One of the most difficult parts about planning a Disney World vacation might be learning how to use the Genie+ system. Genie+ is the new way to skip the lines in Disney World, but it has a lot of rules and nuances that make it very tricky to master. However, a new change might make using Genie+ just a little bit EASIER!
Disney Genie+…the new way to skip the lines
Unlike the last Genie+ change, this new update is pretty simple and actually makes the system a bit more user-friendly. Let’s take a look.
First, some background knowledge you’ll need to understand this change: Genie+ costs $15 per person per day in Disney World, and once you’ve bought it, you can reserve times to skip the line on some rides. Instead of going into the standby line, you’ll use the Lightning Lane at the rides where you’ve reserved a time. You can only make those reservations one at a time, though. Once you’ve scanned into the Lightning Lane at an attraction, you can then make your next Genie+ reservation.
Splash Mountain Lightning Lane
That rule does have an exception: if you make a Lightning Lane reservation that is more than 2 hours in the future, then after 2 hours have passed, you can make your next Lightning Lane reservation (and still keep the one you made first). So if it’s 10AM and the only available time to skip the line at Tower of Terror is at 6PM, you can book that reservation and then book ANOTHER reservation (for a different attraction) at 12PM (2 hours after you made the Tower of Terror reservation).
Tower of Terror Lightning Lane
We’ve been calling this exception the 120-minute rule, and it’s not new. In fact, Disney recently made this an official rule on their website (it was just a strategy before).
Lightning Lane sign at EPCOT’s Frozen Ever After
The NEW change is that now Disney Genie+ will tell you what time you can book your next reservation! That could be right after the next Lightning Lane you have reserved, or it might be 2 hours after you book the reservation if you booked one more than 2 hours in the future. Either way, you don’t have to keep track of the confusing 120-minute rule anymore because Genie+ will just tell you the next time you can book a new reservation.
A look at the new “When You Can Book” feature with Genie+ 🧞♂️ pic.twitter.com/5HAJU5DEdi
— Disney Food Blog (@DisneyFoodBlog) August 25, 2022
©Disney
We tested this new feature out today. We purchased Genie+ and then made a Lightning Lane reservation at Haunted Mansion with a return time of 1:35PM to 2:35PM. Once we’d confirmed the reservation, the banner at the top of the screen updated to let us know we could book our next reservation at 1:38PM (just after the window opened for us to use that 1:35PM reservation).
©Disney
No more setting timers or trying to remember to book the next reservation right when you can into the Lightning Lane — now you can just check the app to see when you’re eligible to make the next reservation.
Lightning Lane
We were curious to find out if the time would change once we selected a different park since Park Hoppers cannot make Lightning Lane reservations before 2PM for the parks they’re hopping to (because Park Hopper doesn’t start before 2PM). However, when we chose EPCOT (the park we could hop to), the time of 1:38PM for our next selection did not change. We were still not able to choose a Lightning Lane before 2PM in EPCOT, but the time didn’t update to reflect that rule.
©Disney
UPDATE: This Genie+ change is also live in Disneyland now! Genie+ costs $20 per person, per day in Disneyland, and it includes 19 attractions between Disneyland and Disney California Adventure. The new banner that tells you when you can book your next reservation is now in the Disneyland app, in the same place as in the My Disney Experience app for Disney World.
©Disney
We’ll continue to watch for more Genie+ updates. In the meantime, check out these posts to learn how to MASTER Genie+:
- STEP-BY-STEP Guide: How to Purchase Genie+ for Disney World
- The Big Disney Genie+ Rule That EVERYONE Gets Wrong!
- A Step-By-Step Guide to Using Disney Genie+
- Updated List of Everything That’s Included in Your Genie+ Purchase in Disney World
- How Many Rides Can You Get On Per Day With Genie+ in Disney World?! We Dig In!
- The Difference Between Disney Genie and Disney Genie+
- Breaking Down the Most CONFUSING Parts of Disney Genie!
