Is attendance really down at WDW this or…

[celluloid]

Yep, conspiracy theories about attractions going down as a tool to push Genie+ aside, some of Disney's parks simply have no room for error.

It even makes it hard to do standard refurbishments when one missing attraction has a significant impact.

Disney also should consider building some attractions with capacity in mind. Universe of Energy was a great option to have because it was never busy, even on crowded days, and offered an extended experience. A friend referred to it as a "just do it" option on a busy day like NYE. It has been replaced with yet another attraction that lasts a few minutes with a long wait time.

Build more high capacity omnimover type attractions in each park. They typically see less wait times than coasters for example and offer a longer experience.

And what do you do with a kid who is under 40 inches in height on that side of the park?

 

[Thepuma]

I don't think attraction downtime is due to a secret agenda to push wait times up by keeping attractions closed, I just think maintenance is really bad. Just looking at the state of some attractions is all you need to know.

I do think wait-times are inflated to consider potential downtime, the ridiculous Genie to Standby ratio, and the fact that one attraction down causes a domino effect throughout the park due to a lack of capacity.

I think Disney is a mirror of civilisation as a whole...we peaked at the turn of the millennium and since then we are heading backwards at a rate of knotts...people poorer, maintenance on roads etc almost non existent.. even theme parks being a worse experience as they once were.

The customer service era has long gone...its now all about scamming people out of as much money as possible for the least amount of effort.

All quite sad really. Who would want to be a child

Then we’ll never have to read this again. Woo hoo!

They must be doing something right.

Given how busy OP says they are, they have no reason to address your concerns.

So, your solution to the Disney multitude of problems is to not talk about them and they'll magically go away.

You must be Disneys best customer...they can walk all over you and you keep it all quiet, rather than tell the truth.

 

[Lilofan]

This was an option for my wedding too. GMR, a few countries, and maybe Ellen's. I can't remember the other options.

I would say Great Movie Ride track area would be an incredible place to have a private wedding party event. Appetizers, open bar at Indiana Jones snakes , Western Gangster, Alien scenes. Dinner and dancing at the Wizard of Oz and Its a Small World scene.

 

[Lilofan]

I think Disney is a mirror of civilisation as a whole...we peaked at the turn of the millennium and since then we are heading backwards at a rate of knotts...people poorer, maintenance on roads etc almost non existent.. even theme parks being a worse experience as they once were.

The customer service era has long gone...its now all about scamming people out of as much money as possible for the least amount of effort.

All quite sad really. Who would want to be a child


So, your solution to the Disney multitude of problems is to not talk about them and they'll magically go away.

You must be Disneys best customer...they can walk all over you and you keep it all quiet, rather than tell the truth.

It seems better a change of scenery to spend your dollars to support the FL economy would be best. Your complaints, theories and concerns and your frustration on so many guests in the parks seems to be stressing you out to no end. Have you shared this with Disney management ?

 

[seabreezept813]

I would say Great Movie Ride track area would be an incredible place to have a private wedding party event. Appetizers, open bar at Indiana Jones snakes , Western Gangster, Alien scenes. Dinner and dancing at the Wizard of Oz and Its a Small World scene.

I was very tempted and fascinated but also pretty poor. We also thought TCM would save GMR long term. We were wrong! We must have had the cheapest Disney wedding. Tuesday night, Sea Breeze point, and Narcoosees after with about 11 people. Our 10 day trip and wedding cost maybe 8-9k, which is sadly what just a week long trip costs us now.

 

[The Mom]

Oh I hate when folks cherry pick Goethe, he was even cognizant of this Man sieht nur das, was man weiß

I only did it because the original quote has been revised so many times, and attributed to many later historical figures. But the most well known is "Never mistake incompetence for malicious intent." Which I think is the case here. Maintenance is not what it was, and I suspect they either can't find or do not want to pay for overnight maintenance - which is more expensive. And They may even be having trouble finding people who have the hands on skills. Every repair person/contractor/ etc I've run across lately has the same complaint.

Even my local grocery has been stocking shelves during the day for the past few years - this used to be done overnight so customers wouldn't be inconvenienced by the stocking carts.

 

[jpinkc]

It seems better a change of scenery to spend your dollars to support the FL economy would be best. Your complaints, theories and concerns and your frustration on so many guests in the parks seems to be stressing you out to no end. Have you shared this with Disney management ?

HAHAHAHAHAHA sorry but they are the least ones to care. Now everyday cast members in the past were the ones who saved the day for us on several occasions. And yes we did mention it to guest services and even wrote a letter once. Those people are the ones who can truely make a Magic trip.

 

[JMcMahonEsq]

Disney also should consider building some attractions with capacity in mind. Universe of Energy was a great option to have because it was never busy, even on crowded days, and offered an extended experience. A friend referred to it as a "just do it" option on a busy day like NYE. It has been replaced with yet another attraction that lasts a few minutes with a long wait time.

Build more high capacity omnimover type attractions in each park. They typically see less wait times than coasters for example and offer a longer experience.

I can get behind the idea of more omnimover type rides. First because i don't like coaster type rides and think it is these types of rides, like HM or PotC that seperate Disney from regional thrill ride/coaster based parks.

