DHS, I don't see it, what am I missing?

[boufa]

I keep hearing about DHS and how much is gone, its not worth going to etc. For our feb trip, if Soarin is closed, we are going to cut Epcot down to 1 day and hit another park (its a short trip) and it look like DHS will be that 3rd park for us.

I keep hearing that there is noting left at DHS, and that with so little to do, the lines are longer now for the other things.

So here is what I am seeing closed, am I missing something....

1) Backlot tour. I'll give you this one. Wasn't great, but it was an attraction
2) Jack Sparrow... Never saw it, it was only a walk through.
3) Animation academy... a gift shop and meet and greet and a drawing class (sorry I left that out!)
4) American Idol.... never saw it, did anyone?!?

That's it that I can see. Sure there are some temp closings (jedi training) but they will be back in a few months.... and once walls go up, if walls go up, in public spaces other things may close, but for now, I'm not seeing the disastrous waste of a park that most people are talking about.

 

[MataHari22]

I keep hearing about DHS and how much is gone, its not worth going to etc. For our feb trip, if Soarin is closed, we are going to cut Epcot down to 1 day and hit another park (its a short trip) and it look like DHS will be that 3rd park for us.

I keep hearing that there is noting left at DHS, and that with so little to do, the lines are longer now for the other things.

So here is what I am seeing closed, am I missing something....

1) Backlot tour. I'll give you this one. Wasn't great, but it was an attraction
2) Jack Sparrow... Never saw it, it was only a walk through.
3) Animation academy... a gift shop and meet and greet
4) American Idol.... never saw it, did anyone?!?

That's it that I can see. Sure there are some temp closings (jedi training) but they will be back in a few months.... and once walls go up, if walls go up, in public spaces other things may close, but for now, I'm not seeing the disastrous waste of a park that most people are talking about.

I think also, that a lot of people may feel like the shows, are a once and done kind of thing. Also, some people, like me, don't do ToT or RnR, so there's not much in the way of rides, either. I decided to spend a whole day there, but only because I'm not sure what other changes may come, and what else may be removed, but I could have easily only spent a half day there.

 

[Disney Khaleesi]

There aren't as many rides at DHS as there are at other parks-so these rides tend to attract large wait times. I personally won't ride ToT or RnRc, so that leaves TSMM (which is great, but has very long wait times) and the Great Movie Ride, which I love, but isn't very popular with a good amount of guests. There's also Star Tours, but the wait times for that ride can vary. So, that really is only about five attractions in the park besides a few other shows, character meets, etc.

I do enjoy the park, but it's not a park I ever feel inclined to get to at opening, as all I do there is eat at Sci-Fi, ride Star Tours multiple times, at ride TSMM and GMR before I leave. For me, it's really just a nice, relaxing day where I don't feel like I need to accomplish a lot.

 

[disney world dreamer]

i'm with you.
the only thing thats closed that i even did was backlot tour but i hadn't done that in a few trips because i hated how they changed it.

personally when i go i like to do...
-RNRC
-TOT
-BATB
-GMR
-TSMM
-VOTLM (don't have to do it every time)
-muppets

i no longer do star tours, indiana jones, or lights motors action simply because i don't really feel the need and i never do F! because i don't care for it.

i can easily do everything i want in half a day and i don't find the lines to be all that much longer due to other things being closed.

and just because i can do the things i want in half a day does not mean i don't love DHS.
i really do and i would definitely recommend going.

lately i've actually found less to do in epcot.

 

[Nancyg56]

DHS is a park that is not fo everyone. My family usually goes twice every trip, but we only stay 3/4 of a day each time. I like the shows, hit the attractions, and geneally wander through the streets. When my DGD was younger we never coul dspend enough time there, she was a character junkie and DHS was crawling with them, so that took a lot of time.

I think that if you are used to going from one "moving" attraction to the next, this park could be a short day.

 

[mom2rtk]

Whether you did those things or not, someone did. And now that's more bodies spread out among the lesser quantity of remaining attractions.

 

[rainboots]

On our last trip, we spent a full day - rope drop to F! I felt like we were really aimless for a few hours. Not bad, but not great. This trip we are going to the park around 1 & staying for F! I hated TSMM (public stoning to commence soon - who hates TSMM?!), so we have a fairly short list of must-dos. I would like to add Muppets & Little Mermaid this trip. I don't feel like we need to see Lights Motors action or Indy again, but I will poll my group!

 

[jon18uk]

Animation academy... a gift shop and meet and greet

animation academy wasn't the meet & greet. It was a class that taught you haw to draw a character.

I think for repeat visitors it the fact that the shows have never changed. I've been four times over the last 15 years and I don't care to see Voyage of Little Mermaid or Beauty & Beast again. At least at Animal Kingdom Tarzan got replaced with Nemo (and hopefully in a few years will get swapped again).
Also at Epcot, although Future World is a mess they have at least swapped out the World Showcase entertainment.

