GadgetRick
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 7, 2000
- Messages
- 654
Ok, I'm sure I'll get flamed for some of the things I'll say here but what the heck...
Just got back from a week down in DW. We stayed at OKW (my fave DVC resort). We did the meal plan. Here are some thoughts of my time there:
-Why oh why on earth did they move the Christmas Tree (in MK) out of the square area? I understand TV and all but it just didn't feel right with it closer to the castle. They were moving it back by the time we left. Please oh PLEASE don't do this again!!!!
-Decorations, as usual, were gorgeous. Always puts me in the Christmas spirit.
-Crowds were moderate to low. Very manageable.
-MVMCP Hmm, ok, no more family picture and the same price. Sounds like a little profit-taking there. I spoke with a CM while we waited on line to get our traditional hair cut (my son and I). He said, apparently, people complained about the wait to get the pics taken. Sounds like marketing stuff to me. He also said there was supposed to be some sort of deal on buying pics taken by the photographers throughout the park. I didn't see any evidence of any such deal. If you're going to take something away, lower the price.
-CMs I've noticed, over the years, for some reason, it seems like certain CMs (mainly in transportation) seem to be less engaging if you know what I mean. Not rude, not mean, just not as likely to have a conversation with you. Basically, seems like many of them aren't as excited about Disney as most CMs seem to be. I'm making more of an observation than a complaint here. For the most part, CMs are still just as nice and helpful as always.
-Birthday button has changed. Used to have a different button for each park. Now it's a plain-looking generic button which they write your name on. I like the old buttons better. Was fun going to each park to get a different button.
-Not NEARLY as many, "Happy birthdays," for my 4 year old as when I was there in August for my birthday. Not sure why. Always feels nice when everyone wishes you a happy birthday.
-Mickey Cakes at the bakery on the Boardwalk now must be ordered in advance. Just a tip here. I used to be able to just walk up and get one, now you've got to order it at least 24 hours in advance. Just note this if you want one. The girls in the bakery did everything they could to help me out.
-Stickers--seems like Disney isn't giving out as many stickers to the kids? Even in August you could hardly walk 10 feet without a CM giving stickers to the kids. This time my son got stickers exactly TWICE. The kids love the stickers.
-Food--although (overall) the food throughout DW is great I am noticing them narrowing down the choices. It's getting kinda boring by the end of the week. Used to be more choices.
-Dining plan--very good value but you might get bored with the foods. It was hard to eat everything (we left not using 3 counter service meals). Great plan though.
-Reservation situation for food--it's been getting worse over the years--getting into various places to eat. However, now that you can book 180 days out, it's next to impossible to get a decent time at the more popular joints. This makes it very difficult for people like us who can in no way figure out where we want to eat for every night/day of our stay. I understand some people can do that we, however, cannot. It makes it more difficult to really enjoy the dining plan because of this as well. I don't know what they could do to rectify the situation but it would be nice if they kept some times open for those of us who need to make reservations while we're there. At least keep them open until a couple of days before.
Also, many people who've never been to DW before don't know this and wind up stuck without a place to eat or a 2 hour wait. Come on Disney, let's figure this out a little better!
-EMH--I wish they were still E-Ticket nights. Paying the extra couple of bucks seemed to keep the crowds down.
-Snickerdoodles--bring them back already! We used to get them all of the time at the candy store on Main Street. They stopped selling them not too long ago. We miss them!
-New lighting on the castle--I LOVED the way the new lighting looks!
-How to be a Pirate--well worth the time. Was a lot of fun. It's right next to POTC at certain times. Ask a CM as the times weren't posted on the sheet you pick up with the maps.
-Busses--this has been something I've always wished they would do. Why don't they make your resort the SAME number at EACH park so it's easier to remember??? Wouldn't be hard to do. Would get rid of a lot of confusion when trying to leave the parks. Other than that, the busses all ran fine (except one which broke down on us). Never really had to wait all that long.
-Stay in the castle--one of the dreams they will be giving away is a stay in the castle. They are almost done with a suite in the castle. The CM we spoke with said he's seen mock-ups. Should be VERY nice. That would be way cool.
I think that about covers it. We still LOVE DW and will still be going 1-2 times each year. I am just noticing a little too much taking away of things lately. Wanted to comment on them.
Oh yeah, the weather was great. 75-80 during the day and 60-65 at night. Had one day of 60-65 and breezy during the day and one night it got down to 50ish. Perfect weather for me!
