Hi everyone! I finally made an account on here after about two years of browsing the forums, but just like the title i really don't understand why the Haunted Mansion doesn't get the California treatment at Halloween and Christmas. Anyone agree?
-
Welcome to the WDWMAGIC.COM Forums!
Please take a look around, and feel free to sign up and join the community.
Where's the love for Jack Skellington at the Haunted Mansion in WDW?
- Thread starter Phantom_Cookie
- Start date
Goofyernmost
Well-Known Member
No, I'm afraid I have to disagree. I have only been to DL once in my life and it was the day after HM opened with the overlay. All I could think of was...gosh, a carnival fun house complete with cardboard cutouts and black lights.
It works in DL because so many of the guests there are locals with AP's that see the same thing over and over and over and over. The change is nice. It is different at WDW. The guests come from all over the world in large numbers. It represents a huge cash expenditure to spend the appropriate amount of time there to see most everything. What they don't want are people that wanted to see HM in its natural form be disappointed to find an overlay in its place. Think about the upset of people that were surprised by the Castle Cake. The common argument was..."This is a once in a lifetime trip and I wanted to see the Castle the way it should have been. Instead I got the candy land overlay." Many of us (not all) that make repeated visits weren't really bothered by it because, 1) we've already seen the castle and 2) we were coming back anyway and 3) it was kinda novel and creative.
In my humble opinion, the HM overlay is neither creative nor impressive. It was a major disappointment for me and for the same reasons I just mentioned. It definitely was going to be a once in a lifetime experience for me and I had been looking forward to seeing the ORIGINAL Haunted Mansion. I, of course, represented a very, very small minority of Guests at DL.
I do agree to a certain extent but i still think that the nightmare before christmas crew deserve more of a presence in the world at the christmas/halloween period, but this is from a pretty biased fan. (look at the picture) 
Californian Elitist
Well-Known Member
The "once in a lifetime guest" excuse doesn't make sense and it's a silly reason not to do overlays.
HMH is amazing and I think it sucks WDW doesn't have it.
HMH is amazing and I think it sucks WDW doesn't have it.
Californian Elitist
Well-Known Member
Do some research and plan around it.
cameronmouse
Active Member
I would love to see some nightmare before christmas characters/theming during Halloween and Christmas. Maybe if enough people show interest in it theyll add it in at some point?
englanddg
One Little Spark...
Respectfully, I disagree. Consider that trip planning isn't as flexible for many people as it is others, especially if one is coordinating with other family members or two job working households, not to mention children's schedules and activities.
Further, you should consider international guests or people who make the trip only a few times, and these are common.
If I had dropped 7 or 8k (or more) to bring my family from the UK to find that the Castle that I wanted a lasting picture with the kid in front of looked like something that dropped out of a Milton Bradley game...I would be furious. Dressing the Castle up with decorations is different then making a mockery of it and removing its charm and beauty completely, even if it was a neat and unique idea.
Anyhow, as I said, I could care less about skinning the haunted mansion. It isn't as iconic as the castle. But, I do see validity in the "once in a lifetime" argument.
Californian Elitist
Well-Known Member
The thing is Diseneyland gets these guests as well. It's not like Disneyland never ever gets tourists. They do and they still do the overlay. I still say you can plan around it. Disney provides this kind of information, information for when attractions go down, holiday dates, etc.. Agree to disagree. It's a Disneyland thing, I guess. And TDL.
Goofyernmost
Well-Known Member
That's very true, but not to the extent that WDW gets them and that is why there is a difference in usage of the overlays.
Californian Elitist
Well-Known Member
That shouldn't matter. A once in a lifetime guest is a once in a lifetime guest, no matter how many there are.DLR has more APs but that doesn't mean WDW shouldn't cater as much to their APs. I was told the real reason why Florida doesn't have overlays is simply because TDO doesn't want to do them.
George Lucas on a Bench
Well-Known Member
I personally do not want this and I do not support the Disneyland version either.
Goofyernmost
Well-Known Member
What matters is 100 people complaining instead of 1000. And that would be why they don't want to do them at WDW.
Californian Elitist
Well-Known Member
Once again, what does the amount of complaints matter? Right, they don't want to do them. They could do them, they just don't want to because they don't feel like hearing complaints. BS excuse IMO.
Goofyernmost
Well-Known Member
I suppose in one respect you're correct, however, my business plan would be much different if I was only worried about complaints. I would be worried about 100 unhappy guests as opposed to 1000 unhappy guests. That is what makes for differing decisions and it is not BS if you are one of the unhappy guests.
englanddg
One Little Spark...
They matter because Disneys best marketing is word of mouth and replicating experiences, not gaudy displays.
People hear about other peoples trips when they return, and that encourages them to go as well.
I, personally, think its fun, but as I stated before, I can completely understand why it's not as common at WDW.
Imagine, you take your first holiday in 5 years, spend a small fortune, and the most iconic features of the park are cartoonified with silly decorations...
People hear about other peoples trips when they return, and that encourages them to go as well.
I, personally, think its fun, but as I stated before, I can completely understand why it's not as common at WDW.
Imagine, you take your first holiday in 5 years, spend a small fortune, and the most iconic features of the park are cartoonified with silly decorations...