I think “The Magic” is mostly gone for me…

[The Empress Lilly]

We had a different experience recently.

This trip it felt like I finally quit chasing some intangible feeling that I kept looking for every trip - looking for that feeling I had as a child and my parents were young, extended family was there, blah blah blah. It's like I kept trying to recreate what I felt then and honestly, you just can't! Times change, people get older, you know the drill.

This trip we just really had a good time. No expectations of some nostalgic magic and turns out no feelings of disappointment. We really enjoyed taking it easy(ish) during the days and enjoying the parks later afternoon to closing them down. Just enjoyed being at Epcot this trip at night - said earlier it gives Chicago summer street fest vibes and we really like it. Even enjoyed DHS this trip, which I normally don't love it.

This trip it felt like we were visiting a place we really enjoy coming back to every few years. No unobtainable magic for me anymore, but just a good time and honestly, I feel relieved about that. And we do plan to go back again but I don't feel melancholy about it anymore, if that makes any sense.

Thanks for aharing. I can relate, WDW is a place of intense memory and personal bagage for me. Most even for the better, to be sure. And it's the reason why I go there in the first place. But it does bog one down. I feel a certain unbothered lightfootedness when I visit any Disneyland around the world, rather than my WDW. I guess not unlike what you felt this recent trip of yours.

 

[flynnibus]

I'm curious to know when almost solely vacationing at Disney became a thing. They certainly lean into it now with DVC, but my impression is that going to WDW several times a year or even once every year is something that significant numbers of people only started doing relatively recently.

I don't agree with that view. I've been really active in disney fansites for basically 20yrs.. and there has always been the "we go 3+ times a year" portion of the crowd. I mean DVC has been a thing since the early 90s!

I think the problem is if you frame it as 'you only vacation at Disney' vs 'people who chose to vacation at Disney so much they don't have time for anything else'. I think those addicted would see themselves as the second category.. they just don't 'leave time for anything else'.

The 'faithful' have been there since WDW really started expanding IMO.. I think the level of addiction has also increased with the scale of WDW though too. Meaning, the bigger WDW has gotten, the more frequent some seem to go. And of course once we entered the age of the special events and festivals, those always became anchor points for people.

So I think the problem has gotten WORSE for some, but I don't think it's really a more recent phenom.

I agree that standards have slipped and prices are out of control, so I'm not discounting those reasons for people failing to get much enjoyment out of a WDW trip. I do wonder, though, whether the fact so many now visit so frequently contributes to the sense that it isn't the special place it once was as all the flaws become especially obvious with such familiarity.

Take Disneyland for the extreme example. It used to cater to that high frequency well... and even in that situation Disney's moves have undermined and soured that audience. So it's not just 'we are here so much we see it now'.... as there are actual changes that do derail even the faithful.

One of the big arguments used to be 'you didn't know any better'... for the people who had really only been to WDW in the post-2007ish era and had no idea what 1985 or 1991ish WDW was like. Now we've seen Disney change so rapidly, that people who only started going in the last 5ish years even see the swings that negatively impact them.

For me the big swing was going back to WDW in the 2000s after being away for a long period in the late 90s. It was obvious back then even that Disney's lead vs everyone else had shrunk dramatically. And that was before they even got basically hostile towards customers with their product strategies.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

The ratio of good to crappy food is always a matter of opinion and is always relative, is what I'm saying.

Just in the last year I have dined at the Boardwalk Deli twice. The first time our food was great: the pastrami was excellent, and I posted here that I thought the deli was great. (We also had a very good chicken sandwich.) The second time our pastrami sandwiches were very greasy and the worst meal of that visit.

I could say the same about most WDW dining locations over the past 50 years of visiting WDW.

I earlier said Cali Grill was great, but my experiences there have been rather variable over the years. Even if the food was the same every visit, when it comes to CG, the seating matters. Table by a window= fabulous view of MK. Table in the back part of the restaurant= no view. If you happen to get a perfect view of the fireworks, that alone makes the experience fabulous.

But the food and the staff are not uniform every visit, and they are part of the dining experience. A chef who oversalts= a bad meal. A short-staffed kitchen= slow food delivery (most recent visit to Topolino's)

Did you know the Boma buffet rotates between two menus. Mon-Wed-Fri is one menu. Tu/Thur is the other menu. (I'm not sure about weekend schedule). IMO, the Mon/Wed/Fri menu is much better.

Food inconsistency is an aspect of WDW that I find frustrating.

For people with food allergies, inconsistency is even worse. It can be life-threatening.

