Disney - get control of these groups of teens that CHEER and YELL their way through the parks!

[yulilin3]

As a latin person (born and raised in Venezuela) and someone who has been living here for 18 years I see both sides of this problem.
It is a cultural thing, in our countries you are noticed by whomever makes the loudest noise. There's no sense in waiting in line without finding a way to cut, rivalry between Brazil and Argentina is very high, especially at sporting events where these chants are deafening. The kids coming with these tour groups are the rich kids in their countries, entitled to get everything they want when they want. They chant cause it unites them and they are very proud to represent whichever country they are coming from. I know it's very hard to understand. Not making noise for them is being unhappy or sad. The more noise the happier you are
The situation in the theme parks has gotten a lot better actually, not as bad as it was before. The only way to avoid them is walk the other way when you're at the parks (I know in some cases is not possible) as for parades and fireworks they congregate at the HUB and Town Square.
I completely agree that it's annoying, especially in cases where you have to wait for a long time.
EDIT TO ADD: I'm not generalizing saying that ALL latin american people are like this, I'm not like this, I'm just saying that it's something that it's done and accepted in our countries

 

[TwoCortWort]

Where have I been when these groups are there? I have never experienced the chanting, just been about ran over by them is all. Have been asked to take photos for them a few times too.

 

[RustManFan]

I think that is one of the times it WOULDN'T bother me. You are waiting for a bus, not trying to enjoy an attraction or the park's atmosphere. And, really, the kids are enjoying themselves.

They are still being very rude and the adults are doing nothing. They may be enjoying themselves but are still adversely affecting other guests. (I didn't previously mention the pushing, cutting in line....)

Maybe somebody should explain to them that they are not in their home environment and may need to act differently.

 

[Mom2Stitch]

I appreciate that they are happy and want the world to know, but imagine if everyone there was doing this! I promise you I'm the happiest I'll ever be when I'm at WDW and the last thing you want me to do is to start belting out in song! As a matter of fact I've tried singing down Main St when I hear the Mickey Mouse March song~~Whose the leader of the club that's made for you and me~~ and my family quickly reminds me that it's a bad idea

 

[RustManFan]

as usual, the adults are more of a problem than the kids. No understanding of other guests concerns or good supervision

 

[Epcot242]

As a latin person (born and raised in Venezuela) and someone who has been living here for 18 years I see both sides of this problem.
It is a cultural thing, in our countries you are noticed by whomever makes the loudest noise. There's no sense in waiting in line without finding a way to cut, rivalry between Brazil and Argentina is very high, especially at sporting events where these chants are deafening. The kids coming with these tour groups are the rich kids in their countries, entitled to get everything they want when they want. They chant cause it unites them and they are very proud to represent whichever country they are coming from. I know it's very hard to understand. Not making noise for them is being unhappy or sad. The more noise the happier you are
The situation in the theme parks has gotten a lot better actually, not as bad as it was before. The only way to avoid them is walk the other way when you're at the parks (I know in some cases is not possible) as for parades and fireworks they congregate at the HUB and Town Square.
I completely agree that it's annoying, especially in cases where you have to wait for a long time.
EDIT TO ADD: I'm not generalizing saying that ALL latin american people are like this, I'm not like, I'm just saying that it's something that it's done and accepted in our countries

Thanks for this explanation. I think you saying that they're rich kids definitely makes a lot of sense in terms of the entitlement and disregard for everybody else. Always good to get another facet to stuff like this

 

[BrianL]

It certainly is cultural, though the polite thing to do is to conform one's behavior to the country you are visiting. I've been reading a lot about going to Japan recently (because I am planning to go) and there are a lot of cultural rules and such (mostly they involve being quiet in public) and I fully intend to keep my loud (relatively) American mannerisms toned down while there.

That said, I've never run into the extreme behavior as cited in this thread, but have been around a group chanting, and it didn't bother me too much. They're just trying to have a good time. It' also wasn't constant with that group or anything, so I can see how it would get on people's nerves after a while. I would not tolerate it on rides, but just walking around it's not a huge deal to me.

