Disney's Haunted Mansion making room for new ghosts

[wedway71]

Well I think Disney is "damned if they do and damed if they dont".

People will complain about things getting boring and old and then they refurb it then they get mad when its down.

Id rather come to WDW and miss out on an attraction knowing its getting the TLC it needs.

I guess Disney can always do what the ski resorts and hotels in the Catskills do -close down ever summer for 2 months and fix everything at once.

I cant wait for HM to open:sohappy:

 

[wickedfan07]

I guess Disney can always do what the ski resorts and hotels in the Catskills do -close down ever summer for 2 months and fix everything at once.

Maybe people don't realize that, unlike your typical Six Flags Nowhereville, WDW is actually open year-round. Or they think that because its Disney, everything will be perfect all of the time.

I'm disappointed that the Mansion is closed while I'll be visiting, but I'm happy for the chnages to come, and I'll be riding it excitiedly whenever my next trip is.

 

[Dayma]

Disney should provide a "sign off" form when you set reservation through them which would explain what is closed and when ....jk

 

[Champion]

What shocked me yesterday was the number of people who had no idea it was going to be closed. I heard all kinds of grumbling and complaining.

I photograph refurbs all the time, so I see how people are reacting. Most of the time its the group leader saying "Yes, it closed, will reopen with blah blah blah improvement."

I was just a struck as the writer over the number of people who seemed completely unaware it was going to be closed - that's not typical. It means there's a breakdown somewhere in Disney's communication systems.

I don't think there are many attractions that you can compare to HM in terms of popularity that have received such a refurb. Pirates I guess. Would you say there are more people complaining about this refurb then did about Pirates, merf?

 

[mousermerf]

I don't think there are many attractions that you can compare to HM in terms of popularity that have received such a refurb. Pirates I guess. Would you say there are more people complaining about this refurb then did about Pirates, merf?

Yeah, more then both pirates and small world. In the few mins I was there, atleast 20 or so people walked by and were upset it was closed - loud enough for me to hear them without trying.

 

[bayoutinkbelle]

Maybe this is just me, but I don't think it's too much for people to do a little research before they go on their vacations. I can't fathom spending the money and making the trip without planning for it. I've got this little voice in my head that says, "Yeah, but what if ..."

That's just me.

 

[durangojim]

Maybe this is just me, but I don't think it's too much for people to do a little research before they go on their vacations. I can't fathom spending the money and making the trip without planning for it.

To us, who are fanatics, I think that applies, but not to the average mom and dad who maybe have a week that they can go to Disney out of the year. They might not be aware of as much as we are and don't even know that refurbishments happen or how to check for them. I can understand someone who might only go once a year or every couple of years being upset, but I don't think that Disney owes them anything. Maybe this will make some come back for another trip sooner than they would normally.

 

[CThaddeus]

Maybe this is just me, but I don't think it's too much for people to do a little research before they go on their vacations. I can't fathom spending the money and making the trip without planning for it. I've got this little voice in my head that says, "Yeah, but what if ..."

That's just me.

Exactly. Ten years ago I could see being surprised something wasn't open, because the internet wasn't the creature it is today. Type Disney World in a search engine and you'll probably get a few thousand options. If you can't be bothered to check at least one site devoted to Disney World before you book your trip, then you get what you deserve. I know, sometimes you can only go at specific times, but you have to accept that not everything can always be open. My feeling is that if they're just rehabbing the attraction when I'm there, I'm okay with that. However, if they're just keeping it closed because it's the off-season (ie. Wonders of Life) and they don't feel like staffing it, then my disappointment and anger is warranted.
It's not as if no one knew about The Haunted Mansion's closure. It's been floating around the internet for months. I missed it in 1996 due to rehab, but I got to see it in 2000 and every other trip since.

 

[SDav10495]

To us, who are fanatics, I think that applies, but not to the average mom and dad who maybe have a week that they can go to Disney out of the year.

And not even just "average" families...my family is full of what I would call WDW fanatics, but before I really started frequenting Disney sites and boards online a couple of years ago none of us would ever have thought to check rehabs ahead of our trip (and "before" doesn't just mean the early 90s...I'm talking about the Internet age). That's not because we go so frequently that it doesn't bother us--we don't--but it just never would have occurred to us to check. We're just so excited about the whole trip we don't think to get updates on specific attractions. We understand why things have to be rehabbed, but at the same time we understand those who just expect to find everything up and running when they visit. Even Disney fanatics can be out of the loop...so I can forgive the average visitor for not Googling the status of their favorite attractions.

