Highs and Lows

[queendisney]

Landed back at Gatwick on Thursday morning..

to be honest I wasn't going to do a 'Highs and Lows' because really its more lows then highs...anyway here goes.

Highs...Weather was generally good, which it normally is during November.
Got upgraded to a Disney Princess room at POR. This was nice of them but wouldn't stay in one again as missed the ceiling fan from the standard rooms. But it was nice to experience one, even though the OH wasn't so impressed with 8 Disney princess' watching over us every night Not to mention all the Fireworks on the headboard that went off when you pushed a button

Sanaa Restaurant at Kidani Villiage AKL was excellent and would definitely eat there again.

Meeting Claude Cardwell. He is 90 years old and still drives the boat from POR to DTD. He was a racing driver in his time and also a WW2 Vet. Very inspirational.

The new Harry Potter part of Universal Studio's...just amazing. Loved the Hogwarts Express, so cleaver.

Lows....
thought that in general the cast members were not so helpful or just didn't care. They didn't seem so well trained in matters and where as they would have said in the past 'I will find out for you' they just said 'I don't know'..
Parks seem to be dirtier then I have ever seen them.
People smoking everywhere.
Very crowded parks. I have never seen anything like it in November before.
So much construction going on everywhere. Hate to think what HS is going to be like soon when they start a major re-theme.
Food was SO expensive on site with the portions being smaller. Although this wasn't an issue as such as we had free dining. But basically it made us think that we would not stay on resort in the future without it.

We basically just did not enjoy it half as much as normal and have cancelled our reservation for next November. Considering going for Feb 2016 but may leave it for a few years before going back when hopefully most of the construction will be completed.

 

[disneyholic family]

sorry you didn't have such a magical visit this time!!

DD also said the crowds were insane her first week there (they arrived on nov 10)....they're still there and i had the impression the crowds were a bit better this week (though the weather was a whole lot worse )

you may have seen her as she's also at POR....she's tall, thin with long blond hair and her husband is a few inches shorter than she is (with very short black hair)

 

[mickeyforpresident]

I'm also sorry about the lows.... Are more people posting more lows at the moment?! The whole cast member thing worries me... It what they used to pride themselves on....

 

[disneyholic family]

I'm also sorry about the lows.... Are more people posting more lows at the moment?! The whole cast member thing worries me... It what they used to pride themselves on....

my daughter commented on the crowds, but she's having a super magical time...so i guess it's a 'your mileage may vary' sort of thing..
she's had some really magical CM encounters....
only one really really bad experience and that was with their server at via napoli...

 

[tinkerpea]

So sorry to hear about your lows,
i think its harder for people who have been going to disney for so long to except the sub-par standards that are becoming more common!

I love disney and have been visiting since i was 3 for at least 3wks pretty much every yr! Disney is not what it used to be,And has lost some of its magic and some of what makes Disney truly a special vacation.
I find myself having to make more and more magic for my family instead of it being there for me,

Im also struggling with this whole pre book and plan EVERYTHING months in advance! yep i love to plan,but not this much.....I think its crazy to have to think about what park ill be in where ill eat and even what rides i will want to do 180 days in advance!
then i have to hope that everything runs with perfect smoothness else i wont be able to have a fp for the rides i want in the park i choose 180 days ago because i had to pick a restaurent just so i could get a decent meal...
Then you have FP+ which made every ride an extreme wait,becuase now i even have to que 20mins for country bears which i used to use as my napping ground!

After our trip in May hubby and i have discussed doing a disney cruise and universal for 7nights with seaworld and bush gardens and just using up our spare 2day tickets that we have each for our disney fix,
We will then go back when they have completed avatar land,and hopefully HS.

 

[chmurf]

I love disney and have been visiting since i was 3 for at least 3wks pretty much every yr! Disney is not what it used to be,And has lost some of its magic and some of what makes Disney truly a special vacation.

I think this sums up pretty much what many "regulars" feel.

Is Disney really going downhill, or are we becoming spoiled guests with always higher expectations ?

when we return to a restaurant, we expect it to be at least as good as in our last experience.
But we also know that it's not going to happen EACH and every time.
there will be lows.

and the more we go, the more we see the lows.
Isn't that because we expect too much ?

