Is it just me or....

[wcw57]

has Disney's business model for WDW changed? They used to innovate....now it seems derivative or "catch-up" to me.......

was: Space Mountain and animatronics and other "new" stuff.....

now: refurbishing Tiki room (twice!) . Avatar-land (!!) as a response to Harry Potter


2 Toy story attractions and Cptn E-O!

I mean, still great...greatest....but they don't seem to be the leaders they once were..............new cars at test track? wow!


jmho

 

[Jennasis]

I think they're doing fine. Personally, think some people expectations are getting ludicrous.

Aside from the one (very awesome) ride at IoA, what has Universal done besides play catch up with Disney? I adore Universal (in a very different way than Disney). WWOHP was them finally thinking outside their box. It worked out grand, and now they have a very wonderful themed land on par with what Disney offers at every square inch of their property.

Everyone is an armchair Imagineer, and if Disney doesn't live up to those wacky pipe-dreams of ours and open a new gate-buster every year or transform an unused building into exactly what we envisioned ourselves, then they are "losing it" or "falling behind".

Some recent innovations of Disney that still has them at the top of their game:

Sorcerer's of the Magic Kingdom
Interactive queues
TSMM
Mission Space
Interactive characters
Queue-less meet & greets
FASTPASS
Next Gen
New Fantasyland
Art of Animation resort
Grand Floridian DVC


not every innovation has to be a ride.

 

[joshsmom]

Although I am sure WWOHP would just BLOW MY MIND (haven't seen it yet--was there 2 weeks before it opened ), I don't plan 2 weeks at Universal Studios. But I do at Disney!! Why? Because EVERY TIME I GO, there is something new and different!! I'm sure there are changes to almost any place you go, but DISNEY is special. They put so much into their infastructure from the very beginning, so they have an awesome base to build from. And they do change and grow every year. As pp stated, there's lots of new things going on. Would I love to see other changes/improvements? Absolutely! But anything that I see has been discussed and re-discussed many times over by the Disney brass. They know what they have, they know what they need to do, and they know where they're going. And I'm so thankful I'm along for the ride!!!

 

[larryz]

I agree with OP.

WDW is falling behind other Disney parks around the world -- for example, go to Theme Park Reviews on YouTube and check out the great rides at Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea,

I don't need a new attraction every year to keep me interested. But TSMM was opened in 2008, right? Four years ago. And M:S, 2003 -- nine years ago.

The FE is, to my mind, a long-overdue rehab using space they reclaimed from the 20K Leagues ride (shame on them for closing it!) which they closed in 1994. It took them 16 years to figure something out to do with the huge space freed up by that ride.

The rest are tricks and tweaks to keep the ever-increasing crowds at bay, and to try to help them forget that they're standing in a l-o-n-g line for a 20- or 30-year-old ride...

 

[Mister Skellington]

I love Disney and my favorite ride is splash mountain. I have not been on WWOHP yet (June I will!) but The King Kong portion of the tram ride in Hollywood, the Simpsons, and last but not least Spiderman. These are all VERY good rides. Spiderman is the best technological ride I have been on. IOA is every bit as good as the Disney Parks.

I love Disney but Universal NOT playing catch up anymore.

 

[carrie1626]

I've been to WWOHP- yes it was awesome, especially the Hogwarts ride.
Until Universal expands that aspect of the park exponentially, I won't be back.
Why, because it was the only thing that lit my heart.

I get that feeling at WDW everyplace I turn.

 

[bancytu]

I went to IoA in November. The only part I was impressed with was the Harry Potter part. I will never go back.
Now Disney I would go back again and again. Wish I had more money so I could go every year. Planning my first visit since 2005 for this year.
I think it's magical and worth planning a week to see. IoA however was a one day trip and not again.

 

[wcw57]

Yep, me lovin' some Disney, too. Really.

but I'm talking about innovation like they used to do.....not bells and whistles. Not new "lands" which are re-active rather than pro-active (e.g. MGM Hollywood and now Avatarland)....

