Gotta be honest.... Not my best trip

[whoever]

Pennies on the dollar compared to any one of my previous trips. I try to roll with the punches and be upbeat on everything, but sometimes you just gotta say what you are thinking and not saying off your chest especially when you are spending $5k for 3 people for 4 days (really only 3 days)

Crowd levels: INSANE
Genie +: Simply a requirement to experience practically ANY attraction
Extra Magic HALF HOUR: Debacle with the new entry methods and understaffed security lines. and NOTHING open for it.
Attraction uptime: EVERYTHING 101 most of the day
Park Hopping after 1PM only.: Should have been provided a discount on hoppers. POINTLESS
Live experiences: NO CAST MEMBERS TO STAFF.... all but eliminated.
Dining: Some good, some bad. A SHADOW of what it once was. The need for ADRs 60 days out combined with starting park restrictions... UGH.
Hotel: Still good service and appointments. Wish ours had been a better room. Is what it is.

We made the best of it, but this was an exhausting and disappointing trip due to the aforementioned items. Not a relaxing vacation....

I saw VIP after VIP tour during this trip. It's honestly the only way to get a pre-covid DLR experience these days, but well out of my limited price point.

Not a front-line CM shortage either. CMs standing around with nothing to do because there are no maintenance CMs to maintain the attractions... OR Disney is DELIBERATELY putting attractions into 101 to drive up G+ sales. I'd like to think its the former, but I think personally its the latter.

 

[D2Pugs]

Yes! Yes! and Yes! THANK YOU for your honest review. I completely agree with everything you said.

We just returned from a Disney trip and the only highlight of our trip was the concierge and staff at the Veranda lounge -GCH. The only thing that felt consistent and like the pre-covid days.

We even booked a Plaza Inn Breakfast and not one character came to our table! Not one! Oh and we booked the Holiday Tour as well and that was a total let down. Disney is not the same as it used to be.

We agreed as a family to skip Disneyland Parks and just stick to Aulani and Disney cruises. Such a shame.

 

[whoever]

Yes! Yes! and Yes! THANK YOU for your honest review. I completely agree with everything you said.

We just returned from a Disney trip and the only highlight of our trip was the concierge and staff at the Veranda lounge -GCH. The only thing that felt consistent and like the pre-covid days.

We even booked a Plaza Inn Breakfast and not one character came to our table! Not one! Oh and we booked the Holiday Tour as well and that was a total let down. Disney is not the same as it used to be.

We agreed as a family to skip Disneyland Parks and just stick to Aulani and Disney cruises. Such a shame.

While I am no longer a frequent visitor my friends are. We all spend and we are getting less and less every time. This is the first time I Felt the need to educate some folk, but it is..

 

[10stime]

This was exactly how we felt when we got back from a trip October 19th-24th (we stayed at the Grand and attended 2 Halloween parties). I am always ok with splurging on these trips and ready to plan the next the second we get home. For the first time the experience didn't cast enough shadow over the $$$ spent and the CRAZY crowds. So many hours were wasted in lines (a few that we had paid extra for the lighting lane after already buying Genie +) to only have the ride go down and then have it no longer work with the rest of our schedule. I was totally ok with maxpass but magic genie+ and lighting lane do not work in my opinion. We made great memories as always and will cherish them but until something changes I just cant justify another trip. This is the first Christmas in about 14 years (minus 2020) that I won't be going which makes me so sad.

D2Pugs, We also did the breakfast at Plaza Inn which we have done so many times before. We were the only table that didn't attack the characters when they came in the room and we were the only table that got skipped. They used to have people around reminding families to wait at their table and the characters would come to them, it was a zoo.

 

[irlandaise]

Does "101" mean not working?

And what are the new entry methods for Early Entry? Are there fewer places that hotel guests can enter from?

 

[whoever]

Does "101" mean not working?

And what are the new entry methods for Early Entry? Are there fewer places that hotel guests can enter from?

Yes, 101 is Disney speak for attraction down.

