Mickey Mouse LPS Ride - Blue Sky Plans for DCA

[Deleted member 107043]

What is with the massive spending spree Disneyland is on? I think it's great, but they are spending well above what they needed to avoid the gate tax.

My guess is that they are finally acknowledging that they have a serious capacity problem in Anaheim. In order to manage financial growth well into the future at DLR they have to find ways to accommodate more customers. I agree with SSG that in a way the investment is overdue, especially considering how successful DLR has been since the economy rebounded following the recession.

 

[Phroobar]

Any money they invest now will be returned within six months to a year of completion. The more capacity they add, the more money they make in the near future.

 

[SSG]

My guess is that they are finally acknowledging that they have a serious capacity problem in Anaheim. In order to manage financial growth well into the future DLR they have to find ways to fit accommodate more customers. I agree with SSG that in a way the investment is overdue, especially considering how successful DLR has been since the economy rebounded following the recession.

Yup. Disney needs to increase capacity in DL (Star Wars Land & possibly Frozen), plus push folks to DCA (Marvel & Mickey perhaps), plus increase infrastructure (new parking), plus add amenities (new hotel and add to Downtown Disney). It’s an exciting time for DLR.

 

[TP2000]

What is with the massive spending spree Disneyland is on? I think it's great, but they are spending well above what they needed to avoid the gate tax.

Within the last few weeks, before all this info broke, the Miceage Update and several posts by Spirit have laid out exactly why Disneyland Resort is getting a bunch of extra money beyond the 1.5 Billion they agreed to spend last summer to avoid the gate tax for 45 years.

It's a huge pile of cash that Anaheim is suddenly getting for park expansions.

 

[TP2000]

Yup. Disney needs to increase capacity in DL (Star Wars Land & possibly Frozen), plus push folks to DCA (Marvel & Mickey perhaps), plus increase infrastructure (new parking), plus add amenities (new hotel and add to Downtown Disney). It’s an exciting time for DLR.

It surpasses the previous exciting time of DCA's Extreme Makeover of 2008-2012. And we thought that five year time was pretty great.

The five years of 2017-2021 now appears to more than double that level of expansion and investment inside the parks (Star Wars Land, Arendelle, Marvel Land, Mickey Ride), plus add a bunch of infrastructure and amenity upgrades outside the parks (Pumba Parking Structure, New Luxury Hotel, Downtown Disney Remodel). Then you add in the usual replacement/refreshment that Disneyland Resort offerings get every year or two anyway; new Fantasmic, new parades, new stage shows, Food & Wine festival, etc., etc.

It's all a bit overwhelming.

 

[Phroobar]

Ok. Figured out what LPS since no one seems to understand what it does.

The patented system works by directional data being relayed from a master control computer directly to each individual honey pot car through a complicated matrix embedded within the actual floor tiles. Every few seconds, the master computer generates a random path and ‘steers’ the honey pot in real-time, so as the cars roll through the ride the vehicles are, in fact, being told where to go. Because this system is in real-time, they can maneuver accordingly in just fractions of a second. This also allows for spontaneous yet synchronized ‘honey pot choreography’ with groups of honey pots (as many as 8 in a single show scene) appearing to ‘dance’ with the others, often timed with ‘beats’ in the music. Due to limitless variations possible, each journey through the attraction is unique.

 

[britain]

It surpasses the previous exciting time of DCA's Extreme Makeover of 2008-2012. And we thought that five year time was pretty great.

The five years of 2017-2021 now appears to more than double that level of expansion and investment inside the parks (Star Wars Land, Arendelle, Marvel Land, Mickey Ride), plus add a bunch of infrastructure and amenity upgrades outside the parks (Pumba Parking Structure, New Luxury Hotel, Downtown Disney Remodel).

It's all a bit overwhelming.

If you aren't going to do a 3rd theme park for the foreseeable future, this is probably as good (if not better).

Say, how popular is that Carthay Circle Restaurant?

 

[TP2000]

If you aren't going to do a 3rd theme park for the foreseeable future, this is probably as good (if not better).

Say, how popular is that Carthay Circle Restaurant?

Carthay always seems to be busy anytime I'm in there. The Lounge has a line to get in most weekends, but the dining room upstairs also holds its own. It hasn't had hours cut or menus altered in any meaningful way since 2012, so that tells me the concept works for them. The upcharge menus with reserved seating for World of Color and Frozen Musical are very popular. Carthay Circle is sort of the Club 33 for the 99%, if you will.

(And as someone who once had a cocktail in Club 1901 next door, I can tell you that the Carthay Lounge is the better of those two spaces and experiences, so the club members aren't getting much for their dues at Carthay.)

It's all certainly a better use of space and resources, and adds diversity to the dining scene and overall experience, than if it had stayed as the Walt Disney Story 2.0 theater/exhibit attraction they announced back in 2007. Zzzzz....

