News Round Up 2017

[AMusicLifeForMe]

Just so everyone knows...It looks like Drum Corps International is live-streaming the three corps that will be at Disney Springs today on their Facebook page. Carolina Crown is up right now and the Cavaliers video is already there. The Cadets should be later on today.

https://www.facebook.com/drumcorpsinternational/

The videos are slightly off though. I blame Disney WIFI!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I totally get their point, I feel like it management was expecting a massive surge from the land, they were naive and unrealistic. The goal should've been to keep people in AK later, whether due to added experience or more nighttime options (Pandora and rivers of light)

Yeah, I am sure they wish the total numbers were higher, but at least they are seeing Pandora spread the crowds out a bit and Pandora was needed to make AK a full day/night time park (along with Rivers of Light, etc.) so I think they accomplished that knowing they are going to get more of a boost from the projects at DHS and then (hopefully) the upgrades to EPCOT also help to spread out some crowds to there.

So I think knowing this is part of a larger initiative at the non-MK parks I think it is ok, but at the same time the executive are probalby not giving each other high fives over the numbers

 

[lockedoutlogic]

To be fair, I think Pandora should be compared to something like Kong instead of Potter. We all know what the direct answer to the Wizarding World is, and it won't be open for at least a couple of years.

Pandora achieves its main purpose, in my opinion: making Animal Kingdom a solid park that would be skipped otherwise. Though it's true that if Disney expected the land to attract a big base of Avatar fans to the parks they were in for a surprise. There are very few properties that are capable of doing what Potter did for Universal.

A place with the pockets of wdw shouldn't take 9 years to open the counter to Harry Potter...if your theory is correct.

And I think Star Wars land is going to underwhelm...I hate to say it...because disney hasn't got what the trick to Star Wars is..yet

 

[umichigan10]

A place with the pockets of wdw shouldn't take 9 years to open the counter to Harry Potter...if your theory is correct.

And I think Star Wars land is going to underwhelm...I hate to say it...because disney hasn't got what the trick to Star Wars is..yet

I think you could see something similar to diagon alley because of the scope of the place. Only two rides, but you also will have a lot to do in terms of atmosphere type things. I'm also expecting the rides to be well done (because you know Star Wars)

 

[luisov]

A place with the pockets of wdw shouldn't take 9 years to open the counter to Harry Potter...if your theory is correct.

And I think Star Wars land is going to underwhelm...I hate to say it...because disney hasn't got what the trick to Star Wars is..yet

Pandora was the initial reaction, a hurried decision probably. They realized it wasn't going to work a bit too late and Star Wars Land became the reaction not to Potter, but to Universal as a whole.

It's clear that Disney was a bit too confident with its timing. The Potter effect didn't actually hit them until relatively recently.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

Pandora was the initial reaction, a hurried decision probably. They realized it wasn't going to work a bit too late and Star Wars Land became the reaction not to Potter, but to Universal as a whole.

It's clear that Disney was a bit too confident with its timing. The Potter effect didn't actually hit them until relatively recently.

I think the error in strategy...which could ultimately shift the market share 10%...is that they never believed in the planning stages that they had to react. That's a mistake measured in billions.

And it goes to my larger rant: why did they think that they wouldn't have to react? When potter opened it had already been 10+ years since they had really lifted much of a finger at wdw and they had let mgm and Epcot significantly decay.

At the end of the day...people like new or innovative stuff in their parks just a tad more than nostalgia...and so it shall be.

 

[Fantasia79]

If I'm not mistaken, Pandora was a lot of overlay for the Dragon section of Beastly (or Beystlie) Kingdom. The plan was scrapped for Camp Minnie Mickey as a temporary hold. Guests were to cross over a long bridge into an immersive park when they can ride on the back of a dragon, sound familiar?

You even see the dragon in the center of the animal kingdom logo to this day.

I don't think it was as much a reaction to Harry Potter, as finally haveing the cash, creative project and window to make it happen. Though, I'm sure universal played SOME part in the decision.

 

[skier_pete]

Yeah, I am sure they wish the total numbers were higher, but at least they are seeing Pandora spread the crowds out a bit and Pandora was needed to make AK a full day/night time park (along with Rivers of Light, etc.) so I think they accomplished that knowing they are going to get more of a boost from the projects at DHS and then (hopefully) the upgrades to EPCOT also help to spread out some crowds to there.

