Disapointed with Decorations

[RMulieri]

Hasn't there been a thread like this every Christmas for the last couple of years?

Yup..Every year it is the same deal..complaints about the lack of decorations, Dc'd decorations etc. Last year was understandable since that was the first year they decided to do away with Lights of Winter.Honestly I go every December and the only thing I felt was a major disappointment was Epcot...because without the LoW it just seemed lacking.But other than that, I thought everything looked wonderful

 

[linzbear]

Yup..Every year it is the same deal..complaints about the lack of decorations, Dc'd decorations etc. Last year was understandable since that was the first year they decided to do away with Lights of Winter.Honestly I go every December and the only thing I felt was a major disappointment was Epcot...because without the LoW it just seemed lacking.But other than that, I thought everything looked wonderful

Oh, good, I'm not crazy. I've been to AK, MK, AKL, WL, and Contemporary, and everything looks about the same as it did the last time we were here in 07.

 

[Oglet]

[/B]

When I see that picture I notice the old Character Attendant costume (Yellow and Black) and it makes me sad that they took it away and gave it to Modified Duty.

 

[DisneyNDecember]

I failed to notice that, I guess since my son is older, I have not noticed that since he is "too cool" to check out the characters now, good eye !!

 

[Coach81]

We were there last Christmas.. it was magical... we loved it!!!

 

[Noletucker]

13-17th, I am anxious to see this year what the deal is....hope it isn't as bad as it sounds!

 

[PeterPan]

I have been going at Christmas to WDW almost every year for the last 10 years and over time the amount of decorations has definitely declined. They have added some new stuff (like the Castle lights which are now in their 4th year); however, they have gotten rid of a lot more. They have also stopped doing stuff like having characters out in all the parks in Christmas attire.

Last year seemed to be the biggest drop in decorations. Both MK and Epcot seemed to have much less than years previous. Obviously they lost the Lights of Winter which were a huge loss but on top of that most of the countries lost some of their decorations. For example the train that used to be at bottom of the American Adventure Christmas tree disappeared last year

Is WDW an awesome place to visit at Christmas... you betcha... has it declined over the last decade... you betcha.

We will be returning their for Christmas again this year and we are really looking forward to it; however, I am hoping that they haven't reduced things even more :\

Most of the other parks around the world seem to be increasing their holiday offerings (both Christmas and Halloween) while WDW seems to be going in the opposite direction and that is not a good thing

 

[luvmy2babies]

I guess I have found more and more we were at an advantage seeing things for the first time.

Not sure how long we stared at

That's my little princess and her "first time seeing Cinderella's castle" smile.

 

[Violet Parr]

I guess I have found more and more we were at an advantage seeing things for the first time.

Not sure how long we stared at

That's my little princess and her "first time seeing Cinderella's castle" smile.

Wow, definitely a sign of decline, huh? If they were taking things out and not putting in anything new, I would maybe believe the "decline" stories, but they've added quite possibly the most spectacular decoration I've ever seen there: that castle lit up!!!!!!!!!

They also added the massive wreath on the Contemporary. I think for everything that is gone,something new has been added.

 

[Karpkg]

We were told last week that the Osbourne Lights are 100% LED now and that power consumption to those lights have almost been cut by half. I think that's pretty cool.

 

[luvmy2babies]

Wow, definitely a sign of decline, huh? If they were taking things out and not putting in anything new, I would maybe believe the "decline" stories, but they've added quite possibly the most spectacular decoration I've ever seen there: that castle lit up!!!!!!!!!

They also added the massive wreath on the Contemporary. I think for everything that is gone,something new has been added.

We saw that wreath when we walked from the MK bus stop to the Contemporary for breakfast at Chef Mickey's. Dd had me stop so she could take pictures of it. After that she was looking for Mickey Heads everywhere.

On the advice of others here, I tried to notice the little things as much as the big things. We ended up stopping for 10 minutes on the way out of Epcot when we noticed what looked like Christmas lights embedded in the sidewalk. They seemed to go on and off according to how my daughter and the other children there jumped on them. I can still hear her joyous giggle.

 

[TDC Nala]

We ended up stopping for 10 minutes on the way out of Epcot when we noticed what looked like Christmas lights embedded in the sidewalk. They seemed to go on and off according to how my daughter and the other children there jumped on them. I can still hear her joyous giggle.

Those are always there, have been for years.

I'm not willing to accept losing the Lights of Winter because they put more lights on the castle. If there had only been some kind of explanation other than "they're obsolete."

 

[Violet Parr]

Those are always there, have been for years.

