little drop of pixie dust such as random live entertainment acts and new exciting shows etc.
just to be blunt, there is no random live entertainment (or so rare many guests think there are none. TBH they put 3 CMs dressed as pirates with music instruments at the entrance of blue lagoon, yihaaaa ...)
Please don't tell me they'll just repaint the casey jr train again and let that be sent down Main Street every hour like for the 20th Anniversary...
it runs 4 times a day, when they manage to start it (ok I'm just exagerating ... or not ...)
WHY IS THE BUDGET SO BAD? WHY DO DISNEY LET THIS GO ON? CAN'T THEY TAKE OVER THE COMPANY? I don't understand really... but the park is painting a bad name for Disney.
I'll try to answer is a quick fashion (forgive the shortcuts)
On a fiscal level, it is more interesting to be in deficit rather than making profit, because charges are less, and laws are in your favor (employment protection, whatever, I'm using a big shortcut here, but you get the picture, DLP MUST NOT make profit to be profitable to TDWC (the walt disney company)
DLP owes royalties to TDWC for use of the various licenses ( among other things)
TDWC also holds DLP's debt, and DLP is plagued by the interests it reimburses. Even if DLp wanted, it could not make profit because of the money it pays to TDWC
The big boss (P Gas) has no incentive to change things, as he gets paid by TDWC through a special company. So whatever the results, he gets paid (poor old guy had a wage cut last year on his performance premium ... still made in the 6 zeros figure ... I might send him money ... this recession really hits everybody
)
If DLP made money, it would be a catastrophe for TDWC, because right now TDWC makes money out of DLP. If DLP was to make profit, TDWC would need to invest, which means spending money on a park that would then fall into deficit again, due to the interests owed for the new credit lines.
So right now, the only policy is to cut on expenses, thus reducing the shows, and all of those other things that make the Disney atmosphere. And it also means cutting back on maintenance and putting the guests at risk (accidents do happen. In July alone, a gutter gave way on space mountain and a large block of concrete (or resin) fell off a Phantom Manor banister ...
(and when I say guests are at risk, I mean it. The roofs are supposed to have been inspected and rehabed a few weeks ago, still there was a failure of one of those roofing elements, and the issue has been deemed serious enough so that a large number of those elements, on several rides, had to be "temporarily" secured (which in DLP speech means "until the safety itself fails ...")
The pricing policy has been a policy of volume. As I already said on another thread, guests here in France can get their tickets for as low as £15.
DLP is advertising, on TV, several times an hour on almost every channel (imagine how much that costs on a park that says there is no budget for characters, shows, or pixie dust things). They were even distributing flyers in front of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris at the beginning of the week to try and draw people into the park
They seem desperate to get people in the park (14th of July, Bastille day, was dead slow ... come on !!!!)
They only do things so that shareholders do not feel too alarmed (they probably should)
try to imagine that on Bastille Day, they had a smallish fireworks (smaller than the one of a small village in france) before dreams, no decoration along main street, no celebration, no nothing. The only thing they did was to dress Donald in Blue (duh!!!) Mickey in White and Goofy in red to represent the french flag at the top of DLH's stairs (for 5 minutes)
they do a thousand time more for St Patrick's day ... and nothing for the host country's national celebration
If a US DISer reads this, let them imagine a 4th of July at WDW without a special fireworks, a special parade, without flags, marching bands, or special celebration ... that's what it is now like at DLP, and I call that a crying shame.
This is a desperate situation, there is no money, and no will to make money.
Maybe does TDWC want the park to file for bankrupcy (just like the city of Detroit did yesterday) and work to transform the debt into shares, and get absolute control over the park.
Future looks grim. 2013 is the worst year so far, and more and more French guests begin to be very vocal about it (as I am here)
It's not to deter you from going, or to spoil your fun or your magic. It's just that we're fed up with seeing our park go down like this when it used to be the best Disney park in the world (honest)
Consider this post (and the other I've made here) as a cry for help. Our park badly needs help
It's still possible to have a very magical day there, if you manage not to notice, or not to mind all of the minor inconvenience. But at some point, when you're a regular, it becomes worse and worse.
This situation even changes CMs, you'll realise it next time you ask "where are the ...(insert place here)" and the CM answers "It's written on your map, duh !!!" and walks away ... (true story)
