News Big changes coming to EPCOT's Future World?

Sir_Cliff

Sir_Cliff

Well-Known Member
lazyboy97o said:
It also ignores two things about Universal, one positive and one negative. The negative is that they’ve fumbled the opening of Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure and Volcano Bay. Their track record hasn’t been great in that regard.

The positive, the huge thing they did, the thing that defied not only Disney”s assumptions but general wisdom, they grew the Orlando market. That has been their huge success. They didn’t just peel people away from Walt Disney World, they attracted new visitors. Epic Universe being a truly epic success would do this again but it would mean less of a negative impact on Disney.
Click to expand...
Indeed. The big lesson from Potter wasn't, at least as far as I can tell, that Disney needed to fight harder with Universal to win guests. It was that there was still considerable room for growth in the Orlando theme park market that Disney had written off as a mature market.

I'm also old enough to remember all the chatter about Islands of Adventure back in the day and what it would mean for WDW. While Universal did grow into a more credible resort destination following its opening, that took some time and WDW continued to grow alongside it. Similarly, all the talk of Volcano Bay as a next-level water park such that it almost counted as a separate theme park in its own right didn't quite pan out and attendance at the Disney water parks kept growing even if VB also ultimately proved successful. I am getting a similar feeling from all the hyperbole around Epic Universe as some kind of theme park revelation that will act as a magnet drawing crowds over from Disney, leaving them scrambling to try and win them back. I feel the biggest issues Disney is facing in attracting guests are already apparent before Epic Universe is in the picture.
 
SplashJacket

SplashJacket

Well-Known Member
Sir_Cliff said:
Indeed. The big lesson from Potter wasn't, at least as far as I can tell, that Disney needed to fight harder with Universal to win guests. It was that there was still considerable room for growth in the Orlando theme park market that Disney had written off as a mature market.

I'm also old enough to remember all the chatter about Islands of Adventure back in the day and what it would mean for WDW. While Universal did grow into a more credible resort destination following its opening, that took some time and WDW continued to grow alongside it. Similarly, all the talk of Volcano Bay as a next-level water park such that it almost counted as a separate theme park in its own right didn't quite pan out and attendance at the Disney water parks kept growing even if VB also ultimately proved successful. I am getting a similar feeling from all the hyperbole around Epic Universe as some kind of theme park revelation that will act as a magnet drawing crowds over from Disney, leaving them scrambling to try and win them back. I feel the biggest issues Disney is facing in attracting guests are already apparent before Epic Universe is in the picture.
Click to expand...
What metric would make Volcano Bay successful in your eyes? If I had to wager, it likely has the highest capacity utilization of any Disney or Universal park in the world.

It charges a very high price point for a water park and fully gets away with it…
 
Sir_Cliff

Sir_Cliff

Well-Known Member
SplashJacket said:
What metric would make Volcano Bay successful in your eyes? If I had to wager, it likely has the highest capacity utilization of any Disney or Universal park in the world.

It charges a very high price point for a water park and fully gets away with it…
Click to expand...
As far as I can tell, Volcano Bay is successful. My point was just that Universal also having a successful water park didn't seem to mean much for the continued success of Disney's two water parks, let alone their resort as a whole.
 
lazyboy97o

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
SplashJacket said:
What metric would make Volcano Bay successful in your eyes? If I had to wager, it likely has the highest capacity utilization of any Disney or Universal park in the world.

It charges a very high price point for a water park and fully gets away with it…
Click to expand...
It was supposed to be able to support higher visitation. Volcano Bay was also supposed to be a paradigm shift in the theme park business, the first park without queues.
 
ChrisFL

ChrisFL

Premium Member
Sir_Cliff said:
Indeed. The big lesson from Potter wasn't, at least as far as I can tell, that Disney needed to fight harder with Universal to win guests. It was that there was still considerable room for growth in the Orlando theme park market that Disney had written off as a mature market.

I'm also old enough to remember all the chatter about Islands of Adventure back in the day and what it would mean for WDW. While Universal did grow into a more credible resort destination following its opening, that took some time and WDW continued to grow alongside it. Similarly, all the talk of Volcano Bay as a next-level water park such that it almost counted as a separate theme park in its own right didn't quite pan out and attendance at the Disney water parks kept growing even if VB also ultimately proved successful. I am getting a similar feeling from all the hyperbole around Epic Universe as some kind of theme park revelation that will act as a magnet drawing crowds over from Disney, leaving them scrambling to try and win them back. I feel the biggest issues Disney is facing in attracting guests are already apparent before Epic Universe is in the picture.
Click to expand...

Universal also had one of the biggest marketing disasters when IOA opened with their "Universal Escape" marketing campaign that completely failed to entice visitors
 
Disney Analyst

Disney Analyst

Well-Known Member
Sir_Cliff said:
Indeed. The big lesson from Potter wasn't, at least as far as I can tell, that Disney needed to fight harder with Universal to win guests. It was that there was still considerable room for growth in the Orlando theme park market that Disney had written off as a mature market.

I'm also old enough to remember all the chatter about Islands of Adventure back in the day and what it would mean for WDW. While Universal did grow into a more credible resort destination following its opening, that took some time and WDW continued to grow alongside it. Similarly, all the talk of Volcano Bay as a next-level water park such that it almost counted as a separate theme park in its own right didn't quite pan out and attendance at the Disney water parks kept growing even if VB also ultimately proved successful. I am getting a similar feeling from all the hyperbole around Epic Universe as some kind of theme park revelation that will act as a magnet drawing crowds over from Disney, leaving them scrambling to try and win them back. I feel the biggest issues Disney is facing in attracting guests are already apparent before Epic Universe is in the picture.
Click to expand...

I also agree that I think some of the… commentary around Epic and what it means is hyperbolic.
 
Sir_Cliff

Sir_Cliff

Well-Known Member
TheCoasterNerd said:
I think the Brazil D23 will be about the DinoLand replacement, I doubt they'll put South America in Epcot and DAK at the same time...
Click to expand...
I haven't seen much suggestion a new World Showcase pavilion is on the horizon, though in theory I wouldn't see too big an issue with opening a Brazil pavilion around the same time the Tropical Americas section was underway at Animal Kingdom if they had a good deal with potential sponsors. The main issue is that the proposed pavilion from a few years back apparently did not include a ride or show, and I'm not sure WS needs more pavilions without attractions.
 
Weather_Lady

Weather_Lady

Well-Known Member
434877e5-57bf-40e7-908e-ccab851a22df_text.gif
 
OvertheHorizon

OvertheHorizon

Well-Known Member
Competition should keep Orlando area theme parks on their toes to provide the best possible guest experiences. Yes, Disney is expensive, but Universal isn't far behind. Both charge $30/day for parking. Universal advertises 1-day ticket prices as "FROM $119" but when I randomly checked Wednesday, April 17th the price is $149. Disney advertises 1-day ticket prices as "FROM $109" but on Wednesday, April 17th their price ranges from $154 (Animal Kingdom) to $174 (Magic Kingdom). Neither company appears to be losing money. There are lots of things Disney should be adding... more countries to World Showcase, more attractions, updated attractions, electric light parades, better nighttime experiences, more lands to other parks, etc. If Epic Universe spurs Disney to "do better," I'm all for it.
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom