The Disney Decade Ruined Me

[GeoffR]

Hello All,

This article is specific to WDW only

I've been considering writing something like this for a while and thought I would see what the Disney community thought. The impetus for this post is actually a conversation I had with my dad the other day, just reminiscing about childhood WDW trips. We were talking about how we went during May one year, and we walked on everything and how it had been amazing compared to our previous July trips, and how every year we went there was something big and new opening; for reference we had gone in '89, 91, 92, 94, 97, 99. It was at this point where I had to tell him that things like that don't exist anymore

I'm 29 yrs old, and Disney, both the animated features and parks, WERE my childhood. However, it wasn't until I was older (and only within the last year or so) that I learned what the Disney Decade was, and that I grew up in the middle of it. My family and I would go to WDW almost every other year, and to this day my favorite vacations were during those trips. However, having grown up during that time, it's ruined my adult Disney experience.

I want to preface by saying I don't care about crowds all that much, and I can save up for months and months to afford to go to the parks. However, having grown up during the largest expansion of the parks and the prices/crowds being a shadow of what they are now, it's...I guess disheartening is the word...to see how things have shifted.

In my opinion, WDW is not a right, but a privilege, and I know it's a business whose goal is to make $$. That being said, the privilege seems so expensive and so out of reach especially for what you get out each visit. When my family and I would go on these trips, we did it on a single-income. My dad would use a bonus, or tax refund, or stock option, and my family of five would go to WDW for up to 10 days for some trips. Looking at hotel/ticket prices nowadays, there's no way we could have done anything close to what we did; even adjusted for wages/inflation/prices. We even stayed at the Deluxe resorts and had Park Hoppers.

Looking at prices now, I can't wrap my head around an average family affording $500-$800 a night for a deluxe hotel. The numbers just sound insane. On top of that, these are the same hotels that my family went to when they first opened for a fraction of the cost, but after 20 yrs they are exponentially more expensive. I can think of maybe three new hotels that have been added since I went as a kid.

This brings me to my next point, where we really haven't gotten anything new (IMO) that would justify these price hikes. During the DD, the hotel expansion was immense, two gates and expansion within them were added, 2 water parks, a sports complex...and the prices were affordable and the crowds weren't crazy. Since then, we've gotten...we will call it 4 new lands if you include the 2 in development, and a hand full of attractions...and the crowds are insane. To reiterate, I don't mind the crowds, but the $$ doesn't seem justified. Even with inflation and this and that.

As an adult, I've been in 2007, 2012, 2014 (twice), 2015 (DL), 2016, and most recently November 2017. I try to go every year. I love it every time, and it's still my favorite vacation spot anywhere. However, it's so bittersweet because I save up for a whole year to go and stay at a value resort, or a moderate if I can swing it, and I know I'm paying through the nose.

I'd love to be able to get an AP, and go anytime I want ( my dad used to do that) and enjoy the parks casually, but there's so much stress and to the minute planning with FP and all, it's just crazy; and you have to do it or you're not getting on anything.

I know it's a long-winded discussion, but I'm interested to read other people's thoughts on the Disney Decade, and the changes (or lack thereof) in the parks since then.

Geoff

 

[mj2v]

if anything, I see more on the horizon now than there has been in a long time.

You can’t hust look at wdw. Look globally at what Disney is doing.

We have lived in the orlando area since 1995. Got to watch AK be built and got to go prior to the actual opening.

Not everything is theme parks. Disney is spending a ton of money on infrastructure, which is not exciting to anyone except the geekiest of geeks. However, it sets the stage for more growth and a better experience.

You have Pandora, which is the best themed area that Disney has done in a very long time.

Toy Story is not as major, but you have something game changing on the horizon.

Disney Springs is great, tons of good restaurants. Not as exciting as a new theme park, but a solid reimagined area.

Caribbean and Coronado are completely being revamped. Not as exciting as “new” resorts, but they essentially are new resorts.

