What new park developments are you most excited about from #D23?

[Smugpugmug]

I don't think Disney has to attract the kid crowd away, I think they need to hold on to them for a full vacation.

And add How to Train Your Dragon which was a huge hit! and another Harry Potter land. Very wide age appeal.

I think you'll see more of split vacations. Whether someone stays put and does both parks OR moves resorts since Universal has some sweet hotels, some with Express Pass. I am firm that WDW and UO are apples and oranges but that park is a game changer, Disney has to know that. Disney dropping Magical Express and other perks, their slow return to full staffing at resorts ... I know lots of folks who moved offsite for the first time and have asked me about all the other parks.

I mean, I'm doing a split trip now in December. My family is skipping Hollywood Studios and AK and going to Universal instead. I agree that killing Magical Express helped people expand outside the Disney bubble and see other parts of Orlando.

I think we can all agree that Epic Universe will not drastically impact Disney's attendance. I do think that them having Nintendo will be a HUGE boost for them. Kids love Mario games. Whenever I go to Gamestop, Target, Walmart, etc. I see kids wearing Nintendo shirts and asking their parents for Nintendo games/toys. It's a very strong IP for younger kids and people in the younger millennial/Gen Z age range.

 

[HopperFan]

I mean, I'm doing a split trip now in December. My family is skipping Hollywood Studios and AK and going to Universal instead. I agree that killing Magical Express helped people expand outside the Disney bubble and see other parts of Orlando.

I think we can all agree that Epic Universe will not drastically impact Disney's attendance. I do think that them having Nintendo will be a HUGE boost for them. Kids love Mario games. Whenever I go to Gamestop, Target, Walmart, etc. I see kids wearing Nintendo shirts and asking their parents for Nintendo games/toys. It's a very strong IP for younger kids and people in the younger millennial/Gen Z age range.

I think numbers very well could be volatile in a couple years for a few reasons.

I have resort hopped and I hate it, I try to just choose where I want to stay and just drive wherever ... I could see folks staying at a Disney hotel (comfort place) for a week, but maybe only doing 3-4 days at Disney then taking their money to the other parks. Not what Disney wants. Will be interesting for sure.

 

[nikem3]

Not that I think Disney needs to attract the kid crowd away from Universal (as they're already doing that) but if I was a kid I would much rather go to the park that has Mario + Nintendo in it than Zootopia and Moana.

As someone with a young kid ( 2 years old) Universal doesn't really work for him. Height limitations for Universal make it nearly impossible to go on any ride in Universal. I believe there are two rides in all of universal that he can go on (Red Fish Blue Fish and the alien dumboesque ride). He can't even ride the two cat in the hat rides that are super mild. At Disney, he can ride 15+ rides. In fact, he will be able to ride Goofy's barnyard rollercoaster before he can ride the Seuss sky trolley or the cat in the hat.

It gives Disney an advantage for families with younger kids like him and I'm always surprised at the difference between height requirements for Universal and Disney on similar rides. So I feel like Disney will always maintain that crowd even with introduction of things like Mario.

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

Ok, only half kidding, I'm going to rehash the idea of a 5th gate at WDW; Yesterland. Instead of demolishing the old rides to make way for the new, move them to Yesterland. It would be less costly than a new park from scratch, spread guests out, and retain nostalgia. Plenty of people would like to revisit Maelstrom, Horizons, The Great Movie Ride, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Snow White's Scary Adventure, etc.

Intriguing. Very intriguing.

 

[Smugpugmug]

As someone with a young kid ( 2 years old) Universal doesn't really work for him. Height limitations for Universal make it nearly impossible to go on any ride in Universal. I believe there are two rides in all of universal that he can go on (Red Fish Blue Fish and the alien dumboesque ride). He can't even ride the two cat in the hat rides that are super mild. At Disney, he can ride 15+ rides. In fact, he will be able to ride Goofy's barnyard rollercoaster before he can ride the Seuss sky trolley or the cat in the hat.

It gives Disney an advantage for families with younger kids like him and I'm always surprised at the difference between height requirements for Universal and Disney on similar rides. So I feel like Disney will always maintain that crowd even with introduction of things like Mario.

