Dissapointed..

[pyrophoric]

The wealthy will only buy so much stuff. They make a much higher profit by getting kids to buy $25 hats that cost pennies to manufacture. How do you get kids to buy that? They come through the gates, meet Mickey and beg mom and dad for the ears.

Yeah, that would make sense but their prices right now dont make sense.

Can anyone disagree that their prices have increased a lot over the past three years? And can anyone disagree their prices are not worth it for a one day ticket?

If there were no Magic My Way discounted tickets our trip would have surely been canceled this year. As it is now though, this is our last trip for a LONG time.

 

[MKCP 1985]

Can anyone disagree that their prices have increased a lot over the past three years? And can anyone disagree their prices are not worth it for a one day ticket?

I disagree. Their prices are worth it. The price of entertainment has gone up over the same time period.

A lower level seat for an NFL game will give you 3 hours of entertainment and cost you twice as much.

Greens fees and cart at a top of the line golf course. . . concert tickets. . . any number of things can cost you the same as a day at a Disney park and provide no more entertainment value.

Yeah, there are cheaper ways to entertain oneself. But there is only one Walt Disney World, and very few Disney parks worldwide. I'd say the tickets are priced just about right.

Plus, the Disney parks are intended to be a nice place to spend time in a safe, clean and family friendly environment. Sad to say, but price the tickets inexpensively and you're going to get a larger number of people showing up who detract from that environment.

 

[pyrophoric]

I disagree. Their prices are worth it. The price of entertainment has gone up over the same time period.

A lower level seat for an NFL game will give you 3 hours of entertainment and cost you twice as much.

Greens fees and cart at a top of the line golf course. . . concert tickets. . . any number of things can cost you the same as a day at a Disney park and provide no more entertainment value.

Yeah, there are cheaper ways to entertain oneself. But there is only one Walt Disney World, and very few Disney parks worldwide. I'd say the tickets are priced just about right.

Plus, the Disney parks are intended to be a nice place to spend time in a safe, clean and family friendly environment. Sad to say, but price the tickets inexpensively and you're going to get a larger number of people showing up who detract from that environment.

Hrm, I might point out that the cost of their tickets has increased 34% over the past 3 years. Until recently, our economy hasn't changed enough to warrant that kind of an increase. I also hate to be one of those people but ... Walt always said the admission should be affordable to all families. To raise the admission cost for no other reason other than it's a new year is just greedy.

Anyways, guess thats where you and I differ. I don't go to football games and prefer a CD over a concert any day. So comparing one over priced event to another doesn't work, for me anyways.

To each their own though I guess.

Edit: Btw, as far as the comment about inexpensive tickets and rude guests ... thats what an exit is for.

 

[unkadug]

If there's too things we Americans are good at, it's math, speling, and managing money.

:lookaroun

Oh sure, that's the way I wish it would work.

However there are two reasons businesses go up during an economic slump. First, because their cost of providing the entertainment has increased. Second, because less people are coming so it's SMART to charge more per ticket to the only people left coming. Then you alienate them as well.

:brick:

Second guessing Disney's ever changing business model is never a smart thing to do.

Familiarity breeds contempt.

Quite a bit of that around these parts.

:wave:

Of course I'm from Canada. Where do you think I got this outragous accent? :ROFLOL:

I thought my monitor went wacky when you posted!

I dont differentiate between the former colonies especially Yank lite. :drevil:

 

[wvdisneyfamily]

This is sad. I hope you just had a bad day.

 

[sbkline]

We went in '05 and it was total magic. We waited 2 years and it may have even been better! I remember saying how much you forget in 2 years. We went this year (a year later) and it just didn't feel magic. I spent so much time planning and reading about it and watching Disney movies that my expectations were so high. The other thing is you don't forget much in a single year. I had every ride memorized! It got to the point where even though we could walk on most things we felt "obligated" to ride on ride after ride til it lost the fun and we were just lining up like 2 sheep.
The other thing is that we did Disney Free Dining and although ate at places we would not normally do and, although the food was great and gave us new experiences, we felt constrained by having to be at this restauarant at this time. We ate more than normal and it felt more like a chore that we had to do cause we had reservations than what we wanted to do.

I think we'll be waiting 2 years now.

