Disney Parks Pet Peeves
In the immortal words of Frank Costanza, I’ve got a lot of problems with you people, and now you’re going to hear about it! This blog is normally sunshine and rainbows, but it’s time for you to hear what I really think. It’s time for my annual “Airing of Disney Parks Guest Grievances” in honor of Festivus. (Updated December 23, 2023.)
This is a companion piece, of sorts, to our new Top 10 Guest Complaints About Walt Disney World. Those are all of the grievances that you have about the parks. Here, it’s time for all of the issues the parks have with you. Well, not “you” as an individual, and theme parks are inanimate objects so they don’t really have grievances to air. I think you get the idea, though. That list was grievances of guests; this one is grievances about guests.
In our Essence of the Disney Magic post that discusses what makes the parks so special, we share a Walt Disney quote about it taking “people to make the dream a reality.” Clearly, he was referring to the exceptional Cast Members, as all other guests do at Walt Disney World is clog up walkways, obstruct views, make noise during attractions, and lead to longer wait times. 😉
Fair warning: this post is in no way helpful to Walt Disney World, Disneyland, or other park trip planning. Actually, it’s not really helpful to anyone, anywhere at all. Think of it as a junk food blog post that you shouldn’t waste your time reading. That is, unless you don’t really care about wasting your time on the internet, in which case, read away!
I want to underscore that this is meant in good fun and with a lighthearted sense to it. No one is perfect. While these things do bug me, I’m sure I do plenty of things that bug others, and I certainly don’t have any malice towards anyone who does these things. We’ve both been guilty of some of the “offenses” here!
Most of the time, I don’t think people are doing any of these things intentionally, or at least with the express purpose of inconveniencing others. While this could be a helpful heads up to let you know what behavior might be unintentionally obnoxious, it’s mostly just some lighthearted venting.
With those caveats out of the way, I’ll let my inner Frank Costanza (I’d like to think he’d be proud of this list…but at the same time would be its biggest offender) take over and share a few of my Disney theme park pet peeves…
Screens Up! – I don’t know who needs to hear this, but YouTube exists. Joking aside, it’s such an odd phenomenon to see the fireworks start and hundreds of screens go up over heads. Wanting to capture a small snippet to share on social media is one thing, but some people are out there recording the full show with shaky hands from an off-center angle behind a shoulder kid (see below) on a phone with a busted screen. There’s a 100% chance that video will be worse than 100,000+ videos already on YouTube, freely accessible to all.
Don’t get me wrong: having your own photos and videos–even subpar ones–is important. Documenting experiences and having tangible reminders of lasting memories is far better than any souvenir you can buy. What’s key is making them your own. Don’t take photos or video of JUST the fireworks or JUST the stage show or JUST the food.
After recording a few seconds of pyro, pan back to capture the wide-eyed wonder of your child as the glow of the fireworks washes over their face. Take a snapshot of your significant other about to devour a dessert the size of their head. Obtain photographic evidence of grandpa falling asleep during MuppetVision as a future reminder of their distinctly unpatriotic gaffe.
Flaunting Disney Knowledge – Let’s level with one another: I write a Disney blog and you read at least one. We both clearly have too much free time on our hands and probably know much more about Disney than John Q Public.
This is neither a Scarlet Letter, nor is it a badge of honor. Some Disney fans don’t seem to understand this. They share their Mad Park Smartz with their friends in the parks. There’s nothing wrong with this by itself, but when it’s done in painfully loud voices that are clearly for the benefit of those around them in a queue, that’s where I draw the line. You know what I’m talking about.
I’ll be honest with you: it’s possible I’ve become part of the problem. As a frequent photographer of construction walls on both coasts, I very frequently overhear other guests wonder whether Splash Mountain is being converted into a restaurant. If they seem the friendly type, I’ll respond: “I don’t know if you were kidding or not, but it’s actually going to be a similar ride based on The Princess and the Frog. Kinda funny and confusing that they have signs that say ‘Tiana’s Foods’ and nothing about a ride, but that’s what it’ll be.”
