You Hate Everything About It, Yet You Still Go

[NearTheEars]

I have more of a concern for those who DONT "complain" when they see something they love so much (WDW) being turned into a corporate feeding frenzy of greed and corruption. Its getting old listening to people with the "if you dont like it, why do you keep going" attitude. For those who say that I can only assume your too lazy to notice whats happening or just fall in line with what your told to like. You are part of the problem, not the solution. Pleas get a six flags season pass and settle for mediocrity if thats what you like.

Nah, that's OK, I'll keep my WDW pass

 

[wdisney9000]

Nah, that's OK, I'll keep my WDW pass

Sweet! Your a great American!

 

[Californian Elitist]

I suppose "stop complaining a lot" could be equivalent to "keep the constant complaining to a minimum" (one just has a slightly more negative connotation). Or as we say it here in the west, don't be such a buzz kill. Just remember, I prefaced that with "Definitely voice your opinion if you have some constructive criticism," then added "but just keep the constant complaining to a minimum" and I ended with "There are some of us trying to have a good time." I figured I would throw those back in the reply since you seem bent on picking my comment apart looking for some hidden meaning or secret jab considering you don't agree with what I said.

I'm not bent on picking apart your comment or finding some hidden meaning, because there are none. I'm trying to make you see that you keep attempting to make your comments seem like one thing when they're not. That's all. What your comments read and what you're saying are inconsistent.

 

[willtravel]

I have more of a concern for those who DONT "complain" when they see something they love so much (WDW) being turned into a corporate feeding frenzy of greed and corruption. Its getting old listening to people with the "if you dont like it, why do you keep going" attitude. For those who say that I can only assume your too lazy to notice whats happening or just fall in line with what your told to like. You are part of the problem, not the solution. Pleas get a six flags season pass and settle for mediocrity if thats what you like.

If you feel that way, why are you still vacationing at WDW?

 

[puntagordabob]

I can sum up my feelings like this; I LOVE WDW as a place but I HATE the way it's being run..

We have been on opposite sides on many issues, but NOT Today....

+1

 

[draybook]

If you feel that way, why are you still vacationing at WDW?

For us, it's part nostalgia, part hope, and quite honestly there aren't many other places that appeal to us as a whole family. Of course we have looked in to doing a cruise instead of the parks and Universal is slowly taking away a Disney day every year. Is it hypocritical to keep feeding the greed machine when we complain about it...I don't think so. You can enjoy something even with it's flaws. It's just like a relationship with your spouse/gf/whatever. There are flaws that might annoy you about them but you love them and want to be with them forever. Such is the relationship with WDW.

 

[puntagordabob]

Unfortunately, many people do not understand the operational or business side of running a theme park. They only care about what they either see, hear or read... some of which is sensationalized or not true.

The place is an exceptionally run theme park since it is the most popular resort in the world. No one can argue that, regardless of one's opinions.

Many good points... but with a visit to the Disneyland Resort (as a WDW Local THIS was a real shocker for my family a couple years ago when we were out in California) or if you prefer just up I4 to Universal (have not done so since 2001 but everyone seems to say it is really got it's "A GAME" going at the moment) you will likely see some of what is happening at WDW with a little bit more concern.

THAT BEING SAID....There are CERTAINLY good things happening at WDW too.... #1 on my list would of course be Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room, the Fantasyland expansion looks awesome, California Grill appears to be a super refurb, the DVC at the Grand Floridian looks well done, etc....

Still though at the end of the day, you still need to be concerned about a lot of the other trends that point to a more longterm direction that is less than ideal.

 

[Fairybuzz]

All the the time I'm seeing posts on these and other forums from folks who I can only categorize as hating a laundry list of things about Walt Disney World. It ranges from complaints about upkeep of certain attractions (valid in a lot of cases for sure) to extremes that include being against anything/everything TDO is doing, complaining about resorts/pricing/dining, you name it.

It got me thinking... why, for those of you in the position of having more bad than good to say about WDW, do you go? And furthermore... Why do you belong to forums like these?

