Just back - thoughts

[WEDWDW]

my siblings and i are all teenagers now, and going to disney still appeals us. but i guess this is based solely off of personal preferences.

Yes,it is a "myth" that only children love WDW.

 

[Jadyreen1282]

I was wondering when the subject of scooters would come up. It did seem to be the one thing missing to really make this a Dis thread. :-/

Just trying to stir the pot! I love these threads.

 

[RLGNC]

We are in a similar boat as you in that the sci-fi stuff is not appealing to us. Our first trip to Disney was this past April with a 4 and 3 year old. We are already planning a trip back next February. Anytime anyone asks why so soon, my response is bc before I know it they are going to be teenagers and asking for thrill rides instead of Small World. That's not to say that they won't still enjoy an every few years trip to Disney, but DH and I strongly feel as though Disney will be super special to us till the kids are 10ish. Then we will spend our vacation money elsewhere for awhile and there is nothing wrong with that.

I hear you on this. Our first trip was when our kids were 4 and 7, and we we went three more time after that in fairly close succession, with the last trip being when they were 8 and 11. We are going back this year after a 5 year break, and I'm already realizing how precious those trips were in the "younger" years, and wondering how it's going to be different now that they're 13 and 16. Not different in a bad way, but those first 4 trips hold special magical memories.

 

[lynzi2004]

I truly hope they do enjoy it when they are older and I think to some extent they most definitely will. And don't worry, DH and I are already scheming plans for when they are in college and we can sneak away by ourselves for an adult-only trip! lol But I also know that my niece who is 8 loved Disney world and thought it was great. Just this past weekend, they took her to a standard grade amusement park (similar to a Six-Flags) and her comment was that "This is better than Disney World!" (Mostly bc she is old enough now to enjoy the big coasters) Would she mind going to Disney again, of course not. But are her parents more prone to take a weekend trip to Six Flags at $40 bucks a ticket, sure they are!

 

[bpadair32]

I truly hope they do enjoy it when they are older and I think to some extent they most definitely will. And don't worry, DH and I are already scheming plans for when they are in college and we can sneak away by ourselves for an adult-only trip! lol But I also know that my niece who is 8 loved Disney world and thought it was great. Just this past weekend, they took her to a standard grade amusement park (similar to a Six-Flags) and her comment was that "This is better than Disney World!" (Mostly bc she is old enough now to enjoy the big coasters) Would she mind going to Disney again, of course not. But are her parents more prone to take a weekend trip to Six Flags at $40 bucks a ticket, sure they are!

I think there is a lot of variance depending on what people like. IMO I think that the people that get "burned out" on Disney, or tend to not like it as much as they get older, are the ones that just want to go somewhere for the rides and want thrills. You can get that, and at least as far as thrills go get more, at a 6 Flags, Cedar Point, etc. I think the people that want to keep going back, no matter age, are the ones like me, that like the experience of being in Disney, and everything that it has to offer, not just the rides.

 

[dominiondad]

OK, I'll bite. I can see how the scooters could be a concern. We didn't see any problems first hand. We felt like the parks weren't as crowded as expected. We followed the easywdw and touringplans advice. The buses weren't generally crowded, nor were the walking areas in the parks, so there was room for everybody. We saw a few close calls, some seemed to be the fault of the scooter operator, some were the fault of a pedestrian. Overall, 99 percent of the guests were great, it's just that the one percent tend to stand out.
We did have the disboard favorite - right as Wishes started , the woman in front of us stood on her stroller so she could hold her iPad up higher to film. There was room to step to the side so we did. It would have been easy to get a little spun up over that.

 

[Eastern]

I considered the refund route. I have a career effectively centered around conflict, so I really look to avoid any conflict during my vacations. Im going to chalk it up to a learning experience, but I can certainly see why somebody would demand their money back.

It doesn't have to be a contentious experience. Just write a short email to Disney CS and explain that you were very disappointed with an early opening that did not include two usually busy rides. Say that you didn't want to ask for refund and waste precious trip time (that is understandable). At worst, you got your complaint heard.

 

[ArwenMarie]

Thanks for the report. Yeah I would have asked for a refund on the early hour event, but I know how that feels that sometimes you just want to move on.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

We thought the AC on the buses were fine. I'm usually too hot and my kids are almost always too cold. We all thought it was comfortable. It was definitely warm while we were there, high 90's every day. Thunderstorms every afternoon which generally just made it more humid.
I considered the refund route. I have a career effectively centered around conflict, so I really look to avoid any conflict during my vacations. Im going to chalk it up to a learning experience, but I can certainly see why somebody would demand their money back.

Thanks re bus air con info. That's good to know. Fair enough your vacation! I know what you mean we all choose when it is important and when to let it go! AK is an amazing resort though right!

 

[dominiondad]

Thanks re bus air con info. That's good to know. Fair enough your vacation! I know what you mean we all choose when it is important and when to let it go! AK is an amazing resort though right!

AKL is amazing, as is AK, HS, EP, and MK. Don't get me wrong. We absolutely love WDW and I will return in some capacity. I was just throwing out a few of the speedbumps so people can manage their expectations. Even though we hit a few hurdles, I still get choked up when I have to leave and it probably wont be long before I start putting together the next version of my planning binder. That damn mouse has me hooked.

 

[disneygrandma]

The Disney experience that I loved included planning where to eat the day of after arriving at the park. The night before planning which park to go to the following morning. That was when we were all adults. I absolutely do not like having to spend so much time and energy planning everything out way-y-y ahead of time. Disney created this, and yet they still hold out about so many things until sometimes last minute, and all that will throw a wrench in to the plans already made. Now that we're taking grand kids, we're thinking it's worth the 7 month grind ahead of the trip. However, my husband is getting to the breaking point on that too. After this upcoming trip, we're going to take a long break from Disney. Our pocket book needs a break from Disney too.