That is the script I have “perfected” in my head that is, in my opinion, a good mixture of disarming and not too know-it-all-y. At least, that’s my hope. I’ll let you be the judge as to whether I’m being helpful or have become part of the problem!
Rudeness to Cast Members – Don’t like the quality of the beef patty in your burger at Cosmic Ray’s? Having yet another issue trying to book Genie+ Lightning Lane reservations? Think lines for everything are too long? Yelling at the nearest Cast Member seems like a totally reasonable solution that will absolutely fix the problem.
Oh wait, no it doesn’t. At all. Frontline Cast Members are about as much to blame for those problems and decisions as the McDonald’s burger flipper is for Hamburglar’s many crimes. The Cast Members you see in parks don’t create the unpopular policies, even if they are tasked with enforcing them. Yelling at any of these people is wholly unreasonable. What exactly are guests expecting to accomplish?
Spending a lot of money on a Walt Disney World vacation does not entitle guests to be jerks to anyone who gets in their way or prevents them from having a “perfect” trip. Cast Members go out of their way to put a smile on kids’ faces and make magic for guests, and should be treated accordingly.
This is especially true now. Cast Members are under increased stress, having had to play babysitter and rule enforcers to adults for the last year, while also seeing thousands of their colleagues lost during mass layoffs. On top of that, they also bear the brunt of ever-increasing guest complaints about reduced entertainment, Genie+, and other policy changes and cuts made by people at a way higher pay grade. None of this is their fault–being rude to Cast Members only exacerbates problems and degrades the guest experience for those who visit later, as Cast Member burn-out worsens.
A good rule in life is to follow Wheaton’s Law. If that’s too tough to follow, a lower standard is: “don’t be rude to people regarding situations that are out of their control, especially when they are doing their best to be nice and help you.”
Walking Etiquette – I walk at an extremely brisk pace. I have no time for shenanigans such as meandering aimlessly. However, I understand not everyone desires or can maintain my pace, and I certainly don’t expect it.
What I also don’t expect is a convoy of 4 double-wide strollers walking side by side taking up the entire walkway so no one can pass. Instead, observe the rules of the road. Allow sufficient room for oncoming traffic. Leave open space next to you for a “passing lane.”
On a highway, you wouldn’t aimlessly zigzag from lane to lane without regard for traffic behind you, so don’t do the same in walkways. Likewise, just as you wouldn’t come to a dead stop in the middle of your lane when driving 70 MPH, don’t stop in your tracks to look at a map in the middle of a walkway. Navigate the parks like it’s not your first time walking in public.
Filling In All Available Space – I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but if you’re at the end of the extended queue in Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance and the wait time is 180 minutes, standing as close as possible to the person in front of you won’t make the line move any faster. Spacing way back in line has no bearing on efficiency at load, which is the only thing that really matters. You can leave a little breathing room for comfort farther back in the line.
To be sure, there are times when filling in all available space is necessary. If a Cast Member makes the request, do it–there’s likely an operational reason for it (like getting enough people into the Haunted Mansion Stretching Room to ensure a steady flow in the queue afterwards). Moreover, no one should expect 6′ in all directions at this point. But most of the time, there’s no reason to invade the personal space of the strangers around you. There’s a happy medium.
Disproportionate Line Jumping – I’m a reasonable guy. If you’re a large family with a herd of small children, I get that a trip to the parks is a veritable Detrol commercial. Bathroom breaks are a frequent, time-consuming part of the theme park experience. One parent taking a child to the bathroom while the other jumps in line with the rest of the pack is absolutely reasonable.
What I don’t appreciate is when one member of a multi-generational party of 27 jumps in line, and then slowly the other 26 members trickle ahead of me. That’s not meeting the “rest” of your party, it’s thinly-veiled line-jumping. I never say anything to these people, but you better believe the back of their heads receive a contemptuous glare.
A fair rule: unless 51% of your party is farther forward, the rest of the party moves back. Fair enough?
Talking on Attractions – Again, I’m reasonable. I understand that parks are a social environment. They aren’t a library or a movie theater. Some small, quiet comments here and there are totally fine.
