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View Full Version : Thank you Disney...



Marker
07-26-2008, 10:53 PM
I just spent the day at Six Flags in St. Louis.

We had a great time, loved the assortment of roller coasters, but now I have this to say....

Thank you DISNEY for doing it right.

Mousemates
07-26-2008, 11:00 PM
:thumbsup:

I agree with your sentiments wholeheartedly...we did a church youth trip to six flags in Atlanta about two weeks before our last trip to WDW....yes, they have great coasters, but that is ALL they have in my book. The park was unclean, customer service was non-existant, there was no enforcement of line jumping (which appeared to be the norm), and there were some maintenance issues that kind of made me abit leery about a second time on some of the rides. Really made us appreciate the Mouse's place even more.

Faver
07-26-2008, 11:12 PM
:-o I couldn't agree more. Other parks just don't compare. You don't get the same quality, that you get at Disney, and forget about cleanliness.....that's not happenin'

Even at Universal, it' pretty bad. My family and I went there 3 years ago, and I literally, stepped in gum, sat in gum, placed our back pack in gum, and I believe I stepped in a "beer puddle" :sick:

Marker
07-27-2008, 08:01 AM
While at Six Flags, I found myself almost constantly comparing, often without even thinking about it.

A few observations ---

Cleanliness - Nothing bad to say here really. The park was really pretty clean. Sure they had the items left sitting by visitors, but for the most part I didn't see much trash.

Theming - Oh my. They have fallen SO short. At the place we ate lunch, part of the decoration was cases of beer (yes I know, I'm in St Louis, Bud is everywhere). So many places where there was just little or nothing done. You couldn't help but notice. They could do SO much more.

There was also no apparent continuity. As you walked from one place to the next, there was no feel of any particular theme, the "look" just seemed random.

Costumed Character - When I see Mickey Mouse at WDW, I see "Mickey Mouse". When I saw Bugs Bunny at Six Flags, I saw a guy in Bug Bunny pajamas with a head on. When I saw Wonder Woman, I thought of halloween. The costumes just didn't look as good, they looked like costumes.

"Team Members" vs Cast Members - Just not the same. "Frumpy" faces, no apparent desire to help. I even got bumped into on a couple of occasions because a team member wanted past and I was apparently in the way (no "excuse me" either).

Queues - Far too many stairs in the queues for the rides. Sees like we were always climbing stairs. Sometimes 2 or 3 stories worth.

No apparent account for shade in many of lines. There was one line, I believe it was the Batman coaster, we were in a dark tunnel, climbing stairs, and no air movement at all, crowd with sweaty people. It was very uncomfortable. I just glad I'm not clastrophobic.

Atmosphere - Narrower paths, smaller and less detailed building fronts. Everywhere you went they had basically pop radio music blasting. I have no problem with the music, but I definitely really missed the more themed atmosphere music.

The crowds weren't bad, but it sure was hot. Water fountains were very difficult to find. Surprisingly you couldn't even count of finding a water fountain by a bathroom. However, there were plenty of pop machines around.

As I said, Thank You Disney, for doing it right.

T-Belle
07-27-2008, 08:20 AM
Couldn't agree more! I have vowed NEVER to go to a Six Flags again.

Gottaluvgoof
07-27-2008, 10:36 AM
Costumed Character - When I see Mickey Mouse at WDW, I see "Mickey Mouse". When I saw Bugs Bunny at Six Flags, I saw a guy in Bug Bunny pajamas with a head on. When I saw Wonder Woman, I thought of halloween. The costumes just didn't look as good, they looked like costumes.


I just had to respond to this one. For years we had season passes to the St. Louis Six Flags. For my kids, it was wonderful. They could hang out with their friends and have a good time, it was close to home, and something to do. I just have to comment on the Wonder Woman :ack: I don't know about this year, because we did not renew our passes for the first time in years, but that woman could have been a grandma when we saw her. OMG, she was not even close to Wonder Woman. I can't even believe they put her in that costume. By the way, did they have their parade? It was hysterical. It was nothing but cars and workers walking by with a few characters mixed in. I know exactly what you're talking about. Not even close to Disney.

Minnie Imagineer
07-27-2008, 10:39 AM
Disney is the ultimate, but I still like 6 flags. The only one that I have been to is Great Adventure.
The problem I had, were the transitions of themes (like from the 'jungle-land' to the 'western land'). Disney does it perfectly but 6 flags is too choppy.

But our 6 flags does have the best coasters...always making world records!

Young@Heart
07-27-2008, 01:16 PM
I'm with you on that!!!! We live near Six Flags, and it's such a disappointment after WDW. DH (who gets almost as excited about WDW as I do) refuses to go. The only time we go is at Halloween, and thats b/c DC like to. We used to go frequently, and even had season passes a few years ago. But after thinking about it, it's just not worth dealing w/ the crowds, long lines, dangerous rides, and ridiculous prices for food and souveniers.

Tinksmom
07-27-2008, 04:13 PM
We just went to Six Flags over Georgia 2 weeks ago. I spent the first 3 hours telling myself, "It's not Disney. It's not supposed to be Disney. Stop comparing." It's just so hard though when you love the gold standard so much.
Most of the lines we waited in had giant TVs blaring commercials with the occasional segment about the park. (Mostly - buy the Flash Pass!)
Like other had said the characters where just atrocious! They obviously had no training on how to interact with the public and the Bugs Bunny in one of the stage shows had a HUGE rip in the crotch!
All in all our family had a good time, but it makes me yearn for our trip to paradise in second week of December!!!! Ditto on THANKS DISNEY!:mickey:

#1disneyfan
07-27-2008, 04:22 PM
There is nothing like Disney!

laprana
07-28-2008, 02:19 PM
I wholehartedly agree!!! I've been to a few other non-Disney parks over the past couple years (Six Flags, Universal, Busch Gardens, etc.) and NONE of them even come close to Disney parks! I always try not to compare, but it's impossible. This past spring, my sister and I went to the Six Flags near Chicago, and we were both saying things like, "That would never happen in Disney World," or "Disney would never let its parks get so dirty," or "The workers would never be this rude in Disney." There's just nothing better when it comes to theme parks than Disney because Disney knows that it's not just a park with rides - it's an entire experience from the minute you enter the parking lot, and every single detail matters! Disney DOES do it right! :thumbsup:

OhToodles!
07-28-2008, 04:41 PM
Agreed.

We don't live far from STL Six Flags and I think I've been to Disney more times than I've been to Six Flags - or at least it's getting close to that. I don't really care to ever go back again.
Although we feel like we could live at Disney and never get tired of it! Maybe one day our dream of living there will come true.

disneyboy98
07-29-2008, 12:47 AM
Disney ROX!!!

Stich8818
07-30-2008, 02:59 PM
I am in total agreement with Marker. You try not to compare but there is no helping it. Yes Disney is not perfect (ride clsures,Fantasmic cut downs, updated ride refurbs) but for me everything else makes up for it. I was talking with my wife the other night about going to a local amusment park and to tell you honestly I cannot do it... I would just rather wait until I get to Disney.