Is Disney World becoming a shell of its former self?

[jade1]

Currently trip 7 since Halloween. We usually visit cold months but had an opportunity to come now.

Hot but a great time as usual.

Disney Springs has been great, beautiful area down there now with unique shopping and wonderful new dining choices, AK at night is amazing esp in the summer, TOL shows are very cool, Night Safari a great change of pace but fewer animals IMO, EE at night is better, need ROL over J Book though even with 50 live performers but still a nice addition, DVC lounge is fabulous at EPCOT for summer breaks and recharging phones and having drinks and snacks and lounging stayed an hour, FEA is a big improvement to Maelstrom as is the new Soarin and SB was only 30 minutes (15 to the merge), the countries are nice breaks from the heat as well, Star Wars Fireworks show is really well done and the Star Wars Char show as cool, SB for TSM looked improved but we had FP+, RNR was a shorter wait as well actually did that twice in a row SB, TOT seems to have a lot of different drops have done that multiple times, Fantasmic is still hard to beat, MK day Parade is the best and the new stage show is great as is Celebrate the Magic and Wishes, did MK for 4th of July preview fireworks last night (amazing) which was packed and hot but much better with the hub now, DVC still crushes and FP+ as well. Lots of pool time/sleeping in with no worries.

And still getting better for the next few years.

 

[zebsterama]

It really doesn't. That's just your personal opinion.

Maybe it is just me? Maybe it is a generational thing?

Curious, how old were you, and when did you start frequenting Disney World?

 

[zebsterama]

Currently trip 7 since Halloween. We usually visit cold months but had an opportunity to come now.

Hot but a great time as usual.

Disney Springs has been great, beautiful area down there now with unique shopping and wonderful new dining choices, AK at night is amazing esp in the summer, TOL shows are very cool, Night Safari a great change of pace but fewer animals IMO, EE at night is better, need ROL over J Book though even with 50 live performers but still a nice addition, DVC lounge is fabulous at EPCOT for summer breaks and recharging phones and having drinks and snacks and lounging stayed an hour, FEA is a big improvement to Maelstrom as is the new Soarin and SB was only 30 minutes (15 to the merge), the countries are nice breaks from the heat as well, Star Wars Fireworks show is really well done and the Star Wars Char show as cool, SB for TSM looked improved but we had FP+, RNR was a shorter wait as well actually did that twice in a row SB, TOT seems to have a lot of different drops have done that multiple times, Fantasmic is still hard to beat, MK day Parade is the best and the new stage show is great as is Celebrate the Magic and Wishes, did MK for 4th of July preview fireworks last night (amazing) which was packed and hot but much better with the hub now, DVC still crushes and FP+ as well. Lots of pool time/sleeping in with no worries.

And still getting better for the next few years.

Have you checked out Diagon Alley at Universal?

If yes, how would you compare it to say Animal Kingdom, now that it's open at night? ... or other new Disney enhancements as of late?

 

[EveDallas]

Maybe it is just me? Maybe it is a generational thing?

Curious, how old were you, and when did you start frequenting Disney World?

I first visited in 1985, when I was ten. I've been numerous times since, until 2013. The magic was wearing off for me, so I decided to try something else. I went to Universal in 2015 (first time since 2001). Holy crap, I was blown away. Just returned from my third trip and can't wait to go again. I might go back to Disney when they finally finish their Star Wars stuff - until then, I'll immerse myself in Universal. BTW, I'm 41, so I don't really think it's generational. I think it's a matter of what you prefer. To me, Universal is what Disney used to be - new rides, new attractions, the ability to be spontaneous.

 

[ParkHoppers]

To me Universal is still an amusement park. The best amusement park there is but still an amusement park. If rides are your most important thing than Universal is tough to beat. But Disney World can be about the rides or not about the rides. Disney resorts can stand alone from all the attractions. At DW you can have a nice laid back vacation with the parks and attractions on the back burner. I don't feel that way about Universal. I also like the massive size of DW. Once you enter the front gates you feel disconnected from the real world which is nice. I just feel DW has a much broader appeal as a whole. Now if your between the ages of say 15 and 35 on average I can see Universal being the most desirable but I feel every age group can find something at DW. I,m 44 so at this point a more laid back Disney vacation is what appeals to me. It's just where each of us is personally coming from. Universal and DW and quite different places IMO and it is hard to compare them. Universal is the best amusement park we will probably ever see but it could never be DW for those who might think it is building up to be just that.

 

[asamklove]

Of course it's just my opinion - this is a message board, not a news outlet

 

[jade1]

Have you checked out Diagon Alley at Universal?

If yes, how would you compare it to say Animal Kingdom, now that it's open at night? ... or other new Disney enhancements as of late?

