Pleasure Island's Last night

[RBrooksC]

Good Riddance to bad rubbish, I say. With the exception to AC, PI was not worth its cost to operate.

Also, PI, for much of its run, catered to Orlando Locals and not visitors to WDW. The last few times my wife and I went to Disney, we went to PI once and we just went to the AC. We also had no desire to "party" at PI because we had spent a long and enjoyable day in the Parks and extending that long day into a night at PI just wasn't even remotely desirable.

I welcome the change at PI and it may give me more reason to go to DTD in the evening when we aren't at the Parks. While I will miss the AC in theory, I was only there once and did not have an attachment to it. If it opened in WDW in Resort or another place, I would happily go back and enjoy the show.

But the time for PI has passed. Let it die.

 

[anamcara87]

I honestly can't believe the amount of negativity and the 'holier than thou' attitudes from people on this thread.

First off, I'm one of those who are sad to see Pleasure Island go. I've been going to Disney World since I was 1 yrs. old (I'm 26 now). As a child I can remember when we used to go to the park all day, and then at night we'd hang out in the villa with our Grandparents while our parents went to Pleasure Island. In the 8 years that I've been able to get into Pleasure Island, I've been more times than I can honestly remember. New Years, birthdays, getting old friends together... it has always been the perfect venue to go out for a good time and still remain in a relatively safe, Disney environment (as many of the locals know, the bars/clubs in the Church Street area are nice, but they don't have the 'Disney' feel to them). It is human nature and perfectly normal for adults to want to go out and escape for a while, and Pleasure Island provided the perfect outlet for that (with buses to take you back to your room!). The attitude and argument that miniature golf should be embraced as an adult activity over going out for a few drinks is solely an opinion and should not be strong-armed on others. If someone does not drink, excellent for them, and if they do, great (and P.M. the next time you are in the Disney area :animwink: j/k). But on the flip side of that, I've seen a lot of posts since the sbkline rant where posters are trying to justify their drinking, or an amount that they drink. You don't have to do that, we are all adults with the ability to make our own decisions, and frankly it's no one's business whether you drink or not (or how much).

That being said, let's get back on track. Sadly, I can understand why Disney is making this move. Beyond the fact of it's lack of family orientation, I feel that the whole 'club' scene is dying, if not dead. What I would like to see, however, is a few decent bars replace the current venues in PI, much like what can be found in Ragland Road. I was over there two weekends ago, and my girlfriend and I had full intentions on going to PI after dinner at Ragland Road, but the live entertainment was so enjoyable that we stayed there all night. Those sort of restaurants would be a nice replacement for the PI clubs. But that is, of course, just my opinion :animwink:

 

[donniedisney]

HA, Frankie and the west end boys....I used to work at PI and Frankie would walk around backstage like he was a rockstar.

 

[jakeman]

Pleasure Island's time came and went a long, long, long time ago. As someone who vacationed this year in Disneyland and saw how awesome the Downtown Disney idea can be, PI is lame in comparison!

Agreed! I visits DRL last summer and was amazed at how alive their DTD felt compared to WDW.

 

[liquid toez]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Pleasure Island is not closing; it's the clubs that are closing within the Pleasure Island complex.

 

[Master Yoda]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Pleasure Island is not closing; it's the clubs that are closing within the Pleasure Island complex.

You are correct. The clubs will be converted to restaurants and stores. I would imagine that the Pleasure Island theming will be removed and it will either be given a new name or it will be adsorbed into the marketplace or the West Side.

 

[sbkline]

I honestly can't believe the amount of negativity and the 'holier than thou' attitudes from people on this thread.

