DVC-Landbaron
What Would Walt Do?
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2000
Hello folks!!
I have lived and breathed Disney for the past three and a half weeks!! I AM AN EXPERT!! (at least for the next month or so )
Traditionally (last year at least!!) I give my annual state of the Parks Address after my sojourn to that special magical place we all know and love. This year will be no different, so without further fanfare or dilly-dallying, may I present, for your review and comments (as pretentious as ever and with tongue firmly in cheek
) :
THE STATE OF THE PARKS ADDRESS!!
For the past three weeks my family of seven, along with various other family members (numbering as high as 32 at one point) have been living at Old Key West in our own beloved Walt Disney World!!
For those that dont know me, I tend to be a little hard on the Disney Corporation for recent policy changes that I cannot understand and simply call them bone-headed. The purchase and mismanagement of ABC. The collapse and decimation of Imagineering. The tendency to decorate instead of theme. Etc, etc, etc!!! (I also talk in sentence fragments and use two exclamation points when one would (and should) suffice!!)
Anyway, on with the address!!!!
Maintenance.
Everything that I noticed (and that aint much folks, my glasses are rosier than most, even the Pirates ) was splendid!! It was clean (for the most part) and virtually sparkled. Light bulbs were changed in a timely fashion, and trash swept clean (as much as possible after the pigs, that unfortunately are of my generation and younger, do their best to trash the joint, albeit absentmindedly, but seeming with a purpose and vengeance!!). In fact, there are only three complaints that come to mind regarding maintenance. First, the bathrooms (especially in EPCOT for some reason or another) were not as pristine as usual. Now thats not to say they were filthy (although a couple were), but they were not as sparkling as they usually were. I wondered if the cuts were subtly affecting the cleanliness. Second, there were quite a few wet paint signs scattered around the theme parks. Now I never saw a workman, but these signs were noticed very late in the afternoon (if you spend three weeks there, there is very little need to ever go into a park in the morning!!) So, Im wondering if the paint was applied in the morning, in plain sight of the guests? If it were the case, it would be a very bad SHOW. As it was the wet-paint signs were enough of a bad SHOW. And lastly (and of MAJOR concern) were those damned vacuum cleaners that sweep you out of the MK after closing!!! (more about this later.)
The Magic Kingdom
What can one say about the Happiest place on earth (I know, DL not WDW, but its my address and I dont visit DL!!) It is simply marvelous!! I am ALWAYS thrilled to be there. I have only three major issues!
1- Hours of operation
2- Ending the night on an event (the fireworks)
3- Vacuum cleaners!!!
Hours of Operations:
WOW!! If anything will turn me into a Disney hater it is managements decision regarding summer operating hours! Especially for the MK. It is simply not possible to do all there is to do, or you want to do, with the time management gives you. There are too many people. It is too hot. There are too many people. It is too humid. There are too many people. And there is always rain!!! (Something that management doesnt consider at all, but its a fact folks. It rained EVERY DAY!! EVERYDAY, for at least an hour or two and sometimes substantially longer.) And did I mention there are too many people? Well There are!!
But thats the situation that is inherent in summer visits to WDW. Too many people, hot, humid and rainy. If you choose to visit in the summer (or are forced into it because you have five kids all in school age) you better know this and accept it. But it was OK because Disney gave you enough time to do all there was to do, and more. They stayed opened until midnight!! But that was yesterday, and yesterdays gone. Thats right, folks! GONE!!! Now the new summer hours end at ten PM. Can you believe it!! 10:00!!!!!
So . A typical Landbaron day used to be A slow morning, breakfast buffet or coffee on the veranda. Afternoon around the pool. And we hit the park at five and stay until midnight. Or perhaps a morning at AK, back to the pool by 12:30 and again into MK by five or six. Or lastly an EPCOT evening ending with the always wonderful Illuminations and then a mad dash to the MK to close that pace at midnight!! At least two full hours of fun, with dwindling crowds to fight. Maybe catch the second parade. Perhaps be in time for the fireworks, or work against the crowd and ride the rides while everyone else was watching the second parade and fireworks! It didnt really matter. You had OPTIONS!!!
Now there are NO options. There is one (thats right, count it son ONE) parade. Which everyone who wants to see it must view, twenty deep or sitting in one spot for well over an hour (more than likely longer) taking even more precious time away from your already shortened day!!! Oh yes!! Dont forget that theyve shortened it further by eliminating EE. And even if you didnt use it, thousands of others did, and they went home already because they got their thrills earlier in the day. No! Disney is forcing us to make the same moves, at the same time. No options!! One parade. One opening. One closing. And an obscenely early closing, at that!! And if it should happen to rain (as it did every day) between the hours of say five and eight, you really dont have much time at all!!!
