How do they get away with having construction on show?

[Smiles4DW]

We were there late May. We didn't feel any of the magic was gone. In fact, my kids are more excited to see the mine train when it is finished. And when I'm looking at the Beast's and Eric's castles, I think they did an amazing job. It allows me to gaze at Cinderella's castle as I enter the park with those castles not taking away that magical moment. Then have another moment once I've walked through Cinderella's castle and see theirs.

 

[cymbaldiva]

It sort of makes me chuckle... people want expansion, new rides, new lands, new parks and then complain because of the work that has to be done. Disney does an amazing job at doing everything they can to minimize the impact to the guest but you can not block everything. It is impossible. You have to give to get.

I never wanted to "get" - Disney is bad to not maintain what they have; I certainly never asked for a new Fantasyland.

Of course, if they insist there is the option of shutting down to do construction - oh wait, I think the current mindset is to have guests pay for a poor show as opposed to having no show at all... *smh*

 

[minnie mum]

I never wanted to "get" - Disney is bad to not maintain what they have; I certainly never asked for a new Fantasyland.

Of course, if they insist there is the option of shutting down to do construction - oh wait, I think the current mindset is to have guests pay for a poor show as opposed to having no show at all... *smh*

Here's a thought. Since you're a Diser you probably know that you can check for major construction and refurb announcements, as well as the probable duration of these projects. If you want to avoid a 'poor show' when you go, then you can simply not go at all when construction is underway. Presto, problem solved.

 

[Son of Gadsden]

Here's a thought. Since you're a Diser you probably know that you can check for major construction and refurb announcements, as well as the probable duration of these projects. If you want to avoid a 'poor show' when you go, then you can simply not go at all when construction is underway. Presto, problem solved.

Your avatar suits you well.

 

[WDSearcher]

I never wanted to "get" - Disney is bad to not maintain what they have; I certainly never asked for a new Fantasyland.

Of course, if they insist there is the option of shutting down to do construction - oh wait, I think the current mindset is to have guests pay for a poor show as opposed to having no show at all... *smh*

But isn't it our CHOICE to visit WDW? It's certainly not something we are forced to do or a requirement that must be fulfilled. And even if you feel that you MUST go to WDW annually or twice a year or whatever, Disney is generally not working on major construction in more than one park at a time, so perhaps just visit the other three and wait for the construction to be completed in the fourth.

I'm not sure what it is that would make you happy. If they closed MK to build NFL, you'd be upset because the entire park was closed. If they're doing construction in one part of the park, you're upset because you can see it. And since YOU didn't ask for a New Fantasyland, then they were wrong to build it.

So your request is that Disney not build anything new unless they ask you first so that it doesn't impact your vacation?

 

[chartle]

I don't know about this. They are taking an extremely long time to finish the Dwarf Mine Train, and they didn't have to open the other parts of New Fantasyland early. It could have all been opened up at one time those shielding some of the work.

And it would have wasted a ton of money and PR. Yes its not that great a view but do you really think they should have just left all the finished stuff closed until the last part was finished?

I guess they could have delayed the start of the other projects but that also can cause major problems if they had all the constructions workers and money lined up ready to go.

 

[mesaboy2]

And it would have wasted a ton of money and PR. Yes its not that great a view but do you really think they should have just left all the finished stuff closed until the last part was finished?

I guess they could have delayed the start of the other projects but that also can cause major problems if they had all the constructions workers and money lined up ready to go.

Yeah, bottom line is 7DMT was a late addition to the New Fantasyland project and involves some first-of-its-kind ride engineering. It was always going to lag the rest by a significant margin.

 

[bcrook]

And it would have wasted a ton of money and PR. Yes its not that great a view but do you really think they should have just left all the finished stuff closed until the last part was finished?

I guess they could have delayed the start of the other projects but that also can cause major problems if they had all the constructions workers and money lined up ready to go.

My point is simply that it was not well planned out, and that the "show" has been sacrificed in the process. I am not complaining. But it does seem to support the idea that Disney is getting a little "sloppy" or careless.

 

[chartle]

My point is simply that it was not well planned out, and that the "show" has been sacrificed in the process. I am not complaining. But it does seem to support the idea that Disney is getting a little "sloppy" or careless.

The issue was they had a plan and were moving forward when the whole fairies and princess lands got axed* and the Mine train coaster was added. At this point the project was already moving and I guess no way to put on the brakes or rearrange how it opened.

Most projects now a days are fast tracked so they basically start building before everything is designed and laid out.

 

[Missyrose]

My point is simply that it was not well planned out, and that the "show" has been sacrificed in the process. I am not complaining. But it does seem to support the idea that Disney is getting a little "sloppy" or careless.

Understood. But the bottom line was that land was earmarked for princess M&Gs. Once the plans changed, Disney had two options: 1) Wait for 7DMT to be done before opening the rest of NewFL. Or 2)Build the coaster on an island in the middle.

Which would you rather have, a new ride or a bunch of princess M&Gs? Could it have been planned better? Sure, if the ride had been in the plans from the beginning. The plans changed and Disney is doing the best it can to shield the work.

 

[bcrook]

Understood. But the bottom line was that land was earmarked for princess M&Gs. Once the plans changed, Disney had two options: 1) Wait for 7DMT to be done before opening the rest of NewFL. Or 2)Build the coaster on an island in the middle.

Which would you rather have, a new ride or a bunch of princess M&Gs? Could it have been planned better? Sure, if the ride had been in the plans from the beginning. The plans changed and Disney is doing the best it can to shield the work.

I am good with it. I am a happy camper.

There is one more option though. Speed up the work on the mine train. It has been dragged out a long time.

