Disney Discusses Incoming “Disney Genie”: New Mobile Service for the Parks

Back in 2019, Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products Chairman Bob Chapek announced at the D23 Expo that a new digital offering for Walt Disney World would be on the way. The new offering was named “Disney Genie”. While details have been few and far between, we do know the Genie was initially set to debut in late 2020 to ” enhance the Disney vacation planning process for Guests in order to make the most out of their visit.” Of course, with COVID closures the Disney Genie seemed to have been pushed to the back burner.

We learned yesterday that the Walt Disney Company made a HUGE comeback with very successful third-quarter earnings. Walt Disney Company CEO Bob Chapek and Chief Financial Officer Christine McCarthy discussed the Disney Genie during the earnings call.

As reported by OrlandoSentinel: “Chapek and McCarthy said upcoming technological advancements will enhance visitors’ time in the parks and continue the company’s focus on Guest experiences. Disney is preparing to launch a new mobile service for the parks called Disney Genie, first announced in August 2019 with an initial planned launch in late 2020. The “user-friendly app” will offer Park Guests the opportunity to better customize their time as they go, using “industrial engineering data,” Chapek said. “Disney Genie will enable our Guests to more easily and efficiently navigate everything our parks have to offer,” Chapek said.”

The current MyMagic+ program is efficient but Chapek said the Disney Genie would be all that MyMagic+ offers and more by saying the Disney Genie program is MyMagic+ “on steroids”. Chapek goes on to say, “This is going to revolutionize our Guest experience. Guests are going to spend less time waiting and more time having fun in our parks with a dramatically improved Guest experience that’s going to make their navigation of their day and their planning of their day much easier.”

The resurfacing discussion of the Disney Genie comes at a good time as Disney has also announced they plan to increase Park capacity “aggressively”. With no current FastPass program in place, we suspect this increase in capacity will likely mean longer lines. Hopefully, Disney is making plans to use their Disney Genie tool as a chance to get the lines moving once again. What we don’t know however is if this new mobile offering for the parks will carry a cost for a form of FastPass, as recently introduced in Disneyland Paris Premier Access upcharge.

Here’s the full description of Disney Genie when first announced in 2019:

“Disney Genie will make planning easier and more fun by providing customized itineraries geared to your interests, right at your fingertips – from a royal, princess-themed day at Magic Kingdom Park to a trip around the world at Epcot for foodies and even a perfect day for thrill seekers. Certain features of Disney Genie will also be available through your preferred travel professional. Sometimes you may know exactly what you want to do but may not know the best time or order in which to do it. You’ll be able to tell Disney Genie what you’d like to experience, and it will quickly evaluate millions of options to present you with an optimal day. And best of all, it’s flexible! If you change your mind for any reason, Disney Genie will re-optimize your day. Disney Genie can also send you real-time tips and updates, including recommendations for experiences it thinks you’ll love, helping you navigate the theme parks with added convenience and comfort. If you don’t want to worry about making reservations in multiple steps, Disney Genie will even take care of that for you. This represents yet another way we are using creativity and innovation to connect Guests with the stories and characters they love, and to help them make lasting, magical memories with the family and friends they cherish most. Over the past several years, Disney Parks have become more seamless and enjoyable through other digital offerings, such as mobile food ordering, the Play Disney Parks app, online check-in and so much more.”