Star Tours Vs. The Little Mermaid

[Hunter182]

For those who have experienced both, which do you think will be this summer's door buster attraction?

Which do you think was overall better/more enjoyable?

For those who have only experienced one, what did you think of the new attraction? Were your expectations reached?

From what I hear, Star Tours has been getting great reviews, and due to the structure of the ride, it demands repeat visits. Meanwhile with the Little Mermaid, people seem to be expecting a lot more. With all the time and money put into this attraction, they expected something great to only be disappointed.

Would love to hear some opinions on this.

 

[Dizneydaz]

Star Tours for sure. I enjoyed the original and really enjoy the new version.

LM is cute-more so a kid's ride than ST2.

I will ride ST2 again and again. Only LM when the lines are short and when DNephew2.5 is with us.

 

[jdb in AZ]

As with most of the opinions expressed here on the DIS, it's highly subjective. There's nothing wrong with enjoying them both.

 

[Luliemouse]

For those who have experienced both, which do you think will be this summer's door buster attraction?

Which do you think was overall better/more enjoyable?

QUOTE]

1. Star Tours will trump Little Mermaid.... There is more of a Fan Base for Star Tours... There are more nerds (this one included) who would wait in a long line.

2. Star Tours was WAY better.... There was more behind it... The technology, the story, the experience. WAY Cooler!

I've done both several times now... I love the Little Mermaid it was my favorite as a little girl. I was really excited for this attraction... It looks great... Very vivid and colorful. But it was missing something... It never quite got there... It needed more of a pop... It also seemed really short. I will say this for the passholder preview... The line was 60 mins. It did not seem like 60 mins at all... That line moved the whole time... Overall I would say that the attraction lacked something dazzling!

Star Tours on the other hand was FREAKING AWESOME! I think I've done every option now... 54 combos doesn't mean you have to ride 54 times... I just rode 7 times and got all the different destinations. The new story is great, the fact that they make one lucky person part of the attraction is SWEET. My new Disney Wish is that some day... I will be the Rebel Spy! This is the ride of the summer...

The wait for Star Tours for the summer... and maybe the rest of the year will be over an hour maybe even two.

The Little Mermaid.... That will be an hour at first.... but by the end of the summer the wait will be at most 45 mins.... By the end of the year, you will be able to walk on.

Well there it is my two cents!

 

[Hunter182]

As with most of the opinions expressed here on the DIS, it's highly subjective. There's nothing wrong with enjoying them both.

I never said there was anything wrong with enjoying both. I just wanted to know what people thought.

For the record, I live over near WDW. We won't have Ariel and her friends for at least another year. So I have only experienced Star Tours. It amazed me. I've seen almost every option, except for one. And it's a FANTASTIC ride. Lightyears better then the original.

I'm just interested in knowing what you regular DLer's think.

 

[cloudconnected1039]

I think the reason people are disappointed with LM is because they were expecting a spectacular, state of the art ride, when it's been made clear that that is not what came to be. I've seen the supposed original ride thing (for lack of better phrasing! ) on youtube and while that seemed like it would be quite the great attraction, it also didn't seem very feasible It's also been stated before that LM was never meant to be an E-ticket attraction, like Star Tours has been and definitely will be. It won't take the place of TSMM or Soarin'. It's just a great addition to what's becoming an increasingly great park, and I personally love it Made me smile the entire time

And of course, I love ST as well

 

[lapdwife]

They can't compete with each other. ST is cool- no doubt about it. I have been in it 4 times and every time the group is cheering and applause breaks out at the end.

I think LM is awesome! Dh on the other hand said he was disappointed in it for the amount of money that went into it. It's so upbeat and I was dancing and singing the whole way through. I know others have said the story ends abruptly, but I like the way they transitioned through. I do wish real water could have been integrated in, but I know that just would have meant more money.

 

[Hunter182]

I think the reason people are disappointed with LM is because they were expecting a spectacular, state of the art ride, when it's been made clear that that is not what came to be. I've seen the supposed original ride thing (for lack of better phrasing! ) on youtube and while that seemed like it would be quite the great attraction, it also didn't seem very feasible It's also been stated before that LM was never meant to be an E-ticket attraction, like Star Tours has been and definitely will be. It won't take the place of TSMM or Soarin'. It's just a great addition to what's becoming an increasingly great park, and I personally love it Made me smile the entire time

And of course, I love ST as well

It personally looks like a cute ride in the Fantasyland vein. The only thing I was personally disappointed in was the finale. Ursala deserved something so much cooler.

