Disney Springs - A must do or just another mall

[ppete1975]

I love the disney shops especially the ones with more unique disney stuff. To me most of the in park stuff is duplicated shop to shop. Oh and go at night and listen to the musicians!! Especially don black (its been three years is he still there(

 

[ppete1975]

 

[Lisa t]

Love the food, and definitely Uniqlo. $10 Disney tees, $30 sweatshirts. Last vacay we spent 1 day at the park, most of the time a the hotel, and 3 days t the Springs shopping and eating.

 

[Bullseye1967]

I love the disney shops especially the ones with more unique disney stuff. To me most of the in park stuff is duplicated shop to shop. Oh and go at night and listen to the musicians!! Especially don black (its been three years is he still there(

@ppete1975 Don Black is still there and going strong

 

[Bullseye1967]

I don't mean to say every single restaurant needs to be Disney-themed, but I think Disney Springs does need some more experiences that are unique to Disney and, yes in some cases make use of the Disney brands or even dip into Disney Parks lore (maybe something along the lines of a Skipper Canteen?)

O you mean like Jock Lindsey's Hangar Bar?

 

[ppete1975]

@ppete1975 Don Black is still there and going strong

Awesome!! Amazing talent

 

[OsbourneCox]

I've been looking at your title(Disney Springs-A must do or just another mall) and I pick nether.

Springs is very far from a "must do" and even farther from "just another mall".

It is a worthy diversion if one is doing a medium to longer duration of a trip at the World. If somebody is coming in for 3 days I would I see very little value in spending time there, just a huge opportunity squander. Even at 4 days I would have to question one's priorities, unless there were extenuating circumstances to justify. At 5 days I wouldn't do it either.

 

[GoofGoof]

I've been looking at your title(Disney Springs-A must do or just another mall) and I pick nether.

That’s why there were 5 choices on the poll instead of 2

 

[Matty H]

I used to love it when it was the Disney Village, a million eons ago. And, Downtown Disney wasn't bad, either. Now, though... I don't know. I was there a few years ago, when it wasn't quite rebranded yet, and was still under some construction. My one take-away was that it was WAYYYY too crowded!

I do still like World of Disney. But... it's not as magical for me as it used to be. I miss the days when you found different things in different Walt Disney World shops. I loved, really, having a REASON to go into different shops. Back then, World of Disney was like the shop that contained EVERYTHING. So, if I saw something somewhere, and they didn't have the right size, or I wasn't sure I was getting back to that specific store, I could always say, "I'll find it at World of Disney and get it there." It was a great way to cap off the vacation. Now, meh, it's just a crowded store and I feel like the stock isn't so great anymore, either.

 

[Walt d]

I'm a huge fan of the original village marketplace as well as the immaculate theming throughout the added spaces, namely the town center.

I really liked the village too, nice and sleepy, gone for ever

 

[RustySpork]

It's just another mall to me, and with all of the other options available in the area I can't think of any reasons to want to go there.

 

[addacollier]

I don’t think it’s a disaster if you miss it. My sons are both LEGO crazy so we ended up going a few times. Usually after finishing up at TL around 3pm.

 

[phillip9698]

I love going to the Christmas store and no trip would be complete without heading to Ghiradelli's.

 

[MinnieM123]

I love going to the Christmas store and no trip would be complete without heading to Ghiradelli's.

I like those two places as well. They're also located in the Marketplace section, an area I prefer (and have enjoyed over the years) over the newer sections of the mall. So glad that they left this Marketplace area intact. I also like Wolfgang Puck's Express, Earl of Sandwich, and the large, World of Disney store in this area.

 

[bh_trade]

Have only been to DS once, this past June. Honestly, I was skeptical of the "re-branding" of Downtown Disney but found myself pleasantly surprised. The ambience of the place is pretty cool. My wife had to go into Guest Services that evening and I waited outside on the chairs with my 2 kids. Our view was toward that upscale burger place, the name escapes me, but found it a very relaxing way to spend 15-20 minutes.Only bad thing: can get very crowded/busy, but really, what else should one expect - Disney quality, free admission, free parking, of course its going to be busy!

 

[Dave B]

If its not xmas time, I would not have any interest in Disney Springs, just a bunch of shops rather spend my time at the parks or resorts, but I will say the water taxi from Port Orleans to Disney Springs was really cool almost had a jungle cruise feel

 

[GoofGoof]

Before I let this thread die, I just wanted to point out a general observation. 80% of the people who responded to the poll at least visit Disney Springs on occasion with 45% visiting every trip. People seem to like the dining and entertainment options, but the overwhelming response from most people on this board in relation to shopping seems to be that the Marketplace section of Disney Springs is worth a stop but the rest of the shopping isn’t a big draw. That could be bad news for all of the stores recently built or it could just be that more hardcore Disney Park fans (all of us) prefer the Disney focused stores but the general public (who may not frequent these boards) actually would be interested in other shopping too or instead. I have to assume Disney did some market surveys and understood the demand before building the whole shopping mall section.

 

[Bullseye1967]

Before I let this thread die, I just wanted to point out a general observation. 80% of the people who responded to the poll at least visit Disney Springs on occasion with 45% visiting every trip. People seem to like the dining and entertainment options, but the overwhelming response from most people on this board in relation to shopping seems to be that the Marketplace section of Disney Springs is worth a stop but the rest of the shopping isn’t a big draw. That could be bad news for all of the stores recently built or it could just be that more hardcore Disney Park fans (all of us) prefer the Disney focused stores but the general public (who may not frequent these boards) actually would be interested in other shopping too or instead. I have to assume Disney did some market surveys and understood the demand before building the whole shopping mall section.

Trust me, a good portion of the guests visiting Orlando like to do the outlet mall style shopping. Everyone vacations for different reasons.

 

[a goofy username]

i've always loved d o w n t o w n d i s n e y because it's like going to one of the parks without all of the stress that comes with it. very mellow and relaxing place

 

[The Empress Lilly]

Top 3 reasons to visit DS area:

1) The Empress Lilly
2) Village, tranquility, escaping the crowds, hiring a private boat
3) Disney Quest