Is Disney at fault for disappointment?

[MakiraMarlena]

Does anybody know if planning a vacation at Universal is any easier or more difficult? I know it's a smaller place, but they are busy too.

Universal is smaller and less busy than WDW. Their smaller footprint is fully walkable, or you can use the water taxi (with the exception of Cabana Bay which has a short bus ride to the parking garages by City Walk). With only 3 deluxe hotels and a value hotel, they are able to offer the deluxe hotel perk of free express pass. That will get you onto any ride in the express line (kind of like fastpass but without the timing). They also offer a daily express pass for sale to anyone.

The most popular attractions (Harry Potter) don't take express pass, but they offer early entry for their resort guests. If you're not a resort guest, arriving as early as possible will get you the best shot at cutting down on time in line for these attractions. This is especially important for the two major Harry Potter attractions, Forbidden Journey and Escape from Gringotts, although both have a single riders line.

There aren't as many restaurants on offer, and there is a lot more typical fast food at QS restaurants (burgers, fries, pizza) than you will find at WDW. City Walk has many restaurants and since it is easily walkable from both parks, it is not a hardship to leave the park to go there.

 

[maxiesmom]

I don't think anyone expects a meal at 6 pm or to walk on in every ride. 90% of their CS is junk and yeah so are other theme parks but people don't stay a week in any other theme park. The junk food was one of our biggest disappointments. The rides I think they need to build more stuff at a faster pace and build actual rides not "experiences" so not everyone wants to ride the same ride all day long.

That is another thing research would fix--there are many different good options for counter service, but you need to know where to look. The chicken at Cosmic Ray's is very good, as is the mongolian beef at Sunshine Seasons.

 

[KristinU]

I think Disney is at fault because the FP+ system is insane. The idea that you need/should book your ride 30-60 days in advance is insane. Most people don't realize that this truly needs to be done because it doesn't need to be done anywhere else. I spend the day at Hershey Park and there's nothing I need to know or do beforehand besides common sense. Obviously try to come when the park opens and do the big rides in the morning or evening. That's common sense. But to think you need to go online and pre-book 3 rides per day at specific times when most people don't even know which park they're going to be in that day is pretty crazy.

That may be true of Hersheypark, but the experiences at Hershey's Chocolate World do sell out during busy times and you have to plan in advance if you want to make your own chocolate bar or do a tasting. Likewise with Corning Museum of Glass...if you want to make something in their studio it is a good idea to book in advance, especially if it is a special seasonal item, otherwise you could be out of luck.

I don't think booking for experiences in advance is something super unusual. Not that I like it, I prefer some spontaneity and I miss the days at Disney when we literally had a button on it with a spinner that we bought at a WDW gift shop and would use it to choose which park we were going to that day.

 

[cruisingtwins]

That is another thing research would fix--there are many different good options for counter service, but you need to know where to look. The chicken at Cosmic Ray's is very good, as is the mongolian beef at Sunshine Seasons.

Yes what I'm saying is that people who don't want to research should be able to eat decent food too. Some peple no matter how you paint don't want to plan every second of their trip 6 months in advance.

I guess I'm saying Disney needs to improve the quality of their product both foods and rides. Especially the rides. Then the disappointment would not be so bad.

 

[Baklava]

Yes what I'm saying is that people who don't want to research should be able to eat decent food too. Some peple no matter how you paint don't want to plan every second of their trip 6 months in advance.

I guess I'm saying Disney needs to improve the quality of their product both foods and rides. Especially the rides. Then the disappointment would not be so bad.

I don't think you have to come even remotely close to planning every second in order to be responsible for your own lousy time if you do no planning for *any* trip. People who don't research *can* eat decent food. They are free to wander the park spontaneously looking for food that suits them if the thought of clicking a couple links on the web is just too taxing. Not my idea of a good time, but to each his own. What they can't do is magically have exactly the meal they want at the moment they want in the spot they happen to be without any effort on their part.

 

[cruisingtwins]

I don't think you have to come even remotely close to planning every second in order to be responsible for your own lousy time if you do no planning for *any* trip. People who don't research *can* eat decent food. They are free to wander the park spontaneously looking for food that suits them if the thought of clicking a couple links on the web is just too taxing. Not my idea of a good time, but to each his own. What they can't do is magically have exactly the meal they want at the moment they want in the spot they happen to be without any effort on their part.

But how do you know something sucks before you try it? Ah research again..... And yes since you are on the disney bubble you are forced to plan every second of your day.

 

[Angel Ariel]

And what if you're making a vacation reservation at 4 months out? Or lets say 6 weeks out? I don't know about anybody else, but I could easily plan a great vacation to say NYC a month out from travel.

I would concur with this, and did so earlier this year. Including front row seats to an amazing Broadway show, and a beautiful hotel on Times Square about a block from the theatre for less than $200/night. All done less than 1 month in advance. No dining reservations at all necessary yet still had 2 great sit down meals at upscale restaurants. Wouldn't have needed tickets to the show ahead of time either..only got them because we wanted front row (amazing experience, btw ). Other seats in the theatre were available day of.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

How on earth did you find a hotel on Times Square for less than $200 a night, the taxes alone are usually that much.

Unless you are traveling in January.

 

[DisDadDVC]

And what if you're making a vacation reservation at 4 months out? Or lets say 6 weeks out? I don't know about anybody else, but I could easily plan a great vacation to say NYC a month out from travel.

I don't think there is any question that a WDW trip needs to be planned more in advance than others. It's a question of "Does Disney accurately relay that info?".

