So, I think I've been "Disney Shamed"...

I will go against the grain here...
Was super excited for DisneyWorld, always my dream to go, and I will say I planned it very well (so schedule/stress not an issue). Went for the first time with my bf the beginning of the month, and while we enjoyed it, it did fall below both our expectations especially for the price. Ever since we went, I do always wonder if it's really that amazing for the average person to continuously go back. Like I have nostalgic ties to the Disney princesses (magic kingdom was my favorite park and I have soo much little mermaid stuff at home), but still didn't think it was impressive enough for me to go on a yearly basis especially for the price point

So my question is...if you cut out the emotional ties (which I understand is a main part of why ppl go back and is probably Disney's strategy, but just go with this lol), what is the real value of going back? If there were no Disney fans and everyone had average feelings about Disney, how much do you think they would have to cut their prices to get people to go?
 
I will go against the grain here...
Was super excited for DisneyWorld, always my dream to go, and I will say I planned it very well (so schedule/stress not an issue). Went for the first time with my bf the beginning of the month, and while we enjoyed it, it did fall below both our expectations especially for the price. Ever since we went, I do always wonder if it's really that amazing for the average person to continuously go back. Like I have nostalgic ties to the Disney princesses (magic kingdom was my favorite park and I have soo much little mermaid stuff at home), but still didn't think it was impressive enough for me to go on a yearly basis especially for the price point

So my question is...if you cut out the emotional ties (which I understand is a main part of why ppl go back and is probably Disney's strategy, but just go with this lol), what is the real value of going back? If there were no Disney fans and everyone had average feelings about Disney, how much do you think they would have to cut their prices to get people to go?

Honestly, the resort itself is so big & sprawling with so many unique experiences, I'm not sure they couldn't get away with charging what they do or maybe if they couldn't, the difference may or may not be negligible.

I'm coming up on my 3rd trip and it's already shaping up to be very different from the previous two (first one being a big splurge thinking it was one & done and then the second one being very heavy on characters). Third is mostly about food, entertainment, and Galaxy's Edge but still plenty of room for the attractions.

One could easily tailor a WDW experience to completely ignore the "kid stuff" and just do things that are more through an adult lens. Though for me one of the things that changed my opinion was doing a "kids" thing on the first trip that I never got to do as a kid (namely meet Disney characters ), so I'm not sure how much of that is biasing me here.
 
I think it's maybe a case of different strokes for different folks. For example, I have been to Las Vegas a few times before and I wouldn't spend ANY amount of money to go to back there. But there are those who look forward all year to a trip to Vegas to do whatever it is they want to do. But it's not for me. I love Disney because my experiences, with very few exceptions, have been exemplary. I enjoy the food, the whimsy, I am a golfer and love their golf courses, I love the nostalgia factor, the family-friendliness, it's clean, and there's always something new to try while mixing in the attractions and shows that I have come to love. In fact, I am running my first Disney race (Marathon weekend) in January. It's expensive, but to me, it's worth it. (And I haven't even been on a Disney cruise yet!)

I believe Disney is trying to serve up a premium experience for a premium price. It is not cheap, but at least they do offer different price points for different budgets. They're providing a different level of service and quality than you'll find at Sea World, Six Flags, or even Universal. It's not for everyone, and that's OK, not everything is. But it's for me. And I love it.
 
I will go against the grain here...
Was super excited for DisneyWorld, always my dream to go, and I will say I planned it very well (so schedule/stress not an issue). Went for the first time with my bf the beginning of the month, and while we enjoyed it, it did fall below both our expectations especially for the price. Ever since we went, I do always wonder if it's really that amazing for the average person to continuously go back. Like I have nostalgic ties to the Disney princesses (magic kingdom was my favorite park and I have soo much little mermaid stuff at home), but still didn't think it was impressive enough for me to go on a yearly basis especially for the price point

So my question is...if you cut out the emotional ties (which I understand is a main part of why ppl go back and is probably Disney's strategy, but just go with this lol), what is the real value of going back? If there were no Disney fans and everyone had average feelings about Disney, how much do you think they would have to cut their prices to get people to go?

for me I don't have that nostalgia. My one and only family trip to a Disney park was Walt Disney World when I was 16. The trip was a disaster, clueless first timers, very few rides, no planning etc etc. BUT I feel in love with Disney parks and vowed to return and do the parks properly and on my own. I eventually made it back when I was 34 and ever since, my yearly visits I am basically living my teenage dream.

