TSM standby-less test Oct. 6-9

[Laketravis]

When you pay for admission to the park you aren't paying to ride any specific ride.

I have to disagree with that statement. When I pay for admission to the park, I am paying to ride a specific ride. At Epcot, it's TT for me. At AK, it's EE.

And at HS, it's Toy Story.

I'm inclined to believe that many others feel the same way. When they plan to go to a particular park, they have specific rides and attractions in mind. They aren't walking into those parks with a pollyannaish roll-the-dice attitude.

 

[minnie-apple-mouse]

At Epcot, it's TT for me.

Same, but if I had a park reimbursement for every time this was down and missed it over the years.

 

[vacationer1954]

I'm not assuming Disney has sinister aspirations, but this was one massive blunder on their part to do this without warning.

They've done comparable things in the past quite often so it wasn't a blunder. It was just something that some people didn't like. A lot of people don't want the regular operations of the theme park to ever affect anything that they care a lot about but that's not the way things work out.

I have to disagree with that statement. When I pay for admission to the park, I am paying to ride a specific ride.

It's just not true though. The more people believe things that aren't true like that the more they are going to be disappointed, especially at Disney.

 

[cakebaker]

I have to disagree with that statement. When I pay for admission to the park, I am paying to ride a specific ride. At Epcot, it's TT for me. At AK, it's EE.

And at HS, it's Toy Story.

I'm inclined to believe that many others feel the same way. When they plan to go to a particular park, they have specific rides and attractions in mind. They aren't walking into those parks with a pollyannaish roll-the-dice attitude.

I understand that there may be specific rides you enter a park for, but that's not what your money buys you with a ticket. You are not guaranteed of being able to ride anything. I don't walk in with a pollyannish attitude- I walk in with a realistic one and with the knowledge of what I am and am not entitled to for my money.

TOT is mine at HS. While I do other things there too, if that ride wasn't there, I'd make it a resort day while the rest of my bunch went. But, if I go and it's down or they've made it impossible for me to ride- that's life. That's the rules of the ticket I bought. Disney is not obligated in any way to make up for it, although in this case it would seem they were offering several forms of compensation from anytime fp's to refund of the days ticket.

 

[disnut1149]

I have to disagree with that statement. When I pay for admission to the park, I am paying to ride a specific ride. At Epcot, it's TT for me. At AK, it's EE.

And at HS, it's Toy Story.

I'm inclined to believe that many others feel the same way. When they plan to go to a particular park, they have specific rides and attractions in mind. They aren't walking into those parks with a pollyannaish roll-the-dice attitude.

Very true!!

 

[Laketravis]

...that's not what your money buys you with a ticket. You are not guaranteed of being able to ride anything.

I understand those are the ticket terms & conditions and is Disney's reality.

But emotional expectations are the guest's reality, and the two have the potential to be at opposite ends of the spectrum in cases like this.

 

[Laketravis]

I'm sorry, but I just couldn't resist.............

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[ChipnDale79]

I'm not assuming Disney has sinister aspirations, but this was one massive blunder on their part to do this without warning. What makes me feel like Disney seems to care less these days about the guest experience is that this "test" was not aborted before it began or early in the process, after they surely knew the effect it was having on people who paid good money to enter DHS during this time. For a company that is supposed to be 100% about making customers happy, this is incredibly poor customer service.

I mean really, what other way can they say, "we don't care about customer service anymore" than to do what they did this week.

It was a blatant slap in the face to their consumers, and might I add that WDW is in the hospitality industry where Customer Service is one of the most important things.

This test was just handled wrong from the start, I think the way they reacted to it shows exactly how much they care about their customer.

This and the recent history at WDW shows this company is no longer thinking long term in regards to WDW, they are only thinking short term and how to get an extra penny out of the current customers.

 

[grimley1968]

I'm sorry, but I just couldn't resist.............

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I would have included a laughing emoticon, but I hate to laugh at the thought of loyal guests getting the shaft this week.

 

[vacationer1954]

Take a look at the comments before and after Lake's FB comment from people who are actually there at the parks. I didn't see any that weren't very happy. I'm sure there are a few unhappy comments here and there I didn't see, but I think this shows how things are. A few people are upset but practically everyone else is perfectly fine.

 

[JanaDee]

I'm sorry, but I just couldn't resist.............

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I was just checking out their FB page to see if all the negative comments are still there and saw that.

 

[MaryKatesMom]

I understand that there may be specific rides you enter a park for, but that's not what your money buys you with a ticket. You are not guaranteed of being able to ride anything. I don't walk in with a pollyannish attitude- I walk in with a realistic one and with the knowledge of what I am and am not entitled to for my money.

