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Old 12 Nov 24, 10:43 AM  
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tapley
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Should I give Disneyworld another chance

We visited all four Disney parks during our visit May 2023 and were very disappointed although it is difficult to put my finger on the total reason. I suppose partly we enjoy being spontaneous on holiday but having had to book each days visit to a park dampened that somewhat. Additionally I was determined not to pay for LL etc as I believe the current prices are very high compared to precovid years. Once I had queued for well over an hour for the safari ride at Animal Kingdom I realised things were not going to gel for me. And certainly 90 minutes for my favourite ride, Tower of Terror, I was well on the way to saying ‘ Never Again’ . Additionally my wife doesn’t do the rides like roller coasters and T of T but she has always watched Beauty and the Beast whilst I have done this. Last year she tried to do that a few minutes after it started, which has never been a problem previously, but was barred from entering until the next show leaving her out in the sun awaiting my long trip through T of T. Additionally the crowds seemed to be very high May 2023.
We are going again next year, immediately after Easter, and
the trip has always been titled ‘ no more Disney’ however I am now torn for two reasons.
1 I have recently been watching the Knightstrider you tube videos of their trips to Orlando and of course it brings back some good memories of many earlier visits. ( bring back fast passes)
2 I see a very good deal with Attraction tickets both with price matching and the Black Friday deal.
So DIbbers some honest opinions please do I stick to my earlier views of the poor visit last year , although I realise booked park visits have ended and park hopping returned., or do I bite the bullet and give Disney another chance.
I welcome any honest opinions.
Perhaps I should add at 77 this may well be my final visit, although I have said that on my last two visits 😂😂.

Edited at 10:52 AM.
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Old 12 Nov 24, 12:21 PM  
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moblies
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I have to say we went in 2023 and stayed onsite which was easier that the previous offsite visit. we purchased LL when we needed to but there is a lot of planning to get the most out of those days. We are going again next year, I think it has lost a bit of the old magic. you do feel they are just trying to relieve you of as much cash as possible. universal was much more relaxed.
There is plenty of other things to do so perhaps break up the Disney with a few other excursions if you can.
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Old 12 Nov 24, 02:30 PM  
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Nimbus
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I like Disney World. I would usually suggest people do visit Disney World because it's a great place to visit. However, in your case, I don't think there will be much difference between your experience in 2023 and any future experience. The only thing that has changed, really, is that you no longer have to book reservations for the parks. So this does make things a little more spontaneous. Although it was fairly easy to change park reservations on the day last May, so it was almost as spontaneous back then anyway.

Lightning Lane booking is now different, in that you book them in the days beforehand rather than on the day. Which may or may not suit you more? note that the prices will be a little higher than they were in 2023 though. Same goes for most things really.

It's a lot of money to spend - on tickets and Lightning Lanes - just to end up being disappointed again.
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Old 12 Nov 24, 03:08 PM  
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deano2099
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Fastpasses seem to matter a lot to you, I'd try budgeting assuming you will get Lightening Lanes on most days and see if it's worth it to you at that price.
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Old 12 Nov 24, 03:30 PM  
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tapley
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Originally Posted by deano2099 View Post
Fastpasses seem to matter a lot to you, I'd try budgeting assuming you will get Lightening Lanes on most days and see if it's worth it to you at that price.
I just loved the fast passes as you could play it by ear once in the parks .
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Old 12 Nov 24, 04:16 PM  
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Originally Posted by tapley View Post
I just loved the fast passes as you could play it by ear once in the parks .
I would say that the Genie+ system could be played by ear just as the old paper fastpass system could be. Both had similar rules, albeit with Genie+ you could book from 7am wherever you were rather than only once you were in the park with the old paper fastpasses.

The new Lightning Lane Multi-Passes are more similar to the Fastpass+ system, in that you book these days beforehand and can book 3 in advance (one from tier 1, two from tier 2). Availability can be fairly limited on the day, just as it was with FP+.

I would say the newer LLMP system is more aimed at those who like to plan in advance and less for those who like to wing it on the day. Genie+ (which was the system in place in 2023) was probably more aimed at those who liked to do things on the day.

