Park crowds

[erc]

The fastpass system is flawed. it makes people stay in the park longer than they would normally because they need wait for their next ride window to open up... That causes too much crowding in the spaces you use to go for a break..stores in epcot, gardens in England, Paris. Japan. before you used to be able to go EMH or get your must do's early.. maybe go back to hotel.. now you are slave to 3 scheduled rides

I would just note that this isn't a new system. If it is only bad this year then it is something else.

 

[SteveH]

We just spent 8 days at WDW, this past summer we spent 4 days at Disneyland. This summer was an amazing experience, light crowds and we could do any ride we wanted (with the exception of Radiator Springs). Fast forward to our last 8 days, wow what a difference. Crowds were insane. Our last WDW trip was January 2018, and crowds were reasonable and the experience was enjoyable.

This past trip, we really had to lower our expectations. Thankfully we had 8 days to relax and enjoy things. We would ride our three FP+ rides and maybe go on a couple quiet rides (PhilharMagic, Carousel of Progress, Hall of Presidents, etc.) but there were almost no FP’s for what I’d call an E ticket attraction for later in the evening. When a ride like Gran Fiesta Tour has a massive line, you know Epcot is packed.

I think the best experience/value we had was our night at the Disney After Hours, even with Big Thunder being down most of the night, it proved to be the best experience as far as our ability to walk on rides and enjoy the park.

The impact of all of the construction, reduced walk ways, screen walls and the closed rides for refurbs really had a big impact. The loss of WDW RR, TestTrack, Splash, Kali were all significant rides to have down that could have helped absorb the large number people.

While we still had a great time, we really have no desire to rush to back to WDW any time soon. Maybe in a few years when construction is done and the 50th crowds die down it would be fun to go back, but I’m not sure. Am I still of fan of Disney? Of course, but I am not blinded enough not to realize they have oversold the concept and are taking advantage of the loyalty many have towards them.

 

[Remy is Up]

The fastpass system isn't flawed. People who dont educate themselves and understand how to use it and then complain are the flaw

 

[DISNEYFOS]

The fastpass system isn't flawed. People who dont educate themselves and understand how to use it and then complain are the flaw

That's just ridiculous. You don't go every year for 16 years and not understand the system. I know what I'm doing and It's flawed. How much less crowded would the parks be if the did more EMH or expand hours during busy times (for FREE not charge for more money)... Let people get on their rides early....don't make it spread out throughout the day so they are stuck in the park all day...allow people to make their own plan.

 

[DISNEYFOS]

I would just note that this isn't a new system. If it is only bad this year then it is something else.

didn't say it was new..just flawed

 

[DISNEYFOS]

This makes me wish I had made plans for Universal instead of WDW this summer....

Did I mention your room key acts as a way to get Priority seating at any restaurant as well?

 

[ILovePixieDust]

Did I mention your room key acts as a way to get Priority seating at any restaurant as well?

Really!? I didn't know that! That's awesome! Royal Pacific is my absolute favorite Universal Hotel as well. Love it there. I will keep that bit of knowledge in my pocket for next time!

 

[glocon]

A lot of these problems could be alleviated if they opened a 5th Park. It would disperse crowds more and make it all seem less crowded. Except of course for the new park- that would be super crowded.

 

[erc]

Kind of funny reading through this thread. Every 2-3 years when I am planning a WDW trip I come back to disboards and there is always somebody new who is posting, "say goodbye to my money Disney", and then 3 years later I come back again and people are still complaining about the crowds and Disney.

If Disney keeps screwing up like this they are going to become rich.

 

[DeeCee735]

The newer rides are always going to be crowded, and will make the rest of the park crowded. I was at WDW over the weekend and was actually pleasantly surprised by how quickly lines were moving. I knew that we would do the 3 rides a day we had FastPasses for, and figured anything else would be a bonus.

Star Wars Land at Hollywood Studios on Sunday was indeed packed. Around 10 am we waited 15 minutes to get coffee at Joffrey’s. The Lightning McQueen and Muppets theaters, on the other hand, were only half full.

The walkways in Epcot were busy on Saturday, but we didn’t wait more than 10 minutes (and usually not more than 5) at the food pavilions. True, we didn’t ride Frozen Ever After because the wait time never dropped below 45 minutes, but the posted time of 20 minutes at The Seas was entirely the walk to the ride (which took 5 minutes at most).

