News Round Up 2016

[minnie mum]

News

New themed events coming to All-star resorts

http://www.orlandoparksnews.com/2016/04/new-themed-events-coming-to-disneys-all.html?m=1

I know you posted this yesterday, but this part of the announcement caught my eye:

These event might not be advertised to surprise Guests

So, if they don't advertise these "events" to guests, how are they going to know they're even there? Some kind of marketing genius that is. Or am I missing something?

 

[rteetz]

I know you posted this yesterday, but this part of the announcement caught my eye:



So, if they don't advertise these "events" to guests, how are they going to know they're even there? Some kind of marketing genius that is. Or am I missing something?

That's why it's a surprise then? I don't know.

 

[rteetz]

News

Good Morning America is at #AwakenSummer they got a sneak peak at things coming to AK.

http://www.wdwmagic.com/attractions...ok-at-animal-kingdoms-nighttime-offerings.htm

 

[sunshinemelody]

News

Good Morning America is at #AwakenSummer they got a sneak peak at things coming to AK.

http://www.wdwmagic.com/attractions...ok-at-animal-kingdoms-nighttime-offerings.htm

Yeah and they went and showed us a preview of RoL. LOL

 

[wareagle57]

News

Media is getting a behind the scenes look at the frozen ride in Norway today. No pics or video allowed.

I'm assuming this a walking look, and the ride is not almost ready. I really thought these things would be more spread out. I would think it's a huge marketing loss for all of these attractions to open at basically the same time.

 

[skier_pete]

Gotta be real, this year seems really sucky. I mean really. When fan bloggers I follow call war, something is awry. I've been more po'd than excited planning our trips. Obviously I'm still hoping things will take a turn for the better. And obviously I want to hear it will. But, being a fan of reality; I'm now brave enough to ask for it straight. Remember though, I'm used to rainbow land. Please be nice (at least to me, I don't care how much shade you throw Disney)...

As with many things, people like to pretend the past was all sunshine and lollipops. Disney did nothing wrong in the 90s and everything wrong today. That's just a re-write of history. The fact is now every little piece can be scrutinized on the internet. You can come on here and see "Oh they eliminated 10 Streetmosphere Cast Members in DHS - HOW AWFUL!" The same thing was happening 10 and 20 years ago, just there was no one here to comment on it. People complained about Hollywood Studios when it opened. They complained a LOT about Animal Kingdom when it opened. Complain, complain, complain...it's what we do on the internet.

(And Disney's money grubbing policies aren't any different than the other theme park ventures - nothing gets me hotter under the collar than Universal and there $40 a day train ride that you can only access by getting a park-to-park ticket, or the fact that you pay through the NOSE there for FOTL access (their FP system) where Disney's is still included with your ticket.)

The fact is what IS going on at WDW as an almost unprecedented level of new stuff in the next 5 years. There's lots of bad buzz at the moment, but when you think about getting Soarin / Frozen / Rivers of Light / Disney Springs this year, then Avatar next year, followed by Toy Story and Star Wars, that's probably the greatest addition of new experiences at WDW in a 5-year period since the '90s. And this is a GOOD thing for the Disney fan - and should MORE than offset any negativity about that they a charging suckers $159 for 2 hours extra in the park.

So - you can either let these little things get you down, or you can set them aside and just ENJOY the parks/resorts. I follow this board/thread closely for 10 years now, and I KNOW it's more expensive, and I KNOW some things have closed, but when I get there - I just don't care. Not every trip you take is going to top the previous one, but if you love it there, you'll love it there, you'll have a great time. If you stop having a great time - then please - go somewhere else! There's a bazillion other places to go in this country alone. Heck - there's 30 National Parks that offer things 10 times more amazing than a Disney Park.

I don't think about these things when I go to Disney. I know that they are a big, "evil" corporation, but I enjoy it too much to let these things get to me. I do complain some on the boards, but mostly out of fun and commiserating with fellow fans.

Well said! +1

 

[graychef]

News

Price increases for drinks at quick service locations.

http://www.wdwmagic.com/attractions...ease-at-snack-and-quick-service-locations.htm

This is a pretty significant increase. Each item, on the order of cents. But in the grand scheme, 7-20% increase is a huge hit.

 

[TwoMisfits]

This is a pretty significant increase. Each item, on the order of cents. But in the grand scheme, 7-20% increase is a huge hit.

You underestimate - milks are up 35%...that's awesome for parents of little kids (sarcasm alert)...

 

[Budshark]

So - you can either let these little things get you down, or you can set them aside and just ENJOY the parks/resorts. I follow this board/thread closely for 10 years now, and I KNOW it's more expensive, and I KNOW some things have closed, but when I get there - I just don't care. Not every trip you take is going to top the previous one, but if you love it there, you'll love it there, you'll have a great time. If you stop having a great time - then please - go somewhere else! There's a bazillion other places to go in this country alone. Heck - there's 30 National Parks that offer things 10 times more amazing than a Disney Park.

