Do you think there will ever be a 5th gate?

[britterbell]

I could see them doing something for the 75th or 100th anniversary but until then I just can't see it happening right now...

 

[RustManFan]

Disney has sold off some of its acreage and hopefully will continue to preserve some of the rest as natural open space. That being said, I would like to think that a 5th park is likely someday.... not in my lifetime though, I'm sure

 

[DVCcurious]

You can do Epcot in half a day? I guess we tour differently, lol. I agree that all the other parks need a lot of work except for MK. Seems like DAK and DHS plans are in the works. Epcot should be next. Then a 5th gate? It's gonna take a while.

We don't care about food and we don't drink alcohol. So Epcot is basically just Future World to us. World Showcase holds no appeal to my group.

 

[epcotty]

Are they really going to do stuff to HS or is it all just unconfirmed rumor? We haven't been there since last August since it seems like all they do there now is close stuff

 

[jec6613]

Are they really going to do stuff to HS or is it all just unconfirmed rumor? We haven't been there since last August since it seems like all they do there now is close stuff

So far rumor, but the closures tend to be precursors to a remodel, especially as they're all in one area of the park.

 

[DisneyPrince1982]

Are they really going to do stuff to HS or is it all just unconfirmed rumor? We haven't been there since last August since it seems like all they do there now is close stuff

A bus driver told me it would be announced at D23

 

[jec6613]

A bus driver told me it would be announced at D23

The only accurate information I've ever gotten from a bus driver are park hours and how to tell Chip and Dale apart.

 

[DisneyPrince1982]

The only accurate information I've ever gotten from a bus driver are park hours and how to tell Chip and Dale apart.

Interesting. I tend not to even read blogs anymore as the info I get from bus drivers is typically much more accurate, 99th percentile I'd say. They accurately predicted day and month of Epcot opening, MGM opening, AK opening, and FP+ introduction.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

I suspect that Disney will only build another park at WDW if crowd levels force them into it. A lot of people might think that current trending in crowd levels proves a need in the foreseeable future, but WDW crowds ebb and flow with the strength of the economy, and the economy has too many question marks for Disney to make that kind of investment right now.

To see a 5th gate, America is going to have to recover fully and begin to show sustained growth. American optimism - we need it for other reasons, but it will decide this issue.

 

[bsj1701]

I could see them doing something for the 75th or 100th anniversary but until then I just can't see it happening right now...

Unfortunately, I agree with this. It takes them SO long just to do additions and refurbishing, and the crowd levels don't seem large enough for them yet. I'd bet on a new hotel (or 2) before a 5th gate. I'd sure like to see it in the next 10 years though!

 

[GaryDis]

Interesting. I tend not to even read blogs anymore as the info I get from bus drivers is typically much more accurate, 99th percentile I'd say. They accurately predicted day and month of Epcot opening, MGM opening, AK opening, and FP+ introduction.

According to http://www.yesterland.com/urbanlegends.html, some of them don't even know the opening date of MGM after the fact. (That article is about the myth that the first three parks all opened on Oct. 1 because that's the date of Walt's "dishonorable discharge", when in fact, he was too young to get into the armed forces for WWI, but did get into the Red Cross ambulance corps and left honorably. )

 

[epcotty]

Thanks for the responses

 

[larryz]

When donkeys fly, there will be a 5th gate.

Too late...

 

[ilovebassets]

Kind of surprised no one has mentioned this yet. Disney is putting its theme park dollars and expansion efforts where there is untapped vast human potential and untapped growing wealth--Asia. Look at all the new Asian parks in recent years: Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo. There's just going to be so much more return on their money building new Disney parks in other areas than would here would be by building a fifth gate. They just have to pick the right part of the world (I.e. NOT Paris).

 

[grossmansr]

If they ever did, I would love for it to be Disney's America - the theme park that never got built in Haymarket VA.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disney's_America

Either that, or a Historic-themed park with lands for different historical time periods - The Stone Age, Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, The Middle Ages, The Renaissance, The Industrial Revolution

 

[DisneyPrince1982]

Either that, or a Historic-themed park with lands for different historical time periods - The Stone Age, Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, The Middle Ages, The Renaissance, The Industrial Revolution

They already covered all of those time periods in Spaceship Earth

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

Well what this thread has proved out is basically that there will be a 5th park sometime 5 to 100 years from now!

AKK

 

[DisneyPrince1982]

Well what this thread has proved out is basically that there will be a 5th park sometime 5 to 100 years from now!

AKK

And that it will still be standing in the year 3000, well according to Jimmy at least.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

And that it will still be standing in the year 3000, well according to Jimmy at least.

GOOD POINT!

AKK

 

[CandleontheWater]

As an archaeologist I'm finding the conversation around whether WDW will be around in 1000 years pretty interesting. Some have used religious sites, like Notre Dame and Haiga Sofia, as an example of long term preservation, but I don't think that the comparison to Disney World is correct. Both Notre Dame and Haiga Sofia have deep religious meaning along with being architectural marvels and the combination of their sacred importance and incredible beauty and uniqueness have undoubtedly lead to their survival.

Disney world is primarily an entertainment venue, and entertainment venues don't generally fare as well when it comes to long term preservation (like the Globe Theatre). Even entertainment venues that are still standing, like the Colosseum in Rome, were extensively pillaged for raw materials during the middle ages (ever wonder why there are so many holes?).

On the other hand, Disney World does have uniqueness going for it, so my long term prediction is that a portion of the park, Main Street and Cinderella's castle perhaps, will be saved for historic preservation purposes, and turned into a museum, where people can learn about the quaint entertainment options of the past, like theme parks.