Has anyone ever left Disney unsatisfied? A family member?

[crisi]

There are certainly people who are disappointed.

One of my coworkers is the "Disney again?" type. He thinks we are a little nuts. He has been to Disney, but didn't catch the magic. And he isn't a pessimist, or non-commercial. But it was hot and crowded and expensive and he'd rather have gone camping and had (for him) a better time for less money.

We took my mother in law in October. I was very concerned. She is non-commercial. She isn't a ride person. She doesn't like crowds. She is a very smart lady, but in some ways easily confused and overwhelmed. In short, all the things that trigger the whole "not going to like this." The things she had going for her, she is a optimist, and she was going to get to spend a week with our family (and her grandkids) and her sister (who we took along to keep her company), we'd pick up the tab (so expense wasn't going to be the huge issue it would be if she'd paid her own way), and she does enjoy good food - and I went out of my way to book a bunch of great PSs. She had a good time, although I think the best thing in her opinion was that she and her sister spent several days poking through World Showcase at their own pace and together - not the Disney experience most of us have!

My advice, try not to hype too much. Let her go through guide books and try to plan your trip around her interests - although do guide her in her choices (i.e. you might recommend a restaurant over another, or strongly suggest a character meal, or guide her away from a two hour wait at the Jungle Cruise). She will have more fun if you do things she enjoys rather than "dragging her through Disney showing her your favorites." That may be dining or shopping or seeing Cirque or playing golf or spending a day at the waterparks or commandoing the parks.

Best wishes

 

[panfan]

Let me start this off my stating that for the 12 years that I have been married, starting with the honeymoon, we have been to WDW at least once a year someyears twice( this year 3 times)!

NO one in my life understands why we Love it so much....after much talking about it and telling about all the wonders...my bil and sil took their kids ages 9 and 11 last year....guess what....THEY HATED , I MEAN HATED IT!! Can you even imagine, they said the kids were too old and we will see in a couple of years when our kids get bigger....

One of the problems was I think...they were looking at it from an Amusement park point of view stating that 6 flags has better rides.....but It's not about that....Either you get the magic or you dont and they did'nt....

Also , when we recently purchased DVC they just couldn't believe we were wasting our money and warned how are kids are gonna just get bored with it...

I don't think so!!

It''s tough because we are the best of Friends with them in every other aspecto of our lives but this is just something that we can't share!

 

[kmgl78]

Be sure to buy her a guidebook and let her pick some things she thinks she will enjoy. There are lots of things to do besides the rides.

Also, you might rethink going in July if at all possible. It is the hottest and most crowded time of year.

I think anyone who goes with a good attitude will have a fun time, but people who are already complaining before the trip starts could be a problem.

 

[litlpixie]

Speaking of UN- satisfaction....We will be going for the dreaded "Easter Week" this year, and I gotta tell ya I'm a little worried that this trip won't live up to our previous wonderful low-crowded times of being there. I am a little worried about being dissapointed and maybe a little unsatisfied. I've built up in my head of what we're going to do , when and where. But due to the impending crowds, I'm trying to tell myself not to expect too much and to just go with it.

 

[Disneycrazymom]

If at all possible move to the fall. We went the first time in July, it was not fun.(and I always loved the parks from childhood) It is HOT, crowded, and there are tour groups that are difficult to move around. We came home and said never again. My DM kept saying to try again but in Nov. Well what a difference! Nov is WONDERFUL! Perfect weather, no crowds! Now we go at least once a year. Either late as possible in Aug., early as possible in June,or our favorite, the week before or after Thanksgiving week. It can be hard to see the magic if your too hot or there are too many other people.

 

[Poohbear123]

I go 3 times a year, and wish I could go more often. My DH is NOT a "Disney person." He complains about how far he has to walk from the car to the room, from the room to the food court, from the food court to the busses, from the busses to the......well you get it right? Meanwhile, he LOVES to walk thru a flea market/antique show, and I HATE that! This is why I take the train up and the bus back. I was just there a few weeks ago, and I am planning a trip in June!

