What little things that WDW used to do/have do you miss?

[Grumpy4196]

20,000 Leagues for me. Seeing the subs in that magnificent lagoon when I was 7 years old is really what set Disney apart for me. Been hooked ever since.

 

[durangojim]

Free photo and face painting along with entertainment on the Mark Twain and the telling of the legend of Sleepy Hollow during MNSSHP.

 

[trixie21]

River country!!!

 

[Cado603]

This is what broke the magic.

You know come to think of it that was like the last straw you are right. Now we maybe make 3 FP sometimes go early to wait on line and then leave by 1, getting to crowded to deal with it. and the crowds coming in at that time of day are amazing. I miss the late hours too. Now more people stay til closing too it so early, especially in the summer.

 

[Cado603]

Disney should send their marketing and research teams to read these boards. This thread is a good indicator of what they have done right and wrong the past 25 years.

How about more specifically the last 10 years or so if you get my drift.

 

[75disney]

Something very new to add... Gary Sinise as the narrator in Mission Space.

Something old... Jolly Holliday Dinner Show at the Contemporary.

 

[smudgee]

The thing I miss the most is the original Journey to Imagination with Figment and Dreamfinder. It will be really sad if they get rid of Figment all together.

 

[NotAddictedToDisney]

Tapestry of Nations parade. I saw it on my first visit to WDW and wish it would have lasted longer because I didn't make it back until 2008.

 

[GeoffR]

Things I really miss about WDW

• Horizons
• The Earful Tower
• Sorcerer Hat Icon
• The original title of 'Dinosaur' ; Countdown to Extinction. Also, after the ride there was a walk-through area of fossils and bones that's been gone for a long time
• POTC before they added Sparrow
• Disney promotional videos. I watch the same series from 2005 constantly, I really wish they did more!
• Original Journey into Imagination
• Dreamflight
• The days before all the crazy reservations; my family never made any when I was a kid and we still did it all!
• Late Park hours

 

[danyoung56]

McDonald's at the Magic Kingdom. I know there is a giant on-site McDonald's but it's in a very remote place near the entrance to WDW. It's only convenient if your staying at the All Star Resorts.

When was there a McDonald's at the MK? I remember they used to sell the fries from a cart in Frontierland, but I don't remember a real McD's anywhere near the MK.

 

[HeroesandVillians]

I miss the Penny Arcade.

My very first thought! I met the guy that did the maintenance on them for over 20 years, he is so sad to see the way the machines that still exist in the train station and the resorts not operating anymore.

 

[HeroesandVillians]

So true, but it's not really a little thing. Back in the day, we'd eat at Mexico, Italy, Canada, and either the Yachtsman's or Concourse Steakhouse on every trip (sometimes mixing things up here and there to try someplace new). We'd usually get ADRs a day or two before, but sometimes we'd just walk up. But these days it just seems like too much of a hassle - so much advanced planning required, such a high cost if you're not doing the dining plan. At some point it just became not worth the trouble. I definitely miss it.

Does anyone else remember "Magical Moments"? A Cast Member would just give you some extra service, like Fastpasses for a popular attraction or a free popcorn or whatever. My kids used to love that - it would really make you feel special. I don't know if they are still happening - we haven't experienced it in years...

They do have a thing called "No Strings Attached" that CM's fill out for guests. We got one recently from a CM that was walking around blowing bubbles, I yelled at her "I want your job!" and she cheerfully bounced over, pulled off her backpack to see if we had all of the buttons and stickers available at the time, she gave us a special button for the 86th anniversary of the debut of Steamboat Willie. She then asked if there was a special ride we wanted to ride on at MK. Of course we chose 7DMT, we are passholders and still had not been on it yet! She filled out our names on the ticket that we unfortunately had to turn over to the CM at the ride, it was adorable with a little Jiminy Cricket on it! We also got a ticket on my DD's birthday when a custodian noticed her button, he wrote out the ticket for two free Dole Whips, what a treat! So long story short, yes, they do still have perks

 

[James Clifton]

I miss the parks not having so many people on scooters & don't tell me they are "all"disabled people.I miss the old barber shop in the little cul de sac...I miss the main street bakery,now the powers that be have stuck us with Starbucks.I miss going in the Frontier Store & not seeing western merchandise.I miss the skyway.