Wait!! they say. Ill tell you what. Such a deal, I have for you!! You can buy back a very small portion of what used to be included, for only $12.00 (without tax)!! How can you go wrong!! An eighth of the park opened (just a guess) for way less hours than before and only 12 bucks over the initial cost (which rises like clockwork, no matter what anyway!!) WOW!! Talk about magic!!
Ending the night on an event (the fireworks):
Now! Because they leave no options EVERYONE stays until the bitter end!! It great for Disney, but really lousy for the guests. OK, says Disney, like good little guests watch the Fireworks, do an about-face and LEAVE!!! All at the same time!!! All piling into the transportation lines. The buses, the boats, the monorails, waiting and waiting, and even waiting some more, for well over an hour just to get out of the joint!! Why? BECAUSE EVERY LEAVES AT THE SAME TIME!!! THERE ARE NO OPTIONS!!! Its MADNESS!!! AND ITS GOT TO STOP!!!!
Vacuum cleaners!!!
So towards the end of my meeting with Phil Holmes (not sure about the spelling) VP of the Magic Kingdom (you name dropper, you!!) I said, Look. Youll never change the park hours because of guest complaints. And youll probably always end it on an event no matter what I say. But theres one thing you can do. Theres one thing you should do. GET THE VACUUMS OFF MAIN STREET AND THE FRONT ENTRANCE UNTIL ALL THE GUESTS LEAVE!!! Its a bad SHOW!! A very bad SHOW!! You can make one pass, like they used to do, after the parade and one after the Fireworks BUT THATS IT!!! NO MORE NOISE AS WE LEAVE!! STOP SWEEPING US, LITTERALLY, OUT THE DOOR!!!!!!! And he looked at me in stunned silence and finally said, Yeah. I can do something about that. Ill look into that. Youre right. Its not a good show at all. But Ill lay you any odds you want; theyre still there for my next annual report!!
Minor observations at MK:
Scattered and random closings. Tiki birds - Opened at ten closed at eight. Or was it nine, or even six. Im not sure. CoP, opened at nine, or was it ten and closing at five (I think). Timekeeper (I dont know, I saw it at four one afternoon and missed it when I brought my first time visiting cousins at nine). And the list goes on. WHY!!!!???
The characters were abundant!! And seemingly random!! It was WONDERFUL!!!
The CMs, as always, were magnificent!!!
EPCOT
I have a very hard time with this park. It is indeed my favorite, yet, I also LOVE the MK. Kind of like having two genius children, with distinctively different personalities. Who do you love more? Neither and both. Each special. Each separate. Each individual. I always spend my first day in MK. But I always savor my last night in EPCOT. In an inner feeling thing, I guess it wins!!
But
That hand and wand has got to go!!!!!
The new Figment ride is very good. Very good indeed!! It had me smiling all the way through both times I saw it! Congrats!!!
Illuminations What can I say? It is marvelous, stunning, spectacular and awe-inspiring. I keep trying to remember if I liked the first version better than this one, and I cant make up my mind (that middle version(s) sucked). Anyway, I love it!!!
And lastly, it needs some updating. Ive left out all the things we usually talk about on these boards (i.e. stagnant WS, Living Seas going to seed, etc.) but some new stuff is a necessity!!!
The Studios
My least favorite park (I dont consider AK a park. It is a very nice diversion at best.) But in all fairness, how can the place compare to MK or EPCOT? Answer: It cant!!
There is one thing that needs to be addressed though. It is the One Mans Dream attraction. It should be required as a minimum standard to participate in any meaningful discussion regarding Disney philosophy. PLEASE SEE THIS!!! IT IS VERY, VERY IMPORTANT!! And it will show the basic difference between Walts Disney and the new Disney®. (And where does Ei$ner get off mugging to camera in the dead guys story?!?!?! It took all my self-control not to rush the stage the first time he came on!!)
Animal Kingdom:
What a wonderful place!! It is truly beautiful!! The Safari ride is a killer (wish theyd lose the big red bit though), Tough to be a Bug is fun and Kili River is very wet, very short, but entertaining nonetheless!!