 

[ILOVEPOOH1]

LET ME JUST SAY, THAT I TOOK MY SON WHEN HE WAS 6.....FOUR YEARS AGO... HIS GRANDPARENTS CAME TOO AND MY DAD DID NOT WANT TO GO.... SINCE THAT TIME HE AND MY STEPMOTHER HAVE RETURNED TO THE WORLD BY THEMSELVES EVERY YEAR!!
THIS YEAR MY HUSBAND AND I ARE GOING FOR OUR ANNIVERSARY AND HE'S SKEPTICAL... I CAN'T WAIT TO GET THERE AND SHOW HIM THE DISNEY MAGIC.

 

[akur]

When I went in June to MK, and I found that Carrousel of Progress, Pooh, and at least one other ride where closed, I was dissapointed, but usually the magic of being there is enough. I do agree Cancun is too commercial, but Disney has never bothered me as such because it is selling magic... and it does that well. That is not to say that some people find it a let down, but I think if they have a little child in them, they're going to enjoy it.


Ana, I think I'm up to 26 posts?

 

[Lucky4me]

4. she has no idea how to have fun unless it involves people covered in paint doing interpretive dance to animal noises or artists who no one but her has ever heard of.



That's the funniest thing I've read all day.

Yes, there are a lot of people who don't get it and never will. I say good for them, more room in the parks for me.

To the OP, take your girlfriend. If she's a whiney pain in the neck, ditch her and go have fun. That's what I had to do with DH a few times.

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Originally posted by Lucky4me
4. she has no idea how to have fun unless it involves people covered in paint doing interpretive dance to animal noises or artists who no one but her has ever heard of.



That's the funniest thing I've read all day.

Yes, there are a lot of people who don't get it and never will. I say good for them, more room in the parks for me.

To the OP, take your girlfriend. If she's a whiney pain in the neck, ditch her and go have fun. That's what I had to do with DH a few times.

Heehehee Thanks.

I went with someone once who whined the whole time and wanted to sleep till noon every day. I ended up ditching her at the pool most of the time and going to the parks solo We were both happy at the end of the day.

 

[Chim Chiminy]

This is long-----

Our best couple friends.
They went eleven and half years ago, when their daughter was two months old. It was the middle of August, my friend had just found out she was expecting again! They stayed with their In-laws a couple hours away from Orlando.
My friend did not pack extra baby clothes.... and no stroller.
She doesn't like any kind of ride, and her husband prefers thrill rides ala Six Flags or Hershey Park.

They went to Magic Kingdom (which to this day they still refer to as Disney World) and Sea World. One day each.

They hated everything. Too hot, rides suck, too expensive, blah blah blah.
And the two month old got a terrible case of diahrea ( I can only speculate that it was due to heat and dehydration!), which got all over my friend and she didn't bring a change of clothes for either one of them. (remember they were staying two hours away with family). They were too cheap to just buy new clothes for both, so she walked around with baby diahrea all over her shirt.

Her DH thought "the log ride" was the stupidest thing he had ever seen. Splash Mountain is my hubby's fave.............

All they ate was counter service. Bought their tickets at the gate.

Fast forward ten years to OUR first trip in 2002. We went last week of April. Yes, it was unseasonably hot. Locals said they were having a heat wave.
We went because of the Salute to Heroes. Both our husbands are in the Army. We tried to get them to go with us. Their two kids are same age as our son. Their kids begged to go.
No way, Disney sucks.

When we got back from our wonderful trip, they looked at our pictures and could not believe all that we had done. "That stuff is at Disney?"
Still, we ask them to join us, but they still will not go. They love our pics, love our trip reports. Won't go because of that lousy, badly timed, badly planned first trip.

 

[DisFlan]

We've been to WDW many times, but one trip was a definite DUD. In October 2000 we stayed on a "Silver Plan" which was suppose to provide my husband 18 holes of golf every day. He's a mega-serious golfer and golf is the main reason he visits Disney World. I had called before arrival to confirm everything and was assured that golf was available whenever he wanted and would I like to reserve tee times for every morning? I did.

When we checked in, he was told that golf for tee times on the Silver plan was now only after 3 pm!! By the end of a round in late October/early November, he would have been playing in the dark! Not to mention that he prefers an early start, or that after 3 pm golf would ruin most dinner PS times.

This hung a black cloud over the whole trip. He refused to play earlier and pay for it - so no golf. He felt he HAD paid for it. He swore we'd never be back. We really felt that Disney had let us down, which had NEVER happened before.

