Bad Disney Advice

[Ava]

My favorite piece of bad advice actually came from a local travel agent. A few years ago DD went with her high school band to Disney. The band director booked the trip through a local travel agent that specializes in bus tours, although our group was flying down. The travel agent (who also owned the agency) had an informational meeting for the parents.

He told everyone at the meeting that he had to charge the group $1,000 for bus transportation from the Orlando airport to All Star Music on Magical Express. Two of us told him that Magical Express was free but he argued with us. One mother said she had just used Magical Express for free - he said it was only free to the "expensive" hotels, not the "cheap" ones.

I have always wondered what he did with the $1,000 he charged us for the free bus trip.

That's awful that a TA would rip people off by charging them for a free service. And, he probably charges every single WDW trip he books a fee for ME service.

 

[sharonmickey]

A few of us tried to fight to get the money back that the travel agent charged for Magical Express. Unfortunately, the band director sided with the travel agent - he said that if the travel agent said it cost money for a bus from the airport to All Star Music, then it must have cost money. He would not listen to those of us that know it was free.

According to the band director, the travel agent was a professional who knew what he was talking about. We were just a few parents who did not know the facts (even though I've been there more than 15 times and the other family goes 3 - 4 times a year). The travel agent had never even flown to Disney. In fact, according to the students, the tour guide that accompanied them did not even know that there is a tram at the Orlando airport. They ended up lost at the airport trying to find Magical Express!

 

[hambirg]

A few of us tried to fight to get the money back that the travel agent charged for Magical Express. Unfortunately, the band director sided with the travel agent - he said that if the travel agent said it cost money for a bus from the airport to All Star Music, then it must have cost money. He would not listen to those of us that know it was free.

According to the band director, the travel agent was a professional who knew what he was talking about. We were just a few parents who did not know the facts (even though I've been there more than 15 times and the other family goes 3 - 4 times a year). The travel agent had never even flown to Disney. In fact, according to the students, the tour guide that accompanied them did not even know that there is a tram at the Orlando airport. They ended up lost at the airport trying to find Magical Express!

Maybe the band director got a cut.

 

[sharonmickey]

The band director got a free trip so he did not care how much the students paid.

Oh well, that's my bad advice story.

I love the great advice I get from Disboards! Thanks everyone for sharing your advice with each other. I've had some wonderful trips thanks to things I've learned on DIS.

 

[maleficentmom]

I have a cousin who was going to FL with her BF and his 2 kids. They said they were interested in going to Disney. I told her many times that before she went she needed to do some research and if she didnt feel like it, I could make her a touring plan since it was all their first time. Did she ask?! No. They got as far as Adventureland and were overwhelmed and left. Then claimed the kids hated the Magic Kingdom. The fact was she couldnt handle it and instead of asking in advance they wasted all of that money and went to Busch Gardens instead. She claimed they all thought it was way better!

I had a friend who went to DisneyWorld during late June,first trip,and I think they tried to "do it all" while they were there, and had one bad experience at a restaurant,it was hot and busy and she was having some health issues . The other day she told me I should go to Dollywood "because they have WAY more rides than Disney"...and she didn't want to go back to Disney...I think it was just too overwhelming for them too

 

[hanutedmansionmomma]

The worst advice I ever heard about WDW was to WAIT to go until the kids were older and could remember it. I missed so many years of amazing trips! I would certainly have remembered it, and I think my kids would have loved it too. Wish we started sooner!

 

[usnuzuloose]

Okay, I need good advice, how in the heck can I expand my co, so I can hire alot of people, gain enough work, so me and DH can go back to WDW and spend more than 5 days. DH does all the physical labor, so no work no money to go to WDW. We went in 06, I had no clue about this board, but we also won a cruise, so we decided to go to WDW. So it was a wing thing, ( had DDP). It was still fun. Got alot of pics of Mario Lopez.

Well any advice from above, I'm open. Thanks for the stories it is fun reading them. Jo

 

[pickles521]

I had a friend plan a last minute trip with the dining plan. She said she would never again do the dining plan because you had to go all the way back to your hotel to eat. And she kept telling people that you could only eat at your resort on the dining plan and it was a pain because you could not eat in the parks. I kept trying to tell her she could have eaten in a ton of places and then gave up because her trip was over anyway, would have only made her feel worse. I told other people around though that she could have eaten in tons of places and probably never got the brochure.

I just shook my head at this - how can you spend that much money and have no clue???? but then I remembered that Shades of Green had (maybe still does?) a dining plan that you could use only at the hotel. Maybe that's the dining plan she was talking about?

