Disney and Universal: Two very different paths

[Tom Morrow]

Disney's "thrill" rides are also not that intense and are more family friendly. They, too, support the Disney brand.

 

[matt9112]

Disney's "thrill" rides are also not that intense and are more family friendly. They, too, support the Disney brand.

amen

 

[GoofGoof]

I haven't seen anyone rebut this at all

You missed this post:

I'm in the car driving home from a wonderful week in Disney.
We spent 2 days in universal for the first time in years, I have to say I was unimpressed. transformers was the reason my 6 yr old wanted to go, so we went expecting the best. Unfortunately, it fells like a copy of Disney without the soul.
Even transformers is a copy of Spiderman. potterland was nice but felt small, its slow time and it was tough to see the wand ceremony, i could only imagine this area at peak season, don't even get me started on the joke shop and Cady store, way too small and tight, and the people who attend this park are pushy and rude. They are a different breed then the Disney folks, I'll leave it that. both parks look good, offer something of value, it not enough for my family to ever consider this a focal point of our vacation. Walkways are too narrow, and the flow in both parks in not well thought out. I come to these parks every few years with high expectations, but my outcome is always the same. We eat at Mythos on Tuesday, that place is a cave with sub par food. Where is the great theme restaurant which won best themepark.... Yada yada this place is joke. Fish tacos and burgers, I was just as displeased with this place as the rest of the establishment, what mess.

 

[Voice of Disney sanity]

You missed this post:

No I did not. That guy is arguing that disney is better than Uni not that disney is HEADED up

Not one person has argued that or they'd be laughed right off this board.

Oh and by the same token no one is arguing tha Uni is headed down that would also be ludacris.

 

[Goofyernmost]

Remind me again what Disneys most popular attractions are in each park.

If your implications are that the popular attractions are "thrill rides" means that thrill rides aren't very thrilling. Disney has gone to the edge of the envelope making rides that seem thrilling, but are not at all what everyone else has in mind. What they have and to the limit that they have done it, should be the extreme that one would ever find there.

But for the sake of argument lets look at the popular attractions are...

MK... The three mountains. Space, Splash and Big Thunder. Kid rides in a thrill ride park.
Epcot... Soarin... heart stopper, that one.
Mission: Space... somewhat intense (orange) but thrill ride? Don't see it.
Test Track... Wow, 65 miles an hour for about 12 seconds. I went faster then that on the access road coming into WDW.
DHS... RcRC and ToT. I'll give you those two, but even then unless they are out in the open air, reduced thrill.
DAK... Dead Yeti Mountain... OK, but mild by comparison. Dinosaur... Yawn!

Now by my description it would almost sound like a Disney negative. It is not, that is how Disney should be. On the edge but not over it.

Many of those things are "popular" within a specific grouping. If you have 10 attractions and 1000 people per day and one of those attractions is a "thrill ride", one may see 200 people per day at that ride. However, 800 people found the others overall more popular. A theme park is not an individual ride it is a combination of many, but, it must stay with it's target grouping to be able know what to plan and what it should be. It would be tempting to look at the individual attraction and think ...wow... look how many people went to that one. If we had 10 of those we would have had 2000 people here. That, isn't how it works, however, and in the meantime you have changed your entire mission.

 

[doctornick]

I have a slightly different view than a number of the posters on this site that have been to WDW since its inception. I am in my 40s with a wife and 3 children (b6, b10, g12) and my wife and I never went to Disney as kids or as adults until 2009. From frequenting this site since the announcement of Avatar (great progress on that by the way!) I have noticed that a popular view is that WDW has been in decline for the past decade while Universal - with Comcast money - is growing like crazy and long-time Disney fans are becoming more and more impressed as time passes. Also, living near Philadelphia, I have friends that have Comcast as their cable company and know what there monthly cable/phone/internet bill is and I can clearly see why Universal can afford to toss half a billion dollars to Universal each year to improve the parks.

Anyway, I will freely admit that visiting Disney for the first time in 2009, my wife and I were totally blown away by the 'world.' We have since been back 3 times and only stay at the deluxe resorts so we are the idiots that love to through our money away and stay at the most overpriced resorts that Disney offers. Our appreciation for the layout and feel of the Disney parks has only grown during each trip.

I would like to think that I am not in the pixie dust snorting class of individuals but am one that truly enjoys what Disney has to offer. In comparison, in 2012 we visited Universal for one day to see Harry Potter. What was interesting was that I was warned ahead of time by a Potter fanatic coworker of mine to not expect too much. In truth, I found that she was right. While my wife and kids loved the Potter section of IOA, I was definitely underwhelmed by it. Because of the age of my kids at the time, however, there really was not much else for us to go on except for the Dr. Suess Landing area which was great. I am anxiously awaiting Potter Phase 2.

