Biggest Guest Complaints About Disney World
Walt Disney World fans have a lot of complaints right now, so much so that the Festivus-style airing of grievances has become a year-round tradition. There have been many changes that are unpopular with loyal guests, including cutbacks, temporary policies that have become permanent, price increases, and more. Plus, decisions viewed as short sighted to increase profits and per capita spending, all to the detriment to consumers and the experience.
It’s impossible not to notice this. Many complaints we hear from readers are prefaced with “I’m normally a fan no matter what who defends Disney, but…” or “I don’t normally complain, but…” There have been far fewer fans offering defenses of unpopular decisions with the rationalization that Walt Disney World is a business. There’s also less knocking of those who air their grievances as “so-called fans” and much more agreement and acknowledgement of Disney’s shortcomings.
While I enjoy channeling my inner Frank Costanza from time to time, I’ve also made a concerted effort in the last couple of years to appreciate what I have, savor the little things, and look for the silver linings. A lot of feel good fluff, but it’s helped give me a more positive perspective. That probably hasn’t always been evident because there are times when it has been tough to find the upside in some things Walt Disney World is doing.
Nevertheless, it’s in that spirit of positivity that I’m going to air these grievances fans have with Walt Disney World but also attempt to play devil’s advocate and try to make sense of the decision or justify it from their perspective. Perhaps that’ll make me a “pixie duster,” but Walt Disney World still is my favorite place on earth and I’ve gotta rationalize that somehow.
Anyway, let’s begin. Welcome, new comers. The tradition of Festivus begins with the airing of grievances…
Slow Return to Normal – Just today, the Walt Disney World Railroad officially reopened. Last month, Fantasmic finally returned–the last nighttime spectacular to come back, and a major step forward for normal operations and crowd dynamics at Walt Disney World. Still, a lot of entertainment is gone, as are shows like Jedi Training Academy and Voyage of the Little Mermaid. Much of that may never return.
Earlier this week, the company announced Chef Mickey’s and Cinderella’s Royal Table going back to normal in Winter 2023. Almost every restaurant is back with the recent reopenings of Akershus Royal Banquet Hall, Monsieur Paul, and Takumi-Tei. However, a few remain closed or have scaled back their meal services. Again, some of that may never be back.
Readers of this site have likely tired of hearing “staffing shortages” as an excuse for just about everything that still isn’t back, but it’s true (for the most part). Even then, almost all of this has been exacerbated by Disney’s own decisions, or lack thereof. Staffing shortages exist and persist because Disney furloughed so many people and was slow to recall them. A lot of entertainment still isn’t back because the company waited rather than making modifications early-on.
In a vacuum, it might be possible to rationalize or explain away so much of Disney’s lethargic pace in resuming normalcy. However, once you step back and look at the totality of the circumstances–especially as compared to their competitors and in light of the prices being charged–it’s all much less forgivable. For the purported leader of the theme park industry, they’ve sure been doing a lot of following.
Disney Park Pass Reservations – Even after Walt Disney World raised its capacity caps by significant degrees, the company left the park reservation system in place. Many days, it’s little more than a formality–a pointless source of friction and yet another thing to book as part of the tedium of planning a trip. It decreases spontaneity and many fans argue that it isn’t doing anything on crowded days, so what’s the point?
At this point, the Disney Park Pass system doesn’t exist for keeping crowds low—that hasn’t been the case for ages. It’s to redistribute them and prevent attendance from overwhelming staffing levels and available resources at each individual park. Walt Disney World still is not firing on all cylinders, and is unequipped to handle the same guest loads as in a normal year. I’m no fan of the reservation system in the long term, but it’s a “necessary evil” in the short term given the demand-capacity imbalance.
Nevertheless, this is highly likely to change in January or February 2023. While park reservations will likely stick around for some groups (like Annual Passholders and Cast Members), they’ll become a non-factor for most guests.
No Disney Dining Plan – Far and away the most common reader questions we receive concern the return of the Disney Dining Plan. It still isn’t back, despite assurances from the company that it was only being temporarily suspended and would return “soon” (quite a while ago).
Like many things that have happened (or not) over the last year-plus, the suspension of the Disney Dining Plan was originally motivated by one thing (physical distancing and closures) and that rationale has morphed over time to other reasons (staffing shortages, inflation, per guest spending, etc).
