The details are murky, but reporting from WDWMagic is looking likely to show up sooner rather than later at Walt Disney World. Team Disney Orlando is looking to quickly institute a system of direct cash refunds for Genie+ Lightning Lane reservations when an attraction is down for the day of purchase. In other words, previously Disney had not refunded guests who could not use their Lightning Lane (i.e. paid FastPass) for a ride due to a breakdown; now they will change this.
The information comes from an unnamed Disney spokesperson. Our sources have confirmed that Disney is looking to quickly get this direct refund ability into Genie+ after very negative customer response over Rise of the Resistance failures.
Now, however, more concerns are arising with the Genie+ Lightning Lanes. I’ve noticed feedback around the WDW fanbase regarding Disney already beginning to raise prices for the flagship attractions like Flight of Passage. Disney had started the program’s pricing with $15 for the most popular rides, but that seems to be inching up at times. While the company had announced the price could fluctuate, the quick shift to higher costs may have irked some of the Disney World connoisseurs.
I’ve also found that a Disney World vlogger has made a great point about a seldom-mentioned issue with Genie+ Lightning Lanes. While Mickey Views hasn’t done the best job of referencing me as a source when they’ve covered some of my exclusives (no beef here, just hope it improves in the future), Braeden makes a really good point in the video below. If Disney is charging people to skip lines, isn’t there incentive for them to increase the attraction length? And, isn’t that exactly what I described had happened just before Lightning Lanes opened?
I suppose the takeaway is that Genie+ is having some pro-consumer actions taken post-launch, as well as continuing down a path of heavy monetization. Between the normal Genie+ attractions and the premium attractions, plus taxes, you’ve got to think that Disney is milking a family of five for about four-hundred more dollars per four-day trip than they were getting before.
But if you’re holding Disney stock, maybe you’re loving this pay-per-attraction method Disney is going with. After all, if you’re paying just to get through the turnstiles, it’s a great business model to charge for quick rides if guests are willing to pay it. So far… they are.
