Never thought I'd do it- Cancelled.

[rjc1058]

Just got home last night from a 8 day trip and it will be our last until changes are made. Was the trip magical for our 4 year old birthday girl- yes, most definitely. But that was due to the amazing CMs that are doing the best they can. Our trip cost over $10k for 4 adults and 1 jr- we stayed at Art of Animation, ate only quick service except 1 meal at BOG ($450) and fireworks party ($550). We purchased Genie 3x (79.90 each) and ILL for Mickey runaway and Snow White). In 8 days housekeeping only came by once (2 were scheduled and they never came even after calling and scheduling a time), had to get up by 6:45 most mornings to get either Genie, virtual line or ILL, fireworks lasted less than 10 mins and had no story to them, food options were limited from before, long wait times for buses and Genie is a nightmare. I was willing to pay $80 just to get slinky dog on our last day and 5 secs after 7am they were all gone. Luckily they refunded my money but told me it was a non refundable service and would not be refunded again. The genie will tell you available at 10/30am but by the time you add your family and select it is 7pm. And you are paying for this disaster. And not to mention magic bands did not work at all for 1 1/2 days. If you didn’t have cash or credit card you could not eat or drink. We have been going multiple times a year for 24 years. Sadly it is time for new family traditions.

 

[clm10308]

I don’t know. I think maybe it is just all the changes that are problematic to us frequent visitors. Someone who has never been won’t have anything to compare it to.
I like the Genie + system better than the previous FP+ where fast passes had to be reserved 60dsy out or whatever it was. I silk had to wake up early that day and/or try to make time at workto make those reservations. And the old paper fast passes often caused a big stampede at RD to get the popular ride. At least now I don’t have to worry about getting trampled.
iadmit That I would like it better if Genie + were free, but then again I remember paying for whatever Universal called their front of the line psss a long time ago.
As more parades and shows come back Iwill be happier because I prefer todo rides while others are waiting or watching the shows.
All that being said,WFW is expensive. If we had not bought into DVC 25 yrs ago, we wouldn’t have done Disney as much as we have.

 

[Bobb_o]

I never realized how many people pay that much. My AKV contract cost like $15k total and I can use it until 2057. Yes, I have to pay annual dues every year but still the value is there (plus I can sell the contract and based on resale prices there's a very good chance I get that initial money back) compared to what I'm reading people have to pay for deluxe resorts.

 

[Grumpy by Birth]

We have booked a trip to Portugal in May (fingers crossed for calmed down Covid)

I hope you get to go and enjoy Portugal!

Years ago, when I was stationed in Germany, we had a 4-day weekend for Thanksgiving and did a "Christmas with the Kranks" style Thanksgiving trip to Portugal. We flew down to Lisbon and spent the day seeing the sights there. Then drove down to our resort on the beach in Albufeira (not really swimming weather at that time of year, but it was relatively warm... just needed a light coat when it was breezy).

Having Cataplana for Thanksgiving instead of turkey is one of our favorite holiday memories!

We even made a side trip on one of our days all the way down to see Gibraltar and then Seville, Spain on the way back to Portugal (super early start and super late return, but worth it!). We only got to scratch the surface at Seville, but loved it so much that we flew there from the U.S. years later and spent an entire week there.

 

[Grasshopper2016]

It's basic supply and demand economics and Disney does a disservice to their share holders if they don't take advantage.

Yes and no, in my opinion. In today's corporate environment, it's true that shareholders demand instant returns, every quarter. But it remains the case that companies ought to be working to ensure long-term growth and value, and that plundering the company for short-term profits at the expense of long-term progress is also doing a disservice to shareholders. The directors and officers of a company whose value is composed in significant part of goodwill do their shareholders no favors when they squander that goodwill by ignoring customer satisfaction. That might be a good way to maximize executive compensation. But it's not a good way to run a company long term.

 

[goofyernmost]

I’ll add to those commenting about making trips to National Parks. Some of those require planning a year in advance as well. And take a look at vehicle rental prices. It’s gonna be costly. Been there, done that. I would recommend taking those trips.

Of course National Parks require some planning. My trip to Europe in 2015 required 11 months of sometimes intensive planning, but once it was planned, I just followed the plan and saw real things not plastic models of things. More importantly the identifying headline for a theme park is that it falls under the heading of Amusement Parks. It is not a thing that should be so serious that we have to spend so much time on it. The worse part is that the way to get the most out of the experience requires that you continue to plan, adjust and adapt even after you get there. I don't want to do that, I just want to see the attractions, laugh and enjoy. I don't want to have to spend my time with my nose in my phone in order to only half experience what I went to see.

