Just not worth it!

[Pats Dragon]

We will no longer sit on the curb for an hour for the parades and fight hoards of last minute arrivers who push and step on our heads and squeeze on top of us. We will just watch from a distance. Just not worth it.

 

[grimley1968]

I've always thought of parade times as excellent times to go to popular attractions in the standby lines. Those waits drop to nothing then. We don't care about the parades that much but love that particular side effect of them.

 

[freediverdude]

Yes, join the club. I concluded this long ago, and never even attempt to get near the curb anymore. Just not worth the hassle.

 

[TDC Nala]

that is why the Fastpass Plus pre-reserved parade viewing looks like it is going to prove popular.

 

[scoutie]

When we watched WISHES, we had two very tall men stand right in front of us and put their 10 year old daughters on their shoulders.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

Folks the only way to stop these rude people is to be rude right back. I have found being loud and noisy to get a CM's attention usually moved these rude people away or the cm's will move them just to shut me up!

Do I enjoy this type of action..no especailly at WDFW, but sometimes you have to stand up for your rights.

AKK

 

[RedHeadedFairy]

Agreed, we gave it up too. I enjoy the parade but it's not worth the hassle when, like the other poster mentioned, it ends up being a great time to ride everything else. We saw people just losing it during the parade at MK in December, my kids were like this --->

 

[brobrosmom]

We've never really been a parade and fireworks family. We don't think they are worth the wait and the crowds.

 

[runsandjumps]

I only watch the parades for a few minutes on my way to another ride. I don't really care for them too much.

 

[Barnhill9586]

I've always thought of parade times as excellent times to go to popular attractions in the standby lines. Those waits drop to nothing then. We don't care about the parades that much but love that particular side effect of them.

Same here. We even plan it out so that we aren't cut off from a section we want to be in when the ropes go up preventing us from passing. It's a great time to ride.

Sorry to hear about your bad experience OP. I've read about a lot of rude behavior at parade time.

 

[tampabrat22]

One of my biggest pet peeves about theme parks...the line jumpers & the rude people who stand in front of those who waited for a spot. There have been times when we waited over an hour to get a good spot at Wishes or Illuminations just to have rude people squeeze right in front of us. I doubt we will waste much time doing the parades this year simply because of that.

 

[RedHeadedFairy]

Folks the only way to spot


top these rude people is to be rude right back. I have found being loud and noisy to get a CM's attention usually moved these rude people away or the cm's will move them just to shut me up!

Do I enjoy this type of action..no especailly at WDFW, but sometimes you have to stand up for your rights.

AKK

I agree on some level, but honestly, WDW is the LAST place I want to get into any issues.

In my daily life I'm not one to roll over & get walked on but I'm not fighting with someone over a spot to view a parade while I'm on vacation trying to make memories with my family. I also don't enjoy becoming loud & obnoxious just to make my point, & if it comes to that then IMO I'm no better than the rude person who started the whole mess to begin with. Better to teach my kids to walk away in these situations.

Heck, I/we walk away when others around us get into it & we aren't even involved. It sours the entire experience of being there when the adults act badly.

 

[lsenquiz]

I agree on some level, but honestly, WDW is the LAST place I want to get into any issues.

In my daily life I'm not one to roll over & get walked on but I'm not fighting with someone over a spot to view a parade while I'm on vacation trying to make memories with my family. I also don't enjoy becoming loud & obnoxious just to make my point, & if it comes to that then IMO I'm no better than the rude person who started the whole mess to begin with. Better to teach my kids to walk away in these situations.

Heck, I/we walk away when others around us get into it & we aren't even involved. It sours the entire experience of being there when the adults act badly.

I will say I agree that I do not want to get into issues when at WDW but I do not think it has to be like that to protect your spot. When we wait an hour to make sure we have a good spot for the parade and then someone jumps in front of us at the last minute(and believe me someone always does) I just politely tell them that the spot is taken. They almost always move along. In all my years I only had one exception with a family that refused to move. I simply flagged a CM who came over and politely told the family to move along which they did. It was no hassle and did not interfer with my day at all.

Having said all that I am starting to resent the amount of time I lose by getting a good spot. This year I plan to avoid the parades I do not love and get a less desireable spot for the ones I do. That way I can continue to enjoy the park instead of spending so much time sitting on a curb.

 

[RedHeadedFairy]

I just politely tell them that the spot is taken. They almost always move along. In all my years I only had one exception with a family that refused to move. I simply flagged a CM who came over and politely told the family to move along which they did.

