Opinion: Toy Story Land's grand opening will be a disaster

[MisterPenguin]

NOw I also have not been to all the other rides around the world. but I've seen you compare all the rides to letter grades "D" and so forth and wonder how you come up with these scales.

Apparently, within Disney they still use the designations, but, they're a bit hazy to define. Tickets were worth their designated price. In 1960 A through E were, in cents; 10, 25, 35, 45, 50. In 1970, they were 10, 25, 40, 70, 85. When MK opened in 1971, they were 10, 25, 50, 75, 90.

This is a list of rides and their Ticket Level designation over time...

I was looking at images of old tickets on the internet and thought to compile... a chart! Some of the rides changed level over times, some changed several times. A few seems to me were downgraded simply because they became older and were outshone by new attractions. One seemed to jump up the scales simply because of how low the ride's capacity was and they wanted to limit guests. The online record is incomplete year-to-year, but I believe I have enough data. The list indicates where the ride started and changes in tiers over time. I started the year after the E-Ticket was first introduced. I ignored one-year changes in level...

A

• Main Street Vehicles
• 20,000 Leagues Exhibit
• Sleeping Beauty Castle walk-thru
• Carrousel

B > A

• Main Street Cinema

B

• Art of Animation Exhibit
• Casey Jr. Circus Train
• Motor Boat Cruise

B > C > B

• Fantasyland Theater

B > C > D

• Astro-Jet / Star Jets

C > B

• Mad Tea Party
• Dumbo Flying Elephant
• Shooting Gallery

C > B > C > B

• Mike Fink Keel Boats
• Swiss Family Tree House

C

• Autopia/Speedway
• Adventure Through Inner Space
• Conestoga Wagons

C > D > C

• Canoes

C > D

• Rocket to the Moon/Mission to Mars

D > C > B

• Alice in Wonderland

D > C

• Peter Pan Flight
• Snow White’s Adventures
• Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride

D

• Skyway
• People Mover
• Storybook Land Canals
• Steamboat
• Sailing Ship Columbia
• Tom Sawyer Island Rafts

E > C

• Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln

E > D > C

• Steam Train

E > D

• Mickey Mouse Review
• Enchanted Tiki Room

E > D > E > D

• Mine Train (Rainbow Ridge/Nature’s Wonderland)

E

• Monorail
• Submarine Voyage
• 20,000 Leagues
• Space Mountain
• Flying Saucers
• Matterhorn Bobsleds
• It’s a Small World
• Pack Mule
• Big Thunder Mt. Railroad
• Haunted Mansion
• Pirates of the Caribbean
• Country Bear Jamboree
• Hall of Presidents
• Jungle Cruise

 

[eliza61nyc]

Apparently, within Disney they still use the designations, but, they're a bit hazy to define. Tickets were worth their designated price. In 1960 A through E were, in cents; 10, 25, 35, 45, 50. In 1970, they were 10, 25, 40, 70, 85. When MK opened in 1971, they were 10, 25, 50, 75, 90.

This is a list of rides and their Ticket Level designation over time...

The labels "C", "D" and "E" are short for "C ticket" , "D ticket" and "E ticket". Certainly Disneyland and I believe Magic Kingdom too, right? required guests back in the day to buy tickets to experience the attractions. C tickets were for lesser attractions like say a Toad Wild ride(did I get that right? Anyone? Anyone!) whereas E tickets were for the headlining and super ambitious attractions like a Matterhorn and Pirates

When we speak E ticket we are effectively speaking Disney latin----a dead language......used primarily by geeks and self proclaimed efficinados

Toy Story Mania is a "D"
Tower of Terror is an "E"

sweet lord, you guys are holding onto a 50 year old matrix??? most of those rides are gone. lol, reminds me of my dad and his eternal lament that the Dodgers were better when they were in Brooklyn.

there is absolutely no way Disney can ever win up against those hazy halcyon days of "tickets".

 

[Goofyernmost]

The labels "C", "D" and "E" are short for "C ticket" , "D ticket" and "E ticket". Certainly Disneyland and I believe Magic Kingdom too, right? required guests back in the day to buy tickets to experience the attractions. C tickets were for lesser attractions like say a Toad Wild ride(did I get that right? Anyone? Anyone!) whereas E tickets were for the headlining and super ambitious attractions like a Matterhorn and Pirates

When we speak E ticket we are effectively speaking Disney latin----a dead language......used primarily by geeks and self proclaimed efficinados

Toy Story Mania is a "D"
Tower of Terror is an "E"

You got it right, but, it has been taken to the ends of the earth and back by people that have no idea how those classifications were determined. They think it was determined by the "quality" of the ride (based of course on their judgment), but, if you look at the history of it, it was based more on popularity or what they considered to be the most popular. Therefore, the more popular the ride the more they basically charged for it. They did that by making the book of tickets and the least number of tickets in the ticket books were the ones that they thought were going to be rides that people wanted to go to. So "E" ticket rides were given that designation. Once upon a time Small World was an "E", the Enchanted Tiki Room, CoP was an "E" as well. Today's people that feel they have a handle on the good rides would never have made them "E's" because they no longer are popular like they were before. They used that method to sell more ticket books because the Guests would buy additional books to get to go to the most popular ones. They would inevitably go home with ticket books with a lot "c" and "d" tickets still in them.

