WDW and Universal. Who wins?

[NickC]

I think Disney has been pretty good about where they are putting their expansions. HS is clearly going to be all IP outside of Disney Studios landing area, since that park never really had a direction when it was created and was essentially just thrown in to compete with universal, i would say it is better now with a clearer vision. Pandora makes sense in Animal Kingdom far more than the carnival themed Dinoland, and on that merit i would say that the Americas land they are replacing dino land with makes better sense.

I am genuinely curious what they have actually done to this point that doesn't "fit in", and not just speculation about upcoming projects

I find Dinoland to be perfectly on theme for Animal Kingdom, being that they are animals. More so than Indiana Jones. But, that is more speculation on upcoming projects.

 

[HokieRaven5]

Guardians is the Big Bang formation of the universe coaster with a marvel adventure. It’s why Glenn Close talks about the Big Bang in the pre-pre show, the celestial mentions going back to correct an error, Drax asks “was that the Ding Dang” after the flash and launch, and Gamora says “The Milky Way Galaxy just formed”

 

[BrianL]

I find Dinoland to be perfectly on theme for Animal Kingdom, being that they are animals. More so than Indiana Jones. But, that is more speculation on upcoming projects.

I would have had it that Indy stumbles upon a lost valley in South America that is populated with Dinosaurs. It easily fits the Indy universe.

 

[mdmost]

I have to be honest, I feel if I need a Disney fix, I'll go to Disneyland. We're doing that next summer, in fact. It's easier to get there with numerous airport options. I can go visit a beach within a 45 minute drive. There are plentiful, cheap hotel options across the street. Sure, there's no Disney bubble but I'm also not dealing with the massive headache that WDW has become. DLR is just so much more laid back and enjoyable to us. The juice just isn't worth the squeeze any more for our family at WDW.

We do plan on eventually checking out Villains Land but our kids will probably both be in college and that may place us at a point where spending a vacation in Orlando just isn't worth it. Now, I'll definitely hit up Epic Universe on a long weekend. We want to reward Universal for their innovation and it just looks really well themed and a lot of fun. It may depend on how much the hotel is at Epic Universe but I know we'll probably be getting much better perks with the amount of money we're paying for a hotel room vs. the same at Disney. Yes, it's great that Disney is expanding but I do not like tearing down existing theming that benefits the parks because your ROI isn't as good when you have a park that supposed to be not under the same constraints with space that Disneyland had.

 

[New Mouse]

I would say they have toned things down in the past, outside of economic disasters have they outright cancelled things. Keep in mind that they have a duty to their shareholders and outright cancelling large projects that have an impact on their public offering could get them into legal troubles. That said, anything is possible but based on their most recent track record (star wars, toy story, pandora, hotels, ect) i think that you may be overstating for sake of winning your argument

Have they outright canceled things outside of economic disasters? Yes. The epcot projects were also not canceled due to the economic disaster.

 

[Aluminum Falcon]

Have they outright canceled things outside of economic disasters? Yes. The epcot projects were also not canceled due to the economic disaster.

Speaking of the 2019 project?

 

[lowlight]

that i fundamentally disagree with, if you have something no one is really interested in ie tom sawyer island and replace with something new you'd be hard pressed to say the net is zero. Dinoland does not, did not work, ever. If you want to talk about something that never fit in with the theming it was that for sure. Also muppets are not what they used to be, the show is not as popular as it used to be and the muppets generally are not as popular as they were in the 70's,80's,90's. that coupled with the congestion in that area of the park, and the reimagining in totality of HS makes some sense to me. BTW anytime a park replaces a "screen ride" with an actual ride is a win in my book.

I can’t disagree with the lack of popularity of TSI, but that area is visually appealing and peaceful and I love walking by there. My kids love watching the Liberty Belle when we’re at the river. If space was limited like DL, filling it would make sense to make an area for rides where it’s now just filler, but a lot of the “filler” of WDW is what makes it so special, to me at least.

Also Pizzerizzo is my kids favorite spot to eat in all of Disney, and I think the Muppets Theater is one of those special places like IASW, where it is something you just can’t find at most theme parks.

 

[Smugpugmug]

Have they outright canceled things outside of economic disasters? Yes. The epcot projects were also not canceled due to the economic disaster.

Insiders have confirmed that the Spaceship Earth refurb was canceled due to Covid. If the pandemic did not happen, it would've gone ahead. Unsure about the Mary Poppins spinner and the Play Pavilion.

 

[fla4fun]

If that's the case then Figment doesn't fit either.
I do think guardians works, when you boil it down it is showing what humanity should be thriving to become in the future showcased by the Zandarians, and that makes sense in Futureworld to me

Except that it’s not Futureworld anymore either . . .

I am one of the people extremely disappointed that Cars is replacing RoA and TSI. My worst nightmare, knowing the current Disney as I do, is that they will rip it all out and then either run out of funds or focus on other things and just leave the beauty that was once Frontierland camouflaged with some bushes in rolling planters for decades. WoL is a perfect example of this. How many times have we been told that space was going to be utilized, seen detailed descriptions and artist renderings, only to have the building sit empty again and again.

One of the things I like about the theming of Cars Land in DCA is the backdrop wall. It really helps with the immersion into the Cars world. It works because Cars Land is at the edge of the park, not dropped down in the middle of it. I do not feel like the RoA are the correct spot for a Florida version of Cars Land. I feel some of the CL theme will be lost due to the location and a lot of the Liberty Square and Frontierland theming will be compromised as well. A Cars overlay would have been much more appropriate where the Raceway sits on the border of Fantasyland and Tomorrowland and could be more easily designed with a themed backdrop in that location.

