Impact of Norway Frozen Attraction

[wareagle57]

Why would they do that? When Malestrom was open, it was a tier 1 with TT& soarin, wasn't it? Will the extra theater at Soarin be done by the time Frozstrom is open?

I'm not sure if the 3rd theater will be done but it seems like less work than building an entire new ride so I'm hopeful it will be. Of course then they might start closing down a screen at a time to implement the new film and rehab the other theaters.

As for why they would do that, there will be a lot more demand for the Frozen ride than there was for Maelstrom. Most people will use that for their tier 1, leaving plenty of FPs open for Test Track. And with presumably an entire screen just for FP, Soarin' should be able to handle being tier 2.

 

[mesaboy2]

Why would they do that? When Malestrom was open, it was a tier 1 with TT& soarin, wasn't it? Will the extra theater at Soarin be done by the time Frozstrom is open?

Based on what I've understood to date, no. I believe Froway is officially announced as "early 2016", and rumors to this point indicate a new Soarin' theater by late 2016. We'll see if either is correct.

 

[court9008]

This is a good, and specific, question.

Will ALL of WS open?, just Norway?, will it stay 11:00?

That is a good question. I haven't even thought of that.

 

[minnie mum]

I don't think they would remove Soarin from Tier one. They will still need additional Tier one choices for guests who can't get a Frozen fast pass at 12:10 am on their 60 day. Not unlike the current FP frenzy over A&E in MK. Perhaps they might drop LWTL to tier 2. And then, once their new venue is completed, there will be the A&E meet and greet which will move to the top of the priority list for many. At THAT point, with 5 headliners, I wonder if they will discontinue the tiers at Epcot.

I also don't think they will open WS at 9:00 just to please those over eager for their Frozen fix. These theoretical crowds are only interested in one attraction. Why open the entire showcase, with all of the attending costs? And because we're talking Disney, I don't think they'd open just the Norway attraction 2 hours only, either. Again, they are only going to be looking at the bottom line. Unlike a restaurant, which generates revenue, an attraction only costs money.

In the mean time, I don't think anyone needs to be a brain scientist or rocket surgeon to forecast that the Frozen ride, and the entire Norway pavilion will be a prime attraction, will result in the area being very congested, and will have exorbitantly long wait times. But I don't think this necessarily means that the overall crowd levels in the park will be all that much higher. JMHO.

 

[JimmyV]

No one knows. I am hoping for a pretty big redo and not still a flume-type ride with Frozen added, but that's probably just a fool's hope.

No one can accuse you of being a "fool", but I do think that "a pretty big redo" is a pipe dream. When one compares how long it is taking Disney to get Avatar up and running, how long it took 7DMT to be built, and then one compares that to the length of time it took to build Journey of The Little Mermaid, I think we can expect a ride that opens in 2016 to be a heck of a lot more like JOTLM than anything innovative and envelope pushing. I think you can count on "soft-serve ice cream" hair on the sisters sitting in an ice palace.

 

[NJlauren]

If I remember correctly the queue space for the 'Frozen' ride isn't going to accommodate 120 minute waits.... Is it possible it will be FP only at the beginning?

 

[ArwenMarie]

I think it's going to have an massive impact on the feeling of that side of World Showcase.

Epcot is a big park geographically, it can absorb a lot of people, so I don't think the rest of the park will be that affected in terms of how it feels.

I think they will move the tiers around a bit but I imagine Soarin, TT and Frozen will still all be Tier 1. I don't think it will add enough capacity to get rid of the tiering system.

 

[kbelle8995]

If I remember correctly the queue space for the 'Frozen' ride isn't going to accommodate 120 minute waits.... Is it possible it will be FP only at the beginning?

There was big controversy over them doing that with Soarin so I doubt they will do that with the Frozen ride

 

[jhaig]

If it's Tier 1, they need to move either Soarin or TT to Tier 2. There's nothing in tier 2 you even need a FP for now as it is.

