No the Magic isn’t gone but it’s at 25%

[igrsod]

We have a party of 5 (2 of our kids are young). We also have a double stroller so unless we line up 2 hours ahead of time, we can’t get a view with the current crowds. With ADRs and mid day breaks we can’t waste any more time lining up.

We watched the fireworks from behind and had a great time. IMO the projections of the new show aren't that impressive. I would just watch the show from further down main street and escape the crowds quicker after the show.

 

[MyTwoPrincesses]

I'd like to address the supposed leveling of the playing field.

FP+ was free. G+ costs $15.98 per person. Everyone could afford FP+. Not everyone, especially people with families of 2 or more children, can afford G+. For anyone who doesn't have the extra funds, the playing field has been raised, not leveled, despite what Disney wants us to believe.

Disney isn't a charity. I don't have an issue with charging for a front of the line product. Most theme parks do. If it works well and people can get on rides and actually use the product, then it is up to us to choose what we spend our money on. I also don't have an issue with limiting extended evening hours to Deluxe guests. Disney has a LOT of hotel rooms and it is reasonable to give more perks to people who pay more while at the same time reducing crowds. It makes the extended evening hour perk more valuable than the EMH perk was.

 

[Smugpugmug]

That is it for the most part... you need things that eat up crowds. More experiences, shows, rides etc. If all there are to do is a few rides, then everyone is in line. Lights Motors Action for example... so many people multiple times a day watching that show instead of in line.

This was my point that I made a few pages ago in that Hollywood Studios right now is suffering due to a lack of rides even with the new additions. That's why the wait times at that park get insane super quickly in comparison to other parks.

 

[Disturbia]

I sincerely wish that posters here would stop encouraging Disney to raise their prices even more. Many--perhaps most--posters here don't have unlimited funds.

Somehow, mysteriously, WDW was able to have free FP+ for years, people used them, and they were often available the day of one's visit, if one were persistent. Are there really that many more visitors at WDW now? I've been to WDW 3 times in the last year and not once have I encountered crowds that surpassed anything I experienced in the past.

Yes, if Disney raised all their prices--resorts, tickets, G+, ILL$, upcharges for this and that, whatever--that would eventually limit the number of guests there. Should WDW be a vacation destination for only the upper-upperclass?

I think they should bring back after hours events (if Genie+ is to make money) so if you have money, you can attend with lower waits and not charge day guests extra for FP+ (that’s what the system is, 2 LlI$ pre booked and 1 Genie+). Also make the booking 10 days in advance at 7 am (length of as usual trip) so your bookings are already made or you can choose tier3 rides the same day. If it’s just crowd control I don’t see why they can’t make it free and have advance booking.

At this point and with these crowds if you are not pre planning a trip that costs over 10k then you can choose to wait in standby.

The whole system is a disaster because Disney is trying to appeal to an impulsive customer that spends a lot on merchandise so they can get the most out of last minute trips vs families. They need to just offer After Hours for the impulsive crowd.

 

[Babe the Blue Ox]

In November, my husband and I did the mountain challenge in MK one night. This past trip, the kids were obsessed with doing Splash Mountain as many times as they could, so we managed to do it 3 times one evening.

Another good one is what we call the “Late Night Double Dash”. This one involves riding both Big Thunder and Splash Mtn during the same fireworks show without the aid of G+. That would be considered cheating.

The key is to do Big Thunder first as Splash is too slow to unload.

We usually end up just sitting on a bench somewhere and watching the kids run back and forth between the two a few times.

 

[Jrb1979]

There was no way they could have practiced a 50th parade due to COVID.

The stores at WDW are literally covered with 50th merchandise. Again, we’ve been to the parks twice during the 50th and there’s been tons and tons of merchandise.

Enchantment has tons of classic Disney. You just have to pay attention to the projections; it’s all over the show.

If there was more during a previous celebration, I have one thought for you: supply chain/worldwide event you might know about.

I don't buy the Covid excuse anymore. King's Island and Cedar Point just had anniversaries last year and this year. They had a lot more effort then Disney did. Cedar Point even had a night time parade. One thing those parks did that something Disney didn't was celebrate their history. That is what I think people wanted.

 

[mom2rtk]

There was no way they could have practiced a 50th parade due to COVID.

The stores at WDW are literally covered with 50th merchandise. Again, we’ve been to the parks twice during the 50th and there’s been tons and tons of merchandise.

Enchantment has tons of classic Disney. You just have to pay attention to the projections; it’s all over the show.

If there was more during a previous celebration, I have one thought for you: supply chain/worldwide event you might know about.

It’s still WDW’s 50th. Why does DLR have more night entertainment than WDW? Including that night parade you say they couldn’t practice for?

 

[mercuryvenus]

I don't buy the Covid excuse anymore. King's Island and Cedar Point just had anniversaries last year and this year. They had a lot more effort then Disney did. Cedar Point even had a night time parade. One thing those parks did that something Disney didn't was celebrate their history. That is what I think people wanted.

How specifically would you have wanted Disney to celebrate their history? I saw a lot of classic Disney theming in Enchantment, as well as across the statues they put around the parks.

 

[mercuryvenus]

It’s still WDW’s 50th. Why does DLR have more night entertainment than WDW? Including that night parade you say they couldn’t practice for?

So really this comes down to wanting a nighttime parade at WDW.