But your first sentence above just makes no sense to me. How is a ride "a great option to have" because it was never busy, even on crowded days? Its a ride that no one wanted to go on, even when lines for other options were long. How/why is a company going to invest money/resources into a new ride that the best thing you can say about it is that its an indoor AC break spot on days when the crowds are big, and that a couple people might wander into to "just do it."

 

[celluloid]

I only did it because the original quote has been revised so many times, and attributed to many later historical figures. But the most well known is "Never mistake incompetence for malicious intent." Which I think is the case here. Maintenance is not what it was, and I suspect they either can't find or do not want to pay for overnight maintenance - which is more expensive. And They may even be having trouble finding people who have the hands on skills. Every repair person/contractor/ etc I've run across lately has the same complaint.

Since it has been proven to be done before, and competitors still do the things successfully, it does not fit the definition of incompetence.

It is done by choice of priority. A byproduct of business decision(s) is not incompetence. To me that is Malice.

 

[Thepuma]

101 is a fact of life. But the trends at least appear to be alarming. Having 4+ things out at once…especially in the morning…can wreck the day.

They need to mitigate it. Which means more overhead investment. There’s no other way. You’re wrecking your clientele pool.

I can think of two notorious Epcot rides/shows that they’ve battled with since the day they opened.
Their options:
1. Keep battling
2. No other options

Or 3. Spend money on them to get them functioning.

 

[The Mom]

Since it has been proven to be done before, and competitors still do the things successfully, it does not fit the definition of incompetence.

It is done by choice of priority. A byproduct of business decision(s) is not incompetence

I'm not sure I'd call a business that does things that irritate customers competent. But I don't think that they set out to alienate customers, but rather are looking at the bottom line rather than the big picture. Which I consider incompetence when others may consider it just a business decision.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Or 3. Spend money on them to get them functioning.

That’s part of #1

 

[Thepuma]

It seems better a change of scenery to spend your dollars to support the FL economy would be best. Your complaints, theories and concerns and your frustration on so many guests in the parks seems to be stressing you out to no end. Have you shared this with Disney management ?

Yep, I always fill out a satisfaction survey at the end of every holiday.

Pointless task though really. Disney know what they are doing wrong but correcting them doesn't make them money.

 

[Thepuma]

That’s part of #1

Ah..I thought what you meant by 1) Keep Battling, was just to do what they are doing now, ie, patching up the titanic with Duct tape to slow its failure

My 3) was spending the money it needs to get things working properly and consistently.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Ah..I thought what you meant by 1) Keep Battling, was just to do what they are doing now, ie, patching up the titanic with Duct tape to slow its failure

My 3) was spending the money it needs to get things working properly and consistency.

An army needs the manpower and equipment to “battle”

 

[Thepuma]

I'm not sure I'd call a business that does things that irritate customers competent. But I don't think that they set out to alienate customers, but rather are looking at the bottom line rather than the big picture. Which I consider incompetence when others may consider it just a business decision.

Yep, as with most of society now, It's all about money, bottom line. Getting money out of people for the least amount of effort.

For Disney, unlike other smaller businesses, they never really lose.

If 25% of people decided against going again because of their poor practices, they just raise the price by 25% to counter.

It could soon be a place for the financial elite only.

 

[celluloid]

I'm not sure I'd call a business that does things that irritate customers competent. But I don't think that they set out to alienate customers, but rather are looking at the bottom line rather than the big picture. Which I consider incompetence when others may consider it just a business decision.

Your first few sentences describe doing something they choose to do because they can get away with it to the unknowing.
Which now has us back to it being considered Malice.

 

[Lilofan]

Ah..I thought what you meant by 1) Keep Battling, was just to do what they are doing now, ie, patching up the titanic with Duct tape to slow its failure

My 3) was spending the money it needs to get things working properly and consistently.

Ask for more ? Need to add - Mother may I? To the execs in Burbank or new WDW President whose previous role was in charge of all of maintenance of WDW.

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

I can get behind the idea of more omnimover type rides. First because i don't like coaster type rides and think it is these types of rides, like HM or PotC that seperate Disney from regional thrill ride/coaster based parks.

But your first sentence above just makes no sense to me. How is a ride "a great option to have" because it was never busy, even on crowded days? Its a ride that no one wanted to go on, even when lines for other options were long. How/why is a company going to invest money/resources into a new ride that the best thing you can say about it is that its an indoor AC break spot on days when the crowds are big, and that a couple people might wander into to "just do it."

I wouldn't say no one wanted to go on it. The last time I did it was probably just over half full.

I wouldn't keep an attraction open "just because" if no one really likes it anymore, but a reasonably popular attraction with high capacity does provide benefit.

If my entire day at a WDW theme parks consists of 75 minute waits followed by 3 minutes of ride time, that's not fun.

Wait times aren't always the way to gauge popularity either, a high capacity attraction will always have shorter queues but can still be popular.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Your first few sentences describe doing something they choose to do because they can get away with it to the unknowing.
Which now has us back to it being considered Malice.

That’s basically what the entire parks philosophy has been for a decade plus