The Tipping Point For Change

[LittleBuford]

You do whatever makes you happy and I'll do what makes me happy.

This should be everyone's mantra on this website. There's way too much judgement here of others' tastes and preferences.

 

[DisneyMusician2]

I embarrassingly used to be one of those fans. I wouldn't even set foot in CityWalk because it felt "cheap" compared to Disney Springs Then about three years ago, one of my best friends asked me to join him for a staycation at Royal Pacific and a day at the parks, my mind was blown!! There was a lot more at Universal that I enjoyed. I still prefer Disney but I've grown to appreciate what two resorts have to offer.

I was the same way for a long time. I don't enjoy them as much either, but enough that I became one of their AP holders and make a point of visiting my favorites over there all time time.

 

[donaldtoo]

You act like that's a bad thing. The majority of people are not wrapped up in cynical and irrational hatred of things beyond their control. We just returned from a two week trip, our first since before covid, and had an absolute ball. Yea there are things we don't like happening with the parks and but it's frankly childish to say "oh em gee, we're never going back because Disney didn't do [insert complaint] or is taking away [insert complaint]." Even with the looming paid FastPass options, that in itself will likely not sway our decision to not visit Disney World; we'll find something else to enjoy at the resort. For our family there will never be a tipping point.

Yes, but, you’re admittedly on morphine, which is a stepping stone drug to pixie dust...!!!!!

 

[Jrb1979]

This should be everyone's mantra on this website. There's way too much judgement here of others' tastes and preferences.

I agree with what you said and I try not to judge others as much as I once did. There is one thing that has always bothered me and it's how many look down on other parks that aren't Disney. It's fine if those parks aren't what your thing. You can say that with out putting those parks down. I will be honest, as a guy who loves amusement parks, it's part of the reason I do take shots at Disney.

I like Disney. It's not in my top 5 parks and it's mainly due to the amount of planning involved. While some of what they have done maybe a tipping point for some, a paid FP that switches to day off would push Disney into top 5

 

[LittleBuford]

I agree with what you said and I try not to judge others as much as I once did. There is one thing that has always bothered me and it's how many look down on other parks that aren't Disney. It's fine if those parks aren't what your thing. You can say that with out putting those parks down. I will be honest, as a guy who loves amusement parks, it's part of the reason I do take shots at Disney.

I like Disney. It's not in my top 5 parks and it's mainly due to the amount of planning involved. While some of what they have done maybe a tipping point for some, a paid FP that switches to day off would push Disney into top 5

Whereas I’m dreading the prospect of paid FP!

Thanks for the civil response. We clearly have very different tastes when it comes to theme parks, but that doesn’t mean we can’t respect each other’s perspective.

 

[CLBMN]

Nothing wrong with that. I know some Disney super-fans who refuse to step foot in Universal. Truth be told, Universal isn't all that bad. Heck, the WWHP (Potter) gave Disney a run for their money when it first opened. And I like to think Pandora and Galaxy's Edge are the result of that.

Yeah but there is a group of us that just don't care for Universal. We tried it because we heard how much fun it was supposed to be. I also may not be their demographic.
Went once, no plans to go back. Just did not think it was fun.
Now, I am also in the group that believes that they are not the same thing/product, IMHO.
It doesn't matter how much cheaper or if it is believed to be a better value, if the enjoyment isn't there the whole thing is a waste of money.
It is a good thing that there are options!

 

[erasure fan1]

They'll keep jacking up their prices as long as people are still willing to pay for it.

That's what I've been saying for years. The game they are playing is simple. Push the line for the highest price with the most cost cutting as far as they can. Unfortunately we have a long way to go before we hit the line.

 

[Cadbury]

Yeah but there is a group of us that just don't care for Universal. We tried it because we heard how much fun it was supposed to be. I also may not be their demographic.
Went once, no plans to go back. Just did not think it was fun.
Now, I am also in the group that believes that they are not the same thing/product, IMHO.
It doesn't matter how much cheaper or if it is believed to be a better value, if the enjoyment isn't there the whole thing is a waste of money.
It is a good thing that there are options!

Very true! Most of my time is spent at Disney anyways but if I ever wanted to hold a wand and have a total stranger dressed as an old wizard tell me "you're a wizard Greg" then I'd go to Universal.

 

[Jrb1979]

Very true! Most of my time is spent at Disney anyways but if I ever wanted to hold a wand and have a total stranger dressed as an old wizard tell me "you're a wizard Greg" then I'd go to Universal.

This is the type of thing I was talking about in my earlier post. Its one thing to not like other parks but the constant jabs at those parks does bug me.

If I wanted to meet some stranger pretending to be a princess I would go to Disney.

 

[Cadbury]

This is the type of thing I was talking about in my earlier post. Its one thing to not like other parks but the constant jabs at those parks does bug me.

If I wanted to meet some stranger pretending to be a princess I would go to Disney.

I was joking about the wizard part hence the laughing emoji...

 

[DisneyMusician2]

I feel bad for those who live in the Disney bubble because that bubble more or less prevents them from enjoying other parks and attractions in the Orlando area.

Honestly in many ways my Universal visits have made me appreciate Disney more not less

 

[Ahsoka102]

I actually do both Universal and Disney on most trips and enjoy the differences in the parks. And yes I'm one of those crazy people who still love it but thats been for over 30 years and lots of great memories with my extended family so maybe its wrapped up in that a bit.

