What's for boys in the "new" fantasyland?

[Jrock0114]

90% of Disney World is themed towards little Girls..........thus the reason Disney purchased Marvel. Let's get someone in here that understands how to appeal to boys.

Think I'm wrong? Let's take Disney XD (formally Toon Disney) as an example. Disney has tried for years to create programing that would appeal and stick with boys........Nothing. That's the reason they have been showing Marvel Animated Series for years (Spider-man, Hulk, X-Men, Iron Man, etc..). All of these are huge hits with Boys (toys, movies, halloween outfits, etc..). This is what Disney wants to tap into so very bad.

But no........12 year old Males are not going crazy about the news that came out of D23 concerning the parks.........except for Star Tours 2 (again, not a Disney property).

 

[SuperTink]

I think people are jumping the gun on this new expansion and we should wait and see when more details are released on how they are going to balance the boy/girl elements. If the Ariel ride is going to be a "true E-ticket" like Jay Rasulo said, then it will appeal to everyone of all ages.

I'm hoping for something along the lines of the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Submarine ride. They claimed it was discarded because it was unpractical, but that was many years ago. Well, I can always dream...

 

[H.E. Pennypacker]

I don't get why everyone is so hung up in genderizing everything. "Oh, that's a BOYS ride. That's a GIRLS ride." I actually saw a post where someone said Haunted Mansion is geared toward boys. Really? And the statements that everything else besides Fantasyland is geared toward boys are absurd. Seems like every time I'm at WDW, I see people of all ages and all genders enjoying things equally. I think my DGF would be shocked to know she's not supposed to like POTC or Haunted Mansion or ToT or Space Mountain or Expedition Everest. Doesn't she know those are "boys" attractions? And I guess as a male, I shouldn't enjoy It's a Small World. So many dolls! And those pretty pink and lavender colors. And everything is so sparkly. Oh the horror! So on our next trip, I guess I have to just drop her off in Fantasyland while I go do "manly" things in Adventureland and Frontierland. And then maybe we can meet up for lunch. I, of course, will have a big, thick, manly meaty steak. She, of course, will have a small, dainty salad served on a lace doily.

 

[lbklyn]

I don't get why everyone is so hung up in genderizing everything. "Oh, that's a BOYS ride. That's a GIRLS ride." I actually saw a post where someone said Haunted Mansion is geared toward boys. Really? And the statements that everything else besides Fantasyland is geared toward boys are absurd. Seems like every time I'm at WDW, I see people of all ages and all genders enjoying things equally. I think my DGF would be shocked to know she's not supposed to like POTC or Haunted Mansion or ToT or Space Mountain or Expedition Everest. Doesn't she know those are "boys" attractions? And I guess as a male, I shouldn't enjoy It's a Small World. So many dolls! And those pretty pink and lavender colors. And everything is so sparkly. Oh the horror! So on our next trip, I guess I have to just drop her off in Fantasyland while I go do "manly" things in Adventureland and Frontierland. And then maybe we can meet up for lunch. I, of course, will have a big, thick, manly meaty steak. She, of course, will have a small, dainty salad served on a lace doily.

Although I agree with some of the posters that say there should be a set up for some of the Disney Villians (not specifically for boys, but for EVERYONE that enjoys an amusing Disney Villian) I found your post the most accurate. And VERY FUNNY!!! Good points!!!

 

[SuperTink]

Kinda retro--eh, Mr. Hennypacker?!

 

[goodferry]

OK, as a mom of two boys and two girls I am running through my mind trying to think of exactly how 90% is aimed at girls. At MK there's Snow White, Princess Breakfast, Belle's Storybook hour, the Fairys, there's a show that's heavy on Princesses and a Princess meet and greet.
At DHS there's Beauty and the Beast and Ariel's show, I guess some might consider HSM a girl thing.
At Epcot there's a Princess Breakfast and you can run into some of the Princess in World Showcase.
At AK I can not think of a single all girl thing. Maybe the now defunct Poch
Seriously? 90%?
At the resorts there's Alice in Wonderland Tea, a Princess Tea Party and Cinderella dinner at the GF, but also a Pirate Cruise. That's really all I can think of, I consider Mickey, Goofy, Donald, Lilo and Stitch, Pooh, all gender neutral.