At its core, the underlying reason for the Disney Dining Plan not being offered has always been an imbalance of supply and demand. Like with a few other complaints on this list, this is arguably being done for the benefit of the guest experience. Visitors would be even more outraged if they were allowed to buy a “useless” Dining Plan with credits they couldn’t redeem due to a lack of ADRs. In short, we get and sympathize with fans’ complaints, but ultimately understand why the DDP still isn’t back.
Restricted Park Hopping – Walt Disney World brought back Park Hopping last year, which was a huge relief to anyone who tried to fill a full day at Animal Kingdom sans shows or wanted to spend 1.5 days at Magic Kingdom. However, Park Hopping began each day at 2 pm and required that guests enter the first park for which they had reservations, even if it was already after 2 pm.
I love the freedom to Park Hop, and often used to bounce between DHS and Epcot very early in the day. With that said, I’m going to defend this practice in whole. For one thing, there’s enough to do at any park until 2 pm. For another, it serves a practical purpose. If Park Hopping were totally unrestricted, you’d have busy days when people would circumvent the Disney Park Pass reservation system by booking Epcot but immediately hopping to Magic Kingdom. Disney can’t get rid of the Park Hopping rule until it gets rid of Park Pass. Hopefully they’re both gone by early 2023!
Construction Delays – When the parks closed for a few months, Walt Disney World paused all construction. Contrary to popular perception, this was not mandated by the state–work all around Central Florida continued during that time. Some projects that were near completion pre-closure were held back for months even after being finished and other attractions that were slated to open “in time for” the 50th Anniversary didn’t restart until months after reopening. The resulting delays, in several cases, will be over two years. Other previously announced plans were scaled back or abandoned entirely.
From my perspective, the degree to which this is excusable depends upon the project. While I don’t like it, I can understand Disney sitting on Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, and other things. Theme parks add attractions to incentivize new bookings, and they largely would not have fulfilled that role had they debuted last fall. Universal is the one anomaly in continuing to open new things, and a true kudos to them in going against the grain; otherwise, virtually every theme park operator has held back additions.
This is far less excusable when it comes to the central spine redesign of Epcot–also known as the Giant Epcot Dirt Pit™️. Having the park not be a maze of construction walls isn’t something that’s marketable or excites people into booking trips. No matter how long the closure lasted, its financial fallout, or what austerity measures were necessary, it was patently obvious from the outset that would need to be finished.
Disney squandered an opportunity by not kicking the Epcot overhaul into overdrive during the closure and subsequent reopening when the parks were uncrowded, and should be downright embarrassed by the leisurely pace of work in the year that followed.
Another embarrassment is the speed of TRON Lightcycle Run. The entirety of Universal’s Epic Universe will end up being built in about the same time it took Walt Disney World to construct a cloned roller coaster in a mostly-empty warehouse. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed this ride, but I think many WDW diehards are going to be disappointed by its duration and lack of show scenes given how long it took to build. There will probably be a sense of “that’s it?!” when it finally debuts in Spring 2023.
Underwhelming 50th Anniversary – The biggest “limited time” component of Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary is statues honoring 50 characters, the majority of which have minimal presence in or significance to the parks. There are two new nighttime spectaculars featuring movie moments and songs. There’s also some other stuff, none of which offers a nod to the past or the rich legacy of the Vacation Kingdom of the World.
In the latter regard, the unequivocal bright spots have been that the merchandising and culinary teams have truly outdone themselves. There’s a wide range of clever and inventive 50th offerings that appeal to a broad spectrum of guests. These items are varied, fun, and celebratory–perfect for the anniversary celebration. But it’s also mildly insulting that the value of nostalgia is limited to the degree it can be directly monetized.
Over the course of its 51 years, Walt Disney World has grown a fierce fandom, fostering huge communities and accommodating a range of niche interests. It has resulted in one of the most lucrative timeshare programs ever and an immensely lucrative Annual Passholder program, the growth of which not even surging prices can stop. Despite this, if you only paid attention to the substance of the World’s Most Magical Celebration, you might assume it was a tribute to the company’s characters and movie intellectual property.
In normal circumstances, none of this would be particularly surprising. Increasingly, people visit Walt Disney World to be immersed in all things IP. Unimaginative as it might be, Disney is giving the park-going public what it wants. During the 18 months of a milestone anniversary and given the aforementioned passionate fanbases? It comes across as out of touch with its own community, unappreciative of their decades of patronage, and unconfident in the strength of theme parks as a standalone product. I was so excited for the 50th Anniversary, but at this point, I’m anxiously awaiting April 2023, when the ‘event’ will be put out of its misery.
