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  1. #1
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    Default DF's Observations, Thoughts, and Opinions From Current Trip

    Will be home Friday from a week long visit to Orlando... I'm finishing my packing, but wanted to start this thread tonight... When I get back, I'm going to provide what I saw the last week in Disney and Universal (I will post Universal's in the Uni thread), theme park observations, Magic Band usage, Fastpass Plus, crowds, wait times, New Fantasyland... This will not be a trip report... I don't do those... This will simply be what I saw and experienced this last week, and my opinions about everything... Stay tuned!!!
    Son of Jor-El.. Kneel before Zod...

    TRICIA JONES: I heard that you were going to propose to Brandi Svenning at some theme park. When are men going to learn that women want ROMANCE, not Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...

    BRODIE: Hey, now, be fair. EVERYONE wants Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

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  3. #2
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    Looking forward to it
    - Lynn -
    INTERCOT Staff: Theme Parks, DVC

  4. #3
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    I will set my DVR!
    Disney Dream May 2019, WDW Dec 2019

    18 Oct ASMv
    16 (APs) Jan POR, Feb CSR, April ASMv, June BC, Oct Pop & Cabins, Dec ASMv & AKL & Pop, Jan '17 POFQ (10k!)
    15 May Pop&CBR pirates
    13 Oct ASMu&AoA
    10 (APs) June CR, Oct AKL&Pop, Dec Pop
    07 March ASMv
    04 June POR
    94 June Onsite

  5. #4
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    I hope you have a nice time!
    1980 Disneyland
    2004 & 2006 Pop
    2008 AKL
    2010 CBR
    2011 POFQ & WL
    2012 CSR & Contemporary
    2013 Villas @ WL Christmas Family Trip
    2014 YC 25th Anniversary Trip
    2015 AoA Spring Family Trip
    2016 Move to Florida and AP Holder

  6. #5
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    I'm back, but dead tired from a lack of sleep 24 hour train ride... I'll post this weekend, promise!
    Son of Jor-El.. Kneel before Zod...

    TRICIA JONES: I heard that you were going to propose to Brandi Svenning at some theme park. When are men going to learn that women want ROMANCE, not Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...

    BRODIE: Hey, now, be fair. EVERYONE wants Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

  7. #6
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    Can't wait to read it.

    Quote Originally Posted by DizneyFreak2002 View Post
    When I get back, I'm going to provide what I saw the last week in Disney and Universal (I will post Universal's in the Uni thread), theme park observations, Magic Band usage, Fastpass Plus, crowds, wait times, New Fantasyland... This will not be a trip report... I don't do those... This will simply be what I saw and experienced this last week, and my opinions about everything... Stay tuned!!!
    Isn't that technically a trip report?
    Many visits over 35+ years!
    DVC member since 2004 (SSR)

    Stayed at: Bay Lake Tower, Polynesian, Contemporary, Wilderness Lodge, Boardwalk, Beach Club, Dolphin, PO Riverside, AS Sports, AS Movies, Saratoga, Vero Beach, Hilton Head, Aulani, Disneyland Hotel, and Grand Californian.

  8. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Aurora View Post


    Isn't that technically a trip report?
    ~Lynne~

    On deck, you scabrous dogs! Man the braces! Let down and haul to run free. Now...bring me that horizon


    DCL 2008 Mexico, 2011 Alaska, 2013 Caribbean
    WDW 2000, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2010, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019
    Disneyland 2015, 2004,1993,1992, 1991,1973

  9. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Aurora View Post
    Can't wait to read it.



    Isn't that technically a trip report?
    Technically, no.. I'm not detailing every day of my trip... When I read the trip reports, I read people including every minute of their day: what they did, where they ate, and what time they stopped for a potty break LOL... I'm just going to give my opinion on what I saw, not tell you all what I did minute to minute... That is a trip report to me...

    Ok, ready?
    Son of Jor-El.. Kneel before Zod...

    TRICIA JONES: I heard that you were going to propose to Brandi Svenning at some theme park. When are men going to learn that women want ROMANCE, not Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...

    BRODIE: Hey, now, be fair. EVERYONE wants Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

  10. #9
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    First (Aurora, this will be the only trip reportish style of, um, reporting LOL) let me detail how this trip came about....