I just mean they seem more complacent less like leaders than they used to be..........

I wouldn't be on these boards and going to WDW like I am/do if I were not a true, looooong-time fan. Things just feel....different to me now.

 

[Alby]

I personally prefer Disney atmosphere, and while my last trip was 3 days in Disney and 2 in Universal (and 1 in Seaworld), my next will be 6 days in Disney and 1 in Universal.

Nevertheless, I think that WWHOP was extraordinary in terms of innovation: the (fantastic) new ride is only the beginning of it, it is the immersive themeing that makes the difference. Actually, I think that it is Seuss Land that is on par with Fantasyland themeing, while WWHOP is superior.
Fantasyland expansion and Avatar land sound reactive to me as well, and while I hope that Avatar will be innovative and great in scale (I haven’t seen the film, but that doesn’t matter to me), I’m afraid that the new Fantasyland won’t make a huge difference. It has no real E-tickets, nor is the theme new and able to attract a whole new category of fans (as WWHOP has done for Universal). Target audience is the same as the old Fantasyland.

That said, I still love Disney more, and I prefer spending my time there.

 

[shalom]

I mean, still great...greatest....but they don't seem to be the leaders they once were..............new cars at test track? wow!

Disney has been supposedly losing their innovative leadership status since Walt first started innovating. While I would argue that the lows have been lower since Walt and Roy were around, so far someone who really understands the Disney vision has always stepped up to the plate and pulled the company back to its origins eventually. But those origins -- Walt's original vision -- include a balance between tradition and innovation, and the Disney tradition is a weight on Walt's successors that he didn't have to deal with.

not every innovation has to be a ride.

Ditto that. The interactive queues are keen. The interactive characters, ditto. The talking Mickey Mouse technology is pretty cutting edge.

WDW is falling behind other Disney parks around the world -- for example, go to Theme Park Reviews on YouTube and check out the great rides at Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea,

WDW (and Disneyland) are constrained in a way that the overseas parks are not. A fair percentage of people going to the US Disney parks are looking for a nostalgic experience -- they want their kids to experience parks that remind them of their own childhood. So it's not surprising that the overseas parks are more innovative -- not only were they built more recently, but they can get away with a higher percentage of tinkering and outright changing things there.

 

[MickeysBFF]

Well they are making:
Sorcerers of The Magic Kingdom
Belle's Land:Bonjour village gifts,Gaston's tavern,be our guest restaurant,enchanted tales with Belle
Ariel's Land:Meet and greet,scuttle's scavenger hunt, and the little mermaid ride
Storybook Circus: pete's silly sideshow,barnstormer,dumbo, and a few more things i think
Snow's place:Seven dwarfs mine train (soooo excited for this)
New resort too!
So no i do not think that they are falling behind

 

[dtum]

I've been to WWOHP- yes it was awesome, especially the Hogwarts ride.
Until Universal expands that aspect of the park exponentially, I won't be back.
Why, because it was the only thing that lit my heart.

I get that feeling at WDW everyplace I turn.

Our family felt the same way. It was a "been there-done that" experience. The Spiderman ride was the best at US. Some of their rides were very old and out-dated. The hydraulics in the Shrek ride were so in need of repair you couldn't even hear the movie. I had heard so much about how great the Mummy ride was and we all walked out wondering what had just happened, it was so short and uneventful. I know we can't help comparing the park to DW--it just happens, but our family was certainly not impressed with US/IOA.

 

[shalom]

I've been to WWOHP- yes it was awesome, especially the Hogwarts ride.
Until Universal expands that aspect of the park exponentially, I won't be back.
Why, because it was the only thing that lit my heart.

Yah, a bunch of us want to do WWOHP, but every time we start seriously considering it, we realize there's nothing else in the park we're interested in. Maybe we'd have a great time if we went, but why risk it when we know we'll love SeaWorld and/or WDW, and we definitely aren't tired of either?

