Never thought I'd do it- Cancelled.

[Jimmy Mouse]

I replied to this post back on page 6. One thing has changed since. I added one more night to our WDW stay so now we are staying 2 nights but only going to MK one day. Like I had previously posted, we cancelled our 11 night stay and I rebooked for one night at Poly due to points I didn't bank. I still had a few more points so I added a night since availability seems to be opening up a lot at a lot of resorts. I also had no problem booking dining at all the usually sold out restaurants. Anyway, the mouse is losing my money at this point. We are still going to Orlando for the same 11 nights but 3 are at Legoland and 6 at Universal Portofino Bay. I also renewed our UO AP's. $479 renewal rate, express pass after 4:00, no blackouts, early entry, park hoping, valet parking, prime parking if we drive to a park, food and merchandise discounts, hotel discounts and one free HHN ticket per pass makes it a great value! Now I probably will never use the Express pass after 4:00 because we always stay at a resort that includes them but it will be nice to have when we stay at WDW in March as we will not be doing any Disney Parks but may decide to do a UO day. One more added bonus is if you book with your AMEX Platinum card through AMEX you get 12:00 check-in when available, 4:00pm checkout guaranteed, a room upgrade at check-in (if there is no availability they will give you club access) and free breakfast every morning of your stay. That is a perk that will save a lot of money for sure! We really do enjoy universal but me and my family Love WDW so I really hope they see the light and bring back the magic. Soon.

 

[V.B.]

I replied to this post back on page 6. One thing has changed since. I added one more night to our WDW stay so now we are staying 2 nights but only going to MK one day. Like I had previously posted, we cancelled our 11 night stay and I rebooked for one night at Poly due to points I didn't bank. I still had a few more points so I added a night since availability seems to be opening up a lot at a lot of resorts. I also had no problem booking dining at all the usually sold out restaurants. Anyway, the mouse is losing my money at this point. We are still going to Orlando for the same 11 nights but 3 are at Legoland and 6 at Universal Portofino Bay. I also renewed our UO AP's. $479 renewal rate, express pass after 4:00, no blackouts, early entry, park hoping, valet parking, prime parking if we drive to a park, food and merchandise discounts, hotel discounts and one free HHN ticket per pass makes it a great value! Now I probably will never use the Express pass after 4:00 because we always stay at a resort that includes them but it will be nice to have when we stay at WDW in March as we will not be doing any Disney Parks but may decide to do a UO day. One more added bonus is if you book with your AMEX Platinum card through AMEX you get 12:00 check-in when available, 4:00pm checkout guaranteed, a room upgrade at check-in (if there is no availability they will give you club access) and free breakfast every morning of your stay. That is a perk that will save a lot of money for sure! We really do enjoy universal but me and my family Love WDW so I really hope they see the light and bring back the magic. Soon.

Wow...UO is really making it an easy choice. When I read above and then remember all the things that Disney is taking away (Magical Express, most of the EMH's, no FP and charging for ILL, etc), I'm not surprised that you are spending more time at UO.

 

[shawthorne44]

I have been visiting Disney at least once a year my whole life. I absolutely love Disney. We are booked at the YC for Sept. and I am almost to the point of clicking "cancel reservation." I love the beach, but hubby hates it. He likes the mountains I hate it. The only place we both love is Disney....but boy oh boy are they leaving a bad taste in my mouth lately. I know we will more than likely be back in 2022 because why not? But who's to say we won't be staying offsite instead? The YC is my favorite resort along with the Polynesian, but like you said maybe I'm just getting older and more reluctant to throw money in someone's pocket who continues to disappoint.

You might be able to find something. For example, if he dislikes the beach because of the inactivity, maybe get Scuba certified.

Another idea is to try different parks maybe around the country or within Orlando. I haven't been to Discovery Cove, but it looks interesting. Maybe a couple of days there and a few days at Universal.

 

[DCLMP]

It will be interesting to see if you feel the same way a year from now. I think by then you will understand what everyone else is saying.

Disney, in its current form, is ruined.

I just got back from Disneyland and used Genie plus. I liked it, I didn't like the cost of course, but Disneyland has had a similar system with max pass for years. FPP was horrible so I can't imagine this could be any worse. I really enjoyed WDW without fast passes. I would have been happy to see them never return.

