Obnoxious late-comer parade viewer situation - need to vent!

[seashoreCM]

BF." He gets huffy and says "You don't even have any kids!???! Scootch over!" I just ignored him, so he picks up his kid and stands RIGHT next to my back so his DS's feet are shoved right up against my upper back.

Yeah, spent 30 minutes watching a parade with a kid kicking me in the shins and another with his feet in my back. DBF got some good pictures though, at least I can enjoy those! LOL

DBF needed to get into the act and put a stop to the bad behavior.

Great point!

Sadly, I have to say I will no longer make room for even the nicest seeming people at a parade. We had a lady tap me on the shoulder at the MVMCP parade last year at the very last minute to see if her son could get up front by my daughter. Sure we said, no problem. well, that kid spent most of the parade IN the street, leaning over my daughter. She got stepped on a couple times. She felt like she had been mauled by the end of the parade. We both looked at each other when it was over and said never again. Every single CM that came by made him get out of the street but the moment they passed, he'd be right back in the street again..

You're supposed to guard your daughter so the other kid has to stay out away a little more and can't lean or backstep over her.

 

[tvsdisney]

We had this happen to. DS was about 2.5 years. This six foot four guy came and stood right in front of our stroller. I asked him to move and he said then he couldn't see. What a jerk!

 

[Bonniec]

I don't think it's certain cultures, it's just people in general. Everyone thinks they are entitled and it's awful. Crowds of people are the one thing I hate about Disney. Im just starting to dislike people more and more. Not all people, but it just feels like more people are rude than not.

Parades are tough. I would love to avoid them but my 5 year old son loves them. He's a shy, quiet, polite little boy which makes it tough on him. Even just walking through Disney, I am SO SICK of people running over my kid with their strollers, stepping on him, shoving him. I don't understand how full grown adults can push and shove a 5 year old and think it's ok.

 

[Buckimion]

My only bad parade experience was a long time ago at Spectromagic when I had a guy aggressively trying to cut in front of me to tape the parade. One good threat to drop kick him to the other side of the street from a 6'-2" ex-offensive linesman and cop bought me some breathing room.

Unfortunately my DW is now deathly afraid of confrontation escalating out of control and finding myself going up against someone packing a hidden weapon even at Disney. She has gone as far as to start punching me to stop me from confronting people, notably a lady behind up who thought CoP was a great time to carry on a Portuguese conversation on her cell phone at full volume. (DW will curse and mutter under her breath when people feed the birds near food stands but she won't get the the heart of the matter.)

 

[MindyDean]

Some people just think their family is the most important. My advice be early for best seating. We experienced a bad situation last Dec at MVMCP. After waiting an hour, this lady kept trying to push her stroller in front of us. My husband tried to explain that wasn't going to work. She said something back in another language and just stood there. My husband didn't back down-he was hot at that point. The dad finally got the baby out and held it. Poor little thing feel asleep right after the parade started. THe whole incident made me very uncomfortable and kind of ruined the magical Disney feeling.

 

[MichelleXL]

Wait a minute... so I'm not supposed to be kicked repeatedly and have drinks spilled all over me?
Nice to know that I've been watching the parades the wrong way all these years

The next thing you know, you'll be telling me that I'm not supposed to get elbowed in the face
while trying to catch beads during the Mardi Gras parade at Universal

 

[Abby's Dad]

Reading this thread has given me a lot of food for thought. I normally make a point of not going to places where I have to spend good money to be with people that I normally wouldn't associate with for free. We have two trips to WDW scheduled, and from these posts it seems that the rudeness and improper behavior have escalated way out of control. Since the trips are primarily for DW, I am going to have her read this thread and ask her if she still wants to go. We have time to cancel, and that is what I am going to recommend. And I might add - most all of these posters have exhibited much more self control than I can imagine having in similar circumstances, and all had earned the right to be where they were for the parades.

