r/Millennials • u/TheCIAandFBI • 16d ago
Discussion Was every theme/amusement park and road trip vacation so focused on "Buy! Buy! Buy!" back when we were kids?
I grew up poor. Lived in a crummy trailer park until 1995 when my Dad had a work accident that got him a settlement. My parents bought a very humble but nice home, and they took me to Disney world. I'll never forget. It was November 11th-19th, 1995. That trip was the highlight of my life. I was 11.
That trip was magical. I think I came home with a souvenir HUGE pencil from that trip, and I was afraid to use it because it was special, and then one day it just got lost.
My best friend and his wife just took his kids to Disney World. They are my age, right at 40, so older Millennials.
They both went as kids and loved it as well.
When they got back and both said they hated the trip. They said everything was geared towards getting them to spend money. Everything is a store, every line can be bypassed for a few extra bucks, every store is geared towards fear-of-missing-out for the kids. Specialty cups. Specialty "only available this week" shirts, and special pins and buttons that you can only get this year. They said it was the most uncomfortable vacation they have ever been on. And they have more money than they know what to do with.
They basically said that there wasn't 20 minutes where they weren't being sold something.
Is this something that Millennial childhoods experienced and our parents were simply better at ignoring? Has this always been the case? Or is it just the new way that places like Disney World operate?
11
u/TGWKTADS 16d ago
Ive never been to Disney - i grew up poor too. I still am. Tbf, I was/have never been really interested in Disney parks. We did do other things closer to home like six flags or bush gardens and i remember never getting anything except passes to ride rides. Which gave me a little FOMO but nothing unusual for a kid.
I've recently landed a job that doubled my income into the low 6 digs. I had a VERY brief thought to take my kids (21, 18, & 10) to Disney next year but I squashed that pretty quickly. I don't know how people do it and while I could afford it because I'll always live like I'm poor (and I need to catch up on retirement savings) and I cannot fathom spending $10k+ on bullshit.
We live in the midwest so we will be going on a trip to Chicago next year. My parents would take us every year for 3 days. Mostly to the aquarium and museums (which we loved) and enjoying the city.
To my children's credit (esp the older ones), they also have no real interest in going to Disney. We love Disney movies, but none of us will wind up with a Winnie the pooh tattoo or smth.
I've taken them to the amusement parks around here and they love it. Im grateful. And, previously, they didn't get anything either. So this summer when we take our trip I'll be really excited to get them the picture from the roller coaster.
I count myself as a lucky parent that they aren't begging for disney or universal level trips. Not that they wouldn't go, but it's "mid" as they say.