I promise you this isn't some (poor) attempt at trolling.I am looking for real answers here because it's perplexed me for years. My assumption has always been that it's one individual member of a family that in general adores WDW so they do it "for the kids" (or something along those lines). Maybe that's the most common response I'll get but truly, please do share!

EDIT: My response to the posts and my true thanks for them can be seen here. Figured I'd add it to the main post because it'll get lost in the shuffle. LOL!

For me its more of a "I know they can do better" thing. I've seen the amazing things that came out when I was growing up, and then I see them go and make a ride where you sit in a vehicle and watch tv screens that you pass (nemo) and It seems like they're taking cheap routes over quality recently. They close down rides, abandon them, or replace good rides with lackluster things. (wonders of life, imagination). The only other parks I've seen riddled with abandoned rides are six flags parks hence my comparisons I usually make. (Six flags also tends to have rides that slowly lose pieces of their theming each year for seemingly no reason whatsoever). And of course when they announce something big it seems to take them a good number of years to come up with a watered down version of it.

But that being said, its still disney world. It's still the place I walked through as a kid. It's still maintaining areas that are fully themed rather than some clapboard buildings that say "sheriff" in frontierland or something and then have a Johnny Rocket's instead of a first floor. There are no generica areas and for the most part they stay in theme. And of course they still have rides that blew my mind as a little girl and will continue to do so for the rest of my life.

In any event as bad as it is, the current imagination ride is still better themed than anything six flags has ever built in their entire history and since I like to go to parks for the "out of the real world" experience with a little nostalgia mixed in I will never stop going. However I will spend less money and time if they keep knocking out all my favorite rides and replacing them with boring stuff.

 

[willtravel]

For me its more of a "I know they can do better" thing. I've seen the amazing things that came out when I was growing up, and then I see them go and make a ride where you sit in a vehicle and watch tv screens that you pass (nemo) and It seems like they're taking cheap routes over quality recently. They close down rides, abandon them, or replace good rides with lackluster things. (wonders of life, imagination). The only other parks I've seen riddled with abandoned rides are six flags parks hence my comparisons I usually make. (Six flags also tends to have rides that slowly lose pieces of their theming each year for seemingly no reason whatsoever). And of course when they announce something big it seems to take them a good number of years to come up with a watered down version of it.

But that being said, its still disney world. It's still the place I walked through as a kid. It's still maintaining areas that are fully themed rather than some clapboard buildings that say "sheriff" in frontierland or something and then have a Johnny Rocket's instead of a first floor. There are no generica areas and for the most part they stay in theme. And of course they still have rides that blew my mind as a little girl and will continue to do so for the rest of my life.

In any event as bad as it is, the current imagination ride is still better themed than anything six flags has ever built in their entire history and since I like to go to parks for the "out of the real world" experience with a little nostalgia mixed in I will never stop going. However I will spend less money and time if they keep knocking out all my favorite rides and replacing them with boring stuff.

But there is the hard part with nostalgia. What you and I like, there is always someone in the background saying, please tear it down. Old. You see that written many times. WDW will be damned if they do and damned if they don't. That is not to say thought that they should not make investments into the parks.

 

[Fairybuzz]

But there is the hard part with nostalgia. What you and I like, there is always someone in the background saying, please tear it down. Old. You see that written many times. WDW will be damned if they do and damned if they don't. That is not to say thought that they should not make investments into the parks.

I only said nostalgia because no matter what they do I will still see things I know from childhood and It'll still bring me back to that better time.

I didn't say that's why I want some of the oldies to stay though. My idea is if you're going to replace something people love, do it well or not at all. don't half it. Don't clear out a room of beautiful scenery and pretty effects and leave a dark room with some tables and objects on them that probably cost next to nothing to put there and bore people to death. Do it well. Make an effort. Take risks, don't be afraid to go a little extra. My biggest peeve will always be Imagination, which really could have been so good if they tried.

 

[wdisney9000]

If you feel that way, why are you still vacationing at WDW?

