I agree, but will this actually add capacity to the park? I have my doubts.
It may have the opposite effect. AK will have the same (or some may say less) capacity, and a lot more folks will want to go to AK to see the new land.
It will be interesting to watch.
I think it will boost capacity in the end.
I’ve seen some people compare this to Hollywood Studios in that they view this as them making the park top heavy, but I actually don’t think that’s what is going to happen with this.
In terms of the pure numbers game, Animal Kingdom is losing one low capacity spinner and gaining in its place a carrousel which will have a comparable capacity to the spinner as well as a big new E ticket that at minimum will have a higher capacity and, depending on the ride system, will have a maximum that may be the largest capacity on the park.
Now, capacity in theme parks is of course more than just space for guests on rides, it’s also about how guests move about the park and this is where I think Animal Kingdom’s secret weapon comes into play. Animal Kingdom is a big and spread out park with none of its headliners sitting right next to each other. The attractions are spaced out, and along the way there’s various crowd sucking points such as the shows, trails, and train to Conservation Station.
Unlike Hollywood Studios where everything is stacked on top of each other thus disrupting crowd dispersement, Animal Kingdom’s layout keeps people moving. With Dino Land being the runt, yes it put added stress on the other E-ticket corners of the park, but Tropical Americas creates a balance. There will now be a major attraction or two in every section in all 4 corners of the park with lots of diversions in between.
Tropical Americas will be swamped at first, but I think over time we’ll see the park settle into a balance with no one land bearing the total brunt of the park’s guests like Pandora does now.
