Downtown Disney what do you think is wrong?

[lugnut33]

We like to go to Bongos to hear latin music, but last time we went the bartenders were not so pleasant.

And we do go to HOB sometimes.

Oh, what about getting a pretzel dog and Wetzel's?

Actually, if you go behind the businesses on the WS, there is a nice walk area along the lake.

 

[DUHgreg]

Lack of space at the Marketplace (way too crowded for the area), the nuking of Pleasure Island without any replacement plan (and then a plan that may have gotten nuked), lack of consistency on the West Side (remember the separate bus stop, store changes, etc.).

 

[ninecrayons]

DH and I were talking about this thread the other day while walking the dogs.

We definitely agree with people who said that there's just not enough to do and things are a bit too spread out. I like going to the movies over there, but there's no place to have a quick and not too expensive dinner without having to go all the way over to Earl of Sandwich. Wolfgang Puck isn't really the best option for that.

The other problem I have is the total lack of parking. I have easily spent twenty minutes trying to find parking - even on the West Side! It's ridiculous! Does anyone else have that problem?

 

[kbelle8995]

I believe that they way that DTD was built has problems. The Marketplace end was there first. It was the Villages and was so for many years. Once you got to the Empress Lilly that was it. Where Pleasure Island and West side was nothing but trees and swamp for a long time. Then they built Pleasure Island and the Movie theater and then finally Westside. I rarely leave Marketplace.

 

[fall08CP]

Was at DTD last night and it was hopping! The west side had 5 separate musical artist, each bringing in quiet a crowd. It was far from boring!

It was quite crowded though, and people struggle with walking straight n vacation for whatever reason Our one observation was that the majority of guests didn't speak English. It was cool to see so much diversity, but I definitely felt like a minority by only speaking English!

 

[wendydarling826]

I agree with most of what has been said. If I'm going to take time out of my vacation to shop, I want it to be for something unique and Disney related. I loved the Disney Home Store and always brought home souvenirs from there. I would not bother to go into a shopping area with stores that can be found at a mall at home. I miss PI and wish they would develop something similar. We haven't even gone to DTD in our past 3 trips. DD and I might go to Marketplace on our upcoming trip, but there is nothing on the West Side that would interest us. Shopping, like dining, is becoming very homogenized in WDW - a trend I find disappointing and would like to see reversed.

 

[kuzco-like]

I, too, miss the diversity of the stores and merchandise (ahem...in the parks as well). I think that has had a negative effect on Downtown Disney, and therefore PI. And I understand what everyone has said about the effect of removing the gates. My first trips to WDW were in the early 90s, and we went to PI almost every night. We weren't much for the clubs, but we enjoyed the atmosphere at night. We were fine with just buying a drink and strolling. Perhaps we were part of the downfall...we didn't spend enough money.

But I have a question: what, if anything, do you think the effect of the Dining Plan and/or free dining has been on DTD and PI?

I'm not too familiar with the dining plan, except that when I went on a solo trip in 2009, almost every food service cast member was incredulous that I wasn't on the dining plan. But has the dining plan kept people in the parks and drained some of the flow from DTD? Just curious.

Oh, and an idea for improvement. Now that Characters in Flight might be flying the coop, perhaps Disney should invest in one of those fancy ferris wheels such as the London Eye. I would love a safe, air conditioned sky-high view of WDW.

 

[*NikkiBell*]

I always wonder if the folks in power at Disney read these threads...

I think it is safe to say that "yes" they do indeed. There have been many surveys put out by Disney Research mentioning the DIS, WDW Info, etc. I feel comfortable with the thought of their watching to an extent.