News 'Encanto' and 'Indiana Jones'-themed experiences at Animal Kingdom

[Jrb1979]

Disney's MGM Studios was literally Michael Eisner's attempt to beat Universal to the Orlando market by copying their "ride the movies" mixed with a working studio. There's simply no argument that Hollywood studios is different or unique or somehow makes Disney better: that's a fundamental mischaracterization of how theme parks were developed in the Orlando market.

I know how it was created. I'm not comparing Disney and Universal. Everyone is completely missing my point.

When you go back to the 90s after Animal Kingdom opened, each park felt different. They all had a different theme and all had a different vibe. It really was what seperated Disney from everyone else. Since then the parks are slowly becoming an extension of Magic Kingdom.

 

[TheIceBaron]

How? Only three resorts use the monorail to mk and Epcot. Then you have a few that also use boats and a few that have the gondolas. The majority of onsite guests use the buses to all 4 parks.

It’s the only park though that doesn’t have at least one other non-bus option. I don’t know about you but whenever I travel with my family there is fierce opposition to traveling by bus which usually means animal kingdom gets visited the least. Honestly whenever we stay at a particular resort we end up visiting the park that’s closest to our hotel the most. Really only one hotel fits that bill for animal kingdom.

That’s my entire point though is AK sometimes misses the convenience guest, the guest that is there because it’s convenient. It is convenient for pretty much no one and isn’t open late either.

 

[the_rich]

It’s the only park though that doesn’t have at least one other non-bus option. I don’t know about you but whenever I travel with my family there is fierce opposition to traveling by bus which usually means animal kingdom gets visited the least. Honestly whenever we stay at a particular resort we end up visiting the park that’s closest to our hotel the most. Really only one hotel fits that bill for animal kingdom.

That’s my entire point though is AK sometimes misses the convenience guest, the guest that is there because it’s convenient. It is convenient for pretty much no one and isn’t open late either.

Imo this doesn't make sense, the magic kingdom has a bus only option except for 3 resorts. And the skyliner only services 4 for hs and Epcot. That isn't much of a difference. I always travel by bus unless I'm staying in a monorail resort which isnt the norm.

 

[TheIceBaron]

Imo this doesn't make sense, the magic kingdom has a bus only option except for 3 resorts. And the skyliner only services 4 for hs and Epcot. That isn't much of a difference. I always travel by bus unless I'm staying in a monorail resort which isnt the norm.

It doesn’t make sense to you because you experience Disney parks differently than maybe other people do?

Many people I know specifically do not stay at a resort if it only has bus available options (like the cheapest deluxe AK lodge). If you are staying at a deluxe resort with robust transportation options, time is at a premium. So waiting a half hour for bus to even arrive let alone finally get to its final destination is costly with the limited time on your hands.

Since AK doesn’t have any guests that can arrive quickly, it will hold back the attendance at the park, particularly later in the day.

 

[the_rich]

It doesn’t make sense to you because you experience Disney parks differently than maybe other people do?

Many people I know specifically do not stay at a resort if it only has bus available options (like the cheapest deluxe AK lodge). If you are staying at a deluxe resort with robust transportation options, time is at a premium. So waiting a half hour for bus to even arrive let alone finally get to its final destination is costly with the limited time on your hands.

Since AK doesn’t have any guests that can arrive quickly, it will hold back the attendance at the park, particularly later in the day.

Almost all the deluxe resorts only have one way to get to mk..three have the monorail and three(2 of which have the monorail) use boats. So most people use the buses to get there. I guess if you stay at one of the Epcot deluxe resorts you don't go to magic kingdom so you don't have to get on a bus.

 

[the_rich]

It doesn’t make sense to you because you experience Disney parks differently than maybe other people do?

Many people I know specifically do not stay at a resort if it only has bus available options (like the cheapest deluxe AK lodge). If you are staying at a deluxe resort with robust transportation options, time is at a premium. So waiting a half hour for bus to even arrive let alone finally get to its final destination is costly with the limited time on your hands.

Since AK doesn’t have any guests that can arrive quickly, it will hold back the attendance at the park, particularly later in the day.

Also from 2017 until 2020 it was the second most visited park in wdw and it wasnt far behind in 21 and 22. So how were the buses holding its attendance back again?

