I suppose I should have left out any mention of EMH since that is not really the debate I wanted to start. Although it's my personal opinion that everything should remain open for them also.
So ... excluding EMH and AK attractions (due to animals) open should mean open.
It just sucks to get hungry at 8:30pm at HS, when they are open until 9, and have all but one place to eat shut down ... many of them as early as 5 or 6.
I don't buy that Disney shouldn't have to pay for extra staffing. If you pay to get into a park, they should pay to keep it open for the advertised hours. All of it.
DHS is kind of ridiculous in the evening. During our recent trip, I had to make a point of getting to Starring Rolls for a cupcake, because we take breaks every day, and I knew we likely wouldn't be back by the 4pm closing time.
I had to strategically plan my day around that cupcake.
One of the trips before that, I had to wander around from CS to CS trying to find somewhere that was open and sold something I actually wouldn't mind eating.
The fine print always says that times and attractions are subject to change. I would rather Disney manage their bottom line by closing a few under- utilized restaurants and attractions than just shut the whole thing down earlier. Or raise the prices even more!
Would you really rather they close the Magic Kingdom down at say 7 pm then stay open and close down a few food kiosks? Not me!
That's probably the point.
Many people seem to just be explaining why they don't keep everything open. I completely understand the why.
Regardless of what a wise business decision it is to partially close, it doesn't change my opinion that they should give guests what they pay for ... the entire park for the entire duration of operating hours.
As a PP pointed out, EMH will likely be a thing of the past when bands are in use, so it's not really my main issue. But, a couple of points to that effect -
*EMH is NOT pixie dust as it's not a gift or surprise of any kind. It's part of what people pay a premium for to stay at WDW resorts.
*Day guests are not asked to leave during EMH, they just can't ride rides.
As to early closings on normal hour days -
It shouldn't happen. People pay to have access to the park for that day and that is what should be offered.
As far as being worried about Disney raising prices - They do it anyway. Every year. Consistently.
The why is very important. You can't say that someone should do something without expressing the why.
"Should" is relative.
In some cases, they can't keep attractions open without severely inhibiting a guest's total experience. The attractions already break down fairly frequently. I don't think I've ever ridden the Haunted Mansion all the way through without stopping. I got painstakingly close during my last trip... I mean...."Hurrrry baaack" close.
With your logic, they should be open the same hours every day of the year, because everyone pays the same admission price, even though certain weeks are more crowded than others justifying the extended hours.
I think they're fairly good at advertising closures and such beforehand. It's just a matter of finding the information early enough for it to be useful.
People really SHOULD research their vacations, since they're spending so much money on them. That doesn't mean that they do.