Limited Hours – This is one that has improved considerably this year, and hopefully will further improve in 2023. The big change has been earlier opening times for Disney’s Hollywood Studios and EPCOT, which have been great–and hugely advantageous for early risers.
As much as I hate the gradual erosion of park hours, which started long before last year, it’s at least in part supported by guest behavior. No matter how crowded in the morning, Animal Kingdom still clears out by late afternoon. Hollywood Studios is not nearly as busy the last couple hours of the day. Future World empties an hour before Harmonious.
However, Magic Kingdom’s hours are not nearly as defensible. It opens late and closes early by historical standards, with the park frequently having 9 am to 10 pm or 11 pm hours at times when it operated from 8 am to 12 am in the past. On busy days, that 9 am opening time is especially unfortunate, as rope drop is unpleasant and offers minimal strategic upside. On top of that, the colossal crowds lingering on Main Street a full hour after park closing are a pretty good indication that the park should stay open later.
Most likely, this is a staffing issue. Magic Kingdom’s hours are limited by available Cast Member shifts, making it difficult to add another 2-3 hours per day. With each passing month, this feels less like a compelling justification and more like a lame excuse.
Catering to the “Rich” – There have been no shortages of examples of this–or at least, decisions that have prompted this refrain among Walt Disney World fans. Price increases are the big one, but so too are the proliferation of pricey upcharge offerings, VIP tours, After Hours events, and more.
Disney is trying to squeeze the middle class, not exclude them. That might offer little solace, but it’s an important distinction (more so than a “defense” of the practice). The rich are not booking motel-style rooms with exterior hallways at the Value or Moderate Resorts, let alone the many nearby off-site budget hotels that Disney relies upon to fill the parks. Rite of passage vacations among the affluent are certainly a thing, but not nearly enough to sustain Walt Disney World.
Simply put, Walt Disney World is a middle class vacation destination. Even on the high end, it doesn’t offer the caliber of service, amenities, or general quality the affluent expect of real world destinations. This is why Disney “outsources” that to Four Seasons on the hotel side. There are low-volume niche experiences at Walt Disney World aimed at the wealthy, but they’re relatively insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Disney’s bread and butter is still the middle class…and the current trajectory doesn’t change until that group says “enough is enough” and pulls back in its spending and splurging.
Paid FastPass – Roughly 14 months later, Walt Disney World retiring free FastPass and replacing it with a paid alternative continues to be one of the biggest fan grievances we hear. From the outset, our position on this inevitable change was that it “could’ve been worse” and offers downside and upside. This has not been well received by fans, many of whom consider us Disney apologists as a result.
We get it. The move to Genie+ represents a paradigm shift, and is an encapsulation of so many other frustrations. The Genie system is unnecessarily convoluted and has too steep of a learning curve. Excluding some attractions from Genie+ comes across as an unnecessarily crass cash grab. It clearly launched several months before the app feature was ready.
On the plus side, Genie+ has improved in several ways big and small this year. (However, it did take over a year after launch–to add a modify button, the most basic of features. On the downside, Walt Disney World introduced date-based pricing, resulting in a spike from $16 per day to nearly double that. For peak dates, the service currently costs ~$31 after tax, which sure feels like infringing on my right to celebrate new holidays.
With that said, we’ll have to “agree to disagree” on a lot of the other complaints. Getting up at ~6:50 am on vacation stinks, but that’s already par for the course if you want to beat the crowds. At least in theory, having some Individual Lightning Lanes incentivizes construction of new headliner attractions, which can be directly monetized. FastPass+ might’ve been beloved by hardcore fans who always stayed on-site and knew its quirks, but it created its own losers (anyone off-site or learning of its existence upon arrival). FastPass+ was stretched to its breaking point and a change was needed.
Genie is very far from perfect and should’ve been more like MaxPass, but it’s not as bad as it’s made out to be. It will hopefully improve over time, and even simple UI and reliably fixes, plus booking prompts will improve the overall Genie+ experience. Not everyone will love it, but not everyone loved paper FastPass or FastPass+ either.
Too Much Screen Time – Refreshing Genie+ for better Lightning Lanes. Mobile Order for counter service restaurants and Merchandise Mobile Checkout to buy stuff. Constantly checking Walk-up Waitlist for new table service availability. Checking wait times and showtimes. Joining the Cosmic Rewind virtual queue. Reading restaurant menus. Playing the MagicBand+ mini games or the DuckTales World Showcase Adventure.
