Is Disney World becoming a shell of its former self?

[DoingDisney]

Ok…i'll play…

"new fantasyland" was a repurposing of the closed 20,000 leagues lagoon area that closed in 1999…and the rapunzel bathroom was placed where the 1999 closed skyway station used to be. mine train was built across from the closed snow whites scary adventures and was replaced with a princess meet and greet that was moved from the tent in toontown. enchanted tales with belle was moved…as was dumbo. ariels grotto was moved. toontowns tent was taken down…then replaced with nearly the exact same tent as was there before…the completely "new" portions were be our guest (not breathtaking by any stretch), ariel, and gastons.

I don't "dislike" any of these things…but they are what they are - repurposing by and large.

Soarin and toy story mania…the definition of "c" tickets…are having extra capacity added 11 and 8 years after opening - respectively - to reduce the standby wait from 75-90 minutes down to 45-60. tale of the tape there. and more fast pass slots - probably most importantly to the orwellian disney nerve center.

food and wine is "second verse, same as the first" at this point. Incredibly popular…but far from original and ingenious now. And i had a wedding in that park at that time. But that was 12 years ago - and it was already well established then. That doesn't bother me as much as they CLONED the festival booths for flower and garden. What's unique about 4 months a year of the booths being "special"?

The suites are a good move in many ways. But don't ya think the prices at AoA are whack? $350 a night plus for a place with no restaurant? I mean…disney is crazy for how much they require the customer to pay for things like a hot tub and a monorail and a boat and have been for close to 25 years….but this is on a new level. buy a room at beach club for the same price, have somebody sleep in the bathroom (joking…not saying to do this realistically) and you get a waterpark and a 5 minute walk to france.

they paved over the horticulture and landscaping in the hub to provide a place to sell more $60 cupcakes and give people a spot to "look up" at a 13 year old fireworks display with probably 60% of the bursts as the original…you do get the castle show now. I will call SHENANIGANS on any reference of "guest benefit" on this one…its a pure meat market/cattle drive move.

Which show at animal kingdom? Nemo? which is better that the previous? Not Festival - where they moved it from the "temporary" theater to the permanent that i can't figure out what is different at all? Cause that doesn't move the bar. I won't even bring up that the show was a placeholder to cover for an abandoned section of the original park design using old magic kingdom parade floats….even thought its 100% true, i won't mention it


My stance and has been without waiver as that none of these things have actually added to the guest experience or close to the value of steadily increasing rooms, tickets and food. All of those things have been on a parabolic trajectory up without pause no matter what real life was saying was prudent.
Now, we seem to be getting back to "addition mode"…so things are looking better right now.

But what I…and i venture others…are saying here is that DISNEY operating procedure was never to do "nothing" or "little" for long stretches of time in the parks. not when the man died, not in the 70's recessions, not in the 80's takeover threats, sure as hell not in the 90's or even crazy late eisner circa 2003.

It was certainly not standard operation procedure as it has become dangerous close to recently….

you know what else was unheard of? "mothballing"

wonders of life…imagination in ruins…innoventions a 20 year wreck…everest broken….pleasure island closed….studios 30% closed - and i'm being generous there… animal kingdom still one land short (minimum) 18 years after opening….

thats eisner AND iger - but it is the truth.

I'm thrilled they went from the DOS based resort system of 1986 design to a windows based…in 2004. Also thrilled i have a waterproof rubber band that makes the mickey spin as opposed to reaching into my pocket (could do without those silly finger scanners though).
Those are IMPROVEMENTs….no question.

But they really used a lot of their parks lifespan in ignoring what had made them great in the first place: that they are never "done" and that quality will win out.

just the view from the cheap seats.

I think you just won the disboards .... is that a thing ?

 

[IamTHERebelSpy86]

Just my two cents on an outdated topic:

Universal has made some amazing changes, expansions, improvements, etc. over the last several years. Its very impressive to see the work they have done and its created for a more enjoyable atmosphere. Whether you're pro Disney, pro Universal, or neutral, nobody can deny the integrity of the work they've done.

However, to actually answer the OP's question/posting title: "Is Disney World Screwed?"

I've been hearing this same battle cry since WWOHP first opened, and the simple answer: The stats don't lie. Go look at the theme park attendance numbers and compare. No matter how much Universal has improved(and I love going to Universal), Disney has still seen a larger number of guests each year, and this will probably continue. Disney is Disney. One thing to keep in mind, Universal doesn't offer enough attractions and entertainment to fulfill a full week's vacation. Most people who visit Orlando, Florida for a week with the purpose to see Universal and their expansions, also flock to WDW for a few days. Disney World is not screwed, and probably never will be due to Universal Studio's expansions.

BTW... just so I don't get fried by anybody who is pro Universal on this subject. All I am doing is stating the facts and giving my opinion on OP's question "Is Disney World Screwed." I am not giving my opinion on which resort I think is better, or giving my opinion on who has seen the better expansions over the last few years. I love both resorts and always will

 

[rteetz]

Universal doesn't offer enough attractions and entertainment to fulfill a full week's vacation

Some might disagree with that. And they are building more hotels, a water park, and they just bought 450 acres for what we can assume a third gate.

 

[Eoghann]

I've been hearing this same battle cry since WWOHP first opened, and the simple answer: The stats don't lie. Go look at the theme park attendance numbers and compare. No matter how much Universal has improved(and I love going to Universal), Disney has still seen a larger number of guests each year, and this will probably continue. Disney is Disney. One thing to keep in mind, Universal doesn't offer enough attractions and entertainment to fulfill a full week's vacation. Most people who visit Orlando, Florida for a week with the purpose to see Universal and their expansions, also flock to WDW for a few days. Disney World is not screwed, and probably never will be due to Universal Studio's expansions.

