They need to Eliminate Genie Plus and Lightning Lane

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Unfortunately for you, Disney actively promotes itself to multi-generational families. Many older people have physical limitations short of actual disabilities that make it difficult if not impossible to continually stand in long lines all day. Also unfortunately for you, it is often these very older people who have the disposable income to take the family on Disney's ridiculously expensive vacations and Disney knows this. But have fun banging your head against the wall.

Don’t believe their point was to make it hard on old people.

Disney ran a free skip the line system for over 20 years.

Until their aggregate attendance exceeded their functional capacity

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

They did, which was Fastpass and Fastpass Plus, but the beauty of it was that it was included in the park admission fee and available to all guests. Walt Disney created Disney to be a work of love and not about corporate greed, arrogance, and politics. They need to restore the original purpose to the way Walt Disney, himself, intended. Disney should stay completely out of politics and be a happy place where everyone sets their political views aside and can have fun, be happy, and get along. Politics takes the fun and magic out of everything.

1. Standby only would be a mess as it stands
2. Disney was never “out” of politics
3. They owed it to their employees to say something…especially in Florida

 

[Chi84]

Don’t believe their point was to make it hard on old people.

Why would anyone care about “their point?”

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Why would anyone care about “their point?”

Typically people that respond to it are assumed to…

Even if it didn’t really make much sense

 

[Chi84]

Typical people that respond to it are assumed to…

Even if it didn’t really make much sense

No one’s going to decide to go to WDW saying, “well, the experience was awful for us this time - we feel it was a waste of money - but we’ll definitely go back because Disney’s intent was to improve the parks for a broader demographic.” If going all standby works best for Disney, they’ll do it. Then we will adjust accordingly.

 

[Karakasa]

The issue with standby is that, well, standby-only causes severe congestion with an "entry gets you unlimited rides, if you want to wait" style of payment.

If you want standby-only, you'd need to bring back ticket books. Otherwise, I'd advocate that the way Fastpasses used to work prior to FP+ is probably the best solution. Limited in number in a visible way, you go to a kiosk to get them (maybe now you can scan your smartphone or Magicband instead), come back when it says, etc. It could cause issues for the mobility impaired but I'm sure there's a workaround they could figure out. No different from the mobility impaired being disadvantaged by the morningtime ropedrop rush which there's no real solution for.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

No one’s going to decide to go to WDW saying, “well, the experience was awful for us this time - we feel it was a waste of money - but we’ll definitely go back because Disney’s intent was to improve the parks for a broader demographic.” If going all standby works best for Disney, they’ll do it. Then we will adjust accordingly.

Actually…people highlight the decline all the time before saying “my next trip”

…presumed adults also make believe with themselves as to why they do it as well.

Not sure that’s what’s going on here…but still.

It’s just frustration with a really expensive place that is continually falling behind as far as making people feel welcome.

It has increased with frequency - especially of late.

 

[MickeyLuv'r]

They should, in the process, expand the DAS pass qualification to qualify those who are 60 and older and those with physical disabilities that make it painful to stand in a long line such as arthritis, back pain, knee replacement, autoimmune diseases, etc. They can go get a return time that is the same as the estimated wait time in the standby lane and instead of standing in line, they can go sit on a bench, go shopping or dining, go to the restroom, go watch a show, etc while waiting in line.

Except WDW removed many (most?) of the park benches. That's part of the problem.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Except WDW removed many (most?) of the park benches. That's part of the problem.

They need the space for those upcharge snake queues for the tea cups

 

[drizgirl]

Except WDW removed many (most?) of the park benches. That's part of the problem.

Gotta have room to squeeze in a few more bodies.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

They removed all the Dak benches to fit the stand by line for ROTR resistance in Disneyland…

Analysts assure Bob the line would be THAT long

 

[MickeyLuv'r]

This is absolutely true. Skip the line systems present a great option for those who are not yet at the point of having to rent a wheelchair. Just my opinion, but Disney may actually prefer a skip the line system to one that forces more people to use scooters and wheelchairs.