I can totally identify with what you just said! I've done the theme park commando thing where I used the park map as a checklist to check off what rides we have done and which ones we still need to do (with the goal being to do every ride...or almost every ride). Even though I eased off of that on this last trip, the trip was still just as regimented in its own way, in the sense of having a day by day plan that I am trying like heck to stick to. And I can kind of identify with the meal thing, too. I wonder, if instead of doing the dining plan and having a different TS meal every day, perhaps on the next trip, we should just plan one or two must do TS meals and then wing it on the rest of the meals of the trip; whenever we get the hankering to eat, we decide then where we want to eat. We could do this by either not doing the DDP at all, and just eating whatever CS meals suit our fancy at the time, or we could do the DDP but just decide on the fly which restararunt suits us at the time (although going this route leaves the possibility of the restaraunts having no availability).

Anyway, some ideas I have for restoring the magic on the next trip include the above (not making an ironclad itinerary, including meals), just being spontaneous and doing what we feel like doing at the time, as well as trying to give as little thought to the trip as possible in the months leading up to it. I kind of think that if you just book your trip and do the necessary planning in the time leading up to it, and then put it out of your mind and focus on your daily life, rather than a future trip, then when the trip arrives, you will enjoy it that much more. I know it's easier said than done, because I have an obsessive personality and it's hard not to go into total planning mode. But I seriously think that overplanning and dwelling on the trip too much is a big part of what ruins the magic once you get there. At least for me.

And you may be onto something when you mention going every two years. I always said that I would love to go to WDW every year if funds would allow it (even twice a year if funds would allow it). Now I'm not so sure. When my wife and I went on our honeymoon, it was awesome. But that was my first time back to the MK since 2000 and the first time to Epcot since 1987 and the first time ever for everything else. And there was something very special about being there with my new wife, and enjoying our first trip together. It was like "hey this is awesome! I'm at WDW with my new wife!". But after going back several times and over obsessing about the trip each time, it's like I was trying to fight to keep the magic alive this last time, and almost like "ya, here we are at WDW...AGAIN!". :lol: So next time we go, I don't want to dwell on the upcoming trip every day for a year. I don't want to carry my planning guide to work with me everyday and thumb through on my breaks. I don't want to browse over my itinerary every day. I don't want to have a particular restaraunt lined up for every single day. I just want to go about my life until the trip, then enjoy it once it arrives and hopefully the magic will be back in full swing.

 

[sublimesting]

And I can kind of identify with the meal thing, too. I wonder, if instead of doing the dining plan and having a different TS meal every day, perhaps on the next trip, we should just plan one or two must do TS meals and then wing it on the rest of the meals of the trip; whenever we get the hankering to eat, we decide then where we want to eat. We could do this by either not doing the DDP at all, and just eating whatever CS meals suit our fancy at the time, or we could do the DDP but just decide on the fly which restararunt suits us at the time (although going this route leaves the possibility of the restaraunts having no availability).

***That's what we usually do. There were times this year where we were like "I could just eat a snack and be good for the evening but here we are at 8PM off to Boma." Usually in years passed we would do what you mentioned. What DID make it all worth it was the Food and Wine Fest as we had 16 snacks left and we shared everything we ate so we tried all the foods we wanted. Never thought about restaurants not having availability, that never happened to us and we usually go in July, but this time we noticed how full they got.***

Anyway, some ideas I have for restoring the magic on the next trip include the above (not making an ironclad itinerary, including meals), just being spontaneous and doing what we feel like doing at the time, as well as trying to give as little thought to the trip as possible in the months leading up to it. I kind of think that if you just book your trip and do the necessary planning in the time leading up to it, and then put it out of your mind and focus on your daily life, rather than a future trip, then when the trip arrives, you will enjoy it that much more. I know it's easier said than done, because I have an obsessive personality and it's hard not to go into total planning mode. But I seriously think that overplanning and dwelling on the trip too much is a big part of what ruins the magic once you get there. At least for me.

***What makes it so fun our first time is that we didn't know anything, so it was all a surprise. The 2nd time we did anything we missed and also wandered around finding all the secret stuff like the hidden movie theater. This time it was just a repeat, like we go here, now we go here, "oh look HM has no line and we just rode it but its my favorite so let's go 2 more times."***

And you may be onto something when you mention going every two years. I always said that I would love to go to WDW every year if funds would allow it (even twice a year if funds would allow it). Now I'm not so sure. When my wife and I went on our honeymoon, it was awesome. But that was my first time back to the MK since 2000 and the first time to Epcot since 1987 and the first time ever for everything else. And there was something very special about being there with my new wife, and enjoying our first trip together. It was like "hey this is awesome! I'm at WDW with my new wife!". But after going back several times and over obsessing about the trip each time, it's like I was trying to fight to keep the magic alive this last time, and almost like "ya, here we are at WDW...AGAIN!". :lol: So next time we go, I don't want to dwell on the upcoming trip every day for a year. I don't want to carry my planning guide to work with me everyday and thumb through on my breaks. I don't want to browse over my itinerary every day. I don't want to have a particular restaraunt lined up for every single day. I just want to go about my life until the trip, then enjoy it once it arrives and hopefully the magic will be back in full swing. [/quote]

