AVATAR land construction progress

[flyerjab]

Honestly, anyone that has been on the forums long enough knows that @marni1971 (Martin, for the uninitiated) is not a troll. He is the man, plain and simple. And also remember, just because he has issues with a new expansion or ride or whatever, does not mean you also need to have an issue.

Even though I have not met Martin, I love when he posts and he comes off as a genuinely nice chap. Anyone that is familiar with my posts on these here forums, knows that I am - and undauntingly continue to be - a huge supporter of this expansion. For me, it will be the most beautiful and immersive environment of ANY Orlando park - Disney or non-Disney. That is simply my opinion. And also, for my part, this park has never been about the rides. For me, the spirit of this park is in the animals and the themed environments that have been created there. If you are basing your park time off of total time spent on rides, then yes, I question why you would continue to go to this park for any length of time. I like to go into this park and simply get lost in the different areas. Even the Oasis holds that spell for me. And Harambe, since it has been expanded, is simply beautiful. I can spend 6 hours in this park and hardly go on any rides. Some may call me an idiot for that, carping about how Disney needs to do so little here to get my money, but they simply don't enjoy this park the way that I do.

And Pandora will add to this. I believe it will be stunning. Martin is obviously not that impressed with the 'mountains on sticks'. I hold an opposite view of this. From an engineering standpoint, this is probably one of the most challenging structures WDI has built (SSE still has to be the most impressive). But it will also be enchanting for me, and I suspect that the surrounding environment will be as well. And it will be more than just the total ride time that is spent here. Exploring the outside, eating, checking out an merch that makes its way here. And I know that there will be other things to be 'edutained' by, most likely in a sci-fi sort of way. Also, finding a place to relax, watch the day turn to night, and see the glowing plants come to life will really be something. Tack on adding a RoL show and this will be a spectacular way to end my day there...a full day for me.

 

[rioriz]

If people are coming to AK to just ride the rides then they are poorly educated...AK should not and does not need to be a ride heavy park. All the trails and shows are top notch, the best on property. Restaurants and drinks are fantastic!

You could literally spend a whole day in the park if you just take your time and experience all around you. By next year AK could be in the top echelon on Orlando Parks

 

[marni1971]

Honestly, anyone that has been on the forums long enough knows that @marni1971 (Martin, for the uninitiated) is not a troll. He is the man, plain and simple. And also remember, just because he has issues with a new expansion or ride or whatever, does not mean you also need to have an issue.

Even though I have not met Martin, I love when he posts and he comes off as a genuinely nice chap..

Thank you very much for those words. Very kind.

I do think the rocks on sticks - infact the whole project - will look great. I may kid about them sometimes. I just don't think they're the saving grace of an attraction-lite project. Echoes of NFL still ring around.

 

[marni1971]

If people are coming to AK to just ride the rides then they are poorly educated...AK should not and does not need to be a ride heavy park.

I agree. Infact there's only two "rides" and two shows we get in line for. Apart from that we walk and look. But I know there's plenty of regular tourist types who think otherwise. I've talked to them. Your 2.4 kid families staying on 192 for two weeks. They expect a "theme park" to be what they think it would be.

 

[Mike S]

Honestly, anyone that has been on the forums long enough knows that @marni1971 (Martin, for the uninitiated) is not a troll. He is the man, plain and simple. And also remember, just because he has issues with a new expansion or ride or whatever, does not mean you also need to have an issue.

Even though I have not met Martin, I love when he posts and he comes off as a genuinely nice chap. Anyone that is familiar with my posts on these here forums, knows that I am - and undauntingly continue to be - a huge supporter of this expansion. For me, it will be the most beautiful and immersive environment of ANY Orlando park - Disney or non-Disney. That is simply my opinion. And also, for my part, this park has never been about the rides. For me, the spirit of this park is in the animals and the themed environments that have been created there. If you are basing your park time off of total time spent on rides, then yes, I question why you would continue to go to this park for any length of time. I like to go into this park and simply get lost in the different areas. Even the Oasis holds that spell for me. And Harambe, since it has been expanded, is simply beautiful. I can spend 6 hours in this park and hardly go on any rides. Some may call me an idiot for that, carping about how Disney needs to do so little here to get my money, but they simply don't enjoy this park the way that I do.

