If you are reading this article, chances are you are a Disney theme park fan and have probably visited the parks countless times. You probably know how to maneuver your way around a dining plan, and can give great advice on the best time of year to visit, as well as how best to utilize FastPass+ using the most fantastic park strategies.
It needs to be said: You are the minority here.
With Disney bringing in their newest multi-billion dollar technological additions, the Magic Bands, used in conjunction with the My Disney Experience (MDE) app, many of us have (long) been saying, “Why?! We wanted more rides!”
If you haven’t already guessed, Disney executives don’t necessarily value our opinions because we are not the initial target audience. Many families don’t get the opportunity to pull their children out of school to visit Walt Disney World and many people save their paychecks for years. These are the same folks who usually visit during the hot and crowded summer season because that is really their only opportunity. This crowd doesn’t live near the Orlando area and are not Passholders.
They want the full, magical experience, because this may be the only time in their life that they get to take all four of their children to Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique and eat inside Cinderella Castle. These people have probably recently purchased Birnbaum’s newest WDW Guide and they don’t have a clue which experiences need FP+ and which restaurants require ADRs.
Disney strives to make all of these decisions more accessible with Magic Bands and the MDE app, because a smooth-sailing, magical vacation is hopefully what will make these Guests come back and eventually turn them into those crazed, run-to-Toy-Story-Mania, book-your-ressies-180-days-out Passholders (kind of like us).
As fellow blogger Disney in Disguise has pointed out, Disney is a business. Their goal is to make more money and bring more people to the parks. They want those newbie Guests to return to Disney year after year, but they don’t want to stop there. They need to consistently bring in new Guests to keep the ball rolling.
Some of the little touches that us frequent visitors may reminisce about are quickly disappearing as Disney continues to find ways to rake in more money and families. It’s safe to say that there is no longer an off-season at Walt Disney World. For the past few years, Disney has begun offering free dining, discounted room rates or other deals during this time that make it more viable to visit during the once-slower months. Outside of Disney’s control, but to their delight, many schools have started year-round schooling, making Fall Break a convenient time to visit. During a recent visit during an “off-season” in mid-January, Space Mountain wait times topped out at 180 minutes. As you have probably noticed, many E-ticket attractions are rarely walk-ons anymore.
And think about this: It’s rare to just walk up and hug your favorite character without having to wait in some sort of line or have a FP+ reservation. Dare I even mention Anna and Elsa?
Table-Service restaurants at Disney are hardly available for walk-ins; it is always recommended that dining experiences be booked exactly 180 days ahead. Several years ago, especially before the invention of online dining reservations, we never would’ve imagined that Be Our Guest would book up within minutes the day it becomes available.
Areas that were once nice places to wander or sit and people-watch, often “quiet” places to get away from the hustle and bustle of other Guests, are either becoming more discoverable or being demolished altogether to create better crowd control. One of the biggest examples here is the Rose Garden at the Castle hub.
Remember the paintbrushes on Tom Sawyer Island that Guests could trade in for free FastPasses (before they actually became sought after)?
Disney Cast Members who once “acted the role” more often at attractions like Haunted Mansion and Tower of Terror are now often too occupied in dealing with large, difficult hordes of Guests to get into character. (Safety does come first, but Show comes before Efficiency.)
It is also no surprise that unruly Guests have prompted a change in the ceremonial rope drop at Magic Kingdom. Who knew that someday Guests would have to run to their favorite characters just to have a six-hour wait?
Of course, I’m just touching the tip of the iceberg here. But what am I saying? Disney seems to be replacing those little quirks that we insiders know and love, sacrificing the small things, to bring in more cash and pack in more people. It’s all turned into some sort of competition for us to book FP+, ADRs, and even hotel rooms.
As Disney fans, we still know to check for the key under the mat at MuppetVision and not pull the rope over at Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular. We know where some of the best hidden Mickey’s are located and can escape to the walking trails around the Tree of Life (except for ugh, those overhead safety nets). As the parks expand their offerings to include phone charging stations, interactive queues and dance parties, it makes me wonder if, or even when, Disney will eliminate those walking trails or the rope over at Indy, for example, to make way for more FP+ kiosks or parade viewing areas.
It’s all becoming too mainstream, too quickly. And it’s odd that with all of this new technology, it creates more planning and longer lines.
My only hope is that those off-seasons, hidden gems, and special places will someday make a comeback. And for those secrets that are still there, they should forever stay.
I have similar thoughts but directed at completely different areas. All of the things you listed are a result of the ever increasing attendance numbers. It is not Disney forgetting about us, its just them trying to cope with more people than ever. The rope drop for example, if people were not so psychotic then Disney would not have had to change it. I am more upset by the attractions. Not only do they let things like Wonders of Life rot, they also do not expand much. When they do expand it seems sub-par.
The New Fantasyland is nice, but it pales in comparison to the rest of the park in terms of detail. You can visit Adventureland a thousand times and discover new wonderful details every time, but you have seen all there is to see in New Fantasyland after just a couple of trips. The worst is when you see tons of things Disney obviously could have done to enhance the whole thing, but did not. I am excited for the new Avatarland expansion, but if they go all cheap on us again i’m going to be pissed.
I would like to say that Belle’s new area does have some wonderful detail but I feel it still falls short of the usual Disney standard. The Little Mermaid and the Storybook Circus are much less impressive. I enjoy both but I feel that there is a ton of potential in them that was just never met. Ariel has absolutely no detail and the circus was just a cheap last minute addition to avoid losing a male audience. Both could have used more thought and planning.
I know what you’re saying and have to agree with you in many areas. I think Animal Kingdom has more of an advantage, simply because of the sheer size of the park. Same with EPCOT…particularly in World Showcase. I was there a couple of weeks ago for the last week of the Flower & Garden Festival, which I try to never miss. I DID enjoy myself, but there were still some aspects that weren’t as hidden as they used to be. But the nice thing is, I still was able to discover a few surprises there. Even with the many times I have been there as an Annual Passholder, WDW STILL manages to keep some things to discover on your own. You just have to take the time to look, which most of those families coming down for the first initial trip to WDW do not take the time to see and explore.
And all of this is why I’ve come to prefer Disneyland- more local guests, who have greater knowledge of- and respect for- the park experience. Cast members are usually locals, too and have that sense of showmanship that I noticed was sorely lacking in Orlando the last few times I’ve been there. And yeah- it’s all about the profit. Part of that is just corporate CW in general, but I would like to think someday Disney will find some smart new brass that can balance the commerce with the show as effectively as we know Roy and Uncle Walt would have.
There’s really no need to blame Disney for the changes that have come to the parks. They are creating an outstanding product that more and more people are going to every year. Why are there longer wait times? Because they are setting new attendance records all the time, not because of Fastpass.
And all the changes to dining, fastpasses, and the “quirks” are mainly caused by blogs and sites like yours, letting people know of all the things they “must do” on a disney vacation, or else they’re not getting all that they can get out of their expensive vacations. You can blame the attendance calendars, fastpass priority plans, and all the tips and tricks out there for the way your Disney experience has changed. Disney has had to change to adapt to people wanting to do these things, and this is the result.
Loved this article…I do understand that it is a business but some people have been fans of Disney (parks, movies, etc) their whole lives…and it would be nice for them to remember us too. New people are great! New people, new fans, new money, blah blah blah. But still good to keep the the already obsessed people hooked too.