    I was planning a week in Orlando with a friend of mine, the same friend I usually head to Orlando with... We had planned for a week visit, and only doing Universal for 2 days while kicking back and relaxing (getting away from what has been a rough two years for both of us)... The plan was Islands of Adventure one day and Universal Studios/HHN another, with the rest of the time put aside for kickign back by the pool, sleeping in late, and just hanging out with friends visiting other sites...

    Well, during the last year, my friend became a father... So, because of the change of his status from single guy to single dad, he cancelled out... Understandable.... I decided I was going to go alone instead, but still keep IOA/Uni on the agenda.. I wouldn't have done the two parks alone, one of my friends in Orlando had scheduled time off from work to come to the parks with me....

    To my shock, my brother, out of nowhere, mentioned he wanted to go to Disney World... I was shocked because, the last time we were there as a family (2001) was the last time he was there... He used to make fun of me for going every year, and the last time (2001) he was bored and said he didn't care to visit again... so yes, I was shocked when he said he wanted to go...

    Not knowing if I should take him serious or not, I did not make any move to buy WDW tickets or anything... But, he was serious... With that I purchased a 4 day base ticket (with a free 5th day thanks to Official Ticket Center!!!), as well as our train tickets (no, I do not fly), and the Universal tickets...

    There is a little back ground on how this trip came about... Because my brother wanted to go to WDW, even though I didn't, I still purchased the tickets cause I was not going to take that away from him...

    Next post will detail my observations and opinions...
    Son of Jor-El.. Kneel before Zod...

    TRICIA JONES: I heard that you were going to propose to Brandi Svenning at some theme park. When are men going to learn that women want ROMANCE, not Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...

    BRODIE: Hey, now, be fair. EVERYONE wants Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

  11. #10
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    From the 5 days I spent inside Disney World theme parks and the week or so at their resorts, here is what I observed and a few opinions about everything...

    CROWDS
    Where were they? I was expecting to be over run by hoards of people... From reading trip reports and other posts, I was expecting wall to wall sweaty, smelly humans... But, I never encountered that... Except for DTD, which always has crowds anyway... The crowds were no more or less than I remember from previous Octobers... which leads me to:

    WAIT TIMES
    Most attractions were walk on... Some had a little wait, while the most popular attractions had long wait times... One thing I did notice though, Pirates and HM had abnormally long wait times for the minimal amount of people in queue... and I do mean minimal... How can Pirates have a posted 25 minute wait (was really 45) and HM have a posted 30 minute wait (was also 45) with hardly anyone ahead of us? One answer... FAST PASS... I do believe Rides like HM and Pirates do not need and should not have FP... This is proof FP+ is going to inflate wait times...

    MAINTENANCE
    I am the first person to jump on Disney/TDO for poor maintenance... And the last 15-20 years, maintenance was as poor as poor can get... I'm also the first person to give props when due... I must say, the maintenance of attractions seems to have picked up... Many of the attractions looked in great shape... Yes, there was the occasional break down ( couldn't do PhilharMagic at all since it was down all day)...The burning Rome smell was powerful on Spaceship Earth... Main Street looked fantastic, the Castle was beautiful... However, there were a few mishaps.. No mermaids on Pirates, Blackbeard's voice could be heard but no mist scene... DHS still stands... Disco yeit still doing is best John Travolta... and again, PhilharMagic was down the day we were in MK... Otherwise, everything looked to be in pretty good working order, and for the most part, show ready... Even Dinosaur had effects working which I haven't seen in ages...

    RESORTS
    I had a split stay: a few days at Bay Lake Tower, a few days at Saratoga Springs... I've been hearing and reading about the poor condition of the rooms in Bay Lake... These reports troubled me... I love Bay Lake (heck, I did buy into it)... So reading and hearing about the room conditions saddened me.. But then I entered my room and thought "where are these horrible rooms???" My room was in top condition... No paint chips, no broken furniture... AC worked better than I remember

    Saratoga Springs is another story... While the rooms are nice, they are horribly out dated... My room had chipped walls, dirty fridge... The AC was horrible, and the sliding glass door to the balcony would barely open... A call to maintenance didn't even do the trick (if they even showed up)... We still had a hard time opening and closing the sliding glass door... Where are my maintenance fees going exactly?

