Have universal surpassed Disney ?

Kit83

Kit83

Active Member
Original Poster
On our recent and first visit to the Harry potter park within Universal we were all very impressed with the quality of imagineering shown in both the rides and park . Not impressed with the rest of Universal though .

As Disney fans do you think Disney needs to step up to this new level ? We thought that they have set a new standard .
 
M

mazabe

New Member
Hey,

I am a huge Disney fan, however in terms of customer service and recent experiences (July last Year and at the moment) Universal trashes Disney completely!
Something I never thought I would ever say.

Last year I had numerous issues with Disney, from being shouted at by Cast members, to my disabled son being refused to go into disabled viewing areas.

Universal last year. I broke my dress on the day I was due to go home, my cases had already left via the DTD check in. The staff helped sort me out so I could travel back to the UK in comfort. I fell down by Starbucks and thought I had broken my arm. They looked after me and made sure I was comfortable. Even took my suggestion on board to prevent the same happening to someone else. They called me when I was back home to see how I was.

Amazing people
 
BrerJon

BrerJon

Well-Known Member
Universal wins on the following:
Imagineering, theming, clearer communication with guests (Disney will tell you 'spooks have delayed your journey', Universal will tell you 'technical problems mean we can't open the ride'), higher quality attractions, much better maintenance and care of show elements, better value for money, cheaper but better quality hotel rooms, better bus transport, friendlier service from employees, nicer food choices, much better snacks, lighter crowds, shorter wait times for rides and a much better Fastpass system that doesn't drive up the waits by forcing people to use it on attractions that don't need it.

Disney wins on some areas however:
It has a park or two open later, has better fireworks and projection shows, and the resort as a whole has more places to kick back and relax, you also feel more isolated from the world, as opposed to feeling like you're just on the other side of I-Drive. Also DAK and Epcot are more relaxing places to spend an afternoon if you just want to enjoy the atmosphere of a park, instead of doing lots of attractions.
 
J

JT3000

Well-Known Member
Each company does certain things better. But is Universal setting a new standard for themed entertainment (at least outside of Japan?) Yes. Disney could still match it if they cared to. They don't. So in essence, they can't.
 
Hakunamatata

Hakunamatata

Le Meh
Premium Member
Is each company filling a market niche. Yes. Are there areas both could do better yes. Is one beating the other, I'm not sure what purpose that conversation serves. I saw bad show at both this last trip. I saw really cool stuff at both.
 
tweak89

tweak89

New Member
I think it depends on what perspective you are looking it. From my adult (over 40) eyes, they are crushing Disney (and I am a HUGE fan of all things Disney). We alternate park visits every year and this year it was WDW and we were somewhat disappointed. Something just seemed "off" in almost all aspects they they used to excel at. Park wasn't as clean, cast members not as "into it".

Another part of it is ride expectations, nostalgia no longer gives Disney a pass. Universal is just outright more fun for us now and the tech they are employing is providing unique ride experiences. Seven Dwarfs Mine Train?? Looked like a really innovative coaster but in reality turned out to be a harmless children's ride.

But, I'll be back for Avatar land and hopefully some new Star Wars stuff in the future. In fact, Star Wars should be the catalyst for some real innovation, hopefully. But until then, it's Universal up next, and maybe it will be that way for the next couple of trips.
 
captainmoch

captainmoch

Well-Known Member
Universal has passed Disney, by a lot. Nearly annual innovative new ride additions, they keep their attractions (for the most part) up to date and if they shut something down they immediately get to work on replacing it, really unique ride experiences all around, and unlike three out of the four WDW parks, I'm occupied for most of the day when I go. Not to mention both WWoHP areas are some of the best and most immersive theme park areas of all time, complimented with some of the parks' best rides in each. Until WDW starts bothering to keep up, Universal is going to win in my mind.
 
TubaGeek

TubaGeek

God bless the "Ignore" button.
I think a major problem Disney is having right now is the way they treat their cast. It used to be that there would be a handful of happy, fresh-eyed College Program kids dispersed throughout the frontline positions, being led and helped by many full-time CMs. Now, virtually every frontline CM you interact with is part of the College Program, working 60 hours to pay $100 a week to live THREE to a bedroom.
 
TalkingHead

TalkingHead

Well-Known Member
Corey P said:
Universal has some very good new rides and the over all feel to the parks, city walk, the hotels is of a city resort.
Click to expand...

Having just recently stayed on Universal property for the first time, I was highly impressed by the resort-feel of the place. Usually when I'm going to Uni, I'm going as a local, parking in the garage and spending a few hours in the park before driving home.

Vacationing on property, I didn't feel like I was in the city. The water taxis help make the experience feel resort-ish. Overall, the experience reminded me more of Disneyland than WDW.
 