 

[Coach81]

Another boys-only biased parent here... all I can say is.. BOOOOO!

 

[MickeysMagicalMiles]

Even though the majority of rides in Fantasyland are aimed at girls, both genders enjoy them all the same. I understand that probably "its a small world" would appeal only to young girls, but attractions such as Dumbo and even Snow Whites Scary Adventures are for everyone to appreciate and love!

 

[jacksmomma]

Ah, I am used to boys getting the short end of the stick...have you ever went clothes shopping?! Girls have 3xs as many racks and the 1 or 2 that the boys do have are filled with either "World's Next Sports star" apperal or Nintendo character apparel . Now Disney is just joining the club.

 

[SuperTink]

Marketing, especially the clothing and accessory market, has always been more lucrative when targeted to girls because girls are more often encouraged to be more concerned with how they look then are boys. There is no part of the female body that is not targeted, from head to toe. Literally. Plus, the purse market. Lots of money to be made there. But that's for another board, I suppose....

 

[cindyfan]

I already said this in another post but I keep thinking about it so much I thought I would directly post the question. What is there for boys?

I love Cinderella's castle and my boys actually do too but with the new fantasyland sketches the Magic Kingdom is becoming overly girly!

Why isn't there more pirate stuff? I asked in another post too, how about putting in a replica of the Black Pearl and having Jack, Will, Elizabeth, and maybe even Barbossa on hand?

What about a villans area?

I would love a sit down restaurant with pirate or villans as the theme. It seems like there is so many possibilities to interest boys but we keep hearing about princesses as the focus.

I definitely understand that we can't underestimate the marketing power of the princesses but c'mon give this Disney-loving mom of boys something to look forward too!

TOTALLY AGREE!!!!!!
I also posted my concerns on another thread..... but glad you started this one....
Maybe if we keep bringing it up Disney will listen to us!

 

[Colleen27]

90% of Disney World is themed towards little Girls..........thus the reason Disney purchased Marvel. Let's get someone in here that understands how to appeal to boys.

Think I'm wrong? Let's take Disney XD (formally Toon Disney) as an example. Disney has tried for years to create programing that would appeal and stick with boys........Nothing. That's the reason they have been showing Marvel Animated Series for years (Spider-man, Hulk, X-Men, Iron Man, etc..). All of these are huge hits with Boys (toys, movies, halloween outfits, etc..). This is what Disney wants to tap into so very bad.

But no........12 year old Males are not going crazy about the news that came out of D23 concerning the parks.........except for Star Tours 2 (again, not a Disney property).

Huh? Pirates, space, jungles, dinosaurs, video game based rides, action shows... More of Disney is themed to things traditionally "boy" than "girl". The difference is that we encourage young girls to have fun with those things as well, while we let boys just be boys to the exclusion of girl things.

The age bracket is an entirely separate issue. 12yo girls have for the most part outgrown the Princess stage and won't be over the moon about the expansion either, but catering to that age group is difficult because they're so much more fickle than little kids. Little ones have been dreaming of Cinderella, Mickey, and Pooh for more than a half century; 12 year olds, on the other hand, have been fascinated by a string of pop culture fads/phases that seldom last more than a couple years. Given what it takes to build a new attraction in terms of both time and money, it doesn't make sense to put a whole lot into courting that age group.

Universal is taking a gamble on Harry Potter enduring (and I think it is a good bet); in time, I expect we'll see Disney do the same with the Marvel heroes, but it was only a matter of days from that purchase until D23 kicked off. You can't expect them to come up with plans that quickly! If I had to guess, I'd expect to see Marvel plans start popping up at D23 in 2011 or 2012, with construction starting on the heels of the current projects' completion. I don't think they're going to let that sit on a shelf too long.

 

[cindyfan]

As much as I don't like to "genderize" (if that's a word?)
It's truely nature..... boys and girls like different things!!
I have 3 boys that all love CARS!! they love anything and everything about cars.... from Hot Wheels to the movie Cars!
Of the 3 boys.... one likes to dress up..... but not in a dress.... he likes fireman outfits, super-heros, even dressing up as animals.
But none of them like putting on a crown and having "tea".
They like the "action" and "thrills" I guess.

but... I also have 2 girls that also love all the "action" and "thrills" stuff....
we had NO tea parties or girly make up dress up parties in our house.

