Fastpass / Genie - are you going to need a doctorate to understand it?

[Nimbus]

Originally Posted by SleepingBeauty

Well, that isn't exactly correct. Disney is one conglomerate with one CEO that trades under one stock with one headquarters. It's all under the Disney umbrella and Disney media successes certainly do help the parks divisions in the overall financial scheme. They can and do share financial assets if needed. I know this because I'm a stockholder.

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True.

But each division has its own chairperson running things and Disney reports the earning, profits, and other financial details of each division, showing which have made a profit and which have made a loss. Each division will still have it's own targets to meet.

It's similar to the company I work for (although Disney is far more interesting than the one I work for). We have different divisions and, although we are part of one overall company, we are still somewhat treated separately.

The Disney Parks division will be still be trying to recoup the losses it's made over the last 18 months. Mind you, I think this move over to a paid fastpass system has been in the works for sa few years and long before the pandemic happened.

[gjdjud]

Originally Posted by aprilshack

If there are multiple people in a group and they had the app, couldn't one get a rise bg or paid option and another person choose the first genie + ride?

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Maybe One of the million questions yet to be answered. Thankfully by the time I go hopefully strategic plans will be all over the forums

[loldis]

Originally Posted by Tinkerbell

So why stay onsite is my next question

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That's been the question since they first started stripping back benefits. IMO, there's very little reason financially to stay at a moderate or deluxe. You're doing it for the bubble "magic" or convenience. A value still works financially for me at the moment, as a solo traveller who doesn't drive. But only on UK offers. Once the price of a 14 day ticket goes above what I'm willing to pay for it, then I'm probably out.

Consider looking into the partner hotels. Pretty much the same benefits as staying on-site (including early entry) but usually cheaper and/or better quality.

disneyholidays/wal...artner-hotels/

Originally Posted by unixgirl

EMH in the morning is for all on site right not just deluxe and evening ones are just deluxe? Be interesting to see what they do with that, if they have a check to see if you should still be in the park or not. I'm usually an early person - gonna have to have a nana nap and go for the evening sessions so I'm not paying extra everyday.

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It will be exactly like the previous evening extra magic hours. Your band/app will be scanned at the entrance of all rides, if you're not staying at a deluxe hotel, you will be denied entrance.

They typically won't sweep the park of day guests though, as they're usually perfectly happy for you to still be in there shopping. It's only really the rides they restrict.

[Nimbus]

Originally Posted by gjdjud

So 7am. Choose your first genie+ choice or boarding group for ROTR or Remy. What do you choose? If genie+ choice then by the time your done the boarding groups will all be gone

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Remy's Ratatouille Adventure is in a different park to ROTR. So it will depend on whether you have HS or Epcot booked for that day. So let's swap Remy's for Slinky Dog.

I'd book ROTR first - because everyone can book that, it's free, and therefore lots will be looking to secure that.

I'd then book a Lightning Lane pass for the other top-tier ride (Slinky Dog, maybe?) if I felt like paying extra to skip the regular queue for that.

Then I'd book a slot on Genie+ for one of the other rides, again assuming I'd paid extra to skip the regular queues at all the other rides. I'd probably choose Millennium Falcon (because I've not done that) or a popular tier 2 ride.

Having said that, I'm unlikely to book all three. I'd probably just have one of those going at any one time.

[unixgirl]

Originally Posted by loldis

That's been the question since they first started stripping back benefits. IMO, there's very little reason financially to stay at a moderate or deluxe. You're doing it for the bubble "magic" or convenience. A value still works financially for me at the moment, as a solo traveller who doesn't drive. But only on UK offers. Once the price of a 14 day ticket goes above what I'm willing to pay for it, then I'm probably out.

Consider looking into the partner hotels. Pretty much the same benefits as staying on-site (including early entry) but usually cheaper and/or better quality.

disneyholidays/wal...artner-hotels/



It will be exactly like the previous evening extra magic hours. Your band/app will be scanned at the entrance of all rides, if you're not staying at a deluxe hotel, you will be denied entrance.

They typically won't sweep the park of day guests though, as they're usually perfectly happy for you to still be in there shopping. It's only really the rides they restrict.

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Ah thanks - I did one of those evening events and forgot how they'd restricted it - I thought we had an additional paper band to wear, must have misremembered. Still gonna need that nana nap

[Daisychick]

Mmmmm. I don't have a trip currently planned, but I know this will be another reason DH will add to his list of why he won't want to go (he doesn't share my enthusiasm!)

Fastpasses helped as he wasn't having to queue for everything, it calmed him down!

For me, the thing I am most cross about is the creep of technology into the park. Prior to a few years ago, when Fastpasses were still paper, one of the best things about going to the parks was the lack of technology. No-one could phone me, I couldn't go online and be notified of all the horrors going on in the world, it was a complete escape from everything. MDE changed that to an extent, this will change it further.

I don't want to see people walking around zombie like staring at mobile phones when I am on my holiday. And neither do I want to join in and be a zombie.

In terms of the pricing, I think it highlights actually how much better off people are. When I was a youngster, a trip to Disney was seen as a once in a lifetime trip. Literally. Once. Nowadays, and I fall into this camp, we complain when it is too expensive to go every year. Perhaps I need to re-assess my expectations!

[loldis]

Originally Posted by unixgirl

Ah thanks - I did one of those evening events and forgot how they'd restricted it - I thought we had an additional paper band to wear, must have misremembered. Still gonna need that nana nap

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After Hours or the seasonal parties (e.g. Not So Scary) have wristbands, because you're paying for event exclusive park entertainment and not just the rides. In those instances, CMs do sweep the parks for standard guests without bands.

But EEMH works differently. They only check at the rides.

[DanLees]

Having read the available info, this really shouldn't be surprising.

It reminds me of buying an XBOX game when it first comes out. The price is £60. Unless you want the DLC then it's £100+. You can still play the £60 game and it's great but you don't get the special outfits, super weapons or the expansion pack.

What visitors from abroad think of this will be be waaaaay down the the list of Disney's concerns.
But I do think we still Bundled Offers for foreign visitors.

Based on conversations I have had with (reasonably well paid) American Colleagues about trips to WDW, they have a "we're here for 4 days, we want to do all the things, to hell with the cost, YOLO" attitude. They are more concerned about missing out on THE BIG THING than the cost. Having very nearly lost out on the Boarding Group lottery for ROTR on our singular Disney Day last holiday, I totally get that and if I could have paid $200 to walk on at 9am, I probably would have.

If this was in place when were at Disney for 2 weeks 3 years ago, I would have likely paid the $15 per person per day based on 8 days in the parks. Would I have paid a per ride upcharge for the headliners? For Flight of Passage which was the BIG ride at the time, I probably would.

If it was in place in Feb 2020 when we had the one day at Hollywood Studios for all the new Star Wars stuff, I would have paid for all the things that guaranteed entry to the stuff we really wanted to do.

We had a DAS pass that 2 week trip too due my youngest's Autism and if I'm reading this right, the new DAS system seems to work just like Genie+, meaning that if you have DAS pass you can't book rides on Genie+, but you might be able to combine Genie+ and the old DAS system which is staying for time being but we'll see.

[rubberduckie89]

Originally Posted by adamtoonarmy

To be honest if this turns out to be accurate I will just ignore the lot. Rope drop with early entry, return late in the day to pick up the shorter lines.

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My plan of action too I think!

[Disneycraft]

So the stress we all felt at 60 days out trying to get fast passes ,we will now have every morning at 7am of our holiday ! For crying out loud ……..