A Terror-rific Spirited 13th (ToT fans have lots to fear)...

[VJ]

technically the castle walls will be maintained but the main part will be demolished and expanded upwards.
So, doesnt this count as "replacement"? or does it count as "overlay" ?

I feel like the current castle will act as a "castle gate" to the new castle, with a sort of courtyard between the old and new parts. That's how I'm imagining it from the concept art, at least.

 

[Cesar R M]

yikes, moana sitting at 99% with 78 reviews already!

Pixar/Disney is on fire!

 

[Hakunamatata]

yikes, moana sitting at 99% with 78 reviews already!

Pixar/Disney is on fire!

Woo hoo! Canada is getting a Moana attraction! I can smell it like gravy in a boat!

 

[lazyboy97o]

I imagine Bob ordered a crap ton of Extenze, wasn't pleased, and shipped it to Hong Kong.

When you look at this closely and can see Sleeping Beauty Castle sitting there piggy-backing a behemoth, the whole premise becomes grotesque.

Be happy with what you're born with and win them with quality. That's what my pediatrician told me at my pre-college physical.

I really don't get the love for the expanded castle. It is a pile random architectural bits that will just loom high over the park.

 

[the.dreamfinder]

One more thought on Moana as I don't want to get the spoiler police all up in this thread. When it comes to the parks, Moana belongs in Tokyo DisneySea, not Frozen. Maybe even Animal Kingdom given how much nature plays into the story of the film and mythology of the world.

"Nature starts from the ocean. It's the ocean that gives life to the land" - Angel Bera, Member of Moana's Oceanic Trust

 

[the.dreamfinder]

I really don't get the love for the expanded castle. It is a pile random architectural bits that will just loom high over the park.

It's a physical manifestation of "the kitchen sink", so to speak. The more I look at it, the more I appreciate Enchanted Storybook Castle, which has many flaws as well.

 

[Cesar R M]

Woo hoo! Canada is getting a Moana attraction! I can smell it like gravy in a boat!

 

[Mike S]

Probably sooner. The timing on Avengers does not bother me. In nearly every other circumstance I would be rolling my eyes. But finally, one out of twelve Disney parks has entered an actual healthy investment cycle. I don't mind a reasonable road-map with semi-subtantial attractions every few years. Even if one of those is 6 years out and they are telling us too early, it's by far not the only thing on the roadmap.

The inevitable comparisons between the two will be interesting to say the least. There's never been a situation like this before.

They can actually do that because they are the only park to add multiple E-tickets in the last decade. Every other park is so abused that they need to shut half of it down for 5 years to fix it. That's when the slow pace is infuriating. I wish all parks would get on HKDL's investment cycle, but sadly most of them still haven't had their five year shut-down yet.

Word.

I don't know if we can really count Frozen per-say, but Hong Kong will have added 4-5 new E-tickets plus tons of extra attractions over 10 years. A claim only Universal Parks can make otherwise. Same reason it's not really that upsetting that Nintendo will take 5-6 years in Orlando.

Nintendo fans care...

If Frostrom doesn't have added capacity, someone deserves to be fired. At least it is in the right place...

Once again, word.

One more thought on Moana as I don't want to get the spoiler police all up in this thread. When it comes to the parks, Moana belongs in Tokyo DisneySea, not Frozen. Maybe even Animal Kingdom given how much nature plays into the story of the film and mythology of the world.

"Nature starts from the ocean. It's the ocean that gives life to the land" - Angel Bera, Member of Moana's Oceanic Trust

I still think Adventureland would be a good idea. They're putting it there in Hong Kong.

 

[EPCOTCenterLover]

Frozen Ever After?!? What a missed opportunity to really put HKDL on the map.

 

[V_L_Raptor]

GOOD. I really can't wait to see that one.

Truly a gift. Extremely well done.

Stay through the credits.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Truly a gift. Extremely well done.

Stay through the credits.

Moana is

Moana is fantastic. The music, the visuals, the story. The little winks at the princess tropes. Fun Easter Eggs. There is, in fact, a double wink at the very end of the credits.

Moana, Lilo and Stitch, Lava, Hawaiian resort, Polynesian Resort, Tiki Room... Disney's trying to corner the market on Polynesian / South Pacific pop culture.

 

[rushtest4echo]

Percentage of people that visit a Disney Park and will ever ride Frozen Ever After at both Hong Kong and EPCOT: .000001%

Selfishly, I'd love to see a more fully featured ride system and a more lengthy ride, but in the end nobody... NOBODY at HKDL is going to ride it and say "jeez I wish they had done trackless". I'm so glad the fans don't run the parks, HKDL is probably paying 1/3 what it'd cost to develop a new version and that's just smart business especially for a park that's dumping that amount of capital into the park over the next decade.

 

[GiveMeTheMusic]

oh wow.
So the new castle will be built right behind the older one and expand the boundary walls?

No, it's literally being built on top of the existing castle. The current castle forms the base - if you look at the concept art, you can see what will remain of the original SBC.

