Come on, Disney! Step it up already.

[RMulieri]

Harry Potter, Transformers, Spiderman - these all have little interest to me, and I don't think they have the staying power. 50 years from now, anyone gonna still be watching these movies? Showing them time after time to their kids as they grow up? Doubt it.

I'm totally biased because I grew up going to Disney, and me and my kids love it, so US won't compete just because I have no interest in their themes.

If they get LOTR, that'll change, I'll be interested. But not enough to bail on the Disney movies/themes. Not even close.

Are the on-site resorts at US anything comparable to Disney's? Just curious.

Better imho..They are deluxe resorts at cheaper prices than Disney.( most times).They don't have value or moderate priced resorts YET..They are building one, but it will not come with the resort guest express pass perk that the other resorts do..The yare also within walking distance and have dedicated boat service.I have stayed at many Disney resorts and was BLOWN away by Portofino Bay at Unviersal

 

[mbrou24]

Harry Potter, Transformers, Spiderman - these all have little interest to me, and I don't think they have the staying power. 50 years from now, anyone gonna still be watching these movies? Showing them time after time to their kids as they grow up? Doubt it.

I'm totally biased because I grew up going to Disney, and me and my kids love it, so US won't compete just because I have no interest in their themes.

If they get LOTR, that'll change, I'll be interested. But not enough to bail on the Disney movies/themes. Not even close.

Are the on-site resorts at US anything comparable to Disney's? Just curious.

Uh... No staying power? Spider-Man?? Those two don't mix... The ride isn't based on the movies. None of the marvel island is... It's all on the comics.

 

[andyman8]

Thinking about it, I'd love to see Disney do something where they combine "the classic dark ride" with technology similar to HP and a mild thrill. It's kinda what they did with Spider-Man but I'm thinking more on a Seven Dwarfs Mine Train level with some more effects.

 

[Robbi]

Code words for "smoke and mirrors"

Universal and Dinsey offer two different things. They share a city and "compete" for vacation dollars, but make no mistake about it, they do not offer the same thing.

It's like going to Las Vegas. Yeah, the golf courses and the gentlemen's clubs are both competing for what the black jack table doesn't take from you, but they don't offer the same thing. If they do, I must be playing golf at the wrong places.

Seriously though, Universal is more thrill ride/attraction driven while Disney is more story and experience driven. In time, Disney will offer something more to compete for the thrill ride dollars, but their focus is on telling a story with each ride, not just replicating a movie into something that turns out G forces.

Have you been to Universal? If so I don't see how you can say Disney is more story driven. Spiderman, Jurassic park, Wizarding World of Harry Potter, etc. These are all story driven plus thrill rides. It can be done. Disney has chosen not to do this for whatever reason.

 

[bcrook]

I'm not quite sure what you're saying in that second sentence. I compared it to a real place because mostly theme parks allow us to visit places that do not exist in real life (Cinderella's Castle, Be Our Guest, etc). But in the instance of LOTR, it does already exist and you can visit it. So if I were obsessed with LOTR, I would go to NZ.

I'm just saying that (almost) all of us are limited in our vacation, by money, time off, traveling partners, etc. If I wanted to visit LOTR, I would choose NZ not Uni. And if I wanted to visit a theme park, I would visit WDW not Uni and the existence of LOTR at Uni wouldn't change that.

When I told a friend of mine that I was excited about spending a week at the Animal Kingdom Lodge - and how cool it would to see a savanna, my friend scoffed at me and said, if you want to see savanna go to Kenya!

I couldn't really understand that response, but it is similar to the New Zealand response above. I will have to continue processing this logic.

 

[bumbershoot]

Universal and Dinsey offer two different things. They share a city and "compete" for vacation dollars, but make no mistake about it, they do not offer the same thing.

No, I guess they don't. Universal does it better, in our opinion. Theming, rides, FUN... all better. In our opinion.

***headdesk***

I'd been holding out hope that Disney would wisen up and court LoTR.

I was afraid this might happen. Of course this is all complete speculation for the moment. The Tolkein family have (IMO rightly) never been known to just jump into these kinds of mass market things. They have historically been very reticent. So it is not outside the realm of possiblity that they might dig their heels in and simply refuse.

2 years ago I got a survey from Universal asking how I would feel about LOTR there.

I bet they've been talking with the family since long before then.

No way is my 4 year old going to get as excited for Transformers as she will for princesses.

But what about Barney? Woody Woodpecker? Curious George? playgrounds? The whole Seuss area? And all the other things both parks have for little kids to do?