At least that's how I feel
In all honesty, with every trip, I find new lows, new reasons to rant, new reasons to complain. But in all honesty, looking back on those lows, I must admit that, on our very first trip, I probably wouldn't even have noticed, and even if I had, I probably wouldn't even have minded, let alone be distracted or upset by the situation.

That's the reason why, when we came back from the World in 2013, where we had quite a few upsetting lows, we decided to give 2014 a miss and only go back in 2015.

I know (and I only speak for myself and from my own experience) that on a number of occasions, I have made a mountain out of a molehill, and I have let the situation get to me.
I'm not saying that, on such occasion, I was not entitled to a perfect service, or that I was not right to demand a better service. But I know that if I had brushed that away with the back of my hand, it probably wouldn't have registered as a "low" at the end of the trip

so, yes, your mileage may vary. But I also think that going too often WILL change the way we see and experience things.
Once again, I'm not saying that the feelings we feel are not genuine and legit, but we're probably in a mindset that makes us prone to being disappointed or upset.

The magic is not in WDW.
WDW is a place where the magic that's in us can come out and do its thing.

WDW does not need to recharge its magic, WE do.


(and yes, service and experience may not be what it used to be. I agree on this point, but it's still miles above most of the competition)

 

[peajay18]

I think we will take a break after our April 2015 trip until the majority of the construction is complete at Disney Springs, the Hub at MK, Animal Kingdom's Avatar Land and Rivers of Light, the new Soarin' theatre at Epcot, the Poly and the half of the Studios that's about to be completely revamped...

 

[disneyholic family]

I think this sums up pretty much what many "regulars" feel.

Is Disney really going downhill, or are we becoming spoiled guests with always higher expectations ?

when we return to a restaurant, we expect it to be at least as good as in our last experience.
But we also know that it's not going to happen EACH and every time.
there will be lows.

and the more we go, the more we see the lows.
Isn't that because we expect too much ?

At least that's how I feel
In all honesty, with every trip, I find new lows, new reasons to rant, new reasons to complain. But in all honesty, looking back on those lows, I must admit that, on our very first trip, I probably wouldn't even have noticed, and even if I had, I probably wouldn't even have minded, let alone be distracted or upset by the situation.

That's the reason why, when we came back from the World in 2013, where we had quite a few upsetting lows, we decided to give 2014 a miss and only go back in 2015.

I know (and I only speak for myself and from my own experience) that on a number of occasions, I have made a mountain out of a molehill, and I have let the situation get to me.
I'm not saying that, on such occasion, I was not entitled to a perfect service, or that I was not right to demand a better service. But I know that if I had brushed that away with the back of my hand, it probably wouldn't have registered as a "low" at the end of the trip

so, yes, your mileage may vary. But I also think that going too often WILL change the way we see and experience things.
Once again, I'm not saying that the feelings we feel are not genuine and legit, but we're probably in a mindset that makes us prone to being disappointed or upset.

The magic is not in WDW.
WDW is a place where the magic that's in us can come out and do its thing.

WDW does not need to recharge its magic, WE do.


(and yes, service and experience may not be what it used to be. I agree on this point, but it's still miles above most of the competition)

i agree...

 

[pampat]

I totally agree with Chmurf. I thought it was very well expressed. We went with completely low expectations this year after hearing so many unhappy guests expressing discontent, but to be honest, we found things clean and tidy; lots of care being taken over the grounds and surroundings and CMs pleasant, helpful and efficient.

Pam

 

[tinkerpea]

I think this sums up pretty much what many "regulars" feel.

Is Disney really going downhill, or are we becoming spoiled guests with always higher expectations ?

when we return to a restaurant, we expect it to be at least as good as in our last experience.
But we also know that it's not going to happen EACH and every time.
there will be lows.

and the more we go, the more we see the lows.
Isn't that because we expect too much ?

At least that's how I feel
In all honesty, with every trip, I find new lows, new reasons to rant, new reasons to complain. But in all honesty, looking back on those lows, I must admit that, on our very first trip, I probably wouldn't even have noticed, and even if I had, I probably wouldn't even have minded, let alone be distracted or upset by the situation.

