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!
Our 6 year old son got to ride Flights of Passage for the first time when we went a few weeks ago. Unfortunately we ended up with a group of teenagers who had obviously ridden several times already. They kept goofing around and making snarky comments during the pre-show. The CM had to tell them multiple times to be quiet. So frustrating and really killed the magic for our family. Luckily we did get a second ride on it later that went much better.
I never understood the shoulder kids, even when I had little ones. Putting them “piggyback” gives them a view that is no higher than your own head, so it’s a more considerate option that is just as effective, with the added bonus of being significantly less likely to result in your child falling.
Navigate the parks like it’s not your first time walking in public.
LOVE it. We just got back and there were so many folks stopped in the middle or a group of 6 or more walking side by side SLOWLY so you could not passs. (we also walk at a brisk pace most of the time)
My biggest pet peeve is the line jumping. I agree 100% that A fair rule: unless 51% of your party is farther forward, the rest of the party moves back. Fair enough?
I hate when you are in a long line lets say MORE than 60 minutes and when you are just about at the front someone comes to meet up with their party. (each time this happened to us this week there was no young child in tow). If you are early in the line and someone joins because they ran to the restroom I am fine with that but have had someone literally join their party at the FRONT of a 2 hour line – seriously!
Right now I have a pet peeve about masks.
I don’t like them. I don’t know if they are actually a good thing or not – not an expert.
HOWEVER. It is the current rule so wear them. And where they OVER your nose.
We had rides where they would not start it because people would not put on their maskes. Seriously I know Disney castmembers don’t want to be jerks but wish they would have kicked them off. (we are talking adults not small children)
Had a 2 hour line for FOP where a woman in front of us had it in her had the WHOLE time. They have cameras. They can see her. She didn’t put it on until they asked her in the front of the line. Meanwhile her family had on theirs. Again – I hate them but I follow the rules!
Agree on the scooters. they can be even worse than the strollers since they are often driven by folks who are not used to them and put them at full speed in a crowd.
Just got back from a trip. I agree with all of this – but please add scooters to the stroller problem! We were run over by numerous scooters in all parks – they are definitely used as battering rams. It seems that many people who have never used a scooter before decide to rent one at WDW. Of course there are some who are considerate and know how to maneuver it – but many more that just run over whoever’s near them.
Agree with all of these. But my personal hill to die on is when rude ignorant people take flash photos/videos on dark rides. Even after the magical disembodied voice over the ride speaker reprimands them. My kids have had to hold me back. Once I nearly hopped over three bench seats on Pirates while some idiot ruined my all-time favorite ride (maybe this can count as feats of strength?).
Tom,
You’re quite funny & accurately to the point.
I had the opposite experience of having a child sitting on her fathers shoulders, right behind me.
I thought the little girl was absolutely delightful, until I got a splash of mucous descending on the top of my head when she sneezed w/o warning.
Good thing my hair was in need of a wash.
@Adam–floating scooter assistants would be great but what they really need is to reconfigure the buses so scooter and wheelchair users don’t have to parallel park. that’s what is so time consuming, especially for new/rental scooter users. I’ve been using a wheelchair for distances for years now, so I have it down, but if you only use a scooter once or twice a year, the learning curve is steep. if there was another way to configure that, it would speed things up immensely.
Tom….just love this review….so accurate and really what most of us are thinking! It did not read as a criticism to the less ‘able’…and totally agree that Disney should manage the ‘flow’ better for those less fit ..after all it is their vacation too ….love all you reviews Tom…keep them coming please….from a very cold Scotland…..missed being in Florida for past 2 years …..2022 here we come…..fingers crossed.
You made my night! So funny! Mainly because a great deal of your pet peeves are mine too. Love your writing & Seinfield quotes.
I need a scooter for getting very far. Have used ones several times at Disney. It can’t be exhausting making sure you’re not in crashes. Stroller folks sometimes appear oblivious to others being there with them. Random change of direction like squirrels in the road. Suddenly stopping. Had one man bound and determined he was going to force his way in front of me at last second. I feel bad about bus loading, luckily I can actually maneuver mine, but the locking down takes time. A couple of roving scooter loading folks might be helpful. Maybe dedicated scooter buses? The general rudeness of people needs to stop. Maybe other folks should tell the nasty people in unison “be nice!”
Wow, so happy I read this one! I’m going to leave a comment for no reason other than to share my same grievances LOL
The screens up thing is an interesting phenomenon, but because of the generation we live in definitely unavoidable! Though I love your tips about how to make them more personal!
Rudeness I 1000% agree! It is never okay to be rude to a cast member who is just trying to do their job! I share kindness with everyone I talk to, even if they don’t share it back! It’s so important to me to be the reason someone smiles, and never the reason someone has a bad day!
Walking is my biggest pet peeve anywhere! Malls, stores, and especially theme parks! I TOTALLY understand people walking slowly for a multitude of reasons, but it’s so important to leave that lane so people can pass if they need/want to! Everyone deserves to go about their visit at their own pace, so just a little self awareness about others trying to get by you can make a big difference!
I also hate people being so close to me, even pre covid I always tried to give people room to breathe in lines, and hope others do the same. There’s a difference between “all available space” and stepping on heels/breathing in my ear.
So fun to vent those frustrations in a safe space! Again, I try to be as thoughtful of others as I possibly can when on vacation, and totally understand everyone has different needs! But sometimes, like I said, a little self awareness can go a long way!
You left out the Feats of Strength – saving that for another post?
I’ve just read the first page, and sadly didn’t realize that so many people can’t tolerate slow walkers or people on scooters!
Believe it or not, some people are Not Able to walk fast. My husband has nerve damage to his leg and uses a cane, has poor balance at times, and walks slow. So, there are people who want to enjoy disney too, even if they have to walk slowly or if they just want to take it all in.
When did everyone get so impatient and intolerant of others?
The other one is scooters. I have been aggravated, too, with the bus waits and loading of scooters with families. That was until I had to use one due to injury. I look “normal” and could walk onto some attractions too. Believe me, using a scooter is Not Fun at all! You have to be on constant watch for the child who walks or runs out in front of you, or adults who are distracted by phones, or something else. You can’t look at anything else while driving one of these. All you see are butt-level views and crowds.
Also, if you are not aware, disney allows up to 6 or 7 (don’t remember) family members to ride the bus with the scooter user. I have seen people who were in the regular line suddenly move over and hurry into the bus with the real family members. grrr! If some of the complainers actually paid for and used one of these scooters while at disney, they would have a whole new view of the situaton. As I said before, “It Is Not Fun”.
I think we (the general public) are becoming more impatient and in a big hurry most of the time. I know there are time restraints, reservations, etc, etc, but please stop, and put yourself in the place of a slow walking person or someone who is unlucky enough to have to ride a scooter.
@brighter — Be assured I’m not judging you, nor is anyone in my party. It can’t possibly be fun for you to have to endure a cumbersome loading procedure.
So my pet peeve isn’t with people who are disabled — My pet peeve is Disney not doing a better job at devising efficient loading.
For example, one night at Magic Kingdom after park close — Getting on the bus back to the resort, there were 2 wheelchair users. The bus driver spent well over 20 minutes breaking his back by himself to get them loaded before the bus could start taking other guests and eventually depart. How about WDW having a couple floating attendants in the bus area to help load wheelchairs? If that bus driver had another set of hands, that 20-30 minutes could probably have been cut to 10-15 minutes.
100% agree on walking etiquette. As fast walkers this one is tough to deal with. Though we certainly understand slowing down and soaking it all in.