Now it’s everyone else’s turn to be reasonable and understand that the rest of us waited 45 minutes in line so we could enjoy an immersive attraction, not so we could hear you talk about that epic party from last night in excruciating detail as if it has all the drama of the Iran-Contra Affair.
Quoting Attractions – Continuing on the ‘talking’ subject, here’s my biggest pet peeve: quoting lines from attractions in the attraction right before the line is said in the attraction. This is a variation of Flaunting Disney Knowledge, but it’s so annoying that it deserves its own spot.
I don’t mind people quoting attractions in general. I’d like to think the wisdom gleaned from Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree can be applied to all facets of life. What I mind is people beating the attraction to the punch, showing off their own knowledge as if this gives them some sort of ill-gotten street cred. It doesn’t.
Just try and go on the Jungle Cruise without someone saying the words ‘backside of water’ before the skipper, or to the Haunted Mansion without someone saying ‘there’s always my way’ before the Ghost Host. A few words is mildly annoying but relatively harmless–let’s just avoid trying to quote entire paragraphs of the attraction script.
Stroller Etiquette – This has become less of an issue in the last couple of years due to a rule change last year. There was a brief period when Walt Disney World turned into the wild west for strollers, with huge wagons, royal carriages, and Star Wars spaceships. No joke–there were businesses renting out “themed” strollers!
If you operate a stroller, please be mindful of the heels in front of you. Let’s again use the roadway analogy: strollers are like cars–yield to pedestrians. Don’t use your stroller as a battering ram to help you plow through crowds when Walt Disney World walkways are a bit congested with traffic!
Shoulder-Children – Are you 6′ tall and want to put your kids on your shoulders for the fireworks? No problem! It’s not as if there are hundreds of people behind you who also want to see the show or anything. I really am curious as to what line of thought can justify this?
Kids have a tough time seeing a show from the ground and parents have a difficult time holding them at normal eye level. This leaves parents with a conundrum: put them on shoulders or don’t. If you put them on your shoulders, they can see but you’re blocking the view of countless people behind you. This effectively says, “my children seeing the show is more important than anyone behind me seeing it.”
Fair rule: if you want to put your kids on your shoulders, do it from a location where there are not people behind you. Alternatively, choose a viewing location where there are not obstructions in front of you. Both exist, particularly when it comes to Happily Ever After in Magic Kingdom or Luminous: The Symphony of Us in Epcot.
Shoulder kids could really fall under a general penumbra of “Selfish Guests” that would encompass everything from sitting in the middle seats of what clearly will be a packed theater (despite directions from Cast Members to move all the way down), throwing trash on the ground or not cleaning up the trash at your table for counter service meals, smoking wherever you feel like, waving around your selfie stick without regard for others, and a myriad of other things. Again, that $100+ per day ticket is not a license to do whatever the heck you want because, “YOU PAID A TON OF MONEY FOR THIS VACATION.”
Have you steered clear of my airing of Disney theme park grievances thus far? Well, I have a lot more that you are doing! You couldn’t smooth a silk sheet if you had a hot date with a babe…ah, I lost my train of thought. 😉 (I’m sorry, a lot of the references in this blog probably don’t make sense if you’re not a Seinfeld fan. Then again, I’m not so sure I want people reading this blog who aren’t Seinfeld fans.)
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Your Thoughts
What are your Disney theme park pet peeves? Are you so high on the magic of pixie dust when you visit the parks that nothing annoys you? What do I do that annoys you (this is the airing of theme park grievances, after all)? Feel free to vent in the comments. You won’t change anything about how other guests behave at Walt Disney World, but at least it’s therapeutic!
As a person who uses a wheelchair, trust me, no one feels worse or more awkward about your delay than the wheelchair user who is being loaded. I always feel like everyone is watching me and judging me and it’s not a great feeling. I often just wait for the rest of my party if it’s busy, which also sucks, because I don’t get to have the experience with my family.
Also I will say that people tend to not look below their eye line, and so it’s their perception that my wheelchair “came out of nowhere,” when my perception is that they weren’t really watching where they were going. I get it, there’s a lot to look at at WDW, but maybe try to be more conscious of using your situational awareness skills.
