Disneyland "Sunsetting" annual passes, WDW next?

[FerretAfros]

As several peanut gallery blogs and vlogs have pointed out: the most offensive bit of Disney PR usually isn’t the decision itself, regardless of how bad or shortsighted the decision may be. The most offensive part is the way Disney treats the public like ignorant morons.

“We canceled MDE because our guests now have an abundance of options!”

“We’re sunsetting the AP program and will develop an exciting new solution!”

I wish someone in mainstream travel media would call out Disney for its pandering. Twenty years ago, someone might have done that; but after Iger shut down the LA Times for publishing an opinion he didn’t like, Disney now controls much of the travel and movie critics through fear. (The recent Yahoo News story is a high-profile exception.)

Disney has been using this approach for years, and it always makes me laugh what ridiculous excuses they come up with.

The most egregious was around 10-15 years ago, when WDW announced that they would no longer offer prime rib carving stations at their buffets. The "official" reasoning was that (allegedly) guests complained that they didn't have enough room on their plates for the meat.

Not enough room on the plates. At an all-you-can-eat buffet. Where you're encouraged to take as many trips up to the food as you like.

So instead of a high-end cut of meat served to you by a real person, we're just left with the steam table filled with self-serve slop. Cheaper foods, less labor, what's not to like?

And, of course, the prices of the buffets didn't go down to reflect this change.

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

The "official" reasoning was that (allegedly) guests complained that they didn't have enough room on their plates for the meat

Oh man!!! That’s a good one. Like the mousekeeping spending less time in the rooms based on guest surveys. Cause nobody likes a clean room? Lol

 

[Obobru]

I know I know I’m being an “armchair” marketer now...

Ooh, what are you selling?

Armchairs

 

[techgeek]

The most egregious was around 10-15 years ago, when WDW announced that they would no longer offer prime rib carving stations at their buffets. The "official" reasoning was that (allegedly) guests complained that they didn't have enough room on their plates for the meat.

After all these years, I'm still personally offended from the PR line that Lights of Winter was removed because they were "obsolete technology".