Does the new Genie+ pay-per-attraction system alter your views on DVC's value?

[emilymad]

I see more resort only stays in my future until we see how this plays out in a couple of years. I hated MaxPass in DL. I don't care about the cost but it was the being constantly on my phone and not knowing if a return window would work for us if we had other plans at that time. I also don't want to have to be on my phone at 7am every single day. This all just adds up to stress and anxiety before price is even considered. The whole concept fills me with dread so I am not seeing a good reason to continue to vacation with Disney.

And Disney said the $15 is the introductory price so how quickly does that increase?

 

[Pluto1976]

We all know he is a cost slasher and a numbers guy.

Exactly! I have worked for a "numbers guy" in the past and they are so blinded by tangible benefits ($$) they do not have the ability to understand the intangible cons of their decisions. I believe this is what made Walt and Roy work so well together. There was a financial guy (Roy) and an imaginative guy (Walt) who balanced each other out to produce wonderful attractions and parks. I think the current equation is missing the imaginative guy with the power to stymie the financial guy.

As to the OPs question; while being dismayed at this move and others as of late (cutting DME, free resort parking, Magicbands) by Disney's bean counters, I do not feel the value of our current DVC is lessened. However, thoughts of adding on more points to go more often are now on hold if every visit is going to cost more for the things which used to be free thereby increasing our costs, and this is not something I/we just need to get used to either.

 

[Carol_]

Nope. Still great resorts very close to all the Orlando attractions. If Genie isn't good for WDW, they'll cut it off like a sick limb. Disney's good for making money for themselves. What's good for Disney is good for DVC.

 

[UrsulaWantsYourSoul]

So many interesting thoughts here. Sometimes I just wish Disney would stop with the teasers & give us all the info at once… like will any WDW AP’s come with Genie+? Or as an add-on option (like maxpass)? What about DVC members? Virtual queues vs LL? This 7am business? All. Of. It.

They mentioned in one of the videos that AP's would be able to purchase Genie+ the day of their visit.

 

[robinb]

Do we know if there will be a definite limit of each type of fast passes per day, once sold they are out? Or will they keep selling more fast passes until the line length gets to a pre-assigned wait? I assume the former, but I missed that detail when I read. That would affect the normal stand in line wait time for non-fast pass users.

No, we don't know anything about the surge priced attractions. I believe that non-surge Genie+ will act like the old paper FPs, but online. You go on teh Genie app and grab the next available time which may or may not be close to the current time.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

They mentioned in one of the videos that AP's would be able to purchase Genie+ the day of their visit.

Only speculation, but it seems like to start, APs could purchase G+ during their visit - and perhaps farther down the line they might offer APs that will cost more and include G+. Seems like an awful lot of new tech, which Disney is infamous for failing on initially, to get all the bells and whistles down. Guess we'll see.

 

[princesscinderella]

I do not think the night hours are temporary. I think they are here to stay for deluxe guests. It could be why they added them...Those paying higher hotel have an option to get those top tier rides in without paying extra since they really are already based on room costs.

My concern about the bonus night hours is that the rides stay open as long as you got in line before closing so unless it’s three hours of extra time the big attractions are still going to have long waits for at least the first hour of extra deluxe resort time. It says hours so I’m thinking it will be 2 extra hours which is probably what it takes to clear the park now after closing.

 

[monstermash23]

Exactly! I have worked for a "numbers guy" in the past and they are so blinded by tangible benefits ($$) they do not have the ability to understand the intangible cons of their decisions. I believe this is what made Walt and Roy work so well together. There was a financial guy (Roy) and an imaginative guy (Walt) who balanced each other out to produce wonderful attractions and parks. I think the current equation is missing the imaginative guy with the power to stymie the financial guy.

That has been my experience with “numbers guy(s)” that I’ve worked with as well. I think that def adds some fuel to the fire here for me personally.

Fully agreed though! I think you nailed it. Eisner (albeit not creative like Walt but certainly was very passionate for creative work) and Wells are another lesser but still good example to support that duo theory for Disney’s success.

If Chapek does last, then I hope he does (at the very least) attain and strongly defer to that caliber of creative counsel somehow. It does seem like a great recipe for success with a company like Disney.

 

[robinb]

My concern about the bonus night hours is that the rides stay open as long as you got in line before closing so unless it’s three hours of extra time the big attractions are still going to have long waits for at least the first hour of extra deluxe resort time. It says hours so I’m thinking it will be 2 extra hours which is probably what it takes to clear the park now after closing.

I hadn't considered that, but you're right. The new evening EMH for Deluxe guests is only 2 hours IIRC.

 

[DaveNan]

I see more resort only stays in my future until we see how this plays out in a couple of years. I hated MaxPass in DL. I don't care about the cost but it was the being constantly on my phone and not knowing if a return window would work for us if we had other plans at that time. I also don't want to have to be on my phone at 7am every single day. This all just adds up to stress and anxiety before price is even considered. The whole concept fills me with dread so I am not seeing a good reason to continue to vacation with Disney.

And Disney said the $15 is the introductory price so how quickly does that increase?

