Major Disney refurb and construction completion dates worldwide

[George4]

If you're looking for thrill rides in general WDW isn't really your best place to go. I love AK it is my favorite park right now but I even recognize it isn't a full park. Yes there is 18 attractions but those 18 attractions don't work for everyone.

But that's true of all of the Disney parks. In my case, with people spanning from age 5-45, we can still hit just about everything in a park. However, if it were just a group of adults my age, then none of these parks are really full day parks. MK only has about 7-8 rides that appeal to adults. It is the blend of appeal of shows and rides over multiple age groups that really makes these parks multi-day attractions. DHS has lost that with all of the recent closures, and EPCOT has been there for years. AK really holds up much better than both of those parks, and Avatar will only add to that, while the other two continue to crumble.

 

[Rigby]

Avatar is going to be glorious! Biggest movie in the world by a lot. People will be coming from all over the planet for a chance to fly on a Banshee and take a boat ride through the bio luminescent forest. If you build it they will come. Buckle up!!!

 

[rteetz]

But that's true of all of the Disney parks. In my case, with people spanning from age 5-45, we can still hit just about everything in a park. However, if it were just a group of adults my age, then none of these parks are really full day parks. MK only has about 7-8 rides that appeal to adults. It is the blend of appeal of shows and rides over multiple age groups that really makes these parks multi-day attractions. DHS has lost that with all of the recent closures, and EPCOT has been there for years. AK really holds up much better than both of those parks, and Avatar will only add to that, while the other two continue to crumble.

I disagree. Every ride in MK can appeal to adults and children that's the whole point of the Magic Kingdom. Now for AK as a 17 year old I'm not going to sit and dig in the boneyard but I'll do pretty much everything else. Every park can be and is a full day park if you do everything but it all depends on the person and what they are interested in. MK has so much more than 7-8 rides for adults. DHS really hasn't lost a ton yet. The backlot tour was a very large attraction. No actual rides have closed other than the BLT at DHS. Epcot has never been a park about rides it's whole premise while a little lost is about the world and the future. DHS isn't crumbling it's going to get better. Epcot now that might be crumbling but those festivals appeal to the masses.

 

[rteetz]

Avatar is going to be glorious! Biggest movie in the world by a lot. People will be coming from all over the planet for a chance to fly on a Banshee and take a boat ride through the bio luminescent forest. If you build it they will come. Buckle up!!!

I don't think as many people as you think are going to book a trip specifically for avatar.

 

[Rigby]

Just wait until those next 3 Avatar movies get released and completely crush it. With the established track record I'm always surprised when people bet against James Cameron. The place is going to be hugely popular. Maybe not if it opens a year before a new movie which would probably be a good thing to get out all the kinks but once Avatar fever starts up people will be jumping at the chance to ride the movies.

 

[circus4u]

THe belief that AK is a half day park is, in my opinion, misguided. If you are only looking for thrill rides, then I get where you are coming from. But AK has more than 18 attractions that appeal to my kids, and they have, at times, spent more than two hours at the dinosaur dig alone. We never finish AK in one day, and usually it takes 2-3 to do everything that our family wants to do. In contrast, we usually finish DHS in 4-5 hours, depending on the wait times for the 4 e-ticket rides. Avatar is part of expanding the park hours with something that will grow AK into a more than one day park for more people, not just those with younger kids (like us).

Thrill rides are definitely not our forte'. We are empty nesters, but I can understand how those with children can make a full day of it. By no means, do I mean that it is a half day park for everyone. One of the things that "turns us off" is the claustrophobic atmosphere, the paths are narrow and the very things that create the realistic atmosphere create other problems, such as poor air circulation. We do enjoy the shows there. I was just saying that I don't see how adding two new attractions would cause this park to go from what some people consider a half day park to a full day park for those people. For my wife and I, we don't ride a lot anymore; we do the shows and just enjoy walking around the different parks.

 

[George4]

I disagree. Every ride in MK can appeal to adults and children that's the whole point of the Magic Kingdom. Now for AK as a 17 year old I'm not going to sit and dig in the boneyard but I'll do pretty much everything else. Every park can be and is a full day park if you do everything but it all depends on the person and what they are interested in. MK has so much more than 7-8 rides for adults. DHS really hasn't lost a ton yet. The backlot tour was a very large attraction. No actual rides have closed other than the BLT at DHS. Epcot has never been a park about rides it's whole premise while a little lost is about the world and the future. DHS isn't crumbling it's going to get better. Epcot now that might be crumbling but those festivals appeal to the masses.