One of the fastest-growing complaints we’ve heard this year is that visiting Walt Disney World involves too much screen time. We see this as a double-edged sword and, honestly, a bit overblown (sorry!). Refreshing Genie+ is similar to doing the same for FastPass+ to obtain 4th (and beyond) ride reservations. Mobile Order, Merchandise Mobile Checkout, and Walk-up Waitlist are not required–they’re optional offerings that can cut down waiting at restaurants (and are increasingly common in the real world). Same goes for the minigames in the Play Disney Parks app.
As a general matter, we do agree with this criticism. One of our core ‘theses’ was that Walt Disney World leaned too heavily on technology (ironic, since it’s something the company is objectively awful at) and not enough on tactile experiences. To paraphrase my favorite Walt Disney quote, “it’s people that make the dream a reality.”
The best memories are formed as a result of interpersonal moments, and so much emotional resonance is derived from guests connecting with Cast Members. Even if people can’t put their finger on it, so much of what differentiates and defines the appeal of Walt Disney World is the ‘little things’ that connect them to other people and the environments around them. Sure, ‘sexy’ rides like Cosmic Rewind get people to take the trip, but it’s the myriad little things and those connections that convince them (even subconsciously) to return.
So while we won’t point to Genie+ or any other new feature in My Disney Experience as being “bad,” like many fans have done, we very much agree with the generalized sentiment that spending a day at Walt Disney World now nudges guests towards spending way too much time with their faces buried in their phones. These new features are great in isolation, and benefit the company by improving efficiency and cutting costs. However, the totality of all of this amounts to Walt Disney World effectively leaning into its weakness and away from its strengths. And that’s worthy of a pretty big ‘grievance,’ if you ask me.
Cutbacks & Charges – This is already getting really long, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t at least acknowledge all of the cutbacks and charges for things that used to be included. Want a MagicBand? That’ll cost you! Bread to start your table service meal? Prepare to pay extra! Evening Extra Magic Hours? Upgrade resorts! Want to see a parade or stage show? It’s behind an After Hours paywall.
I’m not a fan of nickel & diming. I don’t want to give this major grievance only cursory treatment, but there’s just not a ton I can add here that hasn’t already been said. There are arguably some scenarios–like cutting back on plastic waste with MagicBands or hiring more housekeepers being nearly impossible–where some of this is understandable. By and large, it’s just a way to improve margins. It’s an effective approach because each is minor in isolation, but there’s a reason why “death by a thousand cuts” is a saying. The totality of these cost-cutting measures has become very noticeable.
End of Disney’s Magical Express – We knew it was coming, but it was still difficult to believe that Walt Disney World would actually follow through and end Disney’s Magical Express this past January. Even until the very last minute, many fans felt the company was playing hardball and would extend its contract with Mears. That did not happen.
To this day, we still hear from readers holding out hope that Disney’s Magical Express will return in 2023. Given that there’s no basis for this belief, it’s one of the more surprising common questions we’re asked. Although its spiritual successor is still operated by Mears and there’s another fun train-themed alternative, Walt Disney World does not offer airport transportation.
Even more than paid FastPass, this has garnered the most backlash and confusion among fans. A year later, I still cannot make sense of this one. Retiring DME is the equivalent of pulling your ace starting pitcher throwing a no-hitter during the World Series. Sabermetrics somehow justifies it, but it makes no sense to anyone in the real world. It’s analytics gone awry, justifying decisions that diminish the overall quality of the experience. The fun is being sucked away by people who don’t actually love the game, armed with computers that have deemed those decisions to be “correct” and “good.”
It seems like the decision to eliminate Disney’s Magical Express was arrived upon in a similar manner, and I can muster no defense for the move, whatsoever. Like stupid sabermetrics decisions that are hurting baseball, I fear Disney is doing something similar with an overreliance on analytics. Perhaps these will bring short-term gains, but also, unknown long-term pain.
Eliminating Disney’s Magical Express is short sighted and will cost the company hotel stays, visits to other theme parks, meals outside the resort complex, and more. One of Walt Disney World’s greatest strengths was its bubble, and the company has voluntarily punctured that. The captive audience that was viewed as advantageous for years is gone–and at a time when Walt Disney World’s #1 competitor keeps growing and getting stronger. Make it make sense.
The thing is, I’m sure there is a business justification for the decision, with complex calculations performed. It all makes sense, if you’re a computer. And yet, it does not pass the simplest of smell tests for humans. (I don’t want to give any false hope, but I still think Walt Disney World might find itself reversing this decision once Epic Universe opens.)
