News Tron coaster coming to the Magic Kingdom

[Horizons '83]

So, I'm extremely biased here (nice precursor huh? ) but TRON is here, its not going anywhere we understand its limitations and we understand that from a capacity standpoint it doesn't help MK at all, it might actually hurt it.

With that said, I am really looking forward to another thrill ride at MK, I am actually not much of a coaster fan but between the lighting package, TRON soundtrack and the ride vehicle itself, I am pretty excited about being immersed in "the grid". I am a huge TRON fan in general hence my bias. We can't do anything to reverse their decision, so we might as well enjoy a pretty awesome thrill ride, come 2021.

 

[Buried20KLeague]

FP+ can be a major advantage for groups in they use the system to it's potential. I agree that this actually hurts the majority of park guests, but it 100% can be an advantage. During july 4th week (busy week) last year I was able to do the following in 1 day at MK.
FP+: Splash, BTMRR, HM, Pan, 7D, Meet Rapunzel/Tiana, LM, Meet Ariel, Dumbo, Teacups, Pooh (x2), Buzz (x2), Meet Tink, Meet Mickey and Minnie.
Along with non-FP activities: Sit down lunch, FoF Parade, Small World, Meet pluto and Daisy, Meet Donald and Goofy, Pirates, Aladdin, Jungle Cruise, COP, and HEA

IF FP+ was not around that day, there is no way I would have done that many things. Sure my Small world wait probably would have been shorter, but that was a 20 minute wait (longest I waited in line all day). I even had another FP for Pirates after the fireworks, but we decided to leave.

Loosing FP+ will be a huge bummer to me and honestly may make me consider alternative vacations. I really do view it as a major advantage after I was able to do that in MK and very similar success in the other 3 parks.

So in one day, during July 4th week, you did 16 things via FP+, and then 8 more things while waiting in standby lines (of which Small World was 20 minutes), watch a parade, plus at least one meal? Pardon me if I absolutely don't believe you. 26 activities in a day during July 4th week, 8 in standby, a parade, and at least one meal.

A word of advice... When you're going to bend the truth to try to back up a point you're trying to make, you might not want to go Whole Hog.

The only way this MIGHT be remotely possible is if you have a big group of people, all of which are booked for different FP attractions, and basically none of which plan on riding anything or using those FP's themselves and you used their band or card or whatever they had and used up all their rides instead of them. Which is hardly about the FP system, and more about the large group of people feeding you their rider slots and why they would bother to pay a ton of money to be at a crowded Disney park in the dead of summer and not ride anything.

 

[UNCgolf]

I'd argue that a new E+ attraction is exactly what MK *doesn't* need *at this time*.

MK is overcrowded. It regularly gets more people than what the park's capacity is designed for. That's why there are so many long lines, even for lower tiered attractions.

A big E+ attraction will draw even more people into the park than such an attraction can handle, making the overcrowding even more pronounced.

That's a fair point, although if they would open a big, impressive E ticket along with a new TS restaurant (maybe a QS too) and a D/C (or both), it would go a long way -- they certainly need the dining capacity as well.

But you're right that the other parks all need the capacity more, and if they're going to spend the money (and they aren't at the moment) it would be better to keep adding new attractions to the others. DHS still feels like a half-day park with all of the recent changes (partially because they just replaced existing things rather than actually adding), and while EPCOT actually still has a lot to do, too many of the attractions are mediocre especially compared to what was there before. It's not helpful to have attractions that many guests completely ignore (Mission: Space and Imagination being the biggest offenders). They're also lacking some of the previous post-ride areas that also increased capacity with interactive exhibits, shows, and so on.

 

[Buried20KLeague]

It can be a major advantage, especially to a local AP. Many locals won’t even go unless they have fastpasses for good rides

That's the only case I would agree with. And those people are in the VAST minority.

 

[CastAStone]

It is the general wisdom that most of the WDW parks need more C and D rides.

It would help if they stopped closing the railroad.

 

[UNCgolf]

That's the only case I would agree with. And those people are in the VAST minority.

It can also be advantageous to people who only care about certain rides and don't mind missing some. It was actually pretty helpful my last two trips because I could skip the line on one major ride at a couple of parks while not caring if I didn't get on the others.

It's still a terrible system overall, though, and I will be very glad to see it gone.

 

[Jon81uk]

I would rather them eliminating FREE Fastpass permanently and do Maxpass like Disneyland. It's a way better system (for me).