Good call on food inconsistency. Nearly all of my favourite WDW eateries have given me great food one trip, then sometimes outright bad experiences the very next. Boma. Columbia Harbour House. Tangierine Café.

 

[dreday3]

Thanks for aharing. I can relate, WDW is a place of intense memory and personal bagage for me. Most even for the better, to be sure. And it's the reason why I go there in the first place. But it does bog one down. I feel a certain unbothered lightfootedness when I visit any Disneyland around the world, rather than my WDW. I guess not unlike what you felt this recent trip of yours.

Yes! Thank you for understanding what I meant. I put a kind of pressure on WDW trips that I don't put on any other of the vacations we take/places we visit.

It's all good memories for sure, but also made me melancholy, which in turn always made me feel like I was missing "something" while on the trip. This trip due to other stuff that happened in life, I felt like we were there just to be there in the moment instead of trying to find something that's gone. And it was very enjoyable.

 

[Disgruntled Walt]

TLDR: I agree with the OP.

My family used to visit Disney World every year from 1990 to 2009. I was born into it in 1997, and some of my favorite memories of my childhood were made either there or at Disneyland (you can see the specific years I visited each in my signature). I felt like it was a second home. And every year, we were treated like royalty by the Cast Members, experienced (for the most part) top-notch attraction quality, and genuinely "felt the Magic," though it's a corny phrase.

We took one year off in 2010, and when we returned in 2011 and continuing on from there, our experience began to decline. Attractions not quite looking as great. Higher prices. In some instances, RUDE Cast Members. An overall decline in quality. I didn't want to admit it, because I loved going there. By 2014, it wasn't financially feasible for us to make the trip there every year anymore, and the decline in quality of the experience made it a lot easier to swallow for my family members who actually saw things for how they were in the Parks.

I had the chance to go on a Spring Break trip to WDW in 2015, which was the first time I experienced FP+. Looking in January at which rides I wanted to go on in late March was ridiculous to me, and one of the first chinks in the armor. But at least it was still free.

Later in 2015, having graduated from high school, I was gifted a trip to either WDW or Disneyland. I picked Disneyland so we could experience all of the things added since our previous trip there 10 years earlier. We had a great time (traditional FP was still there too!), but the dearth of WDW-esque (buffet/family style) dining options was rough (glad Big Thunder BBQ was still open then). The Cast Members seemed to be nicer, too (closer to what we were used to in WDW).

After another break, we saved up and went to WDW again in 2017 as a family. Again, the experience was getting further and further away from what made our earlier trips so fantastic. Even I noticed it this time. Cast Members who seemed unhappy with their jobs (perhaps justifiably, but it never used to show) and took it out on us.

After one more pause, when I graduated college I was gifted another trip. Again I chose Disneyland, this time so we could experience Galaxy's Edge (sans RotR). Again, a pretty solid trip in terms of experience, but I was reminded again of how great a WDW trip was back-in-the-day. And I wanted to try to experience that again, or at least get as close as I could! And we actually had plans to.

My family was heading to Florida for a wedding scheduled for May 2020. Naturally, we decided to make a week of it. COVID had other plans, and it didn't happen.

And now, I've been following Disney news sites, looking at photo reports, reading about people's experiences, and I can see just how much things have changed since my last trip to WDW. It's so different now. I dislike so much of what they're adding with all of the IP-centricity. Plus there is the political stuff. I have people in my family who won't give Disney their business because of the politics, and while I don't feel the same way as them, I certainly don't blame them. I don't know when I'm going back. I'd like to, but with the price gouging, removal of perks, and the politics, it probably isn't happening soon.

I'll always love WDW for what the experience it gave my family and me for so many years, and I'd like to return to that WDW. Will it ever happen? Not likely.

 

[MagicRat]

TLDR: I agree with the OP.

My family used to visit Disney World every year from 1990 to 2009. I was born into it in 1997, and some of my favorite memories of my childhood were made either there or at Disneyland (you can see the specific years I visited each in my signature). I felt like it was a second home. And every year, we were treated like royalty by the Cast Members, experienced (for the most part) top-notch attraction quality, and genuinely "felt the Magic," though it's a corny phrase.

We took one year off in 2010, and when we returned in 2011 and continuing on from there, our experience began to decline. Attractions not quite looking as great. Higher prices. In some instances, RUDE Cast Members. An overall decline in quality. I didn't want to admit it, because I loved going there. By 2014, it wasn't financially feasible for us to make the trip there every year anymore, and the decline in quality of the experience made it a lot easier to swallow for my family members who actually saw things for how they were in the Parks.