***I usually obsess too so it will be hard to go back and wing it, especially after 2 years.***

 

[Todd L]

It sounds like when they saw the man behind the curtain in the wizard of oz. All the magic was gone. Take a long break and go back when you really feel the urge. Im going back for the 1st time in 10 years and can tell you I cant remember being this excited for a vaction in Years.

 

[Christi22222]

Didn't think I'd be posting in this thread, but had some interesting info come my way today.....

My sister in law and her family went to Disney last week for free dining and stay at CB. They are not fanatics, just enjoy the Disney vacation because they have two little girls, 6 & 9, and it's fun. They have been 3 times in 6 years, and never before that. Usually she comes back raving and thrilled with the dining plan and can't wait to find time to go back. Not this time. She said the food was awful. When I pressed for details, she said all of the food was terrible and the service wasn't very good either. She was very displeased to learn of the no appetizer/gratuity. She did, however, enjoy CB. End result....they will be taking a break from any Disney vacations for awhile. She says they will try new destinations. Disney quality is meh and the vacation was over priced I guess. I'm really starting to get a sense that Disney's pendulum is swinging the other way, you know? I think it would have happened anyway, but the economy is giving it a shove. Too much focus on the wrong things and too many insane price increases have allowed the Disney wave of popularity to start waning? I had assumed that the foreigners would keep it crazy busy, but now that some other major economies look worse than ours, who knows? So I guess I'm here to say that at least one other family was "disappointed" enough to put Disney on hold.

 

[Disneykidder]

I wasn't going to post this anywhere, but I will. Our trip was fabulous with one exception...our resort.

We were in Disney Aug 23-31. We stayed at ASMu. We had free dining but would have paid for it, like we did last year. Well...our trip was AWESOME except for ASMu. I was so disappointed with that resort. It was terrible. I will never stay at another value ever again. I will not divulge any other info. other than saying that we had a terrible experience and end it with that. 6 resorts we have stayed at and this was the ONLY one we actually hated. The others were fine or excellent. The staff at the resort was amazing and our misfortune in no way was related to the CMs. They handled everything with professionalism and much courtesy. They were really great. It was the resort itself that we disliked.

The dining was exellent. Every restaurant we ate at had superb staff and the food was realllly good!! The only restaurant we disliked was Boma. The waitress kind of forgot about us for quite a long time and the food was just not to our liking. EVERY other placce we ate at was fabulous.

Will be go back to Disney again? Heck yeah!!!! We will not let our one negative resort experience turn us away from so many other great ones. Next trip...Disney cruise/Wilderness Lodge!!

 

[daliseurat]

I wish you would specify what you didn't like about the resort. It seems like you liked the staff.

Have you stayed at a value resort before?

Was it just dirty or something worse?

Wow! I am shocked you didn't like Boma. That's my favorite. But, as you said the food wasn't to your liking. I hate the food at the LUAU show at the POLY. But I love the show!

 

[RiversideBunny]

....The only restaurant we disliked was Boma....!

Just so you know, you are not alone on that. We finally tried Boma last December after hearing so much about it and about the zebra domes.
It was OK but nothing we want to go back for.
Crystal Palace is more interesting for us.

On this web site there are a lot of Boma fans.
Also rabid fans of Dole whips. Tried them also; didn't think Dole whips were so special. (Now I'm really in trouble.)
To put this in some perspective I eat all kinds of food, like sushi.
It's not that we only like plain 'peasant food'.

IMHO
:slurp:

 

[sublimesting]

I wasn't going to post this anywhere, but I will. Our trip was fabulous with one exception...our resort.

We were in Disney Aug 23-31. We stayed at ASMu. We had free dining but would have paid for it, like we did last year. Well...our trip was AWESOME except for ASMu. I was so disappointed with that resort. It was terrible. I will never stay at another value ever again. I will not divulge any other info. other than saying that we had a terrible experience and end it with that. 6 resorts we have stayed at and this was the ONLY one we actually hated. The others were fine or excellent. The staff at the resort was amazing and our misfortune in no way was related to the CMs. They handled everything with professionalism and much courtesy. They were really great. It was the resort itself that we disliked.