The best part is that we also have a formidable and motivated Universal massively upping their game. The more they build, the more motivation the mouse finds.

As for affordability, it’s always been an issue. My parents did not take me to WDW as a kid. It just did not fit into the budget.

Probably explains why we live in Celebration, own DVC, Platinum on DCL, have aps, etc.

My wife and I really wanted a house in celebration. No way we could have afforded it when celebration started, so we took a risk, started a business, worked out butts off, and pushed to make our dreams a reality. It was not always easy, but we knew what we wanted.

If someone really wants something, they figure it out, or get frustrated. Simple choice.

I have met thousands of people who visit WDW. some are so much in debt and just don’t care. Some figure out ways to fit it into their budget. And then there are those that have so much $$ it just doesn’t matter. They all make it work somehow.

By the way, we would never pay $500 a night or more. We own DVC and that is what allows us to stay on property, even though we live 10 minutes away.

 

[ParentsOf4]

It's not just you; WDW is still good but it's not as good as it used to be.

I've been visiting WDW as an adult for decades. Since you mention you're 29, that means before you were born. (I never had the opportunity to visit as a child.)

In my opinion, WDW's peak years were 1982 to 1984, immediately after the opening of Epcot (WDW's largest project ever) and just before Michael Eisner became CEO, initiating 4 years of double-digit price increases. During those years, WDW's two best theme parks were in their prime, prices were (relatively) low, and service and quality were truly outstanding. (Food was only so-so; I guess you can't have everything!)

Baselining 1982 to 1984 as a '100', here's how I scored all years relative to those perfect years:

 

[MrConbon]

Then don’t go

 

[erasure fan1]

You can’t hust look at wdw. Look globally at what Disney is doing.

Not everything is theme parks. Disney is spending a ton of money on infrastructure, which is not exciting to anyone except the geekiest of geeks. However, it sets the stage for more growth and a better experience.

I can just look at WDW because I'll never go to any other park except maybe Cali. And in no way should it be justified that WDW gets less and charges more because of what Disney is doing over seas. Prices have exploded for no justifiable reason other than they can. I've said it many times, I have no problem paying more if the product warrents it with new attractions... And this infrastructure you speak of would in no way justify the increases and in my opinion has hardly made anything better. Again I can only speak for myself but our vacations with the good old paper fastpasses, far superior to FP+ .

 

[celluloid]

I am 29 as well. After showing my wife martin's tributes and the like she is shocked on how it used to be. My family stopped going nearly as much and it is true, for whatever reason matured product or not, The Disney Decade did spoil us. Hopefully things change as they tend to go on cycles. One thing about Eisner is he had a creative background. Iger gets a lot of shareholder praise, and that has its place, but creatively speaking Eisner was ready to turn those parks around in the late 80s into something wonderful.

Now it is the catch up game and we hope the momentum continues to go back to what it was.

 

[DisneyFreak]

GeoffR, I feel much the same way you do and had a very similar experience as a child growing up going to WDW on family vacations. We (Mom, Dad, little Sister and myself) went in '79, '83, '85, '87, '89, '91 and '93. We stayed at the Polynesian every time. The first year was 5 nights, the second time was 8 nights and thereafter was 10 nights each trip.

Since my Wife and I moved to Florida 12 years ago we had been going 2-3 times a year. Recently though it just seems like the ends don't justify the means. We haven't been to the parks since Feb 2017, not that long ago but a long time for us. While we miss it and still love WDW, we feel it has definitely lost some of it's Magic. We are aiming for a return in maybe 3-4 years.

 

[DarthVader]

Then don’t go

Ultimately that's the only way Disney is going to notice.
With disney enjoynig record profits, and record attendance I don't see how any of these complaints and grades mean very little to Disney.

n my opinion, WDW is not a right, but a privilege

Why do you think people think Disney is a right? I'm not getting this point, can you explain

I guess disheartening is the word...to see how things have shifted.