So armed with that lack of knowledge about how logically it was planned have taken on their own system of rating a ride. Disney may, internally still use that "letter" method, but, you can be sure it is based on what they consider to be a big draw and not whether or not the, so called, aficionados, agree to its quality.

 

[MrConbon]

I have to confess that I am a little concerned about the lowered standards for a todays "land" at WDI and TDO. Call me a little too demanding and spoiled but since when do 2 attractions define a new "land" (TSM doesn't count it was already there). And if you take a look at the ride quality it gets even worth. Pandora: ONE E-Ticket (Is FoP a real E-Ticket? I never did it) and a quite unelaborate river ride. Toy Story Land: A D-ticket rollercoaster and a cheap carnival type ride with some Disney decoration. That's an entire new land? Or am I spoiled?

Frontierland has two rides. Splash and Big Thunder. Liberty Square has only Haunted Mansion. Adverturland has Jungle Cruise and Pirates (magic carpets is garbage and shouldn’t count). Two big rides per land is pretty standard.

 

[lawdogNOLA]

Is it going to be a disaster? To paraphrase a resident of the Hall of Presidents, define what do you mean by "disaster"? Is it going to be hot and overcrowded? Yes, of course. I still remember 10 years ago, getting into a soft opening for TSMM. It was our last day, and we waited hours in line, and loved the ride. The theming and Mr. Potato Head (bless you, Don Rickles) helped pass the time, it was cool knowing you were being a guinea pig before an official opening, plus our 6-year old loved everything Toy Story. We also got to ride it twice: Half the screens weren't working (mine did, my wife's was on a glitchy one), so we got to immediately ride it again, this time with everyone's screens working.

I have no problem with this becoming a part of a new land. As has been pointed out, a lot of lands only have 2 or so rides to start out. It is fair, however, to also note that many other lands have other entertainments to take up slack. Adventure Land might have only 2 major rides (great ones!), but it also has a minor one. In no way are the flying carpets the best thing since sliced bread, but getting on one at night, with the feel of the air going past is a nice cooldown, and a decent view. Adventure Land also has the Treehouse and the Tiki Birds, plus pirate shows.

I think this is a solid concept that Disney has gone with for a Toy Story Land. To me the theming doesn't look cheap, it looks like Toy Story. Sure, I wish there was more, and someday there might be: A Toy Story dark ride has all sorts of possibilities, as does a stage show. And everyone who says they can't understand how Disney could make a Toy Story Land without a kid play area, well, count me in that number.

But a disaster? Almost ten years have passed and I can still remember our 6-year old grinning as we left (his screen didn't glitch either). We'd waited almost 3 hours, had to deal with a glitch, but we'd ridden it, and we left, far later than planned, on the start of our drive back home with the kid falling asleep in the car watching Toy Story on the portable DVD player. Disaster? Not for us.

 

[DreamalittleDisney]

I agree with this, but more in the sense that I do not understand why someone would spend SO MUCH MONEY on a trip to WDW before a child turns say, 6. Chances are the kid probably won't remember this (we lose most of our memories at 7, and cannot actually form memories until we are about 3 years old) so why not just wait until your child is old enough to remember & old enough to not need babying?

I took my son at 3.5 (he is a fairly tall kid) but the point wasn't all the rides ideas the experiences and his reaction at them.

We enjoyed watching this more than the rides.. his face meeting mickey with no question in his head that that was MICKEY MOUSE was magical .. i love rollercoasters but nothing anyone builds will beat that moment of magic

We are going this October he will be 5 and 9months and is interested in different things this trip - we're from the UK so each trip will be around every 2 years and each time I'll get a different experience with him!

 

[Disone]

Isn't the Goofy Rollercoaster in MK completely visible?

Please! There's no room for facts here.

I think the one post I agree with the most is the one that compares the opening of Toy Story Land to The Last Jedi.

There's going to be a lot of hate but in the end it's going to be just fine.

 

[DarthVader]

Given how Pandora's opening was (And is) such a success, Toy Story land is going to be an unmitigated success

Just look at Pandora, its tiny, has one major ride (that is absolutely awesome), and one other ride that it has to work at to be mediorce. Yet that medicore ride has 2 hour wait times.

From what I've seen on released (or leaked) photos, Toy Story is going to be a huge success

 

[Willmark]

Not that I don’t disagree but consider: Throw a starving man a cracker and cheese and he’ll think it’s surf and turf.