First off, I'm one of those who are sad to see Pleasure Island go. I've been going to Disney World since I was 1 yrs. old (I'm 26 now). As a child I can remember when we used to go to the park all day, and then at night we'd hang out in the villa with our Grandparents while our parents went to Pleasure Island. In the 8 years that I've been able to get into Pleasure Island, I've been more times than I can honestly remember. New Years, birthdays, getting old friends together... it has always been the perfect venue to go out for a good time and still remain in a relatively safe, Disney environment (as many of the locals know, the bars/clubs in the Church Street area are nice, but they don't have the 'Disney' feel to them). It is human nature and perfectly normal for adults to want to go out and escape for a while, and Pleasure Island provided the perfect outlet for that (with buses to take you back to your room!). The attitude and argument that miniature golf should be embraced as an adult activity over going out for a few drinks is solely an opinion and should not be strong-armed on others. If someone does not drink, excellent for them, and if they do, great (and P.M. the next time you are in the Disney area :animwink: j/k). But on the flip side of that, I've seen a lot of posts since the sbkline rant where posters are trying to justify their drinking, or an amount that they drink. You don't have to do that, we are all adults with the ability to make our own decisions, and frankly it's no one's business whether you drink or not (or how much).

"Strong armed on others"??? :ROFLOL::ROFLOL::ROFLOL:

Dude, you make it sound like I'm talking about sending thugs into PI to drag y'all out of the club, take you to the mini-golf places, shove clubs in your hands and tell you to have fun or else. :lol:

As you said, the argument that mini-golf (or anything else) should be embraced as an adult activity over clubbing, is just an opinion...my opinion, and an opinion which I expressed on this message board. You're free to agree or disagree as you see fit. No one is "strong arming" anyone. But some of you are whining and boohooing about this whole PI thing as if there's not a thing you can do anymore with other adults at WDW. As if the only fun and entertainment that you can think of involves clubbing at PI. I'm not saying anyone is a horrible person for preferring PI as their venue for entertainment. But since it's going away and y'all are acting like you'll be sitting in your hotel room twiddling your thumbs in boredom with absolutely nothing to do now for evening entertainment, I thought I'd pass along some suggestions for activities that have worked for my wife and I on every trip. Mini-Golf, shopping, carraige rides, enjoying the grounds, etc. We don't drink or go clubbing (and I'm not saying that this makes us "better" people in any way, either), but these are the evening activities that we enjoy when we're down there and we manage to have a perfectly good time. Which leads back to my intial observation, which appears to have been misconstrued, that I don't understand why people think that they have to have this club/party scene in order to be entertained at WDW, when we have done just fine without it. I understand if one enjoys these things and hates to see them go, but I simply think that there is plenty else to find to do without having to talk rubbish about not having any evening entertainment anymore in the absence of PI. If you're with the people you want to be with, then you should be able to have a perfectly enjoyable evening doing any of the activities I mentioned.

"Strong arming" others. :ROFLOL:That's hillarious! :lol:

 

[wdwfan100]

I can make a thread about anything. That doesn’t mean there is enough demand to keep it open.

I replied to a statement that said that "The fact is, if “adult only” entertainment were actually in demand at WDW, there would be some". I referenced this thread showing that there is some sort of demand. I agree that you can create a thread on anything. In doing so you would be indicating demand at least on your part for the subject matter. If no one responds, than demand is low. If there is a big response demand is better. There have been several threads on this subject on this board. With many pages of discussion and disappointment. So I stand by the fact that there is demand. Now you changed it to "enough demand". That can be very subjective, and I certainly would not want to attempt to quantify what that would be. I have just enough insight into corporate methodology to realize that decisions made are difficult to change. So maybe you are right. Still I will share my disappointment and disagreement with this direction Disney has taken.

There are still clubs on property. There is Atlantic Dance, Jellyrolls and the club at CS that I can't remember the name of. There are also bars at every hotel.

True. I love Jellyrolls. I suspect it will get more crowded than it already is. Hopefully they don't need to start turning people away. That would then show the demand that you were asking for earlier, but then it would be a little late to admit it.

I agree, that you can be upset, as that is your prerogative, but asking a company that exsist solely to make a profit off of a luxury item to keep open prime real estate that is not generating suffecient income,is asking them to cater to you, at their detriment.

