This comes to light after a recent trip to Orlando with my family. Apologies for the length, it’s just something I’m passionate about.
I suppose a more correct title would be "Is Walt Disney World loosing it?". I had an amazing holiday. It's hard not to in Orlando. There's all the rides and shows and holiday bonanza (with us going over Christmas), and the fact we're pretty much an enthusiast family means you're guaranteed a bloody good time.
But, Disney is such a special 'brand'. I can never refer to Disney as that, because it's so much more. I used to never like to call the parks at Walt Disney World theme parks, because I felt that they were so much more. This time though, it lost something.
First of all, there could be some personal factors towards this. This is our 6th visit to Orlando. I'm not saying that we've rinsed out the magic, that would be pretty difficult. We've been to California twice, and that place has so much heart and history that Walt Disney World can't have because everything Walt wanted it to be it isn't. 'One Man's Dream' confirmed this, as every single quote Walt said about the Florida Project was taking out of context to make it seem like this is what he wanted this land in Orlando to be like. Obviously Disney will never admit this. I just thought maybe, because now I know Disneyland’s passion, Walt Disney World lost something slightly.
The second personal factor would be our personal holiday plans. On a majority of occasions, we get to Disney, stay in a hotel and enjoy ourselves, then come home. This time we did a bit more of a 'tour' around hotels in Walt Disney World, and had some days in Sanibel for the Grandparents. So you could argue we didn't have the entire immersive Disney experience that we’re used to, but considering the reasons why I personally left Walt Disney World feeling a tad 'disheartened', they aren't really relevant. I'm just thinking of every reason before I start to point fingers.
So, we get there, everything's good. We expected to see a lot of cuts with regards to the recession. This was not the case at all. Maybe it's because we went at a very busy time, so they still got out all the street entertainers , but we have been at Christmas before (2004) and they had so much more general entertainment round and about than ever before. This was in every theme park. So we were pleased to see this was the case. Despite the general park hours being cut noticeably, the recession was not as noticeable as I had imagined. It was extremely busy and there, from a guests opinion, was no reason to believe that this was a company who was being hit hard from the economic climate.
Happy with this, our holiday goes underway. However, EPCOT seems to have turned into some sort of drunken target. I love a good drink. A drink at a theme park? There's nothing wrong with that. But when you are walking around a theme park with your family you do not want to feel threatened by drunken behaviour, let alone at a bloody Disney park. Walt himself never budged when his Imagineers insisted that parents would appreciate a drink after dealing with excited kids all day. He didn't want it. Back to Disney not sticking to Walt's beliefs, alcohol is now freely available in the parks.
Now I know drinking around the world has always been a common thing. It's not new. But the amount of drunks around EPCOT is. It's horrid to take the entire family in for Extra Magic Hours and be greeting by drunks in the toilets leaving the park, or groups trying to push in the monorail queue reeking of alcohol. This would not be acceptable at parks like Thorpe or Blackpool, but bloody Walt Disney World? With families with young kids waiting around, and families with old grandparents waiting around? Makes me feel sick, and I have never been disgusted at Disney so much. The family atmosphere was replaced with insecurity. Why would Disney do this? Only because they can charge ridiculous prices for alcohol I presume. After all, money is all that matters. It's the modern Disney way.
Back to the point that drinking around the world has always been there, again I know. But never before have I seen cast members walking around with trays of beer selling them to guests as they walk past. This isn’t at EPCOT, this is at the Studios and Animal Kingdom. To be honest, we never saw drunk people at Animal Kingdom (probably because it always closes early) and I don’t remember seeing alcohol being sold at the Magic Kingdom weirdly enough. But, waiting for Fantasmic they must've made a killing, because they were walking round and selling so much alcohol. I know if I was somewhere with my mates waiting for a show to come on, we'd buy a few beers and get a bit merry while waiting for it to keep us occupied, have a bit of fun. But not at Disney. Not when there's families and kids around. Again, I'm not against having a drink, that doesn’t hurt anyone. I'm against having drunk people around families at a place which prides it reputation on family joy and so called 'magic'.
