WDW trip planning - Genie+ (power in my corner?)

It’s been about a month since I booked my trip and I’ve sorted flights and hotel, made park reservations and reacquainted myself with the mobile app. I’ve even started to have some thoughts as to what I need to pack and especially, what shoes to wear! Additionally, the RetroMagic website has started adding details of the special guests that will attend and I am really excited!

During my daily walks, I’ve also spent some time thinking about what to do about Genie+. I’ve been doing a LOT of research, because this is the part that I’m most apprehensive about. This is an entirely new thing that I have never experienced in WDW and that has the potential to make a big difference to how I plan my days and navigate the parks, but also apparently, on how much sleep I get and how many battery packs I need to bring.

Coming into this, all I knew about Genie+ was academic: I heard about it when it launched and have been following this with interest in the months (years?) since. I have read countless articles and blogs written by those that have or have not used it in their last park visit and listened to a number of podcasts where this feature is discussed. There seem to be some pros, a bunch of cons and a 3-mile-long list of considerations where the answer is “Well, it depends.” 

But all my reading and listening about Genie+ was hypothetical - I’d already cancelled plans to visit the parks in the near future so I wasn’t really paying attention to the detail and the nuance of how it all works and what it is good for. 

I’ve also been to Disneyland Paris relatively recently and, while there is no Genie+ in that park, I have seen firsthand how some of those priority queues work, and just how much they cost. But I don’t know if the DLP experience is totally different from the one in WDW, and not just because they are called different things. 

I had to do some research, that’s for sure. I found a lot of really good articles explaining Genie+, lots of tips and even articles helping me to work out if it is worth it and when. I learned so much about virtual queues. I’ve also gone through Disney’s official guide to Genie, Genie+ and Lightning Lanes. I’ve read everything I could find that seemed remotely helpful in this area. The internet was my restaurant and Google my maitre d' and it certainly took my order!

Boy, there is a LOT of information out there.

I still don’t know what to do, though.

My main thinking point is that this is a solo trip, which is an entirely different concept from travelling with a family. Also, I can probably make the most of being quick and nimble, of single rider queues and being able to make quick decisions. All of these things just don’t happen with a larger group, so maybe spending money on Genie+ is not worth it. 

However, I am also going for only a week. (Only a week?! I hear you snort - well, yes. Ideally, I’d spend at least two full weeks there but I realise the privilege that comes from being able to take lots of paid time off.) I need to make the most of it, so perhaps paying to save time is a good plan! Also, paying for it for one person is of course cheaper. 

There are still a couple of things that bother me, though. One of them is having to rely so much on my phone while in the parks. I may feel differently about this at the time, but right now it just bothers me. I know I won’t have travel companions around to talk to anyway, so having to stay buggy-eyed on my phone may be a good idea but I feel like it will also take me away from the experience. On a practical note, I’ve read that Disney WiFi is good but not great so for better results, they recommend turning off the WiFi and using data in the parks. This may be quite costly, as I’d have to roam to do so (although, full disclosure: I am on O2 and my data plan does include USA roaming so it may not be so expensive). 

The other thing that troubles me is having to wake up so early to make the most of Genie+. I’m on vacation! Here too, I may have a slight advantage though, as I’ll be jetlagged and at least the first few days I will be awake at stupid o’clock, so I may as well spend some of that time booking attractions. 

Very recently, Disney announced some changes to Genie+ and I got very excited… but then realised that these will come into effect early in 2024 so my plans wouldn’t be affected. In any case, details are not yet available so I can’t comment on how this would have helped me make my decision but it does indicate that WDW is aware that Genie+ could do with some changes. It is very easy to find comments from people that have recently visited WDW where they say how much they dislike having to pay for everything, having to do so much homework and how the joy seems to have been taken out of a visit to a Disney park. However, I am determined to keep an open mind here and anyway... they pride themselves on service so hopefully things improve soon.

When I last was at Disneyland Paris, I didn't go on my own but we did try single-rider queues sometimes and wow, what a time saver! More than once, we would go through the queue even quicker than the people on Premier Access and we'd have saved some money in the process. I wonder if this strategy would continue to play out in WDW? After all, the money could go towards souvenirs or park snacks which I'm much happier to splurge on!

After going through column A (and all of column B) I am still on the fence on this one, I admit. It may be worth it for a few days, or none at all but I think I won’t be able to really discover this until I get there. So my decision, for now, is to go without. In any case, there is nothing I can do at this point anyway, so there is no harm in continuing the research and the consideration period.