Not even on the same playing field. A great addition to our trips though, as are the beaches, golf courses and fishing lakes.

Do US/IOA every trip, it's great. Usually closes before dark though like AK did and no night shows at all-esp like Star Wars Fireworks, Fantasmic, Wishes, Illuminations, Jungle BOOK, soon ROL, Parades, TOL shows, Celebrate the Magic etc. That and we are always done there in one day by mid to late afternoon, then we hit WDW for FP+ night shows and DVC, its a great day.

 

[zebsterama]

Not even on the same playing field. A great addition to our trips though, as are the beaches, golf courses and fishing lakes.

Do US/IOA every trip, it's great. Usually closes before dark though like AK did and no night shows at all-esp like Star Wars Fireworks, Fantasmic, Wishes, Illuminations, Jungle BOOK, soon ROL, Parades, TOL shows, Celebrate the Magic etc. That and we are always done there in one day by mid to late afternoon, then we hit WDW for FP+ night shows and DVC, its a great day.

We haven't tried AK at night yet -- will be doing so. I thought that Diagon Alley in the evening was pretty spectacular when we visited a couple of years ago, when comparing the experience to DW. Will be interesting, since we're hitting both complexes on this next trip.

 

[jade1]

We haven't tried AK at night yet -- will be doing so. I thought that Diagon Alley in the evening was pretty spectacular when we visited a couple of years ago, when comparing the experience to DW. Will be interesting, since we're hitting both complexes on this next trip.

Heck yea they are both for all of us.

Seems odd folks don't do both, why it's either or makes little sense IMO.

That said when US/IOA close at 6 or 7pm for months at a time and WDW has parks open until 9, 10 even midnight makes the evening choice pretty easy at least for us.

Even last night US/IOA closed at 10 and MK 3am. 5 more hours is substantial.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

To me Universal is still an amusement park. The best amusement park there is but still an amusement park. If rides are your most important thing than Universal is tough to beat. But Disney World can be about the rides or not about the rides. Disney resorts can stand alone from all the attractions. At DW you can have a nice laid back vacation with the parks and attractions on the back burner. I don't feel that way about Universal. I also like the massive size of DW. Once you enter the front gates you feel disconnected from the real world which is nice. I just feel DW has a much broader appeal as a whole. Now if your between the ages of say 15 and 35 on average I can see Universal being the most desirable but I feel every age group can find something at DW. I,m 44 so at this point a more laid back Disney vacation is what appeals to me. It's just where each of us is personally coming from. Universal and DW and quite different places IMO and it is hard to compare them. Universal is the best amusement park we will probably ever see but it could never be DW for those who might think it is building up to be just that.

I think that all those things that you speak of that allow WDW to be NOT about the rides - the hotels, non theme park areas, restaurants, bars, -have been largely abandoned/ignored by the Iger regime. They are using the Disney built/Iger built stuff and exploiting it for mileage.

Springs is the first real attempt to add to that component of the property. We'll see how that works.

 

[lennyd]

We are conditioned to love Disney from when we are children .I went to universal for first time last yr and felt like I was cheating on Disney but it was awsome

 

[lockedoutlogic]

We are conditioned to love Disney from when we are children .I went to universal for first time last yr and felt like I was cheating on Disney but it was awsome

And that...other than the size...is the real advantage they hold

 

[circus4u]

To me Universal is still an amusement park. The best amusement park there is but still an amusement park. If rides are your most important thing than Universal is tough to beat. But Disney World can be about the rides or not about the rides. Disney resorts can stand alone from all the attractions. At DW you can have a nice laid back vacation with the parks and attractions on the back burner. I don't feel that way about Universal. I also like the massive size of DW. Once you enter the front gates you feel disconnected from the real world which is nice. I just feel DW has a much broader appeal as a whole. Now if your between the ages of say 15 and 35 on average I can see Universal being the most desirable but I feel every age group can find something at DW. I,m 44 so at this point a more laid back Disney vacation is what appeals to me. It's just where each of us is personally coming from. Universal and DW and quite different places IMO and it is hard to compare them. Universal is the best amusement park we will probably ever see but it could never be DW for those who might think it is building up to be just that.

I think you hit the nail on the head. As you and your family get older, interests change. I know they did for our family. Since the kids are grown and have their own families, I think that my wife and I enjoy Disney in an entirely different way. The laid back, leisurely approach is now our style. We took a three year hiatus from Disney trips during the extensive construction period when everything was walled off. The last time we were there, the MK hub was completely walled off on both sides and construction walls all over Downtown Disney. We now have a Disney vacation planned in early September since the walls are down in the areas we enjoyed the most. If Disney ever builds a fifth gate, maybe it should be an "amusement park" type gate that caters to the younger, thrill seeking group. Put the roller coasters and other amusement park type thrill rides there rather than trying to "shoe horn" them into parks where they really don't fit the theme. (Prime example for me is the Rockin' Roller Coaster in Hollywood, it seems out of place to the theme.)

