Al Lutz: Carsland for WDW, FLE not Bringing in Guests

[TP2000]

In fairness - the ride itself is not readily visible from the road. If you weren't aware, it would be easy to write off Luigi's as just another shop like those around it. You have to walk down that side street a bit to actually see most of the ride.

Well, true. Cars Land is an extremely themed environment, so I guess a casual visitor could think that Casa Della Tires was actually selling tires. Or t-shirts.

But I guess I'm baffled by the thought of visiting a new theme park and not referring to the free Guidemap that clearly lists all attractions, and gives a short description of what each one does. Let alone checking out the website the night before you go to see what rides are there, what's new, what's just opened, etc.

 

[ParentsOf4]

But I guess I'm baffled by the thought of visiting a new theme park and not referring to the free Guidemap that clearly lists all attractions, and gives a short description of what each one does.

About 2 years ago I was standing in front of Tony's Town Square Restaurant just after opening. A very nice and well-dressed gentleman was standing nearby looking at a park map with his family. After looking at it for some time, he excused himself and said: "I can't find the Everest roller coaster on the map. Where is it?"

 

[Genie of the Lamp]

About 2 years ago I was standing in front of Tony's Town Square Restaurant just after opening. A very nice and well-dressed gentleman was standing nearby looking at a park map with his family. After looking at it for some time, he excused himself and said: "I can't find the Everest roller coaster on the map. Where is it?"

Did you tell him it was in Fantasyland? I would've said "Welcome to Disneyland"!

 

[awoogala]

You couldn't care if Carsland comes to WDW?

I'm gonna take a wild guess that you haven't visited Carsland at DCA...

I was very sceptical about Carsland and RSR before I went ... I don't really care for the cars franchise.... but that land is nothing short of breathtaking and RSR is the best disney built attraction since TOT!

nope. Hate cars, (with a capital H), sick of cars, barely like test track. This is a test track themed cars. I'm not saying it isn't "better than what they have done in years", etc. But I probably wouldn't get to go on it, since both of my kids despise anything with cars in it. A land well themed to a despised thing does not interest me. So yup, does not matter to me.

 

[awoogala]

I think if Mermaid were not the headlining attraction of the grand opening of first major expansion of the Magic Kingdom in decades, along with being the ONLY new major attraction for MK since Splash in 1992, more people would be willing to look past it's shortcomings.

or of it had come out right after the movie...20 years of brainstorming, and that is what we get?

 

[ParentsOf4]

or of it had come out right after the movie...20 years of brainstorming, and that is what we get?

The saddest part is I like the 20-year-old Voyage of the Little Mermaid much more than the new Journey of the Little Mermaid.

 

[Goofyernmost]

What I found out is that the overall atmosphere of any park, such as Disney or Universal is the image and feeling of awe overall. There are many, many rides and attractions at Universal that I have no desire or intention of ever riding, but the idea that they are there make that place feel alive and moving forward.

Disney, lately, makes me feel like it's dying. I don't like that feeling at all. It saddens me and the last thing I want to feel at Disney is sad. Build something, anything! Fill those empty buildings with something, even if it's the lamest stuff on the planet, open those damn counter service restaurants and let me know that you are still alive and well and willing to make my choices more varied, give it a feel of life and effort.

I would like it to be Carsland because what I have seen of it, via videos is new, detailed and different. Yes, I know that TT is a less redneck Carsland, but the ride vehicle is not nearly as important is the fact that it exists. If we used that excuse then only one omni-mover should have ever been built. Even if I don't like something, it would be liked by many people and add life and vibrancy to a slowly dying franchise.

You may think that this feeling is strictly for those of us that have been going there for a long time and can see the difference, but, I can assure you that everyone feels it, they just cannot identify what exactly it is that they are feeling. Their experience may not be negative, but, it certainly is no where near as positive as the one that most of us "old timers" felt when we went. Today's prevailing stimulation is how many FP's you can get in one day and can you get away with using them after the window closes. Not the same as we felt in the beginning.

 

[aladdin2007]

I just think that UtS:JotLM is a stunning combination of bad. Bad storytelling, bad show lighting, and way too many simple mechanical figures. It really feels like a ride thru "Disney Store" window display. It is more grand in scope than most Fantasyland dark rides, but bigger does not mean better. It's BIG and Plasticy. The Under the Seas scene is way to big and bright. It feels like you are in a warehouse and the industrial AC ducts and light rigs just drive that feeling home. And there is a stunning lack of intimacy in that ride.

I do enjoy the Scuttle and Sebastian AAs a lot.

The worst part of it is the animatronics dont even work half the time, already! Was on it last week again and all of them were totally off in the under the sea room except for the spinning fish from the ceiling. The rest were all off. Ariel motionless in there is horrible show. It was bad. Plasticy it is, way too plasticy.

