Splash Mountain

[bilzer]

I can't believe that they are closing Splash at the same time of year, two years in a row. It's so frustrating to people who go the same time each year. Thoughts on why another long refurb?

 

[stormer]

Yes, it was closed the same time last year. We have gone four of the past five years in Febraury - President's week - and Splash has only been open once. It is frustrating. Mt kids are so disappointed. We are lucky that we go in August also so they still get to ride it then.

 

[lhermiston]

We're going in February so I share your frustration. Hopefully, BTMRR - which was closed during our last trip - will be open and that will soften the blow. Plus, my girls are going to experience BTMRR, Space Mountain and Hollywood Studios for the first time, so it's still a net gain for us.

I can't speak to the length of the refurb, but from Disney's perspective, the timing makes sense. Weather and crowd levels mean Splash won't get nearly the ridership during that time that it normally would. As for the frequency of refurbs, when we went last April my wife and one DD got stuck for 30-40 minutes. That same week, my other daughter and I got stuck for 10-15. It seems like it is breaking down semi-frequently.

It's an old ride, what are you going to do? Maybe Disney plans on opening the 7 Dwarfs Mine Cart during the refurb...

 

[disnut8]

I can't believe that they are closing Splash at the same time of year, two years in a row. It's so frustrating to people who go the same time each year. Thoughts on why another long refurb?

I don't know why the longer refurb but I'm assuming to get some problems sorted out or to add something to it.

But my question is - when would you like Splash Mountain closed? Right now, it's scheduled for 1/6-3/21 so about three months. The Flower and Garden Festival is March 5 - May 18th (not at Magic Kingdom but it's a long event), then it's summer, then the Food and Wine Festival is 9/27-11/10, then the holiday season starts. A three month closure is kind of tough to schedule around all that.

 

[bwang123]

i heard they are adding a magic band feature. when you pass an anamatronic or feature that is broken, your magic band emits an electrical shock that makes you look the other way or shut your eyes momentarily. that way they never have to take it down for refurbishment.

 

[dcod1974]

I've been tracking closures/rehabs for a few years now and early January through early Feb is the annual maintenance time for Splash Mountain. I've also noticed that, generally speaking, during even-numbered years (2008, 2010, etc), the maintenance is extended an extra 3-4 weeks. Lots of animatronics, a long ride, and water = lots of maintenance. But it also makes for a terrific attraction. It's my favorite, so we've never chosen to go in that time frame, suffering other closures instead. And generally, the least amount of maintenance occurs from the end of march through the end of summer....makes sense given the crowds.

 

[One Hit Wonder]

I've also noticed that, generally speaking, during even-numbered years (2008, 2010, etc), the maintenance is extended an extra 3-4 weeks.

Not entirely true. In 2012 it didn't close at all, and it 2013 it was closed from early January to late March.

 

[Tramp68]

i heard they are adding a magic band feature. when you pass an anamatronic or feature that is broken, your magic band emits an electrical shock that makes you look the other way or shut your eyes momentarily. that way they never have to take it down for refurbishment.

 

[disnut8]

Not entirely true. In 2012 it didn't close at all, and it 2013 it was closed from early January to late March.

It didn't close in 2012 because something else was closed during that time. Otherwise, it would have had the same refurb schedule.

 

[dcod1974]

hence the use of "generally speaking" but yes, the 2012 didn't follow suit, and is probably why 2013 was longer. If I were planning a 2014 visit, and I was certain that I wanted to ride Splash Mountain, I would not visit in January or February (and maybe even March).

 

[mm1971]

I can't believe that they are closing Splash at the same time of year, two years in a row. It's so frustrating to people who go the same time each year. Thoughts on why another long refurb?

While I feel for you, I'm not sure why your upset. This is offseason and the coldest month of the year. That is why low crowds and cost to go. It is pretty well known that if you go around January/early February that there are going to more maintenance closures than at busier times.

The reason for annual maintenance is that there are so many moving parts that they break down often and they need the time to repair them and check all the safety equipment. In order to do a full inspection and repairs, they need to drain the water. Can't do that in a few hours.

Again, sorry you won't be able to go on. Splash is one of our favorites. We had a year we went twice, once in October and them again in May. Both times RnR was down pretty much the whole week(s). We were bummed so I know the frustration.

 

[mm1971]

Not entirely true. In 2012 it didn't close at all, and it 2013 it was closed from early January to late March.

In 2012 they left it open because BTMRR was down and they didn't want to bring them both down, I believe. The 2013 extended time was due to not doing the maintenance the prior year.

 

[mesaboy2]

While I feel for you, I'm not sure why your upset. This is offseason and the coldest month of the year. That is why low crowds and cost to go. It is pretty well known that if you go around January/early February that there are going to more maintenance closures than at busier times.

The reason for annual maintenance is that there are so many moving parts that they break down often and they need the time to repair them and check all the safety equipment. In order to do a full inspection and repairs, they need to drain the water. Can't do that in a few hours.

Again, sorry you won't be able to go on. Splash is one of our favorites. We had a year we went twice, once in October and them again in May. Both times RnR was down pretty much the whole week(s). We were bummed so I know the frustration.

Other than Splash's near-annual refurb and a waterpark, I'm not sure there's anything to that.