 

[Bellamouse]

We have read/heard about this for years as well, and finally encountered it for the first time yesterday. While we didn't hear a ton of chanting/clapping, mostly they walked like a WALL so you couldn't get around them. When they would be coming in our direction and there was nowhere for us to go, we ended up deciding to not move out of their way and force them to "part the sea" for us. Some people knocked into us.

And in many places, they all sat down on the ground, with their bags spread out around them, and almost completely blocked the walkways. AK was crowded yesterday, and the walkways tend to be narrow as it is, and it is nearly impossible to get large crowds of people through these narrow spaces when 2/3 of it is taken up by tour groups sitting in huge groups on the ground. We honestly couldn't believe that Disney allowed this. It must be a hazard!

Their lack of common courtesy for other people was what bothered us the most. Not so much any cultural differences like clapping or singing. Just simple common courtesy to other human beings that one would expect to encounter anywhere on the planet. Like moving aside when other people are trying to pass on a shared walkway.

Disheartening to say the least.

 

[PetePanMan]

Although I think line cutting and any disruptions in the actual attractions should be addressed, IMO the majority of the groups I have seen are just having fun and people should try to chill a bit.

 

[Linda M]

We, thankfully, didn't encounter this type of group chanting when we were there earlier this month. I have to say, though, that there is a variety of different behaviors that are annoying. The worst one we observed was while waiting for a bus back to our hotel one evening during a thunderstorm. A large line had been waiting for 10 or 15 minutes, uncomfortably, when the bus arrived and a family group of about 15 people, who had just arrived at the stop, pushed their way directly to the bus as one of their members was in a wheelchair. So, after yet another long wait while they boarded, we finally got on and saw that they had spread themselves out over more seats than necessary including a separate seat for each and every young child, necessitating several others to stand for the ride. As if that wasn't annoying enough, when we got back to the GF and went to the CL lounge for a snack, there they were, with the wheelchair 'bound' woman dancing (and I do mean dancing!) up and down the stairs between the lounge and the concierge desk level with plates of food, to the music from the lobby. Grrrrr. And this was a good old American family!

 

[ArwenMarie]

All you can do is avoid the times that these groups visit if it bothers you.

If Disney makes the rules too restrictive, they will stop coming. So Disney won't do that. (or Universal for that matter)

 

[JRawkSteady]

It certainly is cultural, though the polite thing to do is to conform one's behavior to the country you are visiting. I've been reading a lot about going to Japan recently (because I am planning to go) and there are a lot of cultural rules and such (mostly they involve being quiet in public) and I fully intend to keep my loud (relatively) American mannerisms toned down while there.

That said, I've never run into the extreme behavior as cited in this thread, but have been around a group chanting, and it didn't bother me too much. They're just trying to have a good time. It' also wasn't constant with that group or anything, so I can see how it would get on people's nerves after a while. I would not tolerate it on rides, but just walking around it's not a huge deal to me.

I certainly agree that you should conform to the culture of the country you are visiting. It's the lack of knowledge and/or caring that makes certain people seem rude even though they don't perceive themselves to be this way. It works the same locally too.. The age old assumption that "New Yorkers are rude/angry/scary" is absolutely absurd. However, when tourists come here and do the same thing they do in WDW (Stopping in the middle of the street, walking in a straight horizontal line so no one can pass them, etc etc) it causes a lot of frustration - - Just because people are on vacation, doesn't mean other people aren't trying to get to work/home.

I recorded audio of the said tour groups on our last trip and it is grating to say the least. Not just "people having fun", but people that seem to be going out of their way to say "We're here, so get out of my way." It drowns out the BGM and it's almost impossible to have a conversation with anyone until they finally march their way into the distance. This type of behavior is something I would expect at Six Flags...but it definitely ruins the theming and is WAY WORSE to deal with the chanting/screaming than to deal with the local drunks at Food & Wine.