    TRANSPORTATION
    This trip, I found it to be very reliable... I never waited more than 5 minutes for a bus to anywhere... The monorails need a complete replacement and upgrade, but even so, I did not encounter one break down... The night we stayed in MK during EMH, we had to take the ferry back to TTC, and even then, I found the ferry to be just fine...
    Son of Jor-El.. Kneel before Zod...

    TRICIA JONES: I heard that you were going to propose to Brandi Svenning at some theme park. When are men going to learn that women want ROMANCE, not Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...

    BRODIE: Hey, now, be fair. EVERYONE wants Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

  12. #11
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    FASTPASS PLUS
    I want to hate the NextGen program, and I still do... I feel this is a waste of $2.5 billion dollars... In 5 years, Comcast will be spending $2.5 billion on new attractions, hotels and theme park expansions... WDW on something that wasn't broke but now broken... Waste of money... Complete waste of money...

    When I read how awesome people find this, I read it notice the feels are of personal and selfishness (not bad selfish, but more like not seeing the over all picture, just worrying about yourself)... if I were to look at this without the objective view, yes I'd love it too... Who wouldn't want to book a ride on Soarin 60 days in advance? And if you are fortunate enough to be able to do that, then great... the system works just fine... But now, look at it objectively... it is a disaster... Soarin and Test Track had over 60 minute wait times all day, and FP were sold out very early in the morning... Hardly any paper FP were available to people not participating in the magic band/FP+ testing, or to guests with RFID KTTW cards... TSMM is another ride where FP were gone very early... I don't believe many, if any, same day FPs were available for these attractions... This is a major failure... Lines at Guest Relations were abnormally long this trip... Came to find out, almost all of the complaints were FP not being available, with plenty of DAS complaints tossed in... This is a nightmare for GR cast members... Wonder why they are hiring so many? Not enough bodies to handle the complaints... Some of us called this a disaster waiting to happen... Seems we were right... This is a program which will collapse under its own weight... Disney has a problem... I have NO faith in them to find a solution... Disney is no longer in the guest satisfaction game... Now, it is all about treating guests in WDW as if they are items on a conveyer belt, squeezing the life out of them (in this case, every last cent you have on you)... And no, it isn't working...

    Now, selfish me: FP+ worked fine for me... I booked, in advance, for three attractions in Epcot for the day I arrived... I booked Soarin, Test Track, and Spaceship Earth... Well, I missed my Soarin time (no biggie, we weren't going to rush to the park), but I managed to get on Test Track and Spaceship Earth (which does not need FP either)... So, again, in those cases, yes the system is just fine... In the over all picture, no... it isn't...

    And they must remove it for Fantasmic... Fantasmic may become a show I never go see again... Having FP on shows is just stupid... But, this is the new Disney Company where stupid is as stupid does... And in Orlando, they are full of stupid... We went to the 9:00 show of Fantasmic, and because of FP+ getting priority seating (let in first), stand by was not seated until 8:50, and with that it was a stampede of humans pushing, shoving, and trampling over each other just to get into the arena... If this is how it will be, count me out... As for the show, the torches on the canoes failed to work as usual, the projections on the water were crummy, but everything else seemed to have been updated and working just fine... And yes, they are slowly upgrading the show.. In fact, they just upgraded the lighting.. Now update the projections!!!

    MAGIC BANDS
    For the first few hours of wearing them, I had no issues or complaints... other than the awkward turning of the wrist at the FP or gate entrance turn styles... By late afternoon/early evening, they became annoying... Easy fix: remove from your wrist... They worked just fine, for the most part, for entering the room or theme parks or fast pass lines... We did run into one issue but it was easily corrected... I was told at Bay Lake I did not have to check out, just leave... So, I did and went to SSR... The CM at SSR informed me I was supposed to check out at Bay Lake so they could deactivate my BLT bands and SSR could activate my SSR bands... Hassle if you ask me.. Easily solved: ONE SET OF BANDS!!! But no, we needed two... So, I had to get my SSR bands from the car and have the CM check me out of BLT (from SSR which was pretty nifty!!) and then activate my new bands... Once they did that, everything worked just fine... Like I said, one issue which was easily fixed...

