6 Days at the park... Where were the dreams?

[Bareacuda]

I just have to add this one...
Just spent 4 days at DL. On the 14th(my B-day) a family was picked to be the Grand Marshalls and a stay at the Minnie's suite!
The father was PO'ed ! He only went to DL to in his words "to shut up his bratty daughter about going to DL!!!"
I would have loved ANYTHING from the Dream Team! Beyond that... I still had a very breath taking birthday.

I guess some people will never be pleased or happy

 

[Vemnox]

Like I mentioned in every other "disappointed" post - the dream squad EXCLUSIVELY uses backstage areas. They only hand out prizes a handful of times a day. Your odds of actually seeing a dream squad member are slim to none. I'm here 40+ hours a week and am lucky to see them 1x. They are literally prize ninjas. They always have a manager with them who gives them a time frame so they are in-and-out within minutes.
Look for people wearing the dream ears, lanyards, and fastpasses though ... you'll see plenty of them.

 

[CanadianGuy]

Personally:

I expect absolutely nothing out of this upcoming trip of mine. I don't even expect to see the ears.. or the lanyards...

Low expectations = EVERYTHING is a pleasant surprise.

 

[Vemnox]

Personally:

I expect absolutely nothing out of this upcoming trip of mine. I don't even expect to see the ears.. or the lanyards...

Low expectations = EVERYTHING is a pleasant surprise.

 

[CanadianGuy]

Thanks Vemnox..

I try to keep in mind the fact that I'm able to go to Disney AT ALL .. is the real dream come true.. lots of folks in this world can't... a couple of years ago -- that included me.

So.. :

 

[Minnie3]

In December, wasn't much but it made our day, we were chosen to go ahead of everyone on the Test Track ride (which I was a little chicken about)..Family of the hour I think they called it and another day, we also went ahead of everyone on a ride in Dinorama (a spiny ride I didn't actually want to go on) but they said we coud go twice...so I guess I got to like it! and they gave us a limited print so it was pretty cool

 

[dpayne1969]

Wow,
Honestly I feel we have already won "a dream" by being able to go to Disney World again! We love Disney & we feel blessed just by being able to go.
I have not heard either of my kids even mention anything about this,so I doubt they will be upset if they dont get picked. They did say it was cool for the person who won the stay in the castle but other than that nothing.
We are just so excited about our upcoming trip that we dont care about being at the right place at the right time. As far as we are concerned we will be at the "right place" as soon as we step foot on that Magical Express bus.
LOL

 

[maxiesmom]

I wonder if the execs at Disney regret this promotion. They try to do something special and instead of being excited, so many people are upset that they didn't recieve a "Dream." I'm with the group that is just so excited to be at Disney that anything else is a bonus.

And by the way, I was this close to a dream pass this last October. Went on Splash Mountain with my dad, and had a great time chatting with a nice lady and her son in the log with us. When we were done they headed to Big Thunder Mountain. I wanted to too, but dad wasn't up for it. We ran into the same people later in the day, and they had the dream passes around their necks. They got them when they went on Big Thunder. Seems they were handing a bunch of them out. Was I disappointed? Yes. Was I so upset that it ruined my vacation and made me mad at Disney? NO!

It is a promotion and not everyone will win. Why go in expecting something and set yourself up to be disappointed?

 

[Vemnox]

I wonder if the execs at Disney regret this promotion. They try to do something special and instead of being excited, so many people are upset that they didn't recieve a "Dream."

That sounds like their personal problem. People shouldn't set the bar of expectations so high that they are letting THEMSELVES down. Disney isn't letting them down; they are.

 

[BethA]

We were just there and saw people with the fast pass lanyards, but never saw the dream team. I did not expect anything--we never win, so it was not a personal let down, but I am not going crazy over the promotion. It seems like the small dreams, should be a part of extra special customer service, not a major promotion.

Does anyone know how his is going over--is it a success?

