3. Starbucks is taking over

I’ll admit that I’m in the minority in the sense that I am not a fan of Starbucks. I’m even less of a fan of blatant commercialism. Let’s face it - Disney itself is commercial enough, even without the cooperative flex of corporate giants like McDonald’s and Starbucks. McDonald’s never got too far with their attempt to infiltrate Walt Disney World, but now Starbucks is having a crack at it.

There are currently four Starbucks locations at the Walt Disney World Resort - three in theme parks, and one at Downtown Disney. Many a lifelong Walt Disney World fan shed a tear the day that Starbucks slithered its way to the Main Street Bakery. Put simply, the addition of corporate entities within the park gates reeks of a shopping mall, especially if this is merely the first of many commercially-driven refurbishments. Corporate sponsorship of an attraction is one thing; corporate takeover is a whole other mouse trap.

4. Ongoing food festivals at Epcot

Who doesn’t love Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival? It’s one of those events that people will specifically plan their visit around - an annual treat that undoubtedly lures many with its palate-pleasing perks. Once again, Disney saw something that worked, and they ran with it. Unfortunately, they ran a bit too far and made a favorite seasonal tradition into an almost everyday event.

Suddenly, it seems as if there is one colossal, non-stop Food-and-Wine-and-Flowers-and-Gardens-and-Concerts Festival throughout Epcot’s World Showcase area. Special, pop-up kiosks offering varied, evolving menus are not so special anymore. They’re there more often than not, and the menus aren’t as alluring when they’ve become just another quick-service selection. The urge to make the most of the event by taking in all of the unique, limited-time offerings that you can handle doesn’t seem quite as essential when you can always just come back to it another time. Even the concerts associated with the events have all seemed to blend together as a who’s who of the 60s-80s (with a 90s one-hit wonder thrown in for good measure), with no real differential line drawn between event themes.

For those who make the journey to Walt Disney World once in a lifetime, or even every few years, everything is appealing and it’s not always easy to spot the earmarks of redundancy. But frequent visitors may find the repetition tiring, and the build-ups disappointing. We’ve learned to hold Disney to a higher standard; our expectations being set by the company’s earliest foundations. Sometimes, it seems as if a bait-and-switch tactic has been employed, or perhaps they have decided we’re too simplistic and distracted to take notice of tired parallels and multiplicity. With the company’s tradition of originality and innovation, is it fair to assume we can be pacified with less than their very best, or is it more appropriate to hope that they learn to push the boundaries of imagination once again, providing the guest experience we’ve all come to expect and crave over the last forty-four years?