No one likes crowds, but on the other hand, it seems like you want to enjoy the park, but deny other's the same opportunity. Yes, its very crowded, and I don't like it, but are the folks at the park any different then my family? no, they're the same and they want to have a "magical time"

ooking at prices now, I can't wrap my head around an average family affording $500-$800 a night for a deluxe hotel.

That's why Disney offers other options, including moderates and value resorts. Also off site resorts are very affordable.

I know it's a long-winded discussion, but I'm interested to read other people's thoughts on the Disney Decade, and the changes (or lack thereof) in the parks since then.

Why should Disney change, they're making money hand over fist.

 

[Tony the Tigger]

Be grateful for what you had. My parents couldn’t dream of taking us to WDW, let alone staying on property.

I didn’t go until I was your age (29) and I could barely afford a 3 day park hopper, let alone staying on property or enjoying fine dining. (Our only time setting foot in a TS restaurant was for dessert only at the Poly.)

Sure we’ve been there when the parks were “dead” but I highly doubt that was by design or part of the intended “magic.” It was lucky for us, not so lucky for Disney.

I’m guessing the Chase Disney Visa card has some impact, also. We do more “splurgy” things since that helps defray the cost. That doesn’t do anything for crowds, though.

but there's so much stress and to the minute planning with FP and all, it's just crazy; and you have to do it or you're not getting on anything.

Here, I must disagree. You might not get on FoP, but you’ll get on most others (even if you wait until the day of to get FPs.

 

[GeoffR]

Then don’t go

Lol yikes. Was asking opinions and trying to start a discussion, but I suppose apathy is an opinion?? Lol

 

[GeoffR]

Thanks for all the replies!! A lot of them made me feel better about the situation.

 

[DarthVader]

Lol yikes. Was asking opinions and trying to start a discussion, but I suppose apathy is an opinion?? Lol

Actually its a valid comment. If you don't like what a company is doing, then stop giving them money, i.e., vote with your wallet. There's also another layer to that post. Why go on a vacation (A very expensive one at that), that you don't enjoy.

 

[GeoffR]

Ultimately that's the only way Disney is going to notice.
With disney enjoynig record profits, and record attendance I don't see how any of these complaints and grades mean very little to Disney.


Why do you think people think Disney is a right? I'm not getting this point, can you explain


No one likes crowds, but on the other hand, it seems like you want to enjoy the park, but deny other's the same opportunity. Yes, its very crowded, and I don't like it, but are the folks at the park any different then my family? no, they're the same and they want to have a "magical time"


That's why Disney offers other options, including moderates and value resorts. Also off site resorts are very affordable.


Why should Disney change, they're making money hand over fist.

My point about the hotels was specific to deluxe resorts. My point about the 'right' was I've read dozens of posts where people feel like it's exactly that, a right. I said I dont mind crowds, so not sure why you brought that up

 

[GeoffR]

Actually its a valid comment. If you don't like what a company is doing, then stop giving them money, i.e., vote with your wallet. There's also another layer to that post. Why go on a vacation (A very expensive one at that), that you don't enjoy.

The misconception being I don't enjoy it, lol. My point was only to dive into how my pov is scewed because of when I grew up. I think the fact I go every year speaks to the fact that I accept how things are.

 

[geekza]

When my family and I would go on these trips, we did it on a single-income.

I'm a fair bit older than you, but my family got to go to WDW three times while I was growing up. Once in the mid-70's, once right after EPCOT Center opened, and a third time when I was in high school. Dad was a United Methodist Minister and Mom was a public school teacher. Needless to say, we weren't rolling in dough. Although we could never have afforded every-other-year vacations to WDW, the fact is that we were still able to afford to go a few times. We never stayed on-property because this was before the big hotel boom, but we still had great experiences. Even with the huge crowds at EPCOT in the summer of 1984 (and they were HUGE), getting separated from my family in the Magic Kingdom (Don't bother chasing Goofy for a hug. He will ignore you and walk backstage, where you can't follow, and you will be suddenly alone in a sea of strangers.), and once getting so exhausted that I whined one time too many and was socked in the stomach by my older brother, I fell in love with WDW.

