What does everyone really think about all the changes?

[Mickey91]

IT'S MY 1700th POST!!!

OKay, just curious what everyone really thinks about all the changes lately at the World? First, we have the generic mugs, then the removal of the tip and appetizer from the DDP, now LTT is not going to be a character site, this list goes on.

I for one am disenchanted. I cannot believe that of all the companies, Disney doesn't get why it is so great! The very things that keep us going back are the ones that they seem to be in a hurry to get rid of. I hate the generic mugs. At the very least they should have a new design for each year. Taking away the tip and appetizer takes away most of the value of the dining plan. Especially with the changes in the amount of food each entree offers now. And, LTT is my favorite character dining place. If we can only do one character meal, it is LTT. To me it seems that Disney is taking the Disney out of the resort. And lately, I feel like I am paying for pixie dust and getting glitter. What do you guys think?

[SBETigg]

I'm really not that affected by these changes. The dining plan was a great deal, but now it's still a good deal for us. The mugs-- to me, a mug is a mug. As long as it still serves its purpose, I don't mind if they all look the same. The LTT character meal, yeah, that's a bit of a shame. But I've never eaten there and it's not high on my list of places to try. So, really, Disney is every bit as magical as it ever was to me.

[Polynesian Dweller]

I have the same feeling as SBETigg, not really affected. We've never used the mugs.

As for the DDP, well it never really worked that well for us. We don't eat as much as the plan offered and enjoyed going to places that weren't on the plan. So, leaving the plan is no big deal.

Character meals are OK but not for everyone and if you want that you can go to the other ones. There are far more than there used to be even a few years ago so cutting back one is a big deal. It seems to me that they have been mostly used to rescue places that were losing attendance. Crystal Palace and Akershus were both places in decline before being switched over. LTT doesn't seem to have a problem like that.

[brewcrew26]

I think it's a sign of the times. Economically, they're probably saving a little money by just printing generic mugs for all the resorts. They don't have to pay for a few characters at a nightly dinner (I'm not sure what the salaries of a Goofy, Minnie et al really is). And they don't have to pay for the food costs of the appetizer and a tip, might as well have the guest pay for it. I'm sure it's the start of many things that will change with the current stagflation.

Sorry...I'm never really that soapboxy...but it was my gut reaction.

[disneymom15]

The changes don't affect us either. We've never done the dining plan, (we just don't eat enough to find value in it) and charactor dining is not high on our priority list. As for the mug, all of ours from previous trips are pushed to the back of the cupboard and hardly ever used.

[IloveDisney71]

I am sad to hear that LTT is not going to have characters but my DH will be happy. He doesn't really get into the whole character dining thing. He says they interrupt his meal...I tell him that's the whole point! LOL

I won't be surprised if we see other changes along these lines due to the economic crisis that is hitting everyone.

[Lynn J Mc]

I personally would love to lose some character dinners. I loved Crystal Palace when it was cafeteria style and you could do through and get what you wanted and pay for what you got. Disney was a lot cheaper back then.
I never have understood the lure of mugs that i would have to walk all the way back to the snack bar for. I guess b/c we drive and take our own drinks it's not a big deal for us.

[CaptainJessicaSparrow]

The mugs aren't a problem for me because in some locations where it was a slower inventory turnover, such as at Contemporary, they wouldn't sell through their stock as quickly as a location such as Pop Century. So they would change the designs and have to destroy the old ones because they didn't sell as fast. More people will stay at a Value Resort than at a Moderate or Deluxe during a given period. I remember going through about 10 boxes of mugs a night at Pop Century during slower seasons. Places like Polynesian, or Wilderness or AKL, would go through maybe that much in a week.

I don't think them taking out the tip and appetizer on the DDP is a sign of the times either. Disney has an incredibly high mark-up on both food costs and merchandise. Trust me when I say they weren't losing much money with the DDP as you might think. If anything, the Guests might have lost more because while that food was included with their meals and they might have gotten it, how much of it could the average Guest actually finish eating (without overstuffing themselves)? The portions of the sizes tend to be larger, especially at something like a buffet, and at a regular meal adding an appetizer and a dessert would be a lot more than the average person could eat by themselves.

As for the tip, well I have no problem with Disney not paying. Why should they pay the servers the tips when they aren't the ones getting the service? It's the Guests discretion as to how much they should get. If the service was bad, a lower tip should be left and with the DDP, it was always 18%. If the service was excellent, prompt, and attentive, a higher grat should be left and with the DDP, most people probably figured that was good enough and would seldom leave a little extra. I'm a high tipper though, even with my Disney wages. It's almost always >20% unless the service is horrible.

However, LTT is actually my favorite character meal. So I am very sad to see that one go, just because I like seeing the characters in different outfits other than the ones they normally wear. Plus they look soooooo cute at Halloween with their little masks!!

[Wells]

In my opinion......
I think Disney is in the process of "centering" itself. Just like the closing of the Disney stores in order to better manage the quality of the merchandise and experience, it appears that there is a controlled withdrawal from the Michael Eisner "harvest the brand" philosophy.
In recent years they have gone a little nuts with the character dining, it hard to find somewhere to eat where you will not be accosted by a "rubber head" sometime during the meal. I know a lot of people enjoy the character interaction, but a lot of us don't. There are still plenty of characters dining experiences available to those who are interested. As for the refillable mugs, I wouldn't be surprised to see them disappear altogether before too long.
Closing the Pleasure Island clubs fits in with this "de-saturation" effort too. Basically, I don’t think these changes are necessarily bad, if they lead to Disney concentration their resources and efforts on there core business of providing high quality, family orientated entertainment.
Maybe I didn't explain this too well, but you guys know what I mean.....

