My Own Personal 'Mad as Hell' Moment

[Princesca]

Again, right there with you OP.

I have never written a negative tone letter to any business - until this morning. For me the straw that broke the camel's back was the extended dinosaur refurb.

My letter was pleasant but strong and certainly left no room for interpretation regarding my level of displeasure.

I don't even care about Dinosaur that much on its own (though it would have been nice to have a standard explanation in the notification email as to why it was cancelled, rather than making me go to Google to hunt it down) - but in conjunction with everything else, ick. I understand sometimes refurbs take longer than anticipated. But add that to Stitch, BTMRR, Swiss Family, RNRC, msep, blah blah on and on...

If they close Star Tours people all over the globe are going to hear my head explode.

 

[mom2rtk]

I agree I would much rather see Star Wars fireworks, I was just being a little pedantic and pointing out they didn't actually cancel them. I really think how much enjoyment you get out of your vacation is mainly down to you and your mind set. I know it's difficult with all the issues lately, but your trip (and mine) is so close, don't ruin it's for yourself by feeling negative. Go with a positive attitude, and it enjoy what is being offered. And if you still feel like pursuing your complaint when you get back, go for it.

Well, at some point people have to take a leap of faith in scheduling trips without announced entertainment offerings and closures. If you wait until it's all scheduled, you wouldn't be eligible for discounts and probably could not schedule to eat at a number of the places you want to eat. I think it was reasonable to hope for Star Wars fireworks after they were offered for an extended time already.

 

[Mickey's Best Girl]

I don't even care about Dinosaur that much on its own (though it would have been nice to have a standard explanation in the notification email as to why it was cancelled, rather than making me go to Google to hunt it down) - but in conjunction with everything else, ick. I understand sometimes refurbs take longer than anticipated. But add that to Stitch, BTMRR, Swiss Family, RNRC, msep, blah blah on and on...

If they close Star Tours people all over the globe are going to hear my head explode.

That's it right there.

Rehabs happen, we all know that.

But one or two here and there, a headliner and Swiss Tree House....... That is the norm and what I would consider acceptable. Never have I seen this many headliners, and yes, for us they are headliners, out of commission at once.

 

[prprincess]

Good job! Your letter is well written and I agree with you 100%. I felt that way when we went in August--why the heck are we still going, everything's closed??? We did still though have a great time, as I know you will. Please keep us posted. I'm curious to see whether or not you get a response.

 

[Klayfish]

Though I will say I don't agree with the content of your letter to WDW, I have an honest question. Not a criticism at all, just asking about the ADR comments because I don't eat in WDW often (we bring our own food 95% of the time and do QS the other 5%). In all of our trips there, we've only done ADR once...it was at Seven Dragons in Epcot and we quickly realized we didn't need it because the restaurant was empty, and now when we eat there we just walk in.

What is the alternative that WDW can do regarding ADR to make it better for guests? From what I understand, they open certain restaurants to reservations on a first come first serve basis. The guests, I presume, are the ones that take up all the great spots 6 months in advance. What would WDW be able to do about this? From my uneducated eyes on ADR, this seems like a guest issue rather than WDW.

Ride closing stinks, unquestionably. It has to be done sometime, but it always stinks when it's YOUR time that it's being closed.

 

[wilkeliza]

This is more a question than a criticism, and I don't know the answer because I don't eat in WDW often (we bring our own food 95% of the time and do QS the other 5%).

Why is it WDW fault that you need to make reservations for restaurants 6 months in advance? The way I understand it, they make certain restaurants available for reservations, and it's first come first serve. How is Disney responsible because guests take up all the slots early? What would be the alternative for WDW to do? Again, not being critical really, I just don't understand the whole ADR thing. From what I know of it, I can see why it's frustrating, but I don't see it as WDW fault.

Ride closing stinks, unquestionably. It has to be done sometime, but it always stinks when it's YOUR time that it's being closed.

The alternate would be what Disneyland does. At DL you can start making reservations at 60 days (may even be 45 or 30). I can usually make my reservations at 180 days but now that I'm planning a trip for my niece whose mom is not an uber planner she doesn't understand why I have to say things like sorry even though we aren't going until February niece won't get to eat with the Princesses and probably not even with Mickey unless we are willing to mess up nap time. No we can't eat in Belle's castle and so on. They are newer to Disney now and are use to Disney from when they were kids where their parent's didn't have to plan everything half a year out. So Disney could make the FP and Dinning reservation time line be the same.

 

[Princesca]

This is more a question than a criticism, and I don't know the answer because I don't eat in WDW often (we bring our own food 95% of the time and do QS the other 5%).

