  We like Space Mountain, but we rode it at rope drop and also during Boo Bash so I wasn't planning to pay for it.  It was an impulse buy on our last day.  I wouldn't pay for SDMT (have ridden it before, think it's just ok) or Frozen.  I also wouldn't pay for Everest because you can do single rider - but did once at my son's request so we could ride together.  MMRR we rode during Early Entry. Remy we paid for since we hadn't ridden it, but I wouldn't pay for it again.


----------



## mggeary

Have now heard a few anecdotal reports on successful method to start a LL “double stack” one hour after park open:

MK example (9am park open):
1) At 7am book first LL (A1) for 9-10am
2) At 10:01 BEFORE tap into A1, book 2nd LL (A2).  As A1 “expires” system appears to reset 120 cool down rule.
3). Ride A1 between 10:01-10:15 during grace period, again resetting 120 min cool down.
4). Immediately book B1 after tap into A1

Presto….a double stack by 10:05 instead of waiting till 11am.

Can rinse and repeat this technique using the expire/grace period combo with each LL.

Can anyone else confirm this works?


----------



## ComeToSocialize

mggeary said:


> Have now heard a few anecdotal reports on successful method to start a LL “double stack” one hour after park open:
> 
> MK example (9am park open):
> 1) At 7am book first LL (A1) for 9-10am
> 2) At 10:01 BEFORE tap into A1, book 2nd LL (A2).  As A1 “expires” system appears to reset 120 cool down rule.
> 3). Ride A1 between 10:01-10:15 during grace period, again resetting 120 min cool down.
> 4). Immediately book B1 after tap into A1
> 
> Presto….a double stack by 10:05 instead of waiting till 11am.
> 
> Can rinse and repeat this technique using the expire/grace period combo with each LL.
> 
> Can anyone else confirm this works?



DisneyTouristBlog is speculating / half confirming that this is indeed another strategy. You don't have to wait for the 120 min to pass to create a double stack, you just have to let your window expire, then book during the grace period, then tap during the grace period. 

This makes the stacking extremely powerful as you can theoretically create a new stack every hour. It also means you no longer have to strategically pick a window at least 60 min past park opening, you should instead pick one immediately at park open, ideally for your favorite ride.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

dez1978 said:


> You can only do that tho if Epcot is your reserved park for the day correct?  Otherwise you have to purchase the $ll?  We are hopping to epcot


I had success by starting out having EPcot as my reserved and then at 7am waiting a couple of minutes-I believe I did it at 702 but that would vary by day. Then book it, then change parks if you were able to catch a late boarding (mine was around 6pm). I might have just gotten lucky though, as it doesnt really make sense for the 7am to go out so late, but it worked.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

LindaOwl1 said:


> Question about booking LL with G+:  At 7AM does the Tip Board automatically populate with LL return times or do you have to refresh the page?  And if refresh is required which I suspect, what is the fastest way to do this to get the return times up to be able to book?  Any experiences with this?  Thanks



If you just click the time provided it will automatically show the most current time when it gets to page 2, so if you are in a race to get as early as possible just click it. Otherwise, you could scroll down and hold to refresh, or click the ride and then click back-this is useful if the ride you want is a litle down on the app, as it will automatically force that ride back to the top when you click the back arrow (on ios anyway), or just click the time and then back up if you dont like it, but I haven't tried that one to see how it works.


----------



## Sydnerella

aeasterling said:


> Sure.  We had a day where we wanted to do all 4 parks - something we've always wanted to do.  We roped dropped AK and did everything standby or single rider - rode FOP, Everest 4 times and Safari.  We were back at the hotel (Swan) by 11am to take a nap.
> 
> At 7am, I got online and got a paid ROTR (2:25pm) and SDD (2:50pm).  I got SDD first and that was the time it gave me - it will automatically go to past 2pm if it isn't your park reservation.
> 
> At 11am (2 hrs past park open), back at the hotel, I got a TOT LL at 2pm.
> 
> At 1pm (back at hotel, after my nap), I got TSMM at 2:55pm.
> 
> So then we had 3 stacked for HS + an ILL, all to use between 2 and 4pm.  We walked over from Swan, got about 2:15.  We did TOT first, then ROTR and then hung out in GE for a bit until 2:45... then walked over to Toy Story land and rode SDD and TSMM.  As soon as we rode TOT, I got a LL for Test Track (4:55pm) and then grabbed Soarin (4:55pm) after we rode SDD.  I could have gotten a 3rd one after TSMM, but there wasn't anything else we wanted to ride at EPCOT.
> 
> We were walking out of HS around 4:15 - so 4 rides done in 2 hours.  Took the boat to EPCOT, got there at 5 and rode Soarin and Test Track.  So at this point I had two stacked - I replaced those with rides at MK (Buzz and BTMR, I think) and kept 2 going until we left MK at close.


Thanks so much for the details! Does this method work at a single park, say you rope drop early morning Magic and hit standbys for low wait rides and us $ILL… first is there any advantage to this and second can you stack FPs like this within the same park you started? Looking for a scenario that does this if it makes sense.


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## TheMick424

I haven't seen this covered yet (although maybe I missed it) - If you set up your planned park and top picks in the free Genie portion, does the Tip Board display/list those attractions first?  I am hoping to reduce scrolling on our DHS day.


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## aeasterling

Sydnerella said:


> Thanks so much for the details! Does this method work at a single park, say you rope drop early morning Magic and hit standbys for low wait rides and us $ILL… first is there any advantage to this and second can you stack FPs like this within the same park you started? Looking for a scenario that does this if it makes sense.


Based on my experience, this would be my opinion on using Genie Plus/ILL$ for each park if you aren't hoping.  Note this is based on crowd levels I experienced last week... so YMMV, depending on when you go.  Also, I'm planning a trip for adults/teens, no little kids.

*EPCOT *- I wouldn't use Genie +.  Maybe get an ILL$ for Frozen if it is a priority, or you could rope drop it.  Get a BG for Remy - seems to have been pretty easy to get for most folks.  You can ride Test Track in the morning or single rider if the ride is long.  When we were there, Soarin rarely got over 20 minutes and everything else (Spaceship Earth, the Seas, Mission Space) were less than 10.

*Magic Kingdom - *You could use Early Morning Entry to ride SDMT and Space Mountain.  I'd start watching the Genie Plus return times at 7 and grab one as soon as it went past 10am - PPF or Jungle Cruise would probably be a good choice for that.  Then at 10, you could grab a 2nd one before you rode the first - now you have two stacked.  Our experience with MK was that most of the LL were available immediately or within the next hour... I guess this could change if the park was more crowded.  You could also ride things standby in the morning while it was less crowded and then use LL for re-rides, if you like to ride things multiple times.

*Hollywood Studios - *Grab SDD or MFSR  at 7am... again, you want a time after 10am.  SDD seemed to jump right to 11-12 within the first 5 minutes.  Depending on your priorities, you can ride the other one of those at Early Entry or you could do ROTR.  We had one morning where we were there about 8 and were able to ride SDD and TSMM both as walk ons and then MMRR with a 20 minute wait.  At 10am, before using your first LL, you could probably grab TOT or RRC for the next hour.  Now you have 2 stacked... but HS has less rides than MK, so you'd quickly go through all of the rides.

*Animal Kingdom* - I don't know if you really need Genie Plus here.  There really aren't enough rides to stack.  You could get there at 7am ahead of the 7:30 opening and get everything done.  One morning we did AK, we rode FOP, Navi, walked the Gorilla Falls trail all by 8:45am.  We then had a LL for Safari, but the standby wasn't very long (maybe 15-20 minutes).  We then rode Kali as walk-on and Everest a couple times in the single rider line.  I had a LL for Dinosaur at 11:15 - standby was only 25 minutes.  We had ridden everything by noon.  I think you could do this park in the morning with no Genie Plus and fairly short waits.  If you like to re-ride things, you might be able to use LL for that... but I don't know if you could stack because the times (at least for us) weren't far enough out to get the 2 hour window.


----------



## leeniewdw

mggeary said:


> Have now heard a few anecdotal reports on successful method to start a LL “double stack” one hour after park open:
> 
> MK example (*9am park open*):
> 1) At 7am book first LL (A1) for 9-10am
> 2) *At 10:01 BEFORE tap into A1*, book 2nd LL (A2).  As A1 “expires” system appears to reset 120 cool down rule.
> 3). Ride A1 between 10:01-10:15 during grace period, again resetting 120 min cool down.
> 4). Immediately book B1 after tap into A1
> 
> Presto….a double stack by 10:05 instead of waiting till 11am.
> 
> Can rinse and repeat this technique using the expire/grace period combo with each LL.
> 
> Can anyone else confirm this works?



I hesitate to comment because I accidentally posted the wrong thing about 3 days after I was certain I understood things  However,  If the park opens at 9am, you can't book another LL until 11am as far as I understood.  You make your first LL reservation at 7am and the next one becomes available 2 hours after park opening.   If MK opens at 9am, that slot is 11am.


----------



## Turksmom

leeniewdw said:


> I hesitate to comment because I accidentally posted the wrong thing about 3 days after I was certain I understood things  However,  If the park opens at 9am, you can't book another LL until 11am as far as I understood.  You make your first LL reservation at 7am and the next one becomes available 2 hours after park opening.   If MK opens at 9am, that slot is 11am.


The two hour rule applies only if the first LL booked is more than 2 hours away from the current time. 2 hours from park open, if booked at 7am. If the first ride is within 2 hours, the  rule wouldn't apply, and a new LL could be booked as soon as you tapped into the second point- or theoretically, after the ride window expired


----------



## ckelly14

leeniewdw said:


> I hesitate to comment because I accidentally posted the wrong thing about 3 days after I was certain I understood things  However,  If the park opens at 9am, you can't book another LL until 11am as far as I understood.  You make your first LL reservation at 7am and the next one becomes available 2 hours after park opening.   If MK opens at 9am, that slot is 11am.



I believe they were pointing out a "loophole" where you book your second LL during the 15 grace period after your first reservation expires.


----------



## leeniewdw

Turksmom said:


> The two hour rule applies only if the first LL booked is more than 2 hours away from the current time. 2 hours from park open, if booked at 7am. If the first ride is within 2 hours, the  rule wouldn't apply, and a new LL could be booked as soon as you tapped into the second point- or theoretically, after the ride window expired



I'm not sure I'm following here.   The post says they were trying to get a 2nd LL specifically BEFORE they tapped into the ride.

However:


ckelly14 said:


> I believe they were pointing out a "loophole" where you book your second LL during the 15 grace period after your first reservation expires.



I think I AM following this.   So you wait to ride LL1 anywhere between :01 and :15 after the end of your return window and during those minutes grab LL2.  The suggestion is that if you then tap into LL1, you'd get another LL slot to reserve?   Wow.   I'm not sure I'm advanced enough to integrate that into my touring plan!


----------



## DisneyKidds

leeniewdw said:


> I hesitate to comment because I accidentally posted the wrong thing about 3 days after I was certain I understood things  However,  If the park opens at 9am, you can't book another LL until 11am as far as I understood.  You make your first LL reservation at 7am and the next one becomes available 2 hours after park opening.   If MK opens at 9am, that slot is 11am.


The 120 minute cooling off only applies if your first LL is more than two hours away when the park opens.  Otherwise, you can start working the original LL once you tap in.

The nuance here is that (something I speculated whether you could do earlier in the thread) you can (or may be able to) use the grace period as a means of stacking, in that as soon as the first LL “expires” at 10:00 you can make a new LL, however (because of the grace period) that first one didn’t really expire.  So wait until the grace period to stack A2 then start working A1.

Unlike stacking with the 120 cool down or hopping (which I see as using the system as designed), which I don’t think needs to or will be fixed…..this one seems like something (gaming the system) they could consider “fixing”.


----------



## ckelly14

leeniewdw said:


> I'm not sure I'm following here.   The post says they were trying to get a 2nd LL specifically BEFORE they tapped into the ride.
> 
> However:
> 
> 
> I think I AM following this.   So you wait to ride LL1 anywhere between :01 and :15 after the end of your return window and during those minutes grab LL2.  The suggestion is that if you then tap into LL1, you'd get another LL slot to reserve?   Wow.   I'm not sure I'm advanced enough to integrate that into my touring plan!




You got it.  The only thing it really does is to get you a second LL about an hour earlier than you would with the previous guidance.


----------



## leeniewdw

ckelly14 said:


> You got it.  The only thing it really does is to get you a second LL about an hour earlier than you would with the previous guidance.



Ok, that was my takeaway after reading this.   An hour head start is nice, but you also have to be pretty precise with your timing.  The previous stacking strategy gives you a little more leeway.

Today was the first day I looked at LLs at 7am.  SDD was available for 915am when I looked at 7am, and then was well into the afternoon within 1 minute.

Curious on people's thoughts.  If I was doing DHS at 8:30 EE and NOT using a ILL$ for that park and wanted to ride  SDD, MFSR, RotR, which one would I pick for a LL and which ones would you RD/SB and in what order (no single rider line usage for MFSR).  This is for Sat 12/4, which is supposed to be a lower day crowd-wise.


----------



## disneyfam1986

How long is the return window when you purchase the individual lightening lane access for a ride?


----------



## DisneyKidds

ckelly14 said:


> You got it.  The only thing it really does is to get you a second LL about an hour earlier than you would with the previous guidance.


What this info seems to do is confirm that the grace period is an official part of the ride window (i.e. Mickey turns green until ten fifteen), rather than the grace period being a courtesy.  That makes sense, because it allows a period of time people can be late and the cast members don’t have to deal with it.  Next thing we need is for someone to test the limits of the grace period.  Has anyone tried and been denied (no green Mickey) at 16 minutes?  19?  21?


----------



## Cotta

DisneyKidds said:


> The 120 minute cooling off only applies if your first LL is more than two hours away when the park opens.  Otherwise, you can start working the original LL once you tap in.
> 
> The nuance here is that (something I speculated whether you could do earlier in the thread) you can (or may be able to) use the grace period as a means of stacking, in that as soon as the first LL “expires” at 10:00 you can make a new LL, however (because of the grace period) that first one didn’t really expire.  So wait until the grace period to stack A2 then start working A1.
> 
> Unlike stacking with the 120 cool down or hopping (which I see as using the system as designed), which I don’t think needs to or will be fixed…..this one seems like something (gaming the system) they could consider “fixing”.



Agreed. Hold on while I go finish my Computer Science degree... If A1 then A2... Really need to brush up on my Boolean expressions.


----------



## Sara W

leeniewdw said:


> Ok, that was my takeaway after reading this.   An hour head start is nice, but you also have to be pretty precise with your timing.  The previous stacking strategy gives you a little more leeway.
> 
> Today was the first day I looked at LLs at 7am.  SDD was available for 915am when I looked at 7am, and then was well into the afternoon within 1 minute.
> 
> Curious on people's thoughts.  If I was doing DHS at 8:30 EE and NOT using a ILL$ for that park and wanted to ride  SDD, MFSR, RotR, which one would I pick for a LL and which ones would you RD/SB and in what order (no single rider line usage for MFSR).  This is for Sat 12/4, which is supposed to be a lower day crowd-wise.


I'm trying to figure out this exact same scenario. I think I'm pretty smart, but I am really struggling to grasp this "easier" system.


----------



## mickmom728

RoseGold said:


> I tried to do the virtual queue at 1PM from HS, and it wouldn't let me.  After you go into Epcot, it should let you, if there are slots left. I just paid $7 and booked for late at night.


My understanding is you have to be in the park at 1 to use the virtual que.  It fills up fast so not sure there would be groups available by the time you hop


----------



## ckelly14

leeniewdw said:


> Curious on people's thoughts.  If I was doing DHS at 8:30 EE and NOT using a ILL$ for that park and wanted to ride  SDD, MFSR, RotR, which one would I pick for a LL and which ones would you RD/SB and in what order (no single rider line usage for MFSR).  This is for Sat 12/4, which is supposed to be a lower day crowd-wise.



Well, RotR is out as that is only a ILL$ attraction.  Here's what I would do:

7AM grab a G+ LL for SDD (let's say 9:15 per your example).
Ride RotR during EE.  
Ride MFSR or anything else you like unitl 10:15 (if possible).  
Grab another LL between 10:15 and 10:30.  Tap into SDD before 10:30.
Continue to alternate LL for the rest of the day!


----------



## leeniewdw

ckelly14 said:


> Well, RotR is out as that is only a ILL$ attraction.  Here's what I would do:
> 
> 7AM grab a G+ LL for SDD (let's say 9:15 per your example).
> Ride RotR during EE.
> Ride MFSR or anything else you like unitl 10:15 (if possible).
> Grab another LL between 10:15 and 10:30.  Tap into SDD before 10:30.
> Continue to alternate LL for the rest of the day!



Thanks!  That was my first thought.   It would get blown up if it was a day like today when RotR was down around 9am, but I think that's what we'll try to do.    We're trying to fit a lot into that day, so using ILL$ for rides in other parks.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

Has anyone confirmed that they are able to book the second LL when the first one expires, and then use the grace period check in to activate a second LL, or is this just speculation?


----------



## Cotta

Another thing to keep in mind is if you miss your 15 minute leeway window you can not rebook G+ for the ride. Not sure the stress would be worth it. It's a good strategy on paper (or screen) but in the park there are so many variables. I think it would be good to keep in the back of your mind if it works out but not something I would plan my day around...


----------



## CarolynFH

mickmom728 said:


> My understanding is you have to be in the park at 1 to use the virtual que.  It fills up fast so not sure there would be groups available by the time you hop


I’ve read multiple reports here from people who were able to get a Remy VQ after 2 PM. So it’s worth trying when hopping, but you do have to be inside Epcot to try. Success might depend on how busy the park is that day.


----------



## letsgobirds

ckelly14 said:


> Well, RotR is out as that is only a ILL$ attraction.  Here's what I would do:
> 
> 7AM grab a G+ LL for SDD (let's say 9:15 per your example).
> Ride RotR during EE.
> Ride MFSR or anything else you like unitl 10:15 (if possible).
> Grab another LL between 10:15 and 10:30.  Tap into SDD before 10:30.
> Continue to alternate LL for the rest of the day!


Isnt the risk here that in the time it takes to EE rope drop RoTR , you may miss your SDD G+ even beyond the grace period ?  Also as mentioned above, as much as I like the grace period rebook second line plan on paper, if crowds are significant the timing gets really tricky .   Also what happens if you tap in first tap within grace period but not the second ?  All sorts of variables that can get thrown off on crowded days.


----------



## leeniewdw

Wow, that would mean that RotR would take from 830 to 10:30 to complete.  Is that what people have reported at RD?


----------



## letsgobirds

leeniewdw said:


> Wow, that would mean that RotR would take from 830 to 10:30 to complete.  Is that what people have reported at RD?


Hope not, just curious .  Probably depends on how aggressive timing you use at RD.  We move fast in my group (EC city living) but if I need to get there hours prior to actual EE, for us at least, it's not worth it with impatient kids.  Sounds like to be front pack for RoTR needs a big time commitment.


----------



## DisneyKidds

letsgobirds said:


> …..if crowds are significant the timing gets really tricky….


This is my biggest G+ concern.  It’s great to see recent experiences and to game plan what might be able to be done on future trips.  However, until we see how it all plays out (with available LL reservation times) during a busy period we really don’t know.  I’ll be paying close attention to Thanksgiving and Christmas reports!


----------



## aeasterling

leeniewdw said:


> Thanks!  That was my first thought.   It would get blown up if it was a day like today when RotR was down around 9am, but I think that's what we'll try to do.    We're trying to fit a lot into that day, so using ILL$ for rides in other parks.


The plan above is also what I would do.  We only rode ROTR with ILL$, but I would think if you were at the park around 8am for the 8:30 EE, you could ride it and be off by 9am.  Then you could probably ride MFSR with a small wait.  We rope dropped HS one day, walked in the park at 8:20 and were walking on MFSR right at 8:30 and we were able to ride it twice before 9:15... so the lines weren't getting too long at that point.

The tricky party is SDD.  You would want to make sure you were on MDE right at 7am and clicked it immediately... that would probably get you a 10am LL.

So let's say you got a 10am LL for SDD:
8am - arrive at park
8:30 - 9am - ride ROTR
9 - 10am - ride MFSR
10am - walk over to Toy Story land for SDD (remember you have until 11am to get on it)
Ride SDD and then get another LL - you should be able to get Saucers, TSM, RRC or TOT pretty close to the current time... none of these were going very fast when we were there.  Then just rinse and repeat LL until you are done.


----------



## Lsyves

CarolynFH said:


> I’ve read multiple reports here from people who were able to get a Remy VQ after 2 PM. So it’s worth trying when hopping, but you do have to be inside Epcot to try. Success might depend on how busy the park is that day.


This was annoying. I didn't want to run over to Epcot while in another park just to try to join the VQ. They really should let you do it from anywhere. (I did get onto a VQ at 7am once but of course our boarding call came up right when we had dinner reservations.) Once we ate dinner, I couldn't get the fam to go back for Remy...


----------



## Lsyves

aeasterling said:


> Generally, our LL wait was 5-10 minutes.  So if you did a LL for Spaceship Earth, for example, you might not save any time - but that is not a ride where you really need LL.  The one LL that seemed to go slower was Test Track - because they merge you at the design room and then it can still be a 15 minute wait after that.


We waited 30 mins for our HM LL. Maybe it was an off day but it was disappointing for the cost...


----------



## DisneyKidds

Lsyves said:


> We waited 30 mins for our HM LL. Maybe it was an off day but it was disappointing for the cost...


Ouch.  How long was the posted standby line?  If LL returns aren’t consistently short it really does dilute the value of G+….


----------



## Tess

aeasterling said:


> The plan above is also what I would do.  We only rode ROTR with ILL$, but I would think *if you were at the park around 8am for the 8:30 EE, you could ride it and be off by 9am*.  Then you could probably ride MFSR with a small wait.  We rope dropped HS one day, walked in the park at 8:20 and were walking on MFSR right at 8:30 and we were able to ride it twice before 9:15... so the lines weren't getting too long at that point.
> 
> The tricky party is SDD.  You would want to make sure you were on MDE right at 7am and clicked it immediately... that would probably get you a 10am LL.
> 
> So let's say you got a 10am LL for SDD:
> 8am - arrive at park
> 8:30 - 9am - ride ROTR
> 9 - 10am - ride MFSR
> 10am - walk over to Toy Story land for SDD (remember you have until 11am to get on it)
> Ride SDD and then get another LL - you should be able to get Saucers, TSM, RRC or TOT pretty close to the current time... none of these were going very fast when we were there.  Then just rinse and repeat LL until you are done.



This (bolded) could well be the flaw in your plan.  If you arrive at 8:00 a.m. for an 8:30 a.m. EE, you are at the back of the pack.  We arrived at 7:40 a.m. and the crowd for ROTR had already been moved to the holding area backstage.  We weren't even close to the front.  That said, we were on and off in about 50 minutes (this was pre-ILL$/LL and was strictly stand-by).  Those ILL$ must play a role in boarding times.

On another day, we arrived at DHS at 7:20 a.m. and we were at the front of the pack for SDD--front row of the crowd.  We walked quickly when we were led to the ride at exactly 8:30 a.m. and I would estimate despite our speed, about 50-60 people managed to roll through the crowd from the back to jump the queue.  That waiting game for EE paid off because we rode SDD in less than 10 minutes, moved on to TSMM and then over to ToT and RnRC and finishing with ST (the only rides we planned for that day).  We were done before 11:00 a.m. and had to hang around for our lunch ADR.


----------



## aeasterling

Lsyves said:


> We waited 30 mins for our HM LL. Maybe it was an off day but it was disappointing for the cost...


Yes, you are right on that - I forgot about that one.  Our HM LL was a longer one... they merge everyone before you go in and it seemed like they'd take 10 standby for every 5 LL people.


----------



## aeasterling

Tess said:


> This (bolded) could well be the flaw in your plan.  If you arrive at 8:00 a.m. for an 8:30 a.m. EE, you are at the back of the pack.  We arrived at 7:40 a.m. and the crowd for ROTR had already been moved to the holding area backstage.  We weren't even close to the front.  That said, we were on and off in about 50 minutes (this was pre-ILL$/LL and was strictly stand-by).  Those ILL$ must play a role in boarding times.
> 
> On another day, we arrived at DHS at 7:20 a.m. and we were at the front of the pack for SDD--front row of the crowd.  We walked quickly when we were led to the ride at exactly 8:30 a.m. and I would estimate despite our speed, about 50-60 people managed to roll through the crowd from the back to jump the queue.  That waiting game for EE paid off because we rode SDD in less than 10 minutes, moved on to TSMM and then over to ToT and RnRC and finishing with ST (the only rides we planned for that day).  We were done before 11:00 a.m. and had to hang around for our lunch ADR.


Good point - so I'd modify my advice to arrive at HS at *7:30 *to ride ROTR.  Then I think the rest of the plan would work.


----------



## leeniewdw

Tess said:


> This (bolded) could well be the flaw in your plan.  If you arrive at 8:00 a.m. for an 8:30 a.m. EE, you are at the back of the pack.  We arrived at 7:40 a.m. and the crowd for ROTR had already been moved to the holding area backstage.





aeasterling said:


> Good point - so I'd modify my advice to arrive at HS at *7:30 *to ride ROTR.  Then I think the rest of the plan would work.



Noted.  We're early risers in general, so this is good advice.


----------



## cruisefortibet

Lsyves said:


> We waited 30 mins for our HM LL. Maybe it was an off day but it was disappointing for the cost...



Were you there on 10/29? Just curious bc I heard some people waited 40+min LL for HM that day in the early afternoon, and I believe that was due to the ride going offline right before 12pm. We were tapped in at 11:45am for LL and the ride shut down entirely, they shoved us all in there and made us wait like 15-20 min before ushering everyone out. It was chaotic. We went back at like 6:45pm and waited in LL just 10 min maybe. Although the ride stopped for ~5 min while we were on it, I suspect that it was having troubles that entire day.

Also, apologies if this was made clear in earlier posts... but if you tap into a ride on LL and it goes offline/they usher you out, we were told you have to talk to the CM outside the ride entrance to get it fixed on MDE. Don't do what we did which was go to Guest Services, they basically lectured us on what we did wrong and they "don't do this sort of thing here, but they'd make a one time exception for us" in the most disaproving voice they could muster. Very different experience earlier in the week at AK when we paid for ILL FoP but DD panicked when put in the ride vehicle, and we talked to Guest Services there and they just gave him a refund. A little confusing for us.


----------



## letsgobirds

Tess said:


> This (bolded) could well be the flaw in your plan.  If you arrive at 8:00 a.m. for an 8:30 a.m. EE, you are at the back of the pack.  We arrived at 7:40 a.m. and the crowd for ROTR had already been moved to the holding area backstage.  We weren't even close to the front.  That said, we were on and off in about 50 minutes (this was pre-ILL$/LL and was strictly stand-by).  Those ILL$ must play a role in boarding times.
> 
> On another day, we arrived at DHS at 7:20 a.m. and we were at the front of the pack for SDD--front row of the crowd.  We walked quickly when we were led to the ride at exactly 8:30 a.m. and I would estimate despite our speed, about 50-60 people managed to roll through the crowd from the back to jump the queue.  That waiting game for EE paid off because we rode SDD in less than 10 minutes, moved on to TSMM and then over to ToT and RnRC and finishing with ST (the only rides we planned for that day).  We were done before 11:00 a.m. and had to hang around for our lunch ADR.


This is the EE pitfall for my group.  I totally understand how pre opening waiting saves time when the park is open, but for my group w kids ranging from 4-8 , waiting around the entry an hour prior to doing  anything in the parks will be nearly unmanageable ,so the value of EE rope drop is greatly diminished for us.  

Even though the nickle and dining sucks , this is a situation where the cost of both ILLs and G+ may be very useful since fully utilizing RD to its fullest isn't possible


----------



## Pookie9922

For those of you utilizing the stacking LL, do you feel like you're criss-crossing the parks all day? That's my fear, coming from DLR which are so much smaller. I'm fine criss-crossing either of our parks - I literally can jog across DCA in 5 minutes! On our first trip to WDW, I had each day planned out so well that we really only looped each park once a day with very little backtracking (while doing EVERYTHING on our list), except our 2nd day at MK when we'd done everything we wanted to and started repeating. 

I'm trying to develop a strategy in my head of how this next trip will go and I hate that there are so many unknowns. At least we've done everything now and there isn't a huge amount of pressure to see it ALL this time. We know which rides we can live without. But I also dont want to waste time and money missing things. We're also adding the fun of my brother-in-laws family coming with us - who will not plan and will not rope drop. I'm trying to find a nice way to say that they're on their own, because I cannot figure out how our plan and their lack of plan will line up at all anytime of the day!


----------



## ckelly14

letsgobirds said:


> This is the EE pitfall for my group.  I totally understand how pre opening waiting saves time when the park is open, but for my group w kids ranging from 4-8 , waiting around the entry an hour prior to doing  anything in the parks will be nearly unmanageable ,so the value of EE rope drop is greatly diminished for us.
> 
> Even though the nickle and dining sucks , this is a situation where the cost of both ILLs and G+ may be very useful since fully utilizing RD to its fullest isn't possible



Can't you just arrive at 8:15-8:30?  You will be in the back of the line for the EE people but you have a head start on the rest of the crowd.


----------



## RoseGold

Pookie9922 said:


> For those of you utilizing the stacking LL, do you feel like you're criss-crossing the parks all day? That's my fear, coming from DLR which are so much smaller. I'm fine criss-crossing either of our parks - I literally can jog across DCA in 5 minutes! On our first trip to WDW, I had each day planned out so well that we really only looped each park once a day with very little backtracking (while doing EVERYTHING on our list), except our 2nd day at MK when we'd done everything we wanted to and started repeating.



I mean, yea, that's kind of the point, you crisscross to get the good rides.  It's not like you're going to Barnstormer to avoid walking across the park when you paid for G+ today.  You're going to the good rides:  HM to JC to Buzz and so on.  To minimize walking, the FP system was better because you had a lot of filler time and maybe did ride Barnstormer killing some time before 7D in a couple hours.

G+ makes walking and backtracking hard to plan because it's all on the fly.  So maybe Buzz is now, but JC is in two hours, even though you're at HM.  So, you pick Buzz, even though the walk is significant.


----------



## Lsyves

cruisefortibet said:


> Were you there on 10/29? Just curious bc I heard some people waited 40+min LL for HM that day in the early afternoon, and I believe that was due to the ride going offline right before 12pm. We were tapped in at 11:45am for LL and the ride shut down entirely, they shoved us all in there and made us wait like 15-20 min before ushering everyone out. It was chaotic. We went back at like 6:45pm and waited in LL just 10 min maybe. Although the ride stopped for ~5 min while we were on it, I suspect that it was having troubles that entire day.
> 
> Also, apologies if this was made clear in earlier posts... but if you tap into a ride on LL and it goes offline/they usher you out, we were told you have to talk to the CM outside the ride entrance to get it fixed on MDE. Don't do what we did which was go to Guest Services, they basically lectured us on what we did wrong and they "don't do this sort of thing here, but they'd make a one time exception for us" in the most disaproving voice they could muster. Very different experience earlier in the week at AK when we paid for ILL FoP but DD panicked when put in the ride vehicle, and we talked to Guest Services there and they just gave him a refund. A little confusing for us.


It was on the 24th if I remember right...


----------



## StarrySkye21

aeasterling said:


> Good point - so I'd modify my advice to arrive at HS at *7:30 *to ride ROTR.  Then I think the rest of the plan would work.


What time do busses from on-site resorts start taking people to HS in the morning?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

ComeToSocialize said:


> DisneyTouristBlog is speculating / half confirming that this is indeed another strategy. You don't have to wait for the 120 min to pass to create a double stack, you just have to let your window expire, then book during the grace period, then tap during the grace period.
> 
> This makes the stacking extremely powerful as you can theoretically create a new stack every hour. It also means you no longer have to strategically pick a window at least 60 min past park opening, you should instead pick one immediately at park open, ideally for your favorite ride.


Holy moly, that would be an amazing strategy.  Are there any confirmed reports that this works?


----------



## Lsyves

DisneyKidds said:


> Ouch.  How long was the posted standby line?  If LL returns aren’t consistently short it really does dilute the value of G+….


I think it was 55 mins


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

leeniewdw said:


> I hesitate to comment because I accidentally posted the wrong thing about 3 days after I was certain I understood things  However,  If the park opens at 9am, you can't book another LL until 11am as far as I understood.  You make your first LL reservation at 7am and the next one becomes available 2 hours after park opening.   If MK opens at 9am, that slot is 11am.


No, in his scenario, he can book a LL attraction at 10:01 Am because his previous LL “expired.”


----------



## Pookie9922

RoseGold said:


> I mean, yea, that's kind of the point, you crisscross to get the good rides.  It's not like you're going to Barnstormer to avoid walking across the park when you paid for G+ today.  You're going to the good rides:  HM to JC to Buzz and so on.  To minimize walking, the FP system was better because you had a lot of filler time and maybe did ride Barnstormer killing some time before 7D in a couple hours.
> 
> G+ makes walking and backtracking hard to plan because it's all on the fly.  So maybe Buzz is now, but JC is in two hours, even though you're at HM.  So, you pick Buzz, even though the walk is significant.


For someone who isn't super familiar with the distances at WDW, it'll be hard to judge what would be considered a good enough G+ return time to make criss crossing worth it. Like if it saves 20 minutes of waiting time, but it takes 15 minutes to walk to it, it might not be worth taking. The nerd in me really wants to (and probably will) map out all possible routes on TP so I'll be able to judge walking time!

But generally I guess I'll just have to try to have a bit of a plan but ultimately put my DL mindset on and go by what's available. And I better start walking/exercising now to get ready!


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Cotta said:


> Another thing to keep in mind is if you miss your 15 minute leeway window you can not rebook G+ for the ride. Not sure the stress would be worth it. It's a good strategy on paper (or screen) but in the park there are so many variables. I think it would be good to keep in the back of your mind if it works out but not something I would plan my day around...


People are underestimating how powerful this “hack” is, if it works.  It means you can effectively pull 2 LL’s every time you ride a ride, so long as you tap into that ride during the grace period.  It would enable you to very quickly set up triple and even quadruple stacks by the afternoon.  On a day that’s not too crowded it probably creates the equivalent of a once per ride universal style express pass where you can hit every ride in the park.


----------



## letsgobirds

ckelly14 said:


> Can't you just arrive at 8:15-8:30?  You will be in the back of the line for the EE people but you have a head start on the rest of the crowd.


Yeah, that's our plan, but it looks like doing that still makes RoTR impossible given the crowds that build there, hence the need for the ILL


----------



## Tess

StarrySkye21 said:


> What time do busses from on-site resorts start taking people to HS in the morning?



We were at BCV, so I have no clue what time the buses left for DHS, I can tell you though that the MK bus for an 8:30 EE (1st) arrived around 6:30 a.m.  The AK bus (1st) for a 7:30 a.m. early entry was there around 6:00 a.m.

The boat to DHS, however, hadn't yet arrived at YC/BC, BW and S/D as we were walking over at 7:00 a.m.  The Skyliner from the resorts was running when we arrived and buses were entering and leaving the lot.  (I don't believe it was running from Epcot that early.)

As with all things Disney--bus timing varies.


----------



## persnickity

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> People are underestimating how powerful this “hack” is, if it works.  It means you can effectively pull 2 LL’s every time you ride a ride, so long as you tap into that ride during the grace period.  It would enable you to very quickly set up triple and even quadruple stacks by the afternoon.  On a day that’s not too crowded it probably creates the equivalent of a once per ride universal style express pass where you can hit every ride in the park.



Exactly why I figure this might be a loophole they actually put some real effort into closing. (ie, trying not to get too excited about it before our Thanksgiving week trip)


----------



## Blondie58

Would not work at all on DH iPhone 6.  Worked sporadically on my iPhone 7.  You must live through connectivity (goodbye relaxation) to order food and/or use this service.  There are cast member tech gurus scattered about the parks to help.  (Look for blue umbrellas.)  Plan on waits to get your questions answered and tech issues addressed.  Plan on your park days being extended to do the same amount of things you did in the past.


----------



## sandrews0608

This is going to be really hard when not rope dropping.  I know my 18 year old will not want to RD every day.  I might get 1 or 2 days.  We will be able do the late nights at MK and Epcot though, so hopefully those will be helpful.  We don't have to do every ride though as we have our favorites of course.  It was easier when she was young as she didn't mind RD every day and we would be done by lunch!


----------



## Tiggr88

sandrews0608 said:


> This is going to be really hard when not rope dropping.  I know my 18 year old will not want to RD every day.  I might get 1 or 2 days.  We will be able do the late nights at MK and Epcot though, so hopefully those will be helpful.  We don't have to do every ride though as we have our favorites of course.  It was easier when she was young as she didn't mind RD every day and we would be done by lunch!


Not rope dropping is what the stacking is good for. That way you should be able to have 2 or 3 G+ to manage and the ILL$s have timeslots, so it is definitely doable. My daughter did a late arrival HS and no issues. Again, crowds were not too bad so things may be different, but you should still be good if you plan.


----------



## dmunsil

persnickity said:


> Exactly why I figure this might be a loophole they actually put some real effort into closing. (ie, trying not to get too excited about it before our Thanksgiving week trip)



I think you could be right, but as I think it through, it's not as clear cut.

The key resource that Disney is trying to conserve is Lightning Lane reservations on top-tier rides, and to some extent mid-tier rides. They don't want a subset of "power users" to use up a significant fraction of the headliner rides' capacity.

But the fact that you can't get more than one LL reservation per ride acts as a strong limiting factor on the ability to use any of these loopholes to get more Lightning Lane capacity on the headliners. You don't need these hacks to get on all the "big" rides. Basically anyone who wants to stay all day can get a Lightning Lane reservation on all of the Genie+ headliners without needing to use any hacks at all. Just show up, reserve the first one, ride it, reserve the second one, ride, it, etc. through the day. 

DHS is the toughest park, because you need to get your Slinky Dog reservation done before it sells out. Even if you have to book it for late in the day, by 2 hours later you're unblocked and can now methodically work through all or most of the other top rides in the park. I think it would have to be a super busy day where you couldn't get a Lightning Lane res for SDD, Rock n Rollercoaster, Toy Story Mania, Tower of Terror and Millennium Falcon, which would leave you plenty of time to use the standby lane for everything else. If you're willing to pay for ILL, that's even more time available.

So bottom line, all these strategies like double-stacking do is allow a power user to get through the headliners _faster_. They're getting the same amount of capacity of the headliners' Lightning Lanes that anyone else could get, just earlier in the day.

On a very busy day, a knowledgeable guest could get on more headliners than a naive guest, but not by a massive number. There just aren't that many headliners in each park that are part of Genie+.


----------



## RoseGold

dmunsil said:


> On a very busy day, a knowledgeable guest could get on more headliners than a naive guest, but not by a massive number. There just aren't that many headliners in each park that are part of Genie+.



The place a power user can shine is with the hopper.  

We were able to use G+ to get all of our Tier 2s in all the parks in two days, stacking the late close and moving parks.  Incredible.  This was impossible with FP.  I was thrilled.  There are rides I had never ridden in multiple trips, like Tower of Terror, because I could never get a FP.  Someone willing to fork out for the hopper and G+ can cover the Tier 2 fast.


----------



## soniam

Cotta said:


> Agreed. Hold on while I go finish my Computer Science degree... If A1 then A2... Really need to brush up on my Boolean expressions.



I need a flow or logic chart to fully understand the decision tree here.



aeasterling said:


> Yes, you are right on that - I forgot about that one.  Our HM LL was a longer one... they merge everyone before you go in and it seemed like they'd take 10 standby for every 5 LL people.



This was always an issue with FP+. Sounds like anywhere the merge point is far back could be an issue. I can't remember where else there was an early merge point, maybe Rock n Roller Coaster and TOT.


----------



## William B

RoseGold said:


> The place a power user can shine is with the hopper.
> 
> We were able to use G+ to get all of our Tier 2s in all the parks in two days, stacking the late close and moving parks.  Incredible.  This was impossible with FP.  I was thrilled.  There are rides I had never ridden in multiple trips, like Tower of Terror, because I could never get a FP.  Someone willing to fork out for the hopper and G+ can cover the Tier 2 fast.


Can you explain?  Is the system to make your reservation in the park you are hopping to and then wait till the 2 hours after opening and start stacking that way?  Just trying to figure out the best method to get the most out of our park hoppers.


----------



## RoseGold

William B said:


> Can you explain?  Is the system to make your reservation in the park you are hopping to and then wait till the 2 hours after opening and start stacking that way?  Just trying to figure out the best method to get the most out of our park hoppers.



The good FPs were generally available, the rides that would have been impossible to get with FP.  So, you use your G+ on rides like Tower of Terror, you hop to another park, use it there on rides like Jungle Cruise, and then you do Star Tours and tiki room the next day without G+.  If you just stayed in one park, you'd run out of choices and have to use it on Star Tours eventually.

This was an off-peak weekday, to be fair.


----------



## ComeToSocialize

persnickity said:


> Exactly why I figure this might be a loophole they actually put some real effort into closing. (ie, trying not to get too excited about it before our Thanksgiving week trip)



Yeah, I personally think that both are loopholes that are eventually going to be closed when the word about this spreads more and the bloggers/vloggers start describing how to do this. There's no way someone at Disney decided "OK, if 120 min passes and their ride window is still open, if they book before tapping they should be able to get 2 G+ reservations, but if they book after tapping then they should only get 1..." That doesn't make any sense, it shouldn't matter what order you do actions in, but right now, book, tap, book means you get two LLs, tap then book means you only get 1.

My guess is someone coded it as "you become eligible for a new G+ reservation any time A) 120 min passes after last reservation made; B) Any time a LL window expires OR C) any time you tap into a ride. They never considered that multiple of those things could happen on a single LL reservation. 

I think what will trigger Disney fixing this is people trying to set up these double and triple stacks, having it not work for whatever reason, then complaining that it didn't work the way they read on so and so's blog. Enough of those complaints and Disney might have to do something

I don't think Disney actually really cares that much about making G+ "fair" or balanced, as power users are always going to benefit (most people didn't know about the refresh trick, and those who did could go on many many more rides than those that didn't. ). But the refresh trick was at least intuitive - people cancel, first one to grab it wins. This stuff is convoluted and doesn't seem intentional.


----------



## Claire82013

Does anyone know if you can see the preshow with the Hondo animatronic in the Genie+ line for Smugglers run?


----------



## rmclain73

Claire82013 said:


> Does anyone know if you can see the preshow with the Hondo animatronic in the Genie+ line for Smugglers run?




Yes, you do.


----------



## rmclain73

Lsyves said:


> It was on the 24th if I remember right...



The weeks leading up to Halloween always see HM with longer than usual lines.


----------



## NavyDad

FRANKTSJR said:


> That's for one person. Family of four $132. That's the cost of a nice dinner. Multiply that by 5-7 days and it's a big chunk of change


Which she points out 5-10 times in the video.


----------



## mrebuck

leeniewdw said:


> Thank you.  I do not have the blue "Plan for Your Next Park" section.   We do have a park reservation for that day and we show the 1 day Park Hoppers listed in MDE.  These were leftover 1 day hoppers because we were in WDW when it closed (and left with a day left on our package).   I wonder if there is still something left to do.  The good news is that we'll have time to talk to Guest Services when we arrive the day prior.   We have to stop there anyway because we'll be buying 1 day passes to add to this free one and we'll need to make sure on day 1 it uses the 1 day/1 park pass instead of the hopper.
> 
> Thanks again.


Did you figure out how to fix this?  Like you, I have my park reservations selected for the day,and have park hopper tickets, but I do not have the "Plan for Your Next Park" section.


----------



## kiramay

kiramay said:


> Just my husband and I for Food and Wine and the new ROTR ride. Originally I wasn’t going to pay for G+ at all on this trip and just pay for the one ILL ride. But now I’m considering paying for once day to play with it at HS and hopping to Epcot. The plan will be the earliest SDD possible, early ILL ROTR, and RD Tot and RnRC. Maybe squeeze in TSMM and ST.
> 
> Then hop. VQ Remy (or ride it another day). LL TT and Soarin. That’s about all we care about.



ok. I’m quoting and bumping my post because we go Monday and I’m starting to panic after looking at how fast the LL and ILL passes are going now. We only have one morning (9 am to 2 pm or whenever we hop to Epcot) in HS and it’s the only day I’m buying Genie+. I’m worried I’ll get stuck with my first LL at like 5 pm and I’ve wasted $30.

Do I book Slinky Dog or Rise of the Resistance $ first?

And a “stacking question”. Right now (11 am) it’s showing the next TT LL is at 7 pm. If booked that, I could book another in two hours at 1 pm right? 
thank you!!


----------



## Grasshopper2016

I'm thinking about trying to stack for my DHS day on December 19.  Like almost everyone else (unfortunately), our two biggest priorities would be SDD and MFSR.  My basic plan would be to grab SDD at 7:00 a.m. for as soon as possible, so long as I can check in after 11:00 a.m. in order to stack.  (So, ideally, 10:30 or so.)  Then, right at 11:00, grab a second LL for MFSR for as soon as possible in the afternoon.   And then try to roll the stack for the rest of the day.

But I don't think it's going to work.  Today is a random Wednesday in November.  And yet, at 11:01, the earliest return slot for MFSR is 5:50 p.m.  And on a busy crowd day, that's only going to be worse.  I suspect MFSR will be sold out completely by 11:00. 

So disappointing!


----------



## hollygolitely93

Tips from our experience:

Family of 4; used G+ and ILL; stayed on property

*Trickiest Park: *HS. Went on two separate days; wanted to be done by 1pm. Goal was no line waiting (we never waited with FP+)
- we booked RotR, both days, at 7am with plenty of availability.
- booked RotR first; which meant by the time we went to book SDD early morning times were gone (SDD was 1pm+)
- Arrived for early morning entry (8:30am)
- Walked on Rock n Roller, TT, Star Tours and Alien Saucer. By the time we finished these we had 20+ minute waits for all other attractions wanted; so had to kill time or wait in line until our ride reservation times came up. Unsure if booking SDD first and then RotR would have yielded better results. 
- Tried at 11am to book 2nd g+ but nothing we wanted was available before 1pm.
- Therefore, we did get everything in, but it meant killing time mid morning (could have done droid/saber building or seen a show) and breaking SDD and MF between two days. It also meant we only used 1-2 G+ reservations at HS before we ran out of time (perhaps if we stayed all day it would have been more valuable...)

*Best Park Use: *MK
- was able to stack attractions and availability for most attractions were within 2-3 hours of time we reserved, making it easy to just roll from attraction to attraction all day.

*Best Use of G+*
-For us we found Park Hopping to be the best use of G+... being able to book an afternoon attraction while leaving your first park and then the second attraction 120 mins later meant we had two attractions stacked for our later afternoon park fun. 
- We found all attractions (except SDD and MF) had availability thought early evening.

* Worst Use of G+*
- AK. Wasn't needed. Used ILL for FoP, only.


----------



## leeniewdw

mrebuck said:


> Did you figure out how to fix this?  Like you, I have my park reservations selected for the day,and have park hopper tickets, but I do not have the "Plan for Your Next Park" section.



I can't know for sure if it just fixed it self, but I actually opened a help chat via the app.   The rep said everything looked correct and confirmed I had a park hopper that day (which I could confirm myself).  So I went back in and it was there.  I wish I knew if they did something, they did not claim to have changed anything.


----------



## mrebuck

leeniewdw said:


> I can't know for sure if it just fixed it self, but I actually opened a help chat via the app.   The rep said everything looked correct and confirmed I had a park hopper that day (which I could confirm myself).  So I went back in and it was there.  I wish I knew if they did something, they did not claim to have changed anything.


Thanks.  I'll try that.


----------



## RoseGold

rmclain73 said:


> The weeks leading up to Halloween always see HM with longer than usual lines.





kiramay said:


> ok. I’m quoting and bumping my post because we go Monday and I’m starting to panic after looking at how fast the LL and ILL passes are going now. We only have one morning (9 am to 2 pm or whenever we hop to Epcot) in HS and it’s the only day I’m buying Genie+. I’m worried I’ll get stuck with my first LL at like 5 pm and I’ve wasted $30.
> 
> Do I book Slinky Dog or Rise of the Resistance $ first?



I'd try for Slinky Dog first and then do the rest on the fly.

I was there right before Halloween and ROTR was still available ($) at 10 or 11.  Slinky Dog was actually down on and off most of the day.  We booked a TT that was only a few minutes away mid-day and also waited standby for TT, which was only 20 minutes, right before Halloween and with Slinky Dog down.

You should be able to do SDD, TT, and ROTR in one day, if you're willing to pay for them.  Worst case scenario, you wait for TT.


----------



## VeronicaZS

I've read through many pages of this thread and I haven't seen the following discussed.

Molly states at about minute 48 of her video that unlike FP+, *party size is not a factor in Genie+ selections*. The system will show you the next available time regardless of party size. For those that have used it, do you find this is true in practice? If so, I may seriously reconsider Genie+ for our party of 7 on November 22 at MK.

The SECRET to Using Genie+ in Disney World's Hollywood Studios - YouTube


----------



## nurseberta

ckelly14 said:


> Well, RotR is out as that is only a ILL$ attraction.  Here's what I would do:
> 7AM grab a G+ LL for SDD (let's say 9:15 per your example).
> Ride RotR during EE.
> Ride MFSR or anything else you like unitl 10:15 (if possible).
> Grab another LL between 10:15 and 10:30.  Tap into SDD before 10:30.
> 
> Continue to alternate LL for the rest of the day!



so in this example LL window expires resets the clock



DisneyKidds said:


> Ouch.  How long was the posted standby line?  If LL returns aren’t consistently short it really does dilute the value of G+….



I'm trying to think of this as worth it for planning. the goal is short waits, so if you use G+ great, if standby is short, then you can re-ride.  value in either, just try not to think about man I paid extra, and focus on the, we got great availability to ride



AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> People are underestimating how powerful this “hack” is, if it works.  It means you can effectively pull 2 LL’s every time you ride a ride, so long as you tap into that ride during the grace period.  It would enable you to very quickly set up triple and even quadruple stacks by the afternoon.  On a day that’s not too crowded it probably creates the equivalent of a once per ride universal style express pass where you can hit every ride in the park.



Actually if you consider that there are specific app actions that will essentially clear the path for a new LL, you could set up your 2 stack LL first thing and then essentially not worry about the stack/ride in 15 min grace period factor. As per my understanding (correct me if I am wrong) you can tap/book/tap/book 2 active G+ LL if you have already stacked them. thereby giving you less stress to book in that 15 min grace period.

actions that reset ability to book a G+LL
1. 120min cool down after booking LL. 
2. G+LL window expires.
3. tap into current window 

from the example above 
7AM grab a G+ LL for SDD (let's say 9:15 per your example).
Ride RotR during EE. 
Ride MFSR or anything else you like until 10:15 (if possible). 
Grab another LL between 10:15 and 10:30.  Tap into SDD before 10:30.

when you make a LL prior to tapping into SDD you secure that one, then after tapping in you can possibly secure another? due to the fact that the clock has been reset twice in a row. 1st by wondow expiring and second by tapping into LL window.

wow I sound crazy!!!

someone corroborate please!

Can I apply for my advanced Disney degree now


----------



## js

Hi.
I am leaving next Thursday, November 11.
We are AP staying at BWVs and one ticket that is "regular park ticket" (three total).

November 11 we are going to Epcot our arrival day.

I can book our LL and IA$ at the airport?

I was a master/wizard of FP and FP+

I am lost with LL and G+, although I know the difference. I'm hung up on this 120 minute thing.

What happens if I book at LL and then don't use it?

I want to have G+ and IA$ booked and ready between 12 am - 7 am day I'm going to the park.

If park opens at 9:30 am, I can make a G+ for 9:30 am? I want to do this, is that correct?
Then, I want to not use my G+ until 10:31 am, is this also correct?
At 10:31 am, I want to get my next G+, once that is secure, and hoping earliest one is closest to my time of securing, then I tap into my 9:30 am attraction. Is this correct? 

Once I tap into my 9:30 am (10:31 am) attraction, I can then get another G+? Is this also correct, as of today?

I keep doing this all day? Then, if I want to hop at 2 pm, at any time in my first park and if I DON'T have a LL booked for my first park I can book my second park first LL for 2:00 pm (if available).  Is this correct?

Could I have a 12 pm LL in my first park and then book 2 pm for my second LL in my second park?

I hope this makes sense to someone else other than in my head since I'm trying to read up quickly today and then hopefully before our trip on Thursday.

Thank you if you are still here reading LOL



Is there somewhere on this thread or link, where someone can please explain the stacking to me?
I know I can master it, but I got to start reading.
I've been extremely busy at work but today it slowed down and I need to catch up.

Thank you.


----------



## #1minnie

Is there a window of time once you book a Genie + reservation?  I know you only get "next available", but lets say thats for 11am.  Is there a window of time you can show up, like there used to be for FP, like an extra 30-45 minutes or so?


----------



## Lsyves

rmclain73 said:


> The weeks leading up to Halloween always see HM with longer than usual lines.


True. But lightning lane should be fast whenever you buy it IMHO.


----------



## lmtalbot17

This might be taking it a step too far, but I’ve been thinking about that new expiration “loophole” and wondering if this is theoretically possible:

Assuming 9am park open
7am grab first LL for 10:15am
11am grab second LL (after 120 min cool off)
11:15am grab third LL (after expiration window)
11:20am tap into first LL (within grace period) and grab fourth LL

If that works, that would mean by 11:20 I’ve got a triple stack, right? Or have I officially lost it?!


----------



## persnickity

VeronicaZS said:


> I've read through many pages of this thread and I haven't seen the following discussed.
> 
> Molly states at about minute 48 of her video that unlike FP+, *party size is not a factor in Genie+ selections*. The system will show you the next available time regardless of party size. For those that have used it, do you find this is true in practice? If so, I may seriously reconsider Genie+ for our party of 7 on November 22 at MK.
> 
> The SECRET to Using Genie+ in Disney World's Hollywood Studios - YouTube



This has always been my understanding - you don't even select your party size until you've clicked on the time you want to book.


----------



## JETSDAD

persnickity said:


> This has always been my understanding - you don't even select your party size until you've clicked on the time you want to book.


This should make refreshing even easier then.  I like it.


----------



## Tiggr88

JETSDAD said:


> This should make refreshing even easier then.  I like it.


By having next available, rather then selectable time slots, they can do this. It just pushes the next person out a little further that's all. If they ever tried to allow people to make timeslot reservations in G+ like the old  FP+ or the current ILL, they would probably have the same issue and require you to select your party in which case the available time slots might be different or not available for larger parties just like FP+.


----------



## JETSDAD

Tiggr88 said:


> By having next available, rather then selectable time slots, they can do this. It just pushes the next person out a little further that's all. If they ever tried to allow people to make timeslot reservations in G+ like the old  FP+ or the current ILL, they would probably have the same issue and require you to select your party in which case the available time slots might be different or not available for larger parties just like FP+.


Yes but the problem with this is that a party of 1 could cancel their time and it could be picked up by a large party.  And this issue isn't solved by pushing the next available time out later because I'm grabbing an earlier one off time that's been dropped.


----------



## leeniewdw

lmtalbot17 said:


> This might be taking it a step too far, but I’ve been thinking about that new expiration “loophole” and wondering if this is theoretically possible:
> 
> Assuming 9am park open
> 7am grab first LL for 10:15am
> 11am grab second LL (after 120 min cool off)
> 11:15am grab third LL (after expiration window)
> 11:20am tap into first LL (within grace period) and grab fourth LL
> 
> If that works, that would mean by 11:20 I’ve got a triple stack, right? Or have I officially lost it?!



Based on what was described this week, I think it is supposed to work.   I'm not sure anyone here has actually tried this though.


----------



## dmunsil

lmtalbot17 said:


> This might be taking it a step too far, but I’ve been thinking about that new expiration “loophole” and wondering if this is theoretically possible:
> 
> Assuming 9am park open
> 7am grab first LL for 10:15am
> 11am grab second LL (after 120 min cool off)
> 11:15am grab third LL (after expiration window)
> 11:20am tap into first LL (within grace period) and grab fourth LL
> 
> If that works, that would mean by 11:20 I’ve got a triple stack, right? Or have I officially lost it?!



Your third step doesn't work, because when you get the 11am LL reservation it sets a new eligibility time, so the 11:15 eligibility time no longer applies. If you wait until 11:15, nothing happens other than your regular return window expires.

At any point in time, you are either eligible to book, or you have a single future eligibility time. When you book a reservation, it sets a new eligibility time, making the old time moot. When you use a reservation, it immediately makes you eligible.


----------



## AZMermaid

When you click on the next available time, can it move forward as the confirmation process cycles? Like if you hit 9:30 for slinky, will it change to 11 as you book it? Or is the 9:30 locked in once you press it?


----------



## HopperFan

AZMermaid said:


> When you click on the next available time, can it move forward as the confirmation process cycles? Like if you hit 9:30 for slinky, will it change to 11 as you book it? Or is the 9:30 locked in once you press it?



Has happened to me 4-5 times so far in three days. I'm not slow either, I click it, I click select all .... and my confirmation came back a later time as much as an hour.  On several of them I cancelled and changed them.


----------



## nurseberta

lmtalbot17 said:


> This might be taking it a step too far, but I’ve been thinking about that new expiration “loophole” and wondering if this is theoretically possible:
> 
> Assuming 9am park open
> 7am grab first LL for 10:15am
> 11am grab second LL (after 120 min cool off)
> 11:15am grab third LL (after expiration window)
> 11:20am tap into first LL (within grace period) and grab fourth LL
> 
> If that works, that would mean by 11:20 I’ve got a triple stack, right? Or have I officially lost it?!



I have to say that IF the system allows  availability to book after window expires at 11:15, you would need to book at or past 11:16 and then tap into your grace period. I think this may work! But it’s confusing


----------



## Sjm9911

I havent been reading up on it for the last 20 pages. But today at MK, if you semi roped dropped it was basicly useless. Sure i may not have rode, pirates3x or haunted mansion 2x , etc , and i have no clue what crowds were like but i didnt get value out of it. Better value would be for 7dmt , only thing it helped with was jc . But i could have did that later or earlier. We did rd , or early park entry and got there 45 minutes before opening( not really rp for toady, we were far behind) We rode most of the stuff standby with little wait. So , ppf, small world, haunted mansion, both mountains,  pirates, then had JC for 11 am, stacked with LM and then buzz, we did space afterwards standby.  We took a break at like 1 pm. Went back at like 630, and the LL were way further out then the standy lines or wernt even needed. Walked on pirates in standby, didnt even use the later pirate LL we had later. So it got us on JC , but that was basicly it. Unless they remove the paid LL , and add it to the regular LL, i see little to no value for the $$$. At least for today. The killer was the times for the rides even when refreshed were not in the area we were, or we already rode those rides. It got glitchy at night, and stuff that was LL disappeared from out ap. But was good when you tapped in. Ok, its late. If you have questions ask. Ill try to answer. So , in short , went for the double stack, but we allready did most of the rides that were available.  Went back later, and still had no need or ooen slots to double stack again. Better to use it for park hoping or right away. Or not at all.


----------



## mommycrawford

RoseGold said:


> The good FPs were generally available, the rides that would have been impossible to get with FP.  So, you use your G+ on rides like Tower of Terror, you hop to another park, use it there on rides like Jungle Cruise, and then you do Star Tours and tiki room the next day without G+.  If you just stayed in one park, you'd run out of choices and have to use it on Star Tours eventually.
> 
> This was an off-peak weekday, to be fair.


Thank you this!


----------



## Sydnerella

hollygolitely93 said:


> Tips from our experience:
> 
> Family of 4; used G+ and ILL; stayed on property
> 
> *Trickiest Park: *HS. Went on two separate days; wanted to be done by 1pm. Goal was no line waiting (we never waited with FP+)
> - we booked RotR, both days, at 7am with plenty of availability.
> - booked RotR first; which meant by the time we went to book SDD early morning times were gone (SDD was 1pm+)
> - Arrived for early morning entry (8:30am)
> - Walked on Rock n Roller, TT, Star Tours and Alien Saucer. By the time we finished these we had 20+ minute waits for all other attractions wanted; so had to kill time or wait in line until our ride reservation times came up. Unsure if booking SDD first and then RotR would have yielded better results.
> - Tried at 11am to book 2nd g+ but nothing we wanted was available before 1pm.
> - Therefore, we did get everything in, but it meant killing time mid morning (could have done droid/saber building or seen a show) and breaking SDD and MF between two days. It also meant we only used 1-2 G+ reservations at HS before we ran out of time (perhaps if we stayed all day it would have been more valuable...)
> 
> *Best Park Use: *MK
> - was able to stack attractions and availability for most attractions were within 2-3 hours of time we reserved, making it easy to just roll from attraction to attraction all day.
> 
> *Best Use of G+*
> -For us we found Park Hopping to be the best use of G+... being able to book an afternoon attraction while leaving your first park and then the second attraction 120 mins later meant we had two attractions stacked for our later afternoon park fun.
> - We found all attractions (except SDD and MF) had availability thought early evening.
> 
> * Worst Use of G+*
> - AK. Wasn't needed. Used ILL for FoP, only.


 
Loved this! Thank you!

So based on ROTR availability you mentioned it seems that a better strategy for HS is to book SSD first or MFSR. I think that we will have one person booking each thing at 7 AM.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

lmtalbot17 said:


> This might be taking it a step too far, but I’ve been thinking about that new expiration “loophole” and wondering if this is theoretically possible:
> 
> Assuming 9am park open
> 7am grab first LL for 10:15am
> 11am grab second LL (after 120 min cool off)
> 11:15am grab third LL (after expiration window)
> 11:20am tap into first LL (within grace period) and grab fourth LL
> 
> If that works, that would mean by 11:20 I’ve got a triple stack, right? Or have I officially lost it?!


Right, it sounds like this would work and is why that exploit is so powerful.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

dmunsil said:


> Your third step doesn't work, because when you get the 11am LL reservation it sets a new eligibility time, so the 11:15 eligibility time no longer applies. If you wait until 11:15, nothing happens other than your regular return window expires.
> 
> At any point in time, you are either eligible to book, or you have a single future eligibility time. When you book a reservation, it sets a new eligibility time, making the old time moot. When you use a reservation, it immediately makes you eligible.


No, step 3 works because of the exploit.  His ride has expired which resets the eligibility timer.


----------



## LSUfan4444

Sjm9911 said:


> at MK, if you semi roped dropped it was basicly useless




If you're looking for the morning, correct. If you plan to RD or semi RD you can book and stack in the afternoon and have a good bit of success


----------



## LSUfan4444

So this morning, SDD was gone for the day at 7:03 am and I'll be honest, we don't even like the ride that much so this is a best case scenario for us. At that time MFSR was around mid day.

We plan to hit HS two days and at least one of them will be a rope drop so we look like we can book (at 7am) a post 11 am MFSR pretty easy, after that add our ILL for RotR for a window that fits out Smugglers Run return window. From 9-11 we can really see how much we get done and know if we will be staying in HS after lunch or hopping somewhere else and use that 11-1 cool down window to use our Smugglers Run and RotR LL's. 

Something like this.?.?.?


7am - reserve MFSR for a window around 11:00am and RoTR iLL aiming for 12:40 -1pm
Then, at 11 am we can book something after lunch in the park we plan to hop to 
So, does this mean we should be able to book another once tapping in at our 11:00 am Smugglers Run or would we need to wait until the return window expired and enter the LL during the grace period?


----------



## Sjm9911

LSUfan4444 said:


> If you're looking for the morning, correct. If you plan to RD or semi RD you can book and stack in the afternoon and have a good bit of success


It was useless at night too, a lot of the  rides showed 30 min wait times and were walk on. Space, had few people buying the LL + so standby over flowed there. Pirates were running empty LL boats. If your there at the 3 to 6 pm window then maybe worth it. But the times then were far out for anything decent.


----------



## LSUfan4444

Yeah, I got ya. I wouldn't wait to get there to book something. The key to success would be to book those (jungle cruise,  splash, peter pan, etc) rides earlier in the day with return times into the late afternoon and early evening. 

Splash can wobble either way...could be 20, could be 50 but it's a solid bet that JC and PP will have standby waits over 30 minutes into the evening. 

I think in the end though, if you bought it to experience/insure low wait times and that's what you experienced it is "worth it" but that's just me. I will not view it's value on the amount of times I use it but rather how much time I am not standing in a standby line or waiting for a return window doing things I don't want to do.


----------



## g-dad66

I don’t know if anyone has mentioned this yet, but I found a reason to choose Favorites.
We were at Hollywood Studios yesterday and I knew I wanted to book Slinky right at 7:00 to get a decent time slot.
So I selected Slinky as my only Favorite.
That brings Slinky to the top of the list on the Tip Board, and it stays there when you refresh or toggle.

Also when I practiced the day before and I was on the Tip Board page, the Book Experience links didn’t become active at 7:00.
So yesterday I sat on the My Day page and when the time showed 6:59:56 at top of screen, I clicked on Tip Boards tab. It took 3 seconds to get there and the Book Experience link was active.
There may be a better way to do this, and I will continue to be an avid reader of the boards to learn what it is.


----------



## g-dad66

g-dad66 said:


> I don’t know if anyone has mentioned this yet, but I found a reason to choose Favorites.
> We were at Hollywood Studios yesterday and I knew I wanted to book Slinky right at 7:00 to get a decent time slot.
> So I selected Slinky as my only Favorite.
> That brings Slinky to the top of the list on the Tip Board, and it stays there when you refresh or toggle.
> 
> Also when I practiced the day before and I was on the Tip Board page, the Book Experience links didn’t become active at 7:00.
> So yesterday I sat on the My Day page and when the time showed 6:59:56 at top of screen, I clicked on Tip Boards tab. It took 3 seconds to get there and the Book Experience link was active.
> There may be a better way to do this, and I will continue to be an avid reader of the boards to learn what it is.



guess that should be 4 seconds, not 3 seconds….


----------



## Airb330

I’m really struggling to see how this system is better. SDD still sells out quickly, it costs money, it requires more thinking about in the parks, 7am each day. 

The only upside I see is that is should make standby lines more faster. Clearly the upside for Disney is the money. As an AP/DVC guest who comes about twice a year, I much prefer FP+ & doing a half day in the park with 3-5 rides and calling it a day.

Oh well, I hope someone thinks this system is better overall for their touring. We can’t always win when things change and this G+system doesn’t fit our touring style after reviewing the tip board each day. *Edited to add*...thanks for this thread though as it's still very educational in case we do want to use G+.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Airb330 said:


> I’m really struggling to see how this system is better. SDD still sells out quickly, it costs money, it requires more thinking about in the parks, 7am each day.
> 
> The only upside I see is that is should make standby lines more faster. Clearly the upside for Disney is the money. As an AP/DVC guest who comes about twice a year, I much prefer FP+ & doing a half day in the park with 3-5 rides and calling it a day.
> 
> Oh well, I hope someone thinks this system is better overall for their touring. We can’t always win when things change and this G+
> system doesn’t fit our touring style after reviewing the tip board each day.


This system is emphatically much worse for HS, AK and Epcot.  The system may be better for MK and/or park hopping.


----------



## LSUfan4444

Im afraid you can't judge this system vs FP or FP+...those are gone, they're ghosts. the only thin that ultimately matters now is whether or not you are better with it or without it. 

I am all in for 100% standby (outside of private VIP tours), all day, every day but that isn't a reality so now that G+ and ILLs are a reality and is being had by some guests, I think the option of using G+ and ILLs is better than not. What I used to spend on lunch at Sci Fi will now be spent on line skipping access.


----------



## leeniewdw

LSUfan4444 said:


> Something like this.?.?.?
> 
> 
> 7am - reserve MFSR for a window around 11:00am and RoTR iLL aiming for 12:40 -1pm
> Then, at 11 am we can book something after lunch in the park we plan to hop to
> So, does this mean we should be able to book another once tapping in at our 11:00 am Smugglers Run or would we need to wait until the return window expired and enter the LL during the grace period?



I believe in this scenario, you can grab another LL once you tap into the MFSR, yes.  So you would still have a stack of 2 LLs (one grabbed at 11am, 1 grabbed after MFSR tap in).


----------



## Sjm9911

Ok today, at hs was not good. In line at 815 for the micky and minnie ride, waited untill 930 untill they said to not wait for it anymore because  it broke. Did , aliens,  then went to tower of terror. Got there that was broke. Lol. All standby lines at this point were a hour. Now 2nd LL almost ready to book , nothing good untill later.


----------



## leeniewdw

Yikes


----------



## wisblue

Does anyone have specific experience booking a LL for Slinky at exactly  7 AM ET?

When I test this at home by refreshing the Tip Board at exactly 7 AM, the LL return time shows as 9 AM. If I keep refreshing the Tip Board I usually get 9 AM twice before it quickly goes to later in the morning and then into the afternoon and evening within a minute or so.

I’m wondering if anyone who has  had a DHS reservation and bought Genie+ has tried to book Slinky, and whether the return time you were actually able to confirm was the same as the time that showed when you selected the LL. For example, if you click on a time of 9 AM are you able to confirm 9AM or something later?


----------



## Claire82013

Airb330 said:


> I’m really struggling to see how this system is better. SDD still sells out quickly, it costs money, it requires more thinking about in the parks, 7am each day.
> 
> The only upside I see is that is should make standby lines more faster. Clearly the upside for Disney is the money. As an AP/DVC guest who comes about twice a year, I much prefer FP+ & doing a half day in the park with 3-5 rides and calling it a day.
> 
> Oh well, I hope someone thinks this system is better overall for their touring. We can’t always win when things change and this G+system doesn’t fit our touring style after reviewing the tip board each day. *Edited to add*...thanks for this thread though as it's still very educational in case we do want to use G+.


I'm very surprised based on this that Disney hasn't switched SDD to IAS and MMRR to G+.


----------



## Airb330

Sjm9911 said:


> Ok today, at hs was not good. In line at 815 for the micky and minnie ride, waited untill 930 untill they said to not wait for it anymore because  it broke. Did , aliens,  then went to tower of terror. Got there that was broke. Lol. All standby lines at this point were a hour. Now 2nd LL almost ready to book , nothing good untill later.


Yikes, no kidding. Most G+ LL selections that have value are 7PM and it isn't even noon yet.


----------



## roxymama

wisblue said:


> Does anyone have specific experience booking a LL for Slinky at exactly  7 AM ET?
> 
> When I test this at home by refreshing the Tip Board at exactly 7 AM, the LL return time shows as 9 AM. If I keep refreshing the Tip Board I usually get 9 AM twice before it quickly goes to later in the morning and then into the afternoon and evening within a minute or so.
> 
> I’m wondering if anyone who has  had a DHS reservation and bought Genie+ has tried to book Slinky, and whether the return time you were actually able to confirm was the same as the time that showed when you selected the LL. For example, if you click on a time of 9 AM are you able to confirm 9AM or something later?



On 10/26 I used a world clock app and clicked on the tip board SDD a few seconds prior to 7am.  My first choice time for SDD showed 9:15am, I clicked on it and got 9:45am which I booked.  It had not turned to 7:01 yet when the next choice was showing 11:20am.  So that just shows that a large % of people who try right at 7am are clicking SDD as their first choice.  SDD is the new Rise virtual queue in terms of "first priority."

I then was able to buy a IA$ for Rise at 10:30 (there were earlier choices but I wanted to space them apart enough.)  I did notice throughout the day the SDD (and other rides) would randomly have earlier "next available" access on the apps.  So if it said 5pm for a while, randomly a 3pm would show up.  I'm sure as people change plans throughout the day and as Disney recalibrates how many to make available based on crowd size for standby.


----------



## tex1989

I am sure this has been asked and answered but yes I am lazy (and actually working right now) but I was wondering how the child swap will work with Genie +.  We are arriving November 13th with myself, wife, son and dil and our 1 year old grandson and have purchased Genie +.  Does the rider swap work similar to how it used to or will we have to ride two and two? In other words wife and I ride then we keep grandson while son and dil ride?  I wanted to call Disney but 2 hours plus on the phone is not an option at the moment.

Sorry if this is a duplicate but thanks for any help.


----------



## Blondie58

Glues you to technology!  I vacation to get away from tech.  The time space between use of the first choice to your next choice is too great.  We did not care for at all.  BEWARE - system does NOT work with iPhone 6 and only sometimes works with iPhone 7.  We conferred with several tech folks that stand at the blue umbrellas to help all the frustrated guests with the system.  I must say these young people are very nice but I am sure they roll their eyes when they see the gray hairs coming.   lol  Also I would like a printed menu.


----------



## KrazeeK120

tex1989 said:


> I am sure this has been asked and answered but yes I am lazy (and actually working right now) but I was wondering how the child swap will work with Genie +.  We are arriving November 13th with myself, wife, son and dil and our 1 year old grandson and have purchased Genie +.  Does the rider swap work similar to how it used to or will we have to ride two and two? In other words wife and I ride then we keep grandson while son and dil ride?  I wanted to call Disney but 2 hours plus on the phone is not an option at the moment.
> 
> Sorry if this is a duplicate but thanks for any help.



If you are using LL, there wouldn’t be a swap. 2 people go ride and then the next 2.

We went a couple of times before our son turned 3 and was too short to ride some things. When we had FP, my husband would use his and then I’d use mine (or Vice versa). There’s nothing to swap in that scenario.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

KrazeeK120 said:


> If you are using LL, there wouldn’t be a swap. 2 people go ride and then the next 2.
> 
> We went a couple of times before our son turned 3 and was too short to ride some things. When we had FP, my husband would use his and then I’d use mine (or Vice versa). There’s nothing to swap in that scenario.


I don't think this is accurate.  Why wouldn't rider swap work the same as it did under fastpass? (Subject to the fact that they limited the number of those who can "re-ride" in the swap scenario).


----------



## g-dad66

wisblue said:


> Does anyone have specific experience booking a LL for Slinky at exactly  7 AM ET?
> 
> When I test this at home by refreshing the Tip Board at exactly 7 AM, the LL return time shows as 9 AM. If I keep refreshing the Tip Board I usually get 9 AM twice before it quickly goes to later in the morning and then into the afternoon and evening within a minute or so.
> 
> I’m wondering if anyone who has  had a DHS reservation and bought Genie+ has tried to book Slinky, and whether the return time you were actually able to confirm was the same as the time that showed when you selected the LL. For example, if you click on a time of 9 AM are you able to confirm 9AM or something later?


 I booked SDD yesterday at 7am. The first time was earlier than I wanted.
Clicked Back and I don’t remember exactly what it was then (maybe about 11:30). I took it and it changed to 12:15.


----------



## Sjm9911

wisblue said:


> Does anyone have specific experience booking a LL for Slinky at exactly  7 AM ET?
> 
> When I test this at home by refreshing the Tip Board at exactly 7 AM, the LL return time shows as 9 AM. If I keep refreshing the Tip Board I usually get 9 AM twice before it quickly goes to later in the morning and then into the afternoon and evening within a minute or so.
> 
> I’m wondering if anyone who has  had a DHS reservation and bought Genie+ has tried to book Slinky, and whether the return time you were actually able to confirm was the same as the time that showed when you selected the LL. For example, if you click on a time of 9 AM are you able to confirm 9AM or something later?


I did today had 930 time i clicked it and it changed to 1130. All done at 704 or 706. Then went to rise, after that clicked and only 330 pm available.  Exactly at 7 am.


----------



## britt54311

Does anyone know, up to how many people in your group can be selected at one time for Genie+ return time? We will be a party of 13 plus an infant. At times we would all like to ride at the same time.


----------



## persnickity

britt54311 said:


> Does anyone know, up to how many people in your group can be selected at one time for Genie+ return time? We will be a party of 13 plus an infant. At times we would all like to ride at the same time.



I think it's up to 12. Might need to split into two groups with two head coordinators and try to get close/overlapping times.


----------



## dmunsil

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> No, step 3 works because of the exploit.  His ride has expired which resets the eligibility timer.



I explicitly tested this scenario last week. The system has a single eligibility time that it sets when you book a LL reservation. The expiration of a reservation is only indirectly tied to eligibility time, sometimes.

Every time you book a G+  LL reservation, it sets a eligibility return time, which is the earlier of the end of the reservation return window and 2 hours from the current time (or 2 hours from the park opening time if you’re booking before opening time). Every time you book, it sets a new time and there’s only one time it’s tracking.

So if it’s 9:00 am and you book a 10:15-11:15 am reservation, the eligibility time is set to 11:00 am. If you wait until 11:00, the eligibility time hits and you can book, but that new booking sets a new eligibility time. Say you booked a 11:30-12:30 at that point. Now your eligibility time is 12:30. If you wait until 11:15, nothing happens. You can still tap in and regain eligibility, but the expiration of your 10:15-11:15 reservation does nothing, because that was never set as an eligibility time in the first place.

The confusion arises because tapping in on any reservation resets eligibility, and canceling any reservation resets eligibility, so it’s easy to think that expiration of any reservation would reset eligibility. But it doesn’t work that way.


----------



## dez1978

RoseGold said:


> The place a power user can shine is with the hopper.
> 
> We were able to use G+ to get all of our Tier 2s in all the parks in two days, stacking the late close and moving parks.  Incredible.  This was impossible with FP.  I was thrilled.  There are rides I had never ridden in multiple trips, like Tower of Terror, because I could never get a FP.  Someone willing to fork out for the hopper and G+ can cover the Tier 2 fast.


Can you help me out with this?  I have a 2 day hopper coming up and while I think I understand, I don't want to mess it up.  Day 1 I plan AK to HS.  I am staying at the DS Hilton so I get EE but can't book LL till 9.  So at 9 do I want to try for late SDD 1st since it will likely sell out?  Then I can't book anything else till 11, but I can prob keep busy at AK until then I think.  Or maybe I'm missing something.  

Day 2 is MK to Epcot.  Theres only 2 rides at epcot I care about.  Mostly going there for world showcase and food lol.


----------



## Turksmom

dez1978 said:


> Can you help me out with this?  I have a 2 day hopper coming up and while I think I understand, I don't want to mess it up.  Day 1 I plan AK to HS.  I am staying at the DS Hilton so I get EE but can't book LL till 9.  So at 9 do I want to try for late SDD 1st since it will likely sell out?  Then I can't book anything else till 11, but I can prob keep busy at AK until then I think.  Or maybe I'm missing something.
> 
> Day 2 is MK to Epcot.  Theres only 2 rides at epcot I care about.  Mostly going there for world showcase and food lol.


G+ users can book first ride at 7- just not the extra individually paid rides, so book SDD then!


----------



## dez1978

Turksmom said:


> G+ users can book first ride at 7- just not the extra individually paid rides, so book SDD then!


Oh thank you.  I thought I couldn't book any thing until park open.  But I can, just not paid rides.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

dmunsil said:


> So if it’s 9:00 am and you book a 10:15-11:15 am reservation, the eligibility time is set to 11:00 am. *If you wait until 11:00, the eligibility time hits and you can book, *but that new booking sets a new eligibility time. Say you booked a 11:30-12:30 at that point. Now your eligibility time is 12:30. If you wait until 11:15, nothing happens. You can still tap in and regain eligibility, but the expiration of your 10:15-11:15 reservation does nothing, because that was never set as an eligibility time in the first place.


What you’re describing isn’t the exploit, at least as I understand it.  The exploit is achieved by adding a LL+ reservation after a ride window expires (as you said, that “resets” the eligibility timer.” And then immediately tapping in during the 15 minute grace period after making that addition (again as you said, that once again resets the “eligibility timer.”).  Now you are double stacked.  Rinse and repeat and you can easily triple and quadruple stack throughout the day.


----------



## BrotherCraig

dez1978 said:


> Oh thank you.  I thought I couldn't book any thing until park open.  But I can, just not paid rides.



FOR INDIVIDUAL Lightening Lane (purchase) rides:

*Guests of a Disney Resort Hotel and Other Select Hotels*: These Guests can make their first purchase starting at 7:00 AM on the day of their visit. Available to Disney Resort hotel Guests and Guests of Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Hotels and Shades of Green.
*All Other Guests*: These Guests can make their first purchase when the park opens.
For Genie+ Lightening Lanes:
*When to Select Attractions*
Once you have Disney Genie+ service, you can select the next available arrival window for your first experience via the My Disney Experience mobile app beginning at 7:00 AM on the day of your visit.
Once you’ve redeemed your initial selection (or the arrival window has passed), you can use the app to check your My Day itinerary or Tip Board to see when you’re eligible to make another selection. You can make selections all day up to regular park closing.


----------



## britt54311

Ok 


persnickity said:


> I think it's up to 12. Might need to split into two groups with two head coordinators and try to get close/overlapping times.


Ok thk you!!


----------



## jimmymc

Airb330 said:


> I’m really struggling to see how this system is better. SDD still sells out quickly, it costs money, it requires more thinking about in the parks, 7am each day.
> 
> The only upside I see is that is should make standby lines more faster. Clearly the upside for Disney is the money. As an AP/DVC guest who comes about twice a year, I much prefer FP+ & doing a half day in the park with 3-5 rides and calling it a day.
> 
> Oh well, I hope someone thinks this system is better overall for their touring. We can’t always win when things change and this G+system doesn’t fit our touring style after reviewing the tip board each day. *Edited to add*...thanks for this thread though as it's still very educational in case we do want to use G+.



I think it's better than FP+ if you want to do as many attractions as possible in a day. Getting 4+ reservations with Genie+ is much easier than FP+. The standby lines have also been better on the top tier attractions. I don't think it's perfect, but I actually prefer it to FP+ (though I think the paper tickets or just no fastpasses are the best systems).


----------



## Mango7100

wisblue said:


> Does anyone have specific experience booking a LL for Slinky at exactly  7 AM ET?
> 
> When I test this at home by refreshing the Tip Board at exactly 7 AM, the LL return time shows as 9 AM. If I keep refreshing the Tip Board I usually get 9 AM twice before it quickly goes to later in the morning and then into the afternoon and evening within a minute or so.
> 
> I’m wondering if anyone who has  had a DHS reservation and bought Genie+ has tried to book Slinky, and whether the return time you were actually able to confirm was the same as the time that showed when you selected the LL. For example, if you click on a time of 9 AM are you able to confirm 9AM or something later?


I didn’t actually book it, but today at 7 am exactly a 900 Slinky popped up. I refreshed about 6-7 times and at 701 the return time was 5 pm. For comparison at 701 the ROTR ILL return time was 210.


----------



## Einstein509

Reading through all of this makes my head hurt.  The amount of strategery, questions, planning, scheming, figuring out how to maximize the use of this system is stressful.  This is not a vacation anymore.  It's more like a military operation.  I think the invasion of Normandy had a one page order........we're on page 44 of this thread.  Wow.


----------



## BrotherCraig

Einstein509 said:


> Reading through all of this makes my head hurt.  The amount of strategery, questions, planning, scheming, figuring out how to maximize the use of this system is stressful.  This is not a vacation anymore.  It's more like a military operation.  I think the invasion of Normandy had a one page order........we're on page 44 of this thread.  Wow.



I hear ya.  My wife doesn't even want to go anymore and now wishes she went with my advice and go to Roatan or Hawaii.  Would have been cheaper and easier.  lol  It's a lot of crazy stuff that is for sure.  I feel bad for the ones that arrive at WDW and don't know what to do to get on rides.  Cast Members need a raise with all of this.


----------



## kniquy

We were at WDW for a short 4 day trip with only one day in each park.  As avid WDW visitors for AK, EP and HS we didn't feel the needed to get Genie +.  We did what we could do and just prioritized our wants list.  We hopped over to Epcot and ended up buying the ILL for Remy, we felt how could we visit and not ride the newest ride.  It is a cute but certainly not worth paying to ride.  The virtual queue i don't think is as demanding as ROTR was.  Just for fun I attempted the 1:00 time slot at 1:30pm and i was given a boarding pass, but it wasn't called until we were sitting in the airport at 8pm.  

MK - with only having one day there we felt it a huge help to use Genie + there.  I stumbled upon the "stacking" process.  At 7am I booked a jungle cruise which was at 10:30am.  We waited to ride it until 11:10.  At 11:00 (2 hours/120 min post opening) I was able to book another ride. Once we scanned in to JC I booked a 2nd G+ ride.  We were able to do this all day long until i hit a snag with Splash - it was down during our return window, so it appears the system will allow you to book another G+, but because we were already holding 2 G+ it wouldn't allow me to book a replacement (3rd ride) in place of splash.  

Having gone 2 times during Covid -non-FP times I actually disliked having to plan out and figure out where we were going and what we were doing.  This is coming from a previous over planner.  

Would i use it again?  On a limited time trip with only 1 MK day I would consider it.  But if you have 2 full days planned at MK it likely isn't needed.  Rope drop or end of night would help accomplish any headliners with limited waits.


----------



## leeniewdw

I really have to think about G+ for our 1 hopper day.  Originally it was going to be a HS/MK day which would make sense, but we're probably getting the Merriest AH tickets so it'll be a HS/EP day.   We'll be buying Remi but I don't think it's worth it at EP to have a stack of LLs  when we hop for the afternoon evening.  Which leaves G+ for HS.  If it's a day like today (as reported), by the time I'd be able to grab another LL at 11am, the times will likely be later than we want to stay.   So I might need to adapt an earn/burn LL strategy (as opposed to stacking) there or just not bother at all.

I literally had an xls of how to stack for a HS/MK day, but when I tried to adapt it for a HS/EP day, it just seemed dumb.  If we're going to EP to just eat/drink and ride a few rides, it almost seems like LL would dictate the where/when too much.

This would be my fear of a G+ morning at HS:



Sjm9911 said:


> Ok today, at hs was not good. In line at 815 for the micky and minnie ride, waited until 930 until they said to not wait for it anymore because  it broke. Did , aliens,  then went to tower of terror. Got there that was broke. Lol. All standby lines at this point were a hour. Now 2nd LL almost ready to book , nothing good until later.


----------



## g-dad66

Tapped into Soarin today and expected to be eligible for another LL, but no, not eligible.
Tried again after the second touch point and yes, eligible.
I was thinking that with FP+ you only had to tap in at the entrance to clear that one out. If so, Genie+ seems to be different.


----------



## dmunsil

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> What you’re describing isn’t the exploit, at least as I understand it.  The exploit is achieved by adding a LL+ reservation after a ride window expires (as you said, that “resets” the eligibility timer.” And then immediately tapping in during the 15 minute grace period after making that addition (again as you said, that once again resets the “eligibility timer.”).  Now you are double stacked.  Rinse and repeat and you can easily triple and quadruple stack throughout the day.



I am aware of how it works. The post I replied to would not work, because they hoped to _both_ reset their eligibility to book at 120 minutes after booking _and_ also reset eligibility when that same reservation‘s window ended. That second one won’t happen. You get one or the other, and only for your _most recent_ booking.

If you book reservation A less than an hour away, the eligibility timeout is set to coincide with the end time of reservation A. If you wait until that eligibility time without booking, using or cancelling any other reservations, you can make a new reservation B, then tap in and make another reservation C. But if you book, cancel or use another reservation in the intervening time, the eligibility time is reset, and now nothing happens to your eligibility when reservation A expires.

I added notes to the post I originally replied to:



lmtalbot17 said:


> Assuming 9am park open
> 7am grab first LL for 10:15am
> 11am grab second LL (after 120 min cool off) _<- This is where the eligibility resets_
> 11:15am grab third LL (after expiration window) <- _Expiration does nothing, because eligibility already reset_
> 11:20am tap into first LL (within grace period) and grab fourth LL _<- This works_


----------



## Sjm9911

Nope both tap ins. And they added some that i don't remember them having before. This leads to people on the rides scrambling for LL. So, on like huntef manson, or the little mermaid, people on the phones looking for new LL. This will be my last disney trip for a bit. Some may like it but so far with G+ im 0 for 2. Tomorrow is epcott,  i will see how that plays out as well. Addtionally,  it jeeps saying I need to update the ap, I follow the link and its just remove or open it. I dont want to remove it mid trip.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> The exploit is achieved by adding a LL+ reservation after a ride window expires (as you said, that “resets” the eligibility timer.” And then immediately tapping in during the 15 minute grace period after making that addition (again as you said, that once again resets the “eligibility timer.”). Now you are double stacked. Rinse and repeat and you can easily triple and quadruple stack throughout the day.


Wow!  Has anyone actually confirmed that this works?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

dmunsil said:


> I am aware of how it works. The post I replied to would not work, because they hoped to _both_ reset their eligibility to book at 120 minutes after booking _and_ also reset eligibility when that same reservation‘s window ended. That second one won’t happen. You get one or the other, and only for your _most recent_ booking.
> 
> If you book reservation A less than an hour away, the eligibility timeout is set to coincide with the end time of reservation A. If you wait until that eligibility time without booking, using or cancelling any other reservations, you can make a new reservation B, then tap in and make another reservation C. But if you book, cancel or use another reservation in the intervening time, the eligibility time is reset, and now nothing happens to your eligibility when reservation A expires.
> 
> I added notes to the post I originally replied to:


So you’re saying the exploit works, but the way it works is that you can get a FP when the ride window closes, then tap in during the 15 minute grace period, and then immediately pull a second fp, correct?


----------



## dmunsil

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> So you’re saying the exploit works, but the way it works is that you can get a FP when the ride window closes, then tap in during the 15 minute grace period, and then immediately pull a second fp, correct?


You can pull another G+ LL when the eligibility time comes, which _sometimes_ will coincide with the end of the arrival window of the most recent G+ LL you booked. You can also pull another when you tap into any G+ LL reservation.

In the specific case where your only reservation is within an hour of opening, your eligibility time will coincide with the end of that reservation’s arrival window. When that time comes, you can book again. If you then tap into that reservation during the grace period, you can book again.

When you have several reservations later in the day, expiration times are less likely to be relevant, because your eligibility time is fixed by the last reservation you made. Any previous reservations, even ones that are still outstanding, are no longer a factor for your eligibility time. Also. reservations are likely to overlap in ways that make it hard or impossible to always wait for the end of your eligibility time without having to abandon an intervening reservation.

If you regained the ability to book every time a reservation hit its end time, you could book two reservations every time you used one, by waiting until the end time, booking, then tapping in, then booking. That does not work across the board. If you’re careful, you can get one extra reservation roughly every hour if the times line up right and you book in the right order, but you can’t double your reservations every hour.

And actually, I question the value of this strategy except at the beginning of the day to get a double stack started, or if you’re planning to arrive late and are trying to get as many reservations stacked up before you arrive. Even then, the reservations you want are often not going to have the earliest times, so you may end up needing to use the 120-minute stacking strategy anyway.


----------



## moorish

Oh wow, is it more crowded this week that SDD G+ slots are gone by 7:03 am? That wasn't the case when I was checking on times even last week.

ETA: I went and looked at the thrill data and every day up until today has had availability for SDD until 9ish (maybe on and off a bit). I wonder if they changed the allotment or if there was just that much more demand today.


----------



## Sjm9911

It was packed today at HS. And from what I was told is that its busier earlier. I'm guessing this is because everyone gets up at 7 am to make a reservation, if there up they might as well gontonthe park at opening time. MK was the same way. I got there about 45 minutes ( might have been closer to an hour, but the kids in front of us couldnt scan there fingers, it was atually funny. But took up some time)  before the 830 early opening. We were ushered in spots just for the resort guests. I was still way behind. And 7DMT was were everyone went. Spent the money there, rope drop the whole rest of the park while there in line. Lol.


----------



## Tiggr88

moorish said:


> Oh wow, is it more crowded this week that SDD G+ slots are gone by 7:03 am? That wasn't the case when I was checking on times even last week.
> 
> ETA: I went and looked at the thrill data and every day up until today has had availability for SDD until 9ish (maybe on and off a bit). I wonder if they changed the allotment or if there was just that much more demand today.


Its interesting. Looks like thrill data has slots available until about 7:20, then none for a while and then availability back from 7:35 - 8:05 and then mostly unavailable the rest of the day with some short windows of availability, probably cancellations that briefly showed up.

You can see the LL availability map a little ways down on this page. 

https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/park/wdw/hollywood-studios/


----------



## tex1989

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I don't think this is accurate.  Why wouldn't rider swap work the same as it did under fastpass? (Subject to the fact that they limited the number of those who can "re-ride" in the swap scenario).



I found the answer on All Ears and it said they still do it but the rules are you have to check in with the child present, designate who will wait, and who will ride a second time, all people participating must have Genie +, and you can only take one person. The comment also said they were strictly enforcing the one extra rider to go back with the person who waited.


----------



## soniam

Blondie58 said:


> Glues you to technology!  I vacation to get away from tech.  The time space between use of the first choice to your next choice is too great.  We did not care for at all.  BEWARE - system does NOT work with iPhone 6 and only sometimes works with iPhone 7.  We conferred with several tech folks that stand at the blue umbrellas to help all the frustrated guests with the system.  I must say these young people are very nice but I am sure they roll their eyes when they see the gray hairs coming.   lol  Also I would like a printed menu.



Question on iPhone 7. Was the OS updated to 15/latest? Was the app updated to latest? Just asking, because my husband's new iPhone won't make it until probably after our trip. I just replaced my 7 with a 13 mini. So, we will at least have one phone that should work. Thanks



Mango7100 said:


> I didn’t actually book it, but today at 7 am exactly a 900 Slinky popped up. I refreshed about 6-7 times and at 701 the return time was 5 pm. For comparison at 701 the ROTR ILL return time was 210.



So, it sounds like the best strategy if using G+ and buying ILL is to get SDD G+ first and then buy Rise ILL, right? This is for an onsite stay.


----------



## jeneric997

I have a question about how to keep stacking when one person in your party doesn't ride a ride you have a LL for. Do they have to find another ride or have someone tap their band????


----------



## letsgobirds

Just looked at Thrill data and trying to plan a G+ strategy for tomorrow MK.  Wanted to expire / double stack so trying to pick first G+. It looks like Jungle Cruise is the fastest to book out surprisingly with return times already at 11 even around 7.  So picking that first would make the early AM without a G+ to use.   But picking a different ride then adding that later would give a late return time that holds a slot unused for a while too.  Not sure what the best strategy is here.  It's like a much easier version of the SDD G+ dilemma


----------



## nurseberta

Ok here is my new plan.......

Hollywood Studios
6:45-7:20 am breakfast/coffee at BWI
7:00 book SDD G+ early as possible
7:01 book RotR paid early as possible (onsite stay)
7:20 walk to HS for ETPE 8:30
RD MFSR
Ride SDD  (add G+ ToT 1 min into grace period tap into SDD after G+ selected, add 2nd G+RnR)
Ride RotR paid
Standby TSM and *** (Alien Swirling Saucers) in between.
Standby MMRR later in the day or trip
fill in shows and snacks/meals as they fit in.

thrill data shows ride popularity for LL to be  in this order as far as I can tell
SDD, RotR, MFSR, ToT, RnR


----------



## wisblue

letsgobirds said:


> Just looked at Thrill data and trying to plan a G+ strategy for tomorrow MK.  Wanted to expire / double stack so trying to pick first G+. It looks like Jungle Cruise is the fastest to book out surprisingly with return times already at 11 even around 7.  So picking that first would make the early AM without a G+ to use.   But picking a different ride then adding that later would give a late return time that holds a slot unused for a while too.  Not sure what the best strategy is here.  It's like a much easier version of the SDD G+ dilemma



That is what I have been thinking. Get JC for like 11-12, use Early Entry and standby until 11, book a second LL, then ride JC and make a third LL to set up the stack.


----------



## wisblue

jeneric997 said:


> I have a question about how to keep stacking when one person in your party doesn't ride a ride you have a LL for. Do they have to find another ride or have someone tap their band????



I think you can just cancel the LL for the person who doesn’t ride.


----------



## nurseberta

wisblue said:


> That is what I have been thinking. Get JC for like 11-12, use Early Entry and standby until 11, book a second LL, then ride JC and make a third LL to set up the stack.


If they would only let you over to jungle cruise earlier than 9am you would be able to RD it


----------



## wisblue

nurseberta said:


> If they would only let you over to jungle cruise earlier than 9am you would be able to RD it



You can still do it with a short wait right at 9, but the objective is to get that LL after 11 to set up the stack.

We have always had good luck doing BTMRR, Splash (when it’s warm enough that early), HM, and POC with fairly short waits in the first 2 hours. The standby line at JC generally builds up faster than at the other 4.

So, we will probably go to 7DMT or Space Mountain  at 8:30 and then head to the other side of the park at 9.


----------



## JenLT

I’m a little confused about stacking. Our first day we will be going to Hollywood studios.  We usually rope drop and don’t go to the park the day we arrive but I think we can make it work with Genie Plus.  So on our way there, we can get our first LL at 7:00.  Then at 11:00 we can get our second LL.   I’m not sure what time we plan on arriving but we could get a third one at 1:00 if we aren’t there yet?
Okay so then after we get there how long do we need to wait until we get a 4th?  Do we have to use all of them first?   Do we need to wait until 3:00?   
I get the premise of getting your LL and then wait two hours and get a new LL right before you tap on. Then you can get another.   But it’s having several at the same time already that I am unsure of how it will work.   Thanks.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

dmunsil said:


> I explicitly tested this scenario last week. The system has a single eligibility time that it sets when you book a LL reservation. The expiration of a reservation is only indirectly tied to eligibility time, sometimes.
> 
> Every time you book a G+  LL reservation, it sets a eligibility return time, which is the earlier of the end of the reservation return window and 2 hours from the current time (or 2 hours from the park opening time if you’re booking before opening time). Every time you book, it sets a new time and there’s only one time it’s tracking.
> 
> So if it’s 9:00 am and you book a 10:15-11:15 am reservation, the eligibility time is set to 11:00 am. If you wait until 11:00, the eligibility time hits and you can book, but that new booking sets a new eligibility time. Say you booked a 11:30-12:30 at that point. Now your eligibility time is 12:30. If you wait until 11:15, nothing happens. You can still tap in and regain eligibility, but the expiration of your 10:15-11:15 reservation does nothing, because that was never set as an eligibility time in the first place.
> 
> The confusion arises because tapping in on any reservation resets eligibility, and canceling any reservation resets eligibility, so it’s easy to think that expiration of any reservation would reset eligibility. But it doesn’t work that way.


When I was there I saw eligibility would reset when the window for the LL passed. Therefore if I book a 9am ride and wait until 10am then technically I missed the ride and the system counted it as “used” and thus reset eligibility. That should allow one to book another LL at 10:01. However with the grace window you can then check on to the ride. This is my big question for now, does that check in ALSO allow for a LL reservation, thus allowing 2LL as of about 10:05 am, and has anyone actually tried this yet?


----------



## wisblue

JenLT said:


> I’m a little confused about stacking. Our first day we will be going to Hollywood studios.  We usually rope drop and don’t go to the park the day we arrive but I think we can make it work with Genie Plus.  So on our way there, we can get our first LL at 7:00.  Then at 11:00 we can get our second LL.   I’m not sure what time we plan on arriving but we could get a third one at 1:00 if we aren’t there yet?
> Okay so then after we get there how long do we need to wait until we get a 4th?  Do we have to use all of them first?   Do we need to wait until 3:00?
> I get the premise of getting your LL and then wait two hours and get a new LL right before you tap on. Then you can get another.   But it’s having several at the same time already that I am unsure of how it will work.   Thanks.



if you have 3 after making them at 7, 11, and 1, every time you use one, make another one and you can have 3 for the rest of the day. If you haven’t used any by 3 you could get a fourth one then.

As a practical matter, using DHS as the example, by the time you get to later in the afternoon the options for new LL might be pretty limited. But, if you can get 3 good ones and don’t arrive to the park until mid afternoon, what you have should be at least as good as what you could do with FP+, and possibly better if you can add more after you arrive.

I plan to try this at DHS in January on the day we arrive for the Marathon weekend. If everything works right with the airline, I can make 1 LL at the airport before the flight takes off, a second one at 11 after the flight arrives, and a third one at 1. We would hope to get to the park by 2.


----------



## nurseberta

Experiment
so this is the result of my refresh this morning. Granted I do not have tickets for today so I was not allowed to book further. However, SDD was consistently moving forward steadily in return times faster than Rise. I got Rise returns that moved forward to 2-4pm time range and then pop back to earlier windows 3 times ranging from 1040, 11:30, 12:35. SDD moved towards 5-7pm quickly and did not offer earlier windows frequently but I was able to get a few pop back to 3pm from 6-7pm. After 10 minutes I was able to get 9 o’clock hour windows to show for both SDD and Rise.


----------



## Sjm9911

Its also pouring out right now , so that may effect what people go for.
Lol, as i hit send the rain is stopping. Hope it stays like that.


----------



## nurseberta

Darn it! Reminder to check weather report for future tests!!!


----------



## Sjm9911

Spoke too soon raining again, lol. We have epcott today, and since g+ was allready purchased will use it. Most stuff in epcott is indoors and hopefully running. I got VC for remmy, and test track. Idea here is that if it clears up, they will let me use my TT LL later in the day. If not, no big loss. We will hit frozen and soaring at semi RD.  And hit the rest with the 2nd LL at noon. I dont think theres a need to stack.


----------



## mom2rtk

DisneyKidds said:


> People need and have been asking for something like this, and I just saw someone tell someone else to start one.  So I’m starting one!
> 
> Post up your actual usage experiences here, and your usage strategy or questions IF you plan on using it. No commentary on whether it’s good or bad, no comparisons to things that don’t exist any more (FP+).
> 
> This will keep the crybabies and arrogant jerks who don’t like it (myself among them!) from keeping people from seeing info that will actually help them use it!


So happy to have this thread, but have you considered maybe adding top tips to the first post? I feel like a lot of good stuff will get lost, and most people aren't going to go back and read 45 pages (much more as time goes on).


----------



## Garyjames220

so we are going to Disney in May and using genie + the two weeks we are there. We are meeting some friends a few days to

I was wondering if we want to use genie + with our friends, what is the best way of making sure we have the same times to all go together?


----------



## wisblue

mom2rtk said:


> So happy to have this thread, but have you considered maybe adding top tips to the first post? I feel like a lot of good stuff will get lost, and most people aren't going to go back and read 45 pages (much more as time goes on).



The moderators have planned to do this and have established a pinned and currently locked thread. But, it hasn‘t been filled in yet.


----------



## Tess

Sjm9911 said:


> *Addtionally,  it jeeps saying I need to update the ap, I follow the link and its just remove or open it. I dont want to remove it mid trip.
> *




Ignore it!  I kept getting the same thing yesterday when I checked the App--there is no update to be had provided you have the "50th" which you must or you wouldn't be using Genie!


----------



## Ldisneygraham

If I am booking LLs for an evening in the park (not park hopping just a late arrival day around 4:00-5:00), and I book LL's at 7:00, 11:00, 1:00, and 3:00...what happens if the return windows aren't that far out yet at 11:00? If I choose an earlier time, can I cancel and then rebook that ride? Or does that lose my LL and reset my 120 minute clock?

Ex: at 7am I book SDD for 5:00. At 11:00 the furthest LL time is TOT at 2:45 (before we would arrive) so I guess I select it. Could I book my third LL at 1:00 (say Rock 'n') for 4:00 and then immediately go cancel the TOT for 2:45 bc we wont be in park. Will it allow me to rebook the TOT to a later time once it is cancelled? Or did I then lose that LL since I just booked Rock 'n'?


----------



## deltadisney

For some of the experts on stacking/exploit issue, am I right that to take advantage, it is all contingent upon your first G+LL being booked within the first 2 hours of park opening?  For example, using the HS scenario, if you cannot book SDD (1st G+ LL) until a return time of say, 12:00 -1:00, then your next booking/reservation window would be at the 120 mark (11:00) and because of this, you could no longer take advantage of the grace period LL (2nd)  and the tap into and additional LL (3rd)?  Am I completely missing it?


----------



## g-dad66

MK today
7:03: Got 10:30 Jungle Cruise LL
8:30 early entry: Space Mountain
9:00: Big Thunder, Splash, Pirates, all walk-one due to rain
Time to kill before 11:00
11:00: Got 1:20 Peter Pan LL
Enter JC and got 11:35 Haunted Mansion LL
No interest in Mine Train, so this has worked well for us today to get all our favorites with Genie+ and no ILL$.


----------



## Sjm9911

At epcott,  havent even used it. Got here at rd, and walked on everything.  Waiting for remmy to come up, will hit figment and the spacip earth on the way out. So, frozen,  sorring, living, mermaid, seas, 3 cabeniaros, now at BB sing along. Remmy, and out. If i wanted to i can G+ for sorring etc. But we did what we wanted allready and no wait. Just a lot of walking. Lol. Wished they opened 3 cab in mexico earlier.


----------



## g-dad66

Sjm9911 said:


> At epcott,  havent even used it. Got here at rd, and walked on everything.  Waiting for remmy to come up, will hit figment and the spacip earth on the way out. So, frozen,  sorring, living, mermaid, seas, 3 cabeniaros, now at BB sing along. Remmy, and out. If i wanted to i can G+ for sorring etc. But we did what we wanted allready and no wait. Just a lot of walking. Lol. Wished they opened 3 cab in mexico earlier.



We did early entry Frozen yesterday.
Walking through Mexico at 10:00, and CM comes out and takes down the rope, so we said why not.
Were the very first (and only ones) to ride 3 Caballeros (officially the Gran Fiesta Tour).
After reading over the years about others’ Rope Drop experiences being First on a ride, just thought I would share about our first time being First.


----------



## sheilafri

DizBelle said:


> I can't find anywhere when you can make your second ILL$ purchase.  Can you make your 2 for the day both at 7 am?





DizBelle said:


> I can't find anywhere when you can make your second ILL$ purchase.  Can you make your 2 for the day both at 7 am?


I just got back. I booked a LL at MK at 7 am for PP. I was locked out to get my next pass until 11 am. There were 2 hour windows, then mid to late afternoon it was one hour windows, with an occasional pass offered right after I got in line. My takeaway:  I think it is a fluid situation with an algorithm controlling next booking availability.


----------



## g-dad66

Interesting getting the Jungle Cruise LL this morning. It says 10:00. I click. Says 10:05 and asks me to confirm.
No, too early, so I back out. Shows 10:10. I click. Asks me to confirm 10:20.
I back out again, and it shows 10:25. I click and it asks me to confirm 10:30.
Yes, perfect 10:30 is just what I had in mind.
(I confirm 10:30, and it stays 10:30!)

Far less dramatic than the time changes for Slinky on Wednesday, but be aware that what you get may turn out to be later than what you selected.


----------



## GoofyDad_4427

I consider myself to be pretty smart and I can't follow half the stuff in this thread.

Is anyone willing to post a "Stacking for Dummies" post that would make this as simple as possible to understand?
We are at DHS for one day on Sunday staying offsite.  My thought is that i have a good chance to get a paid ILL for Rise if I am online right at 9am.  Is this correct?


----------



## leeniewdw

sheilafri said:


> I just got back. I booked a LL at MK at 7 am for PP. I was locked out to get my next pass until 11 am. There were 2 hour windows, then mid to late afternoon it was one hour windows, with an occasional pass offered right after I got in line. My takeaway:  I think it is a fluid situation with an algorithm controlling next booking availability.


 You are describing the regular LL reservations.   The poster was asking about the pay-per-ride Individual Lightning Lanes for $.  She should be able to make both of those reservations at 7am.


----------



## Sjm9911

Ok waited for remmy,  and poof its down lol.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

With apologies for not reading the entire thread, can anyone confirm that the expiration stacking strategy actually works in practice?  As I understand it, here is how it would work: (1) book your first LL for soon after park opening; (2) wait until just a few minutes after the expiration of your first return window (without scanning into the ride), and then book a second LL for ASAP; (3) immediately scan into your first LL, during the 15-minute grace period; (4) immediately book a third LL, so that you now have two active return windows; (4) continue to roll the stack--booking a new LL as soon as you sign into a previous one--and thus have two LL slots for the rest of the day.

Has anyone actually successfully done this?


----------



## bernina

At MK now with G+ and Splash and Haunted Mansion are MIA on the map and LL selections. Both rides were up when we walked by. Anyone else experiencing this?


----------



## g-dad66

bernina said:


> At MK now with G+ and Splash and Haunted Mansion are MIA on the map and LL selections. Both rides were up when we walked by. Anyone else experiencing this?



Yes, Splash had been missing from my Tip Board for at least the past couple of hours or so.
Haunted Mansion was there when I grabbed it, but missing now.


----------



## leeniewdw

Grasshopper2016 said:


> With apologies for not reading the entire thread, can anyone confirm that the expiration stacking strategy actually works in practice?  As I understand it, here is how it would work: (1) book your first LL for soon after park opening; (2) wait until just a few minutes after the expiration of your first return window (without scanning into the ride), and then book a second LL for ASAP; (3) immediately scan into your first LL, during the 15-minute grace period; (4) immediately book a third LL, so that you now have two active return windows; (4) continue to roll the stack--booking a new LL as soon as you sign into a previous one--and thus have two LL slots for the rest of the day.
> 
> Has anyone actually successfully done this?



I've been tracking this thread pretty closely and don't think anyone has posted first hand experience despite it being discussed.   One thing that has been pointed out, is the very small window to get this to work (15 mins or less) and that if you somehow screw up and are 16 mins late, you don't ride the ride you had a LL for and you cannot get another LL for that ride.   Bottom line (for a park opening at 9am), is you gain your stack of 2 LLs one hour (well 50 something minutes) earlier than if you just do the same thing at 11am ( for a 10:XX-11:XX return window) and then tap into a ride during the actual window.

I'm not sure I'm brave enough to try this (despite an hour being a very nice perk).


----------



## JenLT

leeniewdw said:


> I've been tracking this thread pretty closely and don't think anyone has posted first hand experience despite it being discussed.   One thing that has been pointed out, is the very small window to get this to work (15 mins or less) and that if you somehow screw up and are 16 mins late, you don't ride the ride you had a LL for and you cannot get another LL for that ride.   Bottom line (for a park opening at 9am), is you gain your stack of 2 LLs one hour (well 50 something minutes) earlier than if you just do the same thing at 11am ( for a 10:XX-11:XX return window) and then tap into a ride during the actual window.
> 
> I'm not sure I'm brave enough to try this (despite an hour being a very nice perk).


Well you could go to the ride and stand right outside - make your next pick and then tap in with plenty of time.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

leeniewdw said:


> I've been tracking this thread pretty closely and don't think anyone has posted first hand experience despite it being discussed.   One thing that has been pointed out, is the very small window to get this to work (15 mins or less) and that if you somehow screw up and are 16 mins late, you don't ride the ride you had a LL for and you cannot get another LL for that ride.   Bottom line (for a park opening at 9am), is you gain your stack of 2 LLs one hour (well 50 something minutes) earlier than if you just do the same thing at 11am ( for a 10:XX-11:XX return window) and then tap into a ride during the actual window.
> 
> I'm not sure I'm brave enough to try this (despite an hour being a very nice perk).


I hear that.  But on a very busy day, that hour might see return windows creep farther and farther away.  I wonder whether being able to double-stack starting one hour after park opening, rather than two, could make a huge difference in terms of your ability to get a large number of good rides.


----------



## bernina

g-dad66 said:


> Yes, Splash had been missing from my Tip Board for at least the past couple of hours or so.
> Haunted Mansion was there when I grabbed it, but missing now.



Thanks! I'm brand new to G+, is it a glitch or do rides run out of LL selections?


----------



## g-dad66

Sjm9911 said:


> Ok waited for remmy,  and poof its down lol.





bernina said:


> Thanks! I'm brand new to G+, is it a glitch or do rides run out of LL selections?


They run out. But they will say Not Currently Offered. For example, Slinky Dog Dash at Hollywood Studios has run out.
Nothing has run out yet at MK.
The disappearance of Splash and HM is either a glitch or an alien abduction.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

Follow-up to my earlier question.  Has anyone confirmed in general that booking a new LL after the expiration of your previous return window does not negate your 15-minute grace period?


----------



## bernina

g-dad66 said:


> They run out. But they will say Not Currently Offered. For example, Slinky Dog Dash at Hollywood Studios has run out.
> Nothing has run out yet at MD.
> The disappearance of Splash and HM is either a glitch or an alien abduction.


 I vote for alien abduction.

Good news is Haunted Mansion just popped back up!


----------



## persnickity

leeniewdw said:


> I've been tracking this thread pretty closely and don't think anyone has posted first hand experience despite it being discussed.   One thing that has been pointed out, is the very small window to get this to work (15 mins or less) and that if you somehow screw up and are 16 mins late, you don't ride the ride you had a LL for and you cannot get another LL for that ride.   Bottom line (for a park opening at 9am), is you gain your stack of 2 LLs one hour (well 50 something minutes) earlier than if you just do the same thing at 11am ( for a 10:XX-11:XX return window) and then tap into a ride during the actual window.
> 
> I'm not sure I'm brave enough to try this (despite an hour being a very nice perk).



I'm thinking we'll try this for something low stakes, like one of the Fantasyland rides that don't get huge waits.


----------



## leeniewdw

Grasshopper2016 said:


> I hear that.  But on a very busy day, that hour might see return windows creep farther and farther away.  I wonder whether being able to double-stack starting one hour after park opening, rather than two, could make a huge difference in terms of your ability to get a large number of good rides.



Yeah, I agree.  For us, due to some shuffling around on a very short trip, this would be useful for us at HS where we don't plan on staying all day (or even very far beyond noon).   I've got almost a month before we go, so will look to see if anyone confirms their experience.   I'm not even sure we need G+ for that day now that we won't be hopping to MK (instead to EP).   I need to see what kind of return times are available around 10:15am to see if it even makes sense to try.  Today was a bad day to sample, due to the rain.   Honestly, if we could do MFSR, ToT, RnRC,  TSM, Star Tours, we'd probably be happy.   I feel like that might be possible even w/o G+.

BUT, we were hoping to try it out just to have the experience before a 6 person trip in Feb.  So we may do it (and eat the $32).


----------



## Tiggr88

bernina said:


> Thanks! I'm brand new to G+, is it a glitch or do rides run out of LL selections?


They can run out but typically not into later in the day for the most popular and not at all for the less popular. SDD seems to be going very quickly and may actually run out in the morning. MFSR at HS, JC and PP at MK seem to be other popular ones that run out sooner than most, but typically are still available through late morning and afternoon. 

Keep in mind that as it gets more crowded, they will start to run out sooner and more often. And the return times will obviously push out faster as well. 

Thrill data can show what it is like for a particular day. You can see the LL availability for MK yesterday a little ways down on this page. 

https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/park/wdw/magic-kingdom/2021/11/04


----------



## CarolynFH

Grasshopper2016 said:


> Follow-up to my earlier question.  Has anyone confirmed in general that booking a new LL after the expiration of your previous return window does not negate your 15-minute grace period?


I've seen more than one report of success - e.g. window was 10-11, at 11:02 booked another LL, then tapped into the ride at 11:10 without incident. So it's working, at least for now.


----------



## Sjm9911

g-dad66 said:


> They run out. But they will say Not Currently Offered. For example, Slinky Dog Dash at Hollywood Studios has run out.
> Nothing has run out yet at MK.
> The disappearance of Splash and HM is either a glitch or an alien abduction.


Down as in broken.  Not as in ran out.


----------



## Tiggr88

CarolynFH said:


> I've seen more than one report of success - e.g. window was 10-11, at 11:02 booked another LL, then tapped into the ride at 11:10 without incident. So it's working, at least for now.


If the park opened at 10, that would be an example of this working. If the park opened at 9, then that could just have been the 120 minute rule working.


----------



## dmunsil

leeniewdw said:


> I've been tracking this thread pretty closely and don't think anyone has posted first hand experience despite it being discussed.



I guess I haven't always been explicit about it, but everything I've been posting about I have verified as working. Disney can change many of the policies for Genie+ at any time, but as of last week, it worked I've said.


----------



## leeniewdw

dmunsil said:


> I guess I haven't always been explicit about it, but everything I've been posting about I have verified as working. Disney can change many of the policies for Genie+ at any time, but as of last week, it worked I've said.



Oh great!  Thanks for sharing your experience!


----------



## JakeAZ

I know the info is here somewhere, but I can't find it.

Do you have to tap into your park before you book your 2nd Genie+ LL?  Say, around 7am, I book an afternoon Slinky return.  Do I have to tap into HS to be able to keep booking in 2 hour increments, or can I do that from the hotel if anticipating a late arrival?

Thanks


----------



## dmunsil

JakeAZ said:


> I know the info is here somewhere, but I can't find it.
> 
> Do you have to tap into your park before you book your 2nd Genie+ LL?  Say, around 7am, I book an afternoon Slinky return.  Do I have to tap into HS to be able to keep booking in 2 hour increments, or can I do that from the hotel if anticipating a late arrival?
> 
> Thanks


You can do it from anywhere. The only thing you need to be in the park for is getting a 1pm boarding group.


----------



## KrazeeK120

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I don't think this is accurate.  Why wouldn't rider swap work the same as it did under fastpass? (Subject to the fact that they limited the number of those who can "re-ride" in the swap scenario).



It works the same, if you actually need to do a rider swap. However, in this scenario, it sounds like it’s a set of parents, a set of grandparents, and a small child. It makes the most sense for one couple to use their LL and then the other couple to use theirs. There would be no swap occurring.

An instance where a swap would be useful would be a family with 2 parents, a tall enough child, and a too-short child. Parent 1 rides with tall child. Child can’t get another LL for the same ride. The swap can be used so parent 2 doesn’t have to ride alone. Tall child can also ride with parent 2.

Another scenario where it’s useful is if the party is using the standby line.


----------



## JakeAZ

KrazeeK120 said:


> An instance where a swap would be useful would be a family with 2 parents, a tall enough child, and a too-short child. Parent 1 rides with tall child. Child can’t get another LL for the same ride. The swap can be used so parent 2 doesn’t have to ride alone. Tall child can also ride with parent 2.


This our scenario.

How does it work for Genie+ rider swap?

Do we all (me, my wife and my taller son) need to have a LL or do just me and my taller son need to have one?

If all 3 of us need to have one, that leaves my smaller son out of the mix for awhile as we can't get him a LL to ride something by himself...

Ideally we'd want me and my older son to get a LL for RNRC and my wife and smaller son to go ride something else with a LL.  Then my wife can ride RNRC with my taller son via rider swap and I could go find something to ride with smaller.


----------



## Boardwalk III

Tried googling this with no luck. Does anyone know if an iPhone 7plus works with the Genie app? My husband has a 6 now which doesn’t work and has a newer phone on order, but it may not come in before our trip. He has a friend that can lend him a 7+. Will that work?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Boardwalk III said:


> Tried googling this with no luck. Does anyone know if an iPhone 7plus works with the Genie app? My husband has a 6 now which doesn’t work and has a newer phone on order, but it may not come in before our trip. He has a friend that can lend him a 7+. Will that work?


I have an 8 and that works, so you're 50/50.


----------



## Tiggr88

I have a 7 and it seems to work fine. I would bring a travel charger for the park. Good advice in general but I suspect the older devices batteries drain faster.


----------



## moorish

I also have a 7 and it works fine.


----------



## soniam

bernina said:


> I vote for alien abduction.
> 
> Good news is Haunted Mansion just popped back up!



I wonder if they take it off if the ride has gone down.



Boardwalk III said:


> Tried googling this with no luck. Does anyone know if an iPhone 7plus works with the Genie app? My husband has a 6 now which doesn’t work and has a newer phone on order, but it may not come in before our trip. He has a friend that can lend him a 7+. Will that work?



I asked about the 7 as well, because someone specifically said that it was only half working on their 7. It sounds like others have said it's working. i would just make sure the OS and app are as up-to-date as possible. We are in the same boat. DH has a 7 with a 13 on backorder. It's supposed to arrive during our vacation. I did get my 13 mini already, so we have 1 phone that should work.


----------



## dmunsil

The iPhone 6s works as well; just checked.


----------



## MNDisneyMommy

We're staying off property this trip, so far it sounds like Slinky might be the only thing we struggle with if we go the G+ route.  Are they releasing another "set" at opening time for off property G+ purchasers or is it just the 7am resort crowd getting decent times now?


----------



## elgerber

MNDisneyMommy said:


> We're staying off property this trip, so far it sounds like Slinky might be the only thing we struggle with if we go the G+ route.  Are they releasing another "set" at opening time for off property G+ purchasers or is it just the 7am resort crowd getting decent times now?


Anyone can book SDD at 7. It’s only the paid ILL that off-site have to wait for park open to purchase.


----------



## letsgobirds

Grasshopper2016 said:


> With apologies for not reading the entire thread, can anyone confirm that the expiration stacking strategy actually works in practice?  As I understand it, here is how it would work: (1) book your first LL for soon after park opening; (2) wait until just a few minutes after the expiration of your first return window (without scanning into the ride), and then book a second LL for ASAP; (3) immediately scan into your first LL, during the 15-minute grace period; (4) immediately book a third LL, so that you now have two active return windows; (4) continue to roll the stack--booking a new LL as soon as you sign into a previous one--and thus have two LL slots for the rest of the day.
> 
> Has anyone actually successfully done this?


It 100% works.   Was holding 3 most of the day at MK today via combo of expire and 120 minute eligibility.   Booked HM for 10.  RD in rain so short lines , then expired HM .  At 1102 booked JC for 130 (120 min rule) first tapped into HM at 1105 and booked Splash, then after second tap added BTMR.   Don't think the first or second tap mattered, just that after 120 min I was eligible to book and after expiration I was also eligible to book, then after ride (second tap) was again eligible to book.  Worked great all day, w the caveat that it was low crowds due to terrible monsoon rain


----------



## Boardwalk III

dmunsil said:


> The iPhone 6s works as well; just checked.


Thanks, I believe his old phone was the model before the 6s and does not have the right iOS for Genie plus. He was able to get a new phone through work, but it hasn’t been delivered yet. Glad to hear the 7S works!


----------



## PepperjackDragon

letsgobirds said:


> It 100% works.   Was holding 3 most of the day at MK today via combo of expire and 120 minute eligibility.   Booked HM for 10.  RD in rain so short lines , then expired HM .  At 1102 booked JC for 130 (120 min rule) first tapped into HM at 1105 and booked Splash, then after second tap added BTMR.   Don't think the first or second tap mattered, just that after 120 min I was eligible to book and after expiration I was also eligible to book, then after ride (second tap) was again eligible to book.  Worked great all day, w the caveat that it was low crowds due to terrible monsoon rain



now I am confused. To clarify I am going to list the times you booked the reservation-NOT the time you were scheduled to get on the ride.

  LL1 (HM)  at  7am -expired at 11am.
  LL2  (JC)  at  1102am because of the 120min rule
  LL3 (S).   at    1105am  because of expired ressie
  LL4 (BT)  At    1110am because of second HM tap

So at 11:10am (ish) you had three active LL reservations-JC, Splash, and BTM all reserved and unused?

if that is what happened it would not only show that the exploit is working but that Disney will also allow you to hold multiple slots unreserved. Since your two hour window happened at the same time as your ressie 1 expired, if you then proceeded to make 2 LL before your second tap-in at HM, then that means you had two active open available slots at 11am. The first tap does not activate availability (unless the ride only has one of course)

Is this what you are saying happened?


----------



## Disturbia

VeronicaZS said:


> I've read through many pages of this thread and I haven't seen the following discussed.
> 
> Molly states at about minute 48 of her video that unlike FP+, *party size is not a factor in Genie+ selections*. The system will show you the next available time regardless of party size. For those that have used it, do you find this is true in practice? If so, I may seriously reconsider Genie+ for our party of 7 on November 22 at MK.
> 
> The SECRET to Using Genie+ in Disney World's Hollywood Studios - YouTube


We have a party of 4 riders and Genie+ would show 9 am but while booking push us to 11 am (no conflicts).  It also did the opposite with ROTR.  MMRR was down so we got an anytime pass and 2 extra MMRR passes (we bought for 4).  It took me 3 times to purchase MMRR and I got an error while purchasing; got logged out, code pasted from email etc.


----------



## Disturbia

At 11:04MFSR was pushed to 6:50 pm; TOT 6:30 pm.  Refresh actually kept pushing RnR further out (booked 4 riders) and I could only get 3:30 (although it would show me 2:50 available); by 1:25 (just happened to check) TOT was sold out for the day


----------



## Disturbia

Refresh did work for TSMM and it gave an earlier time


----------



## letsgobirds

PepperjackDragon said:


> now I am confused. To clarify I am going to list the times you booked the reservation-NOT the time you were scheduled to get on the ride.
> 
> LL1 (HM)  at  7am -expired at 11am.
> LL2  (JC)  at  1102am because of the 120min rule
> LL3 (S).   at    1105am  because of expired ressie
> LL4 (BT)  At    1110am because of second HM tap
> 
> So at 11:10am (ish) you had three active LL reservations-JC, Splash, and BTM all reserved and unused?
> 
> if that is what happened it would not only show that the exploit is working but that Disney will also allow you to hold multiple slots unreserved. Since your two hour window happened at the same time as your ressie 1 expired, if you then proceeded to make 2 LL before your second tap-in at HM, then that means you had two active open available slots at 11am. The first tap does not activate availability (unless the ride only has one of course)
> 
> Is this what you are saying happened?


Actually now that I'm reviewing it in my head , it's odder than that.   Actually booked PP at 7am for 11, but rode it standby after 7DMT (the only benefit of monsoon, near walk ons both) so changed it to 11 HM.  So by our current understanding of the rules the 120 probably shouldn't have been in effect. Unless it's actually not "using" a G+, instead of merely making one @120 min.  Which would have some logic so a later G+ res wouldn't have people shelling out 15 just for one or two uses a day. 

So unclear on exactly how it worked,.but I had all three active (and used them through the day) by 1105


Edit to add: it's possible this is just another.example of garbage Disney IT , in this rare case that actually benefitted me


----------



## LSUfan4444

Sjm9911 said:


> At epcott,  havent even used it. Got here at rd, and walked on everything.  Waiting for remmy to come up, will hit figment and the spacip earth on the way out. So, frozen,  sorring, living, mermaid, seas, 3 cabeniaros, now at BB sing along. Remmy, and out. If i wanted to i can G+ for sorring etc. But we did what we wanted allready and no wait. Just a lot of walking. Lol. Wished they opened 3 cab in mexico earlier.



This is why I would never add it to my entire stay/ticket package. There are just some days and parks where you simply won't need it.


----------



## letsgobirds

LSUfan4444 said:


> This is why I would never add it to my entire stay/ticket package. There are just some days and parks where you simply won't need it.


100%. Pain to manually add, but we are likely going to use it 2 out of park 4.5 days here


----------



## LSUfan4444

dmunsil said:


> I guess I haven't always been explicit about it, but everything I've been posting about I have verified as working. Disney can change many of the policies for Genie+ at any time, but as of last week, it worked I've said.



So you are saying "(1) book your first LL for soon after park opening; (2) wait until just a few minutes after the expiration of your first return window (without scanning into the ride), and then book a second LL for ASAP; (3) immediately scan into your first LL, during the 15-minute grace period; (4) immediately book a third LL" would work?

I thought I was understanding that eligibility would be reset once the second LL was booked because the time window had expired on the first and that the only way to get the third would be to implement the 120 minute rule (which would not be an option at 10:XX am


----------



## LSUfan4444

letsgobirds said:


> It 100% works.   Was holding 3 most of the day at MK today via combo of expire and 120 minute eligibility.   Booked HM for 10.  RD in rain so short lines , then expired HM .  At 1102 booked JC for 130 (120 min rule) first tapped into HM at 1105 and booked Splash, then after second tap added BTMR.   Don't think the first or second tap mattered, just that after 120 min I was eligible to book and after expiration I was also eligible to book, then after ride (second tap) was again eligible to book.  Worked great all day, w the caveat that it was low crowds due to terrible monsoon rain



Am I misunderstanding the original question....I don't think PP was asking about implementing the 120 min rule.

I read it as what he was asking is something like this

At 7am book first G+ for 9:30-10:30am
at 10:31 book second G+ using expired time window of first G+
At 10:35 scan into first G+ and book a third

I did not think that would work and that the eligibility was already reset when he booked his second and for this to work the 120 minute rule needed to be in play. Am I incorrect with that?


----------



## LSUfan4444

letsgobirds said:


> 100%. Pain to manually add, but we are likely going to use it 2 out of park 4.5 days here


 Agreed. We will likely use one ILL for the morning and pair with early entry.rope drop on most days and then use G+ for the afternoons and evenings with another ILL.


----------



## letsgobirds

LSUfan4444 said:


> Agreed. We will likely use one ILL for the morning and pair with early entry.rope drop on most days and then use G+ for the afternoons and evenings with another ILL.


This is the way


----------



## cjlong88

I'm sure this has been asked, but does anyone know if Genie+ allows you to book another LL after you use one of your ILL$, or does the system recognize those as separate from Genie+ and you will need to wait to use your Genie+ LL before selecting another? Am I making sense? TIA.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

cjlong88 said:


> I'm sure this has been asked, but does anyone know if Genie+ allows you to book another LL after you use one of your ILL$, or does the system recognize those as separate from Genie+ and you will need to wait to use your Genie+ LL before selecting another? Am I making sense? TIA.


Genie+ and ILL$ are completely separate.  You do not need G+ to purchase ILL$.  So no, buying and using your ILL$ would not change any rules for using G+.


----------



## cjlong88

thanxfornoticin said:


> Genie+ and ILL$ are completely separate.  You do not need G+ to purchase ILL$.  So no, buying and using your ILL$ would not change any rules for using G+.


That’s what I figured. Thank you!


----------



## ZeeWP

Claire82013 said:


> I'm very surprised based on this that Disney hasn't switched SDD to IAS and MMRR to G+.


I don't think they are going to wiggle much before the holidays. I wouldn't be surprised if things change Jan 2ndish.


----------



## CookieandOatmeal

I know I can try for a BG for Remy but I've read that the wait to actually ride after your BG is called seems to be in the 30 minute range. I don't think my 2 year old is going to be able to wait that long. Paying for the ILL$ might be worth it if the wait isn't as long as the BG's. Anyone have experience they can share?


----------



## NotTooGoofy

I'm about two months out from a family of six trip to WDW and am busy reading up on G/G+/LL.  We have tickets but haven't assigned them to individuals yet.  Aside from assigning the tickets and making park and restaurant reservations, is there anything else that I need to do with setting up G/G+ now?


----------



## Intr3pid

For resort guests to book at 7am on the day of check-in, are the ILLs available?  The website says you need a resort ID.  If you haven't checked in, where do you get that resort ID?


----------



## lorenae

Intr3pid said:


> For resort guests to book at 7am on the day of check-in, are the ILLs available?  The website says you need a resort ID.  If you haven't checked in, where do you get that resort ID?



Once you complete the online check in, the system will recognize you as an on-site guest for that day.


----------



## Intr3pid

lorenae said:


> Once you complete the online check in, the system will recognize you as an on-site guest for that day.


Thanks, and does this also work for those staying at Swan/Dolphin booked through Marriott?


----------



## aeasterling

CookieandOatmeal said:


> I know I can try for a BG for Remy but I've read that the wait to actually ride after your BG is called seems to be in the 30 minute range. I don't think my 2 year old is going to be able to wait that long. Paying for the ILL$ might be worth it if the wait isn't as long as the BG's. Anyone have experience they can share?


We did it both ways last week. First time we purchased an ILL for 6:30.  We walked right through the line onto the ride - maybe took 5 minutes.  

The next time, I got a BG at 7am.  We were called at 1:30 (BG 51).  We waited in line 30 minutes.


----------



## nurseberta

letsgobirds said:


> It 100% works.   Was holding 3 most of the day at MK today via combo of expire and 120 minute eligibility.   Booked HM for 10.  RD in rain so short lines , then expired HM .  At 1102 booked JC for 130 (120 min rule) first tapped into HM at 1105 and booked Splash, then after second tap added BTMR.   Don't think the first or second tap mattered, just that after 120 min I was eligible to book and after expiration I was also eligible to book, then after ride (second tap) was again eligible to book.  Worked great all day, w the caveat that it was low crowds due to terrible monsoon rain



this is high level stacking! Kudos!!!


----------



## JenLT

I really hope they don't close stacking loop holes anytime soon!


----------



## Bevo in VA

Greetings all.  Just want to thank all the advice given in this thread.  My family is just back from a 4-day trip - each park one full day and I learned so much from this thread.  First time going in 7 or 8 years so my goal was to fit as much in as possible.  Paid for G+ for each day.  As others have said, G+ was most beneficial at MK, although ((I think) we used it pretty effectively in the other parks as well.  Overall, we were very happy with G+.  We fit in 20 rides and still had time to do some shopping and eat at CRT.  If anyone is interested to see how we used it for MK our day went as follows:

7 AM got Jungle Cruise LL for 10:15 AM; ILL for Space Mountain for 9:30 AM(probably not needed); ILL 7DMT for 4:30 PM
8:30 AM Rope Drop - Rode -  Pooh, Tea Party, Dumbo, Tomorrow Land Speedway, Space Ranger Spin
9:30 - 11 Rode Space Mountain, Liberty Square Riverboat.  Did some shopping / ate snacks etc...
11:00 AM got BTMRR LL for 12:30 PM (G+ stack set up here)
11:05 Rode Jungle Cruise; got LL for Splash Mountain for 11:30 PM
11:30 Rode Splash; Got LL for Haunted Mansion for 1:30 PM
12:30 Rode BTMRR; got LL Peter Pan for 4 PM.  Did Country Bear Jamboree, Hall of Presidents
1:30 Haunted Mansion, got LL for Pirates of the Caribbean for 3:30 PM 
2:20 - lunch break at CRT
4:00 Rode Pirates, got LL for Little Mermaid @4:30
4:30 Rode PP, got LL for flying carpets @4:45
4:45 Rode Carpets, got LL for Small World 5:30
5:00 Rode Mermaid; 7DMT; Watched Tiki Room
6:00 Small World

I'm sure we got lucky in that the crowd level was 4 as judged by TP and I did have to refresh a few times on some of the rides to get an optimum return slot.  With larger crowds, there's no way we would have been able to get the return times to make everything work.  I had been tracking return times on Thrill Data to kind of plan out a rough schedule ahead of time.  Could have potentially dropped some of the rides, but wanted to give the kids the full experience.  We didn't have to wait more than 10 minutes for any ride and didn't have to do too much backtracking until the end of the day on some of the non-headliners.  Could have probably been a little more efficient there but had dessert party to get to by 6:30.

Hope this is helpful to some folks!


----------



## Sydnerella

ARRIVAL DAY QUESTIONS - help with how to best book G+ with hopping please 

- Park Reservation: AK 2-5 - just a short visit couple rides and a trail or two (1 of 2 visits this trip)
- Hop to EP 6-10

7am-8:45am at airport before takeoff: look for G+

I assume it’s too early to book anything at AK since we won’t be there until 2-230?? But if anything come up in that window, book it.

Can I book G+ at the “hop to” park G+ before entering my reserved park?

Flight departs 9am EST - assuming I won’t have access even with wifi in the air to book

Flight arrives MCO 12:15pm EST
Landing Book G+ by 1215 - AK 
ME to Riviera and Check in 
Uber to AK by 2-230

Book G+ at 2:15 on way or upon AK arrival 

Then keep going trying to stack some for EP later.

Hoping to get G+ for TT at minimum 630 or later - one or two of these: SE, Soarin, LWTL:  would be nice at night too before Harmonious 

Is that possible??


----------



## g-dad66

So here’s what Genie+ did for us today at HS:

7:05 got 5:25 LL for Slinky Dog
11:00 got 4:20 LL for Millenium Falcon
1:00 got 7:30 LL for Tower of Terror
3:00 got 6:55 LL fo RnR Coaster
5:00 planned (but actual 4:50 after tap-in for Falcon) got 5:05 LL for Toy Story Mania

Also had purchased ILL$ for 3:00 Rise and 4:00 MMRR

Started park day at 3:00, finished before 8:00: all 7 major HS attractions done without a wait for any of them.

Had planned to do Early Entry to get walk-ons for ToT and RnRC (and would have booked the 2 ILL$ for the morning) but this was Park Day #5, and we were too wiped out to start early.

So how much does this cost us?

Thinking ahead, I foresee doing HS in one day (not 2 like this trip). Park ticket for 5th day costs about $35. Disney gets $40 from us for G+ and ILL$, so Disney comes out a little bit ahead there.

But we save over $500 for 2 resort rooms and a day of food for 4.


----------



## leeniewdw

That's an amazing day and now I'm thinking about doing an afternoon day at HS to do something similar (on arrival day) and then doing the Merriest AH at MK.  Wow.


----------



## g-dad66

leeniewdw said:


> That's an amazing day and now I'm thinking about doing an afternoon day at HS to do something similar (on arrival day) and then doing the Merriest AH at MK.  Wow.



i was a little worried that the Tower of Terror LLs would run out before 1:00.  At about noon, it actually showed Unavailable for a while.
Prior to noon, MFSR was consistently showing later times than ToT was, so that’s why I booked it at 11.


----------



## leeniewdw

g-dad66 said:


> i was a little worried that the Tower of Terror LLs would run out before 1:00.  At about noon, it actually showed Unavailable for a while.
> Prior to noon, MFSR was consistently showing later times than ToT was, so thatI’s why I booked it at 11.



I've bookmarked your post (along with other narrative posts).  Will review and re-review before our trip in less than a month.  It seems like an afternoon at MK or HS is a better "plan" than trying to use G+ for a morning only, particularly at HS.


----------



## badeacon

CookieandOatmeal said:


> I know I can try for a BG for Remy but I've read that the wait to actually ride after your BG is called seems to be in the 30 minute range. I don't think my 2 year old is going to be able to wait that long. Paying for the ILL$ might be worth it if the wait isn't as long as the BG's. Anyone have experience they can share?


Several weeks ago we were able to get BG on 2 days. When BG called, one day wait was 45 mins and next was 35 mins


----------



## CookieandOatmeal

aeasterling said:


> We did it both ways last week. First time we purchased an ILL for 6:30.  We walked right through the line onto the ride - maybe took 5 minutes.
> 
> The next time, I got a BG at 7am.  We were called at 1:30 (BG 51).  We waited in line 30 minutes.





badeacon said:


> Several weeks ago we were able to get BG on 2 days. When BG called, one day wait was 45 mins and next was 35 mins


Thank you for sharing your experiences. Sounds like we will be better off doing the ILL$ if we want to avoid the long wait in line.


----------



## Theresa88

I am going with a group of 9 in February, and six are staying off property while three are staying on property. Can one of the three staying at a resort book an ILL at 7am for those not staying on property?


----------



## aeasterling

Theresa88 said:


> I am going with a group of 9 in February, and six are staying off property while three are staying on property. Can one of the three staying at a resort book an ILL at 7am for those not staying on property?


No, if you mean the ILL$ (ie FOP or ROTR) you won't be able to.  When we were there last week, my son was only there for 2 days with us and so had separate tickets.  So even though he WAS in our room, he wasn't a resort guest in the system.  On our first day, I tried to buy ROTR at 7am and I wasn't able to include him.


----------



## mab2012

dmunsil said:


> I explicitly tested this scenario last week. The system has a single eligibility time that it sets when you book a LL reservation. The expiration of a reservation is only indirectly tied to eligibility time, sometimes.
> 
> Every time you book a G+  LL reservation, it sets a eligibility return time, which is the earlier of the end of the reservation return window and 2 hours from the current time (or 2 hours from the park opening time if you’re booking before opening time). Every time you book, it sets a new time and there’s only one time it’s tracking.
> 
> So if it’s 9:00 am and you book a 10:15-11:15 am reservation, the eligibility time is set to 11:00 am. If you wait until 11:00, the eligibility time hits and you can book, but that new booking sets a new eligibility time. Say you booked a 11:30-12:30 at that point. Now your eligibility time is 12:30. If you wait until 11:15, nothing happens. You can still tap in and regain eligibility, but the expiration of your 10:15-11:15 reservation does nothing, because that was never set as an eligibility time in the first place.
> 
> The confusion arises because tapping in on any reservation resets eligibility, and canceling any reservation resets eligibility, so it’s easy to think that expiration of any reservation would reset eligibility. But it doesn’t work that way.



So in programming terms (speaking to the general audience here, not specifically @dmunsil, who I suspect already understands this):

Tapping into or cancelling a ride are actionable "events" that the system can respond to.  That is, when one of those things happen, the system is explicitly "aware" it has happened and can/will take actions to handle it.  The expiration time of a ride, on the other hand, is a passive event that the system isn't actively aware of; it just happens in the background, without anyone actually _doing_ anything, and the system doesn't necessarily immediately "know" that something has changed.

Based on what we know about how the system is working, I strongly suspect the implementation is something like this:

When a LL is booked, a timestamp is set tracking the next eligible booking time**
When an existing LL is used ("tapped in") or cancelled, the eligibility timestamp is cleared
The user can book a new LL if (and only if) no timestamp is set, or it is in the past.  In practice, the way this likely works is that whenever a page is loaded that might allow a LL pass to be booked, the system does a check on any existing timestamp against the current time, and clears the timestamp if it is in the past.
** Until @dmunsil posted the information above, I assumed that the next eligible booking time would be set based on the 120 minute rule (adjusted for park opening) or the expiration time of the earliest LL pass currently booked, whichever was earlier.  But based on this new clarification, it sounds like they've taken the even simpler option of setting the timestamp based on the earlier of the 120 minute timeout window and the expiration time of the LL just booked.  This has important implications for someone who understands specifically how the system works and is trying to maximize it, but will go completely unnoticed by the vast majority of users, who will not typically be purposely letting a LL expire with the expectation of then being able to immediately book another.

My personal opinion is that the major result of these implementation choices - ie. the ability to hold and rebook multiple LL passes throughout the day - was deliberate, or at the very least well understood by the system developers.  Anyone with programming or UI design experience will recognize that more nuanced handling of "extra" passes created when the 120 minute eligibility timer expires would quickly become complicated, both technically, but especially in terms of the user's ability to understand the system.  I think they deliberately erred on the side of simplicity, with the understanding that the "no re-ride" rule and the capacity of the system would naturally limit its use.

The "loophole" created by the 15-minute grace period was probably an oversight, or maybe a known consequence that they decided to allow.  The only sensible way to "fix" it would be to set the expiration timer at the end of the 15-minute grace period, instead of the official end time of the LL window.  That _should_ be a really easy change.  But it might create a source of confusion for users who are not aware of the grace period, and maybe they don't want to draw attention to it?  As long as the loophole doesn't have any significant impact on the overall system (and it seems unlikely it would, considering how few people will understand it, let alone make the effort to exploit it), they _might_ just decide to leave it alone.

My thanks (again!) to @dmunsil for the clear and unambiguous test results!


----------



## mab2012

dmunsil said:


> You can do it from anywhere. The only thing you need to be in the park for is getting a 1pm boarding group.



Except from outside of the US.  

So irritating that Disney is geofencing international users.  If the nearly 330 million Americans who are not currently at Disney can see and use the tip board, is there any rational reason to block international users from doing the same?

And yeah, I can pay for a VPN service to get around it, or use one of the crappy, ad-supported free ones.  But I really shouldn't have to.

</rant>


----------



## Sydnerella

Can a G+ LL attraction be booked for the park im hopping to before i tap into the park where my park reservation is at?


----------



## itf

mab2012 said:


> Except from outside of the US.
> 
> So irritating that Disney is geofencing international users.  If the nearly 330 million Americans who are not currently at Disney can see and use the tip board, is there any rational reason to block international users from doing the same?
> 
> And yeah, I can pay for a VPN service to get around it, or use one of the crappy, ad-supported free ones.  But I really shouldn't have to.
> 
> </rant>



Agreed - even if they restrict it to people with linked passes it would be a start.


----------



## evilqueenmindy

How do you pick a lightning lane time later than what Is shown?  I also can’t seem to edit, other than changing my party.


----------



## g-dad66

evilqueenmindy said:


> How do you pick a lightning lane time later than what Is shown?  I also can’t seem to edit, other than changing my party.



Keep refreshing and a later time may pop up.
Basically you have to accept (or reject) the time that shows.
Only ILL$ lets you pick the time you want.


----------



## JETSDAD

mab2012 said:


> Except from outside of the US.
> 
> So irritating that Disney is geofencing international users.  If the nearly 330 million Americans who are not currently at Disney can see and use the tip board, is there any rational reason to block international users from doing the same?
> 
> And yeah, I can pay for a VPN service to get around it, or use one of the crappy, ad-supported free ones.  But I really shouldn't have to.
> 
> </rant>


I believe they fixed that for iPhones with the latest update but the recent update for Android didn't fix it.  I've again emailed to complain about that.


----------



## evilqueenmindy

g-dad66 said:


> Keep refreshing and a later time may pop up.
> Basically you have to accept (or reject) the time that shows.
> Only ILL$ lets you pick the time you want.


Okay I see.  This will take some getting used to


----------



## itf

JETSDAD said:


> I believe they fixed that for iPhones with the latest update but the recent update for Android didn't fix it.  I've again emailed to complain about that.



No still broken on iOS on latest updates but ultimate tickets now correctly recognised as valid admission at least.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

What happens if you miss your ILL$ time slot?  Let's say I book RotR for 1:00-2:00, and then my lunch ADR runs long because the restaurant was behind in seating.  So I arrive at RotR at 2:10.  I'm assuming that there is a 15-minute grace period, since I have read that there is one for regular Genie+ LLs.  Can anyone confirm that?

But what if I don't get there until 2:20 (after the grace period).  Am I just out of luck?  Does Disney just eat the $60 that I paid for my family?


----------



## itf

Grasshopper2016 said:


> What happens if you miss your ILL$ time slot?  Let's say I book RotR for 1:00-2:00, and then my lunch ADR runs long because the restaurant was behind in seating.  So I arrive at RotR at 2:10.  I'm assuming that there is a 15-minute grace period, since I have read that there is one for regular Genie+ LLs.  Can anyone confirm that?
> 
> But what if I don't get there until 2:20 (after the grace period).  Am I just out of luck?  Does Disney just eat the $60 that I paid for my family?



One of the YouTube bloggers compared it to buying a movie ticket. You booked for a specific performance time and that’s it. I guess in practice guest services might help?


----------



## Theresa88

aeasterling said:


> No, if you mean the ILL$ (ie FOP or ROTR) you won't be able to.  When we were there last week, my son was only there for 2 days with us and so had separate tickets.  So even though he WAS in our room, he wasn't a resort guest in the system.  On our first day, I tried to buy ROTR at 7am and I wasn't able to include him.



Good info - Thank you!


----------



## CarolynFH

Grasshopper2016 said:


> What happens if you miss your ILL$ time slot?  Let's say I book RotR for 1:00-2:00, and then my lunch ADR runs long because the restaurant was behind in seating.  So I arrive at RotR at 2:10.  I'm assuming that there is a 15-minute grace period, since I have read that there is one for regular Genie+ LLs.  Can anyone confirm that?
> 
> But what if I don't get there until 2:20 (after the grace period).  Am I just out of luck?  Does Disney just eat the $60 that I paid for my family?


I know that back in the days of BGs you could show your dining receipt and be admitted late to RotR. I can’t specifically remember reading the same about ILL$ but I do think that would be the case for them too. Hopefully someone soon will confirm it.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

itf said:


> One of the YouTube bloggers compared it to buying a movie ticket. You booked for a specific performance time and that’s it. I guess in practice guest services might help?


Of course in most movie theatres if the reason you can’t get into the theatre in time is because the line to get int he building is around the block, the theatre is probably refunding your money.  Also, every major movie theatre chain will refund your ticket if you miss the show for nearly any reason.  Probably because theatre chains are not run by Bob Chapek.  In fact, if you don’t like a movie and leave halfway through and ask for a refund, most movie chains will give it. (I have not done this personally).


----------



## wisblue

letsgobirds said:


> It 100% works.   Was holding 3 most of the day at MK today via combo of expire and 120 minute eligibility.   Booked HM for 10.  RD in rain so short lines , then expired HM .  At 1102 booked JC for 130 (120 min rule) first tapped into HM at 1105 and booked Splash, then after second tap added BTMR.   Don't think the first or second tap mattered, just that after 120 min I was eligible to book and after expiration I was also eligible to book, then after ride (second tap) was again eligible to book.  Worked great all day, w the caveat that it was low crowds due to terrible monsoon rain



So, if I’m understanding you right, your first LL was for Haunted Mansion with a return time of 10-11. Just after 11 you were able to book 3 LL for the following reasons:

1. It was 2 hours since you booked your first reservation.

2. Your HM LL ”expired“ at 11, and 

3. You were still able to ride HM before 11:15 because of the usual “grace period”, and the system let you book another LL because you had used one.

That‘s pretty wild that they let you book another LL based on one attraction being technically “expired” and then a second one for riding the same attraction. That sounds like the kind of thing that nobody would intentionally design. But, the number of people that would know you could do it and then execute it is probably so small that it doesn’t have much impact. 

I‘m not sure if I want to go through the maneuvering that it would take to  time that out and execute it, but I might have to try it sometime for amusement.


----------



## trompettecon

Jrb1979 said:


> https://allears.net/2021/10/21/how-can-you-stack-multiple-disney-genie-reservations/
> Here's a good article on using Genie+. According to them, stacking LL is not recommended. To get the most out of it is take the next one available. IMO it's seems to best to rope drop the top Genie+ ride and use it for other rides the rest of the day.


What would you consider to be the top Genie+ rides at MK?


----------



## maryj11

Einstein509 said:


> Reading through all of this makes my head hurt.  The amount of strategery, questions, planning, scheming, figuring out how to maximize the use of this system is stressful.  This is not a vacation anymore.  It's more like a military operation.  I think the invasion of Normandy had a one page order........we're on page 44 of this thread.  Wow.


I think we may need some type of training classes on how to work this Genie


----------



## disneymom1026

wisblue said:


> You can still do it with a short wait right at 9, but the objective is to get that LL after 11 to set up the stack.
> 
> We have always had good luck doing BTMRR, Splash (when it’s warm enough that early), HM, and POC with fairly short waits in the first 2 hours. The standby line at JC generally builds up faster than at the other 4.



So you need to wait 2 hours after park opening to have your first LL in order to do the hack where you get multiple LL at one time?  Help me think this through..let's say you have a park opening at 9 am but you get a LL for ride A from 9:15 - 10:15 and let the window expire.  At 10:16 you get a new LL for ride B then at 10:17 tap in and use ride A.  After you tap into ride A couldn't you get a LL for ride C? Which  means after you are done with ride A, you would have 2 LL (one for ride B and one for ride C). Am I missing this?  I don't see why you need to wait 2 hours after park opening to get a LL unless you want to have an additional LL so ride D? Thanks for clarifying.  It is a bit confusing.


----------



## g-dad66

trompettecon said:


> What would you consider to be the top Genie+ rides at MK?



1 - Jungle Cruise
2 - Peter Pan
3 - Haunted Mansion
4 - Splash Mountain (in hot weather)

Genie+ will save you the most wait time on those.


----------



## Jrb1979

trompettecon said:


> What would you consider to be the top Genie+ rides at MK?


Jungle Cruise seems to be the one that has return times the latest in the day quickest. I would rope drop that one and then keep picking the earliest time available for rides after that. I would never pay $15 and use it for 3 rides.


----------



## dmunsil

mab2012 said:


> Based on what we know about how the system is working, I strongly suspect the implementation is something like this:
> 
> When a LL is booked, a timestamp is set tracking the next eligible booking time**
> When an existing LL is used ("tapped in") or cancelled, the eligibility timestamp is cleared
> The user can book a new LL if (and only if) no timestamp is set, or it is in the past.  In practice, the way this likely works is that whenever a page is loaded that might allow a LL pass to be booked, the system does a check on any existing timestamp against the current time, and clears the timestamp if it is in the past.



This is all 100% correct, to the best of my understanding. I do not have any special insight into how Disney actually implemented things. I'm an experienced software engineer and based on my observations of how things work, I would bet that the internals are pretty close to this.

I ran a bunch of tests looking at various combinations of overlapping stacked reservations, booking and canceling reservations in different orders, etc., so this is all based on my observations, not other people's reports. Keep in mind that Disney can change this at any time, so this is how it was working last week. Disney has tweaked every version of FastPass at least once or twice, so it's entirely possible some of this may change. Mostly Disney will be analyzing whether there are people hogging too much of the attraction capacity. If that happens, expect Disney to take action.

Anyway, Genie+ is what we call in computer science a "state machine". It's a simple implementation that keeps track of a state or states and simple rules for transitioning between the various states.

In this case there are only two states for each guest: 1) Eligible to book a Genie+ reservation, or 2) Not eligible to book a Genie+ reservation.

There is one (or maybe two) field(s) in a database tracking your status all day.

You begin the day in state 1, "eligible."

When you book a reservation, you go to state 2, "not eligible" and an eligibility time is set for when you'll be eligible _assuming nothing makes you eligible before that point. (_Much of the time, something will happen, like tapping into a reservation, and the eligibility time is moot.)

The eligibility time is set like this:

If the park that the attraction is in is not yet open, eligibility is the earlier of the end of the arrival window and 2 hours after park opening.
If the park that the attraction is in is open, eligibility is the earlier of the end of the arrival window and 2 hours from the current time.

Examples:

It's 7:02. Park opens at 9:00
You book a 9:30-10:30 reservation. _Eligibility time: 10:30 (end of arrival window)_
You book a 10:30-11:30 reservation. _Eligibility time: 11:00 (2 hours after opening)_

It's 10:02. Park opened at 9:00
You book a 10:30-11:30 reservation. _Eligibility time: 11:30 (end of arrival window)_
You book an 11:30-12:30 reservation. _Eligibility time: 12:02 (2 hours from right now)_


You can always view your eligibility time by trying to book. If it succeeds, you're eligible now. If it fails, you will either be shown when you will be eligible again, or you'll get a screen with an "Edit" button you can tap to see when you'll be eligible again.

When you tap into a reservation (including during the grace period), you move to state 1, "eligible."

When you cancel a reservation (including during the grace period, though your cancellation grace period seems to be shorter), you move to state 1, "eligible."

When a ride goes down within or just before your arrival window, and you haven't already ridden, you get a multi-attraction pass and you move to state 1, "eligible."

Whenever you become eligible for any reason, the eligibility time is cleared and is no longer relevant.

Now, the implication of all these rules is that you can, in general, wait until the eligibility time arrives, become eligible, book a new reservation, and also tap into or cancel your existing reservation (possibly taking advantage of the grace period), become eligible, and book _another_ new reservation.

It also implies that once you have two outstanding reservations, you can keep two outstanding reservations for the rest of the day, because every time you tap into or cancel one, you can book another. If you forget, and tap into or cancel two in a row without booking in between, you lose an opportunity to book and now have one fewer reservation outstanding.

What you can't do:


You can't take advantage of _both_ the 2 hour eligibility rule and the "end of the arrival window" rule for the same reservation. They're the same rule - there's just one eligibility time which is either 2 hours away or at the end of your arrival window.
You can't take advantage of the eligibility time, book something, and then immediately take advantage of the eligibility time for another overlapping reservation you booked earlier. The system only stores one time, which was set the last time you booked a reservation.

I hope this answers every question, and folks can just point people back to this. At least until Disney changes the rules...

Don


----------



## wisblue

disneymom1026 said:


> So you need to wait 2 hours after park opening to have your first LL in order to do the hack where you get multiple LL at one time?  Help me think this through..let's say you have a park opening at 9 am but you get a LL for ride A from 9:15 - 10:15 and let the window expire.  At 10:16 you get a new LL for ride B then at 10:17 tap in and use ride A.  After you tap into ride A couldn't you get a LL for ride C? Which  means after you are done with ride A, you would have 2 LL (one for ride B and one for ride C). Am I missing this?  I don't see why you need to wait 2 hours after park opening to get a LL unless you want to have an additional LL so ride D? Thanks for clarifying.  It is a bit confusing.



I am not talking about the tactic of letting a LL “expire” and then riding during the grace period. That requires some timing that I don’t intend to use.

Others have tried that and say it works. I’m probably going to be less fancy and go for the more straightforward double stack.

The thing I don’t like about attempting this type of triple stack is that it forces you to squeeze the use of that first LL attraction into a 15 minute window.

I want to use early entry and the first two hours after regular opening to do some of our favorite attractions standby and then set up the double stack to be used at least in part at a second park.

In our experience we should be able to do at least 4 or 5 of our favorites at MK before 11. For example: 7DMT at 8:30, possibly PP if we get off 7DMT quickly, then some or all of BTMRR, Splash, POC, HM, and JC when that side of the park opens at 9.

Because JC builds up a standby line faster than the other 4, that’s my logical choice for that first LL.

With a return time of say, 11:10-12:10, we have a window of 80 minutes to ride JC. We might decide to go after lunch depending on how everything else goes. (We generally eat lunch early at the parks because we don’t have a big breakfast and want to beat the rush at the QSR) I don’t want to be somewhere at 10:45 and be hamstrung because we have to make sure to get to and ride JC between 11:00 and 11:15 To take advantage of the ”expire then ride” required by a 10-11 return time.


----------



## JenLT

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> Of course in most movie theatres if the reason you can’t get into the theatre in time is because the line to get int he building is around the block, the theatre is probably refunding your money.  Also, every major movie theatre chain will refund your ticket if you miss the show for nearly any reason.  Probably because theatre chains are not run by Bob Chapek.  In fact, if you don’t like a movie and leave halfway through and ask for a refund, most movie chains will give it. (I have not done this personally).



I think the reason for this is two fold.  First, (bc the main point of selling these is for more profits) if they sell X amount for each time, and you buy one of the open slots - another person cannot buy that slot.  So if you move your boarding time to another time slot after yours has expired, they have missed out on a sale.
Second, if they sell X number for each hour and a bunch of people from earlier in the day come to ride at say 6:00 it will slow down the stand by line even more and also cause the LL to be slower making some of the people who purchased the 6:00 time slot angry and disappointed that they had to wait.  

Yes, I agree that it is annoying and I personally dislike how money grubbing Disney has gotten.


----------



## cjlong88

It sounds like at SDD and MFSR are the quickest LL to go at HS. What would be the next attractions to have more limited availability and later arrival windows?


----------



## PepperjackDragon

dmunsil said:


> This is all 100% correct, to the best of my understanding. I do not have any special insight into how Disney actually implemented things. I'm an experienced software engineer and based on my observations of how things work, I would bet that the internals are pretty close to this.
> 
> I ran a bunch of tests looking at various combinations of overlapping stacked reservations, booking and canceling reservations in different orders, etc., so this is all based on my observations, not other people's reports. Keep in mind that Disney can change this at any time, so this is how it was working last week. Disney has tweaked every version of FastPass at least once or twice, so it's entirely possible some of this may change. Mostly Disney will be analyzing whether there are people hogging too much of the attraction capacity. If that happens, expect Disney to take action.
> 
> Anyway, Genie+ is what we call in computer science a "state machine". It's a simple implementation that keeps track of a state or states and simple rules for transitioning between the various states.
> 
> In this case there are only two states for each guest: 1) Eligible to book a Genie+ reservation, or 2) Not eligible to book a Genie+ reservation.
> 
> There is one (or maybe two) field(s) in a database tracking your status all day.
> 
> You begin the day in state 1, "eligible."
> 
> When you book a reservation, you go to state 2, "not eligible" and an eligibility time is set for when you'll be eligible _assuming nothing makes you eligible before that point. (_Much of the time, something will happen, like tapping into a reservation, and the eligibility time is moot.)
> 
> The eligibility time is set like this:
> 
> If the park that the attraction is in is not yet open, eligibility is the earlier of the end of the arrival window and 2 hours after park opening.
> If the park that the attraction is in is open, eligibility is the earlier of the end of the arrival window and 2 hours from the current time.
> 
> Examples:
> 
> It's 7:02. Park opens at 9:00
> You book a 9:30-10:30 reservation. _Eligibility time: 10:30 (end of arrival window)_
> You book a 10:30-11:30 reservation. _Eligibility time: 11:00 (2 hours after opening)_
> 
> It's 10:02. Park opened at 9:00
> You book a 10:30-11:30 reservation. _Eligibility time: 11:30 (end of arrival window)_
> You book an 11:30-12:30 reservation. _Eligibility time: 12:02 (2 hours from right now)_
> 
> 
> You can always view your eligibility time by trying to book. If it succeeds, you're eligible now. If it fails, you will either be shown when you will be eligible again, or you'll get a screen with an "Edit" button you can tap to see when you'll be eligible again.
> 
> When you tap into a reservation (including during the grace period), you move to state 1, "eligible."
> 
> When you cancel a reservation (including during the grace period, though your cancellation grace period seems to be shorter), you move to state 1, "eligible."
> 
> When a ride goes down within or just before your arrival window, and you haven't already ridden, you get a multi-attraction pass and you move to state 1, "eligible."
> 
> Whenever you become eligible for any reason, the eligibility time is cleared and is no longer relevant.
> 
> Now, the implication of all these rules is that you can, in general, wait until the eligibility time arrives, become eligible, book a new reservation, and also tap into or cancel your existing reservation (possibly taking advantage of the grace period), become eligible, and book _another_ new reservation.
> 
> It also implies that once you have two outstanding reservations, you can keep two outstanding reservations for the rest of the day, because every time you tap into or cancel one, you can book another. If you forget, and tap into or cancel two in a row without booking in between, you lose an opportunity to book and now have one fewer reservation outstanding.
> 
> What you can't do:
> 
> 
> You can't take advantage of _both_ the 2 hour eligibility rule and the "end of the arrival window" rule for the same reservation. They're the same rule - there's just one eligibility time which is either 2 hours away or at the end of your arrival window.
> You can't take advantage of the eligibility time, book something, and then immediately take advantage of the eligibility time for another overlapping reservation you booked earlier. The system only stores one time, which was set the last time you booked a reservation.
> 
> I hope this answers every question, and folks can just point people back to this. At least until Disney changes the rules...
> 
> Don


Excellent layout, this was how I saw it before I read the account of tapping into both the 2 hour and grace period simultaneously, but I suspect either something went wrong in the notes, or the system somehow glitched, but regardless, I think this is an excellent and clear explanation that seems unlikely to change dramatically for a while.


----------



## elgerber

cjlong88 said:


> It sounds like at SDD and MFSR are the quickest LL to go at HS. What would be the next attractions to have more limited availability and later arrival windows?


TSMM and MFSR.


----------



## scrappinginontario

*Per the title of this tread, it was created with the intent of sharing Genie+ tips and strategies. 

Please keep discussions on topic.  *After this, posts discussing things you may like changed about the current system, will be removed.  They may be valid ideas but those are better discussed in a new thread in the Community sub-forum.

Thanks.


----------



## g-dad66

cjlong88 said:


> It sounds like at SDD and MFSR are the quickest LL to go at HS. What would be the next attractions to have more limited availability and later arrival windows?



ToT and RnRC


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

trompettecon said:


> What would you consider to be the top Genie+ rides at MK?


Jungle Cruise & Peter Pan seem to be the ones that go the quickest.


----------



## suzymouse724

We just got home, and used Genie + most days. One interesting thing we discovered that I have not seen posted is if a ride goes down during your return time you will get an anytime lightening lane for most rides. However, if you are trying to stack and want to stack - you need to use your anytime lightening lane during your original return window. Otherwise you loose your ability to stack. We were with my cousins, but our Genie + were not linked. We both had slinky LL (but slightly different return times). The ride was down all morning. We eventually decided to use the anytime LL for rockin roller coaster. Both my cousin and I already had a LL for toy story that we made 2 hours after HS opened. After we tapped in to Rockin Roller Coaster, I was able to make another LL but my cousin was not. The only difference was we were still in the return window for my original slinky LL (and she was not).


----------



## wisblue

cjlong88 said:


> It sounds like at SDD and MFSR are the quickest LL to go at HS. What would be the next attractions to have more limited availability and later arrival windows?



I have been following this, and I would put them in this order:

1 SDD (and nothing else is close),
2/3. MFSR/TOT
4. RNRC

Today, for example, I have been checking every few hours. SDD was at 5:35 just after 9 and was out the next time I checked at 10:40.

MFSR was at 6:10 at 3:10 and out sometime before 6:10.

TOT was at 4:40 by 11:15 and out by 1:25.   On other days MFSR has been running out sooner.

RNRC still had availability at 8:20 the last time I looked at 6:10. TSMM had a return time of 7:20 at 6:10.

In general, standby lines seem longer and disappearance of LL times seem faster than they have been up to now. We may be getting a taste of bigger crowds, and the experiences that people had in the first week or two of Genie+ may not be repeatable right now. Crowds from the half marathon weekend and the beginning of Jersey Week might be a factor.


----------



## wisblue

Jrb1979 said:


> Jungle Cruise seems to be the one that has return times the latest in the day quickest. I would rope drop that one and then keep picking the earliest time available for rides after that. I would never pay $15 and use it for 3 rides.



If you literally kept picking the earliest time available you would be  picking all of what I would lump into the category of the non headlining Fantasyland rides (Dumbo, Barnstormer, tea cups, etc.) They frequently have LL availability with return times about 5 minutes out, but they are also near or actual walk-ons for much of the day.

You would get a lot of rides in with LL but wouldn‘t be saving yourself much time.

The strategies people are discussing here are generally trying to find a balance between quantity and quality that lets them use Genie+ to enjoy their favorite attractions while minimizing time spent in lines.


----------



## michaeldorn1

This question is gonna show my tech ignorance:  I've seen many posts from others suggesting "refreshing" their MDE app to over come some tech issues with .  But, I can't figure out how to "refresh" it on my phone?  Any advice?!  Thanks for any help here.


----------



## trompettecon

What if you are doing EE? Rope dropping JC would be a waste no?


----------



## g-dad66

trompettecon said:


> What if you are doing EE? Rope dropping JC would be a waste no?



JC not open during EE.
Only Fantasyland and Tomorrowland are open.


----------



## wisblue

JC is not open during EE. But going there shortly after full park open before the line gets too long would not be a waste.


----------



## mom2cinderella

Does removing Genie’s recommendations from your day only “stick” once you are in the parks? 

They are going poof , until I log back in…


----------



## cjlong88

wisblue said:


> I have been following this, and I would put them in this order:
> 
> 1 SDD (and nothing else is close),
> 2/3. MFSR/TOT
> 4. RNRC
> 
> Today, for example, I have been checking every few hours. SDD was at 5:35 just after 9 and was out the next time I checked at 10:40.
> 
> MFSR was at 6:10 at 3:10 and out sometime before 6:10.
> 
> TOT was at 4:40 by 11:15 and out by 1:25.   On other days MFSR has been running out sooner.
> 
> RNRC still had availability at 8:20 the last time I looked at 6:10. TSMM had a return time of 7:20 at 6:10.
> 
> In general, standby lines seem longer and disappearance of LL times seem faster than they have been up to now. We may be getting a taste of bigger crowds, and the experiences that people had in the first week or two of Genie+ may not be repeatable right now. Crowds from the half marathon weekend and the beginning of Jersey Week might be a factor.



This is excellent info. Thank you! We are starting in EPCOT for F&W festival and will be only going to HS from 5-9pm so our goal is to hit as many attraction as possible. Sounds like I should stack in this order: SDD, MFSR / ToT (whichever has later return times goes first), RnRC, anything else...yes?

Because I'm booking my first LL for HS, will the 120 minute rule begin at 9am or will it begin at 11am because I have an EPCOT reservation?


----------



## wisblue

Someone should confirm this but I think it starts at the opening time of Epcot. That might not leave you with a lot of choices.

But, yes, you’d have to start right at 7 to get something for SDD for later than 5. It won’t take long for the return times to be out that far.
Then at 1 and 3 you’ll have to see what’s available depending on the times and your favorites. If all are equal for you then, yes, take the latest first.


----------



## nurseberta

Thrill data shows that times book up for ToT and then RnR next on the G+ Popularity of bookings but that does t happen until much later into the day.


----------



## nurseberta

wisblue said:


> dmunsil said:
> 
> 
> 
> This is all 100% correct, to the best of my understanding. I do not have any special insight into how Disney actually implemented things. I'm an experienced software engineer and based on my observations of how things work, I would bet that the internals are pretty close to this.
> 
> I ran a bunch of tests looking at various combinations of overlapping stacked reservations, booking and canceling reservations in different orders, etc., so this is all based on my observations, not other people's reports. Keep in mind that Disney can change this at any time, so this is how it was working last week. Disney has tweaked every version of FastPass at least once or twice, so it's entirely possible some of this may change. Mostly Disney will be analyzing whether there are people hogging too much of the attraction capacity. If that happens, expect Disney to take action.
> 
> Anyway, Genie+ is what we call in computer science a "state machine". It's a simple implementation that keeps track of a state or states and simple rules for transitioning between the various states.
> 
> In this case there are only two states for each guest: 1) Eligible to book a Genie+ reservation, or 2) Not eligible to book a Genie+ reservation.
> 
> There is one (or maybe two) field(s) in a database tracking your status all day.
> 
> You begin the day in state 1, "eligible."
> 
> When you book a reservation, you go to state 2, "not eligible" and an eligibility time is set for when you'll be eligible _assuming nothing makes you eligible before that point. (_Much of the time, something will happen, like tapping into a reservation, and the eligibility time is moot.)
> 
> The eligibility time is set like this:
> 
> If the park that the attraction is in is not yet open, eligibility is the earlier of the end of the arrival window and 2 hours after park opening.
> If the park that the attraction is in is open, eligibility is the earlier of the end of the arrival window and 2 hours from the current time.
> 
> Examples:
> 
> It's 7:02. Park opens at 9:00
> You book a 9:30-10:30 reservation. _Eligibility time: 10:30 (end of arrival window)_
> You book a 10:30-11:30 reservation. _Eligibility time: 11:00 (2 hours after opening)_
> 
> It's 10:02. Park opened at 9:00
> You book a 10:30-11:30 reservation. _Eligibility time: 11:30 (end of arrival window)_
> You book an 11:30-12:30 reservation. _Eligibility time: 12:02 (2 hours from right now)_
> 
> 
> You can always view your eligibility time by trying to book. If it succeeds, you're eligible now. If it fails, you will either be shown when you will be eligible again, or you'll get a screen with an "Edit" button you can tap to see when you'll be eligible again.
> 
> When you tap into a reservation (including during the grace period), you move to state 1, "eligible."
> 
> When you cancel a reservation (including during the grace period, though your cancellation grace period seems to be shorter), you move to state 1, "eligible."
> 
> When a ride goes down within or just before your arrival window, and you haven't already ridden, you get a multi-attraction pass and you move to state 1, "eligible."
> 
> Whenever you become eligible for any reason, the eligibility time is cleared and is no longer relevant.
> 
> Now, the implication of all these rules is that you can, in general, wait until the eligibility time arrives, become eligible, book a new reservation, and also tap into or cancel your existing reservation (possibly taking advantage of the grace period), become eligible, and book _another_ new reservation.
> 
> It also implies that once you have two outstanding reservations, you can keep two outstanding reservations for the rest of the day, because every time you tap into or cancel one, you can book another. If you forget, and tap into or cancel two in a row without booking in between, you lose an opportunity to book and now have one fewer reservation outstanding.
> 
> What you can't do:
> 
> 
> You can't take advantage of _both_ the 2 hour eligibility rule and the "end of the arrival window" rule for the same reservation. They're the same rule - there's just one eligibility time which is either 2 hours away or at the end of your arrival window.
> You can't take advantage of the eligibility time, book something, and then immediately take advantage of the eligibility time for another overlapping reservation you booked earlier. The system only stores one time, which was set the last time you booked a reservation.
> 
> I hope this answers every question, and folks can just point people back to this. At least until Disney changes the rules...
> 
> Don
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I am not talking about the tactic of letting a LL “expire” and then riding during the grace period. That requires some timing that I don’t intend to use.
> 
> Others have tried that and say it works. I’m probably going to be less fancy and go for the more straightforward double stack.
> 
> The thing I don’t like about attempting this type of triple stack is that it forces you to squeeze the use of that first LL attraction into a 15 minute window.
> 
> I want to use early entry and the first two hours after regular opening to do some of our favorite attractions standby and then set up the double stack to be used at least in part at a second park.
> 
> In our experience we should be able to do at least 4 or 5 of our favorites at MK before 11. For example: 7DMT at 8:30, possibly PP if we get off 7DMT quickly, then some or all of BTMRR, Splash, POC, HM, and JC when that side of the park opens at 9.
> 
> Because JC builds up a standby line faster than the other 4, that’s my logical choice for that first LL.
> 
> With a return time of say, 11:10-12:10, we have a window of 80 minutes to ride JC. We might decide to go after lunch depending on how everything else goes. (We generally eat lunch early at the parks because we don’t have a big breakfast and want to beat the rush at the QSR) I don’t want to be somewhere at 10:45 and be hamstrung because we have to make sure to get to and ride JC between 11:00 and 11:15 To take advantage of the ”expire then ride” required by a 10-11 return time.
Click to expand...


Would canceling a G + automatically open a new eligibility window? If for example, I booked a G+ at 7am for 5pm, 
11am book 4pm then cancel 5pm? Could I book a G + after cAnceling?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

nurseberta said:


> Would canceling a G + automatically open a new eligibility window? If for example, I booked a G+ at 7am for 5pm,
> 11am book 4pm then cancel 5pm? Could I book a G + after cAnceling?


Yes, you should be able to book a G+ after cancelling. The key is to do that before another window opens.  You will lose a “stack” if two of your windows open at the same time.


----------



## William B

michaeldorn1 said:


> This question is gonna show my tech ignorance:  I've seen many posts from others suggesting "refreshing" their MDE app to over come some tech issues with .  But, I can't figure out how to "refresh" it on my phone?  Any advice?!  Thanks for any help here.


Try pulling the screen down.  This is what does it on my android app.


----------



## mab2012

cjlong88 said:


> This is excellent info. Thank you! We are starting in EPCOT for F&W festival and will be only going to HS from 5-9pm so our goal is to hit as many attraction as possible. Sounds like I should stack in this order: SDD, MFSR / ToT (whichever has later return times goes first), RnRC, anything else...yes?
> 
> Because I'm booking my first LL for HS, will the 120 minute rule begin at 9am or will it begin at 11am because I have an EPCOT reservation?



Reports have been pretty consistent that the 2h timer for booking a second LL is based on the opening time of the park where you booked your first LL, not the park you have a reservation for.

So if you book your first at HS, you should be eligible to book a second two hours after HS opens, regardless of where you are at that time.


----------



## Luisfba

I’m not sure I have my hands fully wrapped around generating the triple stack of letting the window expire, hitting the 2 hour window, and the tap in.

Does the sequence of the first two (window expire, 120 min window) matter?  For example, assuming an 11am eligibility due to the 2 hour rule, does it matter if my window expires at before 11 (10:55 for example) or after 11? (let’s say 11:10).

I guess trying to get a sense for what range of return windows around that 2 hour mark would work for this?  If it can be on either side I’m guessing it’s -15 minutes (well, less since Ned time to make LL selections) up to + whatever..?


----------



## michaeldorn1

William B said:


> Try pulling the screen down.  This is what does it on my android app.


I've tried that, and nothing seems to happen.  I have an iPhone BTW.


----------



## MrBellatrixLestrange

GoofyDad_4427 said:


> I consider myself to be pretty smart and I can't follow half the stuff in this thread.


I'm not terribly bright so imagine how difficult this is for me!  On the positive side I'm terribly, terribly attractive, I mean we're talking about Uber-drivers-dropping-their-pickups-when-they-see-me-on-the-curb-just-to-take-me-somewhere-for-free level of good looking.  That's actually never happened but I'm considering holding my breath waiting for it.


----------



## William B

michaeldorn1 said:


> I've tried that, and nothing seems to happen.  I have an iPhone BTW.


Hopefully someone with an iphone can help.  As soon as I drag or pull the screen down it immediately says checking availability at the top and gives me the most recent info


----------



## AnnabelleTheTalkingTree

As someone who generally plans like crazy, researches like crazy, and ENJOYS the ins and outs of all of it.... this is stressing me the frig out. I keep reading and re-reading these threads thinking that maybe THIS time it will make sense to me, but.... nope. Still overwhelmed


----------



## KrazeeK120

AnnabelleTheTalkingTree said:


> As someone who generally plans like crazy, researches like crazy, and ENJOYS the ins and outs of all of it.... this is stressing me the frig out. I keep reading and re-reading these threads thinking that maybe THIS time it will make sense to me, but.... nope. Still overwhelmed



You are not alone!


----------



## Bevo in VA

michaeldorn1 said:


> This question is gonna show my tech ignorance:  I've seen many posts from others suggesting "refreshing" their MDE app to over come some tech issues with .  But, I can't figure out how to "refresh" it on my phone?  Any advice?!  Thanks for any help here.



On the Tip Board, tap on the "Standby Line" box under the ride you want.  It also says "more details" in this box.  That will take you to a new screen showing ride details.  From there tap on the "LL" and it will put you back into the Tip Board with newly refreshed times (if available).  Repeat as necessary.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

It is 1:00 on a Monday.  Looking at DHS LL return times: SDD, ToT, and MFSR are all completely sold out for the day.  TSM is not available until 5:55; RnRC is not available until 6:05; AS2 is not available until 4:20.  Even Star Tours is not available until 2:35.  I'm sorry, but this is ridiculous.  Just what are you getting for your $15?


----------



## wilkydelts

Grasshopper2016 said:


> It is 1:00 on a Monday.  Looking at DHS LL return times: SDD, ToT, and MFSR are all completely sold out for the day.  TSM is not available until 5:55; RnRC is not available until 6:05; AS2 is not available until 4:20.  Even Star Tours is not available until 2:35.  I'm sorry, but this is ridiculous.  Just what are you getting for your $15?



Most people have probably whipped through those rides with Genie + early in the day. You could have easily used 4 or more by now stacking them.

You can not re-ride so many of the evening ones are people hopping over to DHS


----------



## BrotherCraig

Grasshopper2016 said:


> It is 1:00 on a Monday.  Looking at DHS LL return times: SDD, ToT, and MFSR are all completely sold out for the day.  TSM is not available until 5:55; RnRC is not available until 6:05; AS2 is not available until 4:20.  Even Star Tours is not available until 2:35.  I'm sorry, but this is ridiculous.  Just what are you getting for your $15?




Did you book your first ones at 7 AM this morning or just now getting to it?


----------



## Grasshopper2016

wilkydelts said:


> Most people have probably whipped through those rides with Genie + early in the day. You could have easily used 4 or more by now stacking them.





BrotherCraig said:


> Did you book your first ones at 7 AM this morning or just now getting to it?



I'm not in the park.  Just practicing for my trip next month.  I'm genuinely curious if people are successfully "whipping through" all of these rides early in the day with Genie+.  I have seen reports that SDD has a return time in the afternoon within seconds of the booking window opening at 7:00 a.m.  Let's say you get SDD for 11:30-12:30.  At 11:00, you are able to book a second LL.  But, the last time I looked at precisely 11:01, the return windows for most of these rides were already well into the afternoon.  In fact, MFSR was already at 5:50-6:50.  So let's say you grab that one before it's too late.  Then, at 11:30, you could tap into SDD and grab a third LL --- Maybe for T0T at 3:15-4:15 (if you're lucky).  

But that would mean that you have only actually ridden one LL ride before 1:00.  Hardly "whipping through" them all.  At 1:00, you are eligible to book another ride.  But, as I just noted, the windows are way out by 1:00.  You could grab RNRC for 6:05-7:05.  You will be eligible to book again at 3:00, and then again when you scan in to ToT at 3:15, but what's going to be left by then.  Star Tours for 6:00?  Muppets?  

And remember that today is a random Monday during a relatively calm period.  TP has today as a 5 on the crowd calendar.  What is availability going to look like on an 8-10 day?


----------



## cjlong88

mab2012 said:


> Reports have been pretty consistent that the 2h timer for booking a second LL is based on the opening time of the park where you booked your first LL, not the park you have a reservation for.
> 
> So if you book your first at HS, you should be eligible to book a second two hours after HS opens, regardless of where you are at that time.


This is excellent news. Thank you! Excited to be there this weekend.


----------



## soniam

Grasshopper2016 said:


> What happens if you miss your ILL$ time slot?  Let's say I book RotR for 1:00-2:00, and then my lunch ADR runs long because the restaurant was behind in seating.  So I arrive at RotR at 2:10.  I'm assuming that there is a 15-minute grace period, since I have read that there is one for regular Genie+ LLs.  Can anyone confirm that?
> 
> But what if I don't get there until 2:20 (after the grace period).  Am I just out of luck?  Does Disney just eat the $60 that I paid for my family?



I would talk with the CM at the attraction. I also would not overlap ILL with an ADR by an hour. Book the ILL to start an hour after your ADR started. If you still can't make the ILL, explain this to the CM at the attraction. I suspect they will cut you some slack. I have never had a meal run a complete hour behind, talking about getting seated and eating. We have been close once with the Plaza though.



michaeldorn1 said:


> I've tried that, and nothing seems to happen.  I have an iPhone BTW.



Pulling down from the Tip Board worked for me. iOS 15.1 & latest MDE. It said checking availability and showed a spinning wheel near the top.


----------



## wilkydelts

Grasshopper2016 said:


> I'm not in the park.  Just practicing for my trip next month.  I'm genuinely curious if people are successfully "whipping through" all of these rides early in the day with Genie+.  I have seen reports that SDD has a return time in the afternoon within seconds of the booking window opening at 7:00 a.m.  Let's say you get SDD for 11:30-12:30.  At 11:00, you are able to book a second LL.  But, the last time I looked at precisely 11:01, the return windows for most of these rides were already well into the afternoon.  In fact, MFSR was already at 5:50-6:50.  So let's say you grab that one before it's too late.  Then, at 11:30, you could tap into SDD and grab a third LL --- Maybe for T0T at 3:15-4:15 (if you're lucky).
> 
> But that would mean that you have only actually ridden one LL ride before 1:00.  Hardly "whipping through" them all.  At 1:00, you are eligible to book another ride.  But, as I just noted, the windows are way out by 1:00.  You could grab RNRC for 6:05-7:05.  You will be eligible to book again at 3:00, and then again when you scan in to ToT at 3:15, but what's going to be left by then.  Star Tours for 6:00?  Muppets?
> 
> And remember that today is a random Monday during a relatively calm period.  TP has today as a 5 on the crowd calendar.  What is availability going to look like on an 8-10 day?



Are you refusing to take part in the stand-by in any capacity? 

Your MF:SR issue is resolved by simply doing it early morning right after or instead of RISE or late in the evening when times drop like a rock for it.


----------



## disneyfam1986

Is Genie + worth if if you are mid day break people?


----------



## PixieT78

disneyfam1986 said:


> Is Genie + worth if if you are mid day break people?



This is us and it is looking to me like the answer is yes.  If you follow the stacking advice, you can stack the G+ attractions for your afternoon/evening park. 

When we go in May, we plan on getting G+ for the whole trip and my thoughts are rope drop every day (well, maybe skip one) for stand-by lines at one park, mid-day break for lunch/nap/pool time and head back out to a different park around 4/5 for an evening filled with Lightening Lanes.  At least that is my hope!  We will be testing for our longer Sept trip to see what makes sense for us though too so we'll see how it all goes!


----------



## elgerber

disneyfam1986 said:


> Is Genie + worth if if you are mid day break people?


We always take a mid day break.  It worked great to have a couple of rides reserved when we got to our 2nd park for dinner.


----------



## wisblue

michaeldorn1 said:


> I've tried that, and nothing seems to happen.  I have an iPhone BTW.



I have an iPhone and what I do is hit the “Tip Board” tab and that seems to do the trick.

I can also pull down from the top of the screen ( just under the Tip Board/My Day tabs) and get the “Checking Availability” message that others have described.

But, hitting the Tip Board tab produces a message “Populating Your Tip Board” and seems to produce the same result with less effort.

I know that when I do that at 7AM, each time I hit the tab the LL return time for Slinky is shooting further into the day.


----------



## michaeldorn1

wisblue said:


> I have an iPhone and what I do is hit the “Tip Board” tab and that seems to do the trick.
> 
> I can also pull down from the top of the screen ( just under the Tip Board/My Day tabs) and get the “Checking Availability” message that others have described.
> 
> But, hitting the Tip Board tab produces a message “Populating Your Tip Board” seems to produce the same result with less effort.
> 
> I know that when I do that at 7AM, each time I hit the tab the LL return time for Slinky is shooting further into the day.


Thanks to all of you that shared their advice!  It seems to be working well for me now!!  Yay!!


----------



## wisblue

Grasshopper2016 said:


> I'm not in the park.  Just practicing for my trip next month.  I'm genuinely curious if people are successfully "whipping through" all of these rides early in the day with Genie+.  I have seen reports that SDD has a return time in the afternoon within seconds of the booking window opening at 7:00 a.m.  Let's say you get SDD for 11:30-12:30.  At 11:00, you are able to book a second LL.  But, the last time I looked at precisely 11:01, the return windows for most of these rides were already well into the afternoon.  In fact, MFSR was already at 5:50-6:50.  So let's say you grab that one before it's too late.  Then, at 11:30, you could tap into SDD and grab a third LL --- Maybe for T0T at 3:15-4:15 (if you're lucky).
> 
> But that would mean that you have only actually ridden one LL ride before 1:00.  Hardly "whipping through" them all.  At 1:00, you are eligible to book another ride.  But, as I just noted, the windows are way out by 1:00.  You could grab RNRC for 6:05-7:05.  You will be eligible to book again at 3:00, and then again when you scan in to ToT at 3:15, but what's going to be left by then.  Star Tours for 6:00?  Muppets?
> 
> And remember that today is a random Monday during a relatively calm period.  TP has today as a 5 on the crowd calendar.  What is availability going to look like on an 8-10 day?



I don’t see how it is possible to “whip through” all of the popular attractions at DHS in the morning just using Genie+.

My priority list of attractions at DHS includes: Slinky, TSMM, ROTR, MFSR, MMRR, Star Tours, RNRC and TOT. Even using some combination of Early Entry, standby, ILL, and Genie + you’re quickly going to run into Genie+ return times that are several hours out.

You can pay for the two ILL attractions, and Star Tours usually doesn’t have a long standby line. Then you can do a couple of the others first thing in the morning. But all of those other 5 are getting afternoon LL return times pretty quickly.

For example, at 9:15 this morning the return times were:

Slinky 6:15 PM
MFSR 4:35 PM
TOT 1:55 PM
RNRC 11:50 AM
TSMM 12:25 PM

Even using the fanciest stacking strategies it’s difficult to do 2 of these 5 with G+ in the morning. By the time the stack is set up you’ll be picking times well into the afternoon.

On the other hand, I think setting up 3 for late afternoon and early evening and doing the others in the morning and early afternoon (either standby or ILL) would be perfect for someone who would want a midday break.

ETA: LL Return times at 9:15 on Tuesday, 11/9:

Slinky: Not Available
MFSR: 3:25 PM
TOT: 2:45 PM
TSMM: 12:10 PM
RNRC: 11:50 PM


----------



## ComeToSocialize

letsgobirds said:


> It 100% works.   Was holding 3 most of the day at MK today via combo of expire and 120 minute eligibility.   Booked HM for 10.  RD in rain so short lines , then expired HM .  At 1102 booked JC for 130 (120 min rule) first tapped into HM at 1105 and booked Splash, then after second tap added BTMR.   Don't think the first or second tap mattered, just that after 120 min I was eligible to book and after expiration I was also eligible to book, then after ride (second tap) was again eligible to book.  Worked great all day, w the caveat that it was low crowds due to terrible monsoon rain



This actually isn't the only example of someone somehow going from 1 LL to 3 LLs in a single period I've seen. It goes contrary to all the rules that people have laid out in this thread though. 

My guess, and it's just a guess, is that sometimes when you tap twice into a ride, each tap renews your eligibility. I would recommend that everyone try to book after each tap (even though it shouldn't matter) just in case there is a glitch. If it's not the double tap, I'm not sure how this person booked 3 rides in 5 minutes (and again, other people including some bloggers have referenced getting 3 bookings in very short windows of time)


----------



## jade1

Jrb1979 said:


> Jungle Cruise seems to be the one that has return times the latest in the day quickest. I would never pay $15 and use it for 3 rides.



Depends how folks vacation. And some attractions cost $15 for one ride.

The $15 is worth it for us on 3 or 4 attractions when we have other activities scheduled.

As others have shown, some of the main attractions can be scheduled for later and we really don't care about the lower and mid tier attractions anyway.

We usually open US/IOA one day, and often fish one morning, and even occasionally golf one morning.

If we can enter a park with something close to this, compared to an hour wait for each its for sure worth it.

7:05 got 5:25 LL for Slinky Dog
11:00 got 4:20 LL for Millenium Falcon
1:00 got 7:30 LL for Tower of Terror
3:00 got 6:55 LL fo RnR Coaster
5:00 planned (but actual 4:50 after tap-in for Falcon) got 5:05 LL for Toy Story Mania

Other days we will indeed do full days with RD, but it's great having this option available on days we will enter later.

Really happy we can buy headliners as well.


----------



## maryj11

Just when I became an expert at getting fastpasses now I have to relearn Genie +. We have a trip in 2 weeks and I need to know what I’m doing.
For the popular rides that cost money, can I book both at 7:00am? We are staying on property. How fast is ROR and Remi running out? Those two are most important to us.
This is how I think it works. Let me know if I’m wrong.
Okay after I have paid 15.00 for each of us I book our first regular LL + at 7:00am.  Let’s say I book Slink Dog for 7:00pm. Then 2 hours after park open I can book another LL? Let’s say it is at 11:30am for TOT, then we can book another LL after we ride TOT? If so, then say I get MMRR at 5:00. It’s only a little after 11:30 am. Do we have to wait and ride MMRR before we book another LL?


----------



## DSLRuser

Just came here to say, I wanted to hate Genie+.  Had no intention of using it this December.  But I had to be in Disney for work in late OCT 2021, and spent 2 days at the Epcot and MK.  I decided to but Genie+ and use the LL$ feature.

My experience was nothing but positive.  As a seasoned Disney veteran, the G+ service was easy to use.  

On my Epcot day, I was careful and planned my day to do my rides towards the evening and night.  So during the day, I was scheduling G+ rides every 2 hours and lined my evening up so starting at 4pm I did Rock in roller, Tower of T, and rise, Soarin, Land, TT, Space Earth, and closed with Remy leaving plenty of time to walk around the world showcase and enjoy food and wine.

On my MK day, I went hard and fast getting the 1st G+ ride I could.  I arrived at 10am, and did Big Thunder, Splash, Haunted Man, Pirates, Buzz, Jungle all before I had to head to the airport at 2pm.  As soon as I tapped into a ride via the LL, I was on the app getting my next G+.  I just worked very well.

Disney is expensive.  Dam the cost of G+.  just mentally prepare that a park ticket now costs $150 a day, and enjoy your day.  

Our party of 6 will be using G+ in December for all 3 days.  Time = Money and G+ saves time.


----------



## g-dad66

maryj11 said:


> Just when I became an expert at getting fastpasses now I have to relearn Genie +. We have a trip in 2 weeks and I need to know what I’m doing.
> For the popular rides that cost money, can I book both at 7:00am? We are staying on property. How fast is ROR and Remi running out? Those two are most important to us.
> This is how I think it works. Let me know if I’m wrong.
> Okay after I have paid 15.00 for each of us I book our first regular LL + at 7:00am.  Let’s say I book Slink Dog for 7:00pm. Then 2 hours after park open I can book another LL? Let’s say it is at 11:30am for TOT, then we can book another LL after we ride TOT? If so, then say I get MMRR at 5:00. It’s only a little after 11:30 am. Do we have to wait and ride MMRR before we book another LL?



You would be eligible again at 1:30 if it was 11:30 when you booked another LL.

Note, however, that MMRR is in a whole different category. It is ILL$.  You can book (and pay for) it whenever you want.

A better example would be MFSR which you book at 11:30 for 5:00. You would not need to ride it before booking another LL. You can book again at 1:30.


----------



## DSLRuser

maryj11 said:


> Just when I became an expert at getting fastpasses now I have to relearn Genie +. We have a trip in 2 weeks and I need to know what I’m doing.
> For the popular rides that cost money, can I book both at 7:00am? We are staying on property. How fast is ROR and Remi running out? Those two are most important to us.
> This is how I think it works. Let me know if I’m wrong.
> Okay after I have paid 15.00 for each of us I book our first regular LL + at 7:00am.  Let’s say I book Slink Dog for 7:00pm. Then 2 hours after park open I can book another LL? Let’s say it is at 11:30am for TOT, then we can book another LL after we ride TOT? If so, then say I get MMRR at 5:00. It’s only a little after 11:30 am. Do we have to wait and ride MMRR before we book another LL?



You can't "schedule" return times.  you take what they give you.  if you book slinky dog at 7am, you will most likely get a return time between 9 and 12.  At 9 you can book again, and you may be able to get rocking at 10.  go ride rocking and as soon as you tap in, get your new G+, you may get tower at 10:30.

you can have multiple return times that over lap.  you can get tower at 10, and rocking at 10:05.  just can't have 2 at the exact time.


----------



## maryj11

g-dad66 said:


> You would be eligible again at 1:30 if it was 11:30 when you booked another LL.
> 
> Note, however, that MMRR is in a whole different category. It is ILL$.  You can book (and pay for) it whenever you want.
> 
> A better example would be MFSR which you book at 11:30 for 5:00. You would not need to ride it before booking another LL. You can book again at 1:30.


Oh I didn’t know MMRR was a paid one. Okay thank you so it’s every two hours unless I have tapped into a ride.


----------



## maryj11

DSLRuser said:


> You can't "schedule" return times.  you take what they give you.  if you book slinky dog at 7am, you will most likely get a return time between 9 and 12.  At 9 you can book again, and you may be able to get rocking at 10.  go ride rocking and as soon as you tap in, get your new G+, you may get tower at 10:30.
> 
> you can have multiple return times that over lap.  you can get tower at 10, and rocking at 10:05.  just can't have 2 at the exact time.


Oh okay thank you!


----------



## mom2cinderella

maryj11 said:


> For the popular rides that cost money, can I book both at 7:00am?



I’d like to know this too.


----------



## elgerber

mom2cinderella said:


> I’d like to know this too.


Yes you can.


----------



## WVU Disney Fan

I’m sure this has been answered here but haven’t seen it. We are going to at wdw for 10 days but only 6 park reservations/tickets. If I add G+ to my package in advance does it charge for every day of my resort reservation or just for my 6 days of park tickets?  

Also on the app when I click to add G+ it sends me to link to change reservation. This won’t mess up my park reservations will it?  Just trying to have to avoid adding G+ each individual park day.


----------



## nurseberta

ComeToSocialize said:


> This actually isn't the only example of someone somehow going from 1 LL to 3 LLs in a single period I've seen. It goes contrary to all the rules that people have laid out in this thread though.
> 
> My guess, and it's just a guess, is that sometimes when you tap twice into a ride, each tap renews your eligibility. I would recommend that everyone try to book after each tap (even though it shouldn't matter) just in case there is a glitch. If it's not the double tap, I'm not sure how this person booked 3 rides in 5 minutes (and again, other people including some bloggers have referenced getting 3 bookings in very short windows of time)



I think it is very specific to eligibility and a few things happening at the same tome
#1 120 min window
#2 G+ expires
#3 tap into active G+LL
Each individual occurrence noted above would reset eligibility for a new booking of G+ LL

you have to just be interested in using that brain power to work it.
Or just use the standby waits that are low and G+ for big line rides. I think you have to consider your touring style because I’ve gotten so intense with the planning  and “winning” at DW that I’ve been so stressed and didn’t take time to look around


----------



## wiggy500

All is well that ends well I guess.  I had a couple big takeaways from day 1 using Genie Plus yesterday.  First, I tried to sign up for it at 5:30 am.  I couldn't!  Tried two devices using both methods I could figure out and got errors.  It gave me a phone number to call that no one answered and no one answered the chat either.  After a very stressful start, it worked as advertised and I got it around 6:30.  I will buy ahead of time next time.  So here's how it went:

7:00 book Kilimanjaro 8:10
Ride Kilimanjaro and at 8:13 book 2:00 Big Thunder
10:13 book Navi 12:05.
12:13 book Dinosaur 12:20
Ride Dinosaur 12:31 book 3:25 Haunted
Ride Navi. B mode 12:58 and couldn't book Pirates!

Is stacking LL's a right or a privilege?  I was in full "right" mode.  Navi went down briefly and changed to a multi experience LL and I had no idea.  This made the Navi LL cancel as if I never booked it and I now had to wait until 2:31 to book and I figured to miss Pirates.  Be aware this can happen.

2:31 book Splash 4:00 or so.  Tap into Big Thunder book 2:50 Pirates!  Took some work to get the ideal time, but I did!

No luck getting Test Track. But that's okay.  A successful day despite a lot of frustration.


----------



## LSUfan4444

Luisfba said:


> I’m not sure I have my hands fully wrapped around generating the triple stack of letting the window expire, hitting the 2 hour window, and the tap in.
> 
> Does the sequence of the first two (window expire, 120 min window) matter?  For example, assuming an 11am eligibility due to the 2 hour rule, does it matter if my window expires at before 11 (10:55 for example) or after 11? (let’s say 11:10).
> 
> I guess trying to get a sense for what range of return windows around that 2 hour mark would work for this?  If it can be on either side I’m guessing it’s -15 minutes (well, less since Ned time to make LL selections) up to + whatever..?



I think it depends on what you're trying to accomplish and what order you do things

If the return window  for your first G+ ends at 10:55 you are eligible to book another at 10:55 am. So if you book one at 10:57 you cannot book another at 11 am and if you wait until 11 am to book another that will reset your two hour window as well. So, with the window ending before 11 am, you're not really stacking because at 11 am, you're only booking one more G+

Now, if your expiration window expires at 11 am (or after) you can book another G+ at 11 am (when the 120 min rule expires from the 9 am opening) and *I think I am understanding that once people tap into their 11am G+ (using the 15 minute grace period) at like 11:10 am (after booking one at 11 am as well due to the expiring window), they are able to book an additional G+ because their eligibility was reset by tapping into their first G+ attraction.*

Everything in bold is where my confusion lies as well and I keep reading to try to catch on but rather than clarity, I just get more confused.


----------



## Revan

My experience from using it yesterday at MK and HS.  We are staying offsite, arrived at rope drop, but not early entry.  MK was showing as a 7, HS was showing as a 6 on Touring Plans.  It was very busy.  
- The closest LL was at 9:40 against a 35 minute Buzz, we booked it and did Carousel of Progress.  Space Mountain was down.  
- Walked on Buzz, booked IASW with the next closest return time at 11:15. Space Mountain opened as we were right in front (lucky break) and we jumped in with about a 10-minute wait 
- Rode Speedway with a 10-minute wait (posted 20 minutes)
- Heavy crowds in fantasyland, IASW was posted as 45-minute wait, PP was 90. Checked in and then booked Pirates for 1:40, at the time Haunted Mansion was booking out to 43:05 and we were planning on hopping.
- 6 adults on IASW.....
- Did Hall of Presidents, waited in Standby for Big Thunder (60 minutes posted, 40 minutes actual) and then ate at Peco's Bill; 30 minutes before my 2-hour window opened Pirate's was down and Genie+ canceled our reservation and we got an (almost) unlimited LL for one ride in MK.
- At that point we booked RR at HS for a 6:15 LL - earliest available at HS, other than Muppets and Star Tours and I couldn't see wasting a booking window on either
- Rode Pirates, struggled through the crowd to the hub, the pinch point around Aladdin's to get a Dole Whip is incredibly poor planning.
- Arrived at HS around 3:30, we booked Midway Mania for an 8:15 return time with a park close at 9, nothing else besides the two e-tickets was available on Genie+ for the rest of the day so we chose to wait in standbys.

Takeaways
- Unless you are staying on property and getting in early entry I think Genie+ is of dubious benefit during very heavy days - your booking windows are just too late by the time you can start scheduling.  I paid $100 for 6 and only got on one top-tier ride (RR) and two very good rides (PoC and MM). Maybe I am used to lower crowd volumes, always coming in the 1st week of December.


----------



## Boardwalk III

I haven’t read any pages of this forum since Sunday, so I apologize if this has already been covered:


We arrived this weekend and tried stacking on Sunday at Magic Kingdom. 2 different  family groups tried with 2 sets of plans. Couldn’t get the 3rd stack to work. I have no idea what we did wrong?

My example:

-At 7:30 am booked Pirates from 10:15-11:15 (1st LL)

- At 11:00 am (120 minute rule) booked 2nd LL for Haunted Mansion @ 1:40 pm

- At 11:16 (before riding Pirates during grace period) tried booking 3rd LL.

- system said “ineligible”. Tried twice. No luck. Other family members had same problem with a separate but similar plan.

- rode Pirates during grace window and were able to use the 2 LL’s for the afternoon.

Anyone know why this may have happened?


----------



## thanxfornoticin

DSLRuser said:


> You can't "schedule" return times.  you take what they give you.  if you book slinky dog at 7am, you will most likely get a return time between 9 and 12.  At 9 you can book again, and you may be able to get rocking at 10.  go ride rocking and as soon as you tap in, get your new G+, you may get tower at 10:30.
> 
> you can have multiple return times that over lap.  you can get tower at 10, and rocking at 10:05.  just can't have 2 at the exact time.


Just a question about your theoretical here.  If you book Slinky at 7AM, but the park opens at 9AM, I don't think you can book again until 11AM (or sooner if you tap in to ride Slinky before 11AM).  I think it's 2 hours from park opening, not from 7AM booking.

If that's not the case, I'm still not understanding the process!!


----------



## ZeeWP

wiggy500 said:


> Is stacking LL's a right or a privilege?  I was in full "right" mode.  Navi went down briefly and changed to a multi experience LL and I had no idea.  This made the Navi LL cancel as if I never booked it and I now had to wait until 2:31 to book and I figured to miss Pirates.  Be aware this can happen.



That is good to know, and lame that it happened to you! I didn't realize that this could happen. At least you were able to stack the other ones.


----------



## g-dad66

Boardwalk III said:


> I haven’t read any pages of this forum since Sunday, so I apologize if this has already been covered:
> 
> 
> We arrived this weekend and tried stacking on Sunday at Magic Kingdom. 2 different  family groups tried with 2 sets of plans. Couldn’t get the 3rd stack to work. I have no idea what we did wrong?
> 
> My example:
> 
> -At 7:30 am booked Pirates from 10:15-11:15 (1st LL)
> 
> - At 11:00 am (120 minute rule) booked 2nd LL for Haunted Mansion @ 1:40 pm
> 
> - At 11:16 (before riding Pirates during grace period) tried booking 3rd LL.
> 
> - system said “ineligible”. Tried twice. No luck. Other family members had same problem with a separate but similar plan.
> 
> - rode Pirates during grace window and were able to use the 2 LL’s for the afternoon.
> 
> Anyone know why this may have happened?



I don’t know what happened in your situation but here’s something that happened to us more than once:
It would say we were not eligilble until say 11:10 and the time was already 11:10. Kept trying and eventually it worked. Not sure how long it took but it could have been 1 or 2 minutes. I kept yelling at the phone it is 11:10!


----------



## elgerber

Revan said:


> My experience from using it yesterday at MK and HS.  We are staying offsite, arrived at rope drop, but not early entry.  MK was showing as a 7, HS was showing as a 6 on Touring Plans.  It was very busy.
> - The closest LL was at 9:40 against a 35 minute Buzz, we booked it and did Carousel of Progress.  Space Mountain was down.


Curious, what time did you book Buzz?  Did you book it right at 7?  Seems if you booked right at 7 you could have gotten a lot of choices right away.



thanxfornoticin said:


> Just a question about your theoretical here.  If you book Slinky at 7AM, but the park opens at 9AM, I don't think you can book again until 11AM (or sooner if you tap in to ride Slinky before 11AM).  I think it's 2 hours from park opening, not from 7AM booking.
> 
> If that's not the case, I'm still not understanding the process!!


You understand correctly, that post was incorrect. it's 2 hours after park open.


----------



## RoseGold

maryj11 said:


> How fast is ROR and Remi running out? Those two are most important to us.



Weekday before Halloween.  ROTR still had paid slots available at night at 10-11AM.  Remy was always available and never showed sold out.  We booked at 3-4PM for later in the night.  I heard reports that people hopping at 2PM were able to book in the Remy virtual queue, which had opened at 1PM.


----------



## monkeybug

I have to make dining reservations tomorrow morning so I'm trying to finalize my park plans today. Is planning to rope drop a park and then hop to a different park in the afternoon a good strategy with Genie+? Is there a park where Genie+ works better if you don't hop? 

We will have 5 day tickets so could do one morning and one evening at each park and then have a day to hit up things we want to revisit. Our resort qualifies us for Extra Evening hours in Epcot and MK and early entry (SOG). No little kids in our group either.


----------



## Jedimike

elgerber said:


> You understand correctly, that post was incorrect. it's 2 hours after park open.



Just checking my understanding for this SDD example.  If you book SDD at 7 AM and get a later window, closer to 11 AM, and tap into SDD at 10:55 AM, you can book another LL at 10:55 post-SDD tap in, then again at 11:00 AM, post-2 hour rule?


----------



## elgerber

Jedimike said:


> Just checking my understanding for this SDD example.  If you book SDD at 7 AM and get a later window, closer to 11 AM, and tap into SDD at 10:55 AM, you can book another LL at 10:55 post-SDD tap in, then again at 11:00 AM, post-2 hour rule?


No, that is incorrect.  You can only book the 2nd, if you didn't use the first one yet.  You would have to wait until 11 to book (two hours after park open) then tap in to SDD and book a 2nd.


----------



## Jedimike

elgerber said:


> No, that is incorrect.  You can only book the 2nd, if you didn't use the first one yet.  You would have to wait until 11 to book (two hours after park open) then tap in to SDD and book a 2nd.



Ahhh, I see.  So if you tap in before 11 AM, then you're stuck with either waiting 2 hours from that time point or post-tap of the next LL, whichever comes first?  So it seems pretty important to time your LL tap the right way!


----------



## elgerber

Jedimike said:


> Ahhh, I see.  So if you tap in before 11 AM, then you're stuck with either waiting 2 hours from that time point or post-tap of the next LL, whichever comes first?  So it seems pretty important to time your LL tap the right way!


Correct!


----------



## Jedimike

For arrival days, if we think we'll get to MK at around Noon -- we have no option other than to just check through the morning for the LL windows to hit the Noon time frame?  No way to schedule ahead, right?


----------



## mab2012

Boardwalk III said:


> I haven’t read any pages of this forum since Sunday, so I apologize if this has already been covered:
> 
> 
> We arrived this weekend and tried stacking on Sunday at Magic Kingdom. 2 different  family groups tried with 2 sets of plans. Couldn’t get the 3rd stack to work. I have no idea what we did wrong?
> 
> My example:
> 
> -At 7:30 am booked Pirates from 10:15-11:15 (1st LL)
> 
> - At 11:00 am (120 minute rule) booked 2nd LL for Haunted Mansion @ 1:40 pm
> 
> - At 11:16 (before riding Pirates during grace period) tried booking 3rd LL.
> 
> - system said “ineligible”. Tried twice. No luck. Other family members had same problem with a separate but similar plan.
> 
> - rode Pirates during grace window and were able to use the 2 LL’s for the afternoon.
> 
> Anyone know why this may have happened?



When you book any LL pass, your eligibility timer is reset to two hours from the time of booking, or the end time of the pass you *just booked*, whichever is sooner.  It is not based on the end time of any currently held, earlier LL passes.  This has been specifically tested and confirmed.

So in your case, when you booked your HM LL at 11 am for a 1:40 pm return time, your eligibility timer would have been reset to 1 pm.  You should have been able to immediately book a second LL after tapping into Pirates, which would have reset your eligibility timer again, to two hours from that time or the end time of _that_ pass, whichever was earlier.

I don't know enough about what you did after tapping into Pirates to give specific information, but whatever your eligibility time ended up at, if you waited for that time to pass _without cancelling or tapping into any additional rides_, you should have been able to start another "stack" at that time.


----------



## wisblue

Jedimike said:


> For arrival days, if we think we'll get to MK at around Noon -- we have no option other than to just check through the morning for the LL windows to hit the Noon time frame?  No way to schedule ahead, right?



That is true, but it doesn’t take that long for some attractions to get to return times after noon. For example, the Jungle Cruise return time is usually out past noon before the park opens at 9. Same for Peter Pan.

If you want one of those you should start checking right at 7 and watch the time grow out past noon. Some others like Haunted Mansion and BTMRR might be out past noon not long after 9.

Depending on what your favorites are, when MK opens at 9 AM, I would recommend booking one before 9,  another right at 11 (by that time all of the major attractions will have return times past noon), and another right at 1 PM (or as soon as you use your first one between noon and 1).

Once you have more than one active LL in hand you will be in good position to take advantage of the “stacking” approach discussed in detail in this thread by booking a new LL every time you use one but before you use another one.


----------



## dmunsil

I spent another $16 today to test some more edge cases.

I haven’t learned much that’s new. I deliberately tried to see if maybe the system quietly makes you eligible if one of your existing reservations expires, even when that expiration is not set as your current eligibility return time. The short answer is that no it doesn’t. I looked at two scenarios:

A: book 65+ minutes away, wait 2 hours, book, wait for expiration of original reservation

At 7:20 Booked HM at 10:15. Eligibility time set to 11:00 as expected. At 11:00 (11:01 by my phone’s time) eligibility returned (I was continuously trying to book). Booked Jungle Cruise (via many refreshes) at 4:00. Eligibility set to 1:00, as expected. Deliberately waited until 11:17 to be comfortably past expiration. Couldn’t book, as expected.

B: book overlapping stacked rides, wait for expiration of earlier ride, book, cancel, book, wait for expiration of later one

At 11:20 canceled HM and booked Peter Pan for 12:10 (again, many refreshes). Eligibility set to 1:10 (as expected). Canceled Jungle Cruise and booked Laugh Floor for 11:25. Eligibility set to 12:25 (as expected). Waited until 12:25, eligibility returned. Booked Dumbo for 12:40. Eligibility now 1:40. Cancelled Laugh Floor, booked Magic Carpets for 1:10. Eligibility now 2:10. Waited until 1:10 when Peter Pan “expired”, no eligibility return.

I did learn that as long as a G+ reservation is still visible in your My Day list, you can cancel it, even if the grace period is gone. If you refresh your view (or the system does), expired reservations disappear at about 10 minutes after the end time. But if you lock your phone and lose track of time, and the reservation is still there when you unlock 25 minutes after the end, it’ll still let you cancel.

I totally meant to test that scenario and didn’t just mess up. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Is there another scenario folks want tested? The $16 is sunk cost now, I’m happy to try something else. I’m not in Orlando today, so I can only test cancellation, not tapping in.


----------



## Jedimike

dmunsil said:


> At 7:20 Booked HM at 10:15. Eligibility time set to 11:00 as expected. At 11:00 (11:01 by my phone’s time) eligibility returned (I was continuously trying to book). Booked Jungle Cruise (v*ia many refreshes*) at 4:00...
> 
> At 11:20 canceled HM and booked Peter Pan for 12:10 (*again, many refreshes*). Eligibility set to 1:10 (as expected)...



When you mention the "many refreshes" -- is this similar to the older FP+ system where sometimes rides would appear that didn't initially load upon first glance?  Do the ride times change with the refreshes in both directions, or only to later times?


----------



## dmunsil

Jedimike said:


> When you mention the "many refreshes" -- is this similar to the older FP+ system where sometimes rides would appear that didn't initially load upon first glance?  Do the ride times change with the refreshes in both directions, or only to later times?


Exactly yes. Until you tap the button and see the time on the ”select party” screen, it’s not guaranteed. If you refresh, or bounce back and forth between the tip board and select party screen, you can see earlier times pop up. 

The ride times can vary both ways. Once I was trying to snag an 11:00 Jungle Cruise, and when I tapped the button it showed me a confirmation for 9:20! But more often it’s the same as or later than the tip board time.


----------



## js

dmunsil said:


> Exactly yes. Until you tap the button and see the time on the ”select party” screen, it’s not guaranteed. If you refresh, or bounce back and forth between the tip board and select party screen, you can see earlier times pop up.
> 
> The ride times can vary both ways. Once I was trying to snag an 11:00 Jungle Cruise, and when I tapped the button it showed me a confirmation for 9:20! But more often it’s the same as or later than the tip board time.



Great to know. Thank you for testing this and giving us your input!


----------



## William B

dmunsil said:


> I spent another $16 today to test some more edge cases.
> 
> I haven’t learned much that’s new. I deliberately tried to see if maybe the system quietly makes you eligible if one of your existing reservations expires, even when that expiration is not set as your current eligibility return time. The short answer is that no it doesn’t. I looked at two scenarios:
> 
> A: book 65+ minutes away, wait 2 hours, book, wait for expiration of original reservation
> 
> At 7:20 Booked HM at 10:15. Eligibility time set to 11:00 as expected. At 11:00 (11:01 by my phone’s time) eligibility returned (I was continuously trying to book). Booked Jungle Cruise (via many refreshes) at 4:00. Eligibility set to 1:00, as expected. Deliberately waited until 11:17 to be comfortably past expiration. Couldn’t book, as expected.
> 
> B: book overlapping stacked rides, wait for expiration of earlier ride, book, cancel, book, wait for expiration of later one
> 
> At 11:20 canceled HM and booked Peter Pan for 12:10 (again, many refreshes). Eligibility set to 1:10 (as expected). Canceled Jungle Cruise and booked Laugh Floor for 11:25. Eligibility set to 12:25 (as expected). Waited until 12:25, eligibility returned. Booked Dumbo for 12:40. Eligibility now 1:40. Cancelled Laugh Floor, booked Magic Carpets for 1:10. Eligibility now 2:10. Waited until 1:10 when Peter Pan “expired”, no eligibility return.
> 
> I did learn that as long as a G+ reservation is still visible in your My Day list, you can cancel it, even if the grace period is gone. If you refresh your view (or the system does), expired reservations disappear at about 10 minutes after the end time. But if you lock your phone and lose track of time, and the reservation is still there when you unlock 25 minutes after the end, it’ll still let you cancel.
> 
> I totally meant to test that scenario and didn’t just mess up. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
> 
> Is there another scenario folks want tested? The $16 is sunk cost now, I’m happy to try something else. I’m not in Orlando today, so I can only test cancellation, not tapping in.


I know you are only doing cancellations and expirations because you are not there, but I am curious about your scenario A.  I book HM for 10:15.  Then at 11 I book JC or whatever.  I then tap into HM at 11:05.  Do I get another one to replace the HM? So I could have the JC at 1 and then when I tap into HM at 11:05  get a laugh floor for 11:30 or whatever?


----------



## dmunsil

William B said:


> I know you are only doing cancellations and expirations because you are not there, but I am curious about your scenario A.  I book HM for 10:15.  Then at 11 I book JC or whatever.  I then tap into HM at 11:05.  Do I get another one to replace the HM? So I could have the JC at 1 and then when I tap into HM at 11:05  get a laugh floor for 11:30 or whatever?


Correct. I wrote a whole long post about this: https://www.disboards.com/threads/t...egy-only-thread.3857056/page-50#post-63517569


----------



## maryj11

elgerber said:


> Correct!


I’m confused. If we got a LL before 11:00 we still have to wait til 11:00 to book another? I thought once you tapped in you could book another.


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## VeronicaZS

OMG, you guys, I think I FINALLY get it, even the 120 min rule. I've read most of this thread and watched Molly's videos and it finally clicked for me at minute 17 of this video. Please let me know if I got it right, I was really worried I was going to have to turn in my Disney expert button!!! And not a moment too soon, 11 days till we are back in the magic to celebrate DH's 50th birthday.
The SECRET to Using Genie+ in Disney World's Hollywood Studios - YouTube

*Basic Strategy*
Book your first G+.

if your first G+ is *within *the first 2 hours of the park being open you will be able to book another G+ as soon as you tap into that ride (2 tap points are required) *OR *if your 1 hour window expires. You can continue making G+ for the rest of the day _as long as you don't make a reservation more than 2 hours from when you last tapped in or your last ride window expired._
If you book an G+ more than 2 hours after you tapped into the last one you will be subject to the 120 min rule. For example, at 1:05pm you book an G+ for your favorite "hard to get attraction" but the time slot is 5:30pm. You will not be able to book another G+ until 3:05pm (120 min from when you last booked a ride). At 3:05 you will be able to book new G+ as described in the main bullet. You have now created a double stack.

if your first G+ is *after* the first 2 hours of park open, you will not be able to make additional G+ until 120 min after park open. After that you can continue booking G+ as described in the previous scenario.
*Stacking Strategy*

To start the stack, you need to let your G+ window expire and then make another G+ even if this is within the first 2 hours of the park being officially open. AFTER making another G+, tap into your expired G+ during the 15 min grace period. You can now implement the basic scenario described above but you have 2 parallel paths of G+.
You can also start a stack by triggering the 120 min rule as described in the sub bullet above.
*Advantages of Stacking*

Get through all the rides more quickly
Hold a "hard to get" G+ for later in the day but still be able to get G+ on your parallel track while your 'later in the day G+ is in the 120 min cool down window.
*When to start the G+ or Stack*

ASAP - gives you more time to get all the available rides
2 hours after park open or later - If you have a must ride attraction that doesn't have an G+ until later in the day and you don't want to risk missing it, book it and do other attractions in standby during the first 2 hours of park open. After 2 hours you can start booking other G+ while still holding that later in the day G+. This may also allow you to do an attraction more than once since you can only use G+ once per attraction.
I really hope I got that right!  Edit: Changed ILL to G+


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## Boardwalk III

g-dad66 said:


> I don’t know what happened in your situation but here’s something that happened to us more than once:
> It would say we were not eligilble until say 11:10 and the time was already 11:10. Kept trying and eventually it worked. Not sure how long it took but it could have been 1 or 2 minutes. I kept yelling at the phone it is 11:10!



Oh dear. Maybe I should have been more patient?


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## dmunsil

VeronicaZS said:


> *Basic Strategy*
> Book your first ILL.



This is a nit-pick, but Individual Lightning Lanes (ILL) are the ones you pay for a single ride. Genie+ is the one you're talking about, which people seem to just call G+LL or LL. But that doesn't really matter; we get what you're saying.



> if your first ILL is *within *the first 2 hours of the park being open you will be able to book another ILL as soon as you tap into that ride (2 tap points are required) *OR *if your 1 hour window expires. You can continue making ILLs for the rest of the day _as long as you don't make a reservation more than 2 hours from when you last tapped in or your last ride window expired._
> If you book an ILL more than 2 hours after you tapped into the last one you will be subject to the 120 min rule. For example, at 1:05pm you book an ILL for your favorite "hard to get attraction" but the time slot is 5:30pm. You will not be able to book another ILL until 3:05pm (120 min from when you last booked a ride). At 3:05 you will be able to book new ILLs as described in the main bullet. You have now created a double stack.
> 
> if your first ILL is *after* the first 2 hours of park open, you will not be able to make additional ILL until 120 min after park open. After that you can continue booking ILL as described in the previous scenario.


These are almost correct but not exactly correct. 

Whenever you make a G+LL reservation, an eligibility time is set (more on that below), and you lose your ability to book until one of the following happens:

You tap into any G+LL reservation.
You cancel any G+LL reservation.
Your eligibility time arrives.
Once your eligibility is back, it's back. It doesn't go away until you book a new reservation, at which point a new eligibility time is set and you start over.

Your eligibility time is either the end of the arrival window of the G+LL reservation you just made, or 2 hours from the current time, whichever is earlier. 

There's one exception, which is when you book the reservation before the park's official opening time. In that case, the eligibility is either the end of the arrival window of the G+LL reservation you just made, or 2 hours after the park's official opening time, whichever is earlier.

That's it. Those are the rules, as best we have collectively been able to determine them.

So for your bullet points, 2 hours from park opening is not the relevant time frame. You can make a double stack with _any_ reservation, no matter what time it is relative to park open.

Example 1: 

At 7:00 am, you make a reservation for 9:00-10:00 on a day the park opens at 9:00. 
Your eligibility time is 10:00 (end of your window, since that's less than 2 hours away from opening)
You could tap in as early as 9:00 and regain eligibility to book
You can instead wait until your eligibility time, 10:00, book a new reservation, then tap in (during the grace period), become eligible _again_, and book _another_ new reservation
Now you have a double stack.

Example 2: 

At 7:00 am, you make a reservation for 10:15 - 11:15 on a day the park opens at 9:00. 
Your eligibility time is 11:00 (2 hours from open, because the end of your window is more than 2 hours away from opening)
You could tap in as early as 10:15 and regain eligibility to book
You can instead wait until your eligibility time, 11:00, book a new reservation, then tap in (during the regular ride window), become eligible _again_, and book _another_ new reservation.
Now you have a double stack.
Example 3:

At 7:00 am, you make a reservation for 11:15 - 12:15 on a day the park opens at 9:00. 
Your eligibility time is 11:00 (2 hours from open, because the end of your window is more than 2 hours away from opening)
Your first opportunity to book is at your eligibility time, 11:00, when you can book a new reservation.
At 11:15 your window opens and you can tap in and get _another_ reservation.
Now you have a double stack.
The rest of your post is essentially correct - you want a double stack because it gives you more opportunities to book another reservation. You usually want to do it first thing because it kind of inevitably involves waiting longer than you need to use your first reservation. All correct.


----------



## dmunsil

I want to emphasize for everyone who is finding this complicated: *You do not need to track when your eligibility time will happen. The system will tell you.* Just try to book, and it will tell you when you'll become eligible. From that time, and the arrival times on your existing booked Genie+ LL reservations, you can always figure out when you'll be eligible, and decide whether you want to tap in as early as possible or wait for your eligibility time to get another stacked reservation. You might even decide to shift gears and cancel one of your reservations so you can book something different immediately.

In some cases, you'll only have one option. If the arrival time for your next reservation is more than 2 hours away, then for sure you'll be able to book before that time, so just make sure to take advantage of it. 

Conversely, if your next arrival window is going to close before your next eligibility time comes, you kind of need to tap into that ride or lose your LL reservation. This can happen when you have multiple stacked overlapping reservations.


----------



## Cotta

dmunsil said:


> I want to emphasize for everyone who is finding this complicated: *You do not need to track when your eligibility time will happen. The system will tell you.* Just try to book, and it will tell you when you'll become eligible. From that time, and the arrival times on your existing booked Genie+ LL reservations, you can always figure out when you'll be eligible, and decide whether you want to tap in as early as possible or wait for your eligibility time to get another stacked reservation. You might even decide to shift gears and cancel one of your reservations so you can book something different immediately.
> 
> In some cases, you'll only have one option. If the arrival time for your next reservation is more than 2 hours away, then for sure you'll be able to book before that time, so just make sure to take advantage of it.
> 
> Conversely, if your next arrival window is going to close before your next eligibility time comes, you kind of need to tap into that ride or lose your LL reservation. This can happen when you have multiple stacked overlapping reservations.


 First off Thank you so much for all your attention to detail and helping us figure this out!! My question has to do with this sort of, so I take it the app does not offer nudge to make a new reservation so you are on your own to book. But I am not grasping how long you have to make that new reservation. So say I have a double stack going in the morning and I want to take a mid-day break. Obviously the best scenario is a much later reservation. So for instance I make a 6 pm JC at 1 pm and I have another stack open as well. So I can reserve something else whenever I want. As long as I don't tap into one of my stacks before the other I won't lose the second? And I would also be able to book a 3rd stack at 3 pm and 5 pm?   But if I can not find that later reservation I will have to make and cancel reservations through out the afternoon?


----------



## dmunsil

Cotta said:


> So say I have a double stack going in the morning and I want to take a mid-day break. Obviously the best scenario is a much later reservation. So for instance I make a 6 pm JC at 1 pm and I have another stack open as well. So I can reserve something else whenever I want. As long as I don't tap into one of my stacks before the other I won't lose the second? And I would also be able to book a 3rd stack at 3 pm and 5 pm?   But if I can not find that later reservation I will have to make and cancel reservations through out the afternoon?



I'm not sure what you mean by having a stack "open"? If you mean you're currently eligible, but you're not booking because nothing is late enough, my advice is book now, and cancel and rebook if needed later.

Let's say you plan to come back at 4 and there's nothing you want later than 2, and it's noon right now and you're eligible to book. If you book something now, you have many options. You start a new eligibility waiting period, which could let you start another stack at 2 from your hotel. If one of the rides you want starts having times after 4, you can cancel one of your existing reservations and book the one after 4.

If you don't book, you're just missing out on potential to stack. It's not the end of the world, really. If you've got a double stack going you just need to keep it going, but in general, I think the key strategy tip is to book something any time you become eligible. It's never going to be a bad idea; worst case you cancel and book something else later.


----------



## Cotta

dmunsil said:


> I'm not sure what you mean by having a stack "open"? If you mean you're currently eligible, but you're not booking because nothing is late enough, my advice is book now, and cancel and rebook if needed later.
> 
> Let's say you plan to come back at 4 and there's nothing you want later than 2, and it's noon right now and you're eligible to book. If you book something now, you have many options. You start a new eligibility waiting period, which could let you start another stack at 2 from your hotel. If one of the rides you want starts having times after 4, you can cancel one of your existing reservations and book the one after 4.
> 
> If you don't book, you're just missing out on potential to stack. It's not the end of the world, really. If you've got a double stack going you just need to keep it going, but in general, I think the key strategy tip is to book something any time you become eligible. It's never going to be a bad idea; worst case you cancel and book something else later.



I guess by open I mean eligible. But I think I am understanding more now. So if I have "stacked' rides at 1:30 and 2, If I do not book something after tapping in at 1:30 and I ride at 2 I lose my double stack. So I can't just leave them "open" is where I was getting confused. But if I book something at 1:31 for 3 pm and then cancel I can book something later (same with the 2 pm ride). And you can cancel and rebook the same ride correct?  Or if I were to just ride at 1:30 and 2 and do nothing I would become "eligible" (120 rule) at 3:30 and again at 5:30.


----------



## Tiggr88

Revan said:


> My experience from using it yesterday at MK and HS.  We are staying offsite, arrived at rope drop, but not early entry.  MK was showing as a 7, HS was showing as a 6 on Touring Plans.  It was very busy.
> - The closest LL was at 9:40 against a 35 minute Buzz, we booked it and did Carousel of Progress.  Space Mountain was down.
> - Walked on Buzz, booked IASW with the next closest return time at 11:15. Space Mountain opened as we were right in front (lucky break) and we jumped in with about a 10-minute wait
> - Rode Speedway with a 10-minute wait (posted 20 minutes)
> - Heavy crowds in fantasyland, IASW was posted as 45-minute wait, PP was 90. Checked in and then booked Pirates for 1:40, at the time Haunted Mansion was booking out to 43:05 and we were planning on hopping.
> - 6 adults on IASW.....
> - Did Hall of Presidents, waited in Standby for Big Thunder (60 minutes posted, 40 minutes actual) and then ate at Peco's Bill; 30 minutes before my 2-hour window opened Pirate's was down and Genie+ canceled our reservation and we got an (almost) unlimited LL for one ride in MK.
> - At that point we booked RR at HS for a 6:15 LL - earliest available at HS, other than Muppets and Star Tours and I couldn't see wasting a booking window on either
> - Rode Pirates, struggled through the crowd to the hub, the pinch point around Aladdin's to get a Dole Whip is incredibly poor planning.
> - Arrived at HS around 3:30, we booked Midway Mania for an 8:15 return time with a park close at 9, nothing else besides the two e-tickets was available on Genie+ for the rest of the day so we chose to wait in standbys.
> 
> Takeaways
> - Unless you are staying on property and getting in early entry I think Genie+ is of dubious benefit during very heavy days - your booking windows are just too late by the time you can start scheduling.  I paid $100 for 6 and only got on one top-tier ride (RR) and two very good rides (PoC and MM). Maybe I am used to lower crowd volumes, always coming in the 1st week of December.


Can you please clarify what you mean in your takeaway? G+ should be available at 7AM for anyone staying on-site or offsite, if I understand correctly, which would make G+ attractive for people staying offsite. The ILL can be more problematic since onsite gets a headstart, but since you can only book 2 a day i would still think most people could get a benefit from this staying offsite as well. I think Rise is the only ride I've seen that sells out close to open time and if they are, then there is no money wasted since you would not have purchased it.


----------



## Luisfba

dmunsil said:


> This is a nit-pick, but Individual Lightning Lanes (ILL) are the ones you pay for a single ride. Genie+ is the one you're talking about, which people seem to just call G+LL or LL. But that doesn't really matter; we get what you're saying.
> 
> 
> These are almost correct but not exactly correct.
> 
> Whenever you make a G+LL reservation, an eligibility time is set (more on that below), and you lose your ability to book until one of the following happens:
> 
> You tap into any G+LL reservation.
> You cancel any G+LL reservation.
> Your eligibility time arrives.
> Once your eligibility is back, it's back. It doesn't go away until you book a new reservation, at which point a new eligibility time is set and you start over.
> 
> Your eligibility time is either the end of the arrival window of the G+LL reservation you just made, or 2 hours from the current time, whichever is earlier.
> 
> There's one exception, which is when you book the reservation before the park's official opening time. In that case, the eligibility is either the end of the arrival window of the G+LL reservation you just made, or 2 hours after the park's official opening time, whichever is earlier.
> 
> That's it. Those are the rules, as best we have collectively been able to determine them.
> 
> So for your bullet points, 2 hours from park opening is not the relevant time frame. You can make a double stack with _any_ reservation, no matter what time it is relative to park open.
> 
> Example 1:
> 
> At 7:00 am, you make a reservation for 9:00-10:00 on a day the park opens at 9:00.
> Your eligibility time is 10:00 (end of your window, since that's less than 2 hours away from opening)
> You could tap in as early as 9:00 and regain eligibility to book
> You can instead wait until your eligibility time, 10:00, book a new reservation, then tap in (during the grace period), become eligible _again_, and book _another_ new reservation
> Now you have a double stack.
> 
> Example 2:
> 
> At 7:00 am, you make a reservation for 10:15 - 11:15 on a day the park opens at 9:00.
> Your eligibility time is 11:00 (2 hours from open, because the end of your window is more than 2 hours away from opening)
> You could tap in as early as 10:15 and regain eligibility to book
> You can instead wait until your eligibility time, 11:00, book a new reservation, then tap in (during the regular ride window), become eligible _again_, and book _another_ new reservation.
> Now you have a double stack.
> Example 3:
> 
> At 7:00 am, you make a reservation for 11:15 - 12:15 on a day the park opens at 9:00.
> Your eligibility time is 11:00 (2 hours from open, because the end of your window is more than 2 hours away from opening)
> Your first opportunity to book is at your eligibility time, 11:00, when you can book a new reservation.
> At 11:15 your window opens and you can tap in and get _another_ reservation.
> Now you have a double stack.
> The rest of your post is essentially correct - you want a double stack because it gives you more opportunities to book another reservation. You usually want to do it first thing because it kind of inevitably involves waiting longer than you need to use your first reservation. All correct.



Thanks for the write-up, it's straightforward.  I think it will be interesting to see how folks end up applying this by park and depending on how busy.  One thing that wasn't clear to me with the 2 hour window was what action prevented you from being able to take advantage of it.  I was unclear if it was tapping into a LL res, or making a new LL res after tapping in.  It looks like tapping in is what you want to hold off on if you want to pull the stack from 2 hour window.  (correct?)

One this that was also mentioned somewhere on the thread was being able to get a triple stack early on, I think by essentially taking advantage of all three of the criteria in the same general time period.  I'd like to see if I understand that one right.

I think to pull that off.. you would need to book your LL with a window that (assuming 11am is 2 hours after park open) closes after 11.  Let's say.. window closes at 11:10.  Then you grab one at 11:02 (2 hour window expiration), one at 11:12 (LL res window expires), tap in within grace period, then grab another (from tapping in).

Did I get that right?  If so, would that also work if my res is - on my example above - 9:55 to 10:55?  Would I be able to get one stack from expiration (at 10:55) and one from the two hour wait (at 11:00)?


----------



## JakeAZ

Luisfba said:


> If so, would that also work if my res is - on my example above - 9:55 to 10:55? Would I be able to get one stack from expiration (at 10:55) and one from the two hour wait (at 11:00)?


I don't believe this would work.  Once you book from the expiration, it would start another 2 hour window.  However, once you then tap into the original ride (during grace period) you'd get another opportunity to book.


----------



## dmunsil

Luisfba said:


> One this that was also mentioned somewhere on the thread was being able to get a triple stack early on, I think by essentially taking advantage of all three of the criteria in the same general time period.  I'd like to see if I understand that one right.



To the best of my understanding, that doesn't work. You can get two new bookings by waiting until your eligibility time comes, booking something new, then tapping into a ride, then booking another new thing. You can't get three from the same ride.

Part of the problem is that early reports of how things worked suggested Genie+ restored your ability to book if one of your reservations (or maybe the one you most recently booked) hit its end time. Further experimentation shows that isn't true. Sometimes your eligibility time corresponds to the end of the arrival window of your previous booking, but not always. The key is this: the eligibility time is _either _2 hours or when the reservation you just booked ends. Not both. If it was both, then you could get three separate new reservations from carefully-chosen bookings that were at least 65 minutes in the future.

Folks have reported that they waited 2 hours, then until the window's expiration, then tapped in during the grace period, or something similar, and got three new reservations from one original booking. I can't replicate it. They may have experienced a glitch, or there may be something subtle I've missed. Or they just are misremembering the exact sequence of events.

Honestly, the current system is already pretty generous. I don't even think you need all these double-stack techniques to get a ton of Genie+ reservations, if you just make sure to do things in a reasonable order and always book something new every time you're eligible.


----------



## Cotta

dmunsil said:


> To the best of my understanding, that doesn't work. You can get two new bookings by waiting until your eligibility time comes, booking something new, then tapping into a ride, then booking another new thing. You can't get three from the same ride.
> 
> Part of the problem is that early reports of how things worked suggested Genie+ restored your ability to book if one of your reservations (or maybe the one you most recently booked) hit its end time. Further experimentation shows that isn't true. Sometimes your eligibility time corresponds to the end of the arrival window of your previous booking, but not always. The key is this: the eligibility time is _either _2 hours or when the reservation you just booked ends. Not both. If it was both, then you could get three separate new reservations from carefully-chosen bookings that were at least 65 minutes in the future.
> 
> Folks have reported that they waited 2 hours, then until the window's expiration, then tapped in during the grace period, or something similar, and got three new reservations from one original booking. I can't replicate it. They may have experienced a glitch, or there may be something subtle I've missed. Or they just are misremembering the exact sequence of events.
> 
> Honestly, the current system is already pretty generous. I don't even think you need all these double-stack techniques to get a ton of Genie+ reservations, if you just make sure to do things in a reasonable order and always book something new every time you're eligible.



So you don't think the 3 in one works but allowing a reservation to expire then booking and tapping in during a grace period would activate a second stack?


----------



## JakeAZ

Cotta said:


> but allowing a reservation to expire then booking and tapping in during a grace period would activate a second stack?


I have seen countless reports from reliable sites this works.


----------



## RyMickey

I will readily admit that I have not read through all 55 pages at this point, but I'm wondering people's levels of success if traveling with a large group.  We're going to be a party of six and are contemplating the purchase for this trip (waiting to see crowd levels) just because we're seeing it as an easy way to avoid crowds in the current health environment.  

That said, all the videos from bloggers I've watched are a single person getting passes.  I wonder what happens when you amplify that to a group of four or, in our case, a group of six.  I don't want to be stuck only having access to Beauty and the Beast and Muppets 3D in the Studios.


----------



## Luisfba

dmunsil said:


> To the best of my understanding, that doesn't work. You can get two new bookings by waiting until your eligibility time comes, booking something new, then tapping into a ride, then booking another new thing. You can't get three from the same ride.
> 
> Part of the problem is that early reports of how things worked suggested Genie+ restored your ability to book if one of your reservations (or maybe the one you most recently booked) hit its end time. Further experimentation shows that isn't true. Sometimes your eligibility time corresponds to the end of the arrival window of your previous booking, but not always. The key is this: the eligibility time is _either _2 hours or when the reservation you just booked ends. Not both. If it was both, then you could get three separate new reservations from carefully-chosen bookings that were at least 65 minutes in the future.
> 
> Folks have reported that they waited 2 hours, then until the window's expiration, then tapped in during the grace period, or something similar, and got three new reservations from one original booking. I can't replicate it. They may have experienced a glitch, or there may be something subtle I've missed. Or they just are misremembering the exact sequence of events.
> 
> Honestly, the current system is already pretty generous. I don't even think you need all these double-stack techniques to get a ton of Genie+ reservations, if you just make sure to do things in a reasonable order and always book something new every time you're eligible.



Thanks.  Got it.   And even if it worked, seems like it would be tricky to pull off. 

As far as the system and the techniques.  I'm going to be going during a terribly busy time (week after Easter), so I think that as a result my approach will need to be very dependent on park.  

Magic Kingdom - (planning on going late in the week) - I expect just grabbing back to back Genie+, or maybe one double stack, will work well
Animal Kingdom - really not enough rides to make it matter for AK, will RD and do StandBy and ILLS.. and just reserve stacks for a TBD park to hop to in the late afternoon or evening
Epcot - hoping even if busy just having one stack will be enough
Hollywood Studios - this is the tricky one, seeing the trends this week.. things go quickly and really not much chance to take advantage of G+ in the morning.  looks like this is a 'Rope Drop 1 or 2 rides, do your ILLs and maybe an 11am LL (reserved at 7am), then grab stacks to come back later' approach


----------



## princesswahooey

Thank you, everyone, for all the great research & explanations. I've been following this thread since the beginning, and think I get it. It's going to be tricky for my Christmas week visit because return times will probably fly forward faster than we've seen so far...but...

What about this strategy for an AK/DHS hopper day: 

7:03 am: Pull SDD for DHS for afternoon return time, say 4:00.

9:00: Rope Drop Animal Kingdom & ride standby/ILL$

11:00 am: I am eligible to book again. I book the soonest return time possible in AK (optimistically 11:30-12:30 return time) 

12:31: My return window expires. I book whatever I can (say MFSR, or whatever looks like it's about to run out) in DHS for afternoon/evening.

12:35: Tap into AK ride during grace period. Book another LL for whatever is left in DHS  (maybe ToT?) for afternoon/evening before it runs out.

1pm: Have lunch & Return to hotel for a break 

4:00 pm: Head to DHS with 3 Stacked LL & if anything is left at that point, each time I tap in, I can get a new LL.


*Depending on crowd levels, I may be better off just booking LL #2 for DHS at 11:00 and waiting until 1:00 pm to book the 3rd. Right? Even though the first scenario gives me a LL in AK, I may lose out on a good ride at DHS if I wait that extra hour to take advantage of the grace period stack. And AK standby waits for the G+ rides don't seem that bad. We can just buy ILL$ for FOP & Everest.


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## magicmat77

Hello. I have been to the parks many times as a tourist, and as a volunteer with a charity taking annual trips, and going on EVERY ride many times each year with lots of sick kids!  There are a few new rides which I want to experience. I am going to be travelling alone, and staying off-site. My main aim was to experience the new Star Wars rides at HS with a single day ticket. I will be visiting next Monday, and using Genie+ and paying for ROTR since this is my number 1 priority! My plan was to go late morning and try and stack a couple of rides before arriving.  I had a brain wave and wondered if I could get a Hopper ticket to AK so that I could do both Avatar rides (paying for Flights) in the morning, then move on to HS at 1pm to get in for 2pm and do the "big" rides there.  (I've done the shows and rides many times, but will be happy to revisit any that I can get on, especially in single rider queues). So my thinking is:

7am - Book Na'vi River for as early as possible. If not before 1pm, then i will just queue and see what suitable return times I can get for HS rides
9am - Book Avatar Flights for the morning and ROTR for late afternoon. And then then book my first HS ride, in the order of Slinky Dog (never done it, I am 44 but looks like fun), TOT, Smugglers and RR (These have single rider, so I might get onto those easily at the end of the day)
11am (or after Ive tapped into Na'vi River - Book 2nd HS ride
1pm - Book 3rd HS ride
Hopefully then I can get on the other rides after tapping in to each reservation, or by just queuing.

What do you think? Viable? Bad use of my time? Am I likely to get a pre 1pm Avatar Flights LL at 9am?   HS is my main priority, but seeing the Avatar rides would be great. Im on my own, so i can be flexible and Im happy to stay at HS until late.  Any thoughts should be very much appreciated!


----------



## Revan

elgerber said:


> Curious, what time did you book Buzz?  Did you book it right at 7?  Seems if you booked right at 7 you could have gotten a lot of choices right away.


We booked when we got into the park, we were staying offsite and arrived a little after park open.


----------



## Revan

Tiggr88 said:


> Can you please clarify what you mean in your takeaway? G+ should be available at 7AM for anyone staying on-site or offsite, if I understand correctly, which would make G+ attractive for people staying offsite. The ILL can be more problematic since onsite gets a headstart, but since you can only book 2 a day i would still think most people could get a benefit from this staying offsite as well. I think Rise is the only ride I've seen that sells out close to open time and if they are, then there is no money wasted since you would not have purchased it.



That's a misunderstanding on my part then, but we didn't plan on using G+ until we got to the park and saw the crowds and wait time jumping up


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## StarrySkye21

I am sure this is already answered so I apologize for asking again.

if you book and then later cancel a specific G+ attraction, will you have the option to book the same attraction again later?  I don’t want to lose my one chance at a lightning lane for a favorite ride by canceling it.


----------



## nurseberta

magicmat77 said:


> Hello. I have been to the parks many times as a tourist, and as a volunteer with a charity taking annual trips, and going on EVERY ride many times each year with lots of sick kids!  There are a few new rides which I want to experience. I am going to be travelling alone, and staying off-site. My main aim was to experience the new Star Wars rides at HS with a single day ticket. I will be visiting next Monday, and using Genie+ and paying for ROTR since this is my number 1 priority! My plan was to go late morning and try and stack a couple of rides before arriving.  I had a brain wave and wondered if I could get a Hopper ticket to AK so that I could do both Avatar rides (paying for Flights) in the morning, then move on to HS at 1pm to get in for 2pm and do the "big" rides there.  (I've done the shows and rides many times, but will be happy to revisit any that I can get on, especially in single rider queues). So my thinking is:
> 
> 7am - Book Na'vi River for as early as possible. If not before 1pm, then i will just queue and see what suitable return times I can get for HS rides
> 9am - Book Avatar Flights for the morning and ROTR for late afternoon. And then then book my first HS ride, in the order of Slinky Dog (never done it, I am 44 but looks like fun), TOT, Smugglers and RR (These have single rider, so I might get onto those easily at the end of the day)
> 11am (or after Ive tapped into Na'vi River - Book 2nd HS ride
> 1pm - Book 3rd HS ride
> Hopefully then I can get on the other rides after tapping in to each reservation, or by just queuing.
> 
> What do you think? Viable? Bad use of my time? Am I likely to get a pre 1pm Avatar Flights LL at 9am?   HS is my main priority, but seeing the Avatar rides would be great. Im on my own, so i can be flexible and Im happy to stay at HS until late.  Any thoughts should be very much appreciated!



I’m sure other will have some real time feedback as I have yet to visit with G+ but in my understanding SDD goes fast. My advice is to get SDD 1st then purchase Rise at 7am, (since it is not your park reservation, you will be prompted for times after 2pm,  then purchase FoP, arrive at AK and standby Na’Vi 1st followed by timed FoP, by 11am you could book any other G+ attractions like safari but if wait times are low start adding G+ for HS


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## disneymom1026

Can someone simplify the hacks    I get the Genie + basics but can someone make it super simple for everything else.

1. Can you do the 2 tap hack even if your LL window has not expired?  Example:  You have PP from 1-2pm. Can I tap into PP 1st tap entry point at 1:15pm, get a new LL, tap into PP 2nd tap entry point to get an additional new LL, then ride PP?  Am I understanding this correct?   So that would be 2 additional new LL's instead of just 1 if you did not do the double tap. 

2. In the above example, if I let the LL for PP expire and at 2:01pm I grab an additional LL THEN do the above hack to get 3 new LL's correct?

3. Once I have 2 or 3 LL's going from the above example, how do I keep 2 or 3 LL's going at all times? Do I have to remember any special rules to hold onto many of these bonus LL's at one time or do all the basic rules apply like expiration, using, 120 min rule.

4. Can someone simply explain the cancel hack? 

5. Is the best strategy to get a LL in the near future at 7am or should I go for longer rides like SDD or JC? 

6. We will be park hopping each day.  Should I get a few LL in the first park but really focus on bigger more popular rides in the late afternoon / early evening for the park we are hopping to?  We will be taking an afternoon break. 

This forum is amazing and I have learned so much about Genie + hacks. I hope to get the most out of our trip without going crazy ha.


----------



## LSUfan4444

disneymom1026 said:


> 1. Can you do the 2 tap hack even if your LL window has not expired? Example: You have PP from 1-2pm. Can I tap into PP 1st tap entry point at 1:15pm, get a new LL, tap into PP 2nd tap entry point to get an additional new LL, then ride PP? Am I understanding this correct? So that would be 2 additional new LL's instead of just 1 if you did not do the double tap.




No, your eligibility is not reset with every tap. Once you second tap into the ride (when their is a second tap option), you will be eligible for another G+LL. Now, if you were to wait until your PP window expired (2:01 pm) you could then book another G+LL and the tap into PP and book another G+LL


----------



## nurseberta

disneymom1026 said:


> Can someone simplify the hacks    I get the Genie + basics but can someone make it super simple for everything else.
> 
> 1. Can you do the 2 tap hack even if your LL window has not expired?  Example:  You have PP from 1-2pm. Can I tap into PP 1st tap entry point at 1:15pm, get a new LL, tap into PP 2nd tap entry point to get an additional new LL, then ride PP?  Am I understanding this correct?   So that would be 2 additional new LL's instead of just 1 if you did not do the double tap.
> 
> 4. Can someone simply explain the cancel hack?
> 
> 5. Is the best strategy to get a LL in the near future at 7am or should I go for longer rides like SDD or JC?


1. I don’t think the 1st tap resets your eligibility timer unless someone found a glitch. Have not experienced real-time but from all I have researched, the second tap is what resets so I don’t think you could get 2 LL from one booking.

4. the cancelation hack is not really a hack, just cancel and then you are eligible and rebook but I would be careful because if you have another eligible window opening I believe this would mess with the time clock or potentially mess with that availability if you are trying to multi stack

5. This would change depending on your touring strategy. If you have early entry then you could RD SDD or JC (or plan them for end of the night) and book another G+
my feeling is that if you pay for G+ You have a desire to save time and slow loading/ low capacity rides is where you will get more value (save time waiting in line) if using the LL do these are the rides that book out late and you may not get a G+ as SDD books out of availability 
Also this depends on crowd levels at the time you visit.


----------



## VeronicaZS

dmunsil said:


> This is a nit-pick, but Individual Lightning Lanes (ILL) are the ones you pay for a single ride. Genie+ is the one you're talking about, which people seem to just call G+LL or LL. But that doesn't really matter; we get what you're saying.



Thanks for the clarification, I edited my post so as not to cause confusion.

Thank you for reading so closely, I think I get all the nuances now!


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

JakeAZ said:


> I have seen countless reports from reliable sites this works.


Do you have any links (that are not blocked)?


----------



## JakeAZ

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> Do you have any links (that are not blocked)?


Best write ups I've seen on actual experiences with different strategies is Tom at D tourist blog.


----------



## lynzi2004

Can someone help me understand if I'm planning my arrival day the right way to get the most out of G+ and $IAS?! I think I understand the expiration strategy if arriving early, but I want to make sure I get the best use for the afternoon with a later arrival. We are flying in on a Saturday, Dec 18, arriving around 12pm with EPCOT as our park and a park hopper. (there's still availability at all parks so I can change this if necessary, but for our week as a whole I think this works. ) I'm thinking to first book G+ SDD at 7am for sometime after 2pm. Then book $IAS for ROTR for sometime after 2pm as well. Next I could book a VQ for Remy without the upcharge since that is my park reservation. Here's where I don't know my best bet...does the clock start at 1pm since EPCOT opens at 11am or does it start sooner (most of the other parks open at 9 so can I book a new LL at 11?) Whichever it ends up being, I can pick something else for late afternoon at HS or I could pick something with a quicker return time at EPCOT. I would hope my VQ for Remy was around 12-1pm. If I do a quick return at Epcot, if I wait till it expires, I could then book another LL and then tap in and book another creating a double stack. So I would have Slinky for say 4-5pm (from the 7am booking), but have Test Track from 2-3pm (from the 120 cool down period). At 3:05 book TOT for 6-7pm) and then tap into Test Track and book RnRC from 7-8Pm. Once I got to Slinky and tapped in there I could essentially add maybe TSMM or Swirling Saucers?! Still having my ROTR $IAS to use at whatever time was available as well!

1. Can I book a $IAS at a park I don't have a reservation for?
2. Can I hold G+ LL at two different parks?
3. Does the grace period trick work throughout the day and to your advantage as long as there's LL available? With every LL reservation, if you use the grace period, could you essentially end up with 2 LLs. Obviously, at some point I think that would get terribly confusing, but even just one or two could really help!

Thanks all! Going during a crowded week, I know I need to be prepared to hop on ANY LL I can get bc I'm sure wait times will be long!


----------



## twodogs

I had to stop at page 40 and skip to the end to post this question.  Hopefully it is not answered in the intervening pages, but we have a trip (hopefully!) upcoming, so I am hoping to get the answer here.  I have been playing with the "refresh" for the LLs, and I do see the time back up (sometimes by a few hours) to a sooner time (like with Max Pass in the past).  For the ILL$, does the time ever move earlier with refreshing?  I can't imagine it would other than if they are doing drops at times.  I don't think you can cancel your ILL$, so earlier times would not come up due to cancellations.

Now back to page 40....


----------



## Pookie9922

My trip isn't until end of March but I'm dying to start planning something, so I'm trying to get a feel for my general strategies for each park.

Background - We (family of 5) are traveling with BIL, SIL, 5yo niece and MIL. BIL/SIL are the antithesis of planners. This is their 1st trip (our 2nd). They will not wake up early or pre-plan anything and will only go throughout the day on the whim of the non-adventurous 5 year old, with the addition that they'd like to do some more exciting rides and will either utilize MIL or rider switch for that. We'd like to do stuff with them, but ultimately we want to maximize our trip experience and will be Early Entry RDing and double stacking G+ when possible to do so.  Also MIL has a bad back and will either be walking slow, not joining us all day or using an ECV or all of the above. Hubby says to not plan for them at all, so I'm doing my best to let it go. 

So Question #1) When we are booking G+ LL, can we have everyone's tickets linked in my account so I can make reservations for the group but unselect them if they are not with us* BUT not let them book anything for us* (ie we are not booked in their account)? - last thing I want is for them to make some random G+ reservation and kill my stacks. Follow up to that is, does anyone have any experience with inconsistent groups and eligibility windows? I'm assuming each person has their own individual eligibility time and to be included in a group's LL reservation they must all have eligibility. Is that correct? Is it easy to see everyone's eligibility times?

Question #2) I'm trying to determine which parks I'll need G+. MK and HS feel like a given. Trying to decide epcot and AK. Are people finding G+ helpful in AK or not? We will be Early Entry RDing FOP, possibly buying a later day $ILL for it too since we love it so much. Our only other priorities are the safari and kali rapids. And we like the Animation Experience. Will be skipping Na'vi and ITTBAB and Lion King. Everything else is optional.  We do not have park hoppers, so any extra time will be spent eating or in line for additional FOP rides since Everest will be down for our trip. Would you recommend G+ for that day? I'm leaning no and using the $15 on a FOP $ILL or saving it for another park/ride. 
# 2b) If BIL+ get a late start, would they need G+?

Question #3) What time (if at all) are FOP $ILL's selling out? I expect BIL/SIL will need to utilize that if they want to ride it, so I want to at least give them a reasonable window they have to wake up by. 

Question #4) Given we are staying at the BC and have the super convenient early entry option at Epcot and will be going on a deluxe extended evening hours day, would a G+ be needed at Epcot? Will be skipping Living with the Land and Spaceship Earth. Everything else we like. 
# 4b) If BIL+ get a late start and will not be doing extended evening hours, would they need G+?

Crowds look like they might be a 7-8. 

Thanks!


----------



## dez1978

dumb question.  But if you don't do the stacking thing, and say your 1st LL is at 11, you tap in can you book another one then or do you have to wait until 1 to book something else?


----------



## Bevo in VA

dez1978 said:


> dumb question.  But if you don't do the stacking thing, and say your 1st LL is at 11, you tap in can you book another one then or do you have to wait until 1 to book something else?



You can book a new one as soon as you tap in.


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## dmunsil

twodogs said:


> For the ILL$, does the time ever move earlier with refreshing?  I can't imagine it would other than if they are doing drops at times.  I don't think you can cancel your ILL$, so earlier times would not come up due to cancellations.



Every once in a while during the morning frenzy for Rise of the Resistance you'll see the time back up somewhat, and you can even see a time pop up briefly in the middle of the day after it's been sold out for hours, but extremely rarely. It's a much smaller effect than with the Genie+ LL times, which can bounce around quite a bit for much of the day.

I have some thoughts as to what's going on, but they're just educated guesses:

- When you select a time for an ILL, it holds it for you for 10 minutes. If you back out of that screen, it goes back in the pool for someone else to book. During the morning frenzy, 10 minutes can represent a substantial movement in available times. Getting a time from a few minutes ago may change the reported first available time quite a bit. On top of that, I think they may be batching up the "returns" and putting them back at intermittent intervals. So with Rise, you may see that the latest time is about 6, and then for a little bit (like seconds) there are times around 4 available, then it goes back to 6-ish again.

- Guests can't cancel an ILL, but Disney can. It's possible that the occasional availability is someone who made a mistake or had a problem, went to Guest Relations and got a refund or got their time moved.


----------



## michaeldorn1

OK, this might have already been answered, but...  I want to start playinjg around with Genie+ before our WDW trip.  So, If I choose just a random date for a park and make a reservation for that date, is it possible for me start playing around with it starting at the time the park opens to check out LL times etc. and practice "stacking" or will I have to purchase LL first?  I know this sounds so stupid, but I am soo angsting over all of this LOL!!!


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## dez1978

AnnabelleTheTalkingTree said:


> As someone who generally plans like crazy, researches like crazy, and ENJOYS the ins and outs of all of it.... this is stressing me the frig out. I keep reading and re-reading these threads thinking that maybe THIS time it will make sense to me, but.... nope. Still overwhelmed


Same.  My ADHD hyper focus is making me go crazy over this, yet at the same time it's just not clicking.


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## dez1978

on thrill data I don't see Remy on the graph that shows the LL return times.  The other ILL attractions are listed. Just hoping there are still some available at 10 when the park opens (off site)


----------



## Disturbia

CookieandOatmeal said:


> I know I can try for a BG for Remy but I've read that the wait to actually ride after your BG is called seems to be in the 30 minute range. I don't think my 2 year old is going to be able to wait that long. Paying for the ILL$ might be worth it if the wait isn't as long as the BG's. Anyone have experience they can share?


We purchased Remy (2:20-3:20 pm) and got BG 10 (called at around 11:00 am) and it took us only 5 minutes to get through the queue on 11/6.  We had our almost 2 year old in a Colugo carrier.

Remy BG 10 called at 11 am (done by 11:20) ate at booths as we walked along-France (15 min wait), Morocco, Greece, Pizza (via Napoli)
Test track 12-1 pm took at tail end 1:15 pm; rider switch completed around 2:15 (purchased a baby yoda blanket -59 degrees)
Mission Space 2:05-3:05 (available right away; did not do rider switch) took 30+ mins
Soarin 2:10-3:10 pm (did not do rider switch) took 20+ mins
Remy LLIA$ 2:20-3:20 pm

We had selected a late afternoon for our LLIA$, but were still short on time due to delays-Mission space took 30+ mins and Test track took long due to wheelchairs/groups blocking the lightening lane scans getting rider switch; we were always moved to the side to get RS so not sure why a group of 10 was standing blocking all access.  The Test track CM had to consult with another CM who had seen us lined up 3 mins earlier (we were 3 groups away) to clear us as I was 1 min later than grace period to scan.

I would also caution that the crowds are intense in the Canada-France area after 2 pm (park hoppers).  The France booth line zig zagged (easily 40 mins) and there were droves of people standing/eating/drinking/slow walking around the entrance to France pavilion.  The Remy CM was nice, but slightly annoyed and let my family who were behind enter. We didn't anticipate the crowd and complete block near Canada (music/concert) and intense congestion near France


----------



## nurseberta

I am going at a projected low crowd time in January. I know I generally would not need G+ for AK but I already added it for the length of stay. Thinking I would take advantage of sleeping in! getting a nice breakfast and heading to the park later in the day.  Also have reservations at Raglan Road for 6:30pm. If I get to AK by 10-11ish how long do you think it would take to do the park without rushing and doing shows and animals with G+


----------



## Sjm9911

Ok nor reading the back 5 pages. But as i got G+ for the whole trip including the parks I didnt think worth while,  at AK it worked the best and as it should. We RD FOP today, slower then usally because part of it broke, had a G+ for navi, and then got all the rest G+ around the park easily. So it was worth it for AK, cut lines of 30 and 60 minutes.  I will say the line times , at least in the ones i stood, in all the parks we visited before, were inflated. More so on the paid LL. So while we did skip lines, who knows the atually wait times. So in 7 park days so far, G + was ok in MK, useless in epcott, HS unknown as too many rides broke and DD didnt want to ride a ton. But useless for us there also. Ak surprisingly worked the best. We did shows and rides, not much else and done at 1 pm.


----------



## Pookie9922

Sjm9911 said:


> Ok nor reading the back 5 pages. But as i got G+ for the whole trip including the parks I didnt think worth while,  at AK it worked the best and as it should. We RD FOP today, slower then usally because part of it broke, had a G+ for navi, and then got all the rest G+ around the park easily. So it was worth it for AK, cut lines of 30 and 60 minutes.  I will say the line times , at least in the ones i stood, in all the parks we visited before, were inflated. More so on the paid LL. So while we did skip lines, who knows the atually wait times. So in 7 park days so far, G + was ok in MK, useless in epcott, HS unknown as too many rides broke and DD didnt want to ride a ton. But useless for us there also. Ak surprisingly worked the best. We did shows and rides, not much else and done at 1 pm.


This is a great data point. We won't have park hoppers so being done at AK by 1pm is way too efficient! lol Makes me think I can save the $75 and just have a full park day.


----------



## acarsme123

I’m a little confused by something. I’ve been periodically looking at the MDE app trying to wrap my head around how this Genie+ works. One thing I notice at times is a ride will say “standby line not currently available”. I saw this a lot when I was viewing MK. A lot of rides were saying “standby line not currently available” even though it was showing genie+ selection times. I refreshed a few mins after and then those rides were all showing standby times again. Just a temp glitch?  But then I changed to Epcot and Test Track was showing no genie+ selections but also showing no standby line available. What does this mean?  Are they actually cutting off people from being able to stand in standby lines on some rides?


----------



## dmunsil

acarsme123 said:


> I’ve been periodically looking at the MDE app trying to wrap my head around how this Genie+ works. One thing I notice at times is a ride will say “standby line not currently available”.



I think it's a glitch; I've seen it too. It's just Disney's servers getting bogged down. Hopefully they'll get things better tuned before Thanksgiving...

If a ride is actually down, there will be an extra note saying that it's closed, in addition to the  "Not Currently Available" message.


----------



## nurseberta

Sjm9911 said:


> Ok nor reading the back 5 pages. But as i got G+ for the whole trip including the parks I didnt think worth while,  at AK it worked the best and as it should. We RD FOP today, slower then usally because part of it broke, had a G+ for navi, and then got all the rest G+ around the park easily. So it was worth it for AK, cut lines of 30 and 60 minutes.  I will say the line times , at least in the ones i stood, in all the parks we visited before, were inflated. More so on the paid LL. So while we did skip lines, who knows the atually wait times. So in 7 park days so far, G + was ok in MK, useless in epcott, HS unknown as too many rides broke and DD didnt want to ride a ton. But useless for us there also. Ak surprisingly worked the best. We did shows and rides, not much else and done at 1 pm.


 did you go to Rafiki's planet watch? see the animals?


----------



## acarsme123

So since we are going to be staying on-site in March, and we can make ILL selections at 7am before off-site guests, I take it that should be my priority at 7am?  But anyone using genie+ (off site and on-site) can make their genie+ selections at 7am, correct?  How quickly do the early slot times go for genie+ if I’m busy booking ILL’s at 7am?  Should I be booking ILL’s while say my wife is booking a genie+ slot?  Can two people of the same party be doing that at the same time?  She has her own MDE log in.


----------



## Sjm9911

nurseberta said:


> did you go to Rafiki's planet watch? see the animals?


Nope. Tbh, everyone is to tired. This is the end of the vacation and it was busy.


----------



## soniam

acarsme123 said:


> So since we are going to be staying on-site in March, and we can make ILL selections at 7am before off-site guests, I take it that should be my priority at 7am?  But anyone using genie+ (off site and on-site) can make their genie+ selections at 7am, correct?  How quickly do the early slot times go for genie+ if I’m busy booking ILL’s at 7am?  Should I be booking ILL’s while say my wife is booking a genie+ slot?  Can two people of the same party be doing that at the same time?  She has her own MDE log in.



It depends upon the park. It seems that only Rise ILL go early, However, Slinky Dog Genie+ go early too. I would book Slinky G+ and then Rise ILL, if doing one at a time. The other parks are not as critical.


----------



## Sjm9911

acarsme123 said:


> I’m a little confused by something. I’ve been periodically looking at the MDE app trying to wrap my head around how this Genie+ works. One thing I notice at times is a ride will say “standby line not currently available”. I saw this a lot when I was viewing MK. A lot of rides were saying “standby line not currently available” even though it was showing genie+ selection times. I refreshed a few mins after and then those rides were all showing standby times again. Just a temp glitch?  But then I changed to Epcot and Test Track was showing no genie+ selections but also showing no standby line available. What does this mean?  Are they actually cutting off people from being able to stand in standby lines on some rides?
> 
> View attachment 621640


Depends on when you see those things. Rides go down. Then both get changed to not avalable. Also weather effects them. Plus they are slow to update when the ride is down. I have booked rides, and walked over to find its down. Addtionally,  i have been in cues when the ride is down and they dont update the ap. So, its for a reason, justbnot sceen if your not there.


----------



## Sjm9911

Oh and sometimes they take G + reservations,  when the ride is down for future times. That dosen't mean the ride will be up and running by then. Remmy goes down a lot as does the micky and minni train. I was in line , 3 times when they went down. Missed RD because of one and missed remmy on one park day. All 3 times the ap was not updated to status promptly or at all.


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## StarrySkye21

Im still looking for answers on if you cancel a G+ reservation to say HM, you can rebook HM again later in the day?  

Also what if you accidently let your G+ reservation expire for BTMR? Can you book it again?


----------



## baozi

So did a Disney run last Sunday (a pretty busy day) and something to share:
1. There are many bugs with the system still. Especially when you try to book a new Genie+ reservation and you are not eligible yet, the reason given seems to be powered by a random number generator...
Also, whether or not you can cancel a Genie+ reservation (i.e. whether or not the "cancel" link exists on the Genie+ reservation page) is like determined by a random number generator, maybe an Android specific bug?
2. If an attraction does not have any desirable time slot available, keep refreshing and you may get one later. During the morning when I was in the queue for FoP (9:15-11:15), I wanted to get a G+ for Safaris (had a G+ reservation for SDD, so can only get a new reservation at 11:00). I have been watching the return window for it, and while generally it was in the range of 2:00pm+, eventually I secured one for 11:25. And during the Safaris I tried to secure a G+ reservation for Test track, while the return window was generally in the range of 6:00pm+, I eventually secured one for 2:20pm.
3. I saw some posts saying that Disney intentionally posted wait time that was much longer than the actual wait time to encourage purchase of ILL, it was not my experience. At 9:15am the posted wait time for FOP was 65 minutes while I entered the pre-show room at 11:15am...
4. It is not true that if an attraction goes down, everybody's ILL is automatically extended to the end of the day. Actually for my Remmy ILL (the app was a little bit confusing -- as basically all options were grayed out, I just thought that it never came back up), I went to the customer experience umbrella, and the CM said something like "it is your fault, but let me make a one time exception and extend it".
5. Value of Genie+? You can not compare with the past. In 2018 I was once able to secure 4 fastpasses for FOP in a single day by refreshing. Well, I have to admit that it was sort of unfair for other guests... Now, you may get many G+ reservations for some C rides in MK or Epcot or 2-3 rides in the other two parks. But think about it this way: that $16 saves you maybe 2 hours of park time, I guess it is still worth it to some extent.


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## Sjm9911

StarrySkye21 said:


> Im still looking for answers on if you cancel a G+ reservation to say HM, you can rebook HM again later in the day?
> 
> Also what if you accidently let your G+ reservation expire for BTMR? Can you book it again?


I have cancled a G+ reservation before the time slot started and i was able tonre book the same ride at a earlier time. So i booked it, then it showed an earlier time, so I cancled it and rebooked it.


----------



## amylevan

StarrySkye21 said:


> Im still looking for answers on if you cancel a G+ reservation to say HM, you can rebook HM again later in the day?
> 
> Also what if you accidently let your G+ reservation expire for BTMR? Can you book it again?


According to TouringPlans, if you let a reservation expire, you cannot rebook it.  The system sees it as used.


----------



## Kazi7

I want to use G+ on Sunday for HS between 5p and 9p.  Obviously I'll get SDD at 7am, then at 11am I'd like to get ToT.  So this week I've been stalking the 11am time to see what's available.  Earlier this week at the 11am drop, ToT was pulling return times at 5pm and it went up very quickly to after 7pm within 5 min!  This am when I checked at 11, ToT return times were between 11am and 3pm (refreshing several times).  I had to wait until 11:20 or so to consistently see return times past 5pm.  Every day is different and it's so hard to plan.  I think you just have to be ready on the dot and keep refreshing until you get something that fits.


----------



## CBMom01

From this thread and other sources, I’m getting the message that literally the only Genie+ strategy that works is to start making selections at 7, rope drop, and prioritize must-do early in the day over all else. Do you guys agree?


----------



## Sjm9911

Today at MK was a mess. SDMT down , Splash down, and Jungle cruse down at park opening.  Used exactly one G+ (JC at 1105) grabbed another G+ at 1100, still waiting on times for the next ones to come up So today it wasn't good for G+. And standby lines in the am were still 15 minutes shorter then posted.


----------



## ckelly14

CBMom01 said:


> From this thread and other sources, I’m getting the message that literally the only Genie+ strategy that works is to start making selections at 7, rope drop, and prioritize must-do early in the day over all else. Do you guys agree?



I believe there is also a school of thought to use G+ to stack LLs for an afternoon park.  So you can sleep in a little...


----------



## CBMom01

ckelly14 said:


> I believe there is also a school of thought to use G+ to stack LLs for an afternoon park.  So you can sleep in a little...


Ah, so if you’re hopping just do SB or $LL at park 1 and choose later Genie+  for park 2? Interesting


----------



## DisneyKidds

CBMom01 said:


> Ah, so if you’re hopping just do SB or $LL at park 1 and choose later Genie+  for park 2? Interesting


As far as I’m concerned this will be OUR best use of G+.  Rope drop am park while stacking G+ returns for pm park.  A lot of people say G+ isn’t worth it for Epcot, but if we can triple stack and show up to Epcot later in the day with TT AND Soarin in hand, with maybe Spaceship Earth as well….that would be an improvement over park hopping of yore, albeit at an additional cost.  Of course that is all dependent upon the availability of suitable LL returns during busier times.


----------



## CJK

Just back from our trip. The one thing I never could figure out was refreshing the tip board, to find a closer time for our desired ride. When I refreshed the page (multiple times on multiple days), the times just kept getting later and later. My dh was getting mad that I wasn't booking, but I was hoping the refresh method would work. Was I just really unlucky, or did I do something wrong?


----------



## Luisfba

ckelly14 said:


> I believe there is also a school of thought to use G+ to stack LLs for an afternoon park.  So you can sleep in a little...


I’m starting to think that’s going to be my approach, at least for HS.  I’ll be staying at the Boardwalk, on a very busy week.. so I’m thinking for HS I’m going to have the kids sleep in, start at Epcot, nice lunch at France, take the skylines, and park hop to HS - start making selections at 7am.  This gets me 3 LL plus ILLs already setup by the time I get there.


----------



## Pookie9922

Can someone reiterate what happens with your stack when you get an anywhere LL when a ride breaks down? Someone said it could mess up your stack if you didn't use it in the same window, but I didn't understand why.


----------



## LMO429

Hi! Our trip isn't until April so we have some time im trying to really wrap my head around how to maximize genie plus sometimes when I am reading its confusing is there a you tube video anyone can recommend that really explains this with visuals or a blog post that is super detailed.


----------



## JETSDAD

CJK said:


> Just back from our trip. The one thing I never could figure out was refreshing the tip board, to find a closer time for our desired ride. When I refreshed the page (multiple times on multiple days), the times just kept getting later and later. My dh was getting mad that I wasn't booking, but I was hoping the refresh method would work. Was I just really unlucky, or did I do something wrong?


You're just waiting on someone to cancel.....the times will keep getting later as they get booked up but you want to catch it when someone drops their earlier time. You just never know how long that could take or what times might be dropped.


----------



## woody5

I have been reading this thread daily.  I think I have the stacking figured out.  I just want to clarify that if I have a LL at 9am and I use the LL at say 9:30, I am now eligible for another LL.  I am not subject to the 2 hour rule because I used the LL.  Is this the correct understanding?


----------



## Sjm9911

woody5 said:


> I have been reading this thread daily.  I think I have the stacking figured out.  I just want to clarify that if I have a LL at 9am and I use the LL at say 9:30, I am now eligible for another LL.  I am not subject to the 2 hour rule because I used the LL.  Is this the correct understanding?


Thats correct. But it isn't  a stack. Its just pick one, ride it pick another.


----------



## Orsino

Pookie9922 said:


> So Question #1) When we are booking G+ LL, can we have everyone's tickets linked in my account so I can make reservations for the group but unselect them if they are not with us* BUT not let them book anything for us* (ie we are not booked in their account)?


My understanding is that MDE is a two-way street. If you enable yourself to see their plans, they can see yours (and book stuff). However, you don't have to worry about your group messing up a stack by booking something. You build a stack by booking a new G+ LL as soon as possible when you are eligible. If you book immediately when eligible, your group members will never be able to book a G+ LL for you. If it happens that they book a G+ LL before you do when eligibility comes up, this is not a problem as it will NOT break a stack for you as they would have built a stack for you. You can cancel what they did and make a new G+ LL reservation*. The exception would be if a LL got converted to 'anytime.' I don't know what would happen in that case, but I've read that 'anytime' passes can break a stack.
However, they could mess with your plans by deleting something you didn't want deleted, but that seems less likely.



Pookie9922 said:


> Question #3) What time (if at all) are FOP $ILL's selling out? I expect BIL/SIL will need to utilize that if they want to ride it, so I want to at least give them a reasonable window they have to wake up by.


Since FoP ILL$ is paid for separately, it gives you the option to select a time. Booking as soon as possible (7AM if staying on property, park open if not), will give you the most times to select from. In other words, you don't have to 'time' your booking since you can pick from a list.
On a busy day, FoP can sell out in the morning (11 November data shows it sold out around 9:30, with sporadic reappearances later in the day). On less busy days it doesn't sell out as fast, and since you want later in the day anyway, you would be in good shape; but booking sooner will give you the most choices.


----------



## woody5

The stack comes if I pass the 10am mark, make a new LL reservation and then tap in to the first LL within the 15 minute grace period?  I could then book another LL once I tapped in and therefore now have the stack?


----------



## Sjm9911

The stack would come 2 hours after opening.  So if you book something for 1100ish. Then at 1101 make a second G+ selection , then you will have 2. You can not use your first one before selecting the second or the timer will reset. ( unless your raking the glitch thing that I have no idea about. ) thats for a MK opening at 9 am. The early opening does not count. Its park opening. 


woody5 said:


> The stack comes if I pass the 10am mark, make a new LL reservation and then tap in to the first LL within the 15 minute grace period?  I could then book another LL once I tapped in and therefore now have the stack?


----------



## woody5

So to get a stack started, I want my first LL time to end around 11?  So 10-11 LL fir a ride,  at 11:01 make second LL.  Ride first LL during grace period.  Make another LL as soon as I tap in to 1st LL?  Now I have a stack of 2.


----------



## Sjm9911

You are mixing the glitch thing up with stacking. To get a stack of 2 LL. You need to chose the first one for like around 11 am. It could be from 11 to 12 Then at 1101 before taping into your first LL, chose a second one. Now you have a stack of 2 LL. The other thing i have no idea about and didn't try it. This works because you are allowed a second LL at 2 hours after park opening.


----------



## Sjm9911

I will confirm that if you LL window expires, and you did not use it, the ap will not let you select that rode again.


----------



## woody5

Thanks for your help!  Will be using at MK in December.


----------



## Sjm9911

We did ok if you get there at opening and 7DMT isnt down. Pay for 7DMT if you want to ride it. The 3 days we just went it was always 60 mins or more the whole time. 
We did, PPF , Its a small world, HM, big thunder, splash and pirates. Then hit our first LL at JC. From there you can just pick the others with your 2 LL and have them done and wait on space later in the day. Usally 30 mins for us. We did basicly the same plan all 3 days, road almost all the rides, and did a show or 2.


----------



## JETSDAD

woody5 said:


> The stack comes if I pass the 10am mark, make a new LL reservation and then tap in to the first LL within the 15 minute grace period?  I could then book another LL once I tapped in and therefore now have the stack?


Yes, you can wait until you are in the grace period, make a 2nd LL selection, then tap into the first one during the grace period, then make another LL selection.  No need to wait until 2 hours after open. If you want to get a really good stack going, make that first ride one with 2 tapstyles.


----------



## lynzi2004

So does the grace period thing work the whole day? Meaning you could essentially get 2 LLs each time? Once for the 120 minute time and one for using your LL during your grace period?


----------



## JETSDAD

lynzi2004 said:


> So does the grace period thing work the whole day? Meaning you could essentially get 2 LLs each time? Once for the 120 minute time and one for using your LL during your grace period?


The grace period is instead of the 120 minute rule.  Instead of waiting for 120, getting another LL, using the first LL, then adding another LL you're waiting until the grace period, getting a LL (because the first LL shows as expired), then using the first LL, then adding another.  Both end up working the same.  But yes, each time that you choose to wait until either of those and time it properly then you should be able to add 2.


----------



## lynzi2004

JETSDAD said:


> The grace period is instead of the 120 minute rule.  Instead of waiting for 120, getting another LL, using the first LL, then adding another LL you're waiting until the grace period, getting a LL (because the first LL shows as expired), then using the first LL, then adding another.  Both end up working the same.  But yes, each time that you choose to wait until either of those and time it properly then you should be able to add 2.


Ok thank you!


----------



## acarsme123

I don’t understand the concept of stacking. Can someone explain this?  



ckelly14 said:


> I believe there is also a school of thought to use G+ to stack LLs for an afternoon park.  So you can sleep in a little...


----------



## Tiggr88

acarsme123 said:


> I don’t understand the concept of stacking. Can someone explain this?


It means having more than one G+ reservation at a time. here is a simple example with a 9AM park open:

At 7AM (or anytime before 9AM), get a G+ with a return time that goes past 11. Say Peter Pan with a return time of 11:30-12:30.
At 11AM , you are eligible for another, so you get one for Ride B with a return time of 1-2.

You now have two G+ reservation, Peter Pan from 11:30-12:30 and Ride B from 1-2. 

What's nice about this is that when you tap into Peter Pan you can get a third. When you tap into ride B, you can get a 4th. And on and on all day. You are in essence managing two G+ return times throughout the day now instead of just one at a time. 

Voila, you're 'stacked'.


----------



## acarsme123

Tiggr88 said:


> It means having more than one G+ reservation at a time. here is a simple example with a 9AM park open:
> 
> At 7AM (or anytime before 9AM), get a G+ with a return time that goes past 11. Say Peter Pan with a return time of 11:30-12:30.
> At 11AM , you are eligible for another, so you get one for Ride B with a return time of 1-2.
> 
> You now have two G+ reservation, Peter Pan from 11:30-12:30 and Ride B from 1-2.
> 
> What's nice about this is that when you tap into Peter Pan you can get a third. When you tap into ride B, you can get a 4th. And on and on all day. You are in essence managing two G+ return times throughout the day now instead of just one at a time.
> 
> Voila, you're 'stacked'.


Ahhh, understood. So since we are staying on-site and will be able to do the 30 min early entry, it would almost be beneficial to not make a genie+ until past the 2 hours after opening?  We used to do this with the Fast Pass system. We normally didn’t even utilize fast pass until around 11am cause we were able to do a decent amount of walk-ons early in the day. Then when afternoon hit we were able to use all 3 fast passes and that got us through the afternoon and almost at dinner time, which is about the time we’d be done with the park for the day.


----------



## Tiggr88

There are nuances to it that can make it better, but that is the basics. 

For example, your first ride A can have a return time that starts before 11 in the above example as long as it extends past your 2 hour rule limit (in this case 11AM). So if it were available, you could have selected peter pan from 10:30-11:30. At 11AM, you can still get your second G+ as long as you haven't tapped into your first before 11M. So in order,:

At 7AM (or anytime before 9AM) select Ride A with return time 10:30-11:30.
At 11 AM select Ride B with return time 12-1
Between 11 and 11:30 ride Ride A with G+. Make sure you do step 2 before step 3 and you will be good. 

After tapping into Ride A, select Ride C with return time  12:30-1;30.
After tapping into ride B, select ride D.
And so forth.


----------



## acarsme123

Tiggr88 said:


> It means having more than one G+ reservation at a time. here is a simple example with a 9AM park open:
> 
> At 7AM (or anytime before 9AM), get a G+ with a return time that goes past 11. Say Peter Pan with a return time of 11:30-12:30.
> At 11AM , you are eligible for another, so you get one for Ride B with a return time of 1-2.
> 
> You now have two G+ reservation, Peter Pan from 11:30-12:30 and Ride B from 1-2.
> 
> What's nice about this is that when you tap into Peter Pan you can get a third. When you tap into ride B, you can get a 4th. And on and on all day. You are in essence managing two G+ return times throughout the day now instead of just one at a time.
> 
> Voila, you're 'stacked'.


I guess the thing that I would worry about doing this strategy, is say it’s a really busy day. We’ll be going during spring break time in March. So if I purposely don’t make a genie+ slot until a time 2 hours after park open, is there a risk of the good slots getting all booked up?  Seems like this stacking strategy could backfire on a really busy day?


----------



## Tiggr88

acarsme123 said:


> Ahhh, understood. So since we are staying on-site and will be able to do the 30 min early entry, it would almost be beneficial to not make a genie+ until past the 2 hours after opening?  We used to do this with the Fast Pass system. We normally didn’t even utilize fast pass until around 11am cause we were able to do a decent amount of walk-ons early in the day. Then when afternoon hit we were able to use all 3 fast passes and that got us through the afternoon and almost at dinner time, which is about the time we’d be done with the park for the day.


See my other reply. You can select any return time that goes past 11AM, so your window could actually start earlier. If you want to stack, just make sure you make your second selection before tapping into your first. 

There is also a way to potentially get your second stack started earlier but it is a little more difficult to manage.


----------



## Tiggr88

acarsme123 said:


> I guess the thing that I would worry about doing this strategy, is say it’s a really busy day. We’ll be going during spring break time in March. So if I purposely don’t make a genie+ slot until a time 2 hours after park open, is there a risk of the good slots getting all booked up?  Seems like this stacking strategy could backfire on a really busy day?


That is the tradeoff. What will the standby times be during the first two hours. If reasonable, then you may be better off trying to get two G+ stacked to manage the rest of the day. Or you may be better off getting earlier return times and then just managing the one and getting sooner return times.

Keep in mind this works for any 2 hour window, not just park open. So lets say you do manage to get a few rides in in the morning by not stacking and just using your one slot more earlier and just selecting one at a time. If by 11 or noon the return times are more than 2 hours out, you can simply wait for the two hour rule to apply and start your stack at noon or early afternoon. This is especially helpful if you are going to have a longer lunch break anyway. Basically, any time you can wait 120 minutes since you made a G+, you can make another and have multiple open. 

If the crowds are really bad and the return times very far out, don't forget that your not limited to 2. For example:

Lets say at 11 AM you g=et a G+ with a return time of 4-5 PM. 
You can now get another at 1PM (2 hours since you made a selection at 11AM). Lets say this return time is 2:30-3;30.
At 3PM, you can make a third selection as long as you haven't tapped into your 2:30-3:30 selection. 
Each time you tap into one, you will be able to make another. You now have three stacked reservations you can manage the rest of the day. 

Since the return times are so far out to make that work, it really only works if you are planning a long day or want to take a midday break and come back later. 

In recent crowds, my daughter never needed to have more than 2 at a time to get on anything. Since we don't know what this will look like with bigger crowds, you'll probably want to monitor Thanksgiving and Christmas to see how it goes. 

Hope that helps.


----------



## Tiggr88

Now that you have the basics down, there are some more advanced ways to potentially make this better for you. There is basically a 'hack' that can allow you to start your stack earlier but requires careful management and timing. Same example, park with a scheduled 9AM open. 

At 7AM, get G+ for ride A with return time  9-10AM.
At 10AM , your window has expired, so before tapping into ride A, make a another selection for Ride B. This is allowed since the rules are:
Tapped in and used your existing G+​120 minutes since you made your last or​your Ride A expired.​Ride Ride A with G+ before your 15 minute grace period is up at 10:15.

You now have two selections stacked at 10AM instead of waiting until your two hour 11M window. I doubt this is the way Disney intended this to work but it does. 

This works only if Ride A has an earlier enough return time to make it worthwhile. For example, getting a return time of 9:30-10:30 only gets you a 30 minute headstart on your stack.
It also requires you to carefully manage your morning to make sure you don't miss your grace period window. If you do, there is a heavy penalty. The system will have considered that ride selected and used whether you rode it or not since it expired. Therefore you will not be able to select that ride again. 

Things get a little more complicated if you intend to park hop but that should cover it for staying in one park per day.


----------



## DisneyKidds

acarsme123 said:


> Ahhh, understood. So since we are staying on-site and will be able to do the 30 min early entry, it would almost be beneficial to not make a genie+ until past the 2 hours after opening?  We used to do this with the Fast Pass system. We normally didn’t even utilize fast pass until around 11am cause we were able to do a decent amount of walk-ons early in the day. Then when afternoon hit we were able to use all 3 fast passes and that got us through the afternoon and almost at dinner time, which is about the time we’d be done with the park for the day.


Yes, for a double stack you would make your first G+ reservation (stack 1) for a return time of 11:00, then at 11:00 before using your existing reservation you make your second G+ reservation (stack 2).  Then as you use each of those you can make a replacement G+ reservation, and you continue working those stacks all day.  Me….I’m going to try to triple stack.  First G+ reservation (stack 1) with a 1:00 return.  At 11 make the second (stack 2), then at 1:00 before using the stack 1 reservation make a third (stack 3).  Then work the three stacks rest of the day.

Your follow on question is the key….stacking is really dependent upon what kind of G+ reservations are available, which will be more of an issue during busier times.

Of course the double and triple stack strategy timing above assumes you don’t want to engage in grace period roulette, which might just allow you to expedite your stacking timeline!

I don’t really want to have to spend the $15.98 pp for the days we use it, but I do always appreciate a challenge to my generally superior Disney planning and system gaming abilities!!


----------



## Sjm9911

I think the time you arrive is also key. Tripple stacking if your are at rd and not hopping might be a big waste. hell, if its a slow time G + may just be a waste. Hopefully for everyone,  ot qorks a little bit to give you an edge if you buy it. Me, im heading home in the am. 7 days of G + at all the parks done. Would I do it again, probably,  if just to protect my initial park ticket cost. Was it needed, mostly no. But it was good to have in the afternoon , or to get the one long wait ride. Have fun!


----------



## DisneyKidds

Sjm9911 said:


> Triple stacking if your are at rd and not hopping might be a big waste.


Agreed!  I should have been more clear….I’ll be going for the triple hop stack!


----------



## nurseberta

DisneyKidds said:


> Agreed!  I should have been more clear….I’ll be going for the triple hop stack!



this make me smile!! Lol triple hop stack!!!!!
Hoping to not need much of this in January but happy to know it’s possible. I’m looking forward to taking advantage of G+ and stopping to enjoy the parks in between. Time is money! Esp when you only have 5 days


----------



## magicmat77

Im going to 2 parks - will Genie+ offer reservations on the day of my one-day ticket, and for all the parks so that I can hop and reserve LL and LL$ ?  I presume I wont see anything until then on the app to see how its going to work?


----------



## nurseberta

magicmat77 said:


> Im going to 2 parks - will Genie+ offer reservations on the day of my one-day ticket, and for all the parks so that I can hop and reserve LL and LL$ ?  I presume I wont see anything until then on the app to see how its going to work?



You can purchase G+ day of arrival

It has been reported that if you have a reservation abs want to plan G + attractions at another park you will be prompted with times after 2pm. I have not experienced it yet but this is how it should work


----------



## wiggy500

wiggy500 said:


> All is well that ends well I guess.  I had a couple big takeaways from day 1 using Genie Plus yesterday.  First, I tried to sign up for it at 5:30 am.  I couldn't!  Tried two devices using both methods I could figure out and got errors.  It gave me a phone number to call that no one answered and no one answered the chat either.  After a very stressful start, it worked as advertised and I got it around 6:30.  I will buy ahead of time next time.  So here's how it went:
> 
> 7:00 book Kilimanjaro 8:10
> Ride Kilimanjaro and at 8:13 book 2:00 Big Thunder
> 10:13 book Navi 12:05.
> 12:13 book Dinosaur 12:20
> Ride Dinosaur 12:31 book 3:25 Haunted
> Ride Navi. B mode 12:58 and couldn't book Pirates!
> 
> Is stacking LL's a right or a privilege?  I was in full "right" mode.  Navi went down briefly and changed to a multi experience LL and I had no idea.  This made the Navi LL cancel as if I never booked it and I now had to wait until 2:31 to book and I figured to miss Pirates.  Be aware this can happen.
> 
> 2:31 book Splash 4:00 or so.  Tap into Big Thunder book 2:50 Pirates!  Took some work to get the ideal time, but I did!
> 
> No luck getting Test Track. But that's okay.  A successful day despite a lot of frustration.



The second and final day on Tuesday I fortunately had no IT glitches to contend with.

After getting my Remy boarding group at 7:02 book 3:50 or so Slinky
At 11:02 book 3:10 Tower of Terror
At 1:08 after no luck booking Test Track settle for 3:10 Rock n' Roller
At 3:15 or so book 4:20 Star Tours
At about 3:30 ride Tower of Terror (110 minute wait at half strength) and book 4:20 Muppets that I ultimately opted to skip
About 3:45 ride Rock n' Roller (45 minute wait)
About 4 ride Slinky (70 or 75 minute wait)
About 4:15 ride Star Tours

Weirdly at the Epcot entrance they announced Test Track was going to be closing at 7 p.m. for the day, which prevented me from doing it standby in the evening.  In the two days that ended up being the only ride I was hoping to ride that I didn't get to.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

DisneyKidds said:


> Agreed!  I should have been more clear….I’ll be going for the *triple hop stack*!


Isn't that on the menu at IHOP?


----------



## monkeybug

I’m sure these have been covered and I just missed it but, can two people make selections at the same time for the same group? Can I get passes for Slinky while my husband is getting ILL for ROTR? 
And you don’t need to physically be in the park to make selections after that initial 7:00am (or park opening for non-resort guests) pass, right? You can make them from your hotel room or wherever?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

CBMom01 said:


> From this thread and other sources, I’m getting the message that literally the only Genie+ strategy that works is to start making selections at 7, rope drop, and prioritize must-do early in the day over all else. Do you guys agree?


No.  Another option is to just start booking things early to stack later in the day and then stroll into the park later.  The only problem with this strategy is that you don't get the benefit of sleeping in because you still have to be up at 7 to make your first selection.  Disney really needs to fix this, forcing everyone to be up at 7 every day of their vacation stinks.


----------



## nurseberta

wiggy500 said:


> The second and final day on Tuesday I fortunately had no IT glitches to contend with.
> 
> After getting my Remy boarding group at 7:02 book 3:50 or so Slinky
> At 11:02 book 3:10 Tower of Terror
> At 1:08 after no luck booking Test Track settle for 3:10 Rock n' Roller
> At 3:15 or so book 4:20 Star Tours
> At about 3:30 ride Tower of Terror (110 minute wait at half strength) and book 4:20 Muppets that I ultimately opted to skip
> About 3:45 ride Rock n' Roller (45 minute wait)
> About 4 ride Slinky (70 or 75 minute wait)
> About 4:15 ride Star Tours
> 
> Weirdly at the Epcot entrance they announced Test Track was going to be closing at 7 p.m. for the day, which prevented me from doing it standby in the evening.  In the two days that ended up being the only ride I was hoping to ride that I didn't get to.



too bad you missed test track, curious what BG you got and when you rode Remy? 
Nice touring plan though to get in SDD, ToT, RnR, and Star Tours all in an hour!!! I would call that a win!! did you feel like the time it took to secure these was worth it? did it consume your morning? I am wo worried about being too anxious about stacking that I'll miss the down time



AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> No.  Another option is to just start booking things early to stack later in the day and then stroll into the park later.  The only problem with this strategy is that you don't get the benefit of sleeping in because you still have to be up at 7 to make your first selection.  Disney really needs to fix this, forcing everyone to be up at 7 every day of their vacation stinks.



I think sleeping in and strolling in may possibly need to be left for parks like AK and Epcot. I cant see getting everything done at HS without getting there early.


----------



## Jrb1979

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> No.  Another option is to just start booking things early to stack later in the day and then stroll into the park later.  The only problem with this strategy is that you don't get the benefit of sleeping in because you still have to be up at 7 to make your first selection.  Disney really needs to fix this, forcing everyone to be up at 7 every day of their vacation stinks.


I doubt it will change. IMO the best option is make it like Maxpass, only be able to use it only when in the parks.


----------



## disneyworld19

Maybe a silly question but can you get the paid LL and also do the stack? We have a short trip for a busy time. For example at Epcot at 7am could i

Buy remy
Buy frozen
Book LL for tt
Get a remy bg

could I hold all those at once, and start a stack at noon?


----------



## elgerber

disneyworld19 said:


> Maybe a silly question but can you get the paid LL and also do the stack? We have a short trip for a busy time. For example at Epcot at 7am could i
> 
> Buy remy
> Buy frozen
> Book LL for tt
> Get a remy bg
> 
> could I hold all those at once, and start a stack at noon?


yes


----------



## Maxwell42

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> No.  Another option is to just start booking things early to stack later in the day and then stroll into the park later.  The only problem with this strategy is that you don't get the benefit of sleeping in because you still have to be up at 7 to make your first selection.  Disney really needs to fix this, forcing everyone to be up at 7 every day of their vacation stinks.



I'm not sure I agree with this. We don't go until January, but from what I've observed, I don't think you need to start booking at 7 if you're going later in the day (depending on what park you're going to).  The only park where it seems necessary is HS because SDD (and to a lesser extent MFSR) go so quickly - so it's pretty critical to snag SDD early, at least in that 7:00 hour, and then get MFSR as your second LL at the end of your 2 hour window.

At the other parks, the return times for most rides don't seem to push out into the afternoon nearly as quickly as at HS, so if you're planning for a late arrival, I don't think it benefits you to start booking at 7. But you certainly want to prioritize the rides that go most quickly in the park you're headed to, and watch the return times for them so you can book them as soon as possible, so that you can start stacking LL's every two hours.


----------



## dez1978

DisneyKidds said:


> Yes, for a double stack you would make your first G+ reservation (stack 1) for a return time of 11:00, then at 11:00 before using your existing reservation you make your second G+ reservation (stack 2).  Then as you use each of those you can make a replacement G+ reservation, and you continue working those stacks all day.  Me….I’m going to try to triple stack.  First G+ reservation (stack 1) with a 1:00 return.  At 11 make the second (stack 2), then at 1:00 before using the stack 1 reservation make a third (stack 3).  Then work the three stacks rest of the day.
> 
> Your follow on question is the key….stacking is really dependent upon what kind of G+ reservations are available, which will be more of an issue during busier times.
> 
> Of course the double and triple stack strategy timing above assumes you don’t want to engage in grace period roulette, which might just allow you to expedite your stacking timeline!
> 
> I don’t really want to have to spend the $15.98 pp for the days we use it, but I do always appreciate a challenge to my generally superior Disney planning and system gaming abilities!!


Could you give me some suggetions for this?  We are going to ak then hopping to HS.  How would I want to time this?  The plan is to RD FOP, and honestly Idk that we'd need to LL anything else at AK.  We could FOP, the Navi, then safari.  EE has a single rider line.  Dino is usually a short ish wait and if not, no big deal.  We are going the week after thanksgiving so I'm not sure about crowds.


----------



## wings91

Is this a better deal than fp?


----------



## DisneyKidds

dez1978 said:


> Could you give me some suggetions for this?  We are going to ak then hopping to HS.  How would I want to time this?  The plan is to RD FOP, and honestly Idk that we'd need to LL anything else at AK.  We could FOP, the Navi, then safari.  EE has a single rider line.  Dino is usually a short ish wait and if not, no big deal.  We are going the week after thanksgiving so I'm not sure about crowds.


While I have no idea how effective it will be next summer when we have a chance to try and put what I think I’ve learned to practice , this is my likely strategy for an AK then hop elsewhere day.  Of course it’s all dependent upon suitable LL returns being available.

Arrive AK 45 minutes prior to park open. Sometime after 7am but before 8:00 secure a LL for Safari with a return window that extends beyond 4 hours from park open. Say AK opens at 8:00, try and finagle at Safari return of 12:00 (if returns are that far out prior to 8am). Rope drop FoP, then beeline to EE for standby/single rider, then try to get Dinosaur and a couple other things while lines are still relatively short. At 10:00 make a LL reservation in the hop to park, say TT with a return after 4:00 (again, if a reservation that far out is available).  At 12:00, before tapping into Safari, make another LL reservation in the hop to park, say Soarin’ also with a return after 4:00 (if…we’ll, you get the drill). I believe that should set the triple hop stack, with Safari, TT, and Soarin’ in hand before tapping in for anything. Once tapped in for Safari (don’t tap in before 12:00!) make another LL reservation in hop to park, say Spaceship Earth with a return later in the day. After the 12:00 Safari return do some walking trails, maybe a show or another short standby or two, have lunch, then commence hop.  That allows us to arrive at the hop to park in the afternoon with three rides secured (after having use a LL return in AK). You could replace TT, Soarin’ and Spaceship Earth in that example with rides in HS (perhaps RnR, ToT, and TSMM). Then when you arrive in the hop to park and start using LL returns book something new after each tap in, if stuff is available.  I think that plan is solid, but if anyone sees a flaw let me know!!!

I’m still fuzzy on the whole grace period hack, which might provide an opportunity to expedite the creation of the stack….but I’ve got time to figure out if that’s worth messing with.


----------



## abbycwell

StarrySkye21 said:


> Im still looking for answers on if you cancel a G+ reservation to say HM, you can rebook HM again later in the day?
> 
> Also what if you accidently let your G+ reservation expire for BTMR? Can you book it again?


yes- you can rebook if you cancel it- but not if you let it expire.  I did it a lot this week.


----------



## Missmaureen78

Question on the "grace period" hack for setting up a stack.  Let's say you created a double stack in the morning and use it for a few hours.  Then you notice the LL time -- for Peter Pan for example -- is already way out in the evening so you book it before its gone.  Now you only have 1 LL reservation to work with.  Can you use the grace period hack to set up another stack?  So it's 2:00, you make a PP reservation for 7:30 (for example), you make a reservation for XX ride at 2:30, you let that expire at 3:31, make another, tap in and make another....so now you're back to having 2 + the PP for later.  Assuming there are rides with appropriate times...would that work?


----------



## wvrupp

monkeybug said:


> I’m sure these have been covered and I just missed it but, can two people make selections at the same time for the same group? Can I get passes for Slinky while my husband is getting ILL for ROTR?
> And you don’t need to physically be in the park to make selections after that initial 7:00am (or park opening for non-resort guests) pass, right? You can make them from your hotel room or wherever?



This is my question as well.


----------



## JETSDAD

Missmaureen78 said:


> Question on the "grace period" hack for setting up a stack.  Let's say you created a double stack in the morning and use it for a few hours.  Then you notice the LL time -- for Peter Pan for example -- is already way out in the evening so you book it before its gone.  Now you only have 1 LL reservation to work with.  Can you use the grace period hack to set up another stack?  So it's 2:00, you make a PP reservation for 7:30 (for example), you make a reservation for XX ride at 2:30, you let that expire at 3:31, make another, tap in and make another....so now you're back to having 2 + the PP for later.  Assuming there are rides with appropriate times...would that work?


From everything I've read, yes that should work.  I can't wait until I can get back and test some of these things personally.


----------



## DisneyKidds

JETSDAD said:


> From everything I've read, yes that should work.  I can't wait until I can get back and test some of these things personally.


This whole G+ thing has been a lot to absorb.  While I think I have a lot of it down…..I’ve gotta admit I’m going to have to dig back into the whole grace period hack thing, as it remains a bit fuzzy to me.  There’s opportunity there, but I haven’t really solidified how to take advantage of it.  Somewhere I’m sure it may allow you to achieve a multi-stack quicker than without the hack.  I also wonder if the grace period hack at the tail of a triple stack might somehow net you a quadruple stack?   All I really know for sure is that when I try and think the grace period hack through I start to get a headache!


----------



## Figment1990

Ok I really need some DiS help on this one. We are going to AK on a 8am open day and then hopping to DHS (at least that’s the plan). If I book a LL at DHS at 7, can I book my next LL at 10? (Bc ak opens at 8?) And then my third at 12? And potentially a 4th at 2?


----------



## lynzi2004

On the “Just Back” thread, someone mentioned that HS is already out of any Genie+ return times with the exception of Muppets and Star Tours and paid $ILL for MMRR. That doesn’t seem to bode well for Christmas week and I’m not sure what to do now! I thought for sure that by charging for FP they had figured out a way to make them fairly “available” throughout the day. But pay $15/person and maybe only get 1-2 is disheartening.  I was counting on continuing to stack and add LLs throughout the day until at least 6pm or so, with the hope that I would either have a good stack by then or the standby lines would be dying down!


----------



## BrotherCraig

lynzi2004 said:


> On the “Just Back” thread, someone mentioned that HS is already out of any Genie+ return times with the exception of Muppets and Star Tours and paid $ILL for MMRR. That doesn’t seem to bode well for Christmas week and I’m not sure what to do now! I thought for sure that by charging for FP they had figured out a way to make them fairly “available” throughout the day. But pay $15/person and maybe only get 1-2 is disheartening.  I was counting on continuing to stack and add LLs throughout the day until at least 6pm or so, with the hope that I would either have a good stack by then or the standby lines would be dying down!




Then it is not worth it.  Getting three rides with Genie+ should not be happening.  Would not be worth the money.


----------



## julie28

if staying on site can you get access to genie + at 7am on check in day?

 Trying to plan my park days as won’t arrive until around 12pm that day but was wondering if could start booking at 7am or 9am?


----------



## Tiggr88

BrotherCraig said:


> Then it is not worth it.  Getting three rides with Genie+ should not be happening.  Would not be worth the money.


We don't know what the availability and return times will be on a true holiday date. If it looked like today, you might be better off trying to get an earlier first return time and then just keep using a single stack rather than waiting 2 hours to try and double stack. Its gong to be interesting to watch that over time. HS is also a park with not a lot of rides on G+ but almost all  are high priority for many people. magic Kingdom for example has many more attractions to spread those G+ reservations across. 

Also remember that since it wasn't a holiday, the price was not adjusted. The other alternative Disney has is to raise the G+ and ILL prices which would might reduce the number of people purchasing which would increase the availability. Might not be the solution we want, but might be how they address it.


----------



## Tiggr88

julie28 said:


> if staying on site can you get access to genie + at 7am on check in day?
> 
> Trying to plan my park days as won’t arrive until around 12pm that day but was wondering if could start booking at 7am or 9am?



Anyone onsite or offsite can start G+ at 7AM.
Onsite gets ILL$ start at 7AM while offsite needs to wait until park open.


----------



## Tiggr88

Tiggr88 said:


> We don't know what the availability and return times will be on a true holiday date. If it looked like today, you might be better off trying to get an earlier first return time and then just keep using a single stack rather than waiting 2 hours to try and double stack. Its gong to be interesting to watch that over time. HS is also a park with not a lot of rides on G+ but almost all  are high priority for many people. magic Kingdom for example has many more attractions to spread those G+ reservations across.
> 
> Also remember that since it wasn't a holiday, the price was not adjusted. The other alternative Disney has is to raise the G+ and ILL prices which would might reduce the number of people purchasing which would increase the availability. Might not be the solution we want, but might be how they address it.


Hopefully they will also have longer park hours. That would do a lot to increase the number of G+ handed out as well as make RD better since fewer people show up the earlier the park open is. Likewise, they could extend the park hours at night, although it is pretty apparent if they extend at night it will be for after hours upcharge events. One can hope though.


----------



## boop0524

lynzi2004 said:


> On the “Just Back” thread, someone mentioned that HS is already out of any Genie+ return times with the exception of Muppets and Star Tours and paid $ILL for MMRR. That doesn’t seem to bode well for Christmas week and I’m not sure what to do now! I thought for sure that by charging for FP they had figured out a way to make them fairly “available” throughout the day. But pay $15/person and maybe only get 1-2 is disheartening.  I was counting on continuing to stack and add LLs throughout the day until at least 6pm or so, with the hope that I would either have a good stack by then or the standby lines would be dying down!


This was me! Lol. Genie was a total bust for us today in HS. After everything booked up on LL at 3 then standby became super long the rest of the day everywhere. Our only luck came at the last hour when we got to ride ROTR and MFSR standby. (An hour or so for Rise and 20 minutes MFSR).

But honestly, it was incredibly frustrating and there’s no way really to predict it and I’m not sure we could have prevented it. Our first LL was as early as we could get for SDD (1 pm) and then it was closed/filled for the day at 7 am. We made our next LL at 11 and that wasn’t until later. Then it snowballed from there….
I don’t personally see how this system can work for large crowds. It just doesn’t work.


----------



## Disneyd923

We are here now and experienced the same issue in HS today.  It was frustrating and crowded. I am trying to avoid disappointing the kids at Magic Kingdom tomorrow, is there any advice on what order to book our LL?  Which are most popular?  Thanks


----------



## lynzi2004

boop0524 said:


> This was me! Lol. Genie was a total bust for us today in HS. After everything booked up on LL at 3 then standby became super long the rest of the day everywhere. Our only luck came at the last hour when we got to ride ROTR and MFSR standby. (An hour or so for Rise and 20 minutes MFSR).
> 
> But honestly, it was incredibly frustrating and there’s no way really to predict it and I’m not sure we could have prevented it. Our first LL was as early as we could get for SDD (1 pm) and then it was closed/filled for the day at 7 am. We made our next LL at 11 and that wasn’t until later. Then it snowballed from there….
> I don’t personally see how this system can work for large crowds. It just doesn’t work.



Your experience is making me so nervous for our December trip. Regardless of crowd size, I was certain with the initial reports of how Genie+ was working that I could make it work for our trip, even though I wasn't happy about it.  BUT, current reports are making me second guess that decision, and I know how to approach the trip anymore! I could add another park day or two (arrival, departures, party day, etc) but that's a hefty price tag for an extra 30 min of morning hours and another ride or two at close! I know its all 
"water under the bridge" but pandemic or no, there's no reason they couldn't have just brought back FP+ in its original form or just left it standby only until they had a better handle on their crowds and how to handle them, where to put people.  They would have made plenty of money off their ticket prices and nondiscounted hotels alone!

I hope your trip gets better! And keep posting for us that are trying to figure it out from home too! Its incredibly helpful!


----------



## g-dad66

Disneyd923 said:


> We are here now and experienced the same issue in HS today.  It was frustrating and crowded. I am trying to avoid disappointing the kids at Magic Kingdom tomorrow, is there any advice on what order to book our LL?  Which are most popular?  Thanks



I think the following will save you the most waiting time (but conversely, the return window will be out the farthest), in this order:
1 - Jungle Cruise
2 - Peter Pan
3 - Haunted Mansion
4 - Splash Mountain


----------



## PkbaughAR

Today we were in MK. Booked jungle cruise at 7:30 for 2:20. Then at 10 booked Peter Pan for 3:05. Those are the two most popular! Booked Buzz at 12 for 1:20 return. It was SUPER crowded today. Then managed the stack. Pay attention to the paid return window for space mountain. If it’s running the same as the current time, the posted wait is likely inflated. We waited standby for Space while waiting for Buzz LL, posted 45min and 26 min actual. We were able to ride Buzz, thunder mtn, pirates, HM, little mermaid, small world, Peter Pan, and Pooh with genie+ and could have done several of the others in fantasy land if we’d wanted. Didn’t get to the park until noon. Totally worth it for these AP holders on a VERY busy day!


----------



## PkbaughAR

Nothing left for Genie+ by 6pm. Unless you luck into a cancellation!


----------



## wiggy500

nurseberta said:


> too bad you missed test track, curious what BG you got and when you rode Remy?
> Nice touring plan though to get in SDD, ToT, RnR, and Star Tours all in an hour!!! I would call that a win!! did you feel like the time it took to secure these was worth it? did it consume your morning? I am wo worried about being too anxious about stacking that I'll miss the down time



I got Remy boarding group 76 and it was called around 3:30 p.m.  We were hoping it would be earlier to sneak it in right before Hollywood Studios.  What we ended up doing is keeping the Hollywood Studios plans and waiting until like 9:40 to go on it.  They said "you're late, but go ahead" and on we went.  There was almost no one going on the ride, so we actually saved time doing it that way.

It absolutely was a win.  In two park days I didn't wait more than 10 minutes for any attraction and I only missed doing one that I was hoping to do.  I did have some IT glitches to contend with on the first day that stressed me out, but I easily got my money's worth.

I did spend a little time fruitlessly chasing Test Track both days.  I don't think I tried that any more than five minutes at a time.  I had luck getting better times refreshing on both Pirates on the first day and Tower of Terror on the second day.  Refreshing actually cost me on Haunted Mansion on the first day because the times kept slipping five minutes later each time and eventually I just took it.  The nice thing is once you book a lightning lane you can put the device away again.  I wouldn't try to book something for more than a couple minutes at a time.  And if it isn't a convenient time to try to book something, wait a little longer until it is.  I didn't find it too consuming.  At times I spent a little more time on it than I would have ideally liked.  But I could have been spending that time and more in a line somewhere.

Day 1 I had an ILL$ for Space Mountain and Day 2 I had one for Mickey and Minnie.  I just read an article about how ILL$ isn't worth it for Space Mountain.  If you're doing a short trip I think a lightning lane like that really could be worth it.


----------



## Sydnerella

Using the grace period hack and 120 rule will this work?

MK example Sunday 11/21

7:00am - Book G+ LL - JC for 920-1020 window
7:30am EE (staying on property)
8:00am MK Open

Step A. 10:00 Since 120 minute after opening - Book G+LL for PP as early as we can get it
Step B. 10:21 Book G+ LL BTMRR since JC expired
Step C. 10:22 Tap into JC
Step D. 10:23 Book G+ LL HM

If the above works, can it be confirmed that if instead I were to get the first G+ LL for an earlier time - say 830-930, expiring before the 120 period - I then eliminate the opportunity for the double stack because the tap in occurs first?


----------



## katyringo

I haven't seen this..

is scrolling through tip board the only way to start booking at 7am? Have to scroll to the rides you want?

like most I am thinking of my HS day...  

This is the plan I'm going for:
7am: book SDD for earliest as it gives, buy LL for Rise  and MMRR for early afternoon.

early entry rope drop: Tower of terror and rocking roller coaster (single rider)

smugglers run (single rider)

keep booking Geni+ as available..  (I think overall it's harder to stack in HS if your not arriving late)


----------



## wiggy500

Figment1990 said:


> Ok I really need some DiS help on this one. We are going to AK on a 8am open day and then hopping to DHS (at least that’s the plan). If I book a LL at DHS at 7, can I book my next LL at 10? (Bc ak opens at 8?) And then my third at 12? And potentially a 4th at 2?



You can book your next lightning lane 2 hours after DHS opens.  And then two hours after that.

Let's say DHS opens at 9 a.m.  One idea for you is either at 11 a.m. for your second LL or 1 p.m. for your third, you could book a LL at AK at a ride like Dinosaur that is likely to have an immediate return time available.  Once you tap in you could go back to booking DHS LL's.


----------



## persnickity

katyringo said:


> I haven't seen this..
> 
> is scrolling through tip board the only way to start booking at 7am? Have to scroll to the rides you want?
> 
> like most I am thinking of my HS day...
> 
> This is the plan I'm going for:
> 7am: book SDD for earliest as it gives, buy LL for Rise  and MMRR for early afternoon.
> 
> early entry rope drop: Tower of terror and rocking roller coaster (single rider)
> 
> smugglers run (single rider)
> 
> keep booking Geni+ as available..  (I think overall it's harder to stack in HS if your not arriving late)



I think you can use regular Genie to select your favorite rides, then they will be pinned to the top of your tip board. But I'm not sure if it works before you tap in (it doesn't work from home to practice).


----------



## aboveH20

I hope someone who knows the answer sees this.  I've had no luck googling or searching. 

I'm trying to find out what phone operating system (if that's the right name) Genie requires.  I was at WDW in April and was never able to do mobile ordering.  

I have an iPhone 6 and I think the operating system is 12ish.  I also couldn't get on RoTR but I know that was a long shot for most people.. Sounds like Genie is pretty much a requirement these days.  If I have to buy a new phone that adds considerably to the cost of a trip. 

Anyone know phone requirements for Genie?

Thank you


----------



## soniam

aboveH20 said:


> I hope someone who knows the answer sees this.  I've had no luck googling or searching.
> 
> I'm trying to find out what phone operating system (if that's the right name) Genie requires.  I was at WDW in April and was never able to do mobile ordering.
> 
> I have an iPhone 6 and I think the operating system is 12ish.  I also couldn't get on RoTR but I know that was a long shot for most people.. Sounds like Genie is pretty much a requirement these days.  If I have to buy a new phone that adds considerably to the cost of a trip.
> 
> Anyone know phone requirements for Genie?
> 
> Thank you



I don't think there are any specified requirements. However, you probably need to update to the latest OS that your phone supports. I have read of people using iPhone 6 successfully with Genie+, but I suspect you need to ensure that the OS and app are up-to-date. Update now and play around with it via the "Tip Board" in MDE and see how it's working. Do this now, so that if you want a new phone, you might still have time to get one. My husband just updated his iPhone 7 to iOS 15. It's being a little slow and flaky. Luckily, I just got my iPhone 13 two weeks ago. His is supposed to come in next week, right before we leave. Our phone batteries have been getting worse and worse for months. We had planned to get new phones at some point soon, but Genie+ really hastened the decision. Unfortunately, the iPhone 13 models were on backorder. I don't know if supply has improved or not.


----------



## nurseberta

katyringo said:


> I haven't seen this..
> 
> is scrolling through tip board the only way to start booking at 7am? Have to scroll to the rides you want?
> 
> like most I am thinking of my HS day...
> 
> This is the plan I'm going for:
> 7am: book SDD for earliest as it gives, buy LL for Rise  and MMRR for early afternoon.
> 
> early entry rope drop: Tower of terror and rocking roller coaster (single rider)
> 
> smugglers run (single rider)
> 
> keep booking Geni+ as available..  (I think overall it's harder to stack in HS if your not arriving late)



I have been practicing as well. If you log in and
Chose edit selections you will be able to select a few rides and they will reorder towards the top

note that each time I enter a new day tip board I have to edit selections from the beginning as it doeSnt save preferences from day to day. 
this is something you need to do before the 7am hour


----------



## g-dad66

nurseberta said:


> I have been practicing as well. If you log in and
> Chose edit selections you will be able to select a few rides and they will reorder towards the top
> 
> note that each time I enter a new day tip board I have to edit selections from the beginning as it doeSnt save preferences from day to day.
> this is something you need to do before the 7am hour



Yep, exactly.

