Debate: Loss of TOD to kill WS

[Lesley]

My family loves WS. Loved it long before TON, though I personally loved that parade. Then they butchered the music and started calling it TOD. It was a nice parade...but mainly because it reminded me of what used to be with TON. On my last couple of visits I found it to be more of a nuisance than anything else.....just try getting from one area of WS to another when the walkways are all blocked up. Luckily, it seemed on our most recent visit that it was becoming easier to move around during the parade because less people were watching it!

So anyway....no huge loss. I'd love to see TON back again, but I'm not holding my breath.

 

[Dodie]

Okay. I know that this is heresy, but DH and I thought both ToN and ToD were bizarre, weird, strange, annoying and not enjoyable at all.

It's a parade people. A strange parade with annoying repetitive music and big puppets.

WS is beautiful, educational, and culturally stimulating. The architecture is interesting and beautiful. The food choices are staggering. The shopping is fun. IllumiNations is simply amazing!

Why would stopping a parade "kill" World Showcase?

 

[MHopkins2]

I'm with you and your DH, Dodie! I avoided both versions of that parade like the plague! (I'm not huge on parades in general, but the TOD/TON seemed particularly insipid to me.) So no big loss IMO.

 

[BrianD]

WS is probably our favorite part of WDW. Then again, we have never done it with small children.

I don't think that the parade will make a difference on whether people come to WS or not. We only saw the parade once and all it did for me was block me from crossing over to Germany to get another beer!

 

[raidermatt]

My question is do you think some people will no longer be visiting the World Showcase and instead park hopping to the Studios or MK?

Honestly, Show, I think the greater damage was done with the move from ToN to ToD. It seems that for many, the parade went from great and fitting, to ok and out of place.

The end of ToD will probably have a minor impact, but not too severe. As d-r said, Illuminations seems to be the major draw now. Losing that would DEFINITELY take big chunk out of Epcot's evening drawing power.

 

[Bob O]

I wasnt impressed with either parade and wont miss them at all. I think this will have little impact on attendance at all and think if they got rid if Illumnations that would have a much greater impact on attendance and the tme people leave the park.
And while i didnt like these parades i still think it is bad they are being pulled without something replacing them and is just another typical wdw cutback!!!

 

[Samirella]

Originally posted by Bob O
And while i didnt like these parades i still think it is bad they are being pulled without something replacing them and is just another typical wdw cutback!!!

You have to remember there wasn't a parade at Epcot for almost two decades. ToN was brought in for the Millenium celebration and just happened to be revamped and extended beyond that. Now that it's run its course why does there have to be something to replace it? This was a specialty parade that just happened to stick around a little longer than it was supposed to so how is it a cutback?

 

[Bob O]

If you have a parade and then you remove it it is a cutback!!!! Unless we have some new type of math when you take away something it is a loss and when you add something it is an addition. When the parade was started it was an addition to the park, now that it is being removed it is a cutback. It is one less entertainment option for the guests who visit this park. The parks should be adding things for their guests to do and not taking away options.
So i guess then if wdw closed TOT that wouldnt be a cutback since it wasnt in the park when it first opened???
So yes, it is a cutback of the entertainment options at EPCOT and is typical of the current mindset of the disney company when it comes to theme park operations.

 

[wtg2000]

The parade was there for the Millenium Celebration and actually ran longer than it was originally intended. The millenium village was also intended only for that year. TZTOT is a permanent attraction. The parade was never advertised as permanent. Hopefully, they'll have some special celebrations for the 25th anniversary in 2006. Just prepare to be upset when they "cutback" in 2007.

 

[Samirella]

I thought a cutback was something the company did to save money. The removal of ToD isn't to save money. The parade just ran two and a half years longer than it was intended.

 

[raidermatt]

I thought a cutback was something the company did to save money. The removal of ToD isn't to save money.

I agree that this isn't really a cutback in and of itself, and further, there is rumored to be a replacement on the way.

However, let's not kid ourselves by saying it wasn't ended because of cost. If the parade only cost 100 bucks a night to put on, it would not be ending. It's just that apparently Disney doesn't feel it gets enough benefit from the parade based on what it actually does cost.

Further, it did not "run longer than it was supposed to". They decided each park would have a parade for the 100 Years Celebration, and certainly it was easier to make a few changes to ToN than it would have been to create a whole new parade.

Unlike MK, Epcot hasn't really been hit by attraction closures. Its problems stem from stagnation which is the result of insufficient capital investment.

 

[Testtrack321]

I'm an avid fan of both ToN and ToD. I thought that ToD could pull it off to be another good parade, but then in April, I saw it wasn't so. The parade didn't have a soul. The puppets barely moved and didn't interact will guests at all. And the drummers had no energy like they did in ToN. I'm somewhat happy that ToD is leaving. It ruins the name of ToN. I think that when people came back from ToN and the Millennium Celebration, then said to their firends "I saw this great parade at Epcot! You have to see it!" Then the people go and see ToD instead and think it's crap.

Long live ToN. Death to ToD.