Has Planning Disney Vacation Made You Rethink Going?

[yensid67]

Planning a Disney vacation to Disney World USE TO BE ENJOYABLE AND FUN. but the executives have made changes that has sucked the magic out of planning! It is more of a CHORE than a Magical Journey of discovery. With all the pre-planning from dining reservations to special events to park reservations to GENIE+ and not to mention always having to check your phones during your vacation...IT'S ALL RIDICULOUS! and not necessary!
I wouldn't mind making Park Reservations, but the only thing that bugs me about that, is that DIsney will not release their CAPACITY LIMITS!! They say park reservations make the guest experience as good as it can be by limiting capacity, but won't tell you what "capacity" limit is! (Since I am a Former Cast Member, I know what AT CAPACITY crowds look like, and the crowds I am seeing ARE INDEED AT CAPACITY CROWDS PRE-PANDEMIC!) I think Disney wants guests to "THINK" they are keeping capacity low for guests' enjoyment while lying the guests. If they were keeping capacity lower than FULL CAPACITY, the Parks would be more tolerable and less crowded.

So, has all the changes that Disney is making to the parks make you rethink ever going to a disney park again?

 

[LuvtheGoof]

Dont get me wrong. Im still a loyal Dis guy and have refused to flame Dis for whose in charge and the policies theyve put in place, despite how others have posted intense hatred. I still see enough value to what they deliver and am willing to go back. DW and I are at this moment discussing the possibilities of a trip sooner than later. But they have made decisions that have planted the seed of doubt. Our usual trips are 2 weeks....we were thinking 3 weeks to a month this time.... this may now be scaled back greatly.

So are we. We check pretty much every box that Disney has, except for being CMs. We don't hate the changes at all. Though I do think that current management is clueless about running a Disney theme park. They would do fine at Six Flags. We enjoy what is there, and don't lament what was. We don't go looking for issues, but just love being there. Our trips are 2 to 3 times a year for 8-9 days each. We always have a few resort only and DS days as well to relax. We never park commando anymore, as we just don't need to. Get there at rope drop for resort guests, go on a few favorites, maybe lunch at that park, maybe somewhere else. Back to the resort for some relaxation and pool time. Then a different park in the evening (usually EPCOT). We still see lots of value for us, and will continue to go. We cannot imagine a change that would cause us to not want to go.

Having been going since 1978 when I was 20 and living in Orlando, we have seen what the parks used to be and what they are now. Do we miss a few things? Sure. Our oldest son and his wife got engaged in front of the Rose Garden sign. Do we cry when we walk past there? Of course not. We have tons of pictures and even had a CM take pictures along with us when he saw what was going to happen. We relive it whenever we want. We also happen to agree with the expansion of the hub, as it was getting ridiculous prior to the expansion. Change isn't always bad.

 

[5thGenTexan]

Not knowing if the airplane is going to go to Florida or not has made me rethink our plans for next year,.

 

[Hakunamatata]

No. We just moved here to avoid the frustration.

 

[TheGuyThatMakesSwords]

Not knowing if the airplane is going to go to Florida or not has made me rethink our plans for next year,.

THIS. DVC owners in MI... beyond all the WDW cuts, we can't trust the Airlines to actually perform.
So we just canceled our NOV 2022 trip.

 

[Disstevefan1]

My family and I went in 2018 and had a magical stay at yacht club. It was our first time at YC and the proximity to Epcot and HS was so convenient which made the trip all the more enjoyable. It was a week full of park hopping....sometimes 3 parks in a day (HS opened at 7am that summer!!) No park reservations system, no 2pm restrictions on park hopping, no genie+. It was an absolute trip to remember, just how walt wanted things to be for families coming to wdw. We've talked about going again but every time we discuss the changes that have recently come about, it completely kills the vibe of going back to the "most magical place on earth." I'm the planner for the family and I honestly say that I don't enjoy the thoughts of being stuck on my phone for a week at wdw. I'll agree though there are many other ways to enjoy wdw such as resort time, pool time, DS, water parks, etc. Just have weigh out how much we're willing to bend to the current situations unfortunately.