In fact, if you select Slinky Dog Dash as your ONLY favorite, it will stay at the top of the Tip Board (as it's the only one you need to get to fast at 7am).


----------



## katyringo

g-dad66 said:


> Yep, exactly.
> 
> In fact, if you select Slinky Dog Dash as your ONLY favorite, it will stay at the top of the Tip Board (as it's the only one you need to get to fast at 7am).


This is super helpful


----------



## acarsme123

The more I keep playing with the MDE app and looking at what LL slots are available, I seem to be noticing a trend. By around noon all the slots are pushed out well into the evening hours. You could just standby in the lines for those rides and possibly be through them faster than waiting around for a late evening LL slot. I’m really starting to question if genie+ is worth it for a family like ours in this case. We normally always rope drop, plus we’ll have the 30 min early access. We normally like to eat dinner and call it a day with the parks by early evening so we can go back to the resort and swim.


----------



## dmunsil

Sydnerella said:


> Using the grace period hack and 120 rule will this work?
> 
> MK example Sunday 11/21
> 
> 7:00am - Book G+ LL - JC for 920-1020 window
> 7:30am EE (staying on property)
> 8:00am MK Open
> 
> Step A. 10:00 Since 120 minute after opening - Book G+LL for PP as early as we can get it
> Step B. 10:21 Book G+ LL BTMRR since JC expired
> Step C. 10:22 Tap into JC
> Step D. 10:23 Book G+ LL HM
> 
> If the above works, can it be confirmed that if instead I were to get the first G+ LL for an earlier time - say 830-930, expiring before the 120 period - I then eliminate the opportunity for the double stack because the tap in occurs first?


No, it won’t work. There is no separate “expiration rule” and ”120-minute rule.” It’s the same thing. You regain eligibility to book at either 120 minutes or the expiration time of your most recently booked reservation, not both. So step A works and step B doesn’t.

As to the second question, if you book earlier you can still get a second reservation by waiting until expiration and then tapping in during the grace period, at least so far.


----------



## acarsme123

boop0524 said:


> This was me! Lol. Genie was a total bust for us today in HS. After everything booked up on LL at 3 then standby became super long the rest of the day everywhere. Our only luck came at the last hour when we got to ride ROTR and MFSR standby. (An hour or so for Rise and 20 minutes MFSR).
> 
> But honestly, it was incredibly frustrating and there’s no way really to predict it and I’m not sure we could have prevented it. Our first LL was as early as we could get for SDD (1 pm) and then it was closed/filled for the day at 7 am. We made our next LL at 11 and that wasn’t until later. Then it snowballed from there….
> I don’t personally see how this system can work for large crowds. It just doesn’t work.


This whole genie+ thing has already put me in a sour mood for this coming March trip. We’ve had fabulous trips to DW in the past. This is the first time I’m not very excited about it. I felt obligated to get the Genie+ ahead of time on our ticket package, but I am really starting to question how useful it will be. Unless you plan to stay in the parks from open to close, I am not sure you get your money’s worth out of genie+ since a lot of the LL slots gets pushed out into the late evening hours by mid-day it seems.


----------



## cjlong88

Okay, so far so good with stacking for this evening at HS. Pretty easy, although it took me a minute to figure out the layout of the app.

7am: Rise and Slinky
11am: MFSR
1pm: RnRC

Hoping ToT is still available at 3pm and I’ll see if anything is left at 5pm.


----------



## cjlong88

katyringo said:


> This is super helpful


I’ve been changing my selections to my priority choice every time I’m ready to book the next one. It’s a game changer!


----------



## katied

Hi.  I‘m trying to figure out the best strategy for Dec 19th, with high crowds, optmizing Genie+ and LL.
start 830 am early entry to Magic Kingdom.  
buyLL for 7DMT
rides: BTMR, Space, Splash, HM, Pooh, Pirates 
switch at 2/3 pm to Animal Kingdom
buy LL for FOP
rides: EE, Kali, Na’vi
switch at 7 pm to Epcot
rides: Test Track, Mission Space, try for virtual wait for Remy

so - I think my best plan is to:
7 am - buy my LL, book first Genie + for post 11 am (BTMR or Splash, maybe?)
830 am - rope drop Space
9 am - 11 am - regular lines for HM, Pirates, Pooh
11 am - book next Genie + (maybe Na’vi at AK)
11 ish - ride what I booked Genie +
12 ish book new Genie +
1 ish book new Genie + (maybe Test Track)
finish ride list at MK, eat, transfer to AK

2/3 - arrive AK
ride FOP
ride Na’vi
3 book née Genie +
standby for EE
ride Kali
ride Na’vi

8ish - arrive Epoct
ride Test Track
maybe I got Remy virtual spot
ride Mission Space

does this seem at all possible?  Is there a better way to do this?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Disneyd923 said:


> We are here now and experienced the same issue in HS today.  It was frustrating and crowded. I am trying to avoid disappointing the kids at Magic Kingdom tomorrow, is there any advice on what order to book our LL?  Which are most popular?  Thanks


Jungle Cruise seems to be the one that fills the fastest at MK.


----------



## kappyfamily

dmunsil said:


> No, it won’t work. There is no separate “expiration rule” and ”120-minute rule.” It’s the same thing. You regain eligibility to book at either 120 minutes or the expiration time of your most recently booked reservation, not both. So step A works and step B doesn’t.
> 
> As to the second question, if you book earlier you can still get a second reservation by waiting until expiration and then tapping in during the grace period, at least so far.


sorry, can you remind me how long the grace period is again? Also, is always the case to let it expire then tap in? thank you


----------



## kappyfamily

cjlong88 said:


> I’ve been changing my selections to my priority choice every time I’m ready to book the next one. It’s a game changer!


So you only put one selection in?


----------



## cjlong88

kappyfamily said:


> So you only put one selection in?


You can select as many or as few attractions on your list I believe. I limit it to the one I wanted most when looking for the LL so it remained at the top of the Tip Board.


----------



## Sydnerella

dmunsil said:


> No, it won’t work. There is no separate “expiration rule” and ”120-minute rule.” It’s the same thing. You regain eligibility to book at either 120 minutes or the expiration time of your most recently booked reservation, not both. So step A works and step B doesn’t.
> 
> As to the second question, if you book earlier you can still get a second reservation by waiting until expiration and then tapping in during the grace period, at least so far.



Thank you! This has me mixed up in case you can’t tell!!

So if I instead was able to book JC for 830-930 - then I could do the following:

A. 9:31 Book BTMRR
B. 9:32 Tap into JC
D. 10 am - 120 minute rule book PP

Based on that it seems that there is not also potential for a C. at 9:33 to Book HM - correct?


----------



## BioInfoLib

Thanks to everyone for contributing to this thread - we just got back from our trip yesterday and were pretty happy with Genie+ etc. Couldn't have done it without all your insights!

I've put together a list of what we rode, when, and how (LL, ILL, SB) - wasn't sure if it included enough strategy for this thread so posted it in Here Now Just Back page 802 post 63533432.

Hope this is useful to someone!


----------



## dmunsil

Sydnerella said:


> Thank you! This has me mixed up in case you can’t tell!!
> 
> So if I instead was able to book JC for 830-930 - then I could do the following:
> 
> A. 9:31 Book BTMRR
> B. 9:32 Tap into JC
> D. 10 am - 120 minute rule book PP
> 
> Based on that it seems that there is not also potential for a C. at 9:33 to Book HM - correct?


No, Step D won't work. The "120 minute/expiration time" resets every time you book, so in step A, you're setting a new expiration time at least an hour away and as much as 2 hours away. 

I emphasize again: you don't get BOTH the 120-minute eligibility reset AND the expiration reset, you get just the earliest of the two. And then you also become eligible when you tap in. So for a reservation, you can wait for the timer to run down (which lets you book), book something, then tap in (which lets you book), then book another thing.

In theory you could do it with every reservation but in practice as you build up overlapping reservations it doesn't actually work for many/most of them. Right at the beginning of the day is the easiest time to make it happen.

Here are two posts I made over the last week that detail the rules and how the expiration times work.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/t...egy-only-thread.3857056/page-50#post-63517569
https://www.disboards.com/threads/t...egy-only-thread.3857056/page-54#post-63523331


----------



## dmunsil

BioInfoLib said:


> Thanks to everyone for contributing to this thread - we just got back from our trip yesterday and were pretty happy with Genie+ etc. Couldn't have done it without all your insights!
> 
> I've put together a list of what we rode, when, and how (LL, ILL, SB) - wasn't sure if it included enough strategy for this thread so posted it in Here Now Just Back page 802 post 63533432.
> 
> Hope this is useful to someone!


Here's the link: https://www.disboards.com/threads/h...g-park-hopping.3807247/page-802#post-63533432


----------



## cjlong88

Okay, so we were able to skip line at a total of 8 attractions (2 ILL$ and 6 Genie+). We chose to spend the first half of our day at EPCOT enjoying F&W while we stacked at HS.

I attached the return time I got with the time I secured it in parentheses. Refreshing worked quite well when the app initially said nothing was left for a specific attraction. I was able to snag TSM and Test Track after some refreshing here and there.


----------



## coolbrook

Just back from a week using G+ every day except arrival evening. I'm sold.  I loved it! I had that old "skating above the crowds" feeling I used to get with a good touring plan and strategic FP+ usage.  It was fun!  This thread was invaluable in pre-planning our approach. 

Knowing which ride to choose at 7am was the first key in setting up the day for success.  For us we would decide together each night, based on reports from this thread and our must-do's, what to get first.  We did Slinky in HS, Jungle Cruise in MK, Test Track in EP, and Safari in AK.  

Knowing when we were eligible for booking the next G+ was the second key.  If you forget you can look by faking like you are trying to book a new one and it will tell you won't be eligible until _____ time. Super helpful. We did double and triple stacks some days.  I walk slow with a walker and do not back track and we made this work for me.  

Knowing that as soon as you ride a ride you should book the next G+ reservation (even if you need to cancel and rebook later to get a better time) is the third key.  Just know that if you are eligible to book because you just used a G+ you should do that *before* cancelling and rebooking something else or you will loose a stack.  I made that mistake once and another person in our group did as well.  

Knowing that, although you don't absolutely need G+ for shows, it can be helpful is the fourth key.  Our first full park day was AK, and I didn't think we would need G+ for shows, so I didn't get one for Lion King.  Waited 20 minutes. Didn't make it in to the 2:00 show, got a snack and waited another 30 minutes and did make it in to the 3:00. Show.  That didn't feel like a successful use of Disney time.  So, we learned our lesson and went ahead and got G+ reservations for Disney Junior and Beauty and the Beast in HS.  We did Frozen early in the day without G+ because we were not eligible for our second G+ yet.  As we approached shows the CM were telling people the next show was full at Frozen and Disney Junior.  They let al the G+ people in first, so at Disney Junior our family was able to sit front and center and I got a bench seat.  This also meant I wasn't standing as long. Happy benefit for me.  

A *BIG *Thank you to everyone who has been posting and sharing experiences and strategy ideas here! You helped make our extended family trip wonderful for myself and 5 Disney first timers.


----------



## Luisfba

cjlong88 said:


> Okay, so we were able to skip line at a total of 8 attractions (2 ILL$ and 6 Genie+). We chose to spend the first half of our day at EPCOT enjoying F&W while we stacked at HS.
> 
> I attached the return time I got with the time I secured it in parentheses. Refreshing worked quite well when the app initially said nothing was left for a specific attraction. I was able to snag TSM and Test Track after some refreshing here and there.
> 
> 
> View attachment 622545



First, congrats!  Glad you had such a great time and it worked so well.  I actually am planning something similar for HS but was going to do it both for our travel day and for a day later on the trip where we can start at EC.  In fact the order you just laid out is pretty much what I’m hoping I can pull off when I do it.

A question though.  Does the 2 hour availability go off the park open time of the park you are starting from or the park you are pulling tickets from?  Reason I ask is that I thought starting at EC may be a disadvantage since they’ve been opening later, but you show you were able to pick at 11am.

thanks!


----------



## Stormtrooper mum

coolbrook said:


> Just back from a week using G+ every day except arrival evening. I'm sold.  I loved it! I had that old "skating above the crowds" feeling I used to get with a good touring plan and strategic FP+ usage.  It was fun!  This thread was invaluable in pre-planning our approach.
> 
> Knowing which ride to choose at 7am was the first key in setting up the day for success.  For us we would decide together each night, based on reports from this thread and our must-do's, what to get first.  We did Slinky in HS, Jungle Cruise in MK, Test Track in EP, and Safari in AK.
> 
> Knowing when we were eligible for booking the next G+ was the second key.  If you forget you can look by faking like you are trying to book a new one and it will tell you won't be eligible until _____ time. Super helpful. We did double and triple stacks some days.  I walk slow with a walker and do not back track and we made this work for me.
> 
> Knowing that as soon as you ride a ride you should book the next G+ reservation (even if you need to cancel and rebook later to get a better time) is the third key.  Just know that if you are eligible to book because you just used a G+ you should do that *before* cancelling and rebooking something else or you will loose a stack.  I made that mistake once and another person in our group did as well.
> 
> Knowing that, although you don't absolutely need G+ for shows, it can be helpful is the fourth key.  Our first full park day was AK, and I didn't think we would need G+ for shows, so I didn't get one for Lion King.  Waited 20 minutes. Didn't make it in to the 2:00 show, got a snack and waited another 30 minutes and did make it in to the 3:00. Show.  That didn't feel like a successful use of Disney time.  So, we learned our lesson and went ahead and got G+ reservations for Disney Junior and Beauty and the Beast in HS.  We did Frozen early in the day without G+ because we were not eligible for our second G+ yet.  As we approached shows the CM were telling people the next show was full at Frozen and Disney Junior.  They let al the G+ people in first, so at Disney Junior our family was able to sit front and center and I got a bench seat.  This also meant I wasn't standing as long. Happy benefit for me.
> 
> A *BIG *Thank you to everyone who has been posting and sharing experiences and strategy ideas here! You helped make our extended family trip wonderful for myself and 5 Disney first timers.


Thank you for this.  Would you mind sharing what you did at ak?  I see a lot of people saying it’s not needed so I don’t see many strategies at that park and we plan on using it as we’ll be there on a busy Christmas Saturday


----------



## ZeeWP

the more I read the more it seems like G+ works great for park hoppers. take it easy in one of the parks in the morning, evening go to another park and do all the popular rides.


----------



## DisneyKidds

ZeeWP said:


> the more I read the more it seems like G+ works great for park hoppers. take it easy in one of the parks in the morning, evening go to another park and do all the popular rides.


That’s what I’ve been hoping.  However, yesterday’s reports of all LL reservations being gone by 6:00, some earlier, only heighten my concern that G+ may not be all that useful during peak periods.  Thanksgiving and Christmas should tell us a lot, and I already don’t like what I’m hearing….


----------



## holyrita

Genie+ doesn't let you pick from available times like ILL$, you get the 'next available'. I guess my question is, if you're trying to stack rides for late afternoon into the evening and are on the app at 7am, if there's nothing for your time frame later in the day.. do you just wait to book? Doesn't that delay your next eligibility window, where there will likely be more options in your timeframe?


----------



## cjlong88

Luisfba said:


> First, congrats!  Glad you had such a great time and it worked so well.  I actually am planning something similar for HS but was going to do it both for our travel day and for a day later on the trip where we can start at EC.  In fact the order you just laid out is pretty much what I’m hoping I can pull off when I do it.
> 
> A question though.  Does the 2 hour availability go off the park open time of the park you are starting from or the park you are pulling tickets from?  Reason I ask is that I thought starting at EC may be a disadvantage since they’ve been opening later, but you show you were able to pick at 11am.
> 
> thanks!


The 2-hour time starts when the park opens where you have your first LL booked. I had an Epcot reservation for the day, but because I booked my first LL at HS, the 120 minute countdown began at 9am because that’s when HS opened.

So I booked at 7am, 11am, 1pm, 3pm, and 5pm.


----------



## Luisfba

Very cool.  And since ILLS is on a separate system, does it matter if you pick the rat before your 7am G+ LL?


----------



## Simply Sue

Planning on utilizing late after hours at MK on one day of our trip and will not be heading to the park until about 3pm. In theory, will I be able to lay in bed at the resort and stack up to 4 G+LL's?


----------



## cjlong88

holyrita said:


> Genie+ doesn't let you pick from available times like ILL$, you get the 'next available'. I guess my question is, if you're trying to stack rides for late afternoon into the evening and are on the app at 7am, if there's nothing for your time frame later in the day.. do you just wait to book? Doesn't that delay your next eligibility window, where there will likely be more options in your timeframe?


We waited until we saw the time we wanted. At 7am you will have until the park opens to book your first. The 120-minute rule won’t kick into effect until the park opens.

The order you book your LL’s is key. The most popular attractions will move to the evening earlier, so we booked in order from popular to less popular.

You can also strategically place your ILL$ that have earlier times, as they have zero affect on your LL attractions.


----------



## mickey916

A couple questions:
Has anyone seen anyone getting Slinky for a morning time? I haven't and that's odd. Who's getting the morning spots?
What are people's experience with booking Genie+ LLs with mixed ticket media? (I have an AP, rest of my family doesn't) Is that a problem?


----------



## Tiggr88

mickey916 said:


> A couple questions:
> Has anyone seen anyone getting Slinky for a morning time? I haven't and that's odd. Who's getting the morning spots?
> What are people's experience with booking Genie+ LLs with mixed ticket media? (I have an AP, rest of my family doesn't) Is that a problem?


1. People who are just lucky at 7AM. They definitely distribute them.
2. I haven't done this, but as long as the media are all assigned properly to the correct people and all of the people are correctly in the friends and family, it shouldn't matter.


----------



## Tiggr88

Luisfba said:


> Very cool.  And since ILLS is on a separate system, does it matter if you pick the rat before your 7am G+ LL?


By 'the rat' do you mean getting a ratatouille ILL$? if so, they are on separate systems so it doesn't matter. 

keep in mind that if you are doing this at 7AM you may be able to save some $ by just choosing a BG for Rat which is free. If that doesn't work out, then you can purchase. So far they have been fairly available and don't sell out in a couple of minutes.


----------



## kappyfamily

cjlong88 said:


> Okay, so we were able to skip line at a total of 8 attractions (2 ILL$ and 6 Genie+). We chose to spend the first half of our day at EPCOT enjoying F&W while we stacked at HS.
> 
> I attached the return time I got with the time I secured it in parentheses. Refreshing worked quite well when the app initially said nothing was left for a specific attraction. I was able to snag TSM and Test Track after some refreshing here and there.
> 
> 
> View attachment 622545


thank you for taking the time to not only keep track of all this but to then come on and post. Please know it is appreciated!


----------



## thanxfornoticin

holyrita said:


> Genie+ doesn't let you pick from available times like ILL$, you get the 'next available'. I guess my question is, if you're trying to stack rides for late afternoon into the evening and are on the app at 7am, if there's nothing for your time frame later in the day.. do you just wait to book? Doesn't that delay your next eligibility window, where there will likely be more options in your timeframe?


I apologize as this is probably already answered many times, but I'm looking for clarification, please.  When picking attractions through G+, you get the 'next available' time, like the old FP system?  But if separately purchasing an Individual Lightning Lane for one of the 8 ILL attractions, you can select any time that is available at that point, similar to the FP+ reservations used to be?


----------



## Tiggr88

thanxfornoticin said:


> I apologize as this is probably already answered many times, but I'm looking for clarification, please.  When picking attractions through G+, you get the 'next available' time, like the old FP system?  But if separately purchasing an Individual Lightning Lane for one of the 8 ILL attractions, you can select any time that is available at that point, similar to the FP+ reservations used to be?


Yes and Yes.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

Tiggr88 said:


> Yes and Yes.


Thank you.  Just when I think I understand the system, I read a comment that confuses me and makes me 2nd guess what I thought I understood! Appreciate it.  Looking forward to giving it a try in person in a few weeks.


----------



## coolbrook

Stormtrooper mum said:


> Thank you for this.  Would you mind sharing what you did at ak?  I see a lot of people saying it’s not needed so I don’t see many strategies at that park and we plan on using it as we’ll be there on a busy Christmas Saturday


Sure, It was our first day to use G+ so we were newbies.  We were planning to arrive at the park in time for the 2:00 Lion King show, but we missed it. Some of us got a snack while energetic ones walked the Gorilla Trail.  Then tried for 3:00 Lion King show and got in.  Had a G+ for Safari next. That alone was worth the price.  I think standby was about an hour.  Next was a G+ for Dinosaur with child swap.  Then we had supper at Restaurant-O.  An ILL was next at FOP.  Afterwards 5 of us used a G+ to rive 'Navi while others did standby for Everest. Then it was 7pm closing time and we caught the Tree of life projections.  We knew we wouldn't get many G+ that day because of the short time in the park, but it was worth it for us to do more and wait less.

I started stalking times that morning on the tip board for Safari first looking for around 3pm.  When time got to that range I reserved it.  The next one I got was for Dino, then 'Navi.  I would have prioritized 'Navi but times were not booking far enough ahead for when we would arrive in Pandora.  We bought the ILL right at 7am to have the best choice of available time slots.

If I had it to do over again I would have tried to get a Lion King G+ after I got the Safari one.  I don't like to see the Lion King show right after Safari, because the Safari can take longer if animals stop in the road or something and it could delay our arrival for the show.

I also had never done child swap and underestimated how long that would take for the transition and getting through both rides.

Another thing I would do differently now that I understand more about cancelling and rebooking and stacking is I would try to get more G+ in the morning and then cancel and rebook as the time approached. What I would not try, especially during a busy holiday week, is making a park reservation for a different park than the one we are actually planning to arrive late to just so we can start stacking G+ reservations for the "after 2 hopping time" and then trying to change the park pass back to the park we are really going to.  This caught me without a park pass to MK on Disney+ day this week and it took some Disney resort manager help to fix it.

Hope that helps.  It is hard to plan ahead as much when we have to reserve the G+ day of, but we can plan an approach ahead of time.


----------



## aeasterling

thanxfornoticin said:


> Thank you.  Just when I think I understand the system, I read a comment that confuses me and makes me 2nd guess what I thought I understood! Appreciate it.  Looking forward to giving it a try in person in a few weeks.


One caveat.  If the park you are making your LL is *not where you have your reservation*, it will give you available times after 2pm.  This might be handy for hopping.  We were there last week of October and were planning to hop to HS. I got online at 7am and was able to get my first LL at 2:30 for SDD.


----------



## ZeeWP

mickey916 said:


> A couple questions:
> Has anyone seen anyone getting Slinky for a morning time? I haven't and that's odd. Who's getting the morning spots?
> What are people's experience with booking Genie+ LLs with mixed ticket media? (I have an AP, rest of my family doesn't) Is that a problem?



A friend got one at 950. I haven't seen anything earlier than that. Just a luck of the draw.


----------



## mickey916

ZeeWP said:


> A friend got one at 950. I haven't seen anything earlier than that. Just a luck of the draw.


Good to know. All the Vloggers I've watched have ended up with times 4 pm and later.


----------



## Sjm9911

Ours was like 1130.


----------



## acarsme123

cjlong88 said:


> Okay, so we were able to skip line at a total of 8 attractions (2 ILL$ and 6 Genie+). We chose to spend the first half of our day at EPCOT enjoying F&W while we stacked at HS.
> 
> I attached the return time I got with the time I secured it in parentheses. Refreshing worked quite well when the app initially said nothing was left for a specific attraction. I was able to snag TSM and Test Track after some refreshing here and there.
> 
> 
> View attachment 622545


Wow….so even right at 7am return times are already pushed out into the evening hours??


----------



## g-dad66

acarsme123 said:


> Wow….so even right at 7am return times are already pushed out into the evening hours??



No, only Slinky Dog Dash pushes out to evening hours quickly, and on November 6, it took until 7:05 am for that to happen.


----------



## rmclain73

ZeeWP said:


> the more I read the more it seems like G+ works great for park hoppers. take it easy in one of the parks in the morning, evening go to another park and do all the popular rides.



if you are not park hopping it’s also great if you just want to stay in the room or hit the pool in the morning and do the parks in the late afternoon.


----------



## Tiggr88

acarsme123 said:


> Wow….so even right at 7am return times are already pushed out into the evening hours??


It appears that they were also deliberately trying to get later return times for a park hop, so they probably waited a few minutes to get a later return time and then chose rides that had later return times to fit into their park hopping timeframe.


----------



## boop0524

mickey916 said:


> A couple questions:
> Has anyone seen anyone getting Slinky for a morning time? I haven't and that's odd. Who's getting the morning spots?
> What are people's experience with booking Genie+ LLs with mixed ticket media? (I have an AP, rest of my family doesn't) Is that a problem?


There’s a great blog on Touring Plans that shows return times and at 7 am for SDD it shows right into the afternoon. Also liked the helpful bit here about holding times for 10 minutes, so check back at 7:11, 7:20, and 7:29. I felt it was too risky on our busy week, but maybe it will work for others 

https://touringplans.com/blog/fluctuation-in-lightning-lane-return-times/


----------



## mickey916

boop0524 said:


> There’s a great blog on Touring Plans that shows return times and at 7 am for SDD it shows right into the afternoon. Also liked the helpful bit here about holding times for 10 minutes, so check back at 7:11, 7:20, and 7:29. I felt it was too risky on our busy week, but maybe it will work for others
> 
> https://touringplans.com/blog/fluctuation-in-lightning-lane-return-times/


I always love the Touring Plans analysis. I will take a look!


----------



## evilqueenmindy

So as far as the individual LL+ for purchase, I can book those at 7am with a resort reservation and at park opening as a day guest.

my question- can I book one at 7am on my arrival day?  Or do you have to be checked in?


----------



## nurseberta

Tiggr88 said:


> It appears that they were also deliberately trying to get later return times for a park hop, so they probably waited a few minutes to get a later return time and then chose rides that had later return times to fit into their park hopping timeframe.



When you try to book G+ times for a park other than the one you have reserved, you will only be able to book times after 2pm, even if you chose 10am slot. Genie knows you can’t hop until after 2pm


----------



## cjlong88

nurseberta said:


> When you try to book G+ times for a park other than the one you have reserved, you will only be able to book times after 2pm, even if you chose 10am slot. Genie knows you can’t hop until after 2pm


Correct. If you select, say, a 10am LL for the park you plan on hopping to, It will automatically change the time to another one past 2pm.


----------



## JeffBDisney

Can I ask. With this, it says you got millennial falcon at 11am. But you went to Epcot first.  I assume Epcot opened at 10am. I thought 2nd G+ couldn’t be used until 2 hours after park open of park you are at?

View attachment 622545
[/QUOTE]


----------



## Casey LC

I’m reading a lot about stacking, but it seems to really only benefit people who are park hopping or arriving later to a park. My family doesn’t hop, and always rope drops. It seems to me, the best strategy for someone like myself would be to skip the stacking and use Genie+ reservations as early as I can get them?


----------



## Tiggr88

JeffBDisney said:


> Can I ask. With this, it says you got millennial falcon at 11am. But you went to Epcot first.  I assume Epcot opened at 10am. I thought 2nd G+ couldn’t be used until 2 hours after park open of park you are at?
> 
> View attachment 622545


[/QUOTE]
I believe the rule is 2 hours from park open of the park you made the first  G+ reservation. In this case that would be SDD at HS so he could make another 2 hours after HS opened.

Rat doesn’t count since it is an ILL and not G+.


----------



## princesswahooey

Casey LC said:


> I’m reading a lot about stacking, but it seems to really only benefit people who are park hopping or arriving later to a park. My family doesn’t hop, and always rope drops. It seems to me, the best strategy for someone like myself would be to skip the stacking and use Genie+ reservations as early as I can get them?


There's probably less benefit to choosing a later LL to use the 120 rule stack, but if you pick the earliest return time on your first ride and are willing to wait until the end of your return window, you can try the "tap in after expire" hack method, which would give you two LL selections you could then roll with all day. If you are rope dropping, you probably won't need to use that first LL until the end of the return window anyway, since that first hour in the park is usually great for doing standby. Then if you can do the "hack-stack" you'd be pretty set just leapfrogging your two LLs all day.


----------



## ssgtravel

coolbrook said:


> Just back from a week using G+ every day except arrival evening. I'm sold.  I loved it! I had that old "skating above the crowds" feeling I used to get with a good touring plan and strategic FP+ usage.  It was fun!  This thread was invaluable in pre-planning our approach.
> 
> Knowing which ride to choose at 7am was the first key in setting up the day for success.  For us we would decide together each night, based on reports from this thread and our must-do's, what to get first.  We did Slinky in HS, Jungle Cruise in MK, Test Track in EP, and Safari in AK.
> 
> Knowing when we were eligible for booking the next G+ was the second key.  If you forget you can look by faking like you are trying to book a new one and it will tell you won't be eligible until _____ time. Super helpful. We did double and triple stacks some days.  I walk slow with a walker and do not back track and we made this work for me.
> 
> Knowing that as soon as you ride a ride you should book the next G+ reservation (even if you need to cancel and rebook later to get a better time) is the third key.  Just know that if you are eligible to book because you just used a G+ you should do that *before* cancelling and rebooking something else or you will loose a stack.  I made that mistake once and another person in our group did as well.
> 
> Knowing that, although you don't absolutely need G+ for shows, it can be helpful is the fourth key.  Our first full park day was AK, and I didn't think we would need G+ for shows, so I didn't get one for Lion King.  Waited 20 minutes. Didn't make it in to the 2:00 show, got a snack and waited another 30 minutes and did make it in to the 3:00. Show.  That didn't feel like a successful use of Disney time.  So, we learned our lesson and went ahead and got G+ reservations for Disney Junior and Beauty and the Beast in HS.  We did Frozen early in the day without G+ because we were not eligible for our second G+ yet.  As we approached shows the CM were telling people the next show was full at Frozen and Disney Junior.  They let al the G+ people in first, so at Disney Junior our family was able to sit front and center and I got a bench seat.  This also meant I wasn't standing as long. Happy benefit for me.
> 
> A *BIG *Thank you to everyone who has been posting and sharing experiences and strategy ideas here! You helped make our extended family trip wonderful for myself and 5 Disney first timers.


----------



## ssgtravel

Were they seating fewer people (social distancing) in the Lion King show?  Typically we have always gotten into the show by waiting 20 minutes or less.  Was it a very crowded day you were there?


----------



## DisneyPanthersFan

ssgtravel said:


> Were they seating fewer people (social distancing) in the Lion King show?  Typically we have always gotten into the show by waiting 20 minutes or less.  Was it a very crowded day you were there?



Not sure about then, but yesterday they were NOT doing social distancing at the show. We were told more than once to move to the right as much as possible, every inch counts, etc.


----------



## coolbrook

ssgtravel said:


> Were they seating fewer people (social distancing) in the Lion King show?  Typically we have always gotten into the show by waiting 20 minutes or less.  Was it a very crowded day you were there?


No social distancing, "everyone slide down so we can seat more people" kind of situation like the old days.  The Africa and Pandora sections of the park were pretty crowded/ hard to walk through at times.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

aeasterling said:


> One caveat.  If the park you are making your LL is *not where you have your reservation*, it will give you available times after 2pm.  This might be handy for hopping.  We were there last week of October and were planning to hop to HS. I got online at 7am and was able to get my first LL at 2:30 for SDD.


Great point.  Sounds like you can use that as a strategy on some days!  Thanks.


----------



## Ermise

Casey LC said:


> I’m reading a lot about stacking, but it seems to really only benefit people who are park hopping or arriving later to a park. My family doesn’t hop, and always rope drops. It seems to me, the best strategy for someone like myself would be to skip the stacking and use Genie+ reservations as early as I can get them?


This is what we did last week at MK and it worked pretty well.  We just kept using the earliest available. As the day goes on and return times get pushed out we ended up having a few stacked at the end of the day which was a nice way to finish things up. The "refresh" strategy is not as easy or succesful with Genie+ but it does happen.  You don't have to book and cancel either, once you confirm your party it will show you the return time (which by the way is more often than not different than the time originally shown) and you can back out and try again.  I was able to get return times for a few rides much earlier than what was originally indicated this way.  At HS I was also able to get a Slinky Dog return by doing this in the afternoon.  It is tedious and not particularly enjoyable but it does work.

Edit: Once you back out back to the Tip Board screen, drag down at the top to "refresh"


----------



## rackerlee92

I'm reading a lot about G+ at 7am if you are a resort guest.  Any off-site reports?  How is G+ working if you need to wait until park opens for off-site guests?

Thanks!!


----------



## SmittS

JeffBDisney said:


> Can I ask. With this, it says you got millennial falcon at 11am. But you went to Epcot first.  I assume Epcot opened at 10am. I thought 2nd G+ couldn’t be used until 2 hours after park open of park you are at?
> 
> View attachment 622545


[/QUOTE]
I had a “Epcot as first park” scenario several pages back, but since found this: https://forum.touringplans.com/t/the-genie-thread-all-wdw-info-here/81599



> Second LL Reservation A guest may apply for a second LL at the earliest of:
> a) Once you tap in (at both tap points, if applicable) at your first attraction
> b) The end time of your return window (excluding the grace period)
> c) The later of:
> Two hours after you obtain your first LL
> *Two hours after official opening (i.e., not the early entry opening) of the park where the selected LL attraction is located (this may be the park you are hopping to after 2pm).*



So, to your question, for one you can’t park hop from Epcot to HS until 2pm anyways.  Also, if Epcot is your first park but you’re making a LL selection after entering Epcot, if that LL selection is in HS, assuming you made a LL selection sometime before the park opened, the next LL selection you make for HS would be two hours after HS opens, not after Epcot opening.

I have an Epcot reservation for an upcoming trip where we’ll be hopping to HS in the mid afternoon timeframe.  I plan on stacking LL selections for HS starting at 7am, then will make my next selection at 11am despite Epcot opening at 10am that day.  I had previously thought I needed to wait until 12 to make that next selection, but it seems that is not the case.


----------



## soniam

rackerlee92 said:


> I'm reading a lot about G+ at 7am if you are a resort guest.  Any off-site reports?  How is G+ working if you need to wait until park opens for off-site guests?
> 
> Thanks!!



G+ is available to everyone at 7am, onsite and offsite. It's the individual ones, ILL, like Rise, that can only be purchased by onsite guests at 7am. Rise has been selling out early, often before DHS opens.


----------



## Ermise

We just returned home from our trip last week and here are my observations from using Genie+:


When I say we rope-dropped, I mean we either made it to where they were holding people before 8:30 but had many people in front of us.  We were never at the front of the pack.
We had no need to purchase any individual lightning lanes and were able to ride all of those rides (except Frozen which we were not looking to) with the longest standby wait being around 35-40 minutes.
There was confusion from some guests, similar to when Fastpass+ first rolled out, with many people holding up the lightning lane entrance trying to figure out why they were getting the dreaded blue light.  It seemed like some people thought that once they had purchased Genie+ that was all they needed to do.  They didn't realize they then had to make reservations for individual rides.
Genie+ was not necessary at Epcot. We used the virtual queue for Remy's at Epcot, joined right at 7am, and received boarding groups 5 and 2 on our two visits (a Tuesday and Friday).  Epcot was not busy at all, even with the Food & Wine festival.  Soarin' was typically under 30 minutes and Test Track maxed out at 45 minutes.  Frozen was the one ride where waits were rarely under an hour.  If Frozen is a must ride, try and rope drop in the 30 minute early admission period.  Even if you aren't at the front of the pack that will be the shortest wait all day.  At park close it was still around 90 minutes.
Genie+ was not necessary at Animal Kingdom. This park was not busy at all on our visit (Wednesday the 10th).  Everest was a walk on all day which I've never seen before.  We rode that 3 times in the early admission period then walked over to the Safari shortly after 9am.  We waited for 5-10 minutes to get on.  Later in the day we rode Everest again multiple times with maybe a 10 minute wait at most. We waited in the standby line for Flight of Passage in the afternoon, twice, and both times waited 35-40 minutes.  We waited standby for Navi as well and it was about 25-30 minutes.
We purchased Genie+ for our first full day of Hollywood Studios and were glad we did. At 7am I made a reservation for Toy Story Midway Mania with a return time of 10:15-11:15.  At one point most rides seemed like they had 80 minute waits posted with Tower of Terror at 120 minutes. ToT was not running at full capacity which really increased the wait times. We had roped drop Aerosmith and rode that twice with no wait in the early admission period. Then went to Tower of Terror and waited about 20 minutes. We then were able to use Genie+ for all of the other rides including Tower of Terror and Aerosmith again later during the day.  What we found was that there were periods of "nothing to do" while we waited for the next return window to open. We used those periods for relaxing, having a snack, or browsing shops. For the last two rides of the night we rode standby for Mickey and Minnie and then Rise of the Resistance, which we just made by 3 minutes before the line closed.  We ended up waiting about 20 minutes for the Railway and 30 minutes for Rise of the Resistance.  On our arrival night we came to Hollywood Studios had dinner and then rode Mickey and Minnie, Millennium Falcon, and Slinky Dog all in standby lines. We waited 40 minutes, 30 minutes, and 35 minutes respectively.
We purchased Genie+ for our days in the Magic Kingdom which is where it had the most benefit by far. Our plan each day was to rope drop Space Mountain, ride a couple of smaller rides, like Buzz and then go to our first ride reservation, which for us was Big Thunder Mountain each day, then continue making ride reservations with the next earliest availability. This meant we were not stacking rides but were moving from ride to ride.  As the day went on and return times were later, we did end up having 2 or 3 rides stacked at the end of the day.  Jungle Cruise, or Jingle Cruise, was the ride at MK that had the latest return times early in the morning. The standby waits were crazy long so it made sense to reserve that one for later in the day then wait for the window to open back up to reserve another ride.  We just picked the shortest standby lines while waited to reserve the next ride.
At 7am, or shortly after, I made our first reservation for BTMRR each day.  What I found interesting was that the first available return time was always around 11am.  After you specify your party, the confirmation screen shows the return time again.  This time was quite often different than what was listed originally on the Tip Board screen, usually just by a few minutes or so, but some times drastically different so you have to pay attention.  I reserved the ride and then wanted to see if I could get an earlier time so I canceled and went through the process again.  Each day (3 in total) by doing this cancel/rebook process I was able to reserve a return time of 9:15-10:15am. I also found that I did not have to actually reserve the ride to recheck for earlier times.  When I got to the confirmation screen I could back out to the Tip Board, drag the top of the screen down to refresh, and then click into the ride again to see what if the return time changed.  
Throughout the day I was able to reserve some return times earlier than what was being advertised on the Tip Board by going through that process. It was tedious and not as easy as the "refresh" process with Fastpass+ but it was doable. Similar to our plan at the other parks, we got into line for Seven Dwarves Mine Train at the end of the night and had very minimal waits. One day Big Thunder Railroad was down when our ride reservation window opened so it was replaced with the "any ride" reservation.  We rebooked for Big Thunder and it was closed again so we received another "any ride" reservation.  These were great because they were good for the entire day and we were able to make an additional ride reservations as well. They were good for any ride except Peter Pan, Space Mountain, and Seven Dwarves.


----------



## TinkBink

Trying to keep up and plan our strategy for our trip in May! I'm reading a lot about making another reservation after the 120 min rule or the expiration window for the ride. I thought you were able to make another reservation as soon as you've tapped into your reservation? So if I have a ride from 9-10, I tap into the ride at 9 and then I can make another reservation right then and there? That's what some of the blogs make it seem like but after reading this board I feel like I'm misunderstanding something......


----------



## thanxfornoticin

TinkBink said:


> Trying to keep up and plan our strategy for our trip in May! I'm reading a lot about making another reservation after the 120 min rule or the expiration window for the ride. I thought you were able to make another reservation as soon as you've tapped into your reservation? So if I have a ride from 9-10, I tap into the ride at 9 and then I can make another reservation right then and there? That's what some of the blogs make it seem like but after reading this board I feel like I'm misunderstanding something......


You are correct.  You can make another G+ LL reservation after you have done the "2nd tap" of the LL attraction you are currently on.  Once you tap the 2nd time (once at the LL entrance, once close to entering the actual attraction), you can make another reservation.  You can also make another LL reservation after 120 minutes, in the event you have a LL attraction scheduled more than 2 hours out.  Hope that makes sense.


----------



## trompettecon

Going in January and will go directly to HS after leaving our bags at hotel. Will arrive in park around 16h00. So want to make sure I have the right Genie+ strategy. I should reserve the most popular rides (that I'm interested in) for the latest time possible righ? Here is what I'm thinking:
7h00 a.m. = Reserve MF for around 20h00-21h00
9h00 a.m. when park opens = SDD  for around 18h00-19h00
11h00 a.m (if able to on the plane) = Reserve Star Tours for 16h00-17h00?

Is there anything else I could do to stack?
Ty


----------



## thanxfornoticin

trompettecon said:


> Going in January and will go directly to HS after leaving our bags at hotel. Will arrive in park around 16h00. So want to make sure I have the right Genie+ strategy. I should reserve the most popular rides (that I'm interested in) for the latest time possible righ? Here is what I'm thinking:
> 7h00 a.m. = Reserve MF for around 20h00-21h00
> 9h00 a.m. when park opens = SDD  for around 18h00-19h00
> 11h00 a.m (if able to on the plane) = Reserve Star Tours for 16h00-17h00?
> 
> Is there anything else I could do to stack?
> Ty


G+ attractions do not give you an option to select a time to return.  You get offered 'next available', similar to the original paper FP.  So you'll have to be lucky to get the specific times you seek.  If you do an ILL attraction that you pay extra for, you can select a time that's available.

Also, if you make a G+ LL reservation at 7AM, you can't make your next until 120 minutes after park opening - so 11AM in your example.


----------



## elgerber

trompettecon said:


> Going in January and will go directly to HS after leaving our bags at hotel. Will arrive in park around 16h00. So want to make sure I have the right Genie+ strategy. I should reserve the most popular rides (that I'm interested in) for the latest time possible righ? Here is what I'm thinking:
> 7h00 a.m. = Reserve MF for around 20h00-21h00
> 9h00 a.m. when park opens = SDD  for around 18h00-19h00
> 11h00 a.m (if able to on the plane) = Reserve Star Tours for 16h00-17h00?
> 
> Is there anything else I could do to stack?
> Ty


You will want to do SDD first, or you will not get it.  You cannot book another until 11, it's 2 hours after park opens.


----------



## katyringo

I've been rethinking my HS strategy .. this is long sorry!

as a solo traveler.. I want to ride SDD but it's not be all end all..

I'm going the Monday after thanksgiving as my Hday.. so crowds remain unknown.. could have lingering holiday crowds.. there could be a lull....

But...  I'm not park hopping. Rise is a priority so I am inclined to book my ILL for that first...  and MMRR (has it ever ran out of ILL in the morning?)

but if I'm not park hopping then could it actually be worse for me to get stuck with a SDD for later after noon and evening and thus locking me out until 11am to book another?

I realize if I don't book SDD first then I probably won't get a genie+ For it..

but would genie then be more valuable to me to be able to book more of the other rides?

Idk.. right now this was my plan:

7am
Buy rise (aim for 12-1 time)
Book SDD
Buy MMRR (aim for 1-2 time)

*booking rise and MMRR for heavy crowd times.

early entry rope drop: head to TT and RR

I can single ride RR

Single ride MFSR...

In theory if I can get an earlier time for SDD then I could use genie+ for some shows, TSMM...


what if I forgo SDD and just start booking other things. Could I get more things with Genie+?  I mean.. maybe I just suck up the standby for SDD?


----------



## trompettecon

thanxfornoticin said:


> G+ attractions do not give you an option to select a time to return.  You get offered 'next available', similar to the original paper FP.  So you'll have to be lucky to get the specific times you seek.  If you do an ILL attraction that you pay extra for, you can select a time that's available.
> 
> Also, if you make a G+ LL reservation at 7AM, you can't make your next until 120 minutes after park opening - so 11AM in your example.


Oh! I thought you could push back the time to return at will with Genie+ I read everything and still missed something. Thank you TFN!


----------



## thanxfornoticin

trompettecon said:


> Oh! I thought you could push back the time to return at will with Genie+ I read everything and still missed something. Thank you TFN!


It's a new world of LL and strategies!  Good luck with your choices!


----------



## Grasshopper2016

g-dad66 said:


> I think the following will save you the most waiting time (but conversely, the return window will be out the farthest), in this order:


That's what I hate about this system.  You can use G+ for rides that have very long lines.  But your return window will be much later, so you won't be able to use it on more than a few rides.  Or you can use G+ on rides with return windows that are much closer in time.  This will get you on more rides.  But those are the rides that have the shortest standby lines (and are less desirable), and therefore you won't really save yourself that much time in line.  And you won't be skipping any of the long lines.

I know that stacking can help, especially if you are hopping to DHS and don't use any LL rides in your first park.  But it just seems like the system designed to frustrate.  


PkbaughAR said:


> Today we were in MK. Booked jungle cruise at 7:30 for 2:20. Then at 10 booked Peter Pan for 3:05. . . .  It was SUPER crowded today.


TP had MK as a crowd level of 4 on Friday.  Think of how bad (and comparatively useless) G+ is going to be when the crowd level is 9 or 10!


----------



## GBRforWDW

katyringo said:


> 7am
> Buy rise (aim for 12-1 time)
> Book SDD
> Buy MMRR (aim for 1-2 time


I would grab SDD first.  Those are going in minutes.  If you ran into an issue purchasing Rise, you might miss out on SDD.


----------



## katyringo

GBRforWDW said:


> I would grab SDD first.  Those are going in minutes.  If you ran into an issue purchasing Rise, you might miss out on SDD.


 That's helpful. I just wonder if it's worth skipping Genie+ for SDD all
Together knowing I'm spending all day at HS..


----------



## GBRforWDW

katyringo said:


> That's helpful. I just wonder if it's worth skipping Genie+ for SDD all
> Together knowing I'm spending all day at HS..


Hard to say.  If you can luck out and score a first hour pass, you'll probably have the best options at other passes, but if you have to wait until 11 for your next one, I think is the worst just cause all the other passes are getting snapped up


----------



## soniam

katyringo said:


> That's helpful. I just wonder if it's worth skipping Genie+ for SDD all
> Together knowing I'm spending all day at HS..



Would you skip SDD? You could try it during EE. I think if you don't get a G+ or don't do it during EE, then you will either wait a very long time or have to ride it right before park closing. However, Monday after Thanksgiving may not be too bad. Decisions, decisions, decisions


----------



## TinkBink

thanxfornoticin said:


> You are correct.  You can make another G+ LL reservation after you have done the "2nd tap" of the LL attraction you are currently on.  Once you tap the 2nd time (once at the LL entrance, once close to entering the actual attraction), you can make another reservation.  You can also make another LL reservation after 120 minutes, in the event you have a LL attraction scheduled more than 2 hours out.  Hope that makes sense.


Okay thank you so much for that information!! So our typical schedule is rope dropping to about 12, taking an afternoon break and then park hopping to another park around 4. I'm thinking our best strategy is to book a Genie+ ride for park opening and then tapping in and seeing what we get immediately after that (and continue that trend until we break at 12). Then using the 12-4 break to stack a few rides for the evening park? I know we risk the big rides being gone but we have a 1 and 4 year old and just want to ride whatever we don't have to wait for


----------



## Mango7100

At HS and Epcot today with Genie…I’m not sure if it works as well as I had hoped for stacking.
7 am—-got Slinky Dog for 1040-1140. After got ILL for ROR at 110-210 and Remy for 630-730
11am—purposefully did not tap into SDD in order to enact the 120 minute rule. Got TSMM for 255.
Tapped into SDD at 1105 and got Test Track for 815. Wanted MFSR but it was already at return times at 8pm by then.
At 1 pm—made Soarin for 445-545.
After tapping in to TSMM at 3 there wasn’t anything left for HS and the ones left at Epcot are not helpful (like Living with the Land, Figment, etc).
At 4 pm there are no LL for any ride left at HS for the rest of the day and I refreshed about 10 times.

The ones we used did save time—we waited 5 min for Slinky with a posted 85. Waited 5 for TSMM with a posted 60. Waited 10 for ROR with a posted 135. And judging by where the lines ended those posted times were accurate. Touring Plans has not been as accurate this time. We did do 2 standbys and our actual wait time was exactly what was posted.

Im not sure how well Genie will work at Peak times in HS. You may get 1-2 selections of rides besides paying for ILL. We kept refreshing but it was not as successful as we had with old FP.


----------



## Cotta

katyringo said:


> I've been rethinking my HS strategy .. this is long sorry!
> 
> as a solo traveler.. I want to ride SDD but it's not be all end all..
> 
> I'm going the Monday after thanksgiving as my Hday.. so crowds remain unknown.. could have lingering holiday crowds.. there could be a lull....
> 
> But...  I'm not park hopping. Rise is a priority so I am inclined to book my ILL for that first...  and MMRR (has it ever ran out of ILL in the morning?)
> 
> but if I'm not park hopping then could it actually be worse for me to get stuck with a SDD for later after noon and evening and thus locking me out until 11am to book another?
> 
> I realize if I don't book SDD first then I probably won't get a genie+ For it..
> 
> but would genie then be more valuable to me to be able to book more of the other rides?
> 
> Idk.. right now this was my plan:
> 
> 7am
> Buy rise (aim for 12-1 time)
> Book SDD
> Buy MMRR (aim for 1-2 time)
> 
> *booking rise and MMRR for heavy crowd times.
> 
> early entry rope drop: head to TT and RR
> 
> I can single ride RR
> 
> Single ride MFSR...
> 
> In theory if I can get an earlier time for SDD then I could use genie+ for some shows, TSMM...
> 
> 
> what if I forgo SDD and just start booking other things. Could I get more things with Genie+?  I mean.. maybe I just suck up the standby for SDD?




I would rope drop SDD, then you could book something else at 7 am, I would probably go with ToT since you can single rider RnR and MFSR. And remember you can choose your times for ILL (Rise and MMRR).


----------



## Sjm9911

The problem is if MMRR goes down. Then the times are a mess. I was told all the magnetic rides, MMRR, Remmy  and rise have problems everyday. When I went, we disnt do rise, but the other two were broken down everytime we were there, and it messes up any and all planning. I would do those early, that way if it does break down ot will not be at 730 at night for a return time.


----------



## SkyGuy

trompettecon said:


> Going in January and will go directly to HS after leaving our bags at hotel. Will arrive in park around 16h00. So want to make sure I have the right Genie+ strategy. I should reserve the most popular rides (that I'm interested in) for the latest time possible righ? Here is what I'm thinking:
> 7h00 a.m. = Reserve MF for around 20h00-21h00
> 9h00 a.m. when park opens = SDD  for around 18h00-19h00
> 11h00 a.m (if able to on the plane) = Reserve Star Tours for 16h00-17h00?
> 
> Is there anything else I could do to stack?
> Ty


Slinky should definitely be first. The issues you’re going to run into are that the system doesn’t give you a choice of times for Lightning Lanes. You can only chose times for the paid options (Rise, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway at HS). You may very well be able to procure a later in the day SDD since they go so quickly. The 120 minute rule starts at park open, not after your 7am selection, so you would not be able to get another LL until 11am. At 11am, the times for Millennium Falcon might not be pushed out to 20:00 yet, and Star Tours will almost certainly not be offered that far in advance.


----------



## soniam

TinkBink said:


> Okay thank you so much for that information!! So our typical schedule is rope dropping to about 12, taking an afternoon break and then park hopping to another park around 4. I'm thinking our best strategy is to book a Genie+ ride for park opening and then tapping in and seeing what we get immediately after that (and continue that trend until we break at 12). Then using the 12-4 break to stack a few rides for the evening park? I know we risk the big rides being gone but we have a 1 and 4 year old and just want to ride whatever we don't have to wait for



That is how Maxpass worked at DLR. We used that. However, DLR usually had good Maxpass availability. If it's a busy time, I don't know if DHS will be the same. The other parks might be OK, but some evidence above suggests otherwise.


----------



## katyringo

Cotta said:


> I would rope drop SDD, then you could book something else at 7 am, I would probably go with ToT since you can single rider RnR and MFSR. And remember you can choose your times for ILL (Rise and MMRR).


I'm thinking about this... I was gonna rope drop TT thinking most folks headed to SDD.. but I'm also really good at being one of the firsts in the park too... soooo maybe it's worth rope dropping SDD and then using genie for TT and thus having quicker return times..


----------



## AZMermaid

katyringo said:


> I'm thinking about this... I was gonna rope drop TT thinking most folks headed to SDD.. but I'm also really good at being one of the firsts in the park too... soooo maybe it's worth rope dropping SDD and then using genie for TT and thus having quicker return times..


This is our plan. We are going to rope drop Slinky and book TT at 7, ideally for a window starting 9-9:30, but not sure if it will be that early. I’m hoping it books only after people see late returns for Slinky and MF. Depending on the Toy story waits and time we get off slinky, we might do one of those rides before heading to RR just before 9. Then we will ride TT (ideally) and book MF after we tap in. If our TT is 10:00 or later, I’m thinking we will hit MF standby right after slinky and then wait for the 11:00 stacking period. We will ride MMRR standby at some point, not sure when. Maybe midday when we are basically waiting for our LL times to mature. Not ideal, but I think that’s the plan. I’ll book Rise for 1ish after lunch or before our 4:10 Ogas.


----------



## Sydnerella

At 7am May I buy and book IAS LL passes for ROTR for my inlaws who are in my friends list but not my main travel party so we all ride together?  We are both staying at different Disney resorts.


----------



## coolbrook

Sydnerella said:


> At 7am May I buy and book IAS LL passes for ROTR for my inlaws who are in my friends list but not my main travel party so we all ride together?  We are both staying at different Disney resorts.


I think so as long as they have park reservations at the same park as you show on your friends and family list.  I just got back from a trip last week where I was staying at a different resort from my sister and her family.  We took turns doing the AM purchasing and choosing and were always able to buy the G+ and ILL for each other.  On the Epcot morning I got the Remy BG and she bought G+ and the Remy ILL.


----------



## ssgtravel

Need some expert advice.  I plan to try double stacking by booking a LL for 9-10, waiting until just after 10 to book another, then tap in before the end of the grace period at 10:15, after which I can book another LL.  A couple of questions.  If your first tap is within the 15 min grace period, but the second one is not (say the LL line inside the ride is longer than expected), what happens?  Does the second tap turn green, or if not, does the CM let you in anyway?  

We plan to use baby swap on some rides.  What if the first party taps into the ride within the grace period, but the second party who are waiting do not because their wait extends beyond the 15 minutes?  I assume the cast member will let them in anyway because they did arrive before the end of the grace period, but then have been waiting, but is that true?   And does this affect the ability to book the second LL, because the second party is not tapped in within the actual allowable return time for the ride (so the system thinks they did not ride), and also the second LL is being booked after the 15 minute grace period ends.


----------



## Sjm9911

You xan not book a new LL untill everyone has tapped in. So if they have 2 taps, and most rides do. You need to have everyone through before the next selection. Taping in after the grace period, may or may not work. TbH sounds like a time waste trying to get a CM to fix it, if they can. I saw people having trouble with the phones and cards at tap in points. They were there a long time fixing what was wrong. If your doing normal stacking , you need to wait untill 2 hours after park opening to get another selection. If you are using the glitch, I have no idea. Its up to you on what to try and how far to push the system.  But it could backfire. Not a chance i would take.


----------



## Luisfba

But as far as general grace period use (forgetting about G+), as long as you are past the first tap point within the grace period.. you are ok right?


----------



## DisneyKidds

Luisfba said:


> But as far as general grace period use (forgetting about G+), as long as you are past the first tap point within the grace period.. you are ok right?


I can’t imagine them turning you away at a second tap point if you’ve already cleared the first.


----------



## DisneyKidds

Sjm9911 said:


> If your doing normal stacking , you need to wait untill 2 hours after park opening to get another selection. If you are using the glitch, I have no idea. Its up to you on what to try and how far to push the system.  But it could backfire. Not a chance i would take.


When we have the opportunity to use G+ next summer I’ll start with “better safe than sorry” standard triple hop stacking, but after a few successful days of that (hopefully) I’ll definitely test the limits of the system and try adding in some grace hack stacking!


----------



## TinkBink

Have people had any luck with refreshing the tip board and getting genie+ reservations suddenly pop up for the time they want? I used to have a lot of luck doing that with FastPass+ and just wondering how this compares?


----------



## Tiggr88

TinkBink said:


> Have people had any luck with refreshing the tip board and getting genie+ reservations suddenly pop up for the time they want? I used to have a lot of luck doing that with FastPass+ and just wondering how this compares?


It doesn’t appear to happen as often. More importantly, there is no modify option. if you already have a G+ and need to cancel it to get this new one you need to cancel and then search again so it will probably be gone by the time you do that.


----------



## dez1978

Does anyone remember when Genie was 1st announced and there was a thread about that and there was a person who was just adamant that LL would never run out and would always be available all day, and that you would be able to pick virtually anytime you wanted to pick all day?  And that those of us who didn't love it were just nayayers who weren't giving it a chance and wed see how wrong we were... Are they here?  Because it seems they were wrong...


----------



## Cotta

Can someone tell me what happens when a ride is down that you have reserved a g+ for? I understand you get an anytime pass. Can you remake a g+ for that same ride later? Also does this in fact "end" your stack? Can you make another reservation once you tap into the anytime pass? Sorry for all the questions!


----------



## dez1978

I am not finding anything for Remy on Thrill data.  Do I have any chance at Remy if we are not on site and hopping to Epcot?  I don't have a problem buying it, but are they still available when Epoct opens?


----------



## elgerber

dez1978 said:


> I am not finding anything for Remy on Thrill data.  Do I have any chance at Remy if we are not on site and hopping to Epcot?  I don't have a problem buying it, but are they still available when Epoct opens?


There are still some available for purchase right now


----------



## DisneyPanthersFan

TinkBink said:


> Have people had any luck with refreshing the tip board and getting genie+ reservations suddenly pop up for the time they want? I used to have a lot of luck doing that with FastPass+ and just wondering how this compares?



That basically worked for me with one attraction.

I didn't refresh the tip board - I just kept selecting Book Experience. When I did that, I frequently got a different time listed. After doing this multiple times over and over for maybe a few minutes here and there, I was able to get a time I wanted (a few hours earlier than what had been showing up).

I didn't bother refreshing the tip board because there was one specific ride I wanted.


----------



## TinkBink

DisneyPanthersFan said:


> That basically worked for me with one attraction.
> 
> I didn't refresh the tip board - I just kept selecting Book Experience. When I did that, I frequently got a different time listed. After doing this multiple times over and over for maybe a few minutes here and there, I was able to get a time I wanted (a few hours earlier than what had been showing up).
> 
> I didn't bother refreshing the tip board because there was one specific ride I wanted.


Thank you so much for that info! It's good to know it can happen. That's a good call to aim for a specific ride to refresh I'll definitely try that!


----------



## Sjm9911

It may not happen often. Usally its because someone cancled theres. So , you may see the time you want and by the time you select it, it changes. You can get diffrent times, but it wasnt real useful.  I kept hitting ,i think it was pirates to book, and the time changed by an hour. Took 5 mins to get it 45 mins earlier. The earlier time kept showing 8n the refresh, but by the time you clicked on it it changes. It may depend on the croad level also.


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## Sjm9911

Cotta said:


> Can someone tell me what happens when a ride is down that you have reserved a g+ for? I understand you get an anytime pass. Can you remake a g+ for that same ride later? Also does this in fact "end" your stack? Can you make another reservation once you tap into the anytime pass? Sorry for all the questions!


Yes they give you an extra use for anything pass. But it may be hours later when you get it. I selected test track on a rainy day. Just in case it cleared up, my LL was like 1045 am , i got the pass at like 130 pm.


----------



## Sjm9911

dez1978 said:


> I am not finding anything for Remy on Thrill data.  Do I have any chance at Remy if we are not on site and hopping to Epcot?  I don't have a problem buying it, but are they still available when Epoct opens?


Depends if it goes down and for how long. There is a chance. On the day i went I dont even know if they opened it up again at 1 pm. I booked at 7 am and got a boarding group like 61. Was supost to come up at 1145, then the ride went down, 1145 changed to 1230, to 130 , and stayed there untill we were called at like 430 pm for the ride. Estimated wait time was 90 mins. But We were long gone by then. At 7 am all the early  boarding groups filled up when we were there.


----------



## Sjm9911

DisneyKidds said:


> When we have the opportunity to use G+ next summer I’ll start with “better safe than sorry” standard triple hop stacking, but after a few successful days of that (hopefully) I’ll definitely test the limits of the system and try adding in some grace hack stacking!


It was a pain to manage 2, i cant imagain more. Lol.


----------



## DisneyKidds

dez1978 said:


> Does anyone remember when Genie was 1st announced and there was a thread about that and there was a person who was just adamant that LL would never run out and would always be available all day, and that you would be able to pick virtually anytime you wanted to pick all day?  And that those of us who didn't love it were just nayayers who weren't giving it a chance and wed see how wrong we were... Are they here?  Because it seems they were wrong...


Ah….but were they?  

Has it happened yet that SOMETHING (no matter how useless) hasn’t been available at all?  If not…..well, they were right (or at least would still claim to be)!


----------



## DisneyKidds

Sjm9911 said:


> It was a pain to manage 2, i cant imagain more. Lol.


Ha! Just as my wife, always getting mad at me trying to keep a day in the parks “on plan”, I’m a Disney masochist!


----------



## soniam

dez1978 said:


> I am not finding anything for Remy on Thrill data.  Do I have any chance at Remy if we are not on site and hopping to Epcot?  I don't have a problem buying it, but are they still available when Epoct opens?



Yeah, Thrill Data doesn't show Remy. I guess because it does not have posted wait times/standby line. Mostly, they seem to be available. Some really busy days they may go earlier.



DisneyKidds said:


> Ah….but were they?
> 
> Has it happened yet that SOMETHING (no matter how useless) hasn’t been available at all?  If not…..well, they were right (or at least would still claim to be)!



Well, Thrill Data does show that G+ for at least the popular rides do run out at most parks before closing, even Animal Kingdom.


----------



## cjlong88

TinkBink said:


> Have people had any luck with refreshing the tip board and getting genie+ reservations suddenly pop up for the time they want? I used to have a lot of luck doing that with FastPass+ and just wondering how this compares?


I did last weekend. Got Test Track each day from refreshing. One of them had a return time of 30 minutes out. I saw a few bigger attractions in HS pop up around the 5:30-6:30 time frame as people were changing there plans as well. They initially showed as distributed for the day and then would randomly show availability. They went away in the blink of an eye so you had to be quick to snag them.


----------



## Pookie9922

Does cancelling a LL restart your clock? I see mention of booking anything to keep your stack and then modifying it later, but I would think cancelling and rebooking something else/another time would mess things up. Is there a certain order you have to do things in?


----------



## Sjm9911

DisneyKidds said:


> Ha! Just as my wife, always getting mad at me trying to keep a day in the parks “on plan”, I’m a Disney masochist!


If you wanthttps://www.disboards.com/threads/t...ratch-that-disney-world-here-we-come.3858239/ to see what we did and when, i do have a trip report here. Its just on the camping section.


----------



## Sjm9911

Pookie9922 said:


> Does cancelling a LL restart your clock? I see mention of booking anything to keep your stack and then modifying it later, but I would think cancelling and rebooking something else/another time would mess things up. Is there a certain order you have to do things in?


I only cancled when i had a stack of two. So , i wasn't planning to get a 3rd. Just tap in and rebook from there. It never effected the 2nd LL.


----------



## Avery&Todd

posting somewhere else...


----------



## jade1

cjlong88 said:


> View attachment 622462



This is right up our touring alley.  

Great evening line up after doing other things.

Prob not RotR very often though.


----------



## aboveH20

soniam said:


> I don't think there are any specified requirements. However, you probably need to update to the latest OS that your phone supports. I have read of people using iPhone 6 successfully with Genie+, but I suspect you need to ensure that the OS and app are up-to-date. Update now and play around with it via the "Tip Board" in MDE and see how it's working. Do this now, so that if you want a new phone, you might still have time to get one. My husband just updated his iPhone 7 to iOS 15. It's being a little slow and flaky. Luckily, I just got my iPhone 13 two weeks ago. His is supposed to come in next week, right before we leave. Our phone batteries have been getting worse and worse for months. We had planned to get new phones at some point soon, but Genie+ really hastened the decision. Unfortunately, the iPhone 13 models were on backorder. I don't know if supply has improved or not.



Thanks for taking the time to write such a detailed answer.  When I was there in April every CM whom I told my phone didn't work took my phone from me and tried to show me how to do it -- with no luck.  Finally I just said I wasn't able to order so I didn't have to wait for them to fiddle with my phone and tell me it didn't work.  One CM told me she was able to use her iPhone6 and when I asked at my hotel the CM said OS 13 was needed.

We're going to WDW for a day in January prior to a cruise so it occurred to me that will be a good time to see, once and for all, whether or not I need to upgrade.

*I'm surprised that I haven't been able to find anything googling or on Disney's site about phone requirements.  Seems like that would be a pretty basic piece of information people would need.*


----------



## dez1978

DisneyKidds said:


> Ah….but were they?
> 
> Has it happened yet that SOMETHING (no matter how useless) hasn’t been available at all?  If not…..well, they were right (or at least would still claim to be)!


lol, exactly.  I just remember thinking that I wanted to hear from them again once this was all in play instead of just in theory.  Bc they were very sure you'd be able to book whatever ride you wanted for whatever time you wanted and it would always be available.


----------



## trompettecon

dez1978 said:


> Does anyone remember when Genie was 1st announced and there was a thread about that and there was a person who was just adamant that LL would never run out and would always be available all day, and that you would be able to pick virtually anytime you wanted to pick all day?  And that those of us who didn't love it were just nayayers who weren't giving it a chance and wed see how wrong we were... Are they here?  Because it seems they were wrong...


Yup! LL$ for ROTR is gone EVERY DAY before 9 a.m. So non-resort guest = nothing. And SDD Genie +LL usually gone by 11h00.


----------



## GBRforWDW

trompettecon said:


> And SDD Genie +LL usually gone by 11h00.


I didn't check today, but have looked closely over the last several days and this one is typically out within minutes.  I've seen it gone as early as 7:03.   There are times where someone will drop and that comes available, but for the most part, If you're not getting SDD first thing, you may miss out.


----------



## katyringo

SDD is open during early entry right? The more I think about it the more I'm inclined to not use genie + to book SDD but to rope drop it for EE... I think on a busy HS day getting a late SDD could do more harm than good for someone who isn't park hopping

New plan:

7am
LL for rise (aim for 12-2pm busy time)
Genie + for TT
LL for MMRR  (aim for 12-2pm busy time)

Early entry rope drop SDD and TSMM

smugglers I can single rider If needed
RR I can single rider if needed

then this can open up my useof genie+ for the day on less in demand things on a busy day..

Hummm...


----------



## ZeeWP

I feel what happens in HS is that EE people try to get on Rise early but the line quickly climbs up past 30, 60, 90 minutes. So around 945, 950, these people grab up the last Rise in exchange for not waiting in line.


----------



## RNTeacher

I am doing the planning for husband and I. He has difficulty with some rides. If he does not ride some things (SDD, MFSR), could I ride then use his band and tap in?


----------



## CarolynFH

RNTeacher said:


> I am doing the planning for husband and I. He has difficulty with some rides. If he does not ride some things (SDD, MFSR), could I ride then use his band and tap in?


As long as he tapped into the park itself, that will work, no problem.


----------



## Mango7100

TinkBink said:


> Have people had any luck with refreshing the tip board and getting genie+ reservations suddenly pop up for the time they want? I used to have a lot of luck doing that with FastPass+ and just wondering how this compares?


We have been using Genie Plus the last two days, and refreshing is not as fruitful with this compared to FastPass in our experience. I have seen a few things pop up, but the hard thing with Genie+ is you can’t modify an existing LL. You have to cancel and gamble that the better time is still available


----------



## Mango7100

Today we had a better day stacking with Genie for hopping to Hollywood studios. Went to Epcot for the morning and didn’t use Genie Plus. We booked at 7 am SDD for 525-625 and Rise for 505-605. At 11am booked Smugglers for 715-815. At 1 booked TSMM for 6-7. At 3 did Swirling Saucers for 740-840. At 5 we could have still pulled a TOT or Rock n Roll but DH had Done single rider for RnRC and we don’t do TOT


----------



## mom2cinderella

dez1978 said:


> Does anyone remember when Genie was 1st announced and there was a thread about that and there was a person who was just adamant that LL would never run out and would always be available all day, and that you would be able to pick virtually anytime you wanted to pick all day?  And that those of us who didn't love it were just nayayers who weren't giving it a chance and wed see how wrong we were... Are they here?  Because it seems they were wrong...



Yes I am definitely curious if their enthusiasm has diminished with what we now know.


----------



## lynzi2004

Mango7100 said:


> Today we had a better day stacking with Genie for hopping to Hollywood studios. Went to Epcot for the morning and didn’t use Genie Plus. We booked at 7 am SDD for 525-625 and Rise for 505-605. At 11am booked Smugglers for 715-815. At 1 booked TSMM for 6-7. At 3 did Swirling Saucers for 740-840. At 5 we could have still pulled a TOT or Rock n Roll but DH had Done single rider for RnRC and we don’t do TOT



Question, something like this is part of my plan, but I would prefer to stack them from about 4-7pm if possible. Did the 7:40-8:40 saucers save you much time? I was thinking if I could get a slightly earlier “stack” of times, that maybe lines would die down enough towards the end of the night that maybe they wouldn’t be needing. I don’t want to stack from 6-9pm during what could be a “quicker” standby time and instead have to do standby from 3-6ish with long lines?Obviously, we are all just having to take what we get, but I was curious what your experience was! Thanks!


----------



## Juventus

I seems that by the time the parks open that most ILLs (well for 7DMR, FoP, MMRR) only med afternoon or later are offered, and this morning, ROTR was sold out before park opening.  I am going in March, offsite, a busier time, and am assuming these trends will continue.

So staying offsite I see less incentive to ropedrope as these ILL will be later in the day....maybe try to stack a couple LL before heading into the parks.

Any tips for ROTR though?


----------



## GBRforWDW

Juventus said:


> I seems that by the time the parks open that most ILLs (well for 7DMR, FoP, MMRR) only med afternoon or later are offered, and this morning, ROTR was sold out before park opening.  I am going in March, offsite, a busier time, and am assuming these trends will continue.
> 
> So staying offsite I see less incentive to ropedrope as these ILL will be later in the day....maybe try to stack a couple LL before heading into the parks.
> 
> Any tips for ROTR though?


For RotR, get in line later in the day.  A lot are waiting until the final minute to 30 minutes to get in line as that will be the shortest wait.

Of course, if you get everything else done that you want to do, get in line regardless and wait it out.


----------



## JStu

Luisfba said:


> I’m not sure I have my hands fully wrapped around generating the triple stack of letting the window expire, hitting the 2 hour window, and the tap in.
> 
> Does the sequence of the first two (window expire, 120 min window) matter?  For example, assuming an 11am eligibility due to the 2 hour rule, does it matter if my window expires at before 11 (10:55 for example) or after 11? (let’s say 11:10).
> 
> I guess trying to get a sense for what range of return windows around that 2 hour mark would work for this?  If it can be on either side I’m guessing it’s -15 minutes (well, less since Ned time to make LL selections) up to + whatever..?


yes.  from what i have read, its the "last action"

so if you are at MK with an 8AM opening.  say you get your first G+ from BTMR from 945-1045.

(1) if you tap in to BTMR at 945, you get to book another G+ selection.  HOWEVER,

(2) if you wait until 10:01, you can book another G+ selection because you are now 2 hours after park opening.  Then if you go tap into BTMR (say 1002) after you booked the G+ selection above, you have another "last action" (i.e., tapping in) that allows you to book another G+, thus you are stacked with 2 G+ selections going forward.

In example (1) you only get 1 "last action" - tapping in.  you never get to the 120 minute (2 hour) last action because you tapped in PRIOR to 2 hours.


----------



## DisneyKidds

Mango7100 said:


> Today we had a better day stacking with Genie for hopping to Hollywood studios. Went to Epcot for the morning and didn’t use Genie Plus. We booked at 7 am SDD for 525-625 and Rise for 505-605. At 11am booked Smugglers for 715-815. At 1 booked TSMM for 6-7. At 3 did Swirling Saucers for 740-840. At 5 we could have still pulled a TOT or Rock n Roll but DH had Done single rider for RnRC and we don’t do TOT


So you quadruple stacked, and could have quintuple stacked, to be in HS from 5pm to close.  Nice!  The question remains…..during peak periods (Thanksgiving, Christmas, Summer) will anything close to that be possible?  With return times that late on a comparatively slower time of year I wonder how many will be able to be stacked before availability is gone.  I’m not a fan of having to pay now, but if we can still manage to stack three for a HS hop next summer I’d find sufficient value in that.


----------



## maryj11

I’m not sure how to work this on our Epcot day. We have been trying to get a Topolinas breakfast forever. Finally got one for 11:00am. I was hoping for an earlier one. 
So if I book a LL at 7:00 will there be times available later in the day like 1:00-2:00? We wanted to ride Test Track, Soarin, and Spaceship Earth. Then at 11:00 we can book another LL for later? So when we arrive we will have 2 LL? We are also are going to book a paid LL for Remy. Do I get to pick a later time for that at 7:00am. So we would actually have 3 LL when we arrive after breakfast.
Am I understanding this correctly?


----------



## DisneyKidds

maryj11 said:


> I’m not sure how to work this on our Epcot day. We have been trying to get a Topolinas breakfast forever. Finally got one for 11:00am. I was hoping for an earlier one.
> So if I book a LL at 7:00 will there be times available later in the day like 1:00-2:00? We wanted to ride Test Track, Soarin, and Spaceship Earth. Then at 11:00 we can book another LL for later? So when we arrive we will have 2 LL? We are also are going to book a paid LL for Remy. Do I get to pick a later time for that at 7:00am. So we would actually have 3 LL when we arrive after breakfast.
> Am I understanding this correctly?


Remy ILL$ you can pick your time.  For Test Track, Soarin, and Spaceship Earth you book the next available offered time.  You can go back/refresh if the time offered doesn’t suit your needs.  Keep on that routine until a time that suits you comes up.  Based on recent experiences it seems like a good bet that sometime between 7am and 9am you could get an afternoon Test Track return.  Then at 11am (assuming Epcot opens at 9am) you should be able to get an afternoon Soarin return.  

While I haven’t used Genie yet, I think your plan is workable.


----------



## Mango7100

lynzi2004 said:


> Question, something like this is part of my plan, but I would prefer to stack them from about 4-7pm if possible. Did the 7:40-8:40 saucers save you much time? I was thinking if I could get a slightly earlier “stack” of times, that maybe lines would die down enough towards the end of the night that maybe they wouldn’t be needing. I don’t want to stack from 6-9pm during what could be a “quicker” standby time and instead have to do standby from 3-6ish with long lines?Obviously, we are all just having to take what we get, but I was curious what your experience was! Thanks!


740 Saucers saved about 10-15 minutes, so not a lot but still something. The 505 ROTC saved about 90 minutes. The 525 SDD saved about 60 minutes. The 600 TSMM saved about 30-35. The 715 Smugglers saved about 25-30. We also did MMRR standby at the end of the night (it broke down so it ended up taking 45 minutes).


----------



## Mango7100

DisneyKidds said:


> So you quadruple stacked, and could have quintuple stacked, to be in HS from 5pm to close.  Nice!  The question remains…..during peak periods (Thanksgiving, Christmas, Summer) will anything close to that be possible?  With return times that late on a comparatively slower time of year I wonder how many will be able to be stacked before availability is gone.  I’m not a fan of having to pay now, but if we can still manage to stack three for a HS hop next summer I’d find sufficient value in that.


I agree that I’m not sure this will be possible for peak times. There is a benefit to doing the afternoon stack at HS. We went in a morning and we were only able to do SDD and TSMM as LL pulls. times pushed out into the evening by about 12. If we were going to stay at HS all day that would have been fine, but we wanted to go to Epcot by early evening so ended up booking Test Track and Soarin before we got to Epcot


----------



## fireman1

I'm debating on purchasing genie +. I almost hit confirm payment a few minutes ago, but thought I'd get thoughts from here first. It's an extra 95 for two of us.  Worth it?


----------



## DisneyKidds

fireman1 said:


> I'm debating on purchasing genie +. I almost hit confirm payment a few minutes ago, but thought I'd get thoughts from here first. It's an extra 95 for two of us.  Worth it?


That’s a difficult question to answer, especially without know both your plans AND your tolerance for lines!  Two of you for three days each it looks like?  When are you going, what parks, will you hop, will you have early entry or evening Extra Magic Hours?


----------



## maryj11

DisneyKidds said:


> Remy ILL$ you can pick your time.  For Test Track, Soarin, and Spaceship Earth you book the next available offered time.  You can go back/refresh if the time offered doesn’t suit your needs.  Keep on that routine until a time that suits you comes up.  Based on recent experiences it seems like a good bet that sometime between 7am and 9am you could get an afternoon Test Track return.  Then at 11am (assuming Epcot opens at 9am) you should be able to get an afternoon Soarin return.
> 
> While I haven’t used Genie yet, I think your plan is workable.


Ok. By what I have seen on the genie test track runs out first. So that will be my first LL booked.


----------



## ckelly14

Not heading to WDW until April so maybe things will change by then but:

I have hoppers and plan to hop to Epcot most evenings for drinks/dinner.  Only attraction I am really interested in is Remy.  Can I make ILL or get a VQ for Remy at 7AM on that day or do I have to wait until I'm in the park after 2?


----------



## GBRforWDW

ckelly14 said:


> Not heading to WDW until April so maybe things will change by then but:
> 
> I have hoppers and plan to hop to Epcot most evenings for drinks/dinner.  Only attraction I am really interested in is Remy.  Can I make ILL or get a VQ for Remy at 7AM on that day or do I have to wait until I'm in the park after 2?


Virtual Queue you need a reservation for Epcot to enter at 7, so yes, you would need to wait until you enter to try, but they'll typically be gone by 2pm. 

ILL$ - if you're staying onsite, you can get one at 7am.  Otherwise, you can get one when the park opens


----------



## swats

Hi, currently here and stacking G+ for the afternoon at HS.  Currently have the following:

RNRC - 4-5P
ROR ILL - 5:35 - 6:35p
SDD - 5:45 - 6:45p
MFSR - 6:05 - 7:05

Planning on getting another G+ for TSMM but wanted to ask what would be the recommended order for doing these after RNRC?  I wasn't sure how long each LL ride would take (line+ride) and I don't want to miss any obviously.  Thx!!


----------



## GBRforWDW

swats said:


> Hi, currently here and stacking G+ for the afternoon at HS.  Currently have the following:
> 
> RNRC - 4-5P
> ROR ILL - 5:35 - 6:35p
> SDD - 5:45 - 6:45p
> MFSR - 6:05 - 7:05
> 
> Planning on getting another G+ for TSMM but wanted to ask what would be the recommended order for doing these after RNRC?  I wasn't sure how long each LL ride would take (line+ride) and I don't want to miss any obviously.  Thx!!


If you can get tsmm around 5/5:30, that'd probably be best as you could hit both TSL rides first and not have to go back and forth.  

So you would go rnrc, tsmm, SDD, RotR, mfsr


----------



## swats

GBRforWDW said:


> If you can get tsmm around 5/5:30, that'd probably be best as you could hit both TSL rides first and not have to go back and forth.
> 
> So you would go rnrc, tsmm, SDD, RotR, mfsr



Excellent, thanks!  There is still good availability for TSMM so i’ll shoot for 5/5:30


----------



## mab2012

Pookie9922 said:


> Does cancelling a LL restart your clock? I see mention of booking anything to keep your stack and then modifying it later, but I would think cancelling and rebooking something else/another time would mess things up. Is there a certain order you have to do things in?



Cancelling an LL _clears_ your eligibility clock, making you eligible to rebook immediately.  But when you do rebook, _that_ will reset your eligibility timer to 2h (or the expiry time of the LL you just booked, whatever is sooner.)

So say it's 10:45, you're holding an LL for 2 pm, and will be eligible to book a second LL at 11:00.  You can wait until 11, book a second LL, _then_ cancel the 2 pm and immediately replace it with another, leaving you with two booked.  OR you can cancel and replace the 2 pm right away, but your eligibility timer to book a second will now be reset to 12:45, unless you book an earlier LL and either tap into it, cancel it, or allow it to expire.

In other words, if the primary goal is to start a second "stack", you should wait.

ETA: When people say "book anything to keep your stack", they mean that if you are currently eligible to book, you might as well do it, even if you might modify it later.  Eligibility is a binary concept - you either are, or you're not.  So yes, if, at 11 am, I book an LL, and then an hour later I change my mind and cancel/rebook, I'll push my eligibility timer out.  But I'm not any worse off by doing that than if I just waited until noon to book that new LL in the first place.  And if I *don't* book, and something else happens in the meantime that would make me eligible to book (eg. I tap into an existing LL, or another two hours pass), then that 11 am opportunity to book a second LL is, in effect, permanently lost.  I can still book another LL anytime, but I only have one, when I could have had two.  HTH.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Nice, I love Toy story Land.  Fun to look around and see everything and the rides are great too.  But you'll really enjoy being able to explore Galaxy's Edge without rushing to get back to TSL.


----------



## lynzi2004

Has anyone skipped reserving SDD and instead just booked first available at say RnRC or TOT and kept doing that?
So Rope drop SDD dash during early entry and then keep rolling the one Genie+ reservation (kind of like it was intended to be?) I’m wondering if we did this if there were be immediate return times available throughout the morning as people rush to book up SDD and MFSR and essentially “lock” themselves out of another LL until 11am?


----------



## deltadisney

If both my wife and I have MDE accounts, would it be possible for her to book our party for a $ILL , and I simultaneously book our first Genie + ride?


----------



## Welsh_Dragon

deltadisney said:


> If both my wife and I have MDE accounts, would it be possible for her to book our party for a $ILL , and I simultaneously book our first Genie + ride?


Yes.


----------



## GBRforWDW

lynzi2004 said:


> Has anyone skipped reserving SDD and instead just booked first available at say RnRC or TOT and kept doing that?
> So Rope drop SDD dash during early entry and then keep rolling the one Genie+ reservation (kind of like it was intended to be?) I’m wondering if we did this if there were be immediate return times available throughout the morning as people rush to book up SDD and MFSR and essentially “lock” themselves out of another LL until 11am?


I think this will be my strategy on our Christmas trip, though probably get TSMM and we'll skip SDD altogether.  But will depend on how my 7yo is feeling about it, she goes back and forth on wanting to ride it again.  She was a bit scared the first time she rode in January.  I'm now intrigued by getting the pass for 2 hours after park opening to get the pass before checking in right at the 2 hour mark and another after checking in to the ride.


----------



## lynzi2004

GBRforWDW said:


> I think this will be my strategy on our Christmas trip, though probably get TSMM and we'll skip SDD altogether.  But will depend on how my 7yo is feeling about it, she goes back and forth on wanting to ride it again.  She was a bit scared the first time she rode in January.  I'm now intrigued by getting the pass for 2 hours after park opening to get the pass before checking in right at the 2 hour mark and another after checking in to the ride.



that’s a good idea too! I just hate to do SDD and lock myself out for 2 hours when they are so limited to begin With. Once they got reserved later than I wanted to go, I could hop somewhere with more availability.


----------



## Pookie9922

lynzi2004 said:


> that’s a good idea too! I just hate to do SDD and lock myself out for 2 hours when they are so limited to begin With. Once they got reserved later than I wanted to go, I could hop somewhere with more availability.


For a park hopper, using them early makes more sense. But as a non-park hopper, my plan is to reserve my LL selections for when the lines are actually long later in the day. And that also allows us to possibly ride a favorite ride more than once, once SB in the morning and once LL later in the day. I just checked (~3:00) and DHS has LL availability on everything except MSFR and SDD. So my G+ strategy will be like it was for FP+ of scheduling them shortly after 11 - early enough to be able to refresh for more, but not so early that they didn't really save you much time. I feel like that strategy is even more important now that you can only get a LL once per ride. I can picture using them all early and having nothing but long lines to choose from in the evenings.


----------



## MikeandReneePlus5

wings91 said:


> Is this a better deal than fp?



Seems to like the exact same thing as paper FP.  Except you don't have to run around the park to the different machines every 2 hours.


----------



## fireman1

In two weeks. The 4th through the 11th.  
I purchased it anyway.


----------



## Missmaureen78

lynzi2004 said:


> Has anyone skipped reserving SDD and instead just booked first available at say RnRC or TOT and kept doing that?
> So Rope drop SDD dash during early entry and then keep rolling the one Genie+ reservation (kind of like it was intended to be?) I’m wondering if we did this if there were be immediate return times available throughout the morning as people rush to book up SDD and MFSR and essentially “lock” themselves out of another LL until 11am?



This is similar to what I've been noodling.  We want to do to GE in the evening and don't really care about SDD.  So I've been thinking about rope dropping RnRC, trying for the earliest possible LL for ToT, then hope to get a couple more rolling LLs in while keeping an eye on return times for MFSR.  Once that starts pushing out around 5 (or even a bit later), book that and then spend the cool down period having lunch and a couple of beers.  Mop up anything left with a combo of LL and standby and then head to GE for the evening with our MSFR LL, an ILL for ROTR and (hopefully!) an ADR for Oga's.

I *think* this will work, based on the return times on Thrill Data.  But I'll be keeping a close eye on how fast MFSR fills up next week.


----------



## emily nicole

This thread is huge so I apologize if this is a duplicate question.

I know off-site can’t book ILL$ until park opening. How has this experience been for off-siters? Are they sold out by then or only very late times? TY!!


----------



## elgerber

Missmaureen78 said:


> This is similar to what I've been noodling.  We want to do to GE in the evening and don't really care about SDD.  So I've been thinking about rope dropping RnRC, trying for the earliest possible LL for ToT, then hope to get a couple more rolling LLs in while keeping an eye on return times for MFSR.  Once that starts pushing out around 5 (or even a bit later), book that and then spend the cool down period having lunch and a couple of beers.  Mop up anything left with a combo of LL and standby and then head to GE for the evening with our MSFR LL, an ILL for ROTR and (hopefully!) an ADR for Oga's.
> 
> I *think* this will work, based on the return times on Thrill Data.  But I'll be keeping a close eye on how fast MFSR fills up next week.


Are you on-site? If you do early entry and rope drop RnR you can likely go straight to ToT without needing a LL


----------



## Missmaureen78

elgerber said:


> Are you on-site? If you do early entry and rope drop RnR you can likely go straight to ToT without needing a LL



Yes, we will be onsite and that was my initial plan.  My concern is that we will (intentionally) not be in the front of the pack and we're lazy and don't like walking fast on vacation.  So I was thinking by the time we got to RnR and rode it, ToT could have a semi-long line.  I think my issue is that I'm obsessing over the perfect strategy to skip ALL the lines instead of just accepting that we'll be in WDW at a busy time and will definitely have to wait in some lines some times.


----------



## GBRforWDW

emily nicole said:


> This thread is huge so I apologize if this is a duplicate question.
> 
> I know off-site can’t book ILL$ until park opening. How has this experience been for off-siters? Are they sold out by then or only very late times? TY!!


So just looking at the tip page in genie now at 7:50pm and for the 3 parks open, each has 1 ILL$ still available.  From watching throughout the day, it seems only Rise of the Resistance is the only one selling out prior to park open, I think seven dwarfs mine train lasts quite a while into the day as well as Remy's.  I'm can't recall how long Flight of Passage lasts, but Everest is usually available throughout the day as well.


----------



## soniam

emily nicole said:


> This thread is huge so I apologize if this is a duplicate question.
> 
> I know off-site can’t book ILL$ until park opening. How has this experience been for off-siters? Are they sold out by then or only very late times? TY!!





GBRforWDW said:


> So just looking at the tip page in genie now at 7:50pm and for the 3 parks open, each has 1 ILL$ still available.  From watching throughout the day, it seems only Rise of the Resistance is the only one selling out prior to park open, I think seven dwarfs mine train lasts quite a while into the day as well as Remy's.  I'm can't recall how long Flight of Passage lasts, but Everest is usually available throughout the day as well.



I think there was one day when Remy sold out between 10 & 11am. I saw it sometime in the last week. Other than Rise, it's the only one that comes close to selling out before park opening, sometimes. Rise always sells out quickly, usually in the first half hour or hour.


----------



## emily nicole

Thank you both so much for responding!


----------



## Boardwalk III

boop0524 said:


> This was me! Lol. Genie was a total bust for us today in HS. After everything booked up on LL at 3 then standby became super long the rest of the day everywhere. Our only luck came at the last hour when we got to ride ROTR and MFSR standby. (An hour or so for Rise and 20 minutes MFSR).
> 
> But honestly, it was incredibly frustrating and there’s no way really to predict it and I’m not sure we could have prevented it. Our first LL was as early as we could get for SDD (1 pm) and then it was closed/filled for the day at 7 am. We made our next LL at 11 and that wasn’t until later. Then it snowballed from there….
> I don’t personally see how this system can work for large crowds. It just doesn’t work.



We head home tomorrow after being here for 11 days. Most of our party are not early risers so I tried the double stack on 5 days (getting up at 7am and booking 1st attractions starting in the 10:30-11:30 AM timeframe). Worked just OK on one or two slightly slower days at MK and DHS, but the other 2 were just too crowded and we could only get a couple of decent attractions in, before return times were well into the evening when we had conflicting dinner plans.  On the busy days we only got 3-4 attractions done through Genie+. So far I’m not a fan


----------



## wilkydelts

Does G+ carry over into the Extended Evening Hours at MK or Epcot or do the times just end at the normal close hours?


----------



## coolbrook

wilkydelts said:


> Does G+ carry over into the Extended Evening Hours at MK or Epcot or do the times just end at the normal close hours?


No, just the regular park hours.  We were at MK during extended hours last week.  Waits were very low.


----------



## evilqueenmindy

I used Genie+ In November 7th, it was Sunday of a marathon weekend, so MK wasnt packed to the gills, but there was definitely a decent crowd.
we were doing a half day, visiting MK after having lunch at the Polynesian, it was 3 adults and a 2-year old, so our ride priorities were just fantasyland, and I got genie+ as practice for future trips.
we rode-
peter pan
small world (Winnie the Pooh was selected but the attraction went down)
dumbo
little mermaid
winnie the pooh
barnstormer

we also went on the carousel, but there is no LL for that.

I feel like it DID save us time, particularly on Peter Pan, where the posted wait was 100 minutes, and we waited about 15.  Most of the other rides had posted waits of 30-45 minutes, and we waited maybe 5 minutes.
I was a pretty big FP+ user, and this system took some getting used to.  Once I understood it, it was mostly fine, but I found it pretty glitchy, the tip board and “my day” boards sometimes were blank, other times didn’t like to load, I ended up closing the app and reopening it quite a bit.
also, you’ll be on your phone A LOT.  I found myself on the app much more than I ever was with FP+
also, I’m sure others have reported this, but the grace period return time was definitely in effect on our day, we arrived late to our first 2 attractions (and had to wait almost 5 minutes to get to the tapstile at Peter Pan) and didn’t even have to plead our case, the touch points were just green.

what I liked- the ability to book LLs very close to the same time, the hour rule on FP+ was pretty annoying.  It is nice to have LL availability into the afternoon.  It was fairly crowded, and we were still able to get new LL’s, we could have had more rides if we were so inclined.

what I didn’t like- i get why you can’t pick your time, but having to sit there at 7am waiting for a time that works (1:30 or later) was pretty tedious, it would be nice to be able to just see afternoon if you wanted (I suspect this will never happen because its how they keep times open).  Its probably much more fun if you are planning a full day.  I also found the app kinda glitchy, but that’s Disney IT for you ( I find myself much less forgiving of Disney's IT when I am paying for it) I also think regular genie is so useless it basically bullies you into paying for the + but that’s a post for another day.


----------



## SuperJ

I've tried to read through the thread as much as I can, but I haven't found an answer to this.  How does it work with ADRs?  I see that you can't choose the times you are offered for an ILL or LL reservation.  Does the system "know" if you have an ADR and so it won't offer you times during your ADR? Or does it just give a time and, if it doesn't work for you because of your ADR, you're stuck taking something else that does work or possibly just missing out entirely?

If anyone wants to help weigh in on our planning/strategy, we are going to MK, HS, and Epcot during Christmas week. Planning on purchasing Genie+ for MK and HS only.  HS on Christmas day.  At MK, we have a 3pm ADR.  At HS, we have an 11:35am ADR.  We are staying onsite.  We also are bringing dogs (whole story) so, I will be leaving parks twice each day, probably around noon and around 5, to go back to the hotel to walk the dogs, which further hurts our LL time abilities (though I am aware I will just need to miss some rides, but I'm trying to push for dog walking times to be character meet times for the little one. ha.).

For HS, which seems to be the trickiest park, we are hoping, if within our budget, to purchase ILL for ROTR and trying to get our first LL for SDD (one of us will try on the app for ROTR and the other will be trying for SDD right at 7am). I am aware from the thread that may not be possible so, if that fails, plan is to rope drop SDD and TSMM at early entry and then either get in line for or purchase MMRR.  Assuming LL for SDD fails and we have to go with plan B, we will probably take a LL ToT or MFSR first, then try for the other.  We have a child too small for RnR so we will probably go single rider or try for a late LL, but assuming those will be long gone.

At MK, we are not planning on making any ILL purchases. We are planning on making a LL reservation at 7am (maybe PP if we can get it. if not, we're still debating what to prioritize) and then hoping to rope drop SDMT at early entry (along with everyone else) and then head to SM (or save it until the end of the night). After that, we'd just be doing LL on what we can find.

Finally, Epcot is our last park day and we're planning on trying to get Rat virtual queue at 7am, then early entry Frozen. No Genie+ or ILL purchases if we can help it. After that, maybe test track, but likely taking it easy enjoying food from the holiday kiosks and doing the Olaf scavenger hunt.


----------



## Selket

My 2 young adult children are traveling with me and I always did their fast passes.  They've never used the app and do not have Disney accounts.   For them to use Genie+ and make their own selections:

do they need to make accounts?
Can they pay for Genie+ or ILL$ by putting a credit card on the account or is it charged to our onsite room?
Will I still be able to see their account and get passes for them - say if I wake up early?
I could in theory buy Genie+ just for one of them for the day or ILL$ and not the rest of us right?
We usually split up as the day goes on so I'm guessing they will end up in another park than me and will want to be able to make their own selection.  Or probably they'd rather me spend all that time on the phone doing it for them - haha!


----------



## jade1

DisneyKidds said:


> So you quadruple stacked



Probably coming to WDW soon.


----------



## mixtli

On November 12, I booked 7DMT ILL$ for 4 for a return time of 11h15-12h15. We were supposed to have Covid tests( required 72 hours before our flight back to Canada) at 7H30 but got delayed until 11h45. I was afraid of losing the ILL and it in fact disappeared from the app  around 12h30. We arrived at 7DMT around 13h30 and explained the situation to the Cast Member who let us through without any problem after scanning our magic bands. It seems that the reservation was still showing on his screen.


----------



## Disturbia

Sjm9911 said:


> The problem is if MMRR goes down. Then the times are a mess. I was told all the magnetic rides, MMRR, Remmy  and rise have problems everyday. When I went, we disnt do rise, but the other two were broken down everytime we were there, and it messes up any and all planning. I would do those early, that way if it does break down ot will not be at 730 at night for a return time.


MMRR took 3 times to book at 7:10 am (booked ROTR and SDD first, two people were booking from separate devices).  I kept getting an error message.  We had a 10-11 am LL booking, but the ride went down and didn’t come back up until after noon.  In addition to the anytime pass for our group, we were issued an MMRR pass for 2.  With our infant, 3 people could ride.


----------



## GBRforWDW

mixtli said:


> On November 12, I booked 7DMT ILL$ for 4 for a return time of 11h15-12h15. We were supposed to have Covid tests( required 72 hours before our flight back to Canada) at 7H30 but got delayed until 11h45. I was afraid of losing the ILL and it in fact disappeared from the app  around 12h30. We arrived at 7DMT around 13h30 and explained the situation to the Cast Member who let us through without any problem after scanning our magic bands. It seems that the reservation was still showing on his screen.


Glad you were able to still get on mine train.  Sounds like a rough morning prior to heading to the park though.  Yikes.


----------



## Disturbia

Selket said:


> My 2 young adult children are traveling with me and I always did their fast passes.  They've never used the app and do not have Disney accounts.   For them to use Genie+ and make their own selections:
> 
> do they need to make accounts?
> Can they pay for Genie+ or ILL$ by putting a credit card on the account or is it charged to our onsite room?
> Will I still be able to see their account and get passes for them - say if I wake up early?
> I could in theory buy Genie+ just for one of them for the day or ILL$ and not the rest of us right?
> We usually split up as the day goes on so I'm guessing they will end up in another park than me and will want to be able to make their own selection.  Or probably they'd rather me spend all that time on the phone doing it for them - haha!


It’s pretty stressful to keep looking at the phone and having to juggle other things that only parents have to.  I would seriously delegate esp. if they’re adults and splitting up; you will run out of battery literally and figuratively just trying to communicate the plans (I’m the one taking and sending screenshots and answering the same damn question for the 100th time). 

I’m not 100% on the logistics but I’m sure they can have their own accounts and buy on their own and still be linked on your friends and family list.

This discussion might be relevant:
https://www.disboards.com/threads/friends-family-without-own-mde.3843776/


----------



## LuckyMamaInDE

Selket said:


> My 2 young adult children are traveling with me and I always did their fast passes.  They've never used the app and do not have Disney accounts.   For them to use Genie+ and make their own selections:
> 
> do they need to make accounts?
> Can they pay for Genie+ or ILL$ by putting a credit card on the account or is it charged to our onsite room?
> Will I still be able to see their account and get passes for them - say if I wake up early?
> I could in theory buy Genie+ just for one of them for the day or ILL$ and not the rest of us right?
> We usually split up as the day goes on so I'm guessing they will end up in another park than me and will want to be able to make their own selection.  Or probably they'd rather me spend all that time on the phone doing it for them - haha!


My adult "kids" (21, 26) will be using my MDE log-in if they want to make their own G+ (I'll be paying for the 4 of us). They would use my account back in the FP+ era. It just seemed easier to have them use my account when they started making their own selections as wanted at ages 15 and 20. (Dh also uses my account.)

If/when they begin traveling on their own, they'll get their separate MDE accounts and we'll move forward that way, linking them as Friends & Family.


----------



## coolbrook

SuperJ said:


> I've tried to read through the thread as much as I can, but I haven't found an answer to this.  How does it work with ADRs?  I see that you can't choose the times you are offered for an ILL or LL reservation.  Does the system "know" if you have an ADR and so it won't offer you times during your ADR? Or does it just give a time and, if it doesn't work for you because of your ADR, you're stuck taking something else that does work or possibly just missing out entirely?
> 
> If anyone wants to help weigh in on our planning/strategy, we are going to MK, HS, and Epcot during Christmas week. Planning on purchasing Genie+ for MK and HS only.  HS on Christmas day.  At MK, we have a 3pm ADR.  At HS, we have an 11:35am ADR.  We are staying onsite.  We also are bringing dogs (whole story) so, I will be leaving parks twice each day, probably around noon and around 5, to go back to the hotel to walk the dogs, which further hurts our LL time abilities (though I am aware I will just need to miss some rides, but I'm trying to push for dog walking times to be character meet times for the little one. ha.).
> 
> For HS, which seems to be the trickiest park, we are hoping, if within our budget, to purchase ILL for ROTR and trying to get our first LL for SDD (one of us will try on the app for ROTR and the other will be trying for SDD right at 7am). I am aware from the thread that may not be possible so, if that fails, plan is to rope drop SDD and TSMM at early entry and then either get in line for or purchase MMRR.  Assuming LL for SDD fails and we have to go with plan B, we will probably take a LL ToT or MFSR first, then try for the other.  We have a child too small for RnR so we will probably go single rider or try for a late LL, but assuming those will be long gone.
> 
> At MK, we are not planning on making any ILL purchases. We are planning on making a LL reservation at 7am (maybe PP if we can get it. if not, we're still debating what to prioritize) and then hoping to rope drop SDMT at early entry (along with everyone else) and then head to SM (or save it until the end of the night). After that, we'd just be doing LL on what we can find.
> 
> Finally, Epcot is our last park day and we're planning on trying to get Rat virtual queue at 7am, then early entry Frozen. No Genie+ or ILL purchases if we can help it. After that, maybe test track, but likely taking it easy enjoying food from the holiday kiosks and doing the Olaf scavenger hunt.


Sounds like a solid plan.


----------



## Luisfba

When I was tracking the SDD LL times when G+ first launched they were selling out but not as quickly as now.  I figured it would work out great for my arrival day where I could log in and see return time and grab something when they were showing at or after 6pm.

But now they are fully selling out within 1 minute.  Will be very tough to target a specific time range I think.  I may need to jump in, maybe wait about 15-20 seconds after 7.. and cross my fingers.

Question - the time shown when you fist select to go get the LL is not going to be the time I get right?  Meaning, I shouldn’t just refresh u til I see 6.. then start the process.

also, is it safe to assume that even if I click to get the LL it may be gone by the time I confirm payment?  Any idea at what point in the selection process it’s locked in that I have a LL?


----------



## Figment1990

Luisfba said:


> When I was tracking the SDD LL times when G+ first launched they were selling out but not as quickly as now.  I figured it would work out great for my arrival day where I could log in and see return time and grab something when they were showing at or after 6pm.
> 
> But now they are fully selling out within 1 minute.  Will be very tough to target a specific time range I think.  I may need to jump in, maybe wait about 15-20 seconds after 7.. and cross my fingers.
> 
> Question - the time shown when you fist select to go get the LL is not going to be the time I get right?  Meaning, I shouldn’t just refresh u til I see 6.. then start the process.
> 
> also, is it safe to assume that even if I click to get the LL it may be gone by the time I confirm payment?  Any idea at what point in the selection process it’s locked in that I have a LL?


This is a great question and one I hadn’t thought of. I too need slinky in the evening. But with how it “sells out” in seconds I suppose I should click as soon as I can and hope it bumps out while I’m booking? Or Ike you said, wait like 5-10 seconds?

my guess is that for ILL$ they have to ”hold” the time you selected or at least give you a confirmation before you pay. Because you cant cancel.

if someone as screenshots or a link to a video showing booking screens I would appreciate it. 

and when booking these I know it’s useful to have your selections set up to have them appear at the top. But to confirm, we do this from the tip board right? Or is it in “my day”?  Any other tips? Booking my first g+ tomorrow….


----------



## g-dad66

Figment1990 said:


> and when booking these I know it’s useful to have your selections set up to have them appear at the top. But to confirm, we do this from the tip board right? Or is it in “my day”?  Any other tips? Booking my first g+ tomorrow….



It's in My Day.  

Click on Get Started with Disney Genie. When you get to My Top Picks, select only the one attraction that you want to book at 7am tomorrow.  It will then stay at the top of the Tip Board.

After booking, deselect it and then select the one you will be going for next, etc.

You will have to re-do this process for each day that you plan to do a 7am booking.


----------



## Mango7100

Here is our Genie experience fromWednesday 11/17…
7am—booked Safari for 830-930 at AK
9 am—tapped into Safari and booked Jungle Cruise for 215-315
Made a mistake. 945 realized we need a later Jungle Cruise time due to lunch plans so cancelled and rebooked for 355-455. That reset my 120 minute rule to being able to book at 1145 now.
1145–booked PP for 435-535
230–booked HM for 515-615
Tapped into Jungle Cruise at 355–posted wait was 120 and we waited 30 min. Could not book again until 2nd tap point. Booked Small World for 455-555 after 2nd tap.
Booked Buzz for 540-640 after tapping into PP. PP posted was 35 and waited 10
Booked Pirates for 715-815 after tapping into HM, HM posted was 40 and waited 10
Booked Carpets at 710-810 after tapping into Buzz. Buzz posted was 35 and waited 10
Could have booked Big Thunder for 830 after tapping into Pirates but decided not to. Pirates posted was 25 and waited 5.
Carpets was a walk on so it didint help but we rode it 3 times without getting off during the fireworks.

A lot more rides have 2nd tap points now..more than I remember before. You can’t book until the 2nd tap. Also I found I had to delay some of my stacking pre entry to find a time that worked. I booked HM 45 minutes later than when I could start because all the times for everything we wanted were too early. So I had to keep refreshing and waiting until we found times that worked and so were weren’t running from one side of the park to another the whole time. Really wish you could select a time instead of taking what is given.

So all in all we used 7 LL at MK from 4-830 and 1 LL at AK in the morning.


----------



## kmsimone

Thanks to everyone posting their experiences.


----------



## PennyW

On arrival day, if we plan to get to a park by 1pm, would it be better for that park to be HS or AK as far as utilizing Genie+ and ILL?  This will be on a '4' TP crowd calendar day.

HS musts are RoTR, MMRR, Slinky, ToT, RnRC, TSMM.

AK musts are FOP, Safari, Everest, Na'vi. 

Thanks for any suggestions!


----------



## wisblue

g-dad66 said:


> It's in My Day.
> 
> Click on Get Started with Disney Genie. When you get to My Top Picks, select only the one attraction that you want to book at 7am tomorrow.  It will then stay at the top of the Tip Board.
> 
> After booking, deselect it and then select the one you will be going for next, etc.
> 
> You will have to re-do this process for each day that you plan to do a 7am booking.



You can do it on the Tip Board too by clicking on “edit selections”.


----------



## g-dad66

wisblue said:


> You can do it on the Tip Board too by clicking on “edit selections”.



Good tip. That's even easier.


----------



## wisblue

NM


----------



## StarrySkye21

Just left today.  We did 1 park per day and it was stupid crowded.  We are primarily ride-people.  Quick service restaurants and maybe 1-2 shows.  Open to close.  Our goal is to ride as many rides as we can.  I went into our trip quite nervous over genie+ and how the crowds would affect it.  Spoiler: I now LOVE genie+.  We had an amazing, magical time even though it was sooo crowded.    We purchased genie+ on 2 of the 4 days and did not buy any ILL$.  Here’s what we did:

Day 1 Epcot: no Genie+.  We scored a boarding group for Remy at 7 am.  Longest actual line we waited in was Frozen at about 50 minutes.  We were able to ride every single  ride and even Test Track twice.  A couple shows. Even left early because we were tired and had done everything we wanted to.  No regrets not getting Genie+for Epcot even with the crowds.

Day 2 Animal Kingdom: no Genie+.  Longest wait was Flight of Passage of probably 45 minutes. We did every ride except Navi River (we didn’t think it was worth the hour wait) and were able to catch
a couple shows. Rode Dinosaur 4 times (daughters favorite) and Everest 4 times (my favorite). We saw all the animal exhibits and attractions. Again, no regrets on not getting genie+.  It was such a chill day, full of rides even though people were everywhere.

Day 3 Magic Kingdom: genie+ day. Rope dropped Seven Dwarves and selected Peter Pan as our first lightning lane with a return time around 11.  Until 11 we rode Space mountain and the rides with the smallest waits (like Little Mermaid). At 11, before tapping into Peter Pan we selected our second lightning lane.  From there we selectively double stacked lightning lanes all day. Refreshing the tip board worked every time giving us our ideal time within a minute or two of refreshing.  We rode every single ride minus Dumbo (kids say babyish) and Splash (down all day). Lines were long on everything but we flew by in the lightning lanes. Did Space Mountain on standby twice. Thunder mountain 3 times. We ran out of things to do by 5 or 6 and debated going back to the hotel but for the first time ever decided to camp out in front of the castle to have a prime spot for Enchantment. Worth it. Genie+ was definitely worth it.

Day 4 Hollywood Studios: genie+ day. Crazy crowded. Forgot to book our first lightning lane at 7 and by 7:08 Slinky was completely gone.  I started constant refreshing and a 10:30 slot popped up within a minute or two.  Snagged it, so perfect.  We Rope dropped Rise and were probably among the first 200 people in line. It was down for a bit but we managed to get on and off by 9:10.  To kill time until we could tap into Slinky and start our double stack, we did Millenium Falcon and Star tours on standby.  Then it was time for Slinky and to selectively double stack lightning lanes for the rest of the day. I refreshed the tip board over and over and scored great return times all day. Lines were insane (over 100 minutes for most every ride, rise 200 minutes) so we felt privileged to use the fast lane for everything but Mickey and minnies railroad which ended up about an hour wait. We rode every single attraction with Millenium Falcon and Star tours twice. We did 2 shows. And got back in line for Rise just before they closed. Posted wait of 195 minutes ended up to be 45. Genie+ Well worth it. We heard several people complain that they only managed to ride 2-3 rides all day while we rode 13. We felt so spoiled.

We are SO GRATEFUL for the advice and experience from these forums that allowed us a vacation better than we imagined.  I hope our experiences help others!


----------



## princesswahooey

StarrySkye21 said:


> Just left today.  We did 1 park per day and it was stupid crowded.  We are primarily ride-people.  Quick service restaurants and maybe 1-2 shows.  Open to close.  Our goal is to ride as many rides as we can.  I went into our trip quite nervous over genie+ and how the crowds would affect it.  Spoiler: I now LOVE genie+.  We had an amazing, magical time even though it was sooo crowded.    We purchased genie+ on 2 of the 4 days and did not buy any ILL$.  Here’s what we did:
> 
> Day 1 Epcot: no Genie+.  We scored a boarding group for Remy at 7 am.  Longest actual line we waited in was Frozen at about 50 minutes.  We were able to ride every single  ride and even Test Track twice.  A couple shows. Even left early because we were tired and had done everything we wanted to.  No regrets not getting Genie+for Epcot even with the crowds.
> 
> Day 2 Animal Kingdom: no Genie+.  Longest wait was Flight of Passage of probably 45 minutes. We did every ride except Navi River (we didn’t think it was worth the hour wait) and were able to catch
> a couple shows. Rode Dinosaur 4 times (daughters favorite) and Everest 4 times (my favorite). We saw all the animal exhibits and attractions. Again, no regrets on not getting genie+.  It was such a chill day, full of rides even though people were everywhere.
> 
> Day 3 Magic Kingdom: genie+ day. Rope dropped Seven Dwarves and selected Peter Pan as our first lightning lane with a return time around 11.  Until 11 we rode Space mountain and the rides with the smallest waits (like Little Mermaid). At 11, before tapping into Peter Pan we selected our second lightning lane.  From there we selectively double stacked lightning lanes all day. Refreshing the tip board worked every time giving us our ideal time within a minute or two of refreshing.  We rode every single ride minus Dumbo (kids say babyish) and Splash (down all day). Lines were long on everything but we flew by in the lightning lanes. Did Space Mountain on standby twice. Thunder mountain 3 times. We ran out of things to do by 5 or 6 and debated going back to the hotel but for the first time ever decided to camp out in front of the castle to have a prime spot for Enchantment. Worth it. Genie+ was definitely worth it.
> 
> Day 4 Hollywood Studios: genie+ day. Crazy crowded. Forgot to book our first lightning lane at 7 and by 7:08 Slinky was completely gone.  I started constant refreshing and a 10:30 slot popped up within a minute or two.  Snagged it, so perfect.  We Rope dropped Rise and were probably among the first 200 people in line. It was down for a bit but we managed to get on and off by 9:10. We then selectively double stacked lightning lanes for the rest of the day. I refreshed the tip board over and over and scored great return times all day. Lines were insane (over 100 minutes for most every ride, rise 200 minutes) so we felt privileged to use the fast lane for everything but Mickey and minnies railroad which ended up about an hour wait. We rode every single attraction with Millenium Falcon and Star tours twice. We did 2 shows. And got back in line for Rise just before they closed. Posted wait of 195 minutes ended up to be 45. Genie+ Well worth it. We heard several people complain that they only managed to ride 2-3 rides all day while we rode 13. We felt so spoiled.
> 
> We are SO GRATEFUL for the advice and experience from these forums that allowed us a vacation better than we imagined.  I hope our experiences help others!


Thanks for the detailed report. This gives me hope for our Christmas week trip. I'm also nervous about Genie+ but sounds like as long as you're prepared, it can work to your advantage!


----------



## Luisfba

StarrySkye21 said:


> Just left today.  We did 1 park per day and it was stupid crowded.  We are primarily ride-people.  Quick service restaurants and maybe 1-2 shows.  Open to close.  Our goal is to ride as many rides as we can.  I went into our trip quite nervous over genie+ and how the crowds would affect it.  Spoiler: I now LOVE genie+.  We had an amazing, magical time even though it was sooo crowded.    We purchased genie+ on 2 of the 4 days and did not buy any ILL$.  Here’s what we did:
> 
> Day 1 Epcot: no Genie+.  We scored a boarding group for Remy at 7 am.  Longest actual line we waited in was Frozen at about 50 minutes.  We were able to ride every single  ride and even Test Track twice.  A couple shows. Even left early because we were tired and had done everything we wanted to.  No regrets not getting Genie+for Epcot even with the crowds.
> 
> Day 2 Animal Kingdom: no Genie+.  Longest wait was Flight of Passage of probably 45 minutes. We did every ride except Navi River (we didn’t think it was worth the hour wait) and were able to catch
> a couple shows. Rode Dinosaur 4 times (daughters favorite) and Everest 4 times (my favorite). We saw all the animal exhibits and attractions. Again, no regrets on not getting genie+.  It was such a chill day, full of rides even though people were everywhere.
> 
> Day 3 Magic Kingdom: genie+ day. Rope dropped Seven Dwarves and selected Peter Pan as our first lightning lane with a return time around 11.  Until 11 we rode Space mountain and the rides with the smallest waits (like Little Mermaid). At 11, before tapping into Peter Pan we selected our second lightning lane.  From there we selectively double stacked lightning lanes all day. Refreshing the tip board worked every time giving us our ideal time within a minute or two of refreshing.  We rode every single ride minus Dumbo (kids say babyish) and Splash (down all day). Lines were long on everything but we flew by in the lightning lanes. Did Space Mountain on standby twice. Thunder mountain 3 times. We ran out of things to do by 5 or 6 and debated going back to the hotel but for the first time ever decided to camp out in front of the castle to have a prime spot for Enchantment. Worth it. Genie+ was definitely worth it.
> 
> Day 4 Hollywood Studios: genie+ day. Crazy crowded. Forgot to book our first lightning lane at 7 and by 7:08 Slinky was completely gone.  I started constant refreshing and a 10:30 slot popped up within a minute or two.  Snagged it, so perfect.  We Rope dropped Rise and were probably among the first 200 people in line. It was down for a bit but we managed to get on and off by 9:10. We then selectively double stacked lightning lanes for the rest of the day. I refreshed the tip board over and over and scored great return times all day. Lines were insane (over 100 minutes for most every ride, rise 200 minutes) so we felt privileged to use the fast lane for everything but Mickey and minnies railroad which ended up about an hour wait. We rode every single attraction with Millenium Falcon and Star tours twice. We did 2 shows. And got back in line for Rise just before they closed. Posted wait of 195 minutes ended up to be 45. Genie+ Well worth it. We heard several people complain that they only managed to ride 2-3 rides all day while we rode 13. We felt so spoiled.
> 
> We are SO GRATEFUL for the advice and experience from these forums that allowed us a vacation better than we imagined.  I hope our experiences help others!


congrats!  Glad it worked so well.

looks like refreshing does pay dividends then?  I’m going to gues your initial return times on HS for the big rides were a few hours out but you were able to get them back to a reasonable time by refreshing?  I had heard reports that refreshing want working as well but it seems maybe we just need to be more patient?


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## bsmcneil

Is it better (or possible) to have two people/MDE accounts doing this in the am? I'm a single parent taking my kids - but I can probably teach/talk the oldest through to do it while I also do it (thinking of DHS in particular, for SDD and ROTR). (or maybe even recruit someone back home to help that morning)


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## katyringo

So it's a sold out day for HS and rise still has LL availability at 830am.

I leave Friday but these are some of the first sold out days we will see so I want to watch trends


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## thanxfornoticin

Agree - will be interesting to see how G+ and ILL trend over the upcoming busy holidays.


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## StarrySkye21

Luisfba said:


> congrats!  Glad it worked so well.
> 
> looks like refreshing does pay dividends then?  I’m going to gues your initial return times on HS for the big rides were a few hours out but you were able to get them back to a reasonable time by refreshing?  I had heard reports that refreshing want working as well but it seems maybe we just need to be more patient?



yes, refreshing worked perfectly.  For example, we had grabbed a Tower of Terror pass for 7 pm.  We were over by it at 2 pm and didn’t want to wait till 7. TOT was showing completely unavailable so I did a little test before canceling our slot.  You rapidly refresh the quickest way repeatedly.  I saw that a slot opened up and was gone again within seconds. I took the chance, canceled our 7 pm and started rapidly refreshing.  Within 2 minutes or so a 2:30 slot popped up.  Immediately grabbed it and were good to go. We did this a few times at HS and MK.  You may not be quick enough, but don’t give up.  Just rapidly refresh.  Even if it shows availability 3 hours from now, if you refresh an earlier time will likely pop up.  If you are speedy you can get it.

You can practice at home.  Find a ride like Millenium Falcon that is popular and learn how to rapid refresh.  Watch the times bounce around.  Sometimes it takes a few minutes but they will drop in earlier times as people cancel theirs.

Edit: here is the way I found refreshes fastest on the iOS app so you don’t have to scroll:  On the tip board, find the ride you want.  Click the standby option and then click the back arrow to go back out. Now just tap the tip board tab at the top over and over.


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## CJK

StarrySkye21 said:


> Edit: here is the way I found refreshes fastest so you don’t have to scroll: Scroll down to the ride you want. Click the standby option and then click the back arrow to go back out. Now just tap the tip board tab at the top over and over.


Thanks for this, and for your report. We were there last week, and were too scared to do the refresh method. We did it for a few seconds, but the available times continued to get later and later, so we gave up!


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## Chughes812

StarrySkye21 said:


> yes, refreshing worked perfectly.  For example, we had grabbed a Tower of Terror pass for 7 pm.  We were over by it at 2 pm and didn’t want to wait till 7. TOT was showing completely unavailable so I did a little test before canceling our slot.  You rapidly refresh the quickest way repeatedly.  I saw that a slot opened up and was gone again within seconds. I took the chance, canceled our 7 pm and started rapidly refreshing.  Within 2 minutes or so a 2:30 slot popped up.  Immediately grabbed it and were good to go.



It sounded like you had stacked LL. Did canceling ToT not affect your ability to carry 2 LL at once??

thanks for sharing!


----------



## StarrySkye21

Chughes812 said:


> It sounded like you had stacked LL. Did canceling ToT not affect your ability to carry 2 LL at once??
> 
> thanks for sharing!



nope, we still kept double stack all day.


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## Figment1990

hey all, got our first G+ this morning for SDD! Had 3 of us on our phones and just kept refreshing until we saw the time that was the earliest we knew we could make it (it’s our travel day). DS had fast fingers and got us right at tht time he saw (4:20). We did it thru the tip board and had it set up as our only selection for the time being.


----------



## Luisfba

Chughes812 said:


> It sounded like you had stacked LL. Did canceling ToT not affect your ability to carry 2 LL at once??
> 
> thanks for sharing!



for G+LL, do you pretty much get the LL as soon as you click on it from the tip board, or are there other confirmation screens (that if you arent fast getting through them you may lose the LL regardless)?


----------



## StarrySkye21

Luisfba said:


> for G+LL, do you pretty much get the LL as soon as you click on it from the tip board, or are there other confirmation screens (that if you arent fast getting through them you may lose the LL regardless)?



There’s a confirmation screen to click through.  I was sometimes too late and the confirmation screen showed a later return time than I wanted so I’d back out and try again.  I believe it will ultimately give you whatever time is shown on the confirmation screen even if you are slow to click through to the final confirmation.


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## lostprincess_danie

Adding our experience with first time (and only for that trip) using Genie+ from 11/16 at HS. Our plan was to book Slinky first thing and hope for a afternoon slot. Arrive at 8:15 to queue for early entry. Do Rise then MMRR standby before waits ballooned. Things went sideways when Genie+ malfunctioned and we ended up having to push everything to late afternoon/evening when we did not plan to be at the park. Felt like I was playing catchup the entire day and we only did a handful of attractions.

Overall notes:
- Guest Experience CMs (blue shirts and umbrellas in the park) are the most qualified to help. Chat, phone and front desk may help but it's wasted time if they can't.
- Screenshot EVERYTHING 
- A CM told us there's no info in the app to let you know when cool down ends. Just make a mental note. 
- It was exhausting keeping up with everything even for just the two of us. Info is scattered throughout the app so I had to resort to typing up in notes all our return times and cool down times. 

6:00a Attempt to purchase Genie+. The button to confirm purchase was blank and not functioning on my nor husband's phones.
6:10 MDE online chat said I could not do a purchase until 7. I told them that's not true, it is midnight for G+. 7am only for ILL$. CM said they could not help me. Needed to go to the resort front desk. (We turned phones on and off. Logged in and out. Deleted and reinstalled app.)
7:00a Husband ran to the front desk so I could finish getting ready.
7:20a Front desk CM purchased G+ for us. Husband said he still could not make an LL even though purchase was active. 
7:28a Front desk CM got Slinky for us at 7:55p. It was the last time slot available. Decided to go ahead to HS and work out additional Genie problems there.
We were at the back of pack for early entry but made it inside and to Galaxys Edge at 8:40.
Waited about 45 min for Rise.
Went to Guest Experience tent to see what could be done about our Genie+ purchase not working. CM was very patient and helpful. She offered a anytime LL for our choice of attraction to "make up for missed time" (excluding SDD, Rise or MMRR) We chose Midway Mania.
10:00 stopped for a drink.
Standby 60 min for MMRR and it broke down as we entered the theater screen room. Given recovery LL pass.
11:00 Booked RNR for 3:00
11:15 Lunch at Ronto roasters
12:00 Went back to hotel to regroup after frustrating morning. 
1:30 booked TSMM for 6:20p.
3:00 Back to HS.
3:15 Redeemed RNR.
3:40 Redeemed MMRR recovery LL
4:05 booked Muppets for 4:10. When we got there the next show was posted to start in 10 min. We actually waited 12 minutes until admitted to theater. (I do not see the benefit of LL for shows.)
5:45 Redeemed TSMM complimentary LL 
6:18 Rode Mania again with our "regular" LL.
6:52 Mania comp LL was still showing in app so we tried again. The tap style turned blue but they let us in after I showed them the pass on my phone. 
7:55 Redeemed Slinky.
Wondered around and left at 8:45.


----------



## Sjm9911

lostprincess_danie said:


> Adding our experience with first time (and only for that trip) using Genie+ from 11/16 at HS. Our plan was to book Slinky first thing and hope for a afternoon slot. Arrive at 8:15 to queue for early entry. Do Rise then MMRR standby before waits ballooned. Things went sideways when Genie+ malfunctioned and we ended up having to push everything to late afternoon/evening when we did not plan to be at the park. Felt like I was playing catchup the entire day and we only did a handful of attractions.
> 
> Overall notes:
> - Guest Experience CMs (blue shirts and umbrellas in the park) are the most qualified to help. Chat, phone and front desk may help but it's wasted time if they can't.
> - Screenshot EVERYTHING
> - A CM told us there's no info in the app to let you know when cool down ends. Just make a mental note.
> - It was exhausting keeping up with everything even for just the two of us. Info is scattered throughout the app so I had to resort to typing up in notes all our return times and cool down times.
> 
> 6:00a Attempt to purchase Genie+. The button to confirm purchase was blank and not functioning on my nor husband's phones.
> 6:10 MDE online chat said I could not do a purchase until 7. I told them that's not true, it is midnight for G+. 7am only for ILL$. CM said they could not help me. Needed to go to the resort front desk. (We turned phones on and off. Logged in and out. Deleted and reinstalled app.)
> 7:00a Husband ran to the front desk so I could finish getting ready.
> 7:20a Front desk CM purchased G+ for us. Husband said he still could not make an LL even though purchase was active.
> 7:28a Front desk CM got Slinky for us at 7:55p. It was the last time slot available. Decided to go ahead to HS and work out additional Genie problems there.
> We were at the back of pack for early entry but made it inside and to Galaxys Edge at 8:40.
> Waited about 45 min for Rise.
> Went to Guest Experience tent to see what could be done about our Genie+ purchase not working. CM was very patient and helpful. She offered a anytime LL for our choice of attraction to "make up for missed time" (excluding SDD, Rise or MMRR) We chose Midway Mania.
> 10:00 stopped for a drink.
> Standby 60 min for MMRR and it broke down as we entered the theater screen room. Given recovery LL pass.
> 11:00 Booked RNR for 3:00
> 11:15 Lunch at Ronto roasters
> 12:00 Went back to hotel to regroup after frustrating morning.
> 1:30 booked TSMM for 6:20p.
> 3:00 Back to HS.
> 3:15 Redeemed RNR.
> 3:40 Redeemed MMRR recovery LL
> 4:05 booked Muppets for 4:10. When we got there the next show was posted to start in 10 min. We actually waited 12 minutes until admitted to theater. (I do not see the benefit of LL for shows.)
> 5:45 Redeemed TSMM complimentary LL
> 6:18 Rode Mania again with our "regular" LL.
> 6:52 Mania comp LL was still showing in app so we tried again. The tap style turned blue but they let us in after I showed them the pass on my phone.
> 7:55 Redeemed Slinky.
> Wondered around and left at 8:45.


About what our day was like there. Lol. At least you got to ride some stuff, but it is way more complex and stressful then it need to be. And when a ride goes down, it really throws a wrentch in the plans.


----------



## katyringo

Does it use the payment method you have stored in the app?


----------



## StarrySkye21

Sjm9911 said:


> About what our day was like there. Lol. At least you got to ride some stuff, but it is way more complex and stressful then it need to be. And when a ride goes down, it really throws a wrentch in the plans.



We had an interesting discovery with rides being down.  The morning we went to MK, we reserved a time for splash mountain.  Well it ended up being down the entire day, but you could still grab passes to it.  If the ride was still down when it was your turn to ride, it converted the genie+ pass to a special pass that you could use on any LL you wanted (except the two ILL$).  So we would use that special pass on rides like Big Thunder (kids favorite) and then immediately grab another Splash Mountain slot.    It was this way that we were able to ride Thunder mountain in the lightning lane multiple times.


----------



## CJK

katyringo said:


> Does it use the payment method you have stored in the app?


yes


----------



## bp traveler

Can anyone help me to figure out how to add genie+?  I bought the tix from Undercover tourist and when I try to add genie + I the my Disney app it said to call them.  I did and they said I have to call Disney to add it?! 
I have been on hold twice after 40 minutes with Disney and magically disconnected!  I have tried the chat too.
Is there any way to add it we leave tomorrow.  Thanks


----------



## kappyfamily

At Epcot today. Bought genie+ at 6am, and got Remy group 46. Remy groups I believe were gone 3 minutes later, if that. 46 got called at 12:30. When I got Remy I quickly tried to get test track and 1:30-2:30 was the earliest I could get. We got early entry and everything was like a 5-10 min walk on except Frozen. We all agree genie + is not needed if you have early morning entry. We will try and get on frozen right when park closes. We did a ton of rides by 1:30 with no genie+ needed. So it looks like we spent $47 for 3 of us for one booked test track ride. But it was a great experiment and now I will know what to do for MK tomorrow.


----------



## kappyfamily

Duplicate


----------



## Haley R

kappyfamily said:


> At Epcot today. Bought genie+ at 6am, and got Remy group 46. Remy groups I believe were gone 3 minutes later, if that. 46 got called at 12:30. When I got Remy I quickly tried to get test track and 1:30-2:30 was the earliest I could get. We got early entry and everything was like a 5-10 min walk on except Frozen. We all agree genie + is not needed if you have early morning entry. We will try and get on frozen right when park closes. We did a ton of rides by 1:30 with no genie+ needed. So it looks like we spent $47 for 3 of us for one booked test track ride. But it was a great experiment and now I will know what to do for MK tomorrow.


How long did you have to wait for remy?


----------



## 570traveler

bp traveler said:


> Can anyone help me to figure out how to add genie+?  I bought the tix from ****************** and when I try to add genie + I the my Disney app it said to call them.  I did and they said I have to call Disney to add it?!
> I have been on hold twice after 40 minutes with Disney and magically disconnected!  I have tried the chat too.
> Is there any way to add it we leave tomorrow.  Thanks


I’m going to say you’re in the same boat as me. My first day is today. Last night I tried to add genie to all my days.  I got message that dates were unavailable.  I was told because the parks are at capacity, it’s unable to be added. I have to buy it each morning.


----------



## coolbrook

StarrySkye21 said:


> We had an interesting discovery with rides being down.  The morning we went to MK, we reserved a time for splash mountain.  Well it ended up being down the entire day, but you could still grab passes to it.  If the ride was still down when it was your turn to ride, it converted the genie+ pass to a special pass that you could use on any LL you wanted (except the two ILL$).  So we would use that special pass on rides like Big Thunder (kids favorite) and then immediately grab another Splash Mountain slot.    It was this way that we were able to ride Thunder mountain in the lightning lane multiple times.


Interesting and good to know.


----------



## kappyfamily

Haley R said:


> How long did you have to wait for remy?


Right after we tapped in, we waited maybe 15-20 min.


----------



## DisneyKidds

StarrySkye21 said:


> Just left today.  We did 1 park per day and it was stupid crowded.  We are primarily ride-people.  Quick service restaurants and maybe 1-2 shows.  Open to close.  Our goal is to ride as many rides as we can.  I went into our trip quite nervous over genie+ and how the crowds would affect it.  Spoiler: I now LOVE genie+.  We had an amazing, magical time even though it was sooo crowded.    We purchased genie+ on 2 of the 4 days and did not buy any ILL$.  Here’s what we did:
> 
> Day 1 Epcot: no Genie+.  We scored a boarding group for Remy at 7 am.  Longest actual line we waited in was Frozen at about 50 minutes.  We were able to ride every single  ride and even Test Track twice.  A couple shows. Even left early because we were tired and had done everything we wanted to.  No regrets not getting Genie+for Epcot even with the crowds.
> 
> Day 2 Animal Kingdom: no Genie+.  Longest wait was Flight of Passage of probably 45 minutes. We did every ride except Navi River (we didn’t think it was worth the hour wait) and were able to catch
> a couple shows. Rode Dinosaur 4 times (daughters favorite) and Everest 4 times (my favorite). We saw all the animal exhibits and attractions. Again, no regrets on not getting genie+.  It was such a chill day, full of rides even though people were everywhere.
> 
> Day 3 Magic Kingdom: genie+ day. Rope dropped Seven Dwarves and selected Peter Pan as our first lightning lane with a return time around 11.  Until 11 we rode Space mountain and the rides with the smallest waits (like Little Mermaid). At 11, before tapping into Peter Pan we selected our second lightning lane.  From there we selectively double stacked lightning lanes all day. Refreshing the tip board worked every time giving us our ideal time within a minute or two of refreshing.  We rode every single ride minus Dumbo (kids say babyish) and Splash (down all day). Lines were long on everything but we flew by in the lightning lanes. Did Space Mountain on standby twice. Thunder mountain 3 times. We ran out of things to do by 5 or 6 and debated going back to the hotel but for the first time ever decided to camp out in front of the castle to have a prime spot for Enchantment. Worth it. Genie+ was definitely worth it.
> 
> Day 4 Hollywood Studios: genie+ day. Crazy crowded. Forgot to book our first lightning lane at 7 and by 7:08 Slinky was completely gone.  I started constant refreshing and a 10:30 slot popped up within a minute or two.  Snagged it, so perfect.  We Rope dropped Rise and were probably among the first 200 people in line. It was down for a bit but we managed to get on and off by 9:10.  To kill time until we could tap into Slinky and start our double stack, we did Millenium Falcon and Star tours on standby.  Then it was time for Slinky and to selectively double stack lightning lanes for the rest of the day. I refreshed the tip board over and over and scored great return times all day. Lines were insane (over 100 minutes for most every ride, rise 200 minutes) so we felt privileged to use the fast lane for everything but Mickey and minnies railroad which ended up about an hour wait. We rode every single attraction with Millenium Falcon and Star tours twice. We did 2 shows. And got back in line for Rise just before they closed. Posted wait of 195 minutes ended up to be 45. Genie+ Well worth it. We heard several people complain that they only managed to ride 2-3 rides all day while we rode 13. We felt so spoiled.
> 
> We are SO GRATEFUL for the advice and experience from these forums that allowed us a vacation better than we imagined.  I hope our experiences help others!


The Studios sounds like it was crowded…..Epcot and AK not so much, based on the standby lines, especially Test Track and FoP.  I’m still concerned for next summer……


----------



## StarrySkye21

DisneyKidds said:


> The Studios sounds like it was crowded…..Epcot and AK not so much, based on the standby lines, especially Test Track and FoP.  I’m still concerned for next summer……


It was definitely more crowded than I’ve ever seen it.  We only did standby when touring plans said it was lowest wait of the day.   The posted waits were much higher than the actual.  It would have been miserable without Genie+, so I definitely think it’s worth it. Would be perfect if all rides were included or you could ride more than once.  One or the other.


----------



## Figment1990

Just thought I would share our strategy from today at DHS with G+ and some of the quirks we learned along the way.  It was our travel day, flight departed at 10:45 am (delayed), arrived at 12:58 (cut that WAY too close for me - I was booking G+ walking off the plane and WiFi & data are both very glitchy at landing), took magical express to the hotel (THAT took forever and fyi phone service in the magical express loading area of MCO is nonexistent), and we walked over to DHS (from Boardwalk) after very quickly dropping our bags in our room (which magically was ready just as our bus pulled up).  All of this was super stressful and I would not really want to do it again, but it DID work so I’m sharing it anyway in case it helps someone else. 

7am booked SDD for 4:20-5:20 after refreshing a few times
11:01 am - booked ToT for 3:05 - 4:05
1:05 pm booked RnRC for 6:55 - 7:55 (I could have booked it earlier but we were going for a specific time frame) ***HOWEVER: on this booking we learned that the 120 hour rule is to the second, not to the minute.  Our “eligible” window said 1:01. But when we tried at 1:01, it would not let us book until closer to 1:02
At 3:0X we booked TSM for 8-9pm. I forgot to write down the exact time because we were refreshing to get a time and also wondering if we would arrive in time for our ToT reservation. 
3:30 we arrived at our hotel, dropped off our bags, and very very quickly walked over to DHS
4:15 rode ToT (confirming grace window)
4:35 walking over to ride Slinky, DS refreshed and snagged a 4:45 MFSR
4:45 rode MFSR
4:50 booked Aliens for 8:00 after DS refreshing (FYI - only one tapstile at MFSR I think.  Also, teens are great at G+…)
5:23 rode SDD
5:40 checked into dinner at Mama Melrose ADR
After dinner we headed to Sunset Blvd to ride RnRC - took our time to let our food settle and watched some Sunset Seasons Greetings (very festive!)
7:30 rode RnRC
8:02 rode TSM (slightly longer LL wait here)
8:24 rode Aliens
Then we wandered through Galaxy’s Edge, grabbed some blue milk and just enjoyed the atmosphere.  We could have actually also rode Star Tours but we were exhausted and tapped out. Sat and watched the animation show on the Chinese Theater and then walked back to the room.

So that’s 6 G+ (could have been more but we didn’t want to squeeze in Muppets or other shows or Star Tours).  I feel like today we got our money’s worth.  But it was a LOT of pre-work and strategizing and studying of thrill-data data AND help from you folks! 

While it was very VERY useful today (DHS seemed very crowded), i am also glad that we are not planning a G+ day tomorrow! (AK/EP day)


----------



## meghanmione

I'm sorry if this has been asked before, but I will be arriving to Disney late afternoon on our first day. We are planning to do Epcot in the late afternoon/evening. If I purchase Genie+ for that day and hop on at 7AM, is it too risky to try and purchase a boarding group for Remy if I don't know what exact time we'll be in the park? Haven't been since early 2019 and trying to catch up with the new system.


----------



## katyringo

meghanmione said:


> I'm sorry if this has been asked before, but I will be arriving to Disney late afternoon on our first day. We are planning to do Epcot in the late afternoon/evening. If I purchase Genie+ for that day and hop on at 7AM, is it too risky to try and purchase a boarding group for Remy if I don't know what exact time we'll be in the park? Haven't been since early 2019 and trying to catch up with the new system.



for the purchased lightning lane you can choose your time. So just choose a later time.

it's the free virtual que that you can't control the time.


----------



## katyringo

Figment1990 said:


> Just thought I would share our strategy from today at DHS with G+ and some of the quirks we learned along the way.  It was our travel day, flight departed at 10:45 am (delayed), arrived at 12:58 (cut that WAY too close for me - I was booking G+ walking off the plane and WiFi & data are both very glitchy at landing), took magical express to the hotel (THAT took forever and fyi phone service in the magical express loading area of MCO is nonexistent), and we walked over to DHS (from Boardwalk) after very quickly dropping our bags in our room (which magically was ready just as our bus pulled up).  All of this was super stressful and I would not really want to do it again, but it DID work so I’m sharing it anyway in case it helps someone else.
> 
> 7am booked SDD for 4:20-5:20 after refreshing a few times
> 11:01 am - booked ToT for 3:05 - 4:05
> 1:05 pm booked RnRC for 6:55 - 7:55 (I could have booked it earlier but we were going for a specific time frame) ***HOWEVER: on this booking we learned that the 120 hour rule is to the second, not to the minute.  Our “eligible” window said 1:01. But when we tried at 1:01, it would not let us book until closer to 1:02
> At 3:0X we booked TSM for 8-9pm. I forgot to write down the exact time because we were refreshing to get a time and also wondering if we would arrive in time for our ToT reservation.
> 3:30 we arrived at our hotel, dropped off our bags, and very very quickly walked over to DHS
> 4:15 rode ToT (confirming grace window)
> 4:35 walking over to ride Slinky, DS refreshed and snagged a 4:45 MFSR
> 4:45 rode MFSR
> 4:50 booked Aliens for 8:00 after DS refreshing (FYI - only one tapstile at MFSR I think.  Also, teens are great at G+…)
> 5:23 rode SDD
> 5:40 checked into dinner at Mama Melrose ADR
> After dinner we headed to Sunset Blvd to ride RnRC - took our time to let our food settle and watched some Sunset Seasons Greetings (very festive!)
> 7:30 rode RnRC
> 8:02 rode TSM (slightly longer LL wait here)
> 8:24 rode Aliens
> Then we wandered through Galaxy’s Edge, grabbed some blue milk and just enjoyed the atmosphere.  We could have actually also rode Star Tours but we were exhausted and tapped out. Sat and watched the animation show on the Chinese Theater and then walked back to the room.
> 
> So that’s 6 G+ (could have been more but we didn’t want to squeeze in Muppets or other shows or Star Tours).  I feel like today we got our money’s worth.  But it was a LOT of pre-work and strategizing and studying of thrill-data data AND help from you folks!
> 
> While it was very VERY useful today (DHS seemed very crowded), i am also glad that we are not planning a G+ day tomorrow! (AK/EP day)


I recently changed my flight to arrive the night before and stay at the hotel inside MCO that night and catch ME early AM. This post confirms that..

it also helps me know to not be in the ME terminal at 7am..


----------



## meghanmione

katyringo said:


> for the purchased lightning lane you can choose your time. So just choose a later time.
> 
> it's the free virtual que that you can't control the time.


Oh okay! That's great to know, thank you


----------



## tpmac68

bsmcneil said:


> Is it better (or possible) to have two people/MDE accounts doing this in the am? I'm a single parent taking my kids - but I can probably teach/talk the oldest through to do it while I also do it (thinking of DHS in particular, for SDD and ROTR). (or maybe even recruit someone back home to help that morning)


If you have two people trying to book at the same time, can they all be signed in to the same account or does each person need their own account?


----------



## cjlong88

tpmac68 said:


> If you have two people trying to book at the same time, can they all be signed in to the same account or does each person need their own account?


My husband downloaded the app and I signed him into my account. At 7am he was booking one thing while I was booking another. Worked perfectly.


----------



## sam1985

I think I understand the basics. I can book #1 @ 7 and book #2 @ at earlier of Park open +120 or after LL1 is used/expires. 

So if park opens at 8 and LL #1 has a return window of 930-1030 
I book #2 at 10 (120 rule), 
Use #1 at 10:05 and book #3 (LL used)
I would then be able to book #4 120 min later (12:05) or when I use a LL or it expires.

What if instead after I book LL #1 with a return window of 930-1030
I Book #2 at 10 (120 rule), 
Book #3 10:30 (LL #1 Exp), 
Use #1 at 10:35 (grace period). Can I immediately book #4?  

Its unlikely for things to work out as simply as #2 but if it does and it works I get 4 LL by 10:30 instead of having to wait until around noon.


----------



## katyringo

Alright. I am 1 week away from my HS day.  Right now it's the first day post holiday that is green and open for all parks.  But I'm planning for the chaos.
I am solo traveler and I don't have anyone else to help make LL..
No hopper- so stacking in the morning for later arrival doesn't work for me.
It seems it's much much harder to get that double stack going in HS if you are starting and staying there.

I have been debating the SDD ... and ultimately Rise is more of a priority for me than SDD so I am going to book rise first which will put me out of SDD.
So I think I am going to Early entry slinky dog, book RISE, make my first genie+ For TT, and book MMRR.

I think that's my plan to start the day there.  I think going for SDD first couple potentially lock me out of using more genie+ choices for the day..

Not sure!


----------



## Lyndylou

StarrySkye21 said:


> Just left today.  We did 1 park per day and it was stupid crowded.  We are primarily ride-people.  Quick service restaurants and maybe 1-2 shows.  Open to close.  Our goal is to ride as many rides as we can.  I went into our trip quite nervous over genie+ and how the crowds would affect it.  Spoiler: I now LOVE genie+.  We had an amazing, magical time even though it was sooo crowded.    We purchased genie+ on 2 of the 4 days and did not buy any ILL$.  Here’s what we did:
> 
> Day 1 Epcot: no Genie+.  We scored a boarding group for Remy at 7 am.  Longest actual line we waited in was Frozen at about 50 minutes.  We were able to ride every single  ride and even Test Track twice.  A couple shows. Even left early because we were tired and had done everything we wanted to.  No regrets not getting Genie+for Epcot even with the crowds.
> 
> Day 2 Animal Kingdom: no Genie+.  Longest wait was Flight of Passage of probably 45 minutes. We did every ride except Navi River (we didn’t think it was worth the hour wait) and were able to catch
> a couple shows. Rode Dinosaur 4 times (daughters favorite) and Everest 4 times (my favorite). We saw all the animal exhibits and attractions. Again, no regrets on not getting genie+.  It was such a chill day, full of rides even though people were everywhere.
> 
> Day 3 Magic Kingdom: genie+ day. Rope dropped Seven Dwarves and selected Peter Pan as our first lightning lane with a return time around 11.  Until 11 we rode Space mountain and the rides with the smallest waits (like Little Mermaid). At 11, before tapping into Peter Pan we selected our second lightning lane.  From there we selectively double stacked lightning lanes all day. Refreshing the tip board worked every time giving us our ideal time within a minute or two of refreshing.  We rode every single ride minus Dumbo (kids say babyish) and Splash (down all day). Lines were long on everything but we flew by in the lightning lanes. Did Space Mountain on standby twice. Thunder mountain 3 times. We ran out of things to do by 5 or 6 and debated going back to the hotel but for the first time ever decided to camp out in front of the castle to have a prime spot for Enchantment. Worth it. Genie+ was definitely worth it.
> 
> Day 4 Hollywood Studios: genie+ day. Crazy crowded. Forgot to book our first lightning lane at 7 and by 7:08 Slinky was completely gone.  I started constant refreshing and a 10:30 slot popped up within a minute or two.  Snagged it, so perfect.  We Rope dropped Rise and were probably among the first 200 people in line. It was down for a bit but we managed to get on and off by 9:10.  To kill time until we could tap into Slinky and start our double stack, we did Millenium Falcon and Star tours on standby.  Then it was time for Slinky and to selectively double stack lightning lanes for the rest of the day. I refreshed the tip board over and over and scored great return times all day. Lines were insane (over 100 minutes for most every ride, rise 200 minutes) so we felt privileged to use the fast lane for everything but Mickey and minnies railroad which ended up about an hour wait. We rode every single attraction with Millenium Falcon and Star tours twice. We did 2 shows. And got back in line for Rise just before they closed. Posted wait of 195 minutes ended up to be 45. Genie+ Well worth it. We heard several people complain that they only managed to ride 2-3 rides all day while we rode 13. We felt so spoiled.
> 
> We are SO GRATEFUL for the advice and experience from these forums that allowed us a vacation better than we imagined.  I hope our experiences help others!


This is an awesome post .So informative We aren't going  July but super excited already Slight confusion. I read your post as you  bought genie+but not LL yet you said you did LL  Have i misunderstood ?


----------



## CarolynFH

meghanmione said:


> I'm sorry if this has been asked before, but I will be arriving to Disney late afternoon on our first day. We are planning to do Epcot in the late afternoon/evening. If I purchase Genie+ for that day and hop on at 7AM, is it too risky to try and purchase a boarding group for Remy if I don't know what exact time we'll be in the park? Haven't been since early 2019 and trying to catch up with the new system.


Just remember, if all you want is to purchase an ILL$ for Remy, you do not have to pay the $15 for Genie+. Genie+ is for the Genie+ LL rides like Soarin’, Frozen, etc. if you think you might want them, wait until you arrive and can check Genie to see if the Genie+ LL rides you want are still available. You can buy Genie+ then and book them.


----------



## boop0524

Curious how those of you with early entry and extended hours in MK have planned your day... Definitely would prefer not to get ILL for 7DMT, but do we go in morning or evening? Any other rides that are better in am vs pm or vice versa?


----------



## dmunsil

sam1985 said:


> What if instead after I book LL #1 with a return window of 930-1030
> I Book #2 at 10 (120 rule),
> Book #3 10:30 (LL #1 Exp),
> Use #1 at 10:35 (grace period). Can I immediately book #4?
> 
> Its unlikely for things to work out as simply as #2 but if it does and it works I get 4 LL by 10:30 instead of having to wait until around noon.



That doesn’t work, because you can’t use both the 120 minute reset and the expiration reset. They’re actually the same rule. More here: https://www.disboards.com/threads/t...egy-only-thread.3857056/page-50#post-63517569


----------



## Delilah1310

has anyone gotten a second LL through Genie+ for the same ride?
I know they say you can't re-ride with Genie+ but just curious if anyone has actually tried and what happens.
thnx


----------



## kappyfamily

CarolynFH said:


> Just remember, if all you want is to purchase an ILL$ for Remy, you do not have to pay the $15 for Genie+. Genie+ is for the Genie+ LL rides like Soarin’, Frozen, etc. if you think you might want them, wait until you arrive and can check Genie to see if the Genie+ LL rides you want are still available. You can buy Genie+ then and book them.


I agree! I was there yesterday and wish I wouldn’t have gotten genie plus for Epcot. It was a huge waste of money. We got our boarding group right at 7am and then everything was walk on for early entry. Wish I would’ve waited like you said….. today at MK though, we used genie plus a ton.


----------



## Sjm9911

Delilah1310 said:


> has anyone gotten a second LL through Genie+ for the same ride?
> I know they say you can't re-ride with Genie+ but just curious if anyone has actually tried and what happens.
> thnx


It dosen't let you.


----------



## lynzi2004

I had a concern earlier today. I have not yet added Genie+ to my tickets for our Christmas week trip. Genie+ itself doesn't sell out to the point you can't even buy it right?!


----------



## twincruisers

boop0524 said:


> Curious how those of you with early entry and extended hours in MK have planned your day... Definitely would prefer not to get ILL for 7DMT, but do we go in morning or evening? Any other rides that are better in am vs pm or vice versa?


This is a decision you have to make. If you don’t have EMH it isn’t worth it to try to rope-drop 7DMT as the line is already 90 mins+ by the time you are let loose. This pretty much applies to Peter Pan as well as that ride tends to fill up quickly from those who are disappointed with how fast 7DMT filled up. If you do have EMH on the other hand, you can rope drop but you have to be there early so you aren’t stuck in the crowd. I’d make sure you look at Robo‘s maps and the early entry thread here so you know where you are going.

EEH was more helpful than EMH since only Deluxe Resorts +DVC are a smaller subsection vs all Disney resorts for EMH. I found the lines dropped off the closer to the end of EEH. 7DMT was 40 mins at 9:10pm, it was 20 mins at 10:55pm. So you can make good use of the EEH if you stay to close.

That said, I found the best time to ride 7DMT was during the fireworks show. I was able to ride 7DMT 4 times in a row between 7:50pm and 9pm. The best part was being on 7DMT while fireworks were exploding all around us. That made the ride even more memorable.

Either EMH or EEH can get you what you want, just a matter of how you want to plan your day. Add in the fireworks gap and you have 3 good opportunities to enjoy 7DMT with lower lines without using ILL$.


----------



## g-dad66

lynzi2004 said:


> I had a concern earlier today. I have not yet added Genie+ to my tickets for our Christmas week trip. Genie+ itself doesn't sell out to the point you can't even buy it right?!



I would doubt it.  I imagine you can always get a Lightening Lane for Muppets and Journey Into Imagination.


----------



## boop0524

twincruisers said:


> EEH was more helpful than EMH since only Deluxe Resorts +DVC are a smaller subsection vs all Disney resorts for EMH. I found the lines dropped off the closer to the end of EEH. 7DMT was 40 mins at 9:10pm, it was 20 mins at 10:55pm. So you can make good use of the EEH if you stay to close.
> 
> That said, I found the best time to ride 7DMT was during the fireworks show. I was able to ride 7DMT 4 times in a row between 7:50pm and 9pm. The best part was being on 7DMT while fireworks were exploding all around us. That made the ride even more memorable.
> 
> Either EMH or EEH can get you what you want, just a matter of how you want to plan your day. Add in the fireworks gap and you have 3 good opportunities to enjoy 7DMT with lower lines without using ILL$.


Amazingly helpful, thank you!!


----------



## Sjm9911

twincruisers said:


> This is a decision you have to make. If you don’t have EMH it isn’t worth it to try to rope-drop 7DMT as the line is already 90 mins+ by the time you are let loose. This pretty much applies to Peter Pan as well as that ride tends to fill up quickly from those who are disappointed with how fast 7DMT filled up. If you do have EMH on the other hand, you can rope drop but you have to be there early so you aren’t stuck in the crowd. I’d make sure you look at Robo‘s maps and the early entry thread here so you know where you are going.
> 
> EEH was more helpful than EMH since only Deluxe Resorts +DVC are a smaller subsection vs all Disney resorts for EMH. I found the lines dropped off the closer to the end of EEH. 7DMT was 40 mins at 9:10pm, it was 20 mins at 10:55pm. So you can make good use of the EEH if you stay to close.
> 
> That said, I found the best time to ride 7DMT was during the fireworks show. I was able to ride 7DMT 4 times in a row between 7:50pm and 9pm. The best part was being on 7DMT while fireworks were exploding all around us. That made the ride even more memorable.
> 
> Either EMH or EEH can get you what you want, just a matter of how you want to plan your day. Add in the fireworks gap and you have 3 good opportunities to enjoy 7DMT with lower lines without using ILL$.


It was still packed at firework time when we went. TBH, it was packed at all times. We skipped it. Not woth an hour or more in line. That may be the one ride you should buy the LL for. We did have good position for RD one day, but that day it was broken down on opening. We roped dropped, PPF , and went to smallworld, after that HM is open, then BTRR, splash, pirates, and used the genie for 11 am JC.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Delilah1310 said:


> has anyone gotten a second LL through Genie+ for the same ride?
> I know they say you can't re-ride with Genie+ but just curious if anyone has actually tried and what happens.
> thnx


The only time this works is if your ride breaks down during your return time and before you go.  You'll get a recovery pass and you're able to rebook the same ride for a different LL time, according to posts from early on in using Genie+


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

It looks like all LL’s and ILL$ in Hollywood studios for rides were gone by about 1:00 PM today.  That does not seem sustainable as Disney returns to normal crowd levels.  Are they till selling and pushing genie for casual guests who come into the parks int he afternoon and don’t know that they need to wake up at 7 am to grab a fastpass for 7 pm?  They need to increase the number of LL’s given out.


----------



## twincruisers

Sjm9911 said:


> It was still packed at firework time when we went. TBH, it was packed at all times. We skipped it. Not woth an hour or more in line. That may be the one ride you should buy the LL for. We did have good position for RD one day, but that day it was broken down on opening. We roped dropped, PPF , and went to smallworld, after that HM is open, then BTRR, splash, pirates, and used the genie for 11 am JC.


We had a crowd level of 3 on TP for MK when I was able to ride so easily during the fireworks show. So yeah if it’s busy like the holidays, probably best to consider ILL$ On those days.


----------



## boop0524

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> It looks like all LL’s and ILL$ in Hollywood studios for rides were gone by about 1:00 PM today.  That does not seem sustainable as Disney returns to normal crowd levels.  Are they till selling and pushing genie for casual guests who come into the parks int he afternoon and don’t know that they need to wake up at 7 am to grab a fastpass for 7 pm?  They need to increase the number of LL’s given out.


Wow! We were so frustrated when this happened to us a few weeks ago. I reached out and let them know how it impacted us with no response back (yet, I guess). I totally feel for anyone there today. Disney needs to do something to improve this situation...to me it's totally unacceptable. Can't imagine how it's going to be the week of Thanksgiving


----------



## CBMom01

Tiggr88 said:


> Now that you have the basics down, there are some more advanced ways to potentially make this better for you. There is basically a 'hack' that can allow you to start your stack earlier but requires careful management and timing. Same example, park with a scheduled 9AM open.
> 
> At 7AM, get G+ for ride A with return time  9-10AM.
> At 10AM , your window has expired, so before tapping into ride A, make a another selection for Ride B. This is allowed since the rules are:
> Tapped in and used your existing G+​120 minutes since you made your last or​your Ride A expired.​Ride Ride A with G+ before your 15 minute grace period is up at 10:15.
> 
> You now have two selections stacked at 10AM instead of waiting until your two hour 11M window. I doubt this is the way Disney intended this to work but it does.
> 
> This works only if Ride A has an earlier enough return time to make it worthwhile. For example, getting a return time of 9:30-10:30 only gets you a 30 minute headstart on your stack.
> It also requires you to carefully manage your morning to make sure you don't miss your grace period window. If you do, there is a heavy penalty. The system will have considered that ride selected and used whether you rode it or not since it expired. Therefore you will not be able to select that ride again.
> 
> Things get a little more complicated if you intend to park hop but that should cover it for staying in one park per day.


For rides with 2 tapstiles in the LL do you have to be through the 2nd one within the 15 mins?


----------



## GBRforWDW

CBMom01 said:


> For rides with 2 tapstiles in the LL do you have to be through the 2nd one within the 15 mins?


To piggy back this question, is there a compiled list of rides with 2 taps vs 1 tap tor LL's?


----------



## Sydnerella

Did the post-window 15 minute grace period get reduced to 5 minutes in the past week?


----------



## katyringo

Best video I've seen for stacking.
https://vm.tiktok.com/TTPd2DdC9U/
The key would be how do you try getting SDD for 11 without missing out all together?

this would work for any ride if you wait for an 11 time slot

BUT like mentioned on a really busy day at HS all LL can be gone by 1..

so is it better to forgo stacking at HS and get earlier than 11 return times..

Hummm


----------



## Mrjoshua

Can my party board separately with LL if all were booked under the same time window? For example, if 2 people stay behind to watch a child, can those 2 people ride a few minutes later (provided they are still within the booked time window)?


----------



## CarolynFH

Mrjoshua said:


> Can my party board separately with LL if all were booked under the same time window? For example, if 2 people stay behind to watch a child, can those 2 people ride a few minutes later (provided they are still within the booked time window)?


Yes, they can.  No worries.


----------



## Katherine Brock

tguz said:


> We are going for 10 nights in early December.  Our strategy is to not buy genie+ for the first 4 days (each park) and see how wait times are and how many of our "must do" attractions we were able to experience.  We would then consider buying Genie+ on our second go round through the parks if there are "must do's" that we were not able to do on the first park visit.  That is just our plan and I hope it works out for us.


We went for 8 days and only wound up purchasing the Lightning Lane pass for three of the days as the wait times weren’t too bad.


----------



## Sjm9911

CBMom01 said:


> For rides with 2 tapstiles in the LL do you have to be through the 2nd one within the 15 mins?


I think only the first one, but the LL were never 15 mins long.


----------



## Sjm9911

CBMom01 said:


> For rides with 2 tapstiles in the LL do you have to be through the 2nd one within the 15 mins?


I think only the first one, but the LL were never 15 mins long. 


GBRforWDW said:


> To piggy back this question, is there a compiled list of rides with 2 taps vs 1 tap tor LL's?


Most I remember as having 2 taps. Even if the tapins spots were down they had a cm with a portable reader.


----------



## cgattis

Any tips on what to do if your reservation (specifically Sean/Dolphin—posted on that resort thread too) comes unlinked sometime between when you go to bed and when you wake up for the next day’s Genie and IAS purchase if you can’t re-link it yourself??? Had that happen this morning and lost my chance to IAS Rise. Called the number that popped up in the app but got disconnected. Called back and said 160 minute wait. Guest relations, when I went in person, just basically said “thems the breaks.” (BTW it eventually let me re-link it myself after a few hours but too late to get any IAS we wanted.) Anybody know the magic number to call if that happens again???


----------



## PepperjackDragon

katyringo said:


> Best video I've seen for stacking.
> https://vm.tiktok.com/TTPd2DdC9U/
> The key would be how do you try getting SDD for 11 without missing out all together?
> 
> this would work for any ride if you wait for an 11 time slot
> 
> BUT like mentioned on a really busy day at HS all LL can be gone by 1..
> 
> so is it better to forgo stacking at HS and get earlier than 11 return times..
> 
> Hummm


I can’t see how that would help honestly. If you book early by the time you ride it will be pushed out until 11-12 anyway, so you will still have used a weak early morning LL and then wait until 11ish, but by then you will only be able to catch one evening at best. Seems to me either way you slice it you will end up with 3 at best.

So probably best to pick up SDD, grab a second at 11 for Smugglers or other top priority, and hope you can still get a third at 1pm, or we’re lucky with your 1st or 2nd to start a stack and secure the third and maybe a 4th before they are all gone—but realistically you would be limited to 3 in that scenario regardless of what you do, I think. Thus, the key would be to make the few you do get count.

we all need to be writing them to get evening hours switched from Epcot to Hollywood though, total waste of evening hours imo, with so few rides and the restraunt closed. Especially On busy weeks, if LL is gone so fast, they really need to offer that imo.


----------



## CBMom01

cgattis said:


> Any tips on what to do if your reservation (specifically Sean/Dolphin—posted on that resort thread too) comes unlinked sometime between when you go to bed and when you wake up for the next day’s Genie and IAS purchase if you can’t re-link it yourself??? Had that happen this morning and lost my chance to IAS Rise. Called the number that popped up in the app but got disconnected. Called back and said 160 minute wait. Guest relations, when I went in person, just basically said “thems the breaks.” (BTW it eventually let me re-link it myself after a few hours but too late to get any IAS we wanted.) Anybody know the magic number to call if that happens again???


Oh that sucks. I’m sorry.


----------



## StarrySkye21

Lyndylou said:


> This is an awesome post .So informative We aren't going  July but super excited already Slight confusion. I read your post as you  bought genie+but not LL yet you said you did LL  Have i misunderstood ?



When you buy Genie+, the entrance that you use to redeem your selection is the Lightning lane.

Genie+ Is the program that allows you to pay $15/day to periodically skip the standby lines and use the lightning lane.

Lightning Lane is the lane that Genie+ users, DAS users, VIP tours and ILL$ users use.

Individual Lightning Lane Selection is the additional purchase of up to two select rides per day In order to skip the standby lane and use the lightning lane.

It’s Disney’s fault for making the terminology so confusing.


----------



## Mango7100

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> It looks like all LL’s and ILL$ in Hollywood studios for rides were gone by about 1:00 PM today.  That does not seem sustainable as Disney returns to normal crowd levels.  Are they till selling and pushing genie for casual guests who come into the parks int he afternoon and don’t know that they need to wake up at 7 am to grab a fastpass for 7 pm?  They need to increase the number of LL’s given out.


That’s terrible! We were able to use 4 LL in HS one on Tuesday 11/16 and could have done a 5th, but it was also not very crowded. Any holiday period is going to be awful with Genie Plus I suspect


----------



## meghanmione

CarolynFH said:


> Just remember, if all you want is to purchase an ILL$ for Remy, you do not have to pay the $15 for Genie+. Genie+ is for the Genie+ LL rides like Soarin’, Frozen, etc. if you think you might want them, wait until you arrive and can check Genie to see if the Genie+ LL rides you want are still available. You can buy Genie+ then and book them.


Oh that's good to know!! We will be getting to the park late so it may just be best for us to see how the rides are. We do wish to do Soarin' and others that are on Genie+ that evening. Do you think we should still purchase Genie+ and keep refreshing until later times become available or just see how it is upon arrival?


----------



## Lsdolphin

Can I purchase genie+ on the morning of my arrival day and select a ride/time for later in the day Or does the app just select for you?  With the old fast pass+ you were able to select a time....


----------



## twincruisers

Lsdolphin said:


> Can I purchase genie+ on the morning of my arrival day and select a ride/time for later in the day Or does the app just select for you?  With the old fast pass+ you were able to select a time....


You select the ride and they just offer the next available time slot. No selection of time slots.


----------



## Lsdolphin

I arrive on 11/30


twincruisers said:


> You select the ride and they just offer the next available time slot. No selection of time slots.



well that stinks.....


----------



## mom2cinderella

lynzi2004 said:


> I had a concern earlier today. I have not yet added Genie+ to my tickets for our Christmas week trip. Genie+ itself doesn't sell out to the point you can't even buy it right?!



Disney has said they would not limit sales. The OP in this thread had issues due to the way the system handles adding Genie+, so maybe keep that in mind.


----------



## Sydnerella

So the app Wouldn’t let me book my inlaws IAS LL this morning for ROTR or MMRR. First park day with them, we started Friday.

I recall reading others having this issue but thought it was a glitch, how are parties on different reservations supposed to ride together if this isn’t allowed?

I took screenshots and will bring to GET but it seems like a weird thing not to allow.

then I had to also add the stupid email code  which made my next 2 LLs much later than I wanted for MMRR and TOT…


----------



## JakeAZ

Anyone else have their app crash this morning for the 7am genie money grab?  Booked jungle cruise right at 7. Got 940-1040. Then the app crashed. Multiple email code requests. Once it finally came back, it showed my genie JC reservation for 2pm!!  A little while later it showed correct again, but keeps bouncing around. So I took some screenshots when it bounced to the correct time.
Genie + on a crowded day….so far, it’s a nightmare and, at least in my case, Disney IT couldn’t handle the rush.


----------



## Sydnerella

cgattis said:


> Any tips on what to do if your reservation (specifically Sean/Dolphin—posted on that resort thread too) comes unlinked sometime between when you go to bed and when you wake up for the next day’s Genie and IAS purchase if you can’t re-link it yourself??? Had that happen this morning and lost my chance to IAS Rise. Called the number that popped up in the app but got disconnected. Called back and said 160 minute wait. Guest relations, when I went in person, just basically said “thems the breaks.” (BTW it eventually let me re-link it myself after a few hours but too late to get any IAS we wanted.) Anybody know the magic number to call if that happens again???


 
Thank you for posting this I just tried to book my in-laws individual paid attractions and they are booked at the Swan starting today and are driving here from another location in Florida. I am wondering if this is the issue and reason I was not able to book their’s. I asked them to check and make sure the reservation is linked.


----------



## tguz

Katherine Brock said:


> We went for 8 days and only wound up purchasing the Lightning Lane pass for three of the days as the wait times weren’t too bad.


That is good to hear.  I hope to not purchase it at all.  I have seen posts where wait times at the attractions were listed as 60 minutes but were really only 20.....if that is the case, we won't be purchasing except maybe a LL for Remy's, we really want to do that.


----------



## kappyfamily

Sydnerella said:


> Did the post-window 15 minute grace period get reduced to 5 minutes in the past week?


Nope! We tapped in at the 14 minute late mark at jungle cruise last night with no problem.


----------



## CarolynFH

meghanmione said:


> Oh that's good to know!! We will be getting to the park late so it may just be best for us to see how the rides are. We do wish to do Soarin' and others that are on Genie+ that evening. Do you think we should still purchase Genie+ and keep refreshing until later times become available or just see how it is upon arrival?


If I knew I wouldn’t be getting to the park until later, especially Epcot where many rides have relatively short standby lines, I wouldn’t buy Genie+ until I was there or close enough there to see that standby times were long enough to make the purchase worthwhile and that the available Genie+ LL times would work for us. If I could, I might monitor Genie+ LL times through the day as I traveled, but of course if I’m flying I wouldn’t be able to do that.


----------



## wisblue

meghanmione said:


> Oh that's good to know!! We will be getting to the park late so it may just be best for us to see how the rides are. We do wish to do Soarin' and others that are on Genie+ that evening. Do you think we should still purchase Genie+ and keep refreshing until later times become available or just see how it is upon arrival?



if you’re arriving in the late afternoon and Soarin is your top priority, you might not need Genie+ unless you are visiting at a peak time.

On our visit last week Soarin often had posted wait times of 20-30 minutes in the late afternoon and early evening, and the actual waits were probably less than that. All of the other Genie+ attractions except for Test Track were virtual walk on.

If you do want to do TT, you could purchase Genie+ in the morning and wait to book TT until the return time is late enough to fit your arrival. That might happen between 7 and 9 AM or a little later. If you do that, you could book another LL for Soarin 2 hours after Epcot opens if it is still available. 

After those two any LL reservations you get might not save you much time.


----------



## Disturbia

We were arriving late afternoon, but AA cancelled our flights, so if flying and you’re reasonably sure you can make it in the evening, I would book 2 LLIA$ only (late evening Epcot).  I think GET can help with issuing a pass for another day or something if you are unable to use them (for height restriction-FOP, ride closure, etc).  Genie+ would not have been refunded.

After 2 pm the Canada/France area gets crowded (esp, during the festivals) where it took us a while to navigate the crowd.  Budget 15 extra mins to get to Remy.  Soarin took 30 mins with LL.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

Today is a crowd level 10 day in all four parks, according to TP.  As of 1:00, LL availability is absolutely dismal.  Virtually nothing available in any of the parks.  Those few rides that are not sold out have return times at the very end of the day.

On the one hand, Genie+ will get you one or two skips of long lines, which is definitely worth something on a crazy crowded day.  But on the other hand, Genie+ really doesn't help you to get your money's worth out of your vacation.  Things were demonstrably better under FP+, where you could at least get three line skips, lined up well in advance and at the times that you desired.  And that was free.

I know that this thread is only about tips and strategy, not griping or crying over spilled milk.  So I guess the strategy takeaways are these:

(1) On crowded days, don't expect much from Genie+.  There is no substitute for arriving very early for rope drop (and staying on site).  And steel yourself for long lines no matter what.

(2) On crowded days, the best use of Genie+ is to park hop, and to use all of your LLs in your second park.  You should be able to get decent selections at 7:00 and 11:00.  That at least gets you two LL rides.  And maybe a third, non-particularly-desirable one lined up at 1:00.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Grasshopper2016 said:


> Today is a crowd level 10 day in all four parks, according to TP.  As of 1:00, LL availability is absolutely dismal.  Virtually nothing available in any of the parks.  Those few rides that are not sold out have return times at the very end of the day.
> 
> On the one hand, Genie+ will get you one or two skips of long lines, which is definitely worth something on a crazy crowded day.  But on the other hand, Genie+ really doesn't help you to get your money's worth out of your vacation.  Things were demonstrably better under FP+, where you could at least get three line skips, lined up well in advance and at the times that you desired.  And that was free.
> 
> I know that this thread is only about tips and strategy, not griping or crying over spilled milk.  So I guess the strategy takeaways are these:
> 
> (1) On crowded days, don't expect much from Genie+.  There is no substitute for arriving very early for rope drop (and staying on site).  And steel yourself for long lines no matter what.
> 
> (2) On crowded days, the best use of Genie+ is to park hop, and to use all of your LLs in your second park.  You should be able to get decent selections at 7:00 and 11:00.  That at least gets you two LL rides.  And maybe a third, non-particularly-desirable one lined up at 1:00.


I am legitimately surprised that Disney hasn't scaled up LL availability with crowd levels.  I'm pretty sure most guests would be ok with an extra 5-10 minutes of wait time in the lightning lanes if it means that availability doesn't go poof by early afternoon.  This is a pretty big fail by Disney.


----------



## leeniewdw

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I am legitimately surprised that Disney hasn't scaled up LL availability with crowd levels.  I'm pretty sure most guests would be ok with an extra 5-10 minutes of wait time in the lightning lanes if it means that availability doesn't go poof by early afternoon.  This is a pretty big fail by Disney.



I guess the question is, do we know they haven't?   If this is a "10" day, then perhaps waits are going to be longer for everyone regardless of the line they are in.


----------



## lynzi2004

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I am legitimately surprised that Disney hasn't scaled up LL availability with crowd levels.  I'm pretty sure most guests would be ok with an extra 5-10 minutes of wait time in the lightning lanes if it means that availability doesn't go poof by early afternoon.  This is a pretty big fail by Disney.



I won’t be surprised if they do some fine tuning before Christmas, BUT on the other hand, maybe I’ll keep my money in my pocket and just stand in line. We are going Christmas week so I’ve started taking screenshots of wait times throughout the day and watching lightening lane availability. While I would much rather have FP back, if BTMRR will stay at 60 min at 1pm during Christmas week,  maybe I will just stand in line and bear it. If they start messing with # of  LL given out for a time period, the standby may jump to 80-90 min and with the way the return times run, I still may not get one. Then I’m just stuck waiting in line longer, and not really getting much else out of it


----------



## rmclain73

Grasshopper2016 said:


> Today is a crowd level 10 day in all four parks, according to TP.  As of 1:00, LL availability is absolutely dismal.  Virtually nothing available in any of the parks.  Those few rides that are not sold out have return times at the very end of the day.
> 
> On the one hand, Genie+ will get you one or two skips of long lines, which is definitely worth something on a crazy crowded day.  But on the other hand, Genie+ really doesn't help you to get your money's worth out of your vacation.  Things were demonstrably better under FP+, where you could at least get three line skips, lined up well in advance and at the times that you desired.  And that was free.
> 
> I know that this thread is only about tips and strategy, not griping or crying over spilled milk.  So I guess the strategy takeaways are these:
> 
> (1) On crowded days, don't expect much from Genie+.  There is no substitute for arriving very early for rope drop (and staying on site).  And steel yourself for long lines no matter what.
> 
> (2) On crowded days, the best use of Genie+ is to park hop, and to use all of your LLs in your second park.  You should be able to get decent selections at 7:00 and 11:00.  That at least gets you two LL rides.  And maybe a third, non-particularly-desirable one lined up at 1:00.



Not at the park today, but playing from home and I have been pretty successful at refreshing and getting just about everything that is no longer available.  More people in the park means more changing their plans and dropping LL's.


----------



## dmunsil

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I am legitimately surprised that Disney hasn't scaled up LL availability with crowd levels.  I'm pretty sure most guests would be ok with an extra 5-10 minutes of wait time in the lightning lanes if it means that availability doesn't go poof by early afternoon.  This is a pretty big fail by Disney.


LL already is using 80% of ride capacity (with some exceptions, mostly shows), and they apparently don’t feel they can go any higher without negative effects. The rides have the capacity they have. There’s no real way to add more LL availability without adding attractions. Increasing the park hours helps, but I suspect they’re constrained by availability of staff.


----------



## wisblue

rmclain73 said:


> Not at the park today, but playing from home and I have been pretty successful at refreshing and getting just about everything that is no longer available.  More people in the park means more changing their plans and dropping LL's.



I would be cautious about expecting too much from refreshing.

When we were in the parks last week I didn’t want to spend a lot of time parked on the phone refreshing, but a couple of times if I was back at the resort or in a line waiting for something I tried to see if I could snag something that was either unavailable or had a return time later than I wanted.

I only tried to refresh if I was eligible to make a LL selection or if I had made a reservation that I didn’t mind losing. For example, on one day I was trying to get an evening LL for MFSR after it showed as no more availability for the day. More than once a time popped up, I clicked on it, but the next screen said there was no availability. Presumably that means that a time popped up and somebody else beat me to it.

The lesson is that just because you see a time come up when you’re playing at home doesn’t mean that you’d be able to book that time if you were on site and had purchased Genie+. And, if you had to cancel an existing reservation first and then try to get the other one, the chances that it would be gone would be that much higher, and you might not be able to get the one you cancelled back.


----------



## CBMom01

rmclain73 said:


> Not at the park today, but playing from home and I have been pretty successful at refreshing and getting just about everything that is no longer available.  More people in the park means more changing their plans and dropping LL's.


This is 100% true. I don’t see it as anything different from refreshing to jump on fast pass+ that pops up. Just, you know, super expensive


----------



## rmclain73

wisblue said:


> I would be cautious about expecting too much from refreshing.
> 
> When we were in the parks last week I didn’t want to spend a lot of time parked on the phone refreshing, but a couple of times if I was back at the resort or in a line waiting for something I tried to see if I could snag something that was either unavailable or had a return time later than I wanted.
> 
> I only tried to refresh if I was eligible to make a LL selection or if I had made a reservation that I didn’t mind losing. For example, on one day I was trying to get an evening LL for MFSR after it showed as no more availability for the day. More than once a time popped up, I clicked on it, but the next screen said there was no availability. Presumably that means that a time popped up and somebody else beat me to it.
> 
> The lesson is that just because you see a time come up when you’re playing at home doesn’t mean that you’d be able to book that time if you were on site and had purchased Genie+. And, if you had to cancel an existing reservation first and then try to get the other one, the chances that it would be gone would be that much higher, and you might not be able to get the one you cancelled back.



Sorry refresh did not work out well for you when you were in the parks.  I have to say that when I was in the parks my experience with using refresh was much better and I was always able to grab something sooner.  I never would cancel a LL in the hopes to get a new one.  I was always able to refresh to get something sooner prior to booking the attraction.


----------



## Mango7100

rmclain73 said:


> Not at the park today, but playing from home and I have been pretty successful at refreshing and getting just about everything that is no longer available.  More people in the park means more changing their plans and dropping LL's.


I did a little experiment today. At 703 I got on to look at HS. Both SDD and Rise showed unavailable. Smugglers was showing 7 ish return time. I refreshed 20 times and got 4-5 SDD to pop up and 3-4 Rise. Smugglers bounced to a bit earlier. At 715 I tried again and refreshed 10 times. Got 2 SDD but never a Rise. Of course I didn’t book these so I don’t know if they would still be available in the time it takes to select and confirm… I think refreshing is harder now because you have to gamble and cancel instead of modifying like FP. Last week we had some refresh success but not nearly as much as we did with FP previously


----------



## DisneyKidds

Grasshopper2016 said:


> (2) On crowded days, the best use of Genie+ is to park hop, and to use all of your LLs in your second park.  You should be able to get decent selections at 7:00 and 11:00.  That at least gets you two LL rides.  And maybe a third, non-particularly-desirable one lined up at 1:00.


That’s my concern, that when things truly get busy you can only really get three G+LL selections….which means you are now paying $16 pp extra for what you essentially had under FP+.  At least now you can get TT/Soarin’ or RnR/ToT so I can see getting some effective hop stacks….but you still have tiering because the ILL$ attractions aren’t included.  G+ should be useful, but at an added price…..making it hard to view as an improvement.  Take what you can get I suppose!


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

dmunsil said:


> LL already is using 80% of ride capacity (with some exceptions, mostly shows), and they apparently don’t feel they can go any higher without negative effects. The rides have the capacity they have. There’s no real way to add more LL availability without adding attractions. Increasing the park hours helps, but I suspect they’re constrained by availability of staff.


They could add more LL capacity by allowing LL wait times to increase. LL appear to move much faster then fp lines didn’t


----------



## cgattis

JakeAZ said:


> Anyone else have their app crash this morning for the 7am genie money grab?  Booked jungle cruise right at 7. Got 940-1040. Then the app crashed. Multiple email code requests. Once it finally came back, it showed my genie JC reservation for 2pm!!  A little while later it showed correct again, but keeps bouncing around. So I took some screenshots when it bounced to the correct time.
> Genie + on a crowded day….so far, it’s a nightmare and, at least in my case, Disney IT couldn’t handle the rush.


Yeah, yesterday was my day. Sorry today was your day  This app crashes SO much and it’s horrendous to get a signal or any WiFi in so many of the ride buildings. When you’re standing in hour standby lines and can’t make your next LL, it just gets ridiculous. I’m glad we finally got to see Galaxy’s Edge, but I’m really regretting making this a full 7-day trip and not just a weekend. We literally rode four rides at Epcot (five if you count that we did Remy twice, one BG and one ILL) in seven hours at Epcot today. Just horrendous. (Not to mention the absolute ridiculousness of having 100 food booths closed Thanksgiving week with lines an hour deep at fast food and 30+ minutes at carts.)

Also (and I know I’m way off topic), customer service has been atrocious as I’ve tried to get my dining res issues fixed because this worthless app has them locked up. Ugh.

So as far as strategy, I’d say get there at rope drop and be prepared to stand in long lines or pay $$ to maybe reduce that a little…..but don’t expect much.


----------



## twodogs

dmunsil said:


> LL already is using 80% of ride capacity (with some exceptions, mostly shows), and they apparently don’t feel they can go any higher without negative effects. The rides have the capacity they have. There’s no real way to add more LL availability without adding attractions. Increasing the park hours helps, but I suspect they’re constrained by availability of staff.


If this is the capacity that they have via the LLs, then they should cap the number of G+ that they sell per day to stay in line with the expectations of buying a shorter wait time via G+.  Disney has an incredible amount of data about ride through-put, they know exactly how many tickets they have sold for the day via the park reservation system (at least for the first park), and since you have to put your dates in when you buy your tickets, they can generally know how many G+ they can sell each day before the experience degrades to the point of not being worth it at all to the guest.  I understand that at busier times, LLs will be more difficult to get (as it was with FP+ and MP).  What I don't expect is that there is literally almost zero LL availability at 1pm in any park on a day like today (or any day).  I spot checked it today, and saw the same thing as OP saw.  I refreshed for MFSR about 100 tries, and nothing ever came up.  I am not in the parks but we have plans to be there the weekend before Christmas.  I am hoping I don't regret purchasing G+ with our tickets.


----------



## wisblue

Mango7100 said:


> I did a little experiment today. At 703 I got on to look at HS. Both SDD and Rise showed unavailable. Smugglers was showing 7 ish return time. I refreshed 20 times and got 4-5 SDD to pop up and 3-4 Rise. Smugglers bounced to a bit earlier. At 715 I tried again and refreshed 10 times. Got 2 SDD but never a Rise. Of course I didn’t book these so I don’t know if they would still be available in the time it takes to select and confirm… I think refreshing is harder now because you have to gamble and cancel instead of modifying like FP. Last week we had some refresh success but not nearly as much as we did with FP previously



I think refreshing might be more effective in those early minutes because others are grabbing something right at 7 and then switching to something else.  

Success at refreshing obviously also depends on how much time you’re willing to devote to it and/or being lucky. 

This afternoon from home I refreshed 100 times looking for something for SDD and no time ever showed up.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

twodogs said:


> they should cap the number of G+ that they sell per day to stay in line with the expectations of buying a shorter wait time via G+


Agree 100%.  But Disney has already announced that G+ will never sell out.  Why leave money on the table, when the whole point is to make as much money as possible?

I watched the Defunctland video posted in this thread:
https://www.disboards.com/threads/deep-dive-into-fastpass-genie-on-defunctland.3861000/
At one point, it talks about how FP+ was originally intended simply to improve the guest experience. There was no obvious way that it would increase revenues, but senior management still invested a billion dollars in it simply because it would make the parks a better place (and in the long run, happy customers are more likely to come back, and more likely to recommend the place to their friends). 

How things have changed!


----------



## dmunsil

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> They could add more LL capacity by allowing LL wait times to increase. LL appear to move much faster then fp lines didn’t



I know that sounds like it would work, but it actually wouldn't help. In order for Lightning Lane to work, they have to match the number of reservations to the actual capacity pretty closely. If they give out 10% more LL reservations but don't actually let any more people onto the ride from the Lightning Lane, the Lightning Lane just slowly gets longer and longer and longer. 

The core limitation is always ride capacity. They only have so many rides per hour for each attraction, and once the ride is at 100% capacity, that's just it. They can only allocate so much of it to Lightning Lane before things get out of whack.

Part of the reason they only give out 80% of the ride capacity is they need some extra slack to handle things like VIP tours, "anytime" passes given out when rides go down, DAS and guest recovery passes. Those use up Lightning Lane capacity as well, and when all of them put together add up to more than 100% of the actual ride capacity things really start breaking badly. Disney experimented with pushing above 80% and it was... not good.


----------



## dmunsil

twodogs said:


> If this is the capacity that they have via the LLs, then they should cap the number of G+ that they sell per day to stay in line with the expectations of buying a shorter wait time via G+.



I would go further: they should set the overal park reservations cap lower. Genie+ or no, it's unreasonable to sell so many tickets that the average guest can only experience 3 or 4 attractions in a normal day.

If there are a ton of people using Genie+, yes, they each get fewer LL reservations, but typically they are saving _massive_ amounts of time per ride. On a day that Slinky Dog sells out in a couple minutes, the wait times can get up in the 1.5 - 2 hour range. I'm going to say that for many people, saving one 2 hour wait could be worth $15. The measure of the value of Genie+, IMO, is not how many rides you get Genie+ reservations for, it's how many minutes of line waiting you avoid.

I would be curious, actually, how much that number varies between different levels of crowding. It may be that the number of minutes in line avoided varies much less than the number of rides experienced.


----------



## katyringo

Short tik tok on refreshing.
https://vm.tiktok.com/TTPd2fAGbE/
I think if you are in the parks on a super duper busy day and LL are out.. you could use this method by pinning what you are hoping for and refresh refresh refresh.

also living by Disney reports that in DHS even though early entry is technically 30minutes- they are regularly opening rise and galaxy's edge an hour early. I still think my strategy is to early entry rope drop SDD - use indivual lightning lanes for rise and MMRR- and to make my first genie+ for TT.

I think it's worth it to get to HS EARLY.- 90 minute before official park opening.


----------



## cgattis

katyringo said:


> Short tik tok on refreshing.
> https://vm.tiktok.com/TTPd2fAGbE/
> I think if you are in the parks on a super duper busy day and LL are out.. you could use this method by pinning what you are hoping for and refresh refresh refresh.
> 
> also living by Disney reports that in DHS even though early entry is technically 30minutes- they are regularly opening rise and galaxy's edge an hour early. I still think my strategy is to early entry rope drop SDD - use indivual lightning lanes for rise and MMRR- and to make my first genie+ for TT.
> 
> I think it's worth it to get to HS EARLY.- 90 minute before official park opening.


Based on our experience yesterday in HS, I think you’re dead on. We left the Dolphin by boat at 7:30 and by the time we arrived, we were sent straight on in, and the Rise line was already formed out past the entrance tunnel and turned the corner down the street. We were in the room with Rey and BB-8 at 8:23, so obviously it was open earlier than advertised.


----------



## AZMermaid

katyringo said:


> Short tik tok on refreshing.
> https://vm.tiktok.com/TTPd2fAGbE/
> I think if you are in the parks on a super duper busy day and LL are out.. you could use this method by pinning what you are hoping for and refresh refresh refresh.
> 
> also living by Disney reports that in DHS even though early entry is technically 30minutes- they are regularly opening rise and galaxy's edge an hour early. I still think my strategy is to early entry rope drop SDD - use indivual lightning lanes for rise and MMRR- and to make my first genie+ for TT.
> 
> I think it's worth it to get to HS EARLY.- 90 minute before official park opening.


This is our plan. I noticed MF stays reasonable until 9/9:15 (under 30 min). Today the G+ were gone or very spotty with refresh after 8:30AM, maybe earlier. So we are going to get there early and head to MF after hopefully being early in the slinky line. Then after tapping into TT, we’ll get TSMM. I think, haha.


----------



## JenLT

I know I can use Genie + for a park I’m hopping to in the afternoon.  But can I use it for two parks in the same day?   We’ll be going to Ak and later to Epcot. Can I get a ride in AK and then switch to Epcot?   Once I’ve gotten a ride at Epcot, does that mean I can’t get any additional times for AK?


----------



## kappyfamily

FYI By 7:07am today Navi River and the Safari both are at 3pm return times for LL.

Edit: looks like at around 7:20am they released a new batch because now both are at a return of noon.


----------



## emilymad

katyringo said:


> Short tik tok on refreshing.
> https://vm.tiktok.com/TTPd2fAGbE/
> I think if you are in the parks on a super duper busy day and LL are out.. you could use this method by pinning what you are hoping for and refresh refresh refresh.
> 
> also living by Disney reports that in DHS even though early entry is technically 30minutes- they are regularly opening rise and galaxy's edge an hour early. I still think my strategy is to early entry rope drop SDD - use indivual lightning lanes for rise and MMRR- and to make my first genie+ for TT.
> 
> I think it's worth it to get to HS EARLY.- 90 minute before official park opening.



I think this is my plan as well.  We go next week and I still expect some crowds.  I am just not seeing how G+ helps you at HS unless you are hoping to it or planning to stay all day.  We only plan a half day so rope dropping SDD is our plan I think.


----------



## katyringo

I played along at home
Today since I had to be awake anyway. Slinky was gone in 1 minute. I screen recorded but I'm not sure how to upload a video here..


----------



## wisblue

I was at DHS for early entry on 2 different days last week.

On both days I started on Sunset Boulevard to ride RNRC and TOT first. I bought IALL for ROTR one day and used Genie+ for SDD one day and MFSR the other day so I could avoid the mass rushes to those attractions.

On Monday they led guests to the queues at TOT and RNRC at exactly 8:30 and on Thursday they did it at 8:20. It does make me wonder if they will be opening attractions earlier than the official 30 minutes before opening when they expect very high crowds.

On both days we were in the first elevator at TOT. On Monday we were through with both rides in 25 minutes and on Thursday it was 20 minutes.

I agree with trying to arrive at DHS 90 minutes before official opening when they first open the security lines and gates. Going down Sunset Boulevard is much more relaxing that joining the hordes heading to Galaxy’s Edge and Toy Story Land.


----------



## wisblue

JenLT said:


> I know I can use Genie + for a park I’m hopping to in the afternoon.  But can I use it for two parks in the same day?   We’ll be going to Ak and later to Epcot. Can I get a ride in AK and then switch to Epcot?   Once I’ve gotten a ride at Epcot, does that mean I can’t get any additional times for AK?



Yes, you can get Genie+ LL for two parks in a day.

Getting one at a second park does not preclude you from getting another one at the first park.

You are probably aware that Genie+ will only let you make LL for returns after 2 PM for a park that you are hopping to. But, you can book those reservations at any time.


----------



## Mango7100

Did another experiment today. Both Rise and SDD were gone at 702. I refreshed constantly for 5 minutes. I got 2 slinky to pop up and never got a Rise. Smugglers bounced around, but toward the end of the 5 minutes it was showing not available.


----------



## DisneyKidds

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I am legitimately surprised that Disney hasn't scaled up LL availability with crowd levels.  I'm pretty sure most guests would be ok with an extra 5-10 minutes of wait time in the lightning lanes if it means that availability doesn't go poof by early afternoon.  This is a pretty big fail by Disney.


Scale up LL availability?  Silly you ….this is Cheapek’s Disney now and surely that means they will scale up price before they scale up availability!

Then again, if they can get from 1/3 to 1/2 of “guests upgrading to Genie+” before they up the price Cheapek would have a bigger pile of cash to Scrooge McDuck himself in.

Sorry, to keep my own thread on topic, I believe I will have to work a higher price than $15.98 pp into my triple hop stacking plans should I implement them next summer.


----------



## acebatonfan

I'm heading out next Friday and am keeping an eye on this thread. Since it's only a two-person trip we splurged for Genie+. I'm surprised they don't include events like fireworks/CP as genie+ options, especially when it would be a quick and relatively simple way to use up selections without really affecting ride times... or it might just be me being a little bitter about being unable to snag a CP dining package. Our arrival day is Epcot, so it'll be interesting using a "slower" park to play around with the mechanics and some of the tricks (especially stacking).

Worst comes to worst, it's just waking up at 7AM anyways to take my meds and have my coffee, relax, and making our first selection one of our must-dos. It might even make scheduling afternoon breaks and downtime a little bit easier since I could essentially say I am back to BLT from MK from 1300 to 1600, make a reservation for after 1600, and then use the 120 minute rule to stack reservations until the evening is roughly planned out (_assuming availability). _


----------



## DisneyKidds

CBMom01 said:


> This is 100% true. I don’t see it as anything different from refreshing to jump on fast pass+ that pops up. Just, you know, super expensive


Except FP+ you could modify the existing reservation, whereas with G+ you have to cancel.  As wisblue pointed out above, at least in the afternoon, cancelling for a pop up reservation seems like folly because you are likely to walk away empty handed….and still super expensive.


----------



## TropicalDIS

Slinky and Rise are insane. Just back from the World on Sunday and did two days at HS.

Day 1: Went for Rise first, got it no issues. Then tried to get SDD, gone by 7:04. Kept refreshing, at 7:10, more times popped up, and I was able to grab 3:30-4:30.

Day 2: Went for SDD first, got it for 3:15-4:15, completely gone by 7:02. 

I'll continue to say this, but Genie is a must for HS. Also paid for Rise and MMRR, which made HS an expensive park day, but we nailed everything we wanted in about 6 hours, made it a very pleasant day.


----------



## DisneyKidds

TropicalDIS said:


> Day 1: Went for Rise first, got it no issues. Then tried to get SDD, gone by 7:04. Kept refreshing, at 7:10, more times popped up, and I was able to grab 3:30-4:30.


Isn’t that how everyone wants to start a day of their vacation…..waking up at the crack of dawn so they can spend the first 10 (or more) bleary eyed (no time for coffee yet) minutes of their day staring at their phone to hopefully (but maybe not) get G+LL reservations that suit their “Magical “ Disney day?

Note to self…Summer usage strategy updated.  Wake 6:30, throw on clothes, procure coffee, LL dance 7:00 to 7:15.


----------



## TropicalDIS

DisneyKidds said:


> Isn’t that how everyone wants to start a day of their vacation…..waking up at the crack of dawn so they can spend the first 10 (or more) bleary eyed (no time for coffee yet) minutes of their day staring at their phone to hopefully (but maybe not) get G+LL reservations that suit their “Magical “ Disney day?
> 
> Note to self…Summer usage strategy updated.  Wake 6:30, throw on clothes, procure coffee, LL dance 7:00 to 7:15.



Haha. Too true. Mine was more of a wake up at 6:50 plan. Coffee would have been helpful for sure!!


----------



## OhDannyBoy

I hope availability is better in February. Or at least lines are a bit shorter.


----------



## MGD2007

On my arrival day, I plan to arrive at HS (my actual first park of the day) around 4pm.  I thought it would be smart to schedule another park reservation that day, so Genie would only show me LL return times after 2pm and I wouldn't have watch the LL times as much while I'm enroute to the airport.  But now I'm thinking I won't be able to "park hop" to HS if I don't scan in to my first scheduled park that day, correct?  My brain is fried!!


----------



## katyringo

MGD2007 said:


> On my arrival day, I plan to arrive at HS (my actual first park of the day) around 4pm.  I thought it would be smart to schedule another park reservation that day, so Genie would only show me LL return times after 2pm and I wouldn't have watch the LL times as much while I'm enroute to the airport.  But now I'm thinking I won't be able to "park hop" to HS if I don't scan in to my first scheduled park that day, correct?  My brain is fried!!



correct.
You would be better to just watch the times on genie+ then deal with having to scan into your first park.


----------



## 570traveler

Here now. At AK. Tried the refresh. Even if times would reappear, once you click to book, they are no longer available.  So don’t assume because a time appears for a sold out LL or $LL you can get them 
And lines are very long at Safari and FOP


----------



## Luisfba

TropicalDIS said:


> Slinky and Rise are insane. Just back from the World on Sunday and did two days at HS.
> 
> Day 1: Went for Rise first, got it no issues. Then tried to get SDD, gone by 7:04. Kept refreshing, at 7:10, more times popped up, and I was able to grab 3:30-4:30.
> 
> Day 2: Went for SDD first, got it for 3:15-4:15, completely gone by 7:02.
> 
> I'll continue to say this, but Genie is a must for HS. Also paid for Rise and MMRR, which made HS an expensive park day, but we nailed everything we wanted in about 6 hours, made it a very pleasant day.



When doing an ILL$, about how much time does it take to go through the process before we can get on and try to grab a regular G+?  Asking because if I'm going for both a Rise and an SDD.. wondering if it's better to do SDD first, then Rise since SDD is selling out within less than a minute it seems (30 seconds?).

My other issue is on arrival day I would love SDD but it would have to be 6pm or later for it to work.  My strategy was going to be to wait some time (15 seconds?) to refresh and grab whatever shows then.  Then if I get shut out then just get MFSR.  Then move on to ROTR.


----------



## MGD2007

Luisfba said:


> When doing an ILL$, about how much time does it take to go through the process before we can get on and try to grab a regular G+? Asking because if I'm going for both a Rise and an SDD.. wondering if it's better to do SDD first, then Rise since SDD is selling out within less than a minute it seems (30 seconds?).



From what I've read, the prevailing wisdom (if you are staying on property), is to grab your G+ selection first, then move onto ILL$ purchases.


----------



## GBRforWDW

MGD2007 said:


> On my arrival day, I plan to arrive at HS (my actual first park of the day) around 4pm.  I thought it would be smart to schedule another park reservation that day, so Genie would only show me LL return times after 2pm and I wouldn't have watch the LL times as much while I'm enroute to the airport.  But now I'm thinking I won't be able to "park hop" to HS if I don't scan in to my first scheduled park that day, correct?  My brain is fried!!





katyringo said:


> correct.
> You would be better to just watch the times on genie+ then deal with having to scan into your first park.


Would you be able to hit the international gateway at Epcot, then hit the skyliner or walk back to DHS?  Would eat up 20 minutes but would accomplish what you need to do.


----------



## MGD2007

GBRforWDW said:


> Would you be able to hit the international gateway at Epcot, then hit the skyliner or walk back to DHS?  Would eat up 20 minutes but would accomplish what you need to do.



I'm staying at AK Lodge, so probably more trouble than it's worth....would maybe attempt it if I was staying at the Beach Club. Add my voice the the chorus of those who dislike the park reservation system!


----------



## Luisfba

GBRforWDW said:


> Would you be able to hit the international gateway at Epcot, then hit the skyliner or walk back to DHS?  Would eat up 20 minutes but would accomplish what you need to do.



That's actually going to be my plan for my DHS day.  Staying at Boardwalk so I think it allows me to start building stacks at DHS with a EC park res, sleep in (well, kids sleep in), leisurely head into EC via the IG, late lunch somewhere on WS, gondola to HS for an afternoon/evening type thing.  Seems a lot more fun than doing the rope drop at DHS to have the 1-2 rides + maybe an early LL, but then a big dead zone of LL's until mid afternoon.


----------



## katyringo

Just watched another tik tok with an intersting take on HS..

she said to of course rope drop a must,using the indivual lightning lanes.. but then dedicate your mornings to shows while you stack genie+ for afternoon evening.

probably not my style but an interesting take


----------



## lynzi2004

Which goes first...Navi or Safari? Going to be park hopping there, not sure which one I should book first.


----------



## leeniewdw

TropicalDIS said:


> Slinky and Rise are insane. Just back from the World on Sunday and did two days at HS.
> 
> Day 1: Went for Rise first, got it no issues. Then tried to get SDD, gone by 7:04. Kept refreshing, at 7:10, more times popped up, and I was able to grab 3:30-4:30.
> 
> Day 2: Went for SDD first, got it for 3:15-4:15, completely gone by 7:02.
> 
> I'll continue to say this, but Genie is a must for HS. Also paid for Rise and MMRR, which made HS an expensive park day, but we nailed everything we wanted in about 6 hours, made it a very pleasant day.



So conventional wisdom would be to book SDD first, then try for ILL$ for Rise?   We arrive late next week and have an afternoon/evening at HS, so wanting to try for those if possible.   We can be (presuming now flight delays of 4 hours or more!) in HS any time after 1 or 2, but would probably prefer timeslots around 4-5.


----------



## MikeandReneePlus5

Mango7100 said:


> Did another experiment today. Both Rise and SDD were gone at 702. I refreshed constantly for 5 minutes. I got 2 slinky to pop up and never got a Rise. Smugglers bounced around, but toward the end of the 5 minutes it was showing not available.



I thought Rise was only available as a LL$ purchase?  Are you saying those were gone by 7:02?


----------



## Tom_E_D

lynzi2004 said:


> Which goes first...Navi or Safari? Going to be park hopping there, not sure which one I should book first.


For at least the last few days, it has been Safaris. I'm basing "goes first" on when it first disappears, even if it temporarily reappears later. Here's a link to Thrill Data's AK page from yesterday. The Lightning Lane Availability Map is the third graph on the page. There are Previous Day and Next Day buttons on the top of the page if you want to check other dates..


----------



## twodogs

Grasshopper2016 said:


> Agree 100%.  But Disney has already announced that G+ will never sell out.  Why leave money on the table, when the whole point is to make as much money as possible?



So if this is the case, the value of G+ degrades terribly just when the guest needs it the most, on a very crowded day.  It not only degrades because crowds will overall be higher, but because Disney gives a "relief valve" to guests of spending money on G+ to get around some of the crowds, but they don't limit the number who can purchase G+, thereby making it just an expensive, slightly shorter stand-by-like line, for 1-3 rides per day.  I can't imagine people will continue to pay for it if this remains the model, but then again, Disney seems to find a bottomless market no matter what it does.


----------



## MikeandReneePlus5

The naming conventions are HORRIBLE.

Why not just make it "Genie" and "Lightning Lane" to distinguish between the one's you get for $15 app fee and the one's you can buy separately?

What group at Disney sat around a conference table or Zoom call and came up with "Genie+ Lightning Lane" and "Individual Lightning Lane"???


----------



## thanxfornoticin

MikeandReneePlus5 said:


> I thought Rise was only available as a LL$ purchase?  Are you saying those were gone by 7:02?


Correct that Rise is only ILL$ or standby right now.  And the reports indicated they are bought out by WDW resort guests in a few minutes some days.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

MikeandReneePlus5 said:


> The naming conventions are HORRIBLE.
> 
> Why not just make it "Genie" and "Lightning Lane" to distinguish between the one's you get for $15 app fee and the one's you can buy separately?
> 
> What group at Disney sat around a conference table or Zoom call and came up with "Genie+ Lightning Lane" and "Individual Lightning Lane"???


Cannot agree more.  And don't forget, the update to MDE when this rolled out is called Genie!  That's the only free Genie - everything else costs money.


----------



## Ldisneygraham

I’m seeing reports that as of today, genie plus users can’t keep their stacks rolling and are only able to book every 120 minutes. (They can’t rebook once they tap in).  Is anyone in the parks today that can confirm?


----------



## TikiRob

Ldisneygraham said:


> I’m seeing reports that as of today, genie plus users can’t keep their stacks rolling and are only able to book every 120 minutes. (They can’t rebook once they tap in).  Is anyone in the parks today that can confirm?



I was just starting to understand the rules!  I sure hope this isn't true.


----------



## elgerber

Ldisneygraham said:


> I’m seeing reports that as of today, genie plus users can’t keep their stacks rolling and are only able to book every 120 minutes. (They can’t rebook once they tap in).  Is anyone in the parks today that can confirm?


I am seeing this all over Facebook.


----------



## Mango7100

MikeandReneePlus5 said:


> I thought Rise was only available as a LL$ purchase?  Are you saying those were gone by 7:02?


Yes, Rise is an Individual purchase but it was already gone at 702 when I checked this week. We were there last week (on a supposedly lower crowd time) and Rise sold out well before 8 am both of our HS days. We were able to purchase right after doing our SDD at 7 am, so purchased at about 702-703


----------



## lorenae

Ldisneygraham said:


> I’m seeing reports that as of today, genie plus users can’t keep their stacks rolling and are only able to book every 120 minutes. (They can’t rebook once they tap in).  Is anyone in the parks today that can confirm?




I just posted about this, as I didn’t see this.   (Sorry to the mods for starting a new thread!).  That’s what I’m reading too.  Even after tapping in, they couldn’t book another ride for 120 minutes so can’t stack.


----------



## TropicalDIS

leeniewdw said:


> So conventional wisdom would be to book SDD first, then try for ILL$ for Rise?   We arrive late next week and have an afternoon/evening at HS, so wanting to try for those if possible.   We can be (presuming now flight delays of 4 hours or more!) in HS any time after 1 or 2, but would probably prefer timeslots around 4-5.



Definitely go for SDD first, unless you only have 1 day and your absolute priority is Rise. But if you want to do both, go with SDD first. The next thing about booking Rise is you can choose your time.


----------



## TropicalDIS

Luisfba said:


> When doing an ILL$, about how much time does it take to go through the process before we can get on and try to grab a regular G+?  Asking because if I'm going for both a Rise and an SDD.. wondering if it's better to do SDD first, then Rise since SDD is selling out within less than a minute it seems (30 seconds?).
> 
> My other issue is on arrival day I would love SDD but it would have to be 6pm or later for it to work.  My strategy was going to be to wait some time (15 seconds?) to refresh and grab whatever shows then.  Then if I get shut out then just get MFSR.  Then move on to ROTR.



Not long, as long as you have a credit card linked to your card, the process is pretty quick. Do SDD first, it's a little tougher than Rise because you cannot choose your time. When I did it my second day, I could have gotten 9:15 am, but I knew I couldn't be at the park that early, so I waited a couple seconds, refreshed, and SDD was already at 4:15. It goes fast.

Don't worry about MFSR, that will be there. SDD than ROTR than MFSR.


----------



## leeniewdw

re:  inability to stack...

This is huge news .   And having JUST successfully explained it to DH, figures there would be a change.   I presume this would not prevent stacking as long as you are doing it at the next time intervals?   Because if THAT changed, we're in serious trouble on our trip next week.  We're banking on having a stack when we arrive in the parks in the afternoon after traveling.

So the issue is using a 2 hour wait and booking your 2nd LL but being unable to replace LL#1 after tapping in?  But it's not preventing stacked up LLs if grabbing them every 2 hours?


----------



## Luisfba

TropicalDIS said:


> Not long, as long as you have a credit card linked to your card, the process is pretty quick. Do SDD first, it's a little tougher than Rise because you cannot choose your time. When I did it my second day, I could have gotten 9:15 am, but I knew I couldn't be at the park that early, so I waited a couple seconds, refreshed, and SDD was already at 4:15. It goes fast.
> 
> Don't worry about MFSR, that will be there. SDD than ROTR than MFSR.



cool.  and for the ILL theres a couple of screens where you confirm before it’s all done and time can change as you work through them?


----------



## Grasshopper2016

leeniewdw said:


> This is huge news imo. And having JUST successfully explained it to DH, figure there would be a change. I presume this would not prevent stacking as long as you are doing it at the next time intervals? Because if THAT changed, we're in serious trouble on our trip next week. We're banking on having a stack when we arrive in the parks in the afternoon after traveling.
> 
> So the issue is using a 2 hour wait and booking your 2nd LL but being unable to replace LL#1 after tapping in? But it's not preventing stacked up LLs if grabbing them every 2 hours?


Yes, can someone better explain what change seems to have been implemented today?   If I book LL1 at 7:00 a.m. (with, say, a return time of 11:30 - 12:30), and then at 11:00 a.m. I go to book another LL (LL2), can I still do it?  Let's say that I can, and I get a return time of 3:00-4:00.  When I scan into LL1 at noon, am I no longer able to book a new LL (LL3)?  When would I be eligible again?   1:00 p.m. (two hours after my last booking)?

Alternatively, if I book LL1 at 7:00 a.m. with a return time of 9:00-10:00, and then I scan in at 9:15, would I be able to book again at 9:15, or would I have to wait until 11:00?  

In other words, what the #$%& is going on?


----------



## Grasshopper2016

Did Disney decide, "Wait a minute, some people have actually figured out a way to almost get their money's worth out of Genie+.  Let's put an end to that at once!"?


----------



## katyringo

Dang. That stinks.
It should make them last longer throughout that day tho..


----------



## leeniewdw

Grasshopper2016 said:


> Yes, can someone better explain what change seems to have been implemented today?   If I book LL1 at 7:00 a.m. (with, say, a return time of 11:30 - 12:30), and then at 11:00 a.m. I go to book another LL (LL2), can I still do it?  Let's say that I can, and I get a return time of 3:00-4:00.  When I scan into LL1 at noon, am I no longer able to book a new LL (LL3)?  When would I be eligible again?   1:00 p.m. (two hours after my last booking)?



This is how I'm reading it.   



Grasshopper2016 said:


> Alternatively, if I book LL1 at 7:00 a.m. with a return time of 9:00-10:00, and then I scan in at 9:15, would I be able to book again at 9:15, or would I have to wait until 11:00?
> 
> In other words, what the #$%& is going on?



Good question!  

It's important to know if the limiter is 2 hours since last reservation or holding 2 LLs at a time.   It *sounds* like you can get a 2nd LL in your "stack" initially, but the "tap in" does not make you eligible again.   This is all confusing, but this seems to make scheduling later afternoon/evening LLs even more valuable because you can use the entire morning to stack.   But you can't establish a stack and cycle thru as originally could.

Like stacking is possible if you are scheduling 5-6 hours into the day, but if you try to establish a 2 LL stack in the morning, you're going to single thread it after you ride your first ride.


----------



## katyringo

Ldisneygraham said:


> I’m seeing reports that as of today, genie plus users can’t keep their stacks rolling and are only able to book every 120 minutes. (They can’t rebook once they tap in).  Is anyone in the parks today that can confirm?


Can you share where you are seeing these reports? Just want to read and see for myself. Thank DS!


----------



## Luisfba

[


leeniewdw said:


> This is how I'm reading it.
> 
> 
> 
> Good question!
> 
> It's important to know if the limiter is 2 hours since last reservation or holding 2 LLs at a time.   It *sounds* like you can get a 2nd LL in your "stack" initially, but the "tap in" does not make you eligible again.   This is all confusing, but this seems to make scheduling later afternoon/evening LLs even more valuable because you can use the entire morning to stack.   But you can't establish a stack and cycle thru as originally could.
> 
> Like stacking is possible if you are scheduling 5-6 hours into the day, but if you try to establish a 2 LL stack in the morning, you're going to single thread it after you ride your first ride.



question - is this how maxpass worked?  Perhaps they fixed the ‘hacks’ and got it closer to what maxpass was?


----------



## Ldisneygraham

katyringo said:


> Can you share where you are seeing these reports? Just want to read and see for myself. Thank DS!


The FB genie plus group is where I’ve seen the posts.


----------



## katyringo

Luisfba said:


> [
> 
> 
> question - is this how maxpass worked?  Perhaps they fixed the ‘hacks’ and got it closer to what maxpass was?



yeah this is how maxpass worked but with a shorter cool off time. (90minutes... and sometimes reported shorter in the morning)
I need calcification:

if park opened at 9 and your genie was from 9-10 and you tap in at 930 then you can make another section right?

you would only be waiting until 11 if
You had your return time after 11


----------



## Grasshopper2016

Grasshopper2016 said:


> Did Disney decide, "Wait a minute, some people have actually figured out a way to almost get their money's worth out of Genie+. Let's put an end to that at once!"?


As the person who posted this snarky comment, let me expand on and partially retract it.  Here's what I suspect Disney was thinking (assuming that any of this is even happening):

It turns out that, on very crowded days, all of the good LL slots are gone by mid-day.  This is going to lead to a lot of complaints with Guest Services.  And, more importantly, it will lead people to stop buying Genie+, since its value is not nearly as great as our promotional materials suggest. 

What can we do about it?

Well, we could limit sales of Genie+, just like we do with sales of ILL$.  That way, everyone who buys it is guaranteed to get reasonable value from it.  But that's a non-starter.  We are trying to make as much money as possible from this program, and we simply refuse to leave any money on the table.

So instead, let's limit the ability of some people to effectively "hoard" LL slots, thus depriving others of the ability to get more than one or two halfway decent ones.  That will greatly reduce the value of Genie+ for those who learned how to make the most of it.  But it will marginally increase the value for everyone else.  And, more importantly, when people look at LL availability on their phones, things will look better, and they will be more willing to buy Genie+.  More money in our pockets.  Of course, the more we sell, the lower the value for each user.  But that's just not our priority.


----------



## AZMermaid

Max pass you could also book a new one as soon as your window opened. So if at 8 you booked a 9-10, you could book again at 9. If you booked a 11-12, you could book again at 9:30 (90 min later).


----------



## Grasshopper2016

If Disney is not willing to limit sales of Genie+, I would honestly prefer to see dynamic pricing, like with ILL$, rather than these efforts to spread the wealth.   At some point, you spread the mayo so thin that it no longer makes your sandwich any less dry.   

I would rather have the option of paying $30 for a service that will actually help me to skip the lines in a meaningful way than feel compelled to spend $15 (since everyone else is) for a service that doesn't help much at all.


----------



## Orsino

In terms of vocabulary, I'd like a clarification on "stacking" versus "double stacking."
My understanding was, people "stacked" G+LL for the afternoon by using the 7am, open+2, open+4 to have a 'stack' of G+LL ready to go when they go to the park. I believe this is still allowed.

"double stacking," to my understanding was the practice of booking a G+LL and letting the 120 minute expire to allow the next booking (LL#2) and then booking *again* (LL#3) after tapping LL#1. I believe this form of 'stacking' is what has been removed.

(I'm not sure, I'm just reading stuff and trying to make sense of it. The word 'stacking' and 'stack' get thrown around to mean a bunch of different things, so I think we need to be clear on which is which.)

Honestly, when I first heard about 'double stacking,' I was surprised. I didn't think that was something Disney would have allowed to continue, and am not surprised it is being 'nerfed.'


----------



## leeniewdw

yeah, my first reaction to G+ was that I'm paying extra for 3 rides.  It wasn't until the reports came out about stacking that it made more sense. 

Hopefully we can first hand info on what happened today.  And it would be fascinating to know how many people were doing this to cause a noticeable impact.   If you can still stack for afternoon/evening for say, a stack of 4, how much would today's change impact LL availability?   It seems like someone stacking at 11am and then tapping in is most likely only going to have a stack of 2 of they are riding/cycling those 2 passes.  Could that many people be doing that to make an impact?


----------



## SmittS

I’m skeptical of this rumor that you can no longer make new selections at tap in.  Not seeing it anywhere else except the chatter here that is reportedly coming from Facebook.  If there’s no stacking going on, it’d be amazing that nearly all G+ LL selections are done for the day already.


----------



## jmstroud

Correct me if I'm wrong, but if there is no stacking, you could really screw up your day if you get a late LL pass for a ride like Slinky Dog.  If you get a 3:30 or 4:00 one, you can book one more at 11 (2 hours after park open) and that would pretty much be it for your day.  You could book another one at 3:30 when you tap into Slinky Dog, but what would even be left by then?

Do I have this right?


----------



## g-dad66

jmstroud said:


> Correct me if I'm wrong, but if there is no stacking, you could really screw up your day if you get a late LL pass for a ride like Slinky Dog.  If you get a 3:30 or 4:00 one, you can book one more at 11 (2 hours after park open) and that would pretty much be it for your day.  You could book another one at 3:30 when you tap into Slinky Dog, but what would even be left by then?
> 
> Do I have this right?



You could get another one at 1:00 if you haven't yet done the one you got at 11:00. (That's assuming the 120-minute rule is still in effect.)


----------



## Grasshopper2016

Maybe the new rule is this:

You can make a new LL reservation when you scan in for an existing LL reservation, UNLESS you have another unused LL reservation still in the system.  In that case, you cannot make a new LL reservation until either (1) you scan in for your final existing reservation, or (2) 120 minutes from when you last made an LL reservation.  

Is this what is happening?


----------



## dmunsil

It’s hard to tell from the Facebook reports, since most people seem to be reporting what other people have said. But it sounds like you may still be able to rebook after tapping in, as long as you tap in less than 2 hours from when you booked that specific reservation, or something along those lines. In other words, if your return time is right away, you can use it and get something else right away. Folks just aren’t able to test that today because nearly everything is 2+ hours away.

So it would work more like classic FastPass if that’s true. You get a new reservation when you tap in, OR after 2 hours, but not both. But we should know more soon.


----------



## g-dad66

dmunsil said:


> It’s hard to tell from the Facebook reports, since most people seem to be reporting what other people have said. But it sounds like you may still be able to rebook after tapping in, as long as you tap in less than 2 hours from when you booked that specific reservation, or something along those lines. In other words, if your return time is right away, you can use it and get something else right away. Folks just aren’t able to test that today because nearly everything is 2+ hours away.
> 
> So it would work more like classic FastPass if that’s true. You get a new reservation when you tap in, OR after 2 hours, but not both. But we should know more soon.



If so, this would still allow you to stack.

You just wouldn't be able to double-stack or triple-stack, etc.


----------



## DisneyKidds

SmittS said:


> I’m skeptical of this rumor that you can no longer make new selections at tap in.  Not seeing it anywhere else except the chatter here that is reportedly coming from Facebook.  If there’s no stacking going on, it’d be amazing that nearly all G+ LL selections are done for the day already.


Where there is smoke…

When I first saw the ‘grace period hack’ talked about I figured that might be something they eliminated.  Sounds like (hopefully) you can still do standard stacking.     Based on the chatter it sounds like…whether stacking or not….you now have to wait two hours after tapping in to work you LL reservation (individual or stacks)?


----------



## elgerber

dmunsil said:


> It’s hard to tell from the Facebook reports, since most people seem to be reporting what other people have said. But it sounds like you may still be able to rebook after tapping in, as long as you tap in less than 2 hours from when you booked that specific reservation, or something along those lines. In other words, if your return time is right away, you can use it and get something else right away. Folks just aren’t able to test that today because nearly everything is 2+ hours away.
> 
> So it would work more like classic FastPass if that’s true. You get a new reservation when you tap in, OR after 2 hours, but not both. But we should know more soon.


Yes that is what appears to be happening.  You can book after tap in, if you don't have another booked.
You can still book another after 2 hours, if your other window hasn't opened yet.  But if it opens right after that two hours, you won't be able to get another one until two hours after booked the other one.


----------



## DisneyKidds

elgerber said:


> Yes that is what appears to be happening.  You can book after tap in, if you don't have another booked.
> You can still book another after 2 hours, if your other window hasn't opened yet.  But if it opens right after that two hours, you won't be able to get another one until two hours after booked the other one.


Hmmm….this would mean you can make the stack, but you can’t work the stacks for new reservations when you tap.

Poopy.

So….if that’s the case then I guess I’ll be pushing for quadruple/quintuple hop stacks (if there are still LL reservations to be had at 3:00 or 5:00, and the return on stack 1 extends past 3:00 or 5:00).

Pivot THAT Cheapek!


----------



## CBMom01

TropicalDIS said:


> Slinky and Rise are insane. Just back from the World on Sunday and did two days at HS.
> 
> Day 1: Went for Rise first, got it no issues. Then tried to get SDD, gone by 7:04. Kept refreshing, at 7:10, more times popped up, and I was able to grab 3:30-4:30.
> 
> Day 2: Went for SDD first, got it for 3:15-4:15, completely gone by 7:02.
> 
> I'll continue to say this, but Genie is a must for HS. Also paid for Rise and MMRR, which made HS an expensive park day, but we nailed everything we wanted in about 6 hours, made it a very pleasant day.


HS Is a huuuuuuuuuge money sink if you do Genie+, $LL and a droid or saber. 

$107 ticket
$214 saber
$16 genie+
$24 for 2 LL
$30 food (and that’s conservative) 

You’re at almost $400 pp/day

But if like me, doing it up like that (all in) once or maybe twice in a lifetime the $16 starts to feel insignificant in the big picture


----------



## Grasshopper2016

CBMom01 said:


> $16 starts to feel insignificant in the big picture


And that's how they get you.  (And me.)


----------



## GBRforWDW

Grasshopper2016 said:


> And that's how they get you.  (And me.)


Yeah, to me, if you just buy it with your ticket, it's almost not even noticable.  Though it's nice you have the option to not get it every day if you don't want it, for AK and Epcot.


----------



## dez1978

Ldisneygraham said:


> I’m seeing reports that as of today, genie plus users can’t keep their stacks rolling and are only able to book every 120 minutes. (They can’t rebook once they tap in).  Is anyone in the parks today that can confirm?


I was just coming to ask this as I’d read it on a fb group


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

dez1978 said:


> I was just coming to ask this as I’d read it on a fb group


Is this being reported anywhere outside of facebook?  Because I’m not seeing it on other reputable forums.


----------



## leeniewdw

[QUOTE="dmunsil, post: 63558844, member: 174088"

So it would work more like classic FastPass if that’s true. You get a new reservation when you tap in, OR after 2 hours, but not both. But we should know more soon.
[/QUOTE]

So (presuming reports are true), nothing today would indicate you couldn't arrive at a park (say on arrival day) with a stack of 3 LLs (presuming availability at time you grab them: 7, 11, 1).   And taking this example further....So if I arrived at HS with 3 LLs in the afternoon,  as I start to use them, no slots would open up in my stack, but rather I could make another 2 hours after my last reservation grab (in this case at 3pm)?

*I realize this is all hypothetical.


----------



## g-dad66

leeniewdw said:


> [QUOTE="dmunsil, post: 63558844, member: 174088"
> 
> So it would work more like classic FastPass if that’s true. You get a new reservation when you tap in, OR after 2 hours, but not both. But we should know more soon.



So (presuming reports are true), nothing today would indicate you couldn't arrive at a park (say on arrival day) with a stack of 3 LLs (presuming availability at time you grab them: 7, 11, 1).   And taking this example further....So if I arrived at HS with 3 LLs in the afternoon,  as I start to use them, no slots would open up in my stack, but rather I could make another 2 hours after my last reservation grab (in this case at 3pm)?

*I realize this is all hypothetical.
[/QUOTE]

I assume the way it would work is:
I have a stack of 3 that I reserved at 7am, 11am,1pm

I now use the first one at 2pm.  My eligibility time resets to 4pm (2 hours).
I now use the second one at 3pm. My eligibility time resets to 5pm (2 hours).  It replaces the 4pm time. Thus, I cannot double-stack.

Just speculating here.  We have yet to learn confirmation of what the change is (if any).


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

g-dad66 said:


> So (presuming reports are true), nothing today would indicate you couldn't arrive at a park (say on arrival day) with a stack of 3 LLs (presuming availability at time you grab them: 7, 11, 1).   And taking this example further....So if I arrived at HS with 3 LLs in the afternoon,  as I start to use them, no slots would open up in my stack, but rather I could make another 2 hours after my last reservation grab (in this case at 3pm)?
> 
> *I realize this is all hypothetical.



I assume the way it would work is:
I have a stack of 3 that I reserved at 7am, 11am,1pm

I now use the first one at 2pm.  My eligibility time resets to 4pm (2 hours).
I now use the second one at 3pm. My eligibility time resets to 5pm (2 hours).  It replaces the 4pm time. Thus, I cannot double-stack.

Just speculating here.  We have yet to learn confirmation of what the change is (if any).
[/QUOTE]
That can’t be right.  Any time you tap into a ride you must wait 2 hours to make a new LL?  So there’s no more booking a new fp after using one?


----------



## katyringo

g-dad66 said:


> So (presuming reports are true), nothing today would indicate you couldn't arrive at a park (say on arrival day) with a stack of 3 LLs (presuming availability at time you grab them: 7, 11, 1).   And taking this example further....So if I arrived at HS with 3 LLs in the afternoon,  as I start to use them, no slots would open up in my stack, but rather I could make another 2 hours after my last reservation grab (in this case at 3pm)?
> 
> *I realize this is all hypothetical.


----------



## katyringo

I think the time in which you book matters-

if I book a ride for 12pm at 7am this means I can book another at 11 for a 9am opening.

At 11 I book a ride for 3pm.

I ride my 12pm ride.

I can make another choice at 1pm. At 1pm I make a choice for 6pm.

I ride my 3pm ride.

at 3 pm I can make another choice. I get a 7pm.

at 5 pm I can make another selection. I get an 8pm.

I now have a rides booked for 7 and 8 and can make another choice hypothetically at 7pm..

I've kept 2 at a time most of the day but I'm not booking 2 at a time.. if that makes sense.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

My admittedly uninformed speculation is that this is the new rule:

You can make a new LL reservation when you scan in for an existing LL reservation, UNLESS you have another unused LL reservation still in the system. In that case, you cannot make a new LL reservation until either (1) you scan in for your _final _existing reservation, or (2) 120 minutes from when you last made an LL reservation.


----------



## katyringo

Grasshopper2016 said:


> My admittedly uninformed speculation is that this is the new rule:
> 
> You can make a new LL reservation when you scan in for an existing LL reservation, UNLESS you have another unused LL reservation still in the system. In that case, you cannot make a new LL reservation until either (1) you scan in for your _final _existing reservation, or (2) 120 minutes from when you last made an LL reservation.



me thinks this is correct and more
Lines up with what they advertised and what maxpass did.


----------



## dmunsil

g-dad66 said:


> If so, this would still allow you to stack.
> 
> You just wouldn't be able to double-stack or triple-stack, etc.


Oh, you could double and triple stack and so forth, it just perhaps takes longer. The big thing is that it doesn't let you maintain your stack once you have it. The big thing that made stacking valuable was that once you had two reservations, you could book a new one each time you tapped into either reservation, so you kept two all day.

I've been reading the FB groups (at least the ones I know about) and based only on first-person accounts from people who seem to understand how the system used to work, It seems most likely that they've adjusted the tap-in behavior, so it only gives you the ability to book if you are tapping into the ride before your eligibility time for that specific ride.

In other words:

At 9:00 you book a ride from 10:30-11:30. Your eligibility time is set to 11:00 (2 hours after booking)
If you tap in at 10:30, you can book again immediately (and your eligibility time is cleared)
If you wait until 11:00, you can book again, but now tapping in on the 10:30-11:30 ride will no longer reset your eligibility, because you're tapping in later than the eligibility time that was set when you booked that ride. In other words, you've already "used up" your next reservation.

There are a few other possible ways they could have adjusted things that would explain the observed behavior, and figuring out how exactly the algorithms have changed will take some experimenting.

One thing seems like it could be tricky for Disney about this change. To keep things simple, Disney's literature about Genie+ just says, roughly, "you can book another after tapping in". Disney doesn't even mention the 2 hour timeout or expiration times at all. With this new rule, they will have a fair number of guests who will not be able to book once they've tapped in, and will then go to guest relations to complain, where they will hear (potentially for the first time) about this whole 2 hour thing, which is tricky to understand. Time will tell if that becomes a problem...


----------



## dmunsil

Grasshopper2016 said:


> My admittedly uninformed speculation is that this is the new rule:
> 
> You can make a new LL reservation when you scan in for an existing LL reservation, UNLESS you have another unused LL reservation still in the system. In that case, you cannot make a new LL reservation until either (1) you scan in for your _final _existing reservation, or (2) 120 minutes from when you last made an LL reservation.



That could be, though I'm seeing some reports on FB that seem to contradict this. I think it's more likely that you don't get to book again if you already got to book again at 120 minutes (or expiration time) for that specific Genie+ booking. If they store in the database the time a reservation was made (which I can't believe they don't already do; it's such a low-hanging fruit), then it just requires a simple time comparison on the same database lookup they're already doing. So that's a simple change. Checking if you have a future reservation outstanding is a second, potentially larger, database lookup, which would be riskier when you're trying to turn the tapstile green as fast as possible.


----------



## elgerber

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I assume the way it would work is:
> I have a stack of 3 that I reserved at 7am, 11am,1pm
> 
> I now use the first one at 2pm.  My eligibility time resets to 4pm (2 hours).
> I now use the second one at 3pm. My eligibility time resets to 5pm (2 hours).  It replaces the 4pm time. Thus, I cannot double-stack.
> 
> Just speculating here.  We have yet to learn confirmation of what the change is (if any).


That can’t be right.  Any time you tap into a ride you must wait 2 hours to make a new LL?  So there’s no more booking a new fp after using one?
[/QUOTE]
not if you have another one currently booked.  If the one you tapped into is the only one, then yes.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

dmunsil said:


> That could be, though I'm seeing some reports on FB that seem to contradict this. I think it's more likely that you don't get to book again if you already got to book again at 120 minutes (or expiration time) for that specific Genie+ booking. If they store in the database the time a reservation was made (which I can't believe they don't already do; it's such a low-hanging fruit), then it just requires a simple time comparison on the same database lookup they're already doing. So that's a simple change. Checking if you have a future reservation outstanding is a second, potentially larger, database lookup, which would be riskier when you're trying to turn the tapstile green as fast as possible.


It seems like you understand the IT a lot better than I do.  And, as I recall, you were spot on in figuring out how the system operated up until today.  But I will say that my speculated rule is a whole lot easier for people to understand and work with than the rule that you are speculating that Disney has implemented.  I'm still not entirely sure I've wrapped my head around the rule you are speculating.


----------



## morganms22

We are just returning today and we used Genie+ the entire trip. We were not going to purchase it originally, but with a toddler in tow it made sense for us.
We were trying to fit in park time along with being there for Destination D. We rode most everything we wanted minus a few rides. We did not strategize much since it was a last second decision to use it. There was one day where the app was showing certain times to book and when paying, but would confirm after booking for different time. Then, It just went down completely. It did eventually come back up.  So, that day was a bit of a headache. We waited about the same as when we had Fast Pass. Already considering strategies for next time!


----------



## 570traveler

I’m here now. I will say that today when I “thought” I’d be able to book again (based on the past 3 days), I was not. previously I could book after tapping into the ride, but several times today I would get a message saying I was not eligible (and the time would be 2 hours after I booked the last one).
I was able to hold more than one pass, but I did start booking for a 2nd park before I left the first.
I’ll try to record the times tomorrow.  We are planning DHS then hop to Epcot because there’s been no times left by noon and the lines are just too long for us!


----------



## CJK

Thanks for all the explanations on this thread. I'm trying to understand today's change. I truly am! I'm just not totally clear on when you can book another LL with the recent changes. Here's two scenarios, both beginning in the same way. Let's say we are going to DHS after lunch. We can book 3 LL's (one at 7am, one at 11am and one at 1pm). Okay, I get that. Here's where it gets fuzzy.

Scenario#1
We were able to book our 3 LL's at 2pm, 3pm & 4pm (hypothetically). When would I be able to get a new LL? After scanning into the 3pm LL?

Scenario #2
We were able to book our 3 LL's at 2pm, 3pm & 6pm (hypothetically). When would I be able to get a new LL? My dh is thinking 5pm, but I don't know why he says that?


----------



## lorenae

Grasshopper2016 said:


> Maybe the new rule is this:
> 
> You can make a new LL reservation when you scan in for an existing LL reservation, UNLESS you have another unused LL reservation still in the system.  In that case, you cannot make a new LL reservation until either (1) you scan in for your final existing reservation, or (2) 120 minutes from when you last made an LL reservation.
> 
> Is this what is happening?



Maybe- that’s what it seems like right now anyway.


----------



## g-dad66

CJK said:


> Thanks for all the explanations on this thread. I'm trying to understand today's change. I truly am! I'm just not totally clear on when you can book another LL with the recent changes. Here's two scenarios, both beginning in the same way. Let's say we are going to DHS after lunch. We can book 3 LL's (one at 7am, one at 11am and one at 1pm). Okay, I get that. Here's where it gets fuzzy.
> 
> Scenario#1
> We were able to book our 3 LL's at 2pm, 3pm & 4pm (hypothetically). When would I be able to get a new LL? After scanning into the 3pm LL?
> 
> Scenario #2
> We were able to book our 3 LL's at 2pm, 3pm & 6pm (hypothetically). When would I be able to get a new LL? My dh is thinking 5pm, but I don't know why he says that?




I think all will become clear on this in the next week or so.

My condolences to those genie-pigs who are currently at WDW having to contend with this.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

lorenae said:


> Maybe- that’s what it seems like right now anyway.


If this is what is happening then this really is an even crappier system then first debuted.  It’s watered down so it’s not particularly useful for anyone.  They would have been better off just going back to ride tiers like with fastpasses to force people in DHS to go to the shows.


----------



## princesswahooey

We've spent all this time learning the new system and I think they just flipped it to be more like Maxpass was. Maybe even think of it like the old paper fastpass. It's very linear. 

You select a LL. If it is less than 2 hours away, you can redeem & get another as soon as that one is done. 

If your return time is over 2 hours away, you can select another LL after 2 hours. But once you tap into that original selection, you don't get to pick a "next" one because you already picked your "next one" at the 2 hour mark.

Here's a very convoluted Example:

7:00am you pick SDD for 3:00-4:00pm (LL#1)

At 11:00 (120 from open) you pick TSMM for 1:30-2:30pm (LL#2)

At 1:00 you are eligible to pick again (120 min). You choose Aliens for 2:30-3:30pm (LL#3)

(At this point you have stacked 3, but you will not get to "roll" each stack. Here's why

At 2:00 you tap into TSMM, but you are not eligible to pick again, b/c it is LL#2, and you already picked LL#3.

At 2:30 you tap into Aliens and are eligible to book again, SINCE THIS IS LL#3 and you haven't picked #4 yet. You pick Star Tours for 5:00-6:00pm (LL#4)

At 4:00 you tap into SDD, but you can't select a new LL b/c this was LL#1 and you already picked LL#2.

At 4:30 (120 minutes since you booked LL#4) you can select again if there's anything left. You maybe refresh and score RnR for 7:30-8:30pm return (LL#5).

At 5:00, you tap into Star Tours, but are not eligible to book because that was LL#4 and you already picked #5.

At 6:30 you could then try for LL#6 (120 rule)

Hopefully this helps you visualize what I presume is happening.


----------



## dmunsil

CJK said:


> Thanks for all the explanations on this thread. I'm trying to understand today's change. I truly am! I'm just not totally clear on when you can book another LL with the recent changes. Here's two scenarios, both beginning in the same way. Let's say we are going to DHS after lunch. We can book 3 LL's (one at 7am, one at 11am and one at 1pm). Okay, I get that. Here's where it gets fuzzy.



First off, we really don't know exactly what change Disney did. I think I have a good guess based on the least-histrionic posts on Facebook that seem to have documented clearly what they tested and how. But there are a few options. Here are the top two contenders:

A. You get a reservation after you tap into a ride, only if you tap in before that ride's eligibility time would have arrived. This is my guess, largely because it would be a very simple change to the system behind the scenes. A tiny bit of math and one extra test in the main code path.

B. You get a reservation after you tap into a ride, ONLY if you don't already have a ride booked already in the future. Several folks on Facebook are suggesting this, but I don't think anyone has a clear reason why they think it, other than it kind of makes intuitive sense. I think it's unlikely because it would be a bit more complicated for Disney to implement in terms of database accesses. 

I'm an old systems engineer, so my preference for A may just be my bias showing. It's certainly totally doable either way. I've seen at least one report that clearly contradicts B, but you have to take these reports with a grain of salt, since usually people are reporting what they remember, hours after the fact in their hotel room. It's super easy to misremember a time or something. So we just don't know.



> Scenario#1
> We were able to book our 3 LL's at 2pm, 3pm & 4pm (hypothetically). When would I be able to get a new LL? After scanning into the 3pm LL?



It depends on which of these you booked last at 1pm. If you booked the 4pm one at 1pm (and the other two at 7 and 11), then you will have to wait until 3pm (2 hours after your last booking), because under either rule A or B, you don't get to book after tapping in to the 2pm reservation.

If you booked the 2pm one at 1pm, then it depends on whether A or B is the right answer (or maybe some other algorithm C we haven't thought of). Under rule A, you can book as soon as you tap into the 2pm booking, since it's inside that booking's eligibility time. Under rule B, you couldn't book until 3pm (2 hours after you last booked), because you still have a booking outstanding.



> Scenario #2
> We were able to book our 3 LL's at 2pm, 3pm & 6pm (hypothetically). When would I be able to get a new LL? My dh is thinking 5pm, but I don't know why he says that?



Same answer as above. 5pm is clearly wrong, because the under any system anyone has proposed, the longest you would ever have to wait between bookings is 2 hours. No matter what, you'll be able to book at 3pm.


----------



## dmunsil

princesswahooey said:


> We've spent all this time learning the new system and I think they just flipped it to be more like Maxpass was. Maybe even think of it like the old paper fastpass. It's very linear.
> 
> You select a LL. If it is less than 2 hours away, you can redeem & get another as soon as that one is done.
> 
> If your return time is over 2 hours away, you can select another LL after 2 hours. But once you tap into that original selection, you don't get to pick a "next" one because you already picked your "next one" at the 2 hour mark.
> 
> - Example clipped -



I think this seems right. I'm just describing it as an algorithm, because that's how I think. It's almost exactly the way classic FastPass used to work. You get another FastPass once your existing one comes up, or 2 hours, whichever is earlier. You don't get both.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

dmunsil said:


> You get a reservation after you tap into a ride, *only if you tap in before that ride's eligibility time would have arrived*


What do you mean by this?


----------



## Luisfba

princesswahooey said:


> We've spent all this time learning the new system and I think they just flipped it to be more like Maxpass was. Maybe even think of it like the old paper fastpass. It's very linear.
> 
> You select a LL. If it is less than 2 hours away, you can redeem & get another as soon as that one is done.
> 
> If your return time is over 2 hours away, you can select another LL after 2 hours. But once you tap into that original selection, you don't get to pick a "next" one because you already picked your "next one" at the 2 hour mark.
> 
> Here's a very convoluted Example:
> 
> 7:00am you pick SDD for 3:00-4:00pm (LL#1)
> 
> At 11:00 (120 from open) you pick TSMM for 1:30-2:30pm (LL#2)
> 
> At 1:00 you are eligible to pick again (120 min). You choose Aliens for 2:30-3:30pm (LL#3)
> 
> (At this point you have stacked 3, but you will not get to "roll" each stack. Here's why
> 
> At 2:00 you tap into TSMM, but you are not eligible to pick again, b/c it is LL#2, and you already picked LL#3.
> 
> At 2:30 you tap into Aliens and are eligible to book again, SINCE THIS IS LL#3 and you haven't picked #4 yet. You pick Star Tours for 5:00-6:00pm (LL#4)
> 
> At 4:00 you tap into SDD, but you can't select a new LL b/c this was LL#1 and you already picked LL#2.
> 
> At 4:30 (120 minutes since you booked LL#4) you can select again if there's anything left. You maybe refresh and score RnR for 7:30-8:30pm return (LL#5).
> 
> At 5:00, you tap into Star Tours, but are not eligible to book because that was LL#4 and you already picked #5.
> 
> At 6:30 you could then try for LL#6 (120 rule)
> 
> Hopefully this helps you visualize what I presume is happening.



From reading through the various reports, I agree with your interpretation.  It also makes sense with what I think they intended in the first place before we found all the 'hacks'.


----------



## katyringo

Luisfba said:


> From reading through the various reports, I agree with your interpretation.  It also makes sense with what I think they intended in the first place before we found all the 'hacks'.



Use what you have first or every 2 hours- whichever comes first.


----------



## princesswahooey

dmunsil said:


> I think this seems right. I'm just describing it as an algorithm, because that's how I think. It's almost exactly the way classic FastPass used to work. You get another FastPass once your existing one comes up, or 2 hours, whichever is earlier. You don't get both.


I like the way your programming brain works. I never would have wrapped my head around the original (pre-today) Genie+ if it had not been for your breakdowns.


----------



## g-dad66

You get a reservation after you tap into a ride, *only if you tap in before that ride's eligibility time would have arrived*



AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> What do you mean by this?




I'll take a stab at this (and I'll probably be wrong)

It means "Only if you tap in before 2 hours have elapsed since you booked that particular LL"

You are now eligible to book again earlier than 2 hours.

But if you tap in after 2 hours since you booked it, it doesn't give you a new eligibility. You were already eligible 2 hours after you booked it.

As others have said, eligiblity is either (1) when you tap in, or (2) after 2 hours, WHICHEVER COMES FIRST, and you don't get both.

I think I'm almost starting to get my head wrapped around this (if this in fact is the nature of the change).


----------



## Juventus

I wonder how many used this concurrant stack method and, if it has been eliminated, what kind of affect it will have on LL pass availability tomorrow.


----------



## buckeyeguy1

Thought I had this all figured out. But think they changed the rules.

Today was the first time purchasing G+. We were at MK.

- 7a I made first LL for Pirates at 10a-11a.

- 10a I made our second LL reservation for BLSS at 1p. (MK opened at 8a today) at this point we had a total of 2 LL.

-10:02a we tapped into Pirates. Tried to make another LL and it said I couldn’t until 12p. I thought there may have been a slight delay but got off the ride and tried again. Still said I couldn’t book until noon. I immediately canceled BLSS and rebooked it (oddly enough) for 10:20a. Just for giggles, I tried to book another one, but it said I had to wait until the 120 min mark.

-11:00a we tapped into BLSS.

-11:10ish am just after we got off the ride we booked an 11:50 for LM.

-12p tapped into LM.

-12:15p I booked a Alien SS at HS for 7:50p. I had never really paid attention to anything prior to today on how G+ works with park hopping, but when I made the LL the app said it booked my late LL at that time due to park hopping. Later on I started playing with genie and found how to let it know at what time I was going to switch parks.

We went back to the resort for a little while and around 2:30p or so I tried to see what LL I could get. Pretty much only thing left was Muppets and Frozen Sing Along.

I think we’re back mostly to the old FP+ system after you used your first 3 with the caveats of:
1) Being able to add another after 120 min if you didn’t book anything else.
2) Have multiple LL scheduled in the same time block.
3) Ability to park hop.

If I have it figured out, I think this process is a little easier to understand. However I can’t see buying this everyday.


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## AnnaKristoff2013

I wonder if they also closed the loophole on making a new lightning lane after the ride expired, tapping in during the grace period, and then making another.


----------



## g-dad66

Juventus said:


> I wonder how many used this concurrant stack method and, if it has been eliminated, what kind of affect it will have on LL pass availability tomorrow.


 
If it was in effect today, from what I saw of LL availability today, it doesn't seem to have made any improvement.


----------



## cgattis

Something I’m not seeing anybody else mention is the terrible cell and WiFi signals inside a lot of the ride buildings. If you get stuck in a queue for an hour with no signal, it can really hose your “tap and book” routine. If anyone is compiling tips, I’d add a recommendation/reminder to book your next one before you enter any show building. That killed my Epcot day.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

cgattis said:


> Something I’m not seeing anybody else mention is the terrible cell and WiFi signals inside a lot of the ride buildings. If you get stuck in a queue for an hour with no signal, it can really hose your “tap and book” routine. If anyone is compiling tips, I’d add a recommendation/reminder to book your next one before you enter any show building. That killed my Epcot day.


Having watched a lot of resort tv 1 streaming, I don’t think there are really large areas that have *neither* a wifi signal or a cell signal, and certainly not for large segments of queues.


----------



## dmunsil

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> dmunsil said:
> 
> 
> 
> You get a reservation after you tap into a ride, only if you tap in before that ride's eligibility time would have arrived.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> What do you mean by this?
Click to expand...


Whenever you book a reservation, an eligibility time is calculated, which is typically 2 hours from the time you booked, or that reservation's end time, whichever is earlier. I'm suggesting that if you tap into that reservation during that time, you get to book again immediately (and the timer is cleared). If you wait for the eligibility time instead, you get to book when the time comes. But once the timer has expired, then when you tap in, you are tapping in AFTER the eligibility time, so it doesn't return your booking eligibility.

Intuitively, it's because you already got your booking returned for that ride, which is what Princesswahooey said.

Examples:


It's 10:00. You book a reservation from 11:30-12:30. Your eligibility time is set to 12:00 (two hours after booking).
If you tap in between 11:30 and 11:59, your eligibility returns immediately, and the timer is cleared, so the eligibility time is no longer relevant.
If you wait until 12:00, the eligibility time arrives and you get to book. If you tap in AFTER that time, nothing happens, because you already got your eligibility back at 12:00.

It's 10:00. You book at reservation from 10:10-11:10. Your eligibility time is set to 11:10 (the end of your reservation window)
If you tap in between 10:10 and 11:09, you get your eligibility back immediately and can book again. The timer is cleared and the eligibility time is no longer relevant.
If you wait until 11:10, the eligibility time arrives and you get to book. You have 15 minutes grace period to tap in still, but nothing happens to your eligibility when you tap in because you already got it back at 11:10.

Basically, tapping in can only get you the ability to book if you do it before your eligibility is up for that specific booking. 

But all of this is still speculation. I think it might work this way, but we need more testing and reports to see.


----------



## dmunsil

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I wonder if they also closed the loophole on making a new lightning lane after the ride expired, tapping in during the grace period, and then making another.


They definitely did. Every report makes that clear.


----------



## g-dad66

One thing that helps simplify the whole procedure once you are at WDW and doing real bookings is that whenever you try to reserve an LL, it will tell you if you are not eligible, and it will give you the time when you are next eligible.

Knowing the time when you are eligible for your next booking is the key thing you want to know, and Genie+ will give you that information.


----------



## dmunsil

Juventus said:


> I wonder how many used this concurrant stack method and, if it has been eliminated, what kind of affect it will have on LL pass availability tomorrow.


It certainly isn't going to fix the sellout of Slinky Dog reservations at 7:01 am. It might help make reservations last a little longer in the late morning or afternoon.


----------



## CJK

dmunsil said:


> First off, we really don't know exactly what change Disney did. I think I have a good guess based on the least-histrionic posts on Facebook that seem to have documented clearly what they tested and how. But there are a few options. Here are the top two contenders:
> 
> A. You get a reservation after you tap into a ride, only if you tap in before that ride's eligibility time would have arrived. This is my guess, largely because it would be a very simple change to the system behind the scenes. A tiny bit of math and one extra test in the main code path.
> 
> B. You get a reservation after you tap into a ride, ONLY if you don't already have a ride booked already in the future. Several folks on Facebook are suggesting this, but I don't think anyone has a clear reason why they think it, other than it kind of makes intuitive sense. I think it's unlikely because it would be a bit more complicated for Disney to implement in terms of database accesses.
> 
> I'm an old systems engineer, so my preference for A may just be my bias showing. It's certainly totally doable either way. I've seen at least one report that clearly contradicts B, but you have to take these reports with a grain of salt, since usually people are reporting what they remember, hours after the fact in their hotel room. It's super easy to misremember a time or something. So we just don't know.
> 
> 
> 
> It depends on which of these you booked last at 1pm. If you booked the 4pm one at 1pm (and the other two at 7 and 11), then you will have to wait until 3pm (2 hours after your last booking), because under either rule A or B, you don't get to book after tapping in to the 2pm reservation.
> 
> If you booked the 2pm one at 1pm, then it depends on whether A or B is the right answer (or maybe some other algorithm C we haven't thought of). Under rule A, you can book as soon as you tap into the 2pm booking, since it's inside that booking's eligibility time. Under rule B, you couldn't book until 3pm (2 hours after you last booked), because you still have a booking outstanding.
> 
> 
> 
> Same answer as above. 5pm is clearly wrong, because the under any system anyone has proposed, the longest you would ever have to wait between bookings is 2 hours. No matter what, you'll be able to book at 3pm.


Thank you for this wonderful explanation. I think I'm truly starting to get it. I understand wh you said in scenario #1, we could book at 3pm. However, what if I booked the 2pm ride, at 1pm. Wouldn't I still have to wait until 3pm to book another?


----------



## Figment1990

I haven’t read the last 3 pages because as soon as I opened Dis and jumped to the new posts and saw that they DID change things, I had to post! We were at the park today and 100% experienced this change. Here’s what happened to us.
At 7:30 booked 10:15-11:15 Peter pan
At 10:01 booked 6:25-7:25 jungle cruise. 
At 11:16 tried to book an “expired” LL and could not. 
checked into Peter Pan and tried to book a LL, my eligibility was still showing 12:02
I COULD NOT BOOK ANYTHING UNTIL 12:02. I thought it was just me messing up the expired loophole that I was testing anyhow. Or that because it expired it lost my eligibility. But now I feel better knowing they changed things bc I knew we 100% checked into our ToT LL late on Saturday and then still pulled a LL right after even tho we had others booked.
At 12:02 I booked 1:40 it’s a small world, bc I wanted to test this mess again. 
At 1:39 I checked into IASW and tapped in to the first tapstile. I was refreshing and my new “you are not eligible til” time jumped from 2:02 to 2:40??? What??? Then I tapped into the second and it let me book one right then at 1:39 for Haunted mansion (for 7:20).
At 3:44 I booked pirates for 6:25.

I have no idea what the new rules actually are. I was giving it the benefit of the doubt after pan. Then I was seething in the small world line when it reset temporarily to 2:40. But now I am so angry and frustrated that they changed this system during my trip after I literally spent days and hours upon hours in the weeks leading up and ON vacation trying to understand how to use it during a very busy time in the parks. I’m done. Totally done. Did we get a lot done today with G+ and in general? Yes. But we were there from 8-8 and that is not our usual touring plus we were all over the park, we had to fit in eating when we didn’t want to really eat, I recharged my phone 3 times and we spent SO much time trying to figure out what we were doing wrong and trying to figure out what to book.  Every other time that it was my time to book on the 120 hour that lined up with park opening my app crashed. It was insane.  I’m considering pulling the plug on our future G+ plans for this trip and we have already decided to go to universal next summer instead. After 20+ trips in the last 12 years.  I don’t want to spend my whole trip on my phone.

I know it sounds like I’m exaggerating and flipping out but I just can’t do this for this money (not the $15-  the $600 per night rooms with the worlds worst toilet paper). Did we have “fun”? Yes we made the best of all of it. But it was far too stressful for me to consider it a vacation. I’ll be back if they ever bring back advanced FP booking.


----------



## princesswahooey

Figment1990 said:


> I haven’t read the last 3 pages because as soon as I opened Dis and jumped to the new posts and saw that they DID change things, I had to post! We were at the park today and 100% experienced this change. Here’s what happened to us.
> At 7:30 booked 10:15-11:15 Peter pan
> At 10:01 booked 6:25-7:25 jungle cruise.
> At 11:16 tried to book an “expired” LL and could not.
> checked into Peter Pan and tried to book a LL, my eligibility was still showing 12:02
> I COULD NOT BOOK ANYTHING UNTIL 12:02. I thought it was just me messing up the expired loophole that I was testing anyhow. Or that because it expired it lost my eligibility. But now I feel better knowing they changed things bc I knew we 100% checked into our ToT LL late on Saturday and then still pulled a LL right after even tho we had others booked.
> At 12:02 I booked 1:40 it’s a small world, bc I wanted to test this mess again.
> At 1:39 I checked into IASW and tapped in to the first tapstile. I was refreshing and my new “you are not eligible til” time jumped from 2:02 to 2:40??? What??? Then I tapped into the second and it let me book one right then at 1:39 for Haunted mansion (for 7:20).
> At 3:44 I booked pirates for 6:25.
> 
> I have no idea what the new rules actually are. I was giving it the benefit of the doubt after pan. Then I was seething in the small world line when it reset temporarily to 2:40. But now I am so angry and frustrated that they changed this system during my trip after I literally spent days and hours upon hours in the weeks leading up and ON vacation trying to understand how to use it during a very busy time in the parks. I’m done. Totally done. Did we get a lot done today with G+ and in general? Yes. But we were there from 8-8 and that is not our usual touring plus we were all over the park, we had to fit in eating when we didn’t want to really eat, I recharged my phone 3 times and we spent SO much time trying to figure out what we were doing wrong and trying to figure out what to book.  Every other time that it was my time to book on the 120 hour that lined up with park opening my app crashed. It was insane.  I’m considering pulling the plug on our future G+ plans for this trip and we have already decided to go to universal next summer instead. After 20+ trips in the last 12 years.  I don’t want to spend my whole trip on my phone.
> 
> I know it sounds like I’m exaggerating and flipping out but I just can’t do this for this money (not the $15-  the $600 per night rooms with the worlds worst toilet paper). Did we have “fun”? Yes we made the best of all of it. But it was far too stressful for me to consider it a vacation. I’ll be back if they ever bring back advanced FP booking.


Yikes. I would have been so frustrated, convinced I was doing something wrong.  It would have totally stressed me out, too. Thanks for the report. It's really not cool for them to "change the rules in the middle of the game."


----------



## Kmilos1024

As much as people on here liked the loophole, I think closing it will help all lines in general and hopefully make the system now perform like it was designed.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

Figment1990 said:


> I haven’t read the last 3 pages because as soon as I opened Dis and jumped to the new posts and saw that they DID change things, I had to post! We were at the park today and 100% experienced this change. Here’s what happened to us.
> At 7:30 booked 10:15-11:15 Peter pan
> At 10:01 booked 6:25-7:25 jungle cruise.
> At 11:16 tried to book an “expired” LL and could not.
> checked into Peter Pan and tried to book a LL, my eligibility was still showing 12:02
> I COULD NOT BOOK ANYTHING UNTIL 12:02. I thought it was just me messing up the expired loophole that I was testing anyhow. Or that because it expired it lost my eligibility. But now I feel better knowing they changed things bc I knew we 100% checked into our ToT LL late on Saturday and then still pulled a LL right after even tho we had others booked.
> At 12:02 I booked 1:40 it’s a small world, bc I wanted to test this mess again.
> At 1:39 I checked into IASW and tapped in to the first tapstile. I was refreshing and my new “you are not eligible til” time jumped from 2:02 to 2:40??? What??? Then I tapped into the second and it let me book one right then at 1:39 for Haunted mansion (for 7:20).
> At 3:44 I booked pirates for 6:25.
> 
> I have no idea what the new rules actually are.


dmunsil, can you run this this through your theory and explain why the booking windows opened when they did?   (This experience seems to disprove my hypothesis.  I think it might be consistent with yours, but I'm having trouble seeing how it all fits together.)


----------



## princesswahooey

Kmilos1024 said:


> As much as people on here liked the loophole, I think closing it will help all lines in general and hopefully make the system now perform like it was designed.


It will certainly help my brain stop trying to figure out the best way to maximize our time. There were way too many variables to consider with the different stack hacks, for sure.


----------



## Luisfba

buckeyeguy1 said:


> -12:15p I booked a Alien SS at HS for 7:50p. I had never really paid attention to anything prior to today on how G+ works with park hopping, but when I made the LL the app said it booked my late LL at that time due to park hopping. Later on I started playing with genie and found how to let it know at what time I was going to switch parks.



Something you say here that may be new to me.  I thought when you select a LL for a park that’s not the one you have a Rea you automatically get your LL pushed to 2pm (assuming the time on it is before 2).  Are you saying there’s a way to change that to later than 2pm?


----------



## Figment1990

g-dad66 said:


> One thing that helps simplify the whole procedure once you are at WDW and doing real bookings is that whenever you try to reserve an LL, it will tell you if you are not eligible, and it will give you the time when you are next eligible.
> 
> Knowing the time when you are eligible for your next booking is the key thing you want to know, and Genie+ will give you that information.


Then I have no idea why it let me book my haunted mansion LL at 1:40 when my app was saying my next booking was at 2.

(I did go back and read the previous pages and whoever said that Disney is going to have a huge mess trying to explain why the “book another after you’ve used it” doesn’t always work to the average guest. This system is WAY too complicated to explain. 

and if it is supposed to “fix” LL‘s ‘selling out’ too quickly it certainly didn’t help today.)


----------



## DisneyPanthersFan

Maybe a silly question but - where does it say the time you are eligible for your next booking? Somehow I never noticed it.

When I was there and tried to book another when I wasn't yet eligible, each member of my party was listed under the heading "Not Eligible". And under each member of my party, it said "Unknown Conflict." Does it not usually say that?


----------



## Figment1990

princesswahooey said:


> We've spent all this time learning the new system and I think they just flipped it to be more like Maxpass was. Maybe even think of it like the old paper fastpass. It's very linear.
> 
> You select a LL. If it is less than 2 hours away, you can redeem & get another as soon as that one is done.
> 
> If your return time is over 2 hours away, you can select another LL after 2 hours. But once you tap into that original selection, you don't get to pick a "next" one because you already picked your "next one" at the 2 hour mark.
> 
> Here's a very convoluted Example:
> 
> 7:00am you pick SDD for 3:00-4:00pm (LL#1)
> 
> At 11:00 (120 from open) you pick TSMM for 1:30-2:30pm (LL#2)
> 
> At 1:00 you are eligible to pick again (120 min). You choose Aliens for 2:30-3:30pm (LL#3)
> 
> (At this point you have stacked 3, but you will not get to "roll" each stack. Here's why
> 
> At 2:00 you tap into TSMM, but you are not eligible to pick again, b/c it is LL#2, and you already picked LL#3.
> 
> At 2:30 you tap into Aliens and are eligible to book again, SINCE THIS IS LL#3 and you haven't picked #4 yet. You pick Star Tours for 5:00-6:00pm (LL#4)
> 
> At 4:00 you tap into SDD, but you can't select a new LL b/c this was LL#1 and you already picked LL#2.
> 
> At 4:30 (120 minutes since you booked LL#4) you can select again if there's anything left. You maybe refresh and score RnR for 7:30-8:30pm return (LL#5).
> 
> At 5:00, you tap into Star Tours, but are not eligible to book because that was LL#4 and you already picked #5.
> 
> At 6:30 you could then try for LL#6 (120 rule)
> 
> Hopefully this helps you visualize what I presume is happening.


This absolutely makes sense to me and I think it explains why I experienced things the way I did today. (Why I couldn’t book after Pan but could after IASW.) 

I still have no desire to try to come up with a new strategy for the rest of our week and I’m still very very angry with Disney for the way they handled this today. If this had been the way it worked from day 1 at least I wouldnt have wasted my time. But I do think I can wrap my head around it.  And its still going to take me a while to want to come back. And even then, I still think it’s pretty impossible during busy times.


----------



## g-dad66

DisneyPanthersFan said:


> Maybe a silly question but - where does it say the time you are eligible for your next booking? Somehow I never noticed it.
> 
> When I was there and tried to book another when I wasn't yet eligible, each member of my party was listed under the heading "Not Eligible". And under each member of my party, it said "Unknown Conflict." Does it not usually say that?



I don't remember ever seeing "Unknown Conflict" as the reason for eligibility.  It was either below or to the right of each member of the party where it would give the time when the person was next eligible for LL booking.


----------



## DisneyPanthersFan

g-dad66 said:


> I don't remember ever seeing "Unknown Conflict" as the reason for eligibility.  It was either below or to the right of each member of the party where it would give the time when the person was next eligible for LL booking.



I'm wondering if it was a glitch, then? And that's where it should have said it? Thank you for letting me know. Hopefully it will work as expected the next time I use it.


----------



## g-dad66

Figment1990 said:


> *Then I have no idea why it let me book my haunted mansion LL at 1:40 when my app was saying my next booking was at 2.*
> 
> (I did go back and read the previous pages and whoever said that Disney is going to have a huge mess trying to explain why the “book another after you’ve used it” doesn’t always work to the average guest. This system is WAY too complicated to explain.
> 
> and if it is supposed to “fix” LL‘s ‘selling out’ too quickly it certainly didn’t help today.)



It sounds like it was saying next booking at 2 because you had only tapped into the first tapstyle at that point.  When you tapped into the second tapstyle, your booking eligibility changed to immediate.

Unlike FP+ where the tap-in at the first tapstyle allowed you to book your next FP+, with Genie+, it appears that you must tap into the second tapstyle before you can book your next LL.

I fully concur with you on the complexity of the system.  I have been trying to help another family plan their first trip, and it's hard enough to figure out where to start and how detailed to get before even getting to the whole topic of Genie+.  Yikes!


----------



## Orsino

Based on the most recent report above, I'm counting 5 fastpasses obtained at MK with the change, which seems reasonable to me for 16 dollars.

I understand that passes disappeared quickly even with this change, but (1) we don't know how much worse it would have been without the change and (2) it was obviously a loophole that was going to get fixed. It has only been about a month of live operation, so that was reasonably quick, I think.


----------



## Figment1990

Orsino said:


> Based on the most recent report above, I'm counting 5 fastpasses obtained at MK with the change, which seems reasonable to me for 16 dollars.
> 
> I understand that passes disappeared quickly even with this change, but (1) we don't know how much worse it would have been without the change and (2) it was obviously a loophole that was going to get fixed. It has only been about a month of live operation, so that was reasonably quick, I think.


Yes we had 5 LLs and we did get “value” out of it in terms of time saved in lines and ability to ride potentially more total rides. However,

A) it wasn’t $16, it was $48 for my family of 3.
B) we only were able to do 5 because we were there all day. We would not be able to use 5, and definitely not those 5, if we were there only in the first half of the day (like we prefer)
C) the mental work to figure this out ON THE FLY was not conducive to a relaxing day.

How did they miss this loophole and let it launch in the first place is my question?  i would have so much preferred to not have to switch mid trip. It is much easier to not have to track double stacks, and I would have probably planned days differently.

I know a lot of the time some people on here get dismissed as negative. I don’t want to come across that way. im just sharing the info of the things that happen n our trip in case it helps someone else. I do think that genie can be very useful at MK on moderately busy days, useful (but with modifying your trip around it to get value) on very busy days, and I‘LL keep reporting back our experiences in their parks as we go, in case it helps others. 

On that note, I just purchased genie plus for us and additional family members that will be joining us tomorrow. Because they have tickets and park passes I was able to add them to our purchase. 

(I still am negative about park hopping rules though. It was raining yesterday morning and I wanted to skip going to our reserved DHS when DH and DS went to ride stuff but i wouldn’t have been able to get into Epcot for dinner later without tapping in. thats ridiculous. What if I was not feeling well and felt better later? What if I had to take a work call? What if I just wanted to sit around the pool? if they will allow hopping I shouldn’t have to go to the other park first!) sorry. It’s been bugging me since sunday night.


----------



## dmunsil

Grasshopper2016 said:


> dmunsil, can you run this this through your theory and explain why the booking windows opened when they did?   (This experience seems to disprove my hypothesis.  I think it might be consistent with yours, but I'm having trouble seeing how it all fits together.)


Yes, it’s consistent with the rules I outlined.


----------



## Figment1990

g-dad66 said:


> It sounds like it was saying next booking at 2 because you had only tapped into the first tapstyle at that point.  When you tapped into the second tapstyle, your booking eligibility changed to immediate.
> 
> Unlike FP+ where the tap-in at the first tapstyle allowed you to book your next FP+, with Genie+, it appears that you must tap into the second tapstyle before you can book your next LL.
> 
> I fully concur with you on the complexity of the system.  I have been trying to help another family plan their first trip, and it's hard enough to figure out where to start and how detailed to get before even getting to the whole topic of Genie+.  Yikes!


But technically from 12:02 to 1:39 I was eligible to book as early as 1:40 if I chose to use my LL at that time. The app was showing me 2 From 12:02 to 1:39. At 1:39 when I tapped the first one, it changed to 2:40. And then After the second it changed to letting me book immediately.

Which means that you cannot rely on the app to tell u when u can book your next one.


----------



## dmunsil

CJK said:


> Thank you for this wonderful explanation. I think I'm truly starting to get it. I understand wh you said in scenario #1, we could book at 3pm. However, what if I booked the 2pm ride, at 1pm. Wouldn't I still have to wait until 3pm to book another?


Assuming “rule A” is in effect, if you book a 2pm-3pm reservation at 1pm, you can book again as soon as you tap into the 2pm reservation, whether or not you have other reservations outstanding. If you book a 2pm-3pm reservation at, say, 10am, then you will not be able to book after tapping in at 2pm, because you got back your ability to book at noon (2 hours after the time you made the booking).

Again, maybe. Let’s all see what happens and what test cases come up.


----------



## Orsino

Oh don't get me wrong. I would have absolutely gone bonkers if the switch happened midtrip for me. Though I do recall thinking to myself to be prepared for the loophole to close at anytime. Still, sudden changes add unnecessary stress.


----------



## Sydnerella

cgattis said:


> Yeah, yesterday was my day. Sorry today was your day  This app crashes SO much and it’s horrendous to get a signal or any WiFi in so many of the ride buildings. When you’re standing in hour standby lines and can’t make your next LL, it just gets ridiculous. I’m glad we finally got to see Galaxy’s Edge, but I’m really regretting making this a full 7-day trip and not just a weekend. We literally rode four rides at Epcot (five if you count that we did Remy twice, one BG and one ILL) in seven hours at Epcot today. Just horrendous. (Not to mention the absolute ridiculousness of having 100 food booths closed Thanksgiving week with lines an hour deep at fast food and 30+ minutes at carts.)
> 
> Also (and I know I’m way off topic), customer service has been atrocious as I’ve tried to get my dining res issues fixed because this worthless app has them locked up. Ugh.
> 
> So as far as strategy, I’d say get there at rope drop and be prepared to stand in long lines or pay $$ to maybe reduce that a little…..but don’t expect much.



yesterday, Monday 11/22 sucked for us too. I was in tears at GET… after multiple unmagical moments with Genie+ since arriving Friday.

I’ve had it with this new app update and system. We have had success and we have also experienced immense frustration and failure. And working 60% of the time is not great odds at Disney prices. We should expect things to work, bare minimum, that’s a pretty low bar… but that’s too high for them.

Yesterday at MK before the 10am window opened and right through it, the app stuck me in a continuous loop of entering my password and getting a code from my email…. For 12 minutes… while all the times we could use were getting gobbled up. I tried everything. Restarting my phone or trying from another family members phone didn’t even help, let alone closing the app…Finally while waiting in the long GET line it stopped and I booked something that conflicted with extended family lunch plans.

If I’m paying a premium to experience things (that were previously included) then you better D*** well make your app tech, your ride tech and your customer service top notch.

Please don’t tell me the continuous loop is a security feature, two factor Authentication is annoying enough when seconds are precious - but it’s a flaw or bad system design for peak demand periods when your 2FA process puts guests into a loop of it - completely unable to use your app or sign in! And “Something went wrong” should not be an every other click result.

Genie + and $LL and Disney cell service towers and wifi are not equipped for crowds. And don’t even get me started on how many attraction breakdowns we have experienced.

I can think of many other less stressful places to drop my $15K for vacation.

And we will definitely be planning a trip to one of them next time.

And I love Disney and am a 15 year vet who has been reading and watching to learn and know how to use Genie + and stack LLs and maximize touring, etc. I was a FP super user with paper and FP+.  So I’m able to adapt… when things work… but this week’s crowds  are showing the cracks in the genies lamp and  the kingdom.

It is sucking the fun and relaxation away from my happy place.


----------



## Sydnerella

Orsino said:


> Based on the most recent report above, I'm counting 5 fastpasses obtained at MK with the change, which seems reasonable to me for 16 dollars.
> 
> I understand that passes disappeared quickly even with this change, but (1) we don't know how much worse it would have been without the change and (2) it was obviously a loophole that was going to get fixed. It has only been about a month of live operation, so that was reasonably quick, I think.



I think you are not acknowledging the frustration of being in the midst of a vacation and trying to plan and adjust and figure out things… all the while dealing with Holiday crowds, a crashing app, understaffed and breaking down rides. Reasonable or not - it sucks to be the testers when your on a weeks vacation at these prices and not able to just go anytime.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Sydnerella said:


> I think you are not acknowledging the frustration of being in the midst of a vacation and trying to plan and adjust and figure out things… all the while dealing with Holiday crowds, a crashing app, understaffed and breaking down rides. Reasonable or not - it sucks to be the testers when your on a weeks vacation at these prices and not able to just go anytime.


The fact that they decided to change how the system works in the middle of thanksgiving, the second busiest time of the year, just further shows how little Disney currently cares for the guest experience.  All they care about is maximizing G+ purchases and getting as much money out of every guest as possible.


----------



## Mrs~Incredible

Can someone please quickly explain what has changed? 

I was there last week and had G+ For a couple days. I thought I understood it (120 minute and stacking) but there were a few times I tried to book another and wasn’t eligible.

most LLs for G+ (Anything that would be helpful) were “sold out” between 2-4 pm anyway….


----------



## deltadisney

Does anyone know what causes the issue of the app requiring the constant logging in and email code?


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

702am SDD sold out, Dolphin stay not recognized as on site RotR gone at 703am anyway. Got MFSR at 705am return 830pm..


----------



## kappyfamily

5DisneyNuts said:


> 702am SDD sold out, Dolphin stay not recognized as on site RotR gone at 703am anyway. Got MFSR at 705am return 830pm..


SDD actually was gone 45 seconds in! I got one for a 10am return luckily. We’re at Swan Reserve and our room doesn’t show up either, but oddly it “popped up” yesterday at AK around 2pm all the sudden and I was able to buy for expedition Everest. Our key card has been getting us in to early mornings…..


----------



## wisblue

I too would like to know what people think has changed.

On my trip last week I never tried to use the trick of getting an extra LL selection by booking one during the 15 minute grace period. But I was able to create more simple stacks by booking one at the 2 hour mark and then another when I used the first one I booked.

The simple example is booking JC shortly after 7 AM with a return time of 11:10-12:10. Then at 11 AM I booked a second LL and, after riding JC at 11:30, booked a third.  So, at that time I was holding 2 active LL.

Are people saying that won’t work any more and that booking the second LL at 11 will reset my eligible time to 1 PM and that I wouldn’t be able to book a third after riding JC?


----------



## Sydnerella

Swan and Dolphin are known glitches. Screenshot attempts and more importantly, it sounds like you need the hotel to confirm something with front desk at check-in to make sure it doesn’t occur. It happened for me trying to book IAS for my inlaws on their first day. We are at Riviera and could book no problem but I couldn’t book their ROTR or MMRR. So had to talk to GET. They said the above. Not sure what the hotel staff can really do though. And they also said to book what you can if you have guests not at those hotels. Which we had done.
On the plus side it hasn’t happened since their first day when I’ve tried to book the IAS paid LLs


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

Sorry,  but where should it show when I'm eligible to book the next LL? MFSR is not until this evening and when I try to book another LL to see eligibility, it just says unknown conflict. Unbelievable.
TIA


----------



## Sydnerella

deltadisney said:


> Does anyone know what causes the issue of the app requiring the constant logging in and email code?


No! I cannot imagine it’s anything but that I got caught in a glitchy loop. Even shutting down my phone didn’t help. It emailed me 11 codes in 10 min but then just asked for my Password again… sometimes I just closed it out or shut down or refreshed. Rather then entering the PW so it would have been even more if I let it. After 5 or 6 minutes I asked my son and husband to try on their phones (mine is the newest, iPhone 12) and same issue. Others in the GET line had the same issue and other issues… it’s beyond ridiculous. Tears. I was literally crying in Disneyworld and not for the Disney fan reasons of heartstrings and joy…

not to mention throwing out an F-bomb in front of the inlaws and fam while trying to do this sitting at the area by the Plaza during what was supposed to be our pleasant together/ morning coffee/Gastons cinnamon roll/castle watching time before using our JC lightening lane booked at 7….which I also had issues getting but eventually canceled and rebooked for an earlier time with luck after my 7am glitches….

Ahhhh where does it end?!?


----------



## Figment1990

wisblue said:


> I too would like to know what people think has changed.
> 
> On my trip last week I never tried to use the trick of getting an extra LL selection by booking one during the 15 minute grace period. But I was able to create more simple stacks by booking one at the 2 hour mark and then another when I used the first one I booked.
> 
> The simple example is booking JC shortly after 7 AM with a return time of 11:10-12:10. Then at 11 AM I booked a second LL and, after riding JC at 11:30, booked a third.  So, at that time I was holding 2 active LL.
> 
> Are people saying that won’t work any more and that booking the second LL at 11 will reset my eligible time to 1 PM and that I wouldn’t be able to book a third after riding JC?


you will no longer be able to book a second LL at 11:30 after riding jungle cruise if you booked one at 11. if you do not book he at 11 you can book after tapping into second jungle cruise tapstile.

if at 11, you book something for 12:30-1:30, then when u tap into that at 12:30 you should be able to book again. So no, it’s not EXACTLY resetting it to 1, it’s just eliminating your ability to book again with jungle cruise since you booked one at 11.
(at least that’s the current speculation)


----------



## rmclain73

wisblue said:


> I too would like to know what people think has changed.
> 
> On my trip last week I never tried to use the trick of getting an extra LL selection by booking one during the 15 minute grace period. But I was able to create more simple stacks by booking one at the 2 hour mark and then another when I used the first one I booked.
> 
> The simple example is booking JC shortly after 7 AM with a return time of 11:10-12:10. Then at 11 AM I booked a second LL and, after riding JC at 11:30, booked a third.  So, at that time I was holding 2 active LL.
> 
> Are people saying that won’t work any more and that booking the second LL at 11 will reset my eligible time to 1 PM and that I wouldn’t be able to book a third after riding JC?



Exactly!


----------



## rmclain73

Take this with a grain of salt, but I have been reading this morning on various other pages that the paid lightning lanes for on site guest have been earlier than 7 AM the last two days. People seem to be complaining when they login right at 7 AM and things are already sold out or at the very end of the day already.


----------



## deltadisney

Sydnerella said:


> No! I cannot imagine it’s anything but that I got caught in a glitchy loop. Even shutting down my phone didn’t help. It emailed me 11 codes in 10 min but then just asked for my Password again… sometimes I just closed it out or shut down or refreshed. Rather then entering the PW so it would have been even more if I let it. After 5 or 6 minutes I asked my son and husband to try on their phones (mine is the newest, iPhone 12) and same issue. Others in the GET line had the same issue and other issues… it’s beyond ridiculous. Tears. I was literally crying in Disneyworld and not for the Disney fan reasons of heartstrings and joy…


 I am so sorry.  I cannot imagine.


----------



## Sydnerella

[


rmclain73 said:


> Take this with a grain of salt, but I have been reading this morning on various other pages that the paid lightning lanes for on site guest have been earlier than 7 AM the last two days. People seem to be complaining when they login right at 7 AM and things are already sold out or at the very end of the day already.



I booked FOP this morning at 7am - there was no ability to book it earlier. Refreshing since 6:50. Same with the other paid IAS LLs I have booked daily since arriving Friday. You can only click on it at 7am sharp.

Some are gone in a minute or less - like the old ROTR BGs, But not able to book before 7. One needs to click on it ASAP to get it snd the time shown initially is unlikely to be the time you get when you get to the next screen.


----------



## GBRforWDW

rmclain73 said:


> Take this with a grain of salt, but I have been reading this morning on various other pages that the paid lightning lanes for on site guest have been earlier than 7 AM the last two days. People seem to be complaining when they login right at 7 AM and things are already sold out or at the very end of the day already.


Im not entirely sure this is true, at least not for all rides.  I don't have park reservations for today though, so I could be wrong.  I was watching RotR and at 7, saw the times progress throughout the day by refreshing, starting in the 9am time frame though late morning, early afternoon late afternoon and evening.


----------



## Figment1990

Sydnerella said:


> [
> 
> 
> I booked FOP this morning at 7am - there was no ability to book it earlier. Refreshing since 6:50. Same with the other paid IAS LLs I have booked daily since arriving Friday. You can only click on it at 7am sharp.
> 
> Some are gone in a minute or less - like the old ROTR BGs, But not able to book before 7. One needs to click on it ASAP to get it snd the time shown initially is unlikely to be the time you get when you get to the next screen.


This is my experience as well. I’ve never seen anything prior to 7 am on the dot.


----------



## rmclain73

Sydnerella said:


> [
> 
> 
> I booked FOP this morning at 7am - there was no ability to book it earlier. Refreshing since 6:50. Same with the other paid IAS LLs I have booked daily since arriving Friday. You can only click on it at 7am sharp.
> 
> Some are gone in a minute or less - like the old ROTR BGs, But not able to book before 7. One needs to click on it ASAP to get it snd the time shown initially is unlikely to be the time you get when you get to the next screen.


Good to hear!  Maybe it was just some irritated guests who couldn’t get what they wanted and were just making assumptions.


----------



## Sydnerella

JakeAZ said:


> Anyone else have their app crash this morning for the 7am genie money grab?  Booked jungle cruise right at 7. Got 940-1040. Then the app crashed. Multiple email code requests. Once it finally came back, it showed my genie JC reservation for 2pm!!  A little while later it showed correct again, but keeps bouncing around. So I took some screenshots when it bounced to the correct time.
> Genie + on a crowded day….so far, it’s a nightmare and, at least in my case, Disney IT couldn’t handle the rush.


I had similar issues if you see my flurry of posts this morning. Not to mention rides breaking down too… ROTR - paying $90 to ride it without both pre-shows ???? and half the Ride tech not working for months (Kylo animatronic never works and the blasters are now stationary), the “lightening lane” on HM took 60 min in total to wait and ride yesterday. It stopped 4x while we were on it for long periods and before it was down and backed up, Test track ride showed none of the cars we built - no metrics showed up - and the Lightening Lane took 40 minutes.
Take this Genie + money to make your attractions worth paying for - until then we are heading elsewhere in the world and likely if we return to Orlando checking out the park down the road and their new attractions.


----------



## wisblue

Figment1990 said:


> you will no longer be able to book a second LL at 11:30 after riding jungle cruise if you booked one at 11. if you do not book he at 11 you can book after tapping into second jungle cruise tapstile.
> 
> if at 11, you book something for 12:30-1:30, then when u tap into that at 12:30 you should be able to book again. So no, it’s not EXACTLY resetting it to 1, it’s just eliminating your ability to book again with jungle cruise since you booked one at 11.
> (at least that’s the current speculation)



If that’s what it is, then it sounds like they have made it identical to the original paper FP system in terms of the timing. Once you book a LL you are eligible to book the next one at the earlier of (1) two hours after booking the LL, or (2) tapping in to use that LL.

That was what I expected it to be in the first place.

That would seem to eliminate the advantage of booking your first LL for after 11 AM (or whatever 2 hours after opening is). You’d be better off booking something like JC a little earlier so you would have a better selection for your second one.


----------



## disneykate914

rmclain73 said:


> Take this with a grain of salt, but I have been reading this morning on various other pages that the paid lightning lanes for on site guest have been earlier than 7 AM the last two days. People seem to be complaining when they login right at 7 AM and things are already sold out or at the very end of the day already.



Am here this week and have not experienced anything earlier than 7 am on the dot.  Got ROTR ILL at 7 am exactly. Completely sold out at 703.


----------



## Figment1990

wisblue said:


> If that’s what it is, then it sounds like they have made it identical to the original paper FP system in terms of the timing. Once you book a LL you are eligible to book the next one at the earlier of (1) two hours after booking the LL, or (2) tapping in to use that LL.
> 
> That was what I expected it to be in the first place.
> 
> That would seem to eliminate the advantage of booking your first LL for after 11 AM (or whatever 2 hours after opening is). You’d be better off booking something like JC a little earlier so you would have a better selection for your second one.


Yes, it seems like the old paper FP system, which I also agree - is what I was expecting initially.  I’m not angry that they made the system work this way.  I’m angry they didn’t make it work this way from the beginning and therefore, we wasted all our time over the last few weeks.  I agree with those who are saying the rides are down more than normal.  It is frustrating and noticeable.  I can’t believe I’m going to pay for Rise with the very real possibility of it going down and losing my money for the day.  I’m only taking the chance because we will be there all day, and with it being thanksgiving, I have very little faith we will get on much else.  It’s going to be an expensive day though!  

I’m also frustrated, like others, with the technological performance of the app.


----------



## JakeAZ

If you like stressing all night that you will sleep through your alarm clock for the 7am cluster…

If you like stressing out while trying to time a refresh at 7am…

if you like getting kicked out of the app / having multiple (60+ yesterday for me) verification emails sent to you…

if you like stressing all day about making sure you try for another LL. But then making sure they work with dining, hopping and other LLs

Well then head on down to Disney World!

I understand on lower crowd days the system is easier to navigate. But it’s an absolute nightmare on crowded days.

100% awful

if you have a trip scheduled for around Christmas / New Years…..good luck!  You’ll need it.


----------



## acebatonfan

rmclain73 said:


> Take this with a grain of salt, but I have been reading this morning on various other pages that the paid lightning lanes for on site guest have been earlier than 7 AM the last two days. People seem to be complaining when they login right at 7 AM and things are already sold out or at the very end of the day already.


It makes me wonder if the people who aren't getting the 0700 reservations are using Disney's wifi versus their own LTE/5g/cell data. Not in IT, but I could definitely imagine resort wifi getting a bit boggy if a large number of people are suddenly using it at such a weird time.

Now it's time to take some basic computer science/internet 101 classes and see if factors such as caching the website/app prior to 0700 would be of any benefit. And I promised my boss I wouldn't be thinking of work during the trip, but here we are...


----------



## JakeAZ

acebatonfan said:


> It makes me wonder if the people who aren't getting the 0700 reservations are using Disney's wifi versus their own LTE/5g/cell data. Not in IT, but I could definitely imagine resort wifi getting a bit boggy if a large number of people are suddenly using it at such a weird time.


I don’t think this is the case. Both my brother (on Verizon) and me (on resort WiFi) had the same problems, at the same time. It’s the app. It can’t handle the surge for the 7am cluster.


----------



## acebatonfan

JakeAZ said:


> I don’t think this is the case. Both my brother (on Verizon) and me (on resort WiFi) had the same problems, at the same time. It’s the app. It can’t handle the surge for the 7am cluster.


Looks like I might be enlisting my partner-in-crime DSis for securing ride reservations, or I could steal her phone and obsessively refresh both at the same time and wait for one to get through. I'm surprised Disney didn't consider giving resort guests an earlier reservation release time with how much money they like making these days (and possibly cut down on some of the all-at-once app demand at 07).


----------



## DisneyPanthersFan

5DisneyNuts said:


> Sorry,  but where should it show when I'm eligible to book the next LL? MFSR is not until this evening and when I try to book another LL to see eligibility, it just says unknown conflict. Unbelievable.
> TIA



That's the message I got (unknown conflict) when I was there about a week or two ago. I never saw a time I would be eligible to book the next one. But I think most people see a time instead of that message, apparently.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

5DisneyNuts said:


> 702am SDD sold out, Dolphin stay not recognized as on site RotR gone at 703am anyway. Got MFSR at 705am return 830pm.


This is flat-out unacceptable.  People should lose their jobs for this.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

Can anyone explain or even speculate about the purpose of the emailed confirmation codes?  Why would Disney want or need to confirm that you really are who you say you are before selling you an ILL$?  And why would that only happen at peak crowd moments?  This seems like an epic IT fail, even by Disney standards.  And I don’t even understand what it was trying to accomplish.


----------



## OhDannyBoy

My strategy is to consider RotR over rated and not worth the headache and be over it. I'll ride it if the line is an hour, maybe a bit longer. But I'm not driving myself bananas to ride it. there's other cool stuff in HS to do.

It's the same position I took when FoP first opened. Cool ride, but not worth 3 hours of my time.


----------



## ZeeWP

I am still going through the pages, but Man, I am surprised that they implemented these changes during one of the busiest times of the year. It is bound to "ruin" many people's vacations when things are already so chaotic. I mean this is something that I would shrug off, but it would definitely mess with touring strategies that I may have planned out.


----------



## Arouge

We have a trip set for President's week with our son and his family. I am getting anxious because it looks like it will be more crowded than we anticipated. This is a trip we were going to do in November 2020, but then Covid happened.  Since these are my younger grandchildren who have never been, we are still planning on going. I might get genie+ for a MK day and a HS day, but from what I'm reading I'm not sure it will be worth it if it's that crowded. We would be paying for our group of 7. I have changed an April trip with my daughters and their families to Universal, Sea World and Discovery Cove. They have been to Disney many times with us over the years, and with all of these changes at Disney, we decided to switch this trip and are not doing Disney at all. We are all really excited about the April trip!


----------



## twodogs

I am trying to look from home today.  Before 10am Florida time, I could see the LL return times and wait times etc.  I could refresh and see different times.  Suddenly, my Tip Board just spins and then checks my Face ID as if it is trying to log me into the app?  I have closed the app etc many times, logged out, and all it does is cycle through Face ID, says it is good and then checks Face ID again (iphone).  I can go to other areas of the app such as dining reservations or my tickets, and those are fine.  I REALLY hope this is not happening to anyone actually in the parks today, as it would be horrible.  I can't see the Tip Board at all, just an endless loop of Face ID.


----------



## dardis

Here this week with my family of 5 and my brother and his family of 4.

Was able to stack rides for afternoon MK arrival on Sunday by booking every two hours. 7, 11, 1, 3. I was able to book new rides each time we tapped in past second tap point.

Monday was HS - I was able to get SDD at 7am for 3-4. Booked other G+ LL at 11, 1, 3. Was able to book after second tap point - but  limited availability- even with refreshing.

Tuesday started at MK 8am open- as already noted here, G+ changed overnight. Booked HM from 9:10-10:10 at 7am. Booked Pooh at 10 for 12:40. For the first time tried booking during “grace period” at 10:12 - nope. Tapped into HM at 10:15, second tap @10:25. App said I could not make another G+ LL until 12 (2 hours after I made last reservation).

Trying our best to make current system version work for rest of our trip. Early entry if on property is a must do (our experience has been parks and rides open at least one hour prior, not 30 min). Booking G+ for afternoon/eve of second park, can only get 2-3 (even with refreshing), by booking every 2 hours.

Many thanks to all here that have shared ideas and experiences. Super helpful! My brother and his family think I am the bomb! Crazy busy, crazy expensive, but we are having fun.


----------



## leeniewdw

@Arouge we also have a trip during the Pres weekend (though we arrive Thurs before and leave Sun before).  And while this isn't with younger grandchildren, it's with our own grown kids & SOs that haven't been in 15+ years.   I'm very nervous about that Saturday (listed as a 10 via TP) and how we'll accomplish the headliners that they've never been on (bad enough Everest is gonna be down).  Just yesterday I switched our park reservations in attempt to give us a better chance to get the HS rides in.  At this point I'm praying for an AHs event to help (literally hoping for an opportunity to give them MORE money).    Was hoping that G+ would help us if they decided not to RD (and maybe it still will), but it seems like RD and G+ might help the most at DHS.


----------



## LisaDKG

I found that if the email code requirement would come up only if I was using Disney wifi and I speculated it was because I'm Canadian and my MDE account address is Canadian and that it did not like that I was using my account using US wifi as if I had hacked the account from far away.  It may be that it didn't help that I was also using a US sim card with a completely different cell number than what my account has.  I theorized that it was the discrepancies between my account details and the device and location I was using it in.

This doesn't hold any water in Americans with American phones and accounts and addresses are also experiencing the code-required glitch.  

I didn't ever have to enter a code if I was not using Disney wifi - which I tried my hardest to never use.  It's the worst and being from Canada I KNOW bad, expensive wifi!!!

Also, during my one night stay in a ground level room at Saratoga Springs, I had neither access to wifi or even internet service AT ALL and had to leave the room and go out into an open space in order to find any internet.  It was like I was back in the stone ages of the internet and soooo frustrating when the success of the day depends on your access.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

We have an upcoming trip the week before Christmas.  

I understand why they eliminated the ability to double-stack.  I don't approve of that change, since I think it was a good idea to build into the system an ability for regular, loyal customers -- the kind who obsessively follow Disney blogs and forums -- to get more out of their vacations.  I hate that Disney seems only to be catering to the once-in-a-lifetime guest these days.  But still, I understand the change and I can live with it.

(I can't respect the decision to make the change in the middle of one of the biggest weeks of the year, without any announcement or explanation.  I feel terrible for the people who are there now and were sandbagged by that.  But that's a different matter.)

What I can't abide is the significant possibility that the system won't perform as intended.  I have spent hours carefully planning out my days, agonizing about exactly how to approach my G+ and ILL$ selections so as to maximize my chance of getting everything that I want.  If I log in at precisely 7:00 on the first day of my trip, and find that MDE no longer recognizes my Swan reservation and/or that the system gets stuck in a loop of asking me over and over again to reenter my username and password and useless confirmation codes that it keeps emailing me, so that, by the time I can actually attempt to make a reservation, the ILL$ rides and the top G+ rides are gone, and the second-tier G+ rides are already showing return times in the evening, I will be beyond livid.  It won't just be that my $16 (actually $320 for the four of us for the five-day trip) was wasted.  I spent thousands of dollars on this trip, and if I can't ride many of the best rides (or have to stand in line for hours on end to do so), I will feel like that money was wasted.  

Disney had better get its act together between now and Christmas!


----------



## fflmaster

Trying to search and get the "stacking"  option down, but couldn't find a post that if you have multiple people doing the LL selections in your group. 

So, if I select a LL selection for Tower of Terror, can I put everyone in my party as included? If someone else, for example, my wife, were to go into her account and try to select a LL for Slinky Dog, would it allow her to select or say she is not available due to the 120 rule?


----------



## Juventus

LisaDKG said:


> I found that if the email code requirement would come up only if I was using Disney wifi and I speculated it was because I'm Canadian and my MDE account address is Canadian and that it did not like that I was using my account using US wifi as if I had hacked the account from far away.  It may be that it didn't help that I was also using a US sim card with a completely different cell number than what my account has.  I theorized that it was the discrepancies between my account details and the device and location I was using it in.
> 
> This doesn't hold any water in Americans with American phones and accounts and addresses are also experiencing the code-required glitch.
> 
> I didn't ever have to enter a code if I was not using Disney wifi - which I tried my hardest to never use.  It's the worst and being from Canada I KNOW bad, expensive wifi!!!
> 
> Also, during my one night stay in a ground level room at Saratoga Springs, I had neither access to wifi or even internet service AT ALL and had to leave the room and go out into an open space in order to find any internet.  It was like I was back in the stone ages of the internet and soooo frustrating when the success of the day depends on your access.


Fellow Canuck here.  The "my tips" board will not work from home unless I use a VPN (and choose an American city).  You can get a cheap VPN (some have 30 day trials I believe...) and see if that makes a difference.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

On crowded days, how fast are the Remy ILL$ selling out?  I plan to purchase it for later in the day -- around 5:00.  And I want to try to get a G+ LL for TT as early as possible.  I'm thinking try to book TT first, and then purchase Remy.  But I don't want Remy to sell out -- or be available only in the late evening, when it would conflict with my ADR -- by the time I am able to buy it.


----------



## Jrb1979

According to a few sites the expire hack has been closed by Disney. 


The hack was that if you let your LL1 expire, you could book LL2, then redeem LL1 during the 15-minute grace period and then book LL3.


----------



## MikeandReneePlus5

Jrb1979 said:


> According to a few sites the expire hack has been closed by Disney.
> 
> 
> The hack was that if you let your LL1 expire, you could book LL2, then redeem LL1 during the 15-minute grace period and then book LL3.



Well that's that then.  Can't say I am troubled by it.

They really should just go back to full stand by for everything.


----------



## mab2012

I wonder if they are applying the same eligibility check to cancelled LL reservations?

If yes, it would be important to understand that, otherwise you could risk losing a reservation entirely.  eg. Book a late LL, wait 2+ hours, book a second LL.  I paid my 2h eligibility "penalty", so I'm entitled to hold and ride two LLs.  But if the system applies the same eligibility check to cancellations, and I decide to cancel my late LL and replace it with something earlier, I will be out of luck.  I don't get to rebook it, because my eligibility timer for that ride has already passed, and I also don't get to ride it, since I cancelled.  Poof, gone.

If no, rebooking that cancelled LL to an earlier time would, in effect, reset the eligibility timer _for that particular LL_, thus leaving a path to creating a second rolling stack.  Albeit one that comes at the very high "cost" of sacrificing your first LL pick of the day.

@dmunsil, have you seen anything yet that could confirm this either way?


----------



## Jrb1979

MikeandReneePlus5 said:


> Well that's that then.  Can't say I am troubled by it.
> 
> They really should just go back to full stand by for everything.


I disagree as I love skip the line systems. Wish Disney's was more like Universal's. Disney needs to get out of the crowd management game.


----------



## Miffy

After reading through many of the recent posts on this thread, I'm thinking the best strategy for our December trip is to RD every park, hold our breath at 7 am to hope to get acceptable-to-us times for ILL$, and spend a lot of time at the resort, sitting on the balcony and watching the animals from our savanna-view room at AKL . . . which room, btw, even with the AP discount, is still nearly twice the price it was 2 years ago at the same time, prepandemic.

The other strategy will be to purchase G+, think of it as another ILL$, and consider ourselves fantastically lucky if we get more than one desired LL at a desired-by-us time out of it.

I really really really miss FP+.


----------



## mab2012

Juventus said:


> Fellow Canuck here.  The "my tips" board will not work from home unless I use a VPN (and choose an American city).  You can get a cheap VPN (some have 30 day trials I believe...) and see if that makes a difference.



There are also some free, ad-supported VPN applications.  They generally suck, but if you only want to use it to play around with the tip board (or make reservations on travel day), they are sometimes adequate.


----------



## DisneyKidds

MikeandReneePlus5 said:


> Well that's that then.  Can't say I am troubled by it.


I don’t think the expire hack is the only thing that changed.

I could be wrong in piecing together the info but……while you can still make a standard stack (book G+ LL reservations at 7am, 11am, 1pm, 3pm, assuming a 9am open and suitable late return times), now when you tap into the first return time that comes up you can’t make a replacement selection because you already have more G+LL reservations booked.  So you can make the stack, but you can’t work the stack or make another selection until you tap into the last return in the stack.  In the past you used to be able to replace each reservation in the stack once you used it.  This change will lessen the total number of G+LL reservations you are able to secure via stacking, but the MK is probably the only park with enough G+ rides for it to be a factor.

I think….


----------



## ComeToSocialize

It sounds like now that they eliminated the double stacking loophole it now works like Maxpass, which I suspect was always their intention. 

They probably realized a small minority of G+ guests were consuming the majority of LL reservations and made this change to make it more balanced.


----------



## katyringo

I think for those there right now your frustration in something you studied and then the rules
Changing is totally valid.

when Genie came out many comments were made about how vague DisneyWorld on how it worked and someone said they do that so they can tweak it. And that's exactly what happened.

I do believe how it works right now today was always the intention. I said it from the start it was rebranded maxpass without re-rides.

The difference is the amount of rides and this is why we see this system struggle at DHS. Super high demand and not enough rides.


----------



## leeniewdw

ComeToSocialize said:


> They probably realized a small minority of G+ guests were consuming the majority of LL reservations and made this change to make it more balanced.



Could that even be possible?  If it was a "small minority" and people only had a stack of 2 LLs during morning touring, just how many slots was that?  Especially when the return times are so far out by mid/late morning.  I don't think the math works out that a small minority could take the majority even if they tried this week.

If people are stacking 3 or 4 LLs for afternoon/evening, then nothing that changed yesterday would impact those stacks.


----------



## emilymad

So would it now be better to take the earliest time possible and keep getting a new LL after riding or is the 2 hours always in effect?  I thought I understood all this but back to the beginning and we leave on Friday.  Really thinking about skipping G+ all together.


----------



## mab2012

None of us will ever know, but personally, I think they knew exactly what they were doing when they launched, and how it differed from MaxPass. What they probably didn't have a great handle on was how inventory would hold up to the changes.  So they would have had this modification in their back pocket, ready to deploy if they found that the inventory couldn't keep up on high-crowd days.  And here we are.


----------



## lorenae

Hearing reports now that today’s Genie+ again allows stacking and booking another LL after tapping in to one.


----------



## boop0524

Miffy said:


> After reading through many of the recent posts on this thread, I'm thinking the best strategy for our December trip is to RD every park, hold our breath at 7 am to hope to get acceptable-to-us times for ILL$, and spend a lot of time at the resort, sitting on the balcony and watching the animals from our savanna-view room at AKL . . . which room, btw, even with the AP discount, is still nearly twice the price it was 2 years ago at the same time, prepandemic.
> 
> The other strategy will be to purchase G+, think of it as another ILL$, and consider ourselves fantastically lucky if we get more than one desired LL at a desired-by-us time out of it.
> 
> I really really really miss FP+.



I would love for one of the vloggers to do a video testing how many rides you can get done between early morning and evening extra hours, no Genie+. You could take a break mid day and maybe do an ILL$. Sounds a lot less stressful and probably more productive too


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

As of 2:20 PM today *every single lightning lane in animal kingdom is gone*.  Not just the rides, every show too.  Even animation experience, for which the fastpass is usually not even worth it, is gone.  Every. Single. One.  I would love to see what Disney castmembers are going to say to people who showed up in the park for the afternoon and paid money for Genie+ only to not be able to use it at all.  This system is a disaster.  Maybe they'll start offering LL's to kite tails.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

lorenae said:


> Hearing reports now that today’s Genie+ again allows stacking and booking another LL after tapping in to one.


From where?


----------



## Bill McKinley

We have a trip coming up in less than 3 weeks.  We'll be there before major Christmas crowds arrive (I hope).  We have not been since February of '20 so no experience with G+, we LOVED the FP+ system and from the sounds of it, it's going to take some getting used to for G+.  A couple questions if they haven't been answered yet...

1.  Why no re-rides??
2.  At what capacity are the parks operating at now? 

Thanks in advance for the help!


----------



## dmunsil

mab2012 said:


> I wonder if they are applying the same eligibility check to cancelled LL reservations?



Yeah, I've been curious about that myself.



> If yes, it would be important to understand that, otherwise you could risk losing a reservation entirely.  eg. Book a late LL, wait 2+ hours, book a second LL.  I paid my 2h eligibility "penalty", so I'm entitled to hold and ride two LLs.  But if the system applies the same eligibility check to cancellations, and I decide to cancel my late LL and replace it with something earlier, I will be out of luck.  I don't get to rebook it, because my eligibility timer for that ride has already passed, and I also don't get to ride it, since I cancelled.  Poof, gone.



That's exactly why I suspect that cancellation probably still resets eligibility, but someone should test it.



> If no, rebooking that cancelled LL to an earlier time would, in effect, reset the eligibility timer _for that particular LL_, thus leaving a path to creating a second rolling stack.  Albeit one that comes at the very high "cost" of sacrificing your first LL pick of the day.
> 
> @dmunsil, have you seen anything yet that could confirm this either way?



I kinda think that if cancellation still resets your booking eligibility, it doesn't really allow for rolling over your multi-reservation stack, and that's the whole value. There's no point in waiting to build a multi-reservation stack unless either you're going to arrive to the park later (and that still works), or you can keep your two reservations all day by leapfrogging them. You can't leapfrog any more, so there's typically no point in deliberately creating a stack. You could just book reservations and use them during that time.

I was going to get a park reservation today and test cancelling, but I couldn't get one for annual passholders. Also it could be a pain trying to test things on a crazy busy day, so I may wait until next week. By then someone else may have tested it and saved me $16. 

*Edit: I did end up testing this shortly after posting this, and cancelling any reservation allowed you to rebook at that time. However, Disney changed the rules at some point in the last few weeks. Cancelling any reservation other than the one you most recently booked does nothing as of 1/30/22.*


----------



## lorenae

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> From where?



Facebook groups with people currently there reporting their experiences.


----------



## Sunelis

Bill McKinley said:


> We have a trip coming up in less than 3 weeks.  We'll be there before major Christmas crowds arrive (I hope).  We have not been since February of '20 so no experience with G+, we LOVED the FP+ system and from the sounds of it, it's going to take some getting used to for G+.  A couple questions if they haven't been answered yet...
> 
> 1.  Why no re-rides??
> 2.  At what capacity are the parks operating at now?
> 
> Thanks in advance for the help!



1. No official reason given. The best people can come up with is to give a chance to everyone to ride every ride once.
2. No official number given by Disney. From what I've seen at the beginning of November I would guess pretty close to pre-pandemic capacity.


----------



## katyringo

I wonder if we aren't seeing a "loop hole" close but a glitchy system due to really high demand.

I too am seeing the Facebook reports that contradict yesterday's report.

I go Saturday sooo... YOLO!


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

katyringo said:


> I wonder if we aren't seeing a "loop hole" close but a glitchy system due to really high demand.
> 
> I too am seeing the Facebook reports that contradict yesterday's report.
> 
> I go Saturday sooo... YOLO!


I suppose with Disney the old adage "never ascribe to malice what can be instead ascribed to incompetence" is always true.


----------



## Figment1990

lorenae said:


> Hearing reports now that today’s Genie+ again allows stacking and booking another LL after tapping in to one.


Ok, here is what I have set up for tonight. We purposely didn’t use any at Epcot this morning as we knew we wanted to focus on tonight prior to the extended evening hours after we meet my folks.  

At 10am we booked Jungle Cruise 6:55-7:55
At 12pm we booked BTMRR 7:45-8:45
At 2pm we booked Haunted Mansion 8:05-9:05
(Still waiting to see if we can book anything at 4)

Based on yesterday, I don’t expect to be able to book anything after we ride Jungle Cruise or BTMRR (if we ride those before HM) but I will try to if there’s anything left and report back the results.


----------



## jlud57

Currently reading through this to prepare for 1st week of December- what is the code requirement that is generated through the email for genie+ (sorry not understanding this)?


----------



## princesswahooey

Figment1990 said:


> Ok, here is what I have set up for tonight. We purposely didn’t use any at Epcot this morning as we knew we wanted to focus on tonight prior to the extended evening hours after we meet my folks.
> 
> At 10am we booked Jungle Cruise 6:55-7:55
> At 12pm we booked BTMRR 7:45-8:45
> At 2pm we booked Haunted Mansion 8:05-9:05
> (Still waiting to see if we can book anything at 4)
> 
> Based on yesterday, I don’t expect to be able to book anything after we ride Jungle Cruise or BTMRR (if we ride those before HM) but I will try to if there’s anything left and report back the results.


Thanks for being on the front lines and reporting


----------



## buckeyeguy1

jlud57 said:


> Currently reading through this to prepare for 1st week of December- what is the code requirement that is generated through the email for genie+ (sorry not understanding this)?



I have gotten it a couple times. When I purchased G+ both mornings, there was a second verification for sign in that they send a 6 digit code to your email you have to enter on the app.

I got it even though I was already signed into the app.


----------



## MikeandReneePlus5

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> As of 2:20 PM today *every single lightning lane in animal kingdom is gone*.  Not just the rides, every show too.  Even animation experience, for which the fastpass is usually not even worth it, is gone.  Every. Single. One.  I would love to see what Disney castmembers are going to say to people who showed up in the park for the afternoon and paid money for Genie+ only to not be able to use it at all.  This system is a disaster.  Maybe they'll start offering LL's to kite tails.



Wow.  And great point about late arrivers.  I think the original paper FP system worked so well because a lot of people didn't know about.  now we are basically back to that except a) it is more widely known and b) so much easier to use because it is your phone instead of having to visit a physical FP machine.

What a mess.


----------



## Missmaureen78

I wonder how big of an impact parkhoppers have on late-day availability.  If people spend their mornings stacking LL's for their second park, that would eat up availability that might otherwise be distributed in a more "natural" way.  So instead of LL return times progressing steadily forward as people book them and use them and book again, some percentage of that availability is booked up at the start of the day.  Maybe that's a marginal number but I wonder.


----------



## BridgetR3

We’ve been at Disney for about a week now and had not used Genie + (or been on the DISboards) so imagine my surprise today when I could no longer grab a second fast pass after the first…. Yeah yeah LL.  
Today we hit Magic Kingdom and at 7 I pulled Jingle Cruise. At 11 I pulled Haunted Mansion. At 1 I pulled Peter Pan. At 3 I pulled splash and just now at 5 I pulled buzz light year.  We have had luck in getting what we wanted but jingle cruise was still a 25 minutes wait with LL.  Also every single one of our LLs was for a time after 3:30.  
It’s been a wild wild week but we are here often and have really just enjoyed being back in the parks with people again.  It’s definitely a very different experience from last thanksgiving for sure!!


----------



## twodogs

fflmaster said:


> Trying to search and get the "stacking"  option down, but couldn't find a post that if you have multiple people doing the LL selections in your group.
> 
> So, if I select a LL selection for Tower of Terror, can I put everyone in my party as included? If someone else, for example, my wife, were to go into her account and try to select a LL for Slinky Dog, would it allow her to select or say she is not available due to the 120 rule?


If your wife is included in your party for the LL for ToT, she will be limited by the 120 minute rule (or tap in rule), regardless of who books the LL on their account.  So no, you can't double dip by getting LLs from two different accounts, if that is what you are asking.


----------



## Jrb1979

lorenae said:


> Hearing reports now that today’s Genie+ again allows stacking and booking another LL after tapping in to one.


That's not the loop hole that was closed. The one they closed was thee hack  that if you let your LL1 expire, you could book LL2, then redeem LL1 during the 15-minute grace period and then book LL3.


----------



## princesswahooey

It's funny to me that Disney closed the loopholes on G+ and yet the analytics from today are not much different than Monday. Clearly there is a capacity issue. They simply don't have enough LL availability for what they are selling.

The more I think about this, I realize that by making certain rides ILL$, what Disney essentially did was make FP+ cost about $40 per day, not $15. The limited availability for G+ LL attractions is skewed because some of the most popular rides have been eliminated from that pool. Paying $15 does not get you the equivalent of the old FP+ setup.

Once upon a time we got 3 scheduled FP+ to start our day. We can still do that, but only if we pay more and our choices include the ILL$ rides. Everything after that is a bonus.

I wonder if the availability would balance itself out a little better if they had put rides like SDD or Test Track as ILL$ (instead of MMRR and Remy. Both are new, but not necessarily as popular as others.) If the most coveted rides were actually the pay rides, maybe the 7am first LL G+ picks would be a little more evenly spread among other rides so fewer attractions would run out so early in the morning.


----------



## cgattis

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> Having watched a lot of resort tv 1 streaming, I don’t think there are really large areas that have *neither* a wifi signal or a cell signal, and certainly not for large segments of queues.


Well I only know what I experienced, and I know I couldn’t get that app to load at ALL (on WiFi or cell) in Test Track or Soarin queues, nor in the fully indoor part of Remy. Also had trouble up near the building at TOT and in parts of Galaxy’s Edge (but wasn’t paying close enough attention at that point to say where). Finally just had to go up to Docking Bay 7 and show them my blank screen so they’d let me go in to order. YMMV.


----------



## cgattis

Sydnerella said:


> I think you are not acknowledging the frustration of being in the midst of a vacation and trying to plan and adjust and figure out things… all the while dealing with Holiday crowds, a crashing app, understaffed and breaking down rides. Reasonable or not - it sucks to be the testers when your on a weeks vacation at these prices and not able to just go anytime.


Totally agree with this post and your reply to mine. Terrible. We actually left early because it was just literally no fun. We enjoyed HS because we hadn’t been since TSL opened but the rest was miserable. I’ll be emailing Guest Relations and Billing tomorrow; today was still too fresh.


----------



## cgattis

Sydnerella said:


> Swan and Dolphin are known glitches. Screenshot attempts and more importantly, it sounds like you need the hotel to confirm something with front desk at check-in to make sure it doesn’t occur. It happened for me trying to book IAS for my inlaws on their first day. We are at Riviera and could book no problem but I couldn’t book their ROTR or MMRR. So had to talk to GET. They said the above. Not sure what the hotel staff can really do though. And they also said to book what you can if you have guests not at those hotels. Which we had done.
> On the plus side it hasn’t happened since their first day when I’ve tried to book the IAS paid LLs


It happened to me on my second day (but first day was fine!).  Missed getting ROTR. GET said too bad. Ugh.


----------



## cgattis

Grasshopper2016 said:


> On crowded days, how fast are the Remy ILL$ selling out?  I plan to purchase it for later in the day -- around 5:00.  And I want to try to get a G+ LL for TT as early as possible.  I'm thinking try to book TT first, and then purchase Remy.  But I don't want Remy to sell out -- or be available only in the late evening, when it would conflict with my ADR -- by the time I am able to buy it.


On Monday I managed to get one and by the time I got my confirmation and then refreshed to see what time I actually got, it showed no more available and my clock still showed 7:00…….and to top it off, we waited 45 minutes once we were called. FOR $30!!! Sorry—rant over.

ETA: Sorry, I mixed apples and oranges! The VQ was gone at 7 and we waited 45 minutes for that, but it was free. I purchased the ILL$ right after that, so about 7:03 I think, and got a 1:55-2:55 return time. Didn’t check back to see when they sold out; sorry!


----------



## mab2012

dmunsil said:


> I kinda think that if cancellation still resets your booking eligibility, it doesn't really allow for rolling over your multi-reservation stack, and that's the whole value. There's no point in waiting to build a multi-reservation stack unless either you're going to arrive to the park later (and that still works), or you can keep your two reservations all day by leapfrogging them. You can't leapfrog any more, so there's typically no point in deliberately creating a stack. You could just book reservations and use them during that time.



See, I think you _could_ still set up an ongoing double stack, but in a much more restricted way.  The trick would be to only book return times within 2h of the booking time, and then make sure you tap in before the 2h window is up. The cancellation makes it possible (in theory) to get to the initial setup of two active LLs, each within 2h of its own booking time.

Of course, they could be tracking the booking time of the original reservation across cancellations, but that seems a lot less likely.

I'm not suggesting that this would have much practical value (if any).  Maybe it could work on a quiet day, if you're not too worried about riding a lot of headliners.  But in that case, you're probably just as well off repeatedly rebooking your single LL, as intended.  Still, I think it's probably technically possible, and I just like to understand these things.  

What they've done here is actually quite clever.  Both simple to implement and very effective.


----------



## Lsdolphin

Is there anyway to use genie + to get rides for late in the day ...we arrive on the 30th and wanted to go to MK around 5:00 and do a few rides before party starts ....I had thought I could stack every 2 hours during the day for times between 5-8 but doesn’t look like that’s possible.


----------



## katyringo

Lsdolphin said:


> Is there anyway to use genie + to get rides for late in the day ...we arrive on the 30th and wanted to go to MK around 5:00 and do a few rides before party starts ....I had thought I could stack every 2 hours during the day for times between 5-8 but doesn’t look like that’s possible.



you can do what you said the key is if the times you need are available. You will have to watch for them and they may not be down into the evening at 7am.  If you want to pay for the individual lightning lanes you can buy those at 7 and choose your times.

I am doing the same on a party day. I plan to arrive to MK around 3-4

At 7am I plan to buy SDMT and Space mountain for a 4-5pm slot

I then plan to watch genie+ return times on other rides and once they start to get to 3-4 pm I will book one.


----------



## Lsdolphin

katyringo said:


> you can do what you said the key is if the times you need are available. You will have to watch for them and they may not be down into the evening at 7am.  If you want to pay for the individual lightning lanes you can buy those at 7 and choose your times.
> 
> I am doing the same on a party day. I plan to arrive to MK around 3-4
> 
> At 7am I plan to buy SDMT and Space mountain for a 4-5pm slot
> 
> I then plan to watch genie+ return times on other rides and once they start to get to 3-4 pm I will book one.





katyringo said:


> you can do what you said the key is if the times you need are available. You will have to watch for them and they may not be down into the evening at 7am.  If you want to pay for the individual lightning lanes you can buy those at 7 and choose your times.
> 
> I am doing the same on a party day. I plan to arrive to MK around 3-4
> 
> At 7am I plan to buy SDMT and Space mountain for a 4-5pm slot
> 
> I then plan to watch genie+ return times on other rides and once they start to get to 3-4 pm I will book one.


how do you get the time you want...I thought the Gen + just randomly assigns you a time


----------



## DavidNYC

princesswahooey said:


> It's funny to me that Disney closed the loopholes on G+ and yet the analytics from today are not much different than Monday. Clearly there is a capacity issue. They simply don't have enough LL availability for what they are selling.
> 
> The more I think about this, I realize that by making certain rides ILL$, what Disney essentially did was make FP+ cost about $40 per day, not $15. The limited availability for G+ LL attractions is skewed because some of the most popular rides have been eliminated from that pool. Paying $15 does not get you the equivalent of the old FP+ setup.
> 
> Once upon a time we got 3 scheduled FP+ to start our day. We can still do that, but only if we pay more and our choices include the ILL$ rides. Everything after that is a bonus.
> 
> I wonder if the availability would balance itself out a little better if they had put rides like SDD or Test Track as ILL$ (instead of MMRR and Remy. Both are new, but not necessarily as popular as others.) If the most coveted rides were actually the pay rides, maybe the 7am first LL G+ picks would be a little more evenly spread among other rides so fewer attractions would run out so early in the morning.


Yup - and I had been predicting this from the outset.  By removing those rides from Genie+, they created way too great a supply/demand imbalance.  It was clear this was coming . . .


----------



## DavidNYC

Lsdolphin said:


> how do you get the time you want...I thought the Gen + just randomly assigns you a time


Generally you can't and at busy times like this you really can't.   Stacking is theoretically possibly if you just keep booking later times at 7, 11, 1 etc.  But the odds of the rides you want having the availability you want seems to be getting less likely by the day.  I don't predict a very happy X-mas season for cast members who have to deal with Genie+ complaints . . .


----------



## acarsme123

5DisneyNuts said:


> 702am SDD sold out, Dolphin stay not recognized as on site RotR gone at 703am anyway. Got MFSR at 705am return 830pm..


Oh my god…that’s insane


----------



## katyringo

Lsdolphin said:


> how do you get the time you want...I thought the Gen + just randomly assigns you a time


I was talking about the individual lightning lanes upgrade - those you can choose your time.

with genie+ you can't- you get next available. But you can use refresh abs watch the times


----------



## GBRforWDW

Lsdolphin said:


> how do you get the time you want...I thought the Gen + just randomly assigns you a time


With MK, you should be able to watch and grab one of the top rides as the times are slower to progress.  I'd watch jungle cruise or Peter pan depending on which one you wanted and once it got into the 5pm time period, book it. You can't choose your time but you can wait for it.

ETA: it took about 5-6 minutes for Jungle Cruise to get to the 5pm hour today.  After 15-20 minutes, looks like a lot more times for earlier in the day opened back up though, so just double check the time you get


----------



## Luisfba

Where is the email coming from (what address) for those codes?  I want to be sure to setup a filter to make sure they don’t go into spam.


----------



## Sydnerella

cgattis said:


> Totally agree with this post and your reply to mine. Terrible. We actually left early because it was just literally no fun. We enjoyed HS because we hadn’t been since TSL opened but the rest was miserable. I’ll be emailing Guest Relations and Billing tomorrow; today was still too fresh.



I have been at GET daily and talked to a couple non GET managers. We are STRONGLY ENCOURAGED to email and let them know our dissatisfaction.

So all of my Fellow Frustrated Thanksgiving Week Peeps - PLEASE PLEASE send a well written email outlining your experience and expectations. CMs are saying to me this is the only way it changes!

CMs are saying this is a tough week - comments range from the system needed more testing and isn’t doing well with crowds to the Maxpass model from DL works less well here due to sheer volume of guests. And as a PP said, it’s much more easy to quickly eat up the G+ capacity since it’s by phone and heavily promoted ($$$$). And another PP is correct, the new system really costs 15+15+15 (or whatever the surge pricing is for IAS LLs). So $47.95 with tax to have 3 passes before entering the park if you’re on-site.

Which was all previously included.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! I’m thankful for this space you all create to learn, share and understand.


