Do You think DISNEY has gone down hlll the last few years?

[TLSnell1981]

don't know if it is iger or another entity that has disney world on this current path.however if it is him 2015 won't come soon enough for me.alot more damage can be done in 3+ years.i kind of wish the 2013 thing would have come about.it is time for a change at the world,maybe not just iger but a wholesale change at the upper management level!

"like"

 

[Planogirl]

Don't know if it is Iger or another entity that has disney world on this current path.However if it is him 2015 won't come soon enough for me.Alot more damage can be done in 3+ years.I kind of wish the 2013 thing would have come about.It is time for a change at the world,maybe not just Iger but a wholesale change at the upper management level!

I agree 100%. Disney needs some creativity and foresight at the top.

 

[Tori 2001]

Tough question. There are things that disappoint - closing some attractions without a replacement, leaving a resort half built for years, more focus on merchandising with less than quality items, lack of updates for EPCOT, considerable ticket price increases in hard times. On the other hand, some excellent new attractions have been added. I'm not sure the company is sharing profits with its CM's adequately, but in many cases the magic is certainly still there among them. Like any company, Disney must be successful from a business standpoint. There will be changes. Overall, we don't look forward to our trips any less.

 

[blondietink]

Regarding the merchandising of recent years.... I am less than thrilled with the designs on the t-shirts and sweatshirts. They are just the same thing over and over again with a new year on it. I was just sorting out some summer/winter clothes for the change of seasons and came across an Electric Light Parade t-shirt I bought for my sons years ago. I will never throw that thing out! I would love more ride/parade/fireworks specific clothing and would buy a lot more if there were more choices out there. Better designs = more money out of my pockete and into the corporate profit.

Take for example the 40th Anniversary t-shirt they have out now. It's just the same old Mickey's gang design with them all in front of the castle with 40th Anniversary written all over it. YUCK! the limited edition t-shirts weren't very spectacular, either, IMHO. Come one, black with a black design you can hardly see and then white with a silver design? How boring! You would think with the animation team they have they could do much, much, better.

 

[WDSearcher]

Sorry if I misunderstood, but the way you worded that post seemed to imply that we were just discussing the same points, and so it has made for an old and tired discussion that is no longer valid or relevant.

Nope. Never said that. If you read my posts that followed that post, you will see that I said just the opposite. That this discussion will ALWAYS be relevant because there will ALWAYS be complaints. Everything at Disney could be 100% spot on perfect in your eyes, but not in someone else's. Disney will never please all of the people all of the time. Hence, there will always be multiple complaint threads on any Disney BB.

The discussion isn't "old and tired" -- it's just kind of lazy and comfortable (in a good way). It's a bunch of mostly like-minded people reinforcing each others POV and occasionally introducing new topics and talking points. But there's a lot of off-topic going on too: comments about deals to be had in Vegas, for example, or how to plan an economical Disney vacation. Neither of those things are targeted to Disney going downhill; they're tangents of a main conversation that has expanded beyond its initial point.

On the contrary...we are still discussing as we have ideas to share, trip reports or new policy changes (monorail closure, addition of wifi in deluxe resorts), for example. For those of us who have read each and every post in this thread, it is still a relevant discussion, so why not continue to discuss with each other?

Again ... I never said that it should end or that it should not continue. Someone made a comment that the "uphill" conversation had ended while the "downhill" conversation continued. And the way that comment was made implied that the "downhill" conversation was somehow more valid due to its continued existence. My opinion was that part of the reason why it was still going on was because the topic just happened to collect a group of people who meshed well and were simply enjoying the discussion, not because the "downhill" people were "right" and the "uphill" people were "wrong".

 

[nytimez]

Again ... I never said that it should end or that it should not continue. Someone made a comment that the "uphill" conversation had ended while the "downhill" conversation continued. And the way that comment was made implied that the "downhill" conversation was somehow more valid due to its continued existence. My opinion was that part of the reason why it was still going on was because the topic just happened to collect a group of people who meshed well and were simply enjoying the discussion, not because the "downhill" people were "right" and the "uphill" people were "wrong".

WHOAAAA Nelly -- that was me. Where did I say or imply that the length of a thread had anything at all to do with the validity of the discussion?

There are "something about nothing" threads on various Disboards forums that have been going on for years, and those say right in the title that they're about nothing.

I said it was funny that this one is still going... while the other one stopped. That's all.

Sometimes, the words people say (or write) are exactly what they mean. No need to turn every sentence into a linguistic Rorschach test.

 

[flicx]

*
Hi! I did make a few edits on the front page. Check it out. I'm all for any other comments and or suggestions from anyone. Feel free to PM me too! Thanks! Brunette

Hi brunette just thought I might add that maybe the monorail thing isn't a done deal (running after hard ticket events)as there are still conflicting reports about it.Apparently some say yes others no,seems to change night by night.

