Happy Birthday DisneySea

[Panthius]

Check out this article from Reuters:

Tokyo DisneySea celebrates fairy tale first year

I find the most interesting part of the article is the following:

In a recent poll by the Nihon Keizai Shimbun newspaper, 87 percent of people who had visited DisneySea once said they would like to return. Sixteen percent of respondents said they had been to one or both of the Disney parks three or more times this year.

I bet The Disney Company wishes DCA had that kind of following, and I bet we all did also.

Pan

 

[Bstanley]

A repeat customer described TDS as:

This is a place like no other. It seems like things are possible here that aren't possible anywhere else

The article also points out that the Japanese economy is in a slump, and that smaller amusement parks are struggling - including Universal Studios Japan, where attendance is down 24% from last year for the summer period.

So with 25M customers a year and an average spend of $125 (a guess based on data from the article) those wacky Japanese are going to drop about $3.1B into the coffers at the Oriental Land company this year. Yum, yum...

The hotels are booked solid at between $300 and $4000 a night. So figure another $200M a year (365*1000 rooms*$525) for them, and there are restaurants, t-shirts, blah blah blah.

You know - this is really simple math. You spend $1.5B to build TDS, and you bring in another $1.5B a year - FOREVER...

It almost makes me mad enough to chew neutronium...

Let's bring the head of Oriental Land in for an interview...

 

[Panthius]

Let's bring the head of Oriental Land in for an interview...

Funny thing is, when reading that article I thought, "I wonder if the head of the OLC would consider running the The Disney Company".

Pan

 

[indigo]

On LaughingPlace.com I remember reading a great story about the love of Disneyland, the original, that is felt by the people who worked on building TDL and TDS.

'Land of the Rising Mickey'

-Indigo
who isn't sure if he should be flattered or bothered that TDS decided to open on his birthday.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

I raise my glass to celebrate their anniversary and hope that sometime in the near future I am one of the masses entering TDS's turnstiles.

 

[King Triton]

Congratulations to DisneySea. That is an AWESOME theme park!

Why can't Disney build something like that HERE?

I'm jealous.

King Triton

 

[JamesMorehead]

I travel internationally quite a bit for work... and always sneak in a day, if possible, at a Disney park. I've had the good fortune to visit every Disney park globally with the exception of the Paris Disney Studios (will add that to my collection in a few weeks).

Tokyo DisneySea is beyond incredible - the styling and detail is awe inspiring. For a true Disney fan, it is a must stop. I realize the cost of getting to Japan - and staying there (hotels are extremely expensive) makes this difficult for many. HOWEVER - if you can wing it, go there!

The version of Indiana Jones at TDS builds on the Disneyland version and has effects that I'm sure we'll see in other attractions down the road.

Note that every time Disney builds an attraction, they take the best from earlier attractions and add some. The Tower of Terror under construction at DCA will improve on the WDW version.

So while it is highly unlikely Tokyo DisneySea will exist anywhere but Tokyo for quite a while, the innovations at TDS will find their way into other Disney parks.

 

[Peter Pirate]

RE:The OLC big cheese. This was discussed a lot last year and it was pointed out by some "in the know" that the head of this organization is like all other big corporate heads...Simply money driven. The talk of this man or Company providing the Disney 'magic' was outside of the realm.

Here's a link to an article by David Koenig at Mouseplanet. Read it, you'll find it interesting (orignally posted on the DIS by JThornhill).
http://www.mouseplanet.com/david/m072301.htm

 

[Bstanley]

Well P. Pirate sir,

My take is - given the choice between suits that HAVE identified the link between providing quality & show in exchange for receiving large sums of money - AND - suits that have NOT identified the link between providing quality & show in exchange for receiving large sums of money - I'll take the former.

There are some who contend that The Big ME never understood it. I am not convinced of that - but in any case for the last 6 years or so he has done a poor job and I believe it is time for him to enjoy his golden years.

Now I guess I'll go read the article

Ciao!

 

[Peter Pirate]

BStanley, no argment from me (on ME). My point is that it's too easy to cannonize OLC as the next coming when in fact they too are just a business...This could have been OLC's big moment in the sun & certainly Eisner had his as well...Just food for thought, really.

 

[Panthius]

Very interesting read, and while reading that, I thought of a former similar relationship at the top of Disney between Frank Wells and Michael Eisner. It seems that Michael Eisner's biggest problem is controlling the money, and unfortunately for Disney fans, his problem is not spending enough of it on Disney's core businesses(animation/tehme parks), but spending way too much of it on things he fancies(tv channels,sports teams).

Pan

 

[raidermatt]

The Tower of Terror under construction at DCA will improve on the WDW version

Interesting, because just about every other rumor says the opposite, that the DCA version will be a scaled back experience for the guest. Have you heard differently, or is this only your opinion? (Not that your opinion can't be right, just trying to determine where the info is coming from...).

Rumors have also said that the Pooh ride in DL will be equal to the WDW version at best, and most likely scaled back.

True, rumors are by definition not facts, but many of the sources in these cases have a pretty good track record...

I'd love for what you said to be true, but history doesn't really support it either. Dinosaur is essentially an Indy clone, and while its a great attraction (imho), there was no real upgrade from Indy. Pirates and Small World are a couple of examples of older rides that were cloned and not improved.

It seems that the foreign parks get improved attractions in many cases, but that doesn't seem to be the norm domestically.

 

[airlarry!]

I wish I could remember where I read it, but there was a great post about hwo OLC was as tight fisted as Disney, but there is a clause in the contract that allows WDI to watch the spending at the Disney parks in Japan...to make sure that they are up to Disney standards, which forces OLC to spend more and go bigger then they normally would have.

The post ended by saying it was ironic that in Japan WDI had (contractually) more influence in keeping Disney magic alive than here in the States.