Posted wait times wildly off...WAY LONGER!

[whiporee]

Man, that really sucks. You've got broken rides at three different parks on the same day, at the same time. And that's really bad luck to have attractions closed hours before the park does, because I've honestly never known that to happen. I've known them to be shut down for a while, but I've never seen any ride at WDW to have an unscheduled closing that's announced earlier than park hours. Or a CM who just shrugged off a concern, or a manager who admitted what a specific problem was -- and to have wait times that far off and no one knowing about it. That's a very bad string of luck, though I'm glad the manager was able to extend your FP for a fixed-time show. Sounds like a real cluster of incompetence and malice there, and I'm sorry you were the brunt of such a set of unusual problems.

Hope the rest of your trip goes better.

 

[angierae]

As someone who often rides 300-400 foot tall roller coasters: I will never complain when a ride is down. It might be a safety issue. I would rather they close a ride at the first sign of something being wrong than keep running and get people stuck in there or worse, hurt.

I'm sorry there's so much of it during your trip, though. I know how hard it is to only have a few chances to do things and then have that go out the window.

 

[monkyby87]

It's not a consolation for your disappointing a trip, but that much being down at once is generally the exception, not the rule. So hopefully an further trips will be just fine. Of all the times I've gone over the past many years, I've rarely had a time when that many things were down all at once.

 

[Sara_H]

As much of a pain it would be, I get it, rides break down and sometimes there is nothing they can do. However, in my opinion lately Disney seems to be all about the new things and they aren't focusing on repairing or the upkeep of the old. Buzz Lightyear is a good example. That ride used to be fun, but now the guns don't work well, if at all, and the ride seems to be worn down. I understand that the new rides are what keep people coming back but they can't let other things deteriorate (yes I understand that the park is not falling apart by any means). Not all changes are good, sometimes you need to keep what is already there in good working condition instead of focusing on building new. Having a new ride is awesome but not if it is at the cost of 3 or 4 others constantly breaking down because they aren't as important as the new ride.

 

[Victoria3]

Some attractions do close earlier then the official park closing time. I'd recommend picking up a times guide.

 

[DisLiss]

Sorry this is happening. Hope tomorrow will be a better day.

I can understand the frustration. Disney is an expensive trip for many people. They didn’t pay that big money to hear “don’t let this ruin your day”.

You're paying for the expensive trip no matter what. So you have to decide....will you let the problems drag down your expensive trip or find other ways to enjoy your expensive trip? My family chooses to do our very best to move past problems and find other ways to have fun.

We literally talk about this beforehand. We come with hypothetical problems and plan Bs and plan Cs if things go wrong. We talk about how important it is NOT to get your heart set any any rides. And we remind them that the parks will still be here in the future and they can see about coming back another time to hit whatever they miss on the upcoming trip. (And our next trip after our upcoming one won't be for another 7 years. So it's not like we're every year Disney goers.)

I wasn't trying to sound harsh or unsympathetic in the least. I was sorry they ran into issues. I get that it can be disappointing and frustrated. And we get disappointed & frustrated, too. But we try to recalculate and move on so we can still enjoy ourselves and I was just hoping they could find a way to enjoy themselves despite those issues, too.

 

[Cinderumbrella]

Come on folks. It was a vent post. OP, vent away. I get the disappointment. Venting usually helps.

I suspect you’ve moved on and are enjoying the rest your trip.

 

[jodifla]

You're paying for the expensive trip no matter what. So you have to decide....will you let the problems drag down your expensive trip or find other ways to enjoy your expensive trip? My family chooses to do our very best to move past problems and find other ways to have fun.

We literally talk about this beforehand. We come with hypothetical problems and plan Bs and plan Cs if things go wrong. We talk about how important it is NOT to get your heart set any any rides. And we remind them that the parks will still be here in the future and they can see about coming back another time to hit whatever they miss on the upcoming trip. (And our next trip after our upcoming one won't be for another 7 years. So it's not like we're every year Disney goers.)

I wasn't trying to sound harsh or unsympathetic in the least. I was sorry they ran into issues. I get that it can be disappointing and frustrated. And we get disappointed & frustrated, too. But we try to recalculate and move on so we can still enjoy ourselves and I was just hoping they could find a way to enjoy themselves despite those issues, too.

I am th OP and grew up near WDW and have been here countless times. I am also a DVC owner. I give Disney the benefit of the doubt typically, but what we are seeing here now is worrisome. Every day broken rides and times that don't match the posted times.

Disney has been the industry standard. They need to maintain that.

 

[Disneypro1]

All the years we have gone. We have not experienced anything close to that. Glad I’m not there today!!
Sure an attraction may be down now and then. But nothing that last long. This is unusual what you describe. Never experienced anything close to it. I made the comment to my wife last visit that the park looked brand new. Everything perfect.

 

[Disneypro1]

Some attractions do close earlier then the official park closing time. I'd recommend picking up a times guide.