 

[Baklava]

But how do you know something sucks before you try it? Ah research again..... And yes since you are on the disney bubble you are forced to plan every second of your day.

You're really not. You may choose to plan and get exactly what you want or not plan and maybe not get everything. (Of course, there's always not planning and having a sulk about how terrible everything is, but that makes one look awfully silly. )

 

[2vets]

"Fault" and "blame" are so emphasized in our society. The information is out there, and Disney is unlikely to emphasize the crowds and insanity that take place at times of year (like Xmas week, our current example). They are a business, and scaring the heck out of people is a bad way to attract customers. Some people - many people, I'd argue - research large purchases like this, while others are more fly-by-the-seat-of-their-pants (a characteristic I can appreciate). The latter is obviously not a good way to maximize your dining/attraction experience at WDW. Every time I hear about this sort of thing happening, I just shrug and say, "Yeah, a little research is a really good idea if you want to go back - you can get a lot done, but you have to spend a little time planning it out. It isn't for everyone." No need to feel frustrated. Let's face it - your lucky ADR probably happened because someone else flew by the seat of their pants.

Now, if I had made a package purchase through a TA, they hadn't specifically encouraged me to consider planning a few things in advance, and I'd arrived to discover wall-to-wall, no-TS-available, 120-min-wait-everywhere chaos? Then, I'd be pissed. And I might use the B word ("blame", that is).

 

[Hibiscus]

How on earth did you find a hotel on Times Square for less than $200 a night, the taxes alone are usually that much.

Unless you are traveling in January.

Maybe it was the Carter. (No, can't be; she survived to type that post.)

 

[Angel Ariel]

They are not really desirable things to a newbie.

I very much disagree with the idea that experiences liek CRT, BOG, BBB, etc are not desirable things to a newbie.

Every "newbie" I have helped plan, has *approached* me about help with them telling me, *prior to me saying anything at all*, that they wanted a princess character meal, or a mickey character meal, or to eat at Be Our Guest (which has been heavily promoted on commercials), or to have a princess makeover in the castle. They may not know the names of the restaurants, or the Bibbidy Bobbity Boutique, but they know the experiences exist and that they want to experience them.

 

[cruisingtwins]

You're really not. You may choose to plan and get exactly what you want or not plan and maybe not get everything. (Of course, there's always not planning and having a sulk about how terrible everything is, but that makes one look awfully silly. )

It's not about getting everything is about getting crap.

 

[maxiesmom]

But how do you know something sucks before you try it? Ah research again..... And yes since you are on the disney bubble you are forced to plan every second of your day.

I don't agree with you that 90% of the quick service food sucks. So I'm quite happy not planning where my next counter service meal is coming from. If someone is going to a theme park and wants a meal that is not burgers or chicken strips (which I believe most people know is average quick service food) then I would do some research to see where something else was offered.

Every quick service place can't offer an endless variety of food. Or else there is always the option of packing in your own food. An option Disney allows that most other places do not.

 

[Angel Ariel]

Heck, there is a really casual, yet extremely popular, place up here that has an all you can eat fish fry on Friday nights in the summer. They don't take reservations. We got a table.....after a 2 hour wait.

Are you somehow implying that I'm being misleading?

In case you think that, I'm not. Not only do we not have to make reservations for any restaurant we have gone to since DD was born, but we haven't waited for anything more than 15 minutes for a table (and 15 mins is unusual). And we don't eat at crazy early or late times either. Simply put, there's enough restaurants to deal with the demand, so reservations and waiting aren't issues.

 

[cruisingtwins]

I don't agree with you that 90% of the quick service food sucks. So I'm quite happy not planning where my next counter service meal is coming from. If someone is going to a theme park and wants a meal that is not burgers or chicken strips (which I believe most people know is average quick service food) then I would do some research to see where something else was offered.

Every quick service place can't offer an endless variety of food. Or else there is always the option of packing in your own food. An option Disney allows that most other places do not.

The problem is not the burgers and the chicken strip the problem is that those things are really poor quality.

 

[Murron]

My friend wants to take her daughter and two grandchildren (one disabled) for a quick "pop down to Disney" next week. Their first trip. No clue. I just said please please please Nooooooo! I won't repeat what others have said here. Disney gives you the info you need. Is it ridiculous planning? Yes. It is.

 

[Angel Ariel]

How on earth did you find a hotel on Times Square for less than $200 a night, the taxes alone are usually that much.

Unless you are traveling in January.

It was the end of February, Saturday-Sunday. A week later was a little more expensive, but not much..and still nothing near what Disney Deluxes were.

Now, Spring Break? Yeah, prices were higher. But availability was still there even 1 month prior (I wanted to go to a show again over spring break time, so I was looking. Just decided against it because of other things going on in family life at the time, not because of availability or lack thereof).

 

[SA mom]

On the one hand, that new commercial that makes it sound like you just show up at the front desk and tell them you want to eat with a princess and all that other stuff...totally misleading. I don't think you can even get that lucky on Club Level. That commercial really makes it sound like everything is there for your taking.

On the other hand, I do get frustrated when people I know (and know me well) roll their eyes at my planning and then complain that they weren't able to do all the things my family does on a trip. We had some friends go with other friends of theirs arriving on Christmas Day. They made no plans, allowing the Disney vets to lead them around. Well, the Disney vets were just pleased to walk around, drinking in all the Christmas spirit. They were at MK for 4 hours before they actually made it into an attraction. The Disney vets were waiting for them to say what they wanted to do.

They are the same people that also complained about their recent cruise. The food was no good. They only ate at the buffet. They never once stepped into the Main Dinning Room. What?!?

I need new friends!