Price Hikes Galore! (Genie+ variable pricing, ILL, refillable mugs, SWGE lightsaber and droids)

[Chi84]

Know what's embarrassing? When your own words come back to haunt you.

To me, the post you just made, apparently directed at everyone who has a different opinion than yours, whether talking to you or not, is what's embarrassing.

This was his first post - pretty reasonable and balanced:

We do have 2 young girls so Disney is right our family's wheelhouse. But my wife and I have been coming to Disney since before kids - and if we didn't have kids we would still choose Disney first. There's just something about the atmosphere inside the Disney bubble for us. And even though that costs more now and they might cut some corners they didn't use to - we don't feel the same way when we're anywhere else. A cruise would be our next favorite - mostly because we just want to relax and not have to deal with too many curveballs when we're on vacation. Once were inside Disney or on a cruise we know we can do 7-14 days with few or no real issues and enjoy ourselves. I understand that doesn't work for everyone - but looking at Disney's supply and demand scenario I would say there are plenty of people who feel the same way as us.

The rest were made in response to the usual relentless attacks and expressions of disbelief that anyone could ever still enjoy WDW unless they have no standards or have something wrong with them to the extent that they are unable to vacation anywhere else.

Serous question:

What would it take for your feeling about the "atmosphere" to change?

Seeing garbage in places you didn't used to? Walking by the same place a few hours later and seeing the same garbage laying around?

Lines 3x longer than you experience today?

Prices 4x higher than today?

... Walking through Fantasyland minding your own business when a brawl breaks out around you?

For you and yours, is there any sort of breaking point or do you consider it something that'll never happen?

Decades ago, who would have ever believed a trip to Walt Disney World would be about low expectations and even lower standards?

Truly pathetic.

And this is the problem. Low standards like yours. Disney is so much worse for so much more money even from just 2-3 years ago it’s not even funny. That’s why we haven’t been back and won’t be back

…excellent post.

I think if you get crickets as a response…you’ll have the psychological profile laid out for you

The travel equivalent of Jung’s “an individual’s social facade or front as a reflection of the role they are playing”

I also can refer to the “DCL effect”

Manifestation would be the appearance of objectivity when no actual attempt to make a real world comparison is ever made.

Like saying “nothing else is better”…when the reality is nothing else comparable is ever attempted.

Very Disney.

Maybe allowing for positive as well as negative opinions of WDW without demanding that the poster justify every statement would stop the kind of downward spiral that happened here.

 

[Jrb1979]

Maybe allowing for positive as well as negative opinions of WDW without demanding that the poster justify every statement would stop the kind of downward spiral that happened here.

It goes both ways though. Look how quick many of you dismiss and are negative to parks not named Disney. The poster asked for a good alternative to Disney, I made a suggestion and got 2 negative responses. One being spitting their drink out for making a ridiculous suggestion and the other being "they said they had little girls so that suggestion is stupid".

I get it the majority of you have no interest in any parks but Disney. It doesn't mean you have to look down on those other parks as much as you do.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Maybe allowing for positive as well as negative opinions of WDW without demanding that the poster justify every statement would stop the kind of downward spiral that happened here.

The conversation went the way it went. My contributions were “meager”

Now stop quoting me…because it’s getting a little creepy. So I have to apologize for my part…again…but I’m requesting it stop (again)

And now we can be done. Honestly. (The therapy is really working )

 

[RobWDW1971]

Maybe allowing for positive as well as negative opinions of WDW without demanding that the poster justify every statement would stop the kind of downward spiral that happened here.

Eh. It's an opinion board so come prepared to defend your opinion and know more than likely you will be teased, mocked, or insulted because of it. It's called "life" and get some perspective and a little thicker skin.

If you come in here and say "The current state of Epcot is amazing, I can't wait to take my family!!!" or "WDW is in fantastic shape and the guest experience has never been better!!!" - yeah, expect to be mercilessly mocked and ridiculed.

 

[Chi84]

It goes both ways though. Look how quick many of you dismiss and are negative to parks not named Disney. The poster asked for a good alternative to Disney, I made a suggestion and got 2 negative responses. One being spitting their drink out for making a ridiculous suggestion and the other being "they said they had little girls so that suggestion is stupid".

