Op-Ed: 7 Issues Walt Disney World Must Address Immediately

in Disney, Walt Disney World

Disney´s Monorail

Credit: Disney

I love the Most Magical Place on Earth because it’s the most magical place.

I love the view of Cinderella Castle from the monorail and how the Grand Floridian is illuminated at night. I love the scent of oranges at the Soarin’ attraction and the champagne scent at Mickey’s PhilharMagic. And I love the sounds of the music from the Festival of Fantasy Parade. But there’s always room for improvement, and at Disney World, there are some issues that I can’t believe haven’t already gotten attention.

Walt Disney World entrance
Credit: Becky Burkett / Inside the Magic Reporter

Related: Disney Is Losing Its Magic, New Report Indicates

And so I’m not accusing you of being “Debbie Downers” or “Negative Nancys” who point out problems and offer no solutions; I’ve included ways in which I feel Disney could correct the issues that seem to be blatantly staring them in the face.

Disney World must address these things. And now. Here are 7 of them, in no particular order.

Do away with the “3 FastPasses Per Day” Limit

I get it. More than 50 million people visit Disney World each year. That’s as many as 50 million Guests cramming into queues for the myriad of attractions I love at the parks. And I’m thankful for the 3 FastPass+ selections Guests get each day; I am. But if I’m sincere, pre-booking only 3 per day isn’t enough. Think about it: you are lucky enough to get all 3 in the morning or all 3 in the afternoon, or you have the luck of getting FastPass+ times inconveniently spread out across the day–4 and 5 hours apart from each other.

It sure would be nice to have one or two more selections each day to keep the Magic going strong. Some Guests might even pay for the option to have more pieces per day; others will say they’re already paying enough that the opportunity should be included (I’m ignoring the FastPass+ that you can book after you’ve used your three because let’s be let’s the selection at that point isn’t excellent).

Avatar: Flight of Passage ride at Animal Kingdom
Credit: Disney

Allow Guests to reserve FastPass+ selections in different parks on the same day.

Dear Disney World,

You encourage us to buy the Park Hopper option on theme Park tickets. We Passholders have the Hopper option standard on our passes. But you refuse to allow us to make FastPass+ selections for 7D Mine Train at Magic Kingdom, then Flight of Passage at Animal Kingdom, followed by Slinky Dog at Hollywood Studios–all on the same day.

If you aren’t budging on the “3 FastPasses per day” limit, at least let Guests use their selections however they want to. It’s no skin off your proverbial nose if Guests scatter their preferences across three different parks. Why so pushy about the Park Hopper option if our FastPasses might keep us in one Park for most of the day?

Sincerely,

A Majority of the 50 Million Guests who visit each year

Stop dangling Cinderella’s suit in a suit of us like a carrot.

This isn’t very pleasant. Diehard Disney World fans have all seen pictures of the piece of Heaven perched high above Fantasyland inside the fourth floor of Cinderella Castle. Images that make us desperate to see CinderellCinderella’sh our own eyes. But alas, those pictures may as well be carrots dangling out there in front of us because Guests know that less than 0.001% will ever see the suite in our lifetimes.

It might not even exist for all I know. The only way to enter the suite is by joining a sweepstake that pops up every 3rd blue moon and then being the lucky 0.00001% that wins. (Disclaimer: Decimal values may be inaccurate.)

Cinderella´s Castle Suite
Credit: ABCNews

Either that or create more opportunities for Disney fans to see the suite. Cinderella told us that if we keep believing, the dream we wish will come true, so I’m about 100% positive that she wouldn’t approve of the dangling carrot either.

Heck, it’s Disney World, so why not charge a crazy amount of money for a stay in the suite? You know some Guests would pay the fee. Yes, the waiting list for such a booking could be years long, but at least the dream I wish has a better chance of coming true.

Cinderella´s Castle at Dusk
Credit: Becky Burkett / Inside the Magic Reporter

Expand the Dining Room at Cinderella’s Royal Table

While on Cinderella’s Castle, let’s talk about the gorgeous restaurant on its 2nd floor. Cinderella’s Royal Table Restaurant is a lovely venue with a pleasant staff. The food is good, and the desserts win bonus points for creativity. But no points are awarded for accommodation potential at the restaurant. With room for only 130 Guests, it’s the smallest dining room at a table-service venue in the entire Walt Disney World Resort.

It’s one of the toughest dining reservations to score, and payment in full is due at the time of booking. Let’s find a way to expand the dining room or reimagine another area on the 2nd floor that, with some pixie dust, could be turned into another dining area. I’ll ask the Imagineers; they’ll know what to do!

Cinderella´s Royal Table
Credit: Disney

Stop conducting routine maintenance on the monorail during Park hours.

No explanation is needed. It’s crowded enough as it is. No routine servicing of the monorail during Park hours unless there’s an emergency.

Monorail at epcot
Credit: Becky Burkett / Inside the Magic Reporter

Give Annual Passholders a discount on daily Park tickets.

As Passholders, we never have to think about the hassle of purchasing daily tickets to the four theme parks. But we often visit the parks with friends and family members who aren’t Passholders, and some of us also buy those tickets so our loved ones can experience the magic too.

Annual Passholders receive a 20% discount on most merchandise, a 10-20% discount on select dining venues, and $0 parking. Why not allow us a 20% on Park tickets, even if there’s a limit? Disney allows us a discount on water Park tickets, so why not theme Park tickets? My grandmother wants to see EPCOT!

Calm down with the crazy parking fees, will you?

Yeesh! How many more times will Disney raise the parking fees this decade?

Parking fee revenue at Disney World is what I call “mailbox money.” It’s a continual, guaranteed stream of cash that accrues without too much effort or expenditures on the part of the recipient. (It must be an oversized mailbox.) Everyone reading this can multiply and add. Thousands upon thousands of vehicles parking each day x $25 per vehicle = $$$$.

And that’s not even including the Resort hotel nightly parking fees, which, by the way, are going up this fall from $13 to $15 at Value Resorts, from $19 to $20 at Moderate Resorts, and from $24 to $25 at Deluxe Resorts and Deluxe Villas.

Grand Floridian Resort
Credit: Becky Burkett / Inside the Magic Reporter

There’s simply no justification for the exorbitant parking fees at Disney World, and there’s certainly no justification for the multiple price hikes in parking fees over the past few years. Add to that that someone who parks closest to the Transportation and Ticket Center at Magic Kingdom pays the exact cost as the family who parked in the Heroes lot and has to ride the tram if you’re not going to be more reasonable with the parking fees, dear Disney, at least charge a lower price for lots that require a hop aboard a tram.

These are some of the issues I think Disney World should address immediately. Do you agree with any of them? What problems do you see at Disney World that need a solution?

in Disney, Walt Disney World

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