New Al Lutz: Marketing DCA and Cars Land, EP Not Returning?, BVS Entertainment

[HydroGuy]

Al Lutz of MiceAge posted a new update today here with lots of juicy rumor tidbits:

http://miceage.micechat.com/allutz/al110111a.htm

Highlights include:

o Disney food and merchandise visits Universal's Islands of Adventure to get ideas about Cars Land
o Growing DLR attendance from non-local tourists
o Marketing push for DLR and DCA starts in Spring 2012
o Destination DLR campaign to market in mid-America regions for the first time as well as domestic and international Pacific regions
o Electrical Parade looks like it is not coming back to DCA - maybe to DL and maybe not at all
o Buena Vista Street entertainment firming up - "Five and Dime", "News Boys", and "Friendly Sisters"
o Talking Mickey meet and greet on BVS
o New uniforms coming to many areas of DCA
o Mad T Party to replace ElecTRONica
o More details about Cars Land activities and uniforms
o RSR to have FP
o Luigi's Flying Tires will need some practice
o Details on POTC refurb
o Matterhorn to be down for 6 months in early 2012
o Plaza Gardens refurb to Fantasy Faire to begin after Christmas
o Fantasy Faire and re-opened Fantasyland theater to open in 2013


Note: Al Lutz does not work for Disney. His posts are not Disney announcements. He has solid contacts inside Disney and is helpful in giving an indication of what Disney is planning and considering. People planning vacations should be very cautious about making plans based on Al's articles. That is not what they are intended for. Rather, Al tries to give an insider view of what Disney is thinking and planning for those interested in what the future may hold. This can and does change over time.

Here is the disclaimer that Al has at the end of his article:

Keep in mind updates only get posted when there is something to report on, and not before. It takes time to confirm things, and even then we can only offer a snapshot of a continually evolving story. (People do change their minds you know.) Just like the happiest place on earth, patience is a virtue; the queue may take a while before you can enjoy the attraction.

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

I'm so excited about the new entertainment!!! I can't wait to see it all come together.

 

[GrandBob]

Wow, quite an update.

Plusses:
Plans for the big relaunch sound great. As do the plans for Mad T Party and the overall ambiance around CarsLand. The street theater around the courtyard sounds like a lot of fun.

Minuses:
They're considering retiring the Electrical Parade? Sacrilege!!!
And oh oh for the future price increases. No more great AP promotions, and ticket and AP price increases of 5-8% at the end of summer. I was already on the fence about buying APs again this year, and managed to buy an AP voucher at the old prices (which I'll activate in a couple of weeks, yay). Not sure I'd do it at the current prices. Further price increases will further de-motivate, which is what it sounds like they're trying to accomplish.

Oh, and was it already known that Matterhorn was going to be down for six months? I knew about several rehab periods, but I thought each one was a month or so. Was I not paying attention again?

Overall, it sounds great. DLR is still a great product, and as long as they're packing them in, they're gonna raise prices.

Thanks for the heads-up, Trey.

-Bob

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

Yes it was know (or rumored) that Matterhorn was going to be down for the first half of 2012.

I'm excited about the Mad T Party too (and the merchandise). We didn't experience Glow Fest because we went right after WOC was open and it was just craziness. I'll get to see ElecTRONica in January. We'll be getting APs again this year, just not sure when.

 

[HydroGuy]

Yes it was know (or rumored) that Matterhorn was going to be down for the first half of 2012.

I'm excited about the Mad T Party too (and the merchandise). We didn't experience Glow Fest because we went right after WOC was open and it was just craziness. I'll get to see ElecTRONica in January. We'll be getting APs again this year, just not sure when.

Go see Laserman at ElecTRONica!

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

Go see Laserman at ElecTRONica!

I will. DH and I are finally getting a kid free trip for our anniversary, and running the Neverland 5k. I'm excited to experience a lot of the things we pass over with 4 small kids in tow.

 

[DLR29]

Interesting article! I can't wait to see how the T party looks.

 

[Eeee-va]

For all that people criticize Al for being too critical/cynical/etc., that update made me want to see the DLR in 2012 more than any official Disney page ever has! I'm thinking 2013 is more practical, though.

The T Party does not sound appealing to me, but it's far enough away, I wouldn't be at all surprised if Disney is putting the rumors out there to gauge the hardcore fan reaction. I imagine it would be easy enough to tone down certain elements a bit if need be.

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

For all that people criticize Al for being too critical/cynical/etc., that update made me want to see the DLR in 2012 more than any official Disney page ever has! I'm thinking 2013 is more practical, though.

me too!

 

[Mortimer Mouse]

That was a great read, thanks hydro for always highlighting Al's informative articles.....

 

[DryCreek]

Al Lutz of MiceAge posted a new update today here with lots of juicy rumor tidbits:
Highlights include:

o Disney food and merchandise visits Universal's Islands of Adventure to get ideas about Cars Land
o Growing DLR attendance from non-local tourists
o Marketing push for DLR and DCA starts in Spring 2012
o Destination DLR campaign to market in mid-America regions for the first time as well as domestic and international Pacific regions This is good for me (Texas)
o Electrical Parade looks like it is not coming back to DCA - maybe to DL and maybe not at all
o Buena Vista Street entertainment firming up - "Five and Dime", "News Boys", and "Friendly Sisters"
o Talking Mickey meet and greet on BVS
o New uniforms coming to many areas of DCA
o Mad T Party to replace ElecTRONica
o More details about Cars Land activities and uniforms
o RSR to have FP
o Luigi's Flying Tires will need some practice
o Details on POTC refurb
o Matterhorn to be down for 6 months in early 2012 This is not so good for me (visiting late Feb 2012)
o Plaza Gardens refurb to Fantasy Faire to begin after Christmas
o Fantasy Faire and re-opened Fantasyland theater to open in 2013

