Norway Pavilion Frozen construction - Frozen Ever After ride

[PhotoDave219]

Have you ever seen meet and greets with 5 hour waits on a daily basis? I hadn't until Frozen in Norway.

Never.

The popularity is difficult to wrap your head around.

 

[WDW1974]

Have you ever seen meet and greets with 5 hour waits on a daily basis? I hadn't until Frozen in Norway.

Have to respond to this as I just saw it pop ... Steve, I'd say that anyone who waits five hours for anything that isn't a necessity of life (like food, water, medicine, a roof over their head) is a bit crazy to say the least.

To spend five hours waiting to meet two 22-year-old O-Town college girls playing dress-up ...well, that is full on insane.

 

[Goofyernmost]

Have you ever seen meet and greets with 5 hour waits on a daily basis? I hadn't until Frozen in Norway.

That's only because the Guests are brain dead. Anyone foolish enough to stand in a line for that long to do anything needs to be fitted with a tight fitting jacket and placed in a heavily padded room.

 

[SJN1279]

I guess we will see next May. I'm looking forward to the ride, hoping I can get on it without a killer wait.

 

[FettFan]

Scott from IL on June 9th, 2015 at 5:27 pm
I can’t believe how much hate this ride is getting. It’s Frozen! Everyone loves Frozen!
So what if it’s not based on a real country. Why is that a first? Like Morocco is a real country. It was just made up so that Mo’Rockin had a place to play!
So what if there will seemingly not be much of Norway left in the pavilion? Princesses are real, I saw that one was just born in London, and that’s Europe, and all of Europe is the same thing anyway!
So what if the story of this attraction seems to not be a real story, and instead just a ride past our favorite characters? Who rides rides for stories anyway? If I want a story, I’ll turn on Reading Rainbow!
So what if an expansion pad is being turned into a giant meet and greet? Meet and Greets are just the interactive cosplay attraction of the future, allowing fans to interact with franchise characters and build their bond with the brands they love!
Let it Go all you h8ters, thaw your Frozen Heart! For the First Time In Forever, Disney is tearing down an existing attraction to build a new one. Maelstrom was always a bit of a Fixer Upper anyway. This place is going to be a madhouse, and who doesn’t Wanna Build a Snowman In Summer? Look deep inside think about the new ride and realize that Reindeers are better than People. I for one cannot wait for this attraction to finish and I can prove that Love is an Open Door to the new Frozen Ever After ride!

That awkward moment when the satirist is so good that his words blend perfectly with those he's satirizing.

That's Machiavelli-level satire right there.

 

[hopemax]

Have you ever seen meet and greets with 5 hour waits on a daily basis? I hadn't until Frozen in Norway.

I've wondered with all this Frozen M&G nonsense....if Mickey Mouse only had ONE M&G on the entire WDW property, how long would that line be?

 

[Communicore]

I hope they build a new entrance at the back of Norway.

 

[Magicart87]

Kyle on June 9th, 2015 at 5:51 pm
Sigh… I’ve gotten over the whole Frozen in WS thing, but I’m never going to be able to ride this work of art because of the capacity issue. 900 per hour? Really? Pirates has 3200 per hour and has 30-45 minute waits, and this is Frozen. FP+ won’t work either, because I don’t plan to stay up till midnight to get it, supposing I do pay the outrageous prices for a Disney hotel room. Oh well…

 

[FettFan]

Maybe they are going to change the song to Let it Flow.

 

[Communicore]

Just curious. When did you visit Epcot as a child? I don't need the exact years, ballpark mostly.

I ask this because it seems completely different than the experiences I had with Epcot as a child. Going by the age in your profile, you were born right around the height of EPCOT Center, the decline started really coming by the early 90s.

Maybe that is the difference. Maybe it's because I was able to experience it in my childhood, when it really meant something other than being "just a theme park".

Yes, that is definitely correct. We can never bring back the EPCOT Center from the 80's. Epcot theme park is here to stay.

 

[Hakunamatata]

 

[ThemeParkJunkee]

Spirited Frozen Ever After Musings:

First, let's talk about the Big Picture stuff, the stuff you don't know and that a good 14% won't believe on principle and another four percent simply because it is coming from moi.

I and at LEAST three other members of this forum (two who post regularly, one who lurks) have been in contact with Ben Fritz of the Wall Street Journal about our concerns and issues with what is and isn't being reported from Shanghai regarding Disney's developments in the Chinese Mainland. He has been very professional. He has taken as much information as he could possibly gather. He has said all the right things. ...

And then he went directly to Disney in Burbank, likely to the Zenia Mucha level, brought the issues up, suggested that he might be interested in writing about them and ... and ... then he was offered a Frozen Ever After exclusive (yes, Disney leaked the story before it appeared on their own blog). Now, I'm sure the 'anti-reality' crowd will point out that this was coincidental and can easily be explained away. And that Disney, which is so secretive it won't release any details at all on what is being built in Shanghai Disneyland, only the most important P&R development of the century, or what's going to be in Pandora ... or what the company will be building based on Star Wars on both coasts or Marvel in Anaheim or pretty much anything else anywhere somehow saw the need to DESCRIBE THE ENTIRE RIDE (every scene) to the Wall Street Freaking Journal.