Still doesn't mean they should all be whining about why it had to happen during their vacation, though.

 

[Champion]

Maybe this is just me, but I don't think it's too much for people to do a little research before they go on their vacations. I can't fathom spending the money and making the trip without planning for it. I've got this little voice in my head that says, "Yeah, but what if ..."

That's just me.

First, what if their trip is something thats been planned for longer than the refurb was known about? Hard to reschedule something long planned for a single attraction.

Second, its hard to reschedule around an attraction anyway. If you do it for HM and try to go next year, you might miss Jungle Cruise or Space Mountain or one of the other classic attractions that need a refurb.

Third, you can be upset that its closed and still not have it 'ruin' your entire trip. I know that if was going during the refurb, I would be disappointed that I didn't get to ride it, but it wouldn't be the end of the world. Theres a difference between 'I'm sad that its closed' and 'I hate Disney they don't tell us anything RAWR!'

Forth, both of the people quoted in the story were children. Of course they were going to be upset about not being able to experience the attraction, and they aren't going to understand fully the concept of closing it to make it better. Why isn't it open for them is the only thing they will worry about.

 

[Baums101]

Well they have to close it sometime, they can't expect to close due to someone's stay.

 

[redfive13]

She would have loved my honeymoon to DL in 9/03... Haunted Mansion...closed, Space Mountain... closed for refurb, Splash Mountain...closed. That was a bummer.

 

[disneytopdog]

I changed my trip when I saw the rehab dates. I will be there a week after its scheduled to re-open. I will however be there when Spaceship Earth is down. Am I mad? Sort of. But hey you deal with it. As someone posted earlier "the place is open year round" The rides do break down or need to be fixed up. At least Disney is biting the bullet and giving the ride what it needs.

 

[bayoutinkbelle]

Sorry, but I still chalk it up to poor planning - fanatics or not. If mom and dad had done their homework, they could prepare little Johnny beforehand. I think if the average mom and dad has only a week to spend at Disney each year, proper planning makes the most of that valuable week. Why leave such a trip like that to chance?

I'm not trying to be harsh, but things like this happen. Someone could have planned their vacation for a year and then something like this pops up. The disappointment wouldn't be as severe if you knew before you got to the gates.

I planned my trip months before the HM refurb was announced. It's my favorite ride at MK. I'm disappointed, but I'm also a fanatic D ) so I knew about it. More than being disappointed, though, I'm thrilled that my fave attraction is getting the TLC.

 

[MAGICFLOP]

The Last time I was there they said there was only room for 1 more ghost and I heard the people ahead of me say they were going to inquire at the end of the tour. :sohappy:

 

[kcnole]

I can understand people being upset. On my first trip back to the world in years almost all the major rides in Epcot that I wanted to ride were down for refurb or broken that day. I had checked the WDW website and nothing was listed but then three things were down that day. WDW does need to do a better job of communication within the company and display things like that easier for people to find. Most people I know don't even know the refurb schedule is available online and if they do its often not easy to find.

WDW's website is awful. I think it needs the next major refurb.

As to people complaining about why its closed, you're going to have that problem whenever and its the reason WDW doesn't refurb their attractions like they should, at least one of them. I hope they're learning their lesson and will start to just accept the guest complaints about closed attractions. I think in the end people would rather see one attraction closed but the rest of them beautiful and in tip top shape than see all of them open but run down.

Heck, that's the way TDR runs their resort. There's almost always a ride down there but everything else that is running is in such great shape that people accept it.

 

[beachclubbasics]

I will be there in 1.5 months and will miss SSE, HM, and dinner at Mitsukoshi...but hey, we'll get by. We'll actually finally have time to do Test Track, Expedition Everest, and Rockin Roller Coaster..in three years we haven't had the time to of any of these.

As for teppen, we found a good Japanese restaurant in Orlando that we are going to try..and where I can use Restaurant.com certificates to save money. Plus, we replaced Teppanyaki with Morocco...been dying to try there!

So, there are actually a few plusses to these rides/restaurants being closed.

However, I must say that I'll miss using SSE to cool down in!

 

[tirian]

WDW's website is awful. I think it needs the next major refurb.

I have heard of a web design professor who uses the WDW website as an example of what NOT to do!

 

[TinkerBell9988]

I saw that in the paper yesterday...

Tourists... :lol:

 

[Capt. Jack]

I hope to god the new ghosts, well at least one of them, doesn't consist of Eddie Murphy. :brick: :hurl: