Friends didn't enjoy their WDW trips

I tried to tell her that her son most likely misunderstood but she is convinced that the CM told him, for sure, that the park was only for resort guests and diners.
Tell her to tell him, “Wow! He’s so lucky he got a breakfast reservation by walking up that morning! Most people have to plan 180 days out! He got really lucky!” And, “I bet he saved money by staying offsite. That was smart because then he had extra to do things like pre-park opening breakfast.” It’s all true - he actually ended up doing what others build plans to do. If he’d planned for it, he’d be delighted it worked out! It’s all perspective!
 
So, literally, just before I found this thread, a co-worked came by my office and was asking me if Animal Kingdom was only open to people who stay on property or have a restaurant reservation.

Apparently, her son arrived at AK with family in tow and was told by a CM that the park was only open for resort guests or people who had a reservation.

After a long tortuous conversation with her, I figured out that he must have arrived during EMH and the CM told him that the park was only open for resort guests etc and maybe left the "right now" unspoken - or the son just didn't her that part.

So, the son made a breakfast reservation so he could go the park that day. And then he complained about the expense.

I tried to tell her that her son most likely misunderstood but she is convinced that the CM told him, for sure, that the park was only for resort guests and diners.

I can't help but laugh at this. That's so ridiculous! "Yes, let's build a huge theme park but only 2 types of guests can actually use it." Well I guess crowds would be lower that way. :P
 
We have many close friends that do love it as much as us. Several of our friends are DVC members. But of course we have friends that think we are crazy. We had a cousin once that went for the first time with 2 DDs. They did no planning. We booked their room and if it wasn't for us harassing them - they wouldn't have even booked FPs and they were going during Spring Break. They set it up to fail. They came back hating it and said "It was once and done". I warned them not to go for the first time during spring break but they wouldn't listen.
 
I live about 90 min from Disney, so just about everyone around me has been at least to the parks for a day trip. But there are plenty that HATE it, and I find for the most part, the ones that hate it are the ones that go without a plan and/or consider the day/weekend a total failure and waste of money if they don’t do EVERYTHING.
 


a total failure and waste of money if they don’t do EVERYTHING.
I know I get sad sometimes if I can't experience all I want when I vacation (speaking outside of Disney) like we went to the Hoover Dam in October and they've had ongoing elevator issues which meant they couldn't do the Dam tour. We were all disappointed, but that happens on vacation. Some things you just don't have time for, some things are down for maintenance, etc.

Those people you know I would say just have an unrealistic view of vacation then. But that's sorta sad that they view it as a waste of money and failure. That'd be like saying all the vacations I've been on have been that way since there's always been something we wanted to do but couldn't for one reason or another. We've never been able to see all on any vacation.
 
Most of the folks I work with have been and some love it and some hate it and some just checked it off their list and moved on to other places.

Some do hate it because they didn’t plan.

Some did plan extensively and still hate it. Usually like pieces and parts-like certain rides or character meals—but overall just didn’t enjoy it.

On the other hand, some didn’t plan at all and had a ball. One co worker has a teaching partner who is “all Disney, all the time” and she tried to help my friend plan but she overwhelmed her. So she just shut down and didn’t plan anything. They had a blast!

Another co worker had the spreadsheet, the best ADRs and all the coveted FP and just didn’t enjoy the overall trip. Said they felt price gouged and like they spent so much time on on planning and it was a let down.

Different people like different things and it’s ok. I love Disney but honestly if someone blesses me with a big vacation account right now, I would choose a nice long stay at a nice relaxing beach.
 
Just want to share an interesting observation.. For most of us here on Dis, upon returning from a WDW trip, we couldn't wait to go back to WDW. HOWEVER, the fact isn't so in my circle of friends in the real world. Several of my friends went to WDW recently. They were all excited about the trip before leaving.. But when they came back, they had nothing positive to say about their trips!! Some of them are first timers and some haven't been since childhood. They complained about the price, the food, the wait and the amount of walk!! In the meantime a few other friends who haven't been to WDW all dread about the thought of going to WDW and hope their children won't ask to go.

Does anyone else get the same observation as mine??
Let's be real. If your friends aren't planners and don't put in the arduous hours of research and organization required to maximize the opportunities for enjoyment, of course they won't have fun.

This isn't a beach vacation where you can be spontaneous and maybe make one reservation during your entire stay.

We weren't thrilled when returned home from WDW the first time with blisters on our blisters and me with a pinched nerve. We needed a vacation after our vacation, and were ABSOLUTELY EXHAUSTED. We felt like we missed out on so much that we had wanted to do. Fortunately, we were smitten by the magic, and were willing to try again and educated ourselves before our next trip.
 


We weren't thrilled when returned home from WDW the first time with blisters on our blisters and me with a pinched nerve. We needed a vacation after our vacation, and were ABSOLUTELY EXHAUSTED. We felt like we missed out on so much that we had wanted to do. Fortunately, we were smitten by the magic, and were willing to try again and educated ourselves before our next trip.
Respectfully..I had blisters like none other on our most recent trip..because we walked a ton between 5 WDW and 3 USO park days and that was even with 2 rest days due to Irma. We were still exhausted, we still had a blast, I still did planning (over 2 years worth) and still didn't do everything we had planned on (though I set up Must See vs Time Permits on things because some things it was I sat at home thinking I'd might want to see or do X but when actually there it just wasn't important).

Most vacations I go on we're exhausted by the end and feel like we need a vacation from our vacation. The destination hardly matters to us there, even our beach vacations (Hawaii, St. Lucia and I'm sure it will be that way with Jamaica in August). With Hawaii it was the travel and several time zone changes, with St Lucia it was the same but with the added stress of government furloughs that caused us to nearly miss our connection in ATL to go back home.
 
If there is anything I have learned about life it's this: There are Disney people and people who don't like Disney. My family, we're Disney people and some people I have spoken with just don't get it. Not everyone is into the parks, the walking, waiting in line and spending large amounts of money and I get that. Heck, DH hates spending money!! But like most of these people have said, the people who came back with such complaints either A) Did not listen to a word you said about your trips or advice you gave or B) Just decided they were going to completely wing it which is not good.

We have winged it by means of not having ADR which is fine cuz we mostly eat CS or offsite (save for 1 trip). We utilize fastpass but ultimately let the day take us and we always have a blast! From about 9 am to park close we are all smiles! I've done the planned trip with ADR's every day, Memory Maker, HEA dessert party and all kinds of shows thrown in between rides and I don't think it's for us. Did we still enjoy ourselves on that trip, yes....but at first it was really tough for us to adjust to stopping everything for that prized picture or running to make that reservation or stopping to see Peter Pan and every other character possible. Everyone does Disney different and has their own vacation style..I like ours but that doesn't make our trips any better/worse than yours. Would I do that crazy planned trip again? Let's say this... I would do a modified more relaxed version of it. And if my friends come back from their trip and say they hated it...Lol I think I still might tell them, You did something wrong!!
 
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Let's be real. If your friends aren't planners and don't put in the arduous hours of research and organization required to maximize the opportunities for enjoyment, of course they won't have fun.

This isn't a beach vacation where you can be spontaneous and maybe make one reservation during your entire stay.

We weren't thrilled when returned home from WDW the first time with blisters on our blisters and me with a pinched nerve. We needed a vacation after our vacation, and were ABSOLUTELY EXHAUSTED. We felt like we missed out on so much that we had wanted to do. Fortunately, we were smitten by the magic, and were willing to try again and educated ourselves before our next trip.
Sorry but I have to disagree. It's entirely possible to have a fun trip without doing hours of research or making tons of reservations. You're assuming that everyone has the same vacation style and priorities, which simply isn't true. A successful Disney trip doesn't have to mean eating in the most popular restaurants or riding the newest rides. Some people might value walking down Main St or enjoying World Showcase....watching the parade....or spending time by the pool. There are plenty of things to do at Disney that don't require a ton of planning.
 
Most vacations I go on we're exhausted by the end and feel like we need a vacation from our vacation. The destination hardly matters to us there, even our beach vacations (Hawaii, St. Lucia and I'm sure it will be that way with Jamaica in August). With Hawaii it was the travel and several time zone changes, with St Lucia it was the same but with the added stress of government furloughs that caused us to nearly miss our connection in ATL to go back home.
Our beach vacations are in Cape Cod, MA. Our days consist of lying on the beach with an occasional swim in Cape Cod Bay. Our room is beachfront, so walking is just going from the beach to the pool across the street. Our biggest decision is whether we are barbecuing steaks on the grill on the beach or wandering into Provincetown and eating at a restaurant. It is truly a relaxing vacation, the direct opposite of WDW. We tend to alternate destinations every other year when possible.

As far as how our approach to vacationing in WDW has evolved: We used to stay Value and spend the majority of our time in the parks and always got park hoppers. We now stay Deluxe taking more advantage of relaxing in our resort only spending mornings in the parks. Twice during our vacation my family returns at night. I only return at night on the last night of our vacation to take advantage of our last hours in WDW. I take a full day to myself in a pool Cabana while everyone goes off to AK. We eat at more signature restaurants than before. I work harder to make sure that everyone's special requests are granted. Every vacation gets better as we fine tune it.
 
Sorry but I have to disagree. It's entirely possible to have a fun trip without doing hours of research or making tons of reservations. You're assuming that everyone has the same vacation style and priorities, which simply isn't true. A successful Disney trip doesn't have to mean eating in the most popular restaurants or riding the newest rides. Some people might value walking down Main St or enjoying World Showcase....watching the parade....or spending time by the pool. There are plenty of things to do at Disney that don't require a ton of planning.
It is your right to disagree. I can only share my point of view, and that is exactly what I did.
 
Our beach vacations are in Cape Cod, MA. Our days consist of lying on the beach with an occasional swim in Cape Cod Bay. Our room is beachfront, so walking is just going from the beach to the pool across the street. Our biggest decision is whether we are barbecuing steaks on the grill on the beach or wandering into Provincetown and eating at a restaurant. It is truly a relaxing vacation, the direct opposite of WDW. We tend to alternate destinations every other year when possible.

As far as how our approach to vacationing in WDW has evolved: We used to stay Value and spend the majority of our time in the parks and always got park hoppers. We now stay Deluxe taking more advantage of relaxing in our resort only spending mornings in the parks. Twice during our vacation my family returns at night. I only return at night on the last night of our vacation to take advantage of our last hours in WDW. I take a full day to myself in a pool Cabana while everyone goes off to AK. We eat at more signature restaurants than before. I work harder to make sure that everyone's special requests are granted. Every vacation gets better as we fine tune it.
We vacationed in Cape Cod 2 years in a row..well ok 1 year in there and 1 year in Plymouth where we went to P-town (Provincetown), driving up the Cape enjoying the towns.

The first year we went was not the most enjoyable because my mother-in-law couldn't get out of the condo (which was a timeshare they owned) until late in the day, we'd go to the beach for a few hours, go to dinner, then go back the condo where we wouldn't do much, then it was rinse lather repeat. I love a good relaxing beach vacation but it was too much waiting around for someone else to get up, take over an 1 hr to get ready to go to the beach, then not do much. The beach can be tiring in itself with the sun beating down on you and the heat (we would vacation in July). We did do 2 days of driving the Cape that year. 1st day we drove basically just straight to P-town and then the second day we drove to P-town but did stops along the way to all these cute towns. We really enjoyed those days.

For me all of my vacations can include tiring aspects. From DC where we walked around museums a lot and Mt Vernon and Arlington National Cemetary and Naval Academy, to Hawaii where we walked around Pearl Harbor area, to St. Lucia where we did an excursion that included an 1 1/2 hr trip on a catamaran in the sun (coming back it wasn't sunny but it was a bit chilly), to a road trip, to WDW and USO, to NYC between walking for transit and walking for sight seeing, to Vegas with the walking, etc.

We enjoy beach vacations (though we prefer tropical style) but they come with their own exhaustions just different than WDW. It was sorta comical to us because in Hawaii we found ourselves going to bed between 8-9:30pm way earlier than normal but the day was just a tiring day-being out in the sun tends to tire people out.

My point was really exhausting is par for the course for us personally lol.
 
I have one friend/co-worker who is quite anti-Disney. She hates the marketing machine, and feels like she is selling out every time she takes her kids to see a Disney movie. Her view is also that the parks are fake. Fake castles, fake rocks, fake cultural experiences. Characters with creepy plastic eyes all under control of the man. All designed to make you consume more toys you don't want and buy DVDs you don't need. I have given up on convincing her, and we can just have a good laugh about her anti-corporate views sometimes.

But otherwise, I do wish people would enjoy Disney like I did. I actually felt a (little) sad and strangely offended overhearing a family complain about their trip. There we were on the monorail crossing the Seven Seas Lagoon in the evening, and for me I thought it was beautiful to see the ferries crossing the river, and the twinkling lights of Main Street and the iconic castle. And this family was like, "meh, this place is kind of disappointing." Oh well...
 
I have one friend/co-worker who is quite anti-Disney. She hates the marketing machine, and feels like she is selling out every time she takes her kids to see a Disney movie. Her view is also that the parks are fake. Fake castles, fake rocks, fake cultural experiences. Characters with creepy plastic eyes all under control of the man. All designed to make you consume more toys you don't want and buy DVDs you don't need. I have given up on convincing her, and we can just have a good laugh about her anti-corporate views sometimes.

But otherwise, I do wish people would enjoy Disney like I did. I actually felt a (little) sad and strangely offended overhearing a family complain about their trip. There we were on the monorail crossing the Seven Seas Lagoon in the evening, and for me I thought it was beautiful to see the ferries crossing the river, and the twinkling lights of Main Street and the iconic castle. And this family was like, "meh, this place is kind of disappointing." Oh well...

Well, in your friend's defense, she is correct. The problem is that pretty much everything in society is that way. Coca Cola doesn't have cute Polar bears on their cans because they want to help the animals out, they do it to sell more Coke. The same is true of Disney. Bottle up good feelings and sell them at a high cost. People have a choice of focusing on that, trying to ignore it, or accepting it and just rolling with it.
 
Just want to share an interesting observation.. For most of us here on Dis, upon returning from a WDW trip, we couldn't wait to go back to WDW. HOWEVER, the fact isn't so in my circle of friends in the real world. Several of my friends went to WDW recently. They were all excited about the trip before leaving.. But when they came back, they had nothing positive to say about their trips!! Some of them are first timers and some haven't been since childhood. They complained about the price, the food, the wait and the amount of walk!! In the meantime a few other friends who haven't been to WDW all dread about the thought of going to WDW and hope their children won't ask to go.

Does anyone else get the same observation as mine??
My sister went without asking any advice, and she & her family liked it & have been back. They're able to stay at Shades of Green, though, which isn't an option for most guests. A colleage without kids went last October and she had a blast, though she wasn't a newbie.

The people I know with families who haven't been mostly seem reluctant to go because of the cost. I don't try to talk them into anything, though.
 
The thing is though...it doesn't have to be that costly. Growing up, I always thought WDW was too expensive and I would not get to go. Now as an adult, I have been there 3 years in a row. All trips have been done with a budget and our family of 3 does it all for under $3000 (our last trip I believe we spent $2000 but SIL absorbed some cost cuz she wanted to spoil our daughter.) For a Disney trip I don't think that's bad. Just do some research and find ways to cut costs, you don't NEED to stay on property to have a good time either...I don't buy into that. We actually taught both my SIL's (who have only stayed on property over 6 trips) that lesson and they were both pleasantly surprised.
 
We had some friends go on Memorial day weekend and hated it. Shoulder to shoulder crowds, 2 hour lines for everything, they were pretty disappointed.
 
A coworker took her family to WDW for the first time last summer. She was, at first, totally overwhelmed by all the planning and halfway considered just 'winging it' but I and another coworker convinced her otherwise. It was her, her DH, their 2 yr old DD, and her DH's 2 older children (1 a junior or senior in high school, the 2nd in college). Originally, she knew nothing about FP+, ADRs or anything like that.

During the planning process, she was quite overwhelmed. But she stuck with it and they had a wonderful time despite summer crowds and all that. I sent her to this website and a couple of other ones, too.

you can go to WDW without doing any planning. You can show up at the park entrance at 10-11 am. You can wait in the long 1+ hour lines all day. But you'll have a miserable time. Or you can put in a little bit of effort ahead of time and have a much better experience.

It's similar to if you were going on, let's say, a trip to Europe. Chances are that you'd do a little bit of research ahead of time so you could figure out some basics. WDW works that way, too.

If you want a vacation where all you have to do is press the easy button all week, where it's effortless and you just show up, then WDW is probably not where you should be spending your vacation dollars.
 
you can go to WDW without doing any planning. You can show up at the park entrance at 10-11 am. You can wait in the long 1+ hour lines all day. But you'll have a miserable time. Or you can put in a little bit of effort ahead of time and have a much better experience.

I agree. My daughter's high school band and color guard go to WDW every other year. It's a very expensive trip even though they stay at an airport hotel. The kids don't plan anything ahead of time. They basically get picked up mid morning and get dropped off at a park for several hours. All they do is stand in long lines for hours. DD quit the band when she started attending her performing arts high school, but she always heard about the awful trips to WDW from old friends.

That way of touring WDW, getting up whenever; showing up whenever; and standing in long lines to do whatever is my nightmare.
 

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