No Water from Freestyle Machines

[Scott W.]

This is clearly a power play to shorten lines for rides.

- Make guests spend on Coke Freestyle cups.
- Only offer soda/sugary drinks.
- Fatten up guests to the point where they can't fit on many rides.
- Shorter lines.

Boom.

The future of UOR.

The SCREENZ are a nice touch too.

 

[IzzyB]

I've followed Disney very closely for a long time. They've been continuing a chain of little decisions very similar to things like removing free water for many years now. I wasn't really referring to the big things like what they chose to invest in but rather the small details of how they run a business. No one wants to go to the restaurant that has a key for the bathroom or charges you for water, businesses like that in turn have to then look to other ways to squeeze money out since their brilliant idea to save money backfired. It's a vicious cycle and Disney has been in it a while. They're constantly finding new ways to sneak in little charges hear and there. I once talked with someone who worked with Dick Nunis and she said he would always immediately reject any idea that in his words was "nickel & diming" the guests. That mentality showed through at Disney for a very long time. It however created a lot of opportunities for future executives to show how much money they could save. The end result is you diminish the final product. The same is true here. Free water is just one small thing but if they continue to make little decision like that eventually people will feel like they are continuously being ripped off by Universal. You want people to visit and open they're wallets willingly, this is something casinos in Las Vegas learned long ago give people free things and they will only spend more money.

You didn't get my point. That nickle and diming is not what is killing WDW attendance and spending numbers. It is the lack of spending money on the parks. That lack of spending came from the big projects.

 

[s8film40]

You didn't get my point. That nickle and diming is not what is killing WDW attendance and spending numbers. It is the lack of spending money on the parks. That lack of spending came from the big projects.

I think it's a combination of the two that's hurting Disney. I also think the nickel & diming is/was a symptom and sign of the the other issue. They started nickel & diming and then relied on that to drive their increases.

In any case I don't think Universal is anywhere close approaching that point yet, but it's scary to see this. These were the type of things that Disney did and everyone rushed to defend them saying it was just business. Now they've all added up to be huge changes to the WDW vacation and meanwhile Disney forgot how to invest in the parks. I didn't like watching this happen to Disney and I really don't want to watch it happen to Universal. My hope is the executives will see this as the big mistake it is and make it known to their managers that that's not the way they want to do business.

 

[Mad Dog]

There is no more water, so just straight up lol

A scene from that great John Wayne movie 'The Quiet Man"....Barry Fitzgerald, playing the matchmaker..."When I drink water, I drink water. When I drink whiskey, I drink whiskey".

 

[Mad Dog]

The future of UOR.

The SCREENZ are a nice touch too.

Looks more like "present day" WDW.

 

[Galaxy Defender]

The future of UOR.

The SCREENZ are a nice touch too.

I think these are the folks causing Frozen to bottom out.

 

[Hockeyman55]

Yep, sounds like a good time for a double of Jim Beam & water. Heh, where's my drinking partners Disneyhead & UK Trigg when you need them?

@UK-Trigg and @Disneyhead are still nursing their hangovers from wild night at Mangos :whoo:

 

[Mad Dog]

@UK-Trigg and @Disneyhead are still nursing their hangovers from wild night at Mangos :whoo:

Yes, I heard the stories. At least Dave left early. .... Mark was still recovering from Thirsty Fish and then Pat O'Briens the next night. The Hurricanes were flowing.

 

[graspthesun]

I think it's a combination of the two that's hurting Disney. I also think the nickel & diming is/was a symptom and sign of the the other issue. They started nickel & diming and then relied on that to drive their increases.

In any case I don't think Universal is anywhere close approaching that point yet, but it's scary to see this. These were the type of things that Disney did and everyone rushed to defend them saying it was just business. Now they've all added up to be huge changes to the WDW vacation and meanwhile Disney forgot how to invest in the parks. I didn't like watching this happen to Disney and I really don't want to watch it happen to Universal. My hope is the executives will see this as the big mistake it is and make it known to their managers that that's not the way they want to do business.

I think it's unfair to compare this one action by UOR to a pattern that WDW has been in for years. You can't call it nickel and diming if they're not taking the amenity away. They're just limiting it very slightly.

You also can't say that it's like Disney because even if UOR did start to charge for small things, they're still investing millions into the infrastructure and enjoyability of the parks.

 

[s8film40]

I think it's unfair to compare this one action by UOR to a pattern that WDW has been in for years. You can't call it nickel and diming if they're not taking the amenity away. They're just limiting it very slightly.

You also can't say that it's like Disney because even if UOR did start to charge for small things, they're still investing millions into the infrastructure and enjoyability of the parks.

It all starts with one or two little things. I'm not comparing them to Disney as they are now but how they were when things first started to go wrong. My hope is this is a one time isolated incident that gets corrected. We'll see what happens I guess.

 

[Hockeyman55]

Yes, I heard the stories. At least Dave left early. .... Mark was still recovering from Thirsty Fish and then Pat O'Briens the next night. The Hurricanes were flowing.

You heard the stories, I saw the photos :shh:

 

[Mr. EPCOT]

 

[TubaGeek]

This is just stupid.
A) Why unautomate a task?
B) Having water THAT freely available I'm sure cut down on the number of Alphas that have to be called during Summer Peak. It's honestly a matter of safety.

 

[ThreePack Shagur]

This is just stupid.
A) Why unautomate a task?
B) Having water THAT freely available I'm sure cut down on the number of Alphas that have to be called during Summer Peak. It's honestly a matter of safety.

Am I missing something that makes it a requirement for Universal in-particular to have water at these machines? No other parks in Florida offered water this openly. Is Universal just extra hot or something?

 

[TubaGeek]

Am I missing something that makes it a requirement for Universal in-particular to have water at these machines? No other parks in Florida offered water this openly. Is Universal just extra hot or something?

I'm pretty sure Busch and SeaWorld provide water in their Freestyle machines. Disney (surprisingly) doesn't have any Freestyle machines.
And why does comparing parks justify taking something away that was a safe, TM-free way for guests to stay hydrated?

 

[IzzyB]

I'm pretty sure Busch and SeaWorld provide water in their Freestyle machines. Disney (surprisingly) doesn't have any Freestyle machines and (unsurprisingly) don't have any soda fountain accessible to guests.
And why does comparing parks justify taking something away that was a safe, TM-free way for guests to stay hydrated?

What do you mean Disney doesn't have any soda fountain accessible to guests?

 

[Hockeyman55]

I know Typhoon Lagoon has self serve soda dispensers that we scanned our barcode with to grant access

 

[IzzyB]

I know Typhoon Lagoon has self serve soda dispensers that we scanned our barcode with to grant access

There are also several counter service places with free refill stations inside the eatery. The one that comes to mind is the one by Star Tours.

 

[Hockeyman55]

Club Cool in Epcot

 

[s8film40]

What do you mean Disney doesn't have any soda fountain accessible to guests?

Yeah. Disney has many soda fountains available to guests (just about every QS I can think of). They all have a water option and can be used just like the Freestyle machines were.