My thoughts about our last Disney world vacation

[bbjunkie]

You make me feel like you think I hate Disney or something. I am one of the biggest Disney fans on the planet, but you have to live under a rock to not see what they have been doing for the last 3 or 4 years. Here's a few:

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/busi...embership-benefits-resale-20160404-story.html

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/trav...ld-ticket-prices-increase-20170210-story.html

http://www.themeparkinsider.com/flume/201508/4686/

http://www.dadsguidetowdw.com/11-reasons-i-hate-the-disney-dining-plan.html

http://www.bestoforlando.com/articles/paper-fastpass-ticket-system-walt-disney-world/

http://www.wdwmagic.com/other/table...count-program-price-increase-begins-today.htm

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/tourism/os-disney-cuts-20160304-story.html

http://www.orlandoweekly.com/Blogs/...ly-charges-50-an-hour-for-rides-and-ice-cream

Ok.... but you refer to morning or evening extra magic hours as "taking away magic" and I'd bet some people would call this adding an opportunity.

You can easily list price increases, but price increases are industry-wide, not just Disney. So I suppose, while this complaint is certainly valid, wouldn't it be true of every other vacation you could possibly take? Or in order to maintain magic, is Disney supposed to decrease their costs as everyone else increases?

And amongst all of the complaints I tend to see on posts like this, there never seems to be an acknowledgement of the things that have been added. New meet and greets, Rivers, of Light, the Muppet Shows in Liberty Square, new menu offerings at restaurants, etc.

Yes, it is crowded. I'm sorry that your trip didn't live up to your expectations. Maybe it would be better if there was a bathroom attendant in every bathroom full time. But personally I am willing to look past the occasional messy bathroom so I can watch Sam the Eagle narrate some US History for me. I'm looking forward to expereincing Pandora, and I still think grabbing some freshly made caramel corn from Karamel Kuche after Illuminations is magical.

 

[SaintsManiac]

34 posts in this thread for the old standby, " if you don't like it don' t go", or a variation on it. It gets old.
People are allowed to voice their opinions and concerns over a place they obviously love, that's why they voice it!

And people telling others what they should and shouldn't post gets old, too. You post on a discussion board and you will get discussion. I'm allowed to voice my opinion, also.

 

[TravelDad]

Ok.... but you refer to morning or evening extra magic hours as "taking away magic" and I'd bet some people would call this adding an opportunity.

You can easily list price increases, but price increases are industry-wide, not just Disney. So I suppose, while this complaint is certainly valid, wouldn't it be true of every other vacation you could possibly take? Or in order to maintain magic, is Disney supposed to decrease their costs as everyone else increases?

And amongst all of the complaints I tend to see on posts like this, there never seems to be an acknowledgement of the things that have been added. New meet and greets, Rivers, of Light, the Muppet Shows in Liberty Square, new menu offerings at restaurants, etc.

Yes, it is crowded. I'm sorry that your trip didn't live up to your expectations. Maybe it would be better if there was a bathroom attendant in every bathroom full time. But personally I am willing to look past the occasional messy bathroom so I can watch Sam the Eagle narrate some US History for me. I'm looking forward to expereincing Pandora, and I still think grabbing some freshly made caramel corn from Karamel Kuche after Illuminations is magical.

Not sure who this response it to. Nowhere in any of my post do I speak about restrooms cleanliness and I posted no article or complaint on EMH. I do have a complaint about when the parks are crowded that Disney would close early or open late in order to squeeze an extra admission out of guests in order to stay later (excluding MNSSHP/MVMCP although they have been continually increasing the amount of tickets sold to them to nearly unbearable points).

 

[dreiwhit]

We have been to Disney multiple times and I have always left kicking and screaming. Not this time. The parks seem to have had a different vibe to them. There is a lot under construction. The parks were not open late during spring break. The bathrooms were extremely dirty. One was so bad I went to find a cast member. Many of the rides have things in them that are broken down. The monorail continued to break down. Less flowers in Epcot at the festival. Food also didn't seem up to par. Many things taken away off the Pecks Bills bar in the last year. Tried the Plaza restaurant for the first time. I was not impressed. I can really tell where Disney is pinching there dollars. I think this will be the last time for a while that we will be going to Disney. It is a shame. It has always been my happy place.

Our last trip in November was sort of like that. We didn't leave with regrets that we were going back to "the real world", more of a relief its over. We did have a good time, but the magic wasn't the same as our previous trip.

For us, it was a combination of rides breaking down, monorail frequently breaking down or having to wait for a long period of time before getting back to the TTC, favorite attractions being close and the knowledge that some attractions will be gone by the time we return, a very crowded Epcot, and some "less than friendly" cast members that we interacted with.

I've said several times that Disney needs to plow money back into the parks and the monorail to make them more reliable.

 

[Bomahog]

I will try to keep this short and sweet. First trip, 28yrs old in 1972,most recent trip, this last Thanksgiving. Thirty-seven trips from Oregon in between. YES there have been many changes! From the closing of Tangaroa Terrace and thus MY bread pudding no longer being available to the gutting of Horizons and River Country. However, even with a hundred Disney "punches" I will return as many times left to me. I mean REALLY----I still get tears in my eyes just on the little boat ride from the Wilderness Lodge to the boat dock in front of the Magic Kingdom

 

[Zippa D Doodah]

Interesting - seems that Disney would rather pay off the few complainers with passes and refunds than actually address the issues, at least by the testimony of this thread.

From a corporate perspective it is pretty smart to take on that strategy. Imagine how different things would be for United Airlines today if they had offered Dr. Dao $10 grand and a hotel suite.

 

[Dizjunkieee]

This whole thread is such a downer I'm so excited to be planning a multi-generation trip for our kids and grandkids next May but reading posts like these make me want to chuck all the plans and head back to Hawaii which was a trip they really enjoyed last year...and would be MUCH cheaper than WDW! Sorry to hear that so many have had disappointing trips.

Don't feel that way. While things like Disney not finalizing their park hours until very close to when your trip begins can be annoying, I go 3-4 times/year and the magic is still alive and kicking for me. Are things always perfect, nope, but are they anywhere? Go in with a positive attitude and it will be terrific!!

 

[Zippa D Doodah]

As for me... Me and my family have been to WDW 20+ times over the past 17 years, almost all on property. We've seen a few things.

In the course of those trips I have seen a few instances of uncleanliness, disrepair, and discourteous guest service. As with most things in life, the negative stands out more than all the positives -if you let it. One bad apple CAN spoil the bunch. This means that entering a couple trashy bathrooms on a trip means, from an individual perspective, OH MY GOSH!!!! ALL BATHROOMS ARE FILTHY!!! When in actuality 95% of the bathrooms on a particular day were well-attended to. It is a valid argument though to say Disney should only accept 100% cleanliness in their bathrooms. I'm OK with 95% but YMMV

It looks to me on recent visits that there is something to the chatter about Disney/WDW cutting corners. I mean after all, they have huge new waves of people flooding the gates and they can't raise prices high enough to stem the tide. Nice problem to have! My guess is that they are using this stroke of good fortune to underwrite other flagging properties under the Disney umbrella (I'm looking at you ESPN). That's why you hear these odd rumors about cutbacks to Toy Story Land even as huge crowds continue to come. Honestly, if Disney was nurturing WDW properly they would be announcing a 5th gate soon in order to service guests and lay groundwork for the future.

 

[jvattes]

We have been to Disney multiple times and I have always left kicking and screaming. Not this time. The parks seem to have had a different vibe to them. There is a lot under construction. The parks were not open late during spring break. The bathrooms were extremely dirty. One was so bad I went to find a cast member. Many of the rides have things in them that are broken down. The monorail continued to break down. Less flowers in Epcot at the festival. Food also didn't seem up to par. Many things taken away off the Pecks Bills bar in the last year. Tried the Plaza restaurant for the first time. I was not impressed. I can really tell where Disney is pinching there dollars. I think this will be the last time for a while that we will be going to Disney. It is a shame. It has always been my happy place.

I know a lot of us try to disconnect during trips, but I wonder if you tried live tweeting about any of this. I have heard others tweet about, in particular, dirty bathrooms, and see a cast member arrive to resolve the matter in moments. Should we have to be doing this - no. But public shame can be a real motivator

 

[momimouse27]

Still love WDW, but I can say with honesty, that I understand the feelings of those here who are disappointed. For me, it stems from the neglect of my favorite park, Epcot. I miss the original Figment ride, Innoventions, Horizons, and Maelstrom. I used to love hanging out in Future World-i could stay there all day. But I love Soarin and the addition of special events in World Showcase. Some of it is expectation...I remember when I took my girls around September 2000 and 2001 when there was literally almost no one there. Last year September it was much, much busier. So, yeah, i do miss the old days a bit. I don't notice the dirty bathrooms as some have mentioned-in fact, they seemed cleaner to me. I have, however, noticed some of the CMs that lack the friendliness that used to be there. But they aren't all that way, of course. Some of my favorite restaurants have disappointed me recently. But, I'll probably go there again anyway, because they hold memories for me and for my kids.

 

[disneyseniors]

And people telling others what they should and shouldn't post gets old, too. You post on a discussion board and you will get discussion. I'm allowed to voice my opinion, also.