I had the chance to go on a Spring Break trip to WDW in 2015, which was the first time I experienced FP+. Looking in January at which rides I wanted to go on in late March was ridiculous to me, and one of the first chinks in the armor. But at least it was still free.

Later in 2015, having graduated from high school, I was gifted a trip to either WDW or Disneyland. I picked Disneyland so we could experience all of the things added since our previous trip there 10 years earlier. We had a great time (traditional FP was still there too!), but the dearth of WDW-esque (buffet/family style) dining options was rough (glad Big Thunder BBQ was still open then). The Cast Members seemed to be nicer, too (closer to what we were used to in WDW).

After another break, we saved up and went to WDW again in 2017 as a family. Again, the experience was getting further and further away from what made our earlier trips so fantastic. Even I noticed it this time. Cast Members who seemed unhappy with their jobs (perhaps justifiably, but it never used to show) and took it out on us.

After one more pause, when I graduated college I was gifted another trip. Again I chose Disneyland, this time so we could experience Galaxy's Edge (sans RotR). Again, a pretty solid trip in terms of experience, but I was reminded again of how great a WDW trip was back-in-the-day. And I wanted to try to experience that again, or at least get as close as I could! And we actually had plans to.

My family was heading to Florida for a wedding scheduled for May 2020. Naturally, we decided to make a week of it. COVID had other plans, and it didn't happen.

And now, I've been following Disney news sites, looking at photo reports, reading about people's experiences, and I can see just how much things have changed since my last trip to WDW. It's so different now. I dislike so much of what they're adding with all of the IP-centricity. Plus there is the political stuff. I have people in my family who won't give Disney their business because of the politics, and while I don't feel the same way as them, I certainly don't blame them. I don't know when I'm going back. I'd like to, but with the price gouging, removal of perks, and the politics, it probably isn't happening soon.

I'll always love WDW for what the experience it gave my family and me for so many years, and I'd like to return to that WDW. Will it ever happen? Not likely.

It also may seem that you were not paying for these items while you said “we” given the age you were born. Becoming an adult will certainly change things, but viewing this stuff through the glasses of the internet will not help you neither will the mafia of a message board. I hope you get to go soon and with the money it will cost you, be able to enjoy it!

 

[World_Showcase_Lover007]

The magic will return…temporarily…when you have kids. Then you’ll eventually realize that you were correct in your first assessment of it being gone.

 

[Tom Morrow]

I can pinpoint the exact moment where the magic was finally gone for me. And, well, it took an awful lot to get to that point. I won't get into how much Disney and WDW have altered my life, but well, it's a lot.

But it was opening night of Harmonious. I was a huge fan of Illuminations and attended the final showing of Illuminations. I was pumped to see what their big replacement for it would bring.

Then 20+ minutes later, the show finished, I felt nothing. It was so completely empty and soulless, and boring to boot (despite being technically impressive). I looked around me and a bunch of Instagram influencers and Disney brand lifestylers were raving about "how much better it was than Illuminations". Not trying to sound smug, but it used to be about more than the Disney the brand.

That is when I realized that the WDW I cared about is pretty much gone. They've moved on and have successfully conditioned the majority of their guests to move on with them and forget how it used to be, while also creating a new legion of fans that are just Disney Adult brand lifestylers and not theme park lovers.

 

[Goofyernmost]

I don't agree with that view. I've been really active in disney fansites for basically 20yrs.. and there has always been the "we go 3+ times a year" portion of the crowd. I mean DVC has been a thing since the early 90s!

I think the problem is if you frame it as 'you only vacation at Disney' vs 'people who chose to vacation at Disney so much they don't have time for anything else'. I think those addicted would see themselves as the second category.. they just don't 'leave time for anything else'.

The 'faithful' have been there since WDW really started expanding IMO.. I think the level of addiction has also increased with the scale of WDW though too. Meaning, the bigger WDW has gotten, the more frequent some seem to go. And of course once we entered the age of the special events and festivals, those always became anchor points for people.

So I think the problem has gotten WORSE for some, but I don't think it's really a more recent phenom.




Take Disneyland for the extreme example. It used to cater to that high frequency well... and even in that situation Disney's moves have undermined and soured that audience. So it's not just 'we are here so much we see it now'.... as there are actual changes that do derail even the faithful.

One of the big arguments used to be 'you didn't know any better'... for the people who had really only been to WDW in the post-2007ish era and had no idea what 1985 or 1991ish WDW was like. Now we've seen Disney change so rapidly, that people who only started going in the last 5ish years even see the swings that negatively impact them.

