Keeping the magic

[tnemgif]

There has always been some things that have put Disney parks way ahead of other parks like the spotless, sparkling cleanliness, the attention to detail about everything, the tear jerking parades and shows, and of course the brilliant attractions. Now don't slam me please because I still love Disney parks and see them as far better than any other theme parks. I have noticed the parks taking a small step downhill everytime I go over the past few years. Little things that you would take as common place in other parks (rotting boards, broken lights, trashed water bodies, dusty walls, etc.) are a big deal at the Disney parks. Guests notice small things that we wouldn't notice at other parks. The last few times at Walt Disney World I have noticed afew rotting boards or beaten walls needing a paint job that I would have never seen ten years ago. Did the sweeping people go on strike? Where did they go? The amazing attractions are few and far between. The old amazing attractions are no longer amazing because of their being ignored and not taken care of. It is just my opion that the things that seperate Disney from other theme parks are slowly fading or altogether disappearing. I just hope that my grandchildren will someday have the experience of walking into this amazing place the way I walked into it 15 years ago and still be astounded. (sorry for the long post) Thanks for listening

 

[RonAnnArbor]

You are not incorrect in noticing a slippage of "the magic". This is from deliberately made cost cutting and savings. The problems started after 9/11 when the resort occupancy fell WAY below average for a year or so. To make up for that, Disney cut many services, cut back on staff, halved the bus service in the park, and eliminated many of the "extras" that ate into profits. They have never returned to the levels pre-9/11. As to the attractions themselves, not much of the magic has changed - there have been many new attractions, and they did shutter some of the ones that were starting to cost more to keep operational than to just shut down (20K Leagues, etc). Otherwise, I have been going to the parks since the summer that they first opened WDW...and I have not seen a decrease in quality of the attractions - rather, I have very much noticed that the magic is, well, much less magical.

 

[bigang]

it seems to me that most people here seem to feel this way, yet myself i don't see it. the magic is still there, and everytime i step into the magic kingdom, i truely beleive i am in the happiest place on earth. maybe some of us go too often and it spoils some of the magic? me personally, i almost started to feel this way,and then i went to universal, and no i am not trashing it,because i had a great time there as well,but while i was having lunch there outside in whoville, enjoying a great sunny florida day,taking in the sights of ioa , a gentleman tapped me on the shoulder and said,sir we need you to move so we can measure this area, we are going to repave the ground and if we cannot start immediately, it will not dry in time for our customers. i had no choice but to move , and realized right there that my wallot belonged to universal that day, but my heart belonged to disney

 

[MagliteL13]

My only suggestion is to either tell guest relations nicely or tell a CM in the area--if you tell the right CM (one who cares, basically) they'll probably call it in to Maintenence.

 

[Merlin]

My only suggestion is to either tell guest relations nicely or tell a CM in the area--if you tell the right CM (one who cares, basically) they'll probably call it in to Maintenence.

Finding a CM who cares....That's something else that's diminishing in frequency!:lol:

 

[bigang]

i personally feel we are all too hard on wdw,considering all theme parks big and small alike have thier problems , closed rides,constant rehabs,empty areas, trash,parking ,rides and attractions that are bad , expensive and lousy food,and so on. disney is the class of an industry it did not create ,but took to a place that not even walt could have imagined ? or could he? ......and they have great food and dining too

 

[disney9752]

i feel the same way, it all started a few years after the eisner era began, & has yet to be stopped or reversed. burnt out light bulbs, rotting wood, dirty areas, attractions that are not as magical as we remember because someone doesnt want to spend the money, no more easter parades, maitenance done in day in plain view of guests that NEVER used to be done by day or in view of guests. a good example was an old wdw press release i have that goes over the parks nightly cleaning procedures, even says monorails are all cleaned each night. you can ask any monorail cm & they will tell you the MARK VI never got nightly maintenance like the MARK IV did. i guess this is one reason the nasty carpet is going away & the tile is coming in. the orlando sentinel even did an article in 2004 where they invited 3 experts in the constrution industry to look around MK one day & found several problems that walt would have never allowed at disneyland. the first picture was a burnt out light for one of the letters at the MK toll plaza. i don't think we're too hard on disney. those of us that can recall what the magic used to be like can see a change. granted wdw might b cleaner than universal, sea world, or the mall in your home town, we still can complain that they are not maintaing the magic the same it used to be.