That is so true, but it's the same old, lame old remark people make when someone on here has concerns and voices them, that's all.
I think that if you don't like what is in a thread, you should just leave it and go to another one. There are many wonderful ones here on the dis to choose from. Why make a snarky remark when someone is expressing their concerns about their vacation. There are many posters on here that did the same thing. I personally like to read these. Some I agree with, some I don't, but there's a choice.
There are many threads that I look at, decided I really don't like them, and go on to another one that I am interested in. No need to make someone feel like they need to leave Disney because they had an experience on their vacation that they didn't like. Anyway, it's simple, just find another thread that you enjoy

 

[SaintsManiac]

That is so true, but it's the same old, lame old remark people make when someone on here has concerns and voices them, that's all.
I think that if you don't like what is in a thread, you should just leave it and go to another one. There are many wonderful ones here on the dis to choose from. Why make a snarky remark when someone is expressing their concerns about their vacation. There are many posters on here that did the same thing. I personally like to read these. Some I agree with, some I don't, but there's a choice.
There are many threads that I look at, decided I really don't like them, and go on to another one that I am interested in. No need to make someone feel like they need to leave Disney because they had an experience on their vacation that they didn't like. Anyway, it's simple, just find another thread that you enjoy

There was absolutely no snark in my comment. I meant it sincerely, because I would take a break myself if I felt that negative about it. You wanted to find snark, so you did.

 

[disneyseniors]

There was absolutely no snark in my comment. I meant it sincerely, because I would take a break myself if I felt that negative about it. You wanted to find snark, so you did.

ba da dum! Sigh...........................I'm outta here

 

[kreckl]

You make me feel like you think I hate Disney or something. I am one of the biggest Disney fans on the planet, but you have to live under a rock to not see what they have been doing for the last 3 or 4 years. Here's a few:

Whoa- what? I simply didn't know what you were referring to and asked- no judgement-by me.

 

[TravelDad]

Whoa- what? I simply didn't know what you were referring to and asked- no judgement-by me.

 

[JerseyJanice]

One of the things I enjoyed about visiting WDW over the years was feeling that we got a lot of bang for our bucks. It's never a cheap vacation, but the value was always there.

However, I do feel that there has been some real avarice from the current management, and it's off-putting. $60 for a dessert party? The price of moderate resort rooms? Four nights per week of the MNSSHP in the fall?

Well, there has to be a tipping point, and it will happen soon. Current events in the world are likely to slow down overseas visitors, and then we will see Disney needing to offer value to people to keep up critical mass.

 

[bbjunkie]

Not sure who this response it to. Nowhere in any of my post do I speak about restrooms cleanliness and I posted no article or complaint on EMH. I do have a complaint about when the parks are crowded that Disney would close early or open late in order to squeeze an extra admission out of guests in order to stay later (excluding MNSSHP/MVMCP although they have been continually increasing the amount of tickets sold to them to nearly unbearable points).

It was in response to you, as you posted an article about Disney After Hours as evidence of "something they've been doing," when asked for examples. My point is that your complaint that this is a problem may be viewed entirely differently by someone else, who is more than willing to pay some extra money in order to have more rides with less crowds.

 

[Planogirl]

It is always the same here. People critique the parks a bit and a few rush to defend Disney. I see nothing wrong with both sides discussing problems but there are those who just want to defend and those individuals are pretty obvious. And yes, it comes from the other side too.

WDW is not the same as it once was. The only question is whether it needs to be. For some people it's fine as it is but for others including me it's lacking. I will stop going when the bad outweighs the good but I'd rather see less bad! The place is getting more and more crowded so the company has no reason to care.

It's funny how consumers overlook so much when it comes to Disney. I believe that many people are much more critical if it's another company.

 

[TravelDad]

It was in response to you, as you posted an article about Disney After Hours as evidence of "something they've been doing," when asked for examples. My point is that your complaint that this is a problem may be viewed entirely differently by someone else, who is more than willing to pay some extra money in order to have more rides with less crowds.

It's not necessary to have an extra ticket to ride more rides with less crowds if you're going to go early and stay late. Just have the parks open and close on time during peak seasons like they have done in the past and those are the times that much can be accomplished with minimal crowds. They have taken away the early entry and late nights, not simply added additional time. It's just a cash grab by being open during the same times and charging for what used to be free.

 

[TravelDad]

It is always the same here. People critique the parks a bit and a few rush to defend Disney. I see nothing wrong with both sides discussing problems but there are those who just want to defend and those individuals are pretty obvious. And yes, it comes from the other side too.

WDW is not the same as it once was. The only question is whether it needs to be. For some people it's fine as it is but for others including me it's lacking. I will stop going when the bad outweighs the good but I'd rather see less bad! The place is getting more and more crowded so the company has no reason to care.

It's funny how consumers overlook so much when it comes to Disney. I believe that many people are much more critical if it's another company.