Thoughts from my recent visit to the World

[whiterhino42]

So we just got back from six days in the world. It was myself, hubby, and 10 year old nephew. We also had our friends and their two kids join us for two days. I have some thoughts and would love to hear yours.

1. We stayed at Carribean Beach and were very disappointed in the room. It was a preferred room in a good location but it was small. It had no pullout bed. The bathroom floor was covered in hair when we got there which grossed us all out. The sheet had a brown stain that looked like someone changed a diaper on it. I was very disappointed as our last visit 3 years ago we were at port Orleans riverside and the room was spotless, cute, and had a pullout bed.

2. The breakfast food in the resort was much better than 3 years ago so chalk that up to a plus. Loved that.

3. The crowds are out of control and not just at MK. We were there for what was supposed to be like the 10th least crowded week of the year yet it was wall to wall people. Wait times were routinely 70 minutes or more. We waited in line for things I have never seen with a line. Rides like it's a small world, living with the land, dinosaur, three cabelleros, great movie ride etc had big lines. I have never experienced that before. I can't imagine peak season, it would be unbearable. It was hard to even walk at MK.

4. The photopass is a major marketing thing now and I think we will see photos on more rides going forward. I actually thought it was a fun thing this time. I will get it again.

5. Epcot is in shambles and everyone notices now. It has always been my favorite park and I still love meandering through the country's but future world is an empty shell. It consists of test track, turtle talk, empty buildings and crap rides like imagination. It made me sad. Living with the land was even dilapidated and that used to be a favorite of mine. It was very disappointing.

6. Pandora looks no where near done, neither does frozen in epcot...I wonder if they will be delayed.

7. Tappan Edo and boma are great restaurants. I highly recommend.

8. There are as many Brits at Disneyworld as there are Americans which tells me Disney Paris must not be so great. I like it though.

9. Stroller mammas are rude and internationally run people over at Disney.

10. My favorite rides at each park currently stand at Haunted Mansion, Test Track, Star Tours and Dinosaur.

11.. We got the EXACT same ride sequence 3 times on star tours....so it's not very random these days sadly.

12. Disney Springs is still nowhere near completion and I feel it's lost its character.

13. The bridges over the road to Disney Springs are terrifying those afraid of heights and I HATE them. The walking bridges.

14. Overall the parks and resorts have become dirty and it's a direct result of not enough employees and that's sad because the magic is gone to some degree. I hope staff levels return to normal soon.

15. Fast passplus sucks. I felt locked into every second....and hated that.

 

[rufio]

1. I just want to point out that you can find floor plans for the rooms online and I'm sure that when you booked the website outlined all of the room amenities. If you were curious about whether there was a pullout bed, I'm positive that info would have been available to you. Obviously there's no excuse for a nasty room.

2. Wooohoo!

3. This has been an issue Disney has been running into in recent weeks, along with those who make the crowd calendars. In past years, spring break was over by this time. For some reason though, schools have decided to stagger their spring breaks even more this year, which has created quite a few issues for Disney since, as you said, this is supposed to be a pretty slow time of year. I went one day a couple weeks ago when the crowds were supposed to be very low and there were 68,000 people in MK by 11am.

4. Photopass is awesome!

5. I don't think this is anything new. Obviously, Soarin' is down for refurbishment and will be re-opening later this year, which is amazing because it was in serious need of an overhaul. I haven't seen any issues with Living With the Land recently though, and I'd hardly say FW is in shambles.

6. Neither of those things are supposed to be done yet, so I'm not sure what the issue is. Pandora is set to open next year...

7. Agreed.

8. Disney World* and I think your calculations may be a bit off, although I've not heard great things about Disneyland Paris.

9. Yes, agreed. I wish they'd stop renting out the doublewide strollers.

10. Cool.

11. Three times in a row or three times over six days?

12. Again, it isn't supposed to be near completion yet and the point is it's getting a new character.

13. Maybe you shouldn't drive on them?

14. Maybe stay home for awhile?

15. Fastpass Plus is amazing and I'm not sure why you would feel "locked into every second" considering the old FP had a one hour window also.