----------



## Figment1990

Figment1990 said:


> Ok, here is what I have set up for tonight. We purposely didn’t use any at Epcot this morning as we knew we wanted to focus on tonight prior to the extended evening hours after we meet my folks.
> 
> At 10am we booked Jungle Cruise 6:55-7:55
> At 12pm we booked BTMRR 7:45-8:45
> At 2pm we booked Haunted Mansion 8:05-9:05
> (Still waiting to see if we can book anything at 4)
> 
> Based on yesterday, I don’t expect to be able to book anything after we ride Jungle Cruise or BTMRR (if we ride those before HM) but I will try to if there’s anything left and report back the results.





princesswahooey said:


> Thanks for being on the front lines and reporting


We’ll folks, I wasn’t able to test out which of my LLs would allow me to book another LL because by the time we got to our riding there was nothing left to book for the night despite my refreshing. We were able to grab one for pirates at 4 and Buzz at 6 so we were fine with having our 5 set up when we arrived at the park at 6:30. We rode from 7:10-9 on our LLs and then we started standby. We didn’t want to see enchantment, but we did catch the fireworks part from BTMRR which was cool!  

i posted my experiences booking RotR this morning on the post about booking it at 7 in this forum. I was able to get it and DH got MFSR. The app blessedly didn’t kick me out or ask me for a code. We have never put our phones on wifi here so perhaps that’s the trick???? It did ask me for a code one time when I was using wifI on another device.
Happy thanksgiving everyone and im saying an extra thanks today for our DIS Community!

eta: I will be writing Disney later to let them know how I felt on Tuesday about them changing how the system works during the middle of my stay with no warning. Good suggestion.


----------



## Sydnerella

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> As of 2:20 PM today *every single lightning lane in animal kingdom is gone*.  Not just the rides, every show too.  Even animation experience, for which the fastpass is usually not even worth it, is gone.  Every. Single. One.  I would love to see what Disney castmembers are going to say to people who showed up in the park for the afternoon and paid money for Genie+ only to not be able to use it at all.  This system is a disaster.  Maybe they'll start offering LL's to kite tails.



I was at AK yesterday during this and when I  cancelled and rebooked a LL for a later FORLK show as we could no longer make the initial window, the system pushed my eligibility out twohours after I made rebooking - instead of keeping  my original eligibility which was 15 minutes away… so my bad - I should have known that would happen from this thread but did it anyway…

I knew that  by the time the new eligibility window opened it would be slim pickings and sure enough there was nothing to book. At this time I was able to make my way to a GET stand and they helped me out getting us a LL. My account shows a LONG list of notes and guest accommodations made - I could see it on his iPad - they know what time things were booked too. Anyway… the CMs are frustrated too and generally pretty understanding if you’re honest and respectful.

BUT back to your point about the MESS….

the CMs said people entering that park that afternoon and were still buying G+ even though there wasn’t anything left to book… and the system let the purchase it. So they had been issuing refunds for many of those less informed guests…


----------



## katyringo

I played along at home this morning ad SDD didn't even last the whole minute.:

however Something I don't see talked about here but I see on the Facebook group is that around 715-730ish they seem to release more times. Not a ton but folks report refreshing around that time and getting more options for Rise, SDD etc..


----------



## Sydnerella

Have we confirmed that the expiration window hack no longer works?

It worked for us Saturday and Sunday but have not used it since.

I see posts about conflicting reports on FB and here.

Or was that related to another change?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Sydnerella said:


> I was at AK yesterday during this and when I  cancelled and rebooked a LL for a later FORLK show as we could no longer make the initial window, the system pushed my eligibility out twohours after I made rebooking - instead of keeping  my original eligibility which was 15 minutes away… so my bad - I should have known that would happen from this thread but did it anyway…
> 
> I knew that  by the time the new eligibility window opened it would be slim pickings and sure enough there was nothing to book. At this time I was able to make my way to a GET stand and they helped me out getting us a LL. My account shows a LONG list of notes and guest accommodations made - I could see it on his iPad - they know what time things were booked too. Anyway… the CMs are frustrated too and generally pretty understanding if you’re honest and respectful.
> 
> BUT back to your point about the MESS….
> 
> the CMs said people entering that park that afternoon and were still buying G+ even though there wasn’t anything left to book… and the system let the purchase it. So they had been issuing refunds for many of those less informed guests…


I’m sure regular genie was still pushing people to buy genie+ when there was literally no genie+ availability left.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

katyringo said:


> I played along at home this morning ad SDD didn't even last the whole minute.:
> 
> however Something I don't see talked about here but I see on the Facebook group is that around 715-730ish they seem to release more times. Not a ton but folks report refreshing around that time and getting more options for Rise, SDD etc..


The working theory on that is that it’s not really another drop.  Rather, people who cancel or don’t finish booking have their spots re-released at chunk times instead of dynamically.  So a lot of people who maybe went for a SDD reservation at 11 am only to see it’s actually 8 pm by the time they got to the checkout screen release it, things like that.


----------



## GBRforWDW

katyringo said:


> I played along at home this morning ad SDD didn't even last the whole minute.:
> 
> however Something I don't see talked about here but I see on the Facebook group is that around 715-730ish they seem to release more times. Not a ton but folks report refreshing around that time and getting more options for Rise, SDD etc..


I noticed that with Magic Kingdom as well, jungle cruise went out to at least 7pm, by 710am, then I checked back later and lots of earlier times were back open.  I kept refreshing and seeing more times.


----------



## katyringo

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> The working theory on that is that it’s not really another drop.  Rather, people who cancel or don’t finish booking have their spots re-released at chunk times instead of dynamically.  So a lot of people who maybe went for a SDD reservation at 11 am only to see it’s actually 8 pm by the time they got to the checkout screen release it, things like that.


  Good thought!


----------



## GBRforWDW

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> The working theory on that is that it’s not really another drop.  Rather, people who cancel or don’t finish booking have their spots re-released at chunk times instead of dynamically.  So a lot of people who maybe went for a SDD reservation at 11 am only to see it’s actually 8 pm by the time they got to the checkout screen release it, things like that.


I was going to disagree, but then I saw this post on another thread with a screenshot showing a 10 minute hold time:



Figment1990 said:


> W he n I booked Rise this morning I was tapping through so quickly I didn’t stop to screen shot. However, something caught my eye. So when I went back to book MMRR I was more careful and I grabbed this shot. *Notice the “items held for 10 min” line at the top*. That was on the payment selection screen (3rd page) I believe. First screen: pick an hour and a time and party, next screen you review your time, and  then payment screen. I don’t remember if the hold for 10 min message was on the 2nd screen or not as I was kinda hurrying since my time changed from my selected time and I wasn’t sure if it could still change. However, it looks like once u move forward to payment u might have 10 minutes, like you would buying theater or concert tickets online. Supposedly. At least according to the app. At least for today.
> 
> Also, I luckily didn’t have any issues with it kicking me out this morning. We are on our Verizon data network, at wilderness lodge. I was able to get Rise, DH got us MFSR and then I went back and got MMRR after I saw his time. I’m not thrilled about paying for all this but at least I “know” we will have things we can do today and I can relax a bit and enjoy the holiday. I would not normally buy MMRR. And FWIW, SDD popped up a few times around 7:24 with various times so don’t give up hope if it’s gone right at 7. Keep refreshing for a bit.


Wonder if the Genie+ LLs also show that hold time.


----------



## katyringo

So if you feel your Genie+ skills are "high level" as in you understand it well and it won't be confusing to you..

if you never used Maxpass - go watch some old Disneyland maxpass videos. I do really think it will help you understand this system better because other than the no re-ride and the Individual lightning lanes- it works the same now. Replace the 90 minute window with 2 hours.

That being said- I was one who when it came
Out said I didn't feel they would completely run out even on busy days- I can admit when I'm wrong and I was wrong.  I don't think DHS has enough rides for this system.


----------



## leeniewdw

Sydnerella said:


> the CMs said people entering that park that afternoon and were still buying G+ even though there wasn’t anything left to book… and the system let the purchase it. So they had been issuing refunds for many of those less informed guests…



Of all the issues with G+, this is truly ridiculous to allow.  That should be item number one on the bug list.  I suppose it might get tricky with park hopping and having people still want to purchase even if their park reservation has no LLs, but there has GOT to be a better way to warn people properly.


----------



## GBRforWDW

katyringo said:


> So if you feel your Genie+ skills are "high level" as in you understand it well and it won't be confusing to you..
> 
> if you never used Maxpass - go watch some old Disneyland maxpass videos. I do really think it will help you understand this system better because other than the no re-ride and the Individual lightning lanes- it works the same now. Replace the 90 minute window with 2 hours.
> 
> That being said- I was one who when it came
> Out said I didn't feel they would completely run out even on busy days- I can admit when I'm wrong and I was wrong.*  I don't think DHS has enough rides for this system.*


Agreed.  The system would work, At least somewhat better, if the ILL$ didn't exist and instead they were tiers.  Then people could only start with 1 instead of some getting up to 3.  At least in theory, they passes might last longer into the day.


----------



## lorenae

katyringo said:


> So if you feel your Genie+ skills are "high level" as in you understand it well and it won't be confusing to you..
> 
> if you never used Maxpass - go watch some old Disneyland maxpass videos. I do really think it will help you understand this system better because other than the no re-ride and the Individual lightning lanes- it works the same now. Replace the 90 minute window with 2 hours.
> 
> That being said- I was one who when it came
> Out said I didn't feel they would completely run out even on busy days- I can admit when I'm wrong and I was wrong.  I don't think DHS has enough rides for this system.



I think you’re correct with DHS.  There are 6(?) desirable rides, and two of them are ILL.   So really not enough rides for the system.  While the shows hold plenty of guests and can swallow some of the crowd, nobody will book a genie+ for them (unless Fantasmic! comes back as a +).   MK has enough rides for all ages.   AK has few rides as well, so I wouldn’t even try to buy Genie+ on those days.


----------



## ssgtravel

What happens if you get an anytime pass if a ride that you had a LL reservation for goes down?  Can you just show up at anytime for another ride, without making a reservation  Are you still allowed to book additional rides after 2 hours, then 4 hours?  We have little children and were planning to visit the park only in the AM, then go back to the hotel for a nap, then hopefully go back into the park later with hopefully a couple of rides reserved, via the stacks.


----------



## Luisfba

GBRforWDW said:


> I was going to disagree, but then I saw this post on another thread with a screenshot showing a 10 minute hold time:
> 
> 
> Wonder if the Genie+ LLs also show that hold time.



what I wonder is if the selected times are really held for you when you are on the ‘being held for 10 minutes’.  Meaning, on what screen are the times shown actually locked down for you.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Luisfba said:


> what I wonder is if the selected times are really held for you when you are on the ‘being held for 10 minutes’.  Meaning, on what screen are the times shown actually locked down for you.


Yeah, it's such a mystery.  I don't like the stressful part of this especially the morning rush to grab what's essentially virtual queues all day


----------



## wiggy500

ssgtravel said:


> What happens if you get an anytime pass if a ride that you had a LL reservation for goes down?  Can you just show up at anytime for another ride, without making a reservation  Are you still allowed to book additional rides after 2 hours, then 4 hours?  We have little children and were planning to visit the park only in the AM, then go back to the hotel for a nap, then hopefully go back into the park later with hopefully a couple of rides reserved, via the stacks.
> [/QUOT



It cancels the lightning lane and gives you a multi experience lightning lane instead, which there will be options of rides in the park of the cancelled lightning lane.  The multi experience lightning lane can be used at any time that day.

As far as when you can book again, the multi experience pass should be outside of determining that.  The system keeping track should just be aware that you cancelled a lightning lane.


----------



## Sydnerella

Sydnerella said:


> Have we confirmed that the expiration window hack no longer works?
> 
> It worked for us Saturday and Sunday but have not used it since.
> 
> I see posts about conflicting reports on FB and here.
> 
> Or was that related to another change?



So the answer is, “Yes, we have confirmed that the grace period hack NO longer works” - regarding my question above.

I tried today at 10:09 after our 10:05 expired BTMRR and no dice. I did book at 10:05 when it said my window opened.

On the plus side we scanned in more than 5 minutes into the grace period and it was green.


----------



## Disturbia

No more stack throughout the day

https://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2021...e-change-if-youre-going-to-disney-world-soon/


----------



## katyringo

Disturbia said:


> No more stack throughout the day
> 
> https://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2021...e-change-if-youre-going-to-disney-world-soon/
> View attachment 625804



This is confusing because you can still have more than one booking at a time, you just have to follow the "use my selection or wait 120mins- whichever comes first" rule.

let's say MK opens at 8am.

if I book at 7 for a return time of 3-4pm
I can book again at 10am. - I get a 5-6pm time
I can book again at 12- I get a 6-7 time
I can book again at 2- I get a 7-8 return time

its 2pm and I am now holding 4 bookings. I just entered the park for the day..

alternatively

I book at  7am and I get a 8-9 return
I enter my ride at 830- I can book another. I get 9-10 return time.
I enter my ride at 9- I can book another- I get a 1-2 return time.

I've used 2 genie+ without stacking and now I can book another one at 11.

at 11 I book with a 3-4 return time.
im now holding one for 1-2 and one for 3-4

at 1pm I would be eligible to book another. I do and I get a 5-6 return time.

I use my 1-2 return time one.
I use my 3-4 time one and I'm eligible for another because it's been 2 hours since I booked my 5-6 one. 

you can still stack.. you just Have to follow the "use the LAST one I booked or 120 mins- whichever comes first"


----------



## princesswahooey

leeniewdw said:


> Of all the issues with G+, this is truly ridiculous to allow.  That should be item number one on the bug list.  I suppose it might get tricky with park hopping and having people still want to purchase even if their park reservation has no LLs, but there has GOT to be a better way to warn people properly.


Right? For every person that asked for a refund, there were probably at least 2 or more who just ate the cost, either not knowing what went wrong or not wanting to bother with the hassle. Disney should not be selling LL when there is no availability. That's ridiculous.


----------



## DisneyKidds

Figment1990 said:


> We’ll folks, I wasn’t able to test out which of my LLs would allow me to book another LL because by the time we got to our riding there was nothing left to book for the night despite my refreshing. We were able to grab one for pirates at 4 and Buzz at 6 so we were fine with having our 5 set up when we arrived at the park at 6:30. We rode from 7:10-9 on our LLs and then we started standby. We didn’t want to see enchantment, but we did catch the fireworks part from BTMRR which was cool!


Stinks you couldn’t further gauge the system since additional LL reservations were all gone….but hero work!  A quintuple stack, with holiday week crowds.  A nice morning (hopefully) in Epcot, a little midday break (that’s our style), followed by hop to the MK with 5 good rides in hand.  If I can accomplish that kind of thing next summer I’d be ok with paying the $15.98 pp.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

leeniewdw said:


> Of all the issues with G+, this is truly ridiculous to allow.  That should be item number one on the bug list.  I suppose it might get tricky with park hopping and having people still want to purchase even if their park reservation has no LLs, but there has GOT to be a better way to warn people properly.


This is a feature, not a bug.  Disney doesn’t care.  Some of those people who bought it and are unable to use it won’t go thorugh the trouble of waiting in a 45 minute guest relations line to get their money back.  That is pure profit for Chapek’s Disney.


----------



## mab2012

princesswahooey said:


> Right? For every person that asked for a refund, there were probably at least 2 or more who just ate the cost, either not knowing what went wrong or not wanting to bother with the hassle. Disney should not be selling LL when there is no availability. That's ridiculous.



But where do they draw the line?  What, exactly, does it mean to have "no availability"?  10% capacity?  A number of users eligible to book that is greater than or equal to the total number of LLs remaining across all parks?  No _current_ availability in one particular park (even if other parks have availability?)  No availability anywhere for the last X minutes?

Is a customer going to be any happier if they buy G+ and only manage to book a single LL for Figment than if they bought it and got nothing at all?

Don't get me wrong, I'm not really disagreeing with you.  Selling a useless product is terrible look and will lead to a great deal of customer dissatisfaction.  But they either have to cap sales at something that will leave enough availability that those who do buy have at least a somewhat positive experience, or they take a "caveat emptor" approach, dumping the responsibility onto the buyer, with all that implies.

So far they've chosen the latter.


----------



## StarrySkye21

Goodness, it just gets more confusing every day.  We had decent success last week, but it still took a lot more effort than it should have.  Now I’m reading things have again changed.

  Why couldn’t they do what a lot of theme parks do, such as you pay $15 for any 5 rides any time.   Or charge $30 for unlimited lightning lanes that you can choose to use whenever and however?  Why in the world complicate what’s supposed to be a magical time with 7 am wake-ups, faulty apps, fleeting return times, and complicated rules?  Just dumb.


----------



## scrappinginontario

StarrySkye21 said:


> Goodness, it just gets more confusing every day.  We had decent success last week, but it still took a lot more effort than it should have.  Now I’m reading things have again changed.
> 
> Why couldn’t they do what a lot of theme parks do, such as you pay $15 for any 5 rides any time.   Or charge $30 for unlimited lightning lanes that you can choose to use whenever and however?  Why in the world complicate what’s supposed to be a magical time with 7 am wake-ups, faulty apps, fleeting return times, and complicated rules?  Just dumb.


I'm guessing they can't do this due to the number of people in the parks.  Allowing 'unlimited' options even for a higher price would mean the LL lanes would be full and the standby lines wouldn't budge.  It's finding the balance that allows both those paying the upgraded cost plus those not, to ride.  It's why to me, the old FP system that was free to all, was a better system.  When you're not paying extra you can't really complain if the options are gone but, once they charge there is an expectation that for the price I will be able to ride at least 'x' number of things.


----------



## StarrySkye21

scrappinginontario said:


> I'm guessing they can't do this due to the number of people in the parks.  Allowing 'unlimited' options even for a higher price would mean the LL lanes would be full and the standby lines wouldn't budge.  It's finding the balance that allows both those paying the upgraded cost plus those not, to ride.  It's why to me, the old FP system that was free to all, was a better system.  When you're not paying extra you can't really complain if the options are gone but, once they charge there is an expectation that for the price I will be able to ride at least 'x' number of things.



Why is Universal able to do it?


----------



## princesswahooey

scrappinginontario said:


> I'm guessing they can't do this due to the number of people in the parks.  Allowing 'unlimited' options even for a higher price would mean the LL lanes would be full and the standby lines wouldn't budge.  It's finding the balance that allows both those paying the upgraded cost plus those not, to ride.  It's why to me, the old FP system that was free to all, was a better system.  When you're not paying extra you can't really complain if the options are gone but, once they charge there is an expectation that for the price I will be able to ride at least 'x' number of things.


Yes, I thought with all the data they had collected over the past years with the magic band system they would leverage that information to make an improved system where they could make this a true virtual queue system that would actually be maximized if *every* guest used it, allowing them to spread guests evenly through the parks and making it a better experience for all. 

Instead it seems they replaced their civil and statistical engineers with marketing and merchandising execs. When I saw how completely useless the regular Genie was (essentially directing all guests, regardless of their preferences, to under-utilized, unpopular attractions) I lost any faith in an improved fastpass experience. 

They are selling us the emperor's new clothes--a commodity that doesn't exist (at least not enough of it.)


----------



## princesswahooey

StarrySkye21 said:


> Why is Universal able to do it?


Universal charges a lot more, titrating the price based on crowd levels, and puts a cap on it.


----------



## scrappinginontario

StarrySkye21 said:


> Why is Universal able to do it?


Due to a few things I feel.  

1. Most people spend 2-3 days (is my understanding) to do the 2 U parks.  
2. Their pass to ride unlimited rides starts at $120/person/day.  

We heard the uproar when Disney wanted to charge $15/day.  Can you imagine if they suddenly wanted to charge 8 times that amount/day???


----------



## hopemax

StarrySkye21 said:


> Why is Universal able to do it?


A. Demand is a function of "necessity."  Universal didn't train their customers that if they didn't have a line-skip option they wouldn't be able to ride the big rides without excruciating waits.  So they have less demand for a line-skip option before people even walk through the gate.  People seek out different tricks like rope-drop, or they just wait because the waits aren't that bad.  Even right now Forbidden Journey only has a 35 minute wait.  Gringotts is the only one showing something horrible (130 minutes) which I would guess indicates an operational issue, like when one side of ToT goes down.  Guests believe they can have a good day at Universal without it, but that isn't true at Disney.

B.  Price.  To buy Express pass for tomorrow it will cost you $299.99 per person, not $15.  This also limits demand. 

C.  It's capped.  Today is sold out, and they set their threshold lower than Disney sells through Genie+ or offered through FP+ so that Standby wouldn't get as bad as at Disney, which increases their customer's ability to avoid the situation Disney has created in Part A.


----------



## Orsino

Also, universal doesn’t have the numbers that Disney does. If universal ever gets to the level of visitors that Disney does, express pass will have to change.

i understand that people want express pass at Disney because in their minds it would be awesome. The problem is that for Disney to offer an express pass like product it would have to be exceedingly high price and be so limited that everyone here would be complain about how hard it is to book and lamenting that those that do get it ‘ruin’ it for everyone else.

look at how hard it is to get slinky dog G+. Now imagine having to fight to get a Disney express pass like product. Now imagine how much it will stink if you lose.

also also, Disney does have an express pass like product called VIP tour, which they wisely keep extremely limited.

also also also, Disney does kind of have an express pass like product called after hours.


----------



## BridgetR3

Interesting story from our experience today on the other side of Genie + - we had booked a ILL for mmrr and we’re in regular line for toy story. Toy story had a posted 60 minute wait and we were 85 minutes in when we finally reached the glasses area.  According to a CM there, they were having technical difficulties and our wait would be at least another 40 minutes making our entire wait over two hours and causing us to miss MMRR.  She stated that if we left line, we would not receive anything to return to toy story (such as a fast pass or LL) but if we stayed we would definitely miss our MMRR ILL.  We spoke with two CMs at the ride and both were fairly unapologetic that they don’t offer any compensation anymore and that it was just a suggested wait time so in essence we should have planned better.  I did eventually head to guest services where again we were told that in the future there is nothing they can do to help us but for this one time they would allow us to go back to do toy story.  Be careful not to miss your time at all as there is also supposedly no more grace period.  It’s crazy I tell ya.


----------



## DisneyPanthersFan

BridgetR3 said:


> Toy story had a posted 60 minute wait and we were 85 minutes in when we finally reached the glasses area.  According to a CM there, they were having technical difficulties and our wait would be at least another 40 minutes making our entire wait over two hours and causing us to miss MMRR.  She stated that if we left line, we would not receive anything to return to toy story (such as a fast pass or LL) but if we stayed we would definitely miss our MMRR ILL.  We spoke with two CMs at the ride and both were fairly unapologetic that they don’t offer any compensation anymore and that it was just a suggested wait time so in essence we should have planned better.



You should have planned for the ride having technical difficulties?

And if it's okay that the "suggested" wait time is so far off from the actual wait time, then why even bother with the "suggestions"?


----------



## trompettecon

katyringo said:


> you can do what you said the key is if the times you need are available. You will have to watch for them and they may not be down into the evening at 7am.  If you want to pay for the individual lightning lanes you can buy those at 7 and choose your times.
> 
> 7 a.m. LL$ only if you are on property though...


----------



## tano

scrappinginontario said:


> Due to a few things I feel.
> 
> 1. Most people spend 2-3 days (is my understanding) to do the 2 U parks.
> 2. Their pass to ride unlimited rides starts at $120/person/day.
> 
> We heard the uproar when Disney wanted to charge $15/day.  Can you imagine if they suddenly wanted to charge 8 times that amount/day???


If Disney cared about uproars they wouldn't have increased prices and reduced offerings.


----------



## cgattis

BridgetR3 said:


> Interesting story from our experience today on the other side of Genie + - we had booked a ILL for mmrr and we’re in regular line for toy story. Toy story had a posted 60 minute wait and we were 85 minutes in when we finally reached the glasses area.  According to a CM there, they were having technical difficulties and our wait would be at least another 40 minutes making our entire wait over two hours and causing us to miss MMRR.  She stated that if we left line, we would not receive anything to return to toy story (such as a fast pass or LL) but if we stayed we would definitely miss our MMRR ILL.  We spoke with two CMs at the ride and both were fairly unapologetic that they don’t offer any compensation anymore and that it was just a suggested wait time so in essence we should have planned better.  I did eventually head to guest services where again we were told that in the future there is nothing they can do to help us but for this one time they would allow us to go back to do toy story.  Be careful not to miss your time at all as there is also supposedly no more grace period.  It’s crazy I tell ya.


Yeah the new customer service (or lack thereof) attitude was really the last straw for me. “So you paid for all our new planning features and you still didn’t get to ride what guy wanted?? Oh well.” That just doesn’t work for me at these prices.


----------



## katyringo

So I'm guilty of this today too but I'm reminded that we have a whole genie discussion thread and this one is focused on strategy. Like it or not this is the system we got.

so I fly out tomorrow and have Epcot on Saturday. Fully booked day accross all 4 parks.

I am solo so I'm planning to use test track single rider. 
I will book $LL for frozen and Remy.  I probably don't need genie but I got it for my whole trip.  I'll probably book soarin.. I'm going to watch for evening times for living with the land for the Christmas lights.  That's kinda my Epcot plan.


----------



## cjlong88

katyringo said:


> So I'm guilty of this today too but I'm reminded that we have a whole genie discussion thread and this one is focused on strategy. Like it or not this is the system we got.
> 
> so I fly out tomorrow and have Epcot on Saturday. Fully booked day accross all 4 parks.
> 
> I am solo so I'm planning to use test track single rider.
> I will book $LL for frozen and Remy.  I probably don't need genie but I got it for my whole trip.  I'll probably book soarin.. I'm going to watch for evening times for living with the land for the Christmas lights.  That's kinda my Epcot plan.


Thank you for getting us back on track! I have found that refreshing did wonders for us when it appeared like things we wanted to book were gone. Good luck!


----------



## dez1978

tano said:


> If Disney cared about uproars they wouldn't have increased prices and reduced offerings.


There obv isn’t too much of an uproar seeing as the parks are PACKED this week


----------



## wisblue

Back to the subject of strategy (as opposed to editorializing).

Is there a site that tracks daily LL return times at different times  of the day? I’m thinking of something similar to charts of standby times.

This would help guests know what they might expect to be available as they move through the day based on expected crowd size.

I did a little bit of this the week before our recent trip by looking at return times at 9 AM, 11 AM, 1 PM, and 3 PM and it helped me decide what attractions to book first and which I could expect to get later.

Obviously, return times have run out a lot faster this week than they did last week, and it will be interesting to see if they return to something closer to last week’s pattern next week.

It‘s impossible for us to know if this week’s pattern is purely because of larger crowds, or a combination of larger crowds and a higher percentage of guests purchasing Genie+.

One non strategy comment. I think we should expect that Disney will eventually implement surge pricing for Genie+, similar to what it does for park tickets and what Universal does for its express pass.


----------



## Missmaureen78

wisblue said:


> Back to the subject of strategy (as opposed to editorializing).
> 
> Is there a site that tracks daily LL return times at different times  of the day? I’m thinking of something similar to charts of standby times.
> 
> This would help guests know what they might expect to be available as they move through the day based on expected crowd size.
> 
> I did a little bit of this the week before our recent trip by looking at return times at 9 AM, 11 AM, 1 PM, and 3 PM and it helped me decide what attractions to book first and which I could expect to get later.
> 
> Obviously, return times have run out a lot faster this week than they did last week, and it will be interesting to see if they return to something closer to last week’s pattern next week.
> 
> It‘s impossible for us to know if this week’s pattern is purely because of larger crowds, or a combination of larger crowds and a higher percentage of guests purchasing Genie+.
> 
> One non strategy comment. I think we should expect that Disney will eventually implement surge pricing for Genie+, similar to what it does for park tickets and what Universal does for its express pass.



Thrill Data.


----------



## Disturbia

katyringo said:


> This is confusing because you can still have more than one booking at a time, you just have to follow the "use my selection or wait 120mins- whichever comes first" rule.
> 
> let's say MK opens at 8am.
> 
> if I book at 7 for a return time of 3-4pm
> I can book again at 10am. - I get a 5-6pm time
> I can book again at 12- I get a 6-7 time
> I can book again at 2- I get a 7-8 return time
> 
> its 2pm and I am now holding 4 bookings. I just entered the park for the day..
> 
> alternatively
> 
> I book at  7am and I get a 8-9 return
> I enter my ride at 830- I can book another. I get 9-10 return time.
> I enter my ride at 9- I can book another- I get a 1-2 return time.
> 
> I've used 2 genie+ without stacking and now I can book another one at 11.
> 
> at 11 I book with a 3-4 return time.
> im now holding one for 1-2 and one for 3-4
> 
> at 1pm I would be eligible to book another. I do and I get a 5-6 return time.
> 
> I use my 1-2 return time one.
> I use my 3-4 time one and I'm eligible for another because it's been 2 hours since I booked my 5-6 one.
> 
> you can still stack.. you just Have to follow the "use the LAST one I booked or 120 mins- whichever comes first"


This doesn’t really work in practice and isn’t as great as it sounds (I did stack at MK and HS but ended up riding less rides overall) as we never had passes past 1 pm at 7 am in early November.  It might work when park passes are sold out during major holidays.   It’s also disadvantageous as you’re waiting 2 hours and wasting precious time when you could be rolling with the next available and closest ride (am has more availability vs afternoon and later).  If you’re park hopping then stacking past 2 pm makes sense but I doubt you can really find much late afternoon availability at 7 am.  I found myself looking at my phone and setting 2 hour timers and it just took away from the experience. 

Personally I liked booking a 9 am pass and continually booking until I was ready to leave the park and then try to book a late afternoon pass while eating lunch/at resort; stack 2 hrs after that if you want before heading back to the park.

I would much rather pay for an after hours party (not available when we went).


----------



## magicwdw

Based on all the Genie+ posts - it seems it's not worth buying on extremely busy days since you might only get 2 or 3 rides in and that is very expensive for a family of 4 or 5 (crowd level 8-10 on a scale of 10).  On very low crowd days (which is getting more and more rare) it might not be worth buying since it's not needed (crowd level 1-4).  I guess when Genie+ is a decent buy is during moderately busy days when you could go either way on buying it (crowd level 5-7).  Just my thoughts and I'm sure I'll buy Genie+ on one of my next visits and see if it works for us.


----------



## wisblue

Missmaureen78 said:


> Thrill Data.



I‘ve looked at that site. It takes a little time to figure out exactly how to interpret and navigate some of those color coded graphs.


----------



## GBRforWDW

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> The working theory on that is that it’s not really another drop.  Rather, people who cancel or don’t finish booking have their spots re-released at chunk times instead of dynamically.  So a lot of people who maybe went for a SDD reservation at 11 am only to see it’s actually 8 pm by the time they got to the checkout screen release it, things like that.


I started refreshing Slinky Dog at 7:10 this morning.  At 7:11, I started seeing new times available starting at 3pm and refreshed several times to find several times available for all hours beyond 3pm.  Those time slots lasted another 1-2 minutes.

Went back in at 7:21 and started refreshing again. At 7:23, 10 minutes after they were gone the second time, more times were available again, mostly the same times I saw before but maybe not as many slots, though I did get a 12:45 option first this time.  Those times lasted another 2 minutes.

ETA: SDD had availability again at 7:35, though not quite as much and that stayed a couple more minutes.

Realized I was keeping time in Central time so updated to Eastern, 

ETA: at 7:47, only saw 2 time slots this time.  3:30 and 3:40 before showing sold out again.

Last edit:checked back at 7:59 and refreshed for 2 minutes and didn't see any more pop up.


----------



## Figment1990

Just reporting in with our strategies and experiences. Yesterday (on Thanksgiving), we were at DHS.  At 7 am I booked Rise for 11am, DH booked MFSR for 4:25 and then I booked MMRR for 1:30.  We originally were not going to book MMRR but my parents have never been on it, and I was a bit nervous we wouldn’t be able to get another LL at 11.  We decided that since we had already done RnRC and have another day yet that we can return to DHS if we wanted, we would “sleep in” and arrive at 10 for a “relaxing day” and we actually did mostly accomplish that. 

We arriver and had a mobile order placed for Ronto Roasters.  Walked around Galaxy’s Edge until 11 when we made our next LL for TSM at 4:15. 
Rode RotR
Rode muppets
Rode Star Tours / Frozen (split up)
At 1, we booked Aliens b/c that was really the only one left, for 7:50
Met at the hub and had fun taking pictures with the golden statues
Rode Lightning McQueen
Had lunch (they were behind, but that was ok)
At 4:30 ish rode TSM
Played with photo lenses in Galaxy’s Edge
At 5:20 rode MFSR
After that we decided to do standby Aliens b/c the wait was only 30 and we didn’t want to walk all the way back here - gave up our LL 
Got blue milk
Stood in line for ToT (45 min)
Watched sunset greetings and shopped on Sunset Blvd for DS/DH to ride RnRC (55 min)
Let park around 9pm

So, we had a GREAT day and did everything we wanted.  I considered it $40 ish for us to have 3 passes going in and pulled a “4th”,  This was not more than we used to really get with FP+ (we were not super FP users unless we pulled a 4th going to a second park.  Our strategy was always longer trips, spread out the headliners). However, I’ll say it again, we were able to be there all day.  If we had been trying to leave, probably we wouldn’t have felt the value.  As it is, I still was less than thrilled enough that we’ve decided NOT to get G+ this morning.  We wanted to try to get on Test Track but have decided to try standby, even if it is really long. Or skip it.  DS did ride it earlier in the week during our extra extended hours, which was a really good deal and we did almost everything That night anyways.  We knew though, that if we used our G+ at TT for tonight, that we wouldn’t get to use it at AK.  So we decided it wasn’t worth getting for 1 maybe 2 (couldn’t get another for Epcot until 12). My main goal for Epcot anyway is to see holiday stuff And harmonious.

I might regret it later if my party decides they want to ride a bunch of stuff in Epcot, but I feel great about saving the $80 we were most likely going to pay today for TT!

I still ended up having to get up early though for FOP which still is very annoying.


----------



## intertile

This morning we were prepping for our day at HS.  I purchased Genie + at around 6:40am and waited for 7am to grab SDD.  Then I would get ROR and last MMR.  At 7 exactly.got SDD with a return time of around 12:30.  Then frantically went back to get ROR and the app crapped out on me.  Went into this loop.of loading and asking me.for my password.  Had to force stop it and disconnect from wifi to finally get it to stop.  7:03 got back on and ROR was sold out.  Got MMR for 2:30 and resigned to the fact we would have to rope drop ROR or go at end of day...not happy to say the least.

As I was muttering "niceties" about genie+, I started refreshing and all of a sudden noticed availability for SDD were it was sold out.  Kept refreshing and around 7:15am saw ROR pop with availability.  Grabbed it quickly for 5:45pm.  I had heard rumors that Disney may be holding some availability and dropping it later in the day(or someone never completed there purchase and it took sometime to reset).  I figured good for the group to know if someone gets blocked out of something in a busy day, they can still have an opportunity to grab it if you keep refreshing every so often.
That being said I HATE Genie+, much prefer FP+, and from what CM's have told me there are few that actually like the new system.  They have been telling guests to write Disney and complain, which I plan to do.   I dont expect much but doesn't cost me anything(it worked at DVC with the point tables).  Anyway, DG+ is only worth it at MK and HS.  AK and EP simply don't have the rides to validate it.


----------



## GBRforWDW

intertile said:


> I had heard rumors that Disney may be holding some availability and dropping it later in the day(or someone never completed there purchase and it took sometime to reset). I figured good for the group to know if someone gets blocked out of something in a busy day, they can still have an opportunity to grab it if you keep refreshing every so often.


Congrats on grabbing the RotR when it popped back up!

I'm keeping track of Slinky up above (last page) and it does look like, at least for that one, every 10 minutes after it runs out, some times are available again.  I'm guessing these are never completed checkouts as the times are usually the same but the number of time slots continues to decrease.


----------



## wisblue

GBRforWDW said:


> I started refreshing Slinky Dog at 7:10 this morning.  At 7:11, I started seeing new times available starting at 3pm and refreshed several times to find several times available for all hours beyond 3pm.  Those time slots lasted another 1-2 minutes.
> 
> Went back in at 7:21 and started refreshing again. At 7:23, 10 minutes after they were gone the second time, more times were available again, mostly the same times I saw before but maybe not as many slots, though I did get a 12:45 option first this time.  Those times lasted another 2 minutes.
> 
> ETA: SDD had availability again at 7:35, though not quite as much and that stayed a couple more minutes.
> 
> Realized I was keeping time in Central time so updated to Eastern,



These times do pop up, but the question is always going to be whether you would actually be able to book them if you were onsite and tried to snag one.

You might be competing with a lot of other people trying to grab the same slot and doing the same kind of refreshing.


----------



## GBRforWDW

wisblue said:


> These times do pop up, but the question is always going to be whether you would actually be able to book them if you were onsite and tried to snag one.
> 
> You might be competing with a lot of other people trying to grab the same slot and doing the same kind of refreshing.


Yeah, who knows, most of the refreshes were lasting a couple minutes, so if you held out and didn't book a consolation prize that you'd have to cancel, you'd most likely have a better shot of getting one.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

BridgetR3 said:


> Interesting story from our experience today on the other side of Genie + - we had booked a ILL for mmrr and we’re in regular line for toy story. Toy story had a posted 60 minute wait and we were 85 minutes in when we finally reached the glasses area.  According to a CM there, they were having technical difficulties and our wait would be at least another 40 minutes making our entire wait over two hours and causing us to miss MMRR.  She stated that if we left line, we would not receive anything to return to toy story (such as a fast pass or LL) but if we stayed we would definitely miss our MMRR ILL.  We spoke with two CMs at the ride and both were fairly unapologetic that they don’t offer any compensation anymore and that it was just a suggested wait time so in essence we should have planned better.  I did eventually head to guest services where again we were told that in the future there is nothing they can do to help us but for this one time they would allow us to go back to do toy story.  Be careful not to miss your time at all as there is also supposedly no more grace period.  It’s crazy I tell ya.


Just more proof that disney doesn’t care about guest satisfaction any more at all.


GBRforWDW said:


> I started refreshing Slinky Dog at 7:10 this morning.  At 7:11, I started seeing new times available starting at 3pm and refreshed several times to find several times available for all hours beyond 3pm.  Those time slots lasted another 1-2 minutes.
> 
> Went back in at 7:21 and started refreshing again. At 7:23, 10 minutes after they were gone the second time, more times were available again, mostly the same times I saw before but maybe not as many slots, though I did get a 12:45 option first this time.  Those times lasted another 2 minutes.
> 
> ETA: SDD had availability again at 7:35, though not quite as much and that stayed a couple more minutes.
> 
> Realized I was keeping time in Central time so updated to Eastern,
> 
> ETA: at 7:47, only saw 2 time slots this time.  3:30 and 3:40 before showing sold out again.


I think this reinforces the idea that the 10 minute hold time / peopel cancelling is responsible for this and that SDD is releasing in batches approximately every 10 minutes.   That woudl also explain why you get diminishing returns in each subsequent 10 minute batch.  It seems to me like a person wanting both ROTR and SDD is better off getting ROTR at 7 am and trying for SDD starting at 7:10.


----------



## GBRforWDW

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> I think this reinforces the idea that the 10 minute hold time / peopel cancelling is responsible for this and that SDD is releasing in batches approximately every 10 minutes.   That woudl also explain why you get diminishing returns in each subsequent 10 minute batch.  It seems to me like a person wanting both ROTR and SDD is better off getting ROTR at 7 am and trying for SDD starting at 7:10.


Yep, I was skeptical when you said it yesterday, but definitely see that happening after watching it for an hour.  However as  @wisblue mentioned, and if this becomes more widely known, it will become more difficult to grab at 10 minutes. Right now, people are probably grabbing something else at 7:01 if they lose out, so they have to cancel that then rebook.  If people start holding out, they'll go faster when they come back up at 7:11.


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

I've seen this too.  Be aware though it's been my experience and from what I've read, clicking that time to book seems to throw the app into the looping glitch. 

Hopefully that bug fix will happen soon cause experiencing it is maddening!


----------



## wisblue

5DisneyNuts said:


> I've seen this too.  Be aware though it's been my experience and from what I've read, clicking that time to book seems to throw the app into the looping glitch.
> 
> Hopefully that bug fix will happen soon cause experiencing it is maddening!



Have people experienced that looping when booking with Genie+ or only when booking an IALL that requires a payment?

On my trip I never was victimized by the endless loop, but I was asked a few times to enter a code that was sent by email. It only occurred when I was trying to pay for something, like the purchase of Genie+ for the day, an IALL, or a mobile dining order. I was never asked to enter a code when booking a Genie+ LL.


----------



## TropicalDIS

Luisfba said:


> cool.  and for the ILL theres a couple of screens where you confirm before it’s all done and time can change as you work through them?



Yes! Pay attention to the time. Got me a couple times for the LL, luckily never for ILL.


----------



## rmclain73

GBRforWDW said:


> I started refreshing Slinky Dog at 7:10 this morning.  At 7:11, I started seeing new times available starting at 3pm and refreshed several times to find several times available for all hours beyond 3pm.  Those time slots lasted another 1-2 minutes.
> 
> Went back in at 7:21 and started refreshing again. At 7:23, 10 minutes after they were gone the second time, more times were available again, mostly the same times I saw before but maybe not as many slots, though I did get a 12:45 option first this time.  Those times lasted another 2 minutes.
> 
> ETA: SDD had availability again at 7:35, though not quite as much and that stayed a couple more minutes.
> 
> Realized I was keeping time in Central time so updated to Eastern,
> 
> ETA: at 7:47, only saw 2 time slots this time.  3:30 and 3:40 before showing sold out again.
> 
> Last edit:checked back at 7:59 and refreshed for 2 minutes and didn't see any more pop up.



There was a blog on touring plans that tracked the drops of attractions.  Different times for parks and attractions.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

wisblue said:


> It only occurred when I was trying to pay for something, like the purchase of Genie+ for the day, an IALL, or a mobile dining order. I was never asked to enter a code when booking a Genie+ LL.


The thing I don’t understand is why?  Why would Disney feel the need to confirm your identity with two-step authentication before selling you an ILL$?  The fact that this process glitches badly for many people and causes then to miss out on the ability to book would be bad enough even if Disney had a reason for sending the codes in the first place.  But if there is no sensible reason, then this is immeasurable incompetence.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Grasshopper2016 said:


> The thing I don’t understand is why?  Why would Disney feel the need to confirm your identity with two-step authentication before selling you an ILL$?  The fact that this process glitches badly for many people and causes then to miss out on the ability to book would be bad enough even if Disney had a reason for sending the codes in the first place.  But if there is no sensible reason, then this is immeasurable incompetence.


The better question is, does Disney care enough to invest the time and resources into fixing this glitch in a timely manner?  I'm guessing no.  They are selling out all the ILL$ anyway so it doesn't matter to them if a few users are prevented from purchasing by a glitch.


----------



## MagicMoon

Genie + is not very useful on busy days.  The inability to modify or select a more desirable time are two of the biggest downfalls for our family. 

At MK thanksgiving, at 7am got Jungle Cruise at 10:40 - 11:40. Then at 11:00 got PP at 4:10. Then checked into Jungle Cruise at 11:20. Unable to pick up another at this point until 1. By 1, there were slim pickings that worked with our schedule.

Also, hotel reservations that appear to be linked in the my Disney experience, may not necessarily be linked.  I was worried about this going into this week with reports others have posted at Swan and Dolphin and called two months ago to verify this wouldn’t be an issue.  Unfortunately it still was.  Had to call and hold for a long time and go to guest services first day.  Third day here today and hotel disappeared from my Disney app.  Noticed at 6:40 thank goodness and chatted w cast member who corrected before 7am. 

By the way, this early morning daily unpleasantness is very stressful, not what I like in a vacation.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

MagicMoon said:


> Also, hotel reservations that appear to be linked in the my Disney experience, may not necessarily be linked. I was worried about this going into this week with reports others have posted at Swan and Dolphin and called two months ago to verify this wouldn’t be an issue. Unfortunately it still was. Had to call and hold for a long time and go the guest services first day.


Can you say more about this?  We are staying at the Swan next month, and I really, really don't want this to happen to us.  It sounds like you called in advance and they told you everything was okay, but then it wasn't on your first morning?  Or did you call in advance and get the problem fixed in advance?  Who did you call?  Thanks.


----------



## ssgtravel

Question about stacking every 2 hours.  Let's say I book a ride at 1:00, then plan to stack another at 3:00, then another at 5:00.  If the ride I book at 1:00 is not a convenient time, and I want to change it, what happens if I cancel and rebook?  Does that alter the 2 hour rule, e.g., if I origininally booked at 1:00 (so would then become eligible to book again at 3:00), but say at around 1:30 I find a better time for that first reservation, will that action reset my "2 hour" clock, so that I would not be unable to book again at 3:00, but would have to wait until 3:30?


----------



## Missmaureen78

wisblue said:


> I‘ve looked at that site. It takes a little time to figure out exactly how to interpret and navigate some of those color coded graphs.



They can be confusing at first but I've found them to be interesting in terms of identifying trends.  It's easier on a computer vs. a phone or tablet, since you can hover your cursor to bring up actual times.


----------



## JMommyof3

ssgtravel said:


> Question about stacking every 2 hours.  Let's say I book a ride at 1:00, then plan to stack another at 3:00, then another at 5:00.  If the ride I book at 1:00 is not a convenient time, and I want to change it, what happens if I cancel and rebook?  Does that alter the 2 hour rule, e.g., if I origininally booked at 1:00 (so would then become eligible to book again at 3:00), but say at around 1:30 I find a better time for that first reservation, will that action reset my "2 hour" clock, so that I would not be unable to book again at 3:00, but would have to wait until 3:30?



From what other users have posted, yes it will change your time.


----------



## Luisfba

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?


----------



## soniam

Have gotten the dreaded passcode twice while buying ILL. It was always my husband doing it on his phone using my MDE account. It actually caused us to not get MFSR G+ early enough today; need to be at Epcot tonight. Just did it twice during EE instead and got G+ for TOT. It happened for 7DMT on Tuesday and Rise today, Friday. It takes what seems like forever for the email to come and then to load.


----------



## MagicMoon

Grasshopper2016 said:


> Can you say more about this?  We are staying at the Swan next month, and I really, really don't want this to happen to us.  It sounds like you called in advance and they told you everything was okay, but then it wasn't on your first morning?  Or did you call in advance and get the problem fixed in advance?  Who did you call?  Thanks.




I called the Dolphin in advance.  We went through all 3 of our reservations (party of 8).  Thought it was ok. Needed Disney to fix at the park in the end and they had to fix our lightening lanes.  Not sure why the hotel reservation dropped mid stay???!? Did a chat to fix this morning because it was before 7am.  Luckily I got someone to fix prior to picks.

I think several are having issues with this and hopefully will fix prior to your trip.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

MagicMoon said:


> I think several are having issues with this and hopefully will fix prior to your trip.


Thanks.  But, sadly, I have zero faith in Disney to work diligently to fix these glitches.


----------



## pinkxray

We are headed to Epcot next weekend. I have a 4 year old obsessed with frozen and my favorite movie is  Ratatouille.
I am fine missing everything else in Epcot if we can get both if these. Which one should I go for first? The virtual Remy or Frozen? I will pay for Ratatouille  if needed but prefer not to.


----------



## g-dad66

Frozen hasn't been selling out until mid-morning this week (probably will be even later after this holiday week is over), so definitely try for the Remy VQ first.


----------



## soniam

pinkxray said:


> We are headed to Epcot next weekend. I have a 4 year old obsessed with frozen and my favorite movie is  Ratatouille.
> I am fine missing everything else in Epcot if we can get both if these. Which one should I go for first? The virtual Remy or Frozen? I will pay for Ratatouille  if needed but prefer not to.


Probably Remy VQ first. However, the waits can be 30-45 minutes with VQ. We waited less than 10 when we bought it. We did it both ways. Thrill data shows that FEA didn’t sell out until about 10:30am. They don’t show data for Remy.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

pinkxray said:


> We are headed to Epcot next weekend. I have a 4 year old obsessed with frozen and my favorite movie is  Ratatouille.
> I am fine missing everything else in Epcot if we can get both if these. Which one should I go for first? The virtual Remy or Frozen? I will pay for Ratatouille  if needed but prefer not to.


Definitely grab Remy first.  Frozen doesn't sell out instantly.


----------



## pinkxray

soniam said:


> Probably Remy VQ first. However, the waits can be 30-45 minutes with VQ. We waited less than 10 when we bought it. We did it both ways. Thrill data shows that FEA didn’t sell out until about 10:30am. They don’t show data for Remy.



That’s good to know, thanks! We have a super short trip so I might just pay for Remy if it gets us through quicker.


----------



## TropicalDIS

CBMom01 said:


> HS Is a huuuuuuuuuge money sink if you do Genie+, $LL and a droid or saber.
> 
> $107 ticket
> $214 saber
> $16 genie+
> $24 for 2 LL
> $30 food (and that’s conservative)
> 
> You’re at almost $400 pp/day
> 
> But if like me, doing it up like that (all in) once or maybe twice in a lifetime the $16 starts to feel
> insignificant in the big picture



100% it is, but it made our HS stay so nice. Was able to sit around and relax, have lunch, have a starbucks, while we waited for our times. Made even better by the fact that all of the standby lines for the big rides were massive.


----------



## TropicalDIS

soniam said:


> Probably Remy VQ first. However, the waits can be 30-45 minutes with VQ. We waited less than 10 when we bought it. We did it both ways. Thrill data shows that FEA didn’t sell out until about 10:30am. They don’t show data for Remy.



Yes go for Remy first. Got Remy VQ with no issue, still had to wait an hour, but so be it.

Frozen won't sell out until later. Out of the 3 days i was at Epcot last week, two of them, Frozen was still available at Noon.


----------



## MagicMoon

VL line was waaay longer than ILL purchase.  But this was day before Thanksgiving…


----------



## Mango7100

pinkxray said:


> We are headed to Epcot next weekend. I have a 4 year old obsessed with frozen and my favorite movie is  Ratatouille.
> I am fine missing everything else in Epcot if we can get both if these. Which one should I go for first? The virtual Remy or Frozen? I will pay for Ratatouille  if needed but prefer not to.


Paying for it definitely gets you in faster. When we were there last week we waited less than 5 minutes and passed a very long VQ line outside. I think they take the ILL people in a higher ratio just like any ride. 

Dont know if you are staying deluxe, but we did the extended hours and watched the fireworks from Norway (not the best view for the projection stuff but we didn’t care). Went right to frozen and walked on—by the time we got off the line was to China


----------



## katyringo

On magical express. I booked this morning on MCO WiFi.  No issue getting Remy, or frozen.. when I went to book my first genie I got an error message but went right back in and got the same available time for soaring.  I can book again at noon but my return time is before that.


----------



## Luisfba

Does the 2 hour clock for making a LL reset when you tap in?  Just wondering if it’s possible to continue to make LL res every 2 hours once you start turning them in.

for example.  If I made res at 7am, 11am, and 1pm.. and my first LL return is at 2-3 (with the other two being at say 5-6 and 6-7) and I tap in at 2:30.. can I make one at 3 since that is 2 hours from when I made my last res?


----------



## BridgetR3

Luisfba said:


> Does the 2 hour clock for making a LL reset when you tap in?  Just wondering if it’s possible to continue to make LL res every 2 hours once you start turning them in.
> 
> for example.  If I made res at 7am, 11am, and 1pm.. and my first LL return is at 2-3 (with the other two being at say 5-6 and 6-7) and I tap in at 2:30.. can I make one at 3 since that is 2 hours from when I made my last res?


Yes but you seem to only be able to make them on the 2 hour mark and not at any time right after tapping in.  
Edited because I misunderstood the question.


----------



## wisblue

MagicMoon said:


> VL line was waaay longer than ILL purchase.  But this was day before Thanksgiving…



it was like that when we were there on Sunday, the 14th too.

We hopped to Epcot so the VQ wasn’t an option, but I would happily pay $11 to have a time of my choice and not have to wait in the long VQ line.


----------



## emilymad

Really debating buying G+ for MK tomorrow.  We only plan to be there until around 1pm before hopping to Epcot.  I am trying to read Thrill Data but I am afraid all of the return times will be too late for us.


----------



## Luisfba

BridgetR3 said:


> Yes but you seem to only be able to make them on the 2 hour mark and not at any time right after tapping in.
> Edited because I misunderstood the question.



Darn.  Was hoping the 2 hour clock would only reset based on last time a res was made.  If you stacked some for an afternoon it really means it will be hard to make another one once you start turning them in until you’ve turned them all in.


----------



## Jrb1979

Luisfba said:


> Darn.  Was hoping the 2 hour clock would only reset based on last time a res was made.  If you stacked some for an afternoon it really means it will be hard to make another one once you start turning them in until you’ve turned them all in.


I think thats the point of the system. IMO Disney would prefer people to only have 1 LL at a time. The 2 hour rule is a compromise cause the know there isn't enough attractions to truly make Genie+ work. I personally wouldn't be surprised if they eventually limit stacks to 2 only. It would open availability a lot more.


----------



## katyringo

So here is the deal with Epcot so far:

at 7am I booked $LL for frozen and Remy and Genie+ for soarin.

my soarin and Remy overlap. (1105-1205)

on paper it would make more sense to go scan into soarin and ride first so I can make another genie+ choice. However I'm currently (10:15)sitting down to have crepes in France. Also genie+ Options right now aren't much past 11.. so it doesn't make sense to walk accross the park just for that reason. I did test track already- first car of the day single rider- sooo.I think if you use $ILL and early entry you do not need genie for Epcot. I'll probably be able to book as I go a bit today.. we will see.


----------



## MickeyMinnieMouse

Looking for some guidance to maximize my Genie+ selections (EPCOT reservation/Park Hop to HS - staying offsite).  I understand I can make 1 non-$ILL selection at 7am.  If I make that selection for HS for late afternoon (if possible given time available), do I understand this correctly in that I can't make another LL selection until 1pm (2 hours after EPCOT Park open since that's my reservation)?  Or can I make another at 11am at HS (2 hours after HS park opening)?  The only reason I booked EPCOT was an attempt to ride REMI which now seems almost impossible unless I change other day reservations JUST for REMI which I'm not doing.  Our flight takes off at 7:05 which really complicates things (gonna try for REMI VQ 1st at 7am) and we don't expect to be in EPCOT until closer to 2pm so can't get VQ at 1pm.  Thanks for any replies.


----------



## cjlong88

MickeyMinnieMouse said:


> Looking for some guidance to maximize my Genie+ selections (EPCOT reservation/Park Hop to HS - staying offsite).  I understand I can make 1 non-$ILL selection at 7am.  If I make that selection for HS for late afternoon (if possible given time available), do I understand this correctly in that I can't make another LL selection until 1pm (2 hours after EPCOT Park open since that's my reservation)?  Or can I make another at 11am at HS (2 hours after HS park opening)?



Unless things change, you will be eligible to book your next LL at 11am. The 120-minute rule begins for the park opening in which you booked your first LL.

We did the same thing a few weekends ago. Had EPCOT park reservation, but was eligible to book our second LL at 11am because our first LL was for an attraction in HS.


----------



## nurseberta

katyringo said:


> Short tik tok on refreshing.
> https://vm.tiktok.com/TTPd2fAGbE/
> I think if you are in the parks on a super duper busy day and LL are out.. you could use this method by pinning what you are hoping for and refresh refresh refresh.
> 
> also living by Disney reports that in DHS even though early entry is technically 30minutes- they are regularly opening rise and galaxy's edge an hour early. I still think my strategy is to early entry rope drop SDD - use indivual lightning lanes for rise and MMRR- and to make my first genie+ for TT.
> 
> I think it's worth it to get to HS EARLY.- 90 minute before official park opening.




The question is.......... what time does SDD open? If you arrive and they open GE at 8am, is that where you need to be? unless you are behind the pack.


----------



## Luisfba

cjlong88 said:


> Unless things change, you will be eligible to book your next LL at 11am. The 120-minute rule begins for the park opening in which you booked your first LL.
> 
> We did the same thing a few weekends ago. Had EPCOT park reservation, but was eligible to book our second LL at 11am because our first LL was for an attraction in HS.



so.. given the first was at HS could that second one at 11am be at Epcot even though it has a park open at 10?


----------



## MickeyMinnieMouse

cjlong88 said:


> Unless things change, you will be eligible to book your next LL at 11am. The 120-minute rule begins for the park opening in which you booked your first LL.
> 
> We did the same thing a few weekends ago. Had EPCOT park reservation, but was eligible to book our second LL at 11am because our first LL was for an attraction in HS.


Thank you!


----------



## cjlong88

Luisfba said:


> so.. given the first was at HS could that second one at 11am be at Epcot even though it has a park open at 10?


I would guess yes, you would be able book your 2nd one at Epcot, although I personally have never tried that.


----------



## Luisfba

How quickly is rise selling out on the busy days?  Is there enough time grab both SDD as well as Rise?


----------



## trompettecon

Luisfba said:


> How quickly is rise selling out on the busy days?  Is there enough time grab both SDD as well as Rise?


Fast. No.


----------



## Luisfba

Got it.  Thanks.  I had heard coming into this week prior to the capacity crowds you were able to do both, so I was wondering how that was working out with the peak crowds.  I figured it would be unlikely.


----------



## MagicMoon

I was able to get SDD early on Black Friday.  Refreshed 3 times till time said 7:55 pm (we wanted evening hours).  Confirmed and time came back as 2-3 pm which didn’t work for our party.  Went on to next step and bought LL for RoTR at 8:10 pm.  It was almost sold out at 7:01-7:02ish. 

I ended up cancelling SDD looking for another later, no longer available.  Ended up getting MFSR at 7:10, all this by 7:04.  Super hectic :/


----------



## holyrita

Questions about buying ILL$ for ROTR at 7am. From the videos I've watched, when buying an ILL$ you:
1. select the attraction from the tip board
2. choose the hour to search in
3. choose your preferred time

Does any of this matter with how quickly ILL$ go for Rise? Do you select the earliest time available and take whatever the system assigns you? Or does it reject the time you select if that time is no longer available, putting you further behind? Thanks.


----------



## Luisfba

Ok.  So doable, but tight.  I’m actually looking at doing the same thing for my travel day  - shoot for an evening SDD (wait about 10-15 seconds - refresh - book) and RoTR.  If miss SDD then just grab MFSR after RotR.

Been tracking the SDD and they seem to go within 30 seconds this last week.  I expect it about the same on my travel day (day before Easter Sunday).


----------



## buzz1fan

What is the time amount from when your reservation is until you need to ride?  Example splash mountain at 940.   When is the latest I can get there


----------



## BillFromCT

buzz1fan said:


> What is the time amount from when your reservation is until you need to ride?  Example splash mountain at 940.   When is the latest I can get there


15 minutes late, so 9:55.


----------



## Tom_E_D

buzz1fan said:


> What is the time amount from when your reservation is until you need to ride?  Example splash mountain at 940.   When is the latest I can get there





BillFromCT said:


> 15 minutes late, so 9:55.


A 9:40 reservation for Splash Mountain is officially an hour-long reservation (it 'll say 9:40-10:40 on MDE), but the system will allow you to tap in up to 5 minutes before or 15 minutes after that (9:35-10:55).


----------



## soniam

Luisfba said:


> How quickly is rise selling out on the busy days?  Is there enough time grab both SDD as well as Rise?



Too fast this week, especially if you want daytime times. If you end up having to enter a passcode sent to your email, then it’s a no go. If you can have 2 people signed into the same MDE account, that works better. Be sure the account owner buys the ILL, since the passcode email goes to their account. Usually, it’s better to do the Genie+ first, since everyone has access at 7am. Only resort guests have access to ILLs at 7am. However, DHS is a special beast



holyrita said:


> Questions about buying ILL$ for ROTR at 7am. From the videos I've watched, when buying an ILL$ you:
> 1. select the attraction from the tip board
> 2. choose the hour to search in
> 3. choose your preferred time
> 
> Does any of this matter with how quickly ILL$ go for Rise? Do you select the earliest time available and take whatever the system assigns you? Or does it reject the time you select if that time is no longer available, putting you further behind? Thanks.


I haven’t seen that buying it this week. It fave us our selected time, even after waiting to get the passcode email.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Luisfba said:


> How quickly is rise selling out on the busy days?  Is there enough time grab both SDD as well as Rise?


If you're willing to chance it, buy RotR right at 7 and then refresh at 7:10, around 7:11 or a few seconds after, SDD should re-add some expired times.  I didn't watch this morning, but yesterday, they'd last about 2 minutes and would come up several times over the hour until they were officially gone.  The first couple times this happened, it went through several available time slots.  No guarantee you'll get one, but if you do fine one it'll probably be an Mid-afternoon to evening time.  Also, It'll be easier to grab if you don't take a different LL that you'd have to cancel.


----------



## katyringo

Alright. I'm sitting waiting for Harmonious
Here was my Epcot day with individual lightning lanes and Genie+

At 7am I booked Remy (11:05-12:05) frozen (1245-145) and soarin (11:05-12:05)

I was on the first bus to Epcot. I early entry rope dropped the single rider line at test track. On and off very fast.
Then went and had sit down meal at the new crepe place (10/10 recommend)

Then the day went like this:

Remy right at 11:05 (the VQ line was massive.. I waited about 10 mins)
Soarin LL - booked figment after 2nd scan in
Figment LL- didn't book anything after this. All return times were right away except test track has ran out.
ate some food
Frozen $LL- got right on
Fiesta - 5 min wait
Saw Mickey - I was the only one there. I don't think a lot of folks know he is meeting in Epcot.
Bought Popcorn bucket
Hotel break took a Nap
Back to park around 545

the next 3 LL I just booked as I walked to the ride..
Mission space LL (didn't need it- standby was 10 mins)

Space ship earth LL (standby 20 mins)

Stop and stare at the new spaceship earth lights

Living land LL - this was dumb but hey I paid for it lol. Standby was 5 mins.

that's it for the day!  Genie probably helped most with Soarin and figment. I would have been fine without it but like I had said before I added it to my whole ticket..  the majority of the crowd rope drops test track. So I think if you do have Genie for Epcot but won't be in the lead pack-I would book test track first. I also had the advantage of being solo and using Single rider.


----------



## dez1978

Is there any data regarding ILL for Remy and when they are selling out? I can’t have my phone at work so I’ve been unable to Check periodically. I’m hoping to be able to buy one at 11 (staying offsite, hopping to Epcot)


----------



## dez1978

I had to


----------



## nurseberta

soniam said:


> Too fast this week, especially if you want daytime times. If you end up having to enter a passcode sent to your email, then it’s a no go. If you can have 2 people signed into the same MDE account, that works better. Be sure the account owner buys the ILL, since the passcode email goes to their account. Usually, it’s better to do the Genie+ first, since everyone has access at 7am. Only resort guests have access to ILLs at 7am. However, DHS is a special beast
> 
> 
> I haven’t seen that buying it this week. It fave us our selected time, even after waiting to get the passcode email.



what is the need h go or a passcode? Is this with every ILl$ purchase?


----------



## DavidNYC

Luisfba said:


> Does the 2 hour clock for making a LL reset when you tap in?  Just wondering if it’s possible to continue to make LL res every 2 hours once you start turning them in.
> 
> for example.  If I made res at 7am, 11am, and 1pm.. and my first LL return is at 2-3 (with the other two being at say 5-6 and 6-7) and I tap in at 2:30.. can I make one at 3 since that is 2 hours from when I made my last res?


I believe the others answers you got are wrong.   You can always make a new reservation no later than 2 hours after you made your last reservation.  You can make it earlier if you tap into a ride and don't have any other outstanding reservations but tapping in to anything should have no effect on when your next reservation window opens.  (The change that was recently made was that tapping in used to OPEN a new window even if you made a reservation less than two hours ago.  But the change did not make it that a window reset to 2-hours, it just doesn't open a new window at all and keeps your prior window - unless you have no other pending reservations).

(EDIT - the answers may not have been wrong because you asked the same question twice but phrased it so that the answers would be different because of your phrasing so not 100% sure when someone answered "yes" which of the two questions they were answering).


----------



## itf

dez1978 said:


> Is there any data regarding ILL for Remy and when they are selling out? I can’t have my phone at work so I’ve been unable to Check periodically. I’m hoping to be able to buy one at 11 (staying offsite, hopping to Epcot)



thrill-data should have this info


----------



## soniam

nurseberta said:


> what is the need h go or a passcode? Is this with every ILl$ purchase?


Not every time. It’s random and seems to only happen for ILL and purchasing Genie+.



itf said:


> thrill-data should have this info


Thrill Data doesn’t have info for Remy at all. I guess it’s because it doesn’t have posted wait times.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

soniam said:


> Thrill Data doesn’t have info for Remy at all. I guess it’s because it doesn’t have posted wait times.


Yea, I think that's right.  No standby line and no posted wait times to monitor.


----------



## mom2rtk

soniam said:


> Not every time. It’s random and seems to only happen for ILL and purchasing Genie+.


They never should have rolled out this system with those pass code stops in place. It's ridiculous, arbitrary and absolutely awful from a guest service standpoint. If there was no way to do it without, they should have waited until they found a way.


----------



## Welsh_Dragon

mom2rtk said:


> They never should have rolled out this system with those pass code stops in place. It's ridiculous, arbitrary and absolutely awful from a guest service standpoint. If there was no way to do it without, they should have waited until they found a way.


Do we have any idea what triggers the passcode? Change of country, change of state? WDW WiFi?


----------



## mom2rtk

Welsh_Dragon said:


> Do we have any idea what triggers the passcode? Change of country, change of state? WDW WiFi?


I haven't seen any theories.


----------



## Welsh_Dragon

Come on guys. Don’t let the side down. We need theories! Maybe this needs its own thread?


----------



## AndreaDanger

Welsh_Dragon said:


> Do we have any idea what triggers the passcode? Change of country, change of state? WDW WiFi?


Completely anecdotal, but I've only had it happen while using WDW wifi. It has not happened to me yet while using off-property wifi or my phone's data.


----------



## sam1985

Okay here now so real example:
TT LL 10-1 and Remy BG2. 
Can I book my next LL after tap or is it at 12?
Thinking TT then Remy incase Remy has a long VQ. Maybe try to squeeze in Mission Space before TT after Frozen


----------



## Welsh_Dragon

AndreaDanger said:


> Completely anecdotal, but I've only had it happen while using WDW wifi. It has not happened to me yet while using off-property wifi or my phone's data.


I have started a separate thread, so that this one doesn’t get clogged up.


----------



## katyringo

sam1985 said:


> Okay here now so real example:
> TT LL 10-1 and Remy BG2.
> Can I book my next LL after tap or is it at 12?
> Thinking TT then Remy incase Remy has a long VQ. Maybe try to squeeze in Mission Space before TT after Frozen


After you tap in! If there are two tap ins in the line it will be after the second one.


----------



## coolbrook

pinkxray said:


> That’s good to know, thanks! We have a super short trip so I might just pay for Remy if it gets us through quicker.


Paying for an ILL will usually get you through much quicker than the VQ.  The comparison is like the regular line to a lightning lane.


----------



## cjlong88

Checked the all this morning at 8:30 am. Still LL availability for Slinky and Rise. Wondering if the crowds less today? Or…is it that they might not release everything at 7am and if you are willing to refresh the app every so often and be patient you will probably find what you’re looking for?

We are visiting between December 17th - 19th and plan to try the exact same HS evening stacking strategy we did back in mid-November to test if the LL’s are really selling out quicker or if we just need to refresh a little more before taking the first things we see.


----------



## holyrita

cjlong88 said:


> Checked the all this morning at 8:30 am. Still LL availability for Slinky and Rise. Wondering if the crowds less today? Or…is it that they might not release everything at 7am and if you are willing to refresh the app every so often and be patient you will probably find what you’re looking for?
> 
> We are visiting between December 17th - 19th and plan to try the exact same HS evening stacking strategy we did back in mid-November to test if the LL’s are really selling out quicker or if we just need to refresh a little more before taking the first things we see.


Watching since 7am this morning and it definitely seems quieter today. I think something weird happened with ROTR though, it's been showing 6:40pm availability since like 7:20am? Immediately sold out when it was open for everyone at 9:00:10am though!


----------



## lostprincess_danie

I am trying to advise a friend on Genie+ for her future trip but the "closed the stacking loophole" discussions have confused me. 

Our experience with Genie+ was pre-loophole. Example:
- 7a booked Slinky for 7:55p as only time available
- At 11a I would be eligible to make a new LL (2 hour rule)
- 11a book ToT for 12p
-Tap into ToT 12p and be immediately eligible to make another LL while Slinky LL hangs out later in the day.
- For remainder of day be able to use my tap/reserve LL eligibility, until Slinky at 7:55p

 Am I understanding correctly that NOW the tap/reserve while holding a later LL no longer works?? This is how it now would be:

- 7a booked Slinky for 7:55p (as only time available)
- At 11a I would be eligible to make a new LL (2 hour rule)
- 11a book ToT for 12p
- Tap into ToT 12p and NOT eligible until 2 hour cool down (1p) expires OR I use Slinky at 7:55p
- I'm stuck waiting 2 hour cooldown period all day because my Slinky LL is so late.


----------



## cjlong88

lostprincess_danie said:


> I am trying to advise a friend on Genie+ for her future trip but the "closed the stacking loophole" discussions have confused me.
> 
> Our experience with Genie+ was pre-loophole. Example:
> - 7a booked Slinky for 7:55p as only time available
> - At 11a I would be eligible to make a new LL (2 hour rule)
> - 11a book ToT for 12p
> -Tap into ToT 12p and be immediately eligible to make another LL while Slinky LL hangs out later in the day.
> - For remainder of day be able to use my tap/reserve LL eligibility, until Slinky at 7:55p
> 
> Am I understanding correctly that NOW the tap/reserve while holding a later LL no longer works?? This is how it now would be:
> 
> - 7a booked Slinky for 7:55p (as only time available)
> - At 11a I would be eligible to make a new LL (2 hour rule)
> - 11a book ToT for 12p
> - Tap into ToT 12p and NOT eligible until 2 hour cool down (1p) expires OR I use Slinky at 7:55p
> - I'm stuck waiting 2 hour cooldown period all day because my Slinky LL is so late.


Your understanding is correct (I think)…


----------



## lostprincess_danie

cjlong88 said:


> Your understanding is correct.



 This sounds like a nightmare if a popular ride gets pushed to later LL times quickly in the morning. And because of the 2 hour rule you might get only 4 or 5 LL the whole day (assuming they don't run out.)


----------



## katyringo

I need a genie+ for this Gideon's line.


----------



## dez1978

itf said:


> thrill-data should have this info


I don’t see that it tracks remy. I’ve looked several times. Maybe I’m missing it


----------



## itf

dez1978 said:


> I don’t see that it tracks remy. I’ve looked several times. Maybe I’m missing it



You're right, it doesn't. They track paid LL availability for ROTR so had assumed they would for Remy.


----------



## GBRforWDW

lostprincess_danie said:


> 11a book ToT for 12p
> - Tap into ToT 12p and NOT eligible until 2 hour cool down (1p) expires OR I use Slinky at 7:55p
> - I'm stuck waiting 2 hour cooldown period all day because my Slinky LL is so late.


Wouldn't you be eligible after you tap into ToT?  Since that was your 11am selection?


----------



## GBRforWDW

dez1978 said:


> I don’t see that it tracks remy. I’ve looked several times. Maybe I’m missing it





itf said:


> You're right, it doesn't. They track paid LL availability for ROTR so had assumed they would for Remy.


It's the standby line that is tracked, since Remy doesn't do standby, there's no data for them to track.


----------



## itf

GBRforWDW said:


> It's the standby line that is tracked, since Remy doesn't do standby, there's no data for them to track.



This has definitely changed in the last 48 hours. For ROTR at least they 100% had a LL availability and return time chart. You could see that some days there was availability at the 9am offsite point, and most dates there weren't.

You can even see it on the cached version of the page here
https://webcache.googleusercontent....seoftheresistance/+&cd=15&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=uk


----------



## 570traveler

cjlong88 said:


> Checked the all this morning at 8:30 am. Still LL availability for Slinky and Rise. Wondering if the crowds less today? Or…is it that they might not release everything at 7am and if you are willing to refresh the app every so often and be patient you will probably find what you’re looking for?
> 
> We are visiting between December 17th - 19th and plan to try the exact same HS evening stacking strategy we did back in mid-November to test if the LL’s are really selling out quicker or if we just need to refresh a little more before taking the first things we see.



at HS today. Definitely much quieter than our last 2 visits last week. Currently in line for Alien Saucers. This is our 6th ride today!  Rope dropped for Smugglers and they opened that at 8:00.


----------



## Figment1990

lostprincess_danie said:


> I am trying to advise a friend on Genie+ for her future trip but the "closed the stacking loophole" discussions have confused me.
> 
> Our experience with Genie+ was pre-loophole. Example:
> - 7a booked Slinky for 7:55p as only time available
> - At 11a I would be eligible to make a new LL (2 hour rule)
> - 11a book ToT for 12p
> -Tap into ToT 12p and be immediately eligible to make another LL while Slinky LL hangs out later in the day.
> - For remainder of day be able to use my tap/reserve LL eligibility, until Slinky at 7:55p
> 
> Am I understanding correctly that NOW the tap/reserve while holding a later LL no longer works?? This is how it now would be:
> 
> - 7a booked Slinky for 7:55p (as only time available)
> - At 11a I would be eligible to make a new LL (2 hour rule)
> - 11a book ToT for 12p
> - Tap into ToT 12p and NOT eligible until 2 hour cool down (1p) expires OR I use Slinky at 7:55p
> - I'm stuck waiting 2 hour cooldown period all day because my Slinky LL is so late.


I believe your first scenario is correct. You should still be able to book a new LL after you use it at 12. Because that was the last thing you booked.
Here at DHS now. rotr was down when we walked in this morning at 8:45. So far I feel like the park is less crowded also than it had been last week.
We do not have genie plus for today because we are hopping to epcot at 2 and we wouldn’t get enough LL in before our hop time. We actually only bought it 4 of our 10 days because of the way I had previously set our park and dining reservations before G+ full details were released. It does not work very well on crowded days if you are park hopping to a park where it is less necessary (Epcot) because of how fast the times go in the first park.
We did use it well for a DHS evening, a MK evening and DHS and MK full day visits. All the other days we did standby by except for FoP and Remy and Rise. This meant we missed Navi and Safari but we were ok with that. We got on TT with a 40 min wait somehow yesterday afternoon. We were going to get G+ that day but DH decided that it wasn’t worth the $75 that it would have ended up costing to get it (went to MK in the am and wouldn’t have been able to use bc we would have had to book TT at 7 and by 11 everything at MK would be past our leaving time). Disney still got my money as we got some souvenirs and holiday food booth stuff!

also the deluxe resort extra hours were great and rope dropping was much more effective than genie plus. I suppose rope dropping and then trying to build a stack at MK while u go back for a break would work. But we like to go to Epcot a lot at night so it doesn’t help there. If DHS slows down it might be possible to stack there. We did that on Nov 20 while we traveled but it’s been too busy to do so since.

I’ve found that the code happens on wifi for us. Since I’ve kept off the wifi here I haven’t had the code.

edited to add: I was WRONG. DHS very busy. Wait times are significant. But we are happy with what we’ve done so far this morning (rnrc, mfsr, slinky and ToT and docking bay 7 lunch).


----------



## lostprincess_danie

GBRforWDW said:


> Wouldn't you be eligible after you tap into ToT?  Since that was your 11am selection?


If I understand my own example correctly, not eligible after ToT because of Slinky being so late. Everyone that books at 7a is eligible after 2 hours to book their next LL. But then paths diverge - if you do not have a late LL hanging out in the future you can utilize tap/reserve method. If you DO have a LL in the future you wait 2 hours for each booking until catching up and tapping into that future LL that was made at 7a.

I have two different opposing responses to my original post.  I think I already know the answer to this, but maybe hopefully wishing Disney had an official release on this stacking business?


----------



## GBRforWDW

lostprincess_danie said:


> If I understand my own example correctly, not eligible after ToT because of Slinky being so late. Everyone that books at 7a is eligible after 2 hours to book their next LL. But then paths diverge - if you do not have a late LL hanging out in the future you can utilize tap/reserve method. If you DO have a LL in the future you wait 2 hours for each booking until catching up and tapping into that future LL that was made at 7a.
> 
> I have two different opposing responses to my original post.  I think I already know the answer to this, but maybe hopefully wishing Disney had an official release on this stacking business?


Yuck. Haha. Hopefully someone there now can provide more detail.  I really thought it was about the most recent selection, but I could be wrong .  I visit in 3 weeks, hopefully I understand it better by then. Lol.  I guess the good news is you can definitely try again after 2 hours.


----------



## MickeyMinnieMouse

Do you have to be in the park (EPCOT) to book REMI ILL$ at 11am if staying offsite?  Travel day and won't be in park until early afternoon.


----------



## g-dad66

GBRforWDW said:


> Yuck. Haha. Hopefully someone there now can provide more detail.  I really thought it was about the most recent selection, but I could be wrong .  I visit in 3 weeks, hopefully I understand it better by then. Lol.  I guess the good news is you can definitely try again after 2 hours.



I think you are correct on this.

11:00 eligible for LL, so select ToT for 12:00
12:00 tap into ToT (2 taps), eligible NOW for next LL (because tap-in is prior to the 2-hour cool-off, which would be at 1:00)

For each LL booking, you are next eligible:
(1) in 2 hours (cool-off), OR
(2) LL tap-in of the most recently booked attraction if the tap-in is prior to 2 hours cool-off from that booking

The evening SDD which was booked at 7am is irrelevant at 11am.  Stacking is still allowed. (It's only the "rolling" stacks, which I think of as double-stacking or triple-stacking, that no longer work.)


----------



## holyrita

I wish Disney would read through this thread to see just how confused the people who spend all of this time researching and preparing for their trips are. But it's clear when they sell Genie+, even when the only LL left for the day is Muppet Vision 3D, they don't give a  about experience when they're making record profits


----------



## leeniewdw

Was fascinating to watch the slower progression of times for DHS this morning between 7 and 730am.   After being a little freaked out all last week, now concerned about our 7am LL grab on Friday.   We had decided to skip SDD and grab MFSR, but our flight departs at 7:25am and today the return times were too early for us!  A good 'problem' to have if that means crowds are much lower. 

Just checked at 11:05am and MFSR is available for 7:15pm return, so I guess we're back to SDD first and MFSR next. 

I'm going to need to set alarms all week at 7am and 11am to check MDE to nail down our plan.  Then prepare to be boarding a plane when I need to grab that 7am LL.      (I may have to make sure to get a paper boarding pass at the airport, can you imagine being in a SW lineup and have to stop to scan your boarding pass RIGHT AT 7AM! LOL)


----------



## soniam

katyringo said:


> I need a genie+ for this Gideon's line.


It was only a 30 minute wait on Monday evening.


----------



## soniam

Welsh_Dragon said:


> I have started a separate thread, so that this one doesn’t get clogged up.


Where’s the new thread? I can’t find it.


----------



## trompettecon

Honestly all the hours I spent reading these pages combined with the charts I made, I would have been better off buying a private VIP tour


----------



## Selket

My 4 family members are linked to my account (they don't use MDE at all at the moment and don't have their own accounts).   I always managed fast passes for everyone in the past so....

If I want to buy Genie+ for just 2 of the 4 for one day - can I do this?
At what time can I first purchase it?  Or can I wake up at say 6:30am and get it for 2 of us and then book rides at 7am? (we are onsite)
If persons 3 and 4 decide they want Genie+ can I add them later that day?  I realize they will have missed out on booking things early - and may not get or want the same things I had booked for myself
Would it be easier to share my password with them to login in as me on MDE app and they manage themselves this way or if they made their own accounts ...how would I link them back to me?  (they are my husband and my young adult sons).  I'm a bit concerned someone will get confused and cancel someone else's bookings thinking it is their own, etc.
We tend to split up and go different ways so I don't want to have to manage everyone if I can help it!


----------



## twodogs

lostprincess_danie said:


> If I understand my own example correctly, not eligible after ToT because of Slinky being so late. Everyone that books at 7a is eligible after 2 hours to book their next LL. But then paths diverge - if you do not have a late LL hanging out in the future you can utilize tap/reserve method. If you DO have a LL in the future you wait 2 hours for each booking until catching up and tapping into that future LL that was made at 7a.
> 
> I have two different opposing responses to my original post.  I think I already know the answer to this, but maybe hopefully wishing Disney had an official release on this stacking business?


If it works like MP at DLR did (And I have seen several users who have done both and say that it does), then you would be able to book the next one right after scanning into ToT.  Once you have “paid” the price for the late booking of SDD by waiting the two hours before booking ToT, that SDD LL is “paid” and doesn’t figure into any future booking windows.


----------



## katyringo

Alright. Today I am arriving to MK around 3(on bus now). I'm doing the Christmas party tonight but I've decided to let go of reason and book all the things..

so at 7am I booked space and SDMT for this evening. With genie I've stacked Winnie the Pooh and jingle cruise. I then have a dessert party.

I deff think there is a huge value in using genie for an evening arrival or for park hopping. I could have more rides booked if I didn't have other plans..


----------



## katyringo

katyringo said:


> Alright. Today I am arriving to MK around 3(on bus now). I'm doing the Christmas party tonight but I've decided to let go of reason and book all the things..
> 
> so at 7am I booked space and SDMT for this evening. With genie I've stacked Winnie the Pooh and jingle cruise. I then have a dessert party.
> 
> I deff think there is a huge value in using genie for an evening arrival or for park hopping. I could have more rides booked if I didn't have other plans..



a better use of genie would have been Peter Pan but I got distracted by shiny things at world of Disney.


----------



## JakeAZ

Selket said:


> My 4 family members are linked to my account (they don't use MDE at all at the moment and don't have their own accounts).   I always managed fast passes for everyone in the past so....
> 
> If I want to buy Genie+ for just 2 of the 4 for one day - can I do this?   *YES*
> At what time can I first purchase it?  Or can I wake up at say 6:30am and get it for 2 of us and then book rides at 7am? (we are onsite) *You can purchase after midnight.  Get it done anytime before the 7am cluster*
> If persons 3 and 4 decide they want Genie+ can I add them later that day?  I realize they will have missed out on booking things early - and may not get or want the same things I had booked for myself.  *YES, but it will most likely be a waste for them*
> Would it be easier to share my password with them to login in as me on MDE app and they manage themselves this way or if they made their own accounts ...how would I link them back to me?  (they are my husband and my young adult sons).  I'm a bit concerned someone will get confused and cancel someone else's bookings thinking it is their own, etc. *Either way works. *
> We tend to split up and go different ways so I don't want to have to manage everyone if I can help it!


----------



## leeniewdw

katyringo said:


> I deff think there is a huge value in using genie for an evening arrival or for park hopping. I could have more rides booked if I didn't have other plans..



That's what we're hoping for Friday, our travel/arrival.  Today I was able to 'model' DHS getting the 2 ILL$ and SDD at 7am.  Then MFSR, ToT, RnRC at 11, 1, 3.   We'd arrive at DHS around 3pm with 5 headliners.  Then we'll head to the MK AH party.

Of course, I don't know how Friday compares to today's crowds, so .... who knows!


----------



## JakeAZ

leeniewdw said:


> Today I was able to 'model' DHS getting the 2 ILL$ and SDD at 7am. Then MFSR, ToT, RnRC at 11, 1, 3


This is very ambitious, but I wish you the best of luck!

We were there last week and yes, I know Thanksgiving is a week unto itself, but getting a ROTR LL and a SDD LL is a tall order.  You really have to decide which one you want the most.  Getting the LL for SDD only requires a few clicks but the IAS for ROTR requires a few more.  All those seconds matter.

You should have no problem grabbing IAS for MMRR.


----------



## leeniewdw

SDD was available well after 7am today.  Had I been booking for our arrival, I would have had to wait until the return window met our ability to be in the parks.  ROTR was also available after 7 for awhile.

will it be that way Friday? Who knows.


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

twodogs said:


> If it works like MP at DLR did (And I have seen several users who have done both and say that it does), then you would be able to book the next one right after scanning into ToT.  Once you have “paid” the price for the late booking of SDD by waiting the two hours before booking ToT, that SDD LL is “paid” and doesn’t figure into any future booking windows.


Yes this was our experience. 

Tried at 7am (again today ugh) purchased RotR, SDD gone. MFSR had availability until mid-afternoon.  I saw SDD pop up a few times but got an error booking. That has been a consistent experience.

GET said the app and bookings work better on an iPhone too.

TP has today as 3/10, but definitely not seeing that based on wait times.  I think everyone is still trying to figure it out. 

Booked ToT at 7am when SDD wasn't available. Return at 10am booked RnRC for 11am saw B&B in between. When I tapped current I could book next.   If return time is later,  book again in 2hrs. IMO I think rolling G+ are better on crowded days but there are others better than me with this stuff and I'm looking forward to hearing what they say. 

I haven't been able to find any other cases that work so far. Tap or Two


----------



## katyringo

Ya know I didn't necessarily believe the idea that a lot of first time or once in a lifetime folks don't look into things before their trip.. but now... I have got to talking to 5 families either in the line or on the bus and once they figure out I'm a dis nerd they ask for help. I've shown all of them Genie+ and walked through virtual que with them. I promise I wasn't being nosy or anything.. they just started asking. One family had me help them with an entire DHS plan of action as they were doing a second day and their first day there was not good.


----------



## g-dad66

leeniewdw said:


> I'm going to need to set alarms all week at 7am and 11am to check MDE to nail down our plan.



The Lightning Lane Availability Map at thrill-data.com is fascinating.

If you go back at least two days, you can see what was available for every LL attraction every 10 minutes.

It took me a little while to figure out exactly how to find the chart, but on the Wait Times menu, pick a park and then click Change Data Date.  The Map for today is understandably incomplete (in fact, I couldn't even find it this morning), and the Map for yesterday is also incomplete for some reason.

Then scroll down on the page.


----------



## lostprincess_danie

katyringo said:


> Ya know I didn't necessarily believe the idea that a lot of first time or once in a lifetime folks don't look into things before their trip.. but now... I have got to talking to 5 families either in the line or on the bus and once they figure out I'm a dis nerd they ask for help. I've shown all of them Genie+ and walked through virtual que with them. I promise I wasn't being nosy or anything.. they just started asking. One family had me help them with an entire DHS plan of action as they were doing a second day and their first day there was not good.


Yes to this! My previous post was about helping a friend with their first trip. She was going to "wing it" and asked me what Fast Passes she should book. I could not let her go down there without a plan so I gave her as much info as I knew. She said she feels a lot better about things now.


----------



## katyringo

leeniewdw said:


> SDD was available well after 7am today.  Had I been booking for our arrival, I would have had to wait until the return window met our ability to be in the parks.  ROTR was also available after 7 for awhile.
> 
> will it be that way Friday? Who knows.



I am worried this may have been a glitch today. Maybe not... but my tip board and day were glitchy all day in MK..


----------



## mom2rtk

katyringo said:


> I am worried this may have been a glitch today. Maybe not... but my tip board and day were glitchy all day in MK..


More likely post holiday lighter crowd.


----------



## katyringo

It's 6am. I rolled into bed at movies last night at 230am after the Christmas party.  Whyyyyyyy did I plan DHS after that?!?  I never learn.
Anyway. I'm at the bus stop.

my plan

book Rise
Book tower of tower (I am hoping for an early return time
Book MMRR.. 

Rope drop Slinky.

let's go.


----------



## katyringo

Oh I have full bar data/ cell service at the all star movies bus stop.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

5DisneyNuts said:


> TP has today as 3/10


Yesterday did, in fact, end up being a 3/10 per tp overall.  MK individually was a 4 as was HS.  This is why the LL’s did not run out.  Looks like the sweet spot for Genie+ is crowd level 3-5.  Anything less then 3 and you don’t need it.  Anything more than 5 and it is impossible to get more then 1 or 2 worthwhile LL’s except maybe at MK.


----------



## katyringo

I got rise and MMRR and tower of terror but almost lost rise as it glitched out on me. Didn't get the time I wanted but it's okay


----------



## katyringo

That was stressful .. and the family in line next to me are now yelling at each other over it.


----------



## pinkxray

First time using genie plus. 
Just booked paid passes for Remy And Frozen.
I accidentally booked test track for 7:35(no idea how I confirmed this, was just looking at the time but oh well)

So now I can’t book another lightening land until 1? The cooling down starts at 11 park open?


----------



## katyringo

pinkxray said:


> First time using genie plus.
> Just booked paid passes for Remy And Frozen.
> I accidentally booked test track for 7:35(no idea how I confirmed this, was just looking at the time but oh well)
> 
> So now I can’t book another lightening land until 1? The cooling down starts at 11 park open?



Yes. But you could also cancel and book another instead but having been in Epcot I would keep it.


----------



## katyringo

katyringo said:


> That was stressful .. and the family in line next to me are now yelling at each other over it.



I helped this family. Using  refresh for them and got them Rise, slinky dog and MMRR.

where is my commission Disney?


----------



## GBRforWDW

katyringo said:


> I helped this family. Using  refresh for them and got them Rise, slinky dog and MMRR.
> 
> where is my commission Disney?


Would you settle for a good Samaritan Award?


----------



## katyringo

GBRforWDW said:


> Would you settle for a good Samaritan Award?


 I guess!  Apparently their travel agent has promised to do all that for them.. and didn't.


----------



## GBRforWDW

katyringo said:


> I guess!  Apparently their travel agent has promised to do all that for them.. and didn't.


Ohhh yikes.  

That's good you were able to help out!  

Have fun at Hollywood Studios!


----------



## Donna M

katyringo said:


> I guess!  Apparently their travel agent has promised to do all that for them.. and didn't.


This just shows that you really need to know what to do yourself.  We  went in October and made good use of stacking in the MK.  Now with a Feb trip planned I feel like I have to relearn the whole process!

I hope your day turns out to be a great one!


----------



## dez1978

So at 812 am, sdd still has passes today. ROTR does not


----------



## wisblue

Selket said:


> My 4 family members are linked to my account (they don't use MDE at all at the moment and don't have their own accounts).   I always managed fast passes for everyone in the past so....
> 
> If I want to buy Genie+ for just 2 of the 4 for one day - can I do this?
> At what time can I first purchase it?  Or can I wake up at say 6:30am and get it for 2 of us and then book rides at 7am? (we are onsite)
> If persons 3 and 4 decide they want Genie+ can I add them later that day?  I realize they will have missed out on booking things early - and may not get or want the same things I had booked for myself
> Would it be easier to share my password with them to login in as me on MDE app and they manage themselves this way or if they made their own accounts ...how would I link them back to me?  (they are my husband and my young adult sons).  I'm a bit concerned someone will get confused and cancel someone else's bookings thinking it is their own, etc.
> We tend to split up and go different ways so I don't want to have to manage everyone if I can help it!



The answers to your first 3 questions are::

(1) Yes

(2) Yes, you can book Genie+ for the day anytime after midnight.

(3) Yes

Number 4 depends a lot on how reliable the other people are. I would share your concern that others with no experience dealing with MDE would inadvertently mess something up by cancelling or changing plans that you don’t want to change.

If you do trust everyone not to mess up, the best would probably be for everyone in the group to have their own MDE account and to add each other to their Friends and Family list with authority to share plans. That’s how our family of all adults does it. When I’m on the trip they usually defer to me to make the plans, but they can help with things like booking LL or making mobile orders using their own accounts.


----------



## Selket

wisblue said:


> If you do trust everyone not to mess up, the best would probably be for everyone in the group to have their own MDE account and to add each other to their Friends and Family list with authority to share plans. That’s how our family of all adults does it. When I’m on the trip they usually defer to me to make the plans, but they can help with things like booking LL or making mobile orders using their own accounts.



*** *edited to say I was able to add one son after he made his own account so I think it is working for us - thanks!*

So the other 3 (DH, & two young adults) do not have MDE.  Right now I see their park tickets, park reservations, etc.  So from what you're saying they can create their own MDE account and choose to share their plans with me.   How does MDE pick up that the person named "Bob" in my account is my child named "Bob" who just made his own MDE?


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

Suggest turning wi-fi off before trying for passes or VQ.
Wi-fi seems to be what causes the app to loop back to log in over and over.  I was able to duplicate the issue consistently with wi-fi on,  and didn't have it happen on mobile. FYI.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

dez1978 said:


> So at 812 am, sdd still has passes today. ROTR does not


Predicted overall crowd level today is a 4 with HS at a 2 per tp, so this is not shocking.


----------



## Selket

katyringo said:


> I helped this family. Using  refresh for them and got them Rise, slinky dog and MMRR.
> 
> where is my commission Disney?



Are you there all week?  I'm headed down and could use some help lmao.  I'm joking but that was really nice of you.  Hopefully when I'm able to do it - it will all make more sense.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

5DisneyNuts said:


> Suggest turning wi-fi off before trying for passes or VQ.
> Wi-fi seems to be what causes the app to loop back to log in over and over.  I was able to duplicate the issue consistently with wi-fi on,  and didn't have it happen on mobile. FYI.


That's going to stink for international users, but as long as the ILL$ are selling out, Disney has no incentive to fix this.


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> That's going to stink for international users, but as long as the ILL$ are selling out, Disney has no incentive to fix this.


Yes, I should add I tried both at resort and in the parks. I have an android. GET CM said the app works better on iPhone.


----------



## leeniewdw

JakeAZ said:


> This is very ambitious, but I wish you the best of luck!
> 
> We were there last week and yes, I know Thanksgiving is a week unto itself, but getting a ROTR LL and a SDD LL is a tall order.  You really have to decide which one you want the most.  Getting the LL for SDD only requires a few clicks but the IAS for ROTR requires a few more.  All those seconds matter.
> 
> You should have no problem grabbing IAS for MMRR.





leeniewdw said:


> SDD was available well after 7am today.  Had I been booking for our arrival, I would have had to wait until the return window met our ability to be in the parks.  ROTR was also available after 7 for awhile.
> 
> *will it be that way Friday? Who knows.*





katyringo said:


> I am worried this may have been a glitch today. Maybe not... but my tip board and day were glitchy all day in MK..





dez1978 said:


> So at 812 am, sdd still has passes today. ROTR does not



So yesterday things looked perfect for my very ambitious plan haha.  Today was different.  SDD went initially within a minute.   MFSR went into my return time preference (mid-late afternoon) pretty quickly.  So, thought we might flip to grabbing MFSR and forgo SDD (we've ridden it before).   About 7:20 I looked again, MFSR return times were back to morning!   I know this has been reported but I hadn't seen it before.  Today I *should* have been able to grab SDD and RotR, but I think we're prioritizing MFSR > SDD, so I'll check what the deal is at 11am today.

And SO interesting that SDD went back to available later!  I refreshed a fair amount at 7:20 and never saw it become available again.


----------



## BrotherCraig

Just got back from 6 days at Disney World and 5 days at Universal.  Had a great time although the rain made things a little more challenging at Disney.  With that said, Genie+ was a big success for us.  We went to HS, Epcot, and MK.

HS:  At 7 AM, booked Slinky Dog.  Bought ROTR (ILL).  Did not make Early Entry into the park but got there right at 9 AM.  Hit ToT and it was a 7 minute wait (posted 20 minutes).  Ended up having 4 rides booked at once using Genie+ and it worked out great.  Hit every ride but Rockin' Rollercoaster.  Genie+ was a lifesaver and made it a great day.

Epcot:  At 7 AM, got Virtual Queue for the Remy Rat ride.  Bought ILL for Frozen.  Decided to not rope drop Epcot since we got those rides so got into Epcot at 11 AM.  Used LL for most of the rides there but didn't have to for most there.  Genie+ was not much of a value here but still was happy with it.

MK:  At 7 AM, ILL Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (didn't care for that ride although kids enjoyed it), LL for Peter Pan.  Ended up having 5 rides booked at once by late afternoon (Space Mountain ILL, BTMR, JC, Haunted, and Pirates).  Genie+ was great for us at MK.

Merriest Christmas after-party was a bust for us.  We only lasted one hour there because of the rain and cold.  Cancelled parade and was told no fireworks (although they ended up having it).  Big waste of money for our family.


----------



## emmabelle

leeniewdw said:


> And SO interesting that SDD went back to available later!  I refreshed a fair amount at 7:20 and never saw it become available again.



Today, I saw them all gone by 7:01am for SDD. Awesome... now I can spend even more time on my phone hoping that more will pop up later.


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

emmabelle said:


> Today, I saw them all gone by 7:01am for SDD. Awesome... now I can spend even more time on my phone hoping that more will pop up later.


Hahaha exactly.
Just to add my experience, when something popped up, I received errors trying to book and was not successful.
Also it's not FP+ refresh, the timing has to be right.  If your eligibility window isn't open you won't be able to book. 
By the time you cancel a G+ to book SDD it will be gone. 
Based on how quickly SDD sells out, I wouldn't be surprised if MMRR becomes G+ and SDD ILL$


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> Predicted overall crowd level today is a 4 with HS at a 2 per tp, so this is not shocking.


I'm curious how crowd calendars are low,  yet MK/DS park reservations sold out with G+ options seemingly available later.  Does Disney reduce park capacity that much?


----------



## 4_canucks

I've seen many posts mentioning posted wait times inaccuracies, and some with references to Touring Plans being more accurate.  For those who use TP in addition to MDE for wait times, do you visit TP's website via a browser, or are you using their app (and is it the "lines" one)? I have not subscribed to TP yet but want to get a sense of whether it'd be flipping between two apps or an app and a browser page or..  

thanks in advance.


----------



## BrotherCraig

4_canucks said:


> I've seen many posts mentioning posted wait times inaccuracies, and some with references to Touring Plans being more accurate.  For those who use TP in addition to MDE for wait times, do you visit TP's website via a browser, or are you using their app (and is it the "lines" one)? I have not subscribed to TP yet but want to get a sense of whether it'd be flipping between two apps or an app and a browser page or..
> 
> thanks in advance.




I used the app the whole time and it was pretty close to being accurate.  Disney posted wait times were off quite a bit.


----------



## BrotherCraig

5DisneyNuts said:


> I'm curious how crowd calendars are low,  yet MK/DS park reservations sold out with G+ options seemingly available later.  Does Disney reduce park capacity that much?




Crowd Calendars are off.  Not accurate this year in my experience the last couple of weeks.


----------



## Figment1990

It definitely didn’t feel like a 3/10 in either HS or epcot yesterday. At HS slinky was up to 90 min by the time we left around 2 pm and various others kept popping up to 70-80 min regularly. Perhaps it’s a lightning lane effect but it made it a bit stressful. I guess I’m just not a holiday traveler. At Epcot it was SOOOOO crowded in the world showcase at night. I knew it was like that for food and wine but wasn’t expecting it for holiday festival. Just way more crowds than I like to navigate. I will flip the plans next time and do world showcase in the daytime and future  nature discover celebration wall world in the evening.

also ourwait times almost always matched disneys posted times.


----------



## Mango7100

katyringo said:


> I guess!  Apparently their travel agent has promised to do all that for them.. and didn't.


Yikes, the travel agent should have never promised to do Genie+ for them. I be getting a new agent…or just not use one (we never have for any trip)


----------



## itf

5DisneyNuts said:


> I'm curious how crowd calendars are low,  yet MK/DS park reservations sold out with G+ options seemingly available later.  Does Disney reduce park capacity that much?



Yeesh so even a TP Level 2 HS day there's 0 availability for off-site guests for ROTR.


----------



## dez1978

itf said:


> Yeesh so even a TP Level 2 HS day there's 0 availability for off-site guests for ROTR.


Or remy unless you have reservations for Epcot. Id planned to hop to Epcot but looks like that might not work


----------



## leeniewdw

5DisneyNuts said:


> I'm curious how crowd calendars are low,  yet MK/DS park reservations sold out with G+ options seemingly available later.  Does Disney reduce park capacity that much?



Wow, I didn't realize the park reservations where sold out.  If I'm reading TP right, HS is sold out on Friday and that happened on 11/28.  Thank goodness we firmed up our plans (just) before that happened! 

And you're right.  There are LLs for 2-4pm for ToT, RnRC, TSMM still available.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

4_canucks said:


> I've seen many posts mentioning posted wait times inaccuracies, and some with references to Touring Plans being more accurate.  For those who use TP in addition to MDE for wait times, do you visit TP's website via a browser, or are you using their app (and is it the "lines" one)? I have not subscribed to TP yet but want to get a sense of whether it'd be flipping between two apps or an app and a browser page or..
> 
> thanks in advance.


The lines app is worth the price of the subscription.  That's what I use.


----------



## Casey LC

I’m at Hollywood Studios now, taking a coffee break. We rope dropped Rise and we were the first group on. They let us in the park at 7:30 and we were in line by 8:00, off the ride by 8:15 before Early entry even officially began. At 7AM We got a SDD fastpass for 9:20am, and after getting off the ride, used refresh to get a Tower of Terror at 10:15 followed quickly by RnR at 10:30, also using refresh. The posted return times for those rides were both after 12, it took a few minutes of refreshing for something better to come up. Smugglers Run return time is gone but I refreshed and got a 3:00 return time now.

This is our first trip with Genie+. I miss Fastpass+, the ease of having 3 prebooked passes is much more relaxing than this nonsense. God help anyone who doesn’t research how to take advantage of this silly system.


----------



## katyringo

pretty successful morning 

Rope drop Slinky was on the second train
Walked right on to TSMM right after
Got Ronto wrap
Smugglers single rider- got right on 
Time for first genie + - rode TT
Got a frozen hot chocolate - watched a couple calvacdes 
Rode MMRR with LL..

I need a nap now after having been at the Christmas party until 2am..

I have rise booked for this evening and I'm watching times for rocking roller coaster to book another genie for this evening.


----------



## katyringo

katyringo said:


> pretty successful morning
> 
> Rope drop Slinky was on the second train
> Walked right on to TSMM right after
> Got Ronto wrap
> Smugglers single rider- got right on
> Time for first genie + - rode TT
> Got a frozen hot chocolate - watched a couple calvacdes
> Rode MMRR with LL..
> 
> I need a nap now after having been at the Christmas party until 2am..
> 
> I have rise booked for this evening and I'm watching times for rocking roller coaster to book another genie for this evening.



I could have booked another genie after my second TT scan and have gotten it for around noon. I just need a break and I feel really good about my day so far.


----------



## ZeeWP

UGHHHh maybe they will distribute better during Christmas and/or Spring break crowds. Let's see how that goes. I am now stressed more about our Tgiving 2022 trip.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

Casey LC said:


> We rope dropped Rise and we were the first group on. They let us in the park at 7:30 and we were in line by 8:00, off the ride by 8:15 before Early entry even officially began.


Does anyone have any idea whether people headed to SDD have a similar experience?  Do they start running that ride at 8:00 as well?


----------



## wisblue

Selket said:


> *** *edited to say I was able to add one son after he made his own account so I think it is working for us - thanks!*
> 
> So the other 3 (DH, & two young adults) do not have MDE.  Right now I see their park tickets, park reservations, etc.  So from what you're saying they can create their own MDE account and choose to share their plans with me.   How does MDE pick up that the person named "Bob" in my account is my child named "Bob" who just made his own MDE?



I‘m not sure about the mechanics of how that works. We all have first and last names and my account shows the character icons that everyone has chosen. We set these up a few years ago and I don’t remember exactly how we got there. I do recall that to create the link, one of us had to invite the other to join the Friends and Family list and the other person had to accept.


----------



## Bellagirl

Casey LC said:


> I’m at Hollywood Studios now, taking a coffee break. We rope dropped Rise and we were the first group on. They let us in the park at 7:30 and we were in line by 8:00, off the ride by 8:15 before Early entry even officially began. At 7AM We got a SDD fastpass for 9:20am, and after getting off the ride, used refresh to get a Tower of Terror at 10:15 followed quickly by RnR at 10:30, also using refresh. The posted return times for those rides were both after 12, it took a few minutes of refreshing for something better to come up. Smugglers Run return time is gone but I refreshed and got a 3:00 return time now.
> 
> This is our first trip with Genie+. I miss Fastpass+, the ease of having 3 prebooked passes is much more relaxing than this nonsense. God help anyone who doesn’t research how to take advantage of this silly system.


 When a selection appeared did you just keep hitting refresh to see if a better selection came up for an individual ride or for all rides?  Thanks!


----------



## Tay N Evie's Mom

This Friday is our day at HS. Should I go for ROTR 1st or MFSR 1st at 7am, then try for the other? Luckily my family doesn’t care for SDD! We’re hopping to Epcot for dinner at Biergarten, so I don’t have the whole day to spend at HS.


----------



## katyringo

Grasshopper2016 said:


> Does anyone have any idea whether people headed to SDD have a similar experience?  Do they start running that ride at 8:00 as well?


They did not run slinky today until 830


----------



## katyringo

Bellagirl said:


> When a selection appeared did you just keep hitting refresh to see if a better selection came up for an individual ride or for all rides?  Thanks!





Tay N Evie's Mom said:


> This Friday is our day at HS. Should I go for ROTR 1st or MFSR 1st at 7am, then try for the other? Luckily my family doesn’t care for SDD! We’re hopping to Epcot for dinner at Biergarten, so I don’t have the whole day to spend at HS.


Rise first.


----------



## Casey LC

Bellagirl said:


> When a selection appeared did you just keep hitting refresh to see if a better selection came up for an individual ride or for all rides?  Thanks!



better selections come up for only certain rides if someone cancels a pass or maybe their algorithm determines they can fit more people on a certain attraction. The best way to do it is to pin whatever ride you want to the top (or two rides max) of the tip board, keep refreshing constantly and then the moment a better time comes up that you want, choose it ASAP. It will only last a couple seconds. It’s not a very fun process, but it gets my kids on the rides they want.


----------



## itf

Casey LC said:


> better selections come up for only certain rides if someone cancels a pass or maybe their algorithm determines they can fit more people on a certain attraction. The best way to do it is to pin whatever ride you want to the top (or two rides max) of the tip board, keep refreshing constantly and then the moment a better time comes up that you want, choose it ASAP. It will only last a couple seconds. It’s not a very fun process, but it gets my kids on the rides they want.



Truly the Disneyworld dream vacation. Stare at your phone all day in case the genie throws you some scraps.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

katyringo said:


> They did not run slinky today until 830


What time did you arrive at the park?  Do you have a sense of how much further back in line you would have been (time-wise) if you had arrived at the park around 8:00?


----------



## katyringo

Grasshopper2016 said:


> What time did you arrive at the park?  Do you have a sense of how much further back in line you would have been (time-wise) if you had arrived at the park around 8:00?



I was in the park and at slinky dog by 745. The line grew quickly.. by 8 there would have been quite a line


----------



## Grasshopper2016

katyringo said:


> I was in the park and at slinky dog by 745. The line grew quickly.. by 8 there would have been quite a line


Thanks.  That's frustrating, but not surprising.  Kind of annoying that they started running RotR at 8:00, but didn't start SDD until 8:30.  If you want to do SDD, it sounds like you should arrive by 7:45.  But if you are going to arrive that early, there is a strong incentive to do RotR rather than SDD, since you can be off of RotR before others even get onto SDD.


----------



## katyringo

Alright here is my whole day thus far (2:25pm) and I will most likely not be able to book another genie for a top ride today:

At 7am I booked Rise, MMRR and TT(9:30-10:30)

I was in the park by 745 via first bus from Movies. Straight to SDD and was on the 2nd-3rd train.
Walked on TSMM
Mobile ordered ronto wrap-ate it
Single rider Smugglers run- walk on 
TT genie+ (I could have booked another right after second scan but I needed the times to get a bit later..) 
Watched calvacades- mobile ordered frozen hot chocolate and new sipper cup
Rode MMRR with lightning lane 
Back to resort- booked RR for 445-5pm. 
nap- at 2:08 I tried refreshing for a bit to see if I could get slinky to show up- no luck. Booked TSMM for 730-830pm.

I am headed back to the park and I have Rise, RR, and TSMM booked for my evening. I'm eligible to book again at 4:08. Might try some refreshing but by then it will be slim pickings.

I've got an after park close Oga's reservation and a mobile order in for Docking bay 7.. so off to enjoy the rest of the evening.

if you are keeping track- I will have rode all the headliners today using a mix of early entry, genie + and indivual lightning lanes.  I was able to pull 3 genie+ ... most likely could have been 4 if I had not taken a break as I would-of had some earlier return times. I needed that nap tho


----------



## katyringo

Grasshopper2016 said:


> Thanks.  That's frustrating, but not surprising.  Kind of annoying that they started running RotR at 8:00, but didn't start SDD until 8:30.  If you want to do SDD, it sounds like you should arrive by 7:45.  But if you are going to arrive that early, there is a strong incentive to do RotR rather than SDD, since you can be off of RotR before others even get onto SDD.



for me personally I paid for ROTR lightning lane but didn't want to get a late return time for my first Genie+ so it made sense for my strategy to rope drop SDD.


----------



## mickey916

Thank you @katyringo for all of your real time reports. It's very helpful.


----------



## princesswahooey

mickey916 said:


> Thank you @katyringo for all of your real time reports. It's very helpful.


Yes, @katyringo you deserve an award!


----------



## trompettecon

Casey LC said:


> better selections come up for only certain rides if someone cancels a pass or maybe their algorithm determines they can fit more people on a certain attraction. The best way to do it is to pin whatever ride you want to the top (or two rides max) of the tip board,


Ok. Read everything. Feel really stupid now but how to pin to the top?


----------



## soniam

Grasshopper2016 said:


> Does anyone have any idea whether people headed to SDD have a similar experience?  Do they start running that ride at 8:00 as well?





katyringo said:


> They did not run slinky today until 830


We saw 8:30 as well for SDD last week. I think only Rise and Smugglers try to start at 8, 1 hour before regular opening. We actually did Smugglers one morning just a hair after 8.


----------



## davper

katyringo said:


> It's 6am. I rolled into bed at movies last night at 230am after the Christmas party.  Whyyyyyyy did I plan DHS after that?!?  I never learn.
> Anyway. I'm at the bus stop.
> 
> my plan
> 
> book Rise
> Book tower of tower (I am hoping for an early return time
> Book MMRR..
> 
> Rope drop Slinky.
> 
> let's go.


Did anyone find an adult passed out on a bench today?


----------



## GBRforWDW

trompettecon said:


> Ok. Read everything. Feel really stupid now but how to pin to the top?


You have to have tickets added to MDE.  If you do have tickets, you can click Edit Selections on your My Genie Tip Board:


----------



## katyringo

As expected my window opened at 4:10 and there is nothing. I'm refreshing while in line but nothing is coming up.


----------



## Casey LC

trompettecon said:


> Ok. Read everything. Feel really stupid now but how to pin to the top?



you have to set up a genie itinerary first under the “My Day” tab and pick whatever ride you want as a Top Pick and that will pin it to the top of the Tip board. Skip all the other options they offer. After that you can edit which ride you want to pin by clicking “edit selections” on tip board. I usually change the pinned ride as the day goes on to whatever ride I’m trying to find next.


----------



## Selket

wisblue said:


> I do recall that to create the link, one of us had to invite the other to join the Friends and Family list and the other person had to accept.



Yes sounds right - I had my son and DH make an account and then in my account I sent them an email requesting to share plans.  They could then see their park reservations, etc. so I think we're good to go for buying Genie+.   I was surprised it actually worked considering how much headache that trying to plan this trip has been lol!


----------



## CBMom01

I’m super confused about a few points, but mainly how people are checking Genie+ and/or $ILL return times before their trips.


----------



## leeniewdw

CBMom01 said:


> I’m super confused about a few points, but mainly how people are checking Genie+ and/or $ILL return times before their trips.



I'm in the US and am able to pull up the tip board on app and see what the current return times are for the G+ LLs.  As far as ILL$, they also show if they are available and the current soonest return time  (you can't see all available times unless you have a park reservation for the day).   Today and yesterday, if you refresh the app page (tap the Tip Board text at the top) it shows how those times move around.  Mostly move to later times, but sometimes earlier.   Last week the return times moved to later in the day much faster than today (unsuprisingly).


----------



## katyringo

Tomorrow I am doing AK but I'm not sure how dedicated I am going to be to early entry. I am tired! I plan to wake up to buy FOP. I hear single rider at Everest is always fast?

Also... I got in line for MMRR with a 40 minute wait and it probably took 15mins..


----------



## Mango7100

Grasshopper2016 said:


> What time did you arrive at the park?  Do you have a sense of how much further back in line you would have been (time-wise) if you had arrived at the park around 8:00?


We were there the week before Thanksgiving and got in line for MMRR at 750 and were about 1/2 through the outdoor queue. As we waited the SDD line went back to Little Mermaid theater. Rise was down so that was probably a factor


----------



## nurseberta

leeniewdw said:


> Was fascinating to watch the slower progression of times for DHS this morning between 7 and 730am.   After being a little freaked out all last week, now concerned about our 7am LL grab on Friday.   We had decided to skip SDD and grab MFSR, but our flight departs at 7:25am and today the return times were too early for us!  A good 'problem' to have if that means crowds are much lower.
> 
> Just checked at 11:05am and MFSR is available for 7:15pm return, so I guess we're back to SDD first and MFSR next.
> 
> I'm going to need to set alarms all week at 7am and 11am to check MDE to nail down our plan.  Then prepare to be boarding a plane when I need to grab that 7am LL.      (I may have to make sure to get a paper boarding pass at the airport, can you imagine being in a SW lineup and have to stop to scan your boarding pass RIGHT AT 7AM! LOL)



OMG! Valid point! I also have a 7:05 flight! Hoping I can board early and secure my LL before take off!!! 
 Just added “print boarding pass” to my itinerary
Also thinking I need airline wifi so I’ll have to buy it on delta!!


----------



## nurseberta

leeniewdw said:


> That's what we're hoping for Friday, our travel/arrival.  Today I was able to 'model' DHS getting the 2 ILL$ and SDD at 7am.  Then MFSR, ToT, RnRC at 11, 1, 3.   We'd arrive at DHS around 3pm with 5 headliners.  Then we'll head to the MK AH party.
> 
> Of course, I don't know how Friday compares to today's crowds, so .... who knows!



curious to see how this works, our arrival day usually plan Epcot


----------



## nurseberta

katyringo said:


> That was stressful .. and the family in line next to me are now yelling at each other over it.



what line were you in at 7am?


----------



## katyringo

nurseberta said:


> what line were you in at 7am?


The bus line for DHS.


----------



## nurseberta

Grasshopper2016 said:


> Thanks.  That's frustrating, but not surprising.  Kind of annoying that they started running RotR at 8:00, but didn't start SDD until 8:30.  If you want to do SDD, it sounds like you should arrive by 7:45.  But if you are going to arrive that early, there is a strong incentive to do RotR rather than SDD, since you can be off of RotR before others even get onto SDD.



true but if you do rise and then SDD you would be behind most of the RD crowd.


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> The lines app is worth the price of the subscription.  That's what I use.


Agree 100% the TP app has been invaluable this trip. Times have been much more accurate.

Off topic, but there is a banner at the bottom of the resorts TV channel saying no need to arrive earlier than 1/2 hr EE time. If I saw that and got to DHS only to find myself in an hour long line behind people that arrived at 730am I'd be really annoyed.

G+ is very similar to the old paper FP without the running and with extra costs that add up quickly ($150+) day for ILL$ and G+. The part I do not like at all is the 7am wake up each day.  Since I didn't purchase G+ for EPCOT or AK, I wish I had scheduled parks a bit differently to allow for alternate sleep in days.


----------



## katyringo

I decided not to rope drop AK today. Needed some more rest. I did wake up and buy FOP. I also bought Everest because I can (lol). I watched the times a bit and booked Navi river. I now have a nice mid morning stack. I'll book the safari when I'm eligible to book again.

If I wasn't solo and with the whole family I probably would have bought FOP for all of us, rope dropped Everest, and not buy Genie for the day for all of us.


----------



## katyringo

Everest has been down all morning..

anyone know what happens to your purchased upgrade lightning lane if the ride is down during your time?


----------



## HeiHei2018

katyringo said:


> Everest has been down all morning..
> 
> anyone know what happens to your purchased upgrade lightning lane if the ride is down during your time?


Previous posters said it converts to an anytime for that ride. Reports said they would only offer refund if it’s down all day.


----------



## katyringo

HeiHei2018 said:


> Previous posters said it converts to an anytime for that ride. Reports said they would only offer refund if it’s down all day.


 Thanks. I would have been just fine with that. Luckily it seems to be back up!


----------



## katyringo

katyringo said:


> Thanks. I would have been just fine with that. Luckily it seems to be back up!


 Kidding- it's down again.


----------



## Lsdolphin

How do I cancel/change a genie+ time for a later time?


----------



## leeniewdw

There is no "change", you have to cancel and then re-book.   I haven't been in the parks yet since G+, but I'm presuming there's a CANCEL if you click on the LL?


----------



## Lsdolphin

Hmmm


leeniewdw said:


> There is no "change", you have to cancel and then re-book.   I haven't been in the parks yet since G+, but I'm presuming there's a CANCEL if you click on the LL?


, I clicked LL but not seeing any option to cancel....guessing I should wait til I can book another ride at 11:00 before doing anything with first choice which I want to make later...


----------



## katyringo

My Everest converted to a multiple expirence and says any lightning lane. Does that mean FOP?


----------



## katyringo

This is the language it uses:


----------



## scrappinginontario

nurseberta said:


> OMG! Valid point! I also have a 7:05 flight! Hoping I can board early and secure my LL before take off!!!
> Just added “print boarding pass” to my itinerary
> Also thinking I need airline wifi so I’ll have to buy it on delta!!


If your flight is at 7:05, you will still be on the ground at 7:00.  Can you use your data and save purchasing wifi unless you push back from the gate super early?


katyringo said:


> My Everest converted to a multiple expirence and says any lightning lane. Does that mean FOP?


In the past, any FP+ option that was excluded from a 'multiple experience' was stated on the notice.  Does it state any exclusions?


----------



## BrotherCraig

Lsdolphin said:


> Hmmm
> 
> , I clicked LL but not seeing any option to cancel....guessing I should wait til I can book another ride at 11:00 before doing anything with first choice which I want to make later...




You click on My Day and then go to your chosen ride.  Click on it and there will be a cancel on there.  I did it many times last week.


----------



## scrappinginontario

katyringo said:


> This is the language it uses:


To me it sounds like it can only be used at EE.  Possibly if EE remains down it many change the wording but currently I interpret that to mean it can only be used at EE.


----------



## Lsdolphin

Yes


BrotherCraig said:


> You click on My Day and then go to your chosen ride.  Click on it and there will be a cancel on there.  I did it many times last week.


yes! Thank you


----------



## katyringo

I spoke to guest relations who told me I can use that multiple expirence pass anywhere except Pandora. I asked what happens if Everest doesn't come back because respectfully I didn't pay extra to ride dinosaur or safari... they said I would need to come back to guest relations to have it refunded.

and this is my first complaint about this system.


----------



## leeniewdw

katyringo said:


> I spoke to guest relations who told me I can use that multiple expirence pass anywhere except Pandora. I asked what happens if Everest doesn't come back because respectfully I didn't pay extra to ride dinosaur or safari... they said I would need to come back to guest relations to have it refunded.
> 
> and this is my first complaint about this system.



I don't blame you.

This probably means absolutely zero, but on our last trip (March 2020 so FP+ era), we had a FP for Space Mountain and it was down.  We went about our time at MK, riding a few rides and then wanted to leave.  We always break midday and hop to other parks.  When I went to Guest Relations at an umbrella, they said I could change it to an any time FP for SM, but not for anything else.  We decided to stop at town hall (is that what it's called?) and ask again if they could move the FP to 2 days later, the next time we planned to be at the park and they did it no problem.  (and LOL, we never used it because of Covid and leaving a day early to head home.)

tl;dr; I would definitely stop again and ask for what you'd like.


----------



## katyringo

leeniewdw said:


> I don't blame you.
> 
> This probably means absolutely zero, but on our last trip (March 2020 so FP+ era), we had a FP for Space Mountain and it was down.  We went about our time at MK, riding a few rides and then wanted to leave.  We always break midday and hop to other parks.  When I went to Guest Relations at an umbrella, they said I could change it to an any time FP for SM, but not for anything else.  We decided to stop at town hall (is that what it's called?) and ask again if they could move the FP to 2 days later, the next time we planned to be at the park and they did it no problem.  (and LOL, we never used it because of Covid and leaving a day early to head home.)
> 
> tl;dr; I would definitely stop again and ask for what you'd like.


 So knowing Disney I stopped at another guest relation place and asked again.  This guy said only at Everest but for anytime and if it didn't come back to come back and get a refund.

so in true fashion they don't even know their own rules lol.

doesn't matter Everest is back up.


----------



## jade1

davper said:


> Did anyone find an adult passed out on a bench today?



As a matter of fact.....


----------



## BrotherCraig

katyringo said:


> This is the language it uses:




They cancelled it for you when that happens.  With that said, when it comes back open, no need to rebook.  Just show up at the lightening lane and show them that.  They will permit you through.  Happened to us TWICE last week.  Enjoy.


----------



## katyringo

Interesting  development:

safari went down while I held a genie+ for it.  The multiple expirence pass for that one looks different than the one for Everest.  It says specially what it can and cannot be used on. This makes me wonder if that Everest one can be used on Pandora. Should I try it? Pics of both attaches.


----------



## katyringo

This is how they show up on the my day page..

ignore my FOP booking..


----------



## katyringo

Another development:

I shouldn't have been able to book another genie until 1244 - but  because my safari was converted to multiple experience genie told me I could book a lightning lane so I was able to book another sooner than 2 hours.


----------



## ENJDisneyFan

Just back from a Thanksgiving week trip.  Used G+ in MK and DHS with pretty good success.  Overall, I was surprised by how many passes I was able to get throughout the day during a very busy week.  My main complaints are as follows:

1.  Lack of a change/modify button.  This is HUGE in my opinion.  It was incredibly frustrating to see a time pop up for a ride we wanted, but by the time you cancel your other pass, the time would be gone.  You basically have to  not be holding something and continue to refresh until you get what you want.  

2.  I felt like I was constantly on my phone, even more so than with FP+.  I disliked having to keep track of the 2 hour windows and be ready to keep booking throughout the day.

3.  Offsite is at a huge disadvantage for booking ILL$.  It is basically impossible to get either ROTR or Remy if not onsite.  Both were sold out consistently ahead of park opening.  Not a huge deal for Rise since standby is offered, but frustrating for Remy since the only other choice is to start the day at Epcot with a park pass (which my family never does).


----------



## ZeeWP

5DisneyNuts said:


> Off topic, but there is a banner at the bottom of the resorts TV channel saying no need to arrive earlier than 1/2 hr EE time. If I saw that and got to DHS only to find myself in an hour long line behind people that arrived at 730am I'd be really annoyed.



Little things like this, and things like the way the Genie gives out itinerary, make me think of Disney as one of those micromanaging bosses. They are trying REALLLLLLLY hard to control the crowds the way THEY want to the minutiae detail.


----------



## katyringo

Okay another interesting thing:

Because  my Everest this morning converted... I am allowed to buy Everest again even though it's open now and I can use my converted pass for it. I won't pay again but interesting.


----------



## maryj11

Booked genie for our day today. Thank goodness I did, it’s packed here! Started this morning at 7:00. First I booked Rise then went for Slinky. Slinky was booked! So I bought MMRR and checked for TOT. As I refreshed I got lucky and a Slinky popped up Yay! We did get TOT later with no problem.
So definitely keep refreshing a bit for Slinky Dog or others.


----------



## Mango7100

ENJDisneyFan said:


> Just back from a Thanksgiving week trip.  Used G+ in MK and DHS with pretty good success.  Overall, I was surprised by how many passes I was able to get throughout the day during a very busy week.  My main complaints are as follows:
> 
> 1.  Lack of a change/modify button.  This is HUGE in my opinion.  It was incredibly frustrating to see a time pop up for a ride we wanted, but by the time you cancel your other pass, the time would be gone.  You basically have to  not be holding something and continue to refresh until you get what you want.
> 
> 2.  I felt like I was constantly on my phone, even more so than with FP+.  I disliked having to keep track of the 2 hour windows and be ready to keep booking throughout the day.
> 
> 3.  Offsite is at a huge disadvantage for booking ILL$.  It is basically impossible to get either ROTR or Remy if not onsite.  Both were sold out consistently ahead of park opening.  Not a huge deal for Rise since standby is offered, but frustrating for Remy since the only other choice is to start the day at Epcot with a park pass (which my family never does).


Agree that the inability to modify is a big deal. We would have LLs and see a more desirable time pop up, but I was always too afraid to cancel and change in fear they would be gone by the time we completed all the steps. Then you are stuck with nothing


----------



## goofynut41

when can I buy Genie+ and lighting lanes? I arrive in a week I tried now but it says I have to call?


----------



## GBRforWDW

goofynut41 said:


> when can I buy Genie+ and lighting lanes? I arrive in a week I tried now but it says I have to call?


You could buy it each morning if you weren't adding for your entire trip.  If you're an AP holder, this is your only way 

Otherwise, you should be able to upgrade tickets in the MDE app.


----------



## goofynut41

GBRforWDW said:


> You could buy it each morning if you weren't adding for your entire trip.  If you're an AP holder, this is your only way
> 
> Otherwise, you should be able to upgrade tickets in the MDE app.


I have military tickets and its says I have to call, anybody else have military and can get genie+?


----------



## kevind2112

Sorry if this was answered previously. I tried to look but could not find an answer.

My wife and I are staying on property starting on Dec 23. Our kids and their significant others are joining us on the 26th, but are staying off property. We all have park hopper tickets, but ours came with the room package while our kids got theirs from a reputable 3rd party ticket seller. We are also all linked together on the MDE app.

Two questions:

Would I be able to book their RotR passes along with ours at our 7:00am window?
Would I be able to book their first regular park Genie+ reservation along with ours at 7:00am?
I know they could not do it on their own, as they are not staying on property, but if we make the reservations for them, do you think we could pull this off? 

Thanks!


----------



## seashell7290

goofynut41 said:


> I have military tickets and its says I have to call, anybody else have military and can get genie+?


It’s not available for advanced purchase but midnight the night before park reservation you can do it add it. Used my salute tickets a few weeks ago like this.


----------



## katyringo

kevind2112 said:


> Sorry if this was answered previously. I tried to look but could not find an answer.
> 
> My wife and I are staying on property starting on Dec 23. Our kids and their significant others are joining us on the 26th, but are staying off property. We all have park hopper tickets, but ours came with the room package while our kids got theirs from a reputable 3rd party ticket seller. We are also all linked together on the MDE app.
> 
> Two questions:
> 
> Would I be able to book their RotR passes along with ours at our 7:00am window?
> Would I be able to book their first regular park Genie+ reservation along with ours at 7:00am?
> I know they could not do it on their own, as they are not staying on property, but if we make the reservations for them, do you think we could pull this off?
> 
> Thanks!



1. No
2. Yes


----------



## katyringo

Buying LL for Everest was completely unnecessary today.  I used it, but then was able to ride 4x in a row using single rider and standby is currently at 10mins.

what do you all think? All wait times in the park are low right now except Pandora...at 65mins. My Disney gut is telling me that is inflated to keep the crowds away from Pandora.. should I go get in line for FOP? It's 5:25 and park closes at 7. The only thing left on my must list is the tree of life lighting ..


----------



## mickey916

katyringo said:


> Buying LL for Everest was completely unnecessary today.  I used it, but then was able to ride 4x in a row using single rider and standby is currently at 10mins.
> 
> what do you all think? All wait times in the park are low right now except Pandora...at 65mins. My Disney gut is telling me that is inflated to keep the crowds away from Pandora.. should I go get in line for FOP? It's 5:25 and park closes at 7. The only thing left on my must list is the tree of life lighting ..


Little late in responding but I'd say go for it.


----------



## katyringo

mickey916 said:


> Little late in responding but I'd say go for it.


 It's at 80 mins now and I don't wanna risk it!


----------



## mickey916

katyringo said:


> It's at 80 mins now and I don't wanna risk it!


Wonder if you could see the Tree of Life and then hop in line right before closing?


----------



## princesswahooey

mickey916 said:


> Wonder if you could see the Tree of Life and then hop in line right before closing?


That's what I would do! If you're in line when they close, you can still ride!


----------



## katyringo

princesswahooey said:


> That's what I would do! If you're in line when they close, you can still ride!


I could have but I'm dead lol. I did ride Everest a couple more times in the dark.


----------



## katyringo

To recap my genie+ and $LL use in animal kingdom:

I paid and booked for FOP. But I didn't try to rope drop today. I woke up at 7, booked it for noon and then went back to sleep. I got to the park about 930-10.

I also paid for Everest which was completly unnecessary. 1. Waits dropped significantly after about 4pm and I used single rider line to ride over and over again.

when I went to book my first Genie+ I wanted to get Navi River. But  the times weren't going later. So I went back to sleep and booked it around 9am for an 11am return time .

the next one I booked was The Safari. I don't remember exactly when I booked it but I do remember watching the times until it got where I wanted iit. But then it went down during my return time and I got a multiple experience one. I ended it up using it on safari later.

I used a genie+ for Dinosaur. The standby was only 20 mins.

I used a genie+ for lion king.  I arrived about 15 mins before the show.  The standby was kinda long but I don't see any value in genie+ for this.. it doesn't give you better seats.. just in the theater sooner.. idk.

so after that there really isn't anything else worth a genie+ in AK. I did the animation thing first show this morning. Walked right in. Also I came in later in the morning but looking at the wait times at open today... genie+ helped me most because I came to the park later. The waits for everythjng stayed really low until about 9am this morning and then dropped down again about 4pm.

you don't need genie+ for AK. Rope drop FOP and Navi and then work your way around the park. Save Everest for the evening. I think you could do a whole day with no $LL or genie+

This also concludes all parks for me and here are my biggest things:

the free genie is useless and annoying. The my day page drives me nuts because it puts reccomdationd into my day and I just want to see what I have booked. I did like adding things like shows I wanted to see (kite tails is super fun BTW) to that page. It just felt cluttered. I also do not like that when you book something it puts your time on the my day page but not the tip board. The ride will say you have this booked but will display the next genie+ time not the time you have booked. That's on the my day page. It confused me a couple of times.

Genie is 100% useful in DHS even if you can "only" get 2-3. Use it in combo with rope drop. I personally think it's better to get quick return times then book SDD for way out into the evening. Folks who book Late ones can't book another until 11- but if you had an earlier return time- say 930- then when you scan in you will be able to book a second right then- not at 11.

I feel like the only necessary $LL is Rise.

Remy's virtual que is now Just a call back to get in a long-ish standby line. Priority is going to $LL

if your party can utilize single rider do so.

the 7am wake up kinda stinks. Stacking for later morning and evening only works if the return times are getting further out which I only say really happen in DHS and MK.

final thought: cast members are still learning too. My whole Everest turned multiple expirence confused many of them and I got 4 different answers about how it's used.

will I used Genie+ again? Yes. And I'll probably continue to add it to our whole ticket because honestly it was handy sometimes. However with the whole family (4 of us) we would be much more selective of those $LL. I would probably only use it for Rise. Maybe SDMT if I didn't get it rope dropped.

I appreciate everyone on these boards because it helped me so much. I've had an amazing trip. I am at MK in the morning before my flight and my only priority there is coffee, the castle, and a ride on the people mover.


----------



## JoJoGirl

katyringo said:


> To recap my genie+ and $LL use in animal kingdom:
> 
> I paid and booked for FOP. But I didn't try to rope drop today. I woke up at 7, booked it for noon and then went back to sleep. I got to the park about 930-10.
> 
> I also paid for Everest which was completly unnecessary. 1. Waits dropped significantly after about 4pm and I used single rider line to ride over and over again.
> 
> when I went to book my first Genie+ I wanted to get Navi River. But  the times weren't going later. So I went back to sleep and booked it around 9am for an 11am return time .
> 
> the next one I booked was The Safari. I don't remember exactly when I booked it but I do remember watching the times until it got where I wanted iit. But then it went down during my return time and I got a multiple experience one. I ended it up using it on safari later.
> 
> I used a genie+ for Dinosaur. The standby was only 20 mins.
> 
> I used a genie+ for lion king.  I arrived about 15 mins before the show.  The standby was kinda long but I don't see any value in genie+ for this.. it doesn't give you better seats.. just in the theater sooner.. idk.
> 
> so after that there really isn't anything else worth a genie+ in AK. I did the animation thing first show this morning. Walked right in. Also I came in later in the morning but looking at the wait times at open today... genie+ helped me most because I came to the park later. The waits for everythjng stayed really low until about 9am this morning and then dropped down again about 4pm.
> 
> you don't need genie+ for AK. Rope drop FOP and Navi and then work your way around the park. Save Everest for the evening. I think you could do a whole day with no $LL or genie+
> 
> This also concludes all parks for me and here are my biggest things:
> 
> the free genie is useless and annoying. The my day page drives me nuts because it puts reccomdationd into my day and I just want to see what I have booked. I did like adding things like shows I wanted to see (kite tails is super fun BTW) to that page. It just felt cluttered. I also do not like that when you book something it puts your time on the my day page but not the tip board. The ride will say you have this booked but will display the next genie+ time not the time you have booked. That's on the my day page. It confused me a couple of times.
> 
> Genie is 100% useful in DHS even if you can "only" get 2-3. Use it in combo with rope drop. I personally think it's better to get quick return times then book SDD for way out into the evening. Folks who book Late ones can't book another until 11- but if you had an earlier return time- say 930- then when you scan in you will be able to book a second right then- not at 11.
> 
> I feel like the only necessary $LL is Rise.
> 
> Remy's virtual que is now Just a call back to get in a long-ish standby line. Priority is going to $LL
> 
> if your party can utilize single rider do so.
> 
> the 7am wake up kinda stinks. Stacking for later morning and evening only works if the return times are getting further out which I only say really happen in DHS and MK.
> 
> final thought: cast members are still learning too. My whole Everest turned multiple expirence confused many of them and I got 4 different answers about how it's used.
> 
> will I used Genie+ again? Yes. And I'll probably continue to add it to our whole ticket because honestly it was handy sometimes. However with the whole family (4 of us) we would be much more selective of those $LL. I would probably only use it for Rise. Maybe SDMT if I didn't get it rope dropped.
> 
> I appreciate everyone on these boards because it helped me so much. I've had an amazing trip. I am at MK in the morning before my flight and my only priority there is coffee, the castle, and a ride on the people mover.



Thank you so much for your detailed reports!  I’m headed down next week and your information has been incredibly helpful.  Safe travels home!


----------



## maryj11

katyringo said:


> 1. No
> 2. Yes


If they all have their tickets linked on their MDE why wouldn’t they be able to buy the ROTR at 7:00 as long as it’s all the same day?


----------



## OhhBother

Deleted, as I found the info I needed. Thanks.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

ZeeWP said:


> Little things like this, and things like the way the Genie gives out itinerary, make me think of Disney as one of those micromanaging bosses. They are trying REALLLLLLLY hard to control the crowds the way THEY want to the minutiae detail.


----------



## mom2cinderella

maryj11 said:


> If they all have their tickets linked on their MDE why wouldn’t they be able to buy the ROTR at 7:00 as long as it’s all the same day?



The kids/spouses are staying offsite. I’d assume if mom & dad tried to buy an IAS at 7, the others would show up as ineligible.


----------



## maryj11

mom2cinderella said:


> The kids/spouses are staying offsite. I’d assume if mom & dad tried to buy an IAS at 7, the others would show up as ineligible.


Oh okay yeah they cannot book theirs til opening. There wouldn’t be any available by then .


----------



## princesswahooey

katyringo said:


> I could have but I'm dead lol. I did ride Everest a couple more times in the dark.


We love going on Everest at night. Right before closing, even during busy weeks, we somehow manage to ride several times with minimal wait. You must be tired. What a crazy week!


----------



## princesswahooey

katyringo said:


> To recap my genie+ and $LL use in animal kingdom:
> 
> I paid and booked for FOP. But I didn't try to rope drop today. I woke up at 7, booked it for noon and then went back to sleep. I got to the park about 930-10.
> 
> I also paid for Everest which was completly unnecessary. 1. Waits dropped significantly after about 4pm and I used single rider line to ride over and over again.
> 
> when I went to book my first Genie+ I wanted to get Navi River. But  the times weren't going later. So I went back to sleep and booked it around 9am for an 11am return time .
> 
> the next one I booked was The Safari. I don't remember exactly when I booked it but I do remember watching the times until it got where I wanted iit. But then it went down during my return time and I got a multiple experience one. I ended it up using it on safari later.
> 
> I used a genie+ for Dinosaur. The standby was only 20 mins.
> 
> I used a genie+ for lion king.  I arrived about 15 mins before the show.  The standby was kinda long but I don't see any value in genie+ for this.. it doesn't give you better seats.. just in the theater sooner.. idk.
> 
> so after that there really isn't anything else worth a genie+ in AK. I did the animation thing first show this morning. Walked right in. Also I came in later in the morning but looking at the wait times at open today... genie+ helped me most because I came to the park later. The waits for everythjng stayed really low until about 9am this morning and then dropped down again about 4pm.
> 
> you don't need genie+ for AK. Rope drop FOP and Navi and then work your way around the park. Save Everest for the evening. I think you could do a whole day with no $LL or genie+
> 
> This also concludes all parks for me and here are my biggest things:
> 
> the free genie is useless and annoying. The my day page drives me nuts because it puts reccomdationd into my day and I just want to see what I have booked. I did like adding things like shows I wanted to see (kite tails is super fun BTW) to that page. It just felt cluttered. I also do not like that when you book something it puts your time on the my day page but not the tip board. The ride will say you have this booked but will display the next genie+ time not the time you have booked. That's on the my day page. It confused me a couple of times.
> 
> Genie is 100% useful in DHS even if you can "only" get 2-3. Use it in combo with rope drop. I personally think it's better to get quick return times then book SDD for way out into the evening. Folks who book Late ones can't book another until 11- but if you had an earlier return time- say 930- then when you scan in you will be able to book a second right then- not at 11.
> 
> I feel like the only necessary $LL is Rise.
> 
> Remy's virtual que is now Just a call back to get in a long-ish standby line. Priority is going to $LL
> 
> if your party can utilize single rider do so.
> 
> the 7am wake up kinda stinks. Stacking for later morning and evening only works if the return times are getting further out which I only say really happen in DHS and MK.
> 
> final thought: cast members are still learning too. My whole Everest turned multiple expirence confused many of them and I got 4 different answers about how it's used.
> 
> will I used Genie+ again? Yes. And I'll probably continue to add it to our whole ticket because honestly it was handy sometimes. However with the whole family (4 of us) we would be much more selective of those $LL. I would probably only use it for Rise. Maybe SDMT if I didn't get it rope dropped.
> 
> I appreciate everyone on these boards because it helped me so much. I've had an amazing trip. I am at MK in the morning before my flight and my only priority there is coffee, the castle, and a ride on the people mover.


Thank you so much for the detailed reviews every day. Helps a ton for the people like myself planning on going around Christmas when it will be busy crowds like your trip.


----------



## nurseberta

scrappinginontario said:


> If your flight is at 7:05, you will still be on the ground at 7:00.  Can you use your data and save purchasing wifi unless you push back from the gate super early?
> 
> Possibly, but I’m planning Epcot for a 1-2pm arrival so I may have to wait out test-track to get the time in the afternoon that I want crowd level 3-5 that week but anything is possible


----------



## Bullseye

Really wish there was a sticky for Genie+ and ILL that was all encompassing like Mesaboy2 used to maintain for FP+. The first eight pages were just how to use the system, tips and tricks, and various other information.


----------



## mdinme

Great post thanks.




katyringo said:


> To recap my genie+ and $LL use in animal kingdom:
> 
> I paid and booked for FOP. But I didn't try to rope drop today. I woke up at 7, booked it for noon and then went back to sleep. I got to the park about 930-10.
> 
> I also paid for Everest which was completly unnecessary. 1. Waits dropped significantly after about 4pm and I used single rider line to ride over and over again.
> 
> when I went to book my first Genie+ I wanted to get Navi River. But  the times weren't going later. So I went back to sleep and booked it around 9am for an 11am return time .
> 
> the next one I booked was The Safari. I don't remember exactly when I booked it but I do remember watching the times until it got where I wanted iit. But then it went down during my return time and I got a multiple experience one. I ended it up using it on safari later.
> 
> I used a genie+ for Dinosaur. The standby was only 20 mins.
> 
> I used a genie+ for lion king.  I arrived about 15 mins before the show.  The standby was kinda long but I don't see any value in genie+ for this.. it doesn't give you better seats.. just in the theater sooner.. idk.
> 
> so after that there really isn't anything else worth a genie+ in AK. I did the animation thing first show this morning. Walked right in. Also I came in later in the morning but looking at the wait times at open today... genie+ helped me most because I came to the park later. The waits for everythjng stayed really low until about 9am this morning and then dropped down again about 4pm.
> 
> you don't need genie+ for AK. Rope drop FOP and Navi and then work your way around the park. Save Everest for the evening. I think you could do a whole day with no $LL or genie+
> 
> This also concludes all parks for me and here are my biggest things:
> 
> the free genie is useless and annoying. The my day page drives me nuts because it puts reccomdationd into my day and I just want to see what I have booked. I did like adding things like shows I wanted to see (kite tails is super fun BTW) to that page. It just felt cluttered. I also do not like that when you book something it puts your time on the my day page but not the tip board. The ride will say you have this booked but will display the next genie+ time not the time you have booked. That's on the my day page. It confused me a couple of times.
> 
> Genie is 100% useful in DHS even if you can "only" get 2-3. Use it in combo with rope drop. I personally think it's better to get quick return times then book SDD for way out into the evening. Folks who book Late ones can't book another until 11- but if you had an earlier return time- say 930- then when you scan in you will be able to book a second right then- not at 11.
> 
> I feel like the only necessary $LL is Rise.
> 
> Remy's virtual que is now Just a call back to get in a long-ish standby line. Priority is going to $LL
> 
> if your party can utilize single rider do so.
> 
> the 7am wake up kinda stinks. Stacking for later morning and evening only works if the return times are getting further out which I only say really happen in DHS and MK.
> 
> final thought: cast members are still learning too. My whole Everest turned multiple expirence confused many of them and I got 4 different answers about how it's used.
> 
> will I used Genie+ again? Yes. And I'll probably continue to add it to our whole ticket because honestly it was handy sometimes. However with the whole family (4 of us) we would be much more selective of those $LL. I would probably only use it for Rise. Maybe SDMT if I didn't get it rope dropped.
> 
> I appreciate everyone on these boards because it helped me so much. I've had an amazing trip. I am at MK in the morning before my flight and my only priority there is coffee, the castle, and a ride on the people mover.


----------



## mickey916

Bullseye said:


> Really wish there was a sticky for Genie+ and ILL that was all encompassing like Mesaboy2 used to maintain for FP+. The first eight pages were just how to use the system, tips and tricks, and various other information.
> View attachment 627415


One has been started and pinned but it's still labeled a "work in progress".


----------



## evilqueenmindy

Has anyone purchased the paid lightning lane on the morning of check-in?  Will it let you book at 7am?


----------



## Lsdolphin

Ok...another stupid question: how do you “refresh” genie+?


----------



## GBRforWDW

Lsdolphin said:


> Ok...another stupid question: how do you “refresh” genie+?


The tip board can be refreshed a couple different ways. 

You can pull down when at the top of the screen and release to refresh.

Some phones refresh just by clicking the Tip Board tab at the top.

If you're looking at a specific ride but don't have it pinned, you can click the ride name, then the LL icon on the ride details page will take you right back to your spot on the tip board while simultaneously refreshing.


----------



## LibrarianBecky

Hello everyone!

I"m looking for opinions on whether it will be 'worth it' to purchase Genie+ for our upcoming April 2022 trip.  Here's some information to set the scene: We're going April 8-15, so spring break.  We have a party of 3--myself, my husband, and our 15 year old son.  We've been to Disney about a half dozen times, we are rope droppers, and we were good at using FP+(so my family is spoiled and never had to wait very long for their favorites).  We are staying offsite.

We haven't purchased tickets yet, but would like to do so soon, so that we can book park reservations.  Part of me thinks that I'd like to just add Genie+ at the beginning and be done with it, but even just for three people, it is nearly $300 for six park days.  Not our biggest Disney expense, but also enough to make me consider if it is worth adding for every day of our trip.  I know we will want it for Magic Kingdom and probably Hollywood Studios, but I'm just not sure the value is there for us for AK and Epcot.  I'm considering just adding it for individual days.  If I do that, I would have to purchase it through MDE on the day of--is that correct?  Since I can't book my first LL until park opening, since we are offsite, I don't think that necessarily sets me back anything.  I am up early because of rope drop.  I purchase Genie+ on the day we want it, rope drop our park, and then book our first LL pass as soon as the park opens.  Does that seem like a reasonable plan?  Would love to get some input from my fellow Disney fan!  Thank you!


----------



## GBRforWDW

LibrarianBecky said:


> If I do that, I would have to purchase it through MDE on the day of--is that correct?


This is correct.  



LibrarianBecky said:


> Since I can't book my first LL until park opening, since we are offsite,


Disney won't sell out of Genie+ itself, so doesn't hurt to wait until day of and only buy if you want to. Sometimes on the busiest weeks, it's good to have every day, but not necessary.

For Genie+ LL's you select your first at 7am regardless of where you're staying.  It's the rides with the individual cost, the ILL$ attractions that can't be booked until park opening for offsite guests.

Also, only onsite guests are able to enter the park before official Opening now.


----------



## Sandy Bickhart

Party of 10 +toddler going in March.  On the fence about purchasing the Genie+ when I order my tickets from Sam's Club.  Should I just wait to purchase when we are there?  We are there a full 6 days.  I'm thinking the only place I would use Genie+ is at HS and MK.  We are staying off site, and from what I've read, ILL$ may not even be available by 9am.  Our groups must do is RotR, so just do in the evening when it's not so crowded???


----------



## katyringo

maryj11 said:


> If they all have their tickets linked on their MDE why wouldn’t they be able to buy the ROTR at 7:00 as long as it’s all the same day?


 They will come up and ineligible due to not being at a Disney resort.


----------



## princesswahooey

LibrarianBecky said:


> Hello everyone!
> 
> I"m looking for opinions on whether it will be 'worth it' to purchase Genie+ for our upcoming April 2022 trip.  Here's some information to set the scene: We're going April 8-15, so spring break.  We have a party of 3--myself, my husband, and our 15 year old son.  We've been to Disney about a half dozen times, we are rope droppers, and we were good at using FP+(so my family is spoiled and never had to wait very long for their favorites).  We are staying offsite.
> 
> We haven't purchased tickets yet, but would like to do so soon, so that we can book park reservations.  Part of me thinks that I'd like to just add Genie+ at the beginning and be done with it, but even just for three people, it is nearly $300 for six park days.  Not our biggest Disney expense, but also enough to make me consider if it is worth adding for every day of our trip.  I know we will want it for Magic Kingdom and probably Hollywood Studios, but I'm just not sure the value is there for us for AK and Epcot.  I'm considering just adding it for individual days.  If I do that, I would have to purchase it through MDE on the day of--is that correct?  Since I can't book my first LL until park opening, since we are offsite, I don't think that necessarily sets me back anything.  I am up early because of rope drop.  I purchase Genie+ on the day we want it, rope drop our park, and then book our first LL pass as soon as the park opens.  Does that seem like a reasonable plan?  Would love to get some input from my fellow Disney fan!  Thank you!


Your family sounds like ours. One thing, though. Now that every park opens early for resort guests, rope dropping will not give you quite the advantage it once did if you are off site. You can forget headliners, for sure. At least with Genie+ you can at least score 1 coveted ride.

Also, on a busy week if it were me, I might just book the G+ for the whole trip because I have heard people's IT frustrations sometimes buying in the AM and then you risk not being ready for 7am selection process.

I hate to say it, but $300 is like a sit down meal for a family if 3.  If you can afford it, I would save yourself the stress.


----------



## g-dad66

Sandy Bickhart said:


> Party of 10 +toddler going in March.  On the fence about purchasing the Genie+ when I order my tickets from Sam's Club.  Should I just wait to purchase when we are there?  We are there a full 6 days.  I'm thinking the only place I would use Genie+ is at HS and MK.  We are staying off site, and from what I've read, ILL$ may not even be available by 9am.  Our groups must do is RotR, so just do in the evening when it's not so crowded???



We did not buy them in advance for our last trip, because we knew we wouldn't want Genie+ for every day.

Only took a couple of extra minutes to purchase Genie+ before booking first LL at 7am.


----------



## goofynut41

Want your opinion please! We are early park people and NOT late People... WE usually only stay in the park half day and go back to resort to rest or pool and maybe hop to another park for early evening and occasion fireworks.. How do I use Genie+ an LL? do I need them? We are most interested in Star wars because we have not done them... Thank You


----------



## BrotherCraig

goofynut41 said:


> Want your opinion please! We are early park people and NOT late People... WE usually only stay in the park half day and go back to resort to rest or pool and maybe hop to another park for early evening and occasion fireworks.. How do I use Genie+ an LL? do I need them? We are most interested in Star wars because we have not done them... Thank You




If you want to do the star wars rides, I highly recommend Genie+.  Is it needed?  No.  You can rope drop ROTR and get on MFSR right after.  Genie+ makes it easier but you might get a later return time for ROTR.  Have to go with your gut feeling.  Genie+ will get you on a lot more rides that is for sure early in the day.


----------



## HeiHei2018

LibrarianBecky said:


> Hello everyone!
> 
> I"m looking for opinions on whether it will be 'worth it' to purchase Genie+ for our upcoming April 2022 trip.  Here's some information to set the scene: We're going April 8-15, so spring break.  We have a party of 3--myself, my husband, and our 15 year old son.  We've been to Disney about a half dozen times, we are rope droppers, and we were good at using FP+(so my family is spoiled and never had to wait very long for their favorites).  We are staying offsite.
> 
> Part of me thinks that I'd like to just add Genie+ at the beginning and be done with it, but even just for three people, it is nearly $300 for six park days.  Not our biggest Disney expense, but also enough to make me consider if it is worth adding for every day of our trip.  I know we will want it for Magic Kingdom and probably Hollywood Studios, but I'm just not sure the value is there for us for AK and Epcot.  I'm considering just adding it for individual days.



It is possible that Disney will raise the price of Genie+ at some point, so buying for all days now might not be that much more expensive than buying for individual days if the price jumps to $25 per day. (Price increase is pure conjecture at this point, but it seems likely given the popularity and lack of ride availability during Thanks.)


----------



## katyringo

evilqueenmindy said:


> Has anyone purchased the paid lightning lane on the morning of check-in?  Will it let you book at 7am?


Yes you can do this no problem.


----------



## JoJoGirl

Question for the Genie Experts:

In the “My Day“ tab, how soon can you “Get Started” and make your top attraction picks to pin to the top of your tip board for your trip days?

I’m five days out from my trip, with linked park passes, park reservations, and resort stay.  All are showing in “My Day” for each day of my trip.

When I click on “Get Started,” then designate a day, say the 8th, Genie tells me I am not eligible because I don’t have a linked park reservation.  But my park reservation is showing right there in Genie!    FWIW, I was able to go in and do this several weeks ago.  I made top pick attraction selections for December 6 and 7.  Dec. 6 still works for me, and always has, but now I am locked out of the 7th and all the days after that - getting the error message ”no linked park reservation.”

Chat was zero help.  They just recommended updating everything and trying again, which of course did not work.  Hoping someone here knows before I spend hours trying to call IT.

Thanks in advance!


----------



## mickey916

Try scrolling down the page to make sure the correct park is selected...I found it was defaulting to the park on the previous day. 
ETA: on the Select a Date page under the calendar where it says Select a Park


----------



## JoJoGirl

mickey916 said:


> Try scrolling down the page to make sure the correct park is selected...I found it was defaulting to the park on the previous day.
> ETA: on the Select a Date page under the calendar where it says Select a Park



Thank You!!!  In two minutes you solved what chat couldn’t in an hour.

I didn’t even know that part of the screen was there - it wasn’t showing on my phone.  And why would it default to the previous day, makes no sense.    Thanks again!


----------



## mrd7896

some logistics that i was trying to read back a few pages and couldn't find an answer right away:
-How many people can you purchase Genie+ for? Anyone that has a reservation and is linked in your account?
---We have a group of 11, they are all linked to my account and i can see everyones plans. Could i add on and purchase it for 11 people at once?

-If you are offsite, can you still purchase it at midnight?

-At midnight, do you JUST purchase it, or do you also make your first selection for the morning? Or is that done at 7 AM?
--Going off of the first question, if i paid for 11 people can i make a selection for all of us? Or is there like a max amount of people that can be made at once similar to dining reservations?

-The two hour aspect, does that start at park open ? That part really confuses me. If our first selection is for noon, when can i make a second selection? The park opens at 9.

-I haven't been on my app early enough, is the first possible selection time right around park open so like 9:05? 9:10? Similar to how FP was?

-Lastly, does anyone have general feedback/experience/recommendations for Genie+ on Hollywood Studios and their findings/strategies?

It's tough trying to convince my whole family to be onboard. Half of our group will be in the park at park open, we are thinking of waiting in queue for the two IAS$, and then we are hoping to have a Genie+ selection lined up for say 11:30 when the rest of our group plans on making their arrival.  But we don't know if having your first selection for 11:30 or later if that is a waste...

I apologize if this is something that has already been addressed, i feel like all i am reading is just confusing me more!


----------



## mickey916

JoJoGirl said:


> Thank You!!!  In two minutes you solved what chat couldn’t in an hour.
> 
> I didn’t even know that part of the screen was there - it wasn’t showing on my phone.  And why would it default to the previous day, makes no sense.    Thanks again!


Maybe I should work for chat...lol! Happy to help.


----------



## twodogs

HeiHei2018 said:


> It is possible that Disney will raise the price of Genie+ at some point, so buying for all days now might not be that much more expensive than buying for individual days if the price jumps to $25 per day. (Price increase is pure conjecture at this point, but it seems likely given the popularity and lack of ride availability during Thanks.)


They did this with MP at DLR, raising the price over time without warning.  If they continue to have this much demand for G+, you can bet they will be increasing the price.  If you have already added it when you buy your tickets, they will honor it.


----------



## leeniewdw

It just dawned on me that I've been so hyper focused on DHS 7am strategy, that I hadn't paid attention to AK and EP ILL$ availability.   We're going to do a AK morning and EP evening and want to grab FOP for mid-morning and Remy for evening, is there any concern about order in which to do it?  I'm presuming AK/FOP first but that's just a guess.   We head down in 2 days.

BTW, TP just posted a great blog post with color coded graphs on how long LLs seems to be available based on crowd size.


----------



## princesswahooey

twodogs said:


> They did this with MP at DLR, raising the price over time without warning.  If they continue to have this much demand for G+, you can bet they will be increasing the price.  If you have already added it when you buy your tickets, they will honor it.


After what we saw at Thanksgiving and Disney's lack of communication on changing the way Genie+ works I see this as a totally real possibility. Are we taking bets now if they are going to raise the price of Genie+ for Christmas crowds?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

princesswahooey said:


> After what we saw at Thanksgiving and Disney's lack of communication on changing the way Genie+ works I see this as a totally real possibility. Are we taking bets now if they are going to raise the price of Genie+ for Christmas crowds?


Bob Chapek doesn't leave money on the table so I think this is a sure bet.


----------



## GBRforWDW

princesswahooey said:


> Are we taking bets now if they are going to raise the price of Genie+ for Christmas crowds?


Well I already bought for my Christmas trip, so not raising my price.


----------



## princesswahooey

GBRforWDW said:


> Well I already bought for my Christmas trip, so not raising my price.


Same. We do park hoppers and stay on site. We generally rope drop, mid-day break at resort & hop to a different park for evening. So we can use G+ effectively even on Epcot or AK days to stack for 2nd park. I bought for the whole trip already, so I guess we're good if they jack the price.


----------



## LarryBoy

Random question that may have been asked before, should I make sure to turn on notifications from DME app while in the parks so I can get notifications from Genie? Are the notifications important or just annoying?


----------



## BrotherCraig

LarryBoy said:


> Random question that may have been asked before, should I make sure to turn on notifications from DME app while in the parks so I can get notifications from Genie? Are the notifications important or just annoying?




That is a personal decision obviously.  I don't like notifications so mine are off.  They are annoying to me.


----------



## jade1

I guess I was hoping this would mean you could "buy on the fly" $ILL if a line was really long.

Not you have 1 minute at 6AM CT.


----------



## mom2cinderella

LarryBoy said:


> Are the notifications important or just annoying?



I didn’t even think about notifications. I wouldn’t mind reminders.


----------



## g-dad66

mrd7896 said:


> some logistics that i was trying to read back a few pages and couldn't find an answer right away:
> -How many people can you purchase Genie+ for? Anyone that has a reservation and is linked in your account?  *YES*
> 
> ---We have a group of 11, they are all linked to my account and i can see everyones plans. Could i add on and purchase it for 11 people at once?  *YES*
> 
> -If you are offsite, can you still purchase it at midnight? *YES*
> 
> -At midnight, do you JUST purchase it, or do you also make your first selection for the morning? Or is that done at 7 AM? *CAN MAKE FIRST SELECTION AT 7AM.  NO NEED TO BUY GENIE+ AT MIDNIGHT. CAN DO IT AT 6:50 AM*
> 
> --Going off of the first question, if i paid for 11 people can i make a selection for all of us? Or is there like a max amount of people that can be made at once similar to dining reservations?  *CAN MAKE ALL*
> 
> -The two hour aspect, does that start at park open ? * YES*
> 
> That part really confuses me. If our first selection is for noon, when can i make a second selection? The park opens at 9.  *YOU CAN MAKE SECOND AT 11AM*
> 
> -I haven't been on my app early enough, is the first possible selection time right around park open so like 9:05? 9:10? Similar to how FP was?  *YES*
> 
> -Lastly, does anyone have general feedback/experience/recommendations for Genie+ on Hollywood Studios and their findings/strategies?  *WE MADE LATE AFTERNOON/EVENING SELECTIONS AT 7AM, 11AM, 1PM, 3PM BUT WE WEREN'T THERE DURING A BUSY TIME*
> 
> It's tough trying to convince my whole family to be onboard. Half of our group will be in the park at park open, we are thinking of waiting in queue for the two IAS$, and then we are hoping to have a Genie+ selection lined up for say 11:30 when the rest of our group plans on making their arrival.  But we don't know if having your first selection for 11:30 or later if that is a waste...
> 
> I apologize if this is something that has already been addressed, i feel like all i am reading is just confusing me more!


----------



## CarolynFH

LarryBoy said:


> Random question that may have been asked before, should I make sure to turn on notifications from DME app while in the parks so I can get notifications from Genie? Are the notifications important or just annoying?


I’m going to turn them on. If they turn out to be more annoying than helpful, I’ll turn them off. Actually, notifications from MDE have always been on for me, so I would know when we got our room-ready text, our RotR BG was ready, etc. I haven’t found them to be excessive, so hopefully Genie and Genie+ won’t be either.


----------



## TropicalDIS

LarryBoy said:


> Random question that may have been asked before, should I make sure to turn on notifications from DME app while in the parks so I can get notifications from Genie? Are the notifications important or just annoying?



If you having dining reservations, or are using the mobile order system, then you want those notifications on.


----------



## Scalemaster34

HeiHei2018 said:


> It is possible that Disney will raise the price of Genie+ at some point, so buying for all days now might not be that much more expensive than buying for individual days if the price jumps to $25 per day. (Price increase is pure conjecture at this point, but it seems likely given the popularity and lack of ride availability during Thanks.)



Yeah can see a point where we will be right back where we were when Magic Kingdom opened.  But rather than few bucks to get into the park, you'll shell out $100+, and rather than a ticket book you'll have a APP where you pay for each ride based on a "scale" of some sort (say A,B,C,D & E).  Hopefully GENIE+ will be optional for a few years more..... but a decade from now?

Supply & Demand....


----------



## MikeandReneePlus5

Under the old paper FP system a paper FP would be honored at any time after the window opened.  So you could pull one for 10-11am but it would be honored at 4pm.

Is that the case with G+


----------



## elgerber

MikeandReneePlus5 said:


> Under the old paper FP system a paper FP would be honored at any time after the window opened.  So you could pull one for 10-11am but it would be honored at 4pm.
> 
> Is that the case with G+


No it is not.  It was also not the case with FP for several years. They closed that loophole eventually.


----------



## mrd7896

wow thank you!!!!


----------



## GatorChris

This has probably been asked. When I want to get Genie+, do I have to wait until the day of to get it? When I use the app, it says, "Get Disney Genie+ for Today." Then there's a window that doesn't look like I can purchase it. 

Does this mean I have to decide each day if I should get Genie+? Buy it pre-7am and then start getting those FP/LLs, right? 

And for my money, the Disneyland MaxPass would've been way better. Buy it all before hand. Get a FP only once you're in the park. Now it's a free-for-all at 7am. Such a pain.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Bullseye said:


> Really wish there was a sticky for Genie+ and ILL that was all encompassing like Mesaboy2 used to maintain for FP+. The first eight pages were just how to use the system, tips and tricks, and various other information.
> View attachment 627415





mickey916 said:


> One has been started and pinned but it's still labeled a "work in progress".


I tried to create one but the information seems to change often and, so much of it is work-arounds that honestly, it is overwhelming to create.  I could continue the one I started and it would basically be what Disney says on it's website but every day people are saying their experience is different.

I knew FP+ inside out but it ran well and consistently.  Genie + does not seem to be that way, at least not yet.  The first week alone we had over 2,000 new posts on the 'Genie Announcement' thread and this one is now over 2,000 posts also.

*For those who have used Genie +*, if I created a basic 'to do' guide based on the information Disney has published, would it be beneficial? Or, is it truly as complicated and challenging to use as it appears to be?   Is there an easy A-B-C process?

I haven't been in the parks since it was introduced so weeding through 4,000+ posts (just in 2 threads alone let alone the hundred+ Genie sub-threads) is completely overwhelming!!!

Trust me, I WANT to create an 'Everything Genie +' thread but am not sure it's possible to create based on the myriad of feedback published by those who have used the system.


----------



## emilymad

goofynut41 said:


> Want your opinion please! We are early park people and NOT late People... WE usually only stay in the park half day and go back to resort to rest or pool and maybe hop to another park for early evening and occasion fireworks.. How do I use Genie+ an LL? do I need them? We are most interested in Star wars because we have not done them... Thank You



This is us.  We are at Disney now and so far we have chosen to not buy G+.  It was just too stressful to figure out the return times when we only do mornings/evenings and not the middle of the day.  We have taken advantage of the onsite early hours which has worked really well.

We bought ILL for ROTR and Remy.  It was completely worth it for ROTR.  Remy we bought since it is a new ride and we wanted a specific time.  It saved us about 30 minutes in line.  I wouldn't buy this one again.

Crowd levels are in the 3-5 range so our opinions would maybe be different if it was more crowded.  So far, we haven't waited more than 30 minutes in any line but we have gotten there early and had a plan.  The Touring Plans Lines app has been great for us.  We have been using that and almost never the Disney app.

We may buy G+ for the MK tomorrow more to try it out while we hear than anything else.

I will say that the Epcot late opening has majorly messed with our usual mornings/evenings plan.  My fault for not planning only evenings there so just something to keep in mind.


----------



## katyringo

Well I'm at the airport.. boooo.  But one more report as I did do MK this morning.

I'm a sucker and bought SDMT because .. well.... I didn't rope drop and I probably won't be back to DisneyWorld for a long while.

I booked thunder mountain for 9:20.

I arrived at 8am. Got Starbucks. Took some pictures. Watched the castle show. Got some food. Just real chill.

tapped into thunder and booked Mansion for like 1030..
Standby pirates 20 mins
Time for for mansion- booked buzz
Rode people mover
Rode buzz. Didn't book anything after that. 
rode mine train with $LL

then I just enjoyed MK- calvacades, dapper dans, some shopping, Winnie the Pooh characters, Columbia harbor house. Got a caramel apple to go. And then goodbye Disney. So Genie+ wise I used 3 LL's aby 11 and could have done more.

MK felt packed. It's time to start thinking about the parks and crowds in pre Covid ways. 

this is also just a recommendation for mobile ordering and mobile checkout in the stores. If I'm gonna be on my phone anyway.. I used it for everything this trip and it deff saved me time.


----------



## g-dad66

scrappinginontario said:


> I tried to create one but the information seems to change often and, so much of it is work-arounds that honestly, it is overwhelming to create.  I could continue the one I started and it would basically be what Disney says on it's website but every day people are saying their experience is different.
> 
> I knew FP+ inside out but it ran well and consistently.  Genie + does not seem to be that way, at least not yet.  The first week alone we had over 2,000 new posts on the 'Genie Announcement' thread and this one is now over 2,000 posts also.
> 
> *For those who have used Genie +*, if I created a basic 'to do' guide based on the information Disney has published, would it be beneficial? Or, is it truly as complicated and challenging to use as it appears to be?   Is there an easy A-B-C process or, is it really as complicated as it appears to be?
> 
> I haven't been in the parks since it was introduced so weeding through 4,000+ posts (just in 2 threads alone let alone the hundred+ Genie sub-threads) is completely overwhelming!!!



I suspect a sticky with the basics would answer a lot of questions.  Now that some loopholes have been closed, the process seems to be much clearer than it was at first.

Here are some things that might be included:

1 - Genie+ has a daily fee, but does not give Lightning Lane access to all attractions. Lightning Lane is simply the new name for the Fast Pass Lane.
2 - ILL$ is the name for the extra pay attractions (currently 2 of them in each park)
3 - Genie+ can be purchased in advance for all days of a resort stay. For individual days it must be purchased day-of (can be purchased as early as midnight)
4 - Genie+ allows selection of first Lightning Lane attraction at 7am for everyone
5 - ILL$ allows purchase of 2 extra pay attraction Lighting Lane access at 7am for WDW resort guests only; non-resort guests cannot purchase until park opens
6 - ILL$ allows you to pick the desired time for the attaction; Genie+ only allows you to pick the next available time
7 - When using Genie+ to see next available time, you can refresh to hope for an earlier or later time; occasionally earlier times will pop up.
8 - When you make a choice, the time MAY CHANGE (usually to a later time) by the time you hit the Confirm screen, so be attentive!
9 - You cannot modify a time once who have confirmed; the only way to pick a different time is to cancel what you have and then rebook
10 - You can have LL access only once per attraction
11 - Genie+ will tell you when you are next eligible for a LL.  You are eligible EITHER (a) 2 hours after park opens, or (b) when you double-tap into the LL you most recently booked (if sooner than 2 hours)
12 - Speed is important for a few 7am bookings; pinning the desired attraction to the top of the attraction list is helpful (explanation needed for how to pin it there)
13 - Play around with the Tip Board before your trip to get an idea of how it works

Information needed for park-hopping to 2nd park, but we never parkhop, so I haven't really been following those procedures.

Questions about who all can be booked probably need to be addressed (everyone linked in the Friends list etc.?, everyone must have park reservation).  You can select different attractions for different people (just like for FP+)

I'm sure there are other basics that I'm not thinking of off the top of my head, but I hope these suggestions are of some help. Also, I'm sure I've said some things that need correction or further explanation.


----------



## Ensusieasm

GatorChris said:


> This has probably been asked. When I want to get Genie+, do I have to wait until the day of to get it? When I use the app, it says, "Get Disney Genie+ for Today." Then there's a window that doesn't look like I can purchase it.
> 
> Does this mean I have to decide each day if I should get Genie+? Buy it pre-7am and then start getting those FP/LLs, right?
> 
> And for my money, the Disneyland MaxPass would've been way better. Buy it all before hand. Get a FP only once you're in the park. Now it's a free-for-all at 7am. Such a pain.


Yes, you decide to buy Genie+ each day beginning at midnight. 
Or you could add it to all the days of your ticket beforehand.


----------



## scrappinginontario

g-dad66 said:


> I suspect a sticky with the basics would answer a lot of questions.  Now that some loopholes have been closed, the process seems to be much clearer than it was at first.
> 
> Here are some things that might be included:
> 
> 1 - Genie+ has a daily fee, but does not give Lightning Lane access to all attractions. Lightning Lane is simply the new name for the Fast Pass Lane.
> 2 - ILL$ is the name for the extra pay attractions (currently 2 of them in each park)
> 3 - Genie+ can be purchased in advance for all days of a resort stay. For individual days it must be purchased day-of (can be purchased as early as midnight)
> 4 - Genie+ allows selection of first Lightning Lane attraction at 7am for everyone
> 5 - ILL$ allows purchase of 2 extra pay attraction Lighting Lane access at 7am for WDW resort guests only; non-resort guests cannot purchase until park opens
> 6 - ILL$ allows you to pick the desired time for the attaction; Genie+ only allows you to pick the next available time
> 7 - When using Genie+ to see next available time, you can refresh to hope for an earlier or later time; occasionally earlier times will pop up.
> 8 - When you make a choice, the time MAY CHANGE (usually to a later time) by the time you hit the Confirm screen, so be attentive!
> 9 - You cannot modify a time once who have confirmed; the only way to pick a different time is to cancel what you have and then rebook
> 10 - You can have LL access only once per attraction
> 11 - Genie+ will tell you when you are next eligible for a LL.  You are eligible EITHER (a) 2 hours after park opens, or (b) when you double-tap into the LL you most recently booked (if sooner than 2 hours)
> 12 - Speed is important for a few 7am bookings; pinning the desired attraction to the top of the attraction list is helpful (explanation needed for how to pin it there)
> 13 - Play around with the Tip Board before your trip to get an idea of how it works
> 
> Information needed for park-hopping to 2nd park, but we never parkhop, so I haven't really been following those procedures.
> 
> Questions about who all can be booked probably need to be addressed (everyone linked in the Friends list etc.?, everyone must have park reservation).  You can select different attractions for different people (just like for FP+)
> 
> I'm sure there are other basics that I'm not thinking of off the top of my head, but I hope these suggestions are of some help. Also, I'm sure I've said some things that need correction or further explanation.


THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!  This is a huge help to get me started!!  I will use the information you've provided above and try to enhance (and unlock) the 'Everything Genie +' thread so that hopefully some of the basic questions that get asked often can be answered.

Greatly appreciate your help with this @g-dad66!


----------



## CarolynFH

scrappinginontario said:


> THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!  This is a huge help to get me started!!  I will use the information you've provided above and try to enhance (and unlock) the 'Everything Genie +' thread so that hopefully some of the basic questions that get asked often can be answered.
> 
> Greatly appreciate your help with this @g-dad66!


I agree with @g-dad66.  The difficulty I've found with the existing threads, which I've watched since the beginning (but admittedly have skipped pages at times), is that there's no post at or near the start of the thread that's updated when something changes OR that I can point someone to when they ask a question that's been answered before.  So I agree that something with the basic steps as well as answers to the questions that come up over and over (can I book for everyone in my F&F list at one time, can I buy G+ and book LL/ILL$ before I arrive at WDW) would be great.  Also what the issues are with buying G+ for people with different types of tickets - do you have to buy G+ for all those with MYW tickets in one transaction, then buy G+ for the ones who have APs in a separate transaction? - I honestly don't know what the answer is for that one, despite pretty much keeping up with these threads so far, but I know it was a problem at some point!


----------



## scrappinginontario

CarolynFH said:


> I agree with @g-dad66.  The difficulty I've found with the existing threads, which I've watched since the beginning (but admittedly have skipped pages at times), is that there's no post at or near the start of the thread that's updated when something changes OR that I can point someone to when they ask a question that's been answered before.  So I agree that something with the basic steps as well as answers to the questions that come up over and over *(can I book for everyone in my F&F list at one time, can I buy G+ and book LL/ILL$ before I arrive at WDW) would be great.  Also what the issues are with buying G+ for people with different types of tickets *- do you have to buy G+ for all those with MYW tickets in one transaction, then buy G+ for the ones who have APs in a separate transaction? - I honestly don't know what the answer is for that one, despite pretty much keeping up with these threads so far, but I know it was a problem at some point!


Do you have answers to those?  I'm happy to include them but need to know what the answers are to include them in the post.

Thanks!


----------



## g-dad66

scrappinginontario said:


> Do you have answers to those?  I'm happy to include them but need to know what the answers are to include them in the post.
> 
> Thanks!



We don't have APs.  Hopefully some AP-holders might be able to suggest some things that AP-holders need to know.


----------



## CarolynFH

scrappinginontario said:


> Do you have answers to those?  I'm happy to include them but need to know what the answers are to include them in the post.
> 
> Thanks!


That's a good question.  

I believe a guest can book for everyone in their F&F list, as long as everyone has the requisite tickets and park pass reservations for the booking they're trying to make - IOW I don't think there's a limit on the number of people you can book for at the same time.  

I know that it's not necessary to be at WDW to buy G+ or to book G+LL or buy ILL$.  

I do not know the answer about buying G+ when F&F members have a mix of ticket types - so I hope that someone will come along and answer that question, as well as confirm the answers I've given you!

Good luck!


----------



## katyringo

Ohhhh another thing..

I am not sure if this happened with FP+ because I never used it.. but there was continuously a back up at the LL entrances to rides where folks scan.  Like they had to create rope lines there due to the back ups, but once you got to the scan part it was wide open. I observed this being caused by 1. Folks not using both sides to scan. 2. Big groups giving all their magic bands or tickets to one person and then standing there waiting. 3. Errors or guest mistake at the scan and the clogging and blocking the line while they problem solved with the cast member and 4. More folks not using magic bands but tickets to scan.  I would get to a ride and wonder why the lightning lane line was so long just to realize it was only a back up at the first scanner.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

MikeandReneePlus5 said:


> Under the old paper FP system a paper FP would be honored at any time after the window opened.  So you could pull one for 10-11am but it would be honored at 4pm.
> 
> Is that the case with G+


No.  There's a grace period but we don't have confirmation that it's any longer then 15 minutes or so.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

katyringo said:


> Ohhhh another thing..
> 
> I am not sure if this happened with FP+ because I never used it.. but there was continuously a back up at the LL entrances to rides where folks scan.  Like they had to create rope lines there due to the back ups, but once you got to the scan part it was wide open. I observed this being caused by 1. Folks not using both sides to scan. 2. Big groups giving all their magic bands or tickets to one person and then standing there waiting. 3. Errors or guest mistake at the scan and the clogging and blocking the line while they problem solved with the cast member and 4. More folks not using magic bands but tickets to scan.  I would get to a ride and wonder why the lightning lane line was so long just to realize it was only a back up at the first scanner.


Also people who don't have valid LL's arguing with cast members, etc.


----------



## katyringo

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> Also people who don't have valid LL's arguing with cast members, etc.


Yes this too.. and folks not understanding how it worked, the cast member explaining, all while the line is being blocked by said person and cast member.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

katyringo said:


> Yes this too.. and folks not understanding how it worked, the cast member explaining, all while the line is being blocked by said person and cast member.


What is the etiquette here?  Like if the cast member is having a conversation with someone like this, and there is another tap station open, do you just walk up to it and tap in and walk by?  That was a constant thing during fastpass and I never knew what to do.


----------



## elgerber

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> What is the etiquette here?  Like if the cast member is having a conversation with someone like this, and there is another tap station open, do you just walk up to it and tap in and walk by?  That was a constant thing during fastpass and I never knew what to do.


Yes we do. If they are conversing or arguing we just tap in and go.


----------



## scrappinginontario

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> What is the etiquette here?  Like if the cast member is having a conversation with someone like this, and there is another tap station open, do you just walk up to it and tap in and walk by?  That was a constant thing during fastpass and I never knew what to do.


I would say if there is another CM there and you can easily walk by the person, it is okay to do so.  If the only CM is dealing with another guest, personally I would wait until they were done.

Our experience is that rarely is there only one person working the line so most time (where space allows) we pass by and tap.


----------



## katyringo

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> What is the etiquette here?  Like if the cast member is having a conversation with someone like this, and there is another tap station open, do you just walk up to it and tap in and walk by?  That was a constant thing during fastpass and I never knew what to do.


If there was another scanner open I just went for it and scooted by.


----------



## CBMom01

It always seemed like there were 2CMs at the busy FP+ rides, and one kept the FP entrance moving


----------



## Disneymom1102

If not arriving to the park until around noon, does it make sense to log in at 7 and book one, then two hours after park opens, book another, and so on so we would have 2 or 3 stacked? Most advice I see says you stack by starting with a ride time later in the evening. I’d like to stack in afternoon if we can.


----------



## WITN-E

Thanks in advance for any response to this probably silly question but I can't seem to find the answer anywhere-

If someone purchases an ILL$ for a ride at a park they plan to hop to (for example spending the day at MK but want to try to buy Remy's at Epcot for the afternoon) assuming you can even do this- will it block you from booking regular Genie+ LLs at your first park because you won't be able to "tap in" to the ride you booked for later in the day?


----------



## CarolynFH

WITN-E said:


> Thanks in advance for any response to this probably silly question but I can't seem to find the answer anywhere-
> 
> If someone purchases an ILL$ for a ride at a park they plan to hop to (for example spending the day at MK but want to try to buy Remy's at Epcot for the afternoon) assuming you can even do this- will it block you from booking regular Genie+ LLs at your first park because you won't be able to "tap in" to the ride you booked for later in the day?


ILL$ are completely separate from Genie+ LLs, so having an ILL$ won’t prevent you from booking a Genie+ LL for any time in the day.


----------



## Lsdolphin

I bought Genie + the other day with no problem but im trying to purchase Genie+ right now for today and I see no option to purchase and it says I’m not eligible...I have an AP and am staying at Disney resort right now.  I also have park reservation.

ok I was just able to purchase genie+ for today but now it says I’m not eligible to continue...
hoping maybe that’s because its too early to make selection...


----------



## wiggy500

Disneymom1102 said:


> If not arriving to the park until around noon, does it make sense to log in at 7 and book one, then two hours after park opens, book another, and so on so we would have 2 or 3 stacked? Most advice I see says you stack by starting with a ride time later in the evening. I’d like to stack in afternoon if we can.



Yes, this would work great as long as the lightning lane time slots are for the times you are looking for.  You might have to refresh or check back later to pull a more ideal time slot.


----------



## g-dad66

Lsdolphin said:


> I bought Genie + the other day with no problem but im trying to purchase Genie+ right now for today and I see no option to purchase and it says I’m not eligible...I have an AP and am staying at Disney resort right now.  I also have park reservation.
> 
> ok I was just able to purchase genie+ for today but now it says I’m not eligible to continue...
> hoping maybe that’s because its too early to make selection...



Right. You can purchase Genie+ after midnight, but you can't make your first Lightening Lane selection until 7am.  So get some sleep.


----------



## Selket

I’m here now and decided to buy G+ for Epcot today for myself and one adult son (others have their own plans).  I wanted to try it so I see how it works before possibly getting it tomorrow for DHS.   I got a REMY boarding group at 7am and got group 72 or something.  Sounds like …. That’s kinda far after opening or no?  I didn’t know what LL to get so I got Soarin.     I’m probably wasting my money here since I didn’t need G+ to get a Remy boarding group but oh well lol.

I plan to be there before 10:30am when the park opens to hotel guests and maybe head to Frozen? Good idea?

I booked all this at 7am.  Can I book another LL at 9am or do I have to wait until 11am when the park opens?


----------



## goofynut41

emilymad said:


> This is us.  We are at Disney now and so far we have chosen to not buy G+.  It was just too stressful to figure out the return times when we only do mornings/evenings and not the middle of the day.  We have taken advantage of the onsite early hours which has worked really well.
> 
> We bought ILL for ROTR and Remy.  It was completely worth it for ROTR.  Remy we bought since it is a new ride and we wanted a specific time.  It saved us about 30 minutes in line.  I wouldn't buy this one again.
> 
> Crowd levels are in the 3-5 range so our opinions would maybe be different if it was more crowded.  So far, we haven't waited more than 30 minutes in any line but we have gotten there early and had a plan.  The Touring Plans Lines app has been great for us.  We have been using that and almost never the Disney app.
> 
> We may buy G+ for the MK tomorrow more to try it out while we hear than anything else.
> 
> I will say that the Epcot late opening has majorly messed with our usual mornings/evenings plan.  My fault for not planning only evenings there so just something to keep in mind.


Thank You for your input ...  Can you get LL without Genie+?


----------



## Madame

Thanks so much to all of you who have been giving first-hand accounts - so very useful to all of us planning!

Can anyone give me any suggestions on what to do for our DHS day?  It's Dec 20th and given the lack of hotel rooms, difficulty getting a DVC room for that particular time period (Dec 19-21) and difficulty scoring *any* restaurant reservations for that day, I'm anticipating heavy crowds.

We are attending the X-Mas Party the night before, so my idea was to make it to DHS for lunch (we have Mama Melrose booked) and have our G+ reservations lined up for mid-late PM.

*SDD is a high priority (our only DHS day 2/3 of my kids won't ride RnR or ToT) and I was thinking of trying to score an ILL for Rise and MMRR as well - I know, potentially unlikely.  I want to stack TSMM and Star Tours as well.*

Any advice on how I should attempt to secure these would be greatly appreciated (I understand that it could all go badly day-of anyway - seriously wish they let us do this at least a week out, that much stress and waking up early on my vacation is doing my head in).


----------



## GBRforWDW

Madame said:


> Thanks so much to all of you who have been giving first-hand accounts - so very useful to all of us planning!
> 
> Can anyone give me any suggestions on what to do for our DHS day?  It's Dec 20th and given the lack of hotel rooms, difficulty getting a DVC room for that particular time period (Dec 19-21) and difficulty scoring *any* restaurant reservations for that day, I'm anticipating heavy crowds.
> 
> We are attending the X-Mas Party the night before, so my idea was to make it to DHS for lunch (we have Mama Melrose booked) and have our G+ reservations lined up for mid-late PM.
> 
> *SDD is a high priority (our only DHS day 2/3 of my kids won't ride RnR or ToT) and I was thinking of trying to score an ILL for Rise and MMRR as well - I know, potentially unlikely.  I want to stack TSMM and Star Tours as well.*
> 
> Any advice on how I should attempt to secure these would be greatly appreciated (I understand that it could all go badly day-of anyway - seriously wish they let us do this at least a week out, that much stress and waking up early on my vacation is doing my head in).


This is assuming you're staying onsite - couldn't tell specifically by the info provided...

Are you able to have anyone on another phone helping out?  If so, have one person grabbing SDD and another getting RotR. If not, I'd say get the more important of SDD and RotR.  There has been times where about 11 minutes after 7 (start refreshing at 7:10, SDD becomes available again). 

I'm not saying it's a guarantee, but if you want to try this route, get your RotR passes, then start refreshing at 710 and jump as soon as you see a time available for SDD.  You would not want to have another pass when doing this method as you'd have to cancel it first and that takes too much time.

If you don't see any pop up with refresh by 715, you're probably not going to find one.  I'd take a TSMM pass at this point if it's late enough in the day for you.

MMRR usually lasts awhile so you can grab this while you wait for the refresh time, or hold off until you get SDD or another LL pass.

If you're offsite, you can't get an ILL$ until park opening, so RotR will be out, just get the sdd LL.  MMRR may have availability when the park opens, so worth a shot to try.


----------



## Madame

GBRforWDW said:


> This is assuming you're staying onsite - couldn't tell specifically by the info provided...
> 
> Are you able to have anyone on another phone helping out?  If so, have one person grabbing SDD and another getting RotR. If not, I'd say get the more important of SDD and RotR.  There has been times where about 11 minutes after 7 (start refreshing at 7:10, SDD becomes available again).
> 
> I'm not saying it's a guarantee, but if you want to try this route, get your RotR passes, then start refreshing at 710 and jump as soon as you see a time available for SDD.  You would not want to have another pass when doing this method as you'd have to cancel it first and that takes too much time.
> 
> If you don't see any pop up with refresh by 715, you're probably not going to find one.  I'd take a TSMM pass at this point if it's late enough in the day for you.
> 
> MMRR usually lasts awhile so you can grab this while you wait for the refresh time, or hold off until you get SDD or another LL pass.
> 
> If you're offsite, you can't get an ILL$ until park opening, so RotR will be out, just get the sdd LL.  MMRR may have availability when the park opens, so worth a shot to try.


Thanks for your reply!  Yes we're onsite at SSR.  My DH has an Android, so I wasn't sure that would be all that helpful, but I might be able to do it through my kids IPads (?)


----------



## GBRforWDW

Madame said:


> Thanks for your reply!  Yes we're onsite at SSR.  My DH has an Android, so I wasn't sure that would be all that helpful, but I might be able to do it through my kids IPads (?)


Probably doesn't matter which one, as long as you can get the my Disney experience app installed on it.


----------



## emmabelle

Madame said:


> Can anyone give me any suggestions on what to do for our DHS day?  It's Dec 20th and given the lack of hotel rooms, difficulty getting a DVC room for that particular time period (Dec 19-21) and difficulty scoring *any* restaurant reservations for that day, I'm anticipating heavy crowds.



we're there 12/17 to 12/22.  We have our DHS day planned for 12/21 and it's probably going to be a bleep show.   

I've tried to see how long SDD lasts and my Iphone 12 keeps getting error messages once it turns 7am.  Once 7:01 hits, I can refresh again and SDD are sold out.  I have my doubts that I'll get an SDD.


----------



## Madame

emmabelle said:


> we're there 12/17 to 12/22.  We have our DHS day planned for 12/21 and it's probably going to be a bleep show.
> 
> I've tried to see how long SDD lasts and my Iphone 12 keeps getting error messages once it turns 7am.  Once 7:01 hits, I can refresh again and SDD are sold out.  I have my doubts that I'll get an SDD.


Yep.  Figure I’ll set my expectations low.  It’s insane that we’re paying for only 1 ride per a limited attraction list and yet aren’t even guaranteed one ride on each at a park with (let’s face it) very limited selection.


----------



## emmabelle

Madame said:


> Yep.  Figure I’ll set my expectations low.  It’s insane that we’re paying for only 1 ride per a limited attraction list and yet aren’t even guaranteed one ride on each at a park with (let’s face it) very limited selection.



 we're staying at the Swan so at least we aren't at the mercy of any type of transportation.  We'll throw our running sneakers on and book it for EE!     

Maybe we'll at least get on something.  Unless Omicron starts scaring people I'm expecting high crowds but going with the expectation that I'm there to see all the Christmas stuff.


----------



## ckelly14

Do you get online access at 7AM for ILL on the day of check-in?


----------



## princesswahooey

ckelly14 said:


> Do you get online access at 7AM for ILL on the day of check-in?


From my understanding, if you are staying on property, as long as you have completed mobile check-in, you should be good to go at 7am.


----------



## ckelly14

princesswahooey said:


> From my understanding, if you are staying on property, as long as you have completed mobile check-in, you should be good to go at 7am.



Thanks


----------



## LuckyEmblem

Thankful for all the advice in this thread. Both nervous and excited to use Genie for the first time this weekend. I'm sure the 'excited' part will wear off once those ILL purchases start adding up


----------



## baseballgal

Trying to make sure I understand all the rules I have been reading the past few weeks so a scenario  question: 
If I am staying on site, can I book...
1) Slinky Dog at 7am using Genie+  
2) ROTR ILL at 7:01ish
3) Remy ILL at 7:02ish for later that evening? Or will I need to be going to Epcot  as my first park to book Remy
Then, I understand I cannot start booking regular LLs until 11 or after I use the one for SDD, whichever is first?  I can no longer pick a second selection at 9.


----------



## CJK

baseballgal said:


> Trying to make sure I understand all the rules I have been reading the past few weeks so a scenario  question:
> If I am staying on site, can I book...
> 1) Slinky Dog at 7am using Genie+
> 2) ROTR ILL at 7:01ish
> 3) Remy ILL at 7:02ish for later that evening? Or will I need to be going to Epcot  as my first park to book Remy
> Then, I understand I cannot start booking regular LLs until 11 or after I use the one for SDD, whichever is first?  I can no longer pick a second selection at 9.


Yes, all of that is correct. You can book Remy ILL at any time of day. You don't have to have Epcot booked, and can just park hop to it.


----------



## pigletto

Ok so coming from Canada there has been just an absolute ton of trying to figure out and follow the ever changing guidelines and requirements for travel. I’ve been really focused on that and making ADRs and planning park days and getting park reservations etc.

Now that that’s all worked out can anyone recommend a comprehensive YouTuber , blogger, place to go read an overview regarding all the Genie + strategy?

I think this thread will be awesome when I start to have specific questions but right now it’s overwhelming and I think I need to just start with an overview. It can’t be as confusing as I’m making it right ?


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

CarolynFH said:


> I agree with @g-dad66.  The difficulty I've found with the existing threads, which I've watched since the beginning (but admittedly have skipped pages at times), is that there's no post at or near the start of the thread that's updated when something changes OR that I can point someone to when they ask a question that's been answered before.  So I agree that something with the basic steps as well as answers to the questions that come up over and over (can I book for everyone in my F&F list at one time, can I buy G+ and book LL/ILL$ before I arrive at WDW) would be great.  Also what the issues are with buying G+ for people with different types of tickets - do you have to buy G+ for all those with MYW tickets in one transaction, then buy G+ for the ones who have APs in a separate transaction? - I honestly don't know what the answer is for that one, despite pretty much keeping up with these threads so far, but I know it was a problem at some point!



DH and I are APs DSs had individual tickets staying on DVC points. All in friends and family list.
Booked G+ each day we used around 650am and was able to book G+ and all rides for everyone at once.   Park reservation was required.
After completing mobile check in you can book for arrival day.  I wasn't able to however since I started at the Dolphin and the reservation wasn't recognized even though it was in MDE.
Yes lines are backed up at tap ins. Late arrivals were allowed in however I think it's because of the confusion. We turned green 10 minutes after window.  I believe window is 5 minutes before and 15 after.
Make sure you cancel G+ reservation because if it expires you will not be eligible to get another for that ride.
Easiest thing to check eligibility for next G+ is to try to book one.  You will see the eligible time.  This worked on iPhone not Android. At this time iPhone seems less glitchy.
Suggest you turn wi-fi off before booking hard to get G+.
SDD goes the fastest by far.  ILL$ for RotR does too.
G+ worked best for us at MK and DHS.


----------



## CarolynFH

5DisneyNuts said:


> DH and I are APs DSs had individual tickets staying on DVC points. All in friends and family list.
> Booked G+ each day we used around 650am and was able to book G+ and all rides for everyone at once.   Park reservation was required.
> After completing mobile check in you can book for arrival day.  I wasn't able to however since I started at the Dolphin and the reservation wasn't recognized even though it was in MDE.
> Yes lines are backed up at tap ins. Late arrivals were allowed in however I think it's because of the confusion. We turned green 10 minutes after window.  I believe window is 5 minutes before and 15 after.
> Make sure you cancel G+ reservation because if it expires you will not be eligible to get another for that ride.
> Easiest thing to check eligibility for next G+ is to try to book one.  You will see the eligible time.  This worked on iPhone not Android. At this time iPhone seems less glitchy.
> Suggest you turn wi-fi off before booking hard to get G+.
> SDD goes the fastest by far.  ILL$ for RotR does too.
> G+ worked best for us at MK and DHS.


@scrappinginontario, this post might be helpful for the pinned thread!


----------



## GatorChris

I'll definitely be doing G+ for the MK, and then for AK because it's a Saturday. But I'm at Epcot on a Friday. There doesn't seem to be a lot of rides there. Would it be worth it for Test Track and Soarin? Seems like skipping those lines would be nice.


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

CarolynFH said:


> @scrappinginontario, this post might be helpful for the pinned thread!


The thing I'll try is to see if the on site resort reservation makes any difference with allowing me to book everyone together. 
We did have 2 separate park reservations, 2 AP and 3 theme park tickets and that was fine.

From our experience the best strategy was to book the first G+ at 7am for the time we were entering the park (didn't use EE) and roll from there.  Once you tap,  book the next.  If you book a later G+ at 7am,, then book the next G+ 2 hours after park opening. I mention this because I see 11am mentioned a lot but that's assuming a 9am park opening.

I didn't park hop so can't help with that.

I will say though since the app behavior changed on arrival day and disallowed stacking, I didn't try any strategies on the fly and just went with the flow. Others may discover a better way to use.

Happy to help with any questions I can.


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

GatorChris said:


> I'll definitely be doing G+ for the MK, and then for AK because it's a Saturday. But I'm at Epcot on a Friday. There doesn't seem to be a lot of rides there. Would it be worth it for Test Track and Soarin? Seems like skipping those lines would be nice.



A lot depends on the crowds and yes it's nice to skip the lines or if you are on a tight schedule.  We didn't get G+ on our EPCOT or AK days. 

TT has single rider that moved fast and Soarin moves pretty quickly so standby is not terrible. Other than those and Frozen nothing else requires G+.

We also did the late hours for deluxe guests and the park was empty, everything was a walk on.

The past few days the Thanksgiving crowds left but wait times were still long for standby in DHS and MK.


----------



## GBRforWDW

pigletto said:


> Now that that’s all worked out can anyone recommend a comprehensive YouTuber , blogger, place to go read an overview regarding all the Genie + strategy?


I like to read Tom's strategies over at http://www.disneytouristblog.com.  he's been fine tuning his articles, just search for genie+ strategy and you should be able to find the information you're looking for.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

5DisneyNuts said:


> After completing mobile check in you can book for arrival day. I wasn't able to however since I started at the Dolphin and the reservation wasn't recognized even though it was in MDE.


Were you able to book ILL$ the next day (and subsequent days) at 7:00?  Or did the system still not recognize your Dolphin reservation?  If you were, did you do anything to get the system to recognize it?  We will be staying at the Swan later this month.  We're arriving at night, so we're not going to the parks on arrival day.  But I'm hoping to purchase hard-to-get ILL$s at 7:00 the next morning.  And I'm very concerned about reports of the Genie system not recognizing a Swan or Dolphin reservation, even though it is still showing in MDE.


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

Grasshopper2016 said:


> Were you able to book ILL$ the next day (and subsequent days) at 7:00?  Or did the system still not recognize your Dolphin reservation?  If you were, did you do anything to get the system to recognize it?  We will be staying at the Swan later this month.  We're arriving at night, so we're not going to the parks on arrival day.  But I'm hoping to purchase hard-to-get ILL$s at 7:00 the next morning.  And I'm very concerned about reports of the Genie system not recognizing a Swan or Dolphin reservation, even though it is still showing in MDE.


I couldn't get ILL$ that first day for RotR and it was sold out by 9am. G+ was OK since it's open to everyone at 7am.

I went to GET in the park and they took my info for both the reservation and my phone settings and escalated to IT.  After that I was good. 

We jumped on the standby line at park close.  FWIW, while on line for GET, I was listening to the issues people were having and didn't hear one recovery offered and there were some people trying hard. I remember the old days where the CMs handed out FP/FP+ for almost anything. 

You may want to try calling Disney IT before you go to check it for you.  I know there is a different number for them if you search the boards and hopefully not a 2 hour wait!

Good luck and have a great trip.


----------



## JakeAZ

baseballgal said:


> 1) Slinky Dog at 7am using Genie+
> 2) ROTR ILL at 7:01ish


Depending on when you are going, you may have to decide which one of these is more important, or employ 2 people trying at the same time (one for Slinky and one for Rise).  We were there last week and getting both by one person was impossible.


----------



## Snow L

Can someone let me know if this scenario is hypothetically doable?
7am: Book SDD for 3pm
11am: Book Barnstormer for 11:30
11:30: Ride Barnstormer
11:35 Book Little Mermaid for 12pm
Basically what I want to know is if I have an LL I haven't used (SDD), but then book and ride my next LL (Barnstormer), can I immediately book my next LL (Little Mermaid) or will I still be restricted to the 2 hour wait?


----------



## BrotherCraig

JakeAZ said:


> Depending on when you are going, you may have to decide which one of these is more important, or employ 2 people trying at the same time (one for Slinky and one for Rise).  We were there last week and getting both by one person was impossible.




I didn't have any issue and I just got back from there on Friday.  I booked SDD right at 7 AM and ROTR ILL$ right after it.  Then booked Mickey Railroad ILL$.  No issues.  You do have to be quick and have your people lines up in the app that is for sure.  Very successful day with Genie+ when we went to HS.  Had 4 or 5 rides lined up in My Day.  Rope dropped ToT - 7 minute wait.  Hit every ride but Rockin' Rollercoaster that day.


----------



## JakeAZ

Snow L said:


> Can someone let me know if this scenario is hypothetically doable?
> 7am: Book SDD for 3pm
> 11am: Book Barnstormer for 11:30
> 11:30: Ride Barnstormer
> 11:35 Book Little Mermaid for 12pm
> Basically what I want to know is if I have an LL I haven't used (SDD), but then book and ride my next LL (Barnstormer), can I immediately book my next LL (Little Mermaid) or will I still be restricted to the 2 hour wait?


Getting SDD for a specific time is a total crap shoot.  If you delay while waiting for times to climb, you risk missing out or getting a really late time.

No, you won't be able to grab another LL after tapping into, in your example, Barnstormer.  You will have to wait until 1pm to book again.  This "loophole" was closed last week.


----------



## BrotherCraig

Snow L said:


> Can someone let me know if this scenario is hypothetically doable?
> 7am: Book SDD for 3pm
> 11am: Book Barnstormer for 11:30
> 11:30: Ride Barnstormer
> 11:35 Book Little Mermaid for 12pm
> Basically what I want to know is if I have an LL I haven't used (SDD), but then book and ride my next LL (Barnstormer), can I immediately book my next LL (Little Mermaid) or will I still be restricted to the 2 hour wait?



Park hopping?  Barnstormer is over at MK.  I don't recall choosing times.  Just took what it was given.  Maybe I am reading this wrong - strong possibility.


----------



## Snow L

JakeAZ said:


> Getting SDD for a specific time is a total crap shoot.  If you delay while waiting for times to climb, you risk missing out or getting a really late time.
> 
> No, you won't be able to grab another LL after tapping into, in your example, Barnstormer.  You will have to wait until 1pm to book again.


Yes, I would be park hopping, but the times are just made up to get to my actual question, which you answered about grabbing another LL.  I was under the impression I wouldnt be able to do that either, but I just read a touring plans blog article that stated otherwise.


----------



## BrotherCraig

Snow L said:


> Yes, I would be park hopping, but the times are just made up to get to my actual question, which you answered about grabbing another LL.  I was under the impression I wouldnt be able to do that either, but I just read a touring plans blog article that stated otherwise.




The TP blog is correct with the updated rules.


----------



## Snow L

BrotherCraig said:


> The TP blog is correct with the updated rules.


So then my example would work?  I could grab another LL after doing a ride while I still have SDD in the future?


----------



## JakeAZ

Snow L said:


> Yes, I would be park hopping, but the times are just made up to get to my actual question, which you answered about grabbing another LL.  I was under the impression I wouldnt be able to do that either, but I just read a touring plans blog article that stated otherwise.


When it first launched, you could do that.  It was a great loophole.  You could also let the LL "expire", grab another LL, then use the grace period to tap in and grab another one.  All gone though.


----------



## Snow L

According to this article you still can.  It was written post-change.  That's why I'm so confused...

When Can I Book My Next Genie+ Attraction? – TouringPlans.com Blog


----------



## g-dad66

Snow L said:


> According to this article you still can.  It was written post-change.  That's why I'm so confused...
> 
> When Can I Book My Next Genie+ Attraction? – TouringPlans.com Blog



You are correct. You are eligible for another LL as soon as you double-tap into the 11:30 ride. You don't have to wait 2 hours.


----------



## JakeAZ

g-dad66 said:


> You are correct. You are eligible for another LL as soon as you double-tap into the 11:30 ride. You don't have to wait 2 hours.


Maybe they've "fine tuned" it again, but this was not our experience in the parks last week (after the changes on Wednesday).  Everything was based off two hours from the last booked ride.  Didn't matter what we tapped into.

IMO, it should allow you to book once you've tapped in, so hopefully that is the way it's working again.


----------



## Luisfba

JakeAZ, the key though is.. did you have others waiting (still to be turned in) when you tapped in?  If you did, it still goes off the two hour clock.  You will only be able to grab another one right after tapping in only if you don't have any more scheduled later. (or at least that's what I've been told - I haven't had the chance to do it myself yet)


----------



## JakeAZ

Luisfba said:


> JakeAZ, the key though is.. did you have others waiting (still to be turned in) when you tapped in?  If you did, it still goes off the two hour clock.  You will only be able to grab another one right after tapping in only if you don't have any more scheduled later. (or at least that's what I've been told - I haven't had the chance to do it myself yet)


Last week is a blur, but that could have been the case.  It all runs together with Genie.

We are a group of people that really pay attention and it sounds like there is still confusion! Haha. It really is quite the terrible system Disney instituted.


----------



## g-dad66

After you make a LL selection, you are able to make another selection either:
(1) after 2 hours, or
(2) when you double-tap into that LL (if sooner than 2 hours)

If you make a LL selection before the park opens, the 2 hour wait is 2 hours from when the park opens.


----------



## hayesdvc

As an example, if I have a LL for Slinky Dog for 10:00, what is the latest time when I scan will I get green?

I have been told several things.

TIA


----------



## GBRforWDW

hayesdvc said:


> As an example, if I have a LL for Slinky Dog for 10:00, what is the latest time when I scan will I get green?
> 
> I have been told several things.
> 
> TIA


Your 10am should be good for 1 hour, so 10-11.  You should also have a 5 minute before and 15 minute after window where you're able to check in.  Those times are according to previous posters in the park.

Since they closed the loophole where you could wait for 2 hour window, grabbing another LL, checking in to ride and grabbing another LL, you'll benefit by checking in as soon as you can so you can schedule the next pass.


----------



## MagicMoon

My experience Thanksgiving,
Got jungle cruise 10:40-11:40 at 7 am.  Got PP for 4:10-5:10 at 11 am.  Tapped into jungle Cruise between 11:00 and 11:40.  Tried to book another for two hours and each time it said I was ineligible til 1:00 pm…


----------



## aimes0105

The change they made was that people were able to book another at the 2 hour mark after booking AND after tapping into a ride, for the same reservation. 

Now you can book another after either: 
2 hours goes by (2 hours after park open if the booking was made before then) OR you tap into your most recently booked reservation.

I think that's the confusing part, it's the most recently booked reservation it's going off of. Taping into a LL will not always let you book another (it used to - that is the loop hole they closed)

Say you book:
7:00am book a 7pm SDD (LL1) 
11:00 am book a 2:00pm TSM (LL2) 
1:00pm book a 2:30pm ToT (LL3)
Your eligibility for booking LL4 is based off of LL3.

When you tap into your 2:00 LL2, you won't be able to book another because it wasn't your most recently booked LL and it hasn't been 2 hours since you last booked. But when you tap into LL3 at 2:30 you will be able to book again because it was your most recently booked LL.

Alternatively, say you haven't used your LL3 yet at 3:00, you could book another then because it's been 2 hours. You then tap into your (2:30-3:30) LL3 at 3:15, you will not be able to book another then because you already booked LL4 at 3:00pm and that is what your eligibility is now based off of. 

That sounds complicated to spell out but all you need to remember is which was your most recently booked LL and when you booked it.


----------



## aimes0105

MagicMoon said:


> My experience Wednesday before Thanksgiving,
> Got jungle cruise 10:40-11:40 at 7 am.  Got PP for 4:10-5:10 at 11 am.  Tapped into jungle Cruise between 11:00 and 11:40.  Tried to book another for two hours and each time it said I was ineligible til 1:00 pm…




Right, your most recent booking was at 11:00am for PP (LL2). You can book either 2 hours later or when you tap into LL2 but tapping into LL1 didn't trigger another eligibility because you'd already used it, by booking two hours after you'd booked LL1.


----------



## MagicMoon

Correct, all the studying for nothing .  Lol.  It changed earlier that week…


----------



## cjlong88

aimes0105 said:


> The change they made was that people were able to book another at the 2 hour mark after booking AND after tapping into a ride, for the same reservation.
> 
> Now you can book another after either:
> 2 hours goes by (2 hours after park open if the booking was made before then) OR you tap into your most recently booked reservation.
> 
> I think that's the confusing part, it's the most recently booked reservation it's going off of. Taping into a LL will not always let you book another (it used to - that is the loop hole they closed)
> 
> Say you book:
> 7:00am book a 7pm SDD (LL1)
> 11:00 am book a 2:00pm TSM (LL2)
> 1:00pm book a 2:30pm ToT (LL3)
> Your eligibility for booking LL4 is based off of LL3.
> 
> When you tap into your 2:00 LL2, you won't be able to book another because it wasn't your most recently booked LL and it hasn't been 2 hours since you last booked. But when you tap into LL3 at 2:30 you will be able to book again because it was your most recently booked LL.
> 
> Alternatively, say you haven't used your LL3 yet at 3:00, you could book another then because it's been 2 hours. You then tap into your (2:30-3:30) LL3 at 3:15, you will not be able to book another then because you already booked LL4 at 3:00pm and that is what your eligibility is now based off of.
> 
> That sounds complicated to spell out but all you need to remember is which was your most recently booked LL and when you booked it.


Thank you so much for posting this. The change makes a lot more sense.

So it sounds like your best bet is to book your LL’s from latest to earliest so the first one you tap is the last one you booked, then you can rebook while still holding your others…

For example:
7am book Slinky LL for 8-9pm
11am book MFSR LL for 7-8pm
1pm book RnRC LL for 6-7pm
3pm book ToT LL for 5-6pm

Tap into ToT, because it was the most recent LL you booked…you are now eligible to book another, even thought you are holding 3 others.

Did I get this right or am I off base?


----------



## katyringo

After using genie in all the parks on days I only stayed in that park and always arrived in the morning it is my opinion and booking earlier return times and tapping and booking as you go is the best strategy if you are staying in that pArk all day.

At DHS I did not book SDD for this reason. I booked TT and had I not needed a nap(lol) and not had single rider for smugglers I would have gotten 4 genie+ selections for top rides in that park before they ran out.  Which I think for DHS is a good day. I tried refreshing for SDD a lot and it never popped up for me.


----------



## Runnsally

Snow L said:


> Can someone let me know if this scenario is hypothetically doable?
> 7am: Book SDD for 3pm
> 11am: Book Barnstormer for 11:30
> 11:30: Ride Barnstormer
> 11:35 Book Little Mermaid for 12pm
> Basically what I want to know is if I have an LL I haven't used (SDD), but then book and ride my next LL (Barnstormer), can I immediately book my next LL (Little Mermaid) or will I still be restricted to the 2 hour wait?


Not sure if this was clearly answered already, but yes you can immediately book Little Mermaid in this scenario.  This is not the loophole that was recently closed.


----------



## Susi

I've been reading up on Genie + and Individual Attraction Selection (IAS) or fancy rides tm (as Molly calls it) but still a bit confused so hopefully I can get some help.
I'm staying offsite and will purchased Genie + at 12am and book my first Genie + selection at 7am.  Since I'm staying offsite when will I be able to purchase an IAS at 7am or park opening?


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

aimes0105 said:


> The change they made was that people were able to book another at the 2 hour mark after booking AND after tapping into a ride, for the same reservation.
> 
> Now you can book another after either:
> 2 hours goes by (2 hours after park open if the booking was made before then) OR you tap into your most recently booked reservation.
> 
> I think that's the confusing part, it's the most recently booked reservation it's going off of. Taping into a LL will not always let you book another (it used to - that is the loop hole they closed)
> 
> Say you book:
> 7:00am book a 7pm SDD (LL1)
> 11:00 am book a 2:00pm TSM (LL2)
> 1:00pm book a 2:30pm ToT (LL3)
> Your eligibility for booking LL4 is based off of LL3.
> 
> When you tap into your 2:00 LL2, you won't be able to book another because it wasn't your most recently booked LL and it hasn't been 2 hours since you last booked. But when you tap into LL3 at 2:30 you will be able to book again because it was your most recently booked LL.
> 
> Alternatively, say you haven't used your LL3 yet at 3:00, you could book another then because it's been 2 hours. You then tap into your (2:30-3:30) LL3 at 3:15, you will not be able to book another then because you already booked LL4 at 3:00pm and that is what your eligibility is now based off of.
> 
> That sounds complicated to spell out but all you need to remember is which was your most recently booked LL and when you booked it.


This is exactly what our experience was.  

Any time I wasn't sure I would just try to book another G+ and the eligible time was listed. 

If you are going during a busy time the times aren't going to be as smooth as it sounds however and on some days nothing was available by mid afternoon although you could still purchase G+.


----------



## mickey916

Susi said:


> I've been reading up on Genie + and Individual Attraction Selection (IAS) or fancy rides tm (as Molly calls it) but still a bit confused so hopefully I can get some help.
> I'm staying offsite and will purchased Genie + at 12am and book my first Genie + selection at 7am.  Since I'm staying offsite when will I be able to purchase an IAS at 7am or park opening?


I believe if you're staying offsite you can't book the IAS until park opening but you can book your first Genie+ at 7 am.


----------



## aimes0105

cjlong88 said:


> Thank you so much for posting this. The change makes a lot more sense.
> 
> So it sounds like your best bet is to book your LL’s from latest to earliest so the first one you tap is the last one you booked, then you can rebook while still holding your others…
> 
> For example:
> 7am book Slinky LL for 8-9pm
> 11am book MFSR LL for 7-8pm
> 1pm book RnRC LL for 6-7pm
> 3pm book ToT LL for 5-6pm
> 
> Tap into ToT, because it was the most recent LL you booked…you are now eligible to book another, even thought you are holding 3 others.
> 
> Did I get this right or am I off base?



Theoretically yes, though in reality the times may not work out so smoothly.


----------



## 5DisneyNuts

Susi said:


> I've been reading up on Genie + and Individual Attraction Selection (IAS) or fancy rides tm (as Molly calls it) but still a bit confused so hopefully I can get some help.
> I'm staying offsite and will purchased Genie + at 12am and book my first Genie + selection at 7am.  Since I'm staying offsite when will I be able to purchase an IAS at 7am or park opening?


You can purchase G+ any time before 7am if you want to book your 1st G+ at 7am. I added it at 645am for example. Leave enough time until you are comfortable with the process and for potential glitches.

G+ rides (think FP+) are available for all guests to book at 7am. You pick 1. Then 2 hours from park opening or when you tap you can select another.   Remy virtual queue is available at 7am too. ILL$ (fancy rides) open to resort guests Swan/Dolphin and Shades of Green at 7am. Non resort guests at park opening.


----------



## holyrita

cjlong88 said:


> Thank you so much for posting this. The change makes a lot more sense.
> 
> So it sounds like your best bet is to book your LL’s from latest to earliest so the first one you tap is the last one you booked, then you can rebook while still holding your others…
> 
> For example:
> 7am book Slinky LL for 8-9pm
> 11am book MFSR LL for 7-8pm
> 1pm book RnRC LL for 6-7pm
> 3pm book ToT LL for 5-6pm
> 
> Tap into ToT, because it was the most recent LL you booked…you are now eligible to book another, even thought you are holding 3 others.
> 
> Did I get this right or am I off base?



Yes, but something to take into account is how busy the park is that day. Looking at genie+ data on thrill-data, ToT LL return times at 3pm were mostly 7pm or later. Only the lighter crowd days had 4-6pm available at that time. RnRC skewed even later than ToT at 3pm too


----------



## Susi

5DisneyNuts said:


> You can purchase G+ any time before 7am if you want to book your 1st G+ at 7am. I added it at 645am for example. Leave enough time until you are comfortable with the process and for potential glitches.
> 
> G+ rides (think FP+) are available for all guests to book at 7am. You pick 1. Then 2 hours from park opening or when you tap you can select another.   Remy virtual queue is available at 7am too. ILL$ (fancy rides) open to resort guests Swan/Dolphin and Shades of Green at 7am. Non resort guests at park opening.


Thanks! This helps


----------



## JakeAZ

The fact that this thread is still full of clarifying questions, says everything about how awful Genie is.

I wonder how long until Disney increases the price?


----------



## SuperJ

JakeAZ said:


> The fact that this thread is still full of clarifying questions, says everything about how awful Genie is.
> 
> I wonder how long until Disney increases the price?



We're going over the holidays and, while we were only planning on buying for two out of our three total park days, we wondered this exact same thing and decided to just book ahead (thus paying for all three of our park days, one more than originally planned) because we figured better to pay for a day when we may not really want or need it than be priced out entirely if they do a last-minute pre-holiday increase.


----------



## cjlong88

aimes0105 said:


> Theoretically yes, though in reality the times may not work out so smoothly.


Yes, theoretically. Just using this as an example to understand the newest iteration, not a reality on crowded days.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

Man I just realized they changed it. Don’t see any really effective way to use it like before anymore very sad news. Honestlythis thread should probably be closed and labeled as having outdated information or it will just end up causing confusio, imo.


----------



## GBRforWDW

PepperjackDragon said:


> Man I just realized they changed it. Don’t see any really effective way to use it like before anymore very sad news. Honestlythis thread used probably be closed and labeled as having outdated information or it will just end up causing confusio, imo.


I don't know about that.  It's more like the here now and just back thread.  It was started when very little was brought back, but still relevant after 18 months because people continue to post what they are experiencing in the parks.  Same thing can be done here, with people posting about how they used Genie, changes to how it works, etc. This will be a post where reading the last 2 or 3 pages is more helpful than reading the first 100 pages.


----------



## Susi

GBRforWDW said:


> I don't know about that.  It's more like the here now and just back thread.  It was started when very little was brought back, but still relevant after 18 months because people continue to post what they are experiencing in the parks.  Same thing can be done here, with people posting about how they used Genie, changes to how it works, etc. This will be a post where reading the last 2 or 3 pages is more helpful than reading the first 100 pages.


absolutely agree about reading the the last 2 - 3 pages than the first 100.  I started reading from page 1 over a week ago and when they changed how Genie + works I skipped over to page 90.  Honestly I'm still a bit confused but reading others experience and tips is really helpful.  I have 2 days at DHS and MK so the first visit will be trial and error and hopefully by the 2nd park day I'll be much better at navigating Genie +.


----------



## scrappinginontario

cjlong88 said:


> Thank you so much for posting this. The change makes a lot more sense.
> 
> So it sounds like your best bet is to book your LL’s from latest to earliest so the first one you tap is the last one you booked, then you can rebook while still holding your others…
> 
> For example:
> 7am book Slinky LL for 8-9pm
> 11am book MFSR LL for 7-8pm
> 1pm book RnRC LL for 6-7pm
> 3pm book ToT LL for 5-6pm
> 
> Tap into ToT, because it was the most recent LL you booked…you are now eligible to book another, even thought you are holding 3 others.
> 
> Did I get this right or am I off base?


The thing to keep in mind with above scenario is that you don't have an option to choose what time you book an individual LL for so, for your scenario to work out, 

At 7am - the booking window for Slinky must already have reached 8-9pm.  
At 11am - the booking window for MFSR must be in the 7-8pm window.

I understand you were just giving attractions/times as an example but, wanted to clarify for others that unlike FP+, a return window cannot be selected.  You may only choose the return window that is currently being offered which reduces the planning options.


----------



## g-dad66

scrappinginontario said:


> The thing to keep in mind with above scenario is that you don't have an option to choose what time you book an individual LL for so, for your scenario to work out,
> 
> At 7am - the booking window for Slinky must already have reached 8-9pm.
> At 11am - the booking window for MFSR must be in the 7-8pm window.
> 
> I understand you were just giving attractions/times as an example but, wanted to clarify for others that unlike FP+, a return window cannot be selected.  You may only choose the return window that is currently being offered which reduces the planning options.



Exactly.

Regarding strategy for DHS, what will work best to get late afternoon/evening times (except for a peak week like Thanksgiving) is:
7:00 am: Slinky Dog
11:00 am: Millenium Falcon
1:00 pm: Rock n Roller Coaster (or Tower of Terror if it is only running at partial capacity, like it was the day we did this)
3:00 pm: Tower of Terror (or Rock n Roller Coaster)
5:00 pm: Toy Story Mania

During Thanksgiving week, this didn't work because MF was gone before 11, and RRC/ToT were gone before 1.


----------



## DavidNYC

aimes0105 said:


> Now you can book another after either:
> 2 hours goes by (2 hours after park open if the booking was made before then) OR you tap into your most recently booked reservation.



Best simple phrasing of this I've seen.  Way too many overly complicated explanations of this.   This is the only sentence you need to remember.


----------



## JakeAZ

DavidNYC said:


> This is the only sentence you need to remember.


Until next week


----------



## Jrb1979

DavidNYC said:


> Best simple phrasing of this I've seen.  Way too many overly complicated explanations of this.   This is the only sentence you need to remember.


I think where it's gets complicated is when people do the stacking thing and try make it work like FP+.


----------



## DavidNYC

JakeAZ said:


> Until next week


LOL - in some boardroom now they're reading this and thinking too many people have figured the system out so they need to make it more confusing really quickly!


----------



## PepperjackDragon

GBRforWDW said:


> I don't know about that.  It's more like the here now and just back thread.  It was started when very little was brought back, but still relevant after 18 months because people continue to post what they are experiencing in the parks.  Same thing can be done here, with people posting about how they used Genie, changes to how it works, etc. This will be a post where reading the last 2 or 3 pages is more helpful than reading the first 100 pages.


I hear what your saying, the problem is that people are coming here without any real understanding of how the system works are are looking for practical information. As of now only the last few pages matter and the lesson is basically “you can get 2-4LL with essentially no way to game the system.”

there is basically no strategy anymore, just get what you can get and don’t have a fit, so having 100+ pages detailing elaborate 2hr/tapin strategies is bound to make things confusing. Those who are good at this type of thing will be distraught, but the average customer will probably be happy to have a level playing field, either way the entire point of the thread has now become moot. True there are a few basic principles that may sometimes be useful to know, but they aren’t really strategies and will make very little practical difference now.


----------



## DavidNYC

PepperjackDragon said:


> I hear what your saying, the problem is that people are coming here without any real understanding of how the system works are are looking for practical information. As of now only the last few pages matter and the lesson is basically “you can get 2-4LL with essentially no way to game the system.”
> 
> there is basically no strategy anymore, just get what you can get and don’t have a fit, so having 100+ pages detailing elaborate 2hr/tapin strategies is bound to make things confusing. Those who are good at this type of thing will be distraught, but the average customer will probably be happy to have a level playing field, either way the entire point of the thread has now become moot. True there are a few basic principles that may sometimes be useful to know, but they aren’t really strategies and will make very little practical difference now.


 This thread really probably should be shut down and a new one started - and should happen each time if there is any major change to the system.  The recent changes really moot a majority of the thread.


----------



## CarolynFH

PepperjackDragon said:


> there is basically no strategy anymore, just get what you can get and don’t have a fit, so having 100+ pages detailing elaborate 2hr/tapin strategies is bound to make things confusing. Those who are good at this type of thing will be distraught, but the average customer will probably be happy to have a level playing field, either way the entire point of the thread has now become moot. True there are a few basic principles that may sometimes be useful to know, but they aren’t really strategies and will make very little practical difference now.


@scrappinginontario, this may be where your thread comes in - no strategy for maximizing number of rides, just a “how to” thread including answers to FAQs such as noted before.


----------



## emilymad

We tried G+ yesterday at MK to see how it would work for us.  We arrived around 9:30 with a LL already booked for Jungle Cruise.

We rode Jungle Cruise, Haunted Mansion, and Splash using LL.  We booked the next available each instead of waiting 2 hours.  We finished this plus snack, lunch, and two smaller rides by 1pm.

Around noon we decided we would park hop to Epcot.  TT was already gone for  the entire day.  Everything else at Epcot was almost immediately available as stand by times were around 5-10 minutes with the exception of Soarin.  We booked SE as the return time for Soarin was during our ADR.

So overall we got 4 rides by purposely having no plan for the day on a lower crowd day.  We easily could have gotten all of the same rides with very small wait times if we had arrived for early morning hours.

Overall, we didn't like G+ and didn't think it worked for our touring strategy (mid-day breaks).  We thought the app was confusing.  Almost every LL entrance had people trying to ride who didn't have LL.  I think a lot of this is because of how confusing the app is.


----------



## katyringo

I don't agree with the idea that there isn't a strategy to using this system. Having used it in every park .. there is most deff a strategy to what to book first, what not to book, what is worth a LL and what is not worth a LL...


----------



## scrappinginontario

CarolynFH said:


> @scrappinginontario, this may be where your thread comes in - no strategy for maximizing number of rides, just a “how to” thread including answers to FAQs such as noted before.


I understand that but I need to find the time to create the thread.  This is a volunteer position so on top of monitoring the boards I have a fulltime job, family and, it's December so unfortunately I just can't throw it together quickly.

There is still value to this thread as many others have pointed out, until the new thread is ready.  People can read the last few pages as has widely been recommended to get the gist of things until the new thread is ready to go.  I will work on it as I can but life is busy.  Thanks for understanding.


----------



## CarolynFH

scrappinginontario said:


> I understand that but I need to find the time to create the thread.  This is a volunteer position so on top of monitoring the boards I have a fulltime job, family and, it's December so unfortunately I just can't throw it together quickly.
> 
> There is still value to this thread as many others have pointed out, until the new thread is ready.  People can read the last few pages as has widely been recommended to get the gist of things until the new thread is ready to go.  I will work on it as I can but life is busy.  Thanks for understanding.


I’m sorry - I meant my post to be in addition to the other suggestions made yesterday, about what your thread should contain. I didn’t mean to add any pressure for you to get it done!


----------



## AndreaA

Everything I’m reading tells me this system will not work for us at all - or at least not be worth the money.  I loved FP+. I’m a big planner.  I could easily plan our top 3 rides for the beginning of the day and work around them with the smaller stuff.  I’d get SDMT, BTMRR and PP for Magic Kingdom, for example, and easily manage Pooh, TeaCups, Carousel, Dumbo, Splash and Pirates - all before 1pm when we’d leave to go back to our hotel.

Now it’s all “book a 10am time at 7am and then when you get to the park at 9, book an 11, and then a 12, and then a 1, etc., etc., etc… basically the strategy all revolves around afternoon and evening touring.  The choice to tour early morning without running all over the places is gone.


----------



## katyringo

AndreaA said:


> Everything I’m reading tells me this system will not work for us at all - or at least not be worth the money.  I loved FP+. I’m a big planner.  I could easily plan our top 3 rides for the beginning of the day and work around them with the smaller stuff.  I’d get SDMT, BTMRR and PP for Magic Kingdom, for example, and easily manage Pooh, TeaCups, Carousel, Dumbo, Splash and Pirates - all before 1pm when we’d leave to go back to our hotel.
> 
> Now it’s all “book a 10am time at 7am and then when you get to the park at 9, book an 11, and then a 12, and then a 1, etc., etc., etc… basically the strategy all revolves around afternoon and evening touring.  The choice to tour early morning without running all over the places is gone.



on a morning MK day where I didn't rope
Drop but was in the park early I did:

mat 7am I purchased LL for SDMT for 1130am
i booked big thunder for 930
After tapping into big thunder I got mansion.
Stand by pirates
Rode mansion and then booked buzz

I could have kept going like that all day. The two hour rule only applies if your selection is more than 2 hours away.

I was able to rope drop and use LL in the morning and take an afternoon break and have some booked in almost every park I went to.

after using this system I believe it can be used with any type of touring plan..


----------



## scrappinginontario

CarolynFH said:


> I’m sorry - I meant my post to be in addition to the other suggestions made yesterday, about what your thread should contain. I didn’t mean to add any pressure for you to get it done!


Thank you for clarifying.  I will review the post you referenced to see what I can grab from it for the new post.  Thanks!


----------



## dirtnap101

Question on purchasing Genie+ in advance:

I have room-only reservations at Boardwalk Jan 13-17. I have 3 day tickets for my party that are good Jan 14-18.  I have not added Genie+ yet. 

I go into MDE app and to "My Day" and change the date to Jan 14, and if a scroll down the app offers me Genie+ with a graphic that says "Take Today to the Next Level, Get Genie+ for today".  So I tap it.  The next screen has the "Get Disney Genie+ Service" button and I tap that. 

It then takes me to "My Tickets and Passes" area and I can choose "Change Ticket" or "Reassign Ticket".  When I choose Change Ticket, I can choose the rest of the party and then it shows me the things I can change: valid ticket dates; number of days; ticket type; and Disney Genie+ Service.

The first 3 things in that list can be changed, the pencil icon next to them is blue. But for Disney Genie+ Service, the pencil is grayed out and it says "Selected tickets have already been upgraded to include Disney Genie+ service", even though I haven't bought Genie+. Any ideas? Did these tickets somehow come with Genie+?


----------



## GBRforWDW

dirtnap101 said:


> Question on purchasing Genie+ in advance:
> 
> I have room-only reservations at Boardwalk Jan 13-17. I have 3 day tickets for my party that are good Jan 14-18.  I have not added Genie+ yet.
> 
> I go into MDE app and to "My Day" and change the date to Jan 14, and if a scroll down the app offers me Genie+ with a graphic that says "Take Today to the Next Level, Get Genie+ for today".  So I tap it.  The next screen has the "Get Disney Genie+ Service" button and I tap that.
> 
> It then takes me to "My Tickets and Passes" area and I can choose "Change Ticket" or "Reassign Ticket".  When I choose Change Ticket, I can choose the rest of the party and then it shows me the things I can change: valid ticket dates; number of days; ticket type; and Disney Genie+ Service.
> 
> The first 3 things in that list can be changed, the pencil icon next to them is blue. But for Disney Genie+ Service, the pencil is grayed out and it says "Selected tickets have already been upgraded to include Disney Genie+ service", even though I haven't bought Genie+. Any ideas? Did these tickets somehow come with Genie+?


It should tell you on your ticket page.  When I look at my tickets with Genie+, here's what it looks like:



If it doesn't have "and Genie+ Service", then no you don't have it.  if you want to have it added before you go, you may need to call to upgrade.


----------



## Einstein509

katyringo said:


> on a morning MK day where I didn't rope
> Drop but was in the park early I did:
> 
> mat 7am I purchased LL for SDMT for 1130am
> i booked big thunder for 930
> After tapping into big thunder I got mansion.
> Stand by pirates
> Rode mansion and then booked buzz
> 
> I could have kept going like that all day. The two hour rule only applies if your selection is more than 2 hours away.
> 
> I was able to rope drop and use LL in the morning and take an afternoon break and have some booked in almost every park I went to.
> 
> after using this system I believe it can be used with any type of touring plan..


Ok, but you went solo.  I imagine it's a lot easier to get single rider times than a family of 4 or more.  So your sample or example of how the system applies to others may not be accurate.


----------



## Bellagirl

AndreaA said:


> Now it’s all “book a 10am time at 7am and then when you get to the park at 9, book an 11, and then a 12, and then a 1, etc., etc., etc… basically the strategy all revolves around afternoon and evening touring.  The choice to tour early morning without running all over the places is gone.



Does this strategy still work or is that what everyone is stating that you cannot keep stacking rides through the day?


----------



## emilymad

katyringo said:


> on a morning MK day where I didn't rope
> Drop but was in the park early I did:
> 
> mat 7am I purchased LL for SDMT for 1130am
> i booked big thunder for 930
> After tapping into big thunder I got mansion.
> Stand by pirates
> Rode mansion and then booked buzz
> 
> I could have kept going like that all day. The two hour rule only applies if your selection is more than 2 hours away.
> 
> I was able to rope drop and use LL in the morning and take an afternoon break and have some booked in almost every park I went to.
> 
> after using this system I believe it can be used with any type of touring plan..



Yes, this is true but what rides are available can be different everyday so maybe you can ride what you want and maybe you can’t. There is no way to know in advance.

I also don’t think this works in all parks. If you want a SDD LL you are going to be tied to the 2 hour rule unless you get really lucky.

Disney vacations are a lot of money to settle for maybes and luck especially when it is a higher crowd time.


----------



## mom2rtk

emilymad said:


> Yes, this is true but what rides are available can be different everyday so maybe you can ride what you want and maybe you can’t. There is no way to know in advance.
> 
> *I also don’t think this works in all parks. If you want a SDD LL you are going to be tied to the 2 hour rule unless you get really lucky.*
> 
> Disney vacations are a lot of money to settle for maybes and luck especially when it is a higher crowd time.


I've felt all along that this might be useful at MK but no chance was it going to be a good experience in the other 3. The main reason MaxPass worked worked so well at DLR was that those parks had ample rides to access, so far more pass inventory than Epcot, DHS and AK ever dreamed of having.


----------



## deltadisney

I’ve read about people having issues with G+ and $LL in certain situations - if I have a room only reservation and have separate park tickets, will it recognize me as a resort guest for purposes of 7:00am booking?  Everything shoes up in MDE, but my park tickets are separate and not part of a vacation package (rented dvc).


----------



## Sydnerella

katyringo said:


> on a morning MK day where I didn't rope
> Drop but was in the park early I did:
> 
> mat 7am I purchased LL for SDMT for 1130am
> i booked big thunder for 930
> After tapping into big thunder I got mansion.
> Stand by pirates
> Rode mansion and then booked buzz
> 
> I could have kept going like that all day. The two hour rule only applies if your selection is more than 2 hours away.
> 
> I was able to rope drop and use LL in the morning and take an afternoon break and have some booked in almost every park I went to.
> 
> after using this system I believe it can be used with any type of touring plan..



The big caveat to this is *crowd level *- as those of us learned who had the misfortune over Thanksgiving week to see that crowds are not handled very well by Disneyworld tech right now:

- Wifi is slower with crowds, even data seemed slow in places so wifi worked better so we hesitated to turn it off
- Genie + had many error issues with the demand brought by the increased crowds, seemingly unable to process selections many times, errors occurred, endless code/PW loops occurred
- Genie+ and LL availability go lightening fast…
- To ride headliner/popular favorites you are beholden to choose in the order they run out, not to avoid criss crossing the park or even potential conflicts with other plans
- canceling/rebooking the same attraction for G+ changes your eligibility time to two hours from the time it was rescheduled
- ROTR  functionality is a constant question mark, it went down each of the three days we booked the ILL - we couldn’t even ride it with my in-laws as it never came back up before we had to leave the park (8pm, 5pm)
- On our first ROTR (b4 in-laws arrived at WDW) after being down for a number of hours they skipped both preshows - so paying $63 for half the experience… not acceptable… some people in the cell with us were Super Confused 
- TT also had issues each time we rode it, not recognizing cars designed
- HM was down a few times snd even took us 55 minutes to get thru with our “lightening lane” - 30 in the queue and 4 stops during the ride
- Splash was down intermittently
- Even the freakin Teacups broke down!?!?
- All issues above result in longer GET recovery lines and frustrating waits during your limited vacation time

IF YOU ARE CHARGING A PREMIUM THEN UPDATE YOUR SYSTEMS TO PROVIDE A PREMIUM EXPERIENCE!

The Park entry cost is really just a cover charge during busy periods…  Truly our best and most relaxing enjoyable stress free park touring was GENIE FREE! And that was during the two nights of Extended Evening Hours offered during our 9 night trip. Pretty ridiculous that it was only two nights/parks during that long period over the holiday week+

But I didn’t cry once out of frustration! It was actually very fun!


----------



## dirtnap101

GBRforWDW said:


> It should tell you on your ticket page.  When I look at my tickets with Genie+, here's what it looks like:
> 
> View attachment 628119
> 
> If it doesn't have "and Genie+ Service", then no you don't have it.  if you want to have it added before you go, you may need to call to upgrade.



Thank you, our tickets do not say "and Disney Genie+ Service".  I expect nothing less of Disney IT's app than to tell us we don't have it but that we do have it when we try to buy it


----------



## dirtnap101

dirtnap101 said:


> Thank you, our tickets do not say "and Disney Genie+ Service".  I expect nothing less of Disney IT's app than to tell us we don't have it but that we do have it when we try to buy it



Just to complete the story - I tried via the website instead of the MDE app and after a few "400" errors I was able to purchase Genie+ in advance, and even got the option to pay with a Disney gift card which I preferred as a payment method and was hoping for during checkout.


----------



## Sydnerella

JakeAZ said:


> Anyone else have their app crash this morning for the 7am *genie money grab*?  Booked jungle cruise right at 7. Got 940-1040. Then the app crashed. Multiple email code requests. Once it finally came back, it showed my genie JC reservation for 2pm!!  A little while later it showed correct again, but keeps bouncing around. So I took some screenshots when it bounced to the correct time.
> *Genie + on a crowded day….so far, it’s a nightmare and, at least in my case, Disney IT couldn’t handle the rush.*



*7am* *genie money grab - *that’s exactly what it was/is… And I would rather get up early once 60 days in advance and make a reasonable plan to start with then I have to set my alarm to get up at 6:50 every vacation day, to bundle up and go out on balcony where reception was best and sometimes wake up one-two of my family members to also get G+ or paid Lightning Lanes at the same time to ensure that we actually got the rides we planned for at reasonable times. This isn’t so bad two or three days - especially with parks with early rope drops, but it got soooo old every morning!

These bold statements are SO very true to my feelings and experience Thanksgiving week!



wisblue said:


> Have people experienced that looping when booking with Genie+ or only when booking an IALL that requires a payment?
> 
> On my trip I never was victimized by the endless loop, but I was asked a few times to enter a code that was sent by email. It only occurred when I was trying to pay for something, like the purchase of Genie+ for the day, an IALL, or a mobile dining order. I was never asked to enter a code when booking a Genie+ LL.



Both

But trying to get the next Genie + booked at 10am was the culprit of the 10+ minute cycle of PW/code for me and some others at GET in MK on 11/22



trompettecon said:


> trompettecon said:
> 
> 
> 
> Fast. No.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Luisfba said:
> 
> 
> 
> Ok.  So doable, but tight.  I’m actually looking at doing the same thing for my travel day  - shoot for an evening SDD (wait about 10-15 seconds - refresh - book) and RoTR.  If miss SDD then just grab MFSR after RotR.
> 
> Been tracking the SDD and they seem to go within 30 seconds this last week.  I expect it about the same on my travel day (day before Easter Sunday).
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> Two people logged into same account is best way to ensure you get them both - especially during busy times. As long as you have your credit card connected to your My Disney experience account it doesn’t matter who buys the individual lightning lane attraction. My son got ROTR paid each time while I booked G+ and my cc  was there for him to select as payment optsince it’s in my MDE.
> 
> 
> 
> soniam said:
> 
> 
> 
> Not every time. It’s random and seems to only happen for ILL and purchasing Genie+.
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> As stated above, my ridiculously long verification loop was not for ILL mine was for Genie plus. And the request came for Genie other times as well as mobile order and ILL‘s
> 
> 
> 
> mom2rtk said:
> 
> 
> 
> They never should have rolled out this system with those pass code stops in place. It's ridiculous, arbitrary and absolutely awful from a guest service standpoint. If there was no way to do it without, they should have waited until they found a way.
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> COULD NOT AGREE MORE
> 
> I have never before cried in the Magic Kingdom (and elsewhere at WDW) due to anything other than sentimental emotions and joy.
> 
> Genie+ sent me over the edge a few too many times.
> 
> 
> 
> 570traveler said:
> 
> 
> 
> at HS today. Definitely much quieter than our last 2 visits last week. Currently in line for Alien Saucers. This is our 6th ride today!  Rope dropped for Smugglers and they opened that at 8:00.
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> That sounds soooo wonderful - enjoy! Man, can I have a do over  ?!?!
> 
> And while that is super nice for folks there this week, I have to wonder why they would do that this week when they had mega crowds Thanksgiving week and wouldn’t open anything until 830 on the dot??? I really dislike the inconsistency and constant changing or moving the cheese. It’s a lot of money and time people invest for this experience and into planning the WDW vacation and having so many variables changing around you is an added challenge and stressor.
> 
> Pack your patience
> Expect things to take longer and cost more
> Expect curveballs, plan changes
> Voice your frustration to the powers that be respectfully - emails, phone, GET, etc
> 
> AND Have fun despite or in spite of it all!
Click to expand...


----------



## Figment1990

deltadisney said:


> I’ve read about people having issues with G+ and $LL in certain situations - if I have a room only reservation and have separate park tickets, will it recognize me as a resort guest for purposes of 7:00am booking?  Everything shoes up in MDE, but my park tickets are separate and not part of a vacation package (rented dvc).


We had a room only reservation and separately purchasked park tickets last week and were able to buy ILL$ at 7 am without a problem. It wasnt a rented DVC but our tickets were def purchased separately.


----------



## By-Tor and Snow Pup

This is the first time I have visited this board. I am wondering how WDW guests are feeling about Genie+ overall. Positive? Negative? is it working? How many LL are you getting on a busy day? How do you feel about the regular Genie service? Thank you for the sum up because there is no way I am reading 106 pages of posts!!


----------



## DisneyKidds

scrappinginontario said:


> There is still value to this thread as many others have pointed out, until the new thread is ready.  People can read the last few pages as has widely been recommended to get the gist of things until the new thread is ready to go.


FYI……I edited my OP to indicate that G+ changes have take place that impact strategy discussed earlier in the thread, so that people can fast forward if they want.


----------



## Jrb1979

From reading a lot of things there really is no strategy anymore. At 7am book your headliner but after that people's best bet is take the next ride available. It would be much simpler on people if you get away from a planning mindset. Go with the flow every day at the parks.


----------



## DisneyKidds

Jrb1979 said:


> From reading a lot of things there really is no strategy anymore. At 7am book your headliner but after that people's best bet is take the next ride available. It would be much simpler on people if you get away from a planning mindset. Go with the flow every day at the parks.


For you perhaps….but there are definitely other ways to use G+.  

While the ability to do so successfully is limited by how busy the parks are (and availability of LL returns), stacking is still a valid strategy, even with the tweaks Disney made around Thanksgiving.


----------



## Sydnerella

By-Tor and Snow Pup said:


> This is the first time I have visited this board. I am wondering how WDW guests are feeling about Genie+ overall. Positive? Negative? is it working? How many LL are you getting on a busy day? How do you feel about the regular Genie service? Thank you for the sum up because there is no way I am reading 106 pages of posts!!



I think reading the last 3 pages is a reasonable investment to read the temperature of people. Generally this thread is about strategy but the challenges of the system result in commentary on the system. I’m not a fan.

Genie - worthless for touring to a seasoned WDW traveler, but interesting audio stories and reminders of experiences you might typically bypass

Genie + not a fun system to get what you want and when, and even tougher in crowded times when tech issues abound, but necessary evil to avoid lines

ILL - See G+


----------



## emilymad

By-Tor and Snow Pup said:


> This is the first time I have visited this board. I am wondering how WDW guests are feeling about Genie+ overall. Positive? Negative? is it working? How many LL are you getting on a busy day? How do you feel about the regular Genie service? Thank you for the sum up because there is no way I am reading 106 pages of posts!!



We did not like it. It never seemed worth the money with the exception of ROTR.  Between the 7am start time, looking at your phone all day, and the cost it made for a no fun vacation.  We had a much better time on the days we opted to not use G+. We decided this will be our last trip for awhile. We will see how things look in another 5 years.


----------



## wiggy500

By-Tor and Snow Pup said:


> This is the first time I have visited this board. I am wondering how WDW guests are feeling about Genie+ overall. Positive? Negative? is it working? How many LL are you getting on a busy day? How do you feel about the regular Genie service? Thank you for the sum up because there is no way I am reading 106 pages of posts!!



Opinions will vary wildly about Genie+.  

For myself I had moments where things did not function as I expected that were very frustrating, though in the end everything worked out.  I went on somewhat busy, but not crazy busy days.  The first day I had 7 LL and the second day 4 LL (and I skipped out on going on a 5th LL that I had booked because I didn't feel like it).  I also had one ILL$ each day.  Both days I got to a point in the day where I didn't need more LL's so I stopped booking them.  With two day park hoppers the longest I waited for a ride was 10 minutes for Nemo in Epcot.  So I'm in the positive camp, but nobody is that happy about the additional costs.

Regular Genie I didn't bother with.  I think it's only significant potential is for people unfamiliar with Walt Disney World.


----------



## KrazeeK120

emilymad said:


> We did not like it. It never seemed worth the money with the exception of ROTR.  Between the 7am start time, looking at your phone all day, and the cost it made for a no fun vacation.  We had a much better time on the days we opted to not use G+. We decided this will be our last trip for awhile. We will see how things look in another 5 years.



I haven’t been there since the introduction of the new products, but I didn’t think ROTR was part of G+. I understood it to be ILL$. Do I have something mixed up? I’m still trying to grasp all of this…


----------



## g-dad66

KrazeeK120 said:


> I haven’t been there since the introduction of the new products, but I didn’t think ROTR was part of G+. I understood it to be ILL$. Do I have something mixed up? I’m still trying to grasp all of this…



You're correct.

I think the opinion being expressed included both G+ and ILL$.


----------



## CrimsonTideFan94

What is the best strategy for getting RotR and SDD times early in the morning? I know both of them usually go quickly at 7am and I want to use the early entry time to ride ToT (my favorite) and RnR, then have times booked for both.


----------



## OhhBother

CrimsonTideFan94 said:


> What is the best strategy for getting RotR and SDD times early in the morning? I know both of them usually go quickly at 7am and I want to use the early entry time to ride ToT (my favorite) and RnR, then have times booked for both.


Today is our first day using Genie+. At 7 am, I booked ROTR and my husband booked SDD on his phone.  I got 9:20-10:20 for Rise, and he got 11:10-12:10 for Slinky. I then added MMRR from 10:15-11:15.

Worked out well for us. We actually went to the park for the resort early hours. We arrived at 7:30, and they held us outside Galaxy’s Edge until 7:45. So we rode Rise standby, rode Smuggler’s Run standby, got a snack and then rode our three booked rides - second ROTR ride, SDD and MMRR. We left the park around 11:30, and I’ve been stacking LL ressies to use when we go back to the park after dinner tonight.

It’s worked fairly well for us. Hope that helps.


----------



## hayesdvc

OhhBother said:


> Today is our first day using Genie+. At 7 am, I booked ROTR and my husband booked SDD on his phone.  I got 9:20-10:20 for Rise, and he got 11:10-12:10 for Slinky. I then added MMRR from 10:15-11:15.
> 
> Worked out well for us. We actually went to the park for the resort early hours. We arrived at 7:30, and they held us outside Galaxy’s Edge until 7:45. So we rode Rise standby, rode Smuggler’s Run standby, got a snack and then rode our three booked rides - second ROTR ride, SDD and MMRR. We left the park around 11:30, and I’ve been stacking LL ressies to use when we go back to the park after dinner tonight.
> 
> It’s worked fairly well for us. Hope that helps.




How do you get later times?  I thought it just assigned the next time and you cannot select the time you want.


----------



## OhhBother

hayesdvc said:


> How do you get later times?  I thought it just assigned the next time and you cannot select the time you want.


For the ones I’m stacking, I’ve just been watching the tip board throughout the afternoon (while watching football) and grabbing later ones (one by one every two hours) when they come up. I had to wait awhile to let the times get late enough to suit our schedule. It also helps that we’re having an early dinner.  Hope that makes sense.


----------



## hayesdvc

OhhBother said:


> For the ones I’m stacking, I’ve just been watching the tip board throughout the afternoon (while watching football) and grabbing later ones (one by one every two hours) when they come up. I had to wait awhile to let the times get late enough to suit our schedule. It also helps that we’re having an early dinner.  Hope that makes sense.



Thanks


----------



## katyringo

I'm not a moderator but reminder that there is a whole other Genie+ discussion thread. This is the strategy thread!


----------



## katyringo

Einstein509 said:


> Ok, but you went solo.  I imagine it's a lot easier to get single rider times than a family of 4 or more.  So your sample or example of how the system applies to others may not be accurate.


What do you mean easier to get single rider times? Genie+ Doesn't give different return times based on the number of people in your group.... the times I saw at 9am we're  the times anyone looking saw.

I also feel it necessary to tell you that while I was solo this trip- I am usually a family of 4. I can tell you that genie+ is going to work however you want it to work for your family.

rope droppers and all day park goers will book as they go, sometimes able to book after tapping in and sometimes having to wait 2 hours.

late arrivals can watch for times to get later and start booking for their late arrival. if the times aren't pushed out then you will be able to book as you go once in the park.

rope droppers with a midday break and coming back can book as they go in the morning, and during their break watch the times to book some for later or they may start stacking before they leave for their break.

park hoppers may decide to forgo selections in their first park- use low morning waits- and start to book for their hopping park for the evening.

folks with delux after hours may forgo it all together- saving the big rides for lower waits at night. (I did this with the Christmas after hours)

The do it all family will use $LL, rope drops and genie+ to do everything, maybe multiple times, in a single trip.

hate it, love it, meh about it... it's what we got.. And there is a way to use it for whatever your touring plan style is.


----------



## js

emilymad said:


> We tried G+ yesterday at MK to see how it would work for us.  We arrived around 9:30 with a LL already booked for Jungle Cruise.
> 
> We rode Jungle Cruise, Haunted Mansion, and Splash using LL.  We booked the next available each instead of waiting 2 hours.  We finished this plus snack, lunch, and two smaller rides by 1pm.
> 
> Around noon we decided we would park hop to Epcot.  TT was already gone for  the entire day.  Everything else at Epcot was almost immediately available as stand by times were around 5-10 minutes with the exception of Soarin.  We booked SE as the return time for Soarin was during our ADR.
> 
> So overall we got 4 rides by purposely having no plan for the day on a lower crowd day.  We easily could have gotten all of the same rides with very small wait times if we had arrived for early morning hours.
> 
> Overall, we didn't like G+ and didn't think it worked for our touring strategy (mid-day breaks).  We thought the app was confusing.  Almost every LL entrance had people trying to ride who didn't have LL.  I think a lot of this is because of how confusing the app is.



Hi. Were you able to get into Epcot at noon and not wait until 2 pm by park hopping?

Thank you.


----------



## mrd7896

My experience for our first Genie+ day today:
Group of 11! Thought it would be very challenging and not worth it for HS, we are all adults so we didn’t want to do slinky which helped
-7AM booked Smugglers, in the midst of selecting, our return time dropped from the 10 o clock hour to 11:05. By 7:04 i saw Slinky was already booked up for the day! I’m glad i selected smugglers because that immediately had about a 3PM genie+ Return time while the other attractions available were for 930/940ish. 

-Got to the park, rope dropped Tower and Rnr with a walk on 
-Headed over to Rise-posted 70 minutes, it was about 35 but it’s difficult to say since you’re on the ride before you’re actually on the ride.
-TSM posted a 35, but the line was wrapped all around the outside. Midway through our wait it shot up to 50 minutes and it was pretty much exactly that.
-Tapped into smugglers
-At 11, our next Genie+ choice was a 1:25 ToT. By that point of the day ToT and TSM both had around the same return times. RnR was already around 3 PM for the next Genie+ time and Smugglers was about 7PM iirc.
-Once we tapped in to tower i grabbed a 5:25 RnR.
-That 1:30-5:25 stretch was a bit brutal since that was a pretty peak time at the park.
-We watched a parade, went on Star Tours with a 10 ish minute wait, ended up waiting for MMRR-posted 65 and was just about 50.
-at 3:17 i realized i could make another selection and grabbed TSM for 6:50

(Cut out a lot of our day since this is mostly about my genie+ observations)

Overall, i was pleased with our day. I was definitely very nervous that especially for a group of our size and what I’ve been reading that genie wouldn’t be worth it. But we clearly got everything that we wanted, and multiple times for a few things too.

It definitely is glitchy, 100% of the time when i selected a choice, the actual confirmed time was later. Sometimes a decent bit later which was frustrating 

I hate that you can’t easily modify or refresh the time. There were occasions where i saw an earlier RnR than our 5:25 but i didn’t want to risk taking the time to cancel ours and hope to get an earlier one. That’s rather annoying that they didn’t make that a feature, especially when you have literally 0 control over the time you get. 

We didn’t have any set dining reservations today which definitely helped our case because our day was around the Genie+ times, not the other way around.

5 pm leeway ahead of time is nice i guess. We almost always tapped in at the grace period before. 

I’m sure if i swapped my selection choices and went for RnR second instead of ToT we could’ve squished things together a bit more but oh well. I really wanted to get back to back times but it never panned out

 I’d give it about a 6/10. It was stressful and i kept freaking out that we wouldn’t get to make another selection, or for what we wanted. It ended up working out for sure, but it’s just not the same experience than what I’ve ever been used to. 

This is the only park we are doing Genie+ for so at least i don’t have to worry about it again!


----------



## scrappinginontario

js said:


> Hi. Were you able to get into Epcot at noon and not wait until 2 pm by park hopping?
> 
> Thank you.


They decided earlier that they wanted to hop but you are correct that hopping is not allowed until 2PM.  You may book a LL before you tap into a park though.


----------



## TikiRob

scrappinginontario said:


> They decided earlier that they wanted to hop but you are correct that hopping is not allowed until 2PM.  You may book a LL before you tap into a park though.


So if you have hoppers and plan to park hop, you could theoretically be at Magic Kingdom and book for late afternoon for a hop to HS and evening for a night hop to EPCOT? I think I heard you could also purchase ILL in any park with hoppers, but still max 2. Thinking of grabbing a ROTR and Remi on our MK day to maximize our hops.


----------



## GBRforWDW

TikiRob said:


> So if you have hoppers and plan to park hop, you could theoretically be at Magic Kingdom and book for late afternoon for a hop to HS and evening for a night hop to EPCOT? I think I heard you could also purchase ILL in any park with hoppers, but still max 2. Thinking of grabbing a ROTR and Remi on our MK day to maximize our hops.


Yes you can do that.  If you book LLs for a park where you're not starting, you will get times for after 2pm.  So if you're starting in MK, you could book a SDD at 7am and get an afternoon/evening time slot. Same with the ILL$.

Just remember tho, the 2 hour park opening window starts when the park you book that LL in opens, not the park you're starting.  I think MK and HS usually always starts at 9, but MK on party days does open at 8, so if you were at MK one of those days and wanted to book your second LL in MK, you'd have to wait until 11.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Also in case any offsite guests are waiting to enter their park and looking on here instead of the tip board, RotR still has availability this morning, meaning you might be able to grab an RotR ILL$ as an offsite guest when DHS
opens in 5 minutes.

ETA: And they're gone, lasted a little over a minute after 9am.


----------



## glocon

Wow! I just now looked and there was a 7:50pm available for Rise! Who would have thought? Probably gone as I typed these words, but still… don’t give up hope! Keep checking!


----------



## GBRforWDW

glocon said:


> Wow! I just now looked and there was a 7:50pm available for Rise! Who would have thought? Probably gone as I typed these words, but still… don’t give up hope! Keep checking!


Yep, they were available until just after 9am, so might have had 1 fall back into availability after the 10 minute window.


----------



## DisneyKidds

Question for those who have park hopped using G+.  Is having a hopper ticket sufficient for G+ to offer you reservation times after 2pm in a different park…….or do you have to fill out the Genie itinerary indicating which park you intend to hop to in order for reservations in that park to show up?


----------



## AndreaA

katyringo said:


> on a morning MK day where I didn't rope
> Drop but was in the park early I did:
> 
> mat 7am I purchased LL for SDMT for 1130am
> i booked big thunder for 930
> After tapping into big thunder I got mansion.
> Stand by pirates
> Rode mansion and then booked buzz
> 
> I could have kept going like that all day. The two hour rule only applies if your selection is more than 2 hours away.
> 
> I was able to rope drop and use LL in the morning and take an afternoon break and have some booked in almost every park I went to.
> 
> after using this system I believe it can be used with any type of touring plan..



First, note that you had to BUY access to SDMT.  Doesn’t that give you pause at all?  Something that was previously free, you now have to pay to get.  Second, you lucked out in getting the attractions you mention in the order you wanted them.  Some of us don’t want to rely on luck when we are paying thousands of dollars.  Going to DisneyWorld shouldn’t be like visiting a LasVegas casino…


----------



## Einstein509

katyringo said:


> *What do you mean easier to get single rider times? Genie+ Doesn't give different return times based on the number of people in your group.... the times I saw at 9am we're  the times anyone looking saw.*
> 
> I also feel it necessary to tell you that while I was solo this trip- I am usually a family of 4. I can tell you that genie+ is going to work however you want it to work for your family.
> 
> rope droppers and all day park goers will book as they go, sometimes able to book after tapping in and sometimes having to wait 2 hours.
> 
> late arrivals can watch for times to get later and start booking for their late arrival. if the times aren't pushed out then you will be able to book as you go once in the park.
> 
> rope droppers with a midday break and coming back can book as they go in the morning, and during their break watch the times to book some for later or they may start stacking before they leave for their break.
> 
> park hoppers may decide to forgo selections in their first park- use low morning waits- and start to book for their hopping park for the evening.
> 
> folks with delux after hours may forgo it all together- saving the big rides for lower waits at night. (I did this with the Christmas after hours)
> 
> The do it all family will use $LL, rope drops and genie+ to do everything, maybe multiple times, in a single trip.
> 
> hate it, love it, meh about it... it's what we got.. And there is a way to use it for whatever your touring plan style is.


On your first statement in bold, how do you know that?  Did you look at other people's phones to ascertain that what a family of 5 was showing is what you were showing as a solo user?

I find that hard to believe since the number of people likely impacts the time slot.  Kind of like ADRs.  If you change the number of people when looking for an ADR, different time slots pop up or even different restaurants.

In the old FP+ system, I would sometimes be able to get a single ride return time, but couldn't for the entire family.  The new system likely works the same way.  So I stand by my statement that it's likely easier as a solo than as a group.


----------



## katyringo

AndreaA said:


> First, note that you had to BUY access to SDMT.  Doesn’t that give you pause at all?  Something that was previously free, you now have to pay to get.  Second, you lucked out in getting the attractions you mention in the order you wanted them.  Some of us don’t want to rely on luck when we are paying thousands of dollars.  Going to DisneyWorld shouldn’t be like visiting a LasVegas casino…


Luck? Or did I know what order to go in based on reading strategy?  Do I like paying for rides? No. There is a free option called standby. I did both for this ride because it's my favorite.


----------



## katyringo

Einstein509 said:


> On your first statement in bold, how do you know that?  Did you look at other people's phones to ascertain that what a family of 5 was showing is what you were showing as a solo user?
> 
> I find that hard to believe since the number of people likely impacts the time slot.  Kind of like ADRs.  If you change the number of people when looking for an ADR, different time slots pop up or even different restaurants.
> 
> In the old FP+ system, I would sometimes be able to get a single ride return time, but couldn't for the entire family.  The new system likely works the same way.  So I stand by my statement that it's likely easier as a solo than as a group.


 True. I might be wrong on this one.


----------



## katyringo

I think im going to turn notifications off on this thread. You can read back on my trip and see how genie+ and $LL worked for me.  I like the system. I'll never love it due to the $LL but I like it.   Prior to my trip I read everything I could about it and had a plan in each park. Yes I was a single rider.  So I had access to single rider lines which I used for test track, Everest and smugglers.   The longes line I waited in during my 5 day stay was for Gideon's coffee and I rode everything.  I don't like being told that was all luck.. I read a million posts on here and blogs to plan for my trip and make decisions on what I learned.  I used this system
For all types of days. I had a day I arrived late, I did rope drops and mid day breaks.  Anyway- our next family trip is Disneyland in October and we will use it there if it is launched by then.


----------



## CrimsonTideFan94

DisneyKidds said:


> Question for those who have park hopped using G+.  Is having a hopper ticket sufficient for G+ to offer you reservation times after 2pm in a different park…….or do you have to fill out the Genie itinerary indicating which park you intend to hop to in order for reservations in that park to show up?



They will show up without planning an itinerary - you just have to change which park you’re looking at in the tip board.


----------



## leeniewdw

Hi, just home for our quick 48 hours in the parks.   Had G+ both days and bought 2 ILL$ each day.  We are bringing 4 other adults (our kids and SOs) in Feb, so decided to use our 2 person trip to test as much as we could.

On our arrival day (Fri 12/3) we were planning an afternoon/early evening at DHS and then attending the MK AHs event.  I was literally in line at the airport (flew SW so had to line up) at 7am (we had printed boarding passes in case we were scanning in at 7!).  Anyway, this is what we were able to get before entering the parks around 2:45pm:

7am:  purchased RotR and selected a 3pm return time
7am:  selected MFSR for similar return time
7am:  purchased MMRR and selected a 5ish return time
**breathed a sigh of relief, high fived my DH and the lady behind us in the boarding line laughed**
11am:  selected ToT for 5ish return
1pm:   grabbed TSM because the RnRC times were too late for our plans (to head to MK)
2:45ish:  arrived in DHS with 5 LLs to use!
3pm:  we were in line for MFSR at this point and still couldn't get a good return time for RnRC so just rode the ride and then was able to snag one as we exited for 6:45pm.

My DH thought I was a genius!  The only thing was a little backtracking due to going ToT, TSM, and back to RnRC, but that's minor.   SDD was the only headliner we didn't hit.  We probably could have done it SB (we had 1 break where we sat down and had a beer, probably could have stood in line while enjoying it. We left DHS between 7-8pm having ridden 7 rides (we did ST on SB) in 4.5 hours with 2 beer breaks.

Sat 12/4:

Since we'd done the MK AHs, we opted to skip early entry.  We were hopping to EP on this day. 

7am: purchased FOP for 10am
7am: selected Safari for 10:20am (I think this was the first time the return time jumped for me, from 9:45 to 10:20am after I selected).
7am:  purchased Remy for a return time of 5:10pm
(we ended up heading to AK earlier than we expected and were able to walk on Everest twice around 9am)
10am:  was eligible to make another selection (since we started in AK that opened at 8am),  grabbed TT for 4pm ish.

This is where I may have forgotten that if you are hopping, G+ will automatically offer your later times once you click a ride.  It was showing me next available which was pre-2pm (and we didn't plan on being in EP until 4pm) so I'm not sure if I may have been able to get more appropriate times if I'd tried.  Anyway, due to Epcot's return times, I kept having to refresh to get times that worked with our plans, sometimes it took 20-30 mins.   I wasn't doing it constantly because my issue was not availability, just times.

In the end I ended up with these 4 rides on arrival around 4pm grabbing more than 2 hours apart due to return time wonkiness:

Soarin'
TT
Mission Space
Remy

We ended up losing our Space LL because we got behind due to repeated stoppages on the Skyliner and the LONGEST wait of our entire trip in the TT LL.   I forgot to cancel the Space LL before it expired.  I'm sure I would have been able to rebook at a new time, but it didn't matter we literally walked straight onto the ride w/o seeing another guest in the Orange queue or waiting to board.  The CM joked with us that when he sees only 2 people, they are usually celebrities so he's keep it on the down low that we were there, lol.


My takeways/lesson learned:


Don't forget to click on a ride if you are hopping because it will automatically show you later slots.  The main page won't advance the time until you click!
You might not need G+ in AK or EP but if you are spoiled, you kind of want it anyway.   We still saved time at Soarin' and TT around 4-5pm timeframe.    We used it for exactly 1 ride in AK (Safari) and that SB line was LONG and getting longer.
MMRR is NOT worth whatever they are charging for it.
I had a note with booking times and ride target which made it easy, but I had to set phone alarms to remind me when to book.  No way would it work otherwise.
Once we had our LLs set up, I would refer to my phone and say "we have to ride X and Y by time Z" and then I'd put my phone away for awhile.  I couldn't commit times to memory for more than 2 rides at a time!
Sorry this was so long!


----------



## buzz1fan

If you have a dining reservation at 530, earlier in the day when scheduling genie will it. It bring up times during your dining time? If it doesn’t give you options what do you do?


----------



## holyrita

Einstein509 said:


> On your first statement in bold, how do you know that?  Did you look at other people's phones to ascertain that what a family of 5 was showing is what you were showing as a solo user?
> 
> I find that hard to believe since the number of people likely impacts the time slot.  Kind of like ADRs.  If you change the number of people when looking for an ADR, different time slots pop up or even different restaurants.
> 
> In the old FP+ system, I would sometimes be able to get a single ride return time, but couldn't for the entire family.  The new system likely works the same way.  So I stand by my statement that it's likely easier as a solo than as a group.



@katyringo was right, the number of people does not impact the time slot. This was covered in an AllEars video from the Genie+ media event. They asked this exact question during the Q&A and it was answered by the team that developed Genie+. Back in the day when you walked up to a FastPass distribution kiosk, it would say the time it was currently distributing and it didn't matter how many tickets you scanned, you were given the next available time. 

If you think back to how FastPass+ used to work this makes total sense. Before seeing FastPass+ availability, you selected your party and then browsed times. Now with Genie+, you see all next available times and then select your party. (Granted sometimes your confirmed booking time is later than the time you selected, but that's more due to the app and latency than anything to do with the size of your party)


----------



## wilkydelts

leeniewdw said:


> Hi, just home for our quick 48 hours in the parks.   Had G+ both days and bought 2 ILL$ each day.  We are bringing 4 other adults (our kids and SOs) in Feb, so decided to use our 2 person trip to test as much as we could.
> 
> On our arrival day (Fri 12/3) we were planning an afternoon/early evening at DHS and then attending the MK AHs event.  I was literally in line at the airport (flew SW so had to line up) at 7am (we had printed boarding passes in case we were scanning in at 7!).  Anyway, this is what we were able to get before entering the parks around 2:45pm:
> 
> 7am:  purchased RotR and selected a 3pm return time
> 7am:  selected MFSR for similar return time
> 7am:  purchased MMRR and selected a 5ish return time
> **breathed a sigh of relief, high fived my DH and the lady behind us in the boarding line laughed**
> 11am:  selected ToT for 5ish return
> 1pm:   grabbed TSM because the RnRC times were too late for our plans (to head to MK)
> 2:45ish:  arrived in DHS with 5 LLs to use!
> 3pm:  we were in line for MFSR at this point and still couldn't get a good return time for RnRC so just rode the ride and then was able to snag one as we exited for 6:45pm.
> 
> My DH thought I was a genius!  The only thing was a little backtracking due to going ToT, TSM, and back to RnRC, but that's minor.   SDD was the only headliner we didn't hit.  We probably could have done it SB (we had 1 break where we sat down and had a beer, probably could have stood in line while enjoying it. We left DHS between 7-8pm having ridden 7 rides (we did ST on SB) in 4.5 hours with 2 beer breaks.
> 
> Sat 12/4:
> 
> Since we'd done the MK AHs, we opted to skip early entry.  We were hopping to EP on this day.
> 
> 7am: purchased FOP for 10am
> 7am: selected Safari for 10:20am (I think this was the first time the return time jumped for me, from 9:45 to 10:20am after I selected).
> 7am:  purchased Remy for a return time of 5:10pm
> (we ended up heading to AK earlier than we expected and were able to walk on Everest twice around 9am)
> 10am:  was eligible to make another selection (since we started in AK that opened at 8am),  grabbed TT for 4pm ish.
> 
> This is where I may have forgotten that if you are hopping, G+ will automatically offer your later times once you click a ride.  It was showing me next available which was pre-2pm (and we didn't plan on being in EP until 4pm) so I'm not sure if I may have been able to get more appropriate times if I'd tried.  Anyway, due to Epcot's return times, I kept having to refresh to get times that worked with our plans, sometimes it took 20-30 mins.   I wasn't doing it constantly because my issue was not availability, just times.
> 
> In the end I ended up with these 4 rides on arrival around 4pm grabbing more than 2 hours apart due to return time wonkiness:
> 
> Soarin'
> TT
> Mission Space
> Remy
> 
> We ended up losing our Space LL because we got behind due to repeated stoppages on the Skyliner and the LONGEST wait of our entire trip in the TT LL.   I forgot to cancel the Space LL before it expired.  I'm sure I would have been able to rebook at a new time, but it didn't matter we literally walked straight onto the ride w/o seeing another guest in the Orange queue or waiting to board.  The CM joked with us that when he sees only 2 people, they are usually celebrities so he's keep it on the down low that we were there, lol.
> 
> 
> My takeways/lesson learned:
> 
> 
> Don't forget to click on a ride if you are hopping because it will automatically show you later slots.  The main page won't advance the time until you click!
> You might not need G+ in AK or EP but if you are spoiled, you kind of want it anyway.   We still saved time at Soarin' and TT around 4-5pm timeframe.    We used it for exactly 1 ride in AK (Safari) and that SB line was LONG and getting longer.
> MMRR is NOT worth whatever they are charging for it.
> I had a note with booking times and ride target which made it easy, but I had to set phone alarms to remind me when to book.  No way would it work otherwise.
> Once we had our LLs set up, I would refer to my phone and say "we have to ride X and Y by time Z" and then I'd put my phone away for awhile.  I couldn't commit times to memory for more than 2 rides at a time!
> Sorry this was so long!



I am very confused and maybe I missed a change recently. How did this poster get to choose ideal Genie + return times for rides? I thought you could not choose your time. I thought what was offered is what you can choose or hope to have the luck with refreshing times until you see what you want. Can this poster or someone clarify?


----------



## katyringo

wilkydelts said:


> I am very confused and maybe I missed a change recently. How did this poster get to choose ideal Genie + return times for rides? I thought you could not choose your time. I thought what was offered is what you can choose or hope to have the luck with refreshing times until you see what you want. Can this poster or someone clarify?



the one they selected the times for would be the individual lightning lane rides that code extra. For those you can choose the times and don't have to purchase genie+ To book.


----------



## Loopster

holyrita said:


> @katyringo was right, the number of people does not impact the time slot. This was covered in an AllEars video from the Genie+ media event. They asked this exact question during the Q&A and it was answered by the team that developed Genie+. Back in the day when you walked up to a FastPass distribution kiosk, it would say the time it was currently distributing and it didn't matter how many tickets you scanned, you were given the next available time.
> 
> If you think back to how FastPass+ used to work this makes total sense. Before seeing FastPass+ availability, you selected your party and then browsed times. Now with Genie+, you see all next available times and then select your party. (Granted sometimes your confirmed booking time is later than the time you selected, but that's more due to the app and latency than anything to do with the size of your party)



While this is true, what about all the times someone refreshes for a potential better time? Wouldn’t the availability for those be based on how many people canceled a G+ for a particular time? For example, if one person canceled their 1:15 PM RnR G+, a family of four wouldn’t see that because there was just one available at that time (when let’s say its currently booking out at 3:00 PM…which is what would show up for the family of four), but someone looking for just one person would see the 1:15 available time. Even if a party of three canceled an earlier time slot a family of four still wouldn’t see that, but parties of 1, 2, and 3 would.


----------



## MagicMoon

Who are these people cancelling?  I bet the amount is low.  I know we were not willing to lose our “for sure” rides…

And then, when could you book again?  What if it was a pick from earlier and you made another since then?  Would you cancel only to have to wait another two hours to book again?


----------



## cjlong88

MagicMoon said:


> Who are these people cancelling?  I bet the amount is low.  I know we were not willing to lose our “for sure” rides…



People cancelled their FP’s all the time, so it makes sense that there will be people who cancel their LL’s. There are tens of thousands of people visiting WDW all the time, even if just a small percent of guests cancel, that’s a lot of LL’s being filtered back into the system at a given time.

We cancelled one after we realized we didn’t want to be in the park at that specific time. Kids realize they really don’t want to ride that attraction. Someone in your party doesn’t feel well. An ADR goes long. I’m sure there are more reasons as to why. We aren’t casual guests so we might not cancel our rides at all because we know better and/or can adapt better. Someone who doesn’t visit the boards or go to WDW often might not realize that the LL they have won’t be available later in the day if they cancel and wait too long to book.


----------



## MagicMoon

cjlong88 said:


> People cancelled their FP’s all the time, so it makes sense that there will be people who cancel their LL’s.



Yes, but this isn’t fast past.  

I’m sure you are right, there are some who may cancel and will.  

From my experience thanksgiving week, I only saw one or two attractions pop up that were previously already distributed.  And that was over several days and after many refreshes (my poor family, my face was glued to my phone all week).


----------



## melking23

I would expect that higher crowd days would have less cancelled G+ attractions.  With lower crowds someone could see an earlier available time at another attraction near their current location and cancel their later scheduled attraction instead of waiting to tap in or the 2 hours cool down to pass.


----------



## leeniewdw

wilkydelts said:


> I am very confused and maybe I missed a change recently. How did this poster get to choose ideal Genie + return times for rides? I thought you could not choose your time. I thought what was offered is what you can choose or hope to have the luck with refreshing times until you see what you want. Can this poster or someone clarify?





katyringo said:


> the one they selected the times for would be the individual lightning lane rides that code extra. For those you can choose the times and don't have to purchase genie+ To book.



Yes, I might not have worded this correctly.   At 7am, I selected my times for the paid ILL (RotR, MMRR, FOP, Remy).   When I was looking for my first G+ ride, I had to refresh a few times so the return times worked for our plans.   It didn't take long for MFSR at 7am, but I made sure the return time worked for us before booking it.   

At 1pm on our arrival day, I would have preferred to pick RnRC, but that return time was pretty late, so I selected TSM which WAS offering the timeslot that worked for us.   It took me awhile to find a decent RnRC return time, but I waited to book until a timeslot showed up that did.




MagicMoon said:


> From my experience thanksgiving week, I only saw one or two attractions pop up that were previously already distributed.  And that was over several days and after many refreshes (my poor family, my face was glued to my phone all week).



I can imagine how frustrating that was!  I had really nothing to complain about, but for the times I did have to keep refreshing it was annoying.   However, my goal was getting a perfect time, not just any slot.   If that was my goal, I could have selected a lot faster.   I think RnRC was the only one I targeted that showed Sold Out but would pop a time slot occasionally.   All the other refreshing was just being picky about times. 



melking23 said:


> I would expect that higher crowd days would have less cancelled G+ attractions.  With lower crowds someone could see an earlier available time at another attraction near their current location and cancel their later scheduled attraction instead of waiting to tap in or the 2 hours cool down to pass.



Yes, I'm sure that was the biggest difference.  Currently we plan to return the few days before Pres day (gone on the Sunday) and I expect my experience will be quite different.


----------



## goofynut41

If we get there at rope drop can we do all all star wars first and then LL TOT and SDD?


----------



## JakeAZ

goofynut41 said:


> If we get there at rope drop can we do all all star wars first and then LL TOT and SDD?


We did this Thanksgiving week, however only because we lucked out during the 7am cluster and got a LL for SDD at 10:20am.

We arrived at HS at 7:45am.  Got through bag check and entranced and were queued at the tunnel for about 10 minutes.  Then they started letting us in and the line for ROTR never stopped.  We were on and off the ride before 8:30am.  We went to MFSR next and were off before 9am.  Did all of Toy Story land after and due to the SDD LL, we were done with both lands by 10:45am.

It really just depends on how crowded it is when you go and how lucky you get during the 7am Genie drop for SDD.


----------



## JakeAZ

AndreaA said:


> First, note that you had to BUY access to SDMT.  Doesn’t that give you pause at all?  Something that was previously free, you now have to pay to get.  Second, you lucked out in getting the attractions you mention in the order you wanted them.  Some of us don’t want to rely on luck when we are paying thousands of dollars.  Going to DisneyWorld shouldn’t be like visiting a LasVegas casino…


100% on the money.  It's stupid.  But if you are going, you have to jump through the Disney hoops and play by the Disney rules / rely on luck in order to make sure you're able to enjoy the thousands you've already spent.

For those reasons, we have no plans to return.


----------



## KBL3782

Grasshopper2016 said:


> Were you able to book ILL$ the next day (and subsequent days) at 7:00?  Or did the system still not recognize your Dolphin reservation?  If you were, did you do anything to get the system to recognize it?  We will be staying at the Swan later this month.  We're arriving at night, so we're not going to the parks on arrival day.  But I'm hoping to purchase hard-to-get ILL$s at 7:00 the next morning.  And I'm very concerned about reports of the Genie system not recognizing a Swan or Dolphin reservation, even though it is still showing in MDE.



I stayed at the Dolphin this past weekend & had that issue. My friend had booked the reservation, she was able to buy G+ but I was not (even thought it showed up in MDE). We were fortunate to be at the Christmas party when we realized the problem so a quick stop at Guest Services and they were able to fix it so I had no issue the next morning. I believe it is also something the hotel is able to fix, so it may be worth a call to them prior to arrival or at least talk to them when you check in?


----------



## persnickity

Loopster said:


> While this is true, what about all the times someone refreshes for a potential better time? Wouldn’t the availability for those be based on how many people canceled a G+ for a particular time? For example, if one person canceled their 1:15 PM RnR G+, a family of four wouldn’t see that because there was just one available at that time (when let’s say its currently booking out at 3:00 PM…which is what would show up for the family of four), but someone looking for just one person would see the 1:15 available time. Even if a party of three canceled an earlier time slot a family of four still wouldn’t see that, but parties of 1, 2, and 3 would.



You choose your time before selecting your party - they have purposefully created this system to not factor in the number of riders.  So, yes, the family of four can still see and book a reservation that was dropped by a smaller party. 

If they increase the number of LL reservations allowable per hour in any significant way (surely they are considering this, as waits even during Thanksgiving week were very, very low), they may need to factor in party size before displaying availability.


----------



## Datfan1

Newbie question here. When I stack rides do they still have to be 2 hours apart?


----------



## leeniewdw

Datfan1 said:


> Newbie question here. When I stack rides do they still have to be 2 hours apart?



The return times?  No.   That was never the case.  You can have return times that overlap. The 2 hours is between making reservations if you are not actually going to use the reservation/return time before 2 hours elapses.


----------



## TropicalDIS

Loopster said:


> While this is true, what about all the times someone refreshes for a potential better time? Wouldn’t the availability for those be based on how many people canceled a G+ for a particular time? For example, if one person canceled their 1:15 PM RnR G+, a family of four wouldn’t see that because there was just one available at that time (when let’s say its currently booking out at 3:00 PM…which is what would show up for the family of four), but someone looking for just one person would see the 1:15 available time. Even if a party of three canceled an earlier time slot a family of four still wouldn’t see that, but parties of 1, 2, and 3 would.



I don't think so. I think the new system goes by # of time slots, that's it. If a 1:15 PM time slot is cancelled for LL, then there will be 1 1:15 time slot going back into the system, up for grabs by whomever is quickest to get it.


----------



## BethR9

If I try to book SDMT right at 7am for an ILL, what time should I expect to ride that (meaning what time do you think the first available ILL to book would show up)?  This will be on a crowd level 9 day over MLK weekend.


----------



## DavidNYC

BethR9 said:


> If I try to book SDMT right at 7am for an ILL, what time should I expect to ride that (meaning what time do you think the first available ILL to book would show up)?  This will be on a crowd level 9 day over MLK weekend.


The problem with the phrase "right at 7am" is that you probably are actually talking somewhere between 7am and 7:02 am and seconds make big differences first thing in the morning.  It doesn't look like 7DMT is as nuts as SDD you'll probably still be able to range from early morning to early afternoon depending on how fast your fingers are.


----------



## BethR9

DavidNYC said:


> The problem with the phrase "right at 7am" is that you probably are actually talking somewhere between 7am and 7:02 am and seconds make big differences first think in the morning.  It doesn't look like 7DMT is as nuts as SDD you'll probably still be able to range from early morning to early afternoon depending on how fast your fingers are.



Thank you!  First time using ILL, will choices of times pop up or just one time and I have to take it?  Trying to plan everything else for that day as well so want to be prepared if this throws off my other planned things.


----------



## DavidNYC

BethR9 said:


> Thank you!  First time using ILL, will choices of times pop up or just one time and I have to take it?  Trying to plan everything else for that day as well so want to be prepared if this throws off my other planned things.


I believe the paid rides do offer you choices throughout the day that are available (unlike the regular Genie+ rides).  So you can choose a little later in the day if that works.


----------



## Figment1990

MagicMoon said:


> Who are these people cancelling?  I bet the amount is low.  I know we were not willing to lose our “for sure” rides…
> 
> And then, when could you book again?  What if it was a pick from earlier and you made another since then?  Would you cancel only to have to wait another two hours to book again?


We canceled a LL for Aliens during thanksgiving week just because we were in TSL and our bodies were asking us not to trek over to ToT and then back to TSL. We waited 20 min when we could have waited none with the LL but it was still less time than walking back and forth across the park. We definitely cancelled and didn’t just let it expire.


----------



## Figment1990

BethR9 said:


> Thank you!  First time using ILL, will choices of times pop up or just one time and I have to take it?  Trying to plan everything else for that day as well so want to be prepared if this throws off my other planned things.


For ILL$ you will want to tap on the paid LL on the tip board and then select the hour you are interested in and then the 15 (or so) minute time frame below that and then your party.
For busy times I highly recommend having a plan that allows you to accept a time that is in a 2 hour period and selecting the earlier time, in case by the time u tap thru to the next screen it has jumped forward. For example, we wanted to ride RotR somewhere between 11-12:30, so we were sure to tap 11 and then 11:00 quickly just in case it jumped to 11:30 or 12:00 we would be ok. (Rather than tapping for say 12:00 and ending up with a 12:45 or something that ran into an ADR).

It does seem that there is a 10 min hold once you get to the payment confirmation screen. You will see this message at the top of your screen.

My second recommendation is that if you are trying for a high demand ILL$ and G+ on the same day, ask a second person in your party to do the other. You can do this from the same MDE account on different devices. It is helpful for things like SDD and RotR (or MFSR if u are trying for an early time).

Finally, if you don’t get your ILLs at 7:00, keep trying for at least 10-15 min. Same with G+. This is because of that 10 min hold. It seems to replenish the inventory after the hold.

Andif you find yourself needing to do a 120 min booking at say, 12:04 or 10:03, or 1:02, this is not necessarily a bad thing. More times than not my app would crash on the hour more than on the off minutes. It makes it more difficult to get hard to secure G+ during busy times but it is a tiny bit less stressful than seeing the “we’re sorry, something went wrong” message.


----------



## Sydnerella

MagicMoon said:


> Yes, but this isn’t fast past.
> 
> I’m sure you are right, there are some who may cancel and will.
> 
> From my experience thanksgiving week, I only saw one or two attractions pop up that were previously already distributed.  And that was over several days and after many refreshes (my poor family, my face was glued to my phone all week).



I can corroborate your experience TG week. Not much for cancellations and the G+ LLs were gone earlier than all the times I found when I researched prior to our trip. So by the third booking there was little left sometimes.

And to the point from @katyringo about time spent to be prepared - Many hours were spent figuring out a strategy but much was blown out of the water by the demand and technology limitations, app issues, mid-trip adjustment to how the LL eligibility even worked and ride malfunctions.

I’m sure we fared better than people who don’t know Disney as well nor spent time learning the new system - but it still really sucked to deal with and have my phone out as much as it was needed. Not to mention the GET visits.

I can see how it would be more productive and beneficial in less crowded situations - heck, we got more done 11/20 and 21 than we did the other days at those parks because they hadn’t changed the eligibility rules yet and crowds were not super peak yet.


----------



## Loopster

persnickity said:


> You choose your time before selecting your party - they have purposefully created this system to not factor in the number of riders.  So, yes, the family of four can still see and book a reservation that was dropped by a smaller party.
> 
> If they increase the number of LL reservations allowable per hour in any significant way (surely they are considering this, as waits even during Thanksgiving week were very, very low), they may need to factor in party size before displaying availability.





TropicalDIS said:


> I don't think so. I think the new system goes by # of time slots, that's it. If a 1:15 PM time slot is cancelled for LL, then there will be 1 1:15 time slot going back into the system, up for grabs by whomever is quickest to get it.


Interesting! That makes sense. Thanks for clarifying.


----------



## duder92

Im on site and trying to add genie+ through the app. when I get to the screen to purchase it and scroll down, the button that I assume says next or purchase is blank and nothing happens when I press it. 

Any ideas?


----------



## NMPensFan

duder92 said:


> Im on site and trying to add genie+ through the app. when I get to the screen to purchase it and scroll down, the button that I assume says next or purchase is blank and nothing happens when I press it.
> 
> Any ideas?


This happened to me yesterday. Had to go to front desk and by then everything worthwhile was gone.  LL total waste of money. Today sdd was never an option.  Still refreshing like mad


----------



## leeniewdw

Figment1990 said:


> We canceled a LL for Aliens during thanksgiving week just because we were in TSL and our bodies were asking us not to trek over to ToT and then back to TSL. We waited 20 min when we could have waited none with the LL but it was still less time than walking back and forth across the park. We definitely cancelled and didn’t just let it expire.



Also, if you don't cancel a ride before it expires, you can't rebook it that day.   So if people are running behind or need a break and realize you can't get to the ride before it expires, it makes sense to cancel and then try to rebook.   We accidentally let our Mission Space LL expire because were running behind and TT had a long line (even for LL).   It didn't matter because Space was a walk on, but people will WANT to cancel if they plan on trying to re-book a LL for the same ride.


----------



## Cotta

duder92 said:


> Im on site and trying to add genie+ through the app. when I get to the screen to purchase it and scroll down, the button that I assume says next or purchase is blank and nothing happens when I press it.
> 
> Any ideas?


 
I would delete the app and reload.


----------



## CBMom01

I've read all 110 pages and watched the videos.  Can someone confirm that this is both possible and a good approach for MK.  This assumes day with 8:00 park open:

1.  Buy Genie+ in advance or after midnight day of
2.  7AM: book first LL for (hopefully 11:00);
3.  10AM:  Book 2nd LL (2 hours from park open/4 from booking of first LL).  Let's say I get 2 PM on something.
4.  11AM: Tap into first LL and book 3rd LL - Let's say 3:00 pm
5.  1PM:  Book 4th LL since it's been 2 hours since I booked my most recent LL.  Let's say I get lucky with a 6PM window


Now, at 1PM I have
LL1 - Done at 11 am
LL2 - 2PM window
LL3 - 3PM window
LL4 - 6PM window

I realize I'm being optimistic about the return times being available, but in theory that's how it can work, right?  Then at 3PM I could book another, at 5PM another...and so forth as long as they are available?


----------



## Grasshopper2016

I think your approach may not be possible.  This simplest summary of the rules as they now operate (after the recent elimination of the double-stack) that I have seen is this one.  Once you make a reservation . . .


aimes0105 said:


> you can book another after either:
> 2 hours goes by (2 hours after park open if the booking was made before then) OR you tap into your most recently booked reservation.


So on your time line, you can make LL1 at 7:00, and then LL2 at 10:00.  But you can't make LL3 at 11:00 because the ride you just tapped into was not your most recently booked reservation (or, put differently, it was made more than two hours ago).  Rather, you have to wait until 12:00 to make LL3.   And then you can make LL4 at 2:00, and LL5 at 4:00, etc.  If, at any point, you tap into your most recently booked reservation, you can make a new reservation at that point.  And then the two-hour clock will begin anew.  At least that's how I understand it.


----------



## Miffy

Grasshopper2016 said:


> I think your approach may not be possible.  This simplest summary of the rules as they now operate (after the recent elimination of the double-stack) that I have seen is this one.  Once you make a reservation . . .
> 
> So on your time line, you can make LL1 at 7:00, and then LL2 at 10:00.  But you can't make LL3 at 11:00 because the ride you just tapped into was not your most recently booked reservation (or, put differently, it was made more than two hours ago).  Rather, you have to wait until 12:00 to make LL3.   And then you can make LL4 at 2:00, and LL5 at 4:00, etc.  If, at any point, you tap into your most recently booked reservation, you can make a new reservation at that point.  And then the two-hour clock will begin anew.  At least that's how I understand it.



Now I am completely confused. Is it in fact impossible to have 3 LLs reserved at the same time? What if I make all my LLs for my hopping park? For example, I RD MK and don't use G+ there, instead making all my G+s for Epcot:

7 am: ILL$ for Remy at 4 pm
7 am: G+ for Soarin' at 2 pm
11 am (if Epcot opens at 9): G+ for Nemo at 2:30 pm
1 pm: G+ for SE at 3 pm

No?

I still can't figure out why @CBMom01's approach doesn't work.


----------



## Cotta

Grasshopper2016 said:


> I think your approach may not be possible.  This simplest summary of the rules as they now operate (after the recent elimination of the double-stack) that I have seen is this one.  Once you make a reservation . . .
> 
> So on your time line, you can make LL1 at 7:00, and then LL2 at 10:00.  But you can't make LL3 at 11:00 because the ride you just tapped into was not your most recently booked reservation (or, put differently, it was made more than two hours ago).  Rather, you have to wait until 12:00 to make LL3.   And then you can make LL4 at 2:00, and LL5 at 4:00, etc.  If, at any point, you tap into your most recently booked reservation, you can make a new reservation at that point.  And then the two-hour clock will begin anew.  At least that's how I understand it.



Ok just to make sure I understand! haha... But if the LL made at 12:00 is at 1:00 you could make another after tapping in correct? Since it is the most recently made?


----------



## Disneymom1126

Okay, I have read through this thread and my head is still not completely wrapped around this Genie+ and ILL business. I'm starting to work on plans for our trip in May. Here's an example day...do I have this figured out correctly? We won't be arriving to Epcot until about 3pm and I'm not 100% sure I want to purchase ILL, but for the sake of understanding this, let's just assume that I do decide to purchase. We are staying on site...

at 7:00 a.m. I can purchase ILL for Frozen and book a Genie+ LL for Test Track
at 9:00 a.m. I can purchase ILL for Ratatouille and book another Genie+ LL for Spaceship Earth after the two hour "cool down" period. This would put me at 4 rides that I have LL booked for before I even leave for the park right? or...

Do I have to wait for the second until after the park opening time?
Would I be able to book a third Genie+ LL two hours later at 11:00 a.m. or at that point do I need to wait until I use one? 
I've noticed people saying you don't get to choose your times for the Genie+ LL...does that mean that I couldn't select times in the afternoon knowing I won't arrive until 3 and so really I need to wait until later in the day to start selecting the Genie+ LL selections so I get later hours for them?

Thanks!


----------



## elgerber

Disneymom1126 said:


> Okay, I have read through this thread and my head is still not completely wrapped around this Genie+ and ILL business. I'm starting to work on plans for our trip in May. Here's an example day...do I have this figured out correctly? We won't be arriving to Epcot until about 3pm and I'm not 100% sure I want to purchase ILL, but for the sake of understanding this, let's just assume that I do decide to purchase. We are staying on site...
> 
> at 7:00 a.m. I can purchase ILL for Frozen and book a Genie+ LL for Test Track
> at 9:00 a.m. I can purchase ILL for Ratatouille and book another Genie+ LL for Spaceship Earth after the two hour "cool down" period. This would put me at 4 rides that I have LL booked for before I even leave for the park right? or...
> 
> Do I have to wait for the second until after the park opening time?
> Would I be able to book a third Genie+ LL two hours later at 11:00 a.m. or at that point do I need to wait until I use one?
> I've noticed people saying you don't get to choose your times for the Genie+ LL...does that mean that I couldn't select times in the afternoon knowing I won't arrive until 3 and so really I need to wait until later in the day to start selecting the Genie+ LL selections so I get later hours for them?
> 
> Thanks!


This is not quite accurate.  at 7, you can book Test Track, Frozen and Ratatouille.  You can then book another two hours after the park opens, or when you use Test Track, whichever comes first.  If Test Track is in more than 2 hours after park opens, you can book another and then yes, you would have 4 set up.


----------



## g-dad66

Miffy said:


> Now I am completely confused. Is it in fact impossible to have 3 LLs reserved at the same time? What if I make all my LLs for my hopping park? For example, I RD MK and don't use G+ there, instead making all my G+s for Epcot:
> 
> 7 am: ILL$ for Remy at 4 pm
> 7 am: G+ for Soarin' at 2 pm
> 11 am (if Epcot opens at 9): G+ for Nemo at 2:30 pm
> 1 pm: G+ for SE at 3 pm
> 
> No?
> 
> I still can't figure out why @CBMom01's approach doesn't work.



This will work, because at 1:00, you still haven't tapped into one of the rides yet.

The other example was different because the ride booked at 7am was tapped into at 11am.  That's the difference.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

Miffy said:


> Now I am completely confused. Is it in fact impossible to have 3 LLs reserved at the same time? What if I make all my LLs for my hopping park? For example, I RD MK and don't use G+ there, instead making all my G+s for Epcot:
> 
> 7 am: ILL$ for Remy at 4 pm
> 7 am: G+ for Soarin' at 2 pm
> 11 am (if Epcot opens at 9): G+ for Nemo at 2:30 pm
> 1 pm: G+ for SE at 3 pm
> 
> No?
> 
> I still can't figure out why @CBMom01's approach doesn't work.


You can have 3 or more LLs reserved at the same time.  For instance, at 7:00 you can purchase 2 ILL$ and book one G+.  That gets you 3 right there.  Imagine that the G+LL that you book at 7:00 is for SDD at 8:00 p.m.  (Sadly, this happens.  On busy days, it looks like SDD runs out for the entire day in seconds.)  In that case you could book additional LLs at 11, 1, 3, 5, and 7.  If all of them have a return time at 7:00 or later, and if you booked your ILL$ return times that late, it is possible to have 8 LLs all stacked up at once! 

When you make a G+LL reservation, you can always make another one: 2 hours later (or 2 hours after park opening if the booking was made before then) OR after you tap into your most recently booked reservation.


----------



## Miffy

Grasshopper2016 said:


> You can have 3 or more LLs reserved at the same time.  For instance, at 7:00 you can purchase 2 ILL$ and book one G+.  That gets you 3 right there.  Imagine that the G+LL that you book at 7:00 is for SDD at 8:00 p.m.  (Sadly, this happens.  On busy days, it looks like SDD runs out for the entire day in seconds.)  In that case you could book additional LLs at 11, 1, 3, 5, and 7.  If all of them have a return time at 7:00 or later, and if you booked your ILL$ return times that late, it is possible to have 8 LLs all stacked up at once!
> 
> When you make a G+LL reservation, you can always make another one: 2 hours later (or 2 hours after park opening if the booking was made before then) OR *after you tap into your most recently booked reservation*.



Let me try to understand this!

At 7 am I make a G+ for RideX at 10 am.
At 9 am I make a G+ for RideY at 11 am.
After I ride RideX at 10 am I can't make another G+ until after I ride RideY at 11 am since that's the most recent G+ I made? And what if RideY's G+ is at 7 pm? Do I have to wait until after I ride RideY at 7 pm before I make another G+ since that would be the most recent reservation I made?

Help!!!!

I guess because I would never set it up this way myself it makes no sense to me.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

Miffy said:


> Let me try to understand this!
> 
> At 7 am I make a G+ for RideX at 10 am.
> At 9 am I make a G+ for RideY at 11 am.
> After I ride RideX at 10 am I can't make another G+ until after I ride RideY at 11 am since that's the most recent G+ I made? And what if RideY's G+ is at 7 pm? Do I have to wait until after I ride RideY at 7 pm before I make another G+ since that would be the most recent reservation I made?
> 
> Help!!!!
> 
> I guess because I would never set it up this way myself it makes no sense to me.


I wouldn't set it up this way either!  There are a couple of posters on this thread who understand the IT stuff, and they can explain why this makes more sense to IT people than it does to the rest of us.

As for your scenario . . .  First, you won't be able to make your second LL reservation at 9:00.  Remember that you can't make your second reservation until 2 hours after the park opens.  So, for a 9:00 opening, that isn't until 11:00.  So let's change the times a bit:

At 7 a.m. you make a G+LL for Ride X for noon.
At 11 a.m. you make a G+LL for Ride Y for 1 p.m.
After you ride Ride X at noon, you cannot make another G+LL until either 2 hours since you made your last reservation or your tap into Ride Y (your most recently made reservation).
So you will be eligible to make another reservation for Ride Z at 1:00.  (Or, I guess, 12:55 if you tap into Ride Y during the early grace period.)

So now on to your second scenario:

At 7 a.m. you make a G+LL for Ride X for noon.
At 11 a.m. you make a G+LL for Ride Y for 7 p.m.
After you ride Ride X at noon, you cannot make another G+LL until either 2 hours since your last booking or you tap into Ride Y (your most recently made reservation).
At 1 p.m., you can make a G+LL for Ride Z (since it has been two hours since you made your last reservation).
If you tap into Ride Z before 3 p.m., you can immediately make another reservation for Ride A.  If not (if, say, your Ride Z window doesn't open until 4 p.m.), then you can make a G+LL reservation for Ride A two hours after you made your last reservation, so 3 p.m.
And then, when you tap into Ride Z at 4:00, you can't make another reservation yet (because that wasn't your most recently made G+LL).  You will have to wait until 5:00 (or when you tap into Ride A, whichever is earlier).

All of this can make your head spin.  But if you just reduce it to the one simple rule, it is easier to get your mind around it:  When you make a G+LL reservation, you can always make another one: 2 hours later (or 2 hours after park opening if the booking was made before then) OR after you tap into your most recently booked reservation.


----------



## CBMom01

Grasshopper2016 said:


> I think your approach may not be possible.  This simplest summary of the rules as they now operate (after the recent elimination of the double-stack) that I have seen is this one.  Once you make a reservation . . .
> 
> So on your time line, you can make LL1 at 7:00, and then LL2 at 10:00.  But you can't make LL3 at 11:00 because the ride you just tapped into was not your most recently booked reservation (or, put differently, it was made more than two hours ago).  Rather, you have to wait until 12:00 to make LL3.   And then you can make LL4 at 2:00, and LL5 at 4:00, etc.  If, at any point, you tap into your most recently booked reservation, you can make a new reservation at that point.  And then the two-hour clock will begin anew.  At least that's how I understand it.


Thank you!


----------



## reluctantredhead

_My husband was mostly in charge of Genie+/LL during our trip (I helped as a 2nd with the 7am bookings) and typed up the following observations about the trip we just got back from today. HTH someone! _

We just completed a split stay 11/30-12/3 at the Boardwalk and 12/4-12/7 at the Poly and wouldn’t have had as good a time without the tips on this thread. Thanks to all who have provided such valuable information!  A few observations from our stay:

Getting up before 7a every day had a cumulative effect on us and we wished we had built in more mid-day breaks back at the hotel to compensate. _(Note from me: The adrenaline from trying to book was real and prevented me from going back to sleep; husband was able to without too much difficulty though)._
Hotel WiFi simply cannot handle the load it is being asked to at 7a. We had much better results using the cel network (T-Mobile 5G, 2 bars at both hotels). Once the 7a peak was over, WiFi resort-wide was mostly fine, with exceptions that others have noted.
For the longer term, planning when to go matters a lot more than it did during the FP+ days. After reading horror stories from people who went during Thanksgiving week, we definitely saw benefits from going during a less crowded period.
We opted for the deliberate park hopping strategy and that served us well. Morning at Epcot paired with an evening at DHS and morning at AK paired with an evening at MK. Rope drop the first park and start stacking at the 2nd park as early as possible.  While stacking didn’t work as well as it appears to have for others pre-Thanksgiving rule change, it still helped. Would help more if you could select your own return time after what is currently available, but the current system is what it is.
_General observation from me:  I strongly prefer the old FP+ system to the new G+/LL/ILL$ system. We found it difficult to mesh LL times with ADRs and opted to cancel many of the ADRs we'd made for later in the week because we found it frustrating to work them around available LL times. I also disliked not knowing when we got up each day whether we'd be able to ride something or not (yes, I understand that for most rides you can use the standby queues, but at our ages and for our current work/tiredness level, that's just not always an option for us). I feel like we accomplished quite a bit less this trip, with more exhaustion and stress. Pre-pandemic we'd been making 3-4 trips per year, but to be honest, I will think long and hard and really explore other options before I agree to go back. Makes me sad to say, and it doesn't mean we won't visit occasionally, but this wasn't the relaxing and mainly stress-free trip we needed right now._


----------



## tsme

I’m so confused. We buy Genie+ Then at 7am we can book one ride, but the return time has to be at 11am or later (if park opens at 9am), right? Then we can’t try to book another until 11am? And ride times have to be 2 hours apart? So if I’m reading this right, you can’t technically have any rides booked before 11am? Is this correct?


----------



## elgerber

tsme said:


> I’m so confused. We buy Genie+ Then at 7am we can book one ride, but the return time has to be at 11am or later (if park opens at 9am), right? Then we can’t try to book another until 11am? And ride times have to be 2 hours apart? So if I’m reading this right, you can’t technically have any rides booked before 11am? Is this correct?


No this is not correct. You can book for as early as there are spots available. They all start at park opening. Some biok faster than others. You can then book another 2 hours after park opening or as soon as you use the first one you have booked. Whichever comes first.


----------



## Pookie9922

tsme said:


> I’m so confused. We buy Genie+ Then at 7am we can book one ride, but the return time has to be at 11am or later (if park opens at 9am), right? Then we can’t try to book another until 11am? And ride times have to be 2 hours apart? So if I’m reading this right, you can’t technically have any rides booked before 11am? Is this correct?



The two rules of booking a LL
1) It's been 2 hours since you booked a LL (or 2 hours after the park opened, if you booked at 7am)
or
2) You tapped in on your most recently booked LL

You can book a ride before 11am. When you tap in, you'll be able to book another one immediately (under rule #2).
Some people have said this is the strategy they'll use. I personally will go with the old adage that I'd rather save LL for when lines are longer later in the day and wait standby in the morning before the lines get too long. That's why most of the scenarios people are suggesting have the 1st return window later than 11am. But you're welcome to book an early return, tap in and book another ride.

I hope Disney sees how confused they've made people! This is not a straightforward system, whatsoever!


----------



## tsme

Thank you.


----------



## aimes0105

There was a discussion way back around page 85 where dmunsil broke it down from a programming perspective that helped this click for me.

Basically the system is programmed with a simple eligibility rule that resets each time you book a LL.

When you book a LL a 2 hour timer starts, you either need to wait until the end of that timer or use that LL to reset eligibility. If you wait the two hours to book another, now a new eligibility rule is set based on that booking, and your earlier booked LL has no effect on future eligibility. You either wait the two hours from when you booked your new LL or you need to use it to reset your eligibility.

It is basically blind to any other LL you have booked. The only one that matters for eligibility to book another is the most recent booking.

Which is just another (more complicated) way of saying what I originally said a few pages back, but sometimes stating it differently helps.


----------



## Miffy

Grasshopper2016 said:


> I wouldn't set it up this way either!  There are a couple of posters on this thread who understand the IT stuff, and they can explain why this makes more sense to IT people than it does to the rest of us.
> 
> As for your scenario . . .  First, you won't be able to make your second LL reservation at 9:00.  Remember that you can't make your second reservation until 2 hours after the park opens.  So, for a 9:00 opening, that isn't until 11:00.  So let's change the times a bit:
> 
> At 7 a.m. you make a G+LL for Ride X for noon.
> At 11 a.m. you make a G+LL for Ride Y for 1 p.m.
> After you ride Ride X at noon, you cannot make another G+LL until either 2 hours since you made your last reservation or your tap into Ride Y (your most recently made reservation).
> So you will be eligible to make another reservation for Ride Z at 1:00.  (Or, I guess, 12:55 if you tap into Ride Y during the early grace period.)
> 
> So now on to your second scenario:
> 
> At 7 a.m. you make a G+LL for Ride X for noon.
> At 11 a.m. you make a G+LL for Ride Y for 7 p.m.
> After you ride Ride X at noon, you cannot make another G+LL until either 2 hours since your last booking or you tap into Ride Y (your most recently made reservation).
> At 1 p.m., you can make a G+LL for Ride Z (since it has been two hours since you made your last reservation).
> If you tap into Ride Z before 3 p.m., you can immediately make another reservation for Ride A.  If not (if, say, your Ride Z window doesn't open until 4 p.m.), then you can make a G+LL reservation for Ride A two hours after you made your last reservation, so 3 p.m.
> And then, when you tap into Ride Z at 4:00, you can't make another reservation yet (because that wasn't your most recently made G+LL).  You will have to wait until 5:00 (or when you tap into Ride A, whichever is earlier).
> 
> All of this can make your head spin.  But if you just reduce it to the one simple rule, it is easier to get your mind around it:  When you make a G+LL reservation, you can always make another one: 2 hours later (or 2 hours after park opening if the booking was made before then) OR after you tap into your most recently booked reservation.


I'm copying this and sending it to myself. I think I understand this. But do I? Ack!!!


----------



## Boardwalk III

Einstein509 said:


> On your first statement in bold, how do you know that?  Did you look at other people's phones to ascertain that what a family of 5 was showing is what you were showing as a solo user?
> 
> I find that hard to believe since the number of people likely impacts the time slot.  Kind of like ADRs.  If you change the number of people when looking for an ADR, different time slots pop up or even different restaurants.
> 
> In the old FP+ system, I would sometimes be able to get a single ride return time, but couldn't for the entire family.  The new system likely works the same way.  So I stand by my statement that it's likely easier as a solo than as a group.


I had a group of 6-8  mid November. I found with the larger group LL bookings, it would show me a time but when I clicked to the next page to book it would often show a couple of hours later on the booking page. I suspect this is due to the larger group size, and was frustrating.


----------



## Miffy

Grasshopper2016 said:


> I wouldn't set it up this way either!  There are a couple of posters on this thread who understand the IT stuff, and they can explain why this makes more sense to IT people than it does to the rest of us.
> 
> As for your scenario . . .  First, you won't be able to make your second LL reservation at 9:00.  Remember that you can't make your second reservation until 2 hours after the park opens.  So, for a 9:00 opening, that isn't until 11:00.  So let's change the times a bit:
> 
> At 7 a.m. you make a G+LL for Ride X for noon.
> At 11 a.m. you make a G+LL for Ride Y for 1 p.m.
> After you ride Ride X at noon, you cannot make another G+LL until either 2 hours since you made your last reservation or your tap into Ride Y (your most recently made reservation).
> So you will be eligible to make another reservation for Ride Z at 1:00.  (Or, I guess, 12:55 if you tap into Ride Y during the early grace period.)
> 
> So now on to your second scenario:
> 
> At 7 a.m. you make a G+LL for Ride X for noon.
> At 11 a.m. you make a G+LL for Ride Y for 7 p.m.
> After you ride Ride X at noon, you cannot make another G+LL until either 2 hours since your last booking or you tap into Ride Y (your most recently made reservation).
> At 1 p.m., you can make a G+LL for Ride Z (since it has been two hours since you made your last reservation).
> If you tap into Ride Z before 3 p.m., you can immediately make another reservation for Ride A.  If not (if, say, your Ride Z window doesn't open until 4 p.m.), then you can make a G+LL reservation for Ride A two hours after you made your last reservation, so 3 p.m.
> And then, when you tap into Ride Z at 4:00, you can't make another reservation yet (because that wasn't your most recently made G+LL).  You will have to wait until 5:00 (or when you tap into Ride A, whichever is earlier).
> 
> All of this can make your head spin.  But if you just reduce it to the one simple rule, it is easier to get your mind around it:  When you make a G+LL reservation, you can always make another one: 2 hours later (or 2 hours after park opening if the booking was made before then) OR after you tap into your most recently booked reservation.


@Grasshopper: Your explanation is so incredibly helpful. I just studied it and I feel confident that I now understand how this works.

It seems like the best strategy is to book one's G+s either at the hopped-to park or to not go to the reserved park until later in the day, since, hopefully, by then, you'd have a stack of, say, 2 G+s and 1 or 2 ILL$.

Gee, good thing this doesn't cost even more than it already does. I feel like I'm going to have to buy G+ for every day of the upcoming trip that I'm not RDing. And buying ILL$ for FoP, RotR, and Remy.

Fortunately I don't mind getting up to reserve things at 7. I'm up at 5 anyway.

I seriously wish if WDW just wanted more money they would've let you book G+ and ILL$ in advance, a la the old FP+ system. It only works on the fly in an idealized scenario where everything is available all day . . . which is not how it's working.


----------



## aimes0105

Boardwalk III said:


> I had a group of 6-8  mid November. I found with the larger group LL bookings, it would show me a time but when I clicked to the next page to book it would often show a couple of hours later on the booking page. I suspect this is due to the larger group size, and was frustrating.


This has been widely reported by lots of people (even solo travelers) and seems to be a product of multiple people booking at once and the fastest gets the first time and others get pushed out later.


----------



## leeniewdw

reluctantredhead said:


> Getting up before 7a every day had a cumulative effect on us and we wished we had built in more mid-day breaks back at the hotel to compensate. _(Note from me: The adrenaline from trying to book was real and prevented me from going back to sleep; husband was able to without too much difficulty though)._



We were only in the parks for 2 days last weekend and 1 was our arrival day, but on day 2 our plan was to grab our 7am stuff and go back to sleep as we'd attended the MK AHs on Friday night and got to bed late.  BUT.... we found that neither of us could go back to sleep.   So we laid there and decided to go ahead and get up.  We grabbed breakfast sandwich from the food court, ate them back in our room and then headed out to AK.   It worked out fine as we were able to ride Everest twice with no wait (arrived around 9am) before we headed to our ILL$ (FOP) and our LL (Safari).   By that time the park was getting very crowded (the Gorilla trail was WAY too crowded to be enjoyable) and we didn't really care to ride anything else and left (and went back for lunch, nap, pool time).  In the end, it worked out fine and skipping early entry at least gave us an extra hour of sleep I guess.   But I could see this being a real pain morning after morning if you weren't planning to be up.


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## Grasshopper2016

leeniewdw said:


> our plan was to grab our 7am stuff and go back to sleep as we'd attended the MK AHs on Friday night and got to bed late. BUT.... we found that neither of us could go back to sleep.


This is exactly what I'm afraid of!


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## melking23

What I’m seeing is people confusing ILL$ (individually paid) with G+ (per day paid).
How many attractions you can book per day shouldn’t have ILL$ included in your calculations because you can’t book G+ for those rides anyway.  IGNORE ILL$ AT THIS POINT.

Let’s say’s I’m going to MK.  The park opens at 8AM and closes at 8PM.  The + is for booking G+, the - is for using booked G+.  This example is strictly using the 2-hour cool down period between bookings:
+At 7AM I book Haunted Mansion for 1PM
+At 10AM I book Jungle Cruise for 3:30PM
+At 12PM I book Big Thunder Mountain Railroad for 5:15PM
-At 1PM, tap into Haunted Mansion
+At 2PM I book Splash Mountain for 4:30PM
-At 3:30PM, tap into Jungle Cruise
+At 4PM I book Buzz for 7PM
-At 4:30PM, tap into Splash Mountain
-At 5:15PM, tap into Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
+At 6PM I book Barnstormer for 7:30PM
-At 7PM, tap into Buzz
-At 7:30PM, tap into Barnstormer

On slower crowd days you might be able to book earlier return times than 2 hours out.  We’ll use MK’s same 8AM-8PM hours and rides but switch up the return times.  This example uses a mix of tap and book and the 2-hour cool down:
+At 7AM I book Haunted Mansion for 9:15AM
-At 9:15AM, tap into Haunted Mansion
+At 9:15AM I book Jungle Cruise for 11:30AM
+At 11:15AM I book Big Thunder Mountain Railroad for 12:45PM
-At 11:30AM, tap into Jungle Cruise
-At 12:45PM, tap into Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
+At 12:45PM I book Splash Mountain for 4:15PM
+At 2:45PM I book Buzz for 5PM
-At 4:15PM, tap into Splash Mountain
+At 4:45PM I book Barnstormer for 6PM
-At 5PM, tap into Buzz
-At 6PM, tap into Barnstormer
+At 6PM I book Small World for 7:30PM
-At 7:30PM, tap into Small World

You have to base the next booking on the previous booking.  If your last booked attraction is under 2 hours away, you can book as soon as you’ve tapped in (the 2nd tapstile on some attractions).  If your last booked attraction is more than 2 hours away then you have to wait 2 hours between bookings.

Keep in mind that you don’t exactly get to choose your attraction window.  The next available window will show.  If you don’t like that window, choose a different attraction within the window you need or refresh and hope the window you’re looking for at the attraction you want opens soon for booking.

Let’s say I booked Seven Dwarves Mine Train and Space Mountain ILL$ and they’re in there somewhere.  I did not list them because they have no bearing on what I book or tap into using G+.  Listing them would only cause confusion.


----------



## Rigby

If I have a return lightning lane time for Rise at 5 p.m. and I show up at 7:30 p.m. can I still get on the ride? Thanks!


----------



## JakeAZ

Rigby said:


> If I have a return lightning lane time for Rise at 5 p.m. and I show up at 7:30 p.m. can I still get on the ride? Thanks!


Maybe. It really depends on the CM at the LL entrance. I wouldn’t take that chance though. Also, with so much downtime, the ride might be offline later in the night.


----------



## bjcaed

Long time disney vacationer but man this Genie plus has me spinning.
We will be at MK and will rope drop.  We will take a mid day break, bad knees,....Park opens at 8:00, we will be in line for Fantasyland at 7:30.
Here is my question.  At 7:00 should i book Jungle cruise for early morning, say 9:00 this gives us time to do BTR and Pirates right after 8:00 opening, then after tapping in to JC just book new LL and repeat each LL until Lunch at noon.  After last LL before lunch has been used, then start booking LL for after our 5:00 return to the park?  HOw do I stack for the evening?
I dont even know if any of this makes sense......
We will be back later in the week for Christmas after hours so whatever we don't ride first day we will get to then.


----------



## princesswahooey

bjcaed said:


> Long time disney vacationer but man this Genie plus has me spinning.
> We will be at MK and will rope drop.  We will take a mid day break, bad knees,....Park opens at 8:00, we will be in line for Fantasyland at 7:30.
> Here is my question.  At 7:00 should i book Jungle cruise for early morning, say 9:00 this gives us time to do BTR and Pirates right after 8:00 opening, then after tapping in to JC just book new LL and repeat each LL until Lunch at noon.  After last LL before lunch has been used, then start booking LL for after our 5:00 return to the park?  HOw do I stack for the evening?
> I dont even know if any of this makes sense......
> We will be back later in the week for Christmas after hours so whatever we don't ride first day we will get to then.


In theory this works, but you really can't count on getting a return time that early to JC. You only get next available time and JC is most popular at MK, which means it will probably push out to early afternoon depending on crowds. It would be sheer luck or a very empty day if you actually secure that 9am return.


----------



## bjcaed

princesswahooey said:


> In theory this works, but you really can't count on getting a return time that early to JC. You only get next available time and JC is most popular at MK, which means it will probably push out to early afternoon depending on crowds. It would be sheer luck or a very empty day if you actually secure that 9am return.


even booking JC at 7:00?  I have seen it go fairly fast but not slinkydog fast. I f not I will just book someting else I guess.  JC is not a must do for us but its cute


----------



## princesswahooey

bjcaed said:


> even booking JC at 7:00?  I have seen it go fairly fast but not slinkydog fast. I f not I will just book someting else I guess.  JC is not a must do for us but its cute


Getting the first return window for any most popular rides is not guaranteed. And even if it says 9am when you click on it, by the time you finalize it could already be bumped to 10 or 11 or later depending on crowds. Check out Thrill Data for return times and you'll see how quickly they go. Not say it's impossible, just saying have a plan B.


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## jeneric997

So after reading this I have 2 scenarios for tomorrow and I am wondering which is better:
I am flying in and can't get to the park before 11:30 am.

Should I 
A: make the first LL for 11:30 am and then just tap and move on
or
B: make first LL for after 1pm (ie: Jungle Cruise) then at 11am make one for any ride that was available as close to 11:30am (ie: Dumbo)- would I be able to tap after the Dumbo one since it was the last one I booked? Is this possible?


----------



## JakeAZ

jeneric997 said:


> So after reading this I have 2 scenarios for tomorrow and I am wondering which is better:
> I am flying in and can't get to the park before 11:30 am.
> 
> Should I
> A: make the first LL for 11:30 am and then just tap and move on
> or
> B: make first LL for after 1pm (ie: Jungle Cruise) then at 11am make one for any ride that was available as close to 11:30am (ie: Dumbo)- would I be able to tap after the Dumbo one since it was the last one I booked? Is this possible?


Tomorrow will probably be crowded, so I would just see what you can get at 7am and adjust.

An ideal scenario would be something for around 11:30am and then book again at 11am for something else.  Then you'll be able to book again at 1 or tap in.


----------



## swummyh20

Take screenshots of everything you book!! I am so frustrated!

We have had 5 separate times in the last two days where we booked a specific time for something (even the paid ROTR!!) and when we go back to the app, the TIMES HAVE CHANGED. I am not even talking about clicking on the 1025 SDD LL but then a moment later it’s telling me 1pm in the confirmation. I’m talking about we booked and paid for the 1130 ROTR at 7am and when we went to the app to plan something else, it was changed to 1230pm. Or the test track we booked for 805pm being changed to 905pm.

Has this happened to anyone else??


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## LSUfan4444

Grasshopper2016 said:


> I think your approach may not be possible.  This simplest summary of the rules as they now operate (after *the recent elimination of the double-stack*) that I have seen is this one.  Once you make a reservation . . .


Take a few days off from this fast moving thread, focus on other things and read this....I can't keep up anymore.

On page 110 trying to see what I missed


----------



## LSUfan4444

So with the elimination of the double stack, that basically means you just can't have multiple "lines/stacks" created and continuing to expand?

In it's simplest explanation, you can book another G+ two hours from the last G+ reservation you made OR once you tap into the most recent G+ you made...regardless of what time you're making those reservations for? Is that correct?


