Magic Gone 😢

[ryan1]

You’ve been drinking the Kool-Aid!

If you have to pay EXTRA for it, that isn’t the “real” queue. But I am choosing to wait in standby for the price of the ticket. The fact that Disney charges people to let THEM jump ahead of ME without my consent means they are stealing from ME, but THEY are profiting from it.

The example of flying standby is entirely different. You aren’t paying for anything you are even guaranteed. You are just HOPING to get on. (ANd this is a way for airlines to ensure no seat flies empty.)

[noreen99]

@Jsanta26

A lot of the qs items have now turned into generic food options across the board, and the menus have been cut down so much-and some a lot of the food is just mediocre now- definitely the quality of some of the food has gone downhill while the prices have gone up. We try to work around this-

Not just QS- we have found the menus at TS to have been drastically reduced and it’s the same stuff over and over again- seriously reports that Olivia’s is now serving bagged chips vs house made and conche fritters never returned.
We were just went food shopping and our local warehouse club had a decent deal on short ribs- I said no we are going to WDW it’s going to me on the menu 8 days straight

[ThorKat]

@ryan1

You’ve been drinking the Kool-Aid

Nope just stating facts.

[noreen99]

@QwertySC

So much jumping through hoops.

This kills me - I think since genie there is absolutely to much work and all at the last second.

[bebe80]

Yeah, technically when Disney started charging for the jump-the-line queue, the price of admission should have dropped.

When the system started in 1999 it was free, and everyone was pretty much on the same playing field. (FP kiosks)

Now it’s a class system. In general, people with more money to spend get a big advantage. And those that cannot, (or choose not too) do not get an admission discount for waiting longer and therefore experiencing less attractions in a day compared to the past.

[hufflematt]

As a first-time G+ user yesterday — and inspired by this thread — I have written my own thoughts on G+ in my trip report.

Spoiler: G+ is bad.

[gingerSnaps543222]

@heathernoel

There is a theory that the wait times are inflated to stretch out the return time for DAS. There is a lot of reasons why this theory makes sense (as does yours).

Our DLR VIP Tour Guide told us this about DAS: He said there are days when 50% of the park is using it and it drives u StandBy wait times. That’s why they are making the changes recently announced.

[gingerSnaps543222]

I agree with you on this one. And Disney did this in the beginning with tickets. E-Tickets cost more. You want to ride more you gotta pay more. You want to ride newer/more advanced rides, you gotta pay even more. Always been the market model for Disney. Maybe they did free FP for so long so people would get hooked though and then fork out extra.

[davej]

@ryan1

I’m still trying to figure out a way to “bill” Disney for every time they allow someone to jump ahead of me in line with G+! I didn’t agree to that,

To play the devil’s advocate: If you bought your park tickets after G+ was implemented, then you bought knowing WDW’s rules of the game so you implicitly agreed to the G+ rules with your purchase.

[ryan1]

That is true…but if the choice is between not going at all, and putting up with Disney’s thievery, I still choose to go…because I still find magic at Disney…but we also ride a lot fewer rides nowadays.

(To be fair, I consider ANY pay to skip the line service at any park to be thievery…but Disney has figured out how to maximize impact on guests moreso than other parks!)

[Jsanta26]

@noreen99

seriously reports that Olivia’s is now serving bagged chips vs house made

We were just at OkW last month and I believe our chips were still “house made”

[noreen99]

This is last couple of days- hopefully it’s a fluke of some sort but it’s got OKW social groups buzzing.

[Jsanta26]

I’m sure.
I will say I ordered the turkey sandwich at goods (probably around 7-8 pm) and was told they were out of them for the day, and I was perplexed they couldn’t just have the kitchen make one.
So obviously it appeared they weren’t made on site…
But I’ve never been a huge fan of OKW qs.
I think the setup stinks and the menu kinda sucks- but the tuna is good…

[gingerSnaps543222]

but Disney has figured out how to maximize impact on guests moreso than other parks!)

on this you and I have always agreed!

[Jsanta26]

I must join these groups- it’s one of my home resorts… links?

[noreen99]

Agreed -OKW QS is not why we love it there but Olivia’s is a family tradition for us no matter where we are staying on or off property- last day was Olivia’s, changes to the menu really bothered us a lot. Without a doubt quick service needs a boost, and needs a bigger spot.

[noreen99]

Links I have no idea how to do-

[melani_875095]

Thanks for all the info. I have a good friend who has already gone the Universal route. Definitely will give it a lot of thought.

[janamelia]

@ryan1

When we go (and we are going MORE often nowadays rather than less often) we find the magic. We bring the magic with us. So I wouldn’t say it is gone. Lessened, yes. But not gone. There is still more magic there than any other park (including Universal).

We are increasingly less about doing the rides and more about ambiance and exploration now.

This is us. Our 2013 trip was our first foray into what an alternate trip might look like when we brought 2 family members who couldn’t ride many rides due to back and neck injuries. Then our '22, '23 and '24 trips were considerably less ride centric. We enjoy visiting with CMs more. Afterall they are the ones responsible for everything. We’ve finished our 2024 trip yesterday and were commenting on how it seemed there was less rudeness this trip. We’re looking forward to our December trip. Can’t really do much about the heat other than visit in winter.

[janamelia]

@heathernoel

predict your current feelings on WDW! (@ryan1 excepted)

Count me in here as well. I had quit using fast pass before 2019. Have no plans to pay to ride with this new system.

As my youngest grandson has said for decades, it’s Disney World. Tho @melani_875095 mentioned problems across the board. While I don’t disagree with some complaints I aim to figure work arounds. Some work better than others. I keep thinking of “it’s kind of fun to do the impossible”