Has anybody NOT had a disappointing trip lately?

[HOOSIERDAD]

We have gone every year since 2005 & our last trip this past December was the best yet! Over the top CM's, good food, great service.

 

[nco91590]

For the majority of people, Disney is not the most relaxing vacation. It's usually crazy hot, crowded and there's typically a meltdown or five. There's a lot of work on the front end to make sure you can get on a ride and have a meal. It's also pretty expensive, so it's understandable that people get disappointed.

That being said...Disney is by far my favorite place to vacation and I've never had a TERRIBLE experience there. I think people's expectations are way too high.

 

[LoKiHB]

Our trip in March of last year was great. For me personally, it wasn't as great as the year before (we went to SWW), but it was still fantastic. Everyone has their own expectations. Some expect perfection, and I don't think that's possible. Some people will always find fault, and I don't think that's fair. It's what you make of it.

 

[kmoore7]

We, wife and five children, went in July 2014 over the fourth. Drove 18 hours over two days. Stayed ten nights at POP Century. Crowded beyond belief. Heat and humidity like I've never experienced. Cost us a small fortune to do it. Would drop everything in a heartbeat given the chance to go again tomorrow. I would rather complain about something in Disney World than be at work,wouldn't we all? One last note. It costs me less money to stay at Disney World than it does to stay at the beach. I won't stay at the beach unless I have a view of the ocean from my balcony,and that's not cheap. Hopefully that helps you decide.

 

[luvsJack]

Just had a 3 day trip with a school group. We were anything but disappointed! We had a great time.

All the bathrooms I went in to were clean. In fact the one in DHS was a little too clean! LOL The CM was busy cleaning each stall as one person went out and then let the next one in. Made for a really backed up line! But it was definitely clean. The only thing I did notice about cleanliness was that the ashtrays in the smoking areas did get overfilled at one in AK, but it was over by Lion King so I am thinking that when the show lets out a huge number come down that way and then its messy for a little while because later when I stopped there, it was fine. People were putting their butts out on the ground more but that's a people problem not a Disney problem.

FP+ wasn't awful and it wasn't wonderful. I think once I learn how to use it as well as the old FP, it will be fine.

Food was decent. We ate only CS but loved the ribs in AK and liked the flatbread pizza things at Pinocchio in MK and the CS chinese place in Epcot was good too (I was worried that it would be awful but it was really pretty good) and still love the turkey legs. I didn't find anything to be oversalted but maybe they are talking about TS places. I am surprised that they would start putting MORE salt when every where else in the world is putting LESS.

 

[wdwjeffc37]

We have been to WDW a lot. Our last two trips were in early June 2013 and again in 2014 and both trips were great. Was everything perfect? No, but no vacation I ever took was perfect. Realistic expectations and knowledge of possibilities is what lets us enjoy our trips. We find no use in complaining about things we cannot change or complaining to people that can't change them. The best way to have an enjoyable trip is to remember: Almost everything is colored by the way you react to things. Have a good attitude and things go much smoother. As for cast members, I find the better you treat them the better the interaction you will have. I always find them delightful to talk to. Even when I see that they might be having a trying day, I greet them with a smile and try and sympathise with them.

 

[Disfan1968]

Hey listen, I trooped down with a family of 8, including my mother and father in law last summer and we managed to have a great time! Lots of different personalities in our group but still some magic there for everyone to have a good time.

 

[verleniahall]

We had a FANTASTIC trip in September and we are going back Oct/Nov - the trip is all in what you make of it

 

[DisneyMim]

Our last two trips were wonderful. We were there last August and during Christmas/New Years. We have been going for years so our trips are more relaxing than most people's. We don't do rope drop, don't care much about rides, in fact we had only a few FPs during our Christmas trip. We go because we look at it as our second home. We have another trip planned for next Christmas and probably will go again this summer. Disney isn't for everyone. I do agree with the above poster. If you treat the CMS well they will treat you well. I can't count the amount of times I've seen people screaming at CMS. Not going to do you any good. I think too many people go with the expectations of tons of pixie dust and everything has to be perfect. They feel very entitled. Well I hate to break it to you, but EVERYONE wants a great vacation. EVERYONE has paid money for their trips. We've been going forever and I think the biggest change is that many many more people are going today than years ago. It's just so much more crowded. I see it in people's eyes. They are on a mission and just plowing through their trips. Relax and smell the roses.