 

[SamN'Dean]

No spoilers, it was just good to be back in The Wizarding World for 2+ hours. You'll like it.

I wish I felt that way. I'm a huge HP fan, but I found FB to be a crushing disappointment.

 

[Gabe1]

My sources aren't saying much (well, beyond that RoL may be dead as we know it and may have to be completely retooled with a new opening sometime next year) as this is a holiday week and they are all over and I am headed off on a Spirited attempt to eat as much as I can and still look smallish compared to the average WDW Guest.

I can only say that I have never lied to anyone here. Disney execs lie almost everytime they open their mouths with fans or media or Wall Street analysts. Considering the timeline on this, Disney can come back in three years, do it and say ''We never had any plans, but the amazing response from our fans at Disney California Adventure Park and Florida fans clamoring for their own version just won the day. It's a tough decision to make, but we know when Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakdance Back In opens at The Bob Iger Memorial MAGICal IP Land Theme Park in 2022, just in time for GotG 5 to hit theaters and Corneal iChips everywhere, that everyone will be boogieing on down (cue: Let's Groove Tonight by Earth Wind and Fire since they'll have to be on 80s music by then)."

I stand behind everything I have posted as being accurate at the time. I know of nothing conflicting beyond Chappie's Bizarre Address to me and my flock of followers (and even the haters are followers because they read and spread my word like Jesus on the Mountain! I mean, my lawn man Jesus riding BTMRR and yelling ''Jesus, they were too damn cheap to add in the Anaheim and Paris effects here?!??!") I have had a bulge since the weekend and wonder if I should call my doctor or just invite over a few of my favorite fanbois.

Marvel is absolutely planned to be a component of the third gate in the swamps. I have heard chatter that the Dr. Strange IP might find a home in the Tower instead. I am simply relaying this because it does NOT come from any of my trusted sources.

In a more serious note, I spent part of tonight at the local Disney outlet store and they sure have loads of Star Wars merchandise and Marvel merchandise and all of that stuff that is supposedly selling so well at full price. I happened upon a Hall of Presidents tee from the 28 and Main collection for the low-low price of $14.99. First, they look like will last approximately 2.3 washings before disintegrating ... then, I was wondering if with the recent collective suicide attempt by the USA if buying one to mock would be in bad taste. At times like this, I do sit back and wonder what would That Dude Derek Burgan do?

Oh well, I need to go break my Bob Iger bank (it's a piggy bank, but the piggy is named Bob Iger) to see if I can add to the $54.97 I have toward one of those fancy upscale Tomorrowland Teabagging Tents. I just gotta sit on one of those lounges near the Tomorrowland Toilets and send a minimum wage CM over to Cosmic Ray's to grab me some vittles. Yup, this is how those Beverly Hills elites live.

My guess is your sources are not saying much as likely they were just as blindsided as most were with that announcement. Go Figure. Honestly wonder how last minute that decision was to placate to the local audience. Such Twitter fanfare it was. The worship and praise-'Disney isn't doing anything to the Tower" gush.

The Bus Drivers are saying next year for RoL. I tend to trust them more than the executives or the fandom out there. (how sad is that) Still not as sad as the cheap little tents popping up. Can't wrap my brain around the tents. If I'm not exploring the parks-I'm out and back to the resort before I'm sitting in a hot, unventilated plastic tent that costs more than a deluxe resort room. Seriously how are these receiving accolades?

 

[PREMiERdrum]

If this castle "enhancement" lasts more than 4 hours, should one call their doctor?

Asking for a friend.

 

[matt9112]

People seem to only dislike Frozen Ever After because it goes against the "original" concept of the park. Sorry, but it's not like it's sacrilegious or anything, it wasn't Walt's original plan anyway. What bothers me about FEA is that they didn't take the time to update the ride system. I know they wanted it out as quick as possible, but this will cost them in the years to come, especially since it's already causing problems. Say what you want about Maelstrom, but it was not a classic ride. Equivalent to the current Imagination which does have its own fans, but again, not a classic.

I dont care about placement i care about the fact it deserved its own high capacity ride aystem from scratch and there was room for a larger show building.

 

[Brer Oswald]

Woo hoo! Canada is getting a Moana attraction! I can smell it like gravy in a boat!

I don't know how Moana is based on Canada (guessing it's an extreme joke) but I'm all for it!

 

[Brer Oswald]

I dont care about placement i care about the fact it deserved its own high capacity ride aystem from scratch and there was room for a larger show building.

Good...that's what bothers me about it too!

 

[lazyboy97o]

Percentage of people that visit a Disney Park and will ever ride Frozen Ever After at both Hong Kong and EPCOT: .000001%

Selfishly, I'd love to see a more fully featured ride system and a more lengthy ride, but in the end nobody... NOBODY at HKDL is going to ride it and say "jeez I wish they had done trackless". I'm so glad the fans don't run the parks, HKDL is probably paying 1/3 what it'd cost to develop a new version and that's just smart business especially for a park that's dumping that amount of capital into the park over the next decade.

So Hong Kong Disneyland should build a crappy attraction because most people won't realize it is a copy?