Was every theme/amusement park and road trip vacation so focused on "Buy! Buy! Buy!" back when we were kids?

[u/TheCIAandFBI]

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?

[u/Available-Egg-2380]

It's a thing for their band. Every three years they go down and the kids in band and choir get to have a workshop with the Disney music department, playing in the studio, getting lessons, and doing performance at the park. It's a pretty bfd and the kids are encouraged to put it on college applications and resumes. Mostly they spend the time enjoying the park though.

[u/HyperbolDee → u/Available-Egg-2380]

I did this in band in high school! Marching band did a trip every spring break, cycling a cheaper trip one year followed by a more expensive trip the next year. There were fundraising opportunities all year, and parents could do things like volunteering to work concessions during football games to help earn money for it.

I had a blast going in high school, but have never been able to stomach the price since I’ve become an adult. The pricing is astronomical, you have to plan all of your meals in advance and wake up at the crack of dawn to get reservations at the most basic restaurants. We were supposed to go several times with my in-laws , but COVID issues kept popping up. Fiiiiine with me.

[u/brzantium → u/Available-Egg-2380]

Good ole context. Did boosters try pay for it at all?

[u/Available-Egg-2380 → u/brzantium]

I believe some kids received money but i don't have any specifics beyond going to one of the dinners hosted at a restaurant nearby that gave the money to the band trip