People Waiting at WDW for Harry Potter?!

Next Big Thing

Next Big Thing

Well-Known Member
steamboatpilary said:
sorry evil genius, i'm not trying to pick on you, but your comment has been iterated by others too, and i finally decided to reply.

I've been reading the pages and pages of these posts (i'm sick in bed :eek: So i've time to spare) and what i fail to understand is how people seem to be unavailable to the notion that liking both universal properties and disney properties is possible. My whole family is nuts for disney but we appreciate the complete difference that ioa offers us. Is that wrong? I think not. Is it disloyal? No way!

As for everyone wondering about whether or not the wwohp and the hp series will 'transcend time/generations', come on! The hp series is about good vs evil. That theme has been around since mankind began and continues to intrigue...

We'll be at wdw for almost 2 weeks this august.. One of those days will be spent at ioa/wwohp, and i can't wait.
Click to expand...
completely agree!
 
Evil Genius

Evil Genius

Well-Known Member
SteamboatPilary said:
Sorry Evil Genius, I'm not trying to pick on you, but your comment has been iterated by others too, and I finally decided to reply.

I've been reading the pages and pages of these posts (I'm sick in bed :eek: so I've time to spare) and what I fail to understand is how people seem to be unavailable to the notion that liking both Universal properties AND Disney properties is POSSIBLE. My whole family is nuts for Disney but we appreciate the complete difference that IOA offers us. Is that wrong? I think not. Is it disloyal? No way!

As for everyone wondering about whether or not the WWOHP and the HP series will 'transcend time/generations', come on! The HP series is about Good vs Evil. That theme has been around since mankind began and continues to intrigue...

We'll be at WDW for almost 2 weeks this August.. One of those days will be spent at IOA/WWOHP, and I can't wait.
Click to expand...


I can't speak for anyone else, but I don't think in any of my post I ever stated that you couldn't be a fan of both parks. In fact, I've said multiple times I wish Universal success!

What I have said though is that you still cannot classify Universal and IOA as a "desintation" vacation the way WDW is and I doubt you will be able to in the near future.

Also, no matter how people want to state the opposite opinion...personally I don't see the Harry Potter franchise as something that will be incredibly popular for generations to come. Plus as others have said, the movies are VERY hit or miss and I don't see them as films that will stand up over time say the way the original Star Wars films, Lord of the Rings or even a film such as The Wizard of Oz has. Poor scripts, very uneven performances and sometimes less that spectacular effects riddle the films and I think bring them down.

On the books...sure they're a nice quick read...but they're really not well written novels. The underlying themes are nice...albiet a little cliched...characters aren't all that multi-dimensional and the stucture of the books themselves leave a little to be desired.

Again all personal opinions.

Finally...again I hope Universal is successful! If for no other reason that I think all parks in Orlando benefit when one has any sort of boon. However IF WWoHP proves to be a long standing success, Universal better have a bang up plan on how to expand it as the foot print for the area right now is very small and not able to accomodate the numbers wishing to visit it. If that trend continues for long (of course numbers will eventually slow down) Universal will need to expand the area!

In closing. Be a fan of Potter. Nothing wrong with that. But to the people who won't back down from the notion that it's going to put even a tiny dent in WDW's attendance...you're delusional.
 
devoy1701

devoy1701

Well-Known Member
I think it's possible to be a fan of both properties. However, I am definitely not a "fan" of Uni Orlando. I will visit from time to time (last visit was 2008, might go back next year if HP crowds die down alittle), and I do have fun when I'm there. But I do dislike the way the parks looked last time we were there, found it annoying that half of the counter service locations were closed when i visited, thought the place looked old/warm down (especially IoA for being less than 10 yrs old), was disappointed that IoA did not have its firework show anymore, and was upset that there were quite a few less things to do there than when I was there previously (at the time Universal Studios seemed dead). I also found some of the employees to be on par with those of Busch Gardens. I know that not all CMs are of top quality, but I do think they USUALLY present a higher level of service.

I hope that when we do decide to return to Uni that we overall have a better opinion!

I do REALLY enjoy the monster makeup show though...just thought I should saw something positive!
 
raven

raven

Well-Known Member
Evil Genius said:
...to the people who won't back down from the notion that it's going to put even a tiny dent in WDW's attendance...you're delusional.
Click to expand...

Disney has hundreds conventions on it's property all year long ranging in numbers of 2,000, guests or more. One particular convention this fall will bring over 10,000 guests into the parks for several days. Even if these groups don't enter a single theme park their attendance is still on Disney property...as well as their money.
 
SleepingMonk

SleepingMonk

Well-Known Member
Evil Genius said:
Never speak of those again! :brick:
Click to expand...


jar-jar-carbonite.jpg
 
Evil Genius

Evil Genius

Well-Known Member
raven said:
Disney has hundreds conventions on it's property all year long ranging in numbers of 2,000, guests or more. One particular convention this fall will bring over 10,000 guests into the parks for several days. Even if these groups don't enter a single theme park their attendance is still on Disney property...as well as their money.
Click to expand...

