Disney springs not doing so well.....

[flyerjab]

The eateries are certainly doing well. There was a line out the door for D-Luxe Burger when I was there, a mob inside the pizza place, a 15-minute wait for tables at the Irish pub, and a line outside Morimoto. And that was on a Wednesday night. I have to say that everything I had at Morimoto Street Food was fantastic (especially the addictive ribs) and a serving of any poutine from The Daily Poutine is a really tasty hearty meal.

We were there at the end of September and went to DS on a Saturday to try to find something. Let's just say that everything that was table service had a wait and everything that was quick service had a line out the door (the lines for D-Lux and Blaze were ridiculous). We ended up choosing Art Smith's Homecoming as it was ONLY a 30 minute wait.

My family and the other couple we travel to WDW with have been avid followers of the transformation from DTD to DS. Over the past few years we have visited each new restaurant on various trips that coincided with them opening. The only one that ended up as sort of 'meh' for us was STK. This was probably due to the fact that it was expensive and the overall experience and vibe of the meal was off. We went at lunch time - my wife and I, our 3 kids ages 9 through 15, and our 2 friends - and the downstairs club area was not seating anyone. The upstairs was open and there were really only a few people there. The service was great as there was an abundance of wait staff, so our kids had a blast playing Pokemon Go with some of the waiters and the one host. Aside from that though, the cuts of meat were good but the place was just missing something. Maybe we should go again at night on a weekend to experience it they way it was designed to be experienced.

Overall, I have yet to be there and see evidence that it is failing. It is always crazy busy but now there is room for people to spread out. The new mall area is beautiful and very well done, and there is this multitude of pathways to wander through, especially around the Springs section itself. Actually, it doesn't surprise me that the Marketplace is suffering a bit because the Town Hall and Springs locations really seem to draw the people right now. And there are entertainers everywhere you turn.

Will some businesses suffer and shutdown? Sure. Others will have to adjust hours of operation, menus, etc. But this is pretty standard I would think. We never miss DS now and include it in each trip when we go. The eating options there crush a lot of what is offered in the parks themselves. But that really fits with how we vacation in the parks. We always view WDW as one big resort as opposed to individual parks. Having APs obviously allows for this type of touring. But we end up in DS almost every other day at some point (and we don't buy stuff in WDW, be it Disney merchandise or stuff at the Springs Town Center).

 

[lazyboy97o]

I wasn't even talking about HOB Orlando, so I wasn't arguing with you.

But I will bet that the rents at both DS and DTD make it difficult for tenants to make a decent profit. I doubt HOB moved because their acts were restricted, it wouldn't matter to them as long as they profited.

Restrictions impact profits because they are a limitation of the number and type of shows the venue can host.

 

[Hakunamatata]

HOB at DTD in California is closed. They are relocating to Garden Walk. I'm sure the rent is a lot more appealing.

What factual information do you base your certainty?

 

[Otterhead]

We were there at the end of September and went to DS on a Saturday to try to find something. Let's just say that everything that was table service had a wait and everything that was quick service had a line out the door (the lines for D-Lux and Blaze were ridiculous). We ended up choosing Art Smith's Homecoming as it was ONLY a 30 minute wait.

I'll be really curious to see how The Edison changes things when it opens. It's smack dab in the center of things and will be one of the biggest complexes on site, from the look of it, and they're saying it'll have multiple 'rooms'; if it's anything like its LA counterpart, it will likely have both table service and upscale counter service.

 

[lazyboy97o]

What factual information do you base your certainty?

What part do you doubt? Given GardenWalk's troubles, lower rent is a very reasonable expectation.

 

[Hakunamatata]

What part do you doubt? Given GardenWalk's troubles, lower rent is a very reasonable expectation.

It was just a question. Figured since the OP was sure the rent was lower that statement was based on some known fact.

 

[21stamps]

Come to think of it, and I don't mean to get political, but what would happen with crowds at Disney if the minimum wage is raised to 15 dollars?

You would have a lot more people who couldn't afford to go.

Yeah, pretty much. Deciding what transportation you're going to take at a luxury vacation destination is very much a First World Problem. Some people have to decide if they'll spend their budget for the month on food, clothes, or medicine, because they can't cover all three.

Right, and this is a Disney Forum. So anything being discussed is a #firstworldproblem

 

[flynnibus]

It was just a question. Figured since the OP was sure the rent was lower that statement was based on some known fact.

Site A is Disney...
Site B is a struggling, nearly empty, shopping mall

Which do you think is cheaper?

 

[21stamps]

Is DS crowded because people want to be at DS... or is DS crowded because guests are being funneled there with little else to do?


Site A is Disney...
Site B is a struggling, nearly empty, shopping mall

Which do you think is cheaper?

Wait, what? How are they being funneled there? Because in the whole of Walt Disney World Resort they can't find anything else to do?

 

[flynnibus]

Wait, what? How are they being funneled there? Because in the whole of Walt Disney World Resort they can't find anything else to do?

That was old text that wasn't meant to be there.. but if you are a Disney guest trapped onsite... where else are you going to go if you are curious after your designated park closes for the day?

When you don't have park hoppers... DS looks pretty attractive to people.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

I think DS is going to have weird growing pains. Right now, since DS is new, a lot of the people there are just "checking the place out" and therefore not really buying anything except F&B.