Sure, when we decided to take a side trip from Rome to Pompeii, it took a while to plan and reserve that, but I spent the entire time walking though the ruins looking at the ruins not my phone trying to figure out where I wanted to eat later in the day. There are things that require careful planning. Things like financial portfolios or getting your children settled in college, but to ride Small World should require a minimum of planning that doesn't require guessing months in advance if it is going to rain on the Tuesday you think you would like to attend.

 

[Darcy03231]

I wonder how many of the outraged Disney folks are *exclusively* Disney travelers. All travel has gotten dodgy and expensive. Perhaps it’s a matter of perspective.

I have two upcoming non-Disney vacations.

(1) Cruise in an extended aft-balcony cabin. Package includes alcohol, specialty dining, wifi, $50 per port shore excursion credit, and gratuities. We've already picked our shore excursions. Total cost $3588. By comparison a week at WDW in a moderate room that includes just the room and base park tickets is $3436. That's before we've bought food, drinks or anything else. Airfare for both trips is about the same. Transfers for WDW would be slightly higher.

(2) Week at Sandals Curacao. Package includes everything - - food, drinks, all activities. Total cost $5371. Cost to go to WDW for the same week in a Deluxe resort with base tickets is $5,660. Again, no food/drink, Genie+, LL, etc.

In past years Disney would have gotten those vacation dollars. My neighbor and I still haven't rebooked the trip we were going to take last fall with her children. The way things are looking now we might not.

 

[ZellyB]

Yes and no, in my opinion. In today's corporate environment, it's true that shareholders demand instant returns, every quarter. But it remains the case that companies ought to be working to ensure long-term growth and value, and that plundering the company for short-term profits at the expense of long-term progress is also doing a disservice to shareholders. The directors and officers of a company whose value is composed in significant part of goodwill do their shareholders no favors when they squander that goodwill by ignoring customer satisfaction. That might be a good way to maximize executive compensation. But it's not a good way to run a company long term.

Fair enough. It may yet to be seen if they have truly cost themselves in the long-term. As pointed out, this board represents a very tiny portion of their overall theme park business and while they may well have alienated some fans forever, it's not clear if that number is significant enough to cause detriment in the long term. And, if it is a significant portion, what percentage of those will be easily wooed back by lowered prices and improved experiences if/when business begins to falter. Jury's out on that, I suppose. In the meantime, it does suck to see a product/experience that people on this board have loved for many years become something relatively unrecognizable and I don't fault anyone for being sad and frustrated by it.

 

[Mickeynutty]

We just got back from a stay at Wilderness Lodge.

To anyone that didn’t experience WDW 20 - 25 years ago, you really don’t understand all the ways in which it has changed. Here are just a FEW things we experienced at Wilderness Lodge, Christmas 2000:

Early park entry one hour before official park opening
Each morning clever, different towel animals in our room
Complimentary (FREE) kids activities in the lobby (like making ornaments)
Flag family
Personalized tours of the Lodge - FREE
Surrey bikes to rent to go to Fort Wilderness
A marina with boat rentals, fishing, mouse boats
”Sleigh” rides to Fort Wilderness
A gift left at your door Christmas morning
Local choirs performing in the lobby most evenings
Napkins, swizzle sticks, room stationary all had Wilderness Lodge Logo on them
The BBQ was cooked on site and filled the Lodge with a wonderful smell
REAL wood burning fireplaces

It leaves me sad....

 

[Shughart]

Sounds like the OP has been reading a lot of negative 3rd party reports. I'd just encourage those in a similar position to go and decide for themselves.

I'm not willing to spend that kind of money to 'go and decide for myself.'

 

[dreynolds1982]

tl;dr alert...

Maybe I'm in the minority, and granted I have actually used the system yet, but I like what I've seen so far from Genie+ and LL. It seems similar to the ole paper FP system (despite the added cost, obviously) but with what I see as the convenience of using your phone. I remember the paper FPs, having to run from machine to machine, wait in long lines, sometimes a family "rep" with like 10 park tickets so they can get FPs for everyone in their party. And just like with the current system, popular rides were out of FPs early, sometimes by 10 or 11 am. Also, my parent just went on a 3 day trip where they hit up every park. They decided they didn't want to deal with the Genie + and they didn't have any issues. Wait times were reasonable and they managed to do everything they wanted, multiple times in many cases. Did they have to get the parks a little early or stay a little late? Sure, but that's always been the best strategy anyways. I firmly believe you can still get a ton out of a Disney trip and have a blast without over planning and getting lost in the details, but also understand that it's all relative.

