Soarin' Expansion and new Soarin' Around the World film

[Clamman73]

Still a little confused how they're going to allow access to the third theatre??? Through the main Soarin building part or a separate entrance and exit to the building off from the walkway queue part before it gets the Soarin building.

 

[dstrawn9889]

Still a little confused how they're going to allow access to the third theatre??? Through the main Soarin building part or a separate entrance and exit to the building off from the walkway queue part before it gets the Soarin building.
View attachment 85608

they have cleared the land of cans and buildings, and will build a freestanding theatre, and branch the queue - most likely once they have completed the structure

 

[DVCOwner]

Interesting approach to improve capacity at Epcot (and DHS with TSMM addition). These additions won't do anything to improve attendance, but should improve the guest experience. Soarin' addition actually makes sense as it loads so slowly, but a new ride would have also taken some demand off these attractions. Hopefully there is more to come that is actually new. Glad though to see updates to the projections and screens.

I do not agree 100% with this. Soarin' is a must see for everyone coming into the Epcot, so the only way to reduce wait times at Soarin' is to increase capacity. Disney is doing the right thing for both Soarin' and TSMM.

 

[Goofyernmost]

hopefully these upgrades will remove some of the car-sized dust/bugs from the film?

...or make them clearer by making the film digital lol

...or digitally remove them if the film does go digital.

Or understand that the dust is on the film, not in it!

Oh, there is something that I meant to comment on. Three weeks ago I rode Soarin. The film was clearer then I remember from the past and no, natta, nothing in the line of dust on the film either. And I was seriously looking for it.

 

[Goofyernmost]

Still a little confused how they're going to allow access to the third theatre??? Through the main Soarin building part or a separate entrance and exit to the building off from the walkway queue part before it gets the Soarin building.
View attachment 85608

This is how I imagine it...
Currently as you get to the end of the queue of Soarin, you go either to the right or the left to enter the two theaters. All they really have to do is build right behind the present building and attach straight on from the queue line. In other words, when you get to the boarding assignment portion of the queue you will then be directed to the right or the left (like always) and with the new theater straight ahead. I know that sounds way to simple, but, I think that is what is going to happen. Again, for all that care, that is not inside information that is an opinionated guess. I haven't really seen a blueprint of the floor plan of even the current Soarin set-up, just going my memory. Maybe @marni1971 has that at his disposal and would be willing to share.

 

[Travel Junkie]

I do not agree 100% with this. Soarin' is a must see for everyone coming into the Epcot, so the only way to reduce wait times at Soarin' is to increase capacity. Disney is doing the right thing for both Soarin' and TSMM.

Not everyone thinks it is a must see as plenty of people do not go on it now.
If you want to see how a rounded out roster of quality attractions changes the wait times, look at DCA. TSMM and Soarin wait times are roughly half of WDW’s times. Epcot and DHS need MORE attractions not increased capacity at the few attractions they have.

 

[Rasvar]

Not everyone thinks it is a must see as plenty of people do not go on it now.
If you want to see how a rounded out roster of quality attractions changes the wait times, look at DCA. TSMM and Soarin wait times are roughly half of WDW’s times. Epcot and DHS need MORE attractions not increased capacity at the few attractions they have.

It's also the first attraction to exhaust FP+ each day at Epcot. As far as DCA goes, I always thought it was a bit silly to have a Soarin' over California when you could just visit most of the places yourself pretty easily. With the repeat traffic in DCA, I see it as a been there, done that situation. Get a new film in there and you're likely to see DCA wait times increase. I just hope they think globally when/if they do the new film.

Yes, Epcot needs new attractions. I'd love to see something brand new in the location of Wonders of Life. I think that should be the spot for the next attraction. The expansion of TSMM and Soarin doesn't excite me. At the same time, I'm not going to complain about it. I like both attractions but almost never get on them since I don't plan my trips three to six months out and am not a morning person. I'm not going to praise it as great either. It's kind of like announcing new garbage cans to me. I'm more interested in seeing Trader Sam's Grog Grotto open.