 

[disnut8]

Wondering if Universal has something like Kim Possible (and even though the show is gone, I still see at least five parties doing this as I'm walking around World Showcase) or the new Magic Kingdom thing? I think that was innovative. I also think those kinds of things could be changed easily when needed.

I also marveled when Disney was able to change Toy Story Mania overnight from the Toy Story 2 layout to the Toy Story 3 layout. What about Star Tours now with the over 50 different versions? Or Twilight Zone with the sequences?

What I find innovative about Disney World is the very simple fact that almost all of their attractions are geared for the entire family. Just came back from a week with my family, including a five year old. That short five year old could do anything he wanted except for four things. But all was good as he got to be a Jedi Knight and run as part of the kids game in the marathon weekend. His 13 year old sister also ran and was able to do anything the adults wanted. And we could also enjoy several things with my 82 year old wheelchair bound father.

Plus, we all stayed at the same resort in four rooms all side by side with every single request met. My son and his family were provided with free transportation from the Orlando Airport, we drove our car only once to go offsite, we used every single form of Disney transportation, AND we did everything we wanted to do although it took us a week to do it.

Now, that's innovation to me.

 

[mom2rtk]

The rest are tricks and tweaks to keep the ever-increasing crowds at bay, and to try to help them forget that they're standing in a l-o-n-g line for a 20- or 30-year-old ride...

I thought it was just me not getting excited everytime they redo the queue to an existing ride!

I'm looking forward a lot to the FLE. But I'm wondering though if it will seem anti-climactic once it opens and everyone realizes Ariel is the only new ride for now. The mine coaster seems very cool, especially with the swaying cars. But in my mind it's a little close to the idea of the runaway mine car at BTMRR. And the park had to lose the classic SW dark ride to make way for it.

 

[dtum]

Wondering if Universal has something like Kim Possible (and even though the show is gone, I still see at least five parties doing this as I'm walking around World Showcase) or the new Magic Kingdom thing? I think that was innovative. I also think those kinds of things could be changed easily when needed.

I also marveled when Disney was able to change Toy Story Mania overnight from the Toy Story 2 layout to the Toy Story 3 layout. What about Star Tours now with the over 50 different versions? Or Twilight Zone with the sequences?

What I find innovative about Disney World is the very simple fact that almost all of their attractions are geared for the entire family. Just came back from a week with my family, including a five year old. That short five year old could do anything he wanted except for four things. But all was good as he got to be a Jedi Knight and run as part of the kids game in the marathon weekend. His 13 year old sister also ran and was able to do anything the adults wanted. And we could also enjoy several things with my 82 year old wheelchair bound father.

Plus, we all stayed at the same resort in four rooms all side by side with every single request met. My son and his family were provided with free transportation from the Orlando Airport, we drove our car only once to go offsite, we used every single form of Disney transportation, AND we did everything we wanted to do although it took us a week to do it.

Now, that's innovation to me.

US has no Kim Possible thing and between IOA and US we saw only ONE show and it was based on Beetlejuice and not very good--pretty bad actually (I know--shouldn't compare to DW, but DW has the market cornered on shows). They have a lot of big coasters that DH and I don't ride so we "guarded" our backpacks. Most rides you can't take anything on so it was easier watching bags then messing with lockers at every ride. We did enjoy the water type rides which we did just before leaving for the day because we were totally drenched when we got off (way wetter than anything DW has). Touring Harry Potter was very neat, but so crowded you couldn't really stop and enjoy the atmosphere.