 

[Damon7777]

Please! There's no room for facts here.

What's with the triumphant sarcasm?

You won nothing but acknowledgement that Barstormer and Primeval are carnival grade while totally missing the overall point that rides should not be created anywhere near that level.

 

[NickMaio]

I agree with this, but more in the sense that I do not understand why someone would spend SO MUCH MONEY on a trip to WDW before a child turns say, 6. Chances are the kid probably won't remember this (we lose most of our memories at 7, and cannot actually form memories until we are about 3 years old) so why not just wait until your child is old enough to remember & old enough to not need babying?

Life is not just about memories but EXPERIENCES. This is why many parents, including myself, choose to take their little loved ones to WDW. We want them to experience something special together.

 

[celluloid]

I agree with this, but more in the sense that I do not understand why someone would spend SO MUCH MONEY on a trip to WDW before a child turns say, 6. Chances are the kid probably won't remember this (we lose most of our memories at 7, and cannot actually form memories until we are about 3 years old) so why not just wait until your child is old enough to remember & old enough to not need babying?

Because to some that is a different way of thinking. We take my son who is 3. He may not remember it. But we will. We enjoy the smiles and reactions. My kid is 3 and 40 inches tall. He rides everything he is tall enough for.

 

[Disone]

What's with the triumphant sarcasm?

You won nothing but acknowledgement that Barstormer and Primeval are carnival grade while totally missing the overall point that rides should not be created anywhere near that level.

I wasn't trying to " win" anything at all. The original post clearly stated it's Walt Disney World's, not Hollywood Studios, 1st coaster where you could see the track. Clearly that's not the case and that's all the sarcasm was directed at. Nothing more nothing less. Try not to take this so seriously. It was just a little fun.

 

[larryz]

I wish I had a time machine so I could go back and check out how things felt in the 80s. Maybe I would see things similarly to everyone else.

Trust me, you're better off not knowing how good it used to be.

 

[durangojim]

My opinion is that parents shouldn't be taking there kids to parks that do fall under height restrictions. 6 years old is the best time.

Nope.

 

[larryz]

Given how Pandora's opening was (And is) such a success, Toy Story land is going to be an unmitigated success

Just look at Pandora, its tiny, has one major ride (that is absolutely awesome), and one other ride that it has to work at to be mediorce. Yet that medicore ride has 2 hour wait times.

From what I've seen on released (or leaked) photos, Toy Story is going to be a huge success

'Zackly. Ever play Roller Coaster Tycoon, build a ride, and delight at the peeps lining up to ride it?

That's what's going on here. Yet more proof that WDW is being managed by a bunch of suits playing the WDW version of RCT IV.

 

[Goofyernmost]

Trust me, you're better off not knowing how good it used to be.

I hate always disagreeing with you, but, you keep saying things like that. Go back and look at the old Disneyland, look at the old Magic Kingdom. I mean really look at it and tell me what part of that was better then what we currently have? You will be hard pressed. The old, nostalgic image comes from first experiences with a Disney theme park which easily beat every other amusement park experience that any of us have witnessed. But, anything beyond primitive was rare. The parks are so much more attractive and exciting, in reality, then they were, in reality, back then. We have fond memories of our first visits whether we were adults at the time or like most with those heavy duty wonderful memories of a child. Childhood memories have never been classified as history, just exaggerated memories of young impressionable minds. There were flaws that we were all to busy looking at the razzle dazzel to even notice. It was good, but, it was hardly the quality, number and technology of the newer attractions.

I don't in anyway, justify them letting the parks go, basically untouched, all those years, but, even without that attention, it is so much more of a visual experience now then it was then. Other problems like crowds, artificial wait times due to Fast Pass, cost of admission, cost for food, queue lines for character meet and greets, Fast Pass itself, cut backs on entertainment and a few other things are lacking compared to a few years back. But, used to be better then now... hardly.

 

[DisneyDoctor]

Trust me, you're better off not knowing how good it used to be.

I suppose my ignorance is bliss then.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

I agree with this, but more in the sense that I do not understand why someone would spend SO MUCH MONEY on a trip to WDW before a child turns say, 6. Chances are the kid probably won't remember this (we lose most of our memories at 7, and cannot actually form memories until we are about 3 years old) so why not just wait until your child is old enough to remember & old enough to not need babying?

It's not that expensive when they're that young. They fly for free, barely eat anything, and don't require park admission.

Now, if you're only going to take a kid once or twice in their lives, definitely wait for a more ideal age. But if you plan on being a regular visitor, Disney with a baby is fantastic. My three year old has been six times and she's had a blast every single time. She doesn't remember the first few trips, but there's undeniable excitement in her eyes from the colors, sounds, and smells even in those earliest photographs.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

I don't think anyone mention this because everyone was looking at the coaster, but I think the lights are flashing inside Alien Saucer Swirl.