Fast forward to the present. My wife and I both work full-time. We certainly don't have minimum wage jobs, but we're only living slightly better than paycheck to paycheck. I've only been able to go to WDW twice as an adult: once on my (first) Honeymoon in 1997 and again in 2006, when my son was a toddler. Since then, the cost of living has soared and wages have stagnated, if not gone down. (I live in WV. Things aren't great here.) My current wife and I have never been able to take any trips together. Nope. Not even a Honeymoon. We are raising three amazing boys and, because that's what parents do, have had to devote all of our time and what little money we have to them. I'm not complaining. I feel very lucky compared to many people in this world. Our family loves one another, we have a house, transportation, jobs, and food on the table.

I promise I'm getting to my point.

I've always wanted to go back to WDW. Even though I know it isn't the place I loved as a kid, there's still enough of the place I loved that it's something I want to experience again and want to share with my wife. She's never been there. Over the past three years or so, we've tried twice to plan trips to WDW. We made reservations, saved money, and made payments over a period of months. Twice, the trip has been canceled. Life events happened that would always drain what little we had saved and made even thinking about a vacation out of the question. It sounds stupid, but both times made me terribly depressed. I know; First World Problems.

In any case, we're trying a third time this year. The boys' grandmother, aunt and uncle offered to take them to WDW over Thanksgiving week. My wife and I decided that this would be a great opportunity for us to also go down and stay by ourselves. The sad part is that the only reason we can afford to go this time is that my mother passed away back in April and left me a little bit of money.

My very-not-wealthy family was able to afford to take three amazing trips to WDW when I was growing up, but now it has become so expensive that my wife and I work our butts off and couldn't afford to go once until some money came our way in the most horrible way possible.

TL/DR Walt Disney World went from an affordable place for working-class families to a place where working-class families can only afford to go if they go into debt or are able to save up for months or years.

I'm not suggesting that Disney is a charity and that WDW vacations are a right instead of a luxury. All I'm saying is that people now have to pay far more for an objectively lesser experience where you now have to plan your meals months in advance and decide at least two months in advance when, down to the day and time, you would like to experience an attraction.

I'm still looking forward to going this year, but I don't know that I'll ever be able to afford to go again in the future and that makes me sad.

Sorry for the rant.

 

[GeoffR]

I'm a fair bit older than you, but my family got to go to WDW three times while I was growing up. Once in the mid-70's, once right after EPCOT Center opened, and a third time when I was in high school. Dad was a United Methodist Minister and Mom was a public school teacher. Needless to say, we weren't rolling in dough. Although we could never have afforded every-other-year vacations to WDW, the fact is that we were still able to afford to go a few times. We never stayed on-property because this was before the big hotel boom, but we still had great experiences. Even with the huge crowds at EPCOT in the summer of 1984 (and they were HUGE), getting separated from my family in the Magic Kingdom (Don't bother chasing Goofy for a hug. He will ignore you and walk backstage, where you can't follow, and you will be suddenly alone in a sea of strangers.), and once getting so exhausted that I whined one time too many and was socked in the stomach by my older brother, I fell in love with WDW.

Fast forward to the present. My wife and I both work full-time. We certainly don't have minimum wage jobs, but we're only living slightly better than paycheck to paycheck. I've only been able to go to WDW twice as an adult: once on my (first) Honeymoon in 1997 and again in 2006, when my son was a toddler. Since then, the cost of living has soared and wages have stagnated, if not gone down. (I live in WV. Things aren't great here.) My current wife and I have never been able to take any trips together. Nope. Not even a Honeymoon. We are raising three amazing boys and, because that's what parents do, have had to devote all of our time and what little money we have to them. I'm not complaining. I feel very lucky compared to many people in this world. Our family loves one another, we have a house, transportation, jobs, and food on the table.