 

[Annadesu]

When I was in Magic Kingdom a few years ago, the park employees were allowing people to cross the road during the parade to get to other sections of the park. They would lower the ropes, have the walkers cross quickly, and then put the ropes back up until there was another pause.

This group of 20 year old latino men kept crossing the road everytime the ropes went up, and standing against the ropes when they were put back up. They kept doing this so they could be right by the road an take pictures. But everytime they would cross and stand in front of the ropes, they would be shoving multiple children and families out of the way to do so.

Finally, a random man told them to knock it off because his kids couldn't see the parade. After speaking English for the last 20 minutes, they spoke back to him in Spanish, clearly trying to pretend they couldn't understand him. The park employees did nothing.


ALL THAT SAID: I have watched the parades multiple times with no incident. But you can't escape rude people, no matter where you go, so it's bound to happen once and a while. The trips, as a whole, were a ton of fun.

 

[kwdw]

Glad I finally found my favorite secret spot to watch the parade at MK!!! Never a problem if I get there before someone else!

 

[MichelleXL]

Reading this thread has given me a lot of food for thought. I normally make a point of not going to places where I have to spend good money to be with people that I normally wouldn't associate with for free. We have two trips to WDW scheduled, and from these posts it seems that the rudeness and improper behavior have escalated way out of control. Since the trips are primarily for DW, I am going to have her read this thread and ask her if she still wants to go. We have time to cancel, and that is what I am going to recommend. And I might add - most all of these posters have exhibited much more self control than I can imagine having in similar circumstances, and all had earned the right to be where they were for the parades.

I think everyone in the thread is just venting a little. These are all "worst case scenarios."
I've watched the parades many times next to very friendly people, and had an amazing time.

For some reason, parades tend to make people go a little loopy,
but your experience may differ, and the rest of the park will more than make up for it

 

[eastcarolinafan]

Ok, so I've read a million times on the boards about rude people who shove in front of others who patiently waited for the parade. I never personally experienced this situation in all the parades we have seen over the years - until this trip - and it happened TWICE! I know this is long, but I have to vent!

Just a backnote: my boys are 8 and 5 and very small. (8 yr old 45 lbs, 49 inches tall. 5 yr old 45 lbs and 42 inches tall).