 

[ParkHoppers]

I think that all those things that you speak of that allow WDW to be NOT about the rides - the hotels, non theme park areas, restaurants, bars, -have been largely abandoned/ignored by the Iger regime. They are using the Disney built/Iger built stuff and exploiting it for mileage.

Springs is the first real attempt to add to that component of the property. We'll see how that works.

Agreed. I do think that Disney is now back in building new attractions etc though. Next 10 years should see major improvements for all aspects of Disney. On the other hand because Universal is all those things that Disney is not they HAVE to build more and faster than Disney to pull some away from Disney.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

Agreed. I do think that Disney is now back in building new attractions etc though. Next 10 years should see major improvements for all aspects of Disney. On the other hand because Universal is all those things that Disney is not they HAVE to build more and faster than Disney to pull some away from Disney.

It's an arms race that is good for the customers...

You know what also would help? A good old fashioned dip in travel...where the tourgroups and one timers go away and they have to come groveling back to the old Florida residents, DVC backbone, and AP holders...

"Kneel to me!!! Kneel to ZOD!!!"

 

[peg110]

It's an arms race that is good for the customers...

I suppose you could argue it's good for customers in the "Attraction" department. I'd be happy to see an impact in the cost department. Competition should either drive up quality or drive down cost (or BOTH), but I really am not seeing a lot of either, particularly in Disney. We will see now that some new renovations have been done (Disney Springs, the MK Hub, etc...) if it's going to be worth it.

 

[mcd2745]

It's an arms race that is good for the customers...

You know what also would help? A good old fashioned dip in travel...where the tourgroups and one timers go away and they have to come groveling back to the old Florida residents, DVC backbone, and AP holders...

"Kneel to me!!! Kneel to ZOD!!!"

We may be seeing that this summer. There are already whispers of crowds the last month or so were not at the levels they were for the same periods the last few years. Also, there were/are some summer time promotions that were not available the last several years. And the tour groups? How are things going in Brazil these days? Are they even going to be able to pull off the Olympics? Because of the The Olympics, we've all been hearing tons stories about how bad things are there. Many other countries are in the same situation. Another big question...how will Brexit affect the amount of travelers from the UK?

 

[EveDallas]

Heck yea they are both for all of us.

Seems odd folks don't do both, why it's either or makes little sense IMO.

That said when US/IOA close at 6 or 7pm for months at a time and WDW has parks open until 9, 10 even midnight makes the evening choice pretty easy at least for us.

Even last night US/IOA closed at 10 and MK 3am. 5 more hours is substantial.

Just speaking for me personally - both parks is not an opinion for me financially. I have to choose one or the other.

 

[Donald Duck888]

To me Universal is still an amusement park. The best amusement park there is but still an amusement park. If rides are your most important thing than Universal is tough to beat. But Disney World can be about the rides or not about the rides. Disney resorts can stand alone from all the attractions. At DW you can have a nice laid back vacation with the parks and attractions on the back burner. I don't feel that way about Universal. I also like the massive size of DW. Once you enter the front gates you feel disconnected from the real world which is nice. I just feel DW has a much broader appeal as a whole. Now if your between the ages of say 15 and 35 on average I can see Universal being the most desirable but I feel every age group can find something at DW. I,m 44 so at this point a more laid back Disney vacation is what appeals to me. It's just where each of us is personally coming from. Universal and DW and quite different places IMO and it is hard to compare them. Universal is the best amusement park we will probably ever see but it could never be DW for those who might think it is building up to be just that.

I totally agree with this. I am even older than 44 but have a 9 yr old daughter. We have been Exclusively to Disney since I have been taking her but I also have been to Universal a few different times before she was born. As time has been passing and she has been growing older I can see her tastes changing. She gets more interested in the thrill rides each year so i can certainly see a day where Universal appeals to her more. Me on the other hand I am moving in the other direction, but also to be honest, I have never really liked thrill rides anyway even when I was young. I also agree that individual taste plays a big role as well. I have a friend (old like me) who absolutely loves Universal but again when we were younger He loved Thrill rides and used to basically have to drag me onto them.

 

[peg110]

Just speaking for me personally - both parks is not an opinion for me financially. I have to choose one or the other.

This is my dilemma too, and since I know what WDW has to offer versus US (as I have not been there), I have to go with the "Devil" I Know.