Disney parks are my happy place, a place where I can escape reality and adult responsibilities. A place I can feel safe, a place where I can go to a bar, go to a restaurant, go to a show and entertainment and not have to worry about being attacked, or assaulted.

If there was no Disney parks, I would probably be in Universal Studios. If there were no theme parks I would find a similar place.
 


I get "Disney shamed" every now and then. Sometimes people are more subtle about it, but others can be somewhat cruel. For instance, I have a very good friend who lives in Paris now, and when I was asking her about DLP she replied, "It's really just for kids." Um, no it's not. I just changed the subject at that point. It wasn't worth the argument.

While there is some nostalgia for me (we went semi frequently as kids), I have to agree with @BadPinkTink -- it's just a safe and fun place where I can leave my worries behind. When I go on other types of vacations I feel like the "real" world (work, personal life, etc.) can still suck me in and take me away from the moment. At Disneyland I'm immersed in everything around me. I also am someone who tends to enjoy a lot of stimulation, so laying around on a beach just isn't for me. I love all the sights and sounds and hustle and bustle of the parks.

For those who don't get it... well, they probably never will. And that's okay (hey, less crowds)! We all have our likes and dislikes.
 
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I get "Disney shamed" every now and then. Sometimes people are more subtle about it, but others can be somewhat cruel. For instance, I have a very good friend who lives in Paris now, and when I was asking her about DLP she replied, "It's really just for kids." Um, no it's not. I just changed the subject at that point. It wasn't worth the argument.

My coworkers used to be a little weirded out by my frequent vacations to Disneyland, but now they sort of expect it. Whenever I go on vacation they don't ask me where I'm going anymore-- they know. 🤣

While there is some nostalgia for me (we went semi frequently as kids), I have to agree with @BadPinkTink -- it's just a safe and fun place where I can leave my worries behind. When I go on other types of vacations I feel like the "real" world (work, personal life, etc.) can still suck me in and take me away from the moment. At Disneyland I'm immersed in everything around me. I also am someone who tends to enjoy a lot of stimulation, so laying around on a beach just isn't for me. I love all the sights and sounds and hustle and bustle of the parks.

For those who don't get it... well, they probably never will. And that's okay (hey, less crowds)! We all have our likes and dislikes.

It's funny that your friend said that. I watch You Tube videos on all of the Disney parks, and you see a lot of adults without kids at them. I think people just lie to keep the crowds down. LOL
 
One could easily tailor a WDW experience to completely ignore the "kid stuff" and just do things that are more through an adult lens. Though for me one of the things that changed my opinion was doing a "kids" thing on the first trip that I never got to do as a kid (namely meet Disney characters ), so I'm not sure how much of that is biasing me here.
The sad thing is we tried to do the "kids stuff", but as adults in their late 20's, it just wasn't the same and I think that's what made the trip "not as special". For character dinners, the princesses swept through us faster to get to the kids, even when we tried starting interesting convos (cinderella, are you celebrating the holidays with your stepmom? and such). My bf got so excited when he saw the jedi training at star wars land. Then found out its only for kids under 12 so....there went that. Not to mention at some Chewbacca interaction, they only picked kids to participate. And then when asked if they knew what the resistance was, only 1 girl out of 12 kids knew. That's when we were like "what about the adults...***??" His favorite moment of the entire trip is when he was swinging his light saber around and some storm troopers made that "im watching you sign" as they walked by. Considering that was his best moment out of all the character interactions we attempted, it was kind of sad. Didn't ruin the trip but now I can understand people a bit more when they say "Disney is for kids" cause kids are treated like royalty there! Epcot was amazing though :D
 