What about a *family friendly* child-swap policy where you don't split up outside the ride building, but shortly before boarding? With little rooms, instead of hot benches (or having to go find something to do), to wait in?

What about Princess Fiona? Oh, and hey, there's a form of Tinkerbell on the Shrek attraction.

Welp, that's that, then. With Potter, Transformers, Spider Man (haven't been since 06 but that ride was incredible)...if Universal gets Hobbits, I'm done for. DH will insist upon Universal, possibly onsite, and our Disney days are done.

We need Star Wars, stat!

ETA: to be clear, I hate hobbits and transformers, though I love HP and would like to see WWoHP some day. DH, however, would make me reciprocate for the Disney trips with Universal, if this indeed turns out to be true. My saving grace is that the kiddos are too little right now, but in a few years...bleh.

You might find yourself tremendously surprised.

Are we really comparing actual places to theme park representations? Cuz if I go see the set pieces in NZ it's going to be a rollercoaster or a dark ride? There's no comparison there IMO

It seems that some think you can't go to the real place if you've been to a pavilion of the place.

Now, I'm not saying that money is infinite, LOL. But one can have a NZ savings account and a Universal savings account.

Yes it is! But what surprised me most about my one day at Islands of Adventure was how cool the Port of Entry is at that Park. Some of the best theming I have ever seen.

Some? To me it's THE best. I could take pictures of every square inch of Port of Entry. And I practically do, each time we go through it.

People hold Universal to a different standard, and that's why Disney gets thumbs down in the "step it up" department.

I will agree that WWoHP is amazing. The theming, the ride, the butterbeer ... all of it. I love that part of the park. But it's the only part of the park I go to. I go in, go to WWoHP, spend a few hours, leave. And when you walk out of WWoHP into Seuss Landing, the first thing I think is, "Boy ... these buildings are faded!" The whole rest of the park looks like they've barely done any maintenance. But then ... no one expects them to. They have thrill rides! Harry Potter! Spiderman! No one gets upset if Seuss Landing looks faded or if they cut back entertainment to almost nothing or if the kids areas are still based on Feivel (who?) and Barney (eww). I'm not a "off the shelf thrill ride" person, so nothing else in either park really holds my interest. (Dr. Doom's Firefall? No thanks -- if I'm going to ride a drop ride, I'd MUCH rather have Tower of Terror. Men in Black? Nope. Give me Buzz or TSMM any day. Popeye vs. Splash? No contest.)

At Disney, people get mad when there's chipped paint, burned-out bulbs or dirty windows. They can't find the princess they want in the exact dress they want her to be in and letters and e-mails come pouring in. There are characters who have been on Disney Jr for a year and they're not in meet & greet form yet? How dare they!

No one remembers WWoHP's delays or the timeline or the problems it encountered during soft openings. No one talks about how outdated E.T., Twister or Beetlejuice are. No one talks about how lame the Disaster! attraction is or how you have to pay for FP or how annoying that walk from the parking garage to the parks is. How many people actually visit the rest of the park, other than to go from coaster to coaster? Who spends time exploring the theming of Superhero Island? When was the last time you were immersed in shops and entertainment in Amityville? When was the last time your kid begged you to let him wear his Woody Woodpecker costume to school?

Yes, they're both theme parks and, as such, are the "same" business. But the expectations of the guest are different. If they weren't, this thread wouldn't exist.

I wonder when the last time YOU did all those things? Because I do a lot of them, and it's AMAZING there.

I found Beetlejuice to be hilarious, as did all of the other people in the theater. Even my son, who has not seen the movie, thought it was funny.

Did anyone EVER wear a Woody Woodpecker costume? But the coaster is so kid friendly that DS takes his express pass card (from the hotel, since we stay onsite there) and goes around and around and around that ride. I think he's done the ride 15 times in a row as his current record. He LOVES that ride. 14 in a row is his max so far for Hippogriff.

The only BIG coasters I've done, in 3 separate visits, so far are Rip Ride Rockit and Dragon Challenge. More are on the list because my son is now tall enough and I cannot let him go on THOSE alone. Does Mummy count? I guess it does, I've done that, too. Before those were experienced, I did Forbidden Journey and Spiderman, which were the most adventurous I'd gone on at Universal, which was on our first trip, no one else did any "bigger" rides, and 4 days was nowhere NEAR enough. When we went back to Disney, we were in foul moods. We wanted MORE Universal. FastPass was clunky and sad in comparison.

