Just Back from 7 day trip.

[txbuckeye71]

7 days. Stayed off site, rented a house in Reunion.

Probably my 15ish trip in my lifetime, I'm 50. Traveled with wife, three kids (31,24,23), 2 Sons-in-Laws, and 2 grandsons (4,2)

Major Takeaways-

The crowds were manageable but were large. Temps were ridiculous. Mid 80's every day. Made for a miserable few hours each afternoon.

Christmas Party was money well spent, had a great time. Lots of fun.

Have stayed on and off site many times and I'm realizing that when we return in3-4 years we will stay on-site. In order to take advantage of early morning and other perks, you need to stay on site and most likely at a Deluxe resort.

Genie + and LL was easy to use, we purchased it most days.

A few Magic "extras" - free preferred parking 2 days, and numerous free ice creams and drinks.

4 new attractions for us, Ratatouille, Mickey/Minnie, ROTR, and Smugglers - enjoyed all of them immensely.

The Magic is still there, I will say though, that nostalgia is a powerful drug, nothing is like it was in the past. WDW was always expensive, but I never felt like it was a money grab, and actually felt there was value for what we got in return. I often tell people, my kids have been to WDW more than 6 flags and 6 Flags is 45 minutes away in Arlington. (Live in Dallas) I was always turned off Universal, because it always felt that way (money grab)to me. It seems Disney is constantly taking away or charging for items that were included with the price of admission. I do feel now like its a bit of a money grab. Priority #1 is the shareholder and sadly not the paying customer or the cast members. It is what it is.

I don't care for the matching shirt nonsense. My opinion, though unpopular, you are NOT part of the show, its everywhere and I just don't care for them. To each his own.

Lastly, a rant. The Electric Vehicles are out of control. Its absurd. They are rented, in many instances, just so people don't want to walk. They take up a lot of room, they slow down attraction loading. We have a health problem in this country, the crowds at WDW are a microcosm of the country as a whole. We MUST right this ship and participate in our own healthcare.

Oh, and Splash Mountain is still the best attraction at WDW and I am also excited for the retheming to Princess and the Frog. Can't wait.

 

[disneyseniors]

I;m glad you had a good time at disney and don't mind all the changes.
As far as ECV's, I think you should rent one for a day to see how it actually works as you seem to have alot of misconceptions about them. I had to use one a couple of times and I can tell you I would not use one if I didn't have to. Imagine riding on one and that you are at bottom level, so all you see is bottoms. Forget about seeing anything but that! You can't see the buildings, attractions, anything. Even if that were not true, you Have to watch the front of the vehicle at all times. People dont' seem to see them, or just don't care and think you can stop for them on a dime. These ECV's slow down to a stop; you

can't possibly stop when someone steps in front of you and stops. Kids and adults constantly cross in front of you and you have to spend all your time on it watching out for them so you don't accidently hit someone. Fun, huh?

As far as "slowing down loading", well I hope you or a loved one never have a disability and go to disney. Yes, it can slow things down but don't forget that someone who is handicapped is going to get to ride that ride and have a good time too. Also loading the buses with ECV's first is a safety issue. You can't load everyone else and then try to load one. Up to six family are allowed by disney to get on with them. And, ECV's are the last to get unloaded at the park, so they are the last to the attractions. Remember that! Also, it is not cheap to rent one. We rented one each day at the parks and it was $60 or 75 with deposit (I can't remember exactly) but it was not cheap. Multiple that by a few days or a week. I can't see any one going through the expense or aggravation that using an ECV requires.

There may be some to rent one "just because they don't want to walk", but they are few are far between. And speaking of overweight? If someone can't walk or exercise, they might tend to be over weight. Not everyone is lucky enough to be able to walk,run, or move that well to be able to keep the weight off, so dont' judge them.

I do strongly recommend you rent one for a day, and have fun, LOL!