How Important is EE to You? - DVC Member Only Poll

[PamOKW]

With the cutback on EE until the crowds pick up again and the uproar this has caused among some people, I'm wondering how important it is to DVC'ers. Many non-DVC people seem to feel there's no need to stay on-site without EE. What are your feelings? With the ability to keep returning to WDW, is EE still as important?

[Pluto4President]

doesn't matter to me...

[TrudyZ]

We use it all the time for MK (have a 3 year old); and sometimes for the other parks.

We were just there October 10-20th. Not counting the first and last days, as we were not there long enough to use it; we used it five out of nine days. We used it every possible MK EE day (4 out of 5 EEs we did) during our trip.

On the other four days we went to AK (1), pool hopped (1), slept in due to MNSSHP prior evening (1), and lazed around one day that we were sick.

I was first very dissapointed that E nights were gone--we used those nights to do all of the " big people" rides. We were not aware of any loss of the EE priviledge while we were there--no rumors what so ever.

I feel that staying on site has lost much of it's magic--no EEs, noE nights, etc. No much incentive.

I will lobby very strongly to bring them back--especially for MK--which had the most rides/attractions by far open for EE.

Trudy

[danicaw]

I havent been since the cut of EE, but they are doing this because of a drop in attendance - more specifically not as much money coming in - if that is the case there should be fewer people and not the need for EE as there used to be.

I love staying on Property. I will continue to with or without EE. Half the time I can't drag myself out of bed early enough to take advantage of it anyway. ;)

Just my opinion.

[RONfromRI]

Although I voted for the second choice, a 5th option would have better described our opinion. "Use it frequently but are not upset at its demise" because with drop in attendance, it's not really needed.

[Disnydad]

We have used it a few times over the years. I find it not worth the hassel of getting the four of us up, b'fast and to the park. I'm on vacation and going to EE is too much like getting the four of us up, b'fast and to the bus stop(kids) and to work.:rolleyes:

[PamOKW]

Good suggestion Ron! I didn't think about adding an option for, "Don't need it with low crowds but look forward to its return."

[Regina]

That's how I feel Ron.

We enjoyed WDW before EE was introduced, and we'll still enjoy it without it.

[Eeyore2U]

I think there was a line in a song "it don't matter to me"

We were just home from 9/30-10/6. I'm glad we had a rental car since we did everything we wanted to do in the parks by Wednesday. I like the sleep I don't usually get too!!!

[TrudyZ]

Ron,

We were just there; and although there was a supposed drop in the crowds, MK was still the most crowded park--and packed on the weekends.

On the four days we went to MK on EE, many of the rides that are part of the EE program had a 30+ minute line before noon (Pooh, Dumbo, Peter Pan, Buzz, Astro Orbiter, etc.) Those are awful long times for small children to wait--so that 1 1/2 hours we get for EE with limited access really count (and it doesn't hurt that it is cooler in the early mornings also).

Also, with the park hour cutbacks, you will find that as parks open later in the morning, they will be more crowded from the start. And as the parks close earlier, the parks will stay crowded until close. There won't be that hour or two of lower crowds that the early birds or night owls used to enjoy.

I also found that at the other parks with EE, there were only a few attactions open, and many of those had fast passes, so EE was not as important. But, I think for many of us with small children, EE really helps us enjoy MK and was very much a part of our vacations plans.

I will be interested in hearing reports from families who used to do EE (especially at MK); and how the loss of EE and E nights affected their trips.

Trudy

[lyndon1]

Our family has found that while everyone rushes to get to the parks scheduled for "EE", we go to an alternate park and there are less people there. Wow, what a concept.

No harm, no foul.

The Girvins

[NJmouse]

Like lyndon we used EE the oppsite way. We would go where the crowds were not. If MK was an EE we would go to the Studio or Epcot and the opposite for those parks. It worked out really well for us. There is no poll for this particular concept, so I didn't pick any.

[dianeschlicht]

Have to agree with Ron. We used it but wont miss it either.

[DVCJman]

Our plan was to go to the park that had Early Entry the day before......

