One Last Rant on the State of WDW

[robinb]

I feel like you're assuming that I complained about said CMs to someone other than this board. I did not because Disney's problems are no longer my problems. I did speak to a friend who is a CM in management about the out of costume/out of character stuff and he agreed with me. He said that they don't train CMs like they used to and that the ones who're being hired don't have the commitment that has been a trademark of Disney CMs in the past. But as I said, not my problem any longer because my vacation dollars will go much further elsewhere, and my feet will take me to that elsewhere.

FWIW, that ship sailed long ago when I saw a CM in a Fantasyland costume at Publix. Disney changed the rules and allowed CMs to go to/from work in their costumes instead of changing at work. Talk about ruining things!

FWIW, I enjoy seeing CMs put a little bit of their own style into their on-stage look. Longer hair, facial hair, painted nails are all a-ok with me!

 

[Princesca]

Tell me how any bed linen is different from resort to resort. They're all plain white in every resort now. No theming on the beds whatsoever. Is that, or is that not a cost cutting measure?

Honestly, I think that's a hygiene measure. White sheets enable bleaching, and given the amount of bodily fluids expunged at Disney by children (and otherwise) in a given month, I imagine that having standardized, easily bleachable linens is a plus. Also when linens are white, I can look at them and at least be able to see when they're stained. I find colored/patterned bed linens in hotels to be kinda sus.

For this same reason, I do not own white clothing because I have a toddler

 

[revdon64]

How are bed linens integral to theming? The Polynesian has had extensive re-theming in the rooms with Moana touches, along with the Contemporary with The Incredibles, and Wilderness Lodge with some playful Chip & Dale touches. In 2019 the Jambo House rooms at AKL were re-themed and have Lion King touches. Riviera has elements of Minnie, Mickey, The Aristocats. Pop Century had its rooms redone with some classic character elements. Yet all of these resorts have plain white bed linens. No sign of cost cutting in hotel room theming generally given the massive investment in redoing all those rooms listed above just in the past 2-3 years. If your judgement of a hotel room lives and dies on white hotel linens, I would argue you wouldn’t like most 5 star resorts in the world either. All crisp white linens without a single patterned or themed bedspread in sight.

Unless my memory is faulty, every Disney resort used to have resort themed bedspreads or duvets. They also had themed carpeting in the rooms. Refurbishments have eliminated that theming across the resorts, making theme feel sterile. Undoubtedly this was a cost-cutting measure. You can be fine with it, that's OK. I'm simply saying that lots of those little touches that differentiated Disney from other resorts are the things that softened the blow of paying more to stay on property. Taking those touches away makes the prices harder to swallow. Again, it's simply an observation. If you like it, good for you. I find it particularly unimaginative and not Disney.

 

[revdon64]

For someone not planning to return, you’re certainly investing a lot of time in defending your rationale. As I said in my original post, perhaps WDW is no longer the destination for you. It appears you’ve come to that conclusion and that is your right.

But I doubt you’ll be convincing others of the same on a message board dedicated to that destination and frequented by some of its most loyal fans.

I shouldn't defend how I perceive things just because I'm not planning a trip? I mean, I did say that I enjoy this community, didn't I?
And honestly, I'm not trying to convince anyone of anything. I was venting a little frustration with the direction that Disney is going. If that's no longer welcome here then someone should tell the podcast crew.

 

[revdon64]

FWIW, that ship sailed long ago when I saw a CM in a Fantasyland costume at Publix. Disney changed the rules and allowed CMs to go to/from work in their costumes instead of changing at work. Talk about ruining things!

FWIW, I enjoy seeing CMs put a little bit of their own style into their on-stage look. Longer hair, facial hair, painted nails are all a-ok with me!

I'm with you in that I don't mind the hairstyle/facial hair (if it's not unkempt)/(short) painted nails. But an absolutely out of costume knit hat? Like. Adventureland costume and this hat:


It just stood out as glaringly out of costume. Am I nitpicking? Sure I am. But again, it's the little things that used to set Disney apart. When the little things aren't there anymore then Disney is nothing more than a 50% more expensive Cedar Fair park.