 

[splitdrums81]

yea i believe that also about some of those issues but i must say one thing that still defines them is how they are always so nice and having fun at what they do, so even if i notice somethings like that its just a thought in my head for a minute because by that time i always seem to see some cm being goofy and having fun. Must thank all of the cm also because them having fun working there makes it more fun each time i go (usually once a year) Im sure there is some cm out there that isnt exactly like that, but for the majority when i got thats what i see from them, how about you guys?

 

[bigang]

i believe some of these issues are due to the enormous size and expansion over the years, and as a result the product gets thinned out. disneyland and early wdw were the equivilant of a small town, now wdw is the equivilant of a major metropoitan city

 

[AndreainNY]

If you want to inject a little of the magic back into Disney, go to another theme park (not necessarily Universal or Sea World). Try a Six Flags park or King's Dominion in VA - they will make you appreciate what Disney does on a daily basis, even if it has slipped a little! The dirt, the noise, the grumpy employees, the lousy food, the smell (killer in some of the other parks), the cigarette smoke, the filthy bathrooms.....all reasons why we don't even go to any of the other parks anymore. Even if Disney has "slipped" - what they offer is so far beyond any other theme park in the USA that it explains why they are in a class by themselves.

 

[justducky78]

I guess we don't go often enough to notice it at Disney. Then again, I'm usually in a "Disney Daze" the whole time!

I live in Chicago and bought a Six Flags pass this year and used it this summer only about 5-6 times. I haven't been to Six Flags for years and noticed the litter, paint chips, etc right away.

Maybe it's because I'm EXPECTING the litter, etc from parks like Six Flags (not like they're even in the 'same' league as Disney) but it's just so much more apparent it seems. And Six Flags isn't even open all year long - granted they have to put up with snow/cold but still!!

Maybe Disney has gone downhill a bit in terms of the paint/chips, etc. but the magic is still there. You don't get that anywhere else!

PS-- Six Flags has a new waterpark now and they actually shipped palm trees up here. My husband and I were laughing our butts off about the dead palm trees, it was so pathetic, they were completely brown and dying. Six Flags is trying to capture the beach theme but it just doesn't feel the same up here in the Midwest!

 

[Scooter]

I guess I'm too busy enjoying all the good stuff to notice the bad stuff...
Shame on me

 

[Littlebit]

They do it because they can.

It's true that after 9/11, profits went down and one way they tried to save money was to make cost-cutting measures...decrease the number of people who kept the parks clean, decrease the number of maintenance people (which meant longer waits for things that needed to be fixed), schedule more time before refurbishments, etc. The problem is that such measures lowered many peoples' expectations...guests still came to the parks and yeah, they might not like that wood is rotting out or the parking lot lines are in HUGE need of a paint job or lightbulbs stay blown out for days or sometimes weeks on end...but it certainly didn't stop people from coming. So even though attendance is up, they STILL don't have enough people to clean the parks or do the maintenance...why should they; it would cut down on their profits.

The other problem, and this is a longer-term thing that happened way before 9/11 and will continue probably for forever, is that Disney has gotten so huge that they can't hand-pick their CMs anymore...they have to rely more and more on CMs who they might not have chosen to work at WDW 15 or 20 years ago. People who do not have the appropriate social abilities of Disney CMs. People who don't take pride in their work. People who think it's more important to talk to their friends than to do their job. And managers and leads whose main objective is to climb up the ladder of success, rather than ensure that their team is up to the Disney Standard. All of that takes a toll on quality. THAT isn't even a Disney problem; that's a United States problem.

