Worst Walt Disney World Stories of 2024
Despite Disney’s amazing year, some bad stuff still happened at Walt Disney World.
Some of it was strange, some of it was funny, and some of it was heartbreaking.


Photo:impulsecreative.com
Here are the worst Walt Disney World stories of 2024.
The Allergic Reaction Tragedy


Photo: Raglan Road
Here is one of the saddest stories I’ve ever covered at Disney.
My heart bleeds for the people involved, not all of whom are the victims.


Jeffrey Piccolo and Kanokporn Tangsuan. Photo: NY Times
On one fateful night, a doctor and her husband ate a meal at Raglan Road.
Before the night was over, the doctor had died, and her husband wasn’t even with her to help.


Disney’s Raglan Road website.
Technically, this tragedy occurred in October 2023, but we didn’t learn the details until early 2024.
During the meal, the doctor stressed that she had food allergies and ordered from the allergy-safe menu.


Photo: cba.cj
Later, after her husband and mother-in-law went shopping, the doctor suffered a severe allergic reaction and died.
A lawsuit is ongoing. It’s important to note that Disney neither owns nor operates Raglan Road, a third-party restaurant.


Walt Disney Company
Still, this incident occurred at Disney Springs and will be inevitably linked with the restaurant forever.
Muppet*Vision 3D Closing


2024 D24 Expo
This bit of sadness hasn’t happened yet, but we know it’s coming.
In the aftermath of the 2024 D23 Expo, fans did the math and realized that Disney’s Hollywood Studios was about to change.


Muppets Courtyard
Disney promised a new themed land at the park, and there were only three places where it could go.
The cheapest and quickest of them was Muppets Courtyard, as that’s where Disney had already added infrastructure.
Fans feared the worst, and that’s what we got. Disney confirmed that Muppets Courtyard will close to make room for Monstropolis.
In the process, Disney will close one of its most historically significant attractions, Muppet*Vision 3D.


Jim Henson and the cast of Muppet*Vision 3D. Photo: Disney
That charming Muppets show reflects the life’s work of the late Jim Henson. It’s utterly replaceable.
Disney has promised that The Muppets will become the band on Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster soon afterward.


Photo: Disney
Also, park officials have indicated that they plan to preserve Muppet*Vision 3D. It could possibly find a new home down the line.
Unfortunately, Disney hasn’t finalized any plans, though. So, nothing may come of it.


Photo: Disney
Instead, we’re all left to enjoy the final days of Muppet*Vision 3D.
Tiana’s Early Struggles


Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Opens in Disneyland
You didn’t need to be a Disney insider to know that this was going to happen.
When Disney announced Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, it promised state-of-the-art Audio-Animatronics (AAs).


Tiana
The thing about these robots is that they consist of many moving parts. All moving parts have failure rates.
So, the odds of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure opening without a hitch were always low.


Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
Still, the sneak previews of this boat ride proved shakier than even Disney probably expected.
In fact, Disney had to cancel some of its sneak previews because it couldn’t keep the attraction up and running long enough.


Photo: Disney
On the bright side, this early preview proved to be precisely the beta test the attraction needed.
When the boat ride officially opened to the public, its hiccups weren’t anywhere near as pronounced as they were during the sneak previews.
By December, Disney has mostly hammered out all the technical issues.
So, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is quite reliable as a rule now.
Two Hurricanes in Two Weeks


Photo: National Weather Service
The late Jimmy Buffett had a song called Trying to Reason with Hurricane Season. I often think of it during the fall.
Since Walt Disney World resides in Central Florida, it’s subject to severe weather conditions at this time of year.


Photo: WESH
In 2024, forecasts suggested that hurricane season would prove particularly aggressive.
Still, I doubt anyone at Walt Disney World could have possibly expected the actual events.


Photo: WESH
In less than two weeks, a Category-3 and a Category-4 hurricane made landfall in Florida.
In each instance, the coastline suffered mightily due to the extreme weather.


