They hated my recommendation

[Pally]

Recently, some friends were going to Florida and they asked for some recommendations around the parks and some dining.

I have suggested a few things that I thought they would like and briefly discussed each.

One recommendation was Hoop-Dee-Doo.

Well, when they came home they told me that they absoultely hated the whole experience. The food was bad, the entertainment was worse. They would never recommend this to anyone. :(

I am completely shocked that there was not one redeeming thing about Hoop-Dee-Doo they could think of.

My sister and I went in October and really ejoyed the food and entertainmnt. My sister had never been to it but enjoyed it immensely. It was my second time and I enjoyed it as much as the first time.

Anyone else make a recommendation in the parks or dining event that the person or family absoultely hated. I feel terrible but honestly thought they would enjoy it. I did describe it to them and they thought it sounded good.:confused:

[SBETigg]

Different people have different tastes, different impressions of things, plus not every experience is the same. I made a recommendation for San Angel Inn for a festive, fun family celebration to someone and that turned out to be a bad call-- she hated it. I should have known because it's generally not consistent, but she is also one of us so she knew the risks/mixed reviews. Still, I wished it had been good for her.

[MargaretMessler]

I guess it's all in what your preferences are. Sometimes it's hard to tell from descriptions whether you will like something or not too.

Personally, I loved HDDR...been several times over the years. Nothing super special on the food, but the show is really fun.

[faline]

You win some...well, you know the rest.

I remember speaking highly of Hoop De Doo to a former co-worker to discover that she had been once, hated it, and vowed she would never return!!

Sometimes our favorite things are the very things that someone else hates as well as the other way around. Remember all those people who keep asking you why you would ever go Disney World over and over again? They might be the very folks who spend every vacation in the casinos at Vegas and who can't understand why I don't get why that is the ideal vacation or the folks who sit on a beach from sunup to sundown and don't get why I could possibly be bored with doing that.

[DizneyRox]

I'd take those people off my Christmas card list...

HDDR gets way more yay than nay. It's almost a sure bet, but as you found out, you can't please everyone. Next time tell them they are on their own. Can't blame you for their own decisions.

[hoop de do]

Definitely, they are the exception more than rule.
We love Hoop De Do.
:thumbsup::thumbsup:

[joonyer]

Different strokes for different folks.
Hoop Dee Doo revue is really "corny" humor. And the food is pretty ordinary fare, although you get a lot of it. Personally we've had a great time there and would like to go back someday, although I think it's a little pricey. But some people might find that kind of humor kinds silly and I can see how they might not be impressed with the food. I guess your friends fall into that crowd.

[TinkerbellT421]

Wow, I love hoop dee do. But I guess each their own. :( sorry you were disappointed.

[Madame Leona]

I hesitate to recommend unless specifically asked if I like something for just this reason. DH raved about Hoop Dee Doo and instisted I would LOVE it. I didn't LOVE it. I didn't even like it. I realize I'm in the minority but that is what started my ban on recommending restaurants.

[VAdizneefan]

I'm a TA and I make recommendations to my clients for their trip as a part of the planning process before I make their ADRs.

It is always strange to hear some of the places that people come back disappointed with and their reasons why. A lot of the time, it is as simple as the client not liking the food because it is too "fancy"!!

Dining at Disney will definitely bring out a wide variety of comments and I feel terrible when somebody doesn't like a particular place I recommended.

However, I think you should keep on recommending what you like but add in what you liked about it. Maybe in that conversation you'll learn that they don't like the corny humor, hate buffets, or meat with sauce.

:mickey:

[Kairi_7378]

I hesitate to recommend unless specifically asked if I like something for just this reason. DH raved about Hoop Dee Doo and instisted I would LOVE it. I didn't LOVE it. I didn't even like it. I realize I'm in the minority but that is what started my ban on recommending restaurants.

This is the approach I take as well. Food and entertainment choices can be very subjective.

A few years ago, I chatted with a family who happened to be on both our arrival and return flights to Philly. While waiting for our suitcases, we compared our eating experiences. She gave me very odd looks when I raved about Sanaa and CA Grill and I'm not sure I looked super enthused when she raved about Trails' End and CRT. That is actually one of the things that I like about WDW. You can have a totally different vacation than someone else, and both will have a good time. Like here... I'm more of a Signature Dining person, and my husband and I would never book HDDR. However, I'm happy that so many of you enjoy it :thumbsup:

[Crow]

never tried HDD but have thought of it a few times. someday i will. my tastes vary from CS to Artist PT, CA GRILL, but i also tried Narcoosees once and didnt like it.and i have had both good and bad meals at diff places so it varies
plus ive been to Vegas and want to go back.
so it depends on what people like and the server and food etc

[EeyoresBestFriend]

Like you, I've learned about recommendations.

My lesson was with "helping" and recommending WDW as a vacation. They did NOT like it, at all!! I was really hurt when they returned with comments of 'waste of time and money' and 'how can you keep going back'. :(

Like other posters have said ~ it isn't for everyone, be it the entertainment, the rides, the food . . . . or even the destination!!

So when someone asks my advice now, I am pretty conservative in response.

[wdwluv]

Often I get asked for advice and recommendations for friends trips. It actually stresses me out! I give them my faves and my tips and try and impress upon them that I can only tell them what works for us. And then I stress the entire time they are there if they are using any of my recommendations! LOL

[wdwluv]

And we LOVED Hoop Dee Doo, btw! Hope to get back someday!!!

[minnie04]

I have learned in the past 20 years NOT to recommend things to friends and even family. If you don't want to hear how they hated them. I used to tell everyone about great deals, great places to eat, good shopping, etc. and some people just :ack: on what I recommended, so I just keep my great found treasures to myself. I would get so excited for friends/family when I would hear they were going and love to give all the helpful tips, but not anymore. Now I wait for them to come back and complain that they spent too much, had bad meals, and wish they had asked for tips. Im not saying I'm an expert, but I have been there enough to know what's good :mickey:

Besides, if I don't know. I can always ask on here and pass on all the great advise from Intercot friends..

[princessgirls]

I hate when that happens!!!

Ughhh....makes me feel so small.

Like Faline said, you win some, you lose some.

95% of my friends do not remotely understand WHY I keep going back to Disney, and spending days in theme parks...Surely I MUST be NUTS!!!

Good thing for Intercot....I am with Disney loving peeps here!

Julie:mickey:

[Pally]

Thanks for everyone's replies. Like some above said they were so sour when they came back it made me feel terrible, almost like a punch in the stomach."Drama". Though, they did like some other recommendations.

I guess I have learned my lesson and will keep my opinions to myself unless I am really, really sure that it won't be a complete flop.

[DVC2004]

Years ago my friends (a married couple) went to WDW for the first time. They asked for recommendations on dining. I raved about 'Ohana. They went and hated it, and made it a point to tell me so when they got back. Oh well. I didn't lose sleep over it.

They did love Wolfgang Puck's in DTD they said.

[Granny Jill A]

Don't be too hard on yourself. You merely recommended a place you enjoyed, but you didn't guarantee they would have a stellar experience.

What if they had gone on their own, without your suggestion?

You can't be held responsible for what happened.

[PAYROLL PRINCESS]

And sometimes a bad experience might be because they were already having a bad day, fighting with each other etc and might not have anything to do with the place at all. Who knows, they might go back again and love it.
I wouldn't stress over it too much, after all you didn't force them to go!

[hauntedmansiongirl]

And sometimes a bad experience might be because they were already having a bad day, fighting with each other etc and might not have anything to do with the place at all. Who knows, they might go back again and love it.
I wouldn't stress over it too much, after all you didn't force them to go!

That is so true! We love 50s Prime Time and go once or twice every trip. We recommended it to our friends and they hated it. After talking with them, it turned out they liked the food but their 4 year old was tired and cranky and wined and screamed the whole time, making the dinner very stressful. So their memories, and thus, their impression of the place is very bad. There was nothing we could have done about that!

Just know that you are trying to help and anyone who doesn't appreciate it will never get your help again! Don't even lose another minute thinking about it!!! :tink:

[BugeyedMuggy]

Also remember everyone makes their own happiness. If you are not open to the fun at the time you can make it miserable for others and yourself. It is hard to believe you can not get a good feeling after leaving the Hoop de doo. We have gone a hand full of time to the same show and tho it is not as funny as the first time it is always a good time. Stuffy is the only thought that comes to mind for your friends.

[MNNHFLTX]

I'm going to agree with the other posters in that you can't beat yourself up because someone else didn't like the same things you did. But I wanted to add (in a gentle way) that I don't think your friends seem like the most thoughtful people in the world. They asked for recommendations and you tried to be helpful. My personal opinion is that they could have come back and been a little more tactful in giving their feedback. Why some people feel like they have to be brutally honest in this type of situation and, in the process, rain on your parade is beyond me. :shake:

[conan617]

Don't you just love when people ask you for recommendations and then complain to you when they didn't like it. I recommended MNSSHP to a coworker - when he got back he complained about paying extra to go and do the same things he could have done during the day. I loved MNSSHP and he hurt my feelings so I told him to do his own research next time and told him to come here to Intercot.:thumbsup:
BTW - HDDR was a recommended to me by a fellow Intercotee. It was the best meal we had. We laughed and stuffed ourselves silly with the great food and were included in the show. What else could you ask for?

[LVT]

"Why some people feel like they have to be brutally honest in this type of situation and, in the process, rain on your parade is beyond me."
Well said.:confused:

[mom2morgan]

Never mind if they liked it or not - how incredibly rude to say so!!