You want to see a Disney park that works the way a Disney park SHOULD run? Go to Tokyo Disneyand. The Japanese philosophy is still that of taking pride in whatever you do, whether it's head of the company or cleaning the toilets. TDL and TDS are...perfect. Clean. No obvious need for maintenance. Friendly, helpful, smiling CMs. Quality that Walt would be proud of. Here? No. Here we're slowly developing into a whole new world and it's not for the better, IMHO.

 

[baloo_24]

:veryconfu I get so drawn into the Disney fun , I really do not even notice it..
Definately if you have a concern look for a CM who seems to actually care!!!!

 

[bigang]

littlebit, whats wrong with disney making a profit? i never was under the impression walt started this for charity. wdw is the jewel of its industry,
what every other themepark in the world could only wish they could be.
you find me a business of this size and magnitude that does not have to cut corners or cutback to stay profitible and in disneys case continually expand
and still be successfull in the current economy. i give disney kodos for continuing to add new shows and attractions

 

[wannab@dis]

I don't see the 'loss of magic' that some see. Maybe because I don't go looking for problems. Take a look at a recent thread on this very subject. http://forums.wdwmagic.com/showthread.php?t=70736

I think you'll see that some agree and others don't. I've been going to WDW for years and I think the magic is better than ever. I think to many people don't realize that if you look for bad, you'll find it. If you quit looking for the bad and just enjoy your time, you will see that the magic is all around you. :wave:

 

[tnemgif]

I wasn't saying that the magic is gone, it is still there. I've just seen the magic slowly dissappearing and I don't want it to completely dissappear by the time my grandchildren come around. I've just always been one to really appreciate every detail and when I look at every little detail, I see small things like I mentioned earlier. I'm not saying the magic is gone, i'm just saying I don't want it to leave.

 

[wannab@dis]

I wasn't saying that the magic is gone, it is still there. I've just seen the magic slowly dissappearing and I don't want it to completely dissappear by the time my grandchildren come around. I've just always been one to really appreciate every detail and when I look at every little detail, I see small things like I mentioned earlier. I'm not saying the magic is gone, i'm just saying I don't want it to leave.

I understood what you were saying, but I, personally, don't agree. If anything, it's as good or better than ever for me and my family.

If you think the magic is disappearing, you may want to look at yourself and how your perceptions have changed, rather than WDW. Not saying that's true for everyone, but it may be part of it. *shrug*

 

[wdwfan100]

it seems to me that most people here seem to feel this way, yet myself i don't see it. the magic is still there, and everytime i step into the magic kingdom, i truely beleive i am in the happiest place on earth.

I do too. It is a place that is constantly living in my memories. Memories that always make me smile. I worry though. I have been going to WDW since the Mid '70's. Everyone seemed committed to making sure you had a great stay. Now, I have found that the same commitment is not there. It is a business I know. Costs are always in the equation. I think there is more tolerance of rude and "unmotivated" employees. Don't get me wrong. I love Disney! They need to make sure that the magic does'nt slip away when they aren't looking. People may go to see another wizard, if they can get the same tricks.

 

[wdwfan100]

it seems to me that most people here seem to feel this way, yet myself i don't see it. the magic is still there, and everytime i step into the magic kingdom, i truely beleive i am in the happiest place on earth.

I do too. It is a place that is constantly living in my memories. Memories that always make me smile. I worry though. I have been going to WDW since the Mid '70's. Everyone seemed committed to making sure you had a great stay. Now, I have found that the same commitment is not there. It is a business I know. Costs are always in the equation. I think there is more tolerance of rude and "unmotivated" employees. Don't get me wrong. I love Disney! They need to make sure that the magic does'nt slip away when they aren't looking. People may go to see another wizard, if they can get the same tricks.