 

[SarahKate]

Why would Execs regret this decision??? This is NOT an entitlement, it is the luck of the draw.

Think about all the people who don't even KNOW about this program - and if they've heard of it, they probably don't know what it's even about. We are in a special situation here on the DIS. We have knowledge of all things Disney. And that can be a total CURSE, because we know too much.

I would much rather just be approached by a cast member giving me a prize, having not known a darn thing about YOAMD!

After reading these posts about people being all disappointed, all I can say is wow! It's not enough that you're IN WDW???

That said, we just got home on 2/9 and to be honest I had for the most part forgotten about the promotion. But then on about the 3rd day I was seeing people with the lanyards. Lucky them! It didn't bum me out and make my trip less than magical!

We did get a little piece of the magic though. One day at MGM I had ordered a small popcorn and a soda. The cast member gave us one of the plastic buckets (w/ a handle) of popcorn and only charged us for the soda! Not a big thing, but we were tickled by it!!! I would love to be a cast member and be able to just surprise people, even in these small ways.

 

[HACAM]

I can't believe people were letting this sort of thing ruin their vacation. Seems pretty petty! I would think you would be happy to be spending your vacation is such a fun place!

Our family keeps going back to WDW because we just love the place, not because of the different promos they have on each year.

JMHO!

 

[David & Anne-Marie]

After reading these posts about people being all disappointed, all I can say is wow! It's not enough that you're IN WDW???

I can't believe people were letting this sort of thing ruin their vacation. Seems pretty petty! I would think you would be happy to be spending your vacation is such a fun place!

Our family keeps going back to WDW because we just love the place, not because of the different promos they have on each year.

JMHO!

Wow... I guess I would put forth a gentle suggestion that it might be OK to be disappointed. I look at it like the kid who goes to a baseball game and afterwards looks for his favorite player for an autograph, but before he gets the signature, the ball player needs to leave for the locker room. You know the kid was happy to be at the game, but you also know he was disappointed not to get the autograph. So why can't these fans of Disney be a little disappointed in not getting a dream? Seems natural anough for me. Not trying to stir up a debate, but I thought it necessary to validate some feelings.

 

[Vemnox]

Wow... I guess I would put forth a gentle suggestion that it might be OK to be disappointed. I look at it like the kid who goes to a baseball game and afterwards looks for his favorite player for an autograph, but before he gets the signature, the ball player needs to leave for the locker room. You know the kid was happy to be at the game, but you also know he was disappointed not to get the autograph. So why can't these fans of Disney be a little disappointed in not getting a dream? Seems natural anough for me. Not trying to stir up a debate, but I thought it necessary to validate some feelings.

The kid shouldn't go in expecting to get the autograph in the first place.

 

[nurse.darcy]

Why? and Why Not? Sorry but I am of both sides of the debate. . .while part of me would love to receive a bit of "free" Disney magic, the other part of me says that hey, its enough that you are taking your first trip to WDW. I have been an AP holder at DLR forever and have gottensome special stuff but WDW is a whole new ball game. . .I won't be disappointed but I still would love to win something. . .

 

[David & Anne-Marie]

The kid shouldn't go in expecting to get the autograph in the first place.

What if I said the kid had a hope/desire/wish/dream to get the autograph? Does that perhaps clarify where I'm coming from?

Disney promotes YOMD with Wishes once thought impossible may just come true at Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort!. How can one not get their hopes up just a little?

 

[Doombuggyman]

While it's a cool promotion, there is no question that we let our recent trip (1/19-1/28) get somewhat diminished by it. We saw quite a few Dream Ears and Fast Passes. We saw the Dream Team several times but never personally...we missed out on an "extra-hour-after-hours" at the MK by just a few moments. To make things worse, it was clear that a number of these dreams were granted to people who really didn't care about them. This was discouraging to us, because we really would have been excited to receive then ourselves.