People did indeed complain about the faded paint, and it was taken care of! Just like at Disneyland, one person can walk by cracked paint around a window and complain forever, never knowing that there was a CM with paint and a brush walking 2 minutes behind them, sometimes it's easy to assume that nothing has changed, like you've done.

I marveled at the theming of Marvel island last time (and I'm not a comic book fan, though I loved watching Spiderman cartoons in the late 70s early 80s). I plan to explore more this time.

My son still loves Barney (and likes to torture his dad with it even more), and looks forward to watching American Tail so he knows who Feivel is, but in the meantime he's happy to play in the playground.

MIB is lower than Buzz to you? We're going to have to disagree seriously on that one, LOL. There's nothing wrong with Buzz (except for the issue of the blaster being fixed, unlike at Disneyland), but MIB is not a lesser ride.

We'll be at Universal Feb 10-12. Come tour with us. We will be in the parks as soon as we can get out of Port Canaveral, pick up a rental car at the airport, and stash our stuff at HRH. I'm sure we'll hit the Butterbeer stand first off (though it's hard to pass up Cat in the Hat!!!!) We'll have fun. Maybe you can see it through our eyes this time.

 

[Peaseblossom]

Thinking about it, I'd love to see Disney do something where they combine "the classic dark ride" with technology similar to HP and a mild thrill. It's kinda what they did with Spider-Man but I'm thinking more on a Seven Dwarfs Mine Train level with some more effects.

I agree - sort of like Splash but with newer technology. There are the drops, but also the slow, relaxing audio animatronic scenes. I really like the combination and the nice long ride. Everest, RnRC - love them, but they're over so fast!

 

[Melodious]

When I told a friend of mine that I was excited about spending a week at the Animal Kingdom Lodge - and how cool it would to see a savanna, my friend scoffed at me and said, if you want to see savanna go to Kenya!

I couldn't really understand that response, but it is similar to the New Zealand response above. I will have to continue processing this logic.

I guess the difference is that although I love the safari ride and AKL, however, I do not go to WDW just to see the safari. I go to WDW to see the safari and the castle, the France pavilion, It's A Small World, Via Napoli, etc, ad nauseum. If all I wanted is to see a safari, then I would go to Tanzania. I do not go to Uni now, so I'm simply saying that the addition of LOTR in itself would not be enough to convince me to go to UNI instead of WDW or NZ

As I said vacations are about choosing. If I really want to see a safari, I'd go to Tanzania. If I want to go to a theme park, I'd pick WDW because it also has a safari

 

[bumbershoot]

Oh, and the Jurassic Park area? We took the time to explore in there last trip, and WOW. How the TMs stay so much in character for the theme I do not know. It's JP *before* everything goes wrong, so they are all excited about their safety features and how they've kept the amino acid out of the diet, etc. They have a dino hatching every half hour or so, and my son got the fun of naming it. He got a birth certificate for the dino, too.

On one trip DS and I happened by the Triceratops Trail, which had been closed for years, and I think has been closed since then, and got to experience their triceratop attraction....words can't even describe. A huge triceratops in touching distance, looking SO real. A carried-in-arms baby triceratops that you could, in fact, touch. WOW.

I could go on and on.


Considering how they've done the face characters from Whoville at Universal, I wonder if they'll be able to do face characters for LOTR, too! If, of course, it goes forward.


I'll stop now.

Back in 2010 we thought we were going to Universal for one visit only. We were so happy to be wrong. The place is amazing.

 

[toddinboston]

My family spent a week at Disney in October, and visited US/IOA for 2 days...my family really enjoyed both parks because they weren't Disney... something different, a nice change...looking forward to going back, but we'll still stay at Disney...

 

[RMulieri]

I got the survey at Universal about adding a LOTR area in jan of last year, I am guessing this has been on the drawing boards of possibility over there for awhile now

 

[andyman8]

I agree - sort of like Splash but with newer technology. There are the drops, but also the slow, relaxing audio animatronic scenes. I really like the combination and the nice long ride. Everest, RnRC - love them, but they're over so fast!

EXACTLY! Splash was the particular attraction I was thinking of. With the Seven Dwarfs Coaster, I'm not expecting a big thrill (maybe, just below BTMRR level at best) with no real drops but lots of turns and speed. One reason I've been hesitant to write a review of New Fantasyland on the blog is that I still see it as a work in progress. If you ask me, they still have some tweaking to do at BoG (particularly for lunch) but also the Seven Dwarfs coaster seems to be a significant portion of the expansion. Until I actually saw it with the rest of the FLE opened, I didn't realize how significant it will be. Right now, I view writing a review of New Fantasyland as writing a review of a cake that you ate halfway through its baking process.