Except MaxPass is just regular FastPass booked through an app. There is no major difference between collecting a return time at the attraction and collecting it on the app, other than the amount of walking involved. Therefore forcing everyone to book it on the app won't make any overall difference.

 

[MisterPenguin]

It would help if they stopped closing the railroad.

The railroad only serves to inure people to the problems of fossil fuels and global warming.

 

[lazyboy97o]

So in one day, during July 4th week, you did 16 things via FP+, and then 8 more things while waiting in standby lines (of which Small World was 20 minutes), watch a parade, plus at least one meal? Pardon me if I absolutely don't believe you. 26 activities in a day during July 4th week, 8 in standby, a parade, and at least one meal.

A word of advice... When you're going to bend the truth to try to back up a point you're trying to make, you might not want to go Whole Hog.

26 experiences in a 12 hour day is over 2 experiences per guest per hour. Beyond the top end of industry standards on a peak week. This would mean the park has enough capacity that 15 minute lines are the norm on the busiest days. There would be no crowding if the parks had this sort of capacity.

 

[Jon81uk]

But they aren't nearly enough. As you said, Magic Kingdom absolutely needs a new, great modern E-ticket along the lines of Rise of the Resistance. EPCOT has Guardians coming, which should be an impressive E-ticket (again ignoring the fact that it doesn't belong there, has a terrible building, etc.), but it needs far more than just those two rides.

I really wanted to reply to this, but noticed MisterPenguin did it so well, The MK really does not need any more E tickets. They do not need to attract any new guests to the Magic Kingdom. They need to get people to spend full days at the other parks to spread crowds out. Epcot is the park that needs the E tickets. MK needs the B, C and D tickets, the theatre behind main street, the Muppets history show, the small things that spread existing crowds out, not the big ones that make people book another trip.

I'd argue that a new E+ attraction is exactly what MK *doesn't* need *at this time*.

MK is overcrowded. It regularly gets more people than what the park's capacity is designed for. That's why there are so many long lines, even for lower tiered attractions.

A big E+ attraction will draw even more people into the park than such an attraction can handle, making the overcrowding even more pronounced.

It is the general wisdom that most of the WDW parks need more C and D rides. So TRON fits the bill of a D ride (the canopy is at an E level, but the box is a B).

This is the same situation for Ratatouille, which at the time it was made for Paris, was E level, but now that trackless is getting rather common, makes it more of a D.

Cosmic Rewind is the new E Ticket ride, but not because of thrills. In the new "more family friendly" parks, we're not going to get new 'thrill rides' (at least for the next decade).

 

[Buried20KLeague]

26 experiences in a 12 hour day is over 2 experiences per guest per hour. Beyond the top end of industry standards on a peak week. This would mean the park has enough capacity that 15 minute lines are the norm on the busiest days. There would be no crowding if the parks had this sort of capacity.

Not to mention just travel time between this and that... Various small things that can slow you down for a few minutes here and there... Having to INSTANTLY grab new FP experiences the second it opened back up for you... Actually having experiences to pick from basically all day long during a July 4th week day...

I'd venture to say no standby line is 15 minutes. Except maybe CoP. He already said Small World was 20 standby (which sounds awfully low for July 4th week as well).

So... Yeah.

 

[Disney Analyst]

So, I'm extremely biased here (nice precursor huh? ) but TRON is here, its not going anywhere we understand its limitations and we understand that from a capacity standpoint it doesn't help MK at all, it might actually hurt it.

With that said, I am really looking forward to another thrill ride at MK, I am actually not much of a coaster fan but between the lighting package, TRON soundtrack and the ride vehicle itself, I am pretty excited about being immersed in "the grid". I am a huge TON fan in general hence my bias. We can't do anything to reverse their decision, so we might as well enjoy a pretty awesome thrill ride, come 2021.

Thanks for shining some positivity in here!

 

[marni1971]

Not from inside the park with the dome thing completed.

Yes, we do.

 

[Marc Davis Fan]

I'd argue that a new E+ attraction is exactly what MK *doesn't* need *at this time*.

MK is overcrowded. It regularly gets more people than what the park's capacity is designed for. That's why there are so many long lines, even for lower tiered attractions.

A big E+ attraction will draw even more people into the park than such an attraction can handle, making the overcrowding even more pronounced.

It is the general wisdom that most of the WDW parks need more C and D rides.

I guess it depends what we mean by "need."

If the only goal were to improve crowd flow, then obviously MK doesn't need things that would draw more people in. In fact, to provide a silly hypothetical: if MK increased its capacity by adding attractions that were poor-quality (to ensure they didn't increase its attendance), that would be optimal purely from a crowd flow perspective.