The dining was exellent. Every restaurant we ate at had superb staff and the food was realllly good!! The only restaurant we disliked was Boma. The waitress kind of forgot about us for quite a long time and the food was just not to our liking. EVERY other placce we ate at was fabulous.

Will be go back to Disney again? Heck yeah!!!! We will not let our one negative resort experience turn us away from so many other great ones. Next trip...Disney cruise/Wilderness Lodge!!

Why so mysterious with why you hated ASM? A blanket hate statement doesn't really mean too much. Was it the smaller rooms, was there a needle in your bed, no bible in the nightstand? I'm confused, as we stay at POP and love it!

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Just so you know, you are not alone on that. We finally tried Boma last December after hearing so much about it and about the zebra domes.
It was OK but nothing we want to go back for.
Crystal Palace is more interesting for us.

On this web site there are a lot of Boma fans.
Also rabid fans of Dole whips. Tried them also; didn't think Dole whips were so special. (Now I'm really in trouble.)
To put this in some perspective I eat all kinds of food, like sushi.
It's not that we only like plain 'peasant food'.

IMHO
:slurp:

No as a Boma fan I concur that the standards of both food and presentation have declined. We wont be visiting this trip.

Mind some of the clientèle have also gotten worse :drevil:

 

[Epcotbob]

I think the best way to approach a WDW trip is to not have too high of expectations and just determine to have a great time regardless.

If your expectations are too high, then your going to be bothered everytime they aren't met. Or someone else "ruins" the magic for you.

Last time I went was my best trip ever! I just kept my expectations in check... I expected to encounter rude inconsiderate people and just decided they can be jerks all they want, they aren't ruining my vacation.

Great thing is, I encountered these kind of people like I do every trip, but it just didn't bother me at all....they just looked silly to me.

Can your kids get cranky or impatient at times, of course! Usually they are over-tired and over-sugared, but just take it in stride....and don't expect them to be perfect angels 24/7 because of "all the money you spent" taking them to Disney World.

We were on the dining plan, did every morsel of food melt in my mouth and give me a sense of euphoria? No, but overall it was very good.

Especially as a parent, I find my attitude affects the whole family...so keep it positive and just determine your going to have a fantastic time! :sohappy:

 

[Lucky]

So next time we go, I don't want to dwell on the upcoming trip every day for a year. I don't want to carry my planning guide to work with me everyday and thumb through on my breaks. I don't want to browse over my itinerary every day. I don't want to have a particular restaraunt lined up for every single day. I just want to go about my life until the trip, then enjoy it once it arrives and hopefully the magic will be back in full swing.

Next time your son will be old enough to enjoy it, and you'll see it all differently. And as he gets older, he'll be into different aspects of it. That'll make each trip different for you too.

We've been going every year since DD was 4. Minnie Mouse and Barnstormer were her favorites, then she was into princesses, and this year at age 9 her favorite was Rock 'n Roller Coaster.

We go in late summer every year now for free dining. Being able to try new restaurants and dinner shows helps keep it all new. We eat more often at expensive restaurants during that one week at WDW than we do the other 51 weeks of the year combined.

Trying different resorts also keeps it feeling new. And every year there are a few minor attractions we've missed before that we see for the first time. They're not always exciting, but they're different.

Going with new people really makes a difference. Taking your child who is old enough to appreciate it for the first time is the best of all. But even going with another family or friends or relatives, especially if they're inexperienced and rely on you for advice, can liven things up a lot.

 

[hpyhnt 1000]

Didn't think I'd be posting in this thread, but had some interesting info come my way today.....

My sister in law and her family went to Disney last week for free dining and stay at CB. They are not fanatics, just enjoy the Disney vacation because they have two little girls, 6 & 9, and it's fun. They have been 3 times in 6 years, and never before that. Usually she comes back raving and thrilled with the dining plan and can't wait to find time to go back. Not this time. She said the food was awful. When I pressed for details, she said all of the food was terrible and the service wasn't very good either. She was very displeased to learn of the no appetizer/gratuity. She did, however, enjoy CB. End result....they will be taking a break from any Disney vacations for awhile. She says they will try new destinations. Disney quality is meh and the vacation was over priced I guess. I'm really starting to get a sense that Disney's pendulum is swinging the other way, you know? I think it would have happened anyway, but the economy is giving it a shove. Too much focus on the wrong things and too many insane price increases have allowed the Disney wave of popularity to start waning? I had assumed that the foreigners would keep it crazy busy, but now that some other major economies look worse than ours, who knows? So I guess I'm here to say that at least one other family was "disappointed" enough to put Disney on hold.