I understand your disappointment at seeing people who "didn't care" about their prizes... I personally saw someone win a Dream Pin Lanyard and toss it in a trash can as they walked away. That's disappointing, to be sure... but it also saddens me to see families wearing matching T-shirts reading "PICK US TO WIN A NIGHT IN THE CASTLE!" It seems to me these folks are just setting themselves up for heartache.

The Dream Squad members have absolutely no control over how the prizes are awarded; they'll get a message stating something like "Give out 100 Dream Fastpasses to the first 100 guests to exit Big Thunder Mountain at 9:45am." Other prizes are similarly awarded.

Me, when I go to the parks, I just tell myself that if I win something, hey, lucky day! If not, I'm at FREAKIN' DISNEY WORLD, and magic -- and dreams -- are all around me. Like the little boy wrapped in an embrace with Pooh -- hugging what I imagine he sees as the world's biggest plush bear. Or the teenage girls swooning over Jack Sparrow, dreaming they could catch his fancy as Elizabeth did.

Being part of the year of a million dreams doesn't necessarily mean your dream of a free fastpass or Mickey ears or even a stay at the castle will come true... but what about your dream of sailing the Caribbean and watching Pirates hunt for treasure? Or a dream of exploring a condemned hotel? Or of flying through the galaxy and helping to destroy the Death Star? Or even of catching a glimpse of Mary Poppins?

The Year of a Million Dreams is about ALL Disney dreams. I say we all enjoy it and let the magic take us Dreamers if it will.

 

[Doombuggyman]

Like I mentioned in every other "disappointed" post - the dream squad EXCLUSIVELY uses backstage areas. They only hand out prizes a handful of times a day. Your odds of actually seeing a dream squad member are slim to none. I'm here 40+ hours a week and am lucky to see them 1x. They are literally prize ninjas. They always have a manager with them who gives them a time frame so they are in-and-out within minutes.
Look for people wearing the dream ears, lanyards, and fastpasses though ... you'll see plenty of them.

In Epcot, perhaps. I know that in the Magic Kingdom they spend a lot of their time on stage doing guest service-type stuff.

If anyone is wondering, the Dream Squad costume consists of a sky-blue oxford-style button-down shirt, khaki slacks, and (sometimes) a white vest with the Dream Squad logo on the back or dark blue coat. They may have stopped wearing the vests; I've heard of a number of situations where Dream Squad members have been harassed by guests demanding prizes.

Disney promotes YOMD with Wishes once thought impossible may just come true at Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort!. How can one not get their hopes up just a little?

When you wear Axe deodorant, do you honestly think that thousands of gorgeous women will run after you trying to molest you? And are you disappointed when they don't? Just curious...

 

[CanadianGuy]

When you wear Axe deodorant, do you honestly think that thousands of gorgeous women will run after you trying to molest you? And are you disappointed when they don't? Just curious...

YES! You too?!!?? Join my class action lawsuit at...

(kidding of course)

Personally, I get a much bigger kick out of seeing other people -- especially families with children - win stuff than I probably ever would out of winning it myself.

The exception being the really REALLY big prize of the DVC resort points. That I would get pretty excited about

J

 

[Sandi]

We were there for 8 nights in February and went to the parks every day. We saw lots of people with dream fast passes and DD12 saw them being awarded to a group in the green line at Mission: Space. She was in the orange line. She was bummed to not get one, and that's OK. It is normal for anyone. It did not, however, ruin our trip to see someone else win. DD12 said it was fun to watch the suprised expressions on the faces of those who won them.

When we checked in for our ADR at California Grill (planned months in advance to be able to be there for the fireworks) a young family was there to check in because they won a dinner at CaliGrill that afternoon. We were delighted to see them win it because they were so genuinely excited. Someone else in line cursed under her breath and said she didn't feel they were "deserving." Can you believe it!?!

We go to WDW usually 2x a year and enjoy the magic of whatever is there. Sure, it would have been fun to win something. But, CM's make magic there every day when they leave your stuffed animals playing games on your kid's bed, when they make your kid's sundae extra big just because, and in so many other ways.