Disney announces changes to Genie+

[Edited to remove copy/paste from Orlando Sentinel...]

Here's the announcement directly from the parks.

guests have told us they would prefer to have the option to do more of their planning before their theme park day

People wanna plan

From the blog:

Lightning Lane Multi Pass 
When you purchase Lightning Lane Multi Pass, you may make up to 3 Lightning Lane selections in a theme park, in advance of your visit. You’ll also be able to choose available times as you make your selections.
On the day of your visit, once you use a selection, check the My Disney Experience app for availability to make an additional selection.

Lightning Lane Single Pass 
Lightning Lane Single Pass will work much like it does today, where you can secure a time to ride one of our most highly demanded attractions, but you’ll now be able to make your purchase and plan in advance. 

I guess it's better so people aren't getting up at dawn, but I don't know. It ain't FastPass.

Jeff:

I guess it's better so people aren't getting up at dawn

Yea. They didn’t bother me because I’m an early riser. My wife on the other hand…..

guests have told us they would prefer to have the option to do more of their planning before their theme park day

Disney remains the only park I have to plan out my day, and at the exact moment it becomes available no matter how inconvenient. Not a fan.

Disney should open up those selection times at like 1 or 2 in the morning, just to screw with everyone.

TheMillenniumRider:

Disney remains the only park I have to plan out my day

No one is forcing you to plan out your day

But does planning make your trip more enjoyable? Probably up for debate

Cmon, could anyone have a decent day at Disney without planning? Forget a decent sit down meal, plan on waiting in every long line, walking into shows or parades all but guarantees a lousy viewing experience. Want an after hours experience of day of, just forget about that

Sure, I can skip a plan, but should I really go that route???

This may blow up in their face, because resort guests and multi day ticket holders will now purchase all at once to prebook. Genie has been as high as $40 I believe, so for the average family of 4 that would cost $120 a day, painful but about the cost of “nice resturant.” Now you are going to pay 5 days all at once, that becomes $600. That’s probably more than a night in your hotel room (unless staying at a deluxe resort) and all at once which goes against human psychology. I think they will see less people purchasing it. Although that might make it better for those that do.

Also old rules apply, use one and you can book another, and tiers don’t apply after your prebooks.

Jeff:

I guess it's better so people aren't getting up at dawn, but I don't know. It ain't FastPass.

7am is dawn? Man, I want your schedule. :)

I also have unlimited PTO.

TheMillenniumRider:

Cmon, could anyone have a decent day at Disney without planning?

Yes. It happens every day.

I'm disappointed that no one appreciated my The Fifth Element joke. You're all horrible people.

I’m usually waiting for or on a bus/monorail at 7am to get to the park for Early Entry rope drop (unless AK is opening at 8 am/7:30 EE which at that point I’m outside the entrance already.)

Is there any park that has implemented a virtual queue? What I mean by that is, you walk up to the ride entrance but rather than entering the queue and then standing in line, you scan something (phone app, wristband, card, etc.) and the screen tells you to come back in X minutes, based on the number of people that have "entered the queue" before you but have yet to ride, so that you can wander off and do whatever you like until it's your time, then you come back and scan again and the screen tells you to proceed. Basically, you get in line but don't have to stand in line.

Seems like one of the big gripes with the Disney system is the need to plan way ahead and book your attractions when they become open to you at 2:30 am or whatever. I'm not sure why this has to be the system. If we define the problem as standing in line for two hours (rather than waiting to ride for two hours), then that seems solvable in a way that still requires the person to present themselves at the ride entrance during their visit, rather than booking the ride once you're 90 days out from your planned visit.

Bakeman31092:

Is there any park that has implemented a virtual queue?

Six Flags, Volcano Bay.

Bakeman31092:

If we define the problem as standing in line for two hours (rather than waiting to ride for two hours), then that seems solvable in a way that still requires the person to present themselves at the ride entrance during their visit, rather than booking the ride once you're 90 days out from your planned visit.

But that doesn't help Disney at all.

The more you tell them in advance what you're doing, the more they can prepare for it. Think of how much easier it is to make the guest experience better (and even being able to anticpate, adapt to, and modify things) because you already know where you need to focus based on the fact that your guests have outlined where they'll be and when before they arrive.

I'd argue that the Disney experience continues to get more and more over the top good (or at least remain the leader in the field) while others implementing dollar-store versions of the same ideas are racing to the bottom because of the idea that Disney continues to find out more and more about what the guest will be doing when they visit.

A bunch of people handing over a hundred bucks and repeatedly randomly running up the unmonitored exit lines of any given park's biggest attractions isn't doing much for anyone involved. Handing Disney a detailed itinerary of the week you'll be spending with them? Priceless.

eightdotthree:

Six Flags, Volcano Bay.

Yeah, and that system is junk.

Volcano Bay works well enough but only because you just hop in a river or the wave pool and still have a good time while you wait. Amusement Parks don’t have those high capacity rides like that.

Lord Gonchar:

over the top good

I wish I felt this way. It feels like I am constantly swimming upstream at Disney parks.

Bakeman31092:

If we define the problem as standing in line for two hours (rather than waiting to ride for two hours), then that seems solvable in a way that still requires the person to present themselves at the ride entrance during their visit, rather than booking the ride once you're 90 days out from your planned visit.

In addition to Gonch's data-collection observation, this presents an additional problem. The people standing in queue switchbacks are not on the midways, clogging up the stores, etc. etc.. In other words, the queues are themselves are an important part of the park's physical guest capacity.

Volcano Bay was designed with VQ from the start, which means that (presumably) the park designers planned for the day's capacity to not have to stand in switchbacks, but could all be Somewhere Else. A park that was not designed that way from the start might not be able to make that transition without a significant infrastructure investment.

Jeff:

I'm disappointed that no one appreciated my The Fifth Element joke.

I came close to responding with "She knows it's a multipass" but already used it in another forum.

But I did start watching it again last night. It's on Apple TV+ right now for those of you in the Walled Garden.