This encapsulates my biggest fear for the future of Walt Disney World. More decisions by analytics, fewer by real people. Less that’s interesting and unique, more that’s beholden to brand deposits and dictated by accountants. Beyond some of what’s listed here, I also see this mentality reflected in entertainment like Disney Enchantment. That nighttime spectacular is easier to explain as something assembled by algorithm, predicated on Disney+ marketing targets or viewership data. I also see it repudiated in things like KiteTails, which is why I love that chaotic and unpredictable show.
Above all else, Walt Disney World should be fun and creative. Its leaders should never lose sight of that, and realize that a decision is only as “good” as its resulting guest satisfaction. They should be cognizant of the fact that everything has a cost, including short-term financial gain. The price paid for guests returning from trips feeling deflated or devalued should be deemed too high, no matter what per capita spending might have to say. Walt Disney World is a business and always has been. It’s also innovative and imaginative, an ambitious endeavor built not by MBAs and accountants, but by creative visionaries–it should be treated as such by those who now lead it. Guests have long known that the company was after their money, but never before have they felt that was the essence of Walt Disney World.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts
Have any grievances of your own to air about Walt Disney World? Do you agree or disagree with our airing of grievances? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
We are taking out last trip in June. I’d cancel, but they won’t refund my park tickets. 30th wedding anniversary, booked the trip six months in advance, got up early on the day we were were “permitted” to make dinner reservations and every single restaurant in all the parks is already booked for the entire week. Guess my bride and I get to go back to our camper and cook every meal?
I’m sick of the greed. We will NEVER and I stress the word NEVER be disney customers again. I’ve cancelled my Disney Plus membership already and once we leave the not so magical kingdom in June, we will never be back. Universal is a FAR better experience. I’m saddened that my new grandson will never get to experience the actual magic that WAS disneyland.
Keep trying, there will be cancellations. They hold tables for walk up folks.
We used to book our favorite restaurants then go to corresponding park for the day. Haven’t been for a few years and tempted to cancel our December trip.
I’m sorry you are having such a tough time on the most basic of resources for guests. I had the same happen to me in March. Have you been to Celebration yet? It’s the “town Walt built”, only a few miles outside of the area off World Drive. We bought a condo there when I got sick of the same issues and put more work into my vacation than at work!@, It has the charm of a small town, Disneyesque, and some really great places to eat. Try the Lakeside Bar and Grill in the Bohemian Hotel for eating right on the lake (it’s our go-to place for special occasions), or The Colombian, or the many other great eating establishments. Often there are concerts in the Park, too. Hopefully, it will make your anniversary a special occasion this year.
I’ have been a DVC member since 2005. I just visited and was greatly disappointed. I had to greet cast members, and many times they seemed indifferent or ignored in general any type of interaction. I did encounter some that used to be what was expected, but for the most part I was underwhelmed. Maybe Im expecting too much?
At my resort, it was evident that monies paid for upkeep are not being utilized. I walked past a candy cane on a walkway every day of my vacation. Yes, I should have picked it up, but it was sort of a test to give credence to the lack of care being given to basic cleanliness.
These are just 2 examples of my dismay. I did try to find positives, as negatives are easy to find; however, I found myself not going to parks. It’s famous saying is “Happiest Place on Earth!” After reflection of my recent vacation, happiness is not what I left with.
We used to vacation at Disney a few times a year now we are down to one trip a year. Just spent a week there hardly ride any rides lines were ridiculous rides were down it was just a big disappointment and a lot of wasted money. The best thing was the resorts stayed at Animal Kingdom and the Poly. DVC rooms. Went to Moonlight Magic huge let down. Bye Disney we will not waste our time or money again.
Disney’s stock went public in 1957 – making them all about shareholder value (aka “money”) for the past 65 years. Companies will focus on what consumers force them to focus on. Chapek didn’t even try to sugarcoat it on the earnings call. They’re charging whatever people will pay. As a shareholder, I am worried that they are prioritizing short-term goals, placing long-term brand loyalty at risk. As a frequent visitor, I’m enraged by the cost of basically every part of a WDW vacation nowadays. I have to acknowledge, though, that I’m part of the problem, because I haven’t cancelled any trips yet.
@ Kelly D. I am also a shareholder and I am not rich. I have taken a closer look at the board and they are all not getting a free pass from me. I also love how every year they ask us to vote NO to some very important submissions from the shareholders themselves. Unlike you, I have nor returned to any Disney property since 2018. I am also a DVC member for context.