The audio animatronics look great. Ariel for some reason looks a little...off to me, but I guess that's natural. Trying to transform a cartoon character into a lifesize figure is pretty difficult.

 

[Silly Little Pixie]

What Luliemouse said.

Love Little Mermaid- but was hoping for more? I guess I was hoping for something on the scale of Haunted Mansion, not Pooh. It's still cute and well worth seeing- but I wouldn't wait over 30 minutes. JMO.

But Star Tours??!?! FREAKIN AWESOME is right!! Hope to get back into the park late tonight if the line dies down. The teens/Tweens have gone back in and will report the real times

FWIW, checked both Mousewait and DLR Lines today. Mousewait was more accurate, and FREE. Lines/Touring Plans stuck with their crowd projections of 2.9/10 today for DL. oh please!!! It was packed. Mousewait said 90/100 and that was pretty accurate in terms of overall people, even if some lines did get shorter due to ST. I would have been ticked if I had actually used DLR Lines/Touring Plans to plan for this weekend. Glad I only bought the one week subscription!

 

[Luliemouse]

Love Little Mermaid- but was hoping for more? I guess I was hoping for something on the scale of Haunted Mansion, not Pooh. It's still cute and well worth seeing- but I wouldn't wait over 30 minutes. JMO.

I know Right... The beginning of the attraction was good... The whole going under the water thing with the bubbles... then looking up and seeing Ariel and Flounder... Cool...

But that's where the technology ended... After that it was classic dark ride but with an update... It lacked razzle dazzle and pop!

Love it but was really left wanting more!

 

[ludari]

Star Tours hands down. I rode them both today and I have to say I was disappointed with Ariel's Undersea Adventure. The line at Star Tours was twice as long but well worth it. I enjoyed the pre-ride entertainment which the Ariel ride has none.

 

[disneylandkitkat]

I love little mermaid my new fav ride to me its way better then star tours but i know alot of people dont agree.

 

[KBelle5]

I did both during the CM previews.

ST wins, although I had some dislikes: mainly, the length (20 seconds shorter, I think?) and the way it moved from lightspeed to a planet was so fast, it hurt my eyes (I know that's what lightspeed is, moving fast lol, but it wasn't working viewing-wise for me). A lot of times, my 3-D glasses would pixilate and it detracted from the experience. I would wait in line to do it again, just not the crazy 5-6 hours.

Actually, one of the best parts was when the CM came in and asked the back 4 rows to look under their seats for a cellphone. Someone cried out "Winner!" and the CM said, "To the Death Star with you!" Great theming on his part.

LM was a huge disappointment. I went on it twice, and only really started enjoying it at the Kiss the Girl scene. It was way too bright, and I noticed places with "empty" ocean where there could have been bubbles, or something, instead of just plain blue on the walls. The hair that cost some ungodly amount looked like crap. Eric and Triton looked better than Ariel did. Not something I would wait a long time in line for (and luckily didn't).

 

[Hunter182]

I did both during the CM previews.

ST wins, although I had some dislikes: mainly, the length (20 seconds shorter, I think?) and the way it moved from lightspeed to a planet was so fast, it hurt my eyes (I know that's what lightspeed is, moving fast lol, but it wasn't working viewing-wise for me). A lot of times, my 3-D glasses would pixilate and it detracted from the experience. I would wait in line to do it again, just not the crazy 5-6 hours.

Actually, one of the best parts was when the CM came in and asked the back 4 rows to look under their seats for a cellphone. Someone cried out "Winner!" and the CM said, "To the Death Star with you!" Great theming on his part.

LM was a huge disappointment. I went on it twice, and only really started enjoying it at the Kiss the Girl scene. It was way too bright, and I noticed places with "empty" ocean where there could have been bubbles, or something, instead of just plain blue on the walls. The hair that cost some ungodly amount looked like crap. Eric and Triton looked better than Ariel did. Not something I would wait a long time in line for (and luckily didn't).

Star Tours 2 is a FANTASTIC attraction. I have experienced almost all of the options at my local park (Hollywood Studios) and regardless, I have ceased to be impressed. The 3-D is great without "cheap 3-D tricks". It works well for the attraction.

Pixelization? That never happened to me. Huh.

I think the Little Mermaid's problem is that it was too hyped. "THE NEXT GENERATION OF DARK RIDES!" When the truth is, I think the last time WDI did something like that was back in '69 with the Mansion.

It looks cute. And something a younger child would love. It's bright and colorful. The songs are memorable. The scenes are literally right in your faces.