So I think knowing this is part of a larger initiative at the non-MK parks I think it is ok, but at the same time the executive are probalby not giving each other high fives over the numbers

Yeah, I would be pretty surprised if Avatar does anything to boost attendance, but if it boosts attendance at DAK then it is a success. I think Disney now realizes that it has to bring their bottom 3 parks up to a higher standard. MK is still the king, but they need every park to be a draw.

 

[umichigan10]

Yeah, I would be pretty surprised if Avatar does anything to boost attendance, but if it boosts attendance at DAK then it is a success. I think Disney now realizes that it has to bring their bottom 3 parks up to a higher standard. MK is still the king, but they need every park to be a draw.

I think they're understanding that there's a lot of room and desire for expansion at universal and they're not going away. So you at some point have to invest in your parks especially when your cable money maker is dying (it's early July and I've yet to see an espn fantasy magazine out for football season: budget cuts?)

 

[osully]

If I'm not mistaken, Pandora was a lot of overlay for the Dragon section of Beastly (or Beystlie) Kingdom. The plan was scrapped for Camp Minnie Mickey as a temporary hold. Guests were to cross over a long bridge into an immersive park when they can ride on the back of a dragon, sound familiar?

You even see the dragon in the center of the animal kingdom logo to this day.

I don't think it was as much a reaction to Harry Potter, as finally haveing the cash, creative project and window to make it happen. Though, I'm sure universal played SOME part in the decision.

I'll always wish it was Beastly Kingdom.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

If I'm not mistaken, Pandora was a lot of overlay for the Dragon section of Beastly (or Beystlie) Kingdom. The plan was scrapped for Camp Minnie Mickey as a temporary hold. Guests were to cross over a long bridge into an immersive park when they can ride on the back of a dragon, sound familiar?

You even see the dragon in the center of the animal kingdom logo to this day.

I don't think it was as much a reaction to Harry Potter, as finally haveing the cash, creative project and window to make it happen. Though, I'm sure universal played SOME part in the decision.

Can you guess which part I'm confused about here?

 

[Fantasia79]

Can you guess which part I'm confused about here?

Ha! Excuse me, cash that Disney considers too much cash.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

Ha! Excuse me, cash that Disney considers too much cash.

...or the current management has been consistently greedy, lax, and not very intuitive when it comes to parks located in Florida...

Either or

 

[lockedoutlogic]

I'll always wish it was Beastly Kingdom.

That idea is kinda a CM/disneyana urban legend.

It's always been assumed that it woulda been "great"...but maybe they scrapped it because they had nuttin'? Who really knows...

The reality is its symbolic of the mistake to do a half build (an Eisner trademark) and was amplified by the failure to man up and correct it for 20 years...they still haven't and it's still what's ultimately "wrong" with AK. You had to overbuild a zoo based park...not short it. Still a problem and will remain so till somebody with stones comes in and rips off the band aid.

 

[preemiemama]

News
Disney currently testing fully lit Yeti on Expedition Everest. No more Disco Yeti?!

http://blogmickey.com/2017/07/disney-testing-fully-lit-yeti-on-expedition-everest/

Sorry to backtrack, but this was happening when we were there last week. I knew something was different but wasn't sure what! Honestly, it was so much easier to see- and that made it a bit more frightening to me. That arm hangs WAY down- further than it looked with the strobe light IMHO.

 

[umichigan10]

Sorry to backtrack, but this was happening when we were there last week. I knew something was different but wasn't sure what! Honestly, it was so much easier to see- and that made it a bit more frightening to me. That arm hangs WAY down- further than it looked with the strobe light IMHO.

One of the few times I rode it when it was working I almost peed myself as we went by, it was terrifying

 

[umichigan10]

Is there any update on volcano bay? I know opening was kinda a disaster but has it gotten better?

 

[rteetz]

Is there any update on volcano bay? I know opening was kinda a disaster but has it gotten better?

Seems to be going better. There was still some cabanas and such being built last I saw.

 

[rteetz]

Len Testa is reporting he has heard that CMs in call centers are being pulled and told about an Epcot related announcement. This announcement is not attraction related. He is trying to figure out what this announcement could be.

 

[umichigan10]

Seems to be going better. There was still some cabanas and such being built last I saw.

That's good. I saw some videos on YouTube of what it looks like and it seems pretty cool.