Just got back from a week down in DW. We stayed at OKW (my fave DVC resort). We did the meal plan. Here are some thoughts of my time there:
-Why oh why on earth did they move the Christmas Tree (in MK) out of the square area? I understand TV and all but it just didn't feel right with it closer to the castle. They were moving it back by the time we left. Please oh PLEASE don't do this again!!!!
-Decorations, as usual, were gorgeous. Always puts me in the Christmas spirit.
-Crowds were moderate to low. Very manageable.
-MVMCP Hmm, ok, no more family picture and the same price. Sounds like a little profit-taking there. I spoke with a CM while we waited on line to get our traditional hair cut (my son and I). He said, apparently, people complained about the wait to get the pics taken. Sounds like marketing stuff to me. He also said there was supposed to be some sort of deal on buying pics taken by the photographers throughout the park. I didn't see any evidence of any such deal. If you're going to take something away, lower the price.
-CMs I've noticed, over the years, for some reason, it seems like certain CMs (mainly in transportation) seem to be less engaging if you know what I mean. Not rude, not mean, just not as likely to have a conversation with you. Basically, seems like many of them aren't as excited about Disney as most CMs seem to be. I'm making more of an observation than a complaint here. For the most part, CMs are still just as nice and helpful as always.
-Birthday button has changed. Used to have a different button for each park. Now it's a plain-looking generic button which they write your name on. I like the old buttons better. Was fun going to each park to get a different button.
-Not NEARLY as many, "Happy birthdays," for my 4 year old as when I was there in August for my birthday. Not sure why. Always feels nice when everyone wishes you a happy birthday.
-Mickey Cakes at the bakery on the Boardwalk now must be ordered in advance. Just a tip here. I used to be able to just walk up and get one, now you've got to order it at least 24 hours in advance. Just note this if you want one. The girls in the bakery did everything they could to help me out.
-Stickers--seems like Disney isn't giving out as many stickers to the kids? Even in August you could hardly walk 10 feet without a CM giving stickers to the kids. This time my son got stickers exactly TWICE. The kids love the stickers.
-Food--although (overall) the food throughout DW is great I am noticing them narrowing down the choices. It's getting kinda boring by the end of the week. Used to be more choices.
-Dining plan--very good value but you might get bored with the foods. It was hard to eat everything (we left not using 3 counter service meals). Great plan though.
-Reservation situation for food--it's been getting worse over the years--getting into various places to eat. However, now that you can book 180 days out, it's next to impossible to get a decent time at the more popular joints. This makes it very difficult for people like us who can in no way figure out where we want to eat for every night/day of our stay. I understand some people can do that we, however, cannot. It makes it more difficult to really enjoy the dining plan because of this as well. I don't know what they could do to rectify the situation but it would be nice if they kept some times open for those of us who need to make reservations while we're there. At least keep them open until a couple of days before.
Also, many people who've never been to DW before don't know this and wind up stuck without a place to eat or a 2 hour wait. Come on Disney, let's figure this out a little better!
-EMH--I wish they were still E-Ticket nights. Paying the extra couple of bucks seemed to keep the crowds down.
-Snickerdoodles--bring them back already! We used to get them all of the time at the candy store on Main Street. They stopped selling them not too long ago. We miss them!
-New lighting on the castle--I LOVED the way the new lighting looks!
-How to be a Pirate--well worth the time. Was a lot of fun. It's right next to POTC at certain times. Ask a CM as the times weren't posted on the sheet you pick up with the maps.
-Busses--this has been something I've always wished they would do. Why don't they make your resort the SAME number at EACH park so it's easier to remember??? Wouldn't be hard to do. Would get rid of a lot of confusion when trying to leave the parks. Other than that, the busses all ran fine (except one which broke down on us). Never really had to wait all that long.
-Stay in the castle--one of the dreams they will be giving away is a stay in the castle. They are almost done with a suite in the castle. The CM we spoke with said he's seen mock-ups. Should be VERY nice. That would be way cool.
I think that about covers it. We still LOVE DW and will still be going 1-2 times each year. I am just noticing a little too much taking away of things lately. Wanted to comment on them.
Oh yeah, the weather was great. 75-80 during the day and 60-65 at night. Had one day of 60-65 and breezy during the day and one night it got down to 50ish. Perfect weather for me!
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