My bad advice story is being told - by someone who has never been there, of course - that you shouldn't bother with animal kingdom, because all the animals are fake and the only thing to do in the magic kingdom is the castle and some bird show - with real birds. I've been to WDW over 30 times since my first visit in 1971 as a very young toddler (my grandpa carried the stroller and my mom carried me!) , so I'm still not an expert, but I'm pretty well informed. I tried to set him straight, but he just got upset and said " fine. Don't believe me. Take your stupid vacation and have a lousy time, but don't say I didn't warn you." Needless to say that vacation, like all but one of the others, was awesome!

 

[tripplanner2]

I just shook my head at this - how can you spend that much money and have no clue???? but then I remembered that Shades of Green had (maybe still does?) a dining plan that you could use only at the hotel. Maybe that's the dining plan she was talking about?

My bad advice story is being told - by someone who has never been there, of course - that you shouldn't bother with animal kingdom, because all the animals are fake and the only thing to do in the magic kingdom is the castle and some bird show - with real birds. I've been to WDW over 30 times since my first visit in 1971 as a very young toddler (my grandpa carried the stroller and my mom carried me!) , so I'm still not an expert, but I'm pretty well informed. I tried to set him straight, but he just got upset and said " fine. Don't believe me. Take your stupid vacation and have a lousy time, but don't say I didn't warn you." Needless to say that vacation, like all but one of the others, was awesome!

Well, I wish that were the case. I would not have felt so bad. They stayed at POR. The worst part was she was so insistant that she knew the plan so well and that was the way to do it. I had to walk away, maybe her husband would have killed her for not looking into it further I decided it was better to just let things be but I made sure I told everyone else there that she was wrong. I didn't want anyone else to make that mistake.

 

[Teresa Pitman]

I have helped many friends have good Disney vacations, but it is really frustrating when people ignore your suggestions and then come back complaining about how horrible Disney is.

Some friends (with 2 young kids) decided to go for 2 days while visiting Florida. I suggested they pick two parks and just do that. No, they decided to do all four in 2 days. I explained to them about fast passes but they decided it was "too complicated" so didn't use them. And I showed them some menus on-line but they decided that the meals were too expensive (even the counter-service) so they'd eat off-site.

They came back complaining that they spent most of their time driving between parks and back and forth between the parks and the off-site restaurants, and only got to do 2 or 3 rides per park. Gee. And they were mad because they decided to do Test Track using the "single rider" line and then got upset because they were separated!!!! I asked what they thought "single rider" line meant, and she said she knew, but didn't think that Disney would separate parents and young kids. I did that line later and there were FOUR signs explaining that each rider would have to go separately and that groups WOULD BE SEPARATED.

So they now think I'm crazy for loving Disney so much and can't understand why I'd go back.

Teresa

 

[rufusrex]

A guy at work was asking another guy advice on best rides at Disney World. The second guy said you have to go on the Indiana Jones ride. I asked are you talking Disneyland and he was so arrogant with his reply "World" - when I tried to explain there is no Indy ride in Florida, just a show, he was rude. Oh well.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

A guy at work was asking another guy advice on best rides at Disney World. The second guy said you have to go on the Indiana Jones ride. I asked are you talking Disneyland and he was so arrogant with his reply "World" - when I tried to explain there is no Indy ride in Florida, just a show, he was rude. Oh well.

A couple of years ago I was working at DHS at Indiana Jones. I had a Guest who was very upset because we had a show and not a ride. He was absolutely sure that it was a ride, and he had done it before.

I very nicely suggested to him that he go either 3,00 mile West to Disneyland in California or 3,000 miles east to Disneyland in Paris, each of them has an Indiana Jones ride, but all we had was the show. And that the show was an opening attraction.

 

[honeydiane1953]

We're planning a 3 night trip to POP in a few weeks, and I don't think there's any way I could do it under $1800 (one adult, two children who Disney considers adults). In fact, I posted something on the budget board about doing it for under $2,000 without tickets and people seemed to think that was stretching it.

I think you have to also take into account people's stamina and interest. I love the resorts for about 4 hours, and then I don't. It's too many people, too much heat, too much stimulation . . . So, we leave, and hang by the pool, or eat a meal at a resort, or otherwise recharge. If I had a car there, driving to someplace like an IHOP and having a quiet sit down meal of what I consider comfort food together as a family would probably feel like a nice break.