Like many have said, once the rich get bored, and they do. Disney will be begging for people to come back. And by then, most of us will have moved on. The world is large beautiful place just waiting for you to discover!
What happened to the Disney we all used to love and admire? Today’s Disney is all about making money and damn to its patrons! My wife and I went to Animal Kingdom and after paying $25 to park, we were left with a half mile walk to get to the entrance! No trams because they were “all at the Magic Kingdom.” Then after paying $250 to get into the park, 3 major attractions were closed!
I complained and was told to write a letter. I did and the response was a joke! Going forward, I’ll find another way to spend my money!
I would like to encourage everyone to provide Disney with your feedback. I sent an email and outlined some of the concerns I had from our last trip, many of which were the same as the ones outlined in this blog post and in many of the comments. I wasn’t rude or nasty, and honestly, I didn’t even expect to get a reply. Within about a week, I got an email back requesting a phone meeting with an employee in the Executive Correspondence department. We spoke today and had a great chat. He asked me several questions about specific experiences that we had and explained that they are using my feedback, and the feedback from others, to work on making improvements to things like Genie+ and cast member customer service, just to name a few. They won’t know what to fix if you don’t tell them. If there was something you enjoyed, or you had a great experience, you should tell them that, too!
Thank you for your comments which will make this conversation much more productive
I was able to respond to the DVC survey that had many of these issues in it
Could you provide the location/person/web that you contacted for others to follow suit?
Thank you
[email protected]
Agree with Nicole, send emails to Disney to voice your complaints. I have sent several emails regarding all of the changes being made and usually get a cut and paste response, sometimes not even on what I emailed about… 🙁 But after my last email regarding why we cancelled our trip (all the things everyone has mentioned) and also commenting on their cancellation process (in a word: hell) I received a call from a very nice woman in customer service. I reiterated my feelings on the various changes (politely of course) and told her it was worth noting I am a huge Disney fan but I CANCELLED my trip I didn’t simply push it out to another date and that we had no intention of booking another trip until things changed and it felt “worth it” to spend that kind of money. She more or less agreed with me on the changes and asked me to get ahold of her if we decided to rebook so she could make sure we were getting the best price possible. She said she was a big fan of doing things “like Walt” and would pass my comments up the chain of command. I have emailed both [email protected] and [email protected] I don’t know if it matters which you use.
Thank you for your information. In my particular case I have called and emailed Disney multiple times with no response. Reporting multiple incidents to multiple phone numbers and email addresses provided by Disney staff members.
Thank you for this positive encouragement. I’ve been thinking of doing just that because as you said, how else will they accurately know. It would be in bad business form not to evaluate grievances and success alike.
I brought my son for the 50th anniversary in January and worked 2 jobs to pay for it. My primary job is in IT, and the days leading up to the vacation, I tinkered with the Idea of just turning my phone off so I could completely disconnect and immerse myself in the experience.
With all of the work I had to do on the phone, I feel like Disney should’ve paid us haha!
Starting with the check in that was supposed to be “contactless and instant.” My room number didn’t display on the app. We stand in line to check in and then head to Disney springs. Whenever we returned my key card nor my phone unlocked the door, so we had to walk all the back to the hotel lobby and get them to fix the card. I never tried with my phone after this.
Magic kingdom… first park, we stood in line for 1.5 hours for space mountain and then it unexpectedly shut down before we got to ride. While in line, I placed a mobile order to pick up within the hour. I immediately got a text that my order was ready, but I did not select that I have arrived. When I finally went to the lunching pad, I had to speak with 3 different cast members to get my $20 pretzels.
Fast forward to genie plus and lightening lanes. I didn’t even know what that was because I don’t want to be on my phone AT ALL. I asked the gentleman in front of me in one of the lines what this lightening lane was and he said you have to pay extra. I looked into it and saw that rides cost between $8-$15 per person to skip ahead of the “common folk.”
Went to pinocchios haus for lunch, and they wouldn’t let me in until I placed a mobile order. I told the cast member I wanted to pay with cAsh and he said “why?” For the love of god you need top of the line iPhone and battery to even go to Disney now! We were averaging one ride per hour.