BrianV

BrianV

Well-Known Member
I would argue that wdw has long passed Universal. That is to say, universal is now where wdw was 25 years.

The question though is would you rather visit wdw today or wdw 25 years ago?
 
jloucks

jloucks

Well-Known Member
Kit83 said:
On our recent and first visit to the Harry potter park within Universal we were all very impressed with the quality of imagineering shown in both the rides and park . Not impressed with the rest of Universal though .

As Disney fans do you think Disney needs to step up to this new level ? We thought that they have set a new standard .
Click to expand...


We were at Universal this year for the first time ever. While I/we did enjoy it, it was a significantly different experience from WDW.

Since this is the Uni forum, let me hammer home what they did far superior to WDW.

First and foremost having both parks reasonable walking distance from each other is super awesome! A huge chunk of my WDW stress was centered, to one degree or another, on the cattle car, err,,, 'bussing' system employed by WDW. Why not have more busses with freakin' seats? You know, like touring busses? What evs, WDW went cheap with their cattle system and is stinks.

Second, having the resorts walking distance from the parks was possibly even more awesome. Everything I said above plus no park closing mad rush to buses and horrible bus lines. Also,in the middle of the day, no big deal to walk back to hotel for little break or whatevs.

Third, all day unlimited fast passes. This almost worked too good. I almost felt guilty always wisking to the front of every single line. ...well... no fast pass for some Harry Plopper stuff.

Fourth, package delivery to room! Not to loud noisy give shop, but right to your bed! Spent way more money on crap because of this.

Fifth, vertical resort layout. It is not what feels like a 4 hour walk from the bus to your room. ...or from the lobby to your room for that matter.

Sixth, Prices. Yea, way less gouging going on. Still gouging, sure. But not quite a deep, and they don't salt the blade before violating you like Disney does. (exception, charging for parking, seems completely uncool to me, still rubbing me the wrong way on this topic).

Good job Universal, WDW has lost the monopoly on our visits to Orlando.
 
Voice of Disney sanity

Voice of Disney sanity

Well-Known Member
BrerJon said:
Universal wins on the following:
Imagineering, theming, clearer communication with guests (Disney will tell you 'spooks have delayed your journey', Universal will tell you 'technical problems mean we can't open the ride'), higher quality attractions, much better maintenance and care of show elements, better value for money, cheaper but better quality hotel rooms, better bus transport, friendlier service from employees, nicer food choices, much better snacks, lighter crowds, shorter wait times for rides and a much better Fastpass system that doesn't drive up the waits by forcing people to use it on attractions that don't need it.

Disney wins on some areas however:
It has a park or two open later, has better fireworks and projection shows, and the resort as a whole has more places to kick back and relax, you also feel more isolated from the world, as opposed to feeling like you're just on the other side of I-Drive. Also DAK and Epcot are more relaxing places to spend an afternoon if you just want to enjoy the atmosphere of a park, instead of doing lots of attractions.
Click to expand...
I think you nailed it!
 
TubaGeek

TubaGeek

God bless the "Ignore" button.
I think BOTH resorts have flaws in their Express/FastPass systems.
I hate that Universal's system is a paid for premium. I feel that, once you're inside the park, it should not be a have/have not situation.
Disney used to have a great system, and now have great (ignore the price tag) tech, but messed up the system.
I think the best way to do it is almost identical to the OLD FastPass system, where you can hold one MAYBE two FPs at a time, but without making people walk across the park to acquire said FPs.
 
TalkingHead

TalkingHead

Well-Known Member
TubaGeek said:
I think BOTH resorts have flaws in their Express/FastPass systems.
I hate that Universal's system is a paid for premium. I feel that, once you're inside the park, it should not be a have/have not situation.
Disney used to have a great system, and now have great (ignore the price tag) tech, but messed up the system.
I think the best way to do it is almost identical to the OLD FastPass system, where you can hold one MAYBE two FPs at a time, but without making people walk across the park to acquire said FPs.
Click to expand...

The best way is to eliminate FP completely. But since that'll never happen...

I had Express Pass for the first time a couple of weeks ago, and it didn't live up to my expectations. I certainly wouldn't pay $80/day for it, but then I'm willing to do the single riders line.

When Minion Mayhem was running a 60-70 minute wait, Express Pass resulted in a 15-20 minute line. We had what was probably a 10-15 minute wait at Mummy. 10-15 minutes for Transformers. I expected it to be like the old days of FP when you'd show up and get on the ride a couple of minutes later. Express Pass wasn't that for the headliner attractions. Single-rider looks like it's a quicker option.

I will say the Spider-man Express Pass line is awesome -- I don't recall ever having seen the darkroom. Very nice surprise.
 

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