Enjoy The Magic!!

 

[Dallas_Lady]

I started this poll cause I was wondering the same thing...

http://www.disboards.com/threads/how-did-you-feel-about-your-2014-wdw-vacation.3339245/

 

[3Gsandme]

Our trip in Feb 2014 was excellent. So good, in fact, that not only am I kicking myself for having a ten year gap between trips, but I have a trip to DL booked for this summer and a trip to WDW in 2016 in the planning stages as well. My kids talk about the trip frequently. We had a blast (the girls and I cried during Wishes on our last night! That's a good trip!)

I think a lot of the dissatisfaction comes from the people who really maximized the post 9/11 economic downturn. I mean, if you're used to really low prices and really low crowds you probably aren't having as much fun now as things have recovered, discounts aren't as steep and crowds are higher.

 

[North of Mouse]

I want to go, but am hesitant given such widespread complaints here about oversalted food, disgusting bathrooms, declining service, broken technology, layoffs and defections, crowds, construction, nothing new in years and decay/abandonment of whole areas of parks, rising costs in an increasingly poorly disguised effort to gouge the guest, and diminishing value. Oh, and loss of spontaneity due to FP+. So...still a good destination? Do we all just need an antidepressant and lessons in gratitude? I'm honestly not sure what to expect and whether even to go.

Just back from a 2 week visit, to 'us', ALL the complaints you listed above are false (IMO) except for lots of construction, and we were not 'thrilled' with FP+, but made the best of it. Other than that, some people complain about anything.

Disney is definitely packing more people in than it has ride capacity for, but that has really been happening for several years, hence the 'limitations' of FP+!!!

We had a good trip regardless - no complaints with any CM's or service - great, as usual - we just aren't planning as many trips in the future.

 

[L&Lfan]

In spite of FP+ which we despise, all three of our trips last year (June, September and November 2014) were great. The weather was awful in September due to that tropical depression late in the month which caused it to POUR for hours very single day but that wasn't Disney's fault. However with the advent of FP+ we will be limiting our WDW trips to once a year and going to Disneyland, Universal Orlando or elsewhere instead.

 

[rangerxenos]

Have been three times in the last three years, and I'm going back again next month. Have not yet had a bad trip, in fact, I've had very few disappointments overall. We love FP+ as we're not usually getting to the parks early, so we actually get fast passes to popular attractions and don't have to wait in line.

 

[Magpie]

Same here! Bring on the salt! My low blood pressure will actually thank you.

My daughter inherited the same "problem". I actually used to have to remind her to salt her food, to help keep her postural hypotension under control. (Low blood pressure - you get faint if you stand up too quickly.) As far as conditions go, we're not complaining about this one!

Yes. I tend to notice a rather "elitest" attitude by many regarding Disney and they expect everything to go 100% the way they want it to, they expect perfect food, perfect rides, perfect crowds, perfect attitudes, perfect, perfect, perfect. Yeah well... that isn't life! And it sure as heck isn't vacation. It doesn't matter where you go - you can get a bad meal, a broken ride, a cranky ride attendant or waiter. It all boils down to personal attitudes of expectation, entitlement and appreciation (and today far too many have too much of the first two and a serious lack of the third). I think overall experiences are largely based on how easily a person is able to just suck it up and move on, quite frankly. Whether they decide to let a bad meal ruin their trip or just brush it off and keep on going. I think it also depends sometimes on where you're coming from.

