-
The new WDWMAGIC iOS app is here!
Stay up to date with the latest Disney news, photos, and discussions right from your iPhone. The app is free to download and gives you quick access to news articles, forums, photo galleries, park hours, weather and Lightning Lane pricing. Learn More -
Welcome to the WDWMAGIC.COM Forums!
Please take a look around, and feel free to sign up and join the community.
2025 was an awful year
- Thread starter WorldExplorer
- Start date
TrainsOfDisney
Well-Known Member
Agreed with your thoughts - Chester and Hester needed help from day 1 - it wasn’t the best solution even if it needed to be quick and cheap. The bugs land solution at DCA was much more successful.
Sirwalterraleigh
Premium Member
Disney adults in princess costumes with matching bags and ears…just less scary
Smiley/OCD
Well-Known Member
They should’ve added T-Rex to that area of AK… YES, I know Landry’s also owns Rainforest Cafe, but it would’ve added soooo much more to that section of the park.
Dead2009
Horror Movie Guru
Someone who dresses up in exactly that, animal costumes and acts like the animal theyre portraying.
Yeah, especially since Animal Kingdom should have more sit downs and anything you wanted to put in there can be justified with "...tourism...".
The carnival plays into the story, too, but I know you know that already.
Animal Kingdom used to have interesting things to say about our relationship with animals, but with the loss of Dinoland and It's Tough to Be a Bug those are getting rapidly wittled down so the park is now split into two sections: conservation and "buy our crap".
(The yeti hangs on as an interesting thing lesson. Permanently. He just can't stop holding on, in fact.)
No, there were two, one of which had two animals (Marley the crocodile, then a tortiose and vulture whose names I do not know).
I don't know how true it is, but I was told Marley was relocated with the other wildlife when they first built the place but he just kept coming back so they threw up their hands and kept him there. I hope he's happy wherever he is now.
You can't get an accurate answer on a family friendly forum. The best I can give you is that it's people who are likely to draw Mickey Mouse with well muscled arms.
Last edited:
2028 should be a good year.
Oh, someone meant at WDW? Good luck.
Oh, someone meant at WDW? Good luck.
JIMINYCR
Well-Known Member
MickeyLuv'r
Well-Known Member
That Epcot location currently has a display of costumes and props from Disney's Broadway shows. Decidedly a much better use of the space. Costumes aren't everyone's cup of tea, but the current display is very well done.
John park hopper
Well-Known Member
And it costs Disney next to nothing
MickeyLuv'r
Well-Known Member
I'm not sure how to word this, but one area I've noticed a WDW change has to do with allergy dining. To be fair, it is a mixed bag. WDW (and Universal)staff are usually pretty careful, but we noticed a some change in the last year or so where the regular menus now have more allergen-containing foods than they once did. Wheat, eggs and milk have always been common at WDW, but other allergens like coconut, sesame, and tree nuts used to be fairly rare. They now show up in dishes that diners might not expect to find them, which puts both patrons and staff in a position where they have to be more careful. We've also had multiple mishaps like the ones I will describe here:
On a recent visit, we opted to eat at a TS location. When making ADR, we checked the appropriate boxes for allergens. At the podium, we were advised to remind our server of the allergens, we did. From there, our server repeatedly forgot.
The person w allergy had to ask for the allergen-free menu.
The rest us ordered off regular menu. Some food arrived quickly, other food was slow and arrived cold. The fried chicken coating was soggy mush. Our food was delivered by kitchen staff; they dropped off plates then quickly left. We had no opportunity to ask them anything before they ran off. Our server did not check on us. We ate the chicken w/out complaining, but it was very meh.
We had long finished eating everything else, and STILL the allergen dish had not arrived. When we finally flagged her down to ask about the missing meal (50min), she asked if we wanted the check. When we said we were still waiting for food to arrive, she did not explain or apologize, she just ran off, I think to place the order.
It gets worse. The plate that finally arrived (60+ after being seated) was NOT what was ordered, it clearly contained the ALLERGEN! Beyond that, our table was still littered with all of our dirty dishes, including appetizers. Our water glasses were long empty. Person w/allergy had to wait another solid 10min with a plate of food they could not eat.
When we finally flagged her down, she was annoyed. In a very annoyed tone, with only a cursory apology, she asked if the person with the allergy was STILL hungry. It was a bizarre response. By this point, we had been seated for about 70minutes.
She left to place order a 2nd time and didn't come back. We still had no water and a table full of dirty dishes, after what could have been a life-threatening allergen exposure. That's when we flagged down another server to ask for the manager.
