Southern California and Disneyland Adventure

[Chickkypoo]

The April

I called AND I emailed them to let them know how frustrating their lack communication in a timely manner has been regarding the April trips. When I called, I asked to speak to one of the leaders and they would not let me. The gal told me she would pass on the info.
That being said, I understand the disappointment of not being able to tour the buildings and areas we hoped to tour. I am disappointed as well. However, these are crazy times and I am just thankful this trip gets to run. I am also confident that Disney would not run this trip if they could not make it as special as it always has been. Hoping for some fun surprises!

Maybe if more of us email and call to voice our concerns they'll take us more seriously. I'm going to send my email in the morning and copy the President of Disney Signature Experiences on it.

To me this is like paying to go on a tour of Paris, and having them turn around just before you leave and saying sorry, we're not going to take you to see the Eiffel Tower anymore, but we'll take you to the Pantheon instead. Yeah ok, the Pantheon is pretty neat, but you'd be pretty disappointed paying to go all the way to Paris and not seeing a glimpse of the Eiffel Tower.

We paid a premium to do things we wouldn't normally have the chance to do. If we wanted a tour of Disneyland and some museum we have no interest in, we could have done it for much cheaper than what we paid for this tour.

 

[Chickkypoo]

Same. 100%. And the fact that there is no refund option for not visiting buildings that they own is horrible.

I think this is the thing that gets me the most. They have total control over this tour, as they own the majority of the places we're visiting and should have known what was happening with those buildings before now.

 

[sayhello]

Oh boy, I hadn’t logged in here in a few days and I was simply going to post that I received a box with the duffel and straps but no pins … however I see we have other issues to deal with. No studios, imagineering, archives?! i thought that was the point of “Backstage Magic?” well thus the name change

Just jumping in to say I believe the pins come in a separate box.

Sayhello

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

We paid a premium to do things we wouldn't normally have the chance to do. If we wanted a tour of Disneyland and some museum we have no interest in, we could have done it for much cheaper than what we paid for this tour.

This...exactly...we aren't paying for hotel access (we can stay there free via DVC), we don't care about the meals, and VIP gives much better access to Disneyland itself - plus it is private. And we have done it twice already, so we wouldn't be flying all the way out to Cali to do it again if it weren't for this tour. Beyond that, basically they are talking about delivering a Keys to the Kingdom tour (which costs about $100 in Florida) plus $25 admission to a museum that we don't care about. That's ridiculous.

 

[Aeroem]

Maybe if more of us email and call to voice our concerns they'll take us more seriously. I'm going to send my email in the morning and copy the President of Disney Signature Experiences on it.

To me this is like paying to go on a tour of Paris, and having them turn around just before you leave and saying sorry, we're not going to take you to see the Eiffel Tower anymore, but we'll take you to the Pantheon instead. Yeah ok, the Pantheon is pretty neat, but you'd be pretty disappointed paying to go all the way to Paris and not seeing a glimpse of the Eiffel Tower.

We paid a premium to do things we wouldn't normally have the chance to do. If we wanted a tour of Disneyland and some museum we have no interest in, we could have done it for much cheaper than what we paid for this tour.

Exactly this. I called my agent. In my opinion, they weren’t going to address this until it was brought to light. Just hoping a name change, Covid and a giant sweep under a nice rug would cover up the fact that the most important pieces are missing. If more people stand up for what’s right and on the itinerary then the better. I am not settling because it’s Disney. Do better. Don’t take advantage of folks. Highly disappointed in them right now with more than just this. (Different thread entirely) They know this is an issue, how can they NOT?

 

[Chickkypoo]

Exactly this. I called my agent. In my opinion, they weren’t going to address this until it was brought to light. Just hoping a name change, Covid and a giant sweep under a nice rug would cover up the fact that the most important pieces are missing. If more people stand up for what’s right and on the itinerary then the better. I am not settling because it’s Disney. Do better. Don’t take advantage of folks. Highly disappointed in them right now with more than just this. (Different thread entirely) They know this is an issue, how can they NOT?

Exactly. The fact that they're waiting until the last possible minute to give us our itineraries also seems like they're trying to cover this all up. I think they just don't want to give us time to react. They told me yesterday that they know this trip is a go. How can that be if you don't yet have the itinerary sorted?

 

[irlapes]

Wow i'm really worried reading your messages. My main objective with this trip is to visit the Studios, archves and imagineering. I hope it can be sorted out soon enough for all of us.
I read yesterday that there are a lot of Imagineers opposing to move to Florida and that they wrote an open letter to Bob Chapek, hopefully that would be avoided too.
Needless to say that the lack of communication for the trips is jawdropping and letting the days pass making the refund impossible makes ABD look like a money maker more than an experience maker.