----------



## GBRforWDW

LSUfan4444 said:


> So with the elimination of the double stack, that basically means you just can't have multiple "lines/stacks" created and continuing to expand?
> 
> In it's simplest explanation, you can book another G+ two hours from the last G+ reservation you made OR once you tap into the most recent G+ you made...regardless of what time you're making those reservations for? Is that correct?


That's correct


----------



## ScarletFire

Wow!  This thread continues to evolve.  I've not read all pages and I don't think I need too.  DH & I using Genie+ at DHS on December 22.  And, we are staying offsite for the first time in over 20 years.  

I have lots of learning in order to maximize Genie+.  At least it's just the two of us.  We usually have several family and friends depending on me to make the pixie dust happen.  It's my thing!!! 

Thanks DisBoards!!


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## CBMom01

Would love to hear reviews and advice from folks who used G+ with their first choice at HS being anything other than SDD.  SDD being gone at 7:00:01 seems to be dominating the conversation.


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## JakeAZ

CBMom01 said:


> Would love to hear reviews and advice from folks who used G+ with their first choice at HS being anything other than SDD.  SDD being gone at 7:00:01 seems to be dominating the conversation.


MFSM runs into the evening fairly quick too, on crowded days. But there are still times available after the 7am rush.

You can get early return times for any other ride.


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## EjandMD

I tried to search but didn't see my issue.  Arriving at 11 am MCO, Uber to Riverside, drop bags off to MK.  Genie + yes?  We will log on 7 am before we get on the plane to pick LL for SDMT and we can pick a 1 p.m ride as well?  Will everything be gone?  We arrive Dec 15, short trip really there for a dog event but squeezing in 2 days at Disney.


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## GBRforWDW

EjandMD said:


> I tried to search but didn't see my issue.  Arriving at 11 am MCO, Uber to Riverside, drop bags off to MK.  Genie + yes?  We will log on 7 am before we get on the plane to pick LL for SDMT and we can pick a 1 p.m ride as well?  Will everything be gone?  We arrive Dec 15, short trip really there for a dog event but squeezing in 2 days at Disney.


Not sure if this is what you're asking, but for Genie+ rides, you cannot select a time.  If you're able to wait a bit, not sure when your flight leaves, but jungle cruise or Peter pan times may get out past 1pm before your takeoff allowing you to grab that, then you can select another ride at 11am.

The sdmt ILL$ will allow you to select the time so that won't be an issue.


----------



## AZMermaid

swummyh20 said:


> Take screenshots of everything you book!! I am so frustrated!
> 
> We have had 5 separate times in the last two days where we booked a specific time for something (even the paid ROTR!!) and when we go back to the app, the TIMES HAVE CHANGED. I am not even talking about clicking on the 1025 SDD LL but then a moment later it’s telling me 1pm in the confirmation. I’m talking about we booked and paid for the 1130 ROTR at 7am and when we went to the app to plan something else, it was changed to 1230pm. Or the test track we booked for 805pm being changed to 905pm.
> 
> Has this happened to anyone else??


I’ve read of this happening because people were still looking at the tip board tab with current genie times vs the my day tab. could that be it?


----------



## MomEadon

So it says we have our park tickets with genie + 

But whenever I try to use Disney lenses it brings me to a purchase genie plus screen

so now I’m worried something is wrong? It’s not 7 am yet but shouldn’t I see it’s there or something? I see no way to use it when it’s time


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## LSUfan4444

CBMom01 said:


> Would love to hear reviews and advice from folks who used G+ with their first choice at HS being anything other than SDD.  SDD being gone at 7:00:01 seems to be dominating the conversation.


This is where we are at. HS is out first park and have zero interest in Slinky Dog, we don't think it's that great of an attraction.

Our plan is to book a ILL for Rise first shooting for a return time of around 11:30-1. Then (or simultaneously with someone else signed into the same account) try to nab a G+ for Smugglers Run either just before or right after the rise window but something after 11 am. At 11 am we plan to book another using the two hour rule since the park opens at 9 and not really sure what the goal will be but will look for something with a return time around when our Rise window ends. if we don't find anything at 11 am that we like in Hollywood we are going to look over at Magic Kingdom in the evening so we can do Splash before it closes for refurb.


----------



## disneykate914

LSUfan4444 said:


> This is where we are at. HS is out first park and have zero interest in Slinky Dog, we don't think it's that great of an attraction.
> 
> Our plan is to book a ILL for Rise first shooting for a return time of around 11:30-1. Then (or simultaneously with someone else signed into the same account) try to nab a G+ for Smugglers Run either just before or right after the rise window but something after 11 am. At 11 am we plan to book another using the two hour rule since the park opens at 9 and not really sure what the goal will be but will look for something with a return time around when our Rise window ends. if we don't find anything at 11 am that we like in Hollywood we are going to look over at Magic Kingdom in the evening so we can do Splash before it closes for refurb.


I booked ILL for Rise on one of our Hollywood days right at 7.  I did it quickly and was able to choose our desired time (4 pm) without issue.  I remember all of the times seemed available.  It was our second day at Hollywood and I chose not to by Genie Plus.  The first day we had it and by our 11 selection window there was nothing really available.  Yes, Star Tours and Muppets were available but those were low wait or walk on.  

If I were you I'd have someone trying to get Smugglers Run at the same time you were getting Rise.  On the day we got Genie Plus, Smugglers Run was gone by the time I could book again (that was the day I got SDD at 7 am).  We just waited in line for Smugglers Run (multiple times too).

My experience was the week of Thanksgiving so it was really crowded.  Genie Plus at Hollywood just didn't seem worth it on those days.


----------



## 3gr8boys

Selket said:


> *** *edited to say I was able to add one son after he made his own account so I think it is working for us - thanks!*
> 
> So the other 3 (DH, & two young adults) do not have MDE.  Right now I see their park tickets, park reservations, etc.  So from what you're saying they can create their own MDE account and choose to share their plans with me.   How does MDE pick up that the person named "Bob" in my account is my child named "Bob" who just made his own MDE?



I didn't  see an answer to you initial  question in the thread despite reading through several pages. I have been wondering  the same thing as I have to decide whether  one of my sons should have his own MDE.  When your son made his own account, what seemed to tell MDE that he was the same "Bob" as the one in your MDE?  I am nervous about messing  up park reservations  and, in general, my friends and family list.


----------



## Selket

3gr8boys said:


> I didn't  see an answer to you initial  question in the thread despite reading through several pages. I have been wondering  the same thing as I have to decide whether  one of my sons should have his own MDE.  When your son made his own account, what seemed to tell MDE that he was the same "Bob" as the one in your MDE?  I am nervous about messing  up park reservations  and, in general, my friends and family list.



He made an account with his email address and name and so on (his details) and then he sent me an invitation to link to him to the email I use for MDE.  Or it could be that I sent him the invitation.  *Actually I think I sent it to him ... *I would look for that option first.  I think on MY family and friends page there was a link there to send him a link invitation and I sent it to the email he used for his MDE account.

Once linked he could see his ticket and his park reservations.   To do something that required money (like mobile ordering or buying LL pass) he would need to put a credit card on his account I think.  I don't think the payment info on YOUR account would carry over to him just cause you two are linked now.   I could still see him in my account.  One of my sons changed his park reservation (had the front desk at the resort do it or Guest Services in the park) and I think I could see that also.   I also was able to make one son a $LL for something he wanted that the other one didn't - and I bought Genie + for 2 days for one son and myself when the other son had other plans.  So I was still able to make plans for both - I presume they could have done the same for me.

I suggest taking screen shots of his park reservations and tickets if you're concerned it will vaporize but it was actually super simple in the end!


----------



## disneylover102

I’m guessing this has been discussed somewhere in the 112 pages lol but I’m going to Disneyland next month and since there’s not a lot of G+ experience there yet I’m wondering what WDW people have experienced with this. And also this will be nice to know when I’m at WDW for the DCP in the spring!

What exactly happens when a ride you bought an individual lightning lane for breaks down? Can you use it on any ILL ride the rest of the day? I thought I remembered all ears saying you could actually buy a 3rd one? So for example could I book an ILL for Rise, have Rise break down, use it on MMRR instead, and then also book 2 more for say FOP and Ratatouille? Lol does that make sense?

Also what happens when a normal G+ ride breaks down when you have a pass for it? Say a ride like Winnie the Pooh breaks down and I have G+ for it, can I now use that on any other G+ ride such as Thunder Mountain Railroad?


----------



## lexybear

I had no idea you couldn't pick your return time to an attraction like you can with lightning lane.. I'm going to epcot later in day so I was trying to coordinate around my Remy time at 630pm. I should of did some research on genie+ before buying lol. Is there a reason why they don't let you pick?


----------



## LSUfan4444

disneykate914 said:


> If I were you I'd have someone trying to get Smugglers Run at the same time you were getting Rise.



Definitely what we were thinking...the only problem is, I am running the 10K with my daughter that morning so need to make sure we are done in time


----------



## tinkerhon

My SINCERE apologies if this has been asked (and answered !) already---   leaving next week, and stressing over this !!  Can you book Genie+ or "ILL" from a laptop (via MDE) or just from the APP?   I dont usually go thru the app, as Ive always been able to do everything that I needed (FPs (miss you!).  ADRs, hotel ressies, etc) on the laptop-   Thanks so much, and once again... apologies !!


----------



## GBRforWDW

tinkerhon said:


> My SINCERE apologies if this has been asked (and answered !) already---   leaving next week, and stressing over this !!  Can you book Genie+ or "ILL" from a laptop (via MDE) or just from the APP?   I dont usually go thru the app, as Ive always been able to do everything that I needed (FPs (miss you!).  ADRs, hotel ressies, etc) on the laptop-   Thanks so much, and once again... apologies !!


I don't see any options for this though I'm not in the park today.  Also, since you can only get 1 G+, plus your ILL$, at 7am, what would your plan be the rest of the day to grab next G+ rides?


----------



## Tom_E_D

tinkerhon said:


> My SINCERE apologies if this has been asked (and answered !) already---   leaving next week, and stressing over this !!  Can you book Genie+ or "ILL" from a laptop (via MDE) or just from the APP?   I dont usually go thru the app, as Ive always been able to do everything that I needed (FPs (miss you!).  ADRs, hotel ressies, etc) on the laptop-   Thanks so much, and once again... apologies !!


You need the app to book the rides. For Genie+, I found the following on this Disney webpage:

*How to Purchase*

*Before Your Visit:*
Available as an add-on to a ticket or vacation package for the duration of visit. Purchase via Disneyworld.com or authorized travel professionals.
*Same Day of Visit:*
Available for single-day use for existing ticket holders or Annual Passholders. Purchase via Disney Genie service in the My Disney Experience mobile app.
*When to Select Attractions*
Once you have Disney Genie+ service, you can select the next available arrival window for your first experience via the My Disney Experience mobile app beginning at 7:00 AM on the day of your visit.
Once you’ve redeemed your initial selection (or the arrival window has passed), you can use the app to check your My Day itinerary or Tip Board to see when you’re eligible to make another selection. You can make selections all day up to regular park closing.


----------



## tinkerhon

Tom_E_D said:


> You need the app to book the rides. For Genie+, I found the following on this Disney webpage:
> 
> *How to Purchase*
> 
> *Before Your Visit:*
> Available as an add-on to a ticket or vacation package for the duration of visit. Purchase via Disneyworld.com or authorized travel professionals.
> *Same Day of Visit:*
> Available for single-day use for existing ticket holders or Annual Passholders. Purchase via Disney Genie service in the My Disney Experience mobile app.
> *When to Select Attractions*
> Once you have Disney Genie+ service, you can select the next available arrival window for your first experience via the My Disney Experience mobile app beginning at 7:00 AM on the day of your visit.
> Once you’ve redeemed your initial selection (or the arrival window has passed), you can use the app to check your My Day itinerary or Tip Board to see when you’re eligible to make another selection. You can make selections all day up to regular park closing.



Thanks so much !!!


----------



## tinkerhon

GBRforWDW said:


> I don't see any options for this though I'm not in the park today.  Also, since you can only get 1 G+, plus your ILL$, at 7am, what would your plan be the rest of the day to grab next G+ rides?



Tx !!! Yea, I didnt see any options either-    My daughters I-Phone is plan for rest of day. LOL---


----------



## tinkerhon

tinkerhon said:


> Tx !!! Yea, I didnt see any options either-    My daughters I-Phone is plan for rest of day. LOL---



Seems like you would need the APP in order to add Genie+ to your existing tickets as well---- (or call) - dont see an option on Disneyworld.com


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## ThistleMae

I would recommend staying at the same park if you are going to purchase Genie+.  Some of the times they give you for returns end up being much later in the day, for example, Jungle Cruise return time at 9 a.m. was for 4:30 p.m.  As the day goes on it gets later and later.  We are park hoppers so it seemed you would have better results being at the same park.  We ended up with only 2 rides at MK, back to room to hop to HS and got one ride on Toy Story.  You just don't seem to get many rides the way we did it.  And the booking a second ride 2 hours from the first booking didn't work when booking at 7 a.m.  Once we were in the park it was either right after you scanned into the ride or 2 hours.  Still because you can't choose times it's pretty limiting.  But the lines got very long as the day moved on so it was still worth it for us.


----------



## kathi

Is this still the correct strategy (things are changing so fast I can't keep up).

The Set Up
-Hollywood Studios on Sunday 1/2
-Booked Genie + and will get ILL for ROTR and maybe MMR (Touring Plans says crowds will be a 10)
-Staying at BCV, but will not arrive at HS until around 11:30 (we are getting off a cruise)
-We are willing to give up SDD if it will help our chances to get the other major attractions.
-We will stay till close.
-We do not like waiting in line, so unless standby is less than 30 minutes or so, it won't happen.

The Plan
-7am  - We will have one person get the ILL for ROTR while another person books the first LL
-Do I want the first LL to be for later in the day (like after 5pm)?
-I can then book another LL at 11 and then 2 hours later or after I complete the last one I booked? (This is where I'm a bit fuzzy).   *How do I keep things moving to maximize LL throughout the day*?

Thanks and Happy Holidays!


----------



## GBRforWDW

kathi said:


> The Plan
> -7am - We will have one person get the ILL for ROTR while another person books the first LL
> -Do I want the first LL to be for later in the day (like after 5pm)?
> -I can then book another LL at 11 and then 2 hours later or after I complete the last one I booked? (This is where I'm a bit fuzzy). *How do I keep things moving to maximize LL throughout the day*?


You won't be able to select a time for LL like you will with ILL$ rides.  You could try for SDD and hope for later time, maybe wait 10 seconds before proceeding, but that's a personal decision.  Mfsr may also give a later return time quickly, but you should be able to have a better opportunity to get close to the time you click if you keep refreshing.

Yes, 2 hours after park opening for first one, so at 11am. If the return time for the second selection is less than 2 hours, you can get your next after tapping in.  If More than 2 hours, can get next LL 2 hours later at 1pm. 

Best way to keep it moving is to pick the ride/show with the closest return time, but that may not always be what you want to do.


----------



## Bellagirl

Tom_E_D said:


> You need the app to book the rides. For Genie+, I found the following on this Disney webpage:
> 
> *How to Purchase*
> 
> *Before Your Visit:*
> Available as an add-on to a ticket or vacation package for the duration of visit. Purchase via Disneyworld.com or authorized travel professionals.
> *Same Day of Visit:*
> Available for single-day use for existing ticket holders or Annual Passholders. Purchase via Disney Genie service in the My Disney Experience mobile app.
> *When to Select Attractions*
> Once you have Disney Genie+ service, you can select the next available arrival window for your first experience via the My Disney Experience mobile app beginning at 7:00 AM on the day of your visit.
> Once you’ve redeemed your initial selection (or the arrival window has passed), you can use the app to check your My Day itinerary or Tip Board to see when you’re eligible to make another selection. You can make selections all day up to regular park closing.


Flying into MCO early tomorrow am.  Was planning on purchasing the Genie + and make my first selection around 7 am for later in the day.  I understand that after 2 hours I can make my next selection.  Will the next selection just stack onto the first selection?  I was hoping to make later in the day selections for more popular rides in hopes that when we arrive around noon we will have some reservations for rides.  Also, I am assuming I can make these selections outside the park and do not physically be in the park while making my reservations since I have a reservation and tickets for Magic Kingdom.  Thanks!


----------



## g-dad66

Bellagirl said:


> Flying into MCO early tomorrow am.  Was planning on purchasing the Genie + and make my first selection around 7 am for later in the day.  I understand that after 2 hours I can make my next selection.  Will the next selection just stack onto the first selection?  I was hoping to make later in the day selections for more popular rides in hopes that when we arrive around noon we will have some reservations for rides.  Also, I am assuming I can make these selections outside the park and do not physically be in the park while making my reservations since I have a reservation and tickets for Magic Kingdom.  Thanks!



You are correct, except that you can't make your second selection 2 hours after 7am.  It is 2 hours after the park opens when you can make your second LL selection.


----------



## princesslover

g-dad66 said:


> You are correct, except that you can't make your second selection 2 hours after 7am.  It is 2 hours after the park opens when you can make your second LL selection.



Am I understanding correctly that the 2nd selection has to be two hours after park opening and not after you tap in for the first selection? For example, say at 7:00 am I choose a LL for 10:15 am.  Can I choose another after tapping in to that attraction or do I have to wait until 11:00?


----------



## CJK

princesslover said:


> Am I understanding correctly that the 2nd selection has to be two hours after park opening and not after you tap in for the first selection? For example, say at 7:00 am I choose a LL for 10:15 am. Can I choose another after tapping in to that attraction or do I have to wait until 11:00?


You can book another LL after tapping into your 10:15am ride. The rule is, 'you can book your next ride after you tap into your last booked ride OR after 2hrs - WHICHEVER COMES FIRST'.


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## thanxfornoticin

princesslover said:


> Am I understanding correctly that the 2nd selection has to be two hours after park opening and not after you tap in for the first selection? For example, say at 7:00 am I choose a LL for 10:15 am.  Can I choose another after tapping in to that attraction or do I have to wait until 11:00?


In this scenario, after you make your second 'tap' at your 10:15AM attraction, you should then be able to make another selection, not wait until 11.


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## TikiRob

Thanks everyone for contributing here... I think I now understand the new rules (after learning the original rules)!  I'm stuck on an airplane without wifi until 8:30am (8:00am MK opening).  So I was thinking of this hypothetical of stacking higher demand rides in the evening and then a more widely available one for when I arrive.

Here is my hypothetical:
Book LL#1 at 8:30am for 6:00pm
Book LL#2 at 10:30am for 7:00pm
Book LL#3 at 12:30pm for 1:00pm

Scan in at LL#3 at 1:00pm, can I make another right away at 1pm? I've stacked later in the day, but I'm not doing any of the previously closed loopholes, right? Then I can do a rolling rebooking LL#3 for immediate usage until all availability is gone.


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## thanxfornoticin

TikiRob said:


> Thanks everyone for contributing here... I think I now understand the new rules (after learning the original rules)!  I'm stuck on an airplane without wifi until 8:30am (8:00am MK opening).  So I was thinking of this hypothetical of stacking higher demand rides in the evening and then a more widely available one for when I arrive.
> 
> Here is my hypothetical:
> Book LL#1 at 8:30am for 6:00pm
> Book LL#2 at 10:30am for 7:00pm
> Book LL#3 at 12:30pm for 1:00pm
> 
> Scan in at LL#3 at 1:00pm, can I make another right away at 1pm? I've stacked later in the day, but I'm not doing any of the previously closed loopholes, right? Then I can do a rolling rebooking LL#3 for immediate usage until all availability is gone.


Just a first comment on your scenario.  You might already know this, but you cannot actually select your exact time for LL - you get the next available - similar to the original paper fast passes.  Getting those actual times would be unlikely.  Second, the way we understand it, if you do manage to get you LL#1 and LL#2 "stacked", and then use LL#3 at 1PM, you would NOT be able to get another LL until 2:30PM - 2 hours after you made LL#3.  It seems to fill in other holes, so if you have any remaining LLs during the day, you must go by the 2-hour window.  Perhaps others can verify or counter that - but it's what we saw when using it last week.


----------



## g-dad66

TikiRob said:


> Thanks everyone for contributing here... I think I now understand the new rules (after learning the original rules)!  I'm stuck on an airplane without wifi until 8:30am (8:00am MK opening).  So I was thinking of this hypothetical of stacking higher demand rides in the evening and then a more widely available one for when I arrive.
> 
> Here is my hypothetical:
> Book LL#1 at 8:30am for 6:00pm
> Book LL#2 at 10:30am for 7:00pm
> Book LL#3 at 12:30pm for 1:00pm
> 
> Scan in at LL#3 at 1:00pm, can I make another right away at 1pm? I've stacked later in the day, but I'm not doing any of the previously closed loopholes, right? Then I can do a rolling rebooking LL#3 for immediate usage until all availability is gone.



You should be able to book LL#4 at 1:00.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

g-dad66 said:


> You should be able to book LL#4 at 1:00.


You may be right, but it's not what we saw when we tried to do something similar last week.  It appears if you have any future G+/LL reservations, you're on a 2-hour limit for making the 'next'.  If you have no other LL scheduled besides your current one, then you can make another after tapping into a current LL.  Unless I did something wrong while playing with it the one day last week......


----------



## kathi

Other than SDD, what fills up the fastest?  Is it MFSR?   What rides (not shows) tend to be easiest to get later in the day?


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## Grasshopper2016

The rule is this: "You are eligible to schedule another LL when it has been two hours since you last booked an LL (or two hours since park opening) OR you have scanned into your most recently booked LL WHICHEVER IS SOONER."  Having another LL still scheduled does not necessarily preclude you from booking upon scanning in, if the one that you still have remaining was not your most recently booked one.


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## thanxfornoticin

Grasshopper2016 said:


> The rule is this: "You are eligible to schedule another LL when it has been two hours since you last booked an LL (or two hours since park opening) OR you have scanned into your most recently booked LL WHICHEVER IS SOONER."  Having another LL still scheduled does not necessarily preclude you from booking upon scanning in, if the one that you still have remaining was not your most recently booked one.


Like I said above, that was not what happened for me last week.  But I also admit to it being very new and I might have done something wrong - but it told me after i tapped in at Navi, while we had a later LL that day at AK, that I was not yet eligible for another LL.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

thanxfornoticin said:


> Like I said above, that was not what happened for me last week. But I also admit to it being very new and I might have done something wrong - but it told me after i tapped in at Navi, while we had a later LL that day at AK, that I was not yet eligible for another LL.


Hmm.  Either that was a glitch (shocking!), or Disney has changed the rules again without telling us (shocking!).


----------



## aimes0105

thanxfornoticin said:


> Like I said above, that was not what happened for me last week.  But I also admit to it being very new and I might have done something wrong - but it told me after i tapped in at Navi, while we had a later LL that day at AK, that I was not yet eligible for another LL.



Which LL did you book first? Was it Navi or the other one that was scheduled for later? I know Navi goes quickly so my guess is if you had that for earlier in the day you probably booked that first? In which case using it would not have opened up eligibility to book another because it wasn't your most recently booked reservation.


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## DisneyPanthersFan

thanxfornoticin said:


> Like I said above, that was not what happened for me last week.  But I also admit to it being very new and I might have done something wrong - but it told me after i tapped in at Navi, while we had a later LL that day at AK, that I was not yet eligible for another LL.



Was it after your whole group had tapped in the 2nd time at Navi? That threw me sometimes - I'd check before everyone had tapped in the 2nd time and it would tell me I wasn't eligible.

It does seem likely that Disney has changed things again, but I guess I'm just hoping they haven't! I was considering a strategy similar to @TikiRob's for at least one day on our trip next month.


----------



## TikiRob

Grasshopper2016 said:


> The rule is this: "You are eligible to schedule another LL when it has been two hours since you last booked an LL (or two hours since park opening) OR you have scanned into your most recently booked LL WHICHEVER IS SOONER."  Having another LL still scheduled does not necessarily preclude you from booking upon scanning in, if the one that you still have remaining was not your most recently booked one.



Ahhh... Important distinction.  Thank you.


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## ThistleMae

The problem with booking later rides is there aren't many to get.  I could only get one or two at most. Also, after using the current one I couldn't get anything closer than an hour an a half later if not two hours.  You just can't get as many as you would like, and they are spread pretty far out.  If you are like me and want to hop, there isn't much left to get at the end of the night.


----------



## Bobb_o

Trying to plan out this weekend for my 4 parks in 2 days trip. I will have a DAS (but no preselections) as well but I'm combining it with Genie+ to avoid waiting as much as possible. 

First day is Epcot+AK. I'm thinking of Rope Dropping Frozen, getting a G+ for Test Track (if it's a decent window), and a return time for Soarin'. Once the Test Track G+ is used booking KJS or NRJ at AK for 2pm+ and then after two hours the other while getting a return time for FoP.  We won't be doing EE or Dinosaur so it makes it pretty easy. The only caveat here is he boarding pass for Ratatouille and that screws up the timing of the TT return (I think it would since both will go at 7am right?) 

Second day is DHS+MK. Same strategy really: Rope Drop MMRR, try and get Slinky G+ early, and obtain a return time for RotR. Then I'll start booking G+ at MK starting with Jungle Cruise while getting return times at DHS for MF:SR and ToT while hoping that ST and TS:MM isn't too bad. 

For those that have park hopped do you think this is the better strategy or should I just try and stack for the 2nd park?


----------



## MagicMoon

I think the tough thing is, you can’t really plan after 7am…

Even the 7 am booking is unknown until the confirmation returns (as times change during booking).


----------



## emmabelle

I have a question, if I have a park pass for Epcot for Friday do I first have to book a Genie + for Epcot?  Can I just book one for HS for the night time?  We arrive in Orlando in the morning and may want to walk over to Epcot for a little but do HS at night.  Maybe I should just change our pass to HS for that day.


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## CJK

No


emmabelle said:


> I have a question, if I have a park pass for Epcot for Friday do I first have to book a Genie + for Epcot?  Can I just book one for HS for the night time?  We arrive in Orlando in the morning and may want to walk over to Epcot for a little but do HS at night.  Maybe I should just change our pass to HS for that day.


No, you can choose to only book rides in Hollywood Studios. You will only be able to book attractions for after 2pm. Just keep in mind that you must physically tap into Epcot, before going to HS after 2pm.


----------



## emmabelle

CJK said:


> No
> 
> No, you can choose to only book rides in Hollywood Studios. You will only be able to book attractions for after 2pm. Just keep in mind that you must physically tap into Epcot, before going to HS after 2pm.




Thank You!  I think I'll just change my park ressie to HS.  . Maybe we'll just hang by the pool until late afternoon


----------



## Bayoumomof3

TikiRob said:


> Thanks everyone for contributing here... I think I now understand the new rules (after learning the original rules)!  I'm stuck on an airplane without wifi until 8:30am (8:00am MK opening).  So I was thinking of this hypothetical of stacking higher demand rides in the evening and then a more widely available one for when I arrive.
> 
> Here is my hypothetical:
> Book LL#1 at 8:30am for 6:00pm
> Book LL#2 at 10:30am for 7:00pm
> Book LL#3 at 12:30pm for 1:00pm
> 
> Scan in at LL#3 at 1:00pm, can I make another right away at 1pm? I've stacked later in the day, but I'm not doing any of the previously closed loopholes, right? Then I can do a rolling rebooking LL#3 for immediate usage until all availability is gone.


The way I understand it is that since LL#3 was your most recently booked ride that you would be able to book another one right away.  And continue rebooking as available.


----------



## swummyh20

AZMermaid said:


> I’ve read of this happening because people were still looking at the tip board tab with current genie times vs the my day tab. could that be it?



no, this was not our situation. We booked and were shown the confirmation page with our return times. It wasn’t until reopening the app to look at something else did we notice the changes. It seemed to me that maybe it was some sort of attempt at being intuitive to other plans we had, but it actually screwed us up multiple times. Won’t be returning to the parks for some time, and even if I do, I’ll focus on Epcot since I’m a Disneyland key holder. Not happy with genie.


----------



## GBRforWDW

emmabelle said:


> Thank You!  I think I'll just change my park ressie to HS.  . Maybe we'll just hang by the pool until late afternoon


If it's easy for you to get into Epcot once you arrive, I'd keep Epcot, that way as you're selecting your G+/ILL$ rides, you'll definitely get an afternoon/evening time.  This will be helpful in case you don't arrive until after park opening.  Also if you're delayed a little bit, it won't be a big deal as the scheduled rides are all later in the day.


----------



## princesslover

emmabelle said:


> I have a question, if I have a park pass for Epcot for Friday do I first have to book a Genie + for Epcot?  Can I just book one for HS for the night time?  We arrive in Orlando in the morning and may want to walk over to Epcot for a little but do HS at night.  Maybe I should just change our pass to HS for that day.



I don’t think G+ is tied to parks.


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## ThistleMae

If you hop, you can't book your next Genie+ until 2 p.m.  You don't have to be in that park to book it, just has to be 2 or after.  One day we didn't go to the first park we had reservations for.  When we went to our next park, the scanner didn't turn green.  The CM fixed it for us but said it had to be reset and there might not be someone there to do the fix so best to tap into first park or change your reservation, if you can, if you decide not to go to your first park.


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## MagicMoon

Yes *as available.  

And best of luck getting a LL 30 minutes from booking on your desired ride.


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## brockash

ThistleMae said:


> If you hop, you can't book your next Genie+ until 2 p.m.  You don't have to be in that park to book it, just has to be 2 or after.  One day we didn't go to the first park we had reservations for.  When we went to our next park, the scanner didn't turn green.  The CM fixed it for us but said it had to be reset and there might not be someone there to do the fix so best to tap into first park or change your reservation, if you can, if you decide not to go to your first park.


Sorry, can you elaborate a bit.  Are you saying if you plan on hopping and book a g+ ride at your 2nd park at 7am; you can't book your next g+ pass until 2pm?  I understand you won't get a return time until after 2, but I was under the impression you could book like normal.


----------



## CrimsonTideFan94

One tip for those who are rope droppers and don’t stay to close - you can book a G+ reservation with a window starting near closing (I think anytime in the last 45 minutes to an hour would work) even if you will be in your hotel and don’t intend to use it. If the attraction breaks down around the time of your reservation you could get a multi experience pass valid for most G+ rides the next day. This happened to me within an hour before close and some of the exclusions were Slinky, Peter Pan, Navi, Soarin, and Test Track. It also excluded all of the IA$ rides.


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## CBMom01

.


ThistleMae said:


> If you hop, you can't book your next Genie+ until 2 p.m.  You don't have to be in that park to book it, just has to be 2 or after.  One day we didn't go to the first park we had reservations for.  When we went to our next park, the scanner didn't turn green.  The CM fixed it for us but said it had to be reset and there might not be someone there to do the fix so best to tap into first park or change your reservation, if you can, if you decide not to go to your first park.


That's not at all related to G+.  That's the park hopping rule.  You have to tap in to the park at which you have reservations to be able to hop at all.


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## Runnsally

CrimsonTideFan94 said:


> One tip for those who are rope droppers and don’t stay to close - you can book a G+ reservation with a window starting near closing (I think anytime in the last 45 minutes to an hour would work) even if you will be in your hotel and don’t intend to use it. If the attraction breaks down around the time of your reservation you could get a multi experience pass valid for most G+ rides the next day. This happened to me within an hour before close and some of the exclusions were Slinky, Peter Pan, Navi, Soarin, and Test Track. It also excluded all of the IA$ rides.


Kind of a jerk move though, no?


----------



## CrimsonTideFan94

Runnsally said:


> Kind of a jerk move though, no?



If I knew there was a possibility of getting a bonus LL for the next day, I would do it. In this case I actually planned to use it on that ride but it broke down. But in theory this would probably work if you didn’t stay late and thus were finished using G+.


----------



## Miffy

Two days ago my sister and I were at DAK. At 7 am we booked ILL$ for FoP and G+ for NRJ.

After tapping in at the first tap point for NRJ, I tried to make a G+ for KS. By then it was well past 2 hours after park opening and even more than 2 hours past booking the G+ for NRJ. And yet . . . the system wouldn't let me book another G+ for my sister even though it would let it book one for myself.

My and my sister's G+ for NRJ were booked together. Why would the system reject one of us and accept the other?

As it turned out, after my sister tapped in at the 2nd tap point, it let me book the G+ for KS for both of us. But what the heck happened before then? A glitch? Some mystery rule I'm not familiar with?

As for G+ tips, the only tip I have is this: Be prepared to use it for only 1 or 2 attractions at times you may or may not like and call it good. Anything more than that and you have worked miracles or else been here on a slow day or maybe you don't mind paying for G+ for rides that have 5- or 10-minute standby lines.

If I had to give G+ a grade, I'd give it a D-. It should be happy I didn't flunk it.


----------



## CrimsonTideFan94

Miffy said:


> Two days ago my sister and I were at DAK. At 7 am we booked ILL$ for FoP and G+ for NRJ.
> 
> After tapping in at the first tap point for NRJ, I tried to make a G+ for KS. By then it was well past 2 hours after park opening and even more than 2 hours past booking the G+ for NRJ. And yet . . . the system wouldn't let me book another G+ for my sister even though it would let it book one for myself.
> 
> My and my sister's G+ for NRJ were booked together. Why would the system reject one of us and accept the other?
> 
> As it turned out, after my sister tapped in at the 2nd tap point, it let me book the G+ for KS for both of us. But what the heck happened before then? A glitch? Some mystery rule I'm not familiar with?
> 
> As for G+ tips, the only tip I have is this: Be prepared to use it for only 1 or 2 attractions at times you may or may not like and call it good. Anything more than that and you have worked miracles or else been here on a slow day or maybe you don't mind paying for G+ for rides that have 5- or 10-minute standby lines.
> 
> If I had to give G+ a grade, I'd give it a D-. It should be happy I didn't flunk it.



Epcot is probably the one where it’s needed least, especially if you’re solo and can use the single rider line at Test Track. The only other one it would be good for is Soarin.


----------



## Runnsally

CrimsonTideFan94 said:


> If I knew there was a possibility of getting a bonus LL for the next day, I would do it. In this case I actually planned to use it on that ride but it broke down. But in theory this would probably work if you didn’t stay late and thus were finished using G+.


Yes - this was also a thing with rolling FP+


----------



## Mome Rath

Here's how I wound up using G+ and IA$;  I only used G+ on my last day, and that is because it was an AK day with park hopping later on.  I definitely see it as a FP+ downgrade, and it made me miss FP+ even more than when there was no FP or LL at all.  I'd rather just utilize virtual queues and wait in line.  Having said that, that IA$ is worth it if you can afford it.

I used IA$ for both Rat and Rise.  We were getting in early enough on our first day to go to EPCOT, so I grabbed a time for Rat for the evening early in the day so we could ride that.  It lets you straight into the interior area, so it is a really quick wait with IA$, a lot quicker than the virtual queue.

The next morning was DHS, so bought an 10:30 am Rise IA$ (and, yes, with IA$ you can pick your time, but it will move you later before you confirm if times are filling up). I can also confirm that it can change your time during the day, I think ours was moved maybe by 10 min or so later.  We rope dropped and rode Runaway, and did anything else we wanted.  Our time came for Rise, and it was down.  The time for our return window passed, and the IA$ was replaced with an any time LL for Rise that day.  In short, if the ride breaks and is down through your window, you can come back at any point in the day and go through the LL.  I looked at the average down time for Rise, and it was listed as about an hour, so we just waited and got right in when it came back up.

The last day was AK in the morn and went ahead and got G+ for the day, and started off booking for our second park; MK. Rope dropped AK, and was in the first ride of FoP, off of that an on to Navi. Back to hotel, then toured all the monorail hotels, and booked my G+ selections at 2 hour intervals for MK, then lunch, then on to MK. Did what we wanted there (left before the fire excitement), then on to EPCOT where I had a G+ selection for Soarin, and the Land.

The lack of ability to pick a time for G+ severely hampers any type of actual "flow" for the rides you want (as does not being able to hop before 2pm). FP+ was smooth, G+ is jerky lol. To make the most of it, you have to track return times, and coordinate your picks that way. Of course the popular rides move a lot faster through booking windows, with the least popular going at a snail's pace. The only "advantage" that I really saw for G+ over FP+ was the ability to overlap ride windows.


----------



## Dis Dragon

I hate that you have to be on G+ at 7am and then if you're stacking basically have a timer running so you don't loose track of when you need to be getting the next one.  With all the questions being asked by parties in the LL lines they could have put out a cleaner, simpler platform.

After using it this trip, I think I would have still disliked but liked it more if they would have kept the original fastpass system, but you have to buy into the pre-arrival fastpasses and day of would have been free for everyone.

I also found it super annoying that almost every time I opened the tip board it didn't show the park I was in and the to-do list was cluttered with a bunch of garbage instead of showing a clean itinerary.


----------



## ThistleMae

brockash said:


> Sorry, can you elaborate a bit.  Are you saying if you plan on hopping and book a g+ ride at your 2nd park at 7am; you can't book your next g+ pass until 2pm?  I understand you won't get a return time until after 2, but I was under the impression you could book like normal.


You can't book a Genie + ride at your second park until your hop time which is 2 p.m.


----------



## ThistleMae

So tried to book a ll$ for FOP, but it was around 9 a.m.  All sold out by that time.  So even paying for a ride you must book by 7 a.m. unless you happen to get lucky.


----------



## ThistleMae

Dis Dragon said:


> I hate that you have to be on G+ at 7am and then if you're stacking basically have a timer running so you don't loose track of when you need to be getting the next one.  With all the questions being asked by parties in the LL lines they could have put out a cleaner, simpler platform.
> 
> After using it this trip, I think I would have still disliked but liked it more if they would have kept the original fastpass system, but you have to buy into the pre-arrival fastpasses and day of would have been free for everyone.
> 
> I also found it super annoying that almost every time I opened the tip board it didn't show the park I was in and the to-do list was cluttered with a bunch of garbage instead of showing a clean itinerary.


Yes, the app itself is not straight forward at all.  They need to declutter it.  I always have to keep changing tabs to find what I'm looking for.  I also recommend if you are a typical park hopper, don't bother buying it if you want to use Genie+ or LL$.  The times can be really far out on popular rides, so if you really want to ride something before you normally hop at 2 p.m.  you will lose opportunities for certain rides in that first park.


----------



## Mome Rath

Just to try to paint a picture for people; if you are park hopping, the times for the G+ selections in your afternoon park will show up in the app as though you can select them for earlier times (such as 10 am), once you click on it, the app with show that you cannot book for 10 and the time will be set automatically to 2pm.


----------



## Dr Gunnie

I've been tracking the thread and I've read that last few pages. I think all the abbreviations and new terminology is confusing me a little.

Is there a video that one of the blogs or Disney fan sites have done that people would recommend which breaks it down and shows how to do it on the app? I feel like once I watch someone do it on the app, I'll be good (sorry in advance as I'm sure some videos were posted on here before, I just can't find them).


----------



## Mome Rath

Dr Gunnie said:


> I've been tracking the thread and I've read that last few pages. I think all the abbreviations and new terminology is confusing me a little.
> 
> Is there a video that one of the blogs or Disney fan sites have done that people would recommend which breaks it down and shows how to do it on the app? I feel like once I watch someone do it on the app, I'll be good (sorry in advance as I'm sure some videos were posted on here before, I just can't find them).


I can't help with the vids, but some of the abbreviations; Genie (G) is just the free addition to the app that anyone can see, like your day and the tip board within the app.  Genie + (*G+*) is the 15 dollar a day add on that is similar to FP+.  G+ lets you schedule a ride, and when you go to the ride during your ride window (that is an hour long), you go to the Lightening Lane (*LL*) entrance (that was previous the fastpass entrances). Some are talking about G+ selections just using the shorthand LL.

There are at least 2 abbreviations usually used interchangeably for Individual Lightening Lane purchases; I use Individual Attraction Selection (*IA$*) for it, but others use *LL$*/*ILL$* which is Individual Lightening Lane Selection that you pay extra money for. These include rides like Rise of the Resistance and Ratatouille.


----------



## Lilias

Allears has a lot of videos testing G+ and breaking it down, but their experiences have been so much more positive than the general experience I've been seeing on these boards that I don't really know if they are a true representation of the experience.  I suspect that the vlogger spends like every nonfilmed moment refreshing to try to get better times, which a normal park goer simply wouldn't be doing.  She makes it look so easy and like a no-brainer purchase, ugh.


----------



## brockash

ThistleMae said:


> You can't book a Genie + ride at your second park until your hop time which is 2 p.m.


I'm sorry for being a pain...so if I go to Epcot at 10am and want to make a fastpass for DHS; you're saying I can't book it until I'm physically in the park at/after 2?  I thought you could book them, but your return time just wouldn't be until after 2??


----------



## Mome Rath

brockash said:


> I'm sorry for being a pain...so if I go to Epcot at 10am and want to make a fastpass for DHS; you're saying I can't book it until I'm physically in the park at/after 2?  I thought you could book them, but your return time just wouldn't be until after 2??


Just back from a trip; you can indeed book a G+ selection in your park of choice for after 2pm even before it hits 2pm.  You pull up your park you are hopping to and you will see the G+ possibilities, when you click on a return time, if it is prior to 2pm return time, it will change automatically to 2pm if you book it.  So, at 10am if I am in MK and try to book Soarin in EPCOT that shows a return time of say 12pm, it will change to 2pm and you can book it for 2.


----------



## JStu

brockash said:


> I'm sorry for being a pain...so if I go to Epcot at 10am and want to make a fastpass for DHS; you're saying I can't book it until I'm physically in the park at/after 2?  I thought you could book them, but your return time just wouldn't be until after 2??


no, you can book whenever.  

but you cannot book at time until 2pm or later at the park you are hopping too.


----------



## Miffy

Just back from Epcot.

We used ILL$ for Rat. No G+. RD'd Soarin'--off by a little after 11 a.m. Then did standby for SE--15-minute wait, as advertised. The line for SE looks really long, but we were on the ride 14 minutes after we got in line.

Our Rat was for 2, after lunch. Walked right on. VQ was hugely long, so we were glad to have spent the $. Until we did the ride. Then we were sorry we even bothered. But, you know, another $22+--this week, that's hardly anything.

Note to anyone doing ETPE at Epcot: The line for resort guests to enter the park is to the right of the line for non-resort guests. There's apparently a sign at the entrance, but we didn't see it, so we wasted a few minutes in the wrong line, however, we were still able to ride Soarin' without a wait. The standby queue was 60 minutes by the time we got off.

There was practically no one in the G+ line for SE.


----------



## pens4821

For the people that hop, does it seem to work better if you pick for your second park?  I’ve been watching the tip board for over a month, and it seems like that would be the best thing. My plan is to purchase it when I’m hopping to MK and HS in March. just from looking at the tip board  every two hours it seems like HS would be good for 3/4 rides and MK 5/6

it seems like rnrc and tot are available still around 1. So I should be able to do SDD and those two then maybe pull a star tours or saucers possibly around 3 (assuming an 9 am opening). Then at MK I think I should be able to do HM SPLASH and BTMRR then things like POC and maybe one or both buzz/mermaid.

I’m not going to get it for epcot.  We will go early the extended evening hours and try to ride everything. And our other day there we will just do what’s short. MK and HS other days will be getting things done early at rope drop and extended hours at MK. We won’t be doing AK this trip.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Mome Rath said:


> Just back from a trip; you can indeed book a G+ selection in your park of choice for after 2pm even before it hits 2pm.  You pull up your park you are hopping to and you will see the G+ possibilities, when you click on a return time, if it is prior to 2pm return time, it will change automatically to 2pm if you book it.  So, at 10am if I am in MK and try to book Soarin in EPCOT that shows a return time of say 12pm, it will change to 2pm and you can book it for 2.


Clarifying:

Scenario:
- I have a park reservation for EP and am in Epcot at 10AM
- will be hopping to MK at 2:00
- LL return time for an attraction in the MK is currently showing on MDE as 11AM
- if I try to book a LL reservation for the attraction that I’m hopping to at 2PM, when I select it will it:
a) tell me I cannot book it as the return time is earlier than 2PM when I’m allowed to hop? Or
b) show me a time I can book that attraction that is 2PM or later or
C) something else?


----------



## cjlong88

scrappinginontario said:


> Clarifying:
> 
> Scenario:
> - I have a park reservation for EP and am in Epcot at 10AM
> - will be hopping to MK at 2:00
> - LL return time for an attraction in the MK is currently showing on MDE as 11AM
> - if I try to book a LL reservation for the attraction that I’m hopping to at 2PM, when I select it will it:
> a) tell me I cannot book it as the return time is earlier than 2PM when I’m allowed to hop? Or
> b) show me a time I can book that attraction that is 2PM or later or
> C) something else?


If you are booking a LL in the morning for the park you plan on hopping to later in the day, it will only offer you availability beyond 2pm when you select the attraction, at least that was our experience.


----------



## PepperjackDragon

scrappinginontario said:


> Clarifying:
> 
> Scenario:
> - I have a park reservation for EP and am in Epcot at 10AM
> - will be hopping to MK at 2:00
> - LL return time for an attraction in the MK is currently showing on MDE as 11AM
> - if I try to book a LL reservation for the attraction that I’m hopping to at 2PM, when I select it will it:
> a) tell me I cannot book it as the return time is earlier than 2PM when I’m allowed to hop? Or
> b) show me a time I can book that attraction that is 2PM or later or
> C) something else?


It will show you the earliest available times on the general tip board. Once you click it the time will change to 2pm. Also, ime, wait lines are much longer at 2pm, presumably for this reason.


----------



## Bobb_o

Anyone having trouble buying today? The button doesn't work in my app.


----------



## Mike9865

I was on at 7 and didn't see any individual LL sold for ROTR. Anyone else experience this?


----------



## emmabelle

I got SDD for 3:20!

 I’ll be on the plane at 11am.  Hopefully the wifi will be strong enough to get RNRC!


----------



## Miffy

Mike9865 said:


> I was on at 7 and didn't see any individual LL sold for ROTR. Anyone else experience this?


Yes. And we still don't have it. Super frustrating.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Mike9865 said:


> I was on at 7 and didn't see any individual LL sold for ROTR. Anyone else experience this?


Yeah I'm looking at all parks and don't see the ILL purchase option for anything


----------



## Miffy

GBRforWDW said:


> Yeah I'm looking at all parks and don't see the ILL purchase option for anything


Yeah. I looked at all the parks too. We're trying for RotR and we are beyond frustrated.

We are at AKL.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Miffy said:


> Yeah. I looked at all the parks too. We're trying for RotR and we are beyond frustrated.


Understandable, not a good way to start your day, especially when having to do other things.  I just checked the WDW site to see if there was an unannounced schedule change, but it still says 7am


----------



## wvrupp

I noticed the same thing with ILL as I was trying to familiarize myself with the process this morning and thought it was just because I didn’t have a ticket. Wow, hope they get it figured out soon as that is super frustrating


----------



## GBRforWDW

I tossed it out on #distwitter.  See if anything gets fixed soon.


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1471818502508093448


----------



## Miffy

MDE is now showing a pop-up apologizing for the inconvenience.


----------



## EmilyGahr

Staying on-site, what do you do first - Slinky Dog G+ or Rise of the Resistance ILL$?


----------



## GBRforWDW

EmilyGahr said:


> Staying on-site, what do you do first - Slinky Dog G+ or Rise of the Resistance ILL$?


They both go quick, do you have someone that can help from a second phone?

If not, do you think you can get there super early when they start letting ETPE in? Usually an hour before?  I'd grab the pass to the most important one, then rope drop the other.  

Alternatively, I've seen SDD available again after about 10 minutes due to incomplete orders being readded to the queue.  So at 10 after, start refreshing for a few minutes to see if anything comes up


----------



## emmabelle

EmilyGahr said:


> Staying on-site, what do you do first - Slinky Dog G+ or Rise of the Resistance ILL$?



from looking at it for awhile I think SDD goes a little quicker.  You need to be on exactly at 7am for SDD.  I’ve seen them be gone and then appear again but it’s way too hard to get one that way


----------



## Mome Rath

scrappinginontario said:


> Clarifying:
> 
> Scenario:
> - I have a park reservation for EP and am in Epcot at 10AM
> - will be hopping to MK at 2:00
> - LL return time for an attraction in the MK is currently showing on MDE as 11AM
> - if I try to book a LL reservation for the attraction that I’m hopping to at 2PM, when I select it will it:
> a) tell me I cannot book it as the return time is earlier than 2PM when I’m allowed to hop? Or
> b) show me a time I can book that attraction that is 2PM or later or
> C) something else?


Those that have answered you are right, so C is the answer.  If the return time is before 2pm, it will automatically change it to 2 pm, it will not let you pick any other time, either earlier or later (unless people are booking it so fast that it pushes you past 2pm, but you won't be able to choose that time, that would happen automatically too).  If the ride you want is already booking for after 2pm, say 4pm, then you will just book for 4pm.

This means if there are 2 rides you want to book in the park you are hopping to, and you do it before the shown times are before 2pm, then both rides will be booked with a 2pm - 3pm window. As an example I overlapped Peter Pan and Pooh in MK from 2 - 3 when I was in AK. This also has implications if you want a specific ride in a park you are hopping to at a particular time. I was in MK and wanted to ride Soarin in EPCOT at 6pm. I had to keep checking the current return time and time it where I could pick Soarin at 6pm. Was a bit of a pain.


----------



## lorenae

NO ILLs this AM, from what I’ve been seeing on Facebook groups and when I was in the app myself looking at plans (although I’m not going today).   Did anyone else have that experience?





Edit- just saw a post above about this. So sorry.


----------



## lexybear

They're popping up now but not letting me go through buying process


----------



## lexybear

All gone. I had 10 different ROR and it wouldn't go through. So angry.


----------



## lorenae

lexybear said:


> They're popping up now but not letting me go through buying process




I see that too!   The pop up now, but still have the error message on the app.  But since they are showing times and purchase amounts, it must be in the process of being fixed(?).   Hopefully!   Disney IT is a disaster right now.


----------



## Grasshopper2016

How can Disney IT be this incompetent? It boggles the mind.


----------



## Miffy

They seemed to be up for a bit then looked to be sold out. Then they came back. We just got Rise for 10:10. Not sure if any are still available.

I only was able to do this because I was still looking after they supposedly sold out.

Super annoying morning here but at least we were able to give Mickey our money.


----------



## emmabelle

I’m glad I’m only trying to get Genie + ones!  I’d be so annoyed otherwise


----------



## lexybear

Miffy said:


> They seemed to be up for a bit then looked to be sold out. Then they came back. We just got Rise for 10:10. Not sure if any are still available.
> 
> I only was able to do this because I was still looking after they supposedly sold out.
> 
> Super annoying morning here but at least we were able to give Mickey our money.


Happy for you! Was able to grab MMRR but no ROR unfortunately.


----------



## SkyGuy

lexybear said:


> Happy for you! Was able to grab MMRR but no ROR unfortunately.


I’m not there, but looking through all four parks, it seems the more in-demand rides (FoP, SDMT, RotR) are not available, while the other ILL$ are still available for purchase. I certainly hope this is an anomaly and not going to become the norm. I’d have to seriously reconsider my on-site stay in Feb (or even my stay in general).
Edit: It is 8:30am there, so anything that did temporarily open could be gone, so there’s also that…


----------



## lexybear

Just got rise!


----------



## GBRforWDW

Big change for Christmas holiday! Only 1 ILL$ per park, the other 1 dropping to Genie+

https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/genie/lightning-lane/?s=09


----------



## dusty

tguz said:


> We are going for 10 nights in early December.  Our strategy is to not buy genie+ for the first 4 days (each park) and see how wait times are and how many of our "must do" attractions we were able to experience.  We would then consider buying Genie+ on our second go round through the parks if there are "must do's" that we were not able to do on the first park visit.  That is just our plan and I hope it works out for us.


We just got back, only had 6 days so we ended up buying genie+ and found it more helpful than we anticipated.  We actually talked about a longer trip in May and whether or not we would try what you are describing.  So I'm asking you what you ended up doing and how it worked out for you?  thanks


----------



## Grasshopper2016

How can they drop that on us just one day in advance?  After many of us had already carefully planned our itineraries (as best we could with this new BS system).  Outrageous.


----------



## Mheato

EmilyGahr said:


> Staying on-site, what do you do first - Slinky Dog G+ or Rise of the Resistance ILL$?


We chose Rise and tried to get Slinky, we rope dropped Slinky if we didn't get it and took Smugglers instead. That way you set yourself up riding Slinky before park open and then can get on one or two other rides before lines get long. The remaining G+ rides it seems like you can get a bit easier as the day goes on.


----------



## Juventus

SDD may last longer than 1.8 seconds during the busy holidays.  

So many complaints during Thanksgiving about the uselessness of G+...this is probably a response to that.

6 seconds Now for SDD?


----------



## Bobb_o

Well I'm in line at guest services because I can't book a second G+. Booked test track for 8pm at 7:05am and now I can't book anything. My eligible booking time is blank


----------



## GBRforWDW

Bobb_o said:


> Well I'm in line at guest services because I can't book a second G+. Booked test track for 8pm at 7:05am and now I can't book anything. My eligible booking time is blank


Epcot opened at 11am, so you wouldn’t be able to make your next until 1pm


----------



## Bobb_o

GBRforWDW said:


> Epcot opened at 11am, so you wouldn’t be able to make your next until 1pm


 
GS said "that's weird I don't know why it looks like that but try again at 1"


----------



## TikiRob

GBRforWDW said:


> Big change for Christmas holiday! Only 1 ILL$ per park, the other 1 dropping to Genie+
> 
> https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/genie/lightning-lane/?s=09
> View attachment 631376


That stinks.  I was actually fine with embracing the ILL$ for this trip to guarantee some other shorter waits. I wonder if we'll still be allowed 2 per day for park hopping.


----------



## GBRforWDW

TikiRob said:


> That stinks.  I was actually fine with embracing the ILL$ for this trip to guarantee some other shorter waits. I wonder if we'll still be allowed 2 per day for park hopping.


I do not see anything indicating a change to that, so hoppers, based on availability, should be able to still purchase 2 ILL$ rides.


----------



## TikiRob

GBRforWDW said:


> I do not see anything indicating a change to that, so hoppers, based on availability, should be able to still purchase 2 ILL$ rides.



I suppose on the flip side, that is good because it increases inventory for those who are using Genie+


----------



## MagicMoon

TikiRob said:


> I suppose on the flip side, that is good because it increases inventory for those who are using Genie+


----------



## Dis Dragon

GBRforWDW said:


> I do not see anything indicating a change to that, so hoppers, based on availability, should be able to still purchase 2 ILL$ rides.


They just announced it.  Space, Frozen, Everest and Mickey and Minnies are dropping off ILL - they should have never been on it.

They are also opening an extra 30 minutes - so 60 minutes early for resort guests for the next 2 weeks. 

Who knows if this is permanent, doubtful.  They had to bandaid Genie+ after the Thanksgiving debacle.


----------



## princesslover

Dis Dragon said:


> They just announced it.  Space, Frozen, Everest and Mickey and Minnies are dropping off ILL - they should have never been on it.
> 
> They are also opening an extra 30 minutes - so 60 minutes early for resort guests for the next 2 weeks.
> 
> Who knows if this is permanent, doubtful.  They had to bandaid Genie+ after the Thanksgiving debacle.



I was literally just saying yesterday that these four rides have no business being ILL’s.  Ridiculous.  Space and Everest in particular.  These rides are long time family favorites.  Including them with Genie+ —ok.  To charge for them after all this time is criminal to me.  What were they thinking?


----------



## GBRforWDW

Dis Dragon said:


> They just announced it.  Space, Frozen, Everest and Mickey and Minnies are dropping off ILL - they should have never been on it.
> 
> They are also opening an extra 30 minutes - so 60 minutes early for resort guests for the next 2 weeks.
> 
> Who knows if this is permanent, doubtful.  They had to bandaid Genie+ after the Thanksgiving debacle.


I was responding to PPs second question asking if he’d still be able to buy 2 ILL$ per day or if that changed as well.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Hurray, I am staying offsite for Christmas week and was probably going to be boxed out of MMRR and Frozen, but now I won't be.  This is a great change.


----------



## twodogs

Reading this as we are flying to Orlando.  First park day is tomorrow so that will not be with the new rules, correct?  Then Sunday we have a VIP tour, so I won’t have to fool with it much other than in the morning if we want to grab something Before the tour.  Then Monday will be all new rules and new early entry times!  While I have been coming up with my plans and this is a big change, I think it is a positive one for our family because we love EE and SM but didn’t really want to pay for each ride since we have done them a bunch.  I know this is throwing everyone off a bit, but hopefully a positive in the end.  I just wonder if the rides that are now included in G+ will book up that much faster….


----------



## twodogs

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> Hurray, I am staying offsite for Christmas week and was probably going to be boxed out of MMRR and Frozen, but now I won't be.  This is a great change.


I wonder if a change is coming to give an advantage back on onsite guests?  Disney is quickly eroding the value of staying onsite, and they likely don’t want to do that.  I wonder if they will adopt the DLR model from MP where they changed the booking block out window from 120 minutes to 90 minutes for those that paid for MP versus those that were using the free FP.  Or maybe they change the booking start time or maybe they don’t do anything and people will stay offsite since onsite doesn’t have many perks (and they don’t even clean the rooms these days…).


----------



## Grasshopper2016

If including 4 more tier one rides in Genie+ induces more people to purchase Genie+, then this change is not going to do anything to solve the problem of miserable LL availability that they had at Thanksgiving—the problem that probably prompted this change in the first place.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Grasshopper2016 said:


> If including 4 more tier one rides in Genie+ induces more people to purchase Genie+, then this change is not going to do anything to solve the problem of miserable LL availability that they had at Thanksgiving—the problem that probably prompted this change in the first place.


I can’t see people being persuaded to buy G+ because of this.  I really think they’re trying to figure out how to keep passes available longer during the day, ie fix the thanksgiving problem.


----------



## leeniewdw

Grasshopper2016 said:


> If including 4 more tier one rides in Genie+ induces more people to purchase Genie+, then this change is not going to do anything to solve the problem of miserable LL availability that they had at Thanksgiving—the problem that probably prompted this change in the first place.



But doesn't this limit how quickly those rides get taken.  For example, instead of arriving to the parks with 3 LLs (1 G+, 2 ILL$), you can only arrive with 2?   I suppose there might be some that ONLY grabbed the ILL$s and skipped G+, but Disney knows that statistic.


----------



## glocon

GBRforWDW said:


> Big change for Christmas holiday! Only 1 ILL$ per park, the other 1 dropping to Genie+
> 
> https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/genie/lightning-lane/?s=09
> View attachment 631376


Well this will keep a little more inventory open for G+ those weeks.

Stinks though for people who planned on buying 2 ILL$ per day.


----------



## Dis Dragon

It's going to exacerbate the problems Genie+ bad platform, we just got back and you can tell when Genie was taking a dump.  The app would just lag for seconds before responding, or crash or do nothing.  And it wasn't even that busy.

I would feel bad for the people there but I kind of wish it would just keep crashing and they had to rethink/fix the whole thing during this heavy crowd time.


----------



## Dis Dragon

GBRforWDW said:


> I was responding to PPs second question asking if he’d still be able to buy 2 ILL$ per day or if that changed as well.


My B,

I wasn't aware there was a limit to how many ILL you could buy, I mean why would they want to limit a persons out of pocket spend?


----------



## GBRforWDW

Dis Dragon said:


> My B,
> 
> I wasn't aware there was a limit to how many ILL you could buy, I mean why would they want to limit a persons out of pocket spend?


Haha, I gotcha.  Yeah, seems like a weird thing to limit.  I mean, limit it to one every 2 hours like the G+ So you could hop and buy more.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

GBRforWDW said:


> Haha, I gotcha.  Yeah, seems like a weird thing to limit.  I mean, limit it to one every 2 hours like the G+ So you could hop and buy more.


They limit it for the same reason that they limit party tickets which sell out as well.  They have a finite supply.


----------



## GBRforWDW

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> They limit it for the same reason that they limit party tickets which sell out as well.  They have a finite supply.


The limit we're referring to is how many passes one person can buy in a day, not how many passes can be bought per day per ride.

If the passes are available throughout the day, there's a thought that if someone wants to spend the money, let them.


----------



## Miffy

Started yesterday at DHS and hopped to DAK.

We were lucky and able to get on MDE at exactly the right moment to get an ILL$ for Rise--after the ILL$ system was down for quite a while starting at 7 am.

At 7am we booked G+ for TSM.

At lunch we booked G+ for KS at DAK for 3:20.

We arrived at DAK around 2:45 or so. Booked G+ for KRR since nothing for NRJ was available--or ever became available. Also, no ILL$ for FoP were available when we decided to hop and none appeared at all the entire time we were there.

The G+ for KRR wasn't necessary. By the time we got to KRR--around 4:15 pm, the standby wait was 5 minutes. 

We've been here almost a week and we still haven't figured out how to get all the G+ attractions we want on any given day. The only exception to this is days where we wanted only 1 G+ ride, so essentially paid ILL$ price for it.

If we stayed in the parks from open to close, we would have less of a problem with this, I think, but we don't. Often by 2 hours after park opening, G+ times for desirable attractions are already for times in the late afternoon so, for us, there was no point in our booking them,

Furthermore, we spend a heckuva lot of time hanging around, waiting for the next thing we booked. I can't imagine why Disney would think this benefits them. Does it? How could it?

And we and a huge % of the people around us in every park we've been in are constantly staring at the phone screen.

And for everyone who thinks that WDW made G, G+, and ILL$ to even the playing field so that somehow knowledgable guests wouldn't have an advantage, I have big news for you: Knowledgable guests still have an advantage because, judging by everyone I've spoken to in the last week, hardly anyone knows how these new systems work. I mean, people aren't even aware they need park reservations. And innumerable people I've chatted with had no idea that you didn't need to buy G+ in order to purchase ILL$.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

GBRforWDW said:


> The limit we're referring to is how many passes one person can buy in a day, not how many passes can be bought per day per ride.
> 
> If the passes are available throughout the day, there's a thought that if someone wants to spend the money, let them.


The passes are not available throughout the day.  Some of them sell out within seconds (ROTR). 7DMT sells out on busy days before park open, so does Ratatouille.  They are limiting them because the supply is finite.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

There are lots of good reasons to complain about Genie+ but complaining when Disney takes an up charge option and essentially lowers the price by including it in Genie+ is not a good reason to complain.  If they made that change permanent and not just during Christmas that would greatly improve the guest experience.


----------



## Runnsally

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> There are lots of good reasons to complain about Genie+ but complaining when Disney takes an up charge option and essentially lowers the price by including it in Genie+ is not a good reason to complain.  If they made that change permanent and not just during Christmas that would greatly improve the guest experience.


A less expensive guest experience is different than a better guest experience.


----------



## wisblue

GBRforWDW said:


> The limit we're referring to is how many passes one person can buy in a day, not how many passes can be bought per day per ride.
> 
> If the passes are available throughout the day, there's a thought that if someone wants to spend the money, let them.



This isn’t a strategy point and really doesn’t belong on this thread.

But, If they didn’t limit how many one person could buy, some people with deeper pockets would snap up as many as possible, making it more difficult for people on tighter budgets to get one.


----------



## princesslover

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> There are lots of good reasons to complain about Genie+ but complaining when Disney takes an up charge option and essentially lowers the price by including it in Genie+ is not a good reason to complain.  If they made that change permanent and not just during Christmas that would greatly improve the guest experience.



I am still heartbroken that old favorites like Everest and Space Mountain are now separate paid attractions.  I would have like to be a fly on the wall to hear that thought process.


----------



## Mesh

My trip starts Monday so it is during the period where Everest, Space, Frozen, and MMRR will be included in Genie+. I’m wondering how much this changes the  best strategy for what to book at 7 am. My daughter doesn’t ride Everest or Space, but I will be watching tomorrow to see how those additions change the ride availability for the rides we will be doing. I now think I will book Frozen at the 7 am for our Epcot day. I am unsure about HS…to go for MMRR or Slinky first.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Mesh said:


> I am unsure about HS…to go for MMRR or Slinky first


I figure SDD will still go fastest.  But will definitely be paying attention.  We're at DHS Friday the 24th, but I think my decision will be between MMRR and TSM.  Haven't talked my daughter into going back on SDD (also no everest or space).  We'll see how she feels after the other parks next week tho.


----------



## scrappinginontario

princesslover said:


> I am still heartbroken that old favorites like Everest and Space Mountain are now separate paid attractions.  I would have like to be a fly on the wall to hear that thought process.


Depending on when your trip is, these are not separate paid attractions from Dec 19-Jan3.  Hopefully this bodes well for them becoming non-ILL$ in the future.


----------



## GBRforWDW

wisblue said:


> This isn’t a strategy point and really doesn’t belong on this thread.
> 
> But, If they didn’t limit how many one person could buy, some people with deeper pockets would snap up as many as possible, making it more difficult for people on tighter budgets to get one.


Yeah, you're right, it doesn't belong.  It was also only half the point I was making, but since it's not about strategy, I'll stop talking about it in here.


----------



## kboo

GBRforWDW said:


> I figure SDD will still go fastest.  But will definitely be paying attention.  We're at DHS Friday the 24th, but I think my decision will be between MMRR and TSM.  Haven't talked my daughter into going back on SDD (also no everest or space).  We'll see how she feels after the other parks next week tho.


 We are flying in tomorrow and figure we may go to HS for a bit in the afternoon. Probably won’t try for ILL at 7 since we have more HS park days later. Does it make sense to buy G+ and get some afternoon rides lined up, and if so, is SDD or MFSR (assuming both are available) the one likely to have a longer standby time? 

just concerned whether we’d be able to do much of anything going to HS for a few hours in the afternoon with no G+.

(also if we booked one G+ around 7A could we book another one at 9A (or later, but before riding the G+ pass booked at 7, or has that changed?)


----------



## g-dad66

kboo said:


> We are flying in tomorrow and figure we may go to HS for a bit in the afternoon. Probably won’t try for ILL at 7 since we have more HS park days later. Does it make sense to buy G+ and get some afternoon rides lined up, and if so, is SDD or MFSR (assuming both are available) the one likely to have a longer standby time?
> 
> just concerned whether we’d be able to do much of anything going to HS for a few hours in the afternoon with no G+.
> 
> (also if we booked one G+ around 7A could we book another one at 9A (or later, but before riding the G+ pass booked at 7, or has that changed?)



SDD will go fast, so it is the one you should book at 7am.

HS opens at 8:30 tomorrow, so you will be eligible for your second LL at 10:30 (2 hours after park opening).

You could then book third LL at 12:30.

Three LLs (SDD, MFSR, and either MMRR, RnRC, ToT, or TSM) lined up for afternoon doesn't sound bad to me (but on the other hand, $15.00 per person always sounds bad to me)


----------



## GBRforWDW

Well, just like Disney, 3 out of the 4 rides downgraded to G+ were not available at 7am to select.  Only Expedition Everest showing available times.  SDD still went in a minute though, so don't think too many thought about MMRR not being available.

Expedition Everest and Navi are keeping up with each other though with their availability.




I'm in central time, so that's why 6am.


----------



## wisblue

GBRforWDW said:


> Well, just like Disney, 3 out of the 4 rides downgraded to G+ were not available at 7am to select.  Only Expedition Everest showing available times.  SDD still went in a minute though, so don't think too many thought about MMRR not being available.
> 
> Expedition Everest and Navi are keeping up with each other though with their availability.
> 
> View attachment 631819
> View attachment 631820View attachment 631821View attachment 631822
> 
> I'm in central time, so that's why 6am.



I didn’t look right at 7 AM EST, but they are all available now at 7:15 with return times shortly after park open. So, anyone who wants to select those as their first LL selection should be able to do it.


----------



## GBRforWDW

wisblue said:


> I didn’t look right at 7 AM EST, but they are all available now at 7:15 with return rimes shortly after park open. So, anyone who wants to select those as their first LL selection should be able to do it.


They must have shown up right at 715, lol.  I looked at 714. .


----------



## wisblue

QUOTE="g-dad66, post: 63615073, member: 228864"]
SDD will go fast, so it is the one you should book at 7am.

HS opens at 8:30 tomorrow, so you will be eligible for your second LL at 10:30 (2 hours after park opening).

You could then book third LL at 12:30.

Three LLs (SDD, MFSR, and either MMRR, RnRC, ToT, or TSM) lined up for afternoon doesn't sound bad to me (but on the other hand, $15.00 per person always sounds bad to me)
[/QUOTE]

We plan to do something like this on our arrival day when we come for Marathon Weekend.

As you say, SDD will disappear first and quickly. There is also a good possibility, especially on a crowded day, that MFSR will no longer be available 2 hours after park open as a second pick.

But, IMHO, getting one of SDD or MFSR plus TSMM and one other will still make for a much more enjoyable afternoon/evening than going without G+ at all. If we get both SDD and MFSR I would consider that a bonus.

It‘s a matter of personal opinion whether that extra enjoyment is worth $15 a person.


----------



## Miffy

We've been here since Monday and the only advice I have is this: Book your ILL$ first thing and if there's even one G+ attraction you want, book that at 7 am as well. Consider anything on top of that that occurs at a time that's convenient to you to be a huge plus.


----------



## kboo

g-dad66 said:


> SDD will go fast, so it is the one you should book at 7am.
> 
> HS opens at 8:30 tomorrow, so you will be eligible for your second LL at 10:30 (2 hours after park opening).
> 
> You could then book third LL at 12:30.
> 
> Three LLs (SDD, MFSR, and either MMRR, RnRC, ToT, or TSM) lined up for afternoon doesn't sound bad to me (but on the other hand, $15.00 per person always sounds bad to me)


Thank you! That’s great info. So - next newbie question - if we’re getting ILL for RotR, that no longer goes in seconds, right? So we should nab genie+ and our first G+ pick and then do the ILL?

Ooof. I just saw @Miffy’s post - ILL first?!?


----------



## g-dad66

kboo said:


> Thank you! That’s great info. So - next newbie question - if we’re getting ILL for RotR, that no longer goes in seconds, right? So we should nab genie+ and our first G+ pick and then do the ILL?
> 
> Ooof. I just saw @Miffy’s post - ILL first?!?



SDD has been going faster than RotR.

If you can have two of you trying at the same time (can be in same MDE account or separate ones), one can grab RotR while the other does SDD.


----------



## Miffy

kboo said:


> Thank you! That’s great info. So - next newbie question - if we’re getting ILL for RotR, that no longer goes in seconds, right? So we should nab genie+ and our first G+ pick and then do the ILL?
> 
> Ooof. I just saw @Miffy’s post - ILL first?!?


Yes, ILL$ first for Rise. If you can, have someone else booking the G+.

I'm at lunch at Y&Y. Sorry for short reply!


----------



## scrappinginontario

Miffy said:


> We've been here since Monday and the only advice I have is this: Book your ILL$ first thing and if there's even one G+ attraction you want, book that at 7 am as well. Consider anything on top of that that occurs at a time that's convenient to you to be a huge plus.


Sorry, just want to ensure I understand.  Are you paying $15 for Genie+ and only getting one LL from that purchase?

I hope I’m misunderstanding what you’re saying.  Please let me know.


----------



## Miffy

scrappinginontario said:


> Sorry, just want to ensure I understand.  Are you paying $15 for Genie+ and only getting one LL from that purchase?
> 
> I hope I’m misunderstanding what you’re saying.  Please let me know.


You understand what I'm saying. We've had a couple of days when we used G+ for only one attraction.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Miffy said:


> You understand what I'm saying. We've had a couple of days when we used G+ for only one attraction.


Wow!! Thanks!  This makes me realize I have to think seriously about purchasing it if it’s for only one ride!!


----------



## Miffy

scrappinginontario said:


> Wow!! Thanks!  This makes me realize I have to think seriously about purchasing it if it’s for only one ride!!


Here I am, back in the room, so I have more time to weigh in on this.

I think it depends on a number of factors, including how crowded the park is, what attractions you most want to do, how you like to schedule your day, how many hours you want to spend in any given park, how much time and energy you're wiling to devote to making and remaking plans, and how much time and energy you're willing to devote to looking at your smartphone.

We're rarely in the parks into the late evening, so G+ times at 7 or 8 pm are not usually useful to us.

Today we went to DAK. At 7 am we booked G+ for KS for 11:10 am and ILL$ for FoP at 3:20 pm. At 10 am we booked NRJ for 4:40 pm. We'd already done KRR and didn't want to get wet again, but G+ times for it were still available. So we might've gotten 3 G+s out of it today. We don't ride EE and I've done Dino enough for the next year or two.

We didn't use G+ at all at Epcot, which we RD'd. Bought ILL$ for Remy, which we both thought was a waste of time and money. But at least now we know.

We're mostly using G+ so we don't have to stand in a long line at a favorite ride. If that's the only ride we can get G+ for, then so be it. WDW has gotten a LOT of our money this week. We'll add it up after we get home and I'll report back. It's not pretty.

When we went through the LL at KS this morning, I said something like, "We're victims of the Disney upcharge," and the two CMs at the tap points agreed. One of them said, "Truer words were never spoken." The standby line was 85 minutes long, so we were glad (I use that term loosely) we'd spent the fifteen bucks.

My unscientific impression is that G+ and ILL$ are making standby lines heinously long, worse than FP+ did.

ETA: When I say "fifteen bucks" what I really mean is $31.96, since there are two of us and it's $15.98 with tax. BTW, FoP was $14 + tax this morning = $29.82 for the two of us. Today's total upcharge: $61.78. If you divide that by the 3 attractions we did (KS, FoP, NRJ), that's $10.29 each per ride. Sheesh.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Miffy said:


> If you divide that by the 3 attractions we did (KS, FoP, NRJ), that's $10.29 each per ride.


----------



## cjlong88

Sunday December 19th. We were at MK from 7:30 am to 12:15 pm. We then took a break and then hopped to AK and was there from 4:30 - 6:30 pm.

could have grabbed more LL’s than what we did but this was a relaxing day. Didn’t need to see or do it all. We didn’t wait in a single line, and that was awesome. Every standby attraction and LL was a walk-on for us.

I will say, those of us who were refresh monsters with FP+ built a habit of grabbing anything and then modifying the crap out of it. This system forces me doing the exact opposite. I saw lots of stuff pop up and my brain said, “grab it now!” But sometimes the window wasn’t right or it was my second choice ride and I just had to be patient and refresh a little until we found a time or ride that worked for us. A learning curve for sure, and faith that refreshing does bring up better LL’s, even those marked “all gone”. Persistence will win out, just like in the FP+ refresh method.

Wish they would allow modifications. One you book you are committed unless you want to cancel and risk not getting anything equal or better. And those hard-to get refresh LL’s go fast, and canceling takes a bit of effort.


The first time frame is the LL return window and the time in parentheses is what time I booked the LL or ILL$.


----------



## kboo

Wow. We are trying HS tomorrow with ILL and G+, will report back.

so is ROTR ILL as crazy as the BG process from before?


----------



## MagicMoon

cjlong88 said:


> Sunday November 19th. We were at MK from 7:30 am to 12:15 pm. We then took a break and then hopped to AK and was there from 4:30 - 6:30 pm.
> 
> could have grabbed more LL’s than what we did but this was a relaxing day. Didn’t need to see or do it all. We didn’t wait in a single line, and that was awesome. Every standby attraction and LL was a walk-on for us.
> 
> I will say, those of us who were refresh monsters with FP+ built a habit of grabbing anything and then modifying the crap out of it. This system forces me doing the exact opposite. I saw lots of stuff pop up and my brain said, “grab it now!” But sometimes the window wasn’t right or it was my second choice ride and I just had to be patient and refresh a little until we found a time or ride that worked for us. A learning curve for sure, and faith that refreshing does bring up better LL’s, even those marked “all gone”. Persistence will win out, just like in the FP+ refresh method.
> 
> Wish they would allow modifications. One you book you are committed unless you want to cancel and risk not getting anything equal or better. And those hard-to get refresh LL’s go fast, and canceling takes a bit of effort.
> 
> 
> The first time frame is the LL return window and the time in parentheses is what time I booked the LL or ILL$.
> 
> View attachment 631992


Was this before or after the loophole was closed?
November 19th?

must be December…
That looks like a great turn out! Kudos!


----------



## cjlong88

MagicMoon said:


> Was this before or after the loophole was closed?
> November 19th?
> 
> must be December…
> That looks like a great turn out! Kudos!


My bad. It’s December, isn’t it…will correct.


----------



## Miffy

Good morning. Monday, December 20th.

Our plan was to buy ILL$ for RotR for 11:15 or thereabouts and get G+ for MMRR around noon.

On MDE at 7 am.  Not able to even click on the ILL$ for RotR for at least 20 seconds. We got RotR for 1:25--hardly 11:15--and had to settle for MMRR at 1:05.

This screws up our entire desired itinerary for the day, including our lunch plans. Fortunately we don't have an ADR.

We thought we were booking 11:20 am for RotR, but by the time we got to the screen where you pay, it was 1:25--two hours later, in just a matter of maybe 2 seconds. It's sold out now, apparently, or at least it's "not currently available."

If this were free and we hadn't just spent $61.78 (2 of us) we'd probably just feel disappointed in the times but at least happy we'd gotten these LLs at all. As it is, we're still happy we got these, but not at all amused by the cost.

We were trying to avoid RDing DHS yet again today, which we've done twice on this trip.

ETA: We were both on WiFi for trying to book RotR--one on an iPhone, the other on Android. We both have AT&T.


----------



## Madame

RD’d DHS this morning.  Got here at 7:15.  Tip board defaulted to MK this morning and had erased my priority selections.

Only SDD was late PM when we have a Planet Hollywood reservation. I didn’t take anything and about 7:13 SDD popped for 10 so snagged it.

In line for Rise.  Wait says 180.  Been 1/2 hr so far.  Will report back with actual wait.

I am pining for FP - we wanted to sleep in after our party last night but it’s just not possible if you want to ride more than a couple rides.  Not the thread for this but as a family stuck with the busiest times to visit… we are seriously not impressed.  DAK tomorrow and we’ll have to do it all again


----------



## princesswahooey

Here now with DH and kids 15 & 20. Did Christmas party last night, so everyone wanting to sleep in a bit for our Epcot/AK hop day even though we are usually rope-droppers. At 7 we got 3 of us on the phones and got Remy boarding group 53 (1:30-ish return), 12:00 Test Track and FOP for 6:05pm for hopping later. It was all our first try at scheduling and it went OK. And return times for Epcot were good for a little more sleeping in.

Now to drag everyone out of bed


----------



## CopperCreek28

Does anyone know why I can’t buy an ILL for remy’s at Epcot? I’ve been trying since 7 and am staying on site. (I know I can also attempt to join the afternoon BG)


----------



## J. Galt

g-dad66 said:


> SDD has been going faster than RotR.
> 
> If you can have two of you trying at the same time (can be in same MDE account or separate ones), one can grab RotR while the other does SDD.


I’m sorry if this has been asked before, but I leave for my trip soon and am still trying to figure this system out.  I see you can have multiple people using the same MDE account to search Genie+?  So my party of 11 has two MDE accounts.  Can we all try at 7:00 am split between those two accounts?  Or should each person in my party create an account and link them all together?


----------



## scrappinginontario

princesswahooey said:


> Here now with DH and kids 15 & 20. Did Christmas party last night, so everyone wanting to sleep in a bit for our Epcot/AK hop day even though we are usually rope-droppers. At 7 we got 3 of us on the phones and got Remy boarding group 53 (1:30-ish return), 12:00 Test Track and FOP for 6:05pm for hopping later. It was all our first try at scheduling and it went OK. And return times for Epcot were good for a little more sleeping in.
> 
> Now to drag everyone out of bed


 Not sure if you've followed in the past but wanted to give you a heads up that your Remy BG return time will likely be pushed back numerous times.  Many report it gets pushed out by hours.  Not the news you want to hear but just something to keep in mind.


J. Galt said:


> I’m sorry if this has been asked before, but I leave for my trip soon and am still trying to figure this system out.  I see you can have multiple people using the same MDE account to search Genie+?  So my party of 11 has two MDE accounts.  Can we all try at 7:00 am split between those two accounts?  Or should each person in my party create an account and link them all together?


Multiple people can be signed into the same account.


----------



## Rickat96

Just got back from a weeklong trip. December 12-18. We did not use any Disney Genie stuff, nada. From previous years (last trip Dec 2019) we always went the 1st week of December, crowd levels were not busy at all during the week. We decided to sleep in and close the parks at night. It did appear the later in the evening, the lower the standby lines were. We rode all of the top liner's- longest wait was 1:45 min for ROTR-well worth it too, great ride. We did get BG24 for Remy-cute ride, but its not worth paying for.


----------



## wiggy500

GBRforWDW said:


> Well, just like Disney, 3 out of the 4 rides downgraded to G+ were not available at 7am to select.  Only Expedition Everest showing available times.  SDD still went in a minute though, so don't think too many thought about MMRR not being available.
> 
> Expedition Everest and Navi are keeping up with each other though with their availability.
> 
> View attachment 631819
> View attachment 631820View attachment 631821View attachment 631822
> 
> I'm in central time, so that's why 6am.



Did you see this article?  https://insidethemagic.net/2021/12/disney-genie-plus-malfunction-guests-irate-ad1/

Apparently one person on twitter from the central time zone equates to guests being irate.  Got to love journalism.  I had to leave a comment on that one.


----------



## GBRforWDW

wiggy500 said:


> Did you see this article?  https://insidethemagic.net/2021/12/disney-genie-plus-malfunction-guests-irate-ad1/
> 
> Apparently one person on twitter from the central time zone equates to guests being irate.  Got to love journalism.  I had to leave a comment on that one.


Bahaha thanks.  I did not see that.  I also blasted that account last week for linking to a Disneyland article from 2020 to talk about new information regarding the Magic Kingdom fire last week


----------



## conniehar90

G+ Newbie here - have scrolled through a few pages of this long thread.  Looking to purchase G+ for EP on the 28th and MK on the 30th for my son and gf.  They may RD EP but they will probably show up late to MK on the 30th since it is open until 1am and we live an hour away.  If I go on at 7am will I be given morning options and I just keep refreshing for later times?  They will not be purchasing any ILLs.   I appreciate any advice.  I am a Disney veteran but this is all new to me!

I agree with whoever said this makes standby waits worse than with FP.  We went last week with no G+ and got in line for HM at a 45 minute posted time and it was 90 minutes until we got out.  Not liking this one bit!

Thanks!


----------



## GBRforWDW

conniehar90 said:


> If I go on at 7am will I be given morning options and I just keep refreshing for later times?


With Genie+, they do not allow you to choose a time yourself, that being said, if they can watch the app for a few minutes at 7am, jungle cruise and possibly Peter Pan will make it into afternoon time slots fairly quick.  With the park opening at 9am, they won’t be able to select next ride until 11 anyway, so might as well sit on the selection until the time is good. So yes, just keep refreshing to get to your time


----------



## kboo

December 20 - first attempt at ILL/G+ (HS)
minutes before 7A, DH and I are trying to get to the page to book ILL/G+ and it defaults to MK, signs us out, all sorts of shenanigans, even though we THOUGHT we’d gotten it all set up last night.

after several seconds he gets ILL for RotR. For 7pm. We have a dinner reservation at EP. …
I’m shut out of SDD but get MFSR at 12:45. 
we attempt to RD, actually enter the park around 7:40am
Head directly to SDD which the kids love. 
60 min wait (posted 70)
“Can’t book next LL until 10:30” … it is now about 8:45 and lines are loooong everywhere.
TSMM ~45 min SB?
AS2 ~35 min SB?
I started watching LL availability around 10:25 to see what I should book at 10:30; around then the return times for the other popular rides started going into the afternoon since we had a dinner reservation at EP. 
booked an 11am Star Tours LL (posted wait ~35-45) and walked right on after AS2, got to lunch early at 11:45 and we were all exhausted and hangry.

we did 4 rides in 4 hours. 
after star tours and MFSR, though we did manage to stack 3 EP LL (Soarin, SE, the seas) for the 80 minutes before our dinner reservation. But because we napped/rested and it takes a while to get kids up and showered, we only had a half hour and ended up only riding Soarin. Then dinner, then hoofed it back to HS for RotR.

it was a lot more running around than we did in the days of FP or standby days earlier in the pandemic, but given the crowds today I guess it wasn’t too bad. For $15pp for G+ we rode star tours, MFSR and Soarin without much of a wait, and if we’d been more organized ourselves we could have gone on SE and the seas. And this was with two ADRs, one in HS and one in EP. All in all, a good but tiring day. I *think* I now have a better plan for tomorrow.


----------



## Madame

Madame said:


> RD’d DHS this morning.  Got here at 7:15.  Tip board defaulted to MK this morning and had erased my priority selections.
> 
> Only SDD was late PM when we have a Planet Hollywood reservation. I didn’t take anything and about 7:13 SDD popped for 10 so snagged it.
> 
> In line for Rise.  Wait says 180.  Been 1/2 hr so far.  Will report back with actual wait.
> 
> I am pining for FP - we wanted to sleep in after our party last night but it’s just not possible if you want to ride more than a couple rides.  Not the thread for this but as a family stuck with the busiest times to visit… we are seriously not impressed.  DAK tomorrow and we’ll have to do it all again


Update:  Rise took a bit over 2 hrs from getting in line to getting out.  SDD at 10:00 took under 5 mins but I couldn’t get anything before an 11:40 TSMM so we did ST standby and then TSMM.

We had MM lunch at 12:30 and I kept refreshing for about an hour for ToT (8pm and beyond available only) and MMRR (sold out) and ST (4pm and out only). We ended up leaving after lunch around 1:30.

Had we arrived earlier we might have gotten more rides standby without an 80 min wait, but it wouldn’t have changed the fact that we could only get 2 G+ without staying open to close and that is not how we tour. 

I tried to purchase Rise after being unsuccessful getting SDD right at 7, but again, times were only offered at 7pm and beyond.  I canceled the very few dining reservations we had - it’s too difficult with this floating G+, no guarantee of return time.  

The stress this is causing in the mornings (sitting here again while everyone else sleeps) does not make for a relaxing vacation for whichever parent is tasked with securing rides.


----------



## wisblue

wiggy500 said:


> Did you see this article?  https://insidethemagic.net/2021/12/disney-genie-plus-malfunction-guests-irate-ad1/
> 
> Apparently one person on twitter from the central time zone equates to guests being irate.  Got to love journalism.  I had to leave a comment on that one.



Especially since the problem was corrected within about 15 minutes.

That is also an example of a headline writer not exactly capturing the point of the article.


----------



## Juventus

A couple questions:

1) when on the tip board at 7:00am, if I click on the attraction too early (before 7:00), can I simply click the back button on my phone (android) and reclick the attraction (or once back on the tip board do I have to pull down to refresh)

2)  is the above procedure (tapping back and immediately reclicking) what people are doing throughout the day if they are looking for alternate G+ return times?

3) if I don't start my day at Epcot, is $ILL the only way to ride it?


----------



## Mome Rath

Juventus said:


> A couple questions:
> 
> 1) when on the tip board at 7:00am, if I click on the attraction too early (before 7:00), can I simply click the back button on my phone (android) and reclick the attraction (or once back on the tip board do I have to pull down to refresh)



If I remember correctly, I just hit the back button.  If you click on the attraction, it will refresh for the next page.  I will add that the app was glitchy as far as not always loading the same, or smoothly, so just be prepared for that.  I assume it is because the number of people on there at the same time.



> 2)  is the above procedure (tapping back and immediately reclicking) what people are doing throughout the day if they are looking for alternate G+ return times?



The app seemed to refresh more on its own than in the past, so through the day when you open the tip board, or look at your plans or click on an attraction, it kept refreshing on its own. Trying to look at the lay of the land through the day, I just would click on the tip board to refresh the time. Or, you can click on the individual attraction and it should update the time when it opens.



> 3) if I don't start my day at Epcot, is $ILL the only way to ride it?



I think you are asking about Rat?  Yes, if you want VQ chances, your park reservation has to be at EPCOT.  If you are hopping to EPCOT, you need ILL$ to ride Rat, as there is no stand-by.


----------



## KLK622

I put this in another thread, but thought I would share here also about Genie+ at HS on a busy day now that MMRR is an option:

Just wanted to report that I was able to book MMRR for my second Genie+ selection on 12/20…I booked Slinky at 7 am for 1:15-2:15 and then at 10:30 I was able to get MMRR for 6:20-7:20. I was able to get TSMM at 12:30 for 6:55-7:55. The park was busy (touring plans had it as an 8) so I was pleasantly surprised. Also ROTR was still available for booking right after I did Slinky Dog.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Have an Animal Kingdom reservation today.  FoP passes ran out at 7:58, just before offsite guests were able to book, so thought I missed out, but just after 9am, several slots between 11 and 1 opened up!  We're not there yet, decided to let the storms pass a bit.  Hopefully the afternoon storms aren't too crazy.


----------



## Delilah1310

Saturday, Dec 18 - 2 adults, 1 teen

Kiddo and I both on phone at 7 am, same MDE account 

Kiddo got a SDD Genie+ for 10:30-11:30
I got RoTR ILL$ for 11:40-12:40
And then I got a MMRR ILL$ for 10:55-11:55

So we felt pretty good about how the timing worked out.

Arrived at park at 8 am
Rode Tot standby
Rode RRC standby
Kiddo’s magic band came off on RRC so we made a detour up to guest services
Rode TSMM standby

Used SSD genie+
Got Star Tours genie+
Made mobile order lunch ressie for 11:30
Used mmRR ILL$
Used Star Tours genie+
Got test track genie+ for 7:25

Went to ride Rise after lunch but it went down

So we took break back at hotel.
Returned around 4:15 for Rise
Then left for dinner ressies at Epcot 6:15 and barely made it
Could have used TT genie+ but we were exhausted

2 ILL$
3 genie + rides
3 standby

We did not do everything possible … we prioritized favorites and went at a relaxed pace. 

Other days we have wanted a later start so picked our genie+ or a ILL$ and worked around it.

Yes we are only getting a max of 3 or so genie+ rides (we could get more but we are not interested in some of the remaining options)

For us - for the crowds we have this week - we found genie+ plus worth it for having a favorite ride or two locked in. But we are not trying to do it all.


----------



## brockash

Madame said:


> Update:  Rise took a bit over 2 hrs from getting in line to getting out.  SDD at 10:00 took under 5 mins but I couldn’t get anything before an 11:40 TSMM so we did ST standby and then TSMM.
> 
> We had MM lunch at 12:30 and I kept refreshing for about an hour for ToT (8pm and beyond available only) and MMRR (sold out) and ST (4pm and out only). We ended up leaving after lunch around 1:30.
> 
> Had we arrived earlier we might have gotten more rides standby without an 80 min wait, but it wouldn’t have changed the fact that we could only get 2 G+ without staying open to close and that is not how we tour.
> 
> I tried to purchase Rise after being unsuccessful getting SDD right at 7, but again, times were only offered at 7pm and beyond.  I canceled the very few dining reservations we had - it’s too difficult with this floating G+, no guarantee of return time.
> 
> The stress this is causing in the mornings (sitting here again while everyone else sleeps) does not make for a relaxing vacation for whichever parent is tasked with securing rides.


What time did you get in line for RotR? Was this at rope drop?  2 hrs just seems so long...unless did you not have early entry?


----------



## Madame

brockash said:


> What time did you get in line for RotR? Was this at rope drop?  2 hrs just seems so long...unless did you not have early entry?


We arrived at 7:15 (EE).  The CM at the end of the line said about 2 hrs and was spot on - that line twisted all over the place, through the Muppets backstage area at one point.  The constant shuffling made my feet and back ache.  It was pretty miserable.  I won’t ride again without LL access.  We gave in and paid for FOP this morning so we could sleep in a bit.


----------



## cubed

Will it be impossible to get anything next week, when crowds are at max capacity? We have reservations for MK on 12/31 and AK for 1/1 and staying offsite. This is a super last minute trip and I am still scrambling to get my ILs park reservations for the same days. We've done peak capacity days for years with the FPP system and no issues, but I am so afraid we will only end up on two or three rides this time. Argh.


----------



## wiggy500

wisblue said:


> Especially since the problem was corrected within about 15 minutes.
> 
> That is also an example of a headline writer not exactly capturing the point of the article.



And also it wasn't actually a "problem" and instead was a common occurrence of popular lightning lanes not lasting very long and then popping back up a few minutes later.  Maybe the headline could have been "One Person In Nebraska Notices Something Not Too Surprising?"


----------



## brockash

Madame said:


> We arrived at 7:15 (EE).  The CM at the end of the line said about 2 hrs and was spot on - that line twisted all over the place, through the Muppets backstage area at one point.  The constant shuffling made my feet and back ache.  It was pretty miserable.  I won’t ride again without LL access.  We gave in and paid for FOP this morning so we could sleep in a bit.


Wow, so you were in the park 45 mins. before early entry "started" and it took 2 hours to get through the ride...ughh does not sound fun at all.  I wonder what time the first 100 guests or so showed up today...so crazy...thanks for the info. and good luck with the rest of your trip!


----------



## Madame

brockash said:


> Wow, so you were in the park 45 mins. before early entry "started" and it took 2 hours to get through the ride...ughh does not sound fun at all.  I wonder what time the first 100 guests or so showed up today...so crazy...thanks for the info. and good luck with the rest of your trip!


No.  EE started at 7 but I was too focused on trying to get an SDD G+ to properly make my way to the back quickly.  Both things were happening simultaneously and we weren’t at the front of the EE crowd anyway.  I should have focused on one or the other but Disney had us doing both at once.


----------



## brockash

Madame said:


> No.  EE started at 7 but I was too focused on trying to get an SDD G+ to properly make my way to the back quickly.  Both things were happening simultaneously and we weren’t at the front of the EE crowd anyway.  I should have focused on one or the other but Disney had us doing both at once.


Oh, I thought I saw EE was 830 this morning...yikes yeah 7am EE and 7am booking is tough.


----------



## princesswahooey

scrappinginontario said:


> Not sure if you've followed in the past but wanted to give you a heads up that your Remy BG return time will likely be pushed back numerous times.  Many report it gets pushed out by hours.  Not the news you want to hear but just something to keep in mind.
> Multiple people can be signed into the same account.


Amazingly, Remy worked out perfectly, (although tight.) We had an ADR at 1, so was actually hoping it would get pushed out a bit. But it stayed the same! Luckily we were still able to eat and get back to Remy and tap on just a few minutes before our call back window expired.  Figures the one day they stay on schedule.


----------



## Disturbia

scrappinginontario said:


> Not sure if you've followed in the past but wanted to give you a heads up that your Remy BG return time will likely be pushed back numerous times.  Many report it gets pushed out by hours.  Not the news you want to hear but just something to keep in mind.
> Multiple people can be signed into the same account.


All 11 can be linked in one account (only those linked in the friends and family list and with same? tickets would get a pass-everyone needs park hopper to get park2 pass) I believe and then multiple people can log in and get try to get a pass/BG and it would grab it for all.  Sometimes times do get pushed out or even earlier than displayed as Genie+ tries to not conflict with ADRs (showed 11 am but gave us 9 am ROTR due to Oga’s ADR conflict-party of 4 riders; so 11 might make it harder to get earlier times).  

Check height restrictions and deselect anyone who doesn’t meet height requirements


----------



## scrappinginontario

princesswahooey said:


> Amazingly, Remy worked out perfectly, (although tight.) We had an ADR at 1, so was actually hoping it would get pushed out a bit. But it stayed the same! Luckily we were still able to eat and get back to Remy and tap on just a few minutes before our call back window expired.  Figures the one day they stay on schedule.


Great news that you could ride!  Also happy to hear that it isn't everyday that it gets pushed and pushed.  I've heard so often of that happening that I wrongly assumed it happened each day.


----------



## Happy2BMommy0812

Trying Genie + at Epcot tomorrow. Wanting to ride frozen, test track and soarin. Catch is we won’t be there until 4, so I need LL times 4 and later. I thinki might be SOL because I think I might not be able to get a late enough time at 7 and then still grab another 2 hours after park opening and a 3rd 2 hours after that. Would love anyone’s advice. Or, in general, which have been going fastest?


----------



## Bayoumomof3

You should be able to get a later time on TT or Frozen. The park doesn’t open until 9:30, so you have from 7-9:30 to make that first LL without affecting your eligible time for the second one.


----------



## Mome Rath

Happy2BMommy0812 said:


> Trying Genie + at Epcot tomorrow. Wanting to ride frozen, test track and soarin. Catch is we won’t be there until 4, so I need LL times 4 and later. I thinki might be SOL because I think I might not be able to get a late enough time at 7 and then still grab another 2 hours after park opening and a 3rd 2 hours after that. Would love anyone’s advice. Or, in general, which have been going fastest?


I just did Soarin and Land there, so can only comment on that.  There was no huge pressure to get either... I think I got Soarin for 6pm sometime around 2pm in the day, but there are probably more people there now.  I got Land sometime around 5 I believe, also for 6 pm.


----------



## GBRforWDW

We had a pretty wet and wild day at Animal kingdom today.  Tried watching the weather app to see when it’d die down but failed miserably on that front as it was off and on all day, so puddles everywhere.  Shoes soaked before getting in the park. 

That being said, we were able to use Genie+ successfully for what we wanted. First ride selected was Navi.  I waited/kept refreshing until the time was 1pm as we didn’t know when we’d get to the park.

At 9, as I mentioned in a post earlier today, I was able to find a FoP ILL$ for 11am. I actually didn’t use it until after our Navi ride. My wife had to visit the chiropractor this morning and took longer than I expected when I booked the pass. A cast member did ask if I had extenuating circumstances that prevented me from arriving on time,so explained the situation. I said I understand if I can’t, but wanted to see if it’d be possible to ride. They were gracious to let me go as I know they didn’t have to, but man, I’m glad they did. I’ve never been on the ride before. It was so cool.

At 10, booked Festival of the Lion King for 12pm show. 

At 1245, while eating lunch, booked a dinosaur pass for 3:45. I could have booked another one after using the Lion king pass, but the times for what we wanted weren’t moving that fast today and we were trying to avoid too much overlap.

After lunch, we walked to Pandora and rode Navi and then I rode FoP by myself. At 2:45, I was trying to grab a Safari ride, but we were too soon to book again and the last time slots booked up as I was trying again.  Then with a few refreshes, a 2:55 slot opened up!  So yay.  My daughter and I rode that as wife didn’t think she could handle the movements of the Safari vehicle.  

After that we watched kite tails then headed to Dino land for our dinosaur pass. I talked my daughter into riding it, which may have been a mistake. Scarier than I thought, but her day was made when a cast member handed her a button that said Celebrating Conquering Dinosaurs or something like that. She was so proud to wear that and show it off. 

After that we were done. We had some dinner, then watched the tree of life lit up for a bit then headed out.

Overall, we had 4 Genie+ and 1 ILL$ and we actually didn’t ride anything without using Lightning Lane. My daughter didn’t even want to stand in line for Triceratop spin, which had a 25 minute posted time.


----------



## g-dad66

Happy2BMommy0812 said:


> Trying Genie + at Epcot tomorrow. Wanting to ride frozen, test track and soarin. Catch is we won’t be there until 4, so I need LL times 4 and later. I thinki might be SOL because I think I might not be able to get a late enough time at 7 and then still grab another 2 hours after park opening and a 3rd 2 hours after that. Would love anyone’s advice. Or, in general, which have been going fastest?



Thrill-data's data for data today is instructive:

1 - By 7:50 am, the LL time for Test Track was 7:45 pm, so you should have no problem with that one.
2 - LL availability for Frozen disappeared after 11:20 (and you're not eligible to book until 11:30), BUT it popped up with some late night availability at 11:45 and again at 12:15, so this one will be dicey
3 -LL availability for Soarin didn't disappear until 3:30 (and popped up again sporadically a few more times) so you should be good on that one.

If Frozen is more of a priority than Test Track, you could grab it first, but then you will be completely out of luck for getting a Test Track LL.  

Other possible considerations:
I've noticed that the late afternoon standby waits for Frozen this week have been slightly worse than for Test Track but not much different (90-ish minutes for Frozen vs. 80-ish minute for Test Track).  Test Track offers a single-rider lane if that is an option that would work for you.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Mickey's Christmas Parade is available as a Genie+ ride and yes, it's my first pass today!  



Probably a little crazy, but we like the guaranteed viewing option for something we came to see anyway.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

Where is the viewing area for the parade with LL?


----------



## GBRforWDW

thanxfornoticin said:


> Where is the viewing area for the parade with LL?


This probably explains it better than I could!


----------



## thanxfornoticin

Enjoy!


----------



## Disturbia

I want to add that Soarin took us close to 30 mins to ride (15 min queue and then 15 min loadiing/riding) and we had to skip rider switch (no time left) so try to have enough time to ride before your next pass.  

Canada/France area had no path to walk through easily and it was extremely congested; it took us several extra minutes to get to Remy.  People park hop after 2 pm and crowd these areas.


----------



## Disturbia

Happy2BMommy0812 said:


> Trying Genie + at Epcot tomorrow. Wanting to ride frozen, test track and soarin. Catch is we won’t be there until 4, so I need LL times 4 and later. I thinki might be SOL because I think I might not be able to get a late enough time at 7 and then still grab another 2 hours after park opening and a 3rd 2 hours after that. Would love anyone’s advice. Or, in general, which have been going fastest?


We did this in Nov.  I would caution against overlapping them.  We had to skip 2 rider switch because of delays in loading.  As long as rides are 2 hours away, you can still keep stacking.  You’re giving up riding morning rides and hoping there are rides 2 hrs  away.  It was ok; more stress and constantly looking at phone vs booking as you go (MK).  We booked a LLIA$ for SDMT, then JC as our first pass and rode rides nearby; took a lunch break and then stacked evening Tomorrowland (monsters at 3-4pm +fantasyland rides.
https://allears.net/2021/11/24/theres-been-an-update-on-the-disney-genie-loophole/


----------



## GBRforWDW

Here's our parade view with lightning lane.  You enter the circle where the statue is.  There's a person holding a lightning lane sign to enter.


----------



## beesly

GBRforWDW said:


> Here's our parade view with lightning lane.  You enter the circle where the statue is.  There's a person holding a lightning lane sign to enter.
> 
> View attachment 632584



You got lucky! I just read on another site that they overbooked LLs for the parade today and canceled some guests’ reservations without any communication. It apparently didn’t do any good to show the CMs a screenshot of the parade LL reservation (for guests that even thought to take one).


----------



## cubed

GBRforWDW said:


> Overall, we had 4 Genie+ and 1 ILL$ and we actually didn’t ride anything without using Lightning Lane. My daughter didn’t even want to stand in line for Triceratop spin, which had a 25 minute posted time.



Are you staying onsite or off? This is about what I expect to be able to do with my crew next week. Alas, we are staying offsite so might be even less. lol.


----------



## GBRforWDW

cubed said:


> Are you staying onsite or off? This is about what I expect to be able to do with my crew next week. Alas, we are staying offsite so might be even less. lol.


We stayed offsite.


----------



## GBRforWDW

beesly said:


> You got lucky! I just read on another site that they overbooked LLs for the parade today and canceled some guests’ reservations without any communication. It apparently didn’t do any good to show the CMs a screenshot of the parade LL reservation (for guests that even thought to take one).


Uggh that's horrible.  It was pretty crowded, but really fun.  We really loved the parade


----------



## brentm77

princesswahooey said:


> Amazingly, Remy worked out perfectly, (although tight.) We had an ADR at 1, so was actually hoping it would get pushed out a bit. But it stayed the same! Luckily we were still able to eat and get back to Remy and tap on just a few minutes before our call back window expired.  Figures the one day they stay on schedule.



Can someone give us some insight on getting Remy on Christmas day?  We don't mind paying for a lightening lane.  But, what is the best strategy?  Try for the virtual queue at 7, and if we don't get it, immediately buy a lightening lane pass?  Do they go fast, as in, if I am not super quick we won't be able to buy one?


----------



## kboo

brentm77 said:


> Can someone give us some insight on getting Remy on Christmas day?  We don't mind paying for a lightening lane.  But, what is the best strategy?  Try for the virtual queue at 7, and if we don't get it, immediately buy a lightening lane pass?  Do they go fast, as in, if I am not super quick we won't be able to buy one?


We have had reasonable success with LL/G+ At Epcot - basically, yes. Try for a BG for Remy, if you don’t get it then pay for ILL. We did it yesterday and today and had no trouble - you do want to be on right before 7, though. 

Tokay we were at EP from 10am - 4:45pm and did: 
7am: Remy BG in low 60s, TT at 2:05

Figment standby (the kids love it) ~10am
Kids played games in the area after Figment
Booked SE for 11:40 as our 2nd G+ at 11:30 but couldn’t use it because: 
11:00 Went to Norway, waved at Anna and Else, Watched Barn Santa story/show. Kids looked in Norway museum. 
Watched music/dancing show at Mexico
Rode 3 Caballeros
12:00 Got to Le Cellier lunch at noon (somewhere in here switched SE for MS at 1:25) (?)
After we finished lunch, walked around upper Canada, (popped a kids’ Dramamine when kids announced they Wanted Orange instead of Green), watched Canada film, got a cookie. 
1:25 - tapped into MS, booked SE for 3:10
Rode MS Orange. Thankful for Dramamine. 
2:10ish - tapped into TT
while waiting for TT, refreshed to see that Remy BG has been call….. but we are Sooo close to SE. 
3:10ish - tapped in to SE
(potty break, popcorn break, DH and ODD got lost heading in the wrong direction after potty)
3:50isn - tapped in to Remy
Wait was still long… 
Left for dinner reservation at 4:45. 

TL, DR: 
In about 6:45 we did: 
Figment, 3 Caballeros, MS Orange*, TT*, SE*, Remy*
watched 2 shows
Ate 1 massive sit down lunch
Played around at the post ride games at: Figment, MS:O, TT and SE

Didon’t bother w FEA, Soarin and the Land pavilions since we had done rides there yesterday. 

But in these crowded times it seems you may have to be content with having to choose between TT and FEA for using G+. Maybe you could get a super late one fo the other ride, but I wouldn’t count on that in these crowds.


----------



## princesswahooey

LL was invaluable today, which was jam-packed everywhere. 15yo son and I started at AK today, rope dropped FOP, walked on Navi, rode EE 2x. Then met up with hubby and 20yo daughter (sleeping in) for LL for Safari, standby Dinosaur & and Bugs Life. We Lunched at Yak & Yeti. Then went to 2nd LL for EE. Rest break at hotel at 1:30. By the time we returned to MK at 5:30 pm had stacked LL for Space, BTMRR, HM, Pirates, and Splash. Plus had out BOG dinner. Just pulling into hotel at 11pm. The lines for everything all day were pretty insane. We did not wait for anything. Could not have done it w/o G+. Still hate how inflexible it is, though.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Our Genie day was interesting and really thrown off by using our first pass for the parade.  Seems like a terrible use, but what other rides are 15 minutes long?  I had been planning Jungle Cruise as first ride.  Unfortunately by  the time 11am rolled around, JC was too far into the night for us, probably after 9:30, so i skipped and selected Peter Pan for 5:30-6:30.  Thought we’d have enough time to get back from dinner, but we got back maybe 30 minutes late. They let us on as I mentioned we had the dining reservation. We also selected Buzz, Dumbo and Magic Carpets, but didn’t use buzz or magic carpets.  I also got a ILL$ for 7dmt for 9pm. Being offsite, earliest available was too close to fireworks show, so I chose a bit later to give me time to get there.  Ride broke down as I sat down in the train car so they kicked us out and had us wait.  Took about 15 minutes to get going. Almost left the line as I knew the family was getting antsy to leave.  Fortunately it started back up.  Second time riding for me.  It’s such a fun ride.  

we also did Small World and Little Mermaid standby. Iasw posted a 60 minute wait but we were on in 20. LM was posted 30, took 20. We also watched the hall of Presidents show and found a spot by sleepy hallow for the fireworks. Not the best spot for viewing projections, but fun anyway.

I think the longer park hours and extra selections (parade and space mountain) have been helpful for better availability.  Unfortunately, my family isn’t much for thrill so I had to stay on the lighter side of rides today, but I still saw availability for most rides at some point after 11am


----------



## emmabelle

brentm77 said:


> Can someone give us some insight on getting Remy on Christmas day?  We don't mind paying for a lightening lane.  But, what is the best strategy?  Try for the virtual queue at 7, and if we don't get it, immediately buy a lightening lane pass?  Do they go fast, as in, if I am not super quick we won't be able to buy one?



It’s packed here now and I was able to get BG 27 on 12/21.  It really helps to have a seconds hand on your phone.  I used my Apple Watch.


----------



## GBRforWDW

brentm77 said:


> Can someone give us some insight on getting Remy on Christmas day?  We don't mind paying for a lightening lane.  But, what is the best strategy?  Try for the virtual queue at 7, and if we don't get it, immediately buy a lightening lane pass?  Do they go fast, as in, if I am not super quick we won't be able to buy one?


I just got BG 8.  Was really quick if you have your party set and you’re at the refresh screen before 7, then refresh as soon as your phone changes to 7. Just one more button after that, join virtual queue.  Pretty easy.   But also, 5 minutes after 7, the ILL$ was only out to 1pm


----------



## princesswahooey

Going to share my experience on Tuesday 21, which was the super rainy day. We rope dropped ROTR. We were first group at entry tapstile. We were worried about trying to book G+ at 7:00, but thry said they would open gates at 7:03 to allow people to book LL before the craziness started. 

We had 2 of us on at 7:00 and secured G+ for MFSR for 9:50 but failed to get a ROTR ILL because the early times I picked kept being gone. They then opened the gates and we hoofed it through the pouring rain to ROTR. We were the second group to make it to the ride, and I tried refreshing at the 10 minute mark (huge thank you to this board for that info). Was successful in getting 11:50 return time during refresh. 

Of course we were super stoked to be among the first ones in line for ROTR, but at 7:30 they told us the ride was down and turned us all out into the rain. Huge let down, as we now lost our early advantage. 

We trudged through rain to TOT, got in a line that looked like about 30 minutes. Then the announced the ride was down. 

Feeling rather defeated, we booked it over to RNR, where luckily we only waited about 10 minutes. By the time we were out, the mass crowds were in the park and the line was up to 45 minutes. Next we rode Star Tours walk-on.

We waited 25 minutes for TSMM then got a snack at Ronto Roasters before tapping in to our MFSR. Pulled next G+ at 10:30 for TOT at 12:10. (I think I had to refresh once or twice to get this time.)

Watched Muppet Vision walk-on to stay warm and dry, then explored Galaxy's Edge shops a bit before riding ROTR. Very glad we had refreshed to snag an ILL even though we thought we were getting to ride with rope drop. It was good and there were some amazing moments, but we are not sure it's totally worth the hype. (Still good enough that we bought it again for tonight.)

Pulled our next G+ at 12:30 for Soarin at 7:20, rode TOT G+, and headed back to hotel via Skyliner to dry off and rest before Space 220 lunch at 2:35.

At 2:30, got G+ for Space Ship Earth at 6:45 and went back to hotel after lunch to rest & do laundry. 

Headed back to Epcot for our G+ and Crepery dinner. Rode SSE, then headed to Soarin, but it broke down & we ditched the line after a while to make our dinner ressie, which ended up being 30 minutes behind anyway . Enjoyed Crepery, then headed back to hotel.


----------



## nurseberta

kboo said:


> We have had reasonable success with LL/G+ At Epcot - basically, yes. Try for a BG for Remy, if you don’t get it then pay for ILL. We did it yesterday and today and had no trouble - you do want to be on right before 7, though.
> 
> Today we were at EP from 10am - 4:45pm and did:
> 7am: Remy BG in low 60s, TT at 2:05
> 
> 1:25 - tapped into MS, booked SE for 3:10
> Rode MS Orange. Thankful for Dramamine.
> 2:10ish - tapped into TT
> while waiting for TT, refreshed to see that Remy BG has been call….. but we are Sooo close to SE.
> 3:10ish - tapped in to SE
> (potty break, popcorn break, DH and ODD got lost heading in the wrong direction after potty)
> 3:50isn - tapped in to Remy



Sounds like a decent day! 
Have you ever been on MS:Orange before/ I always want to try but I am nervous. does Dramamine knock you out cold? 

How late were you for Remy? I have heard you can go anytime after your boarding group is called? do you think the wait was worth it over purchasing LL$?


----------



## nurseberta

princesswahooey said:


> Going to share my experience on Tuesday 21, which was the super rainy day. We rope dropped ROTR. We were first group at entry tapstile. We were worried about trying to book G+ at 7:00, but thry said they would open gates at 7:03 to allow people to book LL before the craziness started.
> 
> We had 2 of us on at 7:00 and secured G+ for MFSR for 9:50 but failed to get a ROTR ILL because the early times I picked kept being gone. They then opened the gates and we hoofed it through the pouring rain to ROTR. We were the second group to make it to the ride, and I tried refreshing at the 10 minute mark (huge thank you to this board for that info). Was successful in getting 11:50 return time during refresh.
> 
> Of course we were super stoked to be among the first ones in line for ROTR, but at 7:30 they told us the ride was down and turned us all out into the rain. Huge let down, as we now lost our early advantage.
> 
> We trudged through rain to TOT, got in a line that looked like about 30 minutes. Then the announced the ride was down.
> 
> Feeling rather defeated, we booked it over to RNR, where luckily we only waited about 10 minutes. By the time we were out, the mass crowds were in the park and the line was up to 45 minutes. Next we rode Star Tours walk-on.
> 
> We waited 25 minutes for TSMM then got a snack at Ronto Roasters before tapping in to our MFSR. Pulled next G+ at 10:30 for TOT at 12:10. (I think I had to refresh once or twice to get this time.)
> 
> Watched Muppet Vision walk-on to stay warm and dry, then explored Galaxy's Edge shops a bit before riding ROTR. Very glad we had refreshed to snag an ILL even though we thought we were getting to ride with rope drop. It was good and there were some amazing moments, but we are not sure it's totally worth the hype. (Still good enough that we bought it again for tonight.)
> 
> Pulled our next G+ at 12:30 for Soarin at 7:20, rode TOT G+, and headed back to hotel via Skyliner to dry off and rest before Space 220 lunch at 2:35.
> 
> At 2:30, got G+ for Space Ship Earth at 6:45 and went back to hotel after lunch to rest & do laundry.
> 
> Headed back to Epcot for our G+ and Crepery dinner. Rode SSE, then headed to Soarin, but it broke down & we ditched the line after a while to make our dinner ressie, which ended up being 30 minutes behind anyway . Enjoyed Crepery, then headed back to hotel.



Wow, what a bummer with the rain and rides going down. Here's hoping your other days went smoothly!! Sounds like a bunch of bad luck!

This is another reason I love Epcot resort Area, when things get shut down for rain/heat you have other options as lots of future world is indoors (except TT)


----------



## cubed

GBRforWDW said:


> Our Genie day was interesting and really thrown off by using our first pass for the parade.  Seems like a terrible use, but what other rides are 15 minutes long?  I had been planning Jungle Cruise as first ride.  Unfortunately by  the time 11am rolled around, JC was too far into the night for us, probably after 9:30, so i skipped and selected Peter Pan for 5:30-6:30.  Thought we’d have enough time to get back from dinner, but we got back maybe 30 minutes late. They let us on as I mentioned we had the dining reservation. We also selected Buzz, Dumbo and Magic Carpets, but didn’t use buzz or magic carpets.  I also got a ILL$ for 7dmt for 9pm. Being offsite, earliest available was too close to fireworks show, so I chose a bit later to give me time to get there.  Ride broke down as I sat down in the train car so they kicked us out and had us wait.  Took about 15 minutes to get going. Almost left the line as I knew the family was getting antsy to leave.  Fortunately it started back up.  Second time riding for me.  It’s such a fun ride.
> 
> we also did Small World and Little Mermaid standby. Iasw posted a 60 minute wait but we were on in 20. LM was posted 30, took 20. We also watched the hall of Presidents show and found a spot by sleepy hallow for the fireworks. Not the best spot for viewing projections, but fun anyway.
> 
> I think the longer park hours and extra selections (parade and space mountain) have been helpful for better availability.  Unfortunately, my family isn’t much for thrill so I had to stay on the lighter side of rides today, but I still saw availability for most rides at some point after 11am



Thank you for sharing! We will be there next week and I was starting to regret staying offsite. As long as we can do some rides, this will work well for our crew. We never get to do everything anyways since neither my husband or kids have much patience. It sucks that so many LL passes are well into the afternoon/evening since it's more crowded, but we will deal with what we have!


----------



## wisblue

princesswahooey said:


> LL was invaluable today, which was jam-packed everywhere. 15yo son and I started at AK today, rope dropped FOP, walked on Navi, rode EE 2x. Then met up with hubby and 20yo daughter (sleeping in) for LL for Safari, standby Dinosaur & and Bugs Life. We Lunched at Yak & Yeti. Then went to 2nd LL for EE. Rest break at hotel at 1:30. By the time we returned to MK at 5:30 pm had stacked LL for Space, BTMRR, HM, Pirates, and Splash. Plus had out BOG dinner. Just pulling into hotel at 11pm. The lines for everything all day were pretty insane. We did not wait for anything. Could not have done it w/o G+. Still hate how inflexible it is, though.



How were you able to stack 5 LL before arriving at MK after using 2 at DAK, including one after lunch?


----------



## GBRforWDW

cubed said:


> Thank you for sharing! We will be there next week and I was starting to regret staying offsite. As long as we can do some rides, this will work well for our crew. *We never get to do everything anyways since neither my husband or kids have much patience.* It sucks that so many LL passes are well into the afternoon/evening since it's more crowded, but we will deal with what we have!


Story of my life. I want to run around to all the rides and my wife is all slow down, no one does it all in one day!  Haha. 

it’s been fun.  The extra hours have made it easier to grab ILL$ and I’m thankful for that.  For G+ rides, I have refreshed for later rides at 7am because I knew we wouldn’t get there on time for morning hours


----------



## lpoeppelman

Going to WDW Dec 25-30 (I know it will be cra cra!) - but have two questions with Individual Lightening Lane - ILL:

- RoR - when should be book this? At 7AM if for Dec 25 - I don't want return time to be "too early" we won't get to HS until 1PM or noon? Can we book from Ohio before leaving (I think the answer is yes but want to sanity check)
- RoR - what is typical return time if booking at 7AM on a "normal" day?
- RoR ILL at Christmas - is it even reasonable we might get this on Dec 25 or another day Christmas week? Or would it take a miracle?

TIA!


----------



## itf

lpoeppelman said:


> Going to WDW Dec 25-30 (I know it will be cra cra!) - but have two questions with Individual Lightening Lane - ILL:
> 
> - RoR - when should be book this? At 7AM if for Dec 25 - I don't want return time to be "too early" we won't get to HS until 1PM or noon? Can we book from Ohio before leaving (I think the answer is yes but want to sanity check)
> - RoR - what is typical return time if booking at 7AM on a "normal" day?
> - RoR ILL at Christmas - is it even reasonable we might get this on Dec 25 or another day Christmas week? Or would it take a miracle?
> 
> TIA!



You can only book at 7am if you're on on-site guest. It looks like they've been lasting until about 7:30 last couple of days. Off-site hasn't had a look in since the 12th. https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/attraction/hollywood-studios/starwarsriseoftheresistance/


----------



## conniehar90

What time can you book if you are offsite?


----------



## tguz

dusty said:


> We just got back, only had 6 days so we ended up buying genie+ and found it more helpful than we anticipated.  We actually talked about a longer trip in May and whether or not we would try what you are describing.  So I'm asking you what you ended up doing and how it worked out for you?  thanks


We are back from our 10 day trip and did not purchase genie+ at all.  The first time through the parks we did a lot of the attractions that we wanted to do.  The second time through the parks we did more things we wanted to do and some things for a second or third time.  The last two days we went to the MK and Epcot for a third time and just did stuff that was available for short waits.  We used early entry and jumping in line just before park close to do some things that tend to have long wait times during the day.  We did get virtual passes for Ratatouille 3 Epcot days.  We did not do Rise as it seemed to be down quite often during out DHS days.


----------



## itf

conniehar90 said:


> What time can you book if you are offsite?



For individual lightning lanes (the pay per ride ones) I think it’s park open. For Genie+ it's 7am for everyone.


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## lpoeppelman

itf said:


> You can only book at 7am if you're on on-site guest. It looks like they've been lasting until about 7:30 last couple of days. Off-site hasn't had a look in since the 12th. https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/attraction/hollywood-studios/starwarsriseoftheresistance/



We are onsite. What are return times running? I just don't want to be up in the air on my way before we can use it   We won't get to HS until noon-ish.


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## Bayoumomof3

You can pick your time for ILL.


----------



## TerpsBBall

Heading down in January with the family...4 of us.  The wife and I will be using one MDE account.  The kids (19 and 17) each have one.  We are all linked together and plan on park hopping.  My questions are:

1. Can the kids be using their phones to make reservations for us in the same park at the same time my wife and I are?  That is, if one of them gets a better time, we go with that?  
2. Can one of the kids use their MDE app to search for LLs at the park we want to hop to while we are searching for stuff in the park we are currently in?

Thanks in advance.


----------



## princesswahooey

wisblue said:


> How were you able to stack 5 LL before arriving at MK after using 2 at DAK, including one after lunch?


AK opened at 8am, which is earliest open time. MK closed at 11pm, which was latest closing time. So we had max hours to stack. We tapped into Safari shortly after 9am, so we're able to choose again immediately rather than wait until 10, so picked Everest. Then we were eligible for next LL choice shortly after 11. That's when we got Space Mtn and just continued stacking every two hours just after 1, 3, 5, 7. Our final LL was for Splash at 10:10 and not really needed, since the line was short anyway by that time, especially because it was cooler yesterday.


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## princesswahooey

nurseberta said:


> Sounds like a decent day!
> Have you ever been on MS:Orange before/ I always want to try but I am nervous. does Dramamine knock you out cold?
> 
> How late were you for Remy? I have heard you can go anytime after your boarding group is called? do you think the wait was worth it over purchasing LL$?


We were just barely within the 1 hour call-back, so I don't know if there's a 15 minute grace period. We had a conflicting ADR, so were crossing our fingers that they would still let us in if we were late, but we made it just in the nick of time. Sorry I can't offer any info on whether they let you in layer than 1 hour from call.


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## princesswahooey

emmabelle said:


> It’s packed here now and I was able to get BG 27 on 12/21.  It really helps to have a seconds hand on your phone.  I used my Apple Watch.


Yes, definitely waych the clock. My 15 yo son worked the "boarding group button-pushing" this morning and actually snagged boarding group #1. I was shocked. He just basically sat on the page and continually pushed the button like a crazy person until it came up. Boarding group 1 right at opening was walk-on!!!


----------



## princesswahooey

Madame said:


> Update:  Rise took a bit over 2 hrs from getting in line to getting out.  SDD at 10:00 took under 5 mins but I couldn’t get anything before an 11:40 TSMM so we did ST standby and then TSMM.
> 
> We had MM lunch at 12:30 and I kept refreshing for about an hour for ToT (8pm and beyond available only) and MMRR (sold out) and ST (4pm and out only). We ended up leaving after lunch around 1:30.
> 
> Had we arrived earlier we might have gotten more rides standby without an 80 min wait, but it wouldn’t have changed the fact that we could only get 2 G+ without staying open to close and that is not how we tour.
> 
> I tried to purchase Rise after being unsuccessful getting SDD right at 7, but again, times were only offered at 7pm and beyond.  I canceled the very few dining reservations we had - it’s too difficult with this floating G+, no guarantee of return time.
> 
> The stress this is causing in the mornings (sitting here again while everyone else sleeps) does not make for a relaxing vacation for whichever parent is tasked with securing rides.


Totally agree about working G+ selections around dining reservation times. Super annoying. Really wish you could choose and modify return times. We have cut it pretty close on getting to dining reservations all week, and I have 4 very long-legged, fast-walking fit people (no little kids or strollers) in my party. Had to bail on a few G+ picks because we would not make it in time. Plus, park walkways are so crowded, you're really slowed down at times.


----------



## princesswahooey

cubed said:


> Will it be impossible to get anything next week, when crowds are at max capacity? We have reservations for MK on 12/31 and AK for 1/1 and staying offsite. This is a super last minute trip and I am still scrambling to get my ILs park reservations for the same days. We've done peak capacity days for years with the FPP system and no issues, but I am so afraid we will only end up on two or three rides this time. Argh.


Staying offsite you won't get the advantage of rope drop and probably won't get the opportunity to book ILLS. But I think getting G+ would help you a lot and definitely try for a Remy boarding group. Just look at the Thrill data for which rides run out of G+ the soonest and start with the farthest one out, then work your way to the next farthest out. I think the best strategy is to do walk-on stuff or shows in the AM and stack LL for afternoon/evening. You can still do a lot with G+.


----------



## princesswahooey

TerpsBBall said:


> Heading down in January with the family...4 of us.  The wife and I will be using one MDE account.  The kids (19 and 17) each have one.  We are all linked together and plan on park hopping.  My questions are:
> 
> 1. Can the kids be using their phones to make reservations for us in the same park at the same time my wife and I are?  That is, if one of them gets a better time, we go with that?
> 2. Can one of the kids use their MDE app to search for LLs at the park we want to hop to while we are searching for stuff in the park we are currently in?
> 
> Thanks in advance.


We are in the same boat. 15yo and 20yo plus me and hubby. We each have our own MDE acct and just make sure your accounts are linked so anyone in your party can make plans for the others. Super easy. We usually stay together, but can make separate plans if needed. 

Each morning at 7 we divide and conquer on the phones:

I have been in charge of getting the ILL$ and so far we have only bought 1 per day max. 

If we are doing Epcot one of the kids does boarding group for Remy.

Then whoever is left "race" to get our first G+ pick. If you're going for a popular ride there's no time to "see who got the better time." They just need to book it and once one person books it, the other person will show "ineligible." 

So far, my 15yo son has been the fastest on the draw. He beats my husband to G+ picks and even got a Boarding group #1 for Remy. Put the teenagers to task.  Their video game reflexes are superior. 

Good luck! You'll do great!


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## princesswahooey

I can confirm that if you make a LL selection & then change your mind about it, cancel it, and book something different, that it will reset your eligibility until 2 hours after the change  So be careful with that.


----------



## g-dad66

TerpsBBall said:


> Heading down in January with the family...4 of us.  The wife and I will be using one MDE account.  The kids (19 and 17) each have one.  We are all linked together and plan on park hopping.  My questions are:
> 
> 1. Can the kids be using their phones to make reservations for us in the same park at the same time my wife and I are?  That is, if one of them gets a better time, we go with that?
> 2. Can one of the kids use their MDE app to search for LLs at the park we want to hop to while we are searching for stuff in the park we are currently in?
> 
> Thanks in advance.



Yes and Yes


----------



## Luisfba

GBRforWDW said:


> Mickey's Christmas Parade is available as a Genie+ ride and yes, it's my first pass today!  ☺
> 
> View attachment 632500
> 
> Probably a little crazy, but we like the guaranteed viewing option for something we came to see anyway.


Does it count against


princesswahooey said:


> AK opened at 8am, which is earliest open time. MK closed at 11pm, which was latest closing time. So we had max hours to stack. We tapped into Safari shortly after 9am, so we're able to choose again immediately rather than wait until 10, so picked Everest. Then we were eligible for next LL choice shortly after 11. That's when we got Space Mtn and just continued stacking every two hours just after 1, 3, 5, 7. Our final LL was for Splash at 10:10 and not really needed, since the line was short anyway by that time, especially because it was cooler yesterday.



When I go in April (also a busy time) I was actually planning on doing the same as you.  AK in the morning and then MK in the evening. I was planning on getting a LL for Navi (buying ILLS for FoP - was hoping to shoot for late morning for both) and just being front of the line for Safari standby however.  But.. Safari isn’t open for the EMH right?  I’m now thinking it’s better to do Navi standby and then if I get an early Safari LL, it allows me to turn it right around to grab others.


----------



## g-dad66

Luisfba said:


> Does it count against
> 
> 
> When I go in April (also a busy time) I was actually planning on doing the same as you.  AK in the morning and then MK in the evening. I was planning on getting a LL for Navi (buying ILLS for FoP - was hoping to shoot for late morning for both) and just being front of the line for Safari standby however.  But.. Safari isn’t open for the EMH right?  I’m now thinking it’s better to do Navi standby and then if I get an early Safari LL, it allows me to turn it right around to grab others.




Correct.  Kiliminjaro Safari hasn't been open for the Early Entry half-hour.


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## twodogs

Just returned from our trip.  Arrived Friday night 12/17 and left Tuesday 12/21.  I added G+ to our 3 day PH tickets when I purchased them.  We had a VIP tour on Sunday, so I will report on that day separately.  We staged at the BC.  Our first day, there were still all 8 ILL$, and early entry for resort guests was only 30 minutes prior to official park opening (this all changed the next day).  We started at DHS on Saturday.  That morning at 0700, we had all 4 of us logged into my MDE account.  I got an ILL$ for ROTR from 9-10am, my DD got a LL for SDD from 9:40-10:40 (it had showed 9am when she started clicking through the screens), and my DH got a SDMT ILL$ for our MK hopping from 6-7pm (he had a choice of times).

We are experienced MP users at DLR, so G+ was pretty intuitive for us, other than we missed the ability to book re-rides.  We got to the park for early resort entry.  We split up, with DD14 and I going to SDD/TSMM and DD16 and DH going for RNR and TOT.  Lines looked insane even though it was still officially 15 minutes prior to EE starting.  I realized that the lines were being held OUTSIDE the actual queue areas for the rides, so they looked really really long.  The CM told us it was a 60 minute wait for SDD from where we were lined up (near the Buzz animatronic), and we almost left the line since we had ROTR at 9am and a SDD LL at 9:40am.


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## twodogs

Right at 0830, the start of early entry, they let the lines into the actual queue.  At that point, I could tell it would not be 60 minutes, so we stayed in line.  We were on the ride at 0857, so 27 minute wait.Went to TSMM and on the ride at 0916.  Regular park opening was at 0900.  

My DD had left her mask in my backpack, so when they got up to entry for RNR, she had to leave the line to go to front of the park to buy a mask.  Ouch.  Lines for RNR and TOT were down Sunset when they arrived at 0815, but again, they were stacking the lines, so once 0830 hit, they were about to just walk on (but then the mask issue).  They were quickly back in line and didn’t wait long, rode RNR and TOT quickly.  We waited until exactly 935 when we could do SDD with our LL (5 minute grace) and then went to ROTR and got right into the pre show immediately through the ILL$.  Super easy.  Stand by was awful for every thing all day.


----------



## twodogs

Will post rest of day soon.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Luisfba said:


> Does it count against


Yes, the parade is a Genie+ selection, so you have to wait 2 hours to make another selection


----------



## twodogs

I will try to just put what we did and when, to simplify what we did with ILL$ and G+.  This was for this past Saturday, 12/18, when crowds were thick and waits were very long standby (staying onsite, starting park DHS, Early Entry 0830, regular park opening 0900; booked as soon as we could each time after 2 hour lock out or checking into ride):
*Booked all at 7am (three phones going at same time): ROTR ILL$ (9-10am return), SDMT ILL$ (6-7pm return, chosen from options), SDD LL (9:40-10:40am)
*Rode SDD and then TSMM during Early Entry (DD14 and me)
*Rode RNRC and then TOT during Early Entry (DD16 and DH; could have ridden again if had not left mask in my backpack; had to buy mask at front of park)
*Rode SDD with LL at 9:35 (5 minutes early grace period)
*Booked LL for MFSM for 12:05-1:05pm by refreshing for better time
*Breakfast at Ronto Roasters with Mobile Order
*Beers at Baseline Taphouse at 11:30
*Oga's Cantina reservation at 12:00
*Rode MFSM at 1:05pm
*Booked RNRC for 3-4pm with refreshing
*Lunch by Mobile Order at Woody's Lunchbox
*Rode RNCR 3:55pm
*Booked TSMM 4-5pm with refresh
*Rode TSMM 4:35 pm
*Booked BTMRR for 8:20-9:20pm with refresh
*Hopped to MK via bus
*Rode SDMT with ILL$ at 6:04pm
*Booked Buzz for 7-8pm with refresh
*Booked and rode POTC with LL sometime in here (no photos on my phone to time stamp, so not sure about the time or order on this one)
*Quick dinner at Cosmic Ray's
*Rode Buzz at 7:22pm
*Crossed Hub amid throngs of people lining up for fireworks
*Rode Jingle Cruise (walk-on at 8pm when fireworks started), showed SB wait of 25 minutes
*Rode BTMRR stand by at 8:15pm, 10 minute wait
*Rode BTMRR with LL at 8:25
*Bus back to Beach Club


----------



## twodogs

After our VIP tour covering all 4 parks on Sunday, we did AK starting park on Monday, and then hopped to EPCOT (7am Early Theme Park entry, 8am regular park opening, now only 4 ILL$ in all parks, not 8).  I will try to detail what we did:

*Caught bus to AK at 6:35am from Beach Club
*Booked at 7am from the bus (!) using 4 phones at the same time: FOP ILL$ 10-11am (could have gotten earlier time but I wanted later so we could ride short waits in AM), Remy's ILL$ 3-4pm (could have gotten 2pm), Frozen LL 2-3pm
*Early Entry had already started when we went through gates at 7:05am; went straight for FOP
*Line for FOP was looping all the way to FOTLK theater and back again up the path.  Decided to get out of line to ride other things since we had an ILL$ for FOP and we had ridden twice with VIP the day before
*Rode Navi walk on during Early Entry
*Rode EE twice, essentially walk on during Early Entry
*Got back in SB line for FOP right before park officially opened at 8am (stated 75 minute wait, actual 90 because some theaters went down while we were in line), rode FOP at 9:20am
*Rode FOP again with ILL$ at 10:10am
*Round of drinks
*Booked EE LL for 12:10-1:10pm with refresh
*Rode EE at 1:12pm
*Lunch at Pizzafari with Mobile Order
*Watched Kite Tails from path
*Hopped to EPCOT via bus (now started to rain lightly for rest of day and very windy)
*Rode Frozen with LL at 2:30pm
*Explored World Showcase
*Booked Mission Space LL for 4:30-5:30pm with refresh
*Walked back to Beach Club to get warmer clothes and rain jackets
*Rode Remy's with ILL$ at 4pm
*Rode Mission Space with LL at 5pm
*Booked TT for 6-7pm with refresh
*Rode TT with LL
*Dinner in Mexico and at booths in Italy/Germany
*Creperie via very long, slow walk-up line
*I tried to get Soarin' with refresh but it would not come up and we were tired so...
*Back to Beach Club


----------



## GBRforWDW

We went to Epcot yesterday and here's how we used Genie+:

Booked Frozen at 7 with a return between 1:30-2:30 - I had to refresh several times to get to this time as I knew it'd be better for after lunch reservation.  This was the best use of our day.  Just daughter and I went.  Waited less than 10 minutes to get on the ride. 
At 11:35, just after getting to the parking lot, booked Soarin' for 3:30-4:30 - worst use of Lightning Lane so far.  Took over 30 minutes to get on to the ride.  Standby was 55 minutes at the time.  Ride was really fun though, had not done that before.
At 1:40, as we finished lunch, booked Spaceship Earth for 2:25-3:25.  We showed up at 3:27 and the ride had just broken down.  Since we were outside the return window, the pass didn't automatically convert.  We already had a full rest of the day, so we didn't go to GET to fix. When we left the park, could have rode with 10 minute wait, but everyone was ready to go.

Also I got BG 8 for Remy's.  We were called at 9am, 30 minutes before park opening and offsite guest..  We were not going to get there til at least 11.  I knew everyone said BGs had a long wait, so at park opening, I just bought the ILL$ for the family, first time I bought for more than just myself.  I got a return of 6:30 as we were doing 5:15 Candlelight Processional - had R&C dinner package.  We waited less than 10 minutes to get on.  This ride was a lot of fun, we all enjoyed it.  The 4d effects were awesome.

I saw lots of availability throughout the day for so many rides, some of them with near return times with posted standby of 30-40 minutes, of course, Christmas crowds, so probably not a big deal in most situations.  We could have gotten several more passes, but we tried taking it somewhat easy.  Our biggest issue was going one end of the park to the other for things.  As soon as we entered, we had to head to rose and crown for lunch, then across the lake to Norway, we also did Mexico Gran Fiesta Tour whole there, then back to the front for Spaceship Earth, then to the land, then all the way to America pavilion for CP - we just missed the boat to avoid walking - it filled up as we arrived  so we walked as the return time of the boat was too close to CP start. Then over to France for Remy.  After that we did a slow stroll through the WS as we waited for out Space 220 reservation.  Picked up my mobile order at Karamell-Kuche along the way.  Was nice to just walk in and walk out with 4 bags of Caramel Popcorn .  Space 220 was amazing. We did the lounge reservation.  So much fun.  But yeah, overall, just a lot of walking back and forth.


----------



## princesswahooey

OK. Here's how we did 12/23. I think we are definitely still "friends of the monster."

It was an Epcot/HS day.

7am:

I bought ROTR for 6:20pm
Son got boarding group 1 for Remy
We tried for a later time for MMRR, but it wasn't moving out very fast, so I decided to snag Test Track since it looked like MMRR would last until the next pick time. Refreshed to find an earlier time of 12:30 for TT. (Not real great since we had lunch ressies at 12:50 at Teppan Edo, but we figured we'd tap in 5 min early & be a bit late to lunch.)

-Entered park at 9:30 via international gateway and walked onto Remy. 

-Decided to jump in line at Les Halles for a baguette and pastry after experiencing Remy  Ate outside before the park got really crowded in France, which it usually is.

-At 10:20 we decided to ditch the TT G+ and get MFSR before it ran out. Got 8:25-9pm return time. **But that reset my eligibility to book until 12:25 instead of 11:30, which would be 2 hours after park open**

-We instead rode TT via single rider (Posted wait 80 minutes) We entered the gift shop and each designed a car to scan on our magic bands and walked on with zero line in single rider. My dd and I were still in same car (different rows) and dh and ds were also in same car.

-Did some shopping and visited Club Cool to sample the drinks. Beverly is as delightful as ever 

-At 12:25 pulled next LL for MMRR at 8:25-9:00, which overlapped with smugglers run, but I didn't want to risk it running out to refresh. It would be tight for doing both before 9pm.

-Lunch at Teppan Edo

-Ice cream in France and at 2:25 pulled LL for TSMM from 7:55-8:55.

-Back to resort for a break

-At 4:25 refreshed and pulled LL for ToT at 7:35-8:35

-5:15 headed to DHS via Skyliner

-5:35 ate mobile order from Docking Bay 7

-6:20 tapped into ROTR and checked for any last LL picks at 6:25. Star Tours was available for 6:50-7:50, so I grabbed it.

-ROTR broke down. We waited for half hour before a cast member came and told us they would issue a return later G+. I asked if we could come back a different day. CM said sure, as long as I had a reservation for the park on that day, but I'd have to visit guest relations to get it switched.

-We rode Star Tours and I headed to guest relations. Our itinerary was *super tight* so I told family to go ride TOT w/o me.

-Guest relations seemed miffed at the CM who said I could switch to another day, but did honor it reluctantly, so our ILL for that is valid for another park day. (I would not recommend requesting to do that. Had I known it would be an issue, I would not have wasted timaboutce it took about 30 minutes in line at Guest Relations.)

Once I met up with family again at 8pm we frantically did all rides in succession:

-TSMM, MMRR, then MFSR. We were off MFSR by 8:50. 

If ROTR had not gone down it would have been a sweet little stack.

We had a 9:20 ressie for Oga's and it was nice to see Galaxy's Edge cleared out. Highly recommend post close reservations for there!

-got on the Skyliner to return to Riviera just as Epcot fireworks were starting, so got to see the show from the skyliner! Totally magical!

It was a crazy fun evening despite the ride break-down and trying to juggle so many overlapping LL. We managed because we are all adults/teens. Anyone with little kids or mobility challenges would probably not have been able to do it all in time. 

We are still friends of the monster, but the monster definitely makes you work harder for your keep. There's no way we could have done so much without G+ and the smarts from this board.


----------



## Luisfba

twodogs said:


> After our VIP tour covering all 4 parks on Sunday, we did AK starting park on Monday, and then hopped to EPCOT (7am Early Theme Park entry, 8am regular park opening, now only 4 ILL$ in all parks, not 8).  I will try to detail what we did:
> 
> *Caught bus to AK at 6:35am from Beach Club
> *Booked at 7am from the bus (!) using 4 phones at the same time: FOP ILL$ 10-11am (could have gotten earlier time but I wanted later so we could ride short waits in AM), Remy's ILL$ 3-4pm (could have gotten 2pm), Frozen LL 2-3pm
> *Early Entry had already started when we went through gates at 7:05am; went straight for FOP
> *Line for FOP was looping all the way to FOTLK theater and back again up the path.  Decided to get out of line to ride other things since we had an ILL$ for FOP and we had ridden twice with VIP the day before
> *Rode Navi walk on during Early Entry
> *Rode EE twice, essentially walk on during Early Entry
> *Got back in SB line for FOP right before park officially opened at 8am (stated 75 minute wait, actual 90 because some theaters went down while we were in line), rode FOP at 9:20am
> *Rode FOP again with ILL$ at 10:10am
> *Round of drinks
> *Booked EE LL for 12:10-1:10pm with refresh
> *Rode EE at 1:12pm
> *Lunch at Pizzafari with Mobile Order
> *Watched Kite Tails from path
> *Hopped to EPCOT via bus (now started to rain lightly for rest of day and very windy)
> *Rode Frozen with LL at 2:30pm
> *Explored World Showcase
> *Booked Mission Space LL for 4:30-5:30pm with refresh
> *Walked back to Beach Club to get warmer clothes and rain jackets
> *Rode Remy's with ILL$ at 4pm
> *Rode Mission Space with LL at 5pm
> *Booked TT for 6-7pm with refresh
> *Rode TT with LL
> *Dinner in Mexico and at booths in Italy/Germany
> *Creperie via very long, slow walk-up line
> *I tried to get Soarin' with refresh but it would not come up and we were tired so...
> *Back to Beach Club



looks like you had good success with refresh.  About how long did you find yourself refreshing before something popped up that worked?


----------



## Disturbia

princesswahooey said:


> We were just barely within the 1 hour call-back, so I don't know if there's a 15 minute grace period. We had a conflicting ADR, so were crossing our fingers that they would still let us in if we were late, but we made it just in the nick of time. Sorry I can't offer any info on whether they let you in layer than 1 hour from call.


As long as one of you scans in before 1hr 15 mins, they will let the rest of the group in (depends on CM; Test Track refused at 1 hr 16 mins but a GET member saw us get into line 5 mins earlier (and he had setup rider switch for us away from the main line,o it was within the grace period) and a group of 10+ held up the line to get rider switch setup.  Otherwise they will direct you to *GS at the front of the park* for refunds.   It does depend on the CM and crowds.  I asked someone in line (respectfully) at Remy if I could scan in as I was running out of time and he did.  The crowds near Canada were impassable and it took us 5 mins to push through and then France booth crowds were standing in the walkway and you couldn’t pass.

I was able to get a refund for a child who just missed height requirements for FOP via chat but it took hours of waiting.  We were also given the option on the spot to accept an anytime pass for a genie+ ride (they don’t want to refund easily).  I had closed the chat and thought it was lost $$$ and too much of a hassle to get refunded but got a pop up later.  We also didn’t take our rider switch SDMT (kids wanted to do Big thunder instead) so we left money on the table.

We were able to get a ROTR rider switch changed to MMRR as well (infant had nothing to do and kids didn’t want to go again).  We had paid for ROTR LlIA$ (GET blue umbrella).


----------



## kalista

Just back from trip 12/19-12/22.  8 of us, including 5 twenty-somethings and a toddler.  Only go once in 2-3 years, so missing headliners is a big deal.  Paid for all four ILL$ in addition to Genie+.  I had 2 phones (one logged into MDE, other in my email for code) and DD logged into my MDE at same time.  At 7am, I did ILL$, she did LL.  Best move:  FOP ILL$ in morning and SDMT ILL$ in evening.  Dumbest move:  buying hoppers when available LLs (and toddler) are done early.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Today at Hollywood Studios, we used our first pass for MMRR for a 1pm return.  Wasn't sure when we'd arrive, but figured that'd be sufficient.

At 1030, while driving towards Disney, we grabbed TSMM for noon.

Daughter and I arrived at 11ish and headed towards TSL to do AS2 standby.  30 minute posted, was pretty close to accurate.  While waiting we put in a mobile order for Woody's lunchbox for 1230 return time. 

We checked into TSMM at 11:55 then got Beauty and the Beast LL for 2pm. TSMM LL wait was very short.

Woody's lunchbox was the worst for mobile order.  Took us 15 minutes to get to the window once we were notified the food was ready.  So between that and our other stacked LLs and extremely limited seating, we decided to eat on the run.  We've been pushing the kid in the stroller, so worked for her, lol.  We got to MMRR and watched the preshow, but ride broke down before we got on.  They had to scan bands for everyone that went through preshow for a return pass.  Since my wife wasn't there yet, her pass converted to use anytime which was great.

We then headed to BatB while wife headed to DHS in Uber.  After we checked in, grabbed a 330 LL for Frozen show.  We all watched that together before going to Dinner at Hollywood and Vine. Then used recovery passes for MMRR after dinner. 

I saw availability for several rides/shows at 2 when I was getting Frozen.  We ended up running out of energy after watching Tower of Terror lights and Cars show.  My daughter and I both missed shows we wanted to do, her Disney junior and me Indiana Jones, so something to look forward to next time.  I liked that the majority of our passes here were closer together and easier/quicker to get to compared to Epcot. It helped that we wanted MMRR over SDD, but it was nice getting to wait for a return time that worked for us, then having other things stack up worked perfectly.  However, using the LLs for shows is rough because you have to dedicate nearly an entire hour to shows by getting there early for LL return time then sitting through 25-30 minute show.  We still had fun and enjoyed the day, but we were exhausted and left at 7:30 taking a quick skyliner trip to CBR and right back, just for the fun of it.


----------



## princesswahooey

Epcot only day LL experience yesterday 12/24 confirmed it: Paying for G+ at Epcot if you are not hopping may not be necessary, but could help you on a busy day if you plan to be in the park all day. Did not really benefit us, unfortunately, because it's just so inflexible.

At 7:00, dd got boarding group 1 for Remy (that's the 2nd time we've managed to get group 1). I got G+ for Frozen w/ 9:50-10:50am return.

We walked on Remy at 9:30, no wait. Then by the time we walked to Frozen, we were just in time to tap in. We selected our next return immediately for TT at 8:30-9:30pm.

We then headed to TT and rode single rider (no wait) posted time for standy was 85 min.

Next we went to Mission space. It was listed as 30 minutes, but it was more like 5.

When we got off that, most rides (even Nemo & Figment) had 30+ waits. We wandered and watched some street performers in World Showcase. At 11:50 we tried booking Soarin for a later return time since we had lunch at Biergarten at noon (Candlelight package for 8:30 show.) We wanted to go back to the hotel after lunch for a break & get Soarin for when we returned before dinner, but the times were still too early. So I tried monitoring it during lunch. Finally got a 4:15-5:15 return.

We lingered at the hotel and went to the pool, so decided to re-book Soarin when it was clear we were not going to make it. I think something was odd today on my Genie. I could not cancel any LL today when I tried. There was no cancel button. My daughter actually had to cancel it for me. She canceled one minute past our return time and we were still able to rebook Soarin for 7:30-8:30. We planned to do it between dinner and CP show.

We rode Nemo 5 min wait.

Ate at Le Cellier. Tapped in for Soarin at 7:40, but LL was backed up. We waited 15 minutes w/o moving and decided to bail because we had to get all the way to America Pavillion for the show by 8:30, and it was clear we would not be on either of the next flights.

Candlelight Processional was beautiful.

Afterwards we hoofed it to Test Track, tapping in just in time during grace period. We thought we might see fireworks on the ride because our timing was right, but we didn't.

Got off ride & started walking to Skyliner only to see the Harmonious show just starting late at 10:05. We stopped to see the center ring, since we had only seen the side view from R&C dinner package earlier this week. The center was not projecting anything and was not even lit up most of the time. I think it was broken. Since it wasn't showing anything, we just went to the Skyliner and watched the rest of the show from the air, which is pretty awesome!

I was super frustrated with G+ today. We basically got 2 rides (3 if you count the one we bailed). Wish it was more flexible to modify or choose times.


----------



## twodogs

Luisfba said:


> looks like you had good success with refresh.  About how long did you find yourself refreshing before something popped up that worked?


Usually it took less than 5 minutes of refreshing, but some just would not pop up (I am talking to you, Soarin’).  But we had better luck in the early afternoon and then at night when I think some people get too tired to stay and just start canceling LLs.  I felt like I spent less time on my phone with G+ than I did with FP+ because once we were in the 2 hour lock out between LLs (which we often were since it was such a busy time and almost all returns were about 2 hours out, even with aggressive refresh), then I didn’t have to check anything on my phone for a while.  While I would love a “modify” option to see if I could get a better time, that would have meant I was on the phone even more, refreshing to try to modify for an earlier time.  I think the only LLs we booked at the “next available time” all day were the first ones in the morning.  The rest of the day, we always refreshed for earlier times or refreshed to get LLs for rides that showed “out for the day” of LLs.  A little refreshing can result in a much better day with G+.


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## GeorgiaHoo

Couple of questions.  First, family lands in Orlando around 10 am on March 5 then plans  on getting to MK around 1 PM.  Can you make Genie+ reservations that morning before boarding the flight to Disney or do we have to physically check in to the resort first?   

Second, I doubt there's going to be much rope-dropping this trip.  What's the ride experience like for folks who use Genie+ but don't rope drop?  Still able to hit most of the headliners?

Offhand, Genie+ seems like a complicated pain in the rear that isn't an upgrade from anything Disney previously offered, and just adds an extra layer of cost.  I guess we'll know more after experiencing it in the Spring.


----------



## GBRforWDW

GeorgiaHoo said:


> Couple of questions.  First, family lands in Orlando around 10 am on March 5 then plans  on getting to MK around 1 PM.  Can you make Genie+ reservations that morning before boarding the flight to Disney or do we have to physically check in to the resort first?
> 
> Second, I doubt there's going to be much rope-dropping this trip.  What's the ride experience like for folks who use Genie+ but don't rope drop?  Still able to hit most of the headliners?
> 
> Offhand, Genie+ seems like a complicated pain in the rear that isn't an upgrade from anything Disney previously offered, and just adds an extra layer of cost.  I guess we'll know more after experiencing it in the Spring.


First, yes, you can make G+ reservations - your first at 7am and again at 11am if it opens at 9, but you may need to refresh to let the rides get out past 1pm.  I'd honestly shoot for 1:30-2 just to give yourself time to get adjusted in the park.   Jungle Cruise or Peter pan should get out that far after awhile.  If staying onsite, you should also be able to select ILL$ rides at 7 if you desire.

Last week, we didn't rope drop and mostly only used G+ for rides.  Our experience may differ because of the different offerings in G+ Christmas week as well as extended hours.  There were 2 additions to G+, space mountain coming off ILL$ and the parade.  We had pretty good availability throughout our MK day, but didn't get as many rides as we could have due to time constraints, etc

G+ is difficult in that the popular rides that you want to use are spread throughout the park, so if stacking and grabbing, you're going to different parts of the park and walking long distances.  Also, some rides have long lines even with LL passes, so that makes it difficult to hit standby lines in between LL usage.  For example, Soarin' was the longest line I noticed, took me 45-50 minutes from the time I entered the building until I was off the ride, then I was rushing to get to the Candlelight Processional across the lake in the American pavilion. 

Overall, G+ ensured we were able to do the rides and shows we wanted, most of the time.


----------



## princesswahooey

GBRforWDW said:


> Also, some rides have long lines even with LL passes, so that makes it difficult to hit standby lines in between LL usage.  For example, Soarin' was the longest line I noticed, took me 45-50 minutes from the time I entered the building until I was off the ride, then I was rushing to get to the Candlelight Processional across the lake in the American pavilion.



Yes! This exactly! We had to bail on 2 LLs to Soarin on two different days (21st & 24th) because even with LL, we were waiting so long to board after tapping in that we were worried about getting to our dinner reservations and Candlelight Processional across the park, especially since crowds were so thick that you had to move at a snail's pace to get around World Showcase.


----------



## js

Hi. Did I read on this thread or somewhere that there is another "dump" of LLs at a certain time?I know I read it somewhere and Im teying to find the time. We arrive on Saturday so it will still be very busy and thought this is good information to have.

Thanks.


----------



## g-dad66

js said:


> Hi. Did I read on this thread or somewhere that there is another "dump" of LLs at a certain time?I know I read it somewhere and Im teying to find the time. We arrive on Saturday so it will still be very busy and thought this is good information to have.
> 
> Thanks.



You may be thinking of 7:10 am?  

My theory is that many people are trying for their first LL at 7:00 am.  If they haven't paid for G+ yet, they get 10 minutes to make their payment.  If they are unable to get their payment to go through (for example, because they get numerous requests to enter a code sent to their email), then their selections go back into the pot.

I have observed that some earlier return times seem to pop up about 7:10 am, and for Slinky Dog Dash LLs which will run out by 7:01 or so, suddenly at about 7:10, some availability will pop up again for a short amount of time.


----------



## GBRforWDW

js said:


> Hi. Did I read on this thread or somewhere that there is another "dump" of LLs at a certain time?I know I read it somewhere and Im teying to find the time. We arrive on Saturday so it will still be very busy and thought this is good information to have.
> 
> Thanks.


The only actual dump I came across while there last week was for Flight of Passage.  Not saying it doesn't happen to others as it still could.  And I have heard of it, but I think it's usually random so that the non experts have as much of a chance as the experts.

My experience was as an offsite guest.  I was occasionally refreshing until the park opened, then about 2 minutes before 8am, when AK opened, the ILL$ ran out and were unavailable for an hour.  At 9:05, I happened to reopen my phone and the tip board refreshed and to my surprise, FoP had a availability.  I had several times across several hours to choose from, I think I could select 10am, 11am or 12pm as each had times available. A little while later, I did see some afternoon times available as well.


----------



## mgarbowski

Apologies as I expect this has been covered, but I did try searching and it’s needle/haystack time. 

At 7am, can you make a Genie+ Lightning Lane reservation for a later time>? I have tried and cannot figure out a way except to wait until the available times keep moving later in the day and then snag it the time you want.  

For example, Park opens at 8:30am. We plan to arrive later and want a LL for 10am.  At 7am, I can grab a LL for 8:30.  I have played with it and cannot find an option to pick a later time. 
I think there is a way for individual purchase LL not part of Genie Plus, but if there is a way to do this for G+ lightning lane, it eludes me.

Manhy thanks.


----------



## g-dad66

mgarbowski said:


> Apologies as I expect this has been covered, but I did try searching and it’s needle/haystack time.
> 
> At 7am, can you make a Genie+ Lightning Lane reservation for a later time>? I have tried and cannot figure out a way except to wait until the available times keep moving later in the day and then snag it the time you want.
> 
> For example, Park opens at 8:30am. We plan to arrive later and want a LL for 10am.  At 7am, I can grab a LL for 8:30.  I have played with it and cannot find an option to pick a later time.
> I think there is a way for individual purchase LL not part of Genie Plus, but if there is a way to do this for G+ lightning lane, it eludes me.
> 
> Manhy thanks.




You are correct that you can't select a later time than what is showing.  You have to wait until the earliest available time moves to later in the day.

But be aware that for rides that get booked quickly (like Slinky Dog Dash), the time showing may turn into a substantially later time after you click on it to book it. For example, what was showing as 1:00 when you selected it may actually get confirmed as 2:00.

You are also correct that for ILL$, you can select your time (although early times for it may no longer be available).


----------



## cubed

GBRforWDW said:


> The only actual dump I came across while there last week was for Flight of Passage.  Not saying it doesn't happen to others as it still could.  And I have heard of it, but I think it's usually random so that the non experts have as much of a chance as the experts.
> 
> My experience was as an offsite guest.  I was occasionally refreshing until the park opened, then about 2 minutes before 8am, when AK opened, the ILL$ ran out and were unavailable for an hour.  At 9:05, I happened to reopen my phone and the tip board refreshed and to my surprise, FoP had a availability.  I had several times across several hours to choose from, I think I could select 10am, 11am or 12pm as each had times available. A little while later, I did see some afternoon times available as well.



Touring Plans has a schedule of additional drop times and they are usually 1-5 minutes every half hour. We are in AK now as offsite guests and got FoP at 9:03am for a return time of 11:15am!


----------



## thanxfornoticin

mgarbowski said:


> Apologies as I expect this has been covered, but I did try searching and it’s needle/haystack time.
> 
> At 7am, can you make a Genie+ Lightning Lane reservation for a later time>? I have tried and cannot figure out a way except to wait until the available times keep moving later in the day and then snag it the time you want.
> 
> For example, Park opens at 8:30am. We plan to arrive later and want a LL for 10am.  At 7am, I can grab a LL for 8:30.  I have played with it and cannot find an option to pick a later time.
> I think there is a way for individual purchase LL not part of Genie Plus, but if there is a way to do this for G+ lightning lane, it eludes me.
> 
> Manhy thanks.


I'm probably over-thinking it, but we look at G+/LL as working like the original paper FP - you get the next available time slot.  The purchased ILL works like the old FP+ where you can select an available time slot.


----------



## Spaghetti Cat

Thank you everyone for your reports on here. It really helps to see when things run out and the like.


----------



## wisblue

g-dad66 said:


> You may be thinking of 7:10 am?
> 
> My theory is that many people are trying for their first LL at 7:00 am.  If they haven't paid for G+ yet, they get 10 minutes to make their payment.  If they are unable to get their payment to go through (for example, because they get numerous requests to enter a code sent to their email), then their selections go back into the pot.
> 
> I have observed that some earlier return times seem to pop up about 7:10 am, and for Slinky Dog Dash LLs which will run out by 7:01 or so, suddenly at about 7:10, some availability will pop up again for a short amount of time.



When I have played around at home, some additional times for SDD pop up every day around 7:10 and times remain available for a few minutes (and definitely longer than they are available at 7:00 sharp).

The very early times don’t last long, but if you aren’t fussy about the time, or are looking for something for an afternoon arrival, it might be easier to get what you want if you start looking at 7:10 and couldn’t get what you want at 7:00.

This week might be skewed a little by the addition of MMRR to the G+ mix, but the crowds are also at peak levels. I intend to try this next week Tuesday when we arrive for the Marathon Weekend activities.


----------



## Mome Rath

mgarbowski said:


> Apologies as I expect this has been covered, but I did try searching and it’s needle/haystack time.
> 
> At 7am, can you make a Genie+ Lightning Lane reservation for a later time>? I have tried and cannot figure out a way except to wait until the available times keep moving later in the day and then snag it the time you want.
> 
> For example, Park opens at 8:30am. We plan to arrive later and want a LL for 10am.  At 7am, I can grab a LL for 8:30.  I have played with it and cannot find an option to pick a later time.
> I think there is a way for individual purchase LL not part of Genie Plus, but if there is a way to do this for G+ lightning lane, it eludes me.
> 
> Manhy thanks.


The only exception is if you are park hopping; in your hopped to park, any time you pick that is listed with a return time earlier than 2pm will automatically jump ahead to 2pm.


----------



## wisblue

On the 7:10 phenomenon for SDD described a few posts above, today was a good example of what I seem to see every day that I have tested this.

The way I test this is that when I see a G+ time available for SDD I click on it as if I was going to book a time. That takes me to a screen that tells me (correctly) that nobody in my family has a valid admission and park reservation.

Then I back out of that screen to see if times are still available. If I see the “Not Currently Offered” (NCO) message, that tells me that I probably wouldn’t have been able to book that time. But, if that time, or something close to it, is offered, I expect that I could have gotten something in that time range if I had proceeded to booking.

Today I logged in right at 7:00:00 EST and saw a time of 8:30 AM, the earliest possible. But as I went through the book and back out process, the available times quickly went to about Noon, then 3 PM, then to evening, then to NCO. It only took about five cycles and less than a minute to get to the NCO status.

At 7:11, times started showing up again, starting with some as early as 8:40 AM. Those times then gradually went later in the day, with an occasional earlier one popping up. I didn’t get another NCO message until 7:16.  

After that there were still some pop up times, and another similar, but shorter, series of times at around 7:20 that lasted for a couple of minutes.

Obviously there are no guarantees that this pattern will repeat every day or continue as crowd levels change and MMRR goes back to ILL status. But it seems like it’s worth a try if you can’t get a time for SDD that works for you at 7AM, but still would like to get something for SDD before going to a backup.

I will report on how this works for me next Tuesday when we expect to be arriving at DHS in early afternoon and I’ll be looking for a return time around 3PM. My additional challenge is that our departing flight is scheduled for 7:05 EST, and I may be dealing with boarding and trying to connect to Southwest WiFi to pull this off unless I can enlist a non traveling family member to help me.


----------



## kalista

wisblue said:


> On the 7:10 phenomenon for SDD described a few posts above, today was a good example of what I seem to see every day that I have tested this.
> 
> The way I test this is that when I see a G+ rime available for SDD I click on it as if I was going to book a time. That takes me to a screen that tells me (correctly) that nobody in my family has a valid admission and park reservation.
> 
> Then I back out of that screen to see if times are still available. If I see the “Not Currently Offered” (NCO) message, that tells me that I probably wouldn’t have been able to book that time. But, if that time, or something close to it, is offered, I expect that I could have gotten something in that time range if I had proceeded to booking.


So I can’t help but wonder how many people do this and lock up potential slots for folks who are actually eligible?  Then those folks panic and schedule something else thinking their second choice may sell out too?


----------



## Luisfba

So.. after a little over a week of only having 1 ILL, as compared to Thanksgiving week, do folks think that move helped the LL availability significantly?  I wonder if this is here to stay and what the chances May be it’ll come back later (specifically, I’m going the week after Easter).


----------



## GBRforWDW

kalista said:


> So I can’t help but wonder how many people do this and lock up potential slots for folks who are actually eligible?  Then those folks panic and schedule something else thinking their second choice may sell out too?


I don't think the time is locked up until you select your party, at least from what I experienced actually using G+ last week.  The screen where wisblue says he has no eligible family members, if you do have eligible f&f, you can edit on this screen then click next to finish booking.  That's where the time locks in.  So wisblue just clicking the time doesn't take the time out of availability.


----------



## wisblue

GBRforWDW said:


> I don't think the time is locked up until you select your party, at least from what I experienced actually using G+ last week.  The screen where wisblue says he has no eligible family members, if you do have eligible f&f, you can edit on this screen then click next to finish booking.  That's where the time locks in.  So wisblue just clicking the time doesn't take the time out of availability.



This is how I think it works. I’m pretty sure a time wouldn‘t be allocated to someone who hasn’t purchased Genie+ and doesn’t have a valid park reservation or ticket for that day. 

I also suspect that the number of people doing this kind of testing on any given day is pretty low.

I do wonder if sites like Thrill Data or Touring Plans are bombarding the system to get data on return time availability. That would account for a lot more traffic than a few individuals.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Luisfba said:


> So.. after a little over a week of only having 1 ILL, as compared to Thanksgiving week, do folks think that move helped the LL availability significantly?  I wonder if this is here to stay and what the chances May be it’ll come back later (specifically, I’m going the week after Easter).


So, in several parks, not only did you have the 1 ride that came off ILL$ availability to G+, you also had another show/ride available on G+ for various reasons, so 2 extra selections in Genie.

Animal Kingdom saw Kali River Rapids come off refurbishment - refurb started Nov 1 before G+ was rolled out, I believe, or just after it started.  Either way, it wasn't there for Thanksgiving crowds.
Magic Kingdom offered the parade
DHS brought back Indiana Jones
I don't think EPCOT had anything besides frozen.

In almost all parks, I felt like there was availability for everything I wanted and sometimes return times too soon that I didn't want to select or at 7 had to keep refreshing to get a later time that worked better for us. I also saw availability for top rides, other than SDD, at the 2 hour mark.  I definitely felt like I got better use than those that went at Thanksgiving.


----------



## jar

Leaving for WDW on Saturday.  If I see a time slot available for a G+ reservation, will that slot remain held for me through the booking process or might I click on it and then find out that it's already gone?  Sometimes that used to happen with FP+.  I'd see something open up out of the blue but by the time I click on it, the next screen says it's not available.  Thanks.


----------



## GBRforWDW

jar said:


> Leaving for WDW on Saturday.  If I see a time slot available for a G+ reservation, will that slot remain held for me through the booking process or might I click on it and then find out that it's already gone?  Sometimes that used to happen with FP+.  I'd see something open up out of the blue but by the time I click on it, the next screen says it's not available.  Thanks.


That can happen, but I didn't experience it too much.  The system will give you next available, as long as it wasn't the last time slot of the day available.  I think the only time that happened to me was trying to get Kilimanjaro Safari in the afternoon, they close early and the last pass time is 30 minutes before ride closure.  After a couple refreshes, I got a time booked, but it was iffy, since they showed as out.  

I don't think I even had times where I selected a time it then gave me a different time.  Probably because I quickly was hitting next on the f&f screen rather than editing.


----------



## jar

Thanks.  The only ride I'm really concerned about is SDD, since time slots go in just seconds.


----------



## GBRforWDW

jar said:


> Thanks.  The only ride I'm really concerned about is SDD, since time slots go in just seconds.


I came back to say, except the fast movers at 7am like SDD and RotR, you could definitely end up with a later time than what you initially clicked just because there's such a high volume clicking at that time. Jungle Cruise and test track may experience a little bit of that as well, though probably not as noticable.


----------



## kalista

[QUOTE="GBRforWDW, post: 

I don't think I even had times where I selected a time it then gave me a different time.  Probably because I quickly was hitting next on the f&f screen rather than editing.
[/QUOTE]

We had this happen almost every time last week.  Return times came up a couple hours later than we clicked on.  BUT there were 7of us and we had to edit the party, as not everyone made the trip.  Just verify the time before you complete the reservation. (I forgot to do the last step once or twice and they don’t go through!!)


----------



## wisblue

jar said:


> Thanks.  The only ride I'm really concerned about is SDD, since time slots go in just seconds.



For SDD especially it is very possible that you could click on a time and by the time you select your party the time might be gone or the available time could be significantly later.

On our trip in November I logged in at 7:00:00 and clicked on a SDD return time of 9:00 (the earliest possible time with a 9:00 park opening). The time we got was at 10:10 AM; I considered that a win.

In that first minute the number of people booking is going going to fill up hours of times pretty quickly. It’s very similar to the old Rise of the Resistance boarding groups or getting boarding groups for a Southwest flight precisely 24 hours in advance.


----------



## wisblue

Also, later in the day, after times have “sold out” or have moved to later in the day, an occasional earlier time might pop up. Those often disappear before you can complete booking, probably because there was only one slot available and someone else beat you to it.


----------



## jar

wisblue said:


> Also, later in the day, after times have “sold out” or have moved to later in the day, an occasional earlier time might pop up. Those often disappear before you can complete booking, probably because there was only one slot available and someone else beat you to it.



Thanks.  Helpful to know.  I had FP+ down cold.


----------



## wisblue

jar said:


> Thanks.  Helpful to know.  I had FP+ down cold.



I really miss FP+ for something like Marathon Weekend when members of the family can’t make rope drop and don’t want to stay out too late because of the early wakeups for events.

It was nice being able to lock up 3 premier attractions for that relatively small window of park time. But, we’ll try to do the best we can to recreate something similar using the current system.


----------



## macandcheeseplease

Only using G+ for our MK day (middle of the week in January). I have some DAS advanced selections and planning on rope dropping Space Mountain with early entry. Torn between Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Pirates of the Caribbean as 7 AM selection. Which would be a better first choice?


----------



## joech

We have been here at DW since the 23 and we tried G+ one day at DhS and we got 2 rides out of the G+.  The G+ IMHO is not a really thought out system and it is more of a money grab than anything else.  Making ADR almost impossible when you don’t know when G+ will assign the time for the ride.  Not the experience we would have hoped and the old FP / FP+ was mile ahead.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Interesting article over at Touring Plans regarding how and when you actually save time in lines using Genie+:

https://touringplans.com/blog/how-much-time-can-genie-save-me/
Might help some better determine their own strategies.


----------



## bastraker

I posted this somewhere else but it never got answered - so I'll try here.

We're leaving in 15 days. We have AP's which I renewed last month. I need to go to guest services and activate them before we enter our first park which will be HS.

When will I be able to add G+? We arrive in the later evening on our first day so we won't go to the parks until the next day. Do you think I can still go on anytime after midnight and add it or will it have to be activated first?

This is our first trip with G+.


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## g-dad66

GBRforWDW said:


> Interesting article over at Touring Plans regarding how and when you actually save time in lines using Genie+:
> 
> https://touringplans.com/blog/how-m...er&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitter&s=09
> Might help some better determine their own strategies.



Interesting read, thanks.

It seems to fit very well with the experiences that have been reported on this thread.  I think we have a pretty good handle now on how to best use G+ for our own individual situations.

Will be interesting to see if it goes back to 8 ILL$ next week or stays at only 4.  (And if 8, what will replace Everest which is closing for refurbishment).


----------



## g-dad66

macandcheeseplease said:


> Only using G+ for our MK day (middle of the week in January). I have some DAS advanced selections and planning on rope dropping Space Mountain with early entry. Torn between Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Pirates of the Caribbean as 7 AM selection. Which would be a better first choice?



Big Thunder will save you more time than Pirates will.  Standby waits for Pirates have been relatively low (note that I said relatively, because this past week, waits have all been pretty long).


----------



## macandcheeseplease

g-dad66 said:


> Big Thunder will save you more time than Pirates will.  Standby waits for Pirates have been relatively low (note that I said relatively, because this past week, waits have all been pretty long).


Thanks for the advice! I think between G+ and DAS we’ll get to ride everything we’d like on our MK day!


----------



## cubed

G+ was a huge hit at DHS today as offsite guests. I never saw SDD or ROTR availability, but it was my fault for logging on at 7:15am instead of 7 this morning. I was at least able to book MFSR at 7:15am for an 11:15am return time. At 10:30am, I booked Star Tours for 12:40pm return time. I didn’t see anything I liked when my booking window opened again 2 hours later, so I waited until I saw a time I liked for the Alien Saucer ride. That was around 12:53pm, which pushed my next booking window to 2:53pm (didn’t know that it would get extended, so boo). 

At 2:53pm, I noticed there was an available LL for RNRC and I snagged it for a return time of 4pm. The ride was down all day and prime for converting to any time LL per Touring Plans chatter (aka, if you have a LL for a ride that goes down, that converts to an any time LL for almost all rides). We left the park for an afternoon break (and so DH could work for a few hours). 4pm rolled in and my RNRC converted into an any time LL pass. I was also able to book another RNRC at that time, which was another RNRC LL for 4:35pm. Again, that converted into another any time pass. I could have booked another LL at 4:35pm but there was not much available (that we didn’t ride using LL already).

When we returned to the park at 5:40pm, we made it to the Alien saucer ride 10 minutes after our window ended. I was able to get a third RNRC LL that was for 7:40pm and that converted into an any time pass as well. The kids chose MFSR for one of the any time LLs, and it worked even though we already used a LL for it earlier in the day. They chose ToT for the second any time LL. These excluded SDD, ROTR, and MMRR (totally understandable).

Anyway, someone on Touring Plans had a similar experience with any time LLs from a broken ride at MK today. The trick works!


----------



## melking23

GBRforWDW said:


> Interesting article over at Touring Plans regarding how and when you actually save time in lines using Genie+:
> 
> https://touringplans.com/blog/how-m...er&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitter&s=09
> Might help some better determine their own strategies.


That link seems to be broken so here’s the correct link:
https://touringplans.com/blog/how-much-time-can-genie-save-me/That’s a good read for those still on the fence for adding to all park days vs a few days.


----------



## cjlong88

bastraker said:


> I posted this somewhere else but it never got answered - so I'll try here.
> 
> We're leaving in 15 days. We have AP's which I renewed last month. I need to go to guest services and activate them before we enter our first park which will be HS.
> 
> When will I be able to add G+? We arrive in the later evening on our first day so we won't go to the parks until the next day. Do you think I can still go on anytime after midnight and add it or will it have to be activated first?
> 
> This is our first trip with G+.


We bought G+ had our first LL booked before we activated our AP’s when we went in November. If nothing has changed you should have no problem purchasing G+ and booking your first LL before you activate.


----------



## GBRforWDW

melking23 said:


> That link seems to be broken so here’s the correct link:


Thanks, not sure why it quit working. Oh well, copied the link you posted to update my post.


----------



## HappyFairydust

We‘re leaving in 2days and my husband wants to do test truck and my daughter the frozen ride (super fan of elsa).
I‘ve been following the return times/availability through the app the last few days but both of them go pretty fast :/ 
what do you think is better to snag at 7AM? FEA or TT?


----------



## g-dad66

Test Track has been running out before Frozen, but both may be gone by the time you are eligible for second LL.

But stay tuned to see if Frozen goes back to being an ILL$ next week.


----------



## Luisfba

A question to double check the LL eligiblity rule.  Earlier it was said it was either 2 hours or the latest one made was used.  

does that mean that if you use your 7am for something relatively later in the day (say, 2pm).  Assuming a park that opens at 9, if my 2nd one (made at 11am) is for something prior to the 2pm I already have, I can make more with that one as I use them?  For example, if at 11am I make a 11:30, turn that in, I can continue to turn that one around into more even though I have one setup for 2?


----------



## g-dad66

Luisfba said:


> A question to double check the LL eligiblity rule.  Earlier it was said it was either 2 hours or the latest one made was used.
> 
> does that mean that if you use your 7am for something relatively later in the day (say, 2pm).  Assuming a park that opens at 9, if my 2nd one (made at 11am) is for something prior to the 2pm I already have, I can make more with that one as I use them?  For example, if at 11am I make a 11:30, turn that in, I can continue to turn that one around into more even though I have one setup for 2?



Yes, that is correct.


----------



## Jrb1979

Reading through this thread makes my head hurt. I think part of that is everyone is trying to use Genie+ as a planning tool like FP+ was.


----------



## bastraker

cjlong88 said:


> We bought G+ had our first LL booked before we activated our AP’s when we went in November. If nothing has changed you should have no problem purchasing G+ and booking your first LL before you activate.


Thanks so much!


----------



## wiggy500

When I was refreshing looking for a better time for one particular ride, I would get all the way to the point where you book the ride, then back out two steps to see all the rides, then go forward two steps again to see if the time available changed.  I liked doing it this way because refreshing on the screen that showed all the rides didn't guarantee that I would be able to book the times I saw.

Is there a more efficient way to refresh when your focus is narrowed to one ride?  I wasn't sure if backing out once would do it or not.


----------



## cjlong88

wiggy500 said:


> When I was refreshing looking for a better time for one particular ride, I would get all the way to the point where you book the ride, then back out two steps to see all the rides, then go forward two steps again to see if the time available changed.  I liked doing it this way because refreshing on the screen that showed all the rides didn't guarantee that I would be able to book the times I saw.
> 
> Is there a more efficient way to refresh when your focus is narrowed to one ride?  I wasn't sure if backing out once would do it or not.


I would just tag the ride I was looking for as my only “selection” so it was at the very top and continuously pulled down the screen so it refreshed and if a time popped up I could grab it quickly. No need to click the ride and back out.


----------



## Princess Merida

So I've been looking for the answer to this and maybe I found it, but I want to confirm.  Can I buy a ILL for Remy's at 7am if I don't have an Epcot park reservation?  Someone said you have to have a reservation for that park in order to purchase ILL for that day.  This is disappointing if correct.  Why can't I buy an ILL for ROTR and Remy's at 7am if I have a park hopper?


----------



## kalista

Princess Merida said:


> So I've been looking for the answer to this and maybe I found it, but I want to confirm.  Can I buy a ILL for Remy's at 7am if I don't have an Epcot park reservation?  Someone said you have to have a reservation for that park in order to purchase ILL for that day.  This is disappointing if correct.  Why can't I buy an ILL for ROTR and Remy's at 7am if I have a park hopper?


Yes you can, if you are staying on property.  It will have a return time after 2:00pm since it’s your hop park.


----------



## Princess Merida

kalista said:


> Yes you can, if you are staying on property.  It will have a return time after 2:00pm since it’s your hop park.


Thank you!  Yes, we are staying on property!  What happens if you aren't?  Do you have to be scanned into a park?


----------



## cubed

Princess Merida said:


> Thank you!  Yes, we are staying on property!  What happens if you aren't?  Do you have to be scanned into a park?



As off site guests this week, we weren’t able to purchase any ILL until park open. It sucks since SDMT was gone long before that. I keep hoping for a drop, but no luck. We did get lucky and I got FoP during a drop the other day.


----------



## GBRforWDW

cubed said:


> As off site guests this week, we weren’t able to purchase any ILL until park open. *It sucks since SDMT was gone long before that*. I keep hoping for a drop, but no luck. We did get lucky and I got FoP during a drop the other day.


That's terrible.  As offsite, I was able to buy all but RotR and I wasn't planning on it.  7dmt had several time slots available after 7pm while Remy had even more starting at 5pm.  FoP, I was fortunate to come across a replenishment of availability an hour after park opening.  Sounds like you got that as well.


----------



## cjlong88

After testing G+ twice and trying both strategies (stacking for evening vs. booking as early as possible), I prefer the evening stack for a couple of reasons.

1) I don’t have to stress about getting an early time for the most popular attractions at 7am. It’s not make or break to be lightning fast (pun intended). As long as I’m on at 7am I have been able to get my ILL$ and G+ with times that work for us no problem.

2) If I plan and refresh so my LL’s go in order of latest to earliest, then my most recent LL will most likely be the first I use when I begin to redeem them, meaning I can immediately book another one. Very little refreshing has been needed on both visits to see a good return time that works for us.

3) I’m only on my phone every two hours. Once I book an evening LL, there is nothing more I can do, so the phone goes away and I can enjoy attractions with shorter waits, walk around, eat a snack, see a cavalcade, etc.

4) Once I return in the evening I have anywhere from 3-5 LL’s lined up and ready to use. I can have even more lined up if I purchase two ILL$. We have split our strategy between using our ILL$ midday or clumping them with our evening LL’s. We like both options depending on the ride and/or the park we are hopping to.

5) After using our last LL it’s usually the end of the night so we can just hop in line at park close for one attraction for which we couldn’t grab a LL. Shorter wait and not wasting park time to ride it. Win win.

I think this strategy works best for guests who (1) don’t plan their vacation in a detailed minute-to-minute way, (2) don’t eat table service often and can be more flexible with the order of operations in their park experience, (3) enjoy the parks in the evening, and (4) have park hoppers and can move to another location after 2pm if other parks have better LL availability.

Used this strategy both in mid-November and the weekend prior to Christmas and was able to get a minimum of 6 LL’s each day no problem (and for good attractions, too). I also find the I’m doing a lot less pre-planning for our visits and I really really like that. We have our next visit MLK weekend and I’ve done zilch for park planning except which parks we might start in and what we might hop to (with the caveat that we might change our plan depending on what LL’s we get). Looking forward to seeing if this strategy continues to be effective for us or if we run into issues.


----------



## wisblue

cjlong88 said:


> I would just tag the ride I was looking for as my only “selection” so it was at the very top and continuously pulled down the screen so it refreshed and if a time popped up I could grab it quickly. No need to click the ride and back out.



Instead of pulling down on the screen I just hit the “Tip Board” tab to refresh the screen.


----------



## GBRforWDW

wisblue said:


> Instead of pulling down on the screen I just hit the “Tip Board” tab to refresh the screen.


Different phones work differently.  I have both an Android and iphone, one personal one work, but have the app on both.  The tip board click works on the iPhone but not on the Android.


----------



## GBRforWDW

cjlong88 said:


> After testing G+ twice and trying both strategies (stacking for evening vs. booking as early as possible), I prefer the evening stack for a couple of reasons.
> 
> 1) I don’t have to stress about getting an early time for the most popular attractions at 7am. It’s not make or break to be lightning fast (pun intended). As long as I’m on at 7am I have been able to get my ILL$ and G+ with times that work for us no problem.
> 
> 2) If I plan and refresh so my LL’s go in order of latest to earliest, then my most recent LL will most likely be the first I use when I begin to redeem them, meaning I can immediately book another one. Very little refreshing has been needed on both visits to see a good return time that works for us.
> 
> 3) I’m only on my phone every two hours. Once I book an evening LL, there is nothing more I can do, so the phone goes away and I can enjoy attractions with shorter waits, walk around, eat a snack, see a cavalcade, etc.
> 
> 4) Once I return in the evening I have anywhere from 3-5 LL’s lined up and ready to use. I can have even more lined up if I purchase two ILL$. We have split our strategy between using our ILL$ midday or clumping them with our evening LL’s. We like both options depending on the ride and/or the park we are hopping to.
> 
> 5) After using our last LL it’s usually the end of the night so we can just hop in line at park close for one attraction for which we couldn’t grab a LL. Shorter wait and not wasting park time to ride it. Win win.
> 
> I think this strategy works best for guests who (1) don’t plan their vacation in a detailed minute-to-minute way, (2) don’t eat table service often and can be more flexible with the order of operations in their park experience, (3) enjoy the parks in the evening, and (4) have park hoppers and can move to another location after 2pm if other parks have better LL availability.
> 
> Used this strategy both in mid-November and the weekend prior to Christmas and was able to get a minimum of 6 LL’s each day no problem (and for good attractions, too). I also find the I’m doing a lot less pre-planning for our visits and I really really like that. We have our next visit MLK weekend and I’ve done zilch for park planning except which parks we might start in and what we might hop to (with the caveat that we might change our plan depending on what LL’s we get). Looking forward to seeing if this strategy continues to be effective for us or if we run into issues.


We mainly used the later stacking method as well, but only because I didn't know when the family would be ready to go and most days we weren't at the park until our second selection was made.  

I also agree with your comment about dining reservations.  Those were always eating up a lot more time than I was hoping/planning for, making rushing to our next LL either a necessity or we would just blow it off.  We still used 3-5 LLs in each park, but could have been more efficient not rushing to a reservation.  

Next trip, I'm going to miss them only having 1 ILL$ per park and longer hours. It was nice having more G+ availability.  Felt like we always had options Christmas week to select something if we wanted to throughout the day, even if it was to skip a 20-30 minute line.


----------



## Jrb1979

Another thing I am amazed by with reading through this thread is how many people spend such little time in the parks. I get that many are there for a week. Maybe it's just me but when I go to parks for vacation I am in the parks for as long as I can.


----------



## wisblue

GBRforWDW said:


> Different phones work differently.  I have both an Android and iphone, one personal one work, but have the app on both.  The tip board click works on the iPhone but not on the Android.



Yes, I have an iPhone.


----------



## EmilyGahr

Not coming until later this month but constantly on the app trying to make sure I understand everything! Just saw this and couldn’t believe it… 75 minute wait for Slinky Dog but could get a 7:05 LL at 7:04, almost seemed too good to be true!


----------



## wisblue

EmilyGahr said:


> Not coming until later this month but constantly on the app trying to make sure I understand everything! Just saw this and couldn’t believe it… 75 minute wait for Slinky Dog but could get a 7:05 LL at 7:04, almost seemed too good to be true!



Those times can pop up from time to time, probably because of somebody cancelling a LL reservation they had made earlier.

If you were in the park and clicked on that to try to book the reservation you might find that it is gone before you can claim it. There are people who constantly refresh their screens trying to claim these pop up slots so there will likely be competition for them.


----------



## Bon1423

I’ve been reading through the thread and still am not quite understanding everything about stacking.  We are not early morning people and especially want to stack later LL for MK.  So if this is the situation:

Before 9 get splash mountain 11:30 return time
At 11 get Space return time of 3pm
Ride splash at 12:20, then I can pull another even with Space outstanding, right?  So say I pull like Buzz at 2:45.

So we’d ride Buzz, pull another return time (for idk Pirates) then ride space.  After riding space, can I still pull another time or do I have to ride Pirates first?

Seems like double dipping if you can do this all day, have basically two cycles running, but want to make sure I understand.


----------



## boop0524

cjlong88 said:


> After testing G+ twice and trying both strategies (stacking for evening vs. booking as early as possible), I prefer the evening stack for a couple of reasons.


Love this strategy! So interesting...may have to try this for our upcoming trip. I admit, though, I'm a bit traumatized by our last use of Genie+ in early Nov. when everything ran out at HS by mid-day. Our first LL was at 6ish that day, too. So is that not as much of a problem anymore? Also, do you still try to get the rides that book fastest first, just don't stress so much about the time? Sorry, I have not been following this thread that closely lately and am just hopping back in


----------



## scrappinginontario

Bon1423 said:


> I’ve been reading through the thread and still am not quite understanding everything about stacking.  We are not early morning people and especially want to stack later LL for MK.  So if this is the situation:
> 
> Before 9 get splash mountain 11:30 return time
> At 11 get Space return time of 3pm
> Ride splash at 12:20, then I can pull another even with Space outstanding, right?  So say I pull like Buzz at 2:45.
> 
> So we’d ride Buzz, pull another return time (for idk Pirates) then ride space.  After riding space, can I still pull another time or do I have to ride Pirates first?
> 
> Seems like double dipping if you can do this all day, have basically two cycles running, but want to make sure I understand.


The thing to keep in mind is that with Genie+ you may only select the next available time so may not be easy/possible to do what you have described.  We all wish it were but reality is the most popular G+ reservations fill up early and quickly.


----------



## cjlong88

boop0524 said:


> Love this strategy! So interesting...may have to try this for our upcoming trip. I admit, though, I'm a bit traumatized by our last use of Genie+ in early Nov. when everything ran out at HS by mid-day. Our first LL was at 6ish that day, too. So is that not as much of a problem anymore? Also, do you still try to get the rides that book fastest first, just don't stress so much about the time? Sorry, I have not been following this thread that closely lately and am just hopping back in



Yes, I book the rides in order of popularity, so for HS it would be SDD, then MFSR, then ToT / RnRC (whichever is showing later return times), etc. I have rough time frames for each attraction I would prefer so I don't zig-zag across the park, but if there were slim pickings I would just grab what I could. The last time we did this we had SDD, MSFR, ToT, RnRC and TSM all lined up by the time we walked into HS around 5pm. And we purchased RotR and MMRR so we had 7 LL's ready to go. It was awesome going from ride to ride. Granted, this I think is more the exception rather than the norm, but I've been able to do it once in November and once in December. We will see if I can replicate it January!

Okay, so another crazy thing we did is start our day at AK (typically it opens the earliest), book the earliest LL I could find (say 8am for Dinosaur). Immediately tap in at 8am, consequently making myself eligible book MFSR (and there was already later availability). Now my 2-hour window begins at 8am instead of 9am (HS open time) and I can now start stacking at 10am, 12pm, 2pm, and 4pm. With this strategy I was forced to forego SDD as our first pick at 7am, BUT I would remedy this by just getting in line for it at park close.


----------



## boop0524

cjlong88 said:


> Yes, I book the rides in order of popularity, so for HS it would be SDD, then MFSR, then ToT / RnRC (whichever is showing later return times), etc. I have rough time frames for each attraction I would prefer so I don't zig-zag across the park, but if there were slim pickings I would just grab what I could. The last time we did this we had SDD, MSFR, ToT, RnRC and TSM all lined up by the time we walked into HS around 5pm. And we purchased RotR and MMRR so we had 7 LL's ready to go. It was awesome going from ride to ride. Granted, this I think is more the exception rather than the norm, but I've been able to do it once in November and once in December. We will see if I can replicate it January!
> 
> Okay, so another crazy thing we did is start our day at AK (typically it opens the earliest), book the earliest LL I could find (say 8am for Dinosaur). Immediately tap in at 8am, consequently making myself eligible book MFSR (and there was already later availability). Now my 2-hour window begins at 8am instead of 9am (HS open time) and I can now start stacking at 10am, 12pm, 2pm, and 4pm. With this strategy I was forced to forego SDD as our first pick at 7am, BUT I would remedy this by just getting in line for it at park close.


Ah that is brilliant! Thank you so much, going to play around with some planning ideas


----------



## g-dad66

Bon1423 said:


> I’ve been reading through the thread and still am not quite understanding everything about stacking.  We are not early morning people and especially want to stack later LL for MK.  So if this is the situation:
> 
> Before 9 get splash mountain 11:30 return time
> At 11 get Space return time of 3pm
> Ride splash at 12:20, then I can pull another even with Space outstanding, right?  So say I pull like Buzz at 2:45.
> 
> So we’d ride Buzz, pull another return time (for idk Pirates) then ride space.  After riding space, can I still pull another time or do I have to ride Pirates first?
> 
> Seems like double dipping if you can do this all day, have basically two cycles running, but want to make sure I understand.



No, you become eligible for next LL (1) after 2 hours OR (2) after double-tapping into your MOST RECENTLY BOOKED LL (whichever comes first).

So at 11:00 when you booked the Space LL, you are next eligible at either (1) 1:00 , or (2) when you double-tap into Space.
Double-tapping into Splash at 12:20 doesn't re-set your eligibility. 

Ditto regarding your Buzz and Pirate example.  When you ride Space, it doesn't make you eligible again because Buzz was your most recently booked LL.


----------



## ilgirl51

We were just there before Christmas.  We weren't planning to use Genie+, but I'd read about it just in case.  Because of the crowds, we did end up purchasing it for our Magic Kingdom day.  Space Mountain was put into the Genie+ group for the two weeks of Christmas, so we decided it was worth it after rope drop didn't work.  I was able to get more rides than I'd expected to, and I didn't feel like I was on my phone all day.  We didn't need Genie+ at the other parks, but we did buy an ILL for Remy since all of the boarding times were gone by 7:01 the day of Epcot.


----------



## Disturbia

Jrb1979 said:


> Another thing I am amazed by with reading through this thread is how many people spend such little time in the parks. I get that many are there for a week. Maybe it's just me but when I go to parks for vacation I am in the parks for as long as I can.


We used to spend 10+ hours in parks when we had one kid.  When fastbpass+ was in testing we rode 15 rides using printed passes in combo with FP+.  We have been many times and now have 3 kids so we don’t feel the need to ride everything and spend lot of time enjoying dining, parades, fireworks and resort offerings.


----------



## Juventus

Can anyone confirm that MFSR is usually still available 2 hours after park open (say if I go for SDD at 7:00)?  I'm looking stack and hop to DHS 2nd week of March.
My priority is MFSR however between 7:00 and park open I am not sure if a late enough time (after 5:00ish) will be offered for MFSR.
I'm starting to pay attention to thrill data but am not sure how to find historical data.


----------



## g-dad66

Juventus said:


> Can anyone confirm that MFSR is usually still available 2 hours after park open (say if I go for SDD at 7:00)?  I'm looking stack and hop to DHS 2nd week of March.
> My priority is MFSR however between 7:00 and park open I am not sure if a late enough time (after 5:00ish) will be offered for MFSR.
> I'm starting to pay attention to thrill data but am not sure how to find historical data.



Just change the date at the top of the page to see data for any previous date.

Prior to Thanksgiving, MFSr was still available at 11:00, but in the month since then, I have observed that it is often gone by 11:00.  I recommend checking the situation again when it gets closer to your dates.

President's Week in February may be a good index for what it will be like during Spring Break weeks in March and April.


----------



## sdk1231

Reporting back with my second try at using Genie+.  This was done over the busy NYE weekend. I'd been "iffy" about trying Genie+ again, but decided to give it a shot. It was a success for my family this time.  Here's how it went: 

12/29 Travel Day / DHS evening / Extended Eve Hours at MK - Chicago to Orlando. Family of 4. Oldest daughter works at Star Wars Galaxy's Edge. Husband goes to Disney once a year and has never visited SWGE.  This was the 4th trip for my daughters and I this year. Planned arrival at DHS at about 5pm w/dinner at Docking Bay 7 (quick serve) at whatever time worked out.  Purchased G+ for all 4, but I and CM daughter don't care all that much about riding rides. We enjoy entertainment, walking around the park, shopping, and just hanging out. We often give our LL rides to husband and younger daughter.  Hence the "split bookings" you see below. Here's how G+ worked out that day.  Husband and younger daughter rode rides essentially all night long non-stop: 

At 7 AM, while at home.  
Booked ILL for Rise for 3 people at 8pm  
Booked ToT at 5pm - 1 person 
Booked Smuggler's Run at 5:55pm - 2 people 

While at Ohare airport, I did the 10:30AM "drop"
Booked MMRR at 6:40pm - 3 people  
Booked Star Tours at 6:40pm - 2 people 

While DH and daughters were riding MMRR, I picked up an Alien Swirling Saucers at 7pm. 

While they were all riding Rise, I picked up a Toy Story Mania at 8:30pm. 

Reservations for Drinks at Oga's at 9:30. Rode the bus back to the Magic Kingdom for Extended Evening Hours from 11-1AM where daughters rode several rides including Space, Splash, etc.  Walked back to the Grand Floridian.  

12/30 MK with late arrival. 
At 7AM while sitting on my balcony drinking coffee:
Booked ILL for 7DMT for daughters at 7pm
Booked Peter Pan for myself and older daughter at 1:30pm
Booked Space Mtn for husband and younger daughter at 2pm

At the 11am "drop" I booked us all on Splash Mtn at 3pm

Entered MK at around 11:30am, watched Cavalcade and Dapper Dans
Lunch at CRT at 12:20
DH and younger daughter went to Philharmagic while older daughter and I rode Peter Pan.  We finished before they did, and while waiting for them, I checked Genie and saw we were all eligible for another LL.  I was suprised... and I will say that that's one thing I like about Genie...  I didn't have to figure out who was eligible when.  It's very clear who is eligible for another LL.

Booked LL for Monsters Inc Laugh Floor, walked over and watched it.  It was a fun holiday version. 

DH and younger daughter rode Space

We walked over and rode Splash together.  

I checked Genie and we were eligible for another LL.  Booked it for Pirates, walked over and rode that.  

Kids did Pirate Adventure or whatever it's called (the treasure hunt map game)

Walked to Tomorrowland Terrace for Dessert Party at 5pm.  We were 15 min early but they let us in.  Watched Enchantment from the dessert party Plaza viewing area at 6:30.  Not crowded, excellent view.  After Enchantment, the park got LOUD with the New Year's Eve Eve party vibe, which I love.  Hubby does not love that, and left to go back to the hotel, leaving the girls and I to party with plans to join him later for the midnight fireworks from the resort.  

Kids rode 7DMT.  While they were doing that, I checked Genie Tip Board and booked us a LL for Pooh.  They got off 7DMT, we went on Pooh.  Checked G+ and booked kids a LL for Dumbo.  They rode that.  Checked G+ and booked Small World.  Rode that.  Haunted Mansion was 20 min standby time - rode that standby.  Hung around in Liberty Square and on Main Street until about 10:30 when we headed back to the Grand to watch the 11:50 fireworks from the resort. 

I felt that it was a successful 2 days of G+ use, especially for late park arrival days on a busy NYE weekend.  We rode everything we'd wanted to ride, and only rode standby 1 time.  Did not purchase G+ for our other 2 days - NYE and New Year's Day - as we'd ridden everything we wanted to ride and had those days set aside as resort, pool, entertainment days.  

I was never a huge fan of the Fastpass system, being "locked in" to being at certain places at certain times.  I can't say I love the G+ system, either, but I didn't hate it.  It worked well for us this time around and I wasn't looking at my phone all day, either, which I'd been worried about.  I'm not a "phone" fan.  

My husband, who knows very little about the machinations behind a successful Disney trip and joins us once annually (his limit), felt that it was a "great trip" and was happy that he got to ride eveyrthing he wanted to ride back-to-back with Lightning Lane.  At one point he made a comment about this trip being "so easy!" (my CM daughter and I looked at each other and grinned).  So that made it a great trip for me.


----------



## Disturbia

g-dad66 said:


> No, you become eligible for next LL (1) after 2 hours OR (2) after double-tapping into your MOST RECENTLY BOOKED LL (whichever comes first).
> 
> So at 11:00 when you booked the Space LL, you are next eligible at either (1) 1:00 , or (2) when you double-tap into Space.
> Double-tapping into Splash at 12:20 doesn't re-set your eligibility.
> 
> Ditto regarding your Buzz and Pirate example.  When you ride Space, it doesn't make you eligible again because Buzz was your most recently booked LL.


I believe you are able to book another pass after tapping into Splash (earliest booked Genie+ ride) like a rolling fast pass+.  You don’t have to wait to scan into a late (Space) pass?  What if the Space pass was at 5 pm?  or was this the change that was made recently (allears.net mentioned some stacking rule changes Nov 24 article?). I read that to mean that you couldn’t roll multiple stacked passes (we never did).

https://allears.net/2021/11/24/theres-been-an-update-on-the-disney-genie-loophole/
I see Space as an independent pass until the Genie+ rolling pass overlaps this one (5 mins before 3 pm).  So you can continue booking and riding Genie+ rides 11 am (2 hrs after park opening) to 2:55 pm.


----------



## g-dad66

Disturbia said:


> I believe you are able to book another pass after tapping into Splash (earliest booked Genie+ ride) like a rolling fast pass+.  You don’t have to wait to scan into a late (Space) pass?  What if the Space pass was at 5 pm?  or was this the change that was made recently (allears.net mentioned some stacking rule changes Nov 24 article?). I read that to mean that you couldn’t roll multiple stacked passes (we never did).
> 
> https://allears.net/2021/11/24/theres-been-an-update-on-the-disney-genie-loophole/



It's definitely confusing, isn't it?   Yes, the November 24 change meant that you could no longer roll multiple stacked passes each time you tapped into a LL.

This is why tapping into the EARLIEST BOOKED LL (11:30 in the example) won't make you eligible if you already had taken advantage of the 2-hour eligibility rule (eligible at 11:00 in the example).  It's only tapping into the MOST RECENTLY BOOKED LL that makes you eligible to book again.


----------



## Disturbia

In this case he’s rolling only 1 Genie+ pass 11 am-2:55 pm

UNLESS he uses this pass to stack a pass after 3 pm

in his example buzz is before 2:55 which he should be able to book, but I would ride rides continuously until 2:45 and then use my Genie+ pass to stack another After 3 pm.


----------



## g-dad66

Disturbia said:


> In this case he’s rolling only 1 Genie+ pass 11 am-2:55 pm
> 
> UNLESS he uses this pass to stack a pass after 3 pm



If you book an LL at 11:00, you are eligible to book again either (1) at 1:00, or (2) when you double-tap into the attraction that you just booked.

You don't become eligible at 11:30 by double-tapping into the LL that you had booked at 7:00 am.


----------



## Disturbia

I give up.  I need to take more choline from all the brain degeneration Genie+ is causing me.


----------



## g-dad66

Disturbia said:


> I give up.  I need to take more choline from all the brain degeneration Genie+ is causing me.



Same here.


----------



## Disturbia

g-dad66 said:


> Same here.


So is he eligible to book a pass at 1 pm and continue to roll it until 2:55 (or stack)?


----------



## Disturbia

IMHO. unless park hopping, you’re giving up riding as you go during peak afternoon hours and wasting 2 hrs each time.  I would just ride rides 9-12 pm and then stack for 3pm+ (Break for lunch).


----------



## wdw&sonny

Am I able to book at 7a on day of check in?  Is that automatic or do I have to do something to be sure I will be active at 7a?  i.e. do I have to check in to the resort remotely or something?


----------



## Disturbia

wdw&sonny said:


> Am I able to book at 7a on day of check in?  Is that automatic or do I have to do something to be sure I will be active at 7a?  i.e. do I have to check in to the resort remotely or something?


Yes.  You need park 1 reservations, your tickets (on site resort reservations for LLIA$ at 7 am) for booking Genie+ at 7 am (and park hoppers for everyone if hopping).  I would check in online.

Make sure all your friends and family show up on MDE (you can try booking dining).  Check height requirements.


----------



## Disturbia

Also, budget time for frustration if HS is the Park you‘re booking for.  I had to log in and copy and paste a code from my email 4 times for MMRR.  Payment screen would freeze.  SDD and ROTR (LLIA$) were booked using 2 different devices.  It took us 15-20 mins to get these done.


----------



## mousegear

Thank you everyone for some wonderful tips and strategies.  A couple of days before our trip, I read quite a few pages of this thread trying to learn new Genie+.  This trip is just DS 18 and me so two abled adults.
I bought Genie+ when I woke up around 6 am on Jan 2, Sunday.  We plan to spend the morning at Epcot and the evening at MK.

1. At 7am, DS was tasked with Virtual Que for Remy and he got BG11.
I went for TT LL and got a 10:10 return time.
2.  We are staying at BWV so we went for Early Entry and was held by Canada until close to 8:30.  We quickly walked to Soarin and were out by 8:50.  Soarin's wait was still 10 minutes after we were off.  Living with the Land wasn't running yet. We rode Nemo and walked our way to ride Mission Space.  However, we were called for Remy and this was 9:20 ish.
3.  After Remy, we made it to Mission Space and rode Green as I have motion sickness problems lately.
4. By @ 10:00 we rode TT and after tapping, I searched for our next G+ and after a few reload, got Soarin 10:50.
5.  After Soarin, we walked our way over to Italy for our ADR.

I started to stack G+ for our MK evening.
6. Right after scanning Soarin, I got Jungle Cruise for 7-8pm.  On my phone, as soon as I got G+ i had 2 hour count down started so I could get next G+
7  I also bought Seven Dwarves since we haven't ridden that last couple of trips.  It was available for 9:15-10:15
8. @ 1pm, it was our next availability so booked Splash Mt for 7:40-8:40.
9. @ 3pm, booked Thunter Mt for 8:10-9:10
10. @ 5pm, booked Peter Pan popped up after several reload for 6:10-7:10.

So after dinner at our villa, we arrived @ MK by 6pm and went straight to Peter Pan.  
11. After tapping into Peter Pan, I got Pirates for 8:00-9:00.
12.  After Pirates, I immediately got It's a Small World for 8:30-9:30

So we got 7 G+ rides and thought it was totally worth it.  There were more we could have done if we choose to walk across the park but we tried to save our legs a little and stayed mostly in the Adventure/Frontier and then to Fantasy Land.  So even on a crowd 10 day, it's doable.  We also rested in the room from 1-5:30pm.

I will post today's results soon.


----------



## leeniewdw

Jrb1979 said:


> Another thing I am amazed by with reading through this thread is how many people spend such little time in the parks. I get that many are there for a week. Maybe it's just me but when I go to parks for vacation I am in the parks for as long as I can.



We have always taken a break midday.  When our kids were little they needed naps and then as they got older, they liked pool time or water park (and we liked to get off our feet).   We had a big gap of about 15 years when they got busy with sports/activities and we returned as empty nesters in March 2018.   We realized how much we loved the later winter escape and ALSO still wanted our midday break and rest/pool time.   We've gone twice since March 2018 (short visits each time) and have kept this strategy.   We normally rope-drop and get a lot accomplished in doing so.   This last trip we had 2 park days but one was a travel day where we did afternoon DHS +  MK AH and decided not to try rope dropping the next day either.

G+/ILL are expensive, but they worked perfectly for our trip in early Dec.  My DH thought it was a miracle to just walk from  MFSR, ROTR, ST, MMRR, ToT, TSM, RnRC and never wait even though we got to the parks around 3pm.   If it hadn't been sunny, we might have skipped the midday breaks (or made them shorter), but honestly sitting in warm sunshine in December poolside while enjoying a drink was pretty wonderful too.


----------



## princesslover

mousegear said:


> Thank you everyone for some wonderful tips and strategies.  A couple of days before our trip, I read quite a few pages of this thread trying to learn new Genie+.  This trip is just DS 18 and me so two abled adults.
> I bought Genie+ when I woke up around 6 am on Jan 2, Sunday.  We plan to spend the morning at Epcot and the evening at MK.
> 
> 1. At 7am, DS was tasked with Virtual Que for Remy and he got BG11.
> I went for TT LL and got a 10:10 return time.
> 2.  We are staying at BWV so we went for Early Entry and was held by Canada until close to 8:30.  We quickly walked to Soarin and were out by 8:50.  Soarin's wait was still 10 minutes after we were off.  Living with the Land wasn't running yet. We rode Nemo and walked our way to ride Mission Space.  However, we were called for Remy and this was 9:20 ish.
> 3.  After Remy, we made it to Mission Space and rode Green as I have motion sickness problems lately.
> 4. By @ 10:00 we rode TT and after tapping, I searched for our next G+ and after a few reload, got Soarin 10:50.
> 5.  After Soarin, we walked our way over to Italy for our ADR.
> 
> I started to stack G+ for our MK evening.
> 6. Right after scanning Soarin, I got Jungle Cruise for 7-8pm.  On my phone, as soon as I got G+ i had 2 hour count down started so I could get next G+
> 7  I also bought Seven Dwarves since we haven't ridden that last couple of trips.  It was available for 9:15-10:15
> 8. @ 1pm, it was our next availability so booked Splash Mt for 7:40-8:40.
> 9. @ 3pm, booked Thunter Mt for 8:10-9:10
> 10. @ 5pm, booked Peter Pan popped up after several reload for 6:10-7:10.
> 
> So after dinner at our villa, we arrived @ MK by 6pm and went straight to Peter Pan.
> 11. After tapping into Peter Pan, I got Pirates for 8:00-9:00.
> 12.  After Pirates, I immediately got It's a Small World for 8:30-9:30
> 
> So we got 7 G+ rides and thought it was totally worth it.  There were more we could have done if we choose to walk across the park but we tried to save our legs a little and stayed mostly in the Adventure/Frontier and then to Fantasy Land.  So even on a crowd 10 day, it's doable.  We also rested in the room from 1-5:30pm.
> 
> I will post today's results soon.



This is so helpful, thank you! Looks like you had an excellent strategy!

We are going at the end of June.  We have hoppers.  I was going to start by stacking in the evening but based on your experience, it seemed to work out to just let things flow in your morning park and you could still stack the evening rides by 1:00.  I had thought they may be gone.

Im thinking this strategy won’t work as well if the evening park is DHS which has a lot of high demand genie+ options. In that case, it’s better to stack the evening one’s first. Would you agree?


----------



## g-dad66

princesslover said:


> This is so helpful, thank you! Looks like you had an excellent strategy!
> 
> We are going at the end of June.  We have hoppers.  I was going to start by stacking in the evening but based on your experience, it seemed to work out to just let things flow in your morning park and you could still stack the evening rides by 1:00.  I had thought they may be gone.
> 
> Im thinking this strategy won’t work as well if the evening park is DHS which has a lot of high demand genie+ options. In that case, it’s better to stack the evening one’s first. Would you agree?



Yes, for DHS, you will want to book Slinky Dog at 7am, and then at 11am, you will want to book Millenium Falcon (if still available).  If you try to start booking later than 11, those 2 will be gone.


----------



## princesslover

g-dad66 said:


> Yes, for DHS, you will want to book Slinky Dog at 7am, and then at 11am, you will want to book Millenium Falcon (if still available).  If you try to start booking later than 11, those 2 will be gone.



How is TSM, ToT and RnRC holding up for afternoon bookings?


----------



## GBRforWDW

princesslover said:


> How is TSM, ToT and RnRC holding up for afternoon bookings?


I want to add in, you have to remember for the last 2 weeks, the hours have been longer and the extra available ride that is usually ILL$ has really helped with availability over Christmas break.  Unless they make the change permanent and keep similar hours in the summer, the availability throughout the day will fluctuate causing strategy to change.


----------



## g-dad66

princesslover said:


> How is TSM, ToT and RnRC holding up for afternoon bookings?



As GBRforWDW says, check out availability starting tomorrow, when the 2-week 4-ILL$ will be over.

You can check thrill-data.com to see how long availability lasts into the afternoons.


----------



## g-dad66

After midnight, and Expedition Everest has gone into refurbishment status on the Tip Board.  So far, nothing seems to have taken its place as an AK ILL$.

Unfortunately, Space Mountain, Frozen Ever After, and Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway have all now returned to ILL$ status.  I was hoping the change in the last 2 weeks was so wildly successful that Disney would continue it (only 4 ILL$), but alas, twas a vain hope on my part.


----------



## DisneyPanthersFan

Anyone else having trouble buying Genie Plus for today (Tuesday, January 4)?

Okay, after about 20 minutes or so, I was able to do so. I could not buy it from the My Day tab - I had to pick the Edit My Selections option and eventually I had the option of adding on Genie Plus. (Previously, I was stuck getting the same Lightning Lane pop up over and over.) Glad to have that over with so I can hopefully get a little sleep!


----------



## mrebuck

g-dad66 said:


> After midnight, and Expedition Everest has gone into refurbishment status on the Tip Board.  So far, nothing seems to have taken its place as an AK ILL$.
> 
> Unfortunately, Space Mountain, Frozen Ever After, and Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway have all now returned to ILL$ status.  I was hoping the change in the last 2 weeks was so wildly successful that Disney would continue it (only 4 ILL$), but alas, twas a vain hope on my part.



Does that mean that we are back to being able to purchase 2 ILL$ per day?


----------



## Tom_E_D

princesslover said:


> How is TSM, ToT and RnRC holding up for afternoon bookings?


This TP blogpost, written about a month ago, discusses G+ return time availability at different crowd levels.


----------



## GBRforWDW

mrebuck said:


> Does that mean that we are back to being able to purchase 2 ILL$ per day?


You were always able if you were park hopping.  But yes, you can buy up to 2 ILL$ per day.

I agree with @g-dad66.  Was really hoping theyd do away with ILL in favor of a higher cost for Genie+.  Oh well, I was definitely thankful for the changes, not having to pay for Frozen and MMRR and getting on both with the Genie.


----------



## mousegear

princesslover said:


> Im thinking this strategy won’t work as well if the evening park is DHS which has a lot of high demand genie+ options. In that case, it’s better to stack the evening one’s first. Would you agree?



I agree that this strategy won't work if the evening park is DHS since all the selections are gone by early morning.  I'm about to share my DHS morning and Epcot evening G+ experience.


----------



## mousegear

On January 3, Monday, I bought G+ before 7 and counted down the seconds.  Again this was Crowd Level 10 day.
Our agenda @ 7am was to buy Rise of Resistance ILL$ and book Millenium Falcon.  Both of us are not interested SDD which is very helpful to spend the Early Entry better.

1. @ 7am I bought Rise of Resistance for 9:20~10:20 and DS booked G+ for Millenium Falcon for 9:40~10:40.

We went to DHS for Early Entry and we lined up at TOT first.  At the opening of 7:30, we walked to TOT and rose and went to RnRC and walked to the ride.  At the end of the ride, right before being released, we wore stuck there for about 10 minutes.  The RnRC broke down for the rest of the day.  We were the last ones to ride for that day.
After wasting precious Early Entry time, we went to MMRT and had posted a wait time of 25 minutes and it was pretty accurate.  Then rode Star Tours afterward.  Right after we were finished with Star Tours, it hit 8:30 and we saw mob of people running to Rise of Resistance.  We went to Muffet show and looked around merchandizes in Star Wars section.

2.  Tapped for Rise of Resistance @ 9:15 and right afterwards tapped at Millenium Falcon @ 9:40.
3.  As soon as we tapped, I searched for Toy Story Mania and after several trying of reloading, got Toy Story Mania for 11:30~12:30.

After Millenium Falcon, we decided to watch Beauty and the Beast to spend the time until our Toy Story Mania.

4. At 11:35, we tapped Toy Story Mania and booked TT for 5:15~6:15.  I had 2-hour countdown alarm started on my phone to remind me of the next G+ opening.

After Toy Story Mania, we existed DHS and went back to the room to relax and enjoy our resort time.

5. @ 1:35, while trying to book another G+, I saw Remy ILL$ popped up @ 7:20~8:20 pm for $9 so grabbed that.  And after several reload, Frozen popped for 8:20~9 PM so booked.  I set up another 2-hour countdown alarm on my phone for the next opening.
6.  @ 3:37, I booked Soarin for 7:00~8:00pm so grabbed it.
7.  @ 5:38, I booked Mission for 6:55~7:55 pm.

So all in all, I booked 6 rides and all of the headliners in each park.  I think if you plan it right, it could be pretty amazing that you could walk on several rides within a 2~3 hour time frame.


----------



## cheshiregoofy22

If I'm planning on using a park hopper ticket with Genie+ at HS on my arrival day (so probably after 5 PM) on a Thursday at the end of January (already checked into resort online) - should I pick a different park for my reservation (like EPCOT) so when I look at 7:00 AM for afternoon or  evening availability it'll automatically look for HS availability after 2:00 PM?  Just a little confused and many, many thanks!  EDIT - JUST DAWNED ON ME THAT I'D STILL HAVE TO TAP INTO EPCOT BEFORE HS IF I DID THAT...oops...not really a problem, but i spaced on that detail for a minute!


----------



## elgerber

cheshiregoofy22 said:


> If I'm planning on using a park hopper ticket with Genie+ at HS on my arrival day (so probably after 5 PM) on a Thursday at the end of January (already checked into resort online) - should I pick a different park for my reservation (like EPCOT) so when I look at 7:00 AM for afternoon or  evening availability it'll automatically look for HS availability after 2:00 PM?  Just a little confused and many, many thanks!


no, if you do that you will have to scan in to Epcot first, before you go to HS.


----------



## cheshiregoofy22

Thanks!  brain cramp.


----------



## wisblue

We had some success using Genie+ on our arrival day.

We had a flight at 6:05 AM CST, which meant we had to leave home at 3:30 AM to get to the airport. We had park reservations at DHS and planned to spend a few hours there before getting back to the room early to cap a long day.

The first challenge was that we were boarded on the plane at 7AM EST and wasn’t sure I’d be able to connect to MDE. But, I was able to log in after one false start and snagged an LL for ROTR at 4:15. One of my daughters who wasn’t on the flight got a LL for MFSR at 2:20.

We were just arriving at our resort at 11 AM and I got a LL for TSMM with a 3:15 return. Then at 1, just after our room became available I got 4:45 return for Stat Tours.

So, we left for the park at about 1:30 armed with LL for 4 of our favorite attractions. We used those 4 LL, bypassing posted standby waits of 70, 70, 170, and 25 minutes, and get something to eat before leaving the park at 6.


----------



## Momma of 4

I've popped in and out of this thread but can't seem to find the answer to my question....does the G+ line move pretty fast? Is there usually a wait for those lines also, just shorter? We're going end of Jan, so already hopefully lower crowds, but I have 3 under 6 and waits are brutal for us. I'm debating buying G+ for some days, MK specifically, if that means we can walk on the rides we book. Thanks!


----------



## Disturbia

The slowest line we experienced was for Soarin.  It took us a total of 30 mins to ride so we had to skip our rider switch.  Test Track took 5-6 mins longer because the line was being held up by a huge party (10+) trying to get the CM to issue a rider switch.  I’d be careful stacking passes and budget extra time for getting from one end of the park to another (Canada/France area gets extremely congested after 2 pm due to park hopping guests).  Food booths took 20 mins in that area.

For MK, Genie+ was giving us a time which was over an hour away at little mermaid when the wait was 25 mins.  It worked better in the mornings (Adventureland) and we stacked evening passes during lunch/pool break.  It took us over an hour to get from MK to Ohana after the fireworks (would not recommend).  Other lines moved faster than FP+ because there were less people buying (first week of Nov).


----------



## bjcaed

Momma of 4 said:


> I've popped in and out of this thread but can't seem to find the answer to my question....does the G+ line move pretty fast? Is there usually a wait for those lines also, just shorter? We're going end of Jan, so already hopefully lower crowds, but I have 3 under 6 and waits are brutal for us. I'm debating buying G+ for some days, MK specifically, if that means we can walk on the rides we book. Thanks!


We went the second week of December and cro


Momma of 4 said:


> I've popped in and out of this thread but can't seem to find the answer to my question....does the G+ line move pretty fast? Is there usually a wait for those lines also, just shorter? We're going end of Jan, so already hopefully lower crowds, but I have 3 under 6 and waits are brutal for us. I'm debating buying G+ for some days, MK specifically, if that means we can walk on the rides we book. Thanks!


crowds  were busy but not awful and we never waited more than 5 minutes and most things we walked on with LL and ILL. It often took longer to walk through the que because it was empty!! The only exception was Buzz Light year, it had broken down not too long before our return time so it was backed up but we only waited 15 minutes.  The line for Frozen looked long but moved really fast.  Genie plus worked perfectly for us.  I did feel some guilt walking passed ALL the people waiting especially for Slinky and Ratatouille.  Have fun


----------



## SheSingsAlong

cheshiregoofy22 said:


> If I'm planning on using a park hopper ticket with Genie+ at HS on my arrival day (so probably after 5 PM) on a Thursday at the end of January (already checked into resort online) - should I pick a different park for my reservation (like EPCOT) so when I look at 7:00 AM for afternoon or  evening availability it'll automatically look for HS availability after 2:00 PM?  Just a little confused and many, many thanks!  EDIT - JUST DAWNED ON ME THAT I'D STILL HAVE TO TAP INTO EPCOT BEFORE HS IF I DID THAT...oops...not really a problem, but i spaced on that detail for a minute!





elgerber said:


> no, if you do that you will have to scan in to Epcot first, before you go to HS.


I came here with a similar question - if I wanted to stack HS G+ LLs for the afternoon (on arrival day, let's say), could I make my park reservation for EP initially (in order to force LL return times to 2pm or later for me at HS) and then CHANGE my park reservation to HS later in the day so I wouldn't actually have to go tap in at EP before going to HS? If you change your park reservation, do you lose all your G+ LLs or something crazy like that?


----------



## Disturbia

SheSingsAlong said:


> I came here with a similar question - if I wanted to stack HS G+ LLs for the afternoon (on arrival day, let's say), could I make my park reservation for EP initially (in order to force LL return times to 2pm or later for me at HS) and then CHANGE my park reservation to HS later in the day so I wouldn't actually have to go tap in at EP before going to HS? If you change your park reservation, do you lose all your G+ LLs or something crazy like that?



HS park passes have routinely been sold out for weeks in advance.  I would not risk it.  I would think your screen would freeze and it takes hours to get things fixed with GET.  If you have HS park passes available just grab them and keep looking at the app when you’re eligible to stack evening passes starting with SDD/MFSR (7 am-8 am; should jump into pm availability), MFSR/SDD (11 am), TOT/RnR at 1 pm.


----------



## g-dad66

SheSingsAlong said:


> I came here with a similar question - if I wanted to stack HS G+ LLs for the afternoon (on arrival day, let's say), could I make my park reservation for EP initially (in order to force LL return times to 2pm or later for me at HS) and then CHANGE my park reservation to HS later in the day so I wouldn't actually have to go tap in at EP before going to HS? If you change your park reservation, do you lose all your G+ LLs or something crazy like that?



Wait a few seconds after 7am, and Slinky Dog Dash LL time will be well into the afternoon.  By 11am when you are next eligible, you will have no trouble getting LLs with late afternoon return times.


----------



## leeniewdw

mousegear said:


> 4. At 11:35, we tapped Toy Story Mania and booked TT for 5:15~6:15.  I* had 2-hour countdown alarm started on my phone to remind me of the next G+ opening.*



This is a much better idea than what I did when we went in Dec.   I set up alarms based on time of day on my phone.   It worked FINE when I was grabbing LLs on our arrival day for DHS (even our flight departed/arrived during a 2 hour window).   But it was a bust the next day when I was trying to grab evening LLs in EP.   I kept having to wait to get a time that worked for us and then it threw off my alarms.   This is so smart!



Disturbia said:


> The slowest line we experienced was for Soarin.



For us it was Soarin and TT.   Between those wait times and the ground we had to cover between attractions, we missed a SPACE return time (and I forgot to just cancel and try to rebook).  However, when we arrived at SPACE there was literally not another human in our line or waiting to get on the ride (orange side).    The CM pretended we were VIPs since he said they hold everyone else up, lol.

I will definitely rethink any LL scheduling at EP.   After Space we had to hoof it to Remy to make *that* window.  Come to think of it, that was slightly slower than other rides, but it was our last one, so it didn't matter.


----------



## Duck143

I'm wondering if you have multiple LL stacked in the afternoon, let's say your first one is at 2pm, then you have 3 more stacked for later than that.  Can you make another LL after you tap into the 2pm LL attraction?


----------



## g-dad66

Duck143 said:


> I'm wondering if you have multiple LL stacked in the afternoon, let's say your first one is at 2pm, then you have 3 more stacked for later than that.  Can you make another LL after you tap into the 2pm LL attraction?



No, because you already used up the eligibility that your first LL would have given you (when you booked your second LL).  Tapping into an attraction only makes you eligible when it is your MOST RECENTLY BOOKED attraction.


----------



## Duck143

g-dad66 said:


> No, because you already used up the eligibility that your first LL would have given you (when you booked your second LL).  Tapping into an attraction only makes you eligible when it is your MOST RECENTLY BOOKED attraction.


Got it, so if the earliest one (2pm) was booked last and tapped into first, you could make a new choice.


----------



## kellya222

What do you think of my plan using Genie + for DHS on Wednesday, Jan 12th? 

At 7am, book SDD first ( Smugglers Run is not a priority for us)....likely to trigger the 120 minute rule. Immediately after, buy ROTR ILL$ and MMRR ILL$.
At 8:30 early entry, RD TOT and Rock and Roller coaster. 
Do short stand bys and shows while waiting to book next LL at 11. Pick up less popular LLs as the day progresses.


----------



## Disturbia

kellya222 said:


> What do you think of my plan using Genie + for DHS on Wednesday, Jan 12th?
> 
> At 7am, book SDD first ( Smugglers Run is not a priority for us)....likely to trigger the 120 minute rule. Immediately after, buy ROTR ILL$ and MMRR ILL$.
> At 8:30 early entry, RD TOT and Rock and Roller coaster.
> Do short stand bys and shows while waiting to book next LL at 11. Pick up less popular LLs as the day progresses.


Sounds like a solid plan.  That’s what we did in Nov.  Kids don’t like MFSR.  One of us grabbed SDD and the other ROTR.  They were both easy to book.  MMRR gave us problems and I had to copy and paste from an email 4 times (kept freezing on payment screen) and it was time consuming and frustrating.  I would prioritize TOT over RnR.  I picked RnR after TSMM around 2:30 and TOT was sold out within minutes after that (was refreshing to get an earlier time, should have split bookings as our 5 yr old doesn't meet height requirements for RnR).  The CM told me to go to GET at the front of the park if I wanted RnR cancelled; we didn’t bother.

Do keep in mind that ROTR takes 30-40 mins to ride each time (esp if doing rider switch).


----------



## kellya222

Disturbia said:


> Sounds like a solid plan.  That’s what we did in Nov.  Kids don’t like MFSR.  One of us grabbed SDD and the other ROTR.  They were both easy to book.  MMRR gave us problems and I had to copy and paste from an email 4 times (kept freezing on payment screen) and it was time consuming and frustrating.  I would prioritize TOT over RnR.  I picked RnR after TSMM around 2:30 and TOT was sold out within minutes after that (was refreshing to get an earlier time, should have split bookings as our 5 yr old doesn't meet height requirements for RnR).  The CM told me to go to GET at the front of the park to fix it; we didn’t bother.
> 
> Do keep in mind that ROTR takes 30-40 mins to ride each time (esp if doing rider switch).


Great advice! Thank you!


----------



## Leahc117

Any G+ advice for park hopping magic kingdom morning and Hollywood studios afternoon?


----------



## g-dad66

Duck143 said:


> Got it, so if the earliest one (2pm) was booked last and tapped into first, you could make a new choice.



Correct.


----------



## wisblue

Day 2 of our Marathon Weekend trip produced some Genie+ information.

Our plan for the day was to start at DHS, leave around noon to get our bibs and shirts for the events, stop back at SSR to drop things off and take a short break, and then go to Epcot for a few hours.

At 7, my daughter snagged a Slinky return of 9:10. My phone froze when I tried to book Slinky and I had to close and restart the app, and by then the return time was out to 2PM. My backup plan had been to try to get an early time for Slinky during the 710 Surge. Though that wasn’t necessary, I confirmed on the bus to DHS that more Slinky times did come up at 710.

We rode TOT at opening (RNRC was still down as it has been most of the last week) and then MMRR with about a 20 minute wait (it seemed like they had let the non resort guests in early because a lot of people were joining that line at the same time.) 

After riding Slinky with the LL and the Swirling Saucers with a 15 minute wait (posted 35) we had done every open ride in the park between yesterday afternoon and today in about 5 hours of park time.

The afternoon confirmed that Genie + at Epcot doesn’t save much time. The LL for TT were gone by the time we got off Slinky so, ended up getting and using LL for Sorain and Mission Space. We used both of those but with posted waits of 45 minutes for Soarin and 30 for MS, we didn’t save that much time. Every other G+ attraction at Epcot was a virtual walk on.

As an aside, when we left MS we decided to try the single rider line at TT, which we like anyway because we don’t care if we do the car design. To our surprise, there was literally not one other person in the single rider line so we walked right in and were on and off the ride in 10 minutes. So, I’m glad we didn’t get a LL for that. We did not intend to pay for Frozen or Remy on this trip.


----------



## mousegear

1/5 Wednesday
We went to AK in the morning and MK in the evening.  Today is pretty much the last full day in the parks.  We still have two days left in our tickets but we only plan to pop in and out for ADRs and just to stroll and shop.  We like to take it easy so we are well-rested before heading back home.

1.  @ 7 am, I booked G+ Safari LL for 8-9am return.  EE is down for refurb which is boo~
I actually drove to AK since we stayed in our room until 7am and this was a mistake.  We were really back with Early Entry crowd and it took us almost 20 minutes in FOP line.  However since we were able to ride without paying LL$, we stuck it through.  We then rode Navi River.
2.  We decided to ride Safari right away since the animals are really active in the morning which is a good decision. Then as soon as I tapped, I booked the Festival of Lion King.  Today started out cloudy and chilly which we didn't want to ride Kali River.

Afterward we took a coffee break @ Creatures of Comfort and waited until almost 10.  It was the first showing for Lion King and we were seated right away. Enjoyed the show and walked Gorilla Trail

3. After tapping Lion King, I started to stack for MK evening. I booked Jungle Cruise for 6:40~7:40pm.  Again set 2 hour count down clock for the reminder.
4. Got Thunder Mt for 5:30~6:30 and 2 hour countdown.
5. Got Splash Mt for 5:50~6:50 and after 2 hours, I got Pirate for 6~7.
6. After 2 hours, I got Buzz for 6:30~7:30.

Our plan was to ride hard for 2~3 hours and get out before the fireworks.  We saw it from Cali Grill the other night and didn't want to deal with the crowd.  Tonight was the busiest night since all the G+ was gone by the time we finished Buzz around 7pm.  The park was really packed.  I assume it's the marathon crowd and also deluxe resort evening hours at MK that built the crowd.


----------



## wisblue

g-dad66 said:


> Wait a few seconds after 7am, and Slinky Dog Dash LL time will be well into the afternoon.  By 11am when you are next eligible, you will have no trouble getting LLs with late afternoon return times.



I agree with this based on our experience the last two days. If you can’t get an acceptable time for Slinky at 7:00, wait until 7:10 when more times always seem to pop up. Because those times don’t disappear as fast as at 7:00 you should be able to get something that fits your schedule. By 11 AM when you can make your second pick, the times for the most popular attractions will all be out after 2 PM unless the park is unusually uncrowded.


----------



## Avery&Todd

Momma of 4 said:


> I've popped in and out of this thread but can't seem to find the answer to my question....does the G+ line move pretty fast? Is there usually a wait for those lines also, just shorter? We're going end of Jan, so already hopefully lower crowds, but I have 3 under 6 and waits are brutal for us. I'm debating buying G+ for some days, MK specifically, if that means we can walk on the rides we book. Thanks!


When we went this past November that the longest wait was for Ratt - we were on time for our G+ return time but waited in line for 45+ minutes - my DH was not happy at all.  We visited Epcot 2xs during our visit and the ride wait time was as long for both days...

Now, it may have changed/gotten better since then but I'm anticipating long waits when we go in March...


----------



## princesswahooey

cjlong88 said:


> Yes, I book the rides in order of popularity, so for HS it would be SDD, then MFSR, then ToT / RnRC (whichever is showing later return times), etc. I have rough time frames for each attraction I would prefer so I don't zig-zag across the park, but if there were slim pickings I would just grab what I could. The last time we did this we had SDD, MSFR, ToT, RnRC and TSM all lined up by the time we walked into HS around 5pm. And we purchased RotR and MMRR so we had 7 LL's ready to go. It was awesome going from ride to ride. Granted, this I think is more the exception rather than the norm, but I've been able to do it once in November and once in December. We will see if I can replicate it January!
> 
> Okay, so another crazy thing we did is start our day at AK (typically it opens the earliest), book the earliest LL I could find (say 8am for Dinosaur). Immediately tap in at 8am, consequently making myself eligible book MFSR (and there was already later availability). Now my 2-hour window begins at 8am instead of 9am (HS open time) and I can now start stacking at 10am, 12pm, 2pm, and 4pm. With this strategy I was forced to forego SDD as our first pick at 7am, BUT I would remedy this by just getting in line for it at park close.


 

We combined your two strategies one day and made out like bandits. Rolling LL at Animal Kingdom in the AM, then stack for MK in the evening! Both are great strategies!


----------



## princesswahooey

Disturbia said:


> The slowest line we experienced was for Soarin.  It took us a total of 30 mins to ride so we had to skip our rider switch.  Test Track took 5-6 mins longer because the line was being held up by a huge party (10+) trying to get the CM to issue a rider switch.  I’d be careful stacking passes and budget extra time for getting from one end of the park to another (Canada/France area gets extremely congested after 2 pm due to park hopping guests).  Food booths took 20 mins in that area.
> 
> For MK, Genie+ was giving us a time which was over an hour away at little mermaid when the wait was 25 mins.  It worked better in the mornings (Adventureland) and we stacked evening passes during lunch/pool break.  It took us over an hour to get from MK to Ohana after the fireworks (would not recommend).  Other lines moved faster than FP+ because there were less people buying (first week of Nov).


Same experience. Soarin LL was always over 30 minutes for us and we had to bail twice for dinner ADRs  Splash and BTMRR were about 15 each at peak times. Otherwise, everything else moved quick for us.


----------



## scrappinginontario

cjlong88 said:


> After testing G+ twice and trying both strategies (stacking for evening vs. booking as early as possible), I prefer the evening stack for a couple of reasons.
> 
> 1) I don’t have to stress about getting an early time for the most popular attractions at 7am. It’s not make or break to be lightning fast (pun intended). As long as I’m on at 7am I have been able to get my ILL$ and G+ with times that work for us no problem.
> 
> 2) If I plan and refresh so my LL’s go in order of latest to earliest, then my most recent LL will most likely be the first I use when I begin to redeem them, meaning I can immediately book another one. Very little refreshing has been needed on both visits to see a good return time that works for us.
> 
> 3) I’m only on my phone every two hours. Once I book an evening LL, there is nothing more I can do, so the phone goes away and I can enjoy attractions with shorter waits, walk around, eat a snack, see a cavalcade, etc.
> 
> 4) Once I return in the evening I have anywhere from 3-5 LL’s lined up and ready to use. I can have even more lined up if I purchase two ILL$. We have split our strategy between using our ILL$ midday or clumping them with our evening LL’s. We like both options depending on the ride and/or the park we are hopping to.
> 
> 5) After using our last LL it’s usually the end of the night so we can just hop in line at park close for one attraction for which we couldn’t grab a LL. Shorter wait and not wasting park time to ride it. Win win.
> 
> I think this strategy works best for guests who (1) don’t plan their vacation in a detailed minute-to-minute way, (2) don’t eat table service often and can be more flexible with the order of operations in their park experience, (3) enjoy the parks in the evening, and (4) have park hoppers and can move to another location after 2pm if other parks have better LL availability.
> 
> Used this strategy both in mid-November and the weekend prior to Christmas and was able to get a minimum of 6 LL’s each day no problem (and for good attractions, too). I also find the I’m doing a lot less pre-planning for our visits and I really really like that. We have our next visit MLK weekend and I’ve done zilch for park planning except which parks we might start in and what we might hop to (with the caveat that we might change our plan depending on what LL’s we get). Looking forward to seeing if this strategy continues to be effective for us or if we run into issues.


Thanks so much for this great, detailed explanation!!

I'm finally holding out a little hope that our trip we originally booked for 2020 in 2019 and delayed a couple of times, might finally be happening in a few weeks! 

One question that I know has been answered a ton but I'm not sure right now where to find that answer, if I book my first LL at 7AM for as late as possible, I will be eligible to book my second LL 2 hours after that park opens.  Correct?  

Will it matter if that LL is earlier/later than the first one booked?  I'll just want it as late as possible....I think.

We don't currently have PH passes (but will add if we find it will be helpful) but I don't think that would change the stacking description your explained above.  Correct?

Thanks so much!!


----------



## g-dad66

scrappinginontario said:


> Thanks so much for this great, detailed explanation!!
> 
> I'm finally holding out a little hope that our trip we originally booked for 2020 in 2019 and delayed a couple of times, might finally be happening in a few weeks!
> 
> One question that I know has been answered a ton but I'm not sure right now where to find that answer, if I book my first LL at 7AM for as late as possible, I will be eligible to book my second LL 2 hours after that park opens.  Correct?
> 
> Will it matter if that LL is earlier/later than the first one booked?  I'll just want it as late as possible....I think.
> 
> We don't currently have PH passes (but will add if we find it will be helpful) but I don't think that would change the stacking description your explained above.  Correct?
> 
> Thanks so much!!



Yes, you can book second LL 2 hours after park opens, if you haven't already tapped into the first LL ( and yes, it doesn't matter if the second LL is booked for an earlier or later time than the first LL).

I'm sure you know this part: If you tap into the first LL before 2 hours, then you are eligible for second LL at that time (you don't have to wait 2 hours).

Correct, not having Park Hopper won't change anything.  (But if you have PH, and you try to book for park that you don't have reservation for, then it will give only options after 2pm.)


----------



## scrappinginontario

g-dad66 said:


> I'm sure you know this part: If you tap into the first LL before 2 hours, then you are eligible for second LL at that time (you don't have to wait 2 hours).


Sorry, not quite sure what this means.   

Does this have to do with LL that I have stacked or, if I book a LL early in the day and then tap into it, would I be eligible to book another one right away or would I need to wait the 2 hours?  That part is still unclear to me.  When I'm eligible to book a second LL.

Thanks!  I'm guessing it will be clearer once I experience it but for now, trying to understand without the actual hands-on experience.


----------



## jacobsmommy

So, if I purchase Genie +, can I book my first day's rides at 7:00 ET before I even get to Disney?


----------



## MikeandReneePlus5

So from reading it feels like Disney doesn't dump every available return slot at 7am.  Granted they are still all gone for the biggest attractions in minutes, but if you aren't quick fingered you may have a shot for a few minutes after 7am instead of a few seconds even though it may say no availibility?

Or is that totally wrong?


----------



## g-dad66

scrappinginontario said:


> Sorry, not quite sure what this means.
> 
> Does this have to do with LL that I have stacked or, if I book a LL early in the day and then tap into it, would I be eligible to book another one right away or would I need to wait the 2 hours?  That part is still unclear to me.  When I'm eligible to book a second LL.
> 
> Thanks!  I'm guessing it will be clearer once I experience it but for now, trying to understand without the actual hands-on experience.



You become eligible to book an LL either (1) after you tap into most recently booked LL, OR (2) after 2 hours from booking (or 2 hours from park open if first booking was before park opening), WHICHEVER COMES FIRST.

So what I was trying to say was that if you book first LL before park opening (assume 9am park opening) and then tap into it prior to 11am (prior to 2 hours from park opening), you are eligible for second LL at that time. 

That's not what you were inquiring about, but I wanted to clarify that what I said about eligibility for second LL after 2 hours didn't apply if you had already tapped into 1st LL.  (Guess I should just not have mentioned it all, since I apparently confused rather than clarified.  Sorry!)


----------



## g-dad66

MikeandReneePlus5 said:


> So from reading it feels like Disney doesn't dump every available return slot at 7am.  Granted they are still all gone for the biggest attractions in minutes, but if you aren't quick fingered you may have a shot for a few minutes after 7am instead of a few seconds even though it may say no availibility?
> 
> Or is that totally wrong?



Correct.  My theory is that times are held for 10 minutes pending payment.  Some payments don't go through so those times uddenly become available again.


----------



## g-dad66

jacobsmommy said:


> So, if I purchase Genie +, can I book my first day's rides at 7:00 ET before I even get to Disney?



Yes.


----------



## Thorazine

Suppose it is 9am and I make a genie+ LL Reservation for a window of 10:30 AM to 11:30 AM. Can I wait until 11 AM and make a second reservation using the 120 minute rule, and then use that initial (1030 to 1130) reservation at 11:05?

in other words, does a 120 minute rule abide by the difference between the time you make the reservation and the beginning of the reservation window, or does it abide by the difference between the time you make the reservation and the current time?


----------



## AZMermaid

Waiting for the 7:10ish second drop (or cancellation window to open maybe) worked on 1/4. I wanted Space for my and my daughter and buzz for my son and husband. I bought the kids Seven Dwarves (they are old enough to ride alone) and after that- space was booking for noon. So it was stressful watching the times creep forward and I was kicking myself for not grabbing it on a 10:45 refresh. But sure enough, at 7:12, I got 9:05. Same thing with Buzz- it was booking for 10:30ish and at 7:13 I got 9:20. 

Also, I accidentally booked us all for space. I nervously hit ”cancel” and I was able to choose who to cancel it for. So I could cancel them and rebook them into Buzz.


----------



## AZMermaid

Thorazine said:


> Suppose it is 9am and I make a genie+ LL Reservation for a window of 10:30 AM to 11:30 AM. Can I wait until 11 AM and make a second reservation using the 120 minute rule, and then use that initial (1030 to 1130) reservation at 11:05?
> 
> in other words, does a 120 minute rule abide by the difference between the time you make the reservation and the beginning of the reservation window, or does it abide by the difference between the time you make the reservation and the current time?


Yes you could at 11. Or you can tap into the ride at 10:30 and book another LL after the second touchpoint at 10:31.

But you really want to make the first Genie reservation at 7 to get the earliest return times.


----------



## orangecuse

Have people found its difficult to add at midnight for the single day or generally easy?

We have a toddler and a preschooler and I am thinkinh we may only use Genie+ for MK. It sounds like Epcot its not needed.
For HS- the only things our kids are tall enough for are Toy Story and AlienSS. Im  not sure it makes sense to pay that for two rides (since MMRR is not included). Do people find it useful for the shows or would you also skip Genie+ at HS in our case?


----------



## GBRforWDW

Thorazine said:


> Suppose it is 9am and I make a genie+ LL Reservation for a window of 10:30 AM to 11:30 AM. Can I wait until 11 AM and make a second reservation using the 120 minute rule, and then use that initial (1030 to 1130) reservation at 11:05?
> 
> in other words, does a 120 minute rule abide by the difference between the time you make the reservation and the beginning of the reservation window, or does it abide by the difference between the time you make the reservation and the current time?


No, you used to be able to do this, but Disney closed this loophole.  You can only make another selection based on your last selection.  Since your last selection was at 11, your next selection is either when you're able to tap into that pick if it's less than 2 hours away or at 1pm based on the 2 hour window.

You'd be better off tapping into your first selection at 1030 and making your next selection at that time.


----------



## GBRforWDW

orangecuse said:


> Have people found its difficult to add at midnight for the single day or generally easy?
> 
> We have a toddler and a preschooler and I am thinkinh we may only use Genie+ for MK. It sounds like Epcot its not needed.
> For HS- the only things our kids are tall enough for are Toy Story and AlienSS. Im  not sure it makes sense to pay that for two rides (since MMRR is not included). Do people find it useful for the shows or would you also skip Genie+ at HS in our case?


I used Genie+ for shows at Hollywood.  We went over Christmas, so had MMRR available to us, so we got MMRR and TSM as our rides, did AS2 standby, then did BatB and frozen shows with G+.  I didn't plan right for the shows though.  We could have done frozen later in the evening so we could get in Disney Jr or Indiana Jones.  We were also locked into an early Hollywood and Vine reservation.  You have to plan to be available for an hour for each show and the G+ passes are usually available for each show until showtime, so it's hard to get one ahead of time. 

If you do plan to get it, I would do a spreadsheet with the showtimes and figure out which showtimes work best for you.  I would plan for toy story Land in the morning, give yourself 2-3 hours there (3if you want to eat), if you book TSM with a G+ pass, you can easily get it in the early morning if you're on right at 7am (I would refresh until the time is 10 or 10:30 so you don't have to rush) and you shouldn't need one for AS2.  If you have a 10 TSM time, do AS2 first via standby.  Then plan the showtimes starting for noon.  Maybe dis junior and BatB before an afternoon break, then Indiana Jones and frozen after as well as Muppets after.  If you did all those, you'd get 6 passes plus find time to ride MMRR standby, maybe after the frozen show, especially if you do the last frozen show, MMRR will be shortest line at that time.

While genie+ is probably unnecessary for this, I personally liked knowing we were going to get into the shows we wanted without having to guess if standby would be backed up.


----------



## AZMermaid

I added at 6:45 AM instead of midnight. Once I knew where to look, it was easy! I found it in my day, scroll down and there’d be a purple bar reccomnding i buy genie.


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## HBGdancermom

Hi everyone!

I have am getting ready for our trip next week and had a few questions.  I'm sure they have been answered somewhere so feel free to point me in the right direction. We are a party of 4, have park hoppers for this trip and I already have genie + for our stay. For our first day, we will not be in the park until late afternoon.

1) When I pull up genie + at 7am that first morning and choose to purchase ILL for SDMT, will it give me afternoon/ evening times. (When I try to practice it stops me when I get to the pick your party and I can't tell what times are available)

2) I can also book my first genie + ride at this time too, correct?

3) I know some have to people in their party working at the same time on separate devices.  How does that work exactly? I know they need the MDE app as well, however do I need to link them somehow to have access to our plans? Is that a phone call? 

4) For ILL purchases will it pull from the credit card on file or do you have to enter it everytime?

5) On my HS park day, I plan on going in the afternoon.  Should I keep the park reservation at HS and book ILL and genie plus ride  at 7am for the afternoon even in I want to go to MK in the am but don't care about genie + or ILL in MK that morning? I assuming I would not be able to book a MK ride until 9am that day.

Okay thank you for looking at this.  I'm certain I'm overthinking....


----------



## GBRforWDW

HBGdancermom said:


> Hi everyone!
> 
> I have am getting ready for our trip next week and had a few questions.  I'm sure they have been answered somewhere so feel free to point me in the right direction. We are a party of 4, have park hoppers for this trip and I already have genie + for our stay. For our first day, we will not be in the park until late afternoon.
> 
> 1) When I pull up genie + at 7am that first morning and choose to purchase ILL for SDMT, will it give me afternoon/ evening times. (When I try to practice it stops me when I get to the pick your party and I can't tell what times are available)
> 
> 2) I can also book my first genie + ride at this time too, correct?
> 
> 3) I know some have to people in their party working at the same time on separate devices.  How does that work exactly? I know they need the MDE app as well, however do I need to link them somehow to have access to our plans? Is that a phone call?
> 
> 4) For ILL purchases will it pull from the credit card on file or do you have to enter it everytime?
> 
> 5) On my HS park day, I plan on going in the afternoon.  Should I keep the park reservation at HS and book ILL and genie plus ride  at 7am for the afternoon even in I want to go to MK in the am but don't care about genie + or ILL in MK that morning? I assuming I would not be able to book a MK ride until 9am that day.
> 
> Okay thank you for looking at this.  I'm certain I'm overthinking....


1.  ILL$ allow you to choose time, so you should be able to pick a late time.
2. Genie+ doesn't allow you to pick time, so you may need to refresh your page until you see a time that works. Usually jungle cruise and Peter Pan go into the afternoon at 7 am.
3. If you're comfortable with the other person logging directly into your account, that's probably the best.  Otherwise, if someone else has an email address, they can create an MDE account and you link them.  Only DHS really needs this as SDD and RotR go quickly.
4.you can use card on file.  If I remember right, you do also have the option to change the card.
5.if you want to hit MK in the morning, you'll need your reservation for that park.   You can park hop to DHS after 2pm, but that can help as you can get your lightning lane passes and they will always be for afternoon when you're selecting your hop to park. If you book a ride at DHS at 7am, you will book your second one at 11am, 2 hours after park opening.  You can choose to either get another one in DHS or you can select a MK ride.  

Also,the ILL$ booking At 7am is assuming you are staying onsite.  Offsite has to wait for park opening.

Everyone can book Genie+ at 7am regardless of where they stay.


----------



## Disneymom1126

I'm thinking through a plan where we rope drop (not using any ILL), take a mid-day break, and then take advantage of the ILL and $ILL after our break (picking them up throughout the day at each 2hr interval). My thought is we can make a good amount of progress in the morning using standby and then have a sort of "wait-less" after mid-day break. I'm also guessing this would work better at say Magic Kingdom and potentially Epcot compared to HS and AK. If anyone has tried something similar I'd love to hear how it worked out! We are going in mid-May so I don't anticipate super crowds.


----------



## brockash

GBRforWDW said:


> I used Genie+ for shows at Hollywood.  We went over Christmas, so had MMRR available to us, so we got MMRR and TSM as our rides, did AS2 standby, then did BatB and frozen shows with G+.  I didn't plan right for the shows though.  We could have done frozen later in the evening so we could get in Disney Jr or Indiana Jones.  We were also locked into an early Hollywood and Vine reservation.  You have to plan to be available for an hour for each show and the G+ passes are usually available for each show until showtime, so it's hard to get one ahead of time.
> 
> If you do plan to get it, I would do a spreadsheet with the showtimes and figure out which showtimes work best for you.  I would plan for toy story Land in the morning, give yourself 2-3 hours there (3if you want to eat), if you book TSM with a G+ pass, you can easily get it in the early morning if you're on right at 7am (I would refresh until the time is 10 or 10:30 so you don't have to rush) and you shouldn't need one for AS2.  If you have a 10 TSM time, do AS2 first via standby.  Then plan the showtimes starting for noon.  Maybe dis junior and BatB before an afternoon break, then Indiana Jones and frozen after as well as Muppets after.  If you did all those, you'd get 6 passes plus find time to ride MMRR standby, maybe after the frozen show, especially if you do the last frozen show, MMRR will be shortest line at that time.
> 
> While genie+ is probably unnecessary for this, I personally liked knowing we were going to get into the shows we wanted without having to guess if standby would be backed up.


Can you tell me how it works for the shows?  Is there specific seating or can you pick your seats (are you let in before standyby?) what time do you have to show up prior to show time?


----------



## GBRforWDW

brockash said:


> Can you tell me how it works for the shows?  Is there specific seating or can you pick your seats (are you let in before standyby?) what time do you have to show up prior to show time?


Same way as Fastpass before, if you ever used a FP pass for shows.   The pass has a return timeframe, usually about 25 minutes before the show starts to 10 minutes before.  Each show works different.  With BatB, LL passes went in a different entrance than standby.  LLs got to go right in and get their seat.  I think standby was held for awhile, not sure how long, but they are able to fill in space after most LLs have entered. 

With frozen, after you scan in, you go to a holding area where eventually the standby line joins you.  There everyone mixes and you kind of select how far back you want to be based on the door you enter, but once you enter, you choose a row and go all the way to the end of available spacing.  

Those unfortunately were the only 2 we experienced.  Like I mentioned before, you gotta get the timing down before you go, which I didn't do, to hit them in the right order.


----------



## brockash

GBRforWDW said:


> Same way as Fastpass before, if you ever used a FP pass for shows.   The pass has a return timeframe, usually about 25 minutes before the show starts to 10 minutes before.  Each show works different.  With BatB, LL passes went in a different entrance than standby.  LLs got to go right in and get their seat.  I think standby was held for awhile, not sure how long, but they are able to fill in space after most LLs have entered.
> 
> With frozen, after you scan in, you go to a holding area where eventually the standby line joins you.  There everyone mixes and you kind of select how far back you want to be based on the door you enter, but once you enter, you choose a row and go all the way to the end of available spacing.
> 
> Those unfortunately were the only 2 we experienced.  Like I mentioned before, you gotta get the timing down before you go, which I didn't do, to hit them in the right order.


Thank you...we never used fastpasses for shows before, but with such limited choices maybe a show wouldn't be a bad idea.  Thanks!


----------



## jrsharp21

Any AP having problems adding G+? I was staying offsite by myself earlier this week and had no problem. Yesterday my family arrived and we checked into POR. I have the AP and the family has two day hoppers with G+. I went to purchase G+ this morning and I have no option to do it. I have reloaded the app and still no luck.


----------



## mom2rtk

Are late arrivals still ok with ILLS?


----------



## danceteachermom

I am traveling with a group of 27 students. We are planning on MK on Thurs. 2/10 and HS on Fri. 2/11. Debating whether or not to invest in buying them G+. 

Has anyone used the service for a large group? (Fast pass used to glitch and need to be booked in groups of 10 or less.)

Would I be better just buying individual LL for HS? Trying to book as a group or giving each student a giftcard to book on their own?


----------



## TheMick424

jrsharp21 said:


> Any AP having problems adding G+? I was staying offsite by myself earlier this week and had no problem. Yesterday my family arrived and we checked into POR. I have the AP and the family has two day hoppers with G+. I went to purchase G+ this morning and I have no option to do it. I have reloaded the app and still no luck.


Unfortunately, this is a known glitch impacting APs traveling with others who have regular tickets with G+ pre-purchased.  Hopefully they will fix this soon!  

https://www.disboards.com/threads/t...midnight-and-6am-on-the-app-couldn’t.3864874/


----------



## mom2rtk

Can genie plus times overlap?


----------



## g-dad66

mom2rtk said:


> Can genie plus times overlap?



Yep, no problems there!


----------



## mom2rtk

g-dad66 said:


> Yep, no problems there!


Thank you!


----------



## GBBTomorrow

Without getting into a debate about Genie+ and individual lightning lane purchases, looking for some insight from those who have been lately. At DHS, I will buy EITHER Genie+ OR an ILL for ROTR, not both. ROTR is a must-do for us, since my son has never been to Galaxy's Edge and is a lifelong Star Wars fan. We've been to DHS many times, so everything else is gravy.

Would you buy Genie+ and rope drop ROTR (we'll be onsite, so will have early entry), or would you buy ILL for ROTR?

Thanks for your thoughts!


----------



## BridgetBordeaux

GBBTomorrow said:


> Without getting into a debate about Genie+ and individual lightning lane purchases, looking for some insight from those who have been lately. At DHS, I will buy EITHER Genie+ OR an ILL for ROTR, not both. ROTR is a must-do for us, since my son has never been to Galaxy's Edge and is a lifelong Star Wars fan. We've been to DHS many times, so everything else is gravy.
> 
> Would you buy Genie+ and rope drop ROTR (we'll be onsite, so will have early entry), or would you buy ILL for ROTR?
> 
> Thanks for your thoughts!


If it is a must do............ and you only have one DHS day, get the ILL.

If the ride breaks you will be able to return.

If standby, any return may be painful!


----------



## twodogs

GBBTomorrow said:


> Without getting into a debate about Genie+ and individual lightning lane purchases, looking for some insight from those who have been lately. At DHS, I will buy EITHER Genie+ OR an ILL for ROTR, not both. ROTR is a must-do for us, since my son has never been to Galaxy's Edge and is a lifelong Star Wars fan. We've been to DHS many times, so everything else is gravy.
> 
> Would you buy Genie+ and rope drop ROTR (we'll be onsite, so will have early entry), or would you buy ILL for ROTR?
> 
> Thanks for your thoughts!


The problem with RD of ROTR is that is is sometimes (many times) down at park opening.  So you waste your early entry for a ride that takes an hour to reset when it goes down.  If it is up at EE, then the RD plan can be a good one, then use G+ throughout the rest of the day.  I would lean towards getting G+ to reduce waiting in all of the other ride lines, and just going ROTR at RD or if it is down at that time, just going SB later or going near park closing (again with risk that ride goes down near closing time and they don’t reopen it).  You need to study up on G+ so you can maximize LL throughout the park, use heavy refresh to get earlier return times for your LLs so you have more time to book a lot of them and get your value.  Personally, I would just spend the money on both the ILL$ and the G+ if it is a once a year trip or crowds will be high, if you can afford it.  But if you would rather not spend that, I would go for G+ (but learn to be a heavy user or it won’t have nearly the value) and SB for ROTR when you can.


----------



## g-dad66

GBBTomorrow said:


> Without getting into a debate about Genie+ and individual lightning lane purchases, looking for some insight from those who have been lately. At DHS, I will buy EITHER Genie+ OR an ILL for ROTR, not both. ROTR is a must-do for us, since my son has never been to Galaxy's Edge and is a lifelong Star Wars fan. We've been to DHS many times, so everything else is gravy.
> 
> Would you buy Genie+ and rope drop ROTR (we'll be onsite, so will have early entry), or would you buy ILL for ROTR?
> 
> Thanks for your thoughts!



Difficult decision.  My gut response was to go with Genie+ in order to avoid long standby waits at multiple rides.

But in thinking more about your situation, you could rope drop Millenium Falcon, after which Toy Story Mania should not be much of a wait, and Tower of Terror & Rock n Roller Coaster might not be too bad either (Rock n Roller Coaster has been down a lot lately, so it might not even be running.)

Long waits for Slinky Dog Dash and for Mickey & Minnie's Railway are unavoidable (unless you skip them as too much gravy). You can always do Star Tours, Indiana Jones, Frozen Singalong, Muppets, and Lightning McQueen without much of a wait, so you should be able to fill up a day.

And you avoid the rope drop crunch and potentially very long wait for ROTR by scheduling the ILL when you want. (I wouldn't schedule the ILL for it too late in the day, however, for fear that it might go down and not recover before park closes.)


----------



## emcarle27

Sorry if this has been covered...can you purchase ILL at 7am and then also select another attraction, or would you need to ride the ILL ride before being able to select another one?


----------



## pooh2001

We are lucky 
our kids are now grown-ups 
so it would  only cost us $30 a day - the price of breakfast 
So we will do breakfast in the hotel room


----------



## g-dad66

emcarle27 said:


> Sorry if this has been covered...can you purchase ILL at 7am and then also select another attraction, or would you need to ride the ILL ride before being able to select another one?



You can purchase both ILL at 7am.


----------



## Luisfba

What are the chances they put it back to only 1 ILL for spring break, specifically the week after Easter?


----------



## twodogs

emcarle27 said:


> Sorry if this has been covered...can you purchase ILL at 7am and then also select another attraction, or would you need to ride the ILL ride before being able to select another one?


Think of G+ (LLs) and ILL$ as completely different systems, "disconnected" in the old FP language.  Other than both giving you a quick way to get on a ride, they don't interact or affect each other.  They each have different rules of how many you can book and when, differences in booking times in one but not the other if staying onsite or offsite, etc.  They are just separate things, you can buy one but not the other, neither, or both products.  They don't impact each other at all.


----------



## torchlight

Hello, apologies for this question that I'm sure has already been asked, but I skimmed several pages and didn't see it.

We have a group of 6 going.  I'm the only one with an MDE account, and everyone is linked to it. 

Can we also install MDE on, say, my wife's phone and have her log in using my account at the same time I'm logged in on my phone?  And if so, can we do two things at once?  For example, at 7 AM, I book a ILL while she books our first G+ LL?

I'm thinking especially about our DHS day, of course, where multiple things we would want to get at 7 AM are gone almost instantly.

Thanks!


----------



## g-dad66

torchlight said:


> Hello, apologies for this question that I'm sure has already been asked, but I skimmed several pages and didn't see it.
> 
> We have a group of 6 going.  I'm the only one with an MDE account, and everyone is linked to it.
> 
> Can we also install MDE on, say, my wife's phone and have her log in using my account at the same time I'm logged in on my phone?  And if so, can we do two things at once?  For example, at 7 AM, I book a ILL while she books our first G+ LL?
> 
> I'm thinking especially about our DHS day, of course, where multiple things we would want to get at 7 AM are gone almost instantly.
> 
> Thanks!




Yes and yes.


----------



## jacobsmommy

Which of the ILL rides do you all recommend rope dropping at 8:30 and which do you recommend buying?  We want to ride SM, SDMT (and we have two mornings at MK); FEA and R (and we have two mornings at Epcot); M&M and ROTR (and one morning at HS; and FOP (with one morning at AK).


----------



## cjlong88

GBBTomorrow said:


> Without getting into a debate about Genie+ and individual lightning lane purchases, looking for some insight from those who have been lately. At DHS, I will buy EITHER Genie+ OR an ILL for ROTR, not both. ROTR is a must-do for us, since my son has never been to Galaxy's Edge and is a lifelong Star Wars fan. We've been to DHS many times, so everything else is gravy.
> 
> Would you buy Genie+ and rope drop ROTR (we'll be onsite, so will have early entry), or would you buy ILL for ROTR?
> 
> Thanks for your thoughts!


Personally, I would get the ILL for Rise. Rope Drop other attractions so you can get 1-2 rides with short waits. If it gets crazy crowded just take a break at the hotel, then come back in the evening and hop in line for something right at park close. If your party absolutely loved Rise and it’s operating just fine at night, you could ride it for a second time. With it being the major reason you’re visiting, picking the exact time you would want would be great and if it breaks down it will be good for anytime it’s back up and running.


----------



## emcarle27

twodogs said:


> Think of G+ (LLs) and ILL$ as completely different systems, "disconnected" in the old FP language.  Other than both giving you a quick way to get on a ride, they don't interact or affect each other.  They each have different rules of how many you can book and when, differences in booking times in one but not the other if staying onsite or offsite, etc.  They are just separate things, you can buy one but not the other, neither, or both products.  They don't impact each other at all.




Thank you! I did not realize that. Good to know


----------



## mvndvm

Having trouble finding an answer…when you book either G+ or ILL, does the app automatically select all linked members?


----------



## GBRforWDW

mvndvm said:


> Having trouble finding an answer…when you book either G+ or ILL, does the app automatically select all linked members?


Yes.  You can also choose to edit your party and remove someone.


----------



## masupo

Ok Slinky Dog and Rise are still available. Is everyone just sleeping in after the marathon?


----------



## glocon

masupo said:


> Ok Slinky Dog and Rise are still available. Is everyone just sleeping in after the marathon?


 And 20 minutes after your post, both are still available!


----------



## Dixiemom

This Genie+ thing is really confusing to me. I just wonder if it might be a good way to avoid doing the park hopper as many of the attractions my daughter loves are on it.


----------



## 3smithboys

Thanks so much for this thread. There is a lot of great information. I have been reading over it for days now, and I think I am beginning to get a better understanding of everything.

The one thing that I can’t seem to understand is the idea of the 2hr wait to book another G+ vs tapping in and being able to get one right away. I understand the stacking in the evening. I’m sure there are other tricks and tips I’m missing too!

Thanks for any help.


----------



## g-dad66

3smithboys said:


> Thanks so much for this thread. There is a lot of great information. I have been reading over it for days now, and I think I am beginning to get a better understanding of everything.
> 
> The one thing that I can’t seem to understand is the idea of the 2hr wait to book another G+ vs tapping in and being able to get one right away. I understand the stacking in the evening. I’m sure there are other tricks and tips I’m missing too!
> 
> Thanks for any help.



You can get another LL right away (let's call it LL2) if you are tapping into your MOST RECENTLY BOOKED LL (let's call it LL1).  You don't have to wait the full 2 hours from the time that you booked LL1.

If 2 hours have gone by since you booked LL1, you are now eligible to book LL2.  After using the 2-hour rule, the LL1 booking no longer has any relevance to future eligiblity.  It doesn't matter what time the LL1 booking is for or when you use it.

LL2 now determines your next eligibility which is either (a) 2 hours, or (b) when you double-tap into LL2 (whichever comes first).

The good thing is that when you try to book, the app will tell you if you are not eligible, AND it will tell you the next time when you are eligible to book again.


----------



## 3smithboys

g-dad66 said:


> You can get another LL right away (let's call it LL2) if you are tapping into your MOST RECENTLY BOOKED LL (let's call it LL1).  You don't have to wait the full 2 hours from the time that you booked LL1.
> 
> If 2 hours have gone by since you booked LL1, you are now eligible to book LL2.  After using the 2-hour rule, the LL1 booking no longer has any relevance to future eligiblity.  It doesn't matter what time the LL1 booking is for or when you use it.
> 
> LL2 now determines your next eligibility which is either (a) 2 hours, or (b) when you double-tap into LL2 (whichever comes first).
> 
> The good thing is that when you try to book, the app will tell you if you are not eligible, AND it will tell you the next time when you are eligible to book again.



Thank you so much for your answer! This makes sense and I understand it so much better. Now we have to decide if it’s better to stack a few for the evening or ride in the morning and then start stacking for the evening.

It’s just DH and I going for a short trip July 2-5 to celebrate our 30th anniversary. We’ve not been for several years, and can’t wait to see everything new. Never been without our kids either.


----------



## Ecomommy09

3smithboys said:


> Thank you so much for your answer! This makes sense and I understand it so much better. Now we have to decide if it’s better to stack a few for the evening or ride in the morning and then start stacking for the evening.
> 
> It’s just DH and I going for a short trip July 2-5 to celebrate our 30th anniversary. We’ve not been for several years, and can’t wait to see everything new. Never been without our kids either.


You will have so much fun.


----------



## monkeybug

We’re headed to MK tomorrow and are resort guests who plan on rope dropping. Would you recommend buying Seven Dwarves and Space? If we do that should we head straight to Peter Pan? We do have access to MK extra evening hours later in the week if that makes a difference. 
I plan on getting a LL for Jungle Cruise at 7am.


----------



## RNTeacher

We rope dropped in MK today and walked on to 7DMT. Not sure what crowds look like for tomorrow. We had a fabulous day at MK.


----------



## g-dad66

monkeybug said:


> We’re headed to MK tomorrow and are resort guests who plan on rope dropping. Would you recommend buying Seven Dwarves and Space? If we do that should we head straight to Peter Pan? We do have access to MK extra evening hours later in the week if that makes a difference.
> I plan on getting a LL for Jungle Cruise at 7am.



If you buy 7 Dwarfs and Space, then it makes sense to rope drop Peter Pan.  One advantage of rope-dropping Peter Pan is you go through the queue where you will get to see Tinker Bell.  (If you LL it, you skip the queue.)


----------



## Disneynewb0001

RNTeacher said:


> We rope dropped in MK today and walked on to 7DMT. Not sure what crowds look like for tomorrow. We had a fabulous day at MK.


Our last trip was July/August last year (2021) and there was no FP, FP+, or Genie+. Honestly, I enjoyed not having to worry about that because everyone was on equal footing. At the end of the day, getting to the parks at rope drop paid off, and everyone was equal as there was only one line. 

Back when visiting the parks with FP+, I felt like we had to line up rides via FP+ as standing in the standby line meant you weren't just waiting for the folks to move through in the line in front of you but also all the folks who have fast passes entering the FP line before and even after I entered the standby line. 

Personally, I don't like the introduction of Genie+ and ILL but I know that I will utilize the two for our upcoming trip in April. While I count it as the cost of going to WDW, I don't like the fact that families who are budgeting just to make the trip and can't afford the extra cost are treated differently just because they don't have the money to spend on Genie+ and/or ILL.


----------



## Twilight Sparkle

Has anyone had trouble using Genie + on an iphone 7 plus?  I'm wondering if I need to upgrade my phone before our trip.


----------



## Mambo Junkie

I'm trying to figure out how/when to purchase, etc. Thank you if you can point me in the right direction!


----------



## wisblue

masupo said:


> Ok Slinky Dog and Rise are still available. Is everyone just sleeping in after the marathon?



The marathon was Sunday, the half marathon was Saturday.

I was at DHS at 7:30 yesterday (Sunday) because I was going to be there to see two of my daughters come through much later in the morning as they completed the Dopey Challenge. ( I am not that dopey and just did the 10K on Friday). I also wanted to  have a chance to see the top marathoners race through just 3 miles from the finish line. Then I knew I would have a chance to do a few rides with low waits before my daughters would come through.

When I arrived, instead of the usual lines waiting for the security lanes to open, I was one of about 5 people there. When they did open security they let everyone through the tapstiles into the park, so I was able to walk down by TOT to see some of the fastest marathoners come through.

I think there are two significant reasons why crowds at opening of the parks are low on Marathon day. For one, a lot of resort guests are either participating in the marathon or supporting family and friends who are running. Also, road closures relating to the event can make getting to the parks more difficult, and I expect that that keeps people away.

The wait times at DHS were very low for the first hour or so on Sunday. I  had purchased Genie+ because my daughters and I were going to MK later in the day and I knew they wouldn‘t feel like standing in lines. So, I had a LL for Slinky for a 9:10 return, and when I went there after walking on TOT and TSMM (RNRC was still down) the posted wait time at Slinky was only 35 minutes, and I would guess the actual wait might have been shorter. It was strange to see the line not extending out around the corner.

After Slinky I walked over to MFSR and was the only person in the Single Rider line. Then I went to Star Tours and there was literally nobody in the line before the merge point. The ship I was on was not full. At one point shortly after 9 the posted wait time at ROR was 25 minutes. Because I had done the ride with my daughters a few days earlier I didn’t bother hustling over to take advantage of that.

The bottom line is that Marathon Sunday is a unique once a year day at WDW. It presents some unique challenges and some unique opportunities if you can take advantage of them. Generally, I don’t think I would want to go to WDW on Marathon Weekend if I wasn’t participating.


----------



## 3smithboys

DH and I will be coming off of a cruise before our 1st day and will be selecting our G+ and ILL$ from the port in the morning. We want to go to AK in the evening and only get them for the evening. Is it possible to select times? I feel like I’m seeing that times are given to you and you have little to no control over it.

Thanks!


----------



## BillFromCT

3smithboys said:


> DH and I will be coming off of a cruise before our 1st day and will be selecting our G+ and ILL$ from the port in the morning. We want to go to AK in the evening and only get them for the evening. Is it possible to select times? I feel like I’m seeing that times are given to you and you have little to no control over it.
> 
> Thanks!


You'll be able to select times for ILL$ (FOP, and depending on when you're going, EE), but the rides for G+ are first available.  No choice of time.


----------



## 3smithboys

BillFromCT said:


> You'll be able to select times for ILL$ (FOP, and depending on when you're going, EE), but the rides for G+ are first available.  No choice of time.


Thanks so much for your answer. Is there any way to change the time of a G+ pass once you get it or are you stuck with whatever you get? We are going in July and plan go back to the resort in the afternoon for a swim/rest. We won’t want them for the afternoon but will want them for the mornings and evenings.

I know people do stack them for the evenings, so how do they get evening times? Thanks!


----------



## Disturbia

GBRforWDW said:


> No, you used to be able to do this, but Disney closed this loophole.  You can only make another selection based on your last selection.  Since your last selection was at 11, your next selection is either when you're able to tap into that pick if it's less than 2 hours away or at 1pm based on the 2 hour window.
> 
> You'd be better off tapping into your first selection at 1030 and making your next selection at that time.


Thanks for clarifying this.  We never used Genie+ like this so it was hard to grasp what the change actually was.  We always booked around 7 am for something early and stacked evening only (during lunch break).


----------



## Disturbia

3smithboys said:


> Thanks so much for your answer. Is there any way to change the time of a G+ pass once you get it or are you stuck with whatever you get? We are going in July and plan go back to the resort in the afternoon for a swim/rest. We won’t want them for the afternoon but will want them for the mornings and evenings.
> 
> I know people do stack them for the evenings, so how do they get evening times? Thanks!


At 12:00, book something 3:30-4:30
at 2:00, book something 4:15-5:15
don‘t ride the first stacked ride
at 4:00, book 5:15-6:15 and then ride the 3:30-4:30

don’t overlap if utilizing rider switch or going from one side of the park to another.  120 mins start after you book, so could be 2:05 if it took 5 mins to decide then it’s 4:05 for next booking.


----------



## g-dad66

Disturbia said:


> At 12:00, book something 3:30-4:30
> at 2:00, book something 4:15-5:15
> don‘t ride the first stacked ride
> at 4:00, book 5:15-6:15 and then ride the 3:30-4:30
> 
> don’t overlap if utilizing rider switch or going from one side of the park to another.  120 mins start after you book, so could be 2:05 if it took 5 mins to decide then it’s 4:05 for next booking.



Here's how this could have worked yesterday at Magic Kingdom to stack for the evening --

12:00, return time for Jungle Cruise 6:30-7:30
2:00, return time for Peter Pan 6:15-7:15
4:00, return time for Big Thunder 7:00-8:00, or Haunted Mansion 7:45-8:45, or Pirates 6:30-7:30

(Data from thrill-data.com)

Since you can only access LL once per attraction per day, you wouldn't want to get LLs in the morning for anything you planned to stack for the evening.  You could do your 12:00 through 4:00 stacking while lounging around the resort pool.


----------



## diskids2

Hi everyone!   I need a sanity check.  In one of the disney groups I participate in on FaceBook - someone wrote a summary of everything that they booked last week.  They summarized 13 ILL over 4.5 days.  Am I missing something?  I thought it was only TWO ILL per day.  Does that change if you park hop?  I need a disney sanity check!


----------



## thanxfornoticin

Only 2 ILL per day, whether hopping or staying in the same park.


----------



## g-dad66

diskids2 said:


> Hi everyone!   I need a sanity check.  In one of the disney groups I participate in on FaceBook - someone wrote a summary of everything that they booked last week.  They summarized 13 ILL over 4.5 days.  Am I missing something?  I thought it was only TWO ILL per day.  Does that change if you park hop?  I need a disney sanity check!



ILL are the extra pay rides.  There are currently only 7 of them, and you can only get 2 per day.

Genie+ is separate, and there is no limit to the number of LLs you can get with Genie+ (except you can't get the same one more than once in a day).  Those posts had to be talking about LL accress through Genie+ (not ILL access).


----------



## diskids2

g-dad66 said:


> ILL are the extra pay rides.  There are currently only 7 of them, and you can only get 2 per day.
> 
> Genie+ is separate, and there is no limit to the number of LLs you can get with Genie+ (except you can't get the same one more than once in a day).  Those posts had to be talking about LL accress through Genie+ (not ILL access).



No - she outlined every ride and I counted 13 ILL.  I had a feeling she was over inflating what she was able to do.  

Thanks for the sanity check though.  It is only two ILL per day.


----------



## TinkBink

diskids2 said:


> No - she outlined every ride and I counted 13 ILL.  I had a feeling she was over inflating what she was able to do.
> 
> Thanks for the sanity check though.  It is only two ILL per day.


Was she maybe there during the time that some of the $ILL were changed to Genie+ LL's?


----------



## snikki

diskids2 said:


> Hi everyone!   I need a sanity check.  In one of the disney groups I participate in on FaceBook - someone wrote a summary of everything that they booked last week.  They summarized 13 ILL over 4.5 days.  Am I missing something?  I thought it was only TWO ILL per day.  Does that change if you park hop?  I need a disney sanity check!



They dropped some for the holiday. Did it fall during the holiday?


----------



## lynch34

Genie+ has dumbed down the overall experience.  Folks that like to plan can't plan as they have no clue what will be available when.  It's pretty clear for planners it was - paper fastpasses then reserved fastpasses (3) then Covid Disney times (standby only) and now this is the worst.  The trend is the overall experience continues to get worse.


----------



## taterheads

g-dad66 said:


> Here's how this could have worked yesterday at Magic Kingdom to stack for the evening --
> 
> 12:00, return time for Jungle Cruise 6:30-7:30
> 2:00, return time for Peter Pan 6:15-7:15
> 4:00, return time for Big Thunder 7:00-8:00, or Haunted Mansion 7:45-8:45, or Pirates 6:30-7:30
> 
> (Data from thrill-data.com)
> 
> Since you can only access LL once per attraction per day, you wouldn't want to get LLs in the morning for anything you planned to stack for the evening.  You could do your 12:00 through 4:00 stacking while lounging around the resort pool.



This might be the single most helpful post I have seen concerning stacking so far. Ride times do not have to be consecutive or 2 hours apart. All that matters is that the reservation is made 2 hours apart. I assumed it was like fast pass where it wouldn't allow shared times over an hour, except 2 hours now. If I am understanding you accurately that makes G+ a far better value if youre willing to get on and get those reservations. This is super useful to know as we have G+ on our tickets and will have a half day (evening) at MK on arrival.


----------



## g-dad66

taterheads said:


> This might be the single most helpful post I have seen concerning stacking so far. Ride times do not have to be consecutive or 2 hours apart. All that matters is that the reservation is made 2 hours apart. I assumed it was like fast pass where it wouldn't allow shared times over an hour, except 2 hours now. If I am understanding you accurately that makes G+ a far better value if youre willing to get on and get those reservations. This is super useful to know as we have G+ on our tickets and will have a half day (evening) at MK on arrival.



If you aren't going to be in a park during the morning, you can start stacking even earlier and have even more LLs stacked by late afternoon/evening.


----------



## taterheads

Seriously, I have read about 100 blogs and never had anyone explained the ability to stack rides with concurrent windows in the afternoon/ evening. This is my new plan. Ride standby early and just book LL for (almost) everything after lunch til we leave. Thank you so much for this advice. Game changer!


----------



## Jroceagles

question.. can I purchase LL for Remy from the airport in Philly at 7am (staying on property checking in that day at 1030am) have park passes for Epcot day 1...or do I have to wait until we land and in Orlando?


----------



## JoJoGirl

Jroceagles said:


> question.. can I purchase LL for Remy from the airport in Philly at 7am (staying on property checking in that day at 1030am) have park passes for Epcot day 1...or do I have to wait until we land and in Orlando?



You can buy it at the airport— I’ve done so myself.  Have a great trip!


----------



## Jroceagles

JoJoGirl said:


> You can buy it at the airport— I’ve done so myself.  Have a great trip!


THANK YOU!!!!


----------



## Jroceagles

JoJoGirl said:


> You can buy it at the airport— I’ve done so myself.  Have a great trip!


just to clarify...I can purchase at 7am in Philly and not wait until park opening because I have a hotel reservation on property for that day?


----------



## Disturbia

Jroceagles said:


> question.. can I purchase LL for Remy from the airport in Philly at 7am (staying on property checking in that day at 1030am) have park passes for Epcot day 1...or do I have to wait until we land and in Orlando?


We did this in Nov when AA cancelled flights.  We couldn’t get into Epcot until 6:30 pm.  We purchased Frozen and Remy (at 7 am) and had a dinner ADR.


----------



## Disturbia

Jroceagles said:


> just to clarify...I can purchase at 7am in Philly and not wait until park opening because I have a hotel reservation on property for that day?


Yes.  If staying on property you can purchase at 7 am est


----------



## diskids2

TinkBink said:


> Was she maybe there during the time that some of the $ILL were changed to Genie+ LL's?



I'm not sure BUT her ILL's were the four that I know stayed put.  Remy, 7D, FoP and RoR.  She said she did Remy four times, 7D three times, FoP three times and RoR three times.  If she was there after Christmas when it went back to two, then it is even worse because she has space two times, runaway railroad once and frozen twice.  She states she was there for 4.5 park days (5 day tickets)

I think it's as I thought....an over inflate to explain the love of G+.  At the end of the day, I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything


----------



## Disturbia

g-dad66 said:


> Here's how this could have worked yesterday at Magic Kingdom to stack for the evening --
> 
> 12:00, return time for Jungle Cruise 6:30-7:30
> 2:00, return time for Peter Pan 6:15-7:15
> 4:00, return time for Big Thunder 7:00-8:00, or Haunted Mansion 7:45-8:45, or Pirates 6:30-7:30
> 
> (Data from thrill-data.com)
> 
> Since you can only access LL once per attraction per day, you wouldn't want to get LLs in the morning for anything you planned to stack for the evening.  You could do your 12:00 through 4:00 stacking while lounging around the resort pool.


By 12 we already rode Jungle cruise (booked as first pass), Pirates, Big thunder and magic carpets.  So choose one side of the park for AM, another side for PM.


----------



## Jroceagles

Disturbia said:


> Yes.  If staying on property you can purchase at 7 am est


regardless what state I am in that morning?


----------



## Jroceagles

Disturbia said:


> We did this in Nov when AA cancelled flights.  We couldn’t get into Epcot until 6:30 pm.  We purchased Frozen and Remy (at 7 am) and had a dinner ADR.


Thank you.  so no issues booking from another state?


----------



## Disturbia

diskids2 said:


> I'm not sure BUT her ILL's were the four that I know stayed put.  Remy, 7D, FoP and RoR.  She said she did Remy four times, 7D three times, FoP three times and RoR three times.  If she was there after Christmas when it went back to two, then it is even worse because she has space two times, runaway railroad once and frozen twice.  She states she was there for 4.5 park days (5 day tickets)
> 
> I think it's as I thought....an over inflate to explain the love of G+.  At the end of the day, I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything


If the ride breaks down or a part of it is not functioning, then an anytime pass is issued.  We had that happen on MMRR (they only gave a pass for 2 riders, we had a party of 4 riders, 1 infant).


----------



## Disturbia

Jroceagles said:


> Thank you.  so no issues booking from another state?


No issues.  The WiFi was better.


----------



## GBRforWDW

diskids2 said:


> I'm not sure BUT her ILL's were the four that I know stayed put.  Remy, 7D, FoP and RoR.  She said she did Remy four times, 7D three times, FoP three times and RoR three times.  If she was there after Christmas when it went back to two, then it is even worse because she has space two times, runaway railroad once and frozen twice.  She states she was there for 4.5 park days (5 day tickets)
> 
> I think it's as I thought....an over inflate to explain the love of G+.  At the end of the day, I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything


Did she state any were done via standby?

Probably a minor detail she's leaving out


----------



## scrappinginontario

diskids2 said:


> I'm not sure BUT her ILL's were the four that I know stayed put.  Remy, 7D, FoP and RoR.  She said she did Remy four times, 7D three times, FoP three times and RoR three times.  If she was there after Christmas when it went back to two, then it is even worse because she has space two times, runaway railroad once and frozen twice.  She states she was there for 4.5 park days (5 day tickets)
> 
> I think it's as I thought....an over inflate to explain the love of G+.  At the end of the day, I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything


Could it be she's counting the times she rode standby?


----------



## scrappinginontario

GBRforWDW said:


> Did she state any were done via standby?
> 
> Probably a minor detail she's leaving out


LOL - you beat me!!


----------



## ultimatefans

Can I go back and forth between parks for G+ reservations?  Our plan is to tour HS in the morning and Epcot in the evening.  I'm hoping to grab a G+ for SDD or maybe MFSR at 7am.  Then at 11am (or earlier if I'm lucky enough to use my first G+ before then) I'd like to get one for Test Track if it's booking in the evening.  Then at 1pm get another one for HS.  Would this work?


----------



## diskids2

scrappinginontario said:


> LOL - you beat me!!



Ha Ha!  Never thought of that.  She doesn't say....Could be...my mind immediately goes to the darkside LOL!


----------



## Disturbia

ultimatefans said:


> Can I go back and forth between parks for G+ reservations?  Our plan is to tour HS in the morning and Epcot in the evening.  I'm hoping to grab a G+ for SDD or maybe MFSR at 7am.  Then at 11am (or earlier if I'm lucky enough to use my first G+ before then) I'd like to get one for Test Track if it's booking in the evening.  Then at 1pm get another one for HS.  Would this work?


I wouldnt recommend.  We’ve had security take out every single thing in my diaper bag.  We carry AuviQ and had car keys we forgot about.  It takes time to go between parks/rides.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Disturbia said:


> I wouldnt recommend.  We’ve had security take out every single thing in my diaper bag.  We carry AuviQ and had car keys we forgot about.  It takes time to go between parks/rides.


Have you visited since the new security measures were put in place in summer 2020?  No longer any need to unpack bags, just walk through scanners.  Very fast and efficient for the majority of people.


----------



## Disturbia

scrappinginontario said:


> Have you visited since the new security measures were put in place in summer 2020?  No longer any need to unpack bags, just walk through scanners.  Very fast and efficient for the majority of people.


I went 3 times post covid.  This happened nov 2021.  I do believe it was someone having a bad day.  The Second security person looked at him multiple times as he asked me to separate clothes, diapers (They usually just squeeze them to look for metal).


----------



## snikki

I don’t think the poster means leave and go to Epcot and then return to DHS for one ride. They just want to make G+ in the evening at Epcot and when their 2 hour window opens then make one for earlier in the day at DH.

If so yea you can.


----------



## ultimatefans

snikki said:


> I don’t think the poster means leave and go to Epcot and then return to DHS for one ride. They just want to make G+ in the evening at Epcot and when their 2 hour window opens then make one for earlier in the day at DH.
> 
> If so yea you can.


Yes thank you!  That is exactly what I was asking.  Thanks for confirming!


----------



## snikki

taterheads said:


> Seriously, I have read about 100 blogs and never had anyone explained the ability to stack rides with concurrent windows in the afternoon/ evening. This is my new plan. Ride standby early and just book LL for (almost) everything after lunch til we leave. Thank you so much for this advice. Game changer!



This is pretty much my plan for most days. It’s how I utilized FP+ too.


----------



## bmdq89

Can you book a ILL for Rise of the Resistance in the morning and also get a Genie+ LL or do you have to wait 2 hours?


----------



## scrappinginontario

bmdq89 said:


> Can you book a ILL for Rise of the Resistance in the morning and also get a Genie+ LL or do you have to wait 2 hours?


You may purchase ILL$ for RotR at 7AM and also book a Genie + LL for a different attraction at the same time.


----------



## MsVanderquack

If I’m going to AK in the morning but only planning to book LLs for my afternoon at Epcot (so just LLs with windows starting at 2pm). If at 7am I book my first LL for an Epcot ride, when does my 2 hour rule activate?
AK opening at 9am - so can search and book second LL at 11am
or
Epcot opening at 10am - so can search and book at 12pm


----------



## mickey916

MsVanderquack said:


> If I’m going to AK in the morning but only planning to book LLs for my afternoon at Epcot (so just LLs with windows starting at 2pm). If at 7am I book my first LL for an Epcot ride, when does my 2 hour rule activate?
> AK opening at 9am - so can search and book second LL at 11am
> or
> Epcot opening at 10am - so can search and book at 12pm


That's a good question, I think I've heard it goes by the park reservation that you have so it should be 11...


----------



## melking23

MsVanderquack said:


> If I’m going to AK in the morning but only planning to book LLs for my afternoon at Epcot (so just LLs with windows starting at 2pm). If at 7am I book my first LL for an Epcot ride, when does my 2 hour rule activate?
> AK opening at 9am - so can search and book second LL at 11am
> or
> Epcot opening at 10am - so can search and book at 12pm


The 2-hour window starts at the opening of whichever park you have a reservation for.


----------



## Luisfba

oh.. i thought it was based on the opening time for the park for whatever the G+ was for (and not which park you had a park reservation for).  darn.  my plan for a HS day was to have a park res for EC and stack for HS for the afternoon, go in via IG (staying at dolphin).. have lunch, then hop on gondola.  but if it's as you state it sets me back against all the other HS folks.


----------



## Thorazine

With stacking, even if you are going to wait and go to the park in the evening and stack as much as possible, you could reserve rides at: 7 AM, 11 AM, 1 PM, 3 PM. I mean, those are the times that you can make the reservations (not times to go on the rides). So by 3 PM, you could have four reservations. 

However, I have been watching Hollywood studios and by midday many of the more desirable attractions have no more availability. Rarely, when they do, it is late in the evening.

Disney seems to be selling too many Genie plus tickets because it is exhausting their supply on many attractions. It seems like they need to raise the price or sell fewer of them?


----------



## Disturbia

The prices do go up.  We’ve seen a jump in prices during peak season/weekends.


----------



## Thorazine

Disturbia said:


> The prices do go up.  We’ve seen a jump in prices during peak season/weekends.



prices go up for Genie plus? I thought the prices were variable only for the individual attractions?


----------



## Luisfba

My question is when does the eligibility open for the 2 hours.  It's not always 11am, 1pm, etc.  It depends on park opening time.  My question is, is it based on the opening time of the park you have a park pass for, or based on the opening time for the park the ride is on.


----------



## taterheads

snikki said:


> This is pretty much my plan for most days. It’s how I utilized FP+ too.


Except with fast pass you couldn't have them have time overlapping with G+ you can! No sitting around waiting for the next ride window! Yay for that change!


----------



## kilik64

Thorazine said:


> prices go up for Genie plus? I thought the prices were variable only for the individual attractions?


G+ is currently 15/day, they were talking about ILL, those can and do fluctuate.


----------



## g-dad66

DELETED


----------



## Luisfba

g-dad66 said:


> It is the park that you have the reservation for.



Darn, there goes my 'start at EC and stack for a park hop to HS strategy'.


----------



## moorish

MsVanderquack said:


> If I’m going to AK in the morning but only planning to book LLs for my afternoon at Epcot (so just LLs with windows starting at 2pm). If at 7am I book my first LL for an Epcot ride, when does my 2 hour rule activate?
> AK opening at 9am - so can search and book second LL at 11am
> or
> Epcot opening at 10am - so can search and book at 12pm



Awhile back I was told by someone here who did it that it is based on where the ride you made your first G+ booking was. That said, there have been changes made since that time and I see that many other people are responding that it's based on the park where your reservation is. So I'm unsure now.


----------



## melking23

Luisfba said:


> My question is when does the eligibility open for the 2 hours.  It's not always 11am, 1pm, etc.  It depends on park opening time.  My question is, is it based on the opening time of the park you have a park pass for, or based on the opening time for the park the ride is on.


It’s for your first park of the day, so the one where you have the reservation.


----------



## Mambo Junkie

Sorry, I know this has been asked but not on the 12+ pages I've read. We have decided not to use Genie + every day, only for the DHS day. (right now). Can we purchase the Genie+ for DHS at 12 am the morning of our reservation? I don't want to get caught up trying to do that plus make selections at 6? or 7? Thanks


----------



## cjlong88

MsVanderquack said:


> If I’m going to AK in the morning but only planning to book LLs for my afternoon at Epcot (so just LLs with windows starting at 2pm). If at 7am I book my first LL for an Epcot ride, when does my 2 hour rule activate?
> AK opening at 9am - so can search and book second LL at 11am
> or
> Epcot opening at 10am - so can search and book at 12pm


Both in November and December our experience was that the 2-hour rule starts when the park at which you booked your first LL opens, NOT the park you necessarily have a reservation for (this is only true for park hoppers because they have the option to book LL’s elsewhere first thing in the morning).

For example, if you park reservation is for EPCOT but you book your first LL for an attraction at HS, then the two-hour rule will start when HS opens. This was our experience every day of our trip (we park hopped each day and always booked evening LL’s for our second park).

If the rule has changed, you can always do a “check”. Book your first LL at 7am. Then immediately try to book a second LL, it will tell you you aren’t eligible yet and then give you the exact time you are eligible to book the next one.


----------



## g-dad66

Mambo Junkie said:


> Sorry, I know this has been asked but not on the 12+ pages I've read. We have decided not to use Genie + every day, only for the DHS day. (right now). Can we purchase the Genie+ for DHS at 12 am the morning of our reservation? I don't want to get caught up trying to do that plus make selections at 6? or 7? Thanks



Yes you can.  I did our purchase at about 6:45 am with no problem.


----------



## cjlong88

Mambo Junkie said:


> Sorry, I know this has been asked but not on the 12+ pages I've read. We have decided not to use Genie + every day, only for the DHS day. (right now). Can we purchase the Genie+ for DHS at 12 am the morning of our reservation? I don't want to get caught up trying to do that plus make selections at 6? or 7? Thanks


Yes. We booked it at midnight last month, then went to bed. Woke up at 6:55 am and booked our first LL at 7:00 am. Rolled over and went back to sleep to get a few more zzz’s.


----------



## SkyGuy

moorish said:


> Awhile back I was told by someone here who did it that it is based on where the ride you made your first G+ booking was. That said, there have been changes made since that time and I see that many other people are responding that it's based on the park where your reservation is. So I'm unsure now.


If it is the park you have a reservation for and not the park in which you made your first reservation then that is a change from when I was there in November. Say park res is for AK, and at 7am I book Test Track. AK opens at 8am, so at 10am, I would be able to book another Epcot before those with an Epcot reservation are eligible to book a second LL. If there has indeed been a change, then I’ll take that advantage for afternoon stacking.


----------



## g-dad66

SkyGuy said:


> If it is the park you have a reservation for and not the park in which you made your first reservation then that is a change from when I was there in November. Say park res is for AK, and at 7am I book Test Track. AK opens at 8am, so at 10am, I would be able to book another Epcot before those with an Epcot reservation are eligible to book a second LL. If there has indeed been a change, then I’ll take that advantage for afternoon stacking.



I thought I had read that it was the park where the person started (i.e. where they had the reservation), but I haven't done any parkhopping to experience this personally.

Given what both you and cjlong88 report, I trust that your first-hand experience is correct.  Thanks for the info.


----------



## Luisfba

I just bought a Genie+ (for science) and tested it.  It’s for the park for which you made your first selection.  Made a park res for Epcot, got a LL at 7am for a ride at HS.  It says my next eligibility is at 11.


----------



## SkyGuy

Luisfba said:


> I just bought a Genie+ (for science) and tested it.  It’s for the park for which you made your first selection.  Made a park res for Epcot, got a LL at 7am for a ride at HS.  It says my next eligibility is at 11.


Great. I was just coming here to reply to the above comment and say I hope someone tests it soon and reports back. You were way ahead of me. Go you! Thank you for your service.


----------



## tinabina919

A tip I wish I knew before this morning…don’t use Disney’s WiFi at the 7am booking. It just kept scanning my face but wouldn’t sign me in until I turned off WiFi.

I ultimately got everything I wanted, MMRR, Rise and SDD all for this morning/afternoon but if I had to start every morning that way I would not be happy, nor would my husband lol. That was way too stressful for something I am paying for. Crazy.


----------



## scrappinginontario

tinabina919 said:


> A tip I wish I knew before this morning…don’t use Disney’s WiFi at the 7am booking. It just kept scanning my face but wouldn’t sign me in until I turned off WiFi.
> 
> I ultimately got everything I wanted, MMRR, Rise and SDD all for this morning/afternoon but if I had to start every morning that way I would not be happy, nor would my husband lol. That was way too stressful for something I am paying for. Crazy.


Is the VPN turned on on your phone?  In the past some guests have had conflict with their phone and Disney WiFi when their VPN was turned on.  As soon as they turned off the VPN the face scanning was no longer a problem.


----------



## CarolynFH

tinabina919 said:


> A tip I wish I knew before this morning…don’t use Disney’s WiFi at the 7am booking. It just kept scanning my face but wouldn’t sign me in until I turned off WiFi.
> 
> I ultimately got everything I wanted, MMRR, Rise and SDD all for this morning/afternoon but if I had to start every morning that way I would not be happy, nor would my husband lol. That was way too stressful for something I am paying for. Crazy.


I pretty much turn off Wi-Fi at WDW and just use data. Save the Wi-Fi bandwidth for those international guests who can’t use US cellular data.


----------



## pluto377

If I pull my first lightning lane at 7am, can I pull another at 11am if I haven't entered the park yet?  I don't mean park hopping.  I mean I want to go to the park later in the afternoon.  Thanks!


----------



## scrappinginontario

You may book a second LL reservation 2 hours after park opening so it will depend on what time the park opens that you have a reservation for  of the park where you make your first LL reservation.


----------



## Luisfba

Luisfba said:


> I just bought a Genie+ (for science) and tested it.  It’s for the park for which you made your first selection.  Made a park res for Epcot, got a LL at 7am for a ride at HS.  It says my next eligibility is at 11.



And to follow up on my check, I was able to book the second LL at HS at 11am even though my park reservation is for Epcot.


----------



## Luisfba

A question - about how long does it take to get through ROTR using LL on a busy day?


----------



## GBRforWDW

pluto377 said:


> If I pull my first lightning lane at 7am, can I pull another at 11am if I haven't entered the park yet?  I don't mean park hopping.  I mean I want to go to the park later in the afternoon.  Thanks!


Yes, we did this most every day of our trip.  We usually left the hotel room 90 minutes to 2 hours after our park opened, so would get the next LL from hotel parking lot or park parking lot - we stayed near the airport


----------



## g-dad66

scrappinginontario said:


> You may book a second LL reservation 2 hours after park opening so it will depend on what time the park opens that you have a reservation for.



I was wrong about it being the park you have a reservation for.  It is the park that you book your first LL in.


----------



## scrappinginontario

g-dad66 said:


> I was wrong about it being the park you have a reservation for.  It is the park that you book your first LL in.


Thanks!  I will update my response above.  Appreciate you letting me know.


----------



## Disturbia

Luisfba said:


> I just bought a Genie+ (for science) and tested it.  It’s for the park for which you made your first selection.  Made a park res for Epcot, got a LL at 7am for a ride at HS.  It says my next eligibility is at 11.


So park reservation at Epcot doesn’t matter as long as your first Genie+ booking is for HS!  Wow.  I thought it was 2 hrs from the reserved park (Epcot).  I used Genie+ in November but we didn’t park hop.

So while park hopping, is there something special you need to do or just have a park reservation at Epcot, have park hoppers and try booking Genie+ ride for a different park (it automatically gives availability 2 pm onwards for HS)?

How about LlIA$ (Can you choose an earlier LL in error or does it show 2 pm onwards at Hs)


----------



## Luisfba

As far as booking a ride on the park you will hop to.  It’ll show you what the current window available is, even if before 2pm.  But if it’s a park you are hopping to as soon as you pick it, it books it for 2-3 if the current window was before 2.

as far as ILL.. I don’t know what it’ll do.  I figured I would make sure to pick at 2pm or later since I get to pick the time, but not sure what happens if by mistake you pick something before 2.


----------



## wisblue

pluto377 said:


> If I pull my first lightning lane at 7am, can I pull another at 11am if I haven't entered the park yet?  I don't mean park hopping.  I mean I want to go to the park later in the afternoon.  Thanks!



Yes.

On our arrival day last week we made one G+ LL at 7 AM EST from the airport before the flight took off, another at 11 AM, and another at 1 PM and arrived at DHS about 2:30 with 3 G+ LL and one ILL for ROTR ready to use.


----------



## Chris Anglin

our trip is next month, i purchased genie +. PLEASE HELP... All this Genie+ LL, ILL info has got my head going in circles. 

In order to increase my chances, How do I need to go about booking/purchasing ILL for ratatouille?

Do I need to have a ressie for EPCOT before it'll let me book/purchase it?

Should I skip trying to score it through Genie+ LL or go straight to ILL and pay for it? Like, what are the chances of it being sold out if I try genie+ LL first?


----------



## elgerber

Chris Anglin said:


> our trip is next month, i purchased genie +. PLEASE HELP... All this Genie+ LL, ILL info has got my head going in circles.
> 
> In order to increase my chances, How do I need to go about booking/purchasing ILL for ratatouille?
> 
> Do I need to have a ressie for EPCOT before it'll let me book/purchase it?
> 
> Should I skip trying to score it through Genie+ LL or go straight to ILL and pay for it? Like, what are the chances of it being sold out if I try genie+ LL first?


You cannot book Remy through Genie+, the only option is standby or purchasing an ILL.  You do not need a reservation for Epcot, you can book for after 2pm and hop there.


----------



## bambialways4ever

Chris Anglin said:


> our trip is next month, i purchased genie +. PLEASE HELP... All this Genie+ LL, ILL info has got my head going in circles.
> 
> In order to increase my chances, How do I need to go about booking/purchasing ILL for ratatouille?
> 
> Do I need to have a ressie for EPCOT before it'll let me book/purchase it?
> 
> Should I skip trying to score it through Genie+ LL or go straight to ILL and pay for it? Like, what are the chances of it being sold out if I try genie+ LL first?


You can't book the Remy ride without paying for individual lightning lane. It's not included with "regular" Genie+. You either pay the individual lightning lane cost for each person in your party, or you wait standby.


----------



## kwhite1022

Wow I made it through 50+ pages of this (started past 80) and I think I have a good handle on it.  Here is my question, so far as I can tell in reading through, Genie + and the $LL are really only a good option if you are staying on site, or am I missing something?   If all on site people get to book at 7am, and off site have to wait till opening of park, things like RoTR will for sure be gone.....or is there some part of this that Im not understanding.  Now Im guessing if you go during off peak times, it might still be beneficial.  I however am stuck going the worst possible time, Spring Break.  I am glad we went for a one day drop in last year, and we were able to ride RoTR via the BG.  Oh how I wish my daughters band picked a different time!


----------



## scrappinginontario

kwhite1022 said:


> Wow I made it through 50+ pages of this (started past 80) and I think I have a good handle on it.  Here is my question, *so far as I can tell in reading through, Genie + and the $LL are really only a good option if you are staying on site*, or am I missing something?   If all on site people get to book at 7am, and off site have to wait till opening of park, things like RoTR will for sure be gone.....or is there some part of this that Im not understanding.  Now Im guessing if you go during off peak times, it might still be beneficial.  I however am stuck going the worst possible time, Spring Break.  I am glad we went for a one day drop in last year, and we were able to ride RoTR via the BG.  Oh how I wish my daughters band picked a different time!



Sorry but I will disagree with the bolded statement although, it's VERY confusing!!  Friends stayed offsite last week (a busier week) and found G+ beneficial at both DHS and MK.

Both onsite and offsite guests who purchase Genie+ can book their first LL at 7AM.

ILL$ attractions may only be booked by onsite guests at 7AM.  Offsite guests may purchase ILL$ at park opening, if there are times available. 

Even during a busy week they were able to purchase SDMT at park opening.  RotR was sold out but they anticipated that so headed there first and waited in standby.


----------



## GBRforWDW

kwhite1022 said:


> Wow I made it through 50+ pages of this (started past 80) and I think I have a good handle on it.  Here is my question, so far as I can tell in reading through, Genie + and the $LL are really only a good option if you are staying on site, or am I missing something?   If all on site people get to book at 7am, and off site have to wait till opening of park, things like RoTR will for sure be gone.....or is there some part of this that Im not understanding.  Now Im guessing if you go during off peak times, it might still be beneficial.  I however am stuck going the worst possible time, Spring Break.  I am glad we went for a one day drop in last year, and we were able to ride RoTR via the BG.  Oh how I wish my daughters band picked a different time!





scrappinginontario said:


> Sorry but I will disagree with the bolded statement although, it's VERY confusing!!  Friends stayed offsite last week (a busier week) and found G+ beneficial at both DHS and MK.
> 
> Both onsite and offsite guests who purchase Genie+ can book their first LL at 7AM.
> 
> ILL$ attractions may only be booked by onsite guests at 7AM.  Offsite guests may purchase ILL$ at park opening, if there are times available.
> 
> Even during a busy week they were able to purchase SDMT at park opening.  RotR was sold out but they anticipated that so headed there first and waiting in standby.


As someone that stayed offsite over Christmas, we did fairly well with Genie+ LL's.  As Scrapping stated, everyone can book those at 7am, which is great since that has an up front cost.

For the ILL$ attractions, you're not out money if you can't book them, but it certainly is nice if you can.  With longer hours in most parks, I was successful in getting the ILL$ in every park (over Christmas, each park only had 1 and we did not park hop) but Hollywood Studios, RotR is just impossible and I knew going in that I probably wouldn't go to Galaxy's Edge this trip.  We had been to WDW in January 21 and Disneyland in August 21, so between the 2 places, I had gone 3 times.  

Being offsite, there's mostly luck with getting some of the ILL$ and not much strategy.  With FoP, it initially ran out right before park opening, but an hour later, they replenished, allowing me to grab one.  With 7dmt and Remy, there were plenty of time slots available.  7dmt had them as early as 7pm and Remy's 5 or 6pm.  I do think longer hours and earlier opening helped, especially with 7dmt, but there's still opportunity for offsite to get the ILL$.  

Other than the ILL$ rides, the new system does put more guests on a level field than the old Fastpass+ system though, which is a big plus for offsite guests.

Hopefully Disney implements their Christmas strategy during other busy times, including spring break.  Enjoy your trip!


----------



## AnnabelleTheTalkingTree

GBRforWDW said:


> For the ILL$ attractions, you're not out money if you can't book them, but it certainly is nice if you can.  With longer hours in most parks, I was successful in getting the ILL$ in every park (over Christmas, each park only had 1 and we did not park hop) but Hollywood Studios, RotR is just impossible and I knew going in that I probably wouldn't go to Galaxy's Edge this trip.  We had been to WDW in January 21 and Disneyland in August 21, so between the 2 places, I had gone 3 times.



I'm curious how long you waited after paying for ILLs? Like how long was the average wait time for an ILL?


----------



## bambialways4ever

AnnabelleTheTalkingTree said:


> I'm curious how long you waited after paying for ILLs? Like how long was the average wait time for an ILL?


Rise of the Resistance and Remy apparently can be the longest just due to how much down time there is for these attractions, but 30 mins is the max I heard with the rest being closer to like 15 mins


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## jsmla

What can I do with this?  I’m not able to ride Space Mt.


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## sjdrr1313

jsmla said:


> What can I do with this?  I’m not able to ride Space Mt.View attachment 638598



I think you can just wait and use it when 7 Dwarves comes back up


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## GBRforWDW

AnnabelleTheTalkingTree said:


> I'm curious how long you waited after paying for ILLs? Like how long was the average wait time for an ILL?


Remys was very quick, less than 5 minutes. 7dmt would have been less than 10, but it broke down as I was entering the ride vehicle.  They kicked us out and we waited 15 more minutes.  FoP was probably 10-15 minutes.  I can’t remember exactly and I got lucky as they were looking for a single rider to fill up a group.  Probably would have been another 5-10 minutes.


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## jsmla

sjdrr1313 said:


> I think you can just wait and use it when 7 Dwarves comes back up


Thanks! It has reopened but the ILL is backed up past Be Our Guest.  I think I’ll wait.


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## riversend22

Ok so I've read through a number of pages and will keep reading more, but admittedly, I am SO confused by Genie +. I'm mostly bummed to learn that if staying offsite (which we are), you cannot book an ILL until park open. This means ROTR is guaranteed to be gone for us. I understand there is stand-by but that still stinks. Anywho, I do have a few questions: For reference, we are only going for one day on 1/27 at Hollywood Studios.

1) I am planning for 5 people (4 who haven't been in years). I frequent Disney yearly but this will be my first time using Genie+. My first question is: will it be easiest if I add all the members of my group to my Disney experience and control everything from there? Or should the members each buy their own genie+  and we just try and coordinate if we want to ride together?
2) If ROTR, MMRR, RnRC and TOT are priorities, which should we rope drop? I understand that Rise is not part of the genie+ stuff, so I'm wondering since buying the ILL is probably out, should we rope drop that even with EE people before us? Or do we rope drop something else so as not to lose tons of time waiting in line and try to catch that one at another down time? I honestly don't think my group will make it all day, so the nighttime option probably won't work. 
3) Am I understand correctly that after you make a LL reservation, you can't make a new one until either you tap into it OR the 2 hours pass? Does this system hinder getting to ride everything, or does it make it better since the lines are typically shorter?
4) With this new system, is it actually better to NOT rope drop, arrive around 10-11 and try and stack rides for the end of the day? I've seen a lot say they are successful with an option like this, but if you have a group not willing to stay all day, is it even worth it?

I think that's it for now, but dang, do I miss the old fastness! Thanks for the help!


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## Disturbia

Chris Anglin said:


> our trip is next month, i purchased genie +. PLEASE HELP... All this Genie+ LL, ILL info has got my head going in circles.
> 
> In order to increase my chances, How do I need to go about booking/purchasing ILL for ratatouille?
> 
> Do I need to have a ressie for EPCOT before it'll let me book/purchase it?
> 
> Should I skip trying to score it through Genie+ LL or go straight to ILL and pay for it? Like, what are the chances of it being sold out if I try genie+ LL first?



In order to book a LLIA$ for Remy, you need to have a park pass reservation booked for the park you are starting at AND have parkhoppers for everyone (so MK park reservation and park hoppers)

OR

Epcot park pass reservation

Genie+ rides everyone can book at 7 am.  Remy LLIA$ can be purchased by on-site guests at 7 am (offsite is at park opening).

Everyone needs to have the park pass reservation, same ticket (hoppers) and be linked on MDE friends/family list.  I would have one account; multiple people can log in to the same account (one on wifi, one without, difference devices etc).


----------



## brockash

jsmla said:


> What can I do with this?  I’m not able to ride Space Mt.View attachment 638598


Wait to use it or go get a refund....you may be able to request a refund through the chat feature.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

scrappinginontario said:


> Even during a busy week they were able to purchase SDMT at park opening.


I was able to purchase sdmt three times during christmas week by doing it at park opening.


----------



## kwhite1022

Thank you for your responses that did help.   

So, for those who have been during a very busy time, what is a typical stand by time for RoTR?  Im sure being off site means the line will be crazy, but Im curious what we would be looking at for a wait?   Would you recommend not doing that first thing when park opens (Spring Break) and just hope to luck out in the last part of the day?  As we are not hopping and staying till close, maybe that would be my best option?


----------



## glocon

jsmla said:


> What can I do with this?  I’m not able to ride Space Mt.View attachment 638598


I wonder if a purchased ILL$ for a ride that is down could be used at another park for another ILL$. Has anyone asked about this? I know this would only work if a person was park hopping, but it’s an interesting thought.


----------



## Disturbia

kwhite1022 said:


> Thank you for your responses that did help.
> 
> So, for those who have been during a very busy time, what is a typical stand by time for RoTR?  Im sure being off site means the line will be crazy, but Im curious what we would be looking at for a wait?   Would you recommend not doing that first thing when park opens (Spring Break) and just hope to luck out in the last part of the day?  As we are not hopping and staying till close, maybe that would be my best option?



Touring plans posts wait times, this may help plan which genie+ ride to book:

https://touringplans.com/hollywood-...-of-the-resistance/wait-times/date/2021-12-31


----------



## Disturbia

glocon said:


> I wonder if a purchased ILL$ for a ride that is down could be used at another park for another ILL$. Has anyone asked about this? I know this would only work if a person was park hopping, but it’s an interesting thought.


Guest services (blue umbrella) can change a pass.  We were give an anytime pass which was valid at any park over 2 days for a FOP pass.  It does depend on the CM.


----------



## Josh & Laila Harbour

Hi everyone! Sorry if this has been answered elsewhere, but through multiple searches and perusing this thread, I haven't see this addressed specifically yet. Does anyone know of age-based restrictions within MDE that wouldn't allow a teenager to purchase G+ or ILL$ on their own? I seem to recall that if you are under 18, MDE won't let you make purchases in the app (other than paying for Mobile Order with a GC) so I am thinking this would apply to G+ and ILL$ purchases too. I know there are solutions to this (if it IS true) such as having an adult with a valid park pass/ticket who is a "Friend" in MDE make a purchase and select the teen as the person the G+ or ILL$ purchase is being made for. Just wanting to see if this is going to be a necessity for an upcoming school trip a teen will be going on. Thanks for everyone's help in advance!


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## bsmcneil

So - I'm going in a couple of weeks and I'm a single parent with two kids. I know that I can manage G+/ILLS for all 3 of us from my account but I'm concerned that only using my account will be too slow. Do I need to setup an account for my oldest and have them help me (thinking about things that go quickly like ROTR, SDD, FOP, 7DMT)?


----------



## scrappinginontario

bsmcneil said:


> So - I'm going in a couple of weeks and I'm a single parent with two kids. I know that I can manage G+/ILLS for all 3 of us from my account but I'm concerned that only using my account will be too slow. Do I need to setup an account for my oldest and have them help me (thinking about things that go quickly like ROTR, SDD, FOP, 7DMT)?


You can sign yourself into multiple devices so that your kids can help you.  That's my plan when we go.


----------



## bsmcneil

scrappinginontario said:


> You can sign yourself into multiple devices so that your kids can help you.  That's my plan when we go.


Got it. That makes sense. (I also recognize I may be overthinking it - I just don't know what to expect!)


----------



## scrappinginontario

bsmcneil said:


> Got it. That makes sense. (I also recognize I may be overthinking it - I just don't know what to expect!)


I'm with you!  I used to go in with a plan and a fairly good idea what to expect.  This time I'm so confused in spite of all those who have taken time to explain things.  I'm really hoping after a day or 2 it clicks and I can relax.


----------



## cheshiregoofy22

scrappinginontario said:


> I'm with you!  I used to go in with a plan and a fairly good idea what to expect.  This time I'm so confused in spite of all those who have taken time to explain things.  I'm really hoping after a day or 2 it clicks and I can relax.


Same!


----------



## twodogs

I have two teens, ages 14 and 16.  They ALWAYS have the fastest fingers, they always have gotten our BGs when we’ve been at WDW or DLR during these times.  Have them sign in on their phone to your MDE, and give them a job (get this LL for example) and watch the magic happen!


----------



## mom2rtk

twodogs said:


> I have two teens, ages 14 and 16.  They ALWAYS have the fastest fingers, they always have gotten our BGs when we’ve been at WDW or DLR during these times.  Have them sign in on their phone to your MDE, and give them a job (get this LL for example) and watch the magic happen!


Yep. My go to advice has always been to put the best phone in the hands of the teens!


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## mom2rtk

mom2rtk said:


> Are late arrivals still ok with ILLS?


I'll update with my own experience. We did end up a little late for our return time. They let us on, but not without being chastised by the CM at the first scan location.


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## Meeko5

So traveling with my sister, nephew, and dad who are all staying offsite. My family of 4 are onsite. We’ve got all our MDE linked so I can make the Genie + selections for the group to keep us together most of the days we plan to use that. 

BUT, am I also able to make ILL selections for the group? I know offsite can’t purchase until park open, but if we decide to purchase something as a group after opening can I do that for everyone? I’m guessing not, because of payment needed but Google hasn’t been helpful…


----------



## mom2febgirls

Can you hold LL in 2 different parks at the same time?  I have PH and I plan to start my day in DHS and hop to MK.  Can I book a LL for ToT at 7 for the morning and then at 11 book in MK for the afternoon?

Thanks


----------



## Orsino

Do we have an understanding on whether cancelling a G+LL makes you eligible to book a new one?

On my first day, we won’t go into MK until 5pm. If I can’t get a LL for that late, my plan is to book something with plan to cancel it later to rebook. For example I would book my second LL at 11 am as usual. Then immediately cancel the first dummy LL and try to book a new one. Will this work?


----------



## scrappinginontario

mom2febgirls said:


> Can you hold LL in 2 different parks at the same time?  I have PH and I plan to start my day in DHS and hop to MK.  Can I book a LL for ToT at 7 for the morning and then at 11 book in MK for the afternoon?
> 
> Thanks


Yes


----------



## GBRforWDW

Orsino said:


> Do we have an understanding on whether cancelling a G+LL makes you eligible to book a new one?
> 
> On my first day, we won’t go into MK until 5pm. If I can’t get a LL for that late, my plan is to book something with plan to cancel it later to rebook. For example I would book my second LL at 11 am as usual. Then immediately cancel the first dummy LL and try to book a new one. Will this work?


That scenario definitely would not work.  Your next available booking window is based on last pass booked, so cancelling the first pass won't do anything for you. 

I would recommend refreshing at 7am until you got a timeslot that would work.  Even if it's close and the time is almost 7:10(the time when cancelled choices start refilling in Genie), I'd grab it and when you get to the park, if you're late, just let the cm know you couldn't get there on time. I had to do this after a dinner reservation going into Peter Pan.  Your best rides for later time slots will be jungle cruise or Peter Pan.


----------



## Disturbia

bsmcneil said:


> So - I'm going in a couple of weeks and I'm a single parent with two kids. I know that I can manage G+/ILLS for all 3 of us from my account but I'm concerned that only using my account will be too slow. Do I need to setup an account for my oldest and have them help me (thinking about things that go quickly like ROTR, SDD, FOP, 7DMT)?


It will not slow things down.  You can have multiple people on different devices (including iPads) logged into the same account.  If your kids are pre teen and younger, I wouldn’t risk it. 

You can also have someone at home log in and book SDD while you get ROTR and MMRR for instance.


