New miceage update

[DLtorgo]

Didn't see this posted yet. Lots of new rumors... Here are the ones that stuck out for me.

TDA might make the Christmas parade and fireworks a ticketed event next year thanks to the success of Halloweentime.

Murphy the F dragon might be up for Veteran's day.

Water in Paradise bay so yucky because they need more filtration pumps.

Old midway themed stores to remain in Paradise Bay to be used as space for possible new ride in the future.

Duffy still not attracting a big market yet.

Might be last year for Cast Member Holiday party.

No plan to bring back Food and Wine Festival.

http://miceage.micechat.com/

 

[JH87]

thanks for the info
The Christmas party might be a good idea to control the Holiday crowds.

 

[iheartdisney]

i was SO excited this morning, they played the "Joy to the Small World" commerical during good day L.A. this morning, and I got that warm fuzzy feeling that only comes during the Happiest time of Year at the Happiest Place on Earth. Then that warm fuzzy feeling was replaced with a cold chill reading Al's update.
Bottom line... this has NOTHING to do with crowd control, and everything to do with dollar signs. If crowd control was the crux of the issue, a simple adjustment of the AP blackout calendar would correct the problem. The fact of the matter is that the class of people that can afford to stay in the Grand Californinan for a week at a time has no problem with an extra couple hundred of dollars so they can see the the parade.
Reminds me of the movie Titanic, remember when Rose says half of the people on the ship were going to die, and the reply was, "Not the better half." It doesn't matter what others are being robbed of to those who have the resources.
It would be one thing to develop new entertainment for a hard-ticket event, but in this case it is taking entertainment that has been enjoyed, and in many cases anticipated for 16 years and now making you pay twice to see it, just bacause they can.
Disney markets emotion, and in this case, I think it is entirely wrong, ESPECIALLY since it goes against the entire feeling of Christmas. Maybe the Disney movie, Santa Clause 3 needs to be re-written, so the North Pole remains avaliable only to the highest bidder.

 

[letitsnow]

i was SO excited this morning, they played the "Joy to the Small World" commerical during good day L.A. this morning, and I got that warm fuzzy feeling that only comes during the Happiest time of Year at the Happiest Place on Earth. Then that warm fuzzy feeling was replaced with a cold chill reading Al's update.

I saw that yesterday morning!!! REAL early like around 5am and I couldn't help but wake up my husband and ask him if he heard it....i love that commercial! what a great way to start the morning!!!

3 more days for me!

 

[princess lovers mom]

this it what they do at WDW - it would be nothing new for Disney to make the Christmas parade and fireworks part of a party only - then as it is closer to the holiday it plays nightly to everyone...

 

[DLtorgo]

It would be nice if they could compromise somehow by offering the parade and fireworks to all park guests on some nights, then having a party with access to more characters or something. We will have to see what they decide to do.

 

[lwilkison]

More money, more money, more money! <sigh>

When you don't live in the area it just keeps getting more and more expensive to do the travel plus the park, plus they keep getting you to pay for more and more.

It makes travel to say Hawaii even easier! The air fare used to dissuade us but now that there are more and more costs with DLR our next family vacation is probably going to be somewhere like Hawaii instead of DLR.

Kinda sad because we are most definitely a Disney family!

Oh well. We will be going this year...we were going to go next year...but maybe not now with the news released.

 

[goldies 5]

We are staying at the GC for a week . We would definetely have a hard time trying to justify the extra $$$ it would cost our family of 7 to do this.
We have been going to DLR every Chirstmas now for so many years, and really enjoy the snow, Chirstmas parade, and fireworks.
This would be really dissapointing to our family, not to be able to do this nightly or freely as we choose.

 

[CrazyDuck]

More Money! More Money! If it means less crowds and better experience, I'm all for it!

Thinking about the last paragraph about the entrance on Harbor... What if they closed it to all pedestrian traffic as well... I could see TDA doing this in order to devalue the hotels east of Harbor so they could buy them and expand east.... Can you imagine a DTD east with another set of Disney resorts!

 

[iheartdisney]

More Money! More Money! If it means less crowds and better experience, I'm all for it!

Thinking about the last paragraph about the entrance on Harbor... What if they closed it to all pedestrian traffic as well... I could see TDA doing this in order to devalue the hotels east of Harbor so they could buy them and expand east.... Can you imagine a DTD east with another set of Disney resorts!

