Magic Kingdom currently closed to some guests due to capacity (phase 2) (Wed 29 Dec)

[wdwmagic]

http://www.wdwmagic.com/Attractions...-to-some-guests-due-to-capacity-(phase-2).htm

 

[bkgrim]

It is 12:30 at magic kingdom and we have been here since 7am and time to leave. To many people

 

[wdwmagic]

Now back open

 

[stlbobby]

It is 12:30 at magic kingdom and we have been here since 7am and time to leave. To many people

Now back open

Apparently bkgrim was the problem. :ROFLOL:

 

[MissM]

I know AP's can come in all the way until it's closed out completely at Phase 4 but what about parking? The MK lot probably closes earlier in the day, right? Or, do they let people park as cars leave? Could I valet at the Contemporary or something instead? How do you park if you get there late on a phased closing day?

 

[wdwmagic]

I know AP's can come in all the way until it's closed out completely at Phase 4 but what about parking? The MK lot probably closes earlier in the day, right? Or, do they let people park as cars leave? Could I valet at the Contemporary or something instead? How do you park if you get there late on a phased closing day?

If you are an AP you are allowed through the toll plaza and into the lot. If you don't have the appropriate ticket, you get turned around at the plaza and are not allowed to park.

 

[MissM]

If you are an AP you are allowed through the toll plaza and into the lot. If you don't have the appropriate ticket, you get turned around at the plaza and are not allowed to park.

Ah, I did not know that. Cool, thanks!

 

[elisatonks]

I know AP's can come in all the way until it's closed out completely at Phase 4 but what about parking? The MK lot probably closes earlier in the day, right? Or, do they let people park as cars leave? Could I valet at the Contemporary or something instead? How do you park if you get there late on a phased closing day?

The only time the lot totally closes is if it is totally full (which would be very rare as there is usually 2 lots left when we get to capacity nowadays because so many guests arrive by disney buses) or MK is at phase 4. Guests who come through the auto plaza who are admitted during phase 2 & 3 are marked with indicator so the cast at turnabout (the area where CM's turn away guests back down world drive, know they are permitted to enter during the phased closing.) The indictor is different each day. I can say however it is very weird working the lot when we close at phase 2 or 3, I was on the lot parking cars on xmas day when they called phase 3, it was a bit of a shock to my body to go from parking 2 solid lanes of traffic to nothing at all within a couple of min!!!

 

[Scott&Jaime]

We booked a 7 day Christmas vacation at Walt Disney World and cannot recommend that anyone go there with small children or when the park is busy. We took our 5 & 6 year old children. By day two, they were begging to go home, and crying when we said we were going back to the park. The park was dangerously oversold. We got no indication from anyone that this was the busiest time of the year and Disney failed to tell us that it was, and also failed to mention that they had plans to oversell the park to the point of dangerous overcrowded occupancy. We were unable to ride but one ride per day. It was nearly impossible to navigate the park. There were lines for everything, and lines for lines. We paid $14 to park each day, $8 for a hot dog, and $3.50 for a soft drink (if you can wait in line long enough). Expect about $120/day for a family of four, minimum, in ancillary expenses (that does not include buying gifts). The park staff were stressed and often rude (many of them, not all), and we got trapped behind a parade and unable to leave the park on the first night for 2.5 hours. When we exited, there was mass confusion, inability to see signs or directional issues due to overcrowding. It was very dangerous in our opinion. On the 26th, a man was killed by being struck by a Disney bus....the second person who has died in 2010 from being struck by a Disney bus. Given our exit experiences, we can see how this could happen. In the bottle necks of the park, it is literally shoulder to shoulder, and you cannot have a child walking by themselves. Our son's foot was run over by one of the thousands of rented wheelchairs. I think that Disney has a duty to inform guests, who have never been there, about the possibility that they may not even be able to get into a park over Christmas, much less enjoy any part of it. We asked for a refund and they greedily refused. In fact, a guest services supervisor told me that the overcrowding was my opinion and that they had not even reached maximum occupancy (very scary...wait for photos and you decide). Unfortunately, our view, our kids' view, and the views of everyone that we encountered within earshot complaining of Walt Disney World is that it is dangerous, overcrowded, overpriced, and greedy. This was a first visit for all of us, and we don't plan to go back...ever, and unfortunately Disney has created a very negative image in the minds of our children, despite our efforts to downplay the problems. I will post videos and photos evidencing this debacle once I have them available. I have read many good reviews of Walt Disney World, and we are shocked at just how much things have changed from what we have read. It is our strong recommendation to avoid Walt Disney World for the reasons above. Even if the park were not so busy, their lack of customer service, their disregard for safety, and the greed surpassed all expectations of common sense. All in all, we did not have a "magical" experience.

