Somewhat disappointed in the MNSSHP

[lovinmesomedisney]

We went to the party on the 18th of September. Since the party is only from 7 until midnight, I think Disney needs to come up with a better system of clearing out the park from the daytime guests. For the first hour and a half, it seemed we were dodging massive crowds from the regular operating day. There were several people in line for photos with the special characters who did NOT have on wrist bands. We even pointed this out to the cast members and nothing was done to keep these people out of the lines. It was pretty frustrating knowing we had paid hundreds of dollars for our group to attend, and yet others were there evidently free of charge!

[faline]

We went to the party on the 18th of September. Since the party is only from 7 until midnight, I think Disney needs to come up with a better system of clearing out the park from the daytime guests. For the first hour and a half, it seemed we were dodging massive crowds from the regular operating day. There were several people in line for photos with the special characters who did NOT have on wrist bands. We even pointed this out to the cast members and nothing was done to keep these people out of the lines. It was pretty frustrating knowing we had paid hundreds of dollars for our group to attend, and yet others were there evidently free of charge!

That's frustrating! When we last attended, there was a mother and child several folks in front of us in line for pictures with, I think, Cinderlla's carriage. When it came time for her turn, the cast member checked and, since she did not have a wristband, she was NOT permitted to have her picture taken and was told she would need to exit the park.

[Ian]

Yeah, we had this experience as well. I realize there are logistical challenges to clearing out the folks with no wristbands, but with all due respect to Disney you created the mess; you figure out how to fix it.

We watched the first parade and were surrounded by folks with no wristbands. To me, that's ridiculous. Basically the only thing I don't get to do if I have no wristband is ride the rides?? Why am I paying $60 per person then??

To quote ESPN's Mike & Mike ... "Come on, man!"

[joonyer]

Maybe they need to make it more obvious, like giving party guests special hats or something to make it blatantly obvious. Wristbands (or lack thereof) are too easy not to notice. I know, that's probably not to realistic a solution, but if Disney doesn't enforce the policy of making the non-ticket holders leave the park, they are going to sell less and less party tickets in the future. word will spread that you don;t need to buy a ticket to see the parades, fireworks etc. It seems to me that Disney has a financial incentive to sell more party tickets by making sure non-ticket hold can't enjoy the benefits offered by the party. Otherwise, they might as well just open the park to everyone.

[Ian]

Maybe they need to make it more obvious, like giving party guests special hats or something to make it blatantly obvious. Wristbands (or lack thereof) are too easy not to notice.

It's not that ... there was just complete indifference on the part of CM's. I even witnessed more than one time when a group with no wristbands was able to get on an attraction!

Again, this goes back to what we talked about recently in another thread ... there's no upside for the average CM to confront a guest. Management is more likely to end up giving the guest free MNSSHP tickets to make up for their "bad experience" than they are to back a CM who tries to kick someone out of the park.

They'd much rather just stick it to all the folks who paid admission rather than do anything that might God-forbid upset someone trying to break the rules.

[joonyer]

It's not that ... there was just complete indifference on the part of CM's. I even witnessed more than one time when a group with no wristbands was able to get on an attraction!

Again, this goes back to what we talked about recently in another thread ... there's no upside for the average CM to confront a guest. Management is more likely to end up giving the guest free MNSSHP tickets to make up for their "bad experience" than they are to back a CM who tries to kick someone out of the park.

They'd much rather just stick it to all the folks who paid admission rather than do anything that might God-forbid upset someone trying to break the rules.

If that's the case, and I don't disagree that it is, then Disney ought to just open the party to everyone. I guess as long as they still sell enough tickets to cover the additional costs of the party they'll keep doing it.

[BigRedDad]

I will tell you what my plan is if I encounter this. I will be taking pictures of guests that do not have wristbands. If there is anyone there without a wristband, I will be raising $260 worth of mess with Disney Management. I will demand my money back because Disney is not managing their own policies and the benefits people have for purchasing those passes.

This is exactly why the park should close at 5:30PM for the nights of parties. This gives people in line to purchase items until 6PM to finalize their purchase. At 6PM, they are all herded out of the park. Those people with party passes AND in the park prior to 5:30 are permitted into one of the lands that is roped off, say Fantasyland. That gives Disney Security an additional hour to get the people out. Dining reservations are not permitted after 5PM for non-party ticket holders.

All I can say is if I experience this, it may take 2 extra free trips to the party to get my initial monies worth.

[debbymc4]

I think the whole thing is unfair. I went to the Magic Kingdom last Saturday during the day, not for the party. I paid the same one day ticket price, but had two hours less to enjoy the day that I would have had if I had gone on Friday (which I could not do). Plus, party-goers were in the parks prior to 7 pm, which really jacked up the crowds. Technically, they didn't pay to be there earlier than 7 pm. I think there should be a combo ticket option or something to be there all day and everyone who comes that day pays that increased price.

[luvdiznee]

This is exactly why the park should close at 5:30PM for the nights of parties. This gives people in line to purchase items until 6PM to finalize their purchase. At 6PM, they are all herded out of the park. Those people with party passes AND in the park prior to 5:30 are permitted into one of the lands that is roped off, say Fantasyland. That gives Disney Security an additional hour to get the people out. Dining reservations are not permitted after 5PM for non-party ticket holders.

They would have to shut down everything just to get those "hanger-ons" out of there. Can't see that happening.

[renecat]

I've been to both parties and really have never run into this problem. I've seen CM escort people without wrist bands out of the park. Last year at the halloween party I don't recall seeing on person without a wrist band. Maybe I was having so much fun that I wasn't going around looking for this.

[BigRedDad]

They would have to shut down everything just to get those "hanger-ons" out of there. Can't see that happening.