Yeah that I agree with. I don't think Universal's new park will fix the height requirement issue as even the Nintendo land rides have height requirements (the Yoshi ride I believe is 40 inches alone and 36 with an adult. Not sure about Mario Kart). However, I think with Nintendo they will attract more of that 5-10 year old crowd. Those are the kids that go nuts for Mario in terms of the games and the merchandise. Not enough to severely impact Disney, but it's a great IP for Universal to have.

 

[HopperFan]

As someone with a young kid ( 2 years old) Universal doesn't really work for him. Height limitations for Universal make it nearly impossible to go on any ride in Universal. I believe there are two rides in all of universal that he can go on (Red Fish Blue Fish and the alien dumboesque ride). He can't even ride the two cat in the hat rides that are super mild. At Disney, he can ride 15+ rides. In fact, he will be able to ride Goofy's barnyard rollercoaster before he can ride the Seuss sky trolley or the cat in the hat.

It gives Disney an advantage for families with younger kids like him and I'm always surprised at the difference between height requirements for Universal and Disney on similar rides. So I feel like Disney will always maintain that crowd even with introduction of things like Mario.

Obviously the 2 year old guest is not in this equation ... Disney is the destination for a kid's early year trips. But there are many who say by 8 or 9 some kids are becoming jaded, not interested in characters and have been exposed to a wider range of IPs, video games and such. Disney has pretty much held tight to those guests but I think EPIC will draw them out AND once you start the math on tickets, you might as well try the other parks with a bundle.

And even if Disney loses a few days tickets no big, but without the old hotel perks, will this also impact resorts and it impacts dining??? The answer whatever it is - is out there long term but if Disney doesn't acknowledge that UO is actively designing to bring in the next demographic they are fools because catchup is tough.

I did a huge survey for UO, signed a "keep this secret" survey but it was last spring so ... it wasn't just about my experience at UO it was full of very detailed comparison questions between UO and Disney, and minimally UO and SeaWorld. Much of it seemed to be what they can do to get kids/families in the park. It asked about food. It asked about thoughts on different festival ideas. It asked about a Kid's Halloween event - which would work in the new park tied in to Nintendo etc, ToT ... very much a Disney style. They are def thinking forward on making their parks attractive to families, especially non-local families. Look at all their hotels now, and prediction is 3 more possibly at EPIC.

Honestly if it made WDW less crowded, I'm all for it!

 

[CarolynFH]

Our issue with UOR is that it’s not very friendly to Shrek-sized people. I doubt that DH will ever consider going back to the current parks or trying out Epic Universe.

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

Our issue with UOR is that it’s not very friendly to Shrek-sized people. I doubt that DH will ever consider going back to the current parks or trying out Epic Universe.

This is somewhat of an issue for my family, but my dads big problem is he is physically tall. So some rides his knees are in his chest (Mummy and Brendan Fraser we love you but this is why we don’t go on). My one aunt at UOR at least for minions has the seats that don’t move that she can sit in as it’s 4D rides that do her in. So while us plus sized humans do have issues, it’s not nearly as bad as height or motion sickness.

I will say though: I have something called Blephirits. It’s when the crust in your eyes causes bacterial infection. I use one a day contacts and a special scrub for this (doesn’t mean I still can’t get it once in a blue moon. But it helps keep the infection to maybe once a year to every 18 months). So VR rides I can’t do due to the shared glasses. At least 3D I can perch on my nose a certain way and I know they are constantly cleaned. VR I can’t. So I will be riding Super Nintendo Mario kart ride I believe without the hat. Universal isn’t the only one guilty of VR (Sea World had VR on Kraken and BGW replaced Cork screw hill with some weird VR dragon thing I’ve never been able to experience), but I really feel more companies especially post pandemic need to be aware of this and maybe revert back to 3D glasses.

 

[1lilspark]

Our issue with UOR is that it’s not very friendly to Shrek-sized people. I doubt that DH will ever consider going back to the current parks or trying out Epic Universe.

THIS
Universal is not good for people with body inclusiveness or people with photosensitivity