No flames, please. Thank you.

 

[RLGNC]

The Disney experience that I loved included planning where to eat the day of after arriving at the park. The night before planning which park to go to the following morning. That was when we were all adults. I absolutely do not like having to spend so much time and energy planning everything out way-y-y ahead of time. Disney created this, and yet they still hold out about so many things until sometimes last minute, and all that will throw a wrench in to the plans already made. Now that we're taking grand kids, we're thinking it's worth the 7 month grind ahead of the trip. However, my husband is getting to the breaking point on that too. After this upcoming trip, we're going to take a long break from Disney. Our pocket book needs a break from Disney too.

No flames, please. Thank you.

Understandable. It's a shame that it's come to that for many families (mine included). I hope your upcoming trip is very special!

 

[bpadair32]

The Disney experience that I loved included planning where to eat the day of after arriving at the park. The night before planning which park to go to the following morning. That was when we were all adults. I absolutely do not like having to spend so much time and energy planning everything out way-y-y ahead of time. Disney created this, and yet they still hold out about so many things until sometimes last minute, and all that will throw a wrench in to the plans already made. Now that we're taking grand kids, we're thinking it's worth the 7 month grind ahead of the trip. However, my husband is getting to the breaking point on that too. After this upcoming trip, we're going to take a long break from Disney. Our pocket book needs a break from Disney too.

No flames, please. Thank you.

I think this is one of the biggest differences among folks here on the boards, those that love the planning and those that don't. I haven't really seen a middle ground. I myself like the planning, I think that it builds excitement for the trip. I understand the concern about pricing as well, but now that we are DVC members, it makes it much more affordable.

 

[dominiondad]

My two cents on planning - it used to be one of my favorite parts of the trip. I enjoyed the ADR process and even planning FP+. But last minute changes by WDW have made the process frustrating. I will plan which park I'll be in 6 months from now, but it only seems fair that WDW tell me the park hours and then stick to them. What used to be "planning" has now become "educated guessing" IMO.

 

[Jennasis]

I think this is one of the biggest differences among folks here on the boards, those that love the planning and those that don't. I haven't really seen a middle ground. I myself like the planning, I think that it builds excitement for the trip. I understand the concern about pricing as well, but now that we are DVC members, it makes it much more affordable.

I love planning...but there is a point where enough is enough. I'm getting there. And it is beyond frustrating that Disney can switch things willy nilly or release info at the last minute. I have finally gotten to the point where I stick to my guns regardless of whether Disney changes hours or offerings at the 11th hour.

 

[Maryemcd]

If the 2 main rides for EMM were down I would demand a refund. Just my .02

Or at least a partial refund!! 2 fastpasses would not be enough when other people have reported riding 7dMT 5+ times. I would be requesting at least that number of fast passes from Guest Relations.

 

[tlmadden73]

# 1 - Wow .. TWO of the three rides you paid for the Early Morning Magic were down? I would have demanded a refund on that purchase. Fast Passes the rest of the morning is NOT the same.

#4 - I just think that comes over time. I honestly don't "get" the people that go on yearly vacations here for 6+ days. While that would be fun for a few years, I think eventually you will see that park fatigue. Not that much changes year over year and I think eventually families do just "grow out" of the parks as their tastes change. (or at least need to take a break for a few years).

For me, personally, I am at the point that just "being there" is vacation enough .. and if I don't get on a lot of rides that is still okay from a value standpoint.

#7 - I think the value is still there despite the increased costs. Nothing wrong with skipping a park if it doesn't fit your families style. Personally by DHS turning into a "Star Wars" park that has MORE appeal to some (and families with boys). Epcot is the skippable park for me lately. We still dont' know what DHS will turn into but it seems like it will be just a park with "movie-themed" attractions (like Universal Studios has turned into) where there will be a Star Wars area, a Muppets area, a Toy Story area and ... most assume the "Old Hollywood" area will remain but still up in there what will become of the Echo lake and such. It will be a different park that was originally envisioned when it came to be in the late 80s.

It will be interesting to see how this new trend towards immersive movie-specific themed lands work in the long term. Harry Potter land in Universal is pretty new still, but what happens in a decade when there is no longer the HP hype?

The uniqueness about Magic Kingdom is that its themed lands were "general" .. and you could fill them (and change them) over time without being 'stuck'. (Though you can argue that approach doesn't work well for Tomorrowland).

 

[Rainman415]

I'm confused. You PAID for EMH??? How much and who did you pay??? I thought that was a perk of staying onsite?

 

[Mikie]

I'm confused. You PAID for EMH??? How much and who did you pay??? I thought that was a perk of staying onsite?

WDW introduced an add-on called Extra Morning Magic, which some refer to as "paid EMH". Extra Morning Magic was first offered in MK (getting rides on 7DMT, Peter Pan, Pooh) and a buffet breakfast. You paid $69 per person on top of theme park admission for the day. Event begins at 7:45 on a day when the park opens at 9. It has now been added to DHS as well. Regular EMH still exists as a "free" perk to onsite guests.

 

[ArwenMarie]

I like planning too, but I'm with previous commenters, I've hit the wall with the planning. I was in such a bad mood on my FP day for our upcoming trip in a few weeks. I don't mind ADRs, but booking rides makes me bonkers. When I look back at old trip spreadsheets, it's amazing how much we switched up days once we got there as well. I know you can still do that to an extent, but there are some things that it is very hard to rebook the FPs for. I think the only solution now for us is to have longer trips which have some built-in redundancy (for example, I used two days of FPs for Epcot to have some redundancy for FEA). The longer trip gives us some breathing room. Or of course, to just not care I guess LOL