----------



## Disturbia

The grace period is 5 mins before and 15 mins after.  CMs ask you to go to GET at the front of the park for refunds (they are ok if you have a legitimate issue-eg the LL scan line was held up for 5 mins etc), so I would try not to overlap plans too much and leave room for snacking/restroom breaks/bracing the crowds.  We’ve had to leave several rider switch passes on the table due to overlap (3 at Epcot; TT took over 20; Soarin and Mission Space 30 mins; SDMT at MK).

Checkout day budget extra time for dropping bags. The bell services are severely understaffed and we had to wait 40 mins to drop off bags (AOA resort; checkin and checkout people wrapped around the building in the am), which cut into our first Genie +pass time at Epcot


----------



## bsmcneil

Disturbia said:


> You can also have someone at home log in and book SDD while you get ROTR and MMRR for instance.


I actually thought about this, lol. Now that's a service someone should start!


----------



## bsmcneil

twodogs said:


> I have two teens, ages 14 and 16.  They ALWAYS have the fastest fingers, they always have gotten our BGs when we’ve been at WDW or DLR during these times.  Have them sign in on their phone to your MDE, and give them a job (get this LL for example) and watch the magic happen!


If I had teens, I'd totally do it. My 9 year old is pretty proficient - I'll think about it.


----------



## KeyLargoCards

Just got back from Marathon Weekend, and thought I would share my opinion/experiences on G+.  First, we used it for MK & HS, as there's not enough @ AK to make it worth it, and with just my wife & I on this trip, we weren't really worried about missing anything @ Epcot.   Obviously, I don't like paying for it, but thought it worked fairly well.

For our MK day, I was running the Marathon, so my wife was in charge - and she hates these things!  But she did a great job!  We had a late lunch for Skipper Canteen ~3:30, so I told her to concentrate on Jungle, BTMR, Pirates, HM, etc.  for around that time.  As JC goes quick, she snagged that one @ 7am, then was able to get BTMR 2 hrs after park open.  By the time I was showered, and we were ready to head to the parks, we were able to get Pirates.  We were able to knock out all 3 rides + get Dole Whips in ~75 mins prior to lunch (yes, Dole Whips before lunch, its vacation!).  After we checked in the second ride, we were able to get HM for right after lunch.  Finally, there were still plenty left for us to get Under the Sea & Buzz as well.  The park was not too busy, but gauging by posted wait times and peeking at the standby lines, I'd say we saved 2.5-3 hours.  Jungle Cruise was nearly an hour by itself.  Finally, late night we waited for SpMtn (~30 mins) and snuck in SDMT (~20-30 mins) right at park close.  We got a lot done for getting to the park around 2:00!

HS was not quite as successful, but we did save ~2 hours nabbing SDD @ 7am, RnR, then TSMM.  We waited for ToT & MMRR, and snuck in RotR at closing and only had to wait ~30 minutes.  We were able to get a 4th G+ for Star Tours, but didn't really save time with it.  That 2 hours saved, however, gave me the time I need for my favorite - Baseline!


----------



## Donna M

Twilight Sparkle said:


> Has anyone had trouble using Genie + on an iphone 7 plus?  I'm wondering if I need to upgrade my phone before our trip.


I have the iphone 8 and it worked if that helps at all.


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## bluenosemickey

OMG! Forget it! I'm staying at the pool for the day at the resort!


----------



## Twilight Sparkle

Donna M said:


> I have the iphone 8 and it worked if that helps at all.


Thanks!


----------



## Disturbia

bluenosemickey said:


> OMG! Forget it! I'm staying at the pool for the day at the resort!


Well, you can book/stack your evening passes from the pool; sorry for ruining the margarita!


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## conshykid

In everyone's opinion, is genie+ worth the cost or should I just use lightning lane?


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## hultrain

Question: can I book/hold two ILLs at once or does the same 120 minute rule apply to both ILL and regular LL?  Example: let’s say I am going to Hollywood Studios, staying onsite. Can I buy a RotR ILL when bookings open at 7am and then immediately buy a MMRR ILL, or do I have to wait two hours after park open to buy the MMRR ILL?


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## g-dad66

You can do both an ILL$ and a Genie+ LL booking at the same time.  ILL$ and Genie+ are completely independent of each other.

You can buy Genie+ without buying any ILL$, and you can buy ILL$ without buying Genie+.  Or you can buy both. Or you can buy neither.

Which (if either) you want to buy depends on what attractions you want to do, how busy it is, and which you dislike more: (1) standing in lines, or (2) lightening your wallet.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

conshykid said:


> In everyone's opinion, is genie+ worth the cost or should I just use lightning lane?


I assume when you say "lightning lane", you are referring to the additional purchase of individual lightning lane, like that for ROTR or FOP?  If you use Genie+, confusingly, that also gets you a spot in the Lightning Lane!!  Such poor naming.  But to answer your question, it really depends on what you want to accomplish.  If you're satisfied with 2 ILL purchases per day and then standby lines the rest, then skip Genie+.  If you want to try and get shorter waits for a few of your non-ILL attractions, then purchase and use Genie+.


----------



## Disturbia

IMHO, Genie+ is definitely worth it in MK and HS.  At AK the queues are a bit more comfortable and at Epcot, most queues are indoors as well.  LLIA$ is definitely worth it for SDMT, FOP, Remy, ROTR.  Even if the waits went down, we wouldn’t regret paying for it as we would ride them twice.

We paid all days (except checkin; flights cancelled fiasco) even when we had only 3-4 hours on checkout day.  We have young kids so it was worth it.  The only day it felt completely useless was at AK when it rained all day (in Nov!).  It was also too stressful to schedule and run around at Epcot (don’t overlap at Epcot)


----------



## hultrain

g-dad66 said:


> You can do both an ILL$ and a Genie+ LL booking at the same time.  ILL$ and Genie+ are completely independent of each other.
> 
> You can buy Genie+ without buying any ILL$, and you can buy ILL$ without buying Genie+.  Or you can buy both. Or you can buy neither.
> 
> Which (if either) you want to buy depends on what attractions you want to do, how busy it is, and which you dislike more: (1) standing in lines, or (2) lightening your wallet.


I get that.  My question is:  can I buy 2 ILL$ right when the window opens at 7:00, or do I have to buy one at 7:00am and buy the other 2 hours after park opens?  In other words, does the 120 minute rule apply to buying ILL$?


----------



## g-dad66

hultrain said:


> I get that.  My question is:  can I buy 2 ILL$ right when the window opens at 7:00, or do I have to buy one at 7:00am and buy the other 2 hours after park opens?  In other words, does the 120 minute rule apply to buying ILL$?



You can buy both.  I did it in November.


----------



## yeahdisney

We did lightning and Genie plus. Jan 14

7am. Plan Split day for Hollywood studio and MK. Picking up a  Manual wheelchair. 
Purchased ROR right at 7am wanted 10am got 150; changed park bought 7 DMT for 415PM.
Then Purchased genie plus picked millennium falcon got 145. Then Picked BIg thunder mountain for MK 450PM.

Rope dropped slinky dog was allowed to line up for it , moved forward in line 815 and the ride started at 830 for early entry guests. Rode toy story twice. Wanted rip rock it (down till noon). Did the lightening McQueen show walk on.

Stand by star tours but due to wheelchair did use the quick line for this ride. Frozen show down most of the morning. So could not pick this for genie plus. Noon Indian Jones show stand by. 

Lunch. Rosie all American cafe. Teddy was the ONLY CASHIER AND HE WAS FABULOUS.  but I should of mobile ordered. Walked up, did not realize he was the only cashier :said wait time was 20 minutes so I got in line. The line only went to one register which I could not see from the back. So I did not get to him for the 20 minutes anyway.

At 1:03 it allowed us to pick another genie + so we picked another at MK, it let us pick another genie + ride every 2 hours. And they could overlap with the lightening and my sister did not want to ride one genie + ride, it did give the option to leave her off the selection. 

Millennium falcon was walk on with the genie +. I did not look to see what the wait time was. The person that sat with us was a single person, and they said they did the single person line with a group of six and they walked Straight onto the ride.
ROR wait time was 155 and it was at least a 15 minute wait with the purchased lightning line.

Switched to MK Used purchased 7DMT:
Genie + Buzz light year : wait time 60 min SB
Genie + big thunder it was down so we got any time ride with a list of exceptions. We went that way to take a break get snacks and hope it came back up. And it did!
Genie + HM : 60 minute wait SB
It’s a small world walk on
Genie + pirates : 60 minutes SB
Mobile order nachos. Ran to fireworks. Mobile ordered Casey’s.
Genie + Ariel : it was walk on
Ran to 7DMT to make the line before 9.

Random: Saturday when we were leaving. I looked for ROR at 752AM and you still could buy it for 7pm. 

When we did start to buy the day before for Jan 14 ROR it said 10am buy with the last purchase click it did give us the later time.


----------



## dmunsil

Orsino said:


> Do we have an understanding on whether cancelling a G+LL makes you eligible to book a new one?
> 
> On my first day, we won’t go into MK until 5pm. If I can’t get a LL for that late, my plan is to book something with plan to cancel it later to rebook. For example I would book my second LL at 11 am as usual. Then immediately cancel the first dummy LL and try to book a new one. Will this work?


Yes, Your scenario should work, or at least it worked a few weeks ago when I tested it. Cancelling a G+ LL always makes you eligible to book a new one, no matter which one you cancel. It does not need to be the most recent one.

*Edit: Disney changed the rules at some point in the last few weeks. Cancelling any reservation other than the one you most recently booked does nothing.*


----------



## Orsino

dmunsil said:


> Yes, Your scenario should work, or at least it worked a few weeks ago when I tested it. Cancelling a G+ LL always makes you eligible to book a new one, no matter which one you cancel. It does not need to be the most recent one.


Fantastic. I’m happy to hear that.


----------



## yeahdisney

Do you mean you are giving up the LL at 5pm for a later time.

If the LL are all gone there would be none to trade for.  On our AK day. At 11 o’clock there was nothing to buy, everything that you could purchase for AK was sold out. So we only purchased Genie plus at that time.

so if you gave up your LL late time I would guess you might not get another offer.

Now for split day MK we got to pick our time we wanted for 7DMT. So I gave us a buffer of an hour. I just picked so we could do standby ride prior if needed.


----------



## pdz

g-dad66 said:


> You can get another LL right away (let's call it LL2) if you are tapping into your MOST RECENTLY BOOKED LL (let's call it LL1).  You don't have to wait the full 2 hours from the time that you booked LL1.
> 
> If 2 hours have gone by since you booked LL1, you are now eligible to book LL2.  After using the 2-hour rule, the LL1 booking no longer has any relevance to future eligiblity.  It doesn't matter what time the LL1 booking is for or when you use it.
> 
> LL2 now determines your next eligibility which is either (a) 2 hours, or (b) when you double-tap into LL2 (whichever comes first).
> 
> The good thing is that when you try to book, the app will tell you if you are not eligible, AND it will tell you the next time when you are eligible to book again.


So for example if I book LL1 at 7am for a ride time at 6pm and then book LL2  2 hours after park opens for 10am can I book LL3 once I tap into LL2 at 10am or do I have to wait 2 hours after booking LL2 since I have not used LL1 for 6pm?


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## cjlong88

Evening Stack 1/16. Started in Epcot and park hopped to HS


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## Disturbia

cjlong88 said:


> Evening Stack 1/16. Started in Epcot and park hopped to HS
> 
> View attachment 639733


Wow Genie Slayer!


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

kwhite1022 said:


> Thank you for your responses that did help.
> 
> So, for those who have been during a very busy time, what is a typical stand by time for RoTR?  Im sure being off site means the line will be crazy, but Im curious what we would be looking at for a wait?   Would you recommend not doing that first thing when park opens (Spring Break) and just hope to luck out in the last part of the day?  As we are not hopping and staying till close, maybe that would be my best option?



I checked last Friday for an example.  The actual wait time for Rise dropped to 25 minutes about 20 minutes before closing time.  That’s not too bad.  The posted wait was 60.


----------



## g-dad66

pdz said:


> So for example if I book LL1 at 7am for a ride time at 6pm and then book LL2  2 hours after park opens for 10am can I book LL3 once I tap into LL2 at 10am or do I have to wait 2 hours after booking LL2 since I have not used LL1 for 6pm?



You are eligible for LL 3 when you double-tap into LL 2 at 10am. It doesn't matter when you use LL 1.  LL 1 has no relevance to eligibility any more.


(Minor quibble with your example.:  
You are unlikely to have LL 2 for 10am time because even if the park opened at 8am, your booking time for second LL would at 10am, and the LL time is not likely to be immediate.)


----------



## g-dad66

cjlong88 said:


> Evening Stack 1/16. Started in Epcot and park hopped to HS
> 
> View attachment 639733



That's what I call a perfect stack.  Well played.

Interesting about those two 8:30-9:00 time slots. I had thought all return windows were 1-hour.

Any trouble hoofing it from ToT to TSM (or vice-versa) by 9:00?  Wonder if one still gets the 5-minute grace period if the 5 minutes are after 9pm park close? I would presume so.


----------



## g-dad66

yeahdisney said:


> We did lightning and Genie plus. Jan 14
> 
> 7am. Plan Split day for Hollywood studio and MK. Picking up a  Manual wheelchair.
> Purchased ROR right at 7am wanted 10am got 150; changed park bought 7 DMT for 415PM.
> Then Purchased genie plus picked millennium falcon got 145. Then Picked BIg thunder mountain for MK 450PM.
> 
> Rope dropped slinky dog was allowed to line up for it , moved forward in line 815 and the ride started at 830 for early entry guests. Rode toy story twice. Wanted rip rock it (down till noon). Did the lightening McQueen show walk on.
> 
> Stand by star tours but due to wheelchair did use the quick line for this ride. Frozen show down most of the morning. So could not pick this for genie plus. Noon Indian Jones show stand by.
> 
> Lunch. Rosie all American cafe. Teddy was the ONLY CASHIER AND HE WAS FABULOUS.  but I should of mobile ordered. Walked up, did not realize he was the only cashier :said wait time was 20 minutes so I got in line. The line only went to one register which I could not see from the back. So I did not get to him for the 20 minutes anyway.
> 
> At 1:03 it allowed us to pick another genie + so we picked another at MK, it let us pick another genie + ride every 2 hours. And they could overlap with the lightening and my sister did not want to ride one genie + ride, it did give the option to leave her off the selection.
> 
> Millennium falcon was walk on with the genie +. I did not look to see what the wait time was. The person that sat with us was a single person, and they said they did the single person line with a group of six and they walked Straight onto the ride.
> ROR wait time was 155 and it was at least a 15 minute wait with the purchased lightning line.
> 
> Switched to MK Used purchased 7DMT:
> Genie + Buzz light year : wait time 60 min SB
> Genie + big thunder it was down so we got any time ride with a list of exceptions. We went that way to take a break get snacks and hope it came back up. And it did!
> Genie + HM : 60 minute wait SB
> It’s a small world walk on
> Genie + pirates : 60 minutes SB
> Mobile order nachos. Ran to fireworks. Mobile ordered Casey’s.
> Genie + Ariel : it was walk on
> Ran to 7DMT to make the line before 9.
> 
> Random: Saturday when we were leaving. I looked for ROR at 752AM and you still could buy it for 7pm.
> 
> When we did start to buy the day before for Jan 14 ROR it said 10am buy with the last purchase click it did give us the later time.




Well done.

Just to clarify:  At 7am, you booked Millenium Falcon, correct?  You booked Big Thunder at 11am, correct?  

It sounded like you booked both at 7am, and you had me scratching my head as to how you could do that.


----------



## cjlong88

g-dad66 said:


> That's what I call a perfect stack.  Well played.
> 
> Interesting about those two 8:30-9:00 time slots. I had thought all return windows were 1-hour.
> 
> Any trouble hoofing it from ToT to TSM (or vice-versa) by 9:00?  Wonder if one still gets the 5-minute grace period if the 5 minutes are after 9pm park close? I would presume so.


We actually tapped into ToT at 8:22 and asked if that was okay that we were a bit early. The CM had no problem with it (wasn’t expecting that so it was an awesome surprise). We were off ToT at 8:44 pm and had 16 minutes to make it to TSM. We walked briskly and made it in around 8:52.


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

g-dad66 said:


> That's what I call a perfect stack.  Well played.
> 
> Interesting about those two 8:30-9:00 time slots. I had thought all return windows were 1-hour.
> 
> Any trouble hoofing it from ToT to TSM (or vice-versa) by 9:00?  Wonder if one still gets the 5-minute grace period if the 5 minutes are after 9pm park close? I would presume so.


There is no grace period after the park closes.  You can get in line at 8:59 but not 9:00.


----------



## mld2177

Can I add Genie each morning for specific parks? Or do I have to add it ahead of time?


----------



## CJK

mld2177 said:


> Can I add Genie each morning for specific parks? Or do I have to add it ahead of time?


You can add Genie+ on a day by day basis. You don't pick a specific park. Either you book it for a specific day, or not. You need a park reservation to any of the 4 parks in order to book. If you have park hopper tickets, you can book rides in any park after 2pm. You just need to tap into your first park before you can park hop.


----------



## DisTXMom

Curious if people think HS EE or Epcot morning EE/HS evening stack will work better during busy spring break week. I was planning on HS morning, but leaning toward flipping it and doing EPCOT morning/HS evening with stacked passes based on posts above. Curious if HS waits drop in the evening as park close approaches? I’m worried that if we do HS in the am, standby lines will start high because it’s a busy week and we may be better off with our passes in the evening- we may not get a lot done either way, but trying to plan.


----------



## Sabine W.

I apologize if this question has been answered elsewhere.

Does the limit of 2 ILL per day apply if you are park hopping? For example can I buy an ILL at Epcot for the morning and two ILL at HS for afternoon?


----------



## CJK

Sabine W. said:


> I apologize if this question has been answered elsewhere.
> 
> Does the limit of 2 ILL per day apply if you are park hopping? For example can I buy an ILL at Epcot for the morning and two ILL at HS for afternoon?


Only 2 ILL can be purchased per day, regardless of parks. You could book 1 in Epcot and 1 in HS, that's all.


----------



## riversend22

Apologies if this isn't the right thread but it is a strategy question.

What would be the best strategy for HS in the morning if you are NOT staying on site and can't book ILL until 9? I'm trying to decide which LL to grab at 7, and once I get in the park where we should head to first. The caveat is that my party doesn't think they will make it much past 5-6 so I think we may have to wait in the RoTR line (since most of the return times will be after that), but should we wait for Rise at Rope drop (9am), or is the better strategy to hit up ToT and RnRC?


----------



## pdz

g-dad66 said:


> You are eligible for LL 3 when you double-tap into LL 2 at 10am. It doesn't matter when you use LL 1.  LL 1 has no relevance to eligibility any more.
> 
> 
> (Minor quibble with your example.:
> You are unlikely to have LL 2 for 10am time because even if the park opened at 8am, your booking time for second LL would at 10am, and the LL time is not likely to be immediate.)


Thanks!


----------



## Duck143

Quick question: I have read that people missed out on booked a LL or G+ at 7am, but more dropped later and they were able to book then.  Is there a system (timing) to the dropping? I used to know the exact moment that more FP+ would drop for specific rides, so wondering if it's anything similar?


----------



## g-dad66

Duck143 said:


> Quick question: I have read that people missed out on booked a LL or G+ at 7am, but more dropped later and they were able to book then.  Is there a system (timing) to the dropping? I used to know the exact moment that more FP+ would drop for specific rides, so wondering if it's anything similar?



The 7:10-7:15 am time range. My theory is that 7am bookings are held for 10 minutes until the booking is completed, and some of them don't get completed (for whatever reason).


----------



## g-dad66

riversend22 said:


> Apologies if this isn't the right thread but it is a strategy question.
> 
> What would be the best strategy for HS in the morning if you are NOT staying on site and can't book ILL until 9? I'm trying to decide which LL to grab at 7, and once I get in the park where we should head to first. The caveat is that my party doesn't think they will make it much past 5-6 so I think we may have to wait in the RoTR line (since most of the return times will be after that), but should we wait for Rise at Rope drop (9am), or is the better strategy to hit up ToT and RnRC?



I would do ToT and RnRC first to have minimal waits for them.

The RoTR wait is going to be bad whenever you do it.


----------



## GBRforWDW

riversend22 said:


> Apologies if this isn't the right thread but it is a strategy question.
> 
> What would be the best strategy for HS in the morning if you are NOT staying on site and can't book ILL until 9? I'm trying to decide which LL to grab at 7, and once I get in the park where we should head to first. The caveat is that my party doesn't think they will make it much past 5-6 so I think we may have to wait in the RoTR line (since most of the return times will be after that), but should we wait for Rise at Rope drop (9am), or is the better strategy to hit up ToT and RnRC?


Staying offsite, you will almost 100% not be getting an individual lightning lane pass for RotR, but you probably could for MMRR.  

RotR is really difficult to plan for in advance though as it's unpredictable when it'll be working or down.  But if you're wanting to do mfsr as well, id book that pass first at 7am, then do RotR either before or after that ride.


----------



## snikki

If I’m on at 7 am for a ROTR ILL how likely am I to get a time before 1 pm?

On our first full day I have us RDing DHS and hopping to AK after a midday break. I am thinking of swapping that out and doing DHS in the PM because I’m seeing how fast ROTR goes.   We have another day where we do AK then DHS So I would just swap the two days. We have another afternoon and evening at DHS but my DD is going to be itching to hit GE first since we’ve never been.


----------



## Luildinha

At 7am should I buy RotR or get LL for Slinky, does anyone know the best strategy?


----------



## g-dad66

snikki said:


> If I’m on at 7 am for a ROTR ILL how likely am I to get a time before 1 pm?
> 
> On our first full day I have us RDing DHS and hopping to AK after a midday break. I am thinking of swapping that out and doing DHS in the PM because I’m seeing how fast ROTR goes.   We have another day where we do AK then DHS So I would just swap the two days. We have another afternoon and evening at DHS but my DD is going to be itching to hit GE first since we’ve never been.



Pin ROTR to the top of your Tip Board.

When you see the time change from 6:59 to 7:00, click Individual LIghtning Lane Purchase, then click again on whatever time it shows, and then you will be asked to pay (be sure to note what time it says now because it will be probably be later than the time that showed previously).  I think it will hold that time for you until you complete your payment.

I think your odds of getting a time before 1pm will probably be about 50/50.  Depends on how busy a day it is.  I think your odds of getting any time at all will be very good.


----------



## g-dad66

Luildinha said:


> At 7am should I buy RotR or get LL for Slinky, does anyone know the best strategy?



Definitely SDD first.  If you do RotR first, SDD will then be gone (although it could reappear between 7:10 and 7:15, so you might hold off on making any other G+ selection until you feel sure that SDD is all gone).

If you can have two (or more) people doing this (one doing SDD, while other does RotR at the same time), that is the best plan.


----------



## snikki

cjlong88 said:


> Evening Stack 1/16. Started in Epcot and park hopped to HS
> 
> View attachment 639733



Nice work!!

Did you grab ROTR or SDD first ?


----------



## cjlong88

I had my husband log in as me on the app using his phone so we could book both attractions simultaneously. I booked Slinky and he took care of Rose.


----------



## boop0524

cjlong88 said:


> Evening Stack 1/16. Started in Epcot and park hopped to HS
> 
> View attachment 639733



Question on this strategy. On our HS day, we’ll be blocked off from 6-8 pm for ADRs and such. So can we replicate a stack earlier, maybe 3-6? Or is this really only successful because it’s the end of the day?


----------



## cjlong88

boop0524 said:


> Question on this strategy. On our HS day, we’ll be blocked off from 6-8 pm for ADRs and such. So can we replicate a stack earlier, maybe 3-6? Or is this really only successful because it’s the end of the day?


Looking at when things ran out, I don’t think this strategy would work during a 3-6 time frame. Maybe if there were super low crowds that day? Every time the next 120 minutes passed, the next ride we chose to book was definitely past 6pm for the offered return window.


----------



## boop0524

cjlong88 said:


> Looking at when things ran out, I don’t think this strategy would work during a 3-6 time frame. Maybe if there were super low crowds that day? Every time the next 120 minutes passed, the next ride we chose to book was definitely past 6pm for the offered return window.


Oh darn that stinks. So hmm maybe the 7 am drop plus early entry will be our best bet to get things done. Then hope for the best next available G+??


----------



## Disturbia

So does the last genie+ pass book 8-8:45 pm (like fast pass used to?). So no grace period after that? 

We had Splash booked 7:45-8:45 and were able to get on few seconds before it turned 9; but didn’t have anything booked after that time.


----------



## snikki

cjlong88 said:


> I had my husband log in as me on the app using his phone so we could book both attractions simultaneously. I booked Slinky and he took care of Rose.



I will definitely have my daughter log on and do SDD while I get Rise.


----------



## bvolek86

Thank you to everyone who has put so much great info on this thread. I apologize if I missed the answer to this question.

We are flying in on 3/18 and staying at the Hyatt at MCO before checking into to Riviera on 3/19. Our plan is to leave MCO early and head straight to AK until we can get into our room. My question is this.. can I purchase an ILL for FoP at 7AM or will I have to wait until park open (9AM as of now) since we won't have checked in yet.

Thanks!


----------



## scrappinginontario

bvolek86 said:


> Thank you to everyone who has put so much great info on this thread. I apologize if I missed the answer to this question.
> 
> We are flying in on 3/18 and staying at the Hyatt at MCO before checking into to Riviera on 3/19. Our plan is to leave MCO early and head straight to AK until we can get into our room. My question is this.. can I purchase an ILL for FoP at 7AM or will I have to wait until park open (9AM as of now) since we won't have checked in yet.
> 
> Thanks!


You will be allowed to purchase it at 7AM as you are checking into a Disney resort that day.


----------



## wisblue

g-dad66 said:


> The 7:10-7:15 am time range. My theory is that 7am bookings are held for 10 minutes until the booking is completed, and some of them don't get completed (for whatever reason).



To second this, I would start checking about 7:08 because some times do seem to pop up about then on some days. But 7:10 or very shortly after is when a lot of times have appeared on every day that I have tried it, both at home and onsite. And those times are usually available for a few minutes as compared to the initial crush at 7 when they’re typically gone within a minute.

As a live example, on the Sunday of the Marathon I wanted to get the earliest time possible for Slinky because I expected two of my daughters to be running through the park around 10:30 and I wanted to be there to see them.

I tried to book a time at the stroke of 7 from the Springs bus stop at SSR but when I hit the tip board the app froze and I had to close and restart it. In the 15 seconds or so that took the return times were out into the afternoon and of no use to me because we were going to MK after the marathon. 

On the bus on the way to DHS I kept refreshing starting at about 7:08 and was able to snag a return time of 9:10. Armed with that I was able to do TOT (RNRC was down), TSMM, SDD, MFSR (single rider), and Star Tours before getting over to the marathon course on Sunset before 10:30.


----------



## wisblue

conshykid said:


> In everyone's opinion, is genie+ worth the cost or should I just use lightning lane?



So much depends on exactly how you would use Genie+ and how much dollar value you put on being able to avoid standing in lines.

I have found Genie+ to be totally worth the cost, especially when combined with early entry, IALL, and park hopping. It shouldn’t be difficult to save waits of 30 minutes or longer (and sometimes significantly longer) on at least 3 attractions in a day. Especially at MK it Isn’t hard to get more than 3 useful LL reservations with Genie+. 

I do think it makes sense to purchase Genie+ on a daily basis instead of adding it to a ticket unless you are sure you will need to use it every day.  The value of Genie+ seems to be a lot lower if Epcot or DAK will be your only park of the day, and may not not be worth it on every day of a longer trip.

Just one person’s opinion.


----------



## CJK

If anyone is there now (or recently), have you still been prompted to enter a security code when using G+ or ILL? When we were there last November, I remember having to enter the security code sent to my email address, multiple times. 

The reason I ask, is that I want to help a friend later this month book some of her 7am rides. However, I won't have access to her email address, so if I am prompted to enter a security code when booking G+ or ILL, I'm out of luck. Have you found that this security code issue is ONLY with G+ or ONLY with ILL, then maybe I could book the ride that doesn't require the email code. TIA!!


----------



## Duck143

wisblue said:


> To second this, I would start checking about 7:08 because some times do seem to pop up about then on some days. But 7:10 or very shortly after is when a lot of times have appeared on every day that I have tried it, both at home and onsite. And those times are usually available for a few minutes as compared to the initial crush at 7 when they’re typically gone within a minute.
> 
> As a live example, on the Sunday of the Marathon I wanted to get the earliest time possible for Slinky because I expected two of my daughters to be running through the park around 10:30 and I wanted to be there to see them.
> 
> I tried to book a time at the stroke of 7 from the Springs bus stop at SSR but when I hit the tip board the app froze and I had to close and restart it. In the 15 seconds or so that took the return times were out into the afternoon and of no use to me because we were going to MK after the marathon.
> 
> On the bus on the way to DHS I kept refreshing starting at about 7:08 and was able to snag a return time of 9:10. Armed with that I was able to do TOT (RNRC was down), TSMM, SDD, MFSR (single rider), and Star Tours before getting over to the marathon course on Sunset before 10:30.


With how this works, would you wait until 7:08am to book an early G+ for SDD or would you still plan on 7am try to get the earliest G+ time.  I think we'll want to ride this pretty early and I know you're out of luck once you book.


----------



## LSUmiss

Is there anyway to choose an available time or do you just have to book the time available at the time you check genie plus?


----------



## bambialways4ever

LSUmiss said:


> Is there anyway to choose an available time or do you just have to book the time available at the time you check genie plus?


You can't pick and choose for a later time. You can only pick what time it is showing you right now


----------



## LSUmiss

bambialways4ever said:


> You can't pick and choose for a later time. You can only pick what time it is showing you right now


That’s what I thought. I just don’t understand how this is working for ppl when it’s crowded? I’ve tried it on 3 different trips with the strategies. I finally stopped paying for it. I usually can only get like maybe 2-3 rides in before times are way later in the day. So then I am just waiting around for my lightening lane time. Am I missing something? Have ppl had success during busy times?


----------



## wisblue

CJK said:


> If anyone is there now (or recently), have you still been prompted to enter a security code when using G+ or ILL? When we were there last November, I remember having to enter the security code sent to my email address, multiple times.
> 
> The reason I ask, is that I want to help a friend later this month book some of her 7am rides. However, I won't have access to her email address, so if I am prompted to enter a security code when booking G+ or ILL, I'm out of luck. Have you found that this security code issue is ONLY with G+ or ONLY with ILL, then maybe I could book the ride that doesn't require the email code. TIA!!



I just returned from a trip and I was not asked once for a security code. In November I was asked for one a couple of times. When it happened it seemed to be when I was doing something that involved a payment, like  purchasing Genie+, an IALL reservation, or  a mobile food order, but not making a Genie+ reservation after Genie+ was purchased for the day. Others have reported being asked even when no payment was involved.

If you have a choice I would concentrate on things that don’t require a new payment, like making a G+ reservation for Slinky, as opposed to buying an IALL for Rise of the Resistance.


----------



## wisblue

Duck143 said:


> With how this works, would you wait until 7:08am to book an early G+ for SDD or would you still plan on 7am try to get the earliest G+ time.  I think we'll want to ride this pretty early and I know you're out of luck once you book.



if you wanted the earliest time, I would try at 7:00:00 and see if you can land something. The times that come up at 7:10 or so sometimes include very early times, but those can disappear pretty quickly. I was lucky enough to snag a 9:10 return at 7:10, but I wouldn‘t bet on being able to repeat that every day. 

I would suggest that you decide in advance how late is too late for you and take whatever you can get before that. I look at the 7:10 times as a second chance if you couldn’t get an acceptable time (or any time at all) right at 7.

For anyone looking for a late morning, afternoon, or evening time those should be pretty easy to get at 7:10 as long as things continue the way they have been.


----------



## DisneyLover1217

l'm not sure if this was discussed.  I thought you could buy Genie + ahead of time, but when I tried I could only buy today, not for my trip next week.  TIA


----------



## bambialways4ever

DisneyLover1217 said:


> l'm not sure if this was discussed.  I thought you could buy Genie + ahead of time, but when I tried I could only buy today, not for my trip next week.  TIA


Yes, this is how it works. You either buy it when you buy your tickets, or you buy it after midnight the day you visit.


----------



## DisneyLover1217

bambialways4ever said:


> Yes, this is how it works. You either buy it when you buy your tickets, or you buy it after midnight the day you visit.



Thank you so much.  I have an AP, guess I will always have to buy day of.


----------



## CJK

DisneyLover1217 said:


> Thank you so much.  I have an AP, guess I will always have to buy day of.


AP holders have to buy it day of. We don't have the option to buy in advance.


----------



## MinnieMSue

For ILL purchases do you always have to enter the credit card/gift card info or is your stored card for online checkin at the resort an option to quickly click on to pay?


----------



## DisneyLover1217

CJK said:


> AP holders have to buy it day of. We don't have the option to buy in advance.



Thank you!


----------



## CarolynFH

MinnieMSue said:


> For ILL purchases do you always have to enter the credit card/gift card info or is your stored card for online checkin at the resort an option to quickly click on to pay?


This morning when buying an ILL$ I had options for entering GC or rewards card, Apple Pay, a different CC, or the default card that’s linked to my MDE account. Lots of choices, obviously the MDE default CC was easy.


----------



## WIll C

The thing I notice on it, when going to buy something, is that it will ask for your password to log in again that first time. Make sure to have that ready or you will lose time and maybe the slot you want. 
We didn't use it much this trip, mainly because my wife has DAS, but we did buy ILL$ for FoP and MMRR just to make sure we got them at the time we wanted and intermixed DAS return times so we get things done quickly and she can come back to rest in the afternoon.
I notice that RotR disappears quickly, while FoP is much more available, even after park entry but certainly later in the day. We still have afternoon slots open mid-day.


----------



## bambialways4ever

WIll C said:


> The thing I notice on it, when going to buy something, is that it will ask for your password to log in again that first time. Make sure to have that ready or you will lose time and maybe the slot you want.
> We didn't use it much this trip, mainly because my wife has DAS, but we did buy ILL$ for FoP and MMRR just to make sure we got them at the time we wanted and intermixed DAS return times so we get things done quickly and she can come back to rest in the afternoon.
> I notice that RotR disappears quickly, while FoP is much more available, even after park entry but certainly later in the day. We still have afternoon slots open mid-day.


This is helpful, thanks. We will be utilizing DAS too, and due to the reasons for needing it will need to rest in the afternoon. It's good to know with intermixing you were able to accomplish a lot and do this.


----------



## twodogs

LSUmiss said:


> That’s what I thought. I just don’t understand how this is working for ppl when it’s crowded? I’ve tried it on 3 different trips with the strategies. I finally stopped paying for it. I usually can only get like maybe 2-3 rides in before times are way later in the day. So then I am just waiting around for my lightening lane time. Am I missing something? Have ppl had success during busy times?


Do not just look at the time offered in the app or “no longer available”.  Refresh for better times.  We went the week of Christmas and got many more LLs than that.  But were wiling to stop for 5 minutes and all refresh on our phones to get a better time.  Almost always got a substantially better time.


----------



## LSUmiss

twodogs said:


> Do not just look at the time offered in the app or “no longer available”.  Refresh for better times.  We went the week of Christmas and got many more LLs than that.  But were wiling to stop for 5 minutes and all refresh on our phones to get a better time.  Almost always got a substantially better time.


I did that during thanksgiving with no luck .


----------



## wisblue

LSUmiss said:


> That’s what I thought. I just don’t understand how this is working for ppl when it’s crowded? I’ve tried it on 3 different trips with the strategies. I finally stopped paying for it. I usually can only get like maybe 2-3 rides in before times are way later in the day. So then I am just waiting around for my lightening lane time. Am I missing something? Have ppl had success during busy times?



One way it works is for people who take a midday break and return to the park or park hop later. You can get one or two LL rides in the morning and then start taking times for later.

Or, if you can’t be at the park at opening, like on an arrival day or when participating in Run Disney events, you can stack times for later in the day.


----------



## LSUfan4444

LSUmiss said:


> That’s what I thought.* I just don’t understand how this is working for ppl when it’s crowded? *I’ve tried it on 3 different trips with the strategies. I finally stopped paying for it. I usually can only get like maybe 2-3 rides in before times are way later in the day. So then I am just waiting around for my lightening lane time. Am I missing something? Have ppl had success during busy times?



We have only been using it in Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios and only on days we decide we can't or won't rope drop. For our last week trip, we bought it three days and probably only used it 2-3 times each day as well but it was never about quantity of attractions for us to dictate it's value, it's about an overall time savings so if I am rope dropping, I don't need it that day. If I am using evening extra hours, I don't need it that day. We've just accepted we won't even do Flight of Passage because I am not willing to rope drop there or risk an over inflated morning standby time. To us, Hollywood Studios has become a half day park on multiple days with each day focusing on a different area. One day is a later arrival GE using ILLs and G+ and another day is a rope drop knocking out ToT and RNR.


----------



## Chuck96

I understand the 2/day limit for ILL$.  If I am attending DAK with no hopping, I assume I can't pay for FoP twice with EE undergoing renovation.  So I just eat the other opportunity.  I'm okay if that is the answer, but my kid loves FoP.  If I can throw him on it twice, I'd consider it.


----------



## Thomasboys

When staying on-site and the 7a window opens up to book LL and the ILL, which one do you want to do first?  For example, at Hollywood Studios does it make the most sense to get your ILL first and then your lighting lane selection?  Or one person in your party to work on one and the other to work on the other one?  Do I need to train my husband???  He's a good sport about learning Disney strategy for our trips.  Last year when we had to get ROTR virtual queue he took instruction well...hahahaha!


----------



## Orsino

It depends if you want Slinky or not. If not, then there is less worry, but if you are:
Conventional wisdom is to do both at the same time. 
If not able to do that, then do Slinky first, followed by ILL.


----------



## Thomasboys

One more LL question -- any good insight as far as order to go for things in each park?  Specifically AK, MK, and Epcot?  Does the order for which LL to snag typically follow most ride strategy?


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Chuck96 said:


> I understand the 2/day limit for ILL$.  If I am attending DAK with no hopping, I assume I can't pay for FoP twice with EE undergoing renovation.  So I just eat the other opportunity.  I'm okay if that is the answer, but my kid loves FoP.  If I can throw him on it twice, I'd consider it.


No, I don’t think you can pay for the same attraction twice.


----------



## KTwiegs

Thomasboys said:


> One more LL question -- any good insight as far as order to go for things in each park?  Specifically AK, MK, and Epcot?  Does the order for which LL to snag typically follow most ride strategy?


we are going in two weeks and trying to learn as much about genie+ as we can too, I will say the all ears channel on youtube has the BEST videos about genie+ i have learn so much from them and feel a lot more confident about using it now.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Thomasboys said:


> One more LL question -- any good insight as far as order to go for things in each park?  Specifically AK, MK, and Epcot?  Does the order for which LL to snag typically follow most ride strategy?


I did try to buy myself a later time after I bought the ILL$ for FoP and it would not let me select myself since I already had a time.  I could have selected someone else in the party and used their magic band I guess.


----------



## ckelly14

Some help would be appreciated:

Heading to WDW in April.  Only 4 days for the parks and I have 2 park reservations for HS as my son is a big Star Wars guy.

Perhaps I should pick one day to hop to HS instead and plan a late night there give the "stackability"?


----------



## Brian4891

Just an FYI.  I’m here this week and for the most part have had a good experience with all the genie plus stuff.  For the rides that move quickly at the 7am opening, it is pretty tough to nail down the time that you want.  The time you initially click on is not necessarily the time you are going to end up with.  This was especially the case for me on RIse of the Resistance.  

For the Paid LL, after you first select the time you want, there are a few more pages to click through.  There’s a select your party page, credit card card payment page, and I think one other.  This process takes about 10 seconds if you’re quick.  During that time, things change.  I had originally clicked on a 2pm Rise of the Resistance.  By the time I was all done, the time I had been assigned was 6:30.  This was fine and I adjusted our schedule to make it work, but just throwing it out there so people can be prepared that there is not much certainty when it comes to the hot attractions.

For the regular genie plus attractions that you do not pay extra for it’s a bit simpler.  Since there is no credit card (you already paid for genie plus) there is only one page to click through after selecting your time.  For Slinky Dog this morning I clicked on a 7pm time and got assigned a 7:30-8:30 time slot.


----------



## ENJDisneyFan

Anyone have tips for managing G+ with a large (4 families/18 people total) party?  Normally I would manage all the plans for everyone, but I understand I can only have 12 people in my party for G+.  So just wondering if anyone has experience with splitting into 2 groups and trying to coordinate?  I'm thinking it will be pretty difficult and possibly not worth the effort.  Thoughts?

ETA:  This would be for a day at DHS in March (spring break time)


----------



## wisblue

ckelly14 said:


> Some help would be appreciated:
> 
> Heading to WDW in April.  Only 4 days for the parks and I have 2 park reservations for HS as my son is a big Star Wars guy.
> 
> Perhaps I should pick one day to hop to HS instead and plan a late night there give the "stackability"?



There‘s something to be said for that approach.

With 4 full park days we like to visit each park at least once. Now with park reservations we make a reservation in each park and use early entry, park hopping, Genie+, and IALL to do all of our favorite things (and more). We also usually have a break outside the parks in between our first and second park.

For a trip we have planned in late March, our rough plan is:

Day 1- MK, hop to Epcot (Harmonious)
Day 2- DHS- early and late, probably with midday break.
Day 3- DAK, hop to MK (Fireworks)
Day 4- Epcot (lunch at Via Napoli, our favorite), second park will be decided day of based on what we feel like.

Generally I’ll get one, or maybe 2 Genie+ LL at the first park and then start making them for late afternoon and early evening at the second park. Because there are more of our favorite attractions at MK and DHS than at Epcot and DAK, most of our LL reservations will be at those two parks. We’ll also probably use IALL for ROTR, FOP, and Remy to avoid early rushes and long lines for those.


----------



## Donna M

Are we locked into a time if we buy ROTR and they move the time out from when we initial grab it?  We are only doing a half day at HS so can´t be stuck with a late afternoon slot if I thought I was choosing an early one.  I know you can´t cancel, but what if they don´t give you what you initially asked for?

What would be the best strategy for SSD, ROTH, and Smugglers Run along with whatever else we can get into the morning using rope drop?


----------



## wisblue

In my experience, the time for ROTR doesn’t change after you buy it. The time you are able to buy may change from what you select, but if you elect to purchase that is the time you get.

For example, on the Tip Board the time shown will presumably be the earliest return time available at that time. If you click on that time, you will be offered the chance to choose a return time. By then the earliest available return time might be later than what you clicked on. Then when you select a time to purchase, and proceed from there, the time offered might be later than what you chose. But, if you then click to purchase the time offered, and proceed to payment, you should get that time.

The important thing is to always check what time is being offered and not to assume that you will get what you first clicked on.

If you pay and the time you get isn’t something you can use, I would go to one of the Guest Experience Team umbrellas and see if they can help you get a different time or five you a refund.


----------



## wisblue

Donna M said:


> What would be the best strategy for SSD, ROTH, and Smugglers Run along with whatever else we can get into the morning using rope drop?



The best strategy depends on things like (1) if you are staying onsite and are willing and able to get to early entry on or shortly after 7:30 (for a 9 AM opening), (2) whether you are willing to wait in a crush of people to be one of the first to one of the most popular attractions,  (3) which attractions are your highest priorities, (4) how much of the day you intend to spend in the park, and (5) your tolerance for standing in a longer (over 30 minutes) standby line or two.

I’m not trying to make this more complicated than it has to be, but the best strategy isn’t the same for everyone. We have approaches that work well for us, but some people have completely different styles and priorities.

At DHS our approach is:

(1) At 7 AM get a LL for SDD for the earliest time possible and an IALL for ROTR for about 10:30. It might take at least two people trying to get both of those. ROTR is my first priority because I want an earlier time to provide a cushion for the frequent breakdowns. If I can’t get a good time for Slinky I would default to MFSR, the second most popular G+ attraction at DHS.

(2) We get to the park close to 7:30 and go to Sunset Boulevard to queue up for TOT. The number of people that go that way is a tiny fraction of the early entrants, so the wait there is much less crowded. Some members of our group will go to Starbucks while I get a spot in line and they join me after they get their drinks.

(3) Once they open the attractions we are usually on the first elevator on TOT. When we get off there we go directly to RNRC (if it’s running) and do that quickly. Getting through both TOT and RNRC usually takes about 20 minutes.

(4) After exiting RNRC we go back up Sunset Blvd. If we don’t plan to get an IALL for MMRR we check the line there to see if we want to wait. After that we would focus on SDD, MFSR, and TSMM, depending on what our first LL return time is.

With early entry and LL it should be possible to do all of the major ride attractions with maybe 1 wait of over 30 minutes.

Maybe some parts of this approach will work for you, but it could be adapted to use EE for SDD or one of the GE attractions and LL for RNRC and TOT. I just like avoiding the big crowds as much as possible before the park opens and Sunset Boulevard is the best for that.


----------



## Thomasboys

Can you use Genie+ to do the same ride more than once throughout the day?  Or do you only get each attraction once?  For example, if you were to get a LL for TSM from 11-12p and then later in the day when you can get another LL, can you get another TSM for 4-6 (for example)?


----------



## Tess

Thomasboys said:


> Can you use Genie+ to do the same ride more than once throughout the day?  Or do you only get each attraction once?  For example, if you were to get a LL for TSM from 11-12p and then later in the day when you can get another LL, can you get another TSM for 4-6 (for example)?



No.


----------



## SLThomas318

Thomasboys said:


> Can you use Genie+ to do the same ride more than once throughout the day?  Or do you only get each attraction once?  For example, if you were to get a LL for TSM from 11-12p and then later in the day when you can get another LL, can you get another TSM for 4-6 (for example)?


No, each ride only once.


----------



## Joe in VA

What time is ROTR typically running out? I've checked at 7:30 the last four days and it always says not available.


----------



## ruthies12

Joe in VA said:


> What time is ROTR typically running out? I've checked at 7:30 the last four days and it always says not available.



I was watching the app this morning and it was gone by 7:02.


----------



## Donna M

Joe in VA said:


> What time is ROTR typically running out? I've checked at 7:30 the last four days and it always says not available.


I saw someone post their screen shot of it gone at 7:00:30.  I hope that was a busy day because I am not that fast.


----------



## NJlauren

The ride time issue is stressing me out!  Worst case we don’t ride, but we need to head back to the hotel at 3, to head to the airport.   I get a time early in the day.

I am guessing I just select the earliest time and hope I get it?


----------



## wisblue

For ROTR, like SDD, if you can’t get a time you can use right at 7, keep trying. Some times usually pop up, especially a couple of minutes before or after 7:10, and those times often stay available for a couple of minutes. You might not be able to get the very earliest times, but there’s a good chance you can get something.


----------



## JessiMommy

From what I'm reading, it doesn't seem likely to even get a Ill for ROTR at all, let alone prior to 4 PM when we plan on leaving HS for the day? Is the better option to try it at rope drop? Obviously I'll try to get the Ill at 7 AM but if I'm not successful, is rope dropping this ride my best option?


----------



## ENJDisneyFan

JessiMommy said:


> Obviously I'll try to get the Ill at 7 AM but if I'm not successful, is rope dropping this ride my best option?


Yes - especially if you are onsite and can do early entry.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

So for all the people who lamented BGs for ROTR being difficult to obtain via the virtual queue "lottery"... how do you like having to enter a similar "lottery" that fills up in a minute or two allowing you the privilege of paying extra for a BG?  

But, hey... at least we can choose to wait in the SB line now (for 1, 2, or 3+ hours).


----------



## wisblue

Grumpy by Birth said:


> So for all the people who lamented BGs for ROTR being difficult to obtain via the virtual queue "lottery"... how do you like having to enter a similar "lottery" that fills up in a minute or two allowing you the privilege of paying extra for a BG?
> 
> But, hey... at least we can choose to wait in the SB line now (for 1, 2, or 3+ hours).



I really prefer the IALL because you get a set return time and can work around it. The two times we have had IALL for ROTR we walked right through the queue to be loaded to the first pre show. With the VQ once our time was called we still had to wait 30-45 minutes to get that far.

And, at least there is the standby alternative for people who really want to do the ride but can’t get an LL.

Paying for the IALL presumably provides a deterrent to the people who would grab spots in the VQ every day for a week and then come to the Dis to brag about the low BGs they were able to grab. While the LL spots for ROTR can run out within a minute, that’s still an improvement over the VQ which was typically gone within 15 seconds.

I can’t prove it, but I would bet heavily that the LL system results in more guests being able to experience the attraction once during their trips. 

(I realize that this isn’t really an appropriate topic for the strategy thread, but I wanted to provide an alternative opinion to the OP’s complaint.)


----------



## wisblue

JessiMommy said:


> From what I'm reading, it doesn't seem likely to even get a Ill for ROTR at all, let alone prior to 4 PM when we plan on leaving HS for the day? Is the better option to try it at rope drop? Obviously I'll try to get the Ill at 7 AM but if I'm not successful, is rope dropping this ride my best option?



See my previous post (#2848). Your chances of getting something before 4 PM might be a lot better than you think.

Using the “7;10 approach” should give you a good chance of getting something in the late morning or early afternoon.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

wisblue said:


> I really prefer the IALL because you get a set return time and can work around it. The two times we have had IALL for ROTR we walked right through the queue to be loaded to the first pre show. With the VQ once our time was called we still had to wait 30-45 minutes to get that far.
> 
> And, at least there is the standby alternative for people who really want to do the ride but can’t get an LL.
> 
> Paying for the IALL presumably provides a deterrent to the people who would grab spots in the VQ every day for a week and then come to the Dis to brag about the low BGs they were able to grab. While the LL spots for ROTR can run out within a minute, that’s still an improvement over the VQ which was typically gone within 15 seconds.
> 
> I can’t prove it, but I would bet heavily that the LL system results in more guests being able to experience the attraction once during their trips.
> 
> (I realize that this isn’t really an appropriate topic for the strategy thread, but I wanted to provide an alternative opinion to the OP’s complaint.)


Based on a lot of reports here, there are a fair number of people unable to get the PAID "BG" for ROTR.  My point is that it's still a lottery to a large extent.  If you "win" you get to pay for a relatively short wait "BG."  But even if you're willing to pay, you might not "win the lottery" to be eligible to do so, in which case, your only alternative is a very lengthy SB line.  I'd acknowledge that having the option to wait in SB is at least a slight improvement over being completely blocked out, but for most people who are not willing to wait for hours, it still boils down to having to "win the lottery" at 7 am to pay for a reasonable wait.

It also appears that staying onsite is a significant part of the G+/ILL$ strategy, because many off-site guests don't even get a chance to enter the ILL$ lottery, which is selling out for the day before they're even eligible to try and purchase it.


----------



## bambialways4ever

I know we discuss a lot on here about DHS Genie+ strategies, but we are more worried about our MK Day and getting the most out of it because there are SO many rides at MK. 

I would love to hear people's strategies and what has and hasn't worked for Genie+ at MK!!!!


----------



## Brian4891

wisblue said:


> In my experience, the time for ROTR doesn’t change after you buy it. The time you are able to buy may change from what you select, but if you elect to purchase that is the time you get.
> 
> For example, on the Tip Board the time shown will presumably be the earliest return time available at that time. If you click on that time, you will be offered the chance to choose a return time. By then the earliest available return time might be later than what you clicked on. Then when you select a time to purchase, and proceed from there, the time offered might be later than what you chose. But, if you then click to purchase the time offered, and proceed to payment, you should get that time.
> 
> The important thing is to always check what time is being offered and not to assume that you will get what you first clicked on.
> 
> If you pay and the time you get isn’t something you can use, I would go to one of the Guest Experience Team umbrellas and see if they can help you get a different time or five you a refund.



When I did mine, I was going so fast that I did not even look at what time I was being offered when I clicked the final button. I only realized what I ended up with when everything was over at which point I realized it was 4 hours later than I started with.
Most things are not like this but Rise of  the Resistance definitely is since you are paying and it goes quickly at 7am.


----------



## lindsroc

bambialways4ever said:


> Yes, this is how it works. You either buy it when you buy your tickets, or you buy it after midnight the day you visit.



I added it to my tickets this week, after they had already been purchased.  I just went into the app and went to "change ticket."


----------



## riversend22

Question regarding using Genie+ with friends and family. I think giving an example would be best to articulate my question:

If I bought tickets for my sister and her daughter and they stay under my management on MDE, am I the only one who will be able to/need to tap into the fast passes when entering the lightning lanes? OR will my sister also be able to use her own magic mobile to tap in, even if the tickets are under my MDE?  As a better example, if I make a lightning pass for ToT and she decides to make a different one for RnRC, will she be able to use her phone to tap into the fastpass? Is it even possible to make two different fast passes as long as they don't involve the other members of the group that already have one?

So to sum up, do ticket assignments have any bearing on tapping into things while in the parks? Also, does everyone needs to tap in when entering a ride or does only one person in the group need to do it? Thanks all!


----------



## CJK

If you allow your sister and her daughter to login to your MDE on their phones, your plan would work fine. They would still need to tap in for rides with their magic mobile, or with their magic bands, etc.. They need access to your MDE in order to book rides, and each person can book a different ride. You don't all have to pick the same ones. Each person needs to tap in when entering a ride (not just one person of the group). Hope this helps!


----------



## riversend22

CJK said:


> If you allow your sister and her daughter to login to your MDE on their phones, your plan would work fine. They would still need to tap in for rides with their magic mobile, or with their magic bands, etc.. They need access to your MDE in order to book rides, and each person can book a different ride. You don't all have to pick the same ones. Each person needs to tap in when entering a ride (not just one person of the group). Hope this helps!



It does, thank you! To expand on what you said, if I reassign the tickets to my sister, then she wouldn't have to sign into my MDE, and could sign into her own correct?

Also, if my niece doesn't have a phone, would she then need either a card or a magic band to tap in?


----------



## dmunsil

riversend22 said:


> If I bought tickets for my sister and her daughter and they stay under my management on MDE, am I the only one who will be able to/need to tap into the fast passes when entering the lightning lanes? OR will my sister also be able to use her own magic mobile to tap in, even if the tickets are under my MDE?



You can absolutely manage everyone using just one MDE account if each person has their own MagicBand or hard plastic ticket. I believe each person using MagicMobile to use their phone to tap in needs their own account. If two people are logged in to the same account on two different phones, I'm pretty sure those phones will both register as the same person when tapping in.


----------



## wisblue

bambialways4ever said:


> I know we discuss a lot on here about DHS Genie+ strategies, but we are more worried about our MK Day and getting the most out of it because there are SO many rides at MK.
> 
> I would love to hear people's strategies and what has and hasn't worked for Genie+ at MK!!!!



Because of the number of G+ attractions at MK it works really well there. Like every other park the specific strategy depends on whether you’re using early entry and how long you’ll be in the park.

One general strategy for using Genie+ at MK is to focus on attractions that you want to do for which the return times move out into the afternoon the quickest. Jungle Cruise and Peter Pan are two examples of that.

We really like using Genie+ for hopping to MK in the afternoon. It is possible to stack attractions so they can be used one after another without waiting. For example, on the Saturday of the half marathon, making one reservation every two hours starting in late morning we were able to get LL slots for JC, BTMRR, and HM with return times like 3:30, 4:00, and 4:30. After using HM we got one for Small World with an almost immediate return time that we used after getting something to eat at Pinocchios.

We didn’t do it, but it would have been possible to use Genie + to do some of the  minor attractions like the Speedway, Pooh, Buzz, etc. Those attractions didn’t have long waits, but Genie+ can provide you an opportunity to walk right on them instead of waiting 20-30 minutes.


----------



## wisblue

Grumpy by Birth said:


> Based on a lot of reports here, there are a fair number of people unable to get the PAID "BG" for ROTR.  My point is that it's still a lottery to a large extent.  If you "win" you get to pay for a relatively short wait "BG."  But even if you're willing to pay, you might not "win the lottery" to be eligible to do so, in which case, your only alternative is a very lengthy SB line.  I'd acknowledge that having the option to wait in SB is at least a slight improvement over being completely blocked out, but for most people who are not willing to wait for hours, it still boils down to having to "win the lottery" at 7 am to pay for a reasonable wait.
> 
> It also appears that staying onsite is a significant part of the G+/ILL$ strategy, because many off-site guests don't even get a chance to enter the ILL$ lottery, which is selling out for the day before they're even eligible to try and purchase it.



Yes, staying onsite provides an advantage in gaining access to ROTR, both in the form of early entry and access to the first shots at IALL.

People often say there aren’t enough advantages to staying onsite, but I guess this is one.

For guests staying offsite the option is there to wait in line, and doing it first thing in the morning or last thing before park closing are the best bets for the shortest possible waits.

It‘s exactly the same as the choices we faced when we wanted to see Diagon Alley and do the Gringott’s  ride at USO the summer it opened. Because they allowed their onsite guests first access to the ride, we arrived an hour before open, waited until they allowed offsite guests in, joined a mad crush to the area, and got into a line with a posted wait of 150 minutes, that ended up being about 90 minutes.

Doing the newest, most popular attractions at major theme parks often requires some planning and sacrifice, either in the form of money or time or both.


----------



## ENJDisneyFan

Grumpy by Birth said:


> It also appears that staying onsite is a significant part of the G+/ILL$ strategy, because many off-site guests don't even get a chance to enter the ILL$ lottery, which is selling out for the day before they're even eligible to try and purchase it.


This is true.  I stayed offsite in November (Thanksgiving week) and ILL$ passes for ROTR were gone well before I could have purchased.  However, we arrived early for rope drop and headed straight to Rise and only waited about 40 minutes.  Maybe we got lucky, but I didn't find that to be too bad.


----------



## wisblue

ENJDisneyFan said:


> This is true.  I stayed offsite in November (Thanksgiving week) and ILL$ passes for ROTR were gone well before I could have purchased.  However, we arrived early for rope drop and headed straight to Rise and only waited about 40 minutes.  Maybe we got lucky, but I didn't find that to be too bad.



Do you remember what the posted wait time was when you got in the standby line? 

Right at opening it is common for the standby lines to be “blocked” in a way that makes them look a lot longer than they really are, and for posted wait times to be inflated significantly in anticipation of the line building quickly.


----------



## ENJDisneyFan

wisblue said:


> Do you remember what the posted wait time was when you got in the standby line?
> 
> Right at opening it is common for the standby lines to be “blocked” in a way that makes them look a lot longer than they really are, and for posted wait times to be inflated significantly in anticipation of the line building quickly.


It was posted at 50 minutes.


----------



## Ohiostatefan606

wisblue said:


> Do you remember what the posted wait time was when you got in the standby line?
> 
> Right at opening it is common for the standby lines to be “blocked” in a way that makes them look a lot longer than they really are, and for posted wait times to be inflated significantly in anticipation of the line building quickly.



The other piece to add to the Rope Dropping popular rides, the amount of time it takes to even get to the ride.  It was 2 years ago, but we were at HS early, because you had to be in the park to get in the virtual queue for ROTR.  But we were in the pack walking to Smugglers Run.  They snaked us through Galaxy's Edge, then through the entire queue line, it was 25 minutes before we stopped walking.  But we were inside the building and past Rey's speeder.  So we walked for 25 minutes and then waited about 20 minutes to actually ride.


----------



## jade1

wisblue said:


> Do you remember what the posted wait time was when you got in the standby line?
> 
> Right at opening it is common for the standby lines to be “blocked” in a way that makes them look a lot longer than they really are, and for posted wait times to be inflated significantly in anticipation of the line building quickly.






ENJDisneyFan said:


> It was posted at 50 minutes.



Thanks, have friends staying at BCV one night in a couple weeks.

They really want to try to RoTR, so if they fail at the 7AM purchase, is the next best step to walk to DHS RD and directly to ROTR SB? How early should that be? I assume the Skyliner could work as well, just have heard the connection at CBR can be really long to DHS first thing.


----------



## jade1

Oh also wondering if they can "attempt" to purchase RoTR on "check in" day at 7AM from the US Hotel they are checking out of.-or do you have to be checked in-meaning the next morning is your first shot.


----------



## elgerber

jade1 said:


> Thanks, have friends staying at BCV one night in a couple weeks.
> 
> They really want to try to RoTR, so if they fail at the 7AM purchase, is the next best step to walk to DHS RD and directly to ROTR SB? How early should that be? I assume the Skyliner could work as well, just have heard the connection at CBR can be really long to DHS first thing.


I would NOT use the Skyliner from Beach Club. I would walk for sure.


----------



## scrappinginontario

jade1 said:


> Oh also wondering if they can "attempt" to purchase RoTR on "check in" day at 7AM from the US Hotel they are checking out of.-or do you have to be checked in-meaning the next morning is your first shot.


Yes, you may purchase ILL$ attractions from wherever you are on your check-in day.


----------



## SwanVT2

Is it worth it to purchase Genie + for one day at AK? Also, if we do get Genie, what is the best strategy for using it at AK? Thank you!


----------



## scrappinginontario

SwanVT2 said:


> Is it worth it to purchase Genie + for one day at AK? Also, if we do get Genie, what is the best strategy for using it at AK? Thank you!


I have not heard of anyone who feels Genie + is beneficial at AK so there are very few (if any) reports.  Personally, we don't plan to purchase it for our upcoming AK day.


----------



## LarryBoy

I keep seeing a lot of you mention stacking your LL and ILL$ but I can't find exactly how you do that. What's the best way to stack?


----------



## GBRforWDW

SwanVT2 said:


> Is it worth it to purchase Genie + for one day at AK? Also, if we do get Genie, what is the best strategy for using it at AK? Thank you!


I got it Christmas week.  Worth it?  Debatable, but we didn't stand in line for anything we wanted to do.   Rode Navi, dinosaur and Kilimanjaro Safari as well as watched Festival of the Lion King.  Could have done a few other things as well.  We were in the park less than 8 hours and it was raining most of the day, so was nice in that perspective.  I probably wouldn't get it at AK again unless we were going on a busy holiday week though.


----------



## jbish

Our upcoming trip will be during the week leading up to Easter (Tue-Sat).  I'm mentally prepared for it to be the worst crowd levels I've ever experienced so I'd love some insight for those that experienced the Christmas/New Year's crowds this year as it relates to G+.  I've never been during this week of Spring Break - we had a trip in 2020 planned maximizing things like DAH and stuff, but, as you know....

Anyway, conventional wisdom here and on trusted blogs would say that G+ is not worth it for EP and AK.  But for this particular week, do we think it would be worth it?  Our arrival day, for example, we have a PR for EP.  Maybe start stacking LLs for the day as we're en route to Orlando?  (We land at MCO at 8:30 am and estimating we'd be in the parks by 11-12).  In trying to maximize the stacking strategy for this busy week and I'm researching a couple of different strategies:

RD reserved park to get a couple of rides in using early entry and stacking afternoon/evening rides at second park (i.e the "burning the candles at both ends" plan), or
skipping RD altogether and only going to reserved park and stacking afternoon/evening rides while taking it easy at the resort (my kids are perplexed that I would even consider not RDing)



wisblue said:


> We really like using Genie+ for hopping to MK in the afternoon. It is possible to stack attractions so they can be used one after another without waiting. For example, on the Saturday of the half marathon, making one reservation every two hours starting in late morning we were able to get LL slots for JC, BTMRR, and HM with return times like 3:30, 4:00, and 4:30. After using HM we got one for Small World with an almost immediate return time that we used after getting something to eat at Pinocchios.



So question here - on this day, did you have a reservation for MK or a different park that day?  Wondering how you were successful in getting only afternoon time slots.  I do worry that on this busy week, if I'm going with strategy #2, LL options will run out earlier in the day and so I may not have the luxury of just waiting for the times to refresh to the afternoons.  But I know if I set out to grab LL for my second park, I will only be given options after 2 pm. 

Appreciate any insights and suggestions!
[ETA: I drafted this post and didn't post for a couple of hours - thus my similar question to the one prior about getting it at AK]


----------



## TikiRob

SwanVT2 said:


> Is it worth it to purchase Genie + for one day at AK? Also, if we do get Genie, what is the best strategy for using it at AK? Thank you!



We also purchased at the end of December.  I find that Genie+ (and ILL$) all come down to an individual's value of _time vs. money_.

We used it for Navi River Journey, Dinosaur, Kilimanjaro Safaris and Expedition Everest (it was included that week). If I had to guess, we waited 20 minutes total for these rides vs. about 120 minutes in posted wait times. So we saved 100 minutes of standing in line for $30 (2 of us). We felt that was worth it. Of course there is also a "magical" feeling when you walk by all the people in the standby queue!

As far as strategy, I think stacking is hard here and would just book one early and just grab one at a time. If you wait two hours between, pickings could get slim in this park.


----------



## jbish

LarryBoy said:


> I keep seeing a lot of you mention stacking your LL and ILL$ but I can't find exactly how you do that. What's the best way to stack?


I am just now starting the learning process myself.  Finding out what this strategy is in this thread will be challenging.  I recommend just doing a Google search and going to a trusted blog.  I, personally, read about it from Disney Tourist Blog (I don't think the name of the site will get blocked out here - but it might.)  Then come back here and start reading people's specific questions and ask your own!  That's what I just did!


----------



## DiannaVM

LarryBoy said:


> I keep seeing a lot of you mention stacking your LL and ILL$ but I can't find exactly how you do that. What's the best way to stack?


I want to find this out too. First time going using Genie+.


----------



## g-dad66

LarryBoy said:


> I keep seeing a lot of you mention stacking your LL and ILL$ but I can't find exactly how you do that. What's the best way to stack?



Here is one example. This was November 6 at Hollywood Studios:

7:05 am:   Book Slinky Dog Dash for 5:25-6:25
11:00 am:  Book Millenium Falcon for 4:20-5:20
1:00 pm:   Book Tower of Terror for 7:30-8:30
3:00 pm:   Book Rock n Roller Coaster for 6:55-7:55
5:00 pm:   Could have booked Toy Story Mania for 6:30-7:30


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## g-dad66

ILLS are separate from Genie+, and we also booked them for Rise and for Runaway Railway in the late afternoon.


----------



## NJlauren

I have an MK day that will start after park hoping, so figure we arrive around 2.

However I don’t think I plan to use Genie in the morning at AK, what is a good first ride to select at 7 for MK that might have a return time of 2 or later?

It will be a few minutes after 7 as I’m going to buy ILL for FoP and Space.


----------



## DiannaVM

g-dad66 said:


> Here is one example. This was November 6 at Hollywood Studios:
> 
> 7:05 am:   Book Slinky Dog Dash for 5:25-6:25
> 11:00 am:  Book Millenium Falcon for 4:20-5:20
> 1:00 pm:   Book Tower of Terror for 7:30-8:30
> 3:00 pm:   Book Rock n Roller Coaster for 6:55-7:55
> 5:00 pm:   Could have booked Toy Story Mania for 6:30-7:30


OK, so does that mean that once you start booking, you can choose ANY return time for your Genie+ AND then you can book your ILL accordingly?


----------



## Ohiostatefan606

NJlauren said:


> I have an MK day that will start after park hoping, so figure we arrive around 2.
> 
> However I don’t think I plan to use Genie in the morning at AK, what is a good first ride to select at 7 for MK that might have a return time of 2 or later?
> 
> It will be a few minutes after 7 as I’m going to buy ILL for FoP and Space.


Based on what I've read (we don't go until mid-February).  If you have park hoppers and try to book a ride in the park you are hopping to, it will automatically push you after 2:00 pm.  Because you won't be at that park until 2:00 or later.


----------



## NJlauren

Ohiostatefan606 said:


> Based on what I've read (we don't go until mid-February).  If you have park hoppers and try to book a ride in the park you are hopping to, it will automatically push you after 2:00 pm.  Because you won't be at that park until 2:00 or later.



now this i like!


----------



## wisblue

jbish said:


> Our upcoming trip will be during the week leading up to Easter (Tue-Sat).  I'm mentally prepared for it to be the worst crowd levels I've ever experienced so I'd love some insight for those that experienced the Christmas/New Year's crowds this year as it relates to G+.  I've never been during this week of Spring Break - we had a trip in 2020 planned maximizing things like DAH and stuff, but, as you know....
> 
> Anyway, conventional wisdom here and on trusted blogs would say that G+ is not worth it for EP and AK.  But for this particular week, do we think it would be worth it?  Our arrival day, for example, we have a PR for EP.  Maybe start stacking LLs for the day as we're en route to Orlando?  (We land at MCO at 8:30 am and estimating we'd be in the parks by 11-12).  In trying to maximize the stacking strategy for this busy week and I'm researching a couple of different strategies:
> 
> RD reserved park to get a couple of rides in using early entry and stacking afternoon/evening rides at second park (i.e the "burning the candles at both ends" plan), or
> skipping RD altogether and only going to reserved park and stacking afternoon/evening rides while taking it easy at the resort (my kids are perplexed that I would even consider not RDing)
> 
> 
> So question here - on this day, did you have a reservation for MK or a different park that day?  Wondering how you were successful in getting only afternoon time slots.  I do worry that on this busy week, if I'm going with strategy #2, LL options will run out earlier in the day and so I may not have the luxury of just waiting for the times to refresh to the afternoons.  But I know if I set out to grab LL for my second park, I will only be given options after 2 pm.
> 
> Appreciate any insights and suggestions!



On that day, 4 family members were running the half marathon and I was out cheering them on at the TTC (mile 4) and Poly (Mile 8). Two of the runners didn‘t do a park that day because they were doing the marathon on Sunday. The other 2 and I had reservations at MK.

After the runners went through I walked over to MK and did a few rides before going to Disney Springs to meet the group for lunch.

Because we weren’t going to MK until later, we started making the LL reservations later in the morning as the return times moved into the 3-4 PM range: first JC, then BTMRR, then HM. We stayed at MK to see the fireworks at 8.

Genie+ allowed us to do 3 attractions that had pretty long standby lines at that time, plus Small World where the line was only about 20 minutes. We could have gotten a few more G+LL, but just opted for the Peoplemover before getting a spot for the fireworks. 

That day wasn’t typical for us because we usually are at a park for early entry, but what we did at MK could also be done if you started the day at DAK or Epcot, used maybe one or two LL early there (like for the Safari, or Test Track), and then started stacking LL at MK for the afternoon and evening. There aren’t that many things at DAK and Epcot where G+LL helps that much. 

I think MK is the best park for this approach  because of the number of attractions.  On busy days return times will obviously move into the afternoon faster, and at DHS the popular rides will run out sooner.


----------



## SwanVT2

GBRforWDW said:


> I got it Christmas week.  Worth it?  Debatable, but we didn't stand in line for anything we wanted to do.   Rode Navi, dinosaur and Kilimanjaro Safari as well as watched Festival of the Lion King.  Could have done a few other things as well.  We were in the park less than 8 hours and it was raining most of the day, so was nice in that perspective.  I probably wouldn't get it at AK again unless we were going on a busy holiday week though.


We will be there Wed. 2/23. Busy time? I'm not sure?


----------



## SwanVT2

TikiRob said:


> We also purchased at the end of December.  I find that Genie+ (and ILL$) all come down to an individual's value of _time vs. money_.
> 
> We used it for Navi River Journey, Dinosaur, Kilimanjaro Safaris and Expedition Everest (it was included that week). If I had to guess, we waited 20 minutes total for these rides vs. about 120 minutes in posted wait times. So we saved 100 minutes of standing in line for $30 (2 of us). We felt that was worth it. Of course there is also a "magical" feeling when you walk by all the people in the standby queue!
> 
> As far as strategy, I think stacking is hard here and would just book one early and just grab one at a time. If you wait two hours between, pickings could get slim in this park.


So once I use it for a ride, I can automatically book the next ride, right? Thank you!


----------



## Ohiostatefan606

SwanVT2 said:


> We will be there Wed. 2/23. Busy time? I'm not sure?


You are there during President's Day week, which is winter break for the upper east coast.  So the potential for crowds does exist.   I follow WDW Prep School for updated crowd calendars.  She always accounts for school breaks and cheer / dance / twirl competitions.


----------



## wisblue

LarryBoy said:


> I keep seeing a lot of you mention stacking your LL and ILL$ but I can't find exactly how you do that. What's the best way to stack?



If you are hopping to a second park, or won’t be arriving at a park until later in the day, you can make multiple LL reservations to use in the park when you arrive.

For example, if you are flying in and plan  to arrive at DHS about 2 PM, you can make a LL reservation at 7 AM, another at 11 AM (assuming a 9 AM park opening), and another at 1 PM. You would then have 3 LL reservations (plus any IALL reservations you choose to purchase) “stacked” and available to you when you arrive at the park.


----------



## SwanVT2

Ohiostatefan606 said:


> You are there during President's Day week, which is winter break for the upper east coast.  So the potential for crowds does exist.   I follow WDW Prep School for updated crowd calendars.  She always accounts for school breaks and cheer / dance / twirl competitions.





Ohiostatefan606 said:


> You are there during President's Day week, which is winter break for the upper east coast.  So the potential for crowds does exist.   I follow WDW Prep School for updated crowd calendars.  She always accounts for school breaks and cheer / dance / twirl competitions.


Thanks. I went ahead and got me and DD Genie +. Time is certainly money, especially with a kid!


----------



## TikiRob

SwanVT2 said:


> So once I use it for a ride, I can automatically book the next ride, right? Thank you!



Yep!


----------



## Taylor Newman

Going to Disney next month - what are your recommendations for using Genie+?? I need some pro tips!


----------



## lockets

the way we did it:

AK - Everest is closed. Just bought individual lightning lane for Avatar. No Genie+. Was still able to ride everything else.

MK - Splash Mountain is closed. Bought individual lighting lane for 7 Dwarves and Space Mountain. Bought Genie+ and was able to use it for Jungle Cruise, Pirates of the Caribbean, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Buzz Lightyear. Did standby for Astro Orbiter, Monsters show, Haunted Mansion and during the fireworks we did Small World, and Space Mountain again.

Epcot - Did individual lightning lane for Remy and Frozen. Got on everything else we wanted via standby but we were more focused on going to the festival food booths so we only did Soarin and Tres Caballeros. If we didn’t focus on the festival we could have done every ride standby.


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Here's a question:  On a not terribly crowded day, when you want to be able to stack, can you:

1.  Step 1 make a genie+ reservation for a park that you are "hopping" to so that the first reservation is for the afternoon;
2.  Step 2:  Switch your park pass to the park you just made the first genie+ reservation for;
3.  Step 3:  Make the remainder of your genie+ reservations for that park as normal?

For example, let's say that I'm going to start in Magic Kingdom, but know that I'm not getting there till noon.  Can I:
1.  Make a park reservation for Epcot;
2.  At 7:00 AM make a genie+ reservation for, lets say peter pan, which will now be at 2:00;
3.  Then cancel my park reservation and make one for Magic Kingdom instead;
4.  At 11 AM (2 hours after park open), make a genie+ reservation for, lets say Buzz Lightyear, at noon?
5.  After I swipe into my buzz reservation, continue making reservations as normal?


----------



## ComeToSocialize

I know that ROTR has been consistently selling out ILL before park open (so only onsite guests have been able to buy ILL). Has Remy had the same problem?

We are staying offsite, and are planning a DHS morning / Epcot afternoon day, taking the skyway to park hop. MMRR and Remy are our priority attractions by far (the 2 rides we haven't ridden before). Is it likely we'll be able to get a pre-1pm ILL for MMRR and an evening ILL for Remy if offsite? If we can do that, we'll probably just buy those 2 instead of G+.


----------



## g-dad66

DiannaVM said:


> OK, so does that mean that once you start booking, you can choose ANY return time for your Genie+ AND then you can book your ILL accordingly?



No, for Genie+ LL, you are given the next available time. I was able to do my stacking because I had researched previously and knew which ride at 7am would have return time late in the day (SDD), and then I knew that at 11am, Millenium Falcon would have a late return time, etc.

For the ILL, you can pick your time (from what is available), but not for Genie+ LLs.


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

Grumpy by Birth said:


> So for all the people who lamented BGs for ROTR being difficult to obtain via the virtual queue "lottery"... how do you like having to enter a similar "lottery" that fills up in a minute or two allowing you the privilege of paying extra for a BG?
> 
> But, hey... at least we can choose to wait in the SB line now (for 1, 2, or 3+ hours).


Just a few days ago, the actual wait for Rise was only 25 minutes about a half hour before closing time. The posted wait was 60 minutes.

There’s no need to wait hours for this attraction, even if you can’t hit that “lottery”.


----------



## g-dad66

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> Here's a question:  On a not terribly crowded day, when you want to be able to stack, can you:
> 
> 1.  Step 1 make a genie+ reservation for a park that you are "hopping" to so that the first reservation is for the afternoon;
> 2.  Step 2:  Switch your park pass to the park you just made the first genie+ reservation for;
> 3.  Step 3:  Make the remainder of your genie+ reservations for that park as normal?
> 
> For example, let's say that I'm going to start in Magic Kingdom, but know that I'm not getting there till noon.  Can I:
> 1.  Make a park reservation for Epcot;
> 2.  At 7:00 AM make a genie+ reservation for, lets say peter pan, which will now be at 2:00;
> 3.  Then cancel my park reservation and make one for Magic Kingdom instead;
> 4.  At 11 AM (2 hours after park open), make a genie+ reservation for, lets say Buzz Lightyear, at noon?
> 5.  After I swipe into my buzz reservation, continue making reservations as normal?



I don't know about the cancelling park aspect, but it shouldn't be necessary to reserve a different park in the morning in order to gt post-2pm LLs for Magic Kingdom.

It won't take very long after 7am for Peter Pan LL to be 2pm or later, and Jungle Cruise will be post-2pm even sooner than Peter Pan.


----------



## g-dad66

ComeToSocialize said:


> I know that ROTR has been consistently selling out ILL before park open (so only onsite guests have been able to buy ILL). Has Remy had the same problem?
> 
> We are staying offsite, and are planning a DHS morning / Epcot afternoon day, taking the skyway to park hop. MMRR and Remy are our priority attractions by far (the 2 rides we haven't ridden before). Is it likely we'll be able to get a pre-1pm ILL for MMRR and an evening ILL for Remy if offsite? If we can do that, we'll probably just buy those 2 instead of G+.



According to thrill-data.com, for the past several days Remy sold out between 10am and 10:05am, so you will need to be quick on the trigger at 10am.


----------



## Brian4891

LarryBoy said:


> I keep seeing a lot of you mention stacking your LL and ILL$ but I can't find exactly how you do that. What's the best way to stack?



Here is how I did this on Thursday 1/20.  We were having a pool day and heading into Hollywood Studios at night for dinner, toy story land and one other ride.

Woke up at 6:30am and purchased Genie Plus for my group.

At exactly 7am everything opens.  I wanted Slinky Dog for around 7:30pm so I needed to wait a few seconds for the booking time to move to that point.  Remember with Genie Plus reservations you cannot choose a time slot.  You get the earliest available.  Slinky Dog moves extremely quickly.  Every time I refreshed the page it moved about one hour.  Right at 7am, the first available time is 9am.  After one refresh, the first available time is now 10am.  Another refresh and it moves to 11am and so on.  So I would say around 30 seconds after 7am, I grabbed Slinky Dog for 7:30pm - 8:30pm.

At this point I am done until 11am.  I cannot book my next Genie Plus until two hours after the park has opened.  

At 11am I look again but the return times for everything I am interested in is only at around 3pm.  I’m not heading into the park until around 5pm so I wait another half hour and check again.

At 11:30am, Rock n Roller Coaster has moved to 5pm so I book it.  Now I cannot make another one until 1:30pm.

1:30 pm I check and see that Toy Story Mania is at 6pm.  Not bad but it interferes with my dinner so I keep checking every few mins for the next half hour.  Finally it has moved to 7pm and I grab it.  Now I cannot make another one until 3:30pm.

The only thing remaining that I want at this point is AlienSwirling Saucers and I want it late, for around 8pm. Checking at 3:30pm it’s only out to around 5pm. I keep checking for the rest of the night and eventually grab it for 8pm.

So that’s a summary of how you can stack.  When I walked into the park at 5pm I had 4 Lightning Lanes ready to go.  The week before my trip I would kinda practice every day.  I would check the app throughout the day and pretend I was in the park and see if I could book the things I wanted at the times I wanted. It helped a lot to get a feel for what time slots would be available at different booking times throughout the day.  Good luck!


----------



## scrappinginontario

*UPDATE:*

This is a great thread and in no way trying to take discussion away from it but I wanted to share that there is FINALLY a summary thread discussing Everything Genie, Genie+ Individual Lightning Lane.  (Sorry it took so long to create!  The complexities of Genie absolutely overwhelmed me!)

*Everything Genie, Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lane*

A shoutout to @g-dad66, @GBRforWDW and @cjlong88 for helping with the creation of the thread.  @g-dad66 was a HUGE help and much of the wording is his and I appreciate his help so very much!!!


----------



## wisblue

Brian4891 said:


> Here is how I did this on Thursday 1/20.  We were having a pool day and heading into Hollywood Studios at night for dinner, toy story land and one other ride.
> 
> Woke up at 6:30am and purchased Genie Plus for my group.
> 
> At exactly 7am everything opens.  I wanted Slinky Dog for around 7:30pm so I needed to wait a few seconds for the booking time to move to that point.  Remember with Genie Plus reservations you cannot choose a time slot.  You get the earliest available.  Slinky Dog moves extremely quickly.  Every time I refreshed the page it moved about one hour.  Right at 7am, the first available time is 9am.  After one refresh, the first available time is now 10am.  Another refresh and it moves to 11am and so on.  So I would say around 30 seconds after 7am, I grabbed Slinky Dog for 7:30pm - 8:30pm.
> 
> At this point I am done until 11am.  I cannot book my next Genie Plus until two hours after the park has opened.
> 
> At 11am I look again but the return times for everything I am interested in is only at around 3pm.  I’m not heading into the park until around 5pm so I wait another half hour and check again.
> 
> At 11:30am, Rock n Roller Coaster has moved to 5pm so I book it.  Now I cannot make another one until 1:30pm.
> 
> 1:30 pm I check and see that Toy Story Mania is at 6pm.  Not bad but it interferes with my dinner so I keep checking every few mins for the next half hour.  Finally it has moved to 7pm and I grab it.  Now I cannot make another one until 3:30pm.
> 
> The only thing remaining that I want at this point is AlienSwirling Saucers and I want it late, for around 8pm. Checking at 3:30pm it’s only out to around 5pm. I keep checking for the rest of the night and eventually grab it for 8pm.
> 
> So that’s a summary of how you can stack.  When I walked into the park at 5pm I had 4 Lightning Lanes ready to go.  The week before my trip I would kinda practice every day.  I would check the app throughout the day and pretend I was in the park and see if I could book the things I wanted at the times I wanted. It helped a lot to get a feel for what time slots would be available at different booking times throughout the day.  Good luck!



This is a perfect example of what you can also do on an arrival day. You can start building the stack at home, at the airport, or on the road. Throw in an IALL or two and you can do as many as 5 or 6 of the top attractions at DHS even if you’re not arriving until the afternoon.

You could also do it if you’re starting at Epcot or DAK and hopping to DHS.


----------



## wisblue

SwanVT2 said:


> So once I use it for a ride, I can automatically book the next ride, right? Thank you!



This is true if you are only booking one LL at a time. But, if you have two or more LL outstanding, you can only book a new one after you use the last one that you booked (or two hours after you booked it). 

This is explained in the excellent new pinned thread Everything Genie, Genie Plus, and Lightning Lane.


----------



## LarryBoy

Brian4891 said:


> Here is how I did this on Thursday 1/20.  We were having a pool day and heading into Hollywood Studios at night for dinner, toy story land and one other ride.
> 
> Woke up at 6:30am and purchased Genie Plus for my group.
> 
> At exactly 7am everything opens.  I wanted Slinky Dog for around 7:30pm so I needed to wait a few seconds for the booking time to move to that point.  Remember with Genie Plus reservations you cannot choose a time slot.  You get the earliest available.  Slinky Dog moves extremely quickly.  Every time I refreshed the page it moved about one hour.  Right at 7am, the first available time is 9am.  After one refresh, the first available time is now 10am.  Another refresh and it moves to 11am and so on.  So I would say around 30 seconds after 7am, I grabbed Slinky Dog for 7:30pm - 8:30pm.
> 
> At this point I am done until 11am.  I cannot book my next Genie Plus until two hours after the park has opened.
> 
> At 11am I look again but the return times for everything I am interested in is only at around 3pm.  I’m not heading into the park until around 5pm so I wait another half hour and check again.
> 
> At 11:30am, Rock n Roller Coaster has moved to 5pm so I book it.  Now I cannot make another one until 1:30pm.
> 
> 1:30 pm I check and see that Toy Story Mania is at 6pm.  Not bad but it interferes with my dinner so I keep checking every few mins for the next half hour.  Finally it has moved to 7pm and I grab it.  Now I cannot make another one until 3:30pm.
> 
> The only thing remaining that I want at this point is AlienSwirling Saucers and I want it late, for around 8pm. Checking at 3:30pm it’s only out to around 5pm. I keep checking for the rest of the night and eventually grab it for 8pm.
> 
> So that’s a summary of how you can stack.  When I walked into the park at 5pm I had 4 Lightning Lanes ready to go.  The week before my trip I would kinda practice every day.  I would check the app throughout the day and pretend I was in the park and see if I could book the things I wanted at the times I wanted. It helped a lot to get a feel for what time slots would be available at different booking times throughout the day.  Good luck!



Thank you so much, this is a great explanation of stacking! Not sure if we will be stacking much now that I understand it because we will be arriving next Friday and will start three days in the parks on Saturday. Our plan right now is to start Saturday at the MK. We will probably G+ for MK. If we decide to park hop can we get LL for another park on the same G+? Is Genie + good for the whole day in any park or is it one park per G+?


----------



## NJlauren

Im reading all this about arrival day, and am rethinking my arrival day park yet again!  My daughter loves all the rides at HS, now I’m wondering if I should stack a 2, 3, tower and rocking rollercoaster and maybe rise before we head to Epcot for the evening…


----------



## Brian4891

LarryBoy said:


> Thank you so much, this is a great explanation of stacking! Not sure if we will be stacking much now that I understand it because we will be arriving next Friday and will start three days in the parks on Saturday. Our plan right now is to start Saturday at the MK. We will probably G+ for MK. If we decide to park hop can we get LL for another park on the same G+? Is Genie + good for the whole day in any park or is it one park per G+?



I did not park hop, but my understanding is that if you have a park hopper ticket then the genie will show you times for your 2nd park available after 2pm only.  You do not have to purchase it twice for two parks on the same day.


----------



## g-dad66

LarryBoy said:


> Thank you so much, this is a great explanation of stacking! Not sure if we will be stacking much now that I understand it because we will be arriving next Friday and will start three days in the parks on Saturday. Our plan right now is to start Saturday at the MK. We will probably G+ for MK. If we decide to park hop can we get LL for another park on the same G+? Is Genie + good for the whole day in any park or is it one park per G+?



Genie+ is good for the whole day for all the parks.  Haven't read an account yet of anyone getting LLs in all 4 parks in one day, but I'm sure there will be one soon.


----------



## scrappinginontario

LarryBoy said:


> Thank you so much, this is a great explanation of stacking! Not sure if we will be stacking much now that I understand it because we will be arriving next Friday and will start three days in the parks on Saturday. Our plan right now is to start Saturday at the MK. We will probably G+ for MK. If we decide to park hop can we get LL for another park on the same G+? Is Genie + good for the whole day in any park or is it one park per G+?


Thanks.  I updated the Genie thread with the information re: Genie+ being for a day, not a specific park.


----------



## Lsdolphin

So I have park reservation for HS on 1/26 but intend to go to MK that evening for the extended hours...i plan to use Genie+ to do TSM in the morning and then hop to MK later.  I wanted to use Genie+ to stack a few rides at MK for later in the day .  How do I use the Genie+ In the morning after I use the TSM LL  to stack  LL for the MK for later in the day when my park reservation is for HS?


----------



## scrappinginontario

Lsdolphin said:


> So I have park reservation for HS on 1/26 but intend to go to MK that evening for the extended hours...i plan to use Genie+ to do TSM in the morning and then hop to MK later.  I wanted to use Genie+ to stack a few rides at MK for later in the day .  How do I use the Genie+ In the morning after I use the TSM LL  to stack  LL for the MK for later in the day when my park reservation is for HS?


Once you’re ready to start stacking MK attractions and are eligible to book, just select an attraction in the MK.  It will automatically show you only LL times after 2:00 if you’re looking at a park you’re hopping to.


----------



## g-dad66

Lsdolphin said:


> So I have park reservation for HS on 1/26 but intend to go to MK that evening for the extended hours...i plan to use Genie+ to do TSM in the morning and then hop to MK later.  I wanted to use Genie+ to stack a few rides at MK for later in the day .  How do I use the Genie+ In the morning after I use the TSM LL  to stack  LL for the MK for later in the day when my park reservation is for HS?



You select the MK attraction that you want, and it will only offer you times after 2pm (since you can't parkhop until 2pm).


----------



## T'Lynn

g-dad66 said:


> Here is one example. This was November 6 at Hollywood Studios:
> 
> 7:05 am:   Book Slinky Dog Dash for 5:25-6:25
> 11:00 am:  Book Millenium Falcon for 4:20-5:20
> 1:00 pm:   Book Tower of Terror for 7:30-8:30
> 3:00 pm:   Book Rock n Roller Coaster for 6:55-7:55
> 5:00 pm:   Could have booked Toy Story Mania for 6:30-7:30


I love this HS stacking strategy and have a question about how the LL system works. Using this example, when you tap into your first ride (MFSR at 4:20) would you then be able to book another LL? Or would 7pm be the last eligible time?


----------



## GBRforWDW

T'Lynn said:


> I love this HS stacking strategy and have a question about how the LL system works. Using this example, when you tap into your first ride (MFSR at 4:20) would you then be able to book another LL? Or would 7pm be the last eligible time?


It's based on last booked ride, so since RnRC was selected at 3pm, you'd either have to ride RnRC or wait until 5pm, whichever is soonest.  In this case, 5 is soonest, so they would have gotten TSM, where they could check in as early as 6:30.  Since that's less than 2 hours after 5, you could select something else after going through both touchpoints


----------



## Pookie9922

What are the chances of RDing RotR only to have it breakdown and ruin my RD strategy? Staying on property and planning on early entry RDing. Trying to decide if I should buy $ILL or RD it. We've already ridden it once in DL, but it's still a must do. I'd love to not pay $75 for G+ AND $75 for RotR, but I'd also like my day to go exactly as I planned!  Curious % of mornings RotR is a plan ruin-er.


----------



## bsmcneil

cjlong88 said:


> I had my husband log in as me on the app using his phone so we could book both attractions simultaneously. I booked Slinky and he took care of Rose.


Can I borrow your husband? 

I'm feeling really stressed out about our DHS day in particular. I'm not sure I can really teach my almost 9 year old what to do (or be up with me at 6:59am) so that we can navigate SDD and ROTR. Grrr, G+!


----------



## Dee MarWil

You could have someone back home do it. A parent or friend. You don’t have to be in Florida to book things.


bsmcneil said:


> I'm feeling really stressed out about our DHS day in particular. I'm not sure I can really teach my almost 9 year old what to do (or be up with me at 6:59am) so that we can navigate SDD and ROTR. Grrr, G+!


----------



## T'Lynn

bsmcneil said:


> Can I borrow your husband?
> 
> I'm feeling really stressed out about our DHS day in particular. I'm not sure I can really teach my almost 9 year old what to do (or be up with me at 6:59am) so that we can navigate SDD and ROTR. Grrr, G+!



I’m going to try to log in on two devices and try to book simultaneously as much as I can! 



GBRforWDW said:


> It's based on last booked ride, so since RnRC was selected at 3pm, you'd either have to ride RnRC or wait until 5pm, whichever is soonest.  In this case, 5 is soonest, so they would have gotten TSM, where they could check in as early as 6:30.  Since that's less than 2 hours after 5, you could select something else after going through both touchpoints



Thanks! That makes sense


----------



## bsmcneil

Dee MarWil said:


> You could have someone back home do it. A parent or friend. You don’t have to be in Florida to book things.


I don't really have that person, unfortunately.


----------



## cjlong88

bsmcneil said:


> Can I borrow your husband?
> 
> I'm feeling really stressed out about our DHS day in particular. I'm not sure I can really teach my almost 9 year old what to do (or be up with me at 6:59am) so that we can navigate SDD and ROTR. Grrr, G+!


Lol. If you plan on acquiring evening times, I would say get SDD first. Rise will be around and you shouldn’t have an issue getting both. If it’s morning times you’re after, God’s speed! I’ve only ever tried evening return windows for HS. Those morning times just go so fast.


----------



## bsmcneil

cjlong88 said:


> Lol. If you plan on acquiring evening times, I would say get SDD first. Rise will be around and you shouldn’t have an issue getting both. If it’s morning times you’re after, God’s speed! I’ve only ever tried evening return windows for HS. Those morning times just go so fast.


Got it - that really helps! I'm most concerned about just getting them - not really when (evening would work out for Rise as we're doing Droids and have an Oga's ADR in the evening - that said, it breaking down ... blah).


----------



## Jrits

Brian4891 said:


> Here is how I did this on Thursday 1/20.  We were having a pool day and heading into Hollywood Studios at night for dinner, toy story land and one other ride.
> 
> Woke up at 6:30am and purchased Genie Plus for my group.
> 
> At exactly 7am everything opens.  I wanted Slinky Dog for around 7:30pm so I needed to wait a few seconds for the booking time to move to that point.  Remember with Genie Plus reservations you cannot choose a time slot.  You get the earliest available.  Slinky Dog moves extremely quickly.  Every time I refreshed the page it moved about one hour.  Right at 7am, the first available time is 9am.  After one refresh, the first available time is now 10am.  Another refresh and it moves to 11am and so on.  So I would say around 30 seconds after 7am, I grabbed Slinky Dog for 7:30pm - 8:30pm.
> 
> At this point I am done until 11am.  I cannot book my next Genie Plus until two hours after the park has opened.
> 
> At 11am I look again but the return times for everything I am interested in is only at around 3pm.  I’m not heading into the park until around 5pm so I wait another half hour and check again.
> 
> At 11:30am, Rock n Roller Coaster has moved to 5pm so I book it.  Now I cannot make another one until 1:30pm.
> 
> 1:30 pm I check and see that Toy Story Mania is at 6pm.  Not bad but it interferes with my dinner so I keep checking every few mins for the next half hour.  Finally it has moved to 7pm and I grab it.  Now I cannot make another one until 3:30pm.
> 
> The only thing remaining that I want at this point is AlienSwirling Saucers and I want it late, for around 8pm. Checking at 3:30pm it’s only out to around 5pm. I keep checking for the rest of the night and eventually grab it for 8pm.
> 
> So that’s a summary of how you can stack.  When I walked into the park at 5pm I had 4 Lightning Lanes ready to go.  The week before my trip I would kinda practice every day.  I would check the app throughout the day and pretend I was in the park and see if I could book the things I wanted at the times I wanted. It helped a lot to get a feel for what time slots would be available at different booking times throughout the day.  Good luck!


How are you able to see what genie+ is available without having genie+ that day to practice?


----------



## scrappinginontario

Jrits said:


> How are you able to see what genie+ is available without having genie+ that day to practice?


- Open your MyDisneyExperience app
- Look for 'My Plans' (probably near the top of the screen)
- Select 'My Day'
- Select 'Tip Board'

It will default to showing today in the MK.  You can change parks by clicking that option 

You can now see today's current wait times and LL availability.

Hope this helps.


----------



## Brian4891

Jrits said:


> How are you able to see what genie+ is available without having genie+ that day to practice?



You only need pay for genie+ if you want to actually book something.  Anyone with the app can view the available times whenever they want.


----------



## TigerlilyAJ

Payment: Are G+ and ILL strictly CC? I'm using Disney GCs for a lot, but need to know if I can buy GCs for this. How and when do you set up payment? Can you do it before you need, like the day before your trip?
Yikes. Trying to see the Tip Board from Canada on an Android and getting nothing. Starting to sweat my May trip already because I need G and ILL to work for me. Day 1 I'll be at the airport when 7am drops.


----------



## g-dad66

TigerlilyAJ said:


> Payment: Are G+ and ILL strictly CC? I'm using Disney GCs for a lot, but need to know if I can buy GCs for this. How and when do you set up payment? Can you do it before you need, like the day before your trip?
> Yikes. Trying to see the Tip Board from Canada on an Android and getting nothing. Starting to sweat my May trip already because I need G and ILL to work for me. Day 1 I'll be at the airport when 7am drops.



I used a Disney gift card for both G+ and ILL.

You can buy G+ for the day, as early as midnight.  If you want G+ for every park day, you can buy it in advance (you can buy tickets that include G+ if you don't already have tickets).

For ILL, you pay after you select the attraction and time.


----------



## TheMick424

For those of you who have used G+ at HS and attempted to secure SDD at 7am, did you check the return time before selecting or just click buttons as fast as possible?  While I know it gives you next available time, does it make sense to have a first and second choice when you are making the selections each day, or just target one based on your plans for the day?  We typically rope drop, but then head out mid-afternoon for pool time, clean-up for dinner or evening plans.  Seems like G+ at HS requires more of a time commitment because of the uncertainty of return times.  Any advice on how to tour HS over 2 days?


----------



## wisblue

TheMick424 said:


> For those of you who have used G+ at HS and attempted to secure SDD at 7am, did you check the return time before selecting or just click buttons as fast as possible?  While I know it gives you next available time, does it make sense to have a first and second choice when you are making the selections each day, or just target one based on your plans for the day?  We typically rope drop, but then head out mid-afternoon for pool time, clean-up for dinner or evening plans.  Seems like G+ at HS requires more of a time commitment because of the uncertainty of return times.  Any advice on how to tour HS over 2 days?



We should consider a separate thread just for getting LL for SDD and ROTR because questions about them come up so often and they are by far the attractions for which the LL run out the fastest.

If your goal is to get a LL for SDD with a return time before, say 2 PM, I would suggest this:

1. Have Genie + purchased and set SDD at the top of your tip board before 7:00.

2. At 7:00:00 refresh the Tip Board and see what time is offered for SDD. Assuming a 9 AM opening, that time should be 9 AM.

3. Click on that time and make sure your party is correct. It should include everyone in your party that has a park reservation for DHS and has purchased Genie+.

4. Note what return time you are actually being offered. It may well be later than 9 AM, but if you are moving quickly it shouldn’t be much later. Twice we have gotten return times of 9:10 AM.

5. If the time is acceptable, click to confirm and you should be all set.

This sounds like a lot, but you can go through these steps in 10-15 seconds or less.

As for having a backup, that isn’t a bad idea. But, if SDD is really your first choice, I wouldn’t give up if you don’t get an acceptable time right at 7.

As discussed in some other posts (see my post 2805 in this thread), although times for SDD often run out within a minute, at about 7:08, or a few minutes later, more times pop up, and those usually remain available for a few minutes. You might be able to get a time as early as 9AM, but you have a much better chance of getting something later in the morning or early afternoon.


----------



## Brian4891

SDD is easier than the paid LL rides because there is no credit card payment so there is a lot less clicking through screens.  You select the time on the tip board, it takes you to another page where it displays the timeframe and the people in your party.  You click confirm and you are done.  When I did mine I clicked on 7pm on the tip board.  The window I was given on the next page was 7:30pm - 8:30pm.  I clicked confirm and that's the time I ended up with.

We did Hollywood Studios over 2 days and we got everything done with plenty of time to spare and with no rope dropping.  One of those days we showed up at 5pm and did all of Toy Story Land and Rockin Roller Coaster.  That being said, we paid for Genie+, paid for Rise of Resistance, and paid for Runaway Railway.


----------



## scrappinginontario

wisblue said:


> We should consider a separate thread just for getting LL for SDD and ROTR because questions about them come up so often and they are by far the attractions for which the LL run out the fastest.
> 
> If your goal is to get a LL for SDD with a return time before, say 2 PM, I would suggest this:
> 
> 1. Have Genie + purchased and set SDD at the top of your tip board before 7:00.
> 
> 2. At 7:00:00 refresh the Tip Board and see what time is offered for SDD. Assuming a 9 AM opening, that time should be 9 AM.
> 
> 3. Click on that time and make sure your party is correct. It should include everyone in your party that has a park reservation for DHS and has purchased Genie+.
> 
> 4. Note what return time you are actually being offered. It may well be later than 9 AM, but if you are moving quickly it shouldn’t be much later. Twice we have gotten return times of 9:10 AM.
> 
> 5. If the time is acceptable, click to confirm and you should be all set.
> 
> This sounds like a lot, but you can go through these steps in 10-15 seconds or less.
> 
> As for having a backup, that isn’t a bad idea. But, if SDD is really your first choice, I wouldn’t give up if you don’t get an acceptable time right at 7.
> 
> As discussed in some other posts (see my post 2805 in this thread), although times for SDD often run out within a minute, at about 7:08, or a few minutes later, more times pop up, and those usually remain available for a few minutes. You might be able to get a time as early as 9AM, but you have a much better chance of getting something later in the morning or early afternoon.


There's a lot of helpful information here.  Please feel free to start a new thread to help people out with booking SDD and RotR.


----------



## jmparry

scrappinginontario said:


> - Open your MyDisneyExperience app
> - Look for 'My Plans' (probably near the top of the screen)
> - Select 'My Day'
> - Select 'Tip Board'
> 
> It will default to showing today in the MK.  You can change parks by clicking that option
> 
> You can now see today's current wait times and LL availability.
> 
> Hope this helps.


This helps a lot! Thank you!!!! I'm practicing for Friday!


----------



## DsneyDude1

Are annual passholders able to buy Genie + before 7 AM yet day of? Or is that still an issue?


----------



## CJK

DsneyDude1 said:


> Are annual passholders able to buy Genie + before 7 AM yet day of? Or is that still an issue?


No, we still have to buy day of.


----------



## elgerber

DsneyDude1 said:


> Are annual passholders able to buy Genie + before 7 AM yet day of? Or is that still an issue?


That is an issue, if you are linked to others who have already pre-purchased Genie +.  If you are not, then yes, you can buy between midnight and 7 am.


----------



## mickey916

Not sure if I've seen an answer to this. Here's my question regarding grabbing Genie+ LLs (and specifically those hard to get ones like SDD). I recently learned that my brother's family will be coming and so we'll all be linked in MDE and will all have park passes for the same parks on the same days. However our touring styles are completely different. If I go at 7 to grab SDD LLs, I'm assuming it will snag them for his family as well since we're linked and they have park passes for that day too. I'm afraid if I stop to uncheck them (if the time doesn't work for them, they are arrive late/leave early people) before final processing that it will mess with the time I'm trying to get. So, is there a way after booking it to then have them just cancel the ones I made for them and keep ours or is it an "all or nothing" thing?


----------



## mickey916

elgerber said:


> That is an issue, if you are linked to others who have already pre-purchased Genie +.  If you are not, then yes, you can buy between midnight and 7 am.


and that's now going to be my issue too since they have pre-purchased Genie+, I'm an AP and my family just had regular tickets. Really hoping that problem is solved before May.


----------



## twodogs

mickey916 said:


> Not sure if I've seen an answer to this. Here's my question regarding grabbing Genie+ LLs (and specifically those hard to get ones like SDD). I recently learned that my brother's family will be coming and so we'll all be linked in MDE and will all have park passes for the same parks on the same days. However our touring styles are completely different. If I go at 7 to grab SDD LLs, I'm assuming it will snag them for his family as well since we're linked and they have park passes for that day too. I'm afraid if I stop to uncheck them (if the time doesn't work for them, they are arrive late/leave early people) before final processing that it will mess with the time I'm trying to get. So, is there a way after booking it to then have them just cancel the ones I made for them and keep ours or is it an "all or nothing" thing?


It will default to getting it for everyone in the party.  Then after you confirm and are booked, you can go in and cancel the LL for those that won’t make that time.  Just make sure that you cancel it before the LL expires, or that ride will be blocked for them to make another LL later in the day since the system counts a “no show” as a burned LL for that ride that day.


----------



## scrappinginontario

DsneyDude1 said:


> Are annual passholders able to buy Genie + before 7 AM yet day of? Or is that still an issue?





mickey916 said:


> and that's now going to be my issue too since they have pre-purchased Genie+, I'm an AP and my family just had regular tickets. Really hoping that problem is solved before May.


These challenges still exist but there are workarounds for both.

Please read the *7th post* in the pinned, *Genie, Genie+ and ILL thread*.  It should hopefully help both scenarios.  While not ideal, until a permanent fix is in place, people have found a fix that works for the time being.


----------



## twodogs

N


mickey916 said:


> and that's now going to be my issue too since they have pre-purchased Genie+, I'm an AP and my family just had regular tickets. Really hoping that problem is solved before May.


Not sure if this would work…. Could one of your immediate family who you DO want on your party for the early morning LLs make their own MDE account, but only link their account to your immediate family (not your brother’s family), and then use that person’s account for booking your early morning LLs, and then use your MDE account later in the day when you are all together and all want to book the same things together?


----------



## mickey916

twodogs said:


> It will default to getting it for everyone in the party.  Then after you confirm and are booked, you can go in and cancel the LL for those that won’t make that time.  Just make sure that you cancel it before the LL expires, or that ride will be blocked for them to make another LL later in the day since the system counts a “no show” as a burned LL for that ride that day.


Thank you! That's what I was hoping to hear. I did know that if they didn't use it and I didn't cancel it they'd be out of luck. Good to know that I can go through the process though and cancel them afterwards.


----------



## twodogs

mickey916 said:


> Thank you! That's what I was hoping to hear. I did know that if they didn't use it and I didn't cancel it they'd be out of luck. Good to know that I can go through the process though and cancel them afterwards.


I did this for myself this Christmas trip because I can’t ride MS or other rides that give me motion sickness.  It was easier just to book for all 4 of us, and then I could cancel only my LL and keep theirs intact.


----------



## mickey916

twodogs said:


> N
> 
> Not sure if this would work…. Could one of your immediate family who you DO want on your party for the early morning LLs make their own MDE account, but only link their account to your immediate family (not your brother’s family), and then use that person’s account for booking your early morning LLs, and then use your MDE account later in the day when you are all together and all want to book the same things together?


That's a great suggestion. We could use my DHs account for us. Would be worth a try.


----------



## mickey916

twodogs said:


> I did this for myself this Christmas trip because I can’t ride MS or other rides that give me motion sickness.  It was easier just to book for all 4 of us, and then I could cancel only my LL and keep theirs intact.


Great to hear from someone who has actually done it! Sorry about the motion sickness, my DH suffers from that too so in some instances we'll be removing him after the fact as well.


----------



## mickey916

scrappinginontario said:


> These challenges still exist but there are workarounds for both.
> 
> Please read the *7th post* in the pinned, *Genie, Genie+ and ILL thread*.  It should hopefully help both scenarios.  While not ideal, until a permanent fix is in place, people have found a fix that works for the time being.


Thank you! I've added that IT number to my phone! It will really only be an issue two days of our trip, since my brother's family is only in the parks with us on two days. After that I don't think we'll have any issues since my immediate family will only be purchasing Genie+ day of.


----------



## scrappinginontario

mickey916 said:


> Not sure if I've seen an answer to this. Here's my question regarding grabbing Genie+ LLs (and specifically those hard to get ones like SDD). I recently learned that my brother's family will be coming and so we'll all be linked in MDE and will all have park passes for the same parks on the same days. However our touring styles are completely different. If I go at 7 to grab SDD LLs, I'm assuming it will snag them for his family as well since we're linked and they have park passes for that day too. I'm afraid if I stop to uncheck them (if the time doesn't work for them, they are arrive late/leave early people) before final processing that it will mess with the time I'm trying to get. So, is there a way after booking it to then have them just cancel the ones I made for them and keep ours or is it an "all or nothing" thing?


Question for those who have done this.  Would this affect the people who had the LL and then had it cancelled, being eligible to book it again?

@mickey916, will your bother's family also wand to ride SDD?  If so, you do not need to all enter the queue together if you're touring separately so you could grab for all, tour separately and both ride SDD during the return window at the time that works for each family.

Also, if his family wants to ride SDD also, don't want to risk either of you grabbing LL for all then cancelling the other family and basically locking them out of LL for the day as the reservations will all be gone.


----------



## mickey916

scrappinginontario said:


> Question for those who have done this.  Would this affect the people who had the LL and then had it cancelled, being eligible to book it again?
> 
> @mickey916, will your bother's family also wand to ride SDD?  If so, you do not need to all enter the queue together if you're touring separately so you could grab for all, tour separately and both ride SDD during the return window at the time that works for each family.
> 
> Also, if his family wants to ride SDD also, don't want to risk either of you grabbing LL for all then cancelling the other family and basically locking them out of LL for the day as the reservations will all be gone.


I'm assuming they will all want to ride SDD so ideally they will just let me attempt to get a genie+ for all of us and we get a time that works. It's tough because in the past when we've traveled together we're early risers and they sleep in. So, it will only work for us to ride together if I get a later return time. We tend to be rope-drop to close people so any time really works for us. I don't think any of them will be up and trying at 7 am so I'm probably their only shot at a LL for SDD...really happy to be going together especially since we really haven't seen them for a couple years due to COVID but the Genie+ stuff definitely adds some wrinkles to the plan.


----------



## Brian4891

mickey916 said:


> I'm assuming they will all want to ride SDD so ideally they will just let me attempt to get a genie+ for all of us and we get a time that works. It's tough because in the past when we've traveled together we're early risers and they sleep in. So, it will only work for us to ride together if I get a later return time. We tend to be rope-drop to close people so any time really works for us. I don't think any of them will be up and trying at 7 am so I'm probably their only shot at a LL for SDD...really happy to be going together especially since we really haven't seen them for a couple years due to COVID but the Genie+ stuff definitely adds some wrinkles to the plan.



If you wait like 15 seconds after 7am the SDD time will be out to the afternoon and you can grab it for everyone.  Where it says "Edit Selections" on the tip board, only select SDD.  That will keep it right at the top of the tip board so you do not have to scroll down to find it.  At 7am just keep refreshing until you see it get to a time you like.

Only disadvantage of this is that you will have to wait until 11am to make your next LL, but there's still plenty of good stuff available at that time.


----------



## scrappinginontario

mickey916 said:


> I'm assuming they will all want to ride SDD so ideally they will just let me attempt to get a genie+ for all of us and we get a time that works. It's tough because in the past when we've traveled together we're early risers and they sleep in. So, it will only work for us to ride together if I get a later return time. We tend to be rope-drop to close people so any time really works for us. I don't think any of them will be up and trying at 7 am so I'm probably their only shot at a LL for SDD...really happy to be going together especially since we really haven't seen them for a couple years due to COVID but the Genie+ stuff definitely adds some wrinkles to the plan.


Sounds like you'll be a great help for them as SDD LL fills within seconds I've heard!


----------



## DizneyLizzy

Thoughts on strategy for a one day Epcot/MK split? My plan was to just book MK LLs for after 3 PM when we’ll likely get there, but is there any reason to book one or two Epcot headliners before attempting to stack afternoon or evening MK LLs? We’re skipping Test Track and Frozen at Epcot and will likely rope drop Remy since we’ll be entering from the IG. So the only other Epcot headliners we’re planning to do are Soarin and SE.


----------



## mlbrv

I have read so many pages of this thread I'm getting confused!

I have a few questions if someone could help answer:

1. If I have a park rez at MK for the day but at 7am want to book LL, can I book for a different park? Will those times only show up as after 2pm?
Or, do I have to book the 1st one at MK, then the 2nd (and so on) could be booked for a different park for after 2pm?

2. I know that once I tap into my 1st LL, I can immediately book another. (This is assuming my 1st is less than 2 hrs after park opening). Once I tap into the 2nd, can I then book a 3rd right away? (assuming it has been less than 2 hrs since my 1st)

3. Are LL unlimited for the day as long as they are booked 2 hrs apart or after you tap into one?

4. Can you buy a ILL for a park you do not have a park rez for that day? As long as it's for after 2pm?

THANKS!


----------



## kilik64

mlbrv said:


> I have read so many pages of this thread I'm getting confused!
> 
> I have a few questions if someone could help answer:
> 
> 1. If I have a park rez at MK for the day but at 7am want to book LL, can I book for a different park? Will those times only show up as after 2pm?
> Or, do I have to book the 1st one at MK, then the 2nd (and so on) could be booked for a different park for after 2pm?
> 
> 2. I know that once I tap into my 1st LL, I can immediately book another. (This is assuming my 1st is less than 2 hrs after park opening). Once I tap into the 2nd, can I then book a 3rd right away? (assuming it has been less than 2 hrs since my 1st)
> 
> 3. Are LL unlimited for the day as long as they are booked 2 hrs apart or after you tap into one?
> 
> 4. Can you buy a ILL for a park you do not have a park rez for that day? As long as it's for after 2pm?
> 
> THANKS!


I dont know answer to one for sure, but I think you can.

2. Yes. Tap in or 2 hours resets your cool down. 

3. Yes, but only once per ride. You can get as many lls as you can, but you cant do the same ride more than once.

4. Yup.


----------



## twodogs

Answer to 1 is yes, but times will only be shown after 2pm in the hopper park.  You don’t have to book anything in the reserved park, but you DO have to tap into it before tapping into hopper park.


----------



## Thorazine

wisblue said:


> See my previous post (#2848). Your chances of getting something before 4 PM might be a lot better than you think.
> 
> Using the “7;10 approach” should give you a good chance of getting something in the late morning or early afternoon.


Can you remind us what’s the “7;10 approach”


----------



## Bullseye

Where's the sticky in front? Isn't that where the known tips and tricks are supposed to be posted? Not trying to be rude but we need a thing like Mesaboy2 used to have for FP+ where the first several pages are informational.


----------



## g-dad66

Bullseye said:


> Where's the sticky in front? Isn't that where the known tips and tricks are supposed to be posted? Not trying to be rude but we need a thing like Mesaboy2 used to have for FP+ where the first several pages are informational.



https://www.disboards.com/threads/e...lightning-lane-please-read-posts-1-7.3856734/


----------



## Luisfba

I’m trying to practice on MDE some… when I go to my MDE to the tip board, it’s always defaulting to HS and only giving me the option to edit selections (to put some things at top) only for HS.  I can change to other parks.. they just don’t show the ability to edit selections for the preferences.

anyone else face that and if so, any workarounds? Tried deleting and reinstalling app and that didn’t work.

concerned this will create issues when I get there if it’s still happening (at a minimum, not being able to use that function for any parks other than HS).

Thanks


----------



## mickey916

Luisfba said:


> I’m trying to practice on MDE some… when I go to my MDE to the tip board, it’s always defaulting to HS and only giving me the option to edit selections (to put some things at top) only for HS.  I can change to other parks.. they just don’t show the ability to edit selections for the preferences.
> 
> anyone else face that and if so, any workarounds? Tried deleting and reinstalling app and that didn’t work.
> 
> concerned this will create issues when I get there if it’s still happening (at a minimum, not being able to use that function for any parks other than HS).
> 
> Thanks


on the My Day tab when you pick your date, scroll further down the page (under the calendar) and it should allow you to change park.


----------



## cjlong88

Thorazine said:


> Can you remind us what’s the “7;10 approach”


There seems to be a consistent and sudden shift in the return windows. Around 7:10 am you’ll see things with evening return times suddenly show morning return times. They are either (A) withholding availability and not releasing everything at once or (B) people are canceling / shifting their plans or (C) a combo of both or (D) something else entirely.

Many times I’ve sat refreshing at 7am and I would see then most popular rides with very late return windows suddenly show a 9:40 am or something to that nature. The lesson is that just because one doesn’t immediately see what they want doesn’t mean it’s gone. Refreshing the Tip Board will do wonders.


----------



## wisblue

I am planning to start a thread where people can discuss strategies and share experiences for booking SDD and ROTR. Because those are by far the most popular G+ and ILL$ attractions in any of the parks they involve some strategies that you don’t need for anything else.


----------



## ckelly14

My immediate family with hoppers is travelling with extended family without hoppers in April.  My son is a big Star Wars fan so I'm planning 2 days at HS.  Right now I have 2 park reservations at HS. Wondering if I should switch my HS reservation to Epcot (same as the rest of the family) and try to stack afternoon LL's instead hopping to HS after 2?

Only complicating factor is my family likes to have dinner in Epcot so I may need to hop back to Epcot for dinner, which won't give me much time.


----------



## wisblue

ckelly14 said:


> My immediate family with hoppers is travelling with extended family without hoppers in April.  My son is a big Star Wars fan so I'm planning 2 days at HS.  Right now I have 2 park reservations at HS. Wondering if I should switch my HS reservation to Epcot (same as the rest of the family) and try to stack afternoon LL's instead hopping to HS after 2?
> 
> Only complicating factor is my family likes to have dinner in Epcot so I may need to hop back to Epcot for dinner, which won't give me much time.



It sounds like you might be answering your own question if you have to go back to Epcot.

Stacking LL at DHS in the afternoon can work really well, but it gets tougher if you limit yourself to just 2-3 hours.

That having been said, we squeezed MFSR, TSMM, Star Tours, and ROTR in from 2:30-5:30 after starting the day at the airport on our arrival day for Marathon Weekend. So, if your dinner is late enough you can have some fun at DHS between 2 and 6 if you don’t mind bouncing back and forth.


----------



## glocon

ckelly14 said:


> My immediate family with hoppers is travelling with extended family without hoppers in April.  My son is a big Star Wars fan so I'm planning 2 days at HS.  Right now I have 2 park reservations at HS. Wondering if I should switch my HS reservation to Epcot (same as the rest of the family) and try to stack afternoon LL's instead hopping to HS after 2?
> 
> Only complicating factor is my family likes to have dinner in Epcot so I may need to hop back to Epcot for dinner, which won't give me much time.


If GE is your goal for that day, it seems like you should be able to get both SW rides in between 2pm and 6/7pm. You can purchase Rise for the time that works for you then standby or get G+ for MF. Seems doable. Might even get an Oga’s ressie to fit in there too!


----------



## snikki

ckelly14 said:


> My immediate family with hoppers is travelling with extended family without hoppers in April.  My son is a big Star Wars fan so I'm planning 2 days at HS.  Right now I have 2 park reservations at HS. Wondering if I should switch my HS reservation to Epcot (same as the rest of the family) and try to stack afternoon LL's instead hopping to HS after 2?
> 
> Only complicating factor is my family likes to have dinner in Epcot so I may need to hop back to Epcot for dinner, which won't give me much time.



I think you'll be fine starting at DHS, getting everything you want done and going to Epcot for dinner. 

We chose to do DHS in the PM on our first full day since we do midday breaks. I didn't want to take the chance of not getting ROTR before noon on our first day at the parks. If I knew we would stay past 3-4 pm I would've done RD at DHS I would have just done RD.


----------



## HPotter

Here is something I haven't seen discussed (could be wrong).  If you have a group of say 8 adults.  Of course, you can easily book LL passes as a group, but if YOU book ILL for your full group, do you get charged for all 8 or does the charge move to the specific individuals accounts?  Wondering as this could get confusing on expenses between adults.


----------



## wisblue

HPotter said:


> Here is something I haven't seen discussed (could be wrong).  If you have a group of say 8 adults.  Of course, you can easily book LL passes as a group, but if YOU book ILL for your full group, do you get charged for all 8 or does the charge move to the specific individuals accounts?  Wondering as this could get confusing on expenses between adults.



It will be one charge.

If you really wanted separate charges each person or couple would have to book separately. Trying to coordinate that to get the same or overlapping return times sounds a lot more complicated to me than sorting out who owes what later.


----------



## HPotter

wisblue said:


> It will be one charge.
> 
> If you really wanted separate charges each person or couple would have to book separately. Trying to coordinate that to get the same or overlapping return times sounds a lot more complicated to me than sorting out who owes what later.


Bummer, just another layer of aggravation for trying to enjoy a day at the park.


----------



## mlbrv

Thanks for the answers to my earlier questions - I have another one...

Once I book a LL, let's say it's not for several hours later.....is there a way (like the fast pass + "refresh system") that I can keep looking for a better time (on the same ride or even a different one) and switch to that LL? 
Or am I stuck with the 1st one I book?
Thereby having to wait 2 hrs until I can book a 2nd one...(since I wouldn't be able to tap into the ride for several hours)


----------



## chicagodisneyguy

HPotter said:


> Here is something I haven't seen discussed (could be wrong).  If you have a group of say 8 adults.  Of course, you can easily book LL passes as a group, but if YOU book ILL for your full group, do you get charged for all 8 or does the charge move to the specific individuals accounts?  Wondering as this could get confusing on expenses between adults.


 The odds of everyone getting the same return time for rides like RotR, Frozen, 7DMT, or Remy would be pretty low.   One person paying and then reimbursing the others is easiest.


----------



## HPotter

chicagodisneyguy said:


> The odds of everyone getting the same return time for rides like RotR, Frozen, 7DMT, or Remy would be pretty low.   One person paying and then reimbursing the others is easiest.


True, but given that every account is tied to a credit card.  I would hope that they would charge back to that specific account.  It's just a pain in the butt.


----------



## wisblue

mlbrv said:


> Thanks for the answers to my earlier questions - I have another one...
> 
> Once I book a LL, let's say it's not for several hours later.....is there a way (like the fast pass + "refresh system") that I can keep looking for a better time (on the same ride or even a different one) and switch to that LL?
> Or am I stuck with the 1st one I book?
> Thereby having to wait 2 hrs until I can book a 2nd one...(since I wouldn't be able to tap into the ride for several hours)



Unlike FP+ you can’t modify a Genie+ LL to a different time.

You can refresh and see different available times, but to claim it you would have to cancel the first one and then try to book the new one. The risk in that is that the new time may disappear before you can book it, and you’d be left with nothing.

This is addressed in the sticky thread with general information about Genie+ and LL.


----------



## NJlauren

My daughters favorite park is HS,  she mostly wants to do ToT, RnR and maybe SDD, i want to do Rise.  My current plan to do HS 8:30-2:30 one day, the other options is do a few hours in the afternoon one day and also coming back for a 2nd time 8:30-2:30 and skip Epcot all together, but we are really looking forward to checking out the Festival of the Arts and riding Remy!

Do you think i can get those 4 rides done from 8:30-2:30, what is the best plan to do this?  We can not stay later then 2:30 as we have a flight to catch.  

I was thinking pay for Rise pass and hope for an early time, Get RnR LL, ride ToT at rope drop (early entry) and wait for SDD.  If she doesn't want to wait skip SDD, thoughts?  Better plan?


----------



## chicagodisneyguy

HPotter said:


> True, but given that every account is tied to a credit card.  I would hope that they would charge back to that specific account.  It's just a pain in the butt.


Knowing Disney's IT there's a better change of all 8 accounts being charged for all 8 than each getting charged individually.     I think also there's the issues if there are any kids or adults in the group who don't have a credit card on file or a MDE account of their own.  I could also see one person in the group having a credit card that is expired and it causing the whole group to end up with an error message when trying to book a hard to get ILL like RoR or Avatar.


----------



## Sunelis

NJlauren said:


> My daughters favorite park is HS,  she mostly wants to do ToT, RnR and maybe SDD, i want to do Rise.  My current plan to do HS 8:30-2:30 one day, the other options is do a few hours in the afternoon one day and also coming back for a 2nd time 8:30-2:30 and skip Epcot all together, but we are really looking forward to checking out the Festival of the Arts and riding Remy!
> 
> Do you think i can get those 4 rides done from 8:30-2:30, what is the best plan to do this?  We can not stay later then 2:30 as we have a flight to catch.
> 
> I was thinking pay for Rise pass and hope for an early time, Get RnR LL, ride ToT at rope drop (early entry) and wait for SDD.  If she doesn't want to wait skip SDD, thoughts?  Better plan?



Personnally I would pay for Rise, get SDD LL.  Rope drop RnR and TOT.


----------



## NJlauren

Sunelis said:


> Personnally I would pay for Rise, get SDD LL.  Rope drop RnR and TOT.



My fear is i am not going to get a great SDD LL time and be able to get a good Rise time.


----------



## Chuck96

I had my first Genie experience this weekend.  Pretty useless at DAK, but was able to salvage MK when my son spent the whole morning sick in bed (stomach issues, not COVID).  Was able to stack rides starting at 3:30 or so until our Fireworks Dessert thing.  Paid for 7DMT and Space Mountain, because we were only going to hit parks for 3 days total.  Figured I'd splurge.

On Monday, got acquainted with the 10 minute or so refresh rate on booking ILL and G+ rides.  Definitely worth your time if miss out between 7:00 - 7:10.  Managed to get a mid-day RotR after watching it "sell out" multiple times (or offer times after which we would be leaving the park for the airport).  Finally got mine at 7:28 or so.  Patience pays off.  No need to do that one again, but good practice for Tron or Guardians in a year or two.

All in all I prefer FP+ (and I prefer not paying), but with some diligence and patience, you can hit the parks and rides you want without too many standby lines.  But yes, G+ favors the afternoon/evening crunch.  Mornings are still for lines and the occasional early start.

If you do want to stack, take most popular to least popular.  They should all end up between 3-8 PM that way.


----------



## Chuck96

You can always get SDD right away and then hope for a Rise window at the 7:10 refresh.  Otherwise, Sunelis is exactly right.  G+ SDD, ILL RotR, then hit Tower and RnR at park open.


----------



## snikki

NJlauren said:


> My fear is i am not going to get a great SDD LL time and be able to get a good Rise time.



Does your daughter have a phone? Can she log in and get SDD while you get Rise? That's my plan for one of the days. I hope it works.


----------



## NJlauren

@snikki sorry i forgot to quote you and now can not figure out how to add it 

She is 7 and no phone I could load on her ipad I guess… see if that works?


----------



## Brian4891

mlbrv said:


> Thanks for the answers to my earlier questions - I have another one...
> 
> Once I book a LL, let's say it's not for several hours later.....is there a way (like the fast pass + "refresh system") that I can keep looking for a better time (on the same ride or even a different one) and switch to that LL?
> Or am I stuck with the 1st one I book?
> Thereby having to wait 2 hrs until I can book a 2nd one...(since I wouldn't be able to tap into the ride for several hours)



You cannot modify the one that you have, but you can cancel it and book a new one.  When you book the new one, your 120 minutes starts over again.

Just note that if you try to do this with any of the most popular attractions, it is very possible that in the time it takes you to cancel and re-book, the time that you saw and are trying to get will be gone.  With Slinky Dog Dash, for example, sometimes times pop up throughout the day, but by the time you cancel and get back to the tip board it will probably be gone and then you are stuck with nothing


----------



## snikki

NJlauren said:


> @snikki sorry i forgot to quote you and now can not figure out how to add it
> 
> She is 7 and no phone I could load on her ipad I guess… see if that works?



It's better than nothing! I would try it.


----------



## Brian4891

NJlauren said:


> @snikki sorry i forgot to quote you and now can not figure out how to add it
> 
> She is 7 and no phone I could load on her ipad I guess… see if that works?



I think you can get both.  Have both of them pinned to the top of your tip board.  At exactly 7am grab SDD immediately.  It will take 5-10 seconds to get it and get back to the tip board at which point there should still be afternoon ROTR ILL's.  Definitely gotta be quick but I think it's possible!


----------



## Pookie9922

Brian4891 said:


> You cannot modify the one that you have, but you can cancel it and book a new one.  When you book the new one, your 120 minutes starts over again.
> 
> Just note that if you try to do this with any of the most popular attractions, it is very possible that in the time it takes you to cancel and re-book, the time that you saw and are trying to get will be gone.  With Slinky Dog Dash, for example, sometimes times pop up throughout the day, but by the time you cancel and get back to the tip board it will probably be gone and then you are stuck with nothing



Because your 120 minutes starts over, is there any strategy to grabbing a LL, even if it's not the one you want and cancel it later for exchange for another one? I'm trying to wrap my head around the timing that would make sense for this to be beneficial. Like if you're trying to only stack afternoon LL without park hopping.

@ 11:00 book LL#1 Ride you don't want 1:00-2:00 
@ 1:00 book LL#2 Ride you do want 4:00-5:00
@1:01 cancel LL#1 and book LL#1a for 5:00-6:00
@3:01 book LL#3 Ride you want for 6:00-7:00

With my logic it would only make sense to cancel and rebook right after booking a new LL. Am I thinking this out right?


----------



## NJlauren

Brian4891 said:


> I think you can get both.  Have both of them pinned to the top of your tip board.  At exactly 7am grab SDD immediately.  It will take 5-10 seconds to get it and get back to the tip board at which point there should still be afternoon ROTR ILL's.  Definitely gotta be quick but I think it's possible!


But that is my issue, I have to head out by 230, so if ROTR is after say 2, we probably can’t make it happen.  I’m going to have her pick her priorities and go for that one first.  It’s her trip I would rather ride, she may prefer SDD


----------



## Turksmom

NJlauren said:


> But that is my issue, I have to head out by 230, so if ROTR is after say 2, we probably can’t make it happen.  I’m going to have her pick her priorities and go for that one first.  It’s her trip I would rather ride, she may prefer SDD


I would buy ROTR for late morning/early afternoon (if available). We've been able to do RNRC and ToT during early entry- if you go directly to Slinky immediately after exiting ToT, you can probably get all 3 of them done without trying to line up G+ at a convenient time.


----------



## Brian4891

Pookie9922 said:


> Because your 120 minutes starts over, is there any strategy to grabbing a LL, even if it's not the one you want and cancel it later for exchange for another one? I'm trying to wrap my head around the timing that would make sense for this to be beneficial. Like if you're trying to only stack afternoon LL without park hopping.
> 
> @ 11:00 book LL#1 Ride you don't want 1:00-2:00
> @ 1:00 book LL#2 Ride you do want 4:00-5:00
> @1:01 cancel LL#1 and book LL#1a for 5:00-6:00
> @3:01 book LL#3 Ride you want for 6:00-7:00
> 
> With my logic it would only make sense to cancel and rebook right after booking a new LL. Am I thinking this out right?



I don't really think there is any benefit to booking and cancelling.  Once you cancel, you are in the exact same spot as someone who never booked anything in the first place.  It's like the booking never happened.  

Using your example from above, you cannot make the 1:01 LL because you just made one at 1:00.  That one you made at 1:00 shuts you out until 3:00, even if you cancel the one you made at 11:00.


----------



## dmunsil

Pookie9922 said:


> Because your 120 minutes starts over, is there any strategy to grabbing a LL, even if it's not the one you want and cancel it later for exchange for another one? I'm trying to wrap my head around the timing that would make sense for this to be beneficial. Like if you're trying to only stack afternoon LL without park hopping.
> 
> @ 11:00 book LL#1 Ride you don't want 1:00-2:00
> @ 1:00 book LL#2 Ride you do want 4:00-5:00
> @1:01 cancel LL#1 and book LL#1a for 5:00-6:00
> @3:01 book LL#3 Ride you want for 6:00-7:00
> 
> With my logic it would only make sense to cancel and rebook right after booking a new LL. Am I thinking this out right?



It will often make sense to go ahead and book something as soon as you can, even if you plan to arrive later. If you can hold off for 2 hours, you'll be able to stack another one. If that doesn't work and you have to cancel and rebook sooner, you haven't lost anything but a little time.

At the MK, if you imagine a scenario where you'll arrive at 3:00 pm, on a medium-busy day, you'd have to wait until noon or later before you start seeing times after 3:00 on the main headliners. So you book (from your hotel) one ride at noon and one at 2, and enter the park at 3 with two bookings.

If instead you book one sometime between 7-9 (for 10:05-11:05 or later), then at 11 book a new one (for 12;05-1:05 or later) and then cancel and rebook your first one, then do the same thing at 1 (hopefully now for after 3), then book another at 3 just as you enter, now you're walking in with four bookings.

On a busier day, you'll start seeing late return times faster, but it still might be hard to book a ride with a post-3 return time before 9 am, at least at the MK. At Hollywood Studios, you need to book SDD right off the bat, and it's relatively easy to get a later time just by waiting a couple of minutes. Though even then, you might find that there's nothing you want after three when your next booking window opens at 11. In that case, you should book something 65+ minutes away, then book another at 1 and rebook your earlier one.

*Edit: Disney changed the rules at some point in the last few weeks. Cancelling any reservation other than the one you most recently booked does nothing. So you can't really do the stack the way I describe above.*


----------



## dmunsil

Brian4891 said:


> I don't really think there is any benefit to booking and cancelling.  Once you cancel, you are in the exact same spot as someone who never booked anything in the first place.  It's like the booking never happened.
> 
> Using your example from above, you cannot make the 1:01 LL because you just made one at 1:00.  That one you made at 1:00 shuts you out until 3:00, even if you cancel the one you made at 11:00.



When you cancel a Genie+ booking, even one made earlier in the day, you get to make another one, so as long as you book your new one first, you can then cancel and rebook your previous one. That's the key distinction. Or at least, that's the way it worked a couple weeks ago and I haven't heard that it's changed. The rules for cancellation didn't change when they changed the rules for usage.

*Edit: Disney changed the rules at some point in the last few weeks. Cancelling any reservation other than the one you most recently booked does nothing.*


----------



## twodogs

HPotter said:


> True, but given that every account is tied to a credit card.  I would hope that they would charge back to that specific account.  It's just a pain in the butt.


Then people would have to worry that anyone that their account was linked to in MDE could charge something back to their card without their permission.  And I don't think Disney wants this headache.  So they make it your headache!!


----------



## twodogs

glocon said:


> If GE is your goal for that day, it seems like you should be able to get both SW rides in between 2pm and 6/7pm. You can purchase Rise for the time that works for you then standby or get G+ for MF. Seems doable. Might even get an Oga’s ressie to fit in there too!


Something to add into the calculus is the transportation time between the parks (and then back again, if you go back to EPCOT that night).  You can walk, and it might be around 25 mintues if you are quick, each way.  If you take the boats, bus, skyliner, it could be quicker or could be over an hour.  You just don't know.  So to be in DHS right at 2pm to hop, you would have to cut EPCOT shorter in the morning to make the transfer.  Also consider that you would be going through security 3 times in one day, and then ticket booths 3 times in one day, which can get slow right at parkhopping time some days.  Lastly, you can have the LLs scheduled perfectly, but a ride goes down and doesn't come back up for hours.  Then all timing is thrown off.

I personally would just plan to miss dinner with the group in EPCOT and hop to DHS for less stress.  Then if you have great transportation luck and LL luck and no-ride-breakdown luck, you could go back to EPCOT for dinner as a bonus!


----------



## Brian4891

dmunsil said:


> When you cancel a Genie+ booking, even one made earlier in the day, you get to make another one, so as long as you book your new one first, you can then cancel and rebook your previous one. That's the key distinction. Or at least, that's the way it worked a couple weeks ago and I haven't heard that it's changed. The rules for cancellation didn't change when they changed the rules for usage.



If this is true then that is a nice loophole that could definitely be used to someone's advantage.  I did not know this was the case and would have liked to try it out myself last week when I was there.  I'm sorry if I gave the original person incorrect info.


----------



## twodogs

NJlauren said:


> But that is my issue, I have to head out by 230, so if ROTR is after say 2, we probably can’t make it happen.  I’m going to have her pick her priorities and go for that one first.  It’s her trip I would rather ride, she may prefer SDD


Do you have an adult at home who can try to get SDD while you get ROTR?  They just need to be signed into your MDE and know what they are doing.  They don't have to be anywhere near WDW to do it!  We helped get ROTR BGs for our friends over the summer, and we did it from Dallas!

If you have fast fingers and no glitches, and you both try right at the stroke of 7am, you should easily get both well before 2:30pm.


----------



## twodogs

dmunsil said:


> When you cancel a Genie+ booking, even one made earlier in the day, you get to make another one, so as long as you book your new one first, you can then cancel and rebook your previous one. That's the key distinction. Or at least, that's the way it worked a couple weeks ago and I haven't heard that it's changed. The rules for cancellation didn't change when they changed the rules for usage.


I don't think this is the case.  Since the "rule" is that whatever happens, your next action is restricted by the _most recent_ LL you booked.  Period.  Canceling may open up an immediate rebooking opportunity if the one you are cancelling was the _most recent_ one you booked.  But if you are cancelling something you booked earlier in the day, and then you have booked but not used another LL _since then_, the "lock out" rule will be tied to the most recently booked (but not yet used) LL, not the early morning booking that you are cancelling.  If the one you have booked most recently has been used, then you could rebook right then either way, with or without cancelling the earlier morning booking, since the restriction is only based on the most recently booked LL (and you would have used that LL, reopening the opportunity to book something else).   I will let others chime in as well to make sure this is correct.


----------



## twodogs

Brian4891 said:


> If this is true then that is a nice loophole that could definitely be used to someone's advantage.  I did not know this was the case and would have liked to try it out myself last week when I was there.  I'm sorry if I gave the original person incorrect info.


See my post above.  I think you are correct.


----------



## NJlauren

twodogs said:


> Do you have an adult at home who can try to get SDD while you get ROTR?  They just need to be signed into your MDE and know what they are doing.  They don't have to be anywhere near WDW to do it!  We helped get ROTR BGs for our friends over the summer, and we did it from Dallas!
> 
> If you have fast fingers and no glitches, and you both try right at the stroke of 7am, you should easily get both well before 2:30pm.



this isn’t a horrible idea, now to train someone before Friday


----------



## Renaissancerocks

I have mixed feeling about my experience. And, you would think on busy days it would make the most sense but not necessarily. On busy days they do not limit how many LL they sell so we were extremely limited on the ride numbers and the rides that were available were limited. They only limit ll$. So, I think I’m trying to say strategy would depend on how busy parks are. If there are really busy, you will not get as many rides in but you will still get more rides than without. And, we had many rides saying all LL gone by our second or third ride pick so before lunch we did not have all rides available to choose from. And, we did much more walking from one end of the park to the other and back again…a ton more walking than if you can have some sort of a plan before hand. This is a pick what’s available and walk to the other side of the park. So strategy changes depending on how tired you are too. And, for the love of all things magical, I want to sleep in on vacation and LL does not allow for that. So, strategically speaking, to get the most out of it, there is no sleeping in.


----------



## Chris Anglin

Disturbia said:


> In order to book a LLIA$ for Remy, you need to have a park pass reservation booked for the park you are starting at AND have parkhoppers for everyone (so MK park reservation and park hoppers)
> 
> OR
> 
> Epcot park pass reservation
> 
> Genie+ rides everyone can book at 7 am.  Remy LLIA$ can be purchased by on-site guests at 7 am (offsite is at park opening).
> 
> Everyone needs to have the park pass reservation, same ticket (hoppers) and be linked on MDE friends/family list.  I would have one account; multiple people can log in to the same account (one on wifi, one without, difference devices etc).


Let me ask for a little more clarification...
I'll have ressies for AK or MK in the morning and Epcot in the pm. At 7 am can I purchase ILL for Remy for a pm reservation after 2 when I can hop to Epcot?


----------



## Pookie9922

twodogs said:


> I don't think this is the case.  Since the "rule" is that whatever happens, your next action is restricted by the _most recent_ LL you booked.  Period.  Canceling may open up an immediate rebooking opportunity if the one you are cancelling was the _most recent_ one you booked.  But if you are cancelling something you booked earlier in the day, and then you have booked but not used another LL _since then_, the "lock out" rule will be tied to the most recently booked (but not yet used) LL, not the early morning booking that you are cancelling.  If the one you have booked most recently has been used, then you could rebook right then either way, with or without cancelling the earlier morning booking, since the restriction is only based on the most recently booked LL (and you would have used that LL, reopening the opportunity to book something else).   I will let others chime in as well to make sure this is correct.


So what you're saying is that in the case that you're cancelling an LL you booked earlier in the day but isn't the most recently booked, you would basically cancel without getting a replacement. Which would put you in the same spot as if you hadn't booked it the first LL at all. That would be a bummer!

We need someone with an AP and a willingness to spend $15 to test this out for us! I don't have an AP otherwise, I totally would try it. I know it was addressed before they changed the booking rules, but I've been following this thread carefully and haven't seen this scenario addressed. The question is does cancelling reset your eligibility and your clock no matter what or does it only reset your eligibility if it's the most recently booked.

It's too bad they don't let you set your beginning time. Park Hoppers definitely have an advantage with the afternoon LL stacking. I'd rather go SB for rides in the morning, while the lines were shorter and stack up LLs for the afternoon. And get to ride things twice - once SB and once with LL, like we could with FP+.


----------



## Orsino

dmunsil has already said he did the cancel thing a few weeks ago.



dmunsil said:


> Or at least, that's the way it worked a couple weeks ago and I haven't heard that it's changed. The rules for cancellation didn't change when they changed the rules for usage.


----------



## jbish

Luisfba said:


> I’m trying to practice on MDE some… when I go to my MDE to the tip board, it’s always defaulting to HS and only giving me the option to edit selections (to put some things at top) only for HS.  I can change to other parks.. they just don’t show the ability to edit selections for the preferences.
> 
> anyone else face that and if so, any workarounds? Tried deleting and reinstalling app and that didn’t work.
> 
> concerned this will create issues when I get there if it’s still happening (at a minimum, not being able to use that function for any parks other than HS).
> 
> Thanks


I have the same issue - the default park that shows up for me is Epcot.  I thought it was because that is the first park reservation I have (in April).  I can "Edit Selections" on the Tip Board and move up a priority item in Epcot.  But when I change parks to HS or MK, I don't have the "Edit Selection" option.  Also I noticed it refreshed the Tip Board the next day - so whatever I had selected wasn't at the top the next day.  At least I know what people mean by putting it at the top of the Tip Board, but I didn't see a way to really practice beyond that point.


----------



## Tom_E_D

Pookie9922 said:


> So what you're saying is that in the case that you're cancelling an LL you booked earlier in the day but isn't the most recently booked, you would basically cancel without getting a replacement. Which would put you in the same spot as if you hadn't booked it the first LL at all. That would be a bummer!
> 
> We need someone with an AP and a willingness to spend $15 to test this out for us! I don't have an AP otherwise, I totally would try it. I know it was addressed before they changed the booking rules, but I've been following this thread carefully and haven't seen this scenario addressed. The question is does cancelling reset your eligibility and your clock no matter what or does it only reset your eligibility if it's the most recently booked.
> 
> It's too bad they don't let you set your beginning time. Park Hoppers definitely have an advantage with the afternoon LL stacking. I'd rather go SB for rides in the morning, while the lines were shorter and stack up LLs for the afternoon. And get to ride things twice - once SB and once with LL, like we could with FP+.


It wouldn't have to be someone with an AP and a willingness to throw $15 at Disney. It could be someone at the park who is willing to take a chance that they won't be able to book another G+LL to replace the one being cancelled. That might not be much of a sacrifice for someone who has already ridden the headliners that day, is planning to leave the park anyway,  or is staying until closing and able to take advantage of short lines then.


----------



## wisblue

Chris Anglin said:


> Let me ask for a little more clarification...
> I'll have ressies for AK or MK in the morning and Epcot in the pm. At 7 am can I purchase ILL for Remy for a pm reservation after 2 when I can hop to Epcot?



You cannot have park reservations for 2 different parks the same day. If you have a reservation for a park other than Epcot, and a park hopper option with your ticket, and are staying onsite, at 7 AM you can book an ILL$ reservation for Remy for any available return time later than 2 PM.


----------



## dmunsil

Orsino said:


> dmunsil has already said he did the cancel thing a few weeks ago.


Yes - I have an AP and a willingness to throw $15 at Disney. I might go ahead and do it again just to confirm, but at this point I have literally no reason to think it's changed since I tested it. I tested it several weeks after the change that removed the best stacking tricks, FWIW.

*Edit: Disney changed the rules at some point in the last few weeks. Cancelling any reservation other than the one you most recently booked does nothing.*


----------



## ComeToSocialize

NJlauren said:


> My fear is i am not going to get a great SDD LL time and be able to get a good Rise time.



There's no perfect solution to this, and it depends on how "important" each ride is to you. But, in my opinion, if your main goal is to maximize odds of getting on SDD, ROTR, ToT and RnRC before 230pm:

Buy ROTR at 7am, book RNRC through G+ for something like 10am, Rope drop SDD, and then standby ToT. With that plan, you don't even have to be that lucky on the app or have a 2nd person, and you should be able to get SDD done by 10am, ride RNRC through G+, do ROTR whenever your time slot was, and have plenty of time to standby ToT.

Trying for SDD G+ and then ROTR ILL at 7am is the "higher risk, higher reward" solution but you might theoretically end up with time slots after 230pm with that gameplan if your app crashes or something. Buying ROTR is the key, as long as you get that before 2pm you can easily standby the other 3 in 6 hours if you're prepared to get there at 830.


----------



## NJlauren

ComeToSocialize said:


> There's no perfect solution to this, and it depends on how "important" each ride is to you. But, in my opinion, if your main goal is to maximize odds of getting on SDD, ROTR, ToT and RnRC before 230pm:
> 
> Buy ROTR at 7am, book RNRC through G+ for something like 10am, Rope drop SDD, and then standby ToT. With that plan, you don't even have to be that lucky on the app or have a 2nd person, and you should be able to get SDD done by 10am, ride RNRC through G+, do ROTR whenever your time slot was, and have plenty of time to standby ToT.
> 
> Trying for SDD G+ and then ROTR ILL at 7am is the "higher risk, higher reward" solution but you might theoretically end up with time slots after 230pm with that gameplan if your app crashes or something. Buying ROTR is the key, as long as you get that before 2pm you can easily standby the other 3 in 6 hours if you're prepared to get there at 830.



thanks!  I going to ask my daughter which is more important to her ROTR or SDD and which ever she picks I’ll go for at 7, and either stand by or skip the other!

thanks for all the help!


----------



## AndreaDM

Going in 10 days for first trip with Genie+. Taking 2 kids, almost 3 and 5 for their first trip so touring differently than I normally would. I am buying Genie+ only for one day at MK and am confused as to the best strategy for maximizing rides with minimal waits. We won't be park hopping but will be at MK all day, staying onsite and utilizing early entry. What should be our plan of attack? Book rides for later in the day, or start using Genie+ right off the bat. Should we go straight to Peter Pan and book something else? We also want to make sure to get Jungle Cruise but I see those return times are later in the day. I am also trying to minimize park criss-crossing. Ahhhh this is stressing me out!


----------



## GBRforWDW

AndreaDM said:


> Going in 10 days for first trip with Genie+. Taking 2 kids, almost 3 and 5 for their first trip so touring differently than I normally would. I am buying Genie+ only for one day at MK and am confused as to the best strategy for maximizing rides with minimal waits. We won't be park hopping but will be at MK all day, staying onsite and utilizing early entry. What should be our plan of attack? Book rides for later in the day, or start using Genie+ right off the bat. Should we go straight to Peter Pan and book something else? We also want to make sure to get Jungle Cruise but I see those return times are later in the day. I am also trying to minimize park criss-crossing. Ahhhh this is stressing me out!


If you are doing ETPE, then yeah, I would go straight to Peter Pan.  For Genie+, if you're on and ready right at 7, you should get a morning time for Jungle Cruise.  It takes some refreshing and waiting a few minutes before you see afternoon times.

Unfortunately, it's hard to get rides in order around the park and within the time frame you're there unless you plan your rides for afternoon, but even then nothing is guaranteed since you have to take the time offered or wait for a time that works, but that ends up messing with the cool down time.


----------



## AndreaDM

GBRforWDW said:


> If you are doing ETPE, then yeah, I would go straight to Peter Pan.  For Genie+, if you're on and ready right at 7, you should get a morning time for Jungle Cruise.  It takes some refreshing and waiting a few minutes before you see afternoon times.
> 
> Unfortunately, it's hard to get rides in order around the park and within the time frame you're there unless you plan your rides for afternoon, but even then nothing is guaranteed since you have to take the time offered or wait for a time that works, but that ends up messing with the cool down time.



Thanks! But should I get an afternoon JC time and then try to get more before that time, one every 2 hours? Is that possible? Booking one way out and then booking other, easier to get ones for earlier in the day?


----------



## Brian4891

AndreaDM said:


> Going in 10 days for first trip with Genie+. Taking 2 kids, almost 3 and 5 for their first trip so touring differently than I normally would. I am buying Genie+ only for one day at MK and am confused as to the best strategy for maximizing rides with minimal waits. We won't be park hopping but will be at MK all day, staying onsite and utilizing early entry. What should be our plan of attack? Book rides for later in the day, or start using Genie+ right off the bat. Should we go straight to Peter Pan and book something else? We also want to make sure to get Jungle Cruise but I see those return times are later in the day. I am also trying to minimize park criss-crossing. Ahhhh this is stressing me out!



I was in Magic Kingdom last week and used Genie+ there twice. I do not find the stacking strategy to be as useful at that park as it is in Hollywood Studios. I used the "Use and get a new one" strategy and had a lot of success with it.

On our first day there I got Jungle Cruise at 7am for a 9:30am - 10:30am window. We got to the park at 9am and went on Pirates (had planned on heading straight to Thunder Mountain but it was down) with no wait as soon as they opened Frontier Land. Then we went on the Magic Carpets quickly just to kill 5 more minutes before our Jungle Cruise window opened.

As soon as we tapped into Jungle Cruise, we got another LL for Haunted Mansion for 10:30 - 11:30. While we waited for that window to open we went on Small World which only had a 15 minute wait.

After tapping into Haunted Mansion, we got another one for Winnie the Pooh good for 12:30 - 1:30. Ate lunch while we waited for that window to open.

We followed this process all day long, basically using our LL's on things with more than 30 minute waits and filling in the rest of the time with things with minimal waits.

Almost all of the Hollywood Studios attractions LL return times move several hours into the future making it a good park for stacking. This is not the case at Magic Kingdom where the return times stay fairly close to the booking time. Magic Kingdom also has a lot of attractions with low waits that you can fill the time with while you are waiting for your lightning lane. Also not the case at Hollywood Studios where most of the attractions have long standby waits.


----------



## mickey916

Brian4891 said:


> I was in Magic Kingdom last week and used Genie+ there twice.  I do not find the stacking strategy to be as useful at that park as it is in Hollywood Studios.  I used the "Use and get a new one" strategy and had a lot of success with it.
> 
> On our first day there I got Jungle Cruise at 7am for a 9:30am - 10:30am window.  We got to the park at 9am and went on Pirates (had planned on heading straight to Thunder Mountain but it was down) with no wait as soon as they opened Frontier Land.  Then we went on the Magic Carpets quickly just to kill 5 more minutes before our Jungle Cruise window opened.
> 
> As soon as we tapped into Jungle Cruise, we got another LL for Haunted Mansion for 10:30 - 11:30.  While we waited for that window to open we went on Small World which only had a 15 minute wait.
> 
> After tapping into Haunted Mansion, we got another one for Winnie the Pooh good for 12:30 - 1:30.  Ate lunch while we waited for that window to open.
> 
> We followed this process all day long, basically using our LL's on things with more than 30 minute waits and filling in the rest of the time with things with minimal waits.
> 
> Almost all of the Hollywood Studios attractions LL return times move several hours into the future making it a good park for stacking.  This is not the case at Magic Kingdom where the return times stay fairly close to the booking time.  Magic Kingdom also has a lot of attractions with low waits that you can fill the time with while you are waiting for your lightning lane.  Also not the case at Hollywood Studios where most of the attractions have long standby waits.


very helpful post!


----------



## wisblue

Brian4891 said:


> I was in Magic Kingdom last week and used Genie+ there twice.  I do not find the stacking strategy to be as useful at that park as it is in Hollywood Studios.  I used the "Use and get a new one" strategy and had a lot of success with it.
> 
> On our first day there I got Jungle Cruise at 7am for a 9:30am - 10:30am window.  We got to the park at 9am and went on Pirates (had planned on heading straight to Thunder Mountain but it was down) with no wait as soon as they opened Frontier Land.  Then we went on the Magic Carpets quickly just to kill 5 more minutes before our Jungle Cruise window opened.
> 
> As soon as we tapped into Jungle Cruise, we got another LL for Haunted Mansion for 10:30 - 11:30.  While we waited for that window to open we went on Small World which only had a 15 minute wait.
> 
> After tapping into Haunted Mansion, we got another one for Winnie the Pooh good for 12:30 - 1:30.  Ate lunch while we waited for that window to open.
> 
> We followed this process all day long, basically using our LL's on things with more than 30 minute waits and filling in the rest of the time with things with minimal waits.
> 
> Almost all of the Hollywood Studios attractions LL return times move several hours into the future making it a good park for stacking.  This is not the case at Magic Kingdom where the return times stay fairly close to the booking time.  Magic Kingdom also has a lot of attractions with low waits that you can fill the time with while you are waiting for your lightning lane.  Also not the case at Hollywood Studios where most of the attractions have long standby waits.



I think stacking at MK is used most effectively by people who take midday breaks or are hopping to MK from another park, especially from DAK or Epcot where G+ is less useful.


----------



## NJlauren

I think this has probably be answered but I can’t seem to find it.  

If I have a 2-3, 3-4, and 4-5 LL booked and I booked them at 9 and 11 and 1, can I book a 4th LL at 3? My next 2 hours window? 
does this make sense?
If I booked my 2-3 at 1 can I book a 4th LL when I tap into this LL?


----------



## DisneyFive

AndreaDM said:


> Thanks! But should I get an afternoon JC time and then try to get more before that time, one every 2 hours? Is that possible? Booking one way out and then booking other, easier to get ones for earlier in the day?


This is specific to MK, since it has so many attractions...  Personally, I plan to book G+ as early as possible and keep getting new G+ options throughout the day.

At 7am, if you were to book a G+ for later in the day, you are giving up a LOT of prime time to be snagging G+'s for lots of attractions.  

Dan


----------



## wisblue

NJlauren said:


> thanks!  I going to ask my daughter which is more important to her ROTR or SDD and which ever she picks I’ll go for at 7, and either stand by or skip the other!
> 
> thanks for all the help!



See the thread I started yesterday about getting LL for both SDD and ROTR.

You might be able to benefit from the “7:10“ pattern by making the ROTR reservation first and then trying for a SDD LL a few minutes later as more times appear.

If you can’t get an acceptable time for SDD that way you can go to a backup.


----------



## Brian4891

NJlauren said:


> I think this has probably be answered but I can’t seem to find it.
> 
> If I have a 2-3, 3-4, and 4-5 LL booked and I booked them at 9 and 11 and 1, can I book a 4th LL at 3? My next 2 hours window?
> does this make sense?
> If I booked my 2-3 at 1 can I book a 4th LL when I tap into this LL?



Yes you have it right.  You can book your 4th LL at 3 since it has been 2 hours since you last booked one.

Yes to your other question as well.  As soon as you tap into the the last one you booked, regardless of where it falls in your schedule for the day, you can make a new one.


----------



## NJlauren

Brian4891 said:


> Yes you have it right.  You can book your 4th LL at 3 since it has been 2 hours since you last booked one.
> 
> Yes to your other question as well.  As soon as you tap into the the last one you booked, regardless of where it falls in your schedule for the day, you can make a new one.



perfect!!!  Thank you


----------



## LarryBoy

My wife will be at MK Saturday and are planning to use G+ for that day. I would say that our top must do attractions that are on LL are JC, BTMRR, HM, and PotC. We will probably just try to book a LL as early as possible at 7AM and then get another when we tap in and so on. That being said which one would you try to grab first? I'm thinking Jungle Cruise because the stand by tends to be long all day and the LLs fill up quicker. Also is it correct that I can only have more than on LL if I wait two hours past an existing LL? So if I tap in, have an LL, before the two hours I can just book one?


----------



## NJlauren

wisblue said:


> See the thread I started yesterday about getting LL for both SDD and ROTR.
> 
> You might be able to benefit from the “7:10“ pattern by making the ROTR reservation first and then trying for a SDD LL a few minutes later as more times appear.
> 
> If you can’t get an acceptable time for SDD that way you can go to a backup.


Totally check this out!  Thank you!!


----------



## DisneyFive

Brian4891 said:


> Yes you have it right.  You can book your 4th LL at 3 since it has been 2 hours since you last booked one.
> 
> Yes to your other question as well.  As soon as you tap into the the last one you booked, regardless of where it falls in your schedule for the day, you can make a new one.



Just so I'm clear, to your second point, is this what you are saying?  (I edited your response a little)...

"Yes to your other question as well.  As soon as you tap into the *most recently booked LL*, regardless of where it falls in your schedule for the day, you can make a new one."


Also, in NJlauren's case...

Let's say it's 1:30pm.  When she taps into either the 2-3 or 3-4 LL's, it won't allow another LL to be booked right?  That would happen with the 4-5LL, or 2 hour window, whichever comes first?

Thanks,
Dan


----------



## Brian4891

DisneyFive said:


> Just so I'm clear, to your second point, is this what you are saying?  (I edited your response a little)...
> 
> "Yes to your other question as well.  As soon as you tap into the *most recently booked LL*, regardless of where it falls in your schedule for the day, you can make a new one."
> 
> 
> Also, in NJlauren's case...
> 
> Let's say it's 1:30pm.  When she taps into either the 2-3 or 3-4 LL's, it won't allow another LL to be booked right?  That would happen with the 4-5LL, or 2 hour window, whichever comes first?
> 
> Thanks,
> Dan



Correct.  Her most recently booked LL prevents her from making another LL.  In order to make a new one she either has to tap into that most recently booked LL or wait the 120 minutes.

In NJLauren's scenario, she said she booked the 2-3 window at 1pm.  Therefore the 3-4 and 4-5 windows were booked prior to that.  At 1:30pm, it has been greater than than 120 minutes since she booked the 3-4 and 4-5 windows so those bookings are now completely irrelevant.  Now at 2pm when she taps into the LL that she created at 1pm, she is free to make a new LL.  All of her restrictions have been cleared at that point.


----------



## snikki

For arrival day at MK does this make the most sense:

7 am - book JC for an afternoon time. I’ll have to refresh a bit but hoping for around 2 pm.

Around 8 am - take off for Orlando. Land around 10:30

11 am - book PP for afternoon/evening

Hope to be in the park around 1.


----------



## nicko

wisblue said:


> 1. Have Genie + purchased and set SDD at the top of your tip board before 7:00.



How does one "set SDD (or any specific ride) at the top of your tip board"?  I'm using the App on Android and I can't see how to do that.  I see the list of attractions for a park on the Tip Board tab but they are shown in alphabetical order.


----------



## cheshiregoofy22

nicko said:


> How does one "set SDD (or any specific ride) at the top of your tip board"?  I'm using the App on Android and I can't see how to do that.  I see the list of attractions for a park on the Tip Board tab but they are shown in alphabetical order.


 
My android will let me set selections at Hollywood Studios and Magic Kingdom only.  With those two parks, at the top of the page it says "To customize your Tip Board, use Disney Genie service to select your top experiences."  And beneath those words in blue it says "Edit Selections."


----------



## scrappinginontario

snikki said:


> For arrival day at MK does this make the most sense:
> 
> 7 am - book JC for an afternoon time. I’ll have to refresh a bit but hoping for around 2 pm.
> 
> Around 8 am - take off for Orlando. Land around 10:30
> 
> 11 am - book PP for afternoon/evening
> 
> Hope to be in the park around 1.


The one challenge with this method is that there's a good chance PP will be full for the day by the time your 11 am PP booking window opens.  I would recommend choosing the ride JC/PP that is most important to you at 7AM.


----------



## snikki

scrappinginontario said:


> The one challenge with this method is that there's a good chance PP will be full for the day by the time your 11 am PP booking window opens.  I would recommend choosing the ride JC/PP that is most important to you at 7AM.



Wow. I didn’t realize PP books that quickly. Good to know!


----------



## GBRforWDW

nicko said:


> How does one "set SDD (or any specific ride) at the top of your tip board"?  I'm using the App on Android and I can't see how to do that.  I see the list of attractions for a park on the Tip Board tab but they are shown in alphabetical order.


This only works if you have a ticket and park reservation, unfortunately.

Not specifically for today though.   A future reservation should still allow you to access the edit selection link.


----------



## jbish

jbish said:


> Our upcoming trip will be during the week leading up to Easter (Tue-Sat).  I'm mentally prepared for it to be the worst crowd levels I've ever experienced so I'd love some insight for those that experienced the Christmas/New Year's crowds this year as it relates to G+.  I've never been during this week of Spring Break - we had a trip in 2020 planned maximizing things like DAH and stuff, but, as you know....
> 
> Anyway, conventional wisdom here and on trusted blogs would say that G+ is not worth it for EP and AK.  But for this particular week, do we think it would be worth it?  Our arrival day, for example, we have a PR for EP.  Maybe start stacking LLs for the day as we're en route to Orlando?  (We land at MCO at 8:30 am and estimating we'd be in the parks by 11-12).


Re-upping my question again - would love some insight for thoughts on using G+ for EP and AK during the PEAK week leading up to Easter.  Will it be worth it?  I fear that we won't even be able to maximize the number of LLs for HS/MK given the sheer volume of people who will likely be paying for G+ that week.  But better 2-3 rides through LL than none at all?


----------



## scrappinginontario

snikki said:


> Wow. I didn’t realize PP books that quickly. Good to know!


Not as quickly as things like Slinky Dog Dash but in the 4 hour window between 7AM and 11AM, it may fill.  I just looked at Thrill Data and from the heat map PP appears to fill around 11 AM so you may have an opportunity to grab it when your second booking window opens.


----------



## GBRforWDW

jbish said:


> Re-upping my question again - would love some insight for thoughts on using G+ for EP and AK during the PEAK week leading up to Easter.  Will it be worth it?  I fear that we won't even be able to maximize the number of LLs for HS/MK given the sheer volume of people who will likely be paying for G+ that week.  But better 2-3 rides through LL than none at all?


For AK and Epcot, it really depends on how you want to do the parks.  If you want to maximize your time walking around non ride areas, while still doing rides, it's nice to have Genie+.  If you're just there for the rides and don't mind the wait in lines, then you could probably get by without it.

When we went Christmas week, I found myself waiting past the 2 hour window for some rides wanting them to get to a workable time for us for those parks.  We had a lot of non ride things we wanted to do, so it was nice to have to go straight to the front of the line.

At AK, we got G+ passes for:
7:00: Na'vi River Journey for 1pm
10:30: Festival of the Lion King for 12
12:45: Dinosaur for 5pm
2:45: Kilimanjaro Safari for 3pm

The smaller attractions still had availability later in the day as well.

Epcot
7:00: Frozen for 1:30 (downgraded from ILL$ for Christmas)
11:40: Soarin' for 4pm
1:40: SSE for 2:30

We were running around the park and also had the Candlelight Processional for 5 and a Remy ILL$ at 6:30 and a Space 220 ADR at 7:45 so we stopped there with G+ passes, but could have easily gotten for living with the land and Nemo attractions and probably mission space if we planned right.


----------



## jbish

GBRforWDW said:


> For AK and Epcot, it really depends on how you want to do the parks.  If you want to maximize your time walking around non ride areas, while still doing rides, it's nice to have Genie+.  If you're just there for the rides and don't mind the wait in lines, then you could probably get by without it.
> 
> When we went Christmas week, I found myself waiting past the 2 hour window for some rides wanting them to get to a workable time for us for those parks.  We had a lot of non ride things we wanted to do, so it was nice to have to go straight to the front of the line.


Thanks for that insight!  Christmas is probably the most comparable week so I am hoping to hear from more people that went this week.  So, these "waiting and walking around days" were at all of the parks?  Or are you talking about AK & EP?  I do think we would do some non-ride things, but I'm just imagining a wall of people, even just walking around the World Showcase during F&G, which might take the fun out of that.


----------



## GBRforWDW

jbish said:


> Thanks for that insight!  Christmas is probably the most comparable week so I am hoping to hear from more people that went this week.  So, these "waiting and walking around days" were at all of the parks?  Or are you talking about AK & EP?  I do think we would do some non-ride things, but I'm just imagining a wall of people, even just walking around the World Showcase during F&G, which might take the fun out of that.


Yeah, mostly just AK.  We had a lot planned for Epcot with 2 ADRs and Candlelight Processional which time wise would compare to the concert series.  I edited my post above with our passes and times. We also spent about 8 hours in the parks max most days, so for us the Genie was even more beneficial to get more done in our time frame.

Oh yeah, there were walls of people in certain areas of Epcot.  It's a little crazy at the pinch points.


----------



## EpcotNerd

cheshiregoofy22 said:


> My android will let me set selections at Hollywood Studios and Magic Kingdom only.  With those two parks, at the top of the page it says "To customize your Tip Board, use Disney Genie service to select your top experiences."  And beneath those words in blue it says "Edit Selections."



Do you have to do this for each day you have a park reservation?  I tried editing my selections while practicing (we leave next week) and the next day there were no favorites "pinned" on top of my list.  Is this something I'll have to do every morning before 7?  So 1. Purchase Genie+, 2. Pin favorites 3. Make selections as clock strikes 7?


----------



## cheshiregoofy22

EpcotNerd said:


> Do you have to do this for each day you have a park reservation?  I tried editing my selections while practicing (we leave next week) and the next day there were no favorites "pinned" on top of my list.  Is this something I'll have to do every morning before 7?  So 1. Purchase Genie+, 2. Pin favorites 3. Make selections as clock strikes 7?


It appears so to me - also just practicing - leaving tomorrow (woo!) - the favorites that I pin to the top don't appear for more than one day on my phone.  It'll be interesting to see how it plays out in real time!   Have a wonderful trip!!


----------



## GBRforWDW

EpcotNerd said:


> Do you have to do this for each day you have a park reservation?  I tried editing my selections while practicing (we leave next week) and the next day there were no favorites "pinned" on top of my list.  Is this something I'll have to do every morning before 7?  So 1. Purchase Genie+, 2. Pin favorites 3. Make selections as clock strikes 7?





cheshiregoofy22 said:


> It appears so to me - also just practicing - leaving tomorrow (woo!) - the favorites that I pin to the top don't appear for more than one day on my phone.  It'll be interesting to see how it plays out in real time!   Have a wonderful trip!!


Yes, unfortunately it resets each day.  It's pretty annoying.  I ended up not fidgeting with the pins on my trip.  It's good for 7am, but after that, too much of a hassle as you try to do other things.

My approach to refresh times is to click the ride name to get to the ride details page, then click LL to return.   Some like to click the tab to refresh, but I noticed that doesn't always take you back to the same spot.


----------



## Chris Anglin

wisblue said:


> You cannot have park reservations for 2 different parks the same day. If you have a reservation for a park other than Epcot, and a park hopper option with your ticket, and are staying onsite, at 7 AM you can book an ILL$ reservation for Remy for any available return time later than 2 PM.


I'll have ressie for AK, I do have park hopper, I am staying onsite


----------



## Disneymom1126

found answer in Everything Genie post....disregard thanks!


----------



## LarryBoy

We plan on using the tap and book method at MK this weekend, ie I'm hoping to book JC at 7AM and then book a new one when we tap in for that first ride hopefully well before the park has been open for two hours. If we are lucky and continue to get LLs less than two hours away is the only time I can book a new one when I tap in? Am I understanding it correctly that I can only book a second LL once it's been two hours from booking a LL that hasn't been used yet. Also what if the two hour mark falls during an arrival window and I haven't tapped in yet? Can I get one LL before we tap in and a second one after we tap in?


----------



## scrappinginontario

snikki said:


> Wow. I didn’t realize PP books that quickly. Good to know!


I remembered today to take a quick look.  Right now at 10:40 AM, next available LL for JC is 1:55PM and next available for PP is 5:20.  It appears that both will still be available at 11 AM but PP return times will probably be pushed into the evening by then.


----------



## snikki

scrappinginontario said:


> I remembered today to take a quick look.  Right now at 10:40 AM, next available LL for JC is 1:55PM and next available for PP is 5:20.  It appears that both will still be available at 11 AM but PP return times will probably be pushed into the evening by then.



Thanks! At 7 am I will get whichever has 2 pm first. Then at 11 am I’ll get the other. We don’t go until November so a lot can change but we will see. It seems those will be my best bet to get for later times.


----------



## Brian4891

LarryBoy said:


> We plan on using the tap and book method at MK this weekend, ie I'm hoping to book JC at 7AM and then book a new one when we tap in for that first ride hopefully well before the park has been open for two hours. If we are lucky and continue to get LLs less than two hours away is the only time I can book a new one when I tap in? Am I understanding it correctly that I can only book a second LL once it's been two hours from booking a LL that hasn't been used yet. Also what if the two hour mark falls during an arrival window and I haven't tapped in yet? Can I get one LL before we tap in and a second one after we tap in?



I think you pretty much got it.  The only thing that matters is your *most recently booked* LL.  Every time you make a new LL, any prior LL's that you booked earlier do not matter in any way and have no effect on your current situation.  When you booked them no longer matters and when you use them no longer matters.  

The most recently booked is the only thing preventing you from making a new LL.  You can clear that restriction by either 1) Tapping into that most recently booked LL (tapping into a different LL that was made prior to the most recent one does nothing) or 2) waiting the 120 minutes from the time you made the most recently booked LL or 3) Cancelling the most recently booked LL.  

In your scenario where your LL falls during an arrival window which you have not yet tapped into, I think you are asking if you will be able to get 2 new LL's, one for letting the 120 minutes expire and one for tapping into the ride.  That is not how it works.  If your 120 minutes passes and you make a new LL, that new LL is now your most recently booked and is now what is keeping you from getting a new one.  Tapping into the previously booked one (the one that you booked over 120 mins ago) no longer means anything because it is no longer the most recently booked.


----------



## Bullseye

g-dad66 said:


> https://www.disboards.com/threads/e...lightning-lane-please-read-posts-1-7.3856734/


Thanks! That's what I thought this thread was for. My mistake.


----------



## twodogs

Brian4891 said:


> I think you pretty much got it.  The only thing that matters is your *most recently booked* LL.  Every time you make a new LL, any prior LL's that you booked earlier do not matter in any way and have no effect on your current situation.  When you booked them no longer matters and when you use them no longer matters.
> 
> The most recently booked is the only thing preventing you from making a new LL.  You can clear that restriction by either 1) Tapping into that most recently booked LL (tapping into a different LL that was made prior to the most recent one does nothing) or 2) waiting the 120 minutes from the time you made the most recently booked LL or 3) Cancelling the most recently booked LL.
> 
> In your scenario where your LL falls during an arrival window which you have not yet tapped into, I think you are asking if you will be able to get 2 new LL's, one for letting the 120 minutes expire and one for tapping into the ride.  That is not how it works.  If your 120 minutes passes and you make a new LL, that new LL is now your most recently booked and is now what is keeping you from getting a new one.  Tapping into the previously booked one (the one that you booked over 120 mins ago) no longer means anything because it is no longer the most recently booked.


This is an outstanding summary of how it works.  Read this and you will understand it.  Read this!!!!


----------



## LarryBoy

Brian4891 said:


> I think you pretty much got it.  The only thing that matters is your *most recently booked* LL.  Every time you make a new LL, any prior LL's that you booked earlier do not matter in any way and have no effect on your current situation.  When you booked them no longer matters and when you use them no longer matters.
> 
> The most recently booked is the only thing preventing you from making a new LL.  You can clear that restriction by either 1) Tapping into that most recently booked LL (tapping into a different LL that was made prior to the most recent one does nothing) or 2) waiting the 120 minutes from the time you made the most recently booked LL or 3) Cancelling the most recently booked LL.
> 
> In your scenario where your LL falls during an arrival window which you have not yet tapped into, I think you are asking if you will be able to get 2 new LL's, one for letting the 120 minutes expire and one for tapping into the ride.  That is not how it works.  If your 120 minutes passes and you make a new LL, that new LL is now your most recently booked and is now what is keeping you from getting a new one.  Tapping into the previously booked one (the one that you booked over 120 mins ago) no longer means anything because it is no longer the most recently booked.



Thanks, after much studying I almost feel like I'm ready for the G+ final exam!


----------



## Brian4891

LarryBoy said:


> Thanks, after much studying I almost feel like I'm ready for the G+ final exam!



LOL!  The final exam starts at 7am on your park day!


----------



## LarryBoy

Brian4891 said:


> LOL!  The final exam starts at 7am on your park day!



7AM Saturday morning!!


----------



## Juventus

Has the introduction of the Meet and Greets at MK to G+ had any affect on the availability of other LL passes?  e.g., greater availability of others due to greater inventory, or are the meet and greets not that popular?  

We never did the old ones in the past but some seemed to be really popular.


----------



## AndreaDM

Just to clarify (yes I'm slow), if at 7AM I book a ride for say 4 PM, then 2 hours after park opening I can book another ride for ANY available time right? It does not have to be after the 4 PM ride? At say 11 AM I could book one for noon if available, and then book again after I tap into that one? The actual return time of the first one booked has no bearing on subsequent rides booked?


----------



## cjlong88

AndreaDM said:


> Just to clarify (yes I'm slow), if at 7AM I book a ride for say 4 PM, then 2 hours after park opening I can book another ride for ANY available time right? It does not have to be after the 4 PM ride? At say 11 AM I could book one for noon if available, and then book again after I tap into that one? The actual return time of the first one booked has no bearing on subsequent rides booked?


You are correct! Because you tapped into the most recent G+ LL you booked at noon, you are eligible to book another one after tapping into it.

ETA: And yes, you will be able to book your 2nd one for whatever available time is offered to you -- the fact that your first one has a return time of 4pm has no bearing on what is offered to you when utilizing the 120-minute rule.


----------



## AndreaDM

cjlong88 said:


> You are correct! Because you tapped into the most recent G+ LL you booked at noon, you are eligible to book another one after tapping into it.



Thank you! I think I finally have a grasp on how it works, we leave in a week!


----------



## cjlong88

AndreaDM said:


> Thank you! I think I finally have a grasp on how it works, we leave in a week!


Have a great time!


----------



## Garyjames220

I was just wondering are u still able to stack rides in the morning for later in the day 

and if you can how many do you think you could have for late afternoon etc


----------



## wisblue

Garyjames220 said:


> I was just wondering are u still able to stack rides in the morning for later in the day
> 
> and if you can how many do you think you could have for late afternoon etc



You can do that, and the number you can get for late afternoon will be dictated by the “2 hour rule” and availability.

For a park with a 9 AM opening you can make the first one any time between 7 AM and 9AM, and then make subsequent ones at 11 AM, 1 PM, and 3 PM, giving yourself 4 in hand for an arrival between 3 and 5 PM.

The best way to do this is to start with the most popular LL attractions. These are the ones whose return times will reach afternoon soonest.

Using this approach, we have managed to land LL reservations at MK for JC, BTMRR, HM, and IASW, all with return times between 3 PM and 6 PM


----------



## dmunsil

Brian4891 said:


> I think you pretty much got it.  The only thing that matters is your *most recently booked* LL.  Every time you make a new LL, any prior LL's that you booked earlier do not matter in any way and have no effect on your current situation.  When you booked them no longer matters and when you use them no longer matters.
> 
> The most recently booked is the only thing preventing you from making a new LL.  You can clear that restriction by either 1) Tapping into that most recently booked LL (tapping into a different LL that was made prior to the most recent one does nothing) or 2) waiting the 120 minutes from the time you made the most recently booked LL or 3) Cancelling the most recently booked LL.



This is an excellent summary, but there's a small error. If you _*cancel *_any of your reservations, you can immediately make another. It does not need to be the most recent reservation.

*Edit: Disney changed the rules at some point in the last few weeks. Cancelling any reservation other than the one you most recently booked does nothing.*


----------



## Brian4891

dmunsil said:


> This is an excellent summary, but there's a small error. If you _*cancel *_any of your reservations, you can immediately make another. It does not need to be the most recent reservation.



I thought about adding that to the response, but since this is not something I ever tried out myself  I decided I should not be the one to say it works .  Also didn’t want to make things even more complicated than they already are!

But glad you mentioned it cause it should be something people are aware of.


----------



## LMO429

We are Annual pass holders but are staying on site. Do we still have to purchase Genie plus every night still or can we purchase them ahead of time?


----------



## elgerber

LMO429 said:


> We are Annual pass holders but are staying on site. Do we still have to purchase Genie plus every night still or can we purchase them ahead of time?


No, AP holders cannot buy in advance, only day of.


----------



## wisblue

dmunsil said:


> This is an excellent summary, but there's a small error. If you _*cancel *_any of your reservations, you can immediately make another. It does not need to be the most recent reservation.



For example, if I want to make LL reservations at MK with return times after 4 PM, you’re saying  I could make one before 9 AM for an attraction with an earlier return time, say 1 PM. Then at 11 AM I could make a second LL, then cancel the first one and immediately replace it with a second one with a later return time.

Is that right? Then I assume I could make a third one 2 hours after I booked the replacement for the first one some rime after 1 PM. 

If that’s how that works it might make it a little easier for someone to stack into the afternoon instead of waiting to make the first reservation until it has a late enough return time.


----------



## dmunsil

wisblue said:


> For example, if I want to make LL reservations at MK with return times after 4 PM, you’re saying  I could make one before 9 AM for an attraction with an earlier return time, say 1 PM. Then at 11 AM I could make a second LL, then cancel the first one and immediately replace it with a second one with a later return time.
> 
> Is that right? Then I assume I could make a third one 2 hours after I booked the replacement for the first one some rime after 1 PM.
> 
> If that’s how that works it might make it a little easier for someone to stack into the afternoon instead of waiting to make the first reservation until it has a late enough return time.


Correct, and that's exactly why you might care - because it makes some stacking approaches somewhat easier. It's not the kind of wizardry you could do when Genie+ first rolled out where you could keep increasing your stacked reservations, but it can be useful in some cases.

*Edit: Disney changed the rules at some point in the last few weeks. Cancelling any reservation other than the one you most recently booked does nothing.*


----------



## wisblue

dmunsil said:


> Correct, and that's exactly why you might care - because it makes some stacking approaches somewhat easier. It's not the kind of wizardry you could do when Genie+ first rolled out where you could keep increasing your stacked reservations, but it can be useful in some cases.



Thank you.

We had a trip in November before they made the switch and we took full advantage of that with what I called “leapfrog” stacking. At MK we had 3 or 4 active LL all evening by getting a new one every time we used one. I knew that wasn’t going to last.

But we did do some afternoon stacking on the Marathon Weekend when we weren’t going to be at a park for opening, and this might have helped, though we did OK as it is by booking the most popular attractions first and working backward to less popular ones.


----------



## Pookie9922

dmunsil said:


> Correct, and that's exactly why you might care - because it makes some stacking approaches somewhat easier. It's not the kind of wizardry you could do when Genie+ first rolled out where you could keep increasing your stacked reservations, but it can be useful in some cases.


To keep the cancel/reschedule going, what's the correct order of operation?

This is how I see it:
1) When you're able to book a LL, if there's one at the right time (ie afternoon window), book that one. If there is no LL with a late enough window, book whatever is available that has an ending time at least 2 hours away from either park opening (7am booking) or the current time. (any other booking)
2) Wait 2 hours. 
3) Repeat step 1 - book something you want in the afternoon or book anything more than 2 hours from now. 
4) Cancel earliest unwanted LL, availability opens up again.
5) Book new LL (with same criteria - in the afternoon or ends more than 2 hours from now)

If you book something you don't want earlier than 2 hours away, you'll have to cancel/rebook it before your 2 hour wait is up and that will restart the timer. 
This strategy seems tricky. Even trickier if you're trying for rides in a certain order to avoid zigzagging the park in the afternoon. But it also seems doable if you're paying attention and watching return times.


----------



## peteykirch

So we are finishing up a week long stay at WDW.

We bought Genie+ 2 times.

Once for a MK heavy day, and once for afternoon parkhopping at Epcot.

I think it works well when you attempt to stack slots for an afternoon/evening park hopping day. We rope dropped the Studios, did everything we wanted via standby and the early resort access and through the course of the day booked LL slots for Epcot so that by the time we made our way to Epcot we already had slots reserved in sequential order for Test Track, Soarin, Living with the Land, Spaceship Earth and then we were able to add reservations for Journey into Imagination and Mission Space as we toured Epcot.

Our MK heavy day was another story, the app sort of bugged out, and when I tried to book Jungle Cruise at 7AM it hiccupped and the slot bumped me all the way back to 10:35AM. Through the course of the day we were able to use LL at the following attractions, Jungle Cruise, Pirates, Magic Carpets of Aladdin, Haunted Mansion, Big Thunder, Tomorrowland Speedway, Buzz Lightyear, Winnie the Pooh, Small World, and then Peter Pan.

It took a decent effort and gambling in cancelling slots and hoping to rebook at a better time. I felt like I was spending way too much time on my phone throughout the day.

I do wish they would adjust it where instead of giving you the next available slot you could pick from a range of available time slots just like the old FP+ and how they are doing Individual Attraction Purchases. I feel bad for non-resort guests because for the big attractions slots are completely booked by 7:10 since Disney stopped holding slots for a 7AM and 9AM release. 

I do wish they could build a cool down counter into the app so more people could keep easier track of when their next booking window would open if they are attempting to stack.


----------



## twodogs

For a basic cool down counter, try to book something, and the error message will tell you when you can next book, as in “you are not eligible to book your next LL until xx”.


----------



## dmunsil

Pookie9922 said:


> To keep the cancel/reschedule going, what's the correct order of operation?
> 
> This is how I see it:
> 1) When you're able to book a LL, if there's one at the right time (ie afternoon window), book that one. If there is no LL with a late enough window, book whatever is available that has an ending time at least 2 hours away from either park opening (7am booking) or the current time. (any other booking)
> 2) Wait 2 hours.
> 3) Repeat step 1 - book something you want in the afternoon or book anything more than 2 hours from now.
> 4) Cancel earliest unwanted LL, availability opens up again.
> 5) Book new LL (with same criteria - in the afternoon or ends more than 2 hours from now)
> 
> If you book something you don't want earlier than 2 hours away, you'll have to cancel/rebook it before your 2 hour wait is up and that will restart the timer.
> This strategy seems tricky. Even trickier if you're trying for rides in a certain order to avoid zigzagging the park in the afternoon. But it also seems doable if you're paying attention and watching return times.


All of this is correct, except that you need to book something at least 65 minutes away, not 2 hours.

Say you don’t have anything to book that is within your desired future window. You book something 65 minutes away (or 65 minutes after opening) and wait two hours. Your booking ability comes back, you book something new, then cancel your earlier booking (because it hasn’t expired yet, it’s still eligible to cancel).

If they change the rule so you can’t cancel once your return window opens, then yes, you’d have to book something 2 hours away. But since you can cancel during your return window, that means you just need the end of the return window to be more than 2 hours away.

*Edit: Disney changed the rules at some point in the last few weeks. Cancelling any reservation other than the one you most recently booked does nothing. So the above strategy doesn't work.*


----------



## flipflopmom

twodogs said:


> I did this for myself this Christmas trip because I can’t ride MS or other rides that give me motion sickness.  It was easier just to book for all 4 of us, and then I could cancel only my LL and keep theirs intact.



Did this change or affect any future LL for you? There are several I cannot ride, and there may be instances where my DH sleeps in and meets us later.  If we get for all 4 of us and then cancel one immediately, do we all stay on the same schedule for opportunities to book next one? For the most part, I *think* we will try to book them for later in the afternoon/evening anyway, with the exception of maybe the 7am first slot.


----------



## wisblue

flipflopmom said:


> Did this change or affect any future LL for you? There are several I cannot ride, and there may be instances where my DH sleeps in and meets us later.  If we get for all 4 of us and then cancel one immediately, do we all stay on the same schedule for opportunities to book next one? For the most part, I *think* we will try to book them for later in the afternoon/evening anyway, with the exception of maybe the 7am first slot.



Each park has its own pattern of how LL return times unfold and, obviously, how fast return times move out into the day will depend on how crowded the parks are.

But, using MK as the example, I think you can do fine without trying to overthink and book things you intend to cancel. The one thing to do is keep an eye on how return times for the most popular G+ attractions in the park are moving. You can do this by checking every 15-30 minutes or so; it doesn’t require constant monitoring. After the initial bookings times don‘t move out that fast. 

At MK, JC and PP are the ones that get return times after 3 PM earliest. If you are going to be at a park at opening, at 7 AM you can book something with an early return time that you can use before you start setting up the afternoon stack. By mid morning there might be something that you want for later in the afternoon, and you can select that, and then proceed to book another one every two hours.

If at 9 AM a return time for something you really want to do in the afternoon has moved into your ideal time, you can decide whether to cancel the first one you made and replace it with one for the afternoon. You might find that you can use that other one first and then book for the afternoon.


----------



## vinmar4

cjlong88 said:


> Evening Stack 1/16. Started in Epcot and park hopped to HS
> 
> View attachment 639733



Wow, I'm impressed.

I'm trying to learn how to manage Disney+ when going to 2 parks, or even one park , LOL. We have not tried it yet.

I'm curious on how you got all those rides at 7a.m
Where some of those paying the extra fees?

I think I got the concept of 120 minutes and getting another one after you tap the second time, but I would like to know when I can start getting some rides for the second park. I know they will start after 2 Pm.

But does the same concept apply as when you are getting some rides for your first park?

In other words, using the 120 minute rule and /or having to tap the second time to get rides for your second park as well as trying to get some for your first one, where you are currently at?

So at 7 am, I can't start getting times for both parks, correct ? I can still only choose one, besides the ones paying extra for

Thank you for any advice or tips


----------



## JJ2017

Hopefully I'm posting in the right place.  I am looking for a very clear script so I can pass it along to my friend who will be booking Genie+ stuff while I'm running the Princess 10k.  

For our park day (Saturday), we will start at MK and hop to Epcot in the later afternoon/evening.  We aren't focused on many rides (more about taking in scenery, leisurely pace and class, slow rides), but I definitely want to buy Remy for a specific time (I'm thinking 5:00).  So I need her to buy Remy at 7 am and then book our first LL (should it be at MK or EP?).  I don't know what ride to tell her to book. Biggest unknown is if we will rope drop MK.  I am leaning towards not due to the race, wanting to return to hotel to rest, shower, have breakfast.  

Rides we will be interested in at MK:

Pirates
Haunted Mansion
Small World
Peter Pan

Rides we are interested in at MK:

Remy
Soarin
Spaceship Earth

Help please!  Thank you!


----------



## cjlong88

vinmar4 said:


> Wow, I'm impressed.
> 
> I'm trying to learn how to manage Disney+ when going to 2 parks, or even one park , LOL. We have not tried it yet.
> 
> I'm curious on how you got all those rides at 7a.m
> Where some of those paying the extra fees?
> 
> I think I got the concept of 120 minutes and getting another one after you tap the second time, but I would like to know when I can start getting some rides for the second park. I know they will start after 2 Pm.
> 
> But does the same concept apply as when you are getting some rides for your first park?
> 
> In other words, using the 120 minute rule and /or having to tap the second time to get rides for your second park as well as trying to get some for your first one, where you are currently at?
> 
> So at 7 am, I can't start getting times for both parks, correct ? I can still only choose one, besides the ones paying extra for
> 
> Thank you for any advice or tips


Of the three attractions I booked at 7am, only one of them was part of G+ (Slinky). Rise and MMRR are both ILL$ and are paid for separately. Since I was staying onsite, I was eligible to book those at 7am.

All of the LL’s I booked for this day was done outside of Hollywood Studios. We were in Epcot that morning riding a couple of attractions via standby and enjoying Festival of the Arts. I purposefully chose NOT to use G+ for my morning park so I could stack LL’s for our evening park. That way by the time we rolled into HS we had stacked all of these rides using the 120-minute rule.

We accepted that we wouldn’t be able to use LL for Epcot that morning, but it didn’t matter to us because we were going to come back another evening. We managed to utilized early theme park entry and rode Remy, Soarin, LwtL, and Nemo all as walk-ons. The next day we visited Epcot in the evening and that day I just stacked the rides we missed.

This isn’t the only strategy in maximizing Genie+, but in our last three visits it’s by far my favorite and definitely plays to our personal touring style.


----------



## cjlong88

JJ2017 said:


> Hopefully I'm posting in the right place.  I am looking for a very clear script so I can pass it along to my friend who will be booking Genie+ stuff while I'm running the Princess 10k.
> 
> For our park day (Saturday), we will start at MK and hop to Epcot in the later afternoon/evening.  We aren't focused on many rides (more about taking in scenery, leisurely pace and class, slow rides), but I definitely want to buy Remy for a specific time (I'm thinking 5:00).  So I need her to buy Remy at 7 am and then book our first LL (should it be at MK or EP?).  I don't know what ride to tell her to book. Biggest unknown is if we will rope drop MK.  I am leaning towards not due to the race, wanting to return to hotel to rest, shower, have breakfast.
> 
> Rides we will be interested in at MK:
> 
> Pirates
> Haunted Mansion
> Small World
> Peter Pan
> 
> Rides we are interested in at MK:
> 
> Remy
> Soarin
> Spaceship Earth
> 
> Help please!  Thank you!


Soarin and Spaceship Earth should have availability most of the day if not all day. I would book Peter Pan. That one tends to go pretty quickly.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

I developed this simple flowchart to figure out Genie+.


----------



## Rivergirl2005

Is there a location with a list of rides with the average times they disappear? I know at Hs you grab slinky and then rise, and mk is Peter Pan and jungle cruise. But is there a place with times they usually disappear or a list of what to grab for each park in a specific order?


----------



## g-dad66

Rivergirl2005 said:


> Is there a location with a list of rides with the average times they disappear? I know at Hs you grab slinky and then rise, and mk is Peter Pan and jungle cruise. But is there a place with times they usually disappear or a list of what to grab for each park in a specific order?



check out thrill-data.com


----------



## vinmar4

cjlong88 said:


> Of the three attractions I booked at 7am, only one of them was part of G+ (Slinky). Rise and MMRR are both ILL$ and are paid for separately. Since I was staying onsite, I was eligible to book those at 7am.
> 
> All of the LL’s I booked for this day was done outside of Hollywood Studios. We were in Epcot that morning riding a couple of attractions via standby and enjoying Festival of the Arts. I purposefully chose NOT to use G+ for my morning park so I could stack LL’s for our evening park. That way by the time we rolled into HS we had stacked all of these rides using the 120-minute rule.
> 
> We accepted that we wouldn’t be able to use LL for Epcot that morning, but it didn’t matter to us because we were going to come back another evening. We managed to utilized early theme park entry and rode Remy, Soarin, LwtL, and Nemo all as walk-ons. The next day we visited Epcot in the evening and that day I just stacked the rides we missed.
> 
> This isn’t the only strategy in maximizing Genie+, but in our last three visits it’s by far my favorite and definitely plays to our personal touring style.



I see, thank you for the explanation, it makes sense. I will save your strategy. We don't do all day parks anymore, we have only a few rides that we like from each park and like to enjoy the resorts, pools, restaurants and bars. 

We are doing early entry when we stay at Riviera for both Epcot and HS, and definitively after hours at MK.

I wonder if it makes sense to buy Genie+ for HS if we are doing Early Entrance and not staying all day, it will be St Patricks day and we want to also go to Disney Springs for a while and then back to Epcot for some green beer. We won't have any little children, youngest is 19 y/o. But I would think that it makes sense getting it to do more rides at HS before we leave , and maybe save a couple  for Epcot in case we want to ride some.

thank you again for your help !


----------



## g-dad66

Rivergirl2005 said:


> Is there a location with a list of rides with the average times they disappear? I know at Hs you grab slinky and then rise, and mk is Peter Pan and jungle cruise. But is there a place with times they usually disappear or a list of what to grab for each park in a specific order?



You aroused my curiosity to see what a list like this would look like.

Here's what thrill-data shows for last available booking time on January 28 (this is the latest booking time before the gray no availability first appears; some availability pops up later occasionally for some of these):

MAGIC KINGDOM
ILL
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train: 9:15 am
Space Mountain: 7:50 pm
G+
Jungle Cruise: 1:50 pm
Peter Pan: 2:40 pm
Big Thunder Mountain: 4:00 pm
Winnie the Pooh: 5:10 pm
Haunted Masnion: 5:30 pm
Pirates of the Caribbean: 6:30 pm
It's a Small World: 7:00 pm
Barnstomer: 7:05 pm
Buzz Lightyear: 7:50 pm
Dumbo: 7:50 pm
Mad Tea Party: 7:50 pm
Magic Carpets: 7:50 pm
Tomorrowland Speedway: 7:50 pm
Under the Sea: 7:50 pm

EPCOT
ILL
Remy's Ratatouille: 8:15 am
Frozen Ever After: 2:20 pm
G+
Test Track: 9:55 am
Journey Into Imagination: 7:50 pm
Living with the Land: 7:50 pm
Mission Space: 7:50 pm
Soarin: 7:50 pm
Spaceship Earth: 7:50 pm
The Seas: 7:50 pm
Turtle Talk: 7:50 pm

HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS
ILL
Rise of the Resistance: before 7:10 am
Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway: 7:50 pm
G+
Slinky Dog Dash: before 7:10 am
Millenium Falcon: 1:15 pm
Rock n Roller Coaster: 3:20 pm
Tower of Terror: 3:45 pm
Toy Story Mania: 4:00 pm
Alien Swirling Saucers: 5:05 pm
Muppetvision: 7:30 pm
Star Tours: 7:50 pm

ANIMAL KINGDOM
ILL
Flight of Passage: 9:15 am
G+
Navi River Journey: 2:20 pm
Dinosaur: 3:50 pm
Kiliminjaro Safari: 4:10 pm
It's Tough to Be a Bug: 6:30 pm
Kali River Rapids: 6:30 pm (keep in mind that weather is cold)

(I didn't take the time to list any of the shows for which availiability will end earlier than 7:50 pm because of the time of the last show)


----------



## vinmar4

cjlong88 said:


> Of the three attractions I booked at 7am, only one of them was part of G+ (Slinky). Rise and MMRR are both ILL$ and are paid for separately. Since I was staying onsite, I was eligible to book those at 7am.
> 
> All of the LL’s I booked for this day was done outside of Hollywood Studios. We were in Epcot that morning riding a couple of attractions via standby and enjoying Festival of the Arts. I purposefully chose NOT to use G+ for my morning park so I could stack LL’s for our evening park. That way by the time we rolled into HS we had stacked all of these rides using the 120-minute rule.
> 
> We accepted that we wouldn’t be able to use LL for Epcot that morning, but it didn’t matter to us because we were going to come back another evening. We managed to utilized early theme park entry and rode Remy, Soarin, LwtL, and Nemo all as walk-ons. The next day we visited Epcot in the evening and that day I just stacked the rides we missed.
> 
> This isn’t the only strategy in maximizing Genie+, but in our last three visits it’s by far my favorite and definitely plays to our personal touring style.


----------



## Rivergirl2005

g-dad66 said:


> You aroused my curiosity to see what a list like this would look like.
> 
> Here's what thrill-data shows for last available booking time on January 28 (this is the latest booking time before the gray no availability first appears; some availability pops up later occasionally for some of these):
> 
> MAGIC KINGDOM
> ILL
> Seven Dwarfs Mine Train: 9:15 am
> Space Mountain: 7:50 pm
> G+
> Jungle Cruise: 1:50 pm
> Peter Pan: 2:40 pm
> Big Thunder Mountain: 4:00 pm
> Winnie the Pooh: 5:10 pm
> Haunted Masnion: 5:30 pm
> Pirates of the Caribbean: 6:30 pm
> It's a Small World: 7:00 pm
> Barnstomer: 7:05 pm
> Buzz Lightyear: 7:50 pm
> Dumbo: 7:50 pm
> Mad Tea Party: 7:50 pm
> Magic Carpets: 7:50 pm
> Tomorrowland Speedway: 7:50 pm
> Under the Sea: 7:50 pm
> 
> EPCOT
> ILL
> Remy's Ratatouille: 8:15 am
> Frozen Ever After: 2:20 pm
> G+
> Test Track: 9:55 am
> Journey Into Imagination: 7:50 pm
> Living with the Land: 7:50 pm
> Mission Space: 7:50 pm
> Soarin: 7:50 pm
> Spaceship Earth: 7:50 pm
> The Seas: 7:50 pm
> Turtle Talk: 7:50 pm
> 
> HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS
> ILL
> Rise of the Resistance: before 7:10 am
> Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway: 7:50 pm
> G+
> Slinky Dog Dash: before 7:10 am
> Millenium Falcon: 1:15 pm
> Rock n Roller Coaster: 3:20 pm
> Tower of Terror: 3:45 pm
> Toy Story Mania: 4:00 pm
> Alien Swirling Saucers: 5:05 pm
> Muppetvision: 7:30 pm
> Star Tours: 7:50 pm
> 
> ANIMAL KINGDOM
> ILL
> Flight of Passage: 9:15 am
> G+
> Navi River Journey: 2:20 pm
> Dinosaur: 3:50 pm
> Kiliminjaro Safari: 4:10 pm
> It's Tough to Be a Bug: 6:30 pm
> Kali River Rapids: 6:30 pm (keep in mind that weather is cold)
> 
> (I didn't take the time to list any of the shows for which availiability will end earlier than 7:50 pm because of the time of the last show)



This is fantastic! Thank you!!!


----------



## Meglen

What happens if you miss your ILL$ time? say I book RotR on travel day and something goes wrong and we dont get to HS a few hours after the slot?


----------



## Orsino

dmunsil said:


> This is an excellent summary, but there's a small error. If you _*cancel *_any of your reservations, you can immediately make another. It does not need to be the most recent reservation.


So, I did this today and it did NOT work for me. I had a Haunted Mansion for 7:05pm that I booked earlier on the day. After booking something at 5:45ish. I cancelled the haunted mansion and I was not eligible to book again.


----------



## dmunsil

Orsino said:


> So, I did this today and it did NOT work for me. I had a Haunted Mansion for 7:05pm that I booked earlier on the day. After booking something at 5:45ish. I cancelled the haunted mansion and I was not eligible to book again.



Well that sucks. Looks like they changed it. I'll run another test tomorrow just to try a few edge cases. 

I gotta say, this seems like overkill on Disney's part. Giving people the opportunity to book something new when they cancel doesn't really break Genie+. The previous loophole where you could use any booking and then book something else was a very different situation that was giving people "extra" reservations. Cancelling and rebooking is just replacing an earlier reservation with a new one.

Thanks for checking!


----------



## dmunsil

Meglen said:


> What happens if you miss your ILL$ time? say I book RotR on travel day and something goes wrong and we dont get to HS a few hours after the slot?


You go to the entrance and tell them what happened and they may or may not let you in. There are no guarantees, but it's absolutely worth trying. You can also go to Guest Relations and see if they'll either get you a later time or refund you.


----------



## Doingitagain

How can I practice using Genie + for lightning lane so I know how to use it before 7:00 am my first day?


----------



## GBRforWDW

Doingitagain said:


> How can I practice using Genie + for lightning lane so I know how to use it before 7:00 am my first day?


Not really a way to practice, but here's a video on buying an individual lightning lane pass:






And a Genie+ pass:


----------



## bocaj1431

GBRforWDW said:


> Not really a way to practice, but here's a video on buying an individual lightning lane pass:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> And a Genie+ pass:


Thank you for posting this!  I am a visual learner so it was very helpful.


----------



## dmunsil

dmunsil said:


> Well that sucks. Looks like they changed it. I'll run another test tomorrow just to try a few edge cases.



I can confirm that I'm seeing the same thing as Orsino. Cancelling your most-recent reservation allows you to book something else. Cancelling any other reservation does not. I tried a variety of different scenarios, including bookings at different parks, bookings late in the day, bookings only 65 minutes out, etc.

So annoying, especially after I explained all this to a friend who's about to go. Now I need to tell them to forget all the cancel-and-rebook strategies I told them would work. Sigh.


----------



## Tom_E_D

dmunsil said:


> I can confirm that I'm seeing the same thing as Orsino. Cancelling your most-recent reservation allows you to book something else. Cancelling any other reservation does not. I tried a variety of different scenarios, including bookings at different parks, bookings late in the day, bookings only 65 minutes out, etc.
> 
> So annoying, especially after I explained all this to a friend who's about to go. Now I need to tell them to forget all the cancel-and-rebook strategies I told them would work. Sigh.


Did you buy Genie+ for today just to test out how cancelling works? If so, thank you for your sacrifice.

If you read this in time today, maybe you could test out whether another event that triggered being able to book another G+LL pass is still in effect. I remember in the early days (October) that if the expiration time of your G+LL was sooner than 120 minutes, you could book another one at the expiration time even if you haven't tapped in to the ride yet. It should be easy to test. Just book a LL with a near return time (MuppetVision perhaps), then check to see when you can next book one. I think MDE should tell you it is the expiration time, not the later 120 minute time. 

Thanks.


----------



## dmunsil

Tom_E_D said:


> Did you buy Genie+ for today just to test out how cancelling works? If so, thank you for your sacrifice.



You're welcome. Just wish I'd done it sooner and I would have less egg on my face.



> If you read this in time today, maybe you could test out whether another event that triggered being able to book another G+LL pass is still in effect. I remember in the early days (October) that if the expiration time of your G+LL was sooner than 120 minutes, you could book another one at the expiration time even if you haven't tapped in to the ride yet.



Yes, that still works the same way. Just booked a 2-3 ride (at 1:57) and the next time I can book is 3.


----------



## Jrits

I have 2 questions
1) this morning I went on and checked test track, jungle cruise and Peter Pan. By 7:01, all 3 had genie+ already for 2pm or later. Then at 7:20, I went to recheck wondering if they would be no longer available and all 3 had options for between 10-11am. I refreshed a few times and those before noon times stayed. About 20 minutes later, it was back to after 3pm availability. My question is - is this common? 
2) follow up question - if I book say test track 2pm and then recheck and see earlier availablity, can I reschedule without Losing the first slot? If I cancel and then try to book I’m worried if might move fast and I might end up with a later time then I started with.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Jrits said:


> I have 2 questions
> 1) this morning I went on and checked test track, jungle cruise and Peter Pan. By 7:01, all 3 had genie+ already for 2pm or later. Then at 7:20, I went to recheck wondering if they would be no longer available and all 3 had options for between 10-11am. I refreshed a few times and those before noon times stayed. About 20 minutes later, it was back to after 3pm availability. My question is - is this common?
> 2) follow up question - if I book say test track 2pm and then recheck and see earlier availablity, can I reschedule without Losing the first slot? If I cancel and then try to book I’m worried if might move fast and I might end up with a later time then I started with.


1. Yes, it's common.  There appears to be a 10 minute grace period, so people that don't have Genie+ prepurchased have 10 minutes to buy without losing their timeslot, so about 10 minutes after 7, some of the rides that go quick initially will have more availability.
2. Unfortunately with Genie+ you have to cancel what you're holding in order to attempt another time slot.  Their are no edits or updates.  Also with ILL$, once you buy, you cannot cancel or change.


----------



## DVCjj

Just got back from 2 weeks.  Had a terrible time trying to change a park reservation. I could NEVER cancel on MDE in order to make a new one. Had to call... which was one big pain.  And of course, lost time for anything special (LL$ etc).

Has anyone else had this happen?
I easily could change parks *from a PC* prior to the trip but not once I got to WDW or at the resort, couldn't from an iPhone.


----------



## melking23

DVCjj said:


> Just got back from 2 weeks.  Had a terrible time trying to change a park reservation. I could NEVER cancel on MDE in order to make a new one. Had to call... which was one big pain.  And of course, lost time for anything special (LL$ etc).
> 
> Has anyone else had this happen?
> I easily could change parks *from a PC* prior to the trip but not once I got to WDW or at the resort, couldn't from an iPhone.


Just curious…did you try from a mobile browser or only in the MDE app?


----------



## ibob52

um we have tickets and our Park days can we look at the Genie+ system before adding Genie+ to our tickets. We will be there in 10 weeks and wanted to check out Genie+ before we add Genie+ to our tickets if possible . . .


----------



## Rivergirl2005

Question, if I see a ride is down like dumbo but a lightning pass is available in 5 mins, will it switch to a multiple pass? If it switches to multiple pass does the 120 min count reset or do I have to use it before I grab another LL? Also if I did Peter Pan with LL in the morning can I use the multiple pass to ride Peter again?


----------



## DVCjj

melking23 said:


> Just curious…did you try from a mobile browser or only in the MDE app?


App for sure


----------



## Donna M

ibob52 said:


> um we have tickets and our Park days can we look at the Genie+ system before adding Genie+ to our tickets. We will be there in 10 weeks and wanted to check out Genie+ before we add Genie+ to our tickets if possible . . .


Yes, I have been practicing with it for an upcoming trip. You can´t get too far without a park reservation, but you should get yourself familiar with editing your favorites, and seeing what it looks like.


----------



## NJlauren

Has anyone had it happen where your 120 minutes is up and you get an error you can book your next LL till X time?

example I booked 7am test track for 6-7pm then to went at 3pm to book Soarin but it said I wasn’t able to book till 12pm, but it was clearly way after 12pm. I booked no other LLs in this time.  If it happens tomorrow I’ll call today wasn’t really an issue but tomorrow I’m planning to stack at MK in the afternoon.


----------



## twodogs

dmunsil said:


> I can confirm that I'm seeing the same thing as Orsino. Cancelling your most-recent reservation allows you to book something else. Cancelling any other reservation does not. I tried a variety of different scenarios, including bookings at different parks, bookings late in the day, bookings only 65 minutes out, etc.
> 
> So annoying, especially after I explained all this to a friend who's about to go. Now I need to tell them to forget all the cancel-and-rebook strategies I told them would work. Sigh.


Thank you for testing this again.  I had disagreed with your earlier post, but then I started to think maybe I was losing my mind!  Glad to know (on this one thing!), I am not!!  I think the bottom line is the system ONLY cares and restricts you based on the MOST RECENTLY booked LL.  That’s it.


----------



## g-dad66

NJlauren said:


> Has anyone had it happen where your 120 minutes is up and you get an error you can book your next LL till X time?
> 
> example I booked 7am test track for 6-7pm then to went at 3pm to book Soarin but it said I wasn’t able to book till 12pm, but it was clearly way after 12pm. I booked no other LLs in this time.  If it happens tomorrow I’ll call today wasn’t really an issue but tomorrow I’m planning to stack at MK in the afternoon.



I had something similar to that.  Don't remember the exact times, but it was something like 1:02pm, and it was telling me that I wasn't eligible until 1pm.  I was yelling at my phone that it was after 1 pm. Then after another refresh or two, it let me book.

So if it happens again tomorrow, maybe persist?


----------



## MaxsDad

DVCjj said:


> Just got back from 2 weeks.  Had a terrible time trying to change a park reservation. I could NEVER cancel on MDE in order to make a new one. Had to call... which was one big pain.  And of course, lost time for anything special (LL$ etc).
> 
> Has anyone else had this happen?
> I easily could change parks *from a PC* prior to the trip but not once I got to WDW or at the resort, couldn't from an iPhone.


Yes, I was having the same problem yesterday trying to cancel on the app. I had to go to my pc to do it. I did not try it from a mobile browser but that probably would have worked.


----------



## wisblue

Sometimes logging out of the app and logging back in can help.


----------



## melking23

Rivergirl2005 said:


> Question, if I see a ride is down like dumbo but a lightning pass is available in 5 mins, will it switch to a multiple pass? If it switches to multiple pass does the 120 min count reset or do I have to use it before I grab another LL? Also if I did Peter Pan with LL in the morning can I use the multiple pass to ride Peter again?


I’m curious to know the answer to this also!  Has anyone tested the ride down-get multi pass experience and paid attention to the next booking eligibility time?


----------



## Kbosch

Here now and I tried to find an answer first I swear but this is time sensitive lol

I have Slinky Dog Genie+ booked for our whole party (9 ppl) tonight at 7.  My mom and stepdad don’t want to do it.  I was thinking I could cancel their reservation and use that pass so my sister and son could do ToT at a different time?  Just nervous bc the only option I see is “cancel” and want to make sure I’m not going to cancel it for our whole party!


----------



## HumblePie

How is LL availability for Hollywood Studios at the moment? If I book Slinky Dog at 7:00am are there typically Millennium Falcon LLs left 2 hours after the park opens?


----------



## Nana2Callie

I'm reading through the thread, but seemed to be getting more confused.  LL I thought was lightening land and limited to only two rides per day.  But, I continue to see references to booking LL every 120 minutes.  Can someone clarify?


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

Nana2Callie said:


> I'm reading through the thread, but seemed to be getting more confused.  LL I thought was lightening land and limited to only two rides per day.  But, I continue to see references to booking LL every 120 minutes.  Can someone clarify?


The "Lightning Lane" (LL) is the term for the physical entrance (formerly FP entrance) that you can use to skip much of the line for a shorter wait.

If you purchase Genie+ (G+), you can sign up for times to use the LL for many rides (that's where all the 120-minute rules, etc. come into play).

Two rides in each park offer "Lightning Lane" (LL) access ala carte, which is called the Individual Lightning Lane Selections (ILL$).  Those are purchased separate from Genie+ and you select a specific time, so the 120-minute "cooling down" rules, etc. don't apply.

They made it very confusing by using names that include Lightning Lane for both products (G+ and ILL$) even though they are separate purchases with their own unique rules.


----------



## meremac

Our strategy last weekend worked out great for us. I'll post additional details below but the basic idea was to do one ILL$ for the park we were starting at and one for the park we were hopping to. For Genie+, we made the first 1-2 for the park we were starting at, then we started stacking for the park we were hopping to. We also rolled in about 10 minutes AFTER they let in Early Entry guests to avoid the rush, then did some "B" priority attractions first thing. For example, here's what we did on our Epcot/MK day last weekend:


ILL$ for Remy at 12:50
Genie+ for TT at 11am
ILL$ for 7DMT at 8pm
Arrived to Epcot at 9:35am-ish
Rode Soarin' standby
Rode SE standby
Walked around the still-empty WS pavilions but could have done Mission Space, Nemo, and/or Figment easily
Rode TT with Genie+
Immediately made PP Genie+ for late afternoon
Rode Remy and did some Festival Booths. 
Had drinks at both Tambu Tambu Lounge and Enchanted Rose. Headed to MK.
During this time, made Genie+ every two hours for something in MK. Made sure that the last Genie+ I made was one that I could get for an almost immediate time (meeting Mickey) so I could make another right after scanning in

Arrived to MK at around 5pm. Between 5pm-8:15pm, did the following:
Met Mickey with Genie+
This was the last one I made, so I immediately made another for IASW

Rode PP with Genie+ made earlier
Rode BTMR with Genie+ made earlier
Rode HM with Genie+ made earlier
Rode IASW, PoC, and Buzz with Genie+ made after we arrived
Mobile ordered nachos from Pecos Bill's
Saw PhilharMagic standby
Got some PhotoPass shots taken
Rode 7DMT with ILL$ made earlier
Timed this perfectly and was able to watch the fireworks while on the ride



We did something similar the next day with Hollywood Studios and Epcot, although we front-loaded Genie+ at HS a little more since there was less we wanted to do at Epcot that day. It worked really well.


----------



## Tom_E_D

Nana2Callie said:


> I'm reading through the thread, but seemed to be getting more confused.  LL I thought was lightening land and limited to only two rides per day.  But, I continue to see references to booking LL every 120 minutes.  Can someone clarify?


Grumpy by Birth answered your question, and I noticed you've found the Everything Genie thread that describes the basics better than this thread. If you've been reading this thread from the beginning, it's important to realize that in mid-November, Disney IT closed the loophole that allowed people to double stack, triple stack, etc. Much of what was written in this thread prior to then is outdated.


----------



## Eastern

meremac said:


> Our strategy last weekend worked out great for us. I'll post additional details below but the basic idea was to do one ILL$ for the park we were starting at and one for the park we were hopping to. For Genie+, we made the first 1-2 for the park we were starting at, then we started stacking for the park we were hopping to. We also rolled in about 10 minutes AFTER they let in Early Entry guests to avoid the rush, then did some "B" priority attractions first thing. For example, here's what we did on our Epcot/MK day last weekend:
> 
> 
> ILL$ for Remy at 12:50
> Genie+ for TT at 11am
> ILL$ for 7DMT at 8pm
> Arrived to Epcot at 9:35am-ish
> Rode Soarin' standby
> Rode SE standby
> Walked around the still-empty WS pavilions but could have done Mission Space, Nemo, and/or Figment easily
> Rode TT with Genie+
> Immediately made PP Genie+ for late afternoon
> Did some Festival Booths. Had drinks at both Tambu Tambu Lounge and Enchanted Rose. Headed to MK.
> During this time, made Genie+ every two hours for something in MK. Made sure that the last Genie+ I made was one that I could get for an almost immediate time (meeting Mickey) so I could make another right after scanning in
> 
> Arrived to MK at around 5pm. Between 5pm-8:15pm, did the following:
> Met Mickey with Genie+
> This was the last one I made, so I immediately made another for IASW
> 
> Rode PP with Genie+ made earlier
> Rode BTMR with Genie+ made earlier
> Rode HM with Genie+ made earlier
> Rode IASW, PoC, and Buzz with Genie+ made after we arrived
> Mobile ordered nachos from Pecos Bill's
> Saw PhilharMagic standby
> Got some PhotoPass shots taken
> Rode 7DMT with ILL$ made earlier
> Timed this perfectly and was able to watch the fireworks while on the ride
> 
> 
> 
> We did something similar the next day with Hollywood Studios and Epcot, although we front-loaded Genie+ at HS a little more since there was less we wanted to do at Epcot that day. It worked really well.


You have mad Genie skilz.


----------



## g-dad66

I


Tom_E_D said:


> Grumpy by Birth answered your question, and I noticed you've found the Everything Genie thread that describes the basics better than this thread. If you've been reading this thread from the beginning, it's important to realize that in mid-November, Disney IT closed the loophole that allowed people to double stack, triple stack, etc. Much of what was written in this thread prior to then is outdated.



It would be good if the original post to this thread could be updated to say:
Much has changed since this thread was originated. For the most up-to-date information please see Sticky Thread (with link to the Everything Genie sticky)


----------



## meremac

Eastern said:


> You have mad Genie skilz.



I am kind of a wizard . No, honestly, the two tricks were: 1) Making a Genie+ every two hours for the park we were hopping to (for us, that was right after we scanned into TT at 11am, then 1pm, then 3pm, then 5pm. So by the time we arrived to MK, we had FOUR Genie+ reservations plus an ILL$. 2) Making sure the 5pm one was for something I could get into almost right away (meeting Mickey) so I could immediately make another one and wouldn't have to wait the two hours. Rinse and repeat.

Edit: We also overlapped our four Genie+ reservations that we'd made throughout the day so that we didn't have too much downtime between them.


----------



## DVCjj

MaxsDad said:


> Yes, I was having the same problem yesterday trying to cancel on the app. I had to go to my pc to do it. I did not try it from a mobile browser but that probably would have worked.


I tried from Mobile everything…..Safari, Duck Duck whatever, FireFox… iPhone Apps.  Nothing worked.  Concierge at WL said everyone complaining.  At home on PC I could delete and get new park in a second.


----------



## fdecker

meremac said:


> We did something similar the next day with Hollywood Studios and Epcot, although we front-loaded Genie+ at HS a little more since there was less we wanted to do at Epcot that day. It worked really well.



What exactly was your strategy there?


----------



## Tom_E_D

HumblePie said:


> How is LL availability for Hollywood Studios at the moment? If I book Slinky Dog at 7:00am are there typically Millennium Falcon LLs left 2 hours after the park opens?


According to Thrill-Data, MFSR availability lasted well past 11:00 today. Yesterday too.

EDIT: Scroll down after clicking the link. Wait times are on the top of the page. Lightning Lane data is further down.


----------



## meremac

fdecker said:


> What exactly was your strategy there?



So there we did ILL$ for RotR and Genie+ for SDD (we both logged in to the app from different devices and did a divide and conquer thing). Then we did ILL$ for Frozen Ever After for later in the evening, saving MMRR and Smugglers for the next day . Here's how the day worked out:

ILL$ for RotR (I forget exactly what time we got it for but it was early afternoon)
Genie+ for SDD at 1pm-ish
Arrived at around 8:40am.
TSM standby
Alien Swirling Saucers standby
ToT standby
Star Tours standby
Lunch from Backlot Express and drinks from HBD Lounge (we took our time but you could easily fit a show in here)
SDD and RotR (Genie+ and ILL$)
Then we started stacking Genie+ for Epcot. We went back there and finished up the Festival Booths, then did the Genie+ reservations we made, FEA ILL$, and Harmonious R & C. 

Caveat: We did NOT do RnRC because I hate it lol.


----------



## DisneyPanthersFan

Kbosch said:


> Here now and I tried to find an answer first I swear but this is time sensitive lol
> 
> I have Slinky Dog Genie+ booked for our whole party (9 ppl) tonight at 7.  My mom and stepdad don’t want to do it.  I was thinking I could cancel their reservation and use that pass so my sister and son could do ToT at a different time?  Just nervous bc the only option I see is “cancel” and want to make sure I’m not going to cancel it for our whole party!



I would be nervous, too, since it's Slinky Dog! But to answer your question about canceling, yes, I was able to remove 1 person from the reservation without canceling it for everyone. This was earlier in January. I did it for multiple rides, actually.

Just in case, I might screenshot the reservation beforehand in case something goes wrong!


----------



## Sydnerella

HELP PLEASE! 

Struggling a bit to advise friend with family of 4 (spouse and DS16, DD20) staying OFFSITE this week and visiting Epcot 2/3 and HS 2/4. I followed this thread in November/TG week for our trip on site and things are a bit different now with lower crowds, Genie + tweaks and the offsite component

They are more apt to buy G+ for HS and won’t be able to get ILL for ROTR. I think they would buy ILL for Remy too but that seems to sell out prior to park open as well.

2/2 Epcot day: No G+ (UG Crowd Calendar 3)
Friends 50th, they’re excited for FOTA, specialty food/drinks and doing some attractions too

My thoughts:
10am - head to Soarin 
Living with the land - cuz it’s right there, right?
Then do Remy when/if under 60?
12 or later Spaceship Earth
FILLER based on where they are: Nemo/Figment/Three Caballeros/Oh Canada film

Frozen - ride when 40 or less
Test Track - ride when 40 or less


Hollywood Studios Day: using G+ (UG Crowd Cal  5) Thanks to @g-dad advice! 

7am - book G+ MFSR  (Star Wars stuff is more important than SDD)

9am - TOT, RNRR stand by - but if Star Wars stuff is more important as I say, should they just attempt ROTR standby at this time or is the line gonna be longest now? Whereas they’re better off waiting till later in the day?

TSM
Alien SS

11am book TSM G+
11ish MMRR if 45 or less
1pm book TOT or RNRR G+ 
Star Tours
Muppets

3 pm book TOT or RNRR G+ 

Frozen SA

5pm book ST G+ 

ROTR - Anytime it is 60 minutes or less get in line if they have not yet or want another spin


----------



## Lsdolphin

I should know this but i can’t remember.....if Im able to make a 9:30 am Genie+ LL for TSM at 7:00 am and I tap in right at 9:30 am does that mean I can immediately go and get another LL or do I need to wait until 11:00 am?


----------



## Turksmom

Lsdolphin said:


> I should know this but i can’t remember.....if Im able to make a 9:30 am Genie+ LL for TSM at 7:00 am and I tap in right at 9:30 am does that mean I can immediately go and get another LL or do I need to wait until 11:00 am?


You can get another as soon as you've tapped at both touch points


----------



## redmister

Lsdolphin said:


> I should know this but i can’t remember.....if Im able to make a 9:30 am Genie+ LL for TSM at 7:00 am and I tap in right at 9:30 am does that mean I can immediately go and get another LL or do I need to wait until 11:00 am?



You will be able to get a new LL after tapping in to your most recent LL, which would be that one at 9:30 since it is your only one.


----------



## Jrits

redmister said:


> You will be able to get a new LL after tapping in to your most recent LL, which would be that one at 9:30 since it is your only one.


Wouldn’t she be able to get a new one at 9am since it’s 120 minutes from the 7am booking?


----------



## Turksmom

Jrits said:


> Wouldn’t she be able to get a new one at 9am since it’s 120 minutes from the 7am booking?


120 minutes starts at park opening, not 7am.


----------



## Jrits

Turksmom said:


> 120 minutes starts at park opening, not 7am.


So if you book at 7am but an evening ride - what time can you book again - 9am or 11am?


----------



## Turksmom

Jrits said:


> So if you book at 7am but an evening ride - what time can you book again - 9am or 11am?


11am (assuming 9 am park opening)


----------



## Lsdolphin

Jrits said:


> So if you book at 7am but an evening ride - what time can you book again - 9am or 11am?


I don’t think you would get an evening time at 7:00 am...and I think the first 120 min period would be from 9-11:00 am...


----------



## Luisfba

Do LL selections get cancelled if i cancel my park res to book a different park?  For example, park res for Epcot but book HS LL's for park hop.. but decide want to head to HS earlier than 2 and there are passes still available.  Is it possible to cancel Epcot and grab HS, without losing the LLs?


----------



## Jrits

So if you’re stacking for evening, the quickest you could schedule is 7am then not until 11am (if park opens 9am) then 1pm etc?


----------



## Turksmom

Jrits said:


> So if you’re stacking for evening, the quickest you could schedule is 7am then not until 11am (if park opens 9am) then 1pm etc?


Correct!


----------



## redmister

Jrits said:


> So if you’re stacking for evening, the quickest you could schedule is 7am then not until 11am (if park opens 9am) then 1pm etc?


correct


----------



## Jrits

redmister said:


> correct


Oh well, thought I could book one at 9am too


----------



## melking23

Jrits said:


> Oh well, thought I could book one at 9am too


Technically you can but only if you’re lucky enough to snag a 9AM G+.  Once you tap in you’ll be eligible to book another G+ attraction.


----------



## Rivergirl2005

Rivergirl2005 said:


> Question, if I see a ride is down like dumbo but a lightning pass is available in 5 mins, will it switch to a multiple pass? If it switches to multiple pass does the 120 min count reset or do I have to use it before I grab another LL? Also if I did Peter Pan with LL in the morning can I use the multiple pass to



Is this a possible strategy?


----------



## Lsdolphin

Rivergirl2005 said:


> Is this a possible strategy?


Can’t use a Multiple Pass for PP or Jungle Cruise.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

melking23 said:


> Technically you can but only if you’re lucky enough to snag a 9AM G+.  Once you tap in you’ll be eligible to book another G+ attraction.


This is true, but then your first G+ LL wouldn't be "stacked" for later in the evening.  The one you pick at 9am after scanning in would be your first "stacked" LL if you select a later time for that one.  If your goal is to stack for later in the day, you would still only be able to add to your "stack" at 11am, since your 7am LL would be for a 9am return and you would get the first LL for the stack at 9am and the second one at 11am (basically the same as starting your afternoon/evening "stack" at 7am and adding the next one at 11am).

Another consideration would be whether there's much "value" in getting the first LL for a 9am return time.  Since that's right at RD, lines are traditionally shorter then anyway.  However, there are some rides that build longer waits pretty fast.  So there could be some merit to booking the first LL for 9am return if you anticipate the line will already be getting long first thing in the morning and then starting your "stack" at 9am for later in the day.  This presumes that you plan to show up at RD rather than showing up later in the day to use the stack of LLs you reserved throughout the morning/early afternoon.


----------



## Kbosch

DisneyPanthersFan said:


> I would be nervous, too, since it's Slinky Dog! But to answer your question about canceling, yes, I was able to remove 1 person from the reservation without canceling it for everyone. This was earlier in January. I did it for multiple rides, actually.
> 
> Just in case, I might screenshot the reservation beforehand in case something goes wrong!


Thank you for answering! Unfortunately A. I just saw this now and B. Slinky Dog went down as we were waiting to ride!   Since it was the end of the day they gave us a fast pass to use tomorrow at Epcot, but it’s not good for Soarin or Test Track.


----------



## Brian4891

Jrits said:


> So if you book at 7am but an evening ride - what time can you book again - 9am or 11am?



11am.  The 120 minutes starts at park opening not at 7am.

***Sorry did not realize this was already answered!


----------



## CJK

Has anyone had the security code issue over the last few weeks? This is where you try to buy an ILL ride, only to be told you need to enter a security code first, from an email that was just sent to you? That sure slowed me down in November. Hoping it has improved since then!


----------



## Jrits

Grumpy by Birth said:


> This is true, but then your first G+ LL wouldn't be "stacked" for later in the evening.  The one you pick at 9am after scanning in would be your first "stacked" LL if you select a later time for that one.  If your goal is to stack for later in the day, you would still only be able to add to your "stack" at 11am, since your 7am LL would be for a 9am return and you would get the first LL for the stack at 9am and the second one at 11am (basically the same as starting your afternoon/evening "stack" at 7am and adding the next one at 11am).
> 
> Another consideration would be whether there's much "value" in getting the first LL for a 9am return time.  Since that's right at RD, lines are traditionally shorter then anyway.  However, there are some rides that build longer waits pretty fast.  So there could be some merit to booking the first LL for 9am return if you anticipate the line will already be getting long first thing in the morning and then starting your "stack" at 9am for later in the day.  This presumes that you plan to show up at RD rather than showing up later in the day to use the stack of LLs you reserved throughout the morning/early afternoon.


My thought was to get 9am for say PP and then RD a few rides and go on PP by 10am and then I’ll be able to grab another earlier and have knocked out a hard one to get with long wait times. Good idea??


----------



## HumblePie

Tom_E_D said:


> According to Thrill-Data, MFSR availability lasted well past 11:00 today. Yesterday too.



Thank you!!


----------



## Brian4891

Jrits said:


> My thought was to get 9am for say PP and then RD a few rides and go on PP by 10am and then I’ll be able to grab another earlier and have knocked out a hard one to get with long wait times. Good idea??



Yes this is a very good plan.
We were there two weeks ago.  We got Jungle Cruise at 7am for 9:30 - 10:30.  Rope dropped Pirates and then got on JC at 9:30.  Standby was around 45 mins at that point.  Immediately made another LL for Haunted Mansion for around an hour later.  Went on Small World with a 15 min wait while we waited for Haunted Mansion.  After tapping into Haunted Mansion made another one for Winnie the Pooh.  Ate lunch while we waited. Continued this process all day.

This worked out very well.  Use your LLs on the top attractions with waits longer than 30 mins.  Fill the times in between with low wait attractions, eating, parades, etc.


----------



## JJ2017

My cousin agreed to do all the Genie work at 7:00 am (booking things - I'm able to purchase Genie+ beforehand).  What should his order of attack be (and should his wife also be booking something at the same time?):

Peter Pan for 10:00ish
Minnie and Mickey for 2:00 ish
Remy for 5:00ish

And isn't there something I can do to get these choices towards the top of the lists?  

Thanks!


----------



## Rivergirl2005

Lsdolphin said:


> Can’t use a Multiple Pass for PP or Jungle Cruise.


Thank you I didn’t realize it didn’t work for those two. So could I use it to ride something I’ve already lightning passed? Also do you know once you get one are you able to select another lightning pass or do you have to wait until you use it?


----------



## gottalovepluto

CJK said:


> Has anyone had the security code issue over the last few weeks? This is where you try to buy an ILL ride, only to be told you need to enter a security code first, from an email that was just sent to you? That sure slowed me down in November. Hoping it has improved since then!


Uggg! That lost me ROTR ILL in Nov. I’d blocked that from memory…


----------



## DisTXMom

Luisfba said:


> Do LL selections get cancelled if i cancel my park res to book a different park?  For example, park res for Epcot but book HS LL's for park hop.. but decide want to head to HS earlier than 2 and there are passes still available.  Is it possible to cancel Epcot and grab HS, without losing the LLs?


There have been posts about people skipping their park reservation park and going to their 2nd park and being turned away at the turnstiles (especially during busy times). It seemed you have to tap in at the park you have a reservation for before you go to another park in order for your ticket/band to scan properly. Some people had cast members clear them to go in, but others were turned away.


----------



## gottalovepluto

Kbosch said:


> Thank you for answering! Unfortunately A. I just saw this now and B. Slinky Dog went down as we were waiting to ride!  Since it was the end of the day they gave us a fast pass to use tomorrow at Epcot, *but it’s not good for Soarin or Test Track.*


Wow… just… wow…


----------



## jenniferahardin87

2 adults going 3/6 (so excited), here is the plan i came up with so far - trying to wrap my head around G+

trying to get a late start to the day to allow for some sleeping in & not being rushed. also trying to do this in order of the park but i feel i have enough time to zig zag a bit if G+ windows work out that way

if going by the below, suggestions on what times i should try to book the ILL$ for Remy & Frozen?

7am - book ILL$ for Remy & Frozen, and G+ for Test Track 
arrive to park during window given for test Track
ride test track with G+
12pm or after 2nd tap at TT - book G+ for soarin
ride mission space orange stand by
ride soarin with g+
2pm or after 2nd tap at soarin - book G+ for living with the land
ride living with the land w/ G+
ride Remy with ILL$ during that window
ride Frozen with ILL$ during that window
watch harmonious


----------



## CarolynFH

Luisfba said:


> Do LL selections get cancelled if i cancel my park res to book a different park?  For example, park res for Epcot but book HS LL's for park hop.. but decide want to head to HS earlier than 2 and there are passes still available.  Is it possible to cancel Epcot and grab HS, without losing the LLs?


No, your LL selections won’t be canceled. Just be sure to cancel your park reservation for Epcot and rebook for DHS before you go.


----------



## Doingitagain

We have a group of nine.  What is the strategy?  Can someone book ILL for the whole group while someone else books another ILL for the whole group while someone else books Genie+LL for the whole group?  Not sure we will do that, but want to know if it is an option.


----------



## g-dad66

Doingitagain said:


> We have a group of nine.  What is the strategy?  Can someone book ILL for the whole group while someone else books another ILL for the whole group while someone else books Genie+LL for the whole group?  Not sure we will do that, but want to know if it is an option.



Yes, that can be done.


----------



## Sydnerella

CJK said:


> Has anyone had the security code issue over the last few weeks? This is where you try to buy an ILL ride, only to be told you need to enter a security code first, from an email that was just sent to you? That sure slowed me down in November. Hoping it has improved since then!



Me too on Thanksgiving week - I was in a password/verify loop for 12 minutes as I watched all of the G+ passes go bye-bye and could do nothing about it! My first magic kingdom tears of frustration! That poor young man at GET Didn’t know what to do with me but did take care of me after I waited in a very long line with others who had same issue. Unfortunately that was one line out of many that week.

Man I hope that problem has been fixed!

Between this issue, heavy crowds, Disney “fixing” the double and triple stack hack mid-trip, ROTR/TT/HM break downs, my in-laws staying at the Swan - My Thanksgiving 9 day trip regarding booking of LLs was a big ‘ol cluster.

GET has a long list of issues/fixes for me which I confirmed on a recent IT phone call - my account is laden with guest issues and accommodation notes.


----------



## MaveDatthews

If I want to book an ILL for later in the day but at 7 am the times available are all in the morning, do I just wait until a later time eventually comes up? Basically does it default to only giving you the next available time? Thanks!


----------



## JackJack55

MaveDatthews said:


> If I want to book an ILL for later in the day but at 7 am the times available are all in the morning, do I just wait until a later time eventually comes up? Basically does it default to only giving you the next available time? Thanks!


This is also my issue for an upcoming July trip where I will be at a conference during the day, and my family will wait to go into the parks with me in the evening.  Do we just keep on refreshing until return times are way later in the day?  Unfortunately I’m afraid by the time I wait until 2 hours after my first selection, everything else may be gone.
I’m already planning on sitting in the back row of the conference room stalking MDE


----------



## wisblue

MaveDatthews said:


> If I want to book an ILL for later in the day but at 7 am the times available are all in the morning, do I just wait until a later time eventually comes up? Basically does it default to only giving you the next available time? Thanks!



For the paid ILL (known on here as ILL$) you can select your time.

See the sticky thread about everything Genie + and Lightning Lane for details.


----------



## Runnsally

Just had my first GP/LL experience.  Overall, worked better for us ($ aside) than FP+ as much easier to ride the more sought after attractions and the waits in the LL were really short. A few thoughts…

- the system underscores the huge capacity problem at WDW; next available by 11am was often early evening (with average crowds)

- GP is way underpriced at $15pp - would expect it to be $30ish before too long; otherwise too many users 

- really need to aggressively refresh to find earlier times to make GP worth it (the lack of a modify function is a killer in this regard) 

- impressed that at least thus far, WDW has resisted the temptation to increase LL availability and LL wait times 

- the fact that the time you select is often not the time you are offered on the confirmation screen is incredibly frustrating


----------



## TheSouthernBelle

jenniferahardin87 said:


> 2 adults going 3/6 (so excited), here is the plan i came up with so far - trying to wrap my head around G+
> 
> trying to get a late start to the day to allow for some sleeping in & not being rushed. also trying to do this in order of the park but i feel i have enough time to zig zag a bit if G+ windows work out that way
> 
> if going by the below, suggestions on what times i should try to book the ILL$ for Remy & Frozen?
> 
> 7am - book ILL$ for Remy & Frozen, and G+ for Test Track
> arrive to park during window given for test Track
> ride test track with G+
> 12pm or after 2nd tap at TT - book G+ for soarin
> ride mission space orange stand by
> ride soarin with g+
> 2pm or after 2nd tap at soarin - book G+ for living with the land
> ride living with the land w/ G+
> ride Remy with ILL$ during that window
> ride Frozen with ILL$ during that window
> watch harmonious



I'd build my G+ selections around the ILL purchases and prioritize Remy over Frozen. Book Remy ILL first and then go in and select your first G+ attraction. Those two actions will dictate your park touring plans. Just remember on G+, if you don't like what you see at first, keep refreshing and refreshing and refreshing.... for more options/different times.


----------



## TheSouthernBelle

jenniferahardin87 said:


> 2 adults going 3/6 (so excited), here is the plan i came up with so far - trying to wrap my head around G+
> 
> trying to get a late start to the day to allow for some sleeping in & not being rushed. also trying to do this in order of the park but i feel i have enough time to zig zag a bit if G+ windows work out that way
> 
> if going by the below, suggestions on what times i should try to book the ILL$ for Remy & Frozen?
> 
> 7am - book ILL$ for Remy & Frozen, and G+ for Test Track
> arrive to park during window given for test Track
> ride test track with G+
> 12pm or after 2nd tap at TT - book G+ for soarin
> ride mission space orange stand by
> ride soarin with g+
> 2pm or after 2nd tap at soarin - book G+ for living with the land
> ride living with the land w/ G+
> ride Remy with ILL$ during that window
> ride Frozen with ILL$ during that window
> watch harmonious


Also, my comment comment about booking your ILL$ assumes you're on a disney onsite resort guest. If you are staying off site your ILL$ will be purchased at park open.


----------



## MikeandReneePlus5

So many pages and tips...great stuff.

May I ask...for a Genie+...how to you secure them for later in the evening?  Is there a tip or method?  for example if I am going to MK after 5pm I know I can buy a SDD and SM LL$ if I want to...but in the morning how do I get a PP or a Buzz for after 5pm?


----------



## MikeandReneePlus5

GBRforWDW said:


> Not really a way to practice, but here's a video on buying an individual lightning lane pass:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> And a Genie+ pass:



There's 6.5% tax on this service!  sad.


----------



## peteykirch

MikeandReneePlus5 said:


> So many pages and tips...great stuff.
> 
> May I ask...for a Genie+...how to you secure them for later in the evening?  Is there a tip or method?  for example if I am going to MK after 5pm I know I can buy a SDD and SM LL$ if I want to...but in the morning how do I get a PP or a Buzz for after 5pm?



Unless you are hopping into MK after going to a park earlier in the day, your only option would be to keep refreshing the Tip Board to get a time that works for you as they get filled up.

If you start at Epcot, and hop to MK in the afternoon/evening any Genie+ selection will automatically be pushed out to the first available one from 2PM onwards.


----------



## jenniferahardin87

TheSouthernBelle said:


> Also, my comment comment about booking your ILL$ assumes you're on a disney onsite resort guest. If you are staying off site your ILL$ will be purchased at park open.


Yes staying at Caribbean beach sorry should have mentioned. Can I book both ILL$ at once or is there a cool down period for these as well


----------



## wisblue

MikeandReneePlus5 said:


> So many pages and tips...great stuff.
> 
> May I ask...for a Genie+...how to you secure them for later in the evening?  Is there a tip or method?  for example if I am going to MK after 5pm I know I can buy a SDD and SM LL$ if I want to...but in the morning how do I get a PP or a Buzz for after 5pm?



If you want PP and Buzz for an arrival after 5 PM, keep an eye on return times for PP first. It will get out to 5 PM much earlier than Buzz. You don't have to refresh the app constantly because, once the initial wave of LL selections are made, the return times will move out more slowly, but steadily. 

Of course, LL return times move out faster on more crowded days, but you should be seeing return times for PP to be approaching 5 PM sometime by late morning. Return times for Buzz are usually not much more than an hour or so out from the current time.


----------



## Turksmom

jenniferahardin87 said:


> Yes staying at Caribbean beach sorry should have mentioned. Can I book both ILL$ at once or is there a cool down period for these as well


No cool down, you can book both at once.


----------



## Brian4891

jenniferahardin87 said:


> 2 adults going 3/6 (so excited), here is the plan i came up with so far - trying to wrap my head around G+
> 
> trying to get a late start to the day to allow for some sleeping in & not being rushed. also trying to do this in order of the park but i feel i have enough time to zig zag a bit if G+ windows work out that way
> 
> if going by the below, suggestions on what times i should try to book the ILL$ for Remy & Frozen?
> 
> 7am - book ILL$ for Remy & Frozen, and G+ for Test Track
> arrive to park during window given for test Track
> ride test track with G+
> 12pm or after 2nd tap at TT - book G+ for soarin
> ride mission space orange stand by
> ride soarin with g+
> 2pm or after 2nd tap at soarin - book G+ for living with the land
> ride living with the land w/ G+
> ride Remy with ILL$ during that window
> ride Frozen with ILL$ during that window
> watch harmonious



This plan will definitely work, but if you want to save a few bucks, it may be worth considering skipping Genie Plus at Epcot.

You are already paying for Remy and Frozen.  The only other ride in the park that gets a high wait time is Test Track.  There is nothing else that you will really be using Genie+ on in that park.  It’s 4pm as I write this and Soarin is at 15 minutes.  So you have to ask yourself, is it worth $15 per person to skip the line for test track?


----------



## jenniferahardin87

Brian4891 said:


> This plan will definitely work, but if you want to save a few bucks, it may be worth considering skipping Genie Plus at Epcot.
> 
> You are already paying for Remy and Frozen.  The only other ride in the park that gets a high wait time is Test Track.  There is nothing else that you will really be using Genie+ on in that park.  It’s 4pm as I write this and Soarin is at 15 minutes.  So you have to ask yourself, is it worth $15 per person to skip the line for test track?


I already paid for it when I booked my ticket, not knowing which park I was going to choose. So, I’ll use it at every line to feel I got my money worth


----------



## holyrita

I used to just tap the "Tip Board" button on the actual tip board page in order to refresh the times, instead of having to pull down from the top. I notice tapping that button isn't refreshing the times anymore.. I tap it and nothing happens. I'm wondering if this is a temporary bug or if they did something to stop people from refreshing so much?


----------



## snikki

gottalovepluto said:


> Uggg! That lost me ROTR ILL in Nov. I’d blocked that from memory…



Did this happen to you multiple times or just the first time you tried to purchase? The first ILL I plan on purchasing is ROTR. I really don’t want to miss out. I could buy 7DMT the day before to get the code out the way.


----------



## snikki

Runnsally said:


> - GP is way underpriced at $15pp - would expect it to be $30ish before too long; otherwise too many users



I’ve always expected the price to go up. Out of 9 park days I plan on buying G+ for 6 days. I’m debating just adding it for the entire 9 days now and being locked into the $15.


----------



## DisneyFive

snikki said:


> I’ve always expected the price to go up. Out of 9 park days I plan on buying G+ for 6 days. I’m debating just adding it for the entire 9 days now and being locked into the $15.


We were in (almost) the exact same situation.  We are there 8 nights this summer and for sure wanted G+ for MK and HS, which were 5 of the 8 days.  Wasn't sure if we'd need it for AK or EP.  What sold me on prepurchasing it for all days wasn't a possible price increase, but rather the hassle of having to purchase G+ each day that we wanted to use it.  It just means getting up even earlier, and hoping nothing goes wrong with the transaction causing you to miss out on booking at 7am.

Speaking of which... getting up by 7am while on vacation  

Can they at least make it 8am or something?  That's a huge negative change vs FP+


----------



## gottalovepluto

snikki said:


> Did this happen to you multiple times or just the first time you tried to purchase? The first ILL I plan on purchasing is ROTR. I really don’t want to miss out. I could buy 7DMT the day before to get the code out the way.


It was the only thing I tried to purchase.


----------



## snikki

DisneyFive said:


> We were in (almost) the exact same situation.  We are there 8 nights this summer and for sure wanted G+ for MK and HS, which were 5 of the 8 days.  Wasn't sure if we'd need it for AK or EP.  What sold me on prepurchasing it for all days wasn't a possible price increase, but rather the hassle of having to purchase G+ each day that we wanted to use it.  It just means getting up even earlier, and hoping nothing goes wrong with the transaction causing you to miss out on booking at 7am.
> 
> Speaking of which... getting up by 7am while on vacation
> 
> Can they at least make it 8am or something?  That's a huge negative change vs FP+



I think I’m just going to bite the bullet and add it to our tickets now.


----------



## melking23

Runnsally said:


> - GP is way underpriced at $15pp - would expect it to be $30ish before too long; otherwise too many users


This is exactly why I pre purchased G+ with my park tickets although my trip is 9 months away.  It’s Disney so I fully expect the price to increase by fall.


----------



## Orsino

Okay. I’m going to try and contribute to this excellent thread.
31 January 2022, 5:15pm arrival at MK with genie+, no ILL$. 8pm fireworks, 9pm close
Accomplished 8 rides, ice-cream snack, dinner, fireworks(off center view).

8:55am booked jungle cruise LL for 5:30pm
11am booked PP LL for 5:40pm
1pm booked BTMRR for 5:30pm
3pm booked haunted mansion for 7:45pm
5pm booked Buzz for 7:25pm

we arrived shortly after 5pm with 5 LL in hand. After eating ice cream we hit:
jungle cruise
big thunder
Peter pan
After PP we did IASW on standby. While in line we mobile ordered dinner in Tomorrowland. After iasw we rode buzz then picked up dinner.
after dinner we sauntered up to the tommorrowland bridge and watched the fireworks from there. Then we booked to space mountain for a walk onto the ride after fireworks. Then we went to HM and used our last LL there.
got off HM at 8:45 and went to 7DMT for our last ride with a 25 minute wait (actual) in standby.
For us this was a good use of stacking and we accomplished so much in about 4 hours. It was a great evening. Much better than our rope drop fiascos have been this week.

My observations : 
Booking three LL for the same time window is scary, but not a problem we had no problem hitting these three even with the walking. I would not advise 4. Unfortunately, since you can’t choose your times you have to pick based on time on the fly.

I would not book more than 1 LL after fireworks if there is only 1 hour of park time after fireworks. Immediately after fireworks you don’t need LL since the lines are short. LL for your second ride after fireworks is key to being able to ride a third after fireworks. Standby for your second ride after fireworks will probably put you past closing when you finish.


----------



## snikki

melking23 said:


> This is exactly why I pre purchased G+ with my park tickets although my trip is 9 months away.  It’s Disney so I fully expect the price to increase by fall.



Same. We go in 9 months too. I fully expect the price to increase by then. I’m going to add G+ today.


----------



## evilqueenmindy

So I purchased genie+ for today and I only have this.  Since 7am on the dot.  I’m pretty annoyed.  Other parks load.  just not the one I’m going to

edit- tip board is still giving me an error message, but I was able to book jungle cruise for my group, you CAN book from the “my day” but you Don’t get to see all the selections.
guess I’ll be at the blue tent this morning.


----------



## Turksmom

evilqueenmindy said:


> So I purchased genie+ for today and I only have this.  Since 7am on the dot.  I’m pretty annoyed.  Other parks load.  just not the one I’m going to


I'm at home,  just opened my app and it's doing the same thing. Everything except MK shows. Hopefully, it means it's happening to everyone, so you're at least not at a disadvantage.


----------



## lvcourtneyy

evilqueenmindy said:


> So I purchased genie+ for today and I only have this.  Since 7am on the dot.  I’m pretty annoyed.  Other parks load.  just not the one I’m going to


I have the same problem


----------



## draydraydajetpln

lvcourtneyy said:


> I have the same problem


We had the same problem and got around it by going to the my day tab, scrolling down to the ride we wanted (Jungle Cruise in our case) and selecting the check availability link for lightning lane right under the ride. Hope this helps!


----------



## lvcourtneyy

draydraydajetpln said:


> We had the same problem and got around it by going to the my day tab, scrolling down to the ride we wanted (Jungle Cruise in our case) and selecting the check availability link for lightning lane right under the ride. Hope this helps!



thanks that worked for me!


----------



## evilqueenmindy

draydraydajetpln said:


> We had the same problem and got around it by going to the my day tab, scrolling down to the ride we wanted (Jungle Cruise in our case) and selecting the check availability link for lightning lane right under the ride. Hope this helps!


I figured this out as well eventually.  still annoying.  Also, I have WAY less patience for disneys crappy IT when I am being charged for it.


----------



## evilqueenmindy

Looks like the tip board is back


----------



## emmabelle

Here now.  I’ve been trying to get a nighttime slot for Soarin since noon. Three and a half hours of refreshing that I’ll never get back. Hahaha


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

Maybe someone can help me reconcile this in my mind... 

I'm reading a lot of first-hand accounts indicating that Genie+ selections get scarfed up pretty quickly and folks are only able to get a few LL selections throughout the day because by the time they can make their 3rd selection at 1 pm, nothing is available.

But I've also been reading a number of reports where people indicate hardly anyone using the LLs.  So, if hardly anyone is in the LLs, then why are the LL slots selling out so much/quickly?  If not many people are purchasing G+, shouldn't there be ample LL slots for those who do?  Conversely, if a lot of people are purchasing it, then why are folks observing hardly anyone going through the LL?

I saw where someone speculated that Disney is rationing the number of LL slots given out (far fewer available than previously with FP+).  Does anyone have insight into that?  Understanding that offering too many LL slots would slow down SB further (one of the major complaints about FP+), are they simply making fewer LL slots available throughout the day while simultaneously *NOT *limiting how many people can purchase G+? If so, I predict it won't be long before there's a major backlash (can already see it forming now) if a significant number of people purchase G+, but it's not designed to offer an adequate number of LL slots to those purchasers to meet expectations.


----------



## Garyjames220

When Im using the genie plus up let’s say I book a selection in the morning for later in the day and I can’t book another until 11am. If I log on before that time does it show you what rides are still available so I have an idea what rides I can still get?

also is it in time order and each ride gets later and later until there all gone?


----------



## Donna M

CJK said:


> Has anyone had the security code issue over the last few weeks? This is where you try to buy an ILL ride, only to be told you need to enter a security code first, from an email that was just sent to you? That sure slowed me down in November. Hoping it has improved since then!


No codes yesterday.    We got a lot of codes first in Nov.


----------



## Donna M

Make sure you have your alternate plans for when nothing works the way you spent hours strategizing  for.  I watched tons of videos on how to get SDD and ROTR right at 7:00:00. No luck and we had two people working on it.  The system wasn´t processing correctly and then it would release the time I had, or the time was too far out from when I tapped it originally, so frustrating.

So, alternate plan since we only got Toy Story Mania at 11:00 was to rope drop Rise.  Not too bad, 20 min of walking, standing at the entrance listening to Rey and then it breaks down!  They gave us a LL which worked out very well.

Interesting part of resort guests early entry.  We got out of the car at 8:00 and were walking through the Rise line at 8:15.  They didn´t hold us anywhere like they did at MK.

This is just a heads up for all the previous posters who have detailed plans of what they plan to get.  Be ready for frustration, I used some words I don´t usually use!  You may have to be flexible.

HS was packed on Feb 2 too!

Good luck everyone.  I hope you get things better than we did.


----------



## Brian4891

Donna M said:


> Make sure you have your alternate plans for when nothing works the way you spent hours strategizing  for.  I watched tons of videos on how to get SDD and ROTR right at 7:00:00. No luck and we had two people working on it.  The system wasn´t processing correctly and then it would release the time I had, or the time was too far out from when I tapped it originally, so frustrating.
> 
> So, alternate plan since we only got Toy Story Mania at 11:00 was to rope drop Rise.  Not too bad, 20 min of walking, standing at the entrance listening to Rey and then it breaks down!  They gave us a LL which worked out very well.
> 
> Interesting part of resort guests early entry.  We got out of the car at 8:00 and were walking through the Rise line at 8:15.  They didn´t hold us anywhere like they did at MK.
> 
> This is just a heads up for all the previous posters who have detailed plans of what they plan to get.  Be ready for frustration, I used some words I don´t usually use!  You may have to be flexible.
> 
> HS was packed on Feb 2 too!
> 
> Good luck everyone.  I hope you get things better than we did.



So frustrating!  If it went down for everybody and then came back at the same time for everybody, then fine I can deal with that.  At least when it starts working again you have a chance at getting what you want.

The problem is when it works for some people and not others.  The people who have problems sit there messing with the app for hours while all the times get taken by the people who are not having problems.


----------



## Brian4891

Garyjames220 said:


> When Im using the genie plus up let’s say I book a selection in the morning for later in the day and I can’t book another until 11am. If I log on before that time does it show you what rides are still available so I have an idea what rides I can still get?
> 
> also is it in time order and each ride gets later and later until there all gone?



Yes even when you are not eligible to make a new booking, you can still view the next available time.

For your other question, I think you are asking if the available times get progressively later as they get booked up.  Yes that is how it works.  The app shows the next available time.  For example, if the next available time is 4pm, it will show that until that time slot gets fully booked, and then it will show 4:10.  This continues until all time slots are booked and then it will say none available.  Occasionally if you check throughout the day you may see random times pop up due to cancellations or some other reason.


----------



## jbish

Grumpy by Birth said:


> Maybe someone can help me reconcile this in my mind...
> 
> I'm reading a lot of first-hand accounts indicating that Genie+ selections get scarfed up pretty quickly and folks are only able to get a few LL selections throughout the day because by the time they can make their 3rd selection at 1 pm, nothing is available.
> 
> But I've also been reading a number of reports where people indicate hardly anyone using the LLs.  So, if hardly anyone is in the LLs, then why are the LL slots selling out so much/quickly?  If not many people are purchasing G+, shouldn't there be ample LL slots for those who do?  Conversely, if a lot of people are purchasing it, then why are folks observing hardly anyone going through the LL?
> 
> I saw where someone speculated that Disney is rationing the number of LL slots given out (far fewer available than previously with FP+).  Does anyone have insight into that?  Understanding that offering too many LL slots would slow down SB further (one of the major complaints about FP+), are they simply making fewer LL slots available throughout the day while simultaneously *NOT *limiting how many people can purchase G+? If so, I predict it won't be long before there's a major backlash (can already see it forming now) if a significant number of people purchase G+, but it's not designed to offer an adequate number of LL slots to those purchasers to meet expectations.


I'm interested in hearing theories and observations on this too.  As someone going the week before Easter, arguably one of the busiest weeks of the year, I'm worried I will spend $75/day on G+ only to get 2 maybe 3 rides booked.  Is that worth it???  How quickly do these sell out during peak weeks?


----------



## Orsino

At Epcot and animal kingdom, I could see someone describing it as “hardly anyone using genie+”. But at MK and studios, no way. This week, which is busy but not super busy, we have reliably been able to get 5 LL using the two hour stack method. You could arguably be able to get more using the “book earliest” method. On busy days that might drop to 3 or 4(least efficient stack method) but you would also be facing longer lines on those days too so the time savings might be comparable.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

Orsino said:


> At Epcot and animal kingdom, I could see someone describing it as “hardly anyone using genie+”. But at MK and studios, no way. This week, which is busy but not super busy, we have reliably been able to get 5 LL using the two hour stack method. You could arguably be able to get more using the “book earliest” method. On busy days that might drop to 3 or 4(least efficient stack method) but you would also be facing longer lines on those days too so the time savings might be comparable.


There seems to be fairly consistent agreement that G+ is least effective/not needed for EPCOT and AK.  I'll have to go back and re-read those reports to see if it was specified about what park they were seeing "hardly anyone" in the LL.


----------



## Pookie9922

jbish said:


> I'm interested in hearing theories and observations on this too.  As someone going the week before Easter, arguably one of the busiest weeks of the year, I'm worried I will spend $75/day on G+ only to get 2 maybe 3 rides booked.  Is that worth it???  How quickly do these sell out during peak weeks?


If it's busy enough that you only get 2-3 rides with the G+, that may be 2-3 rides more than you'd get riding standby with very long lines. So "worth it" is subjective - only you can decide that.


----------



## DisneyFive

Grumpy by Birth said:


> There seems to be fairly consistent agreement that G+ is least effective/not needed for EPCOT and AK.  I'll have to go back and re-read those reports to see if it was specified about what park they were seeing "hardly anyone" in the LL.


Even though we pre-purchased G+ for our upcoming 8 night trip this summer, I do agree that AK and EP are on a drastically different playing field for G+, _ESPECIALLY_ when you consider that the two highest demand attractions in each park aren't even available with G+ (Remy, FEA, FOP, and EE).  AK and EP total are only 3 of our 8 park days, so that helps.  That leaves very few attractions to make useful use of G+.

EP and AK just lack good attractions what G+ is good for.

Soarin, now that they've added the third theater, has short wait times a good portion of the day, especially the second half.  That leaves Test Track as the only really good use of G+ at EP.  Even so, with how long the lines at TT are standby, and the frequent breakdowns, it will be really nice to have a G+ for it.  It will also be nice, with G+, to basically walk on Spaceship Earth, Mission Space, etc...

The same goes for AK.  I think the only two things that will be nice skipping lines for will be the Safari (that can get LONG) and Dinosaur.  Other than that, G+ really isn't needed for shows.  (we showed up to Lion King 5 minutes early last summer and still got seated.  No bad seat in that theater really.

So yeah, I agree about AK and EP, but G+ isn't pointless there, it's just that the value of it is greatly diminished versus HS and MK.

Dan


----------



## jbish

DisneyFive said:


> So yeah, I agree about AK and EP, but G+ isn't pointless there, it's just that the value of it is greatly diminished versus HS and MK.
> 
> Dan


Also think that G+ for AK/EP might work well for park hopping to HS/MK later.  Snag that high priority ride first thing (say TT at EP) with a EP reservation, then start stacking at MK for later in the afternoon.


----------



## HBGdancermom

Happy Friday everyone!

On one of my park days, we would like to start in Epcot with Remy, but hop to HS for the afternoon to utilize the RoTR ILL and whatever genie + we can stack throughout the morning.  I'm assuming that I would leave my park reservation at Epcot that day but would still be able to purchase the ILL and other genie + rides for HS. 

Is that correct?

Thanks!


----------



## Turksmom

HBGdancermom said:


> Happy Friday everyone!
> 
> On one of my park days, we would like to start in Epcot with Remy, but hop to HS for the afternoon to utilize the RoTR ILL and whatever genie + we can stack throughout the morning.  I'm assuming that I would leave my park reservation at Epcot that day but would still be able to purchase the ILL and other genie + rides for HS.
> 
> Is that correct?
> 
> Thanks!


That's correct! Sounds like a good plan.


----------



## Meglen

I am sorry if this has been answered a bunch already. You can book a ILL$ for any park any day?. If its before 2pm it needs to be your PP park but if its after 2pm and you have hoppers it dosnt matter. Correct?


----------



## Turksmom

Meglen said:


> I am sorry if this has been answered a bunch already. You can book a ILL$ for any park any day?. If its before 2pm it needs to be your PP park but if its after 2pm and you have hoppers it dosnt matter. Correct?


Correct. Just as a reminder, there is a maximum of 2 ILL$ per day, not 2 per park.


----------



## meghanmione

I'm sorry also if this has been strategized before, there's A LOT in this thread haha. If we don't want to spend the ENTIRE day at HS, would it be better to wake up at 7, try to book the ILL's we want (assuming the times we get will be later anyways) and stack some rides with genie throughout the day with return times being for the afternoon/evening? I'm just wondering if rope drop is worth it at all if we're going to use Genie+ there anyways. So far this seems like the trickiest park and it is sadly making me not even super excited for it even though I am dying to see the new galaxy's edge.


----------



## Sydnerella

jbish said:


> I'm interested in hearing theories and observations on this too.  As someone going the week before Easter, arguably one of the busiest weeks of the year, I'm worried I will spend $75/day on G+ only to get 2 maybe 3 rides booked.  Is that worth it???  How quickly do these sell out during peak weeks?



As someone who was there 11/19-28, before, during and after Thanksgiving - we bought it everyday for our 9-day park hoppers. So similar crowds to you. If you see many of my posts you will notice that there were many issues and complaints that trip with G+/ILL, but things would only have been worse line-wise without it. At minimum we had 3 G+ rides booked in one day, and one day we actually were refunded because we focused on FOTH and the few rides we did book broke down. Breakdowns Happened a ton on our trip. We typically got many more than 3 more following guidance here - especially MK 7-8, HS 6 was probably the max plus ILLs.



Grumpy by Birth said:


> There seems to be fairly consistent agreement that G+ is least effective/not needed for EPCOT and AK.  I'll have to go back and re-read those reports to see if it was specified about what park they were seeing "hardly anyone" in the LL.



It depends if you have a trip during a peak time or not. Or if you want flexibility during less crowds to avoid lines, arrive later, don’t want to worry about the rope drops or other line beating strategy, end of the night, etc…

As I said above we had it for our whole trip and it was more useful than not due to the crowds even at Epcot and AK. That said, it was incredibly stressful and I am not a fan.



meghanmione said:


> I'm sorry also if this has been strategized before, there's A LOT in this thread haha. If we don't want to spend the ENTIRE day at HS, would it be better to wake up at 7, try to book the ILL's we want (assuming the times we get will be later anyways) and stack some rides with genie throughout the day with return times being for the afternoon/evening? I'm just wondering if rope drop is worth it at all if we're going to use Genie+ there anyways. So far this seems like the trickiest park and it is sadly making me not even super excited for it even though I am dying to see the new galaxy's edge.



A late arrival as you describe with stacking is a nice plan if you can get good times later in the day to hit things consecutively - from what I have read here. I have not tried this myself. But its often recommended and I can see benefit.  Especially if it is not a huge crowd day. Sorry to sound like a broken record, but again it depends what season you are traveling in. And touring preferences - It seems that it is considered average busy right now - crowd calendar five for Hollywood studios. My offsite friend still arrived at rope drop today to get TOT & RNRR out of the way in standby before their first real line. SDD G+ was booked for 2 at seven but return time was 4 PM. MFSR Was booked for the other two at seven with return time of 11. They had to wait standby for ROTR since they were offsite it was sold out. Otherwise had pretty minimal waits using G+ and standby and left by 630 as they were wiped out.


----------



## MikeandReneePlus5

meghanmione said:


> I'm sorry also if this has been strategized before, there's A LOT in this thread haha. If we don't want to spend the ENTIRE day at HS, would it be better to wake up at 7, try to book the ILL's we want (assuming the times we get will be later anyways) and stack some rides with genie throughout the day with return times being for the afternoon/evening? I'm just wondering if rope drop is worth it at all if we're going to use Genie+ there anyways. So far this seems like the trickiest park and it is sadly making me not even super excited for it even though I am dying to see the new galaxy's edge.



Yes that can work but after your ILL$ (assuming you buy them) you will only be able to book 1 Genie+ before park open (assuming Sslinky Dog) and then the next one at 11am (2 hours after park open).

And at 11am times will be further out.  But that may be just fine for your plan.  I think that is what we will do next week.

Another way to do it is do the exact same thing at 7am but still get there at park open and go ride, say, Millennium Falcon with a short wait and move on to RNRC and TOT and TSMM with short waits while still booking Genie+ for re-rides.

There are other plans also.


----------



## meghanmione

MikeandReneePlus5 said:


> Yes that can work but after your ILL$ (assuming you buy them) you will only be able to book 1 Genie+ before park open (assuming Sslinky Dog) and then the next one at 11am (2 hours after park open).
> 
> And at 11am times will be further out.  But that may be just fine for your plan.  I think that is what we will do next week.
> 
> Another way to do it is do the exact same thing at 7am but still get there at park open and go ride, say, Millennium Falcon with a short wait and move on to RNRC and TOT and TSMM with short waits while still booking Genie+ for re-rides.
> 
> There are other plans also.


That’s a good idea! I wonder if that would allow for a midday break in that case but I guess it’s dependent on what return times I actually get.


----------



## moorish

holyrita said:


> I used to just tap the "Tip Board" button on the actual tip board page in order to refresh the times, instead of having to pull down from the top. I notice tapping that button isn't refreshing the times anymore.. I tap it and nothing happens. I'm wondering if this is a temporary bug or if they did something to stop people from refreshing so much?


I just noticed this too after months of being able to just tap “Tip Board” to refresh. I have to pull down from the top each time and it’s very annoying!


----------



## Donna M

moorish said:


> I just noticed this too after months of being able to just tap “Tip Board” to refresh. I have to pull down from the top each time and it’s very annoying!


Same here for Wed.  I had to pull it down this time.


----------



## GBRforWDW

moorish said:


> I just noticed this too after months of being able to just tap “Tip Board” to refresh. I have to pull down from the top each time and it’s very annoying!





Donna M said:


> Same here for Wed.  I had to pull it down this time.


If you are further down the Tip Board page, click a ride to go to the ride details page, then click on the LL logo.  It'll take you right back to where you were while also refreshing.


----------



## tmart4312

Do non-resort Early Admission eligible hotels (e.g. Doubletree  Disney Springs area) have access to ILL at 7am?  If so, does that include day of check out?  TIA!


----------



## Tom_E_D

tmart4312 said:


> Do non-resort Early Admission eligible hotels (e.g. Doubletree  Disney Springs area) have access to ILL at 7am?  If so, does that include day of check out?  TIA!


Some, but not all of the non-Disney early entry hotels can book ILL$ at 7:00. Doubletree Disney Springs is not on the list. For those hotels that are included, it covers day of check-in and day of check-out.


----------



## tmart4312

Tom_E_D said:


> Some, but not all of the non-Disney early entry hotels can book ILL$ at 7:00. Doubletree Disney Springs is not on the list.
> View attachment 644976


Thanks!  (bummer! lol)


----------



## blobula

Hello, my wife and I will be heading to Disney in a few weeks from 3/2-3/9 for our anniversary. We have only booked a 3 day ticket so HS on 3/4, MK 3/7, Epcot 3/8. No hopper, but considering adding it in order to get to AK.

This will be the first time using Genie+ so reading through this thread has been helpful.

It appears that some people have had great success with going to AK in the morning and hopping to HS after 2pm to use their stacked Genie+ LL's. As of now both AK/HS open at the same time so early entry for on property guests is the same. Would hopping strategy still work on 3/4?

Must do's HS: ROTR (never done), MMRR, and SSD (never done)
   Purchase ILL$ for ROTR and MMRR and try to book ILL for SDD and stack others for evening entry?
Must do's AK: FoP, Navi
  Purchase ILL$ for FoP and LL for Navi, Safari, Dinosaur?

Appreciate any advice, thanks!


----------



## Pookie9922

moorish said:


> I just noticed this too after months of being able to just tap “Tip Board” to refresh. I have to pull down from the top each time and it’s very annoying!


It looks like the fastest way to refresh might be to toggle between "My day" and the tip board. It keeps your spot for what ride you're looking at and is a little faster than clicking on the ride itself and then back.


----------



## sarac87

blobula said:


> Hello, my wife and I will be heading to Disney in a few weeks from 3/2-3/9 for our anniversary. We have only booked a 3 day ticket so HS on 3/4, MK 3/7, Epcot 3/8. No hopper, but considering adding it in order to get to AK.
> 
> This will be the first time using Genie+ so reading through this thread has been helpful.
> 
> It appears that some people have had great success with going to AK in the morning and hopping to HS after 2pm to use their stacked Genie+ LL's. As of now both AK/HS open at the same time so early entry for on property guests is the same. Would hopping strategy still work on 3/4?
> 
> Must do's HS: ROTR (never done), MMRR, and SSD (never done)
> Purchase ILL$ for ROTR and MMRR and try to book ILL for SDD and stack others for evening entry?
> Must do's AK: FoP, Navi
> Purchase ILL$ for FoP and LL for Navi, Safari, Dinosaur?
> 
> Appreciate any advice, thanks!


You can only buy 2 ILL$ in one day, so you’d have to pick. You can try to rope drop FoP or ride MMRR close to closing.


----------



## JoJoGirl

moorish said:


> I just noticed this too after months of being able to just tap “Tip Board” to refresh. I have to pull down from the top each time and it’s very annoying!



I found that you can accomplish the same thing by tapping “Experiences”, just below where your park is shown. That works of IOS at least, not sure about android.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

blobula said:


> Hello, my wife and I will be heading to Disney in a few weeks from 3/2-3/9 for our anniversary. We have only booked a 3 day ticket so HS on 3/4, MK 3/7, Epcot 3/8. No hopper, but considering adding it in order to get to AK.
> 
> This will be the first time using Genie+ so reading through this thread has been helpful.
> 
> It appears that some people have had great success with going to AK in the morning and hopping to HS after 2pm to use their stacked Genie+ LL's. As of now both AK/HS open at the same time so early entry for on property guests is the same. Would hopping strategy still work on 3/4?
> 
> Must do's HS: ROTR (never done), MMRR, and SSD (never done)
> Purchase ILL$ for ROTR and MMRR and try to book ILL for SDD and stack others for evening entry?
> Must do's AK: FoP, Navi
> Purchase ILL$ for FoP and LL for Navi, Safari, Dinosaur?
> 
> Appreciate any advice, thanks!


SDD LL has been going very quickly most days, so if that's a must-do, you might consider making that G+/LL as close to 7AM as you can.  If HS is your hop-to park, it'll give you a time after 2PM.  But if you make a LL reservation at 7AM for SDD, you won't be able to make your next LL reservation until 2 hours after AK opens, probably 10 or 11AM.  You'll have to see what is available at that time that you'd like to do early afternoon, especially if you're hopping to HS after 2PM.  I agree with sarac87 in that of the ILLs you've mentioned, definitely buy ROTR, but then make a choice for early FOP or late MMRR.  Good luck and happy anniversary!


----------



## Runnsally

Pookie9922 said:


> It looks like the fastest way to refresh might be to toggle between "My day" and the tip board. It keeps your spot for what ride you're looking at and is a little faster than clicking on the ride itself and then back.


The best way to refresh is to edit your selections to only include the ride you are interested in so it appears at the top of the tip board.  Then just pull down on the tip board to refresh.


----------



## emmabelle

Pookie9922 said:


> It looks like the fastest way to refresh might be to toggle between "My day" and the tip board. It keeps your spot for what ride you're looking at and is a little faster than clicking on the ride itself and then back.



Wish I had seen this before I spent 3 hours dragging down to refresh. Hahaha


----------



## Orsino

Okay. New strategy today that I’m going to call “hybrid”. You are all undoubtedly aware of the “stack” strategy for building an arsenal of LL for evening and the “fastest” strategy to get early return times to book new LL quickly.
Today we happened to enter epcot at 11 am which is the time for our next LL booking ( we booked slinky at 7am for a hop). So instead of booking a priority attraction at studios, we booked spaceship earth so that we could enter immediately. Then we could book our HS priority attraction to stack for later. This worked well as it saved us 20 minutes in line and didn’t cost much in terms of time for the priority stack.

later we tried this again at star tours where we could book and tap immediately. This ‘worked’ but probably only saved us about 5 minutes as the standby line was short.


----------



## kikismom

I've been sifting through the threads trying to figure out G+ because we'd like to use it on our spring break trip. 

I read that it is impossible to get some rides if staying off site for the ILL. We really want to do Remy and Slinky Dog Dash. Has anyone been successful staying off site and getting a ILL for either of those? 

I'm wondering if we are just going to have to suck it up and wait in line. I wish we were staying on site but are there for a convention and didn't have a choice on hotel.


----------



## mickey916

kikismom said:


> I've been sifting through the threads trying to figure out G+ because we'd like to use it on our spring break trip.
> 
> I read that it is impossible to get some rides if staying off site for the ILL. We really want to do Remy and Slinky Dog Dash. Has anyone been successful staying off site and getting a ILL for either of those?
> 
> I'm wondering if we are just going to have to suck it up and wait in line. I wish we were staying on site but are there for a convention and didn't have a choice on hotel.


Slinky Dog Dash is part of the Genie+ which you will be able to book at 7 am even though you're offsite. Remy is an ILL$ which you'll only be able to book at park opening but I haven't heard of it selling out as quickly as Rise.


----------



## kikismom

Oh thank you! I haven't studied this hard since school! I'm trying to read through all the threads but am a bit overwhelmed. Planning on using G+ and ILLs for our trip. At least at HS and MK for sure.


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

kikismom said:


> I've been sifting through the threads trying to figure out G+ because we'd like to use it on our spring break trip.
> 
> I read that it is impossible to get some rides if staying off site for the ILL. We really want to do Remy and Slinky Dog Dash. Has anyone been successful staying off site and getting a ILL for either of those?
> 
> I'm wondering if we are just going to have to suck it up and wait in line. I wish we were staying on site but are there for a convention and didn't have a choice on hotel.



I checked the Touring Plan stats for yesterday and the actual wait for Slinky was about 20 minutes just before closing time.  That may be a good option.


----------



## Tom_E_D

kikismom said:


> I've been sifting through the threads trying to figure out G+ because we'd like to use it on our spring break trip.
> 
> I read that it is impossible to get some rides if staying off site for the ILL. We really want to do Remy and Slinky Dog Dash. Has anyone been successful staying off site and getting a ILL for either of those?
> 
> I'm wondering if we are just going to have to suck it up and wait in line. I wish we were staying on site but are there for a convention and didn't have a choice on hotel.


Below is a Thrill-Data graphic showing recent  ILL availability for Remy (gray means unavailable). You can see the URL on the photo if you want further info.


----------



## GBRforWDW

kikismom said:


> I've been sifting through the threads trying to figure out G+ because we'd like to use it on our spring break trip.
> 
> I read that it is impossible to get some rides if staying off site for the ILL. We really want to do Remy and Slinky Dog Dash. Has anyone been successful staying off site and getting a ILL for either of those?
> 
> I'm wondering if we are just going to have to suck it up and wait in line. I wish we were staying on site but are there for a convention and didn't have a choice on hotel.


Stayed offsite Christmas week and was easily able to get an ILL$ when the park opened. I booked for 6:30 but could have gone as early as 5pm.  Of course, they still had boarding groups so people may have relied on that more at the time


----------



## moorish

Pookie9922 said:


> It looks like the fastest way to refresh might be to toggle between "My day" and the tip board. It keeps your spot for what ride you're looking at and is a little faster than clicking on the ride itself and then back.


This doesn’t seem to refresh times for me.


JoJoGirl said:


> I found that you can accomplish the same thing by tapping “Experiences”, just below where your park is shown. That works of IOS at least, not sure about android.


But this does!

Thanks for the replies everyone!


----------



## chaoskids

JoJoGirl said:


> I found that you can accomplish the same thing by tapping “Experiences”, just below where your park is shown. That works of IOS at least, not sure about android.




Thank you for this!  Tapping on "Experiences" worked for me and it's fast too!


----------



## twodogs

We used G+ the week of Christmas.  I do think the lines were shorter in the LL than previously with FP+.  I do not think they are limiting how many people can buy G+ on any given day.  But there is most definitely a limit on how many LLs they give out for each ride each day.  If they don’t keep the LLs a short wait, people will not be willing to pay for the service.  I don’t agree with them continuing to sell G+ on days when there is nothing or almost nothing left to book, but that is for another thread….


----------



## Orsino

twodogs said:


> I do think the lines were shorter in the LL than previously with FP



I think it varies. We had 20 minute waits in the PP LL twice last week. Once could be bad luck, but twice makes me think SOP. We noticed that Disney tracks the time spent between the first and second tap at PP, but what their data isn’t gathering is the 5 or so minutes we spent in line getting to the first tap point.

jungle cruise was also slow to load LL. But I think it comes down to down time. If a ride goes down, LL gets hammered later. 

the rest, I think was pretty good.


----------



## wisblue

When you say that Disney is tracking the time between the first and second tap point, do you just mean that they are making you tap twice?

I‘m sure they could track and analyze those times, but I always thought that one reason they require two taps, and maybe the main reason, is to prevent line jumpers from slipping into the LL after passing the first tap point.


----------



## KTwiegs

Just back from our trip. 
used genie + 4 out of the 5 days. I will say by the end of the week I got the hang of it,
Before the trip I watched every genie+ video on allears.net YouTube page which definitely helped. 
the biggest things I learned
**avoid that first thing in the morning 120min rule at all costs. It sets you up for a lot of long waits inbetween lightning lanes. One day I only got 2 lightning lanes for the day because of a later Peter Pan LL… our last day I got 12 for the day and still got a LL for pan later in the day.

**lightning lanes keep popping back up through the day. (Even the hardest ones to get) If something looks sold out first thing in the AM it’s actually not. Keep pulling down refreshing. 

** alway edit your selections of lightning lane preferences for the next ride you want. Example-after tapping into buzz lightyear I put Tomorrowland speedway as my only ride and kept refreshing till it popped up for only 10 mins later. I used the same strategy for Peter Pan around 4pm when we had used almost all of the others in the park.
KEEP PULLING DOWN AND REFRESHING! 

*** you have to be smart with your next ride choice so you aren’t running all over the park. Try and finish a section of the park at a time. Get all those lightning lanes before moving on. 

*** you can tap in 5 minutes before your actually LL time starts

***use the 120 min rule for your lunch break.

*** if doing a half day stack LL for later in the day. Make a new LL every 2 hours. I did this as my boys swam in the pool. We had 5 LL waiting for us in HS that night.

My over all thoughts on genie+ system is it is very flawed. So many ways it could be improved. That being said I do think we will get it for future trips.. BUT I do think we will consider not getting park hopper next time because of it. It was the most successful for me on the day I stayed at MK all day.


----------



## Duck143

Runnsally said:


> The best way to refresh is to edit your selections to only include the ride you are interested in so it appears at the top of the tip board.  Then just pull down on the tip board to refresh.


Can you tell me how you edit your selections?  Is it on Tip Board or My Day?


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

KTwiegs said:


> **avoid that first thing in the morning 120min rule at all costs. It sets you up for a lot of long waits inbetween lightning lanes. One day I only got 2 lightning lanes for the day because of a later Peter Pan LL… our last day I got 12 for the day and still got a LL for pan later in the day.


So, you are in the camp of grabbing as many LLs as possible by picking ones that have the soonest return times rather than "stacking" them for later?

Am I understanding your recommendation correctly?  What about the risk that LLs for popular rides will all be gone by the time you try to get a LL?  As I understand it, refreshing still requires you to be lucky that someone cancelled a LL so it gets dropped back in the pool.

If it's still early and I'm already seeing afternoon times for a popular ride, so I instead book 2nd tier rides because the LL times are only a short time in the future, then the times are going to keep pushing later and later for that popular ride while I'm using LLs for the other stuff.  It seems they might be completely booked for the day by the time you could get one that isn't 2 hours away (with the exception that you are able to pick up a cancelled one by refreshing).

It seems both schools of thought (stacking "quality" LLs for later in the day vs. getting the most "quantity" of LLs by booking ones that have the soonest return times) come with a bit of risk.  Stacking risks having to wait in longer lines until later in the day when you can use the stacked LLs.  Avoiding LL bookings that are further out risks not getting a LL at all for that ride if they're all gone by the time you try for one.

Thoughts?


----------



## SLThomas318

KTwiegs said:


> Just back from our trip.
> used genie + 4 out of the 5 days. I will say by the end of the week I got the hang of it,
> Before the trip I watched every genie+ video on allears.net YouTube page which definitely helped.
> the biggest things I learned
> **avoid that first thing in the morning 120min rule at all costs. It sets you up for a lot of long waits inbetween lightning lanes. One day I only got 2 lightning lanes for the day because of a later Peter Pan LL… our last day I got 12 for the day and still got a LL for pan later in the day.
> 
> **lightning lanes keep popping back up through the day. (Even the hardest ones to get) If something looks sold out first thing in the AM it’s actually not. Keep pulling down refreshing.
> 
> ** alway edit your selections of lightning lane preferences for the next ride you want. Example-after tapping into buzz lightyear I put Tomorrowland speedway as my only ride and kept refreshing till it popped up for only 10 mins later. I used the same strategy for Peter Pan around 4pm when we had used almost all of the others in the park.
> KEEP PULLING DOWN AND REFRESHING!
> 
> *** you have to be smart with your next ride choice so you aren’t running all over the park. Try and finish a section of the park at a time. Get all those lightning lanes before moving on.
> 
> *** you can tap in 5 minutes before your actually LL time starts
> 
> ***use the 120 min rule for your lunch break.
> 
> *** if doing a half day stack LL for later in the day. Make a new LL every 2 hours. I did this as my boys swam in the pool. We had 5 LL waiting for us in HS that night.
> 
> My over all thoughts on genie+ system is it is very flawed. So many ways it could be improved. That being said I do think we will get it for future trips.. BUT I do think we will consider not getting park hopper next time because of it. It was the most successful for me on the day I stayed at MK all day.



12 in one day sounds awesome... did you rope drop and take advantage of early entry as well?  I thought about the tap and go strategy for MK, but the day we used it everything was walk-on the first hour or so (smaller rides... buzz, speedway, tea-cups, pooh, barnstormer, dumbo, and ariel).  With small kids we also like just finishing one area before moving on...


----------



## wisblue

KTwiegs said:


> Just back from our trip.
> used genie + 4 out of the 5 days. I will say by the end of the week I got the hang of it,
> Before the trip I watched every genie+ video on allears.net YouTube page which definitely helped.
> the biggest things I learned
> **avoid that first thing in the morning 120min rule at all costs. It sets you up for a lot of long waits inbetween lightning lanes. One day I only got 2 lightning lanes for the day because of a later Peter Pan LL… our last day I got 12 for the day and still got a LL for pan later in the day.
> 
> **lightning lanes keep popping back up through the day. (Even the hardest ones to get) If something looks sold out first thing in the AM it’s actually not. Keep pulling down refreshing.
> 
> ** alway edit your selections of lightning lane preferences for the next ride you want. Example-after tapping into buzz lightyear I put Tomorrowland speedway as my only ride and kept refreshing till it popped up for only 10 mins later. I used the same strategy for Peter Pan around 4pm when we had used almost all of the others in the park.
> KEEP PULLING DOWN AND REFRESHING!
> 
> *** you have to be smart with your next ride choice so you aren’t running all over the park. Try and finish a section of the park at a time. Get all those lightning lanes before moving on.
> 
> *** you can tap in 5 minutes before your actually LL time starts
> 
> ***use the 120 min rule for your lunch break.
> 
> *** if doing a half day stack LL for later in the day. Make a new LL every 2 hours. I did this as my boys swam in the pool. We had 5 LL waiting for us in HS that night.
> 
> My over all thoughts on genie+ system is it is very flawed. So many ways it could be improved. That being said I do think we will get it for future trips.. BUT I do think we will consider not getting park hopper next time because of it. It was the most successful for me on the day I stayed at MK all day.



Good points.

Several of them highlight the “different strokes, for different folks” aspect of this based on priorities and touring styles.

A lot of posters don’t like the idea of spending too much time on their phones and, from my experience, the “keep refreshing” strategy requires a lot of patience, and/or a lot of luck, to be successful in grabbing a LL for the most popular attractions. 

I have tried refreshing to get a LL a few times when I was somewhere with nothing much else to do, like waiting in a line at an attraction or sitting on the resort balcony taking a break. After 5-10 minutes of refreshing I often found that no times ever popped up or the one or two that did were gone by the time (a fraction of a second later) that I clicked on the time to try to book it.  

Your day of stacking at DHS for later in the day is what some people do on most days of their trips.


----------



## wisblue

Grumpy by Birth said:


> So, you are in the camp of grabbing as many LLs as possible by picking ones that have the soonest return times rather than "stacking" them for later?
> 
> Am I understanding your recommendation correctly?  What about the risk that LLs for popular rides will all be gone by the time you try to get a LL?  As I understand it, refreshing still requires you to be lucky that someone cancelled a LL so it gets dropped back in the pool.
> 
> If it's still early and I'm already seeing afternoon times for a popular ride, so I instead book 2nd tier rides because the LL times are only a short time in the future, then the times are going to keep pushing later and later for that popular ride while I'm using LLs for the other stuff.  It seems they might be completely booked for the day by the time you could get one that isn't 2 hours away (with the exception that you are able to pick up a cancelled one by refreshing).
> 
> It seems both schools of thought (stacking "quality" LLs for later in the day vs. getting the most "quantity" of LLs by booking ones that have the soonest return times) come with a bit of risk.  Stacking risks having to wait in longer lines until later in the day when you can use the stacked LLs.  Avoiding LL bookings that are further out risks not getting a LL at all for that ride if they're all gone by the time you try for one.
> 
> Thoughts?



I am definitely an advocate of quality over quantity when it comes to Genie+. Getting 12 in a day sounds good, but I suspect that some of those involve using the LL for attractions with relatively short standby waits, either because it’s early in the morning or the attractions don’t have long standby lines for most of the day. MK is the only park where that is even an issue.

My comments about refreshing are in my previous post. The risks of stacking for later in the day can be managed pretty well if you have a good idea of which attractions to book first based on which “sell out” first.


----------



## Runnsally

Duck143 said:


> Can you tell me how you edit your selections?  Is it on Tip Board or My Day?


You have to have a park pass and then customize genie through My Day and select attractions you are interested in.  Once you do this, you can edit your selected attractions on the tip board. Confusing I know.


----------



## wisblue

Duck143 said:


> Can you tell me how you edit your selections?  Is it on Tip Board or My Day?



The previous poster beat me to it.


----------



## Duck143

Runnsally said:


> You have to have a park pass and then customize genie through My Day and select attractions you are interested in.  Once you do this, you can edit your selected attractions on the tip board. Confusing I know.


Ok!  That makes sense.  I couldn't find anywhere to do this because I don't have a Park Pass until October.   I went in and edited a day in October.  Is it quickest to refresh right in "My Day"?


----------



## KTwiegs

Duck143 said:


> Can you tell me how you edit your selections?  Is it on Tip Board or My Day?


It’s on the tip board just to the right near the top. Doesn’t look like a button just the words


----------



## Duck143

KTwiegs said:


> It’s on the tip board just to the right near the top. Doesn’t look like a button just the words


I was able to edit my selections and now I can edit them for today's date just to try it out.  It's so helpful not having to sort through all the experiences.


----------



## KTwiegs

Grumpy by Birth said:


> So, you are in the camp of grabbing as many LLs as possible by picking ones that have the soonest return times rather than "stacking" them for later?
> 
> Am I understanding your recommendation correctly?  What about the risk that LLs for popular rides will all be gone by the time you try to get a LL?  As I understand it, refreshing still requires you to be lucky that someone cancelled a LL so it gets dropped back in the pool.
> 
> If it's still early and I'm already seeing afternoon times for a popular ride, so I instead book 2nd tier rides because the LL times are only a short time in the future, then the times are going to keep pushing later and later for that popular ride while I'm using LLs for the other stuff.  It seems they might be completely booked for the day by the time you could get one that isn't 2 hours away (with the exception that you are able to pick up a cancelled one by refreshing).
> 
> It seems both schools of thought (stacking "quality" LLs for later in the day vs. getting the most "quantity" of LLs by booking ones that have the soonest return times) come with a bit of risk.  Stacking risks having to wait in longer lines until later in the day when you can use the stacked LLs.  Avoiding LL bookings that are further out risks not getting a LL at all for that ride if they're all gone by the time you try for one.
> 
> Thoughts?


All good points and of course crowds are an unknown factor in all of this. My experience HS was best from stacking and MK I did extremely well grabbing next available. 
the only popular one in MK we missed was jungle cruise but I was so close snagging it twice later in the day.
What it took me all week to truly realize is that even if at 730 am they are only showing 5pm plus times does not me anything before that is gone for the day. They add earlier ones back all day. I’ve even seen it with rise. 

HS is hard to do at all. Sooooo many popular rides..


----------



## KTwiegs

SLThomas318 said:


> 12 in one day sounds awesome... did you rope drop and take advantage of early entry as well?  I thought about the tap and go strategy for MK, but the day we used it everything was walk-on the first hour or so (smaller rides... buzz, speedway, tea-cups, pooh, barnstormer, dumbo, and ariel).  With small kids we also like just finishing one area before moving on...


Yup we rope dropped storybook circus (I’ve got barnstormer loving boys) got in I think 3 ride before 9am and then had my earliest LL. 
I tried to use each of my LL as soon as my window opened so I had more time to grab another. 
But I LL rides we rope dropped later in the day too. You know little ones they just want to ride over and over again. 
I know so much of this is down to timing and luck but any time saved in line helps with littles.


----------



## KTwiegs

wisblue said:


> Good points.
> 
> Several of them highlight the “different strokes, for different folks” aspect of this based on priorities and touring styles.
> 
> A lot of posters don’t like the idea of spending too much time on their phones and, from my experience, the “keep refreshing” strategy requires a lot of patience, and/or a lot of luck, to be successful in grabbing a LL for the most popular attractions.
> 
> I have tried refreshing to get a LL a few times when I was somewhere with nothing much else to do, like waiting in a line at an attraction or sitting on the resort balcony taking a break. After 5-10 minutes of refreshing I often found that no times ever popped up or the one or two that did were gone by the time (a fraction of a second later) that I clicked on the time to try to book it.
> 
> Your day of stacking at DHS for later in the day is what some people do on most days of their trips.


Yup my way definitely doesn’t work for everyone. But with a 3 year old even waiting for 30 mins can be tough so I tried to maximize genie+ my last day. That is a weirdly good thing with genie+ is you can change it to fit your touring style day to day. 
earlier in the week I went for quality but that last day I was getting my moneys worth!


----------



## MikeandReneePlus5

KTwiegs said:


> **avoid that first thing in the morning 120min rule at all costs. It sets you up for a lot of long waits inbetween lightning lanes. One day I only got 2 lightning lanes for the day because of a later Peter Pan LL… our last day I got 12 for the day and still got a LL for pan later in the day.



I assume you mean you got Peter Pan for later in the day and then couldn't book another pass until 11am?


----------



## Orsino

KTwiegs said:


> HS is hard to do at all. Sooooo many popular rides..


We must have been lucky with our HS days. We got all the LL that we wanted to do. The first time we did 5 LL: Slinky, MFSR, RnRC, TSMM, Tower
Second time 6LL: Slinky, MFSR, RnRC, TSMM, Star Tours** and Alien Saucers. We opted not to do Tower since once a trip is enough for us. I think we could have gotten Tower if we wanted it, but our evening was pretty packed as it was (2PM arrival, leisurely dinner at Brown Derby).

Another possible strategy is to split G+ and ILL onto separate days if you go to Studios on more than one day. We did a short visit to HS on a third day and got Rise and MMRR ILL. I think ILL make more sense on a short morning visit to a park (we hopped to Epcot which doesn't benefit from G+ much).

** didn't really need it, standby was short


----------



## wisblue

Orsino said:


> We must have been lucky with our HS days. We got all the LL that we wanted to do. The first time we did 5 LL: Slinky, MFSR, RnRC, TSMM, Tower
> Second time 6LL: Slinky, MFSR, RnRC, TSMM, Star Tours** and Alien Saucers. We opted not to do Tower since once a trip is enough for us. I think we could have gotten Tower if we wanted it, but our evening was pretty packed as it was (2PM arrival, leisurely dinner at Brown Derby).
> 
> Another possible strategy is to split G+ and ILL onto separate days if you go to Studios on more than one day. We did a short visit to HS on a third day and got Rise and MMRR ILL. I think ILL make more sense on a short morning visit to a park (we hopped to Epcot which doesn't benefit from G+ much).
> 
> ** didn't really need it, standby was short



I think the only real luck with the DHS attractions is being there on a day with low enough crowds to make all of those things available AWhen your windows open.

I assume you got your 6 by getting SDD first. By 11 AM (or two hours after opening) MFSR might or might not be available. That would force going to a backup plan (RNRC or TOT) at 11, and maybe the other one of those or TSMM at 1. But, on a less busy day, the combo of SDD, MFSR, RNRC, and TOT at 7, 11, 1, and 3 is doable. Star Tours and Alien Saucers usually aren‘t hard to get later in the day.

On a busier day you might not get all of those LL, but you’ll still be getting in a lot more attractions without waiting than you would without Genie+.


----------



## KTwiegs

MikeandReneePlus5 said:


> I assume you mean you got Peter Pan for later in the day and then couldn't book another pass until 11am?


Yes that first day I got pan for sometime I think around 11 so I was in that 120 min window. I found that didn’t work for our touring style.


----------



## wdhinn89

KTwiegs said:


> Just back from our trip.
> used genie + 4 out of the 5 days. I will say by the end of the week I got the hang of it,
> Before the trip I watched every genie+ video on allears.net YouTube page which definitely helped.
> the biggest things I learned
> **avoid that first thing in the morning 120min rule at all costs. It sets you up for a lot of long waits inbetween lightning lanes. One day I only got 2 lightning lanes for the day because of a later Peter Pan LL… our last day I got 12 for the day and still got a LL for pan later in the day.
> 
> **lightning lanes keep popping back up through the day. (Even the hardest ones to get) If something looks sold out first thing in the AM it’s actually not. Keep pulling down refreshing.
> 
> ** alway edit your selections of lightning lane preferences for the next ride you want. Example-after tapping into buzz lightyear I put Tomorrowland speedway as my only ride and kept refreshing till it popped up for only 10 mins later. I used the same strategy for Peter Pan around 4pm when we had used almost all of the others in the park.
> KEEP PULLING DOWN AND REFRESHING!
> 
> *** you have to be smart with your next ride choice so you aren’t running all over the park. Try and finish a section of the park at a time. Get all those lightning lanes before moving on.
> 
> *** you can tap in 5 minutes before your actually LL time starts
> 
> ***use the 120 min rule for your lunch break.
> 
> *** if doing a half day stack LL for later in the day. Make a new LL every 2 hours. I did this as my boys swam in the pool. We had 5 LL waiting for us in HS that night.
> 
> My over all thoughts on genie+ system is it is very flawed. So many ways it could be improved. That being said I do think we will get it for future trips.. BUT I do think we will consider not getting park hopper next time because of it. It was the most successful for me on the day I stayed at MK all day.


Do you think Genie+ was necessary/worth it for Animal Kingdom and Epcot?


----------



## KTwiegs

Orsino said:


> We must have been lucky with our HS days. We got all the LL that we wanted to do. The first time we did 5 LL: Slinky, MFSR, RnRC, TSMM, Tower
> Second time 6LL: Slinky, MFSR, RnRC, TSMM, Star Tours** and Alien Saucers. We opted not to do Tower since once a trip is enough for us. I think we could have gotten Tower if we wanted it, but our evening was pretty packed as it was (2PM arrival, leisurely dinner at Brown Derby).
> 
> Another possible strategy is to split G+ and ILL onto separate days if you go to Studios on more than one day. We did a short visit to HS on a third day and got Rise and MMRR ILL. I think ILL make more sense on a short morning visit to a park (we hopped to Epcot which doesn't benefit from G+ much).
> 
> ** didn't really need it, standby was short


Yeah HS was a struggle for me. I think having littles makes it harder because they want slinky,  mania etc. but I will tour HS much differently next trip. Rope drop one day. Stack LL another


----------



## Orsino

wisblue said:


> By 11 AM (or two hours after opening) MFSR might or might not be available.


Yes. I guess we were lucky on not having a super busy day. It was a Saturday (this past Saturday) so I thought it would a busy day. Anyway, it's kind of funny because when I was booking MFSR it was giving me a time too early (we had dinner ADR at 5PM). I ended up booking Spaceship earth at 11AM for a 11:05 return time (immediate), then booking MFSR at something like 11:11 for 5:40PM.


----------



## KTwiegs

wdhinn89 said:


> Do you think Genie+ was necessary/worth it for Animal Kingdom and Epcot?


Definitely not. I did not get it for our AK/EP day. Rope dropped Navi river and safari was perfect for us. Not doing flight of passage till the kids are a bit bigger. 
I did grab a ratatouille LL+$ for one of our park hopping day MK to EP
I don’t see need genie+ there for awhile if ever.


----------



## snikki

I am in the app and under My Day it shows that my park that day is Epcot. When I switch to the Tip Board will it automatically go to that park the day of?

I haven't made any selections or any of that. We don't go until November. Right now when I go to the tip board it will only go to today. It won't populate to November.


----------



## Garyjames220

I was wondering

what happens if a ride goes down and you have a genie plus LL for it, do they give you some sort of pass to go on any other ride instead if you miss your slot for it

 when there has been an issue in the past, guest services used to give you some extra fast passes is that still the case with genie plus

also if a ride stops and starts a lot during your experience on the ride do they let you go again if you have paid for it


----------



## Westerner

Garyjames220 said:


> I was wondering
> 
> what happens if a ride goes down and you have a genie plus LL for it, do they give you some sort of pass to go on any other ride instead if you miss your slot for it
> 
> when there has been an issue in the past, guest services used to give you some extra fast passes is that still the case with genie plus
> 
> also if a ride stops and starts a lot during your experience on the ride do they let you go again if you have paid for it


re your first question - yes.  This happened to us on Big Thunder Mountain.  It went down during our return window and we got a special replacement LL in the app that was good for a selection of rides but not all.  We ended up using it for Haunted Mansion.

don't know about your 2nd question.


----------



## jbish

snikki said:


> I am in the app and under My Day it shows that my park that day is Epcot. When I switch to the Tip Board will it automatically go to that park the day of?
> 
> I haven't made any selections or any of that. We don't go until November. Right now when I go to the tip board it will only go to today. It won't populate to November.


My upcoming trip isn't until April.  Our first park reservation is for Epcot.  When I open the Tip Board, Epcot is the chosen park and I can "Edit Selections" to keep my preferred rides up at the top of the list.  Two things: a) I cannot "Edit Selections" for any other park, even if I change the park to something else, and b) tomorrow, my "edit selections" would no longer be selected.  So my conclusion has been that Epcot shows up for me because it is my first reservation and the selections reset every day.


----------



## snikki

jbish said:


> My upcoming trip isn't until April.  Our first park reservation is for Epcot.  When I open the Tip Board, Epcot is the chosen park and I can "Edit Selections" to keep my preferred rides up at the top of the list.  Two things: a) I cannot "Edit Selections" for any other park, even if I change the park to something else, and b) tomorrow, my "edit selections" would no longer be selected.  So my conclusion has been that Epcot shows up for me because it is my first reservation and the selections reset every day.



Ah ok. My first park day is Magic kingdom. Makes sense.


----------



## LisaRay

Hmmm I've been trying to figure this out and our trip is in 3 weeks and 1st park day is HS but when I open tip board it shows MK.


----------



## Turksmom

LisaRay said:


> Hmmm I've been trying to figure this out and our trip is in 3 weeks and 1st park day is HS but when I open tip board it shows MK.


scroll all the way down on the page to change the park.


----------



## Rivergirl2005

Westerner said:


> re your first question - yes.  This happened to us on Big Thunder Mountain.  It went down during our return window and we got a special replacement LL in the app that was good for a selection of rides but not all.  We ended up using it for Haunted Mansion.
> 
> don't know about your 2nd question.



Once it went down and you received the special replacement were you able to select another LL right away?


----------



## Runnsally

Rivergirl2005 said:


> Once it went down and you received the special replacement were you able to select another LL right away?


Yes you can


----------



## Orsino

Summary of my Genie+ from last week
Note: the 120 minute rule is to the second, so as the day moves along you will be booking at 11AM and 00 seconds, 1PM and 10 seconds, 3PM and 25 seconds etc...

Friday 28 January 2022: Hollywood Studios
7AM booked Slinky for 6:55PM (waited for afternoon return, ended up with evening)
11AM booked MFSR for 6:30PM
1PM booked TSMM for 5:40PM
3PM booked RnRC for evening (don't have record of time)
5PM booked Tower for evening (don't have record of time)

Saturday 29 January 2022: Magic Kingdom
8:55AM booked Jungle Cruise for 3:05PM
11AM booked Buzz for 11:45AM
12PM tap Buzz and booked BTMRR for 8PM-ish
2PM booked PP for 8:05PM
4PM booked HM for 7:05PM
6PM booked Pirates for 8:10PM
6PM+1 cancelled HM to try for a later return time. Denied! Cancelling an 'old' G+ did not create new eligibility.

Monday 31 January 2022: Magic Kingdom
8:13AM woke up and booked Jungle Cruise for 5:30PM [note booked JC earlier in the day today but got a later return time than I did on Saturday]
11AM booked PP for 5:40PM
1PM booked BTMRR for 5:30PM
3PM booked HM for 7:45PM
5PM booked Buzz for 7:20PM

Friday 4 February 2022 Magic Kingdom
8:08AM woke up and booked PP for 2:40PM (we didn't want JC anymore)
11AM booked BTMRR for 4:10PM
1PM booked HM for 7-ish PM
3PM booked Pooh for 7-ish PM
(5PM could have booked Buzz for 8:30PM but opted not to. Found a 7:30 but passed hoping for something earlier since I saw 6:00 shortly before booking window opened. Did not get anything then stopped refreshing to 'enjoy the evening' more. We had EE starting at 9PM anyway)

Saturday 5 February 2022 Epcot! and Hollywood Studios, but mostly Hollywood Studios
7AM booked Slinky immediately showing 9AM but get 2:05PM since we are hopping
11AM arriving at Epcot so book Spaceship Earth with IMMEDIATE return time of 11:05AM that we will also be able to use right away
11:10AM tap into Spaceship Earth and book MFSR for 5:40PM
1:11PM book RnRC for 6:40PM
3:11PM book Star Tours for IMMEDIATE return time of 3:15PM
3:12PM tap Star Tours and book TSMM for 6:30PM (Didn't need this as Star Tours had a tiny standby line, but saved maybe a minute or two. Didn't 'cost' us anything either so no worries)
5:13PM book AlienSS for 6:40 PM (We have never ridden this, so we thought 'why not?')
note: We had dinner at Brown Derby at 5PM, which ran a little slow so we had 4 G+ to redeem between 6:30 and 7:40. We did them in MFSR - Alien - TSMM - RnRC order, and had to hustle to RnRC to get there just after 7:51 making use of the grace period. I don't advise doing this, but it was kind of thrilling. 
note 2: now we know 'why not'
note 3: after RnRC we slipped into the standby for MMRR with a posted 15 minute wait. There was an issue with the ride and we ended up waiting longer, but not too bad. After that we went to Rise and rode that standby to close out the night. A pretty good last night at Disneyworld. 6:30PM- 9:20PM rode 6 attractions!


----------



## Westerner

KTwiegs said:


> **avoid that first thing in the morning 120min rule at all costs. It sets you up for a lot of long waits inbetween lightning lanes. One day I only got 2 lightning lanes for the day because of a later Peter Pan LL… our last day I got 12 for the day and still got a LL for pan later in the day.


I'm in your camp because I want to avoid even 30-40 minute waits.  Some folks don't mind that though.


----------



## jocey4577

Will be using Genie+ for the first time in April. For HS, I’ll try to book SDD right at 7am. What do I do if I can only get a late day return time? Do I keep refreshing to try and get an earlier time?  Or just take whatever I get and then deal with the 120 minute rule after park opening?  It seems there isn’t much luck with canceling a return time to try to get a better one. Thanks!


----------



## Orsino

For slinky the 120 minute rule should be your expectation. While possible to get slinky before 11am, it isn’t likely and the savings will be minor. Not worth the risk.


----------



## VAtink

Question for you all, does the 120 min rule from park opening start at opening of the park you have park reservations for or for the park you made your first LL at?  So say I reserve a LL for Slinky at 7, and HS opens at 9, but my first park of the day is AK which opens at 8, can I make my next selection at 10 or 11?  Thanks!


----------



## SkyGuy

VAtink said:


> Question for you all, does the 120 min rule from park opening start at opening of the park you have park reservations for or for the park you made your first LL at?  So say I reserve a LL for Slinky at 7, and HS opens at 9, but my first park of the day is AK which opens at 8, can I make my next selection at 10 or 11?  Thanks!


The park in which you made your first reservation.


----------



## KTwiegs

Westerner said:


> I'm in your camp because I want to avoid even 30-40 minute waits.  Some folks don't mind that though.


Yes, to me that what the system SHOULD eliminate if used correctly. Still has so many flaws but I really liked the system when I used it that way.


----------



## Good&Plenty

KTwiegs said:


> Yes, to me that what the system SHOULD eliminate if used correctly. Still has so many flaws but I really liked the system when I used it that way.



By "that way", do you mean when you started off with an early G+ selection (in your example above?). Thanks!


----------



## KTwiegs

Garyjames220 said:


> I was wondering
> 
> what happens if a ride goes down and you have a genie plus LL for it, do they give you some sort of pass to go on any other ride instead if you miss your slot for it
> 
> when there has been an issue in the past, guest services used to give you some extra fast passes is that still the case with genie plus
> 
> also if a ride stops and starts a lot during your experience on the ride do they let you go again if you have paid for it


Yes as previous people said you get a redemption if it’s down during your window… 
I actually was hoping for this to happen in our trip. 
little mermaid was down as I was trying to make another LL. I actually made an LL for 20 mins from then in hopes it would still be down. I was hoping to go on haunted mansion again with another LL. But it came back up and didnt get one. Still got to ride Mermaid.


----------



## Good&Plenty

Apologies if this is stated somewhere else.  

If I am hopping to HS, and I go to make a SDD G+ at 7AM, will it automatically give me the “next logical time” after 2PM? Or do I have to strategically wait a few seconds to get that after 2PM time? Thanks!


----------



## Turksmom

Good&Plenty said:


> Apologies if this is stated somewhere else.
> 
> If I am hopping to HS, and I go to make a SDD G+ at 7AM, will it automatically give me the “next logical time” after 2PM? Or do I have to strategically wait a few seconds to get that after 2PM time? Thanks!


It defaults to after 2 pm, if it isn't your reserved park


----------



## KTwiegs

Good&Plenty said:


> By "that way", do you mean when you started off with an early G+ selection (in your example above?). Thanks!


Yes, In my experience, starting out with an early LL (like 9am early) it sets you up better for the day. Yes that first LL is a bit of a throw away because that ride might not be as long as later (my first LL was haunted mansion, it had a 25 min wait) but the coming LL are much much earlier. So I tapped in at HM at 9am, got another LL while walking to the stretching room for small world for 930 and that kind of thing kept rolling for the day. My longest time between LL were during lunch and during a storybook circus splash time for the kids. It’s a big game of luck too. It feels like you have to take the one they are showing you but in my experience if you keep refreshing the time you want does eventually come up. I have no proof of this but I think I noticed new time pop up on the 5s and 10s of the hour..


----------



## rocky24

Turksmom said:


> It defaults to after 2 pm, if it isn't your reserved park


New here and first trip in March.  I noticed on the app you can log what time you are planning on being at the second park.  Does G+ account for that?  For example, I'll enter in that I'll be at the second park from 5 - 9.  When I make my G+ selection, will the available times automatically go to the first reservation on/after 5?  Thank you.


----------



## Avery&Todd

Are still hearing that when APs are logging in before 7am to buy Genie + for the day that they're still having issues?

We had major issues this past November and was hoping some of the IT issues had been resolved!


----------



## Garyjames220

Just wondering if anyone knows the answer to this


when there has been an issue in the past, guest services used to give you some extra fast passes is that still the case with genie plus

also if a ride stops and starts a lot during your experience on the ride do they let you go again if you have paid for it


----------



## Good&Plenty

Turksmom and KTwiegs, thank you both.


----------



## TheMick424

Avery&Todd said:


> Are still hearing that when APs are logging in before 7am to buy Genie + for the day that they're still having issues?
> 
> We had major issues this past November and was hoping some of the IT issues had been resolved!


I have the same question, but haven't seen any updates recently that makes me think the issue has been fixed.


----------



## twodogs

Garyjames220 said:


> Just wondering if anyone knows the answer to this
> 
> 
> when there has been an issue in the past, guest services used to give you some extra fast passes is that still the case with genie plus
> 
> also if a ride stops and starts a lot during your experience on the ride do they let you go again if you have paid for it


Yes, GS can give you a LL if they need to to correct some other issue you are having.  I just think they are much less likely to do it since it is now a paid service.

If the ride is not fully functioning during your paid ILL, the CM may or may not let you reride it.  I know many people (us included) who paid for the ILL for ROTR and it was running in "B mode", meaning some areas were not fully working on the ride.  You would only know this if you have previously ridden it in "A mode".  In any case, we did not ask to ride it again, but I think some did and they were not allowed to reride.  I think Disney basically says they don't guarantee the full ride experience, even if you have paid for the ILL.  But again, it is probably case-by-case and up to the CM.


----------



## Westerner

KTwiegs said:


> Yes, to me that what the system SHOULD eliminate if used correctly. Still has so many flaws but I really liked the system when I used it that way.


For me the ideal way to start the day is with an early sub-headliner LL like MFSR or NRJ.  Book at 7:00:00 AM and shoot for a return time prior to 10AM.  Then when I tap in there should still be a good selection for booking the 2nd LL.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

Avery&Todd said:


> Are still hearing that when APs are logging in before 7am to buy Genie + for the day that they're still having issues?
> 
> We had major issues this past November and was hoping some of the IT issues had been resolved!


All I can tell you is that we are APs, and we purchased G+ several times 'day-of', and had zero issues doing it.  We did it in early December and also in late January, probably bought it a total of 6 times those trips.


----------



## elgerber

TheMick424 said:


> I have the same question, but haven't seen any updates recently that makes me think the issue has been fixed.


the issue happens when others in your party already have Genie +, and it's not fixed, there was a new thread in a Facebook group on it today, from someone who is there now.


----------



## Avery&Todd

thanxfornoticin said:


> All I can tell you is that we are APs, and we purchased G+ several times 'day-of', and had zero issues doing it.  We did it in early December and also in late January, probably bought it a total of 6 times those trips.


Thanks for your experience!  In November we could not purchase Genie+ any day of our trip and I had to head to the front desk and have them purchase it for me each day at 6:45am.

We're APs for this trip AND my cousin has regular tickets with Genie+ already purchased and I'm hearing that can cause a nightmare too....

Fingers crossed we have less issues in 3 weeks!


----------



## leeniewdw

We were in WDW first weekend in Dec for our first G+/LL experience.   It worked well for us, all things considered, though we did not use for MK as we did an AH event.

Anyway -- we didn't have plans to return until we could go with our adult kids/SOs but that's been delayed due to some job changes and some unexpected PTO due to Covid/Covid exposures.  

Long intro to say that we're may be headed back with just the 2 of us in early March (first weekend) to get some warmer temps!  So I dusted off MDE just now to see if I remembered how to check things, etc.   For this trip we'll likely only do EPCOT and DHS.   In checking DHS just now, nearly everything is "out" of LLs on a random Tuesday.   I'm almost certain I was still grabbing LLs around this time on a Friday during our Dec trip.    I guess my question is how availability seems to be going these days?

We probably don't need to stress about it because we'll have the day to stack up LLs for an afternoon/evening, but I have to admit I was surprised.

(Also just realized that Thrill Data ?  tracks this?)


----------



## Turksmom

leeniewdw said:


> We were in WDW first weekend in Dec for our first G+/LL experience.   It worked well for us, all things considered, though we did not use for MK as we did an AH event.
> 
> Anyway -- we didn't have plans to return until we could go with our adult kids/SOs but that's been delayed due to some job changes and some unexpected PTO due to Covid/Covid exposures.
> 
> Long intro to say that we're may be headed back with just the 2 of us in early March (first weekend) to get some warmer temps!  So I dusted off MDE just now to see if I remembered how to check things, etc.   For this trip we'll likely only do EPCOT and DHS.   In checking DHS just now, nearly everything is "out" of LLs on a random Tuesday.   I'm almost certain I was still grabbing LLs around this time on a Friday during our Dec trip.    I guess my question is how availability seems to be going these days?
> 
> We probably don't need to stress about it because we'll have the day to stack up LLs for an afternoon/evening, but I have to admit I was surprised.
> 
> (Also just realized that Thrill Data ?  tracks this?)


It may not be typical with MK closing so early today. More people may have gone to HS, or hopped there.


----------



## Doingitagain

Wow. some great strategies!  How do they work with a large group?   We will have 8 people.  

Does one person make a LL reservation for all 8 people?  Do we all get the same return time?

What happens when there are cancelations during the day and we try to grab them...does there have to be 8 cancelations for it to work for us?

TIA!


----------



## Orsino

Oh. That reminds me. I don't have an answer to the 8 people question, but as a couple we did try cancelling to get a better time. It's kind of scary and I wouldn't recommend doing it for a much sought after LL. I think we did it for TSMM or something mid-tier. Refreshes were stable. 
How we did it: We realized that cancelling then navigating to the tip board was needlessly slow so I navigated to the tip board and my husband pulled up the to-be-cancelled LL reservation on his phone. Then he cancelled it and I immediately booked on my phone. This was a little bit less frantic.

I have no idea what would happen if a group of 8 was trying to pick up a LL that popped up from a group of 1 or 2. As long as no one grabs your cancelled LL, I think the worst case is you wind up back where you started.


----------



## Tom_E_D

leeniewdw said:


> We were in WDW first weekend in Dec for our first G+/LL experience.   It worked well for us, all things considered, though we did not use for MK as we did an AH event.
> 
> Anyway -- we didn't have plans to return until we could go with our adult kids/SOs but that's been delayed due to some job changes and some unexpected PTO due to Covid/Covid exposures.
> 
> Long intro to say that we're may be headed back with just the 2 of us in early March (first weekend) to get some warmer temps!  So I dusted off MDE just now to see if I remembered how to check things, etc.   For this trip we'll likely only do EPCOT and DHS.   In checking DHS just now, nearly everything is "out" of LLs on a random Tuesday.   I'm almost certain I was still grabbing LLs around this time on a Friday during our Dec trip.    I guess my question is how availability seems to be going these days?
> 
> We probably don't need to stress about it because we'll have the day to stack up LLs for an afternoon/evening, but I have to admit I was surprised.
> 
> (Also just realized that Thrill Data ?  tracks this?)


Yes, Thrill-Data tracks it. Below is today's availability. Go to the site and there is a previous day button to help you get a bigger sample.


----------



## Rivergirl2005

Runnsally said:


> Yes you can



So if you see that a ride is closed and a LL pass is available could you grab it in hopes it turns into a multiple? Also, if that works can I use the multiple on a ride I’ve already lightning passed?


----------



## mjlass11

Question/opinion about my plan next Tuesday at HS. It’s going to be my first trip using ILL and genie plus. We’re staying on site, but are NOT early morning/rope drop people. There’s three adults in our 50s&60s. I will be the one doing the booking and will get up at 6:30 to purchase genie plus. I’m hoping to get SDD at 7am for a return between 11-4. I’ll then book RotT for 12-3ish and MMRR sometime in there as well. I’m hoping to get another one or two top tier LL before 4 because we have dinner reservations at O’hana at 5 ( lucked out). After we tap into a LL, we can book another even if it’s before the 120 minutes, right?  Our flight leaves early Wednesday morning so I’m not sure if we’ll head back after dinner. I know that I’m going to be on my phone refreshing a lot in hopes to get the extra one or two LL, and it may be a futile attempt, but does sound like at least a legitimate attempt for a plan?  We’re decreasing our number of days so even though I’m against spending for these “perks”, I’m justifying it because we’ll be there fewer days and will thus spend less money overall.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Rivergirl2005 said:


> So if you see that a ride is closed and a LL pass is available could you grab it in hopes it turns into a multiple? Also, if that works can I use the multiple on a ride I’ve already lightning passed?


Theoretically yes, though actual availability would be unlikely. Few rides at WDW have immediate return times available.