For me the big swing was going back to WDW in the 2000s after being away for a long period in the late 90s. It was obvious back then even that Disney's lead vs everyone else had shrunk dramatically. And that was before they even got basically hostile towards customers with their product strategies.

It worked the opposite for me. I "discovered" WDW in 1983. I became immediately obsessed. It was only my financial statis that mostly kept it at once a year. In unique cases twice, The bigger it got the less I enjoyed it, amazingly coinciding with the advent of FP. I hated FP then and I hate it now in all its various incarnations. It has slowly evolved into something I thought about constantly to now feeling it would have to be some weird thing for me to ever go again. The requirements that it takes to just have worthwhile visit along with the cost more than surpasses the degree of enjoyment for me. I'd rather just look at You Tube videos and remember the times that I once had then to actually know that it will be nothing more than stressful.

I've gone to WDW 48 times since 1983, mostly from 1400 miles away and have no future plans or desires. I have also spent a week in Disneyland and was sort of enveloped in the history, but other than that was unimpressed. I might point out that was in 2005 when DL was celebrating its 50th anniversary. I also visited Disneyland Paris as a one day part of a general month long European trip. It was OK, but I really can't think that I really was able to get the whole picture in just that one day, so no real judgement one way or the other.

 

[Goofyernmost]

The magic will return…temporarily…when you have kids. Then you’ll eventually realize that you were correct in your first assessment of it being gone.

It will be different when one has kids for sure, but I wouldn't count on any magic. Magic only happens within ourselves and if we have allowed any negativity in our brains it will still be there kids or not. One doesn't feel the magic just because their children might be having fun, but if one can find a way to have that spark start up again, within themselves, then it will be different, but going with children will only work until they start whining that their feet hurt, or they are to tired to walk or, and this is a big one, would rather be in the hotel pool than trudging along in the heat with parents that are trying to live vicariously through their offspring.

 

[BASS]

Curious question for those who think Disney has lost its magic: do you have children that [still] accompany you to the parks?

My parents took me a lot as a kid so it has a nostalgic value. I have 2 under 13 and still find the parks immensely enjoyable. That said, I'm not sure I would be at Disney or would find it enjoyable if my kids were no longer traveling with us to the parks.

(For context, I went to Disney for the first time since Covid earlier this year and found it incredibly rewarding and enjoyable. More expensive, absolutely, but that's the world we're in now.)

 

[HauntedPirate]

A sad twist of fate - When Roy E attempted to oust Michael Eisner, saying Disney under him had become, "rapacious, soulless and always looking for the quick buck rather than long-term value", a man who has embodied that philosophy became CEO. Right fight, wrong outcome.

 

[NickMaio]

Just how we felt after last years trip, and talking to normal tourist friends, we’re not alone. Upcharging. Value for money drops but prices rise. Poor to variable show quality.

Which is why we actively chose not to return this year.

That says A LOT from a bonafide Park History Nut!

WDW wake up and listen to the people who have brought you this far.

It's not too late!

 

[DznyRktekt]

In the last two years we have trekked to Orlando four times for long weekend getaways at Universal and have not returned to Disney. I was completely turned off by not being able to ride Rise of the Resistance when taking every step necessary to secure a boarding group the last time we were at Hollywood Studios. I set an alarm on my phone for the second booking as well and we were not able to experience the attraction. Seeing this is the way to experience new attractions at 32830 we have taken a break and I am not interested in staring at any device while on vacation.

 

[Jrb1979]

That says A LOT from a bonafide Park History Nut!

WDW wake up and listen to the people who have brought you this far.

It's not too late!

That's not who they are after. They want that family from Denver who comes once versus the hardcores who buy APs to get discounts.

 

[jaklgreen]

In the last two years we have trekked to Orlando four times for long weekend getaways at Universal and have not returned to Disney. I was completely turned off by not being able to ride Rise of the Resistance when taking every step necessary to secure a boarding group the last time we were at Hollywood Studios. I set an alarm on my phone for the second booking as well and we were not able to experience the attraction. Seeing this is the way to experience new attractions at 32830 we have taken a break and I am not interested in staring at any device while on vacation.

I have always been able to get a boarding group whenever I have tried. I don't use the wifi, I always use my date. I have Verizon and have no issues with the internet. It is so much faster than trying to use Disney wifi, especially when thousands of others are doing the same.