    I'll add this here since this does fit with magic bands... As I and a few others stated previously, and again, shouted down, Disney WILL BE tracking you... They have long range and short range readers... Short range examples are your door, FP+ turn styles, park entrance turn styles, or the pay at the register readers... They have long range too... And yes, Disney will know when Dizneyfreak enters Emporium or World of Disney or Gaston's Tavern even before I purchase anything... Before, the only way they knew where you were is by you using your KTTW card as a credit card... they the information registered back that Dizneyfreak was at Emporium... Now, you no longer have to make a purchase... Just entering they will know... I know some people think the tracking is no big deal... But others do have a problem with it... And Disney is not being honest about it... At least Google tells you they are tracking you... Disney doesn't...

    What Disney does with the info they gain is the problem, I feel... Disney will be creating (yes I know they already have one) a database on their guests... They will compile information regarding your spending habits (where you spend your time and money and on what)... If you are a big spender, Disney will look to squeeze even more out of you... if you are a not a big spender, don't look for Disney to try to get one more cent from you... You are more of a liability then someone they see dollar signs in, and someone they prefer not to visit the parks.. yes, I know it sounds like a stupid idea, but this is what it is...
    Son of Jor-El.. Kneel before Zod...

    TRICIA JONES: I heard that you were going to propose to Brandi Svenning at some theme park. When are men going to learn that women want ROMANCE, not Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...

    BRODIE: Hey, now, be fair. EVERYONE wants Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

  13. #12
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    THEME PARKS/ATTRACTIONS
    As I stated under maintenance, mostly everything looked to be show ready... Dinosaur looked great, Small World looked freshly painted, Splash Mountain looked in great condition minus a few things which will be taken care of during the down time in January... Other things need work...

    I'll start with Epcot:

    Spaceship Earth needs to have a true ending... That descent back to earth is just lazy and shoddy work... And Judy Dench needs to go... Her voice is so monotone it puts me to sleep... The script she reads from is one a 5 year old could write... No one can beat Jeremy Irons in my opinion...

    Test Track: Just okay, nothing spectacular... Creating your car was interesting, but really played no part in the ride in the over all scheme of the attraction... It is basically the same attraction with a more futuristic and Tronish look to it... I didn't hate it, but it didn't impress me either...

    Soarin: Dust filled film ruins the experience... Too many dust particles visible on the screen... Time to change the film too... One thing that finally got to me on Soarin this trip: ending in Disneyland during Christmas... Seems kind of awkward being in WDW during Halloween and ending a ride at Disneyland during Christmas... Maybe they should have filled a regular summer night, a Halloween night, and a Christmas night, and swap out the films during certain times of the year... Still fun, don't get me wrong... Just time for a cleaning and an update....

    Living With the Land: Jared would love to read this... LwtL is a gem.... A gem which gets no appreciation.... May not have much too it, but still, there is something about it which makes it a must ride... kind of like the TTA/Peoplemover...

    Imagination: Nothing to say here... Needs to go... Along with Captain EO and all it's 80's cheesiness.. LOL...

    Universe of Energy: Time to go.... Never got to ride it, broke down just as we were to enter the ride portion... Never bothered to check back later to see if it reopened...

    Mission Space: Hate it, won't ever ride it again...

    Countries: The countries looked just fine... Maelstrom was looking so much better than it did even 2 years ago... Gran Fiesta Tour, no one rides it.. Shame really.. it isn't as good as El Rio but it isn't terrible either...

    Illuminations: Best fireworks/nighttime show on property... Hands town the top... Only one I can watch more than once on a trip... You can have your Wishes and Fantasmic... I'll take Illuminations every time...
    Son of Jor-El.. Kneel before Zod...

    TRICIA JONES: I heard that you were going to propose to Brandi Svenning at some theme park. When are men going to learn that women want ROMANCE, not Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...

    BRODIE: Hey, now, be fair. EVERYONE wants Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

  14. #13
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    Animal Kingdom
    Said goodbye to Camp Minnie Mickey.... and no, CMM you won't be missed... Watched FotLK for the last time in the current theater before they move to where they belong thematically... In Africa... Performers did another wonderful job with that show...

    Tough to be a Bug: Still enjoy it despite it being old... The hornet sting got my brother... he forgot about that part of the show... The netting over your head in the queue, actually, fits the theme and didn't look bad (thematically)... but it is still a quick fix to a bigger problem... You know, like actually fixing the Tree of Life to make sure no more branches fall...

    Dinosaur: Effects I haven't seen in years were working... Still too many empty sections of the attraction... The one effect that was not working though was the pterodactyl...