Next park, new day… Hollywood studios. I had a reservation at Hollywood and vine, character dining. I walk up to the hostess and tell her we have a 2p reservation. She asked if I checked in online. I told her no… she then asked if I wanted her to show me how to check myself in for dinner. I politely asked if she could check me in on the iPad she was holding and she did. I wish I could attach a photo here because it’s comical… in front of this sign masks on, no character on site. That was a “selling point” for eating there I guess. Our hostess brought us to the table without a menu and told me to scan the QR code. I asked her for an actual menu and she brought us one for the table. The characters came around from a distance (I’ll let that slide; however, they pack you like sardines in the attraction line). Same thing with the lines, 1 ride per hour secondary to lightning lane users skipping ahead.
This is not the cast members fault. I know they are given the directive to promote the app, but it really messes with the experience and I’m honestly exhausted from the whole ordeal.
I went in November. It did seem different. The park cast members were friendly as usual. But many are new, or it at least seemed that way. And they are young. I felt that the older experienced cast members were missing, and I missed them. The new ones were not the same. That is how I felt. EPCOT still does not have the international workers back yet, and I miss that. That makes a big difference. The worst part for me though was the genie system. I am a computer science graduate, and I despised the genie. I was spending more time on my phone than I like – especially on vacation. It was not fun. And, it actually made for the worst day I have had in a Disney Park. And I have been a lot since 1971. I would concur with the other complaints I read here about the genie. The fast pass system allowed you to plan your day way ahead of time for free. With the genie you plan as you go during the day and pay for it. You spend lots of time plugging away on your phone. I think I rode two things on the genie one day. Instead of waiting for what seemed forever on the third selection, I just left and went to another park and forgot about the genie. Disney was not fun this trip. And the crowds were way too big. The many (of what I assume to be) Florida residents who get inexpensive season passes make EPCOT seem like a hang out place in the evenings instead of a vacation spot. I am cancelling my March trip this year. It is just too expensive when you add everything up. And for what I got in November, it is not worth it.
I was at WDW Jan 12-14, 2022 and was also terribly disappointed in the ride system.
The value of Genie+ degrades as the day progresses with fewer rides available from which to choose. At the start of the day, a $15 purchase may afford access to 7 rides, but by noon, that may be 4 rides and by 5:00 p.m., there may be just 1 or 2 rides still available. Disney needs to go back to the drawing board and find a more equitable system.
How about going back to the original system, where EVERYONE pays the same admission, waits in the SAME queues, and has the SAME experience? Rich, poor, young, old, white, black, brown, red, yellow.
We went to Disney for the last time in December. It was only to take my grandson before all the new cuts & price increases took effect on Jan 1st. He’d never been to Disney, otherwise we wouldn’t have gone at all.
The Genie & Genie+ was a nightmare. Disney may have allowed us to park hop, but the Genie app didn’t. So it was a waste of money buying the $15 (per person per day) paid FastPass because we could only use it for a half a day. And we purchased the per ride FastPass for Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway. Unfortunately, though, that was the last thing we were doing at the park & when our reserved time became available, the ride was shut down. We then had to wait in line at Guest Services for our money to be refunded. Needless to say, we never tried the Genie app after those two disasters.
Another problem with Disney is its transition to prix fixe meals. I have a child who’s over 10 years old, so she’s charged the adult price. However, she’s a picky eater & eats like a bird, so she always orders off of the children’s menu. So I’m charged the adult price for a kid’s meal which costs half that. We avoided Be Our Guest at dinner because of that, but unfortunately, that pricing style seems to be overtaking the Disney table restaurants.
The magic just isn’t there at Disney anymore. We’ve now moved on to Universal Studios where we can get their version of the FastPass for free if we stay at a premium (aka deluxe) resort. Their military discounted tickets beat Disney’s by a mile. And they don’t pretend their cost-cutting measures are for our safety during COVID while packing the buses to sardine capacity.
It’s going to be interesting to watch how Disney’s nickel-and-diming plays out. I know it wasn’t nearly as crowded when we went in December as it was in 2018 when we went at the same time/same week. And I’m hearing that the 50th Anniversary wasn’t as big a draw as they expected.
Our 1st trip with our kids was the 1st where they had Magic Express. Hubby said why is this free and I said because they get people to come and not leave. It seems like such a dumb business decision to get rid of it.
We went twice n 2021 and had a good time as we try and roll with it on vacation. I do feel that the advantage of staying on-site is not as great at Disney as at Universal which we always visit as well these days.
There was a certain stress about booking 3 fastpasses 60 days in advance but I was used to it and when we were at Disney there was less stress than getting up trying to get a virtual pass or book our 1st Genie pass.
I liked relaxing on vacation!