I promise I'm getting to my point.

I've always wanted to go back to WDW. Even though I know it isn't the place I loved as a kid, there's still enough of the place I loved that it's something I want to experience again and want to share with my wife. She's never been there. Over the past three years or so, we've tried twice to plan trips to WDW. We made reservations, saved money, and made payments over a period of months. Twice, the trip has been canceled. Life events happened that would always drain what little we had saved and made even thinking about a vacation out of the question. It sounds stupid, but both times made me terribly depressed. I know; First World Problems.

In any case, we're trying a third time this year. The boys' grandmother, aunt and uncle offered to take them to WDW over Thanksgiving week. My wife and I decided that this would be a great opportunity for us to also go down and stay by ourselves. The sad part is that the only reason we can afford to go this time is that my mother passed away back in April and left me a little bit of money.

My very-not-wealthy family was able to afford to take three amazing trips to WDW when I was growing up, but now it has become so expensive that my wife and I work our butts off and couldn't afford to go once until some money came our way in the most horrible way possible.

TL/DR Walt Disney World went from an affordable place for working-class families to a place where working-class families can only afford to go if they go into debt or are able to save up for months or years.

I'm not suggesting that Disney is a charity and that WDW vacations are a right instead of a luxury. All I'm saying is that people now have to pay far more for an objectively lesser experience where you now have to plan your meals months in advance and decide at least two months in advance when, down to the day and time, you would like to experience an attraction.

I'm still looking forward to going this year, but I don't know that I'll ever be able to afford to go again in the future and that makes me sad.

Sorry for the rant.

I totally hear you. The planning in advance is something that bothers me. And before anyone jumps and says 'well it makes x y and z better' i get that, lol. My dad and I went in '14, and he was shocked that we couldn't just walk up to a restuarant; but he hadn't been since 99. So it's a norm now, a little annoying, but a norm, but it makes doing things on a whim kind of obsolete

 

[geekza]

I totally hear you. The planning in advance is something that bothers me. And before anyone jumps and says 'well it makes x y and z better' i get that, lol. My dad and I went in '14, and he was shocked that we couldn't just walk up to a restuarant; but he hadn't been since 99. So it's a norm now, a little annoying, but a norm, but it makes doing things on a whim kind of obsolete

I'm thinking of skipping Hollywood Studios entirely this year because there's so little there. At its peak, it was still kind of a half-day park. I was going to do a morning in Animal Kingdom and the afternoon and evening in DHS, but having to use my Fast Passes at DAK that morning if I even want to think of experiencing the Avatar attractions meant that I would have to try and rely on getting day-of FP's for pretty much anything I'd want to experience at DHS. Without FP's, the stand-by lines would be long enough to make the attractions not worth the effort. How they get away with charging full price for DHS right now is beyond me. Deciding to close the GMR at the same time as more than half of the park is under construction was boneheaded. (I'm also just super-bitter that the reason the park was built in the first place has been tossed over the years. I know I'm a crank. GIT OF'N MAH LAWN, WHIPPER SNAPPERS!)

We're only going to eat a couple of table service meals while we're there, both because of the insane expense and because I really hate being forced to decide six months in advance what kind of food I'll be in the mood to eat. My wife, who, again, has never been to WDW, is already over it. I've had to go into obsessive-compulsive mode to start making touring plans and such. When I tried to get her to sit down with me and look at all of the restaurants to decide where she might like to eat, she said, "You just pick something. I think all of this is ridiculous. We aren't even going until November." She's not wrong.

 

[YankeeMouse]

We took the kids every summer and stayed at the Poly or Contemporary. Then when they grew up and we started going ourselves, we stayed AKL or WL. With an annual passholder discount, we used to be able to stay at AKL for $179. Now we stay at CBR and I'm hoping those rates will not go up due to gondola transportation. Like so many have said, I'm not complaining. We still go. Eventually, I see Pop Century on the horizon.