I guess the April 17th is the first trip since COVID, right? or have there been any other Southern California trips after COVID?

Do you know what would happen with "fast passes" included with the tickets now that Genie+ is available?

 

[Kit Jackson]

I may be the only one, but no studios and archives is a deal breaker for my family. I really wanted to have this trip happen especially since it’s been postponed twice. I realize it may be out of their control, but still. I’d like to have faith but to me, it sounds like they are letting us all know info too late, which is scammy to me.

You are not alone. One of my friends and I were planning on doing this trip soon, but moved it. Since we knew that parts of California were going more slowly in reopening and people going back to work in person, we would hold off on the trip, especially since we hadn't paid in full yet. When we made our decision in March, we were not confident that Walt Disney Studios and Archives and the Jim Henson studios would be part of the trip, so we decided to wait. I would do the trip without Imagineering but Walt Disney Studios and Archives and the Jim Henson studios are an absolute must. My friend would go without Imagineering but reluctantly.

 

[sayhello]

I guess the April 17th is the first trip since COVID, right? or have there been any other Southern California trips after COVID?

Do you know what would happen with "fast passes" included with the tickets now that Genie+ is available?

There have been no Southern California trips that have gone since COVID-19 that I've heard of.

And nobody has said anything yet if they've heard what the situation with Genie+/LL/ILL will be. I'm sure the Adventure Guides will have a way to handle it, but who knows what it will be.

Sayhello

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

I really hope the rumors are wrong, but I can't imagine how ABD could think substituting for these key parts of the tour would be okay. I agree that this seems to fall under the wait until the last minute to allow less time for people to pivot. Really brutal, but sadly with the way ABD has handled the tours during the pandemic I'm not surprised. My likelihood of ever going on another ABD trip dwindles to nothing as these reports keep coming in. It's sad given that I was once one of the biggest ABD cheerleaders on this board, and I've had so many fabulous trips with them (including Backstage Magic back in 2014). I've always had problems with some of the corporate policies (i.e. the refusal to have a solid date by which they would guarantee a trip would go has always been one of them), but not telling people anything with only weeks to go is really unbelievable.

 

[Kimfriedl]

Maybe if more of us email and call to voice our concerns they'll take us more seriously. I'm going to send my email in the morning and copy the President of Disney Signature Experiences on it.

To me this is like paying to go on a tour of Paris, and having them turn around just before you leave and saying sorry, we're not going to take you to see the Eiffel Tower anymore, but we'll take you to the Pantheon instead. Yeah ok, the Pantheon is pretty neat, but you'd be pretty disappointed paying to go all the way to Paris and not seeing a glimpse of the Eiffel Tower.

We paid a premium to do things we wouldn't normally have the chance to do. If we wanted a tour of Disneyland and some museum we have no interest in, we could have done it for much cheaper than what we paid for this tour.

Can you please share the email they gave you? They wouldn’t even give me an email when I asked for one. I was just told to use the “contact us” form. I sent my message in early last week and never heard anything back…not surprised about that. I will send another email regarding the lack of appropriate communication with guests. I think the last minute communication of this news of the itinerary changing along with ABD waiting to confirm these trips are actually happening has guests extra upset. Many people were already frustrated waiting to hear if their trip is actually happening or not.

Good analogy with Paris. You are right. I guess I am just hoping that they would throw in a surprise like meeting with an imagineer or something like that to replace not being able to go inside and experience the dish or see the other things in the Imagineering building. I know, I have big hopes. Lol! It will be interesting to see how this plays out and how each trip may change as things continue to open up. I am going to keep my hopes up and try to stay positive about it all.

 

[Kimfriedl]

Wow i'm really worried reading your messages. My main objective with this trip is to visit the Studios, archves and imagineering. I hope it can be sorted out soon enough for all of us.
I read yesterday that there are a lot of Imagineers opposing to move to Florida and that they wrote an open letter to Bob Chapek, hopefully that would be avoided too.
Needless to say that the lack of communication for the trips is jawdropping and letting the days pass making the refund impossible makes ABD look like a money maker more than an experience maker.

I guess the April 17th is the first trip since COVID, right? or have there been any other Southern California trips after COVID?

Do you know what would happen with "fast passes" included with the tickets now that Genie+ is available?

The April 5th short escape will be the first trip since covid. This is the only trip that has been made aware of the itinerary change at this time. Each trip may be different based on the phased reopening of the buildings and cast members returning back to work in these buildings.

