New Disney World ad says ‘memories aren’t made from predetermined plans’
A new Disney World advertisement encourages “unplanned” vacations, despite Disney’s integration of vacation plan systems like Genie.
“Magic is Found in Spontaneity”
An advertisement for Walt Disney World Resort currently runs during commercial breaks of “What Now? with Trevor Noah” on Spotify. In full, the commercial’s narration is:
At Walt Disney World Resort, magic is found in spontaneity, the unplanned, the unexpected: an inside joke born in the Haunted Mansion queue, a surprise Stitch sighting in Tomorrowland, watching fireworks from your room. These memories aren’t made from predetermined plans, but manifested from simply being present and together in the most magical place. Find your moment at Walt Disney World Resort.
Walt Disney World advertisement
This vision of an “unplanned” Disney World trip void of a “predetermined” itinerary is different from the resort’s messaging elsewhere, and presents a choice to the traveler. Ignoring tools like Disney Genie+ or systems like advanced dining reservations can mean missing out on major experiences; embracing them means learning the ins and outs of multi-step procedures.
Disney’s Pre-Vacation Mailers
Currently, in the weeks leading up to travelers’ Disney World visit, guests receive emails and postal mail detailing the many aspects of planning a Disney trip. Some of these communications provide general overviews of the parks or describe special events happening during the guests’ trip.
Other communication is more extensive. One pre-trip booklet from Disney lists a 10-step checklist followed by a literal glossary of terms like virtual queue, mobile order, and Disney PhotoPass. The checklist ends with a final step, “Learn about Lightning Lane entrances,” leaving out the process involved to do so.
There’s also a landing page, disneyworld.com/getready, with everything spelled out in one place.
From various pre-trip literature for a recent trip, Disney sent my family information regarding: dining reservations, the Disney Dining Plan, AdventHealth, Disney PhotoPass, Memory Maker, MagicBand+, Disney MagicMobile, Disney Genie, virtual queue, merchandise mobile check-out, Minnie Van, and linking park tickets to My Disney Experience, among other subjects.
At the end of every email, Disney asks the guest to rate on a scale of one to five stars, “How clear was this email?”
A New Ideology for Disney Vacation Planning?
The messaging in Disney’s Spotify ad — implying spontaneity is not only preferable to planning, but also possible to achieve — presents a different and sometimes contradictory ideology to that expressed by Disney’s current systems. In such cases, it’s impossible for the guest to heed the advertisement’s advice.
For example, guests cannot experience Disney World’s two newest roller coasters without a plan. Guests who want to ride Tron Lightcycle / Run at Magic Kingdom Park or Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at Epcot need to either a) reserve their spot in a virtual queue on their mobile device at 7 a.m. or 1 p.m., or b) purchase Lightning Lane access. There is no way to spontaneously experience Tron or Guardians as there is no standby line to jump into.
Disney’s new, non-plan-focused messaging indicates the company is aware there are more steps to planning a Disney World vacation than there were even three years ago.
One procedure of recent years was mostly eliminated a few months ago: acquiring park reservations. Introduced at the onset of the pandemic for all guests, Disney World park reservations are now only required on select days for annual passholders and cast members.
If you’re interested in visiting Walt Disney World Resort, we recommend Mouse Fan Travel for a free, no obligation quote and free help throughout your trip.
I have said it before and I’ll say it again. My family had been Premium AP owners for the better part of 15 years. We did the top tier so we could go whenever we wanted – even Christmas week – without blackout dates. Now that same pass level costs much more, you still have to schedule your days, every day can be blacked out if not available, and you could potentially not be able to go the whole year. Where is the spontaneity?