Vicky and I both went to Disneyland in the 1950s (not together, of course.....ha ha). We remember it well. It was so quaint. We took horseback rides and stagecoach rides. We went on the Jungle Cruise where the guide shot a fake Hippo and where there were fake headhunters and shrunken heads. The train ride went past a homestead that had been raided by Indians, and out in front was a dead guy with an arrow in his back. What felt fine then doesn't feel quite right now. That's an improvement in our thinking, I believe.
Even the ticket situation was quaint. You bought a book of tickets, with a certain number of A rides, B rides, etc., up to E rides. E rides were the best. Before you could go on rides back then you actually had to do some on-the-spot planning. I went to Disneyland again in the early 1960s, but don't remember much about that visit.
Fast forward to the early 1980s, a few years after Disney World opened. I went there several times in the early 80s, and to Disneyland several times as well. Disney World had two theme parks: Magic Kingdom (which was almost identical to Disneyland) and Epcot Center (which never did have a coherent theme and still doesn't).
No longer did you use your ticket book. Instead, you just paid an admission price, stood in lines, and did whatever you wanted and had time for. You still had to plan your day on the day you arrived. That seemed to work fine.
That was still the system in 1986 when we went again to Disney World. That was the last time Emily had been there until this year---a 30-year hiatus.
But in the early 2000s, when I went about five times in five years, a new system had been introduced: Fastpass. For certain rides you pulled a little slip of paper that allowed you, at a later time, to do the ride with little or no waiting.
That system worked even better, and the day was still planned on the day of your visit.
But now the fastpass system requires an "app." And a phone for the app. An "app?" For Fantasyland? Is that why it is A Small World now? Because of "apps?"
Instead of planning your day when you get to the park, like with the old fastpass system, now you can plan it 60 days ahead of time......if that's your idea of enjoying something like Disney World. The other hidden change with the new fastpass system is that it now is more parent-oriented than child-oriented. Parents will determine, by using the "app," what the kids will do during a day several weeks into the future. No more kids yelling: "I want to do THIS ride." The day is structured by parents more so than it was in the past.
And as a result, the big difference between our visit here and our honeymoon here 5 1/2 years ago is the number of people who are walking around looking at little screens. And the fact that getting a fastpass so you can ride on the attraction you want may not be possible unless you stay at a Disney World resort (those people can get fastpasses 30 days before other people). Now, isn't that cheesy?
Makes me long for the olden days of yore when you had a book of tickets with A rides, B rides, etc.
Aside from being old fogeys who want the world to stand still, Disney World was its usual awesome experience to share with Emily, Sean, and the two grandsons Soren and Sebastian.
Our first ride after arriving was It's a Small World. It's our favorite ride. It was introduced at the 1964 New York World's Fair, and brought to Disneyland (and subsequently Disney World) after the Fair closed. In a way it is showing its age, but in another way it is timeless.
Our guess is that Sebastian's favorite park was the Magic Kingdom. Some of the rides were geared more to his age.
Probably his favorite was the "Pirate Experience." Can you believe this?
Soren's favorite was probably Hollywood Studios. It had some exciting rides (including the Haunted Hotel which is awesome and which he went on twice). This theme park has changed since we were there last. It should be renamed Star Wars Studios.
Our favorite theme park? Probably Animal Kingdom, especially the Asia zoo.
We also like the World Showcase at Epcot. I especially enjoy the Italian wine ride. You don't need a Fastpass for it---just a VISA card.
We can't wait to go back.
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