 

[DisneyJoe]

1. We stayed at Carribean Beach and were very disappointed in the room. It was a preferred room in a good location but it was small. It had no pullout bed. The bathroom floor was covered in hair when we got there which grossed us all out. The sheet had a brown stain that looked like someone changed a diaper on it. I was very disappointed as our last visit 3 years ago we were at port Orleans riverside and the room was spotless, cute, larger and had a pullout bed.

Did you ask to be moved? Bring the gross room to the attention of management?

As far as room size, all moderates have the same size rooms - POR and CBR are both 314 square ft, according to many resources.

 

[AndyS2992]

As a Brit who regularly visits both WDW and Disneyland Paris, I'm just going to put it out there that Disneyland Paris is awesome. Has the best Castle, Big Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean of all the resorts. It's downfall however is that it is just very expensive. Five days at Disneyland Paris costs pretty much the same as two weeks at WDW, so go figure. Also lots of Brits are now scared/anxious to visit Disneyland after the Paris and Brussels terrorist attacks which is a shame.

However if anyone is thinking of visiting Disneyland Paris, do so in 2017 during the upcoming 25th anniversary. It's going to be great.

 

[Disney Stine]

I had the same sequence in Star Tours as well, back in February. I asked about that and they said that each week they have some specifics locked to promote the new movie. Each time I had the same planet, same ending, and same character hologram, but different opening sequence.

 

[bethymouse]

Wow! I was excited about my trip, but now I am just kinda bummed. June 2-8 I am sure will begin summer crowds, although around here where I live students don't get out of school until June 3, some even later due to snow days! I guess whatever happens, I must make my own "magic" and try not to complain about things I'm already aware of.

 

[whiterhino42]

1. I just want to point out that you can find floor plans for the rooms online and I'm sure that when you booked the website outlined all of the room amenities. If you were curious about whether there was a pullout bed, I'm positive that info would have
been available to you. Obviously there's no excuse for a nasty room.

2. Wooohoo!

3. This has been an issue Disney has been running into in recent weeks, along with those who make the crowd calendars. In past years, spring break was over by this time. For some reason though, schools have decided to stagger their spring breaks even more this year, which has created quite a few issues for Disney since, as you said, this is supposed to be a pretty slow time of year. I went one day a couple weeks ago when the crowds were supposed to be very low and there were 68,000 people in MK by 11am.

4. Photopass is awesome!

5. I don't think this is anything new. Obviously, Soarin' is down for refurbishment and will be re-opening later this year, which is amazing because it was in serious need of an overhaul. I haven't seen any issues with Living With the Land recently though, and I'd hardly say FW is in shambles.

6. Neither of those things are supposed to be done yet, so I'm not sure what the issue is. Pandora is set to open next year...

7. Agreed.

8. Disney World* and I think your calculations may be a bit off, although I've not heard great things about Disneyland Paris.

9. Yes, agreed. I wish they'd stop renting out the doublewide strollers.

10. Cool.

11. Three times in a row or three times over six days?

12. Again, it isn't supposed to be near completion yet and the point is it's getting a new character.

13. Maybe you shouldn't drive on them?

14. Maybe stay home for awhile?

15. Fastpass Plus is amazing and I'm not sure why you would feel "locked into every second" considering the old FP had a one hour window also.

No I didn't read the room plans but our room was filthy and very worn, that was the real issue and there isn't any excuse for it.

Star tours was 3 times in a ROW and it's my favorite ride so I was bummed it wasn't more random.

Um you don't drive over the bridges at Disney springs you walk over them.

Frozen is supposed to open in May, I was just stating it looks behind schedule as does Pandora for 2017. My point is they take forever.

I completely disagree, future world is in shambles and that's a shame. Test track & turtle talk are the only things in good condition and mission space. Agreed soaring Will be great. ..but a lot more needs to be done.

Agreed on double strollers. And yes photopass is awesome.

As for not going we go every 2-3 years so next time we go soarin, frozen, Pandora and toy story land should be done. I love Disney but I want the quality & cleanliness I've come to expect.

 

[llrain]

Let me guess...you counted on touringplas for this crowd meter. Anytime anyone I know mentions this as their guide to crowds I tell them they need not pay attention to this site cause theres no scientific way they could know what the crowds wil be in the coming months or weeks. They are merely guessing based on past crowds they know nothing about because #'s in attendance are never released to the public. and then everyone who swears by them, takes their trip, and then returns to these boards complaining about the crowds when the crowd calender told them its a 4 out of 10 or something like that and its ends up a 10 of 10. Its hilarious that people swear by them and are then so let down.