The biggest difference, of course, is that these systems all cost extra compared to the old pre-2020 days. So it helps to budget for the additional cost. The more the overall holiday increases in price, the less value for money it becomes. You may have hit the threshold when a trip to DisneyWorld is no longer value for money for you.
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Edited at 04:18 PM.
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Old 12 Nov 24, 08:16 PM  
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tapley
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Originally Posted by Nimbus View Post
I would say that the Genie+ system could be played by ear just as the old paper fastpass system could be. Both had similar rules, albeit with Genie+ you could book from 7am wherever you were rather than only once you were in the park with the old paper fastpasses.

The new Lightning Lane Multi-Passes are more similar to the Fastpass+ system, in that you book these days beforehand and can book 3 in advance (one from tier 1, two from tier 2). Availability can be fairly limited on the day, just as it was with FP+.

I would say the newer LLMP system is more aimed at those who like to plan in advance and less for those who like to wing it on the day. Genie+ (which was the system in place in 2023) was probably more aimed at those who liked to do things on the day.

The biggest difference, of course, is that these systems all cost extra compared to the old pre-2020 days. So it helps to budget for the additional cost. The more the overall holiday increases in price, the less value for money it becomes. You may have hit the threshold when a trip to DisneyWorld is no longer value for money for you.
nimbus, I think your final comment hits the spot as much as the trials and tribulations of lightening lane . The very high cost of a 14 day UK ticket should in my opinion be sufficient to cover the cost of the LL etc. however when you start adding those additional costs it is definitely not value for money, despite the fun factor. Stories abound about problems of getting LL etc if you want to be spontaneous and make the decision to visit a park on the day. I noted someone yesterday visited Epcot at 9 am and tried to an LL and given a time for 7.30pm . Pure Madness.

Edited at 08:20 PM.
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Old 12 Nov 24, 08:33 PM  
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I'd much rather they just added the additional cost to the ticket then we all could make a decision on whether it was worth it but unless you fork out for the premier pass then you could pay for multi-pass & still only get 3-5 rides plus the attractions that everyone can get, just like FP+. I no longer want or need to stand in a 2 hour ride queue, with the exception of Tron,we've done them all, but if the only way I can ride HM,Tiana's,BTMRR is by paying extra then I'd just not go- admittedly no great loss to Disney but then I can't be the only one.
We found '22 less enjoyable but it was busy & the constant "face to phone" for the next attraction didn't add to the ambience We'll have 4 days left for next year & then for '27 we'll need to have the Disney discussion.
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Old 13 Nov 24, 12:29 PM  
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Originally Posted by tapley View Post
nimbus, I think your final comment hits the spot as much as the trials and tribulations of lightening lane . The very high cost of a 14 day UK ticket should in my opinion be sufficient to cover the cost of the LL etc. however when you start adding those additional costs it is definitely not value for money, despite the fun factor. Stories abound about problems of getting LL etc if you want to be spontaneous and make the decision to visit a park on the day. I noted someone yesterday visited Epcot at 9 am and tried to an LL and given a time for 7.30pm . Pure Madness.
I wouldn't say it was "pure madness". Instead it looks like those LLs are very popular, many of them get booked up days in advance, and thus there is limited availability on the day. So what you are describing is simply something that, to others, is very attractive and popular.

I agree though that the new LL prebooking system means skipping the queues will be less spontaneous than the old Genie+ system where they were booked on the day. It was what a lot of people were asking for but won't be what everyone wants or likes. Personally, I didn't buy Genie+ on many days - just 2 days in a 2 week trip.

Otherwise, for some people the overall cost - which generally keeps on increasing year-on-year at a higher rate than inflation - will mean that the theme parks are no longer value for money for them. What enjoyment they may get from visiting is not worth the cost. So they choose to no longer visit. Others will still enjoy the parks and still think visiting them will be value for money. This is true of a lot of things, and is a very individual decision. See the difference between YorkshireT's view and Claudette's view in the earlier posts.

Only you can answer whether it's worth it to you. All I would say is that, because things generally haven't changed much, if you were disappointed last year then you'll probably be disappointed again if you go next year.
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Edited at 12:31 PM.
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Old 13 Nov 24, 05:02 PM  
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cornishfrogboy
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Originally Posted by tapley View Post
I just loved the fast passes as you could play it by ear once in the parks .
The end of the old, ‘you gotta be in it to win it’ paper fast passes was bad news for us as we were always there at Ropedrop. To use another cliche.. ‘The early bird caught the worm’.. and imho rightly so. If you want something then those prepared to go out and get it should come first.. by being actually present in the park.

Once that went, so did my visiting WDW. I never returned, despite a further 8 visits to Orlando.. and I never will.
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