I get it the majority of you have no interest in any parks but Disney. It doesn't mean you have to look down on those other parks as much as you do.

Of course it goes both ways, but how things are said matters. For example, when you said "they said they had little girls so that suggestion is stupid," is this the exchange you were quoting?

Sandusky Ohio. They have world class park and you can spend a good week relaxing at Put In Bay.

The poster who was asking has very young children, so the park might not be as good a fit as Disney for that particular family.

 

[bryanfze55]

You people talking about Sandusky or Dollywood are like dudes complaining about a new Lamborghini design and then claiming that their Acura is better because Acuras were improved and in their mind Lamborghinis took a step backwards. Just because you’re sad the industry leader didn’t do things you liked doesn’t mean that all of a sudden Dollywood is comparable. It’s not. If that’s what you can afford to go to after the price increases, have a blast! But don’t try to pretend Dollywood has surpassed Disney World. It’s embarrassing.

In absolute terms, I don't see a day anytime soon where Dollywood could possibly be better than Disney - again, in the absolute. This also applies to basically every other U.S. theme park. They pale in comparison.

The problem is that the Lamborghini didn't just take a step back in terms of quality - they took a step back while charging significantly more. And they haven't done it quietly. They've publicly boasted about it.

 

[Chi84]

Eh. It's an opinion board so come prepared to defend your opinion and know more than likely you will be teased, mocked, or insulted because of it. It's called "life" and get some perspective and a little thicker skin.

If you come in here and say "The current state of Epcot is amazing, I can't wait to take my family!!!" or "WDW is in fantastic shape and the guest experience has never been better!!!" - yeah, expect to mercilessly mocked and ridiculed.

I suppose, but it would be nice to keep things a little more civil so the mods can continue to be pretty "hands off." When the mocking and insults take over, rational discussion suffers and the thread is more likely to be closed.

 

[JD80]

On Friday people were posting about a day with G+. I'm posting my notes from a day in late July.

Lots of work to do this, but I got value out of genie and I'd pay thr $20 for my family but only in MK.

This is with a mid day break. Party of 2.

Also my trip report:

Trip Report - Four Parks in One Day with Genie+ and No Kids

My wife and I took a quick trip down to WDW without the kids for a few days and we tried to push Genie+ to the limits. We stayed at CBR and arrived on a Thursday July 14th and it was our first time at this resort and first time on the skyliner. Thursday - Land MCO after 8AM, Resort > HS > MK...

forums.wdwmagic.com

Spoiler

Sunday
Anytime minetrain
700 jungle cruise booked for 915
752 on bus to mk
834 Peterpan rope drop get on line
859 off of pan
910 cruise ll used
912 booked splash for 1210
925 cruise over
930 main st for food
950 food outside Casey's

1007 people mover
1022 cop closed
1030 dumbo standby
1040 barnstorner standby
1048 mermaid stabdby
1130 country bear standby
1150 festival of Fantasy
1225 line for splash
1225
112try to stack for after 5 ... no choices yet
105 off splash... got stuck on drop b4 laughing place
105 heading to sh71
130 SH71
145 book space LL for 5pm
330 poly
3:45 booked thunder fo 650
500 trader sams
540 grand flo
545 ll for pooh
606 space
624 cop
703 thunder
720 minetrain
729 off minetrain
732 booked pan for 1010
735 pooh
745 off of pooh
756 lined up treats and seats
Fireworks
933 book pirates for same time
957 pirates
957 used pirates booked hm
1027 hm
1043 hm dome
Time to go

 

[ceecee101]

Going for the first time in 13 years I feel like I’m going to see an old friend who I haven’t seen in that long. Will we pick up where we left off? Will they have changed so much we have nothing in common anymore? Will I regret spending the money to go see this old friend when I could’ve spent 3 weeks in Europe for the same price? Will I be able to navigate the area again? What will they look like and will I even recognize them? We broke 30 so guess we will find out in a month. Trip report will obviously follow. In the meantime it’s hard for people like me to meaningfully understand much of this, those of you who are regulars have obviously much more nuanced opinions. Cheers.