I think for us, we still enjoy the old things at DW. We were looking at old movies the other day and saw the 20,000 Leagues ride. DS had never seen it before and we couldn't even think of where it was located. Also had a movie of the original Figment ride. So DW does keep changing things--some for good and some for not (Stitch). I think the only thing we actually skip now is the Indiana Jones show--you can only see it so many times before you figure out the "audience member" is actually part of the show. Waiting to see how TT comes out, we really liked the ride going outside and around the curves so fast so a virtual ride may be a little strange, but the last time we were at Epcot, DH actually filmed the whole ride so we have that memory to go with 20,000 Leagues and Figment....see they do keep changing things-maybe we just have expectations that have gotten way to high because it's DW, but it's still our favorite place to go for vacation and second to none.

 

[KellyNY]

That what you get when there are two major players on a block. One does something then another tops it and so on. We win in this situation so I am not complaining. As for innovations, there are 4 parks they cannot possibly add something new and technologically amazing all the time. I enjoy litlle things they add just as I enjoy big things. Actually if we talk technology, not Disney nor Universal is ahead of the game anyway. The simplest Six Flag has more advanced roller coasters but that is about it, no theme, story or wow factor.
One more thing, wait for Avatarland, that should be something imo, Cameron is not an ordinary person and I excpect all the latest technology there.

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

Wondering if Universal has something like Kim Possible (and even though the show is gone, I still see at least five parties doing this as I'm walking around World Showcase) or the new Magic Kingdom thing? I think that was innovative. I also think those kinds of things could be changed easily when needed.

I also marveled when Disney was able to change Toy Story Mania overnight from the Toy Story 2 layout to the Toy Story 3 layout. What about Star Tours now with the over 50 different versions? Or Twilight Zone with the sequences?

What I find innovative about Disney World is the very simple fact that almost all of their attractions are geared for the entire family. Just came back from a week with my family, including a five year old. That short five year old could do anything he wanted except for four things. But all was good as he got to be a Jedi Knight and run as part of the kids game in the marathon weekend. His 13 year old sister also ran and was able to do anything the adults wanted. And we could also enjoy several things with my 82 year old wheelchair bound father.

Plus, we all stayed at the same resort in four rooms all side by side with every single request met. My son and his family were provided with free transportation from the Orlando Airport, we drove our car only once to go offsite, we used every single form of Disney transportation, AND we did everything we wanted to do although it took us a week to do it.

Now, that's innovation to me.

There is just something about the Disney atmosphere that makes us want to keep going back...even if that means waiting in a long line for a 30 year old ride

The point you mentioned is what sealed the deal for me. It is a truly family oriented vacation experience and the theming and atmosphere is so immersive and cheerful. I think what other competing parks have and are doing to stay on top of their game with thrill rides and technology is great and they have some really fun and exciting stuff to offer, but Disney just represents and means so much more.

 

[roadtripper]

I've been to WWOHP- yes it was awesome, especially the Hogwarts ride.
Until Universal expands that aspect of the park exponentially, I won't be back.
Why, because it was the only thing that lit my heart.

I get that feeling at WDW everyplace I turn.

Yes to this. We went to WWOHP last year and LOVED it, and stayed on property at Universal, which was fine, but pricey and not nearly as well themed as WDW. We got 2 day Universal tickets and only used one day. We will not be back this year. After we did everything at WWOHP twice, there was little else to offer us, and we couldn't wait to go "home" to WDW. Our kids don't like thrill rides, which Universal excels at. Plus, we were appalled at the costumes on the women walking around hawking jello shots at the Mardi Gras party. Nothing new at WDW next month? We're OK with that.

 

[KellyNY]

Yes to this. We went to WWOHP last year and LOVED it, and stayed on property at Universal, which was fine, but pricey and not nearly as well themed as WDW. We got 2 day Universal tickets and only used one day. We will not be back this year. After we did everything at WWOHP twice, there was little else to offer us, and we couldn't wait to go "home" to WDW. Our kids don't like thrill rides, which Universal excels at. Plus, we were appalled at the costumes on the women walking around hawking jello shots at the Mardi Gras party. Nothing new at WDW next month? We're OK with that.

Did you go only to IOA? US has plenty of non roller coaster rides.