What a difference 20 Years makes at WDW

[DW Aficionado]

Started taking the family yearly to WDW in 1999 (close to 20 years) and couldn't help but realize all the things that have been taken away from the parks. Let me know if you think it's a good move or a bad move on the part of Disney:

Magic Kingdom
Snow White ride
Splash Mountain
Bakery on Main Street
Nighttime parade
Toon Town w/Mickey and Minnie's houses
Wishes

Hollywood Studios
Backlot Tour
Stunt Show
Osbourne Christmas Lights
Little Mermaid Show
Great Movie Ride
Mickey's Fantasia Hat

 

[John park hopper]

Try having gone since 1972. The list would be twice if not more long

 

[me_stitch]

I've been going since '08 and really miss the Osborne Lights and the Stunt Show and pretty much everything else you mentioned, I do love all the new stuff but I feel there was room at Disney World to expand and keep all of these great attractions and shows and stuff.

 

[mf1972]

my wife & i have been going since our honeymoon in 2000, except covid 2019, but man do we miss the main st bakery

 

[gitchard]

Many of the things mentioned as being removed have been replaced by other things. With that is good or bad is up to debate.

Being a local annual passholder for over twenty years, the one thing I really miss is Osbourne lights. That had become a family tradition for us.

 

[Big T 1963]

Started taking the family yearly to WDW in 1999 (close to 20 years) and couldn't help but realize all the things that have been taken away from the parks. Let me know if you think it's a good move or a bad move on the part of Disney:

Magic Kingdom
Snow White ride
Splash Mountain
Bakery on Main Street
Nighttime parade
Toon Town w/Mickey and Minnie's houses
Wishes

Hollywood Studios
Backlot Tour
Stunt Show
Osbourne Christmas Lights
Little Mermaid Show
Great Movie Ride
Mickey's Fantasia Hat

Yep and a few others too:

Fast Pass
Disney Magical Bus from the Orlando Airport
All Day Park Hopping (now you got to wait till 2pm)
Stitch's Great Escape (so miss that wish Disney would do something with that)

 

[John park hopper]

list of all lost attractions :

Magic Kingdom®

Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom (2012-2021)
Tropical Serenade (1971-1997)
The Enchanted Tiki Room (Under New Management) (1998-2011)
Tinker Bell’s Magical Nook (2011-2014)
Country Bear Vacation Hoedown (1986-1992)
Davy Crockett’s Explorer Canoes (1971-1994)
Mike Fink Keel Boats (1971-2001)
Mickey Mouse Revue (1971-1980)
Magic Journeys (1987-1993)
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage (1971-1994)
Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride (1971-1998)
Skyway (1971-1999)
The Legend of the Lion King (1994-2002)
Pooh’s Playful Spot (2005-2010)
Snow White’s Scary Adventures (1971-2012)
If You Had Wings (1972-1989)
Mission to Mars (1975-1993)
Delta Dreamflight (1989-1998)
Skyway (1971-1999)
ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter (1995-2003)
The Timekeeper (1994-2006)
Stitch’s Great Escape! (2004-2018)
Hollywood Studios®

SuperStar Television (1989-1998)
The Monster Sound Show (1989-1999)
Who Wants To Be A Millionaire – Play It! (2006-2008)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame – A Musical Adventure (?)
Here Come the Muppets (?)
Doug Live! (?)
Journey into Narnia: Prince Caspian (?-2011)
The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow (2012-?)
Sounds Dangerous! (?)
Star Wars: Path of the Jedi (?)
American Idol Experience (?)
Studio Backlot Tour (-2016)
The Magic of Disney Animation (?)
Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show (2005-2016)
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: Movie Set Adventure (?)
The Great Movie Ride (-2017)
Disney Junior – Live on Stage! (-2018)
Epcot®

CommuniCore (1982-1994)
Horizons (1983-1999)
Journey into Imagination (1983-1998)
Magic Journeys (1983-1986)
The Living Seas (1986-2005)
World of Motion (1982-1996)
Universe of Energy (1982-1996)
Wonders of Life (1989-2007)
Wheel of Fortune Live (2017-2018)
Wonders of Life (1989-2007)
PLAY! (2007-2017)
Journey into YOUR Imagination (1999-2001)
Millennium Village (1999-2001)
Captain EO (1986-1994; 2010-2015)
Honey, I Shrunk the Audience! (1994-2010)
Ellen’s Energy Adventure (1996-2017)
Circle of Life: An Environmental Fable (1995-2018)
Food Rocks (1994-2004)
Kitchen Kabaret (1982-1994)
Innoventions (1994-2019)
World Showcase

Mexico -El Rio del Tiempo (The River of Time) (1982-2007)
Norway -Maelstrom (1988-2014)
Canada
Portraits of Canada
Canada 67
Canada: Far and Wide
O Canada! (1982-2007)
O Canada! (2007-2019) replaced by Canada: Far and Wide.
China -Wonders of China (1982-2003)
China – Tomb Warriors (?)
Millennium Village (1999-2000)
Kim Possible (2009-2012)
Agent P (2012-2020)
Animal Kingdom®

Discovery River Boats (1998-1999)
Flights of Wonder (-2017)
UP! A Great Bird Adventure (2018-2020)
Tarzan Rocks
Journey into the Jungle Book
Dinosaur Jubilee
Primeval Whirl (-2020)
Rivers of Light (2017-2020)
Disney Springs®

DisneyQuest (1998-2017)
My all time favorite was Alien Encounter

 

[Ricky Spanish]

I think change is good.
If Disney kept the same rides and attractions, some might complain that there is nothing new to see or do.