So.... it's just a stereotype or "label" ..... the whole "girly" stuff.

What we truely would like to see... is more "action" or "thrill" attractions.... without all the PINK.
They can name it after a princess..... but it's got to have thrills! then we'd be happy with it.
So we will have to wait and see the end result.

 

[mmmears]

To the OP: Come out to California and bring your kids to CA Adventure. It's becoming a "Pixar" park, with Bugs' Life, Toy Story, Monsters Inc., and a whole new "Cars Land" being built!

Plus, we have pirates on Tom Sawyer's Island...

I have a DD, so the Fantasyland changes work for us, plus I think they work well with the Fantasyland theming.

WDW should do more with pirates in Adventureland, though.

 

[wheezy19]

How is it that this debate about the new Fantasyland has only been raging for 4 days and it seems like 4 years already!?

Here's the thing. Essentially what people are upset about are princess meet-and-greets. Sure, they're going to be elaborate, but that's still what they are. There have already BEEN princess meet-and-greets taking up space in Toon Town. They're putting a REALLY shiny new coat of paint on something that's been sitting there all along. The Barnstormer is staying. Changing, but staying, in what I'm sure will be a gender neutral theme. The new Dumbo area has interactive games. My 27 year old boy certainly loved all the interactive games at WDW, so I don't see why younger ones wouldn't!

I would honestly be curious to see a list of every MK attraction and whether people think each is for "boys," "girls," or "both." If I was forced to pick (and I wouldn't want to, because I was lucky to grow up in a home where gendered expectations were kept to a minimum), I bet the scales would tip in favor of boys. Especially if we're counting rides and not just character meetings (which is what these are!).

I also have to disagree that all the available character meals are Princesses. I can only think of CRT, 1900 Park Fare, and Akershus. Am I missing any? The rest include characters from both genders, and mostly male. CP's Winnie the Pooh meal is all boy characters, isn't it? I'm not about to call in the NOW protestors over it. GIVE US KANGA!

 

[ShannonMB]

KANGA at CP! Woot woot!!!!

I really am so surprised there is ANY controversy surrounding the Fantasyland upgrades. Does it not look like it's going to be BEAUTIFUL and awesome?? How can the princesses not deserve their own over-the-top, huge area in a land? I really don't get it.

DD is outgrowing the princesses and would prefer a Hannah Montana meet and greet at this point. She also said she'd prefer the Pirate makeover to BBB at this age (and she's only 8 -- growing up too fast! ). Just because my DD is not much longer going to be blown away by the new stuff (by the time it opens, I imagine she'll be WAY too cool for princesses), doesn't make MK, specifically Fantasyland, any less the perfect place for a permanent, AWESOME home for the princesses.

Oh, and is there one person out there -- boy OR girl, grown up or toddler, tween or teen (may not admit)-- who doesn't want to eat dinner with the Beast in his ballroom?? I thought not!

 

[lugnut33]

I'm a 41 year old guy and love meeting pretty princesses!!

 

[mousygirl]

Dinner with the beast is so exciting. I think even my DH would find it cool.
I wish there was a Stars War dining experience. I think there would be more adults with it on their wishlists than kids.
Maybe one day...

 

[disneymomof2boyz]

Well, I already posted my comment on pg 2, but I will say that I think all this "controversy" is a little over the top. I will stick with my original opinion that I believe that Disney is NOT 90% girls. The only area that Disney can get better at is with the character meals. There aren't any real character meals that apeal to boys, and that is a shame, because Disney has some great characters for boys. We have dined with the princesses, and they liked it, I'm not sure they loved it, but in all it was fun. I also don't want to push my boys too quickly into the "boy box". That box that I know one day will come, but in my opinion they are too young for it now. They watch Princess movies and TinkerBell as well as Toy Story and Meet the Robinsons. I really don't think that this is a big deal.

 

[eliza61]

Op,
That's exactly why we find our selves spending time at Universal/IOA. We still love Disney and make it our "base" camp but for my house filled with testosterone Universal definitely is fun.

heres the big revel on the new HP world.

http://travel.yahoo.com/p-interests-29692008