Ok, I REALLY do hate Soarin' (No I really do)

[dopey]

And Soarin' hates you, Jerm.

Just kidding.

To each his own. I think everybody who loves Disney can name some ride or attraction that they hate. Or at least don't like as much as everything else.

But I do think -- and this isn't an attack -- that it's unfair to expect it to be like a short film. It's an attraction. You can't go to the new Mexico ride and complain that you're not watching the whole "Three Caballeros" movie. I think of it more as a commercial for California tourism.

While it may not fit in its WDW location, that's not a big deal for me. Must there be thematic purity at every turn? I'm sure you could go around the parks and find tons of examples of compromised theming.

I've never been on the "Back to the Future" ride, so Soarin' was totally unique to me. I loved it. But maybe that's because so many other DCA rides and attractions were lame.

 

[cloudboy]

I have to say that it does sound to me like it's a movie. For all the hype over it, from what everyone has described, it's just like some of the other IMax movies I have seen, the only difference here being you are suspended. I don't see what the hype is. On the other hand, I also can see where this could be a great thing - you are simply watching an surround screen movie just like in France and China and even in Imagination (no reason you can't do three D glasses!). So there is quite a bit of potential here.

Ironically, I can't ride it because I have a big problem with heights now. And it's just like a ski lift, which I used to love and now can't even go near!

 

[Montyboy]

“It doesn’t fit in EPCOT”; “I can see the edge of the screen.”; “It gets boring after the forth time.”

I think I’ll just calk this entire post up to recreational ranting… Try again with a real critique.

 

[greg416]

Soarin's wait time is completely manufactured you can be in the fast pass line and they put you in a different ride room then the regular line .When I went in march there was 10 people(I was one of them) riding in the fast pass ride room everyone in the front row and there was a 90 min wait for the regular line. So when I asked the cm they said they use a different ride room for the fastpass.If you ask me this totally unfair to everyone else and it just makes the ride seem more popular than it is.

 

[MiceysBestPal]

Soarin's wait time is completely manufactured you can be in the fast pass line and they put you in a different ride room then the regular line .When I went in march there was 10 people(I was one of them) riding in the fast pass ride room everyone in the front row and there was a 90 min wait for the regular line. So when I asked the cm they said they use a different ride room for the fastpass.If you ask me this totally unfair to everyone else and it just makes the ride seem more popular than it is.

That's not how it generally works.

Anything is possible to find happening on a particular day, but under normal conditions, they fill both theaters with a combination of guests from the standby and the FastPass lines.

What would be the reason to "manufacture" a wait time?
They certainly don't need to make an attraction SEEM more popular.

They don't make any extra money by keeping guests in a queue longer.

 

[diddy_mouse]

Totally respect your opinion! :wave:

I enjoyed Soarin.' Will I ride it again? Certainly. Will I plan my entire day around it? Nope.

I found the ride to be a great experience (especially the lady in the queue who brought her own pizza and drink on board :ROFLOL: ) and look forward to hitting it at some point on our next trip. But it won't kill my whole trip if I miss it and I certainly won't spend more than 30 min. in line for it. I'd rather kill time with a Fastpass and visit other pavillions and such.

 

[jmvd20]

“It doesn’t fit in EPCOT”; “I can see the edge of the screen.”; “It gets boring after the forth time.”

I think I’ll just calk this entire post up to recreational ranting… Try again with a real critique.

I think your statement fits your own post much better than it does the OP.

 

[PintoColvig]

I saw this thread http://forums.wdwmagic.com/showthread.php?t=166881All film attractions have a shelf life of X amount of years before something needs to happen with it, think of all Circle-Vision/simulators/old E.P.C.O.T. Center attractions (any of which I would wait for over Soarin').

It's your opinion, of course, but I think you're exaggerating a bit here. I can understand wanting to wait for an old Epcot Center attraction over Soarin' but a Circle-Vision movie? Apparently, most people do not think of Soarin' as you do. I have never have seen or heard of a 3-hour wait for "O, Canada" like I saw back in December. Just MY opinion, of course.

I was somewhat dissapointed at the fact that not only they use DCA's and yet not make a new one for EPCOT. But the one thing that this attraction lacked..TRANSITIONS!!! For gosh sakes we have a beautiful view of the golden gate bridge and then JUMP CUT to a river then JUMP CUT to the orange field then say it with me JUMP CUT...They could have done much better on flying through clouds to the next scene.