Ah, 2018, the good old days

 

[eliza61nyc]

So Making park reservations is not a chore for me since even before covid, I had my days pretty much pre planned. I used touringplans and booked based on the crowd calendar.
This is our off year so I'm hoping that by 2023 crowds will have thined out a bit.
Last year I didn't have any issues getting the adr's we wanted.
Keeping my fingers and toes crossed for next year

 

[Chi84]

So Making park reservations is not a chore for me since even before covid, I had my days pretty much pre planned. I used touringplans and booked based on the crowd calendar.
This is our off year so I'm hoping that by 2023 crowds will have thined out a bit.
Last year I didn't have any issues getting the adr's we wanted.
Keeping my fingers and toes crossed for next year

We always have our days preplanned. But we really liked the option of switching parks for some unforeseen reason (like weather or ride availability) or being able to visit a water park in the morning instead of our planned park without having to scan into that park before using our hopper for a dinner reservation. We found that you can't depend on being able to cancel the first and reserve the second unless the second happens to be Epcot (almost always available). I honestly didn't realize that the park reservation system would make things so inflexible until we were actually at WDW and used the new system. I thought it would be Genie+/ILLs that I liked least. Not so.

 

[JIMINYCR]

Not knowing if the airplane is going to go to Florida or not has made me rethink our plans for next year,.

I cant count the number of my customers who get to the airport, board the plane and then are told to deplane because theres no pilot showing up. Another customer boarded, they go taxiied out and waited and waited. Then went back to the gate and was told they werent taking off because the lavatory sink was stopped up and there was no one who could get it fixed, therefore they couldnt fly.
So many flights cancelled and no guarantee of when you can get up in the air.

 

[JIMINYCR]

Uni holds nothing for us, so we never even thought to go there.

We went for a change in site, the better thrill rides that Disney refuses to give us and the scarier Halloween nights. As my DS got older he was looking for more thrilling attractions to satisfy his wanting more action. We still enjoy Dis enough that it gets the majority of our money and time.

 

[LuvtheGoof]

We went for a change in site, the better thrill rides that Disney refuses to give us and the scarier Halloween nights. As my DS got older he was looking for more thrilling attractions to satisfy his wanting more action. We still enjoy Dis enough that it gets the majority of our money and time.

As we’ve gotten older, the thrill rides hurt too much. Very few coasters that we can ride anymore.

 

[JIMINYCR]

As we’ve gotten older, the thrill rides hurt too much. Very few coasters that we can ride anymore.

Cant avoid aging. Im feeling the motion of certain rides more than I ever did before and think I'll have to to be more choosier on future trips. Last trip the inverted part of a couple of coasters almost got me.

 

[Disneyfan_76]

We just got back from a trip 2 weeks ago. Pre Covid, we used to go every year. I absolutely hate the reservation system. We like to be able to look at the weather for the week and plan things out while we are there. This can't be done anymore. We will still go to Disney, but I feel like we will be spending more time at Universal on our next trip.

 

[Weather_Lady]

We just got back from a trip 2 weeks ago. Pre Covid, we used to go every year. I absolutely hate the reservation system. We like to be able to look at the weather for the week and plan things out while we are there. This can't be done anymore. We will still go to Disney, but I feel like we will be spending more time at Universal on our next trip.

That's us, too.

It's funny, because I used to enjoy the pre-planning back in the days of FP+ and 180-day restaurant ADRs, as time-consuming as that was, because once you arranged those things, you could look forward to them as a guarantee, PLUS you still had some flexibility to change those plans later if you needed to (subject to certain limitations, of course). The planning added a little extra stress before your trip, but made it less stressful once you were there.

Now, you have to plan way more, but you're guaranteed far less in return (e.g., you can buy Genie+, but your work isn't done - be ready to be up early, every day, for a fresh fastest-fingers challenge!) and there's no guarantee you'll get to reserve any of your top-priority rides; you can buy parkhoppers, but there's no assurance you'll be able to hop to your desired parks, and you certainly can't do so whenever you like, or without first slavishly tapping into the first park you reserved), and you no longer have the flexibility to change plans on the fly (without also changing park reservations). Now you get tons of stress ahead of time, and tons of stress while you're in the parks. Such a deal!

 

[KaliSplash]

yes

 

[CelebrationFL]

Uni holds nothing for us, so we never even thought to go there.

Have you ever been to Uni? How would you know it's not your thing if you've never tried it? For what it's worth, Uni must be doing something right when I don't hear people complaining about them like they do about Disney.

 

[LuvtheGoof]

Have you ever been to Uni? How would you know it's not your thing if you've never tried it? For what it's worth, Uni must be doing something right when I don't hear people complaining about them like they do about Disney.

