Meanwhile at USH this weekend...

dweezil78

dweezil78

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
BrianLo said:
I think we're witnessing the first theme park to hit the price ceiling. The one day ticket prices are obscene, but all other parks have the benefit of people using AP's or multi-day, multi-park tickets. Unlike other resorts, you aren't driven to buy much more than a single day.
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I wonder if this is all a result of USH expiring all the former 'Buy a Day, Get a Year' APs simultaneously on March 18 and people just not feeling the new rates, refusing to play ball w/ Universal. Rather than having passes expire day by day, they put the brakes on attendance hard and as a result the park has become a ghost town. Today should have been busy. When I went on a nice Sunday in early March before all the expiration the park was definitely far busier than its been the past two Sundays with even the tram tour seeing a 50 min wait.
 
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Deleted member 107043

Now that you mention it I haven't seen on WWoHP billboard up here. There are plenty of Disneyland Star Wars Awakens billboards though.
 
Phroobar

Phroobar

Well-Known Member
Rich T said:
The truth is, Harry Potter's had his day. The book series will remain a modern classic, and the films are well done... but the super-mania's over. Universal's opened a copy of a lovely land based on a no-longer-red-hot franchise featuring a ride that makes a lot of people sick.
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It didn't stop them from opening a Simpsons "land". Who still watches that show?
 
Phroobar

Phroobar

Well-Known Member
This low attendance thing is similar to what Disney experienced when DCA opened. Disney took away AP to the new park and raised the prices. No one showed up. Granted DCA sucked and Potter doesn't but the kicking out of APs really shows how much the theme park industry needs annual passes to be operational. They can't rely on one day tourists to fill the parks.
 
Californian Elitist

Californian Elitist

Well-Known Member
BrianLo said:
Exactly, I cannot in actuality speak to what it is truly worth, as I've never been! I'll be sure to share my thoughts when all is said and done.

I think we're all wondering, are people actually not going now? I don't think we'll know until the summer gets underway, but the opening timeframe lack of crowds is probably worrisome to Comcast.
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In my opinion, especially after working at USH, the low attendance right now isn't bothersome because the park always has very low periods where it's pretty much dead. The foreigners absolutely FLOCK in the summer, however, especially the Chinese.

Now that Potter is open, I'm looking forward to other future plans for the park, unless those plans involve taking out a good chunk of the backlot (I still haven't forgiven Universal for moving the Phantom set).
 
Fox&Hound

Fox&Hound

Well-Known Member
Hmmm this is all very interesting! I'm surprised that Universal copied hippogriff and dueling dragons in CA. Those seemed like simple rethemes that were nowhere near as good as Forbidden Journey (very impressive even though it made me sick). Wonder if they would have scrapped those two and added something different if the crowds would have shown up more.

I definitely think Star Wars will be a massive hit in the parks. Disney is smart to jump on this and escalate the timeline. I think it will bring a huge jump in attendance especially as it brings in an older demographic- teens and adult men who sometimes dismiss Disney as a park for kids who love princesses.
 
Disneyhead'71

Disneyhead'71

Well-Known Member
Fox&Hound said:
Hmmm this is all very interesting! I'm surprised that Universal copied hippogriff and dueling dragons in CA. Those seemed like simple rethemes that were nowhere near as good as Forbidden Journey (very impressive even though it made me sick). Wonder if they would have scrapped those two and added something different if the crowds would have shown up more.

I definitely think Star Wars will be a massive hit in the parks. Disney is smart to jump on this and escalate the timeline. I think it will bring a huge jump in attendance especially as it brings in an older demographic- teens and adult men who sometimes dismiss Disney as a park for kids who love princesses.
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Hollywood's WWOHP doesn't have Dragon Challenge. And Hippogriff is a different slightly larger family coaster than the one inOrlando.
 
Phroobar

Phroobar

Well-Known Member
Fox&Hound said:
I definitely think Star Wars will be a massive hit in the parks. Disney is smart to jump on this and escalate the timeline. I think it will bring a huge jump in attendance especially as it brings in an older demographic- teens and adult men who sometimes dismiss Disney as a park for kids who love princesses.
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Wait until the second trailer for Rogue One : a Star Wars Story hits and everyone sees Darth Vader at the peak of his power. Launch Bay will be packed with people wanting to see things from that movie and see the SWL preview center upstairs. The Season of the Force ain't going anywhere.
 
Californian Elitist

Californian Elitist

Well-Known Member
Fox&Hound said:
Hmmm this is all very interesting! I'm surprised that Universal copied hippogriff and dueling dragons in CA. Those seemed like simple rethemes that were nowhere near as good as Forbidden Journey (very impressive even though it made me sick). Wonder if they would have scrapped those two and added something different if the crowds would have shown up more.
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Pretty much everything that can be duplicated is done so between the two Universals in the States.
 
BrianLo

BrianLo

Well-Known Member
WDW1974 said:
BTW, since I really don't have an active Spirited thread right now thought I'd drop this here (especially since absolutely ZERO news came out of Disney's press event).

The UNI Wand Wavers won't likely be happy, but the Potter effect in California has not been anything like it was in O-Town thus far. Yes, no one should jump to any conclusions based on a month of soft openings and two weeks of the real deal but ... down in what was once orange groves in Anaheim ...

TDA is thrilled with attendance and spending the last two weeks since Harry Potter opened. DLR attendance since Potter had its grand opening is slightly higher than the already strong estimates, with both the tourist and locals demographics, and spending is very strong with the left coast Food & Wine event continuing to blow sales targets out of the water (that was even after they dropped the AP lanyard price by $6 after being embarrassed by Guy Selga and @WDWFigment AKA Tom Bricker ... yep, they really were behind the price drop whether they realize it or not since they are on a vacation in Japan now). The WWoHP hasn't had any impact on the Anaheim parks whatsoever, and attendance info leaking out of UNI to TDA contacts is that USH has had attendance MUCH lower than their optimistic estimates.

Please let me know what the UNI addicts say on the Tweeter ...
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See the above from Spirit.
 
Travel Junkie

Travel Junkie

Well-Known Member
Inside Universal has an article that talks about the results so far. Basically attendance is lower than expected mainly due to AP attendance being blocked out. However revenue has been substantially increased since Potter open. Food and merch along with 1 day ticket sales have jumped.

http://insideuniversal.net/2016/04/...tter-a-success-its-complicated-and-heres-why/


This is also exhibit A for why you probably won't see Disneyland remove monthly payment options or otherwise heavily discourage AP sales anytime soon. There will be tinkering with the AP program especially with Star Wars on the horizon, but they are learning from Universal what not to do.
 

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