Scenario #1: We sat on main street 8/16/11 at 7:45 to wait for the electrical main street parade. Early? Yes! But my sons were tired from walking all day, we rode ALL the rides (sometimes twice) and we enjoyed the time people watching, talking about our day, eating snacks. It is a ritual for us at least once a trip, no biggie. Others started doing the same. There was an older teenage girl sitting next to me, with a stroller, maybe an older sister, and 2 toddler age girls. They were doing the same as us, the girls were relaxing in the stroller (pulled up to the curb), one woman (older sister maybe?) sitting on one side of the stroller, teenager on the other side next to the garbage can. At around 8:45, the little toddlers had to go to the bathroom RIGHT THEN, the older woman asked the teenager to wait with the stroller in their spot. Now, need to give a backstory at this point. There was an OBNOXIOUS family hanging in the street right in front of us WAITING to pounce at any moment. I understand that they wanted to find a spot, and there were still some near the train station curb area. But that's not where they wanted to be. So as soon as they saw that the teenage girl's family moved, the husband became very aggressive to the teenager. First he told the kids to push the stroller back from the curb and sit in front of it. The teenager said 'wait, I've been here with my family for over an hour this is our spot'. The wife at this point strategically is behind the stroller pulling it backward to move her own into the spot where the teenager's stroller was. The teenager was very well spoken and calm (more than I would have been), so I waited before jumping in to defend her. He starts embarassingly barading her loudly for others to mock her "WHY would you wait here so long for a parade? Isnt it illegal to save space in walt disney world? Your family doesnt care about you, they left you here so you should give the spots to us! Why would you come to Disney World to sit on a curb and not ride anything?" I was SHOCKED! And he was laughing crazily to get attention so others would mock her too. The girl calmly told him that its none of his business how she spends her day, maybe he should have had the foresight to arrive early and plan out the day accordingly so that he would have a good spot too! At this point I realized she did not need anyone to defend her, but my blood was BOILING! So she offers his kids to sit until her family comes back, but if there is no room they will have to move. When the toddler girls came right back, she politely asked the older kids (maybe 10-12yrs old) to move. THe father told them NOT to move and told them to shove over into my son. At this point I told the kids to back off, and switched places with my son, who was watching and getting VERY nervous. The older girls left, the son tried to leave too (they were VERY uncomfortable) but the father yelled at him to stay. The WHOLE parade was uncomfortable for him, he DIDNT want to sit there because he was embarassed, had his head in his hands. I felt soooo bad for the son, but I am sure his father is training him to do the same when he gets older. I couldnt believe I watched this all unfold in front of me, and it made us very uncomfortable.
As a side note, during this parade, I had my backpack between me and my son (had camcorder, wallet in it). The woman behind me kept putting her baby on it to sit on it. I told her please don't do that, the baby was screaming. But she pretended not to hear me. The family next to us on the other side told my DH that the wife and kids physically got pushed off the curb 2 nights previous by being kicked in the back right before the parade started so they had to move. They didnt get to watch the parade that night after waiting over an hour for their spots. This time the husband was then sitting behind them to guard their spots - big guy who seemed really mad this time (they were waiting as long as us too).
If the teenager and/or family reads this - you handled yourself very well. I don't think I could have been so calm in the same situation. To the obnoxious family - shame on you. You ruined alot of people's magic that evening. What goes around comes around though. Good luck with that.
I think I might be done with parade watching, its too obnoxious for me now..

Scenario #2: We had no intention on watching the parade at DHS, and as we were leaving a quick service restaurant near star tours, it had just begun and we were roped off and stuck. So we just stood, my sons were standing behind people (they said they didnt want to see it this time). A nice man insisted that the boys move in front of him because his wife and kid had found a bench and didnt need the spot in front of him. So I said ok and let the boys go in front of him (a few feet away from me). within 5 minutes, 3 older kids pushed in front of them (about 12-13 yrs old) and stood right in their way. My kids are very meek (which I feel is a curse sometimes. Nice kids, but they get walked all over in situations like this and wont stand their ground) and didnt say anything and backed off. We were thankful that the man gave the spots to them, but we knew we were not entitled to them because we did not wait for the spots, they were offered to us, so we didnt voice our opposition about losing the spot. The man who let my boys in got really mad and said something to the kids, and they just laughed at him. The mother kept yelling for them to stay there. My boys came back to me and we waited for the parade to end. To add salt to the wound, those kids got alot of attention from the characters in the parade - typical! Lesson learned from my kids - being obnoxious pays! (Of course thats not really what they learned, but what they witnessed!)

I know I am done parade watching. People seem to be getting more obnoxious. Its obvious to me. I NEVER experienced this before. Are people becoming more rude?

Vent over.

First the good news. I do not believe people are becoming more rude. I believe you have had unbelievable luck in your past dealings with parade-watchers. Those idiots you encountered have been around for years -- not those particular people, mind you, but others like them. It's not good for me, I can tell you because I do not like to be walked over; but i do not like to be made to look like an ... like a person who will ruin another family's magic simply to fend off red necks. Sorry, but that's what they are.

But they are everywhere. Having said that, please realize that there are others like you and me and probably all the posters on these boards who, when blessed with great parade-watching seats, feel it's not only a resposibility but a true PLEASURE to reach back to a wide-eyed kid with his dad or mom who is behaving well (the kid -- and the parents, I guess) and offer up a seat or two up front. I have seen parades. I like them but it's nothing new.

How do you deal with it? I would say you dealt with it about as best you can. It's sad that -- the second something like that happens -- your Magic experience is squashed. I am sorry for that, but perhaps that's why DW offers up so many others.