(BTW, the show by show scene component is STILL an exclusive to the WSJ as Disney hasn't put it on its own Blog.)

When has that ever happened? Seriously? When has Disney given the WSJ of all organizations (or any for that matter) a blow by blow complete description of a new attraction? And you really think your other ''I don't hate Iger, so I see this clearly unlike the Spirit'' theory holds enough water to put into a thimble? Don't waste your breath.

To my friends who have been in contact with Big Tool Ben, be grateful that you helped him get an exclusive after all. And likely a free Disney vacation for him and his family ...maybe a future one-on-one with Bob before Star Wars opens in December too. No, I never said you wouldn't get results. You did! How does it make you feel?

Like I've said umpteenth times, that's what journalism is in the 21st century. Regardless of who signs his paychecks, Ben Fritz works for The Walt Disney Company.

Now, I read all of those funny comments (except one or two by some crazy Phil character) on Cupcake's Disney Parks Blog. No, I don't think they left an intern in charge. I think they flat out let the comments in to sorta shut up the weak folks on the ropes about whether Disney plays dirty (filthy would be more like it). The thinking goes ''See, Disney is letting all these EPCOT fanbois stuck in the 80s say whatever they want. They don't censor anything there anymore than Bob had his wife censor that Redstone Disney-Hater in the HuffPo.''

Yes, I REALLY believe that. I get how these companies operate, while the naivete of some here is astounding.

What else can be said? I guess I could rip the ride for being exactly what I expected, exactly what I told you it would be -- a cheap overlay with LET IT GO played loudly over and over. But why? It will drastically cut the waits for Soarin come next year. It will move even more crap merchandise.

I also can't help but feel that certain events ... well, let's just say that school is out for summer and it shows as much as a melting snowman and a planted story growing in clickcounts (ones that the WSJ would never get) as the night goes on.

***Felt like this belongs here, but I'm not discussing it here. Feel free to drop into the Spirited Realm to discuss if you wish. Otherwise, you just got part of the real story behind the story.***

Thank you Spirit. It was very curious that the WSJ "broke" this story and in such detail. I was curious as to whether this information was "sitting on a back burner" and was the reason for nonexistent coverage of Shanghai. It never occurred to me that this was a negotiating chip on the part of TWDC for further suppression of the Shanghai story. It does make complete sense given the way the financial media functions.

 

[sshindel]

That awkward moment when the satirist is so good that his words blend perfectly with those he's satirizing.

That's Machiavelli-level satire right there.

Aww shucks. You make me blush.

 

[prfctlyximprct]

Aww shucks. You make me blush.

You won the internet today.

 

[hopemax]

Kyle on June 9th, 2015 at 5:51 pm
Sigh… I’ve gotten over the whole Frozen in WS thing, but I’m never going to be able to ride this work of art because of the capacity issue. 900 per hour? Really? Pirates has 3200 per hour and has 30-45 minute waits, and this is Frozen. FP+ won’t work either, because I don’t plan to stay up till midnight to get it, supposing I do pay the outrageous prices for a Disney hotel room. Oh well…

That got through...now I'm upset. I posted a comment that didn't get posted

"What a wonderful idea to use Disney's most successful IP in years, on a ride that has capacity similar to Peter Pan. And you thought the waits and Fastpass availability at 7DMT were bad."

Is it because I used the word bad? I started it with "what a wonderful idea."

 

[Mike S]

One last comparison to really drive the point home.

Kongfrontation closure: September 8th, 2002
Revenge of the Mummy opening: May 21, 2004
Time: 1 year, 8 months, and 13 days (used some website to calculate)

And here's the Frostrom timeline from my other post:

Maelstrom closure: October 5th, 2014
Frostrom opening: Possibly May 1st, 2016 based on recent info
Time: 1 year, 6 months, 26 days (thanks again Siri)

Remember that RotM was built in Universal's "dark times" and while a replacement was pretty much a brand new ride.

 

[Fox&Hound]

For those who were afraid that Norway would become "Welcome to Arrendale" it's comforting to see that the M&G will stay true to the surrounding architecture and will have a Norwegian influence to it.

I know people will hate me, but I'm excited for this ride. I know it will be a capacity issue but I also understand that not every cartoon can fit in Fantasyland. From a business standpoint, I get it....Hope they do it well and that it can be a fun addition to World Showcase.

 

[FettFan]

I know it will be a capacity issue but I also understand that not every cartoon can fit in Fantasyland.

It can if they'd kill the Tomorrowland Speedway and free up that valuable real estate.

 

[unkadug]

It can if they'd kill the Tomorrowland Speedway and free up that valuable real estate.

But MK is more than just Fantasyland.

 

[rioriz]

I have a question for @Lee @marni1971 @WDW1974

Was the Meet and Greet planned before or after the ride?

I'm still trying to wrap around in my head if the brass thought that would eat up some of the capacity from the ride.

It just seems like the idiotic way of thinking we've become used to...