Please give me some positives. Leave in 5 days!!

[JerseyJanice]

Let me start with this we went 2 years ago second week in Dec with our son 2 and daughter 5. It was an amazing trip! We loved it had so much fun. I left that trip feeling like we did everything we wanted, seeing the joy in my kids it was magical to us. Nothing stood out negative to me other than the crap weather and my poor planning of MVMCP and wasn't a fan of Garden Grill food. Anyways.

We leave in 5 days for 9 nights. Staying at AKL Savannah view. Kids are 4 & 7. I'm stoked to stay there. We're doing MNSSHP. I picked dates based on crowd calendar mainly easywdw one. We're doing the party on the 11th.

I'm posting bc I feel I've read so much negative lately. Parks are changing, cm are rude and don't care, park is dirty, party not the same. Everyone has diff standards and expectations. Money being one and quality. As not frequent goers I'm hoping these tho ha won't matter much to us or stand out. Of course I want nice CM and a clean park but I'm worried we will leave feeling not the same as last time. I loved it so much. I don't expect extra magic or pixie dust but just to see my kids happy. Fun meals, character experiences, rides and laughter. But I worry the way ppl make it sound lately is Disney is just going downhill.

I don't consider us high maintenance if a CM in a store doesn't greet me I'm not going to be bothered by that. Or other small things. So tell me there's hope still that if we go in positive we will have a magical time again!!!

Let me start with this we went 2 years ago second week in Dec with our son 2 and daughter 5. It was an amazing trip! We loved it had so much fun. I left that trip feeling like we did everything we wanted, seeing the joy in my kids it was magical to us. Nothing stood out negative to me other than the crap weather and my poor planning of MVMCP and wasn't a fan of Garden Grill food. Anyways.

We leave in 5 days for 9 nights. Staying at AKL Savannah view. Kids are 4 & 7. I'm stoked to stay there. We're doing MNSSHP. I picked dates based on crowd calendar mainly easywdw one. We're doing the party on the 11th.

I'm posting bc I feel I've read so much negative lately. Parks are changing, cm are rude and don't care, park is dirty, party not the same. Everyone has diff standards and expectations. Money being one and quality. As not frequent goers I'm hoping these tho ha won't matter much to us or stand out. Of course I want nice CM and a clean park but I'm worried we will leave feeling not the same as last time. I loved it so much. I don't expect extra magic or pixie dust but just to see my kids happy. Fun meals, character experiences, rides and laughter. But I worry the way ppl make it sound lately is Disney is just going downhill.

I don't consider us high maintenance if a CM in a store doesn't greet me I'm not going to be bothered by that. Or other small things. So tell me there's hope still that if we go in positive we will have a magical time again!!!

When I was planning a trip in 2008, there were so many negative threads on-line, I was concerned about our trip not being magical. We hadn't been since 2002, and I was reading a lot about how WDW wasn't as good as it used to be.

I am happy to report that our trip in February 2008 was so good that I booked a Free Dining trip that spring, and we went again in August of that year. That Summer's trip was my favorite of all time since adulthood anyhow.

I'm going again in October after a 4 year hiatus and I can't help feeling a bit worried reading about cutbacks now. I won't have a dining plan and the food prices are scaring me too.

And there definitely are things that have been cut back on over the years. But change is inevitable, and I am hopeful that I'll find the Magic again this trip.

 

[DisneyMim]

Please do not worry. We've been going to Disney forever, multiple times a year and if I read and cared about everything I read on message boards I would not go at all. We just went a month ago and will be returning at Christmas for our tenth Christmas/New Year trip. We had a wonderful, magical time as always. I agree with the people who say to get off the message boards. People tend to post negative stuff. Most people, including myself do not post every trip they take. Vacations, as most things in life, are what you make them. Is every trip perfect. Of course not. But really we travel a lot and our trips to Disney are the most memorable for my family. Relax and have a wonderful time!!

Enjoy the magic!!!

 

[jsrj21]

I will give you one positive - You're going to Disney World! My family and I were there from Aug 10-21 and had the greatest time. There are always isolated incidents but Disney is good at making things "right" when something might be wrong. Notice that we were there for 11 days....and we didn't do everything we had planned. I believe that this is what keeps bringing us back...the never ending of things we didn't do or didn't do enough of....that's what keeps bringing us back.

This is my rationale for convincing my wife to buy a condo in Orlando or buy into DVC!

You guys will have a great time!

 

[lovethattink]

Savannahs view sounds great! That's certainly something to look forward to.

Saw so many friends pictures from MNSSHP, that's something I always look forward to and will miss this year.

I can't remember my last bad experience at Disney. And we are there often.

A couple weeks ago, we were granted a magical moment. DS was given the opportunity to choose any seat he wanted at an attraction!

 

[DisneyHardin]

You will have a blast. We have been the last 6 years in a row and I can only remember 2 CM's in all those trips that were less than magical. We generally stay deluxe and have always been very pleased with the resorts and cleanliness of them.

 

[DVCcurious]

Animal Kingdom Lodge savannah view is awesome.

The bus isn't bad because it's a direct to/from the parks. The stops at Kidani are so short it's like not even a stop. Other hotels share and that adds a lot of travel time.

The rides are always super fun. I've gone during 4th of July and Easter week and I don't remember the crowds, I remember the awesome rides and family moments.

 

[PabloMax]

Just got back myself, had been feeling kind of the same as you after reading the comments on the forums. Was it perfect? No, especially the weather, but I really think you will have a great time.

 

[OB1]

aaahhhhhh - AKL savanna view. TOTALLY JEALOUS. Love the AKL & the AK park.

Enjoy the trip - and make sure to chat with the people that are out on the lookout areas at the AKL. Fun to learn about their country, as well as the animals.

 

[disny_luvr]

I was feeling very similar to you before our trip in June. I'm happy to report we had a magical time and we all agreed it was our best trip yet! We didn't experience any of the negativity I read about on here. You will have a blast; you're at Disney after all. Go and enjoy!

 

[ConnecticutNonna]

I think you'll have a great time because of the low crowds. What makes a WDW vacation great is low attraction wait times and being able to repeat favorites. Based on the most recent reports, this is what you'll experience.

Omygoodness I LOVE your Avatar!

ETA: The magic's in how you make it. I had to add that so it would be relevant to the OP.
Seriously, you're going to have a wonderful time, you have a great amount of time to enjoy AKL and the parks.
Have fun!

 

[roselark]

It sounds like we are leaving on the same day and are also staying at AKL! We are gonna have FABULOUS trips!!!

 

[Chant124]

1. Your going to WDW
2. Your going to WDW
3. Your going to WDW

That's enough reasons