My other big fear is how many rides make their way to the "pay per ride LL" list. At introduction it may be ROTR, Rat, SDMR....., but if over time more rides move from Genie+ to per ride LL it is even worse. Do all of the old Tier 1 rides become "pay per ride for LL"?

 

[RoseGold]

Y'all must have been much better at Fast Pass than I was, pre-Covid. I never got 7D or Slinky Dog or anything. I did all of that in EMH, and I never did the morning ones once. The Tier 1 was always completely locked off to me.

Night EMH2 for deluxe guests is even better than what I had planned! It's such a small group, it's like an after hours event!

Genie is intended to disadvantage the APs who bring their own lunch and to a lesser degree off site people. That's who Disney doesn't make money on, and they want to squeeze those dollars. Especially if they were the ones sitting on all the good Fastpasses anyway.

They announced Genie before APs for a reason. He's going to be an add on. Heck, maybe he'll be a deluxe hotel stay freebie, like Universal. If that were the case, I'd be thrilled with DVC. And maybe I would be willing to pay $10 to ride Slinky Dog.

 

[Uh_Oa]

We also just bought into DVC last year and I have been waiting to purchase AP's when new ones went on sale. But now does it make sense to buy them along with the added LL expense or do we just do more resort stays and less park time? What are everyone's thoughts?

We bought DVC last year so we could go more often and slowdown our WDW trips. WDW got so crowded pre pandemic. Now that we go 2-3 times a year were not as concerned about going to the parks everyday and having to be there from open to close. Our kids are still young so taking it easy on our Disney trips has been way less stressful and exhausting. The kids love pool days just as much as Park days

I'm holding an opinion on Genie until it's in action. My first thoughts on it is this has been in development long before the pandemic and Chapek. The crowds at Disney were out of control and they needed to figure something out besides just continually raising ticket prices. I think it's going to more evenly disburse crowds in the parks, at least that is the idea. Beginners will follow it exactly, while veterans will go off and make their own schedule. I could be totally wrong here too

 

[HappyDisneyWife]

My concern about the bonus night hours is that the rides stay open as long as you got in line before closing so unless it’s three hours of extra time the big attractions are still going to have long waits for at least the first hour of extra deluxe resort time. It says hours so I’m thinking it will be 2 extra hours which is probably what it takes to clear the park now after closing.

I’ve wondered the same thing… though they somehow do it for paid after-hours nights… so, I’m wondering if they’ll treat these night hours in a similar fashion? I sure hope so!!

Y'all must have been much better at Fast Pass than I was, pre-Covid. I never got 7D or Slinky Dog or anything. I did all of that in EMH, and I never did the morning ones once.

Night EMH2 for deluxe guests is even better than what I had planned! It's such a small group, it's like an after hours event!

Genie is intended to disadvantage the APs who bring their own lunch and to a lesser degree off site people. That's who Disney doesn't make money on, and they want to squeeze those dollars. Especially if they were the ones sitting on all the good Fastpasses anyway.

They announced Genie before APs for a reason. He's going to be an add on. Heck, maybe he'll be a deluxe hotel stay freebie, like Universal. If that were the case, I'd be thrilled with DVC.

Haha!! Apparently so! Even with short trips, I almost always got the FP’s I wanted… but I didn’t like the “stress” of it & sometimes needing to change an ADR for them. I preferred DL’s maxpass in that sense for sure (but didn’t like paying extra for my family of 8 plus my mom!! )… so, I’m very interested to see how this new system pans out.

I’m definitely hoping the same thing re: EMH2
…and kinda feel the same way about Genie’s announcement (& it’s timing)… I’m *hoping* it’s all a plus for DVC, but only time will tell

 

[TiszBear]

Here is my 2cents but in the end this is a personal decision as to what each of will do.

I have been a DVC member for 22 years (2 Home Resorts) plus I have been going to WDW for 40 years (at least once a year then twice a year when I first bought in) and I have to admit I am not happy with some of the changes. I bought in DVC cause I love Disney and what Walt created all those years ago and the why. I loved going to WDW as it was the one place I could go and block out the rest of the world and when I bought DVC that was an added bonus. Over these 22 years I have used my points to have amazing adventures, vacations and experiences; most I could have never imagined or afforded. Every time my family, friends and myself went to WDW I had a strict rule - no cell phones (unless in an emergency). I wanted relaxation, I wanted a stress free vacation but now, with everything centered on your cell phone that to me is not stress free. I have seen the perks that DVC members used to receive be taken away, I have seen Disney cater to the annual passholder more and more and I have seen them cater those who go to Disney as a "one and done." What I have wondered is what about us? What about those of us fans/lovers of Disney, who have spent thousands of dollars to "own" a piece of the magic? We are the ones who repeatedly go to Disney every year, no matter the month or no matter the length of stay. I knew that the this was the way (changing Fastpass to pay for rides on top of your park tickets) Disney was going, but I have also realized that the Disney I grew up with and the Disney I loved to travel too is no longer. Don't get me wrong, I paid for the annual passes in the past till I didn't need to; then I purchased park tickets for when I needed them and non of that was cheap. So with yesterday's announcement I realized that while I still love Disney it has changed and so have my needs. I decided that I will be selling a few of my contracts as I don't believe I will be going as much as I did in the past. Maybe if the pandemic didn't happen last year I might have a different outlook but even I am not sure about that. What I do know, is Disney is changing and I am not sure I like the path they are going down. But in the end I am just 1 person and Disney I feel has stopped listening to their guests and have stopped listening in general. As I said, this was a personal choice and I am sharing it.