I don't feel a particular way about it at this point. The only thing holding me back from going in 2022 would be the lack of room discounts.

 

[luv2cheer92]

It will be interesting to see if you feel the same way a year from now. I think by then you will understand what everyone else is saying.

Disney, in its current form, is ruined.

*** for you *** Not for everyone.

I really need to stop opening this thread. Makes for some good entertainment though.

 

[jknc]

Well, that is why they are opening another entire park soon...

I get the impression folks think Epic Universe is going to be cost around the same price as their current parks. I don’t see that happening, I think it will cost substantially more.

 

[notatallmagic]

Just back from our three day stay at Yacht Club. Our flights there and back were on time, and we walked right onto Magical Express on arrival. I will miss that service tremendously! Our room wasn't ready when we arrived, so we were able to enjoy the resort decorations and the Christmas decor at the parks - but is was just missing something...we were not fans of either new fireworks show - at Epcot or Magic. We were very attached to Happily Ever After - and this one is just blah. I was much more hopeful for Epcot's new show - and it was just too shrieky and disjointed...ugh. At least we won't need to stay in the parks until close for our March trip. Definitely once and done for both.

We did not do Genie or LL at all, and were still able to ride most of what we wanted; but our expectations were low. The resort staff were lovely, but of course no Mousekeeping. We did have really good experiences with bell services at Yacht, and had a prompt and pleasant response to a request for more shampoo. So, overall, Cast Members did seem much better than this summer.

Our mobile orders were fine too - it's just not the same? I left feeling sad, not blissful and magical like I used to. Hope that things improve, but for us, one more trip...

 

[DisneyMom_13]

I get the impression folks think Epic Universe is going to be cost around the same price as their current parks. I don’t see that happening, I think it will cost substantially more.

Oh for sure and universal passes will go up a ton in price too. I do think its going to be an amazing park though and look forward to it.

 

[Dizznee Freak]

We have been 15 times over the last 20 years or so. In fact we went twice in 2021... AND returning in May 2022. We always have a blast and never have any regrets. Our mindset is we are going on vacation and have no expectations. We just go with the flow. Everything is getting expensive, its called inflation.

 

[ML_LovesDisney]

I talk to a lot of people weekly due to my job, and a lot of people are reporting similar issues with any and all vacations they go on. Mexico, California, NYC, Italy, wherever. Service is cut, quality isn't as great, limited experiences, food isn't as great for same price. I don't think its unique to Disney sadly. I hope it returns to a better level at some point, but not feeling super hopeful about it

 

[luv2cheer92]

I talk to a lot of people weekly due to my job, and a lot of people are reporting similar issues with any and all vacations they go on. Mexico, California, NYC, Italy, wherever. Service is cut, quality isn't as great, limited experiences, food isn't as great for same price. I don't think its unique to Disney sadly. I hope it returns to a better level at some point, but not feeling super hopeful about it

Its the same every.where. I have the luck of going on several vacations every year, to all different kinds of places. National parks, other theme/amusement parks, cruises (haven't done one since Covid), beaches, international trips, big cities, and more. I'm a part of several different social media pages and groups for these places and everyone is the exact same. Prices going up, added costs, more crowded, more planning . All of it, nothing is different. You should've seen one group I'm in the other week when they announced that Arches NP was adding a timed entry reservation system for next year. It exploded. I just think there are a lot of people on here that vacation exclusively, or close to it, at Disney, that they don't see that. And I've had quite a few trips that cost just as much, if not much more at times, than most of my WDW trips.

 

[leeniewdw]

I guess no one knows the future, but if my local Jersey Mikes has to close down mobile ordering because they don't have enough staff to take walk in + mobile orders, well I think there is still a worker shortage that's going to impact *everything*. Our neighborhood pizza/burger/family go to still isn't open for lunch except Fri/Sat/Sun.

We have reservations in Yellowstone and the Tetons in June. We've already talked about how we may have to change our eating plans while there to include more "stuff from a cooler". It remains to be seen if they will return to full services (they didn't last summer) due to covid related worker shortages and housing issues.

