News on the 5th park

[Tikiman]

We just got back the end of last week and we found out some info on the 5th park. Sorry if this has already been reported. I do not spend much time in the rumor board and I have not read them all. We noticed when visiting the Animal Kingdom Lodge that there were many roads going past it that were not being used. We asked a Polynesian staff member and a Disney Engineer we met what the roads were for and they said they have cleared the area past the AKL for the 5th park. It will be a park with more thrill rides (sort of like California adventure or Islands of Adventure). Just thought I would post what I found out.

Steve

 

[JeffJewell]

...meaty rumor. Think I'll wait to see what some other folks say before I write my novella...

Jeff

 

[wdwguide]

I do not think there's enough space back there for another major theme park. There are facilities both to the north and the south of the park. The Animal Kingdom Lodge is in the southwest, leaving only a relatively narrow "wedge" between the lodge, the park, and and edge of the property. The roads that I can make out are Sherberth, the bus loop to the AK, and some small roads that lead to the facilities on that side of the park.
There are fairly large areas cleared adjacent to the Animal Kingdom, although those look like remnants of better times, i.e. the sites of Beastly Kingdom, and the vast stretch of the original Asia, which is located between Conservation Station and the parts of Asia that actually got built.

 

[Tikiman]

They said it was just cleared a few weeks ago. The two people we talked to knew a lot about the parks. One was a chief Engineer that had been there since 1970 before the park opened. I don't usually listen to rumors very often but they seemed sure of this. They even gave me some literature that no one is supposed to see but I can not discuss any of that in here.

Steve

 

[Captain Crook]

...but I cannot discuss any of that in here.

What're you doin' to us, Tikiman???...You do know my email address don't you?

 

[johare]

...and why can't you discuss it here? Did you sign a non-disclosure agreement?

I doubt Disney has any immediate concrete plans for a 5th park right now and if they did, there certainly wouldn't be any secret literature out there being handed out by mysterious staff members.

 

[carterman_12]

I stayed a few weeks ago at AKL, and during the day while waiting for the buses to the parks we freqently noticed construction machiery going into the restricted area. Plus, the road was completey blocked off and covered from sight from AKL...........

 

[Tikiman]

I don't want to get anyone in trouble. They did a lot for us while we were there. We even got our brick replaced in the walk around the world and got to take the original one home. After all they did for us I will not say the things they did not want me to talk about.

I agree that I was surprised to hear they were so far in the planning of the new park and the thing they gave us was not something they hand out to anyone usually. I guess they just trusted us. Why I don't know. Like I said I am not much for believing rumors myself (that is why I am not in here much) but they seemed sure of this. You don't have to believe me. Next time you go to AKL and see the roads I was talking about you will understand. There were two lanes in each direction with an island but only one side is being used for both directions of traffic and they cone it off where you turn to go into the AKL. The large roadway (too large for just the resort) goes past the AKL which seemed strange and is the reason I asked about it. I guess time will tell.

Steve

 

[JeffJewell]

...Disney's Animal Kingdom's Beastly Kingdom.

Disney buys some racier rides from Intamin or Vekoma and sequesters them in a hard ticketed section of the Animal Kingdom complex.

Jeff

 

[anim8or98]

DAKhas land cleared out behind Camp Minnie Mickey for Beastly Kingdom (which is a go) and it is enclosed by a cast access only road. They recently put up fences around this land (which is also behind Rainforest Cafe). The cranes everyone has seen are for building the parade float holding pens behind other Animal Kingdom buildings. Yes, there are roads that lead to nowhere near DAK Lodge, but they are heading towards backstage DAK and not to open fields. The original idea for DAK was to have two resorts adjacent - DAK Lodge and the Safari Lodge (if anyone remembers the rumors from a couple years back), so maybe these roads were just in case. Any theme park that would be built that close to DAK would disrupt the animals, especially with rides by Vekoma and such. I think this is all just a big story.

