Official Fantasyland Expansion Q & A (Mickey gets evicted) PART II

[RJMC]

Considering CM Previews are supposedly the end of the month, I'm thinking the end of the November/early December is more likely.

Where did you get info about cast previews end of the month?

 

[Venomhatch]

Where did you get info about cast previews end of the month?

That info is true.

 

[mesaboy2]

Where did you get info about cast previews end of the month?

It is mentioned in the link provided earlier today in Post #2289. Berlioz quotes it in her post as well.

 

[WDWFAN 1972]

A little bummed as it is looking more like it might not be open for our trip Thanksgiving week. Hate that as we have not been in 4 years and my youngest is in prime princess mode. If we push it back it would be next July before we could go.

 

[RJMC]

The very first portions of it (parts of Storybook Circus) did open in the Spring. Never has the entire FLE been advertised to be open then, nor for all of it to open at one time.

Didn't the original publicity posters say 'New Fantasyland Fall 2012'? (photo below). I Suppose technically late Nov/Dec is still fall, but to me that's closer to winter.

To be fair Disney have sort of opened parts of it when they can I guess, and I imagine that the heavy lifting, steel and concrete work around the mine train has meant for health and safety reasons the surrounding pathways cannot yet be opened until most of that is done. So perhaps that may have slowed up the opening of the other areas a bit?

 

[DCTooTall]

A little bummed as it is looking more like it might not be open for our trip Thanksgiving week. Hate that as we have not been in 4 years and my youngest is in prime princess mode. If we push it back it would be next July before we could go.

You MIGHT be able to catch a soft open. It's not guaranteed, but with the CM preview and possible AP previews happening on the back half of the month, there's a chance some soft openings may happen around Thanksgiving. (Of course... because of the crowds, they may hold off on the soft openings to avoid the nightmare of explaining why it was open earlier but not now to the masses who'd end up complaining...)

 

[mesaboy2]

Didn't the original publicity posters say 'New Fantasyland Fall 2012'? (photo below). I Suppose technically late Nov/Dec is still fall, but to me that's closer to winter.

You answered your own question--Fall goes all the way to December 20.

Remember, they are vague for a reason. If they ever announced a date before they were confident in it, fanatics would book to that date--no matter how much Disney told them not to count on it--and those fanatics would be livid if that date changed. Staying vague avoids all that.

 

[Senator Tressel]

I will be shocked if soft openings don't even start until late November. I don't feel like it will be pushed back that far.

 

[RJMC]

You answered your own question--Fall goes all the way to December 20.

Remember, they are vague for a reason. If they ever announced a date before they were confident in it, fanatics would book to that date--no matter how much Disney told them not to count on it--and those fanatics would be livid if that date changed. Staying vague avoids all that.

yep you're right.

Would still like to know the official source of where it confirms cast previews end of Nov?

 

[Disco]

I will be shocked if soft openings don't even start until late November. I don't feel like it will be pushed back that far.

I know the land looks almost ready to go and we're talking 3 more months!

 

[DCTooTall]

yep you're right.

Would still like to know the official source of where it confirms cast previews end of Nov?

"Official" source would be the Hub.... the Internal CM information system not available to the public. the Unofficial source is several CM's who've reported it and Disney Fan sites which have picked up on the story.

I know the land looks almost ready to go and we're talking 3 more months!

Even if the existing guest areas are almost ready to go, doesn't mean that staff training and the other construction areas are ready for the area to be opened.

It was mentioned earlier in this thread (1 or 2 pages ago I think) that the CM job postings for the new areas just closed a couple days ago. They wouldn't even be able to begin training in the new sites until the buildings were given the all clear by the groups in charge of construction (Imagineering?) and turned over to the Park operations to start bringing CM's into the buildings.

Even if attraction and Restaurant personell transfer for other similar operations, They'd need to learn specific scripting and information for the new areas, As well as familiarize themselves with the back-stage areas and procedures for the new locations. (Such as emergency exits, evacuation procedures in the new structures, etc.). As a brand new area, it's not like they can just take someone from Snow White's Scary Adventure and slot them into LM without some training.... And unlike an existing operation, You don't have people already familiar with the ride's operation who can train new transfers on the job.

 

[SRUAlmn]

I know the land looks almost ready to go and we're talking 3 more months!

Remember, though, that all we can see are the outsides of things. There's still a LOT that's going on inside too. I'm another Thanksgiving visitor, hoping we'll get a chance to try things out. Hey, maybe it'll be my excuse to get an AP

 

[Berlioz70]

Even if the existing guest areas are almost ready to go, doesn't mean that staff training and the other construction areas are ready for the area to be opened.

For reference... I was on the opening team for The Pirates League...

I interviewed in April and transferred on May 31st.

We had to wait nearly 3 weeks before getting into area.

CM previews started on June 25th, with official opening on 29th. And all we had to do was learn how to paint faces.

When opening a new attraction, the test and adjust team is brought in a couple months before opening... to test... and adjust.

 

[Photobee]

WE are going early to mid Nov...and while I would LOVE for BOG and LM to be opened then...if they aren't, we'll just see them some other time!

We have plans to take a disney cruise in the next couple years, and I have talked my husband into a 1 day park hopper pass to spend half a day at MK seeing all the new stuff we miight/will miss...and than 1/2 day at Epcot since we always seem to miss Test Track (it's always closed for refurbishment or something when we have been there).

So, even though I would love to see it all this trip, if it's not quite opened yet...we'll just catch it next time!

 

[pilferk]

Didn't the original publicity posters say 'New Fantasyland Fall 2012'? (photo below). I Suppose technically late Nov/Dec is still fall, but to me that's closer to winter.

"Close to winter" is still fall.

Fall starts in late September (22nd) and ends in late December (21st). Any time prior to December 21st is still fall.

I can't fault them for saying fall when they actually mean....fall.

"Fall but sorta close to winter" would be a bit too wordy.

 

[pilferk]

The other thing is:

While we can all see the stuff that's obvious over the walls...I'd be interested to see the state of the landscaping and hardscaping.

They've done a TON of work back there...and I expect the LAST pieces of the puzzle are to do take care of the landscaping. At least some of that you can't really do until the mine train construction is a little further along...because the construction equipment and materials would be traipsing right over it.

Add to that the "test and adjust" phase for LM and I'm not surprised it LOOKS very finished "over the wall", but still has some time to go.

 

[KSBelle77]

Disney blog posted a picture of the statue of Gaston!

 

[Lillian Gracey]

Disney blog posted a picture of the statue of Gaston!

Here's the picture! I can't wait to see the rest of it!

 

[HoneyBeeM]

It seems to me (and maybe I'm letting excitement cloud my objectivity here) that the updates and new photos coming out of NFE were VERY frequent these past couple weeks.

Plus, did anyone notice what Disney Parks Blog said in their last little blurb after the Gaston photo?

"We'll be back Tuesday morning with another update on New Fantasyland...."

I might be reading too much between the lines with that one...but it sounds like official dates will be coming SOON.

 

[KSBelle77]

It seems to me (and maybe I'm letting excitement cloud my objectivity here) that the updates and new photos coming out of NFE were VERY frequent these past couple weeks.

Plus, did anyone notice what Disney Parks Blog said in their last little blurb after the Gaston photo?

"We'll be back Tuesday morning with another update on New Fantasyland...."

I might be reading too much between the lines with that one...but it sounds like official dates will be coming SOON.

They announce new bits about the expansion every tuesday