And I hate to say this but locals seem to have lost the taste for the place. And I don't think that will change given prices, location, and viable alternatives. Now, I know that some locals on here are gonna say, "huh uh, were locals and we are there 9 times a week and just last week I bought a coffee and 34 LE Pins. So you're wrong!"

 

[21stamps]

That was old text that wasn't meant to be there.. but if you are a Disney guest trapped onsite... where else are you going to go if you are curious after your designated park closes for the day?

When you don't have park hoppers... DS looks pretty attractive to people.

Ok well, my fault, I didn't realize that Disney locked their gates to keep everyone inside.

Now realizing that they do, I'll throw some suggestions out-
Swim at your resort pool.
Go to a resort lounge.
Hang out in the room and talk about your day.
Go to the Boardwalk.
Walk around your resort's grounds.
Lay in a hammock or sit in a chair and chat with your companions.

I'm sure there's others, but if someone needs an alternative that's 6 of them.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

Ok well, my fault, I didn't realize that Disney locked their gates to keep everyone inside.

Now realizing that they do, I'll throw some suggestions out-
Swim at your resort pool.
Go to a resort lounge.
Hang out in the room and talk about your day.
Go to the Boardwalk.
Walk around your resort's grounds.
Lay in a hammock or sit in a chair and chat with your companions.

I'm sure there's others, but if someone needs an alternative that's 6 of them.

Or Uber off property to the plethora of delightful entertainment options in the Orlando Metro Area. Shows and concerts at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, concerts and Pro Sports at The Amway Center and Camping World Stadium, great dining all over town (particularly in Winter Park), etc.

 

[21stamps]

Or Uber off property to the plethora of delightful entertainment options in the Orlando Metro Area. Shows and concerts at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, concerts and Pro Sports at The Amway Center and Camping World Stadium, great dining all over town (particularly in Winter Park), etc.

Oh I agree with this, not my top picks in Orlando, but there is plenty to do in the area. My choice would be Ubering straight to Fun Spot though.

I was giving ideas for those poor souls who are trapped against their will inside WDW property.

 

[ABQ]

Or Uber off property to the plethora of delightful entertainment options in the Orlando Metro Area. Shows and concerts at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, concerts and Pro Sports at The Amway Center and Camping World Stadium, great dining all over town (particularly in Winter Park), etc.

Certainly a valid point. However, with all the massive parking structures built and being built at DS, you'd assume a number of people in attendance at DS wouldn't require an uber and could just drive themselves elsewhere. Now I have no clue if the parking garages are being filled up each day, but if so, what draws those guests to DS? Certainly they have freedom to go where ever else they please.

 

[flyerjab]

I'll be really curious to see how The Edison changes things when it opens. It's smack dab in the center of things and will be one of the biggest complexes on site, from the look of it, and they're saying it'll have multiple 'rooms'; if it's anything like its LA counterpart, it will likely have both table service and upscale counter service.

Agreed. In addition to that, the renovated Paddlefish also looks like it will be a nice addition to the lineup in that area. I even think that the Planet Hollywood Observatory looks like it will be a nice change.

I remember reading somewhere that Portabellos was going to undergo a serious refurb also to keep up with everything else going on around it. It seems that the refurb Paradiso37 did has helped keep the guests coming. By Summer of 2017 there will be so many choices for food it will be great.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

Certainly a valid point. However, with all the massive parking structures built and being built at DS, you'd assume a number of people in attendance at DS wouldn't require an uber and could just drive themselves elsewhere. Now I have no clue if the parking garages are being filled up each day, but if so, what draws those guests to DS? Certainly they have freedom to go where ever else they please.

A lot of them are staying off property and are there as part of their Disney vacation.

All I was saying is that if DS isn't your cup of tea, and it's not one of your park days, there is more in Orlando to do than just lay in bed at your hotel watching rerun movies on cable.

 

[Otterhead]

Agreed. In addition to that, the renovated Paddlefish also looks like it will be a nice addition to the lineup in that area. I even think that the Planet Hollywood Observatory looks like it will be a nice change.

I admit getting a little misty seeing The Edison under construction, as one of the main rooms is using the structure of the old Adventurer's Club. I still think that if that place existed somewhere on site today, possibly Animal Kingdom, it would do amazing business.

 

[flyerjab]

I admit getting a little misty seeing The Edison under construction, as one of the main rooms is using the structure of the old Adventurer's Club. I still think that if that place existed somewhere on site today, possibly Animal Kingdom, it would do amazing business.

It's so funny that you say that. I posted about the expansion pad in DAK once, stating how great it would be if they added a South American section. And one of the additions could be a fictional outpost town with a large TS restaurant, with part of it having a 'secret' entrance into a new Adventurers Club. Rhode loves the AC in DTD and DAK is his baby so I always thought that it made sense.

 

[Otterhead]

Rhode loves the AC in DTD and DAK is his baby so I always thought that it made sense.

I agree completely. I think he gets asked about it coming back a lot; when Tiffins opened, he posted a lot of thoughts about it and the Nomad Lounge being the "spiritual successor" to the AC in that while the AC was about fantasy adventures of the past, the Nomad Lounge is about sharing your current and future real-life adventures and posting them around the club for people to read and respond to. I doubt the AC is coming back but its DNA is all over the place -- at Tiffins, at Jock Lindsey's, and especially at Skipper Canteen.