Exactly! Disney won't notice any sort of fall off.
 
degunter

degunter

Member
wait time on Sunday, June 20

I spoke with a friend last night who was at IOA on Sunday and she said Harry Potter was awesome and that their wait was only like 25 minutes.

Personally, I have not been to IOA in 10 years or so and do not feel any great desire to go back, but I think that is because I grew up with Disney so each trip is almost like reliving past, great memories. I am not sure Universal Orlando will have that same affect on people, though I could be wrong.

I hope Disney will see what Universal does and when they create something that is great and popular, they will find a way to do something better. Hearty competition is a good thing, but seriously doubt Universal will ever top Disney by the numbers... both guests and financials.

Am I wrong, or aren't most of the people who design Universal's attractions past imagineers who were let go once the designs for Animal Kingdom were complete in the mid 1990's?
 
Giraffe Lounge

Giraffe Lounge

Member
degunter said:
Am I wrong, or aren't most of the people who design Universal's attractions past imagineers who were let go once the designs for Animal Kingdom were complete in the mid 1990's?
Click to expand...


There are a lot of free lancers in the industry and people often jump between Disney, Uni, and the major design firms.

Was a time Disney trained everyone, but now, like the film industry, people can start anywhere and tend to mingle a lot.
 
RiversideBunny

RiversideBunny

New Member
It's important in discussing the impact of Harry Potter at Universal Studios to look at the long term view and not just at this immediate time period during the grand opening with all the hoopla and the many people wanting to see it for the first time.

IMHO
:)
 
TubaGeek

TubaGeek

God bless the "Ignore" button.
RiversideBunny said:
It's important in discussing the impact of Harry Potter at Universal Studios to look at the long term view and not just at this immediate time period during the grand opening with all the hoopla and the many people wanting to see it for the first time.

IMHO
:)
Click to expand...
That expansion will be INSANELY packed for years. However, I don't anticipate it bringing Disney down, not by a long shot. That being said, it really should give Disney a little kick in the pants to create an E-Ticket similar to Forbidden Journey and Spider-Man. As much as I'm sure I'll love the advanced classic style of The Little Mermaid, it's not NEARLY enough to pull in most folks in my demographic.
 
Pumbas Nakasak

Pumbas Nakasak

Heading for the great escape.
I dont think anyone has ever said Universals strategic goal was to bring Disney down. I do detect that argument from fan boys who now have to resort to that as a basis for criticism as Universal have clearly up-ed their game in all other areas and are not relying on emotion and nostalgia to maintain/increase market share.
 
Evil Genius

Evil Genius

Well-Known Member
Pumbas Nakasak said:
I dont think anyone has ever said Universals strategic goal was to bring Disney down. I do detect that argument from fan boys who now have to resort to that as a basis for criticism as Universal have clearly up-ed their game in all other areas and are not relying on emotion and nostalgia to maintain/increase market share.
Click to expand...

I don't think anybody has intimated that Universal is attempting some sort of death of Disney with WWoHP. That's both a ludicrous assertion to make and an equally ludicrous accusation to make of so-called "fan boys".

However it has been said over and over (in this thread and others) that it is thought that WWoHP will cause a decline in WDW's attendance. Which of course is also an asinine statement to make. Because as I said before...it won't make a dent.

All the best to Universal. I for one won't ever go back but that's a personal taste thing. Just don't enjoy it there.

Oh and before it's thought to the contrary...I adore thrill rides. I make a yearly pilgrimage to the TRUE thrill park of the world...Cedar Point!
 
RSoxNo1

RSoxNo1

Well-Known Member
I said it before, and I'll say it again - Disney isn't looking at the technology used in the Forbidden Journey Attraction as the mark of success for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. They are look at the merchandise being sold.

I've long complained about the merchandise offerings at Disney World, and frankly they need to latch onto a franchise that can crank out desireable merchandise.

Will we see kids buying swords and dresses after seeing Dreams Come True with Cinderella? I doubt it. Will kids want forks/combs from Ariel's Undersea Adventure? Not likely. What about library cards from Enchanted Tales with Belle? Don't count on it.

Here are the movie franchises that are in the Disney pipeline:
Pirates of the Caribbean - The merchandise is already adjacent to the attraction. Without knowledge of what's in the upcoming movie I'm not sure what else could be added for merchandise here.
Cars - This is a huge merchandise cash cow, and there really isn't a store that focuses just on this stuff. It has it's own section in other stores, but not it's own store. This is why I've been saying that Carsland may be the best response.
Tron - This could be the ace in the hole. I'm not optimistic about the movie being a success, but if it is - this could be a huge merchandise boost as well as another E-Ticket
Monster's Inc - Beyond plush, I'm not sure what else can be sold with this. Perhaps opening a Pixar exclusive store in Pixar Place would be a boost.
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom