GadgetRick
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 7, 2000
- Messages
- 654
Well, unfortunately, we're back from our latest trip to Disney. We go every year to take our older son for his birthday. He turned 6 this year. This is my report:
Now, I'll start off by saying we love Disney. I've visited about 40ish times (I live in NJ) plus 5-10 times to Disneyland. I don't intend on changing my 1-2 trips per year no matter what I complain about here.
Anyway, we headed down for my son's (Luke) birthday. He was turning 6 this year and his younger brother is now two and a half and we were really looking forward to seeing them there this year. Jake (the younger one) is fearless and the boys are very close so we figured it would be a blast (more so than the times before) with them. We weren't dissappointed. They had an awesome time together.
We have been DVC members for about 10 years and had decided to sell this year for various reasons. So we didn't get to stay at a DVC resort but that's not a big deal for us as we're hardly in our room when we're there anyway. We're all about the parks.
Since I'm in the mortgage business, times have been extremely tough this year. It was touch and go as to whether we'd be able to go. So we stayed at a value resort--All Star Movies. Got a 6 day/5 night deal with park hopper for a very good price so that's where we stayed.
All Star Movies
Ok, it's not Old Key West or the Boardwalk but there's nothing wrong with ASM. My only real complaint about the resort would be the rooms are VERY small but I knew that going into it. The room was still very manageable even with a 6 year old and a 2 year old in a pack and play. We managed just fine. The room could use a bit of updating though. But nothing I can really complain about.
They have a nice food court--something missing at most DVC resorts--for a quick bite and they stay open late. Only problem is it's pandemonium in the morning there. However, it looks much worse than it is since the lines seem to move quickly--except for the pancake/french toast line! Not sure why they don't just let people who don't need to wait for pancakes to go on up and get french toast...
Anyway, they have a large pool area (if you're interested in that) as well as a smaller kiddie pool area. There's a large laundry room right by the kiddie pool. Also a bar by the pool you can sit outside and have a drink if you so choose.
Busses come right to the front. Easy to get to. Never really had a problem with the bus service all week. Seems Disney has gotten better at this over the years. We used to have to (constantly) wait and wait and wait for busses. Not this time (or last year).
ASM is over towards MGM, er, ah, Hollywood Studios and Epcot. So you can get to them relatively fast via the bus.
Overall, I didn't mind the resort a bit. If you're not concerned about the size of the room, save your money and stay at one of these value resorts.
Food
Food is a funny thing in DW. I mean, I like to eat and all so it's kinda important to me. Over the years DW has done a very nice job with food throughout DW but, lately, I must say, I've been (overall) unhappy with the food and food choices throughout DW. I know, many of you will tell me I'm crazy and all but hear me out...
First of all, I'm not a fan in the least bit of the meal plan. Why? It's a great deal and all but it's ruined eating at DW for everyone. How? Well, because of the meal plan, everyone stays in DW to eat (obviously one of the reasons Disney did this). This causes a major problem when trying to get into just about anywhere to eat. Everything is always booked because many people book reservations and never show up. So you can't get in. This is VERY frustrating. I believe you can book what, 180 days in advance? I'm sorry, I don't know what I'm eating tonight much less 6 months from now. Don't know what kind of mood I'll be in, etc.
Also, since they've started the meal plan all of the DW food is, well, blah. It's all (pretty much) the same. They call it something different in different places but (overall) it's the same. And, quite frankly, the quality of the food has suffered quite a bit, too. It's not bad but just blah. Nothing to write home about. I used to think some of the better food out there was in DW but not any more. Sure, you can eat at the California Grill or one of the other nice places (costs 2 sit down meals in the meal plan last time I checked) but, other than that, you're getting the same thing everywhere.
Now, I understand totally why they've done this. I'm sure it saves them a TON of money and keeps the profits up. I have no problem with that. My bigger problem is with the fact you just can't get in anywhere to eat. So, if you don't have a car with you, you're stuck.
Oh, another thing for all of you meal plan lovers, if you love it so much stop telling everyone, "You get TOO much food! You can't eat it all!" I mean, what do you think Disney will do once they hear this enough? They'll cut back the amount you get and KEEP THE PRICE THE SAME! Just a tip. Sorry to yell.
Stickers
Yes, stickers, you know, the Mickey stickers you used to get just for walking somewhere? Well, I've got to say, over the last two years, they've gotten VERY stingy with their Mickey stickers. I understand cost-cutting but the kids absolutely LOVE them. Kids, as most of you know, LOVE stickers. We used to get TONS of stickers just about anywhere in DW. Now, you hardly get them anywhere and, when they give them, they give you 2 or 3. They used to just rip off like 20 (or so) stickers and give them to the kids.
Ok, this is a bit like picking nits but it's something I remember and my older son remembers. They bring them home and give them to friends and do what little boys do with stickers. I just think it's a bit, well, cheap of Disney to cut back so hard on this.
Birthday Button
Again, picking nits here but last year they went to the standard birthday button. They write your name on it. In the past, each park had their own button. For us, it was always a game to hit all 4 parks on his birthday (or mine one year) to get a button from each park. I still have mine.
I love the birthday button idea but wish they'd bring back the different button for each park.
Characters
One of the best (and worst) things Disney ever did was start making the characters more accessible. Each park has (at least one) a place where you can go, wait on line and get pictures/autographs with the various characters. This is one of the best things for the obvious reasons--just wait on line and get it done. It's one of the worst because it takes (at least) some of the fun out of having to hunt for the character of your choice and hope to catch them in time. Was kind of like a scavenger hunt.
Cast Members
Still one of the biggest reasons I love Disney. They're all trained to be nice to us. I don't want much from a vacation, just be nice, serve me my hamburger and smile at me. If I'm speaking with you, act interested. Nothing major right? Well, Disney has always seemed to get this right. You can stop any cast member and they'll do everything in their power to help you. Many times, they'll just go out of their way to make your day a little better.
An example is a cast member named Jason (I remember his name because it was special what he did for my son.). We were walking through MGM (I know, old habits die hard) and my son had his birthday button on. Jason stops us, says to my son, "You're Luke? Where are you from?" Luke replies, "NJ." Jason says, " Well great! Luke from NJ!!? I've been looking for you!" He reaches into his bag and pulls out a birthday card from Mickey and gives it to him. My son was amazed Mickey knew where he was at that very moment. A little thing but something he'll remember forever...
Bus Drivers
I'm separating them out from cast members because I wanted to comment on them and the busses in general. As I mentioned, I believe Disney has gotten their act together with the bus situation. I rarely have to wait very long any more and we used to have to ALWAYS wait. This is a good thing.
However, I wish they'd get rid of the sterile recordings about the parks. It was much more fun when the bus drivers gave information about the parks. They were specific about what was happening on that day and other information. I understand why Disney stopped this but I still miss it.
More importantly, I must say, over the past couple of years Disney seems to be hiring about the most boring, non-friendly (but not mean) people. I mean, they barely say hello to you when you get on (or off) the bus. I always make it a point to say something to them on the way on and thank you on the way off. I'm lucky if I get a grunt in reply these days. They used to be super-friendly and would sing songs and other fun things on the bus. Not any more. I wish we could go back to those times.
Parties
I'm talking MVMCP and MNSSHP. These kinds of parties. Although they tend to be kinda cool, they've gotten totally out of hand. We were there Sunday through Friday and, out of that time, 3 nights MK closed early for MVMCP...including FRIDAY night! Ok, I get it, something different but why on earth must you punish everyone by closing the park at 7:00 so often? I mean, am I not spending enough money on tickets, foods, souvenirs, etc that you've got to squeeze another $40ish a head??? I didn't do it this year because of the price but I remember last year they even took away the free picture!
I'm sorry, they shouldn't close the park early on a Friday night! They should have maybe one of these a week (ok, maybe two but that's pushing it). I mean, it's not terribly cheap to get into the parks to begin with. If you want to stay late it's gonna cost you a small fortune if you've got a family. I just think it's ridiculous to be honest with you.
I remember the E-Ticket nights. I loved them. Was like $10 or something like that. I have no problem with a little more money to stay in the park later on a WEEK NIGHT but come on...
This is one of the things which is driving me nuts about Disney. They're becoming more about the profits and less about the customers. I've always felt, although I was paying a lot, I was getting MORE than my money's worth. Today, I feel I'm still getting my money's worth but not like I used to because of stuff like this and some of the other things I'm mentioning here.
Merchandise
We all go there. We all buy stuff there. Overall, I feel the quality of the stuff I buy there pretty good for the money. However, there are some crazy things. Those spinners our kids all love are getting a bit out of hand on the prices. Keep them $10 or less and I have no problem but they're starting to push closer to $20. The things can't cost too much to make for sure. I have no problem with you making a profit but sheesh!
Also--and this is a minor nit pick--we always go the week after Thanksgiving. I remember we used to be able to score some nice deals on the current year's stuff (anything with the current year printed on it). Used to find it like 50% off at times. I've not seen that for quite a while. Wondering if they still do this or is it all just selling out.
Conclusion
Thanks for reading this far and listening to me complain. As I said, I still love going to Disney and will continue to go. These things have been nagging me for quite some time and just felt I'd mention them. Maybe someone will read it and it'll make a difference. Probably not but what the heck. There are just some changes which have taken place over the years (especially in the last few years) which aren't all for the better (IMO). We had a blast while we were there. We had some things happen to us which has never happened to us before (got to ride Dumbo alone with Mickey and Minnie) so we really enjoyed ourselves. So don't think I'm totally hating on Disney, we still love it there.
Now, I'll start off by saying we love Disney. I've visited about 40ish times (I live in NJ) plus 5-10 times to Disneyland. I don't intend on changing my 1-2 trips per year no matter what I complain about here.
Anyway, we headed down for my son's (Luke) birthday. He was turning 6 this year and his younger brother is now two and a half and we were really looking forward to seeing them there this year. Jake (the younger one) is fearless and the boys are very close so we figured it would be a blast (more so than the times before) with them. We weren't dissappointed. They had an awesome time together.
We have been DVC members for about 10 years and had decided to sell this year for various reasons. So we didn't get to stay at a DVC resort but that's not a big deal for us as we're hardly in our room when we're there anyway. We're all about the parks.
Since I'm in the mortgage business, times have been extremely tough this year. It was touch and go as to whether we'd be able to go. So we stayed at a value resort--All Star Movies. Got a 6 day/5 night deal with park hopper for a very good price so that's where we stayed.
All Star Movies
Ok, it's not Old Key West or the Boardwalk but there's nothing wrong with ASM. My only real complaint about the resort would be the rooms are VERY small but I knew that going into it. The room was still very manageable even with a 6 year old and a 2 year old in a pack and play. We managed just fine. The room could use a bit of updating though. But nothing I can really complain about.
They have a nice food court--something missing at most DVC resorts--for a quick bite and they stay open late. Only problem is it's pandemonium in the morning there. However, it looks much worse than it is since the lines seem to move quickly--except for the pancake/french toast line! Not sure why they don't just let people who don't need to wait for pancakes to go on up and get french toast...
Anyway, they have a large pool area (if you're interested in that) as well as a smaller kiddie pool area. There's a large laundry room right by the kiddie pool. Also a bar by the pool you can sit outside and have a drink if you so choose.
Busses come right to the front. Easy to get to. Never really had a problem with the bus service all week. Seems Disney has gotten better at this over the years. We used to have to (constantly) wait and wait and wait for busses. Not this time (or last year).
ASM is over towards MGM, er, ah, Hollywood Studios and Epcot. So you can get to them relatively fast via the bus.
Overall, I didn't mind the resort a bit. If you're not concerned about the size of the room, save your money and stay at one of these value resorts.
Food
Food is a funny thing in DW. I mean, I like to eat and all so it's kinda important to me. Over the years DW has done a very nice job with food throughout DW but, lately, I must say, I've been (overall) unhappy with the food and food choices throughout DW. I know, many of you will tell me I'm crazy and all but hear me out...
First of all, I'm not a fan in the least bit of the meal plan. Why? It's a great deal and all but it's ruined eating at DW for everyone. How? Well, because of the meal plan, everyone stays in DW to eat (obviously one of the reasons Disney did this). This causes a major problem when trying to get into just about anywhere to eat. Everything is always booked because many people book reservations and never show up. So you can't get in. This is VERY frustrating. I believe you can book what, 180 days in advance? I'm sorry, I don't know what I'm eating tonight much less 6 months from now. Don't know what kind of mood I'll be in, etc.
Also, since they've started the meal plan all of the DW food is, well, blah. It's all (pretty much) the same. They call it something different in different places but (overall) it's the same. And, quite frankly, the quality of the food has suffered quite a bit, too. It's not bad but just blah. Nothing to write home about. I used to think some of the better food out there was in DW but not any more. Sure, you can eat at the California Grill or one of the other nice places (costs 2 sit down meals in the meal plan last time I checked) but, other than that, you're getting the same thing everywhere.
Now, I understand totally why they've done this. I'm sure it saves them a TON of money and keeps the profits up. I have no problem with that. My bigger problem is with the fact you just can't get in anywhere to eat. So, if you don't have a car with you, you're stuck.
Oh, another thing for all of you meal plan lovers, if you love it so much stop telling everyone, "You get TOO much food! You can't eat it all!" I mean, what do you think Disney will do once they hear this enough? They'll cut back the amount you get and KEEP THE PRICE THE SAME! Just a tip. Sorry to yell.
Stickers
Yes, stickers, you know, the Mickey stickers you used to get just for walking somewhere? Well, I've got to say, over the last two years, they've gotten VERY stingy with their Mickey stickers. I understand cost-cutting but the kids absolutely LOVE them. Kids, as most of you know, LOVE stickers. We used to get TONS of stickers just about anywhere in DW. Now, you hardly get them anywhere and, when they give them, they give you 2 or 3. They used to just rip off like 20 (or so) stickers and give them to the kids.
Ok, this is a bit like picking nits but it's something I remember and my older son remembers. They bring them home and give them to friends and do what little boys do with stickers. I just think it's a bit, well, cheap of Disney to cut back so hard on this.
Birthday Button
Again, picking nits here but last year they went to the standard birthday button. They write your name on it. In the past, each park had their own button. For us, it was always a game to hit all 4 parks on his birthday (or mine one year) to get a button from each park. I still have mine.
I love the birthday button idea but wish they'd bring back the different button for each park.
Characters
One of the best (and worst) things Disney ever did was start making the characters more accessible. Each park has (at least one) a place where you can go, wait on line and get pictures/autographs with the various characters. This is one of the best things for the obvious reasons--just wait on line and get it done. It's one of the worst because it takes (at least) some of the fun out of having to hunt for the character of your choice and hope to catch them in time. Was kind of like a scavenger hunt.
Cast Members
Still one of the biggest reasons I love Disney. They're all trained to be nice to us. I don't want much from a vacation, just be nice, serve me my hamburger and smile at me. If I'm speaking with you, act interested. Nothing major right? Well, Disney has always seemed to get this right. You can stop any cast member and they'll do everything in their power to help you. Many times, they'll just go out of their way to make your day a little better.
An example is a cast member named Jason (I remember his name because it was special what he did for my son.). We were walking through MGM (I know, old habits die hard) and my son had his birthday button on. Jason stops us, says to my son, "You're Luke? Where are you from?" Luke replies, "NJ." Jason says, " Well great! Luke from NJ!!? I've been looking for you!" He reaches into his bag and pulls out a birthday card from Mickey and gives it to him. My son was amazed Mickey knew where he was at that very moment. A little thing but something he'll remember forever...
Bus Drivers
I'm separating them out from cast members because I wanted to comment on them and the busses in general. As I mentioned, I believe Disney has gotten their act together with the bus situation. I rarely have to wait very long any more and we used to have to ALWAYS wait. This is a good thing.
However, I wish they'd get rid of the sterile recordings about the parks. It was much more fun when the bus drivers gave information about the parks. They were specific about what was happening on that day and other information. I understand why Disney stopped this but I still miss it.
More importantly, I must say, over the past couple of years Disney seems to be hiring about the most boring, non-friendly (but not mean) people. I mean, they barely say hello to you when you get on (or off) the bus. I always make it a point to say something to them on the way on and thank you on the way off. I'm lucky if I get a grunt in reply these days. They used to be super-friendly and would sing songs and other fun things on the bus. Not any more. I wish we could go back to those times.
Parties
I'm talking MVMCP and MNSSHP. These kinds of parties. Although they tend to be kinda cool, they've gotten totally out of hand. We were there Sunday through Friday and, out of that time, 3 nights MK closed early for MVMCP...including FRIDAY night! Ok, I get it, something different but why on earth must you punish everyone by closing the park at 7:00 so often? I mean, am I not spending enough money on tickets, foods, souvenirs, etc that you've got to squeeze another $40ish a head??? I didn't do it this year because of the price but I remember last year they even took away the free picture!
I'm sorry, they shouldn't close the park early on a Friday night! They should have maybe one of these a week (ok, maybe two but that's pushing it). I mean, it's not terribly cheap to get into the parks to begin with. If you want to stay late it's gonna cost you a small fortune if you've got a family. I just think it's ridiculous to be honest with you.
I remember the E-Ticket nights. I loved them. Was like $10 or something like that. I have no problem with a little more money to stay in the park later on a WEEK NIGHT but come on...
This is one of the things which is driving me nuts about Disney. They're becoming more about the profits and less about the customers. I've always felt, although I was paying a lot, I was getting MORE than my money's worth. Today, I feel I'm still getting my money's worth but not like I used to because of stuff like this and some of the other things I'm mentioning here.
Merchandise
We all go there. We all buy stuff there. Overall, I feel the quality of the stuff I buy there pretty good for the money. However, there are some crazy things. Those spinners our kids all love are getting a bit out of hand on the prices. Keep them $10 or less and I have no problem but they're starting to push closer to $20. The things can't cost too much to make for sure. I have no problem with you making a profit but sheesh!
Also--and this is a minor nit pick--we always go the week after Thanksgiving. I remember we used to be able to score some nice deals on the current year's stuff (anything with the current year printed on it). Used to find it like 50% off at times. I've not seen that for quite a while. Wondering if they still do this or is it all just selling out.
Conclusion
Thanks for reading this far and listening to me complain. As I said, I still love going to Disney and will continue to go. These things have been nagging me for quite some time and just felt I'd mention them. Maybe someone will read it and it'll make a difference. Probably not but what the heck. There are just some changes which have taken place over the years (especially in the last few years) which aren't all for the better (IMO). We had a blast while we were there. We had some things happen to us which has never happened to us before (got to ride Dumbo alone with Mickey and Minnie) so we really enjoyed ourselves. So don't think I'm totally hating on Disney, we still love it there.
They cleared the ride of everyone, brought Mickey/Minnie out and brought us on. Jake (2 year old) rode with Mickey (with my wife) and Luke (6 year old) rode with Minnie. I rode in front of them taking pics.
