Save the Adventurers Club

Wendy Pleakley

Well-Known Member
Disney could have found a way to continue the AC if they had the will to do so.

Charge a two-drink minimum to get in, make it a paid show like the Polynesian Luau show, or something.
 

Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
And yet...the dance halls are gone too.
They didn't get enough business either, but, more then the Adventures Club and it was far less cash outlay to support the dance halls then the Club. The whole place had a lot of social problem from what has been reported in the past and if there are a couple of places that are sucking the profit off the entire place, it and the rest eventually will be retired. It was not supporting itself. It might have made it if they had a drink minimum (3 or more). But, they didn't and it suffered. I'm not a drinker. I don't put it down, I just lost the desire many years ago. So I went there sat through the entire show and only bought a Coke which I nursed all evening. But, I only went once and was done. It was cute but attempting to find a place to sit made it all not worthwhile.
 

WDWTrojan

Well-Known Member
The dance clubs had their own issues. Once they removed the turnstiles from the island and allowed families to walk through, the clock was ticking. Beyond that, Orlando in general didn't have the kind of nightlife scene that it had in the 80s and 90s.

I think they could have found a happy median (ie keep Mannequins, Comedy Warehouse - get rid of the rest). Nine venues were just too many for most nights there.
 

The Colonel

Well-Known Member
I do blame Disney. They have no trouble coming up with money making schemes, but for the AC, something near and dear to many, they were stumped? They could have made it a dinner club, they could have charged admission, membership fees, etc, etc. The Edison couldn't be a reincarnation of the AC? Of course it could.
 

Bocabear

Well-Known Member
I do blame Disney. They have no trouble coming up with money making schemes, but for the AC, something near and dear to many, they were stumped? They could have made it a dinner club, they could have charged admission, membership fees, etc, etc. The Edison couldn't be a reincarnation of the AC? Of course it could.
I was hoping the interior of the Edison would be spectacular...So disappointed that it was just the shell of the AC with theatrical lighting and a big clock..stripped down and not so creative or clever. Food was disappointing and not so interesting...Entertainment was just plain strange the night we went... I like they tried something new, but it would have been better if they spent a little more money on decor and really fleshed it out...
 

Dutch Inn '76

Well-Known Member
I was hoping the interior of the Edison would be spectacular...So disappointed that it was just the shell of the AC with theatrical lighting and a big clock..stripped down and not so creative or clever. Food was disappointing and not so interesting...Entertainment was just plain strange the night we went... I like they tried something new, but it would have been better if they spent a little more money on decor and really fleshed it out...

Ain't that the truth! I had high hopes for The Edison - and it's just "meh."
 
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Thelazer

Well-Known Member
A whole book, could be written about the travesty that became pleasure island, how it could have evolved, why the orginal overlay didn't go thru.. and why what we ended up with is a mis-mash of all things, but master of none... One whole chapter alone could cover how Disney missed cashing out on the EDM movement (see Vegas..)
 

seascape

Well-Known Member
A whole book, could be written about the travesty that became pleasure island, how it could have evolved, why the orginal overlay didn't go thru.. and why what we ended up with is a mis-mash of all things, but master of none... One whole chapter alone could cover how Disney missed cashing out on the EDM movement (see Vegas..)
I think Disney did a great job with Disney Springs. I love the new restaurants and my wife loves the CV new stores. We actually spent more time in the Springs than in the parks on our November trip.
 

Bocabear

Well-Known Member
I think Disney did a great job with Disney Springs. I love the new restaurants and my wife loves the CV new stores. We actually spent more time in the Springs than in the parks on our November trip.
Don't they have shopping malls where you are from? It is like so many California and Florida "Lifestyle Center" shopping venues. It is clean and nice, but hardly seems like the unique thing it was before.... The Grove in Hollywood CA is a sort of better done version of what Disney Springs is... Disney Springs is just newer and larger...
 

Wendy Pleakley

Well-Known Member
Don't they have shopping malls where you are from? It is like so many California and Florida "Lifestyle Center" shopping venues. It is clean and nice, but hardly seems like the unique thing it was before.... The Grove in Hollywood CA is a sort of better done version of what Disney Springs is... Disney Springs is just newer and larger...

This.

Disney Springs is nice, but very little about it feels special, or having any of that Disney magic.

It feels like a place people go because there's nothing else to do once the parks close.

Pleasure Island, and the AC in particular, had more of that "only at Disney" feel. It was a place to go for unique experiences, for those who wanted something interesting to do in the evening.

Now it's a place I visit because it's there, not because it's a particularly exciting draw on its own.
 

Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
Seriously? What part of the old Downtown Disney was oozing Disney Magic. I must have blinked someplace. It just looked like any old shopping area to me especially when McDonalds was there. The Christmas shoppe and the World of Disney, did seem to be related to Disney, other then that or maybe the Kaleidoscope just didn't ever feel like it to me.
 

peter11435

Well-Known Member
Don't they have shopping malls where you are from? It is like so many California and Florida "Lifestyle Center" shopping venues. It is clean and nice, but hardly seems like the unique thing it was before.... The Grove in Hollywood CA is a sort of better done version of what Disney Springs is... Disney Springs is just newer and larger...
There really was nothing unique about the property at any point in its history. It started as a standard shopping center and with every addition and expansion remained essentially that. This is currently the most successful it has ever been.
 

DavidS1234

Active Member
And yet...the dance halls are gone too.

To be fair, PI was really becoming more of a risky liability toward the end. When the cash was pouring in during it's heyday, it was easier to write-off the countless car accidents, drunken arrests, on-property injuries/overdoses, etc as isolated incidents. But as attendance and cash began to decrease, those incidents began to attract more attention. It was no reflection on the AC, because that was a different crowd... but it was guilty by association. In the end, PI ran it's course just like the 80's did.... it was a giant, partying, over-the-top cash cow... until it wasn't. Thankfully some of us survived it with some great memories intact. 😁👍👍
 

raymusiccity

Well-Known Member
To be fair, PI was really becoming more of a risky liability toward the end. When the cash was pouring in during it's heyday, it was easier to write-off the countless car accidents, drunken arrests, on-property injuries/overdoses, etc as isolated incidents. But as attendance and cash began to decrease, those incidents began to attract more attention. It was no reflection on the AC, because that was a different crowd... but it was guilty by association. In the end, PI ran it's course just like the 80's did.... it was a giant, partying, over-the-top cash cow... until it wasn't. Thankfully some of us survived it with some great memories intact. 😁👍👍
It was weakened further as a result of being a concrete heat pad during the day. It sweltered with little shade and was more or less a ghost town until night finally arrived.
 

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