 

[asianway]

Punitive damages!

 

[unkadug]

We booked a 7 day Christmas vacation at Walt Disney World and cannot recommend that anyone go there with small children or when the park is busy. We took our 5 & 6 year old children. By day two, they were begging to go home, and crying when we said we were going back to the park. The park was dangerously oversold. We got no indication from anyone that this was the busiest time of the year and Disney failed to tell us that it was, and also failed to mention that they had plans to oversell the park to the point of dangerous overcrowded occupancy. We were unable to ride but one ride per day. It was nearly impossible to navigate the park. There were lines for everything, and lines for lines. We paid $14 to park each day, $8 for a hot dog, and $3.50 for a soft drink (if you can wait in line long enough). Expect about $120/day for a family of four, minimum, in ancillary expenses (that does not include buying gifts). The park staff were stressed and often rude (many of them, not all), and we got trapped behind a parade and unable to leave the park on the first night for 2.5 hours. When we exited, there was mass confusion, inability to see signs or directional issues due to overcrowding. It was very dangerous in our opinion. On the 26th, a man was killed by being struck by a Disney bus....the second person who has died in 2010 from being struck by a Disney bus. Given our exit experiences, we can see how this could happen. In the bottle necks of the park, it is literally shoulder to shoulder, and you cannot have a child walking by themselves. Our son's foot was run over by one of the thousands of rented wheelchairs. I think that Disney has a duty to inform guests, who have never been there, about the possibility that they may not even be able to get into a park over Christmas, much less enjoy any part of it. We asked for a refund and they greedily refused. In fact, a guest services supervisor told me that the overcrowding was my opinion and that they had not even reached maximum occupancy (very scary...wait for photos and you decide). Unfortunately, our view, our kids' view, and the views of everyone that we encountered within earshot complaining of Walt Disney World is that it is dangerous, overcrowded, overpriced, and greedy. This was a first visit for all of us, and we don't plan to go back...ever, and unfortunately Disney has created a very negative image in the minds of our children, despite our efforts to downplay the problems. I will post videos and photos evidencing this debacle once I have them available. I have read many good reviews of Walt Disney World, and we are shocked at just how much things have changed from what we have read. It is our strong recommendation to avoid Walt Disney World for the reasons above. Even if the park were not so busy, their lack of customer service, their disregard for safety, and the greed surpassed all expectations of common sense. All in all, we did not have a "magical" experience.

I understand your frustration and hate that you didn't have an enjoyable time. May I suggest that you buy the Unofficial Guide To Walt Disney World before your next visit. The guide would have warned you about the crowds and what to expect. WDW is NOT for the unprepared!

Give it another chance after reading up a little. :wave:

 

[waltsfavrob]

Now now Robgraves give them a break it was their first trip.We were there 8 nights(19th-26th) and we got A LOT of things done. Apparently they didn't read up on fastpasses and EMHs or they too would have a great time as we did. I never saw a soda over $2.49 unless it was a souveneir cup. They just didn't plan ahead...that's all.

 

[BrerFrog]

It is bound to get even crazier on the next couple of days. I will try to survive those shifts that I have. :lol:

 

[Nemo14]

