I know I’m guilty of constantly using my cell phone, especially for social media. I can’t tell you how many times a day I check email, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Today I want to talk about how this habit is changing my personal Disney vacations (for better and worse) and what I’ve observed others doing in the parks.
Let’s start with the best reason to be on your phone in the parks, the My Disney Experience app. If you don’t have this on your phone, download it now. My husband loves to use this app. Our vacation is still 25 days away and he’s already made us dining reservations and FastPasses. You can easily check park hours, show and wait times. My only note is the app seems to perform better on his Iphone 4 compared to my Galaxy S4.
On to social media usage, my husband proposed to me in front of the Haunted Mansion in 2011. My entire family was there for it and I couldn’t have dreamed of a better moment, but after the initial excitement wore down I was posting a picture of my engagement ring on Facebook. I was so happy I wanted to share the news with everybody immediately. This is an instance I’m ok with social media use during a visit. On the other hand, I know I’m guilty of pulling my phone out and mindlessly scrolling while waiting in line. This is a habit of mine I hate and I wish others would do less of it too. Waiting in all of Disney’s lines is part of the experience. The queues are full of wonderful details and strangers from all over the world you could be talking to. Time flies by a lot more quickly when enjoying others’ company, as opposed to staring at a screen.
“Let’s take a selfie!” A sentence most people have heard, and something I have seen happening more frequently in the parks over the years. It makes sense. You want to have pictures from your magical trip, but are you losing memories by taking a lot of selfies? I have taken selfies in front of Cinderella’s castle and several other landmarks, but I’ve seen a lot of people working for that perfect shot during parades and rides. This is what really triggered my pondering of cell phone usage in the parks. These people may have a good picture to post online, but what about experiencing the parade or attraction? My last trip to Disney is when I came to the realization that I want to spend less time on my phone during my visits. I can post my pictures and status updates later that night. To be honest, I spend way too much money on a park ticket to not be fully immersed in my visit. I’d rather leave with millions of memories than a few likes and comments.
How about you, do you constantly use your phone in the park? Does it annoy you when you see others’ immersed in their cell phone? Let me know on Twitter @hoodie_life!
