Why does Disney take so long to build everything?

[MakiraMarlena]

Those who are stating that Disney Springs is just "a bunch of stores and restaurants" aren't noticing that the entire area is being completely renovated.

And the place just sat for the longest time after Pleasure Island shut down in 2008 when the economy tanked.

 

[mom2rtk]

Those who are stating that Disney Springs is just "a bunch of stores and restaurants" aren't noticing that the entire area is being completely renovated.

And the place just sat for the longest time after Pleasure Island shut down in 2008 when the economy tanked.

Oh, I noticed. I just don't care. We usually don't go to DTD (why bother since everything in those shops is the same we can find in the parks), but when we do (like we did 9 days ago) we really only want to visit the Marketplace area. What a substantial pain it all was.

We waited 40 minutes in the blazing sun to get a boat from POR. I suppose that's because everyone knows what a pain it is to drive and now take the boat (I've certainly seen advice here on the DIS for those not staying at the DTD resorts to park there and take the boat).

We went back the following day by car (had time to kill before heading to the airport) and as expected that was even worse.

My biggest complaint is that so little of what Disney is doing is about adding more people into the fairly static capacity they have already. You can't look at the scope of what they are doing at DTD and to the hub in the MK and not think that. Neither of those 2 massive slow construction projects gives me more for what I pay for admission to WDW. (My own opinion and experience).

 

[MakiraMarlena]

so the answer is that when you return there will be plenty that is new...it just won't be the kind of "new" you would prefer to see.

 

[mom2rtk]

so the answer is that when you return there will be plenty that is new...it just won't be the kind of "new" you would prefer to see.

I count all new things, whether they are what I want or not. But I do only count net new attractions in the parks.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

Harry Potter land was cleared and prep work going on when it was officially announced.

The Marvel attractions s are biult in studio biuldings, using basically the same tracking and lots of video screens.Much of Uni attractions are video screens, much faster and easier to biuld, especailly in boxy studio buildings.

Design goes faster as well when your basicly just doing computer graphics.


The 7 DMT was a changed and redesigned, a state of the art coaster system, and over the top , very complicated and detailed theming, built right in the middle of FL.

Disney has to jump though all the permitting and other loops that all other parks do. 30 years ago, not so much. Mostly becuase Florida authorities did not have the regulations or engineering abilities. However times have changed.

Add that a wdw as so much more in shows and specail events and other entertainment then Uni, it takes more time and maintaince.

AKK

 

[MakiraMarlena]

I remember a lot of praise to Uni for building Transformers and doing it so quickly and then I rode it. It is basically the same ride as SpiderMan. Awesome ride but they had already built it and they knew how.

 

[Grumpy92]

Reedy Creek Website states:
The Reedy Creek Improvement District was created on May 12, 1967. That was the day Florida Governor Claude Kirk signed legislation creating a special taxing district to govern a 25,000-acre area of Central Florida that locals considered remote and uninhabitable.

 

[Ambear]

The Marvel attractions s are biult in studio biuldings, using basically the same tracking and lots of video screens.Much of Uni attractions are video screens, much faster and easier to biuld, especailly in studio biuldings.

I remember a lot of praise to Uni for building Transformers and doing it so quickly and then I rode it. It is basically the same ride as SpiderMan. Awesome ride but they had already built it and they knew how.

Yep. I'm getting a little bored with the screen/movie being the focal experience and the ride portion is just transporting you to a new screen (this is why I find soarin' boring). I'm hoping disney doesn't start doing this more just to create attractions faster and I'm also hoping the kong attraction doesn't rely on this (which thankfully doesn't look like it will so far).

 

[Angel Ariel]

Yep. I'm getting a little bored with the screen/movie being the focal experience and the ride portion is just transporting you to a new screen (this is why I find soarin' boring). I'm hoping disney doesn't start doing this more just to create attractions faster and I'm also hoping the kong attraction doesn't rely on this (which thankfully doesn't look like it will so far).

I was under the impression that one of the new pandora attractions (the major e ticket one, from what I've gathered anyway), is a video-based attraction..

 

[vrajewski10513]

I know when we went last year to AK I felt like a mouse in a maze looking for the cheese. I would have much rather heard the buzzing of construction when I was there knowing the projects would be completed faster, than have to anticipate dealing with it again and again for years to come. The "magic" for me would be for projects to be done by my next trip... We didnt even bother with DTD last year because I've heard and seen pictures of what a mess it was.

 

[Ambear]

I was under the impression that one of the new pandora attractions (the major e ticket one, from what I've gathered anyway), is a video-based attraction..

Well that annoys me. I think I heard that too, like it would be like soarin'? Boring. Disney must be following uni's model then. Which apparently is well liked.

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

Universal had the HP stuff up and running way faster than Disney managed a childs coaster ride in Fantasyland..... plus they added Transformers and Simpsons Land

keep in mind all of those had accesses to them from behind guest areas. The seven dwarfs min train was built in the middle of a guest area and they could only bring in equipment and supplies when the park was closed

 

[goofyernmost]

I don't know that I take the whole "Disney doesn't want guests to see the construction" at face value. WE went to DLR yearly from 2009-2011, right in the middle of the DCA construction. There was construction happening during the day. The re-imagineering of DCA was announced in October 2007, and it was all reopened to the public on June 15, 2012. So 5 years, total, for all of Cars Land, World of Color, Buena Vista Street, Carthay Circle, Toy Story Midway Mania (opened in 2008), retheming Paradise Pier, Little Mermaid.

Disney is perfectly capable of building at faster speeds when it suits them.

Just a question because I have no idea about the answer, but, I thought DCA was closed for a lot of that construction and even if it wasn't, the problem was that no one was going to the place, so crowds probably wouldn't have been a big problem.

Once they actually start building it really doesn't take them a whole lot longer then any other place does. Universal, doesn't even announce an attraction until after the construction has started. Pandora seems to be moving a long at a decent pace now that they got it started, it just too a while for everyone to get into agreement about what was going to happen. They probably had the same situation with Uni, but, we didn't know about it.

7DMT did take a long time, but, I'm cutting them some slack due to the fact that it was right in the middle of Fantasyland with no external entry that didn't disrupt the public. After riding 7DMT, I can see why it took quite a while. That has more detail then they had tackled for a long time.

 

[Angel Ariel]

Just a question because I have no idea about the answer, but, I thought DCA was closed for a lot of that construction and even if it wasn't, the problem was that no one was going to the place, so crowds probably wouldn't have been a big problem.

AFAIK, DCA was never fully closed during the construction. I know they closed the park the day before the re-opening/re-dedication, but we were there multiple times during that 5 yr period, and DCA was never closed.

5 years from announcement to opening in DCA...announcement happened in October 2007, I believe construction began in December 2007, and it all opened in June 2012. That's a lot faster timeline than Pandora.

 

[mummabear]

Money.

 

[Major Tom]

All of the reasons why it takes them so long to build a new attraction don't seem to apply to DVC.

 

[WillAustin]

I count all new things, whether they are what I want or not. But I do only count net new attractions in the parks.

I agree. Redoing the Downtown Disney area and a larger MK hub are nice, but they don't add much more as far as actionable attractions go. For me, stores don't count.

Harry Potter land was cleared and prep work going on when it was officially announced.

The Marvel attractions s are biult in studio biuldings, using basically the same tracking and lots of video screens.Much of Uni attractions are video screens, much faster and easier to biuld, especailly in boxy studio buildings.

Design goes faster as well when your basicly just doing computer graphics.

I think a nice example is Under the Sea, a ride that easily could have been built 30 years ago and took longer than it should have. Disney is slow.

All of the reasons why it takes them so long to build a new attraction don't seem to apply to DVC.

That's because that's a priority.

 

[mom2rtk]

I agree. Redoing the Downtown Disney area and a larger MK hub are nice, but they don't add much more as far as actionable attractions go. For me, stores don't count.

Heck, I might even consider counting a couple stores along the way if they had merchandise different from all the other stores. But I've never seen it as bad as I saw it on our recent trip. I was more than happy to spend a few minutes with a survey taker when I came out of one of the DTD shops last week.

 

[Lizzim]

Disney parks typically have longer opening hours than Universal so that adds time on its own.

Also, lots of the Universal attractions are similar (Spiderman, Transformers etc) so they take less time...but they feel less engaging to me.

I've visited WDW 11 times in the last 6 years and Universal only twice...

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Reedy Creek Website states:
The Reedy Creek Improvement District was created on May 12, 1967. That was the day Florida Governor Claude Kirk signed legislation creating a special taxing district to govern a 25,000-acre area of Central Florida that locals considered remote and uninhabitable.

FWIW, this does not exempt them from Florida building codes. So then having their own special government to green light projects makes it only a tad easier. While Uni follows the same ones, I think what posters are getting at is that basically, the new attractions are just glorified movie theaters with a ride vehicle going from room to room/screen to screen. Rethemed and built again.

(Have not been on these rides except maybe spider man. So I am merely guessing as to their point and reminding that building codes start at the state with counties and municipalities only permitted to make them MORE strict and not less strict.)