IMO, the only transition that would work with the song is a jump cut. The transitions in the song are fast and that necessitates a fast transition on the screen.


Obviously, I like Soarin'. It's an innovative ride system using film and has broad appeal. Admittedly, I feel that the soundtrack is the most underrated soundtrack in all of WDW and that the ride wouldn't be half as good without it. I'm not thrilled by Soarin's location. I like the idea of it having its own pavillion between Seas and Land. Replacing WoL would have been a better idea as well. Nevertheless, it adds a major E-ticket to FW West which has been needed since the opening of the park.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Disney is pants Universal is soo much better. FACT! Imean whats the fuss about gadgys in funny suits anyway. The castle is fibreglass, the boats run on rails, and Splash doesnt even use real logs!


if you are going to try and be controversial at least put a bit of effort in.

 

[Glasgow]

I like the ride okay but I am most disappointed with the queue. They could at least give out some pretzels or sell some $5 headphones.

 

[Matpez]

As I had posted in the "other" thread...

I won't use the word hate... but, you are watching a movie!
I wouldn't wait 20 minutes for Soarin'.
Six Flags (yep, six flags) had a "flying" in a jet simulator in the 90's. Guess what, it was moving seats in front of a giant screen.
At least PhilharMagic is in 3D and entertaining.
(Remember, IMHO.) :wave:

Recently I was waiting at bag check to enter Epcot and the security guard asked a kid near me in line what he had done (attractions) and when the kid didn't say Soarin', the guard said "Oh, what about Soarin'? Thas the best ride at Disney World". When the kid failed to respond, I turned to him and said "Apparently he has never been on Tower of Terror, Expedition Everest, Mission:Space or Test track, huh?" The kid smiled and told me his favorite ride was RocknRollercoaster.

 

[bugsbunny]

There is no other ride like it. When I first rode it at DCA years ago, I had to completely agree with that original arguement then of WHY this ride was so good. There was no pre-show or even any weinies in the queue area. You just got in line and then rode it. Yet every person that got off would say WOW!

It's a thrilling ride and the immersement into your senses is probably what does it, I guess.

But for those that say the ride stinks or don't see its ability to draw a crowd, I say PLEASE explain why the ride wait is 90 minutes? Also please explain why you go for a fast pass at 11AM and it says come back at 530PM!

It has that X factor that can't be exlained. The overwhelming majority of people love it regardless of the fact it has a California theme to it. 90% of the people riding it won't have the Disney Freak POV that people have here where you will point out that the theme of the movie doesn't match the state that is hosting it.

Nobody (besides the people in this forum :animwink: :animwink: ) is waking into the Land and saying, "I sure hope they have some nice Florida themed attactions here or I'm going to be real dissapointed!!" :lol:

 

[stitchtastic]

We went to WDW in 2005, every time we went to EPCOT the wait for Soarin' was 2hrs+ and all fastpasses gone. No way were we going to wait 2 hrs. Finally got a fastpass late morning for 5PM(I think), the park was really busy that day, so we hopped to another park and went back later. It was a hassle as everywhere was really busy that day. But I amm so glad we did make the effort - we all thought is was fabulous. Yes its a simple ride and and you can see flaws- but if you look hard enough they're everywhere (compare to testtrack that is really just a fastcar that breaks down alot). Our biggest regret was that we did'nt get to do it again. This year we will hit the park for EEMH and make sure we do it at least twice.

 

[flynnibus]

IThe film has no fades, no transitions between scenes [...]

All film attractions have a shelf life of X amount of years before something needs to happen with it [...]

They shoe horned it into where ever they could because it went over so well in DCA and they wanted to hop on the bandwagon. Yes I am sure someone could put up some type of argument as to how it fits, but it really doesn't. [...]

but I do not see the draw in riding it more then 2 or 3 times and I would never wait more then 15 maybe 30 (with a first time rider) for it. I know I, as with most of you, are not normal Disney/theme park fans but still I will say it I hate Sorin'!

I don't disagree with what you are saying... except on the transitions.. the scenery is supposed to 'pop' and strike awe in you.. using fades would take away from that.