 

[John park hopper]

I think change is good.
If Disney kept the same rides and attractions, some might complain that there is nothing new to see or do.

Disney has enough property they could keep old attractions and add new. They maybe old to repeat guests but are new to those new guests.

 

[DW Aficionado]

I've been going since '08 and really miss the Osborne Lights and the Stunt Show and pretty much everything else you mentioned, I do love all the new stuff but I feel there was room at Disney World to expand and keep all of these great attractions and shows and stuff.

Exactly, I agree 100 percent, why not expand and keep it all.

 

[Walt Disney1955]

Started taking the family yearly to WDW in 1999 (close to 20 years) and couldn't help but realize all the things that have been taken away from the parks. Let me know if you think it's a good move or a bad move on the part of Disney:

Magic Kingdom
Snow White ride
Splash Mountain
Bakery on Main Street
Nighttime parade
Toon Town w/Mickey and Minnie's houses
Wishes

Never did the bakery on Main Street. So can't comment on it. The rest were not good choices to remove. Snow White was replaced by nonsense. Splash Mountain is being replaced by an inferior ride. There is not a night time parade now, and if I had to say SpectroMagic was just spectacular. ToonTown could have easily survived the expansion at MK years ago. Wishes was a great fireworks show, better than the current one.

So yeah, I can't say the quality is better, because it isn't.

 

[Bleed0range]

I think all the changes made to Hollywood Studios have been good. TBH, I like Toy Story/Star Wars and Mickey/Minnie way better. I know everyone is always complaining about capacity, but I think the park is a pretty great park now. The animation courtyard needs some work though. That could be a future expansion.

The MK I feel less confident about. However, the only major disappointments there might be the Snow White ride and Splash. And the nighttime parade. .. and Stitch/Alien.... but I do feel like MK is still pretty strong and although Splash is gone... it's technically "not" since it's basically getting a huge renovation and update. Which, keep an open mind, might be good in the end.

Epcot is in shambles.

 

[JMcMahonEsq]

I am always confused by these types of posts, with people looking back multiple decades into the past, and talking about how things have changed. Of course things have changed. How could any business stay fresh and with the times if things didn't change over the course of multiple decades?

I also don't get the arguments of people who complain when new rides are built replacing older ones. Disney isn't going to just keep expanding and expanding, like a cancer, growing larger and larger. There are operation costs, diminishing returns on maintaining older and less popular rides. Times/viewpoints/popularity changes and a company wants to keep up with them, without becoming too big and too bloated. Did I love 20000 leagues under the sea? Absolutely. Do I like 7D as much, personally no, but i see the lines, the wait times, and the popularity of the ride now and I would be hardpressed not to say that objectively its a more popular ride. So unless you think Disney should just keep building, keep expanding (which it won't) then your always going to have turnover in what was offered in the past, vs what is there now.

 

[John park hopper]

loved the smell coming from Main street Bakery would always get something ---sad to see it gone

 

[graphite1326]

Started taking the family yearly to WDW in 1999 (close to 20 years) and couldn't help but realize all the things that have been taken away from the parks. Let me know if you think it's a good move or a bad move on the part of Disney:

Magic Kingdom
Snow White ride
Splash Mountain
Bakery on Main Street
Nighttime parade
Toon Town w/Mickey and Minnie's houses
Wishes

Hollywood Studios
Backlot Tour
Stunt Show
Osbourne Christmas Lights
Little Mermaid Show
Great Movie Ride
Mickey's Fantasia Hat

You forgot Alien Encounter. One of my favoites.

 

[Minthorne]

I miss the topiaries

 

[John park hopper]

Guess the topiaries were to costly to maintain my kids driving into WDW loved those, just another down grade to the Disney experience. SAD

 

[JoeCamel]

Guess the topiaries were to costly to maintain my kids driving into WDW loved those, just another down grade to the Disney experience. SAD

The tree farm and greenhouses used to be extensive but are mostly empty now. They still do many hanging baskets and have some topiaries with some trees (oh yeah cloaking devices lots of cloaking devices) but it seems the staffing is focused on the resorts and parks with less behind the scenes to provide the wow factor with the meticulous pruning required to maintain lots of topiaries in situ plus the push is to have roadsides clean when Griswald decides to go off-roading while pointing out the entrance arch

 

[Raxel7851]

In addition to the Osborne Christmas Lights I’d have to add The Country Bears Christmas Show. I’ll toss in the different transportation options going up Main St and the Double Decker buses in Epcot.

 

[Ayla]

In addition to the Osborne Christmas Lights I’d have to add The Country Bears Christmas Show. I’ll toss in the different transportation options going up Main St and the Double Decker buses in Epcot.

Transportation up/down Main Street runs every morning.