I agree with that. It just seems like we are reading more and more about cutbacks and "declining" whatever, whether it be food, cleanliness, etc. Whether or not anything is declining at all is up for debate, but it is the mindset of the guest that is most important. If they even think something is wrong, then Disney has a big problem. The reason people come to Disney is because they hear all these great things about it that make them want to visit; if that mindset of quality and perfection disappears, then the crowds disappear too. Perception is key, and if people begin to perceive that Disney is not as great as they believe it to be, then they will stop coming, or not come at all.

My family hasn't gotten to WDW in a while, but from what I remember from the last visit, I thought everything was still in pretty good shape. Service was good, parks were clean; in short, it was what we expected to find at Disney. But recently, I have been reading more threads or comments like this, about how something just wasn't what it should/used to be. It is starting to make me wonder, "Is Disney getting worse instead of better?", and its this mindset that is most worrying to me. I am a Disney fan through and through, and I really want to believe that the parks are as good as they ever were, but inside my heart of hearts, there is now a little pang of doubt, and I can't help but think Disney is going down the wrong track.

 

[Christi22222]

Excellent point regarding mindset and perception!! That is what I wasn't putting my finger on. I don't desire getting into debates on whether or not Disney actually is declining. I am just sensing that there is a trend for perceptions to sway that way. And that does give me concern that Disney isn't on the right track, like you. Thanks for hitting that nail on the head for me! Sometimes I can sense a concept, but not convey it as well as I'd like. Much appreciated.

 

[sbkline]

But is it the perception of the general populace that WDW is declining? Or are you only hearing that from hardcore people such as who post here? It seems to me that the average vacationer is simply going down to WDW to have a good time, and not going down there with a magnifying glass and a pair of white gloves to do an inspection. On the other hand, hardcore WDW geeks, such as are represented here, go down so often that they notice every new spiderweb that wasn't there the last time they went. LOL It's kind of like when I worked at McDonald's and me and some friends from work would go on outings and stop at the local Mickey Dee's to eat. We would stand in line, chatting to ourselves about the McDonald's, what they're doing wrong, how it's different from ours, etc. We would observe and notice things that no one else in line would care about. But since we worked for the chain and spent 5 days a week behind the counter, we would look for certain things and observe certain things.

IMO, it's similar to that here. When WDW is such an important part of one's life, and that person goes frequently, and chats on messageboards about it, they tend to go down there with white gloves checking for dust, and looking through magnifying glasses to notice cracks in the mortar, etc...whereas most people are just there enjoying a family vacation and don't let give much thought to it if the paper towels are out in the bathroom, or if they see a wrapper laying on the ground, etc. Well, they may be annoyed about the paper towels, but I don't think they would think much about it half an hour later, let alone when they get back home, and decide to gripe about it on a messageboard. They're not down there inspecting the place...they're down there having fun and will understand that no place is perfect.

The same can be said about the restaraunts. If you are a frequent visitor and have your favorite restaraunts, then one of two things can explain your perception that the quality is diminishing. Perhaps it actually is, or perhaps you have just eaten there so much that you're starting to notice the faults more (similar to the notion of visiting WDW itself so often that the entire resort loses the "magic") On the other hand, the average vacationer is going to enjoy their time at WDW with their family and enjoy the restaraunt experience there, without critiquing it against their past 10 visits.

Perhaps it's kind of like dating/marriage. When you first meet that person and fall in love, everything is perfect and that person is perfect. But the more you get to know that person, the more you notice his or her faults and imperfections. It's not that the person has become more imperfect since you met him/her (although that could happen, too LOL), but rather, that you have spent so much time with the person that you notice these things more.

 

[Christi22222]

Believe it or not, my impressions are all coming from casual Disney visitors. Folks who started going in the last 6 years or so and loved it, and now they are over it. Maybe that is an inevitable cycle; maybe there are issues at Disney. Either way, I'm not talking about the "nit-picking" that some of us die hards do on this forum because change is bad. (Myself included, BTW!) I'm talking about the bus stop moms who a year or two ago couldn't stop sharing about their Disney vacation, and now are coming back let down and not going back any time soon. Bummed at the food, bummed at the cost, bummed at airfare/flying in general, bummed at the crowds. The one common thread I hear is that folks still rave about the hard ticket events. Why? I personally think because those get back to some value for the bucks because the experience is so much better with fewer crowds. The hard tickets buy you some of the "magic" again rather than the stress of managing overwhelmed and tired families in a constant barrage of lines and crowds.