There is a nostalgic factor for me with Disney on many levels: my first trip there was with my grandparents and it was also my first trip to Florida. Since then, I've been to Tokyo Disney when I was in high school. I went on February leapyear and while wandering the Moroccan pavillion, met the man who later became my first husband. Before he left his role at Disney, he got me passes to use at a later date, which I used to take my best friend for her first trip to Disney. And a few years later, after my nephew, who was born severely premature, pulled through and reached 5 years old, I made good on the promise that his mom made to take him to Disney. She begged me to take...needless to say, I wouldn't turn it down.

Fast forward, I have a different husband and a child of my own and we ourselves have extended our own memories there. Including, my in-laws getting to join us for a stop at the Magic Kingdom with their only granddaughter at the beginning of a road trip.

I understand both sides of the argument, it's a happy place for some, for others it's not worth it. I feel that the value of a vacation is not necessarily just what you spend, but what you feel along the way. That is a very personal thing and is unique to each person. Atleast that's what traveling around the world from the age of 7 has taught me.
 
The sad thing is we tried to do the "kids stuff", but as adults in their late 20's, it just wasn't the same and I think that's what made the trip "not as special". For character dinners, the princesses swept through us faster to get to the kids, even when we tried starting interesting convos (cinderella, are you celebrating the holidays with your stepmom? and such). My bf got so excited when he saw the jedi training at star wars land. Then found out its only for kids under 12 so....there went that. Not to mention at some Chewbacca interaction, they only picked kids to participate. And then when asked if they knew what the resistance was, only 1 girl out of 12 kids knew. That's when we were like "what about the adults...***??" His favorite moment of the entire trip is when he was swinging his light saber around and some storm troopers made that "im watching you sign" as they walked by. Considering that was his best moment out of all the character interactions we attempted, it was kind of sad. Didn't ruin the trip but now I can understand people a bit more when they say "Disney is for kids" cause kids are treated like royalty there! Epcot was amazing though :D

I agree. As someone who never got to go as a child, I would have loved to experienced things like the sword in the stone. I think that some things, they would get a backlash over for picking and adult over a child because you know how some parents are now. Their kids are more important then everyone else. I understand that the wand ceremony at the Harry Potter area picks mostly kids too.
 
Yes exactly! As someone who grew up w Harry Potter since their elementary school days (until the last book came out in college), I was upset when they picked the 5 year girl physically next to me for the wand choosing ceremony. I waited early in that line to get to the front (I’m short so I know I’m not blocking anyone). I would’ve been ok if this was a one time accident but waiting front in that line multiple times and still not being picked just made me give up and honestly bitter
 
@DisneyKoyote
Don't be bitter about the experiences kids have in the parks
Celebrate being an adult who can do what you want, when you want, eat what you want, buy the merchandise you want.
  • Look with pity on the child who gets told, no you can't have icecream, as you buy your second icecream of the day
  • Look with pity on the child who gets told no you can't buy any more toys, as you buy your 5th Mickey plushie just because he has Christmas costume
  • Look with pity on the child who gets told, no we cant go on that ride you are too small
  • Look with pity on the child who gets told, no you can't have a nap, we are in Disney so we go on rides
  • Look with pity on the child who gets told no, you have to drink water, you are not allowed soda

Disney is is much better as an adult :)
 
