Rides breaking down at alarming rate

[Miffy]

We were there this May and RotR was down 2 of the 3 days we were at DHS. We had ILLs for RotR both of the 2 broken-down days and I got a refund from GET since we weren't staying in the park all day in order to wait around and see if it ever came back up. On day 3, RotR was working--although BB8 was absent--so we got to ride.

We go to WDW a lot so this wasn't a big deal to us, but if this were a once-in-a-few-years (or -lifetime) trip, we would've been quite annoyed.

When we were at WDW in March, MMRR broke down twice while we were standing in line, close to getting on the train. Both times we were given multiride LLs, which we ended up using on MMRR, which finally was fixed.

The worst stuck-on-a-ride experience we've had recently was at PPF last year. The ride stopped, they made announcements, but we had no idea how long we were going to be there, suspended in the air in an area of the ride where there is NOTHING to look at! Not to mention no way to get us out of the vehicle without a crane. Fortunately, the stoppage was only about 15 minutes.

In my many years of going to WDW, I have never until the past 2 years experienced so many rides broken.

And, word to the wise: Want to ride Pooh during ETPE? In the last year, it has NEVER been operational when we've been there first thing at ETPE. It's as though the people responsible for that ride have no idea that ETPE exists and are always caught unprepared.

 

[ttintagel]

I wonder how much institutional knowledge was lost when they had the massive covid furloughs and layoffs also. That kind of thing definitely plays a role in maintenance, especially for older rides. Losing a ton of people who knew the ins and outs and quirks of how to keep attractions (especially older ones) running smoothly, immediately being able to identify issues and figuring out workarounds, etc. could not have helped at all.

I'm sure that is a factor, but short-staffing was a problem long before Covid. And I read that they don't even keep spare parts on hand like they did in the old days.

 

[Minnie1222]

Last September we waited in the hot sun for an hour before they finally cancelled the 12 pm parade. How does a parade break down?

Was it weather-related?

 

[ohdewer33]

Our DD works at Walt Disney World and used to work attractions, specifically Dinosaur at Animal Kingdom. She works Merchandising now but used tell us the stories about guest jumping off the ride to grab phones, hats, ears, etc.. With that being said, some of the rides at Walt Disney World are old and have many moving parts, which means they are going to have issues. However, I think the most important thing to remember is that Disney drills safety into their cast members brains. If any protocol is not met or if anything is considered unsafe on any part of a ride, they shut it down. This is does not help your Disney day but it is a matter of keeping everyone safe.

Also, parks close late and it takes a while to get everyone out. Maintenance takes place at night and if there is a serious issue found, it may not be fixed by park opening the next day.

Should Disney overhaul some rides, absolutely! However, that takes a long time and people will complain that Space Mountain is down at Magic Kingdom for 6 months because of some dumb overhaul. You can't make everyone happy and I'm glad that Disney errors on the side of caution when it comes to safety.

 

[wabbott]

I'm sure that is a factor, but short-staffing was a problem long before Covid. And I read that they don't even keep spare parts on hand like they did in the old days.

I'll take this opportunity to once again note that DIS seems to have no problem hiring many, many, many, many people in Hollywood to write, produce, film and air tv shows that no one watches.

A misallocation of resources? Anyone? Anyone?

 

[VeronicaZS]

And HS opened this morning with slinky and RnR down…..

Did this show up right away in MDE or did you only find out when you arrived at the ride? Trying to plan for early entry in August and don’t want to waste time if the closures show up right away in MDE. Thank you!

I was 870 miles away watching on the app preparing for my trip next week. Sometimes HS opens before early entry so I was watching the app before 8. Times didn’t show up until 8:03.

 

[VeronicaZS]

For what it's worth, here's the approximate amount of downtime per day for major WDW attractions, by park, through the first 6 months of the year.

These numbers do not count planned maintenance. So the Kali River Rapids refurb that ended on Feb 25, doesn't count as downtime here.