 

[pmaljr]

I have maintenance concerns, I'm not talking about that. Splash has maintenance concerns. Lots of the attractions have maintenance issues. I'm talking about folks who say that it's a terrible ride in working order and that they aren't going to ride it again. There's a lot of that happening on here. If I'm at the parks looking for faults, I can find them in just about all of the attractions. There's also maintenance issues on the sides of buildings that are obvious to adults and rust all over the place if you look in the right spots. Are any of the maintenance issues with the ride so much so that it makes the LM ride itself crap? Are any of these somehow worse than hearing the gears above your boat in Peter Pan working/grinding every time you take a turn? The question I have to ask is, am I there for fun or am I there to be an investigative reporter? I mean, are there really issues that detract from the experience or do I just not like the ride to begin with? Ariel "motionless" is a great example of something that takes away from the experience and that should be fixed, I agree. Honestly, I never really paid attention to the ceiling in my four rides. I guess I wasn't looking at that as there are a million things to look at in the room instead of that. If your clam shell was aimed toward the ceiling I would agree but it's not. They should have a water effect going on somehow above your heads that somehow masks the ceiling though, I agree. That would be a good product suggestion to make something good, better. I certainly like how they have sound effects/enhanced areas of sound that cause you to focus at certain parts/animatronics in that room. Good stuff!

 

[Buried20KLeague]

That's all well and good, but, what happens to Walt's Plane. Do we have to chain ourselves to it to make sure that it gets some place of honor in the parks? I think they should move it to that big vacant spot on the back end of Epcot's World Showcase.

To quote Steven Tyler "Wait a minute... I like that idea". Although something like that would probably require dismantling the plane to a point, which I'm afraid they wouldn't do. My guess is they would just find a place at DHS to stick it... Even if it didn't really fit. Maybe Echo Lake in front of Indy.

 

[Buried20KLeague]

Once again, I can't believe I'm the one defending Disney on this. I keep seeing all these comments about how the new LM ride is a one-time ride, how it's not something they will do again, and it just makes me cringe. I'm sorry because I know it's going to be controversial to this crowd, but we rode LM four times in a row on the half-day D23 preview and I never got tired of it. I would have ridden it all day as it was pretty much a walk-on and we loved it, but they were kicking us out at 12, we got a late start, and we wanted to try the meet and greet with Ariel, try Lefou's Brew, and try Enchanted Tales with Belle as well as see the new restaurant. Some of you either didn't care for the LM movie and thus it's no fun, have never seen the new ride much less ridden it, or are just expecting something from a ride that is totally different from what you have gotten traditionally in the rest of Fantasyland and the MK in WDW. LM is a better ride experience in every way than all the old stuff in WDW Fantasyland. Yes, I said it. I'm not talking Disneyland, as after going there for the first time a couple of years ago, I think DL's Peter Pan, Small World, and Snow White are just better overall but as far as WDW goes, the new LM is just better. It is better than WDW Peter Pan, better than Small World, better than Winnie the Pooh, better than Toad, better than 20K, better than Snow White, better than the Mad Tea Party, etc. I've ridden them all, back to my first trip in the mid 70s as a kid. If you want to argue that it's not faithful to the movie, fine. If you want to argue about the overall FLE and about how much space they wasted with all the scenery and the fact that they only added one net ride in all of this, go ahead. I personally think they should have added a BatB ride at minimum instead of just using all that space for story-time and I despise that they shut down Snow White. Go ahead, be my guest. If you want to be upset because they've never updated PP with the latest technology to make it feel more like you are flying and it's still the same since the 80s, go ahead. But anyone who says LM is bad and they don't know if they will ever ride it again is one of the three things I said above and aren't going to like it unless it has a secret tunnel that leads to an underground version of Horizons and a handshake from Chuck Norris awaiting in a robe and crown. This is from someone who has been there, actually ridden it, and can't wait to get back to it again in May. If you aren't in line, then I guess it will be easier on the rest of us.

I'm not bothered by TLM ride. I haven't been on WDW's yet, but have been on DCA's a dozen or so times. I DO have a handful of issues with it (the abrupt ending, Ursula's death, re-use of bare bones AA's in the final scene where they seem WAYYYY out of place to me, the fight between cartoon and "real" aa's, and for some reason I'm really bothered by the fish spitting water made out of plastic in the "kiss the girl" scene)... But overall I don't mind the ride for what it is. My bigger issue with it that might keep me from riding it a lot is the fact that it's got FP. At DCA, it'll be a must-do every trip. At WDW, I'll skip it if need be. But that's not because of the ride itself.

 

[TP2000]

But overall I don't mind the ride for what it is. My bigger issue with it that might keep me from riding it a lot is the fact that it's got FP. At DCA, it'll be a must-do every trip. At WDW, I'll skip it if need be. But that's not because of the ride itself.

Bingo!