Yes it doesn't fit in the land really
Yes the queue is slow..
Yes film based stuff usually gets old after the 2 or 3rd time..

Yet, Soarin for some reason seems to buck all the normal 'laws'. People LOVE it. It's the longest wait in the park, yet people will wait without second guessing. People want to goto EPCOT JUST to ride Soarin... people ride it over and over.

So yes while things don't seem to add up .. somehow Soarin is 1+1 = 4 for most people.

 

[flynnibus]

Soarin's wait time is completely manufactured you can be in the fast pass line and they put you in a different ride room then the regular line .When I went in march there was 10 people(I was one of them) riding in the fast pass ride room everyone in the front row and there was a 90 min wait for the regular line. So when I asked the cm they said they use a different ride room for the fastpass.If you ask me this totally unfair to everyone else and it just makes the ride seem more popular than it is.

This is mainly due to the refurb in the queues that was going on at the time. They had FP people entering through the exit and going to concourse 1, while everyone else was going to C2.

Remember walking up the hallways with tape on the floor 'directing' traffic? That's not normal

 

[brandon8419]

My only complaint about Soarin' is the queue. There is no theming to it and of all the lines, it feels like that one moves the slowest. Other than that, the ride itself is pretty great. I know when I first got to ride it I was thrilled when you were lifted into the air (it was a surprise to me )

 

[summergirl32]

My family loves Soarin. I think the greatest appeal is that guests of all ages can enjoy the ride with the exception of infants and small toddlers. It is relaxing and the scenery is beautiful. For us, we don't need big thrills and super technology to make the attraction great. I do prefer the center section top row, you get the best experience from these seats. With all this said, I would not wait more that 30 minutes to ride.

 

[Xadllas]

I hate Soarin because it replaced my most beloved Disney Attraction: Food Rocks, and that it ruined the look of The Land.

 

[Iakona]

remember Disney isn't just for nuts like us who repeatedly go :wave:

I remember reading a statistic that WDW figures on the average guest visiting 1x every 7 years. We are not the average guests and are far outnumbered by them. If the parks were built/designed for people that visited every year or multiple times a year they would be changing rides constantly.

Soarin's wait time is completely manufactured you can be in the fast pass line and they put you in a different ride room then the regular line .When I went in march there was 10 people(I was one of them) riding in the fast pass ride room everyone in the front row and there was a 90 min wait for the regular line. So when I asked the cm they said they use a different ride room for the fastpass.If you ask me this totally unfair to everyone else and it just makes the ride seem more popular than it is.

Sorry, this is just incorrect. I have been on Soarin in both Epcot and DCA and the fast pass line merges with the standby line. As stated, you most likely experienced the refurb version of the lines.

There is no other ride like it. When I first rode it at DCA years ago, I had to completely agree with that original arguement then of WHY this ride was so good. There was no pre-show or even any weinies in the queue area. You just got in line and then rode it. Yet every person that got off would say WOW!

It's a thrilling ride and the immersement into your senses is probably what does it, I guess.

But for those that say the ride stinks or don't see its ability to draw a crowd, I say PLEASE explain why the ride wait is 90 minutes? Also please explain why you go for a fast pass at 11AM and it says come back at 530PM!

It has that X factor that can't be exlained. The overwhelming majority of people love it regardless of the fact it has a California theme to it. 90% of the people riding it won't have the Disney Freak POV that people have here where you will point out that the theme of the movie doesn't match the state that is hosting it.

Nobody (besides the people in this forum :animwink: :animwink: ) is waking into the Land and saying, "I sure hope they have some nice Florida themed attactions here or I'm going to be real dissapointed!!" :lol:

No need for them to explain why people love it, they just don't. It definitely has the X factor and I think part of that is due to rides like MS, EE, RnR, TT being more of the thrill ride genre Soarin falls into the "everyone in the family can enjoy" category (except those that have a fear of heights).

Hopefully WDW will have their own film soon.

I have to say though that the que is less imaginative than I had expected. Although I like the flat screens with the info. Fits the educational aspect I have always loved about Epcot.

 

[brandon8419]

yes, the educational part is always good, plus it is indoors which can be a nice diversion from the heat. i just wish they could've done some more theming i guess. have some tv screens or something to keep you entertained while you waited