At Animal Kingdom on Monday, wait times were high, but ordering lunch at Sanu’li around 11:30 took 7-8 minutes in line. (The line may have been shorter than the pick-up line for pre-orders.)

if you expect to get through a lot of rides/attractions, especially with kids, over a busy weekend, you will be disappointed. If I were a first-time or infrvisitor, I would stick to weekdays. However, as longtime DVC members wanting a quick getaway, my family had no regrets about traveling over the holiday weekend.

it’s the “you’ll be disappointed” thing that’s so bothersome. For the money one pays to be there when it’s convenient for their own schedule, there shouldn't be anything disappointing. Disney should stand up to it’s own hype and deliver on what it markets so well and charges so much for. No one who spends that kind of time planning and paying should have to deal with disappointment after disappointment. It was not so difficult a vacation to put together and enjoy in the past. Now it’s near impossible. I’ve been going for 24 years. I just lost my taste for it and we’re owners. Even the boardwalk, while beautiful, was the noisiest place I’ve ever stayed at this past week. Between the roller carts, people all hours of the night and buses it was noisy and absolutely not relaxing. It’s sad. I’m staying in a gorgeous relaxing Marriott next time. No more of this nonsense. A vacation is supposed to feel like a vacation not like a competition for food, fast passes, lines, etc. it’s just where I’m at right now and venting...
Dee

 

[DeeCee735]

We went one Sept right after Labor Day. It was so empty it was awesome but the heat was HORRIBLE. It was hard to enjoy just walking around and enjoying the empty walk ways because you felt like you were dying in the heat. Its hard to find the perfect time anymore, between heat and all the crowds.

We’re supposed to go back the first week in October but after this hot February week, I’m cancelling it. I may rent the points, I may trade out. Maybe we’ll book November, which is when we usually go.(November and February) At least the weather isn’t so bad. We’ll see. Right now I’m tired of it.

 

[DisLiss]

A lot of these problems could be alleviated if they opened a 5th Park. It would disperse crowds more and make it all seem less crowded. Except of course for the new park- that would be super crowded.

Nah, because they'd open 3 more resorts along with it and even more people would go on Disney vacations!

 

[prettiepixie]

I've been an AP for about seven years now and I've noticed a drastic change with the amount of crowds in the parks. It's to the point where it's not enjoyable to go anymore because you can't even enjoy the atmosphere, let alone be able to ride more than a few rides in one day's visit. I thought my family and I were the only ones who noticed how crowded the parks have been and I came on here to see if anyone else felt the same way we do, and clearly there is a big problem with crowds if there are a lot of people noticing it. There should be no reason why they have to fill the parks up so much that the walkways are nearly impossible to navigate through and everyone is bumping into each other and getting angry with one another because of it. No one should be spending money on their tickets and passes just to spend the majority of their time in the parks waiting in ridiculous lines. I get it, it's Disney the there WILL be lines, but 2+ hours for a three-five minute ride? It's not right. I know Disney can't do much about it because this is a hot vacation spot, but I wish they would at least allow less people into the parks. Even Downtown Disney Disney Springs isn't enjoyable to go to anymore because that is also filled with crowds. When I was younger there was hardly anyone there and now Disney turned the place into a fancy tourist outdoor mall (imo) to get more people to go to it. Like really a Sephora at Disney World? Is that necessary?

I thought it would be an interesting thing to note that earlier in the week Disney invited Youtubers out to basically promote the parks. Right now they're all on Disney Cruise. Disney paid for EVERYTHING, they stayed at the new Riveria Resort, got early access to the parks, were able to walk on all the rides, and Disney let all of them ride ROTR. The aggravating thing is that these Youtuber's are posting videos on their channels and social media accounts claiming Disney "really is the most magical place on earth" and "all your dreams really do come true here." And basically promoting the crap out of it making it seem like the best place ever and there's no negative side to it. Yes sure, when you're a popular social media influencer and get all these things for free of course Disney is magical. But the truth is all of us 'normal' people don't get any of those things, especially not for free, we have to deal with waiting in long lines and the obnoxious people and crowds. I hate how Disney advertises itself and makes people think when they come here things are going to be magical, easy, relaxing, and fun when in reality you get to the parks and it's been nothing but a complete s**t show lately. And honestly, not to sound bitter (but actually I kind of am) passholders don't get anything like that, actually it seems like we get no benefits at all. Which really sucks because we're the ones paying so much money for these passes and are avid Disney lovers you would think we would get something, I mean we don't even get discounts at every Disney QS. I feel like us passholders should get something like EMH or even an extra FP, just something! With the outrageous crowds and feeling as if being passholders has no perks/benefits, we're not sure if we're going to be renewing our passes again. It's just not enjoyable anymore no matter how many tricks we use.

