Has Disney stopped caring about the guest experience?

[DCLMan]

I am in Orlando at the moment, visiting both WDW and Universal. I am disappointed with my cast member experiences at WDW. Most of my interactions with CM's have left me with the impression of staff who couldn't care less. Added to the construction at DTD and MK I feel that Disney are taking me and my money for granted.

The staff members at Universal on the other hand have been wonderful. They have been enthusiastic and helpful. The new areas, Diagon Alley and the Transformers ride are superb.

On this basis next time I come to Orlando I will not be visiting WDW.

 

[bheckel]

Three CMs were standing around near the register and one was telling the other two all about her recent foot injury, what meds the doctor gave her, etc. It would have been a perfectly reasonable conversation in the break room offstage but not onstage in front of guests. Example 2: I was in line at a CS restaurant. My cashier was fully engaged in conversation with the CM in the next line over about something not job related. They continued this conversation the whole time that both were waiting on guests and taking their orders.

I had a similar experience last week at MK, it was the first time I'd heard CMs chatter among themselves as if bored. Felt a bit more like being a supermarket than a kingdom.

The rest of the week was fun and I wasn't disappointed with anything significant. But you could definitely tell which CMs were truly glad we were there and those that were faking it.

 

[SeanWM48]

i wouldn't say they've STOPPED but i'm sure guest experience is a little lower on the priority list right now especially with all the big jobs going on. it will stay that way until the bottom line gets effected though. most people upset with the parks/parking/CMs are going back next year anyway

 

[DisneyDoc5]

From what I have read and understand, Walt Disney's passion for creating a family environment and theme parks did not equate in his mind to the 'bottom line' of the company. Much of his genius and creativity was done with his own disregard about the financial bottom line of the studios and WED (we know Roy had to keep him in check!) He took risks, and it paid off. I see the current approach in the company missing this passion, and with a strong focus on bottom line, and we the guest are feeling it, feeling that squeeze instead of feeling the magic. I think that is what saddens some of us fans, we see the change and we don't like it even though we still love Disney.

 

[lovin'fl]

We just returned on Wednesday from 12 days at Disney. In many ways, the trip was as wonderful as always. But to this veteran's eyes, there were definitely issues.

1. CM training: This has been mentioned on the podcast numerous times. CMs don't receive the extensive training they used to get and it shows. While we had many wonderful CM encounters on this trip, there were also some not so good ones that really shouldn't ever happen. Example 1: I was in the shop next to Gaston's Tavern in new Fantasyland. Three CMs were standing around near the register and one was telling the other two all about her recent foot injury, what meds the doctor gave her, etc. It would have been a perfectly reasonable conversation in the break room offstage but not onstage in front of guests. Example 2: I was in line at a CS restaurant. My cashier was fully engaged in conversation with the CM in the next line over about something not job related. They continued this conversation the whole time that both were waiting on guests and taking their orders.

2. Maintenance: Pete posted the photo of the lights out on the Great Movie Ride sign this weekend. There are many similar examples of lights out, peeling paint, chipped stuff, broken seats, etc. Another thing I took note of this trip is that when it rained, nobody came out with squeegees to clear the water off the paths like they used to. Everybody was just sloshing through big puddles.

I could go on and on but my sense is that to some extent Disney has lowered their standards when it comes to the guest experience. Things aren't as clean. Cast members aren't as friendly. The new FP system is very guest-unfriendly. There seem to be more maintenance issues and breakdowns. And overall they just don't seem as concerned about "maintaining the magic".

We also just got back and to add to what you've already mentioned...there were 2 other things that bothered me...things very un-Disney.

1- we saw construction...flat out, not hidden...in every park, the 4 resorts we stayed/ate at and at Downtown Disney. In 11 years of doing Disney trips (many trips), i don't remember seeing so much construction.

2- what I call cattle call. There were several times we were shoved in compact areas and screeched at to move forward by the CMs...ie: in the SSR bus line at MK, when it rained while we were waiting for our ADR at BOG and they let us go inside and stand in the roped area, in line for our ADR at Akershus...). I wish they would stop trying to cram as many bodies as they can on their property...just not so magical.