 

[Kit Jackson]

I guess I am just hoping that they would throw in a surprise like meeting with an imagineer or something like that to replace not being able to go inside and experience the dish or see the other things in the Imagineering building.

It's not a perfect replacement, but it's also not a half bad idea. Depending on how many people are on the tour, they could do a version of the Lunch with an Imagineer that Disney World used to offer.

 

[sayhello]

I guess I am just hoping that they would throw in a surprise like meeting with an imagineer or something like that to replace not being able to go inside and experience the dish or see the other things in the Imagineering building. I know, I have big hopes. Lol! It will be interesting to see how this plays out and how each trip may change as things continue to open up. I am going to keep my hopes up and try to stay positive about it all.

It's not a perfect replacement, but it's also not a half bad idea. Depending on how many people are on the tour, they could do a version of the Lunch with an Imagineer that Disney World used to offer.

A TA I know who posts on fb said that these early, changed itineraries would have an Imagineer leading you around at Disneyland, which sounds wonderful. You may want to call ABD and confirm if that's really a part of your new itinerary or not.

Sayhello

 

[Kimfriedl]

A TA I know who posts on fb said that these early, changed itineraries would have an Imagineer leading you around at Disneyland, which sounds wonderful. You may want to call ABD and confirm if that's really a part of your new itinerary or not.

Sayhello

I just saw that!!!!! How amazing would that be??? And others who have been on that trip said they would have had an imagineer lead them around the park than visit the actually building. I bet there are other fun surprises in store! Yahooooo friends!

 

[sayhello]

I just saw that!!!!! How amazing would that be??? And others who have been on that trip said they would have had an imagineer lead them around the park than visit the actually building. I bet there are other fun surprises in store! Yahooooo friends!

Honestly, I would sign up for this trip for this year if I knew that I'd get an Imagineer leading me around Disneyland!!

Sayhello

 

[Chickkypoo]

Can you please share the email they gave you? They wouldn’t even give me an email when I asked for one. I was just told to use the “contact us” form. I sent my message in early last week and never heard anything back…not surprised about that. I will send another email regarding the lack of appropriate communication with guests. I think the last minute communication of this news of the itinerary changing along with ABD waiting to confirm these trips are actually happening has guests extra upset. Many people were already frustrated waiting to hear if their trip is actually happening or not.

Good analogy with Paris. You are right. I guess I am just hoping that they would throw in a surprise like meeting with an imagineer or something like that to replace not being able to go inside and experience the dish or see the other things in the Imagineering building. I know, I have big hopes. Lol! It will be interesting to see how this plays out and how each trip may change as things continue to open up. I am going to keep my hopes up and try to stay positive about it all.

They told me to email
abd.vacationistas@disney.com I took it a step further however, googled the President of Disney Signature Experiences, and sent the email to him, copying
abd.vacationistas@disney.com. I received a call from Disney this afternoon, and it was from a Manager at ABD that wanted to discuss my trip and concerns with me. She was only in until 4 however, and I was tied up in meetings, so I'm going to call her back in the morning.

 

[Disdreamer9]

While I have no interest in going to a generic movie museum, it would be a unique experience for an Imagineer to walk us around the park!

I think we can all agree that communication hasn’t been the greatest (to say the least), I’m trying to be understanding that things continue to shift due to COVID and I’m thankful that we can even go on the trip next month. Like many of you, I’m a lifelong Disney fan and I’ve never been let down to the point like I felt as if my money/time was wasted. I’m going to have some faith, trust (and pixie dust), that Disney will make this a worthwhile experience.

I can appreciate that some of you will differ from this perspective, and I would hope Disney would at least let you cancel if you aren’t satisfied with the revised itinerary. I just don’t want them to cancel everything at this point as we’ve had to cancel all our backup plans.

Deep breath, everyone. We’ll all be on vacation soon!

 

[WaDiWo]

Just jumping in to say I believe the pins come in a separate box.

Sayhello

thanks sayhello! I got the box with pins and lanyards today.

 

[Kimfriedl]

They told me to email
abd.vacationistas@disney.com I took it a step further however, googled the President of Disney Signature Experiences, and sent the email to him, copying
abd.vacationistas@disney.com. I received a call from Disney this afternoon, and it was from a Manager at ABD that wanted to discuss my trip and concerns with me. She was only in until 4 however, and I was tied up in meetings, so I'm going to call her back in the morning.

Thank you! Let us know how it goes. I will send another message using this email.