@draybook said it perfectly. I would just add that I still also go to WDW because I dont need a FP to sit at the top of the steps at Japan Pavilion during sunset like my wife and I have done for the last 2 years. Don't need a magic band to give her that first kiss when we check into our resort room and say "we're home"like I did 8 years ago on our first trip together. I dont need to use the MDE app to laugh with my brother when we are in the MK and recalling crazy stuff we used to do 20 years ago when we were kids. I dont need 6 months advance planning to know I will make new memories and have fun

The parks have been a big part of my life since 1985 and I assure you that the positive emotions far outweigh the negative for me. You gotta laugh though when people complain about the complainers. What many of us have as concerns are looked at as complaints.

 

[Fairybuzz]

@draybook said it perfectly. I would just add that I still also go to WDW because I dont need a FP to sit at the top of the steps at Japan Pavilion during sunset like my wife and I have done for the last 2 years. Don't need a magic band to give her that first kiss when we check into our resort room and say "we're home"like I did 8 years ago on our first trip together. I dont need to use the MDE app to laugh with my brother when we are in the MK and recalling crazy stuff we used to do 20 years ago when we were kids. I dont need 6 months advance planning to know I will make new memories and have fun

The parks have been a big part of my life since 1985 and I assure you that the positive emotions far outweigh the negative for me. You gotta laugh though when people complain about the complainers. What many of us have as concerns are looked at as complaints.

Exactly. It's not just a theme park. Its a place routed in our memories (in my case since the year I was born). When it comes down to it I can live with a lot of the changes (the only ones that I'm really upset about enough to rant here about are horizons and imagination), and no matter what they do its still the place I know still the ground I walked on as a little girl in a cinderella or tink costume.

 

[alissafalco]

Unfortunately, many people do not understand the operational or business side of running a theme park. They only care about what they either see, hear or read... some of which is sensationalized or not true.

The place is an exceptionally run theme park since it is the most popular resort in the world. No one can argue that, regardless of one's opinions.

Iger is that you?

 

[wdisney9000]

Iger is that you?

Funniest post of the year. Lmao

 

[blueboxdoctor]

I think it's like with anything else, if you're into it enough it gets aggravating when there is something blatantly wrong and nothing seems to be getting done about it. Such as EPCOT, there's so much potential, but nearly all of the first half of the park is wasted space and empty buildings. I like a lot of things in EPCOT, but I feel like there's so much potential that they just gave up on.

I'm sure people are like this with other things to, such as being a fan of a sports team that isn't doing well. I wouldn't stop being a fan, I'd just analyze and see what the issue is and discuss it with others. Same goes for pretty much anything that has a continuation from season to season/year to year, such as how I can't stand a lot of decisions/writing currently for the show Doctor Who, but I've been a fan for pretty much all my life and am not going to stop being a fan just because of a currently not so good era.

Back to WDW, for the most part there's a lot I like, but some of the issues are just aggravating, and this is a good spot to post them because various points of view can weigh in on the issues and proper discussion can happen (luckily it doesn't seem like there are many trolls on this site, so discussion is usually pretty good).

 

[Theodore]

I'm as cynical as the next guy but I'm getting tired of all the negativity.

 

[Mark In KY]

"Greed and corruption". LOL! "Corruption"? smh.

 

[AdventureHasAName]

I'm as cynical as the next guy but I'm getting tired of all the negativity.

Imagine how we feel. You're just starting to get "tired". We've been tired for 20 years now (really, since 1994) of the company's reduction in standards.

 

[Bairstow]

I wonder if this is a cyclical thing- people visit Walt Disney world in the '70s or '80s as children, grow up and figure out that companies are in the business of making money, decide that the parks aren't as amazing as they were when they were kids (and weren't having to pay for the own tickets) and become disgusted with the whole thing.

Then, they have kids, decide to try bringing them to Disney, and learn to love it again...

 

[englanddg]

I wonder if this is a cyclical thing- people visit Walt Disney world in the '70s or '80s as children, grow up and figure out that companies are in the business of making money, decide that the parks aren't as amazing as they were when they were kids (and weren't having to pay for the own tickets) and become disgusted with the whole thing.

Then, they have kids, decide to try bringing them to Disney, and learn to love it again...

I'm certain that is part of it. My kid doesn't see the same things I do when we go. I don't think I'm "disgusted" with Disney...even as a teen I knew they were out to make money. That's not it in and of itself.

However, there is a saying about familiarity breeding something...