If I may say one more thing to soften the blow. On Our last trip to DW, we were on the outside looking in at a parade in the MK. It was our own fault and we sunk in about five people deep to watch the parade. But this teenage boy and girl were up front very EXCITED to be where they were. It was nice to see. They were very happy. The boy was looking around, grinning so wide it had to hurt and the girl was doing the same. Cute. Their eyes landed on my girl in her Minnie ears and they pointed right at her, waving for her to come up front with them. They looked back to me, obviouosly asking if she wanted to go up front. I was shocked. But off my girl went, from back of the pack to a top banana in the blink of an eye, thanks to these teenagers. They were nice kids. Those are the kids I think of when I think of parades at DW.

I am sorry for your experience, honestly. It's only a matter of time, though until that happens to everybody. Try to focus on the good. There's a lot more of that on every trip.

 

[RickyMouseMom]

Its sad to see that so many people have experienced the same type of behavior. I truly believe it is becoming more prevalent. I guess the one thing I did not have on this trip that I usually carry with me is a small hand towel/receiving blanket. We usually sit on two of these (just enough to sit on and about 3 inches behind and sides of us over.). This usually always worked to delineate our 'spot' regardless of what language is spoken. My kids still love the parades, so I guess I will have to suffer through them for awhile longer. I will make sure that I pack that towel again though!

As for the poster about the Tusker CS restaurant... I had a similar experience happen next to me I would like to share...
(again, I have NEVER witnessed soooo much bad behavior at WDW!)

We were at Backlot Express counter service on 8/18/11. We quickly found a table for 4 when another family was leaving. She offered it to us as I was walking by. Score, I thought that was awesome...a little bit of magic! A family at the table next to us was finishing up and did the same thing and offered their table to 2 women with 2 kids who were wandering by. At this point an mouthy woman from behind us came ramming through with a stroller saying that she was waiting for the table. The original family leaving - the mom - was shocked (from their accent I think british?). She told the mouthy woman she did not know that she was waiting for the table and sorry she offered it to another family. She added that if she spoke up it wouldnt have been a problem. End of story? NO! Well both the mouthy woman and the 2 other women decided to escalate it further. They all shoved their kids at this small table for 4 and stood behind them glaring at each other while the kids uncomfortably ate. My DH (NON CONFRONTATIONAL!) was getting really nervous and wanted US to move to get away from the drama. I told him noooo way, it wasnt our drama, so we could watch it! They all mouthed off to each other while the kids ate in silence, occasionally asking to move. The hilarious thing was that tables were opening up around us, but they were too stubborn to move - they each werent going to be pushed out of their entitled spot. At one point the DH of the mouthy woman showed up and was shocked to see the incident. He asked her what the h*ll she was doing, told her to leave the table immediately as he found another spot with his son. Kuddos to the Dad for ending that stupid scene. The woman left, but was mad and shoved the chair at the table as she was leaving. Guess she CANT be in the wrong.

I hope that all the women see and identify themselves in this post (although Im sure they are not on the DIS). Shame on YOU!!! Good lessons to teach your children. They, one day, will also be adults WHO ARE NEVER WRONG!

DH said no more quick-service. Only table service!

 

[RickyMouseMom]

First the good news. I do not believe people are becoming more rude. I believe you have had unbelievable luck in your past dealings with parade-watchers. Those idiots you encountered have been around for years -- not those particular people, mind you, but others like them. It's not good for me, I can tell you because I do not like to be walked over; but i do not like to be made to look like an ... like a person who will ruin another family's magic simply to fend off red necks. Sorry, but that's what they are.

But they are everywhere. Having said that, please realize that there are others like you and me and probably all the posters on these boards who, when blessed with great parade-watching seats, feel it's not only a resposibility but a true PLEASURE to reach back to a wide-eyed kid with his dad or mom who is behaving well (the kid -- and the parents, I guess) and offer up a seat or two up front. I have seen parades. I like them but it's nothing new.