 

[shoegal9]

Genie won't affect my views of DVC. What would cause me to sell most of our points would be if they didn't have a DVC AP. No way I will go as often if I had to buy traditional tickets. They have to keep something... otherwise there are no perks to owning direct.

 

[lexxus379]

Y'all must have been much better at Fast Pass than I was, pre-Covid. I never got 7D or Slinky Dog or anything. I did all of that in EMH, and I never did the morning ones once. The Tier 1 was always completely locked off to me.

Night EMH2 for deluxe guests is even better than what I had planned! It's such a small group, it's like an after hours event!

Genie is intended to disadvantage the APs who bring their own lunch and to a lesser degree off site people. That's who Disney doesn't make money on, and they want to squeeze those dollars. Especially if they were the ones sitting on all the good Fastpasses anyway.

They announced Genie before APs for a reason. He's going to be an add on. Heck, maybe he'll be a deluxe hotel stay freebie, like Universal. If that were the case, I'd be thrilled with DVC. And maybe I would be willing to pay $10 to ride Slinky Dog.

I agree. I think Genie came before AP’s because there will be perk which will soften the blow of paying for rides. Prob only one free pass per day but it’s something.
I also agree with all the thoughts on phone usage. I don’t take my phone out unless it’s to take pictures. I’m on my phone enough at work and home. I don’t want to be on it the whole time im on vacation. Not enjoyable to me. We have a small amount of points and newer to DVC with thoughts of adding on but not so much anymore.

 

[hhisc16]

I am curious to know if there are more DVC resale listings up today after yesterday's announcements...

 

[Brian Noble]

I was unhappy with the Genie+ announcement [...] I feel like this adds uncertainty and anxiety.

I'm "old enough" (in Disney terms) to remember the days of paper FP, and if I had to pick between FP and FP+, I'd take the old version. Paradoxically, I think the paper system tended to favor planners a little more than FP+ did, and it certainly favored folks who arrived at the parks earlier. And, I'm both a planner and a rope-dropper. The one thing I liked a lot about FP+ was not having to cross the park to get a fastpass. G+ could well be a best-of-both-worlds situation, in that it sounds like it works more like the paper system, but without the need to physically get them.

The other thing I liked about FP vs. FP+: the former was better suited to a more spontaneous touring style. I won't miss having to stress about the specific details of my day in the parks two months before it happens, but I definitely can see why someone would prefer it the other way.

LL, on the other hand, is more like FP+, targeted only to the most in-demand attractions in each park. This, too, might make sense, because it was those attractions that "old" FP didn't work very well for--the windows got pushed out too far too fast to be really useful.

 

[Duckbug.Ducktales]

I'm "old enough" (in Disney terms) to remember the days of paper FP, and if I had to pick between FP and FP+, I'd take the old version. Paradoxically, I think the paper system tended to favor planners a little more than FP+ did, and it certainly favored folks who arrived at the parks earlier. And, I'm both a planner and a rope-dropper. The one thing I liked a lot about FP+ was not having to cross the park to get a fastpass. G+ could well be a best-of-both-worlds situation, in that it sounds like it works more like the paper system, but without the need to physically get them.

The other thing I liked about FP vs. FP+: the former was better suited to a more spontaneous touring style. I won't miss having to stress about the specific details of my day in the parks two months before it happens, but I definitely can see why someone would prefer it the other way.

LL, on the other hand, is more like FP+, targeted only to the most in-demand attractions in each park. This, too, might make sense, because it was those attractions that "old" FP didn't work very well for--the windows got pushed out too far too fast to be really useful.

Thanks for this. I'm starting to come to terms with it all and your thoughts are helpful--old FP certainly wasn't too bad.

I am old enough, too, to remember the old FPs well. I've been the planner of Disney trips for my family since I was 13 (no matter how often we went, my parents couldn't remember which park was which and what attractions they had, etc) and I remember being in charge of running across the park to get our new FPs, and then keeping track of time so we wouldn't spend too long at lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern (in my memory it was always Liberty Tree) so that we wouldn't miss FPs for something. Genie+ won't have the running around, but it won't have the planned out day element either, and more activities may conflict with each other--and it won't be free like FPs were and that's a real bummer.

Maybe as @RoseGold and @lexxus379 predict, APs will get some perk with Genie+ integration or something. But getting up at 7 am to make a FP reservation will still not be great.
But we shall see, I'll definitely try it all out and assess it in conjunction with EMHs before passing final judgement.

 

[Deb & Bill]

To Do LIst-
1) Cancel March anniversary trip
2) Set up DVC points for sale
3) Find a new Chase card to take the place of the Disney VISA.