Early Entry is ANYTHING BUT early. They open security at 7 when EE starts at 730. Y0u have 500 people in front of you, and they open the park gates to everybody and then screen out the EE people to the side. It's Absolutely HORRIBLE compared to days gone bye. You are LUCKY if you can even get to EE from Security by your entrance window and then, once in, 90% of what is supposed to be open is DOWN

 

[whoever]

This was exactly how we felt when we got back from a trip October 19th-24th (we stayed at the Grand and attended 2 Halloween parties). I am always ok with splurging on these trips and ready to plan the next the second we get home. For the first time the experience didn't cast enough shadow over the $$$ spent and the CRAZY crowds. So many hours were wasted in lines (a few that we had paid extra for the lighting lane after already buying Genie +) to only have the ride go down and then have it no longer work with the rest of our schedule. I was totally ok with maxpass but magic genie+ and lighting lane do not work in my opinion. We made great memories as always and will cherish them but until something changes I just cant justify another trip. This is the first Christmas in about 14 years (minus 2020) that I won't be going which makes me so sad.

D2Pugs, We also did the breakfast at Plaza Inn which we have done so many times before. We were the only table that didn't attack the characters when they came in the room and we were the only table that got skipped. They used to have people around reminding families to wait at their table and the characters would come to them, it was a zoo.

100%+ FACTS. All of it.

 

[Lumpy1106]

Thanks for posting - sorry about all the hiccups. Does anyone have the e-mail for guest relations? They need to see this. We thought about taking the family for a day - then realized that it would only be about $100 more to go on a (short) Disney cruise out of San Diego. Maybe - just not right now, and a crowded day in DL is definitely not going to happen. One thing is for sure, G+ and LL are here to stay until people like us determine it's just not worth it and stay home. It shouldn't have to come to that.

 

[whoever]

This was exactly how we felt when we got back from a trip October 19th-24th (we stayed at the Grand and attended 2 Halloween parties). I am always ok with splurging on these trips and ready to plan the next the second we get home. For the first time the experience didn't cast enough shadow over the $$$ spent and the CRAZY crowds. So many hours were wasted in lines (a few that we had paid extra for the lighting lane after already buying Genie +) to only have the ride go down and then have it no longer work with the rest of our schedule. I was totally ok with maxpass but magic genie+ and lighting lane do not work in my opinion. We made great memories as always and will cherish them but until something changes I just cant justify another trip. This is the first Christmas in about 14 years (minus 2020) that I won't be going which makes me so sad.

This is EXACTLY my experience as well. I've already given Disney a piece of my mind over it. They made it right in the past, but I doubt anything will come of it this time.

 

[coreyfdizz]

While I am no longer a frequent visitor my friends are. We all spend and we are getting less and less every time. This is the first time I Felt the need to educate some folk, but it is..

It’s what happens when you run a theme park like a retail operation. It’s all about maximizing the money spent by guests in the park. Each square inch of the park must show continuous revenue stream throughout the day.
Shutdown the path for a parade in California Adventure is heresy and that’s why you’re stuck with Food and Wine Fests because it’s generating continuous revenue throughout the day.
Overstaff?!? Not in a retail operation. As long as they have reservations they could get away with minimum staffing. Many years ago, when I worked in department store, registers where placed for customers convenience. Then someone got the bright idea of centralized registers, so you save on labor cost and forced customers to a single register location for longer lines.
Park maintenance and over attentive cast members was hallmark of Walt’s vision of his theme park over the typical amusement parks of his time. Looks like Disneyland is becoming more of an amusement park with better theming. It’s not going to change until people stop going back for “pay more and get less” experience.

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

Oh, that is something I didn't even bring up but will now. World of Disney in DTD... You can enter from the East, but you can only leave via the West. Seriously. It is now a literal funnel. I was going to press the issue as I was PISSED, but my wife talked me out of a confrontation with a CM over my ability to LEAVE A BUILDING. FFS. GARBAGE.