The upshot is that our son was currently an intern in College Program, and the next day in class he (rather vociferously) brought this problem to the attention of his instructor. Within a very short time, golf on the Silver Plan was listed on the web site as "Unlimited tee times." It's still listed that way. I chuckle and shake my head every time I see it.

We're returning in 5 weeks, and, yes, my husband will be playing golf every day - at 8 am.

DisFlan

 

[goofyernmost]

It has been my experience that there will always be someone that will not or cannot enjoy anything.

My X could suck the fun out of anything she came near. I think I mentioned before that I have a picture of her at WDW looking like she just came out on the short end of a tax audit.

Before they went, my friends and their family were discussing with me the in's and out's of WDW. She mentioned that she was only going for the kids, that she was to old for that type of thing but it would be nice for them. I told her to do one thing....as you enter the property, leave your adult self behind...let the kid out. She did and told me when she returned that she had a great time.

It's sort of a gamble when you bring others. Just don't take it personally if they don't like it. You can't make them enjoy something that they set their mind on not liking. I was planning on bringing my girlfriend on this trip. She had to cancel and to be honest, I am glad. During the course of trying to plan, I could see that she just had no interest in it at all. I am not a big planner but what little I do is always fun for me. Her total lack of interest just killed it for me. When she decided that she couldn't make the trip, I started to plan for myself and I am back to having fun again, and not a minute to soon. As you might be able to tell, there is not much future with that relationship. Irreconcilable Disney Differences!

Just do the best you can and don't try to force your enthusiam on others, it just isn't possible.

 

[jellydisney]

Originally posted by Chim Chiminy
They were too cheap to just buy new clothes for both, so she walked around with baby diahrea all over her shirt.

Yuck!!! There's cheap, and then there's CHEAP.

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Originally posted by goofyernmost
It has been my experience that there will always be someone that will not or cannot enjoy anything.

My X could suck the fun out of anything she came near. I think I mentioned before that I have a picture of her at WDW looking like she just came out on the short end of a tax audit.

Before they went, my friends and their family were discussing with me the in's and out's of WDW. She mentioned that she was only going for the kids, that she was to old for that type of thing but it would be nice for them. I told her to do one thing....as you enter the property, leave your adult self behind...let the kid out. She did and told me when she returned that she had a great time.

It's sort of a gamble when you bring others. Just don't take it personally if they don't like it. You can't make them enjoy something that they set their mind on not liking. I was planning on bringing my girlfriend on this trip. She had to cancel and to be honest, I am glad. During the course of trying to plan, I could see that she just had no interest in it at all. I am not a big planner but what little I do is always fun for me. Her total lack of interest just killed it for me. When she decided that she couldn't make the trip, I started to plan for myself and I am back to having fun again, and not a minute to soon. As you might be able to tell, there is not much future with that relationship. Irreconcilable Disney Differences!

Just do the best you can and don't try to force your enthusiam on others, it just isn't possible.

I agree. I could never be with someone who could not have fun at Disneyworld. Maybe thats "wrong" but thats just how I am. To me, a person who can not have fun at Disney World is just a sad, and probably very dull person whom I would not enjoy spending time with.

My X actually DID suck the joy out of Disneyworld for me once. He did nothing but complain about heat, children, boring rides and stupid "family" themed stuff the entire time we were there. I ended up ditching him and went to the parks alone every day while he stayed at the resort and drank by the pool until he passed out.

Needless to say, I soon realized I really had nothing in common with this person at all; and that he was, IMO a very unpleasent person to be around.

I'm going tomorrow for the first time with my current (long term) SO who has not been since he was 10 years old (21 years ago!) . He can't wait; he hates thrill rides and can't wait to go on IASW
& get a "pirate hat" to wear on the PoTC ride.I told him I'm going to wear Minnie ears the whole trip and he was like, YAY!!

He read in another post here, about a child who was made "Viking of the Day " and he immediately told me he wants to be "Viking of the Day" and could adults do that? THAT is the sort of person I want to spend a week at WDW with!

I think you can tell a lot about a person by their ability or inability to let go and have fun "playing". IME, people who can't let go, tend to be stuffy, dull , pretentious, and unwilling to compromise.

Of course, I can not see the joy in sitting on a beach doing nothing for two weeks drinking. I'd get bored out of my mind.