The Genie Usage, Tips and Strategy ONLY Thread

[wisblue]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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.

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]

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]

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]

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]

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:

1. 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
2. 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)

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]

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]

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]

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]

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

 

[g-dad66]

ILLS are separate from Genie+, and we also booked them for Rise and for Runaway Railway in the late afternoon.