In the end, I guess that my wife and I benefit from the fact that we have not lived through the history and development of WDW as many here have. It is still new to us I suppose and we are extremely pleased with our time spent there. It is crazy expensive but I don't mind spending that type of cash on vacations. In fact, we purchased DVC points this year at VGF and are scheduled back next May 31st - hopefully the mine train will actually be usable by then. Although a Disney fan, I am frustrated by the project timelines for what Disney does.

I totally understand where you are coming from and agree. I love what Universal is doing and feel they do deserve significant praise. But I think a lot of people on here tend to have an overly negative view of what WDW is like right now. They feel it has clearly fallen from its peak in the early 90's or so (and I agree FWIW) but don't acknowledge that even right now it is a great place to visit with a ton to do.

The main legit complaint about Disney is that it is "stale" and lacks new offerings. That's valid, but it mainly recognized by locals and frequent visitors. Many or most guests to central Florida don't have the same prospective and are less likely to be wowed by the things that impress many about Universal. I think a first time guest to Central Florida is more likely to be impressed by the total package at WDW than at Universal -- at this point in time. Whether that stays that way as Universal continues to build and possible expand to a third park is an interesting question and the ball will be in Disney's court to act in the ensuing time.

 

[doctornick]

Disney's "thrill" rides are also not that intense and are more family friendly. They, too, support the Disney brand.

Agreed. I think more "thrill" rides at the level of ones they currently have would be good, as long as they remain highly themed and are more "experiences" than just the ride itself.

But I don't think WDW necessarily needs many more thrill rides. I think the biggest need right now is just additional rides (especially at DHS and DAK) -- ideally more traditional Disney fare like POTC and HM and classic Epcot that can be enjoyed by everyone.

 

[doctornick]

No I did not. That guy is arguing that disney is better than Uni not that disney is HEADED up

Not one person has argued that or they'd be laughed right off this board.

Oh and by the same token no one is arguing tha Uni is headed down that would also be ludacris.

I would argue that Disney is stagnating more than "headed down" at this point. I think there was a clear decline from about 20 to 10 years ago or so, but more recent years have been pretty stable. If new additions like Star Wars and Avatar and stuff like the FOF parade and a potential DAK night show come to fruition, then WDW could certainly be viewed as improving, albeit not nearly as the same pace as Universal.

 

[gonnichi]

I'm not sure if you're agreeing with me or arguing with me, but the I'm pretty sure the Disney films stand on their own. I showed my 2 year old niece Cinderella just to see what she'd think of it, and the second it ended she wanted to see it again, and I then had to play it third time for her later the same day. It wasn't marketing, it was the just content of the film, the characters and the music just appeal to children ...period.

I am agreeing with you and just pointing out that there may be another component to it also. I see the marketing of the princesses as a way to make them more relevant to girls today. Even though your Niece didn't experience the marketing yet she will soon. So she will probably like the princesses even more. At Halloween I see a lot of girls in Disney Princess costumes and even though The Wizard of Oz is just as good as Snow White, or maybe even better then it I don't see girls dressed as Dorothy very often. So being a part of the Disney family makes Snow White more popular for children today through the marketing of Disney. that's all i'm saying.

and of course it wasn't the marketing that made your niece love those movies, like you said it appeals to children. It should appeal to children because that is one of the target audiences, along with the rest of us adults. its rated G for a reason.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

I really just want WDW to "try". And now they are not.

 

[flynnibus]

Its already probably made to be as light as possible, theres no use in making a moving object heavier than it needs to be. Unless they wanted to remake it out of titanium or carbon fiber there wouldn't be a significant weight loss.

Well they would have made similar cost choices when they first designed it. Plus now you have basically a decade of technology and manufacturing improvements.

Hindsight is worth a ton too

 

[Voice of Disney sanity]

I would argue that Disney is stagnating more than "headed down" at this point. I think there was a clear decline from about 20 to 10 years ago or so, but more recent years have been pretty stable. If new additions like Star Wars and Avatar and stuff like the FOF parade and a potential DAK night show come to fruition, then WDW could certainly be viewed as improving, albeit not nearly as the same pace as Universal.