    Everest: Poor yeti... barely even visible with the strobe light... Fun coaster, but without the yeti working the way it was meant to, the ride lacks that e ticket feel...

    Kali River Rapids: What could have been with this attraction if budget cuts didn't get in the way... Kali is only there to get wet... Otherwise, it is a shame...

    Kilimanjaro Safaris: Saw a load of animals thins year, more than any other time... the new jeeps are much more comfortable and less bumpy, much more of a smooth ride... Safaris looked to be in good shape...

    Finding Nemo: Best show on property... Another one I can see multiple times and not be bored... Performers are top notch.. And no, FP is not needed and should be removed... I actually booked FP+ for this attraction and didn't need to... Dinosaur was a walk on but would have been a better choice.. I was there with friends who were not using FP and they were seated in standby before FP+ was let into the theater... You could sit anywhere, no dedicated FP+ viewing area... So take it from me, don't waste a FP on Nemo...
    Son of Jor-El.. Kneel before Zod...

    TRICIA JONES: I heard that you were going to propose to Brandi Svenning at some theme park. When are men going to learn that women want ROMANCE, not Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...

    BRODIE: Hey, now, be fair. EVERYONE wants Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

  15. #14
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    Disney's Hollywood Studios
    Rip the park down and start over... They would be better off... DHS is not a full day park, and my brother and I were hard pressed to try to make it a full day park... hat saved us was Rock N Roller Coaster went down... of course, during the time I booked FP+ for it... Now is a good time to explain how this worked... The CM at the entrance told us to use either the kiosk or the app and pick a time later in the day... if you had paper FP then you could come back any time... If no FP+ were available, tough luck, choose another option... Luckily, there were (but not for TSMM)... So, I booked the ride for later in the day, early evening... I should have put this in the FP section, but I forgot, so it will go here... Using the app to change FP times worked perfectly... No issues, as long as there are times available... No times, then you are out of luck... But I made a few changes on the fly with no issues.. other people weren't so luck though... Ok, on to the park:

    ToT: Best ride in DHS... Wait time was not too bad, but I had FP anyway... ToT is the one ride my brother enjoys the most, but we only got to ride it once...

    TSMM: I don't see why this ride is such a big deal... Maybe cause it really is one of the only family friendly rides the park offers... But even still, there is no reason for FP to be gone by 9:15 to 9:30 every day... So, those saying you love FP+ cause you no longer have to run for a FP, well, some people still do... So, looking at it objectively (not selfishly), FP+ does not solve the problem but creates bigger ones...

    RnRC: Coaster in dark... fun and yes awesome... Love my coasters....

    Great Movie Ride: Alien was working again, but the first scene Footlight Parade: bubbles hardly worked and the dancers were not rotating like they used to... I had the gangster scene... My tour guide was not all that great of a guide, but the gangster CM was pretty good... Oz looked new and fresh... Over all everything looked pretty good...

    Star Tours: Love what they did to the ride.. Thank you Burbank for forcing TDO to accept the full refurb... Rode it in 2011 and again in 2013 and still love it... Much better than the original... Say hello to more Star Wars!!!

    Muppets: Sorry Muppet fans but Muppetvision either needs to go or get an update.... And this is coming from a Muppets fan...

    Streets of America were dead... Say bye bye... Hopefully...

    Indiana Jones: Enjoyed the stunt show for the first time in years... But, pretty soon we will have to say bye bye...

    Beauty and the Beast: Too chopped up... Felt awkward and badly paced... They should just end the show now and replace it sooner rather than later....

    Mermaid: Tells the story of Little Mermaid much better than the ride does... Will be going too but this one should go later not sooner... Still an enjoyable show to watch...

    Pirates of the Caribbean walk through: Nicely themed inside... Nice little effect making Jack Sparrow appear on the Black Pearl... nice little deviation... But not worth a 30 minute wait... Would only do again if there it is a walk on, other wise, waste of time waiting 30 minutes or more for it...

    Fantasmic: again, getting updates, best I have seen it look in a long time, though still many areas needing upgrades, mostly now the projections on the water... and again, NO FASTPASS DISNEY!!! Such a disaster on Fantasmic...
    Son of Jor-El.. Kneel before Zod...