In my experience, you're right... most situations can be handled politely & easily. I find that most people are simply confused first-timers who aren't trying to be rude, but don't understand that others have sacrificed large amounts of time sitting on a curb to guarantee their spot.

We've seen 2 really ugly incidents in our last 2 trips though.

Last Oct, this guy, his wife & DD stopped right in front of others who had been waiting for Wishes in front of the castle in the Hub area & just squeezed themselves in front. CM's were trying to keep people moving through the hub & then the dad who was already about 7 ft tall, put his DD on his shoulders. To see fireworks. In the sky. People starting loudly asking him to be more considerate & he got immediately irate, foul-mouthed, aggressive & was obviously used to just bullying others to get his way. The CM came over, told him that they were not even IN an area to view fireworks because they were standing in the walkway & to please be considerate to those who had been waiting but the dad just continued his rant louder. There were SO many people trying to get through & the CM's just didn't have the manpower to deal with this one idiot and keep the crowd moving so he got his way. Plus the CM was an elderly gentleman who I am sure didn't feel comfortable getting into it with this aggressive guy & it was only minutes from the fireworks start.

In Dec we tried to take that little path behind Liberty Square that runs down to the boardwalk taking you from there to Thunder/Splash to get through the area while the parade was still going.... it was shoulder-to-shoulder with people & strollers & I mean bad enough that once we got so far in, we could not get out the other side, yet people were still trying to push through. It reminded me of a mosh-pit, no joke. One dad was furious & kept insisting that another lady move her stroller NOW so they could get through & she was like... Um.... WHERE? She was blocked on all sides & tried to politely explain but he LOST it & started screaming at her, again dropping F-bombs everywhere. Eventually he & the mom LIFTED the double stroller, with 2 kids inside, over the heads of everyone there & made their way to the queue area for the Riverboat (it was closed already) & exited through their entrance instead.

I don't think a lot of people understand how large the fireworks/parade crowds can be & it's overwhleming to be caught up in the middle of it if you aren't prepared. And if you're claustrophobic, forget it!

 

[jgh]

Yea we just don't even deal with that...ever. I've never actually seen a Disney parade in all of the years I've been going. Way too insane. We pick one side of the park to be on and ride rides over there until it's way over.

 

[nocomment711]

My secret weapon is an old lady in a scooter.

Even then, we had issues at the mvmcp parade. There was a family behind us with small children waiting almost as long as us, and someone tried to push them out of the way. Our solution? We let the kids sit on the curb in front of my grandma so at least their view wasn't obstructed by the rude people.

 

[aaarcher86]

that is why the Fastpass Plus pre-reserved parade viewing looks like it is going to prove popular.

Maybe the pre-reserved areas will be so crowded the regular curb areas will be the prime spots!

 

[nocomment711]

Also. The castle shows are the worst. People stand up right at the front (adults) and the poor kids can't see. Another example where we used the scooter to try and get an area where the kids could sit and watch.

Too many people are so wrapped up in themselves that they forget that they might be ruining the experience for others, and that's a shame, especially when there's kids involved.

 

[Mom2darlingboys]

In my experience, you're right... most situations can be handled politely & easily. I find that most people are simply confused first-timers who aren't trying to be rude, but don't understand that others have sacrificed large amounts of time sitting on a curb to guarantee their spot.

I'd like to believe that, but I can't. Anytime we have had this happen, and someone (either myself or someone around us has said anything) the rudeness has only ever been treated with escalating rudeness. Like tour groups and line jumpers, these folks know what they're doing. They are using others' goodwill against them, taking advantage of the fact that people won't raise a stink or take them on.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not advocating for or against confrontation (although I personally chose FOR, simply because I am very impatient with people who feel that bad behaviour will get them what they want), just saying that you will never win with people like that.

But for every one rude person we encounter in Disney, we find three more willing to hold doors, share tables during a crush, watch out for 'lost' little ones, and start a friendly chat or share Disney 'secrets' in an overly long character line.

I just wish there was a way to weed all those self-righteous guests out. They really can put a damper on your day, whether you want to get into it with them or not.

 

[Tomh]

At DHS we don't mind staying back a bit, at Animal Kingdom I've never had any trouble getting a good spot for a parade, and at MK, we typically grab a spot back in Frontierland shortly before the parade (say half an hour or so) as it generally doesn't get nearly as crowded as other area's of the parade route. We have managed prime front row spots for the parade there many times only half an hour or so before hand. It helps immensely to be willing to sit on the ground on the side of the street opposite the buildings. I am amazed at how late you can arrive, and still find openings right up at the rope on that side of the street.