It's gonna get way worse before it gets better

[annadreamsofdisneyworld]

The problem for me is that 1) it's already at the limits of affordability

Same here. We are most likely going to cut our trip in half to afford this. And depending on how fastpasses are given we will change our hotel. If they are free for deluxe we will switch to deluxe (from value) and cut our trip in half. Or if everyone pays the same for fastpass then we will downgrade from Pop preferred room to All Stars regular room. We will eat more quick service meals. To me avoiding long lines is my #1 priority. My kids cannot handle them, and I'm not going to pay $$$$ to be miserable in long lines all day. So we will pay for fastpass, but then vacation somewhere else after this. I see us going to Orlando one more time when the Nintendo land opens at Universal, but that will be a split with Disney and Universal or maybe just Universal.

 

[scrappinginontario]

Thread has been moved to Theme Parks Community board for further discussion as it's more about choosing a different time to go to Disney (understandable) and away from planning a trip now.

 

[cakebaker]

Sadly, with what we are hearing about what’s happening at Disneyland Paris, it sounds like Disney’s “solution” to your problem is to get you to spend $1000 or more so you don’t have to stand in the long lines that Disney has created by not opening more shows and attractions to keep up with demand. ☹

I have to admit, if they were ever going to put in a paid system, now is the time to do it. Chapek was right. The pandemic gave them the opportunity to introduce things they'd never get ways with otherwise. And by allowing the crowds to pile in, making wait times unbearable, people will be much more accepting of whatever they put out to fix the problem they created. They really are good at marketing, no doubt about it.

"There are also tons of great deals at good neighbor hotels if the cost of the resort is your biggest gripe."

Staying off site is not an option for us. If Disney can't make it attractive enough for us to justify the cost of staying on site, we don't go. We've never stayed off site, have no interest in staying off site. For us, while we don't have an unlimited budget, cost cutting has never been our focus. There's a big difference between cutting costs and feeling like you got your money's worth. For this trip, I am most definitely not getting my money's worth and I don't plan on ever repeating that again.

 

[kimmar067]

Sadly, based on what’s happening at Disneyland Paris, it sounds like Disney’s “solution” to your problem is to get you to spend an additional $1000 or more so you don’t have to stand in the long lines that Disney has created by not opening more shows and attractions to keep up with demand. ☹

....from what I've recently read, it is turning out to be ONE HUGE FLOP, so my guess is that it might not make over to this side of the pond.

 

[Darcy03231]

I'll go at least one more time to make up for last year's canceled trip. I was going with my neighbor and her two girls, who have never been. Honestly, I've been going less and less as prices have increased over the last few years. Instead of being a primary destination Disney for me has been an add-on to another vacation. Last time (2017) I added a couple of days onto a cruise as DH wanted to see Pandora and I didn't want to fly to Florida for a long weekend.

 

[becauseimnew]

Everything moves in ebbs and flows. Crowds will normalize in time and prices will reflect that. There are also tons of great deals at good neighbor hotels if the cost of the resort is your biggest gripe.

But for those of us that booked 6 months ago were expecting a different experience.

 

[Brett Wyman]

But for those of us that booked 6 months ago were expecting a different experience.

Understandable. But anyone who booked under the current circumstances without having a bit of an open mind just set themselves up for failure.

 

[becauseimnew]

Understandable. But anyone who booked under the current circumstances without having a bit of an open mind just set themselves up for failure.

I did expect Disney to be fully open, just didn’t expect that they would open without the staffing needed to run the current guest capacity

 

[revdon64]

Value... it's all about value. Prices have not gone down, even a little bit. Yet many perks have been removed and/or monetized - resort parking, magical express, character meals, meet and greets... the list goes on. Now we get the very real possibility that FP will become a paid service as well. Before, Disney was an expensive vacation but many (if not all) of us were willing to cough up the cash for the perceived value, at least to those of us who considered ourselves fans. Now, they're stripping away the value and expecting that the fans will just continue to pay because we're fans. Surprise! When the initial demand for travel peters out, they're going to be shocked at their bottom line. My family just got back from our vacation for this year - one week in a private cabin overlooking the Great Smokey Mountains, Dollywood, Pigeon Forge, and Gatlinburg. And, it cost us half of our last Disney vacation (and probably more than half of what it would have cost to go now). Added bonus, not a single day or time were ever asked to put on a mask. Will we ever go back to Disney? That's a solid maybe, but there's nothing planned for us right now.