[jennybobenny]

I wouldn't say I'm 'quite upset', more 'concerned'.
With small children the only EE park that mattered to us was Magic Kingdom. We would take the first bus at 7am, get into the park at 7:30am, ride Dumbo, Pooh, the carousel etc. and then head back to our resort mid-morning. It was an ideal situation for us, especially since my kids are up at the crack of dawn anyway. The plan for our upcoming trip was to do EE at MK at least twice. If the crowds are low, maybe we won't miss it, but I've read a few posts from folks just back saying the MK wasn't even close to being empty. Thanksgiving weekend, especially, should be interesting. ;)

[Chuck S]

The only reason I'll miss it is that it was the park we avoided that day...EE parks were generally the most crowded that day, so we always picked a different one.

[Lesley]

All of our trips have been taken using ee....we get less "hardcore" about doing early mornings now that we spend more time in WDW all together, but we had still planned to do at least half of our days with ee in Jan. We find our favorite times to be in the parks are at ee and enight...we barely would spend any time in the MK during regular hours...just enough to see Adventureland mainly. Everything is so peaceful early in the morning...even if we weren't doing rides its nice to hang out when its empty.

So we're pretty upset, but it will be interesting taking a different approach this trip. We might actually get enough sleep! Still its irksome that our first DVC trip will be without one of the on property perks we've come to love.

[KNWVIKING]

For the most part DW and I are nite owls when we're on vacation so we've never even been awake for EE. We spend our whole working lives going to bed early and getting up at 6:00 am ,we like to break up the routine a little on vacation. Of course,we suffer that first morning after vacation when the alarm goes off :-(

[MikeBW]

I believe that people with small kids feel the effect of EE's loss, more than others. With small kids, there is no sleeping in because we are on vacation. We have used EE extensively, and it has worked out great every time - we see and do a lot before 10 AM. We feel that we can leave the parks in the afternoon instead of staying to get our money's worth, and in the afternoon is when you see the kids pitching fits. (Not my kids, they are perfect. LOL!!)
If the parks are truly less crowded, then EE's loss should not be that much of a hardship. IMHO, EE will be back sooner rather than later. This is a short term inconvenience.

[drusba]

We have not used it in several years as kids (including a teen) won't get up early enough. However, I still consider it an important on-site perk because it provides "definition." You knew what parks would be lighter on a day because they did not have ee and thus you could plan to go to those. Lack of ee will likely take away the ability to define what park is going to be crowded and which not on any particular day. Also, the death of ee to me is just one more event in a pattern of Disney in the last several years to reduce park hours generally. For example in old days MK would be open to midnight in the summer (and 1 on weekends) because the summer had huge crowds and the extra hours are needed. That was reduced to 11 then to 10 for most weekdays over the last several years even though the crowds did not get any smaller; the result has been just more congestion during the hours the parks are open. In other words, we get a sense that the "bean-counters" are in control and they don't consider the issue of impact on the guest when determining what to cut.

[lodgelady]

I wouldn't care if there was no EE at Epcot for most of the year, and AK opens early enough as it is. MGM is small enough to navigate in a day,
*BUT* IMO they should ALWAYS offer EE to MK at least 2 days/week.
It is the center of the magic and the flagship park! My kids would go there early EVERY morning if they could! They are up by 7AM vacation or not....

[CarolMN]

Count me in with the group that wishes EE was still available for the MK. When there are young children in your party, EE is the only way to ensure a reasonable wait for the FantasyLand rides. Hope park attendance rises soon and Disney sees its way to reinstate EE at least for the MK!

[Denine]

We used EE mostly for the MK so we could ride the kiddie rides before all the kids showed up (we are 2 adults). We were just there on Monday with no EE. The park was still empty at 11 AM, the time we usually hightail it out of there.

[Johnnie Fedora]

Just got back from Sept-Oct. WDW, and the crowds were the least i've ever seen. It made for a nice vacation, except you kept thinking about the reason way the crowds were down.

EE is the illusion of a good thing. During our stay, EE was the worst time to be in the park, because everyone was there on those mornings. We stayed away from the parks that had EE (especially in the mornings), as they were more crowded than on non-EE days. If you want the true intended benefit of EE, my advice is to get the non-EE park first thing in the morning.