I'd rather pay $100 an hour for 4 hours that I enjoy than $50 an hour for 8 hours I didn't -- but that's just me.

IF I took a car IHOP or somewhere else for that matter would be a GREAT break from WDW. Heck Arby's sounds wonderful to settle down.

 

[laurafergie]

My bad advice story is from my DSis-in-law. Her parents live in Jacksonville (and have never been to Disney). They told her that they can just stay at their house and drive the hour+ to the parks!! I tried to explain to DSis-in-law that Disney is not like Busch Gardens or Kings Dominion, where you just go for the day and you're done. But she doesn't believe me. My DH said it is sad, that their three boys will end up hating the trip and won't ever want to go back.

 

[Purseval]

My bad advice story is from my DSis-in-law. Her parents live in Jacksonville (and have never been to Disney). They told her that they can just stay at their house and drive the hour+ to the parks!! I tried to explain to DSis-in-law that Disney is not like Busch Gardens or Kings Dominion, where you just go for the day and you're done. But she doesn't believe me.

The going for the day isn't a problem. Ask anyone who stays offsite. The problem is Jacksonville is a lot further than an hour away, more like 2.5 hours if you don't hit any bad traffic. That would be a terrible commute unless it was for 1 day only.

 

[SandrA9810]

I did several 1 day trips to Disney, but that was because we were passholders.

Me: what do you want to do tomorrow??
Kari: I dunno, we're both off...
Me: we could go over to the beach or something...
Kari: are we on block out??
Me: no
Kari: ok, lets go to Disney.

This was also when gas prices were under 2$ a gallon. We were in Ft Lauderdale, and took about 4hrs there and 4hrs back. We'd head off early in the morning, get to the parks around 11am stay till close. We'd eat McD's on the drive there, pack snack into the book bag, and eat at DTD or something after we left the parks. Then came the lovely drive home. Often times included pit stop naps at the rest stops, by the time we got back home we only had a few hrs of real sleep before starting the day.
After gas prices shot up, we started weekend trips stay a night or two at Ft Wilderness, which back then was about 20-25$ a night for a site in off season.

But I'd never suggest that for any one but the young and crazy. The ones that could drive all night and not hold the responsibilities of a kid, just make sure to get back to work the next night.

I also don't understand why a FL resident would buy a 2 day park hopper ticket. Way back when, it was a 4 day play pass for a 100$ with parkhopping. Then in the past few years it changed to a 3 day play pass with no park hopping. And getting seasonals were just under 200$. Plus the Play Pass expired 6 months from first date of use, not 14 days like MYW.

 

[EMom]

The worst advice I ever heard about WDW was to WAIT to go until the kids were older and could remember it. I missed so many years of amazing trips! I would certainly have remembered it, and I think my kids would have loved it too. Wish we started sooner!

I think whether this is good or bad advice depends on the person involved. There was no way I wanted to go to WDW until DD could walk the whole time on her own. We didn't want to push a stroller. So we waited until she was 5. Also, I'd taken her to England the year before (more for me than her....) and I realized how quickly memories fade. By age 5, she was able to remember a lot of the WDW trip. DH and I are not the type to push a stroller around the parks for days at a time. Hell on earth for us. At the time, we had no idea if we'd go once or a dozen times. But considering that for many people, WDW is truly the trip of a lifetime and they'll never do it again, I think that waiting until the kids can remember may be good advice for some families. It's pretty common around here to wait until the kids are 4-5 for the first trip.

 

[areweindisneyyet]

Those are probably not words DH wants to hear, since we're considering both a 4th trip to WDW and a trip to Australia within a 12 month period.

If you need some help with your Australia trip planning don't hesitate to ask.

 

[laurafergie]

The going for the day isn't a problem. Ask anyone who stays offsite. The problem is Jacksonville is a lot further than an hour away, more like 2.5 hours if you don't hit any bad traffic. That would be a terrible commute unless it was for 1 day only.

It not the going for just a day - My Sis-in-law thinks that the whole four parks of Disney World can be done in one day, and if they want to come back - they will just drive back and forth from Jacksonville.

Sorry, should have been more clear in my post.

 

[Purseval]

I think that waiting until the kids can remember may be good advice for some families. It's pretty common around here to wait until the kids are 4-5 for the first trip.

I haven't looked at an Unofficial Guide To WDW in years but they used to have a section called Whose Dream Is It, Anyway? that discussed the benefits of rushing small children from ride to ride and keeping them up hours past their normal bedtime when multiple studies have shown that the best part of a WDW vacation for that age group is the hotel swimming pool.