This. And when you forget This - read it again. And once more for good measure.

It doesn't mean you can't question the logic of some decisions, reflect on the old days, or others pan about what could have been. But at the end of the day, make a decision and be happy. Too much negativity, too many choices, too much researching will lead to misery.

 

[skier_pete]

News

Price increases for drinks at quick service locations.

http://www.wdwmagic.com/attractions...ease-at-snack-and-quick-service-locations.htm

Guess they are going to have to raise resort mug prices as well.

What's funny is if someone would've asked me I would've sworn these higher prices were already there last August (not the milk prices, the other ones.)

Edit: My wife keeps telling me I should stop bringing my backpack full of water/mix ins. NO WAY NOW!

 

[rlbates13]

Complain, complain, complain...it's what we do on the internet.

Amen.

Pete, this entire post is dead-on accurate. Thanks.

 

[rteetz]

News

Behind the scenes of Frozen In Norway

http://www.wdwmagic.com/attractions...e-for-anna-and-elsa---the-royal-sommerhus.htm

 

[TexasKiwiPrincess]

Guess they are going to have to raise resort mug prices as well.

What's funny is if someone would've asked me I would've sworn these higher prices were already there last August (not the milk prices, the other ones.)

Edit: My wife keeps telling me I should stop bringing my backpack full of water/mix ins. NO WAY NOW!

I will not be surprised when they announce that guests are no longer allowed to bring in outside food and drinks, with the exception of baby food. To me, that writing is on the wall. I also expect Fast Passes to become part of a premium experience, too. They (Bob Chapek) are copying too many things that other theme parks do already. If not this summer, than maybe by Christmas, we will see some kind of premium Fast Pass ticket similar to Universal's where you get 1 FP to all rides, for a price dearie.

 

[skier_pete]

for a price dearie.

Are you saying all Disney Magic comes with a price?

I will not be surprised when they announce that guests are no longer allowed to bring in outside food and drinks, with the exception of baby food.

They've already said they are going to be more restrictive on food being brought in, but I doubt they will ever bother to restrict water. They give out free water at all QS anyways, and that's not out of the kindness of their hearts, its so they can say if someone has heat stroke that Disney would always provide water if asked. We've also used the free waters with our Crystal Light mix-ins, but sometimes you don't want to track down a QS just to get a drink. I'm used to being the pack mule anyways.

 

[ChipnDale79]

You underestimate - milks are up 35%...that's awesome for parents of little kids (sarcasm alert)...

We don't buy drinks in the parks, we take a camelbak full of water...well we didnt buy drinks in the parks, until we had little ones. We went in 2014 and 2015, milks were a must for us at meal time, and I can't really carry those around.

Thankfully our next trip we won't need to purchase milk, we'll just bring in our own water.

 

[TexasKiwiPrincess]

Are you saying all Disney Magic comes with a price?



They've already said they are going to be more restrictive on food being brought in, but I doubt they will ever bother to restrict water. They give out free water at all QS anyways, and that's not out of the kindness of their hearts, its so they can say if someone has heat stroke that Disney would always provide water if asked. We've also used the free waters with our Crystal Light mix-ins, but sometimes you don't want to track down a QS just to get a drink. I'm used to being the pack mule anyways.

Ultimately I was agreeing with a PP that stated they tend to feel as though Universal hits your wallet every single chance they get, and that Universal's Express Pass (I think that's what it's called?) costs an arm and a leg. Since the roll out of FP+ I have counted it in the "Pro" column for Disney that Fast Passes are already included in the price of a ticket. Much different than Universal. The Disney execs seem to be borrowing inspiration from other Universal up-charges and I'm starting to feel that same uncomfortable gouging sensation in my bank account. Of course there is always a price involved, but for some reason all these increases from Disney are starting to feel sinister and I feel like I need to be on guard. In the past I felt that way about Universal, but not Disney.

 

[STLstone]

Amen.

Pete, this entire post is dead-on accurate. Thanks.

**EDIT**

Sorry, replied to this post by mistake. :-(

 

[rteetz]

Photo update

DHS photo update

http://wdwnt.com/blog/2016/04/photo...r-carrot-cake-cookie-goes-home-star-wars-etc/

 

[rteetz]

News

Two Clips of Soarin Around the World.

http://www.wdwmagic.com/attractions...oming-to-epcots-soarin-later-this-summer..htm

 

[rteetz]

News

New looks for Minnie and Mickey are coming. I believe I posted photos of them previously. Apparently Shanghai jumped the gun and revealed the new looks too soon. Disney wasn't very happy about that. These new looks will come to all Disney parks very soon.