Why is it WDW fault that you need to make reservations for restaurants 6 months in advance? The way I understand it, they make certain restaurants available for reservations, and it's first come first serve. How is Disney responsible because guests take up all the slots early? What would be the alternative for WDW to do? Again, not being critical really, I just don't understand the whole ADR thing. From what I know of it, I can see why it's frustrating, but I don't see it as WDW fault.

Ride closing stinks, unquestionably. It has to be done sometime, but it always stinks when it's YOUR time that it's being closed.

It's not their FAULT that I choose to go after sought-after reservations by taking advantage of booking windows. BUT... they do like people to plan in advance (though not required) as evidenced by early booking for ADRs, FP+, and now even suggesting that we pre-order food at BoG. Wait til they roll THAT out more places. They like it when WE plan, but they are unwilling to commit to solid plans in enough time for us to enjoy the benefits of those plans. For people who don't have park hoppers, this can make scheduling park days and FP+ pretty onerous.

 

[BrianL]

I agree with you on this. I have no problem with them swapping Star Wars for a Christmas themed show, BUT they should have given people a much longer notice about this. They do expect us to make out plans so very early and it's not fair when you plan to be in a certain park for a certain thing and they pull the rug out from under you at the last minute. Maintenance is one thing because sometimes that can't be helped, but planning around these key experiences is important and they should be giving us a much longer lead time.

 

[Klayfish]

The alternate would be what Disneyland does. At DL you can start making reservations at 60 days (may even be 45 or 30). I can usually make my reservations at 180 days but now that I'm planning a trip for my niece whose mom is not an uber planner she doesn't understand why I have to say things like sorry even though we aren't going until February niece won't get to eat with the Princesses and probably not even with Mickey unless we are willing to mess up nap time. No we can't eat in Belle's castle and so on. They are newer to Disney now and are use to Disney from when they were kids where their parent's didn't have to plan everything half a year out. So Disney could make the FP and Dinning reservation time line be the same.

OK, I see what you're saying. Let me play devils' advocate. Let's say they switch ADR to 60 days, to match FP+. Imagine the mad rush to make reservations "that close" to someone's trip. Can you imagine the stress people will vent in not being sure they can get what they want so close to their vacation? Plus, let's say it's 60 days out from your big trip, you can make reservations starting at 7am. You don't get online until 7:30am for whatever reason. Everything is gone. Then what? I'd guess the uproar would be far worse than what it is now. Wouldn't you be furious that you're only 60 days away from your trip and now can't eat where you want?

For me, many of the frustrations that people voice about having to plan so far in advance and getting mad at WDW for it make no sense. I can understand wanting consistency from WDW, but I don't see it solving the problem. It's a very busy place. Guests are the ones snapping up the FP+, the ADRs, etc... It's not the guests "fault" because that's how the system works. Yet, at the same time, I don't see how WDW can avoid that. I don't know, but I would guess they strongly encourage far advance planning so that they minimize complaints of guests screaming at them "I tried to book my reservation two weeks in advance and I got nothing!! It's your fault because you didn't warn me!!"

To me, it seems like a no win situation for them. I really do understand why it's frustrating for guests, but I don't see where WDW is the root cause of the issue, or even worse what a good solution is.

 

[wilkeliza]

OK, I see what you're saying. Let me play devils' advocate. Let's say they switch ADR to 60 days, to match FP+. Imagine the mad rush to make reservations "that close" to someone's trip. Can you imagine the stress people will vent in not being sure they can get what they want so close to their vacation? Plus, let's say it's 60 days out from your big trip, you can make reservations starting at 7am. You don't get online until 7:30am for whatever reason. Everything is gone. Then what? I'd guess the uproar would be far worse than what it is now. Wouldn't you be furious that you're only 60 days away from your trip and now can't eat where you want?

For me, many of the frustrations that people voice about having to plan so far in advance and getting mad at WDW for it make no sense. I can understand wanting consistency from WDW, but I don't see it solving the problem. It's a very busy place. Guests are the ones snapping up the FP+, the ADRs, etc... I don't see how WDW can avoid that. I don't know, but I would guess they strongly encourage far advance planning so that they minimize complaints of guests screaming at them "I tried to book my reservation two weeks in advance and I got nothing!! It's your fault because you didn't warn me!!"

To me, it seems like a no win situation for them. I really do understand why it's frustrating for guests, but I don't see where WDW is the root cause of the issue, or even worse what a good solution is.