That's the reason why, when we came back from the World in 2013, where we had quite a few upsetting lows, we decided to give 2014 a miss and only go back in 2015.

I know (and I only speak for myself and from my own experience) that on a number of occasions, I have made a mountain out of a molehill, and I have let the situation get to me.
I'm not saying that, on such occasion, I was not entitled to a perfect service, or that I was not right to demand a better service. But I know that if I had brushed that away with the back of my hand, it probably wouldn't have registered as a "low" at the end of the trip

so, yes, your mileage may vary. But I also think that going too often WILL change the way we see and experience things.
Once again, I'm not saying that the feelings we feel are not genuine and legit, but we're probably in a mindset that makes us prone to being disappointed or upset.

The magic is not in WDW.
WDW is a place where the magic that's in us can come out and do its thing.

WDW does not need to recharge its magic, WE do.


(and yes, service and experience may not be what it used to be. I agree on this point, but it's still miles above most of the competition)

I respectively disagree,
I dont go expecting things to be perfect, i dont even expect them to be the same as the last trip,i do way too much research and spend way too much time on these boards so i know better,

You didnt have to make magic happen even as far back as a few years ago,everything seemed magical people was happier to be working at Disney it was special to work at disney,now its just like working at Alton towers,
I see it from 2 sides when i go due to the fact that even though ive been going for many years my husband has not,he never stepped a foot through the door until a year before we was married!
even he has noticed the decline,everywhere you go there is construction,DTD looks a mess.
rides break down constantly bulbs are out,things like this NEVER happened if you go back 10 years.And even when Disney does build something it takes them forever....Universal builds a whole majorly themed land,Disney build a 1minute ride??? how lol
I appreciate rides need to be fixed and ride closures dont bother me,but when you take that construction and everything else, Disney has changed.

Restaurents have declined so much its a joke.
Most of the menus are now generic,the food is nothing like it used to be.
I actually find myself bored of eating the food after 2wks and looking for alternatives for the last wk of our trips.

As for booking every aspect of my trip,Im finding it a chore instead of a pleasure,My kids ask me why they have to decide so far in advance what they want to ride..I would love to wake up and ask the boys where they want to go that day,instead of dictating to them where were eating what park and even which way around we are going to tour the park because walking this way and seeing that show will not work with our FP times for that other ride!and now all the times are taken and sorry kids but we have to wait in that huge 30 minute line for country bears!

Now with that all being said it is still our preferred destination to holiday, as we dont like to lay on the beach.However where as i would spend a day or 2 at Universal while still staying on site at disney or skip Universal altogether,I will now book 5 nights at Universal where I dont have to pre-book everything and can go with the flow.
Disney does not advertise coming there and making your own magic! It says it will be the most magical vacation ever.

 

[crabbie1]

I think I must be the odd one out. I never go with high expectations and just go to enjoy the family time together. I think everything is so much better in the US than here and hv only had a couple of issues with CM's demanding tips. Although I have not always been 100% (one Occassion) with the resort we stayed in I did not let it dampen our holiday in anyway. Perhaps because we dont go every year or 2-3 times a year we make the most of things no matter what happens. Chmurf makes great points. I hv not been since MB and FP+ came in and in a way im looking forward to be able to ride TSM as never done it as FP was always gone and stand by line over an hour or two wait. The magic is within us and by being at disney should bring that out. Thats just how I see it and im sorry for the OP who did not enjoy her trip as much.Its a lot of money and I can understand them being upset.

 

[Elise79]

Restaurents have declined so much its a joke.
Most of the menus are now generic,the food is nothing like it used to be.
I actually find myself bored of eating the food after 2wks and looking for alternatives for the last wk of our trips.

Go without the DDP then - nothing to say you have to eat only onsite

We love our trips without the DDP and would take a room discount over the DDP every time. The are only a few restaurants we will bother with onsite. The rest of meals are offsite and so much better than most of the Disney restaurants

 

[chmurf]

You didnt have to make magic happen even as far back as a few years ago,everything seemed magical

I do respect your opinion, and here's some food for thought

when kids are young, they truly believe that characters are real. Then one day, they become aware that there is a Cast Member inside Pooh and Tigger.