And another thing I have been noticing on the past couple trips is that rides break down all the time. I don't think I have ridden Spaceship Earth without it stopping for the past several trips. And, for goodness sake, when will they fix the film for Soarin'...with all the black spots?

 

[Jennygt]

I wish that I could just have a half hour with Bib Iger, not to complain , but to describe what I love about wdw, and hope that somehow things could be turned around.

 

[disneysteve]

Just to add a positive note to this conversation, although I was initially upset prior to our trip when I learned that the monorail wouldn't be running in the morning, Disney did a GREAT job making up for it. Twice, we went to MK first thing in the morning. At the TTC, we chose to ride the bus instead of the ferry. Both times, the bus was ready and waiting when we got there and pulled out within a minute of us boarding it. Obviously, it isn't the same experience as the monorail and I feel bad for first-timers, but for us, it was perfect. In fact, I wish they would run those buses all the time, even if the monorail was running.

 

[DisneyDoc5]

I wish that I could just have a half hour with Bib Iger, not to complain , but to describe what I love about wdw, and hope that somehow things could be turned around.

 

[SkaGoat]

We also just got back and to add to what you've already mentioned...there were 2 other things that bothered me...things very un-Disney.

1- we saw construction...flat out, not hidden...in every park, the 4 resorts we stayed/ate at and at Downtown Disney. In 11 years of doing Disney trips (many trips), i don't remember seeing so much construction.

2- what I call cattle call. There were several times we were shoved in compact areas and screeched at to move forward by the CMs...ie: in the SSR bus line at MK, when it rained while we were waiting for our ADR at BOG and they let us go inside and stand in the roped area, in line for our ADR at Akershus...). I wish they would stop trying to cram as many bodies as they can on their property...just not so magical.

And another thing I have been noticing on the past couple trips is that rides break down all the time. I don't think I have ridden Spaceship Earth without it stopping for the past several trips. And, for goodness sake, when will they fix the film for Soarin'...with all the black spots?

It's funny, both those times you describe being crammed into lines is done for guest experience.... they don't want other guests to come up and complain they had to wait out in the rain because the people under cover were taking up too much space.

A lot of the time that Spaceship Earth stops is because they are loading people in wheelchairs, or helping to load people who can't load quickly so they stop the ride.

 

[UpstateMick]

From what I have read and understand, Walt Disney's passion for creating a family environment and theme parks did not equate in his mind to the 'bottom line' of the company. Much of his genius and creativity was done with his own disregard about the financial bottom line of the studios and WED (we know Roy had to keep him in check!) He took risks, and it paid off. I see the current approach in the company missing this passion, and with a strong focus on bottom line, and we the guest are feeling it, feeling that squeeze instead of feeling the magic. I think that is what saddens some of us fans, we see the change and we don't like it even though we still love Disney.

Completely agree...well stated!

 

[Jennygt]

From what I have read and understand, Walt Disney's passion for creating a family environment and theme parks did not equate in his mind to the 'bottom line' of the company. Much of his genius and creativity was done with his own disregard about the financial bottom line of the studios and WED (we know Roy had to keep him in check!) He took risks, and it paid off. I see the current approach in the company missing this passion, and with a strong focus on bottom line, and we the guest are feeling it, feeling that squeeze instead of feeling the magic. I think that is what saddens some of us fans, we see the change and we don't like it even though we still love Disney.

So true. I will not say that we will stop going, but the frequency is less. I used to want to go every year, we have not been for almost 3 years and to be honest if my children were not very interested in going next year I would not be planning this trip. I have to say that we are planning to do alot of new things, new resort. so I think that will be fun for us! Trying not to be debbie downer, but I always hope that "someone" browsing these boards will read something that clicks and makes a difference.

 

[disneysteve]

I will not say that we will stop going, but the frequency is less.

I'm honestly not sure where I stand on this. We just got back and there were definitely issues that had me questioning the future, but it was also mid-August, 95 degrees, 100% humidty, and fairly crowded. It was also our first time using FP+ and that had a huge negative effect on the enjoyment of our trip. I'm hoping they tweak that system considerably to make it more guest-friendly because right now it is anything but.