I don't see it necessarily making it easier to get hard to book reservations but what it would do is prevent issues where you don't have 90% of the variables. Right now booking ADRs at 180 days you have no idea what hours are going to be and what fastpasses you may be able to get etc. So people are double and trip booking their ADRs in order to be able to cover all their bases until they have more information. I think making it all line up and closer to a trip would mean that even the average park goer would have a chance at something. As of right now unless you are tuned in to Disney it is not 100% clear that you should book your hotel more then 180 days out and then book food reservations at 180 days if you really care where you eat. Yes Disneyland has a few restaurants you have to book at exactly 60 days or you aren't getting it but that is much easier to think about. I've eaten almost every where I want to at both properties so I don't really care that it is at 180 days but I can imagine it being very hard for the average park goer to plan that far in advance. Heck I can't currently plan that far in advance next year because I don't know my companies new time off policy yet so I feel bad taking ADRs from a family who knows they are 100% going at that time so I haven't booked anything yet for a very likely trip.

 

[robinb]

I gotta say, now that I think about it, that IS really tempting. I just can't let go of all the planning I've done this time.

FYI: Royal Caribbean has a 4-day cruise that leaves on 11/13 on the Majesty of the Seas for $362 for 2 people (not EACH) in an outside cabin and that includes taxes and port fees.

 

[mjr0483]

We went to Disneyland a couple years ago and so much stuff was down due to them getting ready for the big 60th. We also felt cheated. But you always get the cheery people posting.

So I will be cheery. Suck it up. You are going to WDW. How many people never get to go. There are so many things open and so many things to do you will have a great time if you just relax and take it all in.

Seriously though , Stitch really? That is not much of an argument. That mess should have been torn down years ago.

The thing about Disney though is things are always changing. If you don't like it cancel your trip and reschedule or go to Universal.

I was pricing out another trip to Disneyland and the prices were insane. So instead we are going to Disneyland Paris

 

[Princesca]

Seriously though , Stitch really? That is not much of an argument. That mess should have been torn down years ago.

Well then, look at it THIS way - it's a sad state of affairs when so much is closed/gone/ended/cancelled that you notice and miss Stitch's Great Escape.

 

[mom2rtk]

Seriously though , Stitch really? That is not much of an argument. That mess should have been torn down years ago.

I know! I totally get that. But my friend and her family actually LIKE that ride and I knew she'd be disappointed when I told her it would be closed. They're just big Stitch fans in general. We rode it once in 2004 shortly after it opened and haven't bothered since then. Although, that said, I don't like having anything closed since it absorbs bodies in the parks. Those bodies will then be in line for other attractions or clogging up the walkways.

 

[Angel Ariel]

The guests, I presume, are the ones that take up all the great spots 6 months in advance. What would WDW be able to do about this? From my uneducated eyes on ADR, this seems like a guest issue rather than WDW.

The guests take up the spots 6 months in advance because that's when Disney opens the reservations. If Disney opened the reservations at 90 days or 60 days the spots would still fill up like they do at 180, but many people find planning restaurants at 60 days a lot more palatable than at 180 days.

Disneyland has a 60 day ADR window..you still need to arrange the most popular things (like a prepark opening Minnie and Friends character breakfast) ASAP...but at 60 days I am much more in the process of thinking/planning my trip than I am at 180 days.

 

[Amelia :)]

OP check the schedule for November 12th!!! It's just changed!! Please don't be a glitch!!

 

[Amelia :)]

It looks legit, 8pm SWAGS on November 12, an hour after Fantasmic aswell! I really hope you can arrange things so you can see them your arrival night after how disappointed you were

 

[Princesca]

Omg! That would be awesome! Afraid to get my hopes up. Have dinner reservations 615 in EPCOT. What are the odds I can make it to DHS by 8?

The sucky thing is my FEA FP is that night after dinner and no times are available for any of the other two days I'm there.

 

[robinb]

Omg! That would be awesome! Afraid to get my hopes up. Have dinner reservations 615 in EPCOT. What are the odds I can make it to DHS by 8?

The sucky thing is my FEA FP is that night after dinner and no times are available for any of the other two days I'm there.

When is your FP? Maybe you can arrange for a late dinner after the fireworks.

 

[Twilight Sparkle]

Op, since you're a Harry Potter fan, you absolutely should plan to visit Universal. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and Diagon Alley are AWESOME!!! We had a great time there.

I understand your frustration. We're still new to Disney, so I'm not ready to give it up yet, but we will go somewhere else in 2018. Probably Universal, maybe NYC or DC. We already have WDW booked for 2017. I doubt we will return to WDW after this next trip until Star Wars Land opens and gets the kinks worked out. If we do return before then, I foresee a resort only stay rather than a parks focus. Our reasons for taking a break have more to do with the fact that there are other places we want to see rather than with displeasure with Disney. Though, like you, I have not been too thrilled with the planning bumps this time around.

Please let us know if you receive a response. In the meantime, I hope you have a wonderful trip despite these disappointments. Hoping lots and lots of pixie dust finds you and yours.