Disneys Hollywood Studios about to change forever

[Redarrow5150]

I thought LMA was closing next year?

1. Like Rteetz said this is due to Fiscal year 2015 which starts October.

2. The AIE is being used for Oaken's Winter Wonderland, but some of the area behind the building that is part of the Backlot will be used as well.

3. Lights! Motor! Action! not going anywhere from now, but it is on death row as well.

 

[tjkraz]

Disney world gets everything!!!! Why cant they do something fun out here on the west coast!

Take a close look at how many additions there have been at WDW since Disney invested $1.2 billion in DCA.

Not a whole lot, especially considering there are twice as many theme parks in Florida.

 

[rteetz]

I thought LMA was closing next year?

Nothing has been confirmed

 

[ellbell]

With all the changes happening I am seriously considering just cancelling our trip. It will be our first and so far I'm hearing nothing but everything will be closed for upgrades or changes for when we go. To me I'm wondering if it's worth it since this is the park that has something that appeals to all my boys.

 

[beer dave]

With all the changes happening I am seriously considering just cancelling our trip. It will be our first and so far I'm hearing nothing but everything will be closed for upgrades or changes for when we go. To me I'm wondering if it's worth it since this is the park that has something that appeals to all my boys.

This is a very good point. I have been thinking about how completely torn up the parks are right now. If I was taking a first or a once every 5 year trip, I would probably wait. Unless the trip is somewhat short and the kids are very young.. then you could probably get away with MK and Epcot.....

I looked at recent photos on here of AK.... and it looks similar to DTD, and the Poly... and now another portion of Epcot is closing, and another limit to the already limited Studios.

The good thing is really if you look at all the work, this is a big overhaul of the whole place. Even if the changes are not what everyone wants, they are still changes and optimistically improvements. Ak is going to be like a completely new park..... Disney springs will be entirely new (although without the AC)...And now the start of HS..... this could be a big few years for playing catch up.

 

[Spacedog1975]

It does feel like a lot is closing at once, but it's nothing to cancel a trip over. Let's take an honest look at the closures:

1) American Idol : I've been to WDW 5x since this opened. Never once felt compelled to actually go in.

2) Backlot Tour : The biggest thing this has going for it is that it's an original element from the park. It was a lot of fun when I visited in 1991, but now it's a shell of that former experience. Shuttering it is no big loss beyond the foot traffic it absorbs. The current Frozen experiences reasonably should absorb that.

3) Maelstrom : I'm going to miss this one, I will. That said, it is a minor ride that was long in the tooth. Plenty of people went to Epcot and never knew it was there in the first place.

4) Animal Kingdom : The only "missing" attraction is a parade. Sure, there are construction walls up, but this can't be avoided with a major park expansion.

None of these things are worthy of canceling a trip over, especially if it's your first visit. There is soooooo much to do at the four parks that I have a hard time thinking you'll miss anything designated above.

Now, there are also regular refurbs that may happen. Unfortunately, Haunted Mansion won't be open when I visit. That's the only one I'm really saddened by, but it'll be better when I come back.

 

[jason4024]

Disney world gets everything!!!! Why cant they do something fun out here on the west coast!

How about the CarsLand that we East Coasters would love?

 

[Spacedog1975]

How about the CarsLand that we East Coasters would love?

I don't actually want Carsland. I wouldn't complain if we got it, but if rather that be special for California and we get more varied Pixar attractions.

 

[yitbos96bb]

This is the best news we've had in quite a while! My guess is they will start on a Pixar expansion in that area after the holiday season (after Osborne Lights are finished). I just hope this means a couple new attractions, not just something small.

The Star Wars expansion is likely to take up the area where Indy is on the other side of Star Tours.

The big question now is what is the timeline? Will they do the Pixar place expansion and then start on the Star Wars expansion? Or are they going to do both at the same time? That would basically shut down half of the park, so that seems like an unlikely scenario....but who knows!?

That's not a big space for a Star Wars expansion, one rude maybe. I'm guessing way more would be used.

 

[beer dave]

It does feel like a lot is closing at once, but it's nothing to cancel a trip over. Let's take an honest look at the closures:

1) American Idol : I've been to WDW 5x since this opened. Never once felt compelled to actually go in.

2) Backlot Tour : The biggest thing this has going for it is that it's an original element from the park. It was a lot of fun when I visited in 1991, but now it's a shell of that former experience. Shuttering it is no big loss beyond the foot traffic it absorbs. The current Frozen experiences reasonably should absorb that.

3) Maelstrom : I'm going to miss this one, I will. That said, it is a minor ride that was long in the tooth. Plenty of people went to Epcot and never knew it was there in the first place.