And Pandora will add to this. I believe it will be stunning. Martin is obviously not that impressed with the 'mountains on sticks'. I hold an opposite view of this. From an engineering standpoint, this is probably one of the most challenging structures WDI has built (SSE still has to be the most impressive). But it will also be enchanting for me, and I suspect that the surrounding environment will be as well. And it will be more than just the total ride time that is spent here. Exploring the outside, eating, checking out an merch that makes its way here. And I know that there will be other things to be 'edutained' by, most likely in a sci-fi sort of way. Also, finding a place to relax, watch the day turn to night, and see the glowing plants come to life will really be something. Tack on adding a RoL show to this will be a spectacular way to end my day there...a full day for me.

I think the same goes for me here. I'm getting flashbacks to all the time I spent in Diagon Alley during soft openings without Gringotts being open. Of course this all depends on how far Disney goes with these cuts and surge prices. If I don't find it worth it I won't be going for Avatar.

 

[olie64]

I agree. Infact there's only two "rides" and two shows we get in line for. Apart from that we walk and look. But I know there's plenty of regular tourist types who think otherwise. I've talked to them. Your 2.4 kid families staying on 192 for two weeks. They expect a "theme park" to be what they think it would be.

I have never seen AK as a "theme park" just as Epcot isn't a "theme park" is the tradition sense. I still think AK is awesome if you go to it with the idea of seeing it as the way it was attended. Go on the walks see the animals. The first I went I didn't do that and was disappointed I the Lack of rides. The second time we focused on the animals and enjoyed nature and it is now my favorite of the other three parks. MK will most likely always be my favorite. The new HS will probably give it a runs since I love toy story and Star Wars.

 

[Marc Davis Fan]

I agree. Infact there's only two "rides" and two shows we get in line for. Apart from that we walk and look. But I know there's plenty of regular tourist types who think otherwise. I've talked to them. Your 2.4 kid families staying on 192 for two weeks. They expect a "theme park" to be what they think it would be.

Which two rides and two shows are those? I can't guess which one of the three e-tickets you wouldn't get in line for. Unless you're not counting KS as a "ride."

It would be interesting to speak with "regular tourists" about what they think of things at WDW, but I suspect I'd be saddened by the extent to which many don't appreciate the depth of what WDW offers, and are focused only on "rides."

I'm looking forward to the immersive environment of Pandora much more than either of the attractions. If done well, it'll continue AK's tradition of being a place that encourages being taken in slowly, and read "like a rich and complicated kind of novel" (paraphrase). Thus, in fitting with the rest of AK, I hope it contains winding pathways, etc.

 

[marni1971]

Which two rides and two shows are those?.

Kilimanjaro and Dinosaur, Tough 2 Bug and Lion King.

Personal preference I know.

 

[doctornick]

Absolutely not.

Absolutely in denial to think there's no truth in this. Two new rides adding ten minutes ride time at most to the park. Think about it. Many will like the glowing plants. Many will like the mountains on sticks.

And many will want more theme park rides. Reminds of what I read on Trip Advisor this morning. "Not worth the money not enough rides" was Joe publics consensus.

Some maybe indeed be "detached from logic" though.

Agreed. And the talk of the ballooning budget is correct, it makes it even more sad -- because spending another $100-200M in DAK to add in a number of smaller scale B- and C-ticket rides would have been very valuable to the park and to the plans to make it a full day for all guests.

I think the additions they are doing are great, but they fall just a little short of fully fleshing out the park with as many rides as are needed to wow everyone.

 

[Skibum1970]

For us, DAK is a half-day park and these new rides won't change that mindset. Only difference is that we will go in the second half of the day to see the park in the evening as opposed to knocking it out early. I appreciate the immersive quality but, ultimately, I paid the admission for rides and attractions. It will take some substantial increases in ride offerings to get us to devote more time. If we had to choose a park to ignore, it would be DAK (particularly after the DHS work). I am glad to see the pictures and the look of the land, though. Just wish that there was one more ride coming in along with the current two.

 

[olie64]

Agreed. And the talk of the ballooning budget is correct, it makes it even more sad -- because spending another $100-200M in DAK to add in a number of smaller scale B- and C-ticket rides would have been very valuable to the park and to the plans to make it a full day for all guests.

I think the additions they are doing are great, but they fall just a little short of fully fleshing out the park with as many rides as are needed to wow everyone.

Was it ever suppose to be about rides? I always thought it was ment to be about animals and nature but I maybe wrong.

 

[Brian Swan]

For us, DAK is a half-day park and these new rides won't change that mindset. Only difference is that we will go in the second half of the day to see the park in the evening as opposed to knocking it out early. I appreciate the immersive quality but, ultimately, I paid the admission for rides and attractions. It will take some substantial increases in ride offerings to get us to devote more time. If we had to choose a park to ignore, it would be DAK (particularly after the DHS work). I am glad to see the pictures and the look of the land, though. Just wish that there was one more ride coming in along with the current two.