 

[JD80]

Going for the first time in 13 years I feel like I’m going to see an old friend who I haven’t seen in that long. Will we pick up where we left off? Will they have changed so much we have nothing in common anymore? Will I regret spending the money to go see this old friend when I could’ve spent 3 weeks in Europe for the same price? Will I be able to navigate the area again? What will they look like and will I even recognize them? We broke 30 so guess we will find out in a month. Trip report will obviously follow. In the meantime it’s hard for people like me to meaningfully understand much of this, those of you who are regulars have obviously much more nuanced opinions. Cheers.

It'll be interesting to read your experiences and observations. I hope these boards don't bias/shadow your expectations.

It's still a wonderful place and if you're not jaded by the price tag then you're friend will be right where you left them, just a bit older with some new stories to tell.

 

[dreday3]

On Friday people were posting about a day with G+. I'm posting my notes from a day in late July.

Lots of work to do this, but I got value out of genie and I'd pay thr $20 for my family but only in MK.

This is with a mid day break. Party of 2.

Also my trip report:

Trip Report - Four Parks in One Day with Genie+ and No Kids

My wife and I took a quick trip down to WDW without the kids for a few days and we tried to push Genie+ to the limits. We stayed at CBR and arrived on a Thursday July 14th and it was our first time at this resort and first time on the skyliner. Thursday - Land MCO after 8AM, Resort > HS > MK...

forums.wdwmagic.com

Spoiler

Sunday
Anytime minetrain
700 jungle cruise booked for 915
752 on bus to mk
834 Peterpan rope drop get on line
859 off of pan
910 cruise ll used
912 booked splash for 1210
925 cruise over
930 main st for food
950 food outside Casey's

1007 people mover
1022 cop closed
1030 dumbo standby
1040 barnstorner standby
1048 mermaid stabdby
1130 country bear standby
1150 festival of Fantasy
1225 line for splash
1225
112try to stack for after 5 ... no choices yet
105 off splash... got stuck on drop b4 laughing place
105 heading to sh71
130 SH71
145 book space LL for 5pm
330 poly
3:45 booked thunder fo 650
500 trader sams
540 grand flo
545 ll for pooh
606 space
624 cop
703 thunder
720 minetrain
729 off minetrain
732 booked pan for 1010
735 pooh
745 off of pooh
756 lined up treats and seats
Fireworks
933 book pirates for same time
957 pirates
957 used pirates booked hm
1027 hm
1043 hm dome
Time to go

That's a very full day! We definitely aren't people who can do a park open to close.
I agree you get the most for your money with Genie at MK. At least that was also our experience.

 

[JD80]

That's a very full day! We definitely aren't people who can do a park open to close.
I agree you get the most for your money with Genie at MK. At least that was also our experience.

It depends on how you tour the parks, but g+ works in every style at MK (full day, late start, mid day break etc)

It's mostly pointless in Epcot.

It has some value if you want guarantee to do everything in AK before lunch with a rope drop start. Otherwise, it's pointless.

DHS has increasing value the later you start your day at the park with diminishing returns at around a 1pm start. It's a great park to stack LLs. But you gave to start doing that at 7 and then throughout the morning.

Who doesnt like being a project manager on vacation? I love Disney trip planning, but I love it at home not when I'm on property.

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

In absolute terms, I don't see a day anytime soon where Dollywood could possibly be better than Disney - again, in the absolute. This also applies to basically every other U.S. theme park. They pale in comparison.

The problem is that the Lamborghini didn't just take a step back in terms of quality - they took a step back while charging significantly more. And they haven't done it quietly. They've publicly boasted about it.

The price difference is an increasing decision factor for us also.

Car A at $75k vs best car at $100k is a fairly easy choice, best car. Car A improves and becomes $80k while best car gets worse and increase to $125k and suddenly it’s also a fairly easy choice, car A.

The best car is still the best car and many will buy it on that fact alone but many (like us) will struggle to justify the price difference, despite it being the best.

 

[Tom P.]

I traveled in my younger years. Others I worked with had no desire to travel overseas or get a passport/ to them had nothing to do with vacation policy.

I have absolutely no desire to travel outside the United States and have never owned a passport. So that is wrong rather than just different from you?

 

[Casper Gutman]

You people talking about Sandusky or Dollywood are like dudes complaining about a new Lamborghini design and then claiming that their Acura is better because Acuras were improved and in their mind Lamborghinis took a step backwards. Just because you’re sad the industry leader didn’t do things you liked doesn’t mean that all of a sudden Dollywood is comparable. It’s not. If that’s what you can afford to go to after the price increases, have a blast! But don’t try to pretend Dollywood has surpassed Disney World. It’s embarrassing.

If you’re talking about history or size or number of dark rides, no, someplace like Dollywood can’t compete with WDW. But if you visit theme parks to have a pleasant time, enjoy good food, and experience quality service, then yeah DW competes and, arguably, excels. When you factor in what you get for your dollar, DW looks even better. And I understand that it doesn’t accommodate young children as well as it might, but Uni competes with WDW right now on any other terms. Disney’s “market leader” status in everything other then market share is increasingly questionable.

Basically, clinging only to WDW is like turning down a comfortable, reliable, good-looking Acura for a Lamborghini even though Lamborghini recently doubled prices and added that controversial giant-spike-jammed-into-your-groin feature.

By the way, this post is the most supremely condescending I’ve seen in the thread.

 

[Joel]

I'm having a hard time following analogies where one of my options is to buy a Lambo.

 

[MrPromey]

This was his first post - pretty reasonable and balanced:



The rest were made in response to the usual relentless attacks and expressions of disbelief that anyone could ever still enjoy WDW unless they have no standards or have something wrong with them to the extent that they are unable to vacation anywhere else.











Maybe allowing for positive as well as negative opinions of WDW without demanding that the poster justify every statement would stop the kind of downward spiral that happened here.

I agree his first post was.

My post up there was asking, if they saw nothing at all wrong with the way thing were, what would it take to change that idea?

Half of what I listed was entirely hypothetical - just asking if he didn't apparently have any problems at all with the current downhill slide, what would be something that to him was bad enough to rethink it.

I expressed what I didn't like in a later post (not directed at him) and he proceeded to essentially try to refute everything I said with stuff we all know isn't true - plenty of seating around the parks, plenty of tables around World Showcase, the fight wasn't really a fight and fights with your young daughters present are fun to watch, etc.

If you look at the positive post that was a direct response to Jviera1298 answering his question and was what Sirwalterraleigh responded to when he made the "crickets" remark that launched a whole conversation about his insinuation* you'll notice he completely ignored that.

I understand he was on your side** in the debate so to speak but as someone essentially new to posting, he sure came in with a desire to shut everyone down and I'd just like to agree with the last line of this little song (that everyone needs to watch/listen to in completion, regardless of their feelings in this "debate":




*I'll agree it wasn't a nice insinuation but since Jviera1298 responded to him and not the person who took the time to make a thoughtful reply to Jviera1298's original question - which I guess despite him saying was a real question and that he asked for more than once, it turns out to have been more-or-less a correct insinuation.

**Regardless of your feelings about stuff, it's hard to imagine you expressing things the way he did and you've been active enough to know who you like around here and who you don't so a more direct and more personal attack would arguably be warranted - and probably accepted - from you despite me thinking you'd be less likely to actually do that.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

It'll be interesting to read your experiences and observations. I hope these boards don't bias/shadow your expectations.

It's still a wonderful place and if you're not jaded by the price tag then you're friend will be right where you left them, just a bit older with some new stories to tell.

This is very true…

2009-10 was the last hard recession…which tend to be consumer friendly in wdw.

So the impressions will be interesting to hear.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I agree his first post was.

My post up there was asking, if they saw nothing at all wrong with the way thing were, what would it take to change that idea?

Half of what I listed weren't things that have even occurred - just asking if he didn't apparently have any problems at all with the current downhill slide, what would be something that made it worse.

I expressed what I didn't like in a later post (not directed at him) and he proceeded to essentially try to refute everything I said with stuff we all know isn't true - plenty of seating around the parks, plenty of tables around World Showcase, etc.. and then of course, we get up to his final post where it seems like he completely snapped.

I only really looked at your response to the first post.

If someone says something is “better”…it seems that “…than what?” Is a reasonable ask?

But I’m wrong all the time…ask anyone

 

[MrPromey]

I only really looked at your response to the first post.

If someone says something is “better”…it seems that “…than what?” Is a reasonable ask?

But I’m wrong all the time…ask anyone

Go back and re-read my post - if nothing else, for the video I added!