AK is nice diversion from the three (or at least two and ¾) theme parks that Disney has. Kind of like the day we spent in Typhoon Lagoon. Wonderful! Fun filled. But not an entire theme park! As it is not-a-zoo it is also not-a-theme-park!!
And then theres Dino-rama!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(I cant talk about it now. The pleasant memories from my recent trip are still very fresh in my mind. Also, I dont want to vomit!! So Ill affix my extra strength rose-colored glasses and say, What Dino-rama??!! I must have missed it!! Oh well! Maybe next year!!)
The rest of the World
Typhoon Lagoon is spectacular!! I love it there, as does my family. The slides are better in Blizzard Beach, but theres just something about Typhoon
The Buffets around the entire property are all spectacular!! From the campgrounds to the new AKL (Ahhhhhh!!!), just marvelous!! We loved them all!!
And Old Key West is by far the best resort on the property!! If you ever get a chance to stay there do it! You wont regret it for an instant! As good as WDW still is, OKW is just that much better. The old Disney charm is very much alive and is an experience in itself!! Thanks to Maryann and Ted, two wonderful CMs there, for putting up with my kids for three weeks!!
As always the magic is still very evident. From the smiling CMs to the fresh flowers everywhere. From the Character Breakfasts to the bar tender at the Gurgling Suitcase. All wonderful. All Magical. But is it alive? Im not sure. It may be that we are only enjoying remnants of a past age. Is it well? No, my friends, it is not well at all. Just the short summer hours, the elimination of EE and those vacuum cleaners are enough to tell you that the magic is not well at all.
And finally, will it return? Nah! I dont think so. Not at all. Not unless the current administration is exchanged for someone who will actually watch One Mans Dream and not simply provide filler voice over bits for the Dead guys film.
The floor is now opened for debate! Any questions? Any answers?
ps: I had a chance to meet two very wonderful CMs. OnWithTheShow was a delight. We gabbed for hours! And Safari Steve was by far, the best skipper of the Jungle cruise I have heard in quite some time!! Maybe even the best I ever heard, period!! Maybe he was trying to impress me, but somehow I doubt it. He is a natural, funny, self-effacing and friendly! Both great guys!! Thanks guys.
I have lived and breathed Disney for the past three and a half weeks!! I AM AN EXPERT!! (at least for the next month or so )
Traditionally (last year at least!!) I give my annual state of the Parks Address after my sojourn to that special magical place we all know and love. This year will be no different, so without further fanfare or dilly-dallying, may I present, for your review and comments (as pretentious as ever and with tongue firmly in cheek
) :THE STATE OF THE PARKS ADDRESS!!
For the past three weeks my family of seven, along with various other family members (numbering as high as 32 at one point) have been living at Old Key West in our own beloved Walt Disney World!!
For those that dont know me, I tend to be a little hard on the Disney Corporation for recent policy changes that I cannot understand and simply call them bone-headed. The purchase and mismanagement of ABC. The collapse and decimation of Imagineering. The tendency to decorate instead of theme. Etc, etc, etc!!! (I also talk in sentence fragments and use two exclamation points when one would (and should) suffice!!)
Anyway, on with the address!!!!
Maintenance.
Everything that I noticed (and that aint much folks, my glasses are rosier than most, even the Pirates
) was splendid!! It was clean (for the most part) and virtually sparkled. Light bulbs were changed in a timely fashion, and trash swept clean (as much as possible after the pigs, that unfortunately are of my generation and younger, do their best to trash the joint, albeit absentmindedly, but seeming with a purpose and vengeance!!). In fact, there are only three complaints that come to mind regarding maintenance. First, the bathrooms (especially in EPCOT for some reason or another) were not as pristine as usual. Now thats not to say they were filthy (although a couple were), but they were not as sparkling as they usually were. I wondered if the cuts were subtly affecting the cleanliness. Second, there were quite a few wet paint signs scattered around the theme parks. Now I never saw a workman, but these signs were noticed very late in the afternoon (if you spend three weeks there, there is very little need to ever go into a park in the morning!!) So, Im wondering if the paint was applied in the morning, in plain sight of the guests? If it were the case, it would be a very bad SHOW. As it was the wet-paint signs were enough of a bad SHOW. And lastly (and of MAJOR concern) were those damned vacuum cleaners that sweep you out of the MK after closing!!! (more about this later.)The Magic Kingdom
What can one say about the Happiest place on earth (I know, DL not WDW, but its my address and I dont visit DL!!) It is simply marvelous!! I am ALWAYS thrilled to be there. I have only three major issues!