Anyway, some other, not as strong factors also showed signs of Disney loosing it's 'magic' in Orlando. The Studios has a band on. A well funky band at that! I personally thought they were great, but the older people in my family just heard it as 'noise' or 'racket'. I also saw families with younger kids walking past making similar comments. Now, I, personally, was fine with this, A band that covers AC/DC, Bowling For Soup and other rock bands which are extremely funny are a brilliant addition for the Studios in my opinion. Maybe not at another Walt Disney World park, but Studios yes. Other people didn't seem to agree. I see it only fair I mention others opinions, as it's not me ranting, it's me stating an issue others were also commenting on. They were a right good band though, and if they at a Six Flags or Universal or Cedar Fair park they’d be awesome. The crowd just wanted High School Musical I'm afraid.
My final point was at the Magic Kingdom. The parade was on, so what do you do? Cut through the shops? After all, that's why the shops run all the way through to the end. Not anymore! Disney opened up a new pathway in which you leave through a gate next to Luigi's (the Lady and the Tramp restaurant, opposite the fire engine and where the parade actually comes out) and re-entered the park where the old Galaxy Theatre was (next to Buzz Lightyear). Now, initially I thought 'brilliant', Disney have realised the crowds are busy so they've opened up an overflow pathway. However, they used it way too much. They even used it when there was no need, and it was frustrating me so much. This pathway is a pathway marked out with traffic cones out across a car park. All immersive emotion of the Magic Kingdom vanishes. This is more of a Disney geek being picky I suppose, but the whole idea about it being a 'show' and Walt's concept of being immersed into different areas is totally contradicted when cast members are telling you ‘you HAVE to go through this walkway to get to ANYWHERE’. Even if you want to go to Frontierland, they tell you to use the walkway, re-enter at Tomorrowland then walk all the way around. Frustration when you have walked down Main Street when it has been busier so many times before. You can say you want to go into the shops and escape the flow of traffic, which we did, but you shouldn’t have to do that to get the Disney feeling.
You could argue 'well, the reason Main Street isn't busy is because they are using this walkway, they are preventing the crowds'. I don't care. the Magic Kingdom is designed for crowds, I mean, have half of Main Street walking in one direction then the other the other, don't tell guests to leave the park, then make Tomorrowland even more crowded because it practically becomes a midway. Not impressed. When it’s stupidly busy on occasion, yes. Not when there’s no need.
The biggest point is the booze. The Magic Kingdom point and the band point (even though I don't necessarily agree with the band point) are evidence of Disney loosing what they do best, providing quality family entertainment in fantastic, immersive surroundings. Not really immersive seeing cast members push large bins around when you're walking through a car park is it?
So this is my point. Maybe this should have gone in Trip Reports or Opinions, but I put it here because I really consider it an issue. Disney fans have been praising new bars at EPCOT, nobody really seems to see it as a problem. The booze, maybe Disney’s selling more alcohol because of the recession, to get a bit of extra cash. Even if this is the case, I'm sure they won't stop selling it after the recession because they know it's an earner. If this is the case, will we always have these drunken groups making people feel like their families are not safe at Walt Disney World? It probably wouldn’t be an issue if Disney Security actually did things. Actually did more than poke a bag with a stick. They see them walk past and just to get away from them, like everybody else, but surely it’s their responsibility to keep the drunken people in order and maintain the family atmosphere? If that’s not in their job description, it should be. If it already is, they’re pretty crap at it.
Walt always had a strong point of looking after the guests and they will look after you. Have Disney begun to abuse their power, knowing people will visit them no matter what? They don't need to shockingly surprise and impress people, they don't need frequent stellar attractions because they know people will visit anyway because of it's reputation. At the end of the day, is Walt Disney World loosing it's magic?