    TRICIA JONES: I heard that you were going to propose to Brandi Svenning at some theme park. When are men going to learn that women want ROMANCE, not Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...

    BRODIE: Hey, now, be fair. EVERYONE wants Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

  16. #15
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    And the one everyone is waiting for, I know...

    Magic Kingdom
    Main Street looked great... Castle looked beautiful (from my BLT room I was able to watch them test the Christmas lights when the park was closed, WOW)... Best I have seen the park look even 2 years ago..

    Fantasyland, including New Fantasyland
    The old section needs so much work now thatthe new section is nearly complete... Pan and Small World look out of place next to the Tangled area... For bathrooms, the area looks fantastic... This is the job we know and come to expect from WDI... Now, if they can start doing that with attractions again in WDW, a new course may be set...

    Pan was down for refurb... Small World looked freshly painted... Philharmagic down all day... New Fantasyland was just what I expected... Lots of style but no substance... Looked beautiful, which I never denied it looking... But they needed more.... Little mermaid dark ride is plastic... Felt plastic... Felt fake... No cohesive storytelling of the Little Mermaid... Just a hodgepodge of scenes tossed into the attraction... Not worth any kind of wait... Luckily I walked right on during EMH... No way would I wait even 10 minutes for it... Just to think that ride cost more than Forbidden Journey... Disney spent poorly... And as for substance, I don't even think the 7D Mine Train will add any... Over all, I rate New Fantasyland a B for style but D for substance... And I am including Be Our Guest in the style category... Thanks to Jared, I booked a FP for the restaurant for lunch... Food was pretty good, no complaints... Pretty cool how they just bring the food to your table by TRACKING you... Ballroom was well designed, West Wing was out of this world... In the end, it is just a restaurant... Gastons Tavern, well, nothing to really say about it... it serves the purpose of added dining capacity for counter service.. LeFou's Brew by the way, was good but nothing like Butterbeer.. Butterbeer kicks the LeFou out of the Brew... Storybook Circus, well done and an upgrade over Mickey's Toontown... The children were having fun with the Casey Jr water section... And that is all that matters... The section isn't meant for me, as an adult without children... That's fine... Kids were having a good time, that is what matters with areas like this in theme parks...

    Tomorrowland needs an over haul... NOW... Space Mountain, though recently refurbed, is still very rough... Buzz needs work (and no is not better than its counterpart TSMM nor is it even close to MiB)... Stitch, well, it is Stitch... Didn't get on CoP or see Monsters Inc Laugh Floor...

    Adventureland looked in good shape despite the condition of Pirates... No mermaids, no Blackbeard mist though his voice could be heard... Remove the mermaids since they either don't work or no one sees them (very bad effect when they do work) but leave the mermaid skeleton on the beach... Please replace the sound system.. Most of the volume in the attraction was low and couldn't be heard... otherwise everything else was in decent working order... Like the new boats too, which they seem to be getting around to fixing.. My boat didn't leak, but many others were still leaking.... Slowly but surely they are fixing the leaking boats... Jungle Cruise was in great shape... The skippers were excellent... Giving them their due... They played with the guests, and even teased me about my Superman shirt (I was wearing a backwards Superman S which, if anyone follows or followed Superman, would know that was Bizarro... I wouldn't expect many to know that though)... The skippers always made the attraction, and a bad skipper would lead to a bad experience... our skipper was excellent... No Tiki Boards on this trip...

    Frontierland looked pretty good as well... Big Thunder Mountain looked great... the gushers were working... I FP'd the attraction so I skipped the interactive queue so no opinion about it... The ride was smooth though, as I remember previous rides being rough... Splash Mountain was in great condition, minus a few effects still needing work... The jumping water was not working on my ride... and I know this is one of the effects which, despite the refurb, is still hit and miss, and is on the schedule to be taken care of during the upcoming down time... Every scene was crisp, fresh, and sound was perfect... I noticed though, the hidden Mickey in the scene with the river boat at the end of the ride was gone... Did I miss it?

    Liberty Square looked good too... Liberty Belle was running... HM was in tip top shape... The hitch hiking ghosts effect was hit or miss lately as they install on ride photo ability, but it worked during my ride... Still hate the interactive queue, and now it seems a lot of the interactive items are breaking and not getting fixed right away....