Our daughter is heading off to college this year (Sunday in fact) and my wife and I are looking forward to being able to start going just the two of us which will totally change the feel of our visits and I think will make them much more enjoyable for us. It also frees us up to go at other times of year besides summer. We may also go back with DD when she is on winter break in January which I suspect would be a lot better than August.

So right now, we are not planning on going less. In fact, we are actually hoping to go more, but if the experience declines and FP+ doesn't get improved, that could certainly change.

 

[DisneyDoc5]

Completely agree...well stated!

Thanks! It took some soul searching for me to understand why all of the changes at Disney are bothering me, and I came to realize that I am a Walt Disney (the man) fan first, I am amazed by this man that had the vision to create a place where we can find happiness as adults, with our family and friends, and even alone! I know he believed in change and wanted the parks to be fluid and fresh, I get that and agree. However, when the change is drastic and maybe ahead of it's time (MDE) and takes too much away from the enjoyment of the experience (constant construction), I think he wouldn't like it, but current leadership seems to be missing this point in my opinion.

Hey, I get it, it's a business, share holders, etc., but I believe guest experience used to be a BIG focus in the parks and that was what built the current fan base, take that away, and it could be just another theme park with memories of the way it used to be. I hope this doesn't happen because I care so much about Walt Disney World...

I really enjoyed a recent interview Lou Mongello did with Tony Baxter (podcast), at the end of the interview Tony commented on MDE. He really summed up how I feel about it all and I sure hope current management tunes into his wise words on too much technology potentially taking the magic out of the parks. He guarded his words, but his opinion was crystal clear to me. It's a good listen if you have time.

 

[DisneyDoc5]

I'm honestly not sure where I stand on this. We just got back and there were definitely issues that had me questioning the future, but it was also mid-August, 95 degrees, 100% humidty, and fairly crowded. It was also our first time using FP+ and that had a huge negative effect on the enjoyment of our trip. I'm hoping they tweak that system considerably to make it more guest-friendly because right now it is anything but.

Our daughter is heading off to college this year (Sunday in fact) and my wife and I are looking forward to being able to start going just the two of us which will totally change the feel of our visits and I think will make them much more enjoyable for us. It also frees us up to go at other times of year besides summer. We may also go back with DD when she is on winter break in January which I suspect would be a lot better than August.

So right now, we are not planning on going less. In fact, we are actually hoping to go more, but if the experience declines and FP+ doesn't get improved, that could certainly change.

It will be interesting to see how your experience changes as you go at different times of year with just the two of you. I wish you well on this transitional time of your life! I am not ready for college for my kiddos, but I do look forward to the years with my husband that will most definitely include many WDW trips at off times!

 

[kbelle8995]

I had a bad experience with FP+ myself but I have to say the CM handled it well.

I also was witness to fact that disney is packing them in. As when I left at 1:00 I watched a ferry being unloaded and unloaded and unloaded.

 

[disneysteve]

too much technology potentially taking the magic out of the parks.

I think this is the problem in a nutshell. Disney has always embraced technology to enhance the guest experience with new rides, shows, and attractions. But the technology was behind the scenes, not in the guests' hands.

Before, I could go to WDW and not look at my cellphone for hours. Now with MDE and WiFi everywhere, you have thousands of people wandering around walking into people because they are staring at their phones all day. Everywhere you turn, there are kiosks and CMs armed with iPads helping guests schedule where they are going to be every minute of the day. It isn't fun anymore. It is harder to just go in and experience the parks like we could pre-MDE.

I know that MDE and FP+ are still works in progress so hopefully it gets better over time and becomes less structured and less commando.

I also think park of the problem enjoying the parks is actually the other guests, which isn't Disney's fault. The spread of cellphones and iPads is a huge problem, for example. We went to one dark attraction recently and there were so many people around me using their iPhones and tablets to take pictures and video with the screens glowing in my face that it totally sucked out any enjoyment of the show for me. If I could have gotten up and walked out, I would have. It was that bad.

 

[lovin'fl]

We also just got back and to add to what you've already mentioned...there were 2 other things that bothered me...things very un-Disney.

1- we saw construction...flat out, not hidden...in every park, the 4 resorts we stayed/ate at and at Downtown Disney. In 11 years of doing Disney trips (many trips), i don't remember seeing so much construction.