I can confirm that your opinions are covered with lots of Pixie Dust to find the rationalization for your positive spin/excuses. We just returned from a 12 day Orlando trip. 8 at disney and for the first time 4 at universal.
Our Universal experience was more immersive and magical than our time at Disney by a long shot and on almost every level. The Universal employees were so much friendlier and in the moment than any of the Disney folks. We spoke to a handful at each park and the disney folks were quick to disparage Disney while our interactions with Universal (especially Harry Potter) were downright magical.
Getting up at 7 to create a portion of your day and then continuously refreshing is NOT acceptable. We have never rope dropped before and we hated it Previously I could pre-plan at least some of our day instead of starting blind and then being shut out of opportunities, unable to select LL return windows, ride breakdowns (we’ll over 20 times), the complete lack of available dining reservations and the repeated money grab for aging offerings in disrepair. We have been DVC since 2001 and are considering reselling or outright selling our interest.
We can home disappointed and angry and unlikely to visit WDW in the next 3-5 years. WE WILL be revisiting universal.
I will say we loved the food ordering app and really missed that once we were at universal.
I agree with Ally…. We have cut out a park day and prepare more meals in the room….. we actually come out ahead.
Does anyone know of a platform that allows guests to give WDW our feedback directly?
My first trip to WDW was my honeymoon in 2017. It was the most wonderful, celebratory and healing week! I cried as we travelled back to our resort 2nights before we were to go home because I didn’t want to leave! Everything from the magical express, the magic bands signaling to cast members our celebration, the meal plan, the fast pass, the genuinely happy cast members and more was incredibly impactful to our experience. It was our utopia. We knew it would be hard for us but we vowed to return every fifth wedding anniversary. I immediately started saving all my change religiously in a huge jar to get a jump on it (and works btw) So last spring we booked for our 2022 anniversary trip ; even with our son only being just over a year old when the time comes, we were so excited to have the experience in its own right. But with these changes…… it doesn’t feel right. I’m so disappointed by the direction WDW is taking. I’m forgiving of pandemic temporary measures, even appreciate them and have trust to be there because of them – but they’ve gone further than that and too far. I’m afraid to spend the money as I feel too much of what was important about the experience is now gone and I can’t even wait out the pandemic for it to return. Watching the documentary “Imagineering” they talked about how after the death of the CFO, the CEO (Bob Eisner I believe and I can’t remember the other name) how he lost sight of Walt Disneys vision and the guest experience and crossed that line in focusing too much on financial gains. Attendance severely dropped and they had to reverse or correct the practices to bring people back. Can we hope for this to happen again?? At the very least, it’s probable we will at least postpone a year in hopes of things shaking down better. I hope not in vain. My heart is so sad, I wanted to go back so much now. Sorry that was long. But thanks for letting me say it.
So agree, the extra expense is annoying and hurtful. However, the worse part is that no matter how much I spend or how long I save, the Disney I loved could be gone forever. My visit a month ago it felt like a completely different place than it had been all the previous visits over the past 43 years. Let’s hope things get better.
We just returned from a trip with our family of 8. We had a good time, but it’s just so different now. I notice it especially with the cast members and staff as well. We did Universal for two days as well. I understand it’s a hard time for employees everywhere, but if I’m going to have to deal with grumpy and rude employees I can get that at Universal only with far better attractions. It makes me very sad though. The Disney bubble used to be the best and make it worth the price.
We have been DVC members since 2008, and bought an add on in 2015. The constant changes and the nickle and diming of park visitors has made me take a very serious look at selling our membership and vacationing else where. We take a family vacation every other year and fly into Orlando from Colorado so the Magical Express was always considered as part of the extensive cost of maintaining our membership. Our last trip was in 2020 when all of the Covid restrictions were in place, and was by far the worst vacation at Disney that we have experienced. ( 2020 marked our 16th trip there). We used to live closer and visited as much as twice per year. I feel that the vision that Walt Disney had when he started WDW has been lost and the almighty $$$ has taken its place.
My booking for next year is unrecognisable from my 2020 booking, I’ve utilised dvc for the first time, I have zero dinner reservations, I’ll even share 1 refillable mug with my daughter. I plan to shop at outlets for souvenirs, to have snacks & drinks delivered to my resort , and I’m taking half of what I’d normally spend. You see Disney, nickel & dining works both ways!
Disney is not for the middle class anymore! The pricing is for the rich or only for a once in a lifetime trip. I believe after a return this year for a nostalgic trip to WDW, most people will choose to vacation elsewhere. We loved it when it was not complicated to manage and was affordable.