Are you critical of every vacation?

[wdwcoltsfan]

There have been many threads in the past few weeks that are critical of Disney customer service, resorts, rides, etc. It got me to thinking about if I'm critical of other vacation destinations. I may notice certain things, but I'm not analyzing the details.

So, how about you? Do you leave other vacations with the same critical eye that you may have at Disney. I know there are many places we have travelled that have cost as much or more than a Disney vacation. The themepark aspect is hard to compare because I don't know of any other themepark that can be a week destination. We have been to Six Flags, Kings Island, Busch Gardens and Dollywood and none of them are the "destination" that WDW is. However, I know how much I paid for their tickets and what I got in return, so I guess that is how I would compare the two. Of course, Disney gets much cheaper the more days you buy.

I just find it interesting to get others persepectives on this. I've never seen people have such a passionate response about any other themepark. I think that says a lot about the Disney product.


Rachel

 

[dana1003]

we also have been to six flags and all the "major" theme parks around by us(we're in nj) and honestly i expect rudeness, foul language, fighting, etc. but when i hear about people having a bad experience at disney its like"oh my god"!you go expecting to feel like you are on anothe planet where all of that doesnt exsist and i think people being overly critical is what sets the high standard.

 

[F1Julie]

I'm not critical of WDW, but I am more critical of other vacations. I especially compare resorts and at WDW you really do get the nicest hotel for your money. We went to Dollywood and spent $150 a night on a hotel room with no theming at all. Even WDW value resorts were nicer than that at about half the price.

 

[Micca]

For many years our only vacations have been to WDW. I think we try to refine our trips each visit such that each one is a little better than the previous trip. I think having been 30+ times over nearly 30 years, our expectations are realistic. There are always elements that could be better, but we take those in stride and look for new ways to enjoy the WDW experience. We wouldn't even consider visiting the other parks you mentioned as we are not theme park fans, we are Disney fans. Great post Rachel.

 

[alyssa810]

I think that I hold a lot of other places up to Disney. For example, we tend to stay at Starwood hotels when we go on non-Disney vacations, and a lot of times we say "this place isn't as nice as WL" or "Wow, this must be what staying at the Poly is like" when we were at the Maui Westin. I think that we've been spoiled by the overall excellent customer service we get when we're at any Disney entity, be it a theme park, hotel, or even a store like WOD in NYC that when we go other places, we use our Disney experience as the benchmark by which all others are measured.
We haven't been to a six Flags park in close to 10 years, but we have been to smaller amusement parks like Kennywood in PA, and you just need to recognize those kinds of places for what they are: smaller parks that have a charm all their own.
We go to a lot of MLB baseball parks, and we tend to like just about everywhere we go because our home park, Fenway, despite its history and charm and the fact that the Red Sox call it home, has uncomfortable seats that don't face the field and is incredibly expensive; we can sometimes fly somewhere else to see the Sox, get tickets and hotel for less than a pair of decent seats at Fenway
Our first onsite experience ever was actually at the Hard Rock Hotel at Universal, and we were really impressed with the service at the hotel and our whole Universal experience...but we haven't been back there in almost 5 years now. Our first onsite experience @ WDW was just as good too....

 

[wdwcoltsfan]

I'm not critical of WDW, but I am more critical of other vacations. I especially compare resorts and at WDW you really do get the nicest hotel for your money. We went to Dollywood and spent $150 a night on a hotel room with no theming at all. Even WDW value resorts were nicer than that at about half the price.

This is what I do. When we go to Indy or Chicago for the weekend it is $179-$250 for a standard hotel room. That is more than some Disney hotels and the two aren't comparable. I can't even say that the service is better at the "regular" hotels.

If anything, I compare other vacations to to Disney and the other places never stack up.

Alyssa810- We do the same thing with ballparks. We can go to Cincinnati to watch the Cubs and it's much less expensive than going to Wrigley, not to mention Great American Ballpark is a nicer stadium. I know, blasphemy!


Rachel

 

[Eeyore2003]

I compare often. But am always amazed at the price of an amusement park and then how people complain about the price of a park at Disney. Just think of walking into Epcot for a day and what you get for your money especially now during the Food and Wine Festival. Even without spending extra you get all the rides and attractions, free programs with wine, beer and food sampling, World Showcase, all the little "acts" at each of the countries and top off the day with Illuminations, you could even take a stroll on the Boardwalk after that yet if you wanted to.

And it's like clockwork day in day out. I can be sitting here at my computer desk at 8:02 CST and I know that Illuminations just started. I find that amazing. Allot more reliable, consistent and dependable than most things now days.

 

[disney junky]

I think it's harder than ever to hire people for low wages and have them perform a job with pride. Society has become much ruder and disrespectful as a whole, and it's rare to find employees in this day and age that will smile and make eye contact for a job that pays $6.50 and hour. I think WDW does its best to hire people who have the right stuff, but with so many people working there, it's got to be tough. I have had an occasion where I wasn't pleased with something at WDW, but in comparison to reality, I have been treated quite well by the vast majority of people there.

On a different note, the cruises we've taken have been staffed mostly by non Americans and the service has been outstanding. I have often wondered how many of us would be so tolerant of the behavior of some of the passengers while depending on their tips for our income.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

We tend to compare other theme parks to Disney and most of the time it's not a fair comparison. We have season passes to a local theme park this year and we just went this past weekend. They were having a special Halloween parade this month with Nick characters that our sons wanted to see. We got to the parade route right at 5:00 (parade was set to start at 5:00) and we saw several open spots right up front. I commented that we won't have such an easy time finding a good parade spot at Disney. When the parade started, it was cute but kind of cheesy. My husband's comment was, "Disney it ain't!" My son and I went on the car ride and he said Autopia (car ride at Disneyland) is better. So yes, I guess we do compare other places to Disney!

 

[saschab]

There have been many threads in the past few weeks that are critical of Disney customer service, resorts, rides, etc. It got me to thinking about if I'm critical of other vacation destinations. I may notice certain things, but I'm not analyzing the details.

Disney is so detail oriented, I think detailed focused people are much more likely to focus on the details! (Try saying that 5 time fast) And the more details, the more things to scrutinize or criticize when they don't meet expectations.

I just find it interesting to get others persepectives on this. I've never seen people have such a passionate response about any other themepark. I think that says a lot about the Disney product.

This intense passion is another reason I think folks feel so strongly when their expectations are not quite met.

 

[Sabbie]

Never, it makes it less fun if you're critical.. just go with the flow and have a good time.