WDW As The Only Vacation Option: Why?

[Ayla]

Wait, you think Disney resorts treat customers like royalty?
Lol as much as I love on-site, you really have to go to other hotels if you think Disney is any where close to luxurious.
Now I admit I've never been camping, but I think camping automatically means a different experience.

People who have actually stayed in luxury hotels know Disney isn't. lol

 

[Heppenheimer]

People who have actually stayed in luxury hotels know Disney isn't. lol

Well, they charge more than many luxury resorts, so therefore, they must be more luxurious!

 

[jloucks]

Well, they charge more than many luxury resorts, so therefore, they must be more luxurious!

Is that how that works? I mean, it should be how it works, but......

 

[Club Cooloholic]

Over the years that I've been on this board, I have gotten the impression that, when it comes to vacations, WDW seems to be the only option for some people. And, now, with the furor over Genie +, some people, who say they visit WDW multiple times a year, are stating that they will not be returning, or not visiting as much, and I get the impression that they don't know what they will do with their vacation time if they are not at WDW. I have asked this question before, but why would you make WDW your ONLY vacation option? I know the love people have for this place, but there are so many other experiences out there, and to intentionally deny yourself of them is doing a disservice to yourself. Even looking at the US alone, there are so many interesting/historical places to, so much natural beauty to see. Then, (pandemic permitting), you have other countries that can offer the same types of things and more. We have been visiting WDW every year to 2 years since 2014-but they aren't the only vacations we take. We love spending a week at an all-inclusive Caribbean beach resort. We've also visited the Orlando area a couple of times, just to rent a vacation home, sit around the pool, and get out to see local places like Kennedy or a spring training game. I would love to someday drive part/all of Route 66. We've been to Nashville a couple of times. We've spent time in Savannah, Georgia, which is an amazing place, especially for history/paranormal buffs. Deciding to stop giving Disney your vacation $, and going somewhere else, will be a blessing in disguise, and maybe widen your horizons and show that a theme park is not the be-all, end-all of vacations.

We have tended to one year on, one year off. And we try to do the complete opposite on the year off, meaning lots of nature and hiking, a National Park.

 

[CP_alum08]

I live 2000 miles away from WDW. It is my only vacation destination. I don't care if Genie+ is going to charge $$$$, I am not going anywhere else for vacation, ever.

Reasons:

1. Other places are disgusting. Seattle (been there) is too hilly to walk, with lots of garbage and homeless people on the streets. New York city (never been there) is gross and full of crime. I have never seen a show about NYC without seeing somebody getting mugged or molested. In the Disney Channel Show JESSIE, Jessie the nanny took the kids to a subway ride in NYC, and some guy was shaving his head right next to the kids in the crowded subway, and lumps of cut hair was landing all over the kids!
2. National Parks are full of bears, mosquitos, and endless tourists and cars. There's nothing to do there besides walking. (I know because I live right next to a national park.)
3. Europe has disgusting restrooms, incomprehensible languages, huge lines for famous sites. There's nothing in Hawaii except sit on the beach.
4. We used to go on driving trip where you can stop and learn local history. History sucks. It's stuff they teach you at school to keep you busy, and you don't ever remember or care about it when you grow up.

And above all, there's nothing for kids to do. I assure you, they don't want to learn history. They don't want to wait in line to get on Eiffel Tower or the Space Needle or Van Gogh's museum. They don't want to hike endlessly to get to some lake with nothing in it. I don't want to walk among loud traffic in Manhattan while seeing garbage on the streets. And most importantly, I don't want to get mugged.

Here is what you can do in Disney World: you can sit on the white sand beach in Caribbean Beach Resort. You can visit France in Epcot, or Morocco if you prefer. You can watch a giant wave at Typhoon Lagoon, with numerous life guards around. You can ride a gondola for free. You can get a basic history lesson in Spaceship Earth (that's the only history lesson that doesn't bore me.) Everywhere you go, it's scrubbed spotless. You won't run into a homeless guy begging for food (that happened to me). You can take your kids to go on rides, watch parades or fireworks or shows, eat at an interesting restaurant or quick service spot. The fun is endless. Every day there's something to do, and everyday, everybody has fun.

I don't go to Disneyland (been there) or go on Disney Cruises (done that). Disneyland is too much of a dump, and the Disney cruises are too confining, I was stuck on a boat for 3 days. I've been to many other places, including Asia. They all suck. Disney World is the only place to be.