I truly hate this about WOD and I have actually chosen to not go in (and spend) because I didn't want to have to walk the forced ways they required.

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

Pennies on the dollar compared to any one of my previous trips. I try to roll with the punches and be upbeat on everything, but sometimes you just gotta get what you are thinking and not saying off your chest especially when you are spending $5k for 3 people for 4 days (really only 3 days)

Crowd levels: INSANE
Genie +: Simply a requirement to experience practically ANY attraction
Extra Magic HALF HOUR: Debacle with the new entry methods and understaffed security lines. and NOTHING open for it.
Attraction uptime: EVERYTHING 101 most of the day
Park Hopping after 1PM only.: Should have been provided a discount on hoppers. POINTLESS
Live experiences: NO CAST MEMBERS TO STAFF.... all but eliminated.
Dining: Some good, some bad. A SHADOW of what it once was. The need for ADRs 60 days out combined with starting park restrictions... UGH.
Hotel: Still good service and appointments. Wish ours had been a better room. Is what it is.

We made the best of it, but this was an exhausting and disappointing trip due to the aforementioned items. Not a relaxing vacation....

I saw VIP after VIP tour during this trip. It's honestly the only way to get a pre-covid DLR experience these days, but well out of my limited price point.

Not a front-line CM shortage either. CMs standing around with nothing to do because there are no maintenance CMs to maintain the attractions... OR Disney is DELIBERATELY putting attractions into 101 to drive up G+ sales. I'd like to think its the former, but I think personally its the latter.

I am so sorry to hear of your recent experience. As a Magic Key holder and frequent park visitor I have been sharing my similar experiences here rather regularly, though I've been accused by some of being negative and/or exaggerating things. But the fact is, the park experience is NOT GOOD right now. And people need to know it. I have friends who ask me when they should go and I have told them all not to go now. It's bad, bad, bad.

Do *I* still enjoy the parks? Yes, I do, but ONLY because we can go frequently and have very low expectations per visit. My kids are happy to ride Ariel and make pressed pennies and ride the train and get a few treats and wave at some characters. But for infrequent trips, where you're spending a lot and wanting to do a lot, it's just not good right now. Which makes me sad.

I hope you hear back from Disney regarding your comments. I hope Disney wants to fix this mess.

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

So sorry to hear this, @whoever. I believe this is your first trip in a while? Sad to hear that it wasn't a good one. We are going for Christmas and I suspect it will be our last trip for a while--I hate the park reservation/park hopping limitations and IMO Genie+ is a disaster. As you mentioned, I also hate having to get ADRs now at Disneyland. The ability to walk up to restaurants used to be one of the biggest perks of DL versus WDW. I hope the company is listening. They may be printing money in the parks right now, but it will eventually catch up with them--especially if there is a recession.

 

[whoever]

I am so sorry to hear of your recent experience. As a Magic Key holder and frequent park visitor I have been sharing my similar experiences here rather regularly, though I've been accused of being negative and/or exaggerating things. But the fact is, the park experience is NOT GOOD right now. And people need to know it. I have friends who ask me when they should go and I have told them all not to go now. It's bad, bad, bad.

Do *I* still enjoy the parks? Yes, I do, but ONLY because we can go frequently and have very low expectations per visit. My kids are happy to ride Ariel and make pressed pennies and ride the train and get a few treats and wave at some characters. But for infrequent trips, where you're spending a lot and wanting to do a lot, it's just not good right now. Which makes me sad.

I hope you hear back from Disney regarding your comments. I hope Disney wants to fix this mess.

I always make the best of things, but this was such a disappointment. The ONLY things that lived up to my expectations was Carthay lounge and Club 33 and the DLH staff. Even 33 was depreciated for us from past visits.

 

[whoever]

So sorry to hear this, @whoever. I believe this is your first trip in a while? Sad to hear that it wasn't a good one. We are going for Christmas and I suspect it will be our last trip for a while--I hate the park reservation/park hopping limitations and IMO Genie+ is a disaster. As you mentioned, I also hate having to get ADRs now at Disneyland. The ability to walk up to restaurants used to be one of the biggest perks of DL versus WDW. I hope the company is listening. They may be printing money in the parks right now, but it will eventually catch up with them--especially if there is a recession.