I would rather see E-nights where fantasyland is open. That would be a better opportunity to ride Dumbos with the kids.

[sgtdisney]

My problem with the cuts is not just the deletion of EE or E-ticket nights seperately. It is the combination of ALL the cuts all at the same time and on extremely short notice. I personally have never used EE, never had the need too. However I know that a lot of people who stay in Disney Resorts count on it, especially in the Budget Resorts, where it was advertised heavily. Still is in the 100th Celebration materials.. All these cuts are making it appear to all but the most steadfast Disney fan that Disney is cutting back on their world class service and that quality is suffering. I can't see how that appearance would entice people to come to WDW now, who are concerned about going..

The combination of the loss of EE and E-ticket night as well as the park operating hour cutbacks are akin to losing many available hours in the parks. I am sure some cutbacks were required if Disney is having some financial problems with WDW at this point as it seems that they must. It is the entire combination of all the cuts with no communication with the guests that I find to be disquieting right now.

Incidentally a friend just got back from WDW this past Monday and he described the Parks as packed and the waits were not what you would expect for a park that is 'empty.'

[DVC-94]

Originally posted by DVCJman
Our plan was to go to the park that had Early Entry the day before......

We've done the same thing for years. It worked great especially at MK.

[Lesley]

I really don't understand when folks say that ee is of no benefit because its crowded....every time I've gone it has been the only opportunity to ride things like Winnie the Pooh and Peter Pan with absolutely no wait...We easily get our fill of Fantasyland in that hour...repeated rides and all.

Of course if you show up at 8:30 you're not going to see the advantage....the parks do begin to fill by then...but the first hour is great! Then we leave the ee park by 10 or get a late breakfast, then leave.

I love the idea of just bringing back ee at the MK if possible...its the one park where its most useful. My kids are actually night owls (so am I) but its worth it to get us all up and into the MK by 7:30!

[MikeBW]

Here is another opinion on EE: maybe Disney should do a similiar thing to Universal's front of the line. I have never been to Universal, so can someone comment who has been there and seen how it works.

[ohiominnie]

I voted "Use it all the time and are quite upset" but that's not entirely true. We use EE at the MK on every available EE day. I don't believe we've ever used EE at any other park. We've got two little ones (7 and 4) and they are up and at-um on MK EE days. We can get them there and ride everything in Fantasyland before the parks officially open to the public. Then we'll hit Haunted Mansion, Splash, BTMR, and maybe Jungle Cruise or Pirates and just about be ready to leave. By then the kids are ready to swim! We'll swim for a few hours, then hit the parks when it slows down in the evenings (I'd say "when it cools off in the evenings" but it's FLORIDA!)

Also...I voted "and we are quite upset"....which isn't really true either. There are things in this life to get worked up about, and there are things to take in stride and work around. We'll work around not having EE at the MK. I'm sure we'll be at the front gate the second it opens to take full advantage of everything. We're going in December, so it may be cool and the kids won't be so anxious to swim. In the long run, it'll work out. When things are more stable, crowds will go up, and I'll bet they'll resume EE.

So I voted the "best" choice for me....although, as you can see, it was far from the "correct" answer.

ohiominnie :p

[TampaDisneyFreaks]

There should be a category, "Use it occasionally, but will miss it". We use it for MK, but not so much the others. Our big trip in Sept (before 9/11), the crowds were light (they always are those 10 days anyway). We like to use EE at MK, b/c we can do most of what we want to do before 10 and then go back to the resort to be lazy. We use it occasionally at MGM to ride RR and TT without having to worry about getting FP's. If we get FP's after we ride the first few times, then it is a bonus. We usually avoid the parks with weekend EE's b/c of the crowds. We like to take advantage of them during the week b/c then there is a real advantage with smaller crowds anyway and you can do more in the morning to be back at the hotel early to nap, swim, etc.. We use it occasionally at EPCOT to get on Test Track. We will miss it, and it will change our planning while we are there, but it won't keep us away (well, it may reduce the number of day trips we take by a little bit). We will REALLY miss E-ride nights. We LOVE those and have planned some 3 night get-aways specifically so we can have an e-ride night. That will be a huge void for us. Losing them both at the same time REALLY hurts and it puts more of a premium on having to use FP's. It may hurt my DW more, b/c now she will hear me more than ever sarcastically thanking Paul Pressler for all of the wonderful cutbacks he has implemented :(
By the way.............thanks again Paul for the "wonderful" work you are doing with WDW:(


