The magic is still there but it takes more work (and money) to find it.

[durangojim]

We just returned from a week long trip at WDW with my sister in law and her husband along with my niece (7) and nephew (6) all of whom had never been to WDW. We stayed at the Riviera in a 2 bedroom villa with my sister in law and family using the "living room" as their bedroom. Now here's a big disclosure, a couple of us had DAS and it was the first time we had used it. We decided to do MK and DHS as there were only 2 days they could do at Disney. Using the DAS and paying for Genie+ and LL+ (and me getting up in the middle fo the night to purchase Genie plus and then again at 6:55am) we were able to get on 11 rides starting at 8:30am and ending at 3pm at MK, and all rides except for Tower of terror at DHS starting at 830 and ending at 2 which included an hour downtime for RotR. So where's the Disney magic? We took a pontoon firework cruise to celebrate my daughter's birthday which was absolutely wonderful and the CM was great, my neice and nephew's experience on their first "real" roller coasters progressing from Barnstormer to Seven Dwarfs to BTMMRR was priceless, especially with the photos captured while on the ride. Splash was a huge his. They were amazed every night watching Harmonius from our balcony. The biggest magical moment happened when we were on RotR and I told the CM that my nephew was a new recruit and wanted to join the first order. He knelt down and spent what felt like 5 minutes talking to my niece and nephew about how the First Order has no bedtime, no homework, and that they've taken all the ice cream from all the planets in the Galaxy to give to their recruits. Then we went on the ride and the AT AT scene blew their minds. When they got off of the ride they said that was the most amazing thing they've ever seen. Their last night they told me that the needed to come back to Disney for my nephew's 8th birthday. I know it's easy for all of us to become jaded at the changes and decline in quality of certain things but the magic is still there, I just wish Disney made it easier for most to experience.

 

[MarvelCharacterNerd]

The biggest magical moment happened when we were on RotR and I told the CM that my nephew was a new recruit and wanted to join the first order. He knelt down and spent what felt like 5 minutes talking to my niece and nephew about how the First Order has no bedtime, no homework, and that they've taken all the ice cream from all the planets in the Galaxy to give to their recruits.

And THAT is why they still get my $$. That kind of CM magic is just priceless.

 

[SamandplanningUK]

Thank you for this post, we are booked to go in July and have been pretty worried seeing all the negativity, we need more people to post when they have good experiences and not just the bad ones!

 

[RememberWhen]

Those moments of magic are priceless, and why we’re headed back this summer despite all the things we’re not liking about the parks. We won’t but genie+, but we’re there for long enough we should be able to ride what we want.

 

[Sbk1234]

It's very easy to focus on the negative. I, too, miss the "Golden Age" of WDW when you weren't nickel and dimed as far as they can push it, and you didn't have to plan out every single minute of every day (I know I'm being hyperbolic.) But I still find magic there. I just have to work at it a little harder. Hopefully some things will shift back more to the way it was.

 

[JIMINYCR]

Its refreshing to hear about a trip that someone took and has not been totally displeased and cant wait to fill a post with anger and hostility. Yes, there are things we can be upset over and policies we think could have been altered to make a process better. Any vacation spot has its fine points and negatives. But Disney isnt all bad and there plenty there a family can enjoy. Those who prefer to spout only furor and walk away, threatening to never return are missing out on what many of us find magical still.

 

[NickMaio]

We just returned from a week long trip at WDW with my sister in law and her husband along with my niece (7) and nephew (6) all of whom had never been to WDW. We stayed at the Riviera in a 2 bedroom villa with my sister in law and family using the "living room" as their bedroom. Now here's a big disclosure, a couple of us had DAS and it was the first time we had used it. We decided to do MK and DHS as there were only 2 days they could do at Disney. Using the DAS and paying for Genie+ and LL+ (and me getting up in the middle fo the night to purchase Genie plus and then again at 6:55am) we were able to get on 11 rides starting at 8:30am and ending at 3pm at MK, and all rides except for Tower of terror at DHS starting at 830 and ending at 2 which included an hour downtime for RotR. So where's the Disney magic? We took a pontoon firework cruise to celebrate my daughter's birthday which was absolutely wonderful and the CM was great, my neice and nephew's experience on their first "real" roller coasters progressing from Barnstormer to Seven Dwarfs to BTMMRR was priceless, especially with the photos captured while on the ride. Splash was a huge his. They were amazed every night watching Harmonius from our balcony. The biggest magical moment happened when we were on RotR and I told the CM that my nephew was a new recruit and wanted to join the first order. He knelt down and spent what felt like 5 minutes talking to my niece and nephew about how the First Order has no bedtime, no homework, and that they've taken all the ice cream from all the planets in the Galaxy to give to their recruits. Then we went on the ride and the AT AT scene blew their minds. When they got off of the ride they said that was the most amazing thing they've ever seen. Their last night they told me that the needed to come back to Disney for my nephew's 8th birthday. I know it's easy for all of us to become jaded at the changes and decline in quality of certain things but the magic is still there, I just wish Disney made it easier for most to experience.

Awesome to hear - - thanks for sharing!

 

[ppete1975]

just seeing the castle turns me into an 8 year old with no stress in the world

 

[DfromATX]

Thank you for this post, we are booked to go in July and have been pretty worried seeing all the negativity, we need more people to post when they have good experiences and not just the bad ones!

I've been on here for years, and even before Genie+ (which I am against), I have found that it's almost best to not get on here shortly before a trip. There is a LOT of negativity and it definitely can put a damper on things. Don't get me wrong, some of the negativity is valid, but much of it you probably won't even notice and it won't be YOUR experience. I'm guilty of doing some complaining too, but I will tell you that I've never had a bad trip to Disney. Our last one was February 2021 and even with masks and lots of restaurants closed, etc., we had a fabulous time!

 

[eliza61nyc]

Thank you for this post, we are booked to go in July and have been pretty worried seeing all the negativity, we need more people to post when they have good experiences and not just the bad ones!

Lol they eat people like that here. I'm heading down in a few weeks with my girlfriends, can't wait. I'm sure we'll have a blast. We are not planning on doing genie plus. I'll definitely post our experience

 

[S.I.R. the Robot]

My favourite instance of the magic being still there is Boba Fett's evil laugh in the Geonosis scene on Star Tours. IDK why, it's just something about that laugh that makes me smile. He's never laughed evilly before or since. He's morally grey so maybe that's why...