They will still enjoy a picture and autograph, but at the back of their head, they now it's just make believe.

Did the magic change ? did the characters suddendly become less magical ?
They're still the same, but the guest is not. The guest has grown.
The guest will still enjoy it, but it will no longer be truly magical, or it will be another kind of magic.

Even if return guests do not "consciously" compare with previous visits, there is still something, a "background", and it's part of ourselves.

It's like in everyone's job. The more you do something, the more you develop automatic responses to events and situations. There are things you'll notice even with eyes closed and immediatly know if something is off, different, or out of place.

don't misunderstand me, I'm not talking about open-mindedness. I'm talking about routine and habits.

If you eat the very same dish, every meal of every day, at the same time, even if it's your all time favorite, there will be a time when you'll enjoy it less.
No matter how open minded you are, and how much you want to pretend it's the first time, we are only human beings ...
The same thing goes with married couples, as times goes by, the "magic" slowly fades away, and it's not always the significant other's fault. Sometimes, it's ours to relight the flame. And with Disney, it's often a matter of taking a break.

 

[Woodview]

Here is what you should do..

Go to Florida ....... But take a break from buying All theme park tickets

Rent a villa with pool & there are thousands out there.

Rent a car & Explore the Real Florida.

Then decide to buy say a 2 day ticket and visit some Park ...without

rushing from place to place.

You can always visit The Boardwalk or DTD for your Disney Fix for free

( Take trips on the boats & watch fireworks )

Go on a decent Airboat Ride , go to Hontoon Island river cruise etc.

Go to Forever Florida & do Zip wire rides .... look it up.


Go for a holiday not torture.

Many a time I have seen new UK holiday makers arriving & after the First swim they rarely swim again

Why .. Well there up at 6am to get to rope drop & tyey are in parks all day and by the time they arrive back to there villa they are exhausted &

next day starts All over again .

Yes we did the parks , 10 years ago but now only when we have family with us.

We DO go to Orlando two times a year and have done so for 14 years.

 

[tinkerpea]

Go without the DDP then - nothing to say you have to eat only onsite

We love our trips without the DDP and would take a room discount over the DDP every time. The are only a few restaurants we will bother with onsite. The rest of meals are offsite and so much better than most of the Disney restaurants

Oh We dont, we eat offsite many times in our 3wk trips,My dad is American and i grew up in and out of Orlando,so we have places we like to visit with family.I very much enjoy the off site places, however my kids enjoy the theming of the onsite places,
even though we have had the ddp the last 5 times,ive been many many times without it, infact until 2006 id never stayed on site we always had a villa or stayed at I-drive.

I mention the restaurants because the OP said the lows about Disney not anything outside of the world...

 

[tinkerpea]

I do respect your opinion, and here's some food for thought

when kids are young, they truly believe that characters are real. Then one day, they become aware that there is a Cast Member inside Pooh and Tigger.

They will still enjoy a picture and autograph, but at the back of their head, they now it's just make believe.

Did the magic change ? did the characters suddendly become less magical ?
They're still the same, but the guest is not. The guest has grown.
The guest will still enjoy it, but it will no longer be truly magical, or it will be another kind of magic.

Even if return guests do not "consciously" compare with previous visits, there is still something, a "background", and it's part of ourselves.

It's like in everyone's job. The more you do something, the more you develop automatic responses to events and situations. There are things you'll notice even with eyes closed and immediatly know if something is off, different, or out of place.

don't misunderstand me, I'm not talking about open-mindedness. I'm talking about routine and habits.

If you eat the very same dish, every meal of every day, at the same time, even if it's your all time favorite, there will be a time when you'll enjoy it less.
No matter how open minded you are, and how much you want to pretend it's the first time, we are only human beings ...
The same thing goes with married couples, as times goes by, the "magic" slowly fades away, and it's not always the significant other's fault. Sometimes, it's ours to relight the flame. And with Disney, it's often a matter of taking a break.

I understand where your coming from, I think we will haver to agree to disagree

 

[chmurf]

agreed