 

[marni1971]

This is how I imagine it...
Currently as you get to the end of the queue of Soarin, you go either to the right or the left to enter the two theaters. All they really have to do is build right behind the present building and attach straight on from the queue line. In other words, when you get to the boarding assignment portion of the queue you will then be directed to the right or the left (like always) and with the new theater straight ahead... Maybe @marni1971 has that at his disposal and would be willing to share.

That's pretty much it.

 

[marni1971]

 

[Mike S]

View attachment 85625

Are the areas marked "stage" and "theater seats" Kitchen Kabaret?

 

[marni1971]

Are the areas marked "stage" and "theater seats" Kitchen Kabaret?

Yep. I've posted them before but just for you...

 

[TP2000]

It's also the first attraction to exhaust FP+ each day at Epcot. As far as DCA goes, I always thought it was a bit silly to have a Soarin' over California when you could just visit most of the places yourself pretty easily. With the repeat traffic in DCA, I see it as a been there, done that situation. Get a new film in there and you're likely to see DCA wait times increase. I just hope they think globally when/if they do the new film.

I've lived in California off and on for 25 years over the last five decades, and travelled to every corner of the state and every location covered in the Soarin' film. I have never been able to hang glide over Yosemite or the Golden Gate Bridge or San Diego Bay, so Soarin' Over California is a real thrill.

That said, it's just one E Ticket attraction in a park that has 30 other attractions including four other E Ticket thrill rides. DCA has more rides than Epcot, and more than Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios combined. The two Anaheim parks, Disneyland and DCA, have a wealth of riches when it comes to ride counts, especially the big E Tickets. Thus, you get lower wait times overall for most rides when compared directly to their cousins in WDW parks.

It's not that Soarin' Over California is less popular with audiences in Anaheim, it's that there's also a heck of a lot of other stuff to do in that park.

More Park Ride Capacity = Lower Wait Times

 

[Clamman73]

This is how I imagine it...
Currently as you get to the end of the queue of Soarin, you go either to the right or the left to enter the two theaters. All they really have to do is build right behind the present building and attach straight on from the queue line. In other words, when you get to the boarding assignment portion of the queue you will then be directed to the right or the left (like always) and with the new theater straight ahead. I know that sounds way to simple, but, I think that is what is going to happen. Again, for all that care, that is not inside information that is an opinionated guess. I haven't really seen a blueprint of the floor plan of even the current Soarin set-up, just going my memory. Maybe @marni1971 has that at his disposal and would be willing to share.

View attachment 85625

I have that thought too of going straight ahead, but how do you do that with all those mechanics or whatever is built out on that side of the building? Unless I misunderstood you.

 

[marni1971]

I have that thought too of going straight ahead, but how do you do that with all those mechanics or whatever is built out on that side of the building? Unless I misunderstood you.

Move them. It's only air handling.

Or go through the middle. We're only talking about a corridor potentially 12 ft square.

The exit corridor will wrap around the existing buildings exterior to link into one of the existing exit corridors (I'd assume theatre two)

 

[JohnD]

This thread or TSMM may be in the running as the new popular discussion thread, replacing the BAH thread.

See. Blueprints, drawings, satellite images, queue flow, where to put the third theatre. This will go on ad nauseum for two years.

 

[wdwfan757]

I've lived in California off and on for 25 years over the last five decades, and travelled to every corner of the state and every location covered in the Soarin' film. I have never been able to hang glide over Yosemite or the Golden Gate Bridge or San Diego Bay, so Soarin' Over California is a real thrill.

That said, it's just one E Ticket attraction in a park that has 30 other attractions including four other E Ticket thrill rides. DCA has more rides than Epcot, and more than Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios combined. The two Anaheim parks, Disneyland and DCA, have a wealth of riches when it comes to ride counts, especially the big E Tickets. Thus, you get lower wait times overall for most rides when compared directly to their cousins in WDW parks.

It's not that Soarin' Over California is less popular with audiences in Anaheim, it's that there's also a heck of a lot of other stuff to do in that park.