 

[NicholeB630]

We’re supposed to go back the first week in October but after this hot February week, I’m cancelling it. I may rent the points, I may trade out. Maybe we’ll book November, which is when we usually go.(November and February) At least the weather isn’t so bad. We’ll see. Right now I’m tired of it.

i was there for food and like the second week of Oct I t

We’re supposed to go back the first week in October but after this hot February week, I’m cancelling it. I may rent the points, I may trade out. Maybe we’ll book November, which is when we usually go.(November and February) At least the weather isn’t so bad. We’ll see. Right now I’m tired of it.

I just went with a girlfriend back in early October I think we went the second week maybe and most days we lucked out for the weather I think because a storm was coming through so it was like really cool and comfortable it did rain hard half a day it was fun being pelted in the face on slickly lol but then the day that we left and we spent at Disney springs it was disgustingly hot.

 

[NicholeB630]

The newer rides are always going to be crowded, and will make the rest of the park crowded. I was at WDW over the weekend and was actually pleasantly surprised by how quickly lines were moving. I knew that we would do the 3 rides a day we had FastPasses for, and figured anything else would be a bonus.

Star Wars Land at Hollywood Studios on Sunday was indeed packed. Around 10 am we waited 15 minutes to get coffee at Joffrey’s. The Lightning McQueen and Muppets theaters, on the other hand, were only half full.

The walkways in Epcot were busy on Saturday, but we didn’t wait more than 10 minutes (and usually not more than 5) at the food pavilions. True, we didn’t ride Frozen Ever After because the wait time never dropped below 45 minutes, but the posted time of 20 minutes at The Seas was entirely the walk to the ride (which took 5 minutes at most).

At Animal Kingdom on Monday, wait times were high, but ordering lunch at Sanu’li around 11:30 took 7-8 minutes in line. (The line may have been shorter than the pick-up line for pre-orders.)

if you expect to get through a lot of rides/attractions, especially with kids, over a busy weekend, you will be disappointed. If I were a first-time or infrvisitor, I would stick to weekdays. However, as longtime DVC members wanting a quick getaway, my family had no regrets about traveling over the holiday weekend.

I think it is important to have expectations when you go especially over busy weekends but I also don’t think it’s fair to have to have the mentality of oh I’m guaranteed the three fast pass rides and anything else is a bonus, park tickets are expensive, Then add on traveling expenses hotel cost. It’s a rather pricey vacation and you should be able to get more out of it then your three fast pass rides, that’s the problem with Disney. You’re no longer getting your money worth. I get that it’s a busy park and people want to go and it’s never going to be empty I don’t ever expect to walk on every ride with a 10 minute wait but why is it that I can go to Universal Studios and have such more of a pleasant experience and feel like I get my money’s worth. There’s no reason Disney should be going down the path it is. It’s sad. And like I said I can understand busy times and holidays but there should be no time where you feel unsafe to be in the parks bc you can’t walk or see sidewalks. God forbid something horrible happened I can’t imagine the outcome.

 

[DISNEY1975]

I saw pics of the crowd levels this week and it was scary! I cant imagine spending thousands on a trip and doing next to nothing. For a place geared towards families, how to they expect a child to stand in a 2 hour line, for a 2 minute ride, get off and stand for another 2 hours? Beyond my comprehension why anyone would spend thousands for that, and how Disney doesnt see an issue with it.

I saw many photos of the new WDW President in the parks this past week. Now I know he has seen it first hand. If nothing changes now, it never will. They need to A) stop building hotels B) Do not allow neighboring hotels the same perks as onsite C) Stop giving FL residents unbelievable discounts D) Lower the max cap to a number that doesnt create more than an hour wait for the rides

I used to go to the waterparks for a nice relaxing day, off my feet, into the lazy river! Now they offer FL residents an annual pass to the waterparks for $135 ! (And an after 2pm pass for $90). There are never any relaxing days at the waterparks anymore. Where I live, a pool club membership is $800 for 10 weeks during the summer! And it literally only has a pool!