4) Animal Kingdom : The only "missing" attraction is a parade. Sure, there are construction walls up, but this can't be avoided with a major park expansion.

None of these things are worthy of canceling a trip over, especially if it's your first visit. There is soooooo much to do at the four parks that I have a hard time thinking you'll miss anything designated above.

Now, there are also regular refurbs that may happen. Unfortunately, Haunted Mansion won't be open when I visit. That's the only one I'm really saddened by, but it'll be better when I come back.

Have you walked through DTD lately? About 50 % of it is a walkway about 15 feet wide with construction walls on both sides.

For us, a big thing about AK is the feel of the surroundings and the views. With all the construction walls, the views are seriously reduced. While I am very happy about the improvements, my visitation will be greatly reduced until completion.

I guess HS will probably be affected the least by the construction... unless they start Star Wars as well.... then a half day park will be a couple hour park.

The Norway thing isn't a big deal by itself either, but considering the other losses in epcot due to area closures, the loss of Maelstrom for 18 months becomes a larger percent loss.

Of course, this is from the perspective of someone who visits rather frequently. For a first timer, there are certainly many things to see and experience, but if it was a once in a lifetime sort of trip, it would be a shame to spend the big bucks to go and not get the full experience because of construction.

 

[tjkraz]

That's not a big space for a Star Wars expansion, one rude maybe. I'm guessing way more would be used.

Purely speculation but that entire Echo Lake area is probably perfect for a Star Wars (or Lucasfilm, depending on status of Indiana Jones Adventure) land.

American Idol and Sounds Dangerous space is available. There have been rumors for years about retheming Backlot Express to more of a Star Wars dining venue. Heck, they could even fill in Echo Lake and it becomes an enormous tract of land.

Specific to Star Wars, that sort of plan makes a lot more sense than infringing on the Muppet / Streets of America real estate.

 

[circus4u]

Have you walked through DTD lately? About 50 % of it is a walkway about 15 feet wide with construction walls on both sides.

For us, a big thing about AK is the feel of the surroundings and the views. With all the construction walls, the views are seriously reduced. While I am very happy about the improvements, my visitation will be greatly reduced until completion.

I guess HS will probably be affected the least by the construction... unless they start Star Wars as well.... then a half day park will be a couple hour park.

The Norway thing isn't a big deal by itself either, but considering the other losses in epcot due to area closures, the loss of Maelstrom for 18 months becomes a larger percent loss.

Of course, this is from the perspective of someone who visits rather frequently. For a first timer, there are certainly many things to see and experience, but if it was a once in a lifetime sort of trip, it would be a shame to spend the big bucks to go and not get the full experience because of construction.

These were my thoughts too. My wife and I did not renew our annual passes because of all the construction. We were there last May and all the walls in the hub and Downtown Disney were depressing. I can imagine what Animal Kingdom is like too. With the cost of airfare, lodging, etc, we decided it wasn't worth the cost since we too like to just walk around and take in the views and not ride that much. Made five trips last year, but decided to wait a couple years until some of this is finished before making our next trip.

 

[yitbos96bb]

Purely speculation but that entire Echo Lake area is probably perfect for a Star Wars (or Lucasfilm, depending on status of Indiana Jones Adventure) land.

American Idol and Sounds Dangerous space is available. There have been rumors for years about retheming Backlot Express to more of a Star Wars dining venue. Heck, they could even fill in Echo Lake and it becomes an enormous tract of land.

Specific to Star Wars, that sort of plan makes a lot more sense than infringing on the Muppet / Streets of America real estate.

Makes sense... I was just referring to using Indy... But yeah. The rest of the area would do the trick. It's not like there isn't precedent for filling in the actual lake at DHS.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

This news is causing all of us to have high expectations. Does Disney have the same high expectations? Time will tell. I for one certainly hope they do and do something that actually exceeds our expectations.

To Dream....the Impossible DREAM!!!!

(Just kidding... Though your sentiments have been mine for about 15 years and I've not come
Close to have been impressed.
Particularly after the "new" fantasyland... Which while good appearance and quality...doesn't come close to a five year timetable and all the boasts that were laid on it by Disney)

 

[jon18uk]

I don't actually want Carsland. I wouldn't complain if we got it, but if rather that be special for California and we get more varied Pixar attractions.

Completely agree, if you want CarsLand, visit California. I'd much rather have unique attractions for the headliners at least. Putting a few of the small ride ideas from CarsLand as part of a Pixar area would be good (and maybe food options such as Cosy Cone) but there are lots of other Pixar movies they can use too such as Incredibles which would fit well in DHS. Plus Cars is jus Test Track with characters, so there is already a repeat at Epcot.

