Has Disney Lost its Magic? (Or is it Just Perimenopause?)

My husband and I are Disney people. One of the first things we bonded over was our love for Disney. He proposed in front of the castle at Magic Kingdom, our wedding cake topper was Mickey and Minnie, we visited Disney World every year for the first few years of our marriage, both our boys are “Disney babies” and their middle names are an homage to Walt Disney himself, their first haircuts were at Harmony Barber Shop on Main Street of Magic Kingdom, our home is decorated with hidden (and not-so-hidden) Mickeys in every room…I could go on and on about how much we love the magic of Disney.

This past February, we visited Disney for the first time in 6 1/2 years.

The last time we visited was the Fall of 2019 when my youngest son turned four. And then, unfortunately, Covid happened. The world shut down and everything changed. We tried to plan a couple of trips during those post-Covid years (and I wish we had, because I have read that the crowds were slim to none during that time), but we didn’t—first because we were scared of getting sick before or there and ruining our trip, and then because it just got sooooo expensive. We did visit Legoland a couple of times, and driving by all the Disney exits and not turning off was painful. We even tried to go to Disney Springs once on the way back from Legoland, but with all the changes in parking and security, we barely got in before we turned right back around and fled the insane crowds. (I thought it was because it was the a busy Spring Break week…little did I know that that has become the norm.)

Late last year, we started talking about going back. Our oldest is almost 13, and our youngest LOVES Legoland and has been begging to go back. He didn’t even remember the last time we went to Disney. So we planned a trip to visit Legoland, Disney, and Universal. Timothy nicknamed it the “triple trip.”

This time we opted not to stay on property, because we were doing 7 park days in three different locations, so we didn’t want to have to move resorts. That may have been part of the “loss of the magic.” But it was also due to cost. We could stay at an AirBnB with a kitchen, multiple rooms and bathrooms, and a place to spread out for 8 nights for just over $1000, whereas staying at a Disney resort, crammed into one hotel room, would have cost well over $2500, just for a few days (not including park tickets). We could also eat a decent breakfast at our condo each morning because we had a full kitchen. We packed our own lunches to carry into the parks. And even though we didn’t have a dining plan, we were able to find reservations at decent restaurants by checking the park app. While we didn’t get to eat at the Mexican restaurant in Epcot like we traditionally do (I love the ambiance!), we got to eat at Rainforest Cafe at Animal Kingdom, the pizzeria in Epcot (the best pizza we’ve ever eaten, hands down), Liberty Tavern at Magic Kingdom (somewhere I never would have tried before but was absolutely delicious), and the Chinese restaurant in Epcot. Making those reservations at sit-down restaurants each night was one of the highlights of the day. We got to rest and eat well, and we didn’t have to wait in lines. The only problem with staying off-property was the traffic…even though we were physically close to all the parks, it took a good 45 minutes to an hour (and one night, over an hour and a half) just to travel back and forth. We also didn’t get the “extra magic hours” that Disney resort guests get as a perk.

We also didn’t plan a rest day—against my better judgement—and boy did we need one! Seven straight park days were too much for me. We started off trying to “rope-drop” the parks and stay until close, but that only lasted one day. After a day at Legoland, we started our Disney days at Animal Kingdom, and because it closed early and we had park-hopper passes, we hopped over to Magic Kingdom. But by 9pm, I was DEAD. And it was cold! My adrenaline junkie husband and youngest son wanted to ride coasters all night long, but my almost-teenager and myself just wanted to find somewhere warm to rest. The rest of our trip, we were a little more leisurely in the morning, but that definitely kept us from riding a few rides we were hoping for. And by the end of each day, I was so exhausted I almost dreaded getting up the next morning.

The biggest loss of magic was due to the overwhelming crowds. We went in mid-February during our school district’s Winter intercession, thinking mid-February was “off season.” But a combination of President’s Day overlapping with Mardi Gras week created one of the busiest weeks of the year. (On our last visit in September 2019, which we also thought would be “off-season” in late September, we ran into Ramadan crowds.) We did not buy Lightning Lane passes (again, due to the cost), but because of that, we were standing in line for some of the popular rides for up to two hours. Thankfully my husband and I had our Kindles and could pass the time reading while our boys played games like chess, checkers, and solitaire on our phones. But the constant standing in line on hard surfaces KILLED my feet. (More on that later.) I have just come to accept that there are no off-seasons anymore at Disney World. But the mid-February weather was ideal—low 60s in the morning and high 70s in the afternoon, and sunny all week long. I could not have asked for more perfect weather! My soul desperately needed the warmth and sun after a long, cold Winter, and I think that was one of the best parts of my week.

Throughout the week, as much as I love Disney, I kept asking myself, “Where is the magic?” It just didn’t feel like it usually felt. I didn’t get those goosebumps driving under the “Welcome to Disney World” sign on the highway or passing through the gates of each park. I was overwhelmed by the crowds. My feet, which have never given me issues, felt like they were about to fall off. I brought three different pair of comfortable tennis shoes to rotate throughout the week, but they rubbed blisters on my toes, and I started to get excruciating pains around the ball of my right foot. I was limping by lunchtime. On the way home, I started researching and learned yet another fact about perimenopause—the reduction in estrogen can cause your ligaments to lose plasticity and cushioning. And, your foot can change size! I had my feet sized the weekend after we got home, and yes, my feet have grown! So all of my shoes were squeezing my feet. I also have high arches, which have never been an issue before, but seven straight days of parks put so much weight on my metatarsals that it caused inflammation and pain. So now I am on the search for new shoes and good insoles that support my arches.

I think it’s also the insane cost of a Disney vacation that is killing the magic. I had several conversations while standing in line with people about how we thought Walt Disney would be rolling over in his grave, knowing how much people are being charged for a family vacation. A Disney vacation is simply not priced for a regular, middle-class family anymore. Most families go into debt paying for a week in the parks! And if you’re going to pay so much, you should be able to ride rides…not waste hours upon end waiting and missing out on the full experience. The reason Disney (the company) does this is that people keep paying for it, regardless of how high the prices get. But I doubt Walt would have approved. And all the free perks you used to get for staying on property have all but disappeared—like fast passes and free parking.

So is it perimenopause or other factors that are causing Disney to lose its magic for me? I think it may be a combination of both. I don’t want to “give up” on the Disney magic, but something certainly needs to change—the way the parks operate, or maybe just my expectations. How about you, fellow perimenopausal Disney mamas? I’d love to hear more of your thoughts and experiences below!

Kimberly Cauble is a lifelong Disney fan, married to a big Disney nut, and mom of two Disney boys. But she’s perimenopausal and wondering if that’s what has caused the loss of the Disney magic for her!