I am a long time Disney veteran and Disney enthusiast. I have made over 30 trips to Disney World and multiple trips to Disneyland California. I was in Tokyo and decided to go check out DisneySea for a day while sightseeing. We originally bought a 2 day pass to do DisneySea me day and Disneyland the next. More on that later.
We went on a recent Saturday and discovered the crowds were so epically bad, the park was unusable. I am not joking....every single ride was over 200 minutes wait from 9am to 6pm when we just decided to leave. I was able to ride 20,000 leagues after a 200 min wait and got fast passes for Raging Sprirt and Journey to the Center of the Earth. That was really all we could do because Toy Story, Indiana Jones, and Tower of Terror were all 280-300 minutes.
The crowds were not unruly or noticeably upset, but it was almost impossible just to move around the park. I am appalled they even allow the parks to become this crowded. Seriously, even food queuing areas were being actively managed by staff to direct people. The food we finally got was awful. Cold and tasted canned after siting in line over an hour.
After feeling beat down, we went to guest services where we requested an English speaking host which they provided promptly, very impressive. I do not expect English speaking service in a foreign country but was glad they could provide it.
We asked to cancel the ticket tomorrow because we could not enjoy the park with these crowds. She assured me Disneyland would be equally crowded the next day and understood my concern. She downgraded the ticket to one day and refunded me the difference minus a 400 yen change fee. That burned me a bit, but I can't complain too much. What did upset me was that I asked politely for a good faith fast pass to ride Tower of Terror since it's our favorite ride and we came all the way from the US. I know they don't owe me this, but she understood how disappointed we were and how little we were able to do. The request was denied after she "asked her manager" who didn't even have the decency to come tell me in person. Obviously, that doesn't happen in Orlando...I've had ticketing issues and ride concerns where I was offered fast passes or re-rides on the spot.
Perhaps it's cultural or that Tokyo Disney is not managed by Disney? Was I way off base to expect something for my trouble? I realize everyone is going through the same issues, but I had to be part of <1% from the US....nearly everyone seemed local and we watched for it.
First of all, I don't really "blame" Disney. They essentially did nothing wrong. I am posting this to find out:
1) Is this normal?
2) Where can I direct a formal complaint? I'd like to write a letter.
3) What should I have done differently?
4) Have you experienced the same issue at DisneySea?
5) Is my complaint even warranted or should we just deal with it? I truly feel like I did not get my money's worth, a feeling ive never had about a Disnet experience. I am just so disappointed because we LOVE Disney.
Thanks for your input!!
We went on a recent Saturday and discovered the crowds were so epically bad, the park was unusable. I am not joking....every single ride was over 200 minutes wait from 9am to 6pm when we just decided to leave. I was able to ride 20,000 leagues after a 200 min wait and got fast passes for Raging Sprirt and Journey to the Center of the Earth. That was really all we could do because Toy Story, Indiana Jones, and Tower of Terror were all 280-300 minutes.
The crowds were not unruly or noticeably upset, but it was almost impossible just to move around the park. I am appalled they even allow the parks to become this crowded. Seriously, even food queuing areas were being actively managed by staff to direct people. The food we finally got was awful. Cold and tasted canned after siting in line over an hour.
After feeling beat down, we went to guest services where we requested an English speaking host which they provided promptly, very impressive. I do not expect English speaking service in a foreign country but was glad they could provide it.
We asked to cancel the ticket tomorrow because we could not enjoy the park with these crowds. She assured me Disneyland would be equally crowded the next day and understood my concern. She downgraded the ticket to one day and refunded me the difference minus a 400 yen change fee. That burned me a bit, but I can't complain too much. What did upset me was that I asked politely for a good faith fast pass to ride Tower of Terror since it's our favorite ride and we came all the way from the US. I know they don't owe me this, but she understood how disappointed we were and how little we were able to do. The request was denied after she "asked her manager" who didn't even have the decency to come tell me in person. Obviously, that doesn't happen in Orlando...I've had ticketing issues and ride concerns where I was offered fast passes or re-rides on the spot.
Perhaps it's cultural or that Tokyo Disney is not managed by Disney? Was I way off base to expect something for my trouble? I realize everyone is going through the same issues, but I had to be part of <1% from the US....nearly everyone seemed local and we watched for it.
First of all, I don't really "blame" Disney. They essentially did nothing wrong. I am posting this to find out:
1) Is this normal?
2) Where can I direct a formal complaint? I'd like to write a letter.
3) What should I have done differently?
4) Have you experienced the same issue at DisneySea?
5) Is my complaint even warranted or should we just deal with it? I truly feel like I did not get my money's worth, a feeling ive never had about a Disnet experience. I am just so disappointed because we LOVE Disney.
Thanks for your input!!
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