 

[DCLMP]

I talk to a lot of people weekly due to my job, and a lot of people are reporting similar issues with any and all vacations they go on. Mexico, California, NYC, Italy, wherever. Service is cut, quality isn't as great, limited experiences, food isn't as great for same price. I don't think its unique to Disney sadly. I hope it returns to a better level at some point, but not feeling super hopeful about it

I would agree with that. I’ve stayed in hotels for other trips and service is limited. No room service. no breakfast, no maid service etc. The same locally. Just trying to eat out is a PITA. Restaurants are cuttting hours and limiting capacity do to lack of staff.
We went on a Disney cruise in August and room service was provided twice a day. I think there might have been more staff than than guests. Cruising may still offer great service, but there is whole other list of issues, protocols and mandates that make it more stressful than it’s worth.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Just trying to eat out is a PITA. Restaurants are cuttting hours and limiting capacity do to lack of staff.

It's been like that since summer for us. We just keep our patience caps on. Most of the restaurants just have long waits due to low staff not that they are soooo busy so your wait is 2 hours but that there's not enough staff. They aren't really limiting capacity but a byproduct of a long wait is usually that at least some people leave. People do still like to eat out here but you do have to be more patient and understanding.

We went to the movies on Christmas and like they have been doing for months now at least at AMC is Dine-In theaters you order at the bar and they'll bring you your food and the plates and stuff are more disposable style. If you want more stuff you have to go back out to the bar. It's not a big deal to us but they just don't have the full staff to give that full experience like normal.

Because so many places are like this we approach it with a level of understanding, sometimes it bites knowing we aren't getting what we did before but we're weathering through it right now, the staff are dealing with enough. The hours part is sorta a different annoyance just because we don't know if the hours we're reading is accurate or not. One of the only places I've seen around me that had issues was Sonic where they couldn't get anyone to work for the evening so they would close around 5pm but most places close 8-9 pm where they may have in the past been 9-10pm.

I'm sure it's quite frustrating at Disney but if my own local area is experiencing issues I can't assume Disney is immune in this.

 

[Disturbia]

On the argument that people must be fine with Disney's skrimpflation since it is crowded. What percentage non-AP and non-DVC guests are aware? Everyone here is, but what about your average guest? Think of the people that arrived for their first Disney vacation unaware of FPP. Even those that don't know what is missing, a good number will leave with the feeling that the cost wasn't justified. They will notice that a lot of the shows are still closed, even if they don't know it is about half the entertainment. They'll notice that the menus are limited and roughly the same and food quality is sub-par. They probably won't consciously notice that many of the CM's are using generic uniform rather than a themed one. But, they will notice that Disney is just another theme park. Think of the story about Walt insisting on the leather straps because that is what is authentic. Can you imagine anyone at Disney now doing that?

I agree with this. The disillusionment is something that can’t be undone. Disney was a vacation to forget the worries of the world; now we have to take a vacation to forget the worries at Disney.

We changed our hotel from AKL to AOA (no maid service at AKL 1 bedroom (we are not DVC members and did sign up for service); no great food options; transportation. We also cancelled several ADRs (3 for last 3 days of our trip) as food quality and service went down even from Nov 2020 to June 2021 and it’s a headache getting from one place to another.

Grandparents would have been part of our trips had the old system been in place. I still think things will improve and Disney will bring back some elements of pre booking.

 

[MrsNick]

I replied to this post back on page 6. One thing has changed since. I added one more night to our WDW stay so now we are staying 2 nights but only going to MK one day. Like I had previously posted, we cancelled our 11 night stay and I rebooked for one night at Poly due to points I didn't bank. I still had a few more points so I added a night since availability seems to be opening up a lot at a lot of resorts. I also had no problem booking dining at all the usually sold out restaurants. Anyway, the mouse is losing my money at this point. We are still going to Orlando for the same 11 nights but 3 are at Legoland and 6 at Universal Portofino Bay. I also renewed our UO AP's. $479 renewal rate, express pass after 4:00, no blackouts, early entry, park hoping, valet parking, prime parking if we drive to a park, food and merchandise discounts, hotel discounts and one free HHN ticket per pass makes it a great value! Now I probably will never use the Express pass after 4:00 because we always stay at a resort that includes them but it will be nice to have when we stay at WDW in March as we will not be doing any Disney Parks but may decide to do a UO day. One more added bonus is if you book with your AMEX Platinum card through AMEX you get 12:00 check-in when available, 4:00pm checkout guaranteed, a room upgrade at check-in (if there is no availability they will give you club access) and free breakfast every morning of your stay. That is a perk that will save a lot of money for sure! We really do enjoy universal but me and my family Love WDW so I really hope they see the light and bring back the magic. Soon.

