HMF
Well-Known Member
I know I'm not. My last ever trip to WDW was seven years ago. ending Reflections of Earth was the final straw for me.
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MK Cars-Themed Attractions at Magic Kingdom
- Thread starter wdwmagic
- Start date
MickeyLuv'r
Well-Known Member
You are joking, but the birds have been part of why I enjoy this part of the park.
Amusement rides, IMO, should ideally go along with a park looking partly like a (nature) park. I mean, just down the road from WDW is Silver Springs, and it is really beautiful. It has a glass bottom boat ride, and visitors can kayak.
Walking by the RoA is a tiny bit like visiting Silver Springs, and the birds are a part of why that part of the park is so beautiful.
Earlier this year, one of my best trip photos was a cormorant sunning itself on a rock by the waterwheel.
HMF
Well-Known Member
Indeed and once you lose a loyal customer it is very difficult if not impossible to get them back.
DavidDL
Well-Known Member
For what it's worth, my first visit wasn't until 2007, when I had just graduated high school. But Tom Sawyer's Island over in Disneyland (near where I live) is a "must do" every visit for me. WDW's was similarly, simply because it still had an open fort at the end of the island so as a "Disneylander", this was something on the East Coast that I always liked to pop in and see (and leave through the hidden tunnel). Grabbing a snack and visiting the island while watching the river traffic go by with my wife is also one of my favorite things to do come mid-day.
As time moves on, I realize that any attempts I may make to change the minds of those at Disney or others online regarding changes such as these are moot. If it didn't work for Mr. Toad's and all the fanfare that movement got before the widespread accessibility of the internet, it's not going to work for me or the attractions I care about. Tom Sawyer's Island, DINOSAUR, Muppet*Vision 3D and probably many more of my favorites will disappear soon or have already. The parks continue their slow, inevitable march towards each becoming the same identity-less, brand loyalty center. Coming on here to express admiration for something now gone, share a joke or rant into the void helps a bit.
Everyone's breaking point is certainly different. I've told myself the healthiest thing to do once that threshold has been crossed at any particular park, is to simply never return and find other things in life to enjoy. Still, it's hard not to say something while watching something you care about get chipped away little by little, even if you know nothing you say will make a difference. DCA crossed that Rubicon for me a while ago and now the WDW parks are inching closer and closer to it, too.
Thankfully I still have enough left of Disneyland to focus my enjoyment on. I'm hoping nothing like this ever happens to the rivers here. As long as folks keep spending money on Fantasmic! dining packages, they might have a chance!
TheMaxRebo
Well-Known Member
i do feel/hope that the view of Disneyland is different than WDW. So many more of the "original" version, the ones that Walt actually touched, and also the guests/local are more passionate for the history vs the less frequent guests to WDW who just want to have a good time be it new or old.
Replacing Rivers of America/TSI at WDW is not something I would do, but can somewhat understand it - would have a much bigger issue if they were doing the same at DLR and the fact we can still go to WDW (and other parks) and see a RoA definitely lessens the blow to me
DavidDL
Well-Known Member
It's hard to argue that Disneyland's isn't better. There is way more to see and do on the rivers here than in Orlando (even with the closed fort and multitude of broken Pirate effects that litter the island).
easyrowrdw
Well-Known Member
I think the river is better at Disneyland but the island is better at World.
DavidDL
Well-Known Member
Given the sad state Disneyland's is in currently, I'm inclined to agree. I'm probably in a minority who actually really likes the Pirate stuff. I wish they would fix the broken effects. The loss of the treehouse and fort hurt, too.
Still hard to beat a churro and a quiet, shaded spot towards the back of the island as the boats go by, though!
Tha Realest
Well-Known Member
You can get a reservation for just about every restaurant tomorrow.
Chi84
Premium Member
So if the parks and restaurants are empty, why would Disney want to increase dining capacity or keep older attractions available to provide for overflow crowds?
HMF
Well-Known Member
Disneyland has a dedicated fanbase that lets management there know when they are displeased. WDW has a passionate fanbase but they are limited in number and a smaller percentage of the visitors and TDO seems to be aiming for the lowest common denominator
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HMF
Well-Known Member
I agree and I probably never will. The show was very personal to me. The only satisfaction I can get is the fact that it's "successor" was such a huge failure.