 

[DebbieB]

No one can accuse you of being a "fool", but I do think that "a pretty big redo" is a pipe dream. When one compares how long it is taking Disney to get Avatar up and running, how long it took 7DMT to be built, and then one compares that to the length of time it took to build Journey of The Little Mermaid, I think we can expect a ride that opens in 2016 to be a heck of a lot more like JOTLM than anything innovative and envelope pushing. I think you can count on "soft-serve ice cream" hair on the sisters sitting in an ice palace.

From the picture I saw, they gutted the inside of the building, so they are starting fresh.

 

[JimmyV]

From the picture I saw, they gutted the inside of the building, so they are starting fresh.

The question isn't "are they starting fresh". It is "where will they end up". Just a guess/prediction. But I think it will be a smaller version of Little Mermaid.

 

[minnie mum]

If I remember correctly the queue space for the 'Frozen' ride isn't going to accommodate 120 minute waits.... Is it possible it will be FP only at the beginning?

There isn't a queue line for ANY attraction that will accommodate 120 minute waits. They haven't implemented FP only on any other attraction. (have you seen the line for SDMTwhich can extend outside the entrance all the way to the Tea Cups? The logistics is going to be difficult since the attraction is in the middle between Akhershus and the Gift shop exit.

 

[NJlauren]

There isn't a queue line for ANY attraction that will accommodate 120 minute waits. They haven't implemented FP only on any other attraction. (have you seen the line for SDMTwhich can extend outside the entrance all the way to the Tea Cups? The logistics is going to be difficult since the attraction is in the middle between Akhershus and the Gift shop exit.

I haven't seen the SDMT yet but will in a few weeks.... I guess I remember the queue being short.... But you're right no queue is set to hold that many people....no matter what this will be interesting.

 

[jade1]

It will not open at 9AM "unless" it is more popular than Maelstrom was.

 

[mesaboy2]

From the picture I saw, they gutted the inside of the building, so they are starting fresh.

Yep. I still want a trackless ride system a la Pooh's Hunny Hunt at TDR or Ratatouille at DLP. That's my hope and I'm sticking to it.

 

[JimmyV]

Yep. I still want a trackless ride system a la Pooh's Hunny Hunt at TDR or Ratatouille at DLP. That's my hope and I'm sticking to it.

And I want the "Ice Coaster 3000" where "Let It Go" is a term that applies to your lunch! But that ain't gonna happen.

 

[mesaboy2]

And I want the "Ice Coaster 3000" where "Let It Go" is a term that applies to your lunch! But that ain't gonna happen.

Without knowing the ins and outs of the ride system, I claim ignorance and say they can do it there since they've done it a couple of times before now.

 

[lynch34]

Does anyone really think the attraction will be open in 3/2016? I'm very doubtful.

 

[mesaboy2]

Does anyone really think the attraction will be open in 3/2016? I'm very doubtful.

Without more information to go on, what else can be said? I don't know where March came from, to this point I have only every heard "early" 2016. By then it will have been 18 months or so, I think it's completely possible--just depends on what the attraction is planned to be, which we don't have a clue on.

 

[court9008]

I think it's going to have an massive impact on the feeling of that side of World Showcase.

Epcot is a big park geographically, it can absorb a lot of people, so I don't think the rest of the park will be that affected in terms of how it feels.

I think they will move the tiers around a bit but I imagine Soarin, TT and Frozen will still all be Tier 1. I don't think it will add enough capacity to get rid of the tiering system.

You made some good points. I've been thinking along the same lines as you. In regards to WS, I want to take out time to explore each pavilion in more detail. As a matter of fact, I wanted to have a meal at Akershus (preferably lunch) and take a look at some areas that I have previously overlooked. However, I'm pretty sure that Norway is going to present some challenges considering the never ending Frozen mania. I just hope that they don't throw in A&E as the host for Akershus before I get there. I really wanna meet Belle in her ballgown.

Who knows what to expect lol? We're simply living in a "Frozen" world