 

[geekza]

Eventually, I see Pop Century on the horizon.

By that time, you'll be asked when you book your reservation two years in advance if you'd like to upgrade your room to one that includes towels and sheets for a small fee.

 

[Sonconato]

Hello All,

This article is specific to WDW only

I've been considering writing something like this for a while and thought I would see what the Disney community thought. The impetus for this post is actually a conversation I had with my dad the other day, just reminiscing about childhood WDW trips. We were talking about how we went during May one year, and we walked on everything and how it had been amazing compared to our previous July trips, and how every year we went there was something big and new opening; for reference we had gone in '89, 91, 92, 94, 97, 99. It was at this point where I had to tell him that things like that don't exist anymore

I'm 29 yrs old, and Disney, both the animated features and parks, WERE my childhood. However, it wasn't until I was older (and only within the last year or so) that I learned what the Disney Decade was, and that I grew up in the middle of it. My family and I would go to WDW almost every other year, and to this day my favorite vacations were during those trips. However, having grown up during that time, it's ruined my adult Disney experience.

I want to preface by saying I don't care about crowds all that much, and I can save up for months and months to afford to go to the parks. However, having grown up during the largest expansion of the parks and the prices/crowds being a shadow of what they are now, it's...I guess disheartening is the word...to see how things have shifted.

In my opinion, WDW is not a right, but a privilege, and I know it's a business whose goal is to make $$. That being said, the privilege seems so expensive and so out of reach especially for what you get out each visit. When my family and I would go on these trips, we did it on a single-income. My dad would use a bonus, or tax refund, or stock option, and my family of five would go to WDW for up to 10 days for some trips. Looking at hotel/ticket prices nowadays, there's no way we could have done anything close to what we did; even adjusted for wages/inflation/prices. We even stayed at the Deluxe resorts and had Park Hoppers.

Looking at prices now, I can't wrap my head around an average family affording $500-$800 a night for a deluxe hotel. The numbers just sound insane. On top of that, these are the same hotels that my family went to when they first opened for a fraction of the cost, but after 20 yrs they are exponentially more expensive. I can think of maybe three new hotels that have been added since I went as a kid.

This brings me to my next point, where we really haven't gotten anything new (IMO) that would justify these price hikes. During the DD, the hotel expansion was immense, two gates and expansion within them were added, 2 water parks, a sports complex...and the prices were affordable and the crowds weren't crazy. Since then, we've gotten...we will call it 4 new lands if you include the 2 in development, and a hand full of attractions...and the crowds are insane. To reiterate, I don't mind the crowds, but the $$ doesn't seem justified. Even with inflation and this and that.

As an adult, I've been in 2007, 2012, 2014 (twice), 2015 (DL), 2016, and most recently November 2017. I try to go every year. I love it every time, and it's still my favorite vacation spot anywhere. However, it's so bittersweet because I save up for a whole year to go and stay at a value resort, or a moderate if I can swing it, and I know I'm paying through the nose.

I'd love to be able to get an AP, and go anytime I want ( my dad used to do that) and enjoy the parks casually, but there's so much stress and to the minute planning with FP and all, it's just crazy; and you have to do it or you're not getting on anything.

I know it's a long-winded discussion, but I'm interested to read other people's thoughts on the Disney Decade, and the changes (or lack thereof) in the parks since then.

Geoff

I agree with you totally. My husband and I were just discussing this not too long ago. I married my husband in 1989 and we moved from my hometown, Boston, to Florida immediately. We bought annual passes WDW every year and went all the time until we had our son in 1995 when we then moved back to Boston. In 2001, we started to take our son on week-long vacations to WDW annually up until 2006. During all this time WDW was excellent in all the ways you mentioned. Then, we moved back to Florida in 2008 and began to buy annual passes every year again. That is when we started to notice the changes. It seems now that the Disney company caters to large groups of people. My sister also noticed this in Disneyland where she said the crowds were horrendous.