Just back and had a few thoughts...

[jkcd513]

For the most part we had a very magical trip; however there were a few things that weren't. First the group of large drunk men at animal kingdom hanging out at the dinosaur ride that were cussing loudly and talking about how disney should not be so kid friendly- that it should be more for adults, all the while we are standing next to them with our children. The cast members running the attraction were standing even closer to them than we were and yet said nothing to them about the foul language being thrown around or sloshing of alcohol all over everything, but if my kid stepped over the line at a character meet and greet they have no issue telling them to stop hanging on a rope or standing too close. When we were there in 2010 I do not remember encountering drunk people so often. We had a similar experience at epoct this past week as well. Not much irritates my husband but even he commented on the amount of free flowing alcohol and intoxicated people this trip. I want everyone to enjoy themselves at disney, but I also expect to not deal with foul language and extremely drunk people in what is suppose to be a family friendly location.

The other thing that bothered me was that while in MK on our last day (only a few hours before we were getting in our car to make the 13 hour drive home a cast member from the castle couture shop asked my daughter if she would like some pixie dust (I saw he was holding a magic wand and assumed it was just pretend pixie dust and the next thing I know it was like he had dumped a small cup of loose glitter on top of her very curly hair . I was beyond shocked that they allow them to put that amount of loose glitter on their head because in a matter of minutes it had already gotten into her eyes and she was in tears because it was making her eyes hurt. That seems more of a liability than magical (I would have preferred the pretend pixie dust and my daughter would have thought the pretend stuff was just as special, or even just a very tiny pinch of glitter that isn't getting into her eyes or tangled in her curls). We had to go to the hotel (were we had already checked out of) and ask for a towel so I could hold her head under the sink in the lobby bathroom and attempt to rinse out as much glitter as possible so that she did not get glitter all over the car or even more in her eyes. Definitely not the way I envisioned our last 1/2 hour at disney. When we stopped in Georgia for the night it took another 1/2 hour of scrubbing her curly hair to get most of it out. Next time we will just say no to pixie dust unless I can verify it is pretend pixie dust .


Now the cast member that was at the exit of the little mermaid meet and greet in MK was great and he really saved our night. When entering the line the person there gave my daughter one of those red tag necklaces that helps them determine wait times. She was excited to "be in charge" (which is what she called it). Well it was great until the lady at the other end had to take the necklace from her. She was okay until we were leaving the grotto after meeting ariel and realized the lady never gave her back the necklace. She was in tears and had such a pitiful face because she did not understand why they gave her the necklace and then took it away. The guy at the exit saw her and asked her if she didn't like meeting ariel and when I explained exactly why she was sad he asked her if she liked stickers , which of course she did. He then proceeded to measure off a strip of stickers as tall as she was and gave them to her (her big smile immediately returned and her sad pitiful face was forgotten). I was very thankful for his help in making a not so great situation better.

 

[mesaboy2]

For the most part we had a very magical trip; however there were a few things that weren't. First the group of large drunk men at animal kingdom hanging out at the dinosaur ride that were cussing loudly and talking about how disney should not be so kid friendly- that it should be more for adults, all the while we are standing next to them with our children. The cast members running the attraction were standing even closer to them than we were and yet said nothing to them about the foul language being thrown around or sloshing of alcohol all over everything, but if my kid stepped over the line at a character meet and greet they have no issue telling them to stop hanging on a rope or standing too close. When we were there in 2010 I do not remember encountering drunk people so often. We had a similar experience at epoct this past week as well. Not much irritates my husband but even he commented on the amount of free flowing alcohol and intoxicated people this trip. I want everyone to enjoy themselves at disney, but I also expect to not deal with foul language and extremely drunk people in what is suppose to be a family friendly location.

The other thing that bothered me was that while in MK on our last day (only a few hours before we were getting in our car to make the 13 hour drive home a cast member from the castle couture shop asked my daughter if she would like some pixie dust (I saw he was holding a magic wand and assumed it was just pretend pixie dust and the next thing I know it was like he had dumped a small cup of loose glitter on top of her very curly hair . I was beyond shocked that they allow them to put that amount of loose glitter on their head because in a matter of minutes it had already gotten into her eyes and she was in tears because it was making her eyes hurt. That seems more of a liability than magical (I would have preferred the pretend pixie dust and my daughter would have thought the pretend stuff was just as special, or even just a very tiny pinch of glitter that isn't getting into her eyes or tangled in her curls). We had to go to the hotel (were we had already checked out of) and ask for a towel so I could hold her head under the sink in the lobby bathroom and attempt to rinse out as much glitter as possible so that she did not get glitter all over the car or even more in her eyes. Definitely not the way I envisioned our last 1/2 hour at disney. When we stopped in Georgia for the night it took another 1/2 hour of scrubbing her curly hair to get most of it out. Next time we will just say no to pixie dust unless I can verify it is pretend pixie dust .