I think you are way off base here if you really stop and think about it. Do you ride Peter Pan, Little Mermaid, Storybook Circus, Dumbo, etc? Most of those are attractions that you do with your kids as a family. Even as a 17 years old, do you really do those rides/attractions when you get to MK? That park probably has more generic appeal (and probably a few more than 7-8 universal attractions) than the others, but they really don't appeal to most adults that don't have kids. Is there enough for a full day? Absolutely. But my point was intended as more of support of AK than as a knock on MK. DHS on the other hand really can't easily fill a day unless you do attractions over and over. Having just been there a few weeks ago, we spent 12 hours at DHS, and had attended everything in the park except for the Disney jr. Meet-n-Greets and puppet show by 4pm. After that was all repeats. There weren't enough unique experiences to fill the day.

With respect to DHS, you have lost the Backlot tour, LMA, kids playground, Animation courtyard, and I thought something else that escapes me. That's a few hours of enjoyment that has been lost in the past year or so.

 

[George4]

Thrill rides are definitely not our forte'. We are empty nesters, but I can understand how those with children can make a full day of it. By no means, do I mean that it is a half day park for everyone. One of the things that "turns us off" is the claustrophobic atmosphere, the paths are narrow and the very things that create the realistic atmosphere create other problems, such as poor air circulation. We do enjoy the shows there. I was just saying that I don't see how adding two new attractions would cause this park to go from what some people consider a half day park to a full day park for those people. For my wife and I, we don't ride a lot anymore; we do the shows and just enjoy walking around the different parks.

Fair point.

 

[rteetz]

Just wait until those next 3 Avatar movies get released and completely crush it. With the established track record I'm always surprised when people bet against James Cameron. The place is going to be hugely popular. Maybe not if it opens a year before a new movie which would probably be a good thing to get out all the kinks but once Avatar fever starts up people will be jumping at the chance to ride the movies.

If those movies ever get released. Honestly I don't think the sequels will do as well as the original. It would be incredibly hard for any of the sequels to crush the record set by avatar. These aren't just records that are broken all of the time. If they were Star Wars would have done it already. You far too high expectations for those sequels.

 

[rteetz]

I think you are way off base here if you really stop and think about it. Do you ride Peter Pan, Little Mermaid, Storybook Circus, Dumbo, etc? Most of those are attractions that you do with your kids as a family. Even as a 17 years old, do you really do those rides/attractions when you get to MK? That park probably has more generic appeal (and probably a few more than 7-8 universal attractions) than the others, but they really don't appeal to most adults that don't have kids. Is there enough for a full day? Absolutely. But my point was intended as more of support of AK than as a knock on MK. DHS on the other hand really can't easily fill a day unless you do attractions over and over. Having just been there a few weeks ago, we spent 12 hours at DHS, and had attended everything in the park except for the Disney jr. Meet-n-Greets and puppet show by 4pm. After that was all repeats. There weren't enough unique experiences to fill the day.

With respect to DHS, you have lost the Backlot tour, LMA, kids playground, Animation courtyard, and I thought something else that escapes me. That's a few hours of enjoyment that has been lost in the past year or so.

I don't think I am. I am an uber Disney person, being a part of the disboards takes me out of the norm. I would ride Peter Pan, and little mermaid solo, maybe even dumbo. As a 17 year old I would because I'm a Disney fanatic and rides like Peter Pan are classics and tell an amazing story. To someone who is not a Disney fanatic and doing a solo or adults only trio they probably wouldn't do what I do but yes I would. I'm not trying to knock any park as I do like them all for their own reasons. DHS can be a full day park if you do things right. If I ride ToT, TSMM, RnRc, GMR, star tours, and then see some of the shows, go see launch bay, fantasmic, and the Star Wars fireworks, and I have to eat at some point yes I have a full day. That would also depend on the time of year you go.

LMA, playground aren't closed yet. Animation courtyard was replaced with launch bay which is something I enjoy.