That was a pretty bold and gutsy move on TDA's part (Current Senior Vice President Mary Niven specifically, according to online reports) to ditch the museum idea and instead add a high-end upscale restaurant inside the building at the same time the economy was crashing into the Great Recession in 2008-09. That bet paid off for them.

 

[ctrlaltdel]

I think we can see even greater spending in DLR if LA gets the Olympics in 2024. That's the kind of event where Disney will want to put out something huge for all the international and domestic tourists coming to SoCal. The selection of the host city is next year, so they'll have tons of time to plan and budget should LA be chosen (and they have an excellent shot). Exciting times though, 5 years from now they'll be so much new to do.

 

[TP2000]

I think we can see even greater spending in DLR if LA gets the Olympics in 2024. That's the kind of event where Disney will want to put out something huge for all the international and domestic tourists coming to SoCal. The selection of the host city is next year, so they'll have tons of time to plan and budget should LA be chosen (and they have an excellent shot). Exciting times though, 5 years from now they'll be so much new to do.

Uh oh. You probably weren't alive in 1984, were you?

It's one of the most famous stories from the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics; Disneyland was dead. No one showed up. They were too afraid of the crowds and the traffic, so they avoided LA like the plague that summer. True story.

 

[ctrlaltdel]

Uh oh. You probably weren't alive in 1984, were you?

It's one of the most famous stories from the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics; Disneyland was dead. No one showed up. They were too afraid of the crowds and the traffic, so they avoided LA like the plague that summer. True story.

I wasn't alive back in 1984 But yes, I have heard the stories of the surprisng manageability of the LA metro area during the Olympics/ However, the Olympics could be different this time around, with much cheaper airfare from around the country and world, and much expanded global economy leading to more visitors.

 

[Phroobar]

Traffic during the 1984 Olympics was the best ever! The freeways were a ghost town and somehow everyone still got work done. There was a similar effect on the freeways when immigration activist groups told undocumented workers to stay home for the day to protest immigration laws.

 

[Curious Constance]

Guys! I'm getting REALLY excited!

 

[Deleted member 107043]

I wasn't alive back in 1984 But yes, I have heard the stories of the surprisng manageability of the LA metro area during the Olympics/ However, the Olympics could be different this time around, with much cheaper airfare from around the country and world, and much expanded global economy leading to more visitors.

Recent Olympic Games have turned out to be boondoggles for local economies, with several major contenders withdrawing their bids following allegations of corruption within the IOC.

http://qz.com/748894/nobody-wants-to-host-the-olympic-games-anymore-can-you-blame-them/

I wouldn't count on the Los Angeles games driving attendance to Disneyland.

 

[Phroobar]

It might help Universal Studios. Most of the games will be closer to them.

 

[ctrlaltdel]

Recent Olympic Games have turned out to be boondoggles for local economies, with several major contenders withdrawing their bids following allegations of corruption within the IOC.

http://qz.com/748894/nobody-wants-to-host-the-olympic-games-anymore-can-you-blame-them/

I wouldn't count on the Los Angeles games driving attendance to Disneyland.

I'm well aware of the issues with recent Olympics. I would actually say LA is more likely to have a more sustainable games, due to the high number of existing venues that can be used.

Anyways, it was just a thought. Still plenty a stuff coming to DLR regardless

 

[Californian Elitist]

Universal Studios Hollywood would benefit more from the L.A. Olympics than Disneyland.

 

[Dead2009]

Yup. Disney needs to increase capacity in DL (Star Wars Land & possibly Frozen), plus push folks to DCA (Marvel & Mickey perhaps), plus increase infrastructure (new parking), plus add amenities (new hotel and add to Downtown Disney). It’s an exciting time for DLR.

Increase capacity you say? You know what that means!!

Spoiler

CUE ALL THE 3RD GATE THREADS

 

[Phroobar]

Disneyland is like the TARDIS. It's bigger on the inside.

 

[brb1006]

Ok. Figured out what LPS since no one seems to understand what it does.

The patented system works by directional data being relayed from a master control computer directly to each individual honey pot car through a complicated matrix embedded within the actual floor tiles. Every few seconds, the master computer generates a random path and ‘steers’ the honey pot in real-time, so as the cars roll through the ride the vehicles are, in fact, being told where to go. Because this system is in real-time, they can maneuver accordingly in just fractions of a second. This also allows for spontaneous yet synchronized ‘honey pot choreography’ with groups of honey pots (as many as 8 in a single show scene) appearing to ‘dance’ with the others, often timed with ‘beats’ in the music. Due to limitless variations possible, each journey through the attraction is unique.

To see what the LSP system is like. Here's an example from Tokyo Disneyland