The last paragraph is not in reference to the pedestrain crosswalk at harbor, it is talking about the old entrance to the Timon lot (about a block away from the pedsestrian crosswalk/ bus entrance) which was where the original Disneyland entrance stood.

 

[bumbershoot]

TDA might make the Christmas parade and fireworks a ticketed event next year thanks to the success of Halloweentime.

This makes me want to throw up.

Might be last year for Cast Member Holiday party.

So does that. Poor CMs.

this it what they do at WDW - it would be nothing new for Disney to make the Christmas parade and fireworks part of a party only - then as it is closer to the holiday it plays nightly to everyone...

I love the differences between DLR and WDW, and having the December holidays be free and open to all is one of the loveliest ones.

But if they have to do it, I think it makes more sense to go opposite of how WDW does it. For those who choose to give WDW money early in December, they should have everything open to all. For those who go later, charge 'em. (easy for me to say, since we go earlier! LOL)

But really, I've loved the way DLR does it, and it angers me that they are thinking of going the WDW way.

 

[Flitterific]

Wow...that update packed a LOT of info - thank you so much for sharing!

A few thoughts...first of all, Sherry E. totally called the MVMCP, lol I'm still torn as to whether or not I'm in favor of having a ticketed Christmas Party event at DLR. I think there are pros and cons to both. If they do end up charging for it, TDA better make the party a whole lot more exciting than what you currently get or a lot of people (including me) will be upset that we will have to start paying for something that was free before.

As for the murky water in Paradise Pier...gross! I never even took a second look at the water while passing by but now I'm going to be squeemish about having yucky water sprayed on me while watching WoC

On another note...reading about the CM Parties just reinforced my desire to work for Disney...especially WDW. I would feel sorry for DLR CMs if TDA stripped the party from them as they work so hard during the rest of the year and surely deserve a special day for them. However, I am sure a lot of people wouldn't mind that those two days of the year will now be open full day for regular attendees

 

[Eeee-va]

Al's updates are always at best what Disney is considering, certainly not set in stone. He's on occasion said things are coming for sure, and then they either didn't come to pass, or were greatly delayed.

And in the case of the separate ticketed event, he clarifies by saying this is just an idea.

Before you go looking for a pitchfork or torch to help lead a mob to take over the Team Disney Anaheim building,it’s important to remember that this plan to turn the Christmas parade and fireworks into extra-cost options at exclusive parties still doesn’t have the executive green light, but the fantastic numbers and overall improved experience from this past Halloween certainly make the case for 2011.

So I think it's a distinct possibility, but not set in stone.

After all, there was a precedent for the Halloween party to exist, but closing the park before Christmas would be a new thing for Disneyland. And frankly, there are a couple weeks in December where attendance is so light during the week, closing the park early on a Tuesday to offer special nighttime entertainment and "reduced" lines probably wouldn't be terribly compelling for guests. Plus, December has on average about 5 times as much rain as October. There wouldn't be trick or treating nor the ability to dress up. So selling the party almost exclusively based on weather-dependent aspects could be even more problematic than doing so in October.

I don't know what they'd do that would make it a "party" attractive to locals, and IMO they need to have that aspect to make money from the event. If the local audience doesn't see the appeal, then they'll be running the attractions and parades for a tiny crowd. Will locals really pay $40-$50 to see a parade and fireworks show they've seen every Christmas for years now, many with no out-of-pocket cost (using their annual passes)?

Looking at Disney World's offerings, I guess Disneyland could bring free cocoa and cookies? Doesn't quite sound like a party to me, but I'm not a local.

It's probably a good idea to complain vocally and especially to Disney if you don't like the idea. But it's not a given that this will happen. I'd say it's a time to try to find a way to tell Disney how you feel, not to lament how awful it is.

(Though I don't think this upcharge has much to offer compared to the Halloween upcharge and I don't think it's a good idea, I wouldn't compare ANY potential upcharge to any disasters involving a loss of life.)

 

[Raindown]

I'm not completely against a ticketed event. There are pros and cons. If they can have similar benefits to Halloween, I might be interested. It is probably a little harder to do with Christmas and such holidays. It would have to be more than a parade and fireworks.

 

[nunzia]

I just hate the thought of the CM party not happening and hope this gets squashed soon.
I think they could do the Holiday party as a ticket item, as someone else suggested, during certain nights, and then offer Christmas events on a smaller scale for free and be fair. It was a good update!

 

[eggman0905]

I'd love for Murphy to be back for Veteran's Day! Let's cross our fingers!