37 months since my personal last visit. The wife had gone twice this summer though as she's the leader of the GS troops. Still, pales in comparison.

 

[whoever]

I'm currently doing my TR, and I'm struggling with things to say or things we did. It is lackluster at best.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/v...olo-trip-with-dapper-day-and-club-33.3901684/

 

[margareton27]

I have to agree with you on everything you posted. We were there October 3-5 and our adult son came with us. It was a disaster. The main attraction for him to see was the Haunted Mansion overlay. That was the only thing we could use Genie + for. Mostly our fault as we left the hotel a little later and missed the early slots. We did pay extra for ROR or he and my husband would not have gotten on.
We did the Oogie Boogie Bash and thank goodness we did! I know folks on these boards are all about the treat trails. We were all about the rides! We got on everything we wanted to and a good thing as the next day we started in DCA and you could not move. Lunch at Flo’s for mobile order was a wait of 90 minutes. Rides were up and down all day. We grabbed beer, wine and ice cream then picked up a Genie+ for Haunted Mansion and hotfooted it out of there. We did the dessert party for World of Colour and it was the only relief we had from the crowds all day.
Definitely not high on my list to return too soon. While our son enjoyed his time with us there he agreed that it was just too oversold. No reservations left=sold out I am assuming.

 

[StormyCA]

@whoever Thanks for your honesty. The things you mention are the reasons that I keep putting an 'onsite' DLR trip off. I just don't want to put out 'that kind' of money and then end up regretting it because of a frustrating and/or disappointing experience.

I'm really looking forward to our WDW trip next Fall, WDW has always been more 'regimented' than DL and I think it will work to advantage with the 'new normal'. I've already got our park reservations made, I'm used to getting up at 3am to make ADRs at 60 days, and I think G+ will work well for us.

But as far as DL I think my first trip will be 'dipping my toe' in the parks with a one day hopper while staying with family early next year.

 

[whoever]

I have to agree with you on everything you posted. We were there October 3-5 and our adult son came with us. It was a disaster. The main attraction for him to see was the Haunted Mansion overlay. That was the only thing we could use Genie + for. Mostly our fault as we left the hotel a little later and missed the early slots. We did pay extra for ROR or he and my husband would not have gotten on.
We did the Oogie Boogie Bash and thank goodness we did! I know folks on these boards are all about the treat trails. We were all about the rides! We got on everything we wanted to and a good thing as the next day we started in DCA and you could not move. Lunch at Flo’s for mobile order was a wait of 90 minutes. Rides were up and down all day. We grabbed beer, wine and ice cream then picked up a Genie+ for Haunted Mansion and hotfooted it out of there. We did the dessert party for World of Colour and it was the only relief we had from the crowds all day.
Definitely not high on my list to return too soon. While our son enjoyed his time with us there he agreed that it was just too oversold. No reservations left=sold out I am assuming.

I'll be sending this thread to Disney once they respond and I suspect they will. I left a poor review and they did last time and made it right

 

[ktlm]

Yep-- that is how we felt about our trip last fall. And there was no Genie+ yet, so for the first time we had to do it with zero fast passes and no max pass. We have been every year since 2010 except for 2020. Because of our trip last year we skipped DLR this year entirely. Prices way up and value way down.

We were going to both DLR and WDW most every year. The WDW value and experience was already going down before 2020. Our fall trip there in 2018 was not great-- it was way more expensive than our past trips and we felt the experience and the level of service was a lot less- so we skipped that in 2019. I have had plans to go there for the 50th Anniversary and was looking forward to it for at least 10 years-- but with prices the way they are; Genie+ and LL and ILL the way they are, the hopping limitations, park reservations, and the reports I have seen, it just wasn't worth it. So we decided against both WDW and DLR this year.