How do you deal with it? I would say you dealt with it about as best you can. It's sad that -- the second something like that happens -- your Magic experience is squashed. I am sorry for that, but perhaps that's why DW offers up so many others.

If I may say one more thing to soften the blow. On Our last trip to DW, we were on the outside looking in at a parade in the MK. It was our own fault and we sunk in about five people deep to watch the parade. But this teenage boy and girl were up front very EXCITED to be where they were. It was nice to see. They were very happy. The boy was looking around, grinning so wide it had to hurt and the girl was doing the same. Cute. Their eyes landed on my girl in her Minnie ears and they pointed right at her, waving for her to come up front with them. They looked back to me, obviouosly asking if she wanted to go up front. I was shocked. But off my girl went, from back of the pack to a top banana in the blink of an eye, thanks to these teenagers. They were nice kids. Those are the kids I think of when I think of parades at DW.

I am sorry for your experience, honestly. It's only a matter of time, though until that happens to everybody. Try to focus on the good. There's a lot more of that on every trip.

What an awesome story! That truly is magical!

 

[Aunt Bee]

Don't know why it shocks me when people at Disney are really rude, but it does. Fortunately, I haven't encountered really rude people very many times, but when I have, I've just stood my ground and have even spoken up for others when outright bullies are trying to push them around. Can't seem to help myself. And I've had others 'speak up' for me, too, and I always appreciate it.

I'm a small person, but Hubs is 6'4", mild and meek as they come. But he looks fearsome. One evening we'd staked out our viewing for Illuminations next to the railing in Epcot. Hubs had to leave for a minute to retrieve a little more of the "bubbly" we were enjoying with our dessert.

I was trying to hold his spot when a man came along with his wife and kids and literally shoved his kids into Hub's place and then tried to move me over with his body so he and his wife could stand there too.

I politely told him that I was holding that spot for someone (and had been for over an hour) and his exact reply was, "too bad, so sad, you snooze, you lose."

Well, that made the woman (a complete stranger) who'd been standing there on the other side of us as long as we had furious. She told him that I was holding the spot, that he needed to find another place. He just shrugged and said, "too bad". They exchanged a few words....

Well, about that time Hubs returned with the glasses and another round of pastries. He handed the stuff to me, tapped the rude dude on the shoulder, smiled and said vey politely, "excuse me Buddy; this is MY spot." The man took one look at Hubs (who towered over him), and told his wife and kids to "come on, we will find a better spot."

The woman who'd confronted the man said really loudly "Good Riddance" and several of the people standing around all nodded or said something. They, apparently, didn't like bullies either.

Some people like to intimidate others and will if they can. But the rest of us who see it happening don't have to ignore it, either.

 

[larryz]

Kudos to the teen from the OP for keeping their cool. I probably would have cried.

And how humiliating for that poor boy. You can bet this wasn't the first time his dad acted like a horses ****. I'll be happy when some men learn that being a man means being respectful of others not bullying your way around the world.

Look on the bright side, at least you don't LIVE near these people.

That's what video cameras are for. Tape the horse's patootie being a burro and post it to YouTube.

 

[pskorf]

OMGoodness, who are these people and what planet are they from? I bet they are from Uranus, those people always have something stuck up their backsides. Disney should really ban people from Uranus.

I just about had my coffee come out my nose on this one!!! Love it!

 

[elleherself]

Parades can be tricky, that's for sure! Luckily I have a lot of training from the concerts that I attend. You are far from Disney World there-- and preserving your spot is an art form! At the parades I either find a spot and save it, or if I'm riding rides I stand at the back to see, no big deal for me. I also have let children down in front of me too, no problem with that at all. I haven't actually encountered any rude parade behavior on my trips.