 

[Mersmom98]

We encountered the groups during our last trip. It got to the point that our teenagers would immediately go in the opposite direction if we heard them coming. I even told them to back up while we were standing in line for Expedition Everest, but it didn't do a bit of good. They kept bumping into us in line and pushing; it was so hot and crowded...They just looked at me like I was crazy.

 

[larryz]

If you don't get enough of it at WDW (or if you've never seen it for youself):

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=brazilian+tour+groups

That said, I find this video very funny and enlightening...

 

[andyman8]

For those who were wondering, this usually becomes a hot topic around the months of January and July as those are the months when they usually visit (it's their school holidays).

This argument always seems to inevitably end up with people calling each other racist, but I don't see complaining about the rude behavior of tour groups as racist. The groups, touting their loud nationalist shirts and hats, represent their country, just as when I go to Europe in an Uncle Sam t-shirt I represent the USA. When people then repeatedly do not take a liking to your behavior, they see it as not reflecting well of that country, and because they've seen it so frequently, they begin to assume that all tour groups from certain countries act like that. Whether or not that is okay, that's how humans work. We all do it. That's one reason why your kids are always told before any school field trip, particularly if they go to a private or charter school where they have to attract students, to be on their best behavior so people think highly of the school. It's the reason why your boss and company expects you to be at your absolute best for any interaction with outside firms or partners. So, when these tour groups repeatedly wake people up in the middle of the night with these chants, bump, hit, and (in one case) flip off other guests, and try to cut in line, it's natural that people will start to associate these tour groups with rude behavior.

Personally, the chants in the parks don't bother me; it's the stuff I mentioned above that can drive me bananas. To be honest, I don't care if it's considered acceptable in their home countries; that doesn't make it okay. It can create a dangerous environment. I've seen near fights break out, kids cry, and even CMs harassed because of these groups. This isn't me applying my own cultural standards to theirs; it's just me asking them to continue to maintain a safe environment in the parks, and it really is the responsibility of the chaperones to encourage the group to do it, as after all, kids (from any country) will be kids, but I have often wondered why you don't see the fewer American groups act like that. Well, I got my answer on that: Disney (and Universal; seen it at both) won't allow it. Because they A) know they can speak the kids' language and B) know that those groups aren't crucial to the bottom line, they will tell any American tour groups (or just large groups of friends that are all from the US) to stop singing, chanting, etc... I've seen it multiple times firsthand and have heard this from CMs and TMs as well. That really bothers me for some reason.

 

[Nigel Channing]

Brazilians love queuing up then trying to find a way to the front of the queue. Don't worry, they do it at home as well. Getting to the top of the Christ statue in Rio is one of the biggest **** shows I've ever experienced.

 

[OrangeBirdGirl]

MrInfinity, can imagine standing and waiting for a bus back to your resort at the end of a long long HOT day and the dancing, chanting and screaming goes on and on? Believe me, you are lucky to miss this Disney experience! And extra lucky if this activity is for the resort buses next to yours and not in your actual resort line

Or even worse, they get onto the bus and do this all in the closed quarters of a bus and it just echos.......

 

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

It only bothers me in close quarters like ride lines and such.

 

[Lavitz]

Or even worse, they get onto the bus and do this all in the closed quarters of a bus and it just echos.......

Ok this would just plain annoy me. I like relaxing on the way back from the parks.

Question. Do they just do their thing for like a minute or two, or do they do it non stop for like 10-15 minutes (in the parks I mean)? I don't think I'd mind if every half hour they broke out in chanting for a minute or so, I'd actually find it kinda fun. However if they go on and on for like 15 minutes straight I'd be furious.

 

[JRawkSteady]

Ok this would just plain annoy me. I like relaxing on the way back from the parks.

Question. Do they just do their thing for like a minute or two, or do they do it non stop for like 10-15 minutes (in the parks I mean)? I don't think I'd mind if every half hour they broke out in chanting for a minute or so, I'd actually find it kinda fun. However if they go on and on for like 15 minutes straight I'd be furious.

While they are walking from one place to another, it is non-stop...until they reach their destination.