Yes, if it converts to multi use pass, you can use on any ride, even for a ride you've already used an LL pass


----------



## bsmcneil

Here's my usage/strategy feedback:

There are some elements that I enjoyed. Basically, my kids had not been before (oldest went at 2 ¾ and has been to theme parks pre-pandemic - youngest hasn't done either). They were kvetching about the LL lines, lol. A handful of times, I tried to communicate that if they thought _this_ was bad ... but I realize they didn't have a ton of context for it. But yeah, if we had to wait in lines for attractions (especially things that extended past 20-30 minutes), that would've been miserable and likely just not an option. We basically only did attractions with LL (or 10 min or under waits).
I hate, hate, hate, hated waking up at 7 for this. Normally we're up around then but we stayed up late with the parks, transportation, vacation, etc. I let the kids sleep in to rest their bodies (we all have a form of muscular dystrophy) but set my alarm each morning for 6:50-6:55 to be awake and ready. It was just stressful (and absolutely nothing about G+/ILLS feels "spontaneous" or "flexible").
Not having gone with the kids before, I wasn't sure how things would go. That made planning via G+/ILLS really difficult. It was all a guess. It finally became apparent that we were late starters and I was able to do well at stacking LLs (although I had a bad experience early on when I wanted to change one based on kids not wanting to ride the ride but since we hadn't tapped in anywhere/weren't past 120 minutes, once I cancelled, I couldn't get a new one - I wish I had gotten some warning/alert before doing that).
The plain Genie part was absolutely useless information. I hated trying to buy a ILLS and having the return window change while I was purchasing (and I had my gift card number copied and ready to paste before opening the app). We ended up having a problem on our last day as the return window moved a few hours (bumping into our flight) and the blue umbrella Guest Experience folks helped - but it was still super frustrating (I worried all morning/early afternoon).
The restriction to use a LL once per day is terrible. I felt so crappy when my kids would get off a ride and excitedly ask to ride again only for me to say, "Well ... the line is at 2 hours and we're close to the park closing; so, I don't think we can do it." or "We can, but it's a 45 minute wait." They'd ask, "Don't we have the pass thing?" and I explained that it only worked once. My (then) 8 year old summed it up well: "That's a dumb rule." Yes it is, kid. Yes it is.
I appreciated the tips from All Ears about which rides to prioritize (obviously everyone's preferences are different).  Try to have a plan in mind, even if you have to throw it out.
One last negative (that's also redundant), it really isn't flexible. The number of times we wanted to do X but didn't feel like we could because "We have a LL that expires in 20 minutes on the other side of the park" was frustrating. Missed going to Oga's due to a timing issue with RoTR (it going down during the day, backing up our return, the park closing, etc). That was a costly ride (because I had paid for the ILLS and then missing Oga's cost an extra 30). Things were closing, kids were tired and frustrated, so I didn't track anyone down to try to recoup the fee (and I had originally thought it was only 10 - not 10pp - so at first, I didn't mind).


----------



## g-dad66

mjlass11 said:


> Question/opinion about my plan next Tuesday at HS. It’s going to be my first trip using ILL and genie plus. We’re staying on site, but are NOT early morning/rope drop people. There’s three adults in our 50s&60s. I will be the one doing the booking and will get up at 6:30 to purchase genie plus. I’m hoping to get SDD at 7am for a return between 11-4. I’ll then book RotT for 12-3ish and MMRR sometime in there as well. I’m hoping to get another one or two top tier LL before 4 because we have dinner reservations at O’hana at 5 ( lucked out). *After we tap into a LL, we can book another even if it’s before the 120 minutes, right?*  Our flight leaves early Wednesday morning so I’m not sure if we’ll head back after dinner. I know that I’m going to be on my phone refreshing a lot in hopes to get the extra one or two LL, and it may be a futile attempt, but does sound like at least a legitimate attempt for a plan?  We’re decreasing our number of days so even though I’m against spending for these “perks”, I’m justifying it because we’ll be there fewer days and will thus spend less money overall.



After you tap into your *most recently booked* LL, you can book another.

Tapping into any LL other than your most recently booked one does nothing for your eligiblity.


----------



## wdhinn89

When purchasing RotR, is it charged automatically to the card you have on file when you tap your bracelet, or do you need to input a charge card number?  A previous poster commented on having to copy and paste their gift card.


----------



## Ace89

If you cancel your most recently booked G+ LL to rebook another, does that start your 120 minute countdown over again? So if I canceled a reservation at 11:30, I wouldn't be able to book another until 1:30 pm? Or is it more of a "freebie" situation?


----------



## CarolynFH

wdhinn89 said:


> When purchasing RotR, is it charged automatically to the card you have on file when you tap your bracelet, or do you need to input a charge card number?  A previous poster commented on having to copy and paste their gift card.


It’s charged to the CC linked to your MDE account, which may or may not be the same CC your resort account is linked to. You have the option of using a different CC or entering a GC or Disney Visa Rewards card number instead.


----------



## wdhinn89

CarolynFH said:


> It’s charged to the CC linked to your MDE account, which may or may not be the same CC your resort account is linked to. You have the option of using a different CC or entering a GC or Disney Visa Rewards card number instead.



Thank you!!


----------



## Runnsally

Ace89 said:


> If you cancel your most recently booked G+ LL to rebook another, does that start your 120 minute countdown over again? So if I canceled a reservation at 11:30, I wouldn't be able to book another until 1:30 pm? Or is it more of a "freebie" situation?


No - you would be able to immediately book another LL after cancelling.


----------



## Tom_E_D

Ace89 said:


> If you cancel your most recently booked G+ LL to rebook another, does that start your 120 minute countdown over again? So if I canceled a reservation at 11:30, I wouldn't be able to book another until 1:30 pm? Or is it more of a "freebie" situation?


Booking a new G+LL to replace the one you've just canceled will restart your 120 minute clock. Example: at 11:00, you book Ride A with a 2:15 return time. At 12:30, you notice that Ride B is available, take a chance and cancel your Ride A reservation and, at 12:31, book Ride B with a 3:45 return time. You can next book a G+LL at 2:31, 120 minutes after you booked Ride B, which is now your most-recently-booked G+LL. It's not 120 minutes after you cancel, it's 120 minutes after you book the replacement, that's 2:31, not 2:30, in my example. You would not be able to book one at 1:00, which would have been your next booking time if you had not canceled Ride A.


----------



## pens4821

Does rnrc or tot sell out first usually?  I’ll probably just book whichever has the latest return first then hope the other is around at 1ish when I can get my third. I’ll be stacking for park hop when we go next month. Sdd first then the other two are our must do’s. Then if I can get anything else by chance I will.


----------



## TiggerBouncy

bsmcneil said:


> Here's my usage/strategy feedback:
> 
> There are some elements that I enjoyed. Basically, my kids had not been before (oldest went at 2 ¾ and has been to theme parks pre-pandemic - youngest hasn't done either). They were kvetching about the LL lines, lol. A handful of times, I tried to communicate that if they thought _this_ was bad ... but I realize they didn't have a ton of context for it. But yeah, if we had to wait in lines for attractions (especially things that extended past 20-30 minutes), that would've been miserable and likely just not an option. We basically only did attractions with LL (or 10 min or under waits).
> I hate, hate, hate, hated waking up at 7 for this. Normally we're up around then but we stayed up late with the parks, transportation, vacation, etc. I let the kids sleep in to rest their bodies (we all have a form of muscular dystrophy) but set my alarm each morning for 6:50-6:55 to be awake and ready. It was just stressful (and absolutely nothing about G+/ILLS feels "spontaneous" or "flexible").
> Not having gone with the kids before, I wasn't sure how things would go. That made planning via G+/ILLS really difficult. It was all a guess. It finally became apparent that we were late starters and I was able to do well at stacking LLs (although I had a bad experience early on when I wanted to change one based on kids not wanting to ride the ride but since we hadn't tapped in anywhere/weren't past 120 minutes, once I cancelled, I couldn't get a new one - I wish I had gotten some warning/alert before doing that).
> The plain Genie part was absolutely useless information. I hated trying to buy a ILLS and having the return window change while I was purchasing (and I had my gift card number copied and ready to paste before opening the app). We ended up having a problem on our last day as the return window moved a few hours (bumping into our flight) and the blue umbrella Guest Experience folks helped - but it was still super frustrating (I worried all morning/early afternoon).
> The restriction to use a LL once per day is terrible. I felt so crappy when my kids would get off a ride and excitedly ask to ride again only for me to say, "Well ... the line is at 2 hours and we're close to the park closing; so, I don't think we can do it." or "We can, but it's a 45 minute wait." They'd ask, "Don't we have the pass thing?" and I explained that it only worked once. My (then) 8 year old summed it up well: "That's a dumb rule." Yes it is, kid. Yes it is.
> I appreciated the tips from All Ears about which rides to prioritize (obviously everyone's preferences are different).  Try to have a plan in mind, even if you have to throw it out.
> One last negative (that's also redundant), it really isn't flexible. The number of times we wanted to do X but didn't feel like we could because "We have a LL that expires in 20 minutes on the other side of the park" was frustrating. Missed going to Oga's due to a timing issue with RoTR (it going down during the day, backing up our return, the park closing, etc). That was a costly ride (because I had paid for the ILLS and then missing Oga's cost an extra 30). Things were closing, kids were tired and frustrated, so I didn't track anyone down to try to recoup the fee (and I had originally thought it was only 10 - not 10pp - so at first, I didn't mind).



This is all excellent feedback! Thank you!


----------



## twodogs

wdhinn89 said:


> When purchasing RotR, is it charged automatically to the card you have on file when you tap your bracelet, or do you need to input a charge card number?  A previous poster commented on having to copy and paste their gift card.


You are charged for the ILL purchase at the time of purchase, in the APP, where you are buying the ILL.  Tapping in with your Magic Band doesn't affect the charge because you have already paid for the ILL in the app.  Make sure you have the credit card you want to use loaded into the app and saved, to save time when frantically booking the ILLs in the morning (which is why OP said they had the GC number ready to cut and paste into the purchase screen in the app, to save time, since you can't save a GC in the app like you can a credit card).  Also, all ILLs that you buy get charged to the one card in your app (even if you are booking ILLs for multiple people in your party).


----------



## g-dad66

pens4821 said:


> Does rnrc or tot sell out first usually?  I’ll probably just book whichever has the latest return first then hope the other is around at 1ish when I can get my third. I’ll be stacking for park hop when we go next month. Sdd first then the other two are our must do’s. Then if I can get anything else by chance I will.



My observation is that RnRC seems to run out sooner than ToT about 75% of the time, but the other 25%, it's ToT that runs out sooner.  ToT ran out way sooner than RnRC the last day we were there, but ToT was down for most of the morning that day. So it varies.

You should be fine getting either one of them at 1:00.

If you get Millenium Falcon at 11:00, then it can be a bit tricky to decide which one to get at 1:00 and which one to save for the 3:00 grab.


----------



## Luisfba

if I have LL reserved, and I cancel my park res to switch to a different park res the day of.. do I lose the LLs during that switch?


----------



## MMSM

How quick does Test Track go and does anyone know how standby has been for early entry for Remy?


----------



## melking23

Luisfba said:


> if I have LL reserved, and I cancel my park res to switch to a different park res the day of.. do I lose the LLs during that switch?


If you don’t have a park hopper ticket, yes.  If the G+/LL is before 2PM, yes.  You wouldn’t lose them if after 2PM with a park hopper ticket since you don’t need a reservation for the park you’re hopping to.


----------



## Luisfba

ok, in this case what im thinking is to make them for the 2nd park, so they'd be after 2, but then change the park res to that 2nd park so i can get in before 2 (and just not tap into the park with the original res).  it would be a park hopper ticket.


----------



## MMSM

Luisfba said:


> ok, in this case what im thinking is to make them for the 2nd park, so they'd be after 2, but then change the park res to that 2nd park so i can get in before 2 (and just not tap into the park with the original res).  it would be a park hopper ticket.


Why not just change your park reservation first? Are you just attempting to get evening passes?


----------



## TISHLOVESDISNEY

Luisfba said:


> ok, in this case what im thinking is to make them for the 2nd park, so they'd be after 2, but then change the park res to that 2nd park so i can get in before 2 (and just not tap into the park with the original res).  it would be a park hopper ticket.


So then, does it immediately give you times after 2, in this case, you do not need to refresh to those later times?
We arrive in the afternoon from Uni, hoping for a similar plan.


----------



## GBRforWDW

TISHLOVESDISNEY said:


> So then, does it immediately give you times after 2, in this case, you do not need to refresh to those later times?
> We arrive in the afternoon from Uni, hoping for a similar plan.


If you have hoppers, you'll get times after 2pm for the parks you haven't reserved.  If the park you're wanting to go to after 2 is full for reservations, you'll have to go to the park you reserved first to check in before going to the hop to park.


----------



## TISHLOVESDISNEY

GBRforWDW said:


> If you have hoppers, you'll get times after 2pm for the parks you haven't reserved.  If the park you're wanting to go to after 2 is full for reservations, you'll have to go to the park you reserved first to check in before going to the hop to park.


PHs and APs.
So I can make a park reservation for Epcot, but book my ride times at 7am for DHS for after 2. Then we can tap into Epcot, then head to DHS? (Assuming I cannot change my park reservations if full)


----------



## GBRforWDW

TISHLOVESDISNEY said:


> PHs and APs.
> So I can make a park reservation for Epcot, but book my ride times at 7am for DHS for after 2. Then we can tap into Epcot, then head to DHS? (Assuming I cannot change my park reservations if full)


Correct.  Some people have gotten lucky and CMs we're able to update park reservation if they didn't go to reserved park first, but most people are told they can't tap in til they go to the first park, so if you can't get it changed, do be sure to hit up Epcot first.

That being said, DHS you can pretty regularly get afternoon passes pretty easily even with that as your reserved park


----------



## TISHLOVESDISNEY

GBRforWDW said:


> Correct.  Some people have gotten lucky and CMs we're able to update park reservation if they didn't go to reserved park first, but most people are told they can't tap in til they go to the first park, so if you can't get it changed, do be sure to hit up Epcot first.
> 
> That being said, DHS you can pretty regularly get afternoon passes pretty easily even with that as your reserved park


Thanks for the tips!!


----------



## Disturbia

Donna M said:


> No codes yesterday.    We got a lot of codes first in Nov.


I had/still have the problem with website asking for codes sent to an email as well and it took us 25 mins to book MMRR in Nov (we got ROTR and SDD-be careful with party size the time booked gets pushed around quickly vs what you select so double check before you hit purchase).  Sometimes the purchase screen froze.  I think when I installed the new version of the app it forgot my phone and then tries to re verify my account each time I make a purchase (applies to ADRs as well).

I don’t even bother calling IT as I have had Disney visa credit card issues for 5+ years (problems storing info on profile). This issue started when they had me delete my history.

CMs couldn’t care less for IT issues.  Most of them don’t believe you so I screen shot everything now.


----------



## SEAGULL59

Is anyone staying off resort having success getting a paid LL for Rise? Or are they still selling out before off resort guests can attempt to purchase.


----------



## Disturbia

Doingitagain said:


> We have a group of nine.  What is the strategy?  Can someone book ILL for the whole group while someone else books another ILL for the whole group while someone else books Genie+LL for the whole group?  Not sure we will do that, but want to know if it is an option.


Most reviews will be for smaller party sizes.  In our case, if we tried refreshing for a group of 4 riders, the times for RnR kept getting pushed out by an hour.  Also, everyone should have the same ticket type - be on site or off site and have park hopper/not; annual pass etc 

Also if utilizing rider switch, I would budget extra time at rides like Soarin and Test Track (took 25-30 mins to ride with Genie+, we skipped rider switch).  Budget time to get from ends of the park (after 2 pm world showcase gets congested as Epcot is a popular park to park hop to).  France food booth had 35-40 min wait and the pathway to Remy was severely congested.


----------



## Disturbia

jbish said:


> I'm interested in hearing theories and observations on this too.  As someone going the week before Easter, arguably one of the busiest weeks of the year, I'm worried I will spend $75/day on G+ only to get 2 maybe 3 rides booked.  Is that worth it???  How quickly do these sell out during peak weeks?


We went in Nov (first week) and it was supposed to be the least rainiest month so we left our stroller cover at home as no rain was forecasted).  On our AK day it rained all day and our stroller became unusable and it poured non stop to where you couldn’t even move and had to take cover.  Lines dropped drastically but Navi/FOP went up to 40 after initial 15-25 min.  Genie+ was not needed for this day but we didn’t know this at 7 am.

Our AA flights got cancelled and we had to rebook on spirit one day before, so checkin day we didn’t get to the parks until 6:00 pm and we could only ride LLIA$ before our dinner ADR.  We didn’t purchase Genie+ on checkin day.

Also checkout day, bag drop off took over 35 mins as people who were checkin and checking out were in one big line that stretched around the building to the big blue pool side at AOA.  So unexpected things can happen that make you loose time in the parks.  We lost 3 rider switch (couldn’t use) but still thought Genie+ was worth the 3 rides we got in (in addition to Remy) only 2 people rode (party of 4 riders); other 2 got food.


----------



## Disturbia

HBGdancermom said:


> Happy Friday everyone!
> 
> On one of my park days, we would like to start in Epcot with Remy, but hop to HS for the afternoon to utilize the RoTR ILL and whatever genie + we can stack throughout the morning.  I'm assuming that I would leave my park reservation at Epcot that day but would still be able to purchase the ILL and other genie + rides for HS.
> 
> Is that correct?
> 
> Thanks!


Book ROTR first and then book Remy and your first Genie+ ride for SDD after 2 pm (at 7 am).  After that, I think the 2 hr cool down starts from HS park opening (we haven’t park hopped with Genie+) if you decide to keep booking for HS even though you will be in Epcot in the morning.

Can someone verify:  if hopping does the 2 hour start from the park you’re hopping to and booked your first Genie+ ride for (Say SDD at HS)? Would I be able to book something at Epcot at 11 am or does it have to be for HS?

What if the first park was a park that opened earlier like AK at 8 am?  Say I booked SDD after 2 pm (ROTR and FOP).  I can book another pass at 10 am OR 11 am (from HS where I booked first Genie+).


----------



## itf

SEAGULL59 said:


> Is anyone staying off resort having success getting a paid LL for Rise? Or are they still selling out before off resort guests can attempt to purchase.



It's been available 5 of the last 7 days so it may be possible... https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/attraction/hollywood-studios/starwarsriseoftheresistance/


----------



## Aimeedyan

We are trying Genie+ for the first time this weekend - we'll have two AP's and one PH ticket and I've seen some issues mentioned when the party has different ticket types.

One is with actually purchasing it, right? Is there a solution - or can someone point me to a post talking about a workaround? Can the front desk CM buy it for me at midnight if I can't get it to work? 

Are there known glitches when booking times with mixed ticket parties, or is it pretty smooth once you actually get it purchased for the AP's?

I'm trying to plan for the (inevitable) Disney IT struggles in advance so I can pivot easier


----------



## chaoskids

I'm struggling with editing my selections. I choose "Edit Selection" check the ones I want at the top and save but nothing  changes on my Tip Board. I closed and reopened the app, still no change. What am I doing wrong?


----------



## scrappinginontario

Aimeedyan said:


> We are trying Genie+ for the first time this weekend - we'll have two AP's and one PH ticket and I've seen some issues mentioned when the party has different ticket types.
> 
> One is with actually purchasing it, right? Is there a solution - or can someone point me to a post talking about a workaround? Can the front desk CM buy it for me at midnight if I can't get it to work?
> 
> Are there known glitches when booking times with mixed ticket parties, or is it pretty smooth once you actually get it purchased for the AP's?
> 
> I'm trying to plan for the (inevitable) Disney IT struggles in advance so I can pivot easier


*This post* (and thread) will be helpful.  The first few posts cover a number of suggestions, strategies, tips and information about the new system.


----------



## hultrain

Are people still having the random issue with having to re-log into the system when you try to purchase ILL$ and if so is the advice still to avoid using resort WiFi?


----------



## MikeandReneePlus5

hultrain said:


> Are people still having the random issue with having to re-log into the system when you try to purchase ILL$ and if so is the advice still to avoid using resort WiFi?


We used it Thursday and Friday last week at 7am and had no issues on 2 phones and 2 accounts while connected to WiFi.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

Aimeedyan said:


> We are trying Genie+ for the first time this weekend - we'll have two AP's and one PH ticket and I've seen some issues mentioned when the party has different ticket types.
> 
> One is with actually purchasing it, right? Is there a solution - or can someone point me to a post talking about a workaround? Can the front desk CM buy it for me at midnight if I can't get it to work?
> 
> Are there known glitches when booking times with mixed ticket parties, or is it pretty smooth once you actually get it purchased for the AP's?
> 
> I'm trying to plan for the (inevitable) Disney IT struggles in advance so I can pivot easier


We had a 'mixed' party for a week in January - even stayed in different Disney rooms.  We had some with PH's and some AP's.  We had zero issue purchasing Genie+ for all, purchasing ILL$, making G+/LL reservations in the morning or making G+/LL reservations throughout the day.


----------



## MommyMouse143

I appologize if this question has been answered- We are staying at the GF. There are three offsite members of our planning party. If everyone gets Genie +, how does this work? Since we can start earlier than them?


----------



## thanxfornoticin

MommyMouse143 said:


> I appologize if this question has been answered- We are staying at the GF. There are three offsite members of our planning party. If everyone gets Genie +, how does this work? Since we can start earlier than them?


All guests, on or off site, can start making G+ reservations at 7AM (after purchase, of course).  On-site guests can purchase the ILL attractions at 7AM, while off-site need to wait until the park opens.  You do not need to purchase Genie+ to purchase ILL.  Does that answer your question?


----------



## MommyMouse143

thanxfornoticin said:


> All guests, on or off site, can start making G+ reservations at 7AM (after purchase, of course).  On-site guests can purchase the ILL attractions at 7AM, while off-site need to wait until the park opens.  You do not need to purchase Genie+ to purchase ILL.  Does that answer your question?


Yes! Thats perfect, thanks!!


----------



## scrappinginontario

thanxfornoticin said:


> We had a 'mixed' party for a week in January - even stayed in different Disney rooms.  We had some with PH's and some AP's.  We had zero issue purchasing Genie+ for all, purchasing ILL$, making G+/LL reservations in the morning or making G+/LL reservations throughout the day.


Did your 'regular' tickets people purchase G+ in advance for the entire trip?  That seems to be what causes challenges to the system.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

scrappinginontario said:


> Did your 'regular' tickets people purchase G+ in advance for the entire trip?  That seems to be what causes challenges to the system.


No.  In our scenario, we had 2 APs, and 2PHs.  We didn't need G+ every day, and since we had to do day-of with APs anyway, we just bought specific mornings.  I do not have any info regarding potential problems if part of the group has paid for the entire stay.  That's a good point.


----------



## scrappinginontario

thanxfornoticin said:


> No.  In our scenario, we had 2 APs, and 2PHs.  We didn't need G+ every day, and since we had to do day-of with APs anyway, we just bought specific mornings.  I do not have any info regarding potential problems if part of the group has paid for the entire stay.  That's a good point.


Thanks.

Yes, historically the problem seems to occur when non-AP's purchase G+ for length of stay of their tickets and then AP's linked to them are trying to purchase G+ on specific days.


----------



## js

scrappinginontario said:


> Thanks.
> 
> Yes, historically the problem seems to occur when non-AP's purchase G+ for length of stay of their tickets and then AP's linked to them are trying to purchase G+ on specific days.



Hi. Can you please tell me more about this, is there a problem with non AP and AP.
We are staying off site, it's more a golf trip but the girls are doing one day at MK.

I'm AP, my two friends are not. My two friends are in my MDE, they do not have their own accounts.
Both friends have purchased (well I did for them LOL) their one park day and I added G+ to their tickets.
Now on April 19, when I want to book G+, I will buy it prior to 7 am. Are you saying that I may have a problem
because I'm AP and not onsite and have non AP people with G+ that I also need to connect with me when
I begin to chose my first G+?

Thank you so much!


----------



## scrappinginontario

js said:


> Hi. Can you please tell me more about this, is there a problem with non AP and AP.
> We are staying off site, it's more a golf trip but the girls are doing one day at MK.
> 
> I'm AP, my two friends are not. My two friends are in my MDE, they do not have their own accounts.
> Both friends have purchased (well I did for them LOL) their one park day and I added G+ to their tickets.
> Now on April 19, when I want to book G+, I will buy it prior to 7 am. Are you saying that I may have a problem
> because I'm AP and not onsite and have non AP people with G+ that I also need to connect with me when
> I begin to chose my first G+?
> 
> Thank you so much!


I would recommend reading the first few posts of *this thread*.  I believe Post 7 has details about APs.

Yes, there is potential your situation could cause challenges but the workaround is listed in that post also and people report having good success doing what is written there.


----------



## cjlong88

Aimeedyan said:


> We are trying Genie+ for the first time this weekend - we'll have two AP's and one PH ticket and I've seen some issues mentioned when the party has different ticket types.
> 
> One is with actually purchasing it, right? Is there a solution - or can someone point me to a post talking about a workaround? Can the front desk CM buy it for me at midnight if I can't get it to work?
> 
> Are there known glitches when booking times with mixed ticket parties, or is it pretty smooth once you actually get it purchased for the AP's?
> 
> I'm trying to plan for the (inevitable) Disney IT struggles in advance so I can pivot easier


The issue occurs when you purchase Genie+ in advance for your day tickets. If you didn't purchase G+ in advance for that one PH ticket, you shouldn't have any problems buying G+ the morning of for all.


----------



## Aimeedyan

cjlong88 said:


> The issue occurs when you purchase Genie+ in advance for your day tickets. If you didn't purchase G+ in advance for that one PH ticket, you shouldn't have any problems buying G+ the morning of for all.



We did buy it in advance. Gah!

Can the front desk CM buy it for us, or do I have to (gulp) call?


----------



## cjlong88

Aimeedyan said:


> We did buy it in advance. Gah!
> 
> Can the front desk CM buy it for us, or do I have to (gulp) call?


I called each morning. Wasn’t on hold long at all. Maybe 3 minutes max? Not sure if the front desk CM’s can help or not. We used the following number: (407) 939-4357. Super easy to add. Just need to have your credit card ready.


----------



## js

scrappinginontario said:


> I would recommend reading the first few posts of *this thread*.  I believe Post 7 has details about APs.
> 
> Yes, there is potential your situation could cause challenges but the workaround is listed in that post also and people report having good success doing what is written there.



Oh boy!  Thank you. What a mess I feel this will be for me. Something that should be so easy, but I should know better.
Going to that link now. Thank you very much!


----------



## Erica Ladd

itf said:


> It's been available 5 of the last 7 days so it may be possible... https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/attraction/hollywood-studios/starwarsriseoftheresistance/



I have friends coming in late Friday 4/8 or early 4/9. They plan to stay offsite - what are the chances they will be able to purchase ROTR?


----------



## GBRforWDW

Erica Ladd said:


> I have friends coming in late Friday 4/8 or early 4/9. They plan to stay offsite - what are the chances they will be able to purchase ROTR?


Availability beyond a couple minutes is new.  Probably will know better after a couple spring break weeks to see if they continue to be available at park opening.


----------



## tigertides

NEED ADVICE FOR TRIP THIS WEEKEND - Prez Day!

We are staying at Contemp, and doing 2days at Magic Kingdom. We have Genie+ purchased for both days.

I need a plan! I've looked at disney touring blog, mousehacking, as well as touringplans.com, who predicts 70+ wait times.

My plan is:
0700 Get G+ for Jungle Cruise
0701 Pay for 7DMT
0815 arrive for late rope drop
0830 Standby for Space Mountain
0900 Standby for PeterPan
0901 ?2nd G+.... for what?
0930 Standby for Big Thunder

...
Leave park after lunch
5pm Dinner at Wilderness Lodge
7pm - until Kids Tired: Do more rides


We've done MK before, but still don't want to waste time in line. Never done 7DMT, so this is a priority. Will also be with nephews who've never done "thrill" rides.

Anyone with experience on busy holidays, please let me know!


----------



## js

tigertides said:


> NEED ADVICE FOR TRIP THIS WEEKEND - Prez Day!
> 
> We are staying at Contemp, and doing 2days at Magic Kingdom. We have Genie+ purchased for both days.
> 
> I need a plan! I've looked at disney touring blog, mousehacking, as well as touringplans.com, who predicts 70+ wait times.
> 
> My plan is:
> 0700 Get G+ for Jungle Cruise
> 0701 Pay for 7DMT
> 0815 arrive for late rope drop
> 0830 Standby for Space Mountain
> 0900 Standby for PeterPan
> 0901 ?2nd G+.... for what?
> 0930 Standby for Big Thunder
> 
> ...
> Leave park after lunch
> 5pm Dinner at Wilderness Lodge
> 7pm - until Kids Tired: Do more rides
> 
> 
> We've done MK before, but still don't want to waste time in line. Never done 7DMT, so this is a priority. Will also be with nephews who've never done "thrill" rides.
> 
> Anyone with experience on busy holidays, please let me know!



If it was me,  and if your nephews haven't been on SM before, why don't you pay for SM ILL this way you can RD PP.


----------



## g-dad66

js said:


> If it was me,  and if your nephews haven't been on SM before, why don't you pay for SM ILL this way you can RD PP.



Good suggestion.

According to thrill-data.com, the standby line wait for Peter Pan this morning at 9:00 am was 55 minutes.  That is much longer than I would want to line for it.


----------



## g-dad66

tigertides said:


> NEED ADVICE FOR TRIP THIS WEEKEND - Prez Day!
> 
> We are staying at Contemp, and doing 2days at Magic Kingdom. We have Genie+ purchased for both days.
> 
> I need a plan! I've looked at disney touring blog, mousehacking, as well as touringplans.com, who predicts 70+ wait times.
> 
> My plan is:
> 0700 Get G+ for Jungle Cruise
> 0701 Pay for 7DMT
> 0815 arrive for late rope drop
> 0830 Standby for Space Mountain
> 0900 Standby for PeterPan
> 0901 ?2nd G+.... for what?
> 0930 Standby for Big Thunder
> 
> ...
> Leave park after lunch
> 5pm Dinner at Wilderness Lodge
> 7pm - until Kids Tired: Do more rides
> 
> 
> We've done MK before, but still don't want to waste time in line. Never done 7DMT, so this is a priority. Will also be with nephews who've never done "thrill" rides.
> 
> Anyone with experience on busy holidays, please let me know!



You can't get your 2nd G+ LL until 11:00 (2 hours after park opens).


----------



## Orsino

I think it is unlikely for you to get to BTMRR by 9:30 with your plan. Peter Pan should have significant waits by 9AM. Furthermore, BTMRR is quite far from PP.

Honestly, while walking from SM to PP, I'd look at Pooh on your way over and if the wait is reasonable, get in line for that.

After SM, you might be better off going to Frontierland, Adventureland or Liberty Square as they 'secondary rope drop' at 9AM.


----------



## tigertides

From what I've read, tip is NOT to do 7DMT first, unless you are first 100 in the park. And given the frequency of ride being down... We figure wait times for Space MT will be manageable at 830.  I didn't realize the 2nd G+ you can get is at 11am.

Thanks


----------



## scrappinginontario

tigertides said:


> From what I've read, tip is NOT to do 7DMT first, unless you are first 100 in the park. And given the frequency of ride being down... We figure wait times for Space MT will be manageable at 830.  I didn't realize the 2nd G+ you can get is at 11am.
> 
> Thanks


Second one is 2 hours after park opening so time will vary depending on park opening time.


----------



## Aimeedyan

If people are linked as F&F, anyone can make the Genie+ reservation for the party, right?

So, our party is two AP's and one ticket w/Genie+. I know now of the tech glitch in purchasing Genie+ for the AP. My DH has NOT linked to the person holding the ticket w/Genie+ yet. So in theory... could he buy the Genie+ for the two AP's and then I book the actual rides from then on? Would that work and avoid the early morning IT phone call?


----------



## js

Aimeedyan said:


> If people are linked as F&F, anyone can make the Genie+ reservation for the party, right?
> 
> So, our party is two AP's and one ticket w/Genie+. I know now of the tech glitch in purchasing Genie+ for the AP. My DH has NOT linked to the person holding the ticket w/Genie+ yet. So in theory... could he buy the Genie+ for the two AP's and then I book the actual rides from then on? Would that work and avoid the early morning IT phone call?



I am trying to understand what you want since I currently have the same issue. Would you then be able to book everyone together for G+?


----------



## mickey916

Aimeedyan said:


> If people are linked as F&F, anyone can make the Genie+ reservation for the party, right?
> 
> So, our party is two AP's and one ticket w/Genie+. I know now of the tech glitch in purchasing Genie+ for the AP. My DH has NOT linked to the person holding the ticket w/Genie+ yet. So in theory... could he buy the Genie+ for the two AP's and then I book the actual rides from then on? Would that work and avoid the early morning IT phone call?


Hmm...would be an interesting thing to try. We're in the same situation. I'll be linked with my brother's family who are purchasing tix with Genie+ and I have an AP. My DH is linked to me but not them. We'll give that a try (but not until May) and report back if no one else tries it sooner.


----------



## Jenis

I have read through this thread and the other main thread for Genie+ but I can't seem to find the information I'm looking for.

We have an extended family (18 people) trip coming up in the fall and I'm trying to figure out what will be best for us. We are currently all listed as F&F and none of us are AP.  I'm trying to get a better idea of how F&F works with booking Genie+ and figuring out our best strategy. We all plan on purchasing Genie+ as we go but we're not all planning to do the same things. My concern is when I get up to get say SDD for my family (4 people) I just want to click through as quickly as possible to get a return time.  But it's my understanding if we're F&F that everyone would be selected, and I'd have to take the time to deselect everyone else, is that correct? If that is the case I'm wondering if it's better to not be F&F for this trip. 

Does anyone have experience with this?


----------



## scrappinginontario

Jenis said:


> I have read through this thread and the other main thread for Genie+ but I can't seem to find the information I'm looking for.
> 
> We have an extended family (18 people) trip coming up in the fall and I'm trying to figure out what will be best for us. We are currently all listed as F&F and none of us are AP.  I'm trying to get a better idea of how F&F works with booking Genie+ and figuring out our best strategy. We all plan on purchasing Genie+ as we go but we're not all planning to do the same things. My concern is when I get up to get say SDD for my family (4 people) I just want to click through as quickly as possible to get a return time.  But it's my understanding if we're F&F that everyone would be selected, and I'd have to take the time to deselect everyone else, is that correct? If that is the case I'm wondering if it's better to not be F&F for this trip.
> 
> Does anyone have experience with this?


My understanding is that yes, if you're all linked and have park tickets the same day, you will need to click through and select the ones you want.  

I just looked back at screen shots and if I remember correctly, even to choose my daughter when nobody else on my FF list had a park ticket, I still needed to scan down and select her.


----------



## Jenis

scrappinginontario said:


> My understanding is that yes, if you're all linked and have park tickets the same day, you will need to click through and select the ones you want.
> 
> I just looked back at screen shots and if I remember correctly, even to choose my daughter when nobody else on my FF list had a park ticket, I still needed to scan down and select her.



Interesting, I was under the impression everyone on your reservation came up automatically. But still, having to select three people is going to be quicker than deselecting 14 people.


----------



## Tom_E_D

Jenis said:


> Interesting, I was under the impression everyone on your reservation came up automatically. But still, having to select three people is going to be quicker than deselecting 14 people.


I was also under the impression that "everyone" with a park reservation was automatically selected. Regardless, you are going to have a problem in those cases where everyone does want to ride together. The maximum allowable Genie+ or ILL$  group is 12 people.


----------



## Jenis

Tom_E_D said:


> I was also under the impression that "everyone" with a park reservation was automatically selected. Regardless, you are going to have a problem in those cases where everyone does want to ride together. The maximum allowable Genie+ or ILL$  group is 12 people.


Thank you. That’s good to know. I’m wondering if we change who we’re F&F daily based on who’s doing the same things that day if that would work. But that also sounds like a pain in the butt but I don’t want to mess with the deselecting every time, and I don’t want us to mess up each other’s Genie+ plans for those doing different things.


----------



## scrappinginontario

scrappinginontario said:


> My understanding is that yes, if you're all linked and have park tickets the same day, you will need to click through and select the ones you want.
> 
> I just looked back at screen shots and if I remember correctly, even to choose my daughter when nobody else on my FF list had a park ticket, I still needed to scan down and select her.





Jenis said:


> Interesting, I was under the impression everyone on your reservation came up automatically. But still, having to select three people is going to be quicker than deselecting 14 people.


I could be wrong - was going from memory and screen shots.  Others who are there now may correct me.


----------



## brockash

Tom_E_D said:


> I was also under the impression that "everyone" with a park reservation was automatically selected. Regardless, you are going to have a problem in those cases where everyone does want to ride together. The maximum allowable Genie+ or ILL$  group is 12 people.


Yes, as in it worked the same as when you joined a virtual que.  I'm almost positive it'll automatically check everyone that has a valid park reservation.  I sure hope so, otherwise that's a lot of precious time to waste.


----------



## glocon

Jenis said:


> I have read through this thread and the other main thread for Genie+ but I can't seem to find the information I'm looking for.
> 
> We have an extended family (18 people) trip coming up in the fall and I'm trying to figure out what will be best for us. We are currently all listed as F&F and none of us are AP.  I'm trying to get a better idea of how F&F works with booking Genie+ and figuring out our best strategy. We all plan on purchasing Genie+ as we go but we're not all planning to do the same things. My concern is when I get up to get say SDD for my family (4 people) I just want to click through as quickly as possible to get a return time.  But it's my understanding if we're F&F that everyone would be selected, and I'd have to take the time to deselect everyone else, is that correct? If that is the case I'm wondering if it's better to not be F&F for this trip.
> 
> Does anyone have experience with this?



can you maybe change your names in MDE so your immediate family comes up first on your f&f list? Like put AAA in front of all your names?
Or if not that maybe change the icons by your names so that you know to quickly look for all the R2-D2s on the list to make choosing people quicker?
Just a thought…


----------



## conshykid

We were there last week,and when I signed on,my name was there I had to select the rest of my party(only 2 more)


----------



## scrappinginontario

conshykid said:


> We were there last week,and when I signed on,my name was there I had to select the rest of my party(only 2 more)



Thank you!  I thought I was remembering incorrectly but I remember scrolling for my daughter and getting used to where she would be on my screen as we have quite a lengthy F&F list.


----------



## Aimeedyan

js said:


> I am trying to understand what you want since I currently have the same issue. Would you then be able to book everyone together for G+?



That's what I'm hoping for! He buys the Genie+ and me (who is linked to everyone) does the ride booking. 



mickey916 said:


> Hmm...would be an interesting thing to try. We're in the same situation. I'll be linked with my brother's family who are purchasing tix with Genie+ and I have an AP. My DH is linked to me but not them. We'll give that a try (but not until May) and report back if no one else tries it sooner.



We're there this weekend so I'll report back!


----------



## brockash

conshykid said:


> We were there last week,and when I signed on,my name was there I had to select the rest of my party(only 2 more)


Wow, so it does not work like virtual ques did?  You're having to click each person...that's pretty disappointing and is concerning for our upcoming trip.  I swore I read that it did it automatically, but have not been back since Genie.  Thanks all for the info.


----------



## Westerner

brockash said:


> Wow, so it does not work like virtual ques did?  You're having to click each person...that's pretty disappointing and is concerning for our upcoming trip.  I swore I read that it did it automatically, but have not been back since Genie.  Thanks all for the info.


You don't have to click each person each time.  On my recent trip, once I got things set up, I was able to book LL's for my entire party together.


----------



## brockash

Westerner said:


> You don't have to click each person each time.  On my recent trip, once I got things set up, I was able to book LL's for my entire party together.


Can you tell me what you mean by getting things set up?


----------



## Westerner

brockash said:


> Can you tell me what you mean by getting things set up?


I believe that after selecting your party the 1st time you book an LL it defaults to everyone for future ones.  Or there is a Select All button.  But I am sure I did not have to click each person each time.


----------



## scrappinginontario

I have a question out to guests in the February group who are there now.  It appears a change may have happened recently which is why we are seeing various experiences re:  all guests being selected vs. needing to select each person in their party.  I will report back when I hear more.


----------



## Jenis

scrappinginontario said:


> I have a question out to guests in the February group who are there now.  It appears a change may have happened recently which is why we are seeing various experiences re:  all guests being selected vs. needing to select each person in their party.  I will report back when I hear more.



Thank you!


----------



## LuckyMamaInDE

scrappinginontario said:


> I have a question out to guests in the February group who are there now.  It appears a change may have happened recently which is why we are seeing various experiences re:  all guests being selected vs. needing to select each person in their party.  I will report back when I hear more.


We were at WDW Feb 2-7. The first 2 days my whole party (lol, my dh) was already selected. My very first action on our third day was to buy a ILL fro ROTR, and after that I had to select dh each time for anything I did. My F&F group is about 8 people long. I have an icon assigned to dh but not to the others, so it was easy to select him quickly.

(on iPhone)


----------



## Erica Ladd

This is big time as far as planning. Hope all report back as to the here and bid select all or already selected


----------



## Disney102015

Question on strategy for booking the first ride of the day. A lot of the sample plans I’m reading on blogs show booking the first Genie reservation for 11ish when arriving for early entry. Is there a reason for this? I would’ve thought maybe we should book the first possible time we can get (for a ride we want) so we can book our next one ASAP. Or is it just that the first available return time is usually closer to 11ish? Hope that makes sense!

If it matters - we are onsite, planning to arrive for early entry, doing MK, 1 day only, with little kids (so no coasters) - our main Genie priorities will probably be Peter Pan, Jungle Cruise, Pirates, etc.
Sorry if this is answered somewhere - I read through as much of the thread as I could


----------



## GBRforWDW

Disney102015 said:


> Question on strategy for booking the first ride of the day. A lot of the sample plans I’m reading on blogs show booking the first Genie reservation for 11ish when arriving for early entry. Is there a reason for this? I would’ve thought maybe we should book the first possible time we can get (for a ride we want) so we can book our next one ASAP. Or is it just that the first available return time is usually closer to 11ish? Hope that makes sense!
> 
> If it matters - we are onsite, planning to arrive for early entry, doing MK, 1 day only, with little kids (so no coasters) - our main Genie priorities will probably be Peter Pan, Jungle Cruise, Pirates, etc.
> Sorry if this is answered somewhere - I read through as much of the thread as I could


Some of those samples may have been from November when there was a loophole in the system.  Also, the first 2 hours are "typically" the slowest times of the day, so most people want to get standby out of the way that early. 

I'm with you on strategy, grab earliest time you can get for the first ride, the top tier rides go fast anyway, so you don't really know what you'll end up with until you're through the process - the time you click on will probably not be your ride time.  

If nothing else, that first G+ time helps you plan where to go a little better.  Try to work your way around rides to that G+ pass and get there at your pass time.


----------



## 3gr8boys

Disney102015 said:


> Question on strategy for booking the first ride of the day. A lot of the sample plans I’m reading on blogs show booking the first Genie reservation for 11ish when arriving for early entry. Is there a reason for this? I would’ve thought maybe we should book the first possible time we can get (for a ride we want) so we can book our next one ASAP. Or is it just that the first available return time is usually closer to 11ish? Hope that makes sense!
> 
> If it matters - we are onsite, planning to arrive for early entry, doing MK, 1 day only, with little kids (so no coasters) - our main Genie priorities will probably be Peter Pan, Jungle Cruise, Pirates, etc.
> Sorry if this is answered somewhere - I read through as much of the thread as I could



Keep in mind the the Genie+ gives you the next available  time, not a choice.  What happens is the major rides are already giving out late morning LL even if you get on to select right at 7.  BUT if you opt for a ride available earlier, by the time you can book your 3rd or 4th LL, those major rides are giving out evening slots.  It is 9:55 a.m. right now and JC is giving out 6:15 LL and Peter Pan is giving out 4:00 LL.


----------



## stitchlover

I have a question about adding Genie+, like so many this is our first try at it.  I understand that you cannot chose rides until the morning each day.  BUT I was under the impression that we could go ahead and purchase Genie+ in advance and get that out of the way.  When purchasing park tickets this week we were told by a CM you can no longer add Genie+ in advance.  Is that correct or is this another case of it depends on which CM you get hold of and whether or not their information is correct?


----------



## Turksmom

stitchlover said:


> I have a question about adding Genie+, like so many this is our first try at it.  I understand that you cannot chose rides until the morning each day.  BUT I was under the impression that we could go ahead and purchase Genie+ in advance and get that out of the way.  When purchasing park tickets this week we were told by a CM you can no longer add Genie+ in advance.  Is that correct or is this another case of it depends on which CM you get hold of and whether or not their information is correct?


It still gives the option to add it online. It has to be a multi-day ticket. It can no longer be added in advance for one day tix.


----------



## stitchlover

Turksmom said:


> It still gives the option to add it online. It has to be a multi-day ticket. It can no longer be added in advance for one day tix.


That's strange I was purchasing 7 Day Parkhoppers.


----------



## Turksmom

stitchlover said:


> That's strange I was purchasing 7 Day Parkhoppers.


I just tried 7 day PH with random dates from March- July and it gave the option to add Genie for all of them. I'd say you just had a misinformed cast member.


----------



## stitchlover

Turksmom said:


> I just tried 7 day PH with random dates from March- July and it gave the option to add Genie for all of them. I'd say you just had a misinformed cast member.


Thanks for looking at it.  I went in and was able to upgrade my tickets.


----------



## TinkBink

I was able to see availability for SDD and RoR at 7:40 am today. I kept refreshing and there were several times available for a couple minutes. Was this an anomaly or are they getting a little easier to get?


----------



## Aimeedyan

mickey916 said:


> Hmm...would be an interesting thing to try. We're in the same situation. I'll be linked with my brother's family who are purchasing tix with Genie+ and I have an AP. My DH is linked to me but not them. We'll give that a try (but not until May) and report back if no one else tries it sooner.



Reporting back! My DH (not linked to the family member who has the Genie+ on her ticket) was able to buy our Genie+. As expected, my MDE would not let me.

At 7am, I was able to make ride selections for all of us without issue.

Thankfully a successful workaround for anyone with the AP/day ticket issue.



scrappinginontario said:


> I have a question out to guests in the February group who are there now.  It appears a change may have happened recently which is why we are seeing various experiences re:  all guests being selected vs. needing to select each person in their party.  I will report back when I hear more.



It only has me selected and I had to click on the rest of the people. Thankfully it had them right under my name, since they also had park reservations, since I have over 20 people in my f&f list...


----------



## mickey916

Aimeedyan said:


> Reporting back! My DH (not linked to the family member who has the Genie+ on her ticket) was able to buy our Genie+. As expected, my MDE would not let me.
> 
> At 7am, I was able to make ride selections for all of us without issue.
> 
> Thankfully a successful workaround for anyone with the AP/day ticket issue.


Thank you! That's great news! That's a much better workaround than calling IT every morning!


----------



## detroitdad

Will be at WDW from Sat May 28th - Thu June 2nd. We're pretty much empty nesters now and head down with DVC points and spend time relaxing at the resorts more days than going to the parks. We are thinking maybe hitting the parks on two days and park hopping. Trying to come up with the best combo of parks along with potential Genie+/ILL purchase. Epcot is a favorite and would want to be there in the evening. Was thinking that if we were to do one park day combo over the weekend maybe AK first then park hop to Epcot. Since over the holiday with busier crowds, should we Genie+ and $ILL maybe FOP and Remy? I know most feel that Genie+ isn't worth it for those two parks but maybe it would be when over a holiday weekend. We'll wait to do a MK / HS combo day maybe the Tues or Wed after Memorial Day when crowds get lighter. Would try to stack the Genie+ for HS afternoon-evening. Would probably Early Entry for MK and head right to Space Mountain and then do whatever available Genie+ attractions until ready to head to HS. $ILL for RoTR and MMRR. Am I correct that we wouldn't be able to book any LL in the park we're hopping to until after we're actually there because we are actively using Genie+ in the first park?


----------



## Turksmom

detroitdad said:


> Will be at WDW from Sat May 28th - Thu June 2nd. We're pretty much empty nesters now and head down with DVC points and spend time relaxing at the resorts more days than going to the parks. We are thinking maybe hitting the parks on two days and park hopping. Trying to come up with the best combo of parks along with potential Genie+/ILL purchase. Epcot is a favorite and would want to be there in the evening. Was thinking that if we were to do one park day combo over the weekend maybe AK first then park hop to Epcot. Since over the holiday with busier crowds, should we Genie+ and $ILL maybe FOP and Remy? I know most feel that Genie+ isn't worth it for those two parks but maybe it would be when over a holiday weekend. We'll wait to do a MK / HS combo day maybe the Tues or Wed after Memorial Day when crowds get lighter. Would try to stack the Genie+ for HS afternoon-evening. Would probably Early Entry for MK and head right to Space Mountain and then do whatever available Genie+ attractions until ready to head to HS. $ILL for RoTR and MMRR. Am I correct that we wouldn't be able to book any LL in the park we're hopping to until after we're actually there because we are actively using Genie+ in the first park?


You can book in the park you are hopping to, even while using G+ at your first park. Times will automatically default to after 2 pm. It would follow the same booking rules that it follows, if you were not hopping- you can still only book after either using your current selection or after the 2 hour cool down period.


----------



## isabellea

detroitdad said:


> Will be at WDW from Sat May 28th - Thu June 2nd. We're pretty much empty nesters now and head down with DVC points and spend time relaxing at the resorts more days than going to the parks. We are thinking maybe hitting the parks on two days and park hopping. Trying to come up with the best combo of parks along with potential Genie+/ILL purchase. Epcot is a favorite and would want to be there in the evening. Was thinking that if we were to do one park day combo over the weekend maybe AK first then park hop to Epcot. Since over the holiday with busier crowds, should we Genie+ and $ILL maybe FOP and Remy? I know most feel that Genie+ isn't worth it for those two parks but maybe it would be when over a holiday weekend. We'll wait to do a MK / HS combo day maybe the Tues or Wed after Memorial Day when crowds get lighter. Would try to stack the Genie+ for HS afternoon-evening. Would probably Early Entry for MK and head right to Space Mountain and then do whatever available Genie+ attractions until ready to head to HS. $ILL for RoTR and MMRR. Am I correct that we wouldn't be able to book any LL in the park we're hopping to until after we're actually there because we are actively using Genie+ in the first park?



Staying DVC, I would plan Epcot for a Monday and MK a Wednesday to enjoy the Deluxe Evening Hours.


----------



## Boardwalk III

wdhinn89 said:


> When purchasing RotR, is it charged automatically to the card you have on file when you tap your bracelet, or do you need to input a charge card number?  A previous poster commented on having to copy and paste their gift card.



We were there in November. I am a DVC member with an AP and sometimes I had to reload the credit card number even it was already attached. Sometimes I didn’t. I have no idea why


----------



## Meglen

Aimeedyan said:


> Reporting back! My DH (not linked to the family member who has the Genie+ on her ticket) was able to buy our Genie+. As expected, my MDE would not let me.
> 
> At 7am, I was able to make ride selections for all of us without issue.
> 
> Thankfully a successful workaround for anyone with the AP/day ticket issue.
> 
> 
> 
> It only has me selected and I had to click on the rest of the people. Thankfully it had them right under my name, since they also had park reservations, since I have over 20 people in my f&f list...


I think I might be a bit slow on the uptake here. Can you explain how it worked again? I will be going with my mom she has hopper tickets (no genie +) and I will be AP. I usually do everything on my account she dosnt have an account. Will it work for us or will there be issues?


----------



## scrappinginontario

Meglen said:


> I think I might be a bit slow on the uptake here. Can you explain how it worked again? I will be going with my mom she has hopper tickets (no genie +) and I will be AP. I usually do everything on my account she dosnt have an account. Will it work for us or will there be issues?


Yes.
The problem is happening when at least 1 person in the party has a ticket where Genie+ has been added for length of stay and another person has an AP.


----------



## Meglen

scrappinginontario said:


> Yes.
> The problem is happening when at least 1 person in the party has a ticket where Genie+ has been added for length of stay and another person has an AP.


Ohh ok thank you


----------



## detroitdad

Turksmom said:


> You can book in the park you are hopping to, even while using G+ at your first park. Times will automatically default to after 2 pm. It would follow the same booking rules that it follows, if you were not hopping- you can still only book after either using your current selection or after the 2 hour cool down period.



So then the only way I can stack afternoon park G+, is if we pretty much do Early Entry at the first park, maybe purchase 1 ILL there and do standby for the rest of the morning, right?


----------



## detroitdad

isabellea said:


> Staying DVC, I would plan Epcot for a Monday and MK a Wednesday to enjoy the Deluxe Evening Hours.




Ah yes! Thanks for that reminder. Just wondering how bad Memorial Day would be for Epcot for Evening hours.


----------



## Turksmom

detroitdad said:


> So then the only way I can stack afternoon park G+, is if we pretty much do Early Entry at the first park, maybe purchase 1 ILL there and do standby for the rest of the morning, right?


I think it really depends on the popularity of what you want to book in either park and the times available. In theory, you could book an early return time in your first park, book a second with a short return time, and continue to do that before starting to book in the next park, if you are going for later return times or rides that don't generally "sell out". Or you could book something harder to reserve in the second park, wait the 2 hour cool down period and then book for your first park.
I'd look at the app a few times before your trip to get an idea of how quickly times disappear for your desired rides.


----------



## detroitdad

Turksmom said:


> I think it really depends on the popularity of what you want to book in either park and the times available. In theory, you could book an early return time in your first park, book a second with a short return time, and continue to do that before starting to book in the next park, if you are going for later return times or rides that don't generally "sell out". Or you could book something harder to reserve in the second park, wait the 2 hour cool down period and then book for your first park.
> I'd look at the app a few times before your trip to get an idea of how quickly times disappear for your desired rides.



Makes sense! Thanks


----------



## Doingitagain

We have two young children in our travel party whose accounts are managed by a parent.  Can anyone in the travel party get Genie+ LL reservations for the entire group, including the kids?


----------



## brockash

Here now...I did not have to click anyone in my party to get genie+ or LL.  All who had a valid ticket were already selected and those who didn't (I have about 15 on my friends/family list) were not listed, just as it was for virtual ques.

I have an android and the ppl. in my current party are also ppl. I manage - we have same account.  Just trying to figure out what the difference is for those who are having to select each person.


----------



## ucf_knight

3gr8boys said:


> Keep in mind the the Genie+ gives you the next available  time, not a choice.  What happens is the major rides are already giving out late morning LL even if you get on to select right at 7.  BUT if you opt for a ride available earlier, by the time you can book your 3rd or 4th LL, those major rides are giving out evening slots.  It is 9:55 a.m. right now and JC is giving out 6:15 LL and Peter Pan is giving out 4:00 LL.


And this is why I can’t understand the appeal for our family to get G+  Back with FP+ I would book three attractions to be completed typically before noon. Once lunch rolled around we would eat and I’d grab our next FP with the refresh method and could typically always get a headliner attraction. And rinse and repeat if we wanted to stay past 1-2 pm in the parks. Now it seems that if you get 2 attractions done by lunch with G+ you’d be lucky and when it comes to pull your next selection most stuff seems gone. Is this basically how it is? Maybe magic kingdom is better with g+ but the other parks I don’t see how you’d get 3 g+’s done before noon.


----------



## Meglen

ucf_knight said:


> And this is why I can’t understand the appeal for our family to get G+  Back with FP+ I would book three attractions to be completed typically before noon. Once lunch rolled around we would eat and I’d grab our next FP with the refresh method and could typically always get a headliner attraction. And rinse and repeat if we wanted to stay past 1-2 pm in the parks. Now it seems that if you get 2 attractions done by lunch with G+ you’d be lucky and when it comes to pull your next selection most stuff seems gone. Is this basically how it is? Maybe magic kingdom is better with g+ but the other parks I don’t see how you’d get 3 g+’s done before noon.


Pretty much.


----------



## cjlong88

ucf_knight said:


> And this is why I can’t understand the appeal for our family to get G+  Back with FP+ I would book three attractions to be completed typically before noon. Once lunch rolled around we would eat and I’d grab our next FP with the refresh method and could typically always get a headliner attraction. And rinse and repeat if we wanted to stay past 1-2 pm in the parks. Now it seems that if you get 2 attractions done by lunch with G+ you’d be lucky and when it comes to pull your next selection most stuff seems gone. Is this basically how it is? Maybe magic kingdom is better with g+ but the other parks I don’t see how you’d get 3 g+’s done before noon.


I’ve experienced success with refreshing while using G+. People still make changes to their plans and cancel LL’s. We were able to grab Test Track, TSM, Smugglers Run, Big Thunder, and more. Refresh also worked great for finding better times. The only difference is you can’t modify, so that means you can’t grab a LL until you see the ride or time you want. This felt scary, but I just trusted that someone better would pop up, whether it be another ride or a better time, and it almost always did.

I think the last time we used G+ was over a holiday weekend and I grabbed 7 LL’s for great attractions in one day. We were able to do that with FP+ in the days of old because we knew how to work the system to allow that to happen. G+ is the same in that regard, it’s just that it’s so dang new and many guests aren’t figuring out how to maximize it yet. They look at what’s offered and assumed that all there is (or isn’t). But if you’re used to refreshing on FP+ and had some persistence, I think you will be surprised that you may have success doing that again. While I’d much rather prefer a free system, I have found the best feature of G+ is no tiers. The biggest downside for us is that we only get to book a LL for every attraction once. Would be great if they offered an unlimited option since we love repeating rides on our favorite attractions.


----------



## brockash

ucf_knight said:


> And this is why I can’t understand the appeal for our family to get G+  Back with FP+ I would book three attractions to be completed typically before noon. Once lunch rolled around we would eat and I’d grab our next FP with the refresh method and could typically always get a headliner attraction. And rinse and repeat if we wanted to stay past 1-2 pm in the parks. Now it seems that if you get 2 attractions done by lunch with G+ you’d be lucky and when it comes to pull your next selection most stuff seems gone. Is this basically how it is? Maybe magic kingdom is better with g+ but the other parks I don’t see how you’d get 3 g+’s done before noon.


Yes, we're having issues getting more than 1 fpass/genie (many times not even 1 if looking for a more popular ride) before noon which is a bit of an issue trying to go back mid day.


----------



## Doingitagain

I am confused how this works with a large group for both Genie + and ILL$. We will have nine.  Does there have to be nine slots open at the same time for us to book? Or do we just pick a time and it lets us select our whole party?


----------



## Brett Wyman

Doingitagain said:


> I am confused how this works with a large group for both Genie + and ILL$. We will have nine.  Does there have to be nine slots open at the same time for us to book? Or do we just pick a time and it lets us select our whole party?



If a single person is booking all the Lightning Lanes, then yes, 9 spots would need to be open. If more than one person is booking for multiple "groups or families" then you'll need to synchronize times as best you can. I wouldn't want to be in your shoes either way 

Honestly, Genie+ is a complete waste at AK and a pretty big waste HS(unless you want to LL shows). Its okay at Epcot and beneficial at MK(due to the sheer number of rides). With a group that size Id save the money to ILL the big rides at AK and HS, maybe get it for Epcot(but probably not) and definitely get it for MK, but get there as early as you can and make sure you book your first ride at 7am sharp.


----------



## MainMom

Brett Wyman said:


> If a single person is booking all the Lightning Lanes, then yes, 9 spots would need to be open. If more than one person is booking for multiple "groups or families" then you'll need to synchronize times as best you can. I wouldn't want to be in your shoes either way
> 
> Honestly, Genie+ is a complete waste at AK and a pretty big waste HS(unless you want to LL shows). Its okay at Epcot and beneficial at MK(due to the sheer number of rides). With a group that size Id save the money to ILL the big rides at AK and HS, maybe get it for Epcot(but probably not) and definitely get it for MK, but get there as early as you can and make sure you book your first ride at 7am sharp.


This is funny to me because when G+ was first announced all of the proponents on here insisted your group size didn’t matter and if there was a time you could get it if you were 2 or 12. I was told this multiple times as a selling point for G+. Just another thing that was too good to be true.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Brett Wyman said:


> If a single person is booking all the Lightning Lanes, then yes, 9 spots would need to be open. If more than one person is booking for multiple "groups or families" then you'll need to synchronize times as best you can. I wouldn't want to be in your shoes either way
> 
> Honestly, Genie+ is a complete waste at AK and a pretty big waste HS(unless you want to LL shows). Its okay at Epcot and beneficial at MK(due to the sheer number of rides). With a group that size Id save the money to ILL the big rides at AK and HS, maybe get it for Epcot(but probably not) and definitely get it for MK, but get there as early as you can and make sure you book your first ride at 7am sharp.


We’re all so different.  For us, G+ worked at MK and DHS but wasn’t needed at Epcot or AK.

I will say we were there at medium busy days which I know makes a difference.

At DHS we were able to secure LL for SDD, TSM, Star Tours and ToT.  There were more available after that but we did not select them as we ride stand-by (Frozen sing-a-ling, Muppets, Beauty snd the Beast).


----------



## Brett Wyman

MainMom said:


> This is funny to me because when G+ was first announced all of the proponents on here insisted your group size didn’t matter and if there was a time you could get it if you were 2 or 12. I was told this multiple times as a selling point for G+. Just another thing that was too good to be true.



I have VERY recent experience, like 5 days ago, of having to book 4 of us a LL for Space Mountain and having to get the next slot for the 4th. It would show up with the 3, but not 4. Luckily the CM there let our fourth person slide. Not sure how that would work for 9 though!



scrappinginontario said:


> We’re all so different.  For us, G+ worked at MK and DHS but wasn’t needed at Epcot or AK.
> 
> I will say we were there at medium busy days which I know makes a difference.
> 
> At DHS we were able to secure LL for SDD, TSM, Star Tours and ToT.  There were more available after that but we did not select them as we ride stand-by (Frozen sing-a-ling, Muppets, Beauty snd the Beast).



Yeah it depends on touring styles too. We very rarely stay until park close and we did get to HS a little late that day, I'd say about 9:30. SDD was completely gone and ToT was very late afternoon(so no good for us). We literally only used it on Star Tours which was basically always open along with the shows. Biggest waste of money on the trip for sure. I think one consensus is you can definitely get your moneys worth at MK, due to the sheer volume of rides.


----------



## elgerber

Brett Wyman said:


> Yeah it depends on touring styles too. We very rarely stay until park close and we did get to HS a little late that day, I'd say about 9:30. SDD was completely gone and ToT was very late afternoon(so no good for us). We literally only used it on Star Tours which was basically always open along with the shows. Biggest waste of money on the trip for sure. I think one consensus is you can definitely get your moneys worth at MK, due to the sheer volume of rides.


Curious, did you not try to book any Genie+ until you got to the park?


----------



## Brett Wyman

elgerber said:


> Curious, did you not try to book any Genie+ until you got to the park?



We did not. I was never sure we were going to use it this trip so I bought it right a 9:30 when I saw the crowds. So yeah we could have had ONE more ride if I booked at 7am. We did ILL ROTR at 7am but it broke about 11am and never came back! Our time was 12:45pm.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

cjlong88 said:


> I have found the best feature of G+ is no tiers.


Although this is technically true, many of the rides that would have been the Tier 1 FP+ selections are now ILL$ and not included in G+.  So there kinda are still several tiers (with even bigger price tags associated with the top tier).


----------



## Miffy

scrappinginontario said:


> We’re all so different.  For us, G+ worked at MK and DHS but wasn’t needed at Epcot or AK.
> 
> I will say we were there at medium busy days which I know makes a difference.
> 
> At DHS we were able to secure LL for SDD, TSM, Star Tours and ToT.  There were more available after that but we did not select them as we ride stand-by (Frozen sing-a-ling, Muppets, Beauty snd the Beast).


We actually ended up using one of our G+ selections at DHS for Beauty and the Beast and were really happy with the great seats we got. I usually end up sitting in the bleachers but these seats were center orchestra and pretty close. That being said, the only other G+ selection we used that day was TSM. We RD'd MMRR and had an ILL$ for RotR, which was down during our scheduled time, which is how we ended up going to B&tB. Worth it? I can't say. We started thinking of G+ as just another ILL$--getting one attraction out of it was better than nothing.

One day we were at DHS in December (not the above-referenced day) we bought G+ and were not able to use it for anything, since the times we got conflicted with the rest of our schedule--Oga's, lunch ADR, and ILL$. On the way out of the park, I stopped by GET, just to let them know what had happened. I wasn't expecting anything, but thought they should be aware of how G+ didn't work for us. They gave us a full refund and also an anytime G+ for TSM, however, we were exhausted by then and were leaving the park, so we didn't get to use it. I have to say that the GET people I've encountered at WDW are all terrific.


----------



## cjlong88

Grumpy by Birth said:


> Although this is technically true, many of the rides that would have been the Tier 1 FP+ selections are now ILL$ and not included in G+.  So there kinda are still several tiers (with even bigger price tags associated with the top tier).


Yes, but these tiers function at a fundamentally different level. Having to pay for it separately, in my mind, is vastly different than simply not being allowed to book a specific attraction simply because the rules say so. The current is a financial restriction that I have the option to book it or not. The former is a systems restriction that forced me to, at times, prebook rides before I could book the rides I would have rather used. Epcot is a great example of that. The fact that I couldn’t prebook TT, Frozen, and Soarin’ because they were all tier 1 was not fun. I found myself booking FP’s for attractions I simply didn’t need or want.

Again, I prefer a free system. I was a FP super user. But G+ allows me to walk into Epcot with three of the biggest attractions booked should I choose spend on ILLS. I don’t hate that.


----------



## bigrigsby71682

I want to purchase Genie+ for our MK day in a week. We won't be entering the park until 3pm so of course I want to make a selections at 7am/11am/1pm/3pm. When I make my first 3 selections will I be able to get a time after 3pm for each one or will it automatically give me the earliest time possible, which wouldn't be helpful because we won't be in the park at that time. Thanks so much everyone!


----------



## scrappinginontario

bigrigsby71682 said:


> I want to purchase Genie+ for our MK day in a week. We won't be entering the park until 3pm so of course I want to make a selections at 7am/11am/1pm/3pm. When I make my first 3 selections will I be able to get a time after 3pm for each one or will it automatically give me the earliest time possible, which wouldn't be helpful because we won't be in the park at that time. Thanks so much everyone!


The bookable times will be displayed.  You can refresh by pulling down your screen and see the updated times and book when your desired time is displayed.

Warning:  The time you see as 'available' when you select your LL will most likely be different (sometimes by as much as a couple of hours) by the time you actually choose your LL time.  Be sure to look at the actual time you booked once booking is complete as it will be later than what you initially saw when you decided to book it.


----------



## bigrigsby71682

Thanks for the response! So if at 7am I wanted a Big Thunder or Pirates (things that are never in danger of selling out quickly) for 6pm or so I can scroll through and pick a time?


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## DeeBee3

Sort of a technical question and/or asking for feedback: anyone here NOT buy Genie+ but purchase individual lightning lanes for those specific rides. We are only going to Epcot (1 day) and MK (1 day). We don't mind if we miss rides as we can just go again next year. However, in Epcot we want to try our best for Remy and my girls love Frozen. Otherwise, we don't mind waiting or moving around based on wait times.

Has anyone done just the paid lightning lanes and not paid the extra for Genie+ ?


----------



## CarolynFH

DeeBee3 said:


> Sort of a technical question and/or asking for feedback: anyone here NOT buy Genie+ but purchase individual lightning lanes for those specific rides. We are only going to Epcot (1 day) and MK (1 day). We don't mind if we miss rides as we can just go again next year. However, in Epcot we want to try our best for Remy and my girls love Frozen. Otherwise, we don't mind waiting or moving around based on wait times.
> 
> Has anyone done just the paid lightning lanes and not paid the extra for Genie+ ?


DH and I bought ILL$ for Remy and FoP in January, didn't buy G+ at all.  However, we didn't care how much or little we rode other than those two, so our touring style is probably different from yours.


----------



## DisTXMom

bigrigsby71682 said:


> Thanks for the response! So if at 7am I wanted a Big Thunder or Pirates (things that are never in danger of selling out quickly) for 6pm or so I can scroll through and pick a time?


No, you can only select from a list of times for ILLS rides such as 7 dwarves mine train. For LL rides such as Big Thunder and Pirates, it will display the next time available and that is the time you will get/ subject to changes in checkout as posted above.  Your best bet is book the most in demand things first and hope their is availability at 11/1.


----------



## scrappinginontario

DeeBee3 said:


> Sort of a technical question and/or asking for feedback: anyone here NOT buy Genie+ but purchase individual lightning lanes for those specific rides. We are only going to Epcot (1 day) and MK (1 day). We don't mind if we miss rides as we can just go again next year. However, in Epcot we want to try our best for Remy and my girls love Frozen. Otherwise, we don't mind waiting or moving around based on wait times.
> 
> Has anyone done just the paid lightning lanes and not paid the extra for Genie+ ?


Yes, many have successfully done this.  Reports are throughout this thread but scattered.  It is possible though.


----------



## bigrigsby71682

Darn! I want to reserve BTM/Pirates/Buzz…..none of which will be first available past 3pm at 7am. Sounds like Genie+ plus might not be wise for me that day. Thanks!


----------



## scrappinginontario

bigrigsby71682 said:


> Darn! I want to reserve BTM/Pirates/Buzz…..none of which will be first available past 3pm at 7am. Sounds like Genie+ plus might not be wise for me that day. Thanks!


You are eligible to book at 7am but you don't _have_ to book at 7am.  Keep an eye on availability (possibly pin your 2 most desired to the top of your tip board) and refresh occasionally to see where the return times are at.   As more and more book the times will get pushed out.

I'd recommend starting to watch the app now to see approx when the attractions you want are reaching 3PM or later to help you decide if you might like to purchase G+ for your day.


----------



## DisTXMom

bigrigsby71682 said:


> Darn! I want to reserve BTM/Pirates/Buzz…..none of which will be first available past 3pm at 7am. Sounds like Genie+ plus might not be wise for me that day. Thanks!


If jungle cruise or Peter Pan are on your list, they may have times ~3pm pretty early.  Keep in mind, your 2nd LL pull will be at 11 if you pull your first one between 7-9am, so you could watch times and book your first one by 9 and then book big Thunder at 11 and hopefully pirates at 1.


----------



## bigrigsby71682

sadly they aren’t! The rides I need require waiting hours thus wasting the value of having Genie+. Add me to the list of people who miss fastpass and being able to pick your times haha

thanks for the info though!


----------



## DeeBee3

CarolynFH said:


> DH and I bought ILL$ for Remy and FoP in January, didn't buy G+ at all.  However, we didn't care how much or little we rode other than those two, so our touring style is probably different from yours.


I think we are in the same boat. Although we love to do rides, we also enjoy roaming around so riding a million rides in 1 day isn't a big deal. Thanks for the input!


----------



## Boardwalk III

bigrigsby71682 said:


> Darn! I want to reserve BTM/Pirates/Buzz…..none of which will be first available past 3pm at 7am. Sounds like Genie+ plus might not be wise for me that day. Thanks!


Any chance you have a park hopper tickets? If so, you can reserve another park in the morning and NOT use G+ there (though you’d have to check into the morning park first), then you can start stacking MK attractions at 7 AM because they will automatically give you times after 2 PM since that is your park-hopping park.


----------



## bigrigsby71682

Boardwalk III said:


> Any chance you have a park hopper tickets? If so, you can reserve another park in the morning and NOT use G+ there (though you’d have to check into the morning park first), then you can start stacking MK attractions at 7 AM because they will automatically give you times after 2 PM since that is your park-hopping park.


I thought of that but I would have to go to that park first


----------



## SuzyQue

dmunsil said:


> Yes, Your scenario should work, or at least it worked a few weeks ago when I tested it. Cancelling a G+ LL always makes you eligible to book a new one, no matter which one you cancel. It does not need to be the most recent one.
> 
> *Edit: Disney changed the rules at some point in the last few weeks. Cancelling any reservation other than the one you most recently booked does nothing.*


By "does nothing", do you mean you then are *not* eligible to book a new one?


----------



## pinkxray

I’ve been having some vision issues the last few weeks so have not  followed this thread like I’d hoped.
We will be in MK this Sat with Genie +.
We are staying on site so will be there before 8:30 to be in line for Tomorrowland and make Space Mountain our first ride.
We would like to ride both Splash and Thunder Mountain. Will head to one after space and make a Genie LL for the other. Is one more popular than the other?  Not sure which one to pick for Genie.


----------



## DisTXMom

pinkxray said:


> I’ve been having some vision issues the last few weeks so have not  followed this thread like I’d hoped.
> We will be in MK this Sat with Genie +.
> We are staying on site so will be there before 8:30 to be in line for Tomorrowland and make Space Mountain our first ride.
> We would like to ride both Splash and Thunder Mountain. Will head to one after space and make a Genie LL for the other. Is one more popular than the other?  Not sure which one to pick for Genie.


I’ve been watching BTMRR and splash and Splash seems to be a little more popular, with its return times running about an hour ahead of BRMRR. That being said, I think we will attempt to get an early return for BTMRR (9-10), ride  it with LL and then grab the next LL for Splqsh or just hit it without LL immediately after BTMRR.  Thought there is 1) BTMRR is a short ride, so we can knock it out pretty early with LL, 2) BTMRR has been getting some pretty long lines at rope drop and LL let’s us get it done quickly whether or not it had long lines   3) we can hit pirates and other things in the area while we wait for the Splash LL, which I’m hoping will still be in the morning if we book jr by around 920 when we do BTMRR 4) we love splash but I’m not ready to get wet at 9am in March when it may have cool mornings.  If, when we arrive at BTMRR it has a very short line, we would probably do it twice- 1 with LL and 1 without.  Our plan may be flawed, but this is our plan :


----------



## kc51570

pinkxray said:


> I’ve been having some vision issues the last few weeks so have not  followed this thread like I’d hoped.
> We will be in MK this Sat with Genie +.
> We are staying on site so will be there before 8:30 to be in line for Tomorrowland and make Space Mountain our first ride.
> We would like to ride both Splash and Thunder Mountain. Will head to one after space and make a Genie LL for the other. Is one more popular than the other?  Not sure which one to pick for Genie.


Splash goes down a lot more often and at least if you have a LL if it went down, you would receive a new one. The lines are also usually longer there unless it’s cold. We have never had trouble getting on Thunder in the AM although that can be down on occasion as well.


----------



## MsVanderquack

Jenis said:


> I have read through this thread and the other main thread for Genie+ but I can't seem to find the information I'm looking for.
> 
> We have an extended family (18 people) trip coming up in the fall and I'm trying to figure out what will be best for us. We are currently all listed as F&F and none of us are AP.  I'm trying to get a better idea of how F&F works with booking Genie+ and figuring out our best strategy. We all plan on purchasing Genie+ as we go but we're not all planning to do the same things. My concern is when I get up to get say SDD for my family (4 people) I just want to click through as quickly as possible to get a return time.  But it's my understanding if we're F&F that everyone would be selected, and I'd have to take the time to deselect everyone else, is that correct? If that is the case I'm wondering if it's better to not be F&F for this trip.
> 
> Does anyone have experience with this?



re: selecting people when selecting LLs

if you go into your genie planner foreach day of your trip you cando “roll call” and select who you’ll be with that day. Those people will be automatically selected when you book your LLs. Doesn’t help when you have different people wanting different rides on the same day, but if you’re going to be in charge ofbooki by for a certain smaller group within your large party it will be helpful. Your party is larger than the max for LL bookings so you’ll need to split into at least two groups. 

It is clunky and you have to go through a few menus to find it and start planning your genie day. I hope they streamline the menus and declutter Genie in the future.


----------



## MsVanderquack

For example, just now, I needed to book 4 people for HS hopping to Epcot and 2 for just HS. I did all 6 of us for roll call at HS, then selected the 4 for Epcot hopping. 

The Epcot bookings automatically had the 4 selected, because I had selected them previously as planning to hop to Epcot. 

When I booked my first G+ at HS, I had to deselect those not riding. However when I selected my next G+ for the remaining group, they were automatically selected because the others weren’t eligible for another G+ yet.

Is this a lot to do? Yes, it is. Lol
I hope the roll call tip helps some folks though! I appreciate everyone’s help on here. I would not have managed without it. Disney’s official info is way too optimistic.


----------



## brockash

pinkxray said:


> I’ve been having some vision issues the last few weeks so have not  followed this thread like I’d hoped.
> We will be in MK this Sat with Genie +.
> We are staying on site so will be there before 8:30 to be in line for Tomorrowland and make Space Mountain our first ride.
> We would like to ride both Splash and Thunder Mountain. Will head to one after space and make a Genie LL for the other. Is one more popular than the other?  Not sure which one to pick for Genie.


I'd rope drop BTM and fastpass Splash...reason is that Splash is more likely to b down at park opening than BTM.


----------



## Duck143

MsVanderquack said:


> re: selecting people when selecting LLs
> 
> if you go into your genie planner foreach day of your trip you cando “roll call” and select who you’ll be with that day. Those people will be automatically selected when you book your LLs. Doesn’t help when you have different people wanting different rides on the same day, but if you’re going to be in charge ofbooki by for a certain smaller group within your large party it will be helpful. Your party is larger than the max for LL bookings so you’ll need to split into at least two groups.
> 
> It is clunky and you have to go through a few menus to find it and start planning your genie day. I hope they streamline the menus and declutter Genie in the future.


I'm sorry to have to ask this, but do you have to have Genie+ purchased to do this and if not, can you explain where you can set your "roll call".  BTW, I was a pro with the old app and now I just can't get a handle on where everything is in this new updated one.  It's pretty frustrating!


----------



## Jenis

MsVanderquack said:


> re: selecting people when selecting LLs
> 
> if you go into your genie planner foreach day of your trip you cando “roll call” and select who you’ll be with that day. Those people will be automatically selected when you book your LLs. Doesn’t help when you have different people wanting different rides on the same day, but if you’re going to be in charge ofbooki by for a certain smaller group within your large party it will be helpful. Your party is larger than the max for LL bookings so you’ll need to split into at least two groups.
> 
> It is clunky and you have to go through a few menus to find it and start planning your genie day. I hope they streamline the menus and declutter Genie in the future.



Thank you! This is what I was looking for. It's mostly for the first pick of the day when I'm trying to book say SDD and I just want to click through as fast as possible.


----------



## dmunsil

SuzyQue said:


> By "does nothing", do you mean you then are *not* eligible to book a new one?


Correct - it does not restore your ability to book.


----------



## ENJDisneyFan

Some attractions moved from paid to regular LL starting today!
https://blogmickey.com/2022/02/disn...om-individual-lightning-lane-to-disney-genie/


----------



## scrappinginontario

ENJDisneyFan said:


> Some attractions moved from paid to regular LL starting today!
> https://blogmickey.com/2022/02/disn...om-individual-lightning-lane-to-disney-genie/


Here's a thread dedicated to the discussion:  *Changes to ILL & Genie+ starting 2/25*


----------



## Disney102015

Other than buying Genie and adding one of the individual LLs I want to purchase to my top picks for the day, and setting up my roll call, is there anything else I need to do to be ready to purchase as quickly as possible at 7am? Will it be pretty obvious how to purchase once I open the app that day?


----------



## HydroGuy

Disney102015 said:


> Other than buying Genie and adding one of the individual LLs I want to purchase to my top picks for the day, and setting up my roll call, is there anything else I need to do to be ready to purchase as quickly as possible at 7am? Will it be pretty obvious how to purchase once I open the app that day?


This short video may help answer this:


----------



## Disney102015

HydroGuy said:


> This short video may help answer this:


This is perfect, thanks!!!


----------



## LisaRay

We are going to AK and then hopping to Epcot later in the day. If I book my 1st LL at 7:00am to use in AK and the park opens at 7:30 that day then can I book my next LL at 9:30 to use in Epcot later in the afternoon/evening? 
Wasn't sure how the 2 hour rule worked with the park hopping/different opening times.


----------



## mom2rm

Do you only get a certain amount of time to book a LL selection before you lose your time selection.? I'm worried by the time a enter my credit card info, I might lose my time! 
And, if you're staying onsite and have given your cc info does it automatically save that payment method so I can bypass entering my card #?
Also, is it faster to use data rather than Disney Wifi when using Genie+? 
Thanks in advance!


----------



## MainMom

LisaRay said:


> We are going to AK and then hopping to Epcot later in the day. If I book my 1st LL at 7:00am to use in AK and the park opens at 7:30 that day then can I book my next LL at 9:30 to use in Epcot later in the afternoon/evening?
> Wasn't sure how the 2 hour rule worked with the park hopping/different opening times.


It’s two hours after the park opens. And I think it’s the park where you book your first genie+. (Someone help me out with this please!)


----------



## MainMom

mom2rm said:


> Do you only get a certain amount of time to book a LL selection before you lose your time selection.? I'm worried by the time a enter my credit card info, I might lose my time!
> And, if you're staying onsite and have given your cc info does it automatically save that payment method so I can bypass entering my card #?
> Also, is it faster to use data rather than Disney Wifi when using Genie+?
> Thanks in advance!


 By the time you do the 3 click through as your time with most likely have changed. You could even go from morning to evening. If you try to back out you might lose the LL altogether. This is a major complaint with almost everyone. 
I have read of people saying data was faster. It’s just something to keep in mind if you are having loading issues.


----------



## Mamiamjo

mom2rm said:


> Do you only get a certain amount of time to book a LL selection before you lose your time selection.? I'm worried by the time a enter my credit card info, I might lose my time!
> And, if you're staying onsite and have given your cc info does it automatically save that payment method so I can bypass entering my card #?
> Also, is it faster to use data rather than Disney Wifi when using Genie+?
> Thanks in advance!


Haven't used it yet, but as I understand it the times may change while you're buying it. I'd suggest linking your CC to your MDE so you don't have to enter it each time


----------



## brockash

mom2rm said:


> Do you only get a certain amount of time to book a LL selection before you lose your time selection.? I'm worried by the time a enter my credit card info, I might lose my time!
> And, if you're staying onsite and have given your cc info does it automatically save that payment method so I can bypass entering my card #?
> Also, is it faster to use data rather than Disney Wifi when using Genie+?
> Thanks in advance!


Yes, if you have a card linked to the account; it'll automatically be in there, so just need to click confirm or whatever it is on that page.


----------



## Disneyhanna

Great and lucky day at HS today. Glad to have Runaway Railway back on Genie+. For two of us:

Booked 10:10 Slinky at 7am, tried to simultaneously book RotR and failed
Arrived into HS around 8:23 for early resort entry and rope dropped ToT, made it onto ride just shortly after 9
Booked a 4:05 RotR at 9am, initially time said 10:10 but I lost cell service in the ToT queue by the elevators but I was able to get service back and somehow still got passes for 4:05
Rode Star Tours around 9:20 and waited maybe 10 minutes
Rode Slinky and booked our 1:05 Alien Saucers at 10:08am
Spent 30 minutes in line at the Joffreys outside the Toy Story Land entrance, worth it!
Did Muppet Vision and had lunch at Docking Bay, was able to refresh and grab a 1:25 Runaway Railway at 12:08 after waiting our two hours to book again
1:05 Alien Swirling Saucers and after scanning in got incredibly lucky and refreshed for a 1:30 smugglers run
1:25 Runaway Railway scanned in 1:20
1:30 Smuggler’s Run, after scanning in maybe around 1:45 we booked a 2:05-2:20 frozen for the 2:30 show
2:05 Frozen scanned in about 2:18 and was a full show but we had plenty of seats on the end to choose from
Could not refresh for anything else at this point, return times were rare and usually 6-8 and we had dinner plans
4:05 RotR went very smoothly, scanned in 4:00 and was off by 4:35

All in all a super productive day and we really only missed TSM and RnRC. The lines were so long, most were 1-2 hours. Saw rise over 3 hours for a chunk of the midday. We refreshed a lot and missed a lot of slots because they don’t “hold” the time just because you see it, but got lucky a few times. I edit my selections so just the rides I’m refreshing for shows on my tip board. We try to avoid getting times more than 2-3 hours out (especially early in the day) and refresh instead and that usually works for just two of us. We did leave after RotR for dinner at 5:15 at Sanaa and just made it in time. If we stayed the evening we could definitely have finished all the rides, though not the shows. Indy at 12:00 was at capacity when we went by at 11:50 and CMs were recommending getting there 30 mins early.


----------



## jwolfpack

LisaRay said:


> We are going to AK and then hopping to Epcot later in the day. If I book my 1st LL at 7:00am to use in AK and the park opens at 7:30 that day then can I book my next LL at 9:30 to use in Epcot later in the afternoon/evening?
> Wasn't sure how the 2 hour rule worked with the park hopping/different opening times.



I asked this on a different post yesterday, and the general consensus was that the 2 hour rule is based on the opening time of the park where you book your first LL.


----------



## MsVanderquack

Duck143 said:


> I'm sorry to have to ask this, but do you have to have Genie+ purchased to do this and if not, can you explain where you can set your "roll call".  BTW, I was a pro with the old app and now I just can't get a handle on where everything is in this new updated one.  It's pretty frustrating!



It’s under the “My Day” tab, which is very cluttered imho. It was near the top each day before making any plans. We had tickets with G+ added for all the days so I’m not sure if it would be different. I would guess it would be there for everyone because it’s meant to get people to use Genie in general and then to try to sell the up-charge  items like ILLs.


----------



## snikki

Disneyhanna said:


> Great and lucky day at HS today. Glad to have Runaway Railway back on Genie+. For two of us:
> 
> Booked 10:10 Slinky at 7am, tried to simultaneously book RotR and failed
> Arrived into HS around 8:23 for early resort entry and rope dropped ToT, made it onto ride just shortly after 9
> Booked a 4:05 RotR at 9am, initially time said 10:10 but I lost cell service in the ToT queue by the elevators but I was able to get service back and somehow still got passes for 4:05
> Rode Star Tours around 9:20 and waited maybe 10 minutes
> Rode Slinky and booked our 1:05 Alien Saucers at 10:08am
> Spent 30 minutes in line at the Joffreys outside the Toy Story Land entrance, worth it!
> Did Muppet Vision and had lunch at Docking Bay, was able to refresh and grab a 1:25 Runaway Railway at 12:08 after waiting our two hours to book again
> 1:05 Alien Swirling Saucers and after scanning in got incredibly lucky and refreshed for a 1:30 smugglers run
> 1:25 Runaway Railway scanned in 1:20
> 1:30 Smuggler’s Run, after scanning in maybe around 1:45 we booked a 2:05-2:20 frozen for the 2:30 show
> 2:05 Frozen scanned in about 2:18 and was a full show but we had plenty of seats on the end to choose from
> Could not refresh for anything else at this point, return times were rare and usually 6-8 and we had dinner plans
> 4:05 RotR went very smoothly, scanned in 4:00 and was off by 4:35
> 
> All in all a super productive day and we really only missed TSM and RnRC. The lines were so long, most were 1-2 hours. Saw rise over 3 hours for a chunk of the midday. We refreshed a lot and missed a lot of slots because they don’t “hold” the time just because you see it, but got lucky a few times. I edit my selections so just the rides I’m refreshing for shows on my tip board. We try to avoid getting times more than 2-3 hours out (especially early in the day) and refresh instead and that usually works for just two of us. We did leave after RotR for dinner at 5:15 at Sanaa and just made it in time. If we stayed the evening we could definitely have finished all the rides, though not the shows. Indy at 12:00 was at capacity when we went by at 11:50 and CMs were recommending getting there 30 mins early.



I’m confused here. If you grabbed aliens at 10:08 and then MMRR at 12:08 wouldn’t your next time to get another LL be after tapping for MMRR? But I see you got smugglers after tapping into aliens. I thought you couldn’t get more until tapping into your most recently obtained LL.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

ENJDisneyFan said:


> Some attractions moved from paid to regular LL starting today!


Technically, "regular" LL is also paid (Genie+), but at least those are not an extra charge for ILL$ over coming months.  Hopefully, they figure out that adding these rides to G+ helps balance availability and, even if it means a slight reduction in revenue, they keep them in G+ permanently.

I wonder how this might complicate people's strategy who were willing to pay the ILL$, which would have meant they had that ride reserved and could use their G+ slot for a different one.  But now, they will have to use one of their G+ opportunities for the ride that they would have already reserved by paying for the ILL$.  So, even though it will cost less, could this result in some people getting _fewer _of their choices?


----------



## DLRExpert

Issue I ran into this week.
We had 4 guests, but only 3 can ride Space Mountain due to height requirements.
When trying to book ILL for Space Mountain, it was hard to remove that one person and still be able to get the ILL or LL for another attraction for the time that you wanted.

What is the best strategy when you have to remove someone from certain ILL or LL attractions?

Thanks for your help.


----------



## scrappinginontario

DLRExpert said:


> Issue I ran into this week.
> We had 4 guests, but only 3 can ride Space Mountain due to height requirements.
> When trying to book ILL for Space Mountain, it was hard to remove that one person and still be able to get the ILL or LL for another attraction for the time that you wanted.
> 
> What is the best strategy when you have to remove someone from certain ILL or LL attractions?
> 
> Thanks for your help.


Personally for LL I would just grab one for all members of your party then just cancel the 1 so that it doesn't mess up return times etc. if not used.  

It's a little trickier for ILL$ as you won't want to pay for one you won't use so I think you'd need to take the time to remove that person.


----------



## DLRExpert

scrappinginontario said:


> Personally for LL I would just grab one for all members of your party then just cancel the 1 so that it doesn't mess up return times etc. if not used.
> 
> It's a little trickier for ILL$ as you won't want to pay for one you won't use so I think you'd need to take the time to remove that person.


But you usually don't have enough time to remove the person when buying an ILL?
Anyone been successful with getting a refund?


----------



## Boardwalk III

Grumpy by Birth said:


> Technically, "regular" LL is also paid (Genie+), but at least those are not an extra charge for ILL$ over coming months.  Hopefully, they figure out that adding these rides to G+ helps balance availability and, even if it means a slight reduction in revenue, they keep them in G+ permanently.
> 
> I wonder how this might complicate people's strategy who were willing to pay the ILL$, which would have meant they had that ride reserved and could use their G+ slot for a different one.  But now, they will have to use one of their G+ opportunities for the ride that they would have already reserved by paying for the ILL$.  So, even though it will cost less, could this result in some people getting _fewer _of their choices?



Completely agree with this. We just canceled our trip for early April as we were so displeased with Genie+ back in November. I had already decided we were only going to do ILL’s  this time instead, using early entryand/or late night hours to supplement (instead of G+ regular LL’s). That way we could select times of our choice for ILL’s (to schedule around ADRs etc) and not deal with the stress of  being up at 6:45 am daily. Not to mention having to look at my phone all day, often only getting 3-4 attractions. We fly down from the Northeast and don’t mind paying the extra $$ but I just feel G+ is a really inferior system and very unpleasant to manage. I truly hope this change does help more people get on more attractions, but I’m not convinced it’s going to have an overall  positive impact.


----------



## Disneyhanna

snikki said:


> I’m confused here. If you grabbed aliens at 10:08 and then MMRR at 12:08 wouldn’t your next time to get another LL be after tapping for MMRR? But I see you got smugglers after tapping into aliens. I thought you couldn’t get more until tapping into your most recently obtained LL.


Honestly I probably have some times a bit mixed up since it was a long day but I should have the times I rode and the actual rides I rode right!


----------



## TinkBink

Is anyone noticing a weird glitch with your "top picks"? This morning I pinned SDD to the top. I refreshed continually at 7 am and nothing ever showed for a full minute (even though all "other experiences" were showing). When a time finally did come up it bumped my top picks down the list to the other experiences? Is it better not to select top picks now?


----------



## Avery&Todd

Ugh - Im having a brain blip - so now that Frozen is a Genie+ add on - if we're going to Epcot and lets pretend at 7am I get a Frozen Genie+ for 3:30pm can I go ahead and try right after that for TT, earlier like at 12noon?

Im trying to figure out the span of getting a later afternoon Genie+ and being able to book another Genie+ both at 7am or is that not allowed?

and have we had any AP holders report back if they were able to add Genie+ by using the MDW of an AP holder that does not have other folks with mixed tickets on their MDE account?  I have everyone tickets on my MDE, but my DH only had mine and his - so Im wondering if I can buy us Genie+ under his MDE login...

thanks!


----------



## Westerner

Avery&Todd said:


> Ugh - Im having a brain blip - so now that Frozen is a Genie+ add on - if we're going to Epcot and lets pretend at 7am I get a Frozen Genie+ for 3:30pm can I go ahead and try right after that for TT, earlier like at 12noon?
> 
> Im trying to figure out the span of getting a later afternoon Genie+ and being able to book another Genie+ both at 7am or is that not allowed?


Now that Frozen is G+ I assume regular G+ booking rules apply.  You can make your 1st G+ booking at 7AM and the 2nd G+ two hours after park open - which now that Epcot is opening at 8:30 would be *10:30AM* rather than 12 noon.

Edit: assuming your 1st LL return time is late in the day as in this case..


----------



## Avery&Todd

Westerner said:


> Now that Frozen is G+ I assume regular G+ booking rules apply.  You can make your 1st G+ booking at 7AM and the 2nd G+ two hours after park open - which now that Epcot is opening at 8:30 would be *10:30AM* rather than 12 noon.


I thought that there was some exception to that rule if your first G+ booking was really late in the day?

or perhaps Im making that up??


----------



## ENJDisneyFan

Avery&Todd said:


> I thought that there was some exception to that rule if your first G+ booking was really late in the day?
> 
> or perhaps Im making that up??


First is at 7am, second is either a) after you've tapped into the first one or b) 2 hours after park opening, whichever comes first.  There is no exception as far as I know.


----------



## Westerner

ENJ is correct.  Late return time doesn't give you any special exception in booking your next G+ LL.


----------



## Avery&Todd

ENJDisneyFan said:


> First is at 7am, second is either a) after you've tapped into the first one or b) 2 hours after park opening, whichever comes first.  There is no exception as far as I know.


I knew my brain was playing tricks on me!


----------



## AquaGlitter

Was playing around the app this morning (practicing for our April trip) and trying to load the HWS Tip board I got an error message. I did this at exactly 7:00AM and by the time I stopped getting an error message at 7:02 there was no more ROTR LL+ left.

Anyone know what this might be? Was it just an app glitch or specific to me? I recently added genie+ to my trip so wondering if that has anything to do with it. I will keep checking and practicing of course but now I’m stressed about this happening on our trip (we have two Hollywood studios days but still).The amount of time I’ve put into strategizing genie + is embarrassing lol.


----------



## lovethattink

Friendly reminder from:


"We (The DIS) do not enable, condone or promote discussion of ways to circumvent established Disney company policies."


Because our mission is to be a helpful trip planning resource, we want to help travelers understand Disney's policies and rules and how to apply those to their planning. Discussions of what the rules ARE ("here's the policy") are great. Discussions and descriptions of how to cheat or get around those policies are no longer welcome here.


----------



## Westerner

AquaGlitter said:


> Was playing around the app this morning (practicing for our April trip) and trying to load the HWS Tip board I got an error message. I did this at exactly 7:00AM and by the time I stopped getting an error message at 7:02 there was no more ROTR LL+ left.
> 
> Anyone know what this might be? Was it just an app glitch or specific to me? I recently added genie+ to my trip so wondering if that has anything to do with it. I will keep checking and practicing of course but now I’m stressed about this happening on our trip (we have two Hollywood studios days but still).The amount of time I’ve put into strategizing genie + is embarrassing lol.


A few tips:

Load up the tip board prior to 7AM and refresh a few times to check everything's ok
Pin your top choices (or even your single top choice) beforehand so they appear at top of the Tip Board.  I've heard you can only do this a few days in advance.  I did mine the night before
at 7:00:00 swipe down with a single big swipe.  I found short swipe wasn't enough to trigger a refresh sometimes
I've heard there are other ways of refreshing but this seems the most reliable

Use the fastest and most reliable internet connection available
Onsite Disney Wifi may have a lot of sudden activity at 7AM from other guests so using your cell service might be better if it's fast and reliable connection.


----------



## ENJDisneyFan

AquaGlitter said:


> Was playing around the app this morning (practicing for our April trip) and trying to load the HWS Tip board I got an error message. I did this at exactly 7:00AM and by the time I stopped getting an error message at 7:02 there was no more ROTR LL+ left.
> 
> Anyone know what this might be? Was it just an app glitch or specific to me? I recently added genie+ to my trip so wondering if that has anything to do with it. I will keep checking and practicing of course but now I’m stressed about this happening on our trip (we have two Hollywood studios days but still).The amount of time I’ve put into strategizing genie + is embarrassing lol.


Unfortunately the app is very glitchy.  If you continue to get an error message you could try deleting the app and re-adding.


----------



## itf

AquaGlitter said:


> Was playing around the app this morning (practicing for our April trip) and trying to load the HWS Tip board I got an error message. I did this at exactly 7:00AM and by the time I stopped getting an error message at 7:02 there was no more ROTR LL+ left.
> 
> Anyone know what this might be? Was it just an app glitch or specific to me? I recently added genie+ to my trip so wondering if that has anything to do with it. I will keep checking and practicing of course but now I’m stressed about this happening on our trip (we have two Hollywood studios days but still).The amount of time I’ve put into strategizing genie + is embarrassing lol.



I saw this too and so did someone else on the here and now thread, so wasn't just you.


----------



## Disney102015

This morning I made a BTMM Genie reservation for DS and DH for later in the afternoon. (I made a different reservation for myself and DS.) I then made a different Genie reservation for all 4 of us at 12:54. DS is napping late so I tried to modify BTMM to a later time - obviously can’t modify so tried to cancel it and pick up a new time but it says none of us can make a new reservation til 2:54. Is this correct - if you cancel and try to rebook you basically lose the earlier Genie slot? I thought the 2 of them would be able to rebook right away after I canceled but I guess not..


----------



## MsVanderquack

Re: error messages early morning, then sold out Rise, etc.

More mornings than not I encountered glitches and sold out rides. I rebooted my app, waited and refreshed, etc.. In all cases, it eventually came back up and I was able to get what I was after. Here are a couple of examples from this past week:

Couldn't get a LL to load successfully until getting Splash at 7:11AM. Wasn't able to get 7DMT when I clicked at 7AM and then it was unavailable. Kept refreshing and looking (taking a break to get Splash, then getting right back at it), and booked a 7DMT at 7:21AM for 10AM that day.

On another morning, I spent from 7:01-7:19AM trying to get TT, clicking on an available time and then being told it wasn't available, or clicking on a morning time and getting 8pm on the next screen. I did end up with a 9:45AM TT, but at the cost of getting up at 6:58am and kind of freaking out for about 20 minutes.   

My biggest tip is to decide what level of risk you're willing to take, as in decide ahead of time what times are acceptable and what aren't, if you are willing to risk not riding a ride due to a wait that's too long (taking family members into account) vs. having to go at an inconvenient time when you might have been able to "pull" another better time later at the risk of not getting a LL at all.


----------



## AquaGlitter

lovethattink said:


> Friendly reminder from:
> 
> 
> "We (The DIS) do not enable, condone or promote discussion of ways to circumvent established Disney company policies."
> 
> 
> Because our mission is to be a helpful trip planning resource, we want to help travelers understand Disney's policies and rules and how to apply those to their planning. Discussions of what the rules ARE ("here's the policy") are great. Discussions and descriptions of how to cheat or get around those policies are no longer welcome here.


 Hi there,
should I delete my post? I certainly don’t want to break any rules. Just trying to figure out how common it is for glitches to happen on the app  thank you!


----------



## AquaGlitter

Westerner said:


> A few tips:
> 
> Load up the tip board prior to 7AM and refresh a few times to check everything's ok
> Pin your top choices (or even your single top choice) beforehand so they appear at top of the Tip Board.  I've heard you can only do this a few days in advance.  I did mine the night before
> at 7:00:00 swipe down with a single big swipe.  I found short swipe wasn't enough to trigger a refresh sometimes
> I've heard there are other ways of refreshing but this seems the most reliable
> 
> Use the fastest and most reliable internet connection available
> Onsite Disney Wifi may have a lot of sudden activity at 7AM from other guests so using your cell service might be better if it's fast and reliable connection.


The big swipe tip is great! Thanks!


----------



## AquaGlitter

itf said:


> I saw this too and so did someone else on the here and now thread, so wasn't just you.


Thanks that's good to know. Reassuring that it's not just me, less reassuring that this was an issue for many guests.


----------



## Doingitagain

can multiple people try to get LL for the party at the same time, in case someone has the infamous glitch?  Or will we lock each other up?


----------



## Westerner

Doingitagain said:


> can multiple people try to get LL for the party at the same time, in case someone has the infamous glitch?  Or will we lock each other up?


I've seen reports of people having 1 person booking $ILL and another booking G+, using different phones and the same MDE account.  I wouldn't try to have different booking attempts on G+ simultaneously, that seems like it could cause conflict.  What I would suggest is use the most reliable phone you have for booking.  Probably a more modern/faster phone with more RAM will be better and there might be a difference between Android and iPhone in this regard.  Next time I might bring my tablet to have more screen real estate.


----------



## scrappinginontario

AquaGlitter said:


> Hi there,
> should I delete my post? I certainly don’t want to break any rules. Just trying to figure out how common it is for glitches to happen on the app  thank you!


Your post is fine. It does not need to be deleted.


Doingitagain said:


> can multiple people try to get LL for the party at the same time, in case someone has the infamous glitch?  Or will we lock each other up?


Yes, multiple people can try at the same time.


----------



## Tom_E_D

Disney102015 said:


> This morning I made a BTMM Genie reservation for DS and DH for later in the afternoon. (I made a different reservation for myself and DS.) I then made a different Genie reservation for all 4 of us at 12:54. DS is napping late so I tried to modify BTMM to a later time - obviously can’t modify so tried to cancel it and pick up a new time but it says none of us can make a new reservation til 2:54. Is this correct - if you cancel and try to rebook you basically lose the earlier Genie slot? I thought the 2 of them would be able to rebook right away after I canceled but I guess not..


Based on earlier posts in this thread (e.g. post 3083), only canceling your most-recently-booked G+LL entitles you to book another.


----------



## Disney102015

Tom_E_D said:


> Based on earlier posts in this thread (e.g. post 3083), only canceling your most-recently-booked G+LL entitles you to book another.


Yup - learned this the hard way today. Ugh. Wish there was some kind of alert before you cancel, or better yet a modify button. Live and learn!


----------



## mjf

wisblue said:


> BTW, on the subject of SDD, I logged in right at 7 ET this morning to see how quickly the return times for SDD would go up.



How are you able to check the return times on the tip board without a reservation. I think I am missing some important sticky or FAQ? My tip board says "Something went Wrong" try again.


----------



## Disneyhanna

Just back from a trip from 2/24-2/28, I could write many paragraphs but my main tip for small groups (we were a group of 2) is to REFRESH the tip board.

As a group of 2, we were able to ride almost everything in MK and HS without having a full day in the parks. (For MK we arrived late as we ran the 10K that morning, and for HS we did early entry but left at 4:30). We found having your first reservation well before 11:00 (for a 9AM open) was key, as you could scan into the ride and then make a new reservation before everyone else as 11:00, thus getting you "ahead" for the day. I would edit my tip board to 2-3 rides and just refresh constantly for those. Pulling down the tip board over and over to refresh it for minutes at a time, usually I could find a window within an hour after 5-10 minutes of refreshing. It does get a big harder by the late afternoon, but we found this really successful in the morning and early afternoon. We missed many windows as we did not click fast enough, but we learned quickly to not even think, just tap! We generally skipped any times that were not within an hour or so as more refreshing would usually get us what we wanted. It's pretty impossible to get on everything if you have two (or more) hours between every reservation. It's such an adrenaline rush to be refreshing and refreshing and suddenly get a window for something like Big Thunder in the afternoon in just 10 minutes, it was like a game to us. I know not everyone wants to be "glued" to their phone, but an average of 5 minutes of refreshing per ride for us meant we barely waited in any lines. Most lines this weekend were well over an hour so I would rather be on my phone for 5-10 minutes on a bench than wait in those lines. Our feet were noticeably less sore these days since we didn't stand in long lines.

We did the same thing for mobile order dining windows, refreshing until we got an immediate window.

We did a half day at MK today without Genie+ because we left early and it was dreadful, we barely rode anything. I definitely think it's a must for MK and HS unless you want to spend half the day in lines.

We did not do Genie+ in Epcot or AK and were fine with that decision, though we have gone enough times that we don't feel the need to get on everything anymore. I might lean towards getting it if I wanted to ride Frozen, but we just skipped it this trip as we did not rope drop or do early entry at Epcot.


----------



## AquaGlitter

Disneyhanna said:


> Just back from a trip from 2/24-2/28, I could write many paragraphs but my main tip for small groups (we were a group of 2) is to REFRESH the tip board.
> 
> As a group of 2, we were able to ride almost everything in MK and HS without having a full day in the parks. (For MK we arrived late as we ran the 10K that morning, and for HS we did early entry but left at 4:30). We found having your first reservation well before 11:00 (for a 9AM open) was key, as you could scan into the ride and then make a new reservation before everyone else as 11:00, thus getting you "ahead" for the day. I would edit my tip board to 2-3 rides and just refresh constantly for those. Pulling down the tip board over and over to refresh it for minutes at a time, usually I could find a window within an hour after 5-10 minutes of refreshing. It does get a big harder by the late afternoon, but we found this really successful in the morning and early afternoon. We missed many windows as we did not click fast enough, but we learned quickly to not even think, just tap! We generally skipped any times that were not within an hour or so as more refreshing would usually get us what we wanted. It's pretty impossible to get on everything if you have two (or more) hours between every reservation. It's such an adrenaline rush to be refreshing and refreshing and suddenly get a window for something like Big Thunder in the afternoon in just 10 minutes, it was like a game to us. I know not everyone wants to be "glued" to their phone, but an average of 5 minutes of refreshing per ride for us meant we barely waited in any lines. Most lines this weekend were well over an hour so I would rather be on my phone for 5-10 minutes on a bench than wait in those lines. Our feet were noticeably less sore these days since we didn't stand in long lines.
> 
> We did the same thing for mobile order dining windows, refreshing until we got an immediate window.
> 
> We did a half day at MK today without Genie+ because we left early and it was dreadful, we barely rode anything. I definitely think it's a must for MK and HS unless you want to spend half the day in lines.
> 
> We did not do Genie+ in Epcot or AK and were fine with that decision, though we have gone enough times that we don't feel the need to get on everything anymore. I might lean towards getting it if I wanted to ride Frozen, but we just skipped it this trip as we did not rope drop or do early entry at Epcot.


Great tips! Question, which rides did you book first for MK and HS? Did you prioritize popular rides (e.g. SDD) or just go for whatever was available soonest? I keep changing my mind as to what might be the best strategy!


----------



## Westerner

Disneyhanna said:


> We found having your first reservation well before 11:00 (for a 9AM open) was key, as you could scan into the ride and then make a new reservation before everyone else as 11:00, thus getting you "ahead" for the day.


This.  Getting a key LL booking to start the day with return time before park open+2 hrs sets you up for success b/c you get your 2nd pick before everyone else.


----------



## Disneyhanna

AquaGlitter said:


> Great tips! Question, which rides did you book first for MK and HS? Did you prioritize popular rides (e.g. SDD) or just go for whatever was available soonest? I keep changing my mind as to what might be the best strategy!



My memory isn't perfect but I'll try to recall!

HS: I always prioritize SDD! If you're not confident at booking exactly at 7:00, I think I might rope drop this (assuming you do not rope drop RotR) as I imagine this is the fastest to go and a late return time isn't great as it forces you to wait out the 120 minute rule from the start. The strategy after that was to prioritize time > popular rides. We ended up getting Aliens for 1:05 next, which was over two hours out unfortunately but we were able to snag an early afternoon time for Runaway Railway after waiting our 120 minutes. After scanning into Aliens we basically got incredibly lucky to get an immediate Smuggler's Run so did Aliens, Runaway Railway, and Smugglers within an hour. We booked Frozen show next as it was basically immediate after that and nothing else was available. We saw lots of 6:00 return times for TSM but we were not going to be in the park that late. Saw 8:00 return times for stuff like RnRC but again we were not going to be there that late. Looking back we probably should have refreshed more instead of taking Aliens but it still worked really well for us.

MK: We actually did poorly at the start of this day, our strategy wasn't great but we eventually got on track. We did the 10k and weren't sure what time we'd make it into the parks, so I booked a Space Mountain window for somewhere around 1PM just after 7am (during the race ). I didn't book 7 on the dot as I didn't want an early window. We ended up making it to the park just before 11 (I think) and we regretted not having any earlier times. At 11:00 we booked the first Splash we saw which was about 3PM, as this was a priority ride for us given the hot weather. Again, maybe not a great decision because it meant we still had 2 hours before our Space window and another two hours after that until Splash. We had a breakthrough when we waited 45 minutes in standby for Pooh and it went down and we got anytime passes, which made our future plans more flexible since we knew we could get one one "good" ride that we didn't get a Genie+ for. We eventually were able to start stacking more FPs and I think I refreshed for some early-mid afternoon times for Big Thunder, Haunted Mansion, Buzz, and Pirates. I just took whichever of these "bigger" rides had the soonest time. Looking back at the day overall, I would definitely prioritize getting immediate windows as you can just get more done that way rather than being stuck on the 120-minute schedule. I had great luck refreshing for the bigger rides in the afternoon and so I regretted taking such late times for Space Mountain and Splash, when we could have been riding some of the smaller stuff like Pooh or Buzz much earlier in the day back-to-back.


----------



## AquaGlitter

Disneyhanna said:


> My memory isn't perfect but I'll try to recall!
> 
> HS: I always prioritize SDD! If you're not confident at booking exactly at 7:00, I think I might rope drop this (assuming you do not rope drop RotR) as I imagine this is the fastest to go and a late return time isn't great as it forces you to wait out the 120 minute rule from the start. The strategy after that was to prioritize time > popular rides. We ended up getting Aliens for 1:05 next, which was over two hours out unfortunately but we were able to snag an early afternoon time for Runaway Railway after waiting our 120 minutes. After scanning into Aliens we basically got incredibly lucky to get an immediate Smuggler's Run so did Aliens, Runaway Railway, and Smugglers within an hour. We booked Frozen show next as it was basically immediate after that and nothing else was available. We saw lots of 6:00 return times for TSM but we were not going to be in the park that late. Saw 8:00 return times for stuff like RnRC but again we were not going to be there that late. Looking back we probably should have refreshed more instead of taking Aliens but it still worked really well for us.
> 
> MK: We actually did poorly at the start of this day, our strategy wasn't great but we eventually got on track. We did the 10k and weren't sure what time we'd make it into the parks, so I booked a Space Mountain window for somewhere around 1PM just after 7am (during the race ). I didn't book 7 on the dot as I didn't want an early window. We ended up making it to the park just before 11 (I think) and we regretted not having any earlier times. At 11:00 we booked the first Splash we saw which was about 3PM, as this was a priority ride for us given the hot weather. Again, maybe not a great decision because it meant we still had 2 hours before our Space window and another two hours after that until Splash. We had a breakthrough when we waited 45 minutes in standby for Pooh and it went down and we got anytime passes, which made our future plans more flexible since we knew we could get one one "good" ride that we didn't get a Genie+ for. We eventually were able to start stacking more FPs and I think I refreshed for some early-mid afternoon times for Big Thunder, Haunted Mansion, Buzz, and Pirates. I just took whichever of these "bigger" rides had the soonest time. Looking back at the day overall, I would definitely prioritize getting immediate windows as you can just get more done that way rather than being stuck on the 120-minute schedule. I had great luck refreshing for the bigger rides in the afternoon and so I regretted taking such late times for Space Mountain and Splash, when we could have been riding some of the smaller stuff like Pooh or Buzz much earlier in the day back-to-back.


This was incredibly helpful thank you! Good on you for dealing with all that after a race


----------



## mateezy

I’m going to HS in a few days with a group of 8. Accounts are linked, but we all bought our tickets separately. Can I get Genie+ for everyone or does each person need to get it on their own?


----------



## wisblue

mjf said:


> How are you able to check the return times on the tip board without a reservation. I think I am missing some important sticky or FAQ? My tip board says "Something went Wrong" try again.



The “Something Went Wrong” error messages come up occasionally. Refreshing or closing then reopening the app should take care of that.

Normally you can check standby wait times and LL return times without a park reservation.


----------



## Avery&Todd

Question - I was chatting with a friend yesterday who has just returned from Disney last week and I told her for Epcot that our plan was to book an ILL$ for Rat, and then get a G+ for TT and then go to Frozen first and hope we can ride Frozen and then back track to TT to ride it before (1.) the non-resort guests are let in and (2.) before our G+ time so we can ride it twice...

and she said that TT can be down a lot in the am and therefore my G+ could turn into an "anytime" FP - in that case can I still book another G+ for TT since I technically never used my G+?

thanks!


----------



## CarolynFH

mateezy said:


> I’m going to HS in a few days with a group of 8. Accounts are linked, but we all bought our tickets separately. Can I get Genie+ for everyone or does each person need to get it on their own?


As long as you can see them in your F&F list and are set to plan with/for them, you’re good. Be aware that if you book an ILL$ for everyone, the cost will be charged to your payment method, and y’all will have to work out the compensation process.


----------



## mjf

wisblue said:


> The “Something Went Wrong” error messages come up occasionally. Refreshing or closing then reopening the app should take care of that.
> 
> Normally you can check standby wait times and LL return times without a park reservation.



I've refreshed multiple times and restarted app. I can see current wait times but I can't see LL return times in the Genie page.


----------



## wisblue

mjf said:


> I've refreshed multiple times and restarted app. I can see current wait times but I can't see LL return times in the Genie page.



If that happened to me I would first make sure I had the latest version of the app installed. Then I would sign out of the app and sign back in (Not just close and reopen it) If that still didn’t work I would delete and reinstall the app to see what happens.

Anything beyond that is out of my pay grade.


----------



## BOST99

My experience last week was rough.  We used Genie+ in HS and MK.  We rope dropped Rise (waited 45 mins) and Remy (waited 30 mins).

Our troubles were with the technology.  We had a variety of phones, iPhone, Google Pixel, Samsung S9+, and Genie+ would only work on the iPhone.  All apps were updated.  It was very frustrating and essentially useless on Android.

We couldn't do anything with our booked experiences but view.  If we had to cancel or make a new one could only use the iPhone. Unfortunately it took our first park day at HS to figure that out so a total waste of money. 

Yesterday was tough to get service in MK.  I think too many people in the park all trying to use the same network.


----------



## MMSM

wisblue said:


> If that happened to me I would first make sure I had the latest version of the app installed. Then I would sign out of the app and sign back in (Not just close and reopen it) If that still didn’t work I would delete and reinstall the app to see what happens.
> 
> Anything beyond that is out of my pay grade.


When I practice this has happened a lot to me. But only for HS. Never freezes or glitches for other parks. It’s got me worried about day of.  It locked me out for about 3 min and when went back into HS stuff was gone.


----------



## mjf

I've uninstalled and reinstalled the app but getting same results. I can see my park and hotel reservations, friends, current wait times, etc..  But still getting "something went wrong" on tips page. I have a new pixel 6 Android which is up to date.  I'm located in Canada right now if that matters.. Really really hoping I am misunderstanding something. I want to get familiar with the app now so we are prepared for our trip in March. Appreciate any help anyone can provide. Thank you!


----------



## Brian1403

Does anyone know if I can book LL reservations starting at 7am on the day we arrive if we are not checking in to our resort until 2pm? Hoping we can get some for later in the day.


----------



## wisblue

Brian1403 said:


> Does anyone know if I can book LL reservations starting at 7am on the day we arrive if we are not checking in to our resort until 2pm? Hoping we can get some for later in the day.



Yes, you can. We have done that.


----------



## wisblue

MMSM said:


> When I practice this has happened a lot to me. But only for HS. Never freezes or glitches for other parks. It’s got me worried about day of.  It locked me out for about 3 min and when went back into HS stuff was gone.



I have had it happen a couple of times when playing at home right at 7AM. I have attributed it to heavy traffic. If it spins for more than about 10 seconds I close and reopen the app because after that long the next thing to open up usually seems to be the “Something Went Wrong” page.


----------



## Tom_E_D

mjf said:


> I've uninstalled and reinstalled the app but getting same results. I can see my park and hotel reservations, friends, current wait times, etc..  But still getting "something went wrong" on tips page. I have a new pixel 6 Android which is up to date.  I'm located in Canada right now if that matters.. Really really hoping I am misunderstanding something. I want to get familiar with the app now so we are prepared for our trip in March. Appreciate any help anyone can provide. Thank you!


You are not the first Canadian to report a tip board problem on this thread. See post 1644 on page 83. There may have been others.


----------



## MainMom

mjf said:


> I've uninstalled and reinstalled the app but getting same results. I can see my park and hotel reservations, friends, current wait times, etc..  But still getting "something went wrong" on tips page. I have a new pixel 6 Android which is up to date.  I'm located in Canada right now if that matters.. Really really hoping I am misunderstanding something. I want to get familiar with the app now so we are prepared for our trip in March. Appreciate any help anyone can provide. Thank you!


I have read here (not personally experienced) both Canadians and android users having issues.


----------



## mjf

MainMom said:


> I have read here (not personally experienced) both Canadians and android users having issues.



Thank you for this.. a couple of things we have figured out in case this helps anyone who is trying to use the Tips board while still in Canada or elsewhere..

- Android phones while in Canada can't access Tips board. We got an error using Cell Data and home wifi.  3 different Android phones, all running the latest app. Error "something went wrong"  
- iPad using same home wifi in Canada works  
- Android phone using activated US AT&T SIM while still located in Canada also works  

We only have one US SIM card so hoping there are no issues with the other 2 Android phones using Disney wifi once we are there.

Thanks everyone!


----------



## Avery&Todd

Avery&Todd said:


> Question - I was chatting with a friend yesterday who has just returned from Disney last week and I told her for Epcot that our plan was to book an ILL$ for Rat, and then get a G+ for TT and then go to Frozen first and hope we can ride Frozen and then back track to TT to ride it before (1.) the non-resort guests are let in and (2.) before our G+ time so we can ride it twice...
> 
> and she said that TT can be down a lot in the am and therefore my G+ could turn into an "anytime" FP - in that case can I still book another G+ for TT since I technically never used my G+?
> 
> thanks!



Excuse me....anyone happen to know the answer to my question...


----------



## scrappinginontario

[


Avery&Todd said:


> Question - I was chatting with a friend yesterday who has just returned from Disney last week and I told her for Epcot that our plan was to book an ILL$ for Rat, and then get a G+ for TT and then go to Frozen first and hope we can ride Frozen and then back track to TT to ride it before (1.) the non-resort guests are let in and (2.) before our G+ time so we can ride it twice...
> 
> and she said that TT can be down a lot in the am and therefore my G+ could turn into an "anytime" FP - in that case can I still book another G+ for TT since I technically never used my G+?
> 
> thanks!


This heat map shows Test Track for Feb.  Grey means it was closed/down.  Please note many days the park didn’t open until 9:00 so Grey in the first block does not always equal the ride being down.


----------



## Avery&Todd

scrappinginontario said:


> [
> 
> This heat map shows Test Track for Feb.  Grey means it was closed/down.  Please note many days the park didn’t open until 9:00 so Grey in the first block does not always equal the ride bring down.
> View attachment 651279



I appreciate that information but I guess my real question was:  If a ride goes down and your G+ changes to an anytime pass, can you then get another G+ for that same ride if there are remaining G+ to get or have you used up your one G+ per applicable ride?


----------



## ckelly14

Can you have multiple people signed into the same account at 7AM looking for different options, or does everyone need to be on their own account?  Going with kids that don't have their own account but there are a wiz with iPhones!


----------



## scrappinginontario

Avery&Todd said:


> I appreciate that information but I guess my real question was:  If a ride goes down and your G+ changes to an anytime pass, can you then get another G+ for that same ride if there are remaining G+ to get or have you used up your one G+ per applicable ride?


You may only get 1 G+ for an attraction per day.  If it goes down and you are given an anytime pass you can wait and use it for the original attraction (TT for you) if it comes ba k up or, a different eligible attraction. If you use the replacement anytime LL for a different attraction you will need to wait in standby if you wish to ride the original attraction you had a LL for.  In your example TT.


ckelly14 said:


> Can you have multiple people signed into the same account at 7AM looking for different options, or does everyone need to be on their own account?  Going with kids that don't have their own account but there are a wiz with iPhones!


You can have multiple people signed into the same account.

The *Everything Genie… thread* explains the new system in great detail in the first few posts.


----------



## flipflopmom

So we just added G+ to our length of stay tickets. DH convinced me that since we planned for half of them already to go ahead and add it so it would just be there and done. Overwhelming.

Pertinent details: June 18-24. 6 day park hopper tickets only planning 2 ADR, one for being on a rest day so very flexible. Not our first rodeo, kids 15 and 22(former DCP). We like rope drop, summer heat break, close. 

1. ROTR at least once is a priority. Theoretically plan to try for this every morning. So, if DHS isnt our first park, should the strategy be to have one person trying for this and one trying for first available in morning park? If we get Rise, start stacking for DHS for that pm?

2.We will try tap and go at MK on our second day and don’t plan to hop that day so we will see how that goes.


3. If we don’t get ROTR- does anyone anywhere have a good strategy for figuring best park to hop to - should we try to base on G+ availability? Ex: no ROTR. Start Epcot. Best to try to get FEA, TT there and then see what the evening availability is looking like at other parks around 11? What are the chances of having both of those before noon?

I just know someone out there more analytically minded than me can figure this out. I’m usually a down to the hour planner and the idea of going with the flow and flexibility is both daunting and exhilarating.


----------



## wisblue

When you say you will theoretically try for ROTR every morning is that because you want to do it multiple times?

If you follow the tips on the board for continuing to look for ROTR even after they first run out in the first minute there is a high probability that you can get one any day that you want one.

In short, some additional slots for ROTR generally appear around 7:10 and a few other times between 7 and 8.


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

flipflopmom said:


> So we just added G+ to our length of stay tickets. DH convinced me that since we planned for half of them already to go ahead and add it so it would just be there and done. Overwhelming.
> 
> Pertinent details: June 18-24. 6 day park hopper tickets only planning 2 ADR, one for being on a rest day so very flexible. Not our first rodeo, kids 15 and 22(former DCP). We like rope drop, summer heat break, close.
> 
> 1. ROTR at least once is a priority. Theoretically plan to try for this every morning. So, if DHS isnt our first park, should the strategy be to have one person trying for this and one trying for first available in morning park? If we get Rise, start stacking for DHS for that pm?
> 
> 2.We will try tap and go at MK on our second day and don’t plan to hop that day so we will see how that goes.
> 
> 
> 3. If we don’t get ROTR- does anyone anywhere have a good strategy for figuring best park to hop to - should we try to base on G+ availability? Ex: no ROTR. Start Epcot. Best to try to get FEA, TT there and then see what the evening availability is looking like at other parks around 11? What are the chances of having both of those before noon?
> 
> I just know someone out there more analytically minded than me can figure this out. I’m usually a down to the hour planner and the idea of going with the flow and flexibility is both daunting and exhilarating.



Also keep in mind that the shortest waits of the day are generally just before closing time.

For example, last Friday Rise had an actual reported wait of 20 minutes about a half hour before park close. The posted wait at the time was 55.

This may be a viable option.


----------



## MinnieInVA

My experience with the ILL last week was that they would generally all initially disappear within less than a minute. However, all is not lost. I also noted that a large amount of additional ILL times would drop between 7:11 and 7:18. Keep refreshing during that time frame and you’ll likely get one. This happened on ROTR, SDMT, and Remy for me, and I was successful in grabbing ILLs on that second drop.



AquaGlitter said:


> Was playing around the app this morning (practicing for our April trip) and trying to load the HWS Tip board I got an error message. I did this at exactly 7:00AM and by the time I stopped getting an error message at 7:02 there was no more ROTR LL+ left.
> 
> Anyone know what this might be? Was it just an app glitch or specific to me? I recently added genie+ to my trip so wondering if that has anything to do with it. I will keep checking and practicing of course but now I’m stressed about this happening on our trip (we have two Hollywood studios days but still).The amount of time I’ve put into strategizing genie + is embarrassing lol.


----------



## flipflopmom

wisblue said:


> When you say you will theoretically try for ROTR every morning is that because you want to do it multiple times?


There is a chance DH may want to do it twice, but I’m just thinking of the worst case scenarios if not getting it on the day I really want it. 


Babe the Blue Ox said:


> This may be a viable option.


Sorry, got backspace happy. My family prefers slinky at night, so it’s usually our closing park ride. But may use this as a back pocket option, also.


----------



## Mrs~Incredible

Remind me please- if a ride is down during your genie plus window, are they giving the multi-experience pass to replace it? I know they did in November but I feel like I read somewhere that they don’t anymore….


----------



## scrappinginontario

Mrs~Incredible said:


> Remind me please- if a ride is down during your genie plus window, are they giving the multi-experience pass to replace it? I know they did in November but I feel like I read somewhere that they don’t anymore….


Yes they do.  It happened to us last month when Toy Story Mania was down during our window.  We could use it on anything except RotR or SDD.


----------



## Westerner

wisblue said:


> When you say you will theoretically try for ROTR every morning is that because you want to do it multiple times?
> 
> If you follow the tips on the board for continuing to look for ROTR even after they first run out in the first minute there is a high probability that you can get one any day that you want one.
> 
> In short, some additional slots for ROTR generally appear around 7:10 and a few other times between 7 and 8.


I concur assuming you are staying onsite.


----------



## mjf

FYI, response from Disney Support regarding Canadian Android issues 

_



			Thanks for contacting the Digital Guest Experience team.

We're sorry to hear about the troubles you're having with Disney Genie. We are aware of the issue you are reporting, and our technical teams are hard at work resolving this issue in a future update. 

Meanwhile, you may wish to view the Map (second tab on on bottom menu) in order to view Wait Times for attractions or view dining locations. When you're in-park please turn on the Disney-WiFi in order for your app to recognize you're in the US.
		
Click to expand...

_


----------



## Tom_E_D

scrappinginontario said:


> Yes they do.  It happened to us last month when Toy Story Mania was down during our window.  We could use it on anything except RotR or SDD.


In post 3 of the Everything Genie, (etc.) thread it says:

- If an attraction goes down during the time which you hold a Genie+ LL booking for, you will be automatically given an 'Anytime LL' pass that is good for any non-ILL$ G+ attraction from that time until park closing. 

In the post I am replying to, it says the 'Anytime LL' wasn't good for SDD, which is not an ILL$ attraction. Does anyone else have experiences with Anytime LL's not being good for other non-ILL$ attractions? If so, please let us know what attractions and perhaps we can get post 3 of the Everything Genie, (etc.) thread updated/corrected.


----------



## Westerner

Tom_E_D said:


> In post 3 of the Everything Genie, (etc.) thread it says:
> 
> - If an attraction goes down during the time which you hold a Genie+ LL booking for, you will be automatically given an 'Anytime LL' pass that is good for any non-ILL$ G+ attraction from that time until park closing.
> 
> In the post I am replying to, it says the 'Anytime LL' wasn't good for SDD, which is not an ILL$ attraction. Does anyone else have experiences with Anytime LL's not being good for other non-ILL$ attractions? If so, please let us know what attractions and perhaps we can get post 3 of the Everything Genie, (etc.) thread updated/corrected.


I can add a bit from my experience.  BTMR went down and my LL was converted to an anytime LL good for a selection of ~5 MK rides but not all eg I don't think JC or PP were included.  HM was, not sure of the rest.  I remember the CM I asked saying something like it was valid for a certain tier of rides.


----------



## Disneyhanna

Westerner said:


> I can add a bit from my experience.  BTMR went down and my LL was converted to an anytime LL good for a selection of ~5 MK rides but not all eg I don't think JC or PP were included.  HM was, not sure of the rest.  I remember the CM I asked saying something like it was valid for a certain tier of rides.



We got an anytime pass after Winnie the Pooh went down and we were after the merge point, and it was good on everything but the meet and greets, Space Mountain, Peter Pan, and Jungle Cruise (and obviously 7DMT). So that must be the same "tier" as BTMR!


----------



## scrappinginontario

Tom_E_D said:


> In post 3 of the Everything Genie, (etc.) thread it says:
> 
> - If an attraction goes down during the time which you hold a Genie+ LL booking for, you will be automatically given an 'Anytime LL' pass that is good for any non-ILL$ G+ attraction from that time until park closing.
> 
> In the post I am replying to, it says the 'Anytime LL' wasn't good for SDD, which is not an ILL$ attraction. Does anyone else have experiences with Anytime LL's not being good for other non-ILL$ attractions? If so, please let us know what attractions and perhaps we can get post 3 of the Everything Genie, (etc.) thread updated/corrected.


It really depends partially on the demand of an attraction.  SDD fills its LL return time within seconds each day.  If they opened it to anyone who cad an anytime LL in a rough day in the park it would virtually grind the standby line to a halt.

I will update post one to say it is good for most non-ILL$ attractions.


----------



## DonTheDuck

Question.
I am landing in Orlando at 10am.

my expectation is to be at MK by 1pm.

So my goal is to stack a 7am, 11am, 1pm selection and get on a nice run of rides when we arrive.

7am will be tight since the plane supposedly departs soon after.

my question as a first time G+ user is how hard will it be to get a 1pm+ return time at or near 7am?

Will I have to wait quite a while? Can I select a later return time at booking?

will nothing at MK book that far out that early?

thanks for any advice on this.


----------



## scrappinginontario

DonTheDuck said:


> Question.
> I am landing in Orlando at 10am.
> 
> my expectation is to be at MK by 1pm.
> 
> So my goal is to stack a 7am, 11am, 1pm selection and get on a nice run of rides when we arrive.
> 
> 7am will be tight since the plane supposedly departs soon after.
> 
> my question as a first time G+ user is how hard will it be to get a 1pm+ return time at or near 7am?
> 
> Will I have to wait quite a while? Can I select a later return time at booking?
> 
> will nothing at MK book that far out that early?
> 
> thanks for any advice on this.


Peter Pan and Jungle Cruise will  quickly build return times.  A couple of refreshes should give you a time that works for you.  Also, with the attractions that go quickly, it’s quite likely that by the time you finalize your LL booking the time could be pushed out by a couple of hours from what you chose.


----------



## JoJoGirl

Tom_E_D said:


> In the post I am replying to, it says the 'Anytime LL' wasn't good for SDD, which is not an ILL$ attraction. Does anyone else have experiences with Anytime LL's not being good for other non-ILL$ attractions? If so, please let us know what attractions and perhaps we can get post 3 of the Everything Genie, (etc.) thread updated/corrected.



Jungle Cruise was down during my LL time innearly February, and I was given a multi-experience LL, but it could not be used for Peter Pan.  Splash was still under refurbishment that week.


----------



## brockash

Avery&Todd said:


> I appreciate that information but I guess my real question was:  If a ride goes down and your G+ changes to an anytime pass, can you then get another G+ for that same ride if there are remaining G+ to get or have you used up your one G+ per applicable ride?


I don't think you'd be able to.  I haven't trued so can't say 100%, but it seems to me the system would have already counted as you got a fastpass for Test Track and it wouldn't let you book again for that.


----------



## brockash

Tom_E_D said:


> In post 3 of the Everything Genie, (etc.) thread it says:
> 
> - If an attraction goes down during the time which you hold a Genie+ LL booking for, you will be automatically given an 'Anytime LL' pass that is good for any non-ILL$ G+ attraction from that time until park closing.
> 
> In the post I am replying to, it says the 'Anytime LL' wasn't good for SDD, which is not an ILL$ attraction. Does anyone else have experiences with Anytime LL's not being good for other non-ILL$ attractions? If so, please let us know what attractions and perhaps we can get post 3 of the Everything Genie, (etc.) thread updated/corrected.


Yes, last week MMRR went down as we were about to load.  They scanned an anytime pass, but said it was not good for RoTR nor ToT.  ToT is NOT an ILL, but we could not use it there.

In the past, before Genie, this was also common.  I've had an anytime pass not be available at 7DMT, Slinky and TT.  This was all before Genie, but I believe it shows Disney's tendency to donthos when they feel it's appropriate.


----------



## Steve19842015

Let’s say I’m ready to book my next G+. I keep reading that if you continue to search you might eventually find something decent to grab. Would
It be best to pick an attraction as soon as I’m available to pick my best Genie+ and then continue to search within the app for a better option or is it better just to keep refreshing until you see the Genie+ attraction that you’re happy with even if it takes 10-15 mins of refreshing? I heard that modifying your existing G+ Is not very intuitive. That you will need to cancel your G+ first and then take the chance to book. That better attar ruin with the possibility of not getting it in time. Hope this makes sense.


----------



## Jangles

There is no modify option, only cancel and hope! If you look at the recent TP blogs, they chart which G+ attractions run out first. That may help you to decide.


----------



## cjlong88

I think this will all be personal preference, so you are about to get a wide variety of answers based on recent experiences.

Short answer (if it were me) is to refresh until I actually find what I want. Now this comes with a caveat....you have to be okay that you might refresh and what you want doesn't pop up within 10-15 minutes. In the old days of FP+ I could just grab any old FP+ and just refresh until I found something better. You had a back-up FP in case what you were looking for doesn't pop up. So in today's system, it _feels_ more risky because in order for you to grab a last-minute cancellation quickly, you can't have selected a G+ because by the time you cancel your original booking, I guarantee that the G+ you saw pop up is long gone.

Here is what I did in our last three trips and it seemed to work good for us. When my next booking window opens, I would check availability and grab something. But if I really wanted a different attraction, what I would do is select my preferred attraction as my only ride preference in the Tip Board so it was pinned to the top of the page and I would begin to refresh. If I see that availability would pop up and go away once or twice, I would cancel my original booking and start refreshing. You can't hesitate, and you would have to be okay with whatever time you are offered, especially if your attraction of choice has no availability showing. On the other hand, if you select an attraction, then refresh the Tip Board for awhile as you look for your preferred ride and nothing is popping up, then you can decide to just keep whatever you originally selected. No harm, no foul.

I've done this on our last three trips and was able to snag LL's for rides such as Test Track, Toy Story Mania, and Big Thunder after refreshing. But beware, as YMMV. Sometimes the refresh would only take a few minutes. Sometimes it took longer. This is exactly like FP+ in the sense that those who don't give up refreshing will see the most last minute cancellations. Patience and persistence are key. I think most people don't have the patience for this, especially on vacation, so they give up after a minute or two. But for me I have no problem refreshing for 20-30 minutes if it saves me 2+ hours of waiting in a standby line for a popular attraction, especially if I'm refreshing while waiting in another line, transporting from park to resort, or just chilling in the hotel. Others won't see the value in that, however.


----------



## lockets

When I canx my selection and rebooked something else it would reset the 2 hour time clock until my next selection. After that happened I didn’t modify (ie canx and rebook)  anymore. Just selected from what happened to be there within the first few minutes of me refreshing.

This was a little later on, of course. At 7 AM I took what was there immediately before rides sold out.


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## LSUmiss

I thought I read that Ill adds more times in the beginning every so often? Mine train was showing booked at 7:02am this morning. Will more become  available? If so, when should I check again?


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## glocon

LSUmiss said:


> I thought I read that Ill adds more times in the beginning every so often? Mine train was showing booked at 7:02am this morning. Will more become  available? If so, when should I check again?


From what I’ve read here, check again at 7:10ish. Sorry it’s after that time already.


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## Miffy

We're here right now. Fellow DISers--keep checking! Yesterday morning we thought we were sold out of ILL$ for RotR at 7. The system took too long to process my payment so it never went through, and then there were no more times available. This was at maybe 45 seconds after 7 am. But we kept refreshing and at 7:17 or so new times for RotR started showing up. We took the first one we saw--11:25 am--and got it.

Also, another note: If you have data, turn off your Wi-Fi. I had a much faster response time on MDE using data than Wi-Fi. I'm on the AT&T network, btw.

We've been able to get pretty much everything we wanted, just not necessarily at the time we wanted it. That part is frustrating. The other thing we noticed yesterday was that at 11 am (2 hours after DHS opened) the times for the next G+ ride we were trying to book (TSM) increased very very fast. I booked 2:50 and got 3:10. About 10 seconds later, the next available time was well after 4 pm.


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## Westerner

.


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## TheBigErn

Disney has made it such that many of us will spend our time in the parks with our heads buried in our phones instead of enjoying the parks.


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## glocon

Westerner said:


> Generally SDMT is available after the initial 7AM rush subsides.  I'd try between 7:15-8:15 if staying on site.  According to thrilldata there is fairly consistent availability during those times, see below.  If staying offsite booking right at 9AM seems to be the most consistent.  That's when we got ours over the holidays, we were in the car, DD had my phone and booked it.
> 
> View attachment 651750


On that thrill data map, does the green signify lots of availability, yellow and orange less availability and red even less availability? And the grey areas no availability?
Thanks for an explanation!


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## DonTheDuck

scrappinginontario said:


> Peter Pan and Jungle Cruise will  quickly build return times.  A couple of refreshes should give you a time that works for you.  Also, with the attractions that go quickly, it’s quite likely that by the time you finalize your LL booking the time could be pushed out by a couple of hours from what you chose.



Thank you.  Is there any ability to select later return times if they are available for either the ILL’s or the G+ rides?  I assume not correct ?

do you think 7:10 will give me an afternoon shot for jungle cruise? (That’s take off time)

I would also like to nab Snow White for the afternoon at that point ideally.


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## Tom_E_D

glocon said:


> On that thrill data map, does the green signify lots of availability, yellow and orange less availability and red even less availability? And the grey areas no availability?
> Thanks for an explanation!


From the Thrill-Data website: "This graph indicates Lightning Lane availability at Walt Disney World. A non-gray color indicates that Genie+ Lightning Lane or Individual Lightning Lane can be purchased, and the return time. Greener colors indicate return times earlier in the day were available; orange to red indicates return times later in the day were available. Hover over items to see the current return time in 24 hour decimal notation. "


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## Westerner

.


----------



## scrappinginontario

DonTheDuck said:


> Thank you.  Is there any ability to select later return times if they are available for either the ILL’s or the G+ rides?  I assume not correct ?
> 
> do you think 7:10 will give me an afternoon shot for jungle cruise? (That’s take off time)
> 
> I would also like to nab Snow White for the afternoon at that point ideally.


I would anticipate yes re: grabbing times before takeoff for attractions where LL fill quickly.  E.g. We wanted an afternoon for SDD.  I was online right at 7AM, pulled down to refresh my screen twice (so maybe 10 seconds total?) and already times were in the afternoon.  I grabbed one at approx 7:00:10 and got a return time after 3:00PM.  Hopefully you'll be able to get afternoon for Jungle Cruise but it will depend on the day as it doesn't fill as quickly as SDD does.  Just keep trying is my only suggestion.  Sorry.

Re: Snow White are you asking about Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (SCMT)?  Only asking because Disneyland has a Snow White attraction and their G+ and ILL$ is very different at DL than WDW.

If you're asking about SDMT, you will see the earliest time available on the screen but when you click in to purchase it you will be offered more times to select from so can choose a later time.


----------



## MMSM

I have followed this board for a long time. I have read the first pages too, so please forgive me. I have an April trip and just want to make sure I know what to do.  
1.) everything I read is to grabl the next LL after double tapping into attraction. Is that just to get the quickest next available or is there a short window that is avail that will close if you don’t grab one.  Or can I ride the ride and then do LL after the ride?
2.) I Am worried that if my party of 4 are at HS and two of us grab a ToT for 9:45 and two of us do RnRc for 10:00 how will that affect the next genie plus that I want to book for all four at same time do I just wait til the people get off at 10?  does this mess it up


----------



## glocon

Westerner said:


> No, the color spectrum indicates return time.  Green (early) => Yellow => Orange => Red (late) => Grey (none)
> Any color block other than Grey means there was LL availability, it's a question of how early a return time.
> 
> Generally the color progresses along the spectrum over time on a given day as LL's sell out.  But.  When the color goes the other direction (eg from Orange to Yellow, or Grey to any color) it's a sign that new LL availability got added.  That's how you can find drop patterns.


That is a great explanation- thank you!


----------



## HydroGuy

MMSM said:


> 1.) everything I read is to grabl the next LL after double tapping into attraction. Is that just to get the quickest next available or is there a short window that is avail that will close if you don’t grab one.  Or can I ride the ride and then do LL after the ride?


After you double-tap or any time after that you can try for a new G+. Most do it right away because of the high demand.



MMSM said:


> 2.) I Am worried that if my party of 4 are at HS and two of us grab a ToT for 9:45 and two of us do RnRc for 10:00 how will that affect the next genie plus that I want to book for all four at same time do I just wait til the people get off at 10?  does this mess it up


That is going to be complicated because the new G+ system does a very poor job of you giving you a choice on when to ride. That you can get a G+ split (2 people each for 2 rides) both ToT and RnR at the same window (or for any two rides, for that matter) will be virtually impossible.


----------



## MMSM

HydroGuy said:


> After you double-tap or any time after that you can try for a new G+. Most do it right away because of the high demand.
> 
> That is going to be complicated because the new G+ system does a very poor job of you giving you a choice on when to ride. That you can get a G+ split (2 people each for 2 rides) both ToT and RnR at the same window (or for any two rides, for that matter) will be virtually impossible.


Thanks. Appreciate the advice.


----------



## HydroGuy

MMSM said:


> Thanks. Appreciate the advice.


Also make sure you understand the 2 hour rule for getting a FP. It is either that or the double-tap on the most recently reserved ride, whichever is first.


----------



## MMSM

HydroGuy said:


> Also make sure you understand the 2 hour rule for getting a FP. It is either that or the double-tap on the most recently reserved ride, whichever is first.


Right. So if I have a ride for LL for 10:45 (that I made at 7am). Park opens at 8:30.  I enter park and at 10:30 I can make a new LL (2 hour rule) then I tap in at 10:45 and I can make another?


----------



## DisTXMom

MMSM said:


> Right. So if I have a ride for LL for 10:45 (that I made at 7am). Park opens at 8:30.  I enter park and at 10:30 I can make a new LL (2 hour rule) then I tap in at 10:45 and I can make another?


No, once you make a new LL, your next time to make one will be tied to that most recently made one (so after you double tap into the one you make at 1030 or at 1230, whichever is earliest)


----------



## scrappinginontario

MMSM said:


> I have followed this board for a long time. I have read the first pages too, so please forgive me. I have an April trip and just want to make sure I know what to do.
> 1.) everything I read is to grabl the next LL after double tapping into attraction. Is that just to get the quickest next available or is there a short window that is avail that will close if you don’t grab one.  Or can I ride the ride and then do LL after the ride?
> 2.) I Am worried that if my party of 4 are at HS and two of us grab a ToT for 9:45 and two of us do RnRc for 10:00 how will that affect the next genie plus that I want to book for all four at same time do I just wait til the people get off at 10?  does this mess it up


Post 5 of the *Everything Genie thread* explains it clearly.  It was what I used as my guide when we went last month and it worked really well.


----------



## Tom_E_D

MMSM said:


> Right. So if I have a ride for LL for 10:45 (that I made at 7am). Park opens at 8:30.  I enter park and at 10:30 I can make a new LL (2 hour rule) then I tap in at 10:45 and I can make another?


Back in October and early November, you could indeed have made new LL reservations at the 2-hour mark and upon later tap-in. However, it was pretty obviously an unintended loophole. Disney got around to fixing it shortly before Thanksgiving. Beware any videos and blogposts about Genie+ that were made in October. The system has changed since then.


----------



## DonTheDuck

scrappinginontario said:


> I would anticipate yes re: grabbing times before takeoff for attractions where LL fill quickly.  E.g. We wanted an afternoon for SDD.  I was online right at 7AM, pulled down to refresh my screen twice (so maybe 10 seconds total?) and already times were in the afternoon.  I grabbed one at approx 7:00:10 and got a return time after 3:00PM.  Hopefully you'll be able to get afternoon for Jungle Cruise but it will depend on the day as it doesn't fill as quickly as SDD does.  Just keep trying is my only suggestion.  Sorry.
> 
> Re: Snow White are you asking about Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (SCMT)?  Only asking because Disneyland has a Snow White attraction and their G+ and ILL$ is very different at DL than WDW.
> 
> If you're asking about SDMT, you will see the earliest time available on the screen but when you click in to purchase it you will be offered more times to select from so can choose a later time.



yes SDMT, thank you much !


----------



## MMSM

scrappinginontario said:


> Post 5 of the *Everything Genie thread* explains it clearly.  It was what I used as my guide when we went last month and it worked really well.


These boards are amazing!  Not only are they informative, but they get me so excited for the trip! Thanks.


----------



## TinkBink

For a morning at HS, which ride am I most likely to get a 9 am Genie+ for? MMRR, TT or MFSR? I have been studying the drops and I'm trying to organize a strategy where I book Genie+ rides right after using them but it's pretty dependent on actually getting a 9 am!


----------



## HydroGuy

TinkBink said:


> For a morning at HS, which ride am I most likely to get a 9 am Genie+ for? MMRR, TT or MFSR? I have been studying the drops and I'm trying to organize a strategy where I book Genie+ rides right after using them but it's pretty dependent on actually getting a 9 am!


Usually when I see TT I think Test Track (at Epcot) but I think you mean Tower to Terror (usually I see ToT for that).

I am in the same boat as you. I have gathered that while G+ is in the current state of operation I will be better off trying to get my first G+ (I will call that G+ #1) that has a window opening before the 2 hour after park opening rule kicks in. So here is the strategy I plan to follow:

At 7AM try and get G+ #1 with a window that opens before 11AM (the 2 hour point on my day)
Use G+ #1 before 11AM so I can book G+ #2 before 11AM after I double-tap
That should allow better access to G+ #3 before 1PM (the 2 hour rule after G+ #2)
Like me, it sounds like you will not try to get SDD with G+ #1. Since that appears to be by far the most popular choice for #1, that gives you and me an advantage over many other G+ users.

Here was the heat map from yesterday at Thrill-data...
https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/park/wdw/hollywood-studios/2022/03/03/2022/03/03/False
Based on this data below it shows that MMRR was the least in demand of the three you mentioned and I would guess the most likely to have a G+ #1 available in the first 2 hours.

Two screen shots of the same data. One for all day and one only for early day when G+ usage is most critical.


----------



## g-dad66

Working on the same strategy for one of our two DHS days (we'll do Slinky the other day).

Plan to do Rock n Roller Coaster at 8:00 EE and expecting little wait for that.  Since we are that end of the park, I figure that Tower of Terror 8:30-ish LL makes the most sense.  (Will probably do Lightning McQueen at 8:30 if Tower of Terror LL not till 9:00-ish).

Will get 2nd LL for either MMRR or MFSR.  The tricky part is the 3rd LL.  Will either of those still be available at 11:00-ish.  Looking pretty doubtful especially for our week which is the week mostly sold out.


----------



## TinkBink

HydroGuy said:


> Usually when I see TT I think Test Track (at Epcot) but I think you mean Tower to Terror (usually I see ToT for that).
> 
> I am in the same boat as you. I have gathered that while G+ is in the current state of operation I will be better off trying to get my first G+ (I will call that G+ #1) that has a window opening before the 2 hour after park opening rule kicks in. So here is the strategy I plan to follow:
> 
> At 7AM try and get G+ #1 with a window that opens before 11AM (the 2 hour point on my day)
> Use G+ #1 before 11AM so I can book G+ #2 before 11AM after I double-tap
> That should allow better access to G+ #3 before 1PM (the 2 hour rule after G+ #2)
> Like me, it sounds like you will not try to get SDD with G+ #1. Since that appears to be by far the most popular choice for #1, that gives you and me an advantage over many other G+ users.
> 
> Here was the heat map from yesterday at Thrill-data...
> https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/park/wdw/hollywood-studios/2022/03/03/2022/03/03/False
> Based on this data below it shows that MMRR was the least in demand of the three you mentioned and I would guess the most likely to have a G+ #1 available in the first 2 hours.
> 
> Two screen shots of the same data. One for all day and one only for early day when G+ usage is most critical.
> View attachment 651951
> View attachment 651952


Thanks for that! We'll see how it goes. My 4 year old is now tall enough to ride most of the rides at HS. Unfortunately it doesn't look like we'll be able to fit in both ToT (sorry I put TT, good call!) and Slinky dog in the same day which is a bummer. Maybe she will end up not liking one of them on the first go and make our planning easier lol


----------



## cyndik1111

OH MY GOSH, I'm so overwhelmed by this long post/ changes etc and the new Genie+/ Lightning thing that you pay for. Can anyone recommend a place where I can read about these two things that Disney has introduced? Something with all the rules etc? We plan on going to WDW January 2023. Taking a Teen Star Wars nut. His life dream is to ride the rides and make a light saber. Trying to find a way that he can do this.


----------



## scrappinginontario

cyndik1111 said:


> OH MY GOSH, I'm so overwhelmed by this long post/ changes etc and the new Genie+/ Lightning thing that you pay for. Can anyone recommend a place where I can read about these two things that Disney has introduced? Something with all the rules etc? We plan on going to WDW January 2023. Taking a Teen Star Wars nut. His life dream is to ride the rides and make a light saber. Trying to find a way that he can do this.


*Everything Genie, Genie+.....*

The first 7 posts summarize things.


----------



## MainMom

cyndik1111 said:


> OH MY GOSH, I'm so overwhelmed by this long post/ changes etc and the new Genie+/ Lightning thing that you pay for. Can anyone recommend a place where I can read about these two things that Disney has introduced? Something with all the rules etc? We plan on going to WDW January 2023. Taking a Teen Star Wars nut. His life dream is to ride the rides and make a light saber. Trying to find a way that he can do this.


Also, if you aren't going until 2023, I would definitely come back and read more because hopefully they make changes for the better to this system by then. There might also be new strategies at that point.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

MainMom said:


> Also, if you aren't going until 2023, I would definitely come back and read more because hopefully they make changes for the better to this system by then. There might also be new strategies at that point.


I'm not spending too much time right now learning all the ins and outs of G+ yet for this very reason.  When it gets a little closer to our trip, I'll dig in a lot deeper to the detailed strategies, but I don't want to spend lots of time figuring out the system and then discover that they changed it before we get there and I have to "unlearn" a bunch of stuff.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Grumpy by Birth said:


> I'm not spending too much time right now learning all the ins and outs of G+ yet for this very reason.  When it gets a little closer to our trip, I'll dig in a lot deeper to the detailed strategies, but I don't want to spend lots of time figuring out the system and then discover that they changed it before we get there and I have to "unlearn" a bunch of stuff.


This makes a lot of sense!  I tried to learn about it when it first dropped in October but then had to 'relearn' it after changes were made.  Easier to wait until closer to your trip to find out what the current system and strategies are.


----------



## jbish

MMSM said:


> These boards are amazing!  Not only are they informative, but they get me so excited for the trip! Thanks.


Not to be too discouraging, but, as you read the boards more, you may also get discouraged and overwhelmed by all of the planning that is needed to get the most out of your trip.  Just be as ready as you can and try to have a great time.  I'm cautiously optimistic about our upcoming April Spring Break trip.  I'll still be at Disney World so I'm still going to have fun!


----------



## MMSM

jbish said:


> Not to be too discouraging, but, as you read the boards more, you may also get discouraged and overwhelmed by all of the planning that is needed to get the most out of your trip.  Just be as ready as you can and try to have a great time.  I'm cautiously optimistic about our upcoming April Spring Break trip.  I'll still be at Disney World so I'm still going to have fun!


I read those too and negative reviews help too. Trying to stay positive. But my family goes in knowing that during Easter it will be packed, pools crowded, and restaurants packed.  We are hoping that genie plus saves us SOME time from standing in lines.


----------



## mickeyinthehouse

Hoping someone can give me advice. We are heading to HS next Friday. The goal is to ride both Star Wars rides as we have not ridden those before. I’m willing to pay for whatever makes the most sense. We are staying onsite as we have a cheer competition. I have also heard that the cheer participants will have special extra hours at HS that night. What are my chances of getting a $LL for RofR at 7:00 and also scheduling smugglers run via Genie+?  Will I be able to schedule a late morning afternoon time for those or do you think they would be evening reservations?  We could come back for extra evening hours and maybe ride again. What would you do?


----------



## GBRforWDW

mickeyinthehouse said:


> Hoping someone can give me advice. We are heading to HS next Friday. The goal is to ride both Star Wars rides as we have not ridden those before. I’m willing to pay for whatever makes the most sense. We are staying onsite as we have a cheer competition. I have also heard that the cheer participants will have special extra hours at HS that night. What are my chances of getting a $LL for RofR at 7:00 and also scheduling smugglers run via Genie+?  Will I be able to schedule a late morning afternoon time for those or do you think they would be evening reservations?  We could come back for extra evening hours and maybe ride again. What would you do?


Here's today's Thrill Data map of Lightning Lane availability.  Looks like Millennium falcon was available until 11am, so get your RotR LL purchased first, I'd shoot for mid afternoon, then go for the millennium falcon pass and see if you can get one for nearly the same time as your RotR pass.


----------



## fireflyer

So looking at Mar.4 data, there was basically NO lightning-lane rides available AT ALL for Slinky Dog...   How is that possible?  What the heck is wrong with the I.T behind the Genie+ system?


----------



## GBRforWDW

fireflyer said:


> So looking at Mar.4 data, there was basically NO lightning-lane rides available AT ALL for Slinky Dog...   How is that possible?  What the heck is wrong with the I.T behind the Genie+ system?


They sell out in the first minute. That's how it's been since LLs were introduced.


----------



## scrappinginontario

fireflyer said:


> So looking at Mar.4 data, there was basically NO lightning-lane rides available AT ALL for Slinky Dog...   How is that possible?  What the heck is wrong with the I.T behind the Genie+ system?


They were available but they were all gone prior to 7:10AM which is the first time marker displayed on the heat map above.  All SDD LL are  filled within seconds of being released at 7AM.  After that, the only time one may become available is if someone changes their plans and drops their LL reservation to allow someone else to get it.


----------



## Stater2002

So it’s 8:18am, and there have been times for slinky and rise for the last 5 minutes


----------



## scrappinginontario

Stater2002 said:


> So it’s 8:18am, and there have been times for slinky and rise for the last 5 minutes


refreshing is your friend. 

Wish I’d remembered that when we were there last month!


----------



## jbish

MMSM said:


> I read those too and negative reviews help too. Trying to stay positive. But my family goes in knowing that during Easter it will be packed, pools crowded, and restaurants packed.  We are hoping that genie plus saves us SOME time from standing in lines.


We’ll be there the same week! We’ll send each other some positive vibes!


----------



## Lilias

So I just realized that the day I planned on using G+ to stack LLs in the evening at DHS is also the day that I'll be on my keys to the kingdom tour (on Thursday). Meaning I'll only be able to use my phone at 7 am, lunch, and after the tour is over (like 3:30ish).

It looks like there will hardly be anything available to me, so should probably just not get G+ that day? The rides I wanted to use it for the most are SDD and MMRR, with other stuff being gravy.


----------



## Team Bunch

Uncle Coaster said:


> Chincoteague





GBRforWDW said:


> Here's today's Thrill Data map of Lightning Lane availability.  Looks like Millennium falcon was available until 11am, so get your RotR LL purchased first, I'd shoot for mid afternoon, then go for the millennium falcon pass and see if you can get one for nearly the same time as your RotR pass.
> 
> View attachment 652119


You should be a itinerary planner for Disney guests!  Just looking at that data map stresses me out.  We need people like you.


----------



## wiggy500

Lilias said:


> So I just realized that the day I planned on using G+ to stack LLs in the evening at DHS is also the day that I'll be on my keys to the kingdom tour (on Thursday). Meaning I'll only be able to use my phone at 7 am, lunch, and after the tour is over (like 3:30ish).
> 
> It looks like there will hardly be anything available to me, so should probably just not get G+ that day? The rides I wanted to use it for the most are SDD and MMRR, with other stuff being gravy.



It's just before noon eastern and right now MMRR is available for a 5:30 p.m. LL.  I think there is a chance you can get both.  There's a chance you could end up with just Slinky, so the question is if that is acceptable.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Team Bunch said:


> You should be a itinerary planner for Disney guests!  Just looking at that data map stresses me out.  We need people like you.


I'm actually putting together some tips on my personal blog for planning a trip still working on it and not sure it'll help many, but fun to do

Not sure id always be able to provide specific info like that, but reviewing thrill data is pretty fun.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Lilias said:


> So I just realized that the day I planned on using G+ to stack LLs in the evening at DHS is also the day that I'll be on my keys to the kingdom tour (on Thursday). Meaning I'll only be able to use my phone at 7 am, lunch, and after the tour is over (like 3:30ish).
> 
> It looks like there will hardly be anything available to me, so should probably just not get G+ that day? The rides I wanted to use it for the most are SDD and MMRR, with other stuff being gravy.


It’s up to you but I’m not sure I would purchase G+ that day if it’s a busier day in the parks as not sure how much you’ll be able to grab at DHS by noon and 3:30.


----------



## Disturbia

Does anyone know when the Frozen Genie+ sold out today (weekend).

We have Epcot on our checkin day in a couple of weeks (Sunday) and hope to be in the park around 4:30 pm.  We were going to buy Remy, eat around the world showcase and ride Frozen (Genie+) and maybe Test Track (need to rider switch) and then line up for watching Harmonious (couldn’t watch in Nov because ADR took 2.5 hrs).


----------



## GBRforWDW

Disturbia said:


> Does anyone know when the Frozen Genie+ sold out today (weekend).
> 
> We have Epcot on our checkin day in a couple of weeks (Sunday) and hope to be in the park around 4:30 pm.  We were going to buy Remy, eat around the world showcase and ride Frozen (Genie+) and maybe Test Track (need to rider switch) and then line up for watching Harmonious (couldn’t watch in Nov because ADR took 2.5 hrs).


Here's Frozen Ever Afters availability map since switching to Genie+ last week.  Looks like some days last awhile and some go quick, but I wouldn't count on it being available at the 2 hours after park opening very often.


----------



## Disturbia

So buy Remy, get Genie+ Frozen between 7-7:30 am for 5-8 pm and then at noon (2 hrs after park opening) book Test Track.  Hope to refresh around 2 pm for something else.  

The Epcot waits in the morning don’t seem too bad, but people are probably park hopping to Epcot in the evening.  Next week due to sold out parks it will probably be the opposite as people book a Epcot as their first park and then hop to say HS.

We are going in 3 weeks and the week before Epcot opens at 8:30 am.  I signed up for Touring plans (paid).


----------



## wisblue

fireflyer said:


> So looking at Mar.4 data, there was basically NO lightning-lane rides available AT ALL for Slinky Dog...   How is that possible?  What the heck is wrong with the I.T behind the Genie+ system?



This thread has some detailed comments about getting LL slots for Slinky and ROTR.

Slinky and ROTR Genie+/ILL$ Tips and Experiences | The DIS Disney Discussion Forums - DISboards.com

I haven't spent as much time looking at other attractions in the other parks, but when I have the same pattern seems to occur.

The lesson is to not overreact to comments that things "sell out" in the first minute or panic when you're onsite and you can't get something right at 7:00.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Disturbia said:


> So buy Remy, get Genie+ Frozen between 7-7:30 am for 5-8 pm and then at noon (2 hrs after park opening) book Test Track.  Hope to refresh around 2 pm for something else.
> 
> The Epcot waits in the morning don’t seem too bad, but people are probably park hopping to Epcot in the evening.  Next week due to sold out parks it will probably be the opposite as people book a Epcot as their first park and then hop to say HS.
> 
> We are going in 3 weeks and the week before Epcot opens at 8:30 am.  I signed up for Touring plans (paid).


Sorry, here's test track.  Unfortunately they both kinda follow the same path.  I'd say LL the one you really want and standby the other


----------



## leeniewdw

This was our DHS day on Saturday, 3/5.  Our plan was to RD and get an early LL return (so we could grab another before the 11am slot).  Leave park late morning and return for evening with LLs stacked. This is how it worked out:

7am:  Grabbed MFSR for a 9:25am return
7:15am:  walked on to Skyliner (staying at POP)
7:45am-ish:  got in line for RNRC standby, literally people 4 & 5*
8:15am-ish:  line started moving into building, skipped the studio and went RIGHT onto the ride
8:28am: off RNRC
8:30am: got in ToT standby line, sign said 40 mins!*
8:57am: while waiting in line, I was looking at the app and noticed RotR was still available and called an audible and decided to go ahead and get a ILL$ for 7:15pm return
9:30am: off ToT headed to MFSR
9:45am-ish:  tapped into MFSR and looked for next LL.  SHOCKED to see a SDD for 7:25pm return.  Grabbed that.  Set my phone timer for 2 hours for next LL grab.
Not sure on times, but rode Star Tours standby (no wait) and grabbed an early lunch/late breakfast at Commissary

Break Time, so left Park

11:45am:  Grabbed TSM for return time 5:05pm, set timer for 2 hours for next LL grab
*nap and pool time*
1:45pm:   Grabbed ToT for return time of 7:55pm, set timer for 2 hours for next LL grab
3:45pm:   Grabbed Alien Swirling Saucers I think

So our evening went like this:
Arrived back at DHS a little after 5pm and had these LLs:
TSM
AlienSS
Break at Baseline Tap House
Star Tours (I grabbed this at 5:45pm just because I could, it was still basically a walk on)
Grabbed something to eat at Backlot
RotR
SDD
Oga's (our first time....um, not sure what the fuss is about!)
ToT

I don't think you could have a more perfect day.  And we could have grabbed MMRR if we'd wanted to but my DH didn't want to ride it again after riding in Dec, lol.

*My asterisk was related to RnRC and TOT.  We screwed up and SHOULD have ridden ToT first at RD because they were only using 1 side.   TP "told" me to ride RNRC first and because we did that, we had to wait 45 mins at 8:30am to ride ToT.  Has we done it in reverse, we would have done both of them by 8:40am.  There were only 20 people in the ToT line when we arrived.


----------



## Disturbia

@leeniewdw: How big was your party?


----------



## leeniewdw

Disturbia said:


> @leeniewdw: How big was your party?



Just 2 adults.   

We did think about how if we ever actually get our adult kids/SOs to go with us (we've had 2 scheduled only to cancel for all sorts of reasons), it may be impossible to get them up/out at 7am, but I think RDing will help get you 2-3 more rides for the day.


----------



## snikki

leeniewdw said:


> Just 2 adults.
> 
> We did think about how if we ever actually get our adult kids/SOs to go with us (we've had 2 scheduled only to cancel for all sorts of reasons), it may be impossible to get them up/out at 7am, but I think RDing will help get you 2-3 more rides for the day.



I’ve been hearing more and more reports of groups of 2 getting much better LLs, especially at DHS. You guys had a great day using it!


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## Rivergirl2005

snikki said:


> I’ve been hearing more and more reports of groups of 2 getting much better LLs, especially at DHS. You guys had a great day using it!



Same! Glad to hear groups of 2 are able snag some. Wonder how groups of 3 are doing.


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## MainMom

Rivergirl2005 said:


> Same! Glad to hear groups of 2 are able snag some. Wonder how groups of 3 are doing.


How about groups of 7?


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## wisblue

leeniewdw said:


> This was our DHS day on Saturday, 3/5.  Our plan was to RD and get an early LL return (so we could grab another before the 11am slot).  Leave park late morning and return for evening with LLs stacked. This is how it worked out:
> 
> 7am:  Grabbed MFSR for a 9:25am return
> 7:15am:  walked on to Skyliner (staying at POP)
> 7:45am-ish:  got in line for RNRC standby, literally people 4 & 5*
> 8:15am-ish:  line started moving into building, skipped the studio and went RIGHT onto the ride
> 8:28am: off RNRC
> 8:30am: got in ToT standby line, sign said 40 mins!*
> 8:57am: while waiting in line, I was looking at the app and noticed RotR was still available and called an audible and decided to go ahead and get a ILL$ for 7:15pm return
> 9:30am: off ToT headed to MFSR
> 9:45am-ish:  tapped into MFSR and looked for next LL.  SHOCKED to see a SDD for 7:25pm return.  Grabbed that.  Set my phone timer for 2 hours for next LL grab.
> Not sure on times, but rode Star Tours standby (no wait) and grabbed an early lunch/late breakfast at Commissary
> 
> Break Time, so left Park
> 
> 11:45am:  Grabbed TSM for return time 5:05pm, set timer for 2 hours for next LL grab
> *nap and pool time*
> 1:45pm:   Grabbed ToT for return time of 7:55pm, set timer for 2 hours for next LL grab
> 3:45pm:   Grabbed Alien Swirling Saucers I think
> 
> So our evening went like this:
> Arrived back at DHS a little after 5pm and had these LLs:
> TSM
> AlienSS
> Break at Baseline Tap House
> Star Tours (I grabbed this at 5:45pm just because I could, it was still basically a walk on)
> Grabbed something to eat at Backlot
> RotR
> SDD
> Oga's (our first time....um, not sure what the fuss is about!)
> ToT
> 
> I don't think you could have a more perfect day.  And we could have grabbed MMRR if we'd wanted to but my DH didn't want to ride it again after riding in Dec, lol.
> 
> *My asterisk was related to RnRC and TOT.  We screwed up and SHOULD have ridden ToT first at RD because they were only using 1 side.   TP "told" me to ride RNRC first and because we did that, we had to wait 45 mins at 8:30am to ride ToT.  Has we done it in reverse, we would have done both of them by 8:40am.  There were only 20 people in the ToT line when we arrived.



Very nice. Your day sounds very much like what we have done, and plan to do again when we visit in two weeks.

Was this a day that official opening was 9 AM so EE was officially 8:30 AM and they let you in to RNRC a little early?

I am a staunch advocate of starting a day at DHS at TOT. The wait for the rides to open is much more comfortable than at the other top attractions and the crowds there build up much less quickly.


----------



## leeniewdw

wisblue said:


> Very nice. Your day sounds very much like what we have done, and plan to do again when we visit in two weeks.
> 
> Was this a day that official opening was 9 AM so EE was officially 8:30 AM and they let you in to RNRC a little early?
> 
> I am a staunch advocate of starting a day at DHS at TOT. The wait for the rides to open is much more comfortable than at the other top attractions and the crowds there build up much less quickly.



Yes, it was a 9am opening and 8:30am EE.   The CMs kept saying we wouldn't enter the ride until 8:30, but we were off the ride by 8:28 so that wasn't correct.  (People were asking not because they were impatient, but rather wanting to have someone from their group go back and get a coffee or soda and didn't want to return to find the line having moved.)  It seemed like CMs wearing "white" came out and joined the ride-themed CMs and we started to move shortly after that, probably 8:15am.  We were in the first "ride" but we did wait at the 'launch point' for a few minutes before the ride actually took off.

I agree that going to ToT/RnRC first was very chill.   It also allowed us to just hit the Skyliner at 7:15am with absolutely no line waiting there.  I would do it again.


----------



## wisblue

So, when you arrived at DHS the gates were already opened and you were able to walk casually down Sunset Boulevard and the number of people in the TOT and RNRC lines were still both very short?

That‘s how it worked for us on our two previous trips, and I have been hoping that hasn’t changed.

I have been able to get in line while others in the party stopped at Starbucks.


----------



## leeniewdw

wisblue said:


> So, when you arrived at DHS the gates were already opened and you were able to walk casually down Sunset Boulevard and the number of people in the TOT and RNRC lines were still both very short?
> 
> That‘s how it worked for us on our two previous trips, and I have been hoping that hasn’t changed.
> 
> I have been able to get in line while others in the party stopped at Starbucks.



Yes, exactly a casual walk!   I meant to include that the gates were open and we basically just walked right in.  I presume it had been a bit since I can only imagine that huge crowds headed to RotR and SDD and when we arrived it seemed like each tapstyle only had like 4-5 people going in. 

I know we got on the Skyliner at POP at 7:15am (we made our 7am LL in the room and stopped at the food court for a Diet Coke before heading to Skyliner).  So with the 2 Skyliner segments (short line at CBR), getting in and walking to RnRC/ToT, I think I first glanced at my watch in line and it was 7:45am.   We were # 4 and 5 in line for RnRC and probably would have been #s 20, 21 for ToT.  Of course, the lines got longer before they "opened". 

My DH went back for another D Coke (lol) while I waited.  He went all the way back to the entrance to get a bottle soda and was back in plenty of time.   I wouldn't push it beyond 8:15am since that's when they had the line move.  One more thing.  They said that the ToT line might move forward into the queue before RnRC because their line was growing longer and if it got back to the intersection, they'd move them forward.  That didn't happen, both lines moved at the same time.

It's still really early to be up/out on "vacation", but since I had to be up at 7am for the LL stuff, it just made sense to keep rolling instead of trying to go back to sleep (which we tried in December and were unsuccessful).   However, I don't generally mind getting up early on vacation, I like to maximize my day -- I'm the one who gets up for sunrise every morning if we're at the beach!

Last edit!  I just checked TP and they predicted a 7 day, but said it ended up being a 6.


----------



## Disturbia

leeniewdw said:


> Yes, it was a 9am opening and 8:30am EE.   The CMs kept saying we wouldn't enter the ride until 8:30, but we were off the ride by 8:28 so that wasn't correct.  (People were asking not because they were impatient, but rather wanting to have someone from their group go back and get a coffee or soda and didn't want to return to find the line having moved.)  It seemed like CMs wearing "white" came out and joined the ride-themed CMs and we started to move shortly after that, probably 8:15am.  We were in the first "ride" but we did wait at the 'launch point' for a few minutes before the ride actually took off.
> 
> I agree that going to ToT/RnRC first was very chill.   It also allowed us to just hit the Skyliner at 7:15am with absolutely no line waiting there.  I would do it again.


The skyliner was already running at 7:15 am AND it took you about 20 mins from Pop?  Just the line at CB was 40 mins around 9 am for us back in Nov


----------



## leeniewdw

Disturbia said:


> The skyliner was already running at 7:15 am AND it took you about 20 mins from Pop?  Just the line at CB was 40 mins around 9 am for us back in Nov



That was our experience, yes.  It was our first time RDing from POP so I don't have anything to compare it to.   When we stepped off the Skyliner at CBR, we walked right into the queue lined up for the next leg but it was just 5-7 mins maybe?  So, no wait at POP, but a 7 minute wait at CBR?  I wish I'd kept track of the times specifically, but I know the first time I looked at my watch actually IN LINE in front of RnRC it was 7:45am.  It might have been after my husband left to got get a drink, so perhaps we got there a few minutes sooner even?

But based on our day grabbing LLs (SDD around 9:40am,  RotR easily -- several time frames to pick from --  at 8:57am) it wasn't a hugely busy morning of activity at DHS!  AKA we got lucky.

What time did you get on the skyliner at POP when it was a 40 minute wait?   We may have just timed it perfectly that the initial queued up lines were already handled and there was no more backlog?


----------



## garada3

leeniewdw said:


> This was our DHS day on Saturday, 3/5.  Our plan was to RD and get an early LL return (so we could grab another before the 11am slot).  Leave park late morning and return for evening with LLs stacked. This is how it worked out:



Studying for a July trip -

It appears that taking an early LL gave you an advantage as you picked prior to that 11am (two hours from park opening) rush and set you on the path to successful use of G+ at DHS with a break in the day. Interesting - very interesting!

Did you just take the earliest first LL visible in the app or did you target MFSR?

Did you use this same strategy at other parks?

What time did you leave the park?


Thanks for the details on the day!


----------



## wisblue

I think one lesson from your experience, which is consistent with ours, is that if you start your day at DHS by going to TOT and RNRC first, it isn't necessary to be there an hour before EE starts, when they first let people through security and into the park.

You can do those two rides and take care of that area of the park and still get to a third ride before the line gets too long. We have gone to TSMM just after they open the park for everyone and pretty much walked on. If you have an ILL for ROTR and a LL for something else (Slinky or MFSR) you have quite a few of the top attractions accounted for and won't have to look at your phone until your next LL window opens (either two hours after park opening or after using your first LL).


----------



## HydroGuy

garada3 said:


> Studying for a July trip -
> 
> It appears that taking an early LL gave you an advantage as you picked prior to that 11am (two hours from park opening) rush and set you on the path to successful use of G+ at DHS with a break in the day. Interesting - very interesting!
> 
> Did you just take the earliest first LL visible in the app or did you target MFSR?
> 
> Did you use this same strategy at other parks?
> 
> What time did you leave the park?
> 
> 
> Thanks for the details on the day!


As talked about at length on this forum, it would all be so much easier if the time you chose for G+ LL was the time you actually got (give or take a few minutes like in the FP+ days).

Regardless, I have concluded that getting a G+ LL at 7AM for a return window before 11 AM (assuming the park opens at 9AM - so before two hours after park opening) is critical - especially on busy days and especially, especially at DHS (which seems to have the most in-demand G+ LLs). If you do this, you are set up to get a good option on G+ LL #2 (before 11AM) and #3 (before 1PM), etc. You are always ahead of the 7AM mob.


----------



## leeniewdw

garada3 said:


> Studying for a July trip -
> 
> It appears that taking an early LL gave you an advantage as you picked prior to that 11am (two hours from park opening) rush and set you on the path to successful use of G+ at DHS with a break in the day. Interesting - very interesting!
> 
> Did you just take the earliest first LL visible in the app or did you target MFSR?
> 
> Did you use this same strategy at other parks?
> 
> What time did you leave the park?
> 
> 
> Thanks for the details on the day!



It just turned out that my DH loves MFSR and I thought that was a good choice to get an early return time.  And it worked out.   We never expected to get SDD after tapping in at 9:40am-ish, so that was just luck based on crowds I suppose.    We opted for ToT/RnRC because they are so close together and we thought we'd be okay even with not being in Skyliner line 90 mins before EE.   So we presumed we'd get 3 rides in and then have breakfast and decide what we wanted to do next.   In the end, we did RnRC, ToT, MFSR, food break, Star Tours (stand by), an ice cream stop, and headed back to hotel around....11am?

This was a very quick trip and we only did EP and DHS over 2 days.  So no hopping and we didn't use G+ at EP.




HydroGuy said:


> As talked about at length on this forum, it would all be so much easier if the time you chose for G+ LL was the time you actually got (give or take a few minutes like in the FP+ days).
> 
> Regardless, I have concluded that getting a G+ LL at 7AM for a return window before 11 AM (assuming the park opens at 9AM - so before two hours after park opening) is critical - especially on busy days and especially, especially at DHS (which seems to have the the most in-demand G+ LLs). If you do this, you are set up to get a good option on G+ LL #2 (before 11AM) and #3 (before 1PM), etc. You are always ahead of the 7AM mob.



Yes, that was our "plan" (even though you don't know what you'll get until you try!).  After grabbing my 2nd LL after tapping into MFSR, I just set my phone timer for 2 hours, so I'd know when to grab again and continued to do that every 2 hours because we were no longer in the park (we returned around 5pm or so).


----------



## scrappinginontario

leeniewdw said:


> That was our experience, yes.  It was our first time RDing from POP so I don't have anything to compare it to.   When we stepped off the Skyliner at CBR, we walked right into the queue lined up for the next leg but it was just 5-7 mins maybe?  So, no wait at POP, but a 7 minute wait at CBR?  I wish I'd kept track of the times specifically, but I know the first time I looked at my watch actually IN LINE in front of RnRC it was 7:45am.  It might have been after my husband left to got get a drink, so perhaps we got there a few minutes sooner even?
> 
> But based on our day grabbing LLs (SDD around 9:40am,  RotR easily -- several time frames to pick from --  at 8:57am) it wasn't a hugely busy morning of activity at DHS!  AKA we got lucky.
> 
> What time did you get on the skyliner at POP when it was a 40 minute wait?   We may have just timed it perfectly that the initial queued up lines were already handled and there was no more backlog?


I think one thing we're seeing is that the times DHS and Epcot open make a big difference in Skyliner lines.  The earlier the parks open, the shorter the lines appear to be as less people are willing/able to join the line early in the morning than they are on the days when the parks open a bit later. 

A planning strategy we used was that the later a park opened, the longer we allowed time to get to the park.


----------



## HydroGuy

scrappinginontario said:


> I think one thing we're seeing is that the times DHS and Epcot open make a big difference in Skyliner lines.  The earlier the parks open, the shorter the lines appear to be as less people are willing/able to join the line early in the morning than they are on the days when the parks open a bit later.
> 
> A planning strategy we used was that the later a park opened, the longer we allowed time to get to the park.


I would think the recent trend this month to make DHS and Epcot both open at the same time (!!!!) would really make Skyliner as bad as it could possibly be. Disney should really think about this harder.


----------



## scrappinginontario

HydroGuy said:


> I would think the recent trend this month to make DHS and Epcot both open at the same time (!!!!) would really make Skyliner as bad as it could possibly be. Disney should really think about this harder.



It could but, is not always the case as was shared in this post above



leeniewdw said:


> That was our experience, yes.  It was our first time RDing from POP so I don't have anything to compare it to.   When we stepped off the Skyliner at CBR, we walked right into the queue lined up for the next leg but it was just 5-7 mins maybe?  So, no wait at POP, but a 7 minute wait at CBR?  I wish I'd kept track of the times specifically, but I know the first time I looked at my watch actually IN LINE in front of RnRC it was 7:45am.  It might have been after my husband left to got get a drink, so perhaps we got there a few minutes sooner even?
> 
> But based on our day grabbing LLs (SDD around 9:40am,  RotR easily -- several time frames to pick from --  at 8:57am) it wasn't a hugely busy morning of activity at DHS!  AKA we got lucky.
> 
> What time did you get on the skyliner at POP when it was a 40 minute wait?   We may have just timed it perfectly that the initial queued up lines were already handled and there was no more backlog?


----------



## Disturbia

leeniewdw said:


> That was our experience, yes.  It was our first time RDing from POP so I don't have anything to compare it to.   When we stepped off the Skyliner at CBR, we walked right into the queue lined up for the next leg but it was just 5-7 mins maybe?  So, no wait at POP, but a 7 minute wait at CBR?  I wish I'd kept track of the times specifically, but I know the first time I looked at my watch actually IN LINE in front of RnRC it was 7:45am.  It might have been after my husband left to got get a drink, so perhaps we got there a few minutes sooner even?
> 
> But based on our day grabbing LLs (SDD around 9:40am,  RotR easily -- several time frames to pick from --  at 8:57am) it wasn't a hugely busy morning of activity at DHS!  AKA we got lucky.
> 
> What time did you get on the skyliner at POP when it was a 40 minute wait?   We may have just timed it perfectly that the initial queued up lines were already handled and there was no more backlog?


We got on around 9 am.  Security takes longer with a diaper bag as well (we carry allergy medication also).  I know we had to sprint to make our LL for ROTR.  We had ROTR (LLIA$), MMRR (LLIA$) and SDD (11-10 am) lined up for the morning.  ROTR took us 40 mins each time with rider switch; MMRR went down for 2-3 hours and we rode SDD before our 11:25 am Oga’s.  Our kids are 2, 5 and 13 and we are traveling from CST so it won’t be worth the exhaustion to get on to SDD.  

Do they still make the entire party stay together in the outdoor queue (including the baby in a stroller) before giving a rider switch? (June and Nov 2021).


----------



## Seoulbro

Hello all,

I will be one of the many at Disney next week.  After reading tons on Genie, I have a few questions to those who are already there, or have the experience.  We are a family of 4.  

1.Is it easier to book in groups of 2 or remain as 4?
2. If booking as groups of 2, can my daughter be logged in on my account as well or does she need to do it on her own account(I would book with my youngest daughter, she would book with my wife)
3. With a 7:30am opening for AK, is a good strategy to book a LL at AK closest to 7:30 as possible, tap in, then book afternoon LL at HS? Will anything be available? Then I could book HS at 7:30-8:00, then 2 hours after that?
4. With daylight savings on Saturday, what time should I arrive at AK for 7:00am Early Entry, with FOP being the main target?
5. Since we are staying at the dolphin, will I have to connect to Disney WIFI on th bus while going to AK, or is it the same Wifi?

My goal is something like this:  At 7:00am, book Kilimanjaro Safaris somewhere between 7:30-8:30.  Head to FOP, then head to Safari (Maybe squeeze in Navi if there is time? Dreaming here!).  Tap in to Safari, book a HS LL for the afternoon (Millennium, RnR, TSM, don't think Slinky will be there).  Then book HS LL after 2 hours, and repeat.  In the meanitime, take my time during the morning at AK. What are my chances of getting anything? Is this a good plan?  

Thanks in advance, I know it's a lot of questions, just trying to figure out a strategy.


----------



## leeniewdw

Seoulbro said:


> My goal is something like this:  At 7:00am, book Kilimanjaro Safaris somewhere between 7:30-8:30.  Head to FOP, then head to Safari (Maybe squeeze in Navi if there is time? Dreaming here!).  Tap in to Safari, book a HS LL for the afternoon (Millennium, RnR, TSM, don't think Slinky will be there).  Then book HS LL after 2 hours, and repeat.  In the meanitime, take my time during the morning at AK. What are my chances of getting anything? Is this a good plan?
> 
> Thanks in advance, I know it's a lot of questions, just trying to figure out a strategy.



The answer is -- no one knows about the chances.   It's a good plan and one that we followed on Saturday, but it wasn't a packed day.  I would take a look at the predicted crowds and then just hope for the best.  I think you have a good shot at getting the early KS at 7am and you'll have a head start on the next LL once you tap in.     I'd also look at the app each day before you go to see what's available at 8:30am to give you a feel for it.

I have never used park wifi for any app usage even in our room, but I know it depends on if you have a US-based cellular provider.  I have Verizon and it seemed to work fine on cellular.


----------



## elgerber

Seoulbro said:


> Hello all,
> 
> I will be one of the many at Disney next week.  After reading tons on Genie, I have a few questions to those who are already there, or have the experience.  We are a family of 4.
> 
> 1.Is it easier to book in groups of 2 or remain as 4?
> 
> 
> Thanks in advance, I know it's a lot of questions, just trying to figure out a strategy.


I would absolutely not book as groups of 2.  Your return times could be hours apart.


----------



## MainMom

Seoulbro said:


> Hello all,
> 
> I will be one of the many at Disney next week.  After reading tons on Genie, I have a few questions to those who are already there, or have the experience.  We are a family of 4.
> 
> 1.Is it easier to book in groups of 2 or remain as 4?
> 2. If booking as groups of 2, can my daughter be logged in on my account as well or does she need to do it on her own account(I would book with my youngest daughter, she would book with my wife)
> 3. With a 7:30am opening for AK, is a good strategy to book a LL at AK closest to 7:30 as possible, tap in, then book afternoon LL at HS? Will anything be available? Then I could book HS at 7:30-8:00, then 2 hours after that?
> 4. With daylight savings on Saturday, what time should I arrive at AK for 7:00am Early Entry, with FOP being the main target?
> 5. Since we are staying at the dolphin, will I have to connect to Disney WIFI on th bus while going to AK, or is it the same Wifi?
> 
> My goal is something like this:  At 7:00am, book Kilimanjaro Safaris somewhere between 7:30-8:30.  Head to FOP, then head to Safari (Maybe squeeze in Navi if there is time? Dreaming here!).  Tap in to Safari, book a HS LL for the afternoon (Millennium, RnR, TSM, don't think Slinky will be there).  Then book HS LL after 2 hours, and repeat.  In the meanitime, take my time during the morning at AK. What are my chances of getting anything? Is this a good plan?
> 
> Thanks in advance, I know it's a lot of questions, just trying to figure out a strategy.


You will not get the same times or even close. Stay as 4. I’m booking as 7 in June. It is what it is.


----------



## snikki

The more I think about strategies with G+ it seems that park hopping may not be so beneficial, especially at DHS, when G+ times go into the PM so quickly. Maybe Disney wants to make it more difficult to PH and keep people tied to one park for attendance tracking reasons. But then that’s leaving PH ticket money on the table.


----------



## leeniewdw

We've used G+ successfully both WITH Park Hopping and without, but in both cases using 1 LL in the morning and then stacking for the afternoon/evening (as we break midday always).

The most critical part of all this is being lucky (or really smart) in planning a trip when things aren't insane attendance wise, and really understanding how the LLs work and making sure to grab the next LL as soon as eligible. Also helps to be willing to refresh here and there (though I only did that once at DHS on Saturday).    We've gotten lucky twice and literally rode everything we wanted to.


----------



## MainMom

snikki said:


> The more I think about strategies with G+ it seems that park hopping may not be so beneficial, especially at DHS, when G+ times go into the PM so quickly. Maybe Disney wants to make it more difficult to PH and keep people tied to one park for attendance tracking reasons. But then that’s leaving PH ticket money on the table.


Yes  I’ve planned 1.5 HS days. We have the hopper & take mid day breaks, but I feel like we could possibly be staying in the park most of our full day.


----------



## Westerner

Seoulbro said:


> 3. With a 7:30am opening for AK, is a good strategy to book a LL at AK closest to 7:30 as possible, tap in, then book afternoon LL at HS? Will anything be available? Then I could book HS at 7:30-8:00, then 2 hours after that?


Iffy to bank on scoring a 730am return time at AK, but getting a 10am return time for something like KS or NRJ should be doable.  If you tap in at 10 that shouldn’t put you too far behind the curve for booking your 2nd LL at HS.


----------



## Westerner

snikki said:


> The more I think about strategies with G+ it seems that park hopping may not be so beneficial, especially at DHS, when G+ times go into the PM so quickly. Maybe Disney wants to make it more difficult to PH and keep people tied to one park for attendance tracking reasons. But then that’s leaving PH ticket money on the table.


I think this is a very interesting point.  Since DHS return windows go into PM quickly, would you agree that when hopping it’s better to make HS your 2nd park, rather than your 1st?


----------



## snikki

Westerner said:


> I think this is a very interesting point.  Since DHS return windows go into PM quickly, would you agree that when hopping it’s better to make HS your 2nd park, rather than your 1st?



That’s my plan. To do a full day at DHS plus hop there one afternoon. We will also go there on departure day before our flight.


----------



## snikki

MainMom said:


> Yes  I’ve planned 1.5 HS days. We have the hopper & take mid day breaks, but I feel like we could possibly be staying in the park most of our full day.



We also take midday breaks and always go to a different park in the PM. We would almost always book our FP+ for the PM park too. We have DHS for our second day and my plan was to hop in the PM but we will just go back there in the evening. It is our favorite park (after MK) and I don’t want to rush it or get frustrated with return times.


----------



## Disturbia

At 11:00 am

AlienSS 3:10 pm
MMRR 7:20 pm
MFSR NA
RnRC 7:10 pm
ST  1:00 pm
TSMM 4:10 pm
TOT NA


----------



## lfcfan

Anyone see that they are adding the MK parade to Genie +? I wonder if this is temporary for spring break, what it will actually mean, etc. Please add info if you see it! Thx.


----------



## Disturbia

AK in the morning and Hs at night makes a lot of sense.  I suppose you have to pick between FOP and ROTR for the LLIA$ (you can only choose one a day now: feb 25-aug 7 changes?).  We’ve waited 60 mins for FOP and it wasn’t too bad.  I noticed restrooms and fountains for FOP.  Not sure about ROTR even though we waited 2 hours in that queue when the ride broke down.


----------



## Disturbia

I don’t see it (parade added to Genie+,) but they do need to add some more things, including fireworks at MK.  Fantasmic/Star Wars galactic fireworks at HS would mean HS would have to be an evening park for people who are park hopping.

Edit:  yes starting March 11; Why doesn’t Disney notify those of us with upcoming trips when they make changes that impact us

https://wdwnt.com/2022/03/festival-...reams-being-added-to-genie-starting-march-11/
https://allears.net/2022/03/09/two-new-additions-coming-to-disney-worlds-genie-soon/


----------



## MainMom

Disturbia said:


> AK in the morning and Hs at night makes a lot of sense.  I suppose you have to pick between FOP and ROTR for the LLIA$ (you can only choose one a day now?).  We’ve waited 60 mins for FOP and it wasn’t too bad.  I noticed restrooms and fountains for FOP.  Not sure about ROTR even though we waited 2 hours in that queue when the ride broke down.


Someone told me it’s still 2 ILL’s if you have a hopper. Has anyone put this into practice since the February change?


----------



## Disturbia

MainMom said:


> Someone told me it’s still 2 ILL’s if you have a hopper. Has anyone put this into practice since the February change?


This should be clearly spelled out on the Lightening Lane page and it isn’t!

None of the Blogs that I’ve checked have verified (they strike out and specify changes starting feb 25 through aug 7) that you can still get 2.  When a similar change was made during Christmas, they reduced the LLIA$ so you didn’t have an advantage with park hopping.  

ps. I just posted this question in the chat feature on the app.  Hopefully someone gets back to me In a few hours.


----------



## Disturbia

Finally got an answer and the CM said the LLIA$ limit is 2, so you can book one in each park.

Still given my history of being told (I did screenshot the name of the CM) one thing and then being asked which CM told me that, I would feel better if someone can report back on an actual experience.

We were not planning on buying park hoppers, but for those who have it, you can book ROTR and FOP.  This is a big advantage over those of us who can only pre book 1 ride per day now that some rides have moved to the Genie+ pool.

It’s a robotic answer on the chat that you can book 2; no I can’t if I don’t have park hoppers!  Now the following response is worrying me that the CM has no idea what they’re taking about:


----------



## MainMom

[QUOTE="Disturbia said:


> Finally got an answer and the CM said the LLIA$ limit is 2, so you can book one in each park.
> 
> Still given my history of being told (I did screenshot the name of the CM) one thing and then being asked which CM told me that, I would feel better if someone can report back on an actual experience.
> 
> We were not planning on buying park hoppers, but for those who have it, you can book ROTR and FOP.  This is a big advantage over those of us who can only pre book 1 ride per day now that some rides have moved to the Genie+ pool.
> 
> It’s a robotic answer on the chat that you can book 2; no I can’t if I don’t have park hoppers!  Now the following response is worrying me that the CM has no idea what they’re taking about:
> 
> View attachment 653387


Thanks for asking!


----------



## Disturbia

Ok now the chat is going in a different direction


----------



## MainMom

Disturbia said:


> Ok now the chat is going in a different direction
> 
> View attachment 653388


That was a weird turn.


----------



## Disturbia

I don’t know why fair/not fair came into the picture.  I was trying to understand the system so we can see if it’s advantageous to add park hoppers


----------



## Disturbia

I’m going to run for the hills and hit my head on the wall now!!!

Good luck to you all who are park hopping!


----------



## Disturbia

Finally I was told yes I can’t purchase 2 if I have base tickets and even before I could say bye, the CM dropped the chat and I got a feedback screen.  I didn’t click anything, it was actually hilarious.  I probably ruined her day.


----------



## Miffy

The Individual Lightning Lane info is clear: You could purchase a maximum of two *if* you have an AP or park hopper, since there's currently only one ILL in each of the parks.

Of course this could change in the future, if they put the rides that moved to G+ back as ILL selections or make other rides ILLs. Right now that isn't the case.


----------



## Disturbia

Miffy said:


> The Individual Lightning Lane info is clear: You could purchase a maximum of two *if* you have an AP or park hopper, since there's currently only one ILL in each of the parks.
> 
> Of course this could change in the future, if they put the rides that moved to G+ back as ILL selections or make other rides ILLs. Right now that isn't the case.


Yes but the first response that *ANY* guest can purchase a maximum of 2 is not true.

Further down, the statement regarding park hoppers ends with *despite your ticket type* is also not true.

Only guests with park hoppers can book 2. People with base tickets are only allowed 1 LLIA per day.


----------



## Miffy

Disturbia said:


> Yes but they first response that *ANY* guest can purchase a maximum of 2 is not true.
> 
> Only guests with park hoppers can book 2.


Very true. Bad enough that the rules for everything are not exactly straightforward but it's all made even more convoluted by how easy it is to interpret things. I mean, an argument could be made that any guest _could_ purchase 2 ILLs--the _could_ being dependent on that guest having park hoppers. But that should be made clear upfront.


----------



## Disturbia

Miffy said:


> Very true. Bad enough that the rules for everything are not exactly straightforward but it's all made even more convoluted by how easy it is to interpret things. I mean, an argument could be made that any guest _could_ purchase 2 ILLs--the _could_ being dependent on that guest having park hoppers. But that should be made clear upfront.


‘despite your ticket type’ AND ‘any person with a valid theme park ticket’


----------



## Westerner

Rule: max 2 ILL’s per day.  This is a max, not a guarantee of 2.
currently there is only 1 ILL per park
therefore in practice you can only book 1 ILL currently unless you have PH
if I think like a computer that’s what I come up with.

In general there is synergy between G+ and $ILL PH since there is more to choose from and if you keep your 2nd park flex you can capitalize on unexpected availability for RotR or FoP.  This could be a good strategy for offsite guests having difficulty getting these 2 rides.


----------



## conniehar90

After slinky, should I book MMRR or Smugglers?


----------



## Disturbia

MFSR  has single rider if your kids are over 7.   
Then I’d book MMRR (queue is mostly outdoors).


----------



## Sabine W.

conniehar90 said:


> After slinky, should I book MMRR or Smugglers?


Just looking at wait times and G+ availability throughout the day, I would say demand is somewhat higher for MMRR, so I'd book that second.


----------



## conniehar90

Disturbia said:


> MFSR  has single rider if your kids are over 7.
> Then I’d book MMRR (queue is mostly outdoors).


Thanks- I did not know they had single rider!


----------



## Disturbia

So is it pretty easy to get a LlIA$ for FOP for the am (9 am-12 pm) at 7 am?  

AK Park opens at 9 am last week of March.  It’s too late for Disney to make park hour changes hopefully?


----------



## scrappinginontario

conniehar90 said:


> Thanks- I did not know they had single rider!


It does but just be prepared that most often single riders are assigned roles in the back 2 seats.  Gunners?  Sorry, can't remember where each role sits.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Disturbia said:


> So is it pretty easy to get a LlIA$ for FOP for the am (9 am-12 pm) at 7 am?
> 
> AK Park opens at 9 am last week of March.  It’s too late for Disney to make park hour changes hopefully?



It's really a matter of guests who are able to book ILL$ fastest being awarded the earliest times.  They will fill quickly so you'll want to be online and start booking the moment you get through.

Disney can change it's hours up until the actual day.  As you get closer it's less likely they will change the AM hours but it's possible so you'll want to continue to monitor.


----------



## HydroGuy

scrappinginontario said:


> It does but just be prepared that most often single riders are assigned roles in the back 2 seats.  Gunners?  Sorry, can't remember where each role sits.


Yep, Gunners. Not nearly as fun as being pilots!


----------



## jbish

Disturbia said:


> AK Park opens at 9 am last week of March.  It’s too late for Disney to make park hour changes hopefully?


LOL - that's funny.  It's never too late for Disney to make a change on you that will upend all of your plans.  You know better than that!


----------



## Sabine W.

Disturbia said:


> So is it pretty easy to get a LlIA$ for FOP for the am (9 am-12 pm) at 7 am?
> 
> AK Park opens at 9 am last week of March.  It’s too late for Disney to make park hour changes hopefully?


I think hours will still be adjusted for that week. Already Monday and Tuesday are "sold-out" for MK. It might not be as crowded as next week, but I think it will be extremely crowded then.


----------



## Disturbia

I see that and only MK is sold out. I’m hoping they might adjust the hours today.  I signed up for TP (paid).

I was also thinking of changing Hs to one day only given the crowd levels and stress.  We could still change parks to AK (FOP is our favorite ride) and add a park hopper as we almost always take a mid day break, but then you’re paying extra for another LLIA and my hard to get ADRs are impossible to change.


----------



## HydroGuy

Sabine W. said:


> I think hours will still be adjusted for that week. Already Monday and Tuesday are "sold-out" for MK. It might not be as crowded as next week, but I think it will be extremely crowded then.


They just adjusted hours but not for AK.


----------



## Disturbia

They are working on them


----------



## Disturbia

Park hopper means it’s going to change!  Time to change Boma, wow dining opened right away

MK hours got extended to 11 pm (2 weeks before our trip!); now it’s even more valuable to park hop 2-11 pm


----------



## Westerner

scrappinginontario said:


> It does but just be prepared that most often single riders are assigned roles in the back 2 seats.  Gunners?  Sorry, can't remember where each role sits.





HydroGuy said:


> Yep, Gunners. Not nearly as fun as being pilots!


Back: Engineers
Middle: Gunners
Front: Pilots

front right pilot gets to pull the hyperdrive lever.  Don’t forget to yell “punch it Chewie” when making the jump to light speed.


----------



## MainMom

Westerner said:


> Back: Engineers
> Middle: Gunners
> Front: Pilots
> 
> front right pilot gets to pull the hyperdrive lever.  Don’t forget to yell “punch it Chewie” when making the jump to light speed.


How many people in a ride total?


----------



## HydroGuy

MainMom said:


> How many people in a ride total?


6


----------



## buzz1523

Can you purchase LL reservations in advance or only on the day of park entry?  If only day of entry, what time do the LL reservations open that day? Any tips on getting the time you want?


----------



## HydroGuy

buzz1523 said:


> Can you purchase LL reservations in advance or only on the day of park entry?  If only day of entry, what time do the LL reservations open that day? Any tips on getting the time you want?


Read the first post in this sticky thread:

https://www.disboards.com/threads/e...lightning-lane-please-read-posts-1-7.3856734/


----------



## scrappinginontario

*UPDATE:*

There are numerous reports that Genie+ Tip Board is now working for International guests who are using Android devices!!


----------



## pens4821

Anyone been looking around 1030 at HS to see availability lately?  Since now they open at 830. Hoping to get TOT as our second since it seems like the longest wait of the couple things we really want to do.


----------



## SkyGuy

pens4821 said:


> Anyone been looking around 1030 at HS to see availability lately?  Since now they open at 830. Hoping to get TOT as our second since it seems like the longest wait of the couple things we really want to do.


According to Thrill Data, ToT LL availability was gone at 10:30ish today.


----------



## Westerner

Things look better at HS.  According to thrill data for today (3/11) at 10:30 you could still pick up RnRC, MFSR, TSM, MMRR and at 12:30 TSM was still available.  Yesterday (3/10) was similar.  So you could have done something like

7AM: SDD or ToT
10:30: RnRC, MFSR, or MMRR
12:30 TSM
2:30 ST or swirling saucers


----------



## mykidsmom

Luisfba said:


> And to follow up on my check, I was able to book the second LL at HS at 11am even though my park reservation is for Epcot.


When you book at 7am for your park hop park, are the return times automatically after 2pm?  I know this is the case for ILL but haven't read if this is the case for LL.  Thank you


----------



## scrappinginontario

mykidsmom said:


> When you book at 7am for your park hop park, are the return times automatically after 2pm?  I know this is the case for ILL but haven't read if this is the case for LL.  Thank you


Yes.


----------



## Disturbia

4:30 pm


----------



## scrappinginontario

Disturbia said:


> 4:30 pm
> View attachment 653781


The challenge is, actually securing these.  While they do pop up, it's a whole different story trying to get them when you see them.  I tried numerous times when we were on our trip when these popped up on my Tip Board but was successful very few times.  Honestly, by the time you take a screen shot and post here, it's gone. 

It's like grabbing those coveted dropped ADRs.  We see them but so do many others and actually being the successful person who gets it is very different from the large number of people who are all trying for this one coveted LL/ADR all at the same time.


----------



## McCrae

I found that GP would only work if I used a Disney Wi-Fi connection… I could book any LL using cellular.


----------



## Disturbia

What time did MMRR sell out?  Wondering if the following could work:

7 am ROTR (am) and SDD (pm)
10:30 am TOT for evening
12:30 pm MMRR for evening
2:30 pm grab whatever left (AlienSS or Star Tours)

AM -no rope drop:  Watch shows (Indiana Jones/Frozen) and meet/greet inbetween ROTR (hopefully standby star tours). 

Come back in the evening for MMRR, SDD, Alien SS and TOT (likely to be 8 pm+) and standby RnRC; 

caution:  check times for dining locations; abc commissary closes at 8 (Columbia harbor house@mk closes early as well)


----------



## wiggy500

Disturbia said:


> What time did MMRR sell out?  Wondering if the following could work:
> 
> 7 am ROTR (am) and SDD (pm)
> 10:30 am TOT for evening
> 12:30 pm MMRR for evening
> 2:30 pm grab whatever left (AlienSS or Star Tours)
> 
> AM -no rope drop:  Watch shows (Indiana Jones/Frozen) and meet/greet inbetween ROTR (hopefully standby star tours).
> 
> Come back in the evening for MMRR, SDD, Alien SS and TOT (likely to be 8 pm+) and standby RnRC;
> 
> caution:  check times for dining locations; abc commissary closes at 8 (Columbia harbor house@mk closes early as well)



It'll depend on the day.  You may have to skip either Slinky or TOT.  Yesterday and today TOT was gone at 10:30, though yesterday I saw it pop back up.  MMRR might be there at 12:30 or it might not.


----------



## Westerner

.


----------



## Mango7100

We actually had very good success stacking Genie for HS yesterday 3/12. We drove from TN and arrived at HS at 545. We did the following LL…

MMRR (540-640)…booked at 1115 am, had to keep waiting for a time late enough since we were driving so could not book when our window opened at 1030. Posted wait 70, waited 10
Slinky (610-710)…booked about 30 seconds after 7 am. Posted wait 80, waited 5
TSMM (630-730)…booked as our 3rd LL at 130. Posted 35…waited about 10
Saucers (710-810)…booked at 4 (again had  to wait a bit to get a later time, was eligible at 330), posted 30 and waited about 5
MFSR (820-900)…found this one at 730 by refreshing for about 10 min while waiting for Woodys Linchbox mobile order.
Did MMRR at 855 with an actual 10 min wait (posted 25).

So 5 genie rides and one standby in 3 1/2 hrs.


----------



## wiggy500

wiggy500 said:


> It'll depend on the day.  You may have to skip either Slinky or TOT.  Yesterday and today TOT was gone at 10:30, though yesterday I saw it pop back up.  MMRR might be there at 12:30 or it might not.



Just to clarify it was actually 10:40 a.m. today when I checked and TOT was gone.

I think you have to decide if certain rides are more important to you than others.  I would like to book Slinky, then MFSR, then MMRR when we go, but I don't think I can count on MFSR at 10:30 or MMRR at 12:30.  They might be there or they might not.


----------



## Disturbia

So at 7 am, ROTR sells out quick?  In Nov we used a watch to count down and got ROTR at 9 am.  We would be ok with anytime before noon.If it’s pushing into after 12pm within seconds (have had multiple IT issues) then that messes up mid day breaks.

PS:  ROTR (takes double the time to ride with LLIA$ AND rider switch; usually around an 1.5).  With LLIA$ we just go up to the CM with an iPad and get a rider switch.

We never did standby at ROTR. How is rider switch working there with standby (when is it issued-before entering standby/after?; Is it active immediately and valid to end of day?).

The Rider Switch rule changes:

1. only one person is allowed back with the waiting adult
2. everyone stands in the overflow queue (including infants in strollers) together until you’re near the ride sign-hopefully this is flexible and CMs allow exiting and joining back


----------



## Westerner

.


----------



## Disturbia

Mango7100 said:


> We actually had very good success stacking Genie for HS yesterday 3/12. We drove from TN and arrived at HS at 545. We did the following LL…
> 
> MMRR (540-640)…booked at 1115 am, had to keep waiting for a time late enough since we were driving so could not book when our window opened at 1030. Posted wait 70, waited 10
> Slinky (610-710)…booked about 30 seconds after 7 am. Posted wait 80, waited 5
> TSMM (630-730)…booked as our 3rd LL at 130. Posted 35…waited about 10
> Saucers (710-810)…booked at 4 (again had  to wait a bit to get a later time, was eligible at 330), posted 30 and waited about 5
> MFSR (820-900)…found this one at 730 by refreshing for about 10 min while waiting for Woodys Linchbox mobile order.
> Did MMRR at 855 with an actual 10 min wait (posted 25).
> 
> So 5 genie rides and one standby in 3 1/2 hrs.


What party size were you booking for?


----------



## caroline7238

Is a touring plan now obsolete with genie +, has anyone combined to the two? I'd love to use genie plus, but I also love being able to plan out my day somewhat, I have little kids so I'd like to avoid running from one end of the park to another as much as possible. 
Also, I am not sure I understand this correctly. I am not allowed to upgrade to genie plus until after midnight the night before (technically that day) of my park reservation? And then I have to wake up at 7 to make my first reservation? And I can buy a LL that morning at 7am too? The only LL I will buy is for our MK day for seven mines, do I book that before my first genie plus selection or will the genie plus selections sell out first? I am thinking Jungle cruise for my first genie plus that day, then splash, winnie the pooh, pirates of the caribbean, haunted mansion, buzz lightyear, magic carpets of aladdin, 
This all seems to confusing... Thanks all!


----------



## Seoulbro

So an update on my earlier strategy.  We rope dropped FOP today, and with daylight savings and the weather, it was pretty quick. They let us in starting at 7:00. At this time I mad a LL reservation for KS for 8:40.  After FOP we walked over to Navi and it was basically a walk on (10 minutes).  We then went for coffee and headed to KS. At 8:40, after tapping in, we booked a LL for MFSR at 5:00 pm.  finished the safari then walked to Dinosaur, walk on. After Dinosaur, Kids did triceratops, then headed for Rafiki train station. Went to the petting zoo, then booked MMRR for 5:30. Headed to Its tough to be a bug, walk on. Finished that, mobile ordered at flame tree, then back on the train.  went for lunch, watched the Kite Show, then booked a LL for TSM at 7:45, then left the park at 12:45 ish.    After that we walked the Boardwalk, back to our hotel (Dolphin), booked a LL for Star Tours at 6:30 (only LL left that wasn’t a show.).  Chilling now at the hotel until we go to HS studios at 5:00.

Some observations after reading the boards and worrying about Spring Break week.

1. Rope drop a must if you want to tackle a lot. You can get a lot done with little stress at AK.
2. Magic is still here, even if you notice the cost cutting and money grabbing. Don’t listen to all the negativity, just remember it isn’t like before, but still fun.
3. Flame tree portions smaller than before, and that was disappointing,but Resort hotels food still pretty big portions.
4. all the good LL’s gone by 2 at HS.
5. Chicken Guy at Disney Springs is delicious and great bang for your buck.
6. I do hate having to look at your phone every 2 hours, but it is what it is. 
7. Smile and talk to the CM’s! They are working hard and there is still some Pixie dust out there!

I hope this helps, and enjoy your vacations!!


----------



## HydroGuy

caroline7238 said:


> Is a touring plan now obsolete with genie +, has anyone combined to the two? I'd love to use genie plus, but I also love being able to plan out my day somewhat, I have little kids so I'd like to avoid running from one end of the park to another as much as possible.


No, not yet. That will prove super difficult for them to incorporate G+ because you do not even know what or when you will get LL rides until 7AM.

I just re-subscribed to TP mostly because I think their predicted wait times are more realistic than Disney's.



caroline7238 said:


> Also, I am not sure I understand this correctly. I am not allowed to upgrade to genie plus until after midnight the night before (technically that day) of my park reservation? And then I have to wake up at 7 to make my first reservation?


Yes G+ upgrade after midnight.

Also can do that that morning so you do not have to stay up until midnight to upgrade then 7AM to select.



caroline7238 said:


> And I can buy a LL that morning at 7am too? The only LL I will buy is for our MK day for seven mines, do I book that before my first genie plus selection or will the genie plus selections sell out first? I am thinking Jungle cruise for my first genie plus that day, then splash, winnie the pooh, pirates of the caribbean, haunted mansion, buzz lightyear, magic carpets of aladdin,
> This all seems to confusing... Thanks all!


Yes, you can make your first G+LL at 7AM and buy a paid ILL at 7AM. Which order you do it is up to you. Depending on what your G+ selection is you may want to that first, or wait and do it second. For JC it sounds like that is the #1 LL at MK (go figure!!!) so if it were me I would do that first and then SDMT after.

Not sure if you will get all those G+ LLs in one day. Depends on how crowded it is and park hours.


----------



## JoJoGirl

Disturbia said:


> What time did MMRR sell out?  Wondering if the following could work:
> 
> 7 am ROTR (am) and SDD (pm)
> 10:30 am TOT for evening
> 12:30 pm MMRR for evening
> 2:30 pm grab whatever left (AlienSS or Star Tours)
> 
> AM -no rope drop:  Watch shows (Indiana Jones/Frozen) and meet/greet inbetween ROTR (hopefully standby star tours).
> 
> Come back in the evening for MMRR, SDD, Alien SS and TOT (likely to be 8 pm+) and standby RnRC;
> 
> caution:  check times for dining locations; abc commissary closes at 8 (Columbia harbor house@mk closes early as well)



I did something similar to this on Friday, though I rope dropped MK instead of HS. HS had a crowd level of 8 that day according to Touring Plans.

*7:00 am: * I Booked LL for Splash at 9:05 am.  *You would be trying for SDD whenever you could get it.

7:15-7:20 am-ish: Purchased a 7:55 pm ILL for Rise when availability opened back up after the initial 7:00 am sellout.  *Also purchased ILL for 7DMT for 11:20 am.

*After 9:30 am:* Used my first LL at MK.  Splash was down, so used it for Pirates so I could book another right away. By that point MK was a dumpster fire of crowds, down attractions, long standby waits and late return times for open attractions, so I started stacking for evening at HS.  *Picked up ToT for 6:40 (I think) but I had to wait a bit for the return times to hit that point. * At MK I just enjoyed minor attractions with low standby waits because so many major attractions were down, had a Dole Whip and watched a cavalcade, then did my 11:20 7DMT ILL.

*After 11:30 am:* *Picked up MMRR for 7:40 pm. * Again I had to wait for a return time as late as I wanted.  Left MK after the first parade.  Lunched at the Poly and hung out on the beach a bit.

*After 2:30:  Checked HS for return times and still saw lots of options including TSMM and RnRC, *but I wanted to ride SE at Epcot so I picked up that one instead.  Monorailed to Epcot and rode SE, then enjoyed walking through WS and catching some live entertainment. 5:00 pm:  Walked over to the Dolphin, checked in, retrieved my luggage and put it in the room and rested a bit. 6:20 pm: Walked to HS.

*6:40 pm at HS:   LLs were still available for Swirling Saucers and Star Tours IIRC, but not TSMM, RnRC, or ToT.  *

So starting around 6:45, I rode ToT via LL (short wait, only waited one cycle before the library), and then headed to Baseline for a beer and pretzel and people watching.  Headed back to MMRR and rode that via LL, then it was time for Rise.  Again a very short wait, basically walked right into the holding room before the first pre show.  By the time Rise was over, GE was looking awesome with low crowds, lower temps, and tons of ambience so I hung out there a bit just soaking it in before heading to Toy Story Land.  Could very easily have taken in another minor ride or two like Swirling Saucers, then hopped online for TSMM before close, but I was tired so I just strolled through and enjoyed seeing everything lit up at night.  The Animation projection show was going on when I headed back down Hollywood Boulevard.  Watched some of that on the way out.

Sorry that was long-winded.  Just trying to say that Yes, it is entirely possible to do what you are describing at HS even on a busy day!  Just watch LL return times and book accordingly, and fill in earlier in the day with lower wait attractions, live entertainment, snack breaks and dining.  Have fun!

edited - typos and to add info on 7DMT which I forgot about earlier.


----------



## YYCmom

caroline7238 said:


> Is a touring plan now obsolete with genie +, has anyone combined to the two? I'd love to use genie plus, but I also love being able to plan out my day somewhat, I have little kids so I'd like to avoid running from one end of the park to another as much as possible.
> Also, I am not sure I understand this correctly. I am not allowed to upgrade to genie plus until after midnight the night before (technically that day) of my park reservation? And then I have to wake up at 7 to make my first reservation? And I can buy a LL that morning at 7am too? The only LL I will buy is for our MK day for seven mines, do I book that before my first genie plus selection or will the genie plus selections sell out first? I am thinking Jungle cruise for my first genie plus that day, then splash, winnie the pooh, pirates of the caribbean, haunted mansion, buzz lightyear, magic carpets of aladdin,
> This all seems to confusing... Thanks all!



I noticed that TP now has an option on the personalized plans to enter an estimated G+ time.  So if you have an idea of when you think you will get a return time, you can generate a plan with that incorporated.  Click on the yellow box that says "advanced options" to add the attractions you think you will use G+ for.


----------



## wiggy500

JoJoGirl said:


> *After 9:30 am:* Used my first LL at MK.  Splash was down, so used it for Pirates so I could book another right away.



I believe you actually could have booked another lightning lane once Splash turned into a multi-experience LL.  From my limited experience it seems like it treats the original lightning lane booking like it never happened.

Sounds like a great day with a whole lot of walking.


----------



## Mango7100

Disturbia said:


> What party size were you booking for?


3 people.


----------



## TinkBink

If through the process of booking a Genie+ ride the time changes and you end up booking one that doesn't work for you, can you cancel and re-book immediately? I feel like for a time there were reports of people who had their 2 hour clock reset when cancelling.....


----------



## JoJoGirl

wiggy500 said:


> I believe you actually could have booked another lightning lane once Splash turned into a multi-experience LL.  From my limited experience it seems like it treats the original lightning lane booking like it never happened.
> 
> Sounds like a great day with a whole lot of walking.



Thank you! I did notice that afterward when reading the fine print, but didn’t know it at the time. Things worked out fine for me that morning anyway, but it great to know for the future.


----------



## revdon64

My experience for 3/14 - purchased G+ just after 12am, with park passes for DHS. 7am tried for SDD but wonky wifi switched park to EPCOT in the app when i tried to refresh and in the minute or two it took to get back to HS SDD was gone. Had daughter simultaneously trying to get ILL for Rise. That sold out in under a minute as well. Settled for 3:35 MMRR. 10:30am RRC for 4:55. $90 plus tax for my family of six and this is what we get? Do better Disney, do better.


----------



## jbish

revdon64 said:


> My experience for 3/14 - purchased G+ just after 12am, with park passes for DHS. 7am tried for SDD but wonky wifi switched park to EPCOT in the app when i tried to refresh and in the minute or two it took to get back to HS SDD was gone. Had daughter simultaneously trying to get ILL for Rise. That sold out in under a minute as well. Settled for 3:35 MMRR. 10:30am RRC for 4:55. $90 plus tax for my family of six and this is what we get? Do better Disney, do better.


If you plan on using G+ again during your stay, do not despair if you don't get exactly what you want right at 7:00 am.  There are many reports and data that show that there are more G+ availability that pop up again at 7:10 and 7:20.


----------



## js

Hi.

Although I am DVC, I also own a TS in Orlando, which we will be staying at next month.

Is there a separate thread for Off-Site Guests and ILLs? We are also purchasing G+. We are only going to MK, the Tuesday after Easter, during our trip and know it will be packed.

I want to purchase 7DMT for three people at 9 am (or whatever time MK opens that day). Is this impossible?
We are three adult women and going while the guys golf that day so we really don't want a return time after 1-2 pm since we will be leaving the park about that time.

Thank you.


----------



## Meglen

js said:


> Hi.
> 
> Although I am DVC, I also own a TS in Orlando, which we will be staying at next month.
> 
> Is there a separate thread for Off-Site Guests and ILLs? We are also purchasing G+. We are only going to MK, the Tuesday after Easter, during our trip and know it will be packed.
> 
> I want to purchase 7DMT for three people at 9 am (or whatever time MK opens that day). Is this impossible?
> We are three adult women and going while the guys golf that day so we really don't want a return time after 1-2 pm since we will be leaving the park about that time.
> 
> Thank you.


I believe by 9am 7dmt will be a hard grab.


----------



## js

Meglen said:


> I believe by 9am 7dmt will be a hard grab.


Thank you. So do I. It's my bffs only request LOL
They don't even understand about G+ or know it exists. I'm the Disney guru to them so had hoped it would be a possibility but in reality I know it's not.
She will have to decide is waiting 2 hours is worth it for her. I'm also AP so don't care either way and I'll do whatever they decide.
How about FoP? Is that ILL? They love that too. They are doing MK only for 7DMT (I know, I know) but they could do AK if I swayed them that way.


----------



## Meglen

js said:


> Thank you. So do I. It's my bffs only request LOL
> They don't even understand about G+ or know it exists. I'm the Disney guru to them so had hoped it would be a possibility but in reality I know it's not.
> She will have to decide is waiting 2 hours is worth it for her. I'm also AP so don't care either way and I'll do whatever they decide.
> How about FoP? Is that ILL? They love that too. They are doing MK only for 7DMT (I know, I know) but they could do AK if I swayed them that way.


I have seen people buy fop after park open


----------



## js

Meglen said:


> I have seen people buy fop after park open


Thank you.
I will take a look this week and see any trends and times for FoP at park opening and then move our ressie to AK if need be.


----------



## revdon64

jbish said:


> If you plan on using G+ again during your stay, do not despair if you don't get exactly what you want right at 7:00 am.  There are many reports and data that show that there are more G+ availability that pop up again at 7:10 and 7:20.


That's nice to know, but there won't be an "again."


----------



## Miffy

js said:


> Thank you. So do I. It's my bffs only request LOL
> They don't even understand about G+ or know it exists. I'm the Disney guru to them so had hoped it would be a possibility but in reality I know it's not.
> She will have to decide is waiting 2 hours is worth it for her. I'm also AP so don't care either way and I'll do whatever they decide.
> How about FoP? Is that ILL? They love that too. They are doing MK only for 7DMT (I know, I know) but they could do AK if I swayed them that way.


FoP ILL was often gettable after park opening when we were there last week. Word of advice: Don't give up if something you want isn't available right away. It may become available later, although at that point you're gambling.

7DMT at park opening is a very hard get. Good luck with that. And consider riding during the fireworks or just after. Shorter lines then.

Don't know if you're going to DHS, but ILL for RotR was sometimes available at park opening as well. And I hear the lines near closing time aren't so bad.


----------



## jbish

js said:


> I want to purchase 7DMT for three people at 9 am (or whatever time MK opens that day). Is this impossible?
> We are three adult women and going while the guys golf that day so we really don't want a return time after 1-2 pm since we will be leaving the park about that time.


Here is the data on ILL availability for 7DMT for the past few days:


Here are the takeaways - right at 9 am, there is still some availability, but the orange boxes represent return times in the afternoon, red is the evening.  So odds are not great that you'll get a return time before 1 pm.  Now, on the 12th, there were still some return times in the light green, which was late morning.  But I think this was the day of the tornado warning and torrential rain - so maybe not the best indicator of what things will look like after Easter.


----------



## Westerner

.


----------



## jbish

js said:


> How about FoP? Is that ILL? They love that too. They are doing MK only for 7DMT (I know, I know) but they could do AK if I swayed them that way.


Here's the data on FOP:


Today is arguably a good test for what a REALLY busy day could mean for you (plan for that and anything less is gravy). Today AK opened at 7:30 am and that's when the availability just dropped off.  And since the offsite guests are only 30 minutes behind the on-site guests in booking at AK, there's probably a better chance you can get FOP than 7DMT when MK is opening at 9 am.  But you can see that availability is very slim throughout the day today.  I believe AK opened at 7:30 yesterday, too, and you can see there was consistent availability up until about 8:45.  I think you would do okay here.  And it's definitely a better ride than 7DMT!!!


----------



## Westerner

jbish said:


> And it's (FoP) definitely a better ride than 7DMT!!!


Agree!  7DMT is cute but FoP is mind blowing!


----------



## js

Miffy said:


> FoP ILL was often gettable after park opening when we were there last week. Word of advice: Don't give up if something you want isn't available right away. It may become available later, although at that point you're gambling.
> 
> 7DMT at park opening is a very hard get. Good luck with that. And consider riding during the fireworks or just after. Shorter lines then.
> 
> Don't know if you're going to DHS, but ILL for RotR was sometimes available at park opening as well. And I hear the lines near closing time aren't so bad.


Than you. We are leaving the park around 1-2 pm.
I have a monorail bar crawl set up for the six of us (three couples) that evening so we want to get back around the same time the guys are done golfing to shower and get ready so we are not staying for fireworks.



jbish said:


> Here is the data on ILL availability for 7DMT for the past few days:
> View attachment 654212
> 
> Here are the takeaways - right at 9 am, there is still some availability, but the orange boxes represent return times in the afternoon, red is the evening.  So odds are not great that you'll get a return time before 1 pm.  Now, on the 12th, there were still some return times in the light green, which was late morning.  But I think this was the day of the tornado warning and torrential rain - so maybe not the best indicator of what things will look like after Easter.


Thank you very much. I will start keeping track and look with thrilldata.



Westerner said:


> This thread is for both offsite and onsite guests.  To answer your questions, based on recent thrilldata, FoP $ILL should be doable, availability has usually been lasting past 9AM lately.  The fact that AK opens now at 730 means the gap between offsite and onsite (7AM) is less.  jbish already provided data on 7DMT so I will just add that if MK opens earlier eg 830 that may help.  These things can vary so my advice is check again just before you go.
> 
> View attachment 654216





jbish said:


> Here's the data on FOP:
> View attachment 654218
> 
> Today is arguably a good test for what a REALLY busy day could mean for you (plan for that and anything less is gravy). Today AK opened at 7:30 am and that's when the availability just dropped off.  And since the offsite guests are only 30 minutes behind the on-site guests in booking at AK, there's probably a better chance you can get FOP than 7DMT when MK is opening at 9 am.  But you can see that availability is very slim throughout the day today.  I believe AK opened at 7:30 yesterday, too, and you can see there was consistent availability up until about 8:45.  I think you would do okay here.  And it's definitely a better ride than 7DMT!!!


I agree, FoP is much better than 7DMT. I am going to take a look at FoP this week and then talk to them this weekend or on the phone this week about moving our park.

Thanks so much for taking all the time to post the information for me. I appreciate it!


----------



## js

Westerner said:


> Agree!  7DMT is cute but FoP is mind blowing!


I agree and my bff has done both but she hasn't been in a few years and prior to that wasn't there for over 20. I'm just doing what she wants. I have DVC and AP and I'll be back.


----------



## wiggy500

I've done Genie+ with only myself having it in November and it worked amazingly.  Now I am going to do it with a party of 8.

I have heard it claimed several times that you can't get as good of lightning lanes with a large party as you can with a small party.  The only reasoning behind that I've seen is that it just kind of makes sense to whoever thinks that is the case.  My theory is that party size makes no difference with Genie+ as far as what you'll be able to book.  Am I correct or incorrect?  I don't have enough experience to know, but if someone does have an opinion based on experience I would like to hear about it.


----------



## js

Hi. I am trying to track AK vs MK drops but came across this this morning. AK is open but does this mean Safari isn’t any longer? I havent heard of thst happening.

Thank you.


----------



## SkyGuy

js said:


> Hi. I am trying to track AK vs MK drops but came across this this morning. AK is open but does this mean Safari isn’t any longer? I havent heard of thst happening.
> 
> Thank you. View attachment 654434


It usually means the ride is temporarily closed for some reason or another, and according to the TP Lines app, it is closed right now. Could be something as simple as a giraffe standing in the middle of the road, so they can’t load any new vehicles.


----------



## Tess

SkyGuy said:


> It usually means the ride is temporarily closed for some reason or another, and according to the TP Lines app, it is closed right now. Could be something as simple as a giraffe standing in the middle of the road, so they can’t load any new vehicles.



Or the ride simply wasn't yet open--it opens later than ETPE--usually regular park opening time.


----------



## SkyGuy

Tess said:


> Or the ride simply wasn't yet open--it opens later than ETPE--usually regular park opening time.


True. AK opened at 7:30 today, so the question was written when the park had been open for a while. However, Safari doesn’t always open with the park.


----------



## js

SkyGuy said:


> It usually means the ride is temporarily closed for some reason or another, and according to the TP Lines app, it is closed right now. Could be something as simple as a giraffe standing in the middle of the road, so they can’t load any new vehicles.


That makes a lot of sense. Thank you.



Tess said:


> Or the ride simply wasn't yet open--it opens later than ETPE--usually regular park opening time.


Thank you. Regular park opening for all guests today was a 7:30 am.


----------



## g-dad66

TinkBink said:


> If through the process of booking a Genie+ ride the time changes and you end up booking one that doesn't work for you, can you cancel and re-book immediately? I feel like for a time there were reports of people who had their 2 hour clock reset when cancelling.....



Yes, we did it this morning.
Clicked on Slinky when it said something like 6pm and when it confirmed, it showed 11:30am — too early for us today which is sleep-in day (for everyone but me…)
Cancelled it, and finally secured a 6:20pm at about 720am.
It took a lot of work to do it. Continual refreshing for about 15 minutes.
When a time would pop up, clicking on it would over and over say not available.
Occasionally it said we we weren’t eligible yet. That was unnerving!
But persistence paid off.


----------



## TinkBink

g-dad66 said:


> Yes, we did it this morning.
> Clicked on Slinky when it said something like 6pm and when it confirmed, it showed 11:30am — too early for us today which is sleep-in day (for everyone but me…)
> Cancelled it, and finally secured a 6:20pm at about 720am.
> It took a lot of work to do it. Continual refreshing for about 15 minutes.
> When a time would pop up, clicking on it would over and over say not available.
> Occasionally it said we we weren’t eligible yet. That was unnerving!
> But persistence paid off.


Thank you so much for that!! Really good to know you occasionally got a not eligible message but it went away. I will panic less when it inevitably happens to me too!


----------



## g-dad66

TinkBink said:


> Thank you so much for that!! Really good to know you occasionally got a not eligible message but it went away. I will panic less when it inevitably happens to me too!


Yeah, I think the app often has a time lag. 
For example, at 11:01 it will tell you that you are not eligible until 11:00.
So I think a cancellation isn’t  always immediately recognized by the app.


----------



## SLThomas318

wiggy500 said:


> I've done Genie+ with only myself having it in November and it worked amazingly.  Now I am going to do it with a party of 8.
> 
> I have heard it claimed several times that you can't get as good of lightning lanes with a large party as you can with a small party.  The only reasoning behind that I've seen is that it just kind of makes sense to whoever thinks that is the case.  My theory is that party size makes no difference with Genie+ as far as what you'll be able to book.  Am I correct or incorrect?  I don't have enough experience to know, but if someone does have an opinion based on experience I would like to hear about it.



I think this is more relevant as the day goes on or as you are trying to snag the times that pop-up throughout the day?  I'm assuming a certain number of riders are assigned to each genie+ ride for any given time period.... so say 100 people can book ride XXX from 10-11am.  Once those 100 slots are gone it moves to the next time and so on through-out the day.  Eventually you'll hit a point where there are say 3 spots left... so when you go to book with a group of 8, it'll move you to a time that can take a party of 8.  Or say a group of 4 cancels so their 4 spots go out for someone to book... again, your party of 8 wouldn't work, but a smaller group could snag the time. 

We used genie+ after Thanksgiving with a group of 6 and when we were trying to secure a 10am time, it kept pushing us to 1pm.  I would go back and the time was still there, but it wouldn't assign that time once I selected my party size.  My assumption is that there wasn't enough availability for 6 of us to ride at that time.  

This is just my assumption... I'm sure the system is much more complicated


----------



## wiggy500

SLThomas318 said:


> I think this is more relevant as the day goes on or as you are trying to snag the times that pop-up throughout the day?  I'm assuming a certain number of riders are assigned to each genie+ ride for any given time period.... so say 100 people can book ride XXX from 10-11am.  Once those 100 slots are gone it moves to the next time and so on through-out the day.  Eventually you'll hit a point where there are say 3 spots left... so when you go to book with a group of 8, it'll move you to a time that can take a party of 8.  Or say a group of 4 cancels so their 4 spots go out for someone to book... again, your party of 8 wouldn't work, but a smaller group could snag the time.
> 
> We used genie+ after Thanksgiving with a group of 6 and when we were trying to secure a 10am time, it kept pushing us to 1pm.  I would go back and the time was still there, but it wouldn't assign that time once I selected my party size.  My assumption is that there wasn't enough availability for 6 of us to ride at that time.
> 
> This is just my assumption... I'm sure the system is much more complicated



That might not explain it actually depending on what you mean by "go back."  As a party of 1 I would click back and still see the same time there and then go forward through the process and it was still gone.  Now if you meant you refreshed and still saw 10 a.m. before selecting your party then you might be right.

How exactly all this works...only the ancients know.


----------



## SLThomas318

wiggy500 said:


> That might not explain it actually depending on what you mean by "go back."  As a party of 1 I would click back and still see the same time there and then go forward through the process and it was still gone.  Now if you meant you refreshed and still saw 10 a.m. before selecting your party then you might be right.
> 
> How exactly all this works...only the ancients know.



Nope… refreshed, closed the app, went back in… time kept showing and wouldn’t let me book… was very annoying…

Agree… who knows how this works… sometimes I wonder if even Disney knows!


----------



## wisblue

SkyGuy said:


> True. AK opened at 7:30 today, so the question was written when the park had been open for a while. However, Safari doesn’t always open with the park.



The Safari usually doesn’t open until 8 AM, especially at this time of year. With DST just starting sunrise is later than it was last week.


----------



## scrappinginontario

wisblue said:


> The Safari usually doesn’t open until 8 AM, especially at this time of year. With DST just starting sunrise is later than it was last week.


 Hours if Kilimanjaro Safaris changes often (both open and close) so it’s recommended to check the app by clicking the name of the attraction in the tip board.

The park officially opened at 7:30 today but KS doesn’t open until 9AM.

Also, it closes before the park does too.


----------



## MaveDatthews

I managed to edit my top picks for MK (pin to the top of tip board) but can’t figure out how to do it for other parks. The option doesn’t appear?


----------



## snowangel72

scrappinginontario said:


> *UPDATE:*
> 
> There are numerous reports that Genie+ Tip Board is now working for International guests who are using Android devices!!


We are here today. The app doesn't work properly for me as I get error messages when I try to book something but it works on my husband's phone. We are from Canada.


----------



## Jenis

MaveDatthews said:


> I managed to edit my top picks for MK (pin to the top of tip board) but can’t figure out how to do it for other parks. The option doesn’t appear?



I forget where in this thread it's posted but you need to go into my day, change day, and then select the day for the other parks (one at a time) and then it will pop up.


----------



## blossombrd

Just trying to wrap my head around this.  So here goes.  Is the following scenario possible, would I be able to book another LL after I tap into Jungle Cruise at 9:45am?

7am - Book JC for 9:45am (LL1)
9:45am - Book LL2 for 3:00pm
11am - Book PP for 5:30pm (LL3)

Do I have to wait until I tap in at 5:30 to book another LL or can I book a LL at 1pm (2 hours after booking LL3)?


----------



## summerlvr

blossombrd said:


> Just trying to wrap my head around this.  So here goes.  Is the following scenario possible, would I be able to book another LL after I tap into Jungle Cruise at 9:45am?
> 
> 7am - Book JC for 9:45am (LL1)
> 9:45am - Book LL2 for 3:00pm
> 11am - Book PP for 5:30pm (LL3)
> 
> Do I have to wait until I tap in at 5:30 to book another LL or can I book a LL at 1pm (2 hours after booking LL3)?


If I understand things correctly, you  would be able to book another LL at 1 pm since LL3 is more than 2 hours away.


----------



## Westerner

blossombrd said:


> Just trying to wrap my head around this.  So here goes.  Is the following scenario possible, would I be able to book another LL after I tap into Jungle Cruise at 9:45am?
> 
> 7am - Book JC for 9:45am (LL1)
> 9:45am - Book LL2 for 3:00pm
> 11am - Book PP for 5:30pm (LL3)
> 
> Do I have to wait until I tap in at 5:30 to book another LL or can I book a LL at 1pm (2 hours after booking LL3)?


You can book your 3rd LL at 11:45, 2 hours after you tapped in to _booked_ LL2.  Not at 11am.

Please refer to Everything Genie, Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lane - Please Read Posts 1-7, post 3, booking eligibility.

edit: corrected per GBRforWDW, thx for catch.


----------



## GBRforWDW

Westerner said:


> You can book your 3rd LL at 11:45, 2 hours after you tapped in to LL2.  Not at 11am.
> 
> Please refer to Everything Genie, Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lane - Please Read Posts 1-7, post 3, booking eligibility.


Correction, 2 hours after booking LL2 .  Gotta wait to tap into the first ride, then book the second ride and 2 hours after that, can book LL3.

For @blossombrd, if you're wanting a 530 pass for PP, you should make that your second pick.


According to the availability map, you're getting into late evening by noon time.  Also since you can't guarantee a before 10 return for JC, you may have to wait until 11 and 1 for your second and third LLs, making it even more important to grab PP second.


----------



## Luisfba

does anyone have a list of what rides are 'refilling' lightning lanes and the times the drops are?  thanks


----------



## Mando3611

My reservation is at Animal Kingdom...Park Opens at 7:30 AM. I was planning to park Hop to Magic Kingdom at 2:00 PM later that day. I was also planning on stacking LL reservations at 7:00 AM , 9:30 AM (7:30 + 2 hours), and 11:30 AM - ALL LL reservations would be for Magic Kingdom afternoon attractions. Will this work?

Also...could I buy a individual purchase lighting lane at 2 different parks in the same day (Flight of passage and 7 dwarfs)???

Please Help???


----------



## GBRforWDW

Mando3611 said:


> My reservation is at Animal Kingdom...Park Opens at 7:30 AM. I was planning to park Hop to Magic Kingdom at 2:00 PM later that day. I was also planning on stacking LL reservations at 7:00 AM , 9:30 AM (7:30 + 2 hours), and 11:30 AM - ALL LL reservations would be for Magic Kingdom afternoon attractions. Will this work?
> 
> Also...could I buy a individual purchase lighting lane at 2 different parks in the same day (Flight of passage and 7 dwarfs)???
> 
> Please Help???


Is magic Kingdom opening at 7:30?  The 2 hours for park opening begins when the park you booked your first pass opens.  If MK opens at 9, you could try for a park opening LL at Navi if you were planning to rope drop FoP or choose dinosaur or EE, for the 7:30, then as soon as you check in, Choose an mk LL, then every 2 hours after that, get MK LLs.  So you might be able to get MK passes at 7:45, 9:46, 11:47 and 1:48 by doing it this way. I can't guarantee this will work, but I would think it would considering you redeemed a pass already.  

Yes, you can buy ILL$ to both AK and MK on the same day.


----------



## KDee

Is anyone else having issue with the option to edit selection missing? Ie not being able to pin to attractions? It is missing on my app and we re here now.


----------



## g-dad66

KDee said:


> Is anyone else having issue with the option to edit selection missing? Ie not being able to pin to attractions? It is missing on my app and we re here now.



Try going to My Day and click on Get Started Now (for Disney Genie). When you get to the Attractions, click on the one(s) you want to pin, and see if that works.


----------



## MidnightMeeko

I thought I would try tracking a day of possible LL's from home. I know that on the ground, in the moment, would be different because of glitches and the whole choosing a time and maybe not getting it. However, I'm curious how close the following would be to using it in person and if I even did this right.
I tracked Magic Kingdom on 3/20/22.

7am book a LL for Winnie the Pooh at 8:45 (, I overslept so this first one is a guess. The rest are from actual times seen in the app).
Scan into Winnie the Pooh at 8:45 and book LL for Buzz at 9:35. 
Scan into Buzz at 9:35 and book Haunted Mansion for 11:00am. 
Scan into Haunted Mansion at 11 and book Jungle Cruise for 11:35 (I know! What are the odds of that happening again?!)
Scan into Jungle Cruise at 11:35 and book Splash Mt for 12:55.
Scan into Splash at 12:55. At this point I didn't get to check again until 1:35. At 1:35 book a LL for Peter Pan at 8:40.
At 3:35 book a LL for Laugh Floor at 3:40.
Scan into Laugh Floor at 3:40 and book Pirates for 6:20.
At 5:40 book a  LL for Magic Carpets at 6:50.
Scan into Pirates at 6:20 and book Small World for 8:25,
Scan into Magic Carpets at 6:50 book Dumbo for 7:40.
Scan into Dumbo at 7:40 and book Speedway for 9:15.
Scan into Small World at 8:25 and book Teacups for 10.

I know some of those later ones probably wouldn't even need a LL, but I was trying to see how many I could fit into a day.  I got 13, if I did that right. Feedback welcome!


----------



## holyrita

GBRforWDW said:


> Is magic Kingdom opening at 7:30?  The 2 hours for park opening begins when the park you booked your first pass opens.


Curious if you (or anyone reading this) has experience with this? In a Touring Plans video made last week, they said the 2 hours for park opening begins for the park where you have your park reservation, not where you book your first LL .


----------



## Westerner

holyrita said:


> Curious if you (or anyone reading this) has experience with this? In a Touring Plans video made last week, they said the 2 hours for park opening begins for the park where you have your park reservation, not where you book your first LL .


Saw the video, Pretty sure TP is wrong about this.  The person making the video said they weren't actually sure about it.


----------



## Tom_E_D

MidnightMeeko said:


> I thought I would try tracking a day of possible LL's from home. I know that on the ground, in the moment, would be different because of glitches and the whole choosing a time and maybe not getting it. However, I'm curious how close the following would be to using it in person and if I even did this right.
> I tracked Magic Kingdom on 3/20/22.
> 
> 7am book a LL for Winnie the Pooh at 8:45 (, I overslept so this first one is a guess. The rest are from actual times seen in the app).
> Scan into Winnie the Pooh at 8:45 and book LL for Buzz at 9:35.
> Scan into Buzz at 9:35 and book Haunted Mansion for 11:00am.
> Scan into Haunted Mansion at 11 and book Jungle Cruise for 11:35 (I know! What are the odds of that happening again?!)
> Scan into Jungle Cruise at 11:35 and book Splash Mt for 12:55.
> Scan into Splash at 12:55. At this point I didn't get to check again until 1:35. At 1:35 book a LL for Peter Pan at 8:40.
> At 3:35 book a LL for Laugh Floor at 3:40.
> Scan into Laugh Floor at 3:40 and book Pirates for 6:20.
> At 5:40 book a  LL for Magic Carpets at 6:50.
> Scan into Pirates at 6:20 and book Small World for 8:25,
> Scan into Magic Carpets at 6:50 book Dumbo for 7:40.
> Scan into Dumbo at 7:40 and book Speedway for 9:15.
> Scan into Small World at 8:25 and book Teacups for 10.
> 
> I know some of those later ones probably wouldn't even need a LL, but I was trying to see how many I could fit into a day.  I got 13, if I did that right. Feedback welcome!


You're okay until 6:20. However, you cannot book another G+LL after scanning into Pirates at 6:20 because your most-recently-booked G+LL was Magic Carpets. *IF* you had booked Small World after Magic Carpets (which you couldn't in this scenario), you would not be able to book another one as soon as you scanned into Magic Carpets at 6:50 since Small World was then your most-recently-booked one. Ditto for after scanning into Small World at 8:25 when it wasn't your most-recently-booked G+LL. What you're trying to do for the evening hours is use a double stack.  Back in November, Disney closed the loophole that permitted double stacks. 

I hope you remembered to use your Peter Pan at 8:40.


----------



## jbish

I believe, up to this point, you would have been correct.  And here's where I think your assumptions are incorrect:


MidnightMeeko said:


> Scan into Laugh Floor at 3:40 and *book Pirates for 6:20 (LL-a)*.
> At 5:40 book a  LL for *Magic Carpets at 6:50 (LL-b - now your most recently booked LL)*.
> Scan into *Pirates (LL-a)* at 6:20 and book Small World for 8:25,
> Scan into *Magic Carpets (LL-b)* at 6:50 book *Dumbo for 7:40 (LL-c)*.
> Scan into Dumbo at 7:40 and book Speedway for 9:15.
> Scan into Small World at 8:25 and book Teacups for 10.
> 
> I know some of those later ones probably wouldn't even need a LL, but I was trying to see how many I could fit into a day.  I got 13, if I did that right. Feedback welcome!


Where you diverged is when you had to wait the 2 hours after getting Laugh Floor at 3:40.  Once you made the Magic Carpets LL at 5:40, that became the LL from which your NEXT LL choice would be based.  Remember, _when _you can make your next LL is based on the *most recently booked LL*.  If your most recently booked LL can be redeemed in less than two hours, you will be able to book the next LL after you've tapped in for the LL ride.  If your most recently booked LL is more than two hours away, then you must wait two hours and book.  Your original plan was the "loophole" that has since been closed.  Once you booked *LL-b *at the two hour mark, *LL-a *no longer has bearing on when you can book *LL-c*.  Hope that helps (and that I'm correct!! lol)


----------



## MidnightMeeko

jbish said:


> I believe, up to this point, you would have been correct.  And here's where I think your assumptions are incorrect:
> 
> Where you diverged is when you had to wait the 2 hours after getting Laugh Floor at 3:40.  Once you made the Magic Carpets LL at 5:40, that became the LL from which your NEXT LL choice would be based.  Remember, _when _you can make your next LL is based on the *most recently booked LL*.  If your most recently booked LL can be redeemed in less than two hours, you will be able to book the next LL after you've tapped in for the LL ride.  If your most recently booked LL is more than two hours away, then you must wait two hours and book.  Your original plan was the "loophole" that has since been closed.  Once you booked *LL-b *at the two hour mark, *LL-a *no longer has bearing on when you can book *LL-c*.  Hope that helps (and that I'm correct!! lol)


Thank you! That is tremendously helpful. I had a feeling it couldn't quite be right.


----------



## KDee

g-dad66 said:


> Try going to My Day and click on Get Started Now (for Disney Genie). When you get to the Attractions, click on the one(s) you want to pin, and see if that works.


Thank you! This fixed it! I did a lot of refreshing and was able to get what we want earlier in the day. But with the mad dash with Spring Break this is most helpful! Thank you again!


----------



## Dizziman

Westerner said:


> Saw the video, Pretty sure TP is wrong about this.  The person making the video said they weren't actually sure about it.


Not exactly the same thing, but on 3/11 we booked Safari in AK at 7 am with a 9:15 return time. I think we got to the ride around 9:30 and then was able to book at HS, even though it only had been opened an hour. I know technically we were allowed to book anyway because we had used our LL, but it worked for us.


----------



## Westerner

Dizziman said:


> Not exactly the same thing, but on 3/11 we booked Safari in AK at 7 am with a 9:15 return time. I think we got to the ride around 9:30 and then was able to book at HS, even though it only had been opened an hour. I know technically we were allowed to book anyway because we had used our LL, but it worked for us.


Thanks for the data point.  That is consistent with the rule that when hopping, you can book your 2nd LL 2 hours after the park opens where you booked your 1st LL.   Irrespective of park reservation or where you're hopping to.


----------



## ejgonz2

It seemed in the beginning the consensus was that G+ wasn’t worth it for Epcot. With frozen now an option, do people think it is worth it now?


----------



## catccc

Let's say HS opens at 9 am.  You get lucky at 7 am and book a LL for SDD with a 10:15 am return time.  Before you have a chance to check in for SDD at 10:15 am, the ride goes down and stays down for the next hour.  Will G+ immediately convert this to an anytime, multiple experience LL at 10:15 am when the ride goes down, or will it wait until the end of the window and convert it at 11:15 am?  If it converts at 10:15 am, do you get to book a new LL when it converts, or will you now have abide by the 2 hour rule to wait until 11 am?


----------



## GBRforWDW

ejgonz2 said:


> It seemed in the beginning the consensus was that G+ wasn’t worth it for Epcot. With frozen now an option, do people think it is worth it now?


The interesting thing about Epcot is that other than Test Track and Frozen, which you're only going to get one or the other, everything else has availability almost all day, well at least today, anyway.  I guess Soarin' runs out too and would need to be picked before noon.  But for most rides, you could probably say, I want to ride this ride, select that as your next pass, walk to the ride and get on with the pass.  The problem is, most of these rides will have 10-20 minute waits all day or under 5 later in the day.  So you probably still don't need it on most days, other than when it's probably a crowd level 8 or higher day.



It's always variable by person and day though.  If you think you'd like it to skip 2 or 3 long lines, go for it, but if you're ok with a couple long lines, you can probably skip it.  Here's the waits at 7:30 pm.  I'll bet everything down to Nemo is a walk on.


----------



## holyrita

2+ hours for Frozen?!  $15 to skip that line (if that ride is a must do for you) seems worth it to me


----------



## GBRforWDW

It's not always that bad...

If you get there right away, you can get on in 20-30 minutes. . Though within 30 minutes of park opening it's an hour wait already and too late to decide to buy Genie+ for a FEA LL


----------



## ejgonz2

GBRforWDW said:


> It's not always that bad...
> 
> If you get there right away, you can get on in 20-30 minutes. . Though within 30 minutes of park opening it's an hour wait already and too late to decide to buy Genie+ for a FEA LL
> 
> View attachment 656416



Thanks. We’re not rope droppers and Frozen is definitely a must do. Are you really not able to get TT as well?


----------



## sequoia 14

catccc said:


> Let's say HS opens at 9 am.  You get lucky at 7 am and book a LL for SDD with a 10:15 am return time.  Before you have a chance to check in for SDD at 10:15 am, the ride goes down and stays down for the next hour.  Will G+ immediately convert this to an anytime, multiple experience LL at 10:15 am when the ride goes down, or will it wait until the end of the window and convert it at 11:15 am?  If it converts at 10:15 am, do you get to book a new LL when it converts, or will you now have abide by the 2 hour rule to wait until 11 am?



Having just experienced this exact scenario yesterday (but with a 1000 SDD return time) we were able to book our next G+ right at the beginning of the window at 10:00. It converted to an anytime pass at the start of the window.

On a side note, the anytime pass wasn't good for TOT or MMRR on top of Rise and Meet & Greets which surprised me.


----------



## Westerner

My understanding is that when an LL converts to an anytime LL due to ride closure, it's treated as if the original LL was never made.  If it was your most recently booked LL you can rebook right away, and you can book the original ride through the regular LL process should it come back up later.


----------



## sequoia 14

Westerner said:


> My understanding is that when an LL converts to an anytime LL due to ride closure, it's treated as if the original LL was never made.  If it was your most recently booked LL you can rebook right away, and you can book the original ride through the regular LL process should it come back up later.



From my experience yesterday it did keep my original Slinky LL and we were able to use it when the ride came back up in the afternoon.

I was nervous it would use the anytime reservations when we were using the new LLs we had gotten for Toy Story and the Frozen show but it didn't. I made sure never to scan in early or late though to the new LLs so it wouldnt try to use the Slinky anytime passes.


----------



## kimwoje

I have not totally caught up on this thread so I apologize if this was already discussed! How is it working out for AK with the early entry starting at 7:00 am? Do they let people in a little before 7:00 or is everyone trying to both book LLs/ILL$ and run to Pandora at the same time? Thank you!


----------



## DebLovesPooh

ejgonz2 said:


> Thanks. We’re not rope droppers and Frozen is definitely a must do. Are you really not able to get TT as well?


I think it depends on how crowds are, but it’s 10am EST now with Epcot opening at 8:30. TT and Frozen are both gone. My plan for April is to rope drop one and genie+ the other.


----------



## MidnightMeeko

Just a heads up with those dealing with Spring Break crowds. Today I decided to try tracking Hollywood Studios. Runaway Railway was gone at 11am. I did eventually see one for 8:25pm after doing a lot of refreshing, but of course that quickly went away. So, I had pretended to get a Smuggler's Run at 7am for 12:05pm and then at 11am my next must - do...was essentially unavailable.  I'm not a fan of the poop emoji, but I feel like it would be appropriate here.


----------



## Westerner

.


----------



## jbish

sequoia 14 said:


> Having just experienced this exact scenario yesterday (but with a 1000 SDD return time) we were able to book our next G+ right at the beginning of the window at 10:00. It converted to an anytime pass at the start of the window.
> 
> On a side note, the anytime pass wasn't good for TOT or MMRR on top of Rise and Meet & Greets which surprised me.


So, just for clarification, if SDD is down at your return time, it converts to an "anytime pass" INCLUDING your original ride (i.e. SDD in this case) but EXCLUDES a bunch of others?  You tap in to say TSM (as in your example) at (literally) any time but didn't have a reserved LL for it, it would use up your SDD LL?


----------



## KDee

catccc said:


> Let's say HS opens at 9 am.  You get lucky at 7 am and book a LL for SDD with a 10:15 am return time.  Before you have a chance to check in for SDD at 10:15 am, the ride goes down and stays down for the next hour.  Will G+ immediately convert this to an anytime, multiple experience LL at 10:15 am when the ride goes down, or will it wait until the end of the window and convert it at 11:15 am?  If it converts at 10:15 am, do you get to book a new LL when it converts, or will you now have abide by the 2 hour rule to wait until 11 am?


This actually happened to use two days ago. We had a 9:05am LL and the ride was down at park open and through the morning. At 9:05 I was sent a notice that it converted to a multiple use experience LL. I was then able to book a second LL. Slinky did not come back up until 2:30pm that day.


----------



## zillayen

MidnightMeeko said:


> Just a heads up with those dealing with Spring Break crowds. Today I decided to try tracking Hollywood Studios. Runaway Railway was gone at 11am. I did eventually see one for 8:25pm after doing a lot of refreshing, but of course that quickly went away. So, I had pretended to get a Smuggler's Run at 7am for 12:05pm and then at 11am my next must - do...was essentially unavailable.  I'm not a fan of the poop emoji, but I feel like it would be appropriate here.



This was our experience last week. We booked RnRC at 7 am for an 11 am return time. At 10:30 there was nothing left before 3 pm except for Alien SS and Star Tours. By 12:30 pm when we could have booked a third pretty much everything was completely gone (again except for Alien SS and Star Tours).


----------



## MidnightMeeko

zillayen said:


> This was our experience last week. We booked RnRC at 7 am for an 11 am return time. At 10:30 there was nothing left before 3 pm except for Alien SS and Star Tours. By 12:30 pm when we could have booked a third pretty much everything was completely gone (again except for Alien SS and Star Tours).


HS is looking so rough for LL.  I checked a little after 1:00 for what would have been my next LL booking time. No Saucers. No Midway Mania. Nothing, except Star Tours at 4:05.  The exception being LL's for shows. I really like Star Tours, but what a bummer knowing that everything else was gone for the rest of the day.


----------



## Nordic4tKnight

According to Touring Plans the busier HS gets the less useful Genie + is:





Source = https://touringplans.com/blog/how-much-time-can-i-save-with-genie-at-wdw/


----------



## Mamiamjo

Nordic4tKnight said:


> According to Touring Plans the busier HS gets the less useful Genie + is:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Source = https://touringplans.com/blog/how-much-time-can-i-save-with-genie-at-wdw/


Wonderful, the more you need it, the less useful it becomes


----------



## Megsmachine

leeniewdw said:


> This was our DHS day on Saturday, 3/5.  Our plan was to RD and get an early LL return (so we could grab another before the 11am slot).  Leave park late morning and return for evening with LLs stacked. This is how it worked out:
> 
> 7am:  Grabbed MFSR for a 9:25am return
> 7:15am:  walked on to Skyliner (staying at POP)
> 7:45am-ish:  got in line for RNRC standby, literally people 4 & 5*
> 8:15am-ish:  line started moving into building, skipped the studio and went RIGHT onto the ride
> 8:28am: off RNRC
> 8:30am: got in ToT standby line, sign said 40 mins!*
> 8:57am: while waiting in line, I was looking at the app and noticed RotR was still available and called an audible and decided to go ahead and get a ILL$ for 7:15pm return
> 9:30am: off ToT headed to MFSR
> 9:45am-ish:  tapped into MFSR and looked for next LL.  SHOCKED to see a SDD for 7:25pm return.  Grabbed that.  Set my phone timer for 2 hours for next LL grab.
> Not sure on times, but rode Star Tours standby (no wait) and grabbed an early lunch/late breakfast at Commissary
> 
> Break Time, so left Park
> 
> 11:45am:  Grabbed TSM for return time 5:05pm, set timer for 2 hours for next LL grab
> *nap and pool time*
> 1:45pm:   Grabbed ToT for return time of 7:55pm, set timer for 2 hours for next LL grab
> 3:45pm:   Grabbed Alien Swirling Saucers I think
> 
> So our evening went like this:
> Arrived back at DHS a little after 5pm and had these LLs:
> TSM
> AlienSS
> Break at Baseline Tap House
> Star Tours (I grabbed this at 5:45pm just because I could, it was still basically a walk on)
> Grabbed something to eat at Backlot
> RotR
> SDD
> Oga's (our first time....um, not sure what the fuss is about!)
> ToT
> 
> I don't think you could have a more perfect day.  And we could have grabbed MMRR if we'd wanted to but my DH didn't want to ride it again after riding in Dec, lol.
> 
> *My asterisk was related to RnRC and TOT.  We screwed up and SHOULD have ridden ToT first at RD because they were only using 1 side.   TP "told" me to ride RNRC first and because we did that, we had to wait 45 mins at 8:30am to ride ToT.  Has we done it in reverse, we would have done both of them by 8:40am.  There were only 20 people in the ToT line when we arrived.



what is MSFR, and SDD?


----------



## Megsmachine

leeniewdw said:


> This was our DHS day on Saturday, 3/5.  Our plan was to RD and get an early LL return (so we could grab another before the 11am slot).  Leave park late morning and return for evening with LLs stacked. This is how it worked out:
> 
> 7am:  Grabbed MFSR for a 9:25am return
> 7:15am:  walked on to Skyliner (staying at POP)
> 7:45am-ish:  got in line for RNRC standby, literally people 4 & 5*
> 8:15am-ish:  line started moving into building, skipped the studio and went RIGHT onto the ride
> 8:28am: off RNRC
> 8:30am: got in ToT standby line, sign said 40 mins!*
> 8:57am: while waiting in line, I was looking at the app and noticed RotR was still available and called an audible and decided to go ahead and get a ILL$ for 7:15pm return
> 9:30am: off ToT headed to MFSR
> 9:45am-ish:  tapped into MFSR and looked for next LL.  SHOCKED to see a SDD for 7:25pm return.  Grabbed that.  Set my phone timer for 2 hours for next LL grab.
> Not sure on times, but rode Star Tours standby (no wait) and grabbed an early lunch/late breakfast at Commissary
> 
> Break Time, so left Park
> 
> 11:45am:  Grabbed TSM for return time 5:05pm, set timer for 2 hours for next LL grab
> *nap and pool time*
> 1:45pm:   Grabbed ToT for return time of 7:55pm, set timer for 2 hours for next LL grab
> 3:45pm:   Grabbed Alien Swirling Saucers I think
> 
> So our evening went like this:
> Arrived back at DHS a little after 5pm and had these LLs:
> TSM
> AlienSS
> Break at Baseline Tap House
> Star Tours (I grabbed this at 5:45pm just because I could, it was still basically a walk on)
> Grabbed something to eat at Backlot
> RotR
> SDD
> Oga's (our first time....um, not sure what the fuss is about!)
> ToT
> 
> I don't think you could have a more perfect day.  And we could have grabbed MMRR if we'd wanted to but my DH didn't want to ride it again after riding in Dec, lol.
> 
> *My asterisk was related to RnRC and TOT.  We screwed up and SHOULD have ridden ToT first at RD because they were only using 1 side.   TP "told" me to ride RNRC first and because we did that, we had to wait 45 mins at 8:30am to ride ToT.  Has we done it in reverse, we would have done both of them by 8:40am.  There were only 20 people in the ToT line when we arrived.



what is MSFR, and SDD? When did you get the ROTR LL?


----------



## Turksmom

Megsmachine said:


> what is MSFR, and SDD?


Millennium Falcon Smuggler's Run and Slinky Dog Dash


----------



## Princesca

I'm considering using only ILL for our April 2023 trip. We will have two full days in MK and EP, and one in HS and AK. My DW MUST do ROTR, so I thought we would use ILL for that and maybe FOP but we might just rope drop that. We are bringing our toddler, so thrill rides for the most part won't be in our daily plan. We're planning to rider swap the two aforementioned and otherwise skip. So I'm thinking I might be able to avoid having to mess with G+. But I also haven't been to WDW since 2016 and I'm a little nervous.


----------



## Nordic4tKnight

Both Frozen and Test Track were gone by 10:30am today


----------



## CarolynFH

Princesca said:


> I'm considering using only ILL for our April 2023 trip. We will have two full days in MK and EP, and one in HS and AK. My DW MUST do ROTR, so I thought we would use ILL for that and maybe FOP but we might just rope drop that. We are bringing our toddler, so thrill rides for the most part won't be in our daily plan. We're planning to rider swap the two aforementioned and otherwise skip. So I'm thinking I might be able to avoid having to mess with G+. But I also haven't been to WDW since 2016 and I'm a little nervous.


That's what DH and I did in January - bought ILL$ for FoP and Remy, didn't bother with G+.  We've ridden RotR several times previously, back in the BG days, so we skipped it.  We were able to ride what we wanted to in all the parks  by watching wait times in MDE and using the standby lines - but it was January, not Spring Break, so the parks weren't nearly as busy as they've been this month.  As each future trip approaches, I'll watch the standby times and make a decision re G+ based on whether it seems it would benefit us or not, day by day.


----------



## Princesca

CarolynFH said:


> That's what DH and I did in January - bought ILL$ for FoP and Remy, didn't bother with G+.  We've ridden RotR several times previously, back in the BG days, so we skipped it.  We were able to ride what we wanted to in all the parks  by watching wait times in MDE and using the standby lines - but it was January, not Spring Break, so the parks weren't nearly as busy as they've been this month.  As each future trip approaches, I'll watch the standby times and make a decision re G+ based on whether it seems it would benefit us or not, day by day.



Yep, that's pretty much what I'm planning to do. We're not going at peak crowds, and we've got two days each in EP and MK, so I have the luxury of not having to squeeze everything I want to do into one day. That said, since we DO only have one day at HS, I'm planning the ILL for ROTR because my wife will literally implode if we miss it. So I'm praying it doesn't break down. :/


----------



## TinkBink

I have been trying my best to study thrill-data and play with the app and I feel like a few weeks ago I had a really good handle on when all of the "drops" are. But now they seem much more randomized, has anyone else noticed this?


----------



## Duck143

I went into the app at 7am to see what a typical morning is like.  I have an Samsung Andriod, a bit of an older model.  When I try to pull down to refresh on the Tip Board, sometimes it works and refreshes and sometime it does nothing and I have to flip to Dining and back to Experiences to get it to refresh.  That way takes much longer to refresh than just pulling down the Experiences screen.  Has anyone dealt with this and is there a trick to getting it to work? I do plan on upgrading my phone before our Oct. trip.


----------



## Ecomommy09

Ok.  I’m two weeks out and I’m ready to ask actual informed questions. 

we have one day at HS. The goal to ride ROTR, MFSR, SDD, and MMRR. I know. I know. We have lunch at 1 at Hollywood and Vine and have to be back at the resort by 3.

Looming at it the am, it looks like random times for SDD do show up after 0710, but can you actually get those times?

Two adults online at 0700. I assume I’ll be in line already for HS because the Extra time starts at 0730.  I am going to purchase ROTR ASAP for a morning time.

1) Should I try to wait until 0710 and get a G+ SDD that’s before noon. If we did, I’d rope drop MMRR and then go over to MFSR.

2) Or should I plan to rope drop SDD with a six year old with short little legs and just schedule MMRR as my first G+ ride? Can we make the rope drop if I’m in the line for early entry even if I’m not near the front? She’s tiny. She’s got gumption but she’s tiny for her age.

Any other suggestions.

We could also come back to the park in the evening, but I know her and she gets sleepy.


----------



## disrunner9

Westerner said:


> Thanks for the data.  FYI park open for DHS is now 830 so you can typically book your 2nd G+ LL at 1030 rather than 11.  Today MMRR sold out at 10:35 so it would have been possible to get it as 2nd pick.  Thrilldata over the last 10 days or so shows that it's usually still available at 10:30 but sells out shortly after.
> 
> View attachment 656539



Forgive me for this, but where do you find these types of individual attraction heat maps for G+ availability? Really fascinating!!


----------



## Nordic4tKnight

disrunner9 said:


> Forgive me for this, but where do you find these types of individual attraction heat maps for G+ availability? Really fascinating!!


https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/park/wdw/hollywood-studios/


----------



## Westerner

Duck143 said:


> I went into the app at 7am to see what a typical morning is like.  I have an Samsung Andriod, a bit of an older model.  When I try to pull down to refresh on the Tip Board, sometimes it works and refreshes and sometime it does nothing and I have to flip to Dining and back to Experiences to get it to refresh.  That way takes much longer to refresh than just pulling down the Experiences screen.  Has anyone dealt with this and is there a trick to getting it to work? I do plan on upgrading my phone before our Oct. trip.


What I found is that a big downswipe always worked to refresh but a little downswipe sometimes didn’t.  So perhaps try a big swipe.


----------



## Doingitagain

We will have a short day at AK, arriving 9:00 and departing 5:00.  We will get Genie + so we can get our first LL at 7:00 am.  Any thoughts on whether our first LL should be Na'vi River Journey or Killimanjaro Safaris?


----------



## boxer

In looking at Thrill Data charts--when you scroll over the booking times (take for example 7:05 AM for ROTR), are those 'Return Times' pretty accurate?  It seems the trend that was mentioned on here earlier in this thread is correct--that there are some early morning Return Times back out around 7:15.  It is pretty important for us to get an early Return Time (or at least before lunch), so is this something I should start checking (Tip Board) right before our trip in May?


----------



## Duck143

Westerner said:


> What I found is that a big downswipe always worked to refresh but a little downswipe sometimes didn’t.  So perhaps try a big swipe.


Ok.  I'll try a bigger swipe.


----------



## Westerner

.


----------



## DLRExpert

So I have been helping quite a few families with LL and ILL$ bookings and it is almost best not to book anything for a few minutes past 7am. The App has always crashed for me at exactly 7am and the return times seem better by refreshing the screen.


----------



## roctavia

Can you change or modify ILL$? or would you have to cancel and rebook? Just thinking ahead, it sounds like there are more choice of times that don't hop around as much at the later ROTR drop, but I also don't want to miss out on the ride by not trying to book at 7am.... 

I get that the G+ rides you just get what you get, but it's really lame that they sell ILL$ as "you get to pick your time" when in reality, it's almost just as random at G+ from how it sounds.


----------



## jbish

Ecomommy09 said:


> Ok.  I’m two weeks out and I’m ready to ask actual informed questions.
> 
> we have one day at HS. The goal to ride ROTR, MFSR, SDD, and MMRR. I know. I know. We have lunch at 1 at Hollywood and Vine and have to be back at the resort by 3.
> 
> Looming at it the am, it looks like random times for SDD do show up after 0710, but can you actually get those times?
> 
> Two adults online at 0700. I assume I’ll be in line already for HS because the Extra time starts at 0730.  I am going to purchase ROTR ASAP for a morning time.
> 
> 1) Should I try to wait until 0710 and get a G+ SDD that’s before noon. If we did, I’d rope drop MMRR and then go over to MFSR.
> 
> 2) Or should I plan to rope drop SDD with a six year old with short little legs and just schedule MMRR as my first G+ ride? Can we make the rope drop if I’m in the line for early entry even if I’m not near the front? She’s tiny. She’s got gumption but she’s tiny for her age.
> 
> Any other suggestions.
> 
> We could also come back to the park in the evening, but I know her and she gets sleepy.


Because I think you could end up getting a late return time, I would RD SDD.  If you will be there for the early hours and are ready to go at RD, I think you can do a "walk with a purpose" pace (even with a little one) to SDD and get on fairly quickly.  I say hold on to her hands tightly as it is a mob, but you two should be okay.  I would book MMRR or MFSR at 7 (and, possibly, wait until 7:10-7:17, when hopefully you're in the SDD line, to book as usually the return times can go back to late morning - I was watching on the app today very closely).  If you end up back at the park in the evening, SDD wait times don't really get better but both MFSR and MMRR can get to pretty reasonable wait times as it gets closer to park closing.


----------



## Westerner

.


----------



## Westerner

roctavia said:


> Can you change or modify ILL$? or would you have to cancel and rebook? Just thinking ahead, it sounds like there are more choice of times that don't hop around as much at the later ROTR drop, but I also don't want to miss out on the ride by not trying to book at 7am....
> 
> I get that the G+ rides you just get what you get, but it's really lame that they sell ILL$ as "you get to pick your time" when in reality, it's almost just as random at G+ from how it sounds.


You can't cancel or modify $ILL, unlike G+.  So if you get a return time that doesn't work you're kind of stuck.  Depending on how critical return time is to you it's better to go for the good bird in the bush than the bad one in the hand.  FOMO notwithstanding.


----------



## GBRforWDW

roctavia said:


> Can you change or modify ILL$? or would you have to cancel and rebook? Just thinking ahead, it sounds like there are more choice of times that don't hop around as much at the later ROTR drop, but I also don't want to miss out on the ride by not trying to book at 7am....
> 
> I get that the G+ rides you just get what you get, but it's really lame that they sell ILL$ as "you get to pick your time" when in reality, it's almost just as random at G+ from how it sounds.





Westerner said:


> You can't cancel or modify $ILL, unlike G+.  So if you get a return time that doesn't work you're kind of stuck.  Depending on how critical return time is to you it's better to go for the good bird in the bush than the bad one in the hand.  FOMO notwithstanding.


Can confirm what Westerner said... On my Animal Kingdom day, was just happy that FoP passes refreshed and I grabbed one for as early as possible not thinking about my 2+ hours later Navi LL.    There's no options to cancel or rearrange that time once you hit check out.


----------



## roctavia

GBRforWDW said:


> Can confirm what Westerner said... On my Animal Kingdom day, was just happy that FoP passes refreshed and I grabbed one for as early as possible not thinking about my 2+ hours later Navi LL.    There's no options to cancel or rearrange that time once you hit check out.


That's right, I forgot about the no option to cancel, since they don't want people buying it and then canceling if the line is short (which I can understand to a degree)... but frustrating there is no way to modify if the time doesn't stay the one you picked... that's a big problem!


----------



## acarsme123

Doingitagain said:


> We will have a short day at AK, arriving 9:00 and departing 5:00.  We will get Genie + so we can get our first LL at 7:00 am.  Any thoughts on whether our first LL should be Na'vi River Journey or Killimanjaro Safaris?


The animals are most active in the morning.  I would pay for FOP, and probably make Safari your first LL....we stood standby for Safari and that line moved brutally slow.  The only good thing about the standby line is most of it is in the shade as it is surrounded by tall bamboo and trees.  But it's not a fast moving standby line.


----------



## KDee

Ecomommy09 said:


> Ok.  I’m two weeks out and I’m ready to ask actual informed questions.
> 
> we have one day at HS. The goal to ride ROTR, MFSR, SDD, and MMRR. I know. I know. We have lunch at 1 at Hollywood and Vine and have to be back at the resort by 3.
> 
> Looming at it the am, it looks like random times for SDD do show up after 0710, but can you actually get those times?
> 
> Two adults online at 0700. I assume I’ll be in line already for HS because the Extra time starts at 0730.  I am going to purchase ROTR ASAP for a morning time.
> 
> 1) Should I try to wait until 0710 and get a G+ SDD that’s before noon. If we did, I’d rope drop MMRR and then go over to MFSR.
> 
> 2) Or should I plan to rope drop SDD with a six year old with short little legs and just schedule MMRR as my first G+ ride? Can we make the rope drop if I’m in the line for early entry even if I’m not near the front? She’s tiny. She’s got gumption but she’s tiny for her age.
> 
> Any other suggestions.
> 
> We could also come back to the park in the evening, but I know her and she gets sleepy.


When we were at HS this week we were able to grab a LL for SDD at 9:05am. We also got an ILL for ROTR. We rope dropped MSFR which was basically walk on at park open as everyone as going to ROTR. SDD was down at park open (as was ROTR and Saucers) so it converted to an anytime pass but I was still able to book a LL for MMRR at 2:30 when the SDD LL window opened. After riding MSFR twice, my husband went to RNR and then I took the kids to TSM which was about a 20 minute wait. We then went to the Indiana Jones Stunt show, lunch at Sci Fi and then picked up a LL for Star Tours for 12:30pm.  SDD came back up at 2:00pm so we rode that and then went to MMRR.  When we booked ROTR I initially wanted to book it for 1:00 pm but when I confirmed and paid for it the time moved three hours to 4pm. Lesson learned to confirm the time but everything moves so quickly. Good luck!


----------



## wisblue

Westerner said:


> Agree.  I am increasingly concluding that booking at 7:00:00AM is a bit of a crapshoot on return times.  I think we're all conditioned as planners to try to be 1st in line b/c earlier is better.  I don't think that is the case here.
> 
> Also the original FP physical machines (which G+/$ILL resembles) had a linear and predictable return time progression and as far as I know were not restocked.  In contrast, the G+ virtual FP machine is restocked.  A lot of folks see rides sold out at 7:02 and conclude they're gone for the day.  That is too pessimistic.



My experience this week confirms that waiting can make it more likely that you can get something closer to the time you want.

Tuesday at 7:17 I was able to get a LL for Remy for 6-7 PM, which was exactly what I was looking for.

Wednesday I was hoping for a LL for ROTR with the earliest time possible, and at 7:17 I was able to get one for 9:35-10:35 AM. 

Thursday I wanted one for FOP for around 9-10 AM  and got  exactly that at 7:17. Inside the park I heard someone telling her party that a LL for FOP with a return of 5:30 PM was the best she could do because “they were gone that fast”.


----------



## g-dad66

wisblue said:


> My experience this week confirms that waiting can make it more likely that you can get something closer to the time you want.
> 
> Tuesday at 7:17 I was able to get a LL for Remy for 6-7 PM, which was exactly what I was looking for.
> 
> Wednesday I was hoping for a LL for ROTR with the earliest time possible, and at 7:17 I was able to get one for 9:35-10:35 AM.
> 
> Thursday I wanted one for FOP for around 9-10 AM  and got  exactly that at 7:17. Inside the park I heard someone telling her party that a LL for FOP with a return of 5:30 PM was the best she could do because “they were gone that fast”.




I think 7:17 will have to win the best Disboard tip of the year award. Most park visitors will have no clue about it.

Thanks for the great feedback!


----------



## beesly

Seriously, bless you all for the 7:17 tip. I just picked up RotR and FoP for the exact times I wanted for today (9:15 and 2:15, respectively).


----------



## Mome Rath

Does the 7:17 work for G+ selections or just ILL$?


----------



## McCrae

Doingitagain said:


> We will have a short day at AK, arriving 9:00 and departing 5:00.  We will get Genie + so we can get our first LL at 7:00 am.  Any thoughts on whether our first LL should be Na'vi River Journey or Killimanjaro Safaris?


I would go for Kilimanjaro safaris.  If you get their for rope drop you can do Avatar and Na’vi River without having to wait in long lines… do Avator first..expect up to 20 mins wait. Na‘vi river should still have a minimum wait… after that I would go straight to Dinosaur…again expect minimum wait times. Then I would go to the Safari.


----------



## otterpop

I would appreciate any help, suggestions/tips for the below scenario.

We have a trip planned for this coming Summer.  We will be staying at BCV, checking-in on an early Wed afternoon and have AP's that need to be activated.  Our plan is to utilize the MK extended hours that night.

This will be our first time using G+.  Can I purchase G+ and book my first LL at 7:00 am on that wed., even though we have yet to check-in to BCV?

My plan is the following (assuming I can start using G+ at 7am):
1. As we are making our way to Orlando, book 1 or 2 afternoon LL's (Frozen and TT?) for Epcot and then book the rest for MK evening.
2. Once we get checked-in at BCV (probably around 2:30ish), head over to the International Gateway Epcot entrance and activate our AP's.
3. Utilize our Epcot LL's as we make our way to the front of the Park and then take the monorail to MK.
4. Utilize our MK LL's and then take advantage of the MK extended hours.

Also, in order to be able to do the above, I will need Park reservations for Epcot and then from there, we can just hop over to MK whenever (being that it will be after 2:00)?

Will the above plan work?  Am I missing something?  Thanks for any help or suggestions!


----------



## GBRforWDW

otterpop said:


> I would appreciate any help, suggestions/tips for the below scenario.
> 
> We have a trip planned for this coming Summer.  We will be staying at BCV, checking-in on an early Wed afternoon and have AP's that need to be activated.  Our plan is to utilize the MK extended hours that night.
> 
> This will be our first time using G+.  Can I purchase G+ and book my first LL at 7:00 am on that wed., even though we have yet to check-in to BCV?
> 
> My plan is the following (assuming I can start using G+ at 7am):
> 1. As we are making our way to Orlando, book 1 or 2 afternoon LL's (Frozen and TT?) for Epcot and then book the rest for MK evening.
> 2. Once we get checked-in at BCV (probably around 2:30ish), head over to the International Gateway Epcot entrance and activate our AP's.
> 3. Utilize our Epcot LL's as we make our way to the front of the Park and then take the monorail to MK.
> 4. Utilize our MK LL's and then take advantage of the MK extended hours.
> 
> Also, in order to be able to do the above, I will need Park reservations for Epcot and then from there, we can just hop over to MK whenever (being that it will be after 2:00)?
> 
> Will the above plan work?  Am I missing something?  Thanks for any help or suggestions!


For LLs at Epcot, Test Track and Frozen will both be gone by 2 hours after park opening, so you'll have to select which you want more.  I'd grab a Remy ILL$ for the time you plan to be there though so you can walk in and go straight to the ride.  Maybe go for 245-3pm for that and shoot for 3-330 for the Frozen or TT pass, then head to the monorail for the TTC then on to MK.  

Correct on Epcot park reservations then heading to MK.

Have a great trip!


----------



## g-dad66

GBRforWDW said:


> For LLs at Epcot, Test Track and Frozen will both be gone by 2 hours after park opening, so you'll have to select which you want more.  I'd grab a Remy ILL$ for the time you plan to be there though so you can walk in and go straight to the ride.  Maybe go for 245-3pm for that and shoot for 3-330 for the Frozen or TT pass, then head to the monorail for the TTC then on to MK.
> 
> Correct on Epcot park reservations then heading to MK.
> 
> Have a great trip!




This is excellent advice for now.  Things could be different by summer, especially if Guardians of the Galaxy is open.  So best advice is to keep monitoring the Boards here for changes.


----------



## GBRforWDW

g-dad66 said:


> This is excellent advice for now.  Things could be different by summer, especially if Guardians of the Galaxy is open.  So best advice is to keep monitoring the Boards here for changes.


Oh good point.  Once Guardians opens, a lot could change.   Thanks!


----------



## otterpop

GBRforWDW said:


> For LLs at Epcot, Test Track and Frozen will both be gone by 2 hours after park opening, so you'll have to select which you want more.  I'd grab a Remy ILL$ for the time you plan to be there though so you can walk in and go straight to the ride.  Maybe go for 245-3pm for that and shoot for 3-330 for the Frozen or TT pass, then head to the monorail for the TTC then on to MK.
> 
> Correct on Epcot park reservations then heading to MK.
> 
> Have a great trip!


Thank you for the suggestions.  Am I right in thinking that I should be able to purchase G+ and book my first LL (and ILL$) at 7am, even though I won't physically be checking-in to BCV until later in the afternoon?


----------



## GBRforWDW

otterpop said:


> Thank you for the suggestions.  Am I right in thinking that I should be able to purchase G+ and book my first LL (and ILL$) at 7am, even though I won't physically be checking-in to BCV until later in the afternoon?


Correct, just be sure to complete the online check in process


----------



## wisblue

McCrae said:


> I would go for Kilimanjaro safaris.  If you get their for rope drop you can do Avatar and Na’vi River without having to wait in long lines… do Avator first..expect up to 20 mins wait. Na‘vi river should still have a minimum wait… after that I would go straight to Dinosaur…again expect minimum wait times. Then I would go to the Safari.



Arriving at 9 AM for DAK the wait for FOP will be much longer than 20 minutes.

If arriving that late, I strongly recommend that someone who wants to ride FOP should spring for the IALL.


----------



## McCrae

wisblue said:


> Arriving at 9 AM for DAK the wait for FOP will be much longer than 20 minutes.
> 
> If arriving that late, I strongly recommend that someone who wants to ride FOP should spring for the IALL.


Dont arrive late is the message otherwise it’s a struggle. Resort guests need to take advantage of early entry.


----------



## scrappinginontario

McCrae said:


> Dont arrive late is the message otherwise it’s a struggle. Resort guests need to take advantage of early entry.


Another option if you want to arrive later in the day then ride FoP at the end of the day.  This worked well for us.  We were in line for about 30 mins at the end of the day.


----------



## Mango7100

otterpop said:


> Thank you for the suggestions.  Am I right in thinking that I should be able to purchase G+ and book my first LL (and ILL$) at 7am, even though I won't physically be checking-in to BCV until later in the afternoon?


Yes. We started booking Genie rides on our drive down at 7 am. Did online check in around 11. Had 4 LLs by the time we got to the park at 545


----------



## Westerner

otterpop said:


> Thank you for the suggestions.  Am I right in thinking that I should be able to purchase G+ and book my first LL (and ILL$) at 7am, even though I won't physically be checking-in to BCV until later in the afternoon?


For clarity: you don’t need to check in to book G+ at 7am, bc offsite guests can book at 7am too.  It’s for $ILL that early online checkin to a wdw hotel is important, so you can book at 7am.

Btw I am planning to do a similar thing on my next trip so I can book at $ILL at 7-ish on checkin day.


----------



## wisblue

scrappinginontario said:


> Another option if you want to arrive later in the day then ride FoP at the end of the day.  This worked well for us.  We were in line for about 30 mins at the end of the day.



True, but this string was started by a poster who planned on arriving at 9 and departing at 5. 

The line for FOP will be long for that entire period.

On Thursday when we went to DAK, the cost for a LL to FOP was $11 (plus tax). In my book it‘s worth that to avoid an hour or more in line.


----------



## Doingitagain

wisblue said:


> Arriving at 9 AM for DAK the wait for FOP will be much longer than 20 minutes.
> 
> If arriving that late, I strongly recommend that someone who wants to ride FOP should spring for the IALL.





wisblue said:


> True, but this string was started by a poster who planned on arriving at 9 and departing at 5.
> 
> The line for FOP will be long for that entire period.
> 
> On Thursday when we went to DAK, the cost for a LL to FOP was $11 (plus tax). In my book it‘s worth that to avoid an hour or more in line.


the reason we are skipping early entry and leaving early is that no one has FOP as a must do.


----------



## DJFan88

Doingitagain said:


> We will have a short day at AK, arriving 9:00 and departing 5:00.  We will get Genie + so we can get our first LL at 7:00 am.  Any thoughts on whether our first LL should be Na'vi River Journey or Killimanjaro Safaris?


I’m going with Safari because I’d rather do that in the morning since it can get hot and I think the animals are more lively plus I just hate that line when it builds


----------



## Ethanandyclaire

Hi.  On my day of arrival, I plan to go to Epcot, arriving around 1 pm.  I will be checking into BWV.  That day, Epcot opens at 10 am.   If I make my first LL reservation at 7 am, would I then be able to make my next one at 11:30?  Two hours after Early Entry?  I wanted to book both Test Track and Soarin.


----------



## Doingitagain

McCrae said:


> Dont arrive late is the message otherwise it’s a struggle. Resort guests need to take advantage of early entry.


We have a late night the evening before and don’t want to stress on vacation.  We are skipping FOP for extra sleep


----------



## scrappinginontario

Ethanandyclaire said:


> Hi.  On my day of arrival, I plan to go to Epcot, arriving around 1 pm.  I will be checking into BWV.  That day, Epcot opens at 10 am.   If I make my first LL reservation at 7 am, would I then be able to make my next one at 11:30?  Two hours after Early Entry?  I wanted to book both Test Track and Soarin.


Guests are eligible for a second LL 2 hours after official park opening time, not the time that ETPE hours begin.  If Epcot opens at 10, second LL time is 12:00 if stacking as you will be.


----------



## DJFan88

Ethanandyclaire said:


> Hi.  On my day of arrival, I plan to go to Epcot, arriving around 1 pm.  I will be checking into BWV.  That day, Epcot opens at 10 am.   If I make my first LL reservation at 7 am, would I then be able to make my next one at 11:30?  Two hours after Early Entry?  I wanted to book both Test Track and Soarin.



Are you saying the 2 hours start at EE time?  I had thought it didn’t start until official park opening, so for a 10 o’clock, it would be 12. I hope someone chimes in to clarify.

Edited : thank you Scrappin for the clarification we must’ve typed at same time


----------



## wisblue

Doingitagain said:


> the reason we are skipping early entry and leaving early is that no one has FOP as a must do.



That makes a big difference.

Still, because both the Safari and Navi get long standby lines quickly, and LL for them run out into the late afternoon quickly on busy days, if you want to do both of them without a long wait, it would be a good idea to arrive during early entry or as early as possible after regular park opening to have a chance to do one with a short standby line and the other with Genie+.

I would use my first Genie+ on the Safari if only because that is much higher on our priority list.

Maybe getting Genie+ LL for both KS and Navi for your visit will be easier if it is during a less busy time than the holidays or spring break, and if Everest has returned as another Genie+ option.


----------



## wiggy500

Doingitagain said:


> We will have a short day at AK, arriving 9:00 and departing 5:00.  We will get Genie + so we can get our first LL at 7:00 am.  Any thoughts on whether our first LL should be Na'vi River Journey or Killimanjaro Safaris?



I happened to test this yesterday and I saw 1:20 p.m. KS at 7:45 and 2 p.m. Na'vi at two hours after park opening.  And yesterday was an at capacity day.  I feel it isn't consistent which of those rides goes faster, so I would prioritize the one that is more important to you.  Then two hours after opening look for the other one and if it has too late of a time, refresh.


----------



## Disturbia

Took almost an hour of refreshing for a frozen at 10:30 am.  3 errors after selection and couldn’t get it but kept refreshing. This is what I was able to get.

Also got Soarin. And Nemo (still on Mears to resort-AOA is the first stop because of someone with an express booking ; so not sure we will make the first pass; we were told it will take 35-45 mins).


----------



## Westerner

Disturbia said:


> Took almost an hour of refreshing.  3 errors after selection and couldn’t get it but kept refreshing. This is what I was able to get.
> 
> View attachment 657825


Do you remember the precise time, Disturbia?


----------



## Disturbia

Didn’t look at the time as I had to switch the phone to airline mode


----------



## Disturbia

Skyliner messed up our Epcot plans even though Mears was surprisingly just a 35+ min ride.  We waited for 20+ mins at the CB around 4 pm.  We just chose to eat around the WS and skip our first pass (Nemo; did standby with our infant (rest went on Soarin) and it broke down and took 20 mins).  We couldn’t rider switch as Soarin and Test track each took 30 mins+.  The walk from Test Track to Remy was a good 13 mins (budget 20+) and the LL itself was 10 mins to the scanner (ride was down in the am), we told a CM and she assured us that they would allow us on the ride (we had 3 mins of the 15 min grace period left when we got in).  19,300 steps on check in day.  Skyliner back was told 40 min wait, actual was about 25 mins; the CB stop had no wait.

Today for Mk, I booked SDMT for the evening and Jungle cruise. I should have booked JC first as within the min it took me to book SDMT, JC was showing only 5 pm+. I kept refreshing and at 7:04 am got 11:35 (acceptable).


----------



## twirly123

Arriving next week (hopefully)!  I was hoping to get a genie plus reservation for frozen for after dinner. We are at AK in the morning. Can anyone tell me when frozen passes usually run out - wondering if I can get a safari reservation at 7am and then get frozen after. Thanks


----------



## The Foolish Mortal

Maybe. I believe that reservation has been a tough one since the changes to $ILL. For example, its 9:15 in Orlando right now and its already showing FEA s not having any availaibility


----------



## Brett Wyman

There really isn't a truly ILL worthy ride at Epcot right now. Remy gets a pass just by being new. Once Guardians is there FEE will surely be dropped. But for now Frozen sells out quickly simply for lack of rides at Epcot that fit the ILL mold(I fell like Soarin' would have been a better placeholder choice untill Guardians opened). The Frozen ILL is usually a true walk-on.


----------



## CaptainAmerica

Brett Wyman said:


> Once Guardians is there FEE will surely be dropped.


I'm not a fan of ILL in general, but this is my biggest complaint.  It's just over-used.  If you concede the premise that some attractions "need" ILL, the list is very short.

- Rise
- Rat (when it first opened, but not anymore)
- Flight of Passage _maybe_
- Guardians
- TRON

It should really be deployed as a way to soften the blow of brand new attractions when they first open, not arbitrarily applied to whatever happens to be the most popular two attractions in each park at a given time.  I'd love to see them return 6 of the 8 current ILL attractions to Genie+, even if that meant a Genie+ price increase to $20.


----------



## Westerner

.


----------



## twirly123

Thanks everyone. That’s a really helpful chart Westerner. It’s Sunday I was hoping to get safari and frozen so might risk it and cancel
Safari if it’s looking like frozen may be gone by 930.


----------



## Westerner

twirly123 said:


> Thanks everyone. That’s a really helpful chart Westerner. It’s Sunday I was hoping to get safari and frozen so might risk it and cancel
> Safari if it’s looking like frozen may be gone by 930.


I hear you and get the sense that Frozen may be more important to you than Safari.  The thing is, if your Sunday turns out like the past couple Sundays, Frozen return windows may not hit evening til 900a, thus you may not be gaining much by foregoing booking KS at 7.  So I recommend the following to cover all bases:


Pin Frozen and KS in Tip Board
At 7am on your Sunday, look at return windows for Frozen and refresh for ~5 minutes.
If return window for Frozen hits 7-8pm or whatever your desired afterdinner time is, book it.  It's a sign that it's going quickly like weekdays.
OTOH if Frozen return time stays earlier - say in afternoon - then put the phone away and check Frozen again at 725am.  If return window is after dinner,  book it.  Again it's a sign it's going quickly.
If Frozen return time is still in afternoon at 725am it's a sign that Frozen is going slowly like other Sundays, and you should be good to book KS - just do it by 730am so you don't fall behind on being able to book Frozen at 930am (730 + 2 hrs).
Tradeoff if you book Frozen first is you can only book your next LL at 1030 (Epcot park open 830 + 2)
You can also practice this with a dry run beforehand.

Just like investments, past performance is no guarantee of future results so YMMV.


----------



## jbish

Friends - I have been working on a plan for our HS day in two weeks.  I'd like to run this by you as I think I found an opportunity for stacking and being slightly ahead of the crowds while waiting out the 2 hour periods.  Currently I have reservations at HS, but I'm thinking of switching to AK and hopping to HS later.  Staying on site so I have access to Early Theme Park Entry.  Also, very unusual, but this is the one day that HS has the Extra Evening Hours for the deluxe resorts instead of MK.  

Date: Wednesday, April 13th - expected to be very busy (HS crowd level 9)
Park Hours: AK (7:30a-8:30p, 7am ETPE)
                   HS (8a-9p, 9p-11p EEH)
Of note: FOP and ROTR are NOT high priorities for us.  We rode both several times last June so I'll save the money where I can!)

My idea is based on realizing that there is a little bit of "arbitrage" given the different times the parks open.  Unfortunately, they just extended hours at all of the parks and so the difference between AK opening at 7:30 and HS at 8 isn't a huge advantage anymore.  But given how difficult it is to stack at HS these days, I'll take whatever advantage I can get.  Also, I know that we'll have those two extra hours at the end of the night so I anticipate we will get the most accomplished in those two hours.  

Plan:

7:00 - book LL for It's Tough to be a Bug for 7:30 (no competition for this right at 7 am)
7:30 - arrive at AK for regular opening (come after the initial rush as I'm trying not to burn out the family with too early of a start with a planned late night)
As early as possible, tap in to ITTBAB (which is easy to get to since it's right at the front of the park. We may or may not actually go in.  Haven't gone in years but the thought of the bugs crawling behind me already gives me the heebie jeebies.)
Book SDD for sometime around 5-7 pm (this has been available up until 8 am some days, so it's a calculated risk)

Now my next LL booking time will be 9:30 vs. anyone that has a HS reservation who will be booking at 10 am (EP opens at 8:30 and MK opens at 9, so anyone that has a reservation there will be even further behind) 
Please let me know if you think this will work.  I'm hoping this could be helpful for someone else to use this same strategy on a day, ideally, when there's more time between the two parks opening.  Poke holes in my strategy!!


----------



## Disturbia

Was able to get pirates (had to delete a 2 pm one which didn’t show up immediately and keep refreshing.  Rode Magic Carpets standby in a hot 35 mins.





By 5:20 space was selling out or going into the 10-11pm range.  I constantly refreshed to get it (12 mins) before 9:25 pm CRT dinner (app drains battery)




Dinner at CRT took almost 2 hours (boxed desserts as kids were ready to pass out), so we couldn’t use our last Haunted Mansion pass.  Wanted to ride Winnie the Pooh but at 7:30 pm it wouldn’t give a time between 8-9 (Pooh more popular than HM and HM was down an hour or so before) Rode the Carousel and watched Mickey’s Philharmonic show before dinner.


----------



## Westerner

jbish said:


> Friends - I have been working on a plan for our HS day in two weeks.  I'd like to run this by you as I think I found an opportunity for stacking and being slightly ahead of the crowds while waiting out the 2 hour periods.  Currently I have reservations at HS, but I'm thinking of switching to AK and hopping to HS later.  Staying on site so I have access to Early Theme Park Entry.  Also, very unusual, but this is the one day that HS has the Extra Evening Hours for the deluxe resorts instead of MK.
> 
> Date: Wednesday, April 13th - expected to be very busy (HS crowd level 9)
> Park Hours: AK (7:30a-8:30p, 7am ETPE)
> HS (8a-9p, 9p-11p EEH)
> Of note: FOP and ROTR are NOT high priorities for us.  We rode both several times last June so I'll save the money where I can!)
> 
> My idea is based on realizing that there is a little bit of "arbitrage" given the different times the parks open.  Unfortunately, they just extended hours at all of the parks and so the difference between AK opening at 7:30 and HS at 8 isn't a huge advantage anymore.  But given how difficult it is to stack at HS these days, I'll take whatever advantage I can get.  Also, I know that we'll have those two extra hours at the end of the night so I anticipate we will get the most accomplished in those two hours.
> 
> Plan:
> 
> 7:00 - book LL for It's Tough to be a Bug for 7:30 (no competition for this right at 7 am)
> 7:30 - arrive at AK for regular opening (come after the initial rush as I'm trying not to burn out the family with too early of a start with a planned late night)
> As early as possible, tap in to ITTBAB (which is easy to get to since it's right at the front of the park. We may or may not actually go in.  Haven't gone in years but the thought of the bugs crawling behind me already gives me the heebie jeebies.)
> Book SDD for sometime around 5-7 pm (this has been available up until 8 am some days, so it's a calculated risk)
> 
> Now my next LL booking time will be 9:30 vs. anyone that has a HS reservation who will be booking at 10 am (EP opens at 8:30 and MK opens at 9, so anyone that has a reservation there will be even further behind)
> Please let me know if you think this will work.  I'm hoping this could be helpful for someone else to use this same strategy on a day, ideally, when there's more time between the two parks opening.  Poke holes in my strategy!!


Very clever park opening arbitrage idea jbish!  If you can pull this off not only do you get SDD but you'll be booking the rest of your LL's 30 minutes ahead of the pack all day long (930, 1130, 130 instead of 10, 12, 2).  As you requested I'll poke holes:

You're assuming you can book a DHS ride after tapping in to ITTBAB at 730 despite it being prior to DHS park open at 8.  Technically, I think this should be OK, tap-in generally trumps the 120 minute rule, but I've not seen reports of anyone who's tried this specific PH scenario.
What if Bug doesn't open right at 730 for some reason, or you're delayed in getting to it and you can't tap in?  I suppose you can always cancel the Bug LL and rebook SDD worst case.
Internet access inside the Bug theater may not be so good.  I guess you can always book it right after tap-in before going inside, just be ready.
You're risking SDD being sold out at 730.  It's probably the single most sought-after G+ LL in terms of wait time saved.


----------



## holyrita

Westerner said:


> Very clever park opening arbitrage idea jbish!  If you can pull this off not only do you get SDD but you'll be booking the rest of your LL's 30 minutes ahead of the pack all day long (930, 1130, 130 instead of 10, 12, 2).  As you requested I'll poke holes:
> 
> You're assuming you can book a DHS ride after tapping in to ITTBAB at 730 despite it being prior to DHS park open at 8.  Technically, I think this should be OK, tap-in generally trumps the 120 minute rule, but I've not seen reports of anyone who's tried this specific PH scenario.
> What if Bug doesn't open right at 730 for some reason, or you're delayed in getting to it and you can't tap in?  I suppose you can always cancel the Bug LL and rebook SDD worst case.
> Internet access inside the Bug theater may not be so good.  I guess you can always book it right after tap-in before going inside, just be ready.
> You're risking SDD being sold out at 730.  It's probably the single most sought-after G+ LL in terms of wait time saved.
> Based on recent thrill data, SDD has been available on most Wednesdays at 730-ish.  YMMV.


Looking at thrill-data there's a high likelihood that even at 7am you could get an 8am return time which put you right in line with everyone else at HS.


----------



## NYEmomma

Planning our June trip, which is our first with the G+ system. I'm starting at the beginning of this thread and hope it doesn't take me all 190 page to figure out what the heck I'm doing but I'm not optimistic. Compared to the old FP system, this is crazy confusing and overwhelming.


----------



## Tom_E_D

NYEmomma said:


> Planning our June trip, which is our first with the G+ system. I'm starting at the beginning of this thread and hope it doesn't take me all 190 page to figure out what the heck I'm doing but I'm not optimistic. Compared to the old FP system, this is crazy confusing and overwhelming.


Beware! Much of what was written on this thread before Thanksgiving week is outdated. Disney made a major change to the Genie+ system that week. Don't get excited when reading about double stacks, triple stacks, etc. You can no longer get away with doing those. I think the first page of the Everything Genie thread is a better place to start.


----------



## NYEmomma

Tom_E_D said:


> Beware! Much of what was written on this thread before Thanksgiving week is outdated. Disney made a major change to the Genie+ system that week. Don't get excited when reading about double stacks, triple stacks, etc. You can no longer get away with doing those. I think the first page of the Everything Genie thread is a better place to start.



I appreciate the advice. Any other sage wisdom? We have all prioritized our rides and know that things have changed (and that the parks are busier) and we're likely not going to be able to ride everything we want to like we usually do. I feel like I've got a handle on MK and EPCOT but HS is stressing me out.


----------



## Westerner

holyrita said:


> Looking at thrill-data there's a high likelihood that even at 7am you could get an 8am return time which put you right in line with everyone else at HS.


Sorry, not following.  An 8am return time for what ride?


----------



## Tom_E_D

NYEmomma said:


> I appreciate the advice. Any other sage wisdom? We have all prioritized our rides and know that things have changed (and that the parks are busier) and we're likely not going to be able to ride everything we want to like we usually do. I feel like I've got a handle on MK and EPCOT but HS is stressing me out.


Sage wisdom . . . from ME??? I don't know about that. I never eat the stuff.   I will recommend that you pack your patience and don't panic if it looks like everything you want is unavailable. If you know how the "refresh" method worked with Fastpass+, there are people who have had luck using it with Genie+. It may take longer to get something you want though. It'll be even harder with Individual Lightning Lane selections since those are supposedly non-cancelable. Good luck.


----------



## holyrita

Westerner said:


> Sorry, not following.  An 8am return time for what ride?


Sorry! I quoted the wrong post. It looks like at 7AM the return times for ITTBAB are around 8AM.


----------



## Westerner

holyrita said:


> Sorry! I quoted the wrong post. It looks like at 7AM the return times for ITTBAB are around 8AM.


Oh, I see.  Yes, the LL return times for ITTBAB at 7am are around 8AM or slightly before on thrilldata.

@jbish Suggest you check Tip Board in advance for Bug right at 7:00:00AM and check what return times are offered.  You're in uncharted territory and I'm not sure if a return time of 7:30AM (right at AK park open) is actually offered.


----------



## pens4821

NYEmomma said:


> I appreciate the advice. Any other sage wisdom? We have all prioritized our rides and know that things have changed (and that the parks are busier) and we're likely not going to be able to ride everything we want to like we usually do. I feel like I've got a handle on MK and EPCOT but HS is stressing me out.



I think with a good plan you’ll ride pretty much all that you want.  Im not sure how many park days you have or if you have hoppers, but even one day in each park I think you should be ok.  Get there for early entry if on site (This is huge), get in a popular line at the end of the night or fireworks at MK, and use genie+ and I think you’ll be fine.  If you have hoppers use ETPE at one park and stack for the other.  Take a couple hour break in between.

We were fortunate with multiple days in each park so we got all we wanted multiple times.  But even being there during sold out spring break we got a lot done in one day.  We got enough accomplished that a couple times we’d go to a park and not really do much of anything.


----------



## JennCa

*If the parks open at 8am, do the lightning lanes open to book at 7am and then for riding at 8 or do they wait until later to offer lightning lanes?*


----------



## Westerner

Westerner said:


> Oh, I see.  Yes, the LL return times for ITTBAB at 7am are around 8AM or slightly before on thrilldata.
> 
> @jbish Suggest you check Tip Board in advance for Bug right at 7:00:00AM and check what return times are offered.  You're in uncharted territory and I'm not sure if a return time of 7:30AM (right at AK park open) is actually offered.


Out of curiosity I checked Tip Board for ITTBAB today at 7:00:00a.  1st return time shown was 7:30, but after 1 refresh it shifted to 7:40.  It stayed at 7:40 for about a minute before going to 8:00 at 7:02.  So @jbish you’ll have to be quick to carry out your strategy.  Disclaimer: this is only 1 day of data so YMMV.

More broadly this bears on theoretical earliest possible return time.  @JennCa It suggests that LL return windows right at park open or shortly after do exist - even when the park is opening very early.


----------



## HydroGuy

NYEmomma said:


> Planning our June trip, which is our first with the G+ system. I'm starting at the beginning of this thread and hope it doesn't take me all 190 page to figure out what the heck I'm doing but I'm not optimistic. Compared to the old FP system, this is crazy confusing and overwhelming.


If you are comparing it to the legacy paper FP system I am not sure I agree. Legacy FP had rules. And those who showed up for rope drop had all the advantages. FP+ had its rules and you needed to make a lot of fixed decisions 60+ days in advance. Now G+ has rules. Yes the rules keep changing and many of us do not like that, but I really do not think it is any harder to understand. It may be frustrating to use in some ways but the old systems had frustrations too.

With that said, the current G+ has flaws. Mosrtly that it does not give you return windows you selected. That is frustrating for sure, but not hard to understand IMHO.


----------



## Disturbia

On HS, if it’s a day with extra magic evening hours you will be competing with high crowds.  In all my refreshing a few weeks ago I did not see much SDD availability.  However, if you get the other big wait rides and get an extra, the total time saved will still be more than someone who didn’t arbitrage.


----------



## T'Lynn

JennCa said:


> *If the parks open at 8am, do the lightning lanes open to book at 7am and then for riding at 8 or do they wait until later to offer lightning lanes?*


Lightning lane booking at WDW starts at 7 am. It’s always 7 am no matter what time the park opens.


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## jbish

NYEmomma said:


> I appreciate the advice. Any other sage wisdom? We have all prioritized our rides and know that things have changed (and that the parks are busier) and we're likely not going to be able to ride everything we want to like we usually do. I feel like I've got a handle on MK and EPCOT but HS is stressing me out.


My advice on following the Everything G+ thread is to read the first few posts and then start reading more recent experiences and questions.  Same for this G+ Usage Tips and Strategy thread.  I would go back maybe 2-3 weeks and start reading there.  You will start to see a pattern of questions being asked and they will be much more relevant to what the CURRENT situation is.  Goodness knows that the strategy in June could be different yet again, especially with Guardians likely open by that time!


----------



## kendie_mac

I've read through the last few pages & have a question. My group is mixed ages (Adults, Teens, & Preschool). Ride priorities & thrill levels are obviously different between the Teens & Preschooler. So I'm considering splitting up our G+ choices at Epcot & HS. 

Epcot: TT for Teens. FEA for Adults + Preschooler. Teens have zero interest in riding FEA, but will ride TT multiple times in SR lane & would love a chance to skip the line. 

HS: Only 1 Teen wants to ride Slinky Dog & ToT. He's planning SR for RRC. I've agreed to do Slinky Dog & ToT with him. I'm considering splitting our initial LLs for for these to rides at 7AM. Then RD MMRR before heading to TSMM & figure we'd be done with those 2 fairly quickly. After that we'd only be waiting in Standby for Millennium Falcon, Aliens, & Star Tours (maybe), & then the shows. 

I worry if I split them by people (say 2 of us to ToT, 3 to MMRR) then we'll be off sink the entire day and do zero rides together. 

Or say all 5 of us do LL for MMRR & stay in sink, 2 of us will be spending 4hrs standing in line by ourselves for 2 rides which is a good chunk of the day. 

Feedback? Experience?


----------



## g-dad66

kendie_mac said:


> I've read through the last few pages & have a question. My group is mixed ages (Adults, Teens, & Preschool). Ride priorities & thrill levels are obviously different between the Teens & Preschooler. So I'm considering splitting up our G+ choices at Epcot & HS.
> 
> Epcot: TT for Teens. FEA for Adults + Preschooler. Teens have zero interest in riding FEA, but will ride TT multiple times in SR lane & would love a chance to skip the line.
> 
> HS: Only 1 Teen wants to ride Slinky Dog & ToT. He's planning SR for RRC. I've agreed to do Slinky Dog & ToT with him. I'm considering splitting our initial LLs for for these to rides at 7AM. Then RD MMRR before heading to TSMM & figure we'd be done with those 2 fairly quickly. After that we'd only be waiting in Standby for Millennium Falcon, Aliens, & Star Tours (maybe), & then the shows.
> 
> I worry if I split them by people (say 2 of us to ToT, 3 to MMRR) then we'll be off sink the entire day and do zero rides together.
> 
> Or say all 5 of us do LL for MMRR & stay in sink, 2 of us will be spending 4hrs standing in line by ourselves for 2 rides which is a good chunk of the day.
> 
> Feedback? Experience?



We had a similar experience.  It's pretty easy for the LL return times for the "thrill" rides to be later in the day when you book soon after 7am (and also by the time you book your second LL). 

So splitting up late in the day worked well for us, and in the morning we were doing attractions that we all did together (except for one HS day when the thrill-seekers did Tower of Terror & RRC during early entry, and the others slept in a bit).


----------



## Airb330

Well, this is new. Certainly seems true for DHS lately. I guess they’re setting expectations but at $15 for 2 rides this isn’t a great system. I did better with G+ than 3 rides at MK last week for sure…skipped G+ at AK but did an ILL$ for FoP.


----------



## Disturbia

twirly123 said:


> Arriving next week (hopefully)!  I was hoping to get a genie plus reservation for frozen for after dinner. We are at AK in the morning. Can anyone tell me when frozen passes usually run out - wondering if I can get a safari reservation at 7am and then get frozen after. Thanks


On checkin date (Sunday), I booked Remy and Test Track at 7 am.  Then I wanted Frozen for after 6 pm but it sold out at 10:30 am (next booking window) and I kept refreshing for an hour while boarding my flight.  I finally got Frozen for the time I wanted.

Same thing happened today.  I booked FOP and Safari at 7 am (9:20-10:20; line was over 75 mins and the LL was backed up to Tusker house). and then booked the Lion King show.  At 9:30 (2 hrs post open), I booked NRJ for 5:25-6:25 pm.  We took a break at Satu li (there were tour groups with large orders and coupons so allergy orders took 30 mins extra). Booked Kali River around 11:30 At around 1:30 pm we decided to see if we could refresh Dinosaur as times were only 4:40+.  Constantly refreshing got us as 1:15 pm.  CM let us on at 1:05 as we had Horseback riding booked.

Came back in the evening.  Most rides were low waits as people park hopped


----------



## Disturbia

HS today.  SDD had a second drop at 7:05 and continuously on and off thereafter. 

ROTR had a second drop at 7:15 but that was late evening only.  Third drop at 7:17 was starting at 8:30 am and all times available (what you selected was what you got on the booking screen).  Chose 11:30 am.  Also at 7 am when I selected 11:30 am the booking screen showed 3:50 pm (we have dinner at 5:40 pm)


----------



## twirly123

Disturbia said:


> On checkin date (Sunday), I booked Remy and Test Track at 7 am.  Then I wanted Frozen for after 6 pm but it sold out at 10:30 am (next booking window) and I kept refreshing for an hour while boarding my flight.  I finally got Frozen for the time I wanted.
> 
> Same thing happened today.  I booked FOP and Safari at 7 am (9:20-10:20; line was over 75 mins and the LL was backed up to Tusker house). and then booked the Lion King show.  At 9:30 (2 hrs post open), I booked NRJ for 5:25-6:25 pm.  We took a break at Satu li (there were tour groups with large orders and coupons so allergy orders took 30 mins extra). Booked Kali River around 11:30 At around 1:30 pm we decided to see if we could refresh Dinosaur as times were only 4:40+.  Constantly refreshing got us as 1:15 pm.  CM let us on at 1:05 as we had Horseback riding booked.
> 
> Came back in the evening.  Most rides were low waits as people park hopped


Thanks. That sounds great


----------



## twirly123

If you choose a show with genie plus I see the window opens half an hour before. What’s the latest you can turn up and be allowed in - is it show start time or is it at the half an hour prior window (or somewhere in between). Thanks


----------



## Figmentv

I know a lot of people here have mentioned needing to going from one side of MK to the other several times in a day to get to do their desired LLs. I’m hoping to not have to do that even though we’ll be there during a very busy time 6/29-7/5. 

Is it feasible to group my LLs by land ? I envision something like starting off in Liberty Sq., with HM, tap in then grab an LL in Frontierland and filling in the times between attractions with “little to no wait” type things like the Riverboat or Tom Sawyer, etc. Then moving on to the next land, so on and so forth.

I know a lot of this plan will revolve around when our return time is for SDMT (if we get it). I’m just trying to figure out if it’s doable.


----------



## TacoCatGoatCheesePizza

Posted on a different board but maybe this is the best one for my question.  I have been practicing adding SDD to my tip board and testing looking for LL at 7am (from home to understand the process before our trip next month). For the most part, for any park, when I refresh the tip board at anytime, it is fine and shows current LL availability. However, at exactly 7 am, when I set park to HS and refresh, it spins and gives an error message. By the time I get back in at 7:00:30 maybe, it’s already late afternoon times. Should I expect this to happen in the parks or is genie+ more well behaved when you actually are able to book. If not, how do I fix it?


----------



## francie57

TacoCatGoatCheesePizza said:


> Posted on a different board but maybe this is the best one for my question.  I have been practicing adding SDD to my tip board and testing looking for LL at 7am (from home to understand the process before our trip next month). For the most part, for any park, when I refresh the tip board at anytime, it is fine and shows current LL availability. However, at exactly 7 am, when I set park to HS and refresh, it spins and gives an error message. By the time I get back in at 7:00:30 maybe, it’s already late afternoon times. Should I expect this to happen in the parks or is genie+ more well behaved when you actually are able to book. If not, how do I fix it?


When you are there and try turn off Wi-Fi.  I was told this by several guest relation people.  if you get any type of error come up take a quick screenshot. We had gotten through to the payment screen for Rise and a Disney error message came up.  I took a screenshot (you could see the rise info in the background). When I got to the Studios I went to guest services just inside the park and explained what happened and showed her the screen shot.  She gave us an anytime Rise lightning lane for our party.


----------



## lynzi2004

Had a fairly successful day booking LLs from home for family at Disney on their first trip. Family of 4 (parents, DS 6 and DS2) staying at POP.

Got in Skyliner line at 6:45, loading on skyliner at 7 and going through HS security by 7:15. She booked LL for Slinky for 1:20-2:20 but wasn’t happy with the time. I tried for Rise but it was late afternoon too so I opted to wait and at 7:17, refreshed and had my choice of times (chose 10:30-11:30). They were close enough to the front of rope drop that we opted to cancel the Slinky LL and booked MMRR for 9:50-10:50. The morning went like this
1. Slinky Dog
2. Mania
3. Saucers
4. Breakfast at Woodys lunchbox
5. MMRR railway LL (9:50-10:50)
6. Booked an immediate return for Star Tours 10:25-11:25
7. Rise LL for 10:30-11:30
8. Single rider smugglers run 
Left park around 1:30-2pm
They weren’t interested in RnRc or TOT with their kids. 

Around 11:15 after doing Star Tours I started stacking the afternoon we already had FOP booked around 7:20am for a 7:30-8:30pm return

Navi from 6:30-7:30 booked at 11:15
Safari from 5:30-6:30 booked at 1:15

Fairly easy from me to do from home and the just tell her where to go!


----------



## Miffy

lynzi2004 said:


> Had a fairly successful day booking LLs from home for family at Disney on their first trip. Family of 4 (parents, DS 6 and DS2) staying at POP.
> 
> Got in Skyliner line at 6:45, loading on skyliner at 7 and going through HS security by 7:15. She booked LL for Slinky for 1:20-2:20 but wasn’t happy with the time. I tried for Rise but it was late afternoon too so I opted to wait and at 7:17, refreshed and had my choice of times (chose 10:30-11:30). They were close enough to the front of rope drop that we opted to cancel the Slinky LL and booked MMRR for 9:50-10:50. The morning went like this
> 1. Slinky Dog
> 2. Mania
> 3. Saucers
> 4. Breakfast at Woodys lunchbox
> 5. MMRR railway LL (9:50-10:50)
> 6. Booked an immediate return for Star Tours 10:25-11:25
> 7. Rise LL for 10:30-11:30
> 8. Single rider smugglers run
> Left park around 1:30-2pm
> They weren’t interested in RnRc or TOT with their kids.
> 
> Around 11:15 after doing Star Tours I started stacking the afternoon we already had FOP booked around 7:20am for a 7:30-8:30pm return
> 
> Navi from 6:30-7:30 booked at 11:15
> Safari from 5:30-6:30 booked at 1:15
> 
> Fairly easy from me to do from home and the just tell her where to go!


If Genie were really a genie, it'd do what you did for your family!


----------



## HockeyMomNH

twirly123 said:


> If you choose a show with genie plus I see the window opens half an hour before. What’s the latest you can turn up and be allowed in - is it show start time or is it at the half an hour prior window (or somewhere in between). Thanks



We learned the hard way, that the G+ for shows doesn't save you a spot.  Once the show is full they will not let you enter even if you have a reservation.  It makes the G+ pretty pointless, imo.  Plus, I couldn't book another G+ until the 2 hour time was up because I couldn't scan in and "use" the show one.

I went to CS and definitely expressed my unhappiness with the system that day.


----------



## lynzi2004

Miffy said:


> If Genie were really a genie, it'd do what you did for your family!


Thank you! For first timers who don’t know which ones sell out first or where something was located. It was almost easier to take control than to try to fix when the inevitably texted that they were having issues!


----------



## twirly123

HockeyMomNH said:


> We learned the hard way, that the G+ for shows doesn't save you a spot.  Once the show is full they will not let you enter even if you have a reservation.  It makes the G+ pretty pointless, imo.  Plus, I couldn't book another G+ until the 2 hour time was up because I couldn't scan in and "use" the show one.
> 
> I went to CS and definitely expressed my unhappiness with the system that day.


That is a bit rubbish! I would have been really frustrated at that too!


----------



## CarolynFH

HockeyMomNH said:


> We learned the hard way, that the G+ for shows doesn't save you a spot.  Once the show is full they will not let you enter even if you have a reservation.  It makes the G+ pretty pointless, imo.  Plus, I couldn't book another G+ until the 2 hour time was up because I couldn't scan in and "use" the show one.
> 
> I went to CS and definitely expressed my unhappiness with the system that day.


Oh my!  That's not good.  How far in advance of show time did you arrive and were turned away?


----------



## Westerner

HockeyMomNH said:


> We learned the hard way, that the G+ for shows doesn't save you a spot.  Once the show is full they will not let you enter even if you have a reservation.  It makes the G+ pretty pointless, imo.  Plus, I couldn't book another G+ until the 2 hour time was up because I couldn't scan in and "use" the show one.
> 
> I went to CS and definitely expressed my unhappiness with the system that day.


I think if you follow the G+ return window given you for a show you'll have no problem getting priority access.  That was our experience at DHS for Indiana and Beauty & Beast.

A workaround to any "I can't tap in so can't book my next G+" situation is simply to cancel the blocking G+ booking.


----------



## Rivergirl2005

Does anyone know if there are “drop times” for flight of passage in case I miss the time at 7?


----------



## Westerner

.


----------



## ilovetotravel1977

We are a group of 7 going: My parents, my daughter and I are already in my MDE account. My sister, BIL, and Nephew are also coming.  Should they create their own MDE or join mine?

I was thinking it might be easier finding LLs for groups of 4 and 3 vs 7.  We would plan on doing everything together and just try to get matching LLs.

Any thoughts or experiences with groups under the same MDE account?


