DisneySea Preview pics

[wdwguide]

Have you ladies and guys seen the pictures of DisneySea on Mouseplanet.com?
I can't put how great the park is themed in words - it's more than amazing. It looks.... REAL!

[babar]

My father and I were comparing his pictures from his trip to Italy along the coast, and to Venice. I swear they look the same!! At least in the pictures!

amazing, but sad because it's so far away......

[Spaceman Spiff]

I'm at a loss for words, simply amazing.

[J. Thornhill]

I'm at a loss for words as well. It's difficult to speak as you choke back the bitter bile of resentment. Why can't we have nice things too? Why, I ask you?

J.-

[toefungus]

DisneySea sure puts DCA to shame. :(

[Another Voice]

And you know what – they haven’t even put up the pictures of the good stuff yet.

[toefungus]

I've seen some pictures from Mouseplanet, and just the entrance looks amazing! Here's a link to some more preview pictures http://www.jtcent.com/disneysea/index.html

[Another Voice]

But Mr. Scoop, Disney’s next stateside park is already available for your inspection here in sunny Southern California. Remember that DCA was given the green light after Tokyo DisneySeas, and that most of the DisneySeas work was done as part of the Port Disney complex in the ‘80s & ‘90s. If Disney wanted that caliber of park in the states, we’d have already seen it by now. To answer your question, “Does Disney dare imitate OLC in spending habits?” – that’s already been answered.

As for the public reaction, a rumor holds that one of the unfortunate WDI designers to have been stuck on California Adventure (and subjected to intense management interference into an attraction the same executives now despise) very recently went to one of the previews for DisneySeas. This person broke down into tears when they first saw the vista across the lagoon to the fort and to the volcano. Most people are calling DisneySea the last truly Disney theme park.

[toefungus]

Hopefully, I'm saying hopefully DisneySea does amazing. If it were to pull in more guests than expected, and it does really well, maybe the Eisner and Pressler over here will get a clue that if you build parks like DisneySea and not DCA, they will be more willing to build better parks here. Just a thought.

[airlarry!]

Warning! DO NOT LOOK AT THOSE MOUSEPLANET PICTURES...if you have any plans to visit DCA in the future.

I cannot remember being blown away at the details OF JUST THE ENTRANCE of a park.

Anybody that reads this bb knows that I am a big fan of AK. But, when we look at DisneySeas, we are looking at what AK *could* have been with a little bit more support. I mean it, the theming in AK *could* have been every bit as detailed as DS. In fact, in many parts it is. It just was not finished.

The Japanese Disney fan is getting the whole enchilda...er...sushi....at the start of the park. And if the projections are correct, this park is going to outdraw both DCA and AK easily.

One look at these pictures effectively ends any argument that DCA was anything but a poorly conceived way to rake in more attendance and shopping dollars by artificially making Disneyland into a three day stay.

I WANT MY DISNEYSEAS IN ORLANDO!! I WANT THE PLANS FOR THE FINISHING OF AK ANNOUNCED TOMORROW, Mr. Eisner, with a newsrelease in my email box bright and early. or there will be Universal to pay.

[Another Voice]

The only parade I’m casting a shadow over is the one that claims that the artist and financial success of DisneySea is somehow forcing Mr. Eisner’s hand and that a Golden Age of Wonder is near. As much as I want to believe that, it just isn’t so.

The truth is that if Disney wanted to build DisneySea or anything like it stateside, they would have. The Company is simply choosing not the offer the American consumer the same level of product that it provides overseas – it’s a simple business decision to maximize the power of the “brand” with the lowest possible investment. Does anyone have any idea how much of DisneySea was originally designed for the U.S.? ‘Journey to the Center of The Earth’ sure seems like a ‘mountain’ with ‘fire’. The on-again, off-again Mediterranean Resort for WDW, you’ve been looking pictures at the one that got built. The Little Mermaid’s area was to replace the old Motor Boat Cruise/Fantasyland Autopia area in Disneyland. What does it “bode” when stateside plans only become reality when another company pays for them?

And isn’t the next stateside “land” already under construction - Din-O-Rama? I’m having a hard time seeing the reflection of that gleaming tower in the mad mouse ride and the carny games.

[tiggerstheman1]

I just looked at Laughingplace.com's coverage and I'm thinking to myself -- "I know I said I have to pay off the credit cards from the last 2 trips first --- but ...." as I think about how to finance a trip to Tokyo as soon as possible.

I think we are seeing the Internet revolution hit Disney and they are caught flat-footed. First they design DisneySea but abandon it, then ship it overseas, then build DCA for the home crowd.

But, then comes 1999 and the internet boom and now everyone has an ISP connection and surfs the web and what happens? Well, word gets out faster than ever that DCA isn't all that it's cracked up to be. I certainly am not interested in traveling across country to see it. Then, DisneySeas starts coming together and again word travels through the internet that it is a mind-blower. Now Disney is left with a park they own 100% scrambling to make any sort of attendance numbers, one that I won't spend $300 on airfare to go see while I will spend $4200 on airfare for 3 to go across the Pacific and spend money at at park where Disney only gets 7-10% of my money. All the while, Marty Sklar says that OLC was crazy to spend the 2.x Billion on TDS (but they weren't crazy to blow 1.x Billion on DCA).