More Park Ride Capacity = Lower Wait Times

and let's not forget that the distance between space mountain in DL and soarin in DCA is geographically shorter than the distance between mission space and the land pavilion. You can efficiently do a LOT of park hopping at DLR. I always enjoy the fun of having a pocket full of fastpasses

 

[Goofnut1980]

Wow. They can build a whole theater and make improvements to the existing. In the same amount of time as they can add a simple track and video screens to TSMM. LOL. They must have 2 people building this one. LOL

 

[Rasvar]

I've lived in California off and on for 25 years over the last five decades, and travelled to every corner of the state and every location covered in the Soarin' film. I have never been able to hang glide over Yosemite or the Golden Gate Bridge or San Diego Bay, so Soarin' Over California is a real thrill.

That said, it's just one E Ticket attraction in a park that has 30 other attractions including four other E Ticket thrill rides. DCA has more rides than Epcot, and more than Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios combined. The two Anaheim parks, Disneyland and DCA, have a wealth of riches when it comes to ride counts, especially the big E Tickets. Thus, you get lower wait times overall for most rides when compared directly to their cousins in WDW parks.

It's not that Soarin' Over California is less popular with audiences in Anaheim, it's that there's also a heck of a lot of other stuff to do in that park.

More Park Ride Capacity = Lower Wait Times

Thing is, I don't recall the lines for Soarin being huge even in the bad days of DCA when the ride capacity (and park attendance) was terrible and it was one of the only attractions worth going to. Heck, I even went on Superstar Limo. I find it hard to compare capacity between DL and WDW simply because with the way DLR is setup, you can treat it as one big park and it is a different kind of customer. It takes about the same amount of time to walk from the back of DL's MK to the back of DCA (if you aren't slowed down at the ticket gate). I think that compactness also helps to hold down the queue size at DCA. So, yes, it may not be the go to attraction there. But, as far as park capacity, I wouldn't say that DCA beats Epcot, let alone adding DHS and AK. Most of it's capacity is sitting in line at Cars Land.

I'm not here to bash DCA because I love it as my fourth favorite park. It beats the heck out of Epcot on thrill rides. But, it is a bit of a mess theme wise (like DHS). I prefer the DL experience right now but it has nothing to do with capacity as much as it has to do with superior show quality. I can go in Epcot and have a full day and never ride a ride, though. WDW will never be the e-ticket capital. The parks do need more attractions. And Tomorrowland needs a revamp at both DL and WDW. DCA has more attractions but Epcot has more capacity and higher attendance. Adding new rides isn't going to just magic away the Soarin lines in Epcot. It would help if they stopped replacing attractions that held people a long time with shorter attractions that serve the same capacity level. Every time they have tried to E-Ticket something in Epcot, the attraction goes from about 20 minutes time to 5 minutes.

 

[Little Green Men]

I've lived in California off and on for 25 years over the last five decades, and travelled to every corner of the state and every location covered in the Soarin' film. I have never been able to hang glide over Yosemite or the Golden Gate Bridge or San Diego Bay, so Soarin' Over California is a real thrill.

That said, it's just one E Ticket attraction in a park that has 30 other attractions including four other E Ticket thrill rides. DCA has more rides than Epcot, and more than Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios combined. The two Anaheim parks, Disneyland and DCA, have a wealth of riches when it comes to ride counts, especially the big E Tickets. Thus, you get lower wait times overall for most rides when compared directly to their cousins in WDW parks.

It's not that Soarin' Over California is less popular with audiences in Anaheim, it's that there's also a heck of a lot of other stuff to do in that park.

More Park Ride Capacity = Lower Wait Times

While that's true, EPCOT also has quite a few people eaters such as SSE, UOE, AA, LwtL, etc. What's the longest attraction at DCA? EPCOT also has a number of exhibits, probably more than any other U.S. Disney parks.

 

[muteki]

So reading this update verbatim, they are adding another theater (half the current building) and are not adding a second building (two more theaters)?