Sorry if this is disjointed or incoherent. Lots of thoughts for this, but my allergy medicine is making me think and move in sssssllllllloooooowwwwww mmmmoooootttttiiiiiooonnnnnn.
I understand it is a business, but the cuts (or at least the manner they have been handled and the timing) are frustrating. I am not just refering to the post 9-11 cuts, but all the little things that were happening over the past few years as well. However, we still love Disney and all that Walt stood for, and hope things will return back to "normal" at WDW once the economy picks back up.

[Bennet]

We use it all the time but are not all that upset. Yeah it is a great thing and I hope that as volume picks up it comes back.

I was there 9/11. Didn't get the park time I had hoped for as they closed. Two groups we met that day help put things in perspective.

We spent part of the afternoon in the BWV laundry with some folks from NYC, one of who worked at WTC.

Later we spent some time at YC pool talking to a family, who I had taken a groop picture of that AM in Epcot. (I like to take pictures for groups so they can all be in it.) Turns out they had been planning a trip for months, parents w/ grown sons and wifes. The Mom passed away shortly before the trip. They came to WDW in part to salute her passing.

We always meet nice folks at WDW who also enjoy the place. That will still happen and the cast members will still be great. We all have a roll in making magic and that is the point of going. WDW isn't just a spectator sport. EE is nice but it isn't why we go.

[twinglefam]

We always use EE, but not UPSET...since 9/11 it takes a lot more than that to get me upset! Just returned from our trip home and used EE almost each day. It may have just been our week (10/12-10/19) but there were really very small lines all week. The Fantasyland lines seem to develop at a quick pace no matter when we are in that area. My girls are getting older and are happy with just one visit there during our trip. I checked every day all week for the Mickey flag pins; finally scored a few the last day in MK and returned home to find two even more spectacular pins waiting for me from DVC! What a nice gift. BYW...I LOVED OKW!!!! Our two bedrm was magnificent and blew our BW room out of the water (we tried both this trip.) Our home is VWL but I think we'll be opting for OKW when we can. It was grrrreat!!!!

[Pluto4President]

wow this is one of the closest polls I've seen yet!

[vernon]

While personally it doesn't worry me too much. My own park activity now is a lot more relaxed. I do think it effectively removes the practicality of taking a couple of hours out in the middle of the day to those with younger children or those that like to take a break. With park hours down to 9-10 hours a day to take a two hour break ( compounded by 30 minutes each way transportation) really takes quite a big bite out of a days ticketting.

I do feel that EE is really more of an incentive to those who are making "once in a lifetime" trips and as such DVC members can afford to have a time where this incentive isn't offered as IMHO they will make it up in the future. I do find more worrying that this will have a negative impact on people who chose to stay on site. It seems Disney has got into the mentality of cutting back to reduce costs as opposed to looking at how they can maximise the number of people staying ( and spending money) on site. IMHO this move will bring less visitors and therefore less money into WDW, so...... what next will they cut.

It doesn't effect me, but I think it's a mistake.

[CaptainMidnight]

Use it all the time, but understand some cutbacks are necessary, and prefer this cutback to increases in dues, or other more painful actions...

[MaryJ]

I have teenagers who think that going on vacation means sleeping late, so doing EE is a real challenge for us. They'd rather stay late at night. When we were there at Spring Break (we've always gone in the summer before) the parks closed earlier and we missed staying late! Won't miss EE much at all.

[KirstenB]

We have a 3 year old, and even though she gets up early, we've never used it. We do what Lyndon said, "look at whichever park has it, then go to another park". We may use it in the future, but right now, we (including our little girl) are so excited to be on vacation, we're happy at any one of the parks. When she gets old enough to get really excited about certain rides in particular, we may use it then (if it returns).

At this point she'd be just as happy to hang out at the pool all day, LOL!!

