Captain Chaos
Well-Known Member
Come on.. say it, say it... OPINION?? LOL...
That is the beauty of these forums... We can agree to disagree on our opinions...
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Universal vs. Disney
- Thread starter DisneyparkFreak
- Start date
Come on.. say it, say it... OPINION?? LOL...
That is the beauty of these forums... We can agree to disagree on our opinions...
Captain Chaos
Well-Known Member
Universal has been trying to copy Disney in so many ways recently (name tag shapes, pin trading, "fast pass", etc.). They even have ads online and TV that say you can enjoy 2 Universal Parks on the same day for less than a 1-day hopper ticket at Disney. But who get's a 1-day hopper at Disney anymore? And Universal parks right now are only open from 10AM until 6PM with most rides not opening until noon, plus you have to pay an extra $40 to use their "fast pass" plan! With these factors how is that a better deal than Disney?
IMHO, Universal will never truely win over my vote unless they copy one crucial formula that they left out: guest service. Universal has none.
Their employees publicly cut down Disney in front of guests and they lack discipline, hospitality and general kindness. But Universal still hasn't figured out yet that Guest Service is their downfall so their anti-Disney campaign proudly goes on.
Raven I am so glad you said that... Their Guest Services was the reason I cancelled my AP with them... I am glad I am not the only one who says GS at Universal is terrible... If what happened to me at Universal happened at Disney, SeaWorld, or yes, SIX FLAGS, they would have bent over backwards to make the customer happy.. Instead, they anger you more, blame the customer for their employees rude behavior, and push you out the door, not wanting continued business...
raven
Well-Known Member
Only visited once and I live right next to Universal. But it only takes one bad experience to ruin the day for me and I will never go back. From the very first employee we encountered at the ticket counter until the moment we left we counted 12 times their employees cut down Disney publically to us and other guests standing around us. Then there was the talking on cell phones when they were supposed to be operating rides, sitting on hand railings in the queue areas talking to each other and managers dressed in sweat pants and beer t-shirts yelling at the crowd though megaphones to try and clear the park at closing.
SeaWorld turnstile employees weren't much better though. Both times I've visited they never talk to you. The last time (Monday) the woman was chewing gum, leaning on the ticket scanning machine and yawning. When I asked her if I need to put my finger in the scanner she just looked at me like I was stupid and then pointed to the scanner. I never did that the first time I went so I didn't know. Obviously I was the idiot.
I think if any park charges that much for a single day you could at least smile at guests and thank them for coming to your park. What does that cost?
RSoxNo1
Well-Known Member
I think the perception of Rasulo and Holmes is that the theme parks are in a mature stage. They feel that attendance has peaked. In the Magic Kingdom, perhaps it has, but of Tokyo Disney is any indication the theme parks aren't in a mature state, they're just in need of attention.
I agree....or is it that I disagree?? Now I'm all confused. :veryconfu:lol:
sknydave
Active Member
I do something crazy when I visit theme parks. I don't try to count how many times the employees put down a rival company or note what they were wearing or where they were sitting. I mainly focus on enjoying myself. You should try it.
The_CEO
Well-Known Member
I'm going to go out on a limb and say that from past experiences, and posts I have read, I have concluded from, my opinion, that Universal has reached the level of " If you build it they will come." NO matter HOW they treat their guests.. How p iss pour their customer service skills are, if they build a large rollercoaster with some sort of new wheel, Rippen Rocket Hollywoodette Rollercoaster whatchamacallit... aka Rockin Rollercoaster.. Not reinventing the wheel here folks.. They will have customers at their park gates..
Their customer skills suck beyond recognition..
Their customer skills suck beyond recognition..
Pumbas Nakasak
Heading for the great escape.
And I've come to the conclusion that most people talk bollocks about Universal customer services on Disney fan sites.
Who'd have thunk it
Who'd have thunk it
Soooo....How exactly do you come to the conclusion that these two coasters are even remotely similar to each other?
Gambit
New Member
Yes Universal makes fun of Disney every now and again but they also make fun of themselves. Have you been on the Simpsons? You crash through a giant sign that says "Send Money To Universal." Also, some of those Disney jokes are funny.
Donkbo - You'll hurl in your teacups.:ROFLOL:
The_CEO
Well-Known Member
Soooo....How exactly do you come to the conclusion that these two coasters are even remotely similar to each other?