----------



## MainMom

ilovetotravel1977 said:


> We are a group of 7 going: My parents, my daughter and I are already in my MDE account. My sister, BIL, and Nephew are also coming.  Should they create their own MDE or join mine?
> 
> I was thinking it might be easier finding LLs for groups of 4 and 3 vs 7.  We would plan on doing everything together and just try to get matching LLs.
> 
> Any thoughts or experiences with groups under the same MDE account?


I think it will be very hard to match LL. I am traveling with a group of 7 in June. I will book everyone together. I would recommend at least one of the adults in the other family has an MDE and then manages the other 2. The become friends and family so you can book LL together for everyone. Or you can split up if you want too.


----------



## Disturbia

We had Oga’s Cantina booked at 10:25 am. I forgot to book my MMRR 2 hours after park opening.  I did have the timer set but we got called to our table and I forgot (Oga’s sat our infant at the bar (they initially refused high chair saying they only had tall ones; finally they said they could MAYBE arrange the counter height chair) and 5 of us stood sideways crammed in a space meant for 3 normal people sitting on bar stools-making room for Starcruiser guests: sat comfortably).  Also supply issues meant they charged us for the Blue Bantha but there were no cookies, only blue milk.  Don’t drink too many drinks when you’re trying to book Genie+.  I was able to get it (MMRR) again with many refreshes for 4:30-5:30 (would only give 8 pm+ Mostly).  Went to GET and they were able to change it (after a big ‘As a one time favor I will make this change’) as it conflicted with Dining (thankfully in this case).  Got TSMM for 4-5 pm.  Booked but didn’t want to go to GET (wanted to leave before 3).  Left the park.  Could have booked RnRc saw availability after multiple refreshes).  Enjoyed the pool after dinner (45 min wait to be seated at Story book dining because we were 1 min late).

Thought of going back with the teen to ride TOT, enjoyed pool time and enchanto (Art of Animation) instead.

There was a drop of ROTR at around 2 pm


----------



## Westerner

Disturbia said:


> We had Oga’s Cantina booked at 10:25 am. I forgot to book my MMRR 2 hours after park opening.  I did have the timer set but we got called to our table and I forgot.   Don’t drink too many drinks when you’re trying to book Genie+.  I was able to get it again with many refreshes for 4:30-5:30 (would only give 8 pm+ Mostly).  Went to GET and they were able to change it (after a big ‘As a one time favor I will make this change’) as it conflicted with Dining (thankfully in this case).  Got TSMM for 4-5 pm.  Booked but didn’t want to go to GET (wanted to leave before 3).  Left the park.  Could have booked RnRc saw availability after multiple refreshes).  Enjoyed the pool after dinner (45 min wait to be seated at Story book dining because we were 1 min late).
> 
> Thought of going back with the teen to ride TOT, enjoyed pool time and enchanto (Art of Animation) instead.
> 
> There was a drop of ROTR at around 2 pm


Thanks for the info and glad things worked out with GET for your ADR.  The one observation I have is if you find yourself unable to make use of a LL you booked (eg TSM in your case) it's in your interest to cancel it which allows you to book it again later should the opportunity arise.  If you let it expire unused it counts as your 1 permitted LL for that ride. 

Did you actually book RotR at 2pm?


----------



## ilovetotravel1977

MainMom said:


> I think it will be very hard to match LL. I am traveling with a group of 7 in June. I will book everyone together. I would recommend at least one of the adults in the other family has an MDE and then manages the other 2. The become friends and family so you can book LL together for everyone. Or you can split up if you want too.



Does my sister need her own MDE or can I just add them to mine and control the LLs myself?


----------



## lynzi2004

Rivergirl2005 said:


> Does anyone know if there are “drop times” for flight of passage in case I miss the time at 7?


They dropped again for us today at 7:17, with a full range of options. I saw it again several times throughout the day sporadically as well. I had already booked it on the second drop, so I’m not sure if you would have got any on the random ones throughout the day, but definitely at 7:17 you should be able to!


----------



## CarolynFH

ilovetotravel1977 said:


> Does my sister need her own MDE or can I just add them to mine and control the LLs myself?


Your sister can make her own MDE and manage her family. Then you can link all three of them as F&F in your MDE, which will allow you to book LLs, ILL$, ADRs, etc. for all of you as one party.


----------



## Disturbia

Westerner said:


> Thanks for the info and glad things worked out with GET for your ADR.  The one observation I have is if you find yourself unable to make use of a LL you booked (eg TSM in your case) it's in your interest to cancel it which allows you to book it again later should the opportunity arise.  If you let it expire unused it counts as your 1 permitted LL for that ride.
> 
> Did you actually book RotR at 2pm?


No, I posted a few posts back that I had ROTR (7:17 am drop had even 8:30 am open, but we chose 11:35 am as everyone was still in bed) booked earlier in the day.  Oga’s was in between those.  Note:  Skyliner had no wait at 9:15 am.  

So after that I got MMRR (booked around noon for 4:30-5:30 by constantly refreshing; saw MFSR pop up for 1:30 pm btw; GET helped change it to an anytime pass-dinner ADR at 5:40 pm) and TSMM (booked at 2 pm for 4-5 pm) but chose not to ride TSMM and leave instead.


----------



## Disturbia

ilovetotravel1977 said:


> Does my sister need her own MDE or can I just add them to mine and control the LLs myself?


Seeing how hard it is to already manage a family of 4 riders (plus one infant), I would seriously delegate and let other people take on some of the work.  Plus the more people you have in your party, the less options Genie+ gives (LL for party of 1 has more availability vs 4).


----------



## Disturbia

Please note: those of us going during crowded holidays/summer:  Do lower your already lowered expectations as you buy Genie+ and anything else at WDW right now; as you can see from the change in language on the website, Disney couldn’t care less about your experience or that of your kids.  Corporate Greed is prevalent everywhere, most notably at HS.  

It was so dangerous for us to be eating over our kids (severe allergies) at an area meant for 3 people.  Everything was within reach of our younger kids even glass.  A person in her 20s looked shocked and took a picture of us (yes it was that bad) and the 2 people who were squeezed in tried to accommodate by standing sideways ( like us) as well.  Fortunately the 2 year old was distracted by the phone.  The chef saw how dangerous our seating arrangement was and brought us allergy safe baatu bits (no humus) despite us requesting a regular one.  You can read TripAdvisor reviews so we are not alone in this dismal experience.  It doesn’t phase us anymore as we’ve now come to expect something like this each trip (this is our 4th post pandemic).  We still CHOSE to not get upset and have a good time despite the circumstances.  It was still disappointing and our next day we plan to just stack in the evening and forget about going in the morning.  To make that happen we will cancel Topolinos and Oga’s for our next HS day (if we could change it to another park we would, but we’re stuck with what we have right now).  Maybe having park hoppers is a good idea during high crowds.

At GET I saw an European lady almost in tears trying to describe what she was feeling.  She started off by saying I don’t know what I’m feeling.  I think I feel sad, I want to cry, I click and the times keep changing and I have a dining… It was so sad to see someone else feel like this.  I think she was feeling a sense of shock, disbelief, heartbreak, loss and sadness at what this experience has become (we already went through that phase of shock and disbelief on our post pandemic pre Genie+ trips - that’s actually pretty sad that it’s come to that; the pandemic is not an excuse any longer).  

To get 2 Genie+ passes before 4 pm, I had to refresh constantly for hours.  Pack a lot of Advil.


----------



## Luisfba

A question about ILL. I’m aware the time you get may not be the initial time on the first screen, but does ILL lock down a time and tell you what that is before you actually purchase (perhaps a couple of screens into the purchase flow)? Or is there a risk you end up purchasing a time that isn’t what you need/want?


----------



## Disturbia

I just booked JC (screen froze at 7 am), but still got 9:25 am.  SDMT was pushed into the evening quickly 8 pm+ as I went back to confirm what time I had dinner booked.  Waited and kept refreshing and there were 4 and 6 pm available at 7:08 am.  Im sure at 7:17 am there will be another drop.  JC is already pushing into late afternoon


----------



## Disturbia

Yes another drop, but I wanted evening


I booked 7-8, I just checked my time and it changed to 10:30-11 on my day!!!!! Wow I don’t know how I can cancel and rebook

This is my *** moment.  I am going to have to go to the front desk at our resort to change this, still showing availability starting at 11:10 am.

Edit:

Later in the day (entered park at 10 am):

1. Rode JC Genie+ booked Splash 11:35
2. Pirates standby (posted 45, actual 20).
3. Rode Splash, booked Big Thunder 1:50 (refresh crazy).  Ride got stuck several times, teenagers took off shirt so got to ride twice (thanks to gift shop employee)
Ate Lunch at Pecos Bill (allergy orders took really long to get, so we weren’t done until 1:45 pm
4. Rode Big Thunder, break at resort (exit around 3 pm), bus didn’t arrive for 20-30 mins, so got to resort at 3:40 pm.  refresh crazy booked PP at 6:30-7:30
Dinner at Steakhouse71 at 5 pm (meat quality down, excessive salt (3 times normal) service slow took almost 2 hours (quickly ate and packed desserts).  Refresh crazy couldn’t get early times for HM.  Exit at 6:45 and sprinted to SDMT reaching by 7:10 (had booked 6-7 pm).
5. Rode SDMT (fixed by front desk but took an hour) and got HM 7-8 pm.
6. Rode Peter Pan was able to book IASW
7. Rode IASW booked Buzz for 9-10 pm
Dessert after party check in and fireworks from plaza garden
8. After fireworks rode people mover standby headed to Buzz it went down and I had 10 mins left in my window but didn’t get a recovery pass!.  Went to the dessert party at 9:45.  Ate a few sweets had 2 drinks.  Yes crepes are here to stay and they are topped with candied walnuts.
9. Rode buzz standby (walk on)
10. Rode little mermaid standby (walk on)
We could have ridden 1-2 more rides like Winnie the Pooh, tea cups, speedway which were all walk ons but chose not to.
11. Rode Space standby (posted 35, actual 10).

Took photos on Main Street, exited park at 11:30 pm.


----------



## leiaorgana

Is there any threads like this *just* for offsite people’s experiences using G+ for LL on arrival at the parks and rope dropping following the resort crowds or can I make one that won’t get merged with the others? I’m just looking for a space where offsite people can share their experiences without having to dig through hundreds of pages to find what they’re looking for.


----------



## Disturbia

Update:  Front desk was able to change SDMT from 10:25 to 6-7 pm Phew.  There was still availability starting at 11 am around 7:45 am.  

Although I was next in line, I had to wait 30 mins at the front desk btw.  So be prepared for that.


----------



## MainMom

Luisfba said:


> A question about ILL. I’m aware the time you get may not be the initial time on the first screen, but does ILL lock down a time and tell you what that is before you actually purchase (perhaps a couple of screens into the purchase flow)? Or is there a risk you end up purchasing a time that isn’t what you need/want?


It can change all the way through the booking. It will tell you a time, but for some of these it seems like you have to go so fast you can’t really pause to look. There have even been reports of getting a confirmation after you pay for one time and then they look at the time later on in the app and it’s changed again.


----------



## MainMom

leiaorgana said:


> Is there any threads like this *just* for offsite people’s experiences using G+ for LL on arrival at the parks and rope dropping following the resort crowds or can I make one that won’t get merged with the others? I’m just looking for a space where offsite people can share their experiences without having to dig through hundreds of pages to find what they’re looking for.


Offsite can book G+ LL at 7am like onsite  ILL are at park opening.


----------



## jbish

Westerner said:


> I think if you follow the G+ return window given you for a show you'll have no problem getting priority access.  That was our experience at DHS for Indiana and Beauty & Beast.
> 
> A workaround to any "I can't tap in so can't book my next G+" situation is simply to cancel the blocking G+ booking.


Keep in mind, cancelling that G+ LL that you couldn't use will only free up the ability to book another one IF it was your most recently booked LL.


----------



## jbish

Westerner said:


> Very clever park opening arbitrage idea jbish!  If you can pull this off not only do you get SDD but you'll be booking the rest of your LL's 30 minutes ahead of the pack all day long (930, 1130, 130 instead of 10, 12, 2).  As you requested I'll poke holes:
> 
> You're assuming you can book a DHS ride after tapping in to ITTBAB at 730 despite it being prior to DHS park open at 8.  Technically, I think this should be OK, tap-in generally trumps the 120 minute rule, but I've not seen reports of anyone who's tried this specific PH scenario.
> What if Bug doesn't open right at 730 for some reason, or you're delayed in getting to it and you can't tap in?  I suppose you can always cancel the Bug LL and rebook SDD worst case.
> Internet access inside the Bug theater may not be so good.  I guess you can always book it right after tap-in before going inside, just be ready.
> You're risking SDD being sold out at 730.  It's probably the single most sought-after G+ LL in terms of wait time saved.
> Based on recent thrill data, SDD has been available on most Wednesdays at 730-ish.  YMMV.


Thanks for the feedback @Westerner!  It has been a crazy few days for me so I haven't been able to respond sufficiently.  Here are my thoughts reading your notes:

First, I feel like someone may have the same idea as I presented because, OF COURSE, these past couple of days, ITTBAB G+ LL have bumped past 7:30 pretty quickly after 7:00.  So if I'm going to do this, I'm going to have to be johnny-on-the-spot right at 7 am to snag that first LL.  
THANK YOU for that idea that, if I don't get to ITTBAB right at 7:30, to cancel and start looking for SDD right away - I think that will have to be my backup plan.  I have been watching LL availability between 7:30-7:55 for SDD and a few do pop up, but that's a long waiting game and the risk I take to try to capitalize on this measly 30 minute advantage I may or may not obtain.  But I'm willing to give it a try.  
Does anyone know if ITTBAB has two tap points or just one?  I was hoping to start looking for SDD asap - before going into the show building.


----------



## leiaorgana

MainMom said:


> Offsite can book G+ LL at 7am like onsite  ILL are at park opening.


I understand that but I wanted to know what offsite people’s experiences were like booking ROTR, FOP etc and whether we stand a chance or not and how bad rope drop is now following onsite people at every park without having to wade through hundreds of pages of irrelevant onsite experiences in the other threads to find the information . It was just a suggestion to make offsite people’s research easier is all


----------



## Miffy

jbish said:


> Thanks for the feedback @Westerner!  It has been a crazy few days for me so I haven't been able to respond sufficiently.  Here are my thoughts reading your notes:
> 
> First, I feel like someone may have the same idea as I presented because, OF COURSE, these past couple of days, ITTBAB G+ LL have bumped past 7:30 pretty quickly after 7:00.  So if I'm going to do this, I'm going to have to be johnny-on-the-spot right at 7 am to snag that first LL.
> THANK YOU for that idea that, if I don't get to ITTBAB right at 7:30, to cancel and start looking for SDD right away - I think that will have to be my backup plan.  I have been watching LL availability between 7:30-7:55 for SDD and a few do pop up, but that's a long waiting game and the risk I take to try to capitalize on this measly 30 minute advantage I may or may not obtain.  But I'm willing to give it a try.
> Does anyone know if ITTBAB has two tap points or just one?  I was hoping to start looking for SDD asap - before going into the show building.


I haven't followed all your posts, and perhaps I'm wrong about this, but in my experience, ITtBaB is a walk-on. No G+ necessary. Has this changed recently? It's a huge theater.

And also I'm assuming you really want to experience this and know what you're getting into.


----------



## stamper

leiaorgana said:


> I understand that but I wanted to know what offsite people’s experiences were like booking ROTR, FOP etc and whether we stand a chance or not and how bad rope drop is now following onsite people at every park without having to wade through hundreds of pages of irrelevant onsite experiences in the other threads to find the information . It was just a suggestion to make offsite people’s research easier is all


This is info I'd love to have too!! We couldn't get a reasonable onsite hotel so we are offsite. Now I'm trying to figure out strategies for getting the rides you mentioned.


----------



## Westerner

leiaorgana said:


> I understand that but I wanted to know what offsite people’s experiences were like booking ROTR, FOP etc and whether we stand a chance or not and how bad rope drop is now following onsite people at every park without having to wade through hundreds of pages of irrelevant onsite experiences in the other threads to find the information . It was just a suggestion to make offsite people’s research easier is all


Got it.  Yes, an offsite $ILL specific thread would be helpful.  FYI for clarity of terminology, G+ and $ILL are two different things.


----------



## godfather927

leiaorgana said:


> I understand that but I wanted to know what offsite people’s experiences were like booking ROTR, FOP etc and whether we stand a chance or not and how bad rope drop is now following onsite people at every park without having to wade through hundreds of pages of irrelevant onsite experiences in the other threads to find the information . It was just a suggestion to make offsite people’s research easier is all


If you haven't already, you will definitely want to head over to thrill data to get an idea of how often times are available beyond the park opening window for those rides. On crowded days, it's fairly rare, but not impossible. It's a crapshoot, of course, but data is your friend.


----------



## jbish

Miffy said:


> I haven't followed all your posts, and perhaps I'm wrong about this, but in my experience, ITtBaB is a walk-on. No G+ necessary. Has this changed recently? It's a huge theater.
> 
> And also I'm assuming you really want to experience this and know what you're getting into.


LOL - definitely not my #1 priority.  Here's my original post - it's more of a science experiment.  In fact, I'm not even sure we would go into the attraction itself.  Just trying to get a leg up on what I think will be a really busy day at HS.



jbish said:


> Friends - I have been working on a plan for our HS day in two weeks.  I'd like to run this by you as I think I found an opportunity for stacking and being slightly ahead of the crowds while waiting out the 2 hour periods.  Currently I have reservations at HS, but I'm thinking of switching to AK and hopping to HS later.  Staying on site so I have access to Early Theme Park Entry.  Also, very unusual, but this is the one day that HS has the Extra Evening Hours for the deluxe resorts instead of MK.
> 
> Date: Wednesday, April 13th - expected to be very busy (HS crowd level 9)
> Park Hours: AK (7:30a-8:30p, 7am ETPE)
> HS (8a-9p, 9p-11p EEH)
> Of note: FOP and ROTR are NOT high priorities for us.  We rode both several times last June so I'll save the money where I can!)
> 
> My idea is based on realizing that there is a little bit of "arbitrage" given the different times the parks open.  Unfortunately, they just extended hours at all of the parks and so the difference between AK opening at 7:30 and HS at 8 isn't a huge advantage anymore.  But given how difficult it is to stack at HS these days, I'll take whatever advantage I can get.  Also, I know that we'll have those two extra hours at the end of the night so I anticipate we will get the most accomplished in those two hours.
> 
> Plan:
> 
> 7:00 - book LL for It's Tough to be a Bug for 7:30 (no competition for this right at 7 am)
> 7:30 - arrive at AK for regular opening (come after the initial rush as I'm trying not to burn out the family with too early of a start with a planned late night)
> As early as possible, tap in to ITTBAB (which is easy to get to since it's right at the front of the park. We may or may not actually go in.  Haven't gone in years but the thought of the bugs crawling behind me already gives me the heebie jeebies.)
> Book SDD for sometime around 5-7 pm (this has been available up until 8 am some days, so it's a calculated risk)
> 
> Now my next LL booking time will be 9:30 vs. anyone that has a HS reservation who will be booking at 10 am (EP opens at 8:30 and MK opens at 9, so anyone that has a reservation there will be even further behind)
> Please let me know if you think this will work.  I'm hoping this could be helpful for someone else to use this same strategy on a day, ideally, when there's more time between the two parks opening.  Poke holes in my strategy!!


----------



## jbish

leiaorgana said:


> I understand that but I wanted to know what offsite people’s experiences were like booking ROTR, FOP etc and whether we stand a chance or not and how bad rope drop is now following onsite people at every park without having to wade through hundreds of pages of irrelevant onsite experiences in the other threads to find the information . It was just a suggestion to make offsite people’s research easier is all





Westerner said:


> Got it.  Yes, an offsite $ILL specific thread would be helpful.  FYI for clarity of terminology, G+ and $ILL are two different things.


I think there are two different questions being asked.  First is what @Westerner addressed, which are the specific rides being asked about: ROTR and FOP which are $ILL where offsite guests truly are at a disadvantage. I think your challenges will also be dependent on the actual park hours.  For example, right now, during Spring Break, AK is opening at 7:30 am, which is when offsite guests will be able to book FOP. I think you'd have a decent shot at getting a $ILL.  HS is opening at 8:00 this week, so only one hour after onsite guests can start booking ROTR.  Here is thrill-data for ROTR $ILL:

The yellow line is 9 am - so you can see there's sporadic availability up until 9:00 (which, for some of these dates) was the opening time.  Thrill-data is a little tricky to understand when you first start going to the site, but once you figure out how to read the charts, it is a really helpful tool as you get closer to your travel dates.  

I think the other part of @leiaorgana 's question is about what is it like to be 30 minutes behind the Early Theme Park Entry guests and how that affects the rope drop experience for those that can't get into the ride queues at the same time.  There is a sticky thread on the Early entry, but it is more about the onsite experience.  But I think if you ask that specific question in a separate thread, you may get more relevant feedback.


----------



## ilovetotravel1977

Disturbia said:


> Seeing how hard it is to already manage a family of 4 riders (plus one infant), I would seriously delegate and let other people take on some of the work.  Plus the more people you have in your party, the less options Genie+ gives (LL for party of 1 has more availability vs 4).



This is why I was thinking of letting my sister's family control their own LLs.


----------



## Miffy

jbish said:


> LOL - definitely not my #1 priority.  Here's my original post - it's more of a science experiment.  In fact, I'm not even sure we would go into the attraction itself.  Just trying to get a leg up on what I think will be a really busy day at HS.


Thanks for reposting this--I hadn't seen it.

I'm still kinda lost though. You could book your hop-to park G+ at 7. It wouldn't be for a time before 2 pm, but you could do it, so you could get your late-afternoon SDD first thing, without having to do this buggy (haha) experiment.

For the record, you couldn't pay me to do ITtBaB ever again!


----------



## xipotec

These post are just outright depressing. So it pretty safe to say, this summer G+ is going to be an absolute nightmare for guests.....but at the same time, it may be the only way to ride many attractiosn with less than a 2 hour wait.

Disney need new management.


----------



## umichigan10

It seems like the gist from this thread is that it’s useful to get the paid service for MK but not Epcot or AK because of lack of attractions, and studios because they go too quick. Anyone who would disagree with that assessment?


----------



## roctavia

umichigan10 said:


> It seems like the gist from this thread is that it’s useful to get the paid service for MK but not Epcot or AK because of lack of attractions, and studios because they go too quick. Anyone who would disagree with that assessment?


I think HS it can be more useful, even to just skip 1-2 lines. The options do go fast, so it's not going to get you on a lot of rides, but the lines can be quite long, so even skipping the line on 2 things can be worth it. 

I would agree that it's debatable on how useful it is at Epcot and AK. Though I'm more tempted to get G+ at those parks just for the time saving aspect of a few rides. We plan to RD FOP/Navi and also pay for FOP (it's a family favorite so riding twice is a plus) but we also want to do the safari and that line can get very long, so now I'm rethinking if paying for G+ would be worth it for that ride... I don't really want to pay the extra, but also like to ride rides... It will also depend on how bad the crowds are when we go, so I plan to watch things closer when we aren't as far out from our trip.


----------



## MainMom

umichigan10 said:


> It seems like the gist from this thread is that it’s useful to get the paid service for MK but not Epcot or AK because of lack of attractions, and studios because they go too quick. Anyone who would disagree with that assessment?


Studios I’m not looking at it as quantity more can I skip 1-2 60-120 minute waits because those lines all get long quickly. We did buy Genie+ for the whole trip though and plan on buying ILL.


----------



## umichigan10

MainMom said:


> Studios I’m not looking at it as quantity more can I skip 1-2 60-120 minute waits because those lines all get long quickly. We did buy Genie+ for the whole trip though and plan on buying ILL.


That’s a good point. I’ll generally hop my second half of the day, so I could also use for whatever park I go to next


----------



## Scooley01

In terms of terminology, why does everyone seem to call it "ILL" or Individual Lightning Lane?  Disney's terminology everywhere seems to refer to that as "Individual Attraction Selection" right?


----------



## CarolynFH

Scooley01 said:


> In terms of terminology, why does everyone seem to call it "ILL" or Individual Lightning Lane?  Disney's terminology everywhere seems to refer to that as "Individual Attraction Selection" right?


When Disney first announced details of the Genie program, they called them Individual Attraction Selections.  When Genie actually was implemented in October, Disney called them Individual Lightning Lanes, and that's what they're called in the MDE app.  No explanation given by Disney, and it definitely leads to confusion!


----------



## Scooley01

CarolynFH said:


> When Disney first announced details of the Genie program, they called them Individual Attraction Selections.  When Genie actually was implemented in October, Disney called them Individual Lightning Lanes, and that's what they're called in the MDE app.  No explanation given by Disney, and it definitely leads to confusion!


Oh yeah that's definitely confusing!  My only experience with that so far is through YouTube videos, so I guess the ones I've watched have all been older haha!


----------



## kilik64

I think they should just do what All Ears does and call em Fancy Rides.


----------



## Westerner

CarolynFH said:


> When Disney first announced details of the Genie program, they called them Individual Attraction Selections.  When Genie actually was implemented in October, Disney called them Individual Lightning Lanes, and that's what they're called in the MDE app.  No explanation given by Disney, and it definitely leads to confusion!


Individual Lightning Lanes was an unfortunate choice of name as it abbreviates to ILL.  A poor PR choice on Disney's part.  Too bad, b/c $ILL's can be pretty good value for $ in terms of wait time saved.


----------



## jbish

Miffy said:


> Thanks for reposting this--I hadn't seen it.
> 
> I'm still kinda lost though. You could book your hop-to park G+ at 7. It wouldn't be for a time before 2 pm, but you could do it, so you could get your late-afternoon SDD first thing, without having to do this buggy (haha) experiment.
> 
> For the record, you couldn't pay me to do ITtBaB ever again!


Yeah, not a fan of the attraction itself. lol

So my theory is, if I get to use my first LL at 7:30, and then get to book my second one right at 7:30 (ex. SDD in afternoon), then I will be eligible for my next one at 9:30. 

Alternatively, if I just started booking for HS right away, my first one would be at 7 (where, sure, I have a very good chance at getting what I want), then the next time I would be eligible to book would be at 10 (two hours after HS opens). So the science experiment is that by starting to book at AK, I could set myself up to book 30 mins before the rest of the HS crowd. Hope that’s makes sense.


----------



## pens4821

xipotec said:


> These post are just outright depressing. So it pretty safe to say, this summer G+ is going to be an absolute nightmare for guests.....but at the same time, it may be the only way to ride many attractiosn with less than a 2 hour wait.
> 
> Disney need new management.



I disagree, but many will agree with you. I was there a couple weeks ago with all sold out parks and was pleased with genie+. Does it suck having to pay for what was free? Yes. Could it be better?  Yes. But we got 5 rides done with it in each of MK, HS, and ep. It did take some time refreshing for HS, but nothing crazy and we did it while we weren’t doing anything anyway. I was more than pleased with genie+ and actually wish I would’ve got it the other three days too to be honest.


----------



## pens4821

umichigan10 said:


> It seems like the gist from this thread is that it’s useful to get the paid service for MK but not Epcot or AK because of lack of attractions, and studios because they go too quick. Anyone who would disagree with that assessment?



I would get it at every park. That’s what we read too about not getting it at ep and Ak (we didn’t visit there this trip). We were planning on using it our first and last days of 6 (hopping to MK first, HS last). Our 5th day I got it for epcot and was more than pleased I did. Yeah, the lines weren’t horrible there for what we got, but it saved us over a couple hours of waiting in line.


----------



## Disturbia

Edited post 3839 for Genie+ usage on MK day


----------



## Miffy

jbish said:


> Yeah, not a fan of the attraction itself. lol
> 
> So my theory is, if I get to use my first LL at 7:30, and then get to book my second one right at 7:30 (ex. SDD in afternoon), then I will be eligible for my next one at 9:30.
> 
> Alternatively, if I just started booking for HS right away, my first one would be at 7 (where, sure, I have a very good chance at getting what I want), then the next time I would be eligible to book would be at 10 (two hours after HS opens). So the science experiment is that by starting to book at AK, I could set myself up to book 30 mins before the rest of the HS crowd. Hope that’s makes sense.


Got it! Thanks for explaining. I await the results of your experiment!


----------



## Disturbia

SDD and ROTR showed unavailable pretty quick


This system is pretty messed up.  I booked 5-6 for ROTR during the evening drop at 7:15 am and after I clicked payment it jumped without a warning to 7:10-8:10, which conflicts with 8:30 dining at Steakhouse71 (for Rider Switch we need 35-40 mins each time) I am not spending another hour at the front desk.  Ridiculous!

And the weather; conditions favorable for funnel clouds, thunderstorms all day.


----------



## Westerner

Disturbia said:


> SDD and ROTR showed unavailable pretty quick
> 
> 
> This system is pretty messed up.  I booked 5-6 for ROTR during the evening drop at 7:15 am and after I clicked payment it jumped without a warning to 7:10-8:10, which conflicts with 8:30 dining at Steakhouse71 (for Rider Switch we need 35-40 mins each time) I am not spending another hour at the front desk.  Ridiculous!
> 
> And the weather; conditions favorable for funnel clouds, thunderstorms all day.


Yeeesh!  Sorry this happened, it’s really unfair for RotR time to shift after *payment*.  Maybe try talking to blue umbrella people in park?  I seem to recall that sometimes there wasn’t that long of a line of people waiting to talk to them.


----------



## mom2rtk

Disturbia said:


> SDD and ROTR showed unavailable pretty quick
> View attachment 659157
> View attachment 659158
> This system is pretty messed up.  I booked 5-6 for ROTR during the evening drop at 7:15 am and after I clicked payment it jumped without a warning to 7:10-8:10, which conflicts with 8:30 dining at Steakhouse71 (for Rider Switch we need 35-40 mins each time) I am not spending another hour at the front desk.  Ridiculous!
> 
> And the weather; conditions favorable for funnel clouds, thunderstorms all day.
> 
> View attachment 659164


How they ever thought this would be OK in a system is just beyond me. 

What a mess indeed.


----------



## g-dad66

mom2rtk said:


> How they ever thought this would be OK in a system is just beyond me.
> 
> What a mess indeed.



And why haven't they fixed it in 5 1/2 months now?  

They can't be getting too many compliments from people saying, Hey, I really like the fact that I don't end up with the time that I chose.


----------



## ScarletFire

I've been micro-managing from KY my DD24 DHS day.   It's been successful!

LL 7am: SDD 3:05 and RISE 4:25. 

Rope Drop ToT, RnRC and MMRR.  All completed by 9:00!  I've trained my DD24 well!!

LL 10:30am:  RnRC 2:40.  Wants to ride again.

I hate, HATE that there is no way to modify times!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   At 7am, you take what you get and then see way earlier times.  And, the time your reserve is not the time you get! Why?????????????  I know it's a rhetorical question.


----------



## Disturbia

Fixed ROTR via chat; TOT did the same thing; will try to fix in park or just forget it


----------



## Disturbia

Westerner said:


> Yeeesh!  Sorry this happened, it’s really unfair for RotR time to shift after *payment*.  Maybe try talking to blue umbrella people in park?  I seem to recall that sometimes there wasn’t that long of a line of people waiting to talk to them.


The thing is there was a lot of availability starting at 4 pm, so it wasn’t like I was selecting the earliest drop either.  At 7 am I got error messages twice for 4-5 and 5-6 when I selected them.

I’m just glad they were able to fix it via chat (missed the text, but specified a time frame I wanted).


----------



## Westerner

ScarletFire said:


> I've been micro-managing from KY my DD24 DHS day.   It's been successful!


That's a great idea.  Book G+ and $ILL's from home for family that's in the park.  I might do it for BIL, if he asks nicely.  And if he doesn't I'll still do it but I might pick different LL's.


----------



## Disturbia

Just when you thought it couldn’t get worse


----------



## LMO429

The ride time changing AFTER you pay sounds completely illegal!


----------



## Disturbia

Got passes changed with a big ‘we will not accommodate any others.  This is a one time thing!’


----------



## pens4821

Disturbia said:


> Got passes changed with a big ‘we will not accommodate any others.  This is a one time thing!’
> 
> View attachment 659288



Glad you were able to get both sdd and tot and that they have fixed your times so that they work better for you. Like I said when we were there a a couple weeks ago, genie+ can work, even at HS. We had a lucky day doing 5 things we wanted  (6 including lying for ILL). 

That’s one thing I forgot to mention about my thoughts on genie+. Not only do I think it’s better for park hoppers, but it’s also better if you don’t have any dining planned either. The days we used it we either did qs or had our ts earlier in the day.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Disturbia said:


> Fixed ROTR via chat; TOT did the same thing; will try to fix in park or just forget it
> 
> View attachment 659206
> View attachment 659207





Disturbia said:


> Just when you thought it couldn’t get worse
> 
> View attachment 659216





Disturbia said:


> Got passes changed with a big ‘we will not accommodate any others.  This is a one time thing!’
> 
> View attachment 659288


Curious, are the times changing after you hit your final acceptance?

When I was there in Feb the times changed up until I hit my final confirmation page but then when I confirmed they were the same as the screen where I chose to accept.

Has that changed recently?


----------



## Westerner

pens4821 said:


> That’s one thing I forgot to mention about my thoughts on genie+. Not only do I think it’s better for park hoppers, but it’s also better if you don’t have any dining planned either. The days we used it we either did qs or had our ts earlier in the day.


I think that's an accurate observation.  G+ tends to reward flexibility with more and better LL's.


----------



## SLThomas318

Disturbia said:


> Fixed ROTR via chat; TOT did the same thing; will try to fix in park or just forget it
> 
> View attachment 659206
> View attachment 659207


Curious about when these are changing on you?  Are you just confirming the conflicting time and then asking them to adjust?  In Nov 10am would show and when I selected it and entered my party it would show me a later time… I just backed out and tried again or went for something else if it didn’t work for our plans.

Wouldn’t want to count on them always fixing it, but it’s an interesting strategy.  How much time do you think you’ve spent getting them to fix things?  I feel like guest services needs a ILL!


----------



## ScarletFire

Westerner said:


> That's a great idea.  Book G+ and $ILL's from home for family that's in the park.  I might do it for BIL, if he asks nicely.  And if he doesn't I'll still do it but I might pick different LL's.


It worked well!  It's fun for me too!!


----------



## Disturbia

scrappinginontario said:


> Curious, are the times changing after you hit your final acceptance?
> 
> When I was there in Feb the times changed up until I hit my final confirmation page but then when I confirmed they were the same as the screen where I chose to accept.
> 
> Has that changed recently


The time I selected my party was 6 pm and the next screen didn’t show any details on time and I only knew about the shift after payment.  Maybe I was going too fast, but if you wait even a second everything is gone.


----------



## Disturbia

So today I tried to pay real close attention and my Remy pass (selected 8:30 am) was 9-10 am (I did not wait because we have a short day, I just saw it in the background when payment was going through and the screen grayed out) on the payment screen but when I clicked pay the final confirmation said 9:30-10:30 am, so the time changes from the payment screen to final confirmation.

So the time displayed on the payment screen wont necessarily match what you get.


----------



## Figmentv

At 7:58, ALL the ILLs for every park were available. That’s good news.


----------



## jlovesdisney15

Apologies if this has already been asked, but if your reservation switches to multiple experiences, is there any limits to what it can be used on?


----------



## GBRforWDW

jlovesdisney15 said:


> Apologies if this has already been asked, but if your reservation switches to multiple experiences, is there any limits to what it can be used on?


Yes, generally speaking, you can't use it for the most popular rides unless the pass was for one of those rides.  For example, if you book toy story mania and it goes down, the multi experience pass may say something like, good to use on any ride except Slinky Dog Dash or Mickey and Minnie Runaway Railway.


----------



## jlovesdisney15

GBRforWDW said:


> Yes, generally speaking, you can't use it for the most popular rides unless the pass was for one of those rides.  For example, if you book toy story mania and it goes down, the multi experience pass may say something like, good to use on any ride except Slinky Dog Dash or Mickey and Minnie Runaway Railway.


Thank you! I was thinking it would be similar to the old system.


----------



## isabellea

Reading this thread made me change my plan for our July trip. I’ll try to plan TS meal for lunch instead of dinner and just eat QS for dinner (in the past we mostly did the opposite). We cannot upgrade our tickets to PH so thinking that doing this change will increase our flexibility and increase our chances for G+ success.


----------



## godfather927

Disturbia said:


> Got passes changed with a big ‘we will not accommodate any others.  This is a one time thing!’
> 
> View attachment 659288


Just to confirm, you managed to get them to convert these via chat instead of going to the guest services team?


----------



## Disturbia

godfather927 said:


> Just to confirm, you managed to get them to convert these via chat instead of going to the guest services team?


Nope.  Had to go and wait 15+ mins (line got real long fast).  Chat doesn’t get results until a few hours later.  Front desk also takes 30-40 mins depending on how many people are in line.

Frozen went down the two times we tried to ride it (morning and around noon).  Had given up Soarin to walk all the way to Frozen.  Heavy rains forecasted so left park at 12:50 pm to catch the Skyliner (there should be some announcement in park or a place in the app where you can see if it’s still running.)

Mears was scheduled to pickup at 1:55 pm, but picked us at 2:40 pm (almost an hour past!).  We were the last stop so we got to the airport at 3:15 pm.  All flights cancelled so we have to drive 17 hours.  Even car rentals were backed up (they don’t have cars so we are snugly fitting into a HR-V (keep luggage to a minimum) and no car seats or booster available (had to go buy them).


----------



## godfather927

Disturbia said:


> Nope.  Had to go and wait 15+ mins (line got real long fast).  Chat doesn’t get results until a few hours later.  Front desk also takes 30-40 mins depending on how many people are in line.
> 
> Frozen went down the two times we tried to ride it (morning and around noon).  Had given up Soarin to walk all the way to Frozen.  Heavy rains forecasted so left park at 12:50 pm to catch the Skyliner (there should be some announcement in park or a place in the app where you can see if it’s still running.)
> 
> Mears was scheduled to pickup at 1:55 pm, but picked us at 2:40 pm (almost an hour past!).  We were the last stop so we got to the airport at 3:15 pm.  All flights cancelled so we have to drive 17 hours.  Even car rentals were backed up (they don’t have cars so we are snugly fitting into a HR-V (keep luggage to a minimum) and no car seats or booster available (had to go buy them).


Geez, sorry to hear that. We know of another family in the same situation that had their flight cancelled today, the next available flight for them was Tuesday so they are renting a car tomorrow and driving back instead. What a headache.


----------



## Westerner

Figmentv said:


> At 7:58, ALL the ILLs for every park were available. That’s good news.


Yes - and good news for offsite in particular b/c with the 730AK park open, you can get FoP.


----------



## Disturbia

godfather927 said:


> Geez, sorry to hear that. We know of another family in the same situation that had their flight cancelled today, the next available flight for them was Tuesday so they are renting a car tomorrow and driving back instead. What a headache.


Yes.  At 12 am we were hunting down hotels in Georgia.  All Hilton, Howard, Holiday Inn hotels we called were booked but we got a room through Hilton honors.  It’s one king bed for $350 for a night (Hilton Garden Inn), but it was $306 with honors discount (people were calling for that room when we checked in around 1:30 am) and half the family had to sleep on the floor.  We are a family of 5 - 2 adults, 3 children (2, 5 & 13). They had no rollaway beds which we were told we could add.  It was like take it or leave it people are calling for it.  Front desk gave 30% off

We got in the airport at 3:15 pm and left in 3-4 hours.  There were people who had arrived at 8:30 am and had deposited their bags and were still trying to locate them 10 hours later.


----------



## Doingitagain

godfather927 said:


> Just to confirm, you managed to get them to convert these via chat instead of going to the guest services team?


We got our Remy ILL changed via chat because the time changed on us and conflicted with ADR.  We booked right at 7.


----------



## xipotec

Disturbia said:


> Nope.  Had to go and wait 15+ mins (line got real long fast).  Chat doesn’t get results until a few hours later.  Front desk also takes 30-40 mins depending on how many people are in line.
> 
> Frozen went down the two times we tried to ride it (morning and around noon).  Had given up Soarin to walk all the way to Frozen.  Heavy rains forecasted so left park at 12:50 pm to catch the Skyliner (there should be some announcement in park or a place in the app where you can see if it’s still running.)
> 
> Mears was scheduled to pickup at 1:55 pm, but picked us at 2:40 pm (almost an hour past!).  We were the last stop so we got to the airport at 3:15 pm.  All flights cancelled so we have to drive 17 hours.  Even car rentals were backed up (they don’t have cars so we are snugly fitting into a HR-V (keep luggage to a minimum) and no car seats or booster available (had to go buy them).


So in addition to long lines to ride standby on G+ , sold out ILL at 5 minutes after opening AND only being able to use LL 2-3 times a day…..

You also get to wait on a customer service line to fix app issues….

sounds magical.


----------



## jbish

jbish said:


> Friends - I have been working on a plan for our HS day in two weeks.  I'd like to run this by you as I think I found an opportunity for stacking and being slightly ahead of the crowds while waiting out the 2 hour periods.  Currently I have reservations at HS, but I'm thinking of switching to AK and hopping to HS later.  Staying on site so I have access to Early Theme Park Entry.  Also, very unusual, but this is the one day that HS has the Extra Evening Hours for the deluxe resorts instead of MK.
> 
> Date: Wednesday, April 13th - expected to be very busy (HS crowd level 9)
> Park Hours: AK (7:30a-8:30p, 7am ETPE)
> HS (8a-9p, 9p-11p EEH)
> Of note: FOP and ROTR are NOT high priorities for us.  We rode both several times last June so I'll save the money where I can!)
> 
> My idea is based on realizing that there is a little bit of "arbitrage" given the different times the parks open.  Unfortunately, they just extended hours at all of the parks and so the difference between AK opening at 7:30 and HS at 8 isn't a huge advantage anymore.  But given how difficult it is to stack at HS these days, I'll take whatever advantage I can get.  Also, I know that we'll have those two extra hours at the end of the night so I anticipate we will get the most accomplished in those two hours.
> 
> Plan:
> 
> 7:00 - book LL for It's Tough to be a Bug for 7:30 (no competition for this right at 7 am)
> 7:30 - arrive at AK for regular opening (come after the initial rush as I'm trying not to burn out the family with too early of a start with a planned late night)
> As early as possible, tap in to ITTBAB (which is easy to get to since it's right at the front of the park. We may or may not actually go in.  Haven't gone in years but the thought of the bugs crawling behind me already gives me the heebie jeebies.)
> Book SDD for sometime around 5-7 pm (this has been available up until 8 am some days, so it's a calculated risk)
> 
> Now my next LL booking time will be 9:30 vs. anyone that has a HS reservation who will be booking at 10 am (EP opens at 8:30 and MK opens at 9, so anyone that has a reservation there will be even further behind)
> Please let me know if you think this will work.  I'm hoping this could be helpful for someone else to use this same strategy on a day, ideally, when there's more time between the two parks opening.  Poke holes in my strategy!!


Well, I was just too wrapped up in various things this past week so I never got around to changing my park reservations for my experiment day to AK.  And all parks are booked.  Sadly, I will not be able to try this strategy out.  But if anyone else wants to - especially when you can do this for two parks with a larger difference in opening times - please let me know how it goes!!


----------



## wonderchica

Any thoughts on using Genie+ around the weather? Will be at MK on Thursday and expecting some storms, maybe in the morning. I’m wondering what would be wisest- try to avoid booking rides that will go down in the weather? Or continue to book those and it’ll convert to anytime as needed? We are planning to RD.


----------



## JoJoGirl

wonderchica said:


> Or continue to book those and it’ll convert to anytime as needed?



This. Weather is so unpredictable, unless you know it is going to be solid rain all day there’s no telling when, where and if it will actually happen.  All very variable at WDW.


----------



## Luisfba

I'm choosing to ignore weather forecast because of unpredictability of those.  However, when I'm done each day I'm going to try to book some late rides as available in case those go down and dont come back up - which would flip to an anytime the following day if down at park close.  Just got to figure out what some good ones to target for that would be.


----------



## wonderchica

Luisfba said:


> I'm choosing to ignore weather forecast because of unpredictability of those.  However, when I'm done each day I'm going to try to book some late rides as available in case those go down and dont come back up - which would flip to an anytime the following day if down at park close.  Just got to figure out what some good ones to target for that would be.


I haven’t heard that they will flip to the next day. That’s interesting!


----------



## martin33

Good morning,

Trying to wrap my head around genie plus, as we have not been to Disney World since 2019. We have a trip planned for this June, and will be buying genie plus for each of the 8 days. On our arrival day we won't actually get into a park until after 3pm (it will be EPCOT). My question is will there be issues with Genie plus attraction availability due to our late arrival and first selection presumably being used late afternoon. In other words will alll the favourite/ thrill rides be unavailable for the most part for booking for an evening visit, once I trigger the first attraction, and then go to book our next one?
TIA for any advice- its all new to us


----------



## TheSouthernBelle

Has anyone done evening G+/iLL$ stacking for late afternoon/eve hours recently? I'm fairly familiar with the system but have not stacked for evening and know it can be done with a good bit of constant refreshing for later times but anyone have recent experience at DHS doing that? Just saw that the hours for MK on our park day prior to DHS are now 11pm close and EEH are till 1am, which I love but won't love the next AM. I am now leaning to us sleeping in on our DHS day and trying for ROTR at park close, risky I know given it goes down or just wake up for 7am and see what time we might get for iLL$ and hope for a late in the day Rise time. 

I know DHS does empty out a ton in the evenings so we're looking forward to that but just curious if anyone's had recent tidbits they can share on late afternoon/evening stacking. TIA!


----------



## CJK

Hi all! I have a quick question. My friends have 1 day tickets to Magic Kingdom next month. They are all staying in the same Disney hotel room, but they bought their 1 day tickets at different times. Three of the five people have 1 day tickets that includes Genie+. The other 2 people just bought their tickets today, and they don't have Genie+ (because Disney doesn't allow the sale of Genie+ with 1 day tickets anymore). Assuming the 2 family members buy Genie+ after midnight on their park day, should they be okay? I know there have been problems with AP tickets with tickets with Genie+ already added to the tickets, but I wasn't sure about this scenario. Thanks so much for your help!


----------



## acpalmer

martin33 said:


> Good morning,
> 
> Trying to wrap my head around genie plus, as we have not been to Disney World since 2019. We have a trip planned for this June, and will be buying genie plus for each of the 8 days. On our arrival day we won't actually get into a park until after 3pm (it will be EPCOT). My question is will there be issues with Genie plus attraction availability due to our late arrival and first selection presumably being used late afternoon. In other words will alll the favourite/ thrill rides be unavailable for the most part for booking for an evening visit, once I trigger the first attraction, and then go to book our next one?
> TIA for any advice- its all new to us


You don't have to wait until you are in the park to book LL, so you should start trying in the morning for rides with afternoon return times (Frozen, Test Track) and then you'll have some already in place before you ever even get there.


----------



## lynzi2004

So I’ve had family in the park the last 2 weeks and I’ve been helping to book lightening lanes from home. At Epcot, Test Track has had a couple extra drops of times in the afternoon, whereas I’ve yet to catch Frozen on a random drop. Now, I’ve not actually been in the park (walking, looking, riding) but instead been booking from my couch or the car rider line after school. BUT if you are lucky enough to catch one (they last 2-3 minutes at a time usually in 10 min increments 5, 5:10, 5:20) then you may be better off booking frozen at 7am and risking test track later.


----------



## ScarletFire

Maybe ya'll already know this....

My DD24 used Genie+ last Friday at the Studios.  I micromanaged from KY.  At 7am, we got a SDD LL and RISE LL$.  We took the first times offered and both LLs were around 4-5 pm.  Seemed late but whatever,  it was our first time using Genie+.  After we made the LLs, there were way earlier times listed on the Tip Board.  We wished we hadn't been so hasty. 

DD24 went to AK on Saturday.  She planned to leave the park at 2pm and wanted a FoP LL$.  Her 7am try had a return time of 5pm, her plane leaves at 4:45pm.  She refreshed, refreshed, got a return time of 7:55am.  Not good because she was in the FoP queue and wanted the LL$ for later.  Refreshed and got a return time of 10pm but it was really 2pm when her selection finalized.  *She canceled that selection then Genie + gave her hour increment times to select from.  *That was nice.  She picked 10am and got a return time of 10:20.


----------



## jsbowl16

Want to get some opinions here. We go to DW every summer but first one with Genie Plus. Usually we do one park in the morning then an afternoon break and then another park at night. I am trying to determine how to tour HS. Assuming we want to skip MMRR and RotR, would you go in the morning with the extra 30 minutes and just ride as much as you can with walk on or go to a different park in the morning and just start stacking LL for the evening at HS? Doing an entire day is also an option if that would work best but not what we usually like to do. Opinions please to get the most attractions over a 3 to 4 hour period either morning or evening with Genie Plus.


----------



## joy13

So I happened to be awake this morning at 6:15 central so 7:15 at Disney and I decided to play with the tip board a bit. Both RotR and FOP $ILL seemed to be sold out but I kept refreshing and sure enough - both had plenty available at 7:17 - nothing at 7:16 tons at 7:17 - what an odd time, I’ll keep paying attention for the next month, but that’s definitely going to be my plan in May if it keeps being that way.


----------



## SkyGuy

joy13 said:


> So I happened to be awake this morning at 6:15 central so 7:15 at Disney and I decided to play with the tip board a bit. Both RotR and FOP $ILL seemed to be sold out but I kept refreshing and sure enough - both had plenty available at 7:17 - nothing at 7:16 tons at 7:17 - what an odd time, I’ll keep paying attention for the next month, but that’s definitely going to be my plan in May if it keeps being that way.


It should keep being that way. 7:17 has been a known drop time for ILL$ for quite a while now. Just hope they don’t do some kind of update and change it on us!


----------



## joy13

SkyGuy said:


> It should keep being that way. 7:17 has been a known drop time for ILL$ for quite a while now. Just hope they don’t do some kind of update and change it on us!


Same!  I hear so many issues with times changing on people when they book right at 7:00 but not if they wait until 7:17.


----------



## lynzi2004

ScarletFire said:


> Maybe ya'll already know this....
> 
> My DD24 used Genie+ last Friday at the Studios.  I micromanaged from KY.  At 7am, we got a SDD LL and RISE LL$.  We took the first times offered and both LLs were around 4-5 pm.  Seemed late but whatever,  it was our first time using Genie+.  After we made the LLs, there were way earlier times listed on the Tip Board.  We wished we hadn't been so hasty.
> 
> DD24 went to AK on Saturday.  She planned to leave the park at 2pm and wanted a FoP LL$.  Her 7am try had a return time of 5pm, her plane leaves at 4:45pm.  She refreshed, refreshed, got a return time of 7:55am.  Not good because she was in the FoP queue and wanted the LL$ for later.  Refreshed and got a return time of 10pm but it was really 2pm when her selection finalized.  *She canceled that selection then Genie + gave her hour increment times to select from.  *That was nice.  She picked 10am and got a return time of 10:20.


I actually didn’t know that you could cancel and rebook a $LL so that’s great to know!


----------



## DJFan88

lynzi2004 said:


> I actually didn’t know that you could cancel and rebook a $LL so that’s great to know!


I’m wondering if it’s maybe in the very last screen before you actually accept payment, if so, that would be awesome


----------



## scrappinginontario

lynzi2004 said:


> I actually didn’t know that you could cancel and rebook a $LL so that’s great to know!


To the best of our knowledge an ILL$ Cannot be cancelled and rebooked.  Once you have confirmed your purchase it is locked in.


----------



## wisblue

jsbowl16 said:


> Want to get some opinions here. We go to DW every summer but first one with Genie Plus. Usually we do one park in the morning then an afternoon break and then another park at night. I am trying to determine how to tour HS. Assuming we want to skip MMRR and RotR, would you go in the morning with the extra 30 minutes and just ride as much as you can with walk on or go to a different park in the morning and just start stacking LL for the evening at HS? Doing an entire day is also an option if that would work best but not what we usually like to do. Opinions please to get the most attractions over a 3 to 4 hour period either morning or evening with Genie Plus.


We virtually never stay in one park all day and always have hoppers.

If you do a search on some of my recent posts you will see how we used Genie + on a recent trip in each of the 4 parks. Two of those days included a morning at DHS where we did every major attraction except Slinky, and a day that we started at Epcot and  I was able to get 4 LL reservations (Slinky, Toy Story, Star Tours, and Aliens) all with returns between 4:30 and 6 PM. 

In general, we take advantage of the early entry to do a few things with shorter waits and then start using Genie+ for LL for later in the day. The specifics depend on which park or parks we plan to visit that day and which attractions are our top priorities. On some days we will get one LL with an early time for our morning park and then start stacking for our late afternoon/evening park. On others we will just start right away getting them for the second park of the day.

For all of the criticisms of Genie+ (including some that I share) it does offer more flexibility to adapt to different touring preferences and circumstances that come up during the trip than any previous system.


----------



## MainMom

SkyGuy said:


> It should keep being that way. 7:17 has been a known drop time for ILL$ for quite a while now. Just hope they don’t do some kind of update and change it on us!


At least not until after my trip


----------



## jsbowl16

Thanks for the reply. Was it possible to get Slinky the morning you went or were they all gone for the morning when you tried at 717 on that day? Seems like it is better to do the morning for tot and rnrc and then evenings for some other attractions so maybe we will do two mornings and two evenings at HS.


----------



## ScarletFire

lynzi2004 said:


> I actually didn’t know that you could cancel and rebook a $LL so that’s great to know!





DJFan88 said:


> I’m wondering if it’s maybe in the very last screen before you actually accept payment, if so, that would be awesome





scrappinginontario said:


> To the best of our knowledge an ILL$ Cannot be cancelled and rebooked.  Once you have confirmed your purchase it is locked in.



DD24 canceled before payment.  Then, she got the hourly time selections. DJFann88 is correct.  ScrappinginOntario is correct too.

Don't be too hasty with your LL selections.  You can "refresh" for a better time.


----------



## Stephy811

We go mid-May, two adults and I’m on the fence about Genie+.  I’ve been “practicing” here and there by checking tip boards at various times of the day to see what’s left etc.  I usually refresh for a few minutes to see what pops up.  Even refreshing for a short time (less than 5 minutes), times almost always pop up…I’ve seen SDD, MFSR, MMRR.  My question is how hard is it to snag these refresh options?  Since we aren’t actually there I can’t go beyond the next screen.  Is it pretty much you click on it and you get it or are there error screens possible?  is it a case where so many people are refreshing that you hardly ever actually get them?  Just trying to gauge how useful refreshing is from people that have actually used this method successfully.


----------



## ScarletFire

I learned about REFRESH from Molly and she gets a lot of views on youtube.

There were times when we selected the refresh option only to have it unavailable once we got to the final screen. Other tries we got an acceptable return time. We mainly used the refresh option later in the day.   But, had we known that earlier times were available at 7am, we would have used it then too. My DD24 rode all the headliners at the Studios during spring break using Genie+ and early entry.


----------



## T'Lynn

Stephy811 said:


> We go mid-May, two adults and I’m on the fence about Genie+.  I’ve been “practicing” here and there by checking tip boards at various times of the day to see what’s left etc.  I usually refresh for a few minutes to see what pops up.  Even refreshing for a short time (less than 5 minutes), times almost always pop up…I’ve seen SDD, MFSR, MMRR.  My question is how hard is it to snag these refresh options?  Since we aren’t actually there I can’t go beyond the next screen.  Is it pretty much you click on it and you get it or are there error screens possible?  is it a case where so many people are refreshing that you hardly ever actually get them?  Just trying to gauge how useful refreshing is from people that have actually used this method successfully.


It really just depends. A couple times I saw a LL pop up and got it and a couple times I saw a LL and got the "there are no more LL available" message. It is hit or miss!


----------



## HydroGuy

A tip for G+LL #2 for the "2 hours after park opens" slot. I experienced this at DHS on March 25.

For LL#1 I got MFSR at 7AM. No issue there. It was for a 12:15-1:15PM window. So the two hour rule applied for LL#2.

DHS officially opened at 8:30AM. So LL#2 opened at 10:30AM for me and 10,000+ other people! We were sitting in the Indy Stunt show at 10:30AM. I really wanted to try and snag ToT for LL#2.

So, right before 10:30 I was ready using all the tips from here. And I tried for ToT but it was immediately sold out for the day as often seen on Thrill Data. So I could not get ToT. But before committing to another LL#2 I hesitated to see if a ToT LL would come back. It didn't. Eventually I booked LL#2 for RnR (6:15-7:15PM window) at 10:31 or 10:32.

Here is the thing. That now set my time for the LL#3. It was 2 hours after LL#2. Since I hesitated that 1-2 minutes at 10:30 that put my LL#3 slot at 12:31-12:32. And everyone else gobbled up the remaining good LL's right at 12:30. I did not quite realize that at 12:30 - I was trying to get a LL#3 and MDE would not let me. It said I was not eligible. That changed at 12:31-12:32.

Obviously, if I could have gotten LL#2 for a window before 12:30PM I would not be subject to the 2 hour rule. Or even LL#1 before 10:30AM.

Moral of the story - especially for DHS. When getting LL#2 at the 2 hour rule, try and grab something ASAP. Hopefully you will get your first choice. But if you wait to see if something else pops up you will hurt any chances for a good LL#3.


----------



## js

Hi.
Is there a drop for MK for off-site guests?
On April 20, MK opens at 9 am so 8:30 am for resort guests.
I will be at RD for the Splash, Haunted and Pirate area but was hoping to possibly get
a 7DMT for three people.

Thank you.


----------



## HydroGuy

Based on experience last week during sold out days (April 1 and 2) I will confirm what many others have said - that G+ works really well for MK and is not generally worth it for Epcot.

At MK (April 1, last Friday, park officially opened at 9AM) I was able to get LL#1 at 10:25-11:25AM for JC. That was my goal and it happened. I wanted JC for LL#1 and I wanted it before the 2 hour rule would kick in at 11AM. So I wanted a window that opened before 11AM. Mission accomplished.

There was so much availability for LL#2 and I ended up getting HM at 10:50-11:50AM as we wanted to ride that before lunch.

In the end I got like 7 or 8 LLs that day. As we stayed at the Dolphin we were able to get SDMT at 7AM as an ILL$ with a window of 6:05-7:05PM. 

We were so bone tired after MK (we got back to our room at about 11:20PM) that decided to sleep in a bit Saturday morning rather than try and get to Epcot ETPE at 8AM rope drop. I did set my alarm for 6:55AM so I could grab a TT LL and an ILL$ for Remy. That worked great. We got a TT LL for 9:25-10:25AM and Remy for the afternoon. Then went back to bed. We left our room at about 9:30AM and headed to use our TT LL. When we tapped in I started looking for LL#2. And everything was available for an immediate window except for FEA which we were not planning on. I grabbed a Soarin LL. Everything else I just grabbed a LL right before we went on the ride. 

While G+ worked for us because we slept in, and was worth it for us for that reason, the line for TT was not that bad at 9:45AM when we got to TT. Like 50 minutes. If we had made rope drop, then G+ would have provided no value at all.

Remy was valuable as we skipped a 75 minute line to ride it at 1PM.


----------



## HydroGuy

js said:


> Hi.
> Is there a drop for MK for off-site guests?
> On April 20, MK opens at 9 am so 8:30 am for resort guests.
> I will be at RD for the Splash, Haunted and Pirate area but was hoping to possibly get
> a 7DMT for three people.
> 
> Thank you.


Yes, of course. For offsite it is best to use your RD on rides not already open for ETPE. Splash/Pirates/HM are thus perfect.

Getting a 7DMT LL as an offsite guest will be tough unless there is a late drop.


----------



## HBGdancermom

Hi everyone!

My trip is coming up! YAY! I will be booking our arrival day ILL$ and genie+ from the airport.  I know when I book the ILL$ it will give me a variety of times to choose from that day.  Will the genie+ rides only show the earliest time listed or more times?  If so do I just keep refreshing since you can no longer modify a time.  My goal is to book SDMT ILL$ for around 12 and Jungle Cruise for 12:30ish.

Thanks!


----------



## NJlauren

If I have genie plus and I’m staying on site, but I’m visiting with someone who is not staying on site, can I purchased paid LL for the person off site at 7am as well?


----------



## dmunsil

NJlauren said:


> If I have genie plus and I’m staying on site, but I’m visiting with someone who is not staying on site, can I purchased paid LL for the person off site at 7am as well?


Only if you're willing to add them to your reservation. If you have room on the reservation to add their name, that's a perfectly fine way to go - you're paying for the room, you can fill it up any way you want.

Keep in mind that Disney charges a per-night fee for each adult over 2 for most room types (campgrounds and DVC resorts do not charge this fee).


----------



## NJlauren

dmunsil said:


> Only if you're willing to add them to your reservation. If you have room on the reservation to add their name, that's a perfectly fine way to go - you're paying for the room, you can fill it up any way you want.
> 
> Keep in mind that Disney charges a per-night fee for each adult over 2 for most room types (campgrounds and DVC resorts do not charge this fee).


That’s what I was worried about, we are 4 already and my dad may come for a few days but won’t be staying in the room.  Will need to figure it out, thanks!


----------



## HydroGuy

HBGdancermom said:


> Hi everyone!
> 
> My trip is coming up! YAY! I will be booking our arrival day ILL$ and genie+ from the airport.  I know when I book the ILL$ it will give me a variety of times to choose from that day.  Will the genie+ rides only show the earliest time listed or more times?  If so do I just keep refreshing since you can no longer modify a time.  My goal is to book SDMT ILL$ for around 12 and Jungle Cruise for 12:30ish.
> 
> Thanks!


You can choose your desired time for ILL$ so have some control over that. But Disney still can move it around on you. And once they set your window you are stuck with it. I thought I was choosing a 5PM window for ROTR and got 1PM. I thought I was choosing a window for 7DMT at 10:30AM and got 6PM.

For G+ you have to take what is currently available. For super popular rides (which is JC at MK right now for some strange reason) the window will move out quickly. It will be hard to get that for the window you want. Good luck!


----------



## MikeandReneePlus5

HydroGuy said:


> Based on experience last week during sold out days (April 1 and 2) I will confirm what many others have said - that G+ works really well for MK and is not generally worth it for Epcot.
> 
> At MK (April 1, last Friday, park officially opened at 9AM) I was able to get LL#1 at 10:25-11:25AM for JC. That was my goal and it happened. I wanted JC for LL#1 and I wanted it before the 2 hour rule would kick in at 11AM. So I wanted a window that opened before 11AM. Mission accomplished.
> 
> There was so much availability for LL#2 and I ended up getting HM at 10:50-11:50AM as we wanted to ride that before lunch.
> 
> In the end I got like 7 or 8 LLs that day. As we stayed at the Dolphin we were able to get SDMT at 7AM as an ILL$ with a window of 6:05-7:05PM.
> 
> We were so bone tired after MK (we got back to our room at about 11:20PM) that decided to sleep in a bit Saturday morning rather than try and get to Epcot ETPE at 8AM rope drop. I did set my alarm for 6:55AM so I could grab a TT LL and an ILL$ for Remy. That worked great. We got a TT LL for 9:25-10:25AM and Remy for the afternoon. Then went back to bed. We left our room at about 9:30AM and headed to use our TT LL. When we tapped in I started looking for LL#2. And everything was available for an immediate window except for FEA which we were not planning on. I grabbed a Soarin LL. Everything else I just grabbed a LL right before we went on the ride.
> 
> While G+ worked for us because we slept in, and was worth it for us for that reason, the line for TT was not that bad at 9:45AM when we got to TT. Like 50 minutes. If we had made rope drop, then G+ would have provided no value at all.
> 
> Remy was valuable as we skipped a 75 minute line to ride it at 1PM.


Sounds like it worked really well at Epcot also?  Why did you think it was not worth it?


----------



## js

HydroGuy said:


> Yes, of course. For offsite it is best to use your RD on rides not already open for ETPE. Splash/Pirates/HM are thus perfect.
> 
> Getting a 7DMT LL as an offsite guest will be tough unless there is a late drop.



Thank you. Yes, I was asking if there have been notes of "late drops" for MK at Park Open for ILL.
Thank you.


----------



## Mango7100

TheSouthernBelle said:


> Has anyone done evening G+/iLL$ stacking for late afternoon/eve hours recently? I'm fairly familiar with the system but have not stacked for evening and know it can be done with a good bit of constant refreshing for later times but anyone have recent experience at DHS doing that? Just saw that the hours for MK on our park day prior to DHS are now 11pm close and EEH are till 1am, which I love but won't love the next AM. I am now leaning to us sleeping in on our DHS day and trying for ROTR at park close, risky I know given it goes down or just wake up for 7am and see what time we might get for iLL$ and hope for a late in the day Rise time.
> 
> I know DHS does empty out a ton in the evenings so we're looking forward to that but just curious if anyone's had recent tidbits they can share on late afternoon/evening stacking. TIA!


We recently stacked over Spring Break On a sold out HS day. Started at 7 am and did every 2 hours after park open while we drove down. We entered HS at 545 (park closed at 9) and had MMRR, SDD, TSMM, and Saucers stacked for the evening. Also got a MFSR once we used a LL. So we did 5 LLs and rode MMRR again standby right at close in about 3  1/2 hours.


----------



## TheSouthernBelle

Mango7100 said:


> We recently stacked over Spring Break On a sold out HS day. Started at 7 am and did every 2 hours after park open while we drove down. We entered HS at 545 (park closed at 9) and had MMRR, SDD, TSMM, and Saucers stacked for the evening. Also got a MFSR once we used a LL. So we did 5 LLs and rode MMRR again standby right at close in about 3  1/2 hours.


Thank you for the feedback. I suppose I'm at the mercy of whether or not we get a Rise iLL$ and at what time.


----------



## HydroGuy

MikeandReneePlus5 said:


> Sounds like it worked really well at Epcot also?  Why did you think it was not worth it?


It was worth it for us because we wanted to sleep later that morning and not rush out for rope drop. I guess it depends which day you are there but it was a sold out day so I assume it is considered as a crowded day.

If we had made EPTE rope drop we could have done easily TT through Standby then Soarin SB with a short wait. Even at 10AM the Soarin wait was still 10 minutes. All other rides were literally had LL availability right away. E.g., as we were walking to SSE we grabbed a LL as we approached which was for 5 minutes away. Since you can use LL 5 minutes early, we just grabbed it then walked to LL and went in. The SB line was short like 5 minutes. So hardly worth it.


----------



## MinnierellaMama

HydroGuy said:


> It was worth it for us because we wanted to sleep later that morning and not rush out for rope drop. I guess it depends which day you are there but it was a sold out day so I assume it is consdiered as a crowded day.
> 
> If we had made EPTE rope drop we could have done easily TT through Standby then Soarin SB with a short wait. Even at 10AM the Soarin wait was still 10 minutes. All other dies were literally had LL availability right away. E.g., as we were walking to SSE we grabbed a LL as we approached which was for 5 minutes away. Since you can use LL 5 minutes early, we just grabbed it thne walked to LL and went in. the SB line was short like 5 minutes. So hardly worth it.


While I agree that most Epcot rides don’t have long standby waits, we found the value for Genie+ for our Epcot day to be in being able to stack rides for our hop to MK or HS that evening. On our Epcot day, we used G+ for a LL for TT, then Soarin’ and then Frozen and got all three done plus standby waits for Nemo, Figment and Mission Space all by 1pm. Then at 1pm, I started stacking for our evening at MK. I pulled Peter Pan, Pirates, Small World, and Ariel for my crew. (Splash Mtn, Space Mtn and BTMR were all still available at times as well but my crew didn’t want to ride them that night.) So I think the real G+ value comes if you have park hoppers. Just my two cents…


----------



## pens4821

We found value in genie+ for our Epcot day. We did soarin (posted 45 minute wait), mission space (60 for orange which is what we did), se (30 but it went down so we came back and when we used it it was almost walk on), nemo (25 but not sure if it was actually that long).


----------



## T'Lynn

We also found it had value at Epcot. We used it for Test Track and Soarin' and saved 45 minutes plus on both. We also were able to skip several 15-30 minute lines as well. Overall, it saved us time and let us really enjoy the park with almost no waiting!


----------



## chiisai

js said:


> Thank you. Yes, I was asking if there have been notes of "late drops" for MK at Park Open for ILL.
> Thank you.


I’m at MK tonight and got SDMT around 10:15am, for 5:55pm.  I got it first for 6:45pm, lost it, then refreshed for another minute and got it back at 5:55 and it went through.


----------



## js

chiisai said:


> I’m at MK tonight and got SDMT around 10:15am, for 5:55pm.  I got it first for 6:45pm, lost it, then refreshed for another minute and got it back at 5:55 and it went through.


Thank you. I'm guessing if we were there all day, and I'm good at the refreshing, I would get something, but we are leaving about 1 or 2 pm so not getting hopes up and will have to break this to my bff this weekend LOL
Thanks.


----------



## MinnierellaMama

js said:


> Thank you. I'm guessing if we were there all day, and I'm good at the refreshing, I would get something, but we are leaving about 1 or 2 pm so not getting hopes up and will have to break this to my bff this weekend LOL
> Thanks.


It’s still worth a shot! This past week I was able to refresh around noon for a 2:15 Remy ILL


----------



## martin33

acpalmer said:


> You don't have to wait until you are in the park to book LL, so you should start trying in the morning for rides with afternoon return times (Frozen, Test Track) and then you'll have some already in place before you ever even get there.


thanks for this - much appreciated


----------



## godfather927

HydroGuy said:


> A tip for G+LL #2 for the "2 hours after park opens" slot. I experienced this at DHS on March 25.
> 
> For LL#1 I got MFSR at 7AM. No issue there. It was for a 12:15-1:15PM window. So the two hour rule applied for LL#2.
> 
> DHS officially opened at 8:30AM. So LL#2 opened at 10:30AM for me and 10,000+ other people! We were sitting in the Indy Stunt show at 10:30AM. I really wanted to try and snag ToT for LL#2.
> 
> So, right before 10:30 I was ready using all the tips from here. And I tried for ToT but it was immediately sold out for the day as often seen on Thrill Data. So I could not get ToT. But before committing to another LL#2 I hesitated to see if a ToT LL would come back. It didn't. Eventually I booked LL#2 for RnR (6:15-7:15PM window) at 10:31 or 10:32.
> 
> Here is the thing. That now set my time for the LL#3. It was 2 hours after LL#2. Since I hesitated that 1-2 minutes at 10:30 that put my LL#3 slot at 12:31-12:32. And everyone else gobbled up the remaining good LL's right at 12:30. I did not quite realize that at 12:30 - I was trying to get a LL#3 and MDE would not let me. It said I was not eligible. That changed at 12:31-12:32.
> 
> Obviously, if I could have gotten LL#2 for a window before 12:30PM I would not be subject to the 2 hour rule. Or even LL#1 before 10:30AM.
> 
> Moral of the story - especially for DHS. When getting LL#2 at the 2 hour rule, try and grab something ASAP. Hopefully you will get your first choice. But if you wait to see if something else pops up you will hurt any chances for a good LL#3.


Why did you wait until 10:30am? I thought the 2 hour rule window had a 5 min cushion, meaning you could book at 10:25am? Or am I confusing this with the 5 min early cushion on the LL return time?


----------



## SLThomas318

godfather927 said:


> Why did you wait until 10:30am? I thought the 2 hour rule window had a 5 min cushion, meaning you could book at 10:25am? Or am I confusing this with the 5 min early cushion on the LL return time?


The 5 min cushion is for entering the ride line, not booking another genie+


----------



## godfather927

SLThomas318 said:


> The 5 min cushion is for entering the ride line, not booking another genie+


Ah, thank you. Too many wrinkles to remember.


----------



## SLThomas318

godfather927 said:


> Ah, thank you. Too many wrinkles to remember.


I agree… so much to keep track of!  Not a fan!


----------



## TacoCatGoatCheesePizza

ScarletFire said:


> I've been micro-managing from KY my DD24 DHS day.   It's been successful!
> 
> LL 7am: SDD 3:05 and RISE 4:25.
> 
> Rope Drop ToT, RnRC and MMRR.  All completed by 9:00!  I've trained my DD24 well!!
> 
> LL 10:30am:  RnRC 2:40.  Wants to ride again.
> 
> I hate, HATE that there is no way to modify times!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   At 7am, you take what you get and then see way earlier times.  And, the time your reserve is not the time you get! Why?????????????  I know it's a rhetorical question.


Mind sharing the order of rope drop rides to get this all accomplished in 30 minutes?  Those were my picks for rope drop but not sure what order is most efficient during EE!


----------



## wisblue

jsbowl16 said:


> Thanks for the reply. Was it possible to get Slinky the morning you went or were they all gone for the morning when you tried at 717 on that day? Seems like it is better to do the morning for tot and rnrc and then evenings for some other attractions so maybe we will do two mornings and two evenings at HS.


Our plan that day was to see if we could get an early time for Slinky and, if we couldn’t get something before noon,  to get one for MFSR instead. Whichever of those we didn’t get we could get when we hopped to DHS on our Epcot day.

That morning I forgot to buy Genie+ before we got to the park  and in the few seconds it took me to buy it the time for Slinky was after noon. I‘m not sure what time we would have gotten if I didn’t have to make those couple of extra clicks, but it was at 8:30 AM when I started the process. On a previous  trip we were able to get 9:10 AM on a day with a 9 AM opening.

Instead of taking the later time for SDD we took something for MFSR.


----------



## wisblue

TacoCatGoatCheesePizza said:


> Mind sharing the order of rope drop rides to get this all accomplished in 30 minutes?  Those were my picks for rope drop but not sure what order is most efficient during EE!


Not sure about the person you were asking but ETPE at DHS has been starting at 7:30 this week and has been at 8 AM for the rest of spring break. So, getting those 3 rides done before 9 AM would not require doing them in under 30 minutes.

We were able to do TOT, RNRC, and MMRR (in that order) in about 45 minutes by being near the front of the line at TOT when it opened. We did have about a 20 minute wait at MMRR because offsite guests were being let in before 8:30. 

I would recommend that order because the line at TOT can build quickly with only one side of the ride operating.


----------



## lynzi2004

So the time changing after purchasing the $ILL finally got me today! I don’t know how many times I have purchased and not had issues and honestly assumed the people who were complaining just weren’t paying enough attention  sorry guys! But this morning, FOP went from 8:30am (tip board time), to my personal selection of 10:10-11:10 (payment confirmation screen) to 12:35-1:35 (final confirmation). I get why everyone is so frustrated when this happens and Disney seriously needs to put a stop to it. Especially 10 min later when I go back and all the times are once again available, but now I can’t modify and am stuck with what they gave me


----------



## ScarletFire

TacoCatGoatCheesePizza said:


> Mind sharing the order of rope drop rides to get this all accomplished in 30 minutes?  Those were my picks for rope drop but not sure what order is most efficient during EE!


Of course.  Early entry began at 8am, I think,  so it was actually longer than 30 minutes.  ToT, RnRC, MMRR.

RnRC was down during EE RD.  When DD24 exited ToT, the RnRC queue opened.  She entered line and there was still a short wait for the ride to begin operating but that was a timesaver. 

DD24 was a party of two and was called ahead of other riders at MMRR.


----------



## redboat45

I think the biggest thing I'm learning from this thread is to not even try for ILL until 7:17am.


----------



## g-dad66

lynzi2004 said:


> So the time changing after purchasing the $ILL finally got me today! I don’t know how many times I have purchased and not had issues and honestly assumed the people who were complaining just weren’t paying enough attention  sorry guys! But this morning, FOP went from 8:30am (tip board time), to my personal selection of 10:10-11:10 (payment confirmation screen) to 12:35-1:35 (final confirmation). I get why everyone is so frustrated when this happens and Disney seriously needs to put a stop to it. Especially 10 min later when I go back and all the times are once again available, but now I can’t modify and am stuck with what they gave me



Sorry this happened to you, but just for the record, I think there are at least 4 times that we see return times (actually 5).

1 - Time on tip board (in your case, 8:30)
2 - Times to choose from (I think these are typically on the hour: 9:00, 10:00, 11:00 etc)
3 - Subset of times to choose from (in your case, you probably picked 10:00 and then you chose 10:10 from subset of 10:10, 10:20, 10:30, etc.)
4 - Confirmation page (this is the page that's easy to be flying by so fast that one doesn't notice what time it says because it's tucked away in a paragraph)
5 - Payment page is next, and after payment you see final time (in your case (12:35)

I know from first-hand experience that the time can change (and usually will change) between 3 and 4.

The question I'm still not sure what the answer is: can the time change between 4 and 5?  I know from my first-hand experience when I was finally watching carefully that it did not change from 4 to 5, but that may not always be the case.

If time never changes from 4 to 5, then backing out at step 4 allows one not to end up with a time you don't want.


----------



## lynzi2004

So I thought about this a bit after I posted and yes I do think it changed between 4 and 5…I’ve been trying to go back and think it through off and on all morning!

1. Tip board showed 8:15 or 8:30 or whatever.
2. Opened screen that allowed me to pick 10:10, 10:20, etc
3. Clicked on the 10:10 optuon
4. Payment confirmation actually gave me 10:35-11:35, which was close enough I didn’t really question it.
5. Final confirmation jumped down to the 12:35…

I really wish I would have screenshot #4 bc I remember thinking that’s not actually 10:10 but 20 min isn’t going to make a difference. But then when the 12:35 showed up I was wishing I would have screenshot the 10:35. Not a huge deal for us, but if those 2 hours would have messed with a plane departure or something, that would have been super aggravating. I may test it again on Saturday with rise and make sure I screen shot the time on the payment confirmation page. 

I think the frustrating thing is, that we all are trying to figure out is it or isn’t it changing between the two but you are in such a hurry that you don’t think it’s going to matter until it does, and then you can’t go back! I do like the 7:17 drop better bc there’s more wiggle room for double checking everything!


----------



## g-dad66

Yeah, it's pretty risky to pause on #4 long enough to take a screenshot.  Thanks for taking the time to mull over this.  Hopefully our experiences with ILL may help some folks going forward.

EDITED TO ADD:  The time changes are huge when you are doing this at 7am.  The changes are minimal when you are doing it at 7:17 am.  Unless things change (which they always could), 7:17 is the way to go for ILL.


----------



## MinnierellaMama

The time change thing got me a few times last week for ILL’s as well. I ended up backing out before hitting purchase and then just refreshing for another drop. Was able to snag a better time around that 7:07-7:15 timeframe each time. It was a gamble but I had two days at MK and at HS scheduled so I figured if it didn’t work, I’d just try the next day.  Also keep an eye out for afternoon ILL’s if you are park hopping. We were at HS one morning and I refreshed around 1pm and snagged a 2:30 ILL for Remy that day. So if you for some reason don’t get one first thing, all hope isn’t lost!


----------



## MainMom

redboat45 said:


> I think the biggest thing I'm learning from this thread is to not even try for ILL until 7:17am.


I’m leaning towards this as well for my trip. It makes me nervous, but I have a longish trip so I’ll take the risk.


----------



## ejgonz2

ScarletFire said:


> DD24 canceled before payment.  Then, she got the hourly time selections. DJFann88 is correct.  ScrappinginOntario is correct too.
> 
> Don't be too hasty with your LL selections.  You can "refresh" for a better time.


With a group of 6 I’d be VERY nervous not taking whatever comes up for ROTR and other ILLa.


----------



## lynzi2004

Ok so this morning was Epcot and I was booking Remy. Here’s what I mean when I say the time changed while making my final payment…don’t know if it’s wrong or right but it is what it is. I didn’t take the time to screenshot every screen but I wanted to get the 4th and 5th screens specifically to see if this is what others are talking about.

1. Tip board screen said 8:30am purchase
2. Selected the 8:30 time slot from the list of choices
3. I forget what the first time they gave me was. Thinking it said 9:15-10:15.
4. 9:25-10:25 was what my payment confirmation screen said (THIS is what I actually expected to end up with)
5. 1:15-2:15 Final confirmation after BTMRR seemed to go around forever….

Disney needs to fix this…payment screen 4 was the LAST times I saw given to me at all…if there’s another place I should have noticed it kicking out to between screen 4-5, I don’t know where to find it!

Update! Took screenshots to guest services and they fixed it with an anytime redemption for Remy!


----------



## TISHLOVESDISNEY

lynzi2004 said:


> Ok so this morning was Epcot and I was booking Remy. Here’s what I mean when I say the time changed while making my final payment…don’t know if it’s wrong or right but it is what it is. I didn’t take the time to screenshot every screen but I wanted to get the 4th and 5th screens specifically to see if this is what others are talking about.
> 
> 1. Tip board screen said 8:30am purchase
> 2. Selected the 8:30 time slot from the list of choices
> 3. I forget what the first time they gave me was. Thinking it said 9:15-10:15.
> 4. 9:25-10:25 was what my payment confirmation screen said (THIS is what I actually expected to end up with)
> 5. 1:15-2:15 Final confirmation after BTMRR seemed to go around forever….
> 
> Disney needs to fix this…payment screen 4 was the LAST times I saw given to me at all…if there’s another place I should have noticed it kicking out to between screen 4-5, I don’t know where to find it!


Yeah, this isn't right when it's the ones we pay for. If this is how it's going to be, then don't even bother with the times selection...
ETA: Was this at 7 or 7:17?


----------



## lynzi2004

TISHLOVESDISNEY said:


> Yeah, this isn't right when it's the ones we pay for. If this is how it's going to be, then don't even bother with the times selection...
> ETA: Was this at 7 or 7:17?


It was right at 7…I should have waited till 7:17 and knew better than to risk it again, but I also wanted to see what would happen after yesterday!


----------



## mom2febgirls

I am only planning to get G+ for MK on 4/20. This is my plan based on a few days checking the app, does it look realistic?

7am - G+ for Haunted Mansion (should be around 10am return time) - *I've noticed a couple times that around 7:10 I could get HM for 9-930.  Is it safe to wait until 7:10?
ETPE: RD 7DMT
Peter Pan
Use HM G+, Make G+ for Jungle Cruise (~7pm)
Hall of Presidents
Lunch / Parade/ Castle Show
Make G+ for PP (~7pm)
Resort Break
Make G+ for BTMM 
Make G+ for Splash
Make G+ for PotC
7pmish return to MK
Ride G+ rides
Enchantment
EEH


----------



## LMO429

lynzi2004 said:


> Ok so this morning was Epcot and I was booking Remy. Here’s what I mean when I say the time changed while making my final payment…don’t know if it’s wrong or right but it is what it is. I didn’t take the time to screenshot every screen but I wanted to get the 4th and 5th screens specifically to see if this is what others are talking about.
> 
> 1. Tip board screen said 8:30am purchase
> 2. Selected the 8:30 time slot from the list of choices
> 3. I forget what the first time they gave me was. Thinking it said 9:15-10:15.
> 4. 9:25-10:25 was what my payment confirmation screen said (THIS is what I actually expected to end up with)
> 5. 1:15-2:15 Final confirmation after BTMRR seemed to go around forever….
> 
> Disney needs to fix this…payment screen 4 was the LAST times I saw given to me at all…if there’s another place I should have noticed it kicking out to between screen 4-5, I don’t know where to find it!



This is just insanity how the times switches I agree 100000 percent Disney needs to fix this also is there any tips for not letting this happen


----------



## lynzi2004

LMO429 said:


> This is just insanity how the times switches I agree 100000 percent Disney needs to fix this also is there any tips for not letting this happen


The best thing I know to do is wait until after 7am to book. So here’s the deal…I’ve essentially booked lightening lanes for people the last four weeks.

1. I was there personally the first few days of March and had success getting RoTR, 7DMT, Remy. But being on property, my phone seemed to always glitch in the room, so it seemed I was immediately disappointed at 7am but between 7am-7:20 something always popped up and I had no trouble securing it. (Not really realizing at the time that they were actually doing more drops of times, just happy to snag something and go to the bus stop!)

2. I had some friends arrive the day I left (around March 8) it was their first Disney trip and they were overwhelmed! I offered to help get their lightening lanes after an initial 7am text that they had missed 7DMT and she was so bummed. At 7:14 I logged into her account and was able to book everything she wanted within a couple of minutes. Plenty of options too! That’s when I personally started noticing the deal with the additional drops. Booked FOP and Remy the next two days for her as well but I really think I did them after the initial 7am rush.

3. Fast forward to last week and I had a cousin going for the first time. She asked me for my help so we actually booked almost ALL her paid lightening lanes between 7:10-7:20 and had no issues getting the exact times we clicked. They did all the paid rides.

4. Lastly, my other cousin (her sister) arrived the day they were leaving and I’ve been trying to do hers at 7am on the dot this week and that’s when I’ve noticed I’ve had all the trouble! But it’s also hard to be patient and I don’t want to miss out on something for them.

So I’ve had a ton of real life, real time experience with this this month. It’s not just me randomly going in the app and seeing available times, but actually having real people, real tickets linked. 

I have had ALOT of success with refresh this week and last week during the day to get tough to get rides. But when looking for something specific I’ve had the advantage to be sitting in pickup line for school, watching tv, etc so I can easily spend 5-10 min getting exactly what they want throughout the day. Previously sold out PP, Splash, Navi, etc. but that would be hard to replicate while trying to wrangle kids and walk around a theme park.


----------



## g-dad66

lynzi2004 said:


> The best thing I know to do is wait until after 7am to book. So here’s the deal…I’ve essentially booked lightening lanes for people the last four weeks.
> 
> 1. I was there personally the first few days of March and had success getting RoTR, 7DMT, Remy. But being on property, my phone seemed to always glitch in the room, so it seemed I was immediately disappointed at 7am but between 7am-7:20 something always popped up and I had no trouble securing it. (Not really realizing at the time that they were actually doing more drops of times, just happy to snag something and go to the bus stop!)
> 
> 2. I had some friends arrive the day I left (around March 8) it was their first Disney trip and they were overwhelmed! I offered to help get their lightening lanes after an initial 7am text that they had missed 7DMT and she was so bummed. At 7:14 I logged into her account and was able to book everything she wanted within a couple of minutes. Plenty of options too! That’s when I personally started noticing the deal with the additional drops. Booked FOP and Remy the next two days for her as well but I really think I did them after the initial 7am rush.
> 
> 3. Fast forward to last week and I had a cousin going for the first time. She asked me for my help so we actually booked almost ALL her paid lightening lanes between 7:10-7:20 and had no issues getting the exact times we clicked. They did all the paid rides.
> 
> 4. Lastly, my other cousin (her sister) arrived the day they were leaving and I’ve been trying to do hers at 7am on the dot this week and that’s when I’ve noticed I’ve had all the trouble! But it’s also hard to be patient and I don’t want to miss out on something for them.
> 
> So I’ve had a ton of real life, real time experience with this this month. It’s not just me randomly going in the app and seeing available times, but actually having real people, real tickets linked.
> 
> I have had ALOT of success with refresh this week and last week during the day to get tough to get rides. But when looking for something specific I’ve had the advantage to be sitting in pickup line for school, watching tv, etc so I can easily spend 5-10 min getting exactly what they want throughout the day. Previously sold out PP, Splash, Navi, etc. but that would be hard to replicate while trying to wrangle kids and walk around a theme park.



This is tremendous first-hand experience which you are sharing with all of us. Thanks so much for taking the time to explain it fully.  You have confirmed that the time can change between what we have referred to as screen 4 (confirmation page) and screen 5 (page after payment).

I think when one books an ILL at 7:17, the time is much less likely to change (or not change very much).


----------



## acpalmer

The 7:17 drops are just the $ILL. correct?  Not additional G+LL times for the popular LL rides like Peter Pan, Slinky Dog, etc.?


----------



## lynzi2004

acpalmer said:


> The 7:17 drops are just the $ILL. correct?  Not additional G+LL times for the popular LL rides like Peter Pan, Slinky Dog, etc.?


There are more times available after 7am but I’m not sure that they are full drops. But there is definitely lots of availability between 7-7:20 but to say there is a full drop, I’m not certain. Thankfully, I’ve been able to secure those at 7am without any trouble. 

Booking right at 7am, I usually can get a return time for Peter Pan before 10:30ish. Then we’ve rope dropped Tomorrowland and moved to Fantasyland and tapped into Pan before most people can book at the 11am, 2 hour reset for MK. I’ve then had no trouble either booking something 2nd tier for a closer return time (saving 45 min plus in line…looking at HM, Small World, something close to Fantasyland) or getting Jungle Cruise or one of the Frontierland mountains for that evening. I then start stacking Adventureland/Frontierland rides for late evening at the two hour mark. That way I’m not crossing all over the park all day, do the right side with early entry/morning and stack for the left side of the park. This allows a mid-day break  by saving the big left side rides for the end of the day.


----------



## TinkBink

acpalmer said:


> The 7:17 drops are just the $ILL. correct?  Not additional G+LL times for the popular LL rides like Peter Pan, Slinky Dog, etc.?


I have been practicing for Peter Pan and Slinky Dog and if you are looking for an early morning time, every morning I have checked there have been early morning spots opening up again between 7:08 and 7:20. Although the 7 am dash can be helpful if you are aiming for a night time spot.


----------



## acpalmer

TinkBink said:


> I have been practicing for Peter Pan and Slinky Dog and if you are looking for an early morning time, every morning I have checked there have been early morning spots opening up again between 7:08 and 7:20. Although the 7 am dash can be helpful if you are aiming for a night time spot.


I would love to get in some dry runs before we go, but that is 5am here in Colorado and I have to be in the shower by 5:10 to be ready for work on time, so the thought of getting up at like 4:45 to shower BEFORE I work on practicing...it's just not worth it.

I'm mainly hoping to avoid some of the worst of the times switching to hours and hours later than what I initially pick, so if they do pop up again at times if you keep refreshing and they "stick" to the times better, then that is what I will go for.  We will have dining reservations that I am going to *attempt* to work around as much as possible and that 7am rush that causes huge time shifts does not sound conducive to that.


----------



## poptart90

lynzi2004 said:


> There are more times available after 7am but I’m not sure that they are full drops. But there is definitely lots of availability between 7-7:20 but to say there is a full drop, I’m not certain. Thankfully, I’ve been able to secure those at 7am without any trouble.
> 
> Booking right at 7am, I usually can get a return time for Peter Pan before 10:30ish. Then we’ve rope dropped Tomorrowland and moved to Fantasyland and tapped into Pan before most people can book at the 11am, 2 hour reset for MK. I’ve then had no trouble either booking something 2nd tier for a closer return time (saving 45 min plus in line…looking at HM, Small World, something close to Fantasyland) or getting Jungle Cruise or one of the Frontierland mountains for that evening. I then start stacking Adventureland/Frontierland rides for late evening at the two hour mark. That way I’m not crossing all over the park all day, do the right side with early entry/morning and stack for the left side of the park. This allows a mid-day break  by saving the big left side rides for the end of the day.


Bookmarked this for our trip this summer! Thank you for such a great layout of how to both navigate MK and how to book/stack Genie+ selections! Care to offer similar advice on the other Parks? You've got a great straightforward no nonsense way of presenting the information. Love it.


----------



## lynzi2004

poptart90 said:


> Bookmarked this for our trip this summer! Thank you for such a great layout of how to both navigate MK and how to book/stack Genie+ selections! Care to offer similar advice on the other Parks? You've got a great straightforward no nonsense way of presenting the information. Love it.


Thank you! Yes I would be happy to this afternoon when I get time. I’ve got 3 kids and a limited patience for waiting in lines. I was a FP pro before. We love to make the most of our days in the parks and then enjoy a down day or two over the course of our trip!


----------



## wonderchica

I had a weird payment error twice with my ILLs this morning. It kept giving me an error with my card (which I’ve been using with my magic band for days). I had to frantically grab a family member’s phone to grab Rise and Remy. Idk if it was just me but it wouldn’t work after several attempts.


----------



## lynzi2004

Update on the Remy saga from this morning…as I mentioned, they took the screenshots when they got to the park and were able to get an anytime redemption pass for Remy for today. BUT, when they tapped in to ride it, I guess it counted their regular $ILL. Bc tonight they are still showing an extra anytime ride! So it may be a glitch but if you have issues with an $ILL and you have them adjust it, make sure that you actually use ALL of your redemptions! You might just luck out and get an extra one for your trouble!


----------



## MemoryMakers

I promise I did try to find this out before asking but…if I have a Genie+ reservation and I’m looking to change it to something else, do I have to cancel my existing one in order to make a new one?   Or does it work like the old FP where you can keep searching and once you find a new (better) one, you can book it to replace the existing reservation?


----------



## g-dad66

MemoryMakers said:


> I promise I did try to find this out before asking but…if I have a Genie+ reservation and I’m looking to change it to something else, do I have to cancel my existing one in order to make a new one?   Or does it work like the old FP where you can keep searching and once you find a new (better) one, you can book it to replace the existing reservation?



You have to cancel it in order to book something else.


----------



## Dr Gunnie

I have a question for the group. New to Genie+ and need help planning a day. Planning for my family of 4 on our Saturday June 18th park day. We want to go to both HS and AK on that day with parkhoppers. Our must do rides are Flight of Passage at AK and Rise of the Resistance at HS. We have Genie+ and I’m ok with paying for the Lightning Lane. 

What is our best plan of action? Which park should we do in the morning and which in the afternoon to best land these two rides? What should my plan of action be that morning as far as reservations for these? Any help for a nervous new user is appreciated!


----------



## TISHLOVESDISNEY

Question, is there a better, faster way to refresh? They took away the just tapping "Tip Board"
I've been selecting the ride I'll want a Genie for, and just going back and forth from "LL" to the ride title. 
Anything better?


----------



## disny_luvr

This is a long thread and I didn’t read through everything, so sorry if I am asking a repeated question.

My boys leave tomorrow for a trip with their high school music department. Each son has their own account in MDE as do their friends. They are all linked together as friends and family. Are they each buying their own Genie+? Since they are linked together, can one person make a ride selection for the entire group?

Thank you!


----------



## scrappinginontario

disny_luvr said:


> This is a long thread and I didn’t read through everything, so sorry if I am asking a repeated question.
> 
> My boys leave tomorrow for a trip with their high school music department. Each son has their own account in MDE as do their friends. They are all linked together as friends and family. Are they each buying their own Genie+? Since they are linked together, can one person make a ride selection for the entire group?
> 
> Thank you!


If they are linked then 1 person can purchase for all but that person’s cc would be charged for all the the purchases.


----------



## bloomcruisers

disny_luvr said:


> This is a long thread and I didn’t read through everything, so sorry if I am asking a repeated question.
> 
> My boys leave tomorrow for a trip with their high school music department. Each son has their own account in MDE as do their friends. They are all linked together as friends and family. Are they each buying their own Genie+? Since they are linked together, can one person make a ride selection for the entire group?
> 
> Thank you!


And remember that large groups will have a more difficult time finding available slots. So he might want to choose a small group of friends who can then take turns buying G+ and doing the booking for that day.


----------



## toodycat

We're visiting WDW for three days  in May and staying onsite. Our park reservations are for DSH, MK and then Epcot. My husband wants to know what the earliest Genie+ issued is for a park that opens at 9 a.m. I know some people consider that a waste of a Genie+ because you can often walk on. However, he is just curious. Also, is there a website that ranks Walt Disney World attractions by popularity? I'm interested in how my priority choices compare to others, especially since we dislike most roller coasters. Thanks!


----------



## disny_luvr

scrappinginontario said:


> If they are linked then 1 person can purchase for all but that person’s cc would be charged for all the the purchases.


Can they purchase separately though?


----------



## lynzi2004

TISHLOVESDISNEY said:


> Question, is there a better, faster way to refresh? They took away the just tapping "Tip Board"
> I've been selecting the ride I'll want a Genie for, and just going back and forth from "LL" to the ride title.
> Anything better?


 I generally peg the ride I want to the top of my tip board by going through the basic genie and making 1 or 2 of my favorite selections and then pull down at the top of the screen to refresh! Basically where it says HS or Magic Kingdom on the tip board you can pull down and refresh from there. As I get one ride, I can go in and change to the next ride I want so what I’m looking for is always at the top.

If park hopping, I haven’t figured out how to get my selections to the top of the page. So on those I click on the selection I want and then go back to the top. When you pull down to refresh it will automatically send you to the exact selection you wanted.


----------



## scrappinginontario

disny_luvr said:


> Can they purchase separately though?


Each person can purchase their own snd their charge will go on the cc linked to their account. Once purchased, anyone linked can book for the group.


----------



## Tom_E_D

toodycat said:


> We're visiting WDW for three days  in May and staying onsite. Our park reservations are for DSH, MK and then Epcot. My husband wants to know what the earliest Genie+ issued is for a park that opens at 9 a.m. I know some people consider that a waste of a Genie+ because you can often walk on. However, he is just curious. Also, is there a website that ranks Walt Disney World attractions by popularity? I'm interested in how my priority choices compare to others, especially since we dislike most roller coasters. Thanks!


There are many websites that rate Disney rides by popularity. Some do so based on surveys; others based on the author's "expert" opinion; others based on wait times. I would imagine that the wait time list is more relevant to choosing which rides to prioritize for Genie+. This article has the average wait times over a recent week and contrasts them to the previous week, giving you two weeks of recent data.


----------



## Smrtalec33

Has anyone noticed any Genie+ drops for either Test Track or Frozen Ever After?  For both rides, looking at Thrill Data for the last month, there is something around 11:35 every 4th day or so for FEA, and more frequently than that for TT, so was wondering if there was maybe an 11:32 drop.  I will check for myself tomorrow, but thought maybe someone would know.  Really any time for either of those 2 rides with availability after 10:30 would be huge.  Thanks!


----------



## Miffy

mom2febgirls said:


> I am only planning to get G+ for MK on 4/20. This is my plan based on a few days checking the app, does it look realistic?
> 
> 7am - G+ for Haunted Mansion (should be around 10am return time) - *I've noticed a couple times that around 7:10 I could get HM for 9-930.  Is it safe to wait until 7:10?
> ETPE: RD 7DMT
> Peter Pan
> Use HM G+, Make G+ for Jungle Cruise (~7pm)
> Hall of Presidents
> Lunch / Parade/ Castle Show
> Make G+ for PP (~7pm)
> Resort Break
> Make G+ for BTMM
> Make G+ for Splash
> Make G+ for PotC
> 7pmish return to MK
> Ride G+ rides
> Enchantment
> EEH


I can't comment on your entire plan, but there was something I noticed right away that might not work out as you've planned it.

If you RD 7DMT, unless you're at the front of the pack and literally run to 7DMT, you will still have a bit of a wait. If you stop to go to the bathroom or walk not quite briskly enough, then you will have a substantial wait.

But, let's say you're in the front and get to ride 7DMT pretty quickly. Here's where the problem is. By the time you get off 7DMT and go over to PPF, the wait for PPF will be at least 40 minutes, maybe more. If that's okay with you, then that's great. Just be aware.

My last 2 trips we've RD'd ETPE at MK and by the time we got to PPF--from near the front of the pack and not stopping to do anything on the way--the wait for PPF was already over 40 minutes. And this was without us doing another ride first.

I'm also not sure about booking JC at that time. It's been selling out early. Someone else here with in-the-park knowledge will no doubt answer your question. If not, ask again on Monday. I've noticed that the DIS seems to have less traffic on the weekends.


----------



## helix-helix

Smrtalec33 said:


> Has anyone noticed any Genie+ drops for either Test Track or Frozen Ever After?  For both rides, looking at Thrill Data for the last month, there is something around 11:35 every 4th day or so for FEA, and more frequently than that for TT, so was wondering if there was maybe an 11:32 drop.  I will check for myself tomorrow, but thought maybe someone would know.  Really any time for either of those 2 rides with availability after 10:30 would be huge.  Thanks!


There has been discussion around drops for those at 11:32, 1:32, and 3:32 that appear to be at least somewhat regular. I will say the day I was in EPCOT last week, I specifically looked for TT to drop at those times and none showed up. Part of it could have been that both TT and FEA had extended down times that morning though.


----------



## lynzi2004

Smrtalec33 said:


> Has anyone noticed any Genie+ drops for either Test Track or Frozen Ever After?  For both rides, looking at Thrill Data for the last month, there is something around 11:35 every 4th day or so for FEA, and more frequently than that for TT, so was wondering if there was maybe an 11:32 drop.  I will check for myself tomorrow, but thought maybe someone would know.  Really any time for either of those 2 rides with availability after 10:30 would be huge.  Thanks!


I’ve seen Test Track drop more frequently than FEA…I’ve seen a 2:30 drop and a 4:30ish drop depending on days and times for test track. I would 100% book FEA first and then keep my eye out for TT….I’ve watched it pretty closely the last four weeks and haven’t caught FEA yet.


----------



## disny_luvr

scrappinginontario said:


> Each person can purchase their own snd their charge will go on the cc linked to their account. Once purchased, anyone linked can book for the group.


Great, thank you for your help!


----------



## GBRforWDW

toodycat said:


> We're visiting WDW for three days in May and staying onsite. Our park reservations are for DSH, MK and then Epcot. My husband wants to know what the earliest Genie+ issued is for a park that opens at 9 a.m. I know some people consider that a waste of a Genie+ because you can often walk on.


The first passes are either at park opening or 5 minutes after, can't remember for sure, but the pass is good for 1 hour after with a 15 minute grace period, so you can probably get a ride or two in before using the g+ pass


----------



## toodycat

GBRforWDW said:


> The first passes are either at park opening or 5 minutes after, can't remember for sure, but the pass is good for 1 hour after with a 15 minute grace period, so you can probably get a ride or two in before using the g+ pass


Thanks! I will let him know.


----------



## f1rstxlas7

Hey guys, I'm very familiar with all things Genie+, but I just considered a scenario that I have not seen mentioned before and wanted to know what would potentially happen.

Let's say I have Early Entry for MK with the official park open at 9, so 8:30 rope for Early Entry. At 7 I booked Peter Pan's Flight for 9:00am on the dot. I know that you can scan into your LL up to 5 minutes early, but can you do it _before_ official park hours? Has anyone ever tried scanning into a ride at 8:55am and then were able to book their next Genie+ _before_ official park open? You'd essentially get 2 LL reservations before anyone else and while I'm sure this either has never happened or is _very_ rare, I'm wondering if it's actually even possible to scan in before official park open.


----------



## cjlong88

f1rstxlas7 said:


> Hey guys, I'm very familiar with all things Genie+, but I just considered a scenario that I have not seen mentioned before and wanted to know what would potentially happen.
> 
> Let's say I have Early Entry for MK with the official park open at 9, so 8:30 rope for Early Entry. At 7 I booked Peter Pan's Flight for 9:00am on the dot. I know that you can scan into your LL up to 5 minutes early, but can you do it _before_ official park hours? Has anyone ever tried scanning into a ride at 8:55am and then were able to book their next Genie+ _before_ official park open? You'd essentially get 2 LL reservations before anyone else and while I'm sure this either has never happened or is _very_ rare, I'm wondering if it's actually even possible to scan in before official park open.


This is interesting. If I had to guess, because Peter Pan is running during ETPE, you could technically scan in 5 minutes early. The ride is already operating. More than likely, though, it will be completely dependent on the CM stationed at the LL queue. Maybe they would let you in early. Maybe not. My guess is that their isn't a clear cut rule (there never is at Disney!).

Honestly, though, I'm not seeing too much benefit to this. If you plan on using the 120-minute rule strategy, you wouldn't have much of an advantage. Your next booking window would only open 5 minutes earlier than if you just scanned at 9am.  Same thing for booking the next available LL. You probably won't see too much difference between booking your next LL at 8:55am vs. 9am. Everyone can book their first LL at 7am regardless if they are on or off site and will already have their first choice. 

I guess my question would be this...what strategy requires you to book a 9am LL for an official park open of 9am, use it at 8:55am, and then book another one immediately in order to receive any type of an advantage over someone who does the same thing and scans in at 9am?


----------



## mgsmom

Headed to DHS tomorrow and figuring out a strategy.  Could I plan to rope drop both ToT and RRC?  That way I could ILL and use Genie+ for Star Wars.  Then start stacking for evening.


----------



## g-dad66

mgsmom said:


> Headed to DHS tomorrow and figuring out a strategy.  Could I plan to rope drop both ToT and RRC?  That way I could ILL and use Genie+ for Star Wars.  Then start stacking for evening.


Yes, we did it.  With Tower of Terror only being partially in operation (unless that has changed recently), the waits for it will build much faster than for RnRC.

So we did it first, and then RnRC still had only a 5 minute wait after we completed ToT (this was during early entry).


----------



## pens4821

mgsmom said:


> Headed to DHS tomorrow and figuring out a strategy.  Could I plan to rope drop both ToT and RRC?  That way I could ILL and use Genie+ for Star Wars.  Then start stacking for evening.



This is what we did last month. We were near the front for tot. By the time we got off and went to rnrc we  walked right through the pre show room. We rode rnrc a second time (maybe 5 minute wait the second time) then went to mmrr and waited a little over a half hour.


----------



## GBRforWDW

f1rstxlas7 said:


> Hey guys, I'm very familiar with all things Genie+, but I just considered a scenario that I have not seen mentioned before and wanted to know what would potentially happen.
> 
> Let's say I have Early Entry for MK with the official park open at 9, so 8:30 rope for Early Entry. At 7 I booked Peter Pan's Flight for 9:00am on the dot. I know that you can scan into your LL up to 5 minutes early, but can you do it _before_ official park hours? Has anyone ever tried scanning into a ride at 8:55am and then were able to book their next Genie+ _before_ official park open? You'd essentially get 2 LL reservations before anyone else and while I'm sure this either has never happened or is _very_ rare, I'm wondering if it's actually even possible to scan in before official park open.





cjlong88 said:


> I guess my question would be this...what strategy requires you to book a 9am LL for an official park open of 9am, use it at 8:55am, and then book another one immediately in order to receive any type of an advantage over someone who does the same thing and scans in at 9am?


I agree with Cjlong on this, but for different reasons.  PPF Is one of 2 passes that go quickly or at least pushes out to the afternoon quickly, so even if you're in right away, by the time you finish, you could have a noon return time.  So that makes it difficult to guarantee you'll get your return time you want.

If this is more about the strategy of booking another one right at 9 or a little before so you can also get in before 11, you may want to think about a different pick at 7am that you can guarantee will be the 9am pick.  You'd probably also be able to select PPF at 9am for later in the day with this strategy.


----------



## gharter

We were there last week.  Found Genie + to be helpful at Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios.
no need at Epcot.  It might have helped at Animal Kingdom, by we were able to do everything we wanted to by 2 pm without Genie +


----------



## Stephy811

I apologize if this is in here somewhere as I’ve been reading the recent posts but didn’t go back through all 200 pages….but the issue of times changing is that only with the individual LLs for purchase or with every Genie LL?  I’ve never used G+…so at 7a when everyone is choosing their first LL, and say I choose Slinky…will everyone see the 9a slots open since everyone trying within fraction of a second and then it will adjust your time to something later as you click through the screens?  or as soon as I pick Slinky at 7:00:03 it will show 5p or whatever right from the start?


----------



## unbanshee

Stephy811 said:


> I apologize if this is in here somewhere as I’ve been reading the recent posts but didn’t go back through all 200 pages….but the issue of times changing is that only with the individual LLs for purchase or with every Genie LL?  I’ve never used G+…so at 7a when everyone is choosing their first LL, and say I choose Slinky…will everyone see the 9a slots open since everyone trying within fraction of a second and then it will adjust your time to something later as you click through the screens?  or as soon as I pick Slinky at 7:00:03 it will show 5p or whatever right from the start?



It can change. If you've never used G+, here's a good (long) read on someone's experience recently 

https://blogmickey.com/2022/03/updated-look-at-using-disney-genie-at-disneys-hollywood-studios/


----------



## Stephy811

unbanshee said:


> It can change. If you've never used G+, here's a good (long) read on someone's experience recently
> 
> https://blogmickey.com/2022/03/updated-look-at-using-disney-genie-at-disneys-hollywood-studios/


Thank you!  This was very eye opening.  I didn’t realize how often a time pops up and then you still don’t get it.  And these guys are definitely “experts” compared to the average guest.  I need to re-evaluate my plans and see if it’s worth the stress!


----------



## f1rstxlas7

GBRforWDW said:


> I agree with Cjlong on this, but for different reasons.  PPF Is one of 2 passes that go quickly or at least pushes out to the afternoon quickly, so even if you're in right away, by the time you finish, you could have a noon return time.  So that makes it difficult to guarantee you'll get your return time you want.
> 
> If this is more about the strategy of booking another one right at 9 or a little before so you can also get in before 11, you may want to think about a different pick at 7am that you can guarantee will be the 9am pick.  You'd probably also be able to select PPF at 9am for later in the day with this strategy.


 PPF was just an example. Astro Orbiter or Mad Tea Party could be subbed into the scenario instead because their LL availability moves much slower than PPF. My real question was, is it actually even _possible_ to scan into your first ride and book your 2nd before park open. Both of you are right though, it'd give an advantage but it'd only be a slight advantage.


----------



## jbish

I am pretty sure we've answered this (but my trip starts tomorrow so I'm really down to details at this point! lol) - on HS day, our #1 priority for LL is SDD.  Goal is to just snag the first available one right at 7 am because, for the past few days, I have not seen another drop at 7:17 with morning return times (though Thrill Data does show some but I haven't seen them).  Question: let's say we go through and secure one but it's for a time we don't want (I'm aiming for a return time before 10 am), can I cancel it right away and try again?  I would think I could, since it's my most recently booked LL, but just want to make sure.


----------



## g-dad66

jbish said:


> I am pretty sure we've answered this (but my trip starts tomorrow so I'm really down to details at this point! lol) - on HS day, our #1 priority for LL is SDD.  Goal is to just snag the first available one right at 7 am because, for the past few days, I have not seen another drop at 7:17 with morning return times (though Thrill Data does show some but I haven't seen them).  Question: let's say we go through and secure one but it's for a time we don't want (I'm aiming for a return time before 10 am), can I cancel it right away and try again?  I would think I could, since it's my most recently booked LL, but just want to make sure.



Yes, you can, but be aware that it might take the app some time (not sure howlong) to allow you to re-book the one that you just cancelled.  Would be better to back out and not confirm (rather than confirm and then cancel).


----------



## GBRforWDW

f1rstxlas7 said:


> PPF was just an example. Astro Orbiter or Mad Tea Party could be subbed into the scenario instead because their LL availability moves much slower than PPF. My real question was, is it actually even _possible_ to scan into your first ride and book your 2nd before park open. Both of you are right though, it'd give an advantage but it'd only be a slight advantage.


Ah I got ya.  Would definitely be worth trying for fun, but you'd Definitely have to choose a low selected ride in the Fantasyland or Tomorrowland area, but my guess would be the Lightning Lane scan is not active until official park opening.


----------



## mgsmom

Just nailed it at HS today.  Take aways:  buy LL for ROR right away if you want to do it.  Just buy it and don’t look back.  Even at rope drop, the whole crowd is heading to Star Wars.  We rope dropped TOT and RNRC (can do that one twice in a row), LLd ROR and genie+ MFRR.  those were our top 4 and it worked great.  Genie+ goes FAST so priority is important.  Also, couldn’t get ROR right away, but keep refreshing and bought at 7:15 for a 10:30 ride time.  Ride times were all high, all day.  Even at 8 - 9 pm.  Oh we only also were able to genie+ for Mickie Minnie Runaway


----------



## poptart90

mgsmom said:


> Just nailed it at HS today.  Take aways:  buy LL for ROR right away if you want to do it.  Just buy it and don’t look back.  Even at rope drop, the whole crowd is heading to Star Wars.  We rope dropped TOT and RNRC (can do that one twice in a row), LLd ROR and genie+ MFRR.  those were our top 4 and it worked great.  Genie+ goes FAST so priority is important.  Also, couldn’t get ROR right away, but keep refreshing and bought at 7:15 for a 10:30 ride time.  Ride times were all high, all day.  Even at 8 - 9 pm.  Oh we only also were able to genie+ for Mickie Minnie Runaway


Did you mean you were only able to book one Genie+ all day? Just want to make sure I understood. If so, that's concerning considering you were at rope drop.


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

mgsmom said:


> Just nailed it at HS today.  Take aways:  buy LL for ROR right away if you want to do it.  Just buy it and don’t look back.  Even at rope drop, the whole crowd is heading to Star Wars.  We rope dropped TOT and RNRC (can do that one twice in a row), LLd ROR and genie+ MFRR.  those were our top 4 and it worked great.  Genie+ goes FAST so priority is important.  Also, couldn’t get ROR right away, but keep refreshing and bought at 7:15 for a 10:30 ride time.  Ride times were all high, all day.  Even at 8 - 9 pm.  Oh we only also were able to genie+ for Mickie Minnie Runaway


Yesterday did look busy.  On Sunday, the actual wait for Rise dropped as low as 35 minutes late in the day.


----------



## boothbay

Does anyone have any experience with purchasing an ILL or G+ on the day you arrive at MCO?  I am trying to get a ride on one of the headliners at HS just to kick off our trip and wondered if people have tips (or cautionary tales) for getting something in the afternoon on the day you arrive?


----------



## scrappinginontario

boothbay said:


> Does anyone have any experience with purchasing an ILL or G+ on the day you arrive at MCO?  I am trying to get a ride on one of the headliners at HS just to kick off our trip and wondered if people have tips (or cautionary tales) for getting something in the afternoon on the day you arrive?


You are eligible to purchase ILL$ and G+ from anywhere.  I purchased from the tarmac of our outgoing airport and someone else reported purchasing during their flight!

We purchased G+ and stacked for afternoon when we would be in the MK.  It worked great!  Purchased first at 7AM sitting on plane, second from the Orlando airport and 3rd from our resort room so we had 3 stacked before even entering the MK.  My only suggestion is to allow yourself lots of time for travel, etc. so book later than you arrive as you don't want to miss your window.

I'm not sure if that's the scenario you're asking about or something else.  Hope this helps.


----------



## NashvilleMama

Need some advice, please, on how to tackle as I feel like I'm still not completely following how this all works (ugh, so frustrated after reading so much - WHY is this so confusing?) 

Park hopper day: Morning at DHS and afternoon at AK. 
7am: Priorities are ILL for ROTR and then FOP in the afternoon
G+ - do I wait to worry about this until after I do the ILL? Should I try to get one of my tweens to do this on their phone while I'm doing the ILL at 7am? Priorities for the DHS time are MMRR and MFSR (going to rope drop ToT and RnRC). 

thank you!!


----------



## wisblue

NashvilleMama said:


> Need some advice, please, on how to tackle as I feel like I'm still not completely following how this all works (ugh, so frustrated after reading so much - WHY is this so confusing?)
> 
> Park hopper day: Morning at DHS and afternoon at AK.
> 7am: Priorities are ILL for ROTR and then FOP in the afternoon
> G+ - do I wait to worry about this until after I do the ILL? Should I try to get one of my tweens to do this on their phone while I'm doing the ILL at 7am? Priorities for the DHS time are MMRR and MFSR (going to rope drop ToT and RnRC).
> 
> thank you!!


Having a second person do something can’t hurt, even if it’s just to give you a backup in case you run into a spinning screen (which can and does happen).

But, your situation would be perfect to take advantage of the second wave of ILL that comes up around 7:17.

If I were you I would shoot for the Genie+ LL for MMRR or MFSR first. I would go for MFSR because that goes more quickly, and if you’re at the park early enough (like a half hour before early entry starts) and do TOT and RNRC quickly (in that order) you can then go to MMRR and have a reasonable standby time.

After getting the Genie+ LL, you can try to get an afternoon time for FOP. In just the time in takes to book MFSR your chances of getting a morning time for ROTR are next to nothing. You can try, but you’re probably going to have to wait until 7:17 for that.

If you can’t get an acceptable time for FOP at 7:01, you can do that at 7:17 too. Do ROTR first because the times for that go more quickly, but not as fast as they disappear at 7:00. Getting an afternoon or evening time at FOP should be pretty easy at 7:17.


----------



## 3gr8boys

I have seen mention of people (this thread and others)  looking for LL at the 7:17 drop- LL times usually  experience  a shift to  earlier times between 7:05 and 7:10.  It is ILL that usually has a 7:17 drop.  I would not wait until 7:17 for hard to get LL rides that you really want.
(Maybe someone  can chime in with personal experience  about success with genie+ LL drops at 7:17.)

ETA my park days were 4/3 - 4/8


----------



## wisblue

3gr8boys said:


> I have seen mention of people (this thread and others)  looking for LL at the 7:17 drop- LL times usually  experience  a shift to  earlier times between 7:05 and 7:10.  It is ILL that usually has a 7:17 drop.  I would not wait until 7:17 for hard to get LL rides that you really want.
> (Maybe someone  can chime in with personal experience  about success with genie+ LL drops at 7:17.)
> 
> ETA my park days were 4/3 - 4/8


Right, my experience was that the appearance of the big new batch of LL times at 7:17 was only for the one ILL attraction at each park. That was the week of March 21. 

For Genie + attractions if you want an earlier time than what is showing I would keep refreshing because earlier times do pop up occasionally. Even for Slinky times often showed up around 7:10. But, if I wanted a time for Slinky as early as 8:30 or 9:00, and could get 10:00 AM I would just keep it because there’s a good chance you won’t improve on it and you might not get it back. 

Anything you use less than 2 hours after park opening at least lets you pick your next one before the pack that is selecting exactly two hours out.


----------



## TISHLOVESDISNEY

Word is out on these drops. Going faster


----------



## redboat45

TISHLOVESDISNEY said:


> Word is out on these drops. Going faster


shoot.  That's what I was worried about.  We don't go until June so I'll keep an eye on it until then.


----------



## wisblue

redboat45 said:


> shoot.  That's what I was worried about.  We don't go until June so I'll keep an eye on it until then.


I would keep an eye on it too if I had a trip coming up. 

If I happen to note that it's 7:17 ET I sometimes open the app to see what's going on. Today the times at 7:17 for ROTR were later and disappeared faster than usual. But then a few minutes later there were return times for 8:30 AM and they moved out slowly. 

So, it looks like today 7:17 came a few minutes late. It will be interesting to see if that was a one day thing or if there's going to be a new pattern.


----------



## wisblue

Stephy811 said:


> I apologize if this is in here somewhere as I’ve been reading the recent posts but didn’t go back through all 200 pages….but the issue of times changing is that only with the individual LLs for purchase or with every Genie LL?  I’ve never used G+…so at 7a when everyone is choosing their first LL, and say I choose Slinky…will everyone see the 9a slots open since everyone trying within fraction of a second and then it will adjust your time to something later as you click through the screens?  or as soon as I pick Slinky at 7:00:03 it will show 5p or whatever right from the start?


I have never found it to move out quite that fast. more than once we clicked on Slinky at 7:00:00 when the return time showed as 9:00 (which was when the park opened then). Once we got a return of 9:10 and the other time we got something like 9:50.

On our trip in March I wanted a return time of about 5 PM because we were starting the day at EPCOT. So, starting at 7:00:00, I refreshed a few times until the time on the Tip Board showed as 4:30. I clicked on that and got a return time of 5:15.


----------



## Princess_K

I’ve been stalking the ROR 7:17 drop for a few weeks now in anticipation of our upcoming trip.  Today was the first I didn’t see them appear then, which made me think maybe I should just grab first available at 7:00.  Just when I was feeling confident in my strategy!


----------



## ckelly14

Princess_K said:


> I’ve been stalking the ROR 7:17 drop for a few weeks now in anticipation of our upcoming trip.  Today was the first I didn’t see them appear then, which made me think maybe I should just grab first available at 7:00.  Just when I was feeling confident in my strategy!


We arrive next week so this scares me a bit.  Don't you think it may have to do with one of the busiest weeks of the year?


----------



## Datfan1

With EE opening at AK on the 16th will this mean that Genie+ is worth spending money on at AK?


----------



## disrunner9

TISHLOVESDISNEY said:


> Word is out on these drops. Going faster


I noticed that the 7:17 ROTR drop seemed not as consistent today. Not sure if that's because of higher crowds this week or the fact that a certain blog (not THAT one) posted an article to social media yesterday about the 7:17 phenomenon.... I'm hoping it's just Easter week


----------



## Scooley01

So just to clarify - my understanding is that if we get ILL or book a G+ ride, and the app switches times on us during checkout and the new time conflicts with a reservation we already have, the cast members can help with this...is that right?  How do they pick the "rebooked" time?  We have reservations at Savi's and Space 220 on our HS day, so I'm worried about conflicts


----------



## Datfan1

HS day Wed 20th. Plan is grab 7am ILL for ROTR and LL for SDD. We will rope drop and hope to walk-on some rides…. MF, TOT, TS, RNR all are on our wishlist. Which ones should we try to walk-on and which can we grab an LL for after the 120 minute rule? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.


----------



## wonderchica

Datfan1 said:


> HS day Wed 20th. Plan is grab 7am ILL for ROTR and LL for SDD. We will rope drop and hope to walk-on some rides…. MF, TOT, TS, RNR all are on our wishlist. Which ones should we try to walk-on and which can we grab an LL for after the 120 minute rule? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.


Previous posters have had good success RDing (with early entry) TOT, RNR, and MMRR (in that order). Last week we did MFSR, TSM, and MMRR in the first 45 minutes using early entry. On 4/8, MFSR ran out of G+ first, which I think is standard. I remember MMRR and TSM still being available around 12-1, not sure about others.


----------



## BridgetR3

Usually I know the acronyms or can figure them out but what is MFSM??


----------



## DisneySyd

BridgetR3 said:


> Usually I know the acronyms or can figure them out but what is MFSM??


Millennium Falcon


----------



## DisneySyd

Datfan1 said:


> HS day Wed 20th. Plan is grab 7am ILL for ROTR and LL for SDD. We will rope drop and hope to walk-on some rides…. MF, TOT, TS, RNR all are on our wishlist. Which ones should we try to walk-on and which can we grab an LL for after the 120 minute rule? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.


I would rope drop ToT, RnRC and MFSM in that order. TSM usually has availability last the longest (still available as of 11:55 today), plus it takes awhile and eats into precious morning time.


----------



## wisblue

disrunner9 said:


> I noticed that the 7:17 ROTR drop seemed not as consistent today. Not sure if that's because of higher crowds this week or the fact that a certain blog (not THAT one) posted an article to social media yesterday about the 7:17 phenomenon.... I'm hoping it's just Easter week


I noticed again today that there weren’t as many times for ROTR at 7:17 as there usually have been. The first return times  that showed up were  a little later and they didn’t last that long.

But, at about 7:20, earlier times appeared (starting at 8:30 AM) and lasted longer.

So, the last two days, the window that had been opening at 7:17 has been opening around 7:20.


----------



## Datfan1

Have another question! Arriving late Sunday afternoon at Epcot. Plan to have stacked rides for the evening. Need TT with an evening return time. Is it simply luck of the draw Or do I wait until 7:02 or so hoping for evening. Or should I just keep refreshing until I see those evening times pop up? Thanks in advance.


----------



## Smrtalec33

Good success with genie+ and ILL today (Good Friday)

Frozen twice during Early Entry
Test track standby (20 min)
Soarin standby (20 min)
Remy (ILL)
Rose and Crown lunch, hop to HS

Tower of Terror (genie #1)
Slinky Dog (genie #4)
Rock n Roller Coaster (genie #2)
Rise of Resistance (ILL)
Star Tours
Dinner - left before riding Alien Swirling Saucers, which was our 3rd genie selection.

Wife and dd4 returned to Epcot after a break and used LL for 2nd rides on TT and Soarin and a 3rd on FEA


----------



## DisneySyd

Datfan1 said:


> Have another question! Arriving late Sunday afternoon at Epcot. Plan to have stacked rides for the evening. Need TT with an evening return time. Is it simply luck of the draw Or do I wait until 7:02 or so hoping for evening. Or should I just keep refreshing until I see those evening times pop up? Thanks in advance.


I would keep refreshing. Based on thrill-data most days it takes a few minutes but there have been a few days where it went quicker.  That said, if you miss it (or your time changes too much between screens), there’s usually another “drop” of times (around 7:08/10ish).
The other option is the single rider line if nothing else works.


----------



## Rangers67

My apologies, if I missed this in the thread, if I book my first LL for the park I have a reservation for and then start stacking for park hopping, does the 2 hour after park hour opening rule for the second booking follow park opening time for the park we have the reservation for or for the park we are hopping to and trying to book the second LL for? thx


----------



## ckelly14

EE open at AK.  That made my day, it’s my favorite ride.  Heading down in 3 days.
EE is on G+ now?


----------



## DisneySyd

ckelly14 said:


> EE open at AK.  That made my day, it’s my favorite ride.  Heading down in 3 days.
> EE is on G+ now?


Yes, until Aug 7th


----------



## SkyGuy

Rangers67 said:


> My apologies, if I missed this in the thread, if I book my first LL for the park I have a reservation for and then start stacking for park hopping, does the 2 hour after park hour opening rule for the second booking follow park opening time for the park we have the reservation for or for the park we are hopping to and trying to book the second LL for? thx


It follows your second booking - ie. you make your first booking for AK and AK opens at 8am. You can make your second booking for whatever park you’d like at either 10am OR after you’ve tapped into that first LL at AK. Then you use the 2 hour rule, so since it will be after 2pm before you use your next LL, set your alarm for two hours and make another.


----------



## DisneySyd

Scooley01 said:


> So just to clarify - my understanding is that if we get ILL or book a G+ ride, and the app switches times on us during checkout and the new time conflicts with a reservation we already have, the cast members can help with this...is that right?  How do they pick the "rebooked" time?  We have reservations at Savi's and Space 220 on our HS day, so I'm worried about conflicts


Yes, at least they were on my trip in March (blue umbrellas). For us, they asked what I originally chose and changed it to that (some people had screenshots but I didn’t think to do that, but it wasn’t an issue). I’ve heard of others who got anytime passes, but I wouldn’t expect that. The other option I’ve heard and observed working is to show your ADR reservation to the CM at the ride when you show up late. It’s easier to fit your party on a ride then a full restaurant.  We did get a very kind CM who let us on JC early (17 mins) when I showed her a Steakhouse 71 reservation but she said it was a one off and they prefer you to either change things at the blue umbrellas or show up late.


----------



## mom2rtk

DisneySyd said:


> Yes, at least they were on my trip in March (blue umbrellas). For us, they asked what I originally chose and changed it to that (some people had screenshots but I didn’t think to do that, but it wasn’t an issue). I’ve heard of others who got anytime passes, but I wouldn’t expect that. The other option I’ve heard and observed working is to show your ADR reservation to the CM at the ride when you show up late. It’s easier to fit your party on a ride then a full restaurant.  We did get a very kind CM who let us on JC early (17 mins) when I showed her a Steakhouse 71 reservation but she said it was a one off and they prefer you to either change things at the blue umbrellas or show up late.


So please go wait in line at a blue umbrella so they can help you get the time you booked to skip a different line.


----------



## DisneySyd

mom2rtk said:


> So please go wait in line at a blue umbrella so they can help you get the time you booked to skip a different line.


Yup! Seriously insane


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

Lol, I think Genie isn’t long for this world if even Disney realizes they need to include a disclaimer about how people maybe shouldn’t buy it because it’s useless unless you are expert-level at manipulating it: 

https://insidethemagic.net/2022/04/disney-warns-against-genie-app-ld1/


----------



## ckelly14

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> Lol, I think Genie isn’t long for this world if even Disney realizes they need to include a disclaimer about how people maybe shouldn’t buy it because it’s useless unless you are expert-level at manipulating it:
> 
> https://insidethemagic.net/2022/04/disney-warns-against-genie-app-ld1/


Although I agree with you about the complexity, I don't think that's what this warning is saying.    It's there so people don't complain after the fact when they buy G+ in the afternoon when there is no more LL availability.


----------



## Runnsally

AnnaKristoff2013 said:


> Lol, I think Genie isn’t long for this world if even Disney realizes they need to include a disclaimer about how people maybe shouldn’t buy it because it’s useless unless you are expert-level at manipulating it:
> 
> https://insidethemagic.net/2022/04/disney-warns-against-genie-app-ld1/



What’s not long for this world is the $15/$20 per person price point…


----------



## DisneySyd

wisblue said:


> I noticed again today that there weren’t as many times for ROTR at 7:17 as there usually have been. The first return times  that showed up were  a little later and they didn’t last that long.
> 
> But, at about 7:20, earlier times appeared (starting at 8:30 AM) and lasted longer.
> 
> So, the last two days, the window that had been opening at 7:17 has been opening around 7:20.


I was helping someone at Epcot today and noticed the same thing with Remy. There were two “mini drops” around 7:10 and 7:17 but less options and they went quicker. The big drop we’re used to didn’t happen until closer to 7:25. Sorry, didn’t note exact time when it started (confirming things) but there was still lots available at 7:25.
Took a look at thrill-data, and it looks like that has happened the last 4 days.


----------



## ckelly14

DisneySyd said:


> I was helping someone at Epcot today and noticed the same thing with Remy. There were two “mini drops” around 7:10 and 7:17 but less options and they went quicker. The big drop we’re used to didn’t happen until closer to 7:25. Sorry, didn’t note exact time when it started (confirming things) but there was still lots available at 7:25.
> Took a look at thrill-data, and it looks like that has happened the last 4 days.



Wish they didn't change things up the day before I leave!


----------



## MainMom

If I want ROTR for the evening is it best to get it at the 7am drop and not wait for the 7:17 drop?


----------



## DisneySyd

MainMom said:


> If I want ROTR for the evening is it best to get it at the 7am drop and not wait for the 7:17 drop?


I would. At 7am, for an evening slot, you’re likely to get what you initially choose (or very close).
Disney has been “tinkering” with the extra drop times the past few days. The good news is that they’re still doing extra drops (in case you miss/skip the 7am for whatever reason). The bad news is the timing has been inconsistent (not the usual 7:17). I’ve seen 7:08/10 and closer to 7:20.


----------



## MainMom

DisneySyd said:


> I would. At 7am, for an evening slot, you’re likely to get what you initially choose (or very close).
> Disney has been “tinkering” with the extra drop times the past few days. The good news is that they’re still doing extra drops (in case you miss/skip the 7am for whatever reason). The bad news is the timing has been inconsistent (not the usual 7:17). I’ve seen 7:08/10 and closer to 7:20.


Thank you!


----------



## DisneySyd

MainMom said:


> Thank you!


You’re welcome! I received so much useful advice from others on here before my trip (long-time lurker ) that I’m trying to pay it forward.


----------



## godfather927

Question on using Genie+ to book a LL for a stage show, like Beauty and the Beast for example. I see that the return times are 30 min prior to the show, but does this mean there's no "grace period" if we happen to be running a bit behind from a meal or another attraction? I guess what I'm trying to ask is, when do they start letting guests into the theater and when's the latest we could show up to the LL line and still be let in, like for a 4pm show?


----------



## ckelly14

Heading to the parks tomorrow.
Question about Genie+.  Since the only selection that matters for determining eligibility for another LL reservation is the most recent one, if you tap in for the most recent one, can you select another even if you have a few selected earlier that were not used?


----------



## Tom_E_D

ckelly14 said:


> Heading to the parks tomorrow.
> Question about Genie+.  Since the only selection that matters for determining eligibility for another LL reservation is the most recent one, if you tap in for the most recent one, can you select another even if you have a few selected earlier that were not used?


Yes, you can.


----------



## DisneySyd

ckelly14 said:


> Heading to the parks tomorrow.
> Question about Genie+.  Since the only selection that matters for determining eligibility for another LL reservation is the most recent one, if you tap in for the most recent one, can you select another even if you have a few selected earlier that were not used?


Yes. It’s based on most recent booking.


----------



## holyrita

SkyGuy said:


> It follows your second booking - ie. you make your first booking for AK and AK opens at 8am. You can make your second booking for whatever park you’d like at either 10am OR after you’ve tapped into that first LL at AK. Then you use the 2 hour rule, so since it will be after 2pm before you use your next LL, set your alarm for two hours and make another.


I just want to share this was not my experience when I was there last week. My park reservation was for AK which opened at 7:30am. I booked a LL with Genie+ at 7am for Kilimanjaro Safaris for 8am-9am. After tapping in I tried to make a LL at MK which was opening at 9am that day and I was *not* eligible to book one. I was able to book Navi though!


----------



## DisneySyd

godfather927 said:


> Question on using Genie+ to book a LL for a stage show, like Beauty and the Beast for example. I see that the return times are 30 min prior to the show, but does this mean there's no "grace period" if we happen to be running a bit behind from a meal or another attraction? I guess what I'm trying to ask is, when do they start letting guests into the theater and when's the latest we could show up to the LL line and still be let in, like for a 4pm show?


There is a grace period, but I can’t remember what it is (thinking until 10mins before). Hopefully someone else can confirm.


----------



## tentaguasu

holyrita said:


> I just want to share this was not my experience when I was there last week. My park reservation was for AK which opened at 7:30am. I booked a LL with Genie+ at 7am for Kilimanjaro Safaris for 8am-9am. After tapping in I tried to make a LL at MK which was opening at 9am that day and I was *not* eligible to book one. I was able to book Navi though!


Hmmm... do you known if you would have been able to get one after 9:00 but before 11:00? I'm really curious about that. 

So take this scenario.

Let's say AK opens at 8:00 and HS opens at 9:00. I have AK reservations and plan to hop to HS. 

So at 7:00 a.m. I get a Kilimanjaro Safari's booking for, say 8:30. I tap in and try to book Tower of Terror - according to your experience, that won't work. 

But what if I wait until 9:05 to try ToT? It seems like that _should_ work according to the rules.

If not, however, I'm assuming that I certainly could at 10:30 - i.e. two hours after I tapped into Safari. Is that true?

I'm thinking it would be at least somewhat advantageous because I assume you get waves of HS bookings at 7:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., and 1:00 p.m. With the above strategy, I'd be a half hour ahead of "the wave." I couldn't get more bookings (either way I'd only get three) but I'd be somewhat more likely to do OK at my third HS booking (i.e. better time or better availability). 

Is that right, or am I off target?


----------



## ckelly14

We’ll, I was hit with a significant time change between payment and confirmation.  So annoying.  The positive is I was able to secure SDMT for a party of 10.  The negative was the time changed from 4pm to 8pm when I received the confirmation.  Probably will just keep it and we can all ride after dinner and before fireworks (or during fireworks?).
Serves me right for not waiting until a later drop. Any chance to argue this at Guest Relations and where is the least crowded in the Magic Kingdom (or is it just city hall)?


----------



## DisneySyd

ckelly14 said:


> We’ll, I was hit with a significant time change between payment and confirmation.  So annoying.  The positive is I was able to secure SDMT for a party of 10.  The negative was the time changed from 4pm to 8pm when I received the confirmation.  Probably will just keep it and we can all ride after dinner and before fireworks (or during fireworks?).
> Serves me right for not waiting until a later drop. Any chance to argue this at Guest Relations and where is the least crowded in the Magic Kingdom (or is it just city hall)?


It’s worth a shot, if the line isn’t too long


----------



## holyrita

tentaguasu said:


> Hmmm... do you known if you would have been able to get one after 9:00 but before 11:00? I'm really curious about that.
> 
> So take this scenario.
> 
> Let's say AK opens at 8:00 and HS opens at 9:00. I have AK reservations and plan to hop to HS.
> 
> So at 7:00 a.m. I get a Kilimanjaro Safari's booking for, say 8:30. I tap in and try to book Tower of Terror - according to your experience, that won't work.
> 
> But what if I wait until 9:05 to try ToT? It seems like that _should_ work according to the rules.
> 
> If not, however, I'm assuming that I certainly could at 10:30 - i.e. two hours after I tapped into Safari. Is that true?
> 
> I'm thinking it would be at least somewhat advantageous because I assume you get waves of HS bookings at 7:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., and 1:00 p.m. With the above strategy, I'd be a half hour ahead of "the wave." I couldn't get more bookings (either way I'd only get three) but I'd be somewhat more likely to do OK at my third HS booking (i.e. better time or better availability).
> 
> Is that right, or am I off target?


Yes, if I'm remembering correctly after I tapped into Navi I was able to make a LL for MK. That was after 9am and before 11am.


----------



## goingtotheworld

We normally take an afternoon break on our MK day leaving around 1pm and returning after dinner, between 5-6 pm.  Park hours for 6/15 are 9am - 10pm, with early entry at 8:30am which we will utilize.  The current plan is try for Jungle Cruise for our first LL and $LL SDMT at 7:00am.  Assuming we get those at times that don't conflict with our break, should we book the next LL based on return times before our break or should we book based on priority regardless of return times?  I am having such a hard time wrapping my head around this!


----------



## wonderchica

goingtotheworld said:


> We normally take an afternoon break on our MK day leaving around 1pm and returning after dinner, between 5-6 pm.  Park hours for 6/15 are 9am - 10pm, with early entry at 8:30am which we will utilize.  The current plan is try for Jungle Cruise for our first LL and $LL SDMT at 7:00am.  Assuming we get those at times that don't conflict with our break, should we book the next LL based on return times before our break or should we book based on priority regardless of return times?  I am having such a hard time wrapping my head around this!


I think it depends on what your priority rides for your group are. Our priorities two weeks ago were headliners, so we went with the stacking strategy- I picked the ride we wanted with the furthest out time first, then worked my way back. For example, during lunch, I booked PP which was already at 8 pm, the furthest out. 2 hours later, I picked Big Thunder for 7, then the furthest out. Repeat. This worked out well for us.


----------



## Mango7100

On Saturday 4/16  we had an LL for Pirates at 530-630 which converted at 530 to a multi experience anytime LL since Pirates was down. It could not be used for PP, Jungle, Space, 7D, or character meets. Since I had noticed that Pirates had been down for a few hours, I refreshed and booked another LL for Pirates with a return time of 630.  it let me since my first LL for Pirates was converted so it doesn’t think I am booking the same ride twice.. Sure enough Pirates was still down at 630, and I got another anytime LL. So now I have 2. We used them for Big Thunder (which we had already ridden as an LL earlier) and Small World. Booked another Pirates LL for 10 pm. At 10 got another LL which was good for any park (did have slot of ride exemptions though) and it could be used the next day! Unfortunately we weren’t going to any parks the next day, so it wasn’t as valuable as it could have been. The take home point is if you see a ride down for a lengthy time, try booking it to get those multi experience LLs.


----------



## TaraS29

Great tip, thank you


----------



## godfather927

Mango7100 said:


> On Saturday 4/16  we had an LL for Pirates at 530-630 which converted at 530 to a multi experience anytime LL since Pirates was down. It could not be used for PP, Jungle, Space, 7D, or character meets. Since I had noticed that Pirates had been down for a few hours, I refreshed and booked another LL for Pirates with a return time of 630.  it let me since my first LL for Pirates was converted so it doesn’t think I am booking the same ride twice.. Sure enough Pirates was still down at 630, and I got another anytime LL. So now I have 2. We used them for Big Thunder (which we had already ridden as an LL earlier) and Small World. Booked another Pirates LL for 10 pm. At 10 got another LL which was good for any park (did have slot of ride exemptions though) and it could be used the next day! Unfortunately we weren’t going to any parks the next day, so it wasn’t as valuable as it could have been. The take home point is if you see a ride down for a lengthy time, try booking it to get those multi experience LLs.


Whoa, this is a monster "hack" that could be super useful if used correctly. Wondering if this was a one-off type deal for the day you went or a common loophole that kinda flies under the radar.


----------



## wisblue

wonderchica said:


> I think it depends on what your priority rides for your group are. Our priorities two weeks ago were headliners, so we went with the stacking strategy- I picked the ride we wanted with the furthest out time first, then worked my way back. For example, during lunch, I booked PP which was already at 8 pm, the furthest out. 2 hours later, I picked Big Thunder for 7, then the furthest out. Repeat. This worked out well for us.


This is what we have done too. If you can do one early, like JC around 10 AM and then start booking one every 2 hours after that you can usually get 3 or 4 good ones with return times in the 5-7PM range.

If you use early entry you can do a couple of headliners before the return for JC and then try to get  others for the late afternoon or evening.


----------



## roctavia

godfather927 said:


> Whoa, this is a monster "hack" that could be super useful if used correctly. Wondering if this was a one-off type deal for the day you went or a common loophole that kinda flies under the radar.


It just depends on if the ride keeps breaking down after they have it fixed... They wouldn't open it back up for LL unless they expected it to be up and running again, so I would guess this is more rare that they added it back to the LL pool twice after break downs without it being fully fixed/on track.


----------



## godfather927

roctavia said:


> It just depends on if the ride keeps breaking down after they have it fixed... They wouldn't open it back up for LL unless they expected it to be up and running again, so I would guess this is more rare that they added it back to the LL pool twice after break downs without it being fully fixed/on track.


Ok, yeah this makes more sense, otherwise I feel like this would've been a much bigger deal if it was a more repeatable hack.


----------



## Mango7100

roctavia said:


> It just depends on if the ride keeps breaking down after they have it fixed... They wouldn't open it back up for LL unless they expected it to be up and running again, so I would guess this is more rare that they added it back to the LL pool twice after break downs without it being fully fixed/on track.


I’m not sure. The ride was down from about 3-4 pm and never opened back up with a park close timing of 11. We even got a push notification on the app apologizing for Pirates being offline for an extended period of time and that they were working hard to get it back up and running. But something potentially similar could be done for outdoor rides when you know there is severe weather around.


----------



## DisneySyd

godfather927 said:


> Whoa, this is a monster "hack" that could be super useful if used correctly. Wondering if this was a one-off type deal for the day you went or a common loophole that kinda flies under the radar.


I did the same thing with TSM back in March. It went down during our time so got a multi experience pass (we used it for MFSR). Managed to book it again and it went down again. My girls really wanted to  ride it so we used it for that when it came back. The next time we were back at HS I couldn’t get MMRR but TSM was available. I booked it (hoping it would go down since it had earlier in the day) and we got lucky so got to ride MMRR


----------



## snikki

Mango7100 said:


> On Saturday 4/16  we had an LL for Pirates at 530-630 which converted at 530 to a multi experience anytime LL since Pirates was down. It could not be used for PP, Jungle, Space, 7D, or character meets. Since I had noticed that Pirates had been down for a few hours, I refreshed and booked another LL for Pirates with a return time of 630.  it let me since my first LL for Pirates was converted so it doesn’t think I am booking the same ride twice.. Sure enough Pirates was still down at 630, and I got another anytime LL. So now I have 2. We used them for Big Thunder (which we had already ridden as an LL earlier) and Small World. Booked another Pirates LL for 10 pm. At 10 got another LL which was good for any park (did have slot of ride exemptions though) and it could be used the next day! Unfortunately we weren’t going to any parks the next day, so it wasn’t as valuable as it could have been. The take home point is if you see a ride down for a lengthy time, try booking it to get those multi experience LLs.



We would do this with FP+. We would also always book TT at Epcot as our tier 1 FP+ since it goes down more often than soarin.


----------



## Heidi Drum

ejgonz2 said:


> It seemed in the beginning the consensus was that G+ wasn’t worth it for Epcot. With frozen now an option, do people think it is worth it now?


I keep reading that it seems like G+ is best at Magic followed by HS. Might change though now with Guardians...


----------



## disrunner9

Has anyone noticed if the ILL drops have been shifting around more in the last week or so? In looking at Thrill Data, it seems like the Rise 7:17 drop might not be as predictable any more? After the initial 7 AM drop, today's data in looking at Rise & Remy point to a couple of drops at 7:15 and then at 7:25. Anyone been noticing something similar? Going in a few weeks and I've been trying to keep up


----------



## DisneySyd

disrunner9 said:


> Has anyone noticed if the ILL drops have been shifting around more in the last week or so? In looking at Thrill Data, it seems like the Rise 7:17 drop might not be as predictable any more? After the initial 7 AM drop, today's data in looking at Rise & Remy point to a couple of drops at 7:15 and then at 7:25. Anyone been noticing something similar? Going in a few weeks and I've been trying to keep up


Yes. It’s been inconsistent the past few days. Here are some observations from earlier on this thread:


wisblue said:


> I noticed again today that there weren’t as many times for ROTR at 7:17 as there usually have been. The first return times  that showed up were  a little later and they didn’t last that long.
> 
> But, at about 7:20, earlier times appeared (starting at 8:30 AM) and lasted longer.
> 
> So, the last two days, the window that had been opening at 7:17 has been opening around 7:20.





DisneySyd said:


> I was helping someone at Epcot today and noticed the same thing with Remy. There were two “mini drops” around 7:10 and 7:17 but less options and they went quicker. The big drop we’re used to didn’t happen until closer to 7:25. Sorry, didn’t note exact time when it started (confirming things) but there was still lots available at 7:25.
> Took a look at thrill-data, and it looks like that has happened the last 4 days.


----------



## godfather927

disrunner9 said:


> Has anyone noticed if the ILL drops have been shifting around more in the last week or so? In looking at Thrill Data, it seems like the Rise 7:17 drop might not be as predictable any more? After the initial 7 AM drop, today's data in looking at Rise & Remy point to a couple of drops at 7:15 and then at 7:25. Anyone been noticing something similar? Going in a few weeks and I've been trying to keep up


I've been watching ROTR and it seemed to have a decent drop of times at 7:23. Didn't last for long, but hopefully long enough to grab one and speed through the checkout process.


----------



## disrunner9

godfather927 said:


> I've been watching ROTR and it seemed to have a decent drop of times at 7:23. Didn't last for long, but hopefully long enough to grab one and speed through the checkout process.



Thanks (as well as @DisneySyd) for the info! I'll try practicing on MDE to see the exact timing


----------



## wonderchica

wisblue said:


> This is what we have done too. If you can do one early, like JC around 10 AM and then start booking one every 2 hours after that you can usually get 3 or 4 good ones with return times in the 5-7PM range.
> 
> If you use early entry you can do a couple of headliners before the return for JC and then try to get  others for the late afternoon or evening.


Yes, this is almost exactly what we did. We don’t like JC so we got an early LL for Splash, did early entry and hit Space and Buzz, then started stacking for the 4-8 pm range after using our first LL around 10 am.


----------



## MainMom

wonderchica said:


> Yes, this is almost exactly what we did. We don’t like JC so we got an early LL for Splash, did early entry and hit Space and Buzz, then started stacking for the 4-8 pm range after using our first LL around 10 am.


How long did it take to ride both space and buzz? I’m assuming  you did these one right after the other at Early entry.


----------



## CookieandOatmeal

Currently here at Disney now and want to thank everyone for their tips and advice. Other than having to pay $15 for safari (toddler couldn’t last to try to grab any more times), we’ve been able to use Genie+ well at MK. It really was worth the $15/person for our family to avoid line meltdowns with our two year old. I also managed to grab a Remy ILL$ by watching the clock on my watch to know when to refresh. Got the time I wanted (no time pushback!) and when I looked again after I checked out, it was sold out for the day already.


----------



## godfather927

godfather927 said:


> I've been watching ROTR and it seemed to have a decent drop of times at 7:23. Didn't last for long, but hopefully long enough to grab one and speed through the checkout process.


Same case again today with the 7:23 RotR drops. They lasted just under 2 minutes today which should be enough time to snag one if you're refreshing as soon as they drop. My mission is to focus on doing whatever it takes to get SDD on our HS day, but once that's out of the way, I'll try to get RotR too, so hopefully I can already have SDD booked before 7:23.

One other thing I noticed, on the Android app, swiping down to refresh seemed less reliable than clicking on "Change Park" and just selecting the same park again. Not sure if anyone else has noticed the same or if the iPhone app behaves similarly.


----------



## wisblue

MainMom said:


> How long did it take to ride both space and buzz? I’m assuming  you did these one right after the other at Early entry.


I’ll butt in here because we have done this too.

At ETPE our two choices are to go to Space or 7DMT first. Those are the two most popular choices and the line for 7DMT gets longer faster.

If you go to Space first and can be reasonably close to the front, you can get through the ride and over to Buzz by 8:40 or so if they open the ride right at 8:30. Of course, if you are further back in the crowd as it is led to the ride it will take longer.

Buzz has always been pretty much a walk on at that time so we are able to do that and then head to the Frontierland/Adventureland side as it opens at 9 AM. We usually like to do BTMRR and Spalsh first, though on our last trip Spalsh was down at park opening so we went to Pirates after BTMRR and before using our LL for JC. That gave us 5 good rides by about 10:15 when we started making LL reservations for later in the day.


----------



## wisblue

godfather927 said:


> Same case again today with the 7:23 RotR drops. They lasted just under 2 minutes today which should be enough time to snag one if you're refreshing as soon as they drop. My mission is to focus on doing whatever it takes to get SDD on our HS day, but once that's out of the way, I'll try to get RotR too, so hopefully I can already have SDD booked before 7:23.
> 
> One other thing I noticed, on the Android app, swiping down to refresh seemed less reliable than clicking on "Change Park" and just selecting the same park again. Not sure if anyone else has noticed the same or if the iPhone app behaves similarly.


On the refreshing I click on “Attractions and Shows” instead of swiping. I have an iPhone.

I haven’t been checking as often or as carefully because our next trip probably won’t be until next year’s marathon. But the 7:17 pattern has definitely changed since our trip in March. 

Regular refreshing should catch something as others appear at various times. Today there were some times around 7:10-7:12 and then again later as you noted.


----------



## MainMom

wisblue said:


> I’ll butt in here because we have done this too.
> 
> At ETPE our two choices are to go to Space or 7DMT first. Those are the two most popular choices and the line for 7DMT gets longer faster.
> 
> If you go to Space first and can be reasonably close to the front, you can through the ride and over to Buzz by 8:40 or so if they open the ride right at 8:30. Of course, if you are further back in the crowd as it is led to the ride it will take longer.
> 
> Buzz has always been pretty much a walk on at that time so we are able to do that and then head to the Frontierland/Adventureland side as it opens at 9 AM. We usually like to do BTMRR and Spalsh first, though on our last trip Spalsh was down at park opening so we went to Pirates after BTMRR and before using our LL for JC. That gave us 5 good rides by about 10:15 when we started making LL reservations for later in the day.


Thank you! We are staying at BLT and are early risers so we plan on being close to the front. I would love to get space and buzz done before 9.


----------



## MinneTinK

I’ve been practicing at 7am for our trip next week, HS first day with SDD being priority.  Can anyone tell or show me via screen shot what the steps are after that first screen (right now it shows me “choose eligible guests” as our tickets aren’t valid until Monday)


----------



## DisneySyd

MinneTinK said:


> I’ve been practicing at 7am for our trip next week, HS first day with SDD being priority.  Can anyone tell or show me via screen shot what the steps are after that first screen (right now it shows me “choose eligible guests” as our tickets aren’t valid until Monday)


For LL, the choose eligible guests page is the page you confirm the booking on (it will show the time you’re booking). The next page is the confirmation showing your booking.
I don’t have screenshots but if you google “step by step Genie+” there are some good YouTube videos showing the screens- they also remind you of everything you need to set up before 7am to ensure success.
Make sure you set up My Day with only SDD selected. When you go to your Tip Board before 7am, ensure SDD is at the top. If not click “edit selections” and choose only SDD.


----------



## wonderchica

MainMom said:


> How long did it take to ride both space and buzz? I’m assuming  you did these one right after the other at Early entry.


Yes. I’d say we waited 5 minutes + walked the queue for Space, then waited maybe 10 for Buzz? Long enough for me to sneak to the nearest bathroom. We headed to Adventureland after Buzz and they were letting in other park guests so I’d say we finished the first two in around 30 minutes.


----------



## orangecuse

Hopinh someone can help clarify this ILL$ question for me. 

We are not Disney Resort guests, but we are at a DS that can use the 30 min EE. In this scenario below which time can we book an $ILL for RAT 

Starting park is MK, planned hop park is Epcot. MK opens at 9, Epcot opens at 8:30. Can we book Rat at- 

A. 8:00, when EE starts for Epcot
B. 8:30, when Epcot opens
C. 9:00, when MK opens 

Hope this is clear! We will be in MK but booking Rat for an evening in Epcot.


----------



## Gentry2004

orangecuse said:


> Hopinh someone can help clarify this ILL$ question for me.
> 
> We are not Disney Resort guests, but we are at a DS that can use the 30 min EE. In this scenario below which time can we book an $ILL for RAT
> 
> Starting park is MK, planned hop park is Epcot. MK opens at 9, Epcot opens at 8:30. Can we book Rat at-
> 
> A. 8:00, when EE starts for Epcot
> B. 8:30, when Epcot opens
> C. 9:00, when MK opens
> 
> Hope this is clear! We will be in MK but booking Rat for an evening in Epcot.



I thought the DS hotels with ETPE also get 7am ILL$ booking. Is that not correct? I obviously haven’t been yet.


----------



## CJK

Gentry2004 said:


> I thought the DS hotels with ETPE also get 7am ILL$ booking. Is that not correct? I obviously haven’t been yet.


Sadly, no. They have to book ILL$ at official park opening.


----------



## DisneySyd

orangecuse said:


> Hopinh someone can help clarify this ILL$ question for me.
> 
> We are not Disney Resort guests, but we are at a DS that can use the 30 min EE. In this scenario below which time can we book an $ILL for RAT
> 
> Starting park is MK, planned hop park is Epcot. MK opens at 9, Epcot opens at 8:30. Can we book Rat at-
> 
> A. 8:00, when EE starts for Epcot
> B. 8:30, when Epcot opens
> C. 9:00, when MK opens
> 
> Hope this is clear! We will be in MK but booking Rat for an evening in Epcot.


B. - it is at regular park opening time for the park the ride is located in


----------



## orangecuse

DisneySyd said:


> B. - it is at regular park opening time for the park the ride is located in


Thank you!!


----------



## lynzi2004

Our experience with Space and Buzz in March. Got to MK around 7:50, first time there in 20ish years for some of our group so we took some time to take in the sights and gets some pics. We went over to the Tomorrowland entrance around 8:10 I would say and were lined up right under the sign to Tomorrowland. It was nothing like the 7DMT madness but definitely more packed than I was expecting. By the time the rope dropped it was shoulder to shoulder from somewhere around the Laugh floor all the way back across the bridge And fanned towards the Hub. The advantage/problem with Space (depending on which camp you are in) is that the walkway to actually get to Space is huge. So once your out of the bottle neck, there is some jockeying for position. If you have a later arrival, you can make up time. If you arrival early, you will still need to “get with it” to keep towards the front. No one was running necessarily but we hurried over there, party of 3 with tweens and we walked the que and got right on.  But after we got off Space, the line said 60 min and they were lined up almost to the Lunching Pad…so minutes really do matter even when rope dropping Space. My guess is their wait wasn’t actually that long but it would be disheartening to be in the position if you were hoping to knock out things early. No wait for Buzz afterwards.


----------



## MainMom

lynzi2004 said:


> Our experience with Space and Buzz in March. Got to MK around 7:50, first time there in 20ish years for some of our group so we took some time to take in the sights and gets some pics. We went over to the Tomorrowland entrance around 8:10 I would say and were lined up right under the sign to Tomorrowland. It was nothing like the 7DMT madness but definitely more packed than I was expecting. By the time the rope dropped it was shoulder to shoulder from somewhere around the Laugh floor all the way back across the bridge And fanned towards the Hub. The advantage/problem with Space (depending on which camp you are in) is that the walkway to actually get to Space is huge. So once your out of the bottle neck, there is some jockeying for position. If you have a later arrival, you can make up time. If you arrival early, you will still need to “get with it” to keep towards the front. No one was running necessarily but we hurried over there, party of 3 with tweens and we walked the que and got right on.  But after we got off Space, the line said 60 min and they were lined up almost to the Lunching Pad…so minutes really do matter even when rope dropping Space. My guess is their wait wasn’t actually that long but it would be disheartening to be in the position if you were hoping to knock out things early. No wait for Buzz afterwards.


5 of 7 of my party are good at keeping up with the crowd. The other 2 meander. Hopefully I can get them to keep up.


----------



## wisblue

lynzi2004 said:


> Our experience with Space and Buzz in March. Got to MK around 7:50, first time there in 20ish years for some of our group so we took some time to take in the sights and gets some pics. We went over to the Tomorrowland entrance around 8:10 I would say and were lined up right under the sign to Tomorrowland. It was nothing like the 7DMT madness but definitely more packed than I was expecting. By the time the rope dropped it was shoulder to shoulder from somewhere around the Laugh floor all the way back across the bridge And fanned towards the Hub. The advantage/problem with Space (depending on which camp you are in) is that the walkway to actually get to Space is huge. So once your out of the bottle neck, there is some jockeying for position. If you have a later arrival, you can make up time. If you arrival early, you will still need to “get with it” to keep towards the front. No one was running necessarily but we hurried over there, party of 3 with tweens and we walked the que and got right on.  But after we got off Space, the line said 60 min and they were lined up almost to the Lunching Pad…so minutes really do matter even when rope dropping Space. My guess is their wait wasn’t actually that long but it would be disheartening to be in the position if you were hoping to knock out things early. No wait for Buzz afterwards.


There definitely is a lot of jockeying for position once the rope drops for Space.

We are usually close to the front and you have to move quickly just to hold your position relative to the people from further back who try to elbow ahead or outflank the group as the walking area opens up. How easy it can be to do that can depend on how aggressive the cast members are at scolding people who try to move ahead of them by sweeping to the sides.

I also doubt if the actual wait is 60 minutes when you exit and the line extends outside the attraction. But it’s going to take significantly longer than just walking through the queue.


----------



## ckelly14

Just back and will say that Genie+ is a bit of a pain but it seemed to work out well with our touring style.  We were a group of mostly adults with my elderly parents so we never got to the parks before noon.  Generally we were satisfied with the 3-4  rides that we had LL access for or short waits.  

Evening extended hours started great at MK but the kids only rode SM once.  There was a HUGE line to get check for eligibility as the were using handheld scanners to verify.

Rode with LL:

MK- PPF, HM, Pirates, BTMR, SDMT
Epcot- Soarin', Rat, Frozen
AK: FOP, Navi, EE, Safari
DHS: RotR, Smugglers, RnRC

Really half day in most parks so we were OK with what we received.


----------



## Gentry2004

ckelly14 said:


> Just back and will say that Genie+ is a bit of a pain but it seemed to work out well with our touring style.  We were a group of mostly adults with my elderly parents so we never got to the parks before noon.  Generally we were satisfied with the 3-4  rides that we had LL access for or short waits.
> 
> Evening extended hours started great at MK but the kids only rode SM once.  There was a HUGE line to get check for eligibility as the were using handheld scanners to verify.
> 
> Rode with LL:
> 
> MK- PPF, HM, Pirates, BTMR, SDMT
> Epcot- Soarin', Rat, Frozen
> AK: FOP, Navi, EE, Safari
> DHS: RotR, Smugglers, RnRC
> 
> Really half day in most parks so we were OK with what we received.


Has EE reopened?


----------



## Tess

Gentry2004 said:


> Has EE reopened?


Yes.


----------



## jsmla

Saturday 5/24

I drove to Orlando and spent the night in Tallahassee so I was around four hours away from Disney.  At 7:00 I purchased an ILL for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train with a 7:00 pm return time and headed out.  The return times for Peter Pan were still to early so I ended up pulling over a couple of times to check Genie +.  I ended up booking Peter Pan (5:15 R/T) at 11:31 and Big Thunder (5:05 R/T) at 1:31.  At 3:32 I booked Haunted Mansion (6:05 R/T). 

I arrived at Ft Wilderness a little after noon, checked in and got the van all set up for the week before I left for the MK around 4:00(ish). 

Tomorrowland was my first stop.  The Peoplemover was down and being evacuated so I headed over to Carousel of Progress.  I was able to walk into the next theater just as the doors opened.  I always enjoy this and haven’t seen it since the pandemic.

Next stop was the Peoplemover.  It was just reopening so the line was pretty short.  I may have waited five minutes, if that.  I LOVE the Peoplemover, it’s so Zen.

Peter Pan was next.  I used my LL and was on in 8 minutes.  The posted wait was 70.

At 5:34 I booked Genie + for Pirates of the Caribbean with a 5:50 return time before heading to Big Thunder Mt.  The published wait was 35 minutes.  I waited 8.

After Big Thunder I rode Pirates of the Caribbean with my LL booking.  Pirates had a 25 minute wait posted. It was basically a walk on with LL.

Since Pirates was my most recently booked LL I was able to get  a LL for Buzz Lightyear (6:15 R/T) right after tapping in at Pirates.

Haunted Mansion was next.  I used my LL and was on in 7 minutes.  The posted wait was 25.

After Haunted Mansion I used my final LL booking at Buzz Lightyear.  Out of curiosity I tried to get another LL (SmallWorld) after my Buzz window opened (but before I tapped in) but wasn’t allowed until I had tapped in at Buzz.

Mine Train was my final ride of the evening.  I got in line at 7:15 and was on in less than five minutes.  I believe standby was around 90 minutes.  I thought this was well worth the $12 price for solo me.  I’m not sure how I would feel if paying for a family.


----------



## TheSouthernBelle

ckelly14 said:


> Just back and will say that Genie+ is a bit of a pain but it seemed to work out well with our touring style.  We were a group of mostly adults with my elderly parents so we never got to the parks before noon.  Generally we were satisfied with the 3-4  rides that we had LL access for or short waits.
> 
> Evening extended hours started great at MK but the kids only rode SM once.  There was a HUGE line to get check for eligibility as the were using handheld scanners to verify.
> 
> Rode with LL:
> 
> MK- PPF, HM, Pirates, BTMR, SDMT
> Epcot- Soarin', Rat, Frozen
> AK: FOP, Navi, EE, Safari
> DHS: RotR, Smugglers, RnRC
> 
> Really half day in most parks so we were OK with what we received.


We had a similar experience with EEH at MK. My girls got on SM with little to no wait early in the evening around 10p but by 11:30 or so the line was so so long backing up to Astro orbiter. I am not sure if they need more CM to help expedite the lines for EEH but we tapped out around 12:30a. We did 7DMT twice that night and the line moved pretty quickly, 15 min wait one time and 10 min the second time. Posted waits were 55 min and 40 min respectively. 

We also did later days too but not because of elderly parents, it was teenage girls that sleep in and take forever to get ready LOL!


----------



## TheSouthernBelle

We were at the parks last week and felt like crowd wise, it was heavy but not anymore crowded than I was expecting. Surprisingly, our most crowded feels like day was MK (4/20) which I was not expecting. MK G+ is easy to navigate and you can get decent G+ into mid/late afternoon, unlike DHS, since there are so many more rides. We were not into doing PP or Jungle via G+ and knew we'd ride 7DMT/SM during EEH so we prioritized BTMRR and Splash. 

We also arrived late to the park at around 11:30am- anyone planning to arrive early and get earlier G+ times could really knock it out of the park at MK and probably get 6/7 G+ fairly easily, especially if you don't mind back tracking some.

11:15a- BTMRR G+
11:45a- Splash Standby (wait was short since it was just coming back online)
1:30p-pirates G+
2:15p People mover
3:45p Barnstormer
4:40p Little mermaid G+
5p- tea cups standby
6:20p Haunted G+
7p- PP standby
7:30p IASW standby
8:30p Little mermaid...again
8:35p Buzz G+
9p Astro standy
9:30p SM standby
10p- 7DMT standby
10:30p SM....again
11p 7DMT....again

We were at DHS on Thursday, 4/21 and planned a half'ish day since we were up till 2a the night before at MK EEH.

I was able to secure an early eve iLL$ for SWROR and SDD, and did my best to build a midday touring plan around that pretty easily. I'm not an advanced MDE/Genie user at all and even with oddball glitches the morning of and felt decent about getting the 4 G+ we got. Everything else we really wanted to ride, we did standby and I'd say our longest wait was TOT at 55 min. We arrived around 2p and left around 9:30p. We are not into the shows and really the only ride we missed and would have liked to do was MMRR but we'll be back soon enough. MMRR had times in the late afternoon but I didn't book them since we were in the TOT line. All that standby time gave me lots of refresh time and there are some G+ that do come back throughout the day so do make sure to keep checking.  

Here was our hobbled together day- I was able to get SDD at 7:03a and SWROR at 7:11a. 

2p- Star tours standby
3p- Lightening McQueen standby
3:35p G+ Aerosmith
4pm-TOT standby
5:55p- SWROR iLL$
7p- Smugglers standby
7:15p- SDD G+
7:40p-TSM G+
9p-TOT standby

Epcot on 4/22, did not use G+ but did purchase Remy iLL$, totally spaced out and missed 7a booking time but was able to get 8:40a Remy at 7:30a.


----------



## ckelly14

TheSouthernBelle said:


> We also did later days too but not because of elderly parents, it was teenage girls that sleep in and take forever to get ready LOL!


We had both!

For Space, it looks like the scanner didn't work very quickly and there was only one person checking in.  Seemed a bit ridiculous.


----------



## dnguyen8

We have group of 10 with all kids under 5. Reading the thread is there a reason why most of the Genie+ return times are mid/later afternoon? We were gonna hit the parks early and wanted to use Genie+ to get times in the AM/early afternoon.


----------



## TheSouthernBelle

dnguyen8 said:


> We have group of 10 with all kids under 5. Reading the thread is there a reason why most of the Genie+ return times are mid/later afternoon? We were gonna hit the parks early and wanted to use Genie+ to get times in the AM/early afternoon.


G+ doesn't let you choose your time so you get what Disney gives you or if you pass on the times and refresh, you run the risk of the next available times being earlier/later, but more times than not later as the day goes on and more people book their G+. If you can, try to book your first G+ as early as possible if you plan to be in the parks early so you can then book your next G+ earlier than others. Our G+ times were mostly later in the day since we did not plan on being in the parks early on. 

You can play the "refresh to death" gamble and sometimes you will randomly get an earlier time if the system adds more G+ or people cancel but it's not like iLL$ where you can select your time. 

Also, a party of 10 has no bearing on G+ bookings, the system will provide the same results for small to larger groups.


----------



## 3gr8boys

dnguyen8 said:


> We have group of 10 with all kids under 5. Reading the thread is there a reason why most of the Genie+ return times are mid/later afternoon? We were gonna hit the parks early and wanted to use Genie+ to get times in the AM/early afternoon.



(ETA- this is applicable to MK most of all as it has the most rides.  There are a decent variety of ride/attraction LLs to be had at AK and Epcot. HS is tough because so many of the rides are "headliners." )
There will be morning LLs available when you start booking Genie+ LLs.  But that early availability will be short lived for some rides.  You strategy may prioritize popular rides that push your LLs later in the day more quickly, or you may be able to keep your group happy with rides that have better LL availability early in the day.


----------



## Disturbia

scrappinginontario said:


> Curious, are the times changing after you hit your final acceptance?
> 
> When I was there in Feb the times changed up until I hit my final confirmation page but then when I confirmed they were the same as the screen where I chose to accept.
> 
> Has that changed recently?


I was watching a video by allears.  Molly clicked on 9:30 am for SDMT (LLIA$) and after she hit payment the time she received was 7:25 pm (7:28 mins into the video).  It was displayed as 9:30 am on the payment screen


----------



## scrappinginontario

Disturbia said:


> I was watching a video by allears.  Molly clicked on 9:30 am for SDMT (LLIA$) and after she hit payment the time she received was 7:25 pm (7:28 mins into the video).  It was displayed as 9:30 am on the payment screen


I believe it happened but am wondering how much of that had to do with her being a non-resort guest and unable to purchase until 9AM which meant most were gone so very few were available.  Still not good at all though, especially when paying for it!


----------



## Princess_K

I’ve been in Disney the last few days and tomorrow is the first Individual Lightning Lane we plan to buy (Remy’s).  Is the later drop (ie 7:17-7:23) still happening?  Haven’t been able to stalk the recent days’ drops like I had been doing before we left.


----------



## ci1025

Princess_K said:


> I’ve been in Disney the last few days and tomorrow is the first Individual Lightning Lane we plan to buy (Remy’s).  Is the later drop (ie 7:17-7:23) still happening?  Haven’t been able to stalk the recent days’ drops like I had been doing before we left.


I checked this morning and the drop was at approximately 7:11. I would start refreshing a bit earlier


----------



## dnguyen8

3gr8boys said:


> (ETA- this is applicable to MK most of all as it has the most rides.  There are a decent variety of ride/attraction LLs to be had at AK and Epcot. HS is tough because so many of the rides are "headliners." )
> There will be morning LLs available when you start booking Genie+ LLs.  But that early availability will be short lived for some rides.  You strategy may prioritize popular rides that push your LLs later in the day more quickly, or you may be able to keep your group happy with rides that have better LL availability early in the day.



Interesting so to clarify if we book a less in demand ride we could potentially get say 9-10am return time. Ride it then go back to G+ and find another one. Not have to wait for the  opening+ 120 min rule ie 11am to book the next ride?


----------



## 3gr8boys

dnguyen8 said:


> Interesting so to clarify if we book a less in demand ride we could potentially get say 9-10am return time. Ride it then go back to G+ and find another one. Not have to wait for the  opening+ 120 min rule ie 11am to book the next ride?



Yes,  this is possible (especially in MK).  For our MK mornings we booked SM LLs both times with morning  (9:30ish I think...booked closer to 7:10 than 7:00).  SM is one of the rides that can push later early, but there are plenty that don't.  If you can tap into your first LL before 120 minutes after park open hits, you will have bigger selection and earlier times to choose from  because you are ahead of the people that have to wait for that 120 minute mark because their first LL window opens later.


----------



## TheSouthernBelle

Princess_K said:


> I’ve been in Disney the last few days and tomorrow is the first Individual Lightning Lane we plan to buy (Remy’s).  Is the later drop (ie 7:17-7:23) still happening?  Haven’t been able to stalk the recent days’ drops like I had been doing before we left.


Definitely keep checking but yes the later drop is still occurring. Was at Epcot last friday and bought Remy at 7:21am, got 8:40a iLL$ return time.


----------



## Disturbia

We will probably see a premier pass coming soon (90 Euros in Paris)

https://wdwnt.com/2022/04/confirmed...ultimate-to-skip-the-lines-at-12-attractions/

For 5 of us it would be $3,150 for a week.  I suppose it would force people to shorten trips and Disney would make more money by reduced ticket discounts (day 5+ tickets are cheaper) for longer trips.


----------



## FunnyLady1966

TheSouthernBelle said:


> We were at the parks last week and felt like crowd wise, it was heavy but not anymore crowded than I was expecting. Surprisingly, our most crowded feels like day was MK (4/20) which I was not expecting. MK G+ is easy to navigate and you can get decent G+ into mid/late afternoon, unlike DHS, since there are so many more rides. We were not into doing PP or Jungle via G+ and knew we'd ride 7DMT/SM during EEH so we prioritized BTMRR and Splash.
> 
> We also arrived late to the park at around 11:30am- anyone planning to arrive early and get earlier G+ times could really knock it out of the park at MK and probably get 6/7 G+ fairly easily, especially if you don't mind back tracking some.
> 
> 11:15a- BTMRR G+
> 11:45a- Splash Standby (wait was short since it was just coming back online)
> 1:30p-pirates G+
> 2:15p People mover
> 3:45p Barnstormer
> 4:40p Little mermaid G+
> 5p- tea cups standby
> 6:20p Haunted G+
> 7p- PP standby
> 7:30p IASW standby
> 8:30p Little mermaid...again
> 8:35p Buzz G+
> 9p Astro standy
> 9:30p SM standby
> 10p- 7DMT standby
> 10:30p SM....again
> 11p 7DMT....again
> 
> We were at DHS on Thursday, 4/21 and planned a half'ish day since we were up till 2a the night before at MK EEH.
> 
> I was able to secure an early eve iLL$ for SWROR and SDD, and did my best to build a midday touring plan around that pretty easily. I'm not an advanced MDE/Genie user at all and even with oddball glitches the morning of and felt decent about getting the 4 G+ we got. Everything else we really wanted to ride, we did standby and I'd say our longest wait was TOT at 55 min. We arrived around 2p and left around 9:30p. We are not into the shows and really the only ride we missed and would have liked to do was MMRR but we'll be back soon enough. MMRR had times in the late afternoon but I didn't book them since we were in the TOT line. All that standby time gave me lots of refresh time and there are some G+ that do come back throughout the day so do make sure to keep checking.
> 
> Here was our hobbled together day- I was able to get SDD at 7:03a and SWROR at 7:11a.
> 
> 2p- Star tours standby
> 3p- Lightening McQueen standby
> 3:35p G+ Aerosmith
> 4pm-TOT standby
> 5:55p- SWROR iLL$
> 7p- Smugglers standby
> 7:15p- SDD G+
> 7:40p-TSM G+
> 9p-TOT standby
> 
> Epcot on 4/22, did not use G+ but did purchase Remy iLL$, totally spaced out and missed 7a booking time but was able to get 8:40a Remy at 7:30a.


So what is the total you're spending on G+ and iLL$ per person? I still can't wrap my head around paying extra to ride a ride I've already bought a ticket for. This is frustrating to me.


----------



## Disturbia

FunnyLady1966 said:


> So what is the total you're spending on G+ and iLL$ per person? I still can't wrap my head around paying extra to ride a ride I've already bought a ticket for. This is frustrating to me.


Currently per person it’s $15 for Genie+ and one LLIA (approx $12) per park (until August 7).  Tax extra.

For 4 people for 7 days it’s about $756

That’s about to triple (to $2520 if they make it $90 for 12 rides like Paris) when they make it a package (maybe after August 7). 

I can see this change being applicable to Disneyland but at WDW, Epcot and AK don’t have that many rides; HS they might justify it with shows

https://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2022...d-for-a-limited-number-of-disney-world-rides/


----------



## FunnyLady1966

Disturbia said:


> Currently per person it’s $15 for Genie+ and one LLIA (approx $12) per park (until August 7).  Tax extra.
> 
> For 4 people for 7 days it’s about $756
> 
> That’s about to triple (to $2520 if they make it $90 for 12 rides like Paris) when they make it a package (maybe after August 7)
> 
> https://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2022...d-for-a-limited-number-of-disney-world-rides/


So you spent almot $800 extra after your tickets? I. Can't. Even.


----------



## Disturbia

FunnyLady1966 said:


> So you spent almot $800 extra after your tickets? I. Can't. Even.


Yes.  Instead of waiting 2-3 hours for one ride like we did back in June 2021

Btw this is a usage only thread so our posts will be deleted


----------



## FunnyLady1966

Disturbia said:


> Yes.  Instead of waiting 2-3 hours for one ride like we did back in June 2021
> 
> Btw this is a usage only thread so our posts will be deleted


I appreciate your honesty. I guess in the long run it will come down to why go if we can't ride the rides... so yes, the extra money guarantees that. Thanks


----------



## TheSouthernBelle

FunnyLady1966 said:


> So what is the total you're spending on G+ and iLL$ per person? I still can't wrap my head around paying extra to ride a ride I've already bought a ticket for. This is frustrating to me.


I am with you and it's not fun to pay for what was once free. 

I equate it to the fact that even when it was included, riding certain rides like SWROR, was never guaranteed. It was virtual queue only and sometimes we'd never even get it and we had no standby. So at least now, barring breakdown, we know we'll ride it.

For everything else that's less in demand, I chalk it up to all the recent inflationary rising costs and WDW being a business and monetizing something that they know people will pay for. We're 4 so SWROR was $63 with tax @ $15pp, Remy was the cheaper iLL$ $43 w tax @ $11 pp but I've also seen it around $9pp, have not seen SWROR for less than $15. G+ for the day is always $15pp plus tax per day. We only did two G+ days. Total G+ expenses were less than $240 for 2 park days. I would not use it for Epcot and AK so even if we spent a full week at WDW, I would only purchase it for my DHS and MK days right now and if I devoted more than 1 day to either of those parks, I would not purchase G+ both days but I might do an iLL$. 

I also saw where DL Paris is rolling out a premium skipping the line service that would be into the hundreds for a few days PP so it's possible that's also coming down the line.

Overall, I don't hate G+, do I love it, not really but for me, I feel like I didn't spend a ton of time on my phone being the family planner for my group and definitely not anymore when we had FP+. My biggest complaints are the glitchy factor and having to wake at 7am to plan my day on my vacay.


----------



## TheSouthernBelle

FunnyLady1966 said:


> So you spent almot $800 extra after your tickets? I. Can't. Even.


I would not pre-purchase it for an entire trip so unless someone is doing a YOLO once and lifetime, done never going again trip, I would strongly suggest most guests not buy G+ for the entirety of their trip for all days tix. Few extenuating circumstances but it's not really beneficial in the parks with fewer rides right now.


----------



## FunnyLady1966

Disturbia said:


> Currently per person it’s $15 for Genie+ and one LLIA (approx $12) per park (until August 7).  Tax extra.
> 
> For 4 people for 7 days it’s about $756
> 
> That’s about to triple (to $2520 if they make it $90 for 12 rides like Paris) when they make it a package (maybe after August 7).
> 
> I can see this change being applicable to Disneyland but at WDW, Epcot and AK don’t have that many rides; HS they might justify it with shows
> 
> https://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2022...d-for-a-limited-number-of-disney-world-rides/


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

FunnyLady1966 said:


> So you spent almot $800 extra after your tickets? I. Can't. Even.


Another option is to just wait for the end of the day when the lines are the shortest.  Most, if not all, of the ILL attractions will get down to actual waits of 20 minutes or less close to closing time.

Just keep in mind that posted wait times are intentionally inflated late in the day to discourage late riders.

This may be a better option for some than spending an extra $800.


----------



## FunnyLady1966

Babe the Blue Ox said:


> Another option is to just wait for the end of the day when the lines are the shortest.  Most, if not all, of the ILL attractions will get down to actual waits of 20 minutes or less close to closing time.
> 
> Just keep in mind that posted wait times are intentionally inflated late in the day to discourage late riders.
> 
> This may be a better option for some than spending an extra $800.


You know...I think we're going to do that go to the parks after lunch thing and try to do all the walk on's and shows we can the first day and see how that works out for us. I just can't justify that kind of money. Great idea.


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

FunnyLady1966 said:


> You know...I think we're going to do that go to the parks after lunch thing and try to do all the walk on's and shows we can the first day and see how that works out for us. I just can't justify that kind of money. Great idea.


Just for an example, I checked the stats from last night for Rise.  The posted wait time a half hour before close was 35 minutes.  I would expect that the actual wait was even less,

We often find the posted wait to be up to 4x the actual wait as closing time approaches.


----------



## FunnyLady1966

Babe the Blue Ox said:


> Just for an example, I checked the stats from last night for Rise.  The posted wait time a half hour before close was 35 minutes.  I would expect that the actual wait was even less,
> 
> We often find the posted wait to be up to 4x the actual wait as closing time approaches.


My daughter and her family are going in Nov this year. They're using this approach and they said the parks will be less crowded and shorter wait times after 5. Thanks for the tip!!


----------



## scrappinginontario

FunnyLady1966 said:


> So you spent almot $800 extra after your tickets? I. Can't. Even.


It's purely optional though.  We went in Jan/Feb (12yo and myself) and spent a total of $90 for the 2 of us to have G+ for 3 days.  Rode everything we wanted including RotR twice, 7DMT, Remy x 2 and FoP.  We didn't pay for any of those.  We either rope dropped them or, rode them at the end of the day.  Both worked well and I ended out coming out ahead as I dropped our park hoppers (which we didn't miss) so in the end paid less than we'd originally planned.


----------



## snikki

Remember you can ride rides without G+. You aren’t paying to ride the rides, you’re paying to skip the line. I have family and friends that have gone and will be going and didn’t/won’t purchase G+ and they had a great time. They utilized RD and late nights and it worked for them.


----------



## LiveLikeJack&Sally

Does anyone know if you are an on-site guest, but it is the day of your checkout can you still purchase an ILL$ at 7am?  I am assuming yes, but could not find this answer when doing a search.  Looking to maybe purchase RoTR the day we leave and just want to make sure that is an option.


----------



## redboat45

LiveLikeJack&Sally said:


> Does anyone know if you are an on-site guest, but it is the day of your checkout can you still purchase an ILL$ at 7am?  I am assuming yes, but could not find this answer when doing a search.  Looking to maybe purchase RoTR the day we leave and just want to make sure that is an option.


yes you can.


----------



## LiveLikeJack&Sally

redboat45 said:


> yes you can.


Thank you!


----------



## godfather927

After having experienced Genie+ firsthand, I gotta say, at $15/ticket it's a steal given how much time we were able to save by skipping those lines. Obviously cost and time are valued very subjectively by different people, but for us, it was worth every penny.  In fact, I'd probably pay twice as much under two conditions: they address their maintenance issues that are causing so many rides to be down for so long, and if they let you book a desired time (like $ILL) rather than first available times. 

After the 3rd and 4th days of skipping so many standby lines, some of which were in unbearable heat, me and my wife each said to each other that we couldn't possibly imagine waiting in those lines to save $15. When it's 89 degrees, but feels like 95 with humidity and sun, I'll pay just about anything for relief with two kids in tow.


----------



## Disturbia

scrappinginontario said:


> I believe it happened but am wondering how much of that had to do with her being a non-resort guest and unable to purchase until 9AM which meant most were gone so very few were available.  Still not good at all though, especially when paying for it!


The system showed availability (although on her screen only 2 options were available, so maybe it was a cancellation-CM told me cancellation would show availability but then it could be just for 2, but you can’t grab it for your party of 5); at that point it didn’t matter if she was offsite or on site. I was on site and it happened to me.  I clicked 9:30 am and it gave me something that conflicted with my 5 pm dinner.

I went to the lobby (crazy hair and all) and had to wait 30+ mins in a line and a CM was able to change it.  At 7:17 am more slots opened up so get to the front desk (if not rope dropping) quickly (so before the non resort guests start taking up the LLIA$ availability).

GET told me my party size was the issue hence the following error message (I clicked on an available time but we were 4 riders; I saw this message for other rides as well):


----------



## NashvilleMama

Just wrapped up first day and made a major rookie G+ stacking mistake despite, what I thought, was tons of ample research and strategizing. I was beyond ticked at myself.

Added G+ at 11pm CST last night, one less thing to worry about this morning before our early flight.

6am CST successfully got ILL for 7DMT and G+ for splash which was my groups number one priority.

Flew to Orlando.

Landed a bit early and just in time for an 11am EST G+ LL, grabbed Pirates since the time was perfect for when we’d get into the park.

Then I got nervous as we were on the monorail and realized our splash and pirates overlap too close to likely make both. So I cancelled splash as I saw a better splash time just a bit further out.

Nope. Can’t do that. I couldn’t make another G+ LL until after pirates, not having realized the order of them mattered. Even stopped by guest services umbrella stand (love how many there are all over MK) and confirmed and she was basically like yeah you screwed up.

That said: crowds were surprisingly low today and we did an AMAZING amount for having arrived in the park around 11:45am.

LL Pirates
Dumbo 
Under the Sea 
Carousel of Progress
People Mover
Tea cups
Barnstormer
BOG meal (ugh. So not worth it.)
ILL 7DMT
LL splash
BTMRR -said 40 mins took 15
LL Small World
LL Buzz Lightyear
Space - said 40 took 75. Almost died but worth it in the end. Kids’ favorite ride to end the night.
Fireworks were just starting, watched for a short bit then beat the crowds to monorail/TTC/drive to resort.

Phew. I am STILL not confident with G+ (clearly) and while the benefits are for sure worth it, it really shouldn’t be this complicated. They just messed this up big time.


----------



## Jacq7414

scrappinginontario said:


> I believe it happened but am wondering how much of that had to do with her being a non-resort guest and unable to purchase until 9AM which meant most were gone so very few were available.  Still not good at all though, especially when paying for it!


I was a resort guest and doing it at 7 am. On my payment screen I had a 10 am (or whatever it was) for flight of passage. After my payment went through it was 445 pm! I was so pissed


----------



## scrappinginontario

Jacq7414 said:


> I was a resort guest and doing it at 7 am. On my payment screen I had a 10 am (or whatever it was) for flight of passage. After my payment went through it was 445 pm! I was so pissed


Yes, this happens daily.  The way the system is set up everyone is eligible at 7AM to book LL reservations and have no choice of return times so all clicking at 7AM see the same return time.  It’s a poorly designed system which needs a lot of work to make it more user friendly.


----------



## bloomcruisers

I start my trip tomorrow and will have my first park day on Monday. I've been reading these threads for months. This morning tried to access Genie+ as a test to see how to do it but can only find the link to buy it, not any way to see what is available. Maybe I am misremembering but I thought somewhere in these boards people talked about practicing how to get in to perfect timing and being able to see availability. I have tickets and park reservations but have not purchased genie+ yet. Is there a way to practice or am I just overloaded with info and confused? And if you can check, is there a step by step guide somewhere, because I'm just not seeing the link.


----------



## cjlong88

bloomcruisers said:


> I start my trip tomorrow and will have my first park day on Monday. I've been reading these threads for months. This morning tried to access Genie+ as a test to see how to do it but can only find the link to buy it, not any way to see what is available. Maybe I am misremembering but I thought somewhere in these boards people talked about practicing how to get in to perfect timing and being able to see availability. I have tickets and park reservations but have not purchased genie+ yet. Is there a way to practice or am I just overloaded with info and confused?


Maybe you’re thinking about the Tip Board? You can track the LL return times throughout the day to see which attractions are pushed to later the quickest or run out first. I like to refresh the Tip Board to see if sold out LL’s pop up or if earlier return times appear (they do on both accounts). Other than that I don’t think there is really any other way to practice.


----------



## 3gr8boys

On the MDE app, hit the + button in the bottom center and select "view ....the tip board." Choices at top of the screen should now be Tip Board and My Day.  Tip Board is where you see what LLs are available.   My Day is where you select the attractions  that will be prioritized when you look at the tip board.


----------



## bloomcruisers

Yes thank you. It is the tip board I am looking for. Thanks for the quick guide!


----------



## Stater2002

We were at the parks 4 days this past week and were surprisingly very successful considering it is the tail end of Spring Break.  We had a strategy for Check-in day last Sunday of hanging at the pool (we stayed at the Beach Club) and then walking in to hit Remy, Frozen and Harmonious.  This worked very well, I was able to get evening times at 7am on Check-in day, and this opened up our Monday 4/25 Epcot day where we could LL everything else in the park because those two were out of the way.  We did MK on Tuesday 4/26 and were able to get Space, Buzz, Pirates, Little Mermaid, Haunted Mansion, Small World and Aladdin Carpets with LL.  We also purchased Mine Train, and did standby for Pooh and AstroOrbiters.  Studios on 4/27 we accomplished Slinky, MMRR, Toy Story Mania, Saucers with LL plus we purchased Rise.  Did we get on everything? No, but I feel like we accomplished a ton due to G+ and my kids were extremely happy being able to skip the line on so many rides.  It worked better than I honestly expected, with only one issue of time skipping with Rise that the Blue Umbrellas fixed because it conflicted with an ADR


----------



## Disturbia

scrappinginontario said:


> Yes, this happens daily.  The way the system is set up everyone is eligible at 7AM to book LL reservations and have no choice of return times so all clicking at 7AM see the same return time.  It’s a poorly designed system which needs a lot of work to make it more user friendly.


I agree.  I was buying SDMT (LLIA$) so it was before non resort guests start buying and this still happened, so it’s competitive even among resort guests who have early entry access.

The only way to remedy this would be increasing prices, which I’m sure is on the horizon.


----------



## RLGNC

Babe the Blue Ox said:


> We often find the posted wait to be up to 4x the actual wait as closing time approaches.


This is good info to keep in mind!


----------



## Disturbia

FunnyLady1966 said:


> My daughter and her family are going in Nov this year. They're using this approach and they said the parks will be less crowded and shorter wait times after 5. Thanks for the tip!!


Depends on when in Nov.  There is Jersey week (11/6-12), runDisney events (wine & dine half marathon 11/3-6) and the end of Food & Wine (11/19) and first day of Christmas celebrations (maybe 11/6?) which gets super busy with bloggers.  I’m assuming you’re avoiding Thanskgiving.


----------



## Disturbia

RLGNC said:


> This is good info to keep in mind!


Be careful as FOP posted was 45 so we thought we would be done in 20-30 and have enough time to hop over to Navi; the wait was over 60 mins.


----------



## Miffy

Disturbia said:


> I agree.  I was buying SDMT (LLIA$) so it was before non resort guests start buying and this still happened, so it’s competitive even among resort guests who have early entry access.
> 
> The only way to remedy this would be increasing prices, which I’m sure is on the horizon.


There are many ways to remedy this, and increasing prices isn't one of them. The most logical way to fix it would be that the system would hold the time you chose for a certain amount of time until the transaction was complete. If Ticketmaster can do this, there's no reason Disney can't.


----------



## Disturbia

Miffy said:


> There are many ways to remedy this, and increasing prices isn't one of them. The most logical way to fix it would be that the system would hold the time you chose for a certain amount of time until the transaction was complete. If Ticketmaster can do this, there's no reason Disney can't.


Even better would be if we were allowed to book our first (or 2) Genie+ pass and up to 2 LLIA$ (so 3 rides) 10 days (typical trip length) in advance at 7 am EST.

There is no reason to have people scramble every morning while on vacation and in flight (yes I booked Frozen after crazy refreshing for over an hour, right before I had to turn my phone into airplane mode).  I had booked Remy and Test Track at 7 am.

After the release of pay per ride at Paris, Genie+ was introduced at WDW a few months later, hence the speculation that paid package option is coming


----------



## Jrb1979

Disturbia said:


> Even better would be if we were allowed to book our first (or 2) Genie+ pass and up to 2 LLIA$ (so 3 rides) 10 days (typical trip length) in advance at 7 am EST.
> 
> There is no reason to have people scramble every morning while on vacation and in flight (yes I booked Frozen after crazy refreshing for over an hour, right before I had to turn my phone into airplane mode).  I had booked Remy and Test Track at 7 am.
> 
> After the release of pay per ride at Paris, Genie+ was introduced at WDW a few months later, hence the speculation that paid package option is coming


Might as well bring back FP+ at that rate. I personally think they should have went to Universal route and get rid of return times. To make it work limit how many people can purchase it.


----------



## ICEMAN3205

I'm sure this has been mentioned several times, but...
Just got back from the parks last week and wanted to add some advice for first time Genie+.  For those planning on stacking multiple Genie+ LL for later in the day make sure you don't make the mistake I did.  I thought I had read enough on here and watched enough Youtube videos but in the moment I still made the mistake of making each new LL later in the day instead of working towards earlier times.  So I had to keep waiting the 2hr rule instead of being able to grab a new LL after tapping into the "Last Booked".


----------



## Garyjames220

Is there a way of getting frozen and test track as a lightening lane on the same day 

I’m I better picking frozen or test track first?

is there a time you have noticed both available?

I have checked a lot before our trip that starts in A few days and seems impossible to get both


----------



## trishadono

ICEMAN3205 said:


> I'm sure this has been mentioned several times, but...
> Just got back from the parks last week and wanted to add some advice for first time Genie+.  For those planning on stacking multiple Genie+ LL for later in the day make sure you don't make the mistake I did.  I thought I had read enough on here and watched enough Youtube videos but in the moment I still made the mistake of making each new LL later in the day instead of working towards earlier times.  So I had to keep waiting the 2hr rule instead of being able to grab a new LL after tapping into the "Last Booked".


It depends . I will look and discuss with dd our options. IF there is a ride we want in the morning at a time we want to still be in the the park we grab that. If it’s 12 or later we are ready for lunch or other activity and will then switch to looking at different parks for a later evening time like 4 or 5 p. 

After a few trips with it we got good. We booked , canceled and rebooked stuff as we changed our minds. 

My dh trip is always harder, the man is not into rides all day but likes a few. I really had to ask him what time and what ride? I was better off with just one he wanted than trying to book several. He is content to resort hop n explore.


----------



## DisneySyd

Garyjames220 said:


> Is there a way of getting frozen and test track as a lightening lane on the same day
> 
> I’m I better picking frozen or test track first?


I would pick Frozen first. It usually has less LL availability as the day goes on and it has the longer line. Plus you can always do single rider on TT.


Garyjames220 said:


> is there a time you have noticed both available?
> 
> I have checked a lot before our trip that starts in A few days and seems impossible to get both


They both normally have a new drop of times just after 11:30 (11:32 when I was there). TT also appears to have a couple more “drops” just after 1:30 and 3:30.


----------



## g-dad66

Garyjames220 said:


> Is there a way of getting frozen and test track as a lightening lane on the same day
> 
> I’m I better picking frozen or test track first?
> 
> is there a time you have noticed both available?
> 
> I have checked a lot before our trip that starts in A few days and seems impossible to get both



You may be able to get both.

Epcot opened at 8:30 today, and just now at 10:35, there are evening LL times still showing for both Frozen and Test Track.


----------



## Disturbia

DisneySyd said:


> I would pick Frozen first. It usually has less LL availability as the day goes on and it has the longer line. Plus you can always do single rider on TT.
> 
> They both normally have a new drop of times just after 11:30 (11:32 when I was there). TT also appears to have a couple more “drops” just after 1:30 and 3:30.


We picked Test Track first because it was a must do for our older kids (it does have a single rider line, if you have kids over 7).  I was able to get Frozen as well on our check in day (3/27)

Checkout day (4/2) we booked Frozen first.  Frozen went down twice and it was quite a trek from Soarin (budget 10-15 mins; longer for Remy after 2 pm).  I did a super refresh and got Test Track after booking Frozen and Remy first.  Don’t overlap if doing rider switch; Soarin, TT take 30 mins to ride each time.

https://allears.net/walt-disney-worlds-single-rider-line/


----------



## FunnyLady1966

Disturbia said:


> Depends on when in Nov.  There is Jersey week (11/6-12), runDisney events (wine & dine half marathon 11/3-6) and the end of Food & Wine (11/19) and first day of Christmas celebrations (maybe 11/6?) which gets super busy with bloggers.  I’m assuming you’re avoiding Thanskgiving.


Actually we're wanting to go after Thanksgiving


----------



## GeorgiaHoo

ICEMAN3205 said:


> I'm sure this has been mentioned several times, but...
> Just got back from the parks last week and wanted to add some advice for first time Genie+.  For those planning on stacking multiple Genie+ LL for later in the day make sure you don't make the mistake I did.  I thought I had read enough on here and watched enough Youtube videos but in the moment I still made the mistake of making each new LL later in the day instead of working towards earlier times.  So I had to keep waiting the 2hr rule instead of being able to grab a new LL after tapping into the "Last Booked".


Not sure I understand this.  We are arriving tomorrow afternoon and I plan on making our first reservation tomorrow morning at 7 am EST for around 3 pm, which is when we'll first be at the park, and then making the next one at 11 am after the 120 hour window expires.  Are you saying I should make that first reservation for an earlier time, even though we won't be able to use those earlier ones?


----------



## roctavia

GeorgiaHoo said:


> Not sure I understand this.  We are arriving tomorrow afternoon and I plan on making our first reservation tomorrow morning at 7 am EST for around 3 pm, which is when we'll first be at the park, and then making the next one at 11 am after the 120 hour window expires.  Are you saying I should make that first reservation for an earlier time, even though we won't be able to use those earlier ones?


This is more for people in the parks all day, if you have an earlier time before the two hour window is up, you can ride the ride and then book another one right away. By stacking only for evening you miss out on that opportunity and can only book every two hours.  So it's kind of a choice for what is important- riding more rides earlier in the day if you can get good times, or stacking a bunch for later.

For your situation you have the right plan.


----------



## redboat45

GeorgiaHoo said:


> Not sure I understand this.  We are arriving tomorrow afternoon and I plan on making our first reservation tomorrow morning at 7 am EST for around 3 pm, which is when we'll first be at the park, and then making the next one at 11 am after the 120 hour window expires.  Are you saying I should make that first reservation for an earlier time, even though we won't be able to use those earlier ones?


I think they're saying that you'll want to use the one you last booked first so you can get a new lightening lane after checking into it.


----------



## FunnyLady1966

redboat45 said:


> I think they're saying that you'll want to use the one you last booked first so you can get a new lightening lane after checking into it.


It's overwhelming allllll of the information we have to know before we get there. I miss FP


----------



## GeorgiaHoo

FunnyLady1966 said:


> It's overwhelming allllll of the information we have to know before we get there. I miss FP


Yep. In the past we just showed up early and ran around grabbing paper fast passes. And didn’t even necessarily need restaurant reservations! Those were crazy times.


----------



## FunnyLady1966

GeorgiaHoo said:


> Yep. In the past we just showed up early and ran around grabbing paper fast passes. And didn’t even necessarily need restaurant reservations! Those were crazy times.


But GREAT times. That's when you could have an actual itinerary and follow it! Now you're just hoping to do a few of the main attractions in each park.


----------



## ICEMAN3205

roctavia said:


> This is more for people in the parks all day, if you have an earlier time before the two hour window is up, you can ride the ride and then book another one right away. By stacking only for evening you miss out on that opportunity and can only book every two hours.  So it's kind of a choice for what is important- riding more rides earlier in the day if you can get good times, or stacking a bunch for later.
> 
> For your situation you have the right plan.


This is correct.  3pm is kinda late so it probably woudn't matter because at say MK with current park hours you would already be able to book 4 LL by 3pm, the following is what I was talking about:

LL1- 7am book - Jungle Cruise at 1:15 pm
LL2- 11am (2hrs after MK opens) - Space Mtn. at 2:30
LL3 - 1pm book - Splash Mtn. at 4:30

Now you scan into Jungle Cruise at 1:15and Space at 2:30  you cannot book LL4 yet, you have to wait two hours after the LL3 at 1pm. so 3:00 is when you can book again.  Now if you do it this way:

LL1- 7am book - Jungle Cruise at 4:30 pm
LL2- 11am (2hrs after MK opens) - Space Mtn. at 2:30
LL3 - 1pm book - Splash Mtn. at 1:15

now at 1:15 after you scan into splash you can book LL4.  and whenever you scan into LL4 you can book again, or wait til 3:15.  (of course this is a perfect scenario where you can find earlier return times, but depending on ride selection isn't impossible)


----------



## Disturbia

FunnyLady1966 said:


> Actually we're wanting to go after Thanksgiving


Just avoid Dec 2-4  (see Dec thread for details)

https://www.disboards.com/threads/official-december-2022-thread.3870949/


----------



## FunnyLady1966

Disturbia said:


> Just avoid Dec 2-4  (see Dec thread for details)
> 
> https://www.disboards.com/threads/official-december-2022-thread.3870949/


Good tip. We're only going for 5 nights because we're taking SIL and GS out of school and SIL is a teacher so they really can't take off too much time right before Christmas break.


----------



## Disturbia

ICEMAN3205 said:


> This is correct.  3pm is kinda late so it probably woudn't matter because at say MK with current park hours you would already be able to book 4 LL by 3pm, the following is what I was talking about:
> 
> LL1- 7am book - Jungle Cruise at 1:15 pm
> LL2- 11am (2hrs after MK opens) - Space Mtn. at 2:30
> LL3 - 1pm book - Splash Mtn. at 4:30
> 
> Now you scan into Jungle Cruise at 1:15and Space at 2:30  you cannot book LL4 yet, you have to wait two hours after the LL3 at 1pm. so 3:00 is when you can book again.  Now if you do it this way:
> 
> LL1- 7am book - Jungle Cruise at 4:30 pm
> LL2- 11am (2hrs after MK opens) - Space Mtn. at 2:30
> LL3 - 1pm book - Splash Mtn. at 1:15
> 
> now at 1:15 after you scan into splash you can book LL4.  and whenever you scan into LL4 you can book again, or wait til 3:15.  (of course this is a perfect scenario where you can find earlier return times, but depending on ride selection isn't impossible)


Problem I see is JC not going up to 4 pm.  Some days it goes up to 11-2 pm at 7 am. The hardest to book was POC (had to refresh for over an hour to get that time; I had to cancel when the time jumped to late afternoon when I clicked noon; the cancellation button (3 dots on the right) didn’t show up for a good 10-15 mins.



The cancellation option is accessed by clicking the 3 dots next to the booking:


----------



## NickC

FunnyLady1966 said:


> But GREAT times. That's when you could have an actual itinerary and follow it! Now you're just hoping to do a few of the main attractions in each park.



We were never big planners, but we did have a general plan for each day. It might be something as simple as splitting MK in half over two days. RD BTMRR, then Splash, then PotC, then have a FP+ for  Jungle Cruise, followed by HM and lunch at Pecos Bills. Then the next MK day might be RD Space, Buzz, People Mover, FP+ for 7DMT, then Winnie the Pooh, then lunch at Pinocchios. After lunch, we would just go where ever the day took us.

We tried to keep this system on our trip last month, but it didn't always work out that way. First of all, RD wasn't the same. But, I guess that's for another thread. Short version is that it was much more crowded. With FP+, if we couldn't get the time we wanted, we had a few months to switch up our mornings and figure out a basic plan that worked. We rarely tried for other times. Once it was booked, we went with it. Genie+ was better than we thought it would be, but there are so many variables to consider. Some days, we would have to formulate a plan on the bus to the park. It was as if our day was re-arranged based on one ride. We kind of felt that if something like RotR popped up, we had to hit the 'book' button before we could even consider what we had planned around that time. Otherwise, we might not be able to book it. It all worked out, and we had a fun time, but it was certainly less ride oriented than our previous trips.

This trip, there were a number of newer rides that we haven't done. I think our next trip (whenever that would be) will be less stressful, since we really don't HAVE to go on RotR, Rat and MMRR again. We like to ride all the new stuff, but our favorites are mostly the older rides.


----------



## FunnyLady1966

NickC said:


> We were never big planners, but we did have a general plan for each day. It might be something as simple as splitting MK in half over two days. RD BTMRR, then Splash, then PotC, then have a FP+ for  Jungle Cruise, followed by HM and lunch at Pecos Bills. Then the next MK day might be RD Space, Buzz, People Mover, FP+ for 7DMT, then Winnie the Pooh, then lunch at Pinocchios. After lunch, we would just go where ever the day took us.
> 
> We tried to keep this system on our trip last month, but it didn't always work out that way. First of all, RD wasn't the same. But, I guess that's for another thread. Short version is that it was much more crowded. With FP+, if we couldn't get the time we wanted, we had a few months to switch up our mornings and figure out a basic plan that worked. We rarely tried for other times. Once it was booked, we went with it. Genie+ was better than we thought it would be, but there are so many variables to consider. Some days, we would have to formulate a plan on the bus to the park. It was as if our day was re-arranged based on one ride. We kind of felt that if something like RotR popped up, we had to hit the 'book' button before we could even consider what we had planned around that time. Otherwise, we might not be able to book it. It all worked out, and we had a fun time, but it was certainly less ride oriented than our previous trips.
> 
> This trip, there were a number of newer rides that we haven't done. I think our next trip (whenever that would be) will be less stressful, since we really don't HAVE to go on RotR, Rat and MMRR again. We like to ride all the new stuff, but our favorites are mostly the older rides.


I probably did wayyy too much research...but I always had a great itinerary for each park assuring that we would ride and see all the attractions that were a must do for us. But those days are gone now. You made a great point in that there are rides I don't NEED to do each trip. It's been 6 years for me so a LOT has changed and been added so who know with this next trip


----------



## NickC

Our mindset with this trip was that we were OK with missing some stuff. RotR was on our to-do list only because it was new. We missed it entirely on our first DHS day (wrong credit card stored in MDE) and missed it at 7am on our second day. We were able to get it on the bus to the park 10-15 minutes later. When it was our ILLS time, it went down. It worked out well since then we were able to get an anytime LL. It was originally scheduled very close to our ADR at Sci Fi, which, is honestly much higher on our list than RotR. We were able to take our time with lunch, and wander over on our own schedule.


----------



## Disturbia

I don’t know if this has been discussed,  but you need to go through the Genie setup to have your preferred rides ‘pinned to the top’ of the tip board.






The day you’re in the park and refreshing the tip board to get an earlier time, you can click on a ride and then hit ‘LL’ and it takes you back to the tip board and each time it refreshes it will automatically scroll down to say Tower of Terror


----------



## MinneTinK

Just back from a week, staying at YC, park hopping.  _Family_ of 4, kids 3 & 6. We are fortunate enough to visit quite often so the we don’t feel the pressure to do every single attraction.  I was hesitant to purchase G+ but after looking at wait times & reading the boards I added it to our tickets and was SO glad I did. Our touring style is early AM entry/RD, return to resort for lunch/pool/nap, hop to a different park for dinner.  Here is our first day at HS, hopping to MK later on:
Wednesday 4/27:
HOllywood studios early entry
7am-booked slinky while walking into park(9:15 return)
7:25-mickeys runaway railroad walk on
Toy story midway mania walk on
Aliens flying saucers walk on
Starbucks & snack break
One man’s dream
9am-met sully
9:15-tap into slinky
Booked smugglers run
Met Pluto
Met doc mcstuffins
Met fancy Nancy
10:30-tap into smugglers run
Booked jungle cruise @ magic kingdom for tonight (7:30)
11:00-left Hollywood studios
By the pool:
12:30-booked Peter Pan (7:15)
2:30-booked Cinderella meet (7:00)
4:30-booked Winnie the Pooh (7:05)
 6:30-got to magic kingdom, watched adventure cavalcade
6:45-picked up mobile order dinner
7-Winnie the Pooh
7:15-Cinderella & Elena 
7:45-Peter pan
8:15-jungle cruise
8:45-started walking out of park
9-fireworks by exit


----------



## Erica Ladd

MinneTinK said:


> Just back from a week, staying at YC, park hopping.  _Family_ of 4, kids 3 & 6. We are fortunate enough to visit quite often so the we don’t feel the pressure to do every single attraction.  I was hesitant to purchase G+ but after looking at wait times & reading the boards I added it to our tickets and was SO glad I did. Our touring style is early AM entry/RD, return to resort for lunch/pool/nap, hop to a different park for dinner.  Here is our first day at HS, hopping to MK later on:
> Wednesday 4/27:
> HOllywood studios early entry
> 7am-booked slinky while walking into park(9:15 return)
> 7:25-mickeys runaway railroad walk on
> Toy story midway mania walk on
> Aliens flying saucers walk on
> Starbucks & snack break
> One man’s dream
> 9am-met sully
> 9:15-tap into slinky
> Booked smugglers run
> Met Pluto
> Met doc mcstuffins
> Met fancy Nancy
> 10:30-tap into smugglers run
> Booked jungle cruise @ magic kingdom for tonight (7:30)
> 11:00-left Hollywood studios
> By the pool:
> 12:30-booked Peter Pan (7:15)
> 2:30-booked Cinderella meet (7:00)
> 4:30-booked Winnie the Pooh (7:05)
> 6:30-got to magic kingdom, watched adventure cavalcade
> 6:45-picked up mobile order dinner
> 7-Winnie the Pooh
> 7:15-Cinderella & Elena
> 7:45-Peter pan
> 8:15-jungle cruise
> 8:45-started walking out of park
> 9-fireworks by exit


We are thinking of doing MK after HS. Sounds very doable!!


----------



## closetmickey

scrappinginontario said:


> Yes, this happens daily.  The way the system is set up everyone is eligible at 7AM to book LL reservations and have no choice of return times so all clicking at 7AM see the same return time.  It’s a poorly designed system which needs a lot of work to make it more user friendly.


How have the parks been dealing with this? For example you click on a time earlier in the day that works for you and then you are actually given a later time that may conflict with an ADR?


----------



## LetsTalkWDW

Question: Do you have to actually be in the Park for the 120 minute rule to apply?
I'm wondering, for example, at MK. If I book a LL+ reservation for Jungle Cruise at 7:00pm and we decide to stay at hotel for the morning. If MK opens at 9:00am, will I be able to book an additional LL+ at 11:00am from the hotel without ever entering the park?


----------



## DisneySyd

LetsTalkWDW said:


> Question: Do you have to actually be in the Park for the 120 minute rule to apply?
> I'm wondering, for example, at MK. If I book a LL+ reservation for Jungle Cruise at 7:00pm and we decide to stay at hotel for the morning. If MK opens at 9:00am, will I be able to book an additional LL+ at 11:00am from the hotel without ever entering the park?


You do not have to be in the park. Yes, you can book additional LL from your hotel. We did it all the time (stacked) and entered the parks in the afternoon with 4/5 rides lined up.


----------



## DisneySyd

closetmickey said:


> How have the parks been dealing with this? For example you click on a time earlier in the day that works for you and then you are actually given a later time that may conflict with an ADR?


If you go to the blue umbrellas (guest experience team) they will either adjust the specific time or give you a ride anytime pass. Some people have also had success getting this done at the front desk of their hotel. Finally, the CMs at the ride will normally let you on AFTER (usually not before) your ride window if you show your ADR reservation/bill. Definitely don’t miss your ADR (harder to fit you into a full restaurant vs a ride)


----------



## piccolopat

We're just back and made good use of Genie+.  I booked our first Genie+ and ILL at or shortly after 7 in the windows noted on these boards.  We had to refresh a number of times to get our ILL for RotR and Remy but it was easier for FOP.  We didn't bother with 7DMT.  I didn't want to be glued to my phone all day and so every time I booked a Genie+ I set an alarm on my phone for 5 minutes before my next window would be open.  I used that 5 minutes to see what times were available for rides we were interested in and then booked the one that worked best for us at the time.  We did a LOT more walking this trip - over 80 miles.  Most of that was the crisscrossing that now happens with Genie+.  We were always able to group our 3 preselected FP+ around dining and that cut down on walking quite a bit.

Oh, and I only put 1 or 2 rides pinned at the top at any time.  Once I booked a Genie+ for one, it was deleted and replaced with my next priority.  Saved a lot of scrolling.


----------



## orangecuse

So if we are going for a later in the day Frozen or testtrack, can we do that by selecting it at 7? Or will we need to wait past 7 for the time to drop? Hoping for 3ish!


----------



## g-dad66

According to thrill-data.com, both Frozen and Test Track reached 3:00 LL time at about 9:00 this morning.


----------



## SLThomas318

So I saw in another thread someone was only allowed to book a group of 10 for genie, not 12.  They mentioned it could be a glitch.... anyone else able to do a larger group recently?  We have 11 in November and I can't imagine trying to coordinate 2 groups of genie+ bookings...


----------



## orangecuse

g-dad66 said:


> According to thrill-data.com, both Frozen and Test Track reached 3:00 LL time at about 9:00 this morning.



Oh wow thats a lot later than I was expecting! I am guessing waiting until 9 would mess up my ability to book again at 10:30 and Id need to wait to 11. I will have to think about that! 

Does anyone know if I had to delay my first selection to say 8:15 if I could atill book at 10:30 (2 hours post park open)? It seems like I should be able to but I just want to confirm


----------



## g-dad66

orangecuse said:


> Oh wow thats a lot later than I was expecting! I am guessing waiting until 9 would mess up my ability to book again at 10:30 and Id need to wait to 11. I will have to think about that!
> 
> Does anyone know if I had to delay my first selection to say 8:15 if I could atill book at 10:30 (2 hours post park open)? It seems like I should be able to but I just want to confirm


Yes, if park opens at 8:30, and if you book first LL by 8:30, then you will be eligible to book LL#2 at 10:30.


----------



## closetmickey

g-dad66 said:


> According to thrill-data.com, both Frozen and Test Track reached 3:00 LL time at about 9:00 this mornin


Is that pretty typical or were there low crowds today?


----------



## g-dad66

closetmickey said:


> Is that pretty typical or were there low crowds today?



Based on wait times today, I would say that crowds were lower than they have been in the past 2 months.


----------



## itf

Wonder what caused the very long availability for ROTR yesterday!


----------



## scrappinginontario

closetmickey said:


> How have the parks been dealing with this? For example you click on a time earlier in the day that works for you and then you are actually given a later time that may conflict with an ADR?


If this happens you may try to get your ride return time changed at a Guest Experience Team blue umbrella but if lines are long, people have reported going to their ADR then showing their receipt at the ride when they’re finished and being allowed to ride.


----------



## MainMom

g-dad66 said:


> According to thrill-data.com, both Frozen and Test Track reached 3:00 LL time at about 9:00 this morning.


Ugh! This is just kills my arrival day strategy since I will be on a plane when the afternoon times start becoming available. Unless crowd levels pick up. I don’t really want to wish for that though.


----------



## LetsTalkWDW

MainMom said:


> Ugh! This is just kills my arrival day strategy since I will be on a plane when the afternoon times start becoming available. Unless crowd levels pick up. I don’t really want to wish for that though.


Don't most airlines have on-board wifi now? Maybe you'll get lucky.


----------



## itf

Good availability for Rise again today - have the crowds calmed down a lot?


----------



## mmackeymouse

LetsTalkWDW said:


> Don't most airlines have on-board wifi now? Maybe you'll get lucky.



If it's Southwest, you have to pay for it. Not sure about other airlines.


----------



## cjlong88

I think on my last Delta flight I needed wifi and paid $5 for it (if my memory is correct).


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

According to the Touring Plans stats for yesterday, the actual reported wait time for Rise of the Resistance was 8 minutes shortly before closing time.  The posted time was 30 minutes.  It had been up to 120 earlier in the day.

That’s not too bad.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Babe the Blue Ox said:


> According to the Touring Plans stats for yesterday, the actual reported wait time for Rise of the Resistance was 8 minutes shortly before closing time.  The posted time was 30 minutes.  It had been up to 120 earlier in the day.
> 
> That’s not too bad.


Yes, Disney is known to inflate their wait times at park close.  It’s good to ignore the posted wait time just before closing and get in line as actual  as l wait time will be much less than posted.


----------



## Disturbia

Babe the Blue Ox said:


> According to the Touring Plans stats for yesterday, the actual reported wait time for Rise of the Resistance was 8 minutes shortly before closing time.  The posted time was 30 minutes.  It had been up to 120 earlier in the day.
> 
> That’s not too bad.


Yes.  If you have 2 days, I would certainly try this on the first day.  ROTR has been known to break down routinely though.

There was this one time last year where we were indoors (we had a VQ) and the ride went down for 2 hours.  There was no communication and we kept thinking any min it would start back up (should have left 30 mins into it).  It completely ruined the morning and we felt exhausted from having been stuck there.  We left the park early.

This past trip we paid for ROTR on both HS days and the second day it went down during our LLIA$ time for several hours!  We went to GET and got refunded (had ADRs when it finally started back up).


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

scrappinginontario said:


> Yes, Disney is known to inflate their wait times at park close.  It’s good to ignore the posted wait time just before closing and get in line as actual  as l wait time will be much less than posted.


Yes, for years we’ve found the posted wait to often be 4x the actual wait when closing time approaches.  

I would have expected the wait to be less than 10 minutes if it was posted as 30.  

It’s rare that these low actual waits get reported.  Generally, late night guests will keep that info to themselves so that they can slip in line again.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Babe the Blue Ox said:


> Yes, for years we’ve found the posted wait to often be 4x the actual wait when closing time approaches.
> 
> I would have expected the wait to be less than 10 minutes if it was posted as 30.
> 
> It’s rare that these low actual waits get reported.  Generally, late night guests will keep that info to themselves so that they can slip in line again.


I’ve done this often but never found  a consistent mathematical formula to calculate  actual wait.  In Feb we hopped into 4 different lines at closing and there was no consistency at all re: actual vs posted wait time.

E.g 
RotR was posted at  80 - Actual was 40

SDMT was posted as 75 - Actual was less than 15

TSMM was ousted at 45 and was a walk-on.


----------



## Disturbia

orangecuse said:


> So if we are going for a later in the day Frozen or testtrack, can we do that by selecting it at 7? Or will we need to wait past 7 for the time to drop? Hoping for 3ish!


I was able to book Test Track for a later time on check in day (booked Remy and Test Track between 7-7:30 am).  Epcot opened at 8:30 am so my next window was 10:30 am and I had to refresh for a good hour or so to get Frozen- got it right before I had to put my phone in airplane mode (3 times I got an error while booking during that hour and Frozen was completely gone and then one random time would appear).  After that I put a timer for another 2 hours and booked Soarin and then another 2 hours I booked Spaceship Earth.  Problem with overlapping passes like we had was that we had to skip rider switch as Soarin and Test Track take 30 mins to ride each time.  Plus it’s hard to pass through Canada/France to get to Remy.

Our flight got into MCO at 2:30; baggage claim took 30 mins; ride to AOA 35 mins (someone with an express pass got on our bus).  We dropped off bags in our room and were on the gondolas very quick but Skyliner was down for 30 mins at the CB hub, so we missed Spaceship Earth (booked for 3-4 pm at around 3 pm).


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

scrappinginontario said:


> I’ve done this often but never found  a consistent mathematical formula to calculate  actual wait.  In Feb we hopped into 4 different lines at closing and there was no consistency at all re: actual vs posted wait time.
> 
> E.g
> RotR was posted at  80 - Actual was 40
> 
> SDMT was posted as 75 - Actual was less than 15
> 
> TSMM was ousted at 45 and was a walk-on.


4x is more a rule of thumb than an actual formula.  Another good indicator is the number of strollers parked out front.

Just don’t go by the visible portion of the line. They have ways to make those appear longer than they really are.


----------



## snowwhite84

Wondering if anyone could speak to how Genie+ is going now that certain rides have been added temporarily, ie Space Mountain, Runaway Railway etc. When I was there in February we had some trouble getting G+ headliners as the day wore on. For example, Millenium Falcon, TSMM and Rockin  Roller Coaster we’re all gone by noon. Has the addition of some of the ILL rides being moved to G+ helped that at all?


----------



## g-dad66

snowwhite84 said:


> Wondering if anyone could speak to how Genie+ is going now that certain rides have been added temporarily, ie Space Mountain, Runaway Railway etc. When I was there in February we had some trouble getting G+ headliners as the day wore on. For example, Millenium Falcon, TSMM and Rockin  Roller Coaster we’re all gone by noon. Has the addition of some of the ILL rides being moved to G+ helped that at all?


According to thrill-data.com, Rock n Roller Coaster lasted until 4:35 today, Millenium Falcon lasted until 4:50, and Toy Story Mania could still be booked at 8:25 pm!

I think this is much more a function of much lower crowds in May than what we saw in March and April. The transfer of 4 ILLs to G+ didn't really help much for LL availability in March and April.


----------



## snowwhite84

g-dad66 said:


> According to thrill-data.com, Rock n Roller Coaster lasted until 4:35 today, Millenium Falcon lasted until 4:50, and Toy Story Mania could still be booked at 8:25 pm!
> 
> I think this is much more a function of much lower crowds in May than what we saw in March and April. The transfer of 4 ILLs to G+ didn't really help much for LL availability in March and April.


Interesting! We check in the day after Memorial Day. Wondering how crowds will be that week and how it might affect things. Just trying to set my expectations accordingly!


----------



## scrappinginontario

snowwhite84 said:


> Interesting! We check in the day after Memorial Day. Wondering how crowds will be that week and how it might affect things. Just trying to set my expectations accordingly!


This is purely a guess based on years past but I would anticipate crowds being higher that week than current both because it is a holiday week and, many schools will have started their summer vacation by then which will increase crowds at Disney.


----------



## g-dad66

snowwhite84 said:


> Interesting! We check in the day after Memorial Day. Wondering how crowds will be that week and how it might affect things. Just trying to set my expectations accordingly!



I recommend keeping your eye on data at thrill-data.com in the days leading up to your trip.


----------



## sagosto

Does Genie+ conflict with Multiple Experience passes? For example, if you have pre-assigned ME passes and want to use Genie+, can you book the SAME attraction in the same day?


----------



## laska

15 years since my last trip. Great info here but I am still struggling to figure out our plan since most of the discussions involve lots of LL and definitely using G+ every day.
When I last went FP was more about saving time to do other activities make second runs?

So if we are not staying at a Disney resort (thus late start even with G+ or LL?) and my budget doesn't include more than maybe one LL, should I just figure we will miss the most popular rides? Or is it still possible say, if we have two days at MK (also going to AK two days and 1 day HS.) to manage to get most rides in? I budgeted 2 days of G+ .
Trip is early June.

From the looks of things I expect most of the parks will be full by then.

Thanks....


----------



## danceintherain

laska said:


> 15 years since my last trip. Great info here but I am still struggling to figure out our plan since most of the discussions involve lots of LL and definitely using G+ every day.
> When I last went FP was more about saving time to do other activities make second runs?
> 
> So if we are not staying at a Disney resort (thus late start even with G+ or LL?) and my budget doesn't include more than maybe one LL, should I just figure we will miss the most popular rides? Or is it still possible say, if we have two days at MK (also going to AK two days and 1 day HS.) to manage to get most rides in? I budgeted 2 days of G+ .
> Trip is early June.
> 
> From the looks of things I expect most of the parks will be full by then.
> 
> Thanks....


I've never been able to get everything done at Disney. My last few trips, I've skipped many of the headliners, because I was traveling with small children who either weren't tall enough or interested.

So, it has always been a matter of prioritizing.

With two days at AK, I expect you'll be able to get in everything you want to do there easily. FoP supposedly has shorter lines at the end of the day.

Magic Kingdom just has a lot of attractions, so with 2 days you would have needed to select carefully even with classic fast pass.

Hollywood Studios was tough, even before Star Wars opened. Showtimes are limited, so getting everything to mesh nicely has always been hard. Slinky apparently runs out quickly after 7am, so it's a matter of the importance of the other rides to your itinerary.
Rise will be the tough one.

Will you have park hoppers?


----------



## robinb

I wanted to share my experience with G+ yesterday.  I couldn't buy G+ because the app wouldn’t respond at  6:55 when I tried to purchase it.  The “Continue” button wouldn’t respond on the guest selection page. I didn’t try to purchase until late (6:55) because I had planned to pick up a LL at the 7:11 drop instead of right at 7:00. I struggled for 15 minutes to buy G+ in advance because I knew that my return time would get messed up if I had to buy it on the fly.  So, I didn’t buy it.

We ended up doing standby and managed to do ok. I would have preferred have a LL because I did see many rides booking out fairly close to the current time.

Next time I try tomorrow I will be up earlier to purchase G+ before the system gets slammed.


----------



## laska

We decided against Park hopping. We did get the more option so we have some other options to destress .
I am reading more and I think the key for us will be to set expectations and take it as it comes.
I think my biggest task now is to figure out which of the longer queue rides we really want to do and which we can let go. Then if we get lucky and can still get it in it will be a plus.
Probably the biggest adjustment for me is that even older rides that I would have thought would have shorter waits are getting long very long queues.

This all changes the dynamic for me. If I had known the challenges and changes of the real value of the experience earlier I would certainly have just gone a few days with WDW and picked up some Universal Tickets.

We might have gotten lucky on our timing in the past. For instance one evening we rode Splash Mountain 3 times in a row with almost no queue (during fireworks). From what I see now that kind of thing just doesn't happen anymore.


----------



## Miffy

laska said:


> We decided against Park hopping. We did get the more option so we have some other options to destress .
> I am reading more and I think the key for us will be to set expectations and take it as it comes.
> I think my biggest task now is to figure out which of the longer queue rides we really want to do and which we can let go. Then if we get lucky and can still get it in it will be a plus.
> Probably the biggest adjustment for me is that even older rides that I would have thought would have shorter waits are getting long very long queues.
> 
> This all changes the dynamic for me. If I had known the challenges and changes of the real value of the experience earlier I would certainly have just gone a few days with WDW and picked up some Universal Tickets.
> 
> We might have gotten lucky on our timing in the past. For instance one evening we rode Splash Mountain 3 times in a row with almost no queue (during fireworks). From what I see now that kind of thing just doesn't happen anymore.


The closer it gets to the time the park closes--and this means all the parks--the shorter the lines at even the major attractions. I just came back a few days ago and this was still true. And if you go during Early Theme Park Entry (assuming you're staying onsite), then you can probably do at least one headliner before the crowds appear.


----------



## HeiHei2018

We are planning for August, and I am hoping the recent low crowds will be similar to when we are there. However, Frozen return times are putting a wrench in my plans. I was thinking of getting Hoppers and doing MK, then Epcot on our arrival day (Halloween party at MK means it would close early). I would need a late (~6) Frozen time to avoid going from monorail straight to frozen and then backtracking all through Future World. As of now (9:38 on a Saturday), the return time just hit 5:55. And waiting until now to book Frozen would mean delaying and possibly missing PP at 11 am.  I saw one poster who was able to refresh for Frozen in the second pull at 11 am. Has anyone else had success with that? I can’t decide if Hoppers will make life easier or more stressful.


----------



## Smrtalec33

laska said:


> We might have gotten lucky on our timing in the past. For instance one evening we rode Splash Mountain 3 times in a row with almost no queue (during fireworks). From what I see now that kind of thing just doesn't happen anymore.


We were just there during a very busy spring break time around Easter, and I had a similar experience, so it can still happen. We did Thunder at 9 right as the fireworks started (we had an LL but wouldn’t have needed it). Once we got off, we immediately walked through again a second time with no wait. We didn’t try for a third time because the fireworks were over and the big selling point for us was being able to see the fireworks from the ride, but I suspect we could’ve gone a third time with a little or no wait.


----------



## tofubeast

My feet are somewhere still at MK while the rest of me is in our hotel room. Daughter and I did a genie challenge today and scored all genie rides (minus iLL as we didn’t want to pay) and Meet Mickey. 17 lightning lanes! Crowds were definitely lighter (vs March), so that helped. Here’s all we did including non LL. 

Big Thunder LL (9:00!)
Splash (walk on)
HM LL (9:45)
Pirates LL (10:20) 
Mickey LL (10:20)
Splash LL (11:00)
Tomorrowland speedway LL (1:20) 
Barnstormer x2
Pooh LL (2:05)
Buzz LL (2:35)
Jungle LL (2:25…got at 11:05)
Aladdin
Peter Pan LL (4:25 got at 2:26)
Small World LL (5:00)
Mad Tea Party LL (5:10)
Space LL (7:20 got at 5:30)
Ariel LL (7:30)
Dumbo LL (7:50)
Barnstormer LL (7:55) 
Astro Orbiter (walk on)
Alladin LL (8:40)
Thunder (walk on during fireworks)
Splash (walk on)
Carousel

…Left my feet near a bench by Main St.  


Did I mention we woke up today at 4:30am and drove up from Broward?! 

Trick is def getting something at 9:00 to be ahead of the curb. We didn’t really care if we got Jungle so that was a nice surprise. It all just came together. 

Night night.


----------



## motofox4

Here now, staying at Coronado Springs. and trying to buy G+ but when I push the button to try to buy, it’s not doing anything. I deleted the app and reinstalled and restarted phones and it just won’t let us push that to buy. Does anyone have any suggestions of what to do? Here is a ss of the screen where it won’t let us push to buy or go any further. SO frustrating.


----------



## glocon

motofox4 said:


> Here now, staying at Coronado Springs. and trying to buy G+ but when I push the button to try to buy, it’s not doing anything. I deleted the app and reinstalled and restarted phones and it just won’t let us push that to buy. Does anyone have any suggestions of what to do? Here is a ss of the screen where it won’t let us push to buy or go any further. SO frustrating. View attachment 669276


I have read here on the Dis that you can just choose a LL and if you don’t have G+ it will give you a prompt from that screen. Maybe try that?


----------



## motofox4

glocon said:


> I have read here on the Dis that you can just choose a LL and if you don’t have G+ it will give you a prompt from that screen. Maybe try that?


We bought a ILL for Ratatouille and didn’t see the option to buy G+. Someone finally called back from IT and was able to purchase for us. However, I sure hope we don’t have this problem every day here. Ugh. I asked if we can just pay for it every day now to avoid this but she said we can only buy individual days.


----------



## MablePines24

Hi everyone! I’m visiting the first week of August and we’re a family of 4 staying off property. We’re not planning on park hopping and will be going to all 4 parks. To maximize our time , after watching a lot of videos lol, I want to use genie+ for sure at MK & HS. What are the best tips for using G+ when staying off property?

Thank you!


----------



## Gentry2004

tofubeast said:


> My feet are somewhere still at MK while the rest of me is in our hotel room. Daughter and I did a genie challenge today and scored all genie rides (minus iLL as we didn’t want to pay) and Meet Mickey. 17 lightning lanes! Crowds were definitely lighter (vs March), so that helped. Here’s all we did including non LL.
> 
> Big Thunder LL (9:00!)
> Splash (walk on)
> HM LL (9:45)
> Pirates LL (10:20)
> Mickey LL (10:20)
> Splash LL (11:00)
> Tomorrowland speedway LL (1:20)
> Barnstormer x2
> Pooh LL (2:05)
> Buzz LL (2:35)
> Jungle LL (2:25…got at 11:05)
> Aladdin
> Peter Pan LL (4:25 got at 2:26)
> Small World LL (5:00)
> Mad Tea Party LL (5:10)
> Space LL (7:20 got at 5:30)
> Ariel LL (7:30)
> Dumbo LL (7:50)
> Barnstormer LL (7:55)
> Astro Orbiter (walk on)
> Alladin LL (8:40)
> Thunder (walk on during fireworks)
> Splash (walk on)
> Carousel
> 
> …Left my feet near a bench by Main St.
> 
> 
> Did I mention we woke up today at 4:30am and drove up from Broward?!
> 
> Trick is def getting something at 9:00 to be ahead of the curb. We didn’t really care if we got Jungle so that was a nice surprise. It all just came together.
> 
> Night night.



Wow! So for most of these you just booked, rode, booked another, rode, etc.?

Ie: you booked HM after you scanned into Thunder, booked pirates after scanned into HM, and so on?


----------



## thanxfornoticin

The strategy for G+ is no different staying off-site as it is staying on-site.  You really have the same options as any on-site guest.  The biggest difference comes into play if you decide to purchase any of the ILL attractions, which you can only do at park opening instead of 7AM.  But that's separate from Genie+.


----------



## pigletto

tofubeast said:


> My feet are somewhere still at MK while the rest of me is in our hotel room. Daughter and I did a genie challenge today and scored all genie rides (minus iLL as we didn’t want to pay) and Meet Mickey. 17 lightning lanes! Crowds were definitely lighter (vs March), so that helped. Here’s all we did including non LL.
> 
> Big Thunder LL (9:00!)
> Splash (walk on)
> HM LL (9:45)
> Pirates LL (10:20)
> Mickey LL (10:20)
> Splash LL (11:00)
> Tomorrowland speedway LL (1:20)
> Barnstormer x2
> Pooh LL (2:05)
> Buzz LL (2:35)
> Jungle LL (2:25…got at 11:05)
> Aladdin
> Peter Pan LL (4:25 got at 2:26)
> Small World LL (5:00)
> Mad Tea Party LL (5:10)
> Space LL (7:20 got at 5:30)
> Ariel LL (7:30)
> Dumbo LL (7:50)
> Barnstormer LL (7:55)
> Astro Orbiter (walk on)
> Alladin LL (8:40)
> Thunder (walk on during fireworks)
> Splash (walk on)
> Carousel
> 
> …Left my feet near a bench by Main St.
> 
> 
> Did I mention we woke up today at 4:30am and drove up from Broward?!
> 
> Trick is def getting something at 9:00 to be ahead of the curb. We didn’t really care if we got Jungle so that was a nice surprise. It all just came together.
> 
> Night night.


This is amazing! Could someone explain to me again what the advantage is of getting something at 9 is ? ( I know I’ve read about this but it’s confusing me at the moment).


----------



## 3gr8boys

pigletto said:


> This is amazing! Could someone explain to me again what the advantage is of getting something at 9 is ? ( I know I’ve read about this but it’s confusing me at the moment).


An advantage  to getting an early LL window is that you will be booking your next LL (and perhaps a third!) well before many people become eligible at 120 minutes after park open.


----------



## 2Lunds

Question for you re: MDE/"My Day".  

We have a trip coming up next week.  We have 5 days of park reservations.  Last week, I was able to program my Tip Board (save attractions I was interested in ahead of time) for EP, which is our FIRST park reso.  I have not been able to access the subsequent 4 days.  A CM on chat said that's normal, the other days will open up for programming day of - has this been your experience as well?


----------



## pigletto

3gr8boys said:


> An advantage  to getting an early LL window is that you will be booking your next LL (and perhaps a third!) well before many people become eligible at 120 minutes after park open.


Perfect, thank you .


----------



## scrappinginontario

motofox4 said:


> Here now, staying at Coronado Springs. and trying to buy G+ but when I push the button to try to buy, it’s not doing anything. I deleted the app and reinstalled and restarted phones and it just won’t let us push that to buy. Does anyone have any suggestions of what to do? Here is a ss of the screen where it won’t let us push to buy or go any further. SO frustrating. View attachment 669276


Hopefully it doesn’t happen again but if you’re unable to purchase Genie+ you can call 1-407-939-4357.  I believe that number opens at 6AM.


----------



## motofox4

scrappinginontario said:


> Hopefully it doesn’t happen again but if you’re unable to purchase Genie+ you can call 1-407-939-4357.  I believe that number opens at 6AM.


Thank you! I e went down to the front desk and were able to purchase it now for the rest of our stay!  doing it day to day would be stressful wondering if it was going to work or not. Lol


----------



## pigletto

Our plan will be to remain in one park per day and use Genie+ every day. I am hoping to utilize early entry for resort guests as well, both for the slight jump on the crowds and because it won’t be as hot early in the morning. Then will take a break and come back in the evening and use our booked lightening lane picks. 

Can someone remind me what time resort buses start running? We will have a car but I was just reading that could be a disadvantage for rope drop at Hollywood Studios.


----------



## joy13

pigletto said:


> Our plan will be to remain in one park per day and use Genie+ every day. I am hoping to utilize early entry for resort guests as well, both for the slight jump on the crowds and because it won’t be as hot early in the morning. Then will take a break and come back in the evening and use our booked lightening lane picks.
> 
> Can someone remind me what time resort buses start running? We will have a car but I was just reading that could be a disadvantage for rope drop at Hollywood Studios.


I believe it’s an hour before early entry.


----------



## CarolynFH

pigletto said:


> Our plan will be to remain in one park per day and use Genie+ every day. I am hoping to utilize early entry for resort guests as well, both for the slight jump on the crowds and because it won’t be as hot early in the morning. Then will take a break and come back in the evening and use our booked lightening lane picks.
> 
> Can someone remind me what time resort buses start running? We will have a car but I was just reading that could be a disadvantage for rope drop at Hollywood Studios.


To be near the front of the pack for ETPE, it’s recommended that you be at your resort bus stop/transportation station around 90 minutes before ETPE opening time, so that you have the best chance of catching the first bus/earliest Skyliner/monorail to your desired park.


----------



## pigletto

Thank you !


----------



## tofubeast

Gentry2004 said:


> Wow! So for most of these you just booked, rode, booked another, rode, etc.?
> 
> Ie: you booked HM after you scanned into Thunder, booked pirates after scanned into HM, and so on?


Yes. I believe there were only two attractions that invoked the 120m rule. Otherwise we just kept booking right as we tapped in.  We were lucky as we didn’t have too much back and forth either. We had plenty of time to enjoy snacks, lunch, sit down dinner at Skipper Canteen, etc.


----------



## mrd7896

if i have a family of 4 and two of us want a Genie+ ressie for a rollercoaster and two of us want a genie+ ressie for another tamer attraction, is that something that we can do at once or do we have to prioritize one over the other? I know i am able to select who is a part of which reservation but if my avatar and my daughters is booked for a return attraction, can i immediately book a selection for my husband and my son?


----------



## 3gr8boys

mrd7896 said:


> if i have a family of 4 and two of us want a Genie+ ressie for a rollercoaster and two of us want a genie+ ressie for another tamer attraction, is that something that we can do at once or do we have to prioritize one over the other? I know i am able to select who is a part of which reservation but if my avatar and my daughters is booked for a return attraction, can i immediately book a selection for my husband and my son?


Everyone's eligibility is independent.  If you and your daughter tap into a LL and become eligible to book another but the other two members have not yet tapped into their LL, only you and your daughter will be able to book another at that moment.  (Of course, if the LLs in question were the last ones booked and were booked more than 120 minutes ago, everyone is eligible at the 120 minute mark.)  When you select a LL to book, the next screen will show you who can be included.  You can opt to book something for the two people eligible or keep checking until everyone is eligible.  That said, if you may stay separated for awhile (my family always went with a "divide and conquer" approach when our kids were younger), keep in mind that you and another adult can be logged into the same account on the app and be making LL reservations on two different devices.


----------



## joy13

motofox4 said:


> Here now, staying at Coronado Springs. and trying to buy G+ but when I push the button to try to buy, it’s not doing anything. I deleted the app and reinstalled and restarted phones and it just won’t let us push that to buy. Does anyone have any suggestions of what to do? Here is a ss of the screen where it won’t let us push to buy or go any further. SO frustrating. View attachment 669276


I had this happen this morning also.  I used the chat feature and they told me what to do.  It sounds like it’s a known issue? Here’s their response:


This worked very easily for me.  The chat was very fast and efficient.

Edit 5/21/22 - this only seems to work once.  I had issues other days and had to either call or just buy it when I went to book my first LL.  I hope they get that bug fixed soon.


----------



## georgina

My HS experience today - was able to buy Rise ILL for 11:25 (at about 7:15-7:20) and SDD G+ for 9:40 (at around 7:25). Great I thought! Plan was to early entry ToT, my favorite ride, which unfortunately was down most of the morning. So we did MF instead, were off by 8:30 with nothing to do until SD. Did a mobile order for woodys lunchbox for 10:10, and sat around. 

After tapping into Slinky we ate and had a Toy Story Mania LL for 10:25 ( that went down for a bit but it came back) then got a Star Tours one for 11. ( even ST had a 45 min wait). After checking into ST I looked for a ToT LL . 8:30 PM came up briefly but then they were SOLD OUT! My favorite ride with a 90-120 minute listed wait. I kept trying but no dice. So we left. I kept trying from our resort and just now at 3:30 a ToT LL finally showed up for 4:05. I grabbed it and now ToT is showing sold out again. Weird.


----------



## Gentry2004

georgina said:


> My HS experience today - was able to buy Rise ILL for 11:25 (at about 7:15-7:20) and SDD G+ for 9:40 (at around 7:25). Great I thought! Plan was to early entry ToT, my favorite ride, which unfortunately was down most of the morning. So we did MF instead, were off by 8:30 with nothing to do until SD. Did a mobile order for woodys lunchbox for 10:10, and sat around.
> 
> After tapping into Slinky we ate and had a Toy Story Mania LL for 10:25 ( that went down for a bit but it came back) then got a Star Tours one for 11. ( even ST had a 45 min wait). After checking into ST I looked for a ToT LL . 8:30 PM came up briefly but then they were SOLD OUT! My favorite ride with a 90-120 minute listed wait. I kept trying but no dice. So we left. I kept trying from our resort and just now at 3:30 a ToT LL finally showed up for 4:05. I grabbed it and now ToT is showing sold out again. Weird.



ToT is a pretty common one to sell out, no? I think most people recommend making that your second choice after SDD.


----------



## georgina

Gentry2004 said:


> ToT is a pretty common one to sell out, no? I think most people recommend making that your second choice after SDD.


Yeah I guess that was my point - I screwed up. It was available for times in the afternoon for a long time and I lost track of it.We are old and don’t want to be crisscrossing the park too much. If I was planning again I would do the afternoon/evening stack because if I had gotten an afternoon ToT after Slinky we would have nothing to do for hours in the park.


----------



## PittPantherfan

georgina said:


> My HS experience today - was able to buy Rise ILL for 11:25 (at about 7:15-7:20) and SDD G+ for 9:40 (at around 7:25). Great I thought! Plan was to early entry ToT, my favorite ride, which unfortunately was down most of the morning. So we did MF instead, were off by 8:30 with nothing to do until SD. Did a mobile order for woodys lunchbox for 10:10, and sat around.
> 
> After tapping into Slinky we ate and had a Toy Story Mania LL for 10:25 ( that went down for a bit but it came back) then got a Star Tours one for 11. ( even ST had a 45 min wait). After checking into ST I looked for a ToT LL . 8:30 PM came up briefly but then they were SOLD OUT! My favorite ride with a 90-120 minute listed wait. I kept trying but no dice. So we left. I kept trying from our resort and just now at 3:30 a ToT LL finally showed up for 4:05. I grabbed it and now ToT is showing sold out again. Weird.


Think we had worse luck today at HS.  Started at grand good Slinky and RoTR times. Go to DHS at a good time for the start of EH. Our plan was ToT then RnR.  Walked down the street and saw ToT CMs out front - bad news but we pivoted the RnR - posted 25 min. Then nothing moving, messages announced that time wait time was going up. Then the dreaded message, it's down. . Got Smuggler's right after RotR. Did rise, feeling good to move on to next adventure - walk over to Smugglers, and then got the bad new it was down now!!! GGGGRRRRR!!!. So ridiculous really. 3 rides down with issues in one day.

Plan would have worked great - if it wasn't for lack of reliability on Disney's part.


----------



## neurosx1983

Couple of questions:
1. How quickly are LL selling out for Rise, Remy, Seven dwarves, Flight of passage? Specifically for Remy and Rise, if you're not at the 7am window will they usually be sold out by the time the window opens up for everyone else?
2. We are staying at FS and super unfortunately they don't offer guests to book LL at 7am like other resorts (including swan/dolphin) - This might be a little nuts but has anyone heard of someone booking a dummy resort reservation (such as all-stars) just to have that in the profile to be able to book LL at 7am?  Does that method work?


----------



## TheBigErn

I've read a lot of theoretical plans using Genie+ and ILL$.  But I haven't seen too many real world plans.  That is, strategies that have been used under current park crowds etc.  For example, with ToT not operating at full capacity.  Please post plans, that you have recently used and that were successful. Looking for plans for all 4 parks.


----------



## _19disnA

Haven't been to Disney recently, but I have seen several threads where others talk about their actual Genie experiences.  Some are standalone threads and not buried in that 200+ page Genie discussion thread.


----------



## Jennasis

For DHS we arrived at the tapstiles at 7am for a 7:30 early entry.  We were 10th in line.  At 7am I got an iLL$ for Rise for 10:20am.  They let us in a little after 7:15 and we went straight to Sunset Blvd where they had a line held in front of BatB for ToT.   They let us in right at 7:30.  We walked on ToT and then got right on RnRC after with no wait.  Walked over to Slinky Dog just ahead of the rope drop horde and got on with a 15 minute wait.  Got off and did TSMM with a 10 minute wait.  Then walked over to MMRR and had a 15 minute wait.  Then mobile ordered lunch at Ronto's.  Ate and explored Galaxy's Edge while waiting for our Rise LL to rol around.  Walked right on Rise, then went to Smuggler's Run where we had our one and only long wait of 45 minutes.  Then we left GE and walked on Star Tours with no wait.  Left the park at 12:30 and went swimming.

Perfection.  No Genie+.


----------



## TheBigErn

To whoever moved my original question:  I'm disappointed that my stand alone original thread got thrown into this massive thread.  I didn't want to be a part of this and that's why I didn't pose my question here.  This thread is too big to navigate.


----------



## MainMom

TheBigErn said:


> To whoever moved my original question:  I'm disappointed that my stand alone original thread got thrown into this massive thread.  I didn't want to be a part of this and that's why I didn't pose my question here.  This thread is too big to navigate.


I do wish we had a thread just for plans people executed. It’s a lot to read through these massive threads when your trying to come up with a plan.

I’m leaving for a trip in 2 weeks. I would love to post what we do with our party of 7 to help people out, but I’m not even sure the correct place for it. This thread or the Here Now/Just back one? And then it gets lost In the questions.


----------



## bluezy

motofox4 said:


> We bought a ILL for Ratatouille and didn’t see the option to buy G+. Someone finally called back from IT and was able to purchase for us. However, I sure hope we don’t have this problem every day here. Ugh. I asked if we can just pay for it every day now to avoid this but she said we can only buy individual days.



You probably didn't see the option to buy it when you bought your ILL for Ratatouille because you don't need to purchase Genie+ to buy an ILL.   I think the option to buy G+ only pops up when you book a regular G+ ride without having already purchased G+.


----------



## focusondisney

Just saw something on Twitter: starting June 8th, Genie + will only be available to purchase the same day, no advance purchases.  If you have already purchased, you’ll be fine, but no new advanced purchases.   Haven’t found it on the WDW website yet.

edit: found it in the Disney parks blog

“With the launch of new bookings, we will also make an adjustment to how guests purchase Disney Genie+ service, which remains popular and in high demand amongst our guests. From the beginning, our goal has been to launch, learn and evolve as we see how guests are using this service. 

Starting June 8, Disney Genie+ will only be offered for purchase through the My Disney Experience app on the day of your visit – we will no longer offer the option to purchase this service pre-arrival as a ticket add-on for dates remaining in 2022 and in 2023.   

This means that, moving forward, whether you have an Annual Pass, multi- or single-day ticket, you may only purchase Disney Genie+ service on the day of your visit via the app, one day at a time, subject to availability. We’re focused on delivering the best possible guest experience, and this adjustment will help manage the incredibly strong demand our guests have shown for Disney Genie+.”


----------



## mikalkwin

It is there : 
https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/b...2023-tickets-and-resort-bookings-open-june-8/


----------



## elgerber

focusondisney said:


> Just saw something on Twitter: starting June 8th, Genie + will only be available to purchase the same day, no advance purchases.  If you have already purchased, you’ll be fine, but no new advanced purchases.   Haven’t found it on the WDW website yet.
> 
> edit: found it in the Disney parks blog
> 
> “With the launch of new bookings, we will also make an adjustment to how guests purchase Disney Genie+ service, which remains popular and in high demand amongst our guests. From the beginning, our goal has been to launch, learn and evolve as we see how guests are using this service.
> 
> Starting June 8, Disney Genie+ will only be offered for purchase through the My Disney Experience app on the day of your visit – we will no longer offer the option to purchase this service pre-arrival as a ticket add-on for dates remaining in 2022 and in 2023.
> 
> This means that, moving forward, whether you have an Annual Pass, multi- or single-day ticket, you may only purchase Disney Genie+ service on the day of your visit via the app, one day at a time, subject to availability. We’re focused on delivering the best possible guest experience, and this adjustment will help manage the incredibly strong demand our guests have shown for Disney Genie+.”


Subject to availability.  Are they saying it may now sell out each day?  Will we have to buy at midnight now to be safe?  That's worse than 7 am.


----------



## ChipTheRescueRanger

My guess June 8 G+ will have a price increase !


----------



## snikki

I think it’s a price increase. We added G+ to our November tickets months ago since I had a feeling something like this was coming. I’m thinking in August they’ll make one ILL in each park permanent and increase the price of G+. They may also cap sales but who knows.


----------



## focusondisney

elgerber said:


> Subject to availability.  Are they saying it may now sell out each day?  Will we have to buy at midnight now to be safe?  That's worse than 7 am.



 Maybe? It says to “to manage the incredibly strong demand”.


----------



## SLThomas318

So this will make our upcoming family trip over Thanksgiving interesting... we have annual passes, but the rest of the group bought day tickets with genie+.... I was already stressing over utilizing it for our group, but now my family *might* not even be able to buy genie+ to use with the rest of the group...


----------



## focusondisney

ChipTheRescueRanger said:


> My guess June 8 G+ will have a price increase !



This will stink for APs who can’t book in advance.


----------



## Duck143

I just tried modifying one of our 8 day PH's to include Genie+ and it will still let me.  It was around $174 to add it every day.  I'm not sure how much it will cost if they increase the price....I wasn't planning on utilizing G+ every day of our trip.  Add it now for $174 (x4) or take the chance that it will still be cheaper to add it to a few days.  I just would despise waking up at midnight to add it.


----------



## snikki

Duck143 said:


> I just tried modifying one of our 8 day PH's to include Genie+ and it will still let me.  It was around $174 to add it every day.  I'm not sure how much it will cost if they increase the price....I wasn't planning on utilizing G+ every day of our trip.  Add it now for $174 (x4) or take the chance that it will still be cheaper to add it to a few days.  I just would despise waking up at midnight to add it.



You’ll be able to add G+ onto your tickets until June 8.


----------



## elgerber

SLThomas318 said:


> So this will make our upcoming family trip over Thanksgiving interesting... we have annual passes, but the rest of the group bought day tickets with genie+.... I was already stressing over utilizing it for our group, but now my family *might* not even be able to buy genie+ to use with the rest of the group...


Yup, I have an AP, and have two trips in July/Sept with regular ticket holders.  So I had them not buy it, so that I don't have issues day of.  They will be oh so happy if price goes up.  And if we have to get up at midnight now to book.


----------



## Duck143

snikki said:


> You’ll be able to add G+ onto your tickets until June 8.


For some reason, I was thinking they stopped immediately.  Thanks for clarifying.


----------



## gorkt

So let me get this straight.  In order to hope I get to use this service, that I would pay money for, I have to stay up until midnight, during my vacation, to see if I can even buy it, then if I get lucky enough to use it, get up at 7am, during my vacation, to make reservations, which are also subject to availability.

Honestly I am considering cancelling over this.  It's truly absurd.  Getting 6.5 hours of sleep a night isnt a vacation, it's torture.


----------



## elgerber

gorkt said:


> So let me get this straight.  In order to hope I get to use this service, that I would pay money for, I have to stay up until midnight, during my vacation, to see if I can even buy it, then if I get lucky enough to use it, get up at 7am, during my vacation to make reservations, which are also subject to availability.
> 
> Honestly I am considering cancelling over this.  It's truly absurd.  Getting 6.5 hours of sleep a night isnt a vacation, it's torture.


I am wondering if it will only be available now at 7, they have to know that midnight to purchase and 7 am to book is going to be a huge issue for people.


----------



## orangecuse

gorkt said:


> So let me get this straight.  In order to hope I get to use this service, that I would pay money for, I have to stay up until midnight, during my vacation, to see if I can even buy it, then if I get lucky enough to use it, get up at 7am, during my vacation, to make reservations, which are also subject to availability.
> 
> Honestly I am considering cancelling over this.  It's truly absurd.  Getting 6.5 hours of sleep a night isnt a vacation, it's torture.



Just back from 7 park days and the sleep was already torture just getting up at 6:50 every day. Even on our afternoon only park day I felt I had to wake up early to start stacking. If I also had to be up at midnight (and I am someone who usually stays up late) I would have raged. We were asleep by 9/10 every night with the early wakeup schedule!

Also I know its a little off topic but Genie+ was easy/great in MK, easy but not super needed in Epcot/AK, and has ruined DHS. Based on our experience we decided itd be a few years before our next trip so our youngest son is tall enough for more rides. In DHS he was tall enough for 3 rides so with FP I could book those 3 over and over but for Genie+ we spent 3isb hours in DHS each day we went and then felt done.

Eta- I have travelled w/ a 2 year old during FP+, a 1/3 year olds during no FP, and now a 2/4 during Genie+. I used to tell everyone the parks were worth it even with little kids, this time that felt the least true for us outside of MK!


----------



## gorkt

Yeah we need details.  I am an early riser by nature so the 7am start time didn't bother me, but because of that I am generally in bed by 10-11 and at WDW with all the walking I NEED that extra hour or two of sleep.  I can't believe they want a bunch of exhausted sleep deprived people running around for days on end.


----------



## ktlm

focusondisney said:


> Just saw something on Twitter: starting June 8th, Genie + will only be available to purchase the same day, no advance purchases.  If you have already purchased, you’ll be fine, but no new advanced purchases.   Haven’t found it on the WDW website yet.
> 
> edit: found it in the Disney parks blog
> 
> “With the launch of new bookings, we will also make an adjustment to how guests purchase Disney Genie+ service, which remains popular and in high demand amongst our guests. From the beginning, our goal has been to launch, learn and evolve as we see how guests are using this service.
> 
> Starting June 8, Disney Genie+ will only be offered for purchase through the My Disney Experience app on the day of your visit – we will no longer offer the option to purchase this service pre-arrival as a ticket add-on for dates remaining in 2022 and in 2023.
> 
> This means that, moving forward, whether you have an Annual Pass, multi- or single-day ticket, you may only purchase Disney Genie+ service on the day of your visit via the app, one day at a time, subject to availability. We’re focused on delivering the best possible guest experience, and this adjustment will help manage the incredibly strong demand our guests have shown for Disney Genie+.”





elgerber said:


> Subject to availability.  Are they saying it may now sell out each day?  Will we have to buy at midnight now to be safe?  That's worse than 7 am.





focusondisney said:


> Maybe? It says to “to manage the incredibly strong demand”.


This is pure garbage!!!   We went to DL last October when there was no FP and no Genie+ and DH said he would not go back to either place unless there was some type of Fastpass/Maxpass/Genie + in place.  DD is a Disney addict who wanted to be an imagineer for years, and hates to leave Disney and last October she was asking if we could change our flights and go home a day early which is absolutely unheard of from her.    For years we went to DLR in the summer and WDW at some point in the fall/winter.   There is ZERO way I want to spend thousands on a trip only to get there and find out that I am in the type of insane race to try to get Genie+ each day that we  we had trying (and failing) multiple times to get in Virtual queues for ROTR or Webslingers at DLR last October.  Last October with those stupid virtual queues, with crowds, and with no FP, it  was the worst Disney trip we have ever had and we have been to WDW in a hurricane.  (Outside of Oogie Boogie's Halloween party which was fantastic- it was the thing that made the trip worth it)  If I had a trip booked right now and couldn't get Genie+ ahead of time, I would cancel. No way I am booking a trip until I see if there are mornings that people can't get Genie+ at all.   If they aren't limiting it and just making people wait that is one thing (seems like MaxPass at DLR was that way one trip until they changed it so you could buy it with the package)- but if they are limiting how many they are selling every day that is absolutely unfair to make people gamble on taking a trip as to whether they can use the service.   This is just crazy.  They have had FP in some form (FP+/Max Pass) since 1999 and NEVER limited how many people could use it.   I sure hope that is not what they are trying to do now-- but the way things are going and the way our last trip was, I fear that they are.   They need to clean house and get rid of people and get their systems back on track.


----------



## 3gr8boys

_19disnA said:


> Haven't been to Disney recently, but I have seen several threads where others talk about their actual Genie experiences.  Some are standalone threads and not buried in that 200+ page Genie discussion thread.


oops! replied to wrong post


----------



## ktlm

gorkt said:


> So let me get this straight.  In order to hope I get to use this service, that I would pay money for, I have to stay up until midnight, during my vacation, to see if I can even buy it, then if I get lucky enough to use it, get up at 7am, during my vacation, to make reservations, which are also subject to availability.
> 
> Honestly I am considering cancelling over this.  It's truly absurd.  Getting 6.5 hours of sleep a night isnt a vacation, it's torture.


TOTALLY absurd!!!!!!!!!!!   It was absurd last October at DLR when I had to get out of bed before 7:00 a.m., try to find a spot with really strong wifi, frantically try to get in the virtual queue for ROTR (or Webslingers) using every tip I could find on the internet; fail miserably  every time I tried in the morning;  have to tell DD I failed when she woke up and see her disappointment; and be completely stressed out until the 2nd drop at noon; frantically try to find a spot with really strong wifi; and frantically try for the 2nd time to try to get in the virtual queue for one of them with in the noon drop limited success on certain days.    If they are limiting the number of Genie+ this is WORSE!


----------



## 3gr8boys

TheBigErn said:


> To whoever moved my original question:  I'm disappointed that my stand alone original thread got thrown into this massive thread.  I didn't want to be a part of this and that's why I didn't pose my question here.  This thread is too big to navigate.


I totally understand the frustration. While it may not qualify as "plans" that you can use, I did share some thoughts after our April trip regarding Genie+ that may contain some helpful tidbits. (It was a standalone thread for a couple of days with some good back and forth questioning/commenting but then was pulled into the "Here Now & Just Back" thread.)

https://www.disboards.com/threads/h...-including-park-hopping.3807247/post-63923788

(FWIW It would have been a pain to worry about adding Genie+ everyday instead of having it attached to tickets ahead of time.)


----------



## Gentry2004

I was planning to just buy it the days I wanted it (MK and DHS) but this is still frustrating because it means more users online trying to buy it with me when many of them would have preferred buying it in advance. And I definitely was planning to just buy it at 6:45am - not midnight.


----------



## maui2k5

Something good - something frustrating...  So last year we had some issues with our trip at the Yacht Club and we ended up getting a complimentary 5 day park hopper pass plus a deluxe club level for 5 nights. (trip this year is in early Aug @ Poly).  Having seen the news today about adding Genie+ needing to be purchased daily starting June 8th, I thought why not buy it now in advance while I can. 

However, I was informed by Disney special reservations that complimentary tickets cannot add G+ in advance and must be purchased each day starting at 12am.  While this is a first world problem (I know - I have free tix and room so I should not complain), but the whole G+ process is frustrating for probably the majority of guests compared to FP+.

Would be better to allow booking of G+ the day prior as to not until midnight.  Seems not very considerate to guests to think they only need sleep between 12am-6am.  With G+ limited and may sell out, it would cause most people to stay up late to buy G+ so they do not have to both buy & book at 7am (and risk not getting G+).


----------



## Tom_E_D

elgerber said:


> I am wondering if it will only be available now at 7, they have to know that midnight to purchase and 7 am to book is going to be a huge issue for people.


There are other possibilities. I wonder if going to the MaxPass system, where you had to have entered a park before you could buy it, will be considered. Genie + was supposed to have been based on MaxPass, after all. They could still do ILL separately at 7:00 (or another time) in order to give those staying "onsite" their onsite advantage.


----------



## SLThomas318

Someone in one of these threads had said to be careful what we wish for.... Disney could def. make things worse in an attempt to "fix" genie+.... I'm afraid this is worse!

I feel like Disney trips are getting more and more absurd.... when are they going to realize that this new system just doesn't work for the Disney World parks?!?


----------



## scrappinginontario

MainMom said:


> I do wish we had a thread just for plans people executed. It’s a lot to read through these massive threads when your trying to come up with a plan.
> 
> I’m leaving for a trip in 2 weeks. I would love to post what we do with our party of 7 to help people out, but I’m not even sure the correct place for it. This thread or the Here Now/Just back one? And then it gets lost In the questions.


Here Now and Just Back.  The majority of posts on that thread are sharing exactly what you're looking for if you want most recent experiences, go to the final pages.

These threads were created as many had the same questions you do and other valid threads were getting lost as there were so many standalone threads sharing their experiences.

If you have specific questions about your personal trip, creating a thread asking questions about your trip in the 'Theme Park Plans' sub-forum is the place for that.  Many people frequent that board who love to help people plan their trip and answer their questions.


----------



## MainMom

I’m so glad I‘m flying home on June 8th and purchased G+ in advance. I can’t even imagine the app trying to handle the buying of g+, booking g+ rides, booking ILL$, and VQ. It already glitches enough as it is.


----------



## scrappinginontario

I'm pretty confident Disney will make ample opportunity for all who wish to purchase Genie+ to purchase it.  They've never sold out yet so I'm pretty sure they won't in the future either as it's money in their pockets.


----------



## elgerber

scrappinginontario said:


> I'm pretty confident Disney will make ample opportunity for all who wish to purchase Genie+ to purchase it.  They've never sold out yet so I'm pretty sure they won't in the future either as it's money in their pockets.


I agree with others that I think a price increase is coming, and the subject to availability wording in todays announcement, pretty much says it can sell out.


----------



## TheBigErn

scrappinginontario said:


> Here Now and Just Back.  The majority of posts on that thread are sharing exactly what you're looking for if you want most recent experiences, go to the final pages.
> 
> These threads were created as many had the same questions you do and other valid threads were getting lost as there were so many standalone threads sharing their experiences.
> 
> If you have specific questions about your personal trip, creating a thread asking questions about your trip in the 'Theme Park Plans' sub-forum is the place for that.  Many people frequent that board who love to help people plan their trip and answer their questions.


Some threads get too big.  Good information might be located on page 50 of 210 but nobody will find it.  The moderators need to re-think this policy.


----------



## glocon

TheBigErn said:


> Some threads get too big.  Good information might be located on page 50 of 210 but nobody will find it.  The moderators need to re-think this policy.


I think what Scrapping is trying to say is look at the most current pages of the threads she mentioned. They really do have good info about the most current experiences. You definitely are not alone with your questions.


----------



## robinb

joy13 said:


> I had this happen this morning also.  I used the chat feature and they told me what to do.  It sounds like it’s a known issue? Here’s their response:
> View attachment 669622
> 
> This worked very easily for me.  The chat was very fast and efficient.


Shoot!  I wish I had seen your post before now. The same thing happened to me last week and again today. Out of 4 days trying to fork over money to Disney I was only successful twice!

I was on my phone at 6:45 this morning and tried to but G+ for 25 minutes. The button to buy it was unresponsive. I was able to get an ILL for Rise just fine, but the regular G+ was impossible. Until, at 7:11 when the second drop happened I tried to grab a 9:30 Slinky and the payment went through even though I tried through the regular “Buy G+” link just seconds before.  But … I did not know that doing it that way only purchases G+, not the LL. You have to go back to the tip board and get a LL. By the time I realized I didn’t have a LL for Slinky, it was all the way into afternoon. Instead, I grabbed a Smugglers Run for 9:30 which turned out to be for 11:50. The Studios  were Messed up today so I knew I would only get 2 rides in with a return time so late. 

I talked to a guest relations person under the blue umbrella and she told me about needing to go back out to the tip board after purchasing G+  by selecting a return time. She also advised me to buy G+ at 6:00 am.  Right.


----------



## Jrb1979

scrappinginontario said:


> I'm pretty confident Disney will make ample opportunity for all who wish to purchase Genie+ to purchase it.  They've never sold out yet so I'm pretty sure they won't in the future either as it's money in their pockets.


What if they do both. Raise the price and cap sales? The problem with Genie+ is too many people have it.


----------



## choirguy

Trying to plan for our upcoming trip Memorial Day weekend to Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios, and new to the Genie + system. I understand that we can book our first pass at 7am outside the park (we are staying at Fort Wilderness), then 120 minutes after park opening for the next one. 
Can I continue to book every 120 minutes while still outside the parks? Trying to have a morning at the campground but want to continue to book passes for the afternoon and early evening, and didn’t know if I needed to be in the park to book after the first one.


----------



## CJK

choirguy said:


> Trying to plan for our upcoming trip Memorial Day weekend to Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios, and new to the Genie + system. I understand that we can book our first pass at 7am outside the park (we are staying at Fort Wilderness), then 120 minutes after park opening for the next one.
> Can I continue to book every 120 minutes while still outside the parks? Trying to have a morning at the campground but want to continue to book passes for the afternoon and early evening, and didn’t know if I needed to be in the park to book after the first one.


Absolutely! You don't have to be inside the park to book your rides. We often lounge at the pool all day, and continue stacking rides for the evening! Have fun!


----------



## choirguy

CJK said:


> Absolutely! You don't have to be inside the park to book your rides. We often lounge at the pool all day, and continue stacking rides for the evening! Have fun!


Thank you!
Trying to get some time at the campground since it will be such a busy weekend, and that sounds like the best plan for us to still get a few passes for the evening.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

Jrb1979 said:


> What if they do both. Raise the price and cap sales? The problem with Genie+ is too many people have it.


Have to disagree with the 'too many people have it' comment.  Way less people use G+ during a typical day than used FP+.  The biggest issue I have with G+ (besides paying extra for it) is that it doesn't include all the attractions.  Pulling out the top 4-8 attractions from the parks makes it way less useful.  It would work much better if all the previous FP+ attractions were included, but with ILL profits, that's not going to change.  Hopefully, they keep it at just 1 per park as it will be most of the summer.


----------



## Jrb1979

thanxfornoticin said:


> Have to disagree with the 'too many people have it' comment.  Way less people use G+ during a typical day than used FP+.  The biggest issue I have with G+ (besides paying extra for it) is that it doesn't include all the attractions.  Pulling out the top 4-8 attractions from the parks makes it way less useful.  It would work much better if all the previous FP+ attractions were included, but with ILL profits, that's not going to change.  Hopefully, they keep it at just 1 per park as it will be most of the summer.


Yes less people use G+ then FP+. The difference is they are giving out less G+ compared to FP+. Look at how short the waits are for G+ compared to FP+


----------



## SLThomas318

Maybe I'm the minority, but I don't expect to just walk-on the ride... I think a 10-15 min wait is reasonable.  I understand they over-did it with FP+ and handed those things out like hot cakes, but isn't there a happy medium some where?


----------



## MaC410

Jrb1979 said:


> Yes less people use G+ then FP+. The difference is they are giving out less G+ compared to FP+. Look at how short the waits are for G+ compared to FP+



Are they actually shorter though? (honest question since I don't have first hand experience yet) Was watching a stream last night and every Lightening Lane line they were on was pretty backed up and took longer than I've ever waited on a Fastpass line for those rides.


----------



## Jrb1979

MaC410 said:


> Are they actually shorter though? (honest question since I don't have first hand experience yet) Was watching a stream last night and every Lightening Lane line they were on was pretty backed up and took longer than I've ever waited on a Fastpass line for those rides.


For the most part they are. Right now with ride breakdown that seem to happen a lot it ends up backing up the LL queue


----------



## gharter

Jrb1979 said:


> For the most part they are. Right now with ride breakdown that seem to happen a lot it ends up backing up the LL queue


Thats true. But our experience was with a breakdown while the LL backed up, the standby really backed up and they cleared the LL much faster than the standby (just like with old FP+).


----------



## robinb

choirguy said:


> Trying to plan for our upcoming trip Memorial Day weekend to Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios, and new to the Genie + system. I understand that we can book our first pass at 7am outside the park (we are staying at Fort Wilderness), then 120 minutes after park opening for the next one.
> Can I continue to book every 120 minutes while still outside the parks? Trying to have a morning at the campground but want to continue to book passes for the afternoon and early evening, and didn’t know if I needed to be in the park to book after the first one.


You may book a new LL (1) when you tap into your latest booked LL, (2) your latest booked LL expires or (3) 120 minutes pass. Which ever comes first. So book the latest LL you can on your first choice.


----------



## thanxfornoticin

MaC410 said:


> Are they actually shorter though? (honest question since I don't have first hand experience yet) Was watching a stream last night and every Lightening Lane line they were on was pretty backed up and took longer than I've ever waited on a Fastpass line for those rides.


I'm also not sure they're any shorter with G+ than they were with FP+.  But it's a really tough comparison since G+ is also happening as Disney works its way out of a pandemic (still not everything 100% operational) and what happened with FP+ pre-pandemic.  One thing we're certain of is that crowds are usually high over the past 6 months (I say 6 months because that's the time frame we have personal experience with), probably due to pent-up demand from Covid delays and cancellations.  From what we saw, the LL wait times were quite similar to what we used to experience with FP+ previous years during the same time of year.


----------



## petrola

Wonder what happens with already purchased tickets with Genie+ that need dates changed to next year?  Will the Genie+ piece be removed once the dates are changed?


----------



## Jrb1979

petrola said:


> Wonder what happens to people who already purchased tickets with Genie+ already added then need to change their dates to next year?  Will the Genie+ piece be removed once the dates are changed?


Probably. I saw a post of some one from the UK that said they would refund the Genie+ part of their trip was for next year.


----------



## joy13

robinb said:


> Shoot!  I wish I had seen your post before now. The same thing happened to me last week and again today. Out of 4 days trying to fork over money to Disney I was only successful twice!
> 
> I was on my phone at 6:45 this morning and tried to but G+ for 25 minutes. The button to buy it was unresponsive. I was able to get an ILL for Rise just fine, but the regular G+ was impossible. Until, at 7:11 when the second drop happened I tried to grab a 9:30 Slinky and the payment went through even though I tried through the regular “Buy G+” link just seconds before.  But … I did not know that doing it that way only purchases G+, not the LL. You have to go back to the tip board and get a LL. By the time I realized I didn’t have a LL for Slinky, it was all the way into afternoon. Instead, I grabbed a Smugglers Run for 9:30 which turned out to be for 11:50. The Studios  were Messed up today so I knew I would only get 2 rides in with a return time so late.
> 
> I talked to a guest relations person under the blue umbrella and she told me about needing to go back out to the tip board after purchasing G+  by selecting a return time. She also advised me to buy G+ at 6:00 am.  Right.


The link only worked once for me all week - on Tuesday, then on Wednesday it didn’t work again so I tried my trick above.  That must only work once because I went to Photo Lenses and there was no Genie+ link so I went to chat and they told me I then had to call.  They gave me the 407-560-CHAT number to call and I got right through and purchased Genie+ but what a pain!  Thursday and Friday I wasn’t going for as much so I just purchased it by trying to book (I did figure out I had to go back and rebook after purchasing). Today I didn’t buy it because we were only at the park for half a day. Next trip I’ll just buy it with my tickets because we really got good use out of it.

Edited: I’ve just caught up on the thread and see that being able to purchase ahead is going away in June.  What a bummer!  They better get the glitches worked out with the buy button before then!


----------



## MainMom

What is the latest time you can book an ILL for 7 Dwarves if the park closes at 10pm? Thanks!


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

MainMom said:


> What is the latest time you can book an ILL for 7 Dwarves if the park closes at 10pm? Thanks!


You might just consider doing standby if you’re waiting until the end of the day.  Last Monday, the wait was only 15 minutes close to closing time.  The posted wait was 40.


----------



## tseitel

I currently do not have tickets linked to my account.  Once I do, will I be able to practice “pinning” Attractions to my tip board for faster selections, even though it won’t be during my trip?


----------



## GBRforWDW

MainMom said:


> What is the latest time you can book an ILL for 7 Dwarves if the park closes at 10pm? Thanks!





Babe the Blue Ox said:


> You might just consider doing standby if you’re waiting until the end of the day.  Last Monday, the wait was only 15 minutes close to closing time.  The posted wait was 40.


I would agree with Babe the blue ox, but to answer the question, iirc, the last lightning lane time is 30 minutes before closing for the ride, regardless of the ride.


----------



## Beamerball

joy13 said:


> I had this happen this morning also.  I used the chat feature and they told me what to do.  It sounds like it’s a known issue? Here’s their response:
> View attachment 669622
> 
> This worked very easily for me.  The chat was very fast and efficient.
> 
> Edit 5/21/22 - this only seems to work once.  I had issues other days and had to either call or just buy it when I went to book my first LL.  I hope they get that bug fixed soon.


Thanks so much for this!  Used it today.  Without this info I would be panicking at 4am.  Why can’t they fix this glitch?!  Also not excited for tomorrow as I’ll probably have to call.


----------



## MainMom

Are the 7:10/7:20ish drops still working for ROTR & 7 Dwarves for morning times?


----------



## Disturbia

Refreshing does work for GOTG

At 9:52 EST:


----------



## cjlong88

Disturbia said:


> Refreshing does work for GOTG
> 
> At 9:52 EST:
> 
> View attachment 672359


Awesome! Did you grab it? If not, do you m know how long it stayed around?


----------



## Disturbia

cjlong88 said:


> Awesome! Did you grab it? If not, do you m know how long it stayed around?


No, I’m not in the parks.  Just thought of checking.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Disturbia said:


> No, I’m not in the parks.  Just thought of checking.


Historically speaking though, seeing something pop up and successfully grabbing it is a whole different story!!!

I saw many, many things pop up on our trip and not once was I successful grabbing it even though I quickly started the steps immediately.


----------



## Jrb1979

scrappinginontario said:


> Historically speaking though, seeing something pop up and successfully grabbing it is a whole different story!!!
> 
> I saw many, many things pop up on our trip and not once was I successful grabbing it even though I quickly started the steps immediately.


Hopefully with limiting sales it will help that problem.


----------



## Airb330

Disney has got to change the G+ to standby ratio. Everest is BARELY MOVING.  The line wasn’t even long. It must be a 10:1 ratio and it’s BS.


----------



## Smugpugmug

Airb330 said:


> Disney has got to change the G+ to standby ratio. Everest is BARELY MOVING.  The line wasn’t even long. It must be a 10:1 ratio and it’s BS.


It was like that during Fastpass+ too. My sister worked at Big Thunder at the merge and she said often times it was 10:1 or even 15:1. But I agree, it is pretty ridiculous.


----------



## CarolynFH

Smugpugmug said:


> It was like that during Fastpass+ too. My sister worked at Big Thunder at the merge and she said often times it was 10:1 or even 15:1. But I agree, it is pretty ridiculous.


Maybe you could answer a question then - did your sister have to wait until 10 or 15 FP guests went through before letting standby in, even if there was a large gap in the FP line?  Or did she have discretion to let some standby guests go, if no FP guests were in view?


----------



## Smugpugmug

CarolynFH said:


> Maybe you could answer a question then - did your sister have to wait until 10 or 15 FP guests went through before letting standby in, even if there was a large gap in the FP line?  Or did she have discretion to let some standby guests go, if no FP guests were in view?


I just asked her and she said if there no one in the Fastpass line, then she was allowed to let standby people through. If a Fastpass group came in the line then the standby would immediately be stopped and the ratio would "start over", if that makes any sense? She did say that during busy periods, her manager told her to essentially ignore the ratio and she had to clear out almost the entire Fastpass queue before any standby could come through. She worked there before Covid so she isn't sure if this is how they operate now.


----------



## Airb330

Smugpugmug said:


> It was like that during Fastpass+ too. My sister worked at Big Thunder at the merge and she said often times it was 10:1 or even 15:1. But I agree, it is pretty ridiculous.


It was. I agree. It feels worse when there’s actual money involved lol.


----------



## Jrb1979

Airb330 said:


> It was. I agree. It feels worse when there’s actual money involved lol.


It makes sense to have a high ratio of LL to Standby. Those in the LL queue paid for it so they should get a lesser wait. That's how skip the line systems work everywhere else.


----------



## mom2rtk

Jrb1979 said:


> It makes sense to have a high ratio of LL to Standby. Those in the LL queue paid for it so they should get a lesser wait. That's how skip the line systems work everywhere else.


Of course everyone thinks people who pay should have a shorter wait. That's the entire point. But Disney alone controls how many slots they sell, which is what makes the difference between it being a minor annoyance to the non-paying guests (and by non-paying, I mean the ones who paid to be there but didn't pay extra to skip the line) and a maddening road block to them being able to access many attractions at all.


----------



## Jrb1979

mom2rtk said:


> Of course everyone thinks people who pay should have a shorter wait. That's the entire point. But Disney alone controls how many slots they sell, which is what makes the difference between it being a minor annoyance to the non-paying guests (and by non-paying, I mean the ones who paid to be there but didn't pay extra to skip the line) and a maddening road block to them being able to access many attractions at all.


Maybe once they start capping sales June 8th it won't be as much a factor.


----------



## mom2rtk

Jrb1979 said:


> Maybe once they start capping sales June 8th it won't be as much a factor.


I don't have faith Disney will cap it low enough to make that much difference.


----------



## Figment Mom

I'm trying to decide if purchasing G+ will be worth it for our family of 3. Our trip is in July and I know I need to purchase by 6/8 or wait until day of.

It's $479 for our trip which is a decent chunk of change for me but not a deal-breaker.

However, my boys don't like coasters or many of the "big" rides. (Both say they're willing to try a coaster on this trip but I'm not holding out hope that they'll love it and want to do more.)

For this reason alone I'm leaning towards purchasing one day at a time. However, I'm worried there could be a sizeable price increase by then.  

Thoughts?


----------



## glocon

Figment Mom said:


> I'm trying to decide if purchasing G+ will be worth it for our family of 3. Our trip is in July and I know I need to purchase by 6/8 or wait until day of.
> 
> It's $479 for our trip which is a decent chunk of change for me but not a deal-breaker.
> 
> However, my boys don't like coasters or many of the "big" rides. (Both say they're willing to try a coaster on this trip but I'm not holding out hope that they'll love it and want to do more.)
> 
> For this reason alone I'm leaning towards purchasing one day at a time. However, I'm worried there could be a sizeable price increase by then.
> 
> Thoughts?


I would do it on the basis of waiting in line (for me anyway) increases anticipation and anxiety as well. If they are nervous to try something new, will waiting in a longer line and being anxious for a longer time set them up for failure to go through with riding? Just a thought. If the price isn’t a deal breaker I’d go for it. 

Of course I haven’t used it yet and don’t even have a trip planned, but I would for sure get it in your shoes. Any amount of time saved waiting in a line is worth it- that time all adds up in a day. 

Also, July is SO hot, any time saved waiting in line out in the sun would be worth it as well.


----------



## Frozen2014

glocon said:


> I would do it on the basis of waiting in line (for me anyway) increases anticipation and anxiety as well. If they are nervous to try something new, will waiting in a longer line and being anxious for a longer time set them up for failure to go through with riding? Just a thought. If the price isn’t a deal breaker I’d go for it.
> 
> Of course I haven’t used it yet and don’t even have a trip planned, but I would for sure get it in your shoes. Any amount of time saved waiting in a line is worth it- that time all adds up in a day.
> 
> Also, July is SO hot, any time saved waiting in line out in the sun would be worth it as well.


This last statement is one reason we went ahead and added it for our entire trip (but it's August for us).  I would think too that you would be at an advantage of not wanting the headliners as from watching Genie+ the past week or so, these are the ones that sell out quickly.  So for you, you should be able to book what you want....and limit time waiting in line in the sun.  But it is an additional $479, so it just depends on if its in your budget .  For us, we happen to be limiting ADRs anyways, so we can justify the extra cost on Genie+.


----------



## Figment Mom

Thank you! I think I'll spend a few days watching G+ on the app and seeing what we might reasonably book each day to see if I think it's worth it.

We're also rope drop people and not park hopping so I know that will impact our decision.


----------



## Disturbia

Depends on when you’re going (hopefully not 4th July weekend) and which rides you’re ok waiting for (tier 3 now have 30-40 min waits) and age of your kids.  Be prepared for the heat (lines like SDMT and SDD are hard to wait in the sun.











To rope drop, you need to be at the transportation an hour before the extra morning 30 mins (so 1.5 hr before park opens) or you’re waiting the same time as someone who entered 40 mins after park opening. 

If ROTR goes down during the extra 30 mins, you don’t get a recovery pass.

Crowds now are like nothing you’ve seen before:


----------



## Disturbia

scrappinginontario said:


> Historically speaking though, seeing something pop up and successfully grabbing it is a whole different story!!!
> 
> I saw many, many things pop up on our trip and not once was I successful grabbing it even though I quickly started the steps immediately.


Yes.  In 1.5 hour I saw Frozen pop up 4 times and error before I was finally able to secure it.  We are a party of 4 riders.  Key is not to give up.  I had secured Test Track at 7 am.


----------



## Disturbia

Just a note, we averaged 20k steps at WDW.  Towards the end of the trip even an hour saved seemed worth the $60 (party of 4 riders, 1 infant) for us.


----------



## Figment Mom

Thanks! It won't be 4th of July, and my last two trips have been the same time of year so we know what to expect in terms of heat.

Not sure if the teenager will choose to do the early entry (I hope he does) but you better believe my other son and I will be some of the first to arrive well before opening. I've only missed one rope drop in the past two trips and that's the morning I had to check out and check my bags before I could leave for the park.

It's just G+ that's new for us and it will be my 7-year-old's first visit. 

Honestly, if I knew for sure the price wouldn't go up, I'd just wait and buy it each day.


----------



## PittPantherfan

Figment Mom said:


> I'm trying to decide if purchasing G+ will be worth it for our family of 3. Our trip is in July and I know I need to purchase by 6/8 or wait until day of.
> 
> It's $479 for our trip which is a decent chunk of change for me but not a deal-breaker.
> 
> However, my boys don't like coasters or many of the "big" rides. (Both say they're willing to try a coaster on this trip but I'm not holding out hope that they'll love it and want to do more.)
> 
> For this reason alone I'm leaning towards purchasing one day at a time. However, I'm worried there could be a sizeable price increase by then.
> 
> Thoughts?


I nicknamed Genie+ the Patience Pass - because this mom struggles with patience! When we were there it was hot- another reason why I am glad we had. We bought it day-by-day and every day, except our pool day.  When I walked by the people in standby and they were withering, I was so happy we had it. It stinks that Disney has this and it's more $$$ but on the flip side, I heard so many complaining about lack of getting on things when they didn't have it - so if you look at it this way, you pay all the $$$ for the base ticket and don't get to ride many things, to me that is more a waste of $$$.


----------



## Jrb1979

mom2rtk said:


> I don't have faith Disney will cap it low enough to make that much difference.


From things I have heard come June 8th it will be capped a lot. Then as the days go by it will rise til they find that sweet spot. Yes they have messed up Genie+ but I do think they realize that they have over sold it.


----------



## Runnsally

Jrb1979 said:


> From things I have heard come June 8th it will be capped a lot. Then as the days go by it will rise til they find that sweet spot. Yes they have messed up Genie+ but I do think they realize that they have over sold it.


If they actually cap it in a meaningful way, will have to give some sign-up advantage to on-site guests I would imagine…


----------



## Jrb1979

Runnsally said:


> If they actually cap it in a meaningful way, will have to give some sign-up advantage to on-site guests I would imagine…


There is not reason to give on-site guests anything right now. People are showing they don't need perks to fill the resorts.


----------



## flipflopmom

I’ve seen this addressed but I’m not sure I ever saw/understood a definite answer.
 Scenario: DAK in the am and DHS in the pm. If we booked Dino at 7:40am with a 7:00 ETPE, after tapping in could we start stacking G+ for DHS? If DHS has a park open of 8:30, would we be next eligible to book G+ at 9:45ish based off 2 hour rule of tapping into Dino at 7:40? Thinking while we would miss first G+ at DHS, it could potentially get us ahead of the 2 hour DHS surges and possibly be advantageous.


----------



## jlovesdisney15

On arrival day, we are planning on stacking genie at epcot. I am going to get remy at 7, but what is the best strategy after that? Our priorities are frozen, TT, and soarin. Thanks!


----------



## CJK

jlovesdisney15 said:


> On arrival day, we are planning on stacking genie at epcot. I am going to get remy at 7, but what is the best strategy after that? Our priorities are frozen, TT, and soarin. Thanks!


You will want to book your rides in that order - Remy at 7am, followed by Frozen, followed by TT, followed by Soarin'. By the time you book Test Track, you may have to 'pound the app' in order to find availability. However, I have been successful finding availability for all those rides when stacking, thanks to refreshing.


----------



## jlovesdisney15

CJK said:


> You will want to book your rides in that order - Remy at 7am, followed by Frozen, followed by TT, followed by Soarin'. By the time you book Test Track, you may have to 'pound the app' in order to find availability. However, I have been successful finding availability for all those rides when stacking, thanks to refreshing.


Thanks!


----------



## Figment Mom

I have 3 more questions (that are likely already answered in this thread):

What does LL for a show get you? Is it first into the venue so you get the pick of the seats or is it a reserved seating section?
(I realize a show isn't probably best use of LL, but we don't ride some of the headliners so...)

How long is the typical LL line? (I realize it might vary greatly based on a multitude of variables.) But some FP lines still had quite a wait. Is it still a ratio of LL to SB?

I doubt we'll get it, but can someone tell me about the LL viewing area for the MK parade? I hate jostling for a parade spot. Is it crowded? Do you get a front row spot on the curb without arriving crazy early?


----------



## 3gr8boys

Figment Mom said:


> I have 3 more questions (that are likely already answered in this thread):
> 
> What does LL for a show get you? Is it first into the venue so you get the pick of the seats or is it a reserved seating section?
> (I realize a show isn't probably best use of LL, but we don't ride some of the headliners so...)
> 
> How long is the typical LL line? (I realize it might vary greatly based on a multitude of variables.) But some FP lines still had quite a wait. Is it still a ratio of LL to SB?
> 
> I doubt we'll get it, but can someone tell me about the LL viewing area for the MK parade? I hate jostling for a parade spot. Is it crowded? Do you get a front row spot on the curb without arriving crazy early?


When we were there in April, most of our LLs fell somewhere between walk-on and five minutes.  A few may have been a little longer....SDD being one.  I have seen some posts about ratios...but I can't remember where.


----------



## jlovesdisney15

Figment Mom said:


> I have 3 more questions (that are likely already answered in this thread):
> 
> What does LL for a show get you? Is it first into the venue so you get the pick of the seats or is it a reserved seating section?
> (I realize a show isn't probably best use of LL, but we don't ride some of the headliners so...)
> 
> How long is the typical LL line? (I realize it might vary greatly based on a multitude of variables.) But some FP lines still had quite a wait. Is it still a ratio of LL to SB?
> 
> I doubt we'll get it, but can someone tell me about the LL viewing area for the MK parade? I hate jostling for a parade spot. Is it crowded? Do you get a front row spot on the curb without arriving crazy early?


You get a reserved seating area, so seating is guaranteed. 

For Festival of Fantasy seating is right in front of the castle I believe.


----------



## jwolfpack

CJK said:


> You will want to book your rides in that order - Remy at 7am, followed by Frozen, followed by TT, followed by Soarin'. By the time you book Test Track, you may have to 'pound the app' in order to find availability. However, I have been successful finding availability for all those rides when stacking, thanks to refreshing.


I have tried to get Test Track as my second pick the last 2 days for an afternoon park hop to Epcot and have not been able to do so. Soarin' has been available to book through mid-afternoon, possibly later.


----------



## NJlauren

I’m very interested in watching/hearing about capping starting June 8th.  I have used genie a few times and had moderate to good success for how I tour.  But I’m an AP and can’t purchase in advance.  I will plan to buy daily in august, around 115am this when I need to walk my toddler to use the restroom.  But if the limited genie purchased will then then limit the number LL available for each ride?

If  we can’t even use it for more then 2 rides will it be worth it?  I’m not sure why the current number is to high?  Because stand by lines are to long?  Then why even do LL? I visited before genie and honestly full stand by with constant moving lines is fine by me, but this idea $15 only gets you two rides will probably push me over the edge.


----------



## scrappinginontario

NJlauren said:


> I’m very interested in watching/hearing about capping starting June 8th.  I have used genie a few times and had moderate to good success for how I tour.  But I’m an AP and can’t purchase in advance.  I will plan to buy daily in august, around 115am this when I need to walk my toddler to use the restroom.  But if the limited genie purchased will then then limit the number LL available for each ride?
> 
> If  we can’t even use it for more then 2 rides will it be worth it?  I’m not sure why the current number is to high?  Because stand by lines are to long?  Then why even do LL? I visited before genie and honestly full stand by with constant moving lines is fine by me, but this idea $15 only gets you two rides will probably push me over the edge.


These are all great questions and hopefully we learn answers soon.  I will be shocked though if the price remains at $15 iIF Disney truly puts a cap on the number.  Disney is not know for giving more for less.  If they’re selling less they still want it to be financially profitable so I (with others) am anticipating a price hike.


----------



## flipflopmom

flipflopmom said:


> I’ve seen this addressed but I’m not sure I ever saw/understood a definite answer.
> Scenario: DAK in the am and DHS in the pm. If we booked Dino at 7:40am with a 7:00 ETPE, after tapping in could we start stacking G+ for DHS? If DHS has a park open of 8:30, would we be next eligible to book G+ at 9:45ish based off 2 hour rule of tapping into Dino at 7:40? Thinking while we would miss first G+ at DHS, it could potentially get us ahead of the 2 hour DHS surges and possibly be advantageous.


Quoting myself here to see if anyone has the answer?


----------



## Meglen

flipflopmom said:


> Quoting myself here to see if anyone has the answer?


The rule is based off the park you have a reservation for. So if AK opens at 7:30 (not early entry, park official open) than once you tap in for dino you can start stacking for dhs. The only issue I see with this is you can't get to hs till after 2pm so most likely sdd and other top rides will be sold out or way out to the 8pm if you fiddle faddle (tm).


With the earlier time you will have more options but not for the top rides. And it would start your 2 hour window. So dino at 7:40 -book any ride dhs for 2:30- 9:40 book another and so on and so forth till you use the 2:30 or 2 hour rule stops.

 I kinda feel that if you are gonna be at AK use it there till you are done than start stacking. With stacking starting at about 8am you will be hit with super late or no top rides and no times for the lower tier rides after 2pm that early.


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

@flipflopmom   Why not just book a DHS ride at 7 am. It will automatically slot it for the first available time after 2 pm.  Then you can continue stacking every two hours starting with 2 hours after the official park opening time for the park where you made your first G+ reservation.

Booking Dino that early is a waste of a G+ as it will probably have a 5 minute or less actual wait that early in the morning.


----------



## flipflopmom

Babe the Blue Ox said:


> @flipflopmom   Why not just book a DHS ride at 7 am. It will automatically slot it for the first available time after 2 pm.  Then you can continue stacking every two hours starting with 2 hours after the official park opening time for the park where you made your first G+ reservation.
> 
> Booking Dino that early is a waste of a G+ as it will probably have a 5 minute or less actual wait that early in the morning.


My thought process was that by tapping in early, I could possibly be an hour earlier than everyone else booking 2 hours after park opening and every 2 hours afterwards, and maybe have a better selection for the remainder of the day.


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

flipflopmom said:


> My thought process was that by tapping in early, I could possibly be an hour earlier than everyone else booking 2 hours after park opening and every 2 hours afterwards, and maybe have a better selection for the remainder of the day.



But then you would be making your first DHS selection at 7:40 instead of 7.  That could make a big impact if you want Tower or Slinky.


----------



## kimwoje

Am I understanding this correctly? If flipflopmom taps into Dino at 7:40 and makes her 1st HS LL she could either fiddle faddle for SDD or get a late return time for ToT based on latest thrill data. Then, she would start her 2 hour cool down and be able to make her 2nd HS LL at 9:40 when everyone who made their 1st HS LL at 7:00 would need to wait until 10:30 to make their 2nd, thus giving her an advantage on the remaining LLs. Trying to figure this all out is so difficult!


----------



## leeniewdw

kimwoje said:


> Am I understanding this correctly? If flipflopmom taps into Dino at 7:40 and makes her 1st HS LL she could either fiddle faddle for SDD or get a late return time for ToT based on latest thrill data. Then, she would start her 2 hour cool down and be able to make her 2nd HS LL at 9:40 when everyone who made their 1st HS LL at 7:00 would need to wait until 10:30 to make their 2nd, thus giving her an advantage on the remaining LLs. Trying to figure this all out is so difficult!



Yes, I think that's the idea!  We did something similar in March getting an early return time so we could grab the next before the "park open + 2 hours" timeslot to grab.  This is from my post back in March (which wasn't a high attendance day).   We stayed on site, so early entry, DHS opened at 9am. 

7am: Grabbed MFSR for a 9:25am return
7:15am: walked on to Skyliner (staying at POP)
7:45am-ish: got in line for RNRC standby, literally people 4 & 5*
8:15am-ish: line started moving into building, skipped the studio and went RIGHT onto the ride
8:28am: off RNRC
8:30am: got in ToT standby line, sign said 40 mins! (didn't realize only 1 side was working, should have done these 2 rides in reverse)
8:57am: while waiting in line, I was looking at the app and noticed RotR was still available and called an audible and decided to go ahead and get a ILL$ for 7:15pm return
9:30am: off ToT headed to MFSR
9:45am-ish: tapped into MFSR and looked for next LL. SHOCKED to see a SDD for 7:25pm return. Grabbed that. Set my phone timer for 2 hours for next LL grab.
Not sure on times, but rode Star Tours standby (no wait) and grabbed an early lunch/late breakfast at Commissary

Break Time, so left Park

11:45am: Grabbed TSM for return time 5:05pm, set timer for 2 hours for next LL grab
*nap and pool time*
1:45pm: Grabbed ToT for return time of 7:55pm, set timer for 2 hours for next LL grab
3:45pm: Grabbed Alien Swirling Saucers I think

So our evening went like this:
Arrived back at DHS a little after 5pm and had these LLs:
TSM
AlienSS
Break at Baseline Tap House
Star Tours (I grabbed this at 5:45pm just because I could, it was still basically a walk on)
Grabbed something to eat at Backlot
RotR
SDD
Oga's (our first time....um, not sure what the fuss is about!)
ToT

I don't think you could have a more perfect day. And we could have grabbed MMRR if we'd wanted to but my DH didn't want to ride it again after riding in Dec, lol.


----------



## Disturbia

flipflopmom said:


> Quoting myself here to see if anyone has the answer?


If you tap into Dino at 7:40 am (outside and inside turnstile) then you can immediately book another Genie+, you don’t have to wait 2 hours (given an AK opening at 7:30 am)

I don’t have an answer if HS opened at 8:30 am, if you have to wait 2 hrs from park opening so 10:30 am


----------



## trompettecon

If I use the book-ride-book-ride strategy early am at MK what happens when 11h00 comes around? Can I now book 2 if I rode my last one at 10h50?


----------



## CJK

trompettecon said:


> If I use the book-ride-book-ride strategy early am at MK what happens when 11h00 comes around? Can I now book 2 if I rode my last one at 10h50?


No, it's one or the other. You can book your next ride after tapping into your most recently booked ride OR after 120 minutes - whichever comes first.


----------



## trompettecon

CJK said:


> No, it's one or the other. You can book your next ride after tapping into your most recently booked ride OR after 120 minutes - whichever comes first.


Ok. Still unsure about this because when I stack for late at night I can hold 2-3 sometimes 4 by booking at 7h00-11h00-13h00 and 15h00. If using book-ride-book-ride strategy wouldn't it make sense that if I'm not holding any Genie + at 11h00 I could book two Genie +? One because I just taped in and the other because it is now 11h00?


----------



## CJK

Once you tap into a ride, the fact that it's 11am becomes irrelevant.  If you are stacking for the evening, you can book every 2hrs and hold multiple reservations.  You're not tapping into any rides, so the 120 minute rule is constantly in play.

In your example of tap/ride/tap/ride, the 120 minute rule doesn't even come into play at all. You would simply book your next ride after tapping into a ride. The 11am time frame only comes into play if you have NOT tapped into a ride before that time.

Does that make sense?


----------



## trompettecon

CJK said:


> Once you tap into a ride, the fact that it's 11am becomes irrelevant.  If you are stacking for the evening, you can book every 2hrs and hold multiple reservations.  You're not tapping into any rides, so the 120 minute rule is constantly in play.
> 
> In your example of tap/ride/tap/ride, the 120 minute rule doesn't even come into play at all. You would simply book your next ride after tapping into a ride. The 11am time frame only comes into play if you have NOT tapped into a ride before that time.
> 
> Does that make sense?


Yes! But I’ve very disappointed lol! Tks!


----------



## CJK

trompettecon said:


> Yes! But I’ve very disappointed lol! Tks!


When Genie+ was first introduced, your scenario DID work! But Disney quickly closed that loophole. DARN! I feel your pain! LOL


----------



## g-dad66

kimwoje said:


> Am I understanding this correctly? If flipflopmom taps into Dino at 7:40 and makes her 1st HS LL she could either fiddle faddle for SDD or get a late return time for ToT based on latest thrill data. Then, she would start her 2 hour cool down and be able to make her 2nd HS LL at 9:40 when everyone who made their 1st HS LL at 7:00 would need to wait until 10:30 to make their 2nd, thus giving her an advantage on the remaining LLs. Trying to figure this all out is so difficult!



Yes, that's correct.

But it means that she books her *first* DHS LL before others can make their *second* DHS LL. The others booked their first DHS LL before she could. So others have an advantage in the number of LLs they may be able to book at DHS.

It all depends on what LLs she wants. As others said, Slinky Dog may be gone by 7:40.


----------



## supergirl04

I am going to Disney in a couple of weeks, and this will be our first time using Genie+. I am so confused.  We are staying offsite so I know we will not have a chance in hell of $ILL.

But we use Genie+.  I think I read to set up the day or tip board prior to visiting the park for the day. But I am unsure. If someone could direct me to some posts to read so I can figure this out, that would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!


----------



## g-dad66

supergirl04 said:


> I am going to Disney in a couple of weeks, and this will be our first time using Genie+. I am so confused.  We are staying offsite so I know we will not have a chance in hell of ILL$.
> 
> But we use Genie+.  I think I read to set up the day or tip board prior to visiting the park for the day. But I am unsure. If someone could direct me to some posts to read so I can figure this out, that would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!



What I did prior to the trip was to study the Tip Board data to get an idea of how long LLs last for the attractions in which we were interested, and then figure out which LL we would try to book 1st, 2nd, 3rd in each park.

The data at thrill-data.com is even better, because you can see the historical data for whatever attractions you want to check out.

Then on each park day, we did two things prior to 7am: (1) paid for G+, (2) pinned to the top of the Tip Board, the attraction we would be trying to get first LL for (also pinned the ILL$ attraction we wanted).

There are a couple of ways that you can do the pinning, but one is to use the free G link to select your Favorite(s), and select only the one Favorite that you want your first LL for.  Then after booking first LL, remove that Favorite and then pin the one that you will want the second LL for, etc.

You can practice how to pin to the Tip Board ahead of the trip. Familiarizing yourself with the Tip Board and My Day tabs before the trip will be very helpful.


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

supergirl04 said:


> I am going to Disney in a couple of weeks, and this will be our first time using Genie+. I am so confused.  We are staying offsite so I know we will not have a chance in hell of ILL$.
> 
> But we use Genie+.  I think I read to set up the day or tip board prior to visiting the park for the day. But I am unsure. If someone could direct me to some posts to read so I can figure this out, that would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!



We visited two weeks ago, stayed on-site and did not book any $ILL attractions.  

Just wait until the end of the evening when the lines are the shortest of the day.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Babe the Blue Ox said:


> We visited two weeks ago, stayed on-site and did not book any $ILL attractions.
> 
> Just wait until the end of the evening when the lines are the shortest of the day.


Agree.  We did this a lot too.  Also, Be sure to ignore the posted wait times at end of day as they will be highly inflated.


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

scrappinginontario said:


> Agree.  We did this a lot too.  Also, Be sure to ignore the posted wait times at end of day as they will be highly inflated.



Scrappy makes a good point.  Here are just a few recent examples:

Rise (night 1) - Posted 40, Actual 10
Rise (night 2) - Posted 85, Actual 15
Tower - Posted 80, Actual 10
7D - Posted 40, Actual 15

I could go on and on but you get the point.  And yes, this process is intentional and has been in place for many years.


----------



## bluezy

Babe the Blue Ox said:


> Scrappy makes a good point.  Here are just a few recent examples:
> 
> Rise (night 1) - Posted 40, Actual 10
> Rise (night 2) - Posted 85, Actual 15
> Tower - Posted 80, Actual 10
> 7D - Posted 40, Actual 15
> 
> I could go on and on but you get the point.  And yes, this process is intentional and has been in place for many years.



So true!   I remember being at an EMH at MK one year (I think it was 2016) and we felt like we were the only ones in the Tomorrowland area.   We could literally stand there and count the other guests in the area on one hand.   We decided to go ride Space Mountain.   It had a posted wait of 45 minutes....at 1:05 am with a 2:00 a.m. closing time.   I said there was no way it was a 45 minute wait.   We walked past the CM at the entrance who was very loudly announcing to the 4 of us that the wait time was accurate and that if we got in line, it would be our last ride of the night because the rides would be closed by the time we got off.   The kids started to panic.   I told them to keep walking -- that if there really was a bunch of people up ahead, we could turn around and walk out.   We literally walked on the ride.   So we were on and off the ride in less than 15 minutes and there was zero wait time.   And we still got on 7DMT and Winnie the Pooh before the park closed.


----------



## Babe the Blue Ox

bluezy said:


> So true!   I remember being at an EMH at MK one year (I think it was 2016) and we felt like we were the only ones in the Tomorrowland area.   We could literally stand there and count the other guests in the area on one hand.   We decided to go ride Space Mountain.   It had a posted wait of 45 minutes....at 1:05 am with a 2:00 a.m. closing time.   I said there was no way it was a 45 minute wait.   We walked past the CM at the entrance who was very loudly announcing to the 4 of us that the wait time was accurate and that if we got in line, it would be our last ride of the night because the rides would be closed by the time we got off.   The kids started to panic.   I told them to keep walking -- that if there really was a bunch of people up ahead, we could turn around and walk out.   We literally walked on the ride.   So we were off and on the ride in less than 15 minutes and there was zero wait time.   And we still got on 7DMT and Winnie the Pooh before the park closed.



This is a time honored tradition for our family also.  Although I am sad to see groups turn away when they see the inflated wait times.

This trip, we hit Rise an hour and 20 minutes before park close.  The posted wait was 85 minutes with the actual wait of 15.  We immediately rode again with the same 85 minute posted wait, but with an actual wait of less than 5.

We could have rode a third time (posted wait had dropped to 40) but opted for Tower instead.  We strolled across the park, watched a little of the animation pre-show on the theater then hit Tower before closing time.  The posted wait was 80 with an actual wait of about 10 minutes.

That’s how you close a park, and is much more than you could do in a morning no matter how early you arrive.


----------



## Rivergirl2005

Going on Monday and I’m starting to think I may not have the best strategy. Party of 3 and park hopping. We plan on stacking for park 2 but I’ve geared refreshing is better. Should we stick with the plan of stacking or try refreshing throughout the day? Anyone recently been successful refreshing and park hopping?


----------



## scrappinginontario

Rivergirl2005 said:


> Going on Monday and I’m starting to think I may not have the best strategy. Party of 3 and park hopping. We plan on stacking for park 2 but I’ve geared refreshing is better. Should we stick with the plan of stacking or try refreshing throughout the day? Anyone recently been successful refreshing and park hopping?


Unless someone was there today unfortunately their experiences may not be beneficial to you.  There were changes made to Genie+ today (Jun 8, 2022) and people are trying to find out what May/May not be happening now.

There is rumour that the stacking option has been stopped in that a person can hold a max of 2 LL at a time but I have not received  confirmation of that.


----------



## Disturbia

scrappinginontario said:


> Unless someone was there today unfortunately their experiences may not be beneficial to you.  There were changes made to Genie+ today (Jun 8, 2022) and people are trying to find out what May/May not be happening now.
> 
> There is rumour that the stacking option has been stopped in that a person can hold a max of 2 LL at a time but I have not received  confirmation of that.


I’ve stacked 3-4 Genie+ passes on the day I check in.  This is not a change for the better.

Maybe they’re getting ready to drop a premier pass on us starting Aug 8.


----------



## saraheliz

scrappinginontario said:


> Unless someone was there today unfortunately their experiences may not be beneficial to you.  There were changes made to Genie+ today (Jun 8, 2022) and people are trying to find out what May/May not be happening now.
> 
> There is rumour that the stacking option has been stopped in that a person can hold a max of 2 LL at a time but I have not received  confirmation of that.



Definitely hasn't stopped yet, I have a friend there who was holding several LL for yesterday evening. 
We are going at the beginning of August and I really hope this doesn't happen.   Everyone rushed to buy length of stay Genie+ and now they're going to cut the benefits?


----------



## cjlong88

With only one sight is reporting it and no one mentioning this happening to them so far, I’m hoping beyond hope that it’s a wild rumor based on a statement heard by one CM…the fact that we haven’t see anyone else mention it  on here or any other site is my one glimmer of hope that this is bad information. 

If this change does indeed occur, we know these boards will get absolutely flooded with angry posts. So many people on here use the stacking strategy effectively. Fingers crossed it’s nothing. I’m at WDW next Friday. I don’t have time to figure out another G+ strategy!


----------



## Disturbia

As a family of 5 (2 young kids), stacking allows for mid day breaks so we don’t have to be in the parks to ride some of the favorites.

We covered Adventureland in the morning, took a lunch/resort break and stacked a few tier 2 and 3 rides for the evening along with a LLI$ for SDMT.  We also had time for an ADR (Steakhouse71 and CRT).  I don’t see how Disney would see cutting stacking as increasing revenue.  If anything, we only stacked from 6 pm onwards, so didn’t use Genie+ 1-6 pm, leaving more availability for others to buy in.

In HS due to so much uncertainty and Genie+ jumping into the pm in the am, we cancelled our Topolino’s dinner, but there is so much demand that I don’t see us cancelling as Disney loosing any money.


----------



## Jrb1979

Disturbia said:


> As a family of 5 (2 young kids), stacking allows for mid day breaks so we don’t have to be in the parks to ride some of the favorites.
> 
> We covered Adventureland in the morning, took a lunch/resort break and stacked a few tier 2 and 3 rides for the evening along with a LLI$ for SDMT.  We also had time for an ADR (Steakhouse71 and CRT).  I don’t see how Disney would see cutting stacking as increasing revenue.  If anything, we only stacked from 6 pm onwards, so didn’t use Genie+ 1-6 pm, leaving more availability for others to buy in.


I think its more that they are trying different things to make it work for now without raising prices.


----------



## Rivergirl2005

I really hope this change doesn’t occur anytime soon. Going Monday and I’d be a mess if they pulled the rug without an official announcement, since it’s already 10, I’m assuming the effect hasn’t taken place today….


----------



## SealedSeven

If this rumor turns out to be true, then I swear some higher up is purposely trying to piss off as many people they can.


----------



## Jrb1979

SealedSeven said:


> If this rumor turns out to be true, then I swear some higher up is purposely trying to piss off as many people they can.


I don't think that's true. From things I have heard the problem stems from Disney didn't expect this many people to buy Genie+.


----------



## mom2rtk

Jrb1979 said:


> I think its more that they are trying different things to make it work for now without raising prices.


We have no idea whether Disney is trying to keep prices down. They could raise them tomorrow.


----------



## Jrb1979

mom2rtk said:


> We have no idea whether Disney is trying to keep prices down. They could raise them tomorrow.


I don't think they will due to the amount of people who have pre-purchased it. I do see prices changing come next year. It would be a PR disaster to up the price when many got it cheaper.


----------



## snikki

Jrb1979 said:


> I don't think they will due to the amount of people who have pre-purchased it. I do see prices changing come next year. It would be a PR disaster to up the price when many got it cheaper.



That happens with rooms. I could see them doing it with G+.


----------



## goingtotheworld

Our trip is almost here and I'm still feeling a little bit lost with all of the changes.  I've read so many posts, threads, and asked a few questions but my head is spinning!   My current strategy for our Magic Kingdom day (Wednesday 6/15) - we will be at the bus stop at 7am for an 8:30am ETPE and plan to do $LL for SDMT and grab a G+ at 7ish for an early (10am or earlier) return time at PPF, Space, or Splash (We are no longer planning to ride Jungle Cruise).  Assuming we get an early PPF not sure if it would be best to do Space and Buzz during ETPE, then head to Pirates, BTMRR, and Splash....or do Fantasyland rides like Pooh and Mermaid or IASW during ETPE, then head to HM, BTMRR and Splash?   

I'm also planning to use the refresh method for G+ for a few early passes, then switch to stacking for after our resort lunch break.  We will likely leave the park around 1pm and return around 4pm.  Is this the best method for an afternoon break?

Any advice is appreciated!


----------



## superden

Trying to fix G+ by complicating it even more than what it already is doesn't seem like a sound business strategy.


----------



## mom2rtk

superden said:


> Trying to fix G+ by complicating it even more than what it already is doesn't seem like a sound business strategy.


Seems like something Disney would do.......


----------



## superden

mom2rtk said:


> Seems like something Disney would do.......


You are not wrong...


----------



## AnnaKristoff2013

superden said:


> Trying to fix G+ by complicating it even more than what it already is doesn't seem like a sound business strategy.


Current leadership at Disney does not use sound business strategies.


----------



## Disturbia

Recent article on the 120 rule (doesn’t look like it’s being eliminated just yet):

https://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2022/06/08/disneys-confusing-120-minute-genie-rule-is-now-official/


----------



## Disturbia

goingtotheworld said:


> Our trip is almost here and I'm still feeling a little bit lost with all of the changes.  I've read so many posts, threads, and asked a few questions but my head is spinning!   My current strategy for our Magic Kingdom day (Wednesday 6/15) - we will be at the bus stop at 7am for an 8:30am ETPE and plan to do $LL for SDMT and grab a G+ at 7ish for an early (10am or earlier) return time at PPF, Space, or Splash (We are no longer planning to ride Jungle Cruise).  Assuming we get an early PPF not sure if it would be best to do Space and Buzz during ETPE, then head to Pirates, BTMRR, and Splash....or do Fantasyland rides like Pooh and Mermaid or IASW during ETPE, then head to HM, BTMRR and Splash?
> 
> I'm also planning to use the refresh method for G+ for a few early passes, then switch to stacking for after our resort lunch break.  We will likely leave the park around 1pm and return around 4pm.  Is this the best method for an afternoon break?
> 
> Any advice is appreciated!


You want to ride the highest wait rides (all the mountains) during the extra 30 mins and when waits shoot up you go to the tier 3 (low wait) rides like little mermaid. 

Now Splash sometimes doesn’t open on time, so if you’re ok going to neighboring rides then you can hit that part of the park first; if not, then targeting Fantasyland first. 

Be open to things not going as planned.  We had JC first and tried to get POTC but couldn’t get anything before 1 pm.  When I finally saw 11am the system booked 2 pm.  The cancel button didn’t even show up for a good 15 mins (I spent several mins with a CM who had never seen that either).   Don’t just accept a time that would have you criss crossing; cancel and refresh.  I got 12 pm with refreshing and then we took a lunch break and booked big Thunder at 1:30 pm

We didn’t do early morning (we don’t need to do everything).  We arrived at the park at 9:30 am.  We left after Big Thunder and had dinner booked at 5 pm (took 2 hrs with desserts to go; so rides were stacked for the evening).


----------



## DavidNYC

Disturbia said:


> Recent article on the 120 rule (doesn’t look like it’s being eliminated just yet):
> 
> https://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2022/06/08/disneys-confusing-120-minute-genie-rule-is-now-official/


Well I grant the author that it is a confusing rule, this article is also incorrect and does not accurately state how the system works.  Technically it is not two hours or when you use one which ever comes first.  Technically, it’s two hours or when you use your most recently booked one.  The way Disney has set up the system, it makes zero sense whatsoever to limit stacking and will likely lead to credit card chargebacks and complaints due to people not being able to use the system due to The times Disney has assigned them.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Guests there now are reporting *stacking is still alive and well*!!


----------



## FreeCA

goingtotheworld said:


> Our trip is almost here and I'm still feeling a little bit lost with all of the changes.  I've read so many posts, threads, and asked a few questions but my head is spinning!   My current strategy for our Magic Kingdom day (Wednesday 6/15) - we will be at the bus stop at 7am for an 8:30am ETPE and plan to do $LL for SDMT and grab a G+ at 7ish for an early (10am or earlier) return time at PPF, Space, or Splash (We are no longer planning to ride Jungle Cruise).  Assuming we get an early PPF not sure if it would be best to do Space and Buzz during ETPE, then head to Pirates, BTMRR, and Splash....or do Fantasyland rides like Pooh and Mermaid or IASW during ETPE, then head to HM, BTMRR and Splash?
> 
> I'm also planning to use the refresh method for G+ for a few early passes, then switch to stacking for after our resort lunch break.  We will likely leave the park around 1pm and return around 4pm.  Is this the best method for an afternoon break?
> 
> Any advice is appreciated!


Largely a good strategy, but even more is to go with the flow. Some days we find G+ to help us knock out heavy hitters early. Other days it fills up so quick we end up starting our stacking early in the day for the evening.

We also do a resort break midday. Usually we start stacking about 45 minutes before we leave the park.

While this may be dependent on the day, we’ve found stacking & closing the park a better method than trying g to get everything done in the AM with MK.

I’m sure expierence on this veries, which is where flexibility comes in.


----------



## suzywindy

When I went to Disney in May I did use the Genie + and because of these boards I was alerted not to give up when first booking at 7am that a bit later there are drop times.  I am going back in July and practicing again but don't see any drop times or any significant drop times at 7:11 or 7:18 anymore.   Did the drop times stop?   Thanks


----------



## TISHLOVESDISNEY

suzywindy said:


> When I went to Disney in May I did use the Genie + and because of these boards I was alerted not to give up when first booking at 7am that a bit later there are drop times.  I am going back in July and practicing again but don't see any drop times or any significant drop times at 7:11 or 7:18 anymore.   Did the drop times stop?   Thanks


Apparently.  I've been watching all week, and it's being discussed on another board I go to that they are gone.
ETA I guess I should say I've been mostly watching DHS these past few days so,


----------



## Disturbia

TISHLOVESDISNEY said:


> Apparently.  I've been watching all week, and it's being discussed on another board I go to that they are gone.
> ETA I guess I should say I've been mostly watching DHS these past few days so,


When I clicked 9:30 am for SDMT right in the dot at 7 am (timed with an Apple Watch), it booked an evening pass (the final booking screen displayed 9:30 am just like the allears video, but the confirmation after payment was after 6 pm) which conflicted with our dinner ADR (the only reason I glanced at it was that the confirmation screen was taking a few seconds and this info was grayed out in the background; I did not wait to take a screenshot or anything).

I hurried to the front desk and got it corrected (there was a 30 min wait at the front desk at AOA fyi).  They were able to correct it due to a second drop and open availability from 11 am around 7:35 am.