Wow. This is an incredibly sad view of the rest of the world.

 

[DLR92]

I’m from the west coast. I grew up with Disneyland. I heard of WDW as a kid, always wanted to try out WDW. My parent could not afford a WDW vacation. My mom
Would rather spend that type of money to visit Korea for a month with me.

Now that I’m older, WDW is not a ideal place I would seek for a vacation. Disneyland is best as a weekend vacation. I rather spend a week or more to a country I’m not familiar with. I rather see a different world and be enlightened of different cultures and customs. I rather be in Hawaii then spend a time on fake beach on a swampy lake view. I think WDW is too fake and stagy for me. I rather spend time of places of the real deal! Not a fake time in Paris, Morocco. No, I want to see the real deal!

I can’t say no to WDW, it more a low priority for me to visit. I can only see myself planning how I visit Disneyland.

 

[Goofyernmost]

I’m from the west coast. I grew up with Disneyland. I heard of WDW as a kid, always wanted to try out WDW. My parent could not afford a WDW vacation. My mom
Would rather spend that type of money to visit Korea for a month with me.

Now that I’m older, WDW is not a ideal place I would seek for a vacation. Disneyland is best as a weekend vacation. I rather spend a week or more to a country I’m not familiar with. I rather see a different world and be enlightened of different cultures and customs. I rather be in Hawaii then spend a time on fake beach on a swampy lake view. I think WDW is too fake and stagy for me. I rather spend time of places of the real deal! Not a fake time in Paris, Morocco. No, I want to see the real deal!

I can’t say no to WDW, it more a low priority for me to visit. I can only see myself planning how I visit Disneyland.

I wouldn't worry to much about the beaches in WDW. Other than the water parks there is no useable beach unless you like risking a gator encounter. But 60 miles in either direction is the Atlantic Ocean or the Gulf of Mexico in the other direction. Pretty legit beaches in either direction.

 

[jloucks]

I think you’re getting an unfair sample pool. Your “casual fans” are less likely to post regularly on a message board so you are only seeing the above average person here. I think if you were to question 100 random people at WDW they would not say they only vacation there.

All true, but I also feel like the folks here, that were once big fans, but no longer go, have some very valuable insight.

You could argue we hold to key to getting people (us included) to return more often. Or at all.

I am not kidding myself tho, I know full well that a miserably packed park equals huge snack, trinket, and lodging sales, and that that is what really matters to WDW.

 

[John park hopper]

Camping in the Colorado Rockies and waking up to the sun coming up, cool crisp air and the smell of fresh coffee brewing and then trout fishing sure beats the heat, humidity and crowds of WDW. Don't get me wrong vacationed at WDW many times but there are other places

 

[wendysue]

I emailed Disney my concerns regarding all of the changes over the last year or so and how the experience isn't so much of an experience for us any longer and that we would be letting our AP's expire. Today I was shocked to receive a call wanting to talk about my issues. It was a very nice lady that called, but she could not help with ANY of my concerns. She simply stated that she was sorry our experiences were no longer magical. She explained that ridership on ME had been down even prior to Covid and they didn't see the need for it any longer. She encouraged me to "keep trying for those dinner reservations we want". I let her know that if we had to be tied to our phone for food and rides with NO guarantee that you may even get to ride some of the rides in the future it just won't work. I told her we would probably be going to Dollywood for Christmas and she said she was going there as soon as she retires.. We talked about other things as well and I thanked her for calling, but it didn't accomplish anything.

 

[Heppenheimer]

Camping in the Colorado Rockies and waking up to the sun coming up, cool crisp air and the smell of fresh coffee brewing and then trout fishing sure beats the heat, humidity and crowds of WDW. Don't get me wrong vacationed at WDW many times but there are other places

How long in advanced did you need to book a fast pass for that experience?

