Disney Genie Tips Board Replaces Times Guides
For many, many years, Disney World Times Guides guides (pictured below) were printed inserts located in racks near the front of each theme park, near the park maps and, as the name suggests, they gave you important times for your trip - things like park hours, entertainment schedules, and fireworks or parade times.
They don’t print these any more but the information has now been included in the “Experiences Tips Board” found Disney Genie smartphone app.
Where do I find this Information In the Disney App?
The entertainment schedules have been integrated into two different places in the MyDisneyExperience app, which is a free smartphone app that you will want to get before your trip. There are a lot of great features to help you plan your day, mobile order food from quick-service locations, and more. Click here to learn more
Once you’re in the app, there are two (2) ways to find entertainment and characters. This isn’t an absolute rule but, in general, major and permanent experiences like the Festival of Fantasy parade or permanent character locations like seeing Mickey Mouse in the Town Square Theatre get included on the app’s “Tips Board”. “Pop up” entertainment and character locations are listed in the app’s map feature. There are exceptions like the Dapper Dans who don’t have a permanent location but do get included on the tips board. We’ll show you how to find the information in both locations so you can find anything you’re looking for.
Using the Tips Board
There are two ways to get to the Tips board. The first way is to click on the “My Day” button that will take you to the “MyDay” screen but you can click on “Tip Board” near the top right.
The second way to get to the Tip Board is to click on the menu button in the lower left corner of the screen; it looks like three stacked lines (see photo below). That will take you to a screen that looks something like the second photo and you’ll click on the “Tip Board” button.
Once you get to the “Tips Board”, it is going to default to the Magic Kingdom but you can just click on the blue “Change Park” button below the date and change to the Disney theme park of your choice. See photo below.
Live entertainment, fireworks, character sightings, and parades are embedded in with the rides and attractions and these experiences are listed in alphabetical order. I’ve scrolled down to Dapper Dans, a barbershop quartet that performs intermittently through the day. In the photos below, you can see that only the next showtime is visible when you scroll down the list of attractions. You can see all of the performance times available by clicking on “view details”. Once you are in the “details” for the Dapper Dans, you have buttons that show where they are located, directions to get there, and you can add them to the “My Day” area of the app.
If you are looking at an experience that is included in Genie+ (Disney’s paid line reservation service), you will see the time for the next Lightning Lane slot. The Dapper Dans are not a Lightning Lane (LL) selection so they don’t have this information but The Animation Experience at Conservation Station is included in Genie+ and the screenshot below shows you how that looks. The “Next Show” listing at the top lets you know the next time this experience is available (3:15PM) if you wish to use the stand-by line. The “LL Disney Genie+” listing tells you the next available reservation and arrival time and is only available to guests who have purchased Genie+.
Using the Map to Find Characters & Entertainment
Disney World has lots of street performers and character meet-and-greet opportunities that don’t have a permanent structure or fixed schedules that do not make it onto the Tip Board but can be found through the map function of the MyDisneyExperience app. To start, click on the little pin shaped icon at the bottom the screen. When the map comes up, it’ll default to wait times but you can search for characters or entertainment by using the down arrow to access the menu. Once you’re in that menu, you can fine your search further by filtering for a specific park or, in the case of characters, for a specific character. You’ll see links that say “Filter” or “show list” up near the top.
Tip: I’d love for you to play with these features at home so that you don’t have to stand in the theme park, trying to figure it out. Keep in mind though that these lists only show times available for the day’s remaining park hours. If you experiment with it early in the day, you’ll see lots of choices. If you want until the end of the day, it might not have any options to show.
Is This All A Little Confusing?
Lightning Lane, Genie+, Experience Tip Boards….Disney is rolling out a lot of new changes right now and that can be confusing, even if you've visited Disney regularly for years. This is a good time to consider using our services for your next trip even if you've never used a travel agent before. We specialize in Disney vacations and spend a lot of time learning about these new features so you don't have to spend hours trying to sift through website after website trying to find up-to-date information.
Build A Better Mouse Trip - We help people avoid vacation disappointments and disasters by providing better trip planning and preparation because everyone deserves a vacation they will never forget. When you book through us, your travel advisor will help you:
select the right resort for your budget
plan a great "Best Days" itinerary
choose great restaurants and even book reservations for you if you prefer
understand the theme park apps, virtual lines and boarding groups, and other important details before you go so you know what to do, where to go, and how things work.