1- Hours of operation
2- Ending the night on an event (the fireworks)
3- Vacuum cleaners!!!
Hours of Operations:
WOW!! If anything will turn me into a Disney hater it is managements decision regarding summer operating hours! Especially for the MK. It is simply not possible to do all there is to do, or you want to do, with the time management gives you. There are too many people. It is too hot. There are too many people. It is too humid. There are too many people. And there is always rain!!! (Something that management doesnt consider at all, but its a fact folks. It rained EVERY DAY!! EVERYDAY, for at least an hour or two and sometimes substantially longer.) And did I mention there are too many people? Well There are!!
But thats the situation that is inherent in summer visits to WDW. Too many people, hot, humid and rainy. If you choose to visit in the summer (or are forced into it because you have five kids all in school age) you better know this and accept it. But it was OK because Disney gave you enough time to do all there was to do, and more. They stayed opened until midnight!! But that was yesterday, and yesterdays gone. Thats right, folks! GONE!!! Now the new summer hours end at ten PM. Can you believe it!! 10:00!!!!!
So . A typical Landbaron day used to be A slow morning, breakfast buffet or coffee on the veranda. Afternoon around the pool. And we hit the park at five and stay until midnight. Or perhaps a morning at AK, back to the pool by 12:30 and again into MK by five or six. Or lastly an EPCOT evening ending with the always wonderful Illuminations and then a mad dash to the MK to close that pace at midnight!! At least two full hours of fun, with dwindling crowds to fight. Maybe catch the second parade. Perhaps be in time for the fireworks, or work against the crowd and ride the rides while everyone else was watching the second parade and fireworks! It didnt really matter. You had OPTIONS!!!
Now there are NO options. There is one (thats right, count it son ONE) parade. Which everyone who wants to see it must view, twenty deep or sitting in one spot for well over an hour (more than likely longer) taking even more precious time away from your already shortened day!!! Oh yes!! Dont forget that theyve shortened it further by eliminating EE. And even if you didnt use it, thousands of others did, and they went home already because they got their thrills earlier in the day. No! Disney is forcing us to make the same moves, at the same time. No options!! One parade. One opening. One closing. And an obscenely early closing, at that!! And if it should happen to rain (as it did every day) between the hours of say five and eight, you really dont have much time at all!!!
Wait!! they say. Ill tell you what. Such a deal, I have for you!! You can buy back a very small portion of what used to be included, for only $12.00 (without tax)!! How can you go wrong!! An eighth of the park opened (just a guess) for way less hours than before and only 12 bucks over the initial cost (which rises like clockwork, no matter what anyway!!) WOW!! Talk about magic!!
Ending the night on an event (the fireworks):
Now! Because they leave no options EVERYONE stays until the bitter end!! It great for Disney, but really lousy for the guests. OK, says Disney, like good little guests watch the Fireworks, do an about-face and LEAVE!!! All at the same time!!! All piling into the transportation lines. The buses, the boats, the monorails, waiting and waiting, and even waiting some more, for well over an hour just to get out of the joint!! Why? BECAUSE EVERY LEAVES AT THE SAME TIME!!! THERE ARE NO OPTIONS!!! Its MADNESS!!! AND ITS GOT TO STOP!!!!
Vacuum cleaners!!!
So towards the end of my meeting with Phil Holmes (not sure about the spelling) VP of the Magic Kingdom (you name dropper, you!!) I said, Look. Youll never change the park hours because of guest complaints. And youll probably always end it on an event no matter what I say. But theres one thing you can do. Theres one thing you should do. GET THE VACUUMS OFF MAIN STREET AND THE FRONT ENTRANCE UNTIL ALL THE GUESTS LEAVE!!! Its a bad SHOW!! A very bad SHOW!! You can make one pass, like they used to do, after the parade and one after the Fireworks BUT THATS IT!!! NO MORE NOISE AS WE LEAVE!! STOP SWEEPING US, LITTERALLY, OUT THE DOOR!!!!!!! And he looked at me in stunned silence and finally said, Yeah. I can do something about that. Ill look into that. Youre right. Its not a good show at all. But Ill lay you any odds you want; theyre still there for my next annual report!!
Minor observations at MK:
Scattered and random closings. Tiki birds - Opened at ten closed at eight. Or was it nine, or even six. Im not sure. CoP, opened at nine, or was it ten and closing at five (I think). Timekeeper (I dont know, I saw it at four one afternoon and missed it when I brought my first time visiting cousins at nine). And the list goes on. WHY!!!!???