Another 10 min passed before the manager arrived. Just before he did, our server plus another staff member finally cleared our caked-dirty dishes, the other waitperson refilled our water, and she suddenly sounded apologetic. So when the manager finally arrived, our table was in much better shape. The allergy mishap was only part of really bad service. Still, he was nice. For our part, we calmly explained what had happened. He apologized and offered to cover our meal. Really though, they were lucky we caught the server's mistake. After he spoke to us, the allergen meal finally arrived (at least 85min)
After that, our server became more apologetic, but it was only after we asked for the manager. Mind, I used wait tables; I'm usually very sympathetic to the challenges of the job. IMO though, given the life-threatening nature of the situation, the manager was also a bit slow to arrive.
Ten+ minutes could = the difference between life and death.
Alas, this was not the only mishap this visit. We had 2 mishaps over at Universal, except the staff there was more immediately apologetic, but they also appeared to lack proper allergen training.
At one quick-serve, we asked if the granola had tree-nuts. Staff said the granola was nut-free, though she did offer to verify w/chef. Sure enough, the granola had cashews. In this case, we were not asking for an allergen-free food. We kindly let the cashier know that the granola has cashews. She said, "Oh, I knew that. I didn't know cashews are tree-nuts."
The next day at Helios, we also encountered a waitstaff member who was friendly, and trying to be helpful, but nobody there seemed to have allergen training when we asked. They suggested we order a menu item that 100% contained the allergen we were asking to avoid. Like picture offering normal pastry to someone with a wheat allergy. We then asked, "Are you sure this pastry is wheat-free?" They then confessed they weren't sure, apologized, and followed up to make sure we were given an allergen-free food. We had a short conversation w the manager there as well, so hopefully their staff will get more allergen training.
Still, the 3 incidents in one visit were a bit unsettling. WDW and Universal staff are usually informed and careful about food allergens- or at least they used to be. As I said in my opening, this is just what occurred on my most recent visit. I hope both properties get back to the kind of service they have previously provided.
On a recent visit, we opted to eat at a TS location. When making ADR, we checked the appropriate boxes for allergens. At the podium, we were advised to remind our server of the allergens, we did. From there, our server repeatedly forgot.
The person w allergy had to ask for the allergen-free menu.
The rest us ordered off regular menu. Some food arrived quickly, other food was slow and arrived cold. The fried chicken coating was soggy mush. Our food was delivered by kitchen staff; they dropped off plates then quickly left. We had no opportunity to ask them anything before they ran off. Our server did not check on us. We ate the chicken w/out complaining, but it was very meh.
We had long finished eating everything else, and STILL the allergen dish had not arrived. When we finally flagged her down to ask about the missing meal (50min), she asked if we wanted the check. When we said we were still waiting for food to arrive, she did not explain or apologize, she just ran off, I think to place the order.
It gets worse. The plate that finally arrived (60+ after being seated) was NOT what was ordered, it clearly contained the ALLERGEN! Beyond that, our table was still littered with all of our dirty dishes, including appetizers. Our water glasses were long empty. Person w/allergy had to wait another solid 10min with a plate of food they could not eat.
When we finally flagged her down, she was annoyed. In a very annoyed tone, with only a cursory apology, she asked if the person with the allergy was STILL hungry. It was a bizarre response. By this point, we had been seated for about 70minutes.
She left to place order a 2nd time and didn't come back. We still had no water and a table full of dirty dishes, after what could have been a life-threatening allergen exposure. That's when we flagged down another server to ask for the manager.
Another 10 min passed before the manager arrived. Just before he did, our server plus another staff member finally cleared our caked-dirty dishes, the other waitperson refilled our water, and she suddenly sounded apologetic. So when the manager finally arrived, our table was in much better shape. The allergy mishap was only part of really bad service. Still, he was nice. For our part, we calmly explained what had happened. He apologized and offered to cover our meal. Really though, they were lucky we caught the server's mistake. After he spoke to us, the allergen meal finally arrived (at least 85min)
After that, our server became more apologetic, but it was only after we asked for the manager. Mind, I used wait tables; I'm usually very sympathetic to the challenges of the job. IMO though, given the life-threatening nature of the situation, the manager was also a bit slow to arrive.
Ten+ minutes could = the difference between life and death.
Alas, this was not the only mishap this visit. We had 2 mishaps over at Universal, except the staff there was more immediately apologetic, but they also appeared to lack proper allergen training.