I agree with you 100%

EXCEPT when it comes to maintaining THE WORLD. In that area they are experiencing a major decline lately

 

[Lexxweb]

The "innovators that got them to where they are today" are no longer with the company and haven't been in a long time. You do know that right? Disney isn't run by the same people it was in walt's time or even the 1980s. It's now a corporation with a bloated bureaucracy and decisions are made using spreadsheets and focus groups and given the smallest budgets possible because the focus has shifted from long term value for customers to short term profits that appease Wall Street analysts.

I never said it was the same people making the decisions, punkin'.

In fact you misquoted me. I didn't say "innovators that got them to where they are today" -- Do you know how to properly use quotes?

They're still a forward thinking company and still remain innovative no matter who is running things or how. Spreadsheets and focus groups do tend to get things done. Have you used a spreadsheet before? They're useful. How else would you like Disney to run their business? What's your game plan?

Oh, you do realize this is a Disney fan site..correct? Not saying you need to drink the kool-aid, I respect all opinions, but Disney isn't run by the Devil despite recent popular belief. You chose to join this site, why are you acting like Disney is so horrible? You're posting here on your free time, unless you're the most active member of the UO section. Doubt it.

Sidebar- it's weird that everyone on here knows so much about how this place is run. Please tell me more about your MBA and management history with the company...oh wait..high school? That's what I thought.

While I don't work for THIS company, I do know a thing or two about theme parks. Wink wink..nudge nudge.

Peace and love,

 

[Goofyernmost]

I agree with you 100%

EXCEPT when it comes to maintaining THE WORLD. In that area they are experiencing a major decline lately

Since all you have said in the line of detail about the major decline in maintenance lately is just that there is a major decline, I will respond and say no there hasn't been a major decline, without any further detail. In fact, when you look at the list of closures and work in progress things I'd have to say that there has been a major jump in maintenance as of late.

 

[Voice of Disney sanity]

Since all you have said in the line of detail about the major decline in maintenance lately is just that there is a major decline, I will respond and say no there hasn't been a major decline, without any further detail. In fact, when you look at the list of closures and work in progress things I'd have to say that there has been a major jump in maintenance as of late.

I said my piece about the decline of maintenance earlier in the thread and assumed you read it so I felt no need to repeat it. I'm not trying to insult you but if you don't see a recent decline in the cleanliness and general upkeep of the world it can only mean one of 2 things in my opinion. You either haven't been going to WDW very often For more than 10 years or you are intellectually dishonest. Either way I cannot argue with a fantasy.

 

[Goofyernmost]

I said my piece about the decline of maintenance earlier in the thread and assumed you read it so I felt no need to repeat it. I'm not trying to insult you but if you don't see a recent decline in the cleanliness and general upkeep of the world it can only mean one of 2 things in my opinion. You either haven't been going to WDW very often For more than 10 years or you are intellectually dishonest. Either way I cannot argue with a fantasy.

Been going every year for 30 years, sometimes more then once a year. And no, I have not seen a decline to any degree of importance nor am I intellectually dishonest, whatever that is. Fantasy's comes in many colors.

 

[nor'easter]

I never said it was the same people making the decisions, punkin'.

In fact you misquoted me. I didn't say "innovators that got them to where they are today" -- Do you know how to properly use quotes?

They're still a forward thinking company and still remain innovative no matter who is running things or how. Spreadsheets and focus groups do tend to get things done. Have you used a spreadsheet before? They're useful. How else would you like Disney to run their business? What's your game plan?

Oh, you do realize this is a Disney fan site..correct? Not saying you need to drink the kool-aid, I respect all opinions, but Disney isn't run by the Devil despite recent popular belief. You chose to join this site, why are you acting like Disney is so horrible? You're posting here on your free time, unless you're the most active member of the UO section. Doubt it.

Sidebar- it's weird that everyone on here knows so much about how this place is run. Please tell me more about your MBA and management history with the company...oh wait..high school? That's what I thought.

While I don't work for THIS company, I do know a thing or two about theme parks. Wink wink..nudge nudge.

Peace and love,

Gatorland?

 

[Voice of Disney sanity]

It also sounds like you are saying that refurbs automatically make things improved, but when you refurb the Polly and remove the fountains to save cash it isn't better for most guests. Or remove the skyway to make room for restrooms or get a giant cash payment from Starbucks and replace a bakery with a coffee franchise. Or any number of other refurbs that make more cash but lessen the WDW EXPERIENCE.

 

[Voice of Disney sanity]

Gatorland?

Hahahaha haHahahaha ha

 

[Voice of Disney sanity]

Gatorland?

Been going every year for 30 years, sometimes more then once a year. And no, I have not seen a decline to any degree of importance nor am I intellectually dishonest, whatever that is. Fantasy's comes in many colors.

Hmmm "I'm not lying mom!"