Animal Kingdom

• Dinosaur: 45 mins
• Everest: 45 mins
• Kali River Rapids: 45 mins
• TriceraTop Spin: 30 mins
• Attractions that run well: Flight of Passage, Kilimanjaro Safaris, Na'Vi River Journey, shows, films

EPCOT

• Test Track: 75 mins
• Remy's Ratatouille Adventure: 60 mins
• Frozen Ever After: 50 mins
• Spaceship Earth: 40 mins
• Journey Into Imagination: 25 mins
• Attractions that run well: Guardians of the Galaxy, Mission: Space, Soarin', The Seas w/Nemo, boat rides, shows, films

Hollywood Studios

• Rise of the Resistance: 110 mins (not a typo)
• Rock 'n Roller Coaster: 100 mins (since reopening)
• Runaway Railway: 60 mins
• Slinky Dog Dash: 55 mins
• Lightning McQueen: 40 mins
• Tower of Terror: 20 mins (and it runs often at partial capacity)
• Attractions that run well: Toy Story Mania, Smugglers Run, Star Tours, shows and films

Magic Kingdom

• Magic Carpets of Aladdin: 90 mins
• Pirates of the Caribbean: 65 mins
• Space Mountain: 65 mins
• 7 Dwarfs Mine Train: 60 mins
• Big Thunder: 55 mins
• Peoplemover: 50 mins
• Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh: 45 mins
• Haunted Mansion: 35 mins
• Barnstormer: 30 mins
• Journey of the Little Mermaid: 25 mins
• Peter Pan: 25 mins
• Buzz Lightyear: 20 mins
• Carousel of Progress: 20 mins
• Attractions that run well: Astro Orbiter, TRON, character greetings, shows, Country Bears, Dumbo, Tiki Room, HOP, Jungle Cruise, Mad Tea Party, IASW, Swiss Family Treehouse

Does this account for weather related closures?

 

[slickpoetry]

After reading this thread (and some others) I'm actually dreading my vacation in three weeks. First time since 2019 and I just have the feeling everything will be a disaster.

 

[DanceDisney23]

Our DD works at Walt Disney World and used to work attractions, specifically Dinosaur at Animal Kingdom. She works Merchandising now but used tell us the stories about guest jumping off the ride to grab phones, hats, ears, etc.. With that being said, some of the rides at Walt Disney World are old and have many moving parts, which means they are going to have issues. However, I think the most important thing to remember is that Disney drills safety into their cast members brains. If any protocol is not met or if anything is considered unsafe on any part of a ride, they shut it down. This is does not help your Disney day but it is a matter of keeping everyone safe.

Also, parks close late and it takes a while to get everyone out. Maintenance takes place at night and if there is a serious issue found, it may not be fixed by park opening the next day.

Should Disney overhaul some rides, absolutely! However, that takes a long time and people will complain that Space Mountain is down at Magic Kingdom for 6 months because of some dumb overhaul. You can't make everyone happy and I'm glad that Disney errors on the side of caution when it comes to safety.

Safety first, yes absolutely. I’m just wondering why it’s only Disney rides that are frequently down and for a prolonged time. Why does that not happen at Universal outside of weather related closures? That can’t just be explained with safety concerns.

 

[Smugpugmug]

Safety first, yes absolutely. I’m just wondering why it’s only Disney rides that are frequently down and for a prolonged time. Why does that not happen at Universal outside of weather related closures? That can’t just be explained with safety concerns.

Hagrid's at IoA goes down all the time, not counting weather. I've been on line where it went down constantly and it was bright and sunny outside.

 

[wabbott]

After reading this thread (and some others) I'm actually dreading my vacation in three weeks. First time since 2019 and I just have the feeling everything will be a disaster.

No it won't. I gripe as much as anyone on these threads - about how the company is run, and the maintenance/capital issues in the parks division - but there's just about no place I would rather be than in WDW or DLR/DCA.