What happened to pushing the envelope?
Using an X car coaster, yes first in U.S.A , but besides the fact of a new transport, I guess I was expecting a little more from Universal Creative. I can't really talk about the experience as a whole considering it isn't open, nor has anybody ridden it.. But judging from the press promos and photos that are available to the public; I have seen more unique coasters. Tacking on a music track to a coaster has been done before, that's how I consider them similar considering it's one of the major selling points of the coaster that they promote.
Giraffe Lounge
Member
Great coasters aren't unique so much as well designed. Do you by the most "unique" car or the most dependable/sporty/efficient one?
The_CEO
Well-Known Member
You buy the most dependable coaster, and maybe it is going to be all of the above. But right now I am not impressed.. I'm one person. I was pessimistic about EE until I road it and was my favorite from there on.
Captain Chaos
Well-Known Member
I haven't come on here to bash Universal... The parks are fun... I have run into many rude employees and ignored them until my last visit this past October.. And I wasn't going to cancel the AP until their GS manager copped a major attitude...
Want to compare Disney and Universal, go ahead... GS should be included... Disney's GS is fine.. not top notch, but fine.. Universal's have a lot to be desired... As far as with park is better, there really cannot be a clear cut winner in there.. Disney offeres more, of course.. but, Universal offers a ton of fun as well...
RSoxNo1
Well-Known Member
Rip, Ride, Rockit is a Multi-Dimensional Coaster like X2? I was under the impression that it was a normal coaster car, just one of the loops didn't go upsidedown as the track twisted on the ascent and descent.
ChrisFL
Premium Member
So let me get this straight, you've already formed an opinion and comparison of the ride before, by your own admission, NO ONE has even been on it yet, or experienced the different elements that make it unique.
That sounds like most Universal bashing I've heard in the past, give it tons of criticism even if you've never been there.
As far as customer service, one or two incidents do not make a park. Disney has its share of customer service horror stories. This isn't about whether or not they are trained better or worse as much as the fact that both Universal and Disney are hiring a LOT of employees and not all of them are going to be at the very peak of customer service.
Disney has nearly 60,000 people working, now many of them are not in guest areas, but still, how do you keep all of those people 100% friendly all the time, especially when they're making basically minimum wage?
That means that they aren't able to keep quality workers so they are using lots of college and international students who stay for a short time. I know because I've worked with lots of them at Disney. Most of them are quality but not all. Then they leave and a brand new set of employees come in (hence why you see "earning my ears" on name tags constantly at the parks now)
Montyboy
New Member
Only the park buys the coaster. The rest of us are there to rent.
Go to a car show and people will be surrounding the Ferraris. Who goes goes out of their way to ride the Buickcoaster?
Giraffe Lounge
Member
Clever, but the fact remains, unique is not the main way that a coaster will be judged.
Montyboy
New Member
Thanks, but I was trying to be clever to make a point. When steel tube coasters were developed, they allowed designers to add inverted loops. The first ones were awful by any measure today, but people lined up because the coasters were new and unique.
I’ll give you that a great design will give you longevity in a ride, but people will go out of their way to try something they can’t get anywhere else.
Okay, you said judged. Fair enough. A unique coaster gets an asterisk as the only one that does [whatever]. It still has to be good.
I’ll give you that a great design will give you longevity in a ride, but people will go out of their way to try something they can’t get anywhere else.
Okay, you said judged. Fair enough. A unique coaster gets an asterisk as the only one that does [whatever]. It still has to be good.
WDW1974
Well-Known Member
So let me get this straight, you've already formed an opinion and comparison of the ride before, by your own admission, NO ONE has even been on it yet, or experienced the different elements that make it unique.
That sounds like most Universal bashing I've heard in the past, give it tons of criticism even if you've never been there.
So, I'm not the only one who thinks that criticism was a bit out of whack with reality?
Indeed, if I based my desire to return to Disney on my own 5-10 personal CM horror stories over the years (as opposed to all the hundreds of wonderful ones), I'd have not set foot on property since the first 'nightmare' over two decades ago.
Paying minimum wage, treating its CMs like dirt and having to deal with many guests who treat them as subhuman, it constantly amazes me how many terrific CMs WDW has.