News Avatar Experience coming to Disneyland Resort

[Professortango1]

And disclaimer, I personally really like current DCA, it’s incredibly superior to DHS in just about every way.

I liked the park in the early 2010's, when Disney-level attention was being applied. But now, it is all undone.

DHS' Midway Mania is better than ours in terms of capacity and queue. They still have Tower of Terror, even if it is the original 1.0 model. They have Rockin' Rollercoaster, which isn't amazing, but better than Incredicoaster. Galaxy's Edge is certainly superior to Avengers Campus. Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway is better than Mermaid.

DHS has better Disney-level attractions. DCA has more stuff and less studio buildings, but the only top tier E-ticket, IMO, is RSR. Everything else feels like a D-Ticket or below.

The thing DHS has going for it is potential. With Animation Courtyard and so many areas no longer being all that amazing or relevant, it gives opportunity to do something good with it. DCA...I feel like Grizzly Peak is boxed in and can never be improved upon or given full quality attractions. Avengers Campus is what it is. Pixar Pier is horrendous and with WOC being central to the area, there isn't much they can do around the lagoon. The only great areas in DCA are Buena Vista Street and Cars Land, even if Luigi's is a bit of a dud.

 

[Disney Irish]

It is still incredibly rooted in California. So much that they bent over backwards to make Avengers Campus California-centric rather than just being a weird superhero land.

Studios Parks haven't been about fake moving making for quite awhile. DHS reduced and eventually ditched the tour awhile back, Animation building was also shuttered. Universal took away the Special Effects show. Paris' studio park rethemed the tram tour to Cars awhile back. Studio Parks are now focused on Universal's model of "ride the movies" rather than learning how filmmaking occurs.

And yes, Studio Parks are often the laziest parks in terms of themeing and cohesion, which is why I greatly preferred when Disney was trying to commit to the California concept rather than just dumping IP lands and attractions in and forcing them to fit.

I agree with the others, I don't see Avengers Campus bending over backwards to be in California or even there being much in the way of California theming.

Really it looks like a generic office park/college campus that could be anywhere, and yeah that even includes Silicon Valley or even in the LA area. But I don't see much to tie it to California other than someone waving their hand saying "Avengers Campus in California at a former Stark facility". And I say all that as someone who likes the land overall.

If we had gotten a West Coast Avengers HQ or even the rumored Stark themed land that had concept art floating around that would have been California themed in my opinion. But what we got could have easily been said to occur at a Stark facility in Des Moines Iowa.

 

[Disney-Universal Fanboy]

I agree Disney California Adventure needs to be renamed... to Disney's California Adventure! Bring back the Mickey silhouette on California Screamin, bring back the Sun Wheel and the MaliBOOMer, bring back Tower of Terror, the Beach Boys, and the giant balloon of Chicken Little. It'd be better than abandoning the California theme.
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Honestly, I don’t think DCA was ruined, even though it seems like it, It all actually makes sense.

• Buena Vista Street represents 1920s California when Walt first arrived there
• Hollywoodland and cheesy can be represents Filmaking in the golden state
• Avengers campus might have been place where bugs land used to be to make the land feel like a studio filming location for a marvel movie, cars land is half film set, half Route 66
• Performance corridor has no purpose has of now, but San fransokyo square represents, well, San Francisco and San fransokyo!
• Pixar Pier is a turn-of-the-century victorian boardwalk, and paradise gardens park Is a pleasant Victorian park to keep the Victorian cali theme of the lake lands (excluding San Fran)
• lastly, Grizzly peak is a national park.

 

[Consumer]

Honestly, I don’t think DCA was ruined, even though it seems like it, It all actually makes sense.

• Buena Vista Street represents 1920s California when Walt first arrived there
• Hollywoodland and cheesy can be represents Filmaking in the golden state
• Avengers campus might have been place where bugs land used to be to make the land feel like a studio filming location for a marvel movie, cars land is half film set, half Route 66
• Performance corridor has no purpose has of now, but San fransokyo square represents, well, San Francisco and San fransokyo!
• Pixar Pier is a turn-of-the-century victorian boardwalk, and paradise gardens park Is a pleasant Victorian park to keep the Victorian cali theme of the lake lands (excluding San Fran)
• lastly, Grizzly peak is a national park.

It seems like it was ruined because it was. I don't care about whatever dumb excuses Disney comes up with to justify their changes, at the end of the day the park is worse thematically, aesthetically, and most importantly the new attractions and lands simply suck. California Screamin' may not have been Big Thunder Mountain but at least it didn't have Jack Jack on sticks, and Tower of Terror might have been less attractive than its Floridian counterpart but it was still more pleasing to the eye than Mission Breakout, and "a bug's land" may have been nothing but carnival rides but nobody could complain about a lack of shade.