2- what I call cattle call. There were several times we were shoved in compact areas and screeched at to move forward by the CMs...ie: in the SSR bus line at MK, when it rained while we were waiting for our ADR at BOG and they let us go inside and stand in the roped area, in line for our ADR at Akershus...). I wish they would stop trying to cram as many bodies as they can on their property...just not so magical.

And another thing I have been noticing on the past couple trips is that rides break down all the time. I don't think I have ridden Spaceship Earth without it stopping for the past several trips. And, for goodness sake, when will they fix the film for Soarin'...with all the black spots?

It's funny, both those times you describe being crammed into lines is done for guest experience.... they don't want other guests to come up and complain they had to wait out in the rain because the people under cover were taking up too much space.

A lot of the time that Spaceship Earth stops is because they are loading people in wheelchairs, or helping to load people who can't load quickly so they stop the ride.

The SSR bus line night...it was not raining and I am not sure why the CM kept screeching at us to move forward other than the line was growing out past the metal line guide thingy and he wanted everyone in that thingy...was too many people to cram in there though. But, boy, was he determined.

The BOG thing...it was raining outside and they allowed us to come inside but told us to stand between the ropes set up off to the side (with the CS kiosk machines in there) and they told us to squish forward too. The lobby area was pretty empty, so why squish us in the roped off area?

Also at Akershus, we checked in and were told to stand in ropes and squish forward...not raining there either.

And I wasn't aware of the Spaceship Earth thing...that makes sense. Good to know.

Another thing broken down on last trip...the People Mover escalator. That ride was down for refurbishment and opened up before our trip. I was glad as I really like to ride that. We went to get on the they had it closed and the escalator was all torn up with about 5 guys working on it (for everyone to see). We were told it would be down for about 3 hours. We did make it back and rode it. Also, at the end of the trip...after dinner at Akershus, we got in Maelstrom line (stand-by...wait said 20 minutes). We waited and waited and didn't move and then I noticed we could see a boat in the open window and they weren't moving...just stuck. We waited about 15 minutes and then gave up and left (after seeing drunk 20-something step out of line to puke in bushes).

Our Xmas trip, we used our FP for Test Track before our dinner ADR. Got in line to wait and wait and wait and then we were finally told the ride was shut down and we were given paper FP but we never made it back to use them.

In 2003, when we started going to WDW (and the few years after), WDW was so different and more magical...JMO. I still love to go, we like that our kids (teens now) can go off and keep busy and happy...we (DH and I) discovered F&W and we enjoy that. But it's not the same magical place it was just 10 years ago.

 

[*NikkiBell*]

I also think park of the problem enjoying the parks is actually the other guests, which isn't Disney's fault.

I think you hit the nail on the head here, Steve.

For the past few years, many of the guests who visit WDW have an extreme sense of "entitlement" which leads to their barking at CMs, pushing and shoving other guests, and displaying and overall lack of human decency and manners. I witnessed it at the extreme during my trip last week and was disgusted by what I saw. Unfortunately, there's no way for Disney to fix this aspect of the issue.

 

[lovin'fl]

Oh and FP+...I had 3 of our PAPs linked on MDE and the 4th person had hoppers that I linked. I booked our FP+ and we used them for 2 days, no issues. The 3rd day we went to AK and used 2/3 of our FP and left the park...later we went to MK for our dinner ADR and on the way in the park I stopped at the indoor FP+ center when you enter MK. I wanted to try for a 4th FP. I scanned my MB and it only showed the 3 of us with PAPs and not the 4th person with a hopper. A CM came over and told me I needed to link her hopper...I told her I did that...she still insisted I needed to go to CS and have them link her. She also told me I could not get a 4th FP because we did not actually ride all 3 of our FP at AK. I understood that we could make 4th once the other 3 FP were used or the time slot had passed (and that was the case for us). I got nowhere at the center and with the CM...she just told me to go to CS. We had a dinner ADR to get to so I passed on getting a 4th FP. Anyone able to get them?

 

[disneysteve]

I passed on getting a 4th FP. Anyone able to get them?

I got a 4th FP once on our trip without a problem (other than the inherent hassles of the entire system but it worked the way it is supposed to).