I find myself wandering on to DCA's Little Mermaid every few months, just for fun, and because there's no Fastpass and the line is always 5 minutes or less. Even since Cars Land opened and DCA attendance skyrocketed, it's a walk-on to 3 minute wait at most. The Omnimover is full of riders though, so it's still cycling through 2,000 people per hour.

But at Magic Kingdom Park? I won't ever bother scheduling Fastpass tickets and return times, or God forbid waiting in a Standby line longer than 15 minutes for Mermaid.

 

[Californian Elitist]

I don't think I've ever seen a long line for Mermaid. The longest I've ever waited for Mermaid was maybe ten minutes, if that, when I went with @Cosmic Commando last November. How long did we wait, cosmic? Couldn't have been more than seven or eight minutes.

I wish I would wait more than twenty minutes. Mermaid is a "I've got nothing else to do" ride or a "My little kids want to ride, so I'll ride" attraction.

 

[jamarmiller]

God I hope they bring Cars land to DHS

Bring that and star wars land to DHS and then bring Avatar to Animal Kingdom and I would be a very happy theme park goer

 

[dizneeboy]

For what it's worth (which I recognize is not a heck of a lot since this is purely anecdotal), I just came back from WDW about a week ago, and the crowds were MUCH higher than previous January trips I've done. The primary difference between this trip and previous trips is the FLE. Perhaps the crowds aren't increased as much as the folks at Disney were hoping, but they definitely seemed to be increased during my time there...

I just got back last Friday for a week and the crowds were the highest I had seen at this time frmae in the past. However, there were huge cheer groups in town staying on property and I also attributed it to splash being closed and all the construction walls causing bottlenecks. I didn't get the impression it was due to FLE. Also, LM was down for an extended period of time on Monday.

 

[PeterAlt]

How much did Cars Land cost to build, compared to FLE? About the same, I think. Compare the popularity between the two. In hindsight, would it have been better to incorporate the Speedway attraction in Tommorland and turn that into Radiator Racers as part of a larger FLE plan?

 

[dizneeboy]

What I found out is that the overall atmosphere of any park, such as Disney or Universal is the image and feeling of awe overall. There are many, many rides and attractions at Universal that I have no desire or intention of ever riding, but the idea that they are there make that place feel alive and moving forward.

Disney, lately, makes me feel like it's dying. I don't like that feeling at all. It saddens me and the last thing I want to feel at Disney is sad. Build something, anything! Fill those empty buildings with something, even if it's the lamest stuff on the planet, open those damn counter service restaurants and let me know that you are still alive and well and willing to make my choices more varied, give it a feel of life and effort.

I would like it to be Carsland because what I have seen of it, via videos is new, detailed and different. Yes, I know that TT is a less redneck Carsland, but the ride vehicle is not nearly as important is the fact that it exists. If we used that excuse then only one omni-mover should have ever been built. Even if I don't like something, it would be liked by many people and add life and vibrancy to a slowly dying franchise.

You may think that this feeling is strictly for those of us that have been going there for a long time and can see the difference, but, I can assure you that everyone feels it, they just cannot identify what exactly it is that they are feeling. Their experience may not be negative, but, it certainly is no where near as positive as the one that most of us "old timers" felt when we went. Today's prevailing stimulation is how many FP's you can get in one day and can you get away with using them after the window closes. Not the same as we felt in the beginning.

Well stated. This was my feeling last week while I was there. I had fun showing someone new around and seeing the experience from their eyes, but the magic just wasn't there for a variety of reasons. I hope they get their mojo back!

 

[janoimagine]

But I guess I'm baffled by the thought of visiting a new theme park and not referring to the free Guidemap that clearly lists all attractions, and gives a short description of what each one does. Let alone checking out the website the night before you go to see what rides are there, what's new, what's just opened, etc.

Yes, but this is America ... where it's easier just to complain afterwards.

 

[AswaySuller]

nope. Hate cars, (with a capital H), sick of cars, barely like test track. This is a test track themed cars.

Saying RSR is a "test track themed (to) cars" is like saying "wild arctic"at sea world is a polar bear themed star tours 2.0.....

In short it ain't...

They're worlds apart.

 

[Goofyernmost]

Well stated. This was my feeling last week while I was there. I had fun showing someone new around and seeing the experience from there eyes, but the magic just wasn't there for a variety of reason. I hope they get their mojo back!

Sadly, it took a trip to Universal for me to realize what was missing. Atmosphere, life and vibrancy! I just thought that feeling that I had at WDW was just because I had been so many times. When I got to Universal, the atmosphere hit me so strongly it almost took my breath away. It all became clear in my mind, what was missing. It wasn't maintenance, because I still don't see that as a huge problem at WDW, it was the feeling that no one was really trying to entertain (from the management level). It was more like...well, here it is...enjoy! Remember it all started with a mouse and a guy named Walt something! Leave money!