Let me start my post here by saying that I LOVE Disney. I always have and I always will. Whether they continue to compel me to want to spend my money on their property is explored a bit further in my post but make no mistake about my deep love and affection for Disney.
I think the lack of unique development is a result of 2 contributing factors. Firstly that the guys in charge of the parks and resorts are suits. They dont care about the people in the parks. They truly see theme park goers as peons, and they try to run the parks and resorts from their spreadsheets. And if you want some proof just take a look at the marketing campaign. Are
Disneyland and Walt Disney World REALLY that homogenous that you can create a twofer marketing campaign by branding things as Disney Parks? I dont believe they are. That decision was made ENTIRELY from a spreadsheet when someone made a discovery that for the same price as ONE marketing campaign, they could pitch both the east coast and west coast destinations.
The other contributing factor is that the parks and resorts division has become the cash cow for other failed business investments. (Go.com, The Family Channel, ESPN
.) Theyre forced to increase profit margins by giving less and charging more to cover losses in other divisions so that their shareholders can make a profit.
If you want to read more about this stuff take a look at DisneyWar by James Stewart. FASCINATING read. He had unparalleled access to the upper management of Disney during the years when Roy Disney waged war against Eisner through the SaveDisney.com campaign.
Oh yes, I know some criticize Eisner's hotel fever and deplore the addition of moderates and value resorts. I've been through some tough times and those more inexpensive lodgings meant a great deal to me when I could not have afforded the Poly and Contemporary. During that time, we also saw two new parks added as well as the water parks. Some don't like Animal Kingdom. I do. Some adore the water parks. I don't. But, the beauty of Disney is that there really is something for everyone.
Ive stayed at value and moderate resorts. And I LOVE them.
But at the same time, I HATE them. When the Polynesian and Contemporary were first built, they by no means were cheap. But they werent that much more than off-property resorts. The price was FAIR. You were paying for a nice resort experience, a good room, AND the location. Then they built the Caribbean Beach Resort. And the rates that were being charged for the Polynesian, became the Caribbean Beach Resort rates. And the Polynesian and Contemporary became even more expensive. Then they built the value resorts. And moderate prices were now VALUE prices and both Caribbean Beach and the Polynesian (and by extension, other deluxe hotels) rates were jacked up again. For the same price as a Garden View room at the Grand Floridian thats a BASIC room with a less-than-spectacular view you can get a luxury sweet with unlimited access to a BMW at an off-property hotel. I researched that a while ago so I dont remember which one.
No matter what the Disney resorts are simply over-priced. I really wish they would make life easier on EVERYONE and lower the dang rates! The whole idea of charging obscene amounts of money and then offering a great deal (Monster PIN code, anyone? 40% off) to fill the rooms just REEKS of tactics used by slimy used car salesmen. (As a side note used car salesmen need not be offended! Every profession has its share of bad apples and I am using ONLY the bad apples as an example here. I am NOT talking about all used car salesmen!)
In any event, I hate those PIN codes with a passion. And not because I begrudge anybody a discount. What I hate is the very idea that a select few, chosen at what seems to be completely random, get a bargain while others get nothing. Make the offer to EVERYONE or dont make it at all. Or, as I said, better yet lower your rack rates to a REASONABLE price!!!!!
Oh What was it Walt Disney said about Disneyland? Something about it will never be done? Well, I've been going to Walt Disney World since the early '70s and Disneyland before that. There have been many changes to both but those changes haven't happened in a year or two. They happen over decades so, you young ones will just have to be a little patient and accept that you won't have all the cool new stuff next year. You'll also have the joyful discovery that a ride you loved as a child brings as big a grin to your little boy's face when he rides it the first time or that first meeting with Aurora or Cinderella leaves your little girl stammering with excitement just as you did when you met your very first princess.
Well said! Im just afraid that the Disney my daughter is getting to know is a pale comparison of what Disney used to be.
Again, my beef is that disney seems to put a lot of it's money into real estate these days. How does a DVC resort in Hawaii go with the theme parks at all?