The choice of the word "screwed" in the question was overly melodramatic and binary. Universal could potentially hurt Disney but there really isn't a scenario where Disney gets so little business in Orlando that they close shop.

 

[Eoghann]

Some might disagree with that. And they are building more hotels, a water park, and they just bought 450 acres for what we can assume a third gate.

Even with the new water park doing nothing but Universal for 7 days is a stretch though no doubt people have done it.

You can't really count things they haven't built or even announced yet. That's like saying DHS is a really popular park because one day they'll finish Star Wars land.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

The choice of the word "screwed" in the question was overly melodramatic and binary. Universal could potentially hurt Disney but there really isn't a scenario where Disney gets so little business in Orlando that they close shop.

honestly - i didn't take the title seriously from the start of the thread

 

[rteetz]

Even with the new water park doing nothing but Universal for 7 days is a stretch though no doubt people have done it.

You can't really count things they haven't built or even announced yet. That's like saying DHS is a really popular park because one day they'll finish Star Wars land.

I agree but I was just trying to say that, that statement was more of an opinion because I'm sure there are people who do spend a week at universal rather than Disney.

 

[3DisneyFanz]

Even with the new water park doing nothing but Universal for 7 days is a stretch though no doubt people have done it.

You can't really count things they haven't built or even announced yet. That's like saying DHS is a really popular park because one day they'll finish Star Wars land.

Based on recent results of Disney projects I'm not sure why anyone would project good results from Stat Wars land especially if they cop out and build a "never before seen land" that just looks like the Myst Island concept art.

 

[davish562]

honestly - i didn't take the title seriously from the start of the thread

If you read the rest of my original post you would have seen how I talked about how stagnant Disney has become. My point is that Universal is gaining on Disney big time, I'm still waiting for them to fix the mess that is known as Epcot and add a fifth gate. Epcot in some areas is depressing to walk through.

 

[davish562]

I

The choice of the word "screwed" in the question was overly melodramatic and binary. Universal could potentially hurt Disney but there really isn't a scenario where Disney gets so little business in Orlando that they close shop.

i was just saying how lazy Disney has become with maintenance and new rides, as the rest of my post explains.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

I

i was just saying how lazy Disney has become with maintenance and new rides, as the rest of my post explains.

"is disney screwed?" is not indicative of what you say though….

anyone that controls 70% of the market in the most visited tourist destination on the planet isn't "screwed" by any metric…

whether the paperboy on spaceship earth works or not

 

[Eoghann]

I

i was just saying how lazy Disney has become with maintenance and new rides, as the rest of my post explains.

Yes but by choosing that particular wording for the title you bring people into the thread with preconceptions of what they're going to talk about. There's a high chance at least half of the people who responded never read your whole post and just reacted to the title. Even those who read the whole thing will have had their reactions colored by the instinct to "pick a side" and the need to defend it.

It did, however, probably encourage lots of people to click on the thread. Which is why headlines are written that way too. I dislike that practice as well.

 

[3DisneyFanz]

anyone that controls 70% of the market in the most visited tourist destination on the planet isn't "screwed" by any metric…

whether the paperboy on spaceship earth works or not

Do you know how this compares to 5 years ago when the paperboy worked?

 

[lockedoutlogic]

Do you know how this compares to 5 years ago when the paperboy worked?

No clue

 

[Budshark]

No they are not screwed. Are they potentially heading for a multi-year slow and painful decline that allows others to gain share and profits and press? Yes, we are entering that now.

Once you reach a point of saturation, and are a public company driven by shareholders without a board willing to stand up and say this is our direction - you start to play it safe. Budgets drive everything, you slow capital investment both in scope and speed, and you go on defense. One could argue Disney is there now. What happens with Star Wars and Avatar and Toy Story? Are they lipstick on a pig (aka NFL) or are they amazing and innovative? We shall see...

 

[Eoghann]

No clue

Universal's market share has increased, Disney's has decreased (very slightly) but remains overwhelming and their attendance has still increased. So they're making more, but not as much as they perhaps could and Universal is established as a legitimate competitor. This would be the definition of "some harm", not "screwed".

If anyone is screwed in this it is likely to be Sea World and Busch Gardens who probably can't compete with the big dogs in a full on arms race.

 

[3DisneyFanz]

Universal's market share has increased, Disney's has decreased (very slightly) but remains overwhelming and their attendance has still increased. So they're making more, but not as much as they perhaps could and Universal is established as a legitimate competitor. This would be the definition of "some harm", not "screwed".

If anyone is screwed in this it is likely to be Sea World and Busch Gardens who probably can't compete with the big dogs in a full on arms race.

That was my next pondering of who benefited from PETA more Disney or Universal.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

That was my next pondering of who benefited from PETA more Disney or Universal.

You would think universal based on the type of rides in AB parks

 

[Eoghann]

That was my next pondering of who benefited from PETA more Disney or Universal.

Hard to say. The increase in attendance of the Magi Kingdom alone exceeds the losses for Sea World Orlando so it would be hard to parse out.

Universal's increase from 2014 comes almost exclusively from Harry Potter I think given only Studios grew.

 

[Nancy F]

We just went to DW the first week of Dec. Spent one of our 10 days at Universal and it was a BIG WASTE of our time and money! Every ride we went on was the same only with different characters. Won't be going back anytime soon. Plus the hubby couldn't ride HP because his shoulders didn't fit. Bad planning on their part to exclude so many people! Size Does Matter at Universal! :-(