Has anyone tested if there is more availability for the LLI$ now?


----------



## Disturbia

Just pulled up some thrill data for ROTR; availability is sparse; maybe more to do with summer crowds

https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/attraction/hollywood-studios/starwarsriseoftheresistance/


----------



## itf

Not sure if this is a trend, but seems to be a 10am paid LL drop every day with a virtually immediate return time for Avatar?

https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/attraction/animal-kingdom/avatarflightofpassage/ 

It happened virtually every day this month.


----------



## hhhisthegame

Going to disney, and haven't had genie+ before. I'm reading the stacking rules.

Am I right that it's probably smart to get your first fast pass of the day such that it takes place AFTER the park has been open for two hours, so you can have two fast-passes to work with the whole day? or is it best to just get whatever time is available for the big rides? 

I was thinking that it would probably be best to say, if the park opens at 9, try to get your first fast pass for 11, so you have two fast passes most of the day and can double your lightning lanes.


----------



## mom22boys

hhhisthegame said:


> Going to disney, and haven't had genie+ before. I'm reading the stacking rules.
> 
> Am I right that it's probably smart to get your first fast pass of the day such that it takes place AFTER the park has been open for two hours, so you can have two fast-passes to work with the whole day? or is it best to just get whatever time is available for the big rides?
> 
> I was thinking that it would probably be best to say, if the park opens at 9, try to get your first fast pass for 11, so you have two fast passes most of the day and can double your lightning lanes.



Someone with a lot more experience than me could verify this, but it is my understanding that this loophole has been closed.


----------



## Tom_E_D

hhhisthegame said:


> Going to disney, and haven't had genie+ before. I'm reading the stacking rules.
> 
> Am I right that it's probably smart to get your first fast pass of the day such that it takes place AFTER the park has been open for two hours, so you can have two fast-passes to work with the whole day? or is it best to just get whatever time is available for the big rides?
> 
> I was thinking that it would probably be best to say, if the park opens at 9, try to get your first fast pass for 11, so you have two fast passes most of the day and can double your lightning lanes.


The Genie+ "rules" were dramatically changed last November, shortly before Thanksgiving. Ignore anything written before then. Strategies involving double and triple stacks no longer work.


----------



## hhhisthegame

Tom_E_D said:


> The Genie+ "rules" were dramatically changed last November, shortly before Thanksgiving. Ignore anything written before then. Strategies involving double and triple stacks no longer work.



Can you explain? I saw recent articles saying you could double and triple stack.....what changed? You can only have one at a time now? Even just recently they said you can get a new one after two hours or using your reservation, whichever comes first


----------



## hhhisthegame

I found articles and think I get it now. What Im not sure about is if its best to stack, or to start the day by just doing all the early ones quickly. There must be a point where its nice to just do a bunch of easy rides with immediate fast passes, but Im not clear on when to do it


----------



## g-dad66

hhhisthegame said:


> I found articles and think I get it now. What Im not sure about is if its best to stack, or to start the day by just doing all the early ones quickly. There must be a point where its nice to just do a bunch of easy rides with immediate fast passes, but Im not clear on when to do it



It depends on the park and it depends on what attractions you want to do.

For example, if you don't book Remy or Slinky Dog first, they will gone by the time your are ready to book again.

Using early return times works best at Magic Kingdom.  Stacking works best at Hollywood Studios.


----------



## Tom_E_D

hhhisthegame said:


> Can you explain? I saw recent articles saying you could double and triple stack.....what changed? You can only have one at a time now? Even just recently they said you can get a new one after two hours or using your reservation, whichever comes first


You can still have a stack that has two, three, or more G+LL reservations. You create it by making new reservations at the 2-hour mark. Prior to the November change, you could get a new G+LL whenever you tapped into *any* of those reservations, allowing you to get one at the 2-hour mark and then another when you tapped into your older reservation. That meant you could quickly have two or more and then continue to have two, three or whatever number you had when you started tapping in, for the rest of the day. Tap into one, get another. Now, you can only make a new G+LL after tapping into your *most-recently-booked* G+LL (or by waiting for two hours after your most recent booking, or by canceling your most recent booking, or having your most recent booking expire or be converted to an anytime pass). This has made it tougher to maintain a large stack. Eventually, you will use a reservation that is not your most-recently-booked one and you won't be allowed to replace it. I consider a "triple stack" strategy (before the change) to be where, once you had three, you could continue to have three the rest of the day by replacing them on a one-for-one basis. Others may use the term differently. I did not mean to say you can no longer ever have three at one time. You still can. But you can't replace the older ones once they are used, canceled or expire.


----------



## Disturbia

At Mk, I think the optimal strategy is trying to target one Genie+ for the first hour of park opening and then super refreshing to get at least 2 more before breaking for lunch (12:30-1).  After 11:00 am (for a 9 am opening), most passes will start getting into the 3 pm range (keep refreshing; I cancelled a POTC 2 pm for 12:30; the option to cancel (3 dots on the right of a booked LL) didn’t show up for a good 15 mins).  Around 12:30 we take a lunch break (usually takes longer due to peak lunch hour) before heading to the resort.

I usually wait until things start going into the range that I want to start stacking (around 2 pm some passes are into the 6 pm
range), we expect to be in the park around 6 pm and book an early dinner at 5 pm or late post fireworks (CRT releases late hours when hours are added 2 weeks prior).

We usually have SDMT booked for the evening and then 3 Genie+ before fireworks.  Around fireworks we can usually book 2 more Genie+ LL (Haunted Mansion/Small World) and after 10 pm everything has low/manageable waits.

Make sure you setup your preferences in the free Genie+ (On the main MDE page) to be able to ‘pin rides’ to the top.

If you hit ‘LL’ on a ride (details screen after clicking on a ride on the tip board), the tip board will jump to that ride when you pull down to refresh the page (vs manually scrolling down to the ride while refreshing).


----------



## Disturbia

For HS, we try to be more flexible.  We book SDD first and then book MMRR (kids not interested in MFSR) and then super refresh for TOT/RnRc.  Usually we can get TSMM as well.

One day we had a relaxing breakfast at Topolinos and chose to just go to HS in the late afternoon/evening.  Due to the ADR conflict, we had MMRR changed and later TOT.  It was still hectic to exit, walk all the way down to the taxi pickup (end of bus line) and get to our ADR and we cancelled Topolinos dinner on Hs day 2.


----------



## paopiru

Disturbia said:


> Make sure you setup your preferences in the free Genie+ (On the main MDE page) to be able to ‘pin rides’ to the top.
> 
> If you hit ‘LL’ on a ride (details screen after clicking on a ride on the tip board), the tip board will jump to that ride when you pull down to refresh the page (vs manually scrolling down to the ride while refreshing).


Hi, can you please explain again if I have to add to Genie free only the ones I need for Genie+ and ILL the day of my visit to each park? I'm not sure how it works when you refresh the page.  You do this in My board or My Day?


----------



## TheDailyMoo

Going next week with toddler for the first time and very tempted to just say forget Genie+ and let the chips fall where they may. When just the two of us used to go for years we planned everything perfectly and were in the parks open to close. I have no idea what this  trip is going to be like and we may barely even be in the parks very long to justify buying it. Who knows what rides or how many toddler will even go on. Will probably have to take many breaks and we also have many ADRs planned just to sit and eat. Any opinions on this? Would I basically be paying $45 a day just to maybe grab Peter Pan or something like that when we can just as easily stand on line for Aladdin or Dumbo or Tiki room? I can always do single rider if I can sneak away just for some fun right? I have zero idea what to expect not only with a toddler now but also in this post pandemic weirdo money grab over crowded Disney.


----------



## NicholeB630

I’m not sure if this has been asked yet because there’s so many pages in this thread, now that they made it to where you have to book the same day every day which is absolutely ridiculous are people waking up at midnight to book? Is there still availability to get genie plus if you wait until like 6 AM. I really cannot understand the reasoning and as why Disney would force people to do this


----------



## cjlong88

NicholeB630 said:


> I’m not sure if this has been asked yet because there’s so many pages in this thread, now that they made it to where you have to book the same day every day which is absolutely ridiculous are people waking up at midnight to book? Is there still availability to get genie plus if you wait until like 6 AM. I really cannot understand the reasoning and as why Disney would force people to do this


Last weekend I woke up at 6:50 am to purchase G+ and at 7:00 am I booked my first LL. At 7:01 am I rolled over and went right back to sleep. No issues with purchasing it that late.


----------



## scrappinginontario

NicholeB630 said:


> I’m not sure if this has been asked yet because there’s so many pages in this thread, now that they made it to where you have to book the same day every day which is absolutely ridiculous are people waking up at midnight to book? Is there still availability to get genie plus if you wait until like 6 AM. I really cannot understand the reasoning and as why Disney would force people to do this


To date I don't believe we've had any reports of guests being unable to purchase Genie + at any point during a day.  If they are capping sales, I don't believe they've ever reached that cap since it was put in place.

Has anyone experienced being unable to purchase or, have a reliable source stating sale caps were reached on a certain day?


----------



## NicholeB630

cjlong88 said:


> Last weekend I woke up at 6:50 am to purchase G+ and at 7:00 am I booked my first LL. At 7:01 am I rolled over and went right back to sleep. No issues with purchasing it that late.


That’s good to know!!! Thanks!


----------



## NicholeB630

scrappinginontario said:


> To date I don't believe we've had any reports of guests being unable to purchase Genie + at any point during a day.  If they are capping sales, I don't believe they've ever reached that cap since it was put in place.
> 
> Has anyone experienced being unable to purchase or, have a reliable source stating sale caps were reached on a certain day?


OK that’s great because I remember reading that they changed their verbiage to limited availability so that had me a little worried and curious if it would sell out every day. We are early risers anyway so I have no problem waking up at like six but I was not too thrilled with the idea of having to wake up at midnight every night to ensure that we get Genie-+


----------



## Jrb1979

scrappinginontario said:


> To date I don't believe we've had any reports of guests being unable to purchase Genie + at any point during a day.  If they are capping sales, I don't believe they've ever reached that cap since it was put in place.
> 
> Has anyone experienced being unable to purchase or, have a reliable source stating sale caps were reached on a certain day?


I don't believe that has happened yet. It still might happen on the next update to MDE


----------



## Disturbia

paopiru said:


> Hi, can you please explain again if I have to add to Genie free only the ones I need for Genie+ and ILL the day of my visit to each park? I'm not sure how it works when you refresh the page.  You do this in My board or My Day?


This video might explain things better.  Basically you have to set your preferences in the free Genie portion of the app (the rides you want to get a Genie+ for; you can always add more) and then your ride selections show up on the top; refreshing refers to the tip board to reload new times available (usually by pulling down the ‘tip board’ page):


----------



## paopiru

Disturbia said:


> This video might explain things better.  Basically you have to set your preferences in the free Genie app and then your ride selections show up on the top:


Thanks! I will check the video to learn how it works before our trip.  For instance if I have a park pass for AK 2 october and want to make my first genie+ selection at 7. Do I have to go to my day or to my board? Now they are showing on My Board tab. Sorry for the silly questions but I am a bit anxious about the whole process. Thanks again for your help!


----------



## Disturbia

paopiru said:


> Thanks! I will check the video to learn how it works before our trip.  For instance if I have a park pass for AK 2 october and want to make my first genie+ selection at 7. Do I have to go to my day or to my board? Now they are showing on My Board tab. Sorry for the silly questions but I am a bit anxious about the whole process. Thanks again for your help!


To setup the selections, you have to go to ‘My Day’ tab and select ‘get started now’.


This is also where you purchase Genie+:

For selecting rides once you purchase Genie+, you have to make selections on the ‘tip board’.

Allears has further details:

https://allears.net/2021/10/08/everything-you-need-to-know-before-using-the-new-disney-genie/


----------



## paopiru

Thanks. I noticed in the video that once you made your selection, they appeared at the top of the Tip Board so it is easier to see available genie+.  That was the info I was missing. Thanks!!!


----------



## Dr Gunnie

We returned from our trip this week and just wanted to give my experiences with G+ and purchasing LL. I was a huge spreadsheet planner in the FP days and the new system had me super nervous. Overall, we had a great experience and even though I prefer the FP system because you can plan well in advance, we got to ride everything we wanted to. We did stay on site. 

The strategy that worked best for us was stacking in the afternoon/evening. We park hopped, so we would rope drop one park and I would use maybe 1 G+ selection in the morning, then start stacking the rest for the afternoon/evening. When we rope dropped, we were able to get a few bigger rides first in standby with minimal wait, then did our early G+ selection. Throughout the day, we could grab about 5 selections for our afternoon/evening park which really made those fun. We did purchase FoP, Rise, and 7D during our trip. 

I can go in more detail if anyone is interested, but if your a first time G+ user and your nervous about your upcoming trip, it can be done with minimal stress. Good luck!


----------



## Frozen2014

Am a pre-planner too with a spreadsheet so feel less prepared for our upcoming trip.  One question about stacking...when you do so, do you pay attention to the location of the rides so you're not running from one end of the park to the other?  Or you just select based on priority and hard to get rides?


----------



## cjlong88

Frozen2014 said:


> Am a pre-planner too with a spreadsheet so feel less prepared for our upcoming trip.  One question about stacking...when you do so, do you pay attention to the location of the rides so you're not running from one end of the park to the other?  Or you just select based on priority and hard to get rides?


I do try to make it so I zig zag as little as possible. It’s not always perfect, but I’ve done it a few times now where I overlap return times for rides right next to each other to help me stay in one area and keep it organized. Stacking does require you to book in the order of most to least popular so every two hours your next selection’s return time is pushed out far enough so it’s not too early, but sometimes that means getting a return time that’s not 100% ideal. Because MK and HS are so small in terms of park size, I didn’t find that to be too big of a deal at those. AK and Epcot are a different story.

For me though, zig zagging is significantly better than waiting 120 minutes to ride one attraction because it’s next door to the attraction I just got off of. We usually use that walking time as an opportunity to pick up a snack or do something else in between so it’s not seen as time or steps wasted.


----------



## Frozen2014

cjlong88 said:


> I do try to make it so I zig zag as little as possible. It’s not always perfect, but I’ve done it a few times now where I overlap return times for rides right next to each other to help me stay in one area and keep it organized. Stacking does require you to book in the order of most to least popular so every two hours your next selection’s return time is pushed out far enough so it’s not too early, but sometimes that means getting a return time that’s not 100% ideal. Because MK and HS are so small in terms of park size, I didn’t find that to be too big of a deal at those. AK and Epcot are a different story.
> 
> For me though, zig zagging is significantly better than waiting 120 minutes to ride one attraction because it’s next door to the attraction I just got off of. We usually use that walking time as an opportunity to pick up a snack or do something else in between so it’s not seen as time or steps wasted.


Thanks. That helps.  This is one worry as I have only been to WDW only once before and that was awhile ago...so I don't know the parks very well (and this will be our first time at AK).  Kind of feel like I need to study the maps beforehand.  For us too, it'll be August so guess we don't want to zip zag too much...but true, better than waiting the 120 minutes and then missing the Genie+ as it's sold out.  Even for non-stacking park (MK?), still want to try and book things close to where we are...but that requires knowing the park layout....since Genie selections need to be done on the spot and quick.


----------



## DL1WDW2

I thought Genie “planned” your day according to this strategy of keeping your movement organized …avoiding the zigzag. 
I guess not .


----------



## Frozen2014

DL1WDW2 said:


> I thought Genie “planned” your day according to this strategy of keeping your movement organized …avoiding the zigzag.
> I guess not .


Am questioning about the Lightning Lanes that you book on the app.  Not the Genie feature.


----------



## Disturbia

Frozen2014 said:


> Thanks. That helps.  This is one worry as I have only been to WDW only once before and that was awhile ago...so I don't know the parks very well (and this will be our first time at AK).  Kind of feel like I need to study the maps beforehand.  For us too, it'll be August so guess we don't want to zip zag too much...but true, better than waiting the 120 minutes and then missing the Genie+ as it's sold out.  Even for non-stacking park (MK?), still want to try and book things close to where we are...but that requires knowing the park layout....since Genie selections need to be done on the spot and quick.


AK and Epcot had the most zig zagging we had to do.  Limited rides means it’s even harder to book a second tier 2 ride.  At Epcot, I would not recommend overlapping plans, especially after 2 pm.  It took a good 15 mins to speed walk from Soarin to Remy with intense congestion in Canada and France (food booth had a 45 min wait) from guests entering via the Skyliner.


----------



## Disturbia

DL1WDW2 said:


> I thought Genie “planned” your day according to this strategy of keeping your movement organized …avoiding the zigzag.
> I guess not .


Allears had reported Genie recommending going all the way back to POC vs riding Little Mermaid when they were in Fantasyland.  I think it prioritizes rides (in demand) vs distance.  You can choose to ignore the recommendation and not have it appear (but then it won’t show that recommendation again?)


----------



## Disturbia

Frozen2014 said:


> Am questioning about the Lightning Lanes that you book on the app.  Not the Genie feature.


We booked Lightning lanes later in the day to avoid conflicts.  However there were still unforeseen delays (Steakhouse71 took 2 hrs with desserts to go and we almost missed SDMT)


----------



## CarolynFH

DL1WDW2 said:


> I thought Genie “planned” your day according to this strategy of keeping your movement organized …avoiding the zigzag.
> I guess not .


No, Genie plans your day in order to distribute guests more evenly across the park and among the rides.  If the rides you want are in too much demand, it will recommend another ride that doesn't have such a long line.  I believe that Genie is programmed to be blind to geography.


----------



## Disturbia

This video helps compare using Genie and not:


----------



## Dr Gunnie

Frozen2014 said:


> Am a pre-planner too with a spreadsheet so feel less prepared for our upcoming trip.  One question about stacking...when you do so, do you pay attention to the location of the rides so you're not running from one end of the park to the other?  Or you just select based on priority and hard to get rides?


We didn’t really look at locations. There were a couple times we had two rides reserved for the same reservation window (say 7:00 - 8:00), we just made sure to hit the first one at 6:55 to give us enough time to get to the second one. I can see where that might be a problem though if you have younger kids who are walking.


----------



## BuckeyeBama

Do you still need to be a resort guest to bool Individual LL rides at 7am?


----------



## scrappinginontario

BuckeyeBama said:


> Do you still need to be a resort guest to bool Individual LL rides at 7am?


Yes.


----------



## BuckeyeBama

scrappinginontario said:


> Yes.


Thank you


----------



## paopiru

Dr Gunnie said:


> We returned from our trip this week and just wanted to give my experiences with G+ and purchasing LL. I was a huge spreadsheet planner in the FP days and the new system had me super nervous. Overall, we had a great experience and even though I prefer the FP system because you can plan well in advance, we got to ride everything we wanted to. We did stay on site.
> 
> The strategy that worked best for us was stacking in the afternoon/evening. We park hopped, so we would rope drop one park and I would use maybe 1 G+ selection in the morning, then start stacking the rest for the afternoon/evening. When we rope dropped, we were able to get a few bigger rides first in standby with minimal wait, then did our early G+ selection. Throughout the day, we could grab about 5 selections for our afternoon/evening park which really made those fun. We did purchase FoP, Rise, and 7D during our trip.
> 
> I can go in more detail if anyone is interested, but if your a first time G+ user and your nervous about your upcoming trip, it can be done with minimal stress. Good luck!


So glad to hear you managed to ride all you had planned for with G+/ILL.  I'm a spreadsheet fan too and this trip we are staying off site.  Do you think not having early hours would have made a big difference in getting to ride first tier rides?


----------



## TheDailyMoo

If I'm with a toddler for the first time and I'm not looking to stack because I don't know how late we'll be staying in parks or if we'll even come back after hotel break/early dinners, what is the best strategy? Is it just to grab the earliest/best rides and keep doing that until we leave? If we do that and end up coming back into park after a hotel break...let's say like 3pm...are there still decent rides left to grab almost immediately?


----------



## vinotinto

Serious question here, at what time are ya’ll having dinner, with all the late afternoon and evening stacking?


----------



## Smugpugmug

vinotinto said:


> Serious question here, at what time are ya’ll having dinner, with all the late afternoon and evening stacking?


Are you asking for table service dinners or dinner in general? Because when I did stacking for HS on my last trip, my group and I ate at Backlot Express around 7:15-7:30 pm-ish due to all of our stacked LLs being between 5:00-7:00


----------



## paopiru

TheDailyMoo said:


> If I'm with a toddler for the first time and I'm not looking to stack because I don't know how late we'll be staying in parks or if we'll even come back after hotel break/early dinners, what is the best strategy? Is it just to grab the earliest/best rides and keep doing that until we leave? If we do that and end up coming back into park after a hotel break...let's say like 3pm...are there still decent rides left to grab almost immediately?


I think it depends on the park you are visiting. If you are at MK then there are lots of rides with G+ open slots way into late afternoon / night.  If you are going to HS options may be limited.


----------



## HeiHei2018

TheDailyMoo said:


> If I'm with a toddler for the first time and I'm not looking to stack because I don't know how late we'll be staying in parks or if we'll even come back after hotel break/early dinners, what is the best strategy? Is it just to grab the earliest/best rides and keep doing that until we leave? If we do that and end up coming back into park after a hotel break...let's say like 3pm...are there still decent rides left to grab almost immediately?


i haven’t been yet with G+, but my plan based on posts here is to grab the earliest time I can on a must do ride at 7 am and then grab whatever will save us time after that. We don’t do the mountains and will likely skip jungle cruise to make it work. Once you are done for the first half of the day, start a late afternoon stack in case you do come back. If you come back, you are in good shape. I am hoping to get Pirates LL and do Bears and Tiki shows, or Buzz and Monsters Inc. If you don’t return, you can cancel, and someone else will be super excited to snag the LLs you cancelled.


----------



## pens4821

vinotinto said:


> Serious question here, at what time are ya’ll having dinner, with all the late afternoon and evening stacking?



The three days we stacked we didn’t have dinner ADRs so that helped. One day we went to CHH at MK, then we snacked around epcot, and the last night we didn’t eat until we went back to the resort after the park closed. I think we ate lunch around noon so waiting till 10ish was a little late but just the way it worked out we didn’t have much time.


----------



## TheDailyMoo

HeiHei2018 said:


> i haven’t been yet with G+, but my plan based on posts here is to grab the earliest time I can on a must do ride at 7 am and then grab whatever will save us time after that. We don’t do the mountains and will likely skip jungle cruise to make it work. Once you are done for the first half of the day, start a late afternoon stack in case you do come back. If you come back, you are in good shape. I am hoping to get Pirates LL and do Bears and Tiki shows, or Buzz and Monsters Inc. If you don’t return, you can cancel, and someone else will be super excited to snag the LLs you cancelled.


This is along the lines of what I was thinking. Thank you yes I think that's the best strategy. What really throws the monkey wrench into the mix are the many ADR's we made for each day to take a break and sit and eat. This is going to be an experiment for sure especially the first few days as we get a feel for the new system. I can't believe they got rid of fast passes for this!


----------



## MsT82

I’ve been back to the magic in May and I opted to not overly use Genie+ but I’m going back in December and I want to make use of it. However, everything I read seems to be rope drop and full park days. 

We tend to not rope drop and head back to the resort for a couple of hours mid day. Is there anyway to make Genie+ plus work with this setup or does anyone have any tips? Mostly for MK


----------



## vinotinto

Smugpugmug said:


> Are you asking for table service dinners or dinner in general? Because when I did stacking for HS on my last trip, my group and I ate at Backlot Express around 7:15-7:30 pm-ish due to all of our stacked LLs being between 5:00-7:00





pens4821 said:


> The three days we stacked we didn’t have dinner ADRs so that helped. One day we went to CHH at MK, then we snacked around epcot, and the last night we didn’t eat until we went back to the resort after the park closed. I think we ate lunch around noon so waiting till 10ish was a little late but just the way it worked out we didn’t have much time.


Yes, I was asking about sit down dinner ADRs. Is Genie+ still worth it if we make dinner ADRs? It sounds like the most use out of G+ is if you can use that late afternoon and evening time to stack.


----------



## Disturbia

vinotinto said:


> Serious question here, at what time are ya’ll having dinner, with all the late afternoon and evening stacking?


We did 5 pm Steakhouse71 and CRT 9:25 pm on our MK days.

With the HS late afternoon-evening stacking, we did Topolinos late breakfast (doubled as early lunch) and then Steakhouse71 at 8:30 pm.


----------



## Good&Plenty

(Posted in another thread, but trying here in case it's the right place):

I have a question about this rule (taken from a sticky):_ If the first LL is booked at 7AM for a park you are hopping to after 2:00, you will be eligible to book a 2nd LL 2 hours after the park where you booked your first LL opens._

My question: Can this rule be used in the following way?

AK will be opening at 8AM during my upcoming August (2022) trip. If I start my day at Epcot (and do Early Entry Rope Drop) with plans to hop to AK in the afternoon, and make my first G+ selection at 7AM for a ride in AK, will my next chance to use G+ at Epcot be at 10AM?

I hope this question makes sense, thanks!


----------



## emmabelle

Good&Plenty said:


> (Posted in another thread, but trying here in case it's the right place):
> 
> I have a question about this rule (taken from a sticky):_ If the first LL is booked at 7AM for a park you are hopping to after 2:00, you will be eligible to book a 2nd LL 2 hours after the park where you booked your first LL opens._
> 
> My question: Can this rule be used in the following way?
> 
> AK will be opening at 8AM during my upcoming August (2022) trip. If I start my day at Epcot (and do Early Entry Rope Drop) with plans to hop to AK in the afternoon, and make my first G+ selection at 7AM for a ride in AK, will my next chance to use G+ at Epcot be at 10AM?
> 
> I hope this question makes sense, thanks!






Depending when your trip is, I think it's best to try and grab an Epcot one for something for 9am. Once you ride your 9am Epcot one then grab a later one for AK. I just checked and right now AK is still under 2pm for LL's. I think you'll be able to ride an extra headliner that way.  JMHO


----------



## Good&Plenty

emmabelle said:


> Depending when your trip is, I think it's best to try and grab an Epcot one for something for 9am. Once you ride your 9am Epcot one then grab a later one for AK. I just checked and right now AK is still under 2pm for LL's.  Once you ride your 9am Epcot one then grab a later one for AK. I think you'll be able to ride an extra headliner that way.  JMHO



That is terrific advice, thank you! I will do that.


----------



## emmabelle

Good&Plenty said:


> That is terrific advice, thank you! I will do that.



three weeks ago I was able to grab a Frozen for 9am and then after we clicked in to Frozen, I grabbed a 10:40am Soarin.  (Test track already had late LL's and Remy was still a paid $LL that weekend.)  At 10:40am after clicking in for Soarin, I started stacking for our night at Magic Kingdom. 

I would check the LL times at AK after my first Epcot LL.  If they are still early, I would start refreshing to see if I could get an early enough second ride at Epcot.


----------



## Good&Plenty

emmabelle said:


> three weeks ago I was able to grab a Frozen for 9am and then after we clicked in to Frozen, I grabbed a 10:40am Soarin.  (Test track already had late LL's and Remy was still a paid $LL that weekend.)  At 10:40am after clicking in for Soarin, I started stacking for our night at Magic Kingdom.
> 
> I would check the LL times at AK after my first Epcot LL.  If they are still early, I would start refreshing to see if I could get an early enough second ride at Epcot.



That's a good plan, thank you. I'm waiting for August 7th to see if rides are shifted back to $ILL. If they aren't, we'd try for an early Remy if at all possible. Then G+ Soarin and TT (Single Rider, hopefully ok with my DS11 and DD9).  I'm the only one who wants to reride Frozen  this trip.

Hopefully walk on the less busy Epcot rides while stacking for AK.  Thanks!


----------



## emmabelle

Good&Plenty said:


> That's a good plan, thank you. I'm waiting for August 7th to see if rides are shifted back to $ILL. If they aren't, we'd try for an early Remy if at all possible. Then G+ Soarin and TT (Single Rider, hopefully ok with my DS11 and DD9).  I'm the only one who wants to reride Frozen  this trip.
> 
> Hopefully walk on the less busy Epcot rides while stacking for AK.  Thanks!



We did single rider on TT that day.  It was a 10 minute wait at 10am and we were both in the same car.   Standby was around an hour.


----------



## Good&Plenty

emmabelle said:


> We did single rider on TT that day.  It was a 10 minute wait at 10am and we were both in the same car.   Standby was around an hour.



Terrific to know, thank you.  I was planning on not riding and waiting in the gift shop (?) in case my DD9/DS11 went on alone (my husband would be in line w/them). I'll definitely put them all in the single rider lane, thanks!!  

I think what you said earlier _"I would check the LL times at AK after my first Epcot LL. If they are still early, I would start refreshing to see if I could get an early enough second ride at Epcot." _is very helpful.  I'll check the app the week or two before we go (end of August) to get an idea of what the ride times look like.


----------



## emmabelle

Last year we were there the last week of August into September and the parks were so quiet.  On our AK morning we rode FOP with a 15 minute wait at 9am.  When we got off a CM said we could skip the queue and get back in line.  My stomach said yeah that’s okay.  Haha


----------



## Good&Plenty

emmabelle said:


> Last year we were there the last week of August into September and the parks were so quiet.  On our AK morning we rode FOP with a 15 minute wait at 9am.  When we got off a CM said we could skip the queue and get back in line.  My stomach said yeah that’s okay.  Haha


LOL.  That's great to hear, I am definitely hoping for the same. Not ideal weather, but worked w/school schedules. Thanks again!


----------



## cakebaker

Do AP's still have to call to buy Genie+ when others on the reservation have regular tickets with genie+ pre-purchased? We were going to wait to add Genie+ until we arrived, but I added it on to each ticket when they announced they were no longer going to offer pre-sales, not realizing it would cause an issue with me buying it every day. Also, my AP is a older voucher, not yet activated. Does it have to be activated to add Genie+?


----------



## bashuck

MsT82 said:


> I’ve been back to the magic in May and I opted to not overly use Genie+ but I’m going back in December and I want to make use of it. However, everything I read seems to be rope drop and full park days.
> 
> We tend to not rope drop and head back to the resort for a couple of hours mid day. Is there anyway to make Genie+ plus work with this setup or does anyone have any tips? Mostly for MK


We used to never rope drop and always come back to resort from 1-4 at a minimum.  After our last trip I really think we are going to skip going anywhere in the morning and just open the day at the pool.  Most times will only do 1 park at all, but maybe 2 where we just go direct from 1 park to the next where we have a pool of fast passes built up.  I did not find the lines satisfactory without a G+ reservation, and my wife and daughter are not early risers.  We will likely use the pool again when we return as we have no need to get up early.  We have made many trips and I certainly understand someone on their 'only' trip not wanting to do this but I'm confident it will be best for us going forward.


----------



## MsT82

bashuck said:


> We used to never rope drop and always come back to resort from 1-4 at a minimum.  After our last trip I really think we are going to skip going anywhere in the morning and just open the day at the pool.  Most times will only do 1 park at all, but maybe 2 where we just go direct from 1 park to the next where we have a pool of fast passes built up.  I did not find the lines satisfactory without a G+ reservation, and my wife and daughter are not early risers.  We will likely use the pool again when we return as we have no need to get up early.  We have made many trips and I certainly understand someone on their 'only' trip not wanting to do this but I'm confident it will be best for us going forward.


I was thinking this could be a better strategy. Aim for an afternoon and evening visit but stack in the morning for it. With us only doing one full MK day though I think we might just have to brave wait lines in the morning and stack for later in the day. We can’t rope drop that morning as we’re hoping for an Ohana breakfast before going to the park.


----------



## BuckeyeBama

I am confused (no surprise there ). Can someone explain how you "stack" G+ fastpasses?


----------



## MsT82

BuckeyeBama said:


> I am confused (no surprise there ). Can someone explain how you "stack" G+ fastpasses?


It usually just refers to booking several genie+ attractions.  For example, if you aren’t entering the park until afternoon or evening, you can go onto the app, book your first afternoon attraction at 7am, then book another two hours later, then another two hours after that essentially stacking the ride timings so they’re one after the next. When you then tap into the attraction you can stack another one. 

This is how I understand it anyway and I may be wrong


----------



## elgerber

MsT82 said:


> I was thinking this could be a better strategy. Aim for an afternoon and evening visit but stack in the morning for it. With us only doing one full MK day though I think we might just have to brave wait lines in the morning and stack for later in the day. We can’t rope drop that morning as we’re hoping for an Ohana breakfast before going to the park.


Have you considered rope dropping and then doing to latest possible breakfast?  That is what we do, to make sure to take advantage of rope drop lines.


----------



## MsT82

elgerber said:


> Have you considered rope dropping and then doing to latest possible breakfast?  That is what we do, to make sure to take advantage of rope drop lines.


This might work better, I think the latest is 10.30 or 11 but we’ll being doing seats and treats in the evening so figured we’ll be losing a chunk of time there. 

I was thinking maybe booking a 8am breakfast and making our first Genie+ for 9-10am, then stacking as we tap in, leaving around 1pm but booking genie+ attractions from 4pm onward upto our dessert party. Does this sound like we’d get much done this way?


----------



## Tom_E_D

MsT82 said:


> It usually just refers to booking several genie+ attractions.  For example, if you aren’t entering the park until afternoon or evening, you can go onto the app, book your first afternoon attraction at 7am, then book another two hours later, then another two hours after that essentially stacking the ride timings so they’re one after the next. When you then tap into the attraction you can stack another one.
> 
> This is how I understand it anyway and I may be wrong


If you book your first G+ LL before park open, the 2-hour rule lets you book your next two hours after park open, not two hours after booking the first. Tapping into your most-recently-booked G+ LL lets you book another. Tapping into an earlier-booked G+ LL does not.


----------



## Disturbia

Keep an eye on park hoping rules for any upcoming trips (this is a usage only thread, so let’s not turn this into a debate).  Disney is considering adding park reservations for hoping (we have not used park hoppers in recent years.)

https://wdwnt.com/2022/06/walt-disney-world-may-add-park-hopping-to-park-pass-reservation-system/


----------



## MsT82

Tom_E_D said:


> If you book your first G+ LL before park open, the 2-hour rule lets you book your next two hours after park open, not two hours after booking the first. Tapping into your most-recently-booked G+ LL lets you book another. Tapping into an earlier-booked G+ LL does not.


Thank you, still lots to get my head around with Genie+.

So, I I book a genie+ at 7am for 4pm (assuming I’m trying to stack for the afternoon/evening) then park open at MK is 9am, I can’t book another until 11am then?

Then when I tap in for my 4pm ride, I can’t book another attraction as that isn’t my most recent ride booked?

Is this correct? Just trying to make sure I understand correctly.


----------



## Tom_E_D

MsT82 said:


> Thank you, still lots to get my head around with Genie+.
> 
> So, I I book a genie+ at 7am for 4pm (assuming I’m trying to stack for the afternoon/evening) then park open at MK is 9am, I can’t book another until 11am then?
> 
> Then when I tap in for my 4pm ride, I can’t book another attraction as that isn’t my most recent ride booked?
> 
> Is this correct? Just trying to make sure I understand correctly.


Yes, yes and yes. I think you've got it!


----------



## MsT82

Tom_E_D said:


> Yes, yes and yes. I think you've got it!


Thank you! I miss the less complicated fastpass days


----------



## sethschroeder

Disturbia said:


> Keep an eye on park hoping rules for any upcoming trips (this is a usage only thread, so let’s not turn this into a debate).  Disney is considering adding park reservations for hoping (we have not used park hoppers in recent years.)
> 
> https://wdwnt.com/2022/06/walt-disney-world-may-add-park-hopping-to-park-pass-reservation-system/



You can call here any day to check the rules each day
407 560 5000


----------



## paopiru

Tom_E_D said:


> If you book your first G+ LL before park open, the 2-hour rule lets you book your next two hours after park open, not two hours after booking the first. Tapping into your most-recently-booked G+ LL lets you book another. Tapping into an earlier-booked G+ LL does not.


We were having this doubt in another thread.  At 7am I will be booking Jungle Cruise for a night return window lets say 7pm.  2 hours after park opens -11am- I can book a new G+ ride, lets say Splash Mountain with a return window 12-13 pm.  Once I tap into Splash I can book my new G+ ride or do I have to wait for the 2 hours rule?


----------



## Erica Ladd

paopiru said:


> We were having this doubt in another thread.  At 7am I will be booking Jungle Cruise for a night return window lets say 7pm.  2 hours after park opens -11am- I can book a new G+ ride, lets say Splash Mountain with a return window 12-13 pm.  Once I tap into Splash I can book my new G+ ride or do I have to wait for the 2 hours rule?


No since it will be your most recently booked LL.


----------



## Tom_E_D

paopiru said:


> We were having this doubt in another thread.  At 7am I will be booking Jungle Cruise for a night return window lets say 7pm.  2 hours after park opens -11am- I can book a new G+ ride, lets say Splash Mountain with a return window 12-13 pm.  Once I tap into Splash I can book my new G+ ride or do I have to wait for the 2 hours rule?


As soon as you tap into Splash, you can book another.


----------



## Disturbia

paopiru said:


> We were having this doubt in another thread.  At 7am I will be booking Jungle Cruise for a night return window lets say 7pm.  2 hours after park opens -11am- I can book a new G+ ride, lets say Splash Mountain with a return window 12-13 pm.  Once I tap into Splash I can book my new G+ ride or do I have to wait for the 2 hours rule?


At 7 am, JC at most will go into early afternoon, not 7 pm (just looked at thrill data; I suppose if you wait a few mins it will go past 4 pm!)

I would suggest booking JC sometime between 9-11 am, tapping in (when you tap into the second turnstile you’re near loading btw) and super refresh for Big Thunder.  At this time POC is easier to walk on (mostly shaded queue vs Big Thunder).  Lunch break before or after Big Thunder depending on how close you can book. 

Around 12:30 pm most rides will go into the early evening so you can start stacking (we start with Monsters, Buzz, Space and then have a LLI$ for SDMT, then Peter Pan and Haunted mansion for post fireworks).


----------



## MsT82

Disturbia said:


> At 7 am, JC at most will go into early afternoon, not 7 pm (just looked at thrill data; I suppose if you wait a few mins it will go past 4 pm!)
> 
> I would suggest booking JC sometime between 9-11 am, tapping in (when you tap into the second turnstile you’re near loading btw) and super refresh for Big Thunder.  At this time POC is easier to walk on (mostly shaded queue vs Big Thunder).  Lunch break before or after Big Thunder depending on how close you can book.
> 
> Around 12:30 pm most rides will go into the early evening so you can start stacking (we start with Monsters, Buzz, Space and then have a LLI$ for SDMT, then Peter Pan and Haunted mansion for post fireworks).


This is actually really helpful for my MK, so thank you for posting. We’re aiming to be at the park around 10am following our Ohana breakfast so good to know I can still book a Genie+ or two before we leave the park for an afternoon break and then stack for the late afternoon/evening.


----------



## BuckeyeBama

If we stay off-site, will we miss out on the most popular ILL opportunities? For instance, everyone seems to indicate that ROTR ILL will be gone in minutes every day, so none would be available at park open. Is this true of this ride or any others.

We may stay on-site, and this could swing our decision. If it helps, we will be there in September.


----------



## Disturbia

BuckeyeBama said:


> If we stay off-site, will we miss out on the most popular ILL opportunities? For instance, everyone seems to indicate that ROTR ILL will be gone in minutes every day, so none would be available at park open. Is this true of this ride or any others.
> 
> We may stay on-site, and this could swing our decision. If it helps, we will be there in September.


ROTR does pop back up occasionally.  It’s hard to grab and would make a difference if your party is smaller

https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/attraction/hollywood-studios/starwarsriseoftheresistance/

I would expect some changes August 7, and as things have been trending, probably a price jump or premier pass (like Paris).


----------



## southcarolinagirl

We are planning Epcot morning and DHS evening will be stacking for evening but wondered if I can get a Remy LL for 9 and tap in, can I get next LL for DHS PM then or do I have to wait the 2 hrs til 10:30?  TIA


----------



## Disturbia

MsT82 said:


> This is actually really helpful for my MK, so thank you for posting. We’re aiming to be at the park around 10am following our Ohana breakfast so good to know I can still book a Genie+ or two before we leave the park for an afternoon break and then stack for the late afternoon/evening.


When is your ADR?  Service has been really slow lately.  Most of our ADRs took 2 hrs (in the past took less than 1.5 hr).

If you’re going during peak time (summer, holidays), then it will be harder to grab more LLs, but not impossible. 

HS was the worst in terms of having to super refresh (and I completely forgot to book my next LL while enjoying a Fuzzy Tantan at Oga’s, was interrupted multiple times when I was super refreshing, then just forgot; was still able to get SDD (at 7 am), MMRR (had to refresh 40+ mins, TOT (took over 1 hr of refreshing) and TSMM (bought ROTR LLI$).  My hands were cramping at the end of the day.  

Even if something conflicts with an ADR, go ahead and book it as GET can change it (they make a fuss but if you don’t have anything booked they can’t help on errors).


----------



## Disturbia

southcarolinagirl said:


> We are planning Epcot morning and DHS evening will be stacking for evening but wondered if I can get a Remy LL for 9 and tap in, can I get next LL for DHS PM then or do I have to wait the 2 hrs til 10:30?  TIA


Once you tap in you can book another pass right away.  The issue is getting the early Remy pass (it will go fast).


----------



## southcarolinagirl

Thanks!  That is good news!


----------



## MsT82

Disturbia said:


> When is your ADR?  Service has been really slow lately.  Most of our ADRs took 2 hrs (in the past took less than 1.5 hr).
> 
> If you’re going during peak time (summer, holidays), then it will be harder to grab more LLs, but not impossible.
> 
> HS was the worst in terms of having to super refresh (and I completely forgot to book my next LL while enjoying a Fuzzy Tantan at Oga’s, was interrupted multiple times when I was super refreshing, then just forgot; was still able to get SDD (at 7 am), MMRR (had to refresh 40+ mins, TOT (took over 1 hr of refreshing) and TSMM (bought ROTR LLI$).  My hands were cramping at the end of the day.
> 
> Even if something conflicts with an ADR, go ahead and book it as GET can change it (they make a fuss but if you don’t have anything booked they can’t help on errors).


Good tip about ADRs taking longer A rough plan so far has an Ohana ADR for around 7.30/8am and was hoping to be at MK around 10am. Then stay at MK until around 2pm and head back to the resort until 4/5pm or so.

I had planned to book our first G+ ride around 7am for 10-11 then book another once we tap in. Was hoping to do Big Thunder, and Space Mountain on G+ then 7DMT as LL$ before 1pm - probably too ambitious and won’t work but won’t be the end of the world if not. Would be nice to maximise G+ and paid LL to try to get 3/4 rides done before heading back to the resort. Ideally would like to get Big Thunder, 7DMT, Space Mountain and Haunted Mansion done before doing back to the resort.

Then try to stack a few others for the evening.


----------



## bluezy

MsT82 said:


> Thank you, still lots to get my head around with Genie+.
> 
> So, I I book a genie+ at 7am for 4pm (assuming I’m trying to stack for the afternoon/evening) then park open at MK is 9am, I can’t book another until 11am then?
> 
> Then when I tap in for my 4pm ride, I can’t book another attraction as that isn’t my most recent ride booked?
> 
> Is this correct? Just trying to make sure I understand correctly.



I think the one G+ feature that helped me the most while we were there last week that I don't read about often is that if you go to book a ride and you aren't eligible yet, it will tell you when you are actually eligible to book your next experience.   I also found that after a day or two of using G+/LL/ILL heavily, it got much easier to understand the logistics of when you could book your next LL because it can get confusing depending on the order that you book things.   I was very nervous about using G+ before our trip.   We were FP power users and I knew how to use that system very efficiently and effectively.   I educated myself on G+ by reading message boards and FB groups and watched one video (Ear Scouts) and hoped for the best.  After one day of G+ I was a fan and actually really like it (as long as I don't try to compare it to FP and look at it as it's own thing).   We had an awesome trip last week and thanks to G+ we got on everything we wanted to within the first 5 days of our trip which gave us 3 days to go back to repeat our favorites and also do some rides/shows we didn't think we'd have time for.   I wish it was free or less expensive, but in the long run it added $200/person to our 8 day trip and it was worth every penny.


----------



## MsT82

bluezy said:


> I think the one G+ feature that helped me the most while we were there last week that I don't read about often is that if you go to book a ride and you aren't eligible yet, it will tell you when you are actually eligible to book your next experience.   I also found that after a day or two of using G+/LL/ILL heavily, it got much easier to understand the logistics of when you could book your next LL because it can get confusing depending on the order that you book things.   I was very nervous about using G+ before our trip.   We were FP power users and I knew how to use that system very efficiently and effectively.   I educated myself on G+ by reading message boards and FB groups and watched one video (Ear Scouts) and hoped for the best.  After one day of G+ I was a fan and actually really like it (as long as I don't try to compare it to FP and look at it as it's own thing).   We had an awesome trip last week and thanks to G+ we got on everything we wanted to within the first 5 days of our trip which gave us 3 days to go back to repeat our favorites and also do some rides/shows we didn't think we'd have time for.   I wish it was free or less expensive, but in the long run it added $200/person to our 8 day trip and it was worth every penny.


This sounds so positive, thank you. I am a bit nervous and it feels daunting to use a new system. I am hopeful that with tips I’ve picked up we should get some decent use out of it.

The app feature letting you know if you can book again sounds great, at least that way you can try when you think you should be able to book an if not then come back when it says you can.

Sounds like you really made it work for you.


----------



## mikalkwin

Disturbia said:


> ROTR does pop back up occasionally.  It’s hard to grab and would make a difference if your party is smaller
> 
> https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/attraction/hollywood-studios/starwarsriseoftheresistance/
> 
> I would expect some changes August 7, and as things have been trending, probably a price jump or premier pass (like Paris).


What you this mean for people who have Genie+ included for their whole stay?


----------



## catsinawindow

Can anyone provide advice about using (or not using) Genie+ LL for shows.  I'm a WDW newbie, taking our first trip the week after next.  We have Genie+ for our entire trip.  I know there's a few shows we'd like to do (Lion King, Indiana Jones, Feathered Friends off the top of my head, probably others too).  What would the benefit be to using Genie+ for these?  Do they tend to fill up otherwise?


----------



## Disturbia

catsinawindow said:


> Can anyone provide advice about using (or not using) Genie+ LL for shows.  I'm a WDW newbie, taking our first trip the week after next.  We have Genie+ for our entire trip.  I know there's a few shows we'd like to do (Lion King, Indiana Jones, Feathered Friends off the top of my head, probably others too).  What would the benefit be to using Genie+ for these?  Do they tend to fill up otherwise?


Since AK has only a few rides and the queue for Lion King is mostly outdoors with little to no shade, I would book a LL esp during peak season (and if you’re only going 1 day), unless you’re park hoping (don’t want to wait another 2 hrs to get next Genie+).  

Indiana Jones probably doesn’t need one (lots of seats) but I’ve seen long lines for that as well.  I would prioritize rides and push shows to the evening when LLs for the big rides are gone.  If Fantasmic opens I would definitely get one for that as it would be insanely popular.  Frozen doesn’t usually need a pass either.  We’ve just walked in a few mins before the show.  It really depends on time of day and how crowded it is (afternoon will be less crowded as families and rope droppers head back for a break).  You can line up for shows while waiting for your next Genie+


----------



## Disturbia

mikalkwin said:


> What you this mean for people who have Genie+ included for their whole stay?


Hopefully they postpone major changes and just make minor changes like going back to 2 paid LLI$ as before (most likely).  It’s still prudent to check rules and park hours.


----------



## catsinawindow

Disturbia said:


> Since AK has only a few rides and the queue for Lion King is mostly outdoors with little to no shade, I would book a LL esp during peak season (and if you’re only going 1 day), unless you’re park hoping (don’t want to wait another 2 hrs to get next Genie+).
> 
> Indiana Jones probably doesn’t need one (lots of seats) but I’ve seen long lines for that as well.  I would prioritize rides and push shows to the evening when LLs for the big rides are gone.  If Fantasmic opens I would definitely get one for that as it would be insanely popular.  Frozen doesn’t usually need a pass either.  We’ve just walked in a few mins before the show.  It really depends on time of day and how crowded it is (afternoon will be less crowded as families and rope droppers head back for a break).  You can line up for shows while waiting for your next Genie+


Thanks for this advice!  How early before a show would you plan to get in line if doing standby?


----------



## mikalkwin

Disturbia said:


> Hopefully they postpone major changes and just make minor changes like going back to 2 paid LLI$ as before (most likely).  It’s still prudent to check rules and park hours.


I am actually hoping they go back to 2 ILL per park. It would allow me to book them both and use G+ for other rides.


----------



## Disturbia

catsinawindow said:


> Thanks for this advice!  How early before a show would you plan to get in line if doing standby?


In March it was 45 mins at least for the Lion King show.  If there is a disability, seats are limited and even with a LL you can be pushed into the next show (so 1 hr).

https://www.tripadvisor.co.nz/ShowU...of_the_Lion_King-Orlando_Florida.html#REVIEWS


----------



## catsinawindow

Disturbia said:


> In March it was 45 mins at least for the Lion King show.  If there is a disability, seats are limited and even with a LL you can be pushed into the next show (so 1 hr).
> 
> https://www.tripadvisor.co.nz/ShowU...of_the_Lion_King-Orlando_Florida.html#REVIEWS


Ok, so it sounds like you could really be saving some significant time using Genie+ for these popular shows!  I'm assuming you wouldn't need to get in line early with a Genie+ LL since it would be a separate (shorter) line?


----------



## Disturbia

MsT82 said:


> Good tip about ADRs taking longer A rough plan so far has an Ohana ADR for around 7.30/8am and was hoping to be at MK around 10am. Then stay at MK until around 2pm and head back to the resort until 4/5pm or so.
> 
> I had planned to book our first G+ ride around 7am for 10-11 then book another once we tap in. Was hoping to do Big Thunder, and Space Mountain on G+ then 7DMT as LL$ before 1pm - probably too ambitious and won’t work but won’t be the end of the world if not. Would be nice to maximise G+ and paid LL to try to get 3/4 rides done before heading back to the resort. Ideally would like to get Big Thunder, 7DMT, Space Mountain and Haunted Mansion done before doing back to the resort.
> 
> Then try to stack a few others for the evening.


The only issue I see is the runaround.  Can you book Space first and then work your way to Fantasyland and then Haunted Mansion and save Adventureland for the evening or vice versa.


----------



## Disturbia

catsinawindow said:


> Ok, so it sounds like you could really be saving some significant time using Genie+ for these popular shows!  I'm assuming you wouldn't need to get in line early with a Genie+ LL since it would be a separate (shorter) line?


Yes but lines for other big rides are over 60 mins.  This is in 92 degree weather (with threat of thunderstorms)


HS has many shows so you don’t need to wait 60 mins.  I would check lines 30 mins before and grab a snack if it still looks manageable.


----------



## scrappinginontario

catsinawindow said:


> Thanks for this advice!  How early before a show would you plan to get in line if doing standby?


I would also recommend a minimum of 45 mins.  Even shows with a large capacity like Indiana Jones often fills to capacity more than 15 mins before the show starts.


----------



## MsT82

Disturbia said:


> The only issue I see is the runaround.  Can you book Space first and then work your way to Fantasyland and then Haunted Mansion and save Adventureland for the evening or vice versa.


That makes so much more sense. 

I’ve just been reading that paid LL will be 7DMT and SM by the time I travel (December) which will be better for me if so. I’m guessing this means I can grab both these as 1st and 2nd rides, paid, then prioritise doing HM as my first genie+ - does this work?


----------



## paopiru

Disturbia said:


> At 7 am, JC at most will go into early afternoon, not 7 pm (just looked at thrill data; I suppose if you wait a few mins it will go past 4 pm!)
> 
> I would suggest booking JC sometime between 9-11 am, tapping in (when you tap into the second turnstile you’re near loading btw) and super refresh for Big Thunder.  At this time POC is easier to walk on (mostly shaded queue vs Big Thunder).  Lunch break before or after Big Thunder depending on how close you can book.
> 
> Around 12:30 pm most rides will go into the early evening so you can start stacking (we start with Monsters, Buzz, Space and then have a LLI$ for SDMT, then Peter Pan and Haunted mansion for post fireworks).


Thanks for your tips!! I will take notes for sure in order to benefit from G+stacking!!


----------



## paopiru

bluezy said:


> I think the one G+ feature that helped me the most while we were there last week that I don't read about often is that if you go to book a ride and you aren't eligible yet, it will tell you when you are actually eligible to book your next experience.   I also found that after a day or two of using G+/LL/ILL heavily, it got much easier to understand the logistics of when you could book your next LL because it can get confusing depending on the order that you book things.   I was very nervous about using G+ before our trip.   We were FP power users and I knew how to use that system very efficiently and effectively.   I educated myself on G+ by reading message boards and FB groups and watched one video (Ear Scouts) and hoped for the best.  After one day of G+ I was a fan and actually really like it (as long as I don't try to compare it to FP and look at it as it's own thing).   We had an awesome trip last week and thanks to G+ we got on everything we wanted to within the first 5 days of our trip which gave us 3 days to go back to repeat our favorites and also do some rides/shows we didn't think we'd have time for.   I wish it was free or less expensive, but in the long run it added $200/person to our 8 day trip and it was worth every penny.


I was told about that feature some time ago...they told me to take advantage of the AI G+ brain to do the planning! But...I always prefer to arrive to the parks with a solid but flexible plan, just in case! So nice you have a great trip and maximize your G+ spendings.


----------



## paopiru

MsT82 said:


> This sounds so positive, thank you. I am a bit nervous and it feels daunting to use a new system. I am hopeful that with tips I’ve picked up we should get some decent use out of it.
> 
> The app feature letting you know if you can book again sounds great, at least that way you can try when you think you should be able to book an if not then come back when it says you can.
> 
> Sounds like you really made it work for you.


It will be my first time with G+ and I am staying off property so I am a bit anxious too.


----------



## paopiru

mikalkwin said:


> I am actually hoping they go back to 2 ILL per park. It would allow me to book them both and use G+ for other rides.


Disturbia, when are you visiting the parks?


----------



## paopiru

Do you think after August, Epcot will return to have Remy as ILL? I am not sure if it is worth it to buy G+ for Epcot. Test Track and Remy are the rides that I will prioritize.


----------



## paopiru

BuckeyeBama said:


> If we stay off-site, will we miss out on the most popular ILL opportunities? For instance, everyone seems to indicate that ROTR ILL will be gone in minutes every day, so none would be available at park open. Is this true of this ride or any others.
> 
> We may stay on-site, and this could swing our decision. If it helps, we will be there in September.


I haven't seen drops for RoTR in a regular basis. I will be also staying off property and planning stand by line for that ride.  It is too popular and if Disney is not re filling it, then chances are low.  September is a less crowded month so maybe you can grab one.  Keep practicing so you can train your "fast finger"


----------



## BuckeyeBama

paopiru said:


> I haven't seen drops for RoTR in a regular basis. I will be also staying off property and planning stand by line for that ride.  It is too popular and if Disney is not re filling it, then chances are low.  September is a less crowded month so maybe you can grab one.  Keep practicing so you can train your "fast finger"


Thank you. All of this is totally new to me.


----------



## Disturbia

paopiru said:


> Disturbia, when are you visiting the parks?


I’ll be going back in December for a private event for a weekend.  I’m sharing my experience with Genie+ from Nov 2021 and Mar 2022.


----------



## Disturbia

MsT82 said:


> That makes so much more sense.
> 
> I’ve just been reading that paid LL will be 7DMT and SM by the time I travel (December) which will be better for me if so. I’m guessing this means I can grab both these as 1st and 2nd rides, paid, then prioritise doing HM as my first genie+ - does this work?


HM usually has passes when you book your second Genie+ ride because it’s a fast loading ride (save it for your fourth/fifth Genie+; queue is spookier at night).  I wouldn’t book that at 7 am. 

If you want to do JC and Splash/Big Thunder last then something that’s more popular in Tomorrowland/Fantasyland that isn’t fast moving/loading would be a priority for booking (thinking Monsters Laugh Floor).  Peter Pan is also a very popular ride that sells fast.  

Maybe someone else can chime in with more experience with hitting Tomorrowland/Fantasyland first.


----------



## TeamSy

I am sure this is somewhere and I did do a brief search but couldn't find anything and not going through 200+ pages lol...

There are 4 of us, my youngest will not have a ticket. If I want to do a ride with my oldest can the two of us book a LL for one ride while my husband and youngest (who will not have a ticket) go on a LL for a different ride at the same time? I know it's one ride at a time but that's not for the whole group right? Different people in the group can book different rides?


----------



## g-dad66

TeamSy said:


> I am sure this is somewhere and I did do a brief search but couldn't find anything and not going through 200+ pages lol...
> 
> There are 4 of us, my youngest will not have a ticket. If I want to do a ride with my oldest can the two of us book a LL for one ride while my husband and youngest (who will not have a ticket) go on a LL for a different ride at the same time? I know it's one ride at a time but that's not for the whole group right? Different people in the group can book different rides?



Yes, you are correct.

But because you don't get to choose an LL time, it may be tricky to get 2 different LLs for the same general time period.


----------



## MsT82

Disturbia said:


> HM usually has passes when you book your second Genie+ ride because it’s a fast loading ride (save it for your fourth/fifth Genie+; queue is spookier at night).  I wouldn’t book that at 7 am.
> 
> If you want to do JC and Splash/Big Thunder last then something that’s more popular in Tomorrowland/Fantasyland that isn’t fast moving/loading would be a priority for booking (thinking Monsters Laugh Floor).  Peter Pan is also a very popular ride that sells fast.
> 
> Maybe someone else can chime in with more experience with hitting Tomorrowland/Fantasyland first.


Makes sense, I’ll have a look what else we’d like to do in Tomorrowland/fantasyland - thanks so much for your help, it’s been great in helping me get a plan together


----------



## scrappinginontario

TeamSy said:


> I am sure this is somewhere and I did do a brief search but couldn't find anything and not going through 200+ pages lol...
> 
> There are 4 of us, my youngest will not have a ticket. If I want to do a ride with my oldest can the two of us book a LL for one ride while my husband and youngest (who will not have a ticket) go on a LL for a different ride at the same time? I know it's one ride at a time but that's not for the whole group right? Different people in the group can book different rides?


Guessing you’re aware but just in case - if you get 2 different LL reservations, your husband will not qualify for a child swap so he will not be eligible to ride the attraction you and your oldest do.


----------



## Disturbia

TeamSy said:


> I am sure this is somewhere and I did do a brief search but couldn't find anything and not going through 200+ pages lol...
> 
> There are 4 of us, my youngest will not have a ticket. If I want to do a ride with my oldest can the two of us book a LL for one ride while my husband and youngest (who will not have a ticket) go on a LL for a different ride at the same time? I know it's one ride at a time but that's not for the whole group right? Different people in the group can book different rides?


Yes.   We’ve done this where one adult goes with our teen to say RnRC and the rest of the party goes to MMRR.  It’s hard to book them close to each other so we utilize rider switch and standby rides like TSMM (fast loading, inflated waits) or do some of the shows in between. 

A change from the past has been that if doing standby they require you to stand in the outdoor extended queue with your infant (at SDMT, FOP and as seen in the video below at RnRC), but the positive is that the rider switch is immediately activated (so they don’t add extra 15-30 to the standby wait for the rider switch-yes they’ve done that in the past). 

Also everyone who is riding needs a Genie+ booking for a rider switch


----------



## Disturbia

MsT82 said:


> Makes sense, I’ll have a look what else we’d like to do in Tomorrowland/fantasyland - thanks so much for your help, it’s been great in helping me get a plan together


If you look at the tip board right now (12 pm est) return times are:

Big Thunder 3:50
Buzz 12:40
Haunted Mansion 1:50
Small world 12:55
Winnie the Pooh 1:10
Jungle cruise 7:20
Monsters 12:10
Peter Pan 3:30
Pirates 1:00
SDMT 6:20 $12
Space 3:40
Under the sea 12:05

Monsters was in the evening a few mins ago btw, so it seems like a second drop


----------



## MsT82

Disturbia said:


> If you look at the tip board right now (12 pm est) return times are:
> 
> Big Thunder 3:50
> Buzz 12:40
> Haunted Mansion 1:50
> Small world 12:55
> Winnie the Pooh 1:10
> Jungle cruise 7:20
> Monsters 12:10
> Peter Pan 3:30
> Pirates 1:00
> SDMT 6:20 $12
> Space 3:40
> Under the sea 12:05
> 
> Monsters was in the evening a few mins ago btw, so it seems like a second drop


This is great, and so helpful thank you. I’ve been looking at the tip board for ideas and I think I need to be booking early morning to around 12 for return times between 10-1pm (first part of our day) then looking around 1-2pm onwards for evening times (for adventure and frontier lands) Though course it does vary day by day. I can see spending lots of time on my phone in my future 

All I need now is for Tron to open while we’re there and then all my plans will be null and void. I’m really thinking we should do rope drop but I can’t fit in a breakfast at Ohana anywhere else.


----------



## Disturbia

Also if you click on a ride on the tip board and then click ‘LL’ on the details page, when you refresh the tip board it jumps to that ride  so you don’t have to manually scroll (helpful in getting rides listed at the end -TOT and ROTR)


----------



## jeneric997

Has anyone been able to modify a LL lately? DDs were there last week and were told they can't modify and have never been able to, which we know is not true.


----------



## cjlong88

jeneric997 said:


> Has anyone been able to modify a LL lately? DDs were there last week and were told they can't modify and have never been able to, which we know is not true.


AFAIK, you have to cancel the LL and rebook it. You still can't choose the return time -- that is only allowed for the ILL$ attractions. Since Genie+ started there's has been no way to modify a LL once you book it except cancelling.


----------



## MsT82

Disturbia said:


> Also if you click on a ride on the tip board and then click ‘LL’ on the details page, when you refresh the tip board it jumps to that ride  so you don’t have to manually scroll (helpful in getting rides listed at the end -TOT and ROTR)
> View attachment 680875


I never realised you could do this, it will save lots of scrolling. Is it too late to take you on my vacation?


----------



## scrappinginontario

Disturbia said:


> Yes.   We’ve done this where one adult goes with our teen to say RnRC and the rest of the party goes to MMRR.  It’s hard to book them close to each other so we utilize rider switch and standby rides like TSMM (fast loading, inflated waits) or do some of the shows in between.
> 
> A change from the past has been that if doing standby they require you to stand in the outdoor extended queue with your infant (at SDMT, FOP and as seen in the video below at RnRC), but the positive is that the rider switch is immediately activated (so they don’t add extra 15-30 to the standby wait for the rider switch-yes they’ve done that in the past).
> 
> Also everyone who is riding needs a Genie+ booking for a rider switch


I don’t feel that video is the best depiction of rider swap any longer as so much has changed in the past year since it was posted.  It was taken when there were extended queues due to social distancing -and when neither FP+ nor LL We’re in effect.

@TeamSy you would get a much better idea of his child swap I’d currently working by looking in the families board as it’s a topic discussed often.


----------



## scrappinginontario

MsT82 said:


> I never realised you could do this, it will save lots of scrolling. Is it too late to take you on my vacation?


Please look for recent Rider Swap threads in the Families board.  Lots of discussion there about how it works.


----------



## TeamSy

scrappinginontario said:


> I don’t feel that video is the best depiction of rider swap any longer as so much has changed in the past year since it was posted.  It was taken when there were extended queues due to social distancing -and when neither FP+ nor LL We’re in effect.
> 
> @TeamSy you would get a much better idea of his child swap I’d currently working by looking in the families board as it’s a topic discussed often.



Thanks but was more interested in us each taking a kid on a different ride at the same time (if we managed to get the times align) than rider swapping! This is the first year our oldest is tall enough to do splash/thunder but was hoping to do something with the littlest while she goes on that so it’s not a meltdown that SHE can’t go on it lol


----------



## Disturbia

scrappinginontario said:


> I don’t feel that video is the best depiction of rider swap any longer as so much has changed in the past year since it was posted.  It was taken when there were extended queues due to social distancing -and when neither FP+ nor LL We’re in effect.
> 
> @TeamSy you would get a much better idea of his child swap I’d currently working by looking in the families board as it’s a topic discussed often.


That was the only video I could find on it, but whenever lines are extended into the roped areas (not official queue), we were asked to stand together and a rider switch would be issued once we neared the entrance/sign.  This only applies to Standby because the Genie+ LL almost never goes into the extended area (it did for Safari Mar 2022).

Even in Nov 2021 when we rode Expedition Everest (Social distancing was removed), the CM with an iPad told us to go back and stand in the line (was barely 10 people long) and when we get to the entrance they will give us a rider swap.


----------



## CanadaDisney05

Has anyone resolved the issue with the missing "Edit Selections" option on the Tip Board?


----------



## scrappinginontario

TeamSy said:


> Thanks but was more interested in us each taking a kid on a different ride at the same time (if we managed to get the times align) than rider swapping! This is the first year our oldest is tall enough to do splash/thunder but was hoping to do something with the littlest while she goes on that so it’s not a meltdown that SHE can’t go on it lol


Yes l understand but want to ensure you have an understanding how LL works with Rider Swap.

Are you asking only about Rider Swap (without LL) or, when you have a LL reservation for the bigger ride?

You are asking your question in the Genie+ thread which is why responses are focused on Genie+ and LL. 

You cannot use rider swap in combination with LL unless all 3 people who have tickets have a LL reservation.

You’ve mentioned getting the times to align and rider swapping together in the same sentence.  This will not work.  If you want to rider swap an attraction that you have a LL reservation for all 3 of you for that same attraction. You, your husband and child 1 must all have a LL reservation for that ride. 

You will want to go to the LL attraction all together and request a rider swap.  Once you’ve done that, parent 1 can ride with older child while parent 2 rides a different attraction standby with the younger child.

Once parent 1 has ridden with child, swap and let parent 2 ride the same attraction with that child.

I’m hoping this helps clarify but truly your best way to learn about this is on the families board as it gets discussed often at length.  If your question does not involve Genie+ I would request that you please ask it elsewhere to avoid muddying a thread discussing Genie +.  Thanks.


----------



## Disturbia

scrappinginontario said:


> Yes l understand but want to ensure you have an understanding how LL works with Rider Swap.
> 
> Are you asking only about Rider Swap (without LL) or, when you have a LL reservation for the bigger ride?
> 
> You are asking your question in the Genie+ thread which is why responses are focused on Genie+ and LL.
> 
> You cannot use rider swap in combination with LL unless all 3 people who have tickets have a LL reservation.
> 
> You’ve mentioned getting the times to align and rider swapping together in the same sentence.  This will not work.  If you want to rider swap an attraction that you have a LL reservation for all 3 of you for that same attraction. You, your husband and child 1 must all have a LL reservation for that ride.
> 
> You will want to go to the LL attraction all together and request a rider swap.  Once you’ve done that, parent 1 can ride with older child while parent 2 rides a different attraction standby with the younger child.
> 
> Once parent 1 has ridden with child, swap and let parent 2 ride the same attraction with that child.
> 
> I’m hoping this helps clarify but truly your best way to learn about this is on the families board as it gets discussed often at length.


My discussion went off topic and could be confusing.  Please feel free to delete the standby rider swap discussion as it doesn’t apply to Genie+.


----------



## Disturbia

CanadaDisney05 said:


> Has anyone resolved the issue with the missing "Edit Selections" option on the Tip Board?


Did deleting the app and reinstalling and then going through the free genie setup not work?


----------



## CanadaDisney05

Disturbia said:


> Did deleting the app and reinstalling and then going through the free genie setup not work?


Did not work


----------



## Disturbia

CanadaDisney05 said:


> Did not work


Check if you have valid tickets and theme park pass reservations for each day on MDE


----------



## CanadaDisney05

Disturbia said:


> Check if you have valid tickets and theme park pass reservations for each day on MDE


I used to be able to do it for the current day without even when I wasn't in thevpark


----------



## Disturbia

CanadaDisney05 said:


> I used to be able to do it for the current day without even when I wasn't in thevpark


I don’t think you can do that as the second screen in the free Genie setup asks you to link tickets


----------



## CJK

I booked Genie+ rides for a friend last week. I was at home, and she was in the parks. The 'edit selections' button was there for all park days. I'm thinking that you can only see that button on your actual park days now.


----------



## Disturbia

GBRforWDW said:


> Not to derail the topic, but I have tix/reservations for Disneyland for next week and the Edit Selections link appears to be missing there as well.  Wondering if they intentionally removed from both apps


Did you setup selections in the free Genie?


----------



## GBRforWDW

Disturbia said:


> Did you setup selections in the free Genie?


Yes, and I went back through just to double check.  But I could see what @CJK being correct as well that it's only available on your park days


----------



## TriSeb°o°

I can confirm that Pin'ing the attractions is only functional on your actual park day. Today is our first day and I was able to PIN at 12 AM ET. I hope this helps.

EDIT: And the functionality is available for the the length of the trip (All Park Ticket/Ressie Days)


----------



## lmantry

Flying to Orlando on Aug 15th - flight is at 8:30 AM.  Will book Remy's & Guardians from the airport at 7 AM.  When the flight lands at 11:00, what is the chance of test track still having an available LL time for the evening?


----------



## GBRforWDW

lmantry said:


> Flying to Orlando on Aug 15th - flight is at 8:30 AM.  Will book Remy's & Guardians from the airport at 7 AM.  When the flight lands at 11:00, what is the chance of test track still having an available LL time for the evening?


Don't forget, the 1 ILL$ per park ends on 8/7, so Remy's could be back to an ILL$ by that time, so, you could do Remy ILL$, GotG VQ or ILL$, and Test Track LL all at 7am.

But to answer your question, at this time, most LL passes for TT are gone by 10, but there are small amounts sporadically available:



Each day this week has random small drops available, though I wouldn't count on that still happening in a month.  Usually best to check trends right before you go.


----------



## SealedSeven

GBRforWDW said:


> Don't forget, the 1 ILL$ per park ends on 8/7, so Remy's could be back to an ILL$ by that time



I hope they cancel the transition back. Seems everything is going well now there shouldn't be a reason to put rides to ILL$ at each park.


----------



## GBRforWDW

SealedSeven said:


> I hope they cancel the transition back. Seems everything is going well now there shouldn't be a reason to put rides to ILL$ at each park.


I definitely agree with you there, we went over Christmas, so got to take advantage of the first time they dropped an ILL$ from each park.  But, we just don't know what is being planned, so good to be prepared for all possibilities, especially for anyone with a trip so close to that end date.


----------



## lmantry

GBRforWDW said:


> Don't forget, the 1 ILL$ per park ends on 8/7, so Remy's could be back to an ILL$ by that time, so, you could do Remy ILL$, GotG VQ or ILL$, and Test Track LL all at 7am.
> 
> But to answer your question, at this time, most LL passes for TT are gone by 10, but there are small amounts sporadically available:
> 
> View attachment 684909
> 
> Each day this week has random small drops available, though I wouldn't count on that still happening in a month.  Usually best to check trends right before you go.It



It would definitely help us if they return to 2 ILLs at each park by that time.  If not, I was hoping that on August 15th the crowd levels drop since many of the southern schools will be back in session & test track LL's will be available for a longer time.


----------



## holyrita

With the recent changes to the tip board (not being able to see next available times between 7am and 7:30am) I'm wondering how that is affecting usage? Are people still seeing new/earlier times around 7:10am/7:12am? Just when you think you best understand the system it changes...


----------



## leeniewdw

We have a trip planned for early November.   We're going with our adult kids and their SOs.  None have been since they were in middle school.  Due to an unexpected HS reunion that popped up, 1 couple will only be there for 2 park days instead of 3.  We already purchased the MVMCP for our first day, so MK will be covered.

Anyway!  Our arrival day is also the MVMCP day, and we think we can be in the parks by 1pm-ish.  I was thinking that we'd now do AK that afternoon (before heading to MK) and then DHS/EP for the full day.  Theoretically that would cover all 4 parks in 2 days for the 2 that need to leave.

Has anyone successfully stacked LLs at AK for afternoon on a travel day?  It seems like Thrill Data shows that for the first few "grab" timeslots that the return time would be too soon.   I'm considering popping into HS for a few rides before we head to AK so we could force G+ to offer later times?   But 3 parks in 1 day seems like a bit much.


----------



## The Foolish Mortal

I have a Genie+ question I am not sure of the answer to, so here goes:

If I get up and a make LL reservation at 7am when it starts, I know I cannot make another reservation until I either use that LL reservation or until two hours after park opens. But I suspect that I am not going to RD this upcoming trip. So, for example, if I wait untl thirty minutes after park opening and decide to rebook my first LL reservation to stack it later in the day, am I still allowed to make my next LL reservation two hours after park opening or do I now have to wait until two hours after modifying my existing LL reservation? And is the rule the same whether I reset the LL reservation to a later time on the same attraction or switch to an entirely different attraction? Any help is appreciated. Thanks


----------



## JodyK

There's no modify option there's only cancel and rebook. Once you cancel and rebook you've restarted the 2-hour clock.

Best advice I think would be to try to get later times from the start some parks are easier than others to accomplish that.


----------



## Disturbia

The Foolish Mortal said:


> I have a Genie+ question I am not sure of the answer to, so here goes:
> 
> If I get up and a make LL reservation at 7am when it starts, I know I cannot make another reservation until I either use that LL reservation or until two hours after park opens. But I suspect that I am not going to RD this upcoming trip. So, for example, if I wait untl thirty minutes after park opening and decide to rebook my first LL reservation to stack it later in the day, am I still allowed to make my next LL reservation two hours after park opening or do I now have to wait until two hours after modifying my existing LL reservation? And is the rule the same whether I reset the LL reservation to a later time on the same attraction or switch to an entirely different attraction? Any help is appreciated. Thanks


If you’re stacking later in the day and expecting to be in the park around say 9:30 am, I would try to book 2-3 passes 9-12 pm (ride one, book another) and around 1 pm passes push into late afternoon/evening and stack while taking a lunch/resort break.  This has worked great at MK, however stacking morning passes at HS is next to impossible.

The LLI$ is all over the place.  I clicked 9:30 am for SDMT right at 7 am and the booking screen showed 9:30 but the actual booked was 6 pm (conflicting with dinner ADR).  I rushed to the front desk (30 min line at AOA) and the  was able to change the pass (second drop was around 7:17 am and there were plenty of passes available at 7:30 am).


----------



## Isabelle12345

Disturbia said:


> The LLI$ is all over the place. I clicked 9:30 am for SDMT right at 7 am and the booking screen showed 9:30 but the actual booked was 6 pm (conflicting with dinner ADR). I rushed to the front desk (30 min line at AOA) and the was able to change the pass (second drop was around 7:17 am and there were plenty of passes available at 7:30 am).


May I ask when that happened?
I had this happen to us in February but it seems like the last reports haven’t been as bad with the ILLs…
I am so worried it will happen to us and I will be stuck with a late time…


----------



## Disturbia

Isabelle12345 said:


> May I ask when that happened?
> I had this happen to us in February but it seems like the last reports haven’t been as bad with the ILLs…
> I am so worried it will happen to us and I will be stuck with a late time…


End of March


----------



## DGaw4

Hypothetical question for anyone who knows. Let’s say I purchase an ILL for myself and another person in my party, but the other person changes plans and doesn’t go to the park. If I have both magic bands would I be able to use their magicband to redeem their ILL even though they didn’t scan into the park? Thanks for any help!


----------



## g-dad66

leeniewdw said:


> *Has anyone successfully stacked LLs at AK for afternoon on a travel day*?  It seems like Thrill Data shows that for the first few "grab" timeslots that the return time would be too soon.   I'm considering popping into HS for a few rides before we head to AK so we could force G+ to offer later times?   But 3 parks in 1 day seems like a bit much.



We did on March 11:

At 7:10, got Navi for 12:55-1:55  (was a very busy day, so normally might take longer to get afternoon Navi)
At 12:00, got Safari for 2:55-3:55 (even on busy day, had to wait till 12:00 to get desired return time)
At 2:00, got Kali for 5:15-6:15

Everest was on refurb, so couldn't get it.


----------



## brockash

DGaw4 said:


> Hypothetical question for anyone who knows. Let’s say I purchase an ILL for myself and another person in my party, but the other person changes plans and doesn’t go to the park. If I have both magic bands would I be able to use their magicband to redeem their ILL even though they didn’t scan into the park? Thanks for any help!


99.9% sure they'd have to scan in first.  Obviously they could tyen leave and as long as you had one of their magicbands you coukd then ride with theirs, but almost positive they have to have scanned in first.


----------



## HeiHei2018

DGaw4 said:


> Hypothetical question for anyone who knows. Let’s say I purchase an ILL for myself and another person in my party, but the other person changes plans and doesn’t go to the park. If I have both magic bands would I be able to use their magicband to redeem their ILL even though they didn’t scan into the park? Thanks for any help!


Under the old FP system, there were reports (or at least threats) that Disney would cancel annual passes if a person’s magic band was used for Fast pass if the person hadn’t scanned into the park. I wouldn’t try it.


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## DeluxePrincess

Strategy question: We are a rope drop, rest, park hop kind of family.  Is it possible to just stack the park you want to hop to instead of using it for your morning park?  Or is it better to use it at your morning park and stack as the day goes on?  I don’t want any LL at my morning park for later than 1pm because we will most likely be out of the park by then.


----------



## mikalkwin

DeluxePrincess said:


> Strategy question: We are a rope drop, rest, park hop kind of family.  Is it possible to just stack the park you want to hop to instead of using it for your morning park?  Or is it better to use it at your morning park and stack as the day goes on?  I don’t want any LL at my morning park for later than 1pm because we will most likely be out of the park by then.


Yes it is possible. 
It might be better, it might not. Depends on the park, the crowd level, the attractions you like/want etc.


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## leeniewdw

g-dad66 said:


> We did on March 11:
> 
> At 7:10, got Navi for 12:55-1:55  (was a very busy day, so normally might take longer to get afternoon Navi)
> At 12:00, got Safari for 2:55-3:55 (even on busy day, had to wait till 12:00 to get desired return time)
> At 2:00, got Kali for 5:15-6:15
> 
> Everest was on refurb, so couldn't get it.



Thanks!  That would work fine for us, but I guess it really depends on the day/crowds.  I'll keep monitoring.  Right now, all the rides are still too early.




DeluxePrincess said:


> Strategy question: We are a rope drop, rest, park hop kind of family.  Is it possible to just stack the park you want to hop to instead of using it for your morning park?  Or is it better to use it at your morning park and stack as the day goes on?  I don’t want any LL at my morning park for later than 1pm because we will most likely be out of the park by then.



We use the same strategy.    We've stacked for the afternoon VERY successfully on our morning flight/travel day, getting to the parks early afternoon.  We've also done it where we grabbed 1 LL in AK in the morning, then started stacking in another park for later.  We've ALSO done Rope Drop at HS with 1 LL (MFSR) for an early slot (9:30am maybe) , RD'd TOT, RNRC, then hit MFSR and started stacking for the evening.  We happened to be coming back to HS that day so it was the same park, but another park would have worked too.


----------



## paopiru

holyrita said:


> With the recent changes to the tip board (not being able to see next available times between 7am and 7:30am) I'm wondering how that is affecting usage? Are people still seeing new/earlier times around 7:10am/7:12am? Just when you think you best understand the system it changes...


How is this working? You cannot see the hour until the end of the booking process?


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## JodyK

DeluxePrincess said:


> Strategy question: We are a rope drop, rest, park hop kind of family.  Is it possible to just stack the park you want to hop to instead of using it for your morning park?  Or is it better to use it at your morning park and stack as the day goes on?  I don’t want any LL at my morning park for later than 1pm because we will most likely be out of the park by then.



We used this strategy a lot for our recent trip for a variety of scenarios and it worked pretty well. For a morning in AK and afternoon in HS we started stacking at HS immediately in the morning (Slinky Dog). For a morning we started in Epcot we used it for a few rides there in the morning (Remy) and then started stacking for MK after our break and that worked well as well. So I think depending on your park combos there's a few different options.


----------



## snikki

DeluxePrincess said:


> Strategy question: We are a rope drop, rest, park hop kind of family.  Is it possible to just stack the park you want to hop to instead of using it for your morning park?  Or is it better to use it at your morning park and stack as the day goes on?  I don’t want any LL at my morning park for later than 1pm because we will most likely be out of the park by then.



I’m with the PP. It depends on your park plans.

For our upcoming trip I have G+ for each day of our trip. Some days I plan on starting G+ early and getting close times before stacking for our PM park. Some days I have us only stacking starting at 7 am.

AK/DHS - will start stacking for DHS at 7 am (basically anytime DHS is the PM park I will stack at 7 am)

Epcot/MK - will start at Epcot at 7 am


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## JodyK

I think it is also a bit of a see how you go as the day progresses. On our AK day when we were late stacking for HS at one point I considered booking Dinosaur to quickly ride then go back to stacking since times were still a bit early at HS. Dinosaur ended up being down all morning so I couldn't do that but I considered it as an option. 

I think one of the biggest things to look out for with late-day stacking is to try to have the last LL you book before you are arriving late day be pretty close to your arrival time. That way you can use it and book another right away since it is 120 minutes or after using the last LL you booked to book another.


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## rmclain73

GBRforWDW said:


> Don't forget, the 1 ILL$ per park ends on 8/7, so Remy's could be back to an ILL$ by that time, so, you could do Remy ILL$, GotG VQ or ILL$, and Test Track LL all at 7am.
> 
> But to answer your question, at this time, most LL passes for TT are gone by 10, but there are small amounts sporadically available:
> 
> View attachment 684909
> 
> Each day this week has random small drops available, though I wouldn't count on that still happening in a month.  Usually best to check trends right before you go.


Can you please share where this graph came from?


----------



## GBRforWDW

rmclain73 said:


> Can you please share where this graph came from?


Oh sorry, I usually mention it.  The website is thrill-data.com


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## TinkBink

We went to Disney in May and I used all of the tips from this thread to get everything we wanted when we wanted it! Thank you all so much! We are heading back in early September. Have there been any major strategy changes in the last few months? Can I still refresh in the 7:15-7:40 time frame to get the headliners?


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## g-dad66

TinkBink said:


> We went to Disney in May and I used all of the tips from this thread to get everything we wanted when we wanted it! Thank you all so much! We are heading back in early September. Have there been any major strategy changes in the last few months? Can I still refresh in the 7:15-7:40 time frame to get the headliners?



I think things are in a state of flux right now.  Keep checking back.


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## snikki

TinkBink said:


> We went to Disney in May and I used all of the tips from this thread to get everything we wanted when we wanted it! Thank you all so much! We are heading back in early September. Have there been any major strategy changes in the last few months? Can I still refresh in the 7:15-7:40 time frame to get the headliners?



Depending on what changes they make on August 7 that’ll change strategies. Will certain rides go back to ILL or stay G+….that’ll make a huge difference.


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## TeamSy

A bit confused!

If I make my first reservation at 7… when can I do my second (if I don’t tap into my first earlier?)

Can I do it at 9 or is it 4 hours later at 11?

(This is for MK… park opens at 9 but I think we can get in at 8:30 because we are staying onsite?)

So 2 hours later is 9am but I’ve been reading some people mentioning it’s first 2 hours AFTER park opens (so 4 hours after my initial 7am selection???)


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## Sunelis

TeamSy said:


> A bit confused!
> 
> If I make my first reservation at 7… when can I do my second (if I don’t tap into my first earlier?)
> 
> Can I do it at 9 or is it 4 hours later at 11?
> 
> (This is for MK… park opens at 9 but I think we can get in at 8:30 because we are staying onsite?)
> 
> So 2 hours later is 9am but I’ve been reading some people mentioning it’s first 2 hours AFTER park opens (so 4 hours after my initial 7am selection???)


It's 2 hours after the park opens.


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## The Mayor

We’ll be a family of 10 traveling in October. 4 Children ages 5 , 3, 3 and almost 2. Obviously different heights so some rides for some and some not. Question is, can I book two different G+ or ILL$ rides for the different heights at the same time?
Example: I book G+ for SDMT at 7:00 for 5 people and Space Mountain for 5 people. Is this possible? And if so is it possible to do it also at the two hour window?


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## GBRforWDW

The Mayor said:


> We’ll be a family of 10 traveling in October. 4 Children ages 5 , 3, 3 and almost 2. Obviously different heights so some rides for some and some not. Question is, can I book two different G+ or ILL$ rides for the different heights at the same time?
> Example: I book G+ for SDMT at 7:00 for 5 people and Space Mountain for 5 people. Is this possible? And if so is it possible to do it also at the two hour window?


Yes, you can book half and half for the different rides.  When booking the first ride, just deselect the members of the group that won't be doing the ride. 

At the 2 hour window, the timing is pretty precise, so if you're on at exactly 2 hours later, be sure to remember the friends selected for the first ride selection the previous time you selected and choose them first again.


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## The Mayor

GBRforWDW said:


> Yes, you can book half and half for the different rides.  When booking the first ride, just deselect the members of the group that won't be doing the ride.
> 
> At the 2 hour window, the timing is pretty precise, so if you're on at exactly 2 hours later, be sure to remember the friends selected for the first ride selection the previous time you selected and choose them first again.


Thank you!!


----------



## lovethesun12

I'm wondering how my strategy will work. I'm visiting on a predicted lower crowd day so assuming morning wait times will be sensible. 

I'm doing an AK/HS day, and my daughter really wants to ride SDD more than any other ride in any park (so do I for that matter, lol). The rest I'm not as concerned about. 

I'm thinking book SDD at 7am with a later return time, and in the morning at AK knock out KS and NRJ (ILL for FOP) first. Then at 10:30am (HS has an opening time of 8:30am that day) if we haven't been able to do KRR/dinosaur because the wait times are longer I can use genie+ for what we have left at AK. If not, I can start stacking more for HS (we don't plan to do EE, I think it will be too scary for my kids but who knows when we get there, that may change too).

Is there any reason that wouldn't work?


----------



## Lisa P.

The return times at HS advance so quickly that I personally would not wait until the afternoon begin stacking your HS attractions. I'd follow your plan but only do standby at AK, and $ILL for FoP. YMMV.


----------



## g-dad66

Lisa P. said:


> The return times at HS advance so quickly that I personally would not wait until the afternoon begin stacking your HS attractions. I'd follow your plan but only do standby at AK, and $ILL for FoP. YMMV.




I agree unless OP is planning to skip Tower of Terror and Rock n Roller Coaster (thinking that might be the case if skipping Everest as too scary).

If not doing Tot or RnRC, then it should be fairly easy to get a Falcon LL at 11:30 or so, a Railway LL at 1:30, and a TSM LL at 3:30.


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## JodyK

The only way is use a LL at AK is if it was immediate return so I could do it quickly and continue my HS stacking.


----------



## melking23

Keep in mind that after August 7th Disney is going back to 2 paid $LL per park unless they decide to extend the current G+ selections.


----------



## mikalkwin

melking23 said:


> Keep in mind that after August 7th Disney is going back to 2 paid $LL per park unless they decide to extend the current G+ selections.


Because I can afford 2 ILL per day, I can actually see pros for both options (rides going back to ILL or not). But I wish we’d have more certitude already so I can plan accordingly.


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## scrappinginontario

mikalkwin said:


> Because I can afford 2 ILL per day, I can actually see pros for both options (rides going back to ILL or not). But I wish we’d have more certitude already so I can plan accordingly.


Historically, the only other time it happened where they flipped to 1 ILL$ per park for a time, they did switch back to 2 on the day they announced they would.


----------



## mikalkwin

scrappinginontario said:


> Historically, the only other time it happened where they flipped to 1 ILL$ per park for a time, they did switch back to 2 on the day they announced they would.


There is still the « issue » of Epcot. FEA, Remy and GotG on ILL mean that we cannot ride them all in one day with ILL as you are limited to buying 2 ILL per day. They need to change this imho.


----------



## Runnsally

LL pop


mikalkwin said:


> There is still the « issue » of Epcot. FEA, Remy and GotG on ILL mean that we cannot ride them all in one day with ILL as you are limited to buying 2 ILL per day. They need to change this imho.


I suspect they’ll go to 2 ILL at Epcot 8/7. Should be GotG and FEA, but they’ll probably do GotG + Remy instead.


----------



## lovethesun12

mikalkwin said:


> Because I can afford 2 ILL per day, I can actually see pros for both options (rides going back to ILL or not). But I wish we’d have more certitude already so I can plan accordingly.


Yes, I agree. I only go once a year (and currently this trip will be my first time visiting since 2019) so I'd rather be able to lock in as many rides as possible.


----------



## elgerber

Runnsally said:


> LL pop
> 
> I suspect they’ll go to 2 ILL at Epcot 8/7. Should be GotG and FEA, but they’ll probably do GotG + Remy instead.


I agree I don't see them doing 3.


lovethesun12 said:


> Yes, I agree. I only go once a year (and currently this trip will be my first time visiting since 2019) so I'd rather be able to lock in as many rides as possible.


agree with this also, I know it's not popular, but I hope they do go back to 2.


----------



## holyrita

I have an old iPad that doesn't' have automatic updates enabled so I was able to see return times between 7am and 7:30am, where my iPhone running the latest version of MDE was not able to see return times. 

This is just one data point, but I refreshed Hollywood Studios on my iPad between 7:10am and 7:15am and I didn't see any drop it return times like I used to.


----------



## Disturbia

I’m at Disneyland and the LL for Space mountain is about 15 mins outdoors (roped area) and we were refused the Rider Switch pass when we walked up to the entrance.  We have to wait in the outdoor queue and when the official queue starts we will be issued a rider switch.  We can’t just walk up to a CM and get a rider switch with our genie+ (It expires in another 15 mins).  We can stay with the baby in the stroller on the side but can’t leave the area.


----------



## brockash

Disturbia said:


> I’m at Disneyland and the LL for Space mountain is about 15 mins outdoors (roped area) and we were refused the Rider Switch pass when we walked up to the entrance.  We have to wait in the outdoor queue and when the official queue starts we will be issued a rider switch.  We can’t just walk up to a CM and get a rider switch with our genie+ (It expires in another 15 mins).  We can stay with the baby in the stroller on the side but can’t leave the area.


See this I don't understand.  So if I'm understanding correctly the LL is backed up at the scanners, but I assume the standby line is within the normal line, so if you were to ride standby, you could walk right up and get your rider swap with the rider going directly into the line and the little one going along their merry way.  It makes no sense...I get what they're trying to do, but it's dumb.


----------



## Disturbia

brockash said:


> See this I don't understand.  So if I'm understanding correctly the LL is backed up at the scanners, but I assume the standby line is within the normal line, so if you were to ride standby, you could walk right up and get your rider swap with the rider going directly into the line and the little one going along their merry way.  It makes no sense...I get what they're trying to do, but it's dumb.


Yes. The standby could walk right up and get a Rider Switch as that line was indoors (they scan from the side to issue a RS and attach to the tickets).  It doesn’t make sense to me either.  We should be issued a rider switch and then the first party goes back to the end of the LL to wait/enter. 

It just depends on the CM I believe, but something to know so you’re not shocked or upset when/IF they turn you away.


----------



## NJlauren

A few reports coming in that rides will not be added back to ILL

https://blogmickey.com/2022/08/disn...ill-not-revert-genie-offerings-on-august-7th/


----------



## Disturbia

NJlauren said:


> A few reports coming in that rides will not be added back to ILL
> 
> https://blogmickey.com/2022/08/disn...ill-not-revert-genie-offerings-on-august-7th/


That means we might be getting a bigger bombshell dropped on us (premier pass).


----------



## NJlauren

Disturbia said:


> That means we might be getting a bigger bombshell dropped on us (premier pass).


Don’t say that!!!


----------



## preemiemama

Here's one from Scott Gustin showing the WDW website before/after:  



__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1554824049313955841


----------



## Frozen2014

NJlauren said:


> A few reports coming in that rides will not be added back to ILL
> 
> https://blogmickey.com/2022/08/disn...ill-not-revert-genie-offerings-on-august-7th/


Fingers and toes crossed! 

Thanks for sharing.


----------



## snikki

So no end date this time around?


----------



## NJlauren

snikki said:


> So no end date this time around?


I don’t see one anywhere, but as we all know that can change.


----------



## melking23

Disturbia said:


> That means we might be getting a bigger bombshell dropped on us (premier pass).


I don’t think that’ll happen until January with all the prepaid Genie passes still out there.


----------



## elgerber

NJlauren said:


> I don’t see one anywhere, but as we all know that can change.


I hope this isn't an indication that they are expecting larger than normal fall crowds.


----------



## snikki

I feel like I can start loosely planning our mornings at Disney now that they’ve made a statement on this.


----------



## scrappinginontario

snikki said:


> So no end date this time around?


Wording was changed on the Disney website to remove the Aug 7th date from the website and changed to add, ‘subject to change at any time, without notice’.

The Everything Genie thread has been updated to reflect today’s changes.


----------



## nicko

paopiru said:


> How is this working? You cannot see the hour until the end of the booking process?


 
Regrading this post: * With the recent changes to the tip board (not being able to see next available times between 7am and 7:30am) I'm wondering how that is affecting usage? Are people still seeing new/earlier times around 7:10am/7:12am? Just when you think you best understand the system it changes...*


If you are able to see the time slot (at some point near the end of the booking process) can you cancel out of the booking transaction before it's completed? 

Or do you have to complete the booking and if you don't like the time you received you then go cancel the reservation and try again from the beginning?


----------



## lorileahb

All tips/help welcome (help please!)... sanity check! Hoping I understand... does the plan below meet the requirements for when I'm allowed to book Genie+ rides... this plan assumes (with thrill-data research) that I'm guestimating the right available return times... goal is 4 parks one day (ending at Epcot - closes at 9 a.m.)...

6:30 a.m. - Buy Genie+
7 a.m. - Book FOP $ILL (2-3 p.m. - I get to pick the time, correct?)
7:05-7:15 a.m. - Book Remy Genie+ (trying for 7:30-8:30 p.m., seems like this about the right booking time)
10:30 a.m. (2 hrs after Epcot opens/where I made my first Genie+) - Book a Magic Kingdom Genie+ (Pirates or Buzz or whatever near by- will tap in and use before 12:30 p.m.)
12:30/12:35 p.m. - Book MMRR Genie+ (trying for 4:30-5:30 p.m., seems like this is about the right booking time)
2:35/2:40 p.m. - Book Genie + TBD (depending on where we are and what may be available nearby - will tap in and use before 4:30 p.m.)
Between 4:40 and 5:40 - Book Genie+ for Soarin' (trying for 6:30-7:30 p.m.)

Tentative Thoughts:
Rope Drop Magic Kingdom (Peter Pan, Pirates, Haunted Mansion, Aladdin, Dole Whip, Buzz, People Mover, The Plaza - have reservation), Uber to AK
Animal Kingdom (Flights of Passage, Rum Blossom), Uber to HS
Hollywood Studios (MMRR), Skyliner to Epcot
Epcot (Soarin', Three Cab. Boat Ride, Impressions de France, Remy, Chef de France - have late reservation, walk long way around less crowded showcase when leaving)

We go on Sunday (8/7), so I was waiting for the Remy announcement.


----------



## dusty

Just looking at the updated Genie+ info an noticed you still say that Genie+ "length of stay" can be purchased with some resort packages.   I thought this offer was gone and everyone no matter what had to buy day by day.  
If this has already been asked and answered I apologize.  thanks


----------



## Trinity88

I have a question that I'm sure has been asked and answered, but going through 200+ pages was getting tedious.

We are doing late afternoons/evenings in the parks in a couple of weeks. I have already pre-purchased Genie+ and plan to purchase ILL. My question is around booking order once I start using my stacked Genie+. Let's say I book Jungle Cruise for 7pm, at 7am (so first Genie+ of the day). I then book Space Mountain for 4pm, 2 hrs after park open. I continue booking stuff throughout the day as the 2hrs come and go, last G+ being booked at 3pm. At 4pm, I enter the park and swipe at SM. It's only been an hour since I booked my last G+, but I'm swiping at one of my bookings (not the first or last one I booked). Do I have to wait until 5pm to book another G+ (2 hrs) or can I book something else as soon as I swipe (less than 2 hrs).

This has continued to confuse me...


----------



## Disturbia

lorileahb said:


> All tips/help welcome (help please!)... sanity check! Hoping I understand... does the plan below meet the requirements for when I'm allowed to book Genie+ rides... this plan assumes (with thrill-data research) that I'm guestimating the right available return times... goal is 4 parks one day (ending at Epcot - closes at 9 a.m.)...
> 
> 6:30 a.m. - Buy Genie+
> 7 a.m. - Book FOP $ILL (2-3 p.m. - I get to pick the time, correct?)
> 7:05-7:15 a.m. - Book Remy Genie+ (trying for 7:30-8:30 p.m., seems like this about the right booking time)
> 10:30 a.m. (2 hrs after Epcot opens/where I made my first Genie+) - Book a Magic Kingdom Genie+ (Pirates or Buzz or whatever near by- will tap in and use before 12:30 p.m.)
> 12:30/12:35 p.m. - Book MMRR Genie+ (trying for 4:30-5:30 p.m., seems like this is about the right booking time)
> 2:35/2:40 p.m. - Book Genie + TBD (depending on where we are and what may be available nearby - will tap in and use before 4:30 p.m.)
> Between 4:40 and 5:40 - Book Genie+ for Soarin' (trying for 6:30-7:30 p.m.)
> 
> Tentative Thoughts:
> Rope Drop Magic Kingdom (Peter Pan, Pirates, Haunted Mansion, Aladdin, Dole Whip, Buzz, People Mover, The Plaza - have reservation), Uber to AK
> Animal Kingdom (Flights of Passage, Rum Blossom), Uber to HS
> Hollywood Studios (MMRR), Skyliner to Epcot
> Epcot (Soarin', Three Cab. Boat Ride, Impressions de France, Remy, Chef de France - have late reservation, walk long way around less crowded showcase when leaving)
> 
> We go on Sunday (8/7), so I was waiting for the Remy announcement.


At 7 am I would prioritize booking Genie+ because everyone is competing for passes. 

You can’t park hop until 2 pm (Disney was thinking of adding park reservations for hopping btw).

Also budget extra time for walking to the front of the park and taking an Uber (took a good 30+ mins for us at Epcot).


----------



## scrappinginontario

dusty said:


> Just looking at the updated Genie+ info an noticed you still say that Genie+ "length of stay" can be purchased with some resort packages.   I thought this offer was gone and everyone no matter what had to buy day by day.
> If this has already been asked and answered I apologize.  thanks


Sorry, where are you seeing 'length of stay'?


----------



## Disturbia

Trinity88 said:


> I have a question that I'm sure has been asked and answered, but going through 200+ pages was getting tedious.
> 
> We are doing late afternoons/evenings in the parks in a couple of weeks. I have already pre-purchased Genie+ and plan to purchase ILL. My question is around booking order once I start using my stacked Genie+. Let's say I book Jungle Cruise for 7pm, at 7am (so first Genie+ of the day). I then book Space Mountain for 4pm, 2 hrs after park open. I continue booking stuff throughout the day as the 2hrs come and go, last G+ being booked at 3pm. At 4pm, I enter the park and swipe at SM. It's only been an hour since I booked my last G+, but I'm swiping at one of my bookings (not the first or last one I booked). Do I have to wait until 5pm to book another G+ (2 hrs) or can I book something else as soon as I swipe (less than 2 hrs).
> 
> This has continued to confuse me...


At 7 am, not everything jumps into the late evenings.  JC will be afternoon.

I believe you can book another pass after you use up the pass OR it’s been 120 mins since you’ve booked your last pass.  So it’s advantageous to book the last pass before 5 pm and use it up. 

I would caution that with spring break crowds even little mermaid had passes 2.5 hours away.  

Be careful with cross crossing the park as well.  We tried to minimize the runaround and still ended up walking over 8 miles a day.


----------



## Trinity88

Disturbia said:


> At 7 am, not everything jumps into the late evenings.  JC will be afternoon.
> 
> I believe you can book another pass after you use up the pass OR it’s been 120 mins since you’ve booked your last pass.


 I know, I was just using the rides and times as examples. But I thought there was some rule around when you could book another pass after swiping one, depending on order they were booked.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Trinity88 said:


> I know, I was just using the rides and times as examples. But I thought there was some rule around when you could book another pass after swiping one, depending on order they were booked.


The '*Everything Genie*' thread lists a lot of helpful information in the first posts that has been gathered from many people on these boards.  It explains eligibility for booking additional LL reservations.


----------



## Tom_E_D

dusty said:


> Just looking at the updated Genie+ info an noticed you still say that Genie+ "length of stay" can be purchased with some resort packages.   I thought this offer was gone and everyone no matter what had to buy day by day.
> If this has already been asked and answered I apologize.  thanks


You are correct. You cannot add Genie+ to any tickets you purchase now. I believe the deadline to purchase Genie+ with your tickets was back in June. If you have not already purchased it, you can only buy Genie+ on a day-by-day basis now. The beginning posts in this thread are not being updated, unlike the Everything Genie thread.


----------



## Trinity88

scrappinginontario said:


> The '*Everything Genie*' thread lists a lot of helpful information in the first posts that has been gathered from many people on these boards.  It explains eligibility for booking additional LL reservations.


Awesome, thank you! I knew it had to be somewhere. So I'm thinking my best bet would be to book the hard to get rides during the day and then us my 3pm booking (I'm assuming 7am, 11am, 9am, 11am, 1pm, 3pm - I know times will vary depending on park open times) for an easy to book ride, with as close to our planned arrival time as possible. That way we can keep booking rides that are available and using them while we also have the stacked rides. I know this is all subject to how fast the G+ rides book up, my mileage may vary.


----------



## set88

Trinity88 said:


> I have a question that I'm sure has been asked and answered, but going through 200+ pages was getting tedious.
> 
> We are doing late afternoons/evenings in the parks in a couple of weeks. I have already pre-purchased Genie+ and plan to purchase ILL. My question is around booking order once I start using my stacked Genie+. Let's say I book Jungle Cruise for 7pm, at 7am (so first Genie+ of the day). I then book Space Mountain for 4pm, 2 hrs after park open. I continue booking stuff throughout the day as the 2hrs come and go, last G+ being booked at 3pm. At 4pm, I enter the park and swipe at SM. It's only been an hour since I booked my last G+, but I'm swiping at one of my bookings (not the first or last one I booked). Do I have to wait until 5pm to book another G+ (2 hrs) or can I book something else as soon as I swipe (less than 2 hrs).
> 
> This has continued to confuse me...



It's 2 hours from the thing you booked most recently or when you use that most recently booked one. So in your example you would have to wait until 5:00 p.m. or whenever you used the G+ you booked at 3:00 p.m.  I think it used to be different but this is how it is now.


----------



## Jonfw2

Hello. Curious on this one:

Let’s say I have a party of five (hee hee) and we split up for the day. Two have a rez at MK, three have a rez at HS…

Can the party of 2 book an LL at 7 for themselves at MK and the party of 3 book one at the same time for themselves at HS?


----------



## scrappinginontario

Jonfw2 said:


> Hello. Curious on this one:
> 
> Let’s say I have a party of five (hee hee) and we split up for the day. Two have a rez at MK, three have a rez at HS…
> 
> Can the party of 2 book an LL at 7 for themselves at MK and the party of 3 book one at the same time for themselves at HS?


Yes.


----------



## Jonfw2

Thank you!


----------



## flowergleam1211

Hello!  Thanks to everyone who has been sharing their tips and strategies.  Does anyone have favorite blogs or videos that explains how best to use Genie+/Lightning Lane?  I'm almost at a point where I would hire a consultant to walk me through all the steps, processes, strategies, etc.


----------



## Candycane83

flowergleam1211 said:


> Hello!  Thanks to everyone who has been sharing their tips and strategies.  Does anyone have favorite blogs or videos that explains how best to use Genie+/Lightning Lane?  I'm almost at a point where I would hire a consultant to walk me through all the steps, processes, strategies, etc.


I’ve been watching ear scouts lately which does help a bit!


----------



## masupo

flowergleam1211 said:


> Hello!  Thanks to everyone who has been sharing their tips and strategies.  Does anyone have favorite blogs or videos that explains how best to use Genie+/Lightning Lane?  I'm almost at a point where I would hire a consultant to walk me through all the steps, processes, strategies, etc.





Candycane83 said:


> I’ve been watching ear scouts lately which does help a bit!



I second Ear Scouts! He explains things really well and does real world tests and demonstrations.

I also recommend AllEars - Molly is great! Her Genie+ vids helped me so much when I used it the first time.

Touring Plans started a WDW 101 type YouTube series. Their vids on Genie+ are very helpful.


----------



## mom2grace

Is there a way to select later times for LL return windows?  I would like them to be in the evening.  Specifically for MK.


----------



## CaptainAmerica

ILL yes, G+ LL no.


----------



## mom2grace

CaptainAmerica said:


> ILL yes, G+ LL no.


Can you walk me through the process?  Thank you


----------



## CarolynFH

mom2grace said:


> Is there a way to select later times for LL return windows?  I would like them to be in the evening.  Specifically for MK.


Only if you check the return times periodically and then book when one gets to the time period you want.

For example, last month DH and I didn't want to go to MK until early evening.  At 7:00 AM I bought an ILL$ for Seven Dwarfs, but the LLs for the rides we wanted were still too early in the day.  I kept watching them, and finally a little bit after 11 AM, one of them got to 6 PM, so I booked it.  That meant I couldn't book another for 2 hours, which was shortly after 1:00 PM.  At that time, another ride we wanted was booking LL for a time we liked, so I booked it.  Then 2 hours later, I found a third ride at a time we liked and booked that.  

IOW, after I booked the first LL, every 2 hours I looked at the return times for all the rides we wanted and booked whichever one fit the times we wanted.  It's important to realize that a big difference between FP+ and G+LLs is that you can overlap return windows - otherwise we could not have done it.  We ended up with Jungle Cruise at 6:10, BTMRR at 7:15, Splash at 7:40, Peter Pan at 9:25, and Haunted Mansion at 9:45.  Our Seven Dwarfs was at 10:05.  We did not book them in that sequence at all!  But we were able to arrive at MK around 6, eat a hot dog from Casey's, then ride our LLs at JC, BTMRR, and Splash (as well as standby Pirates), followed by walking across the park to ride Carousel of Progress and the People Mover before PP and HM and finally Seven Dwarfs.

Unfortunately, depending on how busy the park is that day, the LL times might move too fast, and especially the most popular rides might book up before you can get them.  I don't think the park was especially crowded that night, so we got lucky!


----------



## scrappinginontario

mom2grace said:


> Can you walk me through the process?  Thank you


I'm pretty sure the '*Everything Genie*' thread will be helpful to you.  Please read the posts on page 1.

The information you're looking for and much more is explained there.


----------



## TeamSy

Sunelis said:


> It's 2 hours after the park opens.



So say at 7:00 I make my selection for I dunno something that is far out, like Jungle Cruise at 10am. Can I make another selection at 9 because it's 2 hours later? Or do I have to wait until I use my LL at 10 and the 2 hour rule only starts beginning at 9 for 11?

Can I do:
7:00: Selection 1 for afternoon
9:00: Selection 2 for afternoon
11:00: Selection 3 for a more recent time and then when I scan in to that ride pick another one?

I don't know why I cannot wrap my head around this lol Thanks!


----------



## JodyK

It is 7AM then either

2 hours after park open OR tapping into your first LL whichever comes first. 

So from your example if park opens at 9AM and you book Jungle Cruise at 10AM you should book your next LL after tapping into Jungle Cruise which could be anytime between 10AM and 11AM. If the park opened at 8AM you should book your next LL at 10AM even if you haven't yet tapped into JC yet.


----------



## g-dad66

TeamSy said:


> So say at 7:00 I make my selection for I dunno something that is far out, like Jungle Cruise at 10am. Can I make another selection at 9 because it's 2 hours later? Or do I have to wait until I use my LL at 10 and the 2 hour rule only starts beginning at 9 for 11?
> 
> Can I do:
> 7:00: Selection 1 for afternoon
> 9:00: Selection 2 for afternoon
> 11:00: Selection 3 for a more recent time and then when I scan in to that ride pick another one?
> 
> I don't know why I cannot wrap my head around this lol Thanks!



The 2-hour rule begins when the park opens, so if park opens at 9:00, you can't make Selection 2 until 11:00.


----------



## TeamSy

g-dad66 said:


> The 2-hour rule begins when the park opens, so if park opens at 9:00, you can't make Selection 2 until 11:00.


Thanks! I don’t know why I have been finding it so hard to wrap my head around this lol


----------



## evilqueenmindy

Maybe stupid question, it’s been a couple months since I used genie+, but I got it for a day trip today at MK.
I seem to remember the next available time to book showing up on the tip board.  You’d see a close time and tap on it.
currently, I’m looking at a bunch of selections and all of them say “check availability” then I have to tap on them, select my party, and THEN it will show me the time that is available.
 Is this a glitch or a new horrible reality of an already not great thing?

EDIT-  after opening and closing the app for the 8th time, I now have times on my tip board.


----------



## Jrb1979

evilqueenmindy said:


> Maybe stupid question, it’s been a couple months since I used genie+, but I got it for a day trip today at MK.
> I seem to remember the next available time to book showing up on the tip board.  You’d see a close time and tap on it.
> currently, I’m looking at a bunch of selections and all of them say “check availability” then I have to tap on them, select my party, and THEN it will show me the time that is available.
> Is this a glitch or a new horrible reality of an already not great thing?
> 
> EDIT-  after opening and closing the app for the 8th time, I now have times on my tip board.


That's the new reality.


----------



## scrappinginontario

evilqueenmindy said:


> Maybe stupid question, it’s been a couple months since I used genie+, but I got it for a day trip today at MK.
> I seem to remember the next available time to book showing up on the tip board.  You’d see a close time and tap on it.
> currently, I’m looking at a bunch of selections and all of them say “check availability” then I have to tap on them, select my party, and THEN it will show me the time that is available.
> Is this a glitch or a new horrible reality of an already not great thing?
> 
> EDIT-  after opening and closing the app for the 8th time, I now have times on my tip board.


That has been the recent situation between 7AM and 7:30.  After that they normally show up.  Do you know if that was possibly the case for you (ie 7:30) when you started seeing them?


----------



## GBRforWDW

evilqueenmindy said:


> Maybe stupid question, it’s been a couple months since I used genie+, but I got it for a day trip today at MK.
> I seem to remember the next available time to book showing up on the tip board.  You’d see a close time and tap on it.
> currently, I’m looking at a bunch of selections and all of them say “check availability” then I have to tap on them, select my party, and THEN it will show me the time that is available.
> Is this a glitch or a new horrible reality of an already not great thing?
> 
> EDIT-  after opening and closing the app for the 8th time, I now have times on my tip board.


Yeah there was an update last month that changed the tip board to display that message from 7 to 730.


----------



## paopiru

I think you can only book again if it is the last G+ you booked the one you are tapping.


----------



## Boardwalk III

3-day trip with a girlfriend 3rd week of October. Limited days but she’d like to do AK as she’s never been - so planning on a morning there with Nomad Lounge for lunch. Likely a Thurs or Fri. 

Coming from VGF so assuming Uber is easiest. What time do we need to be there for resort early entry? Also looking for touring suggestions _with & without Genie +_. Safari and Kali River Rapids are definites. Not sure about FOP & Everest for her alone (I don’t do either one, but may push for her to do FOP). Also hoping for a bit of time to walk around, maybe even do Lion King if there’s time.

Appreciate any thoughts!


----------



## melking23

Boardwalk III said:


> 3-day trip with a girlfriend 3rd week of October. Limited days but she’d like to do AK as she’s never been - so planning on a morning there with Nomad Lounge for lunch. Likely a Thurs or Fri.
> 
> Coming from VGF so assuming Uber is easiest. What time do we need to be there for resort early entry? Also looking for touring suggestions _with & without Genie +_. Safari and Kali River Rapids are definites. Not sure about FOP & Everest for her alone (I don’t do either one, but may push for her to do FOP). Also hoping for a bit of time to walk around, maybe even do Lion King if there’s time.
> 
> Appreciate any thoughts!


I’d plan on arriving to the park about an hour before official park opening, so at least 30 minutes before early entry.  They frequently allow on-site guests in much earlier than the 30 minutes.


----------



## Boardwalk III

melking23 said:


> I’d plan on arriving to the park about an hour before official park opening, so at least 30 minutes before early entry.  They frequently allow on-site guests in much earlier than the 30 minutes.


Thanks so much. It looks like the October week I’m there AK has a 9 am opening so we’ll shoot to arrive around 8 then!


----------



## summerlvr

Boardwalk III said:


> Thanks so much. It looks like the October week I’m there AK has a 9 am opening so we’ll shoot to arrive around 8 then!


Do keep an eye on park hours as it gets closer to your trip. It's not unusual for opening and closing times to change. You don't want to get there only to find the park has been open for 30-60 minutes!


----------



## heathsf

If I have a park pass at AK (official park opening at 8)
And I schedule my first G+ in DHS (official park opening at 8:30)

When can I book my next G+?
Is it 2 hours after park open in the park I’m currently in or the park where I just made a G+?


----------



## CJK

heathsf said:


> When can I book my next G+?
> Is it 2 hours after park open in the park I’m currently in or the park where I just made a G+?


It's 2hrs after the park opens where you booked your first G+.  So in this case, it's 2hrs after DHS opens.


----------



## heathsf

CJK said:


> It's 2hrs after the park opens where you booked your first G+.  So in this case, it's 2hrs after DHS opens.


Thank you!


----------



## TeamSy

I see people mentioning "refreshing to get the time they want" when it comes to booking a LL. What does this mean? Is it in terms of waiting for a LATER time to pop up or an EARLIER time?


----------



## heathsf

TeamSy said:


> I see people mentioning "refreshing to get the time they want" when it comes to booking a LL. What does this mean? Is it in terms of waiting for a LATER time to pop up or an EARLIER time?


It could be either. Sometimes if you keep refreshing an earlier time can pop up but sometimes it takes time and persistence (and luck!)


----------



## TeamSy

heathsf said:


> It could be either. Sometimes if you keep refreshing an earlier time can pop up but sometimes it takes time and persistence (and luck!)



For earlier times, does that happen throughout the day or only during that initial 7am rush?


----------



## LisaRay

quick question. 
with the new 7:00-7:30 changes can you still see what time you are booking a LL for. For example, based   on breakfast ADR we don't want a Tower LL super early but would like to try for 10-11 ish. or even 10-noon ish. is it possible to see what the time is I'm booking when I do it between 7:00-7:30.


----------



## SkyGuy

LisaRay said:


> quick question.
> with the new 7:00-7:30 changes can you still see what time you are booking a LL for. For example, based   on breakfast ADR we don't want a Tower LL super early but would like to try for 10-11 ish. or even 10-noon ish. is it possible to see what the time is I'm booking when I do it between 7:00-7:30.


Only after you click on the ride selection. It will show you the time, and then you can decide if you want to book it or not.


----------



## oneIIIone

We used G+ our last trip.  It was a half week, which was shorter than most of our trips over the years.  We also had a first-time visitor with us.  The combination of the two meant trying to maximize our time and hit some of the key rides.  Otherwise, I think we would have done what some others have mentioned and monitored wait times the first few days and adjusted as we went.


----------



## heathsf

TeamSy said:


> For earlier times, does that happen throughout the day or only during that initial 7am rush?


It can happen throughout the day. During the initial 7am rush I think you're less likely to find times changing to earlier.
There have been reports that Disney does a second drop not long after 7 (I think it was something like 7:17am -- hopefully someone will correct me if I'm wrong on that) but I think it's harder to tell now that the tip board is mostly hidden between 7-7:30.
I suggest watching Ear Scouts youtube videos. He does a great job of explaining the quirks of Genie+.


----------



## TinkBink

TeamSy said:


> For earlier times, does that happen throughout the day or only during that initial 7am rush?


When I when back in May, they used to do additional "drops" for the high demand rides between 7:15 and 8:00 which would mean the time would decrease back to 9 or 10 am and build up later again from there. I have been "practicing" my genie plus strategy for my upcoming September trip and that no longer appears to be the case. The times from 7-7:15 you have to click on for availability (I can't see them because my tickets aren't valid yet) so I have no idea what happens during that time. But at 7:15 I have been able to view the times. I refreshed for almost a full hour for Hollywood Studios and Epcot (I tried this multiple days) and never saw any "drops". There were rare, occasional moments a 10 am or morning slot would open but it would disappear right away which means it was likely just a cancellation from someone else. If you are aiming for an early morning slot, I would hit it right at 7 am. If you are aiming for an evening time, you should be able to get that easily. An additional note however that if you are stacking rides for later in the day, I have still had success in refreshing after a ride is "sold out" for the day and getting an afternoon or evening time pop up so that strategy still works! Hope that's helpful!


----------



## holyrita

TinkBink said:


> When I when back in May, they used to do additional "drops" for the high demand rides between 7:15 and 8:00 which would mean the time would decrease back to 9 or 10 am and build up later again from there. I have been "practicing" my genie plus strategy for my upcoming September trip and that no longer appears to be the case. The times from 7-7:15 you have to click on for availability (I can't see them because my tickets aren't valid yet) so I have no idea what happens during that time. But at 7:15 I have been able to view the times. I refreshed for almost a full hour for Hollywood Studios and Epcot (I tried this multiple days) and never saw any "drops". There were rare, occasional moments a 10 am or morning slot would open but it would disappear right away which means it was likely just a cancellation from someone else. If you are aiming for an early morning slot, I would hit it right at 7 am. If you are aiming for an evening time, you should be able to get that easily. An additional note however that if you are stacking rides for later in the day, I have still had success in refreshing after a ride is "sold out" for the day and getting an afternoon or evening time pop up so that strategy still works! Hope that's helpful!


You used to be able to get an earlier time between 7:10-7:12 am too, as people who originally selected those times would cancel out and they'd return to the pool about 10 minutes later. That no longer seems to be the case either- I have an iPad running an older version of MDE and can still see return times between 7-7:30am (or 7:15am).


----------



## Disturbia

SkyGuy said:


> Only after you click on the ride selection. It will show you the time, and then you can decide if you want to book it or not.


Can someone post a screen shot of this?  It’s already so stressful planning around ADRs.

You can’t see times on the tip board?  Can you see them the day you’re traveling and checking in (park day).


----------



## cjlong88

Disturbia said:


> Can someone post a screen shot of this?  It’s already so stressful planning around ADRs.
> 
> You can’t see times on the tip board?  Can you see them the day you’re traveling and checking in (park day).


The only time you can't see the return times on the Tip Board currently is between 7:00 - 7:30 am daily. The reason they took away the return times during that part of the morning is because the system gets inundated with guests trying to all book their first LL for the same return time that is displayed on the Tip Board. So when the system originally showed you a return time on the Tip Board, you would click that thinking that is what you would get, but the system would modify your return time on the next page (they can't give everyone the 9am return window that is initially shown). So they have removed the return time on the Tip Board for the first 30 minutes of the day to alleviate the disappointment people faced when they saw a 9am return time, clicked it, and then was offered a later return time. I hope that makes sense.

So the inability to see the return time on the Tip Board only happens when you book your very first LL of the day, assuming you book it from 7:00-7:30 am. Any other LL you book your Tip Board will show the return times that are currently offered for each attraction.


----------



## Jrb1979

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1557782151340429315
Big changes to Genie+. Stacking for park hopping is now that more difficult


----------



## GBRforWDW

Jrb1979 said:


> Big changes to Genie+. Stacking for park hopping is now that more difficult


Wonder what happens if the return time is before 2pm and the park is not your reserved park.  Ie. Will it give you the early time or will you get an error message.  Crazy they would do this, but then again...


----------



## han22735

GBRforWDW said:


> Wonder what happens if the return time is before 2pm and the park is not your reserved park.  Ie. Will it give you the early time or will you get an error message.  Crazy they would do this, but then again..



People have tried and it gives you an error.


----------



## GBRforWDW

han22735 said:


> People have tried and it gives you an error.


Good to know.  I'd rather have an error than have to cancel something I can't use!


----------



## BamaGuy44

Jrb1979 said:


> Big changes to Genie+. Stacking for park hopping is now that more difficult


I didn't know it worked like that, we didn't hop on our first genie+ trip in May. But I kind of see why they changed it. Makes it harder to stack I get it, but It's not really fair for people in other parks to have access to 2:00 slots before the people who reserved that park. Seems better for the slots to open up at the same time for everyone, IMO.


----------



## snikki

BamaGuy44 said:


> I didn't know it worked like that, we didn't hop on our first genie+ trip in May. But I kind of see why they changed it. Makes it harder to stack I get it, but It's not really fair for people in other parks to have access to 2:00 slots before the people who reserved that park. Seems better for the slots to open up at the same time for everyone, IMO.



I’m a park hopper person and I was really looking forward to stacking but I agree with you. I wonder how many people will back out of purchasing park hoppers because of this change.


----------



## heathsf

I wonder if there's any chance they're preparing to drop the "after 2pm" requirement for park hopping


----------



## BamaGuy44

snikki said:


> I’m a park hopper person and I was really looking forward to stacking but I agree with you. I wonder how many people will back out of purchasing park hoppers because of this change.


Heh, if they see hopper sales drop off noticeably, they'll probably change it back! We're normally hoppers, but haven't done it with genie yet. Sadly we paid for it on our trip and never hopped. Oops! We were traveling with another family and the logistics just made it better to do one park per day. Oh well it's only money right? lol


----------



## musicguy856

If you really think about it, someone hopping could actually use a 1:30 or 1:45 LL reservation since the windows for those would extend past 2pm.


----------



## BamaGuy44

heathsf said:


> I wonder if there's any chance they're preparing to drop the "after 2pm" requirement for park hopping


I sure hope so. Out of all the annoying post-Covid changes, I hate this one the worst.


----------



## holyrita

Just looking for clarification on this change: you no longer will be able to book a G+ return time at the park you will be hopping to if the return time for that attraction is before 2pm. Example, If you're at MK and it's 11am and you go to book say Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway for a return time of 3pm that will still work?


----------



## snikki

holyrita said:


> Just looking for clarification on this change: you no longer will be able to book a G+ return time at the park you will be hopping to if the return time for that attraction is before 2pm. Example, If you're at MK and it's 11am and you go to book say Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway for a return time of 3pm that will still work?



That’s how I’m reading it.


----------



## NJlauren

I do think this may help with some afternoon availability especially at HS.  I don’t think drastically but a bit.  I still don’t like it, but trying to see a positive


----------



## leeniewdw

Good grief this is hard enough to learn/understand and they keep changing it?

So, I'm trying to understand as well. If I'm at AK and it's 11am and I want to book at EP, if the return times are noon or 1, I just can't book.  So I have to wait until the rides are naturally after 2pm?

But if I'm at AK and it's 11am and all the rides I'm interested in at HS have return times after 2pm I can book?


----------



## holyrita

snikki said:


> That’s how I’m reading it.


Then (and I shutter to say this) it doesn't sound like the change is that bad? Unless you want to start your park hop exactly at 2pm which personally we rarely do. I feel like most of the headliners in each park get G+ return times after 2pm not long into the morning..


----------



## han22735

leeniewdw said:


> Good grief this is hard enough to learn/understand and they keep changing it?
> 
> So, I'm trying to understand as well. If I'm at AK and it's 11am and I want to book at EP, if the return times are noon or 1, I just can't book.  So I have to wait until the rides are naturally after 2pm?
> 
> But if I'm at AK and it's 11am and all the rides I'm interested in have return times after 2pm I can book?


Yes.  If the return times at the park you're hopping to are 2pm or later then your good to go.


----------



## leeniewdw

heathsf said:


> I wonder if there's any chance they're preparing to drop the "after 2pm" requirement for park hopping



At first I didn't understand how this would be related, but I guess after trying to understand this change I'm thinking it does?   But it seems weird not to be done at the same time!?


----------



## snikki

heathsf said:


> I wonder if there's any chance they're preparing to drop the "after 2pm" requirement for park hopping



I hope so!


----------



## heathsf

leeniewdw said:


> At first I didn't understand how this would be related, but I guess after trying to understand this change I'm thinking it does?   But it seems weird not to be done at the same time!?


Honestly, it's just wishful thinking. I would be surprised if they actually dropped the 2pm requirement for hopping. But I'd also be very happy - just one less unnecessary restriction


----------



## leeniewdw

han22735 said:


> Yes.  If the return times at the park you're hopping to are 2pm or later then your good to go.



So this seems like it would an issue mostly with EPCOT (and maybe AK) as your hop to park?   Seems like MK and HS wouldn't be a major issue?


----------



## abbyandangel

My IPhone did not update MDE automatically so I still see the times from 7:00 to 7:30. I have been thinking about updating but now I will leave it alone. We plan to hop every day. I want to see the time when I choose my experience so I can get right after 2 pm.


----------



## java

Here now and these are my 2 cents. 
We bought it for MK - twice- loved it there very useful. (4 of us so $60) and bought it once for HS. I don’t know if it’s necessary there.  We didn’t feel we used it as much- we were able to do everything we wanted in one day- planned second day got switched to our last 1/2 day.  Epcot- completely unnecessary imho if you are an early riser.  Same with Animal Kingdom- we just watched the app and waited for short wait times- again rode everything in one day without +.  Time to head back to the parks.


----------



## Lisa P.

Thanks for that update. Seems like the parks (except MK) are pretty manageable during moderate crowds without Genie+. Our experiences in Feb and June were that Genie+ was pretty necessary at DHS with the larger crowds at those times. It's just been so hard to anticipate crowd levels these days.


----------



## set88

BamaGuy44 said:


> I didn't know it worked like that, we didn't hop on our first genie+ trip in May. But I kind of see why they changed it. Makes it harder to stack I get it, but It's not really fair for people in other parks to have access to 2:00 slots before the people who reserved that park. Seems better for the slots to open up at the same time for everyone, IMO.


This is my interpretation, too.  This change doesn't seem to directly benefit Disney, so I assume it's being made because they think it will increase overall satisfaction.  I agree that it seems more fair that people who are planning to be in one park all day don't get blocked out of afternoon return times because park hoppers took them all in the morning.  

Maybe this will particularly help EPCOT.  Right now it's basically impossible to get all 3 headliners without luck and a lot of refreshing.  If this change allows people who start at EPCOT to actually get all 3, Genie+ would be much more worthwhile there.


----------



## inspectorgadget

I watched an Ear Scouts YouTube video about Genie+ strategy at HS. At first, his return times were all later but he was able to keep refreshing and was able to get early times. I have been "practicing" (my trip is in September) and I have not had any earlier times appear at all. I have been trying throughout the day, everyday. I would hate to miss out on a return time, even if it's later, because I have been holding out for an earlier times. Is there something I am missing? How was he able to do this? Could it be that he had 1 in his party, versus 5 or any big party?


----------



## daisylovesdisney

inspectorgadget said:


> srn times were all later but he was able to keep refreshing and was able to get early t imes. I have been "practicing" (my trip is in September) and I have not had any earlier times appear at all. I have been trying throughout the day, everyday. I would hate to miss out on a return time, even if it's later, because I have been holding out for an earlier times. Is there something I am missing? How was he able to do this? Could it be that he had 1 in his party, versus 5 or any big party?


I looked at thrill data yesterday and could find times during the day when suddenly earlier LL return times were available for some of the attractions.  But there didn't seem to be anything regular about it, and the early times seemed to only last for mere minutes and then were back to later times being available.


----------



## inspectorgadget

daisylovesdisney said:


> I looked at thrill data yesterday and could find times during the day when suddenly earlier LL return times were available for some of the attractions.  But there didn't seem to be anything regular about it, and the early times seemed to only last for mere minutes and then were back to later times being available.



Oh, I see. Thanks for your reply. That sounds like a risky strategy then so I probably will just grab whatever I can. I also do not want to be glued to my phone, it would be nice to spend the time with my family. Imagine that - not having to be tied to your phone on a VACATION!


----------



## daisylovesdisney

inspectorgadget said:


> Oh, I see. Thanks for your reply. That sounds like a risky strategy then so I probably will just grab whatever I can. I also do not want to be glued to my phone, it would be nice to spend the time with my family. Imagine that - not having to be tied to your phone on a VACATION!


I was really hoping to find some sort of pattern for particular attractions and then put timers on my phone but really just seems like luck.  Maybe someone has plotted the info out and has cracked the code lol.


----------



## inspectorgadget

daisylovesdisney said:


> I was really hoping to find some sort of pattern for particular attractions and then put timers on my phone but really just seems like luck.  Maybe someone has plotted the info out and has cracked the code lol.


Haha! A pattern...wouldn't that be nice? You would need to be an advanced code breaker to figure that out.


----------



## melking23

I’m not sure I believe Disney made this change on purpose.  The website had scheduled maintenance last night beginning at midnight eastern.  Either I saw an article stating such or I saw it on Disney’s website myself last night when I got kicked off of the DAS live chat after 10PM.  This change could very well just be a glitch.


----------



## snikki

Any reports this morning on if the no booking after 2 pm is still happening or if it was a glitch?


----------



## Jrb1979

snikki said:


> Any reports this morning on if the no booking after 2 pm is still happening or if it was a glitch?


I don't think it was a glitch but part of the new update.


----------



## Disturbia

Not a glitch,  but they’ve been thinking about implementing a park pass for the park that is being hopped to

https://wdwnt.com/2022/08/daily-recap-8-11-22/


----------



## Disturbia

They’re probably trying to improve evening pass availability.  Now you can’t get ahead of the crowd in booking passes if you initially booked in a park that opened earlier; you’re also at a disadvantage from someone who stays in the parks and at 1 pm can book same park ahead of someone arriving at 2.  It would reduce everyone hopping to MK (open later) in the pm.  We haven’t used hoppers with Genie+.

This has to be leading to something else.  I wonder if they are going to implement a system where you need to be in the park (we stack evening passes for check in day).


----------



## Disturbia

Lisa P. said:


> Thanks for that update. Seems like the parks (except MK) are pretty manageable during moderate crowds without Genie+. Our experiences in Feb and June were that Genie+ was pretty necessary at DHS with the larger crowds at those times. It's just been so hard to anticipate crowd levels these days.


Same with March, Genie+ was absolutely necessary for HS.


----------



## heathsf

Disturbia said:


> Not a glitch,  but they’ve been thinking about implementing a park pass for the park that is being hopped to
> 
> https://wdwnt.com/2022/08/daily-recap-8-11-22/


I really really really hope not. I don't want to lose the flexibility of park hopping


----------



## leeniewdw

You pay extra for park hopping but you have to figure out in advance which parks you want to hop to?  That just doesn't make sense to me.

For our Nov trip with 4 20-somethings who haven't been since they were tweens, it's really hard to know they may want to visit/re-visit as the day unfold.  That's why we bought PARK HOPPERS!


----------



## snikki

Disturbia said:


> *This has to be leading to something else.  I wonder if they are going to implement a system where you need to be in the park (we stack evening passes for check in day).*


I sure hope not. That would suck.


----------



## Frozen2014

Trying to come up with a plan with coordinating ADR, LL and LL$ and have a question around LL$ and LL.

What happens if say at 7am, you book a LL$.
Then when it comes to booking your next LL (at say the second eligible time), it conflicts with the LL$...but you want to grab it as it may be gone for the next time you are eligible to book.

I am thinking of trying for Rise of the Resistance for around 3pm.
But if we try for Millennium Falcon for our second LL, it may fall around the same window.
(We have ADR for late morning which is why I am thinking later in the day for Rise, and MF first time doesn't seem likely)

Can we book it and then just show the second one that we had a conflict and they will let us in?  Or we can't book it at all as we will lose it if we can't make one on time?


----------



## heathsf

leeniewdw said:


> You pay extra for park hopping but you have to figure out in advance which parks you want to hop to?  That just doesn't make sense to me.
> 
> For our Nov trip with 4 20-somethings who haven't been since they were tweens, it's really hard to know they may want to visit/re-visit as the day unfold.  That's why we bought PARK HOPPERS!


*Exactly* my feelings!!!!


----------



## leeniewdw

snikki said:


> I sure hope not. That would suck.



That would very much suck.  You pay all this money to be on site at lovely resorts with convenient travel to/from parks so you can enjoy your entire vacation.  You've paid extra for G+ in order to help maximize your vacation time.   Now you pull the rug out of that?   (And that's ignoring the fact that people are STILL having to study just to know how to use all the various systems and timings, etc -- and they continue to change it!)



Frozen2014 said:


> Trying to come up with a plan with coordinating ADR, LL and LL$ and have a question around LL$ and LL.
> 
> What happens if say at 7am, you book a LL$.
> Then when it comes to booking your next LL (at say the second eligible time), it conflicts with the LL$...but you want to grab it as it may be gone for the next time you are eligible to book.
> 
> I am thinking of trying for Rise of the Resistance for around 3pm.
> But if we try for Millennium Falcon for our second LL, it may fall around the same window.
> (We have ADR for late morning which is why I am thinking later in the day for Rise, and MF first thing doesn't seem likely)
> 
> Can we book it and then just show the second one that we had a conflict and they will let us in?  Or we can't book it at all as we will lose it if we can't make one on time?



You have an hour for your return windows.  You should be able to use overlapping LL/ILL without an issue in the same park.  We've done it many many times.


----------



## Disturbia

Frozen2014 said:


> Trying to come up with a plan with coordinating ADR, LL and LL$ and have a question around LL$ and LL.
> 
> What happens if say at 7am, you book a LL$.
> Then when it comes to booking your next LL (at say the second eligible time), it conflicts with the LL$...but you want to grab it as it may be gone for the next time you are eligible to book.
> 
> I am thinking of trying for Rise of the Resistance for around 3pm.
> But if we try for Millennium Falcon for our second LL, it may fall around the same window.
> (We have ADR for late morning which is why I am thinking later in the day for Rise, and MF first time doesn't seem likely)
> 
> Can we book it and then just show the second one that we had a conflict and they will let us in?  Or we can't book it at all as we will lose it if we can't make one on time?


If you have a dining conflict, GET can help fix it; for us they changed the conflicting LL to an anytime use, so we could use it right away.

At HS the lines at GET can be 15-20 mins long during peak hours.


----------



## shaqfor3

inspectorgadget said:


> I watched an Ear Scouts YouTube video about Genie+ strategy at HS. At first, his return times were all later but he was able to keep refreshing and was able to get early times. I have been "practicing" (my trip is in September) and I have not had any earlier times appear at all. I have been trying throughout the day, everyday. I would hate to miss out on a return time, even if it's later, because I have been holding out for an earlier times. Is there something I am missing? How was he able to do this? Could it be that he had 1 in his party, versus 5 or any big party?


From what I had read party size doesn't matter when you are picking LL (As long as you are under the maximum 10 or 12 people not sure which it is).

Also for refreshing the app, it will be easier at the parks when you can filter the attractions so only the ones you are looking show up.  I do practices as well but I need to scroll down to check them.  So when you are at the park you should be able to refresh faster. 

He sometimes takes 10 minutes to find what he want that's a lot of refreshing.

It requires a lot of patience and faith.  Also people are getting better at it so there is more competition now for those LLs than when he did the video.


----------



## Disturbia

I’m thinking this is the first step to implementing a park reservation system for park hopping.  Once that is implemented, you will essentially have a park pass reservation to two parks and be able to book passes for post 2 pm.  This seems more logical and will restore the benefits of a hopper, while keeping a cap on attendance.

Even now you can book 2 LLI$ with park hoppers (1 in each park) vs a day pass holder who can only book 1.


----------



## Frozen2014

leeniewdw said:


> You have an hour for your return windows.  You should be able to use overlapping LL/ILL without an issue in the same park.  We've done it many many times.


Thanks...Wasn't sure how long Rise of the Resistance and Millennium Falcon rides take (including lining up for the LL to time get on the ride) so if both booked at say, 3pm, it still seems tight.



Disturbia said:


> If you have a dining conflict, GET can help fix it; for us they changed the conflicting LL to an anytime use, so we could use it right away.
> 
> At HS the lines at GET can be 15-20 mins long during peak hours.


Thanks.  I'm thinking more a conflict of the LL and $LL since we will try and not book either around our ADR time.


----------



## Disturbia

Frozen2014 said:


> Thanks...Wasn't sure how long Rise of the Resistance and Millennium Falcon rides take (including lining up for the LL to time get on the ride) so if both booked at say, 3pm, it still seems tight.
> 
> 
> Thanks.  I'm thinking more a conflict of the LL and $LL since we will try and not book either around our ADR time.


Try is the key word here.  I clicked 9:30 am for SDMT and it jumped to 6 pm (payment screen said 9:30 am while it was going through).  We had an ADR at Steakhouse71 at around 5 (ADRs are now taking 2 hours and service is exceptionally slow vs last year).  If that happens, you immediately go to the front desk (perk of staying on site) and they can change it to a suitable time (provided you get there fast before the passes are gone once LLIA are offered to offsite guests).  The line at the front desk was slow moving at AOA and it took 30 mins.  There was plenty of availability after the second drop at 7:17 (It was nerve wrecking  as the earlier times slowly started disappearing).


----------



## Jrb1979

As many issues as Genie+ has two of the bigger issues is too many guests using it and guests trying to use it like FP+. Genie+ was meant to be a go with the flow system. It's no wonder people say they are on the phones a lot now, they spend all their time looking for the optimal times.


----------



## daisylovesdisney

Sometimes we go to three parks when hopping, easy to do DHS for the morning, Epcot for the later afternoon and MK for the evening.  Or start with an early morning at Animal Kingdom, and hop to Epcot and end with a ride on SDD in DHS.   Hope they don't restrict that with hopping reservations.


----------



## Frozen2014

Disturbia said:


> Try is the key word here.  I clicked 9:30 am for SDMT and it jumped to 6 pm (payment screen said 9:30 am while it was going through).  We had an ADR at Steakhouse71 at around 5 (ADRs are now taking 2 hours and service is exceptionally slow vs last year).  If that happens, you immediately go to the front desk (perk of staying on site) and they can change it to a suitable time (provided you get there fast before the passes are gone once LLIA are offered to offsite guests).  The line at the front desk was slow moving at AOA and it took 30 mins.  There was plenty of availability after the second drop at 7:17 (It was nerve wrecking  as the earlier times slowly started disappearing).


This is what worries me...is trying to schedule things together and then by the time you have a good selection, it changes on you.
It's ironic too as LL and LL$ is supposed to limit your time waiting in line, but then if we have to stand in line to have them fixed, then it kind of defeats the purpose.

PS - When I mentioned second drop, I mean second time eligible to book the next LL (so either once you tap into your first LL or 2 hours after park opening).  When I look at thrill data, if we try for Millennium Falcon at 7am, then we will get a time that conflicts with our lunch ADR.  So am thinking of trying for MF as our second booking.


----------



## holyrita

Disturbia said:


> Try is the key word here.  I clicked 9:30 am for SDMT and it jumped to 6 pm (payment screen said 9:30 am while it was going through).  We had an ADR at Steakhouse71 at around 5 (ADRs are now taking 2 hours and service is exceptionally slow vs last year).  If that happens, you immediately go to the front desk (perk of staying on site) and they can change it to a suitable time (provided you get there fast before the passes are gone once LLIA are offered to offsite guests).  The line at the front desk was slow moving at AOA and it took 30 mins.  There was plenty of availability after the second drop at 7:17 (It was nerve wrecking  as the earlier times slowly started disappearing).


Did this happen before or after they started hiding the times on the tip board between 7am-7:30am? If after it seems like hiding the times is.. not solving anything?


----------



## leeniewdw

Jrb1979 said:


> As many issues as Genie+ has two of the bigger issues is too many guests using it and guests trying to use it like FP+. Genie+ was meant to be a go with the flow system. It's no wonder people say they are on the phones a lot now, they spend all their time looking for the optimal times.



I thought it was meant to earn more money on top of the ticket price!   Why would people pay MORE money for a system that's "go with the flow"?  I'm paying more money to maximize my time in the parks. We never go for a week at a time, we got for 2-3 days, so even saving a few hours a day is huge!  If I was going with the flow, I'd not bother with G+ at all. 




daisylovesdisney said:


> Sometimes we go to three parks when hopping, easy to do DHS for the morning, Epcot for the later afternoon and MK for the evening.  Or start with an early morning at Animal Kingdom, and hop to Epcot and end with a ride on SDD in DHS.   Hope they don't restrict that with hopping reservations.



I was thinking the same.  We've done 3 parks in 1 day including a break!   If they change this to 2 parks a day, they should change the name of the ticket.


----------



## Jrb1979

leeniewdw said:


> I thought it was meant to earn more money on top of the ticket price!   Why would people pay MORE money for a system that's "go with the flow"?  I'm paying more money to maximize my time in the parks. We never go for a week at a time, we got for 2-3 days, so even saving a few hours a day is huge!  If I was going with the flow, I'd not bother with G+ at all.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I was thinking the same.  We've done 3 parks in 1 day including a break!   If they change this to 2 parks a day, they should change the name of the ticket.


What I meant was when using Genie+ the original plan for it was to open the app and take what was available. Not to try for optimal times and planning like FP+ was.


----------



## leeniewdw

Jrb1979 said:


> What I meant was when using Genie+ the original plan for it was to open the app and take what was available. Not to try for optimal times and planning like FP+ was.



How do you know this was the plan?  Why would guests change their approach just because FP+ went away?


----------



## denisejk

At the parks now… in DL with Park Hoppers with Genie+. Trying to book LL for Soarin’. Return time is still morning, but I thought I had read that I could book a LL for the opposite park and it would automatically give me a PM return time. But instead it’s saying I’m ineligible. What am I doing wrong?


----------



## cjlong88

denisejk said:


> At the parks now… in DL with Park Hoppers with Genie+. Trying to book LL for Soarin’. Return time is still morning, but I thought I had read that I could book a LL for the opposite park and it would automatically give me a PM return time. But instead it’s saying I’m ineligible. What am I doing wrong?


They are no longer bumping times to 2pm to accommodate park hopping. You will need to wait for Soarin' to post a 2pm return time before you book it. Or select something else that is already showing a 2pm or later return time. This just started a day or so ago.


----------



## set88

leeniewdw said:


> How do you know this was the plan?  Why would guests change their approach just because FP+ went away?


I think the better way of phrasing this might be "The idea was for guests to be able to open the app and take whatever was available and have that work, without requiring a bunch of refreshing."  

I'm not sure to what extent they have accomplished that, but I do genuinely believe Disney's goal (beyond making more money which is a given) was to make a system that is more fair to first timers that haven't done a lot of research and planning than the old system was.


----------



## denisejk

cjlong88 said:


> They are no longer bumping times to 2pm to accommodate park hopping. You will need to wait for Soarin' to post a 2pm return time before you book it. Or select something else that is already showing a 2pm or later return time. This just started a day or so ago.


Ugh! Just my luck.
 Thank you for the quick reply! At least I won’t waste time keep trying to book it.


----------



## leeniewdw

set88 said:


> I think the better way of phrasing this might be "The idea was for guests to be able to open the app and take whatever was available and have that work, without requiring a bunch of refreshing."
> 
> I'm not sure to what extent they have accomplished that, but I do genuinely believe Disney's goal (beyond making more money which is a given) was to make a system that is more fair to first timers that haven't done a lot of research and planning than the old system was.



Are you talking about the recent change being "more fair to first timers" or just the whole G+ system?   The entire G+/ILL is beyond more complicated compared to the old FP+ system.   We've used it twice and my husband still doesn't get the when/how.  There's no reason for the 2 of us to be subjected to reading blogs, forums, youtube videos, so I'm the one that does the booking.    

We're going with our adult kids and either we're going to have to have a zoom call with them so I can try to explain it or they are going to have to let me handle it.  I cannot even imagine going with multiple couples without having experienced it for myself first. 

And the 7am start for all this is not what most would call "easier" (coupled with park reservations, etc) either.


----------



## abbyandangel

My trip is in 3 weeks. I have already spent too much or I would cancel the trip.  I paid ahead for Genie and park hopper. They appear to be getting less worth the investment with every change Disney makes.  I am afraid to think about what else will change before the trip. I counted on stacking and hopping to the MK so I made MK reservations for only 2 days of a 10 day trip.  Now I wonder if I should try to add an MK day. I love AK in the AM so wanted to start there most days. My DD is not as much of an AK fan. She will not be happy if we are unable to get good selections at MK.


----------



## snikki

set88 said:


> I think the better way of phrasing this might be "The idea was for guests to be able to open the app and take whatever was available and have that work, without requiring a bunch of refreshing."
> 
> I'm not sure to what extent they have accomplished that, but I do genuinely believe Disney's goal (beyond making more money which is a given) was to make a system that is more fair to first timers that haven't done a lot of research and planning than the old system was.



I agree. Disney “nerds” are the ones who make it more difficult by trying to optimize it and “get our money’s worth” (me included). When you just look at G+ From Disney’s stand point it is not a confusing product at all.


----------



## leeniewdw

abbyandangel said:


> My trip is in 3 weeks. I have already spent too much or I would cancel the trip.  I paid ahead for Genie and park hopper. They appear to be getting less worth the investment with every change Disney makes.  I am afraid to think about what else will change before the trip. I counted on stacking and hopping to the MK so I made MK reservations for only 2 days of a 10 day trip.  Now I wonder if I should try to add an MK day. I love AK in the AM so wanted to start there most days. My DD is not as much of an AK fan. She will not be happy if we are unable to get good selections at MK.



I agree with everything you wrote about how these continued changes are super frustrating.   If I were you, I'd just keep checking the app in the morning to see what is available with MK for post 2pm.   I feel like MK and HS won't be too hard to find post-2pm rides pretty early in the morning.  I'll be doing that myself for our Nov trip, but figured I should wait until it's closer (and allow for even MORE changes by then!)


----------



## Erica Ladd

Just realized how bad this sucks. Now we cant stack at our hopper park. That was the majority of my plan!!


----------



## snikki

Erica Ladd said:


> Just realized how bad this sucks. Now we cant stack at our hopper park. That was the majority of my plan!!



You can still stack. It won't change much at DHS and MK, especially on busy days. It'll be harder at AK. As for Epcot I see times go late for TT, Remy and Frozen pretty early on.


----------



## CuteAsMinnie

Hi Folks!
I continually read/hear conflicting info…

1st LL is made at 7am

2nd LL made 2 hours later at 9am
OR
2 hours AFTER park opening?

Thanks!!!!


----------



## han22735

CuteAsMinnie said:


> Hi Folks!
> I continually read/hear conflicting info…
> 
> 1st LL is made at 7am
> 
> 2nd LL made 2 hours later at 9am
> OR
> 2 hours AFTER park opening?
> 
> Thanks!!!!


2 hours AFTER park opening.


----------



## leeniewdw

Erica Ladd said:


> Just realized how bad this sucks. Now we cant stack at our hopper park. That was the majority of my plan!!



Depends on where you are hopping to.   If it's MK or HS I think you'll be fine since you can only even attempt to grab 3 rides before 2pm (presuming 9am opening)  

I still hate it though!


----------



## Erica Ladd

snikki said:


> You can still stack. It won't change much at DHS and MK, especially on busy days. It'll be harder at AK. As for Epcot I see times go late for TT, Remy and Frozen pretty early on.


I was planning on starting to stack for HS after our first chance for LL. Now I have to wait until 2 for stacking. There goes SDD!!


----------



## leeniewdw

Erica Ladd said:


> I was planning on starting to stack for HS after our first chance for LL. Now I have to wait until 2 for stacking. There goes SDD!!



You can grab SDD because the returns will launch into the post 2pm timeframe very quickly.   You don't have to wait until 2pm to attempt to grab, you have to wait until the natural return times move INTO the post 2pm timeslots.


----------



## snikki

Erica Ladd said:


> I was planning on starting to stack for HS after our first chance for LL. Now I have to wait until 2 for stacking. There goes SDD!!



You don't have to wait until until 2 pm to start stacking. You just have to wait for SDD to be in the 2pm time slot which will probably be 7:00:05 am instead of 7:00:00 am.


----------



## Erica Ladd

leeniewdw said:


> You can grab SDD because the returns will launch into the post 2pm timeframe very quickly.   You don't have to wait until 2pm to attempt to grab, you have to wait until the natural return times move INTO the post 2pm timeslots.


Good point. Still tho. Lol


----------



## set88

Erica Ladd said:


> I was planning on starting to stack for HS after our first chance for LL. Now I have to wait until 2 for stacking. There goes SDD!!


You don't have to wait until 2pm to book. Just until the return times are past 2pm. For Slinky Dog, you'll probably be able to book at 7:02am. If not then, then certainly still well before park open. Out of all the parks, this update changes the least for HS because the return times get late really fast anyway.


----------



## holyrita

Disturbia said:


> Not a glitch,  but they’ve been thinking about implementing a park pass for the park that is being hopped to
> 
> https://wdwnt.com/2022/08/daily-recap-8-11-22/


I'm not sure if this is new or I just haven't noticed it before, but on the main screen when you launch MDE it shows your next park reservation under 'Upcoming Plans'. Before I believe it said "*Valid On: August 28*" where now it says "*Valid On: Aug 3, 2022 | 6:00 AM - 5:59 AM*". It's the inclusion of the time that makes me nervous park hopping reservations could really be coming.. (or I just never noticed this before and I'm being crazy )


----------



## BamaGuy44

heathsf said:


> I really really really hope not. I don't want to lose the flexibility of park hopping


That would be the end of my park hopping days. the 2:00 rule already takes away a lot of the value of it IMO


----------



## holyrita

holyrita said:


> I'm not sure if this is new or I just haven't noticed it before, but on the main screen when you launch MDE it shows your next park reservation under 'Upcoming Plans'. Before I believe it said "*Valid On: August 28*" where now it says "*Valid On: Aug 3, 2022 | 6:00 AM - 5:59 AM*". It's the inclusion of the time that makes me nervous park hopping reservations could really be coming.. (or I just never noticed this before and I'm being crazy )


Or maybe the morning/afternoon/evening park reservations I think I read about a little while ago now?


----------



## elgerber

holyrita said:


> I'm not sure if this is new or I just haven't noticed it before, but on the main screen when you launch MDE it shows your next park reservation under 'Upcoming Plans'. Before I believe it said "*Valid On: August 28*" where now it says "*Valid On: Aug 3, 2022 | 6:00 AM - 5:59 AM*". It's the inclusion of the time that makes me nervous park hopping reservations could really be coming.. (or I just never noticed this before and I'm being crazy )


Mine said that for my July trip when I made them a couple months in advance.


----------



## holyrita

elgerber said:


> Mine said that for my July trip when I made them a couple months in advance.


PHEW thank you  I did *want* to be wrong


----------



## Lisa P.

Confused, how can anything be "6:00 AM - 5:59 AM"?


----------



## melking23

Lisa P. said:


> Confused, how can anything be "6:00 AM - 5:59 AM"?


6:00AM today until 5:59AM tomorrow


----------



## supergirl04

melking23 said:


> 6:00AM today until 5:59AM tomorrow


My AP reservations all said something like that this summer. While my family’s tickets did not.


----------



## denisejk

In the parks now.. I’m holding a LL for Goofy’s Sky School and it’s temporarily closed. How will I know if and when the LL converts to a MEP? And how long does that take so I can book another LL?


----------



## scrappinginontario

denisejk said:


> In the parks now.. I’m holding a LL for Goofy’s Sky School and it’s temporarily closed. How will I know if and when the LL converts to a MEP? And how long does that take so I can book another LL?


You may wish to post this question on the Disneyland board as you are currently in a WDW Florida thread.  There are some differences between G+ and LL for the 2 parks and not sure if this one is the same or different.

IF it’s the same you will see your LL reservation change to an almost everything pass after the return time arrives.


----------



## Disturbia

holyrita said:


> Did this happen before or after they started hiding the times on the tip board between 7am-7:30am? If after it seems like hiding the times is.. not solving anything?


March 2022, way before the tip board fiasco


----------



## Disturbia

Just read this and it clarified things for me:

https://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2022/08/11/confusing-genie-change-made-for-disney-world/

Given that around 11 am many rides push past 2 pm for HS and MK, you can still stack after you book rides for the first park 9-11 am (that’s not too bad).  The advantage is reduced but not eliminated.

You don’t have to wait until 2 pm to start stacking.


----------



## cjlong88

Disturbia said:


> Just read this and it clarified things for me:
> 
> https://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2022/08/11/confusing-genie-change-made-for-disney-world/
> 
> Given that around 11 am many rides push past 2 pm for HS and MK, you can still stack after you book rides for the first park 9-11 am (that’s not too bad).  The advantage is reduced but not eliminated.
> 
> You don’t have to wait until 2 pm to start stacking.


This is a perfect explanation. Most people who utilize stacking already target rides that get pushed out late super fast (Remy, Slinky, PP), so I really think this will be a non-issue. The only park that might not have any ride push out past 2pm quickly is AK, but that’s not a park where you need to stack.


----------



## shaqfor3

I feel like stacking for DHS or Epcot didn't change much.  Between 7am and park opening you should be able to get Slinky or ToT after 2pm and be able to get the other one after 2 hours of park opening and MF, RnR or MMRR as your third.

In Epcot at 7am you should be able to get Remy and 2 hours after you should be able to stack Frozen.

MK suffers as Jungle Cruise is probably the only one who gets after 2pm before opening with Peter Pan second.  At 11am you should be able to start getting the mountains.  If your plan is to stack after 5pm MK is going to be hard.

Stacking on AK was not needed maybe start with Navi River at 11am or later.


----------



## binkeecat17

Hi Columbus Day weekend will be my first trip since the pandemic so I have never used lightning Lanes before. My question is realistically if I get the  package ( not individual) how many lightning Lanes will I be able to do in one day. What's the availability on crowded days? Once you use them in the morning is there really anything left by the afternoon to book another one? Thanks


----------



## CynBeth

We went around Thanksgiving had 2 days for each park with park hopper tickets.  We are ride wimps don’t go on roller coasters or anything with a drop and got to do almost everything we wanted during the trip. We had some issues on the app every morning when trying to book our first LL and $ILL but finally got them and booked the next time we could and kept getting things until we left each park we tried to stay until each park closed or close to it.  I know things have now changed where you have to buy Genie + each day instead of purchasing in advance and I do not know if they have now limited how many people can get it and if things run out quicker this way.


----------



## Llama mama

So best strategy for stacking purchased LL and Genie + rides. If starting this at 7am , best rides for late afternoon and evening stacking at each park. Some rides quickly go to late afternoon times , some take forever to get to afternoon times. 
Is there a best time to use your purchase LL first when stacking? Last ?


----------



## Boardwalk III

Posted this on another forum in error earlier, meant to post here!

Looking for help with a 1/2 day DHS touring plan. Up-to-date on most things Genie+, including the news about now having to wait until times are available for afternoon stacking. However haven’t been since last November so if anyone has a good booking plan for the below list of attractions I’m all ears!

- DHS on a Thurs (Oct) between about 12pm -5pm 
- 2 adults
- Top priorities are: Slinky DD, ROTR, M&M, & Toy Story Mania
- Open to using Genie+ and an ILL$ if it makes most sense
- Mainly looking for the best order to book these in, and assume I‘ll need to do so beginning right at 7 AM (unless one or more don’t quickly hit afternoon times)

Many thanks in advance to all you experts!


----------



## cjlong88

Boardwalk III said:


> Posted this on another forum in error earlier, meant to post here!
> 
> Looking for help with a 1/2 day DHS touring plan. Up-to-date on most things Genie+, including the news about now having to wait until times are available for afternoon stacking. However haven’t been since last November so if anyone has a good booking plan for the below list of attractions I’m all ears!
> 
> - DHS on a Thurs (Oct) between about 12pm -5pm
> - 2 adults
> - Top priorities are: Slinky DD, ROTR, M&M, & Toy Story Mania
> - Open to using Genie+ and an ILL$ if it makes most sense
> - Mainly looking for the best order to book these in, and assume I‘ll need to do so beginning right at 7 AM (unless one or more don’t quickly hit afternoon times)
> 
> Many thanks in advance to all you experts!


I would use G+ and ILL$. Assuming a 9am park open and I was only visiting the park from 12-5pm, this is what I would do....

7am - Book Slinky LL. You will need to time it so the return is within your window, which means clicking in and out until you find a time you like, but you won't need to do that too much. Then book Rise ILL$. I would choose a 12-1pm return time with the reasoning being that if I choose a 4-5pm and the ride is down at that time, I have no way to ride it. A 12-1pm return gives you a buffer for your afternoon if the ride is being fussy, since it will convert to an anytime LL. It's best if you have the other person you are with to book one ride while you book the other so you don't miss your desired return windows.
11am - Book MMRR
1pm - Book TSM if you haven't yet used MMRR. If you tapped into MMRR before 1pm, then book TSM right after tapping.


----------



## cakebaker

Disturbia said:


> Just read this and it clarified things for me:
> 
> https://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2022/08/11/confusing-genie-change-made-for-disney-world/
> 
> Given that around 11 am many rides push past 2 pm for HS and MK, you can still stack after you book rides for the first park 9-11 am (that’s not too bad).  The advantage is reduced but not eliminated.
> 
> You don’t have to wait until 2 pm to start stacking.



It could actually work in our favor- We felt the need to start immediately stacking for our afternoon park other than maybe book 1 for our morning park. With the new system, no one can book for 2pm and after until the rides reach that time so we're free to go ahead and book at least 2-3 for the morning. And yes, we do book the ones that fill the fastest, knowing that by late afternoon or early evening, they will be gone.


----------



## Boardwalk III

cjlong88 said:


> I would use G+ and ILL$. Assuming a 9am park open and I was only visiting the park from 12-5pm, this is what I would do....
> 
> 7am - Book Slinky LL. You will need to time it so the return is within your window, which means clicking in and out until you find a time you like, but you won't need to do that too much. Then book Rise ILL$. I would choose a 12-1pm return time with the reasoning being that if I choose a 4-5pm and the ride is down at that time, I have no way to ride it. A 12-1pm return gives you a buffer for your afternoon if the ride is being fussy, since it will convert to an anytime LL. It's best if you have the other person you are with to book one ride while you book the other so you don't miss your desired return windows.
> 11am - Book MMRR
> 1pm - Book TSM if you haven't yet used MMRR. If you tapped into MMRR before 1pm, then book TSM right after tapping.



Terrific, so helpful. Many thanks!


----------



## set88

binkeecat17 said:


> Hi Columbus Day weekend will be my first trip since the pandemic so I have never used lightning Lanes before. My question is realistically if I get the  package ( not individual) how many lightning Lanes will I be able to do in one day. What's the availability on crowded days? Once you use them in the morning is there really anything left by the afternoon to book another one? Thanks


Depends on the park.  MK, you'll be able to get a few for sure.  It also depends on when you start booking them.  You'll want to book your first ride before the park opens to get the most use out of Genie+.  I would suggest reading a few blogs that give you a priority list for what order to book the rides.  If you follow that advice and start before park open, you can likely get 3-4 really useful ones at each park.


----------



## mom2rtk

binkeecat17 said:


> Hi Columbus Day weekend will be my first trip since the pandemic so I have never used lightning Lanes before. My question is realistically if I get the  package ( not individual) how many lightning Lanes will I be able to do in one day. What's the availability on crowded days? Once you use them in the morning is there really anything left by the afternoon to book another one? Thanks


App itself says 2-3.


----------



## bluezy

cakebaker said:


> It could actually work in our favor- We felt the need to start immediately stacking for our afternoon park other than maybe book 1 for our morning park. With the new system, no one can book for 2pm and after until the rides reach that time so we're free to go ahead and book at least 2-3 for the morning. And yes, we do book the ones that fill the fastest, knowing that by late afternoon or early evening, they will be gone.



I think that kind of depends on what time of year you're (that's a general "you" -- not directed at anyone specific) there, and what parks and rides you're planning to hop to in the afternoon/evening.   When we were there in June, the headliners at each park had return times after 2:00 by anywhere between 7:00-7:05 a.m. so we'd still have to reserve those first thing in the morning.   Even today at a little after 8:00 a.m. MK, EP, and DHS had at least 1 ride each that had return times after 2:00 and 1 or 2 others approaching that mark.   Remy was already gone for the day.   If you're going during a slower time of year and don't have specific rides you want to stack (or don't want to do headliners), you can probably still book other rides for the morning and then switch to stacking for the evening.   But if it's a busy time of year, you'll still need to reserve the headliner for the park you're hopping to pretty close to 7:00 am if that's the type of ride you want to stack in the evening.


----------



## PoshMom

I'm sorry to ask this.  I'm sure it's been asked numerous times.  Can't find answer anywhere. Are you able to book LLs at 7am with basic genie?  And how many can you book per day with basic genie (not genie+)? And if you do decide to purchase genie+, do you do that from app each morning while on vacation? Or is that purchased with package when you book the trip?  This is insanity.  I'm not sure who Disney thought this would be easy on...first timers, old timers.  It isn't easy nor user friendly.  I wouldn't even be attempting a trip back or doing all of this research, except my teenaged children want to return.  We haven't been in 7 yrs.  They remember the old system.  I hope it is as enjoyable as it once was.  We plan on visiting in November.


----------



## HeiHei2018

PoshMom said:


> I'm sorry to ask this.  I'm sure it's been asked numerous times.  Can't find answer anywhere. Are you able to book LLs at 7am with basic genie?  And how many can you book per day with basic genie (not genie+)? And if you do decide to purchase genie+, do you do that from app each morning while on vacation? Or is that purchased with package when you book the trip?  This is insanity.  I'm not sure who Disney thought this would be easy on...first timers, old timers.  It isn't easy nor user friendly.  I wouldn't even be attempting a trip back or doing all of this research, except my teenaged children want to return.  We haven't been in 7 yrs.  They remember the old system.  I hope it is as enjoyable as it once was.  We plan on visiting in November.


Free genie does not get you access to any lightning lanes. You purchase Genie+ each day you want to use it. It is no longer available for pre-purchase.


----------



## Disturbia

PoshMom said:


> I'm sorry to ask this.  I'm sure it's been asked numerous times.  Can't find answer anywhere. Are you able to book LLs at 7am with basic genie?  And how many can you book per day with basic genie (not genie+)? And if you do decide to purchase genie+, do you do that from app each morning while on vacation? Or is that purchased with package when you book the trip?  This is insanity.  I'm not sure who Disney thought this would be easy on...first timers, old timers.  It isn't easy nor user friendly.  I wouldn't even be attempting a trip back or doing all of this research, except my teenaged children want to return.  We haven't been in 7 yrs.  They remember the old system.  I hope it is as enjoyable as it once was.  We plan on visiting in November.


Would highly recommend delegating tasks to teenagers.

You can buy 1 LLIA (extra individual rides like SDMT).  If you have a park hopper you can book 1 in each park, so SDMT and FOP (if going to MK and AK).  For LLIA you can choose the time (caution: from booking to final payment screen the selected time changes; if staying onsite front desk can fix issues).  Resort guests can buy these at 7 am; offsite only at park opening.

on top of this you buy Genie+ for the rolling fast pass feature but are able to book the first pass (hopefully for sometime between 9-11 am.  Resort and non resort guests both book at 7 am.  Prioritize booking this first.

So technically you can still walk into the park with 3 booked passes but have to pay approx $45 per person to do so.

on checkin day you can also book passes (1 LLIA (2 if hopping) and watch out for Genie+ passes to go into the evening and then book evening passes.  You can book a Genie+ pass every 120 mins if the pass you booked is over 2 hours away.

So we walked into Epcot at 4:30 pm having booked:

 1. LLIA Remy (now book Guardians) (for 4-5 pm) at 7 am
2. G+ Frozen (waited until times pushed into evening 5-6 pm) at 10 am
3. G+ Test Track 6-7 pm at noon
4.  G+ Mission Space 7-8 pm booked at 2 pm
5. G+ SE 4-5 pm booked at 4 pm (took skyliner and it broke down for 30 mins)

It takes time to book (boarding flight, airplane mode etc) so times will vary.  Some sold out passes will show up again, so refreshing works.

https://smallworldbigfun.com/navigating-disney-genie-lightning-lane-attractions/

Nov is no longer a low crowd time.  There are runDisney events in addition to Epcot food and wine and festival of the holidays and Christmas parties and Jersey week.

Free Genie is where you select rides that get pinned to the top of the tip board.

always check disboards AND the app for any crazy updates Disney throws last min and doesn’t notify (Park hours change 2 weeks prior)


----------



## Marionnette

PoshMom said:


> I'm sorry to ask this.  I'm sure it's been asked numerous times.  Can't find answer anywhere. Are you able to book LLs at 7am with basic genie?  And how many can you book per day with basic genie (not genie+)? And if you do decide to purchase genie+, do you do that from app each morning while on vacation? Or is that purchased with package when you book the trip?  This is insanity.  I'm not sure who Disney thought this would be easy on...first timers, old timers.  It isn't easy nor user friendly.  I wouldn't even be attempting a trip back or doing all of this research, except my teenaged children want to return.  We haven't been in 7 yrs.  They remember the old system.  I hope it is as enjoyable as it once was.  We plan on visiting in November.


The free version of Genie (what you're calling basic genie) will make suggestions on where to go. It does not reserve lightning lane times for you. It is supposed to take your preferences into account but what it actually does is make suggestions which will spread crowds out while ignoring your pinned attractions.

IMO, whoever penned the names for Genie, Genie +, Lightning Lanes and Individual Lightning Lanes needs to go back to school to take a refresher course in marketing. The confusion that these terms create for guests is totally unnecessary and could have been avoided if they had just used different terms for very different things.


----------



## Mome Rath

PoshMom said:


> I'm sorry to ask this.  I'm sure it's been asked numerous times.  Can't find answer anywhere. Are you able to book LLs at 7am with basic genie?  And how many can you book per day with basic genie (not genie+)? And if you do decide to purchase genie+, do you do that from app each morning while on vacation? Or is that purchased with package when you book the trip?  This is insanity.  I'm not sure who Disney thought this would be easy on...first timers, old timers.  It isn't easy nor user friendly.  I wouldn't even be attempting a trip back or doing all of this research, except my teenaged children want to return.  We haven't been in 7 yrs.  They remember the old system.  I hope it is as enjoyable as it once was.  We plan on visiting in November.


Just to clarify, there are 3 different things; Genie, Genie (+), and ILL$.

Genie is just a free planning tool, you cannot book any rides with this.

Genie (+), or G+, is paid for by the day and is the most similar (not identical) to the old fastpass + system.  You can buy this before 7am through the app.  You can book your first ride at 7am.

Individual Lightening Lane Selections (ILL$) are separate, but also purchased via the app.  If staying onsite, you can make  ILL$ selections at 7am.  You pay per person per ride; as an example, you can buy Guardians ILL$ at 7am if you are staying onsite.  If staying offsite, you can buy when the park opens.


----------



## PoshMom

Marionnette said:


> The free version of Genie (what you're calling basic genie) will make suggestions on where to go. It does not reserve lightning lane times for you. It is supposed to take your preferences into account but what it actually does is make suggestions which will spread crowds out while ignoring your pinned attractions.
> 
> IMO, whoever penned the names for Genie, Genie +, Lightning Lanes and Individual Lightning Lanes needs to go back to school to take a refresher course in marketing. The confusion that these terms create for guests is totally unnecessary and could have been avoided if they had just used different terms for very different things.


For sure!!  It's like they intended for us to get frustrated and give up...thank you for advice also


----------



## PoshMom

Mome Rath said:


> Just to clarify, there are 3 different things; Genie, Genie (+), and ILL$.
> 
> Genie is just a free planning tool, you cannot book any rides with this.
> 
> Genie (+), or G+, is paid for by the day and is the most similar (not identical) to the old fastpass + system.  You can buy this before 7am through the app.  You can book your first ride at 7am.
> 
> Individual Lightening Lane Selections (ILL$) are separate, but also purchased via the app.  If staying onsite, you can make  ILL$ selections at 7am.  You pay per person per ride; as an example, you can buy Guardians ILL$ at 7am if you are staying onsite.  If staying offsite, you can buy when the park opens.


How early can you start booking rides with genie+?


----------



## PoshMom

Disturbia said:


> Would highly recommend delegating tasks to teenagers.
> 
> You can buy 1 LLIA (extra individual rides like SDMT).  If you have a park hopper you can book 1 in each park, so SDMT and FOP (if going to MK and AK).  For LLIA you can choose the time (caution: from booking to final payment screen the selected time changes; if staying onsite front desk can fix issues).  Resort guests can buy these at 7 am; offsite only at park opening.
> 
> on top of this you buy Genie+ for the rolling fast pass feature but are able to book the first pass (hopefully for sometime between 9-11 am.  Resort and non resort guests both book at 7 am.  Prioritize booking this first.
> 
> So technically you can still walk into the park with 3 booked passes but have to pay approx $45 per person to do so.
> 
> on checkin day you can also book passes (1 LLIA (2 if hopping) and watch out for Genie+ passes to go into the evening and then book evening passes.  You can book a Genie+ pass every 120 mins if the pass you booked is over 2 hours away.
> 
> So we walked into Epcot at 4:30 pm having booked:
> 
> 1. LLIA Remy (now book Guardians) (for 4-5 pm) at 7 am
> 2. G+ Frozen (waited until times pushed into evening 5-6 pm) at 10 am
> 3. G+ Test Track 6-7 pm at noon
> 4.  G+ Mission Space 7-8 pm booked at 2 pm
> 5. G+ SE 4-5 pm booked at 4 pm (took skyliner and it broke down for 30 mins)
> 
> It takes time to book (boarding flight, airplane mode etc) so times will vary.  Some sold out passes will show up again, so refreshing works.
> 
> https://smallworldbigfun.com/navigating-disney-genie-lightning-lane-attractions/
> View attachment 695156
> Nov is no longer a low crowd time.  There are runDisney events in addition to Epcot food and wine and festival of the holidays and Christmas parties and Jersey week.
> 
> Free Genie is where you select rides that get pinned to the top of the tip board.
> 
> always check disboards AND the app for any crazy updates Disney throws last min and doesn’t notify (Park hours change 2 weeks prior)


So, has the list changed at all as far as what are ILL and Genie+ rides?  That list helps a lot.  Thank you


----------



## Mome Rath

PoshMom said:


> How early can you start booking rides with genie+?


7am. if you want G+ for the day, you can buy before that (so like at 6:45am is what I normally do), but you can't book your first ride til 7am.


----------



## Marionnette

PoshMom said:


> How early can you start booking rides with genie+?


You can book your first G+ attraction at 7 AM on the day you are visiting a park. You can book your next attraction 2 hours after the park officially opens or right after you tap in at your first attraction, whichever comes first.


----------



## Disturbia

PoshMom said:


> So, has the list changed at all as far as what are ILL and Genie+ rides?  That list helps a lot.  Thank you


This is the most up to date list and yes it has changed and is constantly evolving from what was offered before.

There are rumors of park hopping reservations so stay informed (I subscribe to DFB blog, WDW news today and watch recent YouTube videos - allears is detailed; before any trip).  Touring plans (free) helps with dining (Stake out app worked for DL) and subscription helps with park hour changes and ADR releases for those hours.

I would check a day before you go if any changes are made.


----------



## Disturbia

This video is helpful to see the actual booking process;

Note:  after this video was posted the rules for park hopping and genie+ changed so you now have to wait until times go up to 2 pm (you can only park hop after 2 pm) and can’t start stacking or booking  for your second park until then.

So now you have to book and use Genie+ for first park 9 am-1:30 pm;

LLIA has not changed and can be booked for both/either park as you select times






This is good as well (edits:  only 1 LLIA is allowed per park currently and you can’t stack in park 2 until wait times reach 2 pm+, so Genie+ no longer pushes times out to post 2 pm for park hoppers)


----------



## scrappinginontario

PoshMom said:


> I'm sorry to ask this.  I'm sure it's been asked numerous times.  Can't find answer anywhere. Are you able to book LLs at 7am with basic genie?  And how many can you book per day with basic genie (not genie+)? And if you do decide to purchase genie+, do you do that from app each morning while on vacation? Or is that purchased with package when you book the trip?  This is insanity.  I'm not sure who Disney thought this would be easy on...first timers, old timers.  It isn't easy nor user friendly.  I wouldn't even be attempting a trip back or doing all of this research, except my teenaged children want to return.  We haven't been in 7 yrs.  They remember the old system.  I hope it is as enjoyable as it once was.  We plan on visiting in November.


There’s a thread that I think will help you in addition to the info shared above, ‘_*Everything Genie…*_’  The first few posts break down what you need to know. Many contributed to this thread to help bring it all together.


----------



## triciambe

In case this is helpful for anyone wanting to try *stacking LLs*, here is what we were able to do yesterday using G+

4:00pm - arrived at Hollywood Studios
4:25pm - Savi's (reserved 60 days out)
5:10pm - Droids (reserved 60 days out)
5:50pm - SDD(reserved at 7am)
6:15pm - ToT (reserved at 10:30am)
6:35pm - MMRR (reserved at 12:30pm)
6:50-7:40pm - Dinner at Docking Bay 7 (order while family rode ToT, mobile pick up time 6:30-7pm)
7:40pm - ROTR (ILL bought at 8:30am - _we we are offsite guests_)
8:15pm - MFSM (reserved at 2:30pm)
8:30pm - TSM (reserved at 4:30pm)
It was a great day! We basically did a big circle around the park so it didn't feel like a lot of zigzagging (logged 7.6 miles walking). The only thing we couldn't do was RNRC, but we are going back this weekend when we are there for the entire day and will ride it then.


----------



## MadderAdder

triciambe said:


> In case this is helpful for anyone wanting to try *stacking LLs*, here is what we were able to do yesterday using G+
> 
> 4:00pm - arrived at Hollywood Studios
> 4:25pm - Savi's (reserved 60 days out)
> 5:10pm - Droids (reserved 60 days out)
> 5:50pm - SDD(reserved at 7am)
> 6:15pm - ToT (reserved at 10:30am)
> 6:35pm - MMRR (reserved at 12:30pm)
> 6:50-7:40pm - Dinner at Docking Bay 7 (order while family rode ToT, mobile pick up time 6:30-7pm)
> 7:40pm - ROTR (ILL bought at 8:30am - _we we are offsite guests_)
> 8:15pm - MFSM (reserved at 2:30pm)
> 8:30pm - TSM (reserved at 4:30pm)
> It was a great day! We basically did a big circle around the park so it didn't feel like a lot of zigzagging (logged 7.6 miles walking). The only thing we couldn't do was RNRC, but we are going back this weekend when we are there for the entire day and will ride it then.


This gives me so much hope! Awesome job, y’all!


----------



## js

Disturbia said:


> Would highly recommend delegating tasks to teenagers.
> 
> You can buy 1 LLIA (extra individual rides like SDMT).  If you have a park hopper you can book 1 in each park, so SDMT and FOP (if going to MK and AK).  For LLIA you can choose the time (caution: from booking to final payment screen the selected time changes; if staying onsite front desk can fix issues).  Resort guests can buy these at 7 am; offsite only at park opening.
> 
> on top of this you buy Genie+ for the rolling fast pass feature but are able to book the first pass (hopefully for sometime between 9-11 am.  Resort and non resort guests both book at 7 am.  Prioritize booking this first.
> 
> So technically you can still walk into the park with 3 booked passes but have to pay approx $45 per person to do so.
> 
> on checkin day you can also book passes (1 LLIA (2 if hopping) and watch out for Genie+ passes to go into the evening and then book evening passes.  You can book a Genie+ pass every 120 mins if the pass you booked is over 2 hours away.
> 
> So we walked into Epcot at 4:30 pm having booked:
> 
> 1. LLIA Remy (now book Guardians) (for 4-5 pm) at 7 am
> 2. G+ Frozen (waited until times pushed into evening 5-6 pm) at 10 am
> 3. G+ Test Track 6-7 pm at noon
> 4.  G+ Mission Space 7-8 pm booked at 2 pm
> 5. G+ SE 4-5 pm booked at 4 pm (took skyliner and it broke down for 30 mins)
> 
> It takes time to book (boarding flight, airplane mode etc) so times will vary.  Some sold out passes will show up again, so refreshing works.
> 
> https://smallworldbigfun.com/navigating-disney-genie-lightning-lane-attractions/
> View attachment 695156
> Nov is no longer a low crowd time.  There are runDisney events in addition to Epcot food and wine and festival of the holidays and Christmas parties and Jersey week.
> 
> Free Genie is where you select rides that get pinned to the top of the tip board.
> 
> always check disboards AND the app for any crazy updates Disney throws last min and doesn’t notify (Park hours change 2 weeks prior)



Haven't been since April with my dh and usually travel with my mom. My upcoming trip in October is with my mom, dd and dgs-14 months so my attraction priorities are different and
we are going at baby's pace. I just wanted to thank you VERY much for this chart. I just printed it.

I am guessing there have been changes since April so I will have to read. We are onsite so hoping not too much has changed.

Thank you again!


----------



## leeniewdw

triciambe said:


> In case this is helpful for anyone wanting to try *stacking LLs*, here is what we were able to do yesterday using G+
> 
> 4:00pm - arrived at Hollywood Studios
> 4:25pm - Savi's (reserved 60 days out)
> 5:10pm - Droids (reserved 60 days out)
> 5:50pm - SDD(reserved at 7am)
> 6:15pm - ToT (reserved at 10:30am)
> 6:35pm - MMRR (reserved at 12:30pm)
> 6:50-7:40pm - Dinner at Docking Bay 7 (order while family rode ToT, mobile pick up time 6:30-7pm)
> 7:40pm - ROTR (ILL bought at 8:30am - _we we are offsite guests_)
> 8:15pm - MFSM (reserved at 2:30pm)
> 8:30pm - TSM (reserved at 4:30pm)
> It was a great day! We basically did a big circle around the park so it didn't feel like a lot of zigzagging (logged 7.6 miles walking). The only thing we couldn't do was RNRC, but we are going back this weekend when we are there for the entire day and will ride it then.



What a great day!  We've done similar with afternoon/evenings at HS.

In November, we'll do HS in the afternoon for a few hours before heading to MVMCP and was hoping to grab ROTR at 7am and MFSR with an afternoon return time.  I'm wondering if the return times for MFSR at 7am won't be into the post 1pm slots?  I suppose I can just wait because as long as I select before 9am I should still be able to grab my next LL at 11am?   You getting MFSR at 2:30pm kind of surprised me!


----------



## bluezy

Marionnette said:


> The free version of Genie (what you're calling basic genie) will make suggestions on where to go. It does not reserve lightning lane times for you. It is supposed to take your preferences into account but what it actually does is make suggestions which will spread crowds out while ignoring your pinned attractions.
> 
> *IMO, whoever penned the names for Genie, Genie +, Lightning Lanes and Individual Lightning Lanes needs to go back to school to take a refresher course in marketing. The confusion that these terms create for guests is totally unnecessary and could have been avoided if they had just used different terms for very different things.*



I agree 100% with the bolded part. The names they chose make the system a million times more confusing for people than it needs to be. Each of those 4 elements should have completely different names.   Genie can be the name of the planning app (that makes sense), but nothing else should have the word Genie in it.   Lightning Lanes would be ok as the paid ride reservation service (currently Genie+, formerly FP+), but the ILLs should have a completely different name -- or at least not use the word "Individual" along with Lightning Lane.   It should be something like "Super Duper Lightning Lane" or something completely different like "Squeezing The Last Penny Out of You Ride" or "No, this ride is not included in your Lightning Lane package purchase.  Yes, you need to pay extra for this ride."


----------



## Disturbia

bluezy said:


> I agree 100% with the bolded part. The names they chose make the system a million times more confusing for people than it needs to be. Each of those 4 elements should have completely different names.   Genie can be the name of the planning app (that makes sense), but nothing else should have the word Genie in it.   Lightning Lanes would be ok as the paid ride reservation service (currently Genie+, formerly FP+), but the ILLs should have a completely different name -- or at least not use the word "Individual" along with Lightning Lane.   It should be something like "Super Duper Lightning Lane" or something completely different like "Squeezing The Last Penny Out of You Ride" or "No, this ride is not included in your Lightning Lane package purchase.  Yes, you need to pay extra for this ride."


Why not Aladdin+


----------



## bluezy

Disturbia said:


> Why not Aladdin+


That would work, too.


----------



## jezza12

Hi Guys

I am heading to DisneyWorld at Spring break next year. I will need to do DHS and Epcot in one day,
Epcot looks easier to rope drop and I could Stack DHS for the afternoon. Just checking if anyone has experience on how many big rides I will be able to book with Genie+ before sell out.  I will get an ILL for RoTR, main attractions I want to ride at MFSR, ToT, TSM, RR,.. I could take or leave SDD don't  see what the big deal is.
Also interested in booking the droids building, not sure if  need DHS reservation to book that in advance.

Basically will I get a 7, 10:30 and 12:30 Genie + booking for the rides above. or just 7 and 10:30

DHS is my priority so if stacking wont work on a crowd day predicted to be an 8, I would prefer to rope drop DHS, and just use Genie+ for epcot in the PM.

Any insight would be appreciated.

Thanks


----------



## DVC4US

bluezy said:


> I agree 100% with the bolded part. The names they chose make the system a million times more confusing for people than it needs to be. Each of those 4 elements should have completely different names.   Genie can be the name of the planning app (that makes sense), but nothing else should have the word Genie in it.   Lightning Lanes would be ok as the paid ride reservation service (currently Genie+, formerly FP+), but the ILLs should have a completely different name -- or at least not use the word "Individual" along with Lightning Lane.   It should be something like "Super Duper Lightning Lane" or something completely different like "Squeezing The Last Penny Out of You Ride" or "No, this ride is not included in your Lightning Lane package purchase.  Yes, you need to pay extra for this ride."



Totally agree with all of this!!  I have gotten to the point with my family that I just call Genie+ - "Fastpass", and ILL we just call Lightning Lane.  Definitely makes it easier for us!

Somebody had to be drinking when they came up with these names!


----------



## triciambe

leeniewdw said:


> What a great day!  We've done similar with afternoon/evenings at HS.
> 
> In November, we'll do HS in the afternoon for a few hours before heading to MVMCP and was hoping to grab ROTR at 7am and MFSR with an afternoon return time.  I'm wondering if the return times for MFSR at 7am won't be into the post 1pm slots?  I suppose I can just wait because as long as I select before 9am I should still be able to grab my next LL at 11am?   You getting MFSR at 2:30pm kind of surprised me!


So I think my luck with rides, esp ROTR and MFSR is totally because the crowds honestly seem relatively manageable right now. That said, DHS was sold out for the day we visited, but I have definitely noticed much more availability in the last few weeks, with a noticeable drop this week (third week of Aug when FL kids go to school). Maybe Disney reworked their algorithm? But I’m not complaining! Lol


----------



## wiggy500

jezza12 said:


> Hi Guys
> 
> I am heading to DisneyWorld at Spring break next year. I will need to do DHS and Epcot in one day,
> Epcot looks easier to rope drop and I could Stack DHS for the afternoon. Just checking if anyone has experience on how many big rides I will be able to book with Genie+ before sell out.  I will get an ILL for RoTR, main attractions I want to ride at MFSR, ToT, TSM, RR,.. I could take or leave SDD don't  see what the big deal is.
> Also interested in booking the droids building, not sure if  need DHS reservation to book that in advance.
> 
> Basically will I get a 7, 10:30 and 12:30 Genie + booking for the rides above. or just 7 and 10:30
> 
> DHS is my priority so if stacking wont work on a crowd day predicted to be an 8, I would prefer to rope drop DHS, and just use Genie+ for epcot in the PM.
> 
> Any insight would be appreciated.
> 
> Thanks



I didn't go during Spring Break this year, but I was following lighting lane return times during Spring Break closely because I was expecting to go.  I think you have a chance to get all four of those, but I also think it's possible you end up with three of the four.  If you can live without Slinky I would skip it to try to make sure you can do the others.


----------



## kcpinwdw

Does anyone have any booking order suggestions for me, please?  Two days back to back we plan on starting at HS and hopping to Epcot.  Priority is getting on guardians.  Will pay for genie + and ILL.  Just not sure which I should be doing first, or what rides should have my 7am attention at HS.  Thank you!


----------



## Marionnette

kcpinwdw said:


> Does anyone have any booking order suggestions for me, please?  Two days back to back we plan on starting at HS and hopping to Epcot.  Priority is getting on guardians.  Will pay for genie + and ILL.  Just not sure which I should be doing first, or what rides should have my 7am attention at HS.  Thank you!


A lot will depend on what your preferred rides are at HS, if you are an on-site guest and if you intend to do early entry rope drop. If I wanted SDD, that would be my priority right at 7 AM. It goes out into late afternoon/early evening very quickly. If ROTR is a must-do, purchase ILL$ rather than trying for standby. Two hours after official park opening, grab your second G+. MMRR or MFSR are good choices as is ToT. Again, it will depend on what's available and what meets your plans for hopping to Epcot. You can refresh over and over if favorable times don't pop up at first. I would not fixate on getting one particular attraction but have 2 or 3 options in mind. What you don't get on your first HS day, you can try for on your second day.

For GotG, be aware that you cannot try for a boarding group until after 2 PM if Epcot is not your first park. The boarding groups that open at 1 PM have still been available after 2 PM lately but every day can be different and you didn't say when you will be going. If you want to guarantee that you will ride GotG then you will need to purchase an ILL$.


----------



## kcpinwdw

Marionnette said:


> A lot will depend on what your preferred rides are at HS, if you are an on-site guest and if you intend to do early entry rope drop. If I wanted SDD, that would be my priority right at 7 AM. It goes out into late afternoon/early evening very quickly. If ROTR is a must-do, purchase ILL$ rather than trying for standby. Two hours after official park opening, grab your second G+. MMRR or MFSR are good choices as is ToT. Again, it will depend on what's available and what meets your plans for hopping to Epcot. You can refresh over and over if favorable times don't pop up at first. I would not fixate on getting one particular attraction but have 2 or 3 options in mind. What you don't get on your first HS day, you can try for on your second day.
> 
> For GotG, be aware that you cannot try for a boarding group until after 2 PM if Epcot is not your first park. The boarding groups that open at 1 PM have still been available after 2 PM lately but every day can be different and you didn't say when you will be going. If you want to guarantee that you will ride GotG then you will need to purchase an ILL$.


Yes on-site.  I’m familiar with prioritizing Hs rides, but wondering about the guardians ILL timing.  So you are saying there is no rush at 7am?  Book my first G+ first and then wait for Guardians time to reach after 2pm?  I was worried guardians was selling out ILL at 7.


----------



## Marionnette

kcpinwdw said:


> Yes on-site.  I’m familiar with prioritizing Hs rides, but wondering about the guardians ILL timing.  So you are saying there is no rush at 7am?  Book my first G+ first and then wait for Guardians time to reach after 2pm?  I was worried guardians was selling out ILL at 7.


GotG ILL$ tend to sell out 3-4 minutes after 7 AM, which should give you time to book a G+ first. If it is sold out, keep trying until after 7:12 AM. That's when any ILL$ purchases that guests did not complete will be returned to inventory.


----------



## set88

jezza12 said:


> Hi Guys
> 
> I am heading to DisneyWorld at Spring break next year. I will need to do DHS and Epcot in one day,
> Epcot looks easier to rope drop and I could Stack DHS for the afternoon. Just checking if anyone has experience on how many big rides I will be able to book with Genie+ before sell out.  I will get an ILL for RoTR, main attractions I want to ride at MFSR, ToT, TSM, RR,.. I could take or leave SDD don't  see what the big deal is.
> Also interested in booking the droids building, not sure if  need DHS reservation to book that in advance.
> 
> Basically will I get a 7, 10:30 and 12:30 Genie + booking for the rides above. or just 7 and 10:30
> 
> DHS is my priority so if stacking wont work on a crowd day predicted to be an 8, I would prefer to rope drop DHS, and just use Genie+ for epcot in the PM.
> 
> Any insight would be appreciated.
> 
> Thanks



I think a lot may change with Genie+ between now and next spring.  I'm wondering how much of the prep work I've done will be out of date by my November trip.

Popularity of rides fluctuate - like ToT being more popular when it was running at half capacity.  MFSR was hugely popular with Genie+ for a while but towards the end of July, was an easier reservation to get.  I would check the data and ask this question again looking at heavier crowd days in the spring before your trip. 

Answering based on Summer 2022 trends, your priorities would be ToT, SR, then one of the other two (should both have availability.)   EPCOT, even on the low crowd days, tends to run out of headliners by noon.  Since you can't get all 3, I don't think Genie+ is worthwhile there.


----------



## BunsenH

Do you need to be at DW to start booking with Genie +? Can I start at 7:00 am if I am in an airport or on a plane?


----------



## Marionnette

BunsenH said:


> Do you need to be at DW to start booking with Genie +? Can I start at 7:00 am if I am in an airport or on a plane?


You can book G+ from anywhere at 7AM. If you are booking ILL$, you must be an on-site guest to book at 7 AM but do not need to be physically on property.


----------



## Miffy

If I want to purchase an ILL$ at my hopping-to park, do I have to wait until 2 p.m. to do that? Or can I book it at 7 a.m.?

Obvy, I'm not up on the new rules. Are they explained in detail somewhere here?


----------



## Tom_E_D

Miffy said:


> If I want to purchase an ILL$ at my hopping-to park, do I have to wait until 2 p.m. to do that? Or can I book it at 7 a.m.?
> 
> Obvy, I'm not up on the new rules. Are they explained in detail somewhere here?


7:00 a,m, if staying "onsite." Park open if staying "offsite."


----------



## Tom_E_D

kcpinwdw said:


> Yes on-site.  I’m familiar with prioritizing Hs rides, but wondering about the guardians ILL timing.  So you are saying there is no rush at 7am?  Book my first G+ first and then wait for Guardians time to reach after 2pm?  I was worried guardians was selling out ILL at 7.


Guardians is an ILL, not a G+ LL ride. You do not have to wait to book it. If staying "onsite," you can book it at 7:00. If "offsite," you can book it at park open. You only have to wait for return times have reached 2:00 or later to book G+ LLs in your hop-to park.


----------



## Disturbia

kcpinwdw said:


> Yes on-site.  I’m familiar with prioritizing Hs rides, but wondering about the guardians ILL timing.  So you are saying there is no rush at 7am?  Book my first G+ first and then wait for Guardians time to reach after 2pm?  I was worried guardians was selling out ILL at 7.


HS times go into the evening pretty quick after 11 am and it’s really difficult to get AM passes so stacking for the PM is probably better.  Everyone is rope dropping so you can only ride 1 ride with low waits, maybe 2 max (if you were at the gates an hour early.)

If you are flexible (no ADRs; highly recommend no ADRs on HS day-take 2 hours) and can hop easily between parks (no mobility issues) then you can try rope dropping HS, ride 2 standby, maybe star tours (usually low waits) and have a ROTR LLIA (it breaks down routinely) and at least 1 Genie+ (SDD and standby MFSR) so that would be a good morning strategy.  Then hop to Epcot and ride single rider TT and LLI$ Guardians and maybe hop back to HS after dinner to ride TOT/RnRC (Genie+/Standby single rider); close with Oga’s cantina


Miffy said:


> If I want to purchase an ILL$ at my hopping-to park, do I have to wait until 2 p.m. to do that? Or can I book it at 7 a.m.?
> 
> Obvy, I'm not up on the new rules. Are they explained in detail somewhere here?


Also, you can book 2 LLIA (max 2 per day rule still applies) whereas someone not park hopping can only book 1 per day currently.


----------



## subtchr

Marionnette said:


> GotG ILL$ tend to sell out 3-4 minutes after 7 AM, which should give you time to book a G+ first. If it is sold out, keep trying until after 7:12 AM. That's when any ILL$ purchases that guests did not complete will be returned to inventory.


This is not correct. 

Guardians ILL$ do NOT sell out until late morning at the very earliest. Here's a chart from Thrill-Data showing that for the past two months, the earliest it sold out was about 10 am, and typically it's available until almost noon or even after.

Rise is a different story.


----------



## vinotinto

We’re going to MK on our arrival night. Flight arrives at 5pm, and we’re planning to get to MK around 8:30ish. It will be busy because it’s a Wednesday during party season (so only 3 nights per week that you can see fireworks and stay until late) and there are deluxe extended hours that evening (for which we are staying). Because it will be busy, I’m thinking about purchasing G+ to do Jungle Cruise and Splash between 9:30 and 11pm because they won’t be open during deluxe extended hours.  I looked at thrill data, and it seems I should be able to book Jungle Cruise in the early afternoon for 9:30-10:30pm, but will need to wait quite a bit to book Splash for that period. Does that sound right? Just trying to juggle picking up kids from school, getting to airport and booking these.


----------



## set88

DizBelle said:


> I can't find anywhere when you can make your second ILL$ purchase.  Can you make your 2 for the day both at 7 am?


Yes, but they have to be in different parks, since you can't repeat rides and there is only one ILL in each park.


----------



## Boardwalk III

subtchr said:


> This is not correct.
> 
> Guardians ILL$ do NOT sell out until late morning at the very earliest. Here's a chart from Thrill-Data showing that for the past two months, the earliest it sold out was about 10 am, and typically it's available until almost noon or even after.
> 
> Rise is a different story.
> 
> View attachment 695524


Thanks for clarifying. I thought I had read this on another post, (it selling out around noon time) so I was confused by the “right after 7 AM“ comment.

Speaking of ROTR however, how quickly does that sell out? I’d be looking to purchase an ILL$ for early afternoon at DHS.

Thanks


----------



## set88

Boardwalk III said:


> Thanks for clarifying. I thought I had read this on another post, (it selling out around noon time) so I was confused by the “right after 7 AM“ comment.
> 
> Speaking of ROTR however, how quickly does that sell out? I’d be looking to purchase an ILL$ for early afternoon at DHS.
> 
> Thanks



It's been lasting until at least park open for the last month.  If you want early afternoon, you're going to want to buy earlier, though.  I'd try to buy before 7:15am.


----------



## subtchr

Boardwalk III said:


> Thanks for clarifying. I thought I had read this on another post, (it selling out around noon time) so I was confused by the “right after 7 AM“ comment.
> 
> Speaking of ROTR however, how quickly does that sell out? I’d be looking to purchase an ILL$ for early afternoon at DHS.
> 
> Thanks


Here's the same chart for RotR. It is often sold out before park opening time. Are you staying at a Disney resort? If so, I'd purchase it shortly after 7, to be safe.


----------



## subtchr

vinotinto said:


> We’re going to MK on our arrival night. Flight arrives at 5pm, and we’re planning to get to MK around 8:30ish. It will be busy because it’s a Wednesday during party season (so only 3 nights per week that you can see fireworks and stay until late) and there are deluxe extended hours that evening (for which we are staying). Because it will be busy, I’m thinking about purchasing G+ to do Jungle Cruise and Splash between 9:30 and 11pm because they won’t be open during deluxe extended hours.  I looked at thrill data, and it seems I should be able to book Jungle Cruise in the early afternoon for 9:30-10:30pm, but will need to wait quite a bit to book Splash for that period. Does that sound right? Just trying to juggle picking up kids from school, getting to airport and booking these.


Yes, that sounds about right, but of course you'll have to keep watching it that day, since what is typical/average isn't always consistent. Good luck!


----------



## Pickles516

So here’s a super noob question I either missed the answer to or that I haven’t seen discussed: what are the wait times at popular rides like with a lightning lane?

I’ve read a lot of analysis about overall time savings, whether you get more time savings in the morning, peak, or evening, and which parks are best suited for genie +.

For the life of me, I can’t seem to find anything that says “The wait for [popular ride] is usually X, but with lightning lane it is Y.”


----------



## scrappinginontario

Pickles516 said:


> So here’s a super noob question I either missed the answer to or that I haven’t seen discussed: what are the wait times at popular rides like with a lightning lane?
> 
> I’ve read a lot of analysis about overall time savings, whether you get more time savings in the morning, peak, or evening, and which parks are best suited for genie +.
> 
> For the life of me, I can’t seem to find anything that says “The wait for [popular ride] is usually X, but with lightning lane it is Y.”


I’m not sure it’s possible to say you save ‘x’ amount of time as the wait times differ all day.  You will always save time with a LL reservation but how much may be 5 mins or 90, even for the same ride.


----------



## Mome Rath

Pickles516 said:


> So here’s a super noob question I either missed the answer to or that I haven’t seen discussed: what are the wait times at popular rides like with a lightning lane?
> 
> I’ve read a lot of analysis about overall time savings, whether you get more time savings in the morning, peak, or evening, and which parks are best suited for genie +.
> 
> For the life of me, I can’t seem to find anything that says “The wait for [popular ride] is usually X, but with lightning lane it is Y.”


Just want an example?  Like with Rise, say it is a 2 hour wait which is an average, you get into the preshow with ILL$ in about 5 to 10 min I'd guess (from experience).


----------



## Pickles516

Mome Rath said:


> Just want an example?  Like with Rise, say it is a 2 hour wait which is an average, you get into the preshow with ILL$ in about 5 to 10 min I'd guess (from experience).


Yeah this is the type of thing I mean, thank you. Do you happen to have any experience with regular LL’s? Like if they get the wait down from 2 hrs to 1-1.5 hrs generally, that doesn’t help me much with small kids, but if it gets the wait down from 1-1.5 hours to 20-30 mins with LL, that’s a godsend. I know it’s speaking I’m generalities, but I’m trying to prepare my brain lol


----------



## dmunsil

Pickles516 said:


> Yeah this is the type of thing I mean, thank you. Do you happen to have any experience with regular LL’s? Like if they get the wait down from 2 hrs to 1-1.5 hrs generally, that doesn’t help me much with small kids, but if it gets the wait down from 1-1.5 hours to 20-30 mins with LL, that’s a godsend. I know it’s speaking I’m generalities, but I’m trying to prepare my brain lol


Disney's target for wait in a Lightning Lane is 10 minutes max, but they don't always hit that. Most of the time, it's somewhere between 0 and 10 minutes before you get to the preshow or loading zone, but if a ton of people show up at once, the Lightning Lane can get very full and there's only so fast they can load vehicles. For example, we once got into the lightning lane at Kilimanjaro Safaris when it was unbelievably full. Apparently Festival of the Lion King had just let out, and everyone swarmed to Kilimanjaro Safaris. We waited maybe 20-25 minutes, but I think that's the longest we've ever been in the Lightning Lane for a ride that was running normally.

Obviously if a ride goes down, everyone is going to wait an indeterminate amount of time, but after the ride comes back up, they will take people mostly from the Lightning Lane to try to clear it, so you'll still save a ton of time over the regular line even then. I think when things are really backed up in the lightning lane, they can go as high as 100:1 ratio, where they take 100 people from the lightning lane for every 1 person from the regular line.


----------



## BillFromCT

dmunsil said:


> Disney's target for wait in a Lightning Lane is 10 minutes max, but they don't always hit that. Most of the time, it's somewhere between 0 and 10 minutes before you get to the preshow or loading zone, but if a ton of people show up at once, the Lightning Lane can get very full and there's only so fast they can load vehicles. For example, we once got into the lightning lane at Kilimanjaro Safaris when it was unbelievably full. Apparently Festival of the Lion King had just let out, and everyone swarmed to Kilimanjaro Safaris. We waited maybe 20-25 minutes, but I think that's the longest we've ever been in the Lightning Lane for a ride that was running normally.
> 
> Obviously if a ride goes down, everyone is going to wait an indeterminate amount of time, but after the ride comes back up, they will take people mostly from the Lightning Lane to try to clear it, so you'll still save a ton of time over the regular line even then. I think when things are really backed up in the lightning lane, they can go as high as 100:1 ratio, where they take 100 people from the lightning lane for every 1 person from the regular line.


I will say we bought ILL$ for ROTR last Saturday.  It was the day we were flying in, so I booked us for 6pm-7pm.  The lightening lane line was out to the touch point.  I think the stand by was listed as 210 minutes.  It took us 20+ minutes to get to the front of the lightening lane.  Later that night there was an MDE message apologizing for the downtime earlier in the day, and they were refunding the cost.  They refunded my credit card for the cost of the ILL$ the next day.


----------



## Boardwalk III

subtchr said:


> Here's the same chart for RotR. It is often sold out before park opening time. Are you staying at a Disney resort? If so, I'd purchase it shortly after 7, to be safe. View attachment 695668


Thank you for the heads up. Yes, staying at VGF.


----------



## Pickles516

dmunsil said:


> Disney's target for wait in a Lightning Lane is 10 minutes max, but they don't always hit that. Most of the time, it's somewhere between 0 and 10 minutes before you get to the preshow or loading zone, but if a ton of people show up at once, the Lightning Lane can get very full and there's only so fast they can load vehicles. For example, we once got into the lightning lane at Kilimanjaro Safaris when it was unbelievably full. Apparently Festival of the Lion King had just let out, and everyone swarmed to Kilimanjaro Safaris. We waited maybe 20-25 minutes, but I think that's the longest we've ever been in the Lightning Lane for a ride that was running normally.
> 
> Obviously if a ride goes down, everyone is going to wait an indeterminate amount of time, but after the ride comes back up, they will take people mostly from the Lightning Lane to try to clear it, so you'll still save a ton of time over the regular line even then. I think when things are really backed up in the lightning lane, they can go as high as 100:1 ratio, where they take 100 people from the lightning lane for every 1 person from the regular line.


This is super helpful information, thank you so much.


----------



## NJlauren

Pickles516 said:


> So here’s a super noob question I either missed the answer to or that I haven’t seen discussed: what are the wait times at popular rides like with a lightning lane?
> 
> I’ve read a lot of analysis about overall time savings, whether you get more time savings in the morning, peak, or evening, and which parks are best suited for genie +.
> 
> For the life of me, I can’t seem to find anything that says “The wait for [popular ride] is usually X, but with lightning lane it is Y.”


In my experience it almost always is under 20 minutes to a preshow.  If you count the pre show as waiting, can be 30ish till ride vehicle on longer preshow rides, guardians, flight of passage, rise.

However if you're comparing to universal who says express pass is generally half the wait time of stand by or a six flags who says 90% or 50% reduction in wait times you won’t get that at Disney.


----------



## Mome Rath

Pickles516 said:


> Yeah this is the type of thing I mean, thank you. Do you happen to have any experience with regular LL’s? Like if they get the wait down from 2 hrs to 1-1.5 hrs generally, that doesn’t help me much with small kids, but if it gets the wait down from 1-1.5 hours to 20-30 mins with LL, that’s a godsend. I know it’s speaking I’m generalities, but I’m trying to prepare my brain lol


Others have already answered, and I agree with what they have said.  I would say for "slower" rides 5 min is my average, for more popular rides it can take a bit longer, usually because the second tapstile leads to a loading area, not right onto the ride, so it then just depends on how long the regular line moves.  So, I'd agree 10 min on average for more popular rides unless there has been an issue.


----------



## saraheliz

dmunsil said:


> Disney's target for wait in a Lightning Lane is 10 minutes max, but they don't always hit that. Most of the time, it's somewhere between 0 and 10 minutes before you get to the preshow or loading zone, but if a ton of people show up at once, the Lightning Lane can get very full and there's only so fast they can load vehicles. For example, we once got into the lightning lane at Kilimanjaro Safaris when it was unbelievably full. Apparently Festival of the Lion King had just let out, and everyone swarmed to Kilimanjaro Safaris. We waited maybe 20-25 minutes, but I think that's the longest we've ever been in the Lightning Lane for a ride that was running normally.
> 
> Obviously if a ride goes down, everyone is going to wait an indeterminate amount of time, but after the ride comes back up, they will take people mostly from the Lightning Lane to try to clear it, so you'll still save a ton of time over the regular line even then. I think when things are really backed up in the lightning lane, they can go as high as 100:1 ratio, where they take 100 people from the lightning lane for every 1 person from the regular line.



This definitely matches our experience. The only two times (over 8 days) we felt we spent any significant amount of time (more then 5-7ish minutes) in the LL line was Peter Pan (after it had re-opened from being down for awhile so I think everyone flooded in) and Kali River Rapids (no idea what the hold up was). 
We did spend a while in GotG too but the ride shut down while we were in the ILL (it had been shut down for over an hour, re-opened briefly which is when we got into line, and then shut down again for about 30 minutes). It was fine for us- air conditioned and everyone just plopped down on the floor, but I think we got in there before most people came back as we had just been shopping right there and ran over once it was opened. There were definitely people who waited out both closures and then people behind us that likely got into a LL backup.


----------



## slickpoetry

Hey all,

As you can see from my sig below, I haven't been to the park since 2019 (pre Genie+) and I am starting to plan a trip for next August.

I am certain all of you wonderful people have discussed all there is to know about Genie+, and I will probably end up reading all 239 pages of this thread at some point, but before I do...can anyone point me in the direction of a really basic introductory-type website or resource I can read, just to get the "lay of the land" so to speak, about the new system? Something I could read in less than an hour...lol.

I literally know nothing about it at this point and it is daunting to think about what I will have to learn.

Thanks!!


----------



## set88

slickpoetry said:


> Hey all,
> 
> As you can see from my sig below, I haven't been to the park since 2019 (pre Genie+) and I am starting to plan a trip for next August.
> 
> I am certain all of you wonderful people have discussed all there is to know about Genie+, and I will probably end up reading all 239 pages of this thread at some point, but before I do...can anyone point me in the direction of a really basic introductory-type website or resource I can read, just to get the "lay of the land" so to speak, about the new system? Something I could read in less than an hour...lol.
> 
> I literally know nothing about it at this point and it is daunting to think about what I will have to learn.
> 
> Thanks!!


This is the one I read when I knew nothing about it:

https://www.disneytouristblog.com/lightning-lanes-genie-plus-disney-world-faq-guide/


----------



## Lisa P.

The DisBoards thread, *Everything Genie, Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lane - Please Read Posts 1-7*, gives you all the basics on the first page or so.

Then see some of the YouTube tutorial videos from AllEars.net or Ear Scouts, such as *Disney Genie Plus Explained: Our 27 Best Hacks, Tips & Tricks to Have the Most Fun at Disney World*. HTH.


----------



## slickpoetry

set88 said:


> This is the one I read when I knew nothing about it:
> 
> https://www.disneytouristblog.com/lightning-lanes-genie-plus-disney-world-faq-guide/


Thank you, I just finished reading it and it is a good introduction. I'm now looking at their priority rankings for each park.

I also need to look into "stacking" and how that works. My impression is you can book a new lightning lane every 120 minutes even if you're not using them--and then save them all for the afternoon/evening....is that accurate?


----------



## lorileahb

slickpoetry said:


> Thank you, I just finished reading it and it is a good introduction. I'm now looking at their priority rankings for each park.
> 
> I also need to look into "stacking" and how that works. My impression is you can book a new lightning lane every 120 minutes even if you're not using them--and then save them all for the afternoon/evening....is that accurate?


You can book your first Genie+ at 7 a.m. - and your second two hours after the park opens where you booked your first.  After that, you can book a new one every 120 mins from when you booked your last one (or after you tap into your most recently booked one).

For the big $ILL rides (currently ROR at Hollywood Studios, GOG at Epcot, SDMT at Magic Kingdom, FOP at Animal Kingdom):  If you are staying on resort, you can buy both for the day at 7 a.m. (you only get to buy 2 a day)... if you are staying off resort, you can't buy them until the park opens.


----------



## set88

slickpoetry said:


> Thank you, I just finished reading it and it is a good introduction. I'm now looking at their priority rankings for each park.
> 
> I also need to look into "stacking" and how that works. My impression is you can book a new lightning lane every 120 minutes even if you're not using them--and then save them all for the afternoon/evening....is that accurate?


Yep.  You do have to wait until return times for the attraction you want to book are already pushed out to afternoon/evening, since you cannot choose your time (you just get first available).

Most of the time, this isn't an issue and you can easily stack, because there are popular attractions that tend to get late return times quickly.


----------



## lorileahb

set88 said:


> Yep.  You do have to wait until return times for the attraction you want to book are already pushed out to afternoon/evening, since you cannot choose your time (you just get first available).
> 
> Most of the time, this isn't an issue and you can easily stack, because there are popular attractions that tend to get late return times quickly.


You can check out the information on the thrill data website - gives you a general idea on when certain rides might have the times you want pop up to book.  It worked pretty well for us when we were trying to get certain rides stacked at certain times later in the day.


----------



## slickpoetry

ok so my follow up question is, can I make Genie+ (or ILL) reservations for a park I'm not in? For park hopping purposes


----------



## set88

slickpoetry said:


> ok so my follow up question is, can I make Genie+ (or ILL) reservations for a park I'm not in? For park hopping purposes


Yes. You have to wait until return times are past 2pm (because that's the earliest hopping time). For something like Slinky Dog, that'll be at 7:01am since it books up so fast. For MK, you might have to wait until closer to park opening for any attraction to have a return window that late.


----------



## set88

slickpoetry said:


> ok so my follow up question is, can I make Genie+ (or ILL) reservations for a park I'm not in? For park hopping purposes


Oh, forgot to say, my previous answer was for G+ . For ILL you can book right at 7am for your hopping park, since you can choose the return time for those. 

I would definitely suggest reading the last few pages of the "here now and just back" thread. There are a few good examples of how people actually made stacking work.


----------



## scrappinginontario

Lisa P. said:


> The DisBoards thread, *Everything Genie, Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lane - Please Read Posts 1-7*, gives you all the basics on the first page or so.
> 
> Then see some of the YouTube tutorial videos from AllEars.net or Ear Scouts, such as *Disney Genie Plus Explained: Our 27 Best Hacks, Tips & Tricks to Have the Most Fun at Disney World*. HTH.





slickpoetry said:


> ok so my follow up question is, can I make Genie+ (or ILL) reservations for a park I'm not in? For park hopping purposes


Reading the first posts on the ‘Everything Genie’ thread quoted above breaks everything down. Many people contributed to create one stop shopping.


----------



## subtchr

lorileahb said:


> You can book your first Genie+ at *7:30 a.m*. - and your second two hours after the park opens where you booked your first.


7:00 am.


----------



## Tom_E_D

slickpoetry said:


> Hey all,
> 
> As you can see from my sig below, I haven't been to the park since 2019 (pre Genie+) and I am starting to plan a trip for next August.
> 
> I am certain all of you wonderful people have discussed all there is to know about Genie+, and I will probably end up reading all 239 pages of this thread at some point, but before I do...can anyone point me in the direction of a really basic introductory-type website or resource I can read, just to get the "lay of the land" so to speak, about the new system? Something I could read in less than an hour...lol.
> 
> I literally know nothing about it at this point and it is daunting to think about what I will have to learn.
> 
> Thanks!!


I recommend that you do* not* read all 239 pages of this thread. The "rules" for G+ and ILLs have changed several times since the system was introduced. Reading about the double and triple stacking strategies that were employed last October isn't going to do you any good since the November change that eliminated a loophole that affected those strategies. Similarly, when looking at articles and videos elsewhere, it is important to look at when they were last updated. Unfortunately, many articles/videos are not dated, and it can be hard to tell if the information therein is up-to-date. I don't keep track of the many sources out there to know which are up-to-date and which aren't. However, I know the first page of the "Everything Genie" thread, which others have referenced, is updated from time to time.


----------



## lorileahb

subtchr said:


> 7:00 am.


Urgh- I knew that... so many rules!!  I type before I think...


----------



## slickpoetry

Tom_E_D said:


> I recommend that you do* not* read all 239 pages of this thread. The "rules" for G+ and ILLs have changed several times since the system was introduced. Reading about the double and triple stacking strategies that were employed last October isn't going to do you any good since the November change that eliminated a loophole that affected those strategies. Similarly, when looking at articles and videos elsewhere, it is important to look at when they were last updated. Unfortunately, many articles/videos are not dated, and it can be hard to tell if the information therein is up-to-date. I don't keep track of the many sources out there to know which are up-to-date and which aren't. However, I know the first page of the "Everything Genie" thread, which others have referenced, is updated from time to time.


thank you for the tips


----------



## wiggy500

I was surprised to see all the lightning lane times displaying when I checked at 7:19 a.m. Eastern this morning.  Did they change that or did I encounter a fluke?


----------



## set88

wiggy500 said:


> I was surprised to see all the lightning lane times displaying when I checked at 7:19 a.m. Eastern this morning.  Did they change that or did I encounter a fluke?


I read somewhere that they changed it to show times after 7:15 instead of 7:30.


----------



## bluezy

I saw a Tweet today that showed there is now a banner on the front page of Genie+ that tells you exactly when you can make your next LL selection.   That's a huge improvement!


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

set88 said:


> I'm not sure to what extent they have accomplished that, but I do genuinely believe Disney's goal (beyond making more money which is a given) was to make a system that is more fair to first timers that haven't done a lot of research and planning than the old system was.


By creating a system so complicated and confusing that even if you do a lot of research and planning, you're no better off than a first timer with no knowledge of how the system works!


----------



## set88

Grumpy by Birth said:


> By creating a system so complicated and confusing that even if you do a lot of research and planning, you're no better off than a first timer with no knowledge of how the system works!



I think people just need time to get used to it.  

The old system wasn't better.  The real issue is that the parks don't have enough attraction capacity to give everyone with a ticket good choices for their lightning lanes/fast passes, so whatever system is in place is going to be unfair to someone.  

The new system doesn't have to accommodate everyone, since only 50% of attendees buy into it, and it puts everyone on the same playing field each day.  It is more fair to more people.  

The most fair system by far would be no system.


----------



## canyoncam

I have just been sporadically checking app for LL return times as I go next week and noticed SDD availability in early evening (5:30-7) up until 10:30am the past two days. Think I just have gotten the random available on my checks or are the parks slowing down? I did notice Remy and Guardians VQ are out almost immediately still.

ETA oops posted on wrong thread  but this one might know too


----------



## Marionnette

canyoncam said:


> I have just been sporadically checking app for LL return times as I go next week and noticed SDD availability in early evening (5:30-7) up until 10:30am the past two days. Think I just have gotten the random available on my checks or are the parks slowing down? I did notice Remy and Guardians VQ are out almost immediately still.
> 
> ETA oops posted on wrong thread  but this one might know too


This week and into September are historically slow periods in the parks.

ETA: I should say "slower", not "slow".


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

So, here's my draft strategy for September 6th at EPCOT.  I welcome any feedback on how likely this is to work.  Might try for a Test Track G+ instead of Spaceship Earth, but there's a good chance I'll just use the SR line for it, because my wife doesn't always ride it.  Thanks!


7:00 AM​Reserve VQ BG for GotG7:01 AM​Reserve G+ for Remy7:30 AM​Walk to International Gate8:00 AM​Early Entry8:30 AM​Park open10:30 AM​Reserve G+ for Frozen (or immediately after scanning in at Remy if return time is earlier)12:30 PM​Reserve G+ for Soarin' (or immediately after scanning in at Frozen if return time is earlier)1:00 PM​Reserve VQ BG for GotG (if unsuccessful at 7:00 AM)1:01 PM​Reserve ILL$ for GotG (if unsuccessful in getting a BG) ? ILL$ sold out by then?2:30 PM​Reserve G+ for Spaceship Earth (or immediately after scanning in at Soarin' if return time is earlier)3:30 PM​Walk to Beach Club Villas4:00 PM​Break/Swim at Resort6:30 PM​Walk to International Gate8:30 PM​Find a spot for show9:00 PM​Harmonius9:30 PM​Walk to Beach Club Villas


----------



## Bork

Just back from 8 days in the park and I just want to say Genie+ sucks at Epcot.  Every other park, we were able to do all rides, with just a bit of planning.  At Epcot, it's impossible because there are only 3 useful LL and it is impossible to get all 3 in a day.  On one Epcot day, we got Remy at 7 AM.  Being offsite, TT was already an hour at rope drop, so we ride Frozen first.  TT then had downtime much of the morning, so that by 10:30, TT LL was gone.  We could have gotten a Frozen LL, but we didn't want to ride it again.  TT was down in the evening too because of rain, so we never got to ride it.  So we spent $75 for the 5 of us to ride Remy.  We registered a complaint at Guest Relations, but we're still out the money.


----------



## set88

canyoncam said:


> I have just been sporadically checking app for LL return times as I go next week and noticed SDD availability in early evening (5:30-7) up until 10:30am the past two days. Think I just have gotten the random available on my checks or are the parks slowing down? I did notice Remy and Guardians VQ are out almost immediately still.
> 
> ETA oops posted on wrong thread  but this one might know too


The data says it's noticeably less crowded on average this month than any month recently.  SDD is currently reliably available to book until 10-10:30am with the possibility of being available into afternoon.  Yesterday was unusual as far as having late afternoon ability.  

I wonder if Slinky Dog being available later has anything to do with the change about LL booking for park hopping.  I started noticing this around the time of that change, but it could be a coincidence.


----------



## set88

Grumpy by Birth said:


> So, here's my draft strategy for September 6th at EPCOT.  I welcome any feedback on how likely this is to work.  Might try for a Test Track G+ instead of Spaceship Earth, but there's a good chance I'll just use the SR line for it, because my wife doesn't always ride it.  Thanks!
> 
> 
> 7:00 AM​Reserve VQ BG for GotG7:01 AM​Reserve G+ for Remy7:30 AM​Walk to International Gate8:00 AM​Early Entry10:30 AM​Reserve G+ for Frozen (or immediately after scanning in at Remy if return time is earlier)12:30 PM​Reserve G+ for Soarin' (or immediately after scanning in at Frozen if return time is earlier)1:00 PM​Reserve VQ BG for GotG (if unsuccessful at 7:00 AM)1:01 PM​Reserve ILL$ for GotG (if unsuccessful in getting a BG) ? ILL$ sold out by then?2:30 PM​Reserve G+ for Spaceship Earth (or immediately after scanning in at Soarin' if return time is earlier)3:30 PM​Walk to Beach Club Villas4:00 PM​Break/Swim at Resort6:30 PM​Walk to International Gate8:30 PM​Find a spot for show9:00 PM​Harmonius9:30 PM​Walk to Beach Club Villas



I think it looks doable.   I don't think you'll get Remy that early - probably 1-2pm.  You'll be doing Frozen in the evening if booked at 10:30am (I assume that was your plan).   So you just have to fit Frozen + Guardians in from 6:30-8:30pm.  It's doable, but remember there is still a line with a boarding group (probably 40-60min.)


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

set88 said:


> I think it looks doable.   I don't think you'll get Remy that early - probably 1-2pm.  You'll be doing Frozen in the evening if booked at 10:30am (I assume that was your plan).   So you just have to fit Frozen + Guardians in from 6:30-8:30pm.  It's doable, but remember there is still a line with a boarding group (probably 40-60min.)


If we get a BG for GotG at 7 am, return time would probably be before our resort break at 3:30pm?  If getting a GotG BG at 1 pm, return time would almost certainly be later in the evening?  If we get called earlier than expected, we should have no problem getting back there in time from BCV.

Later Frozen return time shouldn't be a problem, wait time should be fairly minimal with the G+ LL?  That is the whole idea of the LL, after all.  Just want to make sure we have time to visit a couple of F&W booths for our dinner.  We'll also be hopping to EPCOT the next day, so could wait until then to watch Harmonius if we're still in line for GotG.


----------



## canyoncam

set88 said:


> The data says it's noticeably less crowded on average this month than any month recently.  SDD is currently reliably available to book until 10-10:30am with the possibility of being available into afternoon.  Yesterday was unusual as far as having late afternoon ability.
> 
> I wonder if Slinky Dog being available later has anything to do with the change about LL booking for park hopping.  I started noticing this around the time of that change, but it could be a coincidence.


I’d think a little of both reasons myself. I’m just glad as I intend to sleep in (8ish) on one of my HS days. Since I don’t intend to arrive at park before 3pm I’m hoping to get a time for after that still before park opening at 8:30. Then hoping to pull:

10:30 ToT
12:30 MMRR
2:30 TSMM
After that I’d like *** and then I’d wait in standby at close for another SDD.
I’m not a Star Wars fan. So I’m not interested in the rides-I have been on SR and didn’t enjoy it. 

Think this is a reasonable plan? I was a FP+ expert and went once during stand-by only during Covid but I feel like I’m in way over my head now!!!!


----------



## set88

Grumpy by Birth said:


> If we get a BG for GotG at 7 am, return time would probably be before our resort break at 3:30pm?  If getting a GotG BG at 1 pm, return time would almost certainly be later in the evening?  If we get called earlier than expected, we should have no problem getting back there in time from BCV.
> 
> Later Frozen return time shouldn't be a problem, wait time should be fairly minimal with the G+ LL?  That is the whole idea of the LL, after all.  Just want to make sure we have time to visit a couple of F&W booths for our dinner.  We'll also be hopping to EPCOT the next day, so could wait until then to watch Harmonius if we're still in line for GotG.



Based on the data, I'd say yes to both.  And yes, you should have a max 10 minute wait with a LL and probably less.  I don't know if you know this, but once your boarding group is called, you can go anytime the rest of the day - they don't turn you away if you miss your window.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

Here's the draft plan for DHS (hopping to EPCOT for F&W dinner) on September 7th.

Harmonius is only if we didn't see it the previous night.

If reserving MF:SR G+ at 10:30am, are we likely to get a return time before 2:30pm?

Is 12:30pm too late to reserve MMRR?  I'm thinking the return time would already be later after we'll have left DHS?  Should I reserve something at EPCOT in the evening then?  Would it be better to reserve MMRR at 10:30am and just ride MF:SR using SB?  We've done SB for MF:SR in the past and it wasn't too bad.

If return times are closer for one or both, we won't have to wait 2 hours to reserve the next one, but I'm not that familiar with how quickly the return times push out into the afternoon/evening.

Suggestions for what to reserve at EPCOT (either at 12:30pm or at 2:30pm)?

If we have a G+ return time for something in DHS after 2:30pm, we could stay longer to use it before starting our break.  We could also take a shorter break and enter EPCOT before 6:30pm if necessary.

Also, if we somehow missed out completely on GotG the day prior, can I purchase ILL$ for the evening on the same day that I purchased ILL$ for RoTR that morning?  It's one per park/per day right?  Not just one per day?


7:00 AM​Reserve G+ for SDD7:01 AM​Reserve ILL$ for RotR7:30 AM​Walk to DHS8:00 AM​Early Entry8:30 AM​Park open10:30 AM​Reserve G+ for MF:SR (or immediately after scanning in at SDD if return time is earlier)12:30 PM​Reserve G+ for MMRR (or immediately after scanning in at MF:SR if return time is earlier)2:30 PM​Reserve G+ for EPCOT attraction? (or immediately after scanning in at MMRR if return time is earlier)2:31 PM​Walk to Beach Club Villas3:00 PM​Break/Swim at Resort6:30 PM​Walk to International Gate7:00 PM​Dinner = Food & Wine Festival (G+ attractions?)8:30 PM​Find a spot for show9:00 PM​Harmonius9:30 PM​Walk to Beach Club Villas


----------



## set88

canyoncam said:


> I’d think a little of both reasons myself. I’m just glad as I intend to sleep in (8ish) on one of my HS days. Since I don’t intend to arrive at park before 3pm I’m hoping to get a time for after that still before park opening at 8:30. Then hoping to pull:
> 
> 10:30 ToT
> 12:30 MMRR
> 2:30 TSMM
> After that I’d like *** and then I’d wait in standby at close for another SDD.
> I’m not a Star Wars fan. So I’m not interested in the rides-I have been on SR and didn’t enjoy it.
> 
> Think this is a reasonable plan? I was a FP+ expert and went once during stand-by only during Covid but I feel like I’m in way over my head now!!!!


Yep, that looks completely reasonable. You shouldn't have any trouble getting any of those reservations.


----------



## Disturbia

@Grumpy by Birth:  can you report back on how things went for you.  Your plan looks solid.

The more proficient people are becoming with the system the harder it is to get that third/fourth pass at a reasonable time (vs conflicting with a pm ADR)


----------



## set88

Grumpy by Birth said:


> Here's the draft plan for DHS (hopping to EPCOT for F&W dinner) on September 7th.
> 
> Harmonius is only if we didn't see it the previous night.
> 
> If reserving MF:SR G+ at 10:30am, are we likely to get a return time before 2:30pm?
> 
> Is 12:30pm too late to reserve MMRR?  I'm thinking the return time would already be later after we'll have left DHS?  Should I reserve something at EPCOT in the evening then?  Would it be better to reserve MMRR at 10:30am and just ride MF:SR using SB?  We've done SB for MF:SR in the past and it wasn't too bad.
> 
> If return times are closer for one or both, we won't have to wait 2 hours to reserve the next one, but I'm not that familiar with how quickly the return times push out into the afternoon/evening.
> 
> Suggestions for what to reserve at EPCOT (either at 12:30pm or at 2:30pm)?
> 
> If we have a G+ return time for something in DHS after 2:30pm, we could stay longer to use it before starting our break.  We could also take a shorter break and enter EPCOT before 6:30pm if necessary.
> 
> Also, if we somehow missed out completely on GotG the day prior, can I purchase ILL$ for the evening on the same day that I purchased ILL$ for RoTR that morning?  It's one per park/per day right?  Not just one per day?
> 
> 
> 7:00 AM​Reserve G+ for SDD7:01 AM​Reserve ILL$ for RotR7:30 AM​Walk to DHS8:00 AM​Early Entry8:30 AM​Park open10:30 AM​Reserve G+ for MF:SR (or immediately after scanning in at SDD if return time is earlier)12:30 PM​Reserve G+ for MMRR (or immediately after scanning in at MF:SR if return time is earlier)2:30 PM​Reserve G+ for EPCOT attraction? (or immediately after scanning in at MMRR if return time is earlier)2:31 PM​Walk to Beach Club Villas3:00 PM​Break/Swim at Resort6:30 PM​Walk to International Gate7:00 PM​Dinner = Food & Wine Festival (G+ attractions?)8:30 PM​Find a spot for show9:00 PM​Harmonius9:30 PM​Walk to Beach Club Villas



Smuggler's at 10:30am - yep, likely 1:30-2:30pm.  

MMRR at 12:30pm - looks like 3:30-4:30pm is most likely.

It really depends on the day for standby for SR vs RR.  I think either is potentially doable, especially if you're willing to wait up to an hour.  I'd see how it's looking and book one at 10:30am and do the other via standby.  Of course there's always the single rider option for SR.

Yes, you can definitely buy Guardians for evening at EPCOT even if you also buy Rise.  You can buy up to 2 ILLs a day.  

I just checked the data and at least recently, it doesn't look like you'd be able to book anything at EPCOT at 12:30 for the evening.  It's all either immediate returns, or gone for the big 3.  Even at 2:30, it's basically the same.  That's why G+ at EPCOT sucks so much, lol.  You might get lucky and snag a big 3 for an evening time if it happens to be available when you look, or you spend some time refreshing to try to get one.  

If you want to look into the numbers yourself, I'm getting all the data from thrill-data.com.  They have handy charts for basically everything someone might want to know.  I'm nerdy enough to enjoy studying it, haha.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

Here's our AK plan for September 8th.  I realize that G+ is not that helpful at AK, but our tickets include it for all days (got them when adding G+ for the length of stay was an option), so we might as well use it.  My wife doesn't ride Everest.  I usually ride it SR.


7:00 AM​Reserve ILL$ for FoP7:01 AM​Reserve G+ for Safari7:30 AM​Bus to AK (not getting up early enough to take advantage of early entry)8:00 AM​Park open10:00 AM​Reserve G+ for FotLK (or immediately after scanning in at Safari if return time is earlier)12:00 NOON​Reserve G+ for Dinosaur (or immediately after scanning in at FotLK if return time is earlier)3:30 PM​Bus to Beach Club Villas4:00 PM​Break/Swim at Resort6:30 PM​Drive to Fort Wilderness8:30 PM​Hoop-Dee-Doo Review


----------



## set88

Disturbia said:


> @Grumpy by Birth:  can you report back on how things went for you.  Your plan looks solid.
> 
> The more proficient people are becoming with the system the harder it is to get that third/fourth pass at a reasonable time (vs conflicting with a pm ADR)



This is so true.  The system might look and work completely differently in a few months after everyone is used to it.

I think there's a pretty solid chance we see some big changes to it coming in the new year.  I doubt they mess with it much before the end of the year since so many people have it prepaid, but after that, who knows what they'll do.

It sucks to say it, but the only way to preserve its usefulness might be to raise the price or cap purchases, both of which would suck in different ways.

I said this earlier in the thread, but the problem really comes down to the fact that there isn't enough attraction capacity to accommodate all the people that want to skip lines.  Some lines are inevitable... and the more LL availability is allowed, the worse the standby waits become. 

The only ways Disney can handle this are to cap park attendance (making people that are unable to get reservations upset) or to raise prices until less people come (making just about everyone upset except those with the most disposable income).  Raising prices isn't 100% about greed... it looks like the fairest solution from an objective perspective.   

I certainly don't want to see prices raised but there is an argument to be made that it's better to pay $40/day for something that works well than $15/day for something that has very limited usefulness.  Also, if at $40/day, less people buy, that makes the impact to the regular standby guests less noticeable than more people buying/using G+ at $15/day.

Signed, a nerd who has considered all this mostly for fun.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

set88 said:


> Smuggler's at 10:30am - yep, likely 1:30-2:30pm.
> 
> MMRR at 12:30pm - looks like 3:30-4:30pm is most likely.
> 
> It really depends on the day for standby for SR vs RR.  I think either is potentially doable, especially if you're willing to wait up to an hour.  I'd see how it's looking and book one at 10:30am and do the other via standby.  Of course there's always the single rider option for SR.



I'm thinking we will hit ToT first thing at early entry, and then perhaps ride MMRR using SB if it's not too long by then.  If we reserve MF:SR at 10:30 for a (hopefully) a time just before we leave for our break then, if nothing at EPCOT is feasible at 12:30pm, we could possibly use G+ for something like TSMM or Star Tours that would (I think) have return times within two hours?  

Then I'll have to just keep checking EPCOT attractions to reserve something once the time gets pushed out far enough.  You mentioned the "big 3."  Presumably, that's Remy, Frozen, and Test Track?  Would we be likely to get an evening return time for Soarin' if reserving at 2:30pm or later?


----------



## set88

Grumpy by Birth said:


> I'm thinking we will hit ToT first thing at early entry, and then perhaps ride MMRR using SB if it's not too long by then.  If we reserve MF:SR at 10:30 for a (hopefully) a time just before we leave for our break then, if nothing at EPCOT is feasible at 12:30pm, we could possibly use G+ for something like TSMM or Star Tours that would (I think) have return times within two hours?
> 
> Then I'll have to just keep checking EPCOT attractions to reserve something once the time gets pushed out far enough.  You mentioned the "big 3."  Presumably, that's Remy, Frozen, and Test Track?  Would we be likely to get an evening return time for Soarin' if reserving at 2:30pm or later?



Looks like Toy Story at 12:30 would probably give you a time before 2:30.  Star Tours is pretty much immediate all day and never has a wait anyway.  

Yes on the big 3.  I though Soarin might be at evening by then, but over the last couple weeks, it hasn't been.  It's basically been an immediate return.  

All would be very different if these were crowded days we were talking about.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

set88 said:


> Looks like Toy Story at 12:30 would probably give you a time before 2:30.  Star Tours is pretty much immediate all day and never has a wait anyway.
> 
> Yes on the big 3.  I though Soarin might be at evening by then, but over the last couple weeks, it hasn't been.  It's basically been an immediate return.
> 
> All would be very different if these were crowded days we were talking about.


 
So, to get Soarin' for some time in the evening after we hop, I would just skip reserving a G+ at 2:30pm and monitor MDE until the return time for Soarin' is late enough and reserve it then?


----------



## set88

Grumpy by Birth said:


> So, to get Soarin' for some time in the evening after we hop, I would just skip reserving a G+ at 2:30pm and monitor MDE until the return time for Soarin' is late enough and reserve it then?


Yep.  You can probably do all the small EPCOT rides with G+ in the evening... you just might not actually be saving a ton of time vs standby.


----------



## daisylovesdisney

We just returned from our first WDW trip using Genie+.  I was really nervous about it but found it worked very well for us and we were very happy with it in the end.  

First park day we used LL for Epcot and hopping to the MK.
Second park day we used LL for DHS and hopping to Epcot.
Third park day we used it for AK and hopping to MK (we hopped to Epcot in between but only to eat at the Food & Wine booths and to ride our ILL for GotG, didn't get any LLs there).  

1st Park Day 
For Epcot we walked onto Spaceship Earth, did single rider on TT, walked onto Nemo, LL Soarin, LL Remy (had booked that one at 7:01am after getting VQ for GotG), LL Frozen, VQ GotG.  Hopped to MK.
Hopped to MK - LL Buzz, LL Pirates, missed our LL for Magic Carpets and JC because of rain storm (rides were down).  Used anytime LL for Haunted Mansion, LL IASW, watched fireworks, LL Jungle Cruise, anytime LL for 2nd ride on Buzz, ILL SDMT, standby for Space Mountain at park closing.  

2nd Park day 
We arrived to DHS later than planned (as we did on all our park days) and it was packed when we got in.  Tried to do standby at Alien Swirling Saucers but only one section was working and the line time went up from 20 to 40 minutes and line barely moved.  Gave up and did LL SDD booked at 7am), LL Toy Story (booked after tapping into SDD and start time was only 15 minutes later), had lunch when Backlot Express opened at 11am (happy we did, it filled up within 15 minutes and lines got long right away), went over for a drink at Oga's, LL Smuggler's Run, Droid Depot build, RoTR ILL, standby Muppets, LL MMRR. 
Hopped to Epcot via Skyliners - My party split initially so I could get a champagne and watch Impressions de France, they did LL for Soarin and standby for Living with the Land.  Got back together and also met up with friends.  LL Mission Space, VQ GotG.  Had another bad rain storm and Harmonious was delayed.  Part of our party watched Harmonious and some of us rode Frozen during the deluxe evening hours.  Then half went to Test Track and half to Remy.  The rain really impacted the first 30 minutes so the evening wasn't as successful as we hoped but everyone still had a good time.  I also got Fish & Chips and was happy to see that open during the late evening hours.  

3rd Park Day
Animal Kingdom - LL Navi, ILL FoP, LL Safari, LL Expedition Everest, LL Kali River Rapids.  
Hopped to Epcot just for some Food & Wine and ILL GotC.
Hopped to MK - Skipper's Canteen adr, LL Splash, had LL for BTMRR but line was totally backed up so just canceled and went to get a good spot for the Fireworks.  LL Buzz, LL Space Mountain, People Mover, LL Peter Pan.  Our party split and some went to the gift shops and the rest of us met up with some friends for deluxe evening hours.  Did Splash, BTMRR, was walking to SDMT when the lightening started (was about midnight now).  Total downpour so all outdoor rides closed.  Did Space Mountain 2 more times.  

In between rides we took photo pass pictures, would get drinks/snacks, etc..  We encountered a lot of August rain/lightening which always seemed to take an hour or two out of the evening park time.  We split up the park days with resort/pool days and one at Typhoon Lagoon.  We really needed the breaks after the LONG park days with 12+ miles of walking each time. 

Genie+ and ILL added to our costs but also made the most of our three park days.  If we had 5+ park days, I may not have done it.  Our next trip will be with extended family and I don't think they'll want to spend the extra so will have something to compare the experience with.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

Do they offer G+ LL return times at MK during extended evening hours?  Can those be booked earlier in the evening or do you have to wait until the extended hours begin for those times to become available?


----------



## CarolynFH

Grumpy by Birth said:


> Do they offer G+ LL return times at MK during extended evening hours?  Can those be booked earlier in the evening or do you have to wait until the extended hours begin for those times to become available?


No, sorry, no LL during DEEH.  But reports are that lines are short enough to not need LL, so enjoy!


----------



## wiggy500

Grumpy by Birth said:


> If reserving MF:SR G+ at 10:30am, are we likely to get a return time before 2:30pm?



I happened to be looking at exactly this yesterday or the day before.  MF:SR was at 12:30 p.m. return time right before 10:30 a.m.  Right after the clock struck 10:30 it quickly jumped to 12:45, and then gradually increased after that.


----------



## Erica Ladd

Glad to hear fish and chips are available after hours!!!


----------



## zatharas

If I plan on stacking for Hollywood studios for the afternoon  and evening and we are park hopping is there major benefit to starting day  at animal kingdom. I believe I could start stacking 1 hour earlier because animal kingdom usual opens earlier.


----------



## Honeypot

Grumpy by Birth said:


> Do they offer G+ LL return times at MK during extended evening hours?  Can those be booked earlier in the evening or do you have to wait until the extended hours begin for those times to become available?


No G+ during extended evening hours. They are not necessary either. What did do that worked well for us though, was to get LL in the hour before close for a one or two rides. One time I had stacked both Splash and BTMRR as Splash does not run during EEH, so we did those two then left that area to focus on others. Worked well for us if you have Genie + and are there prior to EEH starting.


----------



## wilkydelts

zatharas said:


> If I plan on stacking for Hollywood studios for the afternoon  and evening and we are park hopping is there major benefit to starting day  at animal kingdom. I believe I could start stacking 1 hour earlier because animal kingdom usual opens earlier.



You have to tap into AK before you are allowed to tap into HS. That not an easy task if you are not actually visiting AK.


----------



## zatharas

wilkydelts said:


> You have to tap into AK before you are allowed to tap into HS. That not an easy task if you are not actually visiting AK.


We would either be going to AK or MK just wondering if the potential extra hour head start from AK helps?


----------



## daisylovesdisney

zatharas said:


> We would either be going to AK or MK just wondering if the potential extra hour head start from AK helps?



I would go to the park you really want to visit, that time won't make much difference.


----------



## slbgnb

I think I'm starting to understand the new ways - the G+ and the ILL's. However, I think we will have so many issues since we aren't staying onsite. We RD every day, but that won't be the advantage it used to be since on-site guests get a 1/2 start now. 

Here are my questions - and any help would be greatly appreciated   
For MK day - we will RD. At park opening, I will try to ILL 7DMT and then G+ everything else. Where should we head first? Is 7DMT the only thing that's hard to get there now? 

For HS day - this seems the hardest. If I head to SDD at RD, is it too late? Is that where all the onsite guests will be? Will I have a chance to G+ this? We will ILL the RofR and hope for the best there. Should we head to RofR at RD or will the line already be insane? Can TSM and Smugglers be G+ pretty easy? Same with Rock N Roller Coaster and TofT?

For EP day - this one is the most confusing to me, as I still don't really understand the VQ for Guardians yet. But, I guess at RD try to ILL this and try to G+ Remy right at 7am? And after Remy, try to G+ TT and Soarin?

Thank you!!!


----------



## VAtink

zatharas said:


> If I plan on stacking for Hollywood studios for the afternoon  and evening and we are park hopping is there major benefit to starting day  at animal kingdom. I believe I could start stacking 1 hour earlier because animal kingdom usual opens earlier.



I asked this same question a few months ago and was told that the booking for 2 hours after park opening is for the park your first LL is booked at.  So if your first LL is booked for when you hop to HS in the afternoon, the next one you could book is 2 hours after HS opens, not AK.  

That being said, that is what a few people on here responded when I asked, I have not actually had a chance to test this out in person (not that I don't trust people on here, I just like to have personal experience before being sure of an answer  )

I will be testing this out in a few weeks though, so I can report back if I can book my second LL based on AK opening vs HS opening.


----------



## DLRExpert

slbgnb said:


> I think I'm starting to understand the new ways - the G+ and the ILL's. However, I think we will have so many issues since we aren't staying onsite. We RD every day, but that won't be the advantage it used to be since on-site guests get a 1/2 start now.
> 
> Here are my questions - and any help would be greatly appreciated
> For MK day - we will RD. At park opening, I will try to ILL 7DMT and then G+ everything else. Where should we head first? Is 7DMT the only thing that's hard to get there now?
> 
> For HS day - this seems the hardest. If I head to SDD at RD, is it too late? Is that where all the onsite guests will be? Will I have a chance to G+ this? We will ILL the RofR and hope for the best there. Should we head to RofR at RD or will the line already be insane? Can TSM and Smugglers be G+ pretty easy? Same with Rock N Roller Coaster and TofT?
> 
> For EP day - this one is the most confusing to me, as I still don't really understand the VQ for Guardians yet. But, I guess at RD try to ILL this and try to G+ Remy right at 7am? And after Remy, try to G+ TT and Soarin?
> 
> Thank you!!!


*For MK day - we will RD. At park opening, I will try to ILL 7DMT and then G+ everything else. Where should we head first? Is 7DMT the only thing that's hard to get there now?*
At 7am book LL for Jungle Cruise. At park opening book Mine Train ILL (should be easy to get).
 If at park opening RD, go to the attractions that EE guests cannot get to during EE. So Splash Mountain first (no LL), then Big Thunder Mountain (no LL), then Pirates of the Caribbean (no LL). Anything that has a wait of 30 minutes less is worth waiting in the regular line for and not use LL.
Once you scan LL for Jungle or 2 hours have passed make Peter Pan the next LL, LL after that will be Space Mountain.

*For HS day - this seems the hardest. If I head to SDD at RD, is it too late? Is that where all the onsite guests will be? Will I have a chance to G+ this? We will ILL the RofR and hope for the best there. Should we head to RofR at RD or will the line already be insane? Can TSM and Smugglers be G+ pretty easy? Same with Rock N Roller Coaster and TofT?*
At 7am book LL for Slinky. At park opening book Rise ILL (will be harder to get but you may be able to get right at 8 or after a few app refreshes).
RD Tower (no LL) and if wait for RNRC is 30 minutes or less after Tower, ride RNRC (no LL). Then check on Toy Story Midway Mania.
Once you scan LL into Slinky, make Falcon your second LL choice. Third LL you go for will be Railway.

*For EP day - this one is the most confusing to me, as I still don't really understand the VQ for Guardians yet. But, I guess at RD try to ILL this and try to G+ Remy right at 7am? And after Remy, try to G+ TT and Soarin?*
At 7am try for the VQ for Guardians first, then Frozen LL.
At park opening Soarin (no LL), Land (no LL), Mission Space (no LL), Seas (no LL), Spaceship Earth (no LL), etc.
Second LL for be for either Remy or Test Track. I would choose Remy over TT as TT seems easier to get on a refresh.

*Learn about the App Refresh Trick.*


----------



## slbgnb

DLRExpert said:


> *For MK day - we will RD. At park opening, I will try to ILL 7DMT and then G+ everything else. Where should we head first? Is 7DMT the only thing that's hard to get there now?*
> At 7am book LL for Jungle Cruise. At park opening book Mine Train ILL (should be easy to get).
> If at park opening RD, go to the attractions that EE guests cannot get to during EE. So Splash Mountain first (no LL), then Big Thunder Mountain (no LL), then Pirates of the Caribbean (no LL).
> Once you scan LL for Jungle or 2 hours have passed make Peter Pan the next LL, LL after that will be Space Mountain.
> 
> *For HS day - this seems the hardest. If I head to SDD at RD, is it too late? Is that where all the onsite guests will be? Will I have a chance to G+ this? We will ILL the RofR and hope for the best there. Should we head to RofR at RD or will the line already be insane? Can TSM and Smugglers be G+ pretty easy? Same with Rock N Roller Coaster and TofT?*
> At 7am book LL for Slinky. At park opening book Rise ILL (will be harder to get but you may be able to get right at 8 or after a few app refreshes).
> RD Tower (no LL) and if wait for RNRC is 30 minutes or less after Tower, ride RNRC (no LL). Then check on Toy Story Midway Mania.
> Once you scan LL into Slinky, make Falcon your second LL choice. Third LL you go for will be Railway.
> 
> *For EP day - this one is the most confusing to me, as I still don't really understand the VQ for Guardians yet. But, I guess at RD try to ILL this and try to G+ Remy right at 7am? And after Remy, try to G+ TT and Soarin?*
> At 7am try for the VQ for Guardians first, then Frozen LL.
> At park opening Soarin (no LL), Land (no LL), Mission Space (no LL), Seas (no LL), Spaceship Earth (no LL), etc.
> Second LL for be for either Remy or Test Track. I would choose Remy over TT as TT seems easier to get on a refresh.
> 
> *Learn about the App Refresh Trick.*


First of all - WOW - thank you!!! I've copied your suggestions and added to my personal report!
Second of all - how do I learn about the App Refresh Trick?


----------



## Disturbia

VAtink said:


> I asked this same question a few months ago and was told that the booking for 2 hours after park opening is for the park your first LL is booked at.  So if your first LL is booked for when you hop to HS in the afternoon, the next one you could book is 2 hours after HS opens, not AK.
> 
> That being said, that is what a few people on here responded when I asked, I have not actually had a chance to test this out in person (not that I don't trust people on here, I just like to have personal experience before being sure of an answer  )
> 
> I will be testing this out in a few weeks though, so I can report back if I can book my second LL based on AK opening vs HS opening.


The issue now is that you can’t book your second park LLs until the Genie+ times go past 2 pm.  You can no longer select your second park and start booking 2 pm+ at 7 am.

Be careful with SDMT.  I clicked 9:30 am and the final screen said 9:30 am but final booking was 6 pm (on site guests can get the LLIA fixed at the front desk at their resort; offsite would probably need to go to GET to cancel and availability at park opening will be vastly different).


----------



## holyrita

Disturbia said:


> Be careful with SDMT.  I clicked 9:30 am and the final screen said 9:30 am but final booking was 6 pm


What the heck is the point of hiding the return times between 7-7:15am if they're still assigning people the incorrect time


----------



## DLRExpert

slbgnb said:


> First of all - WOW - thank you!!! I've copied your suggestions and added to my personal report!
> Second of all - how do I learn about the App Refresh Trick?


Watch the following video, It takes place at the Magic Kingdom in WDW, but she constantly does the refresh trick (she calls it Fiddle Faddle).


----------



## set88

slbgnb said:


> I think I'm starting to understand the new ways - the G+ and the ILL's. However, I think we will have so many issues since we aren't staying onsite. We RD every day, but that won't be the advantage it used to be since on-site guests get a 1/2 start now.
> 
> Here are my questions - and any help would be greatly appreciated
> For MK day - we will RD. At park opening, I will try to ILL 7DMT and then G+ everything else. Where should we head first? Is 7DMT the only thing that's hard to get there now?
> 
> For HS day - this seems the hardest. If I head to SDD at RD, is it too late? Is that where all the onsite guests will be? Will I have a chance to G+ this? We will ILL the RofR and hope for the best there. Should we head to RofR at RD or will the line already be insane? Can TSM and Smugglers be G+ pretty easy? Same with Rock N Roller Coaster and TofT?
> 
> For EP day - this one is the most confusing to me, as I still don't really understand the VQ for Guardians yet. But, I guess at RD try to ILL this and try to G+ Remy right at 7am? And after Remy, try to G+ TT and Soarin?
> 
> Thank you!!!



I agree with the suggestion for Splash / Thunder as your RD at MK.  I would choose Jungle Cruise or Peter Pan for your first G+, although the first choice doesn't matter as much as the other parks (everything has decent availability to be a second or third pick).

For HS, I would definitely not RD Slinky and especially not Rise... they'll be too crowded.  I would go for RnR or ToT.  Yes, Smugglers and TSM tend to have decent availability as LL picks.  Slinky should definitely be the first pick at 7am.  Next pick Smugglers, then Tot, RnR, Runway Railway if you want any of those... TSM can be saved for a later pick.  

EPCOT - Book Remy at 7am for sure.  It can be gone before you get to make your second pick.  Second pick is TT or Frozen, whichever you prefer knowing you likely won't get the other.  Soarin will be available as a third pick.  

If you're spending the whole day at EPCOT, don't sweat the VQ for Guardians too much.  If you don't get in at 7am, you can get in at 1pm VERY easily.  As long as you try at 1pm, you'll get a boarding group for sure.


----------



## slbgnb

set88 said:


> For HS, I would definitely not RD Slinky and especially not Rise... they'll be too crowded. I would go for RnR or ToT. Yes, Smugglers and TSM tend to have decent availability as LL picks. Slinky should definitely be the first pick at 7am. Next pick Smugglers, then Tot, RnR, Runway Railway if you want any of those... TSM can be saved for a later pick.


So - how do I do Rise - just hopefully with the ILL?

Thanks for all the other tips!!!


----------



## DLRExpert

slbgnb said:


> So - how do I do Rise - just hopefully with the ILL?
> 
> Thanks for all the other tips!!!


ILLs for Rise will be available when the park opens, but return times will be limited and go SUPER fast. If they go fast, use the Refresh Trick. 
Otherwise, wait until later in the day and if line is 60 minutes or less jump in it.
Or if you have a 2 hour LL window, grab a snack and drink and jump in line then.


----------



## Disturbia

holyrita said:


> What the heck is the point of hiding the return times between 7-7:15am if they're still assigning people the incorrect time


Sorry this was back in Mar/apr before the change.  Did hiding the time fix the issue?


----------



## set88

slbgnb said:


> So - how do I do Rise - just hopefully with the ILL?
> 
> Thanks for all the other tips!!!


Yes, that would be the easiest way for sure.  I'd definitely plan to buy right at park opening, but you shouldn't have any trouble getting it unless the park is quite crowded (it hasn't been crowded at all recently, so if you're going soon, I think you'll be fine).  If you don't want to pay, the wait near close will be much better than the wait in the morning.  And you're welcome!


----------



## scrappinginontario

slbgnb said:


> So - how do I do Rise - just hopefully with the ILL?
> 
> Thanks for all the other tips!!!


Do you have one or more days at DHS?

If one then yes, I would recommend purchasing ILL$.

If more than one I would try to do it at park close the first day and see how that works out.  We've successfully done that a couple of times.  The challenge with that is Rise can go down and if it's down at park close you won't be able to ride.


----------



## daisylovesdisney

Erica Ladd said:


> Glad to hear fish and chips are available after hours!!!



Honestly it made my night


----------



## clbielick

First trip since genie so catching up.  Going on a mk party day(this Friday) but may not make rope drop due to a late flight in thurs. Had planned to park hop to HS. Will there be LLs available for hs attractions if we use the First couple on mk? Seems like zero chance on SDD. But could I burn my first couple at mk and still manage to get a couple others in the evening at HS? Or am I better off switching to a different park that typically has more options still avaliable later in the day? Sorry- rookie question!


----------



## g-dad66

clbielick said:


> First trip since genie so catching up.  Going on a mk party day(this Friday) but may not make rope drop due to a late flight in thurs. Had planned to park hop to HS. Will there be LLs available for hs attractions if we use the First couple on mk? Seems like zero chance on SDD. But could I burn my first couple at mk and still manage to get a couple others in the evening at HS? Or am I better off switching to a different park that typically has more options still avaliable later in the day? Sorry- rookie question!



This data might help you decide:
https://www.genieplushelper.com/genie-plus-helper/hollywood-studios/


----------



## scrappinginontario

clbielick said:


> First trip since genie so catching up.  Going on a mk party day(this Friday) but may not make rope drop due to a late flight in thurs. Had planned to park hop to HS. Will there be LLs available for hs attractions if we use the First couple on mk? Seems like zero chance on SDD. But could I burn my first couple at mk and still manage to get a couple others in the evening at HS? Or am I better off switching to a different park that typically has more options still avaliable later in the day? Sorry- rookie question!



How long are you planning to be at DHS?  Do you have another day that you’re going to DHS? 

 Party days tend to have lower crowds at MK.  I guess if it were me and we weren’t getting to MK early, I’d plan to stay at MK rather than take the time to travel to DHS and back, especially if you’ll be at DHS during party hours which it seems you may be planning to do.

Just what I would do.


----------



## clbielick

scrappinginontario said:


> How long are you planning to be at DHS?  Do you have another day that you’re going to DHS?
> 
> Party days tend to have lower crowds at MK.  I guess if it were me and we weren’t getting to MK early, I’d plan to stay at MK rather than take the time to travel to DHS and back, especially if you’ll be at DHS during party hours which it seems you may be planning to do.
> 
> Just what I would do.


Yep.  Guessing at mk 8-2. Cool off indoors. Then dhs 4-9. Mk closes early for the party so I figured we'd want to go somewhere else- but I'm probably overthinking this after reading all of this genie info!


----------



## lovethesun12

Grumpy by Birth said:


> Is 12:30pm too late to reserve MMRR?  I'm thinking the return time would already be later after we'll have left DHS?  Should I reserve something at EPCOT in the evening then?  Would it be better to reserve MMRR at 10:30am and just ride MF:SR using SB?  We've done SB for MF:SR in the past and it wasn't too bad.
> 
> Also, if we somehow missed out completely on GotG the day prior, can I purchase ILL$ for the evening on the same day that I purchased ILL$ for RoTR that morning?  It's one per park/per day right?  Not just one per day?





Grumpy by Birth said:


> I'm thinking we will hit ToT first thing at early entry, and then perhaps ride MMRR using SB if it's not too long by then.  If we reserve MF:SR at 10:30 for a (hopefully) a time just before we leave for our break then, if nothing at EPCOT is feasible at 12:30pm, we could possibly use G+ for something like TSMM or Star Tours that would (I think) have return times within two hours?
> 
> Then I'll have to just keep checking EPCOT attractions to reserve something once the time gets pushed out far enough.  You mentioned the "big 3."  Presumably, that's Remy, Frozen, and Test Track?  Would we be likely to get an evening return time for Soarin' if reserving at 2:30pm or later?


You're plans look great. Given my experience just being there, the wait times are really reasonable anyway (and inflated by Disney). My daughter and I rode MMRR at around 10:30am one day. The posted wait was 60 min. We were on it in about 30min, and the line was constantly moving so didn't really feel that long. 

I think Soarin' is almost as easy to book a LL for as Mission Space or Spaceship Earth. We did it on standby as well at around 9:30am one morning and it was basically a walk on.

My DS/DH also did RnR on standby while we were waiting for MMRR in about the same time frame, and we did ToT one evenng at around 9:30pm and it also had a short wait.


----------



## slbgnb

set88 said:


> Yes, that would be the easiest way for sure. I'd definitely plan to buy right at park opening, but you shouldn't have any trouble getting it unless the park is quite crowded (it hasn't been crowded at all recently, so if you're going soon, I think you'll be fine). If you don't want to pay, the wait near close will be much better than the wait in the morning. And you're welcome!



We are going Mar 19-24 - so high crowds. I have no problem paying, I just know it might not be available by the time park opening rolls around. Fingers crossed!


----------



## joydog

So  if I buy individual lightning lane for guardians or rise etc and wifey chickens out can I use her band to ride it in addition to mine?


----------



## scrappinginontario

clbielick said:


> Yep.  Guessing at mk 8-2. Cool off indoors. Then dhs 4-9. Mk closes early for the party so I figured we'd want to go somewhere else- but I'm probably overthinking this after reading all of this genie info!


Sorry, I misunderstood.  I thought you were going to the Halloween party.  Your plan looks like a good one!


----------



## CarolynFH

joydog said:


> So  if I buy individual lightning lane for guardians or rise etc and wifey chickens out can I use her band to ride it in addition to mine?


Yes you can, as long as she has entered the park where that ride is!


----------



## KyloBen

clbielick said:


> Yep.  Guessing at mk 8-2. Cool off indoors. Then dhs 4-9. Mk closes early for the party so I figured we'd want to go somewhere else- but I'm probably overthinking this after reading all of this genie info!


We were there for first MK Party.  Recommend you do not use genie plus for MK, lines were minimal for first 2 plus hours on 8/12 ( we entered at early entry And went from mine train to space to Frontierland)  If you are hopping I’d use your first Genie plus on SDD for a time you want to return, then go ToT, RnR (or millennium falcon), MMRR, TSMM.  We hopped to HS from Epcot and were able to accomplish the above (except MF) in one evening,  we saved Galaxy’s edge for its own day. (From our experience we got more value with GP at HS hopping to studios In evening.  That is my recommendation to anyone going).
 only wildcard is the holiday crowds.


----------



## diaman

Our flight is scheduled to take off at 7am next week so we will not be able to reserve anything until we land around 9:30. Would we be able to reserve a a $ILL and G+ at 9:30, then reserve another G+ at 10:30am if the park opens at 8:30 or do we have to wait 2 hours from 9:30?


----------



## Landry

diaman said:


> Our flight is scheduled to take off at 7am next week so we will not be able to reserve anything until we land around 9:30. Would we be able to reserve a a $ILL and G+ at 9:30, then reserve another G+ at 10:30am if the park opens at 8:30 or do we have to wait 2 hours from 9:30?



If you reserve one at 9:30 from the airport then your next one will be available to book at 11:30, unless you tap into the first ride before 11:30.


----------



## Tom_E_D

diaman said:


> Our flight is scheduled to take off at 7am next week so we will not be able to reserve anything until we land around 9:30. Would we be able to reserve a a $ILL and G+ at 9:30, then reserve another G+ at 10:30am if the park opens at 8:30 or do we have to wait 2 hours from 9:30?


Landry has already answered your question. However, I'd like to point out that many airlines offer onboard wifi that can be accessed by your smartphone in airplane mode. That may give you a chance to book your first G+ LL while in the air, once the flight has reached an altitude that allows use of personal electronic devices.


----------



## cisco911

I don't know if there is a sticky somewhere but outside of Magic Kingdom, is Genie Plus really needed?  Epcot has a handful of rides, 2 of which are ILL, so why would we pay $15/person.  Doesn't seem necessary.  Same thing for animal kingdom.  We are rope drop people so we can get 1 or 2 big rides out the way right in the morning.  The only 2 places I think it would be worth while would be MK and HS.  But even then, HS is kind of a toss up.  Is there a cost/benefit analysis somewhere to show where and when it is worth getting Genie Plus?


----------



## Marionnette

cisco911 said:


> The only 2 places I think it would be worth while would be MK and HS. But even then, HS is kind of a toss up.


HS has too many attractions that tend to go down and when they do, standby waits at other rides can reach intolerable lengths. Even on a day like today where attendance levels are relatively low and all rides are working wait times for many attractions at HS are 40+ minutes (MK attractions are almost walk-on).


----------



## DLRExpert

diaman said:


> Our flight is scheduled to take off at 7am next week so we will not be able to reserve anything until we land around 9:30. Would we be able to reserve a a $ILL and G+ at 9:30, then reserve another G+ at 10:30am if the park opens at 8:30 or do we have to wait 2 hours from 9:30?


Flights rarely leave on time.
Or ask someone close to you who is not going to book them for you.


----------



## set88

cisco911 said:


> I don't know if there is a sticky somewhere but outside of Magic Kingdom, is Genie Plus really needed?  Epcot has a handful of rides, 2 of which are ILL, so why would we pay $15/person.  Doesn't seem necessary.  Same thing for animal kingdom.  We are rope drop people so we can get 1 or 2 big rides out the way right in the morning.  The only 2 places I think it would be worth while would be MK and HS.  But even then, HS is kind of a toss up.  Is there a cost/benefit analysis somewhere to show where and when it is worth getting Genie Plus?



I believe DisneyTouristBlog has done some cost benefit analysis for G+.  They recommend it for MK and maybe for HS, and not for the other two.

I think it's useful at HS as well as MK.  It obviously depends on how you value time, but if you want to do Slinky Dog, it's likely going to save you an hour right there.  I would probably value every other big ride (ToT, RnR, MMRR, TSM, MFSR) as saving ~30-45 minutes.  I'd say you'll get 4 rides total on the average day.


----------



## cisco911

set88 said:


> I believe DisneyTouristBlog has done some cost benefit analysis for G+.  They recommend it for MK and maybe for HS, and not for the other two.
> 
> I think it's useful at HS as well as MK.  It obviously depends on how you value time, but if you want to do Slinky Dog, it's likely going to save you an hour right there.  I would probably value every other big ride (ToT, RnR, MMRR, TSM, MFSR) as saving ~30-45 minutes.  I'd say you'll get 4 rides total on the average day.


Our kids won't do ToT or RnR so that side of the park will not be needed.  We will probably spend our day between star wars and Toy Story Land outside of MMRR and walking around.


----------



## set88

cisco911 said:


> Our kids won't do ToT or RnR so that side of the park will not be needed.  We will probably spend our day between star wars and Toy Story Land outside of MMRR and walking around.


Then maybe not needed, unless you're going at a high crowd time.  Depends on how much money you feel like spending vs your tolerance for lines.  Slinky Dog would be the hardest to find with a lower wait.  If you're ok with 45 minute lines and plan to do early morning/late night, I wouldn't buy it.  I'd probably be tempted to do ILL for Rise instead of G+ if I didn't plan to get both.


----------



## Tom_E_D

cisco911 said:


> I don't know if there is a sticky somewhere but outside of Magic Kingdom, is Genie Plus really needed?  Epcot has a handful of rides, 2 of which are ILL, so why would we pay $15/person.  Doesn't seem necessary.  Same thing for animal kingdom.  We are rope drop people so we can get 1 or 2 big rides out the way right in the morning.  The only 2 places I think it would be worth while would be MK and HS.  But even then, HS is kind of a toss up.  Is there a cost/benefit analysis somewhere to show where and when it is worth getting Genie Plus?


Only one ride at Epcot is an ILL, the same as at all the other parks. Once upon a time, there were two ILLs per park, but not any more.

Here is a blogpost that compares how much time Genie+ saves you at each park. Your cost-benefit depends on how much you value your time. Genie+ costs $15 per day.


----------



## itf

Marionnette said:


> HS has too many attractions that tend to go down and when they do, standby waits at other rides can reach intolerable lengths. Even on a day like today where attendance levels are relatively low and all rides are working wait times for many attractions at HS are 40+ minutes (MK attractions are almost walk-on).



I saw rise at 25 mins this morning while we were at HS. Some of the toy story rides looked excessive though and M&M being down made that one rough.

We had it for all two weeks on our ticket so we used it all parks. I don’t think it’s anywhere near essential at AK but thought it was of some use in the other three in terms of saving time. We found ourselves with a LL “going spare” a lot but it meant walking past something grabbing the LL and just walking straight on.


----------



## bluezy

cisco911 said:


> I don't know if there is a sticky somewhere but outside of Magic Kingdom, is Genie Plus really needed?  Epcot has a handful of rides, 2 of which are ILL, so why would we pay $15/person.  Doesn't seem necessary.  Same thing for animal kingdom.  We are rope drop people so we can get 1 or 2 big rides out the way right in the morning.  The only 2 places I think it would be worth while would be MK and HS.  But even then, HS is kind of a toss up.  Is there a cost/benefit analysis somewhere to show where and when it is worth getting Genie Plus?



It's not *needed* for any park technically.   As Set88 mentioned, it really comes down to how much time you're willing to stand in line and what your financial budget is.   We were at DW for 8 days in June (relatively busy time at the parks).   We had G+ for every day and used it for numerous rides every day.  We also used ILL every day (usually just one a day).   It wasn't so much that we *needed* to use G+ & ILL, but it saved us a lot of time by not having to wait in long lines.   We felt it was worth every penny and we will use it again in the future.  We had more time to relax and just take time to stop and smell the roses.   We probably could have accomplished nearly as much even without G+, but it would have required us to do rope drop almost every day (with G+ we only rope dropped 3 out of 8 days); take advantage of late nights; and just spend a lot more time waiting in lines.   I realize buying G+/ILL every day isn't in everyone's budget, but I think it's worth using at least one day at each park (AK might be the exception if there's a budget issue) especially during busy times -- which is most of the year, now.

The WDW Prep School website has charts for each park indicating how to prioritize rides when using Genie+.   Those might help you decide where it's worth buying it for you.   If most of the things you want to do are "low" priority, you can probably get away without purchasing G+.


----------



## LisaRay

diaman said:


> Our flight is scheduled to take off at 7am next week so we will not be able to reserve anything until we land around 9:30. Would we be able to reserve a a $ILL and G+ at 9:30, then reserve another G+ at 10:30am if the park opens at 8:30 or do we have to wait 2 hours from 9:30?



We booked ours while in flight on our March trip.


----------



## daisylovesdisney

set88 said:


> I believe DisneyTouristBlog has done some cost benefit analysis for G+.  They recommend it for MK and maybe for HS, and not for the other two.
> 
> I think it's useful at HS as well as MK.  It obviously depends on how you value time, but if you want to do Slinky Dog, it's likely going to save you an hour right there.  I would probably value every other big ride (ToT, RnR, MMRR, TSM, MFSR) as saving ~30-45 minutes.  I'd say you'll get 4 rides total on the average day.


I have a low tolerance for lines and found it helpful in AK and Epcot as well.  In AK we used it for Na'vi River, Safari, Kali, and Expedition Everest (my son and brother got to go twice because other in my family won't ride it and they swapped bracelets).  The sun was a beast and even though we only used it on a handful of rides it was worth it to me.


----------



## jimim

Rookie question. . .

party of 4.

1. ill$ - do you guys book your whole party for a ride or split them into 2? is it pretty hard to get 4 at the same time for any of the parks.
2. genie+ - same question.  split us into group of 2 and book closest 2 banks of times for a ride?
3. should I load my account on my wife's phone also? can she be looking at the same time as me on same account? I was always the phone person with fast pass.


----------



## DLRExpert

jimim said:


> Rookie question. . .
> 
> party of 4.
> 
> 1. ill$ - do you guys book your whole party for a ride or split them into 2? is it pretty hard to get 4 at the same time for any of the parks.
> 2. genie+ - same question.  split us into group of 2 and book closest 2 banks of times for a ride?
> 3. should I load my account on my wife's phone also? can she be looking at the same time as me on same account? I was always the phone person with fast pass.


1) whole party
2) whole party
3) yes


----------



## jimim

DLRExpert said:


> 1) whole party
> 2) whole party
> 3) yes


so my wife doesn't need a separate account of her own linked to mine?  she can be logged onto my email account on her phone?  it will let multiple devices logged onto it? my buddy just told me have her make her own account and link us to each other.  keep the kids on mine.


----------



## DLRExpert

jimim said:


> so my wife doesn't need a separate account of her own linked to mine?  she can be logged onto my email account on her phone?  it will let multiple devices logged onto it? my buddy just told me have her make her own account and link us to each other.  keep the kids on mine.


You can share the same account.
She can also add your family info on her account if she wants to.


----------



## scrappinginontario

jimim said:


> so my wife doesn't need a separate account of her own linked to mine?  she can be logged onto my email account on her phone?  it will let multiple devices logged onto it? my buddy just told me have her make her own account and link us to each other.  keep the kids on mine.


You can both log into the same account.  Many, many experiences shared on the boards and never an issue reported.


----------



## jimim

scrappinginontario said:


> You can both log into the same account.  Many, many experiences shared on the boards and never an issue reported.


ok awesome! so i assume that is a smart thing to do?  have us both on at 7AM to get ill$ or say a genie+ ride if need be? or even a virtual queue ride like cosmic rewind?  i'm sorry i feel like such a rookie. its been awhile it feels.


----------



## DLRExpert

jimim said:


> ok awesome! so i assume that is a smart thing to do?  have us both on at 7AM to get ill$ or say a genie+ ride if need be? or even a virtual queue ride like cosmic rewind?  i'm sorry i feel like such a rookie. its been awhile it feels.


It is probably the easiest.
If you are familiar with the app you can also just use two devices at the same time. For example, I use my phone and my ipad.
Family can stay asleep or do what they have to do in the morning.


----------



## jimim

DLRExpert said:


> It is probably the easiest.
> If you are familiar with the app you can also just use two devices at the same time. For example, I use my phone and my ipad.
> Family can stay asleep or do what they have to do in the morning.


right right.  yah im mindless i think at times.  so for VC rides I setup the list of people I want pass for before 7 AM. then I hit refresh or join group right at 7 AM?  thats about it?

is that the same process for ill$?  you setup the group first or do you just pick the ride at 7 AM and select guests and time like old day of fast passes?

am i missing something.  im not worrying about genie+  its a 11 day trip. we will just suck it up for the stuff thats new on genie+ like mickey and minnie train in HS and SR in GE.  We haven't even seen star wars land yet.  its been that long.


----------



## scrappinginontario

jimim said:


> right right.  yah im mindless i think at times.  so for VC rides I setup the list of people I want pass for before 7 AM. then I hit refresh or join group right at 7 AM?  thats about it?
> 
> is that the same process for ill$?  you setup the group first or do you just pick the ride at 7 AM and select guests and time like old day of fast passes?
> 
> am i missing something.  im not worrying about genie+  its a 11 day trip. we will just suck it up for the stuff thats new on genie+ like mickey and minnie train in HS and SR in GE.  We haven't even seen star wars land yet.  its been that long.


Are you aware of the '*Everything Genie*' thread?  That might be a place to look.  The posts on page 1 summarize Genie+ and ILL$ and were recently updated to reflect recent changes and tweak previous posts since we understand the program more now.


----------



## js

DLRExpert said:


> It is probably the easiest.
> If you are familiar with the app you can also just use two devices at the same time. For example, I use my phone and my ipad.
> Family can stay asleep or do what they have to do in the morning.



Hi.
I'm planning for my trip next month.
Why do I want my phone and ipad? Is it just because in case one doesn't work? Or do you use one and have the other ready to go?
Thank you very much!


----------



## Erica Ladd

jimim said:


> js said:
> 
> 
> 
> Hi.
> I'm planning for my trip next month.
> Why do I want my phone and ipad? Is it just because in case one doesn't work? Or do you use one and have the other ready to go?
> Thank you very much!
> 
> 
> 
> So you can book 2 things simultaneously
Click to expand...


----------



## BunsenH

js, I think that the strategy is to constantly refresh both devices to "double" your chances of getting a good time slot. I have heard that some people use data on their phone and Wifi on the iPad to try different paths.


----------



## jimim

I’m bringing all 6 iPads from my house and I’ll have 3 iPhones in front of me. That should cover me. I hope. I might hire some day labor to sit with me and refresh. 

Joke. But it is what we have come to. Horrible.  I think I’m going to buy ill$ for cosmic rewind and rise. I don’t care about avatar cause we have been on it a ton. Mine train same. Tons. If trinity is open I’ll buy that also. I don’t feel like dealing with it all. We will still do our rope drops like we used to. I might. Might do genie plus for HS only cause we have not been on the falcon and Mickey Minnie train. That will help for toy story land cause my kids love it over there still. Other than that we wait. We got 9 full full park days. All we really have to do is star wars land and stuff that opened after that so not too much.  I’m already into it for a lot for tickets cause we have up our Al’s during Covid so what’s a few hundred more to keep me sane.


----------



## itf

For what it’s worth, I did all my genie selection on one device, and we rode every ride via genie or paid lightning lane during the trip (yes even star tours, it’s a small world etc). I also paid no attention to if I was on mobile data or resort wifi. The only thing that ever mattered was the time and order of choosing selections. If I made first selection bang on 7 (using my watch to see seconds) I was always in an early morning boarding group. Same with paid things at park open as an offsite guest, could get Rise etc


----------



## paopiru

set88 said:


> I agree with the suggestion for Splash / Thunder as your RD at MK.  I would choose Jungle Cruise or Peter Pan for your first G+, although the first choice doesn't matter as much as the other parks (everything has decent availability to be a second or third pick).
> 
> For HS, I would definitely not RD Slinky and especially not Rise... they'll be too crowded.  I would go for RnR or ToT.  Yes, Smugglers and TSM tend to have decent availability as LL picks.  Slinky should definitely be the first pick at 7am.  Next pick Smugglers, then Tot, RnR, Runway Railway if you want any of those... TSM can be saved for a later pick.
> 
> EPCOT - Book Remy at 7am for sure.  It can be gone before you get to make your second pick.  Second pick is TT or Frozen, whichever you prefer knowing you likely won't get the other.  Soarin will be available as a third pick.
> 
> If you're spending the whole day at EPCOT, don't sweat the VQ for Guardians too much.  If you don't get in at 7am, you can get in at 1pm VERY easily.  As long as you try at 1pm, you'll get a boarding group for sure.


Hi, I have this same plan but two options for HS, one with RoTR ILL and one RD RoTR.  I'm also staying off property and getting an RoTR at park opening is not always possible.  The line for RoTR will be shorter as soon as the park opens or before closing, but this last option is good if you have another day at HS.  Breakdowns for that ride are high so consider this when planning.


----------



## mamacass

We are planning on using genie plus for AK although I understand it might not be needed.  we aren’t planning on getting there until around 10:00. My question is will we still need to get up at 7:00 to try and get the ILL and the first genie plus ride or can we wait until later to try? Looking at the wait times today they seem pretty manageable. Does anything ever run out at AK? Thanks!


----------



## GBRforWDW

mamacass said:


> We are planning on using genie plus for AK although I understand it might not be needed.  we aren’t planning on getting there until around 10:00. My question is will we still need to get up at 7:00 to try and get the ILL and the first genie plus ride or can we wait until later to try? Looking at the wait times today they seem pretty manageable. Does anything ever run out at AK? Thanks!


Probably depends a bit on when you go, but here's Monday's data for how long LLs were available for each attraction



Basically, you could wait til you got up, but I'd definitely get up before park opening to grab your first one so you're eligible again 2 hours after park opening for your second one.


----------



## jods

mamacass said:


> We are planning on using genie plus for AK although I understand it might not be needed.  we aren’t planning on getting there until around 10:00. My question is will we still need to get up at 7:00 to try and get the ILL and the first genie plus ride or can we wait until later to try? Looking at the wait times today they seem pretty manageable. Does anything ever run out at AK? Thanks!


I was there a few weeks ago before the lull.  I got up at 7 to book for AK but my family didn't get up became we had the Halloween party the night before. I totally could have slept in.  The only good think is my firs


----------



## petbren

Hello all. 
Doing one day at EPCOT next week. 
First trip back since we sold our DVC in 2020 so staying off property. 
First trip since Genie +
Will be there at park opening. 
I have read crowds are low right now. 
want to ride Soarin, Test Track and Ratatouille. 
Do you think we will need Genie +. Just 2 adults going. 
i would rather spend my 30 US dollars on Food and Wine booths. 
Thoughts?


----------



## set88

petbren said:


> Hello all.
> Doing one day at EPCOT next week.
> First trip back since we sold our DVC in 2020 so staying off property.
> First trip since Genie +
> Will be there at park opening.
> I have read crowds are low right now.
> want to ride Soarin, Test Track and Ratatouille.
> Do you think we will need Genie +. Just 2 adults going.
> i would rather spend my 30 US dollars on Food and Wine booths.
> Thoughts?


I would save your money, the parks have been pretty dead.  Remy is likely to have the longest line of those 3 and according to the data, the average peak wait over the last week is 65 minutes.  Average wait overall is 45 minutes.  As long as you go when crowds are lower (such as in the evening) you probably won't have to wait more than 30 minutes.  

Average wait for Test Track has been 47 minutes and for Soarin, 14 minutes.


----------



## daisylovesdisney

petbren said:


> Hello all.
> Doing one day at EPCOT next week.
> First trip back since we sold our DVC in 2020 so staying off property.
> First trip since Genie +
> Will be there at park opening.
> I have read crowds are low right now.
> want to ride Soarin, Test Track and Ratatouille.
> Do you think we will need Genie +. Just 2 adults going.
> i would rather spend my 30 US dollars on Food and Wine booths.
> Thoughts?



I think you'll be fine, especially if you are okay to do single rider on Test Track.


----------



## Grumpy by Birth

G+ actually worked pretty well for us last week.  I'd purchased it for length of stay when that was an option, otherwise I might have skipped purchasing for EPCOT and AK.  But our days went pretty much like this...

EPCOT - booked VQ BG for GotG at 7 am and then LL for Remy.  Remy was down during the morning and we got an automatic "any time" LL for it.  After riding GotG, I was able to book a LL for Frozen that was only about 45ish minutes in the future.  After that, I ended up having to keep checking and waiting for return times to get late enough for TT, Soarin', & SE because we wanted to just spend some time walking around World Showcase, sampling Food & Wine, and seeing Voices of Liberty and the American Adventure.

Eventually, I went ahead and booked Soarin' for essentially an immediate return time.  The line was only about 15 minutes long and pretty much to the merge point, so it didn't really make a difference.  Same with Spaceship Earth.  I was able to book a LL for TT, but due to weather, it closed and never came back up, so I didn't ride TT this visit.

DHS - I booked LL for SDD and then ILL$ for RotR.  Slinky was down during the morning, so we got another "any time" LL for it.  I booked MF:SR as our next LL and didn't have to wait two hours before our time and eligibility to book the next one.  We then got LL for MMRR.  We used our any time LL for SDD (bypassing a 1-hour+ line) and then went to our RotR ILL$ reservation around 1 pm.

After that, I booked a LL for ToT, which was essentially an immediate return time, followed by RnRC (again with an return time that I didn't have to wait for).  I then booked a LL for Jungle Cruise (one of the few rides with a return time late enough).

We hopped back to EPCOT to get some more Food & Wine samples for our evening meal and then ride the monorail over to MK.  We got to MK around 7 pm and I immediately booked another LL for Haunted Mansion.  We rode JC and HM.  We then rode Pirates using the SB line (it was a walk-on, so no point in booking LL for it).

I had pretty good luck stacking LLs for the park we were hopping too, but because it was a lot less busy than previous weeks, I kept having to wait until return times were late enough.

For AK, I booked ILL$ for FoP at 7 am.  I knew we weren't going to get to the park early after being at MK until almost 1 am, and return times for the Safari and NRJ were both too early, so I nodded back off to half asleep and woke up every know and then to check my phone... return times still too early.  Eventually, a time popped up for NRJ that was late enough for when we would be arriving and I snagged it.  We got LL for the Safari next, and then one for FotLK.

SB lines for Dinosaur, EE, etc. were really short.  No need for a LL and because a bad thunderstorm was threatening, we decided to skip the other rides and head back to the resort anyway.

Overall, I was satisfied with G+.  Using these strategies, I was able to get as many LLs in a day as I used to get FPs in the old days.  Ironically, I think I could have gotten more if it had been slightly busier because I would have been able to obtain LLs with return times late enough and started the clock for my next one sooner.

For some of the rides, lines were short and it didn't save us a significant amount of time, but it was good "insurance" because it did save us between 45-90 minutes for several rides throughout the week.  It really enhances a visit for us when we don't wait more than 15 minutes for ANY of the rides.


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## Frozen2014

We got back a couple weeks ago and although I didn't like having the extra cost, I really liked Genie+, and that was during low crowds.  Even though a lot of rides were walk on, it still let us bypass lines for those that weren't at least once.

At Magic Kingdom, we used it for almost every non-show ride (not needed for shows).  Even if the lines were 30 minutes, it let us bypass that.  

At Epcot, you really didn't need it overall as rides such as Soarin, Living with the Land, etc were walk on. However, the 3 headliners were long waits: Test Track, Remy and Frozen.  And since it was low crowds, we were able to grab a LL for each of them.  Normally, from what they sell out so may not work to use it for all 3.

At Animal Kingdom, probably not worth it  It was quite ridiculous for us as we saw Avatar having a wait time of 10 - 15 minutes at a few points (and were annoyed we had paid for it).  It was good for attractions like Everest and Navi.  The Safari ride was walk on.

At Hollywood Studios, it helped for Millennium Falcon, Tower of Terror, Rock n Roll Rollercoaster and SDD.  I would also say that a $ILL was worth it for Rise as that line never went down from when I looked.


----------



## Nick6300

These past few recent trips since the start of Genie, we've been using it about 5-6 for every 8 park days (7 night stays typically). Our May trip, only 4 bought G+ days, and this past week only 2 days out of 8 (planned for 5). And it actually worked out great. 

Prior to the 1st trip since G+, we had it in our heads (and I think many people feel that they have to buy it) that we'd want it nearly every day, based on our RD to close, fast paced ride hungry touring style, at least for MK/HS. However, this past trip being in early Sept., crowds were lower than many times of the year. It also rained heavily for several hours (not just briefly in afternoon), which not only took out some crowds but caused outdoor attraction closings.  Wife being pregnant played into experimenting without G+ more. We had more table service on non G+ days, along with piling ride heavy lineups on G+ days and lower wait time rides, F&W booths and concert, and shows (Presidents, Country Bears, Philhar, Carousel, etc.). were set aside for non G+ days. We also had 2 TL days and didn't feel that we were going to get full use of G those days. Before we knew it, we had 2 G+ uses and the 2nd one which was MK on Labor Day was a waste since wait times were the lowest we've seen in several years. 7D was typically listed at 40 and actual was 20-25 in the heart of the day not near Enchantment. I went on 2-3x on the 3 mountains multiple times. It just illustrates that it's not always a must to buy G+ each day. A lot of variables and personal preferences, like anything else, go into if G+ is necessary or not. The past 2 earnings calls, Chapek touted the increase in G+ use, now at about 50% of attendance. Not looking forward to when we get to a price increase once they feel justified in doing so.


----------



## HockeyMomNH

Yesterday, 9/13,  my DH and I celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary by completing a 6 park/30 ride challenge starting at Universal for two parks and then doing all 4 Disney parks.  I thought I would post the results here since we made excellent use of G+ and ILL.

We purchased G+ at 7 as we were walking to early hours at IOA.  We had to wait a few minutes to get Peter Pan out to 10:40 so that we could use it when we arrived. At 8:00 (MK park opening) we scheduled SDMT at 2:10 and GoG for 8:00.  At 10:10 we scheduled Pooh for 12:05.  After that we just used G+ to schedule the next available ride in MK.  We booked EE while we were leaving MK for 3:20, and we booked TSMM from AK for 4:45.  After that it took some refreshing and a bit of luck but DH snagged a Remy for 8:20.

Final numbers:
18.8 miles walked
31 rides (listed below)
10 G+ rides

8am Park opening at Islands of Adventure
9pm Park close at Epcot

Rides at Universal's Islands of Adventure:
Hagrid's Motorbike Roller Coaster
Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey
Flight of the Hippogriff coaster
One Fish Two Fish
The Cat in the Hat
Spiderman
Hulk Coaster

Rides at Universal Studios Florida:
Jimmy Fallon Race Through New York
Men in Black Alien Attack
Simpsons Hurl and Curl

Rides at Magic Kingdom:
Peter Pan -  G+
Winnie the Pooh - G+
Tea Cups
Dumbo
Barnstormer
Little Mermaid
Thunder Mountain Railroad - G+
Pirates of the Caribbean - G+
Aladdin's Magic Carpets
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train - ILL
Space Mountain - G+
Buzz Lightyear - G+
Haunted Mansion - G+

Rides at Animal Kingdom:
Expedition Everest - G+
Triceratops Spin
Dinosaur

Rides at Hollywood Studios:
Toy Story Midway Mania - G+
Star Tours

Rides at Epcot:
Test Track
Remy's Ratatouille Adventure - G+
Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind - ILL


----------



## scrappinginontario

HockeyMomNH said:


> Yesterday, 9/13,  my DH and I celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary by completing a 6 park/30 ride challenge starting at Universal for two parks and then doing all 4 Disney parks.  I thought I would post the results here since we made excellent use of G+ and ILL.
> 
> We purchased G+ at 7 as we were walking to early hours at IOA.  We had to wait a few minutes to get Peter Pan out to 10:40 so that we could use it when we arrived. At 8:00 (MK park opening) we scheduled SDMT at 2:10 and GoG for 8:00.  At 10:10 we scheduled Pooh for 12:05.  After that we just used G+ to schedule the next available ride in MK.  We booked EE while we were leaving MK for 3:20, and we booked TSMM from AK for 4:45.  After that it took some refreshing and a bit of luck but DH snagged a Remy for 8:20.
> 
> Final numbers:
> 18.8 miles walked
> 31 rides (listed below)
> 10 G+ rides
> 
> 8am Park opening at Islands of Adventure
> 9pm Park close at Epcot
> 
> Rides at Universal's Islands of Adventure:
> Hagrid's Motorbike Roller Coaster
> Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey
> Flight of the Hippogriff coaster
> One Fish Two Fish
> The Cat in the Hat
> Spiderman
> Hulk Coaster
> 
> Rides at Universal Studios Florida:
> Jimmy Fallon Race Through New York
> Men in Black Alien Attack
> Simpsons Hurl and Curl
> 
> Rides at Magic Kingdom:
> Peter Pan -  G+
> Winnie the Pooh - G+
> Tea Cups
> Dumbo
> Barnstormer
> Little Mermaid
> Thunder Mountain Railroad - G+
> Pirates of the Caribbean - G+
> Aladdin's Magic Carpets
> Seven Dwarfs Mine Train - ILL
> Space Mountain - G+
> Buzz Lightyear - G+
> Haunted Mansion - G+
> 
> Rides at Animal Kingdom:
> Expedition Everest - G+
> Triceratops Spin
> Dinosaur
> 
> Rides at Hollywood Studios:
> Toy Story Midway Mania - G+
> Star Tours
> 
> Rides at Epcot:
> Test Track
> Remy's Ratatouille Adventure - G+
> Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind - ILL


 

Wow!! That’s impressive!! Good for you!!


----------



## inspectorgadget

I need to make sure I understand making a Genie+ reservation correctly. I can't "practice" this part because I'm not in the parks yet and I haven't visited since Genie+ came around. Let's say I choose a time for 2:00pm. Does that mean my window is from 1:55-2:15? Or does it work like FastPass+ did and the window is from 1:55-3:15?


----------



## CJK

inspectorgadget said:


> I need to make sure I understand making a Genie+ reservation correctly. I can't "practice" this part because I'm not in the parks yet and I haven't visited since Genie+ came around. Let's say I choose a time for 2:00pm. Does that mean my window is from 1:55-2:15? Or does it work like FastPass+ did and the window is from 1:55-3:15?


In your example, it works like fast pass did with the hour long window, plus 5 minutes before and 15 minutes after.


----------



## inspectorgadget

CJK said:


> In your example, it works like fast pass did with the hour long window, plus 5 minutes before and 15 minutes after.


Ok great. thanks!


----------



## Lisa P.

Please note that you don't choose a time with G+. The app will show one specific time offered and you take it or you don't. Occasionally, it'll say one time and give you a later time because someone else booked it before your request was processed.

With the paid ILL$ (individual lightning lane purchase - 1 in each park), the app will show a variety of times and you may choose from those.


----------



## inspectorgadget

Lisa P. said:


> Please note that you don't choose a time with G+. The app will show one specific time offered and you take it or you don't. Occasionally, it'll say one time and give you a later time because someone else booked it before your request was processed.
> 
> With the paid ILL$ (individual lightning lane purchase - 1 in each park), the app will show a variety of times and you may choose from those.


Yes, I get that. Perhaps I used the word "choose" incorrectly. I just did not know how long the window for each time is.


----------



## leeniewdw

*knock*knock*  Is this thread still active?

I'm getting a bit concerned about our 3 day trip in November (park days 10,11, 12).  We have G+ for all days already and will be buying ILL$s each day (we are traveling with 2 adult DS + SOs).

On our AK/EP day, I'm trying to figure out order of operations at 7am.   I want to purchase ILL$ for GotG and FOP.    I'd also like to try to get Remy.    Is this even doable?  If so, what order is best to try.   We'll be doing AK in the morning and hop to EP (probably with short break).    I'd love to G+ Everest, but I think there's no way to delay Remy.


----------



## Gentry2004

leeniewdw said:


> *knock*knock*  Is this thread still active?
> 
> I'm getting a bit concerned about our 3 day trip in November (park days 10,11, 12).  We have G+ for all days already and will be buying ILL$s each day (we are traveling with 2 adult DS + SOs).
> 
> On our AK/EP day, I'm trying to figure out order of operations at 7am.   I want to purchase ILL$ for GotG and FOP.    I'd also like to try to get Remy.    Is this even doable?  If so, what order is best to try.   We'll be doing AK in the morning and hop to EP (probably with short break).    I'd love to G+ Everest, but I think there's no way to delay Remy.


 This is all definitely doable. Both of those ILL's will be available for quite a while at 7am and therefore the order you book doesn't matter. Remy is a Genie+ ride, but assuming you are park hopping to Epcot, you won't be able to book it until return times reach 2pm. So you'll just keep checking return times until they do and then book it.


----------



## leeniewdw

Gentry2004 said:


> This is all definitely doable. Both of those ILL's will be available for quite a while at 7am and therefore the order you book doesn't matter. Remy is a Genie+ ride, but assuming you are park hopping to Epcot, you won't be able to book it until return times reach 2pm. So you'll just keep checking return times until they do and then book it.



Ok thanks!  And thanks for that reminder about the "wait for post PH times" in G+, keep forgetting.


----------



## Disturbia

leeniewdw said:


> *knock*knock*  Is this thread still active?
> 
> I'm getting a bit concerned about our 3 day trip in November (park days 10,11, 12).  We have G+ for all days already and will be buying ILL$s each day (we are traveling with 2 adult DS + SOs).
> 
> On our AK/EP day, I'm trying to figure out order of operations at 7am.   I want to purchase ILL$ for GotG and FOP.    I'd also like to try to get Remy.    Is this even doable?  If so, what order is best to try.   We'll be doing AK in the morning and hop to EP (probably with short break).    I'd love to G+ Everest, but I think there's no way to delay Remy.


Remy is now a Genie+ ride.  I’m seeing it’s already sold out. 

If you’re staying at a deluxe resort you get a third VQ try for GOTG at 6 pm on an extended evening hour day only (Mondays)


----------



## Gentry2004

Disturbia said:


> Remy is now a Genie+ ride.  I’m seeing it’s already sold out.
> 
> If you’re staying at a deluxe resort you get a third VQ try for GOTG at 6 pm on an extended evening hour day only (Mondays)
> 
> View attachment 709991


Based on this it looks like you should probably try to book Remy first thing at 7am. If returns times are before 2pm, it won't let you book yet but just keep trying until it goes through. Then move on to buying FOP and GotG. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong.


----------



## leeniewdw

On the VQ front.  Since we're hopping to EP, we won't be in park at 1pm.   So can I grab a VQ at 7am and if so what are the odds of having a BG called after 2pm?   We're willing to buy the ILL, but figured it doesn't hurt to try for the VQ too.


----------



## ItsMEH

leeniewdw said:


> On the VQ front.  Since we're hopping to EP, we won't be in park at 1pm.   So can I grab a VQ at 7am and if so what are the odds of having a BG called after 2pm?   We're willing to buy the ILL, but figured it doesn't hurt to try for the VQ too.


So far reports are that no one has been turned away for showing up late for their VQ. Even showing up hours after it's called, but I don't think you can enter the VQ if your park reservation is not for Epcot.


----------



## leeniewdw

ItsMEH said:


> So far reports are that no one has been turned away for showing up late for their VQ. Even showing up hours after it's called, but I don't think you can enter the VQ if your park reservation is not for Epcot.



Ok that makes sense actually!  Thanks.

We have 3 park days and are doing HS + MVMCP on day 1,  AK/EP day 2, and as of now have HS for Day 3 (with an Oga's reservation for 6:45pm).   We've been going back and forth about what park reservation that day should be.   Going with 4 young adults who haven't been to WDW since they were tweens makes it hard to guess what they'd want to revisit the most.    And based on last year, that Saturday will fill in some parks.


----------



## Disturbia

I just saw a tiered pricing, snikki was right all along!

https://www.wdwinfo.com/news-stories/disney-genie-plus-cost-moves-to-tiered-pricing-based-on-date/


----------



## g-dad66

Gentry2004 said:


> Based on this it looks like you should probably try to book Remy first thing at 7am. If returns times are before 2pm, it won't let you book yet but just keep trying until it goes through. Then move on to buying FOP and GotG. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong.



I would agree with that.

Remy and Slinky are very similar in how fast they sell out.  We rope-dropped Remy this past week, but can report experience booking Slinky LL for our Animal Kingdom to Hollywood Studios parkhop day.

Right at 7:00, I tried for Slinky and got message that indicated that LL time was too soon.  Backed out and tried again and then it showed LL for 5:30 which conflicted with a dinner reservation.  So I played the refresh game for a while and then a 3:30 popped up, which we successfully grabbed.


----------



## leeniewdw

g-dad66 said:


> I would agree with that.
> 
> Remy and Slinky are very similar in how fast they sell out.  We rope-dropped Remy this past week, but can report experience booking Slinky LL for our Animal Kingdom to Hollywood Studios parkhop day.
> 
> Right at 7:00, I tried for Slinky and got message that indicated that LL time was too soon.  Backed out and tried again and then it showed LL for 5:30 which conflicted with a dinner reservation.  So I played the refresh game for a while and then a 3:30 popped up, which we successfully grabbed.



Great thanks!   

I'll have to do this for HS on our arrival day since we won't be in the park until 1:30 or 2:00 (airlines willing).   We're trying to decide between aiming for SDD or MFSM as our "target".  We've only got 3-4 hours at HS before heading to MK so it has to be a sweet spot.

Has anyone successfully used MDE on a plane?   The next "grab" time for us will be 10:30am (park opening at 8:30) and we will for sure be in the air.   It's Delta.  I flew Delta last week and even the messaging wouldn't work.   I wonder if I need to pay for upgraded wifi?   I mean, I'm paying all this money for tickets, G+, ILL, MVMCP -- what's another few $$ to get WiFi for reserving a LL! LOL.


----------



## Disturbia

leeniewdw said:


> Great thanks!
> 
> I'll have to do this for HS on our arrival day since we won't be in the park until 1:30 or 2:00 (airlines willing).   We're trying to decide between aiming for SDD or MFSM as our "target".  We've only got 3-4 hours at HS before heading to MK so it has to be a sweet spot.
> 
> Has anyone successfully used MDE on a plane?   The next "grab" time for us will be 10:30am (park opening at 8:30) and we will for sure be in the air.   It's Delta.  I flew Delta last week and even the messaging wouldn't work.   I wonder if I need to pay for upgraded wifi?   I mean, I'm paying all this money for tickets, G+, ILL, MVMCP -- what's another few $$ to get WiFi for reserving a LL! LOL.


I was able to book Frozen by super refreshing before we were told to turn our phones to airplane mode.  This was during Spring break.  It took me over an hour and I saw Frozen pop up 3-4 times and clicked it but I wasn’t fast enough.  Keep trying.

I would book SDD as MFSR has a single rider (age 7+ can ride single)

We did get WiFi for entertainment (2.5 year old wearing mask) and it froze multiple times.  Honestly it wouldn’t be worth the stress.  Can you have a trusted family member book it while you’re in the air?


----------



## leeniewdw

For us, the flight doesn't leave until 9:40am, so I'll be able to do all the 7am stuff fine.  It's the 10:30am stuff where we will for sure be in flight (until they changed park opening I was afraid I'd miss the 11am grab because we'd be descending and WiFi might be off).     If the flight is on time, it would land around 11:20am, so I'd be almost an hour later than everyone else (who didn't have an earlier return time and already grabbed their 2nd LL).

The first time I did the 7am grab at an airport I was literally in line (SW) for a 7:25am flight and I managed the 2 ILLs (at the time) and MFSR just as I'd wanted.   When I got done and did a "YES" with a fist pump the lady behind me broke out laughing.


----------



## g-dad66

leeniewdw said:


> Great thanks!
> 
> I'll have to do this for HS on our arrival day since we won't be in the park until 1:30 or 2:00 (airlines willing).   We're trying to decide between aiming for SDD or MFSM as our "target".  We've only got 3-4 hours at HS before heading to MK so it has to be a sweet spot.
> 
> Has anyone successfully used MDE on a plane?   The next "grab" time for us will be 10:30am (park opening at 8:30) and we will for sure be in the air.   It's Delta.  I flew Delta last week and even the messaging wouldn't work.   I wonder if I need to pay for upgraded wifi?   I mean, I'm paying all this money for tickets, G+, ILL, MVMCP -- what's another few $$ to get WiFi for reserving a LL! LOL.



SDD will be the only ride with a post-2:00 LL time by 8:30, so it will have to be your first grab if you want your second grab to be at 10:30.


----------



## leeniewdw

Disturbia said:


> I was able to book Frozen by super refreshing before we were told to turn our phones to airplane mode.  This was during Spring break.  It took me over an hour and I saw Frozen pop up 3-4 times and clicked it but I wasn’t fast enough.  Keep trying.
> 
> I would book SDD as MFSR has a single rider (age 7+ can ride single)
> 
> We did get WiFi for entertainment (2.5 year old wearing mask) and it froze multiple times.  Honestly it wouldn’t be worth the stress.  Can you have a trusted family member book it while you’re in the air?



We're a traveling party of 6 (my adult kids plus wife/gf) so maybe I'd have my sister do it (if she doesn't have something more important).    And since we're a party of 6, we really want to all ride together!



g-dad66 said:


> SDD will be the only ride with a post-2:00 LL time by 8:30, so it will have to be your first grab if you want your second grab to be at 10:30.



That's what I was wondering.   And this would apply even on the Thursday of "jersey week" (which I just recently learned was a thing).   Will have to make a quick decision because I know SDD will evaporate and then I'll be stuck.   

This is all so ridiculous, it just makes me laugh!   Pay for this and that, but still have to come up with a if-then-else strategy to deploy when it's go time!

Thanks for all the thoughts/help!


----------



## Disturbia

This thread might help WiFi and genie+ inflight:

https://www.disboards.com/threads/genie-during-southwest-flight.3890109/


----------



## Bibbobboo2u

According to genie plus helper (which uses thrill data info), yesterday Remy LL was gone by 7:15am, Frozen by 9:10, and  Test Track by 9:50.  The park opened at 8:30, so the first time to book another LL (after initial 7am booking) would have been 10:30.  How did LLs for Frozen and TT book up before 10:30?  Did some people wait to book their first ride until those times? Did others have first ride times before 10:30, so they were able to pull next LL before 10:30?  I can understand those rides being gone at 10:30, but I am confused about how they were gone before even having the ability to choose a second LL.


----------



## NJlauren

Bibbobboo2u said:


> According to genie plus helper (which uses thrill data info), yesterday Remy LL was gone by 7:15am, Frozen by 9:10, and  Test Track by 9:50.  The park opened at 8:30, so the first time to book another LL (after initial 7am booking) would have been 10:30.  How did LLs for Frozen and TT book up before 10:30?  Did some people wait to book their first ride until those times? Did others have first ride times before 10:30, so they were able to pull next LL before 10:30?  I can understand those rides being gone at 10:30, but I am confused about how they were gone before even having the ability to choose a second LL.


If the park opens at 8:30 and my first LL is 9, I can grab one right away so Technically people can be grabbing a 2nd one before 9.  Some people may sleep in and book later.  And the last one if someone is trying to stack and wait for a time post 2pm retun time (due to hopping or just preference) so they waited till say frozen got to a 6pm return time they might just grab their first one at 9.


----------



## Bibbobboo2u

NJlauren said:


> If the park opens at 8:30 and my first LL is 9, I can grab one right away so Technically people can be grabbing a 2nd one before 9.  Some people may sleep in and book later.  And the last one if someone is trying to stack and wait for a time post 2pm retun time (due to hopping or just preference) so they waited till say frozen got to a 6pm return time they might just grab their first one at 9.


Thanks - I had thought about the first 2 cases, but I had forgotten about park hoppers "stacking".  Only being able to use G+ for one of the 3 most popular rides is disappointing.  It's the equivalent of paying ILL price for that one G+ ride you were able to book.  I know there are other G+ rides at Epcot, but they are often walk-ons or have very limited wait times.


----------



## kyplly

I'm headed to DW this month on the 28th and I'm trying to figure out if you need a park reservation at a certain park in order to get an ILL$. We have park hoppers as well.  I have seen nothing saying that that is a restriction, but I want to confirm here. Does anyone have an answer?


----------



## g-dad66

kyplly said:


> I'm headed to DW this month on the 28th and I'm trying to figure out if you need a park reservation at a certain park in order to get an ILL$. We have park hoppers as well.  I have seen nothing saying that that is a restriction, but I want to confirm here. Does anyone have an answer?


With a park hopper ticket, you can purchase an ILL$ in any of the four parks, but you can only purchase two ILL$ per day.


----------



## kyplly

thank you so much!


----------



## leeniewdw

I've got about 2 weeks and a few days, but the anxiety of bringing 4 other people (young adults) with us is ramping up lol. 

If I have a day (Saturday of "jersey week") where I want to try for GoG ILL,  RISE ILL, and SDD, would it make sense to split up the "jobs" between DH and I (I'm thinking by our 3rd day, he'll be able to use G+, typically I manage all of this).

What would be recommendation.    Me go for SDD, while he's is getting GoG, then grab Rise?

Editing to ask a different question.  If you were ranking the demand of GoG, FoP, Rise, what would it be?   I'm not sure what our DSs will want to revisit on our 3rd day, so just curious on thoughts.   I try to use Thrill Data but figured I'd get real opinions.


----------



## snikki

I would go for GoG while I let DH go for SDD. Once done with the VQ I would get Rise. Seems Rise isn't going as fast anymore but the VQ goes within seconds and SDD goes out to late times within a minute.


----------



## Kingoglow

leeniewdw said:


> I've got about 2 weeks and a few days, but the anxiety of bringing 4 other people (young adults) with us is ramping up lol.
> 
> If I have a day (Saturday of "jersey week") where I want to try for GoG ILL,  RISE ILL, and SDD, would it make sense to split up the "jobs" between DH and I (I'm thinking by our 3rd day, he'll be able to use G+, typically I manage all of this).
> 
> What would be recommendation.    Me go for SDD, while he's is getting GoG, then grab Rise?
> 
> Editing to ask a different question.  If you were ranking the demand of GoG, FoP, Rise, what would it be?   I'm not sure what our DSs will want to revisit on our 3rd day, so just curious on thoughts.   I try to use Thrill Data but figured I'd get real opinions.




Since you are going for reservations in two different parks, the ride times that you select will matter more to you than for a group that is staying in one park. Your plan of have two people working at the same time does work well for this sort of strategy. Whichever one of you is most comfortable navigating the app should be the one to book SDD (the non-ILL ride).

That person should have an idea of the window of time that would work best for your party and refresh the SDD LL selections until you get close to that time. Jump on any time that is near the window of time you want, because you are not guaranteed a time until you finish this booking process, and the time will change.

The second person should also know when you want to be at each of the ILLs that day, and can easily pick a time slot for each of those rides without much stress. Plan enough time to do what you want to do in HS and take the transportation between parks and walk to GoGCRR.

As to your second question, I can say this: Rise always has a high ILL price due to the demand to ride it without waiting in the standby line. FOP has a lot of demand as well but less of a price. Both stand by lines can reach times of well over an hour. Rise costs more, but I think it is a better ride.

GOGCRR has both ILL and a VQ so there are two ways to access the ride, but there still is no stand by. This makes the choice for GGCRR easy. Do I want to pay? If not, did I get a spot in the VQ? If not, do I care about the afternoon VQ? If not, forget about it.


----------



## Gentry2004

Is there still time to buy a GotG ILL if you miss out on the 7am VQ? Also, is there still time to buy RotR after trying for SDD?


----------



## snikki

In the My Day section of the Genie I have edited my selections for our first park day on 11/4 but when I go to the tip board it doesn't show my selections first. Will that change on 11/4 or do I also have to edit my selections prior to 7 am on the tip board?


----------



## NJlauren

Gentry2004 said:


> Is there still time to buy a GotG ILL if you miss out on the 7am VQ? Also, is there still time to buy RotR after trying for SDD?


GOTG - yes I was able to buy ILL after VQ if you get VQ you could go twice!

ROTR - less likely, I have had little luck getting both.  I was able to one time, but I got a very late SDD and a later Rise, but that was August and it was low crowds.  All times I have my kids pick the priority and go for that first and hope I get lucky and get both.


----------



## TropicalDIS

Back from a 10 day trip. Tried 3 times for the GOTG VQ, got it once, the other two times it was full in seconds. Both times I missed it there was plenty of time to buy the ILL, with multiple time options.


----------



## gharter

We were there last week.  Went to MK on a party day, by design.  We stacked Genie + for the afternoon as the morning was very quiet.  We did early entry and ILL$ for 7DMT.  By 6 pm, we had done 19 attractions and rides using a combination of standby and 6 LL's.


----------



## Gentry2004

gharter said:


> We were there last week.  Went to MK on a party day, by design.  We stacked Genie + for the afternoon as the morning was very quiet.  We did early entry and ILL$ for 7DMT.  By 6 pm, we had done 19 attractions and rides using a combination of standby and 6 LL's.


Thanks. Do you remember which Genie+ rides you chose in which order? At least the first 2 or 3? Thanks!


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## gharter

Gentry2004 said:


> Thanks. Do you remember which Genie+ rides you chose in which order? At least the first 2 or 3? Thanks!


Our 1st was Jungle Cruise at 1.  Purchased 7DMT as ILL$.
Did Space Mtn,  Buzz, HM, splash, BTMRR, Pirates standby.
Genie + was Jungle cruise 1,  HM 1:30, Pirates 2:15, BTMRR 3, Buzz 3:45, SM 5.  Just kept stacking the afternoon as the park was not crowded in the morning.  I think we just very lucky how the times worked out for us.

I would put the first Genie + no earlier than 2 hours after park opening as most days you can walk on most rides with a short wait.  Putting the first early afternoon, gave us additional at 10:30 and 12:30 to stack in the afternoon, so we had 3 in place before our 1st one.  Then you could get an additional one after we did Jungle Cruise.  After that, the times we could get another Genie + didn't seem to make sense.  Sometimes it was after tapping in. other times, it was 30 or 60 minutes later.  I suspect it had to do with the number of rides we had in place.


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## glamdring269

This early entry plus Genie+ is something we will definitely be doing. I assume this is the best way to get everything done assuming you don't like sleep and/or are ok with paying for Genie+ and potentially even the ILL$. Is this a safe assumption?

FYI, in paper FP and FP+ we followed the rope drop, leave park at around lunch, return to a second part in the evening strategy. We plan to operate under the same basic premise under the Genie+ rules.

Of course our trip is not until October of 2023 so we might be on Genie++ at $100/pp by then.


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## abbiesmomma

Going to MK on 11/12 as a surprise short trip for DD's 21st birthday (end of Jersey week, Saturday, between MVMCP parties... SO not an ideal date but her birthday is when it is!!!) . First time back at MK since 2019, and I am trying to get a crash course Genie+ since we've just got one day to 'get it right', lol. I've read all the strategies and watched all the videos and feel like I've got a fair grasp on how it works... but I'm not sure of the best strategy during a fairly busy day. Staying onsite so we will rope-drop and then close out the park at 11pm (all adults, no littles). We've been multiple times over the years so it's not a first/only type trip but there are still some things we'd like to accomplish.

Priorities:
Meet Mickey & Minnie
Jungle Cruise
Peter Pan
3 Mountains
7DMT (will save this for last ride/end of night)

My thought is to try to snag a hopefully early return (9-10am) LL#1 for either Meet Mickey or Jungle Cruise at 7 am, hit PP at Rope Drop 1, then Splash at Rope Drop 2, then try to grab either Mickey or Jungle Cruise for LL#2 after tapping into LL#1 which hopefully won't have too long of return times by then... then move on to the other mountains...

I think my biggest concern is not being sure how to know what strategy to employ after getting the first 2-3 things done??  *On a busy day is it better to just go with what's available/nearby so you don't get locked out by the 2 hour return window as much? Or is it better to take the 'sure thing' of getting on the ride and stack them up for later in the day??* I'm trying to be a 'flexible planner' but I don't know how to pivot if the return time windows are not co-operative after multiple refreshes.

Help.


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## scrappinginontario

abbiesmomma said:


> Going to MK on 11/12 as a surprise short trip for DD's 21st birthday (end of Jersey week, Saturday, between MVMCP parties... SO not an ideal date but her birthday is when it is!!!) . First time back at MK since 2019, and I am trying to get a crash course Genie+ since we've just got one day to 'get it right', lol. I've read all the strategies and watched all the videos and feel like I've got a fair grasp on how it works... but I'm not sure of the best strategy during a fairly busy day. Staying onsite so we will rope-drop and then close out the park at 11pm (all adults, no littles). We've been multiple times over the years so it's not a first/only type trip but there are still some things we'd like to accomplish.
> 
> Priorities:
> Meet Mickey & Minnie
> Jungle Cruise
> Peter Pan
> 3 Mountains
> 7DMT (will save this for last ride/end of night)
> 
> My thought is to try to snag a hopefully early return (9-10am) LL#1 for either Meet Mickey or Jungle Cruise at 7 am, hit PP at Rope Drop 1, then Splash at Rope Drop 2, then try to grab either Mickey or Jungle Cruise for LL#2 after tapping into LL#1 which hopefully won't have too long of return times by then... then move on to the other mountains...
> 
> I think my biggest concern is not being sure how to know what strategy to employ after getting the first 2-3 things done??  *On a busy day is it better to just go with what's available/nearby so you don't get locked out by the 2 hour return window as much? Or is it better to take the 'sure thing' of getting on the ride and stack them up for later in the day??* I'm trying to be a 'flexible planner' but I don't know how to pivot if the return time windows are not co-operative after multiple refreshes.
> 
> Help.


I would recommend reading the first posts in the '*Everything Genie*' thread.  It details samples of different ways to approach getting LL reservations.

I would also recommend using Thrill-Data.com.  You can look up individual attractions and see how long LL reservations are lasting.


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## abbiesmomma

scrappinginontario said:


> I would recommend reading the first posts in the '*Everything Genie*' thread.  It details samples of different ways to approach getting LL reservations.
> 
> I would also recommend using Thrill-Data.com.  You can look up individual attractions and see how long LL reservations are lasting.


I have read it and also looked at Thrill Data...  the piece that makes this day particularly difficult is that it's a busy week plus parties all around it, and I've not found not a ton of information about people's experience with days like that... I know there are two basic strategies of either stacking or refreshing for nearby times/rides... So my question is more how to decide when you pivot from what strategy to the other or is one better than the other for a day like this.


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## wiggy500

abbiesmomma said:


> I have read it and also looked at Thrill Data...  the piece that makes this day particularly difficult is that it's a busy week plus parties all around it, and I've not found not a ton of information about people's experience with days like that... I know there are two basic strategies of either stacking or refreshing for nearby times/rides... So my question is more how to decide when you pivot from what strategy to the other or is one better than the other for a day like this.



I went to MK on a day like that with a 7 / 10 level crowd in October.  In my case I did an afternoon Jungle Cruise LL for the first one and did a quicker return with the second (Buzz).  In Magic Kingdom you get to do more lightning lanes if you can work in some quick returns.  But you don't want to let the priority ones get too late or they will vanish on you.  I ended up bouncing back in forth between the priority and the non-priority ones.  Let's say you get a Jungle Cruise LL before 11 like you want.  For the second LL I would be looking for a quick return nearby and if I'm not satisfied check off one of the priorities.  The day will be busy, so it's possible the quick returns may not be super quick for those second tier rides.

Something I found helpful before the trip was going on the app and seeing the available Genie Plus times two hours after open.  I'd imagine what choice I would make if I was in that situation.


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## g-dad66

abbiesmomma said:


> Going to MK on 11/12 as a surprise short trip for DD's 21st birthday (end of Jersey week, Saturday, between MVMCP parties... SO not an ideal date but her birthday is when it is!!!) . First time back at MK since 2019, and I am trying to get a crash course Genie+ since we've just got one day to 'get it right', lol. I've read all the strategies and watched all the videos and feel like I've got a fair grasp on how it works... but I'm not sure of the best strategy during a fairly busy day. Staying onsite so we will rope-drop and then close out the park at 11pm (all adults, no littles). We've been multiple times over the years so it's not a first/only type trip but there are still some things we'd like to accomplish.
> 
> Priorities:
> Meet Mickey & Minnie
> Jungle Cruise
> Peter Pan
> 3 Mountains
> 7DMT (will save this for last ride/end of night)
> 
> My thought is to try to snag a hopefully early return (9-10am) LL#1 for either Meet Mickey or Jungle Cruise at 7 am, hit PP at Rope Drop 1, then Splash at Rope Drop 2, then try to grab either Mickey or Jungle Cruise for LL#2 after tapping into LL#1 which hopefully won't have too long of return times by then... then move on to the other mountains...
> 
> I think my biggest concern is not being sure how to know what strategy to employ after getting the first 2-3 things done??  *On a busy day is it better to just go with what's available/nearby so you don't get locked out by the 2 hour return window as much? Or is it better to take the 'sure thing' of getting on the ride and stack them up for later in the day??* I'm trying to be a 'flexible planner' but I don't know how to pivot if the return time windows are not co-operative after multiple refreshes.
> 
> Help.



Both Mickey & Minnie Greet and Jungle Cruise LLs have been going very fast, so you will need to be quick on the draw at 7:00 am to get an early return time for either one of them.  I would definitely recommend getting the Greet LL first, because it might be gone by the time you are eligible for LL#2.

You should be able to get Jungle Cruise as LL#2, and after that, you will just have to decide what your priorites are. Probably you should go for Space as LL#3 and Big Thunder as LL#4, given that those are your priorities.

I think your plan to do Peter Pan during EE, and then Splash as soon as Frontierland opens is solid. You can probably do Big Thunder after Splash without much wait.


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