Anyone finding themselves rooting for Harry Potter Land?

[maryfree]

I grew up on Disney,but must admit That Universal has been much more consumer friendly over the past few years, I finally broke down and stayed at one of thier deluxe hotels a few years ago, and was blown away by the experience..the staff was great the pools were great and the price was great(compared to Di$ney)My Grandkids love Harry Potter and Im sure Ill be bringing them back when it is complete...Competition is great, and if WDW isnt paying attention they may find Universal more than just a minor annoyance

 

[scotas]

For anyone curious, here is a link to some artist scketches of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. And for any Potter fans, The Three Broomsticks is planning on serving butter beer. Not sure if I would be brave enough to try it.

http://www.universalorlando.com/harrypotter/

My plans are for day trips to see WWHP, but still stay at Disney. Disney won't be losing much on me. I prefer their bus system and ME to renting a car so you won't find me doing a long stay at USO.

 

[FireDancer]

I think competition is always good for the consumer. In that vein, whatever Disney does to counter the draw of HP (and they will do something) will be good for us even if it is not necessarily good for Disney. It may be better rates, it may be updated rides, it might be new rides, it will most likely be a combination of them all.

I have never been to IoA, I live an hour away from Cedar Point if I want thrill rides. I have been to US and go one day each 5 years or so. I have no interest in HP but do want to see how it is pulled off. I am rooting for US to hit a home run because it will be good for us, the Disney fan even if it takes away from Disney.

 

[SecondStartotheright]

I've never been to Universal, and would love to go (I love thrill rides) Everyone says it's just a theme park, though, so what it offers is rides, not the ambiance. Anyway, that's neither here nor there, I'm stoked about HP Land. I *will* be making a point to check it out!

Here's something intriguing (though probably of little merit) My old manager at the Disney Store said Disney has its hands in the creating of HP Land? Like I said...probably of little merit, seeing as it doesn't seem like anyone else has heard this. (It's still a little gratifying to imagine true, yeah?) But yeah, she said she'd heard it, and that's why Disney now has rights HP. I figure it's just so they can show the movies on the Disney Channel...but ANYWAY. Yes I'm excited about HP Land. I believe though, regardless of HP Land or anything else Universal does, Disney will keep expanding in their own way. Since I've been alive Disney has added an entirely new park and has been expanding it ever since, and added several new rides. I personally don't think we need to give Disney a makeover, I think it's beautiful =) But I'm with Walt when he said it should never stop growing

Speaking of...does anyone know what of the mythical creatures area of AK? I was so jazzed about that...but haven't heard much about it. Did they scratch that?

 

[ChrisFL]

I've never been to Universal, and would love to go (I love thrill rides) Everyone says it's just a theme park, though, so what it offers is rides, not the ambiance. Anyway, that's neither here nor there, I'm stoked about HP Land. I *will* be making a point to check it out!

Besides the fact that it is completely false!!! IOA has TONS of ambience, theming, incredible music, great food, it's one of the top theme parks in the world, it's_not_just_thrill_rides, not even close

 

[SecondStartotheright]

Yeah, and regardless I'd still love to go. Everyone is always tells me that stuff about it though. People who hate Disney World because all it is is "pretty flowers and princesses everywhere" They say Universal is "a real theme park, for grown ups" Baha...take it up with those jerks ...I think Universal looks exciting.

Our family vacation has always been devoted to Disney, which is why I've never been to Universal. I'm hoping to get a chance to go when I'm down there for the college program.
But yeah...I didn't mean that *I* thought it was just rides, so I hope you didn't think I was bashing Universal in any way...I want to go there.

 

[storybookmum]

We've never been to Universal before, but you can bet we'll be going to see HP. Huge fans here. And yes, I think it very likely that Disney will feel some pressure to have a competetive new something happening at the same time.

 

[King Triton]

I wish Disney would do what they used to do best - make the best dark rides with the Disney Magic. Removing Horizons and putting in Test Track is an example of the top Disney suits not getting it during the 90's. Magic...think Magic!! Let's see some awesome new dark rides.

 

[ChrisFL]

I wish Disney would do what they used to do best - make the best dark rides with the Disney Magic. Removing Horizons and putting in Test Track is an example of the top Disney suits not getting it during the 90's. Magic...think Magic!! Let's see some awesome new dark rides.

Actually they removed World of Motion and put in Test Track. Horizons was replaced by Mission:Space

 

[JohnsonsLoveDisney]

I just wanted to say that we post-poned our 2009 trip to 2010 when the Potter Park would be opened in Universal.

DH and I went to Universal for the first time in 2004 and were not thrilled with it at all. Granted we only did the orignal one. We didnt even know the other park exsited. and then took our kids to the one in LA this past year and again did not have a great experience. But not every park can be Disney. but we gave it a try twice.

But like I said we will be going to visit the new park, and checking out the other half. Maybe this time we'll like it.

 

[lacrosse_lady72]

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I'm Realllllllly Excited!

 

[lacrosse_lady72]

I just wanted to say that we post-poned our 2009 trip to 2010 when the Potter Park would be opened in Universal.

DH and I went to Universal for the first time in 2004 and were not thrilled with it at all. Granted we only did the orignal one. We didnt even know the other park exsited. and then took our kids to the one in LA this past year and again did not have a great experience. But not every park can be Disney. but we gave it a try twice.