Exactly. There is nothing wrong with that if they are charging almost a 1-Day pass for a 5-hour party. These parties are $60 for adults. A 1-day pass is $82 for almost 12-hours.

[Ian]

I think the whole thing is unfair. I went to the Magic Kingdom last Saturday during the day, not for the party. I paid the same one day ticket price, but had two hours less to enjoy the day that I would have had if I had gone on Friday (which I could not do).

Well yeah I mean I fundamentally agree with you. It seems really unfair for Disney to essentially chop four or five hours off a day for which many folks already paid admission and then ask them to pay again to get back in to a park they've already paid to be in.

But Disney and their defenders will tell you that park hours are subject to change without notice, not guaranteed, blah blah blah so they're covered from everything but an ethical standpoint.

I've seen CM escort people without wrist bands out of the park. Last year at the halloween party I don't recall seeing on person without a wrist band. Maybe I was having so much fun that I wasn't going around looking for this.

I was having fun, too, but I certainly wasn't "looking around for it." It was impossible to miss.

I was jammed in a corner of Frontierland craning for a peek at a parade I had spent $65 to see. I couldn't help but notice that the folks in front of me, for the most part, had no wristbands on.

And I, for one, have never seen a CM "escorting" anyone anywhere. I've seen them lining the streets waving folks out of the parks, but I have never, ever seen a guest or guests being physically removed from the park by a CM for not having wristbands.

[Polynesian Dweller]

I think the whole thing is unfair. I went to the Magic Kingdom last Saturday during the day, not for the party. I paid the same one day ticket price, but had two hours less to enjoy the day that I would have had if I had gone on Friday (which I could not do).

There's a tiny flaw in this logic. Your admission is for any park that day. If you choose to go to MK on a party day rather than another that's open all day, you made the choice to lose the two hours not Disney.

The people Disney are actually shortchanging are those who paid for the party who are being crowded out by non-payers. Disney has an obligation to them and aren't doing it. People should complain because Disney will keep doing it as long as they can get away with it.

[honeebee86]

Last year when my hubby and I went, we were stopped multiple times by CM's who were doing wristband checks. It wasn't at the candy lines or anything, it was random. I swear we got checked twice just walking down Main Street, on the bridge into Liberty Square, just after the bridge going toward BTMR, and lots more times as well. It actually got a little annoying how many times we were asked, but I was glad they were doing it since it made me feel confident that when they found someone without a bracelet they would send them toward the exit. By the sound of it, it doesn't seem as they are monitoring the crowds as well this year or at least taking action when they see someone breaking the rules. It probably does have a little to do with the attitudes of CM's these days as well as guests. There is really nothing in it for them to take the chance of a guest making a huge deal even if they are in the wrong. I do think if we witness too many people there without wristbands, we should demand refunds. I think maybe Disney isn't as aggressive about crowd control with the parties because too many guest would complain about having to leave early and being unaware of the park closing (lack of planning in my opinion) and if they make a big enough a deal, Disney gives the free tickets to the party or a refund for their day "lost". Also, then there are more people to shop since they will most likely me refused on rides. It comes down to more money for Disney. So if we demand refunds for a very valid reason, then Disney will begin to lose money and hopefully smarten up about managing the transition in crowds. We are going to the party Oct. 7th. I can't wait to see for myself what is in store as far as this goes.

[johnO]

Last year we were in toon town fair when we realized the park was closed for NOn- MNSSHP pass holders. We promptly made our way to the front of the park and left. But I did notice others without wristbands still walking around. One thing that I didn't notice was an announcement in the parks letting people know that the park was closed for non-MNSSHP guests and that you needed to leave.

[DisneyPrincess21]

There's a tiny flaw in this logic. Your admission is for any park that day. If you choose to go to MK on a party day rather than another that's open all day, you made the choice to lose the two hours not Disney.

The people Disney are actually shortchanging are those who paid for the party who are being crowded out by non-payers. Disney has an obligation to them and aren't doing it. People should complain because Disney will keep doing it as long as they can get away with it.

[darthmacho]

The bottom line is that Disney should not take some people's money and not others for the same perks and priviledges. It's ethically wrong, and borderline criminal. It's also a slap in the face to honest people. That's my NSHO (Not So Humble Opinion)

I understand it's a huge undertaking to filter the crowd, but the other park seems to manage it for their Halloween nights, so why can't WDW?

[Renfairwedding]

There's a tiny flaw in this logic. Your admission is for any park that day. If you choose to go to MK on a party day rather than another that's open all day, you made the choice to lose the two hours not Disney.

The people Disney are actually shortchanging are those who paid for the party who are being crowded out by non-payers. Disney has an obligation to them and aren't doing it. People should complain because Disney will keep doing it as long as they can get away with it.

[DiannaJ]

I have never seen this problem either. When the park is closing they always had CM's posted at various areas to check for wrist bands of everyone and I have had mine checked many many times which I did not mind at all. There will always be those people who will try to rip off the theme parks because they think that they are being taken advantage of or are just too cheap to pay the cost of the private parties. I know it's very expensive to go to Disney for those who want to go but to steal services from any business is a criminal offense that they should be arrested for but it's Disney and they don't want to make there guest mad and not have them come back...it's a double edged sword for them.

[TiggeRia]

I went to the party on the 21st and actually thought they did a decent job of filtering people out. In the first few hours, we were stopped several times by CM's to make sure we were wearing wristbands and they were also checked prior to entering candy lines or rides. There were several CM's walking through each land holding sticks with ghosts on them starting at one and and working their way to the other filtering people out. Also didn't have any trouble finding a spot on Main Street for the fireworks and front row for the parade, although we did go to the second showing. Sorry you guys had trouble with this-guess they need to improve their methods!