Upgrading to Genie Plus While at Disney World – How Much Does It Cost?
It is always a great joy to have a feel of a Disney theme park but the long queues for the most popular rides are really a let down. Which is why Disney came up with Genie Plus – it grants you access to the Lightning Lane entry points of over 40 rides in Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom, helping you completely bypass those notoriously lengthy standby lines. But how much does it cost to subscribe to Genie Plus? Let's break it down.
Base Genie Plus Pricing
Genie Plus is charged on a per-guest-per-day basis, and this is the base price for the service. Currently for 2023, the Genie Plus upgrade costs $15 per ticket if purchased directly through Disney. So if you have a family of four visiting the parks, it would cost $60 in total to add Genie Plus to everyone’s ticket for the day.
But it is necessary to understand that this is in addition to the regular park ticket price. Therefore, before you can be considered for Genie Plus, you have to be a holder of a Walt Disney World theme park ticket.
For annual passholders, it costs $15 per day no matter the Pass type to upgrade to Genie Plus.
Selecting Genie Plus In Advance vs. Choosing Genie Plus On The Same Day
Genie Plus can be bought at the time of booking the initial theme park tickets or at the park during one’s visit. However, there is a very small variation in the cost of the two options.
If you will buy Genie Plus before your visit, whether it will be one or several days, it will cost $15 per each guest per day.
The price for upgrading to Genie Plus at Walt Disney World will vary depending on whether you get it in advance or at the park; the latter is $19 per guest per day.
So, you will be able to save a little bit of money by choosing Genie Plus at the moment and adding it when first purchasing tickets. But if you are hesitating now, you can always add the upgrade at the last moment when you are in the parks too.
Annual Passes and Genie Plus for Disney World
Important to note is the fact that as a Walt Disney World Annual Passholder, you do not receive Genie Plus with your pass. It is important to note that even if you are a Genie Plus subscriber, you will have to buy it day by day like the regular ticket holders.
Refer to the previous information that has been mentioned, the cost for Passholders to add on Genie Plus is a fixed fee of $15 per day for all Annual Pass tiers including Incredi-Pass, Sorcerer, Pirate, and Pixie Dust Pass.
However, Annual Passholders are not left out as they enjoy an exclusive $10 discount per Genie Plus day if booked in advance for several days. It has to be at least 2 days to get the $10 off discount though.
For instance, Passholders could buy Genie Plus for a Saturday and a Sunday all at once and this would cost $25 instead of $30 for both. Cumulatively, this can translate to reasonable savings for Passholders who intend to have multiple Disney park days within the pass year.
Important Tips About Pricing
When factoring in the cost for your family or travel party to upgrade to Genie Plus, there are a few key things to be aware of:When factoring in the cost for your family or travel party to upgrade to Genie Plus, there are a few key things to be aware of:
All members of your group who wish to access the Lightning Lanes have to participate in Genie Plus. It is not established on hotel room or ticket account. Interestingly, there are no free Genie Plus benefits for kids of 2 years or below, or any other age/exception.
Avoid buying the Genie Plus for multiple days when you anticipate using it as it is quite costly. It does not necessarily have to be every single day of your travel and this can become rather expensive.
Although Genie Plus operates in all four Walt Disney World theme parks, it remains a per person per day system. Thus, if you are park hopping, you only need the Genie Plus purchased at one park for the whole day.
Indeed, the price is $19 per person, and it is the day-of upgrade price, which means that it does not change with the date or season like Disney ticket prices do.
The Advantages and Disadvantages
Is it justified to pay extra for Genie Plus? It depends with the Disney activities and goals you have in mind. The question that needs to be asked is whether shortening the wait time by using Lightning Lane will make things more enjoyable throughout the day to offset the cost?
There are certainly excellent benefits that come with Genie Plus like:There are certainly excellent benefits that come with Genie Plus like:
As it allows you to visit even more attractions within a single day because you don’t waste time waiting in a line.
Ride some favorite attractions which usually have very long queues such as Seven Dwarfs Mine Train.
Fewer cases of standing around in line
Less working hours, having time to relax and eat, time to take a power nap
However there are some downsides too including:However there are some downsides too including:
It is even worse when you have to coordinate your entire day around bookings for Lightning Lane.
Charging $15+ per head per day is rather expensive and becomes cumbersome when there are many people in the team or when the trip is for several days.
Does not include the most high demand rides like Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance which one has to pay 8-15 dollars for each individual lightning lane rather than
When considering whether Genie Plus is a worthy upgrade, ensure you factor in your Disney plans and goals. The fact that it can be bought day-by-day and you pay for the specific park days only, adds to it as well. Determine how much that perk will cost for your party size and then decide if it is worth the price for what you are trying to accomplish.