People are cancelling

[OKWgal]

I called wdwdinw early this morning to change all my PS due to the changes. I'm going in 11 days and am hoping(for planning purposes) that the last three days of Oct. resemble what we'll have hour and entertainment wise when we get there.

The CM said she has spent the morning thus far making cancellations w/o rescheduling. People are baking out of their vavcations as of this a.m.

She had several Cindy ressies cancelled which she advised NEVER happens.

Lastly, I got in where I wanted, when I wanted each time. The Cm kept saying,"no problem, there's plenty of openings."

Just thought you'd like to know.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

With no early entry, and reduced hours, we cannot see any good reason to stay on property rather than off. We have made backup reservations at the Marriott World Center at a lower price that the AP rates we have foir the Contemporary Tower. About a week before our trip is when we will make a final decision. Staying off-property will also mean we will eat a lot of our meals off-property, and since we won't be able to send small purchases back to our room, it may also cut down a lot on our spur of the moment purchases. We have contacted some people at WDW and have asked them what advantages there are now of staying on property as compared to off.

 

[airlarry!]

Long-time visitors will remember the debacle over the tickets Disney issued about 5-6 years ago? There was a change made to the hopper tickets if I remember right, and the RADP people and the general public inundated Disney with complaints. It used to be documented in the Bob (the unofficial guide to Disney).

I bet we look back on this bone-head decision to eliminate a prime perk of staying on-site as another big bad public relations move. Whether you used it or not, it was a big selling point in the eyes of people who infrequently visit the resort. Why not pay an extra $20-40 dollars a night at the All Stars if you can get in an hour earlier and have a chance to stay three hours later?

 

[TXDeb]

This is not surprising based on some of Disney's recent decisions.
Their actions invited cancellations, rather than enticing people to visit.

 

[Mr D]

Disney lost my $3906.00 that i had booked for our upcoming family vacation at the Villas at Disney Institute next month some of it was from 9/11 and most of that decision to cancell was when I heard about the cutbacks, it just make the scale tipp the other way and $254 vs.$66 a night made me opt for a vacation home rental instead, BTW its at Families First

 

[alice-d]

Our vacation is currently booked half at the Marriott Grande Vista half at Polly Concierge. As nice as the Poly looks so does the Grande Vista. I'm now asking myself if I want to commit all this money to staying on-site and getting trapped at Disney. Off-site gives me more flexibility if I find the Disney Parks too unmannagble. Then I realized how Disney's bone headed business decisons have changed my thinking. I went in ne day from thinking that staying On-site was emersing my family in the Disney experience to staying on-site could be stranding my family in Disneyworld. Not a good PR paradine shift.

 

[aprincessmom]

I booked a spur of the moment trip to WDW, staying at the All-Stars because of the airfare and hotel price. And I won't be changing it despite the changes to park hours and such. I've stayed off-site and on but will stick with on-site since it's a quick visit.

I've never used EE though I would imagine I've benefited from it -- lower attendance at other parks -- but since I never looked to see which was an EE that day, I was blissfully ignorant. We don't shop much so the package delivery changes aren't a big deal to us. My DD is still young so E-ticket nights don't benefit us and we won't miss them this time around.

We usually go during Jan or Feb so early park closings aren't a big deal to us -- most parks were closed at 6 during that time of year anyway. The few times I did go during high season the parks were so crowded I didn't enjoy myself anyway and ended up staying back at our hotel by the pool or going other places in the Kissimmee/Orlando area.

The whole point of a vacation -- Disney or otherwise -- is to get away and enjoy yourself and the company of the people you go with. For me, possible changes mean the following:

• Parks open later in the morning = more time for me to enjoy DD at this age when she still thinks I'm pretty cool and fun to be with.
  Parks close early = after dinner swimming or a game of cards with DD (see above)
  Shows aren't open on the days we are in the park = more time to look for hidden Mickey's, take the train ride around MK that we always seem to put off, talk to other visitors, take another ride on your favorite ride

I have lost 2 jobs in the past 18 months. Each time afterwards we went to WDW -- the timing wasn't intentional, it just happened a planned trip was scheduled each time. Lucky me. It was the most magical way to escape and enjoy and relax.

After the events of 9/11 it just seemed like the best place to go and escape, temporarily, the sadness and loss that became a permanent part of my life. So we go to the park later in the morning...I'm sharing that extra time with someone who means the world to me. I think it will be worth the money!

