And your post basically confirms why this sucks
they just keep adding up charges and taking away the cheaper options
I’d much rather see a ticket price that allows all guests to have a good experience than this current system of tiered ticket prices and a multitude of add ons.
Disneyland used to be a unifier, a place where almost everyone had the opportunity to have the same experience. Sure, maybe one family wasn’t buying as many souvenirs or eating at BB, but for the most part the experience was similar. I’d hate to be taking my child to Disneyland now and have to spend all my time explaining why the people in that line get to go faster, why those people get to be in the front row seating for the parade or Fantasmic!, etc.
I’m saying this as someone who now can afford to do some of the add-ons, and has. It’s really too much now. And honestly, I far more enjoyed staking out my curb spot for MSEP in 2022 than I enjoyed paying for a Plaza Inn dining package for the Christmas parade in 2023. One experience rewarded my willingness to give up some time to wait for the parade, and I enjoyed chatting with guests around me as we waited. The other involved waiting in line to get into the seating with a group of people complaining about the line, then waiting in the enclosed area with a group of people complaining about how tightly we were packed in and how we still had to stand (or sit on the ground for the first row of people). The people who had paid for the experience were overwhelmingly less happy about their wait than the people who had staked out curb spots. 2023 was the first time I had ever paid for a parade viewing spot, and I won’t do it again. I don’t mind waiting for curb spots, and until recently I would always stand up for the parade once it started so children nearby could have the very front row and interact with characters (starting 2022 I had to stay seated due to worsening disability).
Same thing with F!, we paid for a dining package once when they were newer, I believe it was Cafe Orleans. Our viewing area was farther off to the side than I would have expected, and we were all required sit on the ground so groups behind us could see. None of us thought it was worth it.
Last year we did the WoC dessert party, and this was only so I could sit down to watch WoC as a disabled person who wasn’t using a walker or wheelchair. DH didn’t think it was worth it, but maybe people who take advantage of the included alcoholic beverages find it to be a better deal. Again, there was just so much waiting. Once you decide to pay that much for the experience, you don’t want to be the person at the back of the line getting a “bad seat”, so you’re advised to arrive an hour before Disney tells you to arrive.
I guess my point is, even the paid experiences aren’t really much of an improvement. Short of doing the VIP tours, it’s still crowded and you wait a lot.
There are too many guests at Disneyland, which is why they sell all of these upgrades. I’d rather they just choose an acceptable ticket price and let us fend for ourselves inside. DH longs for the days of zero fast pass or paid line cutting at all.