 

[mrgoofy]

I'm not too sure about a whole theme park devoted to thrill rides. That is VERY un-Disney. Disney parks are places for the whole family. If people wanted a thrill ride park so badly in central Florida, we would have seen the oft rumored Six Flags Orlando by now. I can see the Beastly Kingdom (infact I hope that is what they're building). If Animal Kingdom is having attendance woes, what better way to boost the numbers than by adding a large new land? It wouldn't make financial sense to build a new park now because new parks canibalize attendance from the existing parks, and more of a drop in attendance isn't what the bean counters want to see happen at the Animal Kingdom. And besides, it has already been announced that Animal Kingdom will undergo expansion within the next few years. I don't remember the time frame I heard, but it extends past the opening of Dino-Rama.

 

[Another Voice]

An all thrill ride park would generate a tremendous amount of noise - just stand near any roller coaster or think how far you can hear the screams from the 'Tower of Terror'.

Why would they put a noisy park like this right next to their animals when they have spent so much time and effort to avoid all of the other noise distractions?

Just a thought...

 

[ozmo19]

Disney can't even replace lightbulbs any longer and they have AK lacking in well, attractions. A decaying Future World, and ride removals all over the place. I think to hear of a 5th park rumor at this point in time is now laughable. We sit here and contend that if Epcot didn't have so many dining spots, management would be glad to close the point at this point in time.

 

[Ocean]

Originally posted by Another Voice
An all thrill ride park would generate a tremendous amount of noise - just stand near any roller coaster or think how far you can hear the screams from the 'Tower of Terror'.

Why would they put a noisy park like this right next to their animals when they have spent so much time and effort to avoid all of the other noise distractions?

Just a thought...

This is an interesting point. Shortly after the Animal Kingdom opened, I was riding a bus from the hotel to the park when another guest asked the driver if there were fireworks at AK. The driver replied that the park would not have a nightly fireworks display because they were concerned for the animals. However, didn't the Animal Kingdom have some type of fireworks on New Year's Eve during the millenium celebration? If memory serves they were supposed to be out in the parking lot. I wonder if they have determined a certain "safe" distance from the animals that Disney feels will be acceptable for more thrill rides?

 

[Ocean]

Originally posted by mrgoofy
I'm not too sure about a whole theme park devoted to thrill rides. That is VERY un-Disney. Disney parks are places for the whole family. If people wanted a thrill ride park so badly in central Florida, we would have seen the oft rumored Six Flags Orlando by now. I can see the Beastly Kingdom (infact I hope that is what they're building). If Animal Kingdom is having attendance woes, what better way to boost the numbers than by adding a large new land? It wouldn't make financial sense to build a new park now because new parks canibalize attendance from the existing parks, and more of a drop in attendance isn't what the bean counters want to see happen at the Animal Kingdom. And besides, it has already been announced that Animal Kingdom will undergo expansion within the next few years. I don't remember the time frame I heard, but it extends past the opening of Dino-Rama.

I've hashed this one over a bit, and I'm not sure that it is all that un-Disney. While it is certainly true that the current parks consist primarily of attractions that the entire family can do together, there are some notable exceptions. Even within the parks there are several rides that carry minimum height requirements. What about the Richard Petty Driving Experience? That certainly isn't a family attraction. And at a certain point each evening, Pleasure Island certainly becomes an adult entertainment complex that is somewhat less appropriate for families. To be sure, there are many things that familes can do in the DD area, but the Pleasure Island Jazz Club, Adventurer's Club, Motion, and Mannequins Dance Palace stand out as things that are definitely geared towards a somewhat older crowd.

There comes a time for many kids when "It's a Small World" just isn't cool anymore. And I think it would be very Disney-like to continue trying to provide a resort that meets the vacation needs of the entire family. To that end, a park with thrill rides is definitely needed. I'm sure that even in a park containing mostly thrill rides, the Imagineers can still manage to create something for everyone in the family (provided that their budgets don't get slashed when construction time comes up).

 

[johare]

There is no 5th park being built behind AK. Castmembers ocassionally start or fuel these rumors. Without an official announcement you would never (or very rarely) find castmembers giving out confidential information to the guests.