 

[soniam]

Just to play the "devil's advocate" here, will two additional rides really increase the park from half a day to a full day? I think the new night time show might help. In all honesty, I am probably in the minority as Animal Kingdom is my wife's and my least favorable park. I can see us going in mid-afternoon and staying for the light show, but for us (only), I don't see it as a full day park.

I can understand. AK is really a half day park for us, and we have a 9 year old. I don't like zoos or animals in cages, so we only do the rides and Safari. We also don't usually like shows. I still don't know if it will be a full day park with everything coming. With River of Lights, I think we will go in the morning to beat the crowds, swim in the afternoon, and then head back in the evening, or even do a different park earlier in the day. Once Pandora opens though, that will change everything, at least for the first visit. I think there will be a lot of stuff to see and do. I am not a Cameron fan (except for the early movies) and just saw Avatar for the first time a couple of weeks ago, but I still think the visuals will be really cool.

I actually think it's in Disney's favor that it will hopefully open before the next movie. It might give some separation between the movies and the attractions, so that people don't just think of the movies. To be sustainable over time, it's going to need to stand on its own. Kind of like Splash Mountain. There are a lot of people who like it but don't really know the background of the characters or have not even seen Song of the South. However, they still like the ride and the theming, completely separate from its origins.

 

[piglet1979]

I

I think you are way off base here if you really stop and think about it. Do you ride Peter Pan, Little Mermaid, Storybook Circus, Dumbo, etc? Most of those are attractions that you do with your kids as a family. Even as a 17 years old, do you really do those rides/attractions when you get to MK? That park probably has more generic appeal (and probably a few more than 7-8 universal attractions) than the others, but they really don't appeal to most adults that don't have kids. Is there enough for a full day? Absolutely. But my point was intended as more of support of AK than as a knock on MK. DHS on the other hand really can't easily fill a day unless you do attractions over and over. Having just been there a few weeks ago, we spent 12 hours at DHS, and had attended everything in the park except for the Disney jr. Meet-n-Greets and puppet show by 4pm. After that was all repeats. There weren't enough unique experiences to fill the day.

With respect to DHS, you have lost the Backlot tour, LMA, kids playground, Animation courtyard, and I thought something else that escapes me. That's a few hours of enjoyment that has been lost in the past year or so.

I am one who loves all those rides at MK. I do have kids but I would make my husband go on them with me once the kids are grown. My mom is the same way. Her favorite ride is Peter Pan.

The Pirates of the Caribbean show is gone from DHS.

 

[jlundeen]

I



I am one who loves all those rides at MK. I do have kids but I would make my husband go on them with me once the kids are grown. My mom is the same way. Her favorite ride is Peter Pan.

The Pirates of the Caribbean show is gone from DHS.

Me too...I ride Dumbo and Peter Pan every trip - and I'm a grandma now but have not traveled with little kids for many years!

Little Mermaid - not so much - missed opportunity in my mind as it could have been so much more.

 

[rteetz]

Town Center in Disney Springs is rumored to be on pace for a May opening. I assume that is just the general area and actual tenants will open as they are ready.

 

[George4]

I



I am one who loves all those rides at MK. I do have kids but I would make my husband go on them with me once the kids are grown. My mom is the same way. Her favorite ride is Peter Pan.

The Pirates of the Caribbean show is gone from DHS.

I forgot that one. It may have been one of the worst experiences I have ever seen Disney do. A complete waste of time.

 

[piglet1979]

I forgot that one. It may have been one of the worst experiences I have ever seen Disney do. A complete waste of time.

I feel the same way about that one. It was horrible.

 

[DanBoris]

Just to play the "devil's advocate" here, will two additional rides really increase the park from half a day to a full day? I think the new night time show might help. In all honesty, I am probably in the minority as Animal Kingdom is my wife's and my least favorable park. I can see us going in mid-afternoon and staying for the light show, but for us (only), I don't see it as a full day park.

It depends on how much of an attraction the land itself is. Diagon Alley at Universal is only two rides but I can spend hours just wandering around the land without even going on the rides.

 

[rteetz]

It depends on how much of an attraction the land itself is. Diagon Alley at Universal is only two rides but I can spend hours just wandering around the land without even going on the rides.

Are you counting the train as the second ride?

 

[George4]

POST DELETED

 

[MamaJinji]

Good to know. I hope Pandora is completed before I manage to return.