    Wishes, you can have it... I'm over it... Soon WDW will be too

    MSEP, please put it out of its misery... Spectro is gone, not coming back.. but MSEP needs to go along with it... I took notice to some of the floats... While I know they move slow, some of them looked to be just chugging along and were on the verge f breaking down... We watched from Liberty Square by the Liberty belle, and by time the floats got to us, they looked to be ready to break down... Plan as I continue to hear it is, once Festival of Fantasy starts in March/April, MSEP is closing down for a long 6 month refurb and FoF will play twice a day, and will even become the night parade until MSEP comes back...
    Son of Jor-El.. Kneel before Zod...

    TRICIA JONES: I heard that you were going to propose to Brandi Svenning at some theme park. When are men going to learn that women want ROMANCE, not Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...

    BRODIE: Hey, now, be fair. EVERYONE wants Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

  17. #16
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    Sorry for the long posts everyone... But I wanted to give each park their own, and detail and give opinions on what I saw and remember...

    I met with a few people this trip, and some discussion had taken place... A lot of what we already knew, but some new info... Info I cannot vet, so if I decide to post it, I ask you all to take the info with a grain of salt and treat it as a discussion topic based on rumors, not based on facts...

    Over all, yes the trip was fun and I had a blast... And yes, mostly because this was my brother's first time down in 12 years... But Disney needs more in WDW... The parks are still stale... More needs to be done... Routine maintenance shouldn't be celebrated... It should be the norm and expected... And they are getting back on track... But this is it for Disney for me unless and until they prove to me they want my hard earned money, instead of just expecting me to open my wallet and volunteer to hand it to them for nothing in return... the value isn't there anymore... But it can be again... They just need to wake up before it is too late...

    FP+ will be a disaster... I predicted it back then, saw it for my own eyes, and continue to predict it based on what I saw and learned... WDW vacations are not going to be fun and magical anymore... They will be mechanical... The good thing is, there are more options for everyone out there... people just need to know you aren't cheating on mickey... Cant cheat on someone who doesn't care about you and only uses you... You won't melt if you leave Disney property... there is a world of adventure out there once you leave property... Fun can be had... And I strongly suggest you all give it a try one time... I promise, you won't regret it!!!
    Son of Jor-El.. Kneel before Zod...

    TRICIA JONES: I heard that you were going to propose to Brandi Svenning at some theme park. When are men going to learn that women want ROMANCE, not Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...

    BRODIE: Hey, now, be fair. EVERYONE wants Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

  18. #17
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    Thank you I have read through all of your posts and really appreciate your insights. I think you gave a fair analysis, ESPECIALLY when it comes to FP+. I have always felt that people being wooed by the low volume test phase will be in for a rude awaking when they return and it has fully been rolled out. (Unless it does become pay-to-play as many suspect, and many on this very board have said they'd be more than willing to do [which makes my blood boil] so maybe they still would love it)

    There are two particular takeaways from your posts that stand out to me:
    Having a FP+ reservation for a ride breaking down and ONLY being able to ride that same ride if a later time is available? Ummm no. So not right, since under the old system your paper FP is good for the remainder of the day. You should get a re-ride pass, not be subjected to the FP+ luck of the draw! I will say it till I'm blue in the face- they took a system that WORKED and was FAIR to all and they've made something that is frustrating, confusing, and unfair. Just look at this board, most of the questions now are about MDE/MyMagic+/FP+ and many of us can't even answer because many at disney can't even answer!!

    The second thing that I didn't realize was that Mermaid cost MORE than Forbidden Journey????? I enjoyed the LM ride well enough but that fact makes me absolutely cringe as Forbidden Journey is lightyears ahead of it.
    ~M.~

    All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.
    11 Trips to WDW
    1 Trip to Disneyland
    Many more to come
    Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection, the lovers, the dreamers, and me.

  19. #18
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    Thank you PirateLover... I tried to be objective... When I went on the trip, I went in with an open mind... My goal was to have fun... My goal was to make the trip fun for my brother who hasn't been since 2001... I accomplished that... Yes, I did have fun... Yes, my brother did too... But, I do have to be objective... And I try to make sure I am...