All that aside, I agree on the cost. It's obscene and unfortunate and is without a doubt a barrier for many. The bad thing is, as long as the market will bear that price, Disney will keep charging it. But, the GOOD thing is, if/when the market will no longer bear it, things will come down. I also don't really blame Disney for the expense. I don't AGREE with it, mind you, but I understand it. If people wouldn't pay it, they wouldn't charge it. At the end of the day they are a business and are out to make a profit. They are doing what they think is best for their business. That being said, you as a consumer don't have to agree with what they are doing at all and certainly don't have to support it, and Disney, just like any business, will hit a point of diminishing returns and will have to adjust accordingly when that happens. Hopefully that's coming soon, though the way spending is in the current economy, I wouldn't count on it (inflation right now is insane all across the board). But the best way to show a business you don't agree with what they are doing is to just not patronize that business. Maybe one or two people doing that won't matter, but eventually enough will and it WILL matter.

Consumers should always do whatever maximizes their ROI. I know many of us, myself included, have an emotional attachment to Disney, and it hurts to say no sometimes, but if you don't feel the ROI is there, do something else. There are TONS of great places to visit. Check some of them out. On the flip side, if you love Disney and still feel it's worth every penny, don't feel bad about it. Go ahead, plop down the cash and have a blast.

 

[juxtapose]

We almost booked a WDW trip for May multiple times, but we ended up booking a Disney Cruise and a few nights in St Augustine instead. We just couldn't justify the cost at this time with the crowds and reduction in onsite benefits. Not sure when we'll be back, we've gone every year (we alternate WDW and DL) for 5 years now but this year is the cruise and next year hopefully London. My family can now go to London/Europe for the same amount of time for less than a Disney trip.

 

[mickeysfavgal]

I have many mixed emotions about our Disney trip this year. We will be staying at POP 12/20- 12/26. We have 4 rooms booked for our party of 14. This is by far the most expensive trip I have booked in all my years of going to Disney. I have purchased Genie+ and 5 day tickets, and I realize I will have to add dining costs and any ILL's we want to ride. I stress daily trying to find out all I can about this new Genie+ system and all the changes that have been made. I know that each park day will be uncertain and will all depend on what LL's and ILL's that we will be able to snag.
My prior worries for a Disney trip used to be as simple as watching the weather and planning our wardrobe for the trip. That was because planning a Disney trip was second nature to us and after all our trips we knew Disney like the back of our hand. We have been at the parks on a crowd level 10 day and managed just fine.

I will not cancel this trip because of my worries. My family desperately needs this trip, I need this trip. Our last trip was December 2019 right before this pandemic that has attacked our world.
I want to feel that joy of walking down Main Street with my family.
I love seeing my grown daughters eyes when they see Cinderella's Castle as if they were still little girls.
I want to ride Splash Mountain with my grandchildren and hear them laugh when I am the one to get wet.
I want to spin in the Teacups so fast that we can hardly stand up when we get off.
I want to raise my hands into the air while on Thunder Mountain knowing its the best coaster ever.
I want to ride It's a Small World and take in every beautiful sight and hum the song the rest of the day.
I want to ride the Jungle Cruise and laugh at the same old corny jokes.
I want to ride Aladdin's Magic Carpet and try to dodge the spray of the Camel.
I want to Spin on Buzz Lightyear's and never be able to know which red dot is mine and never hit a target.
I want to enjoy the relaxing atmosphere of the Tiki Room, Hall of Presidents and Country Bears.
Dole Whips and Mickey Pretzels, emptying the popcorn bucket and standing in line to refill.

I think I'll start packing!

 

[jade1]

The thought of anyone spending $8000 on a Disney trip amazes me!

I'd be more inclined to take a year off and buy the AKV 50 point contract today for $7,950.

That would get me pretty much a week every year until 2057.

$400 in dues for 7 nights no tax. About $57 a night no tax.

Animal Kingdom ID: AKB2377	50	0 | 50 | 50	Feb	$159	$7,950	SMALL

 

[Brian Noble]

I get tired of hearing the old tiresome,"if you don't like it, don't go" It's not that simple.

I was going to ask "Why isn't it?" but I understand that part, because it isn't necessarily that simple for me either.

Instead, maybe the right question is "Why can't it be?"

I will admit that I've never been an all-Disney/all-the-time person, though Disney holds pride-of-place. There are definitely moments of intense emotion connected to our domestic Disney parks visits, and nearly all of them are centered on family. Some of them are also connected to trips I've taken alone. For example, I celebrated my 50th birthday and 1st year of sobriety on a solo trip to WDW a few years ago. Having the Dapper Dans sing Happy Birthday to me on my 50th will be one of my cherished memories for as long as I can access them.