Well, sorta. We all make choices based on our endurance.


I'm not sure what you mean by, "not yet at the point of having to rent a wheelchair." People of all ages use mobility devices, and it is a personal choice. That wording is a little bit offensive.

Some years ago, a member of my family broke their hip a short time before a trip. Said person was in their mid-50's, petite, and prior to the injury -very athletic.

She was treated horribly all over WDW. CM's and some fellow guests were horrible and cruel to her. A few kind strangers were flabbergasted by how she was treated. At times, it was jaw droppingly nasty. At the end of every day, she was emotionally exhausted. Physically exhausted, but the emotional toll was worse.

WDW was a kind of physical therapy though. That was the upside.

In any event, using a mobility device should never = shame, no matter who you are, or what age you are. (strollers!)

There are myriad ways we can all adjust our visits to meet our needs, like taking shorter days/afternoon breaks.

 

[Chi84]

Actually…people highlight the decline all the time before saying “my next trip”

…presumed adults also make believe with themselves as to why they do it as well.

Not sure that’s what’s going on here…but still.

It’s just frustration with a really expensive place that is continually falling behind as far as making people feel welcome.

It has increased with frequency - especially of late.

That's true, but they're making the decision of whether or not to go based on the value (real or perceived) to them. They're not "presumed adults," just adults making decisions based on their own circumstances. When you've done as great a job as Disney making people fall in love with them for so many years, it takes awhile for people to let go. Not everyone is there often enough to see the decline, and some experience it more acutely than others based on the particular changes that are being made. And some people simply find value in things others don't.

As far as the topic of this thread, I can say that at this point, with my family composed of some older adults and some very young children, all standby would not work for us so we would find another vacation venue. Whether or not all standby is better for other people will not enter into our determination. I went to Disney for the first time in 1984 as an adult, so I remember what it was like when you had to stand in line for every ride. That may be fine for some, but it's not fine for us - it's just not the experience we want given the money we're spending. Genie+ at least provides some options, but it's such a deeply flawed product that I'm hoping Disney changes it.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Well, sorta. We all make choices based on our endurance.


I'm not sure what you mean by, "not yet at the point of having to rent a wheelchair." People of all ages use mobility devices, and it is a personal choice. That wording is a little bit offensive.

Some years ago, a member of my family broke their hip a short time before a trip. Said person was in their mid-50's, petite, and prior to the injury -very athletic.

She was treated horribly all over WDW. CM's and some fellow guests were horrible and cruel to her. A few kind strangers were flabbergasted by how she was treated. At times, it was jaw droppingly nasty. At the end of every day, she was emotionally exhausted. Physically exhausted, but the emotional toll was worse.

WDW was a kind of physical therapy though. That was the upside.

In any event, using a mobility device should never = shame, no matter who you are, or what age you are. (strollers!)

There are myriad ways we can all adjust our visits to meet our needs, like taking shorter days/afternoon breaks.

Personally…any discussion that this boondoggle That Iger and then slappy slow rolled out for going on 15 years has anything to do with a “plan” for disability access or benefit is distasteful.

There is no plan here…they sat on their hands while travel grew and can’t stop the downward slide now…it’s been going on forever at this point.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

That's true, but they're making the decision of whether or not to go based on the value (real or perceived) to them. They're not "presumed adults," just adults making decisions based on their own circumstances. When you've done as great a job as Disney making people fall in love with them for so many years, it takes awhile for people to let go. Not everyone is there often enough to see the decline, and some experience it more acutely than others based on the particular changes that are being made. And some people simply find value in things others don't.

