April 2022 - Everything Is Worse

[Devil13]

I had a lot of fun and my family enjoyed it but just got back from our trip (4/13 - 4/21) and easy to say that everything is worse.

Been out of state pass holders for about 8 years and come down 2-3 times a year from the Boston area. I know this has probably been beaten to death in here but I wanted to go in with an open mind, and I did, but...

No Magical Express makes the the airport experience worse
On property hotel prices make staying there worse
Barely any housekeeping makes the hotel experience worse
Reservations and park hopping at 2:00 make the park experience much worse
Genie+ and Paid LL make the in-park experience MUCH MUCH worse
Getting reservations for dining is worse

I could go on...

Again - We had a great time and I'm going back in August but my family is at a different place. Kids are older (17 and 15) and we've been a lot over the years to the point where riding Space Mountain for the Nth time is not a big deal. That being said, I'm pretty sure I'll never ride Rise or FoP ever again if things stay like this. Not willing to wait the 2 hours or pay $60. The Genie+ is actually insulting and should be redone or tossed altogether. Getting up at for 7AM and pay to get on 4 rides, which the earliest time was 1:30PM, is pretty backwards.
Anyone with kids in the 7-12 range who want to come down for their first experience, I would warn against it. In fact, spoke to a travel agent since I've been back and asked what the feedback was that she was getting from first timers who have gone this year and the resounding response was that they would never go again.

All that being said, I'm sure I'm in the minority and everyone loves the changes and I'm happy for you. That's great. It being worse than it was last year or WAY worse than it was pre-pandemic/Chapek doesn't impact my trips too much. I'd rather hang at Nomad Lounge (if I can get in) over waiting for 240 minute for FoP but that's just me.

Had a great time visiting hotels and other establishments on property but the overall experience has taken a nose dive.

 

[Hubie]

We're with you. Going back in October and have no plans to visit the parks.

 

[bbeagle]

Of COURSE it’s worse. Much of it is still Covid. It’s not all Chapek.

We aren’t going until late this year when Fantasia opens, Epcot countries get real natives there, things like Hoop Dee Doo return, all character dining returns, the railroad reopens, Tron and Guardians open, cast members are fully staffed, Toy Story additions, Moana opens in Epcot, etc.

There is so much missing in Disney still, why would you expect it to be great yet? I think after October this year, all those should be there

 

[Devil13]

Hope your right but I don’t believe anything I said will be impacted if anything you mentioned comes back.

Park reservations, Genie+, Paid LL, Parkhopping restrictions, house keeping cutbacks and Magical Express and price increases aren’t going to change.

I don’t expect it to be great, I just don’t expect it to be this much worse. Went last February/August/December while even more was closed and restricted and it was a much better experience overall than it was this week.

 

[bakerworld]

You are in the majority. For repeating visitors the Genie+ and LL, limited housekeeping in hotels, Park Reservations, no staff to allow for all eateries to be open = disgraceful. BUT we can't wait to return.

 

[DaisyDuck001]

I'm sure I'm in the minority and everyone loves the changes and I'm happy for you. That's great. It being worse than it was last year or WAY worse than it was pre-pandemic/Chapek doesn't impact my trips too much. I'd rather hang at Nomad Lounge (if I can get in) over waiting for 240 minute for FoP but that's just me.

You're not in the minority. Over the last few years, there were many changes for the worse, and at first I worked around them or reluctantly tolerated them, but the Genie system was the last straw. I'm not getting up early every day of vacation to pay extra to not even be able to get the previously included "fastpasses" I would want. Not playing that game. Just no.

P.S. I do miss Nomad Lounge, but it's not worth it to me to go to the parks now, until/unless other things improve.

 

[DeeBee3]

Sorta with you on this. Was there April 8-12 (just missed each other!). We did NOT pay for Genie+ because I refuse. We were only there for a short time so I wanted it to be an experiment. I DID pay for Remy ILL$ because my kids specifically were excited for that. $9/person and I'm glad I did because there was no way in h-e-double hockey sticks I would wait the 140 mins in standby. So, the Mouse got $36 from us.

We are in DVC so I know we will be back and we have already been a few times. Like you said, we still enjoyed our trip. Our kids are too little to notice anything specific like you mentioned, although they were actually upset about Magical Express. My oldest (8) actually asked why it wasn't running anymore. Can't fool the kids, Chapek!!!

I'm there for the long haul and I do believe changes will be made eventually. We have to see how 2022 evolves. After the travel explosion dies down and people get back to the regular routine (whatever that means), Disney will still have to evaluate their business plan. A lot of one-timers or every once in a while visitors will simply be unable to afford tickets, even if staying off-site and doing other things to reduce costs.

The magic was still there for us, but I did notice a difference in CMs. I was surprised. Some of them just staring off into space, making no eye contact, no smiles or anything. Was unusual for me. Also, there was trash in queue lines and in other places around the parks that I had never noticed before. Maybe it was just by eyes, but it was really noticeable. When we had brought grandparents with us in the past they always remarked on how they didn't see a speck of trash.

Anyway, we will see what happens!

 

[asuburbanman]

I’m not discounting what you said, but I just looked into going to Hershey park for my family of 4. They wanted over $1,400 to stay at their moderate hotel for two nights and two days of park tickets. I’m the only one who rides coasters, so I looked into their skip their line pass for the dates I was looking at and it was $115 to do each ride once and $160 for unlimited.