The characters were abundant!! And seemingly random!! It was WONDERFUL!!!
The CMs, as always, were magnificent!!!
EPCOT
I have a very hard time with this park. It is indeed my favorite, yet, I also LOVE the MK. Kind of like having two genius children, with distinctively different personalities. Who do you love more? Neither and both. Each special. Each separate. Each individual. I always spend my first day in MK. But I always savor my last night in EPCOT. In an inner feeling thing, I guess it wins!!
But
That hand and wand has got to go!!!!!
The new Figment ride is very good. Very good indeed!! It had me smiling all the way through both times I saw it! Congrats!!!
Illuminations What can I say? It is marvelous, stunning, spectacular and awe-inspiring. I keep trying to remember if I liked the first version better than this one, and I cant make up my mind (that middle version(s) sucked). Anyway, I love it!!!
And lastly, it needs some updating. Ive left out all the things we usually talk about on these boards (i.e. stagnant WS, Living Seas going to seed, etc.) but some new stuff is a necessity!!!
The Studios
My least favorite park (I dont consider AK a park. It is a very nice diversion at best.) But in all fairness, how can the place compare to MK or EPCOT? Answer: It cant!!
There is one thing that needs to be addressed though. It is the One Mans Dream attraction. It should be required as a minimum standard to participate in any meaningful discussion regarding Disney philosophy. PLEASE SEE THIS!!! IT IS VERY, VERY IMPORTANT!! And it will show the basic difference between Walts Disney and the new Disney®. (And where does Ei$ner get off mugging to camera in the dead guys story?!?!?! It took all my self-control not to rush the stage the first time he came on!!)
Animal Kingdom:
What a wonderful place!! It is truly beautiful!! The Safari ride is a killer (wish theyd lose the big red bit though), Tough to be a Bug is fun and Kili River is very wet, very short, but entertaining nonetheless!!
AK is nice diversion from the three (or at least two and ¾) theme parks that Disney has. Kind of like the day we spent in Typhoon Lagoon. Wonderful! Fun filled. But not an entire theme park! As it is not-a-zoo it is also not-a-theme-park!!
And then theres Dino-rama!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(I cant talk about it now. The pleasant memories from my recent trip are still very fresh in my mind. Also, I dont want to vomit!! So Ill affix my extra strength rose-colored glasses and say, What Dino-rama??!! I must have missed it!! Oh well! Maybe next year!!)The rest of the World
Typhoon Lagoon is spectacular!! I love it there, as does my family. The slides are better in Blizzard Beach, but theres just something about Typhoon
The Buffets around the entire property are all spectacular!! From the campgrounds to the new AKL (Ahhhhhh!!!), just marvelous!! We loved them all!!
And Old Key West is by far the best resort on the property!! If you ever get a chance to stay there do it! You wont regret it for an instant! As good as WDW still is, OKW is just that much better. The old Disney charm is very much alive and is an experience in itself!! Thanks to Maryann and Ted, two wonderful CMs there, for putting up with my kids for three weeks!!
As always the magic is still very evident. From the smiling CMs to the fresh flowers everywhere. From the Character Breakfasts to the bar tender at the Gurgling Suitcase. All wonderful. All Magical. But is it alive? Im not sure. It may be that we are only enjoying remnants of a past age. Is it well? No, my friends, it is not well at all. Just the short summer hours, the elimination of EE and those vacuum cleaners are enough to tell you that the magic is not well at all.
And finally, will it return? Nah! I dont think so. Not at all. Not unless the current administration is exchanged for someone who will actually watch One Mans Dream and not simply provide filler voice over bits for the Dead guys film.
The floor is now opened for debate! Any questions? Any answers?
ps: I had a chance to meet two very wonderful CMs. OnWithTheShow was a delight. We gabbed for hours! And Safari Steve was by far, the best skipper of the Jungle cruise I have heard in quite some time!! Maybe even the best I ever heard, period!! Maybe he was trying to impress me, but somehow I doubt it. He is a natural, funny, self-effacing and friendly! Both great guys!! Thanks guys.
song says. But until recently at least the parade was lame, Star Tours needs to be updated, the Backlot Tour is cut down to bare bones, the HAT (!) exists and the rest of the park is getting old and tired. And MGM isn't even THAT old.
But I can remember when the entire Magic Kingdom was opened until 1:00 in the morning!! Every night!!! FOR NO ADDITIONAL CHARGE!!! Now thats something to remember!!!