 

[EricsBiscuit]

Also from 2017 until 2020 it was the second most visited park in wdw and it wasnt far behind in 21 and 22. So how were the buses holding its attendance back again?

A high attendance and the buses holding it back are not mutually exclusive. DAK needs a unique connection to the AKL at minimum.

 

[celluloid]

It’s the only park though that doesn’t have at least one other non-bus option. I don’t know about you but whenever I travel with my family there is fierce opposition to traveling by bus which usually means animal kingdom gets visited the least. Honestly whenever we stay at a particular resort we end up visiting the park that’s closest to our hotel the most. Really only one hotel fits that bill for animal kingdom.

That’s my entire point though is AK sometimes misses the convenience guest, the guest that is there because it’s convenient. It is convenient for pretty much no one and isn’t open late either.

2 but you still make valid points.

 

[GhostHost1000]

Well, let's think about it for a second... first of all, getting live animals would be expensive. And Iger hates additions to the parks that could be expensive. I'd be shocked if there were any live animals as part of this land, which is being built to push IPs and not educate parkgoers on Tropical American wildlife. Second, even if there will be some live animals, they won't be the focus of the land. There isn't going to be another Kilimanjaro Safaris, I'd be shocked if there was even a trail like Maharaja Jungle Trek. The focus will be on the IP-based rides - which, again, are based on IPs that star HUMANS and have no major animal characters in them.

An actual Amazon Rainforest land, focused on actual South American animals, with IPs that would actually FIT THE PARK (Up and Rio for example), would work great for Animal Kingdom. A recreation of the town from Encanto with an Indiana Jones ride in the back and a Coco flat ride would not.

It's like if, when they were building the park, they just had the Asia section be some sort of Mulan Land because, hey, Mulan takes place in Asia even though it's not about animals.

Yes. This.

Even ignoring the fact that Antonio is a minor character, the idea that the hypothetical Encanto attraction will focus on him and Dolores teaching us about nature is very unlikely. People were claiming that Frozen Ever After might teach us about Norway, and it didn't. Then there were theories that the Guardians of the Galaxy ride would teach us about energy, and look how THAT turned out. Heck, The Seas With Nemo and Friends could've used the IP to teach riders about sea creatures, and instead we got a rehash of the movie.

I guarantee you it'll focus on the popular merchandise-selling characters - Mirabel, Bruno, maybe Luisa too. And they'll all sing songs from the movie as the vehicle goes by. Nothing to do with animals whatsoever.

and I bet the idea of wanting to shove Encanto and Coco in the parks came before even knowing which park it could “fit” in or what area it should be called…and I’ll stop there.

There are many other popular Disney IP’s that could have extremely popular areas and attractions. I know we have the lion king show at AK, but there is so much potential there for some type of family themed ride, even if it’s just an omnimover. Jungle Book is another that comes to mind.

 

[Brer Panther]

Best case scenario it visits La Casita with Mirabel as a host (like Henry Mystic) and Antonio/other small humans as mischievous side kicks (like Albert).

Then everything turns to chaos in the mid-sections while visiting the rooms of the house (Bruno, Antonio, Dolores) with Mirabel acting as the preshow and ride bookends.

I’ve long wanted an adapted Mystic Manor for Animal Kingdom (previously wanted a Mystic Safari concept, perhaps at the base of Everest), but this is actually likely to happen.

They’ve been given a layup for this, hopefully They knock it out of the park.

Overall, Encanto (and also Coco) lend themselves far better to expansive impressive attractions than Frozen or even Tangled, IMHO.

So I’m very excited what they’ll do.

At this point it's all speculation but I see no reason why Antonio's room can't be the primary setting for the ride but features characters like Mirabel more prominently in the action, they don't have to exclusively stay in their own rooms...

Once again, isn't Antonio a minor character in the movie? Does he even sell that much merchandise? I doubt Disney would want their Encanto ride to focus on him over Mirabel or Bruno.

It'd be like putting a Snow White ride in Animal Kingdom on the grounds that Snow White is good with animals. That doesn't automatically mean the IP fits in Animal Kingdom.

 

[Incomudro]

Once again, isn't Antonio a minor character in the movie? Does he even sell that much merchandise? I doubt Disney would want their Encanto ride to focus on him over Mirabel or Bruno.