Don't get me wrong though. I love Disney a lot, but four theme parks offer a lot of potential. I'd love to see each park have 35% thrill rides, 35% kiddie attractions (or classic dark rides as Disney might call them), and 30% shows and other experiences. In my mind, each park should have 20 or more "solid" attractions (I don't really consider Figment, American Film Institute, or Habitat Habit to be solid attractions).

 

[RMulieri]

Oh, and the Jurassic Park area? We took the time to explore in there last trip, and WOW. How the TMs stay so much in character for the theme I do not know. It's JP *before* everything goes wrong, so they are all excited about their safety features and how they've kept the amino acid out of the diet, etc. They have a dino hatching every half hour or so, and my son got the fun of naming it. He got a birth certificate for the dino, too.

On one trip DS and I happened by the Triceratops Trail, which had been closed for years, and I think has been closed since then, and got to experience their triceratop attraction....words can't even describe. A huge triceratops in touching distance, looking SO real. A carried-in-arms baby triceratops that you could, in fact, touch. WOW.

I could go on and on.


Considering how they've done the face characters from Whoville at Universal, I wonder if they'll be able to do face characters for LOTR, too! If, of course, it goes forward.


I'll stop now.

Back in 2010 we thought we were going to Universal for one visit only. We were so happy to be wrong. The place is amazing.

It truly is..I used to scoff at the idea of Universal..It as Disney or BUST for me..We went for our 1st trip last year to Uni and we deliberately did only Uni/IOA and stayed onsite to give it a fair chance..SO GLAD I did..We had an amazing time .Even my 9 yr old who is a ride scaredy cat LOVED it.She asked to go back this Summer and we are.I can't wait to see what Uni does in the next few years

 

[notnothin]

I have AP's to all the Florida parks and I love them all,However nobody can deny Universal's new rides and expansions are pretty much crushing Disney's efforts lately

QFT! We're very much looking forward to new HP expansion and this (LOTR) would be the pièce de résistance!

 

[bcrook]

I guess the difference is that although I love the safari ride and AKL, however, I do not go to WDW just to see the safari. I go to WDW to see the safari and the castle, the France pavilion, It's A Small World, Via Napoli, etc, ad nauseum. If all I wanted is to see a safari, then I would go to Tanzania. I do not go to Uni now, so I'm simply saying that the addition of LOTR in itself would not be enough to convince me to go to UNI instead of WDW or NZ

As I said vacations are about choosing. If I really want to see a safari, I'd go to Tanzania. If I want to go to a theme park, I'd pick WDW because it also has a safari

I understand now. That makes sense. Maybe that was my friends point too. I have spent enough money on DVC to have gone to Tanzania five or six times, but I don't want to mess with all the other problems associated with going to eastern Africa. I am with you, I will take the DVC savanna, and the ToT, and the Morocco Pavillion. (Although I did go to Morocco in March, the Pavillion at Epcot is very authentic!!!)

 

[Melodious]

It seems that some think you can't go to the real place if you've been to a pavilion of the place.

Now, I'm not saying that money is infinite, LOL. But one can have a NZ savings account and a Universal savings account..

I am quite confused (and frustrated) why everyone thinks that I said you can't do both? I, in fact, stated that I've enjoyed both Norway and the Norway pavilion. In 2011, I went to Norway, in 2012, I went back to WDW.

I thought we were talking about WDW and Uni competing for our money, ie that Disney needs to step up their game if Uni gets LOTR. What I am trying (in vain) to say is that the addition of LOTR would not convince me to switch from WDW to Uni, partly because if I really loved LOTR, I would want to visit it in NZ not UNI. HOWEVER, I am perfectly aware that if I loved UNI anyway, I would love the addition of LOTR. BUt it is not enough to convince me to go to UNI instead of somewhere else including WDW. I do not think LOTR would fit with WDW so I am not hoping that it will be at WDW instead.

Does anyone out there understand me?

 

[WDSearcher]

Your post is very dated. Amity is being redone into a new Harry potter land, suesslanding got fresh paint and is vastly popular around the holidays with the grinchmas stuff, marvel island is awesome in terms of comic book theming. Splash is not a legit comparison to popeye... Kali river rapids would be. Rip saw falls would be the equivalent of splash. Splash is in a dire state at this point and in need of major refurbishment which it is currently getting btw. The Jurassic park area has a lot of non ride attractions for kids, then there is Harry potter and that is just one park. US has a lot to offer and is getting extremely more entertaining with the new stuff set to open. I personally like disaster. And men in black is just as good as buzz and not comparable to tsmm.