But like I said we will be going to visit the new park, and checking out the other half. Maybe this time we'll like it.

Sometimes I think the reason why people don't like Universal is because they think it will be like Disney. It's not though, definitely for the older, more thrill seeking variety who know that Disney and Universal aren't the same.

 

[Mouseaholic!!!]

This is a very bad time for Disney too loose even one day of a guests' visit.

They are making some pretty tough choices now (see rumor about closing resorts at WDW). Look at all the discounts avalable now....and kids sailing FREE....sounds like the cruiseline is not immune from the economy either.

We were just there last week and you can already see the signs of major cost cutbacks at the parks and resorts. Stop and chat with a castmember!

We still had a wonderful time, especially because we thought we would have to cancel 2 weeks out because of an injury. Yet, our wonderful place filled with magic has little corners that already look shabby.

Oh well, it will come back...it always does. Now they just have to put their heads down and hold on.

OMG....I also heard Disney stands to loose BOATLOADS of $$$ if GM goes under.....unpaid advertisements on ESPN. YIKES.

 

[Lanshark]

We've been going to Disney, almost yearly, for the past 30 years. We've also made it a point to go the Universal the past 4 years.

Universal has the same feel Disney did many years ago. We absolutely love it. Disney has gotten lazy. We still love it but I don't believe it is keeping up.

 

[yitbos96bb]

If one little Harry Potter Land is enough to seriously hurt Disney's business, then those running the theme parks should be fired for incompetence.

 

[yitbos96bb]

We've been going to Disney, almost yearly, for the past 30 years. We've also made it a point to go the Universal the past 4 years.

Universal has the same feel Disney did many years ago. We absolutely love it. Disney has gotten lazy. We still love it but I don't believe it is keeping up.

Part of that is because you haven't gone as much to Universal. Universal is only recently (the last 3 years) really starting to get their act together. They hadn't added much of anything for quite a while and was really a disappointment. Over the last 3 years, they have worked to pull out of that and put some quality out there and add some big promotions.

I agree though that Disney has gotten complacent. The Studios FINALLY is getting some love (although not sure how much the American Idol attraction will appeal to me) and hopefully will continue to expand to an actually decent park and not one great area and a few attractions desperately needing rehabs.

 

[SoScary'09]

I've never been to Universal myself, as I've never been too interested in it, but if they added HP land then I'd have to defenitely consider it^^

 

[minnie61650]

I am still of the belief that the reason IOA made little impact because the marketing department was (and still is) horrible. Nobody had any cloe what IOA was or that it was owned by Universal, or if they did know, had no idea it was a separate park (Remember the "Universal Escape" name?)

I knew IOA was owned and operated by Universal. I picked up the info and the Florida travel book at my AAA. I was not very impressed. After I visited IOA I was even more unimpressed.
JMHO

 

[minnie61650]

Look at all the discounts avalable now....and kids sailing FREE....sounds like the cruiseline is not immune from the economy either.

In 1987 we took on a Disney Premier Cruise Line (the BIg Boat) 4 nights at a WDW Resort and 3 night cruise and the promo that year was "kids sail Free". It was a good deal ! Sounds like a good deal 20 some years later!

A little info about the history of Premier Cruise Lines:

http://www.abcinfo.com/premier.htm

Just my 2 cents.

 

[BriarRosie]

I'm going to throw my .02 in as a huge fan of Harry Potter, and a "diehard" Disney fan, card-carrying member of DVC, and someone who has witnessed the progression of Universal over the years, albeit with very few visits.

I am very excited to see what Universal is doing for the Wizarding World. I know that Jo Rowling is very much involved, making sure her "world" is represented as best possible, so I'm not worried about Universal making a wreck of things.

But, my first visit to Universal was back in 1992, and I must say I was not terribly impressed with it. I thought many of the attractions had the same vibe. How many disasters can you see with King Kong and Earthquake? I had the same impression with those as Catastrophe Canyon at Disney-MGM (Hollywood) Studios. So I can honestly say my first visit did not impress me much.

Cut to 2000. Islands of Adventure was open, and there were a few changes to Universal overall. I went there mostly for IOA, and I was impressed with most of it. I thought Disney could have taken a giant cue from the Spiderman attraction. I thought that Universal outshone Disney with that. Granted, the other thrill rides around the park were basic, but I think Universal did a decent job theming them. I think they dropped the ball with the biggest waste of a beautiful exterior space (aka Poseidon's Fury), but I had a better impression of Universal from that trip.

Cut a few years later when Universal had three resorts onsite, added Men in Black and The Mummy. My friend got a great passholder rate, so I stayed with her for a couple nights at Portofino Bay. I have to say if I hadn't known it was smack dab in the Universal area, I would have thought this was a really first class resort. When I compare the amenities in the room (and the grounds), I think Portofino is better than many of the Disney deluxe resorts. And since there are only 3 hotels onsite, Universal could offer front-of-the-line access as a perk, something Disney cannot do because of the sheer volume of rooms on property. My opinion of Universal went up another notch.

Now, I haven't seen the new Simpsons ride that replaced Back To the Future, and the Wizarding World isn't open yet, but you can be sure I will make a trip out to Universal to see those. I don't tend to want to visit Universal much, but the new Wizarding World will be a major draw for me.