TOT is mine at HS. While I do other things there too, if that ride wasn't there, I'd make it a resort day while the rest of my bunch went. But, if I go and it's down or they've made it impossible for me to ride- that's life. That's the rules of the ticket I bought. Disney is not obligated in any way to make up for it, although in this case it would seem they were offering several forms of compensation from anytime fp's to refund of the days ticket.

True. If the attractions I like best are unavailable I'd still have a great time with my family together and we'd be fine that vacation.

However, am I willing to go back at great expense for another trip when there are just as wonderful things to do together, more inexpensively elsewhere? No.

If you lessen or eliminate all the fun "theme park" things to do, the resorts alone are a terrible value.

 

[grimley1968]

Nothing has changed in our plans to go during this same week next year for Fall Break 2015. But other stuff going on at WDW (losing Maelstrom and the Fife & Drum Corps in World Showcase for instance) has made us less excited about it, and I'm honestly fearful of whatever "test" stunts Disney decides to pull (without warning) while we're there during this same week.

My wife and girls fortunately don't frequent Disney boards like this or the Disney site like I do, so they don't know about this. Frankly, I'm afraid to tell them because it might be enough of a blunder for them to say, "Please cancel this and let's go to a beach somewhere instead." I do want to go still and hope Disney shows more regard for its guests between now and then, so I feel justified continuing to pay for our reservation. I have to admit that right now I feel like a sucker for making the payments after reading about stuff like this.

But if I read much more about these kinds of things going on at WDW, without much in the way of truly positive news (there's been a dearth of that lately), I may have to finally say, after 40+ years of going to WDW and mostly being happy with it, "We're done with it."

 

[Mkrop]

Take a look at the comments before and after Lake's FB comment from people who are actually there at the parks. I didn't see any that weren't very happy. I'm sure there are a few unhappy comments here and there I didn't see, but I think this shows how things are. A few people are upset but practically everyone else is perfectly fine.

Then you need to read all the comments under the FP+ Tips and Trick post, those are not happy guests.

 

[mom2rtk]

Then you need to read all the comments under the FP+ Tips and Trick post, those are not happy guests.

It's no secret I'm not a fan of FP+, and even I was taken aback at the comments there. Disney ignores that at their own peril.

 

[Laketravis]

Nothing has changed in our plans to go during this same week next year for Fall Break 2015. But other stuff going on at WDW (losing Maelstrom and the Fife & Drum Corps in World Showcase for instance) has made us less excited about it, and I'm honestly fearful of whatever "test" stunts Disney decides to pull (without warning) while we're there during this same week.

My wife and girls fortunately don't frequent Disney boards like this or the Disney site like I do, so they don't know about this. Frankly, I'm afraid to tell them because it might be enough of a blunder for them to say, "Please cancel this and let's go to a beach somewhere instead." I do want to go still and hope Disney shows more regard for its guests between now and then, so I feel justified continuing to pay for our reservation. I have to admit that right now I feel like a sucker for making the payments after reading about stuff like this.

But if I read much more about these kinds of things going on at WDW, without much in the way of truly positive news (there's been a dearth of that lately), I may have to finally say, after 40+ years of going to WDW and mostly being happy with it, "We're done with it."

Same here. We're going for two weeks next month and then for another couple of weeks over Spring Break. We had planned on upgrading our 10 day park hoppers to AP's next month while there, but right now we are waiting to see how our actual experience goes. It all hinges on DS9 - if he doesn't enjoy himself this time around, we'll use the funds we would have used to upgrade to AP's to get tickets to US for Spring Break.

 

[minnie-apple-mouse]

Same here. We're going for two weeks next month and then for another couple of weeks over Spring Break. We had planned on upgrading our 10 day park hoppers to AP's next month while there, but right now we are waiting to see how our actual experience goes. It all hinges on DS9 - if he doesn't enjoy himself this time around, we'll use the funds we would have used to upgrade to AP's to get tickets to US for Spring Break.

DS9? That is the US/IOA zone-you may be gone for a few years.

 

[4077]

 

[Laketravis]

DS9? That is the US/IOA zone-you may be gone for a few years.

Right, he was all WDW from 5 until now, but he read all the Harry Potter books (except the last one) over the summer and now he wants to know when are we going to go to US? This year might be the turning point. We've been telling him not to expect his usual 14 times in a row on Space Mountain or Tower of Terror this year, and his response is as eloquent as you'd expect from a 9 year old - "That sucks".

 

[vacationer1954]

If you lessen or eliminate all the fun "theme park" things to do, the resorts alone are a terrible value.

Some of the concern people have is that this test and similar activities would lead not to less fun "theme park" things but instead make those fun "theme park" things available to resort guests more to make the resorts a better value.

Then you need to read all the comments under the FP+ Tips and Trick post, those are not happy guests.

Someone mentioned earlier in the thread how this bulletin board is not a representative sample of people visiting Disney. I bet Facebook is a more representative sample.