Thank you for mentioning people who take up the whole path and make sudden stops in the middle of the walkway. My husband does this and it drives me crazy. I always tell him it is rude for those behind us. At least now I can show him I am not the only one complaining.
Most of these boil down to the total erosion of once-common courtesy in the culture. You won’t find most of these problems at Tokyo Disney Resort, despite those parks being fairly crowded.
Tom….you forgot the not planning ahead for parades and shoving your rugrats in front or between your family members, where you’ve been camping out for an hour and a half, right before the parade stops.
This may seem like an insensitive pet peeve — But how Disney handles wheelchairs on some attractions. Certainly, I’m not upset with those that need wheelchairs. And I understand the difficulty with accommodating them on some attractions. But it can still be very frustrating — I was at the front of the line on Jungle Cruise at an After Hours event. From my point in the front of the line, I still had to wait 20+ minutes while 2 wheelchairs got loaded. (Similarly, I had to wait an extra 20 minutes for a bus driver to load a couple of wheelchairs).
I certainly don’t blame the disabled guests for needing assistance, but I do wish Disney could find ways to better expedite the process.
People are people – Many of your pet peeves can be applied to “Any World” situations.
Post office, grocery store, driving, concert, any place were there is a crowd and others are not within the same mindset. Mine are right!
We gave up our entire 2020 plan when it appeared there was no way to go, even to DW – we are devoted DL people – without putting at least my life on the line (gramma has had lung cancer surgery – already has holes in lungs). We tried and tried because this is our BIG DEAL OF THE YEAR EVERY YEAR!! (Even in years where European wonderful trips take place – NOTHING supplants this family event.)
I’m Gramma, and I arrange the trips in general, and gave up on the Fireworks long ago. The only way to KNOW you will get to see them, is to book a DL Hotel room where you can see at least part of them. There is just no crowd control practiced, and hasn’t been for years. It ruins it. It’s too bad, because it’s a wonderful end to a wonderful day – and we WOULD rather see them in the Park.
Sitting down and eating lunch in the Parks has gotten out of hand. The tables aren’t being wiped. People are not clearing, leaving, BEHAVING. It kinda messes up the day for awhile after the grab and go, which is not what eating in Disneyland is supposed to be about. There needs to be reinstated the tap on the shoulder by a character, waiter, SOMEONE, – Behave!!
And everyone is so right about the strollers and scooters. If you can’t go without a four person stroller, or you are so fat your scooter and yo take up 5′ of walking space, face it – you are not a candidate for Disney.
BTW – I have been a professional Organizer for Events for years and years – BIG EVENTS – I KNOW THE DEAL.
Instead of being against kids on shoulders, I wish Disney would require sitting during the fireworks for everyone able. Standing prevents everyone from seeing and parents can’t always find the magic spots you mention unless they reserve the location for an hour or more. Imagine being a child or a short person. When you see kids on shoulders, you see how they see all the time. Everyone should be able to enjoy the fireworks, not just tall men and kids on shoulders.
My biggest pet peeve is people getting in front of you as your watching a parade. I’m handicapped so I use a wheelchair and we go to the handicapped areas. But no matter where we are rude people bullgard their way in front of me. It’s ok for the rest of my group they are not in a wheelchair. And if you say something politely they pretend like they don’t hear you,or they turn and shrug their shoulders and don’t move. What would Disney etiquette be.
Such great timing. Just craving this very post. You are number 1!
I would add scooters who do the same things you mentioned for strollers. I don’t begrudge anyone their scooter, but I do expect them to drive with care. I was literally run off a path and got my foot run over by a person in AK. Cried out in pain and surprise, and the person barely glanced away from their Cruella de Vil style drive in acknowledgment of my pain. And definitely the people who are distracted by their phones or holding them in distracting/inconsiderate ways such as dark rides or up high during fireworks. All of these problems would be greatly reduced if people could exhibit awareness of others, patience, and value being in the moment.
Excellent! I would like to add, that I hate, when on line, the people behind me touch or bump into my backpack. They will not enter the ride quicker because they are one inch instead of 2-3 feet behind you the whole line.