However, if one of the goals is also to maintain Disney's perceived quality, then adding a major E ticket to MK would indeed be valuable (again because MK represents Disney to so many visitors, especially first-time visitors).

But, point taken that MK has a bigger crowding issue than the other parks, which should be taken into account. I suppose, then, it would be truly optimal (considering both goals) to have an additional/expanded land and C/D tickets along with any added E ticket.

 

[Ripken10]

Just pondering...so wouldn't NOW be the ideal time to add E tickets to the Magic Kingdom -- it likely won't draw many crowds in (coronavirus and all). (I joke)

 

[TYOTimer]

Just pondering...so wouldn't NOW be the ideal time to add E tickets to the Magic Kingdom -- it likely won't draw many crowds in (coronavirus and all). (I joke)

If only Disney could build at Universal’s speed, and not the speed of the Sloth from Zootopia, and they could have Tron open “soon”

 

[_caleb]

Yes, we do.

Maybe he’s referring to the different shades of gray coloring of the external paneling. We didn’t see that coming!

 

[Jon81uk]

If only Disney could build at Universal’s speed, and not the speed of the Sloth from Zootopia, and they could have Tron open “soon”

Disney aren't always slower at building, just different at announcing. Disney say we are going to build Tron coaster, then do nothing for months. Universal say nothing, we can see the coaster being built but no announcement until almost ready to open, making it look quicker even if the actual constriction time is comparable.

 

[larryz]

It would help if they stopped closing the railroad.

That's gonna happen every time they breach the old park boundaries with new attractions...

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

I'd argue that a new E+ attraction is exactly what MK *doesn't* need *at this time*.

MK is overcrowded. It regularly gets more people than what the park's capacity is designed for. That's why there are so many long lines, even for lower tiered attractions.

A big E+ attraction will draw even more people into the park than such an attraction can handle, making the overcrowding even more pronounced.

It is the general wisdom that most of the WDW parks need more C and D rides. So TRON fits the bill of a D ride (the canopy is at an E level, but the box is a B).

This is the same situation for Ratatouille, which at the time it was made for Paris, was E level, but now that trackless is getting rather common, makes it more of a D.

Cosmic Rewind is the new E Ticket ride, but not because of thrills. In the new "more family friendly" parks, we're not going to get new 'thrill rides' (at least for the next decade).

I've said it before and I'll say it again, what the Magic Kingdom needs right now is for the other three parks to get their act together and start pulling their own weight on the next level.

This isn't a response to your post directly, Penguin, this is more building off of your point.

Right now on the MDE App, with current attraction and show closures accounted for, The Magic Kingdom lists the wait times of 21 attractions in that park. EPCOT lists 9. DHS 10. Animal Kingdom 8.

The Magic Kingdom will have to add new attractions sooner or later - that is natural in the lifespan of a successful theme park. Without that guests will feel the park grow stagnant. But adding attractions to MK compounds its issues - demand for the park grows as capacity is added. On top of that The Magic Kingdom already has WAY more things to do than the other three parks.

So what balances the equation? Try to build out the MK to meet its capacity demands? It's a catch 22, and it bears out to MK one day having 100 attractions while the other three parks hover at 20 or so. That doesn't work. Stop building attractions at MK until other parks naturally catch up? Guests will smell the park stagnating - maybe fewer will show up at MK, but they'll also spend less time at WDW overall. Disney still wants those guests on property spending money, there are just too many of them at MK.

The real answer is aggressive expansion to EPCOT, DHS, and Animal Kingdom. Get the attraction count of those parks in the ballpark of MK - make them as appealing to visit as MK (or more, since MK has the nostalgia x-factor that helps keep interest high). For every attraction you build at MK, build 3 more at non-MK parks. Make them high quality. Build until the other parks outdraw MK.

Only then will you once again be able to build organically at the Magic Kingdom. Since 1995-ish the Artistic needs of the park have taken a backseat to its operational needs. It certainly doesn't seem to have damaged business, but it's damaged the soul of the MK. Imagine a WDW where each park is as dense with rich experiences as MK, so self-sufficient that any of them could fairly be considered the "main draw" park.

The perception of MK as the Holy Grail has gone on too long, is more trouble than it's worth, and is entirely self-perpetuated by the company. An Animal Kingdom with 21 solid attractions running the gamut from A to E-Tickets could easily draw as many people as MK. I don't know why they continue to insist on testing to see when the MK's back will break from carrying the resort.

Though I don't expect this moment in history to be the point where they change course.