 

[larworth]

Tikiman

You can understand some of our skepticism. If we had a nickel for every time someone claimed to have an inside source....well we’d all own a suite at AKL. Sure don’t want you to do anything you feel uncomfortable with, but take a second look at what you got. There is probably something more you could share without violating any trust.

Anim8or98

The only recent thing I recall about BK was a comment some WDW rep made last year that he was sure there would be expansion at AK sometime in the future (dah). I think some people interpreted that this might be signaling BK. Of course, it could also just be the family coasters going into Dinoland. Just curious what you base your comment on “which is a go”.

Thrill Park

The sound issue seems logical, but when I think about being at a SF or CP I don’t recall really noticing the roar/screams of a particular coaster until I get fairly close. If I was on one side of say SFGAdv I don’t notice the noise from a coaster on the other side of the park. Maybe all of the other ambient noises, which wouldn’t be there if located close to an animal preserve, drowns it out? Would be interesting to know just how far away you can hear the TOT screams, and just how much distance one really needs to buffer the sound of a coaster.

From a land use perspective (wet lands, traffic flow) where is the most logical piece of real estate for them to center a 5th gate?

The “for the family” principle is an interesting one. Today, many people are afraid to ride what I often consider some of their best rides (Splash, TOT, Space Mtn). I haven’t heard anyone complain (yet) that SPACE will probably not be a ride for the whole family either.

I can’t see Disney opening a park that catered to too small a demographic. They need to have enough broad appeal to get the numbers through the turnstiles to get their ROI. However, if they opened a park that had a higher percentage of Disney type thrill rides, I don’t have a problem with that. If that was the direction they took with a 5th gate, maybe it would make more sense to put the BK attractions in the new park and put attractions in AK more in keeping with it’s rhythm.

 

[Bugster]

Tikiman, thanks for the info. I am curious about the "secret" information that you were given. Are you a shareholder? If so, be careful about this so-called secret information. It could be considered inside information, and we all know how touchy the SEC is about that.

 

[All Aboard]

I have read alot of posts by Tikiman on the Resorts board. He is a great guy that is very helpful over there. I don't think for one second that he is trying to deceive anyone.

I would be suprised if WDW was physically developing a 5th gate right now. The cannibalism effect of an undersized AK is an indicator that saturation may exist right now. On the other hand, someone could get the crazy idea that another park is required to support occupancies at the rapidily growing number of room keys on property.

But, some major additions at AK could assist with that at a much lower cost (putting on my Eisner thinking cap here) than developing an entire new theme park.

There is no escaping that fact that a big subset of guests want to be thrilled. As I have said before, I evesdrop periodically on exit interviews, and this is a common complaint. And I think it is warranted, that's what alot of people want. The existing offerings provide a great deal of magic to guests that don't want thrills. But, in order for WDW to continue to attract new guests and repeat visits from folks that are not "wowed" by Pirates of the Caribbean, somebody is going to have to step up to the plate and develop some amazing attractions.

So, my guess is that the construction is more likely the development of an AKL expansion, or perhaps (less likely) a premium park (ala Discovery Cove) that is centered on animals.

 

[disneyboy21]

Disney, first of all, would never close Epcot, it would'nt, and ain't never gonna happen!
In my opinion I think that AK needs just a few more rides, maybe something like another in door rollercoaster, almost like rockin' but instead of going through the city you are flying through the jungle and the point could be that you have to find some animal that in almost extinct to save it, and it would be a fun ride and it would make a point like the rapid ride in asia. Just a thought (guess i have to much time on my hands) Also if disney were to build a 5th park i think that it would do great, the 5th park should be something totally wild and have amazing thrill rides like indoor sky diving and free falls from 350FT.

well it was just a thought

1988-Marriott
1993-Mk only
1994-epcot only
1999-Disney institute
2000-All star movies
2001-Fort wilderness cabins(will be arriving 7/29-8/4) inkbounc inkbounc inkbounc inkbounc inkbounc