The only exception was the time I took my goddaughter for her birthday. I wasn't planning on watching the night parade (we watched the afternoon parade) but she is a parade fiend! I swear she loved the parades more than the rides. I told her she had a choice, parade or rides, and she chose rides. But when we got off the ride and a beautiful lit night parade was winding by she HAD to see it! Of course we were in Tomorrowland and the route was THICK with people. An older couple begrudgingly let her sit in front of them while I thanked them profusely and hung back behind. I could tell they were concerned about letting her sit there and their concerns were not unwarranted-- after the parade was over and a crush of people were following, she bolted! Just took off in the dark after the parade route. I should mention she turned seven on that trip and certainly knew better, but the allure of all those fairies, princesses, and characters waving merrily like the pied piper was just too great. I didn't even see her do it because I was so far back, and the older gentlemen turned to me, like he expected this all along, and said "She just ran off." I could not even believe my ears, my jaw hit the ground, he repeated himself and them I was off after her! Oh it was a harrowing parade experience.

I have a lot of sympathy for adults who have been wrangling kids all day and then try to enjoy a nice parade. It is no easy feat, that's for sure, whether you wait on a curb trying to keep them occupied for an hour or realize at the last minute they simply MUST see this parade and you didn't plan ahead. No matter what, though, there is no excuse for rudeness from other people, and I know how much I dislike those concert-goers who try to crowd me out of my space, I know I wouldn't like it much at Disney either.

 

[POOHsie]

I am always on my scooter at WDW. There's been incidents in the designated handicapped area each time I view a parade. Non-handicapped people just walking in under the ropes, or trying to sit or stand on the curbs in front of the wheelchairs/ECVs, etc. The CMs have to be extraordinarily vigilent to keep the handicap viewing areas patrolled. There are usually more wheeled vehicles than spaces in the designated areas.

At Illluminations, the handicapped seating at Showcase Plaza, and in front of Canada, are well protected from incursion. I give those CMs high marks for protecting those who cannot fend for themselves.

One particular duty a CM has to perform is to keep the able-guests accompanying the handicapped guests, standing at the back or crouched down in front, so people in wheelchairs and ECVs can see. Many able-guests don't get it that they are blocking others by standing in front.

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

Reading this thread has given me a lot of food for thought. I normally make a point of not going to places where I have to spend good money to be with people that I normally wouldn't associate with for free. We have two trips to WDW scheduled, and from these posts it seems that the rudeness and improper behavior have escalated way out of control. Since the trips are primarily for DW, I am going to have her read this thread and ask her if she still wants to go. We have time to cancel, and that is what I am going to recommend. And I might add - most all of these posters have exhibited much more self control than I can imagine having in similar circumstances, and all had earned the right to be where they were for the parades.

These extreme cases are rare. Please don't let this keep you from your trip.

 

[danetter]

Oh, how sad... We have a story from last year, although not as bad as you describe but just to show how people only lookout for themselves only. We were at MK and found a bench very early near the statue in front of the castle to sit on for the parade/fireworks. We had been sitting a good hour and this lady came over to my husband and told him that her MIL had fallen and asked if he minded getting up and letting her sit down. He told her he would be glad to and got up while the lady went to get her MIL. My DD's and I continued to stay seated. Well a few minutes later she comes back and says forget it that her MIL was embarrased to come over to sit. I wondered then if it was because we all didn't get up for their whole family to sit down with her. It wasn't long people were literally standing in front of us and on both sides of us so close and kept a very close eye on us as though if we were to make one little move they were going to jump in. One lady kept giving us a stare like I wish you would move stare. These people were so close to us when the parade started we had to stand on the bench to see. You should have seen the movement when we did get up to stand on the bench. These people that were so close to us thought they were going to be able to get to it After the fireworks were over we stayed seated for a while and while we were waiting for people to clear out my husband and youngest DD had to go to the bathroom and as soon as they got up 2 guys sat down right next to me and our oldest DD and even kept moving over more as to try to move me and oldest DD off the seat. [