Guests Share “Hidden Cart Secret” to Secure Genie+ AND Dining Reservations

in Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World

slinky dog dash

Credit: Disney

If you’ve ever visited Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, there’s little doubt that you know why it’s called “The Most Magical Place on Earth.” But you’ve probably also concluded that it’s among the most expensive places on Earth — there’s a reason, after all, that t-shirts that say “Most Expensive Day Ever” and “Hakuna NoDolla” exist.

Cinderella Castle 50th Anniversary lights
Credit: Disney

Related: Disney’s “Berserking” Price Hikes Are Just Beginning

Recently, The Walt Disney Company has come under fire for price hikes amid lower quality service than Disney Park-goers are typically used to.

From getting rid of free FastPasses in favor of paid Lightning Lanes to the controversial Genie+ platform to reducing food portion sizes throughout Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort to seemingly cutting corners in regard to theme park merchandise quality to charging $6,000 for a two-night stay on the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser hotel, Disney is overcharging and underperforming in many fans’ minds.

genie disney phone mobile
Credit: Disney

Related: Lucky Guests Experience RARE Finn Easter Egg on Rise of the Resistance

The Genie+ and Lightning Lane system has been particularly maligned, with many Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort Guests frustrated by the pricey process that often yields less-than-magical results (i.e. not getting Lightning Lane access for fan-favorite rides).

Now, however, Reddit user u/F1rstxLas7 has shared a “hidden cart secret” that can help fellow Disney Parks Guests secure not only Genie+ passes, but advance dining reservations (ADRs) as well.

Cinderella Greets Family at "Cinderella's Royal Table"
Credit: Disney

The lengthy post reads, in part:

Here’s where what I’m calling the ‘invisible’ or ‘hidden’ cart system comes into play… It’s 7am on the dot and you refresh Hollywood Studios’ tip board. You’ve already pinned Slinky Dog Dash and Rise of the Resistance to the top and morning time slots are available so you click on Slinky Dog to try for that first. You get into the checkout process and are selecting your party, go to the next screen, and your app crashes! Quickly, you restart the app, see that you didn’t not complete the booking process, and go back to the Tip Board to try and get Slinky Dog except… the return time isn’t until 5pm. Instead, you try for an 11am Rise of the Resistance time, go through the checkout process, AND THE SAME THING HAPPENS!! Again, you quickly restart your app, refresh the Tip Board and both are sold out by 7:05am. You are devastated and the only hope you have is to try rope dropping one of these or to continuously refresh throughout the day and pray it works out. But what if I told you that both Slinky Dog Dash and Rise are actually still just sitting in your cart waiting for you to buy them, without any rush at all?

slinky dog roller coaster vehicle
Credit: Disney

The OP continued:

What does this have anything to do with Advanced Dining Reservations?? Believe it or not, the Disney app and website are really just ecommerce platforms. They utilize a cart/checkout system to provide us a way to easily make purchases. Dining Reservations operate under the exact same cart system that Genie+ & ILL/IAS systems do. When you wake up early, 60 days out from your trip, you experience the exact same system in place. There are multiple time slots of ‘inventory’ for each restaurant- when you click on one, it gets added to your ‘cart’ for checkout. I want to be clear here, and it’s also going to be important for a later point about guest relations, this is an entirely separate cart system from what you use to purchase Merch, Tickets, or anything else through the Disney site. That’s a very clear and durable cart with persistence, this hidden cart system is NOT.

Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance
Credit: ITM/Alex Lue

Related: Disney Is Officially Bringing Back Scrapped Galaxy’s Edge Plans

Finally, the post noted:

So what does this mean? It means that when you click on an ADR time slot, it gets added to an invisible cart on your account. From here you can either complete the checkout process for reservation, cancel it, or just walk away. The reason this works for guests and Disney alike is that it gives people a chance to go get their credit card, put in their personal info, and safely reserve a time slot without it being picked off by someone else who is quicker. How do I know reservations are ‘held’ by Disney in this way? Go add a dining reservation time to your ‘cart’, cancel it, and check to see if it’s immediately available again OR if it’s available in… 10 minutes. This test is most applicable when a restaurant doesn’t have a lot of “inventory” for certain time slots. For example, most restaurants in Disney World are set up for tables of 4 so those time slots will typically stick around a bit longer and might not disappear because there are plenty of them.

What does 10 minutes have to do with anything? If you recall, I mentioned above that people believe Disney “releases” more return times at 7:10am for the most popular rides- this is not true. What is actually happening is that you are adding these ride reservations to your ‘hidden cart’, but if your app crashes then you have no way to get back to them! They still exist in your account for 10 minutes, but the cart is functioning as though it’s inactive because you can’t progress(because you can’t get back to it) and therefore will return these times back into the general ‘inventory’. And guess what time the majority of the inventory is returned. Yeap… 7:10am after phones & apps started to crash during the checkout process right around 7am.

storybook dining
Credit: Disney

Related: Mind-Blowing Hidden Disney Hack Saves Guests Hundreds

Other fans immediately weighed in, noting that this Disney hack worked for them! u/TheHighPhotographer posted:

Used your 10 minute tip just now for a Cinderellas Royal Table on Memorial Day. Got beat on the initial click. Assumed people see the price and bail. Checked 10 minutes later and got the exact reservation. Thanks for the post.

u/wildandflea also weighed in, writing:

This makes complete sense to me regarding the 7:10/10 minutes past crashes theory, and the HUGE takeaway is that if I was able to click click click but crash through the system, I should be able to chill and patiently ask guest services to help with completing the “transaction”. Also: beautifully explained and sound theory!

spice road dining package epcot
Credit: Disney

Related: Disney Hack: How to Cancel a Dining Reservation Last Minute With No Fee

Disney has not commented on the veracity of this tip, but Guests certainly seem intrigued.

What’s your favorite Disney vacation hack?

in Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World

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