But I've enjoyed lots of other amusement parks as well as many other vacation destinations of all kinds--including DCL to Alaska and some of the international Disney parks (Paris, Shanghai). Dollywood is easily in my list of top individual amusement parks, second maybe only to Disneyland. We took our winter trips to WDW/DLR, but our summers were spent at Cedar Point. I've hiked above the tree line in Rocky Mountain NP, along the waterfalls and rivers in Great Smoky Mountain NP, on the South Rim of Grand Canyon NP, and all over the Utah Wasatch range. I've kayaked in three different time zones. I ran a trail race in Stockholm, and celebrated Midsommar there. I watched Bayern Munich win the Champions League on PKs from the Augustiner Biergarten with a couple dozen Bavarians. I've spent time at the ocean at the Outer Banks, Hilton Head, Florida's Atlantic coast, California's Pacific coast, and the four "main" Hawaiian islands.

The common thread to all of these was a sense of connection. Sometimes, it's connection to the environment around me---whether it is nature or a curated, themed space. On solo trips, there is a sense of being with all of these other people, having the time of their lives. On trips with family and friends, the point of those trips was always spending time with those those people, and the theme parks, cruise ships, mountains, rivers, or oceans were just the backdrops against which those things happened.

Disney has an uncanny ability to help me feel that connection--they've honed it to a science and they know how to bottle that feeling and sell it. But, there are other places that provide that too. Maybe some of them take a little more of a deliberate perspective to see it, but it is there. The most important part is that I'm there with the people I love, and we are all taking time out to focus on one another away from the day-to-day challenges of our lives. That can happen (and has happened) in lots of places.

 

[jknc]

Of course National Parks require some planning. My trip to Europe in 2015 required 11 months of sometimes intensive planning, but once it was planned, I just followed the plan and saw real things not plastic models of things. More importantly the identifying headline for a theme park is that it falls under the heading of Amusement Parks. It is not a thing that should be so serious that we have to spend so much time on it. The worse part is that the way to get the most out of the experience requires that you continue to plan, adjust and adapt even after you get there. I don't want to do that, I just want to see the attractions, laugh and enjoy. I don't want to have to spend my time with my nose in my phone in order to only half experience what I went to see.

Sure, when we decided to take a side trip from Rome to Pompeii, it took a while to plan and reserve that, but I spent the entire time walking though the ruins looking at the ruins not my phone trying to figure out where I wanted to eat later in the day. There are things that require careful planning. Things like financial portfolios or getting your children settled in college, but to ride Small World should require a minimum of planning that doesn't require guessing months in advance if it is going to rain on the Tuesday you think you would like to attend.

Did you do any planning for previous Disney trips?

 

[Tiggerontheseas]

Sounds like the OP has been reading a lot of negative 3rd party reports. I'd just encourage those in a similar position to go and decide for themselves.

I don't know. The sheer cost of the current trips doesn't really make that as easy an option as it should be.

 

[scrappinginontario]

Withholding opinion until I try it for myself.

 

[Mle8308]

Currently, you push back, cancel, Disney doesn't really care. Have you looked at park attendance? It appears to be nearly where they were pre-pandemic, but now with higher prices. As much as I dislike the price increases and getting less for more $$, the general population doesn't seem to care. As long as this continues, they have no reason to drop prices.

I have to agree. Just came back yesterday from an 8 day trip (12/4 -12/8) and the parks were very crowded, more so than I expected, busier than pre-covid. The Lightning Lanes were definitely being used, some heavily, so I do not think Disney is having any trouble selling Genie +.

 

[boogienights]

We much prefer Universal to WDW (easy walk to parks from resorts... less crowded... express pass... cheaper dining... less dodging of strollers... fewer toddlers and babies... geared more towards older park goers...better thrill rides...Harry Potter v Star Wars? No contest, boy wizard rules...affordable hotels...HHN...way more relaxing and, dare I say it, "magical"). We are not show, character or parade people. Nevertheless, WDW has always featured in our trips to Florida because WDW is fun too. Just not as fun as Universal . We typically spend four days at WDW (one park per day), usually staying at a Universal resort or renting a house off-site when the trip includes extended family or friends. There are only two things drawing me back to WDW (Rise and Guardians) but I am not prepared to spend hours in a standby line to ride either of them. Nor will I pay the outrageous cost of a Disney hotel to have a better shot at paying even more to secure a ride time. I doubt we'll ever go back.