Whew!
My family and I are Seasonal Passholders and just got back from a Sunday (3-14-04) trip to the Magic Kingdom and Downtown Disney.
I realize that one BAD experience shouldn't make a person want to rip their passes to shreds but this eight-hour tour of horror almost had me at the scissors.
The Magic Kingdom was packed beyond (what I perceive as) capacity. Hour-long waits were the norm for the rides we passed and we only really rode Big Thunder with a Fast Pass.
In fact -- at the Country Bears Show, the red-buzzer alarms on the turnstiles were going off and no one was there to stop people from jumping the deactivated turnstiles. I assume that the red buzzer is a capacity alarm, but I have no clue, really.
It was surreal. People were everywhere! I've been going to Disney since I was seven (almost 30 years ago) and I've never seen the place THAT crowded.
We had to get out before we drowned in a sea of people.
Downtown Disney East Side was not much better. The Earl of Sandwich shop was packed and McDonald's was likewise filled up.
"Where are these people coming from?" I asked my wife.
My answer came a moment later. A vast armada of girls and their families from all over the country. They were dressed in short skirts, matching tops, sequins and gaudy makeup. The sounds of "Oh Mickey" filled the air and exuberant smiles nearly blinded the more sensitive eyes among us. The Cheerleaders had come to DisneyWorld and were not to be stopped. I learned later that the Cheerleader Nationals were on premises between March 12th to the 14th. Had I but known...
Did these Cheering Girls and their kin pack the parks? I don't know, but I'm fond of the theory.
A few hours worth of bad Disney Experience isn't going to make me shred my passes or hate cheerleaders, but it was a shock to the system. Maybe next time, I'll keep more alert to what special events are going on in the parks before I venture forth.
My family and I are Seasonal Passholders and just got back from a Sunday (3-14-04) trip to the Magic Kingdom and Downtown Disney.
I realize that one BAD experience shouldn't make a person want to rip their passes to shreds but this eight-hour tour of horror almost had me at the scissors.
The Magic Kingdom was packed beyond (what I perceive as) capacity. Hour-long waits were the norm for the rides we passed and we only really rode Big Thunder with a Fast Pass.
In fact -- at the Country Bears Show, the red-buzzer alarms on the turnstiles were going off and no one was there to stop people from jumping the deactivated turnstiles. I assume that the red buzzer is a capacity alarm, but I have no clue, really.
It was surreal. People were everywhere! I've been going to Disney since I was seven (almost 30 years ago) and I've never seen the place THAT crowded.
We had to get out before we drowned in a sea of people.
Downtown Disney East Side was not much better. The Earl of Sandwich shop was packed and McDonald's was likewise filled up.
"Where are these people coming from?" I asked my wife.
My answer came a moment later. A vast armada of girls and their families from all over the country. They were dressed in short skirts, matching tops, sequins and gaudy makeup. The sounds of "Oh Mickey" filled the air and exuberant smiles nearly blinded the more sensitive eyes among us. The Cheerleaders had come to DisneyWorld and were not to be stopped. I learned later that the Cheerleader Nationals were on premises between March 12th to the 14th. Had I but known...
Did these Cheering Girls and their kin pack the parks? I don't know, but I'm fond of the theory.
A few hours worth of bad Disney Experience isn't going to make me shred my passes or hate cheerleaders, but it was a shock to the system. Maybe next time, I'll keep more alert to what special events are going on in the parks before I venture forth.
:lookaroun