I suppose a more correct title would be "Is Walt Disney World loosing it?". I had an amazing holiday. It's hard not to in Orlando. There's all the rides and shows and holiday bonanza (with us going over Christmas), and the fact we're pretty much an enthusiast family means you're guaranteed a bloody good time.
But, Disney is such a special 'brand'. I can never refer to Disney as that, because it's so much more. I used to never like to call the parks at Walt Disney World theme parks, because I felt that they were so much more. This time though, it lost something.
First of all, there could be some personal factors towards this. This is our 6th visit to Orlando. I'm not saying that we've rinsed out the magic, that would be pretty difficult. We've been to California twice, and that place has so much heart and history that Walt Disney World can't have because everything Walt wanted it to be it isn't. 'One Man's Dream' confirmed this, as every single quote Walt said about the Florida Project was taking out of context to make it seem like this is what he wanted this land in Orlando to be like. Obviously Disney will never admit this. I just thought maybe, because now I know Disneyland’s passion, Walt Disney World lost something slightly.
The second personal factor would be our personal holiday plans. On a majority of occasions, we get to Disney, stay in a hotel and enjoy ourselves, then come home. This time we did a bit more of a 'tour' around hotels in Walt Disney World, and had some days in Sanibel for the Grandparents. So you could argue we didn't have the entire immersive Disney experience that we’re used to, but considering the reasons why I personally left Walt Disney World feeling a tad 'disheartened', they aren't really relevant. I'm just thinking of every reason before I start to point fingers.
So, we get there, everything's good. We expected to see a lot of cuts with regards to the recession. This was not the case at all. Maybe it's because we went at a very busy time, so they still got out all the street entertainers , but we have been at Christmas before (2004) and they had so much more general entertainment round and about than ever before. This was in every theme park. So we were pleased to see this was the case. Despite the general park hours being cut noticeably, the recession was not as noticeable as I had imagined. It was extremely busy and there, from a guests opinion, was no reason to believe that this was a company who was being hit hard from the economic climate.
Happy with this, our holiday goes underway. However, EPCOT seems to have turned into some sort of drunken target. I love a good drink. A drink at a theme park? There's nothing wrong with that. But when you are walking around a theme park with your family you do not want to feel threatened by drunken behaviour, let alone at a bloody Disney park. Walt himself never budged when his Imagineers insisted that parents would appreciate a drink after dealing with excited kids all day. He didn't want it. Back to Disney not sticking to Walt's beliefs, alcohol is now freely available in the parks.
Now I know drinking around the world has always been a common thing. It's not new. But the amount of drunks around EPCOT is. It's horrid to take the entire family in for Extra Magic Hours and be greeting by drunks in the toilets leaving the park, or groups trying to push in the monorail queue reeking of alcohol. This would not be acceptable at parks like Thorpe or Blackpool, but bloody Walt Disney World? With families with young kids waiting around, and families with old grandparents waiting around? Makes me feel sick, and I have never been disgusted at Disney so much. The family atmosphere was replaced with insecurity. Why would Disney do this? Only because they can charge ridiculous prices for alcohol I presume. After all, money is all that matters. It's the modern Disney way.
Back to the point that drinking around the world has always been there, again I know. But never before have I seen cast members walking around with trays of beer selling them to guests as they walk past. This isn’t at EPCOT, this is at the Studios and Animal Kingdom. To be honest, we never saw drunk people at Animal Kingdom (probably because it always closes early) and I don’t remember seeing alcohol being sold at the Magic Kingdom weirdly enough. But, waiting for Fantasmic they must've made a killing, because they were walking round and selling so much alcohol. I know if I was somewhere with my mates waiting for a show to come on, we'd buy a few beers and get a bit merry while waiting for it to keep us occupied, have a bit of fun. But not at Disney. Not when there's families and kids around. Again, I'm not against having a drink, that doesn’t hurt anyone. I'm against having drunk people around families at a place which prides it reputation on family joy and so called 'magic'.