So we just got back from six days in the world. It was myself, hubby, and 10 year old nephew. We also had our friends and their two kids join us for two days. I have some thoughts and would love to hear yours.


3. The crowds are out of control and not just at MK. We were there for what was supposed to be like the 10th least crowded week of the year yet it was wall to wall people. Wait times were routinely 70 minutes or more. We waited in line for things I have never seen with a line. Rides like it's a small world, living with the land, dinosaur, three travellers, great movie ride had big lines. I have never experienced that before. I can't imagine peak season, it would be unbearable. It was hard to even walk at MK.
.

 

[disney4life2008]

I have been living here in Orlando since last July and have an AP. With the "brief" exception of September, October, and January - crowds have been horrible. It remains amazing that with the increase in prices on everything, more people still flood the resort. The tour groups are not really an issue anymore as much as its just the mass amounts of people.

 

[whiterhino42]

As a Brit who regularly visits both WDW and Disneyland Paris, I'm just going to put it out there that Disneyland Paris is awesome. Has the best Castle, Big Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean of all the resorts. It's downfall however is that it is just very expensive. Five days at Disneyland Paris costs pretty much the same as two weeks at WDW, so go figure. Also lots of Brits are now scared/anxious to visit Disneyland after the Paris and Brussels terrorist attacks which is a shame.

However if anyone is thinking of visiting Disneyland Paris, do so in 2017 during the upcoming 25th anniversary. It's going to be great.

I think it's cool I love meeting people from everywhere, it's a lot of fun.

 

[whiterhino42]

I had the same sequence in Star Tours as well, back in February. I asked about that and they said that each week they have some specifics locked to promote the new movie. Each time I had the same planet, same ending, and same character hologram, but different opening sequence.

That explains it more then when I asked they just said random but it wasn't. I still love it but I want it to be random.

 

[whiterhino42]

Wow! I was excited about my trip, but now I am just kinda bummed. June 2-8 I am sure will begin summer crowds, although around here where I live students don't get out of school until June 3, some even later due to snow days! I guess whatever happens, I must make my own "magic" and try not to complain about things I'm already aware of.

Still be excited, we still had fun. The shine is gone a little right now but it's still a fun vacation.

 

[whiterhino42]

Let me guess...you counted on touringplas for this crowd meter. Anytime anyone I know mentions this as their guide to crowds I tell them they need not pay attention to this site cause theres no scientific way they could know what the crowds wil be in the coming months or weeks. They are merely guessing based on past crowds they know nothing about because #'s in attendance are never released to the public. and then everyone who swears by them, takes their trip, and then returns to these boards complaining about the crowds when the crowd calender told them its a 4 out of 10 or something like that and its ends up a 10 of 10. Its hilarious that people swear by them and are then so let down.

I've always used them with great success until this trip! Also I am a forecaster in my job and you are incorrect there are great predictors some is past data but a lot is realtime data. There is a lot that goes into it. Out of six trips this is the first time it steared me wrong.

 

[Dartha Stewart]

The crowds are out of control and not just at MK. We were there for what was supposed to be like the 10th least crowded week of the year yet it was wall to wall people.

- crowds have been horrible. It remains amazing that with the increase in prices on everything, more people still flood the resort.

Did any of you speak to a CM about this? I wouldn't allow crowds to ruin my vacation -at least without some form of compensation, and neither should you. It's not your fault those crowds cannot read a calendar properly, and realize they're not supposed to be there during your trip.

 

[mouse_luv]

No I didn't read the room plans but our room was filthy and very worn, that was the real issue and there isn't any excuse for it.

Star tours was 3 times in a ROW and it's my favorite ride so I was bummed it wasn't more random.

Um you don't drive over the bridges at Disney springs you walk over them.

Frozen is supposed to open in May, I was just stating it looks behind schedule as does Pandora for 2017. My point is they take forever.

I completely disagree, future world is in shambles and that's a shame. Test track & turtle talk are the only things in good condition and mission space. Agreed soaring Will be great. ..but a lot more needs to be done.

Agreed on double strollers. And yes photopass is awesome.