 

[Miffy]

The playing field being referred to in this context isn't so much the price but the ability to pick attractions. Remove the cost aspect for a moment and let's discuss the way of actually choosing which rides to book. With Fastpass+ hotel guests could book at 60 days, offsite at 30 and people staying at club level had the ability to buy 3 additional Fastpasses. Even if you were staying onsite, if you did not know the ins and outs of the system you were not going to get the big rides like Slinky, FOP and Mine Train. And then there were guests going to WDW that didn't even know Fastpass+ was a thing before their actual park day. By the time that happens, the only thing actually bookable was Barnstormer for 7:30 pm.

With Genie+, it's day of only. Everyone has a shot of getting the big rides at 7 am. Yes, there's the price aspect and you also need to be Disney savvy to get your moneys worth, but the fact that it's day of is how the playing field is being leveled.

Yes, I understand that's what's meant. But money is a factor, even if it's left out of this explanation.

 

[Jrb1979]

How specifically would you have wanted Disney to celebrate their history? I saw a lot of classic Disney theming in Enchantment, as well as across the statues they put around the parks.

Take Cedar Point for instance, they brought back a lot food and drinks that were in the park over the years, they had plaques all over the park with pictures on former attractions. Basically telling the history of the park.

 

[mercuryvenus]

Take Cedar Point for instance, they brought back a lot food and drinks that were in the park over the years, they had plaques all over the park with pictures on former attractions. Basically telling the history of the park.

I feel like the history of Disney World is naturally all over the park, especially in Magic Kingdom. In terms of the food, they just decided to make a lot of special treats and whatnot for the 50th, as opposed to bringing back things that had been discontinued.

 

[leiaorgana]

So really this comes down to wanting a nighttime parade at WDW.

Not necessarily. I just think people were expecting more spectacle and fanfare for the 50th than what’s been presented. A few cupcakes, new outfits for the “Fab 5”, churned out repetitive merch and a fireworks show that isn’t as good as the one before it seems low effort imo. Myself, and I guess a lot of other people were simply expecting something grander than what we received that actually focused on the entire history of the park and not just the more recent IP based on how much better other anniversary celebrations were. Personally, what they’ve done for the 50th was the bare minimum imo and I was anticipating more with it being the 50th anniversary after all.

 

[Smugpugmug]

Yes, I understand that's what's meant. But money is a factor, even if it's left out of this explanation.

I get it. The fact that there is now a paywall is in of itself a barrier. I am a single person without kids so I admit that the price is easier for me to swallow than a family with 2+ kids. Even when I go in a group, every person in the group pays for their own Genie+ so I'm more willing to cough up $15 to skip the line.

All I was saying is that having it be day of makes it more fair for most people that choose to pay to grab some of the better attractions that with Fastpass+.

 

[john7994]

Obviously everyone has different experiences and unique circumstances but I'm starting to think this is more of a self-fulfilling prophecy deal.

Don't disagree, we had a good dialogue about it - so the rest is kinda on him.

 

[mom2rtk]

So really this comes down to wanting a nighttime parade at WDW.

No. That’s just an example that effectively illustrates my point very succinctly. So much more. More decor, more entertainment, more merchandise.

As I said, anyone who experienced one of DLR’s anniversaries knows what I mean.

 

[mercuryvenus]

No. That’s just an example that effectively illustrates my point very succinctly. So much more. More decor, more entertainment, more merchandise.

As I said, anyone who experienced one of DLR’s anniversaries knows what I mean.

You don’t know what they were planning to do before, you know, the world shut down. You have to put all of that into this context.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

It’s still WDW’s 50th. Why does DLR have more night entertainment than WDW? Including that night parade you say they couldn’t practice for?

And we all know CA was more strict than FL in terms of what they could and couldn't do. They almost were the polar opposites. The 50th was October 1 2021..By May and June of 2021 (so before the 50th) they had stopped the "social distancing" verbiage over at WDW. Plexiglass and the likes had started being removed, social distancing markers removed, I'll grant that masks were still required for CMs as late as mid-Feb 2022 but have since no longer been required for fully vaccinated but on that point it isn't as if it stopped them from doing some stuff with masks still on, a parade would have been possible.

 

[mom2rtk]

I get it. The fact that there is now a paywall is in of itself a barrier. I am a single person without kids so I admit that the price is easier for me to swallow than a family with 2+ kids. Even when I go in a group, every person in the group pays for their own Genie+ so I'm more willing to cough up $15 to skip the line.

All I was saying is that having it be day of makes it more fair for most people that choose to pay to grab some of the better attractions that with Fastpass+.

No reason they couldn’t have just made FP+ same day. That’s how it was all along at DLR.

 

[mercuryvenus]

And we all know CA was more strict than FL in terms of what they could and couldn't do. They almost were the polar opposites. The 50th was October 1 2021..By May and June of 2021 (so before the 50th) they had stopped the "social distancing" verbiage over at WDW. Plexiglass and the likes had started being removed, social distancing markers removed, I'll grant that masks were still required for CMs as late as mid-Feb 2022 but have since no longer been required for fully vaccinated but on that point it isn't as if it stopped them from doing some stuff with masks still on, a parade would have been possible.

They had furloughed/laid off a huge number of their employees during the summer/fall of 2020. That really impacted entertainers. It’s fairly difficult to just throw together a whole new parade when you’ve got something like 20K employees laid off, primarily in your parks division.