I’m not necessarily disappointed in the announcements that new things are coming, but if they are replacing existing attractions it doesn’t really help with capacity. We need new things in addition to existing things. I’m not saying original attractions can’t be changed or updated. Take HM. It has been modified in the past with new effects without losing the charm of the original ride. An opening day attraction doesn’t have to remain in the exact form it was on opening day. Plus it. Update it. Don’t tear it out and replace it with something that doesn’t really fit with its surroundings. I think they could have come up with something more appropriate for TSI while leaving the river intact or slightly shortened.

 

[Aluminum Falcon]

Insiders have confirmed that the Spaceship Earth refurb was canceled due to Covid. If the pandemic did not happen, it would've gone ahead. Unsure about the Mary Poppins spinner and the Play Pavilion.

Ok so assuming we are talking 2019, I would say it’s a little baffling to say the pandemic didn’t cause economic strife

 

[tx911]

That's a good point. While they say that this is "Not Blue-Sky" they have cancelled non-Blue-Sky stuff before. It wouldn't shock me to see that Cars expansion go in, then Villains land languish for so long that it eventually becomes something different or doesn't happen at all. We are talking a long timeline on this stuff! I do think the AK changes are coming first, and that is probably the most needed anyway.

Yeah, I'm pretty optimistic that Cars, Monsters, and Encanto/Indiana will happen.
Villains Land seems more tenuous, but I think Universal has gotten Disney's attention now, and they will do whatever is needed to make it happen as well.

 

[Aluminum Falcon]

Except that it’s not Futureworld anymore either . . .

I am one of the people extremely disappointed that Cars is replacing RoA and TSI. My worst nightmare, knowing the current Disney as I do, is that they will rip it all out and then either run out of funds or focus on other things and just leave the beauty that was once Frontierland camouflaged with some bushes in rolling planters for decades. WoL is a perfect example of this. How many times have we been told that space was going to be utilized, seen detailed descriptions and artist renderings, only to have the building sit empty again and again.

One of the things I like about the theming of Cars Land in DCA is the backdrop wall. It really helps with the immersion into the Cars world. It works because Cars Land is at the edge of the park, not dropped down in the middle of it. I do not feel like the RoA are the correct spot for a Florida version of Cars Land. I feel some of the CL theme will be lost due to the location and a lot of the Liberty Square and Frontierland theming will be compromised as well. A Cars overlay would have been much more appropriate where the Raceway sits on the border of Fantasyland and Tomorrowland and could be more easily designed with a themed backdrop in that location.

I’m not necessarily disappointed in the announcements that new things are coming, but if they are replacing existing attractions it doesn’t really help with capacity. We need new things in addition to existing things. I’m not saying original attractions can’t be changed or updated. Take HM. It has been modified in the past with new effects without losing the charm of the original ride. An opening day attraction doesn’t have to remain in the exact form it was on opening day. Plus it. Update it. Don’t tear it out and replace it with something that doesn’t really fit with its surroundings. I think they could have come up with something more appropriate for TSI while leaving the river intact or slightly shortened.

My mentality is, if it’s not driving crowds to it to better handle crowds, then it should be replaced. Cars would definitely assist in eating up crowds throughout the day in a way that TSI never has

 

[jade1]

Eh, disagree. It doesn't fit but I still like the ride regardless.

Lucky to be local and have many times purchased GotG, went to epcot for that and left. In that case at least it fits perf.

 

[New Mouse]

Insiders have confirmed that the Spaceship Earth refurb was canceled due to Covid. If the pandemic did not happen, it would've gone ahead. Unsure about the Mary Poppins spinner and the Play Pavilion.

Play pavilion was canceled because they couldn't get it to work/wasn't good enough.

 

[New Mouse]

Ok so assuming we are talking 2019, I would say it’s a little baffling to say the pandemic didn’t cause economic strife

It did cause strife, but their actions weren't much different than past canceled projects when financial times were fine

 

[Aluminum Falcon]

It did cause strife, but their actions weren't much different than past canceled projects when financial times were fine

Sorry for my ignorance, which projects?

The best example I can find is fantasyland forest and Hyperion wharf, both plagued by the housing bubble recession and let call them “reimagined” otherwise known as rolled back substantially, but even those projects were not outright cancelled, you got new fantasyland and Disney springs out of them

Again baring any strong economic discourse, Disney stays pretty true to their announcements

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

Have they outright canceled things outside of economic disasters? Yes. The epcot projects were also not canceled due to the economic disaster.

There was a propped project that was supposed to put a roller coaster into Spaceship Earth but one of the older imaginers told them that they couldn't do that because of the way the way it was constructed and the ride structure and the rooms support the outside of the building and if they were altered it would collapse

 

[Moliphino]

Sorry for my ignorance, which projects?

The best example I can find is fantasyland forest and Hyperion wharf, both plagued by the housing bubble recession and let call them “reimagined” otherwise known as rolled back substantially, but even those projects were not outright cancelled, you got new fantasyland and Disney springs out of them

Again baring any strong economic discourse, Disney stays pretty true to their announcements

Main Street Theater? They scrapped that pre-covid for unknown reasons.

 

[Jrb1979]

Long video I know but it really fits the discussion on why some aren't exactly happy with where the new additions are going.

 

[Aluminum Falcon]

Main Street Theater? They scrapped that pre-covid for unknown reasons.

that one is valid. If i am remembering correctly, that project was scrapped because Disney found out that the land was not capable of supporting the structure after the announcement. Essentially cart before the horse in this case.