Now the cast member that was at the exit of the little mermaid meet and greet in MK was great and he really saved our night. When entering the line the person there gave my daughter one of those red tag necklaces that helps them determine wait times. She was excited to "be in charge" (which is what she called it). Well it was great until the lady at the other end had to take the necklace from her. She was okay until we were leaving the grotto after meeting ariel and realized the lady never gave her back the necklace. She was in tears and had such a pitiful face because she did not understand why they gave her the necklace and then took it away. The guy at the exit saw her and asked her if she didn't like meeting ariel and when I explained exactly why she was sad he asked her if she liked stickers , which of course she did. He then proceeded to measure off a strip of stickers as tall as she was and gave them to her (her big smile immediately returned and her sad pitiful face was forgotten). I was very thankful for his help in making a not so great situation better.

Sorry you had a few negative experiences. That kind of pixie dust is real, and red-card necklaces are not souvenirs. Next time you'll know.

 

[Laketravis]

This past Friday evening, 9:45pm, Mission Space orange - a group of loud drunks who could barely stand up. We kept waiting for a CM to say or do something, but other than look at each other and roll their eyes, they didn't.

Between the hillbillies loudly cussing each other out on a crowded Main Street on12/10, the drunks in Epcot, and the increased number of mullet hair styles observed, I see it as an indication of an improved global economy which is giving a wider spectrum of society the opportunity to afford a WDW vacation.

 

[ttintagel]

There were more rowdy drunks than usual during my last EPCOT visit, too.

 

[marybaby08]

 

[DRDISNEYMD]

~OP, thanks for the review! I'm glad your trip was magical overall, in spite of the negative incidents.

This past Friday evening, 9:45pm, Mission Space orange - a group of loud drunks who could barely stand up. We kept waiting for a CM to say or do something, but other than look at each other and roll their eyes, they didn't.

Between the hillbillies loudly cussing each other out on a crowded Main Street on12/10, the drunks in Epcot, and the increased number of mullet hair styles observed, I see it as an indication of an improved global economy which is giving a wider spectrum of society the opportunity to afford a WDW vacation.

~LOL. You are just terrible, as in terribly funny!

There were more rowdy drunks than usual during my last EPCOT visit, too.

~Wow, I hope this is isolated and not the start of some trend.

 

[DRDISNEYMD]

.

 

[TunaSled]

I see it as an indication of an improved global economy which is giving a wider spectrum of society the opportunity to afford a WDW vacation.

Priceless!

Don't worry though, first timers soon learn how to behave at WDW. This ain't Six Flags, Bubba!

 

[LoveMMC]

agh glitter in kids hair! We got some from Ariel at my dd's birthday party. It is soo hard to get out of her hair!! I am not a fan! I avoid it in my classroom - annoying stuff!!

 

[jkcd513]

I knew the red card necklace was not a souvenir; however, my little one did not understand that. At least the next time they handed her one at a different ride we had no melt down since she understood what to expect. Like I said overall we had a great trip, and as for the intoxicated people I was just trying to see if this was a random thing or starting to become a more frequent occurrence. And as for the glitter, well at least I got to see my husband covered in sparkles after he held her waiting in line for one last ride on the teacups... they got off the ride and he was covered (his face, his shirt, his arms) in pixie dust too Hope everyone else has/had a magical trip.

 

[mesaboy2]

I knew the red card necklace was not a souvenir; however, my little one did not understand that. At least the next time they handed her one at a different ride we had no melt down since she understood what to expect. Like I said overall we had a great trip, and as for the intoxicated people I was just trying to see if this was a random thing or starting to become a more frequent occurrence. And as for the glitter, well at least I got to see my husband covered in sparkles after he held her waiting in line for one last ride on the teacups... they got off the ride and he was covered (his face, his shirt, his arms) in pixie dust too Hope everyone else has/had a magical trip.