 

[prestoncaldwell]

Remind me not to share any honest critiques of my experiences for fear of getting shot down and shamed over every little detail.....

 

[StageTek]

Remind me not to share any honest critiques of my experiences for fear of getting shot down and shamed over every little detail.....

Yep, people will share their opinions here. And those whose experiences are different than yours will be the quickest.

 

[prestoncaldwell]

Yep, people will share their opinions here. And those whose experiences are different than yours will be the quickest.

This hasn't been, "My experience was different." This has been shouting down the OP and implying that he has no right to his opinions of his experiences.

 

[StageTek]

This hasn't been, "My experience was different." This has been shouting down the OP and implying that he has no right to his opinions of his experiences.

Then I'll remind you: don't share any honest critiques of your experiences. You might get shot down and shamed over every little detail.

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

NVM

 

[jormom1030]

Go to Universal. We were there at the end of February and they seem to have enough workers and don’t have trash on the ground. The ride workers were delightful.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Go to Universal.

Universal is great. I'm so excited to go back and sit in Hogsmeade with a Guinness in my hand on a bench listening to the music piping in My husband is super excited for VelociCoaster.

Only thing I'm getting worried about is there was a recent guest survey that included text about park reservations

I do not in any way want to start that game over there. Of course it's just a random survey but I don't like that they've even mentioned it.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

But again, it's the little things that used to set Disney apart. When the little things aren't there anymore then Disney is nothing more than a 50% more expensive Cedar Fair park.

I love Disney but I frankly don't care about all these really really really tiny details. It's always been just a more expensive amusement park and I still love it. But I think in many respects I'm just a different kind of Disney-goer. A beanie hat wouldn't even be something I would notice TBH, honest to gosh's truth wouldn't even dawn on me to notice that sort of detail. I've got way too much else to pay attention to. It doesn't ruin Disney for me, doesn't make me think Disney is just some other joe schmoe kind of place probably because it never was on the pedestal that many others placed it on. But with me only going about every 6 or so years my attention is on just having a good time knowing it will be a long time before I come back not. I realize for a lot on this Board they go so frequently it's only the small details they notice and I can't say that doesn't make sense because I do get it.

 

[revdon64]

This hasn't been, "My experience was different." This has been shouting down the OP and implying that he has no right to his opinions of his experiences.

I appreciate the support but honestly, I don't feel like I'm being shouted down. It's an impassioned discussion, pretty much what I would expect. I don't feel personally attacked and I actually enjoy the exchanges. I've been around here a long time and this is what this forum is and does. I mean, if we all agreed on everything it would be pretty boring wouldn't it?

 

[Tatum20]

I will be interested to see how things are going to go a few years from now. I feel like even before Covid, Disney was leaning towards "pay to play"- in that the non resort guests were very likely to be shut out of Avatar and other big ticket fast passes, and I also did not like how there really wasn't an off season anymore- even random weekdays during non holiday and school break times were just jam packed with people.

Disney lost A LOT of money during Covid, and even when they reopened I read they were still losing money as a whole, but they were losing less being open than closed. For that reason, I think it was very understandable to reduce expenses, and that includes dropping some of the training and attention to detail to differentiate themselves, and then when they saw people were still willing to pay, they didn't have a lot of incentive to raise their costs, even if it would improve the park experience for guests and they could now afford to do so. It will be interesting to see if guests collectively will stop going or just accept that this is the way it will be now.

I had a good time when I was in Disney last week, but I think we are done for a long time. It was $1,400 for six people for one day (we just did one Disney day, and used park hoppers) and while I don't regret it, I think we got our Disney fix for many years to come. I would actually at this point be more open to just staying at a Disney resort like AKL and skipping the parks entirely, but I can't see myself making a special trip to FL just to do that .