Please be fair to what I was saying. I never suggested that Disney do nothing but loose money. I just expect them to respond with an imaginative and cutting edge solution. If you read my posts I reference the fact that Disney started PI with a lot of support, and it paid off. Had they maintained the same level of support and marketing and used the Disney imagination that leads the industry, PI would still be a booming success that makes plenty of money. Instead I get an equivalent to my local mall. Stores and restaurants, yippee.

That would be the assumption that PI was closed due to the alcohol. It would seem more likely that PI was closed because it was not making money or enough money.

You are right. It really was out of place to the post I was replying to. I have just gotten an "anti drinking feel" from a lot of the posts on this and other related threads. Still my reply was a little out of place

 

[wdwfan100]

Isn't that the truth?? I find it interesting how people get so stuck on "well when I was a kid, the parks were ______ and so and so didn't make decisions like ______ and ______ were taken care of better......" but 30 years down the road, my generation will be saying the same darn thing- "man, I can't believe they got rid of the hard-ticket events" or whatever it may be. Quite frankly, I'm glad that I don't have the same park that my parents did when they were kids-- Disney needs to keep up with the times, and we need to let them, without all the unnecessary complaining.

I am not against change. Most Disney changes I take a wait and see approach to. I just do not agree with this one. I feel that there is a demand for PI. PI was not managed right in recent years. As a result it lost business. Had they managed it correctly we would not be having this discussion. I do not feel I have an obligation to sit back and shut up when something occurs that I do not agree with. When you care about something you don't just watch it make a mistake.

there's threads about paint chipping on trash cans, whether you can find spring action shooters in other places in the park, singles who are desperate for a disney date, crane sightings, and miley cyrus' birthday.... simply because a thread exists hardly means it's of any importance... :brick:

Now look at the Picture of the Day thread and its history... now we're talking about important things :animwink:

Yes, you are right. You can make a thread on anything. There is demand if someone cared enough about it to start the thread. If there a replies than that show more demand. The picture of the day has how many pages? How many posts? I would say there is certainly demand there, or it would have died a long time ago. Just because you do not find value in it, that does not make it worthless.

that was pretty much my exact thought when I read that post "right.... now I see why I've avoided PI all this time.... sure reaffirms my belief that I've missed out on nothing" While I was a CP I never understood what the draw was... and I still don't

I agree, People that behave like that are the one that cause all the social drinkers to be painted with the same brush. He is the exception though and not the rule.

And for the record (for whomever it was that stated that adult families need PI for entertainment when they visit) My family has no small children, we've never gone to PI, and we've spent little time at DTD.... and we always have plenty to do and have a fabulous vacation

That is great. I certainly am not lobbying for those who do not want to go to PI to go. It is something my wife and I enjoy though. I suspect I am not alone either.

 

[wdwfan100]

"Strong armed on others"???

Dude, you make it sound like I'm talking about sending thugs into PI to drag y'all out of the club, take you to the mini-golf places, shove clubs in your hands and tell you to have fun or else.

Would they be dressed as Disney characters? Now that would be entertainment.

As you said, the argument that mini-golf (or anything else) should be embraced as an adult activity over clubbing, is just an opinion...my opinion, and an opinion which I expressed on this message board. You're free to agree or disagree as you see fit. No one is "strong arming" anyone. But some of you are whining and boohooing about this whole PI thing as if there's not a thing you can do anymore with other adults at WDW. As if the only fun and entertainment that you can think of involves clubbing at PI. I'm not saying anyone is a horrible person for preferring PI as their venue for entertainment. But since it's going away and y'all are acting like you'll be sitting in your hotel room twiddling your thumbs in boredom with absolutely nothing to do now for evening entertainment, I thought I'd pass along some suggestions for activities that have worked for my wife and I on every trip. Mini-Golf, shopping, carraige rides, enjoying the grounds, etc. We don't drink or go clubbing (and I'm not saying that this makes us "better" people in any way, either), but these are the evening activities that we enjoy when we're down there and we manage to have a perfectly good time. Which leads back to my intial observation, which appears to have been misconstrued, that I don't understand why people think that they have to have this club/party scene in order to be entertained at WDW, when we have done just fine without it. I understand if one enjoys these things and hates to see them go, but I simply think that there is plenty else to find to do without having to talk rubbish about not having any evening entertainment anymore in the absence of PI. If you're with the people you want to be with, then you should be able to have a perfectly enjoyable evening doing any of the activities I mentioned.