Definitely been there with the glitter too. Seen some drunks as well, at Epcot on Gran Fiesta Tour early this year. Still a rarity during my visits, but I'm just one dude.

Glad you had a great trip!

 

[katrina1122]

The drunks were so bad F&W in epcot while we were there we only did half of the countries and never went back our whole trip and we have no kids. Hopefully being drunk in WDW isn't becoming common place.

 

[DPCummerbund]

I don't know, I've been around drunk people, and I've been around children. Some, in both groups, are badly behaved...

 

[ban26ana]

While we can all agree that glitter is the herpes of the craft world, it's glitter. Not the end of the world. And I feel bad for your daughter that she got it in her eyes, but let's put things into perspective here.

And no, the timing necklace is not a souvenir. And you as a parent could have done your job and explained that while waiting in line. "Wow, they thought you were awfully special to help them like this. When we get to the end of the line, you're going to hand that necklace to the CM. You're helping them figure out how long it takes to get through the line here. Keep that special necklace safe, sweetie!"


Sorry your trip wasn't completely magical. Yes, I fell for the bait.

 

[JennyDrake]

I used to bartend (ages ago.) One of two CMs at the front of a ride (or anywhere else) are not able to safely confront a group of drunk people. Have you considered what would happen if they did and punches were thrown? If they had asked them to move, then all that would have done is taken the beligerance out of YOUR way. They cannot ask them to leave without the manpower to escort them out.

HOWEVER, the CMs should have called trained security to deal with such. I have NO idea what WDW's official protocall is for handling such matters.

What DOES surprise me is that they were served alcohol to get to that point (and yes, if you want to load up before coming into the parks you can do so, and you can also smuggle alcohol in past bag check) but there is so much liability associated with serving people who are already obviously under the influence. It is a big reason I quit bartending as that is when those laws started coming into enforcement.

This year was my first ever F&W and I was also a bit taken aback by the number of drunk people, though none I encountered were rude--just soused.

 

[SnapesGirl]

While we can all agree that glitter is the herpes of the craft world, it's glitter. Not the end of the world. And I feel bad for your daughter that she got it in her eyes, but let's put things into perspective here.

And no, the timing necklace is not a souvenir. And you as a parent could have done your job and explained that while waiting in line. "Wow, they thought you were awfully special to help them like this. When we get to the end of the line, you're going to hand that necklace to the CM. You're helping them figure out how long it takes to get through the line here. Keep that special necklace safe, sweetie!"


Sorry your trip wasn't completely magical. Yes, I fell for the bait.

 

[jkcd513]

I did explain while waiting in line exactly what the necklace was for; however, she turned four a few days ago and like a lot of kids did not quite understand that she did not get it back, but after that incident she understood the concept a little more and liked to be in charge while in the line. And I wasn't complaining about the necklace incident I just wanted to point out the cast member at the exit of the line who helped make a not so happy situation for a just turned 4 little princess into something to smile about. I thought he went above and beyond his job duty to make her smile again and wanted to point out how grateful I was to him

And those few incidents did not mean we had a less than magical trip- I doubt anyone has a trip that is 100% magical all the time. I just wanted people to be aware that the pixie dust in those magic wands is real glitter so that my experience can be avoided if they do not want to deal with the mess of all that glitter everywhere

 

[Figment_Fan]

I have experienced a few overly indulgent individuals (as far as alchohol consumption) at WDW, but for the most part, they have been well behaved and just added to the people watching experience.

I am not a big fan of the glitter, but I must say, when I see it again a few days after we get back, either in the luggage, or on something, it just makes me smile as I remember where its from. Generally, I have never seen them put on enough to get into anyones' eyes. A little definitely goes a long way. I much prefer the little Mickey head glitter.

 

[Melodious]

I still haven't seen the drunk people the DIS complains about. I've been twice at the end of F&W and love to hang out in Epcot at night. We even look for the drunk people after having heard so much about them, but no dice. My mom joked that the drunks must hide from us

 

[JennyDrake]

I still haven't seen the drunk people the DIS complains about. I've been twice at the end of F&W and love to hang out in Epcot at night. We even look for the drunk people after having heard so much about them, but no dice. My mom joked that the drunks must hide from us

I did not see many drunk people, but perhaps 4-6 groups of 4-10 people per group and everyone in the group was pretty well lit. The group was loud & roudy, but once you were out of earshot, it was as if it never happened.