The 'Rose Colored Glasses' folks might actually be right ??

[DaveO]

Well I just steped in the door from a week in the World. As I did in my last trip in December
I went down there after reading these boards about the doom and gloom and expected the worse:

E Nights canceled
Hours Cut
DinoRama is horrible
Parks are dirty
100 years celebration is a joke

ALL WRONG

MK was open late most nights with multiple showings of Spectro. E Night was cancelled because they extended hours to almost 11 pm. Epcot opened @ 9:30 AM with the major attractions open until 9:00 PM. Disney IS adjusting to increased attendance and I am sure now even more with my first hand experience that hours will be back to normal by summer.

IMHO DinoRama is a great FAMILY addition to the AK. It was very fun and 'whacky'. The new PW seemed to be a hit with everyone riding and I enjoyed it. There is so much to look at on the ride you need to ride a couple of times to catch it all. I think that Dinoland USA is now complete with A,C,D, and E ticket attractions plus the Tarzan show - we spent a good 1/2 day in Dinoland USA alone. If you take time to look at all the details in DR it is a very fun and funny area - planters made of licenses plates, wacky bilboards and Chester and Hester roaming about. The games give out decent prizes for playing. We played a few and walked away with 3 stuffed animals. Cetainly not like the local fair. I think Walt would approve of this area - he wanted was clean fun attractions for the whole family. DinoRama completes that for this area. My 17 mo son loved the play area and the flying dinos. My 12 yo niece loved the games and CTX (still like that name better). I love the CTX ride and watching my son enjoy the other rides. This is what Walt wanted for the whole family to enjoy - not super coasters.

Now bring BK on .....

Parks were very clean saw lots of street sweepers many of which stoped to play with my son.

All the new parades are GREAT !!!!!! In Dec I did not get a chance to see AK or MK parade. But they where great Disney quality and fun. I see no issue marketing these parades as new shows to see - they were well worth the time to see them especially the AK parade.

With FP never waited more than 30 mins for an attraction.

The OKW Resort is awesome - clean and well kept up.

Put me securely in Car#1

Now I have to figure out how to use my DVC points for another trip in February!!!

As one last note for all those who think Disney is over priced and is losing it's touch. Took one day to go see Seaworld @ $50 a head (more than Disney w/ park hoppers). There is not even an attempt to keep their attractions up do date. Show buildings looked old and the same as when I went 10 years ago. Resteraunts were just big boxes with no theming except the name.


Dave O.

 

[HorizonsFan]

E Nights canceled

Actually this has been confirmed by Disney. May ERide nights have been cancelled as of yesterday.
(and I ride in Car #2 so we still have a rose tinted windshield)

 

[marty3d]

I went to WDW in January - and like you I was a little hestant because of all the posts. I had an amazing time. An from what I hear, it's only gotten better since. My 3 year old keeps asking me to go back and I just want to say OK!

 

[Planogirl]

Actually, some things were disappointing to me before all of the talk started. But I do still have lightly tinted windows.

I'm glad that you had a good time.

 

[Mooobooks]

Glad to hear your news: our family is going down at the beginning of June and we can't wait. (Is there an emoticon for rose-colored glasses?)

 

[Safari Steve]

My glasses are not rose-colored, other people are just wearing welders' goggles.

Glad you had fun, Dave.

 

[Captain Crook]

I think you may be onto something...It seems those of us who like WDW are frequently accused of being blind moronic fools who aren't smart to recognize any negative, even though we all have pointed out our displeasures a tme or two, when in fact we just enjoy what the place offers...No harm in that and IMO it's better than complaining so much that you build the Disney standard up so so high it can't possibly be lived up to...

Good post DaveO, nice hearing from you again!

 

[2boys'mom]

We had a great time, too. My husband and I both rode Primevil Whirl and liked it. After reading so many posts about it, I understood after riding it why it's not marketed to little kids. When it slings you around it throws you sort of hard against the side of the car and it is a bit jerky. Just this visit , I convinced my 6yo to ride Splash Mountain. No way would he ride PW. Of course he wouldn't ride the teacups either. I did not get nauseated or dizzy with this ride, but don't have a tendency to it either. We, too, enjoyed MK being open later. It seemed to me also that the parks were quite busy.

 

[scauzilloc]

I think a lot of the posts here that portray the negativity of Disney are because someone had 1 single bad experience. They tried to complain to the bigwigs and got nowhere. So what do you do, complain here. They try to put Disney down so that others will not go. I have been on here for over 3 years and I have yet to let those that are negative pull me into their world of Disney hell. I plan on keeping my annual passes and plan on going at least 3 times a month. Walt was just a little child at heart and wanted others to forget about the stress of the world. He wanted us to have fun and enjoy life. Don't pay any attention to Eisner and all the others on here that want to destroy the happiness. Enjoy it while you still can. Take your children and share with them what you shared those many years ago. Not one person on here can truely say they don't have a wonderful Disney memory. Who can forget sitting next to your dad and laughing your head off as you fly around in Dumbo. Or singing the theme song to the Pirate's. On going to the movies to see a Disney film. A lot of good memories came from Disney. Don't lose sight of that.