As for not going we go every 2-3 years so next time we go soarin, frozen, Pandora and toy story land should be done. I love Disney but I want the quality & cleanliness I've come to expect.

2-3 years, I wouldn't count on Toy Story Land being done. Even you pointed out that they take forever to build new attractions/lands anymore, so what makes you think this will be any different?

 

[mousehockey37]

You said there's a lot of people from England. This has nothing to do with Disneyland Paris. Look at the deal for the Brits right now, free dining, $200 gift card and a 14 day pass for the price of a 7 day.... So why go to Paris?

Photo pass is good and bad. Good for those that don't want the hassle of lugging cameras along, but bad that you don't have a backup. If Disney loses those pictures, you're SOL.

As for the crowd levels, you almost just have to wing it and use your own judgement. Certain times of year you know the place will be packed. Other times of the year you have to look at the current deals. Trends are used for making any calendar and sometimes you can luck into a slow day or two.

As for FP+, it's what you make of it. If you have to micro-manage your trip based off the system, you've almost already failed. But each person/family has their own way they plan. The system works well if you make it work FOR you.

 

[rufio]

No I didn't read the room plans but our room was filthy and very worn, that was the real issue and there isn't any excuse for it.

Star tours was 3 times in a ROW and it's my favorite ride so I was bummed it wasn't more random.

Um you don't drive over the bridges at Disney springs you walk over them.

Frozen is supposed to open in May, I was just stating it looks behind schedule as does Pandora for 2017. My point is they take forever.

I completely disagree, future world is in shambles and that's a shame. Test track & turtle talk are the only things in good condition and mission space. Agreed soaring Will be great. ..but a lot more needs to be done.

Agreed on double strollers. And yes photopass is awesome.

As for not going we go every 2-3 years so next time we go soarin, frozen, Pandora and toy story land should be done. I love Disney but I want the quality & cleanliness I've come to expect.

If that was the real issue then why did you spend most of your first point complaining about the size and amenities in the room?

Sounds super sad.

You're complaining about walking over a skybridge??? It's not as if you're hanging out over open air. You know you can park on the West Side and avoid that right?

How are they taking forever when their opening dates aren't here yet? Are you in the business of building theme parks? Is this how you got your knowledge about how long things take?

If you hate Epcot so much, why pay $100 for a ticket? It isn't as if you didn't know which rides would be down.

 

[mousehockey37]

If that was the real issue then why did you spend most of your first point complaining about the size and amenities in the room?

Sounds super sad.

You're complaining about walking over a skybridge??? It's not as if you're hanging out over open air. You know you can park on the West Side and avoid that right?

How are they taking forever when their opening dates aren't here yet? Are you in the business of building theme parks? Is this how you got your knowledge about how long things take?

If you hate Epcot so much, why pay $100 for a ticket? It isn't as if you didn't know which rides would be down.

I always have to shake my head at reviews like the OP's. A legit concern is the room being dirty. That and the crowds are things they can't control, but most everything else they can control. Poor planning ahead of the trip will always cause reviews like the one in this thread.

 

[rufio]

I always have to shake my head at reviews like the OP's. A legit concern is the room being dirty. That and the crowds are things they can't control, but most everything else they can control. Poor planning ahead of the trip will always cause reviews like the one in this thread.

Agreed. I've complained about a dirty room before too. A room that you've paid hundreds of dollars for is a legitimate complaint. Complaining about rides being refurbished, new areas supposedly not being complete enough(?), having to walk over a skybridge, and big crowds (at a place notorious for crowds) just seems silly (and ranty).

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

You said there's a lot of people from England. This has nothing to do with Disneyland Paris. Look at the deal for the Brits right now, free dining, $200 gift card and a 14 day pass for the price of a 7 day.... So why go to Paris?

.

Hmmmm £150 - 200 for the tunnel and fuel in an average car or £600 a head for air fair? 14 days for 7 has been offered for a decade, its the vain hope you dont buy an Orlando pass and spend more time at the other parks. Free dinning, mmmmm cant wait to hit those $20 nuggets and mac n cheese in understaffed over full over priced eateries. A shadow of what was offered 6 or 7 years ago.

The only thing wrong with Paris is the Parisians. And the weather. And theres no Universal. Simple fact is DLP is not a 14 day holiday destination Orlando is