[Disneyatic]

I agree that all the changes do cause a small feeling of disappointment.
I think the main reason that it seems like such a shock or defamation of the pixie dust is that there have been so many change announcements so close together! And all of them have been "take aways" and not additions. It would feel better if Disney could follow up the announcement of discontinuation of character meals or closure of pleasure island or change in DDP with some sort of "good news".
I know, I know, Disney is a business and has to make a profit, but there are many things that are small in comparison that could be done to give the guests back the "warm and fuzzies".

[Disney Doll]

My family won't really be affected. I did kind of like getting different mugs at each resort, but a mug is a mug so I'm not too concerned about that. We never use the DDP just because we eat light and prefer to spend more time in the parks versus time at TS meal.s We've never eaten at Liberty Tree Tavern so I guess I'll never know what I was missing. These changes seem pretty minor to me and I'm still very happy with my Disney experiences.

[brownie]

A little disappointed with the generic mug, but I'm more interested in having a refillable mug than having a resort specific design on it. The other changes won't really impact us.

[Aggie97]

The changes don't bother me much. I think that change often can lead to improvement. If things always stayed the same at WDW, it would be less fun to visit year after year. I don't think we've heard the last from Disney on all these changes -- I really do have faith that some exciting new ideas will be announced in the future.

The different mug designs were cute, but we have a whole cupboard of them at home that we've never used after leaving WDW. I've done the math before every trip since the DDP came out, and I've yet to find any savings for us. P.I. hasn't been a must-do for us in a few years, so I am looking forward to some positive enhancements there.

As for the character meal changes, I agree with Disney's point of view at MK (a lack of non-character TS options), but with all the TS options at WS, I have a hard time agreeing with them at Epcot. We do already have dinner reservations at GG and LTT in Oct., so we will experience both meals at that time.

[MickeyChick]

None of the changes (except the Adventurer's Club closing) really affects me.

I have the generic mug from January and while I have no problem with that, it bothers me that I couldn't find anything with the Pop logo on it or any of the resorts we popped into. (Except I think AKL had tee shirts...)

[Cinderelley]

I agree with you. My friends and I have actually decided to go somewhere else for a girls' get-away this year - Maybe a cruise to Mexico. If we leave out of LA, we might spend a day or two at Disneyland. It's a lot closer.

I don't like that the DDP doesn't give you the option. Yes, it was too much food for one person, but it would be nice to be able to choose between an appetizer and a dessert.

I wasn't thrilled that they got rid of the mice at 1900 Park Fare. That's the whole reason we went there.

We started rethinking future trips when they announced the removal of the Adventurer's Club and decided against going back when they announced that they were taking the characters out of LTT. LTT has been a must-do for us since our first visit.

We were starting to plan another large family reunion there with my DH's older kids & grandkids there in Dec., 2009, and another family reunion trip with my side of the family in June, 2010. Unfortunately, I agree that this is just the beginning of the "changes", and at this point, I have no inclination to continue with these plans. There are so many other places in the world to see.

[VolMickey]

Ditto most comments above. OK with most of these.

[DizneyRox]

I'm glad to hear others are reaching their breaking point. That's the only way Disney is going to stop. Hopefully the downturn in the US economy will do something, however I fear we will only see shorter park hours and more restaurant closures.

[luvdiznee]

As far as the DP w/no app, I was disappointed in that when it first came out, but now that I think of it, it is for the better as far as me. IMO. Was just too much food. And we as a family never get individual app's when we do get them, its only one for all of us. As far as LTT the dinner itself never appealed to me. And there are many other places to see the characters. The mugs that does bother me, since I was collecting them for the resorts we were staying at. Just glad I got what I go so far. As far as Pocahontas will just have to put that on my "to do" list. We saw it once but I would like to see it again before it goes. DTD is a little disappointing, too. Will have to get there for one last hurrah, but am anxious to see what is coming with that next.

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

The dining plan change is probably the only one that really bothered me, and its not that I'll really miss the appetizer (it really was too much food) I just wish they made it where you can choose between a dessert or appetizer at each meal...Although I would probably lean toward dessert most of the time,sometimes, I'm not really in the mood for sweets and sometimes I really want to try a certain appetizer...just give us a choice. Also, having the tip was just a nice convenience.....however, its still a good deal for us so we will continue using it if they don't mess with it anymore.

[Jasper]

Oh what a fickle bunch we human beings are! During the Eisner/Pressler years we complained that Disney was growing stagnant or worse was cheapening everything by branding every last thing and charging more for junk. Now that there is a management team that is actually making changes and pushing things forward we continue to complain.

Folks, we can't have it both ways - either we want things to be stagnant and never change or we embrace the fact that the Disney Company is in the business of constant change and enjoy what comes down the pike. Are there going to be mistakes along the way? Sure there will be but after so many years of seeing nothing but junk being shoved at us I am looking forward to a period of positive change!