And what about the big parties going fastlane, because there is one wheelchair in the family?
With regards to fireworks & parade viewing, it takes everything in me to not lose it when someone puts a child on their shoulders w/o regard to those behind them. My second pet peeve is when you have that group of people IN THE FRONT decide to stand up when the show begins blocking those behind them. But, during our last trip in Summer 2019, WDW really left me shaking my head!
Our family has made a dozen trips over the years to WDW and we’ve always made a point to get a prime spot for the castle lights and fireworks, etc. It’s our choice to lose a couple of hours sitting & waiting patiently for that excitement & picture opportunities. This had never been an issue until our last trip in the summer of 2019 when, after picking prime spots and sitting patiently – along w/ quite a few families with young children & older adults – what happens but Disney Cast Members moved throughout the crowd instructing everyone to stand up and crowd together, pretty much shoulder to shoulder. Of course, when that happened the children could no longer see in front of them, and the elderly were unable to stand up for the length of time it would take to watch the complete show. In our area alone, there were too many people to count who couldn’t view the show. The trickle down to this is that the parents are then placing children on their shoulders which then compounds the viewing difficulties. It was very disappointing, especially after a CM told us that they were instructed to do this. I hope that when things go back to normal, WDW doesn’t go back to this policy.
I agree with the huge families cutting in line. This weekend we had a family cut in in line at one of the social distanced spots about half way in and then added at least ten more people before we made it to the attraction. Drives me crazy!
We have 3 kids. My wife many time takes two kids and runs ahead and me and the smallest go park the stroller. Then “cut” in line 2 minutes later. I hate it. It makes me feel like a dirt bag. I’ve seen the look on peoples face when she has been the one coming through the line and “cutting”. I am very much in the camp of don’t get in line til everyone is there. It is the source of more than a few arguments at Disney.
I also say no eating in line. If you wanna take off your mask do it before or after the ride and go sit down.
THANK YOU!!! I could not have said it better myself!
What happened to the rule about oversized strollers! I wish they were as diligent about denying entrance to those strollers as they are about wearing masks .Also people coming to a sudden stop in the middle of the lane, what are you thinking! We were at Disney several weeks ago (November) and lines were very long and we noticed park not as clean as usual. Several rides closed because maintenance issues! Must bring back park hopping!
Families who rent a wheelchair, even if not needed, and switch usage with various family members to get preference on rides and shows. If you truly need the wheelchair, I have no problem with that. Maybe Disney should require a doctor’s note to be able to rent a wheelchair.
a wheelchair or scooter does not get you preferential treatment for rides. Whether it’s a real need or not, They still wait the same amount of time as you.
This past November ‘19, my mother in law came. She needed a scooter or she never could have come. Let’s just say we got preferential treatment!! I could NOT believe it!!!! My son requires the disability pass and didn’t use it. I mean, go Disney. I live in a world where I think no one would abuse this. It made for a very special first trip for my mother in law. She probably doesn’t believe my stories of the lineups.
That was HILARIOUS! my family and I are going in May after not going last April. Haven’t been to WDW in 6yrs, I forgot about all that stuff. To the grumpy commenters-lighten up- it’s funny, he said that in the beginning. To the potty mouth -Just STOP- Ha!Ha! LOL!! The scooter conversations are so funny. Honestly a lot of people just don’t want to walk the whole park n rent them, lol. I’m a walker, and a fast walker but I’ll remember to bring my patience. Thanks for the morning laugh!
In some weird kind of way, it’s encouraging to hear that others (you all) experience some of the identical annoyances as I do – it’s kinda like having an online pet peeve support group. Truth be told, however, the offenders of such grievances are likely not on sites reading post such as this one; or if they are, they don’t care or they would have corrected their offense long before we aired our grievance. People are people, and do not act any differently at WDW than they do at Walmart or Macy’s. So – I lower my expectations of others, and raise expectations for myself and my family. Makes for much better memories to cherish later.
Someone needs a hug.
Also apparently someone didn’t read the entire article.