In this week’s mailbag, staff writer Wade Sampson responds to some viewer mail regarding his April 18 column, “Are You Too Old for Disneyland?” Sandy K. writes:
I enjoyed your article. I agree that Disneyland and Walt Disney World need to keep a balance among their attractions, with interesting activities for all age groups.
Have traveled to both Anaheim and Orlando with a multi-generational family (babies up to 80-somethings) I can tell you that Soarin’ is an E-ticket ride for the whole family. My mother-in-law (the 80-something) loved this attraction so much we went on it four times in one day.
My disabled father (another 80-something) lamented over the attractions that he could not ride, but greatly enjoyed Mickey’s Philharmagic and the other 3-D shows. Not sure what this would have been ticketed as (D probably), but again fun for the whole family. He enjoyed Haunted Mansion as much as he did the first time we visited (when I was a kid).
Believe it or not the biggest problem we had was with Peter Pan—the flying ships do not stop (like they can for Haunted Mansion) and we had great difficulty getting him in and out. This would be a change that would take seniors into account. Otherwise as a family we all enjoyed.
David C. writes:
I agree with your article. There is one spot that is often shown where Walt is describing his want to create a park. Something to the effect of: There ought to be some kind of enterprise built where both the kids and the parent could have fun together. He was lamenting that when he went to these carnivals and such, he had to sit while the kids had fun without him. You name the park, from Six Flags to Great America, most of their rides are put the kids on a wait for them. It has always been one of the great things about Disney that you can go on most if not all the rides with your kids without too much trouble and both have fun. This is under threat from the thrill ride syndrome. I hope the modern Disney never forgets why the parks were built in the first place.
Gary Mc. writes:
That was a great article! You are right on the money in that the elderly are getting left behind when it comes to new attractions. Maybe because I’m still in my mid-30s, but it seems so easy to overlook others when all I want out of Disney is to have fun for myself (and my nephews). I never really took the time to consider how it is going to be when I reach that ‘older’ age. I know that if I was a decision-maker at Disney, and I just happened to read this article, I would take a step back and try to figure out how to keep the fans of today still being fans in the future.
Joe H. writes:
I read your article with interest as I’m one of those ‘older’ visitors. We try to get to WDW every year, and try for at least a week’s stay. We were there last year with our oldest daughter and her daughter. We have a week reserved in early September just for my wife and myself.
Our last several trips have been with grandchildren and they were a lot of fun. The differences in ages seem to pretty much go away in the fun of the park. I tend to agree that several of the new rides are a bit much for us seniors. I told my wife after our last visit I’d probably ridden the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster for the last time. The Mine Train ride is pretty ‘jerky’ too and I may not ride it again. I’ve never been a big fan of Space Mountain but have ridden it with my grandchildren many times. I’ve done ‘Space’ a few times and it’s a great but stressful ride.
All of this aside the thrill and joy of all the other milder things you can do at WDW still wins out. There are plenty of newer rides/shows that are milder—Mickey Philharmonic, Laugh Floor, revised River of Time, etc. I still think WDW offers a widespread variety of entertainment for people of all ages—which I think was a large part of Walt D’s intent. By the way, I’m 69 and my wife is 65.
Leon M. writes:
I took great interest in your current article, “Are You Too Old For Disneyland?” and enjoyed reading it. As a guy now pushing 50, I’ve given much thought to the issues you discussed.
Last year, we took my 8-year-old son to Disneyland along with my parents (age 76). They did well, given some minor physical restrictions. However, my son was able to con his grandfather into riding Space Mountain. I chose to wait at the exit, by the photo screens. When they exited the ride, I saw my father looking stunned, his skin ashen. After a few minutes of rest and some cold water, he was better. I asked him if the ride was too much and he replied, “No, the ride wasn’t so bad. It’s those damned flashing lights at the end!”
The overall experience of my son and his grandparents spending the day at Disneyland was a good one, and the Space Mountain episode—which was our choice to ride and not the fault of Disneyland—perhaps is an example of issues and questions raised in your article. There was no way my parents could have withstood the jostling of Indiana Jones and no way my mom, with her bad knees, could have got down into a Matterhorn Bobsled.
It’s unreasonable to expect that the park can please all the people all the time, but concentrating on thrill rides would be a mistake. I hate to think that someday the only thing I could ride is Winnie The Pooh.
Thanks again for the article and also the link to the Re-Imagineering Web site.
Karen S. writes:
I was so glad to read your article today. While I have never been to Disneyland, I have been an annual passholder at WDW for many, many years. In the past several years I have found myself, like Walt, sitting on a bench, while younger family members enjoy rides that I cannot enjoy with them. I am so hoping that the Imagineers can come up with a ride that will entertain the entire family: one that I can take my 5-year-old great-granddaughter on and have us both come away satisfied.
Roger C. writes:
Great column! My mother is a classic example of this demographic. She bought her first AP two years ago and is ready to go to the Park any time. And she lives almost 400 miles away! Thanks for the great stuff.
Kim writes:
Wade! What a great article! But they always are.
Kim writes every single week to compliment my columns. It is like having my own personal cheerleader.
Wade responds:
I really seem to have struck a nerve when I wrote my recent column on the Disney parks not addressing the needs and wants of some of us more mature guests. It seems like readers agree that while the Disney Company doesn’t need to eliminate thrill rides, it certainly needs to be more aggressive in developing more entertainment offerings for those Disneylanders who are growing older even though they are not growing up.
Hopefully Bob Iger will consider these concerns, although I noticed on his recent visit with his family to Walt Disney World that leadership made every effort to insulate him from the true onstage and backstage concerns. Things that hadn’t been cleaned or fixed in years including stains on backstage sidewalks where Bob might walk (but didn’t) were worked on day and night by cast members pulled off their regular assignments.
This was more than just “company’s coming so hide things in the closets and bring out the good silverware.” This was an effort to isolate Bob from the true challenges as well as from the cast members themselves who might have shared those true challenges. Bob’s efforts to be just one of the guests standing in a long line with his family for the Nemo show at Disney’s Animal Kingdom or casually interact with cast members backstage were constantly being thwarted in an attempt to show how wonderful everything is.
It is certainly doing a disservice to Bob as well as those of us who love the Disney parks to try this type of deception but it was obvious from the expression on his face that he suspected what was going on. Hopefully, as he tried to stand in some of those long lines like Walt used to do, Bob realized that some of the older guests might have enjoyed more shaded benches or easier queue lines to maneuver or entertainment to distract from the wait time. As he tried to enjoy some time with his family, maybe he saw other families having challenges being able to stay together to enjoy their experience at the Disney parks because some rides and areas weren’t always friendly for all guests of varying ages.