LSLS
Well-Known Member
Sit downs are pretty empty based on the availability I can see on any given day. The parks being empty are a combination of semantics and news from 2 years ago carrying forward. The parks in the summer of 2023 were absolutely empty (relatively speaking, specifically around the 4th). They have rebounded, but are still nowhere near the levels they have been at, despite the wait times for rides being at those levels. So if you want to judge based on the number of people, they are where they were something like 10 years ago. If you want to judge based on attraction wait times, they are back to where they were. But again, lazyboy specifically mentioned the places to eat being less that 1993, and I don't think you will find anyone saying it is less busy now than it was 30 years ago unless I missed a discussion somewhere.
Bocabear
Well-Known Member
We were just there and everything felt mobbed..... There are fewer places to dine, reservations were difficult to get. There is no shortage of guests in the Magic Kingdom.
We took our last trip to Tom Sawyer's Island to say farewell. The condition it was in made it a sad goodbye. While the Fort seems to be in pretty good shape, the mill and windmill have really been let go...Looks like the streeams and springs on the top of the island haven't been working in years, The water wheel at the mill has been stationary so long there were plants growing in it. The Barrel Bridge and several of the walkways were roped off. Aunt Polly's just looks sad... Cave and Mine lighting was all cool white LED in the lanterns which just looked terrible. What a shame to see. The scenery on the Riverboat was much the same...looks like they stopped trying long ago to keep it up and running... Not sure what they will do with the Liberty Belle, but sure hope it is used for something...it is a beautiful boat...and was very popular for each sailing....
We took our last trip to Tom Sawyer's Island to say farewell. The condition it was in made it a sad goodbye. While the Fort seems to be in pretty good shape, the mill and windmill have really been let go...Looks like the streeams and springs on the top of the island haven't been working in years, The water wheel at the mill has been stationary so long there were plants growing in it. The Barrel Bridge and several of the walkways were roped off. Aunt Polly's just looks sad... Cave and Mine lighting was all cool white LED in the lanterns which just looked terrible. What a shame to see. The scenery on the Riverboat was much the same...looks like they stopped trying long ago to keep it up and running... Not sure what they will do with the Liberty Belle, but sure hope it is used for something...it is a beautiful boat...and was very popular for each sailing....
Raineman
Well-Known Member
And I think that is one of the main reasons why there are people strongly advocating for a change like this. ROA/TSI aren't attractions that you can speedrun and then move on to the next, so the park commandos deem it "unused space". When the Cars attractions are opened, the commandos will be able to add two more attractions that they can knock off their list as quickly as possible. Slowing down, enjoying the view, exploring, taking it all in-all part of what makes ROA/TSI a favorite of alot of people, and what also makes the commandos sneer at such a thing.
Disney is so good at "neglecting to death" attractions that are on the way out. For a company that has always stressed the importance of Show, it's pretty pathetic.
Dreamer19
Well-Known Member
It’s interesting. Walt took a lot of inspiration from Olmstead, who designed Central Park. Central Park was designed as an escape within the hustling and bustling chaos of one of the biggest cities in the world.
Imagine if NYC decided to just fill it all in with apartments because the space would be better used that way.
So, all those stories of people wondering why certain rides got updates shortly before their closure never happened?
flynnibus
Premium Member
This would be called "crying over spilled milk". AKA that time has already passed... those attractions are not having any influence because the consumers have already been conditioned away from them. Their presence is in effect, already being ignored. So taking them away isn't going to re-enforce the commando mentalty - it's already passed them over.
And why focusing on 'adding more slow downs and escapes' won't resonate.. it's not acknowledging how the consumer has been evolved. They are conditioning people with their product strategy and marketing to act like X... adding attractions to be like Y, without addressing the rest of things.. will just miss.
DisneyHead123
Well-Known Member
I think that for many the “slow down” areas are air conditioned stores and maybe dining or indulging in cocktails at Epcot. I’ll avoid any commentary on what that says about the state of consumption and consumerism in society, but especially with social media where new rounds of merch are highlighted online, I think that’s been a shift. People will stop to look around if they’re looking at festival merch. I also think AC is now seen as a prerequisite for any “relaxing” areas by guests.
I do think there is still decent demand for many rides considered “B-C list” like the Speedway, Railroad, etc. Not overwhelming but I think it’s there.