Walt actually had plans to build a ski lodge in Colorado. Thats where the Country Bear Jamboree came from. It was originally designed as an attraction for the Lodge that was never built.
I dont have a problem with Disney building resorts away from the theme parks. It does allow them to offer something to people who dont care about a theme park. Not to mention there are TONS of Disney fans with family members who would sell portions of their anatomy to visit a non-theme park location. My wife wants to go to Hawaii and I do too. And I can say with almost absolute certainty, that well probably end up at Aulani.
And to address another poster, aren't those DVC'ers who have trouble finding a resort just having trouble finding a different resort than their home resort? I may be wrong but I thought you always have a room at your home resort but its when you want to try another resort that you may have trouble finding room, right? So really there are enough rooms for DVC members, just not enough at certain resorts that people might want to try.
I rented DVC points at one point and the gentleman I rented from had to waitlist my request because his home resort was sold out. This was back in 2007. Things may have changed since then but I think if theyre building, Disney is finding a profit it.
The ride was re-themed in that way b/c of the classic disney movie from 1945, the Three Caballeros. The movie had donald and the other two birds exploring Mexico and South America. So in that way, it does go with the Mexico theme. But for those who haven't seen the movie, I can see where the confusion is.
Frankly, I think that the Three Caballeros fit into the Mexican Pavilion about as well as the three cows from Home on the Range would fit onto Big Thunder Mountain. Sure you could find a reason to tie them in but neither of these attractions were built as a showcase for animated characters.
For what its worth I dont think the Magic Carpets fit into Adventureland. It started out as a faithful, yet sanitized version of the jungles in the South Pacific and Southeast Asia. The imagineers worked hard to keep things real and make it seem as though you were there without the mosquitos and the diseases they brought with them. Then they plopped down the Magic Carpets. Yes Aladdin loosely ties in there but only if it were a live action film. It wasnt a cartoon location. And I dont find the Mexican pavilion to be a cartoon location either.
For those who think that Universal is just thrill rides, I think you are mistaken. I don't like thrill rides. I don't ride coasters, yet I find an amazing number of things to do at US and IOA.
If I go to AK, I don't ride Everest. I do Kali River Rapids, Kilimanjaro Safari and the rest of the time I spend looking at things and enjoying the shows. That's how I do IOA. I do just a few non-thrill rides and enjoy the shows.
The shows at US are great. I adore the Monster Makeup show and the Graveyard Review.
I certainly don't consider Twister, Terminator, ET or Jaws thrill rides. They are pretty tame. Bilge Rat Barges at IOA is a blast and something for both adults and kids. Both parks have very nice areas for the little kids. At US, the Curious George water area is great. They also have the Fievel and Barney areas as well as the Woody Woodpecker coaster (very similar to Barnstormer). Of course, IOA has Seuss Landing for the little ones.
If people would just give Universal a chance, they might find that they like it. I just find it sad that people are so fanatic about Disney that they reject anything else without giving it a chance. I have annual passes to WDW, Universal, Sea World and Busch Gardens. I love them all for their differences. Disney will always be special to me because I grew up a Disney fan, but I can appreciate the other parks as well.
AMEN, sister!
My daughter LOVES Universal. She loved the pool at Portofino Bay. She LOVED Seuss Landing and could have easily spent a day there, just exploring. She LOVED the Curious George playground. And while she couldnt ride it? She LOVED the whole Simpsons area. She adored looking at all the merchandise and seeing the Kwik-E-Mart. This was all on a trip where she turned 2 while we were traveling. She also LOVED spending time in the Jurassic Park Discovery Center. She met Spiderman and I SWEAR that, to her, was bigger than eating with the princesses at Disney. She loved it.
Every time I have been to US/IOA I have stepped over trash as I go through the lines. Some trashcans were filthy and overflowing. Some smelled like they hadn't been emptied for days. Don't remember foul odors at WDW. It seems to me management has not instilled a sense of pride in staff to take care of the park like WDW has. The place does not have a paint every day look like WDW, but a we can put off touching up yet another year if we dim the lights a little look.