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

I have always been able to get a boarding group whenever I have tried. I don't use the wifi, I always use my date. I have Verizon and have no issues with the internet. It is so much faster than trying to use Disney wifi, especially when thousands of others are doing the same.

We’ve been fortunate and always got them also but it’s an added level of stress I don’t need, especially while on vacation.

 

[Goofyernmost]

I will politely counter that by saying my first trip was when I was almost 30. I had low expectations, probably wouldn't have even gone if someone didn't make a Christmas gift of the trip for me. I thought it was curious at first that there were "shows" and not just "rides" and once I got home, I realized I wanted to go back. I didn't even know why at first. This was not Six Flags. "There's magic in them thar hills." (This was the late 90's.)

Yes, there was (and is) the connection to childhood because even though I had never gone to WDW as a child, I grew up with Disney entertainment/toys/the iconic dinner plate that got passed down from sibling to sibling, etc.

But yes, the parks connection came later in life. I started reading more about the parks, Walt, etc; then coming to this site, then listening to podcasts, and my relationship with the parks (and other fans) evolved over time, avoiding any kind of staleness.

You didn't really counter all that much. We both were close to the same age and also had close to the same connection with Disney except mine went back further. My childhood only had Disneyland in it. DL opened when I was about 8 years old. I laid on my belly eating a Fluffernutter sandwich watching Annette and the rest of the original Mouseketeer's run around the DL in glorious black and white, snowy wonderment.

I saw all the Disney movies but my family couldn't afford to go across the country from the top eastern corner of NY State to Anaheim. I also watched every Disney ABC Wonderful World of Disney/Color when we got a color TV. However, at the time of our first visit I was in the middle of starting my career, two young children, mortgage, two cars and money was very scarce., My parents had just returned from a retirement road trip across the country which included a stop at WDW. They got back and regaled us with story's of how much fun they had at Magic Kingdom, brought Mickey Ears back for the girls and it sparked my thought that I'd like to take the kids.

Over the next two years we planned and saved and the girls asked everyday when we were going. I looked forward to it because up to that point we never had a vacation and my kids had never been further away from Vermont than Boston when they went along with me on a overnight business trip. I had no expectations and only a memory of the snowy TV version of DL.

I remember that first trip like it was yesterday. I drove onto World Drive tuned the radio to WDW's station giving me directions and I was hooked. Even the parking system with trams blew me away. From that point on I didn't care if the kids liked it or not. It was going to be my primary destination for the next 40 years. Until now. Going there was always relatively expensive, but they outdid themselves recently. They priced me out. What money I have put away has to last me for the rest of my life and what I spend has to make me feel like I am getting my moneys worth. That feeling no longer exists. If I knew I was going to buy the farm in the next few months I might go again, just for old times sake, but other than that at least I still have the memories.

 

[Goofyernmost]

That's not who they are after. They want that family from Denver who comes once versus the hardcores who buy APs to get discounts.

It really doesn't take an advanced degree in math to figure out why. Those one timers spend $100.00+ per person just to get into the park. They spend a lot of money for lodging, souvenirs and food. In a seven day visit a four person party will probably have dropped, with the new Genie etc. approximately $6650 if they stay onsite. If a person with an AP only uses the pass once per week the revenue from that over seven visits is $140. if, as is many cases the APers only use it one day at a time, do not stay onsite, bring their own lunches or even if they eat at one of the higher end onsite restaurants the difference in revenue is staggering. Why they even offer an AP has always been a mystery to me. There is a whole lot of room between $6650 and $140. Just like FP was established hoping that people would spend more money during the down times between rides, the AP was supposed to guarantee a certain revenue if it wasn't used to it's maximum. However, if one couldn't feel sure that they would use it well past the cost of individual fee's why would they even buy one. The likelihood that they would all equal out is far more possible in WDW than DL, but with DVC it is still a better bet that they might generate a little extra but not a lot more.

 

[ppete1975]

Pretty much the same as most of EPCOT FW... by about 1990 due to lack of updates. It's not to say the attractions couldn't be saved, but to point out the attractions are not drawing, you have to look at their current state too.

They were never going to be attractions like IASW that can run intact for decades - they relied heavily on content that had contemporary messaging and visuals... while society was moving faster than it ever had.

So did spaceship earth survive (in comparison to world of motion) because of its ride building, and them not being able to put a roller coaster in it. You cant exactly demo the ball or add to the backend like energy. I know I am way off topic, but all of this talk has me thinking through some of their moves. So instead of it being iconic to epcot or a classic, they just havent been able to come up with anything better (that would actually work).