Just seems like rebound travel is real and everyone is benefitting (except the consumer).

I’d agree the Disney experience is way worse now then before times. However the other options out there aren’t much better from what I see.

 

[Sweettears]

Of COURSE it’s worse. Much of it is still Covid. It’s not all Chapek.

We aren’t going until late this year when Fantasia opens, Epcot countries get real natives there, things like Hoop Dee Doo return, all character dining returns, the railroad reopens, Tron and Guardians open, cast members are fully staffed, Toy Story additions, Moana opens in Epcot, etc.

There is so much missing in Disney still, why would you expect it to be great yet? I think after October this year, all those should be there

I think that this touches on most of the points. I believe that a lot of it is based on recovering from Covid. Particularly when it relates to staffing. As I stated on another thread (which mysteriously disappeared) I think that Disney has been pretty aggressive in bringing back the missing pieces. The Covid pause has given them the opportunity to try different options I.e. genie and park reservations that they may have been considering for many years.

 

[DaisyDuck001]

I’m not discounting what you said, but I just looked into going to Hershey park for my family of 4. They wanted over $1,400 to stay at their moderate hotel for two nights and two days of park tickets. I’m the only one who rides coasters, so I looked into their skip their line pass for the dates I was looking at and it was $115 to do each ride once and $160 for unlimited.

Just seems like rebound travel is real and everyone is benefitting (except the consumer).

I’d agree the Disney experience is way worse now then before times. However the other options out there aren’t much better from what I see.

I'm taking this opportunity to visit some national parks. Their annual pass is still $80 for all the parks, national monuments and national forests. And that one pass includes everyone in the same vehicle.

 

[Sweettears]

I'm taking this opportunity to visit some national parks. Their annual pass is still $80 for all the parks, national monuments and national forests. And that one pass includes everyone in the same vehicle.

Not a bad idea but be prepared for crowds.

 

[DaisyDuck001]

Not a bad idea but be prepared for crowds.

Some are more crowded than others. Depends which ones you choose, and whether you go during the busier season for that particular park. The busier parks are experimenting with a park reservation system, with a window of time to enter. If you choose one of the parks without the reservation system, that will likely be a less crowded park.

 

[Sweettears]

Some are more crowded than others. Depends which ones you choose, and whether you go during the busier season for that particular park. The busier parks are experimenting with a park reservation system, with a window of time to enter. If you choose one of the parks without the reservation system, that will likely be a less crowded park.

Sounds familiar doesn’t It

 

[Dcgc28]

Some are more crowded than others. Depends which ones you choose, and whether you go during the busier season for that particular park. The busier parks are experimenting with a park reservation system, with a window of time to enter. If you choose one of the parks without the reservation system, that will likely be a less crowded park.

I thought Disney was stupid for doing this lol

 

[DaisyDuck001]

Sounds familiar doesn’t It

Yes, I'd also noticed that and was not enthused about it. The advantage is that with the national parks, only a few are doing this, so there are still options to choose those that aren't.

 

[k5xs]

I had a lot of fun and my family enjoyed it but just got back from our trip (4/13 - 4/21) and easy to say that everything is worse.

Been out of state pass holders for about 8 years and come down 2-3 times a year from the Boston area. I know this has probably been beaten to death in here but I wanted to go in with an open mind, and I did, but...

No Magical Express makes the the airport experience worse
On property hotel prices make staying there worse
Barely any housekeeping makes the hotel experience worse
Reservations and park hopping at 2:00 make the park experience much worse
Genie+ and Paid LL make the in-park experience MUCH MUCH worse
Getting reservations for dining is worse

I could go on...

Again - We had a great time and I'm going back in August but my family is at a different place. Kids are older (17 and 15) and we've been a lot over the years to the point where riding Space Mountain for the Nth time is not a big deal. That being said, I'm pretty sure I'll never ride Rise or FoP ever again if things stay like this. Not willing to wait the 2 hours or pay $60. The Genie+ is actually insulting and should be redone or tossed altogether. Getting up at for 7AM and pay to get on 4 rides, which the earliest time was 1:30PM, is pretty backwards.

All that being said, I'm sure I'm in the minority and everyone loves the changes and I'm happy for you.

Had a great time visiting hotels and other establishments on property but the overall experience has taken a nose dive.

I agree with you.

Please consider making your voice heard by emailing your comments:

guest.services@disneyworld.com

 

[disneyAndi14]

As an out of state passholder, who goes to WDW 3-4x a year. I really dislike all the changes and Genie+ is such a clunky, unfriendly system.
We go now for the warm weather, lounges, festivals at Epcot and chillin at the resort!
We have a trip coming up very soon and I’m not going to stress about the Genie.
I agree with everything you said!

 

[Devil13]

I agree with you.

Please consider making your voice heard by emailing your comments:

guest.services@disneyworld.com

Email sent - Probably won't be read but was sort of therapeutic to type up and send - Thanks!

 

[k5xs]

Email sent - Probably won't be read but was sort of therapeutic to type up and send - Thanks!

You might be right, but we know what will happen if we don’t speak up.

Let us know if you hear anything.

 

[oufpat]

We were there in January and usually go 1-2x a year. Based on our past experience, we won't be returning any time soon!