I would put US at about a 3 or 4 on cleanliness and WDW at an 8 or 9. I have heard people who have been there recently say the same thing.
I am not out to bash Universal. I am stating my thoughts which is what this thread is about. No need to get upset if people who do not see things the way you do.
Im not getting upset but I visit Universal as often as I visit Disney and I have NEVER, EVER seen what youre describing. Ive had a lot of interaction with Universal team members and have found them to be extremely polite, helpful and friendly. In fact one trip, we were spending the day at Universal while staying at the Polynesian. My wife and I both had bug bites all over us. From Universal we called housekeeping and asked that the sheets be changed. Housekeeping actually gave us attitude about it! They insisted their properties didnt have bugs, and we had left the doors open. We then went to activate our Universal annual passes and the Guest Services Team Member was WONDERFUL. It was a stark contrast to what I had just experienced on the phone with Disney. And I wont even get into the difference in the staff at the Universal resorts as opposed to Disney resorts. Universal blows Disney AWAY. Or actually, I should say, Loews blows Disney AWAY.
Everyone is entitled to their opinions, but in all the times Ive visited Universal, I have yet to see the horror at the Universal parks that is described on the Disney Theme Parks board.
If you ask me Universal is a theme park that thrives and makes its money off of thrill rides. Disney is an experience that thrives and makes its money off of the atmosphere and the overall experience instead of thrill rides. IMO they are not comparable, Disney is superior whether they are building more cutting edge stuff or not. Are there things that Disney does that I question yes, like the homes on property for 8 million in this economy makes no sense to me, but regardless Disney still remains superior in my eyes. Disney uses its design, themeing of the parks/hotels, and its attractions to create an atmosphere that is unlike any other. Universal may be spending more money on what is considered high-tech and cutting edge, but if you ask me the atmosphere and overall experience is no greater than if I went to my local six flags.
Disney was designed with family in mind, that being that an entire family could ride together and thats what it achieves. Not every person can ride a thrill ride, so with Universal there is the possibility that family members get left out because they cant ride those big thrills. In WDW you dont find that AS MUCH, thats part of the overall experience and magic that Disney provides that no other parks in the world can. Disney allows more family friendly attractions for more family memories, thus creating a more positive and endearing atmosphere than Universal.
I see this kind of remark all the time and I truly dont understand it. Ive visited Six Flags. Their game is pure, bare-bones, thrill. Thats NOT what Universal is about. Just heading into the Studios its gone now but on Twister, you NEVER moved. You watched a show. On Shrek, youre in a seat that shakes but it never actually moves. Its still bolted to the same spot on the floor. The Mummy is absolutely a coaster. As is Rip, Ride Rockit. A Day in the Park with Barney, E.T., Animal Actors on Location, Fievels Playground, Woody Woodpeckers Coaster, Curious George ALL appropriate for little ones. Disaster is a slow moving train that shakes from an earthquake. This is NO different than catastrophe canyon. Jaws is a slow moving boat ride. Yes, theres a shark but I certainly wouldnt call this a thrill. I would say its about on par with Dinosaur. The Simpsons is a simulator. No different than Star Tours. Then theres Men in Black. Its a slow moving vehicle that sometimes spins. Out of fifteen rides only TWO provide actual thrill in terms of roller coaster. And this is only the rides! I threw in a few shows but theres a bunch more. I could go through the Islands of Adventure but to say that Universal is on par with Six Flags is terms of providing visceral thrill ONLY is just baseless. When comparing Universal Studios against Hollywood Studios? I think that Universal Studios comes out on top in EVERY aspect. It has rides that are just as good, and in some cases better than whats provided at Hollywood Studios and as a movie park, I think it blows Hollywood Studios out of the water.
And again I say I love Disney. I also love Universal. But I truly think that you dont have to like one at the expense of the other. And if you really think that Universal and Disney arent in competition think again. They are. And thats a GOOD thing for the consumer. It keeps both companies on their toes.