Every single change made to DCA in the past 7 years has been for the worst.

 

[Professortango1]

Yeah, but Disney is a big company and they decide what to do with their parks

And we, as consumers, can judge those decisions.

For me, it turned DCA into a park I no longer visit. Not out of spite. It just isn't worth the extra money anymore. If I'm spending $100-$150 a day to be at the Resort, I'm going to stick to the park with Disney-quality attractions and lands.

Is anyone other than APs actually visiting DCA?

 

[J4546]

I feel like DCA is a solid park, almost everything in it is exclusive to only that park. CarsLand being a huge standout. GRR is an amazing river rapids ride i love it but I know a lot of people dont like RR style rides, and Pixar Pier is good imo, so much kinetic energy and stuff to do and see. DCA def doenst compare to DL but its a solid sister park at this point

 

[Professortango1]

I feel like DCA is a solid park, almost everything in it is exclusive to only that park. CarsLand being a huge standout. GRR is an amazing river rapids ride i love it but I know a lot of people dont like RR style rides, and Pixar Pier is good imo, so much kinetic energy and stuff to do and see. DCA def doenst compare to DL but its a solid sister park at this point

I love a good Rapids attraction, but other than how natural elements look, its not a well-designed attraction. It is better than KRR over at AK to be sure, but that is honestly the lowest bar for RR attractions. Popeye and Bluto's at IOA is still the best I have ever been on.

Carsland is the park's one jewel. The land looks amazing. I don't like Cars, but I do enjoy RSR. Luigi's needs to be torn down for a darkride though.

The rest of the park is kind of filler. Midway Mania is more fun than it should be, but also found at several parks in better forms. Soarin is found elsewhere and really feels like a proof-of-concept that never was developed into an actual attraction until Pandora. Mission BO feels like a cheap overlay that just hasn't been uninstalled. WEB Slingers is a dud that nobody is asking for. Little Mermaid is the weakest of all of the FL-style darkrides and feels out of place by itself in DCA. The rest....generic spinners and flat rides.

 

[mickEblu]

I’m not as low on DCA as most of you but I find it interesting that my sister who has been buying those three day (one park per day) So Cal tickets for the last 4+ years hasn’t used a solitary day on DCA. Granted, she has young kids and there’s just way more to do for them at DL but you think that just one of the times she would have said “you know what let’s switch it up this time.”

At DCA last night I heard a family behind me in line for Goofys Sky school complaining about how busy the lightning lanes were. One of the moms says “there’s just no (few) good rides here.” One of the Dads chimes in and says “yeah so all the lower tier rides get packed.”

 

[Professortango1]

I’m not as low on DCA as most of you but I find it interesting that my sister who has been buying those three day (one park per day) So Cal tickets for the last 4+ years hasn’t used a solitary day on DCA. Granted, she has young kids and there’s just way more to do for them at DL but you think that just one of the times she would have said “you know what let’s switch it up this time.”

At DCA last night I heard a family behind me in line for Goofys Sky school complaining about how busy the lightning lanes were. One of the moms says “there’s just no (few) good rides here.” One of the Dads chimes in and says “yeah so all the lower tier rides get packed.”

Yeah, I don't think DCA is terrible, but it's not the same value as DL. And yet they sell them at equal value. If DCA was $70-$90, I might go more. But if I'm spending $100+, I'll just go the park with all of the good stuff.

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

Yeah, I don't think DCA is terrible, but it's not the same value as DL. And yet they sell them at equal value. If DCA was $70-$90, I might go more. But if I'm spending $100+, I'll just go the park with all of the good stuff.

I get to WDW much more frequently than I do DL, and my last trip out west I spent 5 days at the resort and did not dip one toe into DCA. My last trip where I visited DCA was in 2017, saw Cars Land and Buena Vista Street finished for the first time. Cars Land was great, BVS underwhelmed as the park's opening act and Main Street counterpart. Now I've seen that stuff and am not rushing to again. Until Avatar opens (and a separate attraction I've been told is coming) I can't see myself visiting DCA again of my own volition.

To me it feels silly to spend the time and money to fly all the way out there, be across the street from my favorite place, have a valid park admission, and not just use it at Disneyland proper. Even the new stuff doesn't feel primed to transform my overall opinion of the park - though the new stuff that's coming really should be good, the whole thing has never gelled for me and the new things don't seem primed to fix that.

 

[CaptinEO]

I think it's dumb to have the US Parks get the same attractions. Mickey and Minnie's Run Away Railway, Galaxy's Edge, now Pandora. Give us something we can't do at WDW.

