"Disney trips are so complicated now that you need a class to plan one"

[Minnie1222]

People made it sound like a golden age before FP/G+/iLL/VQ. Lines were long back then and guests were miserable, too. The average wait time for a popular ride was 60 minutes. The average wait time for a new ride was about 3 to 5 hours. Many non-Disney VIP tours existed for a reason.

 

[drenalin'junkie]

Been going since it opened, ticket books and all.
There was a learning curve that culminated in perks for guests, FP that worked and didn't require angst and anxiety and rez that were simpler. The next learning curve was how to sacrifice the simplicy for the sake of profit.
My average experience has declined since the era between the late 90s to mid 2010s.
By comparison SW/BG has expanded options without seeming to consider guests as piggy banks.
UO/IOA lie somewhere in the middle.
I've spent cumulatively 3 years traveling between all the FL parks and find myself at SW and BG festivals more and more. I miss the F&G and F&W of the past. Happy for the Art festival but still a chore to navigate.
Disney food in BG and I'd never hit another park.

 

[starlite_]

People made it sound like a golden age before FP/G+/iLL/VQ. Lines were long back then and guests were miserable, too. The average wait time for a popular ride was 60 minutes. The average wait time for a new ride was about 3 to 5 hours. Many non-Disney VIP tours existed for a reason.

It was also 25 whole years ago, so longer than lots of married adults with kids have been alive. Memories might be rose tinted for some folks for sure.

 

[Duckbug.Ducktales]

I definitely see the desire to maximize G+. Since you've paid for it, especially with a larger family, you want bang for your buck. I have tried to do it so that we don't zig zag a lot but sometimes I worry about missing out on a selection entirely if I wait until the next time I can make a selection. And so I end up sacrificing our feet. I'm going to try to be more strategic next time. But it can be hard in the moment of making the selection.

 

[Duckbug.Ducktales]

Truly, there's no system that will please everybody. We just adapt to the changes. Part of what we do is that we don't get G+ for each day of our trip as we know the G+ days are more hectic. We have days in between that are more relaxing. So that's how we've adapted.

 

[Smugpugmug]

I decided over the weekend to take a trip to Disneyland next year and my tickets include Genie+. I've heard that Genie+ at DL is WAAAY better than at WDW so I hope that's still true when I visit. The last time I was there, they had Maxpass and that was a significant upgrade from Fastpass+.

 

[Smugpugmug]

I definitely see the desire to maximize G+. Since you've paid for it, especially with a larger family, you want bang for your buck. I have tried to do it so that we don't zig zag a lot but sometimes I worry about missing out on a selection entirely if I wait until the next time I can make a selection. And so I end up sacrificing our feet. I'm going to try to be more strategic next time. But it can be hard in the moment of making the selection.

I find it difficult to strategize MK with Genie+ without backtracking/zig zagging across the park. Even in videos from places like Mammoth Club and Allears, they do a decent amount of walking around the park with Genie+.

 

[ParrotBill]

For our trip starting in 2 weeks, I just received an email titled "Important tooks for your theme park visit". it includes 7 sections to "learn more" including one to go to Disney+ for streaming (*** does that have to do with my theme park visit?)

I can't help but wonder what a first timer would think of this email and how far they will really get.

last visit, I did see a lot of people visiting guest services umbrellas and being taught how to use the tip board... the most basic of tools.

 

[irlandaise]

For our trip starting in 2 weeks, I just received an email titled "Important tooks for your theme park visit". it includes 7 sections to "learn more" including one to go to Disney+ for streaming (*** does that have to do with my theme park visit?)

Did they recommend specific videos on Disney+? There are a number of programs there about Disneyland and WDW.

 

[ParrotBill]

Did they recommend specific videos on Disney+? There are a number of programs there about Disneyland and WDW.

Nope. It felt like it was an ad to get you to subscribe, as if you don't already. LOL

 

[cheryllarsen]

Ha! I could teach that class.

 

[cheryllarsen]

What a great idea for newbies though!