I'm not willing to accept losing the Lights of Winter because they put more lights on the castle. If there had only been some kind of explanation other than "they're obsolete."

I think that's a perfectly reasonable explanation. They ARE obsolete. I'm not sure why people think that is a lousy excuse. Non-LED lighting is dated, and what's more, it is incredibly wasteful. While WDW can't afford to go totally green, they also can't afford to project an image of being careless. Those were regular lightbulbs being used on that thing. It was time to upgrade to LED or toss it. I'm sure they had to constantly replace the bulbs. That's a lot of bulbs, and a lot of manpower.

Don't get me wrong, I ADORE the LOW, and I'm anticipating being super sad that they aren't there, but I can see how Disney wants to convert to solely LEDs in all of their displays.


Okay, so the lighting of the castle doesn't make up for LOW for you. That's fine, but I think to assert that Disney is cutting back and things are in decline with no improvements at all is just not true. Castle lights vs. LOW? I'll take the castle! I'm glad they are using electricity in a much smarter way now.

 

[luvmy2babies]

Those are always there, have been for years.

I'm not willing to accept losing the Lights of Winter because they put more lights on the castle. If there had only been some kind of explanation other than "they're obsolete."

Wow, okay, forgive me. It was our first trip and we'd never seen the lights in the sidewalk. We enjoyed them. Glad to know they'll be there next time. I made no comment on the removeal of the Lights of Winter. I've never seen it. I'm sorry that is a disappointment for you.

 

[Violet Parr]

Wow, okay, forgive me. It was our first trip and we'd never seen the lights in the sidewalk. We enjoyed them. Glad to know they'll be there next time. I made no comment on the removeal of the Lights of Winter. I've never seen it. I'm sorry that is a disappointment for you.

They're super-special to my kids, too. I think going with the attitude you had (looking for the small things as well as the large) is the right way to do ANY vacation. If you go into it looking for the ways you'll be disappointed, you will almost certainly will be.

I love watching my kids run "chasing" those lights. I have a wonderful memory of my middle child when he was 18 months...he was just fascinated.

 

[Ltl Mermaid]

The last time I went for the holidays was in Dec 2008 and I didn't remember seeing LOW then either...though I do remember them from my 3 previous Dec trips. i was sad that they removed them but it (for me) didn't decrease the amount of Holiday spirit I felt at WDW...the castle light are fabulous, I think the resorts were decorated as beautifully as I remember them, and I think the Epcot storytelling is such a unique experience. At the BC we saw a group playing "recorders" and there was free hot apple cider.

But I can understand if you were really attached to the LOW that you would be disappointed. I am a bit sad that we will probably be missing the Christmas tree for part of our stay, our MVMCP day is 12/5...does anyone know if the tree is supposed to be up by then?

 

[RMulieri]

The last time I went for the holidays was in Dec 2008 and I didn't remember seeing LOW then either...though I do remember them from my 3 previous Dec trips. i was sad that they removed them but it (for me) didn't decrease the amount of Holiday spirit I felt at WDW...the castle light are fabulous, I think the resorts were decorated as beautifully as I remember them, and I think the Epcot storytelling is such a unique experience. At the BC we saw a group playing "recorders" and there was free hot apple cider.

But I can understand if you were really attached to the LOW that you would be disappointed. I am a bit sad that we will probably be missing the Christmas tree for part of our stay, our MVMCP day is 12/5...does anyone know if the tree is supposed to be up by then?

Maybe , but probably not till Monday December 6th.Sunday is considered a rain date for parade taping and they won't put it up until the parade taping is absolutely completed

 

[Zife]

Someone mentioned that the characters are no longer out, dressed in their Christmas costumes. Go to MVMCP. Not only are they dressed up, they're everywhere. I saw the most characters I ever have at MVMCP.

 

[TDC Nala]

I thought the lights in the sidewalk at Epcot were being referred to as a holiday decoration and were being mentioned to show that yes they are adding new holiday decorations to Epcot. They are not, they are there year-round.

I just don't hang in the MK and look at the castle, but I do hang in Epcot. I don't give a darn what kind of bulb they use, just put up something to look at there. I'm not too pleased with the stripping of Epcot.

You used to be able to see characters in holiday getups without paying for MVMCP. And in Epcot, not just in MK.

 

[palavra]

I guess I have found more and more we were at an advantage seeing things for the first time.

Not sure how long we stared at

That's my little princess and her "first time seeing Cinderella's castle" smile.

Your daughter's smile is so heartwarming! My little princess was also 7 when she saw the castle lights for the first time last year.

Since we had nothing to compare it to, we thought the decorations last Thanksgiving were amazing. We definitely left WDW ready for Christmas!