 

[mickEblu]

I think it's dumb to have the US Parks get the same attractions. Mickey and Minnie's Run Away Railway, Galaxy's Edge, now Pandora. Give us something we can't do at WDW.

I agree with the sentiment but when you say “us” I assume you’re talking us Disney park fiends? I don’t think the GP knows enough or cares about the differences and for those of us in the know I think inherently it will always have enough to get at least 1-2 lifetime visits. You have the whole resort bubble thing which is a big one. We have nothing like World Showcase or Animal Kingdom. Then you still (as of now anyway) have a decent amount of variation with some of the big attractions although that it slowly changing.

Although I’d prefer more unique attractions at DLR, I think Avatar is probably one of the best things we can hope for considering other realistic contenders.

 

[Disney Irish]

I agree with the sentiment but when you say “us” I assume you’re talking us Disney park fiends? I don’t think the GP knows enough or cares about the differences and for those of us in the know I think inherently it will always have enough to get at least 1-2 lifetime visits. You have the whole resort bubble thing which is a big one. We have nothing like World Showcase or Animal Kingdom. Then you still (as of now anyway) have a decent amount of variation with some of the big attractions although that it slowly changing.

Although I’d prefer more unique attractions at DLR, I think Avatar is probably one of the best things we can hope for considering other realistic contenders.

I agree overall, how many in the general public go to both DLR and WDW on a regular enough basis to really care if there is overlap in some attractions.

But to expand on this further the whole reason why WDW even has Pirates for example is because the guests did go to DL expected to see it and complained when it wasn't there.

 

[mickEblu]

I agree overall, how many in the general public go to both DLR and WDW on a regular enough basis to really care if there is overlap in some attractions.

But to expand on this further the whole reason why WDW even has Pirates for example is because the guests did go to DL expected to see it and complained when it wasn't there.

Right. I think a mix is ideal. People clearly want some of those signature attractions that make up a castle park for example. I think the cool thing they used to do was make them slightly different even If in some cases it was just more practical to do so. These days it’s just a 100% clone.

I think it would have been cool if the GE’s had one different secondary attraction. Or maybe have one version of ROTR based around the OT. If I were going to WDW tomorrow I wouldn’t step foot into Galaxies Edge at DHS. Not sure that’s really a bad thing in my case as it makes it easier to hit all the stuff I need to see in 5-6 days. But that’s me, who’s never been there.

 

[Disney Irish]

Right. I think a mix is ideal. People clearly want some of those signature attractions that make up a castle park for example. I think the cool thing they used to do was make them slightly different even If in some cases it was just more practical to do so. These days it’s just a 100% clone.

I think it would have been cool if the GE’s had one different secondary attraction. Or maybe have one version of ROTR based around the OT. If I were going to WDW tomorrow I wouldn’t step foot into Galaxies Edge at DHS. Not sure that’s really a bad thing in my case as it makes it easier to hit all the stuff I need to see in 5-6 days. But that’s me, who’s never been there.

Obviously as we know cost is a factor, which is why clones are done anyways to spreads out the cost of development. But agree overall as variations would be best options.

For example I would hope we get variations in the missions for Smugglers Run when they finally turn those on. And a third attraction for GE one each coast would be nice if they were slightly different experiences.

 

[Purduevian]

For example I would hope we get variations in the missions for Smugglers Run when they finally turn those on. And a third attraction for GE one each coast would be nice if they were slightly different experiences.

I just really enjoy the holiday overlays we get to TSMM!

 

[Disney Irish]

I just really enjoy the holiday overlays we get to TSMM!

Funny, and yet Star Tours has been updated with new scenes multiple times including new ones going in next month. So maybe the team at Lucas just has more pull to get updates done.

Maybe the execs at Pixar need to push to have TSMM updated.

 

[mickEblu]

Funny, and yet Star Tours has been updated with new scenes multiple times including new ones going in next month. So maybe the team at Lucas just has more pull to get updates done.

Maybe the execs at Pixar need to push to have TSMM updated.

It needs more than that. It’s needed new bulbs for years. The screens have been so dim for the longest time. I wonder how the ones at DHS are.

 

[Disney Irish]

It needs more than that. It’s needed new bulbs for years. The screens have been so dim for the longest time. I wonder how the ones at DHS are.

I honestly haven't been on it in years, but how was it after the recent refurb they just did?

 

[mickEblu]

I honestly haven't been on it in years, but how was it after the recent refurb they just did?

I don’t think they addressed the screens at all which was disappointing. If I recall correctly, the refurb was of a decent length so a few of us were thinking it would be addressed.