We booked a 7 day Christmas vacation at Walt Disney World and cannot recommend that anyone go there with small children or when the park is busy. We took our 5 & 6 year old children. By day two, they were begging to go home, and crying when we said we were going back to the park. The park was dangerously oversold. We got no indication from anyone that this was the busiest time of the year and Disney failed to tell us that it was, and also failed to mention that they had plans to oversell the park to the point of dangerous overcrowded occupancy. We were unable to ride but one ride per day. It was nearly impossible to navigate the park. There were lines for everything, and lines for lines. We paid $14 to park each day, $8 for a hot dog, and $3.50 for a soft drink (if you can wait in line long enough). Expect about $120/day for a family of four, minimum, in ancillary expenses (that does not include buying gifts). The park staff were stressed and often rude (many of them, not all), and we got trapped behind a parade and unable to leave the park on the first night for 2.5 hours. When we exited, there was mass confusion, inability to see signs or directional issues due to overcrowding. It was very dangerous in our opinion. On the 26th, a man was killed by being struck by a Disney bus....the second person who has died in 2010 from being struck by a Disney bus. Given our exit experiences, we can see how this could happen. In the bottle necks of the park, it is literally shoulder to shoulder, and you cannot have a child walking by themselves. Our son's foot was run over by one of the thousands of rented wheelchairs. I think that Disney has a duty to inform guests, who have never been there, about the possibility that they may not even be able to get into a park over Christmas, much less enjoy any part of it. We asked for a refund and they greedily refused. In fact, a guest services supervisor told me that the overcrowding was my opinion and that they had not even reached maximum occupancy (very scary...wait for photos and you decide). Unfortunately, our view, our kids' view, and the views of everyone that we encountered within earshot complaining of Walt Disney World is that it is dangerous, overcrowded, overpriced, and greedy. This was a first visit for all of us, and we don't plan to go back...ever, and unfortunately Disney has created a very negative image in the minds of our children, despite our efforts to downplay the problems. I will post videos and photos evidencing this debacle once I have them available. I have read many good reviews of Walt Disney World, and we are shocked at just how much things have changed from what we have read. It is our strong recommendation to avoid Walt Disney World for the reasons above. Even if the park were not so busy, their lack of customer service, their disregard for safety, and the greed surpassed all expectations of common sense. All in all, we did not have a "magical" experience.

I'm sorry that you had such a bad experience, but in all fairness, did you do any research at all before booking your trip at the busiest time of year?

 

[kaos]

We booked a 7 day Christmas vacation at Walt Disney World and cannot recommend that anyone go there with small children or when the park is busy. We took our 5 & 6 year old children. By day two, they were begging to go home, and crying when we said we were going back to the park. The park was dangerously oversold. We got no indication from anyone that this was the busiest time of the year and Disney failed to tell us that it was, and also failed to mention that they had plans to oversell the park to the point of dangerous overcrowded occupancy. We were unable to ride but one ride per day. It was nearly impossible to navigate the park. There were lines for everything, and lines for lines. We paid $14 to park each day, $8 for a hot dog, and $3.50 for a soft drink (if you can wait in line long enough). Expect about $120/day for a family of four, minimum, in ancillary expenses (that does not include buying gifts). The park staff were stressed and often rude (many of them, not all), and we got trapped behind a parade and unable to leave the park on the first night for 2.5 hours. When we exited, there was mass confusion, inability to see signs or directional issues due to overcrowding. It was very dangerous in our opinion. On the 26th, a man was killed by being struck by a Disney bus....the second person who has died in 2010 from being struck by a Disney bus. Given our exit experiences, we can see how this could happen. In the bottle necks of the park, it is literally shoulder to shoulder, and you cannot have a child walking by themselves. Our son's foot was run over by one of the thousands of rented wheelchairs. I think that Disney has a duty to inform guests, who have never been there, about the possibility that they may not even be able to get into a park over Christmas, much less enjoy any part of it. We asked for a refund and they greedily refused. In fact, a guest services supervisor told me that the overcrowding was my opinion and that they had not even reached maximum occupancy (very scary...wait for photos and you decide). Unfortunately, our view, our kids' view, and the views of everyone that we encountered within earshot complaining of Walt Disney World is that it is dangerous, overcrowded, overpriced, and greedy. This was a first visit for all of us, and we don't plan to go back...ever, and unfortunately Disney has created a very negative image in the minds of our children, despite our efforts to downplay the problems. I will post videos and photos evidencing this debacle once I have them available. I have read many good reviews of Walt Disney World, and we are shocked at just how much things have changed from what we have read. It is our strong recommendation to avoid Walt Disney World for the reasons above. Even if the park were not so busy, their lack of customer service, their disregard for safety, and the greed surpassed all expectations of common sense. All in all, we did not have a "magical" experience.