I think that this is the basic philosophical difference why AK is a "full day" or "half day" park for people. I paid the admission to get an experience that was different than I could find elsewhere. That experience includes an equal mix of rides, shows, things to see while exploring the park, unique dining and shopping choices, street entertainment, etc. AK does an amazing job of achieving this - even if it does only have 7 "rides" and 4 "shows". If all I want to do is ride rides, I'll go to Six Flags where I can find more rides, bigger and faster coasters, etc. (and I DO sometimes do this). But the rest of the experience is like a county fair midway on steroids with half-assed theming, lousy food, and rude ride operators. It's just a matter of what you are looking for in a park...

 

[olie64]

It would be interesting to speak with "regular tourists" about what they think of things at WDW, but I suspect I'd be saddened by the extent to which many don't appreciate the depth of what WDW offers, and are focused only on "rides.".

"Regular tourist" always seems to not understand the added depth of WDW. The first time I went I didn't really understand it but as the trip went one I began to appreciate the Disney different. It ruined me on just theme parks, I want to stand in a themed line and not I the sun to jump on a mail ordered ride.

 

[doctornick]

Was it ever suppose to be about rides? I always thought it was ment to be about animals and nature but I maybe wrong.

DAK is my favorite park at WDW, so this is not about my feelings towards the park. But I do firmly believe that any theme park needs a certain baseline number of rides to have the proper broad appeal. It is good to have a wide variety of experiences among theme parks --some are more ride heavy, some more show heavy or bigger on exploration or shopping and eating, whatever.

I would agree that DAK is "meant to be" different from the likes of MK and obviously offers distinct experiences with seeing the live animals and having a strong exploration vibe. But at the same time, it still should have a certain baseline number of rides, even if it is at the "ride lite" end of the theme park spectrum. Personally, I would put the floor at somewhere around maybe 12 rides for a proper theme park, which is something that DAK still will not achieve even with Pandora (which will leave it at 8-9 rides depending on if you count the train). I would consider that to be a very low number of rides for a theme park and only works if the park has a lot of other appeal (which I think DAK does mind you).

For a more "typical" theme park, I would think it should have a ride count of at least 20 or so. I think Disney has somehow conditioned folks with WDW to somehow think that having less than 10 rides in a theme park is "okay" even though that's nuts. Theme parks can have a wide variety of experiences, but the rides are the backbone of the experience.

 

[olie64]

I don't think 10 rides is okay but then the two parks I go to for rides is MK and HS.

 

[Monorail_Red_77]

Here are a few photo updates from my quick trip to WDW back on Sat 2/13. these are viewed from Rain Forest Park Entrance.

Joe the crane guy says hi! Just kidding.....

I'd hate to be the guy on that ladder.

Who wants to play king of the mountain?

 

[captainmoch]

While this doesn't apply anymore, I feel like guests in the past expected more rides because the slogan used to be that "Not a zoo" thing.
"It's not a zoo!" "So it's a theme park, with a bunch of rides?" "Well no, we only have like 5 rides. The main attraction is looking at animals." "So it's a zoo?"
That's at least my two cents.

 

[Timothy_Q]

Just a reminder that Disneyland alone has more attractions than AK, Epcot and DHS combined

 

[ToTBellHop]

Just a reminder that Disneyland alone has more attractions than AK, Epcot and DHS combined

But Disney World has more DVCs, so...

 

[Ripken10]

It seems some would prefer if they took out some of the animal areas to put in rides. And those type of people tend to be louder than the type of folks that enjoy the animal kingdom for what it is. Personally I think adding too many rides would take away from the experience. I like the fact that the crowd you typically see at animal kingdom is very different than the crowd at magic kingdom. It's a more relaxed crowd. It's a sit back and enjoy everything around you. It doesn't need a ton of rides for that. I like rides as much as anyone ?75 the animal kingdom is a completely different experience. For this type of theme park it is ok to have less rides than any other park. It's funny reading hear threads cause more people proclaim animal kingdom as their favorite that HS and Epcot combined X 5, but there is the few Loud individuals that only want rides. Well Then this park isn't for you, just like those who hate thrill rides won't enjoy universal as much. But some can't accept every park isn't for them, They want to change that. Good grief. Pandora only adds to the experience of Ak the rides are just added benefit.