 

[meeshkamooshka]

been there 3 times over the last 4 years... so my last trip I went to universal instead...

what a world of difference, a much smaller ( enjoyable ) scale of a park...i think it was like disney world use to be back in the 70's 80's, frankly I think it has gotten too big...I only will go in the fall or spring and only at non peak times...when everyone is zigging..I will be zagging!!!

and money making machine, yes, but if they lost money we wouldnt have a disney world to visit!

 

[WDSearcher]

WHOAAAA Nelly -- that was me. Where did I say or imply that the length of a thread had anything at all to do with the validity of the discussion?

There are "something about nothing" threads on various Disboards forums that have been going on for years, and those say right in the title that they're about nothing.

I said it was funny that this one is still going... while the other one stopped. That's all.

Sometimes, the words people say (or write) are exactly what they mean. No need to turn every sentence into a linguistic Rorschach test.

You also, as I recall, included a sly wink (), which usually indicates that there is more to a comment than just what is written. If I am mistaken, then I do apologize!

 

[Planogirl]

been there 3 times over the last 4 years... so my last trip I went to universal instead...

what a world of difference, a much smaller ( enjoyable ) scale of a park...i think it was like disney world use to be back in the 70's 80's, frankly I think it has gotten too big...I only will go in the fall or spring and only at non peak times...when everyone is zigging..I will be zagging!!!

and money making machine, yes, but if they lost money we wouldnt have a disney world to visit!

You make an interesting point. WDW used to be much more manageable but I wonder if that is due to more than just size? Disney has made things much more complicated over the years in many ways.

 

[nytimez]

You also, as I recall, included a sly wink (), which usually indicates that there is more to a comment than just what is written. If I am mistaken, then I do apologize!

Would it really be so hard to check the post before saying something like that? It was only a couple of days ago, it's not that hard to find:

When Brunette first posted this thread, some angry Diser made a competing "Do you think Disney has gone UP HILL" thread to "fight the negativity."

It's funny how that thread vanished... and this one is still going strong.

But here we are now, two posts in a row with you adding stuff I didn't say to my comments. Nice job.

 

[blondietink]

Hi brunette just thought I might add that maybe the monorail thing isn't a done deal (running after hard ticket events)as there are still conflicting reports about it.Apparently some say yes others no,seems to change night by night.

From what I have heard and read, the resort monorail only is running 1/2 hour after hard ticket event ends. So, does that stop at the TTC or does it bypass it?

 

[WDSearcher]

Would it really be so hard to check the post before saying something like that? It was only a couple of days ago, it's not that hard to find:

But here we are now, two posts in a row with you adding stuff I didn't say to my comments. Nice job.

Yeah, I was lazy. Sue me.

Then again, I DID preface the comment with, "As I recall", and I also said, "If I am mistaken, then I do apologize!" I figured that if I was remembering it wrong, then I'd be covered. Apparently not.

But just out of curiosity ... when you made the comment about the "downhill" thread still going strong after the "uphill" thread had vanished ... were you honestly not making a value judgement? You weren't kind of maybe implying that the "downhill" comments / posts carried more weight or validity simply because this topic remained while the other had faded? Because gosh ... it sure read that way.

 

[flicx]

From what I have heard and read, the resort monorail only is running 1/2 hour after hard ticket event ends. So, does that stop at the TTC or does it bypass it?

It always stopped there before.So I can't see why they would change that.However some people have said no monorails at all on some nights.Neither resort or express, so if they are accurate it means that there still is uncertainty concerning that mode of transportation after MNSSHP.

 

[wdw4rfam]

Yes- its a little confusing why it has grown so much just recently. We used to go and as long as it wasn't "peak", it was slow, you could walk without bumping into people, you could call same day for ADR's, etc. Now, you have to pick your ADR's 180 in advance or you get nothing, which means without hoppers you must also decide what parks you will go to 6 months in advance. You can go in the dead of January now and the waits are still not terrible, but much worse than 5 years ago. Plus, I dont think there are any "down"times anymore. Disney will keep offering free dining during those times, and get people there. This new credit card for ADR policy isn't going to change the fact that the dining plan is what made ADR's crazy in the first place. If you know when you book that you have 8 table services, you are going to want to make sure there are going to be some when you get there. So, even if everyone only books one per night with their CC, that is still going to make walk-ups hard to come by, especially at free dining times- when EVERYONE has it.

 

[dmccarty]

We were at WDW at the first of the month. It was a great trip!

However one BIG thing stood out to us this trip. Food prices, quantity and quality. High prices, not as much food and declining quality.