 

[fac429]

Revdon64, I appreciate the trip report. My California family has had absolutely wonderful experiences at Disneyworld in the past. Because it's so far away we haven't gone particularly often (we went in 2006, 2012 and 2017) and each time it's been a pretty expensive trip. That was fine- we thought the experience was definitely worth it. But we rely on info like these trip reports to get a sense of when we should go back. I read trip reports the same way I read Yelp reviews- you have to filter out the stuff that seems irrelevant to what your experience would be, people that seem overly sensitive/demanding, and the people that seem to enjoy something because they don't know any better. I thought your report provided valuable information that helps someone like me decide if it's time to go back. Especially since our family LOVES the planning. (Sometimes I think it's my favorite part of the trip. Until I'm there.)

Our original plan was to go back this year, but that was before the pandemic. That, plus all of the things we've been hearing regarding service, restaurant availability (this is a big one!), etc., has made us decide to wait a bit before going back. We'll definitely go back at some point, it just may be at least a couple of years. I'm not willing to pay more for a lesser experience. So until then, we'll likely go back to Universal and give Dollywood a spin before we find ourselves back at WDW.

Having said that, I can't wait for WDW to get their stuff together. Nothing beats it when they're on their game...

The flip side of 'haters gonna hate' is 'lovers gonna love.' You can't post something negative about a park without somebody coming to defend the park, and that's totally fine. I'm glad people still enjoy the parks, particularly since I need those people to keep showing up and giving Disney money until I feel like I'm ready to go back

 

[shortster]

I'm with you in that I don't mind the hairstyle/facial hair (if it's not unkempt)/(short) painted nails. But an absolutely out of costume knit hat? Like. Adventureland costume and this hat:
View attachment 657439

It just stood out as glaringly out of costume. Am I nitpicking? Sure I am. But again, it's the little things that used to set Disney apart. When the little things aren't there anymore then Disney is nothing more than a 50% more expensive Cedar Fair park.

I see this and I think….meh. NBD. (Except that it looks pretty hot for Florida)

I‘m probably outside the norm, but the costumes and rigid grooming standards are bothersome to me. They strike me as suburban, old, white. Very Mayberry. So much so it almost feels exclusionary. I sometimes feel bad for what some cast members are forced to wear! I wish there was an effort to modernize costuming.

 

[PinkPixel]

First response is the comment about College Program labor .
I truly believe Disney is taking advantage of this program to avoid hiring full time staff. The government write off for Disney is obviously the staffing solution that benefits the company the most.They can have one full time lead to monitor the entire department of part time college program. Take a look at that “Flamingo Village Campus “ . Something’s going on that just doesn’t feel right. I don’t think this is what the College Program was designed for. Maybe I am wrong and should keep my mouth shut but …
I edited this my thoughts and comments were harsh to see the least.

I have no idea but in my day this was called an internship?

 

[Lucys dad]

I'm sorry, but I'm siding with the OP. All they did was post THEIR opinion about THEIR trip. You know...."opinion".....like each of us has? Yet people feel the need to critique the post to such a degree that they're adding up dollars and cents!

Of course the OP is defending his rationale. (Why he should have to, is beyond me.) If someone attacks your opinion, aren't you likely to defend it?

This why I've never posted a trip report here. If I were to post a disappointment, an apologist would criticize it. If I were to post a positive experience, a critic would say that's not what happened to them.

Good and bad, why can't we simply allow people to post THEIR experiences? Sure, we may have had a different experience under the same circumstances, but it's supposed to be a post about what happened to them and how they perceived things.

"If you didn't like that, you should've done this." Well, perhaps the person wanted to do "that" for reasons that are none our business.

Agreed.

Some cracking responses though if you enjoy a good doze of having zero self awareness

 

[DduzDis]

Disney lost A LOT of money during Covid, and even when they reopened I read they were still losing money as a whole, but they were losing less being open than closed.

I see this a lot, but they raised $11 billion in a bond deal in May 2020.