 

[Lesley]

Can you blame them? Honestly if I weren't a DVC member, and my plans had been to stay at the All Stars I'd cancel too....stay off-site in a much nicer hotel for less. I'll admit to loving the other Disney hotels simply for their theming but with the extra perks gone I'm not even sure I'd choose any of those...particularly if my spending was limited.

As a first time January visitor this coming year I'm concerned they'll cut hours even more.....might the MK not close at 5 rather than 6? And in January I think if anything park hour cuts will eliminate my pool time....we'll want to be getting our money's worth at the parks rather than swimming in the afternoon. After the parks close it will probably be too cool for swimming.

I spend time with my kids every day at home for free.....our trips to WDW are not only about family time together, they are about enjoying the parks, the rides, the entertainment...of course I love doing these things with my family but if I'm not doing these things I might as well just be at home playing cards with the kids....which does not cost me nearly $50 per person per day!

I was actually ready to not buy AP's....until I realized that we'll need them even more with the reduced hours...I'd feel really ripped off if I were using park hopper days!

Of course, forever the optimist, I'll look forward to my first WDW trip where I might actually get enough sleep.... And I guess the kids will get plenty of resort playground time (hmmm, guess they'll start charging for that soon too....they don't make money off of families hangin' out at the playground, do they?) And we probably won't spend as much money....don't want to waste park time shopping or eating...I can make breakfast in our villa since we won't need to head out so early...some of our ps's will be cancelled anyway because of the changed hours too.

If I weren't an addict (and a DVC member and if my dh wouldn't protest) I'd probably go elsewhere this year.....

 

[Kay1]

The main benefit of staying onsite at this point is the transportation. I wonder if there are cutbacks there as well. I don't like standing in lines for buses anyway, and consider a benefit only for the MK, but if there are fewer buses running with more waiting and standing, that would be tough to take. I'll be listening to the comments of those who are just retuning.

 

[Tori 2001]

Strange, very strange...

I wonder about all the conflicting posts... some claiming the crowds are almost non-existant, and others saying they are as large
or larger than normal for this season... your Disney CM says people are canceling like crazy, and another on a post I just read said
all that talk is blown out of proportion and attendance is right on normal. Who is "spinning" the truth, and why?
Do they think talk of low crowds will encourage more off-season visitors? Or do they thing that talk of larger crowds will encourage
people to proceed with travel plans? I don't know... perhaps stressing the economic impact of the situation is Disney's way of
justifying cuts in hours, shows and jobs, which seem to have been in the works in some cases well before Sept. 11.
The word from all recent travelers I have spoken to is that crowds are a bit light on weekdays, and very large on weekends, which would
indicate to me more day travelers and maybe some flight trip cancellations. Judging from the "unavilability" of many dates on airlines I have
been checking, however, it can't be THAT many... The word on waiting lines for various rides, 15 to 40 minutes, strikes me as about right
for October compared to my past visits. I've been told that All-Star movies for one is basically sold to capacity all the way through the holidays...
Whatever - I have seen no changes that would justify cancelling a family's long-awaited vacation, or for that matter, causing a family that
wasn't looking for a Disney vacation to plan one now.
We did have to cancel - only because our flight was scheduled for the very weekend after the tragedies, and didn't look like it would be taking
off as scheduled. If they ever get around to refunding our money, we will buy new tickets.
Whatever normal is, we should be getting back to it. If not, shame on us....


Tori

 

[Mr D]

I did not cancel my vacation, I actually improved it. I had sent Disney over a 6 month period $3906.00 for two adults, two kids to stay at a one bedroom townhouse for 10 nights at the Villas at Disney Institute using the Resort Majic Package and discounts from the Disney Club, this is a two story fully equipped kitchen so as to save on food costs, now after due consideration of what is it really worth to stay inside the park and the reports I have seen in numerous discussion boards about the poor service and such in general (some resorts are very good but I am not a millionaire) and now lately the cutbacks that may or may not degrade the quality of my hard earned dollars which incidentally is from a low paying job at a not well run company in Alaska as a heavy equipment mechanic. I just found a better deal to stay at a rental vacation home for only $66 a night (normally its about $120) for 14 nights, the total including an extra fee for heating our own pool was about $1355.00, due the math, is it really worth staying THAT close when the return advantage has been cutback or eliminated? As far as transportation, my wife must use an ECV anyway so we will just rent a car for two weeks, I believe I had a quote for $189.00 that sounds fair enough. Instead of a park hopper will get an AP each on the DC discount prices, and yes we plan on visiting IOA and USF for at least 2-4 days, maybe more.

 

[Planogirl]

You know what Mr D? This sounds rather appealing... I hope that it works out well for your family!