Anyway, some other, not as strong factors also showed signs of Disney loosing it's 'magic' in Orlando. The Studios has a band on. A well funky band at that! I personally thought they were great, but the older people in my family just heard it as 'noise' or 'racket'. I also saw families with younger kids walking past making similar comments. Now, I, personally, was fine with this, A band that covers AC/DC, Bowling For Soup and other rock bands which are extremely funny are a brilliant addition for the Studios in my opinion. Maybe not at another Walt Disney World park, but Studios yes. Other people didn't seem to agree. I see it only fair I mention others opinions, as it's not me ranting, it's me stating an issue others were also commenting on. They were a right good band though, and if they at a Six Flags or Universal or Cedar Fair park they’d be awesome. The crowd just wanted High School Musical I'm afraid.
My final point was at the Magic Kingdom. The parade was on, so what do you do? Cut through the shops? After all, that's why the shops run all the way through to the end. Not anymore! Disney opened up a new pathway in which you leave through a gate next to Luigi's (the Lady and the Tramp restaurant, opposite the fire engine and where the parade actually comes out) and re-entered the park where the old Galaxy Theatre was (next to Buzz Lightyear). Now, initially I thought 'brilliant', Disney have realised the crowds are busy so they've opened up an overflow pathway. However, they used it way too much. They even used it when there was no need, and it was frustrating me so much. This pathway is a pathway marked out with traffic cones out across a car park. All immersive emotion of the Magic Kingdom vanishes. This is more of a Disney geek being picky I suppose, but the whole idea about it being a 'show' and Walt's concept of being immersed into different areas is totally contradicted when cast members are telling you ‘you HAVE to go through this walkway to get to ANYWHERE’. Even if you want to go to Frontierland, they tell you to use the walkway, re-enter at Tomorrowland then walk all the way around. Frustration when you have walked down Main Street when it has been busier so many times before. You can say you want to go into the shops and escape the flow of traffic, which we did, but you shouldn’t have to do that to get the Disney feeling.
You could argue 'well, the reason Main Street isn't busy is because they are using this walkway, they are preventing the crowds'. I don't care. the Magic Kingdom is designed for crowds, I mean, have half of Main Street walking in one direction then the other the other, don't tell guests to leave the park, then make Tomorrowland even more crowded because it practically becomes a midway. Not impressed. When it’s stupidly busy on occasion, yes. Not when there’s no need.
The biggest point is the booze. The Magic Kingdom point and the band point (even though I don't necessarily agree with the band point) are evidence of Disney loosing what they do best, providing quality family entertainment in fantastic, immersive surroundings. Not really immersive seeing cast members push large bins around when you're walking through a car park is it?
So this is my point. Maybe this should have gone in Trip Reports or Opinions, but I put it here because I really consider it an issue. Disney fans have been praising new bars at EPCOT, nobody really seems to see it as a problem. The booze, maybe Disney’s selling more alcohol because of the recession, to get a bit of extra cash. Even if this is the case, I'm sure they won't stop selling it after the recession because they know it's an earner. If this is the case, will we always have these drunken groups making people feel like their families are not safe at Walt Disney World? It probably wouldn’t be an issue if Disney Security actually did things. Actually did more than poke a bag with a stick. They see them walk past and just to get away from them, like everybody else, but surely it’s their responsibility to keep the drunken people in order and maintain the family atmosphere? If that’s not in their job description, it should be. If it already is, they’re pretty crap at it.
Walt always had a strong point of looking after the guests and they will look after you. Have Disney begun to abuse their power, knowing people will visit them no matter what? They don't need to shockingly surprise and impress people, they don't need frequent stellar attractions because they know people will visit anyway because of it's reputation. At the end of the day, is Walt Disney World loosing it's magic?
. We did this for Fantasmic as we needed to eat and could not be bothered queueing for 2 hours before the show.