As far as the topic of this thread, I can say that at this point, with my family composed of some older adults and some very young children, all standby would not work for us so we would find another vacation venue. Whether or not all standby is better for other people will not enter into our determination. I went to Disney for the first time in 1984 as an adult, so I remember what it was like when you had to stand in line for every ride. That may be fine for some, but it's not fine for us - it's just not the experience we want given the money we're spending. Genie+ at least provides some options, but it's such a deeply flawed product that I'm hoping Disney changes it.

You can continue to believe the general population makes wise decisions…I’ll be over here watching the actual results come in.

We can “Kumbaya” as always

 

[Chi84]

Well, sorta. We all make choices based on our endurance.


I'm not sure what you mean by, "not yet at the point of having to rent a wheelchair." People of all ages use mobility devices, and it is a personal choice. That wording is a little bit offensive.

Some years ago, a member of my family broke their hip a short time before a trip. Said person was in their mid-50's, petite, and prior to the injury -very athletic.

She was treated horribly all over WDW. CM's and some fellow guests were horrible and cruel to her. A few kind strangers were flabbergasted by how she was treated. At times, it was jaw droppingly nasty. At the end of every day, she was emotionally exhausted. Physically exhausted, but the emotional toll was worse.

WDW was a kind of physical therapy though. That was the upside.

In any event, using a mobility device should never = shame, no matter who you are, or what age you are. (strollers!)

There are myriad ways we can all adjust our visits to meet our needs, like taking shorter days/afternoon breaks.

I think you misunderstood my meaning. I was responding to someone who suggested that wheelchairs or mobility devices are the answer for everyone who has difficulty standing in long lines all day. As another poster pointed out, there are many people who may not need a mobility device for walking, but for whom standing in one long line after another would be painful and make the park experience more difficult.

I don't want to get into it in great detail (and for a condition I hope is temporary), I had to use a wheelchair to deal with the longer distances in the parks on our last trip. I wasn't treated poorly by any means, but using a mobility device is a challenge. There are people who would rather try to do without them for reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with feeling ashamed. I'm not sure how you got that from my post.

 

[LittleMerman]

They just need to take away the stupid rules with it and make it like Disneyland's MaxPass, even if it costs a little more money. I used that and loved it. The rules are what's making Genie annoying and almost useless at this point. I can't even keep up with them. I'm sure they have their reasons for them logistically but it doesn't seem to be working. I'm just scared they will end up doing what Universal does and charge more than the cost of a day ticket for fewer stipulations.

 

[drizgirl]

They just need to take away the stupid rules with it and make it like Disneyland's MaxPass, even if it costs a little more money. I used that and loved it. The rules are what's making Genie annoying and almost useless at this point. I can't even keep up with them. I'm sure they have their reasons for them logistically but it doesn't seem to be working. I'm just scared they will end up doing what Universal does and charge more than the cost of a day ticket for fewer stipulations.

It will never be like MaxPass. The most important piece of what makes that work is having enough attractions located within everyone's access every single day.

 

[DfromATX]

They did, which was Fastpass and Fastpass Plus, but the beauty of it was that it was included in the park admission fee and available to all guests. Walt Disney created Disney to be a work of love and not about corporate greed, arrogance, and politics. They need to restore the original purpose to the way Walt Disney, himself, intended. Disney should stay completely out of politics and be a happy place where everyone sets their political views aside and can have fun, be happy, and get along. Politics takes the fun and magic out of everything.

To me, it was what set Disney above all the other amusement parks. I loved fast passes. It was a great perk and I will miss it.

 

[DfromATX]

Money talks and….you know the rest. Hard to say no to money people are willing to pay for this “service.”

We go to the parks during the week, never weekend, and have not been using Genie+. We feel like we have not needed it and been able to do everything we have wanted in ours days. I know that bar is different for everyone. But, no Genie+ is working fine for us.

That is good to know. I'm seeing more and more that it's not needed and I hope that is true. We are going in January and planning for Monday-Thursday. No more holidays, summers, or weekends for us. Crossing my fingers... cause I refuse to buy Genie.