At one quick-serve, we asked if the granola had tree-nuts. Staff said the granola was nut-free, though she did offer to verify w/chef. Sure enough, the granola had cashews. In this case, we were not asking for an allergen-free food. We kindly let the cashier know that the granola has cashews. She said, "Oh, I knew that. I didn't know cashews are tree-nuts."
The next day at Helios, we also encountered a waitstaff member who was friendly, and trying to be helpful, but nobody there seemed to have allergen training when we asked. They suggested we order a menu item that 100% contained the allergen we were asking to avoid. Like picture offering normal pastry to someone with a wheat allergy. We then asked, "Are you sure this pastry is wheat-free?" They then confessed they weren't sure, apologized, and followed up to make sure we were given an allergen-free food. We had a short conversation w the manager there as well, so hopefully their staff will get more allergen training.
Still, the 3 incidents in one visit were a bit unsettling. WDW and Universal staff are usually informed and careful about food allergens- or at least they used to be. As I said in my opening, this is just what occurred on my most recent visit. I hope both properties get back to the kind of service they have previously provided.
Last edited:
MickeyLuv'r
Well-Known Member
Actually, this display area had to cost Disney something. It has multiple modern museum quality displays and is very well done. There are plaques, nice displays w custom lighting/signage, large video displays. There are also miniatures displayed in custom-lighted display walls. Outside the area is a giant gold genie lamp that gives off puffs of steam for a fun photo-op.
If feels like stepping into a small museum.
I'd actually be pretty happy if they kept this use of the space in Epcot, and just updated it from time-to-time w new costumes/displays. Sure, it is a bit of a commercial for the Broadways shows, but it is also an exciting opportunity to see the care and talent that goes into making each costume.
Last edited:
I called up Disney to order a customized cake to be delivered to my hotel (literally just going down to ride Dinosaur and sulk, wanted a Dinosaur cake), which I was able to do two years ago with no issues, only to be informed that service isn't offered anymore. They want you to come get the cake at the Grand Floridian and I didn't ask but I'm assuming the price hasn't gone down to reflect that.
I'm not sure if they stopped in 2024 or 2025 but if it's the latter that's another hit against that year.
I'm not sure if they stopped in 2024 or 2025 but if it's the latter that's another hit against that year.
I mean, the main problems with Disney have nothing to do with politics. Rivers of America is being replaced because they want to squeeze in more guests. Same reason that Muppets is being shifted to RnRC to make room for Monsters Inc. Dinosaur is being replaced because… well, actually they have no faith in Indy anymore, so maybe they’re just morons?
The point is, Disney is destroying its parks’ identities in order to chase short-term profits that sometimes don’t even materialize. Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is tough to bring up because there is a political overtone motivating its existence, but in essence it is born of the same thinking. They want more people in their parks and ponying up. If Bob Iger had a crystal ball that revealed to him what a disaster it would be, then Splash Mountain would still exist. I know he hates Song of the South, but love is stronger than hate- and boy does he love money more than anything.
Sirwalterraleigh
Premium Member
They’ve basically streamlined that kinda stuff into oblivion with huge price increases
Make sure to book your lightning lanes…I bet the parks are “mobbed”
MickeyLuv'r
Well-Known Member
1. there are alternatives
2. I ordered a cake, I think, in 2024. It was insanely expensive, and not very good. The options were limited. My cake was also through GF. i was able to get it delivered to AKL, but I had to be ther to pick it up, so it wasn't especially convenient.
Going back to #1, I didn't try the other options, so I can't personally suggest any, but there are multiple cake places in the area that deliver to WDW and Uni that will make themed custom cakes.
Within WDW, Amorette's is delicious, but maybe not what you are looking for. They make cakes to order, but no delivery and I think they only do a few specific characters.
We personally enjoyed them when we got them, and they just dropped them off at the front desk to be picked up whenever we happened to go past there so very convenient. The price was the downside (especially since I paid a significant upcharge for a chocolate monorail decoration that was just what they use for the normal, 6 dollar desserts at Contemporary), but it was a fun thing to splurge on. I've tried local options before and while it went fine when we found one I had a very difficult time finding one with availability a month away from the date, so less than a week is probably not going to happen.
I was looking at Amorette's and their ice cream bar cake sounds really good, but then I'm both going out of my way and not getting a Dinosaur themed thing.
Thanks for the suggestions, though. Theming would have been nice, but if I want cake that bad the quick service has some at least.