 

[dez1978]

Understandable. But anyone who booked under the current circumstances without having a bit of an open mind just set themselves up for failure.

This!!! Anyone who has booked in since reopening knew when they booked that there was a good possibility things were not going to be anywhere like they were before. Sure we all hoped that by now things would be more or less back to normal, but we accepted that there was a chance many things would still be lacking. Granted sometimes this feels like much more than just "lacking' at the moment. I was disappointed there were no fireworks when we went in March and that lots of restaurants were still closed. But we still had a great time

 

[PanchoX1]

I did expect Disney to be fully open, just didn’t expect that they would open without the staffing needed to run the current guest capacity

I just got back and I did not get this impression from our visit. in fact, we had a fantastic time. I'd go again in a heart beat.

 

[Nabas]

Since the reopening, we’ve been vacationing at WDW about once every 2 months and have seen the change.

The first few trips (July 2020, September, November, January 2021) were great! Physically long lines that moved swiftly, plenty of Cast Members to handle those of us who were there, and all sorts of hotel discounts.

But beginning in March 2021, we noticed a significant uptick in crowds along with an increasingly overwhelmed staff.

May 2021 was the first time crowds felt back to normal for that month. (It’s usually “slow”, as much as there is such a thing anymore, when we go in May.)

Yet there still are shows and other forms of entertainment that are closed.

We just returned from a July trip and some parks are really hurting from the lack of shows and nighttime entertainment to help disperse crowds. With the return of fireworks, the bus stops at the Magic Kingdom have been horrible at night!

All around, the “show” at WDW has been in decline since January 2021.

 

[kimmar067]

I just got back and I did not get this impression from our visit. in fact, we had a fantastic time. I'd go again in a heart beat.

...as another poster said, it's all about perception.

 

[BobaFettFan]

....from what I've recently read, it is turning out to be ONE HUGE FLOP, so my guess is that it might not make over to this side of the pond.

But did it make money????

Then it might not be a flop in some eyes

 

[Nice Work Pal]

Just got back last night. Already canceled our November trip. Going to Aruba instead. I’d much rather spend all day on a beach with a drink than I would waiting in absurd lines. AP expires in April, unless things change drastically I’ll let it expire. I’ll come back every few years rather than 3-4 times a year.

 

[OhDannyBoy]

I used to go to Disney at least once a year, sometimes twice. When you could get the Florida resident 3 day passes and could spread them out through out the year, that was bonus.

We live in Florida and it's a 3 hour drive. It was nice to just spend a weekend on a whim here.

Now that costs me almost $2k. Time to find another happy place.

 

[shh]

Just got back last night. Already canceled our November trip. Going to Aruba instead. I’d much rather spend all day on a beach with a drink than I would waiting in absurd lines. AP expires in April, unless things change drastically I’ll let it expire. I’ll come back every few years rather than 3-4 times a year.

we love disney and used to go 4x/year. We are now waiting several years between trips - which was unheard of for me previously. We only live a few hours' drive away. But just no desire to experience what I'm reading right now for the money they're charging.

But do enjoy reading the trip reports - I get to go on vacay with lots of diff people and it doesn't cost me a cent!

 

[Darcy03231]

Just got back last night. Already canceled our November trip. Going to Aruba instead. I’d much rather spend all day on a beach with a drink than I would waiting in absurd lines. AP expires in April, unless things change drastically I’ll let it expire. I’ll come back every few years rather than 3-4 times a year.

We have a cruise booked for next May. Large aft balcony that includes the drink package, specialty dining, wifi, $50 per port shore excursion credit, with gratuities included. We're going to Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Belize & Roatan (hopefully). Total cost was $2,800.

I priced out WDW for the same week at the Art of Animation Resort. Just room and base theme park tickets came to $3100.

I'm just not finding the value in a WDW vacation anymore. Hopefully when I start having grandchildren I'll feel differently.

 

[HashberryOTG]

....from what I've recently read, it is turning out to be ONE HUGE FLOP, so my guess is that it might not make over to this side of the pond.

Didn't they have some sort of paid fastpass system before all this too, tho?

 

[OhDannyBoy]

I always thought Disney was genius for having the free fast pass as they don't want you standing in a line not spending more money.

They want you buying dole whips and mouse ears and balloons and ice cream and fridge magnets and getting pictures on the overpriced photo thing and all of that. Can't do that staring at the back of some guy's head for an hour or more.