Hi, thanks for posting this. Now I have a reason to see if we want to upgrade to a platinum AMEX. In the past we decided it wasn't worth it. But if we decide to try Universal then these are pretty nice perks.

 

[DCLMP]

It's been like that since summer for us. We just keep our patience caps on. Most of the restaurants just have long waits due to low staff not that they are soooo busy so your wait is 2 hours but that there's not enough staff. They aren't really limiting capacity but a byproduct of a long wait is usually that at least some people leave. People do still like to eat out here but you do have to be more patient and understanding.

We went to the movies on Christmas and like they have been doing for months now at least at AMC is Dine-In theaters you order at the bar and they'll bring you your food and the plates and stuff are more disposable style. If you want more stuff you have to go back out to the bar. It's not a big deal to us but they just don't have the full staff to give that full experience like normal.

Because so many places are like this we approach it with a level of understanding, sometimes it bites knowing we aren't getting what we did before but we're weathering through it right now, the staff are dealing with enough. The hours part is sorta a different annoyance just because we don't know if the hours we're reading is accurate or not. One of the only places I've seen around me that had issues was Sonic where they couldn't get anyone to work for the evening so they would close around 5pm but most places close 8-9 pm where they may have in the past been 9-10pm.

I'm sure it's quite frustrating at Disney but if my own local area is experiencing issues I can't assume Disney is immune in this.

At least at DL last week restaurants in DDD were able to operate at full capacity. I did not notice a lack of servers. I’m sure they have less of a problem getting servers due to the high prices and high volume equaling big tips. I doubt other places in California are like that.

 

[Marthasor]

I talk to a lot of people weekly due to my job, and a lot of people are reporting similar issues with any and all vacations they go on. Mexico, California, NYC, Italy, wherever. Service is cut, quality isn't as great, limited experiences, food isn't as great for same price. I don't think its unique to Disney sadly. I hope it returns to a better level at some point, but not feeling super hopeful about it

This was not our experience when traveling to the Riviera Maya in Mexico this year. We visited a resort we had been to twice pre-covid and, after traveling to both WDW and Wyoming this year where service has been cut severely, I was shocked by the level of service we received in Mexico this year - the resort was fully staffed, full housekeeping every day and all restaurants were open. In fact, the experience was better than our previous trips. I can't comment on other international destinations, but certainly in the area of Mexico we visited, things were very much back to normal.

 

[MomOTwins]

This was not our experience when traveling to the Riviera Maya in Mexico this year. We visited a resort we had been to twice pre-covid and, after traveling to both WDW and Wyoming this year where service has been cut severely, I was shocked by the level of service we received in Mexico this year - the resort was fully staffed, full housekeeping every day and all restaurants were open. In fact, the experience was better than our previous trips. I can't comment on other international destinations, but certainly in the area of Mexico we visited, things were very much back to normal.

Sure, and we also had phenomenal service with no cutbacks on Disney Cruise. But for both of those things, you have to sign on to mandatory covid testing and all the to risk that entails, so the cruises and international resorts know they can’t cut corners or people wouldn’t go. Disney World knows they have a captive audience of people not willing to hazard getting stranded outside the US for two weeks, and it gives them more license to skimp.

 

[pixiedust2u]

There’s a difference between inflation related cuts, and then just poorly thought out systems. The lack of some services ie. Daily mousekeeping can be attributed to inflation. But I can’t find a reason why inflation has anything to do with a system that requires a 7am log in while on vacation to reserve one ride. Or a system where there’s no way to modify your plans if they conflict with another, or if your plans simply change. Eg PP who didn’t make it to AK in the morning and as a result couldn’t get into MK. Or how about just some honesty and transparency acknowledging the current circumstance such as lack of trams or daily mousekeeping isn’t ideal, and that they are working towards improving services. How about throwing your guests something, like since we aren’t able to offer daily mousekeeping daily here is a voucher for 5$ a mobile order or something. Something, anything. You’d be surprised what something little can do. I think that’s what’s missing, Disney always knew the value and magic in even the smallest of things, and now it’s like they can’t be bothered.