Why I may not go again

[SaucyBoy]

I've entertained the notion of letting my AP expire but I'm worried if I let it lapse, I'll likely never get it back since they've become so wishy-washy about renewals. Sure, it's expensive as an out of state resident now, but it's a risk I don't wanna take.

 

[mkt]

Park reservations is the biggest killer for me. I like being able to just pop up at the park for a few hours.

But beyond that, the political shift in the state of Florida has effectively forced my wife and I to look at a more moderate state to raise our son in, making WDW visits fewer and far between than now, when we can just drive 3-4 hours and be there.

 

[Disstevefan1]

Yes it's expensive but so is everywhere else. Yes the WOKE and politics bugs me. I go there to get away from that. But that's not it. I went to WDW becasue I could go on line, get the hotel I wanted on the dates I wanted, pick my tickets, add things like Park hopper (yes you can still do all those things). But now I have to book my own flights and transportation somewhere else. I loved just walking down to the first floor at the airport and getting on a bus. In other words once I drove to my departing airport I was taken care of. Then there was checking in to your return flight at the resort. Loved it, I didn't have to think or worry about it I was taken care of. With all this it's still not the main reason I may not go again. I could handle these changes. It's GOTTEN TOO DIFFICULT. I don't want to pick my park months in advance and knowing if I want to change it later I could lose out all together. I don't want to get up early in the morning and try to get my "fastpasses" and pay for it too (I'm older and not that savey on a phone). I don't want to, at pretty much the same time as getting fastpasses because if you don't you won't get it, try to get on one of the rides that is not include in Genie+. Nope that's not how I want to relax and have a good time with no worries.

WDW does not want you anymore, you, the loyal, returning guest that can recognize what's going on.

WDW wants new guests that will pay whatever, for whatever and who does not know any better.

 

[Disney4Lyfe]

I wish everyone who said that they are done with WDW would actually be done with WDW. Would result in a lot shorter lines for the rest of us!

This seems unnecessary.

If someone is here, they probably love Disney World. They are bummed and upset and even a little angry that the place they love is changing in a way that doesn’t appeal to them. And you come in and make fun. I don’t understand.

 

[bromeo57]

I Agree with the many. A WDW vacation is now work. Making park reservations, buying a Genie + pass and waking up early to try and get the rides you want. I was surprised to find out that the pass you now pay for doesn't allow you to pick the times you want to ride. You are at the mercy of the system and when the next available opening for a ride occurs. If you schedule your first ride when you can at 7:00 a.m. (ridiculous) you then may not be able to get on another until later that day at night. I may not want to stay at a park all day.
With the old Fas Pass system you were able to schedule as you pleased. All these new rules and procedures are not customer friendly.

 

[graphite1326]

WDW does not want you anymore, you, the loyal, returning guest that can recognize what's going on.

WDW wants new guests that will pay whatever, for whatever and who does not know any better.

Does look that way doesn't it.

 

[Vacationeer]

We may continue going even though WDW has frustrated us here and there on recent trips. But it always comes back to the big picture. Can we plan a visit where we still see value for the money spent? Yes. The draw to WDW for us is the vast amount of experiences we can enjoy. The most popular rides are just part of that equation. We love things like taking the boat from HS over to EP in the afternoon, watching the night shows at each park, seeing different bands at festivals, trying out interesting menus, etc. All week long we are having a fantastic time. We fight back costs with strategic spending. So far still able to string together something that works for us.

 

[NelleBelle]

We still love the Disney parks (I tend to go back and forth between which is my favorite: DLR vs WDW). Now that we're moving to HI, Tokyo will probably be our next park! I think what bothers us is the high price for the resorts now. We can absolutely afford them, but DH would rather put that $$ towards other vacations, which is why he was through with WDW a while back. They only reason he's going this summer is because I told him I was taking our boys with or without him. Funny thing is, we're neither bother with the park reservation system (we used to plan months in advance anyway which park we would be at and usually had ADRs in those parks so we stuck with them); as for park hopping, I do wish they'd get rid of the 2pm rule but it won't impact us other than it might help clear out some of the parks for those wishing to hop earlier. As for Genie+, we are absolutely not paying for that piece of garbage! We will have a DAS pass so that will help some with the queues but we already plan to wait in the stand-by queue and look at this as a positive experience of spending the last few days together with my mom before we move away from her. I'm more annoyed about the lack of original merchandise in the shops! And I totally miss the feature on the app that let you know where you could find an item when you scanned it!! Why get rid of a good feature?!

 

[Diamond Dot]

Huh? Is this really a thing? That's a sincere question. I've not been back to Disney for many years, mostly because I hate that they make you a slave to your phone while on property.

Funny thing is, if they scrapped Genie+, LL, reservations, and FP altogether (I'd prefer they add back ME too), I'd probably book a trip for this Fall despite price increases. Because of all of these things, I'm not going for the foreseeable future. Btw, I understand not everyone agrees with my points about FP, but that's just my opinion. I'm not trying to convince anyone else to agree. I'd be okay with them going back to paper FP system, only not paper. Walk over to the FP kiosk, and scan your Magic Band, or a QR code on your phone, and you now have a FP on your Magic Band for use at a later time that you can see on your app or whatever. It doesn't have to be actual paper. To me that solves SOOO many problems. You're no longer a slave to your phone constantly trying to find open FPs. You don't have to wake up at some ungodly hour to book FPs. It's just a better way to institute the last iteration of FP that I personally believe worked fairly well. AND, people can go back to talking to each other in standy-by queues and enjoying their vacation rather than burning up their phone charge, and ignoring the "World" around them.

