The COVID-19 pandemic hit the Disney Parks hard as they had to stay completely closed for lengthy periods of time in order to help halt the spread of the disease. Now that they have reopened, Disney is trying to enrich the experience of their patrons by making their stays more streamlined.

Something that was teased in 2019 at the D20 Expo will help with that endeavor. Launching this fall, Disney is introducing an app with a free and pay version called Disney Genie and Disney Genie+ respectively. The free version of the app will replace the Fastpass and the paid version, which is priced at $20 per day, will replace the Maxpass.

Slated to work at Disneyland, Disney California Adventure, and Walt Disney World in Florida, the Disney Genie app systems are set up to help patrons streamline their stays. The app was announced by the Disney company on Wednesday.

The free version of the app, Disney Genie, will allow patrons to plan out their day, including planning out an itinerary for their day. Patrons will also be able to make reservations at park restaurants through the app. Although the free version of the app will not allow you to skip any of the lines, it will show you expected wait times at any of the rides so you can plan accordingly.

The pay version of the app, Disney Genie+, however, is a more robust version with far more features. With the paid version, which costs $20 per day at Disneyland and $15 per day at Walt Disney World on top of your normal admission fee, patrons can not only plan out their day as they can with the free version, but they can also use the "lightning lane" on many rides and get in and ride their favorite rides faster.

Not all rides are included in the Disney Genie+ fee, however. More than 15 rides at Disneyland,including Haunted Mansion and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, will be available for reservation through thepaid app. But high-demand rides like Radiator Springs Racers at California Adventure and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom Park will cost riders an additional fee that will vary by date, attraction and park, Disney said. Specifics on pricing will be announced at a later date.

"This service will soon be your new personal assistant to help you create your best Disney day," Gary Daniels, vp digital experience at Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, said in a video announcing the app.

Still, even with the additional fees for some rides, many patrons will be enticed to use the Disney Genie+ app to save themselves some time on rides that they can skip the lines on. Ride lines at the Disney Parks can get very long and the chance to skip even some lines may be worth the additional fee to use the app.

The announcement of the Disney Genie app system comes on the heels of Disney announcing the end of their annual pass program which will be replaced at the end of this month with the Magic Key, a reservation system that will have benefits and discounts for frequent visitors. Disney believes that the Magic Key and Genie+ apps will help maintain the flow of visitors and help to more easily manage crowds. What are your thoughts on the Disney Genie+ app system? Sound off in the comments below!