 

[chartle]

Yeah, bottom line is 7DMT was a late addition to the New Fantasyland project and involves some first-of-its-kind ride engineering. It was always going to lag the rest by a significant margin.

Wasn't the original opening date Fall 2012 with everything open.

Also any idea what happened to the Area for the Fairies, did the new set of Direct to video movies just not work out?

I vaguely recall that when Disney bought Pixar, John Lasseter became the head of animation and pretty much strapped the original movie after it was almost finished.

 

[WDSearcher]

My point is simply that it was not well planned out, and that the "show" has been sacrificed in the process. I am not complaining. But it does seem to support the idea that Disney is getting a little "sloppy" or careless.

If you go back and look at the original first-generation plans for New Fantasyland, you'll see a huge princess area and an entire fairy Pixie Hollow village. No Mine Train. They broke ground with that as the plan.

Fairies ended up not having quite the massive popularity that Disney had anticipated, plus Disney was getting a lot of grief about the area having nothing for boys. So ... Pixie Hollow went away, the princess cottages morphed into the greeting hall (which is also opening later than the rest of the land), and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train was added. At that point, they were well on their way with the elements of the land that had not changed -- Storybook Circus, BOG, Mermaid, etc. I suppose they could have stopped construction on the things that were being worked on and waited for 7DMT to catch up, but that would have left construction walls up longer around the entire section, which means that the construction for ALL of New Fantasyland would have been in view two years longer, plus there'd be droves of people complaining that Disney had all this half-built stuff that was just sitting there, and why don't they just finish what they can and open it now and open the other stuff later?

If you look at early pictures of Disneyland, you'll see lots of construction going on -- they were still pouring concrete on opening day, for goodness sake. New areas were being built every year. Of course, Disneyland had the benefit of off-time. They were closed during the off-season like all the other California tourist attractions, so the park literally had months of no guests in which to built new attractions. I can't imagine that anyone would be thrilled if WDW was closed for five or six months of the year so that they could build a new land or re-do some area of the park. Back then, it was possible. Now? There'd be a full-out mutiny. People complain if the park closes at 8pm instead of 11. Can you imagine the outcry if MK was closed for a year to build something?

Disney hasn't gotten "sloppier". The projects have simply gotten bigger. It's hard to double the size of Fantasyland without it impacting the look and feel of the rest of the park, just as it would have been impossible to build Cars Land without it being in full sight of guests to DCA. If all Disney was doing was dropping in a pre-fab coaster or doing one indoor attraction, then sure ... you can hide that a lot more. But the projects are bigger -- even SeaWorld with Antarctica and Universal with its new Harry Potter have cranes and equipment and walls and dirt piles everywhere. It's not as though Disney is the only park that shows its work. And it's not like Disney has some magical way to hide a major construction project that the other parks don't.

 

[chartle]

I am good with it. I am a happy camper.

There is one more option though. Speed up the work on the mine train. It has been dragged out a long time.

Problem is this is not a cookie cutter attraction like The New Transformer Ride, its all new. As posted above they are building as its designed.

Also I'm assuming they don't want another opening like Test Track.

 

[Luvchefmic]

I could see someone calling it "bad show" IF all the 100s maybe 1000s ? of workers that you don't see working (the electricians, etc) that are there all night long suddenly worked during the day Then it would be "bad show" and unsafe What is being seen during the day is absolute minimum

 

[mesaboy2]

I am good with it. I am a happy camper.

There is one more option though. Speed up the work on the mine train. It has been dragged out a long time.

I think that "dragged out" is unfair. Without detailed knowledge and familiarity with the design and engineering details (which none of us have), any perceptions that it is "taking too long"--an oft-repeated complaint--are in my opinion unjustified.

Wasn't the original opening date Fall 2012 with everything open.

Also any idea what happened to the Area for the Fairies, did the new set of Direct to video movies just not work out?

I vaguely recall that when Disney bought Pixar, John Lasseter became the head of animation and pretty much strapped the original movie after it was almost finished.

I don't recall the original date. The most widely-believed rationale for scrapping PH was that the head of WDW at the time (Rasulo?) had sons but no daughters and thought there was no balance in there for the young male set. Enter 7DMT and a small thrill factor. I have a daughter, and all I know is she loves the Tink movies they continue to pump out every year or so.

 

[d1gitman]

Yeah, bottom line is 7DMT was a late addition to the New Fantasyland project and involves some first-of-its-kind ride engineering. It was always going to lag the rest by a significant margin.

also, what is the life cycle of an e-attraction that Disney has to design to vs. a six flags? i doubt that 50 yrs. from now you will see many, if any, of the current coasters at a six flags or cedarpoint type park.

for what these attractions entail, i don't think it's taking too long. building 1 of a kind, first of a kind rides takes a lot of engineering and time to get it right, safe and long lasting.

 

[chartle]

I don't recall the original date. The most widely-believed rationale for scrapping PH was that the head of WDW at the time (Rasulo?) had sons but no daughters and thought there was no balance in there for the young male set. Enter 7DMT and a small thrill factor. I have a daughter, and all I know is she loves the Tink movies they continue to pump out every year or so.

OK I found what I was looking for.

I guess all that green area in the middle is where the Princess M&G and Pixie Hollow was supposed to be.

 

[mesaboy2]

OK I found what I was looking for.

There you go. They pretty much met that, except for the big change in the middle.

 

[tbia]

I think some of you supporters are giving Disney too much slack. Listen, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition is on ABC, which is owned by Disney.

Give that crew the order and they can have this whole Mine Train thing done in a week. I have seen it over and over.