And from the link provided:

"for the first time Disneyland Resort advertising will be aimed specifically at families in cities west of the Rockies like Denver, Dallas, and San Antonio. The Texas and Rocky Mountain strategy had to receive Burbank’s blessing as those media markets have traditionally belonged solely to Disney World,"
This will be interesting. I wonder if they will offer onsite hotel rates that at least compare to the moderates at WDW? Maybe they will even develop a real dining plan for the DLR.
I do believe that they are too location oriented for their client advertising. As mentioned in another post, when I saved a Good Neighbor DL offer, I was immediately sent an e-mail congratulating me on considering another visit to...Walt Disney World.
Although I am a WDW fan, i hope that our DLR trip proves to be a suitable Disney fix in a shorter (and less expensive) package. The only thing I would truly miss that is offered at WDW exclusively is Epcot.

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

I don't think any of the onsite hotels would be considered moderates. And the dining options don't even compare to WDW. There are maybe a dozen TS restaurants in the 3 hotels and 2 parks (not counting DTD), but a TON of restaurants around the surrounding hotels. I think very few people would like being forced to eat onsite for every meal unless it was for free or a deep discount.

 

[skiingfast]

And from the link provided:

"for the first time Disneyland Resort advertising will be aimed specifically at families in cities west of the Rockies like Denver, Dallas, and San Antonio. The Texas and Rocky Mountain strategy had to receive Burbank’s blessing as those media markets have traditionally belonged solely to Disney World,"

Although I am a WDW fan, i hope that our DLR trip proves to be a suitable Disney fix in a shorter (and less expensive) package. The only thing I would truly miss that is offered at WDW exclusively is Epcot.

This could be a stupid move. Thousands of dollars of revenue at WDW would not want to be traded for hundreds at DLR.

It would have to be carefully marketed as a try DLR as an extra visit, don't sub DLR for WDW.

 

[ArchOwl]

This could be a stupid move. Thousands of dollars of revenue at WDW would not want to be traded for hundreds at DLR.

It would have to be carefully marketed as a try DLR as an extra visit, don't sub DLR for WDW.

I don't know, DL isn't exactly cheap is it? Looking at a random 5 night stay in March, a value resort at WDW with a 6 day ticket and a Quick Service Dining Plan is $2734.

That same 5 nights at DL at PPH is $2400 with 6 day PH tickets. No dining. Even if folks stay fewer nights, they are going to have to shell out some cash for meals. Even if they do it on the cheap, the amount they spend is going to be comparable to those on a dining plan in WDW.

Either way, Disney is making money.

 

[skiingfast]

I don't know, DL isn't exactly cheap is it? Looking at a random 5 night stay in March, a value resort at WDW with a 6 day ticket and a Quick Service Dining Plan is $2734.

That same 5 nights at DL at PPH is $2400 with 6 day PH tickets. No dining. Even if folks stay fewer nights, they are going to have to shell out some cash for meals. Even if they do it on the cheap, the amount they spend is going to be comparable to those on a dining plan in WDW.

Either way, Disney is making money.

To do a realistic comparison you need 7 nights at WDW, and 3 at DL for starters.

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

To do a realistic comparison you need 7 nights at WDW, and 3 at DL for starters.

And you CANNOT compare PPH to a value!

 

[ArchOwl]

To do a realistic comparison you need 7 nights at WDW, and 3 at DL for starters.

But the whole point of this campaign would be to woo out of state folks who stay longer than 3 nights. Coming to DLR would be their vacation and they aren't the locals who stay for a few nights. The folks at DLR have to convince these them that the DLR is a vacation destination like WDW that you can visit for multiple days by hyping Carsland, redone DCA, and a freshened up DL. This is further supported by their desire to see APs remain flat or even decline. They want the out of state folks and their longer stays.

 

[ArchOwl]

And you CANNOT compare DLH to a value!

The comparison was PPH to value, and that was to be generous. It just proves the point that Disney would not lose money as a company if folks stayed at DLR instead of WDW.

ETA: what they do have to guard against is losing folks who normally stay on site at WDW from staying off site at DLR. Hopefully they highly incentivize on site stays or doing something else to keep those visits on site. Maybe they have indications that those who stay on site at WDW are pre-disposed to stay onsite at DLR?

 

[skiingfast]

But the whole point of this campaign would be to woo out of state folks who stay longer than 3 nights. Coming to DLR would be their vacation and they aren't the locals who stay for a few nights. The folks at DLR have to convince these them that the DLR is a vacation destination like WDW that you can visit for multiple days by hyping Carsland, redone DCA, and a freshened up DL. This is further supported by their desire to see APs remain flat or even decline. They want the out of state folks and their longer stays.

That's all well and good. But it will still create an overall loss for Disney.

There are huge difference in the resorts, and to put it simply WDW has a captive audience, DLR does not.

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

The comparison was PPH to value, and that was to be generous. It just proves the point that Disney would not lose money as a company if folks stayed at DLR instead of WDW.

ETA: what they do have to guard against is losing folks who normally stay on site at WDW from staying off site at DLR. Hopefully they highly incentivize on site stays or doing something else to keep those visits on site. Maybe they have indications that those who stay on site at WDW are pre-disposed to stay onsite at DLR?

I corrected my previous statement. I don't know if I'd even compare it to a moderate.