From what I hear, the Little Mermaid has a ton of just blank space. Blue walls with nothing going on whatsoever. For some attractions this works, (Indy and all the just plain dark areas. Where AT&T (the original sponsor) told them to stop spending that much money. ) But this one is tons more noticeable. Just from watching a ride through on YouTube I noticed how...empty the attraction seemed. Like all the money went on the audio-animatronics and Ariel's foam hair, and the rest was skimped out on.

People wanted so much more. It's a ride 20 something years in the making, and people think that for all the hype, they should have gotten something more.

I just hope they'll learn from this attraction, and improve on it at WDW.

 

[Hunter182]

I know others have said the story ends abruptly...

I've said it once and I'll say it again. NOTHING beats Snow White for abruptness.

*Witch gets crushed*

*Door opens*

"...and they lived happily ever after."

 

[KBelle5]

Pixelization? That never happened to me. Huh.

From what I hear, the Little Mermaid has a ton of just blank space. Blue walls with nothing going on whatsoever. For some attractions this works, (Indy and all the just plain dark areas. Where AT&T (the original sponsor) told them to stop spending that much money. ) But this one is tons more noticeable. Just from watching a ride through on YouTube I noticed how...empty the attraction seemed. Like all the money went on the audio-animatronics and Ariel's foam hair, and the rest was skimped out on.

Yeah, Darth Vader was rainbow colored for a second, which is NOT a good look for him and a few other times I saw rainbows. It might have been because we were in the front row, because of the jostling around...I don't really know.

I think the blank space could be helped if the lights inside were dimmer. I don't know if they were on so everyone could see exactly what was going on, but it didn't feel like a dark ride.

 

[Hunter182]

I love little mermaid my new fav ride to me its way better then star tours but i know alot of people dont agree.

And see, this post makes me smile.

Everything is highly subjective and everyone is entitled to his or her own opinions.

Star Tours is based on a franchise loved the world over. Star Wars is a classic series with iconic characters. At some point most people have picked up a stick and pretended it was a lightsaber, or tried to use the force. Ariel can't match that. As for being immersed in the character's world, it looks, to me at least, that Star Tours does it better.

 

[Hunter182]

Yeah, Darth Vader was rainbow colored for a second, which is NOT a good look for him and a few other times I saw rainbows. It might have been because we were in the front row, because of the jostling around...I don't really know.

I am...RAINBOW VADER!

That's pretty funny though. I've ridden in all rows and I never had anything like that happen...hmm.

How many scenes did you actually see?

There are two openings, three beginning scenes, three intermissions, and three endings. Which as an above poster said equals up to 54 different mix and match scenarios. (Which some are better then others.)

*SPOILER ALERT* (Highlight to read)

The only thing that kind of turned me off of the attraction was the different eras you hop in and out from. You can start from the Battle of Hoth (Which takes place in Empire Strikes Back) and go to Naboo (Which takes place years earlier in the Phantom Menace) I know this is only an issue for major fans like myself, but it's a minor pet peeve.

On about 8 rides, I hit all of the scenes except for one of the endings.

And I'm sure I will continue to ride years after I finish all of them.

 

[kikiq]

We've ridden LM three times. Loved it all 3 times. It is a "dark" ride. It is family friendly. EVERYONE can go on it. No child swap, no height restrictions. It has great detail in the queue and the ride itself. I also think that the ending could have been developed a little more BUT again it's for everyone not just us oldies, not the young guns who love thrill rides...that's why they have Star Tours. And yes, us older folks who are cynics and "Disney ride experts" are disappointed that there was more of this and less of that..oh, would we all be imagineers. But it still a family friendly ride, and no one has to swap, no one has to wait because they aren't tall enough. Heck, my 10 yr DNiece loved it.

Haven't been on Star Tours, I know I"ll love that too. Loved the original. We'll be at DL tonight listening to the swing band, might brave the line or maybe not.

 

[Hunter182]

We've ridden LM three times. Loved it all 3 times. It is a "dark" ride. It is family friendly. EVERYONE can go on it. No child swap, no height restrictions. It has great detail in the queue and the ride itself. I also think that the ending could have been developed a little more BUT again it's for everyone not just us oldies, not the young guns who love thrill rides...that's why they have Star Tours. And yes, us older folks who are cynics and "Disney ride experts" are disappointed that there was more of this and less of that..oh, would we all be imagineers. But it still a family friendly ride, and no one has to swap, no one has to wait because they aren't tall enough. Heck, my 10 yr DNiece loved it.

Haven't been on Star Tours, I know I"ll love that too. Loved the original. We'll be at DL tonight listening to the swing band, might brave the line or maybe not.

So based on your multiple rides, you'd say the ride is best for families with young children?

How do you think it would stack up with two teenagers?