I normally do not comment on posts like this one, but I have to tell you, I'm a DVC member, and every DVC cast member I speak with reminds me CONSTANTLY that when I'm booking for Christmas, New Years, July 4th, Columbus Day, any "peak" time, that crowds may be larger and to expect longer lines and wait times for attractions and dining. Having been to Epcot on New Years Eve in the past, and at Epcot on the 27th this December, and heading to Magic Kingdom tomorrow, I can tell you that EVERY cast member has been not only friendly, but even more "up" than usual, gone out of their way, and mind you, this is the busiest season of the year for WDW. I've also booked on the guest lines, and was again informed by every cast member that I spoke with that this time of year is the busiest of the year. Keep in mind that when the park "closes", it is done only for guests that are not staying on WDW property, or one of the goos neighbor hotels. The parks are "closed" not because they are filled to capacity, but rather to allow guests staying on property to enter. If you only were able to ride one attraction, then a few things you didn't take advantage of, like the FastPass system, you might want to try in the future. I was at Epcot on Tuesday the 27th. While Tuesdays are a traditionally slower day, the park was filled to a much higher capacity than I am used to, to the point where I actually had to wait 20 minutes for SSE. However, with my 10 month old along for the ride, we were able to visit Figment at Imagination, see Luis, Jose and Donald at Mexico, get sent backwards over the falls in Norway, Listen to the land, go explore this big blue world with Nemo, and have an energy nightmare with Ellen. We also dined in China, strolled through Germany, Italy, Japan, Morocco, France and the goof ol' USA, and were back at our hotel by 7pm because it was just too darn cold out. Yes, it is a busy time of year here, but I did not have any bad cast experiences, I actully visited Guest Relations at Epcot and had a great experience with an issue regarding our park hoppers, had no problem parking at Epcot, and was able to do a little shopping. All in all, it's a magical time of year to visit, and I do not know where any of these issues stem from. Maybe it's just that I know that I'll be back and I take my time and am courteious to those around me, or maybe I just am lucky and miss all the troublemakers when I'm here, but I've been here well over 200 times, and I've never had a bad experiecne. I'm not a cast member, so don't think that I'm employed by the mouse. I'm just someone that enjoys WDW anx has a realistic idea of what I'm in for.

 

[atsolomon]

It's a pity you didn't do more research before your trip. Though after the trip you're ready and willing to sign onto a Disney fan site and start trolling.

--Adam

 

[Scott&Jaime]

I understand your frustration and hate that you didn't have an enjoyable time. May I suggest that you buy the Unofficial Guide To Walt Disney World before your next visit. The guide would have warned you about the crowds and what to expect. WDW is NOT for the unprepared!

Give it another chance after reading up a little. :wave:

Thank you Unkadug...we did buy "Walt Disney World with Kids", but did not thoroughly read it...it was a tome (we admittedly skimmed it). We were more excited by the notion of being able to go. I worked right up until the day we left, and we did not know we couldn't just buy a ticket and show up to have a good time. We have some theme parks near us...nothing like WDW though. Yes, we were very unprepared. But we were not aware of the preparation needed really. Sort of feel let down by Disney that this happened...and still can't get over how terribly overcrowded the parks were....seems to all come down to that issue in my mind. No matter how prepared one is, I simply don't know how you could enjoy yourself when it's that packed. The employees looked stressed out. I think they should just charge more, or stop selling tickets at some point. Either way, thanks for the advice.

 

[unkadug]

Thank you Unkadug...we did buy "Walt Disney World with Kids", but did not thoroughly read it...it was a tome (we admittedly skimmed it). We were more excited by the notion of being able to go. I worked right up until the day we left, and we did not know we couldn't just buy a ticket and show up to have a good time. We have some theme parks near us...nothing like WDW though. Yes, we were very unprepared. But we were not aware of the preparation needed really. Sort of feel let down by Disney that this happened...and still can't get over how terribly overcrowded the parks were....seems to all come down to that issue in my mind. No matter how prepared one is, I simply don't know how you could enjoy yourself when it's that packed. The employees looked stressed out. I think they should just charge more, or stop selling tickets at some point. Either way, thanks for the advice.

I wish you had of joined this site BEFORE you went. There is a wealth of information here, and really are a lot of good people here who would have been happy to give you some wise words of advice.

I know that seems hard to believe with the welcome you just received...but it's true all the same.

Stick around for a while and you'll be planning another trip before you know it and it will be a totally different experience.

 

[Scott&Jaime]

It's a pity you didn't do more research before your trip. Though after the trip you're ready and willing to sign onto a Disney fan site and start trolling.

--Adam

Sorry Adam...it's clear we did not do exhaustive research before arrival. We feel it's a pity one has to do that...was hoping to show up and have a good time. Certainly not the case, and Disney certainly won't have to worry about us again (or our friends, relatives, etc. for that matter). I thought this was a forum...but am quickly realizing that it's a fan site, and I won't be warning others of the potential pitfalls here. The only people here seem to be employees, or long time Disney customers. Our goal in the post was to warn others so it does not happen to them...sorry to offend all of the die hard Disney employees and long time patrons....but it's not all magical in our view.