 

[TheDailyMoo]

No it won't. I gripe as much as anyone on these threads - about how the company is run, and the maintenance/capital issues in the parks division - but there's just about no place I would rather be than in WDW or DLR/DCA.

I agree. I have such a love/hate with this company right now but in the end I'm happy to throw my money at them. Even while at the parks you may feel overheated and angry and miserable at times all it takes is one parade or fireworks show to make it all better. Or dolewhip...that always works.

 

[Minnie1222]

After reading this thread (and some others) I'm actually dreading my vacation in three weeks. First time since 2019 and I just have the feeling everything will be a disaster.

You'll be fine. We've been to WDW seven times since the re-opening and only saw 3 rides broke down while we were physically at their queue (Remy 06/22, Runaway train 06/22, and Buzz Lightyear 07/23). They were all running soon after and we were able to ride them on the same day. Notice how I only remember the rides that broke down, and never the ones that ran smoothly.

Don't pay attention to rides going down at other parks since they'll likely be fine once you get there. If a ride you want at the same park is not available, then move onto the next, and revisit that particular ride later.

 

[leiaorgana]

Same, like as much as the ride issues were an annoyance at times, we had a great 3 weeks at the parks overall and had a lot of amazing experiences I never thought we’d ever have this time. 98% of the CMs we encountered on this trip were wonderful and I gave out a lot of cast compliments this time and even got “Pixie Dusted” with a few free treats here and there. The “Magic” is still very much there when you keep yourself open to it. You’re going to have a great time even if a few rides are down here and there. It’s not all doom and gloom but the maintenance issue is obviously there atm and that’s out of everyone’s control aside from Disney’s so enjoy yourself.

 

[Minnie1222]

Safety first, yes absolutely. I’m just wondering why it’s only Disney rides that are frequently down and for a prolonged time. Why does that not happen at Universal outside of weather related closures? That can’t just be explained with safety concerns.

Universal rides go down, too. But we still go because it's fun. Same with Disney.

 

[lentesta]

Does this account for weather related closures?

Yes.

 

[kwdw]

I'll echo this report. We were there in late June. Spaceship Earth broke down 4 times when we were on it. Under Sea Journey of the Little Mermaid broke down 6 times when we were at the front of the line and then riding. RotR also broke down of course and had a number of features not working properly: BB8 in one of the pre-show rooms, the transport ship didn't seem to have as much motion as our previous rides, Kylo Ren animatronic, and of course the laser cannons. I get when the complicated rides break down, but Spaceship Earth and Litter Mermaid are omnimover rides! Doesn't get much simpler!

Sometimes for the omnimovers the ride stops for loading/unloading issues - not actual breakdowns.

 

[DanceDisney23]

Universal rides go down, too. But we still go because it's fun. Same with Disney.

I’m sure they do, occasionally. But the difference between Disney and UO last week was staggering.

 

[DanceDisney23]

Hagrid's at IoA goes down all the time, not counting weather. I've been on line where it went down constantly and it was bright and sunny outside.

That’s true. Hagrids goes down quite a bit. Luckily not while we were there. It’s a complicated ride, like ROR. It’s more understandable that those two have issues. There should be no reason, however, to close Pirates for 4 hours while BTMR is closed for 8 on the same day and SM, Teacups, and HM were also down for a significant time on the same day. Overall, I counted 7 MK rides that day that were closed at various times for mechanical issues.

 

[Jacq7414]

That’s true. Hagrids goes down quite a bit. Luckily not while we were there. It’s a complicated ride, like ROR. It’s more understandable that those two have issues. There should be no reason, however, to close Pirates for 4 hours while BTMR is closed for 8 on the same day and SM, Teacups, and HM were also down for a significant time on the same day. Overall, I counted 7 MK rides that day that were closed at various times for mechanical issues.

When we were at MK sometime last trip, we got a push notification from Disney apologizing for pirates being down a significant amount of time