Disney World can be magical, but sometimes, something happens on a trip that makes a guest never ever want to return to the parks.
Rainy day in Disney World
Things can happen on your Disney trip that will make it memorable, maybe not in a good way. Hurricanes can happen. Your luggage can get lost on your flight. Maybe your favorite ride is down for mechanical issues on your park day. While we wish every Disney trip could be perfect, it may not unfold that way. Here are 5 tales that you can learn from, so hopefully you don’t find yourself in similar situations!
A team member had a friend who was frustrated by being told what to do and where to go on his Disney vacation by his spouse. He was so angry, he walked away and threw an AirTag on his wallet into the World Showcase Lagoon so that he couldn’t be tracked. Lesson here — not everyone wants to go pedal to the metal at Disney. Some visitors want a more relaxing experience in the parks. It can be easy to get caught up in the “to-dos” and start demanding that everyone in your party does X, Y, and Z. Talk about expectations BEFORE your trip to save you some headaches — and your AirTag.
EPCOT’s World Showcase
One reporter shared that her first time she took our kids to Disney World, one of their kiddos had an accident just as they were called into Whispering Canyon Cafe (It can happen to any parent!). It would have been her first time eating there, but unfortunately, she spent all of the dinner finding a new outfit for her kid and in the restroom with them. The server also deducted mine, my mom’s, and my 3-year-old’s dining plan credits even though we were all not able to enjoy the meal. Our only consolation was that she “boxed up” a plate from the family platters to go once the server realized we never made the meal. Lesson to learn — accidents can happen on your trip, and while most Cast Members are very helpful, some might not fully understand what you need. It never hurts to ask politely to see if it’s something that they can fix on their end.
Whispering Canyon Cafe
One editor shared that when she was younger, she went with a friend’s family who could not handle the heat in Disney World. They hated the crowds and were overstimulated. They said, “We’re not theme park people,”. Lesson — Disney World is not for EVERYONE. If you don’t like crowds or theme parks, it’s probably not the best idea to vacation here. It’s a good idea to know your traveling party to know if this is something they will enjoy before spending money on it.
Magic Kingdom Crowds
Another team member shared that she knew a family of 10 who were going to Disney World for vacation and had budgeted only like $50 a day for meals for their ENTIRE family. That family has not been back since. The takeaway here is that you want to set a realistic budget for your traveling party. You can look up menu prices ahead of time and read our reviews to help you get a good picture of what it will look like to dine at Disney.
Trail’s End Restaurant
We all know of guests who really don’t do their research before going and just show up. While that was very doable 20 years ago, that just isn’t the case anymore. Families who go without having a general understanding of Lightning Lanes, but don’t want to wait in lines, might have a hard time. Guests who want to eat at Cinderella’s Royal Table, but have no advanced dining reservations booked, might find disappointment. Visitors who don’t have the MyDisney App downloaded and understand how to utilize it can leave frustrated. That’s where we can help!
Cinderella Castle
So our best piece of advice, a little bit of planning can set you up for success. Disney isn’t a good fit for everyone, but we’re here to help make it easier for the ones who do make the trip. For more, follow us at DFB.
I’m a Former Disney World Cast Member. Here Are 5 Things I Wish You Knew Before Going to Disney World.
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We have such a long history of WDW vacations in my family that I don’t know if we would declare that we would NEVER go back. We are visiting less often, for many reasons, including that there are other things that we’d rather do with the money (and our extremely limited time). I’d say you can go to WDW without planning IF you are willing to accept (without FOMO) what the experience will be. Most people I know who don’t want to plan also don’t want to miss out on anything, and I tell them WDW is not for them. One ‘compromise’ I recommend to people who don’t want to plan but really want to go, is to research what their must-dos are and at least create a strategy for making those happen. And visit at less crowded and lower temperature times of year.
For UK visitors it helps to understand the licensing laws. You have to be over 21 not 18 like here and your driving licence may not count as ID. Helps to have a good picture of your passport and they do ID everyone even 48 year old like me
I don’t think that the statement, “If you don’t like crowds or theme parks, it’s probably not the best idea to vacation here” is a fair or useful assessment. This may speak true if you don’t enjoy in theme parks – but I don’t think not liking crowds is an immediate deal breaker.
There are tricks and tips to navigate the crowds. Some people LOVE Disney and that makes maneuvering through that stress worth it. I am one of them. My anxiety is debilitating in crowds, but my entire family loves Disney (including myself), so we make it work and I truly enjoy the majority of my trips (even if there are extremely stressful moments [I’m talking to you, Haunted Mansion portrait room, and especially you, Cosmic Rewind preshows]). I realize that this article was meant to be quick, but mentioning tricks and tips for navigating through those things would be more helpful. I won’t do ANY other crowd activities – but Disney is different.
We were there for10 days my ankle got a rash. I didn’t think too much of it at the time. As time went on my leg got more rash and more inflamed. So, one afternoon I went into the place where they can give you give first aid. The fellow who looked at my leg said put ice on it . He said he saw it before but could not tell me what it was. after we got home we did our regular empty the things to wash all and spray the suitecase. The rash went away. Then one day I saw a little bug like I saw at Disney walking on my computor screen at Disney. So I did some looking around the PC and my bed where I kept it. They were all over my bed and the PC. I had to call the Orkin Man to spray.So now I know where I got the rash. If the First aid department had told me what had caused that red rash that was by then bigger than my hand. I would never gone through the grief that I did.
I buy and consult my WDW without children. I have been many times. But, I haven’t seen everything that I want to see. I adore EPCOT so much! I cannot get enough of the place. Even the crowds don’t bother me. Of course it is crowded and expensive. But, memories last a lifetime!
I can’t imagine anything that would make me say I’d never go Disney World again. For the most part my trips are great, but I have had some random bad experiences: a stomach bug that kept me in the room for a day, a pulled leg muscle that made walking difficult, torrential downpours and even a hurricane. That said, there are certain people I’ve said I’ll never go back with, but that’s a different story.
My friends, family and I are all not going back to Disney. It was out exclusive vacation destination up until they lost their collective minds and destroyed just about everything. We’ve all been researching the heck out of the Epic Universe and it sounds like we’re going to change to Universal.