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[Anthony]

It's happening. Fastpass is dead. The US Disney Parks just unveiled Disney Genie Service, their "new digital service designed to create your best Disney day".



This was teased a couple of years ago as a major trip planning app upgrade, but now it includes one major extra feature: Fastpass (or rather MaxPass) -style ride reservations within the app too.

Sounds like Paris' new Disney Premier Access? Not quite.

• Disney Genie+ is a paid premium version of the service, which also unlocks ride reservations for "selected attractions". Fastpass queues are named Lightning Lanes (oh boy). This costs $15 per person per day at WDW or $20 per day at DLR.

• Individual Attraction Selections run alongside this, allowing you to schedule a time at up to two "highly demanded attractions" each day, for an individual price.

It's all simple and yet, somehow, incredibly convoluted. All the details are in this Disney Parks Blog post: https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2021/08/introducing-disney-genie/

Better than Paris? Worse than Paris? Or all just much-of-a money-grabbing muchness?

I honestly can't make up my mind, although on a per-attraction basis, the Genie+ option does seem to offer far better value for money than Paris?

[norhel]

I can see arguments from both sides, as people often want things included rather than pay for it. However, it should be interesting to see how popular it is in the long run.
But for some it may be better, as I've seen complaints that some miss the old system where FastPass did not exist at all.

[bad-pink-tink]

I have been to Disneyland California twice in 2022, January and June and I used Genie+ on both trips.

I love it. I love using the App and I found my days were so much more productive than with the old fastpass system.

There is huge push back against Genie+ from the local AP Disneyland California people, so as a result, those that do use it have a great experience.

In California Adventures in June at Toy Story Mania I waited 20 minutes in the Lightning Lane queue. The standby was listed at 120 minutes but I heard the cm say it was more like 140 minutes. I watched the cm at the merge point. He let 6 from the standby through then about 20 from the lightning lane.

For Disneyland California Genie+ works really well. I cant see the point of waiting 100 or more  minutes in standby queues in the burning sun.

Also in Disneyland California Genie + includes photopass. In all the years I have been going to Disneyland California I never got Photopass as it was a paid extra. Now that its included on Genie+ I used it on both trips. I got so many really great photos of me in the parks, something I never had before. Ride photos are also included, for the first time I now have a great photo of me on Radiator Springs Racers.