Compare DHS to Universal, which 25 years on only has one opening day attraction left, everything else is new.

 

[GPC0321]

I am the opposite of the OP. I scrapped DHS completely to add another Epcot day. I've only been to DHS once(when it was MGM) and was really underwhelmed. ToT was fun, Star Tours made me want to puke, Muppets, BatB, and Indy were okay, and Fantasmic was meh. GMR was closed when we were there, and RNR and TSMM weren't around yet (neither are tempting enough to lure me back). My biggest thought was that the park was kind of...unattractive? Unlike the other three, I just didn't love the atmosphere much.
So I decided I'd rather spend more time wandering the beautiful World Showcase (during F&G no less) than trying to make a day out of a park I just don't care much about. When they add the new lands, I'll definitely check it out.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

I'd rather go to DHS than Epcot, but I do see that DHS has lost things without them being replaced, and that just makes the other attractions more crowded. I never did American Idol, either, but at least it kept some people away from Tower of Terror.

3) Animation academy... a gift shop and meet and greet

Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa... Animation Academy had a drawing class. My family loved it. Heck, we did it multiple times most trips.

 

[boufa]

animation academy wasn't the meet & greet. It was a class that taught you haw to draw a character.

I think for repeat visitors it the fact that the shows have never changed. I've been four times over the last 15 years and I don't care to see Voyage of Little Mermaid or Beauty & Beast again. At least at Animal Kingdom Tarzan got replaced with Nemo (and hopefully in a few years will get swapped again).
Also at Epcot, although Future World is a mess they have at least swapped out the World Showcase entertainment.

Compare DHS to Universal, which 25 years on only has one opening day attraction left, everything else is new.

Granted, the animation acadamy was more than just a meet and greet, it was also a giftshop an a drawing class, but that doesn't change my point that losing it doesn't ruin the park.

I am the opposite of the OP. I scrapped DHS completely to add another Epcot day. I've only been to DHS once(when it was MGM) and was really underwhelmed. ToT was fun, Star Tours made me want to puke, Muppets, BatB, and Indy were okay, and Fantasmic was meh. GMR was closed when we were there, and RNR and TSMM weren't around yet (neither are tempting enough to lure me back). My biggest thought was that the park was kind of...unattractive? Unlike the other three, I just didn't love the atmosphere much.
So I decided I'd rather spend more time wandering the beautiful World Showcase (during F&G no less) than trying to make a day out of a park I just don't care much about. When they add the new lands, I'll definitely check it out.

I think my point was missed. I am specifically talking about avoiding it recently. I listen to several podcast, read multiple discussion boards, and there is a general "stay away from DHS, everything is closed, nothing is left" message being spread. THAT is what I am questioning. Is it accurate?

I know the inherent limitations to DHS, and i would be no better off at AK at the moment, and I know what both will be like when they are done doing the expansions, but in ht hear and now, what has closed that is actually taking away from the park in a meaningful way??

 

[Gumbo4x4]

I think also, that a lot of people may feel like the shows, are a once and done kind of thing. Also, some people, like me, don't do ToT or RnR, so there's not much in the way of rides, either. I decided to spend a whole day there, but only because I'm not sure what other changes may come, and what else may be removed, but I could have easily only spent a half day there.

This is kind of us. We did enjoy most shows, including AI, although we absolutely hated Fantasmic. But, they're all "once and done" for us. We don't do ToT or RnR, so that basically leaves Toy Story.

Next time, we'll just do a second AK day.

 

[PoohsHunnyBee]

The big thing for me is for the families with little kids, TSMM may draw them in and then there's largely nothing else to do but shows which the majority of little kids don't want to sit through all day. And you'll notice each of the four things you listed were family attractions with no height requirement.

 

[CodeGoddess]

The big thing for me is for the families with little kids, TSMM may draw them in and then there's largely nothing else to do but shows which the majority of little kids don't want to sit through all day. And you'll notice each of the four things you listed were family attractions with no height requirement.

Agreed. For adults it's still a great park and the couple small changes don't seem to make a big difference. Use to be my favorite park of the four (probably still is but it's been a while). I did our touring plan for HS (7 adults) and we have about 1.5 hours of free time left over with nothing scheduled (aka reride whatever) before our BD F! dinner at 4:30.

 

[Dis703]

We have always done a full day at HS and still find plenty to do. We spent a full day there in May and still didn't do everything. I won't ride any of the thrill rides here, but ODS and DH do RnR. We did a bunch of the shows, Great Movie Ride, TSM we did twice. We always do Fantasmic because it's our absolutely favorite of the night time shows. ODS did Jedi Academy and we had dinner at 50s Prime Time. We stopped for some photos but only did one meet and greet with Sorcerer Mickey. We didn't even do everything but we had a lot of fun and stayed the entire day aside from short afternoon break.

 

[jon18uk]

I think my point was missed. I am specifically talking about avoiding it recently. I listen to several podcast, read multiple discussion boards, and there is a general "stay away from DHS, everything is closed, nothing is left" message being spread. THAT is what I am questioning. Is it accurate?