Yes exactly! As someone who grew up w Harry Potter since their elementary school days (until the last book came out in college), I was upset when they picked the 5 year girl physically next to me for the wand choosing ceremony. I waited early in that line to get to the front (I’m short so I know I’m not blocking anyone). I would’ve been ok if this was a one time accident but waiting front in that line multiple times and still not being picked just made me give up and honestly bitter
@DisneyKoyote
Don't be bitter about the experiences kids have in the parks
Celebrate being an adult who can do what you want, when you want, eat what you want, buy the merchandise you want.
  • Look with pity on the child who gets told, no you can't have icecream, as you buy your second icecream of the day
  • Look with pity on the child who gets told no you can't buy any more toys, as you buy your 5th Mickey plushie just because he has Christmas costume
  • Look with pity on the child who gets told, no we cant go on that ride you are too small
  • Look with pity on the child who gets told, no you can't have a nap, we are in Disney so we go on rides
  • Look with pity on the child who gets told no, you have to drink water, you are not allowed soda

Disney is is much better as an adult :)

Let her (sorry if I'm presuming too much) be bitter. She opted out of all those things to wait in line several times over to try and get picked for the ceremony. The feelings are legitimate. I remember waiting in line too, not even fully knowing what the show entailed. Even without expectations, I was disappointed with the experience. To me it sucks that only one ever gets chosen and you're left with a bunch of disappointed kids as well as adults. It's one of the reasons I'm excited to do the lightsaber experience. Sure it's expensive, but unlike the wand, I do get to participate and I'm not hoping to be the rarest of the rare being picked.

Pivoting back to characters, I felt I had relatively short interactions but I am very shy and understand that's hard to play off of. Despite that, I felt the interactions were great with what matched my comfort level. I did have a decent back & forth. One of my favorites was Snow at CRT asking if I had a princess back home. I said yes (my gf couldn't come) and there was a bit of back & forth there. It's just unfortunate that character interactions can be so subjective and inconsistent. That said I am all about mixing the kids stuff with the adults stuff. Though I'm hoping Disneybounding as Han Solo and playing on my data pad gets me some attention from at least some storm troopers 😅
 
A number of years ago when my DH and I first joined the DVC, my dad (who had not yet been to Disney) asked in a rather concerned way, “Won’t you get tired it if you go every year?” Without missing a beat I replied,”I don’t know, Christmas comes every year and I’ve never gotten tired of it.” He’s never questioned it again!
 
I will go against the grain here...
Was super excited for DisneyWorld, always my dream to go, and I will say I planned it very well (so schedule/stress not an issue). Went for the first time with my bf the beginning of the month, and while we enjoyed it, it did fall below both our expectations especially for the price. Ever since we went, I do always wonder if it's really that amazing for the average person to continuously go back. Like I have nostalgic ties to the Disney princesses (magic kingdom was my favorite park and I have soo much little mermaid stuff at home), but still didn't think it was impressive enough for me to go on a yearly basis especially for the price point

So my question is...if you cut out the emotional ties (which I understand is a main part of why ppl go back and is probably Disney's strategy, but just go with this lol), what is the real value of going back? If there were no Disney fans and everyone had average feelings about Disney, how much do you think they would have to cut their prices to get people to go?
I don't know that you need nostalgia for Disney to become a special place. My first trip as an adult was to take my kids for a single trip to the magic kingdom. We had fun, but my short takeaway was it was twice as expensive as other amusement parks with rides that were well themed, but boring and it was so crowded. I was convinced Disney was one and done for us. Cut to a couple years later and DW decided she wanted to try another trip there. I got involved in the planning process and actually started listening to Disney podcasts. Learning the backstory of attractions and different hotels gave me an appreciation for things I didn't see on that first trip. I think Disney's history and ties to popular culture throughout the 20th century enables people to connect with it even if they don't have a personal history with the parks.

I know it's not for everyone, and there are definitely a large number of "Why would you ever go there more than once" people. As a business they don't have to resonate with everyone. They just have to resonate with enough people to keep the parks full. Up until some of the recent moves, that didn't seem hard to do.
 