It'd be like putting a Snow White ride in Animal Kingdom on the grounds that Snow White is good with animals. That doesn't automatically mean the IP fits in Animal Kingdom.

Your Snow White comment is spot on.
Animal wise, Snow White actually works better for than Encanto, Coco, and Indy.
Like I said "crumbly old buildings."
That's the entire logic of them forcing these IP's into Animal Kingdom.
They know they can get away with it, because the look will fit.
And people will eat it up because increasingly they care less.

 

[GhostHost1000]

Your Snow White comment is spot on.
Animal wise, Snow White actually works better for than Encanto, Coco, and Indy.
Like I said "crumbly old buildings."
That's the entire logic of them forcing these IP's into Animal Kingdom.
They know they can get away with it, because the look will fit.
And people will eat it up because increasingly they care less.

Imagineers forcing Tiana into Splash Mountain in Frontierland tells us all we need to know about their focus on theming (and other things) now which is similar to them trying so hard to force Encanto and Coco anywhere they can and then make up a story to try to fit it in

 

[James Alucobond]

Can people stop talking about Coco as if it's a fact when Disney has, to date, never mentioned any intention to include it in this land? I fully concede that it could happen, but they have not said it will, nor is the artwork especially indicative of anything.

And again, I understand being concerned that this will just be a book report ride or some weird after-story where the creative team feels the need to flex on "storytelling" or whatever, but if it's just a ride centered on Casita, Antonio and Isabela's rooms are a massive part of what we see of it in the film. They're the only character rooms we see fully realized, and they both relate well to Animal Kingdom. It does not matter that neither is the main character.

 

[Luigi]

Well, let's think about it for a second... first of all, getting live animals would be expensive. And Iger hates additions to the parks that could be expensive. I'd be shocked if there were any live animals as part of this land, which is being built to push IPs and not educate parkgoers on Tropical American wildlife. Second, even if there will be some live animals, they won't be the focus of the land. There isn't going to be another Kilimanjaro Safaris, I'd be shocked if there was even a trail like Maharaja Jungle Trek. The focus will be on the IP-based rides - which, again, are based on IPs that star HUMANS and have no major animal characters in them.

This is all speculation. You can't use your opinion as fact. Neither of us know until they announce it either way. Until then, I'll maintain a positive outlook.

Well, let's think about it for a second... first of all, getting live animals would be expensive. And Iger hates additions to the parks that could be expensive. I'd be shocked if there were any live animals as part of this land, which is being built to push IPs and not educate parkgoers on Tropical American wildlife. Second, even if there will be some live animals, they won't be the focus of the land. There isn't going to be another Kilimanjaro Safaris, I'd be shocked if there was even a trail like Maharaja Jungle Trek. The focus will be on the IP-based rides - which, again, are based on IPs that star HUMANS and have no major animal characters in them.

An actual Amazon Rainforest land, focused on actual South American animals, with IPs that would actually FIT THE PARK (Up and Rio for example), would work great for Animal Kingdom. A recreation of the town from Encanto with an Indiana Jones ride in the back and a Coco flat ride would not.

Tropical Americas IS an acutal bio region. IPs aside...Tropical Americas is one of the most diverse bio regions in the world and a perfect area to place in a park celebrating nature and animals. Then you quote two IPs you believe to be better suited. UP...which doesn't celebrate the cultural significance of the region and RIO...which is talking animals not originally even made by Disney.

The blatant negativity towards this is apparent. Which is funny because Dinoland used to be punchline. It was labeled a cheap, budget cutting measure. Rides were canceled (Excavator Coaster) and theming was considered poor compared to the rest of the park. Even the Dinosaur ride wasn't an IP ride until after the Dinosaur movie came out and people hated that was an IP pushed into the area.
Then Disney wanted to change it and fandom, who mostly can't handle change, started loving it more and became nostalgic over it.

Nothing anyone can say will sway opinion because fandom is inherently negative. I tend to be positive.
Sorry you all have made your decision so fast. I will wait to see the actual details and personally experience it before I judge. Which to me is the logical method...but then again as another poster pointed out...

I'm ignorant.

 

[flyerjab]

A high attendance and the buses holding it back are not mutually exclusive. DAK needs a unique connection to the AKL at minimum.