OK, my bad ... I haven't seen anything other than spectulation regarding the new Harry Potter area. Did Universal announce that? I'd only heard the Transformers announcement. I'd love a link to the official Universal announcement or press release on the Amity change-over. Thanks.

As for the other stuff ... I was in Seuss Landing in October and it was faded and filthy. If it's been painted since then, great. Want to compare Popeye to Kali? OK ... still no contest. Kali wins.

The "Universal vs. Disney" argument happens all the time and no one's mind is ever changed. But if we're going to talk about "the new stuff set to open" ... the last thing they opened that was new was Minion Mayhem last July. The next thing on the list is Transformers this summer. One ride in one park. My point being that when Universal opens one new ride in one park, that's seen as huge. When Disney opens a park expansion that includes rides, shows, restaurants and new character areas, that's seen as "so what, where's my coaster?"

 

[Melodious]

I understand now. That makes sense. Maybe that was my friends point too. I have spent enough money on DVC to have gone to Tanzania five or six times, but I don't want to mess with all the other problems associated with going to eastern Africa. I am with you, I will take the DVC savanna, and the ToT, and the Morocco Pavillion. (Although I did go to Morocco in March, the Pavillion at Epcot is very authentic!!!)

Thank you for coming back and letting me know you understood. I understand wanting to keep going back to WDW and love the savannas. Thanks for the information on Morocco. I hope to see it myself one day, but in the meantime love exploring the pavilion!

 

[mbrou24]

OK, my bad ... I haven't seen anything other than spectulation regarding the new Harry Potter area. Did Universal announce that? I'd only heard the Transformers announcement. I'd love a link to the official Universal announcement or press release on the Amity change-over. Thanks.

As for the other stuff ... I was in Seuss Landing in October and it was faded and filthy. If it's been painted since then, great. Want to compare Popeye to Kali? OK ... still no contest. Kali wins.

The "Universal vs. Disney" argument happens all the time and no one's mind is ever changed. But if we're going to talk about "the new stuff set to open" ... the last thing they opened that was new was Minion Mayhem last July. The next thing on the list is Transformers this summer. One ride in one park. My point being that when Universal opens one new ride in one park, that's seen as huge. When Disney opens a park expansion that includes rides, shows, restaurants and new character areas, that's seen as "so what, where's my coaster?"

They haven't "officially announced" anything about it but its being built, you can see it in the parks.

Suess landing... I was there in December, looked fine.

And I'm not debating either. I enjoy both. I just think Disney is dragging its feet with finishing the expansion while universal is quickly putting their plans into action.

 

[Cinderumbrella]

OK, my bad ... I haven't seen anything other than spectulation regarding the new Harry Potter area. Did Universal announce that? I'd only heard the Transformers announcement. I'd love a link to the official Universal announcement or press release on the Amity change-over. Thanks.

As for the other stuff ... I was in Seuss Landing in October and it was faded and filthy. If it's been painted since then, great. Want to compare Popeye to Kali? OK ... still no contest. Kali wins.

The "Universal vs. Disney" argument happens all the time and no one's mind is ever changed. But if we're going to talk about "the new stuff set to open" ... the last thing they opened that was new was Minion Mayhem last July. The next thing on the list is Transformers this summer. One ride in one park. My point being that when Universal opens one new ride in one park, that's seen as huge. When Disney opens a park expansion that includes rides, shows, restaurants and new character areas, that's seen as "so what, where's my coaster?"

OK, I will bite on this since I am one who has never been to Universal but is intrigued by all things coming down the pipeline...

The reason that my family is very underwhelmed by the new Fantasyland is because we are parents to an almost 10 year old boy. Princess meet & greets and a slow roller coaster just don't interest us.

Avatarland in AK? Never saw the movie, but I will certainly check it out when (if) it opens, but we aren't waiting impatiently for it either...

Now, if they decide to do something huge with Avengers and Star Wars, then we would be all for it.

For me, the disenchantment with WDW is coming in that everything currently coming down the pipeline is of no benefit and/or interest to us (New Fantasyland, FP +, Avatarland). In fact, I daresay the rumored FP+ will greatly change how we tour in the future, and not for the better.

These new changes at US couldn't be coming at a better time for us...