This nostalgia question intrigues me...I never got to go as a kid...we had a quick trip late 80s when there were only 2 parks...no plans but did not need any...I was a ride chicken...went back in 2007 with family as an adult and just fell in love with planning and Disney...kept going back on solos, with family and with friends...every trip is different but I love the anticipation of the trip and the planning... I have had good character interactions as a solo...but, I agree about the wand ceremony and the Jedi academy...every time I have watched there are very enthusiastic adults in the crowd. I think Disney would be smart to designate an adult Jedi academy...but I also agree with the poster who pointed out all the fun stuff adults get that kids don’t! I only go to The World every other year...the value has decreased over the years and they are close to pricing me out...but until they do I will keep going back!
 
So, last night out of the clear blue, someone I know basically "Disney Shamed" me. Like, it was that "(As a single adult with no kids) Why go to Disney when you can go so many other places?" conversation. I basically told him, "You know, I like it. If it's not for you, that's fine."

I must say I was annoyed by it. This is someone I'm good friends with, so I know he didn't really mean any harm, but why can't people just respect the fact that we all have different tastes in things?

Has anyone ever encountered this? How did you deal with it?
I’ve traveled to much of the 1st world, and to a fair bit of the second and third worlds. I feel not an ounce of shame about preferring a WDW vacation to traveling anywhere else and neither should you.

‘Murica!
 
Even with kids today, we get "Disney shamed". A world to travel and for every vacation, you go to Disney World? Even before we had kids, my wife and I traveled to WDW. I just love it there and so does she. Yet now with kids, I got home last week and was immediately asked how my vacation was.

I said the lines were long, but the kids had fun. "Lines? Where were you?" When I reply, WDW, you already see the squinting eyes glaring back at you. The shoulders go up and they cross their arms. "Disney World?" Yes. Disney World. I start getting preached at about all the places in the world one could visit and yet I choose WDW?

Yep. I do.
 
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Even with kids today, we get "Disney shamed". A world to travel and for every vacation, you go to Disney World? Even before we had kids, my wife and I traveled to WDW. I just love it there and so does she. Yet now with kids, I got home last week and was immediately asked my vacation was.

I said the lines were long, but the kids had fun. "Lines? Where were you?" When I reply, WDW, you already see the squinting eyes glaring back at you. The shoulders go up and they cross their arms. "Disney World?" Yes. Disney World. I start getting preached at about all the places in the world one could visit and yet I choose WDW?

Yep. I do.

When people start that crap with me, I just start listing off the 7 different countries and the 24 states that I have also been to and ask where all they have been. That usually shuts them up. Most people have a place that they go to over and over.
 
So my question is...if you cut out the emotional ties (which I understand is a main part of why ppl go back and is probably Disney's strategy, but just go with this lol), what is the real value of going back? If there were no Disney fans and everyone had average feelings about Disney, how much do you think they would have to cut their prices to get people to go?
For me... Impossible to cut the emotional ties.

I have no interest in sports. If a ticket to the World Series was $50 that would not be of any value to me. I have paid $1,800 for a ticket to a concert I wanted to see.

If there were no baseball(Disney) fans and everyone had average feelings about baseball(Disney) I think they (MLB) would have to cut their prices to get people to go.

So while your question is an interesting one, cutting out all emotional ties is impossible.
 
Here was a little exercise I worked up as we enter skiing season here at home. I just sat and tried working up a week long vacation (Sun to Sat) to a big ski lodge in our state for my family of 4. I accepted all the add-ons they recommended to include rentals, meal tickets and daily group lessons for the kids. So now I had a week of hotel, tickets, and add-ons. The bill was burgeoning at $3,500 before taxes.

As an average skier, I have been enough to know you don't ski all day. Run or two, break for hot drinks and warming up, and then back out for a run or three. Break. Warm up and eat lunch. Repeat. With this hotel stay, I now have someplace to stay and don't have to drive the 3 hours home. So maybe we ski into the evening a bit before heading back to the room.

Could I have saved some money here and there? Yes. Can I also do that at Disney? Yes.

I find that while I do have emotional ties to Disney for our week long trips, I do think that comparing dollars, I get a more rounded vacation at WDW. Swimming. Amazing food. Sights and sounds. Rides. Fireworks. Characters. Every day is just as amazing as the day before.
 

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