Our first park day was at DHS and we went to a part of the park we had never been too to see P&F. Since Pizza Planet was there we had to eat at Pizza Planet. $10 for a pizza that looked and tasted like a frozen pizza is horrible. The meat ball sub was no better.

Mara's used to be our favorite CS place. Love the fries. This trip the prices are up a bit, the kids got very few fries, seem like they got less in their kids meals, and the quality was ok.

In that past, especially at Mara's, we felt that we paid about the same or a bit more for WDW CS vs off site CS but the food was better quality, usually at least. Not this trip and we have been getting the same food at Mara's for years. We only ate at Mara's twice.

Our last three meals at WDW were frozen food bought in the resort store. It was better and cheaper than what we were getting for CS at Mara and in the parks. Prior to the trip the DW and I were talking about taking frozen food to WDW to save us time and a bit of money. Mainly to save time by not having to eat out. Next trip we will be taking frozen food to the resort.

Even eating at CG we saw the difference. We have eaten at CG at least 20 times since the late 90's and we can see the difference. This trip the Sushi was made with long grain rice. CG used to frequently change the menu. Not much has changed over the last few years. The value for us at CG was still there but it is slipping. We would have canceled our second ADR there except the kids wanted to go to Simba's Club House as planned.

We used to really like Rain Forest Cafe. Their Calamari was excellent but it has not been on the menu in years. Paying $15 for a sandwich and only getting potato chips is absurd. Asking for another $2 for fries is pathetic. We can go to Red Robin and get as many fries as we want. Now I do not want, nor need a bottomless plate of fries, but I would like them with a hamburger. We only went to RFC the second time because grandpa had promised the kids. Next time we will skip RFC. The frozen burrito I had at the resort was better and heck of a lot cheaper.

We have noticed this decline in food value over the last few years. We have responded to it by spending less on WDW food. Next trip we will spend even less. In the past we have had at least 4-5 meals at Signature restaurants for each trip. We are down to two now and we would have just had one if not for the kids. Next trip it is likely to be just one.

This is sad because we got to WDW to EAT at the signature restaurants.

F&W was great and we felt we got what we paid for except for some of the deserts. We miss the crab cakes and some of the beers they have had in the past but we no complaints about F&W food/price wise.

The landscaping in the parks has declined. The kids play areas that used to be at F&W are missing.

Space Mountain has uncovered fasteners in the waiting areas that are very blatant. Given the ride just had a refurb you would think they would have taken care of these issues. Soar'n had holes in the dry wall that should have been patched.

We will return to WDW since the overall value is there. But we have been and will continue to spend less money on food. Disney has pushed up the food prices and declined quality to a point where we just will not buy as much. Next trip we will also look a bit more closely at the number of days we spend in the parks. Park tickets are our largest expense and we have been wanting to spend more time at the resort. This last trip, the weather forced us to spend more time at the resort and we really liked it. Given the price increase on the park tickets we are very likely to go to the parks less frequently.

We will be sending a note to WDW about our concerns.

It was a great trip. We had some wonderful interactions with CMs. But we are seeing a decline in quality and value to which we have been and will continue to react.

Later,
Dan

 

[nytimez]

Yeah, I was lazy. Sue me.

Then again, I DID preface the comment with, "As I recall", and I also said, "If I am mistaken, then I do apologize!" I figured that if I was remembering it wrong, then I'd be covered. Apparently not.

It was a valuable lesson in how you operate, and with what level of respect I should give to you. And that, I appreciate.

 

[meeshkamooshka]

You make an interesting point. WDW used to be much more manageable but I wonder if that is due to more than just size? Disney has made things much more complicated over the years in many ways.

the word slowly got out... the 70's , 80's , 90's, 00's, 10's...kind of a snowball effect...

I was there when it opened in 1970 ? I think it was ...there was one park, and the contemporary, poly, fort wilderness... and that was it!

personally Ive been been there about 20 +/- times in my entire life

now the scale is much larger... and many more parks and hotels....

I wonder is someone has hard research on the numbers through the years...not just me talking out of my you know what...


Meeshka!

 

[meeshkamooshka]

the comparison to universal reminded me of what disney use to be..smaller scale, not overwelming... distance short/scale , less people, less options/parks

would you believe at universal if you stay at the hotel on grounds you can get a pass that puts you at the front of the line on almost every ride... now that was amasing! They should have the same thing at disney world, if someone wants to /can pay for it....let them get to the front of the line!

its not like anything else in life, if you want service/ quality product you PAY for it!

 

[WDSearcher]

It was a valuable lesson in how you operate, and with what level of respect I should give to you. And that, I appreciate.

Ditto.