 

[FutureCEO]

Honestly I’ve never understood why people vacation to wdw every year. I know a lot that do, especially being a former cm but there are much better disney experiences other than world. Instead of going to wdw every year, why not go to Tokyo Disneyland? Or a disney cruise? Both are much better experiences imo. Pre covid we stopped going to world and go to SoCal instead. Hit Disneyland for a few days and the rest go to the beaches and what not. Especially post covid with how expensive wdw has gotten…no thanks. I love wdw but the cost of taking my family there for a week is unjustifiable

Your still in the Disney bubble. Though I would like to go to Disneyland Paris one day.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Honestly I’ve never understood why people vacation to wdw every year. I know a lot that do, especially being a former cm but there are much better disney experiences other than world. Instead of going to wdw every year, why not go to Tokyo Disneyland? Or a disney cruise? Both are much better experiences imo. Pre covid we stopped going to world and go to SoCal instead. Hit Disneyland for a few days and the rest go to the beaches and what not. Especially post covid with how expensive wdw has gotten…no thanks. I love wdw but the cost of taking my family there for a week is unjustifiable

Walt Disney World is too expensive but you want people to go to Tokyo or on a Disney cruise? You don't have kids, do you? I would spend more on flights alone to get to and from Tokyo than a week long stay at Animal Kingdom Lodge.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Wow. This is an incredibly sad view of the rest of the world.

You don't recognize troll posts when you see them, eh?

 

[John park hopper]

I am curious for each person that has had enough of Disney how many other people are swayed not to go by that one person. Disney must have some stats on that they seem to have data on everything else.

 

[Goofyernmost]

I emailed Disney my concerns regarding all of the changes over the last year or so and how the experience isn't so much of an experience for us any longer and that we would be letting our AP's expire. Today I was shocked to receive a call wanting to talk about my issues. It was a very nice lady that called, but she could not help with ANY of my concerns. She simply stated that she was sorry our experiences were no longer magical. She explained that ridership on ME had been down even prior to Covid and they didn't see the need for it any longer. She encouraged me to "keep trying for those dinner reservations we want". I let her know that if we had to be tied to our phone for food and rides with NO guarantee that you may even get to ride some of the rides in the future it just won't work. I told her we would probably be going to Dollywood for Christmas and she said she was going there as soon as she retires.. We talked about other things as well and I thanked her for calling, but it didn't accomplish anything.

I know the feeling. I made a passionate, logical and exquisitely worded argument** against the original Fast Pass program and look at the nightmare that has grown into. Do you get the feeling, like I did, that many CM's, like in your situation, are sympathetic to our complaints, but those that matter only use the paper the notes were on as bedding for the Animals in Animal Kingdom.

Spoiler: **

or how it seemed to me as I said it.

 

[John park hopper]

I've contacted Disney when they instituted resort parking fees--- email and called Disney --employees were very polite buy I just got the feeling they are trained in how to handle this complaints and it goes no further up the chain. Guess it's just typical of a large corporation

 

[wendysue]

I know the feeling. I made a passionate, logical and exquisitely worded argument** against the original Fast Pass program and look at the nightmare that has grown into. Do you get the feeling, like I did, that many CM's, like in your situation, are sympathetic to our complaints, but those that matter only use the paper the notes were on as bedding for the Animals in Animal Kingdom.

Spoiler: **

or how it seemed to me as I said it.

I did feel like she was sympathetic but obviously cannot do a thing about anything. When we talked about not being able to get any of the dining reservations we wanted, I stated that we would just order food from Garden Grocer and she was quick to let me know that the resorts would no longer be storing perishables for resort guests. (We will just meet the delivery when they get there). We decided to get the most use we can from the remaining time on our AP's, so are going in a couple of weeks and hope to go once more in November to see the Christmas festivities one last time. After that, we must move on

 

[Ayla]

I am curious for each person that has had enough of Disney how many other people are swayed not to go by that one person. Disney must have some stats on that they seem to have data on everything else.

I just had a conversation with my sister this morning, because I shared some pictures from a Disney trip two years ago.

She has been to Disney a few times (DL twice and WDW twice) and does not keep up with changes. She relies on me to tell her. So I did. And that was the end of that "when is our next Disney trip?" conversation.

 

[Goofyernmost]

I did feel like she was sympathetic but obviously cannot do a thing about anything. When we talked about not being able to get any of the dining reservations we wanted, I stated that we would just order food from Garden Grocer and she was quick to let me know that the resorts would no longer be storing perishables for resort guests. (We will just meet the delivery when they get there). We decided to get the most use we can from the remaining time on our AP's, so are going in a couple of weeks and hope to go once more in November to see the Christmas festivities one last time. After that, we must move on

Sounds like the thing to do.