I’ve wondered about this. I always thought a train would be a nice option to run from AKL to DAK. But I always wondered if that was worth the expense. Then I started thinking a train that ran from the TTC to AKL and then to DAK would be great. But that would have to be really expensive and would it even be geographically feasible. I only have considered light rail an option as the monorail will never be expanded and that would be a crazy long gondola ride.

 

[EricsBiscuit]

I’ve wondered about this. I always thought a train would be a nice option to run from AKL to DAK. But I always wondered if that was worth the expense. Then I started thinking a train that ran from the TTC to AKL and then to DAK would be great. But that would have to be really expensive and would it even be geographically feasible. I only have considered light rail an option as the monorail will never be expanded and that would be a crazy long gondola ride.

For a non air conditioned gondola ride, it would be too long. However, they could build a separate gondola ride from DAK to AKL. A train would be expensive.

 

[flyerjab]

This is all speculation. You can't use your opinion as fact. Neither of us know until they announce it either way. Until then, I'll maintain a positive outlook.


Tropical Americas IS an acutal bio region. IPs aside...Tropical Americas is one of the most diverse bio regions in the world and a perfect area to place in a park celebrating nature and animals. Then you quote two IPs you believe to be better suited. UP...which doesn't celebrate the cultural significance of the region and RIO...which is talking animals not originally even made by Disney.

The blatant negativity towards this is apparent. Which is funny because Dinoland used to be punchline. It was labeled a cheap, budget cutting measure. Rides were canceled (Excavator Coaster) and theming was considered poor compared to the rest of the park. Even the Dinosaur ride wasn't an IP ride until after the Dinosaur movie came out and people hated that was an IP pushed into the area.
Then Disney wanted to change it and fandom, who mostly can't handle change, started loving it more and became nostalgic over it.

Nothing anyone can say will sway opinion because fandom is inherently negative. I tend to be positive.
Sorry you all have made your decision so fast. I will wait to see the actual details and personally experience it before I judge. Which to me is the logical method...but then again as another poster pointed out...

I'm ignorant.

I’m always a wait and see person. I also tend to be more positive so I guess I am also ignorant. I don’t get hung up on the IP argument as it is pointless. Until Iger/the board/Josh/whoever removes this mandate it is a waste of breath to complain about IP in a park. If you want to argue about choice of IP that is entirely different. Those discussions are valid because people are at least dealing in reality at that point.

Despite the high degree of negativity over the first piece of Tropical Americas concept art and the Bruce Vaughn intro, I still think this part of the park will have an excellent aesthetic and be beautiful to walk through. Plus if the concept art holds out and the rumor of an Encanto ride is true, there will be 3 indoor rides (assuming the spinner remains covered), something this park needs more of. Pandora gave us 2 of those from that expansion. And Vaughn was a part of that expansion and saw how you could take an IP that had no business being added to this park; yet somehow still works. So yeah, I’ll stick to being positive at this point.

 

[flyerjab]

For a non air conditioned gondola ride, it would be too long. However, they could build a separate gondola ride from DAK to AKL. A train would be expensive.

That’s what I was thinking. A train would be great and also to me seems a more fitting type of transport to the animal side of WDW. The cost though is probably something Iger has zero interest in.

 

[UNCgolf]

For a non air conditioned gondola ride, it would be too long. However, they could build a separate gondola ride from DAK to AKL. A train would be expensive.

I don't think they'd want to build a gondola that didn't connect to the existing Skyliner, but I also don't think they have much interest in expanding the existing system over longer distances. It's too slow/inefficient and prone to downtime for what it cost.

A train would obviously cost more (and if they were going to build a train, it would make sense to have more connections across property than simply AKL/AK), but it would probably be worth the extra cost because it offers so many benefits over a gondola.

 

[SirLink]

I don't think they'd want to build a gondola that didn't connect to the existing Skyliner, but I also don't think they have much interest in expanding the existing system over longer distances. It's too slow/inefficient and prone to downtime for what it cost.

A train would obviously cost more (and if they were going to build a train, it would make sense to have a larger route than simple AKL/AK), but it would probably be worth the extra cost because it offers so many benefits over a gondola.

Could dust off the old plans of an enclosed people mover for Disney Village/DTD/DS and Hotel Blvd and use that rather than train.