If that's not pressure - if that's not competition - then please, clue me in.

[JeffJewell]

maybe they tread more carefully in competing against themselves Maybe so. And maybe monkeys will fly out of my butt. We have precisely the same amount of compelling evidence for both of these hypotheses.

Forever an optimist? Maybe. Forever a pessimist? I can't speak for you my friend! There is a distinct difference between being a pessimist and being pessimistic about something in particular based on the demonstrated tendencies and past performance of the major players involved.

Jeff

[larworth]

I guess a key question is how much impact did the internet bad press really have on the poor word of mouth that developed for DCA? I know Disney cited this as one of the reasons for their early DCA attendance woes. Was this just spin to the financial guys to try to cover up the real structural problems, or did it really have an impact?

On the surface it is hard for me to imagine that TDS would impact the average consumer's perceptions and eventual purchasing decisions. How many people today still don't know what Fastpass is. Wasn't there a problem when DCA opened where many thought it was just a new land in DL. Does your typical WDW visitor have any idea what attractions are in DLP? The average consumer seems pretty unknowleagable and therefore unlikely to pay any attention to details about a park on the other side of the world.

Also, with the average consumer be more accepting of product differences between here and Japan? Japan has long had electronic products, cars with features superior to domestic products.

If I had to quess, I say it will not signficantly alter the average customer's perception of what quality is. DL/WDW will be the standard that haunts DCA. TDS is surely salt in the wound, but won't create a mass groundswell to change Disney's dosmetic strategy.

But hey, I would have said a similar thing about the power of the internet before DCA opened, so I hope I am wrong again.

[Another Voice]

We already know what Disney’s next stateside projects look like – renderings for Din-O-Rama are posted at the Animal Kingdom. If that’s the dramatically greater detail you’re looking for, then you’ll simply be enthralled with the statues of mythical animals made out of tiny plastic bricks that’s on tap for the next, next big thing. Spending money on the parks because a few people will see pictures of Tokyo on the Internet is the farthest thing from Eisner’s mind at the moment.

The Internet was an early scapegoat for the failure of California Adventure. No one at Disney who really new the situation believed the Company line, but the “all those negative, hurtful, evil people killed this wonderful park” fib made for good public relations. Remember, this is Hollywood and this town has been run by gossip and manipulation since the moment D.W. Griffith stepped off the train. Disney’s effort to spin the discussions on the Internet was far larger than anything the “negative” sites could do – the simple fact is that people (on the whole) who have gone to California Adventure do not like it and that fact can’t be covered-up or explained away.

No, DisneySea will not change the Company’s plans. But it already has changed mine. I just cancelled a trip to Orlando because I’m heading to the other side of planet for my dose of “magic”. The only way that the Company’s thinking will be corrected is if the public holds Disney to a higher standard than Disney is willing to impose upon themselves. If the flow of pictures from the Pacific helps people to do that, then it’s all is for the better.

[tiggerstheman1]

I agree with you, A.V. that pictures/message boards alone will not not change Disney management's opinion one bit. In fact, they most likely will have zero effect on them. What will change them is doing what you are doing (and I am planning on doing) - travel 1/2 way around the world to go to a great park and cut Disney out of 90-93% of the money. Perhaps that will shake current Disney management.

So, let's not have the great DIS meet in Orlando, let's all plan on Tokyo instead (says TTM1 while figuring out how many extra jobs it will take to pay off the credit cards and afford the trip). . A whole section of Mira Costa for the DIS and drinks on DVC !!!

[airlarry!]

Oh my. Oh. Oh my.

Day 3 pics have been posted. When I read all the preview sites months ago, and they talked about the detailing and the loving care that was going into this park...I maintained my doubts. I mean, come on, I was getting first hand looks from every major disney site about DCA and how uninspiring it was turning out to be...and how AK was not finished, etc. etc.

But wow. We are still only at the entrance, and I am completely blown away.

So that's what an Imagineer, with a little support, can produce? How can Paul Pressler go to DisneySeas, and then come back to Team Disney Anaheim and look Mike in the eye...and say "Yep, Boss, things are looking as sharp out there as they are at our California Adventure."

This answers all the doubting Thomases out there who don't believe that there is pixie dust left at TDA. The spirit of Walt is alive and well in a large bay an hour away from Tokyo.

[airlarry!]

I was just fantasizing...what if the team that designed Tokyo DisneySeas designed a minor park at WDW...like the next water park there?

Oh my! What a grand water park that would be. Anybody know the address where I can write to Cousin Mike and beg him to put that team on the project? ;)

[DC7800]

I must admit I have not kept up with developments on DisneySeas. Really, I knew little about it until recently. However, seeing these images changes my whole impression of the place.

Now, that submarine in the Mysterious Island Preview looks just a little too familiar...

[Another Voice]

"I was just fantasizing...what if the team that designed Tokyo DisneySeas designed a minor park at WDW..."