 

[Midnight Garden]

We booked a 7 day Christmas vacation at Walt Disney World and cannot recommend that anyone go there with small children or when the park is busy. We took our 5 & 6 year old children. By day two, they were begging to go home, and crying when we said we were going back to the park. The park was dangerously oversold. We got no indication from anyone that this was the busiest time of the year and Disney failed to tell us that it was, and also failed to mention that they had plans to oversell the park to the point of dangerous overcrowded occupancy. We were unable to ride but one ride per day. It was nearly impossible to navigate the park. There were lines for everything, and lines for lines. We paid $14 to park each day, $8 for a hot dog, and $3.50 for a soft drink (if you can wait in line long enough). Expect about $120/day for a family of four, minimum, in ancillary expenses (that does not include buying gifts). The park staff were stressed and often rude (many of them, not all), and we got trapped behind a parade and unable to leave the park on the first night for 2.5 hours. When we exited, there was mass confusion, inability to see signs or directional issues due to overcrowding. It was very dangerous in our opinion. On the 26th, a man was killed by being struck by a Disney bus....the second person who has died in 2010 from being struck by a Disney bus. Given our exit experiences, we can see how this could happen. In the bottle necks of the park, it is literally shoulder to shoulder, and you cannot have a child walking by themselves. Our son's foot was run over by one of the thousands of rented wheelchairs. I think that Disney has a duty to inform guests, who have never been there, about the possibility that they may not even be able to get into a park over Christmas, much less enjoy any part of it. We asked for a refund and they greedily refused. In fact, a guest services supervisor told me that the overcrowding was my opinion and that they had not even reached maximum occupancy (very scary...wait for photos and you decide). Unfortunately, our view, our kids' view, and the views of everyone that we encountered within earshot complaining of Walt Disney World is that it is dangerous, overcrowded, overpriced, and greedy. This was a first visit for all of us, and we don't plan to go back...ever, and unfortunately Disney has created a very negative image in the minds of our children, despite our efforts to downplay the problems. I will post videos and photos evidencing this debacle once I have them available. I have read many good reviews of Walt Disney World, and we are shocked at just how much things have changed from what we have read. It is our strong recommendation to avoid Walt Disney World for the reasons above. Even if the park were not so busy, their lack of customer service, their disregard for safety, and the greed surpassed all expectations of common sense. All in all, we did not have a "magical" experience.

I'm sorry you had a horrible first experience. WDW is one place that you need to have done research on before you arrive. I've been there that Christmas to NY's week and had a wonderful time but 1) I knew it would be crowded and some parks would close to capacity and took that into consideration when planning my park days 2) I made certain I had dining reservations booked 180 days out 3) I know how Fast Pass works and utilized the heck out of it that week and went on rides multiple times regardless of the large crowd size.

A couple of days ago a friend told me that another acquaintance was arriving at WDW this past Sunday. I don't know for certain, but I think this may be the acquaintance's first WDW trip - or close to first. I believe she and her family are still at the parks. I told my friend to give her a heads-up (before she left) that it's the busiest week of the year and told my friend to have her call me if she wanted any last minute advice. She didn't call. I hope she had a plan and knew what she was getting into but I have a strong suspicion that she'll return with a report similar to yours.

While the crowds are massive this week, the parks weren't oversold. But you have to be in that park with a plan and FP's or you're miserable, frustrated and completely overwhelmed. And as tragic as the two bus deaths were this year (prayers to both families) both deaths were ruled to be in their fault and not the Disney bus driver's.

I hope the fact that you're now signed up for a Disney fan message board means that you're willing to give WDW another try. It's great fun if you know what you're doing. Disney does have good customer service but you may have encountered less happy CM's this week in response to the crowds you mentioned. In a perfect world the CM's would be 100% happy and friendly 24/7. In reality they're human beings, working long hours and dealing with the upset masses of people who are screaming at them, cussing at them, sometimes throwing things at them and even hitting them. If you went into the parks unprepared and you quickly became upset/frustrated by the situation, their attitude toward you may have been a reflection of yours towards them without you realizing it. Sometimes when we're upset we view things a bit differently then how it actually is- our judgment is colored by anger and frustration. Just something to keep in mind.