 

[elcheapo]

I miss the parks not having so many people on scooters & don't tell me they are "all"disabled people.I miss the old barber shop in the little cul de sac...I miss the main street bakery,now the powers that be have stuck us with Starbucks.I miss going in the Frontier Store & not seeing western merchandise.I miss the skyway.

I miss getting wet by the cannons when they used to explode next to the boat on POTC
I miss the old railroad at river country

 

[jwakja]

IMO, the Boardwalk Bakery had a great lobster roll, wonderful bakery items, tasty soups. Now I think it has the worst menu I could ever imagine! Tomato Mozzarella Sandwich? Bland Turkey Club? Roast Beef and Salami?What gives? Really miss the old menu! Must find another place!

 

[jwakja]

I miss the parks not having so many people on scooters & don't tell me they are "all"disabled people.I miss the old barber shop in the little cul de sac...I miss the main street bakery,now the powers that be have stuck us with Starbucks.I miss going in the Frontier Store & not seeing western merchandise.I miss the skyway.

Agree! When was obesity a disease or disability!

 

[jwakja]

I miss the parks not having so many people on scooters & don't tell me they are "all"disabled people.I miss the old barber shop in the little cul de sac...I miss the main street bakery,now the powers that be have stuck us with Starbucks.I miss going in the Frontier Store & not seeing western merchandise.I miss the skyway.

Agree! MISS MAIN STREET BAKERY! Starbicks is one overpriced trap!

 

[jwakja]

- I miss the old bars of soap in the resorts that had the old WDW logo (the one that was a globe with mickey ears)

- I miss the parks being open late

- I miss the breakfasts that were not character breakfasts

- I miss the old sour ball candy bags. The balls themselves used to be more sour and you could get an entire bag of any flavor - cherry, apple, grape, lemon or orange!

- I miss the Earful Tower

- I miss the Adventureland Veranda teriyaki burgers and steak sandwiches

- I miss the 20K Leagues lagoon

- I miss going on the Skyway on a warm summer night

- I miss the old King Mickey & hula Minnie window that was in the GCH lobby underneath the stairs. There was an eruptung volcano and awesome Hawaiian music playing as they moved

- I miss the live music in the Papatea Bay Veranda at the Poly

- I miss the Mickey's Birthdayland Express, which eventually became the Walt Disney World Express, song

- I miss the original Epcot entrance music loop

- I miss the 'Now Is The Time' version of Carousel of Progress

- I miss Dreamflight

- I miss Spaceship Earth and the entrance fountain before they ruined with those dumb tombstones

- I miss hearing the bass from 'Another Part Of Me' from Captain Eo as you walked by the waterfalls of the Imagination pavilion

- I miss El Rio del Tiempo

- I miss ORAC-1

- I miss the days before FP and FP+

- I miss Maelstrom and it's 'tricky trolls'

- I miss the Mike Fink Keelboats

- I miss old Future World ('86-'94)

- I miss Spectro Magic and Jiminy Cricket

- I miss the original PotC finale with the bank vault scene

- I miss the old Spanish guitar music heard in the dungeons of the PotC queue.

- I miss Magic Journeys. Yes, it may have been slightly cheesy. But man, was that score and song hauntingly beautiful

- I miss the Imageworks

- I miss Dreamfinder on the ride and being able to see him walk around with Figment in the park.

- I miss the Omnibuses at World Showcase

- I miss hearing the cannons firing from the turrets of PotC's exterior

- I miss the Jolly Roger from PotC

- I miss the parrot at the entrance of PotC

- I miss Adventureland before they clogged it up with the Aladdin carpets

- I miss them giving you leis when checking into the Poly (or did they bring this back?)

- I miss the old GCH lobby rock waterfall

- I miss hearing Jack Wagner's voice on the MCO peoplemover



.

Face it. Disney only caters to their movies. If you don't care for Star Wars then your out of luck!

 

[freesvoice]

Not sure if I should be sad I never got to visit WDW as a kid and therefore never knew about this stuff... or glad because I don't know what I am missing to miss it.

 

[NotAddictedToDisney]

Another little thing I miss is the pulled pork on waffle fries at the Golden Oak Outpost. I had them early last year and the next time I went back two months later they had been replaced by chicken nuggets. Really? They go and replace a simple, yet unique, item with chicken nuggets??? I've noticed the line there is never as long as it used to be.