Cinderella Castle after Hurricane Milton
As usual, the storms diminished in ferocity by the time they reached Walt Disney World. So, it could have been much worse.
Hurricane season will always prove a bit traumatic for Florida residents and tourists, though.
Shades of Green Employee Steals Money


The alleged theft took place at the Shades of Green Resort
Unless you’re part of a military family, you may not be familiar with Disney’s Shades of Green Resort, the secret resort at Walt Disney World.
The guests at this facility work for the military, and the government rewards them with affordable Disney vacations.


Photo: Disney
This hotel features a lovely premise that should never be sullied.
Alas, a government employee didn’t get that particular memo. Instead, they embarked on a rather brazen embezzlement scheme.


Photo: Shades of Green
The person worked in the accounting department for the Department of Defense and had access to Disney resort files.
So, the individual came up with a fascinating grift. They found the accounts of guests who had recently stayed at Shades of Green.
Then, the grifter provided those guests with refunds that went to the thief’s personal bank account.
Somehow, the person managed to steal $183,000 with this one little hack before the government grew wise.


Photo: Disneyclipart.com
Of course, once government officials knew, the person was in a world of hurt, as that’s a military crime!
The criminal pled guilty to the theft, which they apparently committed 652 times!
“Gun” Incident
A wild Disney story unfolded in late August when reports emerged of a Magic Kingdom shooting.
This happened right as the park was closing for the night. Since it was so late, reporting was scattershot.
ALERT: There is NO active shooter at @WaltDisneyWorld’s Magic Kingdom. A fight occurred, and a “popping” sound was heard that we believe was a balloon. Guests began running and that’s how the active shooter rumor started. There is no active shooter. pic.twitter.com/TRKLs3NglC
— Orange County Sheriff's Office (@OrangeCoSheriff) August 30, 2024
Most journalists weren’t in a position to verify anything and used X/Twitter to find information. That’s…never a good idea.
Sure enough, the reports proved exaggerated, and we’re all glad for that.


Image: Orange County Sheriff’s Office
The early reports indicated that an active shooter had cornered Disney vacationers.
Pictures of cowering guests populated social media. Several of them were later debunked as fake.
However, some were real. That’s because there was some confusion regarding a potential shooter.
Park guests confused a loud balloon popping sound with gunfire right around the same time that a fight broke out near the entrance.


Photo: Disney
Once people saw and heard what they presumed were violent acts, they ran for safety.
The incident proved entirely baseless, but a bunch of Magic Kingdom fans have an exciting story to tell about that night.
Man Makes Fun of Down Syndrome Guest, Sparks Fight


Photo: Visit Florida
The applicable internet acronym here is FAFO.
A drunken, angry, tasteless, idiotic man entered the FA stage of this meme by approaching a table of guests at Belle Vue Lounge.


Photo: Walt Disney World
This person was four drinks into his dinner by this point and feeling the bravery that often comes from excessive scotch.
The individual accosted the table by making fun of one of the guests…someone who had Down Syndrome.


Photo:pixabay
Yes, if this were a movie, the man’s repugnant behavior wouldn’t pass the laugh test yet it’s a real thing that happened at Disney.
As you’d expect in a bullying situation like this, the weakest person proved to be the bully himself.


Photo: kindpng.com
The people sitting at the table took offense at his unforgivably boorish behavior.
Push came to shove, perhaps literally, and that’s when Drunky McLoudmouth entered the “find out” stage.


Photo: Orange County Corrections
Oh, yeah. He got whupped. I’ll hold for applause here.
There’s a mug shot of this pinhead that doubles as a cautionary tale about alcoholism.
Hopefully, the person has learned that other internet acronym, DBAD. If not, more people are gonna throw bottles at his face.
Thanks for visiting MickeyBlog.com! Want to go to Disney? For a FREE quote on your next Disney vacation, please fill out the form below, and one of the agents from MickeyTravels, a Diamond Level Authorized Disney Vacation Planner, will be in touch soon!