 

[Peter Pirate]

Very true scauzilloc, and new memories are being made wth new attractions under this management. Test Track (a ride not loved by all Disney affecianados) will always be the single biggest attraction with our family and oddly enough the delay's (in building) are a big part of that. My daughter and I waited and waited and joked and waited and joked it became a running gag..."Will TT be open this trip?"...Anyway it finally opened and we love it (all the more because of the things we - father & daughter - shared while waiting for it). The point is, a lot of what you get from Disney is only facilitated by the Parks being there and being what they are. If you're looking for the Parks to do ALL the work for you I think you're missing the point.

 

[Another Voice]

“Don't pay any attention to Eisner and all the others on here that want to destroy the happiness. Enjoy it while you still can.”

Mr. Scauzillioc –

I do not want my children to only have fond memories of the place.

I want them to have the ability to take their children there as well.

Ask anyone who is involved in the entertainment industry and you’ll find out how much hard work goes into something that you “just sit back and enjoy”. Seeing the place only as a visitor you do not see all the toil that goes into creating the “magic”. It’s not an easy task, occasionally not pleasant and it is far from a guaranteed success. It’s also incredibly fragile and that’s why we fuss and fume as we do.

It’s so damn hard to get right, and so easy to get so very wrong. That's the point we're not missing.

 

[Bob O]

Dave O im glad you had a great time!!!
When ever i return from wdw i ALWAYS have a great time and it provides great memories and as a family we like to watch the things we videotaped to bring back the great times we had.

And im sure im viewed in the negative camp by some people that post on this board. But my hope/intention is to keep disney held up to the high standards it has had in the past so the memories will keep on forever. i want the place to be as good as it has been/was/is so some day when i go with my grandkids/and young kids(older child is universal fan) it is just as i remember it being. If you let disney slowly let the product suffer and not try to exceed our expectations it will only get worse over time. It is the best theme park experience in the world,but if the public doesnt let them know when things are slipping in their opinion then things will only get worse. If we dont complain about trash/rides not working/chipped paint as some examples they may feel they can save money by not properly maintaining the park( i have not witnessed the trash/paint but have seen it on some posts) and then they feel they dont have to "wow" us but just put in rides you would see at six flags with better theming. They will under eisners regime do what they have to do just to get by if their feet arent held to the fire.
And luckily i havent had a bad experince at all at wdw and thats one reason i keep going back as often as i do(to my wife's displeasure at times!!)But i fear that things are slipping and worry that it may be small things now but what might that turn into several decades down the line. Some complain about mickey/butter/package delivery/valet service/hours/EE as examples and each are small in their own right but put together as a whole they do add up and have to make you wonder what might be next if ABC has a horrible year and more money needs to be siphoned from the theme parks.
And in ending i hope i was somewhat on topic and that my long winded post made some sense.

 

[marty3d]

I agree with you 100% - I love the parks - and I still think they are the happiest place on earth. But Disney sgould not sit on it's laurels. I think Universal used to be a good park, but they let things slide in favor of IOA - now the old Universal is border-line run-down.

 

[ellyn2000]

I'm enough of an optomist that I can have a good time whether it ends @8:00 p.m. or 11:00 p.m.. Never did E-night or early entry, even though we stayed on-site. I do love FP, and if that ends, I'll be forced to get ugly! I just love getting away from work/home for a vacation occassionally and like the scenery @WDW. I don't need 24/7 attention. I just expect a clean room, good food and courteous service everywhere I go. I even expect that from our local McDonald's. I never, ever go to WDW that I don't get the best price possible on everything, so I don't feel like I'm being "taken". I think it has alot to do with personal expectations/opinions. Some of the people who complain so much about WDW also complain about everything else in their lives. It's just their nature. I don't take it too seriously.

 

[MikePezz]

It seems to me that this thread is turning into an "us and them" discussion. Two camps appear to be settling in:

Camp 1: "It ain't like it used to be and never will be with the new Ei$ner philosphy."
Camp 2: "Same as it ever was (two points for the name of the group who sings this song)--the parks are still wonderful."

Well, I think both camps have it right. I still enjoy every trip I make to the parks--probably always will. Do I disagree with many of the decisions of the current management? Damn straight. There are definately problems right now (Mikey, baby...it is time to move on. Otherwise, you will find yourself as the subject of a HARDVARD SCHOOL MANAGEMENT CASE STUDY on ego leadership).

I think we all need to remember the cyclical nature of most companies. Leadership often unravels, with company philosophy and direction changing course (if a course is even set) for the worse. Eventually (more often sooner than later), leadership changes and the path of quality (and profitability through quality instead of quality inspite of it) returns.

 

[space42]

MikePezz wrote

Camp 2: "Same as it ever was (two points for the name of the group who sings this song)--

Talking Heads - "Once in a Lifetime" off of the "Remain in Light" album (what a wonderful album)

Now, back to your regular post