Trust me, you don't want to see that design. Don't let anything spoil your appreciation of DisneySea. Spend your money on a trip to Tokyo to enjoy the park as it should be seen, not the Blue Light Special version once destined for WDW.

[airlarry!]

AV:

I'm sure you have seen 'em, but if not, check out Marc's new articles at Laughingplace.com which features his in depth review of the attractions at DisneySeas.

You know, I am seriously thinking of taking a trip out there. I've got family up north of Tokyo, I could keep an eye for cheap airfare....I could...and then...

<back to reality>

Anyway. AV: what I meant was, I would love to see those guys do a water park. I am a water nut, and I can't even imagine what the creative geniuses behind DisneySeas could do for interactive water rides. Come on wouldn't you like to challenge these guys to top whatever the best waterpark is in America?

[Another Voice]

One of the initial concepts in the DisneySea park for the Long Beach project was an entire water interactive area in a lagoon to the side of the volcano. The side of the volcano would have been a large maze created by jets of water erupting from the side (like geysers and hot springs). The maze would have been computer controlled and would have changed every few minutes. Other effects like larger jets and waterfalls would have been scattered throughout the volcano’s side. If you made it through the maze, you would have entered a cavern filled with tunnels, raft slides and waterslides to take you back down.

The lagoon at the base of the volcano would have been an interactive swimming area. Several large “environments” would have duplicated different marine areas – a California kelp forest, a Caribbean reef, a South Pacific atoll, etc. Guests would have donned swim fins and snorkels to swim through each of these environments and see the animals that lived there. Imagine being able to swim through five different ‘Living Seas’ – each with different fish and different animals. A dry ride through of the environments was also planned for those who didn’t want to swim.

While we will never see anything like this until Mr. Eisner’s career “sleeps with the fishes”, it’s good to remember that no idea at WDI ever really dies. There may be hope for a DisneySea water park – but it will probably be a long plane ride to get there.

P.S. If Mr. Eisner had kept to plans, we all would be celebrating DisneySea’s third anniversary in the Port of Long Beach. If anyone gets a chance to go to Toyko, please take advantage of it.

[mjvans]

If I win the Lotto, I'am going to TDS. Hey that could make a great add for the MVP of the Superbowl.;)

I do most of my trip planning using the internet but my reason for not being to excited to go to DCA comes from my sister in law, who went during the first month. "Don't waste your time or money. :( It's not worth it." That's good enough for me.

As far as Din-o-Rama goes, from the pictures I've seen, I can ride those rides at the local County Fair. Maybe not as clean or well matained, but still the same. This won't improve the AK enough for me to spend more than 1/2 a day at. I see the animals, watch the movie, ride the rapids and go somewhere else.

I guess its time for us to check out IOA and Universal for a couple of days and cut those days from WDW. Come on if AK wasn't finished it shouldn't be open.:mad:

[goofyfordisney]

hey i noticed when i saw pics of this place the signs are in english (sorry for stupid post i'm just curious) could somone explain please. Thanks! (this question is from my 13 year old DS!)

[goofyfordisney]

are there any plans to bring this to california or florida??? good god i hope so

[Another Voice]

English is used throughout the Tokyo Disneyland Resort because it adds an exotic appeal to the parks. Disney is considered about as American as you can get, and the English signs and recordings makes a trip to TDL feel like a trip to the United States for many visitors. It’s kind of like a World Showcase pavilion at Epcot in that sense. When the park first open, most of the signs were in Japanese and most of the restaurants served mostly Japanese food. The guests made it known very quickly that they wanted an “American” experience – new signs went up and hamburgers were served up within weeks of opening. Also, English is pretty much the world’s second language at the moment. Since TDL draws visitors from all across the Pacific and Asia, English is a pretty good “common language” for most people.

As for DisneySea, the park was original designed for the Port Disney complex in Long Beach, California. The project was cancelled when millions of dollars didn’t start pouring in from Euro Disney. There are no plans to bring the park or any of the attractions to the U.S.. Although rumors say that The Little Mermaid’s Kingdom section may serve as the basis for Disneyland’s third gate/water park in Anaheim.

[Robin1116]

Sigh... everyday I go and look at the pictures of the new DisneySea....

What a wonderful park.... I wonder if our new park of choice (when I win the lotto) wil be Tokyo Disney!

It just amazes me all of the fine details and effort that went into this park.... what an amazing vacation! Walt would be proud!!! :D

[Neeter]

OK I am gonna throw up! The envy surging through my body is making me nauseous! My mouth is still hanging open at the first two sections of pics. I cannot believe the detail and beauty of that park. I gotta quit coming to this board, I get more and more depressed about Disney every day. And to think we all have these feelings in the year that Walt would have been 100. I have to think he is looking down on the Tokyo park and smiling and I see tears in his eyes at the state of his beloved parks in America. Eisner should be more than ashamed of himself for what he has allowed to happen to Walt's dream. Then to throw this big "celebration" at WDW... the best way for him to celebrate Walt's birthday would be to rembember what Walt's dreams were all about. :(