Are you talking about the unlocking of the parkhopper, then,yes, it is a real thing. I had DHS booked for a Saturday and went shopping at Target and Joanns on 192 instead. I decided to head for the parks at 8pm, so MK made the most sense. When I got there I was refused entry because I hadn't gone to my reserved park. I questioned the logic of this because if I had gone to DHS and then MK I'd get in. They couldn't answer, I don't think it happens too often, so I was sent to guest relations to get my park hopper 'unlocked', it took 5 seconds. I wouldn't recommend taking the chance as I was alone and they are more flexible with solo guests rather than large parties.

Footnote, on my last day, I scanned my ticked and was told I didn't have a reservation, I showed them it on MDE, so it shows there are flaws. I also had endless issues with the MB and finger scanner, I kept getting the blue ring of death nearly every time.

 

[Diamond Dot]

WDW does not want you anymore, you, the loyal, returning guest that can recognize what's going on.

WDW wants new guests that will pay whatever, for whatever and who does not know any better.

They want the guests who aren't just happy with an entry ticket. They want the guests willing to shell out for all the extras.

 

[Diamond Dot]

Don't get a Genie+. Download entertainment on your phone, movies, a box set, music or a book. I saw one young lady reading a paperback and I had a couple of movies downloaded as well as my favourite music, so no worry about using data or buffering. It made the time pass much faster. But, please wear headphones!

 

[Disstevefan1]

They want the guests who aren't just happy with an entry ticket. They want the guests willing to shell out for all the extras.

Specifically, they want guests that will spend the maximum on any given day.

Before park pass reservations, when we could go at a drop of a hat, we would visit on our AP and easily drop at least $150 on any given visit, this is not counting F&W visits, $150 would just cover the food booths.

That is not enough spending apparently...

 

[Nubs70]

I'm going to Spain this summer for a 2 week split stay between Madrid, Cordoba, Seville and Lanzarote. With the Business Process Optimization of WDW, I have really no desire to go back.

I have a customer who wants to take a family entourage of 20 persons to WDW as it has always been a dream of his. He is finally in a position where his lifetime of hard work has made this opportunity possible.

I know he wants my opinion, but I am struggling with what to say.

 

[JusticeDisney]

This seems unnecessary.

If someone is here, they probably love Disney World. They are bummed and upset and even a little angry that the place they love is changing in a way that doesn’t appeal to them. And you come in and make fun. I don’t understand.

I wasn't making fun at all. I meant what I said.

 

[JusticeDisney]

I'm going to Spain this summer for a 2 week split stay between Madrid, Cordoba, Seville and Lanzarote. With the Business Process Optimization of WDW, I have really no desire to go back.

I have a customer who wants to take a family entourage of 20 persons to WDW as it has always been a dream of his. He is finally in a position where his lifetime of hard work has made this opportunity possible.

I know he wants my opinion, but I am struggling with what to say.

Tell him to not read this board, and instead go to WDW and have the time of his life!

 

[Animaniac93-98]

The 2pm park hopping rule is garbage, and even worse in California despite being an hour earlier.

At 1pm everyday the Disneyland Esplanade is a mad house as so many guests try to switch from DCA to Disneyland or vice versa at the same time. Anyone who visits the parks as a regular paying customer would have realized this problem in advance.

 

[OG Runner]

I'm surprised that people feel the same as I do. I was preparing for backlash and negative comments.

I try to come here for discussions. Many people, I think, feel the way you do about the changes. Unfortunately, they are
earning the company much more money and not enough people share your feeling. They deal with the additional inconvenience
and cost and are still filling the parks.

 

[Nubs70]

Tell him to not read this board, and instead go to WDW and have the time of his life!

20 first visitors, Genie Plus, park ressies??resumes???

I fear for retribution

It took me 2-3 visits to get the Fastpass system figured out

 

[Disstevefan1]

I'm going to Spain this summer for a 2 week split stay between Madrid, Cordoba, Seville and Lanzarote. With the Business Process Optimization of WDW, I have really no desire to go back.

I have a customer who wants to take a family entourage of 20 persons to WDW as it has always been a dream of his. He is finally in a position where his lifetime of hard work has made this opportunity possible.

I know he wants my opinion, but I am struggling with what to say.

A family entourage of 20 persons going to WDW is a nightmare under any circumstances!
All things aside, a party size of 20 is going to be a challenge.
Aside from the party size, park pass reservations, Genie + just complicates tasks like like ADRs
You should give him the facts trying to be as neutral as possible and make sure he knows about park pass reservations, park hopping, and Genie.

 

[mkt]

I'm going to Spain this summer for a 2 week split stay between Madrid, Cordoba, Seville and Lanzarote. With the Business Process Optimization of WDW, I have really no desire to go back.

Even pre-covid, if you timed the flights right, it's never been impossible do a trip to Europe (from North America) for cheaper than a trip WDW.

We went to Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, and the UK for our two week honeymoon a few years back, and overall, between accommodations (comparable or better than where we stay when going to WDW), travel expenses, and comparable meals (plus a ton more alcohol), it cost us less than a week at WDW.

Beyond this, I did a solo 10 day trip to Germany for less than a week in WDW in 2016, and (though not Europe), we were booked for two weeks in Chile + Argentina in 2020 (before the world went to hell) and two weeks in Europe (UK, Norway, Sweden, and France) - both each for far less than a week in WDW.