[Granny]

My DD's are 12 and 10 and I still have to pry them out of the pool on vacations to WDW! Here we are, in the greatest kids destination on earth, and I'm having to beg them to get out of the pool go to one of the theme parks! ;)

Now, with DVC ownership, I can cut the kids a little slack. If they don't want to go to the park one day, no problem. I know we'll be back soon!!!

[Mickbee]

I voted #2. However, we will miss it but I wouldn't say we are upset. I understand why they are doing it though it is sort of a bummer...

Just a thought: Perhaps they could have started EE at the time of regular admission (9:000am ?) and then bump the non-WDW resort guest admission back an hour. It would seem that it would encourage more people to stay in a WDW hotel for their visit. Again, just a thought.

[Kelly&John]

We just got back from WDW this weekend - October 27th. The parks were not crowded. I walked onto many attractions including Peter Pan, Snow White, etc. With park attendance so low, EE really wasn't necessary.

[sumessefui]

We used to use it before joining DVC, but now we sleep later. Since we have all these years to come to WDW, EE is no longer important to us.

[dizneeluvr]

We've never really used early entry during our trips to Disney over the past 2 years. Not in the usual way anyway. Most of the time, we went to a park that didn't have EE because we found it to be less crowded--so in that regard we did like it I guess.

I'm sure when things get better Disney will re-evaluate. They are going to have to, because in order to have a successful business you need to keep your customers happy.

Laura

[Mary Ellen]

The only reason we paid attention to which park was the EE one each day, was to know which park to avoid ;) . We've found that going to a park the day AFTER it was EE works very well for us. :D

[Certifiable WDW Nut]

Is this thread still alive?

In reviewing the posts, I noticed that no one said anything about the fact that EE was one of the very few incentives for guests staying on property as opposed to staying off-site.

It seems to me that Disney Management is shooting themselves in the foot by removing this incentive and thereby cutting off a potential source of revenue.

[Eeyore2U]

Originally posted by Certifiable WDW Nut
Is this thread still alive?

In reviewing the posts, I noticed that no one said anything about the fact that EE was one of the very few incentives for guests staying on property as opposed to staying off-site.

It seems to me that Disney Management is shooting themselves in the foot by removing this incentive and thereby cutting off a potential source of revenue.

You brought it back. I think those of us that visit frequently, mine being once a year, do not go commando style. We don't need to do everything. I think that we, although I won't speak for all DVC members, have the prevailing thought that if we don't do it this trip, we'll do it the next one.

So, in a nutshell, I personally don't care if they ever bring EE back since I have never used it and have only stayed onsite.

[wdw4us2]

DD and DS are 10 & 7 and we always use EE at MK and MGM. Since most of our trips are Friday-Sunday, this is a great advantage to us. There is simply no better way to do MK if you have kids who still insist on doing every attraction in Fantasyland. As for the posts about the EE park being the most crowded, that may be true, but who cares if you have already done all of Fantasyland and most of Tomorrowland before the park opens to anyone not staying onsite? When it becomes crowded - leave and go back to the resort or on to another park. Will we stop going to WDW because of the elimination of EE? No, but it won't be as enjoyable. I already know it's true because DH and I were at WL the weekend of 11/16-11/18 and the crowds were awful at MK and MGM. Too many people trying to do the same things during the same reduced hours. JMHO, though.:D

[Granny]

Originally posted by Certifiable WDW Nut
In reviewing the posts, I noticed that no one said anything about the fact that EE was one of the very few incentives for guests staying on property as opposed to staying off-site. When the suspension of EE first occurred, the issue you bring up was discussed quite a bit on these boards.

I agree that for those who are making a "trip of a lifetime" to WDW, the elimination of EE could make a difference in choosing to stay on-site or off-site.

But there are many who choose to be on-site to be surrounded by the Disney magic all the time. And, even though some seem to intensely dislike it, the transportation system is a big draw as well for many.

Of course, us DVCers have already made the choice to stay on-site for the next 40 years!

[Mousefanz]

I know many are upset by the elimination of EE but frankly, when I'm on vacation I don't participate in anything with the word EARLY in it !!

;)