I would say this advice is correct, if you have done DHS before. Nothing has changed in the park and some things have closed. It also depends on ages of children and whether RnRC and ToT are things you will do. For a first-time visitor then of course they should easily fill a day at DHS as every show is new to a first-timer.

At Animal Kingdom the Safari is more repeatable and is getting a new night show summer 2016 so does offer slightly more for repeat visitors next year.

 

[leebee]

On our last trip, we spent a full day - rope drop to F! I felt like we were really aimless for a few hours. Not bad, but not great. This trip we are going to the park around 1 & staying for F! I hated TSMM (public stoning to commence soon - who hates TSMM?!), so we have a fairly short list of must-dos. I would like to add Muppets & Little Mermaid this trip. I don't feel like we need to see Lights Motors action or Indy again, but I will poll my group!

I DO!! I think it's silly, and it makes me motion sick. I avoid TSMM at all costs. Disney Studios is always a dilemma. DD22 likes to do TSMM, RnRC, ToT, and StarTours, but I don't ride any of these. (And yes, I make 1 FP+ for her on TSMM and 1FP+ for me on RnRC, then let her take my MB for RnRC.) We both like GMR, B&tB (possibly my favorite stage show ever, tied with Tarzan, of course!), Indiana Jones, and Little Mermaid. DD likes the Muppets, so we go to it. Occasionally we see LMA, if it fits our schedule and F!, but we are no longer fascinated by this show and can take it or leave it. We were going to add the animation drawing class this time around (we were in line last time but had to leave for a FP+), but now it's gone.

Because we can use FP+ to our advantage, we won't need to get up early or stay in the park very long to do what we want (which is good, because I find their food options sorely lacking). I am hoping we get in and out of DHS fairly quickly (after seeing Osborne Lights) so we can hop over to Epcot for a little F&W festival for supper!

 

[lugnut33]

Don't forget it also lost the Hat!!

Just kidding. DHS doesn't have a parade. Nor does it have a show on Hollywood Blvd now that Mulch Sweat and Shears was canned. There used to be shows on NY Street a long time ago. Once they closed down Animation Academy they lost a lot of Character Meet and Greets. Also, the Walt Disney exhibit will be leaving soon.

 

[Nancyg56]

On our last trip, we spent a full day - rope drop to F! I felt like we were really aimless for a few hours. Not bad, but not great. This trip we are going to the park around 1 & staying for F! I hated TSMM (public stoning to commence soon - who hates TSMM?!), so we have a fairly short list of must-dos. I would like to add Muppets & Little Mermaid this trip. I don't feel like we need to see Lights Motors action or Indy again, but I will poll my group!

We are heading in late this time a well. I want to stay for the Lights and Fantasmic, and have no desire for character M & G since we are adults. No need for us to rush in because we intend to skip a lot this time around.

I think my point was missed. I am specifically talking about avoiding it recently. I listen to several podcast, read multiple discussion boards, and there is a general "stay away from DHS, everything is closed, nothing is left" message being spread. THAT is what I am questioning. Is it accurate?

I know the inherent limitations to DHS, and i would be no better off at AK at the moment, and I know what both will be like when they are done doing the expansions, but in ht hear and now, what has closed that is actually taking away from the park in a meaningful way??

I wonder the same thing. I don't see it as a park to skip, but because several attractions are gone, and more will follow, it seems that to many it is a park without an identity. I really think that is the issue. Not many Thrill rides, children's activities that most don't bother with, and shows that many feel are either one and done, or that need to be polished Poor BATB really should get some love!

I will admit I skipped AK last year because I just do not like construction walls, and there were a lot of them, but IMO it also is a park with a lot to offer. The problem with this park is it's closing time, I think. Once evening entertainment is available, I think AK will be "rediscovered".

 

[Nancyg56]

Don't forget it also lost the Hat!!

Just kidding. DHS doesn't have a parade. Nor does it have a show on Hollywood Blvd now that Mulch Sweat and Shears was canned. There used to be shows on NY Street a long time ago. Once they closed down Animation Academy they lost a lot of Character Meet and Greets. Also, the Walt Disney exhibit will be leaving soon.

I miss the parade. One of the nicest aspects of a Disney day, and what dictated part of our schedule was the afternoon parades in each park. I really miss the Jungle Jammin Parade in AK, and I liked Cars and Stars in DHS. I think that Disney is eventually going to rethink all of the cutbacks they have implemented in terms of live entertainment in every park. It really makes a difference in how fast you can "do" a park if you are not stopping to enjoy shows and parades along the way. I wonder if someone did the hard math, Disney would find that they would see more guest spending if they increased these entertainments. Instead of trying to corral everyone into shops between FP, which is timing that something guests can control, they may find investing in entertainment that is spread throughout eh day and evening, would encourage folks to remain rather than hit the bricks and then run back to the resort to swim.