 

[vandy]

To Dream....the Impossible DREAM!!!!

(Just kidding... Though your sentiments have been mine for about 15 years and I've not come
Close to have been impressed.
Particularly after the "new" fantasyland... Which while good appearance and quality...doesn't come close to a five year timetable and all the boasts that were laid on it by Disney)

Yep, and I was thinking the same thing. I had originally added "Only to be let down once again" to my post, but ended up deleting that line because for some reason, this time I feel they have a great opportunity to really nail it. My real concern is that maybe they will do a good job overall, but will it live up to our expectations? At this point I can only be pessimistic and say whatever they end up doing will likely fall short of our expectations. I may end up liking whatever is done, but that doesn't mean that I don't think they could have done something more.

 

[Joben]

With all the changes happening I am seriously considering just cancelling our trip. It will be our first and so far I'm hearing nothing but everything will be closed for upgrades or changes for when we go. To me I'm wondering if it's worth it since this is the park that has something that appeals to all my boys.

Funny how a year or so ago the boards were full of people with the sentiment that Disney was falling behind Universal. When the WWoHP first came out all the fans of Disney were jealous and lamenting how no great expansions were happening. NFL had come out, but that really wasn't that great and it was only for little kids. Avatar land was proposed but no dirt was moving. I agree that it would be a shame for a family that has planned for awhile to show up and see all the construction. But honestly even with all that is closed or under construction Disney still has a vast amount to do and see. I go pretty often and always find something new. My extended family is joining us this March, they haven't been in years and I have no doubt they will leave feeling it was a memorable vacation. It's just humorous reading all the bellyaching from people who want the best of both worlds. People need to relax just a smidgen

 

[lockedoutlogic]

I guess it's a matter of perspective...

If you plan for years to travel...the construction is a major issue/ disappointment.

Me...I welcome as much carpentry and excavation as I can get. But that's never away for too long...so my perspective is obviously vastly different.

Last time I was there downtown was a mess
And more trouble than it was worth...
But at least it's SOMETHING new.

The 20,000 leagues site - "new" fantasyland - sat in mothballs with minor misguided "development for over 10 years.

Lot of money to spend for "ehhh...we'll just close it/leave it in disrepair"
...kinda like over at EPCOT.

 

[ellbell]

Funny how a year or so ago the boards were full of people with the sentiment that Disney was falling behind Universal. When the WWoHP first came out all the fans of Disney were jealous and lamenting how no great expansions were happening. NFL had come out, but that really wasn't that great and it was only for little kids. Avatar land was proposed but no dirt was moving. I agree that it would be a shame for a family that has planned for awhile to show up and see all the construction. But honestly even with all that is closed or under construction Disney still has a vast amount to do and see. I go pretty often and always find something new. My extended family is joining us this March, they haven't been in years and I have no doubt they will leave feeling it was a memorable vacation. It's just humorous reading all the bellyaching from people who want the best of both worlds. People need to relax just a smidgen

I'm sorry I wasn't aware that my bellyaching about the state of attractions that I may never see again on my family's first and very likely last trip to Disney was humorous. I have been planning this for 2 years and was unaware of the inconvenience the state of Disneyworld's older attractions had caused frequent travellers to experience. I guess as someone who doesn't go every year my concerns should be kept to myself.

 

[Spacedog1975]

I'm sorry I wasn't aware that my bellyaching about the state of attractions that I may never see again on my family's first and very likely last trip to Disney was humorous. I have been planning this for 2 years and was unaware of the inconvenience the state of Disneyworld's older attractions had caused frequent travellers to experience. I guess as someone who doesn't go every year my concerns should be kept to myself.

I'm far less concerned about first time visitors who are stressed about the changes than I am about veterans who are reaffirming those reservations. IMHO, you should go. I've been 7x in my lifetime, several times of those times for a week. I *never* ran out of things to do and always departed wanting to stay.

Yes there are attractions closed.
Yes there is construction.

In the grand scheme of things, both of these are minor concerns. You are visiting a forum populated by those of us who go regularly and read & analyze every rumor and announcement. Take it from someone who appreciates what we have more than stresses about what we could or should have: there is plenty of wonder waiting for you at WDW right now.

Otherwise there are 2 possibilities: you wait 3 or more years for currently announced construction to be complete, or you stress because the next phase may very well immediately be announced.

How old will you & your family be in 2017? Will you all be in a position to go then?

Carpe Diem!