I was thinking that also.
On a side note. This thread reminds my of a Katiebug thread. Lol

 

[jodifla]

I was thinking that also.
On a side note. This thread reminds my of a Katiebug thread. Lol

The Muppets have never closed earlier in our experience. Closing it in a packed park doesn't make much sense.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

The Muppets have never closed earlier in our experience. Closing it in a packed park doesn't make much sense.

It's not your fault it's closing early but here's this article from WDWNT from October 24th, 2018 when it was announced Muppets would be operating on a reduced schedule: https://wdwnt.com/2018/10/muppetvis...ced-hours-daily-at-disneys-hollywood-studios/

According to the article "It is unclear how long these new hours will last, but they are already scheduled through at least April 22nd, 2019."

Can't speak towards crowded or not crowded but it at least appears to Disney this was a long-term decision without respects to view it on a day by day or week by week review of expected crowds.

 

[gharter]

Unfortunately, rides go down and it sucks when it happens while you are there. When its really crowded, that onnly makes it worse as the crowds are pushed onto fewer attractions, so they become more crowded.
All you can do is make the best of a bad situation.

 

[monkyby87]

Unfortunately, rides go down and it sucks when it happens while you are there. When its really crowded, that onnly makes it worse as the crowds are pushed onto fewer attractions, so they become more crowded.
All you can do is make the best of a bad situation.

It's especially noticeable in HS, since right now there just aren't that many attractions. It only takes one or two rides to go down in HS and it will seem like there's nothing to do. It's getting better as new rides are added.

 

[Disneypro1]

You're paying for the expensive trip no matter what. So you have to decide....will you let the problems drag down your expensive trip or find other ways to enjoy your expensive trip? My family chooses to do our very best to move past problems and find other ways to have fun.

We literally talk about this beforehand. We come with hypothetical problems and plan Bs and plan Cs if things go wrong. We talk about how important it is NOT to get your heart set any any rides. And we remind them that the parks will still be here in the future and they can see about coming back another time to hit whatever they miss on the upcoming trip. (And our next trip after our upcoming one won't be for another 7 years. So it's not like we're every year Disney goers.)

I wasn't trying to sound harsh or unsympathetic in the least. I was sorry they ran into issues. I get that it can be disappointing and frustrated. And we get disappointed & frustrated, too. But we try to recalculate and move on so we can still enjoy ourselves and I was just hoping they could find a way to enjoy themselves despite those issues, too.

I agree life is too short to let anything at WDW upset you. I agree with the above post 110%
We always have the time of our life at WDW to DL

 

[Dallas_Lady]

Unfortunately, as long as the parks are full and profits are up, Disney has no incentive to make things better.

 

[cmwade77]

Exactly. We saved all year for this trip. Crowds are fine. It is spring break after all. But closed rides, mismanaged lines, broken rides.. those fall under WDW's responsibility.

At Star Tours, the cast members just shrugged when they were asked what was going on and said they couldn't do anything about it. I told her it was her job to manage the line and that the time listed should reflect the truth, not be a total fiction. She finally picked up the phone and I heard her shock when she found out half the lanes were closed.

We told a second cast member after we waited for an hour... the Disney app was saying 20 minutes. She also said " nothing I can do about it." After finally getting off the ride 75 minutes later, we ran into two managers and complained to them.

They said they had mechanical problems but hadn't known about the wrong line times until we brought it up to one of the cast members, who finally made a phone call.

Other people were just storming out of the ride. We told the managers they need yo empower their workers to solve problems.

The managers called ahead to Fantasmic so we could still use our fast passes.

I can't imagine how this is going to play out when DWGE opens it they are struggling to handle spring break.

Honestly, if it is a trip you are saving up for that much, do not go during Spring Break if at all avoidable, the change in weather combined with increased crowds almost always bring extra break downs. As for wait times, they usually do a good job at monitoring that, so not sure what happened there.

 

[jodifla]

Honestly, if it is a trip you are saving up for that much, do not go during Spring Break if at all avoidable, the change in weather combined with increased crowds almost always bring extra break downs. As for wait times, they usually do a good job at monitoring that, so not sure what happened there.

I hear what you are saying, but I have a high schooler, so that is why we are here now. I have been going to WDW at least annually since 1972, so 47 years now. What I saw this time was definitely a change in employee accountability. We have magic bands, so it should be easy to track how much time it is taking to move people through the lines.

Today at Animal Kingdom, everything seemed more typical for a busy Spring Break day.

 

[Tiggerlover91]

I hear what you are saying, but I have a high schooler, so that is why we are here now. I have been going to WDW at least annually since 1972, so 47 years now. What I saw this time was definitely a change in employee accountability. We have magic bands, so it should be easy to track how much time it is taking to move people through the lines.

Today at Animal Kingdom, everything seemed more typical for a busy Spring Break day.

Were you only having those problems in the Studios? If so...hoping things get better for the park once SWGE opens. I haven't been to that park in 18 years....so I'm not one to complain or correct people when they do. I listen, I read and then decide will it be worth it to go to when SWGE does open.

 

[Klayfish]

Unfortunately, as long as the parks are full and profits are up, Disney has no incentive to make things better.

I think their actions show that not to be true...at all.