Same here. We do both when we visit. As my kids have gotten older (13 and 10) they now prefer Universal over WDW. I'm the one still trying to hang on to the magic and memories at WDW. I have noticed our fond memories and experiences from our trips to Universal are starting to outnumber the ones at Disney. I think that is just because we are more relaxed and care free at Universal. We stay at Portofino Bay and have express passes and know that we going to get to do everything we want to do. Its just getting harder and harder to do that at Disney.

 

[DisneyMusician2]

Same here. We do both when we visit. As my kids have gotten older (13 and 10) they now prefer Universal over WDW. I'm the one still trying to hang on to the magic and memories at WDW. I have noticed our fond memories and experiences from our trips to Universal are starting to outnumber the ones at Disney. I think that is just because we are more relaxed and care free at Universal. We stay at Portofino Bay and have express passes and know that we going to get to do everything we want to do. Its just getting harder and harder to do that at Disney.

My kids are around the same age with a younger thrown in, they still prefer Disney but I hear where you're coming from.

I agree with what you said and I try not to judge others as much as I once did. There is one thing that has always bothered me and it's how many look down on other parks that aren't Disney. It's fine if those parks aren't what your thing. You can say that with out putting those parks down. I will be honest, as a guy who loves amusement parks, it's part of the reason I do take shots at Disney.

I like Disney. It's not in my top 5 parks and it's mainly due to the amount of planning involved. While some of what they have done maybe a tipping point for some, a paid FP that switches to day off would push Disney into top 5

Sounds like maybe I'm not the only one on here that thinks the paid/day-of FP would be better in many ways than what we had before.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

…this is a good thread.

 

[LittleBuford]

Another way of looking at the question is whether there are any specific aspects of WDW that are unacceptable to you. One tipping point for me is keeping animals in captivity, which is why I almost always skip AK despite recognising how amazingly well themed it is. I have been only once these past five years and made a point of experiencing only those attractions that didn’t involve live animals. Truth be told, it still didn’t feel great, and I wish I were principled enough to put my money where my mouth is and deny Disney my money altogether.

 

[aliceismad]

It does... although I don't remember it being that way when I started lurking here over 10 years ago. I wonder, am I just remembering it as a more positive place than it was, or were people simply happier here 10 years ago because Disney was doing a better job then?

I think the trip report area is much more positive.

I think Universal offers a much more appealing trip on paper than Disney. Value for the money favors Universal. But there isn't the same feeling there. When your heart swells when you see the castle, that's an almost irreplaceable feeling. If it doesn't do that for me anymore, I'll stop going and go other places where it does.

 

[Weather_Lady]

Same here. We do both when we visit. As my kids have gotten older (13 and 10) they now prefer Universal over WDW. I'm the one still trying to hang on to the magic and memories at WDW. I have noticed our fond memories and experiences from our trips to Universal are starting to outnumber the ones at Disney. I think that is just because we are more relaxed and care free at Universal. We stay at Portofino Bay and have express passes and know that we going to get to do everything we want to do. Its just getting harder and harder to do that at Disney.

Same for my family, 100% (with the only tiny difference being my kids are 13 and soon-to-be-15).

I still love the WDW parks more than the Universal ones (although I certainly enjoy them too), and I always will, for many reasons -- but the parks themselves are only part of the equation. The "Disney Vacation Experience" as a whole has become so much more expensive, convoluted, time-consuming to plan, and stressful, that I find myself looking forward to the Universal stretches of our Orlando trips far more than the Disney parts. Visiting Universal is a fun and relaxing vacation, and I feel like Universal is my partner in trying to give me the best time possible -- always throwing little extras our way like birthday freebie coupons and passholder perks and extra park hours (and don't get me started on the complimentary fruit-infused iced water by the hotel pool) -- just like Disney used to do. In contrast, visiting Disney World is increasingly like trying to direct a large-scale military operation, wherein I feel like Disney is the enemy, working against me to deprive me of resources, remove all previous strategic advantages, and generally make our visits as demanding and unpredictable as possible.

To be sure, we have fun both places -- but WDW makes me work and plan ahead for it, or risk missing out. Universal doesn't.

 

[DisneyMusician2]

Another way of looking at the question is whether there are any specific aspects of WDW that are unacceptable to you. One tipping point for me is keeping animals in captivity, which is why I almost always skip AK despite recognising how amazingly well themed it is. I have been only once these past five years and made a point of experiencing only those attractions that didn’t involve live animals. Truth be told, it still didn’t feel great, and I wish I were principled enough to put my money where my mouth is and deny Disney my money altogether.

Which is really interesting because all the conservation and animal work they do is one of the reasons I go when I compare it to other zoo attractions.

 

[DisneyMusician2]

I think the trip report area is much more positive.

I think Universal offers a much more appealing trip on paper than Disney. Value for the money favors Universal. But there isn't the same feeling there. When your heart swells when you see the castle, that's an almost irreplaceable feeling. If it doesn't do that for me anymore, I'll stop going and go other places where it does.

I would agree that in the trip reports or talking to people who went there is much bigger segment who are having a great time than not. I also think we forget on the boards that we are the .5% of people who would even debate things like this.

As far as value, I'd say there are many aspects of Universal I love and some I don't, but I don't usually feel like the team over at Universal is doing and more or less to help me than the team at Disney. I'm sure some of this is caused by the amount of back and forth between the two teams as far as employees and creative goes. I think they are distinctly different experiences from a theme and content perspective but I enjoy all six parks for what they are.

 

[flynnibus]

Disney is like the airline industry: No one will ever really be happy with the product.

But that is the complete opposite of what built Disney to be where they are.

Disney was able to be a premium priced product because they wow'd people. Now it's a premium priced product to see what they can get away with without breaking the dam.