 

[Simon Bond]

Nobody should cancel their holidays to the greatest place in the world. Where else could you get all that magic in one place. Castles that reach to the sky, runaway trains, wonderful shows and fireworks that set the sky on fire!

DISNEY needs us at the moment. Its always been there for us and we need to help it through the bad times that EVERYONE is having.

Remember the magic!

I,d go tomorrow if I had the money and i,m certainly NOT going to cancel my trip early next year.

 

[Dizzy4Dizney]

No way am I cancelling!

NEVER use EE or E-night so I won't miss it.
Never got to the parks before 10 anyways so changes there aren't so bad.

I'm a little bummed about not knowing if the ToD parade is on for next week.
We are taking our niece and her family and if the times are true, they will
only have Sat to see both Spectro Magic and the ToD parade. But, because
we are staying at the BWV on site, it is VERY dooable...long day, but dooable.
Look, a perk of staying on site! IMagine that.

 

[Dizzy4Dizney]

I guess it's how you look at it.

 

[Snowgod]

EE and E nights are the only reason for staying onsite? I love the boats, resorts, and everything else in WDW. DW and I like to sleep late. The veiw from WL and other resorts is priceless. Transportation is a huge perk to us as we are on vacation and don't like to hurry. The BW resort area would be worth staying at without the parks. With the parks it's even better.

 

[kamgen]

We aren't cancelling, we are actually staying longer! We were able to get some great rates and feel that this is an important time to go.
It is the nature of ALL businesses right now to make cuts. I feel that Disney, while making cuts that do bother me, is doing what it thinks is right. If people stop going, things will NOT get better. So, we are going and we are ready to enjoy WDW and all it has to offer.

So many people are complaining about EE. In my opinion, I don't care. Now I can eat and sleep like a normal person and not feel like I have to run to the gates to beat the crowds. It is vacation.
Plus, EE was not a secret. Personally, I always felt like more people were there for EE than at the other parks who did not have EE that day.
As for hours being cut, I am frustrated with that. But look on the bright side, open for an hour or two less is better than not being open at all.
If business was really bad, they could close one park a day during the week. Now, wouldn't that be sad???

WDW is the most magical place on earth, even without extended hours, EE, and massive fireworks displays daily.
We all need to remember that everything is different now, in our world and with our businesses. But our country is strong and so is Disney, we will all bounce back soon enough. And what a glorious day that will be.

Kamy

 

[Simon Bond]

Here Here!!

My thoughts exactly. Keep the faith. Everything will be back to normal oneday, and twice as good!

 

[Amor4Pooh]

In response to Tori 2001. I have been hearing on the news that the airlines are all cutting back the amounts of flights they are running, some as much as 20%, some more ( I just read in the LA Times about United cutting 600 flights from LAX, along with jobs). This would explain why there aren't alot of flights available, it's possible that's because there were less running now than to begin with. I know the airline industry has been hit very hard with the loss of internal tourism within the US and outside.
I haven't cancelled my trip to WDW, but I did have to postpone it. I am still really looking forward to it, but I also will be going with eyes wide open in terms of the situation in WDW. DL is hurting financially too, and DCA is really in the hole.
The DL hotels are also hurting as well. The nice thing about WDW hotels is that there are value choices, along with all the deals they are offering right now. Here in CA, Disney does not have any, and many guests are really looking elsewhere, with all the deals going on at other hotels. The Disney hotels are even offering specials to guests to stay on longer (if they're not already booked) for $89 a night. When did you ever hear of that before?? And none of the 3 Disney hotels here goes for less than $109 a night, ever.


Nichole

 

[Cheshire Figment]

Just as Simon Bond, I am NOT cancelling my vacation. What I will probably be cancelling is staying in the Contemporary Tower. We always rent a car; one of the main reasons is I use an ECV and have to haul it around. The Marriott World Center will save us about $1,000. It is less than one mile from the Epcot Center Drive entrance to WDW (I-4 Exit 26). With no access to early entry, and hours cut back, there does not seem to be any reason to stay on-property.

We have been Disney stockholders for over 10 years and have built up to a few hundred shares so we do not want to "hurt" the company. However, in light of poor decisions (such as buying Capital Cities/ABC and the fiasco with "Go Network") the main source of The Disney Company having overall profits has been the parks. To put it metaphorically, the are milking the cash cow and so killing the goose that layed the golden egg. While everyone around has been cutting short-term prices to attract people, Disney has been cutting services and benefits.

In sum I say don't cancel your vacation; just make a decision to see if it is worth the extra money to stay at a hotel on the Disney property.