I agree with this, and I'd add that one thing Disney has been excellent for is teaching us that when things go wrong, we need to give people a chance to make things right.

For example, my husband once experienced a broken "gun" while riding TSM. He's a competitive sort and a bit of a pessimist (with regards to anyone caring), so it was intensely frustrating for him to see me racking up points while he couldn't shoot anything. He doesn't always "suck it up" with very good grace. I told him we shouldn't leave right away, but he stomped off, leaving me behind to explain the problem to the attendant. Immediately, she said, "Oh, would you like to get on the next car, and have another ride?" I grinned and said, "I would! But he's already left. Don't worry about it!" Then I went, chased my husband down, and lectured him for a few minutes. He promised me he'd try to give people a chance to make things right in the future.

Well, very next trip, we got that chance. Got into line for the Backlot Tour, figuring we had an hour before our ADR. The ride broke down, and we were stuck in line for 45 minutes, so just as we got to trolley, we had to bail. My husband was getting upset again, but I told him to chill and just let me talk to the ride attendant. I did, and we were assured that we could come back through the exit after our ADR and get right on the trolley, no problem. We went, ate, and indeed, had no issues coming in through the exit. They were expecting us and we boarded immediately.

Now, many trips later, my husband is a huge believer in giving people a chance to make things right. Just because things sometimes go wrong, that doesn't mean your experience is ruined. Heck, sometimes the most magical parts of our trips happen because something went wrong, and people were awesome about making it right.

He even applies this Disney-earned philosophy to the real world now, with frequent success.

 

[staceyeileen]

The title of this thread cracks me up. No, every single person who has gone to Disney recently has been disappointed. Yep, every one of them. At least, according to the DIS.

 

[misse320]

I think people have a bad time when they don't plan their trip. I know people criticize the level of planning I do, but that planning helps us have a magical trip every single time! If you don't plan and decide to go peak season in super hot temps, I'll be you don't have the best time. Our next trip is in October and I'm already counting down the days!

 

[seelyt2]

Go! We went Black Friday and while it was busier than we would've liked, we still had an absolutely GREAT time. We managed to get all of our FP+ picks, and the spontaneity for us, I guess, was the moderate standby lines for the the rides that we do each and every trip (I'm looking at you Pirates) in the mid-morning. I've always gone into the parks with a plan so pre-planning isn't a big deal for us. Maybe it is for others, tho, but to each their own... Your trip is what you make it, IMHO. Bus times weren't horrible from the AKL, which is hardly ever the case....it all worked out! Looking back I really can't think of anything that went wrong...just go - and be surprised by the good time you'll have and don't look for the bad. Just let the experiences happen and consider the good experiences a blessing and let go of the rest

 

[chelseabun76]

I had to slow down on reading the boards before our trip because of the negative posts and experiences. It was putting a damper on my excitement and that wasn't fair to my daughter, who was going for the first and probably only time as a child. We got there and had the trip of a lifetime. We had no problems with food other than a super picky 9 year old girl whining when there wasn't chicken nuggets available. Bathrooms were busy but I only noticed a mess in maybe one of them the entire week. With bathrooms that busy I didn't expect them to be 100% immaculate the entire trip. CM's were wonderful. The one thing that put a damper on one day, was Toy Story going down JUST as we walked towards it to use our fp+, but luckily we had decided to hit it at rope drop in hopes of riding it twice that day. We went in with positive attitudes, and being extremely grateful for just being able to BE there. And it was awesome.

 

[bookgirl]

I've been 4 times in the last year. (two value stays, one off site stay, one deluxe stay)

I had 4 great trips (not perfect) very little problems, food was fine, CM's were fine for the majority of interactions, and I had a blast. FP+ worked just like it's supposed to and I navigated it with no problems or technical glitches.

Everyone has a bad day or even a bad vacation but many more have good ones. It's just that we as a society tend to be way more vocal about the bad stuff then the good stuff.