- Understanding Disney Genie in 500 Words or Less
- The Rides to Book FIRST With Genie+ and Pay Per Ride in Disney World
- A Full Guide on Using the FREE Version of Disney Genie!
- The BEST and WORST of Disney Genie+
Stay tuned to DFB for all the latest news from Disney World!
Click here to see our full guide to Genie+.
All About Disney Genie, Genie+, and Individual Attraction Selection
BIG Genie+ Changes Being Planned For Disney World
FULL List of Rides Included With Genie+ in Disney World
3 Tips to OUTSMART Genie+ in Disney World Right Now
Please Stop Skipping These Genie+ Hacks in Disney World (They Really Work!)
Genie+ Tips for the Most Crowded Days in Disney World and Disneyland
Click HERE to See More About Disney Genie
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Have you used Genie+ in Disney World? Let us know what you thought in the comments.
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I love Genie+ SO much and it just keeps getting better. I really like this addition. It makes it easier to just take a peek and know when to book next. I don’t understand all the complaints. This is such a fantastic service and is, people seem to forget, optional. No one is required to use it. You are not forced to make any plans ahead of time. You are not forced to do anything but pick a park, and if you were going to a local theme park (I happen to live in an area that has several within a short drive), you would be choosing which park to attend in advance, so why is it such a big deal?
LOVE Genie+ and can’t wait to use it during my October and November trips this year!
It would be cooler if your new wrist ban lite up when a new reservation could be made. That way if things are going slow or fast inside the parks, Disney could give you a time, but bump up your available booking time request making things even more efficient. It would all be computer controlled and make life much better for guests and Disney!
Hello! I love reading your daily blogs and I am really look forward to my upcoming Disney world trip for the Epcot food and wine festival this October.
Not sure where to ask for clarification on a comment the blog today about the Disney Genie.
I thought you could make a genie reservation in the park you hop to when the ride you want is showing a return time of 2pm or later. The comment in the blog made it seem u could not physically make the reservation until 2pm. Would love it if you could clarify for me.
Thank you.
Get RID of Genie and go back to the Fastpass+ system. It was a Much Better way to PLAN your Day !
I was following along perfectly until I read your example. Knowing what time you had made your Haunted Mansion Lightning Lane reservation would have so helpful for me to finally understand Genie+. Did you make it at 11:38AM?
We tested this new feature out today. We purchased Genie+ and then made a Lightning Lane reservation at Haunted Mansion with a return time of 1:35PM to 2:35PM. Once we’d confirmed the reservation, the banner at the top of the screen updated to let us know we could book our next reservation at 1:38PM (just after the window opened for us to use that 1:35PM reservation).
It appears we’re going to need at least two charge packs for each day to keep current on our day(s) in the parks.
Thanks for the update! Just want to ask a quick question. Do you recall what time you booked the Haunted Mansion Lightning Lane reservation? I’m just curious if it was 11:38am and that’s why you saw a “When you can book next” time of 1:38pm. That would also explain why you could book another Lightning Lane without actually checking in to Haunted Mansion.
I just ask because this would be a massive change. For example, if it were currently 10am, and I booked a 10:20am Lightning Lane for Big Thunder Mountain, that means at 10:23am or so I could book another Lightning Lane reservation even without riding Big Thunder Mountain. I’m not sure I think that would be possible.
Nice change. The only thing that would make this better is if the app sent your phone a notification so you didn’t have to keep looking at the time!
Hi Lori. It’s possible that the next return time for the ride would have been before 2pm and that’s why those were not showing up. If a ride has an available time at 2pm or later, it should show up for you, but it wouldn’t if the next available time was 1:40pm, in this example.
Can you reserve a ride for a group at one time in Genie Plus????
Yes!
Vanessa people are complaining because it’s not working as it’s supposed to! I’ve been to Disney World four times since the feature has come out and it has yet to work according to the rules. However I will be back on October 15th and I will see if it works as described with the new changes.
The old fast pass system was better and it was free. I used Genie plus once and will never again waste my time or money on it. Disney in general has gone down hill the last 2 years. Magic lost.