We have looked at what is there, and seems like mostly thrill rides. No longer our cup of tea. At our age, relaxing is the way to go.

In addition to this, being DVC we stay at Disney exclusively. We have no desire to spend money at one of the Uni resorts or to spend hundreds of dollars on a few days for tickets.

 

[CelebrationFL]

We have looked at what is there, and seems like mostly thrill rides. No longer our cup of tea. At our age, relaxing is the way to go.

Uni isn't 100% thrill rides. You would know that if you actually gave it a shot.

In addition to this, being DVC we stay at Disney exclusively.

I'm not sure what being a DVC member has to do with anything. DVC isn't stopping you from patronizing non-Disney theme parks.

We have no desire to spend money at one of the Uni resorts or to spend hundreds of dollars on a few days for tickets.

Do you mean the same amount (if not more) of money you spend at Disney?

 

[LuvtheGoof]

Uni isn't 100% thrill rides. You would know that if you actually gave it a shot.

I'm not sure what being a DVC member has to do with anything. DVC isn't stopping you from patronizing non-Disney theme parks.

Do you mean the same amount (if not more) of money you spend at Disney?

Hmm, kinda curious why you even care what theme park choices we make? Since I’ve been visiting WDW since 1978 when I lived in Orlando, I just couldn’t care about going to Uni.

Being DVC, I spend zero on our resort stay. We have APs so one time cost, and again zero for 3 of the 4 visits. So we spend a lot less than you think we do when we visit.

If we want to visit Uni, we would have to spend hundreds for a few days. Just not worth it at all.

 

[MickeyCB]

That's us, too.

It's funny, because I used to enjoy the pre-planning back in the days of FP+ and 180-day restaurant ADRs, as time-consuming as that was, because once you arranged those things, you could look forward to them as a guarantee, PLUS you still had some flexibility to change those plans later if you needed to (subject to certain limitations, of course). The planning added a little extra stress before your trip, but made it less stressful once you were there.

Now, you have to plan way more, but you're guaranteed far less in return (e.g., you can buy Genie+, but your work isn't done - be ready to be up early, every day, for a fresh fastest-fingers challenge!) and there's no guarantee you'll get to reserve any of your top-priority rides; you can buy parkhoppers, but there's no assurance you'll be able to hop to your desired parks, and you certainly can't do so whenever you like, or without first slavishly tapping into the first park you reserved), and you no longer have the flexibility to change plans on the fly (without also changing park reservations). Now you get tons of stress ahead of time, and tons of stress while you're in the parks. Such a deal!

All of this.
The thing that I noticed the most is there is no maneuver room.
Booking 180 days ahead and then FP later with 60 days to go till your trip left time to switch things around.
Now dining at 60 (for whatever the heck reason), and day of ride reservations. If there is a conflict with your dining too bad. What do you prefer family, to eat at this fun restaurant or go on this ride? Pick one.
It's quite unreasonable to expect customers to participate in this crazy daily and charge for the pleasure.

 

[DryerLintFan]

Planning a Disney vacation to Disney World USE TO BE ENJOYABLE AND FUN. but the executives have made changes that has sucked the magic out of planning! It is more of a CHORE than a Magical Journey of discovery. With all the pre-planning from dining reservations to special events to park reservations to GENIE+ and not to mention always having to check your phones during your vacation...IT'S ALL RIDICULOUS! and not necessary!
I wouldn't mind making Park Reservations, but the only thing that bugs me about that, is that DIsney will not release their CAPACITY LIMITS!! They say park reservations make the guest experience as good as it can be by limiting capacity, but won't tell you what "capacity" limit is! (Since I am a Former Cast Member, I know what AT CAPACITY crowds look like, and the crowds I am seeing ARE INDEED AT CAPACITY CROWDS PRE-PANDEMIC!) I think Disney wants guests to "THINK" they are keeping capacity low for guests' enjoyment while lying the guests. If they were keeping capacity lower than FULL CAPACITY, the Parks would be more tolerable and less crowded.

So, has all the changes that Disney is making to the parks make you rethink ever going to a disney park again?

We've been at Disney when capacity was limited and it felt more busy and difficult than when the park was legitimately crowded to me because it was half staffed. A lot of the concessions were closed, the rides were not rubbing to their full ability, and food was really really slow.

So I guess that old adage likely applies here: be careful what you wish for.