    Quote Originally Posted by PirateLover View Post

    There are two particular takeaways from your posts that stand out to me:
    Having a FP+ reservation for a ride breaking down and ONLY being able to ride that same ride if a later time is available? Ummm no. So not right, since under the old system your paper FP is good for the remainder of the day. You should get a re-ride pass, not be subjected to the FP+ luck of the draw! I will say it till I'm blue in the face- they took a system that WORKED and was FAIR to all and they've made something that is frustrating, confusing, and unfair. Just look at this board, most of the questions now are about MDE/MyMagic+/FP+ and many of us can't even answer because many at disney can't even answer!!
    The CM had stated the FP+ holders had to use a kiosk or the app and book RNRC at a later time (with no guarantee the ride will be back up that day) or change RNRC for another offering... Then, if you want to ride RNRC, wing it... My understanding is, if the ride does not come back up, and you made the later reservation (if able to, once everyone is on this, availability will not exist), you are given a choice for a FP+ the next day... If you are doing a Disney theme park the next day, and it is not the park the ride broke down in, doesn't matter... you'd get a 4th choice along with the three you already booked, based on availability... The CM did not tell us that, probably because they weren't at the point of no return for the day... Basically, though, I wanted to point out not the policy but how easy it was to go sign into the app and make a FP+ change on the fly... of course, this won't be as easy when everyone is booking FP+ and there are none left... Then you basically will be FPing trips to the bathroom cause that is all that will be left...

    The second thing that I didn't realize was that Mermaid cost MORE than Forbidden Journey????? I enjoyed the LM ride well enough but that fact makes me absolutely cringe as Forbidden Journey is lightyears ahead of it.
    The entire Wizarding World was done for 200 to 250 million with FJ said to be around 100 million of that... Mermaid is said to have cost as must as or slightly more than FJ... and in my opinion, a total waste of money... Mermaid, while not completely horrible, some scenes are well done and Ursula's AA is pretty cool, the ride itself lacks substance... It fails on telling the story... Seems like WDI just took the songs and tossed them into the ride without a cohesive flow... It is really not a ride I would ever desire to be on again...
    Son of Jor-El.. Kneel before Zod...

    TRICIA JONES: I heard that you were going to propose to Brandi Svenning at some theme park. When are men going to learn that women want ROMANCE, not Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...

    BRODIE: Hey, now, be fair. EVERYONE wants Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

  20. #19
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    I should have also mentioned this... I don't know if it is because of the new system or if the CM had no clue what he was doing, but I did online check in for BLT and SSR... When I arrived at BLT, one of the greeters asked me how she could help... Told her I did online check in, so I was just basically there to report in... She escorted me to the desk where the CM attempted to help me with my reservation... They had no record of me checking in online... I filled out my cell number, even a credit card number despite not setting up charging to the room... Not one piece of information was on the system... They had no record of me checking in online... I had to go through the entire process... Had to wait until 3 for a room to be ready for me... Frustrating...

    However, at SSR, they had a record of me checking in online... My welcome packet was waiting for me.. Handed to me by the greeter.... Still had to see a desk CM to activate my SSR bands and check me out of BLT, otherwise the online check in saved me a lot of time with SSR.... Room was ready upon check in....

    So it failed for one resort, worked for another...
    Son of Jor-El.. Kneel before Zod...

    TRICIA JONES: I heard that you were going to propose to Brandi Svenning at some theme park. When are men going to learn that women want ROMANCE, not Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...

    BRODIE: Hey, now, be fair. EVERYONE wants Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

  21. #20
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    And I forgot to talk about the Cast Members... I don't think I ever encountered a group of miserable people ever during any Disney trip... While there were a few bright spots, they were far between... the Jungle Cruise CMs were great... The resort greeters were very friendly and extremely helpful... I needed a cab one day, and they got one for me in no time...

    However, the CM at the theme parks (excluding the JC) had attitudes... No one smiled, no one greeted you, no one said hi, and no one interacted... In previous trips, they always (or at least for the most part) said hello or smiled or interacted in a positive way... This year, they all seemed to be miserable... They seemed unhappy, as if they didn't want to work there... And this was at all 4 WDW theme parks... When not on the clock (or posting on WDW fan forums), they really let their hair down... The things you learn and hear about... Oh boy... LOL...
    Son of Jor-El.. Kneel before Zod...

    TRICIA JONES: I heard that you were going to propose to Brandi Svenning at some theme park. When are men going to learn that women want ROMANCE, not Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...

    BRODIE: Hey, now, be fair. EVERYONE wants Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

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