For my part it is not that I can't find anything else to do. My wife and I do many of the things you suggest. The thing is nearly all of those things we are still dealing with kids. Now most the time that is no problem. Sometimes though it is nice to get away from others peoples kids. I apologize if this steps on some people toes. There is a growing portion of kids (and parents by default) out there that do not recognize the fact that I am also on vacation and that for me it is not all about their child having the best time ever. I have been in restaurants when the kids took their cups of the table and started throwing ice at each other. When we had a piece or two hit us we had to be "the bad guys" and ask them to not do that. This all happened while the parents just looked on and did not say anything until we did. After dealing with that type of thing through out your vacation, it is nice to be able to go and get away from it. I am not saying I get up in the morning and head to PI till 2am. I Just want a sanctuary from time to time.

 

[Timmay]

I replied to a statement that said that "The fact is, if “adult only” entertainment were actually in demand at WDW, there would be some". I referenced this thread showing that there is some sort of demand. I agree that you can create a thread on anything. In doing so you would be indicating demand at least on your part for the subject matter. If no one responds, than demand is low. If there is a big response demand is better. There have been several threads on this subject on this board. With many pages of discussion and disappointment. So I stand by the fact that there is demand.

You know, of course, there is a difference between something being "in demand" (as I have said) and a very, very small percentage of posters on an internet forum demanding something (as you have said). There may in fact be demand for PI, but it isn't in demand. If it, or something similar were, WDW wouldn't flush their cash cow down the drain.

 

[wdwfan100]

You know, of course, there is a difference between something being "in demand" (as I have said) and a very, very small percentage of posters on an internet forum demanding something (as you have said). There may in fact be demand for PI, but it isn't in demand. If it, or something similar were, WDW wouldn't flush their cash cow down the drain.

Yes I do know there is a difference. I obviously have a lower hurddle than you as to what constitutes "in demand". I work for a company that has a product that is specific to one state. It is the only state that we make this product for. It is "in demand" there. Now maybe on a national scale the demand is a small percentage. Still, providing the product allows us to retain customers that we wouldn't have if we did not make the product for them.

The difference in what you are saying and what I am saying is that I believe that some thing can be "in demand", without having an over whelming majority supporting it.

 

[RedGear]

its such a bummer that they are closing PI, i never got to go when I was of age, we are usally so tired after a day at the parks that we usually don't end up going. We still have two adult tickets if anyone wants to buy them. . .

i guess i am not really missing out since the bar scene isn't my thing. I am there for the parks. . . especially epcot.

 

[palmage]

Funny.....Wife and I are going to do the mini-golf thing Saturday (never even thought about it until it was mentioned here).....then dinner at Ohana......then we're boozing big time at PI.

Never setting foot in a park this weekend.

 

[Timmay]

Yes I do know there is a difference. I obviously have a lower hurddle than you as to what constitutes "in demand". I work for a company that has a product that is specific to one state. It is the only state that we make this product for. It is "in demand" there. Now maybe on a national scale the demand is a small percentage.

And if your comapny didn't make a significant amount of profit on said product, they would not continue to offer it...no matter what the "demand" was. Sorry, that is just the simple truth.

 

[wdwfan100]

And if your comapny didn't make a significant amount of profit on said product, they would not continue to offer it...no matter what the "demand" was. Sorry, that is just the simple truth.

I agree to an extent. But my point is my company still views it as a desirable market. Even with the fact that it is such a small percentage over all. So we do not just sit and wait for the demand to decline and then stop shipping the product. We